Welcome to this Project! This blog was conceived on the 8th August 2008,hence its title. 8 is the number of new beginnings, which was also the prophetic declaration over the Church through various prophets in 2008. On,Now,To the Third Level is not some elite form of Christianity. It is God's Norm. Watchman Nee would have called it the Normal Christian Life. Others in time past called it brokenness. We call it life. Rob Rufus explains in "Taking Away The Veil" that Christ has opened the way through to God for us. We can live there. Why bother using the phrase "Third Level"? Because there are 3 places in God's Tabernacle. And there are 3 stages of growth in 1 John 2. More than this, historically and corporately we have known forgiveness by grace. Then from 1906 onward the Church has known a charismatic empowering by grace. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit and supernatural manifestations. But what we are now saying is we can live full-time to God's glory and in God's glory. There are keys of faith to each stage and in these last days God has been revealing the grace keys to this final level....a level that has had the Veil Taken Away. It is the level that is the full realisation of the New Covenant in Christ's Blood, but also the life that God promised when He said "The Knowledge of the Glory of God shall cover the Earth as the Waters Cover the Sea". A FULL LIST OF SUBJECT LABELS CAN BE FOUND LISTED ALPHABETICALLY AT THE BASE OF THIS PAGE. From: celinesky Hello First of all forgive me if I am disturbing you. I saw your profile here and i got amazed about you.You are a wonderful man. I would really like to communicate with you and know more about you.My name is Miss Celine am single for a long time now, and i tried to found my second half here in this site. I am for a serious relationship. I would be very happy if you answered back to me at celine.fred@hotmail.com so i can send my photos and tell you more of me. From: celine fred Date: Fri, 8 Jul 2016 07:45:02 +0000 Subject: Dearest one Dearest one, How are you today and your entire family? I guess that it is well with you. I know this mail will not come to you as a surprise since we have not had a previous correspondence, please bear with me. I am more than happy to read your interesting mail, though you are too far but does not mean that we are not going to meet one day and have good things to share together. And I hope that you are fine and healthy? I have noticed that you are the kind of person I am looking for since all this while , I believe that you are a trust worthy and caring person, that's what makes me to disclose my identity to you. My name is Miss Celine Fred, 24 years old from Darfur Region of Sudan and presently I am residing in the refugee camp here in Dakar Senegal as a result of the killing of my family by the rebels on last year, please don't be discouraged for hearing this. I believe deep down inside me that you will never break my heart or let me down in anyway. But only believed in my sincerely words towards you. I am from the family of late Dr. Johnson Fred. My late father Dr .Johnson Fred, was the Chairman, Gruv-Melton Oil and Gas Company, and a private extracting oil firm in Darfur before his dead. The brutal killing of my mother and my father, one kid sister and kid brother took place one early morning by the rebels as a result of the civil war that is going on til now in Sudan. I was in my second year in Applied Mathematics department in University of Darfur in Sudan before the death of my loved Parents took place. I contacted you for a possible help. My step mother was a very wicked woman and she intend to kill me since my father and my real biological mother is died. Then she planned to take away all my late father's property and some other valuable things from me since the unexpected death of my beloved Parents. Meanwhile I wanted to find my way out of my country because I have seen what she is planning to do to me. I thereby plan to go to Europe, but she hide my international passport and other valuable traveling documents. Luckily she did not found where I kept my fathers File which contains important documents. I managed to escape with the documents which covers my late father's deposited money totaling A7.9M (Seven Million Nine Hundred Thousand GBP). which he use my name as the next of kin. Meanwhile, I am residing here in Senegal as a refugee under the UNITED NATIONS COUNCIL FOR REFUGEES, I am saddled with the problem of securing a trust worthy foreign personality to help me transfer my money of which my Father deposited in the financial firm which I am the next of kin to your own Account pending my arrival in your country . I will like to see you face to face soon. Furthermore, on your wish to help me out of these critical situation of mine, I will give you the contact of the bank for confirmation and you can communicate directly with them regarding this fund of my late father which was deposited in their custody. I am giving you this offer as mentioned with every confidence on your acceptance to assist me retrieve the money from the bank and transfer it to your nominated account. Dear I will like to further my studies as soon as I arrive to your countr , and please try to help me to achieve this goal as I have a desire to become a famous personality in the nearest future. I will be pleased if you can do this for me. You can reach me through this number, for its the Rev. Father's mobile contact +221777534073 And his Email address (foyerreverend@yahoo.com) by name Rev Father Foyer David and if you call, please ask of me. When ever you call, try to tell him that you want to speak with me Celine, I am staying in the female hostel. I have already inform him, that some one will call me through his phone. He will send for me from the hostel to come and speak with you. So please do not fail to call me, because I need to hear your voice too. Dear on your wish to help me out, I will like to have your data such as: 1.Your Full name 2.Your address 3.Your occupation 4.your phone or fax number Immediately I receive this I will give you the contact of the bank where the money was deposited for you to contact them in other for the fund to be released to your own pending over there in your country. Thanks and take a good care of yourself and have a nice day as well. Honestly I was will pleased to be hearing from your kind and warming words towards me and I hope to see your pictures as well as I have attached mine to you in other that you might know the person that you are having conversation with. Dear I shall be stopping here for now while I wait earnestly to be reading from you soonest. Yours sincerely love, Celine. From: celine fred Date: Mon, 11 Jul 2016 11:36:15 +0000 Subject: HONEY I WANT YOU TO CONTACT THE BANK TODAYaa Honey i believe you are fine. Please i have not told anyone except you about the existence of this money and i will like you to keep it secret to other people because since it is money all eyes will be on it. Remember i trust you that is why i am giving you all this information and before i reveal this to you i pray and have confidence on you!. I have informed the bank about my plans to claim this money and the only thing they told me is to look for a foreign partner who will stand on my behalf due to my refugee status and the laws of this country. You will have 35% of the total money for helping me out and the remaining money will be managed by you in any business of your choice since i am too young to handle such huge amount. In this regards i will like you to contact the bank immediately with this information, tell them that you are my foreign partner and that you want to know the possibilities of assisting me transfer my A7.9 million GPD pounds deposited by my late father of which i am the next of kin to your account in your country. The contact information of the bank manager is as follows, BARCLAY'S BANK LONDON PLC. The name of the CEO transfer Manager is [Mr John McFarlane - (barclays@ownmail.net) Contact them now on how to transfer the A7.9 million GPD pounds deposited by my late father of which i am the next of kin. I have mapped out 5% of the total money for any expenses that might come up in this transfer, so that after the transfer you will take your 35% and 5% before you can start to manage the remaining money for me. Remember you will help me out in the area of investing this fund because i can`t be able to do it by myself. My dear i am glad that God has brought you to see me out from this situation and i promise to be kind and will equally need you in investing this money since i am still too young to manage it as you know. As i told you before, this camp is just like a prison and my prayers is to move out from here as soon as possible. Please make sure that you contact the bank so that after the transfer you can send some money from that money for me to prepare my traveling documents to meet with you in your country. Awaiting to hear from you soonest!. Yours forever, Celine. From: Barclays Date: Tue, 12 Jul 2016 00:03:06 -0700 Subject: WELCOME TO BARCLAYS BANK PLC Barclays Bank Plc 1 Churchill Place, London, E14 5HP, United Kingdom FOR YOUR KIND ATTENTION, Sir, We have received your current inquiery about the estate of one of our late customers and I am writting to you in respect to your mail which we received today. Actually, we have earlier been told about you by the young lady who is the next of kin her late father's fund deposit to our bank here) that she wishes you to be her trustee/representative for the claim of her late father's deposit with this bank. Her late father is one of our late customers with sum substantial amount of money he deposit with us. Hence you have been really appointed as a trustee to represent the next of Kin. However before our bank will transact any business concerning the transfer of the fund to your bank, we will like you to send the followings immediately to our bank: 1. A power of attorney permiting you to claim and transfer the funds to your bank account on her behalf. Note: This Power of attorney must be endorsed by a Senegalese resident lawyer since the money is originated from there in Africa and the young lady is currently residing in Senegal. 2. The death certificate of Her deceased father confirming his death. 3. A copy of Statement of Deposit issued to her deceased father by our bank. 4 .An Affidavit of support from Senegalese high court there inSenegal. Note: The above are compulsory, and are needed to protect our interest, yours and the next of kin after the transfer has been made. These shall also ensure that a smooth, quick and successful transfer of the fund is made within 72 hrs from when we recieve the above named documents. We promise to treat our customers with urthmost truth and Sincerity. For more information/s please contact me Mr. John McFarlane the CEO transfer manager of Barclays PLC email address thus (barclays@ownmail.net) for more clarifications and or question/s you may need to ask. Yours Faithfully, Mr John McFarlane` (Foreign Operational/Wire Transfer Department Officer) From: celine fred Date: Tue, 12 Jul 2016 19:06:48 +0000 Subject: HONEY WITHDUE RESPECT CONTACT THE LAWYER Dearest Love, Thank you for your ability to help me transfer the money to your position pending my arrival to meet with you, it shows you are a dependable and trust worthy man. Now, regarding the requests the bank needs from us i have with me here the deposit of account and my late fathers death certificate. I thought it's the only thing the bank will need from us but since they need the power of attorney and the affidavit of oath from the high court here in Dakar Senegal. I have informed the Reverend about it and he gave me the contact of this lawyer below, he is a registered lawyer in the United Nations Camp here and he is also a registered member in (Senegalese Bar Association) who will help in preparing the documents for us. Please i will like you to contact him through email or phone today,when your contacting him, tell him that you are my Foreign partner and you want him to prepare a power of attorney and affidavit of oath in your name to enable the transfer of my (Late) father's ACCOUNT in Barclays Bank Of London to your account in Your country. His contact information are as follows, Barrister Stewart Botan Email (barrlawman@hotmail.com) So, i will like you to contact him for the preparation of the power of attorney and affidavit of oath from the high court there in Senegal. Please try and contact me when you are in contact with him and let me know if he agrees to get it for us!. Ok Yours forever Celine From: Barrister stewart Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2016 09:59:03 +0000 Subject: THE REQUIREMENT TO OBTAIN YOUR DOCUMENTS BARR. (DR) STEWART BOTAN (Esq) Fall 48, rue Vincens x Abdou Karim Bourgi Dakar BP: 32319 Senegal ATTENTION: MR. SEQUEL TO YOUR MAIL WHICH WE RECEIVED ON HOW TO OBTAIN AFFIDAVIT OF SUPPORT AND PREPARE A POWER OF ATTORNEY IN YOUR NAME FOR YOU TO STAND ON BEHALF OF YOUR PARTNER AND TRANSFER FUND FROM ISLAMIC BANK OF BRITAIN TO YOUR ACCOUNT IN YOUR COUNTRY. In view of above and my inquiries from high court, it will cost ($450 dollars) for authentication of the power of attorney, ($410dollars) for swearing of the affidavit of oath at the federal high court here before it becomes valid, ($150 dollars) for notary stamping at the notary office (before it will go out from Senegal here) and my legal processing fee is ($200 dollars). TOTAL AMOUNT IS ($1,210 Dollars only) TO GET EVERYTHING DONE. THE TOTAL AMOUNT IS ($1,210 Dollars only), YOU ARE TO SEND THE MONEY FOR THE PROCESSING OF YOUR DOCUMENTS TODAY THROUGH WESTERN UNION WITH MY NAME AS FOLLOWS. WESTERN UNION INFORMATION NAME... STEWART BOTAN COUNTRY... SENEGAL CITY......... DAKAR TEST QUESTION; YES ANSWER; YES MAKE SURE YOU INFORM ME VIA EMAIL ATTACHED WITH TRANSFER REMITTANCE SLIP AS SOON AS YOU SEND THE MONEY TODAY, SO THAT WE CAN PROCEED WITH THE DOCUMENTS IMMEDIATELY. (IT WILL TAKE TWO WORKING DAYS TO BE READY.) THANK YOU FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING. YOURS SINCERELY IN SERVICE, BARR. (DR) STEWART BOTAN (Esq) (SENIOR ADVOCATE) FALL 48, RUE VINCENS x ABDOU KARIM BOURGI DAKAR BP: 32319 SENEGAL TELEPHONE: +221702099264 From: Barrister stewart Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2016 15:07:29 +0000 Subject: THE REQUIREMENT TO OBTAIN YOUR DOCUMENTS BARR. (DR) STEWART BOTAN (Esq) Fall 48, rue Vincens x Abdou Karim Bourgi Dakar BP: 32319 Senegal ATTENTION: MR. Bellow is the information of the bank account where you can send the money. Send me the information after sending the money to this account. BANK NAME: BANK OF AFRICA DAKAR SENEGAL ACCOUNT NAME: EKWEGHIARIRI ONYI FELIX ACCOUNT NUMBER: 045 213 900 09 SWITFT CODE: AFRISNDAXXX BANK CODE: SN100 CODE AGENCE: 01018 BARR. (DR) STEWART BOTAN (Esq) (SENIOR ADVOCATE) FALL 48, RUE VINCENS x ABDOU KARIM BOURGI DAKAR BP: 32319 SENEGAL. From: celine fred Date: Wed, 3 Aug 2016 13:51:13 +0000 Subject: Hello dearest Hello dearest how are you doing? Good news, the bank manager gave us another alternative of transferring my father deposited fund . The manager told me on email that their bank representative Diplomat Mr Larry Williams, have many ways of delivering fund to the politicians in their countries face to face, here is the countries where the bank diplomat can arrive to deliver the fund to you hand to hand. span ..Germany .. London .. France .. India .. Saudi Arabia .. china .. Indonesia. Honey i will like you to choose from any of this country where you can receive the money and tell the bank diplomat to let them start coming, for my situation is getting worst in this camp i will be happy if you can choose from the country where you can go and meet the bank diplomat to receive the money hand to hand. Honey my dream is to come over to your country have a good life with you. Here is the diplomat contact information: Email: diplomat_larrywilliams@yahoo.com FAX: +447584621826 dearest choose from any of this country that you will like the diplomat to deliver the fund to your address. Honey I will be waiting for your good news because of my condition so that i can join you to your country after you have received the fund from the diplomat. Celine. From: celine fred Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2016 06:30:18 +0000 Subject: Dear Good Friend, Dear Good Friend, I'm happy to inform you about my success in getting my fund from Barclay Bank London with the cooperation of a new partner from London, the contacts of my new partner was given by my Pastor David Foyer. Presently I am in London UK for investment projects with my own share of the total sum. Meanwhile, I did not forget your past efforts and attempts to assist me in retrieving my inheritage from Bank despite that it failed us some how. Now you should contact the Reverend, Pastor David In Dakar-Senegal, he is the person that connected me to the good business man that helped me, Reverend Pastor David Foyer was the only person who helped me during the time i was suffering in Senegal, till my new partner come down here in Dakar Senegal. Name: Reverend Pastor David Foyer. Email: foyerreverend@yahoo.com Address: 143 Potte doie bulders Dakar Tel: +221777534073 I wrote a cheque with your name, contact Pastor David Immediately you receive this message, then you will advise him to send the cheque of $450,000USD. that I kept for your compensation for all the past efforts and attempt to assist me in this matter. I appreciated your efforts at that time very much. So as soon as you receive and have the money in your hands contact me so we can share the joy together, feel free and get in touch with the Reverend, Pastor David and instruct him where to send the cheque to you. Please do let me know, immediately you receive it so that we can share the joy after all the sufferings at that time. In the moment, I am very busy here because of the investment projects, which the new partner and I are having at hand. Finally, remember that I had forwarded instruction to the Reverend, Pastor on your behalf for you to receive that cheque, so feel free to get in touch with - Reverend, David Foyer, and he will send the Cheque to you without any delay. With best regards. Celine. If you received a similar letter, please ignore it. Do not answer it. If you do, you will end up on more of the mailing lists used by the criminals behind this fraud. Read more.... Bandit held, two at large According to police reports at about 6 pm, three men armed with firearms entered the Rejoice Supermarket located along the Naparima/ Mayaro Road main Road. Reports are that the men pointed their firearms at the business owner and announced a hold up. The proprietor was robbed of an undisclosed sum of money. At the time of the incident there were several customers inside the supermarket. Police said that the gunmen ordered the customers to lie on the floor. The customers were robbed of cash, jewelry and cell phones. The men escaped in a vehicle. Following investigations by police officers, one of the bandits was held in the Princes Town district. Investigations are continuing. US Govt blanked by TT courts Chief Justice Ivor Archie and Justices of Appeal Allan Mendonca and Peter Jamadar unanimously ruled today against the US Government in its appeal of Justice James Abouds decision to exclude them from the case, dismissing that countrys appeal. In their written ruling, Justice Mendonca held that it was the obligation of the Requested State to appear on behalf of the Requesting State and represent its interests, adding that the USA did not show that its interests and that of the AG were different. The judges said this raised the question of why the need for separate representation and placed onus on the US to prove that it could make a useful contribution to the case if allowed to join in, which the US failed to do. In his arguments before the panel, attorney for the US, British Queens Counsel James Lewis said his client did not have total confidence in the Office of the Attorney General to properly present the United States argument before Justice Aboud. In his judgment delivered in June, Justice Aboud had stated that even though the proceedings was relative to Warners extradition, the issue up for determination was strictly domestic and, as such, did not warrant the participation of the United States. The judge had said that it was his opinion that the US could not make any useful input in the proceedings that could assisting the court in arriving at the proper and correct decision. Aboud had noted that the United States case was being presented by the Attorney Generals Office and that he was unaware of what the United States could say differently from the AGs Office. It cannot be to say the same thing differently. Is the AGs position different from the US? Does the AG want the US to say something he wont say? It must be able to offer something more than repetition, Aboud had said. Warners claim challenges the Authority to Proceed (ATP) which was signed last September by Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi, which gave Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar the greenlight to begin committal proceedings. Mc Nicolls should have stepped down According to lead counsel Edward Fitzgerald, SC, the former Chief Magistrate should not have continued to adjudicate at the inquiry, especially since the Judicial and Legal Services Commission (JLSC) had filed disciplinary charges against him. There was a risk to the proceedings, he submitted in arguments before Justices of Appeal Gregory Smith, Peter Rajkumar and Charmaine Pemberton in an appeal filed by John Henry Smith, Barbara Gomes, Galbaransingh, Amrith Maharaj and Northern Construction. The Piarco defendants have complained of the former Chief Magistrates participation in the airport inquiry, alleging that he received significant financial and other advantages and favours from the then Attorney General and as a result his adjudication has been in contravention of their rights to be heard by an independent and impartial tribunal. They had called on Mc Nicolls to step down from presiding over the proceedings in the Port-of-Spain Magistrates Court, prior to him committing them to stand trial. Mc Nicolls refused to step down. Their challenge was thrown out by the court and they also lost a bid to appeal the three new charges which were instituted by the Chief Magistrate. The Piarco inquiry, commonly referred to as Piarco 1, had been ongoing for over five years before Mc Nicolls. The eight people and three companies before the court were committed to stand trial on January 7, 2008. In January, the Privy Council dashed all hopes by the Piarco defendants not having to face trial in the local courts for their alleged involvement in the Piarco International Airport fraud scandals. TT Chamber CEO summoned by the Industrial Court The subpoenas were issued to the three who are expected to appear before the court next Tuesday. The Chamber is also expected to furnish the court with copies of all reports, interviews, inserts, programmes, audio visual clips and CCTV footage in prints and electronic, inclusive of blogs, and commentary pertaining to a breakfast meeting held by the Chamber on November 30, under the theme The Impact of Industrial Court Judgments on your Business. At the panel discussion, Mouttet and Ali were critical of the court. Mouttet blamed the Court for low productivity in the country and described the court as harsh and oppressive in its judgments, favouring workers and unions against employers while Ali called for a lobby for pro-business judges on the Industrial Court bench. Earlier this week, the National Trade Union Centre issued a statement challenging Mouttet for his statements while head of the Joint Trade Union Movement (JTUM) Ancel Roget on Wednesday demanded a retraction. Roget said the comments by Mouttet showed a gross disrespect for the court. In May, president of the Industrial Court Deborah Thomas-Felix defended the partiality of the Court against claims that it favours workers and said employers lose cases because of harsh and oppressive conduct. She stressed that people may disagree with some rulings of the Court but to seek to impugn its impartiality or diminish the importance of its role and function, is simply not the way to go. Employers, she said, allegedly claimed that the judgments coming out of the court favoured the worker at the expense of the employer and the survival of the business as a going and profitable enterprise. Thomas-Felix reported that for the period 2014-2015 there were 2,744 matters and of these 747 were disposed by the adversarial process. Out of these, 230 judgments, or 30 percent, were in favour of employers. She also reported that of the withdrawn matters 24.9 percent were withdrawn by unions and therefore the employer won. If you do the math it will answer the question whether the judgments of the Court favour workers, she added. The total percentage of disputes resolved in favour of employers during the period 2011 to 2015 was 54.9 pecent. Woman who went missing could be charged In a statement, she told investigators that she was abducted and assaulted by a group of men after she boarded a PH (private hire) car in San Fernando. Barriteau said that the men had kept her hostage in an abandoned house in Marabella. The men then dropped her off in Marabella. Barriteau also told investigators that she travelled to the San Fernando General Hospital. Later that day medical personnel contacted police officers. A statement was recorded from Barriteau at the hospital. However the story changed when CCTV footage surfaced showing the woman in company with a man at a parang lime in Marabella. At the time she was reportedly missing, her common- law husband Devon Paul made a report at the La Brea and San Fernando Police Stations. In a previous interview with Newsday, Paul said calls to his wifes cell phone went unanswered. When Barriteau was found, there were also reports of bite marks on her chest. Barriteau and Paul had been living together for seven years. Paul had also told Newsday that his wife is not the type to go with another man and he believed that she had been abducted. CCTV footage was subsequently circulated of Barriteau entering the Carrat Shed Pub in Marabella and liming with an unidentified man for hours. She later confessed that she had left the family home to lime and was not expected to return home till Monday. Paul had told Newsday that despite what people on social media were saying about him and his wife he was thankful to have her home alive. When Newsday visited the familys Sobo Village, La Brea home yesterday, a teary eyed Paul said he could not comment further on the matter. Driving old car Betsy Things have become so bad that the Couva/Point Lisas Chamber of Commerce is looking into renting at least one extra vehicle to assist the police officers in engaging in more patrols during the Christmas Season and beyond. This was the outcome of a discussion forum hosted by the Chamber at its Couva headquarters on Thursday evening between members of the business community and two police officers who represented the Couva Police Station. Officers began the meeting by detailing the methods they have been using to tackle the issue of rising crime. The officers highlighted their plans for continuing the fight in the near future. In their turn, some business owners complained about the absence of sufficient police patrols on afternoons, while others complained about slow response times of police to reports of robberies or requests for assistance. Delicately responding to simmering tempers in the room, Sgt Piquette of the Couva Police Station apologized for where the police have fallen short, but begged for the understanding of the business community. Apart from being given only three cars to service all of Penal and outlying districts to respond to a myriad of crimes officers have been forced to frequently repair Betsy themselves, as bureaucracy in the Police Service could result in a vehicle being out of commission for a minimum of three months, for repairs (sometimes minor) to be effected. Sgt Piquette said the police officers time is spent performing traffic duties instead of dealing with reports of crime after traffic wardens were no longer assigned to Couva. Polices ability to effect patrols are further hampered whenever a murder occurs as at least one out of the pool of three cars must be used to escort the body to the Forensic Science Centre in St James and escort it from the Centre to the Funeral Home. Business owners offered to collaborate with police officers to alleviate the problems. This came as no surprise to us, said Liaquat Ali, President of the Couva/Point Lisas Chamber of Commerce. Police manpower has been an issue not just in Couva but throughout the country. We at the Chamber recognize the limited number of vehicles available and we will be looking at the possibility of renting a vehicle and making it available to the Couva police station. The police also plan to look into collaborating with Municipal Police assigned to the Couva/ Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation to utilize the corporations two marked police vehicles, if and when needed. Economists: Crime hurting TT economy Speaking on Wednesday at a panel discussion at the University of the West Indies, St Augustine campus, senior economist at UWI, Dr Roger Hosein said TTs high murder rate (over 440 for the year) affects workers productivity and the outlook of entrepreneurs. Fear of crime is a factor that most affects my investment. You cant invest as you want to nor display your wealth in this society, Hosein lamented. He cited someone who grows patchoi using hydroponics but who has opted to sell his produce only to a few wholesalers, at a lower profit margin, that he could earn if he instead sold to many retailers who would pay more but who might also pose a risk of exposing his business dealings to bandits. Fear of crime has a serious impact on entrepreneurship, Hosein surmised. Economist Prof Patrick Watson endorsed Hoseins sentiment. If a young entrepreneur comes up with an idea to earn foreign exchange, hell not stay here in this country. Its not a nice environment to live in or work in, Prof Watson said. Adding that entrepreneurs need an enabling environment, Watson said crime will hit investments. Dubbing the TT Police Service as a failing institution, Watson said the service is riddled with corruption amid public perception that some officers are actively in cahoots with criminals. Panellists gave an array of advice on the way forward. Hosein urged devaluation (whether to eight, nine or ten TT dollars to one US dollar) to dampen demand for imports. He said Guyanas discovery of reserves of up to 1.4 billion barrels of oil gives a lot of lucrative opportunities for TT players and the local economy. Hosein saw CEPEP as a terrible policy error and said GATE in its present form has starved the countrys real economy, even as he forecast that cuts will further the decline in tertiary attendance that began naturally before the cuts. Energy Chamber CEO Dr Dax Driver, lamented the present state of the economy as being adults now borrowing from their children, for todays consumption. He said the country needs to adjust to a new reality of a much lower revenue coming in. Driver said few people realise the countrys high revenues in 2006 to were due to the rare fortune of a happy constellation of circumstances. He said abundant and easily-accessible oil had meant energy companies had not needed to seek taxbreaks from the Government to undertake risky explorations, so these firms had paid hefty taxes/royalties to the Government. Also, at that time the world oilprice was high, facilitating these firms to sell oil for healthy revenues. Driver warned that the situation today is the exact opposite of yesteryear, as now energy firms face high costs of production, even as the world oil-price is relatively low. Driver advised the export of energy- sector services and other services, that TT firms should seek more foreign market-access, and that institutions that impede business activity should be addressed. These latter include the Customs and Excise Division, law courts, land administration and the work permit system. Tourism in dire straits President of the Tobago Hotel and Tourism Association (THTA), Christopher James, also says that while the problem began a decade ago, it has gotten worse in recent years. Tobagos occupancy rates in October were about nine percent. Last month, November, they were only slightly better - ten percent. We are beyond the critical position for Tobago. James, in pointing out how critical it is for tourism associations and Government to work together in an urgent manner to address the problem, revealed that international arrivals to Tobago were down by 25.84 percent. That is a continuation of decline for the last ten, 11 years, James stated, where back in 2005 we had just under 88,000 arrivals and this year, were looking round about 19,000 or a little less than that in international arrivals. Regarding the proposed construction of a Sandals hotel in Tobago, James lamented that even if that does happen, it would be a few years too late for hoteliers on the island. We cannot wait for Sandals in Tobago to come. We need help now. We have certain criteria that need to be fulfilled. We need money at lower rates of interest to help us get through this. We need incentives in other areas. Our incentives, compared with the rest of the region, are pretty poor. James was speaking during a press conference at Hyatt Regency, Port-of-Spain on Thursday, co-hosted by the Trinidad Hotels, Restaurants and Tourism Association (THRTA) and the Trinidad and Tobago Incoming Tour Operators Association (TTITOA). They appealed to Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley to intervene as he has done for the energy sector, and rescue the tourism industry. No case of human trafficking in TT In many instances, Wheeler added, missing persons are the result of curious young persons being lured into danger by online predators. Wheeler said even the most saintly of children are susceptible to curiosity and urged parents to be more watchful of their childrens online activities. What we have found is that young girls and young women that are living in the social media, they are living on the internet, they live on Facebook, Snapchat, they live on these online chat groups and they meet persons on these chat groups. And your innocent, little naive daughter who you pick up and drop everywhere is busy on the internet, busy on the cell phone, meeting all types of persons who you dont know about. And when she decides to run out, just out of curiosity, she may have never taken a taxi before in her life, because she is so sheltered, she has no idea what is out there. Wheeler said her Unit is responsible for Trinidad and Tobago geographically as well as Trinidad and Tobago nationals, wherever they may end up in the world. Asked how exactly the Counter Human Trafficking Unit determines whether a person has been trafficked out of Trinidad and Tobago, Wheeler said that the Anti- Kidnapping Unit and Homicide usually take the lead on missing persons cases. Fire leaves 11 homeless According to reports, fire-fighters from the Morvant, San Juan and Wrightson Road fire stations responded to a fire at about 2 am yesterday in Second Caledonia, Morvant. When they arrived on the scene, the warehouse which was used to store used tyres was already engulfed in flames which quickly spread to nearby houses. Fire-fighters attempted to douse the blaze, but they had to deal with several negative issues including low pressure in fire hydrants and strong winds which aided the spread of the flames. In the end, the warehouse and two houses were destroyed. No injuries were reported and firemen are to return to the scene today to continue investigations into the case of the blaze. In an unrelated incident, the swift action of security guard Richard Yearwood yesterday prevented a major fire at the Micles clothing store on Frederick Street, Portof- Spain. Customers and workers were evacuated after a small fire broke out at the back of the store. Speaking with Newsday at the scene, Fire Officer Ricky Cabralis from Belmont Fire Station indicated there were no injuries and minimal damage to the back of the store. We received a call at 11.45 this morning and an extractor fan at the back of the store over heated which ignited. But good work by one of the stores security led to the blaze being extinguished. Everything is normal...just minimal water damage and we are waiting for the electrician to come to make sure everything at the back of the store is in order, fireman Cabralis said. An employee at the store expressed relief that the fire was swiftly contained. OSH board recruits new inspectors He gave an update on the work of the board during a meeting yesterday morning between the board and Minister of Labour and Small and Enterprise Development Jennifer Baptiste-Primus at the Ministry of Labour and Small Enterprise Development office, Port-of-Spain. The meeting, a release from the ministry said, was an undertaking on the part of Baptiste-Primus to meet regularly with boards under the remit. The board under Coombs chairmanship was constituted in May. According to Coombs, the boards main priority for the past few months was the recruitment of staff, mainly inspectors, for the OSH Authority and OSH Agency. He reported that the recruitment process was almost completed and new inspectors should be on-board by the first quarter of 2017 to ensure institutional strengthening. Minister Baptiste-Primus reiterated her commitment to work with the board to ensure that it functions optimally as it works to fulfil its mandate in keeping with the OSH Act. Two men go missing Thirty eight-yearold Anand Maharaj of Chance Trace, Arima went missing on December 3 after informing his common-law wife Ria Ramsamooj he was going to lime. Ramsamooj reported Maharaj missing on December 5. He was wearing blue jeans, green slippers and a green T-shirt. Meanwhile, 43-yearold Premnath Jerry was last seen on December 5 when he left his Rushworth Street, San Fernando home for work at about 10 am. His brother, Sona Jerry reported him missing on December 15. He is of slim build and has a tattoo on his chest with the word BOBBY and a short hairstyle and beard. Anyone with information is asked to call 800-TIPS or contact the police at 555, 999, 911 or any police station. Street dwellers a major concern We have quite a lot of street dwellers in San Juan/Laventille particularly in the Croisee, he said. He was speaking with Newsday on Wednesday following the San Juan/ Laventille Regional Corporation Swearing-In Ceremony held at the Barataria Community Centre. Roberts pointed out that he was a former Social Development Minister and unfortunately when one minister leaves and another one comes, he feels that he has to reinvent the wheel. He said that they had done quite a lot of work when he was minister to deal with the issue of homelessness. He explained that they had done a detailed survey and categorised them into those involved in drugs, mentally ill and senior citizens who were homeless. Because you cant use one big brush to paint all, to deal with the problem, he said. He recalled that they were seeking to remove the mentally ill from the St Anns Psychiatric Hospital who did not belong there, expand the Piparo Empowerment Centre for those on drugs and build housing for the homeless and senior citizens. So that there was a plan to deal with the situation. You know people tell you go and pick up the vagrant. But to pick up the vagrants you have to be able to place them properly and take care of them because they are our citizens who find themselves in an unfortunate situation. So there was a plan and nobody followed it after I left. So we are grappling with that situation, he said. Returning to the corporation he said that previously as chairman both he and the CEO met with the Permanent Secretary in the Social Development Ministry to discuss an approach as to how to deal with vagrants in the community. And we started that discussion and those discussions must continue. I t is a new Government now and we again have to start that discussion, he said. During his address he reported that they have cleared the streets of the illegal practice of vending allowing vehicular access throughout the streets. He stressed that there will be absolutely no vending on the verges or streets of San Juan/ Laventille. This municipality will not be a shanty, he declared. At the ceremony, both Roberts and vice chairman Richard Walcott were uncontested. The other aldermen announced were Nazeemool Mohammed and Sudhir Sagramsingh. Lee: Kamla may get UK advice on Grande Rather than election proceedings being chaired by the Corporations CEO, outgoing SGRC chairman, Terry Rondon, took the chair and used a purported casting vote to break a tie and name a presiding officer to oversee his (Rondons) re-election to office, prompting the UNCs mass exodus. Lee yesterday told Newsday that the party has been in touch with Persad-Bissessar who was attending a Commonwealth event in London, England. He said she is due back this weekend, at which time he would like to meet her. Lee raised the possibility that Persad-Bissessar might have even sought legal advice in England on the controversy which the UNC has described as thuggery. Young: PNM not walking out on people He added, That is exactly what happened in Sangre Grande yesterday (Thursday). Young observed that while Ramdeen referred to a breach of protocol regarding the conduct of Thursdays meeting, this is grasping at straws. He explained this was because no such protocol or convention exists and the parent and subsidiary legislation clearly says that what happened yesterday is legal. Young said Ramdeen also accepted that, a chairman is incumbent until a new one is elected, accepts and makes a declaration as per Section 15 (2) of the Municipal Corporations Act. The minister explained the legislation shows that the chairman has a casting or second vote and this is specifically referred to in Section 67 (2) of the Act. Referring to two walkouts staged by the UNC in Parliament with respect to FATCA legislation, Young said, The PNM continues to abide by the law whilst the UNC continues to mislead people and stage walkouts. He added, They have now walked out of the Parliament and the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation. Young reiterated that while other persons behave in a negative, destructive and unproductive manner, the PNM is confident that it has followed the law as advised and will continue to represent all citizens. Camille says Kamla living in glass house Robinson-Regis alleged that Persad-Bissessar, who is attending a Commonwealth event in London, while there has badmouthed the Government and Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, but had herself presided over the countrys most misogynistic administration. She criticised Persad- Bissessar over the recent naming of Dr Glenn Ramadarsingh as chairman of the Siparia Regional Corporation. The Planning Minister also said the former prime minister had fired women from Cabinet. Further Robinson-Regis hit the denigration of Rowleys parents by a former member of Persad-Bissessars government. The country can compare this with the track record of the PNM (Peoples National Movement) which has elevated two women to mayor and chairman, and four to deputy mayor and vice-chairman after the recent Local Government election. Robinson-Regis said the league is proud of those PNM women and supports Rowley who leads a party and government committed to womens elevation. Demonetisation was not a hurried decision, says Amit Shah Delhi,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS New Delhi, Dec 17 (IANS) The decision of demonetising higher currency notes was not taken in a hurry, Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah has said, adding that the decision was taken in consultation with Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Responding to questions on India TV's show Aap Ki Adalat, Shah said that the 50-day deadline, ending December 30, was fixed after much "careful planning", and most of the cash crunch woes at ATMs and banks would be over by this deadline. "Neither was anything kept secret from RBI, nor was it not consulted, the decision (to demonetise Rs 500 and 1000) was taken after adequate consultations by Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) at the small forum, and all administrative nitty-gritty was gone through. The decision was not taken in a hurry, nor was there any reason to be in a hurry," Shah said. Asked about the current cash crunch, he said, it was because of the delay in printing new notes. "The cash crunch is because of delay in printing currency notes, and its taking time to distribute, that's why the 50-day deadline was set. I am not saying that after 50-day deadline the queues (at banks) will be fully over, but most of the woes would be over," he said. The BJP chief also expressed hope that business at factories would be back to normal in two months. "The factories are closed, not because of (lack of) cash but nearly 30 to 40 per cent of transactions that were not taking place earlier in cheques, will now change, and the traders will show these transactions in books...," he said. While stating that he "emphathises" the people standing in queues outside ATMs, the BJP president said people were also losing patience due to lack of infrastructure, indicating that the increased government revenue will solve these issues. "I know people standing outside ATMs and banks are losing their patience, I emphathise with them, but I also know, nearly 80 crore poor people in this country are also losing patience because of lack of electricity, roads, drinking water and education, the army needs funds for modernisation, we need more satellites, more connectivity," Shah said. "In the last eight years, our plan budget has been hanging between Rs 4.2 lakh crore and Rs 4.8 lakh crore, and this money has to be allocated for rural roads, education and all other programmes... India cannot take a leap forward on a mere Rs 4.8 lakh crore budget. The parallel economy is eating into our economy like termite." Describing the demonetisation step as a "multi-dimensional, far-reaching" decision taken in the national interest, Shah said, the positive fallouts of the decision have been: "it has broken the back of terrorism and Naxalism in one stroke." Shah warned that all black money hoarders "will be put behind bars". He also said that BJP would welcome any move by the Election Commission to bring electoral funding within the purview of Right To Information. --IANS ao/ahm/vm A federal appeals court has refused to block a lower courts order requiring an Ohio school district to allow an 11-year-old transgender girl to use the girls restroom at school. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, in Cincinnati, ruled 2-1 against the stay sought by the Highland Local School District. We are not convinced that Highland has made its required showing of a likelihood of success on appeal, said the majority in its Dec. 15 decision in Dodds v. Doe . The court said it was settled law in the 6th Circuit that discrimination based on transgender status was prohibited under federal civil rights statutes. Further, the school district would not be irreparably harmed by a federal district court injunction requiring it to allow the transgender student identified in court papers as Jane Doe to continue to use the girls restroom at school, the appeals court majority said. Does personal circumstancesher young age, mental health history, and unique vulnerabilitiesand her use of the girls restroom for over six weeks, which has greatly alleviated her distress, differentiate her case from the transgender rights case being heard this term by the U.S. Supreme Court. In that case, Gloucester County School Board v. G.G. , the high court granted a stay sought by a Virginia school district of a lower court order that would have required the district to allow a transgender high school student to use the boys restroom. At issue in the Gloucester County case is whether courts must defer to the U.S. Department of Educations interpretation of its rules under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which prohibits discrimination based on sex in federally funded schools. In the Ohio case, the 6th Circuit majority said that staying the injunction would disrupt the significant improvement in Does health and well-being that has resulted from the injunction, further confuse a young girl with special needs who would no longer be allowed to use the girls restroom, and subject her to further irreparable harm. Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton dissented, saying that just as the plaintiff in Gloucester County must wait for Supreme Court review before changing the status quo, so should the plaintiff in our case be required to wait for that decision before changing the status quo. Similar treatment of similar plaintiffs is the essence of equal justice under law. The Supreme Court presumably will resolve the Title IX issue in 2017, Sutton added. In the meantime, the court has indicated that we should wait for further instructions before granting relief on these sorts of claims. These lawsuits pose novel questions and, if successful, will require novel changes to school restrooms and locker rooms. If past is precedent, the [Supreme] Court does not want a patchwork of provisional answers to emerge while it deliberates. New notes: RBI mystifies with its mixed-up math Delhi,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS New Delhi, Dec 17 (IANS) Either the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is uncharacteristically cavalier with the demonetisation-related figures it has given out periodically since November 8 or, more worryingly, its number crunchers are getting their math mixed up. For, the numbers that the apex bank has put out so far do not add up and, indeed, lead to two inevitable conclusions. One: There is an apparent shortfall of anywhere between Rs 5,000 crore and Rs 56,000 crore in terms of the new currency notes it says it has pumped back into the system. Two: Even by the most optimistic of calculations, it appears that less than 2 per cent of the crucial Rs 500 demonetised notes have been returned to the banking system, lending credence to stories of problems at printing presses. To tackle Issue No. 1 first: On December 7, during the monetary policy press conference, the Deputy Governor of RBI, R. Gandhi, informed the media that a total of Rs 4 trillion (one trillion one lakh crore) had been disbursed to the public in new currency notes so far. Of this amount, Rs 1.06 trillion was in smaller denomination currency notes while the rest -- Rs 2.94 trillion -- was by way of high-denomination notes of Rs 2,000 and Rs 500. The break-up of the lower currency notes -- 19.1 billion in number -- was as follows: 8.5 billion pieces of Rs 100 (amounting to Rs 85,000 crore), 1.8 billion pieces of Rs 50 (Rs 9,000 crore), 3.1 billion pieces of Rs 20 (Rs 6,200 crore) and 5.7 billion pieces of Rs 10 (Rs 5,700). The total value of small notes issued till December 6 was thus Rs 1.06 trillion (Rs 1.06 lakh crore). In its most recent public utterances, on December 12, Gandhi told reporters that the total quantum of new notes disbursed to the public till December 10 had gone up from Rs 4 trillion, or Rs 4 lakh crore, to Rs 4.61 trillion. Gandhi also revealed that a total of 21.8 billion, or 2,189 crore, pieces of currency of various denominations had been issued to the public by December 10. The press release issued by the RBI next day, December 13, said that of this amount, 20.1 billion or 2,010 crore pieces belonged to small denominations of Rs 10, Rs 20, Rs 50 and Rs 100. The number of pieces of Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes issued were 1.7 billion or 170 crore. Note that the increase in the number of small notes between December 6 and December 10 is just one billion or 100 crore. Assuming that all of these small notes were of Rs 100 denomination, the amount added to the December 6 figure would be Rs 10,000 crore, taking the total to Rs 1.16 lakh crore. That leaves Rs 3.45 lakh crore to be accounted for by way of high denomination notes. It is here that the math behind the RBI numbers begins to unravel. Here is how. Let us assume, for argument's sake, that all the notes circulated to the public in the high-denomination set were of Rs 2,000 value. Even in this highly unlikely scenario, the total value of high-denomination currency would only come to Rs 3.4 lakh crore (Rs 2,000 x 170 crore), a shortfall of Rs 5,000 crore from the RBI's own implied figure of Rs 3.45 lakh crore. But we know that not all of the high-denomination notes were of Rs 2,000 value. Indeed, over the past few weeks, the apex bank has consistently maintained -- a claim also repeatedly echoed by the government -- that its focus has shifted to printing more and more Rs 500 notes, so as to address the issue of liquidity in the economy. If we assume that a very modest 10 per cent of the 1.7 billion (170 crore) high-denomination notes circulated were of Rs 500 value (17 crore) and the rest were of Rs 2,000 (153 crore notes), the total amount of new currency in circulation would be Rs 3.14 lakh crore --a shortfall of Rs 31,000 crore from the required Rs 3.45 lakh crore. And if we assumes Rs 500 notes issued to be a little higher in the mix of high denomination notes, say, 20 per cent, (34 crore notes) the total would be Rs 2.89 lakh crore and the shortfall would be even more -- Rs 56,000 crore. Now let's take a look at Issue No. 2. Since Rs 500 notes are needed desperately to act as a usable breakup of Rs 2,000 notes, how adequate is their circulation? On November 29, the Minister of State for Finance, Arjun Ram Meghwal, told Rajya Sabha in reply to a question that as on November 8, there were 1,716.5 crore pieces of Rs 500 and 685.8 crore pieces of Rs 1,000 notes in circulation. The total amounts to Rs 15.44 lakh crore (Rs 8.58 lakh crore in Rs 500 and Rs 6.86 lakh crore in Rs 1,000 denominations). If we go back to our earlier assumption of about 20 per cent of the new high-denomination notes being of the Rs 500 variety, what percentage of these demonetised notes has the RBI managed to replace in one month? That would amount to 34 crore notes or Rs 17,000 crore in value. This is just a miniscule 1.98 per cent of the old Rs 500 notes (1,716.5 crore pieces and Rs 8.58 lakh crore in value) removed from circulation. The RBI officials have a favourite line: There are enough new notes available in the banking system. The math shows the reality may be substantially different. --IANS hs/sac/sar RBI gives Rs 5,000 Cr to cash parched Uttar Pradesh Lucknow, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 NI Wire After the governments decision of demonetisaiton of old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, which was made by the Prime Minister on November 8 to curb the black money. The implementation of the new currency notes was not proper planned and due to which the whole country is facing cash crunch, after that the RBI planned to gave Rs 5,000 crore to Uttar Pradesh to avoid cash crunch. According to an official, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) flew in Rs 5,000 crore in a heavily guarded cargo plane to cash parched Uttar Pradesh. At many places in Uttar Pradesh, due to the demonetisation decision of higher currency notes, the state was reeling under a cash crunch leading to chaos, anger and law and order situation at many places. The money soon after landing at the Chaudhary Charan Singh international airport was wheeled into the regional RBI office. The currency was sent to Lucknow for further distribution across the ATMs and banks includes Rs 500 and Rs 2000 notes. The cash will be distributed evenly between the RBI offices in Kanpur and Lucknow. The government has to take this step earlier, because due to cash crunch the state was leading to grave law and order situation, which shows that how the people were facing hardship due to this decision. --with agency inputs Demonetisation is multi-dimensional, far-reaching decision not taken in hurry: Shah Delhi, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 NI Wire The demonetisation decision of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi was announced on November 8 surprisingly and after the announcement the whole country was shocked because the higher currency of the country was declared as illegal tender. After this decision the main problem, which country faced was cash crunch because of improper implementation of new currency and the opposition termed demonetisation as a hurried decision on which Amit Shah clarifies that, it was not taken in a hurry. The Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah said, The decision of demonetising higher currency notes was not taken in a hurry and added that the decision was taken in consultation with Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Shah said that the 50-day deadline, ending December 30, was fixed after much "careful planning", and most of the cash crunch woes at ATMs and banks would be over by this deadline. Shah also said, "neither was anything kept secret from RBI, nor was it not consulted, the decision (to demonetise Rs 500 and 1000) was taken after adequate consultations by Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) at the small forum, and all administrative nitty-gritty was gone through. The decision was not taken in a hurry, nor was there any reason to be in a hurry," When Asked about the current cash crunch, which the whole country is facing, he said, it was because of the delay in printing new notes. He said that, "the cash crunch is because of delay in printing currency notes, and its taking time to distribute, that's why the 50-day deadline was set. I am not saying that after 50-day deadline the queues (at banks) will be fully over, but most of the woes would be over," The BJP chief Shah also expressed hope that business at factories would be back to normal in two months and said, "the factories are closed, not because of (lack of) cash but nearly 30 to 40 per cent of transactions that were not taking place earlier in cheques, will now change, and the traders will show these transactions in books. While stating that he "emphathises" the people standing in queues outside ATMs, the BJP president said people were also losing patience due to lack of infrastructure, indicating that the increased government revenue will solve these issues. After that he said, "I know people standing outside ATMs and banks are losing their patience, I emphathise with them, but I also know, nearly 80 crore poor people in this country are also losing patience because of lack of electricity, roads, drinking water and education, the army needs funds for modernisation, we need more satellites, more connectivity," He further added, "In the last eight years, our plan budget has been hanging between Rs 4.2 lakh crore and Rs 4.8 lakh crore, and this money has to be allocated for rural roads, education and all other programmes. India cannot take a leap forward on a mere Rs 4.8 lakh crore budget. The parallel economy is eating into our economy like termite." Shah described the demonetisation step as a "multi-dimensional, far-reaching" decision taken in the national interest, the positive fallouts of the decision have been: "it has broken the back of terrorism and Naxalism in one stroke." Shah warned that all black money hoarders "will be put behind bars. He also said that BJP would welcome any move by the Election Commission to bring electoral funding within the purview of Right To Information. --with agency inputs Bike riding gives me a sense of freedom: Freddy Daruwala Maharashtra,Cinema/Showbiz,Bollywood, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Mumbai, Dec 17 (IANS) Actor Freddy Daruwala, who is currently riding high on the success of "Force 2", says riding bikes gives him a sense of freedom and is a way of meditation. Freddy, who was also seen in Akshay Kumar starrer "Baby", wants to go for a road trip to the North on his new bike. "Bike riding gives me a sense of freedom. It's a type of meditation. When I am riding, my thoughts are not shadowed by other things. I just enjoy the wind," Freddy said in a statement. The actor, who has finished shooting for "Commando 2", featuring Vidyut Jamwal, has bought a new bike, which specializes in off road trips. Freddy, who is proud of his new possession - a 1982 retro motorcycle - plans to start his journey from December 20 and may also celebrate New Year up in the hills with his friends. --IANS dc/nv/bg Notebandi will meet same fate as Congress's Nasbandi: Lalu Prasad Bihar,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Patna, Dec 17 (IANS) RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav on Saturday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision of demonetisation saying it has failed and will meet the same fate as Congress's forced sterilisation in the mid-70s during the Emergency. Lalu also threatened to launch a protest against the anti-people decision of demonetisation along with like minded parties including ally JD-U in Bihar after the 50-day deadline fixed by Modi. "Notebandi Ka Wahi Haal Hoga Jo Congress Ka Nasbandi Ka Hua (Notebandi will meet the same fate as forced sterilisation)," Lalu said while addressing his Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) party leaders including legislators and workers here. Lalu also termed 'Notebandi' as 'Farzibandi' over the people. "It is not notebandi, it is farzibandi that has put common people in deep trouble," Lalu said, adding that Modi has cheated the people. Lalu reminded Modi of his promise made during the Lok Sabha polls of bringing back black money stashed abroad. "Black money has not come back and Rs 15 lakh, which Narendra Modi promised, has not been deposited in anyone's bank account," he said. Lalu has been opposing demonetisation since November, unlike his ally Janata Dal-United President and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who is supporting it. --IANS ik/sm/bg India, Tajikistan sign four agreements Delhi,National,Politics,Diplomacy, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS New Delhi, Dec 17 (IANS) India and Tajikistan on Saturday signed four agreements, including one on exchange of financial intelligence, following delegation-level talks headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon here. "After the talks, the deliverables! PM @narendramodi and President Emomali Rahmon witness the exchange of agreements across multiple sectors," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on cooperation in the exchange of financial intelligence related to money laundering, related crimes and financing of terrorism. The two sides signed a protocol amending avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion. Another MoU was signed regarding cooperation on broadcasting in exchange of audio-visual programmes. The two sides also initialled a document on bilateral investment. --IANS ab/ahm/bg Is Apple working on foldable iPhone New Delhi, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 NI Wire As the generation of smartphone changing in this technological era, their specifications and features changes according to time. The Apple, Google and Microsoft are all looking to partner up with LG Display for OLED panels that arent just curved, but can be folded. Now the smartphone, which features a curved display, is not a big thing because according to the sources, big companies like Apple, Google and Microsoft are all looking to prepare a screen which can be folded. LG Display will complete with Samsung for Apple orders in 2018 when its expected to start mass-producing foldable OLED screens that could equip smartphones and tablets with curved displays, or devices that can be folded. Whereas, Samsung Display is expected to be the leading supplier of OLED screens for the curved iPhone next year. According to the sources, it is confirmed that LG Display will mass-produce foldable displays for Apple, but also for other major industry including Google and Microsoft. It is expected that iPhone 8 and Galaxy S8 are both expected to feature curved OLED Displays and it is indicating that Google will also interested in following the suit and improving the quality at the same time. But it is unclear at this time when Microsoft and Google might release the devices with curved or foldable screens. If Google and Microsoft are waiting for LGs new OLED display factories to come online, then it is not going to be happening until sometime after next year. Apple is expected to get plenty of Samsungs OLED capacity in 2017, which will leave little for its competitors. On the other hand, Samsung is the only company that can currently meet some of the curved OLED demand out there, but not all of it. This will probably be the reason why not all the iPhone 8 models will get OLED screens next year. US asks China to return drone seized in South China Sea United States,Defence/Security, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Washington, Dec 17 (IANS) The US has demanded the return of an underwater drone that was seized by China in the disputed South China Sea as an American crew was moving in to retrieve it, the New York Times said on Friday. Chinese media reported that Beijing had received a "claim request" from the US for an underwater drone. The episode threatens to increase tensions in a region already fraught with great power rivalries. A Chinese warship had been shadowing the Bowditch, a US naval vessel, in the international waters of the South China Sea. The Chinese then launched a small boat and snatched the unmanned underwater vehicle, the Pentagon said. Ignoring radio demands from the Americans to return the drone, the Chinese ship sailed away. The episode led to one of the tensest standoffs between Beijing and Washington in 15 years and occurred a day after the Chinese signalled that they had installed weapons along a string of disputed islands in the South China Sea. The seizure of the drone brought a formal protest from the United States at a time when China is extending claims over the South China Sea and is watching the US - and its incoming president - with wariness. The episode did not have the life-or-death drama of the April 2001 midair collision between a Chinese fighter jet and a Navy surveillance plane that forced the Americans to make an emergency landing on Chinese territory. Acknowledging the odd nature of Chinese sailors seizing the drone close to its American mother ship, an official here likened it to watching a thief steal a wallet in broad daylight. American officials said they were still trying to determine whether the seizure was a low-level action taken by Chinese sailors who spotted the drone - which the Pentagon said was conducting scientific research - or a strategic-level action ordered by more senior Chinese leaders to challenge the American presence in those waters. "We call upon China to return" the underwater vehicle "immediately," New York Times quoted Peter Cook, the Pentagon press secretary, as saying on Friday, The incident complicates already testy relations between China and the United States, ties that have been further frayed by President-elect Donald J. Trump's phone conversation with the president of Taiwan. Trump angered Chinese officials by holding a phone conversation with President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan, an island that Beijing deems a breakaway province of China. It has been nearly four decades since a US president or President-elect had such direct contact with a Taiwanese leader. Pentagon officials said on Friday that they were trying to determine if the seizure of the underwater drone had anything to do with Trump's comments. --IANS gsh/bg Two killed in Kolkata slum fire West Bengal,National,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Kolkata, Dec 17 (IANS) Two charred bodies were recovered after a fire in a north Kolkata slum on Saturday, an official from the fire department said. The fire gutted at least 10 shanties in Patipukur. "The charred bodies of Priya Adhikari, 16, a student of Class 10 and her uncle Nimai Adhikari, 23, were recovered from their home," a North Kolkata Fire Control official said. According to fire officials on the spot, the incident was caused by an LPG cylinder blast. As many as 16 fire tenders were pressed into service to put out the blaze that raged for several hours. Sovan Chatterjee, West Bengal Minister of Fire & Engineering, Housing, Environment said the state government is closely monitoring the situation. "The standard compensation would be processed shortly," he added. --IANS mgr/sgh/sm/bg 3 soldiers killed in Kashmir attack Jammu And Kashmir,National,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Srinagar, Dec 17 (IANS) Three soldiers were killed after gunmen opened fire on an army convoy in south Kashmir's Pulwana district, the army said on Saturday. According to security officials, militants fired incessantly at the vehicles carrying army men near the Kadlabal area of Pampore. The militants then fled from the spot, but a massive search operation was underway. It was the second attack in Pampore this year. Army convoys have been attacked several times along this stretch of the highway that connects Srinagar and Jammu and is used to carry supplies to the Srinagar-based 15 Corps that acts as nerve centre to battle militancy in the valley. The attack comes just days after two militants were killed on in separate encounters with security forces in Anantnag and Baramulla districts. --IANS sq/ahm/vm A state judge has ordered a Texas school district to permit a school staff members door display featuring the main religious message from the classic TV special A Charlie Brown Christmas. In a case that has attracted nationwide attention, Judge Jack Jones of the 146th Judicial District in Bell County, Texas, on Thursday issued a temporary restraining order that prohibits the Killeen Independent School District from refusing to allow the display of a poster that featured words from the special about the meaning of Christmas. The case involves a Christmas display put up by Dedra Shannon, who is described in court papers as a clinic aide at Patterson Middle School in Killeen. On Dec. 5, Shannon decorated the door of the school nurses office with a customized poster based on the Charlie Brown Christmas special that highlights an essential scene from the 30-minute special, which first aired in the 1960s. The poster reads: For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Savior which is Christ the Lord . . . Thats what Christmas is all about Charlie Brown. Linus. The phrase is from a longer soliloquy delivered by Linus during the special about the true meaning of Christmas that is adapted from the Bibles Gospel according to Luke. On Dec. 7, Principal Kara Trevino asked Shannon to remove the poster or delete the quote, citing concerns about the separation of church and state and the possibility it could offend non-Christians, court papers say. The Killeen school board on Dec. 9 issued a statement supporting the principals actions. The statement referred to a 2013 Texas statute, known as the Merry Christmas law , which is designed to encourage public schools to teach about religious holidays and to allow teachers and students to use greetings such as Merry Christmas, but which also requires that holiday displays not adhere to a specific religion. On Dec. 13, it debated the issue further and voted 6-1 to ask administrators to study holiday displays, but also to encourage school staff members to use, to the fullest extent allowed by law, the name Jesus, the name God, and anything about our Christian religion. The motion called for no further action that would allow Shannon to restore her poster. That prompted the school aide to sue the Killeen district and administrators , citing her right to free speech and free exercise of religion under the Texas constitution. Shannon, backed by a group called Texas Values , argues in court papers that the Linus quote on her poster did not encourage anyone to adhere to Christianity in violation of the Merry Christmas law. Shannon was also backed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who filed a brief in Joness court that said contrary to the decision of [the Killeen district], the inclusion of Bible verses or religious messages on student or teacher-sponsored holiday decorations does not violate Texas law. To the contrary, Texas law prohibits KISD from expressing hostility toward religious messages, and it also specifically encourages school districts to take a more inclusive approach to religious and secular celebrations. Paxton said the school district was muddling the distinction between government and private speech, and that Shannons poster did not constitute government speech. In issuing a temporary restraining order against the school district on Dec. 15, the judge did not accept several sweeping statements proposed by Shannons lawyers. Instead, he wrote that the defendants were restrained from prohibiting Shannon from displaying the poster that was previously on her door with the addition of the words Ms. Shannons Christmas Message in letters as large as the other letters. In a statement Thursday , the Killeen school district said, Christmas and winter celebrations and messages are important to our community. The boards actions taken on Tuesday directing district administration to develop guidelines for employees underscore the boards commitment to this effort. Despite these efforts we found ourselves in court this afternoon. The district noted the judges requirement that Shannon add lettering to her poster indicating that it was her Christmas message. We believe that directing the individual to include the additional text better complies with state and federal law, the districts statement adds. We support this decision. In a statement issued by Texas Values on Friday, Shannon said, I am so thankful that the court ruled in my favor and that Killeen ISDs efforts to ban my Charlie Brown Christmas poster have failed. I was thankful to put my poster back up today. India and Tajikistan sign four agreements Delhi, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 NI Wire The Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets today with the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon. PM Modi warmly welcomed him and described Tajikistan as a valuable friend and strategic friend in Asia. In the bilateral meet, India and Tajikistan signed four agreements, including one on exchange of financial intelligence, following delegation-level talks headed by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon. The External Afffairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted, after the talks, the deliverables! PM @narendramodi and President Emomali Rahmon witness the exchange of agreements across multiple sectors. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on cooperation in the exchange of financial intelligence related to money laundering, related crimes and financing of terrorism. The two sides signed a protocol amending avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion. Another MoU was signed regarding cooperation on broadcasting in exchange of audio-visual programmes. The two sides also initialed a document on bilateral investment. According to press statement by the Prime Minister, Indias membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization will be a valuable platform to work closely on regional security and counter-terrorism efforts with Tajikistan. According to the statement, We agreed that peace, stability and prosperity in Afghanistan are important for the region. India and Tajikistan are joined in our steadfast support of the Afghan people and their aspirations for a peaceful and prosperous nation. According to statement, India and Tajikistan will do work on, through reinforcing overall bilateral security cooperation; through greater training, capacity building and information exchanges; and, through active coordination in regional and multilateral contexts. --source PIB BP lowering drugs may block cancer invasion United Kingdom,Health/Medicine,Science/Tech, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS null London, Dec 17 (IANS) Drugs used to lower blood pressure can potentially block breast and pancreatic cancer invasion by inhibiting their cellular structures, say researchers. The study discovered that calcium channel blockers -- currently used to treat hypertension -- can efficiently stop cancer cells move and invade surrounding tissue. Identification of anti-hypertension drugs as potential therapeutics against breast and pancreatic cancer metastasis was a big surprise, said reseachers. The targets of these drugs were not known to be present in cancer cells and therefore no one had considered the possibility that these drugs might be effective against aggressive cancer types, said Johanna Ivaska at the University of Turku in Finland. The findings showed that aggressively spreading cancer cells express a protein called Myosin-10 which drives cancer cell motility. Myosin-10 expressing cancers have a large number of structures called filopodia, or sticky finger-like structures the cancer cells extend to sense their environment and to navigate - imagine a walking blind spider, explained Guillaume Jacquemet, postdoctoral researcher at University of Turku. The calcium channel blockers target specifically these sticky fingers rendering them inactive, thus efficiently blocking cancer cell movement. This suggest that they might be effective drugs against cancer metastasis, the researchers said. The findings were published in the journal Nature Communications. --IANS rt/sm/vd null Chandy faction sore over Congress revamp in Kerala Kerala,National,Politics, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 17 (IANS) The Oommen Chandy faction of the Congress party's Kerala unit on Saturday expressed its unhappiness over the way the party high command has been handling the affairs of the state unit. Party's Kerala unit Vice President and former state minister M.M. Hassan, speaking to reporters on Saturday, pointed out that the manner in which the high command went about naming the 14 district party chiefs last week was not in keeping with the normal practice. "When the list came out, it became very clear that one faction had been given the upper hand and this has been brought to the notice of the high command also," said Hassan. Congress politics in Kerala has always revolved around two or more groups led by senior leaders. The legendary factional feud in the state unit, which began soon after the Emergency was declared in the country and lasted until the early 2000s, centred around K. Karunakaran and A.K. Antony. However, all through, Karunakaran had the last laugh. But after 2004, when Chandy took over as the Chief Minister from Antony, for all practical purposes, Chandy reigned supreme, with the other faction led by Chennithala always playing second fiddle. However, after the rout of the Chandy-led UDF in the May 2016 assembly polls, he went into a shell and Chennithala appeared to emerge as the new leader. When the District Congress Committee presidents were being named, Chandy got just three, while Chennithala managed close to eight, and the rest were taken by the close aides of state party chief V.M. Sudheeran. Among the three top leaders here, Chandy is the one, who unlike the other two, does not have much support in Delhi. Earlier this week, Chandy expressed his displeasure by not travelling to Delhi along with other party legislators to join a protest rally against demonetisation. Ever since Sudheeran was appointed as the state party chief in 2014, much against the wishes of a huge majority of the state leaders, Chandy has been keeping aloof from the party high command. His relations with the high command took a further dip when he was snubbed by the latter by denying his closest aide Benny Behanan, a sitting legislator, the seat to contest the polls which he had won the last time. But Chennithala, knowing fully well the huge ground support that Chandy enjoys across the state as the most popular leader of the party, said that even he (Chennithala) is also not happy with the revamp. "It was Chandy who had first suggested that we all should stage a protest in Delhi, but later due to a pressing engagement, he had to cancel the Delhi trip," said Chennithala. Meanwhile, sources close to Chandy revealed that he is playing the wait-and-watch game and is in no hurry to make any moves. --IANS sg/nir/bg IS suspect held in Himachal Himachal Pradesh,National,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Shimla, Dec 17 (IANS) A man suspected to be connected to terror outfit IS was detained in Himachal Pradesh's Kullu district on Saturday by an NIA team, police said. Abeeb Khan, of Bengalauru and a suspected member of Islamic State, was picked up by a team of the National Investigation Agency. He used to visit a church regularly in Sidhwan in Banjar. "He's currently under interrogation by the NIA. No case has been registered so far," a senior state police official told IANS. He said the NIA had arrested two suspects in New Delhi and Khan was in touch with them for the past few months. --IANS vg/vd India, Tajikistan to work on anti-terror fight, trade links: Modi Delhi,National,Terrorism,Diplomacy,Business/Economy, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS New Delhi, Dec 17 (IANS) India and Tajikistan will cooperate in the fight against terrorism and work closely on developing trade and transport links through the Chabahar Port in Iran, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday. In a joint address to the media after delegation-level talks headed by him and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon here, Modi said: "India and Tajikistan live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges and threats." "The threat from terrorism endangers not just our two countries, it casts a long shadow of violence and instability over the entire region," the Prime Minister said without naming Pakistan, which India has charged with sponsoring terrorism. "Combating terrorism has, therefore, been an important area of our cooperative engagement. We appreciate Tajikistan's role in the Central Asian region as a mainstay against forces of extremism, radicalism and terrorism. "President Rahmon and I agreed today to strengthen action on this front based on mutually agreed priorities." Modi said that this would be done on multiple levels -- by reinforcing overall bilateral security cooperation, through greater training, capacity building and information exchange, and through active coordination in regional and multilateral contexts. Modi and Rahmon also agreed on the need to increase the scope and scale of the two nations' economic engagement, especially trade and investment traffic. "In this context, hydel power, information technology, pharmaceuticals and healthcare would be areas of priority action," he stated. "We agreed that enhanced surface connectivity is crucial to realise the promise of our economic partnership for the benefit of our countries." The Prime Minister said that India supports initiatives to develop the existing port and transport infrastructure and connecting it through road and rail network with Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Central Asia. "In this respect, we will work to build trade and transit links through Chabahar port in Iran," he said. Earlier this year, India, Iran and Afghanistan signed a trilateral agreement on developing the Chabahar port to boost connectivity between South and Central Asia. "India is also engaged in facilitating the International North South Transport Corridor with other members, including Tajikistan," Modi said. "Our planned accession to the Ashgabat Agreement (a multi-modal transport agreement between Oman, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Pakistan) will further help in linking us with Tajikistan and Central Asia. "India and Tajikistan enjoy a rewarding partnership in capacity and institution building, including under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation training programme." Following Saturday's talks, India and Tajikistan signed four agreements related to cooperation in the exchange of financial intelligence related to money laundering, related crimes and financing of terrorism; amending avoidance of double taxation pact and prevention of fiscal evasion; cooperation on broadcasting in exchange of audio-visual programmes; and on bilateral investment. This is the sixth visit of President Rahmon to India. Earlier on Saturday, he was accorded a ceremonial reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan here. --IANS ab/nir/bg IS suspect held in Himachal, planning to visit Syria Himachal Pradesh,National,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Shimla, Dec 17 (IANS) A suspected member of terror outfit IS was arrested on Saturday by a team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) from a Himachal Pradesh village, the police said. Abdul Abeed Khan, 23, a resident of Bengaluru and a suspected member of the Islamic State, was arrested in a joint operation by the NIA and the state police, Superintendent of Police Padam Chand told reporters in Kullu town. Khan who was picked up from a a church in Banjar town in Kullu district, about 250 km from here, where he he had living and working as a helper for the past five to six months. He was living under the fake name of Paul. A mobile phone and a laptop were recovered from his possession. Chand said the accused was planning to reach Syria via Indonesia. Another police official said the accused recently visited Sri Lanka. A case was registered against him. The official said the NIA had arrested two suspects in New Delhi in January and Khan was in touch with them. He is likely to be produced in a court in Kullu town on Sunday. --IANS vg/vd 'Russia supports China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project' Pakistan,Cinema/Showbiz,Diplomacy,Business/Economy, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Islamabad, Dec 17 (IANS) Russia on Saturday said it "strongly" supports the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project as it was crucial for Islamabad's economy and regional connectivity. According to an interview to Radio Pakistan, Russian Ambassador to Pakistan Alexey Y Dedov, pointed out that CPEC is a component of China's Silk Road and his country was also working on a similar Eurasian Economic Union. He added that China and Russia were holding discussions to merge the two projects. Asked about Pakistan's North-South gas pipeline project, the Russian Ambassador said they were eager to finalise the project at the "soonest". The ambassador said the two countries were closely cooperating in different areas but there was a need to enhance the volume of bilateral trade. About the MI-35 gunship helicopter deal between the two countries, he said the contract has already been signed and it was now for the officials concerned to define a time-frame for the purpose. Replying to a question, the Russian Ambassador said his country wants Pakistan and India to resolve all issues including Jammu and Kashmir through peaceful means. --IANS ahm/bg Militants overrun security camp in Manipur, loot 20 guns Manipur,National,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Imphal, Dec 17 (IANS) In a surprise attack, a large group of tribal militants overran a paramilitary camp in Manipur's Noney district and fled with about 20 assorted automatic guns, official sources said. The incident occurred around 11.30 a.m in the camp manned by personnel of India Reserve Battalion and Manipur Rifles at Nungkao in the newly-carved out district. "About 70 militants raided the camp. They were in combat fatigue and carried highly sophisticated weapons," an official said, adding that there was no firing from any sides and noc casualties. Reinforcements had been despatched to the area while officials at the spot said that they are making inventory of the arms and ammunition lost. Meanwhile, in Imphal, two Manipur Rifles personnel opened fire at the women who were blocking the Tiddim road but fortunately no casualties were reported. The incident took place during the 24-hour general strike called by womenfolk to protest killings of three policemen and attacks on security personnel. "The personnel are the house guards of Congress MLA Phungzathang Tonsing. After opening fire, they rushed inside the residence of the MLA," a women protestor said. However, police reached the spot and brought them out. The two were allowed to go after they tendered an unqualified apology to the protestors. --IANS il/sm/vd Lalu says will launch protest against demonetisation Bihar,National,Politics, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Patna, Dec 17 (IANS) Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav on Saturday announced that his party will launch a protest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision of demonetisation. "RJD will stage protest against demonetisation at all the district headquarters on December 28," Lalu told RJD legislators and workers, called here to chalk out a strategy to launch the protest. Lalu also said his party would hold a huge rally against demonetisation in Patna early next year. "We have not decided the date but decided to organise a rally against demonetisation." He said he would invite leaders of all like-minded parties from across the country to the rally against demonetisation. "It will pave the way for unity of opposition parties to take on the BJP and Modi-led government ahead of assembly polls in some states." Earlier, he targeted Modi's decision of demonetisation, saying it has failed and would meet the same fate as the Congress' forced sterilisation in the mid-70s during the Emergency. "'Notebandi' ka wahi haal hoga jo Congress ke 'nasbandi' ka hua tha (Demonetisation will meet the same fate as forced sterilisation)," the RJD chief said. "It is not 'notebandi', it is 'farzibandi' that has put common people in deep trouble," Lalu said, adding that Modi has cheated people. He reminded Modi of his promise made during the Lok Sabha polls of bringing back black money stashed abroad. "Black money has not been brought back and the Rs 15 lakh, which Narendra Modi promised, has not been deposited in anyone's bank account yet," he said. Lalu has been opposing demonetisation ever since its announcement on November 8, unlike Janata Dal-United President and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who is supporting it. --IANS ik/nir/bg Clinton says she lost election due to 'unprecedented' Russian cyberattacks United States,Politics, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Washington, Dec 17 (IANS) Former Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said her defeat in the November 8 election was due to a series of "unprecedented" events -- Russian cyberattacks and new FBI accusations about her handling of e-mails containing classified government information. According to an audio reported on Friday by The New York Times, Clinton, who lost the election to Republican Donald Trump by not winning the necessary minimum of 270 Electoral College votes, said her defeat was in part due to Putin's "personal beef against me". In that statement, made Thursday at a private fundraiser in New York, the Democrat blamed her loss on last-minute changes among undecided voters in America's swing states, due to "some unprecedented factors that I don't think we can ignore", EFE news reported. Clinton said the letter from FBI Director James Comey just a week before the election, which revived the controversy over her supposedly improper use of her personal server for classified government communications, was one of the factors that switched the vote against her in key states like Florida, North Carolina, and those in the Midwestern rust belt. "Swing-state voters made their decisions in the final days breaking against me because of the FBI letter from Director Comey," Clinton said in the audio obtained by the The New York Times. The former Democratic candidate recalled that she got some three million votes more than Trump nationwide, a number insufficient to win her the necessary number of electoral votes in swing states. The other factor that inclined the balance in favour of the magnate, according to the ex-Secretary of State, was "the unprecedented Russian plot to swing this election", which is, she said, "something every American should be worried about". The former First Lady repeated the news indicating that Putin knew all about what was going on and personally directed "the covert cyberattacks against our electoral system, against our democracy, apparently because he has a personal beef against me". The United States has strong indications that Russian hackers infiltrated e-mails of Clinton campaign personnel and Republican campaign staff members. Clinton said that Putin directed the attacks because he was enraged about the massive protests against him years before he returned to power, protests that he blames on the then-US Secretary of State. --IANS lok/ Important: The opinions expressed in WebMD Blogs are solely those of the User, who may or may not have medical or scientific training. These opinions do not represent the opinions of WebMD. Blogs are not reviewed by a WebMD physician or any member of the WebMD editorial staff for accuracy, balance, objectivity, or any other reason except for compliance with our Terms and Conditions. Some of these opinions may contain information about treatments or uses of drug products that have not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. WebMD does not endorse any specific product, service or treatment. Do not consider WebMD Blogs as medical advice. Never delay or disregard seeking professional medical advice from your doctor or other qualified healthcare provider because of something you have read on WebMD. You should always speak with your doctor before you start, stop, or change any prescribed part of your care plan or treatment. WebMD understands that reading individual, real-life experiences can be a helpful resource, but it is never a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment from a qualified health care provider. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call your doctor or dial 911 immediately. 8th Vibrant Gujarat Summit to have 12 partner countries Gujarat,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Ahmedabad, Dec 17 (IANS) The eighth edition of the high-profile biennial Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, a conclave of industrial investors, will be held in state capital Gandhinagar between January 10 and January 13 with 12 countries partnering the event. The event, which was initiated by Narendra Modi as Chief Minister in 2003, invited investment commitments of Rs 51,000 crore, of which 66 per cent projects have either been commissioned or are under advanced stages of implementation. Giving this information, state Chief Secretary J.N. Singh told reporters here on Saturday that the 8th edition of Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit "will be bigger and grander". He added the scale of the event will be bigger than earlier editions held under Modi, though Singh did not name him. The Summit will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister, who will throw open a Global Trade Show as well as chair a Global CEOs Roundtable. Modi will also declare open a five-week long Nobel Laureate Exhibition. Singh said the exhibition would be accompanied by panel discussions "where participants will have a unique opportunity to interact with these global minds on science and learn about the scientific developments across the world". "We will also have dedicated seminars on 'Make In Gujarat', as an extension of 'Make in India'. For the first time we are organizing 'Action Seminars' to enable 'Make your own policy environment'. The idea is to make Vibrant Gujarat a truly global platform to ideate, engage and collaborate," he said. Additional Chief Secretary (Industries and Mines) P.K. Taneja said 12 countries would partner the event as against eight in the previous edition, "which reflects the growing interest in Gujarat worldwide". "Through the 8th edition, we are also extending our commitment to encourage startups and MSMEs in the state. Additionally, we are also reaching out to other state governments to be a part of Vibrant Gujarat to truly represent our theme of 'Connecting India to the World'. I am confident of the attendees finding the summit interactive, knowledge driven and engaging," he added. The 12 partner countries are Australia, Britain, Canada, Denmark, France, Japan, Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, Sweden, UAE, and US. The event will be supported by seven partner organisations - Australia India Business Council, Indo-Canada Chambers of Commerce, Japan External Trade Organization, UAE India Business Council, UK India Business Council, US India Business Council and British Council. --IANS desai/vd Rahul, Amarinder to stay overnight at Beas sect headquarters Punjab,National,Politics,Religion, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Chandigarh, Dec 17 (IANS) Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi and state Congress president Amarinder Singh will stay at the headquarters of the Radhasoami sect on Saturday night, party sources said. The visit and stay of these top Congress leaders assumes significance since Punjab goes to assembly elections in less than two months. While Amarinder arrived at the sect headquarters, popularly known as Dera Beas, in Beas town, 40 km from Amritsar, Gandhi was expected to arrive later on Saturday. "Both leaders will stay overnight at Dera Beas. They will meet the sangat (public) coming to the dera on Sunday," a Congress leader said. The sect, which has millions of followers in Punjab and in the region, gets thousands of people from all over Punjab for its Sunday Satsang. Punjab is home to a number of sects (deras) which have considerable influence on their respective followers. Political parties and leaders try to keep the sects in good humour. The Radhasoami sect is one of the biggest sects in Punjab and has the maximum number of followers. --IANS js/vd Shah's '10 years older' remark 'extremely indecent': Trinamool West Bengal,National,Politics, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Kolkata, Dec 17 (IANS) A West Bengal Minister on Saturday dubbed as "extremely indecent" BJP President Amit Shah's remark about Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee "looking 10 years older in a single night" post demonetisation. The state's Urban Development Minister and senior Trinamool Congress leader Firhad Hakim said: "Such comments about the Chief Minister are extremely indecent." Shah at a rally in Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh said: "Have you seen the faces of Mamata (Banerjee) and Mayawati? Their faces have lost glow. In a single night, they have started looking 10 years older." Hakim said: "It is true that Mamata Banerjee is saddened by the jolt to the economy of the nation following the demonetisation decision. Unlike the BJP, her heart cries for the pain of common man." Hakim also accused the BJP of hoarding black money. "It's better not to talk about the culture of a party like the BJP that practises communal politics and was deeply involved in the communal riots in Gujarat. "Modesty and good culture can't be expected from them," the minister added. Shah's remark also drew flak from a section of women activists and intellectuals. Sunanda Mukherjee, the Chairperson of West Bengal Commission for Women, said the BJP is resorting to "personal attacks on women politicians". "Such comments about prominent women politicians like Mamata Banerjee and Mayawati are indecent and disrespectful. It is a pity that he does not know how to talk about a Chief Minister," Mukherjee said. Banerjee, also the Trinamool supremo, has been at war with the Narendra Modi government over demonetisation, which has caused a severe cash crunch in the country. --IANS mgr-sgh/nir/bg Portal on radiation status of mobile towers soon Rajasthan,National,Technology,Human Interest/Society, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Jaipur, Dec 17 (IANS) To allay the fears of the general public on mobile tower radiation, the Department of Telecom (DoT) will unveil a portal soon to check radiation compliance status of towers, Union Minister Manoj Sinha said on Saturday. Speaking at an awareness programme organised here on Electromagnetic Field Emissions and Mobile Towers, the Union Minister of State for Communications told media persons: "The portal -- Tarang Sanchar -- is expected to be operational by next month." With its help, people will be able to check the current status of a mobile tower located anywhere in the country as well as its electromagnetic field (EMF) emissions signal compliance status. However, it does not come free as a fee would be charged for the test of a particular tower. "The tests are usually conducted on random basis by us, but if someone wants a particular tower tested, then it can be carried out for a fee," Telecom Secretary J.S. Deepak said at the event, organised under the aegis of the Ministry of Communications. According to Deepak, a fee of Rs 5,000 would be charged for conducting an on-demand test of a specific tower. The awareness programme was part of a nationwide programme to facilitate the Digital India initiative. --IANS as/nir/bg Tanzania dismisses reported Zika virus outbreak Tanzania,Health/Medicine, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Dar es Salaam, Dec 17 (IANS) Tanzania health authorities on Friday allayed fears of the reported Zika virus detection saying the World Health Organisation (WHO) was yet to confirm the reports. Xinhua news agency quoted Ummy Mwalimu, the Minister for Health, as saying that any outbreak of a disease with international concern had to be verified and announced by the global health agency. The Zika virus, which was isolated from monkeys in Uganda about 70 years ago, has prompted worldwide concern after it began spreading very fast in the Americas early this year. Zika viruses are believed to cause serious damage to a foetus such that babies are born with brain damage and head deformity. "No Zika virus has been verified in the country so far. The Zika virus is an international reportable disease of which any discerned condition must be verified by the WHO in collaboration with the office of the Chief Government Medical Officer in the respective country," she said. --IANS lok/ Blac Chyna was forced to 'hide' first pregnancy United States,Cinema/Showbiz,Hollywood, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Los Angeles, Dec 17 (IANS) Model Blac Chyna says she had to "hide" her first pregnancy when she was expecting her son King Cairo, who is now four years old. Chyna, who also has one-month-old daughter Dream Renee with her fiance Rob Kardashian, loved being able to share the journey to Dream's birth so publicly with her family, friends and fans, reports nydailynews.com. In a preview for an upcoming episode of "Rob & Chyna: Baby Special", Chyna said: "With my first pregnancy, I didn't do a maternity shoot, I didn't have a baby shower. "Having to hide your pregnancy is just not a good feeling. So now, with this baby, it's really important everybody that supported me share this moment." --IANS sas/rb Militants overrun security camp in Manipur, loot nine guns Manipur,National,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Imphal, Dec 17 (IANS) In a surprise attack, a large group of tribal militants overran a paramilitary camp in Manipur's Noney district and fled with nine assorted automatic guns, official sources said. The incident occurred around 11.30 a.m in the camp manned by personnel of India Reserve Battalion and Manipur Rifles at Nungkao in the newly-carved out district. The camp, located about 10 km away from the national highway, houses security forces protecting personnel of the Bharatiya Infos Pvt Ltd undertaking tunnelling for rail lines there. "About 70 militants raided the camp. They were in combat fatigue and carried highly sophisticated weapons," an official said. The militants also opened fire before decamping but there were no casualties. Reinforcements had been despatched to the area while officials at the spot said that they are making inventory of the arms and ammunition lost. They later announced that the militants had made away with four self-loading rifles, four INSAS rifles and an AK 47 rifle and some assorted ammunition. Earlier reports said that the militants had fled with almost 20 weapons. Meanwhile, in Imphal, two Manipur Rifles personnel opened fire at the women who were blocking the Tiddim road but fortunately no casualties were reported. The incident took place during the 24-hour general strike called by womenfolk to protest killings of three policemen and attacks on security personnel. "The personnel are the house guards of Congress MLA Phungzathang Tonsing. After opening fire, they rushed inside the residence of the MLA," a women protestor said. However, police reached the spot and brought them out. The two were allowed to go after they tendered an unqualified apology to the protestors. --IANS il/sm/vd Sharma hits out at Modi for insulting Indira Gandhi Delhi,National,Politics, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS New Delhi, Dec 17 (IANS) Senior Congress leader Anand Sharma on Saturday, taking on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for making a comment on former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, asked him to to stop "insulting" former heads of government. He also noted that "she would not have said anything to her ministers in presence of any other person". "Stop insulting former Prime Ministers. Change the narrative and mindset. From Jawaharlal Nehru to Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Manmohan Singh to Indira Gandhi, it is a long list. "When you insult them, you do not insult Indira and Nehru, you also insult Lal Bahadur Shastri and Morarji Desai who demonetised high-value currency in 1978," said Sharma at the 89th AGM of industry chamber Ficci. Modi on Friday said that demonetisation should have been done in 1971 when Indira Gandhi was heading the government, referring to former bureaucrat Madhav Godbole's book in which he has recorded how then Finance Minister Y.B. Chavan had recommended demonetisation to curb ill-gotten and hidden wealth. He had said Gandhi turned down the proposal, telling Chavan whether he expected the Congress to never contest another election. "In 1971, more than 45 years back, I was 17 years, Modjiji was 19 or 20 years of age. It is interesting to know that he had this knowledge what Indira Gandhi had said during that time. "He mentioned Godbole's book. Madhav Godbole was later the Home Secretary of India. But in 1971, he was the special assistant to India's Finance Minister Y.B. Chavan. "I don't think Indira Gandhi would call the personal secretary and others in a meeting along with the Finance Minister. One can write anything about anyone after he or she dies," added Sharma. "Which PM will talk to the Finance Minister in front of his personal assistants?" he asked. "Some write the truth, and some write fictions. Who will you ask? Y.B. Chavan is no more, Indira ji not there. It was a discussion between the two, the third person is writing about it and the fourth person is spreading it," said Sharma, adding that the recommendations of Wanchoo committee to demonetise high-currency notes was accepeted by Indira Gandhi in 1976 which was a matter of record. He later said it was sad and outrageous to have insulted Indira Gandhi on Vijay Diwas - a day commemorated every year on December 16 as a mark of military victory over Pakistan in 1971 during the Bangladesh Liberation War. "It is sad 1971 was the year when India gave Indira Gandhi a massive mandate. This was day to salute Indira Gandhi and not insult her," said Sharma. Hitting out at Modi for calling himself a fakir, Sharma said: "I do not have that kind of a wardrobe but I will not call myself a fakir. We are public servants. We must serve people and understand their pain. We must all have humility." Sharma also said during the session that reforms needed to be an ongoing process and this started way back in 1950s with Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi, which was carried forward by Rajiv Gandhi. "It was in their tenures that the major reforms in India's manufacturing, services particularly the IT and communications, telecom were announced. It was under the able leadership of Rajiv Gandhi that India saw the first big revolution in IT," he said. --IANS sid/vd Mayawati accuses Modi of 'criminal indifference' to people's cash problems Uttar Pradesh,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Lucknow, Dec 17 (IANS) Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Saturday lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation, accusing him of "criminal indifference" to problems being faced by people in the wake of the move. In a statement, the former UP Chief Minister said that rather than realising the blunder he has committed, Modi and senior ministers are making fun of the people by saying that they are supporting the move. "When the entire country is standing in queues outside banks and ATMs, even claiming that people are supporting demonetisation is like adding insult to injury," she added. The BJP, she contended, has not learnt even from the misfired 2004 "India Shining" campaign when it was claiming all-round progress, while the country voted them out. "This will be repeated again," she added. "The fact that people are not able to withdraw from banks their own hard-earned money is a matter of shame for this government," she said. Taking on her arch rival - the state's ruling Samajwadi Party, she said that the "old BJP friend" is now tacitly supporting demonetisation as is evident in cane charges and use of force on people standing in queues outside banks in the state. --IANS md/nir/vd Microsoft releases dataset to help researchers create AI tools United States,Science/Tech,Technology,Business/Economy, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS New York, Dec 17 (IANS) Microsoft has released a set of 100,000 questions and answers that artificial intelligence (AI) researchers can use to create systems that can read and answer questions as precisely as a human. "The dataset is called MS MARCO, which stands for Microsoft MAchine Reading COmprehension, and can be used to teach artificial intelligence systems to recognise questions and formulate answers and, eventually, to create systems that can come up with their own answers based on unique questions they have not seen before," said Microsoft in a blog post. By providing realistic questions and answers, the researchers said they can train systems to better deal with the nuances and complexities of questions regular people actually ask, including those queries that have no clear answer or multiple possible answers. "Our dataset is designed not only using real-world data but also removing such constraints so that the new-generation deep learning models can understand the data first before they answer questions," added Li Deng, Partner Research Manager of Microsoft's Deep Learning Technology Centre. The MS MARCO dataset is available for free to any researcher who wants to download it and use it for non-commercial applications, Microsoft said. --IANS anuj/vm In The Personal Wealth Interests of Politicians and the Stabilization of Financial Markets, researchers from the London Business School and Tillburg University demonstrate the likelihood of US members of Congress voting in favor of bank bailouts was correlated with those politicians' individual investments in banking stocks. Critically, the researchers tease out an overall support for the finance industry (which might lead politicians to both invest in, and vote in favor of, the banks) by comparing the voting records of Congress members who had once held bank stocks, but did not hold them at the time of the bailout votes. Also positively correlated with bailout votes: members of Congress whose spouses' 401(k)s had lost value after the 2008 crisis. The new data showing a correlation between wealth and policymaking emerges at a moment when federal offices are increasingly held by the rich. In the current Congress, the median lawmaker's net worth is more than $1 million and 271 of the 533 members are millionaires. Meanwhile, president-elect Donald Trump has appointed a Cabinet of corporate moguls, CEOs and wealthy political figures whose combined net worth is more than $14 billion. The Personal Wealth Interests of Politicians and the Stabilization of Financial Markets [Ahmed Tahoun and Laurence van Lent/Institute for New Economic Thinking] Lawmakers Who Owned Bank Stock Were More Likely To Vote For Wall Street Bailout: Study [David Sirota/International Business Times] (via Naked Capitalism) Dalai-Pranab meet sends message to world: Sangay Himachal Pradesh,National,Politics,Diplomacy, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Dharamsala, Dec 17 (IANS) Tibetan Prime Minister-in-exile Lobsang Sangay on Saturday said that a meeting between Dalai Lama and President Pranab Mukherjee sent a message of hope to the Tibetans living in Tibet and to governments around the world. Asking China not to dictate its terms to India, Sangay said: "India is a sovereign country and the head of the state is free to meet anyone he wishes to. China shouldn't be dictating its terms to India." His reaction came a day after China's objection to Dalai Lama's December 10 meeting with Mukherjee at the Rashtrapathi Bhavan in New Delhi during a children's summit. China said New Delhi must respect Beijing's "core interests" to avoid "any disturbance" in the bilateral ties. India on Friday downplayed China's protest, saying the event attended by the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader was "non-political". Beijing accuses the 14th Dalai Lama, who fled to India in 1959, of secessionist activities in Tibet. However, the spiritual leader claims that he only wants more autonomy for Tibet. The office of Dalai Lama is based in this north Indian hill station. --IANS vg/ahm/vm 11 opposition legislators suspended from Telangana assembly Andhra Pradesh,National,Politics, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Hyderabad, Dec 17 (IANS) Eleven opposition members of the Telangana assembly were suspended on Saturday from for a day for disrupting its proceedings. Speaker Madhusudhana Chary suspended nine legislators of main opposition Congress party and two of Telugu Desam Party (TDP) after legislative affairs minister Harish Rao moved a resolution. The opposition lawmakers were insisting for a debate on their demand for disqualification of the legislators who defected to ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS). As the speaker rejected their adjournment motion, the legislators trooped into the well of the house. Amid the uproar, Harish Rao moved a resolution for their suspension for one day. The speaker announced their suspension and asked them to leave the house. Congress leader K. A. Jana Reddy termed the suspension as unfortunate. He said never in the past such action was taken against the members without a warning. The opposition parties were unhappy over the delay that in disqualification of defected MLAs. The speaker said the matter was under his consideration and members should wait for his decision. More than a dozen legislators of opposition parties have crossed over to TRS during last two years. --IANS ms/ahm/vm 'Go digital' drive brought cyber security to the fore in India (2016 in Retrospect) Delhi,National,Technology,Features, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS New Delhi, Dec 17 (IANS) With the country logging into the digital world to become a cashless economy, the threat of data breach loomed over both public and private enterprises, with several such cases being reported through the year -- forcing the government to wake up from its slumber and prepare for digital war. In one of the financial sector's biggest cyber threats, millions of debit cards were compromised after a malware-related security breach was detected in a particular ATM network in October. The State Bank of India (SBI), HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and YES Bank were among those which reported several of their customers' debit cards being compromised. India was also listed among the top five in the world to be attacked by ransomware -- malware that forces its victims to pay a ransom through certain online payment methods to regain their data -- as reported by Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab, a leading software security group operating in almost 200 countries and territories worldwide. In September, Trend Micro Incorporated, a global leader in security software and solutions, reported that over 180 Indian companies were victims of ransomware in the first six months of 2016. Indian businesses lost over $1 million from data losses and downtime in the last 12 months, a survey by EMC Corporation -- the world's largest data storage multinational -- revealed in July. According to EMC, 46 per cent of organisations in India suffered unplanned system downtime and/or data loss due to external or internal security breaches. Amid this, Pavan Duggal, the country's leading cyber law expert, lamented that Indian Cyber law does not have adequate provisions to deal with the growing cyber threats. "The Information Technology Act, 2000, amended in 2008, still does not comprehensively deal with all relevant issues in the cyber security ecosystem. India not being a signatory to any international treaty on cyber crime complicates the intrinsic ability of the immense law and legal frameworks to provide effective remedies against cyber crimes which are committed from abroad," Duggal told IANS. With increased 4G and 3G penetration, the internet user-base in India is expected to double to 600 million users by 2020 from the current 343 million -- so the threat will only grow. "With the surge in digital transactions via e-wallets and other online payment gateways, mobile frauds are expected to grow to 60-65 per cent in the country by 2017," warned leading industry body Assocham and global research firm EY in December. According to Oracle India Managing Director Shailender Kumar, security breaches have moved information security from a hidden corner of the IT function to a topic of strategic importance to both business and society. "Towards the beginning of 2016, cyber security had started to become a boardroom discussion. It has emerged to be a key concern for IT and business managers alike this year. In 2017, if security is not attended to, it will negatively impact not only the brand reputation but also the shareholders' trust, revenue loss and result in higher risks for organisation," Kumar told IANS. With more and more Indians buying phones, enhanced security for the devices became another concern this year. India is the second-largest mobile phone market globally, with over one billion mobile subscriptions. Of this, smartphone users account for approximately 240 million subscriptions, which is expected to grow to 520 million by 2020, said a joint study by Assocham and Deloitte released in December. The threat gets bigger with more and more people embracing mobile digital payments in the wake of demonetisation. "Mobile continues to be an area of exposure. As we get more and more used to transactions with mobile banking or e-commerce, mobile becomes more of a financial gateway and the implications are huge," said Anand Ramamoorthy, Managing Director, South Asia, Intel Security. Keeping this in mind, the IT industry's apex body Nasscom and the Data Security Council of India (DSCI) launched a detailed road map for the next 10 years. Titled "Growing Cyber Security Industry, Road Map for India," the report identifies Managed Security Service (MSS), Security and Vulnerability Management (SVM) and Network Security (NS) as attractive emerging opportunities globally. Nasscom-DSCI have also established the Cyber Security Task Force (CSTF) initiative that aims to create one million cyber security jobs and 1,000 cyber security start-ups by 2025. As the year drew to an end, the hacker group "Legion" broke into the Twitter accounts of the Congress Party, its Vice President Rahul Gandhi, controversial liquor baron Vijay Mallya and TV journalists Barkha Dutt and Ravish Kumar, threatening to leak data that will create "chaos" in India. The government later asked the micro-blogging website to strengthen its security and announced measures like audit of the Indian IT infrastructure and setting up a task force to quicken action on cyber security. Highlights of the Indian cyber security scene in 2016: * The government announced it will set up the National Cyber Coordination Centre (NCCC) to provide near real-time situational awareness and rapid response to cyber attacks; expected to be operational by March 2017. * India poised to build a cyber security product and services industry of $35 billion by 2025 and generate a skilled workforce of one million in the security sector. * The Ministry of Electronics and IT ordered review of the IT Act 2000 and set up a crack team to respond to cyber security incidents quickly. * Nasscom and the Data Security Council of India (DSCI) launched a detailed road map for the next 10 years. (This is a part of a series of articles from IANS that look back at the year that was. Nishant Arora can be contacted at nishant.a@ians.in) --IANS na/vm/ky/sac Now Google, Apple won't help Trump build Muslim registry United States,Technology, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS New York, Dec 17 (IANS) Soon after Facebook and Twitter clarified that they will not help US President-elect Donald Trump's idea of developing a Muslim registry, tech giants like Google, Apple and global cab-hailing app company Uber also said they will also oppose such an effort. "In relation to the hypothetical of whether we would ever help build a 'Muslim registry' -- we have not been asked, of course we would not do this and we are glad -- from all that we have read -- that the proposal does not seem to be on the table," Buzzfeed quoted a Google spokesperson as saying on Saturday. But if it's ever asked to participate, "of course (Google) would not do (it)," the spokespserson added. An Apple spokesperson also noted that the company "thinks people should be treated the same no matter how they worship, what they look like, who they love". "We have not been asked and we would oppose such an effort," the Apple spokesperson added. Uber also clarified with a "No," stressing that it would not help Trump build a Muslim registry. On December 4, US-based news website Intercept reported that of the nine major tech giants, including Facebook, Apple and Google, only Twitter declined to help if US President-elect Donald Trump seeks to create a national Muslim registry. According to the report, the firms were asked if they would sell their services to help create a national Muslim registry -- an idea recently refloated by President-elect Donald Trump's transition team -- and only Twitter said no. Nearly 10 days later, Facebook broke the silence and said that it would not help US President-elect Donald Trump's administration to create a list of Muslims present in the US. In a statement to the Intercept, Facebook said: "No one has asked us to build a Muslim registry, and of course we would not do so." Facebook broke its silence after 22 different advocacy groups petitioned those companies to respond. Microsoft returned with an answer saying, "We're not going to talk about hypotheticals at this point." "We oppose discrimination and we would not do any work to build a registry of Muslim Americans," Microsoft PR head Frank X. Shaw was quoted as saying. Oracle CEO Safra Katz, who is slated to join Trump's transition team, declined to respond to Buzzfeed News' question. Meanwhile, IBM, IT giant SRA International, Canada-based Information technology consulting company CGI and Management consulting company Booz Allen Hamilton were yet to respond. --IANS qd/sku/na/vm Daniel Radcliffe loves to shock people by smoking United States,Cinema/Showbiz,Hollywood, Sun, 18 Dec 2016 IANS Los Angeles, Dec 18 (IANS) Actor Daniel Radcliffe likes to shock people by asking them for cigarette lighters because most people don't expect the "Harry Potter" star to smoke. "I do smoke and I like roll-ups. I get a kick out of asking people for a light - I'm always losing lighters. They fumble in their pockets, look up and realise they've committed the crime of giving Harry Potter cancer," Radcliffe told the Sun Newspaper, reports femalefirst.co.uk. He is currently dating a New-York based actress Erin Darke, and says the pair have a romantic trans-Atlantic love. "I live in both London and New York. My girlfriend and I hop back and forth, so we're constantly saying goodbye but looking forward to seeing each other. It's quite a romantic state to be in," he said. And although the actor loved working on the "Harry Potter" movies, he is happy to have moved on from the role of the young wizard. He said: "I'm not Harry Potter any more, but I don't regret a day of it. I had the time of my life. People look at me with pity sometimes. I know it's because they think I didn't have a childhood, that I was like a slave to the 'Potter' set. "But it was fun hanging out with Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, and the most fascinating grown-ups like Alan Rickman, Julie Walters and Maggie Smith. You don't meet those characters every day and they were like family to me." --IANS dc/nv/ Share Wireless communications and networks were front and center this week in Next Generation Communications. That should come as no surprise, as communications are increasingly happening over mobile devices and networks, and advancement of technology in this realm is moving forward at a rapid pace. Heres a quick rundown to remind you what Next Generation Communications reported on this week. I wrote up a Q&A based on an interview with NetGen Communications CEO Mike Coffee. It was part of TMCs (News - Alert) effort to touch base with a handful of industry leaders at the end of the year and on the eve of ITEXPO to get their views on key trends and emerging technologies. NetGen will be at the Feb. 8-10 event in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., displaying a new premises product line for small and medium enterprises that include ATAs and gateways, and IP PBXs. This week I also did a piece about how Nokia (News - Alert) and Vodafone worked together to test network functions virtualization and radio access network technologies in Italy. This kind of thing is expected to allow for a smoother transition from 4G to 5G, according to the companies. This effort involved the Nokia AirScale Cloud RAN running on AirFrame NFV infrastructure, and it split the base processing between real-time and non-real-time functions. A third piece by yours truly talked about a new Mobile Experts LLC study indicating a current slowing in the wireless backhaul market but the expected acceleration in this arena in the years ahead. Meanwhile, Steve Anderson this week wrote about a new report from Juniper Research that suggests that by 2018 mobile and M2M will account for 129,000 petabytes a year. That, Anderson said, is an indicator that the cellular industry needs to stop relying on throttling and augment current networks. Of course, cellular network operators have spent handsomely on their infrastructure and continue to enhance it with the latest versions of 4G and other technology. Theres also been a lot of work lately by cellcos and suppliers to get ready for 5G. Next Generation Communications this week also featured a story authored by Michael Guta. It discussed an effort by The Humanitarian Cooperative and Nokia to film a short movie about Syrian refugees. The documentary was created using Nokias OZO VR camera. Edited by Alicia Young After wishing for it to be Christmas every day, Timmy tries to rescue an overworked Santa in this festive video clip fromChristmas holiday special, "Christmas Everyday!"!:Tune into the ultimate Nick Christmas Party for festive episodes of your favourite Nickelodeon shows everyday from 4:00pm, only on Nickelodeon UK & Ireland/HD, plus, don't forget to enter " "Stuck Up Christmas" ", everyday from 7am on Nicktoons, to win fantastic prizes! Predator-Elect Donald J. Trump has made it clear which American newspaper he likes the least: The Washington Post. The paper ran a series of investigative stories that got under Trump's thin skin, like David Fahrenthold's expose of some of his financial lies. The paper owned by Amazon's Jeff Bezos has now followed up with something truly magnificent a tool that fact-checks his tweets. The "RealDonaldContext" plug-in for Google's Chrome browser was released by Washington Post reporter Philip Bump. Philip Bump says, We made a tool that slips a bit more context into Trump's tweets. It's still in the early stages, but our goal is to provide additional context where needed for Trump's tweets moving forward (and a few golden oldies). Download the tool here to add fact-check overviews to selected Trump tweets. You have to click a post in his feed to view the Washington Post fact-check summary, a grey text box that pops up below the tweet. Not 100% of his tweets have been fact-checked in this service. It's a wonderful, innovative use of technology, and I hope other news organizations are paying attention. From the announcement: It takes a little while for the Chrome extension to update, so we'll try to stay up to speed on fact-checking what Trump is tweeting, but it may take a few minutes. This is a work in progress, so don't hesitate to offer feedback and thoughts. And don't hesitate to point to Trump tweets that could use a little explication. That's the goal, after all. [Install for Google Chrome] Issam Jaafari has been crowned winner of Pan-Arab program Top Chef Award after several weeks of contests. He brilliantly won the award on December 14 after outclassing his challengers. The program aired in several Arab countries was watched by millions of spectators. Jaafari is not at his first competition. In 2012 he represented Morocco at Bocuse dOr, equivalent of World gastronomy competition in Lyon, in France. Working then at Palais Saadi of Marrakech, he failed to win the prize contested by 23 other global chefs. The defeat did not shatter his determination. In 2013, he saw off his opponents at Frances Toulouse National cuisine academy competition. The 31-year old chef started his carrier in 2004. He has worked for celebrated Moroccos hotels in Casablanca and Marrakech namely Palais Saadi and Maison Rahal. The parents of Cheikh Ould Mohamed Ould Mkheitir, a Mauritanian blogger condemned to death for apostasy, have filed asylum application in French embassy in Senegal arguing that their life has become a real hell for them in the North African country since the moment their son has been charged. Both mother and father of Ould Mkheitir arrived in the Senegalese capital on December 13 and applied for asylum in France the following day, Alakhbar media reports citing a security source. Ould Mkheitir was sentenced to death in 2014 for publishing on internet an article deemed religiously deviant and against Prophet Mohammed. A court of appeal in the city of Nouadhibou, North-East of the country, confirmed the sentence in April this year but decided to hand over the case to the Supreme Court after Mkheitir repented from his action. A forum of countrys Islamic clerics last month opposed the court willingness to grant the blogger clemency and urged the court to ignore his repentance. Ould Mkheitirs father has been reportedly fired from his job as prefect of Nouadhibou prefecture, since the publication of his sons controversial article. Russian Presidents Special Envoy for the Middle East and North Africa and Deputy Foreign Minister, Mikhail Bogdanov, lauded the positions adopted by Morocco in support of peaceful and political solutions to crises in the Middle East and in Africa. The Russian official made the statement following talks in Rabat Thursday with Moroccan Foreign Minister, Salaheddine Mezouar. He welcomed the coordination between the two countries concerning a set of reginal issues, notably in the Middle East and Africa. The two countries have adopted similar positions which reflect in many questions in the Middle East and Africa, notably in areas of counter-terrorism and the protection of stability and security, said Bogdanov. The Russian official also expressed satisfaction at the level of cooperation with Morocco, saying that the state visit by King Mohammed VI to Moscow added momentum to bilateral relations with the signing of several cooperation agreements. Early in December, Mezouar reiterated to Russias Ambassador in Rabat Moroccos commitment in favor of strong ties with Russia following statements by Head of the Government Benkirane who ascribed Syrias destruction to the Russian intervention. During that meeting, the Foreign Minister made it clear that Morocco remains attached to the strategic partnership with Russia which was established during the visit King Mohammed VI paid to Moscow in March this year. He then reiterated Moroccos stance regarding the crisis in Syria, saying that the Kingdom supports efforts to reach a political solution to ensure the stability, territorial integrity and unity of Syria. On the same occasion, the Moroccan official stressed the need for the involvement of the international community and for action on the ground to influence the course of events. Mezouar also commended Russias efforts as well as it role on several other international issues. King Mohammed VI has renewed his resolve to boost his countrys strategic cooperation with Russia and to work, to this end, hand in hand with President Vladimir Putin. This came during the talks he held at the Royal palace in Casablanca Friday with Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Nikolai Patrouchev, who is on a working visit to Morocco, a statement by the Royal office said. The meeting is part of the enhanced strategic partnership sealed between the two countries during the Monarchs state visit to Moscow last March. The visit to Morocco of the Secretary of the Russian Security Council confirms the depth of security cooperation between the two countries, the statement said, adding that during the Friday meeting, the Sovereign extended an invitation to President Vladimir Putin to pay a state visit to Morocco. On Thursday, Nikolai Patrouchev held separate meetings with several senior Moroccan officials, including Minister of the Interior Mohamed Hassad and heads of Moroccos foreign and domestic intelligence agencies, Mohammed Yassine Mansouri and Abdellatif Hammouchi. EU officials and media continue to voice concern over the threats of instability in Algeria, which braces for a political crisis marked by the opacity of the regime and disagreements on who will succeed the ailing President Bouteflika and an economic crisis triggered by shrinking oil revenues. Europe should draw lessons from the tragedy in Aleppo. It should prepare for a new crisis emerging in its immediate neighborhood: Algeria with its 40 million people is waiting for the clinical death of President Bouteflika, who has been unable to rule for years, said Pierre Defraigne, Honorary Director General at the European Commission Executive and Executive Director of the Madariaga at the College of Europe. Disagreement on who will be at the helm of the Algerian regime after Bouteflika will spark a decades-long conflict between Islamists and the military junta, he noted, adding that the widespread corruption and oppression provide combustible material for a civil war in the North African country. Schengen will not be able to resist as well as the EUs unity, he warned, alluding to the waves of Algerian refugees that will flow to Europe in the case of a civil war. In the same vein, British weekly, The Spectator, recently published an article showing Algeria as the biggest danger facing the EU. The author, Stephen Pollard, argues that the death of long-serving President Bouteflika will lead to the implosion of Algeria as the Islamists whom he has kept at bay by a firm grip will fill in the void. He said that intelligence services in western countries are aware of the combustible situation in Algeria where a resurgence of Islamists is impending after the Bouteflika era. He explained that Islamist leaders have switched tactics as they managed to gear education to their ideological referential and campaigned to block any government move towards modernity, as they did with the family code which keeps women subservient to men. The Islamists move to seize power after the death of Bouteflika will certainly trigger a civil war that will dwarf the war in Syria, he said. An Algerian civil war would create huge numbers of refugees, said the author, putting the numbers of expected refugees between 10 to 15 million. The President of the African Union Commission, South Africas Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, came under harsh criticism for her deafening silence on the violations of human rights and the 1951 Geneva convention by Algerian authorities which have recently deported thousands of Sub-Saharan migrants. Officials from Mali, Senegal and Cote dIvoire have all condemned the silence of the AU official in the face of the abhorrent racist treatment of Algerian authorities who have arrested Sub-Saharan migrants before transporting and abandoning them in the desert in northern Niger. By turning a blind eye on the summary deportations by Algeria and the calls of national and international NGOs for a halt of these mass expulsions of people in need of international protection, Zuma, in connivance with Algeria, shows that her personal biases and political alliances take precedence over humanitarian considerations thus adding yet another moral fiasco to her mandate. Her tenure at the AU was an utter fiasco. She willfully led the AU to the abyss due to a lack of vision. When she took office, Africa was struggling with multiple security, environmental and health challenges. Her input to resolving the political crises that erupted during her term, whether in South Sudan, Burkina Faso, Libya or recently in Burundi, was so insignificant and reflective of a lack of knowledge about Africa. The same thing can be said about her poor handling of the Ebola crisis and the migration crisis. It took her eight months and the tragic death of 2800 persons to organize the first emergency meeting of the AU. Zuma has also been criticized for her poor achievement at the African Union as she was more focused on using her position at the African Union to gaining political support at home rather than to addressing Africas pressing issues. The Neurological Institute at Montreal's McGill University is host to the "Tanenbaum Open Science Institute," endowed by a $20M contribution; since last spring, the unit has pursued an ambitious open science agenda that includes open access publication of all research data and findings, and an end to the practice of patenting the university's findings. Instead, they will all be patent-free and usable by anyone. They see this as a pilot program for open science across disciplines and institutions. The CBIG-Repository is already partnering with the Quebec Parkinson Network. "That pilot project is the best example of what we hope to do," says Karamchandani. "We already have more than 100 patients [with Parkinson's disease] who have altruistically agreed to donate to CBIG. Fifty of those patients will receive high-level imaging and all of this will be anonymous, de-identified and placed on a secure server where researchers with an ethically valid and scientifically valid question can access the elements of the data that they require to answer their research questions." Tanenbaum hopes that the Neuro's open science practices won't be a one-way street. "One of the first challenges is to get other institutions that are dealing with neurological research and brain disease to open up their science, too. That's why part of my gift is a challenge fund to encourage other institutions to do this." The Neuro expects its open science policies will spur new partnerships with other organizations and companies that are trying to develop treatments for brain diseases. Patents can get in the way of these sorts of collaborations. In a recent piece published in the journal PLOS Biology, McGill law professor Richard Gold, BSc'84, wrote that the Neuro hopes its approach to open science "will draw companies to the Montreal region, where the Neuro is based, leading to the creation of a local knowledge hub." Gold, an expert on intellectual property issues who has been serving as an open science adviser to the Neuro, added that the plan was already bearing fruit Thermo Fisher Scientific, a multinational biotech firm interested in neurodegenerative diseases, will be partnering with the Neuro. The USNS Bowditch. Photo: US Navy China has agreed to return a U.S. underwater-research drone, which it had seized in international waters on Thursday. Upon confirming that the device was a U.S. underwater drone, the Chinese side decided to transfer it to the U.S. side in an appropriate manner, a spokesperson for the countrys defense ministry said on Saturday, though China also complained that the U.S. had unilaterally hyped up the issue. Along those lines, President-elect Donald Trump criticized the incident via Twitter on Saturday morning, explaining that China rips it out of the water and takes it back to China in unpresidented act. Trumps tweet, the misspelling later corrected, followed an earlier demand by the Pentagon for China to return the unlawfully seized drone. Once China agreed to give it back and the Pentagon confirmed, President-elect Trump seemed annoyed with the diplomatic dance between the U.S. and one of the worlds only other superpowers, tweeting on Saturday night that We should tell China that we dont want the drone they stole back.- let them keep it! The Washington Post reports that one of Chinas Communist Partycontrolled newspapers, the Global Times, ridiculed Americas mixed messages on Sunday, referring to Trumps generous announcement that he didnt want the drone back, while wondering aloud, We dont know, after seeing Trumps new tweets, if the Pentagon should feel boggled. As CNN points out, its not entirely clear what the Chinese hoped to accomplish by grabbing the drone (they claimed on Saturday that it was to ensure the safe navigation of passing ships), but the move fits into a pattern of provocations undertaken by the Chinese regime since Trump and Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen participated in a phone call which upended decades of U.S. diplomatic precedent with China. That call violated the One China Policy that China insists foreign governments adhere to when it comes to dealing with Taiwan, which China considers a breakaway state. The call, which led to an official complaint from the Chinese government, was most likely co-ordinated by pro-Taiwan advisors within Trumps transition team. Trump has since said that he feels no need to respect the One China Policy, even though the threat of Taiwanese independence is arguably the foreign-policy issue that is most important to Beijing. In addition to the seizing of the underwater drone, last week China flew a nuclear-capable bomber over its disputed islands in the South China Sea, islands on which it has also reportedly been installing surface-to-air missile systems. According to the U.S., the boosted research drone was measuring ocean conditions for the USNS Bowditch, a U.S. Navy research ship, which supports worldwide oceanography programs, including performing acoustical, biological, physical and geophysical surveys. Such vessels, when operating in the South China Sea, are apparently routinely followed by China under the assumption that they are spying. This post has been updated to include Trumps second comment on the matter. Ya screwed up. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Shall we expect some transatlantic military giant, to step the Ocean, and crush us at a blow? Never If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide. That was the message Abraham Lincoln conveyed to the Young Mens Lyceum of Springfield in 1838, as the storm clouds of the Civil War were gathering. It was also, more or less, the message Barack Obama conveyed to the American people on Friday, as a man who was rejected by a majority of voters but embraced by Vladimir Putin prepares to assume the Oval Office. The presidents press conference came one week after the CIA leaked its assessment that the Russian government had interfered in the 2016 election with the intention of aiding Donald Trumps candidacy and one day after CNN reported that Trumps attempts to discredit that intelligence had led Obama to decide an orderly transition was no longer his top priority. Thus, liberals had high hopes for the presidents address. Finally, Obama would call out the president-elect for what he is; or announce that he would be appointing Merrick Garland during the legislative recess, since he has more right to pick the next Supreme Court justice than the Siberian candidate does; or call on the Electoral College electors to exercise their prerogative to spare the country from an incompetent despot foisted upon this nation by a hostile foreign power. But instead, Obama said of Russias interference, This was not some elaborate, complicated espionage scheme. They hacked into some Democratic Party emails routine stuff. The president said that he had worried the hacks of the Democratic National Committee and of Clinton campaign chair John Podesta might presage an attack on Americas voting infrastructure. So in early September when I saw president Putin in China, I felt that the most effective way to ensure that that didnt happen was to talk to him directly and tell him to cut it out and there were going to be serious consequences if he didnt, Obama explained. And in fact we did not see further tampering of the election process. In other words, Russia didnt ultimately do anything extraordinary to us. Foreign governments are going to, occasionally, succeed in hacking email systems. What was extraordinary was what we did to ourselves. I am finding it a little curious that everyone is acting surprised that this looked like it was disadvantaging Hillary Clinton, because you guys wrote about it every day, Obama said, beginning his lecture by addressing the media itself. Every single leak about every little juicy tidbit of political gossip, including John Podestas risotto recipe. I do think its worth us reflecting how it is that a presidential election of such importance, of such moment, with so many big issues at stake and such a contrast between the candidates came to be dominated by a bunch of these leaks, the president continued. It just took off. And that concerns me, and it should concern all of us. Then, Obama shifted his criticism from the reporters in the room to the voters watching at home. The Russians cant change us or significantly weaken us, the president said. They are a smaller country, they are a weaker country, their economy doesnt produce anything that anybody wants to buy except oil and gas and arms. They dont innovate. But they can impact us if we lose track of who we are, Obama continued. They can impact us if we abandon our values Mr. Putin can weaken us just like hes trying to weaken Europe if we start buying into notions that its okay to intimidate the press. Or lock up dissidents. Or discriminate against people because of their faith or what they look like. It then became unclear whether Obama was describing something that could happen to the United States or something that just did. What I worry about is because of the fierceness of the partisan battle, youve started to see certain folks in the Republican Party and Republican voters suddenly finding a government and individuals who stand contrary to everything we stand for as being okay because thats how much we dislike Democrats, he said. Obama cited the spectacle of Republicans who had criticized him for opening up relationships with Russia turning around and endorsing Trump, even as the GOP standard-bearer praised Putin. Over a third of Republican voters approve of Vladimir Putin, the former head of the KGB, he continued, citing a recent poll. Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave. In this hyperpartisan climate where the American people cannot agree on mutual sources of authority, and, thus, mutual facts we are especially vulnerable to foreign manipulation, Obama argued. If fake news thats being released by some foreign government is almost identical to news being released though partisan news venues, then its not surprising that foreign propaganda would have an effect, he reasoned, because its not that different than what folks are hearing from domestic propagandists. Thus, in sum, Obama argued that Russia cant significantly weaken us unless we have an irresponsible mainstream media incapable of exercising prudent editorial judgement, a Republican Party bereft of all princuples save the will to power, and a deeply polarized electorate that lives in different epistemological universes. Which is to say: Russia can totally, significantly weaken us. And probably just did. And we only have ourselves to blame. This was not the message that most progressives wanted to hear. It's sort of amazing to watch Obama, ever the Institutionalist, sipping coffee in the house on fire saying "This is fine." Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) December 16, 2016 That sound you hear is the heartache of millions of Democrats feeling abandoned by their leadership at the moment of maximum crisis. Peter Daou (@peterdaou) December 16, 2016 Trump is more visibly upset about a bad review of Trump Grill in Vanity Fair than Obama is about the death of the republic. Parker Molloy (@ParkerMolloy) December 16, 2016 And their disappointment is understandable. Its not obvious that its easier to arrest the decline of our civic society than it is to prevent any foreign government from ever penetrating a campaigns email system again. And Obamas remarks on Donald Trump who has chosen to discredit the entire intelligence community instead of acknowledging the existence of evidence that his victory was not solely the product of his own greatness did not indicate any deprioritization of an orderly transition. Theres just a whole different attitude and vibe when youre not in power than when youre in power, Obama said of Trumps behavior, suggesting that the only thing preventing the president-elect from comporting himself with humility and sobriety is his lack of power. Still, the essence of Obamas remarks is hard to dispute. The Republican Party didnt nominate Donald Trump because of John Podestas emails. Maybe they helped put Trump over the top on November 8, but WikiLeaks did not make a transparently unqualified, authoritarian demagogue a competitive candidate for president of the United States. Putin may have been our enabler, but we are responsible for what we did. And Obama isnt going to fix this mess for us. If resurrection be our lot, we must ourselves be its author. Photo: Sebastian Kopp/EyeEm/Getty Images Earlier this week, Oklahomas Board of Health met to discuss last Junes mandate to provide anti-abortion signs in all public bathrooms, from hospitals and restaurants to hotels and nursing homes. In addition to protests from pro-choice folks, small businesses werent thrilled about the price of complying with the measure, which would add up to around $2.3 million. This measure was part of Oklahomas Humanity of the Unborn Child Act, which was proposed by Republican senator A.J. Griffin. On Friday, Griffin introduced an amendment that would limit signage to the bathrooms of abortion providers, and instead focus efforts on an anti-abortion social-media campaign. It was never intended to be a burden on businesses or health providers. Changing to a social media campaign will actually broaden the reach and make linking pregnant women to services even more visible, read a statement from Griffin. this girl's a mess and not sure why people adore her Reply Thread Link Who Reply Thread Link Do people still give a fuck this nobody? I guess she's doing slightly better than her old ex AJ Daulerio. Reply Thread Link she spent the 500k on drugs before she'd even written a page of the book Reply Parent Thread Link mfte Reply Parent Thread Link She's awful and the definition of a mess but ngl I'm probably going to read this lol. Reply Thread Link i love hot messes so i'm definitely gonna read this Reply Thread Link She looks like Tiffany Trump in a lot of photos (not this one though lol) Reply Thread Link I do not know who this person is but I wish her luck in her recovery and hopes she uses whatever leftover attention she has from her 15 minutes for addiction advocacy Reply Thread Link She's clean now? Or is she "clean" Reply Thread Link "Clean" going by the last xoJane article I read by her about her rehab experience. Reply Parent Thread Link She wrote a new xoJane article??? Reply Parent Thread Expand Link sounds intriguing lol i've been watching that Glory Daze documentary on Netflix. it's not very good, but the Club Kid scene of the 90's is so interesting to me Reply Thread Link I hated that documentary. It was way too up its own ass. It really wanted to redeem that set and act like the murder was no big thing. Reply Parent Thread Link alig and james st James were literally joking about the murder throughout the documentary. when they were at the water and michael said "hey, do you think that's angel?" while pointing to debris floating pass them. it was AWFUL. Reply Parent Thread Link its def the worst thing made about the club kids but still interesting Reply Parent Thread Expand Link lol i hate these white chicks who manage to make $$$ by being hot messes. at least elizabeth wurtzel went to harvard and yale law, not sure why anyone should care about this cracked out ho Reply Thread Link she can be a good writer...i haven't seen anything worth reading by her in years though Reply Parent Thread Link Ia Reply Parent Thread Link Agreed. I was just thinking, a lot of people do stupid shit and sabotage their lives but bc of her job and life in NYC, her story's supposed to be more remarkable? Reply Parent Thread Link she had no business getting into yale law lol Reply Parent Thread Link Who Reply Thread Link Her names sounds vaguely familiar, I'm going to look up her articles. Reply Thread Link "clean" i hate that people enable and fund her addiction(s) by being fascinated by it. she's a train wreck Reply Thread Link These fucking asshole conservatives talking about Putin's "strong" leadership while he and his sociopathic friend Assad carpet bomb children. As Obama said the other day (and as I've been saying for a month now), Ronald Reagan must be rolling over in his grave. Reply Thread Link Obama means that with respect to the GOP's (perceived) legacy of bringing down communism in eastern Europe. Reagan has more than enough blood on his hands too. Reply Parent Thread Link I know, they go hand in hand though. And I know Reagan has a ton of blood on his hands, it's just a trip to see them go from the party of Reagan to the party of Putin. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Putin is the modern day Hitler, and Trump is his puppet. Scary AF. Reply Parent Thread Link Fuck assad and putin Reply Thread Link I am not a religious person by any means but I hope versions of heaven and hell exist to right the atrocious unfairness of life. Reply Thread Link Everything happening there is horrific and it's hard to see an end in sight. Fuck. Reply Thread Link I'm still not over the videos I saw, and the pictures of Aleppo from before and now terminal pipeline with capacity of +300k bpd. (Click to enlarge) Cushing builds and Libyan pipeline reopen hit the pause button on spread strength WTI G17/H17 traded in a wide 31 cent range this week peaking on Monday at -0.70 following the agreement on non-OPEC output cuts and reaching a low -1.01 as cash rolls traded down to -1.40 and Cushing suffered a 2nd straight large weekly build which brought stocks in the hub to 66.5m bbls. Deffered spreads also weakend slightly with M17/Z17 trading from a weekly high of +10 cents backwardation to a low of 60 cents contango on Thursday. Spread option markets saw rened bearish interest this week with trade groups and funds aggressively bidding puts in WTI F/G and WTI 2H17 US producer data has been unanimously bearish in the last week. To begin, US production reached just under 8.8m bpd for its highest print since May and an increase of 368k bpd since its July low at 8.428m bpd. The increased production has come with help from an increase in the rig count to 498 representing a 58 percent jump since May. Recent rallies in Cal 17 and Cal 18 WTI strips to +$56 has lead to an increase in producer hedging and brought the NYMEX producer/merchant gross short position to six year high. US diff market excitement was focused in the Bakken this week where Bakken-WTI spiked to -75 for a $2.25 rally in the last two weeks (unsure of the catalyst here.) Midland-WTI also traded at strong levels printing +$1.05 Thursday afternoon with trade groups still busily buying up barrels for export. In WTI-Brent arbs the H17 contract managed to slightly beat its low print from last week and briefly spiked to -1.50 on Tuesday before moving back towards -1.75on Thursday. on Thursday. Related: Combatting Cyber-Attacks In The Oil And Gas Industry Prompt brent spreads traded choppily this week in an ultimately flat trend which held on to recent gains. The weeks low print in Brent G17/H17 at -77 came following news that Libya had reopened two pipelines with capacity of 300k-400k bpd to its Zawiya refinery and export terminal. This dip was enthusiastically bought, however, and the spread moved up to -64 cents in early trading on Thursday. Further back in Cal 17 Brent M17/Z17 traded into backwardation on Monday and Tuesday with a high print of +11 cents before correction to a weekly low of -52 on Thursday. (Click to enlarge) Speculators go way long, USO liquidation continues COT data for the week ended December 6th revealed speculators as massive buyers of NYMEX WTI and ICE Brent contracts. In NYMEX WTI net length increased by 81k contracts for a 43 percent w/w increase in length. In ICE Brent net length increased by 142k contracts for a 46 percent w/w increase in length. The two contracts combined addition of 223k contracts in net length was the largest w/w increase on record. More than half of the addition to net length came from liquidation of short positions which (65k for NYMEX WTI, 60k for ICE Brent) totaled 125k. Data for NYMEX refined products followed a similar trend with RBOB net length held by speculators nearly doubling in a jump from 22k to 40k. In Heating Oil net length almost tripled in a jump from 9k to 24k. This shift in market sentiment remained in sharp contrast to ETF flows as the USO experienced a w/w outflow of $197m (for the week ended December 9th) bringing the two week total for outflows to $565m. (Click to enlarge) Option premiums flattening out at low levels WTI H17 vol was mostly quiet in the 31 percent-33 percent area this week aside from a momentary jump on Wednesday which coincided with steep FX moves following the Feds rate decision. As of Thursday morning WTI H17 50d options priced at 32 percent while 25 delta puts priced at 36 percent and 25 delta calls implied 30 percent. The NYMEX/CBOE WTI index sank below 30 percent for the first time since June 2015 on Tuesday. Realized volatility (20 day basis) was steady near 50 percent. (Click to enlarge) EIAs improve, still have work to do US crude inventories enjoyed another w/w draw and have declined by about 7m bbls over the last two weeks. Unfortunately the draw was PADD III-driven and included another Cushing build. Stocks in the hub have increased by 5m bbls in the last two weeks. US crude output jumped sharply to 8.796m bpd for a seven month high. Production has increased by more than 350k bpd since its July nadir. In refined products inventory changes were more bullish than expected and demand had a signficant w/w pickup Related: How Vision 2030 Will Transform The Oil World US crude stocks fell by 2.6m bbls w/w due largely to a 2.3m bbl w/w draw in PADD III and are now higher y/y by 5.4 percent. In PADD II inventories fell 213k bbls (+6 percent y/y,) PADD IIIs draw brought USGC inventories to a 7 percent y/y surplus and in Cushing inventories increased by 1.2m bbls to 66.5m bbls which is their highest level since June. PADD I and PADD II both reported sharp drops in w/w imports bringing overall imports down 943k bpd w/w to 7.4m bpd. US refiner inputs still look disappointing to us after a small w/w increase to 16.5m bpd. Overall inputs are lower y/y by 1.3 percent over the last four weeks and are still about 300k bpd lower than their December peak in 2015. Utilization is currently at 90.5 percent which is lower y/y by 2.5 percent. US refining margins are still mostly in line with seasonal norms with the WTI 321 crack near $14/bbl this week while gasoil/brent at $11/bbl leaves room for improvement in Europe. Gasoline stocks added 497k bbls w/w (+4.9 percent y/y) due mostly to a 1.6m bbl build in PADD I which brought east coast stocks to a 7.5 percent y/y surplus. PADD IB stocks were essentially flat w/w at 31.6m bbls and are still higher y/y by 14 percent. PADD II inventories are +6 percent y/y following a 600k bbl build and PADD III stocks are higher y/y by 6 percent following a 1.7m bbl draw. Domestic demand jumped more than 100k bpd to 8.9m bpd but is still lower y/y by 3.8 percent over the last four weeks. Gasoline exports increased to 1.1m bpd and are higher y/y by 83 percent. (Click to enlarge) Gasoline futures traded to new post-Colonial highs this week briefly touching $1.59/gl on Monday then selling off towards $1.54/gl on Thursday. Spread markets maintained their recently bullish trends with RBOB M17/Z17 trading up to +24 cpg. Distillate inventories managed a w/w draw of 762k bbls bringing overall stocks to a y/y surplus of just 2.6 percent. PADD IB inventories increased by 363k bbls (+5.9 percent y/y,) PADD II inventories fell by 988k bbls w/w (+3 percent w/w) and PADD III distillates were flat w/w and higher by 1 percent y/y. Production at 5m bpd is lower y/y by 2 percent. On the demand side distillates saw bullish data for the first time in more than a month with domestic consumption increasing more than 300k bpd w/w to 4m bpd. Distillate exports at 1.3m bpd are higher y/y by 1 percent. Heating oil futures made new 2016-highs this week with a peak at $1.71/gl before moderating to $1.65/gl by Thursday afternoon. Spread markets behaved similarly with HO M17/Z17 briefly trading over -4 cpg before falling back to -4.5 cpg. Overseas refined product data was mostly bullish this week and included steep w/w draws in Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp gasoil stocks as well as distillate inventories in Singapore. In ARA gasoil stocks fell 75k mt w/w to their lowest seasonal level since 2013 and are lower y/y by 32 percent. Further east, Singapores distillate inventories fell by 3.3m bbls w/w and are now lower y/y by 13 percent. Gasoil M17/Z17 has responded in kind by trading up to -8.25 for the first time since June 2015. (Click to enlarge) By SCS Commodities Corp. More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Renewable energy is a hot topic amongst developed and developing countries across the world, but the accessibility and affordability for the poorest nations remains a significant challenge for green power. Recently, at the Climate Vulnerability Forum, representatives from 47 of the least affluent nations targeted powering their economies and homes purely from renewable sources. This lofty target has been achieved by Iceland, as 100 percent of their electricity is powered by hydro and geothermal energy. Costa Rica ran entirely on renewable energy this summer, and Uruguay has also seen rapid progress, with 94.5 percent of its energy now from green sources, thanks in large part to effective policy and technical support. As figures from the International Energy Agency would testify, in their World Energy Investment Report this year, renewable energy accounted in 2015 for a fifth of all energy spending, reflecting the reduction in costs of solar PV panels and wind turbines. The question is whether these headline figures represent an increase in renewable energy power for the poorest nations. Alex Perera, global director of charge for the Washington based World Resource Initiatives Electricity Initiative, stated that Technology that's available today, like solar PV and wind power offers affordable solutions for these countries. We are seeing new innovation every day. As the price of renewable energy continues to fall, these technologies will become even more attractive and are today the most affordable option in many markets. We're also seeing countries with large populations without access, like Tanzania and Kenya, look to decentralized solutions like solar home systems to deliver basic electricity services. He added: Energy efficiency technology also has an important role to play in making sure that electricity generated is as productive as possible and saves consumers money in the long run. Better policy and government support is an essential component for scaling up renewable energy in these countries. The IEA raised its five-year renewable energy forecast this fall thanks in part to better policy support in key markets. Governments that are transparent and have open decision-making processes will be well-positioned to deliver on their climate and energy plans. A few key areas for governments to focus on are: open up access to data and information, let citizens and independent experts participate in decision-making, put in place legal mechanisms and create space for advocacy. The Paris Agreement has now been ratified by 117 parties, and can only help push renewable energy forward, with one of the key points of the agreement is to ensure that greenhouse gasses peak as soon as possible. Alexis Crow, who leads Price Waterhouse Coopers global investment opportunity practice, opined that the efficacy of the Paris Agreement is that the leading countries in the world are approving it. And points to developments such as the cap and trade plan, which has been put forward by Canadas Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Related: The Oil Mystery Behind Saudi Arabias Production Cut Geographically, she would look to Europe as the continent that still leads the renewable energy front, with supranational funding as has been brought in from the European Bank of Restructure and Development (EBRD). She continued: Looking at energy returns from investment from a poorer countrys point of view, there are differentiations in the cost of producing a unit of energy, it takes a lot more ethanol to produce a unit of energy than natural gas for example, then there is storage and transport. Renewable energy is used for power or for transport, India have motorbikes as the main conduit for transport as opposed to a car, there is not just one model of energy for transport use. Power generation is like a laptop computer, there has been an immense amount of progress in cost reduction, especially for solar energy. In the very poorest countries that have an abundance of sunshine. Two other key points are the slowdown of global trade, we are seeing a weakening of demand of oil partly down to greater efficiency, there is less movement of physical commodities... Another key point is the changing of the investment environment, as in renewable energy products acting as fast consumer goods, needing a rate of return. This leaves incentivization for renewable energy as an important facet Crow reflected. In Jordan, a combination of the EBRD providing loans for plants that the government has tendered, has proven to be successful. Jordan is targeting that by 2020, 10 percent of its energy base arrives from renewable sources, enforcing a rate of return. The least affluent nations are likely to favour solar and wind power according to Crow, she would place bio fuels further down the list of renewable preferences due to the expense. Related: Combatting Cyber-Attacks In The Oil And Gas Industry Also, investment in energy efficiency is something that is often overlooked, as we have seen with the improvements in solar power. In terms of how government structures will help or hinder advancements in renewable energy, Crow explained: I would again highlight the Trudeau tax law, the more that you can parade examples like that the better it will be, the World Bank is also doing some strong work on this facet, its all about incentivization. The participation of the United States and China and their leadership on renewable energy investment is important, and its a great risk if that support is withdrawn. If the richer countries do not progress in renewable sources, then the poorer countries will believe why should we do anything. They will come into their own on renewable technology if they are led by others. Only time will tell if renewable energy is as prevalent in salubrious parts of Manhattan, as it could be in Mumbai. By Peter Taberner for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Ian Welsh says that the USSR collapsed because its promises "a cornucopia and a withering away of the state" conspicuously failed to materialize; now, neoliberalism's promises ("If the rich have more money, they will create more jobs; Lower taxes will lead to more prosperity; Increases in housing and stock market prices will increase prosperity for everyone; Trade deals and globalization will make everyone better off") are likewise being shown to be lies, and so we're in crisis. Welsh argues persuasively that this accounts for a host of weirdnesses, like the "fake news" epidemic ("the press lied to them repeatedly, it is the original fake news") or economists' predictions about Brexit ("why should they, most economists missed the housing bubble"). In a way, this is the rupture that Thomas Piketty predicted: as capital accumulates into fewer and fewer hands, the rich will have an increasingly outsized in setting policy, and will not allow any policies that undermine their further capital accumulation hence climate denial, mass surveillance, privatization of public goods from education to health care, violent suppression of oppositions and protest movements. This leads to increasingly worse outcomes for everyone who isn't in the elite (socialized losses, privatized gains) and political instability, which eventually becomes more expensive to put down than it would be to remediate through fairer policies. Though, of course, cheap, high-tech mass surveillance moves the "economically rational" point for redistribution over suppression, by making suppression a lot cheaper. As Graeber pointed out in The Utopia of Rules, the west used to point to the USSR's failings by talking about the long lines, the endless paperwork, and the depressing sameness of everything. In today's world of privatized health-care, "accountability" movements in education, migration crackdowns, monopoly telecoms, and winner-take-all franchise capitalism, the west has become the land of long lines, form-filling, phone support queues, and malls that all sell the same things. Welsh's list of neoliberalism's failed promises is an important and compact reminder of what's going on right now, one that we should have ready to cite in discussions of whether capitalism is sustainable. The world order we live in was born in 1979 or 1980, with Thatcher and Reagan. It made a few core promises: 1. If the rich have more money, they will create more jobs; 2. Lower taxes will lead to more prosperity; 3. Increases in housing and stock market prices will increase prosperity for everyone; 4. Trade deals and globalization will make everyone better off. These core promises all turned out to be lies. It's that simple. For most of the population, the last 40-odd years were either an experience of stagnation, or an experience of decline. From Paul Craig Roberts Website This article by Moon of Alabama is not conspiracy theory: Read it carefully. Check out the links. The article is a documented and accurate description of a coup that is underway. The extraordinary lies that are being perpetrated by the media and by members of the US government have as their obvious purpose the prevention of a Donald Trump presidency. There is no other reason for the extraordinary blatant lies for which there is not a shred of evidence. Indeed, there is massive real evidence to the contrary. Yet the coup proceeds and gathers steam. President Eisenhower warned us more than a half century ago of the danger that the military/security complex presents to US democracy. In the decades since Eisenhower's warning, the military/security complex has become more powerful than the American people and is demonstrating its power by overturning a presidential election. Will the coup succeed? In my opinion, former and present members of the US government and the media would not dare to so obviously and openly participate in a coup against democracy and an elected president unless they expect the coup to succeed. It is an easy matter for the ruling interests to bribe electors to vote differently than their states. The cost of the bribes is miniscule compared to the wealth and income streams that a trillion dollar annual budget provides to the military/security complex. The fake news of a Putin/Trump election-stealing plot generated by unsupported allegations of present and former members of US intelligence, the lame-duck President Obama, and the presstitute media provide the cover for electors to break with precedent "in order to save America from a Russian stooge." The CIA-controlled European media, the politicians in Washington's European vassal states, NATO officials, and the brainwashed European peoples will support the coup against Trump. The only ones speaking against the coup are the voters who elected Trump -- all of whom are alleged to have been deceived by Russian fake news -- the Russian government, and the 200 websites falsely described by the Washington Post and the secret organization PropOrNot as Russian agents. In other words, those objecting to the coup are the ones described by the coup leaders as those who made the coup necessary. I do not know that the coup will succeed, but looking at the commitment so many high level people have made to the coup, I conclude that those bringing the coup expect it to succeed. Therefore, we should take very seriously the expectation of success that those who control levers of power are demonstrating. From Counterpunch The neocon-driven propaganda campaign to prevent president-elect Donald Trump from taking office took an unexpected turn on Thursday when CBS posted an article claiming that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally authorized the alleged hacking of the DNC. According to the report: "American intelligence officials say they are convinced that Russian hacking of our presidential election was approved by President Vladimir Putin. Sources confirm to CBS News they believe Putin was aware of attacks that began in July of last year. "An official investigation is still going on. But this is the first time the hacking that plagued the Democratic National Committee until Election Day has been linked to Putin, reports CBS News correspondent Jeff Pegues. "The hacks were so widespread and sustained over such a long period of time that U.S. Intelligence sources say it could not have been carried out without the knowledge of senior levels of the Kremlin. CBS News has learned that investigators believe the initial cyberattack involved thousands of malicious emails aimed at the U.S. government, military and political organizations." ("Vladimir Putin likely gave go-ahead for U.S. cyberattack, intelligence officials say," CBS News) As is true with earlier reports on the same topic, CBS fails to provide the names of any of its "U.S. intelligence sources," any corroborating evidence to support its allegations, or any proof that its speculative stitching together of isolated facts produce an accurate account of what actually took place. No where in the entire hysterical narrative, do the authors mention the fact that neither the DNC nor the Podesta emails were "hacked" by a hostile foreign power, but "leaked" from within the DNC itself or by agents operating at the NSA. The most probable explanation for the alleged cyber intrusion is that the emails were given to WikiLeaks by a disgruntled employee operating in the Hillary campaign who was so sickened by the lies and corruption that he decided to blow the whistle. Is that so hard to believe? Needless to say, this logical storyline doesn't jibe with the CIA-MSM-Podesta version of events which requires a charge of foreign espionage to overturn the election and implement its treasonous plan for regime change in Washington. According to the Daily Mail, Craig Murray, who is the former UK ambassador to Uzbekistan and associate of Julian Assange... "flew to Washington, D.C. for emails...He claims he had a clandestine hand-off ... near American University with one of the email sources. Murray said the leakers' motivation was 'disgust at the corruption of the Clinton Foundation and the 'tilting of the primary election playing field against Bernie Sanders' "Murray says: 'The source had legal access to the information. The documents came from inside leaks, not hacks. Regardless of whether the Russians hacked into the DNC, the documents Wikileaks published did not come from that,' Murray insists.'... "Murray said he was speaking out due to claims from intelligence officials that Wikileaks was given the documents by Russian hackers as part of an effort to help Donald Trump win the U.S. presidential election. Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). Trump greets America (Image by Larry Judson Butler) Details DMCA The value of the companies in the S&P 500 is about 26 times their annual earnings today. That's the price-to-earnings ratio - the PE - and it reflects investors' expectations of future earnings. The historical PE ratio is only about 15 - this suggests that investors expect corporate profits to increase by about 75% in the foreseeable future. But wait. Corporate profits approaching $1.7 trillion [1], in round numbers, already account for nearly 10% of an $18 trillion Gross Domestic Product - GDP. But it gets much worse when you look closer. If corporations accounted for their income the same way the rest of the economy does, we'd need to look at revenues instead of profits. You and I are counted in GDP calculations when we earn money - wages, salaries, rents, interest, dividends and more. All kinds of revenue count, no matter what it costs to earn that income or run our family. Corporations are counted in GDP quite differently - their slice of the pie equals revenues after subtracting costs, expenses, and taxes. So if corporations counted their income like you and I do, they would show about $25 trillion a year in income instead of just $1.7 trillion. The GDP would be $41 trillion instead of just $18 trillion. [2] This gives us a much clearer picture of the influence corporations can exert on our public policy - they make up 60% of our economy instead of just 10%! Let's look at it from the other side. If you and I counted our income like corporations do - after deducting costs, expenses, and taxes - we would be earning about $2.4 trillion a year, or the average annual increase in wealth over the past decade. The GDP would be only $4.1 trillion instead of $18 trillion. And individuals would account for nearly 60% of the economy. But there's a problem with this - the lion's share of net income reverse-gravitates to the top 1% of earners. The capacity to generate and retain wealth is concentrated at the very top. This gives us a much clearer picture of the influence that very wealthy people can exert on our public policy - they control $45 trillion in personal wealth, or about 50% of the total. [3] So if you've wondered how corporations became so powerful while only making up 10% of GDP, this analysis might help. And if you've wondered why the rich keep getting richer, it might make a little more sense now. And if you've wondered what kinds of public policies create inequality, just watch Trump's cabinet selections and the legislation he'll sign on day one. Money as power? Runaway inequality? You ain't seen nuthin' yet! [1] click here [2] click here From Reader Supported News With the CIA, the FBI, and the NSA in unilateral agreement with a "high degree of confidence" that the November 8, 2016, U.S. presidential election was influenced by a foreign actor, specifically Russia, can the Electoral College vote even proceed? Should the electors ratify Donald Trump's victory knowing what they now know, they would -- at the very least -- be accepting a foreign hand in choosing the President of the United States. This is a historic moment politically and constitutionally for the country. These are conclusive statements by all major U.S. national security agencies. This is specifically what the Electoral College was created to detect and prevent. Alexander Hamilton, in creating the foundation for the college, addressed the question directly in his Federalist Paper 68: "Nothing was more to be desired than that every practicable obstacle should be opposed to cabal, intrigue, and corruption. These most deadly adversaries of republican government might naturally have been expected to make their approaches from more than one quarter, but chiefly from the desire in foreign powers to gain an improper ascendant in our councils. How could they better gratify this, than by raising a creature of their own to the chief magistracy of the Union? -- Alexander Hamilton, Federalist Paper 68, 1788 Cast in that light, the current situation is completely unprecedented in the entire scope of American history. Never before have the Electoral College electors been so informed, in such direct and unequivocal terms, that the hand of a foreign actor is influencing the outcome of the election for the highest office in the land. It is the constitutional duty of all 538 electors to take into urgent consideration the implications of the joint findings of all federal National Security and law enforcement agencies. Should Donald Trump be denied an Electoral College victory, he is not disqualified from becoming president, it simply remands the matter to the House of Representatives. House members certainly have both public and classified avenues to discovery of the facts. Something the electors do not have. No presidential election in history compares even remotely to the one now upon the nation. The electors are duty-bound, constitutionally, to take into full account the extraordinary statements made by the joint National Security and law enforcement agencies. It is of grave importance to the nation that the Electoral College electors put the security and integrity of Office of the President above political obligation. Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News. Article originally published the Tallahassee Democrat By Robert Weiner and Ben Lasky Although Democrats in Congress don't agree with most of Donald Trump's policies, there are some surprising areas of common ground in infrastructure spending and even concerning the Affordable Care Act. Congressional Democrats can either whine, curl up with a good book and their dogs as Hillary says she was tempted to do, or get to work. While many remain are upset about the election, leading Democrats from Chuck Schumer to Bernie Sanders to Nancy Pelosi say they will work with President Elect Trump "where we can." Obama says the President-elect is "a pragmatist" not an "ideologue." As ultra-liberal Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) said, "If Trump is ready to go on rebuilding economic security for millions of Americans, so am I and so are a lot of other people-Democrats and Republicans." This is a far cry from Republican leaders in 2008 who supported Senate Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-KY) statement that "the single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term President." With President Elect Trump making fixing the country's infrastructure one of his biggest talking points and citing his Trillion dollar proposal to reporters as first up, this is an area where both parties can work together. But there is a big "however." Federal Reserve Board Chair Janet Yellen on November 17 warned against the $1 trillion that Trump has proposed as a threat to the deficit. "There is not a lot of fiscal space," Yellen said. "The economy is operating relatively close to full employment," she added. First of all the country has 4.6 percent unemployment, not the 3 percent "full employment" of previous decades. Second, the economy might not be in crisis, but the country's infrastructure is. The GAO says that as many as half of the country's bridges, roads, rails, and tunnels are in a state of disrepair, let alone the need for modernization to meet European standards. According to The Florida Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers, in 2016 Florida's infrastructure rates out to a C. While the state's bridges were given a B, the school facilities received a D+ rating. Yellen said nothing about the even bigger threat to the deficit-- $6 trillion worth of more debt--by Trump's proposed tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations. A report by the Library of Congress said that you get five times more bang for the buck when government creates jobs than from tax breaks for the wealthy. Likewise, the Congressional Budget Office found that every dollar devoted to the middle class causes the economy to grow three times faster than a dollar for the rich. Bill Clinton called it "simple arithmetic:" When you take money from the Treasury and give it as tax breaks for the wealthy, you are literally taking money from jobs, education, food, and health. President Elect Trump promised to replace -- and after meeting with Obama, said "amend," the Affordable Care Act, and keep some provisions. On 60 Minutes, he also said he would keep parts of the bill, specifically covering preexisting conditions and keeping kids on their parents' healthcare until they turn 26. Even though he specifically said the "replace" must be at the "same time" as the "repeal", he may be opposed by Congressional Republicans beholden to the insurance industry who simply try to kill the law. Trump would be smart to keep the popular parts. 7.8 million Floridians have some pre-existing condition. When it comes to staying on parents' healthcare, since the law's passage there has been a 16 percent decline in uninsured Floridians ages 18 to 25. Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR), chairman of the National Republican Campaign Committee, told the National Press Club that it is important to emphasize they will "fix, replace, repair" and will maintain the law's coverage of new recipients, pre-existing conditions, children through age 26, and other good provisions. "There's a lot of these areas we're in agreement on." One area in which Democrats could achieve enormous Republican good will is tort reform, so that doctors cannot be sued into bankruptcy for trying to do their job. Obama suggested including state model tort reform programs in Obamacare but congressional Democrats, beholden to trial lawyers, rejected it. Now is a good time to try again. Joe Scarborough said that if Republicans kill Obamacare, states that Trump won and especially Florida, with its more than 1.5 million enrollees, could "become bright blue." Trump promised not to touch Social Security. That's good news for Floridians, over three million of whom are over 65. One in five Floridians receives social security. Florida's great Claude Pepper was the House Aging Committee Chairman and negotiated with Ronald Reagan and Speaker Tip O'Neill to include the current protections. Social Security is actually solvent for decades to come. Much of the "deficit" talk is a myth to give commissions to Wall Street for privatizing it. Democrats should look for areas where the sides can agree to help the country, starting with fixing the country's infrastructure and making sure millions continue to receive healthcare. Robert Weiner is a former spokesman for the Clinton and Bush White Houses and was Chief of Staff of the House Aging Committee under Rep. Claude Pepper (D-FL). Ben Lasky is a senior policy analyst at Robert Weiner Associates and Solutions for Change. (Image by Willies Media LLC) Details DMCA Americans elected President Obama with the absolute most number of Americans than any President in American history. Hell, he had to expand the base to win. He won by over 9 million votes in his first election and by almost 5 million votes in his reelection. Republicans, the Right Wing, and the TEA Party consistently treated him like an illegitimate president. Obama won with a mandate. Obama never bragged about winning in an electoral landslide or a popular vote landslide. He did not need to. Facts are facts. Contrast that with the undemocratically illegitimate President-Elect Donald Trump. He is losing the popular vote by over 3 million votes. He had help from the Kremlin, Russia's President Vladimir Putin, and the Republican head of the FBI. He won four states by less than 100 thousand votes. In several of those states, their Republican leaders acknowledged their voter suppression techniques had a purpose. That along with other shenanigans were successful. Please like the Politics Done Right Facebook page and give progressive radio a chance throughout the country. As Donald Trump's inauguration looms, there's been a lot of speculation about the nature of his relationship with Russia. Trump has frequently spoken of his admiration for the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin; Trump refers to Russia as a "partner" rather than an "adversary." Meanwhile, the CIA believes that Russian hackers helped Trump win the election. In addition, Trump nominated ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson to be Secretary of State largely because of Tillerson's good relationship with Russia. What's going on? First, we do not fully understand Trump's business dealings with Russia because Trump has never released his tax returns. On February 28th, Senator Ted Cruz said, "There have been multiple media reports about Donald's business dealings with the mob, with the mafia. Maybe his [tax returns] show those business dealings are a lot more extensive than has been reported." (http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/mar/02/ted-cruz/yes-donald-trump-has-been-linked-mob/) Politifact noted, "Cruz's statement is accurate. Media reports have linked Trump to mafia bosses and mob-connected business associates for decades." Time magazine (http://time.com/4433880/donald-trump-ties-to-russia/), and other sources, have tied Trump to Russian oligarchs. Writing in Alternet (http://www.alternet.org/election-2016/do-cia-revelations-mean-trump-will-be-putins-puppet?), Marty Kaplan observed: "It's entirely conceivable that Russia has something on Trump. They may hold hundreds of millions of dollars of Trump debt. They may have spousally unsettling video of him--a KGB specialty, and a plausible Trump susceptibility. Surely the Kremlin has mapped his character disorder." Second, 17 US intelligence agencies believe Russian hackers helped the Trump campaign by hacking DNC emails, as well as those of Clinton Campaign Manager John Podesta, and giving them to WikiLeaks. Recently, NBC News (http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/why-cia-thinks-russia-wanted-trump-win-n695131) reported the CIA believes Russian operators wanted Trump to win. There's no proof that Russian hackers corrupted voting machines or changed vote totals. However there is abundant evidence that the hacked Democratic information, dripped out day-to-day via WikiLeaks, hurt Clinton: it kept down her favorability rating -- leading to a false equivalence between Clinton and Trump -- and reminded Bernie Sanders supporters why they preferred to vote for Jill Stein. What's going on between Trump and Russia? Why would Russia want Trump to win the US presidency? Russia likely sees a Trump presidency as a "twofer." First, It would strengthen Russia's geopolitical position. Writing in the Washington Post (https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/the-kremlin-likes-the-hacking-attention-but-not-the-blame/2016/12/14/65279738-c177-11e6-92e8-c07f4f671da4_story.html?), David Filipov observed, "Whether or not the Kremlin is guilty of doing all the things Western accusers say it is, Russia is now considered a master purveyor of geopolitical disorder. And that, for Putin, is a win." Second, Trump could directly impact Russia's economy. Since Russia annexed Crimea and invaded eastern-Ukraine, Russia has been the subject of US and European sanctions. These have impacted the brittle Russian economy. The global decline in oil prices has also contributed to a Russian recession. (In 2016, Russia's GDP is forecasted to decline.) The Trump Administration could render significant aid to Russia by lifting sanctions. On the radio program, "Democracy Now" (http://www.alternet.org/environment/could-massive-russian-oil-deal-exxon-explain-why-putin-appears-have-meddled-us-election?), Amy Goodman speculated: "One of the enormous deals that Vladimir Putin and [ExxonMobil CEO] Rex Tillerson worked on was a $500 billion oil exploration partnership between Exxon and the Russian government's oil company, Rosneft. The Obama administration blocked the deal when it imposed sanctions against Russia for its intervention in Ukraine... This deal could explain why Putin appears to have interfered in U.S. elections in favor of a Trump victory." What would the US get in return? As noted, it's possible that Trump has preexisting deals with Russian oligarchs and improved relations with Russia -- such as the lifting of sanctions -- could benefit Trump's businesses. Another possibility is that Trump and his closest advisers foresee a fundamental shift of US foreign policy: Russia becoming a partner in a global war on Islam. Writing in The Atlantic (http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/12/the-conservative-split-on-russia/510317/) Peter Beinart observed: "Trump and his advisors describe America as fighting a civilizational struggle against the enemies of the West. Seen through that very different lens, Muslims look more nefarious and Vladimir Putin looks more benign... [Trump is moving US foreign policy] away from an ideological confrontation with authoritarian Russia and toward a civilizational conflict with Islam. Trump's choice for National Security Advisor, General Michael Flynn, has tweeted that 'fear of Muslims is rational' and 'Islam is like cancer' When asked in August about Putin, [Flynn said] that America 'beat Hitler because of our relationship with the Russians' and we should renew that partnership in the new world war against 'radical Islamism.'" Since the end of World War II, there's been a "cold war" between the United States and Russia. It appears that Trump wants to supplant this with a "holy war" between the United States and Islam, a war where Russia would be an active partner of the US. For this reason, Trump appears willing to lift sanctions and make Russia a "partner." This major shift in US foreign policy seems a likely reason why Russia helped Trump win the presidential election. First elected to the Senate in 1996, Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) has been described as "one of the last survivors of a once common species of moderate Northeastern Republican ... Collins is considered a bipartisan and centrist member of the Republican Party, and an influential player in the U.S. Senate." Stephen Dinan, author of "Sacred America, Sacred World" and CEO of The Shift Network, is prone to out-of-the-box thinking, and offers this intriguing surprise ending to the 2016 Presidential Election Debacle: As the intensity of the election process heats up amidst accelerating revelations about Russian involvement and bi-partisan calls for deeper investigation, it's important that we have a realistic strategy that can prevent Donald Trump from assuming the Presidency, particularly if more damaging information emerges. The first step is a stalemate in the Electoral College on Dec. 19th. If there is no candidate that reaches 270 votes in the Electoral College, the decision-making goes to the House of Representatives, which is constitutionally required to select from the top three vote-getters in the Electoral College. Specifically, each state delegation will need to align on a candidate and the winning candidate needs a majority of states. At this stage, it is very difficult to imagine that the requisite number of House Republicans would swap sides to vote with Democrats for Hillary Clinton. However, it is plausible that if Donald Trump is so badly damaged by what emerges in the days and weeks ahead that a third candidate could gain the support of enough Republicans and most of the House Democrats and thus be elected. So the core of the strategy needs to be three-fold: Have 37 electors currently pledged to Trump abstain or shift their vote to someone else in Monday's Electoral College. Ensure that a third candidate receives enough votes in the Electoral College to be in the top three (which can be an entirely new candidate) Have Democrats rally around that third candidate and be joined by a sufficient number of House Republicans, thus electing them President. The key to making this work is to find the most unifying Republican candidate that Democrats can support along with enough Republicans. That person would be unlikely to step forward as an official candidate right now because it would be quite risky to do so. It would have to be someone who is known to put country first above party and essentially drafted into the role. I believe that unifying candidate is Senator Susan Collins, a Republican from Maine, for the following reasons: First, Senator Susan Collins is one of the most moderate Republicans and represents a typically blue state, so she's used to working in a bi-partisan way. In fact, the Lugar Center ranked her as the most bi-partisan senator in the 114th Congress. Second, she has 78% approval ratings, the highest of any sitting Republican senator. She understands how Congress works, with twenty years of experience in the Senate. Third, and perhaps most importantly for the left, she took the courageous step of publicly saying she would not vote for Trump and wrote a bold New York Times article about why. She thus fits the bill for someone who puts country above party, is not a Trump supporter, and is willing to take a courageous stand on principal. Finally, the vast number of Democrats who had been hoping for our first female President would gain some satisfaction that the last glass ceiling was finally broken. The fact that Senator Collins didn't actually run for the position this year could be a plus because she hasn't created a lot of polarization. In other words, she could be an effective bridge-builder and healer of the extreme divides that would need to be addressed in the aftermath of the kind of electoral drama that would put her into office. From Consortium News The rising hysteria about Russia is best understood as fulfilling two needs for Official Washington: the Military Industrial Complex's transitioning from the "war on terror" to a more lucrative "new cold war" -- and blunting the threat that a President Trump poses to the neoconservative/liberal-interventionist foreign-policy establishment. By hyping the Russian "threat," the neocons and their liberal-hawk sidekicks, who include much of the mainstream U.S. news media, can guarantee bigger military budgets from Congress. The hype also sets in motion a blocking maneuver to impinge on any significant change in direction for U.S. foreign policy under Trump. Some Democrats even hope to stop Trump from ascending to the White House by having the Central Intelligence Agency, in effect, lobby the electors in the Electoral College with scary tales about Russia trying to fix the election for Trump. The electors meet on Dec. 19 when they will formally cast their votes, supposedly reflecting the judgments of each state's voters, but conceivably individual electors could switch their ballots from Trump to Hillary Clinton or someone else. On Thursday, liberal columnist E.J. Dionne Jr. joined the call for electors to flip, writing: "The question is whether Trump, Vladimir Putin and, perhaps, Clinton's popular-vote advantage give you sufficient reason to blow up the system." That Democrats would want the CIA, which is forbidden to operate domestically in part because of its historic role in influencing elections in other countries, to play a similar role in the United States shows how desperate the Democratic Party has become. And, even though The New York Times and other big news outlets are reporting as flat fact that Russia hacked the Democratic email accounts and gave the information to WikiLeaks, former British Ambassador Craig Murray, a close associate of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, told the London Daily Mail that he personally received the email data from a "disgusted" Democrat. Murray said he flew from London to Washington for a clandestine handoff from one of the email sources in September, receiving the package in a wooded area near American University. Former British Ambassador Craig Murray (Image by Craig Murray) Details DMCA "Neither of [the leaks, from the Democratic National Committee or Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta] came from the Russians," Murray said, adding: "the source had legal access to the information. The documents came from inside leaks, not hacks." Murray said the insider felt "disgust at the corruption of the Clinton Foundation and the tilting of the primary election playing field against Bernie Sanders." Murray added that his meeting was with an intermediary for the Democratic leaker, not the leaker directly. If Murray's story is true, it raises several alternative scenarios: that the U.S. intelligence community's claims about a Russian hack are false; that Russians hacked the Democrats' emails for their own intelligence gathering without giving the material to WikiLeaks; or that Murray was deceived about the identity of the original leaker. But the uncertainty creates the possibility that the Democrats are using a dubious CIA assessment to reverse the outcome of an American presidential election, in effect, making the CIA party to a preemptive domestic "regime change." Delayed Autopsy Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). This piece was reprinted by OpEd News with permission or license. It may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from the source. From Counterpunch What stood out most during the verbal broadside unleashed by Washington's ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, at her Iranian, Syrian and Russian counterparts over the fighting in Aleppo, was her ability to do so with a straight face. It was testament to the ability of US exceptionalism to keep its proponents cocooned from reality. "Aleppo will join the ranks of those events in world history that define modern evil, that stain our conscience decades later. Halabja, Rwanda, Srebrenica, and, now, Aleppo," Power said, from the vantage point of a moral high ground resting on foundations of quicksand. Rather conveniently, the US Ambassador neglected to add Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, or Libya to her list, countries ravaged and destroyed in service to US and Western imperialism. Or how about Gaza and Yemen, where Israel and Saudi Arabia, Washington's closest Middle East, have engaged in the mass slaughter of civilians? Yes, there was no mention of that either by Ms Power. When it comes to Aleppo's suffering, the scenes of celebration by thousands of its citizens over their liberation refutes the attempt by Power and others in the West to paint the Syrian Arab Army, made up of soldiers from every sector of the country's religious, ethnic, and cultural mosaic, as a latter day Waffen SS, an army of occupation executing women and children at random. At the same time, of course, Salafi-jihadist groups such as the Nusra Front (now Jabhat Fatah al-Sham) and Jaysh al Islam have been painted as the modern day equivalent of the French resistance or Partisans. It has been preposterous to behold, part of an intense campaign of demonization motivated not by any concern for human rights or civilians, as maintained, but over the fact that Washington and the West's objective of regime change in Damascus has been denied. The narrative being spun that civilians are being executed in east Aleppo has been disputed by the sight of thousands of those very civilians seeking sanctuary in government-held west Aleppo throughout the fighting. Many of those civilians have reported people being shot at by armed groups for daring to try to leave. Ultimately, the reports widely carried in the Western media of atrocities being committed by pro-government forces remain unverified. There have been no Western journalists in east Aleppo throughout the conflict, for the simple reason that none dare set foot in that part of the city, knowing full well that they would likely be kidnapped and/or murdered in the event. No one with a heart could deny the scale of human suffering that has taken place in Syria, with Aleppo its most grievous recent example. This brutal conflict, as it enters its sixth year, is one that involves the armed forces of a secular government of a pluralist country, along with its allies, pitted against an Islamic Khmer Rouge in various guises, backed by the Saudis, Qataris, Kuwaitis, and Western governments that have throughout this war played a game of good jihadists versus bad jihadists. Clearly, the sheer number of people who have perished and suffered is so shocking it is hard to comprehend. This number includes upwards of 60,000 Syrian troops, as revealed by the UK's Middle East correspondent, Robert Fisk, back in August. Fisk, along with his colleague at the UK Independent newspaper, Patrick Cockburn, has long enjoyed an estimable reputation as one of the world's foremost Western reporters working out of the region. Yet now both he and Cockburn find themselves being widely calumniated as pro-Assad stooges by the "victory to the revolution" mob that habituates much of the left in the West. The point that needs to be made is that no serious person could deny that many thousands more civilians would have perished in the event Nusra and other such groups managed to succeed in taking control of Aleppo, rather than pro-government forces. Meanwhile, placing Aleppo in its proper context leads us to the irrefutable role of Washington in prolonging the suffering of a country whose only crime is that it was deemed next in line for regime change, but which unlike those that have gone before -- Iraq and Libya -- has proved strong enough to withstand it. For those in doubt, Washington's objective of destabilizing Syria dates back to at least 2006, evidenced in the classified memo, made public by WikiLeaks, that was sent from the US embassy in Damascus to Washington in December of that year. It contains an analysis of the Assad government, its strengths and weaknesses, and how it might be undermined. What should be borne in mind is that there is a direct correlation between this long term US strategy when it comes to Syria, and the disinformation that has been rolled out in response to the fact that Syrian forces, supported by its Russian, Iranian, and Lebanese allies, are winning the conflict. This is not to allege that there was not a movement for reform in Syria back in 2011, inspired by an Arab Spring that had swept across the region demanding democratic and political change. And this is not to suggest that the Syrians who supported this movement did not have any legitimate grievances with their government. But there is a marked difference between reform and ruin, and it is the latter course upon which this movement embarked when it was taken over by Salafi-jihadists intent on the mass slaughter and extermination of the country's minorities. Samantha Power knows all this, of course; she knows it but chooses to ignore it, favoring instead moral tirades of the sort she unleashed at the UN against those who are fighting to save yet another Arab country from the fate of the sectarian abyss fashioned in Riyadh and supported by Washington as a lesser evil when compared to a secular Arab state that refuses to kowtow to its writ. In the last analysis, being lectured to by a representative of Washington on human rights violations and war crimes is like being told to sit up straight by the Hunchback of Notre Dame. From WSWS On Wednesday, the New York Times published a banner article, covering five columns on its front page and four inside pages, purporting to be a definitive account of Russian government intervention in the US elections through the hacking of Democratic Party emails. "Hacking the Democrats: How Russia Honed Its Cyberpower and Trained it on an American Election," by Eric Lipton, David Sanger and Scott Shane, is pure propaganda. It is full of unsubstantiated assertions, innuendo and unfounded conclusions, all of which serve one essential purpose: to pollute public opinion and create conditions for military aggression against Russia. As intended, the Times article set the tone for a wave of war-mongering commentary in the American media. Lipton was interviewed on the cable news channels and the Public Broadcasting System's evening news program. Democratic Senator Ben Cardin declared on MSNBC that the US had been "attacked by Russia." He called for an independent commission, citing the bipartisan panel set up after 9/11. CNN commentator Jake Tapper referred to Russia as the "enemy" and openly wondered, in the course of interviewing former CIA and NSA Director Michael Hayden, whether President-elect Trump was "siding with the enemy." NBC News reported Wednesday evening that "top intelligence officials" have concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin was personally involved in directing the hacking operation. No facts, of course, were presented to back up the claim. As "news," the article by Lipton, Sanger and Shane does not conform to the most elementary standards of journalism. It is based entirely on unnamed or clearly partisan sources. By the article's own account, the authors consulted "dozens of players targeted in the attack, intelligence officials who investigated it and Obama administration officials who deliberated over the best response"--in other words, the Democratic Party officials and US intelligence agents who originated the story of Russian hacking. There is no attempt to present opposing opinions or challenges to statements in the article that are clearly absurd. The unsubstantiated assertions are generally couched in the passive voice. There is, for example, the claim that one group supposedly involved in the hacking "may or may not be associated with the FSB, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, but it is widely believed to be a Russian government operation." Another group, according to the authors, is "believed to be directed by the GRU, Russia's military intelligence agency." Believed by whom, and on what basis? The article does not say. Nevertheless, the conclusion proclaimed in the headline is asserted without qualification: the Russian government was responsible for what amounts to an act of war, and definite actions must be taken in response. The claim that there is incontrovertible evidence of Russian state direction of the hacking of Democratic Party emails during the US presidential election is a fiction, but one the Times hopes will, if endlessly repeated, be established in popular consciousness as a fact. The basic timeline, according to the Times account, is as follows: Sometime in September 2015, an FBI agent contacted the Democratic National Committee to inform it that at least one of its computers had been compromised by "a cyber-espionage team linked to the Russian government." Despite the explosive character of such a charge, the FBI agent inexplicably spoke only to a low-level, sub-contracted tech person, made no effort to contact DNC leaders, and did not even visit DNC headquarters, only a half-mile away from the FBI office that was monitoring the alleged hacking. Nothing was done for several months. Then, in April of 2016, the DNC tech person found evidence that an unauthorized individual had gained access to DNC email servers. The DNC responded by hiring CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity firm run by former top FBI officials, to investigate. CrowdStrike immediately declared that Russia was behind two separate hacking groups. It called the groups Cozy Bear and Fancy Bear and claimed they were the same as two groups supposedly linked to the Russian government--APT 28 and APT 29. These groups, according to CrowdStrike, had gained access to DNC emails and the emails of Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta. In mid-June, an individual calling himself Guccifer 2.0 announced that it was he who had hacked the DNC emails, and that he had given them to WikiLeaks, which would be publishing them. The supposed facts the Times cites to justify the conclusion that Russia was behind all of this are highly circumstantial and clearly contradictory. Cited as evidence of Russian state involvement is the assertion that "The Russian hacking groups tended to be active during working hours in the Moscow time zone." Guccifer 2.0, the Times writes, was really a Russian agent. The proof? While he claimed to be Romanian, a writer for tech site Motherboard contacted him in Romanian, using Google Translate to ask him questions. The responses, "according to a couple of native speakers," demonstrated that "Guccifer 2.0 had apparently been using Google Translate as well--and was clearly not the Romanian he claimed to be." Moreover, Microsoft Word documents posted by Guccifer 2.0 had metadata showing that they were edited by someone calling himself "Felix Edmundovich--an obvious nom de guerre honoring the founder of the Soviet secret police, Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky." Also, "Bad links in the texts were marked by warnings in Russian, generated by what was clearly a Russian-language version of Word." CrowdStrike cites these and similar facts, indicative of the work of amateurs, to justify its assertion that the Russian government was directing the hacks, even as it asserts that the hacking was so sophisticated that it could be carried out only by a state actor. Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). text added to image of Standing Rock (Image by revolution messaging) Details DMCA I write this piece so as to help answer four questions that have been circulating in the aftermath of the recent victory at Standing Rock. I intend for my responses to help keep supporters pressing onward and to prevent us from becoming divided. My ultimate goal is to encourage water protectors worldwide to be more determined than ever in the face of the incoming administration of Donald Trump. This may seem an impossible task but perhaps without the deceptive language of those who came before that only veiled Trump's anti-environment intentions, it may be easier than we can imagine if we keep up the effort. Question #1: What exactly was the victory? The Department of the Army's Assistant Secretary of Civil Works (not the Army Corps of Engineers), housed in the Pentagon, issued an order to "not grant an easement" for DAPL "to cross Lake Oahe at the proposed location" until an "Environmental Impact Statement(EIS)" is "prepared." According to Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (Bobby), it would be very difficult for the incoming president to reverse this because a mandate for an EIS essentially becomes federal law. For American Indians, it may be an unprecedented victory. As Vine Deloria, Jr. writes in a chapter for my edited text, Unlearning the Language of Conquest: Scholars Expose Anti-Indianism in America , for us conquest has always masqueraded itself as law. Question #2: What legal enforcement of the order is occurring now? As of December 10th the Blackwater bridge just north of camp is still dangerously blocked, forcing people to drive hours out of the way in dangerous winter road conditions. This is in spite of ABC news reporting on December 4th that the Sheriff Department said it had lifted the blockade. The state police and National Guard defending the pipeline are still in place as well, though further down the road, and at this point they are still on the scene "protecting" the drilling operation that is supposed to have stopped. The U.S. Attorney General made a statement indicating her office would "monitor the situation" and "provide resources to help "in easing tensions." It says nothing more specific about assuring DAPL is complying with the order. One of my Vets for Peace comrades said he talked to a person from the Army Corps of Engineers who said they would not allow DAPL to continue working, but one can only hope this is true. This apparently seems to be being upheld. Based on one report, not only has DAPL and ETS and their efforts to appeal been rejected by a district judge this week, but the Army Corps of Engineers told them they would open the dam and flood the lake if they attempted to proceed. So this is all good news. On the other hand, a newly released audio of DAPL's Chief Operating Officer claims that there is no doubt that the company will go through "on time" and where it was planned. It further states that "the election changes everything" revealing that the pro-oil administration will be sure to support the original pipeline route as will the courts who will respond to ETS's challenge to the Army's request for a full environmental impact report. In any case, Ronald Reagan's famous dictum, "Trust but verify" (and forgive me using a Reagan quote to present a good idea) is appropriate here. Any efforts to verify would be warranted in consideration of five things I have learned about ETS. First, as I wrote previously for Truthout, during my first trip to Standing Rock in September found that DAPL had probably violated the mandate from the U.S. Court of Appeals not to drill within 20 feet . Second, Energy Transfer Partners and Sunoco Logistics Partners announced to the world they would continue as planned, describing the order (rightly or wrongly) as a temporary political play and that they were "fully committed to ensuring that this vital project is brought to completion and fully expect to complete construction of the pipeline without any additional rerouting in and around Lake Oahe." The third reason I think it is important for verification relates to some information I received from an expert on laying oil pipelines. In response to something he had read that said that DAPL was being allowed to drill vertically but not horizonally, he wrote me: Remember, this company like all the oil pipeline companies have professional PR people. In truth, "vertical drilling" for any waterway is A FICTION. Horizontal Directional Drilling turns its' angles with a "Swivel" gadget. The typical river or lake pipeline bore only uses ONE swivel. Vertical drilling would call for a 90 degree swivel angle, which is preposterous. (It would actually need about 7 Eleven degree swivels~ outrageously expensive, and just NOT what any sane HDD company would even attempt. You can bet they are making ONE angle "swivel", on a directional bore, at the deepest part of the river, then, they'll climb the bore back up, towards the opposite shore. That's how it's done. No need for "vertical" anything. This person also told me you can tell from the color and texture of the dirt being piled up where they are in relation to the river. The fourth reason is the Energy Transfer Partnerships (ETS) is getting deeper and deeper into financial losses with a number of risks if further delays occur. A fifth reason is that ETS is not a trustworthy corporation on many levels. It is responsible for 29 major oil spills and damage since 2006 for starters. For its business dealings in general, Bloomberg covered a story where it was ranked dead last as the worst company among its peers. As for human rights, all we have to do is look at the past few months in North Dakota. Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). This is a revision of a previous article, in the context of Politifact's Lie of the Year: Those who come to power through the Big Lie lead their nations to disaster. Here, I unpack Trump's Big Lie and its roots in US public relations doctrine and Nazi propaganda lessons. The Big Lie, historically, leads to disaster, war, crackdown on dissent, and disaster. I also show how the media has ignored the Big Lie to focus on "fake news." Breitbart and other "fake news" sources report that 37% of Federal sentences are, using the Nazi phrase, illegal aliens. Of course, less than 7% of prisoners are in Federal custody, and of the 27,000 unauthorized prisoners, about 3000 are guilty of crimes other than documentation violations. There are among them, 12 murderers. Each one got headline news in a nation where 40 a day are murdered, 150,000 since 9/11 by US citizens. According to FY 2014 USSC data, of 74,911 sentencing cases, citizens accounted for 43,479 (or 58.0 percent), illegal immigrants accounted for 27,505 (or 36.7 percent), legal immigrants made up 3,017 (or 4.0 percent), and the remainder (about 1 percent) were cases in which the offender was either extradited or had an unknown status. Broken down by some of the primary offenses, illegal immigrants represented 16.8 percent of drug trafficking cases, 20.0 percent of kidnapping/hostage taking, 74.1 percent of drug possession, 12.3 percent of money laundering, and 12.0 percent of murder convictions." Of 27,000 prisoners without documentation, note: " Citing the American Community Survey, the report also notes that the percentage of foreign-born men in the United States who are incarcerated (1.6%) is less than the percentage of U.S.-born men who are imprisoned (3.3%). And the reason they're behind bars is often tied to immigration offenses. Given that 70% of "foreign- born men" are here legally, that leaves a total of about .5% of undocumented immigrants who are imprisoned, compared to 3.3% for US citizens. Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). CIA by mashable.com After reading a few of the latest articles [1] putting in proper perspective the CIA instigated hysteria over allegations Russia interfered with the election in favor of Trump it appears we may be heading for a presidential crisis of mega proportions if on Monday the electoral college electors in each state do not vote for the candidate who won the popular vote in that state. With all the hysteria whipped up by the corporate MSM, Hillary supporters, the Obama administration and some in Congress demanding an investigation over the CIA allegations of Russia interfering with the US election-no factual proof given, Monday's electoral college votes may be incredibly up in the air. Some 56 electors-all but one of them Democrats- signed a letter "requesting a briefing on the hacking".1 Check out this from "Moon over Alabama" [2] , a real eye opener to the intrigue of Russia's alleged hacking. Then lastly check out Mike Whitney's latest, "Ah, So Putin Didn't hack Those Emails After All." [3] Hopefully Monday's Electoral College vote will go off without a hitch with the candidate who won that states popular vote selected as the winner of that state's electoral college vote. But it may not be that simple. The Congress returns on January 6, 2017 and calls for a full investigation by Congress could ensue further complicating who will be inaugurated on January 20th. Of course the whole brouhaha could be simply cleared up if unmistakable evidence were presented confirming Russia's interference. But that won't happen because an honest accounting would reveal the MSM et al as the propagandists they are. Allegations are not facts. But who needs facts? The people in the US are so propagandized and indoctrinated that allegations are too often accepted as proven givens. Particularly if the allegations are repeated often enough as has been happening that people come to the conclusion they must be true. Say a lie enough times, it eventually becomes true. One thing seems clear. A pre-meditated crisis has been instigated by the CIA. Whether that crisis becomes a coup of the presumed winner Trump we'll have to wait and see. [1] "Long-shot bid to block Trump arrives at Electoral College Monday", by John McCormick, Bloomberg News, "Information Clearing House", December 15, 2016. 2"The Elite Coup of 2016", by Moon over Alabama, "Information Clearing House", December 17, 2016. Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). The National Museum, Damascus It's a god-awful situation today in Palmyra. How much of our priceless cultural heritage will be destroyed during the expanding re-occupation by Islamic State (IS)? This observer has received more than two dozen emails in the past 72 hours asking for details of what is happening in Palmyra. Many scholars and citizens interested in Palmyra and our cultural heritage here is Syria, who I have had the honor to communicate with these past three years while doing research for the volume, Syria's Endangered Heritage: An International Responsibly to Preserve and Protect are, like most of us, abjectly horrified by Palmyra's recapture by IS last weekend. I spoke this morning with my friend W.N. who works with Syria's Directorate of Antiquities and Museums (DGAM) in Homs and who accompanied me during my last visit to Palmyra when we were given detailed briefings from Syrian Military Intelligence. W was last working in the Palmyra National Museum on Thursday 12/8/2016 two days before the first units of what soon became approximately 4000-5000 IS fighters started invading. He reports that none of his colleagues had any idea that ISIS was in the area and apparently neither did the Syrian and Russian army who were caught by surprise, abandoned their base and heavy weapons stores and moved to the West toward Homs. Like all of us, officials and citizens here hope that ISIS will be expelled before they can do serious damage. The fears of this observer and many archeologists globally, are many and distressing. One is that we will once again see televised executions in the ancient city to strengthen IS positions and create more publicity. Russian, Syrian and Iranian soldiers, taken prisoners, may become the first victims. On 12/15.2016 the government of Iran reported that two of its IRGC officers were killed a couple of days earlier fighting IS near the key Syrian military base, T4. The IRGC armed and funded Afghan Fatemiyoun Division was rushed back to Palmyra once IS re-entered the area on Saturday, 12/10/2016. The retaking of Palmyra by IS has strategic implications. Palmyra was a much-touted political asset for Moscow. Russia is worried that the international community will see the Kremlin as a loser in Palmyra rather than as a "great power" that Vladimir Putin has been trying to achieve via Crimea, Ukraine as well as Syria and elsewhere. Previously, many ordinary Syrians welcomed Russian troops with admiration and enthusiasm, hoping that Russia's participation in the Syrian conflict would end the war. Yet today many of them are disappointed. Some are inclined to believe that Russia is just another stakeholder in the conflict with its own interests -- just like the Americans, Turks, Kurds, Hezbollah, ISIS and other military forces. But a more major immediate concern of officials here relates to information this observer was given last May in Palmyra concerning details of what Daesh had planned to do using the nearly 3,500 explosives they had planted among the ruins. The plan was to completely obliterate Palmyra's ancient sites. (link) but Russian and Syrian forces, with a little bit of luck and technology, plus Russian explosive sniffing dogs, were able to block them at the last minute as Daesh forces fled into the surrounding desert and mountains. It is widely feared that IS will now decide to carry out its earlier plan which they dubbed "Erase" and substantially pulverize Palmyra's antiquities. Unless they can be stopped. As much of the world will recall, the last time IS controlled Palmyra it blew up several ruins, including historic treasures such as the temples of Bel and Baalshamin and the Arch of Victory among others. The group also staged several mass public executions in the ancient Roman amphitheater. Two days ago, Tuesday, 12/13/2013 mass executions were reported in Palmyra of more the 200 residents including a school principal and his family. One of the people in Palmyra who was providing information about recent developments was among those reported executed. Most were shot but a least two were beheaded with IS fighters showing residents photos of what happens to "regime agents." It is predictable that supporters of the Islamic State will again broadcast televised executions in the ancient city in order strengthen their positions and create more publicity. Russian and Syrian soldiers, taken prisoners, will become the first victims. "The catastrophe has happened, I am in absolute shock!, " My much valued friend Dr.Maamoun Abdulkarim, Syria's Director of Antiquities, told the UK Guardian on Sunday 12/11/2016 in a phone interview. "I am losing hope; it looks like we have lost the city." During my meeting with Dr. Maamoun this afternoon in his DGAM office at the National Museum in Damascus, where he offered the most recent, yet sketchy, information from Palmyra, the International Patriot revered for his indefatigable work protecting our global cultural heritage, lamented that he will soon be 50 years of age but in reality he feels more than 80, given unfolding events in his cherished Palmyra. It was reported here today that IS has again taken over the National Museum of Palmyra, re-established its Sharia Court in the basement, and is expected to construct another "Justice Cage" outside the Museum similar to the one shown below when this observer spent three days last May with the Syrian army who briefed him extensively on how Palmyra was liberated on March 28, 2016 by 64 Russian bombing sorties over 45 days along with 2000 Russian, Syrian army and Shia militia fighters. (here) The "Islamic State" is expected to once again set up, just 30 yards to the left as one exits the main entrance to Palmyra's museum, a new execution and slave women auction chamber to decapitate nonbelievers and other miscreants as well as sell women for as little as $ 100--the former price as of February 2015 according to IS documents found in its abandoned Sharia Court. The price for virgins less than 16 years of age was at the time set at $ 150. see here. Above the beheading chamber is this tray with holes drilled in it for blood drainage. Severed heads were thrown into this dish. Sometimes when terrified slave woman were caged next to it they were spattered with blood, eyewitnesses reported. (Image by Franklin Lamb) Details DMCA Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). When: December 17, 2016 Where: President Obama's Holiday Compound, Kailua, Oahu, Hawaii For the 9th year, concerned citizens of Hawaii will vigil at President Obama's Holiday Compound in Kailua, Oahu, Hawaii on Saturday, December 17 at 9am. The vigil began in December 2008 before he was sworn into office in January 2009 on the issue of the 27-day Israeli attack on Gaza. The vigil has continued for the last eight years. President Obama has been in office on issues of importance: Continuing Israeli attacks on Gaza; Closing Guantanamo; Assassin Drones; US militarization of Asia and the Pacific; US military construction at Henoko, Okinawa; Jeju Island, South Korea; Illegal Government Surveillance; Bradley Manning/Chelsea Manning; and Ed Snowden, among many others. Those attending the vigil are from social justice organizations in Honolulu including Veterans for Peace, Hawaii Peace and Justice and World Can't Wait. In the eight years we have held the vigil, neither President Obama nor First Lady Michelle have stopped to talk with the group about their concerns. We hope he will stop and talk this year, the 9th year he will be seeing us. The Secret Service and Honolulu Police have talked with us each year -- so they know who we are. For more information, please contact: Ann Wright, retired US Army Reserve Colonel (retired) and former US diplomat who resigned in opposition to the 2003 war on Iraq) Phone: 808-741-1141; email annw1946@gmail.com From Gush Shalom Benjamin Netanyahu (Image by twitter.com) Details DMCA AN INCREDIBLE piece of legislation is now being debated in Jerusalem. The country is busy with a settlement called Amona. There, deep in the occupied territories, a few dozen Jewish families have set up an illegal settlement -- illegal even under Israeli law, not to mention international law. Trouble is, they did not take the trouble to find out who owns the land on which they settled. As it turns out, it actually belongs to private Arab farmers. The Israeli Supreme Court ordered the settlers to evacuate the site. Evacuate Jews? Unthinkable! The Amonites swore "passive" resistance. This means calling upon tens of thousands of settlers from all over the occupied Palestinian territories to rush to the scene. It means crying babies, screeching girls, violent youngsters pushing bewildered soldiers (many of them settlers themselves), men wearing Nazi-era yellow stars, woman clutching their many weeping children, cameras galore. Awful. So, as the date set for the evacuation comes closer and the court refuses to grant another postponement -- after years of legal playing around -- the government has found a way out: the Amona settlers will move a hundred yards, to land on a part of the same hill which does not officially belong to private persons. In return for this favor by the settlers, the government promises to enact a "legitimization law," an invention of sheer legal genius. It says that in many dozens of places all over the West Bank, where other settlements have been set up on private Palestinian property, the land will simply be expropriated, and the rightful owners will be paid compensation. In short: a gigantic act of stealing the property of private persons, who happen to be Palestinian Arabs, in order to "legitimize" the settlements of fanatical far-right Jews. WHEN I read the text of the proposed bill, I was reminded of a sentence in the Bible that has always bewildered me. It's in Exodus (12). When Pharaoh at long last allowed the Children of Israel to leave Egypt, after the awful 10 plagues, they did something extraordinary. "And the Children of Israel 'borrowed of the Egyptians jewels of silver and jewels of gold and raiment' and they spoiled the Egyptians." Since the Children of Israel were leaving for good, "borrowing" meant stealing. And not from Pharaoh and the state, but from ordinary people, their neighbors. It is now generally agreed among experts that the exodus never really happened, and that the story was written about a thousand years after the purported event. But why would a writer attribute to his forefathers such disgusting behavior? Especially when it never happened? The only answer I can imagine is that the writers and editors at the time saw nothing disgusting in this story. Cheating and plundering non-Israelites was alright. It is also alright now for the settlers and the government of Israel. Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). On December 9, US president Barack Obama ordered a "review" of -- an investigation into -- alleged Russian hacking aimed at influencing the outcome of the 2016 US presidential election. Supporters of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton lauded Obama's order, which seems aimed at, well, influencing the outcome of the 2016 presidential election. On December 19, the electors chosen by voters on November 8 will meet in their respective state capitals to choose the next president of the United States. Under the existing system, those electors are required to vote for the candidate who carried their state's popular vote. Many Clinton supporters want the electors to instead install Clinton (or a "compromise candidate") in a coup d'etat. They've added Obama's "review" order to their arguments in favor of overthrowing the US government. When is it proper to investigate alleged wrongdoing by, or on behalf of, powerful politicians? Apparently it depends. In the months leading up to the popular vote, Clinton and her supporters first praised, then condemned, FBI direct James Comey. In July, Comey announced that he would recommend against prosecuting Hillary Clinton for her criminally negligent storage of classified information on an illegal private server as Secretary of State. Then, 11 days before the election, Comey informed Congress of possible new evidence in the matter. That evidence apparently came to naught, but the Clinton campaign blew its stack. Clinton's supporters are still calling for Comey's head. He's one of their scapegoats not just for Clinton's crimes, but for her mediocre campaign and losing performance (the other scapegoat is, of course, !THEM RUSSIANS!). Throughout the "Servergate" controversy, Clinton's supporters routinely complained that all inquiries into her actions constituted illicit attempts to affect the outcome of the election, and that law enforcement should back away from politically sensitive investigations near election time. Apparently that complaint only applies when the investigation might hurt Hillary Clinton. When Donald Trump might be damaged, the week before the final vote strikes them as perfect timing for an investigation. The publicly disclosed evidence against Clinton was overwhelming. Comey's argument against prosecuting her came down to "well, after all, she's Hillary Clinton." The publicly disclosed evidence that Vladimir Putin's regime attempted to influence the election of the outcome other than through propaganda? Zero. Zip. Zilch. Nada. The only thing we've seen so far are vague assertions about "methods consistent with" state-backed hacking. So far, the argument for an investigation that might hurt Donald Trump is "well, after all, he's Donald Trump." I'm perfectly willing to believe that both Clinton and Trump are bad actors, so crooked that they require staff trained to screw their pants on for them in the morning. But when it comes to investigation timing, how about one set of rules for everyone? Sanders Meets New Hampshire Seniors by Michael S. Vadon (Image by Michael Vadon) Details DMCA BernieThinkTank.com is offering a survey to gather information on how Sanders supporters feel about the election. The group plans to take several actions based on the data collected. One is to " support "current legal actions against the establishment and the DNC. Your (and others) signature and promise to submit an affidavit (if needed) will help establish our case that the DNC cheated us out of the true winner of the Democratic Primaries, which resulted in two choices for president, which most of us didn't prefer." They also plan to utiliize "signatures in attempting to convince as many Electors, as possible, on the Electoral College, to vote for Bernie Sanders." The surveyors ask for those interested to sign before December 19th. Some people may get tangled up in the notion that a petition like this is only about changing the outcome of the election. However, there are a wide variety of reasons why collecting this data can be useful, legal action against the DNC being only one. Bernie Think Tank writes "Your and other people's signatures will help the Electors know Bernie Sanders is the candidate, who truly had and has the support of the people. This is backed by Sanders consistently winning 'hugely' over Trump in polls prior to the Primaries." The 2016 election cycle may be the most valuable one in American history. It has woken people up, and caused them to ask questions and look for answers. This survey offers an opportunity to be part of that process for those who want to add their voices. Take the survey here. Mr. Grinch (Image by rowens27) Details DMCA This morning, in front of my foggy bathroom mirror, I try once again to enunciate the phrase I've had trouble saying without a shudder now for more than a month, "President-elect T-tr-tr-um . . ." Don't worry. I'll get it right some day. But, I still wonder, why did,just enough Americans in the right states pick a former-reality TV star with no experience in government to be the 45th President of the United States? Is it FBI Director Comey's fault? Or, perhaps, the blame lies with Russian hackers? Or fake news? Or uneducated whites? Or, maybe, it's the fault of our anachronistic and undemocratic Electoral College? Take your pick. They've all been written about extensively, but one reason hasn't received nearly enough attention. That the winning party, the Republicans, has been involved in a long-term, well-funded project, not to steal Christmas like the Grinch -- that would be small potatoes -- but American democracy, itself. This project can be traced back to corporate lawyer and future Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell's infamous 1971 memo, a reveille, not for radicals, but for big business to organize against -- well, us, the people. Powell laid it all out, calling for "careful long-range planning and implementation," backed by a "scale of financing available only through joint effort." As chronicled in Jane Mayer's essential Dark Money : The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right , a handful of right-wing billionaires, the Kochs, the Scaifes, the Olins, the DeVoses, and a few others took up Lewis Powell's clarion call and have worked tirelessly over many years to turn our country rightward. To install a government to do their biding, to allow their companies the liberty to rook the suckers with impunity and pollute our air and water without the interference of pointy-headed bureaucrats. They have poured billions of dollars into a dizzying array of think tanks, foundations, and action committees. They've bought off media and universities. In fact, they've even founded their own media, with their own set of "facts." Meanwhile, with gobs of ready cash, the right-wing funded the Federalist Society and bought their way into America's law schools to turn the courts and the country rightward. And their hard work has paid off handsomely. In 2010, the Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling made our politicians even more reliant on the top 1%, whose interests are diametrically opposed to most Americans. But not stopping there, in 2013, Republican-appointed judges on the Supreme Court defanged the Voting Rights Act. Since then, Republican state legislatures have passed voter ID laws and purged voter rolls in order to deny their fellow citizens, mostly Democrats, their precious right to vote. As Mehdi Hasan explained in The Washington Post, in North Carolina, "[on] the eve of the election, a federal judge said she was 'horrified' by the 'insane' process by which people were 'being purged' from the voter rolls. In July, a three-judge panel ruled that the state's 2013 voting law could only be explained by 'discriminatory intent'" because it was obviously aimed at keeping African Americans from voting. This "systematic disenfranchisement," according to political reporters Alice Ollstein and Kira Lerner , " was intentional and politically motivated. In the years leading up to 2016, Republican governors and state legislatures implemented new laws restricting when, where, and how people could vote"--"laws that disproportionately harmed students, the poor, and people of color. In several instances, lawmakers pushing such policies said explicitly that their goal was suppression of voters who favor the Democratic Party." As Zachary Roth succinctly put it in The Great Suppression: Voting Rights, Corporate Cash, and the Conservative Assault on Democracy, "At its core, this bold campaign has amounted to nothing less than an effort to undermine democracy." It's worth noting that Republicans originally got into the driver's seat in battleground states because in 2010 they used every trick in the book and then some to win majorities in order to gerrymander their way to more and more power during the decennial redistricting, regardless of their minority status. In 2010, they blanketed districts with libelous mailers, shamelessly sliming their Democratic opponents. Then having won, they redrew districts with laser-like precision by using a computer program called Maptitude. In Ohio, Republicans were able to win 75% of U.S. House seats with just 51% of the vote. In Pennsylvania, according to Dave Daley's accurately-named Ratf**ked: The True Story Behind the Secret Plan to Steal America's Democracy, Pennsylvania Republicans won 72% of the House seats with only 49% of the vote. Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). The senate will soon consider confirming Jefferson Beauregard III to the powerful post of Attorney General -- In the Nation's best interest, it is imperative his confirmation be denied. Senator Jeff Sessions is a multi-generation Confederate style racist. The Sessions clan immigrants from England, mostly concentrated themselves in South and North Carolina, Georgia and Alabama since the latter 1700s. Over a few generations they learned the ways of mistreating slaves; believing they were not human; mere property to be used at the will and whim of owners. Today this behavior is recognized by its name -- racism, bigotry and crimes against humanity and now, hate crimes. But people harboring the dislike or even hatred for a non-white race, and some religions this was not racism -- it was (in many circles, still is) normal feelings based on credo of superiority and belief of inferiority of those at the receiving end of their scorn and treatment -- the ultimate "white-supremacy" belief. The first Jefferson Beauregard Sessions was so named during the Civil War years. Then came Jefferson Beauregard Sessions Jr, born 1913, followed by Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III, born 1946, the third generation with the same name -- today better known as Senator Jeff Sessions from Alabama. The name Jefferson is not for Thomas Jefferson, it is for Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States; the middle name Beauregard belonged to arguably, the second most important Confederate general after Robert E. Lee. Sessions' men participated in Alabama's Confederate Army units during the Civil War. The choice of first and second names is meaningful as it reveals, since the early 1800s, the sentiment regarding the conviction to the Confederate cause of "state rights to own slaves" and subconscious belief of white supremacy. The end of the Civil War brought to an end slave ownership, but the racism and bigotry continued, the lynching, the rapes, inhumane treatment, total segregation became a way of life. How strong racisms and bigotry was felt by the Sessions family is evidenced with the passing on for three generations the name -- from the first naming by Civil War participants, cumulating in 1946 when third generation, Senator Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III was born. In the Sessions Alabama home young "Jeff," acknowledged as very intelligent, was taught verbally and through osmosis the accepted and traditional standards of racial segregation adopting its concept, but without an inkling that it was the practice of white-supremacy's racism and bigotry -- it was simply normal behavior and mind set shared by the vast majority of men and women in Southern states. Entering politics the young white-supremacist was loose with the tongue, hurling insults and demeaning remarks at blacks and any organization whose mission it was to protect the rights of black Americans. His loose tongue cost him an appointment to a Federal judgeship as overwhelming testimony regarding his racist remarks and behavior before the Senate committee hearing his nomination denied him the post. Since then he has learned to rein in his tongue, but his feeling come out loud and clear time and time again -- he simply can't help it as belief in white-supremacy is part of his DNA. During Trump's speech declaring his candidacy for President, he unleashed sentiments felt by many whose DNA of white-supremacy was deeply imbedded when he said the modern day politically incorrect -- Mexicans are criminals and rapists, later followed with his anti-Muslim deportation, exclusion and even death without regard to Muslims whether terrorists or not including their families, followed by the insults thrown at other minorities. Trump's words released the white-supremacy genie in the lamp. At long last a serious and well known candidate that spoke the Sessions generations' long sentiments. Jeff Sessions III was the first Senator to embrace Trump's candidacy, and now awaits his reward -- the most powerful cabinet position as the chief law enforcement officer in the nation. As per the governments description: "The mission of the Office of the Attorney General is to supervise and direct the administration and operation of the Department of Justice, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Bureau of Prisons, Office of Justice Programs, and the U.S. Attorneys and U.S. Marshals Service." Imagine the power of that office in the hands of a white-supremacist? The stakes are too high to allow this to happen. The Senate must reject his appointment From Reader Supported News Donald Trump (Image by rightwingwatch.org) Details DMCA Donald Trump poses many dangers, high among them the way he plays to the economic rage of workers losing their jobs to globalization and automation, the racial rancor of whites losing their privileged majority status, and the religious resentment of Evangelicals who fear losing their last, best chance to impose their religious views on "a Christian America." Trump pushes all their hot buttons. He also empowers the alt-right, Ku Kluxers, and others who openly preach White Supremacy, explicit Nazi ideology, and extreme measures against Muslims, Jews, and immigrants. Trump and his chief strategist Steve Bannon continue to pander to these nasties on both sides of the Atlantic, nowhere more than in France, where Marine Le Pen has turned her father's Jew-baiting Front National, or FN, into Europe's leading anti-Muslim political force. Understanding all this properly offers an insight into where Trump and Bannon are heading. Are Marine Le Pen and her FN truly neo-fascist, as I have described them over the past several years? A brilliant French academic says I'm dead wrong. "Referring to fascism or Nazism with regard to the FN, commonplace in some militant circles, can only obscure understanding," writes Joel Gombin, a 33-year-old political scientist who specializes in French elections and the far right. "The FN, as a party, has nothing to do today with (neo)fascism or (neo)Nazism." I disagree. My understanding begins with Marine's father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, a former paratrooper and intelligence officer whose unit brutally tortured and killed "Arab terrorists" in Algeria. In the late 1960s, he ran a record company that produced "The Third Reich: Voices and Songs of the German Revolution." The album included such old favorites as "Vive Hitler" and "The Hymn of the Nazi Party." On the record jacket, Le Pen characterized Hitler and the National Socialists in their rise to power as "a powerful mass movement, altogether popular and democratic, that triumphed through elections." Jean-Marie followed up on this idea in 1972, helping to bring together self-proclaimed fascists, Vichy collaborators, well-known war criminals, ultra-rightwing Catholics, and supporters of Alge'rie francaise and the terrorist Secret Army Organization, which had failed in its attempt to keep the French government of Gen. Charles de Gaulle from withdrawing from Algeria. These militants all saw themselves, in Gombin's perfect phrase, as "the losers of history, the forsaken, those that the account written by the victors ... the Allies, the Gaullists, the communists ... had consigned to the dustbin of history." Merging their differences, they formed the Front National, receiving support from the Movimento social Italiano, or MSI, who remained followers of Mussolini. FN became Jean-Marie's base as he built a reputation for being soft on Nazi Germany and shamelessly provocative toward Jews. He publicly dismissed the Holocaust as "a mere detail in the history of the Second World War." He publicly made puns about the Nazi gas ovens. He accused President Jacques Chirac of being "in the pay of Jewish organizations" and argued publicly that the Nazi occupation of France "was not especially inhumane." Having forgotten Voltaire's historic commitment to free speech, French authorities used various laws against hate speech and Holocaust denial to repeatedly prosecute Le Pen, which only increased his popularity among certain sectors of the French population. This led to his greatest success, when in the 2002 presidential election he beat the Socialist Party prime minister Lionel Jospin to win a place in the second round against Chirac, who trounced him with massive support from the left. Flash forward to 2012, when Marine Le Pen took over as FN's president, and to 2015, when she expelled her father from the party for continuing to make provocative statements. In those years and down to the present, she has worked hard to "de-demonize" the FN, emphasizing new issues and changing the party in ways that break sharply with its past. She tossed out the more radical fringes of the party. She supports gay rights and secularism. She calls herself a Gaullist and "a moderate," and claims the FN is on neither the right nor the left. She scathingly attacks neoliberal economics and finance-dominated capitalism. She calls for a referendum to take France out of the European Union, or Frexit, as it's called here. She criticizes Nazi Germany, calls the gas chambers a non-negotiable fact of history, and describes the Holocaust as "the summit of human barbarism." She roundly condemns anti-Semitism, openly seeks Jewish support, and with her live-in lover Louis Aliot -- who boasts of his North African Jewish grandfather ... has even made friends with Israel. But, for all this, she retains a defining element of her father's Front National and of Adolph Hitler's Nazi Germany. She blames a "foreign" group for a large share of France's problems. Only instead of pointing her finger at "the Jews," she castigates "the Muslims" and even opposes letting schools provide Muslim students with an alternative to pork. "It's the same politics of scapegoating that it always has been," explains Professor Nonna Mayer, an expert on the French far right at the prestigious Paris Institute for Political Studies, or Sciences Po. For me, this more than justifies calling her and her Front National neo-fascists, and Trump's "friending" her on the international stage suggests that his anti-Muslim rhetoric will lead in an extremely dangerous direction. Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News. Mountain of Plastic Bottles (Image by Shafiu Hussain) Details DMCA by Walter Brasch Whether Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump was elected, the environment is going to suffer. Both have supported horizontal fracking, the destruction of the earth to extract oil and gas. The use of fracking is so harmful to the environment and public health that numerous banks refuse to lend funds to individuals who wish to build or sell their houses near drilling operations. Numerous lenders have also refused to loan money to corporations that wish to drill. Hillary Clinton, while secretary of state, promoted the use of natural gas within foreign countries. In 2010, she told a meeting of foreign ministers, "Natural gas is the cleanest fossil fuel available for power generation today." One reason for the Obama/Clinton push for natural gas exploration and distribution in overseas countries is because geopolitics plays "a significant role in whether a number of gas projects are realized and come online and where pipelines are built. . . . Individual country decisions about natural gas resources can have dramatic impacts on responses in international discourse," according to a research analysis published by the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Amy Myers Jaffe and Dr. Meghan L. O'Sullivan, co-editors of the study, also pointed out, "The relative fortunes of the United States, Russia and China--and their ability to exert influence in the world--are tied in no small measure to global gas developments and vice versa." In Romania, the Social--Democrats came to power in 2012 on a promise to ban shale gas drilling. However, following extensive lobbying by Clinton, the Romanian parliament voted against a proposed fracking moratorium. Thousands of Romanians, many of them farmers, later protested Chevron's 30-year lease with the government to resume drilling. The protests in Summer 2013 led the government to send in the national police to suppress the citizens' rights of assembly and freedom of expression. Clinton does support stronger environmental laws and an increase in the budget for drinking and wastewater systems, and several other environmental measures, and now believes in a moratorium on fracking on federal land in the U.S. She still believes natural gas is a "bridge fuel" to cleaner energy. Trump wants to make desalination of ocean water more affordable and has presented some environmentally-friendly proposals, but his overall environmental policy diminishes in comparison to that of Clinton and most environmentalists. The incoming president's environment record is "one of the most stridently anti-environment platforms of any recent major party nominee," according to the 2.4 million member Natural Resources Development Council. The incoming president says he would approve the last segments of the 1,959 mile Keystone XL pipeline. TransCanada is an Alberta-based corporation that is building the controversial pipeline that will carry bitumen--thicker, more corrosive and toxic than crude oil--through 36-inch diameter pipes from Alberta tar sands to refineries on the Gulf Coast, almost all of it to be exported. The northern leg of the $7 billion pipeline was held up until President Obama either succumbed to corporate and business pressures or blocked the construction because of environmental and health issues. There will be only a couple of dozen permanent jobs for U.S. citizens if the pipeline is completed, and the President vetoed legislation from the Republican Congress to accelerate construction. The pipeline would add about 240 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year, according to Environment America. To complete the pipeline, the Canadian corporation used the right of eminent domain, which allows government to seize private property and pay a fair market share to the owner if it is in the public good, including building highways and bridges. The pipeline primarily benefits a foreign nation and a private corporation, does not benefit American workers, and has already caused significant disruption of the environment and animal biodiversity. Trump claims eminent domain is necessary but erroneously says that it's because the government is paying as much as ten times the value of the property. He supports private industry being able to dictate the seizure of land. Trump announced he would rescind the Clean Power Plan and end a moratorium on leasing federal coal reserves to private enterprise. Thousands of signs--"Trump Digs Coal"--began appearing during the final two months of Trump's march to the presidency. He claims that digging for coal will preserve jobs and is a source of energy. However, jobs in the renewable energy industry now exceed those in the fossil fuel industry, and coal miners can become renewable energy technicians. Numerous scientists have determined that mining and burning coal has been a contributing factor in the expansive hole in the earth's ozone layers that protect the planet from deadly ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Trump claims wind farms and solar energy are unproven, although dozens of large scale operations have been developed over the past decade, with Iowa producing 20 percent of its energy needs solely from renewable energy, and other states escalating their renewable programs. He claims renewable energy is "very expensive," but neglects facts that reveal renewable energy costs are now matching those of fossil fuel costs, and are continuing to plunge.Trump opposes increased environmental regulation and fracking, and believes the Dakota Pipeline, which is currently being protested by Native Americans, is necessary. Unlike 97 percent of climate scientists who believe climate change is the result of humans using fossil fuels, Trump believes climate change is a hoax "created by and for the Chinese," and that the numbers fluctuate. Anthony Scaramucci, one of his senior advisors, in June declared climate change to be "irrefutable [and] tragic that some people think it's a hoax," but during this past week after being appointed to the transition team said he didn't know if climate change is occurring. He wants to significantly cut back the Environmental Protection Agency. His choice to be EPA director, Scott Pruitt, opposes the EPA, has sued the EPA numerous times, believes global warming is a hoax, disregards the finding of environmentalists and other scientists of a connection between fracking and water pollution, fracking and air pollution, and fracking and earthquakes. Trump's choice of secretary of state is Rex Tillerson, multi-millionaire CEO of ExxonMobil, who believes in risk management practices that allow fracking and other dangerous oil/gas extraction to proceed if they are economical and don't exceed projected pay-out costs for damage to the environment and for health care as a result of drilling. This is the same Rex Tillerson who protested a proposed 160-foot water tower that would be used for fracking operations. The reason why Tillerson opposed the tower was because it was near his home and, he says, would have obstructed his view. He has no problems with ten-story rigs, and noise and light pollution affecting residents by ExxonMobil carving up the environment, often using eminent domain as a way to bisect private property and public forests to open up drilling. Sen. Bernie Sanders, who lost the Democratic nomination to Clinton, and Dr. Jill Stein, the Green Party's nominee, want a moratorium placed on fracking and stricter enforcement of current regulation to preserve federal lands and to protect private property and owner rights. They and former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson were the most environmentally-aware candidates for the presidency. Johnson, the Libertarian Party's nominee, campaigned to assure "strict accountability, not government agency and arbitrary standards, should regulate pollution." He opposes governments, which he calls "the biggest polluters of the environment" and corporations, which embed government fines within increased costs to the consumer. Companies, said Johnson, don't have the incentives "to be stewards of the environment [and] instead are able to stagnate as long as profits are protected by limited liability laws." Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). PPP demanded immediate resignation of Chaudhry Nisar The PPP has submitted adjournment motions in the Senate and the National Assembly on Friday demanding the immediate resignation of Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar. The motions were filed following the release of the inquiry commission report on the Quetta Civil Hospital carnage. They were submitted in the National Assembly Secretariat and the Senate Secretariat. "The people of Pakistan have been subjected to sustained terrorist attacks, which continue unabated, and deserve answers. Those who have failed the people of Pakistan need to be held accountable. Things can not go as they have been. Without top-tier accountability, it is unlikely systematic change will be possible," read the motion filed in the National Assembly. "This reaffirms our view that Minister of Interior is incapable or unable to play his role in combating terrorism and therefore, demand that he resign immediately," added the adjournment motion. The motion further added that an urgent debate is needed on the state of national security in light of the report by the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The motion submitted in the National Assembly was signed by PPP's Nafisa Shah, Syed Naveed Qamar, Abdul Sattar Bachani and others. In the motion submitted in the Senate, the PPP demanded discussion on the same subject by adjourning normal business of the house. The motion in the Senate stated that the inquiry report presents a "damning indictment of the government's commitment and execution of NAP". PPP's Senator Sherry Rehman among other signed the motion submitted in the Senate. The inquiry commission on the Aug 8 Quetta carnage called for banning terrorist organisations without any delay by enforcing the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) in letter and spirit. Key recommendations The National Action Plan should be made into a proper plan, with clear goals, a comprehensive monitoring mechanism, and periodic reviewing. Nacta (National Counter Terrorism Authority) must be activated. It must do what the Nacta Act mandates. The public space needs to be reclaimed to counteract the virulent propaganda of the terrorists. The laws and Constitution need to be reestablished and the state must re-exert itself. The Anti-Terrorism Act needs to be enforced, and terrorists/terrorist organisations must be proscribed without delay. The federal and Balochistan governments must develop and maintain a databank with information or perpetrators/suspects of heinous crimes and terrorists organisations. Forensic laboratories should be not under the jurisdiction of the police, but of scientists. The results/tests should be uploaded in a central databank and easily accessed from any province. All crime scenes should be professionally secured, forensically examined and extensively photographed as soon as possible. Protocols or standard operating procedures should be developed with the help of experts. The shortcomings of the hospital, government of Balochistan and police need to be addressed and removed. All educational institutions, including madaris, need to be registered. Entry into and departure from Pakistan needs to be properly monitored; all persons must have the requisite documentation. The customs authorities should ensure that contraband is not brought into the country. If the media broadcasts and propagates the views of terrorists, then those doing so must be prosecuted in accordance with the law. The amount of compensation for the legal heirs of the deceased and for the injured should be expeditiously distributed. From Greg Swank, 12-4-2 You are about to read a list of 45 goals that found their way down the halls of our great Capitol back in 1963. As... Two persons, including a banker at the Takoradi branch of the Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB) Limited, have been dragged before an Accra Circuit Court for allegedly stealing over GH356,000 belonging to the bank. They are Ferdinand Kofi Amponsah, the banker and Issah Alhassan aka Issah Alhassan, an auto-mechanic and customer of the bank. The two, according to the prosecution, led by DSP George Amega, between September and November, this year in Accra conspired to steal the said amount belonging to the bank. Appearing before the court, presided over by Mrs. Abena Oppong Adjin-Doku, the accused persons denied the charges. The duo was subsequently granted bail in the sum of GH400,000 with four sureties, one of which to be justified. As part of the bail conditions, the accused persons are to deposit their passports at the registry of the court and to report to the police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) every Wednesday. Sitting continues on December 29, 2016. Prosecuting, DSP Amega said between September and November 2016, the management of the bank received complaints from customers about fraudulent withdraws. He said the withdrawals were carried out with cloned cheques drawn on accounts located at the banks branches in Accra. The prosecutor stated that it was established that while the true account holders had their genuine cheque books intact, replica copies of leaflets bearing the serial numbers of leaflets which were not yet used by the account holders were procured with forged signatures. DSP Amega noted that these cloned leaflets are drawn on the bank and presented at branches outside Accra and various withdrawals made. It was established that four accounts of the bank had fraudulent withdrawals made on them. Investigation revealed that Ferdinand even though stationed at Takoradi at the Corporate Banking Department used his identification number FC07072 which was assigned to him at Mampong to make several enquiries on the accounts prior to or after the cloned cheques were presented based on which he was arrested. During police investigations, Ferdinand admitted the offence and told the police that it was upon the request of Issah that he made enquiries on the accounts. Ferdinand further told the police that he took photographs, signature mandates, cheques book serial numbers, photographs and other confidential details of High Valued Account Holders which he forwarded to Issah and others. DSP Amega argued that the GCB banker was not permitted to check or query individual customer accounts of the bank but he was engaged in this activity secretly in collaboration with his accomplices to steal monies from the bank, adding that between the said dates, six of the cloned cheques presented at various branches of the bank resulted in the theft of GH356,100. Ferdinand, according to the prosecutor, admitted receiving money from Issah and admitted ownership of two houses at Kasoa believed to have been built with the proceeds from the crime. Seven other accounts are said to have been affected. Source: Daily Guide Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Gambia's President-elect, Adama Barrow, has told the BBC he will declare himself president on 18 January despite incumbent Yahya Jammeh's rejection of the election result. He said his team was preparing for his inauguration and he urged Mr Jammeh to respect the will of the electorate. The election commission declared Mr Barrow winner of the 1 December poll. Mr Jammeh has launched court action to annul the result after initially accepting defeat. His security forces have seized control of the election commission's headquarters in the capital, Banjul. The Gambia has not had a smooth transfer of power since independence from Britain in 1965. Mr Jammeh first seized power in a coup in 1994, and many of his critics have been jailed or forced into exile. Mr Barrow, a property developer who was the candidate of a coalition of seven opposition parties, defeated him by four percentage points. In the interview with the BBC's Umaru Fofana, Mr Barrow said Mr Jammeh's move to annul the election had come as a surprise. Mr Jammeh had phoned to congratulate him soon after the election and had stated that "our system is the best" and "nobody can rig" the elections, Mr Barrow said. He ruled out a recount or re-run of the election: "We are not supporting anything as at now. Our position is very very clear. I'm president-elect. We advise the president to cooperate." Asked about his inauguration, Mr Barrow said: "We have a team that is working on our inauguration. We are working on it; on the 18th, I'm the legal president of this country." Mr Barrow told the BBC Mr Jammeh would not be prosecuted if he stepped down because his government would focus on "truth and reconciliation". Mr Jammeh "should feel secure" because "he is a Gambian", Mr Barrow added. "If South Africa can reconcile [after the racial system of apartheid ended in 1994], I see no reason why Gambians cannot reconcile. We are not saying prosecution; we said truth and reconciliation." Mr Barrow added that he feared for his safety but had the "support of the whole world". "That puts me in a strong position and I'm a very strong character. I have faith in God." Mr Barrow rejected suggestions that foreign troops should intervene to help him take power. According to the electoral commission's final count: Mr Barrow won 222,708 votes (43.3%) President Jammeh took 208,487 (39.6%) A third-party candidate, Mama Kandeh, won 89,768 (17.1%) Results were revised by the electoral commission on 5 December, when it emerged that the ballots for one area had been added incorrectly, swelling Mr Barrow's vote. Source: Daily Graphic Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Seventh Parliament of the Fourth Republic will commence on January 7, 2017, with Prof. Aaron Michael Oquaye presiding, highly placed sources within the incoming governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) has revealed. The Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition, Kasapafmonline.com understands, settled on the former Ghanas High Commissioner to India because of his vast experience in parliamentary affairs. Having been nominated for the position, his fate will now be determined by the lawmakers of the Seventh Parliament. But with the NPP having won 171 seats in the just ended Parliamentary poll to form the Majority Caucus of the House, the Political Scientist is expected to receive overwhelming endorsement from the elephant family. He is likely to also be endorsed by the the Minority side of the House. He was penciled for the job alongside the equally experienced Paapa Owusu Ankomah, MP for Sekondi and a fomer Majority Leader and the Acting National Chairman of the elephant family, Frederick Worsemao Armah Blay, a former 1st Deputy Speaker of Parliament. The Political Science Professor entered into Parliament in 2005 and served for a period of two terms. He represented the people of Dome/Kwabenya. He also rose through the ranks to become 2nd Deputy Speaker in the Fifth Parliament of the Fourth Republic having served on a number of committees. He had long cherished the position of a Speaker and so when he was elected as the Second Speaker of the House, he gladly welcomed it believing that not sooner than later, the substantive position may come his way when the NPP comes to power. After deciding not to contest the Dome/Kwabenya seat in 2012, many saw that decision by the Political Scientist who is also a legal luminary as the right opportunity to prepare himself for the Speaker position if the NPP wins power. Aaron Mike Oquaye was born April 4, 1944, in Osu, Acca to E. G. N Oquaye of Osu and Felicia Awusika Abla Oquaye (nee Azu) of Odumase-Krobo. He was brought up at Asamankese in the Eastern Region, where he attended the Roman Catholic Primary School and Presbyterian Middle School before proceeding to Presbyterian Boys Secondary (PRESEC), at Odumase-Krobo, and Apam Secondary School. Oquayes father, E.G.N. Oquaye, had been a founding member of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) at Asamankese. He was also treasurer and principal financier of the UGCC, Gold Coast Party (GCP), National Liberation Movement (NLM) and United Party (UP) at Asamankese. When Oquaye was a child, his family received political figures and dignitaries such as Dr. J. B. Danquah and Prof. Kofi Abrefa Busia as guests at their home. While the Okyenhene, Nana Ofori Atta II, was in exile in Accra, he was also a regular visitor to the Oquaye family home in Asamankese. Oquaye is a Baptist Minister, and is married to Alberta Oquaye (nee Asafu-Adjei), a senior professional nurse. Legal career Having obtained the GCE O and A Level Certificates, he entered the University of Ghana and later the University of London, at Lincolns Inn, London. He holds B.A. (Hons.) Political Science, L.L.B. (Hons.), B.L. and PhD. He is a qualified solicitor and barrister, as well as the founder and senior partner of his own law firm. He is a barrister of the Supreme Court of England and Wales, a senior member of the Ghana Bar Association, and a solicitor for some leading companies and financial institutions. Academic career He was a professor of Political science at the University of Ghana, (Legon), and was previously the Head of the Department of Political Science and member of the Universitys Academic Board, the highest authority at the level of the faculties. He received his Ph.D from School of Oriental and African Studies in London, as well as winning the Rockefeller Senior Scholar Award in 1993 and the Senior Fulbright Scholar Award in 1997. He has been a visiting lecturer at George Mason University in Virginia. From 1997 to 1999, he was Vice-President of the African Association of Political Science (AAPS), based in Zimbabwe. Writings and advocacy Oquaye is a writer, who has researched and written extensively on good governance, conflicts, political education, decentralization and development, human rights, military intervention in politics, NGOs, rural development and gender issues. He advocates womens rights, including affirmative action. He is the author of the award-winning book Politics in Ghana 1972-1979, in which he depicts, inter-alia, the military as the bane of Government and Politics in Africa and recounted instances of human right abuses, conflictual politics, economic mismanagement and national decadence. He wrote a second volume, Politics in Ghana 1982-1992, dealing with the politics of revolution, CDRs, Public Tribunals, popular power, positive defiance and human rights issues of the period. His scholarly write-ups have been published in international journals such as Human Rights Quarterly (US), Journal of Commonwealth and Comparative Politics (UK), African Affairs (UK), and Review of Human Factor Studies (Canada). Political career As a student at the University of Ghana, Oquaye joined the campaign for the J. B. Danquah/Kofi Abrefa Busia cause. He strongly supported Busias call for quick return to civilian rule to prevent the militarization of the state and, along with his family, helped to establish the Progress Party in Osu in 1969. The United Party-Progress Party tradition led to the foundation, in 1992, of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), with Oquaye as a founder member. He was the first Regional Secretary of NPP for Greater Accra in 1992, and also the first Chairman of the Party for the Ga District Rural Constituency, which later split into Ga West District and Ga East District. He was the secretary of the Research Committee and a member of the first National Campaign Team of the NPP in the third quarter of 1992. He worked with other central NPP figures, including President John Kufuor, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, R. R. Amponsah, Prof. Adu-Boahen, Peter Ala Adjetey, B. J. da Rocha and Odoi Sykes to campaign successfully for the NPP victory in the 2000 general elections. His role in the partys success, which involved journalistic contributions and involvement in other activities of the party between 1993 and 2000, is considered significant. From 2001 to 2004, Oquaye served as Ghanas High Commissioner to India. In February 2005 he became Minister of Energy, and later he was moved to the post of Minister of Communications. Oquaye was the NPP Member of Parliament for Dome-Kwabenya for two terms from 2004 to 2012. He decided not to go for another term. He sponsored his some, Mike Oquaye Jnr. to fight to be the NPP Parliamentary Candidate for the constituency. His son however lost to Adwoa Safo who went on to win the seat. From 2008 to 2012, Mike Oquaye was the Second Deputy Speaker of Ghanas Parliament. He was succeeded by Joe Ghartey in the 6th parliament of the 4th Republic. Bibliography Written works Politics in Ghana 1982-1992 (Academic Literature, 2005) Democracy, Politics and Conflict Resolution in Contemporary Ghana (Academic Literature, Gold-Type Publication, 1995). Source: kasapafmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the President-Elect, has pledged a different kind of government for Ghana, saying he is heading an Executive that governs in the national interest, not for private gain. Ghana deserves the best. My vision for Ghana is of an optimistic, self-confident and prosperous nation with a strong and thriving democratic society in which mutual trust and economic opportunities exist for all, irrespective of their background. My government will place people at its centre. Their hopes and their concerns will drive its policies and priorities. I promise to build a Ghana that works and gives each and every one of us the opportunity to improve our lives. A Ghana that works for us and our families, not just for the rich and powerful, Nana Akufo-Addo said in a Forward captured in the Partys Election 2016 Manifesto, copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra. Nana Akufo-Addo said: I will be a President for all Ghanaians. Whatever your region, your tribe, your gender, your status, or your religion, I will serve you all. I will champion your cause with the help of the Almighty God. He said everyday he woke up as President his consideration would be what is best for the country we all love and what will improve the lives of all our people. Nana Akufo- Addo said he had an unshakeable faith in Ghana, the Black Star of Africa, and under the leadership of the New Patriotic Party, had a bright future, a future that would be secured by the enterprise, creativity, and hard work of the Ghanaian people. He called on Ghanaians to join him, so together, we can build a country where, if you show up, step up, and work hard, you will have your fair share of its wealth, and be fairly rewarded for your hard work. A country in which hard work pays, and cutting corners does not. A country in which, no matter where you come from, you will be rewarded based on merit, not on whom-you-know-basis. A country in which every young person can hope, and aspire, and reach his or her fullest potential, right here in Ghana. I have dedicated my life to public service to change Ghana for good as President, with the help of the Almighty God. Nana Akufo-Addo noted: I have seen the pain and sacrifices made by ordinary Ghanaians everyday - by the farmer who struggles to feed his family and send his children to school, but does not know, whether having made that sacrifice to pay the bills, his children will even be able to get a job at the end of their studies. By the mother of the sick child, who has to walk miles on the dusty road to the clinic to get medicine only to be turned away because the clinic will not accept her National Health Insurance Scheme card and she has no money to pay. By the young man and woman who, through no fault of their own, have had to drop out of school and cannot find a way out of lifes difficulties. Nana Akufo-Addo observed that he had noticed the young man who, because of financial circumstances at home, never had the opportunity to go to school and was now sleeping rough on the streets of Accra. He said he had seen the youth who worked hard at school, or the university, but still cannot find a job when they leave. They become street hawkers and even open roadside shops, but find they struggle to survive because the falling cedi raises the costs of their goods. Their shops also close because they cannot afford electricity bills. Nana Akufo-Addo said: I have also seen that young woman whose wages can barely cover her transport fares to and from work and her share of the one bedroom she shares with her friend, and by the Kayayei who have no opportunities or shelter and are forced to sleep on the streets of our cities. It is for these people that I contested for the Presidency - for ordinary Ghanaians who have been betrayed by a government that does not care. It is to them that my Government will be dedicated to. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video 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. Templates and tools for the MSU look Use these graphics and resources for print, social media, video, email, letters, presentations and more to infuse the Missouri State brand into your daily activities. argenx launches Phase I/II study of ARGX-110 in combination with azacitidine in newly diagnosed AML patients Details Category: Antibodies Published on Saturday, 17 December 2016 13:58 Hits: 1600 BREDA, The Netherlands / GHENT, Belgium I December 14, 2016 I argenx (Euronext Brussels: ARGX), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on creating and developing differentiated therapeutic antibodies for the treatment of cancer and severe autoimmune diseases, today announced the initiation of a Phase I/II clinical trial of ARGX-110 in combination with azacitidine in newly diagnosed, elderly acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients. ARGX-110 is the Companys SIMPLE Antibody targeting CD70. Azacitidine is a hypomethylating agent that upregulates CD70 expression on AML blasts, and is currently the standard of care treatment for elderly AML patients. AML blasts and leukemic stem cells of newly diagnosed AML patients strongly overexpress CD70, regardless genetic factors or risk class. Targeting CD70 has proven to be a very promising therapeutic approach in various preclinical models of AML. The idea of combining ARGX-110 with the current standard of care azacitidine, which seems to sensitize cancer cells to a CD70 treatment, is an exciting one since it allows us to go into the first-line therapy setting, commented Tim Van Hauwermeiren, CEO of argenx. This trial marks the first combination study for ARGX-110. We believe that combination therapies for cancer will be a mainstay approach to enhance synergistic mechanisms and we are eager to see how ARGX-110 and azacitidine may support this hypothesis in newly diagnosed AML patients. The Phase I/II trial is an open-label, dose-escalating study (Phase I) with a proof-of-concept cohort (Phase II). In this Phase I study safety and tolerability will be determined whilst for the Phase II efficacy will be assessed in up to 42 newly diagnosed AML patients in total. Top-line data from the dose escalation are expected in about 18 months. About ARGX-110 ARGX-110 is a SIMPLE Antibody targeting CD70, an immune checkpoint target involved in hematological malignancies, several solid tumors and severe autoimmune diseases. ARGX-110 works in three ways: i) blocks growth of tumor cells, ii) kills cancer cells and iii) restores immune surveillance against tumors (Silence K. et al. mAbs 2014; 6 (2):523-532). ARGX-110 is currently being evaluated in hematological and solid tumors. Preclinical work on ARGX-110 in AML was done in collaboration with the Tumor Immunology Lab of Prof. A. F. Ochsenbein at the University of Bern, who won together with Prof Manz from the University Hospital of Zurich, the prestigious 2016 Otto Naegeli Prize for his breakthrough research on CD70/CD27 signaling with therapeutic potential for cancer patients. About AML AML develops from immature blood cells produced in the bone marrow that become myeloblasts (also termed blasts or leukaemia cells). All these types of leukaemia cells rapidly multiply in the bone marrow resulting in limited room for healthy blood cells. AML has the lowest 5-year survival rate of all blood malignancies (~5-20%) and primarily affects the eldery. Patients above 65 years old are unfit for stem cell transplantation and are often put on palliative treatment. Around 40% of these patients receive azacitidine, as it has been shown to improve the overall survival rate. About argenx argenx combines the diversity of the llama immune system with antibody engineering to advance a clinical pipeline to treat patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases. Our platforms allow us to unlock novel and complex targets and develop antibody-based drugs designed for longer duration of effect and greater efficacy. The strength of our team, our deep understanding of the biology, and our committed collaborations with industry leaders contribute to the success of our journey. SOURCE: argenx Mike Derrick, the 2016 candidate in the 21st Congressional District raised more for his campaign than 2014 Democratic candidate Aaron Woolf -- $1.24 million for Derrick compared with $1.19 million for Woolf. But Derrick did not have the resources to self-fund his campaign as did Woolf, a filmmaker from Elizabethtown who personally loaned his campaign about $800,000 without taking repayment. And Derrick only received about half the level of political action committee contributions as Woolf in 2014, when the race was for an open seat. Derrick received $163,470 in PAC contributions and Woolf received $342,440. When Derrick entered the race, the 21st Congressional District race was expected to be one of two top-tier House races in New York. No doubt Derrick initially expected to receive substantially more in PAC contributions. But the dynamics changed after three New York incumbents announced retirements, setting up high-stakes races for open seats elsewhere in New York. Derrick raised a little over $1.06 million in individual contributions, about 28 percent more than the $831,593 Woolf raised in individual contributions. Derrick, a retired Army colonel from Peru, in Clinton County, lost to incumbent U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Willsboro. Matt Fiuniciello, a bread company owner and political activist from Hudson Falls, was the Green Party candidate. SARATOGA SPRINGS A portion of the Adirondack Northway, I-87, was closed near Exit 15 at 7 a.m. Saturday after a tractor-trailer jackknifed and had to be towed from the scene, according to New York State Police. Royce Elkins, 25, of Glens Falls, who was driving a Ford Escape, was charged with several traffic violations in connection with the early morning crash, Trooper William Crowe said Saturday afternoon. The driver of the Ford Escape was charged with driving at an unreasonable speed, moving from the lane unsafely and not having a license. Trooper Crowe said the Northway had to be closed several times for 10 or 15 minutes at the time of the incident to accommodate for tow trucks and other vehicles. There were no injuries. Washington County Sheriff Jeff Murphy knows 2017 is going to be a busier year for the staffers in his office who oversee pistol permits. Thats because New Yorks SAFE Act requires that permit holders who received their permits in 2013 or earlier recertify or renew them by January 2018, so many will be looking to start the process next year. But the state has yet to let those gun owners or permit administrators know what they will need to do, and many permit administrators are fielding calls from gun owners with no answers to give. The counties have no idea how any of this is going to work, Murphy said. Four years after the law was passed and we dont know what to tell people. Thats the sign of a law that was hastily passed. County clerks and sheriffs around the state are bracing for a wave of inquiries in the coming months from pistol permit holders who will have to renew their permits before 2018. Most will be able to renew online, but those without internet access will have to get forms from their local State Police station. Tom King, president of New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, said it was not accurate to call the process a renewal, saying it is merely a recertification that all of the information on the permit is accurate. He said he was not a fan of the requirement and hoped the law would change, but said it should be a matter of filling out a form online or in writing for permit holders. As long as you havent committed any crimes, they arent going to take your guns away, King said. Permit holders will be told of the renewal requirement by mail, but Murphy said those who have moved may not get their forms. And those who moved will have to be issued new permits, which will create new work for county pistol permit administrators. We are going to have a lot of people coming here with questions and looking for the forms, the sheriff said. This is just a hassle for the law-abiding gun owners. People who have handguns illegally arent concerned about it. Warren County Clerk Pam Vogel said her office has also been getting inquiries from local gun owners about permit renewals. She said there hadnt been much new information from the state about the process, but her staff will post whatever correspondence they get for the public. Forms to be mailed The renewal forms are to be mailed to permit holders early next year and will ask them to confirm name, date of birth, gender, race, residential address, Social Security number, firearms possessed and add an optional email address. An online search finds no information from the state about the process to be followed, however. Responding to a question about what permit holders will need to do, the State Police public information office released the following statement Tuesday: The State Police is in the final stages of implementing a simple process, which can be completed online or by mail that will allow pistol permit holders to recertify in compliance with the law. We have been communicating our progress to the county clerks, and we will provide the clerks and permit holders with specifics once the process is finalized. We will ensure that those permit holders who must recertify by Jan. 31, 2018, will have a clear and easy path to do so. The state tried a pilot renewal program in three counties, none of them local, starting in 2015, to gauge how the renewal process will go, but two counties reportedly opted out of that process. Deb Capezzuti, chief of staff for Assemblyman Dan Stec, R-Queensbury, said her office recently got an inquiry from a gun owner and, when looking into it, was told the process had not yet been established but will be publicized early next year when it is. There are an estimated 2 million pistol permits issued in New York. Murphy said nearly 10,000 are issued in Washington County, many of them to gun owners who got them decades ago and have never had to jump through the renewal hoops before. Since the SAFE Act was passed, Murphy said the annual number of pistol permit amendments and applications his office handles rose from about 1,500 before the SAFE Act to nearly 4,000 last year. Those who dont renew will have their permits revoked, and if they continue to possess a handgun without their permit they can be charged with a misdemeanor. The state plans to notify the licensing bureau in each county, either the clerk or sheriff, as to which permit holders did not recertify. Welcome Guest! You Are Here: Welcome Guest! You Are Here: Home Regional News East The move forms part of efforts to maintain its position as the largest electronics company in Africa and to ensure consumers have easy access to world-class innovative electronic appliance and smart devices. The new premium brand store, a magnificent building which can be spotted at Ring Road Central Former Alibert Building, near Paloma Hotel (about 200 meters away from the Kwame Nkrumah interchange, Circle, Accra) comes with a product experience zone and full range of Samsung Digital Appliances and other Smart devices to give customers true satisfaction. It also seek to offer consumers the exclusive opportunities to experience the latest range of Samsungs luxury products which include the Ultra High Definition Television (SUHD TVs), the worlds fastest cooling Triangle and Jet Engine Air Conditioners amongst others. Speaking at a media launch prior to opening, Business Leader, Samsung Electronics West Africa, Vishwas Saxena said "This Samsung Brand store is offering our customers the full Samsung experience across our digital, audio visual and home appliances". It will provide the end consumer with a stimulating environment in which to discover the full spectrum of Samsung's world-class offerings in one easily-accessible location". Apart from the showroom we also have a customer service area and a shop so consumers who dont know where to go for after sales service can conveniently walk in here and have their issues addressed, Mr. Saxena added. According to him the store will provide the end consumer with a stimulating environment. Apart from the showroom the biggest Samsung store in West Africa also have a customer service area and a shop so consumers who dont know where to go for after sales service, "they can conveniently walk in here and have their issues addressed. According to Mr. Nour Seklawi, Managing Director of Electroland Ghana Ltd., the shop will be manned by fully trained and experienced Samsung staff who will take cherished customers through the whole Samsung experience. As a brand that always puts customers first, we want to provide them with the convenience of shopping in an easy-to-access environment. Ghana's constitution guarantee's the four-year mandate of the governor and also insulate him from political control. He was promoted to the position ahead of Mr Millison Narh, who is the second deputy governor. But former Finance Minister and a Member of Parliaments Finance Committee Dr Anthony Akoto Osei (NPP MP) believes Dr Issahaku is strongly aligned with the Mahama-led administration. If I were in his position, I will voluntarily step down considering his strongly political leaning to the outgoing government, he said, as quoted by the Business and Financial Times (B&FT). But the Chief Executive Officer of Dalex Finance and Leasing Company Limited, Kenneth Kwamena Thompson believes any move to have the governor exit before his term expires could set a bad precedent. For the purposes of proper governance, he should be allowed to serve his term. I dont see the reason why the governor, who has been appointed and approved by all, cannot work with the new government. I think as a country we must go beyond the so-called precedence that was set. Lets do the right thing as we look beyond the personality and look at the institution and see how actions impact on the institutions, he told the B&FT. It is very sad because this whole debate that has been ignited, I believe, has to do with some individuals personal interest. But Akufo-Addo the President-elect must allow the institutions to work which I think will be to his advantage as well, he added. He also maintained that the success of the incoming NPP administration does not rest on the governor. Her concerns come on the heels of pockets of violence against NDC members in the Western, Greater Accra and Ashanti Regions. The Police say they have arrested many of the perpetrators and have arraigned some of them before the law court. The deputy minister, who is also a queen mother, added that many of the NPP supporters are saying hurtful things about her but has restrained herself from replying them. In a Facebook post titled, "WHO I WAS, WHO I AM AND WHO I WANT TO BE," she claimed that some of her friends have allowed their Facebook wall to be used to (by younger people) to disrespect her. She said: All of a sudden, there are people trolling my wall and exhibiting attitudes that are not acceptable. "Saying hurtful things to me. I have chosen to stay focused on the above 'who I was, who I am and who I want to be' and have chosen to take them all in good faith. "I have 'friends' (peers) who have allowed their walls to be used to (by younger people) disrespect me. "My caution to you is, I am able to take it all in but watch the same space and be ready...the 'Dzatabi' will grow. You raise positive children you reap positive children and the reverse is true. "For those who think I should fight back, that is not "who I am now". That 'was who I was'. "I must focus on "who I want to be". Allowing people who judge unfairly and who earn favours by destroying others to get to me will derail me. "I am in charge of my emotions. I am focused on what the Great I Am has in store for me. I must at least, try, to allow the will of God and not MAN to work. "It is possible to remain calm in the midst of the storm, you know who is in charge." The scale of intimidations against perceived opponent of the NDC has been roundly condemned the clergy and some civil society groups. "I expect them to be more practical in their approach. What Yayha Jammeh is doing is that he is not stupid, he is afraid of his shadows and so what we need to do is to give him some kind of bait," he said. "They should continue with the preventive diplomatic, try to bargain with Yahya Jammeh, bargain his exit. That is more important. We must think of the people... Cote D'Ivoire is an example, we must think about democracy, how we install democracy in Gambia..." he added. He has also lodged a Supreme Court case to challenge the result this week. He has also come under intense pressure from the international community, with the EU, UN and the US mulling sanctions against him. Adama Barrow was declared the winner of the presidential race and even received a call from Jammeh conceding defeat and pledging his support to the president-elect. His concession stunned the world, and many Gambians took to the street to celebrate what they call "emancipation day." Little success was achieved at the mediation talk with Jammeh who has, in his latest antics, lodge a Supreme Court case to challenge the result. Multiple media reports in Nigeria said Jammeh was told by the mediation team to respect the result of the December 1 election which he had earlier accepted. Francophone West Africa regional power, Senegal has threatened to intervene militarily if Jammeh fails to leave office. According to him, NDC polling agents were stationed far away from where the ballot papers were being issued, making it difficult for the party's agents to keep stock of the number of ballot papers issued at the close of polls. Some of our people (agents) were not vigilant at the polling stations because instead of sitting close to the polling officers who were issuing the ballot papers, they were asked to keep a distance and out of ignorance or influence, they did. Then people had a field day and issued more than one ballot paper, some three, some four, some five, to vote," he said in an interview with Accra-based Accra FM. In most of the polling stations in Ashanti, there was over-voting, but we could not hold on [to these allegations] and create problems for this country, and so we had to let it go. We will ensure that those mistakes do not happen again, he added. The claim of over-voting in the Ashanti Region has been strongly rejected by the Ashanti Regional Chair of the Electoral Commission. But leading figures of the NDC keep pushing the false narrative that over-voting occurred in the Ashanti Region. Last week, the party's Deputy General Secretary, Koku Anyidoho, claimed the NPP hacked the EC's system to manipulated the results despite the fact that the results were tabulated manually. John Boadu singled out the NDC's National Chairman, Kofi Portuphy, for criticism, accsuing him of inciting violence and a "face saving exercise" after a poor showing at the polls. READ MORE: Theresa May congratulates Nana Addo after election victory Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters in Accra Portuphy said the members of the NDC have been calm so far hoping the attacks will cease. I am the leader of the party; Im saying if they attack them they should defend themselves while seeking police protection. They should not cross their arms for NPP people to butcher them to death. But Boadu believes the NDC's by the call, is only exhibiting the incompetence of President John Mahama, saying the president is unable to guarantee the safety of Ghanaians. Speaking on Accra-based Asempa FM Friday, he recalled how the NDC criticised President-elect Nana Akufo-Addo's infamous "all die be die" comments which was also a call on NPP supporters to defend themselves against attacks from NDC supporters when the NPP lost power in 2008. He further accused the party of stage-managing the attacks to project the incoming administration as violent. Daily Post reports that the Toyin Aimakhu's ex-lover jetted out to Malaysia and has been unreachable following fresh allegations of an alleged $3000 fraud revealed by a MultiChoice dealer in Ibadan. According to the reports, the Ebony Productions CEO left the country for Malaysia, in a bid to escape the controversies which have trailed him following the phone theft. A source reportedly revealed to Encomium magazine that, Seun Egbegbe is not in town now. I learnt he has gone to Malaysia where he will sojourn till February 8, 2017, when his case will be heard at Ikeja Magistrate Court, Lagos." Egbegbe who was arrested and charged to an Ikeja Magistrates Court for theft, was reportedly granted bail in the sum of N1 million Meanwhile, a MultiChoice dealer has revealed that Egbegbe committed fraud to the tune of $3000 at his outlet, and left him to take the fall for it. The dealer identified as Semiu, also alleged that Aimakhu, paid good money to make that scandal go away. News Story not available This story has been published on: 2022-11-03. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. This story is no longer available on our site. Living Gospel Equality Now: Loving in the Heart of God: Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests In a statement released by the acting Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Haruna Mohammed, it was revealed that the gun battle which lasted for about one hour, saw a member of the Danga Security outfit and the two deceased suspected kidnappers, critically injured and were rushed to the hospital for medical attention. ALSO READ:Police clamp down on kidnappers Mohammed, said two female hostages, Maryam Shuaibu and Hauwau Karfe, from Bauchi State, were rescued from the kidnappers while another suspect was arrested. The Superintendent of Police said that the exhibits recovered from the suspects include one K2 rifle with beech no. 2016576, one magazine, 15 rounds of live ammunition and other incriminating items. The trailer was arrested by customer officers of Federal Operation Unit, Zone C, Owerri, along Aba-Owerri expressway on December 4, 2016. The Customs Area Comptroller in-charge of the unit, Mr Mohammed Uba Garba, revealed that the exhibit was found hidden in a specially constructed tank for illegal bunkering and concealed behind 256 sacks of expired animal feeds. According to Daily Post, Garba said that the impounded adulterated petroleum product caused blockages of heavy duty machines and generators, which he said emits hazardous carbon monoxide detrimental to the health. ALSO READ:Customs arrests drug trafficker carrying Indian Hemp While speaking with newsmen, Garba said that a suspect identified as Chibuzor Njoku was arrested in connection with the case and is to be handed over to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps for prosecution. Disclosing a similar development, Mohammed also said that a 1 X 40 container with marks MRKU 254564 loaded with 1,017 sacks of 50kg cannabis (Indian hemp) estimated at over N111. 1m was intercepted by the unit along the Benin-Shagamu highway on December 7, 2016. The Unit Commandant said the only suspect, James Idoko, who claimed to be a student attempted to deceive the Customs men by presenting copies of fake customs processed document on importation, which turned out to be contrary to what was contained in the container. He added that the suspect also attempted to offer a bribe of N350,000 in a bid to avoid arrest. Garba noted that the suspect is currently in custody with the bribe money, which now serves as an exhibit along with the container load of cannabis. The NCS boss said that the increase in criminality, violence and juvenile delinquency among the youths could be traced to the high consumption of hard drugs such as marijuana which is the reason for the clampdown on those involved in the illicit business. Consumption of cannabis also affects the family relationship and we must fight it to the last so as to have a better society, he stated. Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected! They said this in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Friday when reacting to the 2017 budget estimates presented to the National Assembly on Wednesday by President Muhammadu Buhari. Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim, a human resources practitioner, described the budget as a budget of assurance of better situation in the coming year. The prioritisation of Power, Works, Education, Interior and Housing projects is a welcome development. However, the allocation to Health and Agriculture is too low considering the extent of decay in health sector and need to boost agriculture for higher productivity in food production. We can only force down prices of commodities when we increase productivity in the agricultural sector. Ibrahim said the reactivated railway Sector ought to be given more attention to upgrade its current services as a potent alternative to road transportation. According to him, the railway sector has large traffic of people with the roads presently in bad shape which has resulted in several loss of lives. Ibrahim said the Customs and Exercise Department needed to be funded with a view of making it to work with maximum capacity to generate higher revenue for Federal Government. Also, the Sole Administrator of the Customs Rtd. Col. Hameed Ali had attributed the low revenue profile of customs this year to lack of funds to put necessary infrastructure in order. According to him, this include payment of staff allowances to boost their morale. With Customs remaining for now as the second highly rated revenue sources, apart from oil, we cannot afford to toy with its financial needs, if alternative revenue sources are to be enhanced. On Internally Displaced Persons, measures should urgently be taken to eliminate totally or reduce to the barest minimum, corruption in the intervention scheme aimed at reducing their hardship, he said. Similarly, an environmentalist, Mr Habib Omotosho, urged the Federal Government to implement the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. Omotosho, the National Coordinator, Environmental Advancement Initiatives, an NGO, stressed the need for the Federal Government to work towards reducing emission to the bearest level. Mr Abdullahi Aremu, another environmentalist, urged the Federal Government to discourage bush burning by reducing the price of kerosene. Mr Anikoh Ibrahim, the State Coordinator of NAFDAC, who disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said the seizure followed a call from concerned citizens. He said that the agency got information that the consignments were being discharged at a warehouse in Gwada, Shiroro Local Government Area of the state. He said though they were not able to get the trailer but they succeeded in seizing some of the goods, adding that these included 50 cartons of Zip detergent, 35 cartons of Everyday Sanitary Pad and 20 cartons of Morning Fresh. Others included 15 cartons of Venus hair cream and nine cartons of Elephant Gold wash. He explained that the items would have found their way into the market and subsequently, in the homes of unsuspecting consumers. The NAFDAC State Coordinator said that some of the products expired two years ago, other expired as far back as six years back, adding the agency has commenced investigations to unravel the warehouse owner. The IHVN Programme Officer in the state, Mr Bello Ahmad, disclosed this on Friday while fielding questions from the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Dutse. Ahmad stated that the beneficiaries had been deployed to the 27 local government areas of the state. He explained that they would provide a step down training to other health workers on Case Management of Severe and Uncomplicated Malaria. He said that two doctors and two nurses were deployed to each of the 27 local government areas in the state. They went back and conducted a step down to other health facilities personnel in their respective areas. Thirty six health facility members of staff benefited from the step down training in each of the 27 local government areas, Ahmad said. According to Rholavisions bank statements obtained by The Cable, the sum of N200m was paid into the company's account by Josmon Technologies Ltd, the company awarded the contract to clear "invasive plant species" in Yobe state. Josmon Technologies got the contract to clear grass for N248, 939, 231, from the Presidential Initiative on Northeast (PINE), which was under Lawal. The contractor made cash deposits of N10m into Lawals companys account 20 times from March 29, according to the obtained documents. Investigators believe the suspicious payments were bribes. However, in his reaction to a call for his resignation by the Senate on Wednesday, December 14, the SGF distanced himself from his company, claiming he resigned from the company on August 15, 2015. But according to a Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) document obtained by The Cable, Lawal was a director of Rholavision until September 16, 2016, when he wrote to the commission informing it of his intention to relinquish 1, 500, 000 ordinary shares. The senate had demanded Lawal's resignation over alleged corruption in the management of funds for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the northeast. PINE, under Lawal, allegedly misappropriated N2.5billion allocated to it for the alleviation of the suffering of IDPs. He said the All Progressives Congress (APC) sponsored the 'fake' audio against him to cover up for the monumental fraud perpetrated by the INEC and Police and the military killings that marred the election. Speaking to newsmen in Port Harcourt, the Governor said the audio clip was fabricated using audio software. He said: "At no time did I speak to any electoral officer, let alone issue threats to any electoral officer. There is nowhere I spoke to an electoral officer, threatening him or her, as the case maybe. I never spoke with anybody; I never threatened anybody. "Nobody can say that he sat with me or that I threatened him or how. Let any electoral officer come forward to say that I call him or her on phone. It is totally not correct. "The major issue is, did the Police participate in rigging the election? Did the Army participate in rigging the election? Did INEC compromise? "The Police are denying somebody that was captured on video. That is what they are trying to cover up. "Face the reality and stop chasing shadows. Let them show me. What is audio clip? What cant this government do? "I dont have an Orderly. I dont have a Chief Security Officer. I dont have a Camp Commandant. All were taken away before the election." ALSO READ: Police reveal why Wike's CSO was withdrawn Featured Post Minnesota: Line 3 Charges Dismissed Against Five of 'Shell River Seven' Water Protectors Shell River Seven stand their ground in a confrontation with law enforcement, the Shell River behind them, July 2021 (Photo credit: Citizen ... White Mesa Ute Spiritual March to Shut Down Uranium Mill Mohawk Warrior Society Book Launch Lakota Jean Roach: The True Story of Leonard Peltier Justice for Dad: Taylor Dewey Shares the Harsh Road to Justice Justice Dept Files Lawsuit Against Rapid City Hotel Western Shoshone Ian Zabarte Speaks on Radiation Archive Search This Blog About Censored News Censored News is published by Brenda Norrell. Since 2006, Censored News has received more than 20 million pageviews. As a collective of writers, photographers and broadcasters, we publish news of Indigenous Peoples and human rights. Contact publisher Brenda Norrell: brendanorrell@gmail.com From the publisher Censored News is published by Brenda Norrell, a journalist in Indian country for 40 years. Norrell created Censored News after she was censored and terminated as a staff reporter at Indian Country Today in 2006. She began as a reporter at Navajo Times during the 18 years that she lived on the Navajo Nation. She was a stringer for AP and USA Today and later traveled with the Zapatistas through Mexico. She has been blacklisted by all the mainstream media for 14 years. Contact brendanorrell@gmail.com Translate The couple chose to embrace nature, taking a photo session at the beach, and they could not hide their adoration for each other either, seeing the way they stare into each other's eyes, as the sun slowly sets behind them and gives off a dope silhouetted picture. Jojo and Ose will be married on December 29, 2016, and that will be a new phase of a love story that began six years ago, when the two of them surely couldn't have guessed they'd be here now, preparing to say their marriage vows. "[We] met sometime in 2010 through a mutual friend," says Jojo, a social media manager with Pulse.ng. "He then went on to add me on Facebook [as that was the reigning social media then]... and then we exchanged numbers..." she adds. Though the connection was slow in building up because of Ose's busy life as an IT manager, they kept in touch, and that somehow bonded them over time, such that when Jojo travelled to UK for her masters later that year, Ose found himself still regularly calling her. "Later that year i went to the UK for my Masters and for some reasons he always kept tabs on me via skype and all some days he would even be the one to wake me up." says Jojo. By the time Jojo arrived in 2012, Ose was ready. According to the bride-to-be, "fast-forward to December 2012 I got back to Lagos and for some reasons he was the first person i called when I got home. "He was extremely excited and anxious to see me. We finally hung out and on my birthday that year (24-12-12) he officially asked me to be his girlfriend" That request was met with a yes, and three years later, 2015, when Ose changed the question to "will you marry me?" there was no hesitation before Jojo said another "yes!" The women were in a van driving to the airport in the southern Kandahar province when at least three gunmen on motorcycles opened fire at them, provincial spokesman Samim Kheplwak told AFP. "All the women and their driver aboard the van were killed. The attackers fled the area and we have launched an investigation," he said. Kandahar International Airport Director Ahmadullah Faizi said the women were employees of a private company who would provide luggage and body search services for female passengers. He said the women were concerned about their security after receiving death threats from people who disapproved of their career. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but Kandahar females who work outside their homes have long been at high risk of attack from Taliban militants and other insurgent groups. Afghan women have made giant strides since the Taliban regime was ousted in 2001, but they are still absent from public life and continue to suffer high levels of violence, oppression and abuse. Morales welcomed the party's decision, saying, "If the people decide it, Evo will continue." He added: "So many times we have defeated the right." Morales was first elected president in 2005, and re-elected in 2009 and 2014. But he narrowly lost the referendum in February on the question of whether he was constitutionally permitted to run again in 2019. His current term expires on January 22, 2020. The party congress Saturday, however, recommended "four legal alternatives" to allow his candidacy within the constitutional framework, according to a union leader who read the conclusions. The first was a partial constitutional reform through an initiative requiring the signatures of some 20 percent of the electorate; the second also involves a constitutional reform to allow an extended presidential mandate. The third recommends that the president renounce his office before the 2019 elections, so that he would not have served three full terms; and the fourth involves a reinterpretation of the constitution. Morales, who has cultivated an "everyman" image, has been highly popular through most of his presidency. He won his first election with 54 percent of the vote; his second with 64 percent and his third with 61 percent. Morales has generally benefited from a fragmented opposition. At the time of the February referendum, his popularity had been damaged by allegations that he had fathered a child with a young woman, Gabriela Zapata, and done favors for the Chinese company employing her. He admitted the two had had a son, who died in infancy, but emphatically denied the other allegations. "A detachment of our army's anti-terrorist force suffered a murderous attack which claimed the lives of 12 of our valiant soldiers and left some wounded," said President Roch Marc Christian Kabore, in an address to the nation. "I strongly condemn this horrible attack which shows the cruelty of these perpetrators," added Kabore, who did not specify the number of injured. Two more men were missing after around 40 jihadists riding pick-up trucks and motorbikes attacked the army's Nassoumbou base some 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the Burkina-Mali border, the high commissioner of Soum province, Mohamed Dah, earlier told AFP by phone. "They were heavily armed with Kalashnikovs and rocket-launchers. They opened fire at the depots, the tents and set fire to some of the vehicles," he said, adding that it was "the biggest jihadist attack ever perpetrated" against the army. Dah added that at least five attackers were killed although their bodies were removed from the scene by other assailants on motorcycles. A security source who asked not to be named said the assailants were wearing turbans and waving black jihadist flags. Troops at the Nassoumbou base are part of a 600-strong anti-terrorist battalion that was deployed in January 2013 when France sent in troops to counter a jihadist insurgency in northern Mali. Mounting attacks This was the second direct attack against the Burkina army since jihadist assailants surfaced in the country in early 2015, mostly staging attacks in the north near the borders of Mali and Niger. But in January this year, three jihadists left dozens of people dead and 71 injured in an attack in the heart of the capital. Thirty people were killed when gunmen stormed the four-star Splendid Hotel and a nearby cafe in Ouagadougou. jpegMpeg4-1280x720The Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) group behind a string of attacks in west Africa in recent years claimed responsibility for the strikes on the venues which were popular with Westerners. The army has, since 2012, had an anti-terrorist battalion deployed along the country's long border with Mali, an area which is frequently subjected to attacks and kidnappings. "Since August 2016, MINUSCA has recorded an alarming number of violations and abuses committed by various factions of the ex-Seleka (rebellion), the anti-Balaka (militia) and their affiliates," the peacekeeping agency said in a report. "These incidents have caused the death of at least 100 people," it added. The country is struggling to emerge from a civil war that erupted in 2013 following the overthrow of former president Francois Bozize, a Christian, by Muslim rebels from the Seleka coalition. The coup led to the formation of "anti-Balaka" (anti-machete) vigilante units, drawn from the Christian majority, which began to target Muslims. Both sides committed widespread atrocities. Militias are still flourishing given the weakness of the state. Former colonial power France intervened in 2013 to stop violent Christian-Muslim clashes and formally ended its peacekeeping mission only last month, hailing it a success despite fresh outbreaks of violence. That leaves mainly the UN's 12,500-strong MINUSCA peacekeeping mission to protect civilians from armed groups. Security and human rights are both areas of "major concern", the report said. The peacekeeping mission's human rights division "has documented 1,301 violations and human rights abuses affecting at least 2,473 victims", MINUSCA said, adding that that constituted a 70 percent increase on the period from September 2014 to May 2015. The abuses "were primarily arbitrary executions, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, sexual violence, arbitrary deprivations of liberty, destruction and confiscation of private property, and restrictions on freedom of movement", it added. Among the victims there were "203 children including 91 boys and 67 girls". "A total of 46 children (31 girls and 15 boys)" had either suffered rape or other forms of sexual violence, it added. Turning the ship before it hits the iceberg sponsored by Confused about health insurance? Wellmark has you covered every step of the way. Find out how I can help find you find confidence in your coverage and a plan that works for you. Call me today. An Authorized Independent Agent for John N. Beckey CLU, ChFC, CASL Chartered Financial Consultant Chartered Advisor for Senior Living 102 West 2nd Street, Suite 4 (563) 263-9700 Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa is an Independent Licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. 2015 Wellmark, Inc. W-5018020 08/15 If you have any information about this photo, please contact Jenn Haney by Wednesday @ 5pm 563-262-0550 or Jennifer.Haney@muscatinejournal.com John & Beth Collette with their children Bobby & Mindy (The Muscatine Journal apologizes for any misspellings of names & identities) ? Beth Hughes will ring in the new year with a new retail shop making her the proud owner of two downtown businesses in DeWitt, Iowa. Hughes, the proprietor of Blondie's Coffee Out Back, is planning a new gift/decor store named Sashollie. It will be located across the street from her coffee shop and in the former Dot's Hallmark store, a longtime DeWitt anchor. "When the building became available, I hoped it would become another retail store or somebody would buy it and it would become another Hallmark store," she said. "Somebody," it turns out, was Hughes and her husband, Mike, who purchased the building. "The building also has three apartments, my husband is an electrician and handy, so it made a nice investment for us," she said. Hughes said Sashollie will sell a limited assortment of Hallmark cards and gifts as well as urban and rustic home decor such as area rugs, clocks, wall hangings, candles, ladies clothing and furniture. She is most excited about a section of the store dedicated to the cooking enthusiasts with gourmet foods, cooking oils, spices and more. The Sashollie name is a combination of her three daughters: Sarah, 23; Ashley, 27; and Mollie, who died four years ago at age 21. The store, located at 801 6th Ave., is tentatively scheduled to open Jan. 19. It was the longtime home of Dot's Hallmark, which closed last spring after more than 50 years of selling Hallmark cards in DeWitt. It was run by Dee Kearney and owned by her 90-year-old mother Dorothy "Dot" Necker. Hughes said she has fallen in love with DeWitt and the customers, many who make a day out of shopping DeWitt. "It's becoming a fun little town," she said. Stanley's Roberts named to ISU Hall of Fame Stanley Consultants president and CEO Gayle Roberts has been inducted into the the Hall of Fame of Iowa State University's Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering. Roberts is a 1981 ISU graduate with a degree in chemical engineering. The Hall of Fame was established in 2013 to commemorate the department's centennial year and recognize its most successful alumni. Less than one half of 1 percent of the department's 600 alumni have been inducted. Roberts is a longtime champion of women in engineering and has been recognized for her efforts with many awards. "Gayle is an outstanding example and role model for our students, particularly women in engineering," said Andrew Hillier, professor and endowed department chair. "We couldn't be happier to call her one of our own, and to recognize her impact on our students and profession." Robert joined the Muscatine-based Stanley Consultants, Iowa's largest engineering firm, as a chemical engineer. In 2007, she was elected the company's fifth president and became the first female president of a global consulting engineering firm. In 2012, she was elected CEO of the century-old firm. Roberts has served on the advisory council of the ISU Chemical and Biological Engineering Department, one year as its president. She also served on the board of the university's Engineering Policy and Ledership Institute and the boards of the University of Iowa Engineering College, St. Ambrose University, and Engineers Without Borders. Von Maur to open in Wisconsin in April Davenport-based Von Maur Department Stores will open its first Wisconsin store this spring at The Corners of Brookfield in suburban Milwaukee. An April 8 opening is planned for 150,000-square-foot store, which was first announced in 2012. The company, which traces its 140-year-old roots to downtown Davenport, worked for a decade to break into the Milwaukee area. Von Maur will be the anchor tenant in the new retail development, accessible off Interstate 94. Similar to its Davenport and Moline stores, the new store will feature the company's signature residential ambiance, complete with antiques, original artwork, open-floor plan and of course, music from the store's grand piano. By Brenda Norrell Censored News Earl Tulley, Dine', told Censored News today, "Pinon Pipe Line bit the dust. The company withdrew their application." The pipeline was going to be built from Lyebrook New Mexico, to Milan New Mexico, 130 miles. "Standing Rock protectors were on their way down today, Tulley said. "Perhaps showing up in numbers at Dec 2nd Hearing in Window Rock was enough for company to pull their application -- victory for Navajo. At the December 2nd Scoping Hearing in Window Rock, there was a new generation of protectors accepting the call to the front line in protecting mother earth." "We need to help, and work with, western Navajo to stop the Grand Canyon Escalade project and purposed uranium mining." "Voice of one inspiring, symphony of voices uplifting." A veteran manufacturing executive has been hired as executive director of the Quad-Cities Manufacturing Innovation Hub, the Quad-Cities Chamber of Commerce announced Friday. The chamber has contracted with Scott Hutter, of Hutter Solutions, to develop strategies to assist manufacturing companies in growing their operations over the next decade, Chamber CEO Tara Barney said in a news release. Hutter will provide consulting services, strategic leadership and outreach with area manufacturers. Hutter, of Davenport, brings 35 years of experience in business and industry, most recently serving as president, CEO and board member of Martin Engineering. The Neponset, Illinois, company is a global manufacturer of engineered products in the bulk material handling industry. Hutter replaces Curt Burnett, who recently joined the chamber staff as the Hub's new technology innovation director. Burnett, who initially was a loaned Deere & Co. executive, had been the Hub's first employee. "Im excited to build upon the Quad-Cities capacity and reputation as a leader in manufacturing," Hutter said. "The Hub has an important place in the community and Im happy to have a role in helping our regions manufacturers leverage technology and prepare for the future." The Hub, a chamber initiative, is a network of resources and people focused on guiding and supporting manufacturers as they work to evaluate and adopt new technologies. In 2015, the University of Illinois was awarded a $5.5 million Department of Defense Defense Industry Adjustment grant, of which the chamber was a sub-awardee. With the defense grant, the chamber is developing a regional technology roadmap and a defense industry diversification study to strengthen the local defense and manufacturing sectors. These one-time projects and Hutters contract are covered by the grant, which assists communities impacted by decreases in federal defense spending. Cold-weather chores keep Lyndall Winter busy this time of year. The Muscatine County rancher recently woke up to two broken heaters and a defunct water pump at his business. On top of that, his tractor wouldnt start. Winter, a veteran livestock farmer, raises bison on his property, about 3.5 miles west of Blue Grass off U.S. 61, and processes them for meat. Well, he formerly processed them on site, but not anymore. He said he cant find a qualified meat cutter willing to work more than 20 hours a week. So, he trucks his bison, up to six head a week, to a butcher in Durant and another in Osage, Iowa, almost 200 miles north of the Quad-Cities. We cant get enough butchers to keep up with our sales right now, said Winter, who called the animals smart, majestic and tricky to handle. We dont have any meat to sell, and thats putting us on the hurt for the holidays. The family farm, called Winter Bison, keeps about 125 animals on 110 acres. The bison primarily eat grass, but Winter feeds them corn for 90 days before theyre butchered, to help sweeten and tenderize the meat. Tired of the fluctuating cattle market, Winter and his wife purchased their first few bison in 1991. From that day on, we started getting rid of beef and got more bison, said Winter, who began slaughtering the animals in 1993. Ive always been intrigued with them. He prefers to purchase bison directly from his friends farms to lessen the chance of transferring diseases to his herd. They sell their meat at the Freight House Farmers Market in Davenport and to various restaurants in the Quad-City area, including Barley & Rye Bistro and White Horse Inn in Moline and Ross Restaurant in Bettendorf. The Hy-Vee grocery stores on Locust Street and 53rd Street in Davenport also carry Winter Bisons product. Although hes often thought about it, Winter never has tested his animals DNA to see if they contain any cattle genetics. To us, theyre 100 percent bison, said Winter, who used the term beefalo to label cattle-crossed bison. If you DNA-tested them, and they showed beef, Id say its probably a very small percentage. Eventually, Winter expects to see more farmers like himself transition to bison because the meat generally is leaner than beef, he said. The Winters also welcome visitors to their farm. If you go, keep your eyes peeled for their welcome sign, topped appropriately with a fiberglass bison at 3672 Arrow Head Drive, Muscatine. UPDATED FORECAST: Snow likely today after 3 p.m. with patchy blowing snow after 4 p.m. Skies will be cloudy with a temperature falling to around 14 by 5 p.m. Wind-chill values will be as low as zero. Northwest winds between 10 to 15 mph will create gusts as high as 25 mph. The chance of precipitation is 60 percent with total daytime snow accumulation of less than one inch possible. Snow is likely before midnight with widespread blowing snow before 11 p.m. It will be cloudy during the early evening, then gradual clearing with a low around -10. Wind-chill values will be as low as -25. It will be blustery with a northwest wind 15 to 20 mph gusting as high as 30 mph. The chance of precipitation is 70% with New snow accumulation of around an inch possible. Sunday will be sunny and cold, with a steady temperature around -8. Wind chill values will be as low as -30. Northwest wind 5 to 15 mph. Sunday night will be mostly clear with a low around -9. Wind chill values will be as low as -20. EARLIER REPORT: An Arctic high pressure system packing cold air and high winds will slam into the Quad-Cities this afternoon, sending temperatures plummeting to below zero and create life-threatening wind child indices, said meteorologist Tim Gross of National Weather Service, Davenport. The Quad-Cities is under both a winter weather and wind chill advisory. There also will be periods of snow with the system, with new accumulations totaling between 2 and 3 inches. Gross said the high temperature today will reach 20 degrees before the Arctic air arrives. Then the mercury will quickly fall. The low Saturday night into Sunday morning is going to be minus 10, Gross said. The high temperature Sunday is expected to be minus 2 degrees, he added. The last time we had a high temperature below zero was Jan. 6, 2014, when the high was minus 6. Gross said the danger will be in the wind chills, which are expected to drop to between minus 25-30 degrees. When the front comes through, there will be sustained winds of 25-30 mph with gusts up to 35 mph, he said. It will be windiest late this afternoon through Sunday morning. As the temps fall and the wind picks up, the wind chills will fall to dangerous levels, Gross said. If youre outside make sure every part of your face is covered. The winds will die down to 10-15 mph early Sunday, but with the snow on the ground and cold temperatures the wind chills will remain at minus 25-30 degrees. The record low temperature for Dec. 18 occurred in 1985 when the mercury dipped to minus 16. The coldest temperature on record in the Quad-Cities was minus 28 on Feb. 3, 1996. A low of minus 27 degrees was recorded on Jan. 16, 2009. We had one of the warmest falls on record, and La Nina did play a part in that, Gross said. But that cold dense air can only stay bottled up for so long before it comes down, and since cold air is denser than warm air it will push down, sometimes with a vengeance, he added. Any snow on the ground just adds to the cold, he said. After Sunday, Gross said the Quad-Cities can expect a warming trend, with Mondays high reaching about 19 degrees, while Tuesdays high will be in the upper 20s, nearing 30 degrees. As winter's chill sets in, help is on the way for one Quad-City agency that provides assistance to others. Christian Care, 2209 3rd Ave., Rock Island, will be able to act as a warming center again after several local companies foot the bill for a new rooftop furnace and the cost of installing it. Drake Decker of Republic, Davenport, said that Christian Cares rooftop furnace went out Wednesday. Along with manufacturer YORK, Republic will donate the full cost of the furnace. Kale Heating and Air Conditioning, Moline, will donate the cost of the install and ensure the unit is up and running. Cattani Crane, East Moline, will provide the crane to lift the unit free of charge. The new unit will be installed this morning. Pam Hauman, outreach coordinator for Christian Care, said the mission is open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. for people needing assistance. Also, the city of Davenport has emergency loan assistance to help people repair furnaces that fail in the winter. Communications director Jennifer Nahra said residents in need of help should call the office of Community Planning and Economic Development at 563-326-7765 or log on to cityofdavenport.com/rehab, for information on the loan program. The Illinois Department of Health is warning people to stay inside if at all possible, but to be careful about exposed areas of skin while outside because of the dangers of frostbite. The most commonly affected areas for frostbite are exposed skin on the face, ears, hands and feet. Anyone affected by frostbite should get medical attention immediately. Also, people are cautioned to warm frostbite areas slowly. There also is a danger of hypothermia, when the body temperature drops to 95 degrees or less. The Illinois Department of Health said hypothermia can be fatal if not detected early and treated immediately. MUSCATINE, Iowa - A love of learning, even if only for the sake of learning, has always been encouraged in my family. Ive always been more at home in a book than with other people. Books were (and still are) cherished presents, and while growing up trips to the library were almost more frequent than trips to the grocery store. But, as a child, I wasnt able to communicate about what I read. Ever sense I was child, Ive been plagued with the inability to effectively communicate. Speech came later than normal for me and, when I did start talking, it was in what my mother describes as [my] own language, one that only I could understand. At the same time as I was nodding for yes and shaking my head for no, my home library was growing and if someone wasnt reading to me, I was looking at pictures and reading to myself. Still, I couldnt say the words book or read in a way anyone could understand. I began speech therapy at the age of three. Talking to me now, its barely noticeable, but during my early school years the way I spoke and, as I developed speaking skills, mispronouncing sounds was a like living in depths of hell. Not only that, I had trouble getting my thoughts from my brain to the end of a pencil, and writing what I wanted to communicate was just as much of a challenge as speaking. I also spelled the way I spoke, which meant my writing was just as garbled as my speech. I could read nearly the entire library, but a book report was almost impossible and my grades suffered. It felt like my teachers were punishing me for not being able to parrot back what they wanted and I would cry and cower under desk. I was classified as developmentally challenged, given an individual education program (IEP), and my mother was told that I would most likely become a convict when I grew older Everything changed when I moved from Michigan to Iowa in the fifth grade. When registering for school my mother explained to the elementary schools administration that I received support services and had an IEP in Michigan. The decision was made to test me to see if I met Iowas standards for special needs support. It turned out that I was fantastically intelligent, albeit I didnt learn in the same way as the other students and needed a little extra guidance. The decision was made to simply teach me in a way that I learned, and nearly overnight school was a completely different experience. It was as though I found nirvana. Speech therapy continued and my speaking skills improved, as well as my writing. I was finally able to say and write what I was thinking and express my opinions. I stopped hating school and became an Honor Roll student during the 5th grade. I wasnt surprised to receive an Accelerated Reading award at my elementary schools award ceremony, but the Presidents Award for Excellence was a shock. Books still make much more sense to me then people because I always know where I stand with a book and they dont judge or find me wanting. Theyve never cared how I pronounced the letter r or if I could write a cohesive summary. All books want is to be picked up and given a little love and attention. In turn, theyll tell me the secrets of the universe, from the depths of the human soul to the hearts of stars. Published in the MCC student newspaper, the Calumet, used by permission. MUSCATINE, Iowa Exams create a lot of stress on students. They have to change work schedules, arrange for baby-sitters, finish every project, paper, and presentation, and take exams from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Muscatine Community College hosted a De-Stress Fest for their students the week of finals. This event was a great way to bring students together to celebrate their hard work and accomplishments of the semester and to provide some distractions to reduce tension between exams. During the event, MCC provided stress relieving activities such as ornament making, snow flake making, coloring, board games, homemade cookies at the library, and free food in the student lounge. Over 100 students attended to share memories from the semester and to enjoy each others company. MUSCATINE, Iowa With winter break approaching for the Muscatine Community School District (MCSD), local organizations have activities for students to get out of the house and stay out of the cold. The Muscatine Community Y has several activities geared toward middle school students throughout the break, which lasts from Dec. 22-Jan. 2, according to the MCSD calendar. Amy Hessel, the character development and Kids' Club director at the Y, said winter break is an important time to provide activities for middle school students. "We want to keep them busy and if parents are working we want them to be in a safe environment," she said. The environment will also be calmer than during after-school programming, which Hessel said will give staff an opportunity to connect with the students and for new students to become familiar with the programming in a relaxed setting. "It is so important that kids find something to connect with," she said. "And if we can start here on these no school days and this over winter break and then rope them into after school and then they can start connecting to the Y and the community." Free activities will be held from 1-4 p.m., with a scheduled activity from 1-2:30 p.m. and an activity of students' choice from 2:30-4 p.m. on Dec. 22-23, Dec. 26-30 and Jan. 2. From 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 27 and Wednesday, Dec. 28, a Super Sitters class will be held for students age 11-14. The cost is $18 for members and $36 for non-members. Pre-registration is required for the class, and to receive a certificate students must attend both classes. The classes will cover lessons like how to handle emergencies, how to handle babies and what activities to do with children of different ages. After the break has ended, the middle school winter kickoff event will be held from 4-6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 5. The Science Conundrum event will include hands-on activities focused on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). Hessel said she plans to have several different activities to keep everyone busy at the event. "My goal is just to get them to build and to test things out and to challenge their thinking, and really just have some fun," she said. Those wishing to attend the event are asked to RSVP by Tuesday, Jan 3, so the Y can prepare enough supplies. The Musser Public Library will also have activities available for children during the break. Betty Collins, the children's librarian, said in addition to the regular programming, the library will have Lego blocks and "do-it-yourself" crafts available for children who visit the library. Regularly scheduled programs include O Baby Lapsit for children birth-3-years-old on Thursdays Dec. 22 and 29, and the final December Sparkplugs Wayback machine adventure from 6-7 p.m. on the 22nd. Skeleton Key Adventure Club will be held from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 27, and a guest speaker from the African American Museum of Iowa will discuss projects by African-American scientists and innovators. The library will also host a Harry Potter-themed New Year's Eve party for teenagers on Dec. 31. The event is free, however, teens must visit the library to collect a free ticket prior to the event. For younger children, the Muscatine Art Center's Winter for Tots programming provides craft opportunities for 2 to 5-year-olds. Classes are $4.50 per class or a five-class punch card for $20. Upcoming classes, with a Charlie Brown theme, will be held Dec. 21-22, and Dec. 28-29. For Diane Martha, this Christmas will be tough. It's the first holiday season without her father, a U.S. Army veteran, who passed away earlier this year. "We miss him," Martha said, while visiting the Rock Island National Cemetery on Arsenal Island Saturday. "It's the first Christmas he's resting here." So, Martha, alongside her family members and others taking part in the annual Wreaths Across America ceremony, was thankful to bring a small part of Christmas to her dad. She placed a wreath complete with a red bow on his headstone. "I think it helps us stay close to my dad," she said. "My dad would be the first to say it's not about him, but it's about remembering everybody here so that there is no one forgotten." That's the goal of national nonprofit Wreaths Across America, which started in 1992 when Worcester Wreath Co. placed thousands of wreaths on headstones at Arlington National Cemetery, just outside Washington, D.C. Over the years, more cemeteries joined the charge. On Saturday, similar ceremonies were happening at nearly 1,000 locations across the country and overseas. Some wreaths were donated, and others were purchased by family members to place on the graves of their loved ones. It was "deeply personal" for Sue Jehlen, who has served as director of Rock Island National Cemetery since September. Her father, who served in World War II, is buried at Bath National Cemetery in New York. "While I'm here, my mother is laying a wreath for my dad in New York," she said. "It's wonderful that all over the country, we get to honor our heroes on the same day." About 32,000 people are buried at the Rock Island National Cemetery and each one deserves to be honored with a "beautiful symbol," she said. "No veterans should be forgotten," Jehlen said. "To me, it's about their legacies and remembering them. If you walk around, you see there are stories behind each headstone." During the ceremony, wreaths representing each branch of the military and POW/MIAs as well as one honoring all members of the U.S. military currently serving were placed around the cemetery's main flagpole. About 300 wreaths were sponsored this year, and Lt. Col. Tom Nielsen of Civil Air Patrol-Moline, who is in charge of the ceremony, said more volunteers and sponsorships are needed. "The men and women in the service paid in blood and sweat so that we have the freedoms we have today," he said. "Freedom is not free. That's why this day is important. We need all the help we can get." It's important to keep the tradition going, said Brig. Gen. Richard B. Dix, commanding general of the Joint Munitions and Lethality Life Cycle Management Command and Joint Munitions Command on the Rock Island Arsenal. "Every wreath we place is a visible symbol of our sacred promise to remember our veterans, to honor their memories and to pay them back in some small way for the sacrifices they made for us," he said. And Diane Martha said that small act of giving back is something her dad would want for all veterans. "He has family close by, but not everyone resting here does," she said. "It's important to remember and honor everybody." The fall of Aleppo is a human catastrophe. It's also a demonstration of the perils of choosing the middle course in a military conflict. Sometimes it's possible to talk and fight at the same time. But in Syria, America's decision to pursue a dual-track, halfway approach made the mayhem worse. A battered Secretary of State John Kerry made one more plea Thursday for a peaceful evacuation of what's left of Aleppo. At a State Department briefing, he used the strongest language to describe the situation: "Another Srebrenica ... nothing short of a massacre ... indiscriminate slaughter ... a cynical policy of terrorizing civilians." But for five years now, America's actions haven't matched its rhetoric. Kerry's only real weapon now is the gruesome suffering of the Syrian people and the shame it engenders in everyone who watches. That shame hangs over this administration, too. Kerry's critics argue that his efforts to negotiate a settlement were always doomed to failure. Maybe so, but after the Russian military intervention in September 2015, the administration concluded that diplomacy was the only viable strategy in Aleppo. Having made that decision, officials needed to make it work. Instead, they continued to toy with an armed opposition they weren't prepared to fully support. In the annals of covert warfare, the CIA's support for the Syrian opposition deserves a special, dark chapter. The effort began late -- nearly two years into the war -- after extremists had already begun to dominate the fight against President Bashar al-Assad. It was a hodgepodge of different regional states and their pet fighters -- nominally coordinated from operations centers in Jordan and Turkey but in reality controlled by more than 80 local militias whose commanders were often corrupt and proto-jihadists themselves. The CIA and its partners were never willing to give the opposition the weapons -- especially the shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles -- that could have won the battle. The agency did provide anti-tank weapons that were potent enough that Assad was rocked in the summer of 2015, and analysts began to worry about "catastrophic success," with the regime collapsing and jihadists filling a power vacuum in Damascus. Soon after that, Russia intervened. The CIA's biggest problem was that its allies couldn't stop the dominance of al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, Jabhat al-Nusra. The "vetted" opposition groups might pretend otherwise, but they were fighting alongside Nusra, which rebranded itself this year as Jabhat Fatah al-Sham. The extremists attracted the other opposition groups for a simple reason: Their fighters were the most willing to die for the cause. The U.S. tried to straddle this problem. In 2014, I visited the leaders of one of the vetted groups, known as Harakat al-Hazm, at a safe house along the Syrian-Turkish border. The fighters were despondent. The U.S. had just bombed a Nusra camp nearby, seeking to kill militants from its so-called "Khorasan Group." The CIA-backed fighters said this action had destroyed their credibility. They were right. Nusra soon chased them from their headquarters. Kerry was an early advocate of using military force against Assad. But after the Russians intervened decisively last year, he began to see the CIA program as a hindrance to the diplomatic deal that he saw as the only realistic option. Kerry didn't want to abandon the "vetted" fighters altogether, and he argued for giving some groups more weapons. But he thought the U.S. should make continued assistance conditional on their willingness to separate from Nusra -- something that few of the groups were willing or able to do. So the straddle continued. Kerry met frantically through this year with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, to implement the "cessation of hostilities" negotiated on paper last February. The CIA meanwhile continued to push a program that targeted Russia and its Syrian and Iranian allies -- and helped shield Nusra. Kerry negotiated a near cease-fire in September, but it was conditioned on a pause in fighting -- demanded by skeptics at the Pentagon -- that neither he nor Lavrov could deliver. The Russians didn't restrain Assad or the Iranians. And Kerry couldn't deliver on his promise to separate the "moderate" opposition from Nusra. The opposition forces, good and bad, were "marbled" together in the Aleppo region. The U.S. couldn't undo the anti-Assad alliance it had fostered. Kerry had the impossible job of trying to manage a policy that was going in two directions at once. Perhaps he should have quit, if he sensed it was undoable. But it's Kerry's strength and weakness that he believes he can move mountains. Not this time. Instead, he got crushed in the rubble of a confused policy. Following is a retraction we can never expect to see in the Quad-City Times: Correction: On the front page of the Dec. 14 Quad-City Times, it was reported that Bettendorf and Pleasant Valley School Districts are among those local school districts that receive $175 per student more in state aid than the Davenport Community School District receives. In reality, Bettendorf is $74 per student more, and Pleasant Valley is $133, per student more in their district cost per pupil calculations. In addition, not one of those other schools receives more state aid, but rather must tax their property taxpayers more to gain those funds. Of the four school districts in the state that has the $175 per pupil higher costs, the largest of those four at just 212 students, is also the closest one to Davenport. It is Delwood Community Schools. The cost to Davenport Community School District taxpayers would be approximately 60 cents per thousand dollars of assessed value in order to capture the $175 per student. The Quad-City Times regrets the error and promises to provide more factual journalism in the future. Dont hold your breath expecting to see this retraction. Les Shields Clinton Editor's note: A correction appeared on page A2 of Thursday's edition. News / Local by Staff Reporter The Minister of Finance and Economic Development Patrick Chinamasa has approved Mimosa Platinum Mine's proposed site for the establishment of a refinery plant and given the green light for commencement of construction work.Chinamasa gave his thumbs up to the project during a tour of Mimosa Mine where among other things he was briefed on the company's plans to construct a refinery plant.The move by Mimosa to construct a refinery comes after Government through Ministries of Finance introduced 15% tax on all platinum exports as a measure to force platinum miners to open refineries.Chinamasa said the country has been losing a lot of revenue through raw exportation of platinum ore due to lack of refineries in the country."I had received a brief from Walter Chidhakwa (Minister of Mines and Mining Development) that there is going to be a refinery in Zvishavane hence I decided to see for myself this wonderful project that will benefit the Zimbabwe economy," said Chinamasa.The Finance minister said that the government is going to remove the 15% tax that it imposed on platinum mines as soon as refineries are established. Mimosa Mining Company Executive Chairman Mr Winston Chitando said they are expecting the project to be completed by 2018."According to our plans we expect the project to be completed by 2018 and that will go a long way in changing the platinum mining field here in Zimbabwe," he said.Mimosa was the remaining platinum mine that had not established a refinery site, with Ngezi Platinum suggesting the refurbishment of the BHP Selous refinery while Anglo-Platinum's Unki Mine proposed the resuscitating of Zimbabwe Alloys as its refinery chambers. VERMILLION | The state Board of Regents is concerned about the future of higher education and unfilled jobs because more South Dakota residents are foregoing college after graduating high school. Executive Director Mike Rush said the state needs to make an effort to recruit students and train workers, especially for health care and educational services, which state Labor Department projections show will be in high demand through 2022. "The supply of new jobs is growing, and those new jobs will be increasingly knowledge based," said Rush, according to the Yankton Daily Press and Dakotan. Regent Kathryn Johnson says those not seeking higher education are most often minorities, from low-income families or high school graduates who don't want more training. Those groups may include families where no relatives attended college, she said. "We're seeing tremendous demographic shifts," she said. "During the last 10-15 years, our enrollment has been steady, but the components are shifting." She said the "traditional type" of student is declining and more students are taking online courses. Enrollment at public colleges has been flat, and Rush said that's because there are more out-of-state students. Most of the students who graduate from South Dakota's six public universities remain in state after completing a degree. In 2014, about 72 percent of in-state graduates remained in the state through 2015. For out-of-state graduates, the figure was more than 29 percent. To raise those figures, the regents have adopted a goal that calls for ensuring 65 percent of residents ages 25 to 34 hold some type of post-secondary degree or diploma by 2025. BISMARCK, N.D. | The entire states of North Dakota and South Dakota are under wind chill warnings, as wind chills could get as low as minus-55 in some areas, including central and western North Dakota. The National Weather Service warns that these brutally cold temperatures could cause frostbite in under 10 minutes, and could be deadly for those outside without shelter. The area where protesters have been camping out to demonstrate against the Dakota Access pipeline project is included in the wind chill warning area. Lows Saturday night into early Sunday morning will drop to 25 below zero in the Bismarck area. Wind chills in western South Dakota could get to minus-40, with the coldest weather expected Saturday night into Sunday morning. But a warmup is in sight as early as Monday. SIOUX FALLS | Sioux Falls won't host F-35 fighter jets, despite time, money and effort invested by city officials, who spent this year trying to catch the military's eye. The U.S. Air Force has chosen five of 18 sites under consideration for a follow-up survey, scratching the South Dakota Air National Guard's 114th Fighter Wing at Joe Foss Field off its list, the Argus Leader reported. South Dakota National Guard officials said the survey would've been the next step for the location to be selected. "We are disappointed but know we are an outstanding unit among an outstanding community," Col. Nathan Alholinna said in a statement. R.J. Clifft, chairman of the Sioux Falls Area Chamber of Commerce's military task force, said a lack of flight training facilities in close proximity to Sioux Falls hurt the unit during the selection process. Currently, the unit has training runs in the Powder River training range near Ellsworth Air Force Base in western South Dakota and another facility near Salina, Kansas. "It's just too far away for what they were looking for," Clifft said. "That was 10 points out of a 100-point grading scale that hurt us." The five bases that are still under consideration are in Montgomery, Alabama; Madison, Wisconsin; Boise, Idaho; Jacksonville, Florida; and Harrison Township, Michigan. The first F-35s will be delivered to the two bases selected no sooner than 2022. News / National by Staff Reporter Eight parastals operating under the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure Development are attending a strategic planning workshop at the Great Zimbabwe Hotel in Masvingo.The workshop is also being attended by senior officials from the Ministry including the Permanent Secretary, Muneushe Munodawafa and the Deputy Minister, Engineer Michael Madanha.Air Zimbabwe Chief Operations Officer and President Mugabe's son-in-law, Simba Chikore briefly attended the workshop before he left back for Harare. The four day-workshop which started on Monday was officially opened by Minister Joram Gumbo and will be closed by the Deputy Minister today (Thursday).Gumbo indicated during the official opening that the workshop was a continuation of a strategic planning workshop that the Ministry held in Victoria Falls last year.Some of the key issues which the Minister emphasised on included the separation of roles in which he urged senior Ministry officials and boards of directors to refrain from interfering with the day-to-day running of parastatals.He also said that the Ministry was decentralising its services so that it will have offices at districts level where the same services that are obtained at headoffice in Harare are also available at district and these include the issuance of road permits."At the strategic planning workshop that we held in Victoria Falls last year, I insisted then as I do now, that there is need for a clear separation of roles and functions between the boards and management of our State enterprises."Specifically, boards should not involve themselves in operational matters, but should focus on giving policy and strategic direction," said Gumbo.He also said that the dualisation of Harare-Beitbridge Highway will get underway next year after the signing of the necessary agreements.The parastatals that attended the workshop include; NRZ, National Handling Services, Road Motor Services, Air Zimbabwe, Civil Aviation Authority, CMED, Traffic Safety Council, and Zinara among others. A snowfall record was expected to be threatened Friday in Rapid City as lists of cancellations and postponements swelled and the temperature dipped to dangerous levels. With 1-1/2 inches of snow on the ground by 11 a.m. Friday and more falling toward a forecast accumulation of up to 8 inches in some areas by Friday night, National Weather Service meteorologist Susan Sanders said a record was possible. Before Friday, the record for Dec. 16 snowfall in Rapid City was 2-1/2 inches downtown in 1908 and 2.7 inches at the airport in 1993. Well probably beat that, Sanders said. Beyond Rapid City, Sanders said other snowfall records were expected to be challenged Friday, including the 5-1/2-inch Dec. 16 record for Hot Springs in the southern Black Hills and the 9-inch Dec. 16 record for Lead in the Northern Hills. The state Department of Transportation advised people not to drive in the Northern Hills because of snow and blowing snow, and schools and organizations canceled or postponed numerous events throughout the Black Hills region. Tony Mangan, a spokesman for the South Dakota Department of Public Safety, said motorists seemed to be reacting responsibly to the conditions. By Friday afternoon, the Highway Patrol had responded to six non-injury crashes, one minor injury crash and eight motorist-assist calls statewide. The workload was similar for the Rapid City Police Department, with 11 accident-related calls through mid-afternoon Friday. At Rapid City Regional Airport, the runway was open and flights were mostly on time, although officials advised passengers to closely monitor flight information. The snowfall was expected to end Friday night, but dangerously cold conditions were forecast to continue through today. Thermometer readings of barely above zero on Friday were expected to drop to around 15 below on Friday night, and the predicted high today is between minus 5 and zero. North winds of 10 to 25 mph were expected to create areas of blowing and drifting snow Friday night through this morning. Wind-chill factors through this morning were expected to range from 25 below to 40 below. The combination of snow, winds and extremely cold wind chills will result in dangerous conditions for persons traveling or involved in outdoor activities, the National Weather Service warned. It issued a winter storm warning for the entire region Friday that was expected to remain in effect through at least 11 a.m. today. Temperatures are predicted to rise into the low 20s on Sunday. Sanders said she did not expect any record-low temperatures to be broken Friday or today. The record for Dec. 16 is minus 20 degrees and for Dec. 17 is minus 23 at Rapid City Regional Airport, both set in 1964. The downtown record for Dec. 16 is minus 17 and for Dec. 17 is minus 20, also in '64. Weather-related announcements Severe weather caused numerous closures, cancellations, postponements and schedule adjustments throughout the area. Today's include: The Roosevelt Swim Center in Rapid City will reopen at 8 a.m. today, and the Roosevelt Ice Arena will open at 1 p.m. The Rapid City Main Street Square ice rink will be closed today. The ice rink will reopen at noon on Sunday. The Rapid City Public Library canceled the Rapid City Ukulele Guild planned for this morning. South Dakota State University Extension's program, Holiday Upcycling Workshop, scheduled for today at the Walter Taylor 4-H Building in Rapid City, is canceled. The South Dakota State Railroad Museum in Hill City, and its Trees and Trains exhibit, will be closed today. The Black Hills Central/1880 Train Holiday Express is also canceled today. The museum will be open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday and will add hours from noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday. It will resume scheduled hours from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursday and Friday. The Black Hills National Cemetery's annual wreath lay, originally scheduled for today, has been postponed. The new date and time have not been set. Missoula hosts many amazing events and festivals, and one of the oldest is a festival to honor the dead. The Missoula Festival of the Dead parade, which will take place this year on Sunday, Nov. 2, is a uniquely Missoula tradition that is close to many hearts. It was started by artists Bev Glueckert and Mike DeMeng and will celebrate its 22nd anniversary this year, when the parade heads down Higgins starting at 6:30 p.m. Glueckert and DeMeng drew on traditions of Dia de los Muertos as an inspiration to create a multicultural event that would allow Missoulians to explore and express issues associated with life and death during an evening parade. Everyone is welcome to participate in the parade. More information and a participant agreement form can be found on the festivals Facebook page. The Festival of the Dead has become a showcase of diverse and innovative art forms in which each individual, in their own personal way, can say farewell to a loved one who has passed on or honor the cycle of life and death. Recently, the Zootown Arts Community Center, or ZACC, has joined the festival fun. Leading up to the parade, ZACC holds free workshops for people of all ages to create artwork as catharsis for loss or just to celebrate the Day of the Dead. ZACC also provides free face painting prior to the parade. Attendees will see plenty of skeletons at the parade, both two dimensional and three dimensional. There are dogs in skeleton costumes, and skeletons of humans, birds, bats and bison. There are skeletons with messages and silent skeletons. But skeletons arent the only thing youll see. The Soul City Brass Band leads the parade, followed by monstrous woodcut prints made by the University of Montanas Steamroller Print Project, followed by various organizations and individuals all carrying their own art, including photos of loved ones, shrines and colorful parade floats mixed with various musical accompaniments. Parade favorites include the present incarnation of the ever-dead, but still alive-in-our minds Dead Debutantes (in which founder Glueckert participates), the Stevensville High School Band and Spanish class, and the Missoula Public Library Diebrarians, who have an intricate new bookcart choreography to perform each year. VSA Montana has worked with Festival of the Dead for many years to create a culture where people with disabilities are fully involved with the arts, as expressive artists, learners, and as audience members. The Missoula Festival of the Dead is an entirely community-driven event and depends on volunteers and donations. Volunteers are still needed for various projects, including a fundraising bucket brigade during the parade called Deadt Collectors. For more information visit the Missoula Festival of the Dead Facebook page at facebook.com/Missoula.Festival.of.the.Dead. And, dont forget to join all the skeletons and their friends on Nov. 2 in downtown Missoula. Festival of the Dead Events 2014 Friday, Oct. 10: ZACC Third Annual Festival of the Dead Group Art Show and Fundraiser, 5:30-8:30 p.m. at ZACC Thursday, Oct. 9, 16, 23, 30 and Saturday, Nov. 1: ZACC Big (Wearable) Heads workshops for all ages, 6-8 p.m. (except Nov.1 from noon to 2 p.m.) at ZACC, free Sunday, Oct. 12: ZACC DIY Steam Roller Prints for all ages, 1-4 p.m. at ZACC, free Wednesday, Oct. 15: ZACC Sugar Skull Workshop for all ages, 4-6 p.m. at ZACC, free Saturday, Oct. 18: ZACC Shrine Building Workshop I for all ages, 6-8 p.m. at ZACC, free Wednesday, Oct. 22: ZACC Shrine Building Workshop II for all ages, 6-8 p.m. at ZACC, free; Missoula Community Foundation hosts Willapalooza, 5-7 p.m. at MCT; UM Steamroller printmaking, 10 a.m. in front of the Dennison Theatre at UM Tuesday, Oct. 28: Draughtworks Brewery Cheers for Charity Fundraiser, 5-8 p.m. at Draughtworks Sunday, Nov. 2: ZACC facepainting prior to Festival of the Dead Parade, 1-4 p.m. at ZACC; Festival of the Dead Procession, Circle Square performances by Hypsy Gypsies and parade lineup, 4:30 p.m. at East Alder Street; performances by UM African dance class and Unity Dance and Drum, 6:15 p.m. at Caras Park Chitawan, Nepal : prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has claimed that no agreement is made to hold the local body elections in old structure. Thee parties had discussed over the issue of local body elections but no agreement was made to hold the local body elections in old structure, Prime Minister Dahal said while speaking at a press conference in Chitwan. The seizure of an underwater drone deployed by an American oceanographic vessel in international waters in the South China Sea shows that the Chinese military is capable of fending off the US in the disputed waters, Chinese military and government think tanks said on Saturday. The incident took place on December 15 northwest of Subic Bay off the Philippines just as the Bowditch, an oceanographic survey ship, was about to retrieve the unmanned, underwater vehicle. ADVERTISEMENT Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said the vehicle was an unclassified ocean glider used around the world to gather data on salinity, water temperature and sound speed. The US demanded China return the vehicle. China took the action because it felt its national security was threatened, according to a Peoples Liberation Army officer. Its not the first time that the US deployed a drone in the South China Sea area, but its the first time the Chinese military seized it. There must be a reason for it ... It could have threatened the interests of Chinas islands, or Chinas ships and submarines. It must have been damage to Chinese interests that caused the seizure, said Zhao Xiaozhuo, the director and a senior colonel at the Centre on China-America Defence Relations at the Academy of Military Science, a PLA think-tank. China wants to send out a signal that if you spy on us underwater and threaten our national security, we have measures to deal with it WU SHICUN China has been very restrained about the military intervention from the US. They have been on the edges of Chinese territories all the time. This time the Chinese military took action. It must be because of some actions taken by the US side. Zhao said both sides would probably resolve the issue via negotiation. This is an incident between China and the US. China has seized a piece of equipment from the US side, they will definitely ask us to return it. But China would say, at least, you cant behave in this way any more. China will more or less ask for some conditions. Then the two sides will enter negotiations. It will only be returned when some form of agreement is reached. Beijing has not released an official statement on the latest confrontation between China and the US, but a think tank on the mainland said the incident showed that the two militaries had entered a phase of underwater competition. China wants to send out a signal that if you spy on us underwater and threaten our national security, we have measures to deal with it, said Wu Shicun, president of the Chinese government-affiliated National Institute for South China Sea Studies. On the South China Sea issue, we took in humiliations with a humble view in past years. I think this era has finished. Wu and Zhao were both speaking on the sidelines of an international affairs forum in Beijing. Wu believed the purpose of the drone was to gather intelligence on Chinas construction on islands of the South China Sea, or to follow Chinas submarine movements. Under these circumstances, we can say that the drone has posed a national security threat to China, he said. Zhao said there was no need for China to seize the drone in order to find out how it operated. Its not a big deal with the drone itself, we dont need to seize it to know what it does. It monitors the geography of the sea in that area, the temperature, etc. This data can be useful, and it suggests that the US may consider this area as strategically important, potentially, for the future. Zhao said that how the incident would impact China-US relations remained to be seen. I dont think its China that wants to provoke tensions. It must be because they have somehow caused us damage. There will be an impact on Sino-US relations, but how big it is depends on a lot of other elements. Of course there will be negotiations between the two military sides, but its all relevant to national sentiment and how the media react to it. Wang Yiwei, an international relations professor at Renmin University, said the drone was deployed close to the Scarborough Shoal. The seizure of this drone showed the power of the Chinese army. It sends out a signal that we are capable of stopping US military intervention, he said. The South China Sea tension is not going away. This incident indicated the contest between the two armies has entered into a phase of underwater competition. A pentagon statement said the Bowditch was on a routine mission to retrieve the drone. US media quoted Pentagon sources as saying the Bowditch was about to recover the glider when a Chinese Dalang III class warship approached within 450 metres of the Bowditch, launched a small boat and snatched the drone out of the water. The boat brought the device back to the Chinese ship, which then headed away. Money Life - 12 December 2016 The Supreme Court of India has time and again restricted use of unique identification (UID) number or Aadhaar to public distribution system (PDS) Scheme, the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) distribution scheme, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), National Social Assistance Programme (Old Age Pensions, Widow Pensions, Disability Pensions), Prime Ministers Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) and Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). The Supreme Court has repeatedly emphasised that the UID number where permitted ais purely voluntary and it cannot be made mandatory till the matter is finally decided by the Court one way or the othera. The apex court emphasised that aThe information about an individual obtained by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) while issuing an Aadhaar card shall not be used for any other purpose, save as abovea . The Union of India was also required to agive wide publicity in the electronic and print media including radio and television networks that it is not mandatory for a citizen to obtain an Aadhaar carda . In practice, in blatant contempt of the Courts orders and complete disrespect for the of the Rule of Law various government and non-government agencies have been using the UID number for functions beyond those permitted as also mandating the UID in some of the functions. Information of individuals obtained by the UIDAI has been shared beyond the purposes allowed by the Supreme Court. The government has failed to even issue notifications to its departments or to the UIDAI to cease all use of the UID number beyond that permitted by the Supreme Court. As a consequence of the governmentas coercion and disrespect of respect the Rule of Law, helpless citizens are being made to suffer for not using a UID number. Many with a UID number are being made to suffer if their biometric fails or if their number has already been used by unknown persons. At least a dozen petitions, including several contempt petitions remain unheard by the Supreme Court. What can helpless citizens do? Here is a draft notice of contempt along with copies of the relevant orders of the Supreme Court that should be served to each agency in contempt of the orders of the Supreme Court after editing as required. Name/Address of concerned authority that is forcing for an Aadhaar number Dear Sir/Madam, Subject: Contempt of Rule of Law and the orders of the Supreme Court of India We are shocked that you have been continuing to require and use the UID number and associated data for purposes beyond that approved by the Supreme Court of India. We are also disturbed that you are mandating the requirement of the UID number. This is an unbelievable disrespect of the rule of law and of the repeated orders of the Supreme Court of India. Your actions have also resulted in coercing children, elderly and others alike to have to register for an UID number against their free will. Your actions also constitute an illegal functional creep that cannot be morally or legally justified. Your actions reek of creating a fait accompli before the court finally decides on the matter and hence does not uphold the promise of justice, liberty, equality or fraternity. We draw your attention to the Honable Supreme Courtas orders of 11 August 2015 restricting the use of Aadhaar to PDS Scheme, for the distribution of foodgrains, and cooking fuel, such as kerosene and LPG. This was extended to allow its use for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), National Social Assistance Programme (Old Age Pensions, Widow Pensions, Disability Pensions) Prime Ministers Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) and Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) in its orders of 15 October 2015. The Court also stated that the information about an individual obtained by the Unique Identification Authority of India while issuing an Aadhaar card shall not be used for any other purpose. The use of the UID number/ Aadhaar or information associated with it for any purposes other than that allowed by the court as well as it being mandated for any purposes not allowed by the court is a contempt of the rule of law and the orders of the Honable Supreme Court of India. We also draw your attention to the orders of 15 October 2015 where the Court reiterated that the UID number/Aadhaar card Scheme is purely voluntary and it cannot be made mandatory for the permitted uses till the matter is finally decided by this Court one way or the other. We require that you immediately cease to require the UID number as your usage does not fall into the allowed uses of the UID/ We require you to end the mandatory requirement for the UID number and make the procedures for those with or without the UID number identical. We trust you will share your compliance of the orders within 7 days, publish widely your decision to abide by the orders of the Supreme Court and not cause us to seek other remedies and relief for your failure to respect the rule of law. Sincerely yours, CC 1. Shri Nripendra Mishra, Principal Secretary to Prime Minister, 152, South Block, Raisina Hill, New Delhi-110011 2. Prime Minister of India, 152, South Block, Raisina Hill, New Delhi-110011 Email: narendramodi@narendramodi.in Twitter: @narendramodi @pmoindia 3. President of India, Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi - 110 004 email: [email protected] 4. Chief Justice of India, a Chief Justices Conference Secretariat, Supreme Court of India, Tilak Marg, New Delhi-110 201 Here is a draft notice of contempt you should also send to the UIDAI along with copies of the relevant orders of the Supreme Court for contempt of the orders of the Supreme Court. Dr AB Pandey Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Unique Identification Authority of India -UIDAI 3rd Floor, Tower II, Jeevan Bharati Building, Connaught Circus, New Delhi - 110001 Subject: Contempt of Rule of Law and the orders of the Supreme Court of India We are shocked that you have been continuing to service authentication and KYC requests for UID numbers and provide associated data for purposes beyond that approved by the Supreme Court of India. This is an unbelievable disrespect of the rule of law and of the repeated orders of the Supreme Court of India. Your actions are resulting in coercing children, elderly and others alike to have to register for an UID number against their free will. Your actions also constitute an illegal functional creep that cannot be morally or legally justified. Your actions reek of creating a fait accompli before the court finally decides on the matter and hence does not uphold the promise of justice, liberty, equality or fraternity. We draw your attention to the Honable Supreme Courtas orders of 11 August 2015 restricting the use of Aadhaar to PDS Scheme, the distribution of foodgrains, and cooking fuel, such as kerosene and LPG. This was extended to allow its use for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), National Social Assistance Programme (Old Age Pensions, Widow Pensions, Disability Pensions) Prime Ministers Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) and Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) in its orders of 15 October 2015. The Court also stated that the information about an individual obtained by the Unique Identification Authority of India while issuing an Aadhaar card shall not be used for any other purpose. The use of the UID number/Aadhaar or information associated with it for any purposes other than that allowed by the court as well as it being mandated for any purposes not allowed by the court is a contempt of the rule of law and the orders of the Honable Supreme Court of India. We require that you: 1. Immediately cease providing any authentication and/or KYC or support and use of the UID number for purposes other than those permitted by the Supreme Court of India. 2. Cease to provide any UID authentication or KYC to any organisation mandating the use of UID number for the permitted purposes. 3. Issue notifications and wide publicity in the electronic and print media including radio and television networks, as required by the orders of the Honable Supreme Court dated August 16, 2016, to make it clear that you will not A. Provide authentication and KYC services beyond those permitted by the Supreme Court or B. Cause or allow any agencies to cause anyone to require registering for an UID number or C. Allow anyone to suffer for want of it and that UID number. We trust you will share your compliance of the orders within 7 days, publish widely your decision to abide by the orders of the Supreme Court and not cause us to seek other remedies and relief for your failure to respect the rule of law. Sincerely yours, CC: 1. Shri Nripendra Mishra, Principal Secretary to Prime Minister, 152, South Block, Raisina Hill, New Delhi-110011 2. Chief Justice of India, a Chief Justices Conference Secretariat, Supreme Court of India, Tilak Marg, New Delhi-110 201 3. You can tweet it to the CEO of UIDAI @ceo_uidai 4. You can send emails to UIDAIs DG dg@uidai.gov.in and alok.shukla@uidai.gov.in While there is talk about digitization, it is better if you can send these complaints through registered post. This will help you get an acknowledgement and you can also file an application under the Right to Information (RTI) Act to know progress of your complaint. If required, you can also mark a copy of your complaint to Moneylife mail@moneylife.in. Please ask others who face the same scene as you to complain. Do please tweet your complaints with #UIDContempt. (Dr Anupam Saraph is a Professor, Future Designer, former governance and IT advisor to Goaas former Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and the Global Agenda Councils of the World Economic Forum. He has designed delivery channels and ID schemes for good governance in his previous roles.) Opinion / Columnist Dear Job Sikhala: Why Mthwakazi Wants out of Zimbabwe.Mr Sikhala before I answer your seemingly respectful and genuine questions there are a few things I wish to point out to you, I do not know whether you know or genuinely lack knowledge on these things I will explain to you. First you seem to think that there are Mthwakazians and Matabeles. Mthwakazi is a nation comprised of various nationalities such as Venda, Sotho, Nambya, Tonga, Ndebele, Nguni, Tswana, Kalanga etc it is located in a place called Matabeleland. Matabeleland is a region or home of Mthwakazi people. To make it easier for you Mthwakazi equals Matabeleland.Your first question reads as follows: "What are the genuine grievances to call for secession from the Republic of Zimbabwe?" There are two glaring mistakes in this question, first, you assume that the Mthwakazi struggle is based on grievances. This is far from the truth, the Mthwakazi struggle is not based on grievances at all. Regardless of the treatment received or not received it was only a matter of time for Mthwakazi to rise and assert her nationhood and sovereignty. Therefore in simpler terms the Mthwakazi struggle is based on the principle of self-determination, as you know all nations in the world, small and big have the right to determine their political, economic and social destinies.Secondly, you erroneously refer to the Mthwakazi struggle as secession, I do not know whether you did this deliberately or you genuinely did not know, here I will assume that you did not know and that you used the word out of ignorance not malicious intent. Mthwakazi does not seek to secede from Zimbabwe, you can only secede from an entity where you have been part of, this is not the case with Zimbabwe, Mthwakazi has never been part of Zimbabwe. Mthwakazi was illegally parcelled to Zimbabwe in the Lancaster House constitution, without Mthwakazi having been involved. There was no referendum which ever asked Mthwakazi whether she wanted to be part of Zimbbawe. Historically, Mthwakazi has never been part of Zimbabwe and even after 1980 the natural fault lines have been there for anyone who cares to see. The Mthwakazi struggle is Restoration. Mthwakazi seeks to restore her independence, nationhood and sovereignty. The process has started and it is now entering a defining moment, that is why many Shona people are beginning to throw spanners into the works.Mr Sikhala a unitary state does not need to pronounce that it is a unitary state, the fact that Zimbabwe is shouting that it is a unitary state is enough evidence to those with brains to think, to see that it is trying to force matters. Zimbabwe as MaShonaland yes it is a unitary state, nothing more nothing less. Mthwakazi/Matabeleland is not part of Zimbabwe, anyone trying to say Matabeleland is part of Zimbabwe is mad.Mr Sikhala please tell me one single thing that Mthwakazi is benefiting from being part of Zimbawe right now? The truth is only misery, suffering and dehumanisation. Even if Mthwakazi had decided to follow the grievance route it would triumph for there are so many wrong things that have been done against Mthwakazi and most are still being done. Mr Sikhala do not tell me that you have forgotten about the gukurahundi genocide, any nation which suffered genocide from another nation has a right to self-determine. This alone is reason enough to call for restoration. What more if the genocide perpetrators were never brought to book and from time to time they threaten Mthwakazi of 2nd genocide? Only fools would not want to have a state of their own where their children will be afforded with security and safety and where their children will be accorded the respect they deserve.Cultural genocideI am aware that you are aware that the genocide morphed into different forms, but still very dangerous. The media, all forms of media are weapons of cultural genocide in Zimbabwe against Mthwakazi, I do not need to elaborate. The influx of the Shona workers into Mthwakazi is a deliberate ploy at cultural engineering. Just imagine all jobs of note, I am talking of public jobs such as teaching, policing, defence, nursing, doctors etc are all occupied by one ethnic group. What about the displacements?Economic genocideWhen people are being economically sabotaged as it is happening against Mthwakazi it is called economical genocide. How many firms have relocated to Harare? What about the looting of resources? Where is the MZWP? Even Biti contributed to the destruction of Bulawayo.Mr Sikhala let me tell you a secret, all Mthwakazians want an independent state of Mthwakazi, be they in MDCT, MDC ZANU or in any other political formation.Mr Sikhala I am not going to list all the grievances, but if you want I am happy to spend a long time compiling a long list for you, however, no matter how long the list might be, but it would never be exhaustive. The Mthwakazi struggle has entered a defining moment, nobody can ignore it now and nobody can stop it now. It is up to Zimbabweans how this struggle will progress, maturity from both sides is needed. Calling for a peaceful political process does not mean that Mthwakazi is afraid, but it is a sign of political maturity. Mthwakazi knows the people she is dealing with, their default position is violence, but is violence really necessary? No matter how violent the Zimbabwean state could be against Mthwakazi eventually Mthwakazi will emerge and it is going to be the time when Zimbabwe will also be genuinely free. Naked truth! Schedule of events Despite rain now in the forecast for Friday, Jim Mosby said he plans to host the Winter Wonderland "rain or shine." The free event, which will take place at the recreation fields at 2 River Park Road, is scheduled to open Friday between noon and 1 p.m. Santa Claus is expected to visit around 2 p.m. On Saturday, if there is snow remaining, it will open at 10 a.m., with Santa set to arrive at 11. "The snow must go on," Mosby said. Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Pitched as a Brazilian answer to Once with a bit of a scifi twist, MM Izidoro's Amare looks to be something compellingly unusual. Shot entirely on an iPhone on the most micro of micro-budgets Amare looks to shake off its limitations to deliver a visually compelling musical romance at the end of the world. Jeferson de Souza and Tassia Cabanas play the young leads and with the film just freshly wrapped up and gearing up for the festival circuit the first trailer has arrived online. Check it out below! A former first lady of San Francisco in talks to be part of the Trump Administration? This is a topsy-turvy, upside-down world we are in, folks, and indeed the Chronicle has it that Kimberly Guilfoyle, who was Kimberly Guilfoyle-Newsom from 2001 to 2005 before relocating to New York and divorcing then Mayor Gavin Newsom, is at the front of the line to become Press Secretary for the Trump Administration. This is possibly a more thankless and soul-crushing job than KellyAnne Conway's, and yet the 47-year-old SF native is apparently considering it. Politico broke the story that Guilfoyle had been spotted at Trump Tower to meet with the team, and they have it on some authority that though "Republican National Committee and Trump transition spokesman Sean Spicer is considered the front-runner" for the job, there are some on the transition team pushing for Guilfoyle because she's half-Puerto Rican and may seem "a more sympathetic face when flacking some of Trumps more divisive stances on immigration and pro-life issues." That of course is a disgusting and cynical detail, if it is true, but no doubt the President-elect wouldn't mind having another beautiful woman on the team, since beautiful women are his thing. If Guilfoyle ends up landing the job, and in fact wants it, this would be a fine capper to the tale of Kimberly and Gavin. Lt. Governor Newsom has made no secret of his hatred and disrespect for Donald Trump, and indeed they are political opposites but Guilfoyle has spent the last decade working for Fox News, the holy trumpeters of conservative propaganda and double-speak, lately as a co-host of The Five and Outnumbered, which are two of the most popular talk programs on the network. Back in 2007, when she had first joined the network, Guilfoyle chummily interviewed onetime Newsom rival Matt Gonzalez on The Lineup, a move that implied the divorce was not as amicable and based solely on tensions surrounding her bi-coastal lifestyle as was originally told to the press. But how could Guilfoyle, born to a Puerto Rican mom and Irish dad in a San Francisco household, having worked as an assistant prosecutor for the most liberal city in the land, end up going to work for this president? It could be that Ivanka and Jared Kushner are pushing for Guilfoyle, because as Politico notes, Guilfoyle "has a friendly relationship" with them, "as well as Trumps chief strategist Steve Bannon." Back in July, meanwhile, Gavin went on an epic Twitter rant during the Republican National Convention about the party's backwards stance on LGBT issues, and he continues to rail against Trump in daily tweets, post-election. E.g.: Once again Trump proves that he believes facts don't matter by appointing a man who doesn't believe climate change is real to head @EPA. Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) December 7, 2016 By ignoring the CIA & blaming this on Democrats being sore losers, Trump is prioritizing his ego & relationship w/Putin over our democracy. pic.twitter.com/HXdVZG7XFH Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) December 12, 2016 Trump's treating Russian interference in our election as partisan issue. This is not about political parties - our natl security is at risk. Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) December 11, 2016 .@realDonaldTrump this is not a partisan issue. The information leaked from the attack does not negate the fact that the attack occurred. https://t.co/gFEKdXmXOc Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) December 16, 2016 Meanwhile Newsom's current wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, is also leading a charge against the President-elect and the "culture of toxic masculinity" that has dominated 2016. Her group, the Respresentation Project, has just published a short on Facebook discussing this, "to help spark a national conversation about toxic norms and how we as individuals and a society can do better." Previously: Gavin Newsom Goes On Epic Twitter Rant About Trump And The Republicans' Anti-LGBT Platform If We Were Having Coffee 17th December Shilpa Garg | | Musings, PERSONAL | If we were having coffee, Id wish you a cheery hello and ask you about your week. Hope you had a great week. Saturday is here and you must be having a relaxing weekend. As for me, I am tucked in a cozy quilt with a hot cup of coffee, and I am all set to have a chat with you. You must pardon me if you see me soaking in the beauty and the tranquility of the deep blue Arabian Gulf. Yes, I can watch the small waves lashing the shore with an occasional speedboat zipping past my view, from the comfort of my bed. If we were having coffee, Id tell you excitedly that I met a blogging friend in Kuwait earlier this week. Now, theres nothing new about meeting virtual friends from the blog world in the real world. After reading fellow bloggers blogs where we share our lives, passions, interests, fears, insecurities and much more, we get a peek into their lives. Their messages and comments of support and encouragement, affection and smiles, truly warms our hearts. If we were having coffee, Id ask you that have you observed that finding another person who has a set of thoughts and beliefs that gel well with your sensibilities, or reading their well thought-out comments are enough to develop feelings and a sense of relationship with someone you have never met. A few exchanges in the virtual world are enough to give you the feeling that you know that person. Of course, there have been instances, where a single comment has made me edge away from that person. So, it is seems natural to take these virtual friendships to the next level by meeting in real life! Isnt it? If we were having coffee, Id tell you that I have met quite a few bloggers in real life. And meeting them was like we had known each other forever. So, when I met this blogging buddy in Kuwait, it was just the same. Moments after greeting each other we were comfortably talking as though wed known each other for years. But heres the catch. We had known each other not for years, not for months but.for just a month. Yes, you heard it right. We started visiting each others blogs during the November NaBloPoMo and a month later, we met in real life. Yes, I met the lovely and amazing Scorpria from Alphabet World! In one of her blog posts she mentioned that she is in Kuwait and then I told her that Id be in her city for some time. And that started it all first through comments on blogs and then emails which later moved to WhatsApp messages. And when we met, we talked non-stop about so many things and got to know so much more about each other. Yes, we also shared that this was the craziest meeting ever and how our family and friends were apprehensive of our meeting. And how we had to field their questions like Would it be safe? What would it be like to meet someone youve only ever spoken to online? Would you still like them? Would you get along? For people who are not from the blog world, it is hard for them to understand that we bloggers are normal ordinary people with regular lives. But I totally understand their trepidation and concerns. If we were having coffee, Id tell you that the best part of meeting Scorpria was that she invited me as her guest to An Evening of Christmas Carols which was hosted by the British Ambassador to Kuwait at The British Embassy. It was all the more exciting for this was probably my first and the last time to be at any British Embassy. LOL! I cant tell how nostalgic it was to listen to the Christmas Carols which I had last heard and sung in school decades ago. If we were having coffee, Id tell you that it was kind of bummer that we couldnt click a picture of ours. And thats because phones were not allowed at the event and we both left our phones back in our rooms. We are hoping to meet again before I leave from Kuwait and I am sure we would not stop at clicking just one picture. If we were having coffee, Id take your leave, for tomorrow is a working day for me and I need to prepare a few things. Heres wishing you a fabulous week and see you soon again! Take care! Linking this to #weekendcoffeeshare LONDON Britain's fertility regulator has approved controversial techniques allowing doctors to create babies using DNA from three people what it called a "historic" decision to help prevent a small number of children from inheriting potentially fatal diseases from their mothers. The regulator's chair, Sally Chesire, described it as a "life-changing" moment for families who might benefit from the treatment. "Parents at very high risk of having a child with a life-threatening mitochondrial disease may soon have the chance of a healthy, genetically related child," she said in a statement. The new procedures are intended to fix problems linked to mitochondria, the energy-producing structures outside a cell's nucleus. Faulty mitochondria can result in conditions including muscular dystrophy, major organ failure and severe muscle weakness. Last year, Britain changed its law to permit scientists to modify eggs or embryos before they are transferred into women, becoming the first country to legally approve the techniques. In September, U.S.-based doctors announced they had created the world's first baby using such techniques, after traveling to Mexico to perform the methods, which have not been approved in the United States. To help women with mitochondria problems from passing them down to their children, scientists remove the nucleus DNA from the egg of a prospective mother and insert it into a donor egg from which the donor DNA has been removed. That can happen before or after fertilization. The resulting embryo ends up with nucleus DNA from its parents but mitochondrial DNA from a donor. The DNA from the donor amounts to less than 1 percent of the resulting embryo's genes. But Britain's decision to approve using the new methods will not open the floodgates to genetically modified babies. Clinics will need to apply to Britain's fertility regulator for permission to use the techniques on a case-by-case basis. The decision was made after five years of reviewing the development, safety and efficacy of the procedures. SIOUX CITY | Pat Hoelker can't help but smile as an assembly of volunteers carry out boxes of graham crackers, breakfast cereals and ramen soup from a delivery truck at Elks Lodge #112 on a chilly Friday afternoon. "This may look like organized chaos," she said in preparation for the lodge's annual Christmas food basket delivery drive, "but we know what we're doing." For the past 103 Christmases, Elk Lodge #112 has been distributing food baskets to Siouxland families in need. This year, members will be distributing more than 300 food baskets that are valued at more than $125 a piece. Volunteers will begin delivering the food at 8 a.m. Saturday. "We get the names of deserving families from our fellow Elks members as well as from any number of nonprofit organizations," Pat's husband Skip Hoelker said. Skip Hoelker, the Elks Lodge #112's exalted ruler, said it's not just the poor who received the baskets. "We have individuals who may have physical ailments who need a basket," he said. "Or they have a large family but need a little help." In addition to cans and packages of food -- donated by Hy-Vee -- the Elks will also be distributing hats, mittens, gloves and stuffed animals for children. "That's an important thing for the Elks," the lodge's leading knight Steve Bradley said. "We're a civic-minded group who wants everybody in the community to have a Merry Christmas." With more than 2,000 local lodges nationwide, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks is one of the largest and most active fraternal organizations in the world. The group began in 1868 in New York. The Elks Lodge opened in Sioux City in 1889. That history of public service is important to Pat Hoelker, who has seen generations of families volunteering their time distributing Christmas baskets. "It's quite common to see grandchildren go out with their grandparents," she said. "I wouldn't be surprised if the grandparents distributed food baskets when they were children." Bradley said such volunteerism instills a sense of community. "We're giving back to people who may be struggling a bit," he said. "Hopefully, this will brighten their spirits." Pat Hoelker nodded her head in agreement. "Our community is so blessed with wonderful organizations who are willing to go the extra mile on the holidays," she said. Skip Hoelker remembered the time he was delivering a box of food to a family living in a two-story house. "I saw the faces of kids pressed against every window in the house," he recalled. "Seeing a child smile around Christmas makes all of this worthwhile." ODEBOLT, Iowa | A male teenager and a 36-year-old woman have died and a 9-year-old boy was critically injured after their car collided with a semi-trailer in Sac County Wednesday. According to an Iowa State Patrol crash report Friday, Vanessa Cabrera Mora was driving a 2006 Ford Freestyle and Eli Camacho, 14, and the 9-year-old boy were in the backseat traveling northbound on M-43 around 7:30 p.m. The report said the car ran a stop sign at an excessive speed and struck the rear trailer of a semi that was traveling eastbound on D-15. When officers arrived on scene Cabrera Mora and Camacho were pronounced dead. The 9-year old was transferred to Buena Vista Regional Hospital for critical injuries. The three were from Odebolt, the report said. The semi was driven by Michael Kibby, 69, of Sioux City. He was uninjured. The Iowa State Patrol is investigating the accident. Le MARS, Iowa | An elevator that has been broken for months and left some elderly residents stranded in a Le Mars apartment building is back in operation. Fire Chief David Schipper said the elevator at Floyd Valley Apartments was certified by a state inspector Friday after it first went out of service in August. The delayed repair time was due to "several issues" with getting the parts necessary to fix the elevator, he said. Residents in the five-floor complex at 110 Sixth Ave. who were not able to use stairs have had to rely on friends, family and the building manager to get groceries, do laundry and retrieve mail. SIOUX CITY | Doug Johnson is just one of the many Sioux Cityans that have to withstand Mother Nature's wintry blow head-on during their outdoor-based job. But the Spalding Park Elementary School crossing guard jokes he takes on another occupation when the weather outside gets frightful and is forced to bundle up. "On the days that it gets down to five (degrees) above zero or lower, I wear a black face mask and the kids call me a robber. But I say I am a ninja," Johnson laughed before heading out to safely guide students across the intersection of South Aubin Street and Stone Avenue Friday afternoon. Johnson said he is relieved his duties won't be needed this weekend when temperatures are predicted to drop to 20 degrees below zero and five inches of snow is estimated to fall between 3 p.m. Friday and noon Saturday, the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls said. There is also a Wind Chill Warning from noon Saturday to noon Sunday and wind chill values could reach 32 degrees below zero. The advisory covers all Siouxland counties in Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota. Jeff Hawkinson is a mailman for the U.S. Postal Service and has to work Saturday during the winter blast. This is his 37th winter he has had to battle as a mail carrier-- so he knows the ropes pretty well. "You learn to dress really warm," Hawkinson said while delivering mail to homes in the 3600 block of Cheyenne Boulevard Friday. "You just can't come out here and think you can wear a light coat and go fast-- it will make you go faster-- but it will not keep you warm." Another tip he has gained over the years is to come to work on wintry days well-rested. "You don't want to be tired when you are out freezing, but the cold will keep you awake," he said. "It will just make it a really long day if you are tired." John Deeds is a crane operator for Dixon Construction that is building the new Dearborn Boulevard Bridge in Sioux City. The 10-year construction veteran said the winter weather doesn't hamper his work ethic. "The work has to get done.... and I have to get a paycheck," the Danbury, Iowa, resident said. Jeff Wunder, a site manager for the valet company at UnityPoint Health-- St. Luke's, said one of the most arduous parts of his job is when he retrieves a vehicle that has been parked in the winter. "That blast of cold air is tough," he said. Wunder said compared to a heat stroke he suffered working in the summertime a few years ago, "the cold weather doesn't bother me much." During the extreme cold this weekend, UnityPoint is offering a sanctuary for Siouxlanders left outside to warm-up 5:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. in the main lobby on the first floor of the hospital, 2720 Stone Park Blvd. Emergency Guidelines. According to snow emergency guidelines passed earlier this year, city staff keeps an eye on weather predictions to recommend a snow emergency in advance of a storm. Public Works Director Dave Carney said a prediction of snow accumulating 4 inches or greater is usually when city staff will begin looking at recommending a snow emergency. The whole idea is wed like to figure it out so people can do the odd-even parking before their vehicles buried in snow, he said. Mayor Bob Scott or his appointed designee would then declare a snow emergency, informing the public through local news media and the citys Web and social media platforms. During a snow emergency, parking is allowed on the odd-numbered address side of the street on the odd-numbered days and on the even-numbered address side of the street on even-numbered days. A new change this year specifies that on-street parking is not allowed on sides of the street where parking is not typically allowed. Carney said Friday afternoon that the city is tracking Friday and Saturdays predicted snowfall but that he did not believe a snow emergency would be necessary based on the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls forecast. The Journal's Ian Richardson contributed to this story. Sioux City Sledding Spots SIOUX CITY | The traditional Christmas colors of green and red had a shade a blue Saturday when local law enforcement officers helped kids in need shop for their families at the annual Shop With a Cop program. At both Sioux City Wal-Marts, more than 30 children were each given a $100 gift card and paired with an officer from the Sioux City Police and Woodbury County Sheriff departments. Together, they set out to buy presents for their families and along the way build a relationship. "We are here to help less fortunate families to have a better Christmas," Officer Lori Noltze said. "And we are here to give them a chance to interact with police in a positive light and to let them get comfortable being around police officers." Noltze said the children were pre-selected by the Sioux City Community School District to participate in the event that has been hosted by Wal-Mart since 2002. "This is great. This is the second year that I've done it and it's just a good opportunity that they get to know that we are not just the bad guys on the news," Reserve Deputy Steve Pickering said, who was partnered with 9-year-old Robert Canedo. "We've been talking the whole time we have been together. We are having fun, aren't we?" Robert nodded with a smirk while standing next to a cart filled with clothes, Barbies and other toys he picked out for his family. When the gifts were bought, they were taken to the back of the store to be wrapped by volunteers. Then the two-hour long event had a surprise ending when each of the kids was given a brand-new bicycle. "This is amazing what these guys do," Kaila Steele said standing next to her daughter that was sitting on the bike already. "It is just a great experience for the kids. It gives them something to look forward to every year." CEDAR RAPIDS | Women pushing for gender equity in political office are disappointed, but not discouraged that Hillary Clinton was unable to shatter the glass ceiling between them and the highest office in the nation. I'm fond of saying out of everything bad comes something good, Mary Ellen Miller, executive director of 50-50 in 2020, said about the presidential election results. We didnt get our first woman president as many thought we might. However, Clintons loss or the example of her winning the Democratic Partys nomination and campaigning for the presidency is stimulating women to step up and say, maybe I should get engaged, Miller said during taping of Iowa Public Televisions Iowa Press Friday. Where she might get one query a month from a woman interested in running for office, Miller has been getting several a week since the election. Also, she said, as a result of the presidential election outcome were finding a generation of younger women saying, this cant go on and want to be part of changing womens representation in politics. 50-50 in 2020 has set a goal of helping bring about gender balance in the Iowa Legislature in three years in time for the celebration of the 100th anniversary of women gaining the right to vote. In 2017, women will hold less than a quarter of the 150 seats in the Iowa Legislature. While Clintons loss is a disappointment to those who want to gain gender equity, Mary Rae Bragg, a former political reporter and current president of the Iowa League of Women Voters, thinks this is an opportune time to get more women involved because people were traumatized by the tone and tenure of the presidential election. I have to say that both political parties have left a lot of people behind, Bragg said, and that presents an opportunity to invite people who want to deal with issues in a bipartisan way to get involved whether that means running for office or educating voters about issues. Melissa Gesing, who stepped down as president of the Iowa Federation of Republican Women because she couldnt support Donald Trump, is encouraged that in the wake of the election she is hearing from young women who are starting to pay more attention to politics and elections, and are starting to think they want to be involved. I dont know that they necessarily want to run right now, but theyre taking that first step of paying attention and wanting to volunteer or do something more than watching the news at home, Gesing said. She called Clintons defeat a temporary setback for women in politics, but a catalyst for getting more women involved so I think overall its optimistic. The trio also believe that Lt. Gov. Kim Reynoldss anticipated move into the governors office when Gov. Terry Branstad become ambassador to China also is a positive development for involving more women in politics. Reynolds, a former state senator and county treasurer, was a presenter 50-50s most recent workshops. Bragg called her very inspiring to young women and Im talking fifth-graders on up, looking and seeing a woman in a place and that makes it possible. That's what Kim does. Iowa Press can be seen at 7:30 p.m. Friday night and noon Sunday on IPTV, at 8:30 a.m. Saturday on IPTV World and online at vwww.IPTV.org. 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 Dover: APM Grundstucksverwaltungsgesellschaft mbH & Co. 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Ltd., Markem-Imaje Spain S.A., Markpoint Holding AB, Midland Manufacturing LLC, Midwest Cryogenics Inc., Mouvex, Northeast Services Inc., Northern Lights (Nevada) Inc., Northern Lights Funding LP, Northern Lights Investments LLC, Nova Controls Inc., OK International, OK International Holdings Inc., OK International Inc., OK International Ltd., OPW Engineered Systems LLC, OPW Fluid Transfer Group Europe B.V., OPW Fluid Transfer Solutions (Jiang Su) Co. Ltd., OPW Fluids Group Inc., OPW Fuel Management Systems Inc., OPW Fueling Components (SuZhou) Co. Ltd., OPW Fueling Components LLC, OPW Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., OPW Slovakia s.r.o., OPW Sweden AB, Officine Meccaniche Sirio S.R.L., PDQ Manufacturing, PDQ Manufacturing Inc., PISCES by OPW Inc., PSD Codax Holdings Limited, PSD Codax Limited, PSG (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PSG (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., PSG California LLC, PSG Germany GmbH, Petro Vend Sp. z o.o., Pike Machine Products Inc., Pole/Zero Acquisition Inc., Precision Brasil Equipamentos E Servicos Para Postos De Combustiveis Ltda., Precision Service - Servicos De Manutencao E Instalacao De Postos De Abastecimento De Combustivel Ltda., Production Control Services, Pump Management Services Co. LLC, Quantex Arc Limited, Quantex Patents Limited, RAV France, Ravaglioli S.P.A., Reduction Engineering GmbH, RegO (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., RegO Holding GmbH, RegO Products, RegO Valve (Shanghai) Company Ltd., Rego GmbH, Revod Corporation, Revod Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Revod Sweden AB, Robohand Inc., Rosario, Rosario Handel B.V., Rotary Lift Consolidated (Haimen) Co. Ltd., SE Liquidation LLC, SWEP France, SWEP Germany GmbH, SWEP Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., SWEP North America Inc., SWEP Slovakia s.r.o., SWEP Technology (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Seabiscuit Motorsports Inc., Shanghai RegO Flow Technology Company Ltd., Shine Bloom - ECI A Blocker Corp., Shine Bloom - ECI Blocker Corp., Shine Bloom - ECI S Blocker Corp., Simmons Sirvey Corporation, So. Cal. Soft-Pak, So. Cal. Soft-Pak Incorporated, Soft-Pak, Solaris Laser, Solaris Laser S.A., Somero Enterprises, Sound Solutions, Sound Solutions, Space S.R.L., Spirit, Start Italiana S.R.L., Superior Holding LLC, Superior Products LLC, Swep Energy Oy, Swep International A.B., Swep Japan K.K., Sys-Tech Solutions, Sys-Tech Solutions Inc., Systech, TQC Quantium Quality S.A. de C.V., TTSI III Inc., TWG Canada Consolidated Inc., TXHI LLC, Tartan Textile Services Inc., The Espy Corporation, The Heil Co., Tokheim, Tokheim Belgium, Tokheim China Company Limited, Tokheim GmbH, Tokheim Group, Tokheim Hengshan Technologies (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd., Tokheim Holding B.V., Tokheim India Private Limited, Tokheim Sofitam Applications, Triton Systems, Tulsa Winch Inc., UPCO Inc., US Synthetic, Unattended Payment Solutions LLC, Unified Brands, Val TemperBent Glass L.P., Vectron Frequency Devices (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Vehicle Service Group LLC, Vehicle Service Group UK Limited, Vos Food Store Equipment Ltd., WSCR Corp., Warn Automotive LLC, Warn Industries, Waukesha Bearings, Waukesha Bearings Corporation, Waukesha Bearings Limited, Waukesha Bearings Russia LLC, Wayne Fueling Systems, Wayne Fueling Systems (Rus) Limited Liability Company, Wayne Fueling Systems Australia Pty Ltd, Wayne Fueling Systems Canada ULC, Wayne Fueling Systems Italia S.R.L., Wayne Fueling Systems LLC, Wayne Fueling Systems Ltd., Wayne Fueling Systems Sweden AB, Wayne Fueling Systems UK Holdco Ltd., Wayne Industria e Comercio Ltda., WellMark, WellMark, and em-tec GmbH. Read More Motorola Solutions, Inc. provides mission critical communications and analytics in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Products and Systems Integration, and Software and Services. The Products and Systems Integration segment offers a portfolio of infrastructure, devices, accessories, and video security devices and infrastructure, as well as the implementation, and integration of systems, devices, software, and applications for government, public safety, and commercial customers who operate private communications networks and video security solutions, as well as manage a mobile workforce. Its land mobile radio communications and video security and access control devices include two-way portable and vehicle-mounted radios, fixed and mobile video cameras, and accessories; radio network core and central processing software, base stations, consoles, and repeaters; and video analytics, network video management hardware and software, and access control solutions. The Software and Services segment provides repair, technical support, and hardware maintenance services. This segment also offers monitoring, software updates, and cybersecurity services; and public safety and enterprise command center software, unified communications applications, and video software solutions through on-premise and as a service. It serves government, public safety, and commercial customers. The company was formerly known as Motorola, Inc. and changed its name to Motorola Solutions, Inc. in January 2011. Motorola Solutions, Inc. was founded in 1928 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. PVH Corp. operates as an apparel company worldwide. The company operates through six segments: Tommy Hilfiger North America, Tommy Hilfiger International, Calvin Klein North America, Calvin Klein International, Heritage Brands Wholesale, and Heritage Brands Retail. It designs, markets, and retails men's, women's, and children's apparel and accessories, including branded dress shirts, neckwear, sportswear, jeans wear, performance apparel, intimate apparel, underwear, swimwear, swim-related products, handbags, accessories, footwear, outerwear, home furnishings, luggage products, sleepwear, loungewear, hats, scarves, gloves, socks, watches and jewelry, eyeglasses and non-ophthalmic sunglasses, fragrance, home bed and bath furnishings, small leather goods, and other products. The company offers its products under its own brands, such as Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein, Van Heusen, IZOD, ARROW, Warner's, Olga, Geoffrey Beene, and True&Co., as well as various other owned, licensed, and private label brands. It also licenses its own brands over various products. The company distributes its products at wholesale in department, chain, and specialty stores, as well as through warehouse clubs, mass market, and off-price and independent retailers; and through company-operated full-price, outlet stores, and concession locations, as well as through digital commerce sites. It markets its products to approximately 40 countries. PVH Corp. was founded in 1881 and is based in New York, New York. Plains GP Holdings, L.P., through its subsidiary, Plains All American Pipeline, L.P., owns and operates midstream energy infrastructure in the United States and Canada. The company operates in two segments, Crude Oil and Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs). The company engages in the transportation of crude oil and NGLs on pipelines, gathering systems, and trucks. As of December 31, 2021, this segment owned and leased assets comprising 18,300 miles of crude oil and NGL pipelines and gathering systems; 38 million barrels of above-ground tank capacity; and 1,275 trailers. It engages in the provision of storage, terminalling, and throughput services primarily for crude oil, NGLs, and natural gas; NGL fractionation and isomerization services; and natural gas and condensate processing services. As of December 31, 2021, this segment owned and operated approximately 74 million barrels of crude oil storage capacity; 28 million barrels of NGL storage capacity; four natural gas processing plants; a condensate processing facility; nine fractionation plants; 16 NGL rail terminals; four marine facilities; and 110 miles of pipelines. As of December 31, 2021, this segment owned 15 million barrels of crude oil and 2 NGL linefill; 3 million barrels of crude oil and 1 NGL linefill in pipelines owned by third parties and other inventory; 640 trucks and 1,275 trailers; and 3,900 NGL railcars. The company offers logistics services to producers, refiners, and other customers. PAA GP Holdings LLC operates as a general partner of the company. Plains GP Holdings, L.P. was incorporated in 2013 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas. Le Collectif Cheikh Yassine a organise un certain nombre dactivites et de festivites pour les enfants de Gaza sous le theme La joie des enfants de Gaza pour lAid . Ces activites ont commence le premier jour de lAid et continue jusquau 4eme jour de lAid dans la bande de Gaza. Plusieurs activites, ont ete organisees parmi lesquelles : des competitions recompensees par des prix, des jeux, des animations et des chants presentes par un groupe ainsi que des distributions de cadeaux et daides financieres. A shrewdly-driven Mach It A Par (Jordan Stratton, $6.90) prevailed from the pocket on Friday night, winning Yonkers Raceways $45,000 Filly and Mare Open Handicap Pace. Usually an authentic closer, Mach It A Parfrom mandated post position No. 7was put in play here, and it obviously served her well. She and eight-hole assignee Krispy Apple (Jason Bartlett) both cleared the inside half-dozen ladies, with a three-wide latter making the lead just after a :27.3 opening quarter-mile. Longshot So Nice (Tyler Buter) left into a three-hole, which didnt do much for the cause of pole-sitting Regil Elektra (Dan Dube). The song remained the same at the :57.1 intermission, before Hidden Land (Brent Holland) moved...from seventh. Bedroomconfessions (Scott Zeron), as the tepid 2-1 fave, was away last and chased that one toward a 1:25.1 three-quarters. Mach It A Par was fidgety in the pocket, extricating it to grab a short lead in and out of the final turn. She then finished it off, winning by two and a half lengths in 1:52.3. Hidden Land put in a fine effort, continuing first-up for second, with a needing-room Regil Elektra, Krispy Apple and Moto Moonbeam N (Matt Kakaley) rounding out the payees. Bedroomconfessions was devoid of pace and backpedaled to last. For second choice Mach It A Par, a six-year-old daughter of Mach Three co-owned by DElegance Stable IX, Carmen Iannacone, T L P & Gandolfo Stables and trained by Rich Banca, the win was her 13th in 31 seasonal starts. The exacta paid $64, the triple returned $250 and the superfecta paid $1,143. Yonkers 2016 live season concludes with cards Saturday (first post 7:10 p.m.) and Sunday (first post 1 p.m.). A reminder that theres no simulcasting December 19 through December 28, inclusive and the 17 season begins Sunday, January 1 (post time TBA, dates pending approval of New York State Gaming Commission). (With files from Yonkers Raceway) Tomi Duppers daughter will have to give up the land her mother gave her three years ago in order to pay off a large chunk of the funds her mom embezzled from the YMCA. Dupper, the Longview YMCAs former bookkeeper, was sentenced in April 2014 to two years in prison for embezzling half a million dollars from the YMCA. She was ordered to pay the YMCA nearly $293,000 at no less than $25 monthly, a restitution amount equal to what Dupper still owed the YMCA after she forfeited her retirement and the agency recovered some money from insurance. This June, the YMCA filed a civil suit alleging that Dupper gave 10 acres of land in rural Longview to her daughter Kari Kosa in July 2013. The suit claimed the gift was an attempt to prevent it from being seized and sold to compensate the YMCA. Dupper disputed that and argued she gave the land to Kosa so she could build her own home on it. In November, Superior Court Judge Stephen Warning ruled that the land transfer was fraudulent. On Wednesday, he authorized the Cowlitz County Sheriffs Office to sell Tomi Duppers land and give the proceeds to the YMCA. The county assessors office values the land at $102,580. Anthony Campbell was a high school sophomore when his family was evicted from their Kelso home three years ago. Since then he, his mom and his 13-year-old brother have been homeless, moving from motel to motel or sleeping in their car. Anthony, now 17, is one of hundreds of homeless youth in Cowlitz County. We have to grow up a lot quicker than most kids, Anthony said. We dont have a lot of things handed to us. We have to really struggle for what we get. Social workers say theres a nationwide homeless crisis among youth, and the numbers in Cowlitz County are especially stark, according to the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. In the 2014-2015 academic year, 430 students in the Longview School District 6.3 percent of the student body, double the state average were homeless. Kelso had 231 homeless students, or 4.7 percent of the student body. There are currently no programs in Cowlitz County focused on homeless youth. But that will change soon with a new homeless youth outreach center in Longview. Cowlitz Couty commissioners on Tuesday approved leasing out two dilapidated, county-owned buildings on Washington Street for $1 to Housing Opportunities of Southwest Washington. In exchange, the organization will fund the facilities renovation with the help of Janus Youth Programs. Repairs are estimated to cost a total of $35,000 and can start as early as next week for the outreach center. Love INC is volunteering most of the physical labor. Theres nowhere for them to go, Chris Pegg, executive director of Housing Opportunities of Southwest Washington, said about homeless youth. Janus Youth Programs, based in Portland, got involved when Pegg requested the nonprofits help about a year ago. State grant money secured three outreach workers to talk to homeless youth in Cowlitz County and begin assessing their needs. In the past few years, Anthony has struggled with getting health care, coping with anxiety attacks, getting transportation and keeping his relationships at school. I just noticed I lost a really good portion of my friends and I think its because of my situation, Anthony said. He dropped out of Mark Morris High School his junior year and said hes pursuing his GED independently. Anthony and his family are now staying in Community House on Broadway in Longview, but unaccompanied homeless teens get turned away at the shelter due to Child Protective Services restrictions. Janus Youth Executive Director Dennis Morrow said the first step to helping youth is building a rapport with them to provide a space where they feel comfortable. Morrow said often the phrase homeless youth comes with a stereotype the shriveled up, grungy-looking, tattooed drug addict who, in reality, are just family-less children. And for the chronically homeless minors, interacting with any adult can be distressing. Mutual respect is key to developing that relationship, and thats what Janus Youth does so successfully, Morrow said. It saddens me at the very deepest level that we have that many kids on the street, Morrow said. On the other hand, that shelter wouldnt be full if they didnt feel safe coming over there. Anthony says he still considers himself one of the lucky ones he has his family. For three months, he didnt because he was living with his girlfriend. Being without them was really hard, Anthony said. We all kind of work together in this whole situation. ... They provide a lot of emotional support. Pegg said Janus outreach team has already contacted neighbors surrounding the buildings. The workers will gather more data on homeless youth and their needs before they fully solidify their plans for the facilities. Were responsible for the youth safety, but were also responsible for the communitys safety, Morrow said. If we werent able to create a safe space for them and an effective relationship with the neighbors, we wouldnt be there. Editors note: Todays editorial originally appeared in The Tacoma News Tribune. Editorial content from other publications is provided to give readers a sampling of regional and national opinion and does not necessarily reflect positions endorsed by the Editorial Board of The Daily News. Are we going to decide to kill fish tonight? It was a question Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell brought to the Senate floor last Friday as she implored colleagues to vote no on a controversial water bill that would increase water flow to San Joaquin farmers and away from fish habitat in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. And if they start messing with water flows in northern California, whats to stop them from doing it in Washington? The delta has long been the nexus of controversy pitting agribusiness against environmentalists, but in the final count over who can lay claim to these 720,000 acres of islands and canals, farmers versus fish, the farmers won. In spite of Sen. Cantwells best efforts, the 700-page Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act passed the Senate 78-21 because, frankly, California needs water. Parched cities and farmland are now in year six of a drought. But the bill had a major flaw, one that Cantwell deemed the midnight rider. The rider eliminates limits on environmental pumping on the Sacramento Delta, and these delta flows are vital for native fish. Chinook salmon and six species of fish migrate up the Sacramento River to spawn and are already listed as endangered. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, a Republican dubbed by the San Jose Mercury News as President-elect Donald Trumps go-to guy in California, stuck in this half-billion dollar, backroom rider to benefit large-scale corporate agriculture. Jeffrey Kightlinger, general manager of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, called previous mandates on pumping hyper conservative and agrees with the bills author Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Ca., that storm water gets lost to the sea, anyway. But Cantwell, the senior Democrat on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, says the bill overrides the Endangered Species Act and weakens protections for salmon and other fish populations, and could lead to extinctions. She called McCarthys rider a sweetheart deal to the builders of dams. She isnt wrong. The bill authorizes dam building in 17 states and removes congressional oversight. It grants the new secretary of the Interior Trump has offered the job to Rep. Ryan Zinke (R- Mont.) authority to enter into agreements to design, study, construct or expand any dam or federal storage facility he wants. Washington Sen. Patty Murray even stuck in a ticket home for Kennewick Man. The 9,000-year- old skeleton found on federal land along the Columbia River in 1996 has been at the center of a fierce custody battle. Several DNA tests link him to Columbia Basin tribes, and the water legislation will ensure he gets a proper burial. The bill awaits President Obamas signature. As Cantwell told her colleagues, it wont be the last piece of combative legislation when it comes to water. She called for future collaborative stewardship that balances fish, water, river rights and regional concerns. A team of Brazilian astronomers has added a golden page to the history of terrestrial exploration missions by identifying a giant Death Star which is swallowing the planets creating hurdles in its orbit. An international team of scientists led by Jorge Melendez at the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil has found a massive plant-eating Death Star which is almost akin to Sun in terms of its dimension. Astronomers while experimenting on the sun, termed as HIP68468, discovered it destroying the planets coming to its orbiting trail, a discovery that can trigger many hidden secrets of the planetary system of the cosmos. In an academic journal paper published in Astronomy and Astrophysics, scientists stated that the sun or HIP68468s symphony is indicating towards the aggressive histories of absorbing planets. The co-author of the study, Jacob Bean, an assistant professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Chicago, while putting the light in this context, said: we have found the evidence for the existence of a Sun-like death star that can ingest the planets coming in its way. But it doesnt necessarily mean that the sun will swallow the Earth or any other planet. Taking the statement further, Bean added: the discovery made by our team is pointing out towards the vicious histories of some planets that might be common for the terrestrial systems, including Earths too. The unusual and abnormal composition of this newly discovered death star has indicated about the existence of some other such unknown planet in the planetary system. Unlike the non-natural planet-annihilating, Death Star is shown in the famous Hollywood movie Star Wars, this natural structure of the planetary system can deliver the scientists information regarding progress and movement of the planetary systems over the years. The research team from the University of Sao Paulo, during a multi-year project to discover planets that circle sunlight based twins, detect the star HIP68468, which is located 300 light years away from the earth. During the research, the astronomers found the main planet circling a star rather than the sun in 1995. From that point forward, more than two thousand exoplanets have been distinguished. As said by another co-author of the study, Megan Bedell, it is quite impossible to draw any conclusion on the basis of a single mission or clue and hence we are taking on the mission forward for more facts and explorations. Megan Bedell is also the lead planet discoverer for this joint venture. Mobarakganj Sugar Mills start crushing amid Tk 150cr loss Jhenaidah Correspondent : The Mobarakganj Sugar Mills Limited, the largest heavy industry in Jhenaidah and an enterprises of Banagladesh Sugar and food industries corporation has started its crushing for 2016-2017 season on Saturday afternoon heading a loss for Tka 150 crore. Lawmaker of Jhenaidah-4 constituency Anwarul Azim Anar inaugurated the crushing as chief guest putting the cane in the crushing pot. Presided over by chairman of Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industries Corporation AKM Delwar Hossain, a number of local elite, political personalities, media activists and sugarcane farmers were present during the inaugural session. The mills sources said, they had taken target to produce 7,500 tones of sugar crushing 90,000 tones of sugarcane in the current crushing season. The mills produced 4,124 tones of sugarcane in the past crushing season as against its target for 7,000 tones. Mention may be made that the mills have incurred a loss for Taka 150 crore in past 46 years started in 1967-68 fiscal. Farmers to get 5 new variety quality potatoes Nilphamari Correspondent : Farmers are likely to get five new varieties of high yielding and qualitative potatoes as Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI) developed the breeder seeds (mother seeds) of those potatoes in its 'Breeder seed production center' at Deveganj upazila. Breeders are developed at the last stage of research work and study, conducted for couples of years by agriculture scientists as crossing between two existing variety of potatoes is performed stage by stage. BARI officials said that after being successful in developing breeder seeds, they hands over them to 'Domar foundation seed potato production farm' under Bangladesh agriculture development corporation (BADC) in Nilphamari district few days ago for producing huge amount of foundation seeds this year. Afterwards, the foundation seeds with recommendation of national seed board will be sold to the farmers through BADC dealers for cultivation on commercial basis in fields. The five new potato varieties are Bari potato-35, Bari potato -36, Bari potato-37, Bari potato 40 and Bari Potato-41. The commercial names of the newly developed varieties would be given later before release to the farmers, informed sources. Those five new varieties are addition to the existing commercial varieties like Diamond (office name BARI-7), Cardinal (Bari-8), Granola (Bari-13), Astorix (Bari-25), Lady Rosseta (Bari-28) and Courage (Bari-29). Dr. Ashis Kumar Saha, Principal Scientific Officer of BARI in Deviganj upazila informed that newly developed five potato varieties are high yielding as likely to produce 30-40 tones per hector while existing varieties' production is only 18-20 tones in same area. He also said that the inner portion of the new five varieties potatoes are either cream or yellow in colour and have high demand in food industry as those are suitable as raw material for manufacturing various popular food items like potao chips, french fri, potato flex, crackers and some others, added Dr. Ashis. Presently, raw materials of those food items are largely imported from foreign countries. Deputy Director (DD) of 'Domar foundation seed potato production farm' of BADC, Md. Enamul Huque said that from the available breeder seeds, they set a target to produce 20-25 tons of foundation seeds this year and later would be sold to the farmers. " New potato varieties may bring about a boost in agriculture sector and food industry as farmers and the food industry entrepreneurs will be benefited greatly by cultivating and using in larger extent," said the DD. Khulna General Hospital bldg turns risky South) Correspondent : Health service is being conducted in a dilapidated 81-year risky building in Khulna General Hospital since long. Sources said, in 2014, the then Civil Surgeon Dr. Yasin Ali recommended for renovating the dilapidated buildings of the hospital. In 2015, Afrin Ara Begum, joint secretary of the finance division of the Public Works Department visited the spot and directed to remove the dilapidated buildings. The present Civil Surgeon Dr. ASM Abdur Razzak sent a letter requesting for reforming the dilapidated buildings to the executive engineer of the Public Works Department -1 on October18, 2016. Besides, on October 16, 2016, the personal secretary of the Prime Minister Dr. Nomita Haldar directed to remove the dilapidated buildings at a conference, held at the conference room of the Deputy Commissioner of Khulna. At last on November 12, 2016, the civil surgeon said before the secretary of the Ministry of Health & Family Planning that the civil surgeon has no his own office, a dilapidated building of Khulna General Hospital is his office. On a recent spot visit, this correspondent found a signboard in front of the outdoor department of the hospital where it is written "This building is risky and unusable". But the staffs were working in this dilapidated building. Medicine for T B patients. The store room is on the first floor of this dilapidated building. Hospital sources said, in spite of the fact that some buildings were declared as abandoned in 1987, but they were not renovated still. Due to shortage of buildings, patients are being deprived of getting proper service. According to an internal report, civil surgeon's building is very ancient, dilapidated and unsuitable for living, cracks developed on the roof and water falls from the ceiling, as such valuable official papers are damaging. Official activities are being hampered due to shortage of rooms. The civil surgeon is being compelled to live at a school health clinic and two watchmen are watching the dilapidated the residence of the civil surgeon. Md. Zakir Hossain, Executive Engineer of the public works department-1 said, proposal was sent for including the dilapidated building of the hospital in the operational plan (OP) and if it is included there after proper steps would may be taken. Md. Nazmul Ahsan,DC , Khulna said, I myself visited the hospital building which is actually dilapidated and risky one. This dilapidated building should renovate on urgent basis. Seminar on Medical Engineering held at UIU Speakers at an international conference on \'Medical Engineering, Health Informatics and Technology\' organised by United International University on its campus in the city on Saturday. Staff Reporter : The first international conference on Medical Engineering, Health Informatics and Technology (MediTec 2016) was held on the United International University (UIU) campus on Saturday. The theme of the conference was "Smart Systems for Healthcare." Director General of Directorate General of Health Services Professor Abul Kalam Azad was present at the programme as the Chief Guest while Vice Chancellor of United International University Professor M Rezwan Khan presided over it. Director and Joint Secretary of National Disabled Development Foundation under the Ministry of Social Welfare Dr M Anwarullah, and Joint Chief of Health and Family Welfare Ministry Dr Mohiuuddin Osmani addressed the programmes as Special Guests. MediTec brings together researchers, engineers, medical practitioners and experts contributing mainly in the area of biomedical engineering and health informatics. The conference received 103 papers by distinguished professionals from Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, China, Finland, India, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, USA, United Arab Emirates, and United Kingdom. Dr Abul Kalam Azad emphasized the importance of such a conference to reduce the gap between medical and engineering fields and strengthen multidisciplinary biomedical engineering research and help disseminate real life applications to improve healthcare and disabilities in Bangladesh. Professor M Rezwan Khan hoped that Bangladesh would be benefited significantly from the outcome of this conference through the ideas through sharing and dissemination of bright research ideas and outcomes at MediTec 2016. ORGANIsATION SNIPPETs City Desk : Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal A view-exchange meeting organised by Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) was held at Kushtia Circuit House on Saturday. Information Minister Hasanul Huq Inu was present as the chief guest on the occasion. While speaking Inu said BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia is now shedding crocodile tears for democracy. "Begum Khaleda Zia is trying to practice democracy again but they have no right to exercise democracy as they are involved in killing, terrorism and corruption," he said. The programme was attended, among others, by Superintendent of Police Proloy Chisim and President of JSD Golam Mohsin. Bangladesh Mahila Parishad A views exchange meeting in observance of World Human Rights Day was held at Sufia Kamal Bhaban of the parishad in the city. In the programme the speakers bitterly criticized the violence against women and children. They urged all from all walks of life to come forward to resist the violence against women and children. The speakers also urged the government to take necessary steps against those involved in the heinous crimes. The programme was addressed, among others, by Director of the Legal Advocacy Advocate Maksuda Akhtar, Director of the National Legal Aid Services Malik Abdullah Al Amin, Additional Police Commissioner, Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Jamil Ahmed and Deputy Police Commissioner, Women Support and Investigation Division, DMP Farida Yasmin. President of the parishad, central committee Ayesha Khanom presided over the function. Corruption Prevention Committee A human chain against corruption organised jointly by Corruption Prevention Committee and Conscious Citizen Committee (CCC), Jamalpur was held recently at Bakultala area in Jamalpur to mark the International Anti-Corruption Day. In the programme the speakers stressed mass awareness among the people to prevent corruption in the society.They said people should come forward to prevent corruption for the development of the country. The function was addressed, among others, by Deputy Commissioner (DC) Md Shahabuddin Khan as the chief guest, Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Rawnak Jahan and Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Md Rasel Sabrin. A procession led by Deputy Commissioner was brought out from Bakultala and ended at the premises of Deputy Commissioner's office. 11 killed in road accidents Six people including a woman were killed and 8 others injured when a bus rammed a human hauler in Eetahata area on Dhaka-Tangail Highway in Gazipur on Saturday. BSS, Dhaka : At least 11 people were killed and 24 others injured in separate road accidents in four districts yesterday. In Gazipur, six people including women were killed and eight others sustained injuries as a Gazipur-bound 'Laguna' (human hauler) collided head- on with a bus at about 6:45 am at Itahata on Dhaka-Tangail Highway near Bhawal Badre Alam Government College, leaving all the six persons dead on the spot and eight others injured. Four of the deceased were identified as Ukil Miah, son of M Ali, of Nalitabari in Sherpur district, Pran Nath Das, 38, son of Tulsi Das, his cousin Bakul Chandra Das, 35, son of Indrajit Das, residents of Gobindapur village under Salna Thana in Sunamganj district and Amena Begum, 45, wife of Babul Miah, of Bakshiganj in Jamalpur district. The Laguna was carrying passengers from Chandra to Gazipur when it crashed against the bus coming from the opposite direction. Talking to BSS, officer-in-charge (OC) of Joydebpur Police Station Khandker Rezaul Hasan said the accident occurred due to poor visibility as shallow to moderate fog covered the area. The OC said police and locals rescued the victims and sent them to Shaheed Tajuddin Medical College Hospital. Police also seized the killer bus, he added. In another accident, two people were killed as a Natore-bound BRTC bus hit a van coming from the opposite side in Jolarbata area on the Natore-Bogra highway under Singra upazila in Natore district at about 12.15 pm. The deceased were identified as Abu Kalam, 40, son of late Jonab Ali and Jaheda Begum, 70, wife of Tayef Uddin of Chouwgram village of the upazila, said Officer-in-Charge of Singra Thana Nasir Uddin Mondol. Two people were killed and 12 others injured in two separate road accidents in Kalihati and Bhuapur upazila in Tangail district yesterday. One of the deceased was identified as Abdul Halim, 35. In Thakurgaon, a muezzin of a mosque was killed as a tractor ran over him in Tikapara Sanua Bridge area in the district town yesterday morning. The deceased was identified as Khorsed Ali, 45, muezzin of Tikapara Graveyard Mosque in the town. Sub-inspector of Sadar Thana Murtaza Rahman said the accident occurred when a tractor ran over Khorsed in the area at about 11 am, leaving him dead on the spot. A case was filed in this connection. Victory Day celebrated Savar Mausoleum bedecked with flowers marking the Victory Day celebration on Friday. UNB, Dhaka : The nation celebrated the 46th Victory Day on Friday commemorating its glorious victory in the nine-month bloody war against the Pakistani occupation forces in 1971 with a pledge to forge a unity to make the country prosperous and developed one. The celebrations marked with tens of thousands of people visiting and placing flowers at the National Memorial at suburban Savar and other war monuments across the country to pay their glowing tributes to the heroic sons and daughters of the soil who laid down their lives to attain the independence of their beloved mother land Streets swarmed with the enthusiastic people carrying the national flag, banners, wreaths, head bands and banners of different political, social, cultural and professional organisations inscribed with the slogans of the Victory Day and with many draped in green and red. The day was heralded with a 31-gun salute at dawn. President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina led the nation in paying homage to the 30 lakh martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the country, by placing wraths on the altar, as army bugles played the last post. First the President and then the Prime Minister placed wreaths in the morning around 6:34am and paid their homage to the Liberation war heroes. They stood there in solemn silence for some time as a mark of respect to the great sons of the soil. Later, flanked by central leaders of the party, Sheikh Hasina as the President of Bangladesh Awami League also laid another wreath at the National Monument. Besides, Sheikh Hasina paid homage to Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman by placing a wreath at his portrait in front of Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi here in the morning on the occasion. Leader of the Opposition in parliament Raushan Ershad and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia also placed wreaths at the National Mausoleum paying their tributes to the martyred freedom fighters. The national flag was hoisted atop all government and private buildings, while the government and semi-government buildings and other public places were illuminated and roads and islands were decorated with flags and festoons in all cities of the country on the occasion. The day was a public holiday. Different political parties, socio-cultural organisations and educational institutions observed the day with various programmes. The national flag was hoisted atop all government and private buildings, while the government and semi-government buildings and other public places were illuminated and roads and islands decorated with flags and festoons in all cities of the country on the occasion. On this day in 1971, the chief of the Pakistani occupation forces, Gen AAK Niazi, along with his 93,000 Pakistani tro-ops, surrendered at the then Ramna Racecourse, now Suhrawardy Udyan, in Dhaka following a miserable defeat to the joint forces of Mukti Bahini and Mitra Bahini after the nine-month Liberation War. Supporters, opponents of embattled Park stage big rallies in Seoul People join a protest rally demanding South Korean President Park Geun-hye\'s resignation in Seoul. Reuters, Seoul : Supporters of South Korean President Pak Geun-hye rallied on Saturday for her reinstatement while opponents gathered to repeat their demands that the leader impeached over a corruption scandal step down immediately. The Park supporters, who last held a major rally in mid-November, began their demonstration first. Later, anti-Park protesters packed the streets of central Seoul for an eighth straight weekend. Many of the opponents were angry that Park's lawyers argued on Friday that the impeachment had no legal basis. "This is my first time out here, but yesterday when I heard about her opinion against the impeachment submitted to the Constitutional Court, whatever pity I had felt for her disappeared," Roh Yi-young, 55, said. Park's lawyers struck a defiant note in their first comments since the impeachment vote, saying the motion should be overturned by the Constitutional Court, which has 180 days to review it. The lawyers' submission to the court rejected all the points made in the impeachment motion approved by a wide margin by parliament on Dec. 9 which accused her of violating her constitutional duty and breaking the law. Park's presidential powers have been suspended since the vote for impeachment, which set the stage for her to become South Korea's first elected leader to be thrown out of office. The Constitutional Court must first uphold the motion. Park, 64, is accused of colluding with long-time friend Choi Soon-sil, who has been indicted and is in custody, to pressure big businesses to make contributions to non-profit foundations backing presidential initiatives. Saturday's pro-Park rally near the court a few blocks from the presidential Blue House drew largely older people who said those behind the movement to oust her were misguided. "The people who love this country have come out to save the country despite the hardship," Kim Ku-ja, 69, said with the national flag draped over her. She blamed the media for fuelling anti-Park sentiment, focusing their coverage too much on the views of younger and liberal voters and on criticism that Park received cosmetic procedures while in office. "What's so wrong about a woman getting Botox shots? Why is that a problem?" Kim said. Park's supporters have been in the minority in the weeks of protests demanding her removal. Organizers of Saturday's anti-Park rally estimated the crowd at about 300,000. It was largely peaceful as were the previously rallies, with songs and speeches striking a festive tone mixed with angry calls for her to quit. Park has indicated she would not step down, fuelling concern that the political crisis could drag on for months. She has denied wrongdoing but apologized for carelessness in her ties with Choi. If the impeachment is upheld or Park steps down voluntarily, a new election has to be held in 60 days to pick a new leader who will serve a single five-year term. Park's term was originally set to end in February 2018. Indonesian FM due Tuesday UNB, Dhaka : Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi is expected to visit Bangladesh this week completing her Myanmar visit to discuss Rohingya issues with her Bangladesh counterpart. However, the Foreign Ministry here is yet to make any official announcement over Indonesian Foreign Minister's Bangladesh visit. The Jakarta Post on Saturday said Marsudi will embark on a two-day mission to Myanmar and Bangladesh in search of a lasting solution to the dire situation in Rakhine state, especially regarding the plight of the Rohingya Muslim minority. Quoting her, the report said she will depart for Myanmar ahead of an informal meeting with her Asean counterparts on Monday, before heading out to Dhaka to meet Bangladesh Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali on Tuesday. "On Dec 19, at the invitation of the Myanmar State Counsellor [Aung San Suu Kyi], Asean foreign ministers will meet in Yangon for a retreat to discuss the situation in Rakhine state," Marsudi was quoted as saying on Friday. More than 21,000 Rohingyas have fled and entered Bangladesh as they reportedly fell victims to rape, murder and arson. Multi-client seismic survey in limbo UNB, Dhaka : The government's move for a top priority multi-client seismic survey in offshore gas blocks remains stuck for four months in a decision making process of the Cabinet Economic Affairs Committee, Energy Division official sources said. The Cabinet body, following a rift in its meeting in August this year formed a high-powered committee, headed by the Law Minister, to review an Energy Division's tender process for awarding contract. The committee was asked to submit its report shortly, but the report has not been submitted yet, said the Cabinet Division officials. Meanwhile, Energy Ministry officials said the government has missed this winter for its planned survey works in the Bay of Bengal. Rather, it has to wait for another year for the job as such works cannot be executed without dry season. Petrobangla chairman Istiaque Ahmad, who is a member of the committee, admitted the delay and said the committee held its concluding meeting last week. "Now the Law Minister as head of the committee will place his report to the Cabinet body We'll be waiting for the Cabinet body meeting for decision," he told UNB. Conducting the multi-client seismic survey is a long standing move of the Energy Division since the settlement of maritime boundary with neighboring India and Myanmar. Energy Division had undertaken its first move about three years back. But after selection of an international firm through tender process, the Prime Minister's Office cancelled the process. Again the Energy Division took a fresh move and the state-owned Petrobangla selected an international firm for conducting multi-client seismic survey to assess hydrocarbon potentials in offshore gas blocks. The idea of multi-client survey is that the selected firm will conduct survey in the country's maritime boundary at its own cost. But after completion of the survey it will share its findings with state-owned Petrobangla at a free of cost. The selected firm will have a right to sell the findings and seismic data to aspirant international oil companies who want to participate in oil and gas exploration in the Bangladesh territory. Bangladesh has long been trying to award its offshore gas blocks to international oil companies since its settlement of maritime boundary disputes with neighboring India and Myanmar, but its effort were not very successful. Many officials blamed the lack of seismic data of the gas blocks for failing to attract the international oil companies for the exploration in the blocks. However, neighboring India and Myanmar have been successful to award their offshore blocks because of available data, said the Petrobangla officials. Opposition needs more space Bernicat talks to Kolkata daily Staff Reporter : The US ambassador to Bangladesh, Marcia Bernicat, praised the Sheikh Hasina government for its "zero tolerance" for terrorism but sought more democratic space for the Opposition. Bernicat spoke to The Telegraph exclusively on the sidelines of a panel discussion attended by her and the US ambassadors to India and Nepal, Richard Verma and Alaina Teplitz. The discussion was part of the two-day Indo-Asia Connectivity for Shared Prosperity conference that began in Kolkatga on Thursday. She maintained that terrorism in Bangladesh, if homegrown, was not free of external influence. The Bangladesh government says all terror activities in the country are perpetrated by homegrown elements. The government of Bangladesh has been meeting the threat of the ISIL (also known as the Islamic State) with the formation of a new counter-terrorism unit. The Prime Minister has avowed zero tolerance for terrorism. She's made it clear to all agencies, the various units and intel services, they need to work together, work with Bangladesh's foreign department, so that their ability to fight terror is a lot more effective. We urge as a democracy that you cannot have a democracy without a vibrant Opposition and so we urge that all of Bangladesh's Opposition parties and the civil society be given expanded democratic space. No force should be able to divide a country, but if we as governments, as political entities, create a sense of division that they (the forces of terror) can exploit then shame on us. When the Bangladesh government talks of homegrown terrorism, that's not inconsistent with the ISIL threat, in fact it is exactly how the ISIL works. It has been very effective in finding disaffected individuals. Are they associating with the JMB (Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh), with al Qaida, with the Ansarullah Bangla Team? Yes, all of the above. Homegrown? Yes. Influenced from the outside? Absolutely. In 15 months, Bangladesh has actually experienced more claims of attack by the ISIL than any other country in the world outside of Iraq and Syria, so all this is to say that this is a real, serious threat. I think it's not over. It's a new form of terrorism, outsourcing. The lone wolf kind of attacks are so much harder to detect than the old al Qaida style of highly hierarchical, organised and large-scale attacks. The capacity for flexibility of the ISIL is really extraordinary. If we as sovereign governments don't keep expecting the unexpected and planning for that, then we put ourselves at great risk. We have seen it more and more in the world. In the Bangladesh model, if you get a good education, particularly in English, then your prospects for getting hired should be very strong. But we know that there are not enough jobs being created. Another theory if you have been raised in an environment or household - and this is not a criticism - where there has not been much of an emphasis on religion, then the skewed, wrong teachings of the ISIL might make sense to you. They are known to target the disaffected and the disconnected. We are really in an extraordinary time when India-Bangladesh relations are the strongest they have ever been, the India-US relations are the strongest they have ever been and the US-Bangladesh relations are the strongest they have ever been. Gas price hiked Tk 750 for double burners, Tk 700 for single burner Staff Reporter : The government has increased the gas price for the household users with effect from January 2017. The household users will now have to pay Tk 750 every month instead of current Tk 650 in the case of double burners and Tk 700 for single burners, an increase of Tk 100 only for both burners. Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) finalized the new gas price, after the government agreed to the proposal for hike in the gas price. Acting BERC Chairman Md Maksudul Haque disclosed it to the journalists on Saturday. According to a BERC official, the household users will have to pay Tk750 every month instead of Tk 650 for double burners, and Tk700 for single burners, an increase of Tk 100 only from Tk. 600. The BERC official also informed that the energy regulator would soon issue a circular announcing an average of 20 percent rise in gas price for both double and single burners. The new price will come into effect from January 1, he said. Migrant deaths worldwide top 7,100 - over half in the Med The UN Migration Agency : Switzerland - IOM is reporting today (16/12) 7,189 migrants and refugees have died or remain missing on world migratory routes. This is the highest yearly number IOM has ever recorded, and represents an average of 20 deaths per day, suggesting the deaths of another 200-300 men, women and children well may be recorded worldwide before 2016 comes to an end. This week's number of migrant deaths recorded globally in 2016 was compiled by IOM's Missing Migrants Project and Global Migration Data Analysis Centre. By comparison, total fatalities compiled by IOM in 2014 (5,267) and 2015 (5,740) both fell hundreds of victims short of the 6,000 mark, a figure that was surpassed this year before the end of November. As in the previous two years, the number of deaths on the three principal Mediterranean routes linking North Africa and the Middle East with Europe accounted for over 60 percent of all deaths worldwide. IOM reports the number of migrants recorded as dead or missing and presumed dead - appears to be rising across all regions, including the Mediterranean, Northern and Southern Africa, as well as in Central America and in the United States-Mexico border region. Each already has surpassed those recorded in these regions through all of 2015, according to recent IOM data. For Eastern and Northern Africa, the Missing Migrants Project relies on the work of the Regional Mixed Migration Secretariat's ("RMMS") Mixed Migration Monitoring Mechanism Initiative ("4Mi"), which surveys migrants from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Somalia. Data collection monitors in migration hubs in 13 countries across Europe and Africa ask migrants in transit a variety of questions to do with their journey, including whether they have witnessed the deaths of other migrants along the way. The findings of 4Mi's survey indicates that over 700 migrants from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Somalia have died during migration in 2016. These deaths are due to vehicle accidents, violent attacks and other harm associated with a lack of access to medicines, shelter, food and water during their journey. The majority of these deaths occurred in Sudan, Egypt and Libya. It is likely that many more deaths go unrecorded by any official government or humanitarian aid agency. But they often are recorded by migrants themselves. Among IOM's most important sources of information are testimonies of other migrants, who are videotaping these daily tragedies on cell phones, or alerting family members and friends of the deceased via Facebook posts and other social media. Mining these veins of information IOM's Missing Migrants team this year discovered hundreds of victims in Latin America, off the coast of Yemen or on lonely highways across Africa. In Latin America, there have been 90 more deaths recorded by the Missing Migrants Project than by the same time in 2015. News emerged this week that so far in 2016, at least six people drowned off the coast of Mazatlan, in Chiapas, Mexico, where migrants board smuggling boats and head north towards the United States. The Darien Gap, between Colombia and Panama, has also seen at least 30 people die while migrating so far in 2016, many of whom were Cuban. In Texas, where a record 176 bodies have been recovered along the Mexican border in 2016, there is a new effort to try to help identify those who have died in the desert, with the project by the Texas Observer, called "I have a name/Yo tengo un nombre". Belongings and pieces of clothing left with the deceased have been photographed and added to the project's database in the hope that some of them may be recognized. Although increasing attention brought to the issue of the migrant deaths is helping to improve information gathering, the data in themselves indicate the high risks that people can face in their journey to find a better life, and that there are significant challenges to the UN's call for "safe migration". Meanwhile IOM reports that 357,249 migrants and refugees entered Europe by sea in 2016 through 14 December, arriving mostly in Greece and Italy, compared with 883,393 through the end of November 2015. Some 178,802 people have arrived by sea in Italy in 2016 - more than in either 2014 or 2015. Some 172,813 migrants and refugees arrived by sea in Greece during the same period, far fewer than in 2015. IOM Rome's Flavio Di Giacomo reported Thursday that 2,124 migrants have been rescued since IOM's last report earlier this week. He added that on Wednesday Italian authorities reported another shipwreck, which claimed at least 20 victims. Survivors were brought to the port of Augusta. The total number of migrant and refugee fatalities in the Mediterranean since the beginning of 2016 as of late Thursday was 4,812. IOM Libya reports this includes the deaths since 5 December of some 51 people whose bodies were retrieved from six different incidents in three separate locations, mostly near Tajoura, outside Tripoli, Libya. Information received by IOM Friday morning indicates an additional 87 victims are feared missing after a boat carrying 114 was reported sank off the coast of Zawiya, Libya. The Libyan Coast Guard reportedly rescued 27 from that incident. An additional single body was found Thursday in Zawiya. If confirmed, the addition of these 88 victims would bring the total number of people lost in the Mediterranean to at least 4,900 through the first 50 weeks of 2016 - just under 100 victims per week. Jobs and skills needed to cement democracy Imed Hammami and Pier Antonio Panzeri : A driving factor for many during the Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia that toppled the Ben Ali regime was an increasing lack of opportunity, not just between regions but between people and generations. In a post-Arab Spring world, hope for personal and professional growth and prosperity are not only important, they are vital for democracy, stability and security. We live in an interconnected universe where the domestic and international often intertwine, both the European Union and and Tunisia recognise that a safe and stable region begins with a healthy society at home. It is exactly these challenges that the new Tunisian government must strive to address. The work done to tackle these issues must be supported by the international community in the same way that the EU has stepped up its collaboration through cooperative programmes, financial support and deeper ties. There is also an important role for the business community to play; building strong, responsible public-private partnerships has proven a powerful tool in unlocking economic potential. At the heart of this in Tunisia will be the Ministry of Employment and Vocational Training, whose policies will be fundamental to making the democratic transition sustainable and resilient by bringing it to the individual. The Ministry has been active in developing a number of policy initiatives, such as the new "dignity contract" and "vocational diploma". These proposals aim to offer training and skills development for graduates and to match individuals to companies in high-demand fields. The initiatives will see new levels of public-private cooperation to open new jobs, connect workers to opportunities and open up access to higher education. Another major project is the Reform of National Vocational Training Systems, a package of 14 reforms that aims to promote an overhauled education system. The idea is to change vocational training from the ground up, addressing not only how skills are taught but how training is perceived throughout society. The European Vocational Skills Week, organised by the European Commission (5-9 December), underscores a similar vision of a modern workforce rooted in continuing education and hands-on experience as pathways to opportunity. Education also features prominently in regional security discussions in Tunisia. Inequality and a perceived lack of opportunities are often identified as major contributing factors to radicalisation, especially among young people, who are most likely to feel angry and left out of society. We want to offer them an opportunity that combines a structured path with a clear vision of a place in a changing economy. Facilitating reintegration into the employment market and using jobs to help break down barriers in society, create opportunities, encourage social mobility and reduce feelings of marginalisation is key to sustainable economic growth. These reforms need to take place in the Maghreb region as a whole in order to successfully promote stability in the wider neighbourhood. Partners in Europe and across North Africa have the opportunity to benefit from the security dividends success would bring. Underpinning these programmes is a common long-term vision for Tunisian society to embrace innovation and a spirit of entrepreneurship that will enhance Tunisia's ambition to be a dynamic and interconnected hub for the region. These priorities were reflected in the international Investment Conference held in Tunis in the past fortnight, featuring digital, education and the knowledge economy as thematic pillars equal to traditional industries and investment opportunities. It is easy to see how closely promoting growth and education are linked, and the fact that both Tunisia and the EU have decided to focus attention on vocational training, skills development and strategic investment should be seen as a positive opportunity for cooperative programmes in the future. This will be especially true as negotiations with the EU on the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement progress. Not only will a more dynamic economy make Tunisia more attractive for trade and investment, it would insulate the economy against the shocks some fear could result from deeper trading ties. Additionally, the EU's support in promoting mobility in the region through visa facilitation will be essential in helping EU-Tunisia relations evolve from mere development assistance into cooperation with the private sector. Opportunity is the lifeblood of a democracy. Europe is an instrumental partner in helping Tunisia's fledgling democracy create jobs, and consequentially, opportunity and hope for its citizens as it recovers from a brutal dictatorship. The task, however, is far from finished. Every step taken to expand and diversify the country's employment market is a step closer to cementing a fair, equal and democratic society. (Imed Hammami is the Tunisian minister of employment and vocational training. Pier Antonio Panzeri is an Italian Democratic Party MEP (S&D) and chair of the European Parliament's delegation for relations with the Maghreb Countries and the Arab Maghreb Union). Hundi crippling formal remittance channel News media report highlighted the curse of illegal money transaction, popularly known as Hundi, crippling the country's economic progress by accelerating capital flight, illegal money transaction by evading banking channel. Despite the central bank's hard stance against Hundi, it cannot override the Hundi network as a vested quarter in league with law enforcers is doing the illegal business. Occasional arrest of Hundi traders and money recovered by law enforcement agencies in several border points and airports, are the tips of the total Hundi traders' network across the country with franchises in several countries. Bangladesh Bank estimated that in the last 10 years more than Tk 4,00,000 crore was laundered to several destinations through Hundi while Washington-based Global Financial Integrity reported in 20042013, that Bangladesh lost over USD 13 billion through Hundi. Alarmingly, most of the over a million foreign nationals who work in the country send remittance through the illegal channel while remittance inflow through banking channel has become unattractive. A total of 2370 Bangladeshis laundered money to Malaysia through the illegal channel to take the Second Home offer by Malaysia while the savings of Bangladeshi nationals in Swiss national Bank have increased to Tk 4428 crore in 2015 from 4068 in 2014. A United Nations study said over the last four decades Bangladesh lost about USD 800 million a year on average in capital flight driven by a balance of payment leakages, under invoicing, and unreported remittances. The total capital flight from Bangladesh accounts for 30.4 percent of its GDP. Another report said remittance inflow fell by $1.3 billion in the last 11 months this year compared to the same period last year due to transfer of money from abroad through Hundi. The central bank statistics show remittance inflow was $12.65 billion in January to November period this year, while it was $13.95 billion in the same period last year. Both the Finance Ministry and Bangladesh Bank have identified that Hundi is the major reason behind the slide. It is known that a section of custom, police, bank and money exchange officials at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport are involved with the illegal money laundering business. As the 16 scanners at the entrance and exit points of the airport cannot scan the paper currency, illegal trafficking of money becomes soothed. The traffickers take the advantage of scanner machines to do their business and prevention becomes impossible. A lion segment of the laundered money goes to gambling in casinos overseas while others are invested in the different business. The legal channel of money transfer is narrowing down and the illegal channel becomes bolstered. The government should go all-out efforts to defeat the Hundi network and popularize the legal money transfer system with no delay to save the economy. Govt is Election Commission, no other Election Commission can be independent As there is no election time non-party caretaker government, the sitting party government shall be in charge of the election. It defies logic to expect another Election Commission to be independent as against the government competing to win the election. The effective negotiation should be with the government because nobody else but the government can assure about maintaining neutrality in the election process. As the government cannot afford to lose the election so the government must win. At the insistence of the opposition President Abdul Hamid has undertaken the responsibility of negotiating with the political parties for choosing the Chief Election Commissioner acceptable to all parties. The object is unattainable, unanimity being impossible. Blaming the lame duck opposition parties is not the full answer when it is about election to form people's government and their right to vote. The most pertinent question to be asked is: Have we been able to show our moral backbones as a free nation for enjoying rights as a free nation or vote in a democracy? The shameful truth is that we are now unable to protect the basic right of a citizen -- the right to vote and elect a people's government. It is fundamental to the functioning of any parliamentary system that a new election time government is installed after dissolution of the parliament under the direction of the head of the state. Thus the government so formed is chosen neither on party basis nor on election basis. It is trusted to be non-partisan and neutral. In England, it is at the request of the Queen that the sitting Prime Minister continues to run the election time government. The ministers are also appointed by the Queen though on the advice of the newly appointed election-time Prime Minister. But the basis of the government is not election. It is common sense to know that after the dissolution of the Parliament nobody remains elected. Thus the government so formed is far from being an elected government. The judgement of our Appellate Division of the Supreme Court that declared the election time caretaker government unconstitutional, not being elected, was a highly divided and disputed judgement induced by a misconception of basic structure of democracy in our Constitution. By denying the caretaker government free and fair election has been killed. Democracy itself is facing total extinction. The people are the most helpless ones. For remaining in power the government does not need the people's vote. We have seen last time how the general election became not a voting exercise of the people but a distribution process of the government of seats across the table. In my view one of their Lordships Mr Justice Iman Ali took the more appropriate constitutional position by holding that it is for the Parliament to decide how the election should be conducted, the election being a political matter. In the famous Brexit case the judges of the Supreme Court (of Britain) had made it clear that they are not dealing with the political decision of Britain's not remaining in the European Union. There are only examining the law. To be more clear, the question being resolved is the role of the Parliament in starting the process of leaving the Union. The farcical side of the election is best explained by the fact that the Parliament without the opposition is called democracy. BNP`s talks with President today UNB, Dhaka : President Abdul Hamid is going to initiate formal talks with political parties over the formation of the new Election Commission (EC) through his first meeting with BNP this afternoon. A 13-member BNP delegation, led by its Chairperson Khaleda Zia, will hold the talks with the President at Bangabhaban at 4:30pm. The President has taken the dialogue initiative as the tenure of the current Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad-led EC expires in February next. Contacted, President's Press Secretary Joynal Abedin told UNB, "The Honourable President will start dialogue with registered political parties today (Sunday) to form the new Election Commission. The first meeting will be held with BNP at 4.30 pm on the day." BNP has already sent the names of its 13-member delegation to hold the meeting with the President, Joynal added. He said the names include Khaleda Zia, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Moudud Ahmed, Jamiruddin Sircar, Mahbubur Rahman, Tariqul Islam, Rafiqul Islam Miah, Mirza Abbas, Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Dr Abdul Moeen Khan, Nazrul Islam Khan and Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury. President will hold meetings with Jatiya Party on December 20 at 3pm, Liberal Democratic Party and Krishak Sramik Janata League on December 21 at 3pm and 4:3 pm respectively and Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal-Inu on December 22 at 3pm. The Press Secretary said the President will hold meetings with other registered political parties in phases. The President will complete his dialogue with the registered political parties before he appoints the CEC and commissioners. Now there are 40 registered political parties in the country. The President Office has already sent letters to the five political parties in this regard. On December 12, the letters were sent from Bangabhaban addressing the political parties' general secretaries or secretaries general inviting them to hold dialogue with the President."As per Article 118 of the constitution, the Honorable President has been empowered to appoint the chief election commissioner and not more than four election commissioners. As the tenure of the present election commission expires soon, the Honorable President has expressed interest to take opinions of the political parties to form the election commission," reads the letter signed by President's office secretary Shampad Barua. According to a source at Bangabhaban, the letters will be sent to some other political parties this week. In 2012, then President Zillur Rahman appointed incumbent Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad to lead the five-member EC through a search committee after holding meetings with 23 registered political parties. The Awami league, BNP, Jatiya Party and other major political parties participated in the talks with the late President. The debate on formation of the EC gathered pace when Khaleda Zia placed a 13-point proposal on November 18 for forming the new Commission and called for reconstituting it with representatives from all registered political parties or with representatives of all political parties that over different periods had representation in the national parliament. About Khaleda's proposal, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on December 3 said, "She [Khaleda] has made her proposal; now she can tell the President about it, and he'll make the decision we've nothing to say." Though the President is only a figurehead and just abides by the advice of the Prime Minister, he takes oath to preserve, protect and defend the constitution. The new EC will conduct the next general election scheduled to be held in 2019. The BNP chief will start her journey around 3pm from her Gulshan residence for her party's Nayapaltan central office where other delegation members will be there, her media wing member Sayrul Kabir Khan told UNB. Later, they all, led by Khaleda, will go to Bangabhaban for the dialogue with the President. Party leaders wishing anonymity said the BNP delegation will discuss with the President on the basis of their chairperson's proposal on constituting a stronger and neutral Commission. They will also propose the names of five to six the country's noted citizens, including female one, to include them in the search committee. Besides, they are likely to discuss the formation of an election time neutral government to facilitate the EC holding a fair and impartial election. Meanwhile, BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Saturday said their party wants President Abdul Hamid to form a neutral Election Commission (EC) based on all parties' opinions so that it can work independently ignoring the government's any influence and pressure. The Undead Archives I have finally salvaged my pre-Blogger TDR archives and added them into Blogger. They are almost totally in the form of one giant post for each month. And the formatting strayed from the originals. Sorry. But historians everywhere can rejoice that this treasure trove of my thoughts is restored to the world. Country United States of America US Virgin Islands United States Minor Outlying Islands Canada Mexico, United Mexican States Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Cuba, Republic of Dominican Republic Haiti, Republic of Jamaica Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of 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Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe The 70,000-square-foot Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise on Cajundome Boulevard in ULs Research Park is being taken over by UL Lafayette, The Advocate was the first to report Thursday. The university is assuming control of the state-funded facility and its operations. In 2006 the state Legislature passed a law creating the $27 million, 3-D visualization center and technology incubator, and LITE opened in 2007. It has since been run by a board of commissioners, which will be dissolved pending Legislative approval as part of the cooperative endeavor agreement with the university, a plan approved by the UL System Board of Supervisors Thursday. The center, which has long struggled to find its footing while also suffering high management turnover, lost its state funding last year. The entity itself was unable to generate enough revenue to sustain its operations while also tackling new expenditures to maintain and upgrade a now decade-old facility, says Doug Menefee, who chairs the board of commissioners. The university has the existing resources to better maintain the physical plant, especially when it comes to preventative maintenance, Menefee says, adding that LITE itself generates enough revenue to not burden the university's limited resources. This isnt a failing as much as it is an evolution, Menefee tells ABiz, in large part because it will foster more involvement with UL researchers. With the exception of Chief Operating Officer Erin Marietta, who will leave LITE at the end of the year (she relocated to Texas in July 2015 and has been commuting and working remotely since), the staff will be retained on the universitys payroll, Menefee says. Marietta cites as LITEs biggest accomplishments its role as a strategic economic development partner in the region, assisting in the recruitment of major technology firms to the Lafayette area including CGI, Enquero and Perficient. She also points out how well it has worked in partnership with Opportunity Machine and tenants in its building, saying that it has been a leader in virtual reality technologies and product development by working with clients [both big and small] to generate software applications that help businesses work smarter and safer. Read the Cooperative Endeavor Agreement between LITE and UL Lafayette here. Its accomplishing great things in the community, even though those may not have been what was envisioned in its original mission, Menefee says. What were doing now is taking what did work and making it work better, including showcasing Lafayettes innovation and innovative thinking, delivery of 3-D environments for safety training, and providing an environment for business, economic development and research to collaborate. Menefee says the seeds for a closer collaboration with the university were planted about a year ago, and in May the board began to gauge the universitys interest in assuming control of the building. Out of those discussions emerged a complete takeover of the LITE operations by the university, with Vice President for Research, Innovation and Economic Development Ramesh Kolluru, who is also a LITE commissioner, assuming a lead role going forward. The mission is not changing, Kolluru told The Advocate. The university is committed to economic development, and the university knows how to do economic development. The sextoy market is growing quite rapidly in India right now. Although it is not a big trend, it is a hot topic on the internet as it is secretly expanding its market. In this article, we will focus on sextoy and introduce recommended sextoy for Indian beginners of sextoy by gender. India, the birthplace of the Kama Sutra, is very strict about sex. Also, premarital sex is basically not allowed. Therefore, there are many people who are sexually restricted. But what happens when you continue to be sexually restricted? Frustration may build up and you may end up taking your sexual stress out on your partner. If you are able to adopt sextoy in a timely manner, you can get rid of those problems. I want to have more exciting sex than Im having now. I want more variation in masturbation I want to get even stronger pleasure than I do on my own. If you have any of these problems, please stay with me until the end. What is sex toys for Indian? Sextoy, as the name implies, is a toy used during sex and masturbation. It is a generic term for vibrators, Egg-vibrators, Electric massagers, dildo, handcuffs and condoms. They are used to make regular sex more exciting or to make masturbation more pleasurable. Because sextoy is very stimulating, it can help you to get rid of the problems and frustrations of being in a rut of sex with your partner for a long time, or if you are unhappy with the lack of pleasure in sex with your partner. The ability to satisfy your desires with movement, texture, and size, which cannot be done by a normal human being, can help you to be satisfied with sex and, as a result, improve your relationship with your partner. It is also said to help improve sexual dysfunction (inability to get an erection or ejaculate) and difficulty in feeling during sex (insensitivity), which is attracting more attention than in the past. In recent years, the demand for sextoy has increased due to the spread of smartphones and the Internet and the increasing number of people using online shopping. Even those who are concerned about the appearance of sextoy (and find it difficult to purchase) can now easily obtain it by using mail order. In the case of online shopping, most of the stores have taken steps to ensure that the contents of the products delivered to you are not revealed, so you can purchase them without your family members knowing. Until a while ago, you had to go to the store where the adult goods were sold to buy them, so it was quite a hurdle to overcome. Also, many people may have an image that sextoy is somehow embarrassing to own. But nowadays, some of them are so stylish and cute that you cant believe they are sextoy at a glance. More and more people are using them for travel and outdoor use because they are not too bulky and are suitable for carrying around. Sextoy situation in India Before introducing the recommended sextoy for Indians, lets talk about one of the sextoy situations in India in recent years. In India, due to the high concentration of population, the following six cities have particularly high sales of sextoy in India. Mumbai Kolkata Bangalore Delhi Chennai Hyderabad These cities account for roughly 70 percent of sextoy sales in India. In the future, the percentage of sextoy use will gradually increase in other cities in India as well. If you never talk about sextoy publicly, that girl in your neighborhood might be a sextoy user too. If you are interested in sextoy, you dont have to suppress your desire for it. What are Sextoys for beginner? Among all sextoys, sextoy for beginners are vibrators, dildo, masturbators, Sex Lubricants, and condoms. Sex Lubricants and condoms, which are familiar to people who have had sex, are also a great beginners sextoy. I will explain the details of each toy later, but there are many sextoy products that are painful to use and can only be used after some anal expansion. I assume that the Indian readers of this article are people who have not had much experience with sextoy. If such people use professional sextoy suddenly, they are at risk of injury or trauma. Therefore, to introduce sextoy, you need to start with a beginners version and gradually become familiar with it. Advantages of using sextoy for Indians There are three advantages of using sextoy for Indians You can masturbate in a wide variety of ways. Can have stimulating sex Can develop new sexual zones If you try to masturbate with your own fingers or hands, it tends to be a pattern. However, with sextoy, you can easily masturbate in a variety of ways. You will definitely be fascinated by the attraction of new stimulation. Also, your daily sex life will be more exciting than ever. There are many things in sextoy that are visually stimulating and give you a strong and intense feeling of pleasure. This allows you to see your partners promiscuity in a way that you wouldnt normally see it. When you are in a relationship, sex with your partner may become a pattern, but it can also eliminate these problems. It can also lead to the development of new sexual zones (which is the training of sexual stimulation to allow you to feel orgasms). For more information on the development of new sexual zones, see the following articles [Women's Erogenous Zone]How to find and develop, 7 hidden sexual zones !![In India] In this issue, we will dissect the female erogenous zone! ..." Many of you may be like that. Men, in particular, shou... Thus, the use of sextoy can only be a good thing for the men and women of India. Sextoy for beginner men in India So, lets continue with the recommended goods for Indian sextoy beginners. For ease of understanding, we will introduce them by gender. Lets start with the men! The following five goods are recommended for novice Indian sextoy men Masturbator Cock rings Love Doll Sex Lubricants Toys for the prostate Lets check each one in detail. Masturbator The masturbator is a sextoy for men that elaborately reproduces a womans vagina, mouth, and anus, and is one of the most popular sextoy products. It is used by men to masturbate, and it is popular because it provides stronger stimulation and pleasure more easily than using hands. Most are made of good quality silicone, and their softness is something that cannot be achieved with ones own hands. They can provide stronger pleasure than a real womans vagina, so be careful not to overuse them. (You wont be able to have an orgasm in a womans vagina anymore.) Again Male masturbators are a wonderful toy. I do not need any favourite timing, bothersome bargaining. You do not have to worry too much. Revolutionize your masturbation time! ! ! Made in Japan is a wonderful kinky toy.#sextoysindia #SexToyIndia #Japanhttps://t.co/4k70QGzoTP pic.twitter.com/tRVdxTKPpa SEXToys India PR (@SextoysIndia) November 12, 2018 Some of them are disposable, while others can be washed and used over and over again, so its fun to buy a few to use depending on your mood. If you want to know more about masturbator, please click here Really pleasant male masturbation and how to do it Are you in a rut with your daily masturbation routine? I'm going to show you five ways men masturbate that you might ... [For Beginners] How to choose and use a male masturbator without fail Gentlemen.Have you ever used a masturbator? The person who sees this article is probably the one who has not experien... Cock Ring A cock ring is literally a ring-shaped sextoy that is worn on a mans penis. It maintains an erection by binding the penis with a ring of rubber and blocking blood flow. It is sometimes used as an accessory to be worn on the penis, and may be made of metal or plastic as well as rubber. In some cases, cock rings have parts or vibrators attached to them that stimulate the vagina, so they kill two birds with one stone, giving a woman pleasure while maintaining an erection. Cock rings are also sometimes used to treat erectile dysfunction. It can help with erectile dysfunction, where the penis doesnt get hard when you get an erection or doesnt last long when you try to insert it. Men who are prone to breakage or who are unsure of the hardness and size of their erections can use a cock ring to increase the size of their penis and maintain an erection for a longer period of time. Cock rings vary in price from around RS700 to over RS2000 with a vibrator function. Some of them do not fit your penis, so you should check the size of the cock ring before you buy. You should know the size of your partners or your own penis when it is erect. [Penis enlargement] What is a cock ring? Types and usage Cock rings can make your penis bigger and harder. It also makes sex with women more fulfilling and increases your sat... Love Doll Love dolls, also known as Dutchwives, are dolls with the appearance of a woman who can experience simulated sex. There are dolls that look like a woman, but they have no face and only have their breasts and lower torso cut off, and some dolls are so realistic that they can actually be mistaken for real women. Some expensive dolls can cost more than 1 million yen, and the quality of the doll is easily influenced by the price. The higher the price, the higher the quality of the doll will be, the closer it will be to the real woman, and the cheaper the doll will be, the less elaborate it will be, making it look like a real doll! Something is wrong! That is also true. You cant go wrong if you choose a balance between price and taste. There are stores that allow you to make custom-made love dolls, so you can create a girl of your choice. You can make a girl of your choice. You can start with inexpensive love dolls at first, and once you get used to it, you can try custom-made love dolls. If you want to know more about Love doll, please click here Thorough explanation of the charm of sex dolls! Have you ever heard of sex dolls that are used primarily for pseudo-sex purposes? It is a doll that is quite close to... Sex lubricants Sex lubricants are used as a substitute for lubricating fluid during sex or as a lubricant for men to use masturbator rules. It is not uncommon for women to have difficulty getting wet, depending on their physical condition, or to have difficulty getting wet due to their constitution. Forcing the penis into the vagina at such times can cause painful intercourse. There are various types of Sex Lubricants, some with a warming effect, some with a cooling effect, and some with a scent. Changing the Sex Lubricant used during play is recommended as a good sex accent. If you want to learn more about Sex Lubricants, click here. What is sex lubricant?Explain the difference and usage of each ingredient The word "sex toy" may seem like a hurdle to overcome, but lotion is actually one of the most familiar sex toys. Many... Toys for the Prostate Another sextoy for men is prostate toys. The most famous prostate toys include Enemagra, which was originally a prostate massager developed by an American urologist to treat an enlarged prostate line. Modern prostate toys are imitations of Enemagra that have spread as sextoy for men. Many people think of prostate toys as being used by gay men, but in fact they are often used by straight men. What is the prostate? The prostate is an organ found only in men. It is a walnut-sized organ located deep in the pelvis, just below the bladder, and its primary role is to protect and nourish sperm. You cannot touch the prostate gland from outside the body, but you can touch it by inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus. By inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus and touching the prostate and developing it, you can feel intense orgasms. Orgasms felt in the prostate are mainly dry orgasms, which are orgasms that do not involve ejaculation. (You can also feel orgasms with ejaculation through prostate stimulation.) The prostate is called the male G-spot, and dry orgasms can be much more intense than ejaculation. Therefore, men who are able to develop a prostate can become addicted to the pleasure. sextoy for beinner women in India The following are the recommended goods for Indian women who are new to sextoy. The following three are recommended for use by women who are new to sextoy. Vibrator. Dildo Electric Masserger Lets check out what each one is in detail. If you want to check out womens toys, click here. [BEST25]Sex Toys for Women in IndiaThat Can Help You Have an Orgasm There are many women who pretend to feel orgasm during sex. But don't worry, you don't have to pretend to feel orgasm... Vibrators A vibrator is a sextoy that vibrates with an Egg-Vibrator to provide stimulation and is often referred to simply as a vibrator. Some vibrate as well as rotate, and there are many variations of sextoy. It is quite a popular sextoy, and is well recognized by people who do not know much about sextoy. Its usage is similar to that of a massager, but it is more compact and easier to carry than a massager, and many of them look as cute as a lipstick or a macaroon, so they are popular among women. For a while, a famous influencer on twitter said, This is good! You may have heard of the topic of this article by introducing the recommended vibrators. Vibrators are great for women to use on their own, but they are also recommended for men who have difficulty satisfying women with sex. Since it is powered by electricity, it is far less tiring than moving your hands by yourself. This makes it easier to satisfy a woman with sex because you can caress her for longer than usual. Vibrators are mainly used on the female side, but they can also be used on men. When used on men, they are used to attack the nipples and glans, and in both cases it is recommended to wear a condom for hygiene reasons. Introducing how to use the vibrator, its purpose, and how to choose it! Vibrator uses the vibrations caused by the rotation of the motor to provide stimulation. It is one or two of the most... Dildo A dildo is a model sextoy made to mimic a male penis. It can be made of silicone, elastomer (think of it as a material similar to PVC), metal or glass. A dildo can be used by a man for his female partner during sex, or by a woman for masturbation to get pleasure from it. They are mainly inserted into women, but some can be used in the male anus as well. It is sometimes used synonymously with vibrators, but the vibrator is not the same thing as a vibrating device. A model of a penis that does not vibrate is a dildo. Some of them have suction cups that can be attached to the floor or wall so that you can enjoy realistic masturbation without using your hands. For fun, there is a dildo made in the shape of your partners penis. This one is also popular as a gift, and if youve been together for a long time and are having trouble finding a gift for your partner, you might want to pick one. To learn more about dildo, please click here. What is Dildo: Orgasms with Dildos for Men and Women A dildo is a model of a male organ that is used by women for masturbation and by men to stimulate the prostate gland. Th... Electric Masserger A Electric Masserger is a hand-held electric massager, also known as a handheld massager, and can usually be purchased at electronics stores. It was originally designed to relieve stiff shoulders and back pain, so the hurdle of buying one in a physical store is quite low. Many people may have seen or used it in some form or another, as it is often installed in leisure hotels. Such a massager is highly recommended for beginners because it is easy for women to get pleasure from it when they use it during masturbation. It is larger than Egg-Vibrator and vibrations are stronger than those of Egg-Vibrators and vibrators, so even just hitting the clitoris can give you a great deal of pleasure. For those women who have never had an orgasm during sex with their man, the massager may be a good way to get a feel for what it feels like to have an orgasm. It looks and feels like an electric massager, so you wont have to feel awkward if your roommate finds out. If you are in a rut of having sex with your partner, if you want to feel an orgasm through masturbation, or if you are thinking of using a sextoy, why dont you try it from a simple massager? To learn more about Electric Masserger, click here. What is a massager? Introducing types, selection methods, and usage Originally, the Magic-wand vibrator and the massage machine were sold as a home massage machine used for the back and th... How to choose a sextoy for Indian Now that weve covered the different types of sextoy, heres how to choose one. Especially if you are trying sextoy for the first time, pay attention to the following three points: Does the size fit you (the partner)? Does the size fit you (your partner)? Is the environment able to produce sound without problems? Price range First of all, the choice of size is quite important. Most sextoy are used against or inserted into the genitals, but the genitals are very delicate organs for both men and women. For this reason, using an inappropriate size may cause damage. Secondly, the environment should be able to produce sound without problems. Some sextoys not only wear, but also rotate and vibrate. Its easier to get pleasure from something that moves than something that doesnt, but the fact that it moves means that the internal rotors make some noise. If you live in a house with thin walls or if you have roommates, you may not be able to concentrate because of the noise, so it is best to choose one that is silent or has a low noise level. Especially in India, where many people live with their families, it is very important that you dont have to worry about sound when you use it. Finally, there is the price range. The price range of sextoy ranges widely, from around RS500 at the cheapest to RS10,000 or more at the highest. Its good to consider how much money you can afford and how much you want to buy. Do you want your family to not find out about sextoy? I live with my family and want to use sextoy without them finding out! If you are a man, you should buy a camouflage sextoy that does not look like a sextoy at first glance. For men, there are many masturbators that do not look like a sextoy, and for women, there are vibrators that only look like cosmetics. If you choose such a type, youll be safe in case your family members find out. How to buy sextoys in India The best way to purchase sextoy is through online shopping. For more information on how to purchase sextoy, please see the article below. Sextoy is one of them. Therefore, you can easily get sextoy in India by using online shopping. SexToysINDIA is a long established and stable sextoy store and you can have sextoy delivered to any place in India. They also offer cash on delivery, so those who are worried about shopping with a credit card do not have to worry. Of course, the latest security is in place, so your information will not be taken out when you use your credit card. To begin with, many people may be concerned about whether they are legally allowed to purchase sextoy. ikmAs it turns out, its not illegal. Right now, it is not open to the public because the Indian adult market is still in the development stage, but it will gradually spread from now on. Take advantage of sextoy and open the door to new pleasures and culture. Cautions for Indians using sextoy When using sextoy, keep the following three things in mind Keep sex toys clean Watch out for electrical leakage Beware of the heat generated by the body while using a sex toy As I mentioned earlier, many sextoy products are used for the delicate zone. Therefore, it is most important to keep the sextoy itself clean. It is very important to keep the sextoy itself clean, because if a slight scratch is created by friction, bacteria can enter and breed there. It is safe to wear a condom when using the masturbator, just in case. In addition, many sextoy devices are powered by a power source, so if they are not waterproof, there is a possibility of electric shock or malfunction due to wetness. Some may even develop heat during continuous use. If the fever becomes too much, you may get burned, so be careful. If you get a fever during use, stop driving the sextoy immediately and refrain from using it. You will enjoy sex more if you keep it safe and use it correctly. Summary What did you think? In this article, we have introduced the recommended sextoy for the beginners of sextoy in India. The sextoy market is growing rapidly in India and it will continue to grow steadily in the future. As India is a rather closed-minded country, it can be difficult to be open about ones sexual habits and values. However, being faithful to ones desires by properly dissolving ones sexual desire is very effective for ones physical and mental health. If this is your first time to learn about sextoy, or if you are interested in using sextoy, why not give it a try? Indian Sextoys for ur best! will introduce you to sextoy and other trivia about sextoy, sexuality, and sexuality for men and women. I want to read more! If you think its a great idea, please bookmark it. PINCKNEYVILLE A yellow-colored sofa rests in the back room of the little white building off the roundabout in Pinckneyville: George Culley calls it prophetic, saying it once belonged to the church whom he recently bestowed with the building. "The 'prophetic couch' has been waiting on you," Culley said to the pastor and associate pastor of the church to whom he gave the building. He said members of Willow Glen Worship Center (known as Willow Glen Church) gave the couch to his daughter, who lived awhile in the building, before she moved out. Minutes later, standing on the front porch of the building, Culley presented a single silver key to the building to its new owner, Jerry Ross, pastor of Willow Glen Church. Culley said he felt led to donate the building, valued at $15,000, to Ross for this congregation, whom Culley described as "homeless." "I know they can take it and go with it," renovate and prepare it as a church, Culley said. The church is a small white building, on the corner of Indiana and Kentucky streets, northeast of Pinckeyville's new roundabout. The building has two rooms and a concrete floor. Ross said members are looking at raising the ceiling at least a foot and are looking to move in by January or February. The beginnings of Willow Glen Ross said the church has about 20 to 30 members not that he wouldn't prefer more, but he said he's come realize his church has a special mission: Reaching out to those who might be recovering from alcoholism or other issues or might otherwise feel shunned by or uncomfortable with organized, denominations. He noted that some of his members might perceive that is happening more than it actually is. "Pinckneyville has great churches," Ross said. "I didn't start this church because I felt like there was no place (that met the needs of people)." He said he grew up Baptist, but now runs a church that is non-denominational. It's even something he wanted to capture in the name of the church, a rather non-descript, innocuous sounding name like "Willow Glen." The church's history began sometime before 997, when Ross was asked to leave his home in Sao Paolo, Brazil, to come to Pinckneyville to pastor another church. His moved to this area with his wife, Leeanne Ross, and four children, who are now 24 to 32. After four years with the church, he said he resigned, noting there was just a difference in his approach and what that congregation wanted. "Lets suffice it to say that I wasnt quite what they were expecting, cause I was kinda thinking outside the box," he said. Morphing and moving Around that time, he was approached by a group in the area who was also looking for a spiritual leader and felt they might have an answer in him, he said. He agreed to join them, and they started having Bible studies in Ross' home and elsewhere, until they realized they had a church forming, he said. "It sort of morphed into a congregation, which we later organized into a church" in 2001, he said. Thus was born Willow Glen. Church members first met in the pavilion at the Perry County Fairgrounds in Pinckneyville until the weather turned cooler, he said. They then bought a building, which used to house the Pinckneyville Christian Fellowship church, meeting there for about a decade, he said. The group had several youth and organized many outreaches for youth rock concerts and other get-togethers at times attracting 100 to 300 young people, he said. Then, that season passed, with many of those young people going on to college or leaving the area, Ross said. "And so we morphed (again)," Ross said. "At that point, our ministry focus changed, too, and we became more focused on people who were needing a hand. They needed somebody to just pick them up and keep them stable for awhile, until they got their feet under them." He described his group as being from "the island of misfit toys," a description given his group in another conversation, but one with which he doesn't disagree. "They're the kind of people with that just didnt fit the mold for the traditional churches ," Ross said. "For whatever reason, they just cant bring themselves to go in and be scrutinized by the traditional approach (to church)." They might have multiple tattoos and piercings and reek of cigarette smoke or be battling alcohol and other substance addictions, he said. Church members did not have the income that allowed them to pay for their church building and they had to sell it; Ross, who works as an equipment operator loading coal fly ash, said he doesn't receive a salary from the congregation. The group then started meeting in a room above the Aunt Minnie's Nibble and Chat Bakery, LLC, in Pinckneyville, until that owner decided to close up shop. "So we were without a place to meet," Ross said. "So weve been meeting where we can." Enter Culley, who learned of the congregation's plight. Culley, who operates one of the area's most recognized food pantries, the Least of The Brethren, said God told him to give the building, which had been for sale, to the church members. The church happened to be listed with a Realtor, Cheryl Bigham, whose brother is Willow Glen's associate pastor, Kevin Place. Bigham, Place and their mother, Shirley Welsch, attended Wednesday's gathering, where Culley presented the single key with next to no fanfare to Ross. "We're proud to have George as a fundamental part of our community," Ross said. "He does a lot of good work for our community; our church supports him." MARION A nonprofit organization of advocates for abused and neglected children in Williamson County is looking to make a few adjustments in the upcoming year. With its annual raffle event, Casas for CASA, well underway, Nannette Patrick, executive director for the Court Appointed Special Advocates of Williamson County, said the organization is in the early stages of reorganizing their annual event. For the past 23 years, high school students from throughout the county and surrounding areas have participated in the end-of-year event by designing and building unique playhouses which are then transported to Illinois Star Centre Mall to be raffled off. "We have six of our local high schools, and our building trades instructors, design and build these playhouses for us to raffle off every year," Patrick said. "Gator Tire, Campbell's Towing and Service and J&J Towing are the three transporters this year who are kind enough to donate their time and services to move the playhouses from the schools to the mall, and then from the mall to the each winners' home." But with the pending sale of the mall, Patrick said there will be a few adjustments to the event and a possible date change. "We're likely going to be changing (the raffle) in the coming year just due to the transition and the sale of the mall," she said. "We're thinking of some plan B's and figuring out some changes and restructuring of the event but we certainly plan to continue holding it. I'm planning that we can hold kind of a smaller type event this upcoming April." This year's playhouses are the artistry of students from Carbondale Community High School, Carterville High School, Crab Orchard High School, Herrin High School, Johnston City High School and Marion High School. Each playhouse will be raffled off for a final time at Illinois Star Centre Mall on Thursday, Dec. 22. The raffle will begin at 7 p.m. in the commons area outside of the Fujiyama Japanese Steakhouse. Tickets for the raffle will be sold for $2 each or six for $10 until Dec. 22. CASA will also begin their recruitment for new volunteers for their spring training in March of 2017 following the event, Patrick said. "We've just been so blessed to have the ongoing community support for us to maintain these events that involves so many people," she said. "(Casas for CASA) is a very involved event but also successful and we will be holding our spring training for recruitment week (in March) so we can always use new volunteers." For more information about Casas for CASA or the nonprofit organization, contact Nannette Patrick at 618-998-2291 or visit http://www.casawilliamsoncounty.com/. Commencement exercises for fall 2016 graduates at Southern Illinois University Carbondale are set for 2 p.m. today, Saturday, Dec. 17, at the SIU Arena. The commencement ceremony is open to the public and tickets are not required. Howard A. Peters III will present the commencement address. Peters earned his masters degree in guidance and educational psychology from SIU Carbondale in 1971. He is president of HAP Inc., a consulting service that assists clients in pursuit of their business goals primarily in the areas of criminal justice, human services, and health care. Peters serves on the Board of Counselors for the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute. He served in two Cabinet positions under former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar. In 1991, he became the first African-American to head the Illinois Department of Corrections. From 1995 through June 1997, Peters served as deputy chief of staff to Gov. Edgar. In 1997, Peters became the first director of the Department of Human Services. More information is available at commencement.siu.edu. SIU Media Services CARBONDALE When he eventually returns to the family farm, hell be the sixth William Timpner to manage the familys Pinckneyville area acreage. William Vaino Timpner, the middle name distinguishing him from his similarly named predecessors, graduates from Southern Illinois University Carbondale on Saturday, Dec. 17, with a major in agricultural systems and education and a minor in agribusiness economics. I chose agricultural systems and education because its a versatile degree, he said. But I think I might go into teaching. I started college at Rend Lake College, and I loved it there. I considered a few other colleges before deciding on SIU to finish with a bachelors degree. I knew I could get what I needed here, a degree that would help me get a job. Timpner is engaged to marry Mary Cathryn Walker on June 17 next summer. Shes from Texas. They met through a mutual friend when they attended a conference in Atlanta for young Christians. Their initial courtship was old-fashioned: Timpner said they exchanged letters the snail-mail kind, not emails. Walker, whom Timpner described as a beautiful person and talented musician, graduated from Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, and currently teaches first grade in her hometown of Abilene. Hell join her there and, under a teacher certification program that emphasizes experience and in-the-classroom training, he hopes to become certified as a teacher in Texas. The two will return to Illinois after a year or so, Timpner said. We definitely plan on living on the farm being on the farm is what I love, he said. And yes, Mary Cathryn is excited about it, shes ready for farm life. The Timpner farm has evolved over the years from raising beef, then hogs, and is now a grain and fish farm. The family began an aquaculture project in 2000 in a strip mine lake on the property. An aquaculture specialist with the Fisheries and Illinois Aquaculture Center at SIU provided assistance and counsel as they learned how to raise healthy and marketable striped bass. Similarly, Timpner plans to keep his eyes on new trends and steady business practices when it comes to farming. Timpner works hard. He holds a 4.0 grade point average, he helps farm, and he goes to visit his fiancee in Texas when he can. Hes a humble and reverent man. I really want to thank my family and Mary Cathryn for all they have done for me, he said. Im thankful for my family and friends and each blessing God has given me. All that I have done, have done and will do goes to God. He gave me everything, I owe it all to him. The fall commencement ceremony for undergraduate, graduate and professional students is at 2 p.m., Dec. 17, at the SIU Arena. The commencement ceremony is open to the public, and there is no ticket requirement. Youd think Star Wars might want to steer clear of prequels after the lukewarm reception given to George Lucas Episodes I-III a decade ago. But Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the first in a series of standalone movies set a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, satisfyingly spins a nugget of information from the original 1977 Star Wars into a movie. Maybe its modesty is the key to the success of Rogue One, that it doesnt seek to build on the mythology of the other seven films, but simply fill in a gap. In the original Star Wars, subtitled A new Hope, the opening crawl of text refers to rebel spies stealing the plans for the Death Star, the moon-sized weapon that the Empire hopes will wipe out the Rebel Alliance once and for all. This is their story. Set just before the events of A New Hope, Rogue One is sort of an intergalactic Dirty Dozen, as a ragtag group of rebels plot to steal the Death Star plans. Leading the mission is Lyn Erso (Felicity Jones), a common criminal whose father Galen (Mads Mikkelsen) was an Imperial science officer who worked on the project. Jyn believes her father deliberately built in a structural weakness that will allow the Rebels to the Death Star (neatly explaining what seemed like an obvious plot hole back in 1977). The team includes Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), a ruthless Rebel intelligence agent, Bodhi Rook (Riz Ahmed), a defecting Imperial pilot, and K-2SO (voiced by Alan Tudyk), a reprogrammed Imperial droid with an attitude problem. K-2SO gets most of the laugh lines in the film, although my favorite was the duo of Donnie Yen and Wen Jiang as Chirrut Imwe and Baze Malbus, a couple of aging warriors who bicker affectionately like an old married couple. This is a rougher Star Wars universe than were used to, where sympathetic characters die and the Force is barely a flicker. There are a few callbacks to the original films and some surprise cameos, some of which work and one of which, a CGI creation, really does not at all. Rogue One was directed by Gareth Edwards, who also did the Godzilla remake a couple of years ago, and both films suffer from the same problem. Edwards has a massive climactic setpiece hes pushing the film towards, but cant always figure out what to do with his characters until they get there. A side trip to a rainy planet, for example, feels largely unnecessary, like were just marking time until the climax rather than building towards something. But when that climax comes, its thrilling, an extended battle both on the ground and in the skies above the facility where the plans are housed. The ground battle set on beaches and among palm trees feels like a deliberate homage to World War II films set in the South Pacific, with lasers instead of machine guns and AT-AT walkers instead of tanks. Edwards cuts away from anything too grim to preserve the PG-13 rating, but this is definitely not a high-spirited Ewok battle. In the end, Rogue One isnt exactly a necessary addition to the Star Wars canon, but its well-made and engaging, and will tide us over until Episode VIII next year. Register for more free articles. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! Already a Subscriber? Already a Subscriber? Sign in Terms of Service Privacy Policy We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking Accept, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. This site focuses on Republican politicians and conservatives that rip off their constituency. We have the Tea Party, fundamentalist churches, the corruption of ALEC and other special interests groups. But the site also supports progressive Democrats and the local Democratic Socialist of America. We must have ideas on how to replace regressive and corrupt politicians with something better. For comments steveotto2001@yahoo.com or ottozero2001@yahoo.com. Please note that the poems and essays on this site are copyright and may not be reproduced without the author's permission. Leading scientists and industry experts are in Dubai to attend the biggest international conference dedicated to quinoa, considered one of the world's most popular health foods. The three-day Quinoa for Future Food and Nutrition Security in Marginal Environments,' which concludes tomorrow (December 8), will focus on developing a set of recommendations for quinoa cultivation in marginal environments which are affected by water scarcity and salinity. It is being organised by the International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) in collaboration with the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment of the UAE, Zayed University, the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (Badea), and with the technical contribution of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The participants will share their latest developments in quinoa research, production and trade around the world, at the event, said the organisers. The conference seeks to find ways to implement research and development programmes and initiatives to introduce and scale up quinoa in marginal environments, they added. According to experts, the global population is forecast to increase to 9.7 billion in 2050 and there are concerns about the capacity of agriculture to produce enough food for the growing population. By some estimates, food production will need to go up by about 60 per cent either through an increase in crop yields per unit area or an expansion in the arable land by 2050 to meet the demand. Furthermore, several regions already suffering from malnutrition, water scarcity and soil degradation are forecast to have a large population growth, which raises concerns about whether traditional agricultural methods and crop species will have the capacity to sustain global food production targets. People living in marginal environments are particularly vulnerable to the impact of climate change on agriculture. Therefore, there is an urgent need to identify solutions to sustaining and possibly increasing agricultural productivity in areas where growing traditional crops has become difficult and sometimes uneconomical. Quinoa is widely considered a promising crop that can contribute to addressing these challenges. Addressing participants at the opening ceremony, Dr Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment of the UAE, said: "Climate change poses one of the greatest threats to humanity. Countries that already suffer from droughts, water shortages, and salinity are at an even greater risk. We urgently need to find solutions and adapt and where possible mitigate effects of climate change on different fronts, including agriculture. Ensuring future food security in marginal environments requires a shift in agricultural practices and innovative approaches to crop production systems, he said. Quinoa can play a major role as a staple crop in marginal environments due to its adaptability to harsh environments including poor saline soils with annual rainfall as little as 200 mm, he added. Professor Reyadh Al Mehaideb, vice president of Zayed University, said: "We are pleased to host this international conference. It is a timely event as the world faces the implications of grand environmental challenges, and many countries experience food and nutrition insecurity as well as impacts from climate change. We believe that the conference will be an excellent platform for scientists and experts to look at these challenges and come up with a shared vision on how crops like quinoa that grows in marginal land can help address them, he added. TradeArabia News Service Dow Chemical Company has announced that it would convert all of the Series A preferred stock worth $4 billion held by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway and Kuwait's sovereign wealth fund, into common equity. Buffett bought 3 million preferred shares of Dow for $3 billion in April 2009, helping Dow finance its acquisition of chemical company Rohm & Haas, while Kuwait Investment Authority bought 1 million preferred shares of Dow for $1 billion. The effective date of the conversion will be December 30, 2016. On the company move, Andrew Liveris, Dows chairman and chief executive officer, said: "This milestone is the latest proof point of the strength, resilience and value creation of Dows business model a narrower and deeper focus in attractive, consumer-driven end markets, compelling strategic growth investments, and continuous self-help productivity actions." It is also a clear illustration of our owners recognition and support of the companys consistent earnings and cash flow growth, as well as our potential to deliver even greater shareholder value in both the near- and long-term, he stated. On the conversion date, holders of Series A preferred stock will be entitled to receive 24.2010 shares of common stock for each share of preferred stock, reflecting an approximate conversion price of $41.32 per share. The conversion of all four million shares of Series A preferred stock, will result in an additional 96.804 million shares of outstanding Dow common stock. The Company will pay its last dividend on the Series A preferred stock on the conversion date for the quarter ending December 31.-TradeArabia News Service UAE-based Gulf Petrochem Group, a global oil and petrochemicals conglomerate, said that it has selected Aspects cloud-based E/CTRM (commodity trading and risk management) technology to help drive its future growth. Aspect, headquartered in the UK, is a leading global provider of cloud commodity trade, risk management and market data solutions. Gulf Petrochem Group, valued at $2.5 billion, is active in oil trading, bunkering, manufacturing and refining, storage, shipping and logistics and related areas, and is a leading bunkering firm in the Gulf region, said the company in a . Future expansion in Gulf Petrochems business will be easily accommodated by the solutions inbuilt any-to-many scalability, clear per-seat subscription pricing model and simple upgrade path, it added. Niranjan Desai, global head of IT operations, Gulf Petrochem, said: As our business continues to grow in both scale and by geography, the timely reporting of P&L and inventory across all of our offices was becoming more challenging considering our dependence on disparate legacy solutions that did not integrate adequately. Aspects capability to handle all of the various elements of our companys business activities seamlessly in just one solution are among the reasons it was chosen, he added. Aspect will give us a complete overview of our paper and physical trading, storage, inventory, cargos at sea, bunkering and refining, delivering the same information in real time to our employees around the world, he added. System based oversight monitoring of trades, the ability to handle real-time valuations and reporting of trade positions are some of the key features that convinced us to choose Aspects E/CTRM solution, said Desai. More over the integration of ETRM with our existing ERP system will truly form the back-bone of information flow in a controlled environment within GP locations across the globe, he concluded. Fieras Freijeh, managing director for the Middle East and Africa (MEA), Aspect, said: Were seeing more companies undergoing renewed growth and finding their previous generation CTRM solutions unable to scale effectively. Our cloud-based strategy can be scaled up or down at will depending on business needs. At the same time our data foundation means everyone, everywhere in the organisation can be confident they are working with the exact same information, he added. TradeArabia News Service Saudi Aramco has broken ground on its brand new research centre, at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (Kaust), which is expected to be completed in mid-2019. The new centre will be an 11,300-sq-m research facility, housing 132 scientists and researchers, aimed at supporting Saudi Aramcos upstream and downstream research domains as well as environmental protection research efforts. The objective is to integrate the new facility with the university community and foster strong networks with other leading research and development (R&D) organisations focused on solar energy, chemicals, fuel technology, robotics, hydrocarbon recovery, computational modeling and the marine environment. The ground-breaking ceremony was attended by Ali I. Al Naimi, former Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources and chairman of Kaust board of trustees; Amin H Nasser, the president and CEO of Saudi Aramco; Professor Jean-Lou Chameau, Kaust President; and several government, academic and business dignitaries. Speaking at the launch, Khalid Al Falih, Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources and chairman of Saudi Aramco and vice-chairman of Kaust board of trustees, said: "Both Aramco and the university are leaders in technology development domestically and internationally. Their unique roles in developing innovative and original research is essential to the future success of the energy industry in Saudi Arabia." "Their future joint research and development efforts, through collaboration and partnership, will help achieve the kingdoms strategic energy objectives and create business value in pursuit of the national objective of transition to a knowledge society, as enunciated in Vision 2030," he stated. The ground-breaking marks a major milestone in the successful partnership between Saudi Aramco and King Abdullah University of Science & Technology, for the benefit of the nation as a whole, said Nasser. Our relationship started when Kaust was just an idea and today, it has grown, literally from the ground up. A number of highly promising technologies have been produced here, such as the Saudi Aramco inspection robots, and research here has contributed to many patents, he noted. The facility will allow Saudi Aramco to leverage its unique position within the R&D ecosystem at Kaust to accelerate the implementation of the companys technology strategy. The facility will include laboratories and offices to support research in the areas of chemicals, intelligent systems, solar energy, reservoir engineering, computational modeling, and environmental protection. At Kaust, we are committed to advancing science, innovation and technology through distinctive and collaborative research, which relies upon the nurturing of ideas and talent, said its president Jean-Lou Chameau. Partnering with Saudi Aramco on this new centre is the latest of a series of shared successes to foster the transition to an innovation-driven economy sustained by intellectual capital and scientific discovery, he noted. Saudi Aramco chief technology officer Ahmad Khowaiter said the new facility was about expanding its research needs as a business. "As part of our new technology strategy, we are looking to enable our research domains through capitalising on the world-renowned scientists, exceptional facilities, and international network of academic institutions affiliated with Kaust," he added.-TradeArabia News Service When he was a boy, Layha Spoonhunters father told him that one day the five divisions of the Arapaho tribe, then scattered across the western United States, would come together again. Spoonhunter grew up on the Wind River Reservation, a 2.2 million-acre swath of Wyoming land that lies in the shadow of the sharp teeth of the Wind River Mountain range, home to two tribes. His mother is Eastern Shoshone, his father Northern Arapaho. Layha heard a mix of the two tribes stories and languages in his home near Ethete, with his younger brother and older sister. This summer, the 26-year-old decided to take a semester off studying political science at Idaho State University and focus on Native American advocacy. He wanted to help start youth programs, visit other reservations and speak at schools and universities. He had a plan. Then, he saw a video of the Standing Rock protest on social media. *** The first seven tepees went up in North Dakota in April, when a group of Native Americans began a small protest miles from the construction site of the Dakota Access Pipeline north of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. The reservation, about 60 miles south of Bismarck, is home to more than 8,000 people. As time went by, and construction crawled closer, news of a growing protest reached social media. Images of protesters clashing with police and armed security sparked outrage, and Native Americans from across the country started arriving to what would become the largest gathering of tribes in memory. Then, on Dec. 4, the protest became a symbol of the power of peaceful resistance, when the Army Corps of Engineers denied an easement to dig under Lake Oahe and committed to further environmental impact studies. According to Spoonhunter, who spent three months living at the camp, the protest changed a generation. The $3.7 billion pipeline, owned by Energy Transfer Partners, was planned to take crude oil from the Bakken to processing facilities in Illinois. However, the planned path would take the pipeline under Lake Oahe, where much of the protest was focused in the fall and winter. Members of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe feared the pipeline could spill into the Missouri River, imperiling their access to clean water. They also said construction damaged sacred sites and burial grounds. In a lawsuit filed in July against the Army Corps of Engineers, the government agency that permits construction on federal waterways, the tribes argued that the impact of the pipeline had not been adequately studied and that the Army Corps had violated statutes like the National Historic Protection Act. By late summer, the seven teepees had spread into two large encampments. The number in the camps rose from the teens to the hundreds, and the protesters began calling themselves water protectors. On Aug. 21, Spoonhunter joined a delegation of Shoshone that traveled to Standing Rock. They were meant to stay for two days, but Spoonhunter didnt want to go home. He couldnt, he said. Once you got in there, you saw how many camps were there, hearing songs at night and dances, seeing horseback riders, just taking in the beauty of what it was, what the camp represented, I couldnt leave. It was just too beautiful, he said. Spoonhunter had been at Standing Rock for a few days when he saw something that changed him. The Crow Nation arrived. Traditionally the Crow of Montana and the tribes now settled in the Dakotas are enemies. The Crow arrived on horseback, and when they reached a crowd of joyous protesters, the tribal leaders of each nation embraced. They said they would no longer be enemies. Spoonhunter wept. *** The first few months of the protest were largely ignored in national media. Then word got out in the modern way on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Since the movement had a strong social media presence, those most familiar with the movement were often Spoonhunters age. They shared videos and live feeds on Facebook. Being able to broadcast live was an important tool, Spoonhunter said. It provided evidence to the world of what was happening at the camp. Thats what was beautiful about Standing Rock. It was youth-driven, he said. A lot of decisions werent made unless [the elders] consulted with the youth council. I just seen a whole different style of leadership leaders consulting with youth before they make a decision that impacts them. The news familiar to those on the outside of growing tension, clashes with armed guards and water cannons sprayed on protesters in subfreezing temperature is not the picture Spoonhunter describes. Those things happened, but they werent what made Standing Rock important. Standing Rock became a mecca of sorts. It drew the descendants of Native American legends like Sitting Bull and members of Native American cultural movements like Ghost Dance. The most well-known Native American activists were drawn to Standing Rock, from leaders of the 1960s American Indian movement to those present at the takeover of Alcatraz in 1969. Those movements are remnants of the past, but the story of Native American resistance continued at Standing Rock, proof of a long line of broken promises and disappointment from the federal government, Spoonhunter said. As the protest grew in size and media attention swelled, some in power spoke in favor or against the movement. In mid-November, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders arrived. He called on President Barack Obama to halt the pipeline. U.S. Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming is the chairman of the Indian Affairs Committee. He couldnt be reached for an interview on this story, but in a recent statement, he chastised the current administration for inaction. The Dakota Access Pipeline matter continues to be addressed in the administrative and judicial processes, and I want to allow those processes to conclude, he said. I am concerned that the inaction by the current administration has put peoples lives in jeopardy and has put a strain on tribal and state relationships. The best solutions are those that are discussed amicably instead of with the use of violence. *** Spoonhunter began thinking about Native American issues when he was still a teenager. Both his father and uncle are on the tribal council. They encouraged him to read books about Native American history and learn about the past to understand the present, he said. But there was a tipping point for the teenager that grew out of disappointment. In 2007, he and three other kids from Wind River went to the United Nations in New York. The U.N. was set to vote on the Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. As we got there, we saw all the different nations represented, and all the different tribal groups across the world that had issues just like ours, Spoonhunter recalled. Each of those groups got to meet with their ambassador. Except four kids from Wind River. It turned out that the U.S. had already decided to vote against the declaration, along with Australia, Canada and New Zealand. The meeting with the ambassador was cancelled, and the kids, who saw themselves as representatives of the Native American tribes across the country, went home discouraged. When Obama visited Standing Rock in 2014, many saw believed the president would bring change. Suddenly, there was an opportunity to engage in a government that would listen to the tribes, Spoonhunter said. However, Obama didnt speak about the Standing Rock protest for months. Some do not see the presidents hand in the Army Corps of Engineers decision to halt the pipelines progress. In a plea to the president before the Dec. 4 decision, a youth video circulated on Facebook asking Obama to remember his promise to the young people of Standing Rock. His failure to act, in a lot of protectors eyes, has diminished his reputation in Indian Country, Spoonhunter said. However, that disappointment is small in comparison to what the tribes accomplished. In a sense, it didnt matter, he said. The experiences at Standing Rock didnt teach Spoonhunter to rely on change from outside Indian Country but from within it. The tribes had the power to come together and take a stand, he said. *** When the first snow fell in early September, many left the camp. Visitors from places like Texas and Hawaii were ill-equipped to deal with the cold. The protest held on. The leaders had been giving winter training sessions for weeks. When temperatures plummeted, members went from tent to tent to make sure the people were warm enough, moving some to better insulated lodgings. Images of snow-covered encampments drew new protesters. Hundreds of veterans arrived to act as human shields between protesters and security guards. On Dec. 4 the protest, which had grown to what Spoonhunter estimated to be 10,000 people, received the news that the pipeline permit under Lake Oahe would be denied pending further study. Hopes are high that the courts will decide in favor of the Standing Rock tribe. Eight months after the first few protesters set up camp, about 1,000 people remain to hold the site through the winter. The elders told people to go home if they can, Spoonhunter said. However, many dont want to leave the spirit of the camp or lose the sense of community. It was hard to leave that, Spoonhunter said sitting at a coffee shop in Casper on his way back to Ethete. Some distrust the Army Corps decision and fear relinquishing the camp should the government change its mind, he said. But Spoonhunter is confident. Standing Rock wasnt just a camp. It was a movement. People will bring the wisdom of Standing Rock back to their own reservations, and things can change for the better, he said. Tribes now have that passion and that fire to say no to the United States government, he said. You have to consult us. This is our homeland. This is our people. This is our water. The story of the black snake, as some have come to call the Dakota pipeline, is the fulfillment of a prophecy that the tribes would come together and defeat a giant snake or risk losing themselves, Spoonhunter said. It was one of many prophecies that seemed to play out before his eyes at the campsite. Old oral traditions, filled with imagery and poetry, came true. One night, Spoonhunter noticed five camps grouped together. Some were Arapaho, some Cheyenne. He realized he was looking at the five divisions of the Arapaho Nation. Spoonhunter took out his cellphone and dialed his father. The Powder River Basin Resource Council filed a complaint Monday with state regulators asserting that Contura Energy has failed to meet state requirements for securing eventual cleanup costs of its mines. The complaint, an objection to permit transfers, continues a statewide debate over self-bonding, the practice of allowing a mining company to back up reclamation costs with its balance sheets. A spate of coal bankruptcies in the last year led some, including the council, to push for an end to self-bonds in Wyoming. Meanwhile, state regulators defended their right to grant the bonds under certain circumstances, despite growing pressure from federal regulators. Contura dismissed the complaint in a statement. As the PRBRC continues to raise objections that hinder the leasing and production of Wyomings coal resource, we will remain focused on operating safely and responsibly, to the benefit of our workforce, consumers and community stakeholders, a spokesman wrote. The Bristol, Tennessee-based company was formed out of the Alpha Natural Resources bankruptcy. Alpha's senior lenders created Contura, acquired the Belle Ayr and Eagle Butte mines in Campbell County and bought a number of Appalachian coal operations. As part of Alphas approved bankruptcy exit strategy, Contura would replace millions of dollars in self-bonded cleanup costs in Wyoming with more secure insurance. In September, the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality conditionally accepted $264 million in proposed bonds to cover reclamation at Conturas mines. The bonds are backed up by a combination of insurance and collateral, like machinery and equipment. In its complaint Monday, the council argued that though Conturas bonds appear to be in keeping with the companys agreement with federal officials, the collateral bonds violate the spirit of Conturas commitment to replace all self-bonds with more traditional insurance. Collateral bonds are another type of self-bond, said Shannon Anderson, lawyer for the Sheridan-based landowners group. Contura disputed that. As the Powder River Basin Resource Councils letter acknowledges, Conturas proposed bonds uphold the requirements of the agreement with the Department of Interior and are fully allowed under the law, the company wrote in a statement. However, the council also argues that as a newly formed company, Contura is not eligible for collateral bonds under Wyoming regulations. One of the requirements for self-bonding, whether those bonds have collateral or not, is you have to have a history of financial solvency, Anderson said. Since Contura is a product of the Alpha bankruptcy, Contura is a brand-new company that does not have any history. The history it does have is one of emerging from bankruptcy. Whether Wyoming should continue to allow coal companies to self-bond became a contentious topic during the bankruptcies of the three largest coal companies that operate in the state. Alphas bankruptcy in late 2015 was soon followed by those of Arch Coal and Peabody Energy. Opponents say the bankruptcies made the coal producers ineligible for self-bonding, but state regulators gave the companies a stay until the end of bankruptcy proceedings. Despite criticism, officials at the Department of Environmental Quality have stood behind that decision. They argue that the choice saved jobs and revenue in the state. Federal authorities have largely come out against the practice in light of uncertainty in the coal market, but they have not sought to ban self-bonds. The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality declined to comment for this story. A spokesman confirmed that state regulators were granting the councils request for an informal meeting to discuss the complaint. Robert Shelton, founder of Old Tucson Studios and a longtime advocate for the Southern Arizona movie industry, has died at the age of 95. A statement issued on Old Tucsons Facebook page said Shelton died Thursday. Shelton had just visited the Wild-West theme park on Dec. 3 to celebrate the second annual Bob Shelton Day, Old Tucson said. Old Tucson said it has draped several areas in black and white bunting to honor Shelton, including a museum named in his honor. Shelton founded Old Tucson Co. in 1959, 20 years after Columbia Pictures built the Wild West town as a set for Arizona," an epic Western film starring Jean Arthur and William Holden. Shelton was involved in the production of more than 300 movies and television shows between 1959 and 1985, when he sold Old Tucson. In 1968, a 13,000-square-foot soundstage was built, which launched Old Tucson into a frenzy of moviemaking. The first film to use the soundstage was "Young Billy Young," with Robert Mitchum and Angie Dickinson. At one point in 1970, Shelton recalled in 2011, Burt Lancaster, Clint Eastwood and Lee Marvin worked simultaneously on four different movies here. St. Frances Cabrini Roman Catholic Church, 3201 E. Presidio Road, will host a movie night with film director Leila Sansour as part of the series Theology Uncorked. The program 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 19 will feature a showing of Sansour's film "Open Bethlehem: A Big Film About a Small Town." The film chronicles Sansour's personal connection to her hometown along with the conflict in the city, according to press materials. PHOENIX A judge this afternoon refused to immediately block the voter-approved hike in the minimum wage from taking effect as scheduled next year. But he did agree to consider the legal arguments in depths this coming Tuesday. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Daniel Kiley rejected claims by challengers that leaving the law in place before the full-blown hearing on its legality will cause hardship for employers. "We're two weeks out from the holidays, two weeks out from January 1st,'' attorney Brett Johnson told the judge. "If employers are going to think this statute is actually constitutional, they're making business decisions right now as to whether to lay off people on Monday,'' he told the judge. Johnson said a ruling now putting the law on hold would mean that "over the weekend there's not rash decisions made based off of Proposition 206.'' And Johnson said he presumes that, after a full-blown hearing, Kiley will agree the measure is unconstitutional Kiley, however, said there's no basis for him to even consider whether to delay enforcement on the law. If nothing else, the judge noted that the challenge was filed only a day earlier. He said that means those defending the law including both the attorney general's office and Proposition 206 supporters have not had a "fair opportunity'' to respond to the allegations. "And it's unreasonable to expect them to,'' Kiley said. The phone calls, emails, and letters some of them threatening coming to Tucsonan Bruce Ash have become impossible for him to ignore. The avalanche has grown as Monday draws closer. Thats the day when the countrys 538 Electoral College electors will gather in their respective states to cast their votes for president. In Arizona, 11 electoral voters will gather at the state Capitol to cast their votes, likely for President-elect Donald Trump, who won 306 Electoral College votes, more than the 270 needed to be elected. Ash, a Republican national committeeman and one of the electoral voters, has received more than 700 letters and 65,000 emails asking, demanding and, in some cases threatening, him to vote for any candidate other than Trump. While the state does not require the electors, who were chosen by the Arizona Republican Party, to vote for Trump, all have stated in official documents they plan on voting for him. Many of the messages are form letters in which the only things that are different are the senders names and email addresses. Emails provided by the Arizona Republican Party revealed some identical messages sent from Tucson addresses. One form letter quotes heavily from founding father Alexander Hamilton and argues that the Electoral College was designed to prevent someone like Trump from becoming president. You may in fact believe that Donald Trump would make a better president that Hillary Clinton or anyone else. But if you share my fear that Trump would weaken and shame our country then I encourage you to exercise the power granted to you by the Constitution and join the 156 faithless electors in our nations history by putting country above party and blocking Donald Trump from the presidency, the letter reads. Hamilton would have wanted you to do so. One woman begged Republican electors in Arizona to vote either for Ohio Gov. John Kasich or former Republican nominee Mitt Romney. Another letter from a couple in Oro Valley say they are Clinton supporters who believe Trump is too dangerous to be president. It is our belief that Mr. Trump is a danger to this country and temperamentally unsuited for the profound and nuanced decisions required of the office of the President of the United States, the letter writes. An online petition urging Electoral College voters to change their votes has nearly 5 million signatures. Ash said the attempts to change his mind have only strengthened his resolve to vote for Trump. Before the constant flood of emails crashed his computer server, Ash said he tried to respond to the emails, but many of those who wrote to him were unwilling to have a conversation they wanted a result. For electoral voter Alberto Gutier, director of the Governors Office of Highway Safety, the messages have gotten nastier in the days leading up to Monday. He counts the number of emails sent to his work email 80,540. Twenty seconds later, and another six emails trickle in. Gutier said people are even calling him in the late hours of the night to urge him to change his vote. Those trying to track him down have mistakenly begun sending letters to his sons home noting there is a box full of letters there. He hasnt read most of them although one letter disguised as a Christmas card was opened . Gutier, a refugee who fled with his wife from Cuba 56 years ago, says he wasnt always a Trump supporter. The couple supported the son of Cuban refugees, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio before he dropped out of the presidential race. Gutier said those trying to sway his vote should do something else with their energy, saying he is loyal to the president-elect. They are wasting their time, he said, noting he backed Trump soon after Rubio ended his campaign. We became Trump people, and we support Trump. The timing of the letters isnt lost on him either, noting the amount spent on stamps could have bought hungry families meals or Christmas toys for children. Robert Graham, chairman of the Arizona Republican Party, notes many of the people writing to the electors are asking them to vote their conscience. And on Monday, he says, he expects all 11 electors in Arizona to do just that by voting for Trump. The Tres Rios wastewater treatment plant is likely not the source of recent odor complaints in the West Ina and North Silverbell roads area. At least thats the conclusion of a recently completed study of the facility, which analyzed data collected by a private contractor. There have been no operational malfunctions at the Tres Rios facility that might be attributed to the recent odors at either the (Arizona) Pavilions or along Ina Road, the summary reads. The takeaway for our department is that we have maintained regulatory compliance with fenceline monitoring, John Warner, with county wastewater reclamation, said of the report. Monitoring of the facilitys digesters, which Warner previously told the Star were the most likely culprits if the plant was at fault, showed only one detectable odor value between Nov. 28 and 30. Perimeter monitoring near the digesters showed levels of hydrogen sulfide, which smells like rotting eggs, peaking at 10 parts per billion, well below the regulatory limit of 30 ppb. Odor levels were also low at other parts of the facility. The wastewater department spends roughly $3.5 million annually on odor-control measures, according to the report. Warner said theyre still waiting on lab results that could point to a specific source in the area. The original complaints cited a range of offensive smells in the Marana area including garbage, rotting meat, manure, compost and sewage, Ursula Nelson director of the Pima County Department of Environmental Quality, previously said. Nevertheless, Scott Porter, with the PDEQ, said hes not ruling out the plant at this point, nor is he ruling out other potential sources in the area. He said his department is also working to determine the source, adding: We understand the seriousness of this and well continue to investigate and do what we can to abate the nuisance. A Dec. 5 PDEQ report obtained by the Star states that inspectors noticed a strong and foul odor as they approached one of Tres Rios southern entrances. Porter felt a slight burning sensation in his eyes, according to the same report. The wastewater report cited the possibility of a nearby compost, gravel and garbage facilities playing a role, adding that these multiple odor sources, combined with the natural smells associated with the Santa Cruz River and season temperature inversions, can sometimes create ideal conditions for the occurrence of nuisance odors. Tanks Green Stuff, the compost facility in question, is also likely not the source, according to its owner Jason Tankersley. He said most of what his facility, at Ina Road near the Santa Cruz River, composts is wood and other green waste, along with a small amount of manure. Porter recently toured the site, and said he didnt smell any offensive odors, but added that doesnt exclude them completely from the equation. County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry also weighed into the matter with a Nov. 29 memo claiming that on a bike ride he had smelled an odor closer to the decomposition of earthy vegetative materials rather than the generally unmistakable odors arising from a wastewater treatment facility. Tankersely provided the Star with two 2016 PDEQ inspection reports, both of which noted that no strong or offensive smells could be detected at the location. One, written in mid-February, suggests that a Waste Management transfer station could be the source of the offensive smell. However, garbage at the transfer station is "quickly transferred out and wouldnt generate the odor issues the city has been experiencing," according to a statement provided by a Waste Management spokeswoman. A spokeswoman for Vulcan Materials Co., which owns a concrete business nearby, said that no gravel or sand mining has taken place in the area for at least 1 years and the concrete production is not odor-causing. The ingredients for concrete are rock, sand, cement and water, Barbara Goodrich-Welk said. Scott said PDEQ is getting cooperation from all the potential sources, and hopes to have a more conclusive answer within the next few weeks, though he pointed out that odor identification is by its very nature a difficult endeavor. You could have five different people standing at the same smell and theyll give you five different descriptions, he said. In the 59 years since the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, world governments and space entrepreneurs have created an artificial asteroid belt around Earth. NASA estimates that 23,000 intact satellites and pieces of them larger than a softball orbit Earth, in addition to 500,000 pieces in the nuts-and-bolts size and millions of even smaller particles. A new center at the University of Arizona proposes to bring some order to the chaos with a systematic attempt to find as many objects as possible and classify them to determine which are debris and which are operable. They also want to know which are friend and which are foe where they might be headed and what they might be doing. The University of Arizonas Space Objects Behavioral Science, SOBS, initiative seeks to marry the expertise and capability of various disciplines at the university to answer those questions and become the go-to center for all things orbital. Low-Earth orbit, between 100 and 1,200 miles above Earths surface, is the most crowded place, as evidenced by damage done over the years cracked windshields on Space Shuttles and pitted panels on the Hubble Space Telescope. Even the smallest particles can do damage at an orbital velocity of 17,500 mph. The UA initiative is led by Moriba Jah, the first of a five-professor cluster hire underwritten by the office of Kimberly Espy, the UA senior vice president for research. Jah, a former NASA navigator who helped guide four missions to Mars, has spent the past 10 years studying space debris, at the Air Force Advanced Sciences and Technology Research Institute for Astronautics, and as director of the space situational awareness program at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque. Jah jokingly refers to himself as a space garbage man. His mission is not to collect the garbage in space but to quantify it, characterize it and catalog it. He talks about creating a taxonomy of space objects put a first name and a last name to every possible object, then start saying: How can we classify these things? What patterns can we start discovering? What are the risks and what are the hazards? Jah wants to involve the UA in creating a cyber-infrastructure that manages data from an array of sensors. Hes connected, says Espy, to the agencies and industries that could become clients for the UAs new research. Hes an amazing guy with incredible talents and hes very well connected to both the astronomical community and the defense community, Espy said. The defense department would be an important client for the UAs fledgling program. It accounted for 90 percent of federal spending on space situational awareness, according to a 2016 report by the General Accounting Office. That broadening of sources for astronomical and planetary research would aid in the universitys and his own Panda problem, said astronomer Vishnu Reddy. Pandas live and forage only in the shrinking habitat of bamboo forests, Reddy said. Most planetary scientists, likewise, are dependent on a single source NASA for their sustenance. Just like pandas we eat bamboo and we live in one valley. We are not diverse enough to survive a fluctuating funding environment. Reddy, who went to work for the SOBS initiative in August, has built his career studying natural satellites near-Earth objects such as asteroids and comets that have potential to collide catastrophically with the Earths surface, working with NASA grants through the Tucson-based Planetary Science Institute. His new role at the UA, where he is an assistant professor of lunar and planetary sciences, will be to characterize man-made space objects, an expertise he now uses to determine the composition and parentage of natural space rocks. He said he originally thought: These are moving things and they are closer to the Earth. How difficult can it be? Hes coming to realize that analyzing natural satellites such as asteroids and comets is easy compared to figuring out the behavior and composition of artificial ones. Asteroids and comets follow long orbits into deep space before circling back toward Earth. Once you find and observe them for a bit, you can predict where they will be next year or 100 years from now. Operational satellites can change course and orientation. Debris can collide and make more debris. Orbits can degrade and things can fall out of the sky. There is also a fear that some nations have deployed satellites whose purpose is to eavesdrop, disrupt or disable other nations satellites. Eric Pearce, a professor of astronomy at Steward Observatory, has spent most of his career on space surveillance work. He worked 25 years at MITs Lincoln Laboratory, which, for a time, was the worlds most prolific discoverer of near-Earth objects. Then he helped develop and run a 3.5-meter Space Surveillance Telescope for DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Proliferation of space junk is a problem, Pearce said, especially in near-Earth orbit, where critical programs such as the space station and the Hubble Telescope operate in a growing sea of spent rocket bodies, defunct satellites, lens covers, nuts, bolts and paint flecks. The other hazard, more compelling, is the proliferation of noncooperative actors in space. There is a real threat that people are messing with each others assets in space. We need awareness to defend that and to encourage others not to do that. Pearce said. One of Pearces first tasks is to build a three-color, high-speed photometer that will record light from an object at speeds of thousandths of a second, in order to determine the exact composition of objects in space. Its like when youre driving around at sunset, and catch a glint off a windshield or a building. In that moment, you can isolate that surface so you can study it. In that instant in time, you can learn how flat it is, what color it is and begin to decipher whats what as you dig deeper. Astronomer and optical scientist Michael Hart has his own experimental approach to fast-framing of objects in space by observing their acoustical resonances. Its a new type of instrument that will exploit a technique called hyper-temporal imaging, Hart said. Like Pearces instrument, it would be capable of determining the exact dimensions and composition of objects in orbit. Both Hart and Pearce plan to test their new instruments on the 61-inch telescope run by Steward Observatory below Mount Bigelow in the Santa Catalina Mountains north of Tucson. In addition to Bigelow, Steward operates telescopes on four other Arizona mountaintops Mount Lemmon, Kitt Peak, Mount Hopkins and Mount Graham. It also operates telescopes in Chile and Hawaii, some of which are already being used for NASA space debris programs. Espy said the availability of telescopes and the expertise to operate and adapt them to new uses is a big selling point in the UAs bid to become a worldwide center for space surveillance. This is so much in our sweet spot, you almost wonder why we werent doing it before, she said. Espy said the Lunar and Planetary Lab has been honing techniques for satellite detection and characterization for decades with its SpaceWatch and Catalina Sky Survey programs, which focused on natural satellites of Earth. There is no guarantee that it will accomplish its grand vision for the initiative, she said. Research is always about making big bets. You never know, there are probably four or five teams working on the same problem and they may beat us to the punch, but this is a great opportunity for continuing to expand the folks we serve, particularly with the intersection of astronomy and the defense community. Tim Swindle, director of UA Lunar and Planetary Lab, said his department gets a large fraction of its funding from NASAs Science Mission Directorate, which directs the agencys space missions and earth science. We dont do much of anything outside that pond and were trying to expand, to be relevant. He expects his labs expertise in tracking asteroids will contribute value to the project and that the projects partners in other fields can teach them as well. The project is housed in the UAs Defense and Security Research Institute and includes participants from the College of Optical Sciences, two UA engineering schools and CyVerse, the super-computing portal housed at the Bio5 Research Institute. Swindle said the collaborations could make LPL better at doing what it already does. It could help us find asteroids. Its a logical extension of what we do and a way to help us do what we do. Buell Jannuzi, director of Steward Observatory and the Department of Astronomy, said that cross-pollination creates opportunity for new approaches. Eric Pearce and Vishnu Reddy both do astronomy, but also use astronomical techniques in solving other interesting problems. This is how you get innovation when people get inspired to solve a new problem with something from another field, Jannuzi said. Over at the College of Optical Sciences, Michael Hart is not officially part of the SOBS initiative, but he is building his new instrument with money supplied by Espys office from the Arizona Board of Regents Technology and Research Initiative Fund. He is one of three UA professors who proposed the cluster hire that became SOBS. I have been pushing this general idea that the university should get involved in looking at artificial things in space for the better part of a decade, he said. Its both a fascinating field of research and a way of applying research for the national good, he said. Our modern technological life depends to a large extent on maintaining capabilities in space Google maps, weather forecasting, banking, air-traffic control, communications, GPS. I would have been lost in the wilderness several times if it wasnt for those satellites. We have paid far too little attention to the side effects of our use of space and to the safety of the capabilities that we rely on, Hart said. Reddy recounts the scene from the movie Gravity to describe the potential danger. In it, a crew servicing the Hubble Space Telescope is hit by a wave of space debris that has been growing exponentially as it takes out satellite after satellite, creating more debris as it expands. Its known as the Kessler effect, proposed in a 1978 research paper by NASA scientist Donald J. Kessler. If the density of the debris in Earth orbit becomes so high, every debris-creating event will cascade into creating more debris. Eventually, you cant leave the Earth without hitting something, Reddy said. For now, the big pieces of space garbage, while not few, are far between. There is a lot of space out there. Still, debris crashes occur a few times a year and the International Space Station has had to take avoidance maneuvers 20 times in its 18 years of orbits, according to NASA. Propulsion tanks explode. Things fall apart. Things are a bit quieter up in geosynchronous orbit, more than 22,000 miles above Earths surface where a smaller number of the most expensive satellites orbit at the same speed and in the same direction as the Earths rotation. They are always overhead and ready to relay your important text messages. But the geosynchronous orbit, above the Earths protective magnetic fields, is a hostile radiation environment. Things fall apart there as well. Over the years, countries that operate in space have gotten better about not creating space junk, said Eric Pearce, making sure that pop-off parts like lens caps are tethered to the satellite and planning for end-of-life deployment to a graveyard orbit. Good behavior and waiting for low-Earth orbit to clean itself as orbits decay and Earths gravity pulls the satellites home, may be the best we can do for now. Thats been a debate for a long time. Do you avoid it, clean it up, or dont make it in the first place and wait for the environment to clean itself up. Scientists across the world are working on ways to clean up space, but that task will be extremely difficult, if not impossible, said Pearce. Its very hard to just cruise up next to something, said Pearce. A space garbage truck would need an enormous propulsion capacity to do that kind of stop-and-go driving. Some scientists propose slowing the orbits of space debris with lasers, but Hart, who has built laser guide-star devices for large telescopes, says that is probably impossible. You would have to track and hit the object repeatedly to have even a small effect. Meanwhile, space continues to get more crowded. Reddy compares it to a freeway with on-ramps and no exits, where people simply abandon their cars when they run out of gas or run into something. LAS VEGAS, Nevada A long-term plan for protecting Lake Mead and preventing severe shortages in deliveries of Colorado River water to Arizona and two other states wont be approved before the Obama administration ends, throwing more uncertainty into the outlook. While the three states keep discussing a drought contingency plan, Arizona water officials say theyve reached general agreement with water users here for a shorter-term fix for Lake Meads chronic declines. The Arizona plan calls for cities, farms and Indian tribes to keep enough water in Mead through 2019 to lower the risks of the first round of shortages of Central Arizona Project water deliveries. Such shortages would hurt agriculture significantly, although not enough to threaten viability of the CAP, which delivers drinking water to Tucson and Phoenix and irrigation water to central Arizona farmers. Federal and state water officials announced at a water conference here last week that too many issues remain unresolved to wrap up the major regional drought plan, in the works for three and a half years. Theyre optimistic agreement can be reached next year and perhaps in the first few months. They said they hope that if theyre close to agreement, the new Trump administration wont want to change it radically. The Arizona plan can act as a bridge, helping the over-allocated Colorado River water system until a long-term plan is in place, said Arizona Water Resources Department and CAP officials at the Colorado River Water Users Association conference. Standing in the way of the short-term fix, however, is money. It will cost up to $60 million to compensate Arizona users who give up their CAP water to make the short-term plan work, said Terry Fulp, Lower Colorado regional director for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which runs the river reservoir system. Asked how confident he is of finding that money in the next few months, Fulp replied, Thats a really good question. I dont know if we have a really good answer. All I can tell you is that were working hard to do that. Meanwhile, standing in the way of the long-term fix are two longstanding water disputes in California. One is the fate of the Salton Sea in the southern California desert, which in January 2018 is slated to lose 200,000 acre feet of water thats to be transferred to San Diego under a 2003 agreement. At that point, many authorities are worried that the exposed playas salt and heavy-metal tainted soils will blow around, triggering massive air pollution. The seas water is runoff from the neighboring Imperial Valley Irrigation District, which controls huge amounts of Colorado River water and is reluctant to give up more under the proposed drought plan unless something can be done to shore up the sea. It wants to see a detailed road map outlining what California will do to fix the looming problems there. The other is a $15 billion proposal to build twin tunnels under the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to improve the reliability of water deliveries from northern to southern California. The Metropolitan Water District in Los Angeles wants to see progress toward building the tunnels which are heavily opposed by other groups to ensure that it will have enough other water if it gives up Colorado River water under the drought agreement. BITTERSWEET FAILURE Outgoing Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Estevan Lopez told conferees Friday that the failure to reach agreement is bittersweet. Theres been an incredible amount of work by the states and water users, and by the U.S. with Mexico, to do what we have to do to prepare ourselves for the possibility that this drought continues, he said. We made and thought of some amazing innovations that, once enacted, will provide us some tools that people will figure out how to use to really help to sustain this river system. But we are not there yet. Federal officials said they wont carry out a threat made at this conference a year ago by Deputy Interior Secretary Mike Connor to impose their own Colorado River plan on Arizona, California and Nevada if the states didnt adopt a plan by now. In the first six months of 2016, we have to see progress, coming together among leaders of the three states, Connor told the Arizona Daily Star a year ago. Last week, however, Connor told reporters that because the states have installed a very good framework for the long-term drought plan and made progress toward approving it, the feds wont step in. But we will leave that strategy in place for the incoming Trump administration if the three states cant reach agreement next year, he said. Environmentalist John Weisheit, head of the Utah-based group Living Rivers, said he was disappointed the feds arent following up on the threat. The states didnt follow through and neither did the federal government. This is a joke. Somebody should be fired, said Weisheit, predicting an agreement will never be reached. Theyve known about this problem (of an over-allocated Colorado River) for decades. Even if they do a drought contingency plan, its not going to be sufficient in the long term. Why arent they doing a 60-year plan? Arizona Water Resources Director Tom Buschatzke said as far as hes concerned, failure is not an option. But while the state has pretty broad support for the plan, the details are still in flux. Details matter. We have to make all pieces of the puzzle fit together. We have forward momentum. For now, we find ourselves in a very precarious situation on the Colorado, Lopez, the Bureau of Reclamation commissioner, told the conference Friday. In 2007, we were in an eight-year drought ... (lakes) Mead and Powell combined were at 47 percent of normal. Now, were in our 17th year of drought. Its the driest 17-year period in recorded history. ... Our combined storage today is 43 percent. He pointed to photos showing Meads bathtub ring, standing about as high as a 15-story building, and displaying salts left behind by disappearing water. If we had another five years like 2000 to 2005, we would be in very dire straits right now. Thats why were working so hard on this, he said. 2 river-saving plans detailed The main drought contingency plan calls for Arizona to give up 512,000 acre feet of water enough for more than a million homes once Mead drops below 1,075 feet at the end of any year. The reclamation agency predicts about a 50 percent chance of that by the end of 2017. Under the plan, farmers would take the largest share of cuts, by far, although Indian tribes would also stand to lose water. For the long term, Arizona, Nevada, California and the bureau would give up 1.2 million acre feet total if the lake hit 1,025 feet. The goal is to keep the lake from dropping below 1,020 feet a point where major urban water deliveries would be jeopardized and Hoover Dam couldnt deliver electric power. Under Arizonas temporary plan, the state would leave in Mead 400,000 acre feet a year through 2019. Arizona is already leaving nearly 200,000 acre feet a year. The rivers current guidelines for dealing with shortages and the initial drought plan are viewed by some as penalizing or harming certain classes of water users disproportionately, CAP General Manager Ted Cooke said last week. The temporary Arizona plan would kind of balance those things out a little bit. Higher priority users would voluntarily forbear their use of water so lower priority users could keep their water longer. Some users who dont give up water may be expected to join the feds and state in compensating those who do. The biggest cuts under the Arizona plan would most likely hit the Gila River Indian Community in Sacaton in northern Pinal County. The tribe controls by far the biggest share of CAP water 311,000 acre-feet, more than twice that of Tucson, the next biggest CAP holder. Farmers say it would be hard for them to swallow more cuts when theyre already going to be hurt by a 100,000 acre-foot cut scheduled next year that has nothing to do with CAP shortages. Tucson Water Director Tim Thomure noted the city has already agreed to give up 26,000 acre feet next year. Phoenix would be hard pressed to give up any CAP now because it lacks an adequate well system for a backup, said Phoenix Water Director Kathryn Sorenson; such a system is about five years away. Some of the water not taken would be left in the lake forever, and couldnt be withdrawn by even the owners, a concept known as system conservation. The rest could be withdrawn by its owners in the future under certain conditions. Owners of the water left in the lake forever would be compensated for it. We would contribute a large portion, Gila tribal attorney Jason Hauter said Friday. He thinks the Tohono OOdham tribe, which also controls a significant although much smaller CAP share, would also contribute some water, and that other tribes and other non-Indian water entitlement holders would follow suit, he said. Given the Gila tribes large share of CAP water, we see this as an opportunity to provide a solution to this ongoing issue, said Gila Tribal Governor Stephen Lewis at the conference last week. Were looking for long-term stability for our own community. We see this as a regional solution as well. We have longstanding relations with surrounding agricultural communities. We are wanting to ... positively influence drought mitigation and planning for the future. The Gila Indian community doesnt necessarily see this as giving up water we see this as an investment in the future. ... Keeping Lake Mead healthier longer benefits all parties and definitely benefits the community as well, Lewis said. The University of Arizona-led OSIRIS-REx mission has been given a side job during its seven-year cruise to study and sample an asteroid named Bennu. The NASA spacecrafts cameras will be looking for Trojan asteroids that follow the Earths orbit and could be hiding in the suns glare, undetectable from Earth. OSIRIS-REx is in the fourth month of a seven-year mission to return a pristine sample of an asteroid to Earth. Its principal science mission doesnt begin until it gets close to Bennu in 2018, but NASA and project scientists decided to take advantage of its position in space to search for Trojans. Between Feb. 9-20, the spacecraft will turn on its camera suite, built by scientists at the UAs Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, to scan the space ahead of Earths orbit for asteroids. There are points, fore and aft of the Earth in its orbit, where the pull of Earth and the sun are in equilibrium. Chunks of rock trapped there or left there from formation of the solar system would orbit along Earths path. OSIRIS-REx will be passing right by one of those points. Those objects would be difficult to image from telescopes on Earth, because they are potentially visible only near the horizon at twilight when telescopes have to look through a lot of atmosphere. They would be small, only partially lit by the sun and about 93 million miles away, said Carl Hergenrother, the OSIRIS-REx scientist who is coordinating the search for them. OSIRIS-REx, on an orbit near the Earth right now, will be as close as 5 to 6 million miles to the theoretical cloud of asteroids, looking away from the sun and unbothered by atmospheric scattering, said Hergenrother. Astronomers and planetary scientists have discovered Trojans orbiting with six planets in the solar system. More than 6,000 are known to orbit with Jupiter. Only one Earth Trojan has been detected a 300-meter-diameter rock discovered by NASAs WISE space telescope in 2010. Hergenrother said the search for Trojans has both scientific and operational purposes. The science could be exciting, he said. There could very well be a population of objects that formed when Earth was forming. Hergenrother said the search is also an important test of MapCam, the wide-field camera on the spacecraft. Help India! By IANS, Lucknow : A leading Shia cleric has taken on Indias largest Islamic seminary and said that there was nothing wrong if a Muslim sings the national anthem Vande Mataram. Support TwoCircles I see nothing wrong for a Muslim to recite Vande Mataram as long as it means salutation to the nation and does not amount to offering prayers, Shia scholar and All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) member Maulana Hameedul Hasan told IANS. The declaration came close on the heels of a similar announcement by another renowned Shia cleric and AIMPLBs senior vice president, Maulana Kalbe Sadiq. That is why I feel there was a need to explain the meaning of every word in the national song. I am sure that once it is clarified that there was no element of offering prayers in the song, all this controversy over it would come to rest, Hasan pointed out. This follows the Maulanas heart-to-heart talk with former Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) chief K.C. Sudarshan, who in an unprecedented move drove down to the formers residence here Sunday. The aim of the meeting was to find ways to bridge the Hindu-Muslim divide that arose primarily on account of prevailing confusions about each others religious beliefs, Hasan said. We have succeeded in breaking the ice and I am sure we will be able to resolve various issues that give rise to avoidable tensions between the two communities. On Nov 3, the Darul Uloom Deoband, Indias largest Islamic seminary, passed a resolution urging Muslims not to sing the Vande Mataram, saying the song went against Islamic principles. The resolution sparked a furore, both within and outside the Muslim community in India. The Sunday meeting here was organised at the initiative of the Muslim Rashtriya Manch, a RSS brainchild. It was rare occasion when a Maulana talked about misunderstandings among Hindus about the Koran and a RSS bigwig eulogised the life and achievements of Prophet Mohammad. I told Janab Sudarshan sahib that the need of the hour was to remove all misunderstandings that many Hindus have about the Holy Koran, Islam as also about Indian Muslims who are unfortunately often labelled pro-Pakistanis, said Hasan. These misgivings can only be brought to rest through an open dialogue between the two communities. I am sure the RSS can play a truly meaningful role towards achieving the goal. Seeking to dispel the common impression that Muslims were responsible for the creation of Pakistan, the Maulana said: No Muslim has any soft corner for Pakistan. The bulk of Indian Muslims opposed the countrys partition. Interestingly, RSS stalwart Sudarshan also seemed to second the Maulanas view by adding: It were the British who brought about the partition in collusion with Jawaharlal Nehru. He termed the Hindu-Muslim divide a result of vested political interests while hailing Prophet Mohammad as preacher, social reformer, commander and statesman. Help India! By Vidya Bhushan Rawat, As media reaches the conclusion about the outcome of the general elections the Sangh Parivar and its excited chhutbhaiyyas are competing each other in speak loud and threatening the opponents. One important thing the modern day politics teach us is that those who ride on the chariot of hype are dumped mercilessly by the same forces who are responsible for their rise. The example of Arvind Kejriwal is a pointer as how he was created by media as an alternative and how he has been dumped by the same media because at the moment media magnets and their loudspeakers are anointing Narendra Modi as the future of India. Support TwoCircles Modi has been hyped by media and its corporate honchos for their own dubious purposes. An image is created as if Modi is India and India is Modi. The tiger of India is actually created exactly on the replica of Dev Kant Baruas Indira is India and India is Indira. It was followed by various statements by the opposition leaders hailing her as Durga, most importantly by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, on her role in the liberation of Bangladesh. One must understand that in the post war Indira Gandhi with anti-poverty grants under her hands became larger than life hero of the country. The opposition was nothing as India became the very hope of India. Criticizing Indira Gandhi became as if someone is challenging the authority of power in Delhi. A number of leaders became her devotees and her son Sanjay began to control the party. He was never a political man but more as a muscle man with management skills which are needed to win elections these days. Praveen Togadia [TCN file photo] Sanjay Gandhi created a whole lot of young shouting brigade to run down the opposition and make his image as the future prime minister of India. He would shout out the old loyalists of the party. Many were humiliated in the party and asked to resign. In fact many of the serious issues were not even discussed in the cabinet and ministers were bypassed. The history of imposition of emergency on the night of June 25th 1975 is well known to be described here when it is said that President Fakruhdin Ali Ahmed just signed the declaration without properly going through it. And after that what the country witnessed was the demolition of its constitutional values and total political anarchy. Sanjay Gandhi unleashed a set of goons on country who would harass individuals who protested against them. The media was in their control and in 1975 that did not have to do much of the work as Aakashwani and Doordarshan were owned by the government. The newspapers were crawling when they were asked to bend, said Lal Krishna Advani recalling those days. Indira Gandhi depended too much on her chamchas and the CBI which was jokingly termed as Congress Bureau of Investigation and was used to harass people. She got defeated and even lost her own parliamentary constituency. That was a time when the party has not done anything hurting the poor but the whole issue of PMs integrity was under threat. She could not handle the criticism and finally lost her way. The response of the Janata government was much worse and with leaders like Charan Singh and George Fernandes, Indira Gandhi was send to jail and finally the Janata government fell due to its own contradictions paving the way for Indira Gandhi who sailed through with a huge majority. Later, Indira Gandhis advisers like Vasant Sathe started chanting the mantra of Presidential form of Government in United States so that they could rule the country without any hindrances. Vasant Sathe was disturbed with the growing strength of the marginalized communities and felt that it is essential to stop the blackmailing through presidential form of the government where votes are sought in the name of leader and President and his ministers are experts and not responsible to Parliament. Modi has actually taken a leaf out it and now he is a national icon through 24 hours beaming of his rhetoric on our TV channels. Now, the situation is vastly changed in the post 1990s after the Mandalisation process. Congress is unable to fight and defend the rights of the capitalists and Hindu upper castes. In fact, under Sonia it has turned more towards the socialist secular route though half-heartedly so far but that is the root of Indiras congress in 1971 when she nationalized banks, focused on anti-poverty programmes and the most marginalized communities. Today, what we are witnessing is a revisit to Sanjay Gandhi of those days who was more powerful than the Prime minister. So, Bansi Lal is replaced by an Amit Shah who can manage things here and there. The female brigade around Sanjay Gandhi was powerful and many stories were also published in newspapers but that did not stop him from doing what he wished to do. Coincidently, now with Narendra Modi his female brigade is ready to even beat up the opponents on the TV channels. The rise of Meenakshi Lekhi, Kiron Kher, Smriti Irani, and Saina NC without any political background is clear replication of Sanjays goon brigade who will abuse the opponents and shout them in a much better way would be rewarded. There is a virtual competition between different youngsters particularly these female gang members who are ready to go to any extent to accuse, abuse, and lynch you on the TV studios or through their writings in the print. Anchors are promoting them and do not ask them tough questions. Now many like Madhu Kishwar and Tavleen Singh have left us without any doubt whether they should be called journalists or spokesperson of the party. During emergency in 1975, we criticized the two government channels for not broadcasting the opposition stories but today more than three hundred TV channels and huge number of print media in English and vernacular languages have been hijacked and controlled by the Modi brigade. Modis speeches are broadcasted in such way as if they are amritwani while all other speeches are shown with an immediate counter and rejoinder. No journalists ever tried to probe Modi. They are in awe with him with just watching him speak. It looks like for Rajat Sharma, Madhu Kishwar, Sanjay Putalia and many more, Modi is a demi god and all those who question him are Sonias brigade members. It seems he is already the prime minister and media is just afraid of him or the other side of the story may be because of the corporate pressure and goon threats these journalists some of who were always termed as brightest, courageous , secular and who reported from the ground in 2002 have simply shown their true color today. The trend to create a wave through media has already started. They know that Modi has become larger than life out of nowhere through media. Well known to them is that the negative publicity is also great though media is ready to protect and defend them. If emergency period of 1975 was considered to be the worst in Indian media world for the pressure played by the government, I can say with firm conviction that 2014 elections will be remembered for how media resorted to lies, deceits, calumny in promoting the Hindutva brigade. At least during emergency we had a Ramnath Goenka, his Indian Express and Statesman which did not surrender to the might of the state. This election is radically different. They show that state might has absolutely nothing and being controlled by the media and corporate. Today, it does not look that we have a Prime Minister. If you watch electronic media and print media both, the most powerful person of India is already been declared as Narendra Modi and media is not just crawling but prostrating to Modi humming Namo-Namo. This blatant exhibition of shamelessness and corporate control is basically an indication of what will be the future of our media, freedom of expression and freedom of choices. Hence Modi is not really a threat. Much more threatening are the forces who are behind him, who planted him on our combined conscious, who created his large ego much bigger than what we have seen before. To get their work done they are not going to leave him anywhere. Like Indira Gandhis PMO, Modis chums in media too want a strong Prime Ministers office which can take decision without consulting the Parliament and compel the president to sign on dotted lines. Fortunately, we had seen the next day that both The Indian Express and The Statesman left their front page as blank. Even in 1989, when Rajiv tried to muzzle media through defamation bill there was The Indian Express, The Hindu and the Statesman which provided us the information but today the scenario is much more disastrous. Now, the editors are openly showing their loyalty and propriety and business ethics have been given a go bye. With the owners directing and guiding there is a scene of despondency inside the newsrooms. Wait for a few days and you will see how many of them will be rewarded for their dutifully doing the commands and how many might be thrown away. That is the terror that we have the shouting brigade of Modi on our TV studios like Sanjay Gandhis brigade. Some are invited as official spokesperson while others are as commentators even when we know their open and unambiguous ideological moorings. The media in emergency did fight but today the media has just tamely surrendered to Modi and his team. They can speak anything. More and more Babas are speaking and none challenge them. No uncomfortable questions to likes of Ramdev and Ravishankar even when their involvement and political campaigning is well known. The bureaucracy it seems is reporting to Modi and not to the PM. It does not look like we have a PM today. It is actually indicative of how things are going to happen. When, Giriraj Singh, the BJP leader in Bihar said in the presence of Nitin Gadakari that all those who oppose Modi would be send to Pakistan. The party continues to support those who were responsible for instigating the violence in Muzzaffarnagar. Many of them have been fielded. Amit Shah was made in charge of Uttar-Pradesh. One does not know what is the political qualification of Shah for a politically conscious state of Uttar-Pradesh which gave India, a majority of its prime ministers? Though they might deny but what action has the Parivar taken against Praveen Togadia for his fulminations. He is openly threatening to the Muslims and seculars and yet our media keep quiet or try to project them in a different way. The Ram Sene gang of Manglore is not sitting silent but waiting for their right moment. They are part and parcel of the entire saffron culture. Who can forget the twin brothers of Maharashtra. There will more such senas and army which will provide the instant justice on the streets. And nothing will happen to them as the team of Modi is ready to lynch them further on TV studios actively supported by the spineless anchors and reporters. Yes, their spine is gone. These voices are not isolated. They know it well that they would be awarded. The idiocies of Swamy, Ramdev, Pramod Muttalick, Pramod Togadia are not just a matters of joke but serious matter inside the Sangh Parivar and their philosophy of hatred. At this time, they have active support from the corporate who are determined to make Modi the prime minister of India and then grab all our natural resources. If you have seen the recent statement by Mr Amitabh Kant, DIPP secretary was worried that the new act has made impossible for land acquisition. He said, Land acquisition for roads, ports and similar other economic activities has not been happening ever since the new Land Acquisition Act came into being, Kant said. A number of road and port projects are stuck up on account of the Act and there is an urgent need to fast-track road and port projects, which can be possible when necessary amendments are made to it. So with Hindutva and corporate going hand in hand, India will have tough times in the coming days as the biggest and most scandalous part being played by the corporate goons is to hide information, create new information suitable to their interest, shut and intimidate those who speak for their rights. Indian threw the emergency out in 1975 and after that none dared to do so but now we have similar situation. We do not need to wait as things are visible in the air and the gangs are ready to lynch you at every forum. With Namo Namo on their lips, you cannot expect anything from the paid media so we have a bit hope with social media and it will be under severe pressure and constraints as through paid media attempt will be made to curtail our freedom and shoot the messengers. Sanjay Gandhi could do nothing in his life time afterwards but Sangh Parivar has revived his politics and thought for their own purposes. It is not the time to fear but fight and ally with like-minded people with deep faith in secular pluralistic India. Whatever is the result, we can see the trends. We still have time to defeat such forces who are not bothered about the people of this country for their narrow political sectarian goals. Idea of India is under the threat and we need to respond united now. VB Rawat is a Radical Humanist, political analyst and human rights activist based in Delhi. Help India! Ranchi : Police in Ranchi said on Saturday that four suspects were detained after a 19-year-old engineering student was found dead, stripped bare and her body charred the fourth incident of a woman being burnt alive in Jharkhand. The BTech student of an IT institute here was living at a rented house in Buty Basti with her sister who had gone to visit their parents in Hazaribagh district when her burnt body was found on Friday. Support TwoCircles As the autopsy report to determine the cause of the Ranchi students death was awaited, police said they have formed a special investigating team (SIT) to probe the shocking incident. The incident came to light on the day when the entire country was remembering the December 16, 2012 brutal rape and murder of a 23-year-old para-medical student, dubbed Nirbhaya, in a moving bus in Delhi. Police said it was the fourth shocking incident of women being burnt alive after being raped or termed witch in Jharkhand in a week. On December 14, an elderly woman and her husband in Simdega district were burnt to death on charges of practicing black magic. Lohar Singh, 70 and his wife Chotrai Devi, 62, were dragged out from their house by three men. They were thrashed first and later thrown over a heap of dry grass and set on fire. Another woman was burnt alive on December 12 in Khuti district on charges of practicing black magic. Four days earlier, a minor girl was burnt and thrown in a well after she protested alleged gang rape attempt in Seraikela-Kharsawa district. According to police the Class 4 student was taken in a forested area by four men after offering her a chocolate. When they tried to rape her, she started shouting. The perpetrators then allegedly poured kerosene oil on her and set her ablaze. She was later thrown in a well from where she was recovered still breathing. She died while being treated in a hospital. This year till October, more than 1,000 rape cases have been reported in the state. Almost same number of cases was reported in to 2015. The Congress blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government for failing to curb violence against women in the state. The BJP government led by (Chief Minister) Raghubar Das only believes in tall claims of safety of citizens, particular women, Kishore Sahdeo, Jharkhand Congress general secretary, told IANS. The reality has come to the fore as unfortunate incidents (of violence) against women have taken place in the state. Das has failed to provide security to people. Women are being killed in heinous ways. Donald Trumps twitter account has set fire again. On Saturday Donald Trump sent a tweet where he accused China of stealing in an 'unpresidented' act, a US Navy drone which was investigating in international waters. The tweet was first sent at 7:30AM and was deleted and replaced by its edited version where he claimed it was an 'unprecedented' act. It is not the first time the US President-elect Donald Trump misused his Twitter account. This tweet was sent after Obama urged him not to disregard US relations with China after Trumps secret phone calls with Taiwanese leaders, and Chinas reaction to Trumps questions about Taiwan's policy. Asian countries Concerns among Asian countries had been raised during the American presidential campaign, as they want to secure a trade deal with the United States. Some Asian countries are expected to overcome Americas economy by 2020. But this trade might seem far away from succeeding thanks to the lack of foreign diplomacy experience of Donald Trump. China, the world's second largest economy, has complained about Trump to current American leaders, urging them to find a solution and not rip off what they have been working on. Trump's Twitter account Donald Trump might know how to connect with new voters and sell them the idea that because he is a businessperson, he knows how to make America great again. But what we have seen so far is that he lacks political experience, and he even needs help to manage his social media channels, so how can we forget Obamas words on Trumps Twitter account, "If somebody cannot handle a Twitter account, they cannot handle the nuclear codes". Donald Trump is going to need a great team of bright people who can help him with his statements on others countries' leaders, and complement his deficiency on public affairs. Otherwise, he would have a difficult time maintaining the strong international relations that Obama had built, and the rumours about a possible impeachment might come true, as soon as he takes over the White House. More that 1000 Muslims have blocked the street near an empty embassy located in Belgrave Square, London, demanding that a caliphate should be established in the United Kingdom, the Daily Express reports. Thousands of people shouted Allahu Akbar This recent demonstration, which took placed Tuesday night, and gathered around one thousand people, was seen as an alternative to another one that took place on the same day near Downing Street. Both demonstrations called for an end to the war in Syria. The Belgrave Square protesters blamed the West for what happened in Aleppo. Another thing that differentiates the demonstration that took place in Belgrave Square over the one in Downing Street is that the former had shades of fundamentalism in its fabric. Many of the participants shouted the words "Allahu Akbar," which means God is great in Arabic, an expression that has been historically used as a war cry or as a call to arms, although it can also have more peaceful connotations. The use in this context however, seems to suggest a call for more radical attitudes and actions in the future. The speakers at the rally incited the participants, and asked for the establishment of a caliphate in the UK. The speeches at this rally lasted for almost an hour. At one point, a Muslim poet was invited to speak, and in a fiery poem, he declared that England needs a powerful Caliph, much to the delight of the crowd. There were also women at the rally, most of which were dressed in the traditional Islamic clothing. Traffic was blocked, which angered many Londoners News website Breitbart has reported that there was more than met the eye in regards to the rally. According to them, one of the protesters seemed to be waving a Taliban flag. Another protester, identified by sources as Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain, was distributing placards to the participants, which called for the establishment of a caliphate. Another familiar face among Islamic activists in the UK was Haitham al-Hadad, a Salafist muslim, was also present at the protest. He congratulated the crowd for amassing in such a short amount of time. Asim Qureshi, director for CAGE, a Muslim rights group, blamed the American government for what happened in Aleppo. Many motorists were forced to find an alternative route, as the street was blocked by the crowd. It is yet unknown who organized the rally. The protest was seen as another demonstration of Islamic fundamentalism, a growing phenomenon in the United Kingdom. The booth of ICBC's mobile credit card division at the International Internet Plus Expo in Beijng in August. [Photo/China Daily] Major consumer credit companies say they are highly confident about the growth potential of China's consumer finance market, and plan to further expand their customer base in the mainland, mainly to those clients with middle and low incomes as well as rural residents. China's consumer finance products customers are mainly young people aged below 30, and more than 60 percent of them have a monthly income lower than 5,000 yuan ($720), according to a new report released by the Center for China in the World Economy at Tsinghua University. The report said most of the customers don't have credit cards and credit histories. Most of them use loans to buy durable consumer goods, mainly household electrical appliances, in addition to motorbikes, electric vehicles and agricultural machinery. Although concerned about the lending rate, over half of customers are more concerned about the application requirements and difficulties of getting approval. "China's consumer finance market has a huge potential and we are confident we will grow with the local market," said Ondrej Frydrych, CEO of Czech-based Home Credit, a leading foreign lender to consumers in China. "We will further increase investments in China, deepen our business, and expand our customer base of people with lower incomes," he said. With a nationwide distribution network and customer service network in China, Frydrych said Home Credit had a clientele that was mostly not financially sophisticated. He said his company wanted to help them to promote their financial literacy and understand their responsibilities as well as the process of loan repayments. When Xie Chen first began to sell imported wine on Taobao.com, China's largest online marketplace, in 2013, he had little clue where and who his customers would be. Less than three years later, the 30-year-old has managed to sell between 10,000 and 30,000 bottles of wine every month on his online store called Mihu Wine Shop, which translates to "a little dizzy" in Chinese. "That's the magic of e-commerce. The customers may be invisible and impossible to locate at first, but once you reach them and speak to them using the right language, it's also impossible to lose them," said Xie, who was formerly a salesman at a multinational chemical company. The customers Xie have attracted are mostly young female professionals who are still in search of their preferred wine instead of discerning connoisseurs. As such, he is mindful of how he communicates with his audience. "We don't talk about how to hold the wine glass, how to tell the difference between new world and old world produce, or terroir. It's simply pointless," said Xie. Instead, he provides practical tips such as the brand of Moscato that is best paired with spicy chips for a relaxing weekend movie night and the most value-for-money Sauvignon that people can use as a gift for an important occasion. A report by the Chinese Business Network Data showed that nearly half of China's millennial generation - those born between 1984 and 1995 - prioritise online channels for purchases of wine and other types of alcohol. This generation of millennials, which has an estimated population of 48 million, has also demonstrated a growing interest in drinking wine during social occasions and as a personal treat, a stark contrast to the older generation which still favors baijiu, a Chinese traditional alcohol. The report found that convenience and value for money are the two primary reasons the younger generation are turning to wine. Furthermore, UK consultancy Wine Intelligence discovered that the number of people who rank quality as their top priority rose from 14 percent in 2014 to 26 percent in 2016, suggesting that the market is becoming more sophisticated. Wang Yanyan, executive editor and researcher with Shanghai International Wine Exchange Center, noticed that alcohol companies and e-commerce sites have since 2015 been striking up more partnerships. She added that alcohol companies had identified the e-commerce market as a means of combating the decline of the industry, which was hit hard by two factors: China's anti-corruption campaign and economic slowdown. According to the National Statistics Bureau, the alcohol industry had for the first time in history experienced a negative 2 percent growth rate in 2014. That same year, China's alcohol market consolidated 877.9 billion yuan ($129.3 billion) of sales, of which 1.25 percent came from the online market, based on figures by e-commerce consultancy Analysis International. The e-commerce market, however, was seemingly unaffected by these two factors as they continued to enjoy robust growth. In 2015, the size of China's e-commerce market reached 16.4 trillion yuan, up by 22.7 percent from the year before. In addition, online retail rose 36.2 percent year-on-year. Today, many e-commerce alcohol retailers have been eager to ensure that they only sell genuine wine and some even have lofty ambitions of getting listed on the stock market. However, Ian Ford, co-founder of Summergate, one of China's leading wine importing companies, has offered a more "sobering realization" of the current situation. "There are still lots of people out there who want to buy wine from a human being, who want to go into a shop and hold the bottle, and who want to taste a selection of wines before they actually decide to buy. And this is not going to go away," said Ford, during a wine forum held in Shanghai. Ford also referred to Alibaba's 9.9 Global Wine and Spirits Festival, which took place on Sept 9, saying that the event had not done as well as expected, especially for imported wines. "Everyone that I know and have spoken to in the wine industry tells me that they didn't sell very much imported wine during the festival. There was a lot of buzz surrounding imported wines but it was traditional Chinese wines that did very well instead," said Ford. "When you get such a result even after having the most powerful guy in the Internet world standing up and declaring a global wine day and investing the entire efforts of his organizations, I think some real introspection is required," he added. Wen Wenyi contributed to the story. xujunqian@chinadaily.com.cn Min Christ, the founder of the Global Incubation Center at Southport and CEO of the Seattle Family Regional Center, poses at the front desk of the center. Provided To China Daily Sometimes a real estate project can end up building dreams. Min Christ, founder of the Global Incubation Center at Southport and CEO of Seattle Family Regional Center, was one of 10 honorees at the 2016 Distinguished American Vision Award for Asia ceremony in October. The theme of the awards this year was "technology and innovation" and Christ was cited for her outstanding contribution to the cooperation and exchange in high tech between China and the US. When Christ first moved to the United States from China in 1989, she started chasing her American Dream: owning her own business. Twenty-seven years later, Christ is now helping other immigrant entrepreneurs achieve their dreams, while managing one of the busiest hotel and conference centers on Lake Washington. Hyatt Regency has signed on to partner with Seco Development for a 12-story, 347-room hotel, including 43,000 square feet of conference space. The project is called the Hyatt Regency Lake Washington at Seattle's Southport. "We are delighted to be working with Hyatt and contributing to the economic vitality of the area with this new hotel," Michael Christ, CEO of Seco Development and Min Christ's husband, said in a statement. "Once constructed, this Hyatt Regency hotel will serve as a critical catalyst for the emerging South Lake Washington neighborhood," said Renton Mayor Denis Law. "This new development will have a positive impact on our region's employment base as well as demand for business services, tourism and convention business." The hotel is expected to open in June. Founded in 1989 by Michael Christ, SECO Development has overseen previous land development projects in Kirkland, Bellevue and Mercer Island. Its latest project is the 12-story, 350-room Hyatt Regency in Renton. The $180 million project attracted more than 200 investors, the majority of whom are from Asia, including China and Vietnam. "Real estate is about the land, not about development," she added. "It's important that it feels like a home, not like a box." Christ hopes that Southport's hotel is one more step toward bolstering Renton's image as a high-tech center that will attract the right investors. "We want to change the city's image, to make it known as a high-tech town." Christ said. Christ is working hard to bring more Chinese technology companies and investors to the newly constructed Southport campus of the Global Incubation Center, which boasts 17.5 acres of waterfront property south of Lake Washington. Christ led the creation of the Southport campus, where the Seattle Family Regional Center is located. "The purpose is to build a strategic platform with a focus on off shore incubator and technology fi nance models to accelerate the incubation and marketization of high-tech startups and help them enter either the China or US market," Christ said. The center has already signed cooperative agreements with Chinese companies such as Tsinghua Holdings, Zhongguancun Dream Laboratory in Beijing, ARM Ecosystem Accelerator, the National Food Safety Innovation Center, Shanghai Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park and others. The new hotel project is partially fi nanced through the EB-5 program, which grants immigrant investors temporary US residency for investments of $500,000 or $1 million. Immigrants investing $550,000 in the new hotel at Southport will receive permanent residency for themselves and their families. "The project begins as one of real estate, but my vision for it is not just to build the land, the building; but a dream home for new immigrants and entrepreneurs," Christ said. lindadeng@chinadailyusa.com Award-winner from China says blending Eastern, Western concepts takes deep understanding Members of Music From China: Chen Yihan (left), pipa performer, and Wang Guowei (right), erhu performer, play Taiping Drum for the audience on Dec 8 at Phillips Collection in Washington. Music From China was founded in 1984, with the goal of bringing the best of Chinese music to the states. Yuan Yuan / For China Daily Renowned composer Zhou Long delivered ancient music from China for a Washington audience on Dec 8 at The Phillips Collection. The Phillips Music's Leading International Composers series, in its eighth season, celebrated the music of Zhou, who combines the aesthetic concepts and musical elements of East and West, played by the ensemble Music From China. Zhou won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for his fi rst opera and has been a two-time recipient of commissions from the Serge Koussevitzky Music Foundation. Last year, he was nominated for a Grammy Award. Born in 1953 in Beijing, he began his studies at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing in 1977, and traveled to the US to continue his music studies in 1985. His work embraces elements of traditional Chinese music and American symphonic music. When he first got to the states, he was involved with Chinese ensembles. As he encountered more American composers, Zhou started to invite them to write for Chinese ensembles. "In my own compositions, I also use Western media but with Chinese traditional ideas and elements for the operas," he said. Even when the operas are in English, he borrows musical elements from Peking Opera and other Chinese literary works. To combine the cultures is not simply to mix or push them together, he said. "You have to really understand both cultures, talk to both sides and then people will gradually accept you," Zhou said.Zhou pointed out that nowadays, even in China, original Chinese music is rearranged, popularized and commercialized. But he believes in the uniqueness of Chinese traditional instruments and ancient materials. "I feel that's more original," he said. "I like pop culture, but for my own work, I tend to research deeply to the ancient culture and then use my musical language to compose." Western audience members, besides a general interest in the melody of Chinese folk songs, also pay attention to the singing and playing techniques in Chinese songs, according to Zhou. "I'm writing the Chinese stories using Western media," he said. "It's not a responsibility but my nature, because I grew up with the (Chinese) culture and would like to use the culture as a uniqueness." He also encourages other composers and his students to use their own cultures to make their musical messages more original. If they study their own cultures, they'll benefit from it, he said. Zhou also serves as the director of Music From China, a group founded in 1984 and made up of traditional Chinese instrumentalists. For three decades, the group has brought genuine traditional Chinese music to audiences in the New York area and beyond. Music From China performers have carved a unique place in the music world by playing not only the traditional repertoire, but contemporary work using traditional Chinese instruments. They played nine songs, including Meihua Sannong (the triplex tune Plum Blossom), one of the most favored qin (seven-stringed zither) compositions among both traditional qin artists; Chinese folk songs and some of Zhou's original works with instruments including the pipa (four-stringed Chinese lute), dizi (bamboo flute), erhu (two-stringed bowed instrument), zheng (21-or 25-stringed zither), xiao (vertical bamboo flute) and percussion. The event was held in partnership with the Chinese embassy's culture office. "I'm very delighted to be here to enjoy the Chinese concert tonight," said Zhou Yong, the office's first secretary. "It's a special Chinese event held in a special place. We see those Chinese red lanterns together with the Western oil paintings - a good combination, just like Zhou Long's music." "It exceeded my expectations," said Florence Fasanelli, a member of the Phillips Chamber Society who frequently attends the Phillips Music events. "I found the music exceedingly interesting. And the program was also well-designed with the variety of different kinds of pieces that were played." Yuan Yuan in Washington contributed to this story. Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site. License for publishing multimedia online 0108263 Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349 'The role of Parliament is to hold the government of the day, whichever party is in power, accountable for its actions, policies.' 'The amount we are wasting on Parliament is a very miniscule amount. But the cost of delay in policy-making is huge and that affects the entire nation.' IMAGE: A television grab of members protesting in the Rajya Sabha during the winter session of Parliament. According to PRS Legislative Research, more than 80% of productive time was washed out because of the demonetisation chaos during the winter session of Parliament. PRS Legislative Research's Dr M R Madhavan discusses with Rediff.com's Prasanna D Zore the impact of Parliamentary washouts on India. What is the role of Parliament in a democracy and what do Parliamentary washouts mean for India? What is Parliament for? Why do we have Parliament? The core thing about Parliament is its members represent Indian citizens. On behalf of citizens the MPs have been authorised to discuss, debate bills, etc, that the government (or any private member) introduces, examine it carefully, and reach at the best option available to enact the best laws for the citizens and the country. There could be contending interests, conflicting objectives, but the role of MPs is to debate these issues and reach at the best possible ways to make laws. Even more important role of Parliament is to hold the government of the day, whichever party is in power, accountable for its actions, policies, etc. By asking them questions, seeking answers and putting everything in public domain and Parliamentary records are preserved for posterity. The whole idea of this process is that you are arguing, trying to convince others about your point of view and if somebody else has a better point of view then they might convince you while you discuss and debate and find a way to enact best laws. Parliament is a forum for these processes. At a different level these processes provide legitimacy in the minds of people about democracy and the trust on which it works. Out of various pillars of the State like judiciary, executive, bureaucracy and legislature, only the legislature is elected directly by the people. When you and I vote, we don't really vote for the prime minister; we elect the MPs, and the party that has a majority of MPs choose their leader who then becomes the prime minister. People think that this is a system that is fair, visible, and is very responsive to their needs and demands and that is why any democracy works. This is the core basis of Parliament. Given a spate of Parliament washouts during UPA II as well as during the 16th Lok Sabha, do you think Parliamentary legitimacy is getting eroded in so far as how Indians have begun looking at it? If you see the way the judiciary has been acting in many ways lately... for example there is some part of the executive which is not functioning properly. Let us say, laws on food security. In this case, people go to the judiciary, but this law-making has nothing to do with the judiciary. It is the duty of the executive to make laws; the judiciary should act only if fundamental rights are at stake or essentially there are issues about Constitutional interpretation of laws. The role of holding the executive to account for its action or its policies is usually in almost any other country is not the domain of the judiciary. It is the legislature that does that. People, sometimes, directly go to the judiciary because they expect relief from the judiciary and not from Parliament. They don't petition Parliament; they petition the judges because the public expectation is the judiciary will solve their problems more than the laws of Parliament. But there is tremendous public faith in this country in electoral politics which can be seen from the voter turnouts during general elections. On this count we are doing better than mature democracies like the US or Europe where the voter turnout is more or less around 50 per cent. Is there a way whereby people can make their elected representative accountable to how they act in Parliament especially when Parliament is in session? There are several things here. There are structural problems. According to me the biggest structural problem is with the anti-defection law. It takes away the individual freedom from MPs on any vote. But you (the people) have voted for the MP; that MP is supposed to respond to your needs and also to her/his conscience. Not according to her/his party boss or high commands because s/he is a people's representative. If you look at the British parliament or the American senate all votes are recorded. If you saw the presidential debates, Hillary Clinton, who used to be a senator, people ask her why she voted in a particular manner in the senate. You can't ask that in India because your vote is not recorded; it is done by voice vote. The media too has a big role to play; I am not blaming the media, because if there is information, the media will put out that information for the benefit of the people. That will help people assess parliamentary performance of their representatives and put further pressure on their elected MPs and MLAs. What is the cost to the exchequer when a Parliamentary session is washed out? (That is) very difficult to estimate. I will not use any number because any number would sound silly and the numbers that people put out in terms of money wasted. Let us look at it this way. Let us say there is an important higher education reform pending Parliamentary approval and (because of Parliamentary washouts) that is delayed by a year. There are two crore (20 million0 careers affected in this country because of this one-year delay. Like, GST could have been passed four years ago. And if you believe that the passage of GST will have added 1% to India's GDP then in the last four years we have lost 4% of GDP. If you are not doing judicial reforms through Parliament, then the delivery of justice is getting affected. How do you estimate this loss in terms of money? The point is the amount (in money terms) we are wasting on Parliament is a very miniscule amount. But the cost of delay in policy-making is huge and that affects the entire nation. How many bills couldn't be passed in the winter session of Parliament because it has now turned out to be a washout? Not too many bills were listed in this session. But take the case of the Disabilities Bill (2014). The Rajya Sabha has passed it and the Lok Sabha will probably pass it too. Then there was the Income Tax (Amendment) Bill that was passed after the demonetisation move, which was passed by a voice vote amid noise, and you saw there were MPs who wanted to move amendments but were not allowed to do that because the bill was not passed in the most Parliamentary manner. I think while doing so you need to have discussions because they play an important role. Let us say somebody files a petition in a court over the Constitutionality of a law. It is the role of the Supreme Court and high courts to interpret the law. There may be some ambiguity in the way a law is framed. That is when interpretation comes into the picture. And when one realises that that particular law was passed without much discussion and debate, then it proves to be very harmful for the country. There were about 10 to 12 bills that were lined up for enactment into laws. How many Parliamentary sessions have been washed out after Narendra Modi became prime minister? It depends upon what you mean by washed out. Like there was no business transacted when the Parliament was in session? That is zero except the last time in December 2010 (during the UPA II rule) when they (the Opposition) wanted a Joint Parliamentary Committee to probe the 2G spectrum scam, which was possibly the worst session we have had. After this government came in, the monsoon session (see the table above) last year was a particularly bad session. There were bills passed, but most of the time was lost because there was lot of din over the Vyapam scam and the Lalit Modi issue. When was the last time that Parliament passed a significant law without much disruption and chaos? The GST (Constitutional Amendment) Bill comes immediately to my mind. It is not that there is no serious, intelligent, meaningful debate in our Parliament. But this particular (winter) session was a huge disappointment. The quality of discussion during the passage of the GST Bill was as good as it gets in terms of the quality of debate and counter debates. They were discussing the clauses; they were discussing the big issues; discussing the details, a very high quality of debate. Also, there was detailed debate for Aadhar. There are many more, but these two debates in 2016 come immediately to my mind. Please turn JavaScript on and reload the page. Loading... Checking your browser before accessing the website. This process is automatic. Your browser will redirect to your requested content shortly. Please wait a few seconds. AN GIANG Viet Nam expects to gain a year-on-year increase of 6.6 per cent in export value of tra fish for this year to US$1.6 billion, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. The ministry released the figure at a conference reviewing production and consumption of tra fish this year held in An Giang Province on Wednesday, reported vov.vn. At the conference, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong said the nation achieved slight growth in tra fish export value this year, despite many challenges in markets and climate change. This year, Vietnamese tra fish products were shipped to 140 markets, four more than last year. The US was still the largest export market of Vietnamese tra fish with an estimated export value of $360 million, he said. Next year, the domestic tra fish industry expects to have output of 1.1 million tonnes and will focus on improving quality of tra fish varieties and quality standards for production and promote co-operation among farming households to supply materials for processors of export tra fish, according to the ministry. Vietnamese tra products had diversified and become more competitive but they still faced commercial and technical barriers in importing countries, Cuong said. Catfish inspection programme In other developments, the Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers said many participants of a hearing entitled Waste and Duplication in the USDA Catfish Inspection Program held by US Energy and Commerce Committees Subcommittee on Health in Washington on December 7 opposed the catfish inspection programme. At the hearing, Joseph Pitts, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Health, said the US already had a federal agency responsible for overseeing the safety and inspection of other types of seafood, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), according to www.energycommerce.house.gov. As Members of the Health Subcommittee of the Energy and Commerce Committee with direct oversight of the FDA, it is illogical (and wasteful) that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) would be given the exclusive authority to oversee and regulate catfish only, while the FDA regulates all other seafood, said Pitts. Catfish is an extremely low risk food product. Explicitly creating a programme exclusively for catfish is unnecessary. Since the very beginning of this transfer of regulation (from FDA to USDA) the justification was to ensure food safety. But USDAs expertise is meat and poultry, not fish. Frankly, the real aim of this move was to hinder foreign firms importing catfish so they would be unable to compete with domestic catfish farmers. Such actions could trigger a World Trade Organisation lawsuit. Pitts also said another concerning aspect was that this USDA programme had cost American taxpayers an exorbitant amount of money without much to show for it. The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued no less than nine reports indicating that the responsibility for inspecting catfish should not be assigned to the USDA, he said. Kimberly Gorton, President and Chief Executive Officer of Slade Gorton & Co., Inc said her company was one of Americas largest distributors and manufacturers of fresh, frozen and premium value-added seafood products. The USDA programme is a complete waste of tax dollars. Our government is already squeezing job-creating small businesses, and this programme is a needless, costly and duplicative regulation that burdens my company and all other seafood companies, Gorton said. Ending this programme and its bloated USDA payroll would show that Congress was listening and responding to their concerns, she said. - VNS by Minh Huong Most people enjoy the festive season with families and friends, but for many others, especially those who are poor or ill, they may be struggling with homelessness or feelings of loneliness on Christmas or New Years Eve. To spread a little joy and fun this season, students from the Social Work Club at the Foreign Trade University in HCM City are taking part in an annual charity campaign ong trao yeu thuong (Giving Love in Winter). The Social Work Club, whose slogan is Spend Your Heart, Spend Your Love, has two main activities: The Loving Meal and The Dreaming Christmas Tree. More than 30 students cook and distribute meals as part of the Loving Meal campaign. They delivered 600 meals to patients at the HCM City Oncology Hospital on December 1 and young patients at HCM City Pediatrics Hospital 1 a week later. Ive seen many poor and homeless people on the street, but I was reluctant to help them because of embarrassment. Then The Loving Meal gave me a chance to give meals to people in difficulty, which has been extremely meaningful for me, said Hoang My, a 19-year-old volunteer. As part of the Dreaming Christmas Tree activity, the students recently travelled to Nhon Trach District in ong Nai Province to ask poor children what they would like to have for Christmas. The students then returned to HCM City and placed presents under a Christmas tree at the university campus. After two weeks, 90 gifts had been carefully prepared for the kids. They are young, so their wishes were innocent. They made us think about how to make up for their losses, so we came back and really wanted to organise this activity, said Giang Nguyen, the leader of Dreaming Christmas Tree. Trinh Thuy An, a seven-year-old girl, told the students that she wanted a crayon set and colouring notebook, while a girl named Pham Thi Tuyet Minh said she wanted a desk for studying. Trung Kien, 7, hoped for a superman figure, while a young boy named Nguyen Hiep Huy wanted new clothing. Though they are only material objects, the gifts have spiritual value as well. By helping make their dreams come true, the university students see themselves as compassionate stand-ins for Santa Claus. The students will deliver the gifts to the children in Nhon Trach District in ong Nai Province on December 14 and 16. All of the student volunteers are passionate about raising funds and calling on sponsors for their charity campaign. Despite the hot weather of HCM City last month, they travelled to many universities, high schools and parks to sell corn milk and cakes to raise funds. Fortunately, other students at Foreign Trade University and local universities, as well as Dieu Phap Pagoda and other sponsors, gave the club many donations. Even though they had difficulties during fundraising, including a lack of peers and the pressure to raise money, they were able to overcome them. Without the Loving Meal or Dreaming Christmas Tree activities, my Christmas would not have been complete, one student volunteer said. VNS by Thu Hang HCM CITY Tran Ngoc Ha from HCM Citys District 3 says she drinks hot tea every day, but still doesnt know how to make it properly. It may seem surprising that someone from a tea-drinking nation is not familiar with all things tea, but Ha said she learned some interesting facts about her favorite drink at the Taste of the World 2016 culinary festival now being held at HCM Citys Le Van Tam Park in District 1. Besides tea, Ha and other visitors can sample through the weekend specialties from different countries and localities at 150 booths showcasing dishes prepared by international and local restaurants along with food and beverage firms from 20 countries and territories. Nguyen inh Nam, a representative of Tan An Tea Joint-Stock Company, said that his company was taking part in the four-day fair for the first time to promote the Vietnamese tea drinking culture as well as tea products. Tea is one of the most consumed drinks in Viet Nam, but many people have not mastered the proper way to prepare a teapot, Nam said. We invite visitors to stop at our booth to learn the correct way. Its also the best way to introduce our products to customers who can try before buying, he said. Tea should be prepared in warm pots with hot water measured at 90 Celsius. Boiling water burns the tea and destroys the sweet taste of the tea, Nam said. The fair, with the theme The Art of Multi-Sensory Cuisine, aims to promote both traditional Vietnamese cuisine and the cuisines of other countries, according to Bui Ta Hoang Vu, director of the citys Tourism Department. Some of the more delicious offerings are the specialties of Mien Tay (Mekong Delta) such as banh xeo (crispy pancakes), goi cuon (spring roll), banh da lon (steamed layer cake) and banh bo (steamed rice cake). Dean Parker, 52, from the US, who has lived in the country for three years, said that he loves Vietnamese coffee and food. I had some milk coffee and will buy Vietnamese coffee to make at home. One booth featuring the traditional Malaysian cake Roti was especially popular with visitors. Malaysian cooks gave demonstrations on how to cook Roti with cheese, chicken, beef or eggs. The snacks sell for VN20,000-50,000 (US$0.8-2.2) each. Traditional culinary craft villages are also featured, with the aim of preserving traditional cultural values of the country. As part of the fair, chefs from 16 five-star hotels in HCM City, including the Sheraton, Reverie, Sofitel and Rex, are showing their special wedding cakes and sweet cakes during this wedding season at a Five-Star Chef festival on Saturday (December 17). Also on Saturday, professional cooks from the World Food Culture Centre will demonstrate how to cook Korean food. Tourism rises The fair and similar activities have helped to increase tourism in the city. In fact, the number of international tourists visiting the city rose by 10 per cent this year to reach 5.2 million, according to the tourism department. The city also welcomed 21.8 million domestic visitors this year, a year-on-year increase of 10 per cent. Next year, the city targets receiving 5.5 million international visitors and 24 million local visitors. VNS HCM CITY An exhibition of 80 photos featuring Vietnamese soldiers and people who took part in the resistance war has opened on Nguyen Hue Pedestrian Street in downtown HCM City. The Truyen Thong Hao Hung Cua Quan oi va Nhan Dan Viet Nam (Patriotic Tradition of Viet Nams Army and People) exhibition includes rare photos of the establishment of the Viet Nams Peoples Army and its role in the war to maintain national independence in the 1941-1975 period. Images of HCM Citys Armed Forces during peaceful, modern times are on display as well. The photos feature the achievements and contributions of the armed forces to ensure the citys social security as well as national security. The images of exchange activities between the Peoples Army of Viet Nam and armies of foreign countries are also on display. All of the photos are printed on canvas and displayed outdoors. They can be seen until December 30, 2016. Another exhibition under the same theme showing images of Ha Nois soldiers and citizens valiantly fighting against French colonialists for 60 days (December 19, 1946 February 17, 1947) are on display at the Vietnam News Agency (VNA)s headquarters in Ha Noi. The monochrome photos were taken by VNA photojournalists during the historical period. Through the images, visitors can understand more about the struggle and how the Capital Regiment and Hanoians protected the city. Until mid-December 1946, the situation in Ha Noi and other regions from the 16th Parallel to northern Viet Nam was becoming increasingly serious as the French sped up their invasion. On the evening of December 19, 1946, Vietnamese troops zeroed in their cannon on Lang Fortress, initiating the war. The next morning, the Voice of Viet Nam Radio broadcasted President Ho appeals for national resistance. The VNA organised this exhibition to mark the event. It will run until December 24 at VNAs headquarters, 5 Ly Thuong Kiet Street, Ha Noi. VNS Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) receives Irish Ambassador to Viet Nam Cait Moran at a meeting yesterday . VNA/VNS Photo Thong Nhat HA NOI Ireland will work to push the Viet Nam-European Union free trade agreement, the Irish Ambassador to Viet Nam, Cait Moran, told Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc at a meeting yesterday. The ambassador informed PM Phuc that Ireland was expanding the provision of scholarships and improving visa granting procedures, adding that she hoped more Vietnamese students would receive scholarships to study in Ireland and more Vietnamese tourists would travel to the European country. Phuc noted that the recent visit to Viet Nam by Irish President Michael Daniel Higgins was a success, creating a new impetus for bilateral relations. He said Viet Nam hoped to boost trade and investment ties with Ireland, while looking for Irelands help in education and training, as well as assistance for the early signing of the Viet Nam-EU free trade agreement. VNS Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh receives Secretary of State at the Polish Presidents Chancellery Krzysztof Szczerski in Ha Noi yesterday. VNA/VNS Photo An ang HA NOI Secretary of State at the Polish Presidents Chancellery Krzysztof Szczerski has affirmed that Poland highly values Viet Nams position in Southeast Asia and wants to foster all-round ties with the country. Meeting Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh in Ha Noi yesterday, Szczerski said Poland backed Viet Nams strengthening of ties with the European Union (EU) and would push for the signing of the EU-Viet Nam free trade agreement. Minh, for his part, agreed with the guest on closer liaisons to prepare for the Viet Nam visit by the Polish President next year. The host suggested establishing an Inter-Governmental Committee on economic cooperation and signing a framework agreement on financial co-operation, under which Poland will supply a preferential credit package worth 250 million euros (US$261.1 million) to Viet Nam. Both sides pledged to continue refining a legal framework for bilateral co-operation and signing co-operation agreements on customs, aviation, tertiary education and scientific research. On regional and global issues of shared concern, Szczerski expressed his support of Viet Nams viewpoint on settling disputes in the East Sea (South China Sea) by peaceful means in line with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), ensuring security, safety and freedom of maritime and aviation activities in the East Sea. VNS Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has congratulated Ambassador of Timor Leste Jorge Trindade Neves De Camoes on fulfilling his assigned tasks during his four-year tenure in Viet Nam. VNA/VNS Photo Thong Nhat HA NOI Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has congratulated Ambassador of Timor Leste Jorge Trindade Neves De Camoes on fulfilling his assigned tasks during his four-year tenure in Viet Nam. During a reception in Ha Noi yesterday, the Government leader hailed the growing bilateral ties over the ambassadors term. He especially pointed to growth in trade and telecommunications, which he said is partly attributable to the ambassadors efforts. Expressing his wish for increased economic ties, particularly in rice trade, the PM affirmed that Viet Nam stands ready to supply rice to Timor Leste for the long-term. The outgoing ambassador hopes that the Vietnamese government will encourage firms to do business in Timor Leste and vowed that in any position, he will serve as a bridge to step up bilateral ties. VNS HCM CITY Cho Ray Hospital and Van Khang SOS Company yesterday signed an agreement for developing a home-based healthcare service and emergency aid system outside hospitals. The hospital will provide its ambulances and medical staff for the services. To use the services, people have to download an app of VK-SOS from App Store, Google Play or www.vankhangsos.vn, and register their information or that of their relatives with the company. Doctors who live near the patients house will receive the information from the operator and call the patient to make an appointment. Assoc Prof Dr Nguyen Truong Son, the hospitals head, said the hospital is overloaded and providing home-based healthcare services would help ease the pressure, he said. The Government encourages this kind of service, he added. Dr Le Truong Giang, chairman of the citys Public Health Association, said the service would help seniors with chronic diseases and patients having difficulties travelling to be examined and treated. VNS By Thu Trang HA NOI Fifty-year-old Le Thi Lanh gets up at 5.30am everyday to prepare sticky rice to sell on the pavement of Ha Nois Trung Liet Street. Coming from ai Thang Commune, Phu Xuyen District in Ha Noi, she has sold sticky rice in ong a District, one of the capital citys main districts, for more than 20 years. I missed my children so much at first, especially my youngest daughter. Every time I left for work in central Ha Noi, she cried and begged me to stay, said Lanh. I fought my tears and told her that I would be away only for a little while and back really soon, she said. Lanh started selling sticky rice in 1994. Before, she grew rice in her hometown, but income from the work did not provide enough for her three childrens schooling and her familys daily life. Seeing children in the village leaving for university, I dreamt that my own children could do the same one day. It drove me to move somewhere and kept me going when times were tough, she said. Lanh is among a great number of migrant-workers in Ha Noi in particular, and in Viet Nam in general. Viet Nam has undergone a significant transition over the last three decades. 13.6 per cent of Vietnamese citizens over the past five years have been migrants. Approximately 19.7 per cent of the urban population are migrants, where the figure is only 13.4 percent of the rural population. The Southeast region has the highest proportion of migrants at 29.3 per cent. These findings were disseminated at the national workshop on the results of the 2015 national internal migration survey, held yesterday in Ha Noi by the General Statistics Office (GSO) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Viet Nam. The 2015 National Internal Migration Study was conducted in 20 provinces and centrally-run cities representing the countrys six socio-economic regions, and in the two largest cities of Ha Noi and HCM City. This is the second national internal migration survey conducted by the General Statistics Office. The first survey was conducted in 2004. According to the final results, female migrants make up 17.7 per cent of the female population aged 15-59; this figure for male migrants is 16.8 per cent. Nguyen Bich Lam, GSO general director, said that migrants, especially temporary ones, often meet several obstacles. Migrants often lack access to basic social services and cannot become part of the host communities in their destinations in a way that allows them to fully participate in local social and economic activities. According to the survey data, of all difficulties faced by migrants, housing is most common. 42.6 per cent of migrants reported that they have housing problems. Migrants are more likely to seek support from family members, relatives and friends, rather than the local authorities, organisations and unions in destination areas. Lanh said that when she first came to Ha Noi, she had to spend a lot of time and efforts to find an accommodation. Cheap houses were too far whereas the nearer options were too expensive for her budget. At last, she shared a small room no more than 10sq.m with two other people, priced at some thousands of ong per person per night. More than 30 per cent of migrants sent earnings back to their family within the 12 months prior to the survey, with female migrants slightly more likely to remit than were male migrants, a difference of 30.8 per cent versus 29.2 per cent. Although female migrants are more likely than males to send remittances, the total amount of remittances sent by male migrants is higher. Up to 41.5 per cent of male migrants sent remittances in cash and in kind worth more than VN6 million (US$260) and above compared to the 34.7 per cent of female migrants. Lanh said that every day she earned about VN200,000 ($8). After deducting expenses, she could send about VN4 million ($170) to her hometown. General director Lam said, To address these challenges against migrants, over the last decade, Viet Nam has made great efforts to raise awareness about migration issues among policy makers and to support migrants in ensuring their basic rights and social security needs are met. Migrants have been both the consequence and the key driving force behind Viet Nams socio-economic development, but so far their contributions have not been fully recognised. The findings of the survey are excellent evidence that can be used to provide the basis for formulation of policies on socio-economic development in general and migrants in particular, he said. Astrid Bant, UNFPA Representative in Viet Nam, said, migration must be included in the socio-economic development policies and plans at all levels. It is especially important in the context that Viet Nam is in the process of implementating the recently approved 2016-20 Socio-Economic Development Plan and the National Action Plan to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, she said. The 2015 Migration Survey provides critical data for the government to create and manage sound evidence-based policies and plans to address the current and future needs of migrants. Therefore, GSO may consult with relevant ministries and Government Office to add the Migration Survey to the list of Vietnamese surveys to request research resources. The results of the 2015 Migration Survey help us better understand the impacts of internal migration in Viet Nam and will hopefully identify key changes needed in policies and practices to provide more options for the migrants--especially the poor and vulnerable--so that they, and society as a whole, can benefit from voluntary economic migration, she said. Now Lanhs children have all grown up and graduated. One graduated with a degree in education, one in banking and the youngest one from a vocational training college. And she still works hard with hope for a better living condition. My husband and I may not be better off, but seeing our children growing up and studying hard makes me happy, she said. Im growing old now. Im trying to work and save money for retirement and to pay for healthcare, she said. VNS BINH INH Ministries, agencies and central province administrations have been asked to work harder to deal with widespread flooding, which have heavily damaged the region. Inspecting flood response in Binh inh Province - one of the localities affected by the heavy flooding - yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister Trinh inh Dung offered sympathies to flood victims and asked Binh inhs authorities to mobilise all resources and have plans ready to timely deal with all situations. He stressed that local officials should visit and encourage flood victims and prepare to help local residents resume their daily routines after the flood is over. From late November to yesterday, flooding caused by heavy rains killed 25 people and injured 10 others in Binh inh. More than 57,400 houses were deep underwater, 348 collapsed, and another 398 were unroofed--according to the provinces steering board for disaster prevention, search and rescue. Over 13,500ha of rice and 3,500ha of other crops were destroyed in floods, which also washed away some 3,180 livestock and 195,500 poultry. Total damage is estimated at over VN1.23 trillion (US$54 million). Mass flooding More communes and villages in Thua Thien-Hue, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Binh inh, as well as Phu Yen and Khanh Hoa, were flooded as the region experienced average rainfall ranging from 150mm to 400mm over the last two days. Further, 14 hydro-power plants and eight irrigation lakes in the central and Central Highlands region started discharging water through the spillway from Thursday. Six reservoirs of hydro-power plants in Thua Thien-Hue, Quang Nam and Phu Yen discharged a huge capacity of water, including Huong ien in Hue (1,233cu.m. per second), Binh ien (892), Song Tranh 2 (2,606) and Song Bung 4 (917) in Quang Nam Province, as well as Ba Ha (2,800) and Vinh Son C (2,096). The floods isolated and disrupted traffic on 16 provincial roads in Thua Thien-Hue as main roads in the districts of Phong ien, Quang ien and Huong Tra were submerged, with water as high as 0.3m-2m. Heavy flooding also occurred in the districts of ai Loc, ien Ban, and Duy Xuyen and Hoi An City in Quang Nam, while four districts Nghia Hanh, Mo uc, uc Pho and Tu Nghia in Quang Ngai Province were also submerged in 0.7-1.5m deep water. More than 823 households in Tu Nghia District in Quang Ngai were isolated, while some inner roads of Quang Ngai City were also submerged in water as high as 0.5-0.8m. Rescue forces in the central province helped 1,579 households move to safety. The Centre of Flood and Storm Prevention in the Central and Central Highlands regions warned that provinces from Thua Thien-Hue to Phu Yen could get rainfall ranging from 200mm to 300mm until Saturday, while medium rainfall would occur in the coastal south central provinces from today through Sunday. The water level also rose from 1.8m to 2.5m (over emergency grade 3) in ancient Hoi An City and in the suburban areas along the Hoai River yesterday morning. In a Nang City, the floods isolated 420 households in Hoa Lien Commune in suburban Hoa Vang District, while 105ha of recently-sowed rice was inundated with water. One person died and another was injured, while about 24ha of rice and 370ha of other crops were damaged. Many roads were deluged or eroded, isolating some localities, according to the provinces steering board for disaster prevention, search and rescue. Land erosion Meanwhile, torrential rains caused serious land erosion at Ca Pass in Phu Yen Province, leading to hours-long traffic congestion early this morning. According to Phu Yens Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Search and Rescue, thousand tonnes of soil and rock fell down from the pass, which connects Phu Yen and Khanh Hoa provinces, paralysing the north-south traffic flow on National Highway 1 from around 10pm last night. At times, vehicles were seen queuing up for dozens of kilometres. Two cars were damaged, but no one was injured. Colonel Nguyen Phi Long, head of Phu Yens Transport Police Department, said at 8am this morning, the rescue force temporarily cleared the soil and rock on two-thirds of the road where erosion had occurred. One-way traffic on National Highway 1 through this area was restored. The provincial Department of Transport said heavy rainfall and floods also caused land depression in many areas of National Highway 1 passing through the province. The most serious incidents occurred at Km 1294 + 200 in Vuon Xoai Slope and in Xuan ai Ward, Song Cau Town. Co Ma Pass in neighbouring Khanh Hoa Province also reportedly suffered from land erosion. Torrential rainfall is continuing in both Khanh Hoa and Phu Yen provinces. Hydropower plants in the two provinces said they would discharge water in large quantities at noon and this afternoon. Households in 17 communes in Phu Yen Province have been flooded. Water level of the rivers in Quang Nam, Binh inh, Quang Ngai, Phu Yen and Gia Lai is expected to rise through this weekend. - VNS Political parties depositing old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes in their accounts are exempt from income tax, Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia clarified on Friday, even as the government levied stiff penalty on unaccounted cash in banks and came out with new disclosure scheme. 2016 Award Winners SuE ScARBROugh Realtor of the year Berkshire hathaway STEVE KNApp Distinguished Realtor of the year Lockard Realty DANIELLE MORRIS Rookie Realtor Achievement Inspired Realty TOM hERzMANN presidents Award Outstanding Service & Support Oakridge Realtors RyAN BAcKES community Service Award Oakridge Realtors LISA SONBERg Outstanding Secretaries cedar Valley Iowa Realty charles city/Decorah/ New hampton chRISTINE KAMSTRA Outstanding Secretaries cedar Valley Iowa Realty charles city/Decorah/ New hampton STAcIE cOOpER presidents Special Service Award Sweeney Real Estate TRAVIS BuShAW 1st Vice president gERALD SORENSEN 2nd Vice president DAVE McRAE Treasurer 2017 Board of directors - executive ROcKy SMALLEy president What started out as a small organized group of real estate agents in the early 1900s evolved into an association of professional agents known as the Northeast Iowa Regional Board of Realtors. The board consists of 13 counties, with approximately 700 REALTOR members. Each agent is a member of the local Board as well as the Iowa Association of Realtors and the National Association of Realtors. The Mission of the Northeast Iowa Regional Board of REALTORS is to advocate property rights, inform the public of real estate issues, promote the values of REALTOR, and provide technology and educational opportunities to our members. 351 Fletcher Ave., Waterloo, IA 50701 319-234-1731 HAMPTON -- A Hampton man was among eight people in a large drug ring sentenced to federal prison this week. Miguel Mendoza, 26, received a prison term of six years and six months after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Mendoza and his co-defendants, who were from Marshalltown, Evansdale, Waterloo and California, were responsible for distributing hundreds of pounds of meth, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Iowa. Beginning in the spring of 2013, a drug trafficking organization responsible for distributing ice methamphetamine was formed, officials say. WATERLOO Residents arriving early Saturday for St. Vincent de Pauls annual Christmas distribution were greeted by snowy, freezing weather. But they left with a heart-warming bundle of Cedar Valley generosity. This means my family is going to have a nice Christmas, said Curtis Plain, who stood in line outside the National Cattle Congress pavilion for more than two hours. Plain was among more than 500 people in need who signed up for the chance to get donated toys, winter coats and food baskets through the event coordinated by the local charity and volunteers from Catholic parishes. Thank God for whoever is giving gifts for the holidays, Plain said. Its a blessing to have something, and I appreciate it. Silvia Brewer was also grateful for the chance to get gifts for her family this year. I just lost my job Dec. 5, Brewer said. I have two girls, and want them to have something for Christmas. I didnt come last year because I was working and I try to leave it for the people who really need it, she added. But this year it was me. Karen Buchanan, who coordinates the event through St. Vincent de Paul, said more than 700 children were expected to get toys donated by the Toys for Tots program, individuals and churches. We are very blessed by the support that we get, Buchanan said. Once people sign up, they want to come back every year to help. That includes local dry cleaners who donate coats and International Paper, which provided 600 boxes. The Northeast Iowa Food Bank coordinated the food baskets. We get all of our food from the food bank, and weve got almost 13,000 items of food this year, said Dean Swinton, a volunteer at the event. We made up 486 boxes of food small, medium and large depending on the size of the family and there are 1,408 people in those families. St. Vincent de Paul served a record 560 families during the 2015 event and was expecting to see that many or more Saturday. Thats no surprise to the Rev. George Karnik, who was volunteering as a gift-wrapper but spends many hours working on programs in the community to help those living in poverty. Unfortunately not enough of our population is really aware of the poverty level in Waterloo, Karnik said. The need is great, as many reports show. Poor people, theres just more and more of them, and all the social agencies are getting taxed and running out of money, he added. There just isnt enough resources to deal with them all. Karnik said the annual Christmas distribution used to wrap up before noon in past years. But as numbers and need has grown, the last residents arent served until mid-afternoon. This is an incredible community event, he said. So many people are contributing. 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. How to watch, what to know about South Dakota State at Northern Iowa After suffering from financial troubles for seven long years, ex-Army veteran Ray finally turned to the crowd-funding platform gofundme.com and received great response from the backers. He has served the US Army for 12 years while stationed in Europe and Maine. During his service period, he has also toured Iraq and Afghanistan. He is married to his best friend and has a son and a daughter. His son was four when he adopted him after following a lengthy and costly process in Europe. Rays world turned upside down when he received the news from his command sergeant major that his wife had met with a serious accident and that she had succumbed to her injuries. He went into complete denial and rushed back to home to find that his wife was in ICU and after multiple surgeries and treatment she returned back home in a wheelchair. He did not work for the next 4 months and spent this time taking care of his wife and family which led to some financial troubles for him. The GAP insurance only helped him to recover the cost of the car at a much lower rate. He didnt buy another car but used the money received to get back to his new life in Maine. The financial troubles started increasing further and the close friends and family7 came to rescue but they could only do so much. Ray finally bought another car, a Hyundai accent especially for his wife as she still couldnt get out of the wheelchair but the trauma from the accident kept her away from using the car. Also, that one fireman told her that if she was in a smaller vehicle she wouldnt be alive instigated more fear in her. As a loving husband, Ray went on to purchase a newer Saturn Vue SUV for his wife which he couldnt afford. Although the accident happened due to snow and oil spill, but as per the German law, they still had to pay thousands of dollars as fine, adding more to their financial woes. After all these years of the incident, the family is struggling to pay back the money they borrowed from friends and family for which the fundraiser is started. Luckily enough, a number of people have understood the troubles of ray and came out to support him through Gofundme campaign. Company: Veteran Support Name: Raymond Soucy E_mail: raymondsoucy001@outlook.com Phone: 207-754-1234 Website: https://www.gofundme.com/veteransupport001 Country: United States Media Contact Company Name: Veteran Support Contact Person: Raymond Soucy Email: gracewilliamss91@gmail.com Phone: 207-754-1234 Country: United States Website: www.gofundme.com/veteransupport001 Lekki Lagos, February 1st 2019. Rilla Web Hosting, one of the top players in domain registration and web hosting has announces its full ... This week on Off-Centre, popular Tamil writer and journalist Vaasanthi evaluates the life and times of J Jayalalithaa. Vaasanthis biography Amma Jayalalithaas Journey from Movie Star to Political Queen is a bestseller. In a candid conversation with Anuradha SenGupta, Vaasanthi says that the rest of India will view Jayalalithaa as a very powerful, dynamic and determined leader who was never a good ally to national parties. Vaasanthi adds that Jayalalithas character was fascinating. According to her, People think that she entered politics very reluctantly, but then she was a born politician. She knew exactly what her next move would be, how she would behave, how she would treat her opponents, rivals, allies, she knew. That was amazing. Vaasanthi also talks about the unique nature of Tamil politics and the peoples outlook that let an actor who is a Brahmin become the head of an organisation which had its roots in a movement which was anti-Brahmin. She added that people accepted Jayalalitha and also her mentor MGR who was a Malayali. Catch the full conversation on Off Centre this Saturday at 8 PM and Sunday at 12:30 PM & 9:30 PM, only on CNN-News18 A spell of strong showers had made the mud road very slippery. That there was little light at that late hour made it worse. Same is right wing politics in Manipur. Ram Madhav of RSS who is National General Secretary, for North region, but hardly has any ground level knowledge of those region or state. Okram Ibobi Singh government might be corrupt but we cannot neglect the fact that the new joiners in Manipur BJP once broke bread with him. They are misguiding Ram Madhav on many fronts, but none of the BJP head is interested to check the reality. If this continues and seat sharing goes inappropriate, then BJP might face defeat in Manipur. As these days BJPs Narendra Modi targeting Congress in his every rally, his party workers too is following the same in every state. The issues on state level are different and BJP workers need to identify and address them on ground reality. Recently in a public meeting One by one, a number of local BJP leaders were introduced to the women by a party worker from the locality. They each gave a small speech. As the meeting progressed, a number of men crowded around the doorway, listening intently to each word. BJP MLA categorically asked the people, when did your MLA (Akoijam Mirabai Devi from Congress) visit you last? Why is it that you dont get drinking water even though you live in the Imphal West district, so close to the capital? Why is there no concrete road here? Why no streetlights for you? No drains? Do you get any BPL (below poverty line) family benefits? When did you last get rice under Antyodaya Anna Yojana? Did anyone of you get benefits under the Indira Aawas Yojana? How many of you are still in waiting list? Why dont you get all these facilities when these schemes are meant for you? How long will you keep quiet? BJPs councillor from Patsoi Chungkham Bijoy was just on attacking mode but he was not open to the people to speak. This where BJP loses, they never give ear to public or take direct feedback, they just attack the rivals and leave. Its high time people need someone to listen to them, and hope BJP realizes it. Manipur is the constituency of more women than men, trying to reach out to as many women voters is not easy, and if you dont pay attention to their grievances, she will surely not vote for the party or its leaders. Though the assembly elections in Manipur are about few months away, the BJP has been electioneering in the state for some months now. At the heart of its canvassing are these small meetings. These meetings are as much to canvass for the elections as to build the partys base among people. BJP is new in the state and they have to be much more conscious while dealing with voters. The other local party leaders and workers have been holding small booth level meetings, particularly in the valley districts, with the two-pronged agenda of educating the voters about the party and picking booth level workers. Everyone is trying hard to influence the people of the region. What has helped BJP to attract more people to the party in such a short span of time in Manipur is also that the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) workers have been working in these areas for some years now. On September 14, BJP president Amit Shah held a meeting in Imphal, there were reportedly about 30,000 booth level workers attending it. Most of them have joined the party through such colony meetings. Recently, Joykishan left Trinamool Congress, a Congress ally joined BJP just before by-elections. He won the Thangmeiband assembly seat for the party. Yet another former TMC member, Thongam Biswajit Singh, won the Thongjui seat for the BJP. Much to the joy of the national leadership, they helped the party debut in the Manipur assembly. In the 60-member house, BJP now has two members while the ruling Congress has 48 members. The stakes are obviously high. After the partys rousing win in Assam early this year, it has now set its eyes on making Manipur Congress mukt. The signs, so far, have been good for the party too. After making inroads in the by-elections, BJP won 62 of the 278 municipal councils in January this year, another first. (Congress got 108 seats.) The state BJP got yet another favourable message this past June. In the Imphal municipal corporation elections, BJP again for the first time grabbed ten seats (it won just one seat last time) while 12 went to Congress (14 earlier) and five to independent candidates. The party is hoping the anti-incumbency faced by the three-term-old Congress government will bring it the required numbers to form the next government in the state. But Congress is still strong in some pockets. While Congress is well entrenched in Manipur, BJP is still building its base in the state, mostly by borrowing leaders from other parties. So it is to be seen in coming times whether voters ignore that fact and go only for the party. Also, in Manipur, winning an election has a lot to do with money power. However, the BJP is also getting increasingly aware of the need to engage in some other burning issues. In the last few months, overtly or covertly, it has been addressing some issues. Take for instance, the street protests demanding the government introduce the Inner Line Permit (ILP), as wanted by people living in the valley districts, and a tacit support to the demand of the hill people for more autonomy. With the battle lines drawn rather sharply between two archrivals, it is a tough call for the states voters. However, it seemed easy for politicians to choose sides, a least some young ones. Many budding politicians who have joined the BJP seemed to be driven by the belief that BJP under Modi encourages young leaders. In coming times more Congress leaders may want to join BJP. Many have expressed confidence that the BJP will come to power in Manipur after the 2017 polls. Lets see how smart BJP moves here. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today demanded setting up of a commission to probe source of funding of political parties. He also questioned the central governments decision to exempt political parties from paying income tax while depositing old 500 and 1,000 rupee notes. He sought to link the Centres tax exemption decision to the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi yesterday, suggesting the announcement was outcome of the parleys between the two. Common people are being investigated if they deposit Rs 2.5 lakh individually. But if political parties are not going to be investigated even if they deposit Rs 2,500 crore following the decision, then it is wrong. We demand setting up of an independent commission to probe into bank accounts details of political parties over the past five years, to investigate into their sources of funding, Kejriwal said at a press conference. He also asked the Centre to make public details of money deposited by all political parties post-demonetisation and sought removal of the less than Rs 20,000 donation cap for tax exemption, saying each paisa the parties receive should be declared. The income tax returns filed by AAP right from its formation until now are being enquired into. We are presenting each of the receipts and vouchers to the income tax department. We are not scared, what other parties, BJP, are scared of? Why they too should not be probed? he asked. By Teresa Conrick The research on maternal antibodies as a cause of some cases of autism continues to grow. From TIME this week: "Mothers Antibodies May Explain a Quarter of Autism Cases" In a study published in Translational Psychiatry, researchers report that 23% of all cases of autism may result from the presence of maternal antibodies that interfere with fetal brain development during pregnancy. The work builds on a 2008 study from the same scientists that first described the group of antibodies in mothers-to-be. This is interesting and important work as we continue to see autism as a disorder with roots to the immune system. It did make me wonder if it was possible that the maternal immune activation discussed here as a cause in 23% of the cases could correlate to immune activation created artifically by influenza vaccination. It seemed a valid point and one worth investigating especially when I saw this, also in that TIME article: The antibodies belong to a class of compounds called autoantibodies, which are immune cells that the body makes to target often mistakenly its own cells. Scientists do not know why or when the mothers produce these antibodies, which appear to monkey with normal nerve development in the fetal brain by interfering with their growth, migration and genetic replication. It is possible that infections during pregnancy a known risk factor for autism can prompt the immune system to produce them. Exposure to toxic chemicals can also cause immune defenders to mistake healthy cells for invaders, Van de Water notes. Note the last two sentences - the first related to infection in pregnancy and the second to toxic chemicals. Can infection in pregnancy cause autism? I wondered about that and did some background reading and wrote this article in January, "Can Influenza Vaccines Cause Maternal Immune Activation Linked To Autism? Mothers who get the flu while pregnant could risk affecting their baby's brain, which might lead to 'infantile autism' in their child. A Danish study shows that children were slightly more likely to be diagnosed with the condition before the age of three if their mother had the flu. Researchers claim that when the mother's immune system is triggered - for example, when they have an influenza virus - it is possible that the foetus' developing brain could be affected. But they have clarified that pregnant women and mothers should not be concerned by the findings, as only a tiny portion of those who had influenza gave birth to children with 'infantile autism' and that the research was so limited and early that no concrete findings had been discovered." Interesting. So why is it then that in 1918, the Great Influenza Epidemic swept the world, but yet autism was not identified nor described until Dr. Leo Kanner diagnosed it with those first eleven children born in the 1930's?: Since 1938 , there have come to our attention a number of children whose condition differs so markedly and uniquely from anything reported so far that each case meritsand, I hope will eventually receivea detailed consideration of its fascinating peculiarities...." So let's look at the mechanism described: "..the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin 6, which is known to induce placental inflammatory processes46 and has been shown to mediate the neurodevelopmental effects of gestational inflammation.47 It is possible that such inflammatory processes could be related to the production of maternal antibodies that recognize fetal antigens through maternal-fetal cross talk48 or that maternal antibody to antigen interactions may precipitate inflammation-induced neurodevelopmental alterations similarly to bacterial or viral challenge." Web Toolbar by Wibiya Vice-President elect Mike Pence stated that US President-elect Donald Trump can use his extraordinary skills to reduce tensions around the world and resolve problems such as the Kashmir Issue and added that the new US administration intends to be fully engaged in South Asia and with India and Pakistan on issues such as Kashmir to promote peace and security. (Hindustan Times December 05, 2016) Over eight years back President-elect Barrack Obama (October, 2008) referred to Kashmir an interesting situation and said he was ready to explore USs role to devote serious diplomatic resources to figure out a plausible approach. The former US President Bill Clinton as special envoy, with his vast experience, could be chosen to deal with problem of Kashmir as he had played a vital role in ending the Kargil crises in Kashmir. President Obama takes office and completely forgets all about Kashmir and on the contrary offers India economic assistance, cooperation in building nuclear reactors and arming it militarily to maintain balance of power in the region mainly to contain the emerging super power China. That was the time when Pakistan was in shambles struggling to fight terrorism, sectarian killings and unprecedented corruption of political mafia within the country. To top it all, India mounted pressure on Pakistans eastern and western fronts to weaken Pakistan armys efforts to face the onslaught backed by Indian military and its intelligence agencies. US administration gave all possible support to Prime Minister Modis government to contain China as required but India soon realised growing Chinese economic progress with galloping speed could not be matched and focused more on its sworn enemy Pakistan instead. India had already been working on investing most of its resources to destabilize Pakistan so that it is declared a failed or terrorist state. Further break-up of Pakistan became imperative keeping in view the challenges faced by India especially on international level about questions raised on the indigenous independence struggle launched by people of Kashmir. India, frustratingly, while trying to crush uprising in Kashmir with an iron hand started skirmishes on Ceasefire Line in Kashmir with no realization that UNMOGIP (United Nations Military Observers Group for India and Pakistan) equipped with renewed facilities and manpower was keeping a stronger vigil to monitor the situation on Ceasefire Line and international border. Scores of lives lost and properties damaged on both sides would not deter India from continuously launching attacks to divert the attention of world community from Kashmir situation. It became worrisome for Pakistan when India exploited its facilitated stay in Afghanistan to engage Pakistan further through pushing in terrorists to cause severe damage to already crumbling Pakistan. In a turnaround situation, though Pakistan army and civilians suffered huge loss of life, economic indexes at the rock bottom and instability; Pakistan staged a reversal of all cataclysms by containing terrorism, corruption, sectarian killings and more importantly maintenance of law and order. Pakistan in the transition mode especially on the economic front is now inviting attention for enhanced business relations with partners in the Middle East, European Union and making better all time bonded relation with its trusted friend China. China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CEPEC) is already causing ripples in Indian hierarchy and political circles; India looks for some face-saving vis-a-vis its relation with USA. USA closely monitoring and watching its interests in South-Asia feels that India has failed in the mission assigned. Now that the political equation has changed, Pakistan emerging a key player in the region has consolidated its position and China already on its side, has amazingly to a large extent contained and rebuffed India. Pakistan proved Indias attempts of browbeating through war-mongering, non-existent surgical strikes, using Afghanistans soil to unnerve Pakistan army as futile and resultant waste of billions in financial resources culminating in a zero sum game. In the meanwhile, Pakistan-Russia relations have been growing stronger since Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu visited Pakistan in 2014 and last year, a landmark defence deal included the sale of attack helicopters to Pakistan. A consultation meeting on regional issues, economic cooperation and connectivity, was held (December 14, 2016) between the Russian delegation and its Pakistani counterpart. As reported in the Pakistani media, Russia has shown a considerable interest to join CEPEC which Russians denied and said the story is untrue. Donald Trumps nominee for Secretary of Defence, General James Mattis (subject to US Congress confirmation) came as a big surprise in India as General Mattis is known for his military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and more importantly is introduced to top brass of Pakistan army. Pakistan taking a stringent line, to deal diplomatically with US, is quite aware that US has a lot at stake in the region and cannot afford to abandon Pakistan. Pakistan media reports that Commander of US forces in Afghanistan Gen John W. Nicholson had a meeting with Pakistans new army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa (December 15, 2016) and discussed developing security situation of the region. Due to mounting international pressure India in a conciliatory move makes new overtures to Kashmiri leadership offering them some political settlement within the framework of Indian constitution. India has tried the formula before several times as people of Kashmir understand the purpose behind these offers. India knows very well that these kinds of offers would be rejected outright by Kashmiris and what India is hoping for is use of delaying tactics and buy time to ward of the international pressure. Kashmir, as always, will not settle for anything less than total independence. President-elect Donald Trump administration will be is a better position to broker an acceptable solution for Kashmir imbroglio for all stakeholders as now India depends on a new relationship it has forged with US mainly based on economic cooperation. US is quite aware that enough blood has been spilled in Kashmir and it has become a humanitarian problem for which very little attention is being accorded. Kashmir being a nuclear-flashpoint a resolved Kashmir problem can guarantee peace in south-Asia and the world at large. WASHINGTON, Dec. 16 Environmental Protection Agency officials received a mixed message from scientists assembled to review evidence of whether glyphosate is a human carcinogen. The members of a Scientific Advisory Panel concluded their four-day meeting in Arlington, Virginia, by offering opinions on EPAs conclusion that the active ingredient in Roundup, the worlds most widely used herbicide, is not likely to be carcinogenic to humans. The result: The panel was split on the issue. Some members backed EPAs finding and others said that the evidence was suggestive of carcinogenic potential for the chemical. Some on the panel were not expecting that. Im a little surprised theres this controversy. I thought EPA did a pretty good job, said Marion Ehrich, co-director of the Laboratory for Neurotoxicity Studies at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine. She supported the not likely conclusion, saying there just isnt enough (evidence) there to support any other finding. Rarely does a panel disagree as much as this one, said SAP veteran Kenneth Portier, a statistician with the American Cancer Society. He urged EPA to figure out how it plans to use epidemiology to inform its risk assessments, an issue raised recently by CropLife America, which petitioned the agency Nov. 29 to postpone regulatory decisions informed by epidemiological studies until it has adopted concrete data quality standards. Panel members who supported EPA said the evidence from the epidemiological and animal studies was simply not strong enough to support anything else. But there was uncertainty all around the table as members wrestled with EPAs review of the data in its September 2016 white paper. I am in agreement with EPA with a little reservation, said Aramandla Ramesh, a professor in the Department of Biochemistry & Cancer Biology at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee. He said that glyphosates role in promotion or progression of spontaneously induced lesions cannot be ruled out. Lianne Shepard, assistant chair in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences at the University of Washington, said that epidemiological studies that looked at whether glyphosate causes non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) were enough to tilt the scale in favor of a suggestive finding. Individually, the studies may not contain strong evidence of a connection between glyphosate exposure and NHL, but taken together, they do, she said. Clearly, its suggestive to me, and its the most appropriate public health conclusion to reach, she said. Kenny Crump, a private consultant and statistical modeler, repeatedly warned of the danger of recall bias in the epidemiological studies on glyphosate and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Recall bias refers to the problem of study participants accurately remembering what they did in the past. In the matter of the non-Hodgkin lymphoma studies, the issue would be farmers recollection of pesticide use. Its very difficult to remember what pesticides youre exposed to, Crump said. Related Articles Midwest, South split new GOP seats on Senate Ag panel But Shepard said that while she agreed that recall bias is a feature of case-control studies, it doesnt necessarily mean that they should be disregarded. The meeting featured more than an entire day of public comments, including a presentation by Peter Infante, a consultant and former OSHA epidemiologist who was originally included on the panel but was left off the roster after CropLife America questioned his objectivity. Speaking with reporters, Infante said he did not leave the panel voluntarily but declined to go into more detail. EPA has repeatedly declined to comment on the matter. Infante said his review of the epidemiological data, which focused on non-Hodgkin lymphoma, showed that glyphosate should be considered a likely human carcinogen. There also was a lengthy presentation by representatives of Monsanto, glyphosates original registrant. The scientists supported EPAs evaluation and noted that every regulatory body that has looked at glyphosate has concluded it is not carcinogenic. The controversy over the chemical primarily stems not from any regulatory finding, but from a conclusion by the World Health Organizations International Agency for Research on Cancer in March 2015 that glyphosate probably causes cancer in humans. At the SAP meeting, representatives of both the European Food Safety Authority and the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment offered testimony disagreeing with the IARC conclusion. Glyphosate is unlikely to be genotoxic, neurotoxic or toxic for the reproduction or development and is unlikely to pose a carcinogenic hazard to humans, the EFSA presentation said. Dow AgroSciences, Syngenta, BASF and DuPont Crop Protection also made presentations backing the not likely conclusion. On the other side of the question were groups such as Center for Food Safety, the Natural Resources Defense Council and Consumers Union. NRDC said EPA improperly dismissed evidence of elevated cancer in rodent studies. CFS said that even a finding of carcinogenicity for glyphosate would not lead to its banning. Many pesticides that EPA has designated likely to be carcinogenic to humans or probable human carcinogens are in widespread use today, the group said. More meeting materials are WASHINGTON, Dec. 16, 2016 - President Obama signed into law a water projects authorization bill and issued a statement cautioning agency managers to heed endangered species requirements before increasing irrigation water supplies in Californias drought-stricken Central Valley. Critics of the drought relief, led by retiring Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., said the provisions would divert more water to California farmers than should be permitted by biological opinions that enforce the endangered species protections and protect Pacific salmon fisheries. Obamas signing statement sought to address that concern by saying he interprets the legislation to require continued application and implementation of the Endangered Species Act, consistent with the close and cooperative work of federal agencies with the State of California to assure that state water quality standards are met. This reading of the short-term operational provisions carries out the letter and spirit of the law and is essential for continuing the cooperation and commitment to accommodating the full range of complex and important interests in matters related to California water. A spokesman for Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., who co-authored the provisions along with House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said the presidents statement was consistent with congressional intent. Paul Wenger, president of the California Farm Bureau, said the new law will provide needed flexibility in operating the pumps that supply the state and federal water projects. Like what you see on the Agri-Pulse website? See even more ag, rural policy and energy news when yousign up for a four-week free trial Agri-Pulse subscription. He said the provisions should have no negative impact on the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, since it will only take exceptional flows and capture those for use in the Central Valley and southern California. The biological opinions allowed biologists to utilize their intuition relative to harm to protected species, he said. They must now use metrics based on science and real-time data. Such a novel idea to base operations on such important things as our water infrastructure components on verifiable metrics. In order to ensure that farmers have adequate water during spring planting, the bill includes a provision that would expand the current water transfer period from the current July-September window to April-November. Another provision in the bill would require agencies to explain why they were pumping water at levels lower than what is allowed by biological opinions for protecting the fish habitat. The bill, called the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act, authorizes three inland navigation reports based on final Army Corps of Engineers reports - the Calcasieu Lock (Louisiana), the Upper Ohio Navigation System (Pennsylvania), and deepening of Brazos Island Harbor in Texas (Brownsville Ship Channel). #30 For more news, go to: www.Agri-Pulse.com Aiken Civic Ballet gives Aiken and Barnwell county students the gift of dance at a special Nutcracker performance. Birth defects seen in 6 percent of U.S. pregnancies with Zika Marco's Pizza Marco's Pizza Meat Supremo Pizza (Matt Wake/mwake@al.com) (bn) Here are the top stories in Alabama business for Friday, Dec. 16, 2016: Alabama-based defense shipbuilder Austal was given a boost Friday morning after the U.S. Navy announced that it would aim to expand its fleet from 308 ships to 355, one of the largest expansions in the last 30 years. -- A new Marco's Pizza opened in Trussville at 300 Main St. on Thursday. Marco's Pizza already has four locations in the Birmingham area: One in Birmingham, two in Hoover and one in Helena. -- An Alabama poultry processing plant was fined $29,039 by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration for four "serious" safety violations. Citations include failing to ensure each employee wears appropriate eye or face protection when exposed to hazards and failing to properly guard employees from machine hazards. -- Ohio-based Tire Discounters will open its first Alabama outlet in the Kroger-anchored shopping center Midtown Marketplace in Madison next year. Tire Discounts - a tire retailers and service center - has also signed a purchase sale agreement at Bradford Creek, another Kroger-anchored shopping center at U.S. Highway 72 and County Line Road in Huntsville. -- Follow all of Alabama's business news here anytime. AnthonyDewayneSmithArrested.jpg Anthony Dewayne Smith (Jefferson County Jail/Facebook) One suspect is in custody and more arrests are expected in the death of a Jefferson County teen gunned down in Lipscomb more than one week ago. Jefferson County sheriff's officials and Lipscomb police Friday evening announced the arrest of 20-year-old Anthony Dewayne Smith of Fairfield. He is charged with capital murder in the shooting death of 18-year-old Ashlynn Sparks. Lipscomb police Chief Steve Carey said the shooting death of Sparks and the wounding of her boyfriend, Jabarae Lagarde, happened during a robbery that was intentionally set-up. Smith was arrested Friday afternoon by deputies and Lipscomb police. He was booked into the Jefferson County Jail at 2:53 p.m. and is being held without bond. Authorities said at least one more person is sought. "I don't think he acted alone," Carey said. Sparks, who just turned 18 last month, was shot Wednesday, Dec. 7, in Lipscomb while in the car with her boyfriend of about two years. The shooting happened about 10 p.m. on Circle Avenue in Lipscomb. Sparks and her boyfriend were in a car at that location when two gunmen approached them, possibly to rob them. Lagarde tried to back up in an attempt to escape, and the assailants opened fire. Bullets peppered the car. Lagarde was struck in the arm or shoulder area. Sparks was struck in the hands - in what family believes are defensive wounds - and in the head. The couple fled and was en route to the hospital when they stopped at the Kangaroo Express on 14th Street and called for help. Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to the scene and both were taken to UAB Hospital. Sparks was pronounced dead Thursday, Dec. 8 at 11:27 a.m. Her funeral was held Friday afternoon at McCalla Memorial Funeral Home with burial following at Cedar Hill cemetery. Chief Deputy Randy Christian said once deputies learned the shooting happened in Lipscomb, they turned the probe over to them but did help process the scene and collect evidence. On Dec. 13, Lipscomb police asked for assistance with the investigation, he said. Sheriff's detectives began talking to potential witnesses and reviewing the evidence in the case. A suspect was developed from information provided. That led to the capital murder warrant and Smith's arrest. Sparks' mother, April Curb, said her daughter was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Neither she nor her boyfriend were armed, though Curb had warned her daughter to stay out of that "dangerous" area with her boyfriend. "I taught her to be street-wise. She knew the dangers that were out there, but she was naive," she has said. "The main thing I want to say is that I want kids to stay out of the streets." Sparks grew up in the McCalla and Bessemer areas, attending public schools until about two years ago. She was a cheerleader and was named Miss McAdory in the eighth grade. "She was very popular and very beautiful," Curb said. "She was giving and loving." Death row inmates.jpg The U.S. Supreme Court sent the cases of these four death row inmates back to the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals to review in light of a ruling overturning Florida's death sentencing scheme. The Alabama appeals court ruled on three of the cases on Dec. 16, 2016. (Photos/Alabama Department of Corrections) The Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals on Friday ruled the death sentences of three state inmates are constitutional and don't conflict with a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down Florida's similar death penalty sentencing scheme. The U.S. Supreme Court had vacated the sentences of Alabama death row inmates Ronnie Kirksey, Corey Wimbley, and Ryan Gerald Russell, this year and sent them back to the state appeals court to review in light of its Florida ruling. Alabama's death sentencing law has been compared to Florida's because both allowed judges to override jury recommendations for life and instead impose death. On Friday the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals said it wasn't the same and affirmed the convictions of Kirksey, Wimbley and Russell. The court said Alabama's law is constitutional and does not "run afoul" of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Hurst v. Florida in January. Prosecutors and Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange have repeatedly argued that Alabama's law was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1995 and is not the same as the portion of the Florida law struck down in Hurst. Florida's law had required the judge -- not the jury -- to find the existence of an aggravating circumstance in order for the defendant to be subject to the death penalty. Alabama's law already requires the jury to find an aggravating factor, such as murder during the commission of a robbery, kidnapping or rape, prosecutors argue. Therefore, at the time of conviction, the jury has already agreed upon at least one aggravating factor before the sentencing phase began. In Alabama, after the jury unanimously convicts a defendant with at least one aggravating factor at the trial jurors in a separate hearing then weigh any other aggravating factors and mitigating circumstances and recommend life without parole or death. Jurors must vote 10-2, 11-1 or 12-0 to recommend death. The judge then imposes the final sentence and at that time can override the jury's life or death recommendation. Most of the overrides in Alabama have resulted in the death penalty. In its order in Wimbley's case, the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals found that the jury - not a judge - had determined Wimbley was eligible for the death penalty because it had unanimously convicted him of murder during the course of a robbery and arson. Robbery and arson are both aggravating factors. "Consequently, the jury's guilt-phase verdict satisfied Wimbley's Sixth Amendment right to a jury finding as to the existence of an aggravating circumstance," the appeals court stated. "That, as the Alabama Supreme Court explained, is all that "Ring (a previous SCOTUS ruling) and Hurst require ... nothing more and nothing less." Florida's legislature enacted a new law that gives the jury, not the judge, the power to impose a death sentence. In Delaware, the only other state that allowed judicial overrides, that state's Supreme Court struck down its override law in August. That leaves Alabama as the only state that allows judicial override. Wimbley Wimbley was convicted in Washington County and sentenced to death in the death of 55-year-old Connie Ray Wheat at a grocery store in Wagarville. Kirksey Kirksey, of Gadsden, was convicted in the death of 23-month-old Cornell Norwood. The jury in 2010 found Kirksey guilty and unanimously recommended he be sentenced to death. The judge agreed and sentenced Kirksey to death. Russell Russell was convicted of murdering 11-year-old Katherine Helen Gillespie on June 16, 2008 in Shelby County. The jury unanimously to recommend Russell be sentenced to death and the judge followed the recommendation. A sheriff's deputy found Katherine's body in the backseat of a vehicle at Russell's home. Her body had been partially stuffed into a garbage can and covered in bloody towels and clothes. She had died as the result of a gunshot wound to her head. Russell was found inside the home. Russell's case was sent back by SCOTUS for review in October. Bart Johnson The U.S. Supreme Court this spring also sent back the case of death row inmate Bart Johnson for the state appeals court to review in light of its Florida ruling. The Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals, however, has not rendered an opinion in the Johnson case. Johnson was convicted and sentenced to death in Shelby County for the 2009 slaying of Pelham police officer Philip Davis during a traffic stop. Consistent with earlier rulings While the requests by the U.S. Supreme Court for the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals to review the case were pending, the criminal appeals court and Alabama Supreme Court had declared in other cases that the state's law was constitutional. Jefferson County Circuit Judge Tracie Todd in March ruled in four of her capital murder cases that Alabama's capital punishment sentencing scheme is unconstitutional based on the Hurst case. In June the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals ordered Todd to vacate her rulings and declared the state's law is constitutional. Then on Sept. 30, the Alabama Supreme Court weighed in. The Alabama Supreme Court ruled in the case of Death Row inmate Jerry Bohannon that Alabama's death penalty law is constitutional in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Hurst v. Florida. radar 2 am 1.jpg Storms continued to move across Alabama early Sunday morning. A severe thunderstorm watch remained in effect for parts of the state but storms were starting to lose some of their intensity. (NWS) Strong to severe storms were rolling across parts of Alabama early Sunday. A tornado watch for northern Alabama counties was canceled as of 2 a.m., but a severe thunderstorm watch was to remain in effect until 5 a.m. for parts of north and central Alabama: 1:07am CST #SPC_Watch WW 519 SEVERE TSTM AL GA TN 180705Z - 181100Z, https://t.co/Sg6YPNCcxt pic.twitter.com/3Bv58zMJ9V NWS SPC (@NWSSPC) December 18, 2016 Counties will likely be dropped from the watch after the initial line of storms moves through. Temperatures were falling rapidly behind the main line of storms as Arctic air spilled southward. Temperatures ranged from the 70s ahead of the front to the 40s in northwest Alabama. A winter weather advisory will go into effect for parts of north Alabama later this morning. The National Weather Service in Huntsville said up to a tenth of an inch of ice will be possible through the morning hours. The icing wasn't expected to be widespread but could cause slick road conditions through the morning. Here are updates from earlier this morning: 2 a.m.: The National Weather Service in Huntsville has canceled the tornado watch for Limestone County. That takes all of the Alabama counties out of the watch. A severe thunderstorm watch remains in effect for parts of north and central Alabama until 5 a.m. 1:50 a.m.: The cold air is barreling southward. Here's a status update from Memphis: Precipitation has changed over from sleet to snow at the office. Temp 31 degrees down from 75 at 6 pm #PolarExpress pic.twitter.com/q733o9bK45 NWS Memphis (@NWSMemphis) December 18, 2016 1:45 a.m.: Colbert, Franklin and Lauderdale counties have been dropped from the tornado watch. 1:35 a.m.: A severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for northwestern Madison and northeastern Limestone counties until 2:15 a.m. 1:30 a.m.: The winds are strong early Sunday even away from storms. Gradient winds in Winston County were blamed for knocking down a tree in Haleyville that is blocking a roadway. 1:25 a.m.: The cold air was moving into Alabama. Temperatures at Huntsville were still near 70 degrees but had fallen to 43 near Florence. 1:15 a.m.: A severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for southeastern Colbert, eastern Franklin and Lawrence counties until 1:45 a.m. The storm was located near Russellville and was moving east at 65 mph. 1:10 a.m.: A severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for northwestern Madison County and Limestone County until 1:30 a.m. The storms had gusts up to 70 mph and were located in a line from 10 miles west of Ardmore to 11 miles northwest of Athens to near Rogersville. They were moving east at 55 mph. 1:05 a.m.: The tornado watch has been dropped for Lawrence County. The watch will continue for parts of northern Alabama until 3 a.m. 1:05 a.m.: A severe thunderstorm watch has been issued for part of north and central Alabama until 5 a.m. Sunday: A severe thunderstorm watch has been issued for parts of Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee until 5 AM CST pic.twitter.com/S4S2vw4hIY NWS Atlanta (@NWSAtlanta) December 18, 2016 1 a.m.: Severe storms continued to move across north Alabama early Sunday. The leading edge of the line of storms was passing through Florence and was just to the west of Hamilton just before 1 a.m. No tornado warnings were in effect, but there were several strong to severe storms located over north Alabama. 12:50 a.m.: Strong but not severe storms were beginning to edge into central Alabama. The National Weather Service in Birmingham issued a significant weather advisory for northern Marion County. Those storms were located from southeast of Fairview to near Tremont and were moving northeast at 70 mph. 12:40 a.m.: A new severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for southern Franklin County until 1:15 a.m. The storm had potential wind gusts of up to 70 mph and was located 7 miles south of Red Bay. It was moving east at 55 mph. 12:40 a.m.: Emergency management in Colbert County reports multiple trees and power lines down in the Riverton area. 12:25 a.m.: A severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for east-central Colbert and southeastern Lauderdale counties until 1 a.m. The storm was located over Sheffield and was moving east at 50 mph. 12:20 a.m.: A new severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for parts of Colbert and Franklin counties. It will be in effect until 1 a.m. The storm was located near Belmont and was moving northeast at 70 mph. 12:10 a.m.: A severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for northeastern Lauderdale County until 12:45 a.m. The storm was located 10 miles northeast of Florence and was moving east at 35 mph. It had wind gusts estimated at 60 mph. 12:10 a.m.: The cold air is closing in. Temperatures just after midnight were in the 70s still all the way into north Alabama. However, behind the line of storms they were falling fast. Temperatures were in the 30s already in parts of southern Tennessee and northern Mississippi. 12:05 a.m. Sunday: The National Weather Service in Huntsville said rotation has decreased some in earlier storms, but forecasters were watching a storm near Cherokee and others near the Colbert-Franklin county line. 12 a.m. Sunday: The weather service in Huntsville has gotten reports of power outages in Lauderdale County in north Alabama. Trees have also been reported down in Colbert County. 11:55 p.m.: A new severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for Colbert and Lauderdale counties until 12:30 a.m. Sunday. 11:55 p.m.: A tornado watch remains in effect for part of northwest Alabama until 3 a.m. Sunday: 8:59pm CST #SPC_Watch WW 518 TORNADO AL AR LA MS TN 180255Z - 180900Z, https://t.co/YY3VJIsoXI pic.twitter.com/ICJUgyIusc NWS SPC (@NWSSPC) December 18, 2016 11:47 p.m.: The National Weather Service in Huntsville has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for part of Lauderdale County until 12:15 a.m. Sunday. The storm was located about 7 miles north of Cherokee and was moving east at 65 mph. Take Cover! Severe Thunderstorm Warning including Killen AL and Saint Florian AL until 12:15 AM CST pic.twitter.com/I1qoPKHMM1 NWS Severe Tstorm (@NWSSevereTstorm) December 18, 2016 11:45 p.m.: The weather service in Birmingham has issued a wind advisory for several central Alabama counties. It will be in effect until noon Sunday. WIND ADVISORY now in effect for much of Central AL 'til 12pm Sunday. Winds 15-20mph w/ gusts up to 35mph. #alwx pic.twitter.com/ipwyfqM3zJ NWS Birmingham (@NWSBirmingham) December 18, 2016 11:45 p.m.: Two tornado warnings were in effect for northwest Alabama, one for Lauderdale County and another for Colbert and Lauderdale. Both would last until midnight. No damage reports so far have come in to the National Weather Service in Huntsville. Original story: Storms were entering northwest Alabama late Saturday, and a tornado watch was in effect for the northwest corner of the state. The National Weather Service in Huntsville said "severe, possibly tornadic" storms would approach Alabama's Colbert and Lauderdale counties in the 11:30 p.m. to midnight timeframe. "These storms have a history of producing damage or showing signs of rotation," the weather service said in a special weather statement just after 11 p.m. "They are currently moving at approximately 70 mph. Residents in Colbert and Lauderdale counties should be prepared for possible warnings over the next hour as these storms approach northwest Alabama." The first tornado warning of the night was issued just after 11:20 p.m. for Lauderdale County. The storm was located over J.P. Coleman State Park and was moving east at 60 mph, the weather service said. A second tornado warning was issued just before 11:30 p.m. for parts of Colbert and Lauderdale counties. That storm was located near Midway and was moving east at 45 mph. Forecasters said several other cells could intensify as they move into Alabama. [11:36pm Sat] Tornado-warned storms moving into Lauderdale & Colbert Co's have a history of producing damage in NE MS--take cover now! NWS Huntsville (@NWSHuntsville) December 18, 2016 The tornado watch will be in effect until 3 a.m. Sunday, according to the Storm Prediction Center, and covers Colbert, Lawrence, Franklin, Limestone and Lauderdale counties. The best chance of seeing strong to severe storms overnight will be in northwest Alabama, according to the Storm Prediction Center. The areas in yellow could have scattered severe storms; the storms could be more isolated in the areas in dark green. (SPC) The watch also extends northward into Tennessee and southward into Mississippi. After a taste of spring-like temperatures on Saturday (Tuscaloosa had a record high of 76), a powerful Arctic cold front was poised to move into Alabama overnight. It will bring the risk of a few strong storms. Forecasters expected the front to enter northwest Alabama around midnight. The front will have another blast of Arctic air behind it, and the rain could transition to freezing rain in north Alabama on Sunday. The National Weather Service in Huntsville has already issued two winter weather advisories for extreme north Alabama. One will be in effect from 6 a.m. until noon on Sunday for Madison and Jackson counties. Another winter weather advisory will be in effect from 3 a.m. until 9 a.m. Sunday for Lauderdale, Colbert and Limestone counties. The weather service said ice accumulations of up to a tenth of an inch will be possible. A trace of sleet is also possible. The front will also bring more needed rain. Areas in north and central Alabama could get 1-2 inches through Sunday, the weather service said. NOAA's Storm Prediction Center thinks northwest Alabama will have the best chances of seeing a few severe storms later tonight. There will be a chance of scattered severe storms, mainly tonight, for cities including Florence, Muscle Shoals, the western suburbs of Decatur, Russellville, Hamilton and Tuscumbia, among others. There could be a few isolated severe storms in areas to the east and south, including Huntsville, Cullman, Gadsden, Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Greensboro, Livingston and Chatom, among others. The main risks from stronger storms will be strong wind gusts. However, the weather service said that there could be a low tornado threat for northwest Alabama, mainly west of Interstate 65. The storms were expected to arrive in a line late tonight, according to the weather service in Huntsville. The threat for severe weather was anticipated to end in northwest Alabama between 1 and 2 a.m. and 3 to 4 a.m. in the rest of north Alabama. There will also be the possibility of a few strong to severe storms in central Alabama overnight. The weather service in Birmingham said areas west of a line from roughly Jasper to Tuscaloosa to Livingston have the best chances of seeing strong storms. The timeframe appears to be between midnight and 6 a.m., according to forecasters. However, they continued to note that forecast confidence was low for this event. The weather service in Mobile said the potential for severe storms will be low overnight for south Alabama. The cold front was expected to move into southwest Alabama by late tonight and could bring a few storms, but most were expected to stay under severe limits. The front was anticipated to cross through the state through midday Sunday. Here comes the cold Freezing rain will be possible on Sunday in north Alabama. (NWS) After the storms comes an Arctic blast. North Alabama will also have to deal with the possibility of freezing rain on Sunday morning. The weather service in Huntsville said the cold air was expected to arrive in northern Alabama around 6 a.m., and any lingering rain could transition to freezing rain. Light ice accumulations will be possible across north Alabama -- especially northwest Alabama -- through Sunday morning. The weather service said less than a tenth of an inch of ice will be possible, and that will be mainly on elevated and grassy surfaces. The ground should be warm enough to prevent widespread icing, forecasters said. Temperatures in north Alabama are expected to hover in the 30s all day Sunday and drop into the teens and 20s overnight. The weather service in Birmingham said some of the typically colder spots in Marion, Winston and Lamar counties could possibly see some freezing rain, but temperatures were expected to be near or above freezing and the impact minimal. will sellers folder of letters.jpg Will Sellers holds a folder with some of the letters he's gotten urging him not to cast his electoral vote for Donald Trump on Monday. (Mike Cason/mcason@al.com) The certificate from the 2012 presidential election signed by Will Sellers and eight other Alabama electors. The extraordinary nature of the 2016 presidential election continues even with what could be considered a formality, the casting of the Electoral College votes on Monday. Montgomery attorney Will Sellers, one of nine Alabama electors, can attest to the fact that this election year is different. Sellers has received more than 2,200 emails, as well as letters and phone calls, urging him to break his pledge and vote for someone other than Donald Trump, who carried Alabama overwhelmingly. Sellers was also an elector in 2004, 2008 and 2012 and was an alternate in 2000. "It's never been like this," Sellers said. "I've never seen this kind of wholesale, direct communications with electors." The surge in efforts to influence electors is national, as reported by the Associated Press. And it's apparently not strictly a grassroots movement of individual voters. Many of the emails landing in Sellers' inbox have a common format, bearing a photo of the founding fathers and directing him to a website. Only the names of the senders are changed. And those names? George Washington. Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson. John Jay. "A candidate that plays on the public fears and temporary passions of a nation stirs up tumult and disorder, divides communities and discourages a peaceful democracy," reads the email bearing Washington's signature. Others who have tried to influence Sellers have not been as philosophical. One woman's voice mail begged Sellers to vote for Hillary Clinton, Mitt Romney or John Kasich. "If you do this, you will go down in history for preventing the rise of a dictator in the United States and preserving world peace," she said. "If you don't, we're facing life in a fascist regime and at worst, a nuclear war." That caller's not-so-conversational tone suggested she was reading. Sellers said he hears background voices on some of the voice mails, indicating the message is coming from an organized call center. But not all of the communications seem scripted. One letter writer, a worship leader at a Presbyterian Church, politely contended: "I do not feel like Mr. Trump embodies our Christian values and ethics." Sellers said he's never seen so many articles written about the electoral college or had as many people ask him about his role. He thinks some people are still trying to come to grips with the fact that Trump will occupy the Oval Office. "I think people are shocked that Donald Trump won and this is the way of trying to channel their feelings," Trump said. Sellers, who was a history major at Hillsdale College, says the electoral college was one of the most unique concepts to emerge from the Constitutional Convention, a compromise between Congress choosing the president and a direct popular vote. He said he's glad to see more people take an interest in the electoral system and says the calls, emails and letters have been respectful. "They're very cordial," he said. "I haven't gotten anything I thought was threatening." Sellers, the elector for Alabama's 2nd Congressional District, said there is no option to change his vote. If Monday's ceremony is like the previous ones, he said, the nine electors will get a presidential ballot with a single name, Trump. Then they'll get a vice presidential ballot with one name, Mike Pence. After the votes are tallied, they'll sign the official certificate. Secretary of State John Merrill is hosting a public Electoral College event at noon Monday in the Old House Chambers of the State Capitol. A Marion County woman was killed Friday afternoon in a two-vehicle collision on Interstate 22 near Hamilton. Lila Luke Clingan, 81, was seriously injured when the 1995 Nissan Altima she was riding in collided with a 2010 Jeep driven by a Raleigh, N.C. man at around 3:42 p.m., according to Alabama state troopers. Clingan was transported to North Mississippi Medical Center in Hamilton where she was pronounced dead. Clingan wasn't wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash. The crash occurred on Interstate 22, near the eight mile marker, one mile west of Hamilton, according to troopers. Troopers continue to investigate the cause of the crash. A long-running billing dispute between Medicare and Huntsville's Alabama Pain Center reached another impasse last month, disrupting care for thousands of patients using powerful painkillers for the treatment of chronic pain. Last month, the clinic sent a letter to patients covered by Medicare and Medicaid, urging them to seek care elsewhere. Alabama Pain Center, which had not been receiving payment from Medicare for more than a year, can now no longer bill the program, according to the letter. Alabama Pain Center is the latest of several pain clinics in the state forced to close or curtail services due to action by federal or state authorities, a development alarming to patients prescribed high doses of powerful painkillers. Patients who use opioids and other controlled substances for long periods of time risk becoming dependent on the drugs, and can suffer agonizing withdrawal when the medication runs out. Experts worry that some of these patients may turn to heroin. Pat Brunker of Meridianville received her first pain pump from Dr. K. Dean Willis, chief medical officer of Alabama Pain Center, in 2005 after she exhausted surgical options for severe back pain. She recently got a replacement pump and visits the clinic for drug refills once a month. "It's the best thing that ever happened to me," Brunker said. "My fear, because of this terrible activity, is that he will go out of business. If he does, I don't know where the hell I'm going to go." The number of Alabama Board of Medical Examiners investigations related to prescribing practices in Alabama increased from 7 in 2012 to 44 last year. In Huntsville in 2013, state and federal authorities cracked down on Dr. Shelinder Aggarwal. Last year, agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency arrested two doctors, John Patrick Couch and Xiulu Ruan, affiliated with a large pain practice in Mobile. Many physicians shy away from taking on patients from closed clinics who use high doses of pain medication - fearing possible sanction for excessive prescribing. Sheila Rogers of Grant suffered through seven days of withdrawal after Aggarwal lost his controlled substance certificate while under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice and state medical board. He eventually pleaded guilty to Medicare fraud. Rogers took high doses of painkillers to subdue neck pain that worsened after unsuccessful surgery. For months after her last operation, she slept upright in an armchair. "It took me eight months until I could even lay down in the bed," she said. Her primary care physician referred her to Aggarwal. She initially resisted Aggarwal's suggestion to try methadone, but eventually gave in and combined the long-acting opioid with oxycodone to control her pain. Rogers said she never abused the drugs or sold them. The drugs muted her pain enough to help her care for a nephew with Down syndrome and her own teenage son. After more than two years of treatment, Aggarwal closed his office with no warning, she said. Earlier this year, he pleaded guilty to fraud and illegally prescribing controlled substances. Prosecutors said he wrote more than 100,000 prescriptions, an average of more than 400 a day. Medicare data showed that he billed the program more for some controlled substances than almost any other doctor in the country. Aggarwal operated a pill mill, but Rogers came to rely on his care. Like almost all long-term opioid users, she became physically dependent on her medication. When Aggarwal closed and she ran out of medication, she went to a friend's house so her children wouldn't see her suffer. "When they shut down Dr. Aggarwal, it was horrible," she said. "When you are coming off of methadone, the pain comes from your bones. You talk about painful - it was painful." After she went through withdrawal, Rogers' pain sent her back to another pain specialist, Dr. Mark Murphy in Madison. He plans to retire at the end of the year, according to an employee at his office. The same employee said the doctor put a plan in place to transfer care to different practitioners. The Alabama Board of Medical Examiners has filed a complaint against Murphy and scheduled a hearing for March, according to documents available online, although details of the allegations are unavailable. ProPublica, a nonprofit investigative journalism organization, identified Murphy as a top prescriber of 10 different controlled substances in 2014. Rogers has been seeing Murphy for more than two years, and she said he has drastically reduced her dose of pain medication. She said she doesn't feel as good as she did under Aggarwal's care, but she is happy with Murphy's treatment. She worries that there might be fallout when north Alabama loses another pain practitioner. "Who else are we going to go to? People are turning to the streets and I don't want to do that," Rogers said. "If they close all these pain clinics down, then people will turn to heroin." Joyce Young, Rogers' neighbor in Grant, also started seeing Murphy after Aggarwal shut down. She has osteoporosis that caused two broken hips, a broken leg and constant pain. She doesn't drink and stopped smoking last year at Murphy's insistence. She is currently taking one third of the oxycodone she used to receive from Aggarwal, and worries she might get cut off completely. "When I first started taking them, they made me sick, until my body adjusted to them," Young said. "Then you get to the point where you feel like you've got to have them." Alabama isn't the only state grappling with this problem. Earlier this year in Washington, regulators closed eight clinics affiliated with the Seattle Pain Center. More than 8,000 patients received opioid prescriptions from the clinic, said Dr. David Tauben, chief of pain medicine at the School of Medicine at the University of Washington. The closure sent patients and other practitioners into a panic, Tauben said. In response, public health officials reached out to primary care providers, urging them to absorb pain patients. They allowed primary care doctors to keep prescribing high doses of pain medication even though state law usually limits high-dose drugs to pain specialists. Health officials tried to keep track of pain center patients, and held weekly phone calls to update local doctors about the situation. At least one patient from the Seattle Pain Center died from suicide after the closure, Tauben said, and it's impossible to know how many turned to illegal drugs. But many others received better care from primary care doctors than they received at the pain center, which rarely treated patients with anything more than controlled substances and urine tests, Tauben said. Tauben said health systems must be ready and willing to treat patients receiving high doses of pain medication. Regulators can help by assuring doctors they won't be penalized for continuing to prescribe high doses of medication during the transition. Although the transition has been difficult for doctors and patients, Tauben said pill mills must be closed to protect public safety. "Hercules had to reroute the river to clean the stables," he said. "Unfortunately some people are going to get caught up in the current." A similar panic set in after the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners and the DEA cracked down in 2015 on Dr. Couch and Dr. Ruan of Physician's Pain Specialists of Alabama in Mobile. Larry Dixon, executive director of the medical board, said his agency sent letters to doctors in five neighboring counties, urging them to accept the clinic's patients. "What generally happens when a clinic closes is that all of the physicians in the area are inundated with people in the area seeking pain medication," Dixon said. "A lot of people are addicted. A lot of people who really need pain treatment can't get it. It's a major rupture in the health care system." At a recent board hearing, pain patients protested outside, Dixon said. Dixon said he was particularly concerned about 400 patients from the Mobile clinics using surgically-implanted pumps that deliver medication directly into the spinal fluid. Only a few doctors in Alabama routinely implant and adjust those pumps - including Willis. Dr. Ryan Almeida, a professor in the division of pain medicine at UAB, uses pain pumps for some patients in his practice. He treated some of the Mobile-area patients when Physician's Pain Specialists closed, and has already begun seeing patients from Huntsville's Alabama Pain Center. He said it will be difficult to treat all the Medicare patients who will need medication and adjustments for pain pumps. "As the pumps get older, they will need replacement," Almeida said. "It's going to be a big problem." Santa Claus is coming to town and NORAD is ready to track his path for all the good little boys and girls. NORAD - the more commonly known acronym for the North American Aerospace Defense Command - is celebrating the 61st anniversary of tracking Santa's journey. IT website, www.noradsanta.org, launched Dec. 1 and includes a look at Santa's North Pole Village with a Christmas countdown, games, activities, 2D/3D training maps, Santa Camera videos and more. A wrong number and the Santa tracking tradition While today's NORAD Santa track is high tech, the program's beginnings were decidedly simpler. On Dec. 24, 1955, a young boy accidentally dialed a wrong number (and an unlisted number at that) that just so happened to belong to what was known as the Continental Air Defense Command Ops Center, or CONAD, located in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The phone number was an advertising misprint from a local business the boy was trying to call. Col. Harry Shoup, the operations center director, realized the error and assured the boy that NORAD would help Santa have a safe journey from the North Pole. When CONAD became NORAD in 1958, joining with Canada for a bi-national organization, the Santa tracker program came along. Today, the program uses hundreds of volunteers and donations from private organizations to keep the Santa tradition alive. The big night There are plenty of ways to see Santa this year. Starting at 2:01 a.m. EST on Dec. 24, website visitors can watch Santa make preparations for his flight with NORAD's Santa Cams streaming videos. At 6 a.m. EST, trackers worldwide can speak with a live phone operator to inquire as to Santa's whereabouts by dialing the toll-free number 1-877-Hi-NORAD (1-877-446-6723) or by sending an email to noradtrackssanta@outlook.com. Any time on Dec. 24, Windows Phone users can ask Cortana for Santa's location, and OnStar subscribers can press the OnStar button in their vehicles to locate Santa. Official NORAD Tracks Santa apps are also available in the Windows, Apple and Google Play stores, so parents and children can countdown the days until Santa's launch on their smart phones and tablets. Tracking opportunities are also offered on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and Google+. Santa followers just need to type "@noradsanta" into each search engine to get started. Trump_in_Mobile.JPG President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally on Aug. 21, 2015, at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Ala. Trump is expected to return to Mobile for a rally during his "Thank You" tour on Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016. (file photo) Ahead of Donald Trump's visit to Mobile Saturday, powerful national veterans' groups are asking the president-elect to hold off on appointing a new Veterans Affairs Secretary amid concerns that it will undo the progress made by the agency after years of mismanagement. Robert McDonald, 63, took control of the VA in June 2014 after former secretary Eric Shinseki was ultimately blamed for the deaths of dozens of veterans across the country and the subsequent waiting list fraud that was at the root of the problem. However, veterans' groups in Mobile believe that new management will help the whole scale changes occurring under president-elect Trump's presidency of the country. "I feel like we need to drain the swap." Said Philip Whitlock, Commander of the American legion Post 88 in Mobile, who said that he has not heard any veterans suggest that the current VA Secretary should remain in his post. "The VA is a long way from where it needs to be, and I think we need to get someone that really cares about us." Trump is scheduled to visit Mobile Saturday where he will appear at the Ladd Peebles stadium from 3 p.m., finishing his so-called "thank you" tour of the United States. Trump came to power after a convincing victory his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton last month. On a national scale, Trump's sweeping victory left many veterans wondering what will become of an agency that is in the process of a slow recovery from debilitating scandal that rocked the U.S. military and its former members. For some, however, continuity is key. "We all made it clear that we need someone like Bob, who knows how to run a very large organization and is committed to changing the culture," Rick Weidman, executive director for policy and government affairs at Vietnam Veterans of America, told the Washington Post. "He hasn't had a chance to make his mark." Similar remarks have come from other large veterans groups based in Washington D.C., such as Amevets, one of the biggest in the country. "We all want McDonald," said Joe Chenelly, the executive director of Amvets. "He has a good business mind, he is experienced and we feel we can trust him." It's believed that continued upheaval will detract from the progress already made by the VA and lead to the kind of waiting times that resulted in the death of 40 veterans at an Arizona clinic in 2014. Congressman Bradley Byrne (R-Ala.) said that his is also concerned by the major concerns voiced by the more than 413,000 that reside in Alabama. "The veterans I talk to continue to be seriously concerned about the problems at the VA, and they are desperately seeking fundamental changes and reforms," said Byrne. "Our local veterans have also been strong supporters of Donald Trump, and I expect they want him to select the next leader of the VA. As I have said all along, the VA is a fundamentally broken bureaucracy, and we need to continue exploring ways to give veterans greater access to private medical care." On Friday morning, in advance of President-Elect Donald Trump's stop in Mobile on Saturday as part of his "thank you tour," a cedar tree was cut down at Public Safety Memorial Park off Government Street in midtown Mobile to be displayed at Ladd-Peebles Stadium for the rally. As speculation swirled on social media about the reason for the tree's removal, the city affirmed in an email that the tree was cut from the park and installed at the stadium Friday. Midtown resident Denise Grier was walking her dogs Thursday morning when she saw a crane, a bucket truck, a flatbed truck and about five supervisor trucks "in position to pull out... a magnificent old cedar. It was odd because so many supervisors were there. I knew it was something big." Her first thought, she said in a phone interview Friday night, was, "We've got to save this tree!" She waited and watched, and took a photo of the tree surrounded by the trucks. Then, suddenly, the extra-long flatbed truck left. Relieved, Grier also left. She posted her photo in the Nextdoor online community, expressing her concern for the tree. "It had character. It was gnarly," she said. "I've walked my dogs over there for 20 years. It had sentimental value." When Grier returned to the park later that day, she said, the tree was still there. But on Friday morning, she read a comment in her Nextdoor post from a neighbor who said the tree was gone. Where it once stood, near the walking path at the western edge of the park, all that remained of the tree Friday afternoon was the ground-level stump, with about a two-foot section of the trunk covered in Resurrection fern lying nearby. Meanwhile, just over a mile away from the park at the stadium, a mobile crane hoisted a tree over the side of the north end zone stands, placing it in front of the scoreboard. On Nextdoor, midtown Mobile residents began to wonder if the missing tree and the tree at the stadium were the same. One woman said she emailed Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson about it. "Our city parks aren't Christmas tree farms," she wrote. "An old growth tree from a city park for backdrop? Insane." Grier posted another photo of the tree standing in the stadium on Friday afternoon. "Poor tree," she wrote. "Killed for a ridiculous purpose." City spokesman George Talbot confirmed in an email late Friday that the tree removed from the park was taken to Ladd-Peebles Stadium. In an earlier statement, Colby Cooper, chief of staff for the city of Mobile, acknowledged the city's role in procuring the tree. "The City has gone to great lengths to support the visit of the President-Elect," he said. "A Christmas Tree was needed and the City provided it. We applaud the hard work of the City employees who have done a fabulous job working to make the city and event look great as we prepare to have the world watching Mobile, Alabama tomorrow night." This story was revised at 12:15 a.m. on Dec. 17, 2016, to reflect that the city confirmed via email that the tree came from the park. A federal race discrimination lawsuit against a south Alabama steel manufacturing plant was resolved Friday with a $150,000 consent decree, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced. In June 2015, EEOC filed a lawsuit accusing Outokumpu Stainless USA, LLC of not promoting workers at its Calvert plant because of their race. The commission said the black workers, Daniel Nickelson, Wallace Dubose, Steven Jones, Victor Oliver and Joshua Burrell, were highly qualified to become Team Leaders, but the company hired white applicants who were less qualified for the job. EEOC filed the lawsuit after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement. The discrimination violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Marsha Rucker, regional attorney for EEOC's Birmingham District Office said. "Making employment decisions based on race, such as promoting white candidates over more qualified African-American candidates, strikes at the heart of why Title VII exists," Rucker said "Although we have come a long way since Title VII was enacted, discrimination still occurs. EEOC will continue to pursue actions against employers who make employment decisions based on race rather than skill and experience." Also included in the three-year consent decree, the company must implement new polices to prevent discrimination, provide anti-discrimination training to employees and post anti-discrimination notices throughout the plant. It seems the only way to isolate yourself from the tragedies of Aleppo is to be in Damascus. While most of my Syrian friends abroad are posting about Aleppo on social media, my friends in Damascus are talking about late night pizzas, posting photos of graduation ceremonies and of the wet grey asphalt after a short night rain, and celebrating autumn. Maybe the only way to shade your eyes from this calamity is to care about your own survival. The evening of the 14 December, while people were slaughtered in Aleppo, the Syrian Symphony Orchestra held a classical concert lead by Missak Baghboudarian in Damascus Opera House. Since I left in 2014, I stopped asking myself why the people who do care in Damascus are doing nothing to stop the tragedies in Syria. I know the fear, the frustration and the survival mode you get into. When I was there, I was thinking about the blackouts, about how much the chicken will cost tomorrow and, most of all, about how to get out of there. I was a coward from the beginning, giving myself excuses as a daughter for two parents who would lose their minds if I get hurt. But, I was simply too afraid to act. I am filing my final paper this semester, while reading the endless tweets and posts about Aleppo. I am sometimes too afraid to speak with the people there. My last contact was yesterday when Hisham Eskef, a member of a rebel group that participated in the past truce negotiations for Aleppo, told me that 800 people were taken by the regime while they were getting evacuated from east Aleppo. I am the hypocrite who would talk with the people in east Aleppo, hear their pleas, cry and then go back to reading Lee Hamiltons thoughts on the creative tension in the American democratic system. I am the hypocrite who would say to those trapped in Aleppo, looking death in the eye, that I am with them. But, I am not. I am the Syrian who spends her day wondering how a horrible massacre could produce surreal images, such as those of a woman in a wheelchair and her husband who was frantically trying to save her. The pictures tell a story of a man who desperately searches #Aleppo's streets for a doctor to save his wife's life, she dies in midst. pic.twitter.com/wwys1LzYoD Rami Jarrah (@RamiJarrah) December 7, 2016 I am the Syrian who just read a long interview with Sadeq Jalal Al Azm, who died in exile on December 11, talking about the right to revolt and at least referring to what happened as a revolution. We never learned about him in our textbooks, we didnt read his thoughts on love and religion, many of my Syrian friends dont recognise his name in the first place. And some would ask: Where was the Syrian intellectual elite in this revolution? OPINION: How Facebook hurt the Syrian Revolution I am the Syrian who would see photos of an old friend reporting about the tense sunset in the distressed city of Aleppo. I would see photos of a belated honeymoon taking place alongside a victory over an anguished city. My friend went there, with the man she just married, to report for pro-Assad media about the greatness of a victorious army. Among some of her photos that stuck with me were images of the long line of young men who were forced to fight with the army in order to get to their families in east Aleppo, and an image of a mother in a black headscarf crying bitterly at the sight of her destroyed home. Her attempt at image poetics disturbed me. Eventually, I had to tell her that this victory is built on peoples misery, that while the operation went well, the patient is dead now. She told me that this is war and, in wars, there is always a winner and a loser. On my news feed, I would see another pro-regime friend checked-in in Aleppo with a photo of the old partly damaged castle, a picture of Assad crowning its top. On the same feed, a friend based in Gaziantep would post photos of the graffiti that residents left in east Aleppo before being forced to evacuate; Walls are the notebooks of the rebels, he captioned it. I read the comments of all Syrians, those who are mourning the slaughter and those who are celebrating it. They both see Aleppo as the sacred city, where its always worth taking a last selfie with the rubble before departure. Aleppo is a city to be lived, not to be described. It is a city where resentment had all the reasons to grow into a vicious monster. Is this the type of resentment that allows one to justify a massacre and celebrate it? pic.twitter.com/qX6ZSm3jdv Hadi (@HadiAlabdallah) December 15, 2016 What is happening in Aleppo is truly historic, as Assad said the other day. It is the spectacular tearing apart of a once united nation, to the point that its people can no longer agree on basic principles of humanity. In our last politics seminar this term, we discussed nation-building. Nations need a foundational myth or a story keeping people together, giving them a reason to live together under the roof of a nation. While our professor was asking my colleagues about their nations stories, I was anxious because I didnt have one. Not before, and not any more. Our story, I am afraid, would be that one day we were so different that we killed each other, and we celebrated this killing with chocolates and gaudy Christmas trees. That one day we were so different that we only cared about our own survival and the death of others did not matter. Riham Alkousaa is a Syrian journalist covering refugees in Europe and conflict in Syria. She is currently a masters student of Politics and Global Affairs at Columbia University, Graduate School of Journalism. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy. Robin Yassin-Kassab is the author of the novel The Road from Damascus. In solidarity with Aleppo, the lights on the Eiffel Tower were extinguished. Elsewhere in Paris, and in London, Amsterdam, Oslo and Copenhagen, people demonstrated against the slaughter. Turks rallied outside Russian and Iranian embassies and consulates in Istanbul, Ankara and Erzurum. The people of Sarajevo, who have their own experience of genocide, staged a big protest. The protests are nothing like as large as they were when the United States bombed Iraq, but they are welcome nonetheless. If this level of support had been apparent over the last six years, it would have made a real difference. Perhaps it is making a difference even now. Public sympathy for the victims may have pressured Vladimir Putin to allow those in the surviving liberated sliver of Aleppo to evacuate, rather than face annihilation. At the time of writing, the fate of the deal is in doubt, subject to the whims of the militias on the ground. If it works out and the tens of thousands currently trapped are allowed to leave the best possible outcome then we will be witnesses to an internationally brokered forced population transfer. This is both a war crime and a crime against humanity, and a terrible image of the precarious state of the global system. The weight of this event, and its future ramifications, deserve more than just a few demonstrations. The war on terrorism excuse The abandonment of Aleppo is a microcosm of the more general abandonment of Syrias democratic revolution. It exposes the failures of the Arab and Muslim worlds, of the West, and of humanity as a whole. Many Syrians expected the global left would be first to support their cause, but most leftist commentators and publications retreated into conspiracy theories, Islamophobia, and inaccurate geopolitical analysis, and swallowed gobbets of Assadist propaganda whole. Soon, they were repeating the war on terror tropes of the right. Victory for Assad is also a victory for ISIL. by The Obama administration provided a little rhetorical support and sometimes allowed its allies to send weapons to the Free Army. Crucially, however, Obama vetoed supply of the anti-aircraft weapons the Free Army, so desperately needed to counter Assads scorched-earth campaign. In August 2013, when Assad killed 1,500 people with sarin gas in the Damascus suburbs, Obamas chemical red line vanished, and the US more or less publicly handed Syria over to Russia and Iran. Keeping to the war on terror framework, the US bombs the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and others in Syria, hitting the symptoms rather than the cause of the crisis. Europe, meanwhile, declares a crisis over the refugees arriving on its shores. So long as Assad remains in power, most of these refugees will not return home. As for the Arab states, a combination of sectarianism, Iranian domination, and counter-revolutionary fervour led several to collude in Assads war. Others supported elements of the opposition, but in a disorganised and tepid manner. ISIL and Assad winning The tragedy has also exposed the weaknesses of Syrian society, vulnerabilities which Assad so cleverly manipulated. By organising massacres (particularly in 2012, on the plain between Homs and Hama), by releasing Salafist-Jihadists from prison, even as he tortured and killed thousands of democratic activists, then by inviting in foreign Shia militias, Assad engineered a sectarian breakdown. Too many Syrians fell too easily into his trap. When, for instance, Zahran Alloush founder of Jaish al-Islam and himself a beneficiary of Assads prison amnesty called for Damascus to be cleansed of Shia influence, he played right into Assads hands. OPINION: And who are we to say the Syrian revolution is dead? Yet, the revolution exposed strengths which Syrians didnt know they possessed. Communities held elections and organised themselves in local councils. They set up womens centres, independent trades unions and free radio and TV stations. Aleppo was by far the largest centre of such civil society initiatives. Its not surprising when conservative states allow a revolution to drown. Its more shocking that they stand idle as Arab sovereignty collapses. Assad lost the war he provoked. By September 2015, when the Russian bombing started, his depleted army held less than a fifth of the country. He calculated correctly, however, that powerful friends would come to his aid. When Russia arrived it employed the usual excuse the war on terror, in this case on ISIL, also known as ISIS but less than 20 percent of its bombs fell anywhere near ISIL. Instead, its planes focused relentlessly on eviscerating the Free Syrian Army, as well as the civilian infrastructure in liberated areas. They burned schools, hospitals and markets. They dropped cluster munitions, incendiary bombs and bunker busters banned in civilian areas on residential blocks. These, too, are war crimes. The majority of the ground forces surrounding Aleppo are not Syrian. Most are Shia jihadists from Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, funded and trained by Iran. As well as these proxies, Iran has its own Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) in theatre, often commanding Syrians. In Iraq too, the sectarian Popular Mobilisation Units are under IRGC command. In Lebanon, the Iranian-inspired and funded Hezbollah dominates. Iranian expansionism accompanies the sectarian/political cleansing of areas of Homs and Damascus, as well as Aleppo, creating demographic changes which wont be reversed by another consignment of missiles. Victory for Assad is also a victory for ISIL. As Aleppo was being subjugated, ISIL retook Palmyra, capturing important weapons stocks. At the same time, an increasing number of Syrians facing sectarian aggression though still a minority are buying into the nihilist ISIL narrative. None of this stays in Syria. So how do the Arabs respond? Hamas organised a protest in Gaza, Kuwaitis demonstrated outside the Russian embassy, and Qatar cancelled its national day celebrations. Its not nearly enough. With good reason, the revolutionary thinker Yassin al-Haj Saleh wrote of the Palestinisation of the Syrian people. Sixty-eight years after failing to defend Palestine, Arab states have proved incapable of defending Syria from Russian, Iranian and ISIL occupation. They have, however, taught a repeat lesson to their subjects that sovereignty is meaningless without democratic control. This imperative, which galvanised the 2011 revolutions, is today more relevant than ever. Robin Yassin-Kassab is the author of the novel The Road from Damascus. He is a co-author with Leila al-Shami of the book on the Syrian revolution and war, Burning Country (Pluto, January 2016). He co-edits www.pulsemedia.org and blogs at www.qunfuz.com . The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy. Philippines leader threatens to terminate a deal that allows American troops into country after US scraps aid package. President Rodrigo Duterte has threatened to terminate a pact that allows US troops to visit the Philippines, reacting angrily to what he thought was a US decision to scrap a major aid package over human rights abuses. A US government aid agency said this week that its board deferred a vote on a renewal of the development assistance package for the Philippines subject to a further review of concerns around rule of law and civil liberties. Duterte, whose administration has been criticised by Washington over a bloody crackdown on illegal drugs, unleashed a barrage of expletives in response. He said the Philippines can do without US aid, called Americans sons of bitches and hypocrites, while praising China for offering what he said was huge financial assistance. According to a toll kept by Al Jazeera and other news sources, Dutertes drug war has killed more than 6,100 people, including a handful of teenagers. On Monday, Duterte declared that fewer people are being killed and they are almost finished off anyway. READ MORE: In Dutertes drug war, death toll goes past 6,000 Based on analysis of an official police report, 36 people on average have been killed every day during the 168 days of Dutertes presidency. Impeachment risk The government insisted that those killed by police more than 2,000 died during legitimate anti-drug operations. The police also said that they were investigating other killings, which were carried out by unknown gunmen. Duterte risks impeachment after admitting on Monday to personally killing criminals when he was the mayor of Davao City, two Philippine senators said on Friday. The president boasted to business leaders that as Davao City mayor he used to prowl the streets on a motorcycle looking for an encounter to kill, just to show to local law enforcers he was able to do so. I used to do it personally, Duterte said. If I can do it, why cant you? INFOGRAPHIC: Whos liable for the mounting death toll in the Philippines? Justice minister Vitaliano Aguirre dismissed Dutertes statement as an exaggeration. Its like a hyperbole, thats the president, he is used to exaggerating just to put his message across, Aguirre was quoted in radio reports as saying on Thursday. Even if that were true, Aguirre said it did not necessarily mean that he violated the law. It could be done with a justifiable cause and justified circumstances as a public officer in order to arrest, but if they resisted. He must have been forced, Aguirre said, referring to Duterte. Beijing unhappy with the US hyping up the situation after the underwater drone was seized from South China Sea. Chinas Defence Ministry said it has been in talks with the United States about returning an underwater drone taken by a Chinese naval vessel in the South China Sea, but the US was not helping by hyping up the issue. The drone was seized on Thursday one of the most serious incidents between the two militaries in years about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay off the Philippines, just as the USNS Bowditch was about to retrieve it, US officials said. China decided to return it to the US side in an appropriate manner, and China and the US have all along been in communication about it, the ministry said on its website. During this process, the US sides unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate, and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue. We express regret at this, it added. READ MORE: China seizes US naval drone in South China Sea The Pentagon confirmed on Saturday that Chinese authorities agreed to return the drone. Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said in a statement. Chinas Defence Ministry had said one of its naval vessels discovered a piece of unidentified equipment and checked it to prevent any navigational safety issues, before discovering it was a US drone. According to the Pentagon, the unmanned vehicle was being operated by civilian contractors to conduct oceanic research. The US said it had issued a formal diplomatic complaint over the seizure and demanded the drones return. It is ours. Its clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again, Navy Captain Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters on Friday. He said the drone costs about $150,000 and is largely commercial, off-the-shelf technology. The USNS Bowditch, which is not a combat ship, was recovering two of the gliders when a Chinese ship approached, Davis said. The two vessels were within about 450 metres of each other. According to the Pentagon, as the Chinese ship left with the drone, which is about three metres long, its only radio response to the US vessel was, we are returning to normal operations. US President-elect Donald Trump blasted the seizure. Apparently misspelling unprecedented, he tweeted: China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented act. He later reissued the tweet, correcting the spelling to unprecedented. When your Twitter typo trends globally #unpresidented pic.twitter.com/CmXVbR5Oqf Femi Oke (@FemiOke) December 17, 2016 Trump tweeted once again on the subject early on Saturday from his seaside resort club Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, where he plans to spend the holidays. He said Chine should keep the drone it stole. We should tell China that we don't want the drone they stole back.- let them keep it! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 18, 2016 The Global Times, a newspaper published by Chinas ruling Communist Party, quoted retired Chinese admiral Yang Yi as saying China considered itself well within its rights to seize the drone. If China needs to take it, well take it. [The United States] cant block us, Yang said. Its natural for us to take possession of and research for a bit these types of things that America sends to our doorstep. Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the seizure of the glider occurred inside the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, not China, and appeared to be a violation of international law. Why China cares about the South China Sea Davis said the incident could be the first time in recent history that China has taken a US naval vessel. Some observers have called it the most significant dispute between the sides militaries since the April 2001 mid-air collision between a US Navy surveillance aircraft and a Chinese fighter jet about 110km from Chinas Hainan island that led to the death of a Chinese pilot. Whatever the outcome, the incident is likely to fray the already tense relations between US and China. There also have been increased tensions over Beijings ongoing military buildup in the South China Sea, mainly the development and militarisation of man-made shoals and islands aimed at extending Chinas reach in the strategically vital area, through which about $5 trillion in global trade passes annually. Palestinian group says Zawari was part of its military wing for 10 years and vowed revenge against the Zionist enemy. Hamas blamed Israel for the killing of its commander Mohammed al-Zawari, an aviation engineer who worked on the development of unmanned aerial vehicles, and vowed to take revenge. Zawari, 49, had been in Tunisia only a few days when he was shot dead outside his home by multiple gunshots while in his car near Sfax, 270km southeast of Tunis, on Thursday. Television footage aired on local media showed a black Volkswagen with its windows shot out. Four rental cars were used in the killing and two handguns and suppressors were seized, Tunisias interior ministry said. A judicial spokesman from Sfax, Mourad Tourki, told Tunisian radio Shems FM that eight Tunisian nationals had been arrested in connection with the killing. One of the suspects is a Tunisian journalist based in Hungary, arrested along with a cameraman. Two other suspects, one of them a Belgian of Moroccan origin, are still at large, Tourki said. Authorities have not commented on who is suspected of being behind the murder. Hamas, the Palestinian group that governs the Gaza Strip, confirmed that Zawari had been a member of its military wing for the past 10 years, and spearheaded its drone programme. A statement said Zawaris work contributed to the victories by Hamas during the 2014 Israeli war on Gaza. The group accused Israel of killing the aviation engineer through its network of spies. The assassination of the commander Mohammed al-Zawari in Tunisia is a reminder for all Arab and Muslim nations that the Zionist enemy and its agents are roaming free in the region, playing their dirty roles, and it is time for this cowardly treacherous hand to be cut, Hamas Qassam Brigades said in a statement. https://twitter.com/hamasinfo/status/810156709448654848 It published a poster on Twitter showing Zawari with an unmanned drone. The poster bore the logo of Hamas armed wing and referred to Zawari as a commander. The assassination is an aggression against the group and the enemy should know that the blood of this great commander will not be wasted, it said. Israeli Minister Tzachi Hanegbi, a confidant of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told Israeli Channel One: I hope this issue will not be ascribed to us, that it is not connected to us and that none of those people arrested are our allies. Tunisias Islamist Ennahdha movement has called for an investigation into the killing, which it said posed a threat to the countrys stability. Israeli forces were responsible for the 1988 killing of senior Palestinian commander Abu Jihad, whose real name was Khalil al-Wazir, at his home in Tunis, Tunisia. Wazir was the deputy of then Palestinian chief Yasser Arafat. Mossad is also believed to have been behind the 2010 murder of top Hamas commander Mahmud al-Mabhuh in a Dubai hotel. Regional bloc ECOWAS told to ensure The Gambias president does not stay past his mandate deadline. West Africas regional bloc ECOWAS must ensure The Gambias President Yahya Jammeh steps down because he lost an election, the blocs chairwoman has said. President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, the chair of the Economic Community of West African States, urged the leaders at the blocs summit in the Nigerian capital of Abuja on Saturday to decide measures to bring this matter to successful conclusion before January 19, when Jammehs mandate expires. She did not elaborate on what measures the bloc would take, but they could include sanctions. Jammehs 22 years in power have been marked by allegations of human rights abuses and repression against perceived political opponents. He lost a December 1 election to little-known challenger Adama Barrow. Initially, he conceded defeat but rejected the results later, calling for a fresh vote. Gambian security forces seized the countrys Independent Electoral Commission earlier this week. His party is now challenging the result in The Gambias Supreme Court. On Friday, Marcel de Souza, the blocs president, said a military intervention must be considered if diplomacy failed to persuade Jammeh to step down. READ MORE: Gambias Jammeh rejects result of presidential election Ebrima Sall, a Gambian senior social scientist, told Al Jazeera the business community, religious leaders and bar association have been calling on Jammeh to step down. Everybody is now speaking out, said Sall. They have overcome the fear that was there and they are all calling upon him to leave and accept the verdict. They know the majority wants him to leave. Otherwise, he will be even more isolated internally, let alone internationally. The United Nations, the United States and leading West African countries have condemned him. US lawyer David Friedman has vowed to move US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem a hugely divisive step. A senior Palestinian politician has condemned US President-elect Donald Trumps choice of ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, a right-wing lawyer who has vowed to move the US embassy to Jerusalem. Moving the US embassy from Tel Aviv before a final agreement on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict will be the destruction of the peace process, Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) told journalists on Friday. Along with other Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese territories, Israel has occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the West Bank since the 1967 war and has built Jewish-only settlements throughout the territory in contravention of international law. The West Bank-based Palestinian Authority says East Jerusalem should be the capital of a Palestinian state in any future two-state solution agreement. Erekats remarks came as Israeli officials praised Trumps decision to nominate Friedman, who is also a staunch supporter of Israeli settlements. Chaos, lawlessness and extremism Erekat warned of the potential outcome of moving the embassy and a change in the long-standing position of the United States that considers the settlements as illegal. I look David Friedman and Trump in the eye and tell them if you were to take these steps of moving the embassy and annexing settlements in the West Bank, you are sending this region down the path of something that I call chaos, lawlessness and extremism, he said. In a Trump transition team statement on Thursday announcing his appointment, Friedman said he wanted to work for peace and looked forward to doing this from the US embassy in Israels eternal capital, Jerusalem. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and members of his right-wing government on Friday welcomed Friedmans nomination. OPINION: How impunity defines Israel and victimises Palestinians A source in Netanyahus office told the AFP news agency that the premier was pleased with the appointment. He knows David Friedman has the full confidence of President-elect Trump and looks forward to working closely with him, the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Far-right deputy foreign minister Tzipi Hotovely called the appointment good news for Israel, while education minister Naftali Bennett, of the ultra-nationalist Jewish Home party, said that Friedman was a great friend of Israel. His knowledge and wisdom of the issues will strengthen the bridge between our great nations, Hotovely said. The US and most UN member states do not recognise Israels claim to all of Jerusalem as its capital. Trump may not formally abandon US support for an eventual two-state solution but Washington will likely not press its Israeli ally to make difficult concessions to revive moribund two-state negotiations. Trumps spokesman Jason Miller said on Friday that Friedman had the president-elects full support and that the plan to move the embassy would stand. Severely misinformed More than 530,000 Israelis live in settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, according to the Israeli rights group BTselem. Between 2009 and 2014, settlements were expanded by at least 23 percent. Netanyahu has vowed to continue settlement expansion. In March 2015, the day before Israelis re-elected him, Netanyahu promised to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state on his watch. OPINION: The delusion of a two-state solution in Israel-Palestine Speaking to Al Jazeera, Ramy Abdu, of Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, said that the UN regarded any actions taken by Israel, the occupying power, to impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration in East Jerusalem as illegal. Referring to Trumps recent statement that he would like to broker a lasting agreement between Palestinians and Israelis, Abdu said: If he is sincere, then he is severely misinformed. There is no way to bring about a just or a lasting peace by being the first country in the world to legitimise Israels occupation of a city long regarded as the cultural and religious heart of Palestine. Iran insisting people be evacuated from al-Foua and Kefraya before civilians allowed out of Aleppo, says rebel leader. A senior Syrian rebel blamed Iran and its Shia militias for holding up the evacuation of civilians trapped in the eastern rebel-majority area of Aleppo and urged Russia to live up to its commitment to implement the deal. More than 3,000 people were taken out of east Aleppo on Thursday, but a convoy of about 800 people was turned back the next day and the evacuation suspended. Four evacuaees were also killed, witnesses told Al Jazeera, and people were beaten up and robbed of cash before being sent back. A new ceasefire deal to evacuate tens of thousands of Syrian opposition fighters and civilians was reached, according to a rebel group official. However, trapped Syrians waited desperately on Saturday for evacuations to resume and the Red Cross pleaded for a deal to save thousands of lives. This'd what happened yesterday when civilian were getting ready to be evacuated,In #Aleppo only civilian are being killed even while a truce pic.twitter.com/l1knD08Z16 Zouhir Al-Shimale (@ZouhirAlShimale) December 17, 2016 Munir al-Sayal, head of the political wing of the Ahrar al-Sham rebel group involved in negotiations over the deal, said Iran was insisting people be allowed to leave two rebel-besieged Shia villages in northwest Syria al-Foua and Kefraya before letting the Aleppo evacuation happen. He said Russia was failing to restrain its ally. Iran and its sectarian proxies are using the humanitarian situation of our people in besieged Aleppo and preventing civilians from leaving until the evacuation of their groups in al-Foua and Kefraya, Sayal told Reuters news agency in a telephone interview. OPINION: Aleppo The guilt, the resentment, the indifference Sayal said Iranian-backed fighters, led by Lebanons Hezbollah and other Iraqi Shia groups, were behind the detention of hundreds of people trying to leave on Friday. These sectarian militias are responsible, but we warn them the safety of our people in Aleppo is the priority and all options are open towards achieving that goal, said Sayal. He said Moscows assertion that most civilians had already been evacuated from Aleppo showed Russia was trying to renege on its responsibilities under the deal. Russia has failed to restrain the sectarian Shia militias in Aleppo to complete the deal and Moscow should abide by its commitments. There are still civilians in Aleppo who need to be evacuated in harsh weather conditions and Russian statements that besieged Aleppo is empty is absolving itself from following up on the agreement. Families spent the night in freezing temperatures in al-Amiriyah district, the departure point for evacuations before they were halted on Friday. Theres no more food or drinking water, and the situation is getting worse by the day, Abu Omar, who waited in the cold for nine hours on Friday, told the AFP news agency. He returned the next day only to be told the buses were not coming. UN envoy Staffan de Mistura estimated, as of Thursday, about 40,000 civilians and perhaps as many as 5,000 opposition fighters remained in Aleppos rebel enclave. In New York, the UN Security Council could vote as early as this weekend on a French-drafted proposal to allow international observers in Aleppo and ensure urgent aid deliveries. On Friday, US President Barack Obama called for impartial observers to monitor efforts to evacuate civilians, and warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad would not be able to slaughter his way to legitimacy. Aleppo, Syrias second-largest city and once a key cultural and economic hub, has been divided between government forces and rebels since 2012. The evacuation agreements came a month after the Syrian government and allies launched a military offensive to retake the entire city. Assad has hailed the operation as a victory. The Syrian conflict started as a largely unarmed uprising against Assads rule in March 2011. It has since morphed into a full-scale war that has left hundreds of thousands dead and more than half of the countrys prewar population displaced inside and outside of Syria. Deal reached to resume evacuations of tens of thousands of trapped people, Syrian rebel official tells Al Jazeera. A new ceasefire deal to evacuate tens of thousands of Syrian opposition fighters and civilians from the remaining rebel-held pockets of eastern Aleppo has been reached, according to a rebel group official. The rebel official told Al Jazeera on Saturday that the deal would allow for the complete evacuation of the embattled enclaves still held by rebel groups. Speaking to the Reuters news agency, a Syrian government source confirmed the agreement. Saturdays announcement came after previous agreements brokered by Turkey and Russia fell apart, with the Syrian government and opposition groups exchanging blame. In addition to eastern Aleppo, the deal will allow for the transfer of civilians from the rebel-besieged towns of Kafraya and Fua, as well as the government-blockaded towns of Madaya and Zabadani. A day earlier, Syrian state media said more than 8,000 people had been evacuated from the besieged territory when the agreement was suspended. The deal would have allowed for the remaining population of rebel-held neighbourhoods to be transferred through government-controlled territory to the city of Idlib, where Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (formerly known as the al-Nusra Front, which was linked to al-Qaeda) and rebel groups control most of the territory. IN PHOTOS: Ghosts of Aleppo The Syrian government accused rebel groups of breaching the terms of the agreement, saying they tried to smuggle out fighters and heavy weapons. The rebels were also accused of failing to honour a condition that stipulated they should allow for the evacuation of thousands of civilians from Kafraya and Al-Fua, both Shia Muslim towns besieged by rebel groups in the Idlib province. Journalist Zouhir Al Shimale was among about a thousand civilians detained by pro-government militias on Friday night when their convoy was stopped as the ceasefire collapsed. Witnesses told Al Jazeera that government forces had killed at least four people who were part of the convoy. Tens of thousands of people were still trapped inside opposition-controlled areas and were too scared to leave their besieged districts, Al Jazeeras Amro Halabi reported from eastern Aleppo. Now, the people are afraid and they are running away from the meeting point where they were supposed to gather in order to take the buses out of the besieged east Aleppo districts, they are in a state of horror and shock, he said. Aleppo, Syrias second largest city and once a key cultural and economic hub, has been divided between government forces and rebels since 2012. The evacuation agreements came a month after the Syrian government and allied militias launched a military offensive to retake the entire city. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has hailed the operation as a victory. The Syrian conflict started as a largely unarmed uprising against Assads rule in March 2011. It has since morphed into a full-scale civil war that has left hundreds of thousands dead and more than half of the countrys prewar population displaced inside and outside of Syria. Ruling coalition and opposition fail to strike a deal as president seeks to stay in power, stoking fears of bloodshed. Talks in Democratic Republic of Congo between the ruling coalition and the opposition have failed to reach a compromise on the political future of President Joseph Kabila, who intends to stay in power when his mandate ends on Monday. Growing tension on the ground in DRC was visible on Saturday. Police set up road checkpoints in the capital Kinshasa, while the Republican Guard patrolled its administrative district near the presidential palace. Delegates said negotiations will resume on Wednesday once the Catholic bishops mediating the discussions return from a trip to Rome. There is no deal, said Jean-Marc Kabund, secretary-general for the Union for Democracy and Social Progress party of the main opposition leader, Etienne Tshisekedi. The ruling majority is sitting on its positions and refuses to offer any concessions on matters that require a political response, he said. Felix Tshisekedi, an opposition leader, wrote on Twitter: The discussions have failed. Congolese people, the ball is in your court! We have reached the end of our efforts. More than a dozen protesters killed in DRC clashes He told Reuters news agency the opposition would not organise a protest so as not give the government an opportunity to fire on the population, but said he expected people to remain mobilised and protest each in his own way. Another opposition leader, Joseph Olengankhoy, was more circumspect, saying the talks had made significant progress, but more work remained to be done. Violence expected The international community has warned the current tension could descend into violence, and Western diplomats in Kinshasa this week urged all non-essential nationals to leave the country. The government has ordered social networks including Facebook and WhatsApp be blocked from 11:59pm (2259GMT) on Sunday. READ MORE DRC: Social networks to be blocked from midnight Sunday Kabila is required by constitutional term limits to step down after nearly 16 years in power. His government says it cannot organise a presidential election until 2018. The country of 70 million people has never experienced a peaceful transition of power since independence from Belgium in 1960. Some two decades ago, Congo sunk into the deadliest conflict in modern African history, with its two wars in the late 1990s and early 2000s dragging in at least six African armies and leaving more than three million dead. Angry Warsaw residents block parliament as they rally against measures that would limit journalist access. Thousands of Warsaw residents joined a spontaneous demonstration in front of Polands parliament to protest against a plan by the conservative ruling party to limit journalists access to legislators. The march, which began on Friday, continued into the early hours of Saturday, with crowds blocking the parliament for hours. Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the leader of the ruling party, finally left the building after police forcibly removed protesters blocking the exit. Protesters had blocked politicians cars, preventing them from leaving the parliament area. Opposition politician Jerzy Meysztowicz said police used tear gas to disperse them. A new protest was called for Saturday at noon in front of the Presidential Palace. Rules proposed by the head office of the Sejm, the lower house, would ban all recording of parliamentary sessions except by five selected television stations and limit the number of journalists allowed in the building. They are due to take effect next year. Mobilised by the civic movement, the Committee for the Defence of Democracy, or KOD, the crowd began gathering on Friday and waved white-and-red national flags and chanted Free media! in cold winter weather. Radek Sikorski, a former foreign minister, was among government critics who addressed the protest, harshly denouncing Polands political direction under Kaczynski, the most powerful politician in Poland and chairman of the ruling Law and Justice party that is introducing many sweeping changes. Earlier on Friday, inside the parliaments session hall, a large group of liberal opposition MPs protested against the new media rules by standing on and around the speakers podium for several hours. They blocked a vote on the 2017 state budget. The budget vote was eventually taken by ruling party lawmakers in another hall, but the opposition questioned its legality. It was the most serious crisis in Polands parliament for many years. The political crisis has grown more aggravated, Law and Justice MP Tadeusz Cymanski said. READ MORE: Journalist arrests in 2016 at 30-year high In the 27 years of Polands democracy, journalists have been a constant presence in the parliaments halls. Though banned from the main assembly room, they can grab politicians for interviews in the halls. The ruling party, which is under European Union scrutiny for policies deemed anti-democratic by opponents, is planning new rules starting on January 1 that would drastically limit reporters access to parliament. No democracy without media Agnieszka Wisniewska, editor of Krytyka Polityczna, told Al Jazeera that the proposed measure was the easiest way to cut media freedom. You cannot have democracy without media, Wisniewska said, adding that she expected further protests. This is a way to cut media from information. Ruling party leader Kaczynski denounced the obstruction of parliament as hooliganism and threatened protesters with consequences. We will not allow ourselves to be terrorised, he said. He said the proposed changes to media access are no different from those in many other European nations. Respected journalist Seweryn Blumsztajn, a dissident under communism, called the plan a return to communist-era practices. Monika Olejnik of TVN said that journalists had gone too far sometimes, such as trying to accost politicians heading to the toilet. But she, too, denounced the planned new rules, saying ruling party MPs wanted to protect themselves from uncomfortable questions by journalists. But this is in violation of the constitution and of parliament rules, Olejnik said. Engagement2030 campaign in more than 125 locations worldwide aims to dispel myths and build interfaith understanding. London, United Kingdom In an attempt to promote peace and dispel stereotypes surrounding Islam, a group of British Muslims visited 10 Downing Street on Saturday to deliver roses to Prime Minister Theresa May as part of an international campaign. Engagement2030 is a campaign created by As-Siraat, an Islamic organisation in the UK promoting peace and unity. Muslims from all over the world held events during the initiative that started on December 5, giving out roses and chocolates in their local communities and spreading the meaning of peace in Islam. On Saturday, the campaign culminated with the visit to 10 Downing Street where the delegation presented roses and a card for the prime minister. UK report: Anti-Muslim hate crime rising British Muslims also handed out roses as a gesture of peace to the public. Participants from more than 125 locations around the world were also involved. Unfortunately in the current climate of fear, the true message of Islam has been lost, said Abdur Rehman Tobin, a coordinator for As-Siraat. We give out roses and cards offering messages of peace. It gives an opportunity for people to talk to Muslims and ask questions and find out more to remove any misconceptions. Councillor of the London Borough of Newham Obaid Khan, who was at Downing Street, said it was a fantastic initiative that drew and an overwhelmingly positive response. A rose is a symbol of peace and love. Lets hope in this festive period that we can spread peace through giving, said Khan. With the rise of Islamophobia since the September 11, 2001 strikes and amid ISIL attacks, there have been numerous anti-Muslim hate crimes, growing prejudice, and open discriminatory rhetoric. The campaign hopes to open up dialogue and engage people in creating better interfaith understanding, organisers told Al Jazeera. The United States, New Zealand, and Australia are a few of the countries where the Engagement2030 campaign took place with organisers feeding the homeless, visiting the sick, and doing other charitable acts. UK parties target extremism as election approaches David Bowers is an American tourist who visited Downing Street with his family on Saturday. There are not too many Muslims where I live so there are many people in the states, including myself, who have seen the news reports and quite frankly did not have a good impression. The overall perception of Muslims in the West has generally been one that is negative, he said. But I can see really nice, warm and friendly Muslims here. Perhaps the perceptions we have had may change. With the evacuation of Aleppo under way, the Russian leader turns his attention to a political settlement. It has been a stop-go situation in east Aleppo as thousands of Syrians both civilians and rebel fighters are still waiting to get out. The chaotic process has already been halted several times. Activists say government forces opened fire on convoy trucks on Friday. But the government says it was the rebels who started shooting at the troops. Russia, Syrias ally, is playing a major role in the operation. Its soldiers are in control of checkpoints along the route out of eastern Aleppo. Russias President Vladimir Putin is trying to organise peace talks on Syria, possibly in Kazakhstan. Turkey would be involved but significantly, both the UN and the US would be excluded. What is Putins game and what does he hope to gain? Presenter: Dareen Abughaida Guests: Marwan Kabalan Syria analyst and head of policy analysis at the Arab Center at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies Metin Gurcan Independent military analyst and a columnist with Al Monitor Pavel Felgenhauer Defence analyst After a night of drinking, a UF student crashed her car into a flagpole in front of UF Health Shands Hospital on Thursday, University Police said. At about 2:50 a.m., Erin Elizabeth Smith, 22, drove her silver Volkswagen Jetta into a flagpole in the Shands South front circle, according to a police report. Witnesses saw her hit the pole and run out of her vehicle. The accident was also recorded on Shands security cameras, according to the report. Smith told UPD she drank at least two beers earlier that night. She was also wearing a green paper wristband, usually given out at bars, and she smelled of alcohol, according to the report. UF spokeswoman Janine Sikes confirmed that Smith, a political science senior, is currently enrolled at the university. Smith refused any field sobriety or breathalyzer test and screamed at officers, according to the report. When police began reading her Miranda warning, she yelled arrest me!! according to the report. Smith had manic episodes that included yelling, screaming and crying, followed by short moments of calm, according to the report. Police arrested Smith on a charge of driving under the influence. Authorities took her to the Alachua County Jail, where she was released on her own recognizance Friday afternoon. As of press time, Smith could not be reached for comment. @merylkornfield Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now mkornfield@alligator.org With 12 condoms and some marijuana in tow, a Florida man drove to Gainesville on Thursday expecting to have sex with a 14-year-old girl but what he found was a swarm of officers, Gainesville Police said. The confusion began when 23-year-old Jarrod Austin Lawrence Free began an online relationship with an undercover GPD officer posing as a young girl, according to a police report. Free found the officer on a website and soon began texting and emailing the officer sexually explicit messages. He spoke about having sex and texted the officer a photo of an erect penis, according to the report. Do you send nudes? he texted, according to the report. Free traveled roughly 25 miles from the town of Bronson to Gainesville, planning to have sex with the girl, according to the report. When he arrived, he was arrested with the condoms, along with about a gram of weed, a glass pipe and a metal grinder. Police arrested Free on Thursday afternoon on charges of transmission of material harmful to minors, soliciting a child to commit an illegal sexual act and traveling to meet a minor for unlawful sexual contact, along with possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana. Authorities took him to the Alachua County Jail where, as of Friday evening, he remains in lieu of a $230,000 bond. mkornfield@alligator.org @merylkornfield Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now They danced, laughed and ate burritos Friday night, the pack of about 300 people that gathered to celebrate the 40th anniversary of a local restaurant in need of some merriment. It was all for Burrito Bros. Taco Co., a West University Avenue restaurant that has endured financial hardship this year, reporting losses of 23 percent in September with the massive construction of The Standard at Gainesville next door partly to blame. The party, which doubled as a fundraiser, was hosted by Swamp Head Brewery, located at 3650 SW 42nd Ave. By the end of the night, the event raised more than $3,500 for the restaurant. During the event, Gainesville residents, longtime patrons and former employees drank locally brewed beer, munched on soft-tortilla burritos and bought Burrito Bros. merchandise. I saved Burrito Bros., read the roughly 1,000 T-shirts on sale at the event, donated by Gainesville-based Dragonfly Graphics. Randy Akerson, who owns the restaurant with his wife, Janet, said he was excited to see old employees come back for the party and would be spending the night alternating between laughs and tears of joy. The outpouring of love and support has been nothing short of astonishing, he said. Forty years ago, Akerson opened up Burrito Bros. on the northwest corner of West University Avenue and 13th Street, where it would stay for decades and become a mainstay in the city. But the construction near the current location at 1402 W. University Ave. has limited street parking around the restaurant and turned Northwest 14th Street into a dusty mess, Akerson said. By Fall 2017, the behemoth property next door will boast a handful of restaurants, a TargetExpress and an AC Hotels by Marriott. Gainesville has changed a lot over the years not all of it has been wonderful, he said. Cari Martin, a 51-year-old Gainesville resident, makes an effort once a week to spend her money at Akersons business. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now A patron at Burrito Bros. for more than 30 years, Martin said burritos have become a post-workout treat for her, typically eaten after running at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. But despite her fandom, Martin said she was upset to know that some people choose chain restaurants over the local business. One afternoon she went into the Chipotle Mexican Grill on West University Avenue and asked three patrons inside if they knew about the restaurant a few blocks westward. I couldnt believe the line in there, she said, and I couldnt believe no one knew about Burrito Brothers. Martin said construction has made it impossible to park close to the restaurant, and because its no longer in its original location, its harder to find. Janet Akerson said the development surrounding her business has been a financial disaster, but since informing the public about their troubles, support from the community has been extraordinary. Were incredibly grateful, she said. We try not to take for granted the way people feel about our restaurant. She said while business has improved, the restaurant is still at risk. But thats not something she thought about a lot Friday night, welcoming everyone who attended with a smile, talking to customers young and old. The community support has been fantastic, she said. Thats what you see here tonight. Inside Swamp Head Brewery, people enjoyed local beer with their burrito. There were also T-shirts and raffle tickets for sale. English News Chinas veto over Syrian truce resolution aims to restore faith in humanitarianism Alwihda Info | Par peoplesdaily - 17 Decembre 2016 Humanitarianism is a responsibility for both parties engaged in the war. Some Western media blamed Russia for the Syrian crisis in an one-sided manner, but seldom covered the anti-humanitarian behaviors of the other party. By Zhong Sheng from Peoples Daily China and Russia recently vetoed a UN Security Council draft resolution that calls for a seven-day humanitarian truce in Syria's Aleppo. Some media accused China of being anti-humanitarian and someone even pointed an accusing finger at China. The draft resolution tackles a temporary ceasefire in Aleppo in order to clear ways for humanitarian aid. It seems like a reasonable choice to demand ceasefire at first sight, but such humanitarian aid loses all its meaning when putting in the context of current Syrian situation. After the turmoil broke out Aleppo, which the second largest city in Syria, the rebels occupied the city and created a large number of refugees. In the past, not a single Western country raised humanitarian draft decisions. They only started calling for humanitarian aid after the government forces fought back in Aleppo. After Russia intervened in the Syrian crisis in September last year, the Western world used widening humanitarian access as excuses to seek compromises from Russia and Syria. Rightly after Syrian military announced that they have taken most parts of the urban areas and the battle would be soon ended, the Western countries jumped out to preach the urgency of the humanitarian issue. The time they chose is pretty interesting. Among all kinds of forces against Syrian government, the most ferocious Al-Nusra Front has been deemed as a terrorist group by the UN. Russia, on many occasions, proposed the West to separate the Al-Nusra Front from the rebels, but no response has been heard yet. It makes the outsiders wonder whether they couldnt or wouldnt separate them. Russia met rebuttals from the Western countries again when it suggested that all the armed rebels should be withdrawn from the controlled area by Al-Nusra Front and from Aleppo. Things were pretty clear now: the Western countries only want to use humanitarian aid as an excuse to retain the controlled area by the rebels in Aleppo. Because it is obvious that the upper hand is in the party who controls Aleppo. Some media pointed out that some countries are using Aleppo as leverage to achieve their political hidden agendas instead of protecting humanitarianism. Humanitarianism is a responsibility for both parties engaged in the war. Some Western media blamed Russia for the Syrian crisis in an one-sided manner, but seldom covered the anti-humanitarian behaviors of the other party. The recent on-the-field coverage of rebels in Aleppo showed numerous large-sized barns and arsenals. With the refugees starving outside the warehouses, the goods and materials held them show nothing but irony. Those who learn about the history of the Middle East must know well who have caused these hot potatoes. Before pointing their fingers at China, those countries should understand their own role in the turmoil of the Middle East. Chinas permanent representative and ambassador to the UN said that humanitarian issue should never be a political one in his speech given after vetoing the draft resolution. The words were quite to the point. China, always a practitioner of humanitarianism, has inherited the humanitarian spirit from its traditional culture. What China vetoed are those under-the-table agendas in the name of humanitarianism. Speaking of the Syrian crisis, there exist so many distorted facts and hidden truth. Faced with instability, disasters and tortures, it requests the international society to view the facts in an objective way in order to defend justice and restore peoples faith in humanitarianism. (Peoples Daily) Dans la meme rubrique : < > China enhances efforts to promote biodiversity conservation China stress its commitment to push ahead peace and development for humanity at 20th CPC National Congress CPC's governance experience is worth learning from Pour toute information, contactez-nous au : +(235) 99267667 ; 62883277 ; 66267667 (Bureau N'Djamena) English News Key negotiated outcomes and initiative at UN Climate Change Conference in Marrakech set positive tone for irreversible climate action - 17 Decembre 2016 Marrakech, 15 November 2016 The twenty-second session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 22), the twelfth session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP 12), and the first session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA 1) were held in Marrakech, Morocco from November 7 to 18, 2016. The decisions adopted and initiative launched during COP22/CMP12/CMA1 reinforced the spirit of Parties, united in accelerated and irreversible global climate action. COP22 was a first of its kind, with 35 negotiated outcomes, a global climate action agenda, numerous initiatives launched by members of civil society and the Marrakech Action Proclamation that demonstrated political will at the highest levels to consolidate around the Paris Agreement and its implementation, stated Ambassador Aziz Mekouar, COP22 Head of Multilateral Negotiations. The outcomes addressed several climate change issues such as finance, adaptation, capacity building and transparency and included the following results: Inclusive and transparent consultations with Parties during the Pre-COP and COP22 achieved the adoption by Parties of the Marrakech Action Proclamation For Our Climate And Sustainable Development. The first session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA 1) was held in Marrakech following the agreements rapid early entry into force. The launch of the AAA initiative for the Adaptation of African Agriculture The Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action was announced covering the period 2017 to 2020 and the Pathway to 2050 initiative designed to bring together a broad coalition of national and subnational governmental agencies, organizations and businesses who have a critical role to play in the transition to a net zero-GHG, climate-resilient and sustainable development path. The NDC Partnership and Navigator were launched to assist countries with identifying capacity building and financing opportunities as they seek to implement their nationally determined contributions The Marrakech Global Partnership for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency was launched to consolidate energy sector outcomes from COP21 and COP22 and accelerate the transition to global clean energy systems through information sharing, scaling up of finance, transparency and identifying key policy drivers. The establishment of the Network of International Climate Change Centers of Excellence and Think Tanks for Capacity Building (INCCCETT 4CB) was announced to promote capacity building efforts as part of south-south and north-south cooperation. The Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) committed to take actions to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and lead a transformation towards 100% renewable energy Pre-2020 action was strengthened by Parties insisting on the ratification and application of the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol, which Australia ratified during COP22. The Moroccan Presidency (COP22) will lead inclusive consultations in 2017 with Fiji (COP23 President) to identify modalities for the 2018 Facilitative Dialogue. Adoption of new axes of Nairobi work plan on impacts, vulnerability and adaptation to climate change to be undertaken by subsidiary bodies in 2017. Adoption of a 5-year work plan for the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage associated with Climate Change Impacts. Creation of a team in charge of formulating recommendations for an integrated approach to prevent and reduce human displacement was also approved by the Executive Committee. Climate finance roadmap of $100 billion dollars by 2020. Decision by the Green Climate Fund to allocate $3 million dollars to least advanced countries to formulate National Adaptation Plans. Key progress was made regarding the Adaptation Fund under the Kyoto Protocol as an implementation instrument for the Paris Agreement. Several countries announced contributions to it, bringing the available funds to more than $80 billion dollars. The Paris Committee on Capacity Building mandate was validated and the committee was established to include Morocco. The work plan of the Capacity Building Mechanism for 2016-2020 was also launched. $50 million dollars of financing was announced for the Capacity-building Initiative for Transparency (CBIT) to strengthen the institutional and technical capacities of developing countries to meet the enhanced transparency requirements in the Paris Agreement. In terms of gender and climate, the Lima 2nd biennial work program was adopted. For indigenous peoples and local communities, work was launched to operationalize an information exchange and dialogue platform. The Mohammed VI International Award for the Climate and Sustainable Development ($1 million dollars) The progress made on negotiations in Marrakech reflects the Moroccan Presidencys active, transparent and inclusive engagement with Parties and the global communities irreversible commitment to accelerating forward momentum in the fight against climate change. Dans la meme rubrique : < > China enhances efforts to promote biodiversity conservation China stress its commitment to push ahead peace and development for humanity at 20th CPC National Congress CPC's governance experience is worth learning from Pour toute information, contactez-nous au : +(235) 99267667 ; 62883277 ; 66267667 (Bureau N'Djamena) English News Op-ed: China-Russia strategic coordination acts as stabilizer of world peace Alwihda Info | Par peoplesdaily - 17 Decembre 2016 More and more personnel exchanges have given bilateral ties a personal touch. Over 200 events were held under the framework of the year of media communication. An exhibition hall on the site of the 6th National Congress of the CPC was completed and opened to the public as scheduled, becoming a new symbol of China-Russia friendship. By Zhong Sheng from Peoples Daily The China-Russia relationship has been maintained at a high level since the beginning of 2016. The all-round cooperation on all fronts has not only brought benefits to the two peoples, but played a positive role in ensuring regional stability and world peace. The strategic collaboration between China and Russia has become the ballast stone in maintaining world peace and stability. The main function of the ballast stone is to stabilize an object and keep balance. Starting from the beginning of this year, the international situation was riddled with complicated challenges and hidden turmoil, leading to dozens of black swan events. Under such circumstances, propositions made by China and Russia, featuring positive influence and great energy, have played a crucial role in their respective development and international peace. The importance of the China-Russia relationship to world peace and stability equals that of mutual trust in China-Russia relationship. Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held five meetings this year. Such frequent high-level communications, which were rarely seen in the international society, have charted the course of the China-Russia relationship and cement mutual trust in politics and strategies. By using the 15th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation as well as the 20th anniversary of the establishment of strategic partnership of coordination as platforms, China and Russia have launched all-round exchanges and cooperation based on an ever-lasting friendship. They prioritize each other in diplomacy, regard each other as critical for development, support each other on issues concerning core interests, back each other in choosing the right development path suitable to respective national conditions, and contribute to the prosperity of both countries. The ongoing cooperation in various fields has added momentum to the bilateral relationship. This year, both nations officially started the negotiation on economic and trade agreement of China and Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), marking an early achievement in connecting the Belt and Road and the EEU. During President Putins state visit to Beijing in June, the two countries enriched the cooperation fruits from alignment of the Belt and Road and the EEU by reaching important consensus on building Eurasian partnership. Moreover, both countries, based on a package of cooperation and balanced interests, have promoted comprehensive, pragmatic and mutually beneficial cooperation in the nuclear field, furthered pragmatic cooperation in investment, finance and energy fields, pioneered collaboration on SMEs, agriculture and technological innovation, and also launched strategic projects such as long-range wide-body plane and heavy transport helicopter (HTH). Thanks to the joint efforts, bilateral trade volume of China and Russia has picked up and the trade structure has been improved. More and more personnel exchanges have given bilateral ties a personal touch. Over 200 events were held under the framework of the year of media communication. An exhibition hall on the site of the 6th National Congress of the CPC was completed and opened to the public as scheduled, becoming a new symbol of China-Russia friendship. With more and more Chinese tourists going on the tour of revolution, China will continue to be the biggest source of overseas tourists for Russia. A Shenzhen-based university was officially established by Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) and the Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT), showing that the cultural and personnel exchanges between the two countries have moved to the joint management of schools and improvement of soft power. The ice cream that was presented by Putin to Xi became popular among the Chinese in a short time. China and Russia also play a stabilizing role by guarding peace and justice. Both permanent members of the UN Security Council, China and Russia share similar standpoints and perspectives in international affairs, strongly oppose Cold War mindset and zero-sum games, and devote to international justice and world peace. This year, both heads of state released a joint declaration on global strategic stability and development of information cyberspace, and their foreign ministers also issued statements to promote international law. Such efforts have lifted China-Russia international cooperation to a new high and generated widespread positive influence on the international society. Attaching great importance to the security and stability in Korean Peninsula, Central Asia and other neighboring areas, both countries opposed the possible deployment of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system in South Korea, and accelerated the resolution of hotspot political agendas such as Ukraine and Syria crises. Both countries have made their voices heard loud and clear in the international affairs and contributed their solutions to address challenging issues in the world arena. Looking into the next year, the international situation may become even more complicated, thus posing greater challenges for the development of both China and Russia. With the joint efforts and cooperation, the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination will continue to serve as a ballast stone in order to further promote prosperity in both countries and enhance world peace and stability. Dans la meme rubrique : < > China enhances efforts to promote biodiversity conservation China stress its commitment to push ahead peace and development for humanity at 20th CPC National Congress CPC's governance experience is worth learning from Pour toute information, contactez-nous au : +(235) 99267667 ; 62883277 ; 66267667 (Bureau N'Djamena) In March of 2015, people across the U.S. were shocked to see a video showing two members of the University of Oklahoma SAE fraternity chanting racial epithets. The reaction of the OU administration was swift and draconian. The offending students were expelled without due process and the entire SAE house was immediately shuttered. Legal scholars, writing in the Washington Post and USA Today, described the university's actions as a violation of the student's First Amendment rights. As Eugene Volokh noted, "racist speech is constitutionally protected." Solely as a result of this incident, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) named OU as one of the ten worst colleges in the U.S. for free speech. Greg Lukianoff, President of FIRE, singled out OU as the most intolerant of all institutions because its actions were taken as a signal by other universities that they could "toss freedom of speech and basic fairness out of the window." Racial tensions on the OU campus have not subsided. They remain high, and if anything, are now more pronounced than before the 2015 SAE incident. The campus is in the grip of a collective hysteria. The largest single factor driving campus tensions is the student newspaper, the OU Daily. The Daily is perhaps the worst newspaper in the country, college or otherwise. In recent years it has degenerated into a publication entirely devoted to promoting radical left-wing ideology. The newspaper staff sees racism, homophobia, islamophobia, xenophobia, inequity, and social injustice everywhere. In 2014, the OU Daily became the laughingstock of the nation for an article claiming that nude-colored women's underwear was racist. Last October, OU students woke up one morning to find that overnight someone had glued posters around campus promoting an obscure group named Identity Evropa. The posters featured photos of European art such as the head of Michelangelo's David captioned with slogans that included "Let's Become Great Again" and "Our Future Belongs to Us." The claim was immediately made that Identity Evropa was a white nationalist group. Outraged students scoured campus, ripping down the offending posters. The university press secretary was quoted in the press as stating that any poster "determined to contain hate speech" would be removed. I doubt if Parisians were as upset when they woke up on the morning of June 14, 1940, and found the City of Light occupied by Nazis. One student tweeted in outrage "we still question why students feel unsafe on this campus!" No one seemed cognizant of the fact that the reaction to the posters had only succeeded in publicizing Identity Evropa's message. Without the fuss, it's likely most people would have barely given the posters a second glance. Also lost on the university community was the fact that the university itself promotes Western Civilization through required coursework. Indeed, American universities and most of the curriculum they teach are products of Western Civilization. Last November 14, a professor from the History of Science Department found two racist posters in university buildings. The posters were titled "Why White Women Shouldn't Date Black Men" and "Race and Intelligence: the Facts." The professor photographed these flyers, posted the images on Twitter, and then took them down. Ironically, by publicly posting images of the posters the good professor succeeded in publicizing their message. What might have been viewed by only a handful of people was instead seen by thousands. Removing the posters set a terrible example for students. The implied lesson was that you don't have to defeat ideas you disagree with by reasoned argument -- you are entitled to suppress them by force. Subsequently the Faculty Senate declared that toleration of hate speech was antithetical to "the pursuit of learning [and] the creation of art and knowledge." Members of the OU community were advised to report incidents of hate speech to the OU Police Department. Collectively, the OU Faculty Senate has the intelligence of a flock of turkeys. But to assert that intolerance is essential to teaching and research plumbs a new low. Attempts to suppress hate speech are extremely troublesome. For starters, there is no objective or legal definition of hate speech. In practice, hate speech can be anything people find offensive. On the OU campus, if you say something as innocuous as 'I support Trump," a number of people would consider this to be hate speech. Hate speech is also protected by the First Amendment. People do not have a right to make specific and credible threats or incite violence, but they do have a right to express personal opinions that are both wrong and offensive. Pity the poor police officer who receives a report of alleged hate speech. How is he or she to respond? Not only is there no statute outlawing hate speech, it's a crime to deprive individuals of their First Amendment rights under color of authority. The entire concept of racism itself has also become questionable. Fifty years ago, the term was commonly understood to refer to discrimination against individuals on the basis of race. I'm old enough to remember classified ads in newspapers stating "colored need not apply." In 1960, African-Americans faced legal and societal impediments that barred their entry into schools, occupations, and sundry other institutions and establishments. All of these discriminatory barriers, both public and private, have been removed. We live in a white-majority country that twice elected a black president. This is the same white majority that enacted affirmative-action programs wherein African-Americans are given preference over their own sons and daughters. Yet complaints about racism are now more frequent and intense than they were fifty or sixty years ago. The term "racist" has become so degraded that it is now commonly invoked as a criticism of anything someone does not like. According to the concept of white privilege, all white people are racist as a condition of birth. Oklahoma is one of the most conservative states in the nation. In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump received 65 percent of the vote. Yet last October, a high school teacher in Norman, Oklahoma, instructed his students "to be white is to be racist, period." With this sort of rhetoric circulating, is it any wonder that most rational people now discount the charge of racism as meaningless political drivel? Not only is the University of Oklahoma campus a hotbed of racial hysteria, it's also home to the dreaded scourge of Islamophobia. According to a report in the OU Daily, on November 15, an unidentified person handed a Chick Tract titled "Camel's In the Tent" to a female professor from Lebanon. A Chick Tract is a short evangelical Christian pamphlet. Distributing Chick Tracts is a common form of Christian proselytizing. Over the last fifty years, approximately 800 million Chick Tracts have been printed and distributed. They are very common. Evidently the professor who received a copy of "Camel's In the Tent" had never seen a Chick Tract before. Because the content of the pamphlet made her feel "uncomfortable," she reported the incident to the OU Police. Irony coated the professor's account like two inches of freezing rain in an Oklahoma winter storm. She professed that she "came to this country because I believe in American values," and then preached "we need to reach out [to people] and listen to their fears." But she didn't reach out and listen to fears about Islam or Islamic terrorism. She called the police! The professor also failed to grasp that freedom of religion and speech are core American values. In the United States of America we don't call the police on people who are engaged in Christian proselytizing. That's what they do in Islamic countries such as Saudi Arabia and Iran. It gets worse. In October of 2015 a monument recognizing the Ten Commandments was removed from the grounds of the Oklahoma State Capitol because Section II-5 of the Oklahoma Constitution states that "no public money or property shall ever be appropriated, applied, donated, or used, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit, or support of any sect, church, denomination, or system of religion." But this has not stopped the University of Oklahoma from setting aside a room in their Bizzell Library dedicated to Muslim prayer. Although the room is described as a "reflection room" open to everyone, it's sectarian nature is indicated unambiguously by the fact that it's stocked with copies of the Koran and pamphlets on Islam. How did we come this far? The University of Oklahoma, like other American institutions of higher education, has become hopelessly politicized. The fact that Oklahoma is a conservative state doesn't help, rather it exacerbates the aggravation of the faculty. Most faculty at OU are not native Oklahomans, they are transplants from other states and foreign countries. They view themselves as a besieged island of sanity in a sea of bigotry. Eternal vigilance and zero tolerance are necessary, because the Ku Klux Klan lurks around every corner, carrying ropes and burning crosses. While conservatives view leftists as people with bad ideas, leftists don't look upon conservatives as people who even have ideas -- they're just bad people who must be rooted out, suppressed, and excluded. This quest has now superseded any pretense to education. The OU Campus is in the grip of a moral frenzy, the very definition of a witch hunt. The faculty and administration of the university have failed to heed Nietzsche's warning: "whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster." Dr. Deming is professor of arts and sciences at the University of Oklahoma, and the author of Science and Technology in World History (McFarland, 2010, 2012, 2016). In Irans Strategic Penetration of Latin America (Lexington Books, 2014) authors and global security experts Joseph Humire and Ilan Berman elaborate on Kellys position with a collection of essays that provides an alarming look at Iran's penetration of Latin America. That activity began in 1979 as part of Irans overall strategy to seek global power and develop nuclear weapons. Latin American experts featured in this revealing volume detail how Iran's infiltration of Latin America has been pursued under the cover of commercial activities and cultural exchanges and has been aided by an alliance and shared militancy with the Latin American Left. The experts maintain that, over more than three decades, Iran has been able to forge strong economic, political, and strategic links to the region. As the authors explain, Iran began its strategic infiltration of Latin America in 1982. International proxy groups exported Muslim revolutionary ideas using a global network of embassies and mosques under the cover of legitimate commerce and diplomatic, cultural, and religious associations. In this way, the Islamic regime concealed its intelligence activities, claimed diplomatic immunity and gained access to backdoor channels and local governments. Irans operatives traveled throughout the region unifying and radicalizing Islamic communities and recruiting, proselytizing and indoctrinating young Latin Americans. Editor Joseph Humire recounts that in 1983 the regime sent an emissary, Mohsen Rabbani, an Iranian cleric, as a commercial attache to set up a trade agreement with Argentina, ostensibly to supply halal-certified meat to the Islamic Republic. Rabbani, who in 1994 would become the primary architect of a terrorist attack in Buenos Aires, fostered alliances with local Shiite Muslims, as well as radical activists who wanted to shift power away from democratic alliances and U.S. influence. Trade with Iran helped these activists buy political patronage to advance authoritarian rule and enabled them to funnel mass social spending into their countries and influence elections. As Islamic terrorist entities such as Irans proxy, Hizballah, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) moved into the region, they joined with local radical groups such as FARC and Shining Path in their anti-Americanism and hatred of Jews and Israel. The authors explore how, with a large Muslim population in place spewing hatred toward Israel, attention focused on the largest Jewish population in South America, the 230,000 Jews in Argentina. In 1992, a Hizballah-linked terrorist group claimed responsibility for bombing the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires. In 1994, Hizb'allah committed the deadliest bombing in Argentine history when it bombed the AMIA Jewish community center also in Buenos Aires, killing 89 people and injuring hundreds. The essay collection insightfully examines the role of Venezuelan dictator, Hugo Chavez. After becoming president in 1999, he forged a close relationship with Iran and hailed Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Hizballah, as a hero. He also demanded criminal prosecution for Israels leader, Ariel Sharon, and President George W. Bush for mass murder. Chavez was able to help Iran overcome the hurdles of economic sanctions and engage in both licit and illicit commercial activity, including acquisition of strategic minerals for nuclear weapons development, drug trafficking, and money laundering. Chavez filled his cabinet with Islamists and became a close partner with then-Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. According to the authors, during this period Iranian influence in Latin American countries increased significantly. Chavez worked closely with Fidel Castro, the first leader to recognize the Islamic republic and to invite Iran to open in Havana its first Latin American embassy. Together, Chavez and Castro sponsored a socialist Bolivarian Revolution to establish a new world order in which Latin America was part of a global revolution, not unlike the one in Iran. In 2004, they founded the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America or ALBA. In Irans Strategic Penetration of Latin America, the authors examine how, over a decade, ALBA grew in strategic importance in Latin America and helped cause the backsliding of democratic reforms in the region. ALBAs goal was to create a Latin American coalition under Venezuelan and Cuban rule using non-state actors and transnational organized crime to bring about a post-American world. In 2010, Iran and Syria were admitted to the organization as observer states. Chavez worked with Iran and Hizballah to train his military in asymmetric warfare, the use of insurgency forces against established armies. Iran financed an ALBA military training school in Bolivia, as well as Hizballah training centers in other countries. Hizballah became heavily involved in drug trafficking and money laundering in the tri-border area of Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil. It made millions of dollars, sending cocaine from Mexico and Columbia to the Middle East and Europe. Hizballah used its presence in Latin America to raise money for its global operations from the Lebanese and Syrian diasporas and to recruit, indoctrinate and proselytize among the Latin American population. Iran accrued great benefit from its relationship with the ALBA nations. Diplomatically, they stood against sanctions on Iran and tried to subvert any attempts to isolate the Islamic republic. They provided Iran with a media platform in the region and supported Iran's rejection of nuclear weapons scrutiny from the International Atomic Energy Agency. Additionally, through ALBA, Iran skirted international sanctions and evaded financial authorities by launching front companies, laundering money and injecting cash into the financial systems of ALBA countries for lucrative, commercial, and criminal enterprises. Irans Strategic Penetration of Latin America does a good job of providing an overall picture of Irans infiltration of South and Central America and the Caribbean. It also raises the question of what the future holds for the region. Since the death of Chavez and the economic decline in Venezuela and other Latin American countries, the trajectory of Iran-Latin America relations has shifted. Iran retains commercial interests in many countries in the area and is working to strengthen its political and economic ties. It continues to maintain its innocence in the AMIA bombing, despite substantial evidence to the contrary and heightened negative publicity from the suspicious death of chief prosecutor, Alberto Nisman, in January 2015. Many Latin American countries are wary of Irans influence, regional intelligence gathering and its status as a state sponsor of terrorism. Donald Trumps election may signal a game change in the region. Trump has emphatically and repeatedly stated his opposition to the Iran nuclear deal which calls up possible reimposition of sanctions. Similarly, a ruling by Columbias Constitutional Court to allow expedited congressional approval for a peace accord with the Hizballah-allied terrorist group, FARC, could limit the previously fertile ground for Islamic terrorism in South America. Additionally, the presence of increasingly Euro-friendly regimes in Argentina, Columbia, Ecuador, Peru, and Brazil, could constitute welcome impediments to Irans continued hold on power in the region. Finally, and most optimistically, with retired U.S. Marine Corps Gen. John Kelly as the nominee to head the Department of Homeland Security, Irans use of Latin America as a nexus for terrorist operations could be dramatically curtailed, if not eliminated outright. If a man says hes Napoleon Bonaparte, he needs help, but if he says hes a woman hes perfectly sane and if anyone refuses to go along with him hes being oppressed. If 97% of scientists say that man made global warming is real anyone who disagrees should be put in prison. When 100% of scientists say that human life begins at conception it has nothing to do with abortion. If Russia publishes true facts about Hillary its foreign interference in our election. If illegals, i.e. foreigners, vote in our election its a good thing. Clubbing a baby seal to death is evil. Dismembering an unborn human girl without anesthetic is a societal good. Getting water to Californias central valley farmers isnt as important as protecting the delta smelt. Its okay if wind turbines kill 4200 bald eagles each year. Saying all lives matter is racist. Saying only black lives matter is not. Russia revealing secrets about Hillary is evil. Hillary putting highly classified data on an insecure server is fine. Exposing Hillarys secrets is a foreign coup. The NYT's revealing highly classified anti-terror programs is heroic. WikiLeaks is a source for truth justice and the American way if its exposing critical national security programs that have nothing to do with domestic surveillance. WikiLeaks is an agent of fascism if it reveals anything that Hillary wants hidden. Electoral college electors ignoring how the people voted in their state is true democracy. Fidel Castro, who wore military attire and got his power through a military campaign he led, is a beacon of freedom and truth. Retired American generals are unfit to serve in government. It was racist to say that Obamas lack of experience made him a poor candidate for president. Saying that Ben Carson doesnt have the experience necessary to run HUD is a patriots duty. Native Americans not expressing their concern at any of the 389 meetings the Army Corp of Engineers had with Native American Tribes in no way creates suspicion about why theyre protesting now. Honest citizens who own guns are evil. Criminals who commit crimes while in possession of a gun should get shorter sentences than they do now. 92% of the victims of black criminals are black. Wanting to keep all criminals in jail longer is racist. Any man who claims to feel hes a woman at any given moment can use the womens bathroom. Bill Clintons sexually harassing and possible raping women is irrelevant to his ability to be president. Trumps apparently consensual immorality completely disqualifies him from being president. Ignoring the thousands of blacks shot in Democrat run cities is not racist. Not being outraged when a cop shoots a black man in self-defense is racist. Not caring that black women are 5 times as likely to abort their unborn baby than white women is not racist. Not wanting to fund abortion thereby protecting black lives is racist. Opposing school competition in our inner cities is patriotic. Wanting to give black kids a chance to excel is racist because it hurts the teachers unions. That NASA showed that the earths temperature was flat for 18 years and then suddenly reprocessed the data and found that the temperature was rising -- in contradiction to the satellite data -- raises no suspicions about the quality of the data. The housing crisis was Bushs fault even though Bush had called for reform of Frannie and Freddie two years earlier and was rebuffed by the Democratic Congress. ISIS is Bushs fault even though it was Obama who withdrew all U.S. forces from Iraq and didnt force the Shia president of Iraq to treat the Sunni Iraqis fairly. The deficit of 2009 is all Bushs fault even though it includes the $900,000,000 slush-money-for-my-friends stimulus package that Obama created. Israel is our enemy because it doesnt treat the Palestinians, who openly proclaim they want to commit genocide against Jews, perfectly. Iran is our friend even though they persecute all religious minorities in Iran. Its illegal to compel a gay baker to bake a cake with a pro-marriage message. Its illegal for a Christian baker to be willing to serve gays but not be willing to bake a wedding cake for them. Wanting to raise the tax rate of other people is charitable. People who want to keep the money they work for are selfish. Government workers are smarter and better than regular Americans so its reasonable that they get paid more, have better benefits, and never ever get fired. Its great that the MSM declared open war on Trump but Fox News is evil for questioning Obama. Anything that goes against the liberal narrative is malevolent fake news. Any news that comes from the MSM and has to be retracted is an honest mistake that in no way affects their credibility. Giving oil companies the same tax breaks that all industries get is subsidizing them. Giving billions to companies that fail and are owned by Obamas green energy cronies is investing in America. A Supreme Court justice who cites foreign laws is a patriot. A Supreme Court justice who cites the Constitution is an extremist. Theres nothing undemocratic in the Supreme Court overthrowing the laws of almost all states -- abortion and gay marriage. A later Supreme Court reversing those decisions would be treason. Women are just as capable as men in every way and they are better because they are more reasonable and less violent. We need easier criteria for women who want to be fire fighters, Army Rangers, and cops because not doing so is sexist. Women are oppressed in education even though more women than men are getting college degrees. A woman in a job in an air-conditioned office should make as much as a man who works in the sewers, otherwise the system is sexist. You can read more of toms rants at his blog, Conversations about the obvious and feel free to follow him on Twitter A few weeks before the election, I attended a gathering at a close friends home. When I arrived, a woman whom I will refer to as Liane was there with her husband. Liane is ideologically to the left and divides people into categories. Last summer, she referred to Republicans as rabid. When my friends cousin, a Democrat strategist, made her entrance, Liane immediately stated, I want to hear all about Clinton vs. Trump. Knowing I was the only one in the room supporting Trump, I suggested we keep divisive politics out of the discussion. That did not happen. Everyone, including my friend, who is a moderate, made it clear they viewed Mr. Trump as an impulsive megalomaniac who was going to destroy the world. Later the conversation veered to Bill Clinton and his proclivities. Everyone except Liane agreed his actions were unsavory to say the least. When I mentioned something which had been widely reported, Liane responded angrily, Just like Obama is a birther and a Muslim? She immediately stormed away. The episode shook me to the core. As we got ready to go to a restaurant, she shouted out that she removed herself from the discussion because there would have been blood. Now I am no wilting flower, but I did not wish to embarrass our mutual friend. This occasion, however, was a preview of the Northeast elites hysteria following the victory of Donald Trump. The Wednesday morning after the election, like many, I went to work exhausted but elated avoiding my colleagues. Like many on the right, relief, not gloating, was the order of the day. Clients from both sides of the political aisle kept their appointments. Surprisingly, with a few exceptions, most on the left were resigned and accepted the decision rendered by the majority of the electorate and conversation moved to their therapeutic needs of the day. This was not the case for my colleagues and liberal friends. One liberal but fair-minded colleague who is our current chair mildly indicated her distress when I asked how she was doing. She informed me she would have been less upset if it had been Jeb. I told her only Trump could effectively defend against the aggressive attacks from the corrupt MSM. She went on to thank me for making a decision to recuse myself from Thursday's business meeting so my colleagues could express their rancor and grief over the results of the election. My professional colleagues outside the practice were also not as conciliatory. They used email to express their shock and dismay about the coming apocalypse as a result of Mr. Trumps victory. A small but vocal group began expressing their fears for women, homosexuals, and any and every other minority who could be identified. These highly educated and reputedly open-minded professionals vowed to push ahead with their message of love over hate and claimed they would assist their clients in navigating the treacherous waters of a Trump presidency. The night after the election, another close friend messaged me expressing heartbreak. Because her nephew is gay, she bemoaned the fact that same-sex marriage would be overturned not only because of Trump but Pence. When we used to disagree about our current president, whom she admires, she would close the conversation with ...but Elizabeth, what do I know? Following our spirited discussion regarding Mr. Trump, she refuted her past declaration and let me know she was well read even though her sources were different than mine. Consequently, we had a testy exchange over text until we decided our thirty-three-year-old friendship was too important to so readily discard which it was on the verge of doing. This keening and mourning has not subsided. Two weeks ago, a client whom I have seen for about two years decided to chime in her opinion about Mr. Trump. On this particular day, she made a false accusation regarding our president-elect, maintained fake news was usurping the real news of the New York Times and Washington Post and emphasized her need to work forever because Mr. Trump will ruin Mr. Obamas economy. The finale of her discourse was about vilifying anyone who voted for Mr. Trump and proceeded to glare at me. After unsuccessfully trying to circumvent her, I realized it was futile and allowed her to express her venom. Several minutes later as the conversation meandered, she wondered why people were not willing to engage in friendly banter about politics. The day after her virulent outburst, this woman texted me her decision to end therapy. Because of her surprise tantrum, I was not sad to see her go which is most uncharacteristic of me regarding my clients. Finally, last week, at my business meeting, I bore witness to the true hypocrisy of the Northeast elites who have become increasingly emboldened during this pre- and postelection season. We were reviewing samples for our new brochure, and after examining many options, we already agreed that images of nature rather than people would be a better option. One of our colleagues wanted to give us one more example before we made our final decision. Pictures of families were passed around. Allow me to explain that the towns we serve are about ninety-five percent white, upper-middle-class to wealthy families, and most are comprised of heterosexual couples. It would be most lovely to see the upward mobility of all minorities, and hopefully, this will eventually happen when they turn their back on the political party of nowhere. For now, however, the demographics of our population is not much different from other wealthy enclaves in the Northeast. After looking at the pictures, two of my colleagues proclaimed that these people are too white, and one of them said too heterosexual. A particularly brave soul among the group said, but this is She was drowned out. No one else attempted to rebut these claims in fear of being accused of some ism or phobia. Having taken the risk of expressing my disapproval of similar behavior in the past, I too declined to take a position. The healthier approach going forward is to attend fewer meetings and invest my energies in more constructive endeavors. Rush Limbaugh is correct. This attempted annihilation of Donald Trump is relentless and will not stop. Hell hath no fury like a Democrat scorned! Mr. Trump committed a mortal sin by beating someone who was to be coronated as the first woman president. Believe me, it is echoed throughout my neck of the woods every day. Thank God Mr. Trump is who he is. Our president-elect is going need every muscle it takes to withstand the onslaught as he Makes America Great Again. In the meantime, I will remain optimistic as I am forced to listen to false narratives and exclamations by people who are often clueless and see the world through a different lens. Listening attentively to these stalwart believers of the Leftist ideology, I often say to myself: The truth really is stranger than fiction. The author is using a pen name fo reasons she epxlains here. Immigration today, immigration tomorrow, immigration forever? In recent times there has been much controversy over President-elect Donald Trumps campaign-trail suggestion that we temporarily halt immigration from Muslim nations (which has been modified). The Left claims such a notion is discriminatory, un-American and even, most ridiculously, unconstitutional. Yet theres a simple way to avoid this debate altogether: Institute a moratorium on all immigration. This is a serious proposal and a necessary one. Consider: with the U.S. having a replacement-level fertility rate of 2.1 children per woman, immigration is the only reason our population is increasing. As to this, our numbers have swelled from 100 million people in 1915 to 200 million in 1968 to 320 million today. And its projected they will reach approximately 400 million just after 2050. Obviously, such growth involves strain on natural resources, social services and infrastructure. Yet while the Left purports to care about the environment, it also pursues open-border policies with jihadist-like zeal. But when will enough population be enough? When it stands at 450 million? A half billion? A billion? The Left likes to push family planning. But what about national-family planning? In addition, more than 94 million Americans are not in the labor force, and the real unemployment rate is far higher than the governments fraudulent figure of approximately five percent. Moreover, recent years have seen companies replacing American high-tech workers with foreigners (often forcing our countrymen to train their replacements, as salt in the wound). What rational case can be made that the U.S. needs more people? Actually, there is one rational, if nefarious, case: the desire for political power. Since the institution of the Immigration and Nationality Act in 1965, 85 percent of our legal immigrants have come from the Third World. Upon being naturalized, 70 to 90 percent of them vote Democrat. In contrast, the Republicans derive approximately 90 percent of their votes from European-descent Americans. Do you see the rational case, or at least the rationale, now? This post-1965 immigration model, along with oft-offered-amnesty to illegal migrants, has ushered in great demographic upheaval. Where our country was almost 90 percent non-Hispanic white in 1965, its now just 61.9 percent so. This is precisely what is being spoken of, by the way, when you hear the media and politicians talking about the demographic changes that are pulling the nation left. Dont be fooled by Donald Trumps Nov. 8 victory, either. The President-elect campaigned as a nationalistic populist, not a conservative, and for a variety of reasons he possessed great crossover appeal; in addition, Hillary Clinton was a horrible candidate. There is a reason California, where Ronald Reagan once reigned supreme, could not be won by him today. Theres a reason Virginia and North Carolina (of all places) are swing states; and why Illinois, which went GOP six elections in a row 1968 through 1988, is now a presidential-election Democrat bastion. And a big part of it is spelled i-m-m-i-g-r-a-t-i-o-n. Power-mad, anti-Western politicians are well aware of this, mind you. Barack Obama said last year that immigration was making America "more and more of a hodgepodge of folks" and that he was "hopeful" this would drown out conservatism. Andrew Neather, ex-adviser to former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, was even more blunt in 2009 when he admitted that the massive Third World immigration into the U.K. was designed "to rub the Right's nose in diversity and render their arguments out of date." And Swedish multiculturalist and social engineer Mona Sahlin, commenting on the planned Islamization of her land, said in 2001, "[T]he Swedes must be integrated into the new Sweden; the old Sweden is never coming back." This is also why Obama has intensified the demographic warfare via illegal migration, most notably with an alleged amnesty plan that would legalize foreigners, take over the host (us) and push citizens into the shadows. Part of this scheme appears to involve seeding red states with Muslim migrants and other foreigners, who then will break the ice and create communities that will attract even more newcomers from their nations. Goodbye, Main Street, U.S.A. hello, Hodgepodgeville. By the way, what do you call people who, lusting after power, invite foreigners into their own lands to overwhelm their countrymen? Any thoughts? Note that the 1965 immigration act wasnt billed as a culture-ender and nation-render. In fact, writes the Center for Immigration Studies: Senate immigration subcommittee chairman Edward Kennedy (D-MA.) reassured his colleagues and the nation with the following [when pushing the 65 legislation]: "First, our cities will not be flooded with a million immigrants annually. Under the proposed bill, the present level of immigration remains substantially the same ... Secondly, the ethnic mix of this country will not be upset ... Contrary to the charges in some quarters, [the bill] will not inundate America with immigrants from any one country or area, or the most populated and deprived nations of Africa and Asia ... In the final analysis, the ethnic pattern of immigration under the proposed measure is not expected to change as sharply as the critics seem to think." Every claim above is the precise opposite of what came to pass. Our immigration did increase from a historical norm of approximately 250,000 a year to 1,000,000, we have been inundated with immigrants from one country and area (Mexico and Latin America) and from the most populated and deprived nations, and our ethnic (and racial) mix has changed radically. Note, too, that in delivering his apologia, Ol Teddy tacitly admitted the above would be negative developments he didnt just dismiss such concerns as racist. In fact, those concerns stemmed from a widely recognized truth: a nation demographically unstable is an unstable nation. For if such changes lead to balkanization, it will not long be a nation, properly defined as an extension of the tribe, which itself is an extension of the family. (The Sioux Nation was not a country, per se; it was thus named because all members were Sioux.) E pluribus hodgepodge is not a recipe for national success. Of course, our immigration policy was once quite different. Not only were far fewer immigrants admitted, but for many decades prior to 65, policies ensured that the U.S.s demographic balance would be maintained. Such a model is now called discriminatory.But consider: with millions of ethnic Chinese flooding into Tibet, overwhelming the natives, anthropologists may scream, This is cultural and demographic genocide! When the same thing happens to Western nations? Then its called diversity. Thats not the only hypocrisy here. While reporting last year on white techie types displacing Hispanics in San Franciscos Mission District, fake-news paper The New York Times disparagingly termed the phenomenon bleaching out the Latino culture. Yet fake-news station MSNBC has talked about the browning of America favorably. Apparently, some demographic changes are more equal than others. Of course, suspending legal immigration is currently still a fringe view, in the grip as we are of immigrationism, the belief that immigration is always good, always necessary and must be the one constant in an ever-changing universe of policy. But with the Trump phenomenon having moved the dial on whats politically possible and palatable, its time to start talking about it and moving that dial a bit more. Talk-show host Mark Levin has rhetorically asked, Is the purpose of immigration law to change the demographics of the nation? Today, in America, it is. But with patriotic movements already having struck a blow against the Establishment in Europe with Brexit and in the U.S. with Trump its time to do the same with immigration. Establishment immigration policy must go. Contact Selwyn Duke, follow him on Twitter or log on to SelwynDuke.com When president-elect Donald Trump broke with decades of foreign policy by asserting that the U.S. might abandon its acceptance of the One China policy and no longer regard Taiwan as a part of China, he provoked predictable outrage from Beijing. By using this threat as a bargaining chip for better trade, Trump led the Chinese government to declare that the One China policy is the political bedrock of U.S.-China relations. The Taiwan issue is one of Chinas core interests, referring to a nonnegotiable policy objective that forms the basis for Chinas assertiveness on the international stage. Beijing was already fuming over Trump accepting a congratulatory phone call from the Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen a few days earlier, marking the first official communication between an American and Taiwanese leader since 1979. While Chinese criticism of the move was stern towards the U.S., they struck a harsher tone towards Tsai, with foreign minister Wang Yi referring to the call as a little trick pulled off by Taiwan. While many critics initially speculated that the move was an inadvertent gaffe showing Trumps inexperience in global politics, advisers have indicated that the call represents a new plan to engage with Taiwan that had been planned for months. With many of Trumps advisers known for favoring a tough stance towards China, the phone call could represent an overdue normalization of relations with Taiwan and its democratically elected government. The lack of diplomatic relations with Taiwan is an antiquated holdover from the Cold War. Despite widespread criticism of the move throughout the media, this recognition of Taiwan could help to stabilize an increasingly unstable region. When the Obama administration reached out to Fidel Castro -- a brutal communist dictator -- for normalization, the move was widely hailed as long overdue. However, when Trump accepted a congratulatory phone call from a democratically elected president, the move was decried as an all-out foreign policy disaster. Vice-president-elect Mike Pence summed up the double standard perfectly, saying: I mean, its striking to me that President Obama would reach out to a murdering dictator in Cuba and be hailed as a hero. And president-elect Donald Trump takes a courtesy call from the democratically elected president of Taiwan and it becomes something of a thing in the media. In fact, the old policy consensus of appeasement has only encouraged China to use intimidating rhetoric to gets its way on matters such as Taiwan. After implying that it would readily take back Taiwan by force scaring diplomats around the globe, China has used increasingly uncompromising language to make demands. President Xi Jinping stated in 2013 that disagreements such as Taiwan cannot be passed on from generation to generation, effectively imposing a time limit on the issue whose terms are dictated by Beijing. A tough stance like Trumps will discourage such intimidation tactics. If Trump puts Taiwan back on the negotiating table, he may be able to gain leverage to strike a larger bargain that could ease tensions in East Asia from North Korea to the South China Sea. Furthermore, if China lets go of its outdated claims on Taiwan, it would be able to loosen some of its policies designed to isolate Taiwan in the international community -- a development that would be good for regional stability overall. With the call put into proper context, it seems not unreasonable to expect at least cautious support from U.S. allies such as Australia. However, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull declined to weigh in, asserting that he does not comment on U.S. politics, and does not intend to start now. Other Australian officials cited national interest as cause for Turnbulls silence. The problem with an otherwise diplomatic gesture of not meddling in Americas internal affairs is that Australias prime minister was motivated by a completely different set of worries: not upsetting Beijing. The decline of Australias partnership with the U.S. is afoot. In recent years, China has made significant inroads into Australia through strategic land leases, such as the Port of Darwin, in close proximity to American ships. Furthermore, Chinese funding has infiltrated deep into Australian society including media, higher education, and research endeavors. In this light, Turnbulls silence arouses suspicions that Australia has developed conflicts of interest favoring China over traditional allies that could mark the end of a reliable alliance with the United States. According to one unnamed Trump adviser, the president-elect envisions Japan beginning to play a more active leadership role in the region. The adviser noted that Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe is "a uniquely placed figure to offer leadership in the alliance". The new role that Trump sees for Japan may be tied to the decline of Australia as a consistent U.S. ally in the region. President-elect Trump appears committed to standing up to communist China, while at the same time strengthening the special relationship between the United States and Japan. Also, Trumps conversation with Tsai and the subsequent criticism of the One China policy could be a much-needed antidote to decades of stagnant diplomacy that has allowed China to dictate American policy toward Taipei. Critics conveniently overlook the fact that besides showing American strength, the move could provide leverage to promote peace and stability amidst other regional conflicts. Anything less will only send a message to China that America is weak and that intimidation tactics will continue to be an effective strategy. The Golden Gate Bridge authority is spending $142 million on a net surrounding both sides of the bridge to prevent people from jumping off and killing themselves. For $142 million, the net must be spun of gold. But it's an incredible waste of money that will probably end up saving few if any lives. The first problem with the net is that once people jump into it, they can climb out and jump again. All they are doing is making suicide a two-jump process. Will some people reconsider taking the second jump after taking the first? It is impossible to know. But what we do know is that the net will become an "attractive nuisance," driving crazy, drunk, or drugged people to jump into it for the "thrill" of it, risking injuries, all in an effort to experience a deadly thrill or make a viral YouTube video. Furthermore, even if this net worked perfectly and deterred 100% of suicides from the bridge, there are other bridges people can jump off of, like the nearby Bay Bridge. Actually, a favorite method of suicide in the Bay Area is death by Caltrains. If someone wants to kill himself, making the Golden Gate Bridge off limits to suicide is not going to help very much. It's also going to make the bridge look ugly, with big nets hanging from the sides, like a giant fishing boat. It's interesting to see how much liberals are willing to spend to save lives in some situations but not others. When leftists mandate that cars must be more and more energy efficient, and thus lighter and lighter, they make cars more lethal in crashes. When leftists outlaw the incandescent light bulb and the most available alternative has toxic mercury in it, they don't seem concerned about human lives. And they certainly aren't concerned about human lives when they try to import unvetted illegal aliens from Central and South America and "refugees" from Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan, some of whom go on to kill. What makes the lives of people who want to kill themselves more valuable than the lives of people who don't people who just want to be safe in their cars and in their country? Ed Straker is the senior writer at NewsMachete.com. Hillary has more excuses for why she didn't win the election than Jake Blues. Who can forget that classic scene in the Blues Brothers movie where John Belushi character is staring down a machine gun in a sewer and he tries to explain to his fiancee why he left her at the altar? Jake Blues managed to avoid being shot by sniveling and groveling. I don't know what Hillary is hoping to salvage by likewise embarrassing herself so publicly. Like all good liberals, she should take her participation trophy and go home. If she is hoping to rebuild her clout and influence so she can go hat in hand to her cronies around the world looking for "gifts" for her piggy bank of a foundation, she's not helping by lowering herself to the standards of her constituency. Reality is that she lost because she was a bad candidate who ran a worse campaign. She's the first presidential candidate to run solely based on a platform that she's not the other guy. Her answer to questions about her positions on any subject was to visit her website. She sent her husband and her operatives around the country while she met with billionaires in their Hollywood or Manhattan homes. Her opponent, on the other hand, was making dozens of campaign stops all around the country every week. She avoided the press for 270 days, and when she finally had a presser, it was at an invitation-only Democratic event. When Trump wasn't giving speeches in front of tens of thousands of people, he was doing interviews on friendly and enemy television and radio stations. None of this matters, because it wasn't her fault. The liberal media are like Jake's jilted fiance. They're getting all weepy and falling for it not because they believe it, but because it's what they want to hear. Like usual, they're following all the shiny things that Clinton is scattering about. And just like Jake's fiancee, they'll only be left lying on their backs in a pool of sewage. Encourage it in the appropriate manner. The owner of a Cairo newspaper deplores the bombing of the Coptic Christian church on Dec. 11, 2016. Salah Diab, owner of the Al-Masri Al-Yawm daily, wrote that religious extremism and terrorist attacks in the name of Islam tarnished the reputation of this religion. Diab, who writes under the pen name Newton, stressed that nothing could justify attacks like these, including claims about poverty, social injustice or political exclusion. He added that the increase in terrorism and the fear of terrorism around the world were strengthening right-wing elements in the West, and called to take serious measures to reform the religious discourse in Egypt in order to combat religious extremism. Those who deplore the multiple political successes now of right-wing candidates might take note. That's being evoked as a reason for Islam reforming itself which implies a fear of retaliation, which implies a deplorable degree of comfort with left-wing leaders in the Western world and the absence of any reason to pay attention to their tut-tuts and naughty-boys. We might remember that after the unexpected defeat at Vienna in 1683, the Muslim world retreated, licked its wounds, and spent three hundred years at peace with the West, expanding only to the east, to the southeast, and into Africa. Remember, too, as they do, that their successes had been due to their appropriation of technology (gunpowder: muskets and cannon) from the West. And consider the Western technology that may fuel their next series of advances: nuclear weapons. And then we may wonder why our President Obama and Secretary Hillary were so opposed to the military overthrow of Mohamed Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, and so unwilling to recognize and support the new leader, el-Sisi, even after his democratic election especially when, since his election as Egyptian president, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has "repeatedly called on Egypt's senior clerics, both in the ministry of religious endowments and at Al-Azhar, to act to reform the religious discourse and mend the reputation of Islam." Aid money earmarked for Egypt has been redirected to Tunisia, whose citizens are "more likely than people of any other nationality to join the Islamic State." El-Sisi, of course, has received bipartisan criticism for human rights violations, mostly for killing Islamists of the Muslim Brotherhood persuasion yes, the same Muslim Brotherhood Obama praised. Not to say there's any likelihood of Islam being reformed so that killing infidels is haram and terrorists are kaffirs. Murder is a sin, but murder is the killing of innocent people, and there's no such thing as an innocent infidel. What we may expect to see is a reluctance to publicize, along with attempts to conceal. ISIS, for example, has been urged to stop making videos of its crucifixions and incinerations. And I don't know if Saudi Arabia still gives its reward of $5,000 to the families of suicide bombers any longer. Saddam's Iraq was even more generous to the martyrs of Hamas $25,000 or more to each family. Yes, our multi-culti multi-tolerant elites and you know who you are blissfully ignore the part that the depth and breadth of religious devotion plays in this manifest urge for immediate transport to Paradise. They think suicide bombing is an exotic cultural quirk, like shame and honor killings or female circumcision. Yes, they are aware that these practices are in some sense religious in origin, but that just serves to give them some cachet of exemption from bourgeois moral standards. More to the point, it is cause for some rejoicing that the incoming President Trump will be unconcerned about charges of cultural insensitivity and unlikely to plump for removal of secular dictators who are at war with Islamists. He might even be willing to shake the hand of El-Sisi, and he might decide to sell him those planes and tanks after all. Let me take you back eight years, to the eve of the electors voting for then-senator Obama. My guess is that many of you agreed with me that Mr. Obama was unfit to be president. In fact, we knew nothing about him other than that he was over 35 years old and had lived in Illinois for the last 14 years. He met the U.S. Constitution's requirements to be president, as outlined in Article 2: No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States. It did not occur to me that we should go out and hire a bunch of spokesmen to call on electors to say Senator Obama was unfit to be president. We could have argued that the Founding Fathers wanted only serious people to serve as president not a bad argument, considering that Mr. Obama ran a campaign of slogans with very little substance. We could have added that Mr. Obama's citizenship was an open question and made reference to the Clinton campaign's charges that he was not born in the U.S. Again, I would have rejected any such efforts on the grounds that Mr. Obama had won the election. Well, the "let's make excuses for Hillary's loss" crowd have now gone from the silly to the insane. They are now asking electors to vote their conscience a rather bizarre suggestion, since I voted for Mr. Trump rather than a specific elector in Texas. It gets even more bizarre to hear these "spokesmen" talk about the intent of the Founding Fathers. Will they join us and say the Founding Fathers did not intend to have abortion and marriage decided by the Supreme Court? In the end, this is nothing but more whining by a pack of sore losers. I am not a psychiatrist, but maybe this is one of the stages of grief, as my friend Mark Davis wrote in Dallas: The stages of grief defined by Elizabeth Kubler-Ross in 1969 have a final destination that would be of great value to those still struggling with the election: acceptance. Yes, acceptance is right. Mr. Trump won, and Mrs. Clinton lost. It's time to move on and let the next team get ready for the many challenges awaiting them, from Aleppo to Obamacare. P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter. Even though she never mentions the concept, former Reagan and Bush senior official Linda Chavez makes an excellent case that the success of the Trump presidency depends on sweeping civil service reform. The title of her article in the New York Post indicates her chosen focus: "Will Trumps Cabinet picks be able to beat the bureaucracy?" Drawing on her experience, she lays out all the reasons the answer to her question probably will be no. For example: The normal relationships between employer and employees dont exist. As the head of a department or agency, you pick very few of your own employees, and you have little or no authority to get rid of those employees you inherit. Worst of all, you cant reward outstanding service. Theres no such thing as pay for performance. Nor is it even possible to promote the best hires, except within the constraints of federal civil service rules, and you cant move employees easily from one job to another. The word bureaucracy became a synonym for inefficiency and burdensome rules for a reason. Working within the bureaucracy requires a talent and patience that few CEOs, in my experience, possess. Ive served on corporate boards for more than 25 years and worked closely with CEOs and others in the executive suite. What Ive seen tells me that the businesspeople in the Cabinet are in for a rude awakening. (snip) The greatest culture shock for these new Cabinet members whove never worked in government, however, will be how little authority they have to make major changes in their departments. Divisions within agencies often operate as fiefdoms, with their own ties to Congress and appropriations staffers who fund their work. Worst of all, firing anyone in the federal government, even for cause, is a tedious process for which few have the stomach. And forget about getting rid of someone without an ironclad show of gross incompetence or malfeasance. Shes right, and all of these points are well understood by scholars and students of bureaucracy. So if the Trump appointees are shocked, that would mean that in the course of their careers, those with executive backgrounds learned nothing via their interactions with the federal bureaucracy. Nobody gets very high in any significant company without running into the feds. I am certain that Rex Tillerson, to pick the most familiar example, has had extensive exposure to lots of bureaucrats, especially in the State Department. If he was unobservant of their ways (and the ways of bureaucrats in foreign ministries around the world), why has been such a success at dealing with them? Nobody claims that ExxonMobil is anything other than highly successful in developing energy resources in difficult diplomatic environments like Yemen or Russia. That is why I recommended civil service reform the morning after the election. Hat tip: Ed Lasky As consumers are slowly getting used to electronics made by the Internet of Things (IoT) industry, connected hardware infused with AI assistants is also gradually making its way to peoples homes all around the world. While the likes of Amazon Echo and Google Home still arent perfect when it comes to voice interaction, their manufacturers are hard at work trying to make them more capable of holding a conversation with their owners. However, if youre on the lookout for something with a bit more personality, you may want to check out Gatebox, a recently announced digital assistant which puts a tiny holographic girlfriend inside of what looks like an expensive coffeemaker. Gateboxs AI is called Hikari Azuma whom developers describe as a 20-year-old housewife with a keen interest in anime and cooking, and a deep admiration for her husband, i.e. your humble self. As you spend more time with Hikari, shell adapt to your schedule and try to help you with simple tasks which mostly amount to controlling your other smart appliances and providing you with news and weather reports. In addition to Hikaris conversational interface, youll also be able to text her with a special mobile app thats scheduled to be released along with Gatebox in late 2017. In fact, this texting functionality is touted as one of the main selling points of Gatebox, as evidenced by the first product trailer which you can see below. Hikari was voiced by a young voice actress Yuka Hiyamizu and designed by Minoboshi Tarou, a famous Japanese artist who created the 2009 dating sim LovePlus and worked on numerous Japanese animes. Interestingly enough, Hikari likely wont be the only assistant supported by Gatebox, as developers already revealed another AI called Akari. This unique home assistant that doubles as your waifu is currently slated for release in December of 2017. While no exact release date has yet been given, a quick look at the Gatebox pre-order page reveals that this IoT gadget is priced at $2600 which is far from cheap, but also far from surprising seeing how this is a niche product aimed at a relatively small pool of consumers. The device will be sold in the United States and Japan, and only 300 units are currently available for preorders which are open until January 31st. You can pre-order Gatebox by following the source link below. Its not exactly a secret that Google keeps a large amount of personal data on all of its users. The subject has even managed to generate controversy in the past, including some pointed questions from US Senator Al Franken about Googles practices with the data of students who used Chromebooks with Googles suite of educational and classroom administration software. Thankfully, Googles security practices are the gold standard for the industry, making hacks quite unlikely and leaving your personal data mostly safe. Still, given the strange things Google learns about you, your life, and the people around you, it can be quite interesting to take a trip through the search giants archives of your life, and there are a few portals through which you can do so. For starters, try firing up the Google Photos app on your phone, or going to the website. Youll notice that Google automatically figures out who youre with in photos, if it can, and also logs where and when each photo was taken, as long as that information was available on the device that shot the photo. This makes reliving days gone by a little more intensive. On the subject of days gone by, there is also an option to have your phone record your location history and make it viewable on Maps. The data is, of course, quite private, but can give you some insight as to your past travels. Usage stats for that same device, down to time spent within apps and when that time was spent, are also available in a section of the account dashboard, which you can visit through the source link. You can also check out all the Android apps that youve ever installed, even as far back as your very first device. For those that use Google+ frequently, the number of +1s youve handed out over the years is available. The full history of your commands to Google Now and Google Assistant is available through the Audio tab on that page, and you can even play back the audio recordings. That extensive audio history also includes any time youve used the dictation features built into Google Keyboard, now known as GBoard. All of this data and then some is available via that dashboard. The data can be managed, and you can even opt out of data collection on an itemized basis. HTC has pumped a lot of their effort into VR this past year or so, going all in with the Vive VR headset and continuing to work to expand the platform and the content that you can enjoy with it. While HTC is still very much a smartphone manufacturer, VR is quite clearly a big focus for them now, and like other companies in the industry as well as analysts, HTC is making some predictions about the state of VRs future and what sort of content we can expect from VR in the future. According to HTC Chinas regional President, Alvin Wang Graylin, VR will see its first big budget film released in 2017, while a VR MMORPG will happen sometime in 2018. These are of course, just predictions, and there is every possibility that they wont come true, but the thought of them must surely excite the masses who are quite interested in VR technology. Graylin, who recently spoke at Unity Vision Summit, has tweeted a series of slides from his talking points, some of which contain a handful of what he thinks will happen with VR in the next two years. In addition to the two mentioned above, both of which would be admittedly huge for the industry, Graylin predicts that the VR market will gain a massive amount of new titles, exceeding 10,000 across the entire industry and various VR platforms and devices. For Mobile VR, which is quite a bit more accessible, not to mention affordable for the average consumer, Graylin expects unit sales to surpass 50 million next year, and with that kind of a number its clear that he believes VR is only going up at a decent pace and will be likely to continue doing so. He also believes that VR will see significant growth in large part due to education and that shouldnt seem too far fetched given Samsung Germanys work with Cornelsen in Berling for a VR Eduthon, as well as Googles work with Cardboard Expeditions. While some of the predictions seem a little more probable, such as the big budget film, others could be quite the ambitious undertaking, such as the VRMMO as Graylin isnt just predicting that it will launch by the end of 2018 but that it will also be a high-quality offering and that consumers will instantly rave over it. As for the film, studios like 20th Century Fox have already worked with AMD and Alienware for the recently released Assassins Creed VR experience that was put out to promote the Assassins Creed movie that hits this month, and even though it was only a minute and a half long, a major film studio having helped to produce it makes it much more likely that a big budget film in VR could be possible within a years time. If youre interested in seeing the rest of Graylins predictions, you can view them on the slides from the gallery below. Motorola has announced the winners of its Mod the Future hackathon event which was held in New York City over the Dec. 10-11 weekend. This is a contest where developers can put forward their ideas on what would make a good Moto Mod for the Moto Z line of smartphones. Motorola notes that there were 17 projects submitted and of those 17, three have now been announced as the winning concepts by a group of judges. The first of the winners to be accredited in the Motorola blog is Advanced Audio. As the name suggests, this one looks to add better audio functionality to your smartphone and especially for musicians and audiophiles, as this Mod will look to include more varying degrees of input and output connections. The second noted Moto Mod is Sidepad and again, as the name suggests, this one places much of its focus on gaming. In fact, Sidepad will look to offer smartphone owners a full-featured gamepad which comes equipped with actual buttons and does not require the user to rely on the touchscreen controls. While the last of the winners is a Moto Mod which has been dubbed Bella. In some respects, this one could have the farthest reaching implications as it is designed with the health sector in mind. Bella essentially is a Moto Mod which collect real-time data from your skin and surrounding environment and could be used for monitoring UV levels, air quality, as well as offering beauty and skincare recommendations. It is worth pointing out that these winners are only the winners of this round. The hackathon heads to San Francisco next on the Jan. 21-22 weekend, where a bunch of new developers will submit their ideas for a unique and novel Moto Mod. Following which, Motorola notes that the grand prize winners from each grouping will receive various prizes including a meeting at Motorolas headquarters with a view to seeing if their idea can be brought to market. Advertisement Which does suggest that while the modular scene has proved somewhat controversial during 2016, Motorola is looking to maintain a level of modularity with its smartphones going forward, which is in line with the recent reports that have been coming through. Likewise and following this announcement it does seem plausible that Motorola will look to the developer community as a means to identify more unique and presumably, more appealing modules. Samsung Pay was introduced in the summer of 2015 and has been offered around the world in a limited number of markets, across a comparatively restricted number of devices. To date, Samsung Pay has been offered on the high end or flagship grade models in the Samsung portfolio but as Samsung wishes to increase use of Samsung Pay, so the company is preparing to both offer the technology onto less expensive devices in the portfolio and make it available in more countries around the world. It was very recently reported that Samsung is set to bundle Samsung Pay onto all devices for 2017, except perhaps the lowest end handsets. Samsungs comments on the matter certainly implied that Samsung Pay would be compatible with all new devices. This would be good news, as would the introduction of Samsung Pay Mini, which will see the mobile payment service available on non-Samsung branded devices. However, in order to open up the mobile payment service to more customers, Samsung clearly need to make it available in additional countries around the world. At the time of writing, Samsung Pay is available in Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, and the United States. The promise of a British launch of Samsung Pay by the end of 2016 has been delayed as Samsung has been unable to conclude negotiations with the UK banks. However, we are hearing that Samsung is preparing to launch the application into the Indian market. Here, Samsung Pay should have something of a structural advantage over and above some of the competition because Samsung Pay does not rely on NFC-equipped tills, but can instead use its magnetic strip technology, or MST, on a conventional till. Within the Indian market, mobile payments and the use of credit and debit cards has been rising which could very easily be setting the stage for Samsung to launch their mobile payment solution in the region. Samsung have also explained that they are set to increase how many smartphones use a fingerprint sensor as part of the security system on the device. Fingerprint scanners remove much of the chore associated with authenticating mobile payment systems and would be an advantage to Samsungs devices. Should this happen at the same time as including the Samsung Pay application onto 2017s devices, this could be good news for both the Samsung Pay service and Samsungs 2017 Galaxy-branded Android-powered smartphones. Scrooge & Marley is a long established business in our community. The firm specializes in commodity trading and futures speculation. As such, the firm is diversified and is well positioned to weather the economic uncertainties of our times. This reporter sat down with Mr. Ebenezer Scrooge, the sole proprietor of Scrooge & Marley, for an interview this week. Our appointment was for 9 a.m., however I was delayed in arriving by about 20 minutes due to traffic conditions. Mr. Scrooge was not amused, nor would he accept any excuses. The offices of Scrooge & Marley are quite spartan, providing only the basics in creature comforts. Mr. Scrooge advised that coal was expensive and he did not refrigerate the offices in August. Light is provided from windows on street level and a few candles for illumination. Mr. Scrooge informed me that after the death of his business partner he reintroduced a revised business plan to insure profitability. Wages were cut, and staff has but one day off per year, on Christmas Day. As the markets are not open on Christmas it seemed senseless to have employees in to work. Mr. Scrooge acknowledged that he did not dock employees wages on those days, but rather wished he did. Scrooge & Marley is a top-down company. There is no board of directors and no shareholders. The firm has a lean-and-mean workforce that has been process re-engineered several times in the past. This allows the company to deal swiftly with financial concerns and falling bank balances. Accounts that are not paid are referred to the local magistrate and those falling behind are sent to the local debtors prison, the local workhouse, the treadmill; the Poor Law is rigidly enforced. Mr. Scrooge is adamant in his support of those institutions, as he explained his taxes are used to underwrite their endeavors. When asked if he was going to approach Her Majestys Government for tax relief or for tax credits, Mr. Scrooge was unclear. He indicated that he and other like-minded business owners were working on a tax cut plan for businesses that would stimulate growth and lead to the creation of more jobs for the city. Mr. Scrooge pointed out that it was like watering a plant from the top. Water would reach the roots. As a follow-up to that point, I asked Mr. Scrooge if indeed job creation would be the total impact of his plan, or would people like his clerk, Mr. Robert Bob Cratchit, see increased wages and perhaps some other benefits, like additional days off or a shorter work week? At this, Mr. Scrooge swallowed hard and informed this reporter in no uncertain terms a lean workforce was a willing workforce and that profits would need to be maximized before such an event would happen. In fact, he was thinking of relocating to Ireland where he could continue his interests at perhaps lower wages and more profits. Yet he was hearing that it might be possible that Her Majestys Government may offer tax money to stay in England, so all avenues would be explored. This reporter then approached Mr. Scrooge about his charitable giving. In reviewing the public record, I noted to Mr. Scrooge that the firm of Scrooge & Marley could not be found as donating any amount to charity. Through a wave of his hand, Mr. Scrooge reminded me about his philosophy: Its enough for a man to understand his own business, and not to interfere with other people. Mine occupies me constantly. When asked about his holiday plans, Mr. Scrooge indicated that he did not observe days of such foolishness and that he would be alone during the holidays. He indicated that he had turned down several requests for dinner on Christmas Day. Such festivities were for him Humbug, though he might send brief notes to others about his business by messenger during Christmas Day as most people were home. Before leaving I asked about his former partner, Mr. Jacob Marley. Mr. Scrooge replied that Mr. Marley was always a good man of business. In an afterthought, Mr. Scrooge stated, I wont see the likes of him again, will I? Brexit: Theresa May clears the room at the Brussels divorce summit Hows Brexit going? Well, its not, of course. The Government has yet to trigger Article 50. But be in no doubt Theresa May is playing a masterful hand. Andrew Lilico tells Sun readers May has been crystal clear in her plans fro Brexit. He says we need no additional clarity. Things are clear a word he mentioned sevens times in the article. The only unclear thing is what Theresa May will get. Clear? The Mirror says the country will he handed a 50bn bill to leave the EU. The money is made up of the UKs final two years of EU budget payments plus pensions liabilities and other commitments we have previously agreed to. This bill has been confirmed by EU negotiators. The Mirror adds that EU Ambassador anyone? Anyone? Yes, its Sir Ivan Rogers. Well, he says leaving the EU could take ten years. That May has been in Brussels with the other EU country leaders has not escaped the Mirrors eye. It says May lacks authority and presence in meetings. Her inexperience is a major handicap for Britain. Her rivals see victim stamped on her forehead. She was awkward when filmed standing alone as Europes power players hug and greet one another at the Brussels summit. It was excruciating. May was desolate. The other leader then told her to go while they all went to dinner together. The Sun agrees. NO MAYTES, it puns. May was frozen out. Over Pages 10 and 11, the Daily Mail sees KNIVES OUT FOR OUR MAN IN BRUSSELS. Sir Ivan is being attacked over his gloomy pessimism. Sir Ivan, notes the paper, was top mandarin to Tony Blair, a man whose mentioning necessitates all Mail readers spinning round three times and spitting. It adds that the aforementioned 50bn bill is a threat. It is agross upper estimate. As in the Mirror, the Mail shows May friendless at the summit. Dignitaries turn their backs on the Prime Minister. But the Express has a different view. Its readers see May in conversation with Germany leader Angela Merkel and European Parliament President Martin Schulz. On the matter of that 50bn, a number the Mirror says Number 10 did not confirm or deny, we hear from a Downing Street source, who says: Once we have left the EU, the UK government will make decision on how taxpayers money is spent. Clear? Paul Sorene Posted: 17th, December 2016 | In: Key Posts, Politicians, Reviews, Tabloids Comments (2) | TrackBack | Permalink If youre considering a subscription to the Disney Plus streaming service, you may be wondering how much it costs. The service is available on both YEREVAN, DECEMBER 17, ARMENPRESS. The situation on Karabakh-Azerbaijan contact line is relatively calm, Armenpress was informed from the press service of NKR Defense Ministry. The Ministry informs that Azerbaijan violated the ceasefire regime nearly 30 times overnight December 17, mainly using rifles and machine guns (nearly 350 shots). The front line units of the Defense Army have not taken any retaliatory action. YEREVAN, DECEMBER 17, ARMENPRESS. A blast occurred in front of Erciyes University in the city of Kayseri. Armenpress reports, citing Turkish Hurriyet, a bus exploded. A great number of rescue and ambulance vehicles have arrived at the scene. There are casualties. There were also soldiers on the bus. Turkish Dogan news agencys correspondent in Kayseri told from the scene that the incident left an impression of a terror act. YEREVAN, DECEMBER 17, ARMENPRESS. Pope Francis had a breakfast with 8 homeless people on his birthday. Armenpress reports 6 of the invited were man, 2 were women. Vaticans press service informed four Italians, two Romanians, a Moldovan and a Peruvian were the homeless guests. Pope Francis shared with them traditional Argentinian cakes before heading to Mass. The Pontiff received 3 bunches of sunflowers from them as a birthday gift. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . New Mexico State Police say a Las Vegas man has been arrested for his 12th DWI after driving more than 120 mph on Interstate 25. They say 45-year-old Edward Moya was arrested Dec. 7 by an officer on patrol in San Miguel County. The officer spotted the speeding car south of Las Vegas and says Moya tried multiple maneuvers including deliberately reversing his vehicle and ramming the patrol car. The officer eventually arrested Moya, who allegedly admitted to drinking before driving but refused to comply with DWI testing. Police say Moya is jailed on suspicion of DWI, aggravated battery upon a peace officer, driving with a revoked license, aggravated fleeing a law enforcement officer, reckless driving and not having car insurance. It was unclear Thursday if Moya has a lawyer. As per this report, total under-reporting of Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) is Rs 46,045.75 crore for the period from 2006-07 to 2009-10. New Delhi: The Department of Telecom has issued notices to six telecom operators, including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Reliance Communications, for recovery of Rs 12,488.93 crore for underpayment of licence and spectrum usage charges, telecom minister Manoj Sinha said on Friday. Based on a CAG report, licence agreement and extant orders of DoT, demand-cum-show cause notices for Licence Fee (LF) for four financial years have been issued to the Telecom Service Providers (TSPs), he said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha. The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) conducted the audit of six private telecom service providers and submitted its audit report, the minister said. As per this report, total under-reporting of Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) is Rs 46,045.75 crore for the period from 2006-07 to 2009-10. As per the report of Comptroller and Auditor General of India, the under-reporting of AGR lead to underpayment of LF/SUC, interest and penalty of Rs 12,488.93 crore, Mr Sinha said. The financial impact due to understatement of AGR stood at Rs 3,728.54 crore for RCom, Rs 3215.39 crore for Tata Teleservices, Airtel (Rs 2,651.89 crore), Vodafone (Rs 1,665.39 crore), Idea (Rs 964.89 crore) and Aircel (Rs 262.83 crore), according to the CAG report. Mr Sinha further said, there is a dispute between government and telecom service providers (TSPs) on AGR and TSPs are interpreting the definition differently in their own interest. The TSPs are contending that only revenue under the licence must be taken for computation of AGR. The Licence Agreement has an all-inclusive definition of AGR. The contention of the TSPs is not in consonance with that contained in the Licence Agreement and the stand of the government has been duly upheld by Hon'ble Apex Court in their considered judgement October 11, 2011, the minister said. Wadia had filed a Rs 3,000 crore defamation suit against Ratan Tata, Tata Sons and its directors. Mumbai: Ratan Tata, interim chairman of the group, said that there are no plans for his stepping down from the chairmanship of the Tata Trusts at this point in time. He also outlined the latest initiatives that the Trusts were undertaking that had national impact and said he is looking forward to continuing his involvement with these initiatives in the Trusts. He was also keen that a process should be in place for a smooth succession at an appropriate time. He clarified this to dispel a misunderstanding that had arisen when some of the trustees in a discussion with the media said that processes were being put in place for the leadership succession in the Trusts in the future, to enable an ordered and smooth transition of leadership. Meanwhile in the ongoing tussle between Ratan Tata and Nusli Wadia, The Tata group in a statement said the Bombay High Court on Friday denied Mr Wadia several reliefs he had asked for and the court has allowed the EGMS of all Tata Companies to proceed without any intervention and as planned. Further it passed an order with the consent of all parties, that one board seat amongst the maximum permissible directors as per the Articles of each company, should remain unfilled until the resolution of this suit. Mr Wadia had filed a Rs 3,000 crore defamation suit against Mr Ratan Tata, Tata Sons and its directors as Tata Sons has sought his removal from the boards of all Tata companies where he is director. These include Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Tata Chemicals, India Hotels. Shraddha was all set to sip coffee with M. S. Dhoni: the Untold Story star Sushant Singh Rajput. Shraddha was last seen in 'Rock On 2'. Mumbai: Shraddha Kapoor is currently on a promotion spree for her upcoming film 'OK Jaanu', which will be releasing early next year, visiting numerous reality shows. However, her plans have hit a roadblock. Shraddha, who was all set to sip coffee with M. S. Dhoni: The Untold Story star Sushant Singh Rajput, has cancelled her Koffee With Karan shoot owing to a medical emergency at home. A source close to Shraddhas team has informed Deccan Chronicle that the actress' chauffeur was rushed to a nearby hospital following a massive cardiac arrest. Shraddha was also set to shoot for another reality show 'Comedy Nights Bachao' around the same time and the actress would not be able to shoot for it either. The actress is in hospital now, attending to her driver and supporting his family in this difficult time. The actress now tries to travel, meet different people and explore new things in life. Mumbai: Kareena Kapoor was just 20 years old when she made her debut in Bollywood opposite Abhishek Bachchan in JP Dutta's 'Refugee'. Her decision to enter the film industry early was one of the reasons why she was never keen on finishing college. Since academic performance never held much of an importance to the actress, she often bunked her classes and accompanied sister Karisma Kapoor to her shoot. It was after marrying Saif Ali Khan that Bebo regretted discontinuing her education. While talking to a magazine, Kareena said, I do regret skipping education. I meet Saif and his friends, and I feel like we get stuck in this whole thing of movies and monies, without having anything else to fall back on. The actress now tries to travel, meet different people and explore new things in life and thats exactly what she wants for her child. His family and friends are so well-read; some are Rhodes scholars, and most have studied at Oxford, Cambridge or Winchester. He is so particular about academics with his kids, Sara and Ibrahim as well, and I am happy that he will be so with this child too. I come from a family which has been obsessed with the movies, but as I have grown older, I have realized there is more to life than just that. Now I try to travel, meet different people, explore new things. And I want that for my child, Kareena said. The actress was seen flaunting her customised Quantico-inspired muffler on the occasion of Christmas. Mumbai: Priyanka Chopra has been in the USA since the past few months and the actress was seen celebrating Diwali along with the co-actors of her television show 'Quantico'. And Priyanka is now set to enjoy Christmas with her team in a Quantico way. In a recent post, the Queen of your hearts and social media, was seen flaunting her customised Quantico-inspired muffler. The picture also has her pretty co-stars Yasmine Al Massri and Johanna Braddy in it. Sans makeup, Priyanka looks just as beautiful. Thanking her team for making this innovative effort, PeeCee wrote: Thank you post team of #Quantico for our CIA FBI integrated Christmas scarves. We love it. @thejohannabraddy @jazmasri Recently, Priyanka was appointed the Global Goodwill Ambassador by The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and is an active participant in UNICEFs foreverychild campaign. The National award-winning actress is rumoured to have signed Rakeysh Omprakash Mehras musical comedy Fanney Khan. Talks of her starring in Kalpana Chawlas biopic are doing the rounds. Chopra, however, has not confirmed either of these stories. I did approach Rajini sir, and he loved the film. We both felt his voice is too recognisable, as he is too famous. Meanwhile, Aamir Khan revealed that superstar Rajinikanth would not be dubbing in Tamil for Dangal. Speaking at the launch of Secret Superstars trailer in Mumbai, the actor addressed the media on the fact that despite Rajini liking the movie, the two felt his voice wouldnt suit Aamirs face. The film will be dubbed in Tamil and Telugu. I did approach Rajini sir, and he loved the film. We both felt his voice is too recognisable, as he is too famous. We also felt that his voice would not suit my face. He loved the film and is very encouraging, he told the media. Dangal is to be released on December 23, and Aamir plays the part of Mahavir Singh Phogat; it shows his journey to train his daughters in the sport of wrestling. Aamir and Rajini had previously collaborated in the 1995 film Aatank Hi Aatank, and there were even reports of the former being a part of the Robot sequel. When asked about the scope of collaborating with the South star again, Aamir said, I would love for him to do Hindi films. I would love to work with him and Im a big fan of his. Im looking forward to Robot 2. Made ambassador for anti-open defecation campaign; Donates 5 mobile toilets. Mumbai: Actor Salman Khan is now the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporations (BMC) ambassador for its anti-open defecation campaign. The Dabangg actor has donated five mobile toilets from his Being Human Foundation and urged the public to keep them clean. The development came after Mr Khan complained of people relieving themselves in the open in front of his house at Bandra Bandstand. Soon after, the civic body invited the actor to come on board the Swacchh Bharat Mission campaign, and Mr Khan obliged. Mr Khan told media persons, Its a bad, embarrassing visual, especially women opting for open defecation. This thought made me restless and I decided to be part of this mission. Asked about the plight of women owing to absence of clean toilets and sanitary pad dispensing machines within these toilets, he said, We should make this our priority and it is a very important thing. I am sure these toilets will be useful. Please use the toilets and keep them clean, thinking about the next person who will use them. It is unfortunate that despite BMC being Asias richest civic body, it has failed to construct special toilets for women. BMC commissioner Ajoy Mehta meanwhile said, 30,000 sweepers are working to make Mumbai clean and of course we are the first city to spread awareness and resist open defecation. While BMC has identified 78 spots to install mobile toilet vans, the civic body is working on just 21 out of 78. Ward officers had identified 118 locations but have succeeded in making only 44 of them open defecation free. As for Mr Khan, this is the second time he has been appointed ambassador for a social cause. All the three accused have moved their bail applications, which will be heard on December 21. New Delhi: Former Air Chief Marshal S P Tyagi was on Saturday sent to judicial custody till December 30 after CBI said he was not required for further custodial interrogation in AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam. Special CBI judge Arvind Kumar also sent Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan, co-accused in the case related to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA-2 regime, to jail after the probe agency did not seek their further custody. After the agency's submission, all the three accused moved their bail applications, which will be heard on December 21 as the CBI sought time to reply to the applications. During the proceedings, the counsel appearing for Tyagi submitted before the court that the Italian top court had ordered retrial of ex-Finmeccanica executives in VVIP chopper scam case, which makes CBI's stand weak in the current case. The court, however, said it will take up the matter on next date of hearing on December 21. The court had on December 14 extended the CBI remand of Tyagi and the two others by three days after CBI had said it was a "very serious" case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as "interest of the nation was compromised". The agency had earlier submitted in the court: "It is a very high-profile case and we need proper material. One part of the crime was committed in India while various other angles are in foreign land." Tyagi's counsel had told the court that he was "a decorated war hero of the nation" and "CBI, which was termed as 'a caged parrot' by the Supreme Court, is trying to tarnish his image". Earlier, Tyagi's counsel had claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a "collective" one and Prime Minister's Office(PMO) was also a part of it. CBI had alleged that Tyagi had "abused his official position" and when he was the Air Chief Marshal, he had made huge investments in land and other properties and had not disclosed the source his income. It was also alleged that Khaitan was the "brain" behind how the bribe money reached India and several firms through which the money travelled came into existence and Sanjeev was known to alleged European middleman Carlo Gerosa. 71-year old Tyagi, who had retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by the agency in connection with the case. The CBI had also claimed that alleged European middleman Guido Haschke's statement, which was received through LR (Letter Rogatory), proved that he was assured by Sanjeev Tyagi that the latter's brother was going to be Air Chief Marshal. The accused persons, however, had alleged that the "CBI was trying to extract the confession using force". The team, which will be headed by PMs Principal Secretary, include NSA Ajit Doval and Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar. Government has formed an inter-ministerial task force to look into all the strategic aspects of Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan. (Representational image) New Delhi: Government has formed an inter-ministerial task force, to be headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Principal Secretary Nripendra Mishra, to look into all the strategic aspects of Indus Water Treaty (IWT) with Pakistan. A formal notification to this effect was issued on Friday, a top government functionary said on Saturday, adding other members of the team include NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar and Secretaries in ministries of Finance, Environment, Power and Water Resource. Besides, Chief Secretaries of Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab, the states from where the six Indus system rivers flow, will be "invitees" in the task force. "The task force is mandated with taking all important strategic and policy decisions. It is an all-powerful body which will take decisions regarding the treaty," he added. The committee has been formed nearly three months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a review meeting on the 56- year-old water distribution pact with Pakistan in the aftermath of series of cross-border terror strikes including Uri attack. In that meeting, it was also decided that India would exploit to the maximum water of Pakistan-controlled rivers including Jhelum. Meanwhile, a source said the World Bank, which has paused two separate mechanisms, will send an expert to discuss with both India and Pakistan their versions on designs of Kishenganga and Ratle projects being constructed by India in Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan had in September approached World Bank, flagging concerns that the design of the Kishenganga project was not in line with the criteria laid down under IWT. It had then demanded the international lender to set up a Court of Arbitration to look into the matter. Refuting the claims made by Pakistan, India had asserted that the project design is "well within parameters" of the treaty and urged the World Bank to appoint a neutral expert as the issue is a "technical matter" as suggested in the treaty. Under the Indus Waters Treaty, signed between India and Pakistan in 1960 and to which the World Bank is also a party, the global body has a specified role in the process of resolution of differences and disputes. He also questioned Centres decision to exempt political parties from paying income tax while depositing old 500 and 1,000 rupee notes. New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday demanded setting up of a commission to probe source of funding of political parties. He also questioned the central government's decision to exempt political parties from paying income tax while depositing old 500 and 1,000 rupee notes. He sought to link the Centre's tax exemption decision to the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Friday, suggesting the announcement was outcome of the parleys between the two. "Common people are being investigated if they deposit Rs 2.5 lakh individually. But if political parties are not going to be investigated even if they deposit Rs 2,500 crore following the decision, then it is wrong. "We demand setting up of an independent commission to probe into bank accounts details of political parties over the past five years, to investigate into their sources of funding," Kejriwal said at a press conference. He also asked the Centre to make public details of money deposited by all political parties post-demonetisation and sought removal of the "less than Rs 20,000 donation cap" for tax exemption, saying "each paisa the parties receive should be declared". "The income tax returns filed by AAP right from its formation until now are being enquired into. We are presenting each of the receipts and vouchers to the income tax department. We are not scared, what other parties, BJP, are scared of? Why they too should not be probed?" he asked. Kejriwal, a bitter critic of Modi, accused the latter of helping political parties -- the "biggest hoarders of black money" to convert it into "white" at a time when common people have been forced to queue up outside banks and ATMs to withdraw their hard-earned money. "Ye desh ke sath dhokha hai (it is a big fraud played on the country)," Kejriwal said. Stating it was "surprising" that the tax exemption decision came after Gandhi led a Congress delegation to meet Modi, Kejriwal demanded that the Congress Vice President make public details of Modi's corruption as he claimed to have supporting documents. "He is not sharing details of Modi's corruption, is only talking about it... Then he meets the PM and seals a deal. I will insist Gandhi to make public the evidences and that he stops entering into deals with Modi. Or else, the country will not forgive him," Kejriwal said. Hitting out at the Prime Minister, Kejriwal alleged Modi's intentions were "bad" right from the day he announced demonetisation on November 8. Meanwhile, Kejriwal also denounced the decision to hike petrol and diesel prices, which he saw as a repercussion of demonetisation and sought its immediate reversal. "We oppose the hike in fuel prices. This is direct result of demonetisation. The rupee has become weak in international market post-demonetisation, leading to hike in the fuel prices. This should be rolled back immediately," he said. To a question, the chief minister said the AAP is "not affected" by demonetisation. He reiterated demonetisation is an "unconstitutional" move and likened it to dacoity by the Prime Minister on bank accounts of people as they are not being allowed to withdraw their hard-earned money. Referring to a case pending before the Supreme Court with regard to demonetisation, Kejriwal hoped it takes cognisance of concerns and declares the move as "unconstitutional". The court also refrained from making any amendment to the directive to limit weekly withdrawal at Rs 24,000. New Delhi: In a major relief to the government, the Supreme Court on Friday, in its interim order on demonetisation, refused to interfere with the Centres decision firmly underlining that these are matters of fiscal policies. The court further restrained all high courts from examining the issue, stayed proceedings there and transferred them to itself. Stressing that the government is the best judge, the court also refused to extend dates for exemption of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes for certain services. The court also refrained from making any amendment to the directive to limit weekly withdrawal at Rs 24,000. The SC had framed nine issues for adjudication by a five-judge Constitution Bench for authoritative pronouncement on the demonetisation decision. It hoped that the government will fulfil this commitment to the extent possible keeping in mind the hardships and sufferings faced by the general public. A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice T.S. Thakur, which declined to extend the exemptions on the demonetised currency notes of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500, left it to the judgment of the government to review it hoping that it would be responsible and sensitive. Whether the use of demonetised currency notes would be extended or not, it is on the government of the day as it is the best judge, the bench said. Terming Advani as the 'Bhishma Pitamah' of Indian politics, Sena said he has raised a question mark over parliamentary democracy. Mumbai: Needling BJP over the washed out winter session of Parliament, ally Shiv Sena on Saturday asked the ruling partner to take cognisance of its party patriarch L K Advani's "tears" and called for a special session to discuss the demonetisation issue. Terming Advani as the 'Bhishma Pitamah' of Indian politics, the Sena said he has raised a question mark over parliamentary democracy in the country. "It should be noted that Advani is not a Congress leader. One must bear in mind that he has been at the forefront of the anti-Congress politics," an editorial in Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' said. It recalled that in May 2014, while entering the Parliament building, PM Narendra Modi had knelt and placed his forehead on the green carpeted steps and also shed tears. "But due to the 'tamasha' of parliamentary proceedings in the last two years, the soul of the Parliament (building) has lost and it is shedding tears," it said. "Parliament is meant to debate serious issues of concern to people. But the opposition raises questions and creates chaos, while the government runs away from these issues. This is the picture today," the Sena said. "People are standing in queues for Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,000. However, crores in 'pink' (new Rs 2000) notes are being recovered from the houses of the rich. If the government is not going to say anything on this, if the PM is not going to respond, then a special session of Parliament should be convened and the RBI Governor should be summoned in Parliament," the editorial said. "Nowadays, the Prime Minister sometimes gets emotional. It will be nice if cognisance is taken of the tears shed by Advani on the state of affairs of Lok Sabha and democracy," it said. The Sena remarks come after Advani, for the second time during the Winter Session of Parliament, expressed anguish and concern over the way the session was a washout with daily adjournments. He reportedly even told a few MPs that he felt like resigning from Lok Sabha owing to his distress at the proceedings, adding that "Atalji (former PM Vajpayee) would have been very upset seeing this". Two motorcycle-borne men opened fire using their AK-47 assault rifles. Srinagar: Three jawans were killed and two others wounded in an ambush on an Army convoy near Srinagar on Saturday afternoon, the latest in a string of attacks against security forces by suspected Pakistan-backed terror groups. Two motorcycle-borne men opened fire using their AK-47 assault rifles when the convoy was passing through Pampore township along the Srinagar-Jammu highway, police sources and witnesses said. This comes about three weeks after terrorists killed seven soldiers at an Army base near Jammu, the most audacious attack in J&K since the killing of 19 jawans in Uri in September. About 28 soldiers have been killed in terror attacks and border skirmishes after India carried out surgical strikes across the LoC to avenge Uri. In Saturdays ambush, 20 km south of Srinagar, five soldiers in one of the vehicles moving towards Srinagar were hit. Three of them died on way to or soon after being admitted to an Army hospital. The vehicles driver showed exemplary alertness and courage by driving straight to Srinagars Badami Bagh Cantonment, 17 km north of Kadalbal where the ambush took place, sources said. Meanwhile, soldiers in other vehicles got down, took positions and returned fire but the assailants had already fled the area leaving behind an AK-47 magazine with 20 live rounds. A cab driver also injured in the shooting was admitted to Pampores sub-district hospital, sources said. Soon after the attack, Army reinforcements joined by the members of J&K polices counterinsurgency Special Operations Group (SOG) and the CRPF laid siege to the area to launch massive house-to-house searches. A report said that the militants were seen driving through a side street after carrying out the attack. Pampore has been under attacks for a while. In October, two militants were killed in a 57-hour standoff in a govt building outside the town. In February, three soldiers and as many militants and a civilian were killed during a three -day gunbattle in the same compound. Two jawans had been killed and eight injured hours earlier. In June, 8 CRPF jawans were killed and 20 injured in an ambush on their convoy. Three militants were killed in retaliatory action. For second time in Armys history, seniority principle not followed. New Delhi: The government named Lt. Gen. Bipin Rawat as the new Army Chief and Air Marshal B.S. Dhanoa as the new Chief of the IAF, ending weeks of intense speculation in a late evening announcement on Saturday. Army Chief General Dalbir Singh and IAF Chief Arup Raha will both retire on December 31. While the IAF Chiefs appointment is along expected lines of seniority, the new Army Chief will supercede two seniors Eastern Army commander Lt. Gen. Praveen Bakshi and Southern Army commander Lt. Gen. P.M. Hariz. This will be the second time that the seniority principle has not been followed in the Army. In 1983, General A.S. Vaidya was made the 13th Army Chief overlooking the seniority of Lt. Gen. S.K. Sinha. Earlier in the day, the government appointed Jharkhand cadre IPS officer Rajiv Jain as the new chief of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and Anil Dhasmana as the new head of the Research & Analysis Wing (R&AW), Indias external intelligence agency. News agency PTI quoted official sources saying that Lt. Gen. Rawat, from the Gorkha Regiment, was found best suited to deal with emerging challenges, including a reorganised and restructured military force in the north, continuing terrorism and proxy war from the west, and the situation in the northeast. Commissioned into the IAFs fighter stream in 1978, Air Marshal Dhanoa has served in various squadrons and in the intelligence directorate of Air Headquarters. Meanwhile, the new chiefs of the IB and the R&AW will have a two-year tenure. Mr Jain, who is serving as the special director in the IB, will take over on January 1 after incumbent Dineshwar Sharma completes his two-year tenure on December 31. A recipient of Presidents police medal, the 1980-batch officer has served in various departments, including the sensitive Kashmir desk, of the IB. He was advisor to the previous NDA governments interlocutor on Kashmir K.C. Pant when talks were held with separatist leaders like Shabbir Shah. Mr Dhasmana who will take over the reins of the R&AW succeeds Rajinder Khanna who completes his tenure this year-end. Mr Dhasmana, a 1981-batch officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre, has been with the R&AW for the last 23 years during which he has served on important desks, including Pakistan. Meanwhile, while a theory is doing the rounds that the government may also establish the post of a five-star general in the form of chief of defence staff (CDS), and Gen. Bakshi may be named as the countrys first CDS, no details were available. Lt. Gen. Bakshi, an Armoured corps officer, had not held critical field postings, while Lt. Gen. Hariz had no experience in operational areas in terms of counter-insurgency or seeing action along the LoC. Sources told this newspaper that there was a danger of toppling the balance in the Army, which would affect the line of succession. President Rahmon said terrorism and extremism undermine all developmental efforts worldwide. New Delhi: Agreeing that they live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges, India and Tajikistan decided to strengthen defence cooperation and inked a pact to share financial intelligence to counter money laundering and terrorism financing. The pact was among three signed by the two countries after comprehensive talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on strategic issues, including threats posed by radicalisation and extremism, trade and investments. We assessed the broad progress achieved under different pillars of our bilateral engagement, including our partnership in defence and security. India and Tajikistan live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges and threats. The threat from terrorism endangers not just our two countries. It casts a long shadow of violence and instability over the entire region, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at a joint press meet with Mr Rahmon. Combating terrorism has, therefore, been an important area of cooperative engagement between the two countries, the PM said. We appreciate Tajikistans role in the Central Asian region as a mainstay against forces of extremism, radicalism, and terrorism. President Rahmon and I agreed today to strengthen action on this front based on mutually agreed priorities, he said. On his part, President Rahmon said terrorism and extremism undermine all developmental efforts worldwide. A joint statement issued after the talks said the two leaders discussed situation in the region and stressed that terrorism and extremism seriously threaten peace, stability and progress of all countries. The two leaders agreed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be eliminated without any distinction between good and bad terrorists and called for an end to sponsorship, support and provision of safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists, the statement said. Mr Modi and Mr Rahmon reaffirmed their resolve to work for early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UN General Assembly. Apart from the MoU concerning cooperation in the exchange of financial intelligence related to money laundering, related crimes and financing of terrorism, the two sides also inked pacts on broadcasting of audio visual programmes and protocol amending the avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion and announced initialing of document on bilateral investment treaty. On further deepening of security cooperation, the Prime Minister said this will be done on multiple levels - through reinforcing overall bilateral security cooperation, through greater training, capacity building and information exchanges and through active coordination in regional and multilateral contexts. Indias membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation will also be a valuable platform to work closely on regional security and counter-terrorism efforts with Tajikistan, he said. Describing Tajikistan as a valued friend and strategic partner in Asia, Modi said they have also agreed on the need to increase the scope and scale of our economic engagement, especially trade and investment traffic including in hydel- power and Information Technology. Agreeing that peace, stability and prosperity in Afghanistan are important for the region, the two countries are joined in steadfast support of the Afghan people and their aspirations for a peaceful and prosperous nation, he added. Asserting that pharmaceuticals and healthcare would be areas of priority action, Modi said they shared the view that enhanced surface connectivity is crucial to realise the promise of our economic partnership for the benefit of our countries. India supports initiatives to develop the existing port and transport infrastructure and connecting it through road and rail network to Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Central Asia. ... In this respect, we will work to build trade and transit links through Chahbahar port in Iran. India is also engaged in facilitating the International North South Transport Corridor with other members, including Tajikistan. Our planned accession to the Ashgabat Agreement will further help in linking us to Tajikistan and Central Asia, the Prime Minister was quoted by news agency reports as saying. Arvind Kejriwal yet again alleged on Friday that Mr Rahul Gandhi lacks the guts to expose the Prime Minister. New Delhi: The unity among Opposition parties that had been seen over the past one month crumbled Friday when Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi took an unilateral decision to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi to draw attention to the plight of farmers across the country and seek a loan waiver for them. Miffed over Mr Gandhis move to meet the Prime Minister, the Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, NCP and the Left parties refused to be a part of the Congress-led delegation that later met President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday to apprise him of the hardships faced by the people over demonetisation and the way the government had tried to stifle their voice in Parliament. The parties which joined the Congress-led delegation to meet the President included the Trinamul Congress, RJD, JD(U) and AIUDF, among others. Besides the SP, BSP and Left parties, the DMK too stayed away from the Congress-led delegation. Congress president Sonia Gandhi, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Mr Gandhi led the delegation, that also included Trinamul leader Sudip Bandopadhyay and JD(U)s Sharad Yadav. Just ahead of the meeting with the President, Mr Gandhi along with Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad and other senior party leaders met Prime Minister Modi at Parliament House and demanded a loan waiver for farmers. It may be recalled that only on Wednesday Mr Gandhi had accused the Prime Minister of corruption and had claimed that he has evidence on the personal corruption of the PM which if revealed would burst his bubble. Friday mornings meeting took place in a cordial atmosphere, and the Prime Minister reportedly told Mr Gandhi: We should keep meeting. AAP supremo and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal yet again alleged on Friday that Mr Rahul Gandhi lacks the guts to expose the Prime Minister and said this is a fixed match between the Congress and the BJP. After his meeting with the PM, Mr Gandhi told the media that the Prime Minister had conceded that theres an agrarian crisis in the country, but refused to commit on the loan waiver. Other demands included reducing electricity. ills by half, increase minimum support prices. It may be recalled that in a drive in the election-bound states of Uttar Pradesh and Punjab, the Congress had collected nearly 2.5 crore Kisan Mang Patras (forms for loan waivers). With the Parliament session over and no immediate need for Opposition unity on the floor of the House, it was felt that the Congress, by unilaterally meeting the Prime Minister over the farmers issues, had tried to steal the thunder from rival parties, particularly SP and BSP, in election-bound Uttar Pradesh. The Congress move to meet the PM, that was officially announced around 7 pm on Thursday, took the SP and BSP by surprise. Both these parties had also blamed the Centre for rapidly icnreasing the agrarian crisis. A UP leader remarked: We are also concerned about the plight of farmers. Such an unilateral decision should not have been taken by the Congress. The Congress Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad, tried to play down the issue, and claimed: There are no differences, we are all united. On Friday morning as the Opposition parties gathered under the statute of Mahatma Gandhi in the Parliament complex, from where the delegation was to leave for Rashtrapati Bhavan, the leaders of the Left parties, SP, BSP, DMK and NCP dropped out in quick succession. CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said: We have decided to go to the people as the President cannot do anything. To contest the election for the post of general-secretary, one must have been a primary member of the party continuously for five years. Chennai: Rajya Sabha MP, Sasikala Pushpa, who has been expelled from the AIADMK party, has approached the Madras high court to restrain the party from unlawfully and arbitrarily appointing Sasikala Natarajan, a close aide of former chief minister late J. Jayalalithaa, as general -secretary of the party. Justice K. Kalyanasundaram, before whom the suit filed by Sasikala Pushpa and her husband came up for hearing, ordered notice to the AIADMK party and Sasikala Natarajan and posted to December 21 further hearing of the case. In their suit, they also sought to restrain the AIADMK party in acting contrary to the Society Registration Act by amending the rules and regulations unlawfully for the purpose of enabling Sasikala Natarajan to be appointed as general-secretary. Senior counsel K.M. Vijayan, appearing for Sasikala Pushpa, submitted that she has moved the suit since there was a proposal to elect Sasikala Natarajan as the general-secretary of the AIADMK party by bypassing the rules and procedures. The bylaw of the party mandates that only a general body can elect the general-secretary. But, attempts were being made to conduct the election by convening a meeting of a smaller group of members. To contest the election for the post of general-secretary, one must have been a primary member of the party continuously for five years. But, Ms Sasikala, who was inducted as a primary member in March 2012, has completed only four and a half years. Though this rule could be amended by passing a resolution, the mandate that only a general body can elect the general-secretary cannot be amended as there was a bar in the bylaw to make such modification. Therefore, till a proper methodology was followed, election to the post of General Secretary should not be allowed and the status quo should be maintained, he added. Contending that the suit was not at all maintainable, senior counsel B. Kumar, appearing for the AIADMK party, submitted that Sasikala Pushpa has been expelled from the party on August 1, 2016 and thus she does not have locus standi to file this suit against AIADMK. Her husbands claim that he was a primary member of the party has to be verified. Rule 5 of the Partys bylaw prohibits a member from approaching the court assailing the partys decision. When a member approaches the court, his/her membership automatically gets terminated and hence by his act of filing this suit, he has lost his membership and consequently losing his locus standi. The AIADMK party was registered under the Representation of People act as a political party and not under the Societies Act as a society. Therefore, the provisions of the Societies Act would not apply to the party. Status quo, if granted, would affect the interest of 1.5 crore members of the party, he added. In his reply, Vijayan submitted that though it was claimed that Sasikala Pushpa has been expelled from the party, so far no communication has been sent to her about the expulsion. Even the Rajya Sabha secretary has not been informed of such a decision. Till now, she was attending the Rajya Sabha representing AIADMK. As far as her husband was concerned, it was his constitutional right to approach a court of law. Such a right cannot be curtailed by a bylaw. AIADMK as an association has to be registered under Societies Act. Even though it was not registered under the Act, all the provisions of the Act would apply to the party, he added. The Congress, on the other hand, has also repeatedly stated that there are no talks of an alliance with the Samajwadi Party. Lucknow: UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadavs indications about an alliance with the Congress in the offing is actually a ploy to ensure Muslims votes, said sources. The chief minister, apparently, wants to send out a message that the Samajwadi Party is keen on an alliance with secular forces. His strategy will also help him blame the Congress for refusing to forge a secular alliance later, if the BJP manages to form government in Uttar Pradesh. It is to be noted that Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav has already made it clear that his party would not be a part of any alliance. State SP president Shivpal Yadav has also clarified that he is not aware of any ongoing talks with the Congress. Both the leaders are even said to be upset with Mr Akhilesh Yadavs public approval of an alliance with the Congress. The Congress, on the other hand, has also repeatedly stated that there are no talks of an alliance with the Samajwadi Party. Senior AICC leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and UPCC president Raj Babbar have asserted that the party will fight elections on its own. Political strategist Prashant Kishores series of meetings with SP leaders, apparently without permission from the Congress high command, have already pushed him to the sidelines in the Congress camp. Sources claim that Mr Kishores meeting with SP leaders was aimed at his next assignment. We have been working hard to stand on our own feet so why would we ally with the SP more so, because we have been blaming SP, BSP and BJP in our 27 Saal, UP behaal campaign? Besides, the Samajwadi Party has grown on our vote base and we are trying to wrest it back and this is possible only if we stand alone, said a senior party leader. The Congress is apparently aware of Mr Akhilesh Yadavs game plan to create confusion in Congress ranks. We are aware of their (SP) designs and we are also drawing up a strategy to counter it. If the SP is so keen on challenging the BJP, why did they walk out of the grand alliance in Bihar and why is the SP leadership refusing to forge an alliance with erstwhile members of the Janata Parivar? the Congress leader asked. His aides say the CM is aware that the bonhomie between SP and BJP leaders that was on display during family functions has sent a wrong message among minorities. We have decided to launch our protest against the demonetisation on December 28, says Lalu Yadav. RJD Chief Lalu Prasad with former Bihar CM Rabri Devi, MPs and MLAs attend a meeting on demonetisation at his official residence in Patna. (Photo: PTI) Patna: RJD chief Lalu Yadav launched a fresh offensive against Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday and said the decision to demonetise high- value currency notes has affected only poor people and labourers, and that the situation is worse in rural areas. Mr Yadav, who had earlier toned down his anti-demonetisation rhetoric after Nitish Kumar intervened, held a meeting of his party functionaries to discuss strategies to wage war against the move on Saturday. We have decided to launch our protest against the demonetisation on December 28, said Mr Yadav, adding, The demonetisation will meet the same fate as Congress forced sterilisation drive launched during the Emergency. Hoping to get support from other Opposition parties, he said, I will individually invite all big Opposition party leaders to join us in our fight against the Central governments move. People who have money to hoard are most worried by the demonetisation, says Amit Shah. Kolkata: Trinamul Congress MP and national spokesperson Derek OBrien on Saturday said the mother of the thief shouted the loudest in a sharp reaction to BJP president Amit Shahs offensive remarks against chief minister Mamata Banerjee. In dangabazon ne desh to loot liya hai. Aap ko koi bhashan shobha nahin deta hai. Jaise hum Bangla mein bolte hain chor ki maan ki awaaz oonchi. Chor machaye shor (These rioters have looted the country. Lectures dont suit you. Like we say in Bengal a thiefs mother shouts loudest. Thieves make noise), he tweeted, without naming Mr Shah. However, TMC sources said the party leadership had taken strong exception to Mr Shahs tasteless remarks about their party supremo. People who have money to hoard are most worried by the demonetisation. You have seen how Mamata Banerjees face has lost its sheen. In one night, she has grown 10 years older, Mr Shah had said while speaking at a meeting in UP. Meanwhile, Ms Banerjee continued her attack against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and saw ulterior motive in the new tax exemption granted to political parties. Slamming the Centres flip-flops on demonetisation, she questioned the Centres latest decision. Even the timing of these statements show that there may be an ulterior motive. Is there a motive? Are they trying to give a hidden message to the cadre of one political party? Ms Banerjee wrote on Twitter after revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia announced that political parties depositing old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes in their accounts were exempted from income tax. She made it clear that the Centre needed to clarify that the demonetisation meant it was demonetisation for all, which meant the same rules should apply for everyone. If Rs 500/Rs 1000 notes are illegal tender, then how are they trying to show that there is a division between common people and political parties, she posted on Twitter. She added the Centre must clarify why these confusing and misleading statements now? They must clarify. The artworks that were kept in a box in the Le Guennecs' garage have an estimated combined worth of 60-100 million euros Danielle and Pierre Le Guennec were convicted for keeping the Picasso works hidden in their garage for 40 years. (Photo: AFP) An elderly French electrician and his wife were convicted on Friday of illicitly procuring hundreds of Picasso artworks that they kept for almost 40 years in the garage of their home. An appeals court in the southern city of Aix-en-Provence gave a two-year suspended sentence to Pierre Le Guennec, who carried out electrical work at the home of Pablo Picasso's last wife in the early 1970s, along with his wife, Danielle. The two were also ordered to hand the works over to Picasso's heirs and to pay legal and other related costs. The court also upheld an earlier ruling ending six years of legal wrangling that began when the Le Guennecs took out the 180 paintings and other artworks as well as a book of 91 drawings in 2009-10 to get them authenticated, revealing their existence. The artworks that were kept in a box in the Le Guennecs' garage have an estimated combined worth of 60-100 million euros ($63-$105 million), according to public prosecutors. Pierre Le Guennec, now 77, worked for several years at the Picasso couple's villa in the French Riviera town of Mougins. He argued at the trial that he was given the artworks by Jacqueline Picasso upon her husband's death at 91 in 1973, which sparked a succession feud between her and her son-in-law, Claude. Claude Picasso's lawyer, Jean-Jacques Neuer, welcomed Friday's ruling and told reporters that the artworks were in perfect condition after almost four decades in storage. Picasso, a Spaniard, spent most of his life in France. Transport minister assured the L-G that the department would work out the modalities of reducing the bus fares across different slabs. New Delhi: Delhi lieutenant-governor Najeeb Jung on Friday asked the Delhi government to reduce DTC bus fares to discourage people from using personal vehicles, a move aimed at curbing the rising air pollution in the capital. Keeping the winter pollution in mind, Mr Jung, who held a meeting with deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, transport minister Satyendar Jain and officials, directed the transport department to reduce bus fares across different slabs for the next two months. The move draws inspiration from the Paris example where the authorities recently made the use of public transport free to encourage people to take not use their cars, a senior official said. In the review meeting, the transport minister assured the L-G that the department would work out the modalities of reducing the bus fares across different slabs. According to the L-Gs office, Mr Jung was also assured by the PWD that by February end, all U-turns at Delhi borders, meant to turn away non-destined vehicles, will become operational. Mr Jung said that special attention needs to be paid to reducing pollution at Anand Vihar after the secretary (Environment) apprised him that pollution readings have increased by 20 per cent there. Paving of ISBT (Anand Vihar) to reduce dust, reining in incidents of fires at Ghazipur landfill and undertaking dust control measures at the Integrated Freight Complex at Anand Vihar were some of the measures suggested during the meeting. The secretary (environment) flagged the issue of idling of vehicles on city roads. According to the Raj Niwas, 200 traffic bottlenecks have been identified in Delhi and data has been shared with the agencies concerned so that traffic can be eased at these bottlenecks. The bottlenecks can be removed through road engineering, relocation of bus stops and traffic cycle management, the statement issued by the L-Gs office said. The Secretary (Environment) also flagged the issue of loose soil which can be addressed by greening areas. Mr Jain assured that by February end, greening of PWD roads would be completed. The Secretary (PWD) informed the LG that two vacuum cleaners are operational, out of which one is dedicated to Anand Vihar. They will add six more vacuum cleaning machines by the end of December, the statement said. He had come back to Delhi two months back and was residing at Sector-16A in Dwarka with a fake identity, the officer said. A 33-year-old man has been arrested from Dwarka on Saturday for murdering an elderly woman and looting her apartment 12 years ago. (Photo: PTI/File) New Delhi: A 33-year-old man has been arrested from Dwarka on Saturday for murdering an elderly woman and looting her apartment 12 years ago. Acting on a tip-off, the Crime Branch of Delhi Police arrested the accused, who was absconding for 12 years, from near Metro Bridge in Dwarka, Ravindra Yadav, Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime), said. He had come back to Delhi two months back and was residing at Sector-16A in Dwarka with a fake identity, the officer said. In the intervening night of January 25 and 26, 2004, Raju, who was a civil contractor, along with Dharmender, Arun Kumar and Vikas Yadav, had killed Indira Devi (65), who was residing alone at her apartment in Vikaspuri. They then looted cash and jewellery from the flat. Raju was hired by the woman for painting work in the apartment. He had deputed Dharmender, Arun Kumar and Vikas Yadav for the job. Dharmender, Arun, both residents of Bihar, along with a jeweller Vijay, who had purchased the looted jewellery, were arrested. Raju and Vikas absconded and were declared proclaimed offenders by a court. For the last 12 years, Raju was hiding at in Nepal, Punjab and Bihar, the officer said. Dharmender was sentenced to life imprisonment, while Vijay was awarded two-year imprisonment by the court. Arun was given benefit of doubt and acquitted. Carrying arms and ammunition in the Delhi Metro network is banned under law. A 29-year-old man was on Saturday held on a Delhi Metro station for allegedly carrying two live bullets in his bag. (Photo: PTI/File) New Delhi: A 29-year-old man was on Saturday held on a Delhi Metro station for allegedly carrying two live bullets in his bag. Officials said the incident was reported from the Surajmal Stadium station around 5:00 pm when a CISF personnel detected the live ammunition, of .315 bore calibre, in his bag. They said the bullets were detected during the X-ray scanning of the bag and the man was not allowed to go inside the station premises. The man identified as Kuldip is a resident of Timarpur locality in Delhi and has been handed over to the police by CISF as he could not produce any documents for carrying the rounds, they said. Carrying arms and ammunition in the Delhi Metro network is banned under law. The Chetna Diwas was attended by political leaders and members of the civil society. New Delhi: She lit the flame, read a poster at Jantar Mantar. Amidst a handful of lit candles, the family of the horrific December 16 gang rape victim still awaits justice. The protest site in the heart of the capital, which saw vociferous agitations four years ago, was numb with the early morning news of a similar incident in the capital. In a sombre affair, the Nirbhaya Jyoti Trust, established to help women in dealing violence meted out against them, had organised a gathering to commemorate the incident. The Chetna Diwas was attended by political leaders and members of the civil society. Few hours before the family had planned to assemble, another rape case came to light. Kahan badla hai kuch. We heard about another case in the morning. Like I said yesterday, news of rape is routine here, said Nirbhayas mother. It has been four years today, but till now justice has not been served to her (Nirbhaya). We have been trying a lot from the past four years to ensure that she gets justice. Yet, the accused have not been punished. The case is pending in the Supreme Court, but still we dont know when she will get justice, she added. Jantar Mantar has seen many cold nights with young and old seeking strict laws and change in the psyche towards sexual violence. On Friday, a small number of people gathered there to understand why and how these crimes continue blatantly. There is a vacuum legally and socially. Of course, few rudimentary things in administration will keep a check on sexual violence, but what is the long term solution? Its not like rapes are not rampant in western countries. But, in India there is a stigma attached to it. So, first and foremost, people need to change their ideology about someone who has been raped. The obsession with virginity is what, sort of, dents the life of the survivor, explained an expatriate, Nuria, who works at the Espanol institute and came to attend the gathering. Nirbhayas family said that the fight for justice is a long one. The police said that the accused, after the incident, absconded to Nepal & was declared a proclaimed offender by the local court. The accused persons tied the victims hands and legs and strangulated her. There-after, they robbed the cash and jewellery from her house and also removed the jewellery from her body. (Representational image) New Delhi: The Delhi police Crime Branch has arrested a wanted criminal from Southwest Delhis Dwarka area. The accused was a proclaimed offender in a sensational robbery-cum-murder case of a 65-year-old woman reported at Vikaspuri area in 2004. He was absconding for the last 12 years. The police on Saturday said that the accused, after the incident, absconded to Nepal and was declared a proclaimed offender by the local court. The accused was identified as Raju alias Painter alias Raj Kishore alias Pramod (33), a resident of Araria district in Bihar and presently residing in Dwarka, Delhi. On Monday, information was received by the Crime Branch that the accused, who is presently living somewhere in Sector-16-A, Dwarka under the name of Pramod Pandit, would be visiting the Metro Bridge in Sector-16-A. The team laid a trap near the expected place and on his arrival, he was successfully apprehended. During the interrogation, the accused disclosed that he, along with his associates had killed the victim. In the intervening night of January 25-26, 2004, accused Raju, along with his associates Dharmender, Arun Kumar, and Vikas Yadav, had killed Indira Devi (65) in her DDA flats at Vikaspuri, who was living alone in her flat. They had robbed cash and jewellery from her house. Raju was a small-time civil contractor by profession and was hired by the deceased for a painting job in her flat. He deputed Dharmender, Arun Kumar, and Vikas Yadav for this work. Finding that the victim was living alone in the flat and her only daughter was settled abroad, the accused persons hatched a conspiracy to loot her, thinking that there might be huge cash and jewellery in her house. According to their plan, in the intervening night, the accused persons tied the victims hands and legs and strangulated her. There-after, they robbed the cash and jewellery from her house and also removed the jewellery from her body. Mukti Jodhas have been attending the annual celebration for the past 10 years. A worker cleans the wall on which names of fallen soldiers are engraved at a war memorial during Vijay Divas or victory day celebrations in Kolkata on Friday. (Photo: PTI) Kolkata: Veterans of the Indian Armed Forces and Mukti Jodhas (freedom fighters) of Bangladesh, who fought shoulder to shoulder in the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War against Pakistan, came together to celebrate Vijay Divas (Victory Day) here. Thirty-eight freedom fighters along with the officials of Bangladeshi Army, Navy and Air Force attended the function at Fort William. Mukti Jodhas have been attending the annual celebration for the past 10 years. Wreaths were laid by the veterans, members of the Bangladeshi delegation and Commander-in-Chiefs of the Eastern Army, Naval and Air commands. The celebration kicked off on December 13 with a band performance at Princep Ghat following which there was an interactive session among the war veterans, who recounted their war experiences. Vijay Diwas (Victory Day) is celebrated every year on December 16 in India to mark the anniversary of victory of Indian forces over Pakistan in Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. Indian Army fought in an alliance with Bangladeshs military Mukti Bahini. The year also saw the collapse of the under-construction Vivekananda road flyover which killed over 20 people. Kolkata: Mamata Banerjee emerged as West Bengal's top newsmaker for 2016 by leading Trinamool Congress to a thumping victory in the assembly polls and later positioning herself at the front of the anti-Modi crusade on the demonetisation issue. The state government also scored a major victory in the Supreme Court, which termed the acquisition of land in Singur by the previous Left Front regime for Tata Motors' Nano car project as "illegal and void" and ruled to restore the land to the farmers. Banerjee described the apex court ruling as a "landmark victory" for her party. The year also witnessed the collapse of the under-construction Vivekananda road flyover in which over 20 people lost their lives. The incident led to political mud-slinging with TMC chief shifting blame to the previous LF government. The state also saw a slugfest between TMC and the foe-turned-friend Congress and the CPI(M)-led Left Front during the assembly poll. The Congress-Left combine tried to put up a tough fight by raising the Narada sting operation and the Saradha scam, but TMC had managed to capture 211 seats in the 294-member assembly. However, BJP played a spoilsport for the Congress and Left alliance, which ended up with a meagre 76 seats. BJP opened its account by wining three seats. Maintaining its winning spree, TMC also recorded victories in the by-election to two Lok Sabha and one assembly seat in the state. Having the main Opposition parties decimated in Bengal, Banerjee has chosen to play a bigger role in national politics ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha polls.With Prime Minister Narendra Modi announcing the decision to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes on November 8, Banerjee was the first to go all out against the decision terming it "anti-people" and "financial emergency" in the country. Political observers say the demonetisation gave Banerjee a much-awaited opportunity to try her luck playing a major role in national politics with an eye on the 2019 elections. To build a nationwide movement against BJP, Banerjee gave a call of putting up a united fight against the saffron party at the Centre. She had even managed to enlist the support of Shiv Sena, an NDA partner which had marched to Rashtrapati Bhavan along with TMC to protest against demonetisation. In her effort, she kept aside her political differences and even spoke to CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury. The TMC supremo did not waste a single chance of taking Modi head-on. She made the deployment of army personnel at toll plazas in the state a major issue calling it a 'coup' by the Centre although the army described it a routine operation. The year also witnessed the former state Congress president Manas Bhunia leave the Congress and joining TMC. He was amidst a few newly-elected MLAs of both Congress and the Left who deserted their respective parties and joined TMC. About 31 per cent of Municipal council president candidates are crorepatis. Mumbai: About 8% of the candidates contesting the third phase of local body polls in four districts of Maharashtra are crorepatis, says analysis by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Maharashtra Election Watch (MEW). Screening of self-sworn affidavits by the ADR and MEW of 1142 candidates out of the 1623 contesting the third phase of 20 Municipal Councils and two Nagar Panchayats across the state, have shown that 90 are crorepatis. Due to unavailability of some affidavits, the candidates contesting for Municipal Councils of Vaijapur, Gangapur (both Aurangabad district), Kandhar (Nanded district) and Nagar Panchayats of Ardhapur & Mahoor (both Nanded district) were not part of the analysis. The average assets per candidate calculated for these four districts this election is Rs 31.97 lakhs. The candidate with the highest total of declared assets is Ganesh Jaikisan Fafat who is contesting from Desaiganj Municipal Council (Gadchiroli), with assets worth over Rs 6 crore. There are 264 candidates (excluding one zero asset candidate) with declared assets below Rs 2 lakhs. Fafat is also the candidate with the highest declared total of liabilities with Rs 1.55 crores. ADR and MEW have also analysed self-sworn affidavits of 86 candidates out of 119 who are contesting for post of Municipal Councils President in the third phase. According to a statement from ADR, out of the 86 screened candidates, 27 (31%) are crorepatis. The average assets per candidate analyzed for this election, is Rs 95 lakh plus. However, the screening does not include candidates contesting for Municipal Councils of Vaijapur, Gangapur (both Aurangabad district), Kandhar (Nanded district) and Nagar Panchayats of Ardhapur & Mahoor (both Nanded district) due to unavailability of affidavits. President elections are being conducted directly in all 20 Municipal Councils. The candidate with highest declared total assets is Yogita Pramod Pipar with assets worth Rs 7 crore plus who is contesting from Gadchiroli Municipal Council (Gadchiroli). There are 11 (excluding one zero asset) candidates who declared assets below Rs 2 lakhs. The candidate with highest declared liabilities is Archana Bhaskar Dange who is contesting from Desaiganj Municipal Council (Gadchiroli), with over one crore rupees. Local bodies elections will be held for 342 seats in Aurangabad, Nanded, Bhandara and Gadchiroli districts on Sunday. The US consulate has now confiscated the duos passport and recently handed over the case to the Union external affairs ministry. Mumbai: A couple from Mumbai was in for a shock when the Canadian consulate informed them that two persons who were carrying Canadian visas issued to this couple were arrested while trying to illegally enter into Canada. The couple Saugat Bhattacharya, a film producer and his wife Ilika was even more flabbergasted as their agent had told them that their application for the Canadian visa had been rejected. The US consulate has now confiscated the duos passport and recently handed over the case to the Union external affairs ministry. The victims were clueless about the fraud as the page on their respective passports on which their Canadian visa was issued was torn and replaced with a fake page. Mr Bhattacharya, a film and advertisement producer explained that in June, he had intended to take a trip to the US with his wife Ilika to bring in their 10th wedding anniversary. While they were planning the trip, a local casting agent Dinesh contacted them in February about an offer to perform on a cruise ship travelling from the US to Canada and back, organised by Integrity Solutions. They would pay for the performance if selected and get a chance to travel free of cost to Canada on a cruise ship. The only prerequisite was that the people applying should have a valid US visa. If selected, the company would pay and process the Canadian visa, said Mr Bhattacharya. We had applied for the US visa and once we received it in March, we decided to apply and were selected. The owner of Integrity Solutions, Sameer Agarwal, then asked me to apply for a Canadian visa immediately, he added. Agarwal and Dinesh told the couple that a representative from Akbar Travels would contact them about the Canadian visa. On April 4, we received a call from Dinesh, who asked us to come to the consulate office along with our documents. We were to meet Raju, an Akbar Travels employee, and apply for the Canadian visa," said Mr Bhattacharya. He added that, a week later, the Canadian consulate informed them that they should collect their visas. "The mail did not specify whether our visas had been granted or not. Raju from Akbar Travels collected our passports and was to hand it over to us in Andheri. We were then told that our visas had been rejected. Dejected, I collected my passport and left." He continued: On June 22, we received a call from the Canadian consulate and an official asked us whether our passports had been stolen or were handled by someone else. They said that two people had been caught entering Canada illegally using our passports and visas. They added that we had been granted visas, contrary to what the agent had told us." After the Canada consulate asked Mr Bhattacharya to send scanned copies of his and Ilika's passports, the US Consulate's Mumbai office gave him a call. "They told us that they suspected us to have given away our passport to facilitate illegal entries. They showed us how two pages, containing the Canadian visa, had been torn and new fake pages sewed in," Mr Bhattacharya said. He added that the US consulate then confiscated his passport without offering any proper explanation and also served a life-long ban on his entry to the US. When contacted, the spokesperson for the US consulate general refused to comment. The couple then contacted the BKC police station and lodged an FIR. When The Asian Age spoke to the BKC police, they said that investigations had led the US consulate to hand over the passport to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). Our probe shows that there are at least 15 more such victims and a team will be sent to Delhi to further probe the case. The MEA is also conducting a separate investigation, said an official. The contents of Cockroach Catcher Blog (text and photos) are strictly the copyright of Dr Am Ang Zhang and all rights are reserved. Other bloggers are welcome to quote and use any of the content of the articles on the internet or in their own blogs as long as it is acknowledged. Anyone wishing to use substantial parts or all of any of the articles is asked to contact Dr Am Ang Zhang (cockroachcatcher (at)gmail (dot)com) in advance. The 85-foot-tall artificial tree, with a diameter of 33 feet, has been erected in the centre of an amusement park in the Iraqi capital. Baghdad: A Muslim businessman has erected the tallest Christmas tree in Baghdad as a show of solidarity with Christians during the holiday season. Yassir Saad said on Thursday that the initiative aims at joining our Christian brothers in their holiday celebrations and helping Iraqis forget their anguish, especially the war in Mosul, where Iraqi forces are battling the Islamic State group. The 85-foot-tall artificial tree, with a diameter of 33 feet, has been erected in the centre of an amusement park in the Iraqi capital. Saad says the initiative cost around $24,000. This tree represents love and peace, said teacher Saba Ismael, as her visiting students took pictures in front of the tree. I wish all Iraqi Christians could return to Iraq and live normal and peaceful lives. Iraqs Christian community has steadily dwindled since the 2003 US-led invasion. Christians have been targeted by Islamic extremists on several occasions, and have also fled the country for better economic opportunities. Thousands of Christians fled Mosul and surrounding areas when ISIS swept across northern Iraq in the summer of 2014. The extremist group forces Christians to convert to Islam or pay a special tax, and often confiscates their property. Some have managed to return to villages outside Mosul that have been retaken by Iraqi forces, only to find that their homes have been ransacked. Original 176 designs on exhibition at New Yorks Museum of Modern Art. Tokyo: From a humble smiley face with a box mouth and inverted Vs for eyes, crude weather symbols, and a rudimentary heart emoji have now exploded into the worlds fastest-growing language. There are now about 1,800 emoji characters and counting. They cover everything from emotions and food to professions, are racially diverse and have become an integral part of the smartphone age. The digital hieroglyphics are regarded as so significant that New Yorks Museum of Modern Art, which is home to works by Andy Warhol and Pablo Picasso, is exhibiting the original 176 designs. Shigetaka Kurita, the man who created these characters, is still surprised by the success of his idea, but says he was meeting an obvious need. It wasnt only Japanese who felt inconvenienced when they were exchanging text messages. We were all feeling the same thing, he tells AFP. Kurita was working at major telecom NTT Docomo in 1999 when he sketched out one of the first emoji, a clunky looking thing barely recognisable as the precursor to todays yellow smiley face. Kurita was also experimenting with how to make information, such as weather forecasts, more accessible on the small screens of emerging cellphones, deciding visual aids would help. The sun and umbrella symbols both open and closed were among his earliest creations. For inspiration, Kurita says he tapped Japans popular manga comics and the countrys complicated writing system that uses two sets of phonetic letters mixed with Chinese characters, known as kanji. Keenly aware of how text messages could be misconstrued. Endless emotions THE TRAILBLAZER: Shigetaka Kurita was working at major telecom NTT Docomo in 1999 He sketched out one of the first emoji, a clunky looking thing barely recognisable It was the precursor to todays yellow smiley face The sun and umbrella symbols were among his earliest creations The New Yorks Museum of Modern Art is exhibiting more than hundred designs. It is home to works by Andy Warhol and Pablo Picasso Despite being popular in Japan around the turn of the century, it took another decade for emoji to really take off globally Their success is in part due to the soaring popularity of smartphones Around 2010, some tech firms adopted a standardised table so emoji could be used across different platforms. Later, they became available on the iPhone CELEB USERS: She's been attending her father's transition meetings with high-profile figures from the Japanese prime minister to technology leaders. Des Moines: With Ivanka Trump, the typically minor role of first daughter could get a major makeover. After she played a key role on the campaign trail, the next moves by President-elect Donald Trump's 35-year-old daughter are being closely watched. She's been attending her father's transition meetings with high-profile figures from the Japanese prime minister to technology leaders and has indicated her interest in working on policy issues like child care. An executive vice president at the Trump Organization, Ivanka Trump also owns her own company selling clothes and jewellery. While three of the president-elect's adult children are viewed as close advisers, he often highlights Ivanka and has made clear that he'd love to have her with him when he moves into the White House. Whether that would be in a formal or informal position is not clear. But Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway suggested this week that there may be an exception to anti-nepotism laws for Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, who runs a real estate and construction business. Previous first daughters have played a social role in the White House. For example, during Harry Truman's presidency, when Bess Truman was home in Missouri, her daughter, Margaret, would play hostess. But it would be "unprecedented" for Ivanka Trump to serve as a close adviser, said Katherine Jellison, who chairs the history department at Ohio University. She added: "If there was ever a first daughter who played such a close advisory role to her dad, she really kept it under cover." Here's what we know so far about Ivanka Trump: The business With the Trump family, everything comes back to the vast family business empire. Ivanka, one of Donald Trump's three children with his first wife, Ivana Trump, is an executive vice president of the business along with her two brothers, Donald Jr., 38, and Eric, 32. Just how the president-elect will handle his sprawling business interests remains unclear. Trump has said he will turn management over to his sons and executives. Of course, Ivanka has her own business to consider as well. She recently drew criticism after her company promoted a $10,800 bracelet she wore during a "60 Minutes" interview on CBS. The spokeswoman for the company later apologized. Since then, Ivanka has sought to put some distance between herself and her fashion business. A letter posted on her website said that she would separate her social media accounts from her company's. But questions continue to come up. Earlier this month, Eric Trump offered a "Private Coffee with Ivanka Trump in NYC" on a charity fundraising website. But after drawing high bids and a New York Times story - the auction appeared to have been removed from the website Friday. The Trump organization did not respond to a request for more details. The White House Trump's team says no official decision has been made about Ivanka Trump's role, and she was not made available for an interview for this story. But the president-elect has made his wishes known. "I think we'll have to see how the laws read. I would love to be able to have them involved," Trump said on Fox News of Ivanka Trump and her husband. Congress passed an anti-nepotism law in 1967 that prohibits the president from appointing a family member to work in an office or agency the president oversees. But Conway said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" that the law has "an exception if you want to work in the West Wing, because the president is able to appoint his own staff." Still, Richard Painter, chief White House ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, said, "I don't believe that this statue exempts the White House." He said Conway's interpretation would be reasonable policy because it would bring family members under conflict of interest rules, but added "I'm just not convinced that's what the statute says." Policy platform While much about Ivanka Trump's future role is murky, her policy interests are quite clear. Throughout the campaign she highlighted her interest in issues like child care, pay equity and maternity leave. Her father mentioned those issues rarely. Ivanka Trump met with a group of Republican congresswomen on these issues in September. Since the election, she has been reaching out to members of Congress to continue the conversation, according to Sarah Chamberlain, the president and CEO of Republican Main Street Partnership, who said she has not heard from the future first daughter. Republican consultant Katie Packer, who opposed Trump, said she was welcoming "the spotlight that Ivanka Trump is going to put on these issues." But Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, executive director MomsRising, an advocacy group for women and families, said she was concerned that the president-elect's conservative Cabinet picks don't share those interests. "Ivanka Trump is right that child care and paid family leave are national emergencies, but she was not elected to be president of the United States of America and her dad, who was, has taken the opposite approach," Rowe-Finkbeiner said. White House hostess Throughout the campaign, Ivanka Trump played a more prominent role than Trump's third wife, Melania, who has focused her attention on 10-year-old son Barron. Donald Trump said last month that Melania and Barron Trump would not move to the White House until the end of the school year. She could still come in for major events, but there is historical precedent for a daughter or sister to step in and shoulder some of the social responsibilities. Since the election, Melania Trump has kept a low profile while Ivanka Trump has been a regular fixture at Trump Tower in New York. This week she appeared in a photo with Kanye West. Ms Soni has argued in internal meetings that they should avoid fielding Akali Dal leaders indiscriminately. When Prime Minister Narendra Modi annulled high demonisation currency notes on November 8, the decision was received enthusiastically by Bharatiya Janata Party MPs, who were convinced with his argument that this move will root out corruption and curb the use of black money. But the mood in the party has changed following reports of growing anger and frustration among the people who have been hit by the liquidity crunch. Though no BJP lawmaker has voiced his or her reservations in public, MPs from poll-bound Uttar Pradesh did convey their apprehensions about the adverse fallout of demonetisation to party president Amit Shah at a closed-door meeting last week. Their objections were, however, brushed aside by the tough-talking Shah who told the MPs in no uncertain terms, This is not a Manmohan Singh government... this is a Narendra Modi government and once he takes a decision, theres no going back on it. The MPs were instructed that instead of complaining, they should head back to their constituencies to convince their voters about the merits of demonetisation. Congress Lok Sabha MP and former minister Shashi Tharoor is not particularly popular with his party colleagues. He invariably manages to annoy them with his public statements that he does not agree with the Congress strategy to block proceedings in Parliament and that the Opposition can pin down the government more effectively by allowing a debate. Last year, the Thiruvananthapuram MP was pulled up by Congress president Sonia Gandhi for going public with details of a closed-door party meeting in which Mr Tharoor had opposed the partys decision to derail parliamentary proceedings. Although he was suitably reprimanded, Mr Tharoor continues to stand firm on his stand that the Opposition should allow a debate in Parliament. He recently aired his views publicly once again. Upset with him for taking a contrary position to the party line, the Congress partys mild-mannered Lok Sabha leader Mallikarjun Kharge recently took a dig at Mr Tharoor in the presence of Mrs Gandhi and party vice-president Rahul Gandhi. Pointing out how BJP members had not allowed Opposition members to speak in Parliament, Mr Kharge told Mr Tharoor, I hope you will have some kind words for us now. For a change, Mr Tharoor was left speechless. Though Punjab Congress president Capt. Amarinder Singh and campaign committee chief Ambika Soni are known to be on friendly terms, differences have cropped up between the two over the selection of candidates for next years Assembly polls in Punjab. While Mr Singh has been generous in accommodating former Shiromani Akali Dal members, Ms Soni has expressed her reservations about rewarding new entrants to the party with tickets. Ms Soni has argued in internal meetings that they should avoid fielding Akali Dal leaders indiscriminately, particularly those who are tainted as it weakens the Congress campaign on the drug menace in the state. The large-scale entry of Akali Dal ticket seekers, she said, lends credence to the Aam Aadmi Partys charge that this is a case of match-fixing by Mr Singh and Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal of the Akali Dal who have a secret understanding. Despite Ms Sonis objections and protests from the party rank and file, Mr Singh is going ahead with the induction of Akali Dal members. Last week, Ms Soni was greeted by one such Akali leader who informed her that he had joined the Congress. Ms Soni was stumped as she was not informed about his entry which was unilaterally okayed by Mr Singh. The irrepressible Samajwadi Party MP, Amar Singh, was once known for his flashy lifestyle and the lavish parties he hosted that were invariably attended by Bollywood celebrities and political bigwigs. He took particular pride in showing off his fleet of cars which included a Bentley. But Mr Singh proclaims he is a changed man after he spent a stint in the cold following his expulsion from the SP. He has become more philosophical now and, as part of his image makeover, Mr Singh said he will now desist from any vulgar display of wealth. To begin with, he has decided to travel to the Parliament House in a Nano. He has placed an order for the low-cost car and is awaiting its delivery. Not that he has sold his expensive cars; these are being used by his wife and daughters. Mr Singh maintains his decision to switch to a simpler lifestyle was inspired by Lord Buddha and Lord Ram as well as Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose. He says they all belonged to affluent families but chose to forsake their riches. Mr Singh wants to emulate them, as he has now understood that people have greater respect for those who chose a frugal lifestyle despite their privileged background. Hence the decision to drive a Nano. It is a matter of small detail that driving to Parliament House in a small car makes for an excellent photo-op. In his words: "I am just a professional writer, which means I don't do blogs and try and get money for whatever I write." Karl Marx wrote that history repeats itself, first as tragedy and then as farce. What a piece of work is man Stubborn as a mule Proud and egotistical Unfeelingly cruel In form bulging and paunchy And unfailingly raunchy, In action missing the toilet bowl In romance scoring an own goal In apprehension always Getting the wrong end of the stick, Sentimental to a fault But emotionally thick. From Joys of Self-abuse (Ed. by Bachchoo) An enduring puzzle of the history I was taught is the affair of the animal fat in the cartridges issued to the mercenaries of the East India Company. These sepoys, hired by the Company to fight other Indians, refused to bite the cartridges to activate them because the Hindus said they contained cow fat and the Muslims that they contained pigs. The refuseniks shot their officers and proceeded to seize the arms and ammunition stores of their regiments. Their mutiny was joined by the aggrieved monarchs of India and was subsequently labelled the First War of Independence (FWoI) by Indian historians who havent yet identified a Second. What is puzzling is why the sepoys who refused to bite the bullets in the morning used them to shoot their British officers, and their wives and children, in the afternoon. It may, of course, be that the mutineers had access to old weapons whose bullets werent taboo. Or it may be that the sepoys believed the Portian dictum from The Merchant of Venice which enjoins us to do a little wrong to do a great right and proceeded to bite the bullet to liberate their country from foreign rule. Karl Marx wrote that history repeats itself, first as tragedy and then as farce. The Indian Mutiny or the FWoI of 1857 certainly ended in slaughter on both sides and no independence. What it put paid to was the idea of a resuscitated Mughal Empire or, in fact, any kind of real monarchy in India, with the rajas and maharajas who remained being the licenced puppets or ceremonial accessories of the ensuing Raj. The first inklings of elected democracy took root and brought us to today. And now the farce. The Bank of England last month publicly issued a new 5 note. Now 5 sterling may be worth nearly Rs 500, but it is the smallest denomination note of the United Kingdom. The new fiver wasnt issued as part of a demonetising strategy to flush out or to render worthless black money accumulated in peytis and khokas (which in Britain would be Samsonite leather suitcases and traditional soapboxes). No, the new fiver is a plastic rectangle which is water-proof, tear-proof, fire-proof and no doubt cant be digested if swallowed by animals or humans. It was invented by an Australian Polymer scientist and adopted by the Bank of England for durability. Soon after it was issued, someone discovered that the process of manufacture of the fivers involved using animal fat as an ingredient. Immediately several Hare Krishna temples and the Hindu Forum of Britain called variously for a ban on the notes, for a petition to the Bank of England for their withdrawal and for a plea to Hindus to refuse to handle them. Their protest was joined by vegetarians and vegans when the Bank of England confirmed that the polymer substance of the notes was made using a tiny bit of tallow which came from animal fats. There are, according to the last census, 800,000 Hindus and 1.2 million vegetarians in the UK. It is, as everyone knows, common practice to bite chunks of gold to verify its authenticity. As far as notes of pound sterling denominations are concerned, my local newsagent and grocery store owner, Mr Patel, told me that holding the translucent note up to the light would reveal whether there was a silver strip embedded in it. The real ones contain such a strip and the 20 counterfeit ones which are on sale for 6 each from shady individuals at a pub which I sometimes frequent, dont. Mr Patel assured me that there was no need to bite the notes or put them anywhere near ones mouth to ascertain whether they were genuine or not. I expect the same holds for the new fivers, so I enquired from Mr Patel, a practising Hindu, whether he would follow the Hindu temples call to refuse the notes. He was unhesitant in staunchly protesting that he couldnt see what the fuss was all about. The bank wasnt issuing them to eat! Of course, if I wanted to buy a newspaper from him and pay with a new fiver, he would accept it and give me the change. He also very usefully pointed out that the third shelf down the second aisle in that very shop contained soaps that very many people, known Hindus and unknown vegans, regularly bought. He was aware that these soaps contained the same tallow that people were now protesting against. He said rubbing the soap against your skin was much more intimate contact than passing a fiver through ones fingers. I think he had a point, or even two, but who am I to judge? My late grand-uncle, not even a Hindu, was a vegetarian and wouldnt even keep a leather wallet or wear leather shoes. He wore plastics and never stooped to enquire whether this plastic was made with any mix of animal fat. Nevertheless, in order to avoid a vegetarian mutiny or second war of offended sentiments, the bank has promised the protesters to look into ways of eliminating the animal tallow from the manufacture of the notes. At present the notes are graced with a portrait of Winston Churchill. Next year the bank has said they will be printed (minted?) with a picture of Jane Austen. In light of the above events I have now been moved to start a petition to have Churchill and Austen replaced by a portrait of Mangal Pandey, the martyr who fired the first shot of the err Mutiny. At present, Yoga Book is available in two versions, one running on Windows 10 and another running Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Lenovo is planning to launch Chrome OS version of its 2-in-1Yoga Book laptop sometime around next year. According to Laptop Mag, VP and General Manager of Lenovos Android and Chrome Computing Business Jeff Meredith confirmed in an interview for Toms Guide innovation Award that it will be offering a third version of the Yoga Book running Chrome OS next year. We've had a lot of interest, said Meredith of a Chrome OS-powered Yoga Book. Its an interesting idea for education, especially with the form factor. At present, Yoga Book is available in two versions, one running on Windows 10 and another running Android 6.0 Marshmallow. In his interview, Meredith also confirmed that the Real Pen will work on Chrome OS version in the same way as it does on the Android version of the Yoga Book. Over time, we probably see the Android and Chrome versions melding together, especially based on the fact that we've now seen Chrome roll out the Google Play store capability into Chrome, Meredith told Laptop Mag. We'll probably maintain the three distinctive products throughout this year at least. Ivanka and her real estate developer husband have been a constant presence by President-elects side since his election victory. US President-elect Donald Trumps daughter Ivanka is currently vice-president in the family business. New York: A month before Donald Trump becomes President, chattering classes in New York and Washington are abuzz with signs that his elegant daughter Ivanka will play an active role in his White House. Ms Ivanka, currently vice-president in the family business, and her real estate developer and publisher husband have been a constant presence by the President-elects side since his November 8 election victory. CNN reports that the 35-year-old mother of three is poised to play an active role as an adviser, assume some duties normally assigned to the First Lady and get office space in the East Wing of the White House. Ms Ivanka and husband Jared Kushner, who has been credited with being the brains behind the scenes that helped get his father-in-law elected, have been reportedly house hunting in Washington for days. While Mr Trumps third wife, Melania, is still expected to play a role, she is planning to live in New York with the couples young son at least until the end of the school year. Ms Ivanka was a key surrogate among women voters and since the election has been seen attending her fathers meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Wednesday meeting with tech industry leaders. She also set up talks between her father and environmental campaigner Al Gore, a former Democratic vice-president. The Democrats House minority leader Nancy Pelosi said Mr Trump put Ms Ivanka on the telephone when they started talking about childcare. Mr Trump announced this week that he would hand over the reins of his company to his two adult sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, raising questions about Ms Ivankas role. Ms Ivankas brothers admit that she is their fathers favourite child. She runs her own company and has moved to separate her business and personal social media accounts to limit accusations about conflicts of interest. A nepotism law, passed after then-President John F. Kennedy appointed his brother attorney general, prohibits any President from hiring a kin. Mr Kumar added that Mr Trump is very well aware that terrorism is a big concern for India. New York: Donald Trump will support greater friendship between India and Pakistan, a prominent Indian-American industrialist said Friday as he met the President-elect and discussed issues ranging from growing India-US trade to relations with China and Pakistan. Shalabh Kumar, founder and president of the Republican Hindu Coalition (RHC), met Mr Trump, Vice President-elect Mike Pence, Mr Trumps daughter Ivanka and sons Don and Eric and other senior officials from the incoming Mr Trump administration at Trump Tower. It was a great meeting, Mr Kumar said. He said they discussed mechanisms for increasing trade between US and India. We also talked about policies with respect to China and with respect to Pakistan and how India views them, Mr Kumar said. Mr Kumar added that Mr Trump is very well aware that terrorism is a big concern for India and he is also confident in a way that he could persuade Pakistan to do the right things and actually create a friendship between India and Pakistan. His attitude is always that you can do it, you put your mind to it. As chief of ExxonMobil, Rex Tillerson honed many of the skills inseparable from the exercise of high-level diplomacy: navigating complex geopolitics and pushing tough negotiations with friends and foes around the world. The question now facing the 64-year-old Texan, as President-elect Donald Trumps nominee for secretary of state, is whether he can bring those skills to serve American interests, and break free from the oil industry that shaped him over a lifetime. As the Republican Trump himself put it, in announcing his choice of the chief executive for top diplomat on Tuesday, his relationships with leaders all over the world are second to none. One of those relationships with Vladimir Putin, who awarded him Russia's Order of Friendship in 2013 was likely a key asset in Trumps view, as he pushes for a detente with Moscow. But Tillersons Russia ties have raised hackles across the US political spectrum, and threaten to severely complicate his approval by the Senate, against the backdrop of intelligence indicating Moscow interfered to try to sway the election for Trump. Propelled to the position of the Secretary of State to undo years of American foreign policy blunders and disasters, Tillerson now faces the biggest challenge of his life to translate his business acumen to international diplomacy. From making yet another attempt at resolving Israel-Palestine conflict, on which Secretary John Kerry, has spent considerable time; to engaging the world in the quest to defeat ISIS, building new relationship with Russia, addressing the concerns of countries in the Asia Pacific region against an aggressive and assertive China; and negotiating fresh trade deals with the mandate of bringing jobs back to the country, Tillerson has a tough task ahead of him. Abe concurred, but said the effort would continue despite the difficult path ahead. Tokyo: Russia and Japan on Friday signalled there was no resolution after a two-day summit to a decades-long territorial dispute that has blocked them from achieving a peace treaty to formally end World War II hostilities. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese PM Shinzo Abe held talks in Abes ancestral hometown and in Tokyo, to secure a deal. It would be naive to think we can solve this problem in an hour, Mr Putin said at a press conference with Mr Abe. There must be an end to this historic ping-pong... The fundamental interests of Russia and Japan require a long-term deal. Mr Abe concurred, but said the effort would continue despite the difficult path ahead. Concluding a peace treaty that has not been concluded in more than 70 years is not easy, Mr Abe said. But we cannot resolve this issue only by asserting the correctness of each others claims. DAVID CITY At Aquinas Catholic High School, a class period is 43 minutes long. When it comes to the work going on in the building trades and cabinetry class, the period seems about half that long. As class started on a recent Wednesday, six sophomores and two seniors strapped on tool belts and put on safety glasses as teacher Mark Masur came out with the days construction lesson. The students were about to see firsthand the soldering of the waterworks in a modern shower. The lesson was brief, with Masur asking questions to make sure the students were tuned in. It came with a reminder that the average hourly wage for a certified plumber is around $50. Within 10 minutes the group was headed for the house standing on concrete blocks a few steps from the shop building. On the east side of the school, the house is out of view from Nebraska 15. The house is not far from the school's building and trades shop. A space heater cuts the December chill in the still uninsulated structure. The roof and windows were installed in recent weeks, but the draft is still finding a way in. Each student heads for a designated task, so theres not much talking. Three are measuring and sawing two-by-fours for wall panels. One is installing insulation. Two more are preparing to mark and cut the holes where the showers drain will go, and they get a little help from others to stand up the bulky one-piece walk-in unit. Another two are putting together a door frame that will be installed by a later class. After that's done, they help Masur lift and slide a wall panel across the floor and into place. The wall separates the garage side of the house from the rest of the structure, forming the laundry room at the same time. Masur explains that because the homes lot isnt yet designed, the door leading to the garage can be on the end of the house or the side. Just like that, a half-hour of work by nine people has taken the house a few more steps toward completion. At this stage of the process, Masur said, the students are quite capable of taking care of their assigned tasks, with some guidance. Students still ask a question if theyre uncertain, and thats OK, because it means they wont make mistakes that lead to pulling something apart and starting over. "That means we have fewer nails to pull to get it right," he said. There's a reason the Aquinas building trades and cabinetry class hums along. The school has been at it for 17 years. This years house is 1,680 square feet with three bedrooms. Other homes have ranged from 1,456 to 2,112 square feet. The homes are currently selling at $67 a square foot. At first, the homes were auctioned, but now they are sold before they are finished and sometimes before they are started. It takes the full school year to complete the home. By this time of the year, the students have a good feel for what they're doing. Eli Reiter, a sophomore at Aquinas, said he enjoys going to work in the house. Everybody should have a trade or a skill to fall back on, he said. The trades class will come in handy when applying for a summer or weekend job to help pay for college, or it can help a person complete jobs around the home they live in. Masur said several area contractors got their start in the trades class at Aquinas, including Scott Samek of Samek Electric, Craig Svoboda, a local contractor, Little Timmy (Timothy) Schmid and Mark Polacek, assistant manager at Sack Lumber. Some (alums) find the skills learned at Aquinas very helpful in finding part-time jobs that helped to make college much more manageable, Masur said. Students with flexible schedules can choose their classes in such a manner as to keep certain days or a time of day open for a part-time job, on a construction site or a cabinet shop for example. In the past, Masur said, adults have taken the course at the same time as the students. We have found this to be a good experience for the adults and the students, he said. Regardless of your final vocation, the skills learned in this program are very useful and could save you thousands of dollars over the course of your lifetime. Sponsored visa applications from Indians to study in the UK increased by 5% between 2015 and 2016 to 9,207, the largest number since 2013. London: The number of Indians granted visa to study at UK universities has registered a 6% increase for the first time since 2009. According to latest UK government statistics, between July and September 2016, 8,692 student visas known as Tier 4 visas were granted to Indian applicants, compared with 8,224 issued during the same period in 2015. Sponsored visa applications from Indians to study in the UK increased by 5% between 2015 and 2016 to 9,207, the largest number since 2013. "The increase is an important market breakthrough point," Richard Everitt, Director of Education at British Council India, told the 'Times Higher Education'. He attributed the increase to "deeper relationships between UK and Indian universities, greater transparency over the Tier-4 visa application process and an increase in scholarship opportunities". However, Vivienne Stern, Director of Universities UK International, warned against the sector getting "over-excited" about the "slight upswing" in Indian visa applications and acceptances. "We are working really hard to address misconceptions about the UK as a destination for study," she said. India is the third-largest category in terms of student visa applications after the US and China. The latest visa figures come in the wake of reports that the UK Home Office was finalising plans to cut annual student visa figures by nearly half, from the current 300,000 to 170,000. A UK Home Office spokesperson said: "We want to strengthen the system to support the best universities and those that stick to the rules to attract the best talent". "The British people have sent a clear message that they want more control of immigration and we are committed to getting net migration down to sustainable levels in the tens of thousands." Leaders will stick together against British PMs plan to squeeze out the best deal. British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves at the end of the European Union Summit at the EU Council building in Brussels on Thursday. (Photo: AFP) Brussels: European Union leaders agreed their plan for Brexit negotiations on Thursday pledging to move swiftly and stick together to ensure Britain does not cherry pick a sweet deal that might inspire others to unstitch the bloc. Prime Minister Theresa May left before the other 27 leaders met briefly to formalise their plan for how to run Brexit talks. Before heading home, diplomats said Ms May had assured her European partners that she would launch the two-year process by the end of March despite how London judges rule in a constitutional court case that some say might jeopardise her timetable. Its right that the other leaders prepare for those negotiations as we have been preparing, Ms May told reporters. The 27 issued a statement saying they were determined to see the Union succeed, and were ready to negotiate quickly to tackle the uncertainties raised by the prospect of Brexit. But any agreement will have to be based on a balance of rights and obligations, they insisted, and reject British attempts to remain in the EUs single market if it does not accept free immigration from the continent one of four key freedoms of the Union which British voters rejected in a June referendum. After months in which exasperated continentals have mocked divisions within Ms Mays government over what kind of deal Britain should seek, her exhortations to the others to get on with their preparations sounded a shade ironic. But in fact Brussels did see a wobble in its facade of unity as the European Parliament grumbled that EU leaders were freezing it out of negotiations. After warnings from senior lawmakers that the legislature risked withholding its consent to any final divorce deal if it was not included throughout the talks, national leaders offered an olive branch, saying they could attend preparatory meetings. Ms May, who was filmed looking unsure of herself as leaders gathered, left the summit with no mention of Brexit, focusing instead on Syria and a pledge to provide a further 20 million pounds of support for the most vulnerable fleeing Aleppo. She had sought to reinforce her message that, while still a member, Britain would play a full part in discussions on EU issues and keen to set a conciliatory tone for a smooth exit, welcoming the meeting of the other EU leaders without her. The EU negotiating plan confirmed that a special set of institutions would be set up, mirroring existing EU forums but excluding Britain. Ministerial councils and councils of envoys would meet to keep national governments in overall control of negotiations led by French former minister Michel Barnier, the point man for the European Commission, the EU executive. EU governments are pressing Ms May to start talks. But they are also perplexed by what they see as unrealistic ideas in Britain about what can be achieved by an unprecedented exit that even few of its supporters thought likely before the vote. Some British ministers say they can secure a free trade deal with the EU by the time the withdrawal process is over. Few EU leaders share that view and nor do many British officials. Supporters say she is starting to make a difference after six months. Rome: Romes mayor Virginia Raggi, the poster girl for Italys populist Five Star Movement (M5S), suffered a set back on Friday when her right hand man was arrested over suspected corruption. The case is not linked to any council activity, but offices at the city hall were raided in the investigation into the official, Raffaele Marra. A member of Ms Raggis inner circle who is currently head of personnel for the capital, Mr Marra is suspected of accepting an illegal payment in connection with a shady real estate deal. Mr Marra was a controversial inclusion in Ms Raggis team because of his past employment by prominent right-wing figures in local politics, including former mayor Gianni Alemanno. M5S prides itself on being scrupulously ethical and having no links to what it sees as a caste of sleaze-addicted cronies it says have dominated Italian politics for decades. And its ability to make a success of running Rome, where Ms Raggi won the mayors seat in June, is seen as a key test in the run-up to nationwide elections due in the next 15 months. Polls suggest M5S, headed by comedian Beppe Grillo, will rival the ruling Democratic Party in the battle to emerge from the polls as the biggest party. Ms Raggi faces a tough task in trying to turn around a city grappling with the legacy of years of corruption and mismanagement: pot-holed roads, failing refuse services and inadequate public transport. Supporters say she is starting to make a difference after six months. But rivals have pounced on a string of resignations and cancelled appointments as evidence that the lawyer is not up to the job. The Democratic Party meanwhile suffered a setback of its own when its high-profile mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala, stepped down. The worlds 1.2 billion Catholics are, by now, used to the face Pope Francis displays to the world. Vatican City: Pope Francis turns 80 on Saturday with no sign of slowing down in his drive to reshape the Catholic church to reflect his own vision of compassion and humility. Three years and nine months after his election, the first Pope from the Americas continues to set a relentless pace as he reaches a milestone at which cardinals are ushered into semi-retirement. Pope Francis has not ruled out following the historic example of his predecessor Benedict XVI, who retired, exhausted, in 2013. But, there is no suggestion that could happen soon. Like almost every other day of his papacy, Saturday will be a working day for the holiday-phobic Pope Francis: morning mass with cardinals followed by meetings with the Maltese President and a top Vatican official. In the cerebral Pope Benedicts place, Pope Francis has brought an upbeat Latin tempo, a strong work ethic and the asceticism of a Jesuit missionary to the role of leading the worlds largest church. This will be the fourth birthday the former bishop of Buenos Aires has celebrated in the modest St. Marthas boarding house he has made his home inside the Vaticans walls. The worlds 1.2 billion Catholics are, by now, used to the face Pope Francis displays to the world. More often than not, it is one lit up by a crinkly-eyed, double-chinned smile, at official audiences and meet-and-greets where he displays his ease with people from all walks of life. There are signs of fatigue, natural for a man of his age who lost part of a lung in his youth, and the occasional grimace bears witness to the sciatic pain that is a near-constant companion. Sometimes his features darken, usually indicating he is addressing issues dear to his heart: Europes indifference to migrants drowning in the Mediterranean, the humiliation of the poor or, most recently, the destructive power of agri-business. Born into a family of Italian heritage on December 16, 1936, Jorge Bergoglio became the 266th Pope when he was elected on March 13, 2013. From the off, he seemed like a man in a hurry. Several times he has implied he does not think he will be around for long. He said he wanted a poor church, for the poor. And more broadly, his mission has been to recast the church as a compassionate institution, one that seeks to help believers with daily difficulties. His first Jubilee year was dedicated to the theme of mercy, a quality Pope Francis believes should be at the core of the churchs work, rather than reflexes of condemnation and judgement. Faced with opposition, in the hierarchy and on the ground in the developing world, Pope Francis has arguably made little headway in reshaping Catholic teaching. On vexed issues such as cohabitation and attitudes to homosexual or divorced believers in the church, reviews have ended with ambiguous conclusions that infuriated conservatives and disappointed radicals. But, the mood music has undeniably changed. Who am I to judge? Pope Francis asked when asked for his views on homosexuality, long seen as a disorder by the church. Authorisation to priests to absolve women who confess to having had abortions, a Jubilee initiative, has been extended indefinitely. Bishops can now grant remarried divorcees communion on a case-by-case basis. And the church recognises that cohabiting couples might legitimately be prevented from marrying because of financial barriers. Pope Francis has also recognised the erotic dimension of love as a gift from God, while simultaneously trying to move Catholicism away from its obsession with sex. And, by agreeing to examine the role of female deacons in early Christianity, some see Pope Francis as having opened a door to the possibility of women clergy. Pragmatic reformer rather than revolutionary, is a common assessment of the soon-to-be octogenarian. For him, the church is a field hospital, not a customs barrier, says Italian Vatican expert Marco Politi. But he has not touched doctrine. He is not a progressive in that sense. Marco Tosatti, another Vatican watcher, says Pope Francis has sown a lot of confusion inside the church. Hes a journalists Pope. Hes given the church a friendlier, lighter image. But, summer sales do not attract new customers. The traditional Protestant churches tried adapting to the modern world and look at them: theres nobody left. Mr Politi says conservatives are biding their time. The goal is not a coup but to lay the groundwork for the eventual successor. Like the Tea Party that spent its time sabotaging Obama and found it was worthwhile when Trump was elected. On the day of his birthday, Pope Francis had breakfast with eight homeless people who gave him sunflowers. A gift and a dessert was given on the pontiffs behalf at the end of lunch in many canteens in Rome. The pope co-celebrated Mass with the cardinals in the Pauline Chapel in the Vatican. It is characteristic of love to watch history, he said. We also see that in history and in our life there were wonderful moments of fidelity and bad times of sin. Greetings poured in from around the world, in all sorts of languages. Vatican City (AsiaNews) Pope Francis spoke at the end of the Mass co-celebrated at 8 am this morning with scores of cardinals in the Pauline Chapel in the Apostolic Palace. Today, his 80th birthday, the Holy Father cited the poet Friedrich Holderlin, calling on the faithful to pray for him so that his Old age may be quiet, religious and fruitful, and, after a pause, joyful as well. The popes day began early. The Vatican Press Office announced that this morning the pontiff had breakfast with eight homeless people who usually stay under the colonnade of St Peter. They included two women and six men from Italy, Moldova, Romania and Peru, who gave the pontiff three bouquets of sunflowers, which the pontiff placed in St Martha chapel. The Vatican Press Office also announced that today, "a birthday dessert will be offered on the popes behalf in many canteens in Rome, at the end of lunch or dinner. Guests at various dormitories will also receive an envelope with a small gift and a memento depicting Holy Christmas. After the birthday wishes of Card Angelo Sodano on behalf of the cardinals, the pope delivered his homily. In it, the pontiff focused on the season of Advent as a time when the Church calls on the faithful to remember. Stop, and remember. Look back, [and] look at the road. Memory: This deuteronomic attitude that gives the soul such force" and allows us to "never forget." "It is characteristic of love, he added, not to forget; it is the characteristic of love to have always before ones yes all the goodness we have received; it is characteristic of love to watch history: where we come from, our parents, our ancestors, the path of faith." Turning to the Gospel passage in today's liturgy (Matthew 1: 1-17), which recounts the genealogy of Jesus Christ, he said. "When we listen to this Gospel passage, there is a story, a story of grace, so great; but also a story of sin. On the road we always find grace and sin. Here, in the history of salvation there are great sinners, in this genealogy (cf. Mt 1.1 to 17), and there are saints. We too, in our lives, shall find the same: moments of great fidelity to the Lord, with joy in service, and some bad moments of infidelity, of sin that makes us feel the need for salvation. And this is also our safety, because when we need salvation, we confess the faith, we make a confession of faith: 'I am a sinner, but you can save me, you bring me forward. And so we go forth in the joy of hope." "We also see that in history and in our life there are wonderful moments of fidelity and bad moments of sin. But the Lord is there, with his outstretched hand to pull us up and say: 'Go ahead!'" "May the Lord help us take this grace of memory, said the pope in concluding. But it is hard, boring, there are so many problems . . .'. The author of the Letter to the Hebrews has a beautiful phrase for our complaints, very beautiful: 'In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood' (12:4). This is also a bit of humour, by that inspired author, to help us move forward. May the Lord give us this grace." Tens of thousands of people have sent their greetings from many parts of the world in all sorts of languages. Bilateral agreements signed in June have opened the doors to Chinese expansionism into Kyrgyzstan. About 77 per cent of foreign migrants in the country are Chinese. Bishkek (AsiaNews) Chinese represent 77 per cent of all foreign migrants in Kyrgyzstan, the State Migration Service reported on 8 December. The number of Chinese has been growing since June when Chinese and Kyrgyz authorities agreed that some 40 Kyrgyz plants, some on the brink of bankruptcy, would be run by Chinese to industrialise the country. According to the agreement, 80 per cent of the employees in Chinese-run factories must be Kyrgyz and the ceiling for foreign migrants in the country would be 13,500 per year. The Chinese Embassy in Bishkek says that there are about 20,000 Chinese migrants working at various jobs, but according to a former Labour, Migration, and Youth minister, the real number is much higher -- around 50,000. One nationalist group, Erkin El, claims that up to 300,000 Chinese are already living in Kyrgyzstan. In recent months China has acquired a large amount of resources in Kyrgyzstan like oil, coal, natural gas and precious metals. This is perceived negatively by Kyrgyz who see these bilateral agreements as legitimising Chinese expansionism. Kyrgyzstan is dealing with high unemployment. Out of the country's population of 5.5 million, an estimated 500,000 people leave each year to seek seasonal work in Russia and Kazakhstan. About 6,000 rebels and civilians left the last rebel-held part of the city. However, the evacuation is halted by shootings and violations of the deal. Moscow and Ankara want to shift peace talks from Geneva to Astana, moving the Syrian crisis from the heart of Europe to the heart of Asia. Aleppo (AsiaNews) The evacuation of east Aleppo has come to a halt after reports of shooting. Syrian authorities and rebels accuse each other of failing to respect the deal to allow civilians and rebels to leave the city. The rebels accuse government soldiers of firing on buses taking out civilians. The Syrian military has accused the rebels of trying to smuggle captives and heavy weapons out with them as they left the city. Since Thursday, at least 6,000 civilians and rebels, including at least 2,700 children, are said to have left northern Syrias largest city, after troops loyal to President Bashar al Assad recaptured most of it. For its part, the international community has been trying to find a solution to the crisis. France has called on the UN Security Council to ensure the operation is co-ordinated by international observers, with humanitarian aid allowed into the city and hospitals given protection. Thursdays deal to evacuate the remaining fighters from the citys last rebel-held pocket (1 per cent of the city) collapsed yesterday when rebels violated its terms. At the Ramouse roadblock, south of Aleppo, rocket and sniper fire hit buses on their way to two government-held towns, al Fuah and Kafarya, in Idlib Governorate, both under rebel siege, to evacuate civilians, sick and wounded people and the elderly. The same happened at a crossing near As Suqaylabiyah, in the north-western part of Hama Governorate. Shooting prevented the vehicles from completing their mission, as had been agreed. Red Crescent ambulances set to evacuate the seriously injured from the two government-held towns besieged by rebels in Idlib were stopped at rebel checkpoints in Tall Baklo and Qalaat al-Madiq, Hama Governorate. Scores of rebel rockets were also launched against Aleppos liberated districts. In reaction, refugees from al Fuah and Kafarya blocked the road near Ramouse, effectively stopping rebel evacuation from Syrias former economic and commercial hub. Rebels also appear to have violated two other aspects of the deal brokered by Russia and Turkey, namely the ban on taking captives and heavy weapons and radio equipment. Loud explosions were heard overnight on Thursday into Friday, and columns of thick smoke were seen rising from the Jihadi holdout. According to several sources, rebels burnt compromising documents, such as those that might show their involvement in various forms of trafficking, including organs, and destroyed their more sophisticated weapons, including unconventional ones, to prevent them from falling into the hands of government. During the two days of evacuation, some 9,500 rebel fighters and their families were brought out. Rebel combatants from Aleppo fighting with the Nur el Din El Zenki group chose instead to lay down their weapons and surrender to government forces. Earlier, Turkmen fighters from the same group had left the area for the area that Turkish forces had invaded in northern Syria. Syrias regular army said that its patience had run out and told the fighters that it would enforce the agreement in all its points. If this failed, it would easily proceed to liberate what is left in rebel hands in the coming hours. Any rebel found would be taken prisoner. This leaves rebels with only three alternatives: evacuation as agreed, surrender or death. Meanwhile, fighters who left Aleppo arrived in Idlib full of despair and disillusionment. We are women, not men, said one, crying and proffering insults against traitors and allies who promised support till victory, but then abandoned them. In Idlib, evacuees were met by Turkish Red Crescent officials and soldiers who then transferred many of them to Turkish territory, an indication of Turkeys questionable role and close ties to armed Jihadi groups fighting in Syria. In liberated Aleppo, the horrible signs left by Islamic terrorists are still visible, including desecrated and looted shrines and vandalised tombs. "They did not even leave the dead in peace, said one Syrian civilian, who thanked the government and Russia on state TV for liberating the city from "hell on earth". Aleppos liberation now raises the question of a political solution and peace talks between the opposition and the Syrian government. Taking advantage of the ongoing power transition in the United States, Russia and Turkey decided to move talks from Geneva to Astana, capital of Kazakhstan. Astana owes its name to Istanbul, ex Constantinople, i.e. the capital of the Ottoman Empire and the Caliphate, something that might please Jihadis as well as neo-Ottomanist Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The city also represents a bridge to Russia, which wants to move the Syrian crisis from the heart of Europe to the heart of Asia, in one of the former Soviet Unions Turkic republics. (PB) by Henda Ayari Henda Ayari, a 39-year-old Franco-Tunisian woman, lived and practiced an extremist and fundamentalist version of her religion for years. She was initiated into the radical ideology through her marriage to a fanatical French Muslim. Saudi Arabia and its royal family promote a deviant faith with political goals. Today she struggles for a moderate Islam that can dialogue with other religions. Paris (AsiaNews) Salafist Wahhabism is a "new, false religion" that pushes to "hate the infidel", although at the base of every faith "there should be a rapprochement between human beings," writes Henda Ayari, a 39-year-old Franco-Tunisian who was linked to radical Islam for many years. After a long period of reflection, she is still a faithful Muslim but has abandoned the fundamentalist ideology because of its mistakes, abuses, and violence. In an autobiographical book titled J'ai choisi d'etre libre (I chose to be free), Henda Ayari talks about her journey away from the radical vision of Islam, during which she lost every freedom for a long period of her life. She encountered the Salafist ideology at the age of 21 when she married a fanatical French Muslim. For more than a decade she lived covered from head to toe subjected to the authority of an ever more violent husband. In her reflections about Islam, she attacks Saudi Arabia as the leading proponent of a radical vision of the Muslim faith. A vision that is political and economic, even before it is cultural, one that is promoted by the royal family that rules in Riyadh to keep its supremacy among Muhammads followers. "At 20 I was young and Salafist," Henda Ayari says. "At 39 I am a free Muslim woman." And to those who seem not to understand her message, she wishes to show the two different images that accompany the article: before and after, the years of Wahhabi strictness and the subsequent emancipation, without denying her faith. Henda Ayaris reflections follow. Translation by AsiaNews: Why I left Salafism: I left Salafism because it is a danger to the Muslim world and to the rest of mankind! After having being immersed in Salafism for a long time, I decided to reject totally this ideology, from the day I understood the real danger of this doctrine and the important threat that hovered under the attractive aspects of this "new and false religion" for Muslims. I have spent many years (more than 20) trying to understand that in reality Salafism is a very dangerous sectarian ideology, which aims to divide and foster communalism and hatred among peoples! During the years I lived in Salafism, I have attended conferences of Salafist scholars, in France, and in other countries like Saudi Arabia. I have read many books and gone through hundreds of pages, of texts written by their false scholars, and I became everything that I did not want to be, an intolerant and hateful person against those who were different from me as have many Muslims without even realising it, since we fall unknowingly and almost unconsciously under the influence of one of the most dangerous sects in the world. . . after the Jehovahs Witnesses and many other sects . . . To simplify, in this new false religion, we are driven to hate the "unbeliever" whilst, at its basis, a religion should serve to bring people together, respect all creatures, and live in peace and harmony. After several years of reflection and research, I was able to document myself, through long hours of research. For months, and years, I found enough evidence that pushed me to reject totally Salafist ideology, which I would rather describe as Wahhabi Salafism. I take total responsibility for my choice today and I have decided to tell my view on this subject, claiming to be "a repentant of Salafism" with all due respect to my opponents! It is a long topic that cannot be explained in a single text, but for those who are interested here is an explanation: What is the relationship between Salafism and Saudi Arabia? I can say that Saudi Arabia is the main sponsor of the hateful Wahhabi ideology against the Western world and non-Muslims. . . The Wahhabi Salafist ideology is a serious threat to peace between peoples. It is an ideology on which terrorists rely. More and more converts around the world follow this ideology, when they are freshly converted, more easily manipulated, and more sensitive to toxic messages and the hateful ideology imposed in this doctrine. This explains why many young converts are turning to terrorism. They idealise religion more easily, which is why they consider the Islamic State as a new Eldorado . . . For Wahhabi Salafists: Tolerant Muslims are apostates, each non-Muslim is a "disbeliever" and therefore an enemy of Muslims who must be fought. Those who claim to be Salafist quietists are just as dangerous as those who openly embrace jihadism, because they are in fact propagators of hatred and division. In society, they organise themselves in order to move as far away as possible from society and non-Muslims so as to live among themselves, whilst taking advantage of the social assistance provided by governments and a Republic they hate. . . Despite the fact that Salafism imposes Hijrah (emigration) to the land of Islam, many choose to live in Western countries such as France where they find certain "social" benefits whilst claiming to live according to the Sunnah (i.e. following the ancient tradition of the Prophet) under the protection of freedom and democracy (e.g. including the demand for communal activities, segregated swimming pools for women, etc.) Their main objective is to live as in ancient times, like during the age of the prophet, following the Sunnah and the texts inspired by Wahhabi "scholars". These "scholars" were able to allow the House of Saud to establish itself in power, thanks to many "fatwas", i.e. religious edicts issued by themselves, imposing their rules in the Saudi kingdom as well as in the whole world . . . The Saudis are primarily responsible for the international spread of a religious ideology that explicitly promotes hatred, intolerance, and other violations of human rights and, in some cases, violence against members of other religious groups, both Muslim and non-Muslim. For decades, Saudi Arabia has injected billions of petrodollars into Islamic organisations around the world. One of Riyadhs priorities is to spread a fanatical version of Sunni Islam and fight against the spread of Shia Islam from its worst enemy, Iran. Saudi authorities have set up a whole system of influence that is financed with petrodollars. Riyadh provides financial means to preachers abroad, builds mosques, schools, centres, and supports campaigns to counter officials and media abroad that are likely to oppose the Kingdom's agenda. In one of the many leaflets they distribute to spread their doctrine throughout the world, one can read the words of a senior religious leader: "Do not associate with infidels, hate them for their religion, leave them, never rely on them for help, do not admire them, and always oppose them by every mean in accordance with Islamic law. The advice is categorical: Anyone who helps infidels against Muslims, whatever the type of support provided, is himself an unbeliever. For them, Western countries, like America, France . . . are the Abode of the infidels, i.e. Christians and Jews! Wahhabi Salafists push towards a form of Nazism that inspires and promotes hatred of Jews, using the Palestinian cause, a cause that they do not really defend themselves. In some Wahhabi Salafist books for example, the short leaflet with the greetings of the Cultural Service of the Saudi Embassy in Washington, (published by the Government of Saudi Arabia) or in other books, like the manuals by the Saudi Education Ministry, collections of fatwas, religious decrees . . . issued by the governments religious bureau, or those published by other Riyadh-based organisations one finds detailed instructions on how to behave as a Muslim. One reads about ways to push every Muslim to build a "wall of resentment" between Muslims and infidels: "Never greet Christians or Jews first, never pass on best wishes to the unbeliever on his holidays, never befriend an infidel except to convert him, never imitate the infidels, never work for an infidel, do not wear a graduation gown because it is imitating the infidels." In another book, one can read that if relations between Muslims and non-Muslims were harmonious, there would be no more "loyalty, nor enmity, no more jihad nor struggle to elevate Allah's work on earth." These texts fill libraries, study rooms, mosques, bookstores, all over the world, and in France they have done terrible damage to the minds of many Muslims. Not all books in these mosques espouse extremism, and not all extremist works are Saudi. But Saudi Arabia remains by far the state responsible for most of the publications conveying an ideology of hatred against disbelievers who populate non-Muslim countries. These texts demonstrate Muslims indoctrination in the bellicose and hostile ideology of the radical Wahhabi Salafist sect of Saudi Arabia. Saudis must be Muslim, and the Saudi government, in collaboration with the countrys religious establishment, imposes Wahhabism as the official doctrine of the State. The Wahhabism that the Saudi monarchy applies, and on which its legitimacy is based, presents itself as a fanatically sectarian, xenophobic and sometimes violent ideology. Their texts articulate a wrathful dogma that rejects the coexistence of different religions and explicitly condemns Christians, Jews, all other non-Muslims, as well as non-Wahhabi Muslims. The analysis of all religious texts by Wahhabi Salafists shows that it is a religious obligation for Muslims to hate Christians and Jews. They warn against imitating "infidels", establishing bonds of friendship with them or helping them in any way whatsoever, and participating in their festivities and celebrations. They inculcate contempt for non-Muslim states, because these countries are governed by civil laws rather than Wahhabi-style totalitarian Islamic laws. Some texts order Muslims not to take the citizenship of these countries as long as these countries are governed by infidels. They even advise their followers to work for the creation of an Islamic state. The time has come to fight this devastating doctrine and affirm the principles of freedom and human rights against Saudi Wahhabism as well as confront directly the teachings of this hateful ideology. . . According to state law, fines, penalties, and license money shall be appropriated exclusively to the use and support of the common schools ... . An exception is fines for overloaded vehicles. Seventy-five percent of those funds go to state highways; 25 percent go to the county general fund where the fine or penalty is paid. Fifty percent of money forfeited or seized in enforcing drug laws goes to counties for drug enforcement. Vehicles seized in drug law cases may be used by law enforcement agencies or sold with the proceeds going to schools. County Court Traffic Sentences Kelly Kearney, 60, St. Edward, speeding, 74 mph in a 60 mph zone, $75 fine and $49 court costs. Flora Garcia Ramirez, 58, Madison, no operator's license, $75 fine and $49 court costs. Joseph Eaves, 22, Russellville, Kentucky, speeding, 80 mph in a 60 mph zone, $125 fine and $49 court costs. Joseph Noonan, 80, 1061 E. Seventh Ave., stop sign violation, $75 fine and $49 court costs. Jeffrey Kinnison, 39, Bellwood, traffic signal violation and no operator's license, $100 fines and $49 court costs. Curtis Klug, 27, Humphrey, speeding, 70 mph in a 50 mph zone, $125 fine and $49 court costs. Alexjandro Cardenas, 27, Bellevue, speeding, 60 mph in a 50 mph zone, $25 fine and $49 court costs. Tausa Whitman, 21, Norfolk, speeding, 75 mph in a 65 mph zone, $25 fine and $49 court costs. Elizabeth Przymus, 42, 4411 15th St., failure to yield right of way, $25 fine and $49 court costs. Raul Cardenas, 35, Grand Island, speeding, 82 mph in a 60 mph zone, and no valid registration, $225 fines and $48 court costs. Paul Daniels, 43, Elkhorn, speeding, 51 mph in a 35 mph zone, $125 fine and $48 court costs. Jonathan Shonka, 34, 2319 13th St., No. 2, speeding, 54 mph in a 35 mph zone, and no seat belt, $150 fines and $49 court costs. Derick Gansebom, 21, Norfolk, speeding, 80 mph in a 65 mph zone, $75 fine and $49 court costs. Tyler Emerson, 20, 2415 18th St., negligent driving, no proof of ownership and no seat belt, $100 fines and $49 court costs. Benancio Davalos, 45, 862 26th Ave., failure to maintain control, $25 fineand $49 court costs. Criminal Sentences Luis Alas-Zetino, 29, 608 Countryview Estates, driving under the influence-.15+, six months probation, 120 hours of community service, $500 fine, operator's license revoked one year and court costs. Brayan Escobar Lucas, 19, Schuyler, driving under the influence, six months probation, $500 fine, operator's license revoked for 60 days and court costs. Nelson Reina-Lopez, 24, 2810 15th St., attempt of a Class II misdemeanor and failure to yield right of way, 14 days in jail, $25 fine and court costs. Callie Aune, 34, 3717 27th St., D-23, reckless driving and disturbing the peace, $400 fine and court costs. Jacqueline Figueroa, 30, 1003 Eighth St., driving under suspension, $75 fine and court costs. Randy Weltikol, 54, 3783 SE 16th St., driving under the influence and possession of K2 or marijuana-one ounce or less, six months probation, $800 fines, operator's license revoked for 60 days and court costs. Beth Raymond, 36, address unknown, third-degree assault, 14 days in jail, credit for 17 days already served, and court costs. Ok so my fiance and I are in a bit of a dilemma. To explain, let me start with a little insight on our story. We met in Australia while on a bridging visa A. Our relationship developed over time and about a year later, we moved in together and joined our finances. We got engaged 6 months later and about 6 months after that I had to leave Australia due to an unsuccessful visa application. While overseas, we decided to apply for a PMV and have been in the waiting game ever since while maintaining a long distance relationship which is quite difficult as I'm sure most on this forum can agree. My fiance is still at uni and therefore her time off to visit me is limited. Fortunately though, she's on uni holidays now and we're currently planning her second visit since I left Aus. This time though we're considering having a civil marriage while reserving our original future wedding plans in Aus. Now, I understand that since we haven't had a decision made on our application yet, we are able to request that our application be considered for a partner visa 309 instead. My questions are: 1. Will we have to upload all evidence all over again as with a new application or does it just carry over? 2. With regards to waiting time, does it reset and the application get treated as a fresh one with a 12 month wait (high risk country)? 3. I've read that under the criteria for a partner visa, the couple must be living together and any separation needs to only be temporary. Considering that we've lived together for about a year prior to me having to leave Australia and that my fiance will be staying with me for 4 1/2 weeks on her upcoming second visit after getting married. Does that satisfy this requirement and would it constitute temporary separation in the eyes of the department? We wouldn't want to jeopardise our application over the living together part since we satisfy the rest of the criteria. Any similar experiences and professional opinions are much appreciated. Thank you for your time. Im an australian citizen I got married with a guy who was on student visa we got married and then after 1 year i divorced him I would like to know as I forgot to withdraw with spouse visa has that automatically been withdrawn because he was soo obsessive and controlling i was happy to be divorced from him i totally for got about it as I was so happy with the divorce going through now he is trying to stay here through other methods is this possible SUV As some of you already know, the Accord was discontinued in Europe because of its weak sales. The company decided no to follow up with a successor, so its range now lacks a model in the D segment. Meanwhile, European brands are refreshing their lineups for that class, and they are doing it without any pressure from some Japanese brands.In fact, the only Japanese brands that still sell mid-sized sedans in Europe are Mazda and Toyota. In the case of the latter, the Avensis model was also considered for a retirement from the Old Continent, as sales were deemed to be too weak to justify the expenses related to the development of a successor.Toyotas representatives in Europe revealed that they were considering this possibility for the future, but the results of the Avensis on this continent are consistent with their expectations. Mazdas 6 is also doing well concerning sales, so this segment is not doomed forever in the face of theinvasion.If Honda were to decide to bring the Accord back in Europe, the company could apply the same strategy that was applied by Ford with its Mondeo Fusion in the USA). Instead of making a dedicated version for the European market, which would be costly, and might not meet sales expectations for whatever reason, Honda could adjust the next generation of the Accord to suit a broader audience.We have already seen spyshots of the 2018 Honda Accord , which is currently covered up in camo. The model is expected to come to the US market in late 2017, but selling it in Europe is a possibility at this point. After all, Volkswagens Dieselgate has affected peoples confidence in that brand, which could mean that the D-segment might have room for the return of an appreciated model like the Accord. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. The majority of American drivers dont consider marijuana as serious a threat to road safety as alcohol, according to a survey by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. But drivers living in states where recreational marijuana use is legal are more likely to view the drug as a highway safety problem than drivers in other states. IIHS conducted the phone survey last year between July and October. The results were published in the organizations most recent newsletter. In states where recreational use of marijuana is legal, 43% of motorists said that driving after consuming marijuana is a problem in their community. In contrast, 28% of motorists in states where recreational use is banned viewed the drug as a driving safety problem locally. On a national scale, 80% of drivers favored legalizing marijuana for medical use. But just 42% supported legal recreational use by adults 21 years of age and older. Under federal law, marijuana is still a Schedule 1 controlled substance. Drivers who supported the legalization of recreational use were much less likely to view the drug as a driving safety problem than drivers who opposed such legalization, the survey also found. Drivers in marijuana-legal states were twice as likely to say they had used the drug within the past year. The message that alcohol and driving is a dangerous combination is well-entrenched, but marijuana isnt viewed quite as negatively, said Angela Eichelberger, a senior research scientist for IIHS and the studys author. As more states legalize marijuana use, we anticipate that perceptions about the drugs effects on driving may shift. In November, voters in California, Maine, Massachusetts, and Nevada approved recreational use of marijuana, and medicinal use passed in Arkansas, Florida, and North Dakota. Eight states and Washington D.C. have legalized marijuana for all uses, while 20 states have implemented comprehensive medical marijuana programs. Sixteen more states allow limited access to marijuana products, usually extracts. As I was flipping through the depressing photos of those Cessna Skycatchers being reduced to so much scrap metal, I felt a certain immune response kicking in. Ive seen this before, so lets not get too maudlin about it. The time frame was 1995. The Air Force had bought a fleet of 113 airplanes from the U.K. called the Slingsby Firefly. It was designated the T3A and replaced the T-41, a militarized Skyhawk. They were intended for use in the services new Enhanced Pilot Screening Program to see if the incoming kids had hints of the right stuff before the Air Force invested a million bucks in training them. It was a bad idea to flip would-be pilots through high-G aerobatics before they had even completed basic flight training. The program itself lasted just two years. It cost $62 million for the airplanes alone. The T3A had a fuel line and distribution problem that caused some engine stoppages and whether related to that or not, the T3A suffered three fatal accidents in which unrecoverable spins were mentioned. At the time, Slingsby said it could fix the fuel issue and knowledgeable people in GA told me an experienced homebuilder could have figured out the problem on the back of an envelope. Whether that was true or not and probably thanks to the Byzantine internal politics that infect the services, the Air Force declared the T3A no longer had a mission, but refused to surplus them to the civil market. Instead, after sitting for nearly 10 years,the airplanes were crushed in place at the Hondo, Texas, airport where the screening program was based. Hondo is near Mooneys Kerrville factory and I flew down there once to gawk at all the airplanes marooned in their sun-shade hangars. Surely the scrapper would have recovered engines, radios instruments and hardware for repurposing. Surely not, I was told at the time. Everything was pulverized. Round two is the Skycatchers inglorious end. The one photo that ultimately got to me was the one Im reproducing here, the image of a factory new airplane reposing like a squashed bug on the bottom of a dumpster. Im trying to resist the urge to say that photo is a metaphor for the very industry it was supposed to revive, but my immune response proves too weak to the task.What the Firefly and Skycatcher have in common is not that they were both bad airplanes, but that they got snagged in coldly impersonal organizations whose calculus is insensitive to the utter waste of human effort smashing new airplanes represents. Its not just metal crushing, its soul crushing. Im not trying to make a romantic or even a moral argument, but a practical one. An industrial economy is capable of such massive, efficient output that trashing small bits of what it does isnt even a rounding error in the coffee budget. Its a lost paper clip or a missing pen. In the context of both of these crushed airplanes, the liability tail they represented seemed to outweigh any perceived value their owners could see for a few hundred customers. Goodwill in the marketplace has long since ceased to mar the thinking of U.S. businesses obsessed with the next quarters bottom line. So little worth did those airplanes have that I suspect no one could be bothered to even think of doing something useful with them, perhaps like donating them to a school maintenance program or, heaven forefend, putting them somewhere where they might actually fly. Am I the only one who hungers for at least a shard of encouragement once in a while? If an aviation leader like Cessna has so little regard for its own products, little wonder the rest of an entire industry feels the same. About everything. 17 December 2016 10:25 (UTC+04:00) UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in the South Caucasus Ms. Simone Wolken has hailed the works done in Azerbaijan for the improvement of the living conditions of refugees and IDPs, as she met with Deputy Chairman of State Committee for Refugees and IDPs Fuad Huseynov, Azertac reported. They praised the Azerbaijan-UNCHR relations which are built on solid foundation, saying Azerbaijan has done a lot to address the problems of refugees and internally displaced persons in the country. Fuad Huseynov highlighted Azerbaijan's recent achivements under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev. He noted that Azerbaijan attaches great importance to cooperation with all countries and international organizations. "The only problem in the country today, is the unresolved the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. More than one million Azerbaijanis become refugees and IDPs as a result of the conflict," Fuad Huseynov said. He also highlighted the mediation mission of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs in the settlement of the conflict, saying they failed to achieve any progress. UN High Commissioner for Refugees in the South Caucasus Simone Wolken praised Azerbaijan's economic development, saying she was impressed by the fact that Azerbaijan has become a venue for hosting major international events every day. Underlining the importance of the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, she expressed her confidence that the international organizations involved in the conflict resolution will increase their efforts. Head of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Baku Office Furio De Angelis was also present at the meeting. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 17 December 2016 11:34 (UTC+04:00) The Azerbaijani Alumni of Indian Technical Economic Cooperation (ITEC) program met in an event hosted by the Embassy of India in Baku at Hyatt Hotel on 16 December 2016. The event was attended by several government officials, professionals and businessmen who have participated in training courses in India under the program. Speaking at the event, Ambassador of India, Sanjay Rana informed that ITEC program was started by the Government of India in September 1964 to share its developmental experience and expertise in various fields with its international partners like Azerbaijan. It has three important components namely, delivering technical assistance, technology transfer and training or capacity building. Ambassador Rana said that under ITEC, the Government of India provides fully funded scholarship at top-class institutions in India. The scholarship covers international travel, course fees, accommodation, books, medical expenses in India and sundry expenses. There are currently 56 empanelled institutions conducting around 300 courses every year and around 10, 000 students come from over 160 countries to India to participate in these courses. Ambassador Rana mentioned that there are 15 slots per year for participants from Azerbaijan under the ITEC program. Since 2004, more than 100 Azeri candidates have completed different courses in India under the ITEC program. Deputy Chairman of the State Agency on Alternative and Renewable Energy Sources Jamil Malikov participated and spoke at the event. Jamil Malikov mentioned that within the framework of ITEC programs several officials of the State Agency on Alternative and Renewable Energy Sources attended expertise programs and seminars on Wind turbine technology and applications and experience exchange has been carried out in Azerbaijan in this field. Jamil Malikov said that Azerbaijan is interested in International Solar Alliance initiated by the Prime Minister of India, which acts as a common platform for cooperation between the countries rich with solar energy and which will create an opportunity for the establishment of solar energy stations in the countries with big solar energy potential. India and Azerbaijan enjoy close and friendly relations and have an active cooperation between them in many areas including political, commercial and investment, educational and cultural. Both India and Azerbaijan are committed to develop a strong, vibrant and mutually beneficial partnership with each-other. The two sides had held the fourth meeting of bilateral Inter-Governmental Commission in October 2016 during which they discussed proposals for cooperation in a variety of fields including trade and investment, transportation, energy, chemicals and fertilizer, agriculture, science & technology, information and communication Technology (ICT), health care and pharmaceuticals, education, culture, and youth and sports. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz COLUMBUS A district court judge gave a South Dakota man the presumption the state law created in 2015 probation for reduced drug possession convictions after he and another man were caught with nearly 2 pounds of marijuana and three loaded handguns. Tylor Ihnen, 28, of Freeman, South Dakota, was sentenced Friday to two years of probation on two counts of possession of marijuana under the provisions of a state law aimed at curbing overcrowded prisons by steering low-level offenders to probation. The law created a presumption that offenders convicted of Class IV felonies would be sentenced to probation, unless there were aggravating factors present such as violence or a lengthy criminal history. Ihnens criminal history has been minimal, which District Judge Robert Steinke said was a mitigating factor in his sentencing. Ihnens co-defendant in the case, 25-year-old Dean Pitchford, also of Freeman, was convicted of the same two possession charges and received the same probation sentence a couple of weeks ago. In exchange for the defendants guilty pleas, the Platte County Attorneys Office reduced one of the drug charges against each defendant from possession with intent to deliver while carrying a firearm, a Class II felony offense that carries a penalty of up to 50 years behind bars. Court documents describe a Columbus Police investigation that was initiated about 10:15 a.m. April 9 when Officer Troy Urkoski observed a maroon Ford Freestyle with South Dakota license plates run the stoplight at 33rd Avenue and 23rd Street. As the officer approached the car, Urkoski wrote in his probable cause arrest statement, he saw the driver (Ihnen) drop a small baggie into his lap and quickly conceal it between his legs. The officer then called for backup. While speaking with Ihnen, I could smell the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle, Urkoski wrote in his statement. Police said the South Dakotans were returning from a trip to Colorado, where the recreational use of marijuana is legal. During a subsequent search of the vehicle, police seized 1.93 pounds of marijuana, a pot plant, growing apparatus and drug paraphernalia. Police also found THC-laced candies and three handguns, one under the front seat, one in a side door and one concealed under blankets on the rear seat. 17 December 2016 10:30 (UTC+04:00) The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is complex and the solutions to this conflict will not be easy, commander of the US Transportation Command, Air Force General Darren McDew told reporters in Baku December 17. The US fully supports the peace process established by the OSCE Minsk Group (MG), Gen. McDew said. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 17 December 2016 10:38 (UTC+04:00) Azerbaijan`s Prime Minister Artur Rasizade has met Georgian Defense Minister Levan Izoria. Mr. Rasizade stressed the importance of developing bilateral beneficial cooperation between the two countries in the military-technical field. The Premier praised economic-trade and humanitarian ties between the two countries and highlighted joint activity within the large-scale international projects. Levan Izoria stressed the importance of signing agreement between the defense ministries of both countries. The two discussed prospects for cooperation between Azerbaijan`s and Georgia`s defense ministries in military, military education and military-technical areas. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 17 December 2016 10:40 (UTC+04:00) Azerbaijan is a country that is strategically important for the region, commander of the US Transportation Command, Air Force General Darren McDew told reporters in Baku December 17. He noted that it is his first visit to Azerbaijan and he thanked the Azerbaijani people for hospitality. General McDew also noted that he is thankful for meeting Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev, who is a great leader. The high-ranking US official also said that he discussed with President Aliyev as well as the defense minister the long-term interstate cooperation, and more importantly, what this cooperation would look like decades later. General McDew also offered his condolences regarding the recent accident in the Caspian Sea, with missing oilmen. The general offered his condolences in accordance with the accident in the Caspian Sea that has happened recently. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 17 December 2016 15:24 (UTC+04:00) "Twenty-eight military factories are currently operating within the Ministry of Defense Industry which have manufactured 1160 kinds of defense products so far," Azerbaijan's Minister of Defense Industry Yaver Jamalov told journalists. He said that compared with the same period of last year, the amount of defense industry products increased 1.6 times, while the number of assortments of products rose 1.8 times in 2016. "Ministry of Defense Industry has been participating in the international defense exhibitions since 2009. We have participated in 32 international exhibitions so far. As a result, the Ministry of Defense Industry of Azerbaijan started exporting defense products to a number of countries, including the United States, African countries and the Republic of Korea. And this indicative of the fact that defense industry products manufactured in Azerbaijan meet international standards," Yaver Jamalov said. He pointed to the agreements on the sale of defense products whose total value is of 110 million dollars. "Some of these agreements are being implemented. The agreements will be fully implemented after certain issues are coped with," Yaver Jamalov added. --- -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 17 December 2016 17:13 (UTC+04:00) Azerbaijan and the U.S. have discussed ways of expanding military cooperation as Azerbaijan's Defense Minister, Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov met with a delegation led by U.S. Transportation Commander, General Darren McDew. Zakir Hasanov gave detailed information about the military-political situation in the region, saying Armenia still continues its aggressive policy. The Azerbaijani minister underlined the recent escalation of tension on the frontline cause by regular ceasefire violations by the Armenian armed forces. Pointing to the issue of strengthening regional nuclear security, Zakir Hasanov described it as a serious concern not only for the region, but for the entire world. Highlighting the positive results in a variety of fields thanks to the Azerbaijan-U.S. cooperation, Minister Hasanov praised the expansion of mutual relations between the two countries. The U.S. Transportation Commander, General Darren McDew hailed the Azerbaijani government`s contribution to the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. He also praised productive military cooperation between the two countries. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 17 December 2016 12:45 (UTC+04:00) The Russian government has approved a draft law on ratification of agreement between Russia and Turkey on the project of Turkish Stream pipeline, according to statement published on the website of the government, TASS reported. The decision to approve the draft bill was made at a cabinet meeting on December 15. "To approve the draft federal law "On ratification of the Agreement between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Republic of Turkey on the project of the Turkish Stream pipeline and to submit it to the State Duma in accordance with established procedure," according to the statement. The Russian authorities announced the Turkish Stream in December 2014 to replace the South Stream gas pipeline project. It was planned that the offshore section of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline would comprise four stretches with a capacity of 15.75 bln cubic meters each. The Turkish Stream project envisages the construction of a gas pipeline across the Black Sea to the European part of Turkey and farther to the border with Greece. The pipelines offshore section is expected to equal about 910 km and its overland segment on the Turkish territory 180 km. The project is estimated at 11.4 bln euro. Gas deliveries via the first stretch of the gas pipeline are designed wholly to meet the requirements of the growing Turkish market. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 17 December 2016 13:38 (UTC+04:00) Trans Adriatic Pipeline AG (TAP) has selected Honeywell SRL of Italy for the engineering, procurement and installation of its SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) telecommunications and security systems,Azertag reported According to Trans Adriatic Pipeline AG`s official website, the scope of work includes system detail engineering, graphic interface development, block valve station (BVS) controls, security, and telecommunications systems. The SCADA and security system will provide integrated, centralised and seamless monitoring and control along the entire 878-kilometre gas transportation system. All data will be transmitted back to the supervisory control centre in the Pipeline Receiving Terminal (PRT) in southern Italy, overseeing the pipelines safe and sustainable operations. Ian Bradshaw, Managing Director at TAP, said: With this appointment, TAP has completed the award of all major strategic contracts for pipeline construction. I want to congratulate Honeywell for its successful bid and thank all the companies who participated in this tender round. The SCADA telecommunications and security system is a key piece of equipment which will ensure safe and effective pipeline operations. Honeywell SRL of Italy is part of the Honeywell group, with $38.6bn sales in 2015 and more than 129,000 employees worldwide. The company provides integrated SCADA systems that drive critical information to the pipelines operations team while automating data logging and processing. TAPs routing can facilitate gas supply to several South Eastern European countries, including Bulgaria, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and others. TAPs landfall in Italy provides multiple opportunities for further transport of Caspian natural gas to some of the largest European markets such as Germany, France, the UK, Switzerland and Austria. TAP will promote the economic development and job creation along the pipeline route; it will be a major source of foreign direct investment. With first gas sales to Georgia and Turkey targeted for late 2018, first deliveries to Europe will follow approximately in early 2020. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 17 December 2016 15:00 (UTC+04:00) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called on "all parties and the international community to abide by" the Turkey-brokered truce in Aleppo, Anadolu reported. On his official Twitter account, Erdogan wrote Friday: "The Turkey-brokered truce in Aleppo and the continuation of evacuations is the only hope left for innocent people. I urge all parties and the international community to abide by the truce agreement and support the implementation of the evacuation process. The people of Aleppo are not alone. We will do everything in our power to save innocent lives." His message came in Turkish, English, and Arabic. Under a ceasefire agreement secured Tuesday by Turkey and Russia, civilians trapped in eastern Aleppo will be allowed to go to the opposition-held city of Idlib. At least 7,500 civilians have so far left eastern Aleppo in convoys for safe areas in Idlib, according to Syrian opposition group officials. However, reports also arrived that the regime and pro-regime terrorists violated the truce. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 17 December 2016 10:46 (UTC+04:00) 13:12 (UTC+04:00) Thirteen servicemen were killed, 48 injured following the explosion on campus of the Erciyes University in the Kayseri province in Turkey, the website of the General Staff of Turkeys Armed Forces reports. The wounded were sent to the universitys hospital. Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan obtained the necessary information on the incident from Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces Hulusi Akar. 11:38 (UTC+04:00) Three servicemen were killed following the explosion in Turkeys Kayseri province, the Dogan news agency reported citing the sources in the countrys law enforcement agencies. As reported, the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) terrorist group may stand behind the explosion. Meanwhile, Turkeys Radio and Television Supreme Council imposed a ban on the publication of news about the Kayseri explosion, according to Anadolu news agency. 10:52 (UTC+04:00) The explosion took place at 08:45 local time, near a bus with military personnel, the Dogan news agency reported. A mined car drove up to the bus and exploded, according to eyewitnesses. The IHA news agency reports several were killed in the explosion. 09:35 (UTC+04:00) An explosion occurred on the campus of the Erciyes University in Turkeys province of Kayseri, TRT Haber reported Dec. 17. The exact number of wounded people is not reported yet. Rescue teams and ambulances were sent to the explosion site. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz COLUMBUS City officials will meet next month with a New York-based telecommunications organization as they work to refine the local rules governing cell tower siting. Interim City Administrator Merlin Lindahl said representatives from The Center for Municipal Solutions will meet with the citys Public Property, Safety and Works Committee at its Jan. 9 meeting to discuss potential changes to the permitting process for wireless communications towers in Columbus. They know more about cell towers than we do, Lindahl said Friday while explaining the presentation that will be offered at no cost to the city. According to Lindahl, a model ordinance offered by the consulting group is already used by Saunders and Sarpy counties, as well as some Nebraska communities. Next months meeting is a response to the outcry from residents living near Glur Park, where an 80-foot cell tower will be installed by Verizon Wireless. Those residents, who voiced their opposition to the cell tower during a public forum and city council meeting held after the project was approved in August, were also upset that they werent better informed about the plan ahead of time. Although the project was discussed at public park board and city council meetings, residents werent told individually and nothing was posted in Glur Park, which is located just west of 26th Avenue between 28th and 30th streets. Lindahl said requiring a public hearing for all cell towers planned in Columbus, regardless of where theyre located, is among the changes being considered. Another goal, he said, is ensuring the local ordinance covers all of the new technology in the wireless communications industry. We want to be up-to-date, Lindahl said. The current ordinance regulating cell towers, adopted in May 2003, requires the builder to obtain a special use permit if the structure is going within a residential neighborhood such as the area around Glur Park. That process includes a public hearing. However, that requirement is waived for cell towers in certain industrial or commercial areas and on city-owned property, such as public parks. According to its website, The Center for Municipal Solutions works with local governments to ensure theyre the proactive and controlling party in communications tower agreements without limiting the advancement of technology. All of this is accomplished without sacrificing the ability to protect the interests and safety of both the community and the general public, the organization states. Verizon is adding the cell tower in Glur Park to improve coverage and data capacity for its 4G LTE network, according to spokeswoman Meagan Dorsch. Verizon builds sites based on where we see customer demand, and the demand for wireless voice and data service is growing rapidly between 25 percent and 50 percent each year. We are working to increase our network capacity in order to stay ahead of this demand, Dorsch said in an email. The area around Glur Park was identified as an optimum location to address this need, according to Dorsch. The company hopes to have the new cell tower online by next summer. When asked about the ongoing opposition to the cell tower, Dorsch said Verizon strives to be a good neighbor while developing a project that meets local needs and blends in with the aesthetics of the surrounding area. The tower planned for Glur Park will resemble an evergreen tree. We take all community and public meetings seriously and within these forums, welcome the opportunity to answer any questions from concerned citizens. Verizon took all the required steps to notify the public as part of our regulatory approvals, and went beyond these requirements by setting up a temporary hotline for residents to call with questions after the cell site was approved, Dorsch said. We appreciated hearing from several community residents and the opportunity to provide additional information. At the request of neighborhood residents, city officials asked Verizon whether the cell tower could be moved to the center of Glur Park, farther away from houses, busy streets and a nearby day care and school, but that request was denied. What Verizon proposes to a zoning authority for a cell site is not always what is ultimately approved. This is a collaborative process and Verizon was diligent in meeting all requirements and remaining transparent in all phases of the process. This location is where Verizon received approval to build, Dorsch said of the site in the northeast corner of the park, across the street from Immanuel Lutheran School and day care and residential housing. Dorsch said Verizon complies with all standards and operates well within the safety guidelines set by the FCC (Federal Communications Commission). In addition to erecting the cell tower, Verizon will pay for construction of an accompanying building that houses public restrooms and service equipment for the cell site. Work on that structure and the relocation of a sanitary sewer lift station is already underway. Verizon will cover the buildings construction costs, estimated at $240,000, then receive a $40,000 one-time payment from the city and $6,000 annual credit on its lease payment over 15 years. The companys yearly lease payment starts at $13,200 before the city credit, with that amount increasing by 2 percent annually for up to 25 years. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. With just two weeks left of 2016, the library is looking ahead and planning programs for all ages. Our long-standing book discussion group leads the way with a suggested reading list for the community for 2017. The Columbus Public Library (CPL) Book Discussion Group meets 11 times each year at the library, usually on the last Thursday of the month. The library offers multiple copies of each book club selection for checkout. This group is free, relaxed and fun. Our first selection for the year is Pioneer Girl: A True Story of Growing Up on the Prairie by Andrea Warren. This is a true story of a young girl from a homesteading family in Nebraska. Warrens telling of Grace McCance Snyders life was a Golden Sower Nominee and garnered a starred review from School Library Journal. A reviewer at Kirkus said: The voice of Grace echoes the spirit of the pioneer families who settled the Midwest: Most pioneer children did not know how hard their lives were. They just did what had to be done. Pick up a copy of Pioneer Girl and join us on Jan. 26 at 7 p.m. to discuss this acclaimed book set right here in Nebraska. On Feb. 23, the group will discuss, Before I Go to Sleep by S.J. Watson. This best-selling novel is about a woman who wakes up each morning having forgotten everything. She spends her day putting together the pieces of her life, trying to figure out who she is. Readers of this thriller describe this novel as mesmerizing, chilling and unsettling. This is a recommended title for readers who liked The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins and Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. Join us on March 30 to talk about Lafayette in the Somewhat United States by Sarah Vowell. Here the author follows General Lafayettes involvement in the American Revolutionary War. Vowells coverage of this subject earned a lot of praise and positive reviews, including Library Journals verdict: Vowell's lively, droll style will attract readers to this cleverly crafted, well-researched book. It is especially recommended to those who are convinced that history is dry. In April, well continue our exploration of history with Bridge of Spies: A True Story of the Cold War by Giles Whittell. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks is our return to fiction reading in May, and we take a look at the 1893 Chicago Worlds Fair in Erik Larsons Devil in the White City in June. Other titles the book club will discuss this year include the One Book, One Nebraska 2017 title, Black Elk Speaks by John G. Neihardt. Later we will read The Lake House by Kate Morton, All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman and Loving Frank: A Novel by Nancy Horan. Book club books are made available each month at the front desk. A complete list can be found at http://columbusne.us/index.aspx?nid=154. If you have questions about the book club, please call me at 402-562-4201 or email me at rmcphil@columbusne.us. Roam Sigaev/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) -- President-elect Donald Trump will appoint right-wing hardliner David Friedman as the next US ambassador to Israel. Friedman, 57, advised Trump throughout his campaign, and represented the President-elect in connection with his Atlantic City casino investments. He is on record as being opposed to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and supports the building of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. Friedman has also spoken in the past about his desire to move the American embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said according to BBC any moves to relocate the embassy or support settlements in the West Bank would lead to "chaos, lawlessness and extremism" in the area. He expressed his hope that Donald Trump would not ultimately allow those things to occur. "The United States at the end of the day is a country of institutions, and they are guided by their national interests," Erekat said. Reactions to Friedman's nomination from the American Jewish community were mixed. J Street, a liberal pro-Israel group, said according to BBC approving Friedman's ambassadorship "should be beyond the pale for senators considering who should represent the United States in Israel." Friedman has clashed with liberal Jews in the past, saying those who support a two-state solution are worse than Jews who collaborated with the Nazis. The right-wing Zionist Organization for America said Friedman "had the potential to be the greatest US ambassador to Israel ever." Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. LINCOLN Billys Restaurant served up a melange of dishes Wednesday night -- Thai chicken skewers, bruschetta, duck blackberry glaze on top of risotto, Moroccan pork, sauteed jumbo shrimp -- all made with high-oleic soybean oil. Served in the shadow of Nebraskas Capitol, the dinner was both a promotion and a demonstration for the United Soybean Board, which is hoping to wrestle away parts of the cooking oil market from other commodities like corn and canola. Nader Farahbod, chef and owner of Billys Restaurant, said working with the oil took a little planning, but is worth the effort. It gives a really nice pure natural flavor. Peanut oil has a strong flavor, olive oil has a strong flavor, but this just allows the other ingredients to show their profile and be more present, Farahbod said. And it has a higher burning point. When I sear something, I can work a little bit longer. I dont have to worry about it smoking and burning." Soybean producers lost a major chunk of the oil market as the food industry sought to distance itself from partially hydrogenated oils -- often made by adding hydrogen to soybean oil -- which contain unhealthy levels of trans fats. With consumers demanding more healthy alternatives, food production gravitated toward high-oleic oils, like those made from sunflower, canola seeds and corn. Compared to oil from regular soybeans, high-oleic soybean oil lasts longer, can endure repeated heating without breaking down and has no trans fats. It has oleic acid content similar to olive oil, one of the most concentrated sources of natural monounsaturated fat. High-oleic soybeans were introduced commercially to Nebraska in 2016 with Hasting's AGP Processing contracting for 40,000 acres to be grown. Its the only processor in the state. AGP merchandiser Alex Hines said the company just began crushing its first batch of high-oleic soybeans but has not had a chance to evaluate the oil yet. The company is in the process of determining how many acres of the beans it plans to contract for in 2017. Columbus farmer Eugene Goering, a Nebraska Soybean Board member, grew all Pioneer Plenish beans this year. He said one field yielded 86 bushels per acres, a figure that would make any farmer happy. While high-oleic soybean oil has been around for years, you cant currently buy it in a grocery store. Its only available in the type of large quantities that would interest a restaurant. Because it lasts a long time in deep fryers and in packaged foods without going bad, high-oleic oil has become associated with junk food. But its good for more than just french fries and donuts, said Mark Winkle, a United Soybean Board senior director. He said it will work great for par frying, baking, popcorn topping, salad dressing and even as an industrial lubricant. The one thing high-oleic soybean oil lacks is flavor. But thats a good thing for foods and dishes that dont want to taste like soy, said Scottsdale, Arizona-based Frank Flider, a consultant with the company Qualisoy who has been working on developing and promoting uses for the oil. It doesnt add flavor to foods, Flider said. And because of its high stability the typical soy flavor that might develop over time would take much, much longer to develop with high-oleic soybean oil. But if you do want to use it in a fryer, Flider said, it cleans up easier than other oils. If you ever look at an industrial or commercial fryer, you see a lot of residue growing on the sides of the fryers. Because of the stability of the high-oleic oil you dont get those polymers forming and it makes cleanup easier, so turnover is quicker and downtime is shorter, he said. There are two major competing high-oleic soybeans, Monsantos Roundup-ready Vistive Gold and DuPont Pioneers Plenish. Thanks to some genetic modification known as gene silencing and selective breeding, both varieties have greater levels of oleic acids and lower amounts of linoleic acid than typical soy. The increased oleic levels (on soybeans) combined with reduction in linoleic levels has really elevated U.S. soy functionality to where we can regain and reclaim some of the lost market potential, said Winkle of United Soybean. Both brands are sold as a premium seed, with a price to match, and produce the same high yields as other modern varieties. The high-oleic soybeans usually sell at 40 to 50 cents more per bushel than other varieties, Winkle said. U.S. farmers grew 490,000 acres of high-oleic soybeans this year and are expected to double that number in 2017, Winkle said. The United Soybean Board projects numbers will reach 18 million acres by 2024, which will make 9 billion pounds of soybean oil. The Capitol Christmas tree has officially been lit, which means the holiday season is here. This time of year brings family and friends together around great food and long-held traditions. Its a time for reflection and meditation. And its also a time for giving back to one another. At its foundation, this season is a celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. The story of the Nativity and many other traditions have inspired generations of Nebraskans, and have helped us renew our commitment to the values that make Nebraska the best place in the world to live, work and raise a family. Nebraskans have a long tradition of deep commitment and engagement in their churches, schools and other voluntary organizations. From soup kitchens to parent-teacher associations to retirement facilities, Nebraskans invested 58.23 million volunteer hours in 2015. This helped our state improve our standing to sixth best among all states for volunteerism. According to the Corporation for National and Community Service, these volunteer hours have a value of $1.3 billion. In addition to giving of our time, 56.2 percent of Nebraskans donated at least $25 to charity in the last year. Some of the most inspiring stories of service and giving come from the men and women who put their lives on the line to protect our liberties and freedom. This week, I spoke at the Nebraska National Guards 162nd birthday celebration at the State Capitol in Lincoln. At the event, I thanked our National Guard members for their service to the state, and let them know how much Nebraskans appreciate their sacrifices and those of their families. Thousands of Nebraska men and women have dedicated themselves over the years to serving our state and country in the National Guard. During this holiday season, I encourage you to take time to thank the men and women who serve our country in the military as well as those who serve our state and communities in law enforcement. Their service is vital to protecting our way of life. While many of us will never serve in the military or law enforcement, we can give back to our communities in ways that protect public safety. Earlier this year, the American Red Cross and I launched a disaster and emergency preparedness initiative that will touch every Nebraska community in the coming years. Over the next four years, the Red Cross will work with communities across Nebraska to build a foundation of preparedness. This includes recruiting volunteers, developing shelter agreements, and creating an American Red Cross Engagement Plan for each community in the state. To find out how you can help, please visit the American Red Cross in Nebraska online at http://www.redcross.org/local/nebraska/ for more information. No matter how you decide to give back to your community, it makes a big difference. During this holiday season, I invite you to join me and my family as we renew our commitment to serve and give back. If youre looking for fresh ideas, consider visiting www.serve.gov. Even something as simple as sharing a meal with a neighbor, or donating to your local food pantry helps renew the bonds of fellowship that make our state the Good Life. Additionally, I encourage you to save the date for the next ServeNebraska Week of Service, which will run April 23-29, 2017. It is another opportunity for Nebraskans to come together and give back. As the year comes to a close, I would be remiss if I didnt mention that Nebraska has a big birthday coming up. In 2017, we will be celebrating 150 years of statehood. My wife, First Lady Susanne Shore, has been working with a collaborative team of Nebraskans on developing plans for the coming celebration. This upcoming year will be a great time to highlight why Nebraska truly is the Good Life full of Great Opportunities. More on that in the near future! Until then, you are always welcome to share your thoughts and concerns with my office by emailing pete.ricketts@nebraska.gov or by calling 402-471-2244. A criminal justice specialist from the Pinellas County Sheriffs Office was arrested for DUI early Saturday morning. Criminal justice specialist was arrested for DUI Janet Schreiner, 47, was one of 25 people arrested overnight The increased force was the result of multi-agent 'wolf pack' The arrest of Janet Schreiner, 47, occurred on the same night as a county-wide 'DUI Wolf Pack' effort that involved 10 law enforcement agencies. At about 1:50 a.m., deputies say they saw a 2007 Toyota truck traveling westbound on Bay Pines Boulevard taking up two lanes. Schreiner was behind the wheel. She reportedly made a northbound turn onto Seminole Boulevard, when deputies decided to intervene. When deputies began talking with Schreiner, she identified herself as an off-duty sheriff's office employee. Deputies say Schreiner showed obvious signs of impairment and a breath sample indicated she had a BAC of .229/.229. After being arrested, Schreiner was transported to the Pinellas County Jail. She was one of 25 drivers arrested overnight Dec. 16 and in the early morning hours of Dec. 17. Schreiner was hired by the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office on, January 4, 2013. She worked as a non-certified Criminal Justice Specialist in the Department of Detention and Corrections. Her employment was terminated following the arrest. In a press release the Sheriff's Office said: The operation was part of the Sheriff's Office on-going commitment to reduce deaths, injuries, and property damage associated with traffic crashes related to impaired driving. The goal of a Wolf Pack is to educate drivers and create public awareness about the dangers of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and any chemical or controlled substances. This operation was dedicated to, 38-year-old John Sorensen, who died on January 30, 2016, after he was struck in Dunedin by a wrong way driver, while driving his motorcycle. The wrong way driver was impaired at the time of the crash. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ... Yes, that Mitch McConnell ... is backing a bipartisan investigation into allegations that the Russian government tampered with American elections and maybe, just maybe, helped Donald Trump win the presidency. So can we all agree that this is a thing now? Can we all agree that hacking by a foreign power hostile to American interests isn't politics or sour grapes from Democrats, no matter what the President-elect claims in a series of fact-free tweets? That it's actually a grave matter of national security? Because when you have Sens. John McCain, Lindsey Graham, and now McConnell, among other prominent Republicans, saying something smells bad about apparent Russian meddling in American electoral politics, that's more than mere partisan posturing. Campaign politics is one thing. Malevolent tampering by a serious geopolitical rival is quite another. And it should transcend mere electoral interests -- since it affects us all. But the push, as Vox.com notes, was given some added oomph by the presence of Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, signaling that the "appetite for Republican pushback extended beyond," Trump's critics. In a worrying sign, however, Trump, who claims he's so smart that he can skip regular intelligence briefings, has dismissed the CIA findings, setting up a dangerous dynamic between the incoming White House and the nation's intelligence community. To be sure, there's a lot at stake for Trump if the hacking allegations are proven to be true. The New York billionaire clearly benefited from the Wikileaks document dump that so embarrassed Hillary Clinton during the fall campaign. Thus, any public acknowledgment of a Russian hacking to his advantage would risk delegitimizing Trump's claim to power at a time when his enemies are looking for any excuse to pry him loose. "I think the Democrats are putting it out because they suffered one of the greatest defeats in the history of politics in this country," Trump said during a Sunday interview with Fox News, conveniently ignoring Clinton's 2.6 million popular vote advantage. And, inevitably, the next Leader of the Free World then took to Twitter on Monday to complain about it. "Can you imagine if the election results were the opposite and WE tried to play the Russia/CIA card. It would be called conspiracy theory!" he raged. And: "Unless you catch "hackers" in the act, it is very hard to determine who was doing the hacking. Why wasn't this brought up before election?" he vented. Except that it was, during the Oct. 19 debate with Clinton -- by one Donald J. Trump: "She has no idea whether it's Russia, China, or anybody else," Trump said. "Our country has no idea," Trump said at the time, even as evidence emerged of Russian ties to the hacking attack on the Democratic National Committee. Just days earlier, in a joint statement, the Department of Homeland Security and Director of National Intelligence concluded that they believed, "based on the scope and sensitivity of these efforts, that only Russia's senior-most officials could have authorized these activities." The latest blow up also raises anew questions about Trump's coziness with Russian strongman Vladimir Putin, as well as the longstanding ties between Russia and Trump's pick for secretary of state, ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson. On Monday, real signs emerged that Tillerson's nomination could be in for a bumpy ride in the Senate, where there are real concerns that he'd put his former company's financial interests above the national interest. "Being a 'Friend of Vladimir' is not an attribute I am hoping for from a Secretary of State," Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said. The early pushback from Republicans is an encouraging sign that they won't take Trump's bloviating lying down. But it's not without some element of risk. "This is a difficult position to be in: Partisans don't like to investigate their own party's president," Michele Swers, a congressional expert at Georgetown University, told Vox.com on Monday. "But now that you're getting pushback from Republicans beyond McCain and Graham, it looks like Trump has something to worry about." Leave it to a Russian, ironically enough, to sum up the state of affairs between Trump and his fellow Republicans. "All happy families are alike," Leo Tolstoy famously observed. "Each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." And Republicans can't be thrilled with the way things are going so far. 1. U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war. 2. U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war. 3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament of the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength. 4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war. 5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites. 6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination. 7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N. 8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev's promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N. 9. Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress. 10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N. 11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.) 12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party. 13. Do away with all loyalty oaths. 14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office. 15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States. 16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights. 17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the party line in textbooks. 18. Gain control of all student newspapers. 19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack. 20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policymaking positions. 21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures. 22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to "eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms." 23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. "Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art." 24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them "censorship" and a violation of free speech and free press. 25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV. 26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as "normal, natural, healthy." 27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with "social" religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity which does not need a "religious crutch." 28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state." 29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis. 30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the "common man." 31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the "big picture." Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over. 32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture--education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc. 33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus. 34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities. 35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI. 36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions. 37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business. 38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand. 39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals. 40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce. 41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents. 42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use united force to solve economic, political or social problems. 43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government. 44. Internationalize the Panama Canal. 45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction over nations and individuals alike. UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Iowa, a managed care organization focusing on Medicaid beneficiaries, has developed a health app to support pregnant women, according to Iowa Public Radio. The app, called Baby Blocks, provides pregnant women with a timeline of information to help mothers monitor their own health and stay up-to-date with appointments through a child's third birthday. KellyAnn Light-McGroary, chief medical officer for UnitedHealthcare, told Iowa Public Radio that the app displays a series of "building blocks," which represent milestones in the gestational period. The app offers gift cards, diaper bags and other rewards to women who successfully track their pregnancy milestones, to encourage women to meet all necessary physician appointments. Ryan Jensen will leave his post as CEO of The Memorial Hospital of Salem (N.J.) County in January to become the CEO at Las Vegas-based Desert Springs Hospital, NJ.com reports. Here are four things to know. 1. Mr. Jensen has acted as CEO at Memorial Hospital since May 2014. The hospital is in the process of being sold from its parent company Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems to Ontario, Calif.-based Prime Healthcare Foundation. 2. He previously served as Desert Springs' COO for two years before joining Memorial Hospital. 3. Mr. Jensen announced his departure Dec. 14 to Memorial Hospital's board of trustees. A search for his replacement will begin immediately, according to the report. 4. He graduated from Provo, Utah-based Brigham Young University. Throughout his career, he has worked at hospitals in California, Texas, Washington, D.C., and Ohio, according to the report. To continue following the latest news and information for Bedfordshire and surrounding areas, simply enter your full postcode below Michael Sheen said it 'will be a big change for how people relate to me' Michael Sheen is stepping back from his acting career to fight against the rise of the "hard populist right" as an activist. He revealed the move in an interview in The Times magazine and said the "demagogic, fascistic" change in politics, including the election of Donald Trump, has prompted his desire to counter it. The 47-year-old Welshman said that through grassroots organising in his home town of Port Talbot, he will fight the rise of the "hard populist right" which has emerged in places such as the UK, the US, France and Austria. "It means that I would work less as an actor, and possibly stop," he said. "Once I'm in, I'm fully in, and this is big. It will be a big change for how people relate to me." Sheen has already been outspoken on a number of issues including protecting the NHS and criticising potential changes to freedom of information (FOI) legislation. He has also called for the Government to support steel workers and visited a refugee camp to speak out about the plight of Syrian children affected by war. The British Library's recent announcement that it has acquired the PG Wodehouse archive is a belated recognition of one of the most beloved - and influential - of all comic writers in the English language. Wodehouse's work will form part of the library's substantial 20th-century holdings, alongside other 'greats' of British literature, such as Virginia Woolf, Evelyn Waugh, Ted Hughes, Angela Carter and JG Ballard. Wodehouse (1881-1975), the creator of the Jeeves and Wooster stories, has a loyal and ever-expanding fan base - but his popularity has always been tainted by his infamous 'Berlin Broadcasts' made during the Second World War. For many critics and fervent patriots, these broadcasts suggested that Wodehouse had collaborated with the Nazis. When the war broke out in September 1939, Wodehouse and his wife Ethel lived in Le Touquet, within convenient distance of both Cherbourg, for the cross-channel ferries, and Paris. Rather than immediately returning to England, the Wodehouses decided to stay put - and this decision was to prove fateful. When the Blitzkrieg started and the Nazis invaded France, Wodehouse's escape route was cut off. On July 21, 1940, a new decree announced that all English males in occupied France under the age of 60 were to be immediately interned. Wodehouse was first sent to a prison close to Lille and from there to internment camps in Liege and Huy (Belgium). Finally he was sent to Tost in Upper Silesia where he remained until June 1941. While at Tost, Wodehouse tried to continue with his usual work routine, aided by the liberal-minded camp commandant, Lagerfuhrer Buchelt, who ensured that Wodehouse had a quiet place to write. Alerted by the petitions of several of his American friends to secure his release, the Berlin-based American journalist, Angus Thuermer, managed to secure a chaperoned interview with Wodehouse in the presence of Buchelt. According to Wodehouse's biographer, Robert McCrum, he acted as he always did with the press: "Courteously, openly, and without much thought for the consequences, imagining that any publicity would simply reassure his numerous readers that he was, despite the war, alive and well and in good spirits." The interview with Thuermer, published in The New York Times in late December 1940 also paved the way for an article by Wodehouse for the Sunday Evening Post, which ran under the headline: "My War with Germany", in which he described his life in the internment camp with his accustomed - but in this case, tragically ill-judged - lightheartedness and humour. "There is a good deal to be said for internment. It keeps you out of the saloon and helps you to keep up with your reading. The chief trouble is that it means you are away from home for a long time. When I join my wife I had better take along a letter of introduction to be on the safe side." As a direct response to the interview with Thuermer, Wodehouse's American friends started campaigning even harder for his release and it was this political agitation that attracted the notice of leading Nazis in Berlin who only then became aware of the propaganda potential of their prisoner. The political manoeuvres that followed in Berlin, especially between the Ministry of Propaganda, led by Josef Goebbels, and the Foreign Office, under Joachim von Ribbentrop, are too complex to be set out in detail here, but they resulted in five light-hearted broadcasts about his internment in Germany. What Wodehouse underestimated, though, was the immense propaganda value of war-time radio; for him, writing articles and making humorous broadcasts about his life as an internee simply meant doing what he had always done: writing and entertaining. In the words of George Orwell, one of the few outspoken defenders of Wodehouse after the war: "His main idea ... was to keep in touch with his public and - the comedian's ruling passion - to get a laugh." His broadcasts were entirely free of any political commentary or partisanship. Nevertheless, the Nazis used his broadcasts for their own political means, primarily in a brazen attempt to show themselves as treating foreign prisoners humanely - and as a gesture to stop the US from joining the war. In Britain, they earned Wodehouse the label of being a traitor to the war effort and - worst of all - of being a Nazi sympathiser, a label that stuck to him for the rest of his life. What had led to Wodehouse's ill-judged participation in interviews and broadcasts was his own political naivety, the fact that he had been isolated from friends and advisors for months preceding the broadcasts and his craving for a return to his "normal" quiet routine as a writer. These are not excuses for a decision that could, at best, be labelled as rash, at worst as plain stupid. Yet it is symptomatic of a certain generation and class of Britons who had no interest in politics and gladly detached themselves from the real world. For Wodehouse, the idea of a political dictator was something to be laughed at, to be ridiculed. Think of his depiction of the fascist leader, Sir Roderick Spode, in his 1938 novel, The Code of the Woosters. Spode is a fatuous blowhard, somebody who agitates and who potentially manages to unite some people under his banner for a short time - but who is, ultimately, shown up as inept and bumbling and who quickly disappears from public life. In the mid 1950s, Wodehouse's fellow writer Nancy Mitford, a stout socialist for most of her life, condemned her own politically naive attitude towards fascism in the inter-war years with the words: "We were young and high-spirited then and didn't know about Buchenwald." In both Mitford's and Wodehouse's cases, it was probably more a question of "choosing" to ignore what went on in the world - and Wodehouse certainly paid the price for his poor judgement. Although an official report into his alleged collaboration with the Nazis, submitted in liberated Paris on September 28, 1944, exonerated Wodehouse, it also condemned him as a political naive - "susceptible to any form of flattery". Feeling a political and social outcast in post-war Britain, Wodehouse settled in the US. Towards the end of his life, there were some official gestures towards forgiveness, especially the 1973 knighthood for services to literature, which Wodehouse himself considered as the Establishment's "way of saying, that's that". He died on Valentine's Day 1975. The British Library's acquisition of Wodehouse's archive, including his war-time papers, is an important step towards the recognition of PG Wodehouse as a great of 20th-century British literature - not just as a comic writer but as an accomplished artist who enriched English culture through a host of immortal characters. From Bertie Wooster and his man Jeeves, steeped in Belgravia high life, to Lord Emsworth and his pig the Empress of Blandings, to Wodehouse's effortless cast of wisecracking roues, formidable maiden aunts, lovelorn debutantes and clueless suitors, he lovingly celebrated and satirised a uniquely English way of life which had already disappeared forever. In the words of Kathryn Johnson, the curator of the British Library: "People are coming to acknowledge that he was a truly great English stylist." Having his private papers, especially his wartime ones, in the public domain will mean that the circumstances of the Berlin broadcasts can be examined and assessed more critically and more openly. But it is also an acknowledgement that, controversy aside, Wodehouse is one of English literature's immortals. For full functionality of this site it is necessary to enable JavaScript. Here are the instructions how to enable JavaScript in your web browser He started out back in 1992 and, so far, he has raised a staggering 1.4m for charity. And now Newry's Black Santa is making preparations for his 25th annual sit out in his usual spot. Indeed, this year, John Dalzell MBE, who turns 75 on Wednesday, will be spending his birthday the same way he has done for the past two and a half decades - raising money for the Southern Area Hospice. His annual sit out - which he admits could potentially be his last - gets under way today in Marcus Square on Newry's oldest shopping street at 8am. Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph, John urged everyone to think of the hospice and those it has cared for since opening 26 years ago by giving whatever they can. "1.4m is a lot of money, but I haven't raised that," he said. "It's the people of Newry and Mourne and the whole area who have been so generous and they deserve a lot of praise for that." The Co Down father-of-three will be in his familiar trailer at Hill Street until 6pm on Christmas Eve, while collections will also take place at Fiveways Shopping Complex, The Quays Shopping Centre and B&Q. While many people his age would be winding down, school bus driver John has continued to ferry children to and from St Paul's in Bessbrook for the last 28 years. But despite looking forward to this year's event, the pensioner, who has seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, said it may be time for him to quit. "I've been doing this since I was 50, and I have to confess that I'm struggling with pains and aches," he said. "It has been an absolute delight and I'm glad I've had the health and strength to be able to do it. "Apart from the hospice, I've also raised a lot for cancer research and other projects over the years. I've always been involved in charity work." The Newry native said he wouldn't have been able to do it without the backing of wife Lily (74), a former shop assistant, and his three children - Sharon McMinn (51), Ronnie (49) and Heather Henning (38). Hospice Regional Marketing Officer James McCaffrey said that John and his team are "an incredible example of the spirit of giving at Christmas". "The amount of time and effort they put into this collection for the hospice each year is truly amazing and it is an honour to work alongside them," he said. "In 1991, when Newry hospice was in its infancy, John approached Sister Teresa - the then Matron of the Hospice - with an idea of sitting out to raise funds. "The following year, this idea became a reality and John began his sit out and - to date - John has raised a staggering 1,383,000 for us. "On behalf of all of the patients and their families and friends, I would like to sincerely thank John and his team, and everyone who continues to support them." Wexford-based Sr Teresa said: "Who knew back then the sit-out would turn out to become the institution that it now is and that so much money would be raised by John and his team to continue supporting the work of the hospice? "I pray that they continue with their good work for many years to come." The Ulster Unionist Party has slammed the prosecution of two former paratroopers for the 1972 killing of an Official IRA chief, claiming it showed the judicial system was "in favour of the terrorists". Yesterday the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) announced that two men identified as Soldier A (65) and Soldier C (67) would be prosecuted for the shooting of Joe McCann. McCann was one of the Official IRA's most prominent activists before being shot in disputed circumstances by the Army at Joy Street in the Markets area of Belfast. In February that year he was part of an assassination attempt on Stormont UUP MP John Taylor, and was considered by the security forces as a dangerous terrorist. An Historical Enquiries Team report from three years ago found his killing was not justified. The ex-soldiers involved were later informed the matter had been passed to the PPS for consideration. The UUP justice spokesman Doug Beattie, a former soldier, argued the prosecutions would add to a perception that parts of the judicial system "have become unfairly weighted against the forces of the State, and in favour of the terrorists". The solicitor for McCann's widow Aine welcomed the decision, saying: "This is some measure of justice after all these years." Sinn Fein MLA Gerry Kelly added that "no one should be above the law", and that McCann's family "have been campaigning for more than 40 years and they are entitled to justice". Mr Beattie said that while "anyone who broke the law should face the law", he added there should be limited sympathy for McCann. "There is absolutely no account taken of context or the conditions under which the security forces were operating," he said. "Joe McCann was a dangerous and ruthless terrorist. He had been involved in several killings, was involved in the attempted murder of the then Stormont MP John Taylor, and intelligence reports confirmed he would regularly carry a weapon." He added: "As a career terrorist, he was the local IRA commander and was top of the RUC most wanted list, with expectation that Joe McCann would not surrender without a fight. Therefore, it is absolutely understandable that soldiers may well have felt that their lives and the lives of their colleagues were in danger and opened fire within the rules of engagement, also known as the 'yellow card'." Mr Beattie added that, in 1972, 496 people were killed in Northern Ireland, with 280 attributed to republicans and 86 as a result of security force action. Mr Kelly said: "This is now a live case and those charged, like everyone, are entitled to due process. "But it does highlight the fact that no one is or can be above the law, regardless of how long ago the incident took place." Two men from Co Armagh and one from Holland have been arrested as part of an international investigation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and Dutch Customs into suspected money laundering and tobacco smuggling frauds. Two men from Co Armagh and one from Holland have been arrested as part of an international investigation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and Dutch Customs into suspected money laundering and tobacco smuggling frauds. Dutch Customs officials searched a residential premises and two business addresses in Etten Leur and Rotterdam, while HMRC and the PSNI searched properties in Armagh and Tyrone. Thirty kilos of hand rolling tobacco, 50,000 cigarettes, all believed to be illicit, computers and more than 317,000 (265,000)in cash were seized during the search operations here and in the Netherlands. Dutch investigators arrested the three men. They were interviewed and remain in custody. Investigations into the frauds are ongoing. Arlene Foster at a commemorative event in Mourneview Park in Lurgan last night Arlene Foster at the new DUP office in Sandy Row in Belfast; with MLA Emma Little Pengelly (top right), and (right) with party colleagues First Minister Arlene Foster says she has yet to watch the full TV interview with DUP colleague Jonathan Bell about the botched Renewable Heat Incentive scheme. Mrs Foster was surrounded by a wall of strength by party heavyweights yesterday as she opened the new office for DUP MLA Christopher Stalford in Sandy Row, south Belfast. Appearing in a calm and relaxed mood, the First Minister met supporters and friends in the new office, and insisted she had yet to watch the BBC NI programme. Keeping her company during the office opening was DUP deputy leader Nigel Dodds, as well as senior party colleagues including Lord Morrow, Edwin Poots, Paul Givan and Trevor Clarke. All of them were quick to defend Foster in light of the allegations made by former minister Mr Bell regarding the 'cash for ash' fiasco. As she described it herself, it had been a "tough old week" for the First Minister after Mr Bell accused her of being abusive and of ordering a delay in the closure of the flawed green energy scheme. They are claims she strenuously denies. The First Minister was on her way home to Fermanagh when Mr Bell's TV interview with Stephen Nolan was aired on Thursday night, and therefore was unable to watch it. "I left Stormont Castle late on Thursday night and it takes me one-and-a-half hours to get home to Fermanagh," she said. "I didn't see the interview with Jonathan Bell on TV, although I have read the transcripts. "I may watch the interview this weekend - but I'll only watch the first half, as I don't like to see myself on TV." The First Minister added that she had not made contact with Mr Bell since the interview was aired, nor he with her. "No, I have not called him or spoke to him since the interview," she confirmed. "And he has not called me either." Mr Bell could face disciplinary action by the DUP, but there is no set timeframe in which this may happen. According to DUP sources, the party will meet next week to discuss the allegations made by Mr Bell and decisions will be taken then as to what action should be taken. Meanwhile, the SDLP says it has secured the 30 votes required to table a motion requesting the First Minister to stand aside pending a full investigation. Politicians from the Ulster Unionist Party, Alliance Party, Green Party, People Before Profit and Traditional Unionist Voice have signed the motion, which will be debated in the Assembly on Monday. Several attempts to make contact with Mr Bell yesterday proved fruitless. Widow Ann and daughter Nuala McCann had pressed for a new inquest Two former soldiers are to be prosecuted for allegedly murdering an Official IRA commander in Northern Ireland. Joe McCann, 24, was shot dead in disputed circumstances in Belfast on April 15 1972. Soldier A, now 67, and Soldier C, 65, are surviving members of the Parachute Regiment patrol which fired on Mr McCann, prosecutors said. The UK Government vowed to support any military personnel affected by the case. The accused are likely to appear in court next year. A Public Prosecution Service (PPS) spokesman said: "Following a careful consideration of all the available evidence it has been decided to prosecute two men for the offence of murder." He added: "The decision was reached following an objective and impartial application of the test for prosecution that was conducted in accordance with the code for prosecutors and with the benefit of advice from senior counsel." Mr McCann had been one of the Official IRA's most prominent activists in the early days of the Troubles. He believed in creating a socialist Ireland and supported an "Army of the People" involved in social struggle, his family have said. The veteran of Catholic civil rights protests was shot by an Army patrol in Joy Street in the Markets area of Belfast city centre. A third member of the unit who fired at Mr McCann died in the intervening years, the PPS said. The original Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) investigation was conducted in 1972 and a decision based on the evidence available then was taken not to prosecute any individual. The Historical Enquiries Team (HET) was established to probe unresolved killings in Northern Ireland and carried out an investigation into Mr McCann's death in 2012. The prosecution was not due to any police investigation or re-investigation, Police Service of Northern Ireland assistant chief constable Mark Hamilton said. The case was referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in Northern Ireland Barra McGrory QC by Northern Ireland's attorney general John Larkin QC in March 2014 and has been under review by senior prosecutors since then. Mr Larkin had received representations from the dead man's family for a new inquest. A UK Government statement said: "Any member of the military affected by this legal case will rightly be supported throughout and will receive free MoD legal representation." The McCann case is thought to be the second military prosecution involving Northern Ireland since the 1990s. Another former soldier, Dennis Hutchings, who is in his 70s and from Cornwall, was charged with attempted murder last year in connection with the shooting of John-Pat Cunningham, 27, who had learning difficulties, in Co Tyrone in 1974. In 1999 Paratrooper Lee Clegg was cleared of the murder of a Belfast teenager. Files on the 1972 Bloody Sunday shootings by soldiers in Londonderry are with prosecutors. A Northern Ireland student has been given a top lifesaving honour for helping to rescue a woman from a river in Scotland A Northern Ireland student has been given a top lifesaving honour for helping to rescue a woman from a river in Scotland. Janey Deehan (20) is one of three students who are to receive Royal Humane Society awards for saving the 50-year-old from the River Forth in Stirling. Janey, from east Belfast, will receive one of the society's Testimonials on Parchment. Harry Ball (20), from Stirling, will receive the same award, while Sean Forbes (20), from Fife, will get a certificate of commendation. The rescue happened in the early hours of November 9, 2015. The local woman had fallen into the fast flowing river and is understood to have been in a distressed state. The trio of friends were walking over a bridge when they heard a scream and the sound of someone hitting the water. Despite the dark and lack of street lights, they rushed to the riverbank where Janey and Harry waded in and dragged the woman to safety. Sean, meanwhile, rang emergency services. Dick Wilkinson, secretary of the Royal Humane Society, said if they had not intervened the woman would have drowned. "Put quite simply, they were the right people in the right place at the right time," Mr Wilkinson said. "Speed was of the essence. The river was in full spate because of recent heavy rain. "If the woman had not been spotted immediately she was in the water she would almost certainly have been washed down river and would have drowned. Thanks to the quick thinking and team-work of these three her life was saved. "They richly deserve the awards they are to receive." No date has been fixed for the presenting the awards, which follow a recommendation from Police Scotland. The Royal Humane Society was founded in 1774 to promote techniques of resuscitation. It makes a variety of awards depending on the bravery involved. The society also honours non-healthcare professionals who perform a successful resuscitation. The society has considered more than 86,000 cases and made 200,000-plus awards. The society is a registered charity dependent on voluntary donations. Award-winning make-up entrepreneur Paddy McGurgan has slammed Lord Sugar for suggesting that Apprentice contestant Grainne McCoy's business plan for a makeup training and recruitment agency was too ambitious. Grainne (31), from Newry, was finally fired on last night's episode of the hit television series, having made it through 11 weeks of tough business challenges. The working mother, who has had 15 years of experience in the beauty industry, had hoped that she could become the magnate's business partner and secure a 250,000 investment. But her business plan was torn apart by Lord Sugar (below) and his team of business gurus. Speaking in the boardroom at the end of the show, Lord Sugar confessed that he was "confused" by her business idea. "Grainne, I'm going to be bluntly honest with you: I just can't see this," he said. "It's been nice to be associated with you, but it is with regret that you're fired." However, according to leading Northern Irish makeup artist Paddy McGurgan, who runs his own make-up academy, he is living proof that such a business plan could work. "I was surprised that Lord Sugar didn't sit up and take a bit more notice of the viability behind it when Grainne presented her business model," he told the Belfast Telegraph. "There were many different aspects to what she presented to them, but they came away with the feeling that this was not something that was achievable in any way - especially with one person as the prime source for pushing everything forward. "But myself and others in different aspects have proved that this is a workable business model." Mr McGurgan, who used to teach Grainne, described her performance as "great". "I just wish she had been a little more concise with her delivery of her business model last night," he said. "I feel that maybe she didn't sell it as well as she probably could have." Fashionista Jessica Cunningham and kids' clothes entrepreneur Frances Bishop were also fired in the episode, leaving cakemaker Alana Spencer and novelty designer Courtney Wood to do battle in the final. The final will air tomorrow at 9pm on BBC One. The daughter of a man killed in an IRA blast on a train has claimed her elderly mother would be excluded from a proposed victims' pension scheme while the IRA terrorist whose bomb killed her father would be eligible - because he was injured but survived. Jayne Olorunda was just two when her father Max died after a Provisional IRA incendiary device detonated on a train from Ballymena to Belfast in January 1980. The blast engulfed a carriage killing her father, as well as 17-year-old student Mark Cochrane and one of the bombers, Kevin Delaney (26). There were five people injured, including the other bomber, Patrick Flynn (24). Flynn was tried at Belfast Crown Court for double manslaughter and possession of explosives after his recovery from his burns. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison for each count of manslaughter, as well as seven years for the explosives offences, to be served concurrently. Flynn's daugher Orlaithi has been co-opted as a Sinn Fein MLA for West Belfast to replace the outgoing Jennifer McCann. For Jayne Olorunda, the news convinced her it was time for her to leave Northern Ireland for good. And yesterday she hit out at the proposal for victims' pension, which she felt could be paid out to her father's killer, while excluding her still-grieving mother Gabrielle (66). "Alongside the innocent people who deserve the pension, the perpetrators would be classed in the same category and avail of the pension too," Jayne said. "This is outrageous; I have not heard of anything like this anywhere else in the civilised world. "If I use the train bomb as an example, the ramification would be that the killer would get the pension, but my mother, his victim, would not. "If anyone feels that this is acceptable on any level - believe me, certain people here do - then, for me, they condone the loss of innocent lives." She added: "I think people would be horrified if they knew that bombers, gunmen and members of a terrorist organisation could potentially receive the small reparation that I hope was planned for the innocents." An "overworked" pharmacist who made a tragic error and gave out the wrong pills which killed grandmother of 15 Ethna Walsh was yesterday sentenced to a four-month jail term, suspended for two years. In the wake of the Antrim Crown Court case of 45-year-old Martin White, the family of Mrs Walsh (67) called on community pharmacists to learn "the hard lessons" from her "unnecessary death" and ensure medicines were dispensed properly. In the first case of its kind in Northern Ireland, White, of Belfast Road, Muckamore, who was in the profession for 24 years, admitted filling out the wrong prescription for Mrs Walsh on February 6, 2014. She later died in hospital. In a statement issued on behalf of Joe Walsh, her husband of 46 years, and their seven daughters, the family said that her death "was due to a series of entirely avoidable errors... the medication was selected in error, labelled in error and accuracy checking failed to disclose the mistake". However, the family said they welcomed "the resolution of the criminal proceedings arising from the death and acknowledge the admission of culpability and guilt on behalf of Mr White". The family said that they also hoped "through their misfortune and loss, that some good will come of this tragic event", and that community pharmacists follow new recommendations in preventing dispensing errors, in the sincere hope that "other families will be spared the burden of pain, anguish and loss they have had to shoulder". Earlier the family had listened intently as Judge Gordon Kerr QC acknowledged that the death of Mrs Walsh, a much-loved wife, mother and grandmother, had had a devastating impact on her family. The judge said the dispensing of the wrong drug for her lung condition was due to a combination of factors, including a single momentary lapse in concentration. Judge Kerr said the damage and injury caused by the pharmacist, who had been earning up up to 40,000 but was now on benefits, and never wanted to return to his profession, could not be higher. However, his degree of culpability, as described in an expert's report, was the result of "poor professional performance, but not professional misconduct". The judge said that, according to the evidence, his negligence "was more than minimal, but there is no evidence of intentional negligence". Judge Kerr said that given the cumulative effect of White's guilty plea, his previous good character, loss of reputation and career and permanent financial loss, he did not feel an immediate custodial sentence was necessary. Prosecution barrister Michael Chambers told an earlier hearing that Mrs Walsh had gone with her husband Joe to the Clear Pharamacy on Antrim's Station Road. However, instead of being given the steroid medicine Prednisolone, they were mistakenly given a box of Propranolol. Mr Chambers said that once they arrived home Mrs Walsh took some of the tablets. Within moments she was having difficulty in breathing. Although she was rushed to hospital, Mrs Walsh later died. A tired and fatigued White later claimed that in his "cramped working space... he must have mistakenly picked up the Propranolol instead of the Prednisolone... which were side by side on the shelf and have similar branding". Defence QC John Kearney revealed that since the tragedy White had been too frightened - "frozen in fear" - to return to work, was "racked with guilt and destroyed with remorse", and had been receiving psychiatric help. Special Advisers (Spads) are neither politicians nor civil servants; instead, they inhabit a sort of twilight world between the two. They are bound by the 'Code Of Conduct For Special Advisers,' which states: "The employment of Special Advisers adds a political dimension to the advice available to ministers, and provides ministers with the direct advice of experts in their professional field, while reinforcing the political neutrality of the permanent civil service by distinguishing the source of political advice and support. "Special Advisers are employed to help ministers on matters where the work of the Northern Ireland Administration and ministers' party responsibilities overlap and it would be inappropriate for permanent civil servants to become involved. They are an additional resource for the minister, providing advice from a standpoint that is more politically committed and politically aware than would be available to a minister from the civil service." The work they would be expected to carry out includes reviewing all papers going to the minister, ensuring that party political implications are recognised, advising on departmental issues (especially if they are specialist in some areas), preparing speculative policy papers, contributing to policy planning within the department, liaising with the minister's own party, liaising with outside interest groups, speech writing, representing the views of the minister to the media and taking part in policy reviews. Put bluntly, they can do more or less what their minister wants them to do - albeit within the limitations of the Code Of Conduct. All of which means that they have enormous influence. One former Spad told me: "When I attended and spoke at a meeting with civil servants, I spoke with the authority of the minister. Everyone in the room accepted that fact. I was his eyes and ears. If I was asked to meet people on his behalf then, again, they knew that I came with his authority. "I briefed with his authority. I advised with his authority. I was often the person they would have to make contact with if they wanted to meet the minister in person. And yes, in terms of arranging meetings, or getting specific information to him, they needed to get past me first." Another former adviser said that a key part of his job was ensuring that "MLAs and other elected representatives from his party were kept briefed about what the minister was doing in terms of policy. Some of them were always panicking that 'difficult decisions' - by which they meant anything that could have a negative impact on their constituency - would cost them their seats, so I had to assuage their fears or, at the very least, arm them with the reasons why the decision was necessary and unavoidable." He also confirmed that it was normal practice for Spads from different departments to have what he described as "corridor conversations" on issues which required input from more than one department: "I had very good relationships with Spads from all of the other parties and we trusted each other to report back to our respective bosses accurately and quickly. Most of us would also build up a good relationship with key officials in our department, because it was important that everyone was kept in the loop." In his interview with Stephen Nolan, former minister Jonathan Bell suggested that Spads outside his own department were instrumental in opposing his will on the early closing of the RHI scheme. I asked both former Spads if they would have had the power to do that when they were in their posts. Both said no, one adding, "Had I tried to muscle in on another minister's territory, I'm pretty sure I would have been told where to go. My own minister would certainly have told any other Spad where to go; and if he had found out that I was somehow working behind his back with other Spads I would have been sacked." The other did say, though, that it was, "Not unusual for Spads from ministers in the same party to have 'corridor conversations' on some difficult issues - but those would have been done with the knowledge of our respective ministers." I asked them if Spads working directly for the First Minister and acting on that authority would have the power, as Bell seems to be suggesting, to thwart the will of an individual minister? Surprisingly, perhaps, neither of them ruled out that possibility, yet both said it would be a "provocative action" and would certainly be interpreted as such by any minister. If Bell is right, then it would mean that some Spads - those closest to the leadership - had powers not available to "mere departmental Spads." But since there is no evidence, even in the interview, that Bell took the issue up with Peter Robinson at the time, it's an issue which will only be clarified by questioning the Spads concerned. Generally speaking, Spads are an important part of the government/political process and many of them do good work; a fact that senior departmental officials acknowledge. But the terms and conditions of their employment are set out in their Code Of Conduct, which makes it clear that they are there to assist their ministers rather than work against them - let alone work against other ministers. The First Minister denies Bell's accusations. He stands by them. One thing is clear, though, Spads are not capable of solo runs. Their influence and authority stems from their employer. One other thing is clear, too: by the virtue of the fact that they work for the First Minister it would be natural to assume that the Spads employed there might possess an influence and authority in their own right. Or, as one of the former Spads put it: "When some people get to that level they may be tempted to believe that they are bigger than mere ministers, bigger than MLAs, bigger than the party and bigger than the structures. Bigger than the actual role they occupy." Spads are now a part of the political process across the UK. They perform a role which cannot be undertaken by the civil service, while briefing their minister about broader party political ramifications. They are not expected to be politically neutral. But nor should they be encouraged to believe that they are more important than elected, fully accountable politicians. Politicians prepare for difficult interviews in all kinds of ways. For some, it's an obsessive reading and rereading of their brief, for others it's an intense one-to-one with their closest advisers. Hillary Clinton famously asked a member of her staff to actually act out the part of Donald Trump before her difficult encounters with the now US President-elect. But for Jonathan Bell it was a prayer session - right in the middle of a television studio - that was the precursor to his extraordinary interview with Stephen Nolan. The former DUP minister was filmed hunched over in a chair while two other people, perhaps members of his church, laid their hands on his back and asked God to guide him in what he was about to say. The face of the sound engineer, standing in the background, expressed some of the incredulity that many viewers were feeling. This was a most unusual way for a political interview to begin. It's not that there's anything wrong with a politician choosing to pray before what was bound to be a challenging, demanding encounter with Nolan. This would be the defining interview of Jonathan Bell's political life, and the allegations he was about to make were explosive. The stakes were high, and the potential ramifications - not just for his own career, but for First Minister Arlene Foster's, for the party's special advisers, and indeed for the DUP as a whole - were enormous and unpredictable. But most of us tend to understand personal prayer as something private. Something you might do away from other people, not in the full glare - literally - of television spotlights. What struck me most forcibly was that Mr Bell must have chosen to allow this moment of prayer to be filmed, and subsequently broadcast. That turned prayer from something private into something performative - part of the message he wanted to send to the watching public. He seemed to be claiming that he was the one with God on his side. And God was repeatedly invoked throughout the interview with Nolan. "I came into this studio because my obligations to God to tell the truth are greater than my obligations to anybody else. You have no idea how difficult this is for me," said Mr Bell. He said he would speak the truth "though the heavens fall". "I believe that God doesn't punish people who tell the truth, so let's see how it plays out. My only aim is that the truth is told, I have now told it," he added. For some people, the extra helping of religiosity will have reinforced the impact of Mr Bell's claims, perhaps especially with evangelical Christians, among whom it is common to see fairly colourful acts of public prayer involving the laying on of hands. For others, including those of different faiths and none, Mr Bell's prominent godliness will act as a turn-off, and may be interpreted as an attempt to sanitise and elevate his own actions and motivations, deflecting attention away from the unanswered questions in his narrative. Call me a cynic, but why did Mr Bell hear the voice of the Lord asking him to tell the truth at the very moment when the media demanded answers about the renewable heat scheme? Did he not get a similar call when he allowed - as he claims - his concerns about the disastrous scheme to be overruled when he was in ministerial office? In politics, as in life, timing is everything. Globetrotting gift-giver Father Christmas has denied being out of step with the Parades Commission over Northern Ireland's controversial marching laws. And a local council which booked Santa Claus for a series of festive celebrations has insisted that the bearded benefactor didn't put a foot wrong, or that there was ever a risk that St Nicholas might be nicked for taking part in an illegal parade. The Causeway Coast and Glens council said it stuck to all the clauses in the commission's rulebook after recruiting Santa to switch on Christmas tree lights in a series of towns and villages in their area. The Belfast Telegraph was contacted last week after Father Christmas travelled through Portstewart in a horse-drawn carriage on his way to turn on the yuletide lights in the Crescent. A caller said the council hadn't notified the Parades Commission about what he called 'a procession'. And that was confirmed by the commission, which said: "The commission did not receive any notice of a proposed parade in Portstewart on Saturday, December 10, 2016. "Organisers of any proposed public procession should be aware there is a legal requirement to submit advance notice of their proposed event to the PSNI, who ensure a copy is immediately sent to the commission. " But the council said it didn't notify the commission because it didn't have to. The council said that no notification was needed for the Portstewart event - because it wasn't actually a parade. But it confirmed that it had informed the commission about switch-ons in Coleraine and Limavady on the November 19 and 25 respectively. That begged the question of what does and does not constitute a parade, but it would appear that the council's different approaches were all down to horses for courses In a statement, the council said it had worked closely with the PSNI's events unit and made contact with them regarding the completion of an '11/1 parades form for any of their Christmas lights switch on festivities which included a parade element.' The council said an 11/1 was submitted for the use of the horses and the dray in Limavady and more consultations were held about the nature of the event in Coleraine six days later. The statement added that following those consultations with the PSNI it was agreed that what made an 11/1 necessary for Coleraine was a 'substantial parade element to the event on the public roads.' - elements which included a band, the horses and dray, plus 100 children. In Portstewart, Clydesdale horses pulled a dray containing Santa and the local mayor, Maura Hickey, through a number of side streets and roads and right along the promenade, preceded by a fire engine and a number of PSNI officers who were on foot. Hundreds of revellers packed the town for the celebrations, but the council said it was told that an 11/1 was not required for Portstewart because 'the horse and dray was travelling along the public road and was constituted as a vehicle.' The statement said that the Fire Service only ever partakes in events in Portrush and Portstewart if available to do so. The search for missing east Belfast woman Catherine Johnston is continuing - but for her worried family there is still no news of her whereabouts. The Hazelwood Integrated College teacher was last seen on Tuesday. When her white Seat Leon car was later discovered at Ballintoy harbour on the north Antrim coast, the find sparked a massive air and sea search operation involving the PSNI and the coastguard. A rescue helicopter from Prestwick in Scotland was deployed in the search, as well as hi-tech sonar locating equipment. Three days of intensive searching have so far failed to find any trace of the 39-year-old. The search operation is concentrated around the Dunseverick Castle and Carrick-a-rede areas. On Saturday police re-appealed for witnesses to come forward. Mrs Johnston, who teaches at Hazelwood College and is also head of year 10 pupils, was described as "a shining star" by Hazelwood Integrated College principal Kathleen O'Hare. Ms O'Hare said that pupils at the school were informed of her disappearance at Wednesday morning's assembly, during which prayers were said for her. "She was head of year 12 last year and they got the best results ever in our 30 years of existence, so that's how shining a star she is," said Ms O'Hare. The college's Facebook page said: "All of the Hazelwood community are hoping & praying for the safe return of our dear friend." Mrs Johnston, who had been off work ill in the last few days, had moved to east Belfast from her previous home in Dundonald. In a statement Sergeant David Armour said: A white Seat Leon car, which we believe Catherine was driving, was found in the Ballintoy Harbour area on Wednesday 14 December though we believe that it may have been there from the day before. Extensive searches in Ballintoy and the surrounding area have been ongoing since Wednesday. We have information that a Vauxhall estate car, possibly an Insignia or an Astra, was parked at Ballintoy on Tuesday afternoon. The car is described as being duck-egg blue in colour. "A man, woman and three children were using the car and it is thought that the adults took photographs while they were there. I would ask these people to please contact police so that we can check the photographs and see if they can assist us with the investigation. It is also thought that a white Transit van with a yellow taxi sign on the roof was parked in Ballintoy later that afternoon. Again I would ask the driver to please get in touch with police, quoting reference number 889 of 13/12/16. Thank you. The Ministry of Defence has promised not to reduce the number of troops garrisoned in Northern Ireland for five years, with the possibility of adding three new platoons to Thiepval Barracks in Lisburn. The announcement was part of Army 2020, which was included in the Strategic Defence and Security 2015 Review. Regular armed forces levels will remain at 5,000, with the possibility of increasing reserve forces. A change of the guard at Palace Barracks in Holywood was also announced. 1 Scots will move out and the Royal Anglian Regiment will replace them during 2019. Ulster Unionist MLA Doug Beattie, a former soldier, welcomed the news. "Having made this commitment, it does not mean there will be no changes to the laydown of the armed forces in Northern Ireland," he said. "We already know that a number of bases in Northern Ireland will be closed, including Kinnegar Reserve Logistic Base near Holywood and Abercorn Barracks in Ballykinler. "Alongside this The 1st Battalion the Royal Regiment of Scotland (1 Scots), presently based in Palace Barracks, will rerole to become a specialist infantry battalion. "Its numbers will be reduced from 560 to 270 soldiers in 2017 before they move to Aldershot in England. "They will be replaced by a full infantry battalion from The Royal Anglian Regiment in 2019." Mr Beattie also welcomed the expansion of the locally based reserves. "There will be no change to The Irish Guards or the Royal Irish Regiment, the latter presently deployed in Afghanistan," he said. "To recognise the success of 2nd Battalion the Royal Irish Regiment, whose headquarters is in Thiepval Barracks, Lisburn, it is now allowed to recruit an additional three platoons to its present laydown. "The Army 2020 is good news for Northern Ireland and maintains the strong traditions of young men and women from Northern Ireland serving in the British Army." Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon made the announcements on Thursday as part of the Government's ongoing restructuring process to modernise the British Army. A Councillor has described as 'scary' an incident in which a man was found unconscious and critically injured on Belfast's Shankill Road yesterday. The unknown man was found in the street beside the Rex Bar and Stevenson's Bakery by a passer-by at around 1.10am. He was taken to hospital where he remains in a critical condition, the PSNI said in a statement. No description of the man has been released by the police, nor an estimated age. Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph last night, TUV councillor Jolene Bunting said she was concerned at the news. "This is a deeply worrying incident," she said. "It's scary, to be honest. "And it is also very strange that the man has not been able to be identified and that no one has come forward yet to say that their friend or relative is currently missing. "The Shankill is a very close-knit community, and as I said it seems very odd to me that this man has not yet been able to be identified. "I will pray for him - and hope he is identified soon, " Councillor Bunting told the Belfast Telegraph. There was unconfirmed local speculation that the man was elderly and had collapsed in the street. Police have issued an appeal for information following the shocking discovery in the early hours of yesterday. PSNI Inspector Paul Noble has appealed for anyone who was in the area - and who has any information which could assist officers - to contact Tennent Street on 101 quoting reference number 50 16/12/16 or anonymously contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. The US said it had issued a formal diplomatic complaint over Thursday's seizure and demanded the drone's return (AP) China has said its military seized a US navy unmanned underwater glider in the South China Sea to ensure the "safe navigation of passing ships", but would give back the drone after determining it was an American device. The United States later confirmed it had "secured an understanding" for the return, seeming to settle one of the most serious incidents between the two militaries in years. The Chinese navy on Thursday seized the drone, which the Pentagon said was being operated by civilian contractors to conduct oceanic research. The US lodged a formal diplomatic complaint and demanded the drone back. Chinese defence ministry spokesman Yang Yujun issued a statement late on Saturday saying that a Chinese navy lifeboat discovered an unknown device in the South China Sea on Thursday. "In order to prevent this device from posing a danger to the safe navigation of passing ships and personnel, the Chinese lifeboat adopted a professional and responsible attitude in investigating and verifying the device," Mr Yang said. The statement said that after verifying that the device was an American unmanned submerged device, "China decided to transfer it to the US through appropriate means". The US said that "through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return" the unmanned underwater vehicle, according to a statement from Peter Cook, spokesman for US defence secretary Ash Carter. The US said China's "unlawful seizure" came in international waters. Yet China pointedly accused the US of long sending ships "in China's presence" to conduct "military surveying". "China is resolutely opposed to this and requests the US stop such activities," it said. "China will continue to maintain vigilance against the relevant US activities and will take necessary measures to deal with them." Earlier on Saturday, China's foreign ministry said the country's military was in contact with its American counterparts on "appropriately handling" the incident, though it offered no details on what discussions were under way. The drone was seized while collecting unclassified scientific data about 92 kilometres (57 miles) north west of Subic Bay near the Philippines in the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety, navy captain Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said on Friday. "It is ours. It's clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again," Capt Davis told reporters. He said the drone costs about 150,000 dollars (120,000) and is largely commercial, off-the-shelf technology. The USNS Bowditch, which is not a combat ship, was stopped in international waters on Thursday afternoon and was recovering two of the gliders when the Chinese ship approached, Capt Davis said. The two vessels were within about 450 metres (500 yards) of each other. He said that the USNS Bowditch carries some small arms, but that no shots were fired. According to the Pentagon, as the Chinese ship left with the drone, which is about three metres (10ft) long, its only radio response to the US vessel was: "We are returning to normal operations." President-elect Donald Trump blasted the seizure. Apparently misspelling "unprecedented", he tweeted: "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented act." He later reissued the tweet, correcting the spelling to "unprecedented". Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said the seizure of the glider occurred inside the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, not China, and appeared to be a violation of international law. China delineates its South China Sea claims with a roughly drawn sea border known as the "nine-dash line" that runs along the west coast of the Philippines. However, it has not explicitly said whether it considers those waters as sovereign territory, and says it does not disrupt the passage of other nations' shipping through the area. The US does not take a position on sovereignty claims, but insists on freedom of navigation, including the right of its naval vessels to conduct training and other operations in the sea. Capt Davis said that the incident could be the first time in recent history that China has taken a US naval vessel. Some observers have called it the most significant dispute between the sides' militaries since the April 2001 mid-air collision between a US navy surveillance aircraft and a Chinese fighter jet about 110 kilometres (70 miles) from China's Hainan island that led to the death of a Chinese pilot. The drone seizure seemed likely to fray the already tense relations between the US and China. Beijing was angered by Mr Trump's decision to talk by phone with Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen on December 2, and by his later comments that he did not feel "bound by a one-China policy" regarding the status of Taiwan, unless the US could gain trade or other benefits from China. China considers the self-governing island its own territory to be recovered by force if it deems necessary. There have also been increased tensions over Beijing's ongoing military build-up in the South China Sea, mainly the development and militarisation of man-made shoals and islands aimed at extending China's reach in the strategically vital area, through which about five trillion dollars in global trade passes annually. AP Robert Mugabe has been in power since the southern African nation's independence from white minority rule in 1980 (AP/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi) Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe, who turns 93 in February, has been endorsed as the ruling party's candidate in a national election scheduled for 2018. The ruling Zanu-PF party announced its support in the south-east town of Masvingo, where the party's youth wing even proposed that Mr Mugabe should rule for life with broad powers. Opposition groups have described such adulation as a sign that Mr Mugabe and his loyalists are out of touch with the desperation of a nation that is suffering massive unemployment, cash shortages and company closures. Despite the praise, Mr Mugabe has acknowledged that some people within the ruling party have wanted him to quit. "Let us stop fighting each other," he said, referring to the succession fights that have engulfed his party. Mr Mugabe has been in power since the southern African nation's independence from white minority rule in 1980. But a deteriorating economy has increased the pressure on him, and he has faced opposition protests in the past year. Even so, the Zanu-PF party rallied around Mr Mugabe at its annual conference. Most delegates wore the party's colours of red, green, black and yellow, as well as Mr Mugabe's portrait. Speaker after speaker extolled his virtues. One cabinet minister named Supa Mandiwanzira did so by making a pun about his own first name. "I am not super, Mr President. It is you who is super," he said, introducing the president. Kudzai Chipanga, leader of the party's youth wing, suggested that Mr Mugabe's ID and birth certificate should be changed to read President Robert Mugabe. Mr Mugabe, who won the 2013 election that was marred by allegations of voting irregularities, has seemed frail at times but still travels widely and says he wants to live to 100. AP Supporters of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-hye clashed with anti-Park protesters as large crowds of demonstrators again gathered in Seoul to demand the scandal-ridden leader's immediate ousting. The historically large weekend protests over an explosive corruption scandal pushed South Korea's opposition-controlled parliament to vote this month to impeach Ms Park. The impeachment suspended her powers until the Constitutional Court decides whether she should permanently step down or be reinstated. While polls measure Ms Park's popularity in the low single digits, her impeachment has become a rallying point for her conservative supporters, who turned out in the capital in their thousands on Saturday. They waved the country's white national flag and shouted for Ms Park's "illegal" impeachment to be "nullified" and the "rotten" parliament to be dissolved. The tension was tangible as anti-Park protesters, whose numbers were much bigger, gathered on a boulevard across the street from where Ms Park's supporters were rallying. Despite thick lines of police officers separating them, there was some shouting and pushing between the two groups, with one Park supporter hitting an anti-Park protester with the pole of her flag. There were no immediate reports of serious violence or injuries. Huge throngs of anti-Park protesters later walked toward the presidential offices and residence, known as the Blue House, carrying candles and signs and demanding that Ms Park immediately quit. Other groups marched toward the office of Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, who assumed the role as government caretaker after Ms Park was impeached on December 9, and towards the Constitutional Court. Prosecutors accuse Ms Park of colluding with a longtime confidante to extort money and favours from companies and allowing her to manipulate state affairs. The court has up to six months to decide on Ms Park's case. If she is formally removed from office, the country will hold a presidential election within 60 days. Ms Park has apologised for putting trust in her friend, Choi Soon-sil, whose criminal trial begins on Monday, but has denied any legal wrongdoing. On Friday, politicians attempted to inspect records at the president's office, but were denied entry. The group had planned to look into allegations that Blue House security officials allowed Ms Choi and her key associates to easily move in and out of the presidential offices and residence. Ms Park's lawyer, Lee Joong-hwan, said the court should restore Ms Park's powers because there is insufficient evidence to justify her unseating. He and other members of Ms Park's legal team submitted a statement to the court explaining why the case should be decided in the president's favour. AP In the run-up to Christmas, there is the sobering thought that this year over 15,000 people have been killed worldwide in nearly 1,700 terrorist attacks closely associated with sectarianism and political upheaval. Last Sunday morning, when many of us were enjoying traditional carol services in our local churches, 25 Christians were killed in an Isis bomb blast at a cathedral in Cairo. There was a special poignancy surrounding the Cairo bloodshed, because Egypt was the country to which the Holy Family fled after the birth of Jesus to escape from the infanticide of the villainous Herod. The death of the members of the ancient Coptic Church made headlines for a day or two, but the story was soon buried under the weight of other news . People might feel that these tragedies are so far away, but are they? In our own blood-spattered history, the violence against people because of their religion is clear for all to see. One of the most horrific aspects of the Kingsmills massacre was the way in which the attackers singled out the sole Catholic workman during the ambush on a lonely road in early January 1976. They told the Catholic man to run for his life and then they shot the Protestants. Only Alan Black survived, with scars to this day. The night before, five Catholics were shot dead at Whitecross in south Armagh and at Ballydugan in Co Down. Several years later, not far away in Darkley, south Armagh, a Pentecostal church was attacked by rogue Irish National Liberation Army gunmen, posing as the Catholic Reaction Force. Three people were shot dead and seven were wounded because they were Protestants. During the Troubles, many Catholics also died simply because of their religion, whether at the gruesome hands of the Shankill Butchers or in McGurk's Bar in Belfast and other pubs where Catholics were customers. The list goes on and on, and even today the legacy of the victims of violence continues to be one of the most insoluble problems facing our politicians. In my many travels I have also encountered people who have been punished simply for being Christians. In South Korea, I attended services held in secret because of fear of being found out by the authorities. In South Sudan, I went to rehearsals for a Christmas carol service led by an eccentric American doctor-missionary, and every time I hear the ancient and beautiful carol O come, O come Emmanuel, I am reminded of the peril of many African Christians. However, one of the most inspiring aspects of these visits was to notice how these persecuted Christians took their faith so seriously and how it sustained them in times of great danger and difficulty. All of which places our celebration of Christmas in a different perspective. The true message has been buried by a huge mass of commercialism, where so many people are out to make money from what should be a purely religious celebration of the birth of the baby Jesus. Despite this, the light of Christianity has not been snuffed out by the darkness of secularism, or by the violent opposition of militant Islamists who want to conquer all that the Christmas story stands for. Thankfully, there is still much to enjoy in our Western Christmas, where kindness, friendship and family solidarity are still evident in so many ways. However, the story of the massacre of innocent worshippers in Cairo last Sunday is a reminder that so many people all over the world pay a price, greater or lesser, for being a practising Christian, including the proprietors of Ashers or those people who are prohibited from wearing religious jewellery in the workplace. The Christmas story starts with joy and hope, but at its heart is the reality of what it costs to be a true Christian in modern society. And not just for a season of celebration, but for a lifetime - and beyond that. My mum died ten years ago today. I've spent the day reminiscing about her and also remembering what we were all going through at this time a decade ago as she slipped away. As she was lying in her hospital bed, surrounded by bleeping monitors and drip-tubes and racked with pain, she apologised for "spoiling" Christmas. "I'm sorry darling, I didn't even get you anything" was one of the last things my mother said to me. I wanted to say so many things but all I could manage was "never mind" before the floodgates opened again, washing away my ability to speak. Mum used to tease me when I was little because of my abundance of joie de vivre. Apparently when I was a baby I would laugh for no apparent reason, as though I had a secret joke but wasn't sharing it with anyone. Then later when a song came on the radio I would invariably proclaim "Oh great!! I love this song!!" regardless of whether it was Englebert Humperdink or Procol Harum. At school when I had to write a page about my favourite season, I couldn't possibly choose one so I wrote a page about each. In short, I was a boundless enthusiast. My cup wasn't just half-full, it was overflowing. Of course, certain events from my adult life had since tarnished my shiny optimistic layer and I became a bit more cynical and a bit less gleeful. Nevertheless, this was the quality that my mum loved the most about me. A bit like a court jester, or a village idiot depending on your perspective, I could always be counted on to lighten any mood or seek out the positive side of any situation. And it would seem that here was my ultimate challenge so far -to find the positive side to my mum's untimely end because "it's what she would have wanted". With that in mind, and with two children who deserved as many happy memories of Christmas as I have, I made a conscious decision on that sad day to try and celebrate my mum's life rather than mourn her death. So after the funeral as soon as we got back home I dug out the family photos of grandma for an impromptu slide show accompanied by festive music and Centra's finest mince pies. Furthermore, that evening, when the kids had gone to their dad's, rather than sitting at home alone and bereft I went out for a couple of drinks with my friends to toast my dearly departed mum. A bit like "wetting the baby's head"... but the opposite. The idea caught on and now, ten anniversaries later, it's part of my wider family's Christmas traditions to actively celebrate the mum/ grandma/ wife/ sister/auntie we lost. We all do it in different ways, from going to a memorial Mass (dad) to singing carols around her grave (her sisters) But it was my brother Jim who came up with the most wonderful way of commemorating the occasion this year. My mum was a great story-teller and so as a tribute he wrote down all my mum's favourite stories from her childhood and sent a copy to us all, so we could add our own recollections to it. This must have taken him ages because there were so many, but here's an extract from a Christmas past that I thought you all might enjoy: "One Christmas Day after dinner, all sixteen of mum's family (there were fourteen children, no less!) were playing a game called Hot Holly or, as they pronounced it with their Lancashire accents 'Ot 'Olly. One person went out of the room, while the others took it in turns to hide a sprig of holly. Then he/she came back in, and searched the room for the holly. If he was far away, the others said "Cold", and as they got nearer it was "getting warmer . . . hot . . . boiling", until they spotted it and shouted, "Hot Holly!" When it was uncle Bernard's turn (the youngest brother) and he saw the holly, he got so excited that he jumped up on the sideboard to reach it and accidentally knocked down all the dessert dishes loaded with Christmas pudding, splattering them all over the floor as he shouted "Ot Olly! Ot Olly! Ot Olly!" " A man arrested for allegedly planning a suicide bombing appears in a television interview being viewed on YouTube, Dec. 16, 2016. A top official of the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI) on Friday urged media to avoid providing a platform for violent ideology when broadcasting interviews with terrorism suspects. The comments followed the arrest of a woman police said was on the brink of becoming Indonesias first female suicide bomber, and the equally unprecedented broadcast three days later of lengthy interviews with the suspect and her husband. The two are among nine suspects arrested this week for a suicide attack planned for Dec. 11 outside the presidential palace in Jakarta, according to police. You must be careful. Especially when it comes to arguing theology, Sujarwanto Rahmat Arifin, vice chairman of the KPI, told BenarNews. The woman, Dian Yulia Novi, 27, alluded to a Hadith one of the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad and then appeared to engage in a theological debate with her interviewer when asked why she thought suicide bombing was an acceptable form of jihad. Arguing about the interpretation of that verse was very risky, Sujarwanto said. Asludin Hatjani, an attorney representing the two suspects, disagreed that the interviews could spread terrorist ideology. On the contrary, he said, they could convince people that the arrests were not a ploy to distract attention from the ongoing blasphemy trial of Jakarta Gov. Basuku Tjahaja Purnama, a view that has circulated widely on social media in Indonesia. Therefore, he did not prevent his clients from giving the interviews, Asludin said. They were willing. Thats what counts, he said. TVOne, the network that ran the interviews, declined to comment for this story when contacted by BenarNews. Marriage for disaster Religious leaders, meanwhile, repudiated comments by Dians husband, Nur Solihin, that he had married her to facilitate her goal of becoming a suicide bomber. Asked if such a marriage was religiously justified, Solihin replied, God willing, its justified. The purpose was to seek Allahs pleasure. A marriage meant to create disaster for others is outside the definition of marriage stipulated by religion, Anwar Abbas, secretary general of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), told BenarNews on Friday. Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin said that marriage is a sacred matter between a couple and God. If it becomes a vehicle to contradict the teachings of religion, that should not be, he was quoted as saying by the website detik.com. A surge in female suspects Female suicide bombers have been seen in Middle Eastern countries but never in Indonesia, noted Ridlwan Habib, a terrorism expert from University of Indonesia. He called it a new strategy from Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian IS figure in Syria who police allege was behind the plot and, according to Nur Solihin, specifically instructed that the suicide bomber should be female. This is a new method, a smart strategy, by Bahrun Naim, who is looking for the weakness of the security forces, he told BenarNews. Police say that Bahrun Naim also masterminded the first IS-claimed attack in Indonesia, in January 2016. The gun and bomb attack in central Jakarta left eight dead, including four attackers. People think of suicide bombers as men with backpacks, whereas police are likely to be less suspicious of a woman, Ridlwan said. To date, Indonesian women have had a behind-the-scenes role in terrorism networks, preparing logistics, taking care of children or supporting their husbands, he said. There are some who became geurillas in the forest, taking up arms like the wife of Santoso in Poso, but no one has come out in front like this, he said. Authorities arrested four female of the Eastern Indonesia Mujahideen (MIT) between July and October, including one who was pregnant. The network has been all but destroyed by security forces, who killed its leader, Santoso, in July. A total of four women were arrested this week for alleged links to the suicide plot, including Dian, who was taken into custody in Bekasi, West Java on Dec. 10. On Monday, police arrested Arinda Putri Maharani, 25, the first wife of Nur Solihin, in Solo, Central Java, alleging that she had facilitated financing of the plot and had failed to disclose it to authorities. Early Thursday, police arrested Tutin, alias Ummu Abza, who allegedly introduced Dian and Nur Solihin. Arrested in Tasikmalaya, West Java, Tutin is thought to have radicalized Dian and encouraged her to become a suicide bomber, the Jakarta Post reported. Police picked up Ika Puspitasari alias Salsabika Taslimah in Purworejo, Central Java, on Thursday evening but have not yet disclosed her alleged role. ein Google-Unternehmen Google-Dienste anzubieten und zu betreiben Ausfalle zu prufen und Manahmen gegen Spam, Betrug und Missbrauch zu ergreifen Daten zu Zielgruppeninteraktionen und Websitestatistiken zu erheben. Mit den gewonnenen Informationen mochten wir verstehen, wie unsere Dienste verwendet werden, und die Qualitat dieser Dienste verbessern. neue Dienste zu entwickeln und zu verbessern Werbung auszuliefern und ihre Wirkung zu messen personalisierte Inhalte anzuzeigen, abhangig von Ihren Einstellungen personalisierte Werbung anzuzeigen, abhangig von Ihren Einstellungen Wenn Sie Alle ablehnen auswahlen, verwenden wir Cookies nicht fur diese zusatzlichen Zwecke. Nicht personalisierte Inhalte und Werbung werden u. a. von Inhalten, die Sie sich gerade ansehen, und Ihrem Standort beeinflusst (welche Werbung Sie sehen, basiert auf Ihrem ungefahren Standort). Personalisierte Inhalte und Werbung konnen auch Videoempfehlungen, eine individuelle YouTube-Startseite und individuelle Werbung enthalten, die auf fruheren Aktivitaten wie auf YouTube angesehenen Videos und Suchanfragen auf YouTube beruhen. Sofern relevant, verwenden wir Cookies und Daten auerdem, um Inhalte und Werbung altersgerecht zu gestalten. Wir verwenden Cookies und Daten, umWenn Sie Alle akzeptieren auswahlen, verwenden wir Cookies und Daten auch, umWahlen Sie Weitere Optionen aus, um sich zusatzliche Informationen anzusehen, einschlielich Details zum Verwalten Ihrer Datenschutzeinstellungen. Sie konnen auch jederzeit g.co/privacytools besuchen. The Bible has been under attack in the western world for over 200 years but never more intensely than today. These attacks have taken different forms and have come from many different corners of the academic world, from philosophers, to scientists, to textual critics. In the specialized world of archaeology the attacks have increased dramatically in the past 50 years. Once a specialization filled with Bible believing individuals, the field of archaeology is now overrun with atheists and skeptics, agnostics and those committed to the destruction of the Bible as a source of true historical information. These attacks on the Bible are a part of a sweeping movement in western culture. Spearheaded by academic elitists in the university and the public educational system, the news and popular media, and the entertainment industry, these revisionists cloak themselves with supposed objectivity, purity of motives, and the superiority of science over the "uninformed", "unscientific", religious community. They regularly mock those who question their world-view and their conclusions by name-calling and the worst forms of anti-Bible and anti-Christian propaganda. They have powerfully infected the church by turning Bible believing Christians against the very Scripture which is the foundation of truth and life in this world. Instead of contending for the Bible, Christian academics, pastors, and lay-persons are making egregious accommodations to these destroyers of faith and truth. In these days of intense spiritual battle, God has called ABR to step into the gap to contend for the truth and to assist the church in this critical hour. ABR is a non-profit ministry dedicated to demonstrating the historical reliability of the Bible and to give answers to questions being asked by believers and non-believers alike. We do this by using original archaeological fieldwork and research along with studies in other apologetic disciplines. We take on the bold claims of skeptics and critics. We challenge the bizarre anti-biblical propaganda that is purveyed upon the public as gospel through television and print media. We uphold the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is God's message for the salvation of all mankind! First up, Joe Biden is thinking about dropping tariffs against China. But theres a spy in prison this morning that helps us understand why he shouldnt. Ill explain. Your second brief, If youre looking for a good paying job, you might consider being a CEO for a health insurance company. One executive made $142M dollars last year. Let's talk about that. And as always, Im keeping an eye out for developing stories. Put this one on your radar. Mexican cartels are grooming American kids online and paying them cash to traffic illegals or run drugs across the border. Ill share details. If you enjoyed this episode of the President's Daily Brief, remember to subscribe and listen daily at podfollow.com/pdb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Explosion in Turkeys Kayseri province - A + An explosion has occurred in Talas Avenue, in front of the entrance of Erciyes University in Turkeys Kayseri province at early hours this morning (December 17), at around 8:45. Ambulances were sent to the area after the explosion for the treatment of the injured. Official statements A bus hit by the explosion was transporting soldiers, who were on holiday leave for the weekend, according to the statements of Turkey's official sources. Deputy PM Veysi Kaynak said: "This bomb attack was against our soldier who had gone out on a bus, for shopping. It is similar to the attack in Besiktas last week." Turkey's armed forces (TSK) released an announcement stating '13 soldiers lost their lives and 43 got wounded.' A wounded soldier: 'The explosives-loaded car was following our bus' Talking in front of a camera at the site of the attack shortly after the deadly car bomb attack, a wounded soldier said the car loaded with explosives was following the bus, in which the soldiers in the area were being taken out for their off time for the weekend. Broadcast ban enforced Meanwhile, Turkeys Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTUK) announced enforcement of a broadcast ban. Source: http://www.birgun.net/haber-detay/kayseri-de-patlama-139850.html Science on gift-giving: Worry less about how cool the reveal will be, and more about whether or not the receiver will still be using your gift in the future. Some pie enthusiasts launched a meat and potatoes pie into space to see if the structural changes brought about by extreme physical duress would make it easier to eat. It is thought the pie will freeze on its ascent and be cooked on re-entry. A one million dollar NASA-funded satellite system was unveiled this week that can track the movement of glaciers and ice sheets around the world. Try denying that one. We are about to reach the point where more antibiotics will be consumed by farm animals worldwide than by humans, says Mark Woolhouse, of the University of Edinburgh. Meaning: More antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Yay! Check out the first footage ever captured of the prehistoric ghost shark! Remember making paper snowflakes? I did, but only vaguely. Then I looked it up. See what I found! Via The Globe and Mail, we now learn that it wasn't just nine opioid deaths in Vancouver last night: Thirteen people die of overdoses over one day in B.C. as fentanyl fuels opioid crisis. Excerpt and then a comment: Thirteen British Columbians died of illicit drug overdoses on Thursday, including nine in the City of Vancouver alone the latest grim statistics in a worsening crisis that has emergency officials and Vancouvers mayor issuing an urgent call for more treatment options. In comparison, the city has averaged about 15 fatal overdoses a month so far this year, with authorities investigating 160 deaths as of Nov. 30, according to the citys police chief. Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson and Chief Adam Palmer held a joint news conference Friday in which they lauded efforts to expand life-saving harm-reduction services such as supervised-injection sites, but said they also need the provincial government to invest in significant longer-term treatment options. We want better co-ordination and proper resourcing to ensure that detox and treatment help is available right away, Chief Palmer said. We want a long-term health plan that does more than just revive people temporarily and sends them back into the streets to continue with their addiction. We want treatment on demand. The police chief then told a story of Constable Linda Malcolm, a veteran police officer in the Downtown Eastside, recently being approached by a heroin user asking for help. She began looking for a detox facility; however, there was nothing available, Chief Palmer said. Officer Malcolm was told space would not be available for nine days. Nine days. You lose the window to help within hours. Nine days is an eternity. Vancouver police said eight of Thursdays overdose deaths occurred in the Downtown Eastside. The BC Coroners Service has so far confirmed that there were at least six in the span of eight hours, but that another two in the same area and same time frame are suspected to be drug-related. In the first 10 months of the year, 622 people died of illicit drug overdoses in B.C. That figure is already the highest annual death toll in 30 years of record-keeping, and it is expected to surpass 750 by years end. Fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid, has been detected in 60 per cent of this years deaths to date; carfentanil, an even more toxic opioid that has since been detected in four provinces, is suspected in another recent surge in overdoses. Novembers numbers, to be announced on Monday, are expected to be particularly grim. I doubt that Vancouver is something special. Similar numbers, recognized or not, must be happening all over North America. This is a major crisis in public health. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Its not every day that kids want to see a Christmas tree stripped bare of its decorations but that was the goal for Grade 5 and 6 students at Ecole Harrison. The class rallied the entire school community to take part in a giving tree, collecting donations for YWCA Brandon. We do a big final project through the Mindup Program, where we do something in the community, teacher Jenny Slomiany said. We wanted to do something different in the front foyer, so when we got the letter (from YWCA Brandon), I knew I wanted to do this with my class. Colin Corneau/The Brandon Sun Grade 5 and 6 students from Ecole Harrison pose among the items they helped gather to help others on Friday. The class made decorations with items written on them that the womens shelter needed, and students, staff and parents spent about a month taking decorations off the tree and buying the item listed. On Friday, the class was ecstatic to present a bare tree and a mountain of much-needed items to representatives from the YWCA, who were overwhelmed by the response from the kids. Ive heard great things about Ecole Harrison and theyve really proven it, YWCA marketing officer BJ Kirouac said. This was their project they grabbed ahold of it. The wishlist included things like clothing, blankets, gift cards, diapers, toiletries and baby monitors, Kirouac said. (The students) goal was to get five of everything that was on the list, Kirouac said. YWCA marketing officer Lorna French was overcome by emotion when she saw all the donations, her eyes welling up with tears after finding out they had five new baby monitors for the womens shelter. I was at the shelter and they were just talking about how they needed baby monitors so parents can have that trust that their child is safe, French said. The fact that they have five baby monitors is amazing. The students have gained a better understanding of some of the problems happening in Brandon and reached out to help, according to French. The kids were mind-blown of what we do and how much they were actually helping. They thought it was just for fun, but its so real. The amount of lives theyre changing just through one tree, French said. Theyve made that step, theyve come up with the ideas and theyve pushed for the same change that YWCA is pushing for they are an amazing group of kids. For the class which was eager to help with everything from listing the amount of donations to carrying them out and packing them into French and Kirouacs cars this was just a really cool experience. The Grade 5s would come in and every morning theyd be counting the ornaments left on the tree, and then one morning we came in and they were gone, said Sawyer Walter-Duncalfe, a Grade 6 student at Ecole Harrison. It was pretty cool to see every morning the decorations kept disappearing and the pile (of presents) started growing bigger and bigger, added Miles Blatherwick, also a Grade 6 student at Ecole Harrison. I was impressed to see that one school could make this much of a difference. I was expecting maybe half of this. Im proud we could make this happen. Slomiany said she is happy that the students have such a great support system at the school. We are very fortunate in this building to have many generous families, our families do what they can whenever we do something like this, Slomiany said. edebooy@brandonsun.com Twitter: @erindebooy Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. A troubled teenage girl who bit a cop has been jailed by a judge who says she ran out of options that would keep the youth in the community. Judge Shauna Hewitt-Michta sent the girl to jail for 80 days, followed by 40 days of supervision in the community for assaulting a peace officer and breaching court orders. We have tried basically everything thats available to us in terms of community dispositions and options, Hewitt-Michta said during sentencing on Thursday. After receiving her sentence, the girl sank her head down to her lap in the prisoners dock and seemed unresponsive. Sheriffs cleared the courtroom and they could be heard struggling with the girl as they tried to move her to cells in the basement of the courthouse. She could be heard growling and sobbing in a back hallway as a sheriff repeatedly shouted at her, Stop resisting. Minutes before, Crown attorney Kaley Tschetter had described the events that led to the girls jail sentence. On Nov. 17 around 9:20 p.m., police spotted the girl running west on the 700 block of Victoria Avenue and noted that her face was bleeding. At the same time, they received a report that a female had been trying to damage property in the area. Four officers caught up with the hysterical girl whose face was, indeed, bleeding. Police believed she was high and possibly drunk. They tried to detain her but she started to struggle. They took her to the ground where, as two officers tried to restrain her, she began to bang her head on the ground. When a third officer moved in to try to prevent the girl from banging her head and hurting herself further, she bit him on the leg. The bite was hard enough to pass through the officers pants and break his skin. Shed also tried to spit at officers, so they put a spit hood over her head. She swore at police and banged her head against the protective shield in the police car. Both she and the bitten officer were taken to hospital where the girl continued to flail and was tied down for examination. Even then, she kept trying to bite the hands of police and spit at nurses. She was delusional and believed she was in Chicago, and it was learned that shed taken the drug Gabapentin. Gabapentin is a drug used to treat and control seizures. It is also used to relieve nerve pain following shingles, according to WebMD. When abused, it produces a withdrawal syndrome and certain psychoactive effects. As the drug wore off, the girl calmed down enough to tell police that shed been kicked in the face by a woman who accused her of flirting with her boyfriend. The injury to her face needed a number of stitches. The police officer didnt need stitches for the bite wound, but was put on medication for 10 days to prevent infection. Police also learned that, at the time of their struggle with her, the girl was on court orders. Tschetter said those included a curfew with a condition that she not be out during that curfew unless with staff. On Nov. 21, following the biting incident, she was released on bail, but not before Judge John Combs questioned her supervision. During that bail hearing, Crown attorney Brett Rach read directly from a prior probation order which specified the girl was under a 24-hour curfew and not to be out unless with staff of Specialized Foster Homes or Dakota Ojibway Child and Family Services. However, it seems DOCFS was put on the order by mistake. After The Brandon Sun published a story about Combs questioning of the girls supervision, DOCFSs lawyer wrote a letter to the newspaper stating that the girl was never a ward of DOCFS and that agency is not associated with Specialized Foster Homes (SFH). The agency and its lawyer, however, didnt specify which agency was responsible for the girl, who is aboriginal, and a letter sent by The Brandon Sun to DOCFSs lawyer seeking clarification didnt receive a response. Prior to arrest, the girl had been living at a rural home with SFH, which houses troubled youth on behalf of CFS agencies. At her bail hearing, an SFH staff member said the girl was in Brandon for counselling when she took off. During sentencing on Thursday, Tschetter said the girl was released on Nov. 21 with a 24-hour curfew, which was varied on Nov. 29 to allow her to be out with SFH staff or Southeast Child and Family Services representatives. After signing the order, the girl ran from group home workers. Tschetter said SFH staff followed her and reported the run to police. After some resistance, the girl was arrested and has remained in jail since. Tschetter said the girl has 19 prior convictions for violence and most, if not all, were committed against group home workers, corrections staff or police officers. She has received probationary sentences before for violence. One of her convictions was for assaulting another youth at a group home with a weapon. Tschetter said a plan was formed to put the girl in a home by herself, with two people watching her around the clock, but she still broke her court orders. The girl was already on five different probation orders and, arguing public safety, Tschetter said it was time to sentence her to jail. I think its worth trying to see if it makes that change, because what were doing so far isnt, Tschetter said. Its not working, we can see that quite clearly. Defence lawyer Philip Sieklicki asked the court to spare the girl from jail one more time. He detailed the girls troubled background, which includes abuse and trauma that prompts her to respond to authority by fight or flight. Throughout her life, she was placed at more than a dozen foster homes. However, Sieklicki said the girl has been working with mental health and addictions professionals and suggested it would be better for her to go back to her placement in the community to continue counselling. Shed already been in custody for 21 days while pending on her charges. Sieklicki said SFH staff had also suggested that, if released, the girl not be allowed out of her home at all, even with staff, as she poses a risk to herself when out. Sieklicki said that the night she bit the police officer, she had taken Gabapentin and Gravol, and drank alcohol and doesnt remember what happened. She has cognitive challenges and seems to have trouble understanding the consequences of her actions, Sieklicki said. Despite the teens heartbreaking history, Hewitt-Michta said she was sending her to jail because she needed a structured setting for rehabilitation after exhausting all her community options. At this point in time I dont think that there is anything available in the community that provides the sort of structure that is needed to manage her particular issue, Hewitt-Michta said. ihitchen@brandonsun.com Twitter: @IanHitchen Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. After a few steps back, efforts to create a Brandon University and Assiniboine Community College joint business school have begun inching forward again. Brandon University dean of arts Demetres Tryphonopoulos is joining his colleagues in hosting a two-day consultation session set to begin on Jan. 12. Starting at Brandon University and possibly shifting to Assiniboine Community College by the end of the second day, the consultation invites faculty, administration and students to participate. The local business community, whose feedback has been central to the process since the very beginning, will also be invited. The Brandon Chamber of Commerce has kept up with the effort every step of the way, president Terry Burgess said, noting that the effort was even announced at a chamber event last year. We think its positive from lots of fronts, he said, citing Brandons well-documented skilled labour shortage as something this effort would help address. By pairing the two post-secondary institutions, students get the best of both worlds, he said, adding that the chamber would continue monitoring the situation closely and weighing in whenever required. The joint business school hit a snag earlier this year, as highlighted by a scathing report penned by BUs department of business administration chair Heather Gillander. Leaked to media, the memo questioned various facets of the proposed joint effort, including its financial viability. Its all part of the consultation process, Tryphonopoulos said, noting that the more insights they gather, the more likely theyre able to draft a viable business case. This is why the upcoming two-day consultation is important, he said. After the consultation, Tryphonopoulos is facilitating a report. He hopes to release details of the report by the end of February. This report will outline what the future of the joint program would look like, at which time both institutions are expected to provide further insight and clarity. The report will also likely be shared with officials at the provincial government for budgetary consideration, Tryphonopoulos said. The previous NDP provincial government had budgeted about $420,000 toward the effort, but an election got in the way, throwing the projected contribution into muddy political waters under the new Progressive Conservative government. While interest has been expressed at the provincial level, theyve yet to make any funding announcements. ACC vice-president, academic, Deanna Rexe noted that she and her colleagues at ACC are currently waiting on the results of BUs internal processes to determine what their next step might be. Were looking forward to hearing positive news from their process, she said. The business community has particular visions and needs for business education and we can do more together. This idea of doing more collaboration is one that Tryphonopoulos shares, citing the two institutions 2009 memorandum of understanding, which was renewed in 2014. While they already work together in various capacities, with joint education efforts finding students study at both institutions, he said that more can and should be done to offer students the most out of Brandons post-secondary institutions. Itd be presumptuous to anticipate what his report would recommend prior to next months consultation and greater consideration, however, Tryphonopoulos noted that public interest in the effort has already been well-established. Im personally committed to seeing that we come up with a workable option for students in the area who wish to pursue a business administration education, Tryphonopoulos affirmed. The reason why we havent given up at both institutions is because the business community is very supportive of more opportunity, especially for local students, to get a business education here in Brandon. tclarke@brandonsun.com Twitter: @TylerClarkeMB Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Quietly, the federal government has invested more than $2.8 million into the Brandon Research and Development Centre to ensure cereal breeding research is not harmed by potential flooding. The investment which has never been publicized is for a new irrigation system drawing water from the Assiniboine River. It cost $2.87 million. Work began in May 2015 and is set for completion this spring. Tim Smith/The Brandon Sun A new building is under construction at the Brandon Research and Development Centre to house barley research. According to a statement provided by the federal government, the 2014 flood devastated a lot of research plots, which slowed the agriculture research centres breeding programs and resulted in a financial loss. Available land 15 metres above flood level, however, is too sandy and thus does not hold enough rainfall to produce reliable data without irrigation. To remedy the problem, a linear move irrigation system will irrigate approximately 100 acres per year of crop land. There will be a four-year rotation to ensure the total 400 acres is accounted for. Sen Wang, associate director of the Brandon Research and Development Centre, said they have laid 5,800 metres of pipelines from the river. The water is deposited at a storage reservoir and pumped to the top of the hill where the crops are grown. The testing and commissioning of the system will be conducted when temperatures warm up to ensure the pipe and pumping system doesnt freeze, he said. The irrigation system is designed to endure severe floods. It is important, our research depends on a well-functioning irrigation system, Wang said. In addition to the watering system, construction is underway on a new building to accommodate barley research. Ana Badea, one of the centres lead barley scientists, said the new facility is for the storage and protection of barley seed. Repeated requests to the federal government to explain the purpose of the new building and its price tag were not returned. Brandon-Souris Conservative MP Larry Maguire said his offices attempts to obtain information about the projects from the Liberal government were unsuccessful. Hes pleased, though, to see further development of the barley research program, which the federal government expanded in Brandon when the Conservatives were last in power. Its great any time we can expand the utilization of the barely program, he said. Maguire understands the necessity of a new irrigation system after watching a dike be constructed around the centres fields when water levels rose in 2014. Its not like a regular field of barely, (flooding) the barley trials can wipe out years of work, he said. Moving the trials to higher ground is certainly going to be a benefit. Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay applauded the governments investment. Crop research is a vital part of ensuring the Canadian agriculture sector is strong, sustainable and competitive, he said in a statement. This new irrigation system will help to ensure that the scientists at the Brandon Research and Development Centre will be able to carry on their important research in a stable environment. ifroese@brandonsun.com Twitter: @ianfroese A Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) is an attractive and popular senior living option in Pennsylvania. These types of communities can offer independent living areas, as well as skilled nursing and assisted living facilities to help deliver continuing care to residents. However, moving out of a CCRC is costly and often not a financial option for those who find they no longer want to live in the community. Which is why advocates, residents and even CCRC managers themselves encourage prospective residents to ask the right questions and choose the community that best fits their needs and interests before they move in. Cletus and Dorene Benjamin are just two of an active group of residents at Green Ridge Village in Newville, which is owned by Presbyterian Senior Living. They, like their friends, enjoy where they live. The community provides ample bird watching opportunities with the campus offset from the main road, and plenty of walking trails winding through the community. But they also know there were questions they would like to have asked before they signed the contract. Cletus Benjamin explained that for many people, like himself, once you put your money in, thats it. Residents have sold their homes and used that as the entrance fee to the community. There is nowhere else to move. USA Today reported in 2014 that entrance fees for CCRCs can run anywhere from $100,000 to $1 million, with monthly fees ranging from $3,000 to $5,000. Given what is at stake, asking the right questions can be difficult, but is a necessity, according to the Benjamins. I think that its hard for a lot of people (to ask questions), Dorene Benjamin said. It seems nosy. Questions For many in the Benjamins group of friends, the questions they asked before moving in were about day-to-day life. What was the meal plan? How were the independent homes situated? Were there activities to keep seniors active? While they were all important questions to get a feel for the community, it only scratched the surface of what they later felt they should have known. The Benjamins were one of the few who took a tour of the assisted living facilities, primarily because Cletus Benjamins mother was moving into the same community with them. He admitted if his mother wasnt involved in that decision 10 years ago, hes not sure he would have toured the facility. Its hard, but you have to go there, he said. That decision ended up helping them decide. While one CCRC had an appealing campus, the assisted living facility had an odor of urine that immediately struck the community off the list of options. Other questions they and other residents wished they asked were the CCRCs proximity to a hospital, what that hospital is like, what environmental concerns there are in the area such as air quality and airborne allergies and what the financial stability of the community is. Age Cletus Benjamin suggested adults in their 60s seriously consider moving to a CCRC now instead of waiting until they are in their 80s and unable to enjoy the benefits that such communities offer. That suggestion is echoed in what Presbyterian Senior Living is seeing with its residents. In addition to Green Ridge its flagship community created in 1927 Presbyterian Senior Living also owns more than a dozen locations in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland and Delaware, as well as affordable senior housing in Silver Spring Township and Harrisburg. Ryan Knisely, corporate manager of residential living for PSL, said the communities are seeing more interest from people in their 60s. We are getting younger residents, he said. Thats especially important at Green Ridge where all independent living residents get priority for available spots in the assisted living and skilled nursing facilities on campus. Knisely said both of Green Ridges facilities are open to the public something he says is common for CCRCs in order to survive financially. By choosing to live at a CCRC early, residents ensure they will receive assisted and skilled care later in life. Theyre facing the fear of the future head on, Knisely said. Security One of the most important questions to ask is if there is a promise that a resident can remain at the community, even if his or her financial resources can no longer support their stay. Knisely said Presbyterian Senior Living has never asked a resident to leave a community due to dwindling resources in its 90-year history. He said the not-for-profit organization has endowment care and uses its multiple communities together as a way to cover costs in case one community is having a worse year financially. Asbury Communities, which owns Bethany Village in Lower Allen Township, has the Asbury Foundation, a benevolent care fund that provides funds for residents to stay, as well as for capital improvements at communities. Our priority mission is benevolent care, said J.D. Shuman, vice president of development at Asbury Foundation. Its a vehicle that allows philanthropy to make an impact on your community. Asbury, which has eight communities in four states, has funds for each community, so funds arent shared in case a resident or member of the public donates to a care fund directly to one community. Even employees at the communities are known to donate money out of their paychecks to the care funds. Im proud of the fact weve never had to ask anyone to leave for financial shortage, said Eric Anderson, director of communications at Asbury Communities. That kind of promise is especially important for CCRCs, which, while risky, can offer all the amenities needed through aging. With the CCRC ... its not just a nursing home. Its more than that to most people, said Stephanie Lightfoot, director of sales and marketing for Bethany Village. She said that with continuing care, as well as assisted living and home health care, the family isnt scrambling. Theyll always get to be cared for. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Tim Klassens role as president and CEO of Sunrise Credit Union was announced to the public this week a promotion he has been gunning for since 2008. Klassen will succeed Harry Bowler, who is capping off more than 30 years in the credit union system at the end of the month in favour of easing into retirement over the subsequent year. Sunrise Credit Union formed in 2008 as the result of a merger of five credit unions in southern Manitoba, including those in Virden, Turtle Mountain, Hartney, Tiger Hills and Cypress River. Colin Corneau/The Brandon Sun Outgoing Sunrise Credit Union CEO Harry Bowler (left) and new CEO Tim Klassen appreciate the credit union model for benefiting local communities and keeping decision making in the hands of banking customers. Bowler came from Tiger Hills and Klassen came from Cypress Hills, while the other three credit union CEOs opted to retire. While Bowler took over as Sunrise Credit Union CEO, Klassen entered the role of executive vice-president and assistant CEO, with a clear path set out to succeed Bowler. Everything has fallen into place, with the newly formed organization charting growth since 2008, including in Brandon where they opened a small branch on 18th Street in 2010. In 2015, they celebrated the grand opening of their new space at 2305 Victoria Ave., where the companys footprint doubled, with administration offices on the second floor and its branch on the main. They now serve more than 20,000 members from 14 locations throughout southern Manitoba. Sunrise Credit Union is the eighth-largest credit union in Manitoba and among the top 40 in Canada. A lot is changing in the financial industry, Bowler said, noting that theres getting to be more competition all the time. Thats why Sunrise Credit Union came to be, he explained, noting that the level of competition and pace of change was making it difficult for the five smaller organizations to operate, so they merged. Theres more consolidation coming all the time, Bowler said. We believe were positioned to take part in that (and) look after our membership thats what the future holds. Eight years into the organization and more than 25 in the credit union system, Klassen said that it has been the supportive atmosphere at Sunrise Credit Union that has kept him enthused to come into work. Were all a team, were all in it together, Klassen said. We win together, we lose together, Bowler added. Its not about us, its about them our community, Klassen added. Its about what were here to do give back and build together. Bowler is sticking around Sunrise Credit Union for the next year as a consultant during the transition. However, he said that he doesnt anticipate being too hands-on, with Klassen having long since proved himself in the position. tclarke@brandonsun.com Twitter: @TylerClarkeMB Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Pride. I can honestly say that after speaking with more than four dozen business owners this past year, the one thing that stands out is that they are all really proud of their accomplishments and the businesses theyve created. This is especially true of Mo Karrouze. Karrouze is the proud owner of two businesses Hairistocracy, a busy hair salon in Brandon, and now the new Tranquility Spa. Even though this entrepreneur could be entertaining the possibility of retirement, he has decided instead to expand his operations. Its kind of a celebration for being in business for 25 years, its a celebration for me and a celebration for my clients. It will be part of my legacy, Karrouze said. Tim Smith/The Brandon Sun Sydney Ransom, Meaghan Karrouze, Mo Karrouze, Jenna Karrouze, Kristy Fischer and Alex Park with Hairistocracy and Tranquility Spa at the hair salon on Princess Avenue. The new spa features esthetician Sydney Ransom, who uses a product line that is unique to this region called [comfort zone], which comes from Italy and is from the skin care division of Davines Group the product line that is used in the hair salon. Were an organic salon. If its not good for our environment, why would we put it on your hair or skin. Weve always been very environmentally conscience, Karrouze said. Karrouze, Ransom and the other associates are pleased to partner with this company as its products are created with natural-origin ingredients and are free from silicones, parabens, mineral oils, artificial colours and animal derivatives. Karrouze said they didnt actually find the product the company found them. They all of a sudden invited my salon to the launch in Canada. When they started introducing their products to this part of the country, the distributor was asked to find boutique salons because its more of a boutique line, so they came to us. They look for salons that are in the forefront in changing the planet. Ransom, a recent graduate of H & Co Academy, said she thoroughly enjoys working with the product and is finding that clients are expecting products that not only work well, but that are all natural. Its not fruity and doesnt have a strong smell. Its very natural. It is also gender-neutral, which is great because it doesnt scare off men. Men dont always realize how important their skin care regime is, so its great to have a product that appeals to them as well, Ransom said. Tranquility Spa offers a menu of services which include customized facials, body treatments, waxing, manicures, pedicures and eye enhancements. It is located in the building north of the hair salon and opened at the end of the summer after a complete interior and exterior renovation. In terms of Hairistocracy, this European-inspired beauty salon was also completely renovated earlier this year. The extensive renovations included taking out a wall, redoing the flooring and lighting, adding two feature walls, one in barn board and one in stone and a new paint palette. Karrouze has five full-time hair designers who work alongside him, two of whom are his daughters, Meghan and Jenna. He said that all four of his daughters grew up in the salon, so it was exciting when two of them chose to join the family business. After purchasing the two buildings 14 years ago, Karrouze moved the hair salon to the building right on Princess Avenue and until opening the spa had two apartments in the house next door. But he still has plans for further expansion. Theres an apartment adjacent to the salon, so eventually Id like to have a small school here someday to teach our techniques. I started at Vidal Sassoon in London, I worked at Alan Spiers of Berkeley Square and Antonios in New York City for a number of years. I learned from those amazing people and all the stylists around me, so I have a strict code of ethics when it comes to cutting and colouring. Everyone who works here has done their apprenticeship with me and Id like to share our techniques with others, Karrouze said. This is my art. I dont look at it as a job. You can find Hairistocracy and Tranquility Spa at 2103 Princess Ave. or call 204-728-4800. Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Just a few weeks ago, this columnist gave Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Liberals a pass on the so-called pay-for-play fundraising scandal. After all, in light of the outrageous political happenings south of the border, Canadians looked parsimonious and modest in their scandals. Yours truly incorrectly assumed this scandal would go away. I was wrong. As previously noted, Canadian politics are generally quite even-handed and mild. Our debates are not raucous affairs. In fact, they tend to be policy-heavy and lack all of the drama of a Trump-Clinton free-for-all. The same is true of our political spending. Election spending in Canada is regulated through spending caps per voter and contribution limits on donors. This is not the Wild West. The Canadian Press Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks after meeting with indigenous leaders on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Thursday. Kerry Auriat writes that after more than a year in office including the ongoing pay-for-play fundraising controversy Trudeau may find voters a little more skeptical of him. Even in light of the Trudeau fundraising mess, we are still mild by comparison. However, we are not as innocent as we may wish nor proclaim ourselves to be. As our American friends have shown us, todays voters are a fickle lot and tend to view authenticity as the singular most important asset for a politician to possess. Trudeau enjoyed the fruits of this belief during the last election when he rocketed from third to first. Now he risks finding himself on the receiving end of voter skepticism. Trudeau outlined general principles for open and accountable government. Canadians, by and large tired of cynical politicians supping at the patronage trough, embraced these ideas. Foremost among these principles was the statement Ministers and parliamentary secretaries must ensure that political fundraising activities or considerations do not affect, or appear to affect, the exercise of their official duties or the access of individuals or organizations to government. These principles seem straightforward and simple. Canadians endorsed these rules. I support these rules. Except, of course, for the fact that words like appear and affect are almost impossible to live by in a real world. In recent weeks, we have learned that prominent members of the government have attended high-end fundraising events that cost attendees as much as $1,500 per person. At that price level, obviously regular Canadians are priced out of attendance. We have also learned that several businesspeople who attended these events were concurrently dealing with the government on matters. That is, literally by definition, a potential conflict of interest. Do we know that favours were granted in exchange for cash? No. They may, in fact, have been perfectly appropriate government decisions. Does it appear inappropriate? Yes. Is there a potential for conflict? Yes. Does this scandal contradict Trudeaus promises and principles? Absolutely. In our 24-hour news cycle with social media leveraging opposition and ugly rumours, Trudeaus popularity is bound to take a tumble. He has established a series of principles that have proven impossible to uphold. Trudeau has serious policy issues ahead of him. He has taken on the pipeline question which may hurt him in B.C. If the housing market slows, if President Donald Trump proves difficult to deal with, or the economy suffers, Trudeau will bear the weight of these challenges. Trudeau made holier-than-thou promises. Now we shall see how he lives with them. Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. In the Encyclopaedia Britannica, a gift is defined as something bestowed (given) gratuitously. At this season of giving, we can all be thankful for the gifts we have received. Some gifts we receive during the year, some are across a lifetime and still others happen in an instant. Throughout the year, nearly 650 students at Brandon University celebrate the gifts they have received in the form of scholarships and bursaries awarded, totalling almost $1.6 million. It means that the average scholarship or bursary received is close to $2,500 for each student. These awards are often funded through your donations and from supporters of the university and our students. Many of our students write me notes telling me how these awards have affected their lives and studies. I would like to share with you some of their statements of gratitude: As the recipient of this scholarship, I am able to comfortably continue my studies and please know that this award will be put to good use towards my future studies. And, finally, this one: Thank you for helping my mom. You helped me too. You are really nice. Avery (Grade 2). Throughout the year, as you give to the university or any other cause, please know the recipients of your gifts sincerely thank you. Across a lifetime, the gifts we receive are often simple but life-changing. My parents, brother and sisters were all avid readers and they got through books at a quick pace. We would sit around the kitchen table and discuss any and every topic I learned a lot at our kitchen table. It might partially explain why I enjoy so much the friendship and camaraderie at the coffee shops across Brandon. When we were kids in Toronto in the early 1970s, my parents bought us a set of Encyclopaedia Britannica. Looking back at it now, it was a substantial financial commitment for them at the time, but it also represented the value they put on learning and education. Well, interestingly enough, I was the slow reader in the family today, we say dyslexic. At the time, slow readers did not have an easy time in the school system, but a lot of effort, some help and an interest in mathematics kept me going. Over the years, my reading skills have improved, and today I am anything but a slow reader. I still have the gift of dyslexia, which has allowed me to appreciate how difficult it can be for others to achieve what some take for granted and how the quest to possess the magic of reading (or any other skill or ability) can propel one to become an avid reader and discover new worlds and ignite ones imagination through the process. My dyslexia and my reading have been gifts for me throughout my lifetime. Perhaps we all have gifts in our life that require us to look at a weakness a little differently or cause us to redefine a challenge into an opportunity. It may indeed be a gift anytime throughout our lives when we can do this and also appreciate something from another perspective. In an instant we can receive a gift. It has now been a few decades, but I still remember the instance of one particular gift. A group of us had volunteered to deliver care packages for the holiday season. We went across Toronto delivering packages and had saved the last one to be delivered for an address near where we lived at that time, during the mid-1980s. It was an apartment building just a few addresses away on Godstone Road near Fairview Mall. When we got to the apartment, we were met by a woman with three children in the background and we could see that they had no furniture in the apartment my heart sunk and I hoped that they might even have mattresses or something to sleep on. We gave her the food parcel and in it was a box of cookies. She thanked us and stepping forward so her children would not see her hiding the box of cookies. She whispered these are for their Christmas. It was going to be their only Christmas present. My heart sunk even deeper. She seems to have been a new Canadian who had recently emigrated, possibly from Eastern Europe. Life was certainly not easy for her and her children, but she was going to make the best of it and she had joy for the gifts she received and the gift she could give, even in the form of a single box of cookies. In an instant, I understood the joy and importance of giving and generosity. It was only an instant, but I have carried this memory with me ever since. In this season of giving, a gift may be provided throughout the year, a lifetime or even in an instant. Your kindness and thoughtfulness will be remembered and will affect the lives of others. Some of you will extend the gift of friendship and welcome to others. Many of you will extend your generosity through gifts and donations to the university in support of students, education and research. Others will give your time to caring for others and towards building an outstanding community. Whatever form your giving takes in this season of giving, thank you and happy holidays! Gervan Fearon is the president and vice-chancellor of Brandon University. He holds a Ph.D. in economics, a BSc. and M.Sc. in agricultural economics and a chartered professional accountant designation. His column appears monthly. Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. The Canadian government finally seems poised to ban asbestos, something it should have done decades ago. And it only took the country 29 years to make that momentous decision. The World Health Organization declared asbestos a human carcinogen in 1987, and since then that decision has prompted more than 50 countries around the world to ban the substance. But not Canada. Until now. On Thursday, Science Minister Kirsty Duncan announced that the Liberals would move to ban the use of asbestos by 2018. When it comes to asbestos, the scientific evidence is clear, Duncan stated in a press release. This irrefutable evidence has led us to take concrete action to ban asbestos My colleagues and I will continue to work hard to ensure their families, co-workers and communities will be protected from the harmful impacts of asbestos exposure so they may lead healthy, secure lives. That our federal governments foot-dragging will come to an end is a welcome development. But that doesnt change the fact that for far too long, the federal government was complicit regarding the harm done to millions of people both here and abroad. Over the years, Canada has contributed to this mass exposure by being one of the largest exporters of the hazardous substance, even as there were moves across the country to eradicate asbestos from our homes and workplaces. Chrysotile asbestos was an industry worth millions of dollars to the Quebec economy until it collapsed a few years ago. But that collapse didnt halt the ongoing exposure of potentially hundreds of thousands of people in developing countries that imported Canadian asbestos, including India, Thailand, Indonesia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Statistics Canada records show that between 2004 and 2014, Canada imported several asbestos-laden products including replacement brake pads, pipes, tiles and clothing. Last year alone the country imported $6 million in raw asbestos and products containing the mineral, up from $4.9 million in 2013. According to statistics from the Occupational Cancer Research Centre, as per a Globe and Mail report this week, an estimated 2,300 Canadians are diagnosed with asbestos-related cancers every year, including mesothelioma and lung cancer. Further, approximately 152,000 Canadians are exposed to asbestos in the workplace, according to CAREX Canada. And World Health Authority numbers suggest that around the world, its estimated that about 125 million people are exposed to asbestos in their workplace. Thankfully, the federal government is moving forward with a blanket ban on the carcinogenic substance. Canada will no longer import, manufacture or export asbestos as per new regulations coming to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act. The Ottawa Sun reported that the legislation will include new workplace health and safety rules, changes to national building codes and an expanded inventory of public buildings that contain asbestos. One hundred and fifty-six countries have listed asbestos as hazardous under the Rotterdam Convention, a multilateral treaty to promote shared responsibilities in relation to the importation of hazardous chemicals. The Trudeau government has stated it will sign the agreement next spring. Unfortunately, the fact that successive federal governments both Conservative and Liberal failed to do the right thing and ban asbestos as so many other countries have done remains a national shame. Propping up a hazardous industry, just because federal politicians didnt want to anger Quebec politicians, business owners and voters, is poor comfort for men and women who will continue to be exposed to Canadian-made asbestos products so many decades from now. While we are glad to see the federal government finally move to ban asbestos, there is very little to celebrate in the act. Bethany Village has been in operation for 50 years, and eight years ago, it was going strong strong enough to warrant an expansion at the Lower Allen Township campus. And then the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis and recession hit, and Continuing Care Retirement Communities across the country felt the impact. Some CCRCs that otherwise were doing well financially were suddenly facing bankruptcy a decision that could affect all of the residents who lived on the campuses. Like other CCRCs, the housing crisis was a concern at Bethany Village. We were right in the middle of an expansion we were adding 47 new (units), said Stephanie Lightfoot, director of sales and marketing at Bethany Village. A lot of communities struggled. Lightfoot admitted there was obviously some concern with the expansion planned at the same time the recession hit, but she noted that Bethany Village was able to overcome it by offering significant financial incentives for new residents. That decision resulted in Bethany being able to sell all of the new units before they opened. Not all communities were able to pull out of the recession. Dickinson Law professor Katherine Pearson co-authored an article in April 2011 on the financial difficulties facing CCRCs and what protections, if any, the state offered residents. In the article, Pearson said three CCRCs in Pennsylvania filed for bankruptcy protection between 2008 to 2011. While no one lost their home, one of the CCRCs took away the residents right to the contractual refundable entrance fees due to the sale of the debtors property to a new owner. Pearson said the attraction to CCRCs have historically been because they are often nonprofits that are mission-driven with a focus on residents. Many started as religious or membership organizations, such as Quaker communities or Masonic communities, though many have since expanded to include those outside of religious or member groups. However, a number of CCRCs are changing or are being established as for-profit entities, especially after the recession. CCRCs have really undergone some big changes nationally, and some of that is mirrored in Pennsylvania, as well, Pearson said. Pennsylvania has always had a very large presence of nonprofit CCRCs. Nationally, some nonprofits are getting out of the business and converting to for-profits. In Pennsylvania, its not as big of a trend, but it could continue. Its something that doesnt have a direct effect on residents, she added. For-profits managing communities results in some changes in focus and style. Its a change in the whole health care industry. Along with the change, however, is added caution on the part of the CCRCs. One of the good things or not-so-bad things is that there was a big boom in CCRCs before 2008 and stopped after 2008, Pearson said. Those that came into service after that had to be very careful of finances. Many that are operating have sorted themselves out by now. Oversight and stability Though CCRCs can be a risky investment for residents who trust the community will operate through their lifetime, there is not a lot of oversight in Pennsylvania to ensure that CCRCs are doing right by their residents. Unlike nursing homes that are regularly investigated by the Pennsylvania Department of Health, CCRCs are regulated by the Pennsylvania Insurance Department, which licenses the communities. CCRC regulations vary across the country, with some like those in Pennsylvania being licensed by an insurance department, while others falling under health and human services or aging departments. Some states do not regulate them at all. In 2010, Pennsylvania had the highest number of CCRCs in the country, with 189 communities, according to the federal Government Accountability Office. In GAOs report in 2010, it noted that Pennsylvania does not require CCRCs to conduct or provide a market study as part of its application for licensing. However, the state does have regulatory authority to financially examine CCRCs, and is one of the few states that completes those exams. Pennsylvania requires financial disclosures from licensed CCRS, but the the Insurance Department did not make those easily accessible something Pearson noted was a failing for the state. In Pennsylvania, CCRCs is a lightly regulated industry, she said. Its all about disclosures. The state rarely steps in with CCRCs when theres an argument with residents. However, Ali Fogarty, deputy press secretary for the Insurance Department, said the departments IT staff is working on making those disclosures available online, with a goal to have them ready by the end of the year or early in 2017. Previously, the disclosures were only available by request. Another way to also determine the financial stability of a CCRC is by looking at the occupancy rate. If a community has a low occupancy rate, that may indicate that the community may not be getting the financial resources it needs to stay open or provide the services needed or wanted by its residents. Lightfoot said the occupancy rate is one of the most important questions to ask. The average for CCRCs is 90 percent. Bethany Village for the year is at 95 percent, while Green Ridge Village in October was at 97.26 percent, according to Presbyterian Senior Living. For Pearson, knowing who owns the CCRCs and their financial stability should be important factors in anyones decision as they look at retirement. Though she started focusing on CCRCs after learning about them from an elder law clinic at Dickinson a decade ago, she also noted that her criticisms of how oversight is handled has much to do with how important these types of facilities are. Pennsylvania has very good CCRCs, some of the best in the country, she said. If you can afford it, its great. The reason why I have done so much with CCRCs is because I want that when Im ready. Lawyers representing Nama have issued an order to vacate Apollo House, after it was occupied by activists who converted it into emergency accommodation for the homeless. The group which is occupying the building on Dublin's Tara Street says vacant properties owned by the State agency should be used to house the homeless. They renamed Apollo House 'Home Sweet Home'. The Housing Minister Simon Coveney has said the Apollo House sit-in is not the way to tackle Dublin's homeless crisis. Apollo House on Tara Street has been renamed "Home Sweet Home" by a group of activists and artists who have occupied the NAMA-owned property and are converting it into homeless accommodation. Louis Walsh was on the Late Late Show last night and he revealed who he is taking to next year's Eurovision. The X Factor judge, who took control of Irelands Eurovision entry for 2017 has turned to one of his boyband members. Brendan Murray from Hometown, who announced their split last week, will be Ireland's representative in Kiev in May. Louis told the Late Late Show: "Brendan is perfect for Eurovision, he has a distinctive voice and a look that I think will really appeal to audiences across Europe." Brendan showed his Eurovision credentials by singing Johnny Logan's Eurovision winning classic "Hold Me Now". However, Louis is still looking for a song for the Galway singer to perform. He will be joined by a panel appointed by RTE to choose the song which will be performed by Brendan on The Late Late Show early next year. Louis said: "I want to find the best song for Brendan to perform on that Eurovision stage. Im going to use my own contacts in the business and I want to hear songs from Irish songwriters or songwriters abroad until I find the best song. "I wont rest until I do." Songwriters can enter their song on the RTE website. The US president Barack Obama says the world is in horror at the Syrian regime's assault on the city of Aleppo. The United Nations believes tens of thousands of people are still trapped in the east of the city after an operation to take anti-government supporters out of the area was suspended. Teenager Anne Frank may not have been betrayed to Nazi occupiers, but captured by chance, a new study has said. The study by the Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam says despite decades of research there is no conclusive evidence that the young Jewish diarist and her family were betrayed to the Netherlands' German occupiers during the Second World War, leading to their arrest and deportation. Ronald Leopold, executive director of the Anne Frank House museum, said new research by the museum "illustrates that other scenarios should also be considered". One possible theory is that the August 4, 1944, raid that led to Anne's arrest could have been part of an investigation into illegal labour or falsified ration coupons at the canal-side house where she and other Jews hid for just over two years. Anne kept a diary during her time in hiding that was published after the war and turned her into a globally recognised symbol of Holocaust victims. She died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp at 15, shortly before it was liberated by Allied forces. The new research points to two men who worked in the building on Amsterdam's Prinsengracht canal and dealt in illegal ration cards. They were arrested earlier in 1944 and subsequently released, Dutch records show. The arrests also are mentioned in Anne's diary. Such arrests were reported to an investigation division based in The Hague and the report says: "During their day-to-day activities, investigators from this department often came across Jews in hiding by chance." Another possibility raised by the report is that the raid was part of an investigation into people being allowed to work to prevent them being called up as forced labour and sent to Germany. "A company where people were working illegally and two sales representatives were arrested for dealing in ration coupons obviously ran the risk of attracting the attention of the authorities," the report says. It says "the possibility of betrayal has of course not been entirely ruled out by this, nor has any relationship between the ration coupon fraud and the arrest been proven" and says further research is necessary. "Clearly, the last word about that fateful summer day in 1944 has not yet been said," it adds. Talks aimed at averting strikes by baggage handlers and other staff at 18 airports in the UK will be held at Acas next week. Officials from the Unite union and aviation services company Swissport will meet at the conciliation service on Tuesday. More than 1,500 check-in staff, baggage handlers and cargo crew are due to strike for 48 hours just before Christmas in a long-running pay dispute. Members of Unite employed by Swissport will walk out on December 23 and 24 at Aberdeen, Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Bournemouth, Cardiff, Doncaster, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Gatwick, Glasgow, Heathrow, Leeds/Bradford, Luton, Manchester, Newcastle, Southampton and Stansted. Unite general secretary Len McCluskey said: "This is clearly a positive development. We are pleased that the company will sit down with us in an effort the resolve this dispute. We are confident that our members' case is extremely strong, and that fairness will prevail." No talks have yet been arranged to try to head off a strike by British Airways cabin crew on Christmas Day and St Stephen's Day in a row over pay. The airline said it was "appalled" at the decision by the Unite union and pledged to ensure its customers get to their destinations. The row involves around 4,500 so-called mixed fleet cabin crew who joined BA since 2010. Unite say they are on lower pay than other staff. BA, which employs around 16,000 cabin crew, said in a statement: "We are appalled that Unite proposes to disrupt customers' travel plans on such special days when so many families are trying to gather together or set off on well-deserved holidays. This calculated and heartless action is completely unnecessary and we are determined that it will fail. "We will plan to ensure all our customers travel to their destinations so that their Christmas arrangements are not ruined. "Meanwhile, we have also approached the conciliation service Acas to seek their assistance in reaching an outcome that would avoid any possibility of disruption." Mr McCluskey said: "Unite remains ready and willing to talk to BA at any time. This dispute can be sorted but the company needs to come to the table with a positive offer." PennDOT has lifted the speed limit restrictions as of noon that have been in place since 6:30 AM this morning on major highways in south central Pennsylvania. Posted earlier on Cumberlink: Due to the winter storm impacting the region, PennDOT has temporarily reduced the speed limit on major roadways in south central Pennsylvania Saturday as of 6:30 a.m. PennDOT reduced speeds to 45 mph on the following highways: Interstate 81 in Franklin, Cumberland, Dauphin and Lebanon counties Interstate 78 in Lebanon County Interstate 83 in York, Cumberland and Dauphin counties Interstate 283 in Dauphin County Route 283 in Dauphin and Lancaster counties Route 22/322 in Dauphin County and Perry counties Route 581 in Cumberland County Route 11 in Franklin and Cumberland counties Route 15 in Adams, York and Cumberland counties Route 11/15 in Cumberland and Perry County counties Route 30 in York and Lancaster Counties Route 222 in Lancaster County, from Route 30 to Berks County line Although PennDOT crews have been treating roadways, the departments primary goal is to keep roads passable, not completely free of ice and snow. PennDOT will continue to treat roadways throughout the storm until precipitation stops and roads are clear. PennDOT officials said they recommend not traveling during winter storms. However, if people must travel, they can check conditions on major roadways by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information and access to more than 770 traffic cameras. Just under one percent weight in national CPI, with a contribution of over one-fourth in inflation, such is the ... PARIS: People with monkeypox can spread the virus up to four days before symptoms appear, with more than half of... It is concerning that a 20-month federal inquiry into home ownership could reasonably conclude there is nothing wrong with housing affordability in Australia. However it is not surprising that the Coalition-dominated parliamentary committee would not find a single recommendation to the government for reform. The Turnbull government has steadfastly refused to consider any reforms to tax incentives for investors and this report neatly provides another nail in the coffin for tackling the issue. It rejected the push to change negative gearing or capital gains tax arrangements and while it urged boosting housing supply, the report said this was a matter for the states. All eyes will be on Melbourne's National Gallery of Victoria next year for the House of Dior: Seventy Years of Haute Couture exhibition. However, as is the way with most great things, like avocado toast and voting in a Premier that can backflip better than Simone Biles, Sydney did it first. Model Bella Hadid at a Dior event in New York. Credit:Getty Images Sydney was the first city to which Christian Dior entrusted his collections back in 1948, where the first Dior show outside of Paris was held at David Jones, in the famous "On Seven". The grand event space on the seventh floor of the Elizabeth Street was referred to as "The Great Restaurant" when a state banquet was held for the Queen during her visit in 1954. The refurbished venue is now better known for the biannual fashion launches and parade of Jesinta Campbell's abs. Back in 1948 Dior shipped out more than 50 original garments to the department store via a Lancastrian plane. The dresses and accessories were modelled for society ladies by local "mannequins", including etiquette expert June Dally-Watkins, after they "proved that their waists were around the 20 inch [50 centimetre] mark," the Herald reported at the time. 3024 : PM , 345 A western Sydney teenager suing three media outlets for allegedly mocking him for sporting a "hair-larious" mullet has suffered a setback in his defamation case, after a judge took the scissors to major parts of his claim. Ali Ziggi Mosslmani, who styles himself "Ziggy", was catapulted to internet stardom after he was photographed at an 18th birthday party in Hurstville sporting his now-famous mane. Sydney teen Ali Ziggi Mosslmani sues media outlets over mullet photo. He is suing Daily Mail Australia, The Daily Telegraph and KIIS radio in the NSW District Court for a series of articles online and in print that reproduced the image along with a selection of memes. Judge Judith Gibson has already questioned whether the case has backfired by attracting a wave of unwanted publicity a phenomenon dubbed "the Streisand effect" after US entertainer Barbra Streisand came under increased scrutiny following efforts to suppress photos of her Malibu mansion. Brisbane now has direct fights to Shanghai, China's biggest city with a population of 24 million, following the first flight on Saturday. China Eastern Airlines vice-president Liuwen Tian surprised and delighted Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on Saturday, announcing the airline would move quickly to begin daily flights in 2017, as their original agreement set out. China East Airlines is beginning daily flights from Brisbane to to Shanghai. Credit:Tony Moore Until then, four flights a week - Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday - will operate between the two cities. The first flight from Shanghai touched down about 10am on Saturday to a welcome of koala diplomacy and didgeridoos blended with a mix of Indigenous and Chinese Lion dancing. The return flight was scheduled to land in Shanghai at 8pm China time. They perform their Christmas work without a Santa suit, toys or a sled. But these two Victorian farmers have, for decades, contributed to the Christmas celebrations of tens of thousands of families across Australia. The fruit of their labour ends up in living rooms across Melbourne, country Victoria, Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide, covered in tinsel, baubles and often a star or an angel on top. Just days ago they supplied a shipment destined for the Maldives. Business partners Neil Cranston and Neale Drury are big players in the Christmas tree market, growing tens of thousands of trees on tidy farms on Melbourne's south-eastern fringe, just beyond the rapidly advancing housing estates that, presumably, house some of their customers. The Maldives might only represent a small order, this year just three trees, but it is a regular destination. "Every year we have a few go over there," Mr Cranston says, while standing between two perfectly manicured rows. Beirut: The evacuation of residents from the last rebel-held section in the devastated Syrian city of Aleppo broke down on Friday, with thousands of people still trapped inside, as concerns grew about their fate. The breakdown a day after Syrian government buses and ambulances had begun taking people out of the besieged area came as Russia claimed, incorrectly, that all civilians wishing to leave had already been evacuated and that only "irreconcilable" fighters remained, further raising fears among those still trapped. The World Health Organisation's Syria representative, Elizabeth Hoff, said thousands remained, including many women and many children younger than five. She said WHO staff had been ordered to leave the evacuation area on Friday morning, but "no reason was given". Tensions came to a head when a convoy of hundreds of evacuees was detained and turned back by pro-government militiamen. They blocked the way, according to rebel and pro-government fighters, because insurgents in Idlib province, further north, were blocking an evacuation of civilians from two villages besieged by rebels. WASHINGTON -- Indiana's Thomas R. Marshall, who was America's vice president 100 years ago, voiced -- he plucked it from a Hoosier humorist -- one of the few long-remembered utterances to issue from that office: "What this country needs is a good 5-cent cigar," which would be $1.11 in today's currency. A century later, what the country needs is a $12 twelve-ounce cup of coffee. Or so Howard Schultz thinks. Betting against the man who built Starbucks to a market capitalization of $86 billion is imprudent. Today, you cannot swing a dead cat without hitting a Starbucks store. There are 25,000 in 75 countries, with another 12,000 due by 2021, so Starbucks is not an elusive or exclusive experience. This poses a problem peculiar to affluent societies, and an opportunity. Seattle, where the original Starbucks was opened in 1971, now has a Starbucks Roastery where customers can turn a cup of "small-batch" coffee into an experience -- Starbucks sells experiences as much as coffee -- of both conspicuous consumption and conspicuous connoisseurship. Bloomberg reports that for a pittance, aka $10, skinflints will be able to buy a cold-brew coffee, which presumably is an excellent thing, infused with nitrogen gas, which sounds like an acquired taste. Many existing Starbucks are located to capture foot traffic in malls and shopping centers, which have been losing customers to online shopping. The original 30 Roasteries -- Reuters says they will be "ultra-premium," not mere tacky premium -- will be destinations where people will go to linger. So, by 2021, when there will be more normal Starbucks than McDonald's, the few Starbucks Roasteries scattered from New York to Shanghai will be Starbucks' entry into the positional economy. Very pricey coffee is just a fresh-brewed variation on the familiar phenomenon of positional goods. They are necessarily, inherently enjoyments for the few. They exist because, particularly in the upper reaches of affluent societies, it is not love that makes the world go 'round, it is a compound of envy and pretentiousness. Four decades ago, the economist Fred Hirsch distinguished between the material economy and the positional economy. Once a society has satisfied basic material needs (food, shelter, clothing), it turns yesterday's luxuries (cars, air conditioning, college educations) into necessities. Because these are mass-market commodities, such material prosperity is a leveling, egalitarian force. Positional competition is emphatically not. In the competition for an "elite" education or an "exclusive" vacation spot, one person's success is necessarily a loss for many other persons because positional goods cannot be expanded indefinitely. Of course, Starbucks Roasteries could be expanded by the thousands, but this would make the "experience" banal and drain the stores of their positional power. After elementary needs -- food, shelter, clothing -- are satisfied, consumption nevertheless continues, indeed it intensifies because desires are potentially infinite. People compare themselves to their neighbors, envy their neighbors' advantages, and strive to vault ahead in the envy-ostentation sweepstakes. The political equality of democratic societies leaves ample room for, and incites, social inequalities, which are coveted because they counter the leveling forces of mass affluence. Furthermore, as inherited privilege has been replaced by social rationality -- Napoleon's "careers open to talents," a meritocracy based on skills and education -- there is a residual human urge for irrational distinction. Such as savoring a $12 cup not just for the -- let us stipulate -- divine flavor but for the sheer fun of showing that you can and that your palate is so refined that merely very good coffee would be excruciating. In any American city large enough to sustain a social ecosystem of snobbery, there is a magazine to guide fastidious consumers to "the five best craft breweries" or "the five best artisanal cheese shops." Heaven forefend that anyone should have to settle for the sixth best. For discerning tipplers, there are artisanal ice cubes. In San Francisco, The Mill, a cafe and bakery, offers artisanal toast for $4 a slice. It is to die for, say the cognoscenti. Where will the positional economy end? It won't. Stanford professor Francis Fukuyama notes that it is a peculiarity of human beings that they desire some things "not for themselves but because they are desired by other human beings." Hamsters have more sense. This characteristic of our species -- the quest for recognition by distinguishing oneself from others -- provides limitless marketing possibilities because for many wealthy people, "the chief enjoyment of riches consists in the parade of riches." So wrote Adam Smith in "The Wealth of Nations," published in the resonant year of 1776. George Will's email address is georgewill@washpost.com. Photos: Phillies fans converge on CBP for Game 4 Phillies fans were hyped up for Game 4 of the World Series at Citizens Bank Park and the stadium complex Wednesday. Yardley Friends Meeting at 65 N. Main Street in Yardley will host the documentary Organic Roots on Friday, November 18 at 7 p.m. Join director Al Johnson for a showing of this film followed by a discussion of the last 50 years of this movement. Organic foods are part of our life today and a tool in our concern for... Bank employee admits role in scheme that targeted South Jersey cash Feds say call-center workers took customers' ID and account information, then used that to take their cash. PLEASE NOTE! Due to the March 23, 2020 NM DOH Public Health Order, These Event Listings Are Not Accurate! All non-essential businesses are closed, public gatherings are prohibited! (One day some of these events will be rescheduled or will resume, but they are not happening now!) The Electoral College meets this Monday in what will be the final step in Donald Trump's improbable rise to the presidency. But it will also be the last chance for #NeverTrump dead-enders to keep Trump out of the White House. And now, the anti-Trump effort has been given new fuel by allegations of Russian attempts to interfere with the presidential election. Trump won 306 electoral votes. There are 306 electors, actual people, who are expected to vote for him next Monday in Electoral College meetings in state capitals across the country. Trump's total is 36 more than the 270 required to become president. With that in mind, a group of Trump resisters is hoping to convince 37 Trump electors to vote for someone else on Monday, taking Trump just below the magic 270 mark. If that were to happen, Trump would not become president. The hope is to create one of two scenarios. If rogue electors vote for candidates other than Hillary Clinton, who won 232 electoral votes on Election Day, then no candidate would have 270 and the election would be thrown to the House of Representatives. If the 37, plus one more, voted for Clinton, she would reach 270 and become president. "This election is not in the books," said Chris Suprun, a Texas Republican elector who says he will not vote for Trump, at a news conference Sunday. "While we have been perhaps remiss in thinking it is, Dec. 19 is when ballots will be cast." Suprun would not reveal who he will vote for, but said it will not be Clinton. "While I have not chosen my candidate, I am going to vote for another Republican, someone who I think can unite our country and will do so effectively without the issues that Mr. Trump faces that disqualify him from the presidency," Suprun said. Although Trump won Texas by more than 800,000 votes, there is no law requiring Suprun to vote for him. Texas is one of 21 states that do not require electors to vote for the winner of the popular vote in that state. In 29 states, however, there are laws requiring electors to vote for the popular vote winner. California and Colorado are two of those 29 states. Now, in the wake of Trump's win, there are lawsuits in both states challenging restrictions on electors. Neither suit was filed by Trump electors seeking to vote for someone else; there are no Trump electors in California and Colorado, which Clinton won. Instead, both suits were filed by Democratic electors seeking to knock down the laws in other states that bind electors to Trump. In the California suit, Democratic elector Vinzenz Koller argues that he "must be allowed to exercise his judgment and free will to vote for whomever he believes to be the most qualified and fit for the office of president and vice president within the circumstances and with the knowledge known on Dec. 19, 2016, whether those candidates are Democrats, Republicans, or from a third party." There are reports that a total of 10 electors support the lawsuits. The problem for the anti-Trump forces is that nine of those electors are Democrats who weren't going to vote for Trump anyway. Only one, Suprun, is a Republican. The Trump resisters have formed a group called the Hamilton Electors, named in honor of Alexander Hamilton, who wrote Federalist 68, which deals with the Electoral College. The group says it represents electors "who are pledging to put America first and vote for a qualified Republican alternative who can unify our country." (The group doesn't name names, but some involved in the cause have mentioned Ohio Gov. John Kasich as a possible compromise candidate.) There are other efforts as well. There is a petition created by change.org urging Republican electors to vote for Clinton. "We are calling on 'Conscientious Electors' to protect the Constitution from Donald Trump, and to support the national popular vote winner," organizers say. They claim 4.7 million people have signed the petition. In addition, Harvard University law professor Lawrence Lessig has formed something called "The Electors Trust" to offer free legal advice to Republican electors thinking about abandoning Trump. Backers of the various Electoral College stratagems say their cause has been made more urgent by news reports of Russian efforts to influence the election. "The revelations by the CIA, as reported by The Washington Post, only increased my resolve," Suprun said Sunday. "I will not go to Austin and cast a vote of appeasement to appease the Kremlin. I am calling on the president of the United States, Mr. Obama, please provide the members of the Electoral College with the information we need from the CIA report so we can know if there were undue foreign influences affecting our country." Obama has said he wants the investigation completed by the time he leaves office, Jan. 20. But look for more calls to speed up the work, or to issue a partial report, to get out information before the Dec. 19 Electoral College meeting. The problem with all this is that there has never been a large-scale defection of so-called "faithless electors" in all of American history, and there's no reason to believe one would happen now. The largest defection occurred in 1808, when six electors abandoned James Madison on his way to the presidency. Other than that, defections have been one elector here and one elector there. None ever changed the results of any election. And now, with Trump filling out his Cabinet and preparing to take the oath, with recount efforts fizzling, and with Clinton mostly out of public view, there are supposed to be 37 electors, all for Trump, who jump into the unknown? In addition, if the Hamilton Electors somehow got their way and threw the election to the House, do they actually expect a Republican-dominated body, made up of Republican politicians who come mostly from states that supported Trump, to abandon the candidate who won 306 electoral votes in favor of a candidate who won none? At key points in Trump's run, opponents conjured up elaborate scenarios through which he might be stopped. They planned complex delegate maneuvers at the Republican National Convention. They explored ways of replacing him on the GOP ticket. They hoped he might simply drop out of the race on his own. None of that happened. And now, they are pinning hopes on the most elaborate and unlikely scenario of them all. Byron York is chief political correspondent for The Washington Examiner. The Bombay High Court today did not grant interim relief to the minority shareholders of three Tata Group companies who had sought to restrain its promoters from going ahead with voting at the Extraordinary General Meetings next week on a resolution seeking removal of Nusli Wadia as an independent director. There is an acute shortage of senior airline pilots and commanders in India. With new airlines and more aircraft coming in, the shortage is likely to keep getting more and more acute. Poaching among airlines has become a serious issue and many airlines have been asking the notice period for pilots to be raised to one year. Industry veteran SHAKTI LUMBA, 66, is not known for mincing his words. The former Indian Airlines pilot who also headed Alliance Air (he spent 28 years with Indian airlines) for some time is a known fire-brand in the sector a man who always carried his resignation letter in his pocket. After a long and controversial career with Indian Airlines and Alliance Air, Lumba worked with IndiGo for five years and was part of the start-up team for the airline. In Lumbas view, the growth of aviation in India going forward will be restricted by a severe shortage of senior pilots. He argues that the DGCA will be largely to blame for this as the organisation is caught in a time warp and is more a controlling agency than one that ensures safety and facilitates the sector. He also wants the directorate for flight inspection disbanded. Excerpts from a no-holds barred chat with Anjuli Bhargava. Edited excerpts: Set against the picturesque backdrop of the Mandovi river in Goa, the first edition of the seeks to create a dialogue between different art forms from music and theatre to dance and photography to craft and culinary art. Avantika Bhuyan speaks with SUNIL KANT MUNJAL, chairman, Hero Corporate Service, about the decision to start an interdisciplinary festival and how conversation around arts can be kept alive beyond the duration of the festival. Edited excerpts: Days after Vardah, described as a very severe cyclonic storm, hit Chennai, the city is still grappling with power cuts. The cyclone, which has left a trail of destruction behind it, disrupted mobile and telecommunication services in the city and its neighbouring districts. People struggled to buy essentials since ATMs and point of sale machines didnt work. And, banks were closed for four days in a row. Unlock 30+ premium stories daily hand-picked by our editors, across devices on browser and app. Full access to our intuitive epaper - clip, save, share articles from any device; newspaper archives from 2006. Curated newsletters on markets, personal finance, policy & politics, start-ups, technology, and more. Pick your 5 favourite companies, get a daily email with all news updates on them. 26 years of website archives. Ahead of the eighth edition of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2017 that begins on January 10, the state government claimed a 66% success ratio for the past seven editions. Country Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of Cambodia, Kingdom of Cameroon, United Republic of Canada Cape Verde, Republic of Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad, Republic of Chile, Republic of China, People's Republic of Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia, Republic of Comoros, Union of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, People's Republic of Cook Islands Costa Rica, Republic of Cote D'Ivoire, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Cuba, Republic of Cyprus, Republic of Czech Republic Denmark, Kingdom of Djibouti, Republic of Dominica, Commonwealth of Dominican Republic Ecuador, Republic of Egypt, Arab Republic of El Salvador, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faeroe Islands Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Fiji, Republic of the Fiji Islands Finland, Republic of France, French Republic French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon, Gabonese Republic Gambia, Republic of the Georgia Germany Ghana, Republic of Gibraltar Greece, Hellenic Republic Greenland Grenada Guadaloupe Guam Guatemala, Republic of Guinea, Revolutionary People's Rep'c of Guinea-Bissau, Republic of Guyana, Republic of Haiti, Republic of Heard and McDonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras, Republic of Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region of China Hrvatska (Croatia) Hungary, Hungarian People's Republic Iceland, Republic of India, Republic of Indonesia, Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq, Republic of Ireland Israel, State of Italy, Italian Republic Jamaica Japan Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Kazakhstan, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait, State of Kyrgyz Republic Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon, Lebanese Republic Lesotho, Kingdom of Liberia, Republic of Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein, Principality of Lithuania Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Macao, Special Administrative Region of China Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Madagascar, Republic of Malawi, Republic of Malaysia Maldives, Republic of Mali, Republic of Malta, Republic of Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania, Islamic Republic of Mauritius Mayotte Mexico, United Mexican States Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Monaco, Principality of Mongolia, Mongolian People's Republic Montserrat Morocco, Kingdom of Mozambique, People's Republic of Myanmar Namibia Nauru, Republic of Nepal, Kingdom of Netherlands Antilles Netherlands, Kingdom of the New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua, Republic of Niger, Republic of the Nigeria, Federal Republic of Niue, Republic of Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway, Kingdom of Oman, Sultanate of Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama, Republic of Papua New Guinea Paraguay, Republic of Peru, Republic of Philippines, Republic of the Pitcairn Island Poland, Polish People's Republic Portugal, Portuguese Republic Puerto Rico Qatar, State of Reunion Romania, Socialist Republic of Russian Federation Rwanda, Rwandese Republic Samoa, Independent State of San Marino, Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu US Virgin Islands Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland United States Minor Outlying Islands United States of America Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe Sugar sales are likely to decline by 9.49 per cent in October-December due to a slowdown in lifting by bulk consumers and a decline in retail demand. India is developing a brand new short-range, ballistic missile called the Agni-1P, equipped with cutting-edge technologies. This will replace the old Prithvi and Agni-1 missiles that are still the workhorses of our land-based nuclear deterrent. The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday decided to examine all aspects of . The apex court drafted nine questions and referred them to a five-judge Constitution bench. It also stayed the hearing of all petitions related to filed in various high courts, saying the SC alone will hear the petitions to avoid multiplicity of decisions. According to the Gujarat government, 51,738 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) or investment intentions have been signed in the last seven years SANJAY BHATIA, chairman, Mumbai Port Trust, talks to Sanjay Jog on the Major Port Trust Authorities Bill and why it's welcome. Edited excerpts: What will be the impact of divesting the Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP) of regulatory power to fix rates? It is a big positive. Under the proposed Bill, all PPP (public-private partnership) operators will be free to fix rates on market conditions. TAMPs role is redefined; it will fix a tariff (rate), which will be a reference for purposes of bidding for PPP projects. farmers have asked the central government to extend the market intervention scheme (MIS), currently offered to growers in Karnataka till December 31 this year, up to May 2017. Farmers also want the scheme to be extended to growers in Kerala, said S R Satishchandra, president, Central and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Cooperative (Campco). The central government had last week announced it would procure white at a Rs 251 a kg and the red variety Rs 270 a kg from Karnataka, under MIS, in a bid to help farmers reeling under price crash. In the past two years, arecanut prices have come down from Rs 75,000 to roughly Rs 25,000 a quintal now. MIS is a price support mechanism implemented on the request of state governments for procurement of perishable and horticultural commodities in the event of a fall in market prices. The total demand of the crop in India is estimated at around 1.2 million tonnes, while production is pegged at 703,000 tonnes. While there are 14 states producing arecanut, around 50 per cent of the arecanut production is in Karnataka. Growers are attributing the price drop mainly to imports. Most traders import the crop from Indonesia through Sri Lanka by getting certificate of origin from Sri Lanka by value addition and processing. Imports from Sri Lanka to India attract zero per cent customs duty under the India-Sri Lanka free trade agreement. India had imported 67,824 tonnes of arecanut worth $159 million in 2015-16 against 110,000 tonnes worth $229.96 million in 2014-15. PM lauds passage of Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill 2016 by Parliament The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has lauded the passing of Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill 2016 by the Parliament. The Prime Minister said that this is a landmark moment and will add tremendous strength to Accessible India movement. Passage of Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill - 2016 is a landmark moment and will add tremendous strength to Accessible India movement. Under the Act, the types of disabilities have increased and at the same time provisions for additional benefits have been introduced. There are strict provisions for penalties for offences committed against persons with disabilities and violation of provisions of the new law. The new Act has several salient features which will enhance opportunity, equality and accessibility. Have a look. https://goo.gl/Zwpm4k", the Prime Minister said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) ALSO READ Press Statement by Prime Minister during the State visit of President of Tajikistan to India Your Excellency Mr. Emomali Rahmon President of the Republic of Tajikistan,Ladies and Gentlemen,Members of the Media, President of the Republic of Tajikistan,Ladies and Gentlemen,Members of the Media, I extend a warm welcome to President Rahmon and his delegation in India. Tajikistan is a valued friend and strategic partner in Asia. President Rahmon himself is very familiar with India. We are indeed delighted to have the opportunity to host him again. In India, we deeply appreciate his leadership and contribution to strengthening our bilateral relationship. Our strategic partnership is built on a foundation of mutual respect, trust and shared interests in regional security and development. Our countries and societies also enjoy a natural affinity anchored in deep-rooted shared history and heritage. Our cultural, religious and linguistic inter-mingling from the past has carried into the warmth and friendship that characterizes our people-to-people linkages today. Friends, President Rahmon and I had fruitful discussions earlier today. We assessed the broad progress achieved under different pillars of our bilateral engagement, including our partnership in defence and security. India and Tajikistan live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges and threats. The threat from terrorism endangers not just our two countries. It casts a long shadow of violence and instability over the entire region. Combating terrorism has, therefore, been an important area of our cooperative engagement. We appreciate Tajikistans role in the Central Asian region as a mainstay against forces of extremism, radicalism, and terrorism. President Rahmon and I agreed today to strengthen action on this front based on mutually agreed priorities. We will do this on multiple levels :- through reinforcing overall bilateral security cooperation; through greater training, capacity building and information exchanges; and, through active coordination in regional and multilateral contexts. Indias membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization will be a valuable platform to work closely on regional security and counter-terrorism efforts with Tajikistan. President Rahmon and I also exchanged views on the developments in our region. We agreed that peace, stability and prosperity in Afghanistan are important for the region. India and Tajikistan are joined in our steadfast support of the Afghan people and their aspirations for a peaceful and prosperous nation. Friends, President and I agreed on the need to increase the scope and scale of our economic engagement, especially trade and investment traffic. In this context, hydel-power, Information Technology. Pharmaceuticals and healthcare would be areas of priority action. We agreed that enhanced surface connectivity is crucial to realize the promise of our economic partnership for the benefit of our countries. India supports initiatives to develop the existing port and transport infrastructure and connecting it through road and rail network to Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Central Asia. In this respect, we will work to build trade and transit links through Chahbahar port in Iran. India is also engaged in facilitating the International North South Transport Corridor with other members, including Tajikistan. Our planned accession to the Ashgabat Agreement will further help in linking us to Tajikistan and Central Asia. India and Tajikistan enjoy a rewarding partnership in capacity and institution-building, including under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation training programme. President Rahmon and I agreed on sustaining and strengthening this partnership. Friends, Next year, we will commemorate the 25th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Tajikistan. I am encouraged by the wide-ranging agenda for action that President Rahmon and I have set for our countries during this visit. I further expect that the agreements concluded today and our discussions will help boost practical cooperation in different sectors between India and Tajikistan. I once again welcome President Rahmon and wish him a very pleasant stay. Thank you. Thank you very much. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tata Hospital Mumbai records 100% 'cashless' transaction Tata Memorial Centre Cancer Hospital, Mumbai, which functions under the aegis of Department of Atomic Energy Govt of India, has achieved 100% "cashless" transaction through the use of exclusive hospital - specific multipurpose pre- paid Smartcard" which is infact a unique multipurpose card not only offering the facility to make cashless payments by the patient, but also offering the patient the access to his treatment record by registering the MRD / EMR number. This was disclosed today by Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh during his visit to the Tata Memorial Centre where he held an interaction of the hospital faculty members with the scientists and officials of the Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India. Congratulating the faculty members, doctors and staff of the Hospital for having taken a lead in the government health sector in promoting Prime Minister Narendra Modis campaign for cashless transactions, Dr Jitendra Singh said, Tata Memorial Hospital is possibly the first hospital of its kind in government sector which is making all its transactions for treatment, investigation, management etc through cashless payments from smallest amount to large amounts. Citing figures, Dr Jitendra Singh disclosed, on 8th November when Prime Minister announced the decision of remonetization, the total number of cashless transactions in the Tata Memorial Hospital was 287 amounting to Rs.45 lakh on that single day. But within a period of little over one month on 15th December,he said, the number of cashless transactions during a single day went up almost double to 525 amounting to Rs.65 lakh. Displaying the card prepared by the Tata Memorial Hospital, Dr Jitendra Singh, flanked by Director (Academics) Dr Kailash Sharma and other faculty members, said that the Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai has set an example which can be emulated as a role model by other hospitals in the government sector. He elaborated that the exclusive hospital specific multipurpose Smartcard" prepared by the management of Tata Memorial Centre is a pre-paid card which is handed over to the patient the moment he reports and registers himself at the hospital, whether as an in-patient or out-patient. No extra charges are to be paid for procuring this exclusive Smartcard", said Dr Jitendra Singh and added that once the card is in the possession of the patient or his attendants, it can be used for making payments for diagnostic investigations, purchase of medicines, hospital charges, etc. In addition, he said, the card also provides access to the patients hospital record and other details, which he can share for seeking medical consultation from time to time. He further informed that at the time of registering himself as a patient, the person is expected to deposit a certain amount in advance for hospital expenses and this precisely forms the top-up/ backup of the prepaid hospital card. Dr Jitendra Singh also saw a brief presentation on the latest Proton Therapy for cancer management, for which a full-fledged centre is likely to become functional in Tata Memorial Centre from 2020 with possible support from the Department of Atomic Energy. Earlier, Dr Jitendra Singh visited the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) where he convened a review meeting to receive update on the various ongoing projects. He also visited different scientific blocks at the Centre accompanied by Secretary Department of Atomic Energy Dr Shekhar Basu, Director BARC Dr K. N. Vyas, CMD Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) Dr S. K. Sharma, Senior Director Dr N. Nagaich, senior Scientists and officers from administration. Italy's highest court has suspended a sentence handed earlier this year to the former boss of aerospace and defence group Finmeccanica, Giuseppe Orsi, for false accounting and corruption in connection with the sale of 12 luxury helicopters to India, the Italian media reported. The decision came on Friday after both the defence and the prosecution had requested a suspension, on grounds that the Milan appeals court's sentence in April differed too greatly from an earlier ruling. In April, Orsi was sentenced to four-a-half-years years in jail for false accounting and corruption. Also handed a four-year jail term on the same charges was Bruno Spagnolini, former head of AgustaWestland, a subsidiary of Finmeccanica. The pair had been sentenced to two years in prison in October 2014 for false accounting. The court of cassation has referred the case back to the appeals tribunal. Italian media believe that the case will be closed when the statute of limitation expires in March 2017. The case against Orsi and Spagnolini resulted from an investigation launched in 2012 into the sale of 12 luxury helicopters to India's government. Orsi was arrested in 2014 and resigned as chief executive of the aerospace group a short while later. India cancelled the deal with in January 2014 amid allegations that the company paid bribes to win the $753 million contract. The aborted deal was a severe setback for Finmeccanica, having already been hammered by the global financial crisis. President has declared that Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime, Iran and Russia are responsible for the carnage in Aleppo and argued there was nothing Washington could have done to stop the war, short of a military takeover of Syria. And he warned Assad, who has been engaged in a brutal civil war against opposition forces since 2011, that he will not be able to "slaughter his way to legitimacy." "The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo," he told an end-of-year news conference on Friday. "This blood and these atrocities are on their hands," he said. Obama also admitted to reporters that he had asked himself whether the United States did enough to halt the conflict. "There are places around the world where horrible things are happening and - because of my office, because I'm president of the United States I feel responsible," he said. "Is there something I could do that would save lives and make a difference and spare some child who doesn't deserve to suffer?" But the president said there had been no public appetite for the kind of large-scale US military intervention earlier in the war that he believes would have been the only way to halt it. "Unless we were all in and going to take over Syria we were going to have problems," he said. "It sounded like the right thing to do but it was going to be impossible to do this on the cheap." The US leader, who leaves office on January 20 to make way for President-elect Donald Trump, called for impartial observers to deploy to monitor efforts to evacuate civilians from the city. Obama's White House has been engaged in a diplomatic effort to convince Russia to bring Assad to the table to negotiate a peace deal with the Syrian opposition. But all attempts to secure a ceasefire have rapidly broken down, and now Russia is working with Turkey to oversee an evacuation of the last rebel-held pocket of Aleppo. On Friday, the Syrian government suspended that operation, trapping thousands of civilians and rebel fighters in the city and increasing fears of a bloodbath to come. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that Aleppo had become "a synonym for hell" and urged "the parties to take all necessary measures to allow safe resumption of this evacuation process." Senior US officials, including Secretary of State John Kerry and Washington's ambassador to the UN Samantha Power, have warned Assad against carrying out a Srebrenica-style massacre. They have also warned the defeat of Aleppo will not end the civil war but instead foment extremism among Assad's opponents and have called for war crimes investigations. US president-elect today picked a conservative Republican lawmaker as his budget director at the White House, who he believes would help in responsibly managing the finances of the world's biggest economy, currently under a debt of nearly "$20 trillion". Nominated as Director of the Office of Management and Budget, Congressman Mick Mulvaney, 49, of South Carolina brings a wealth of experience on economic, budgetary, and fiscal issues to his new role, the Presidential Transition Team said in a statement. "We are going to do great things for the American people with Mick Mulvaney leading the Office of Management and Budget," Trump said. Mulvaney has long been a strong voice in Congress for reining in out-of-control spending, fighting government waste and enacting tax policies that will allow working Americans to thrive. "Right now we are nearly $20 trillion in debt, but Mick is a very high-energy leader with deep convictions for how to responsibly manage our nation's finances and save our country from drowning in red ink," said the President-elect. "With Mick at the head of OMB, my administration is going to make smart choices about America's budget, bring new accountability to our federal government, and renew the American taxpayer's trust in how their money is spent," Trump said. Getting America's fiscal house in order is a key component of Trump's America First plan to create millions of jobs and grow the economy, the transition team said in a statement. Trump will have to balance the spending cuts, along with delivering on his pre-poll promises of drastic tax cuts and a big infrastructure boost. In his statement, Mulvaney said the Trump administration will restore budgetary and fiscal sanity back in Washington after eight years of an out-of-control, tax and spend financial agenda, and will work with Congress to create policies that will be friendly to American workers and businesses. "Each day, families across our nation make disciplined choices about how to spend their hard earned money, and the federal government should exercise the same discretion that hardworking Americans do every day," he said. A lifelong resident of the Carolinas, Mulvaney attended Georgetown University where he graduated as an Honor Scholar - the highest award given to students of the Georgetown School of Foreign Service - in Economics, Commerce and Finance. After college, he attended law school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on a full academic scholarship. If youre running a business, you might as well shut up shop for Christmas now. More than half your employees might be there, but theyre not putting their heart into it. Christmas seems to be starting earlier every year, said Dan Rogers, co-founder of Peakon, a Danish start-up that collects and measures data on employees. A survey by the company found that 54 per cent of British workers mentally check out for the holidays by Friday. At the younger end of the workforce, the great Christmas check-out comes sooner. Already on Friday, six in 10 millennial ... Robert Gentz stepped off an Air Berlin plane in Beijing with the goal of conquering online fashion in China. By the time he boarded his return flight to Berlin, he had a new plan: to copy it. An Indian-origin immigration manager of an outsourcing company has been found guilty in an H-1B visa fraud case, Paul Fishman, the New Jersey federal prosecutor, said on Friday. Hari Karne, 32, admitted before Federal Judge Kevin McNulty in Newark, New Jersey, on Friday that he conspired to obstruct the investigation into a scheme to get fraudulent visas for foreign workers and falsify salary information. Even though President-elect Donald Trump has not yet assumed office, the case came up a week after he announced that one of his priorities would be to have the Labour Department crackdown on H-1B visa fraud. The in the alleged conspiracy were shown in court documents seen by IANS as SCM Data based in New Jersey and MMC System headquartered in Virginia, and six individuals, but they are not listed as defendants in Karne's case. The prosecution said that Karne, who is from Hyderabad, worked as an immigration manager with SCM Private Limited in India, which had service agreements with SCM Data and MMC System that in turn provide information technology consultants to US companies. The conspirators recruited students and recent graduates and sponsored them for H-1B visas meant for people with specialised qualification, prosecutors said. To comply with H-1B requirements, they showed them as full-time salaried employees of their companies, according to prosecutors. However, they were not paid by the outsourcing companies and collected salaries only from the companies they were sent to work in. One employee, identified only as "Individual 1" in court papers, was not paid for some time around January last year. Since the outsourcing companies had to show that it paid H-1B visa-holders full-time, Karne asked "Individual 1" to pay cash to the outsourcers from the person's earnings from the company to which the person was outsourced, prosecutors said. The outsourcers then made out a check using what "Individual 1" had paid in cash back to the person to cover the period they had not paid in order to make it appear the person was a regular, salaried employee, prosecutors said. Karne also admitted that in February and March last year he helped SCM Data and MMC Systems prepare false leave slips for foreign workers during a Department of Labour audit to conceal the fact that they were not paid during those months, prosecutors said. He could face a maximum sentence of five years in jail, but often the actual penalties are less. President Barack Obama said the US government took a cautious approach to allegations the Russians had hacked Democratic Party officials before the election out of concern that the issue would escalate or become politicised. I wanted to make sure we were playing this thing straight, Obama said Friday at his final end-of-the-year news conference at the White House, defending his administration against criticism that it didnt more aggressively combat the hacking. My principal goal leading up to the election was making sure the election itself went off ... President has threatened to terminate a pact that allows US troops to visit the Philippines as he reacted with rage to what he thought was a US decision to scrap a major aid package over human rights concerns. A US government aid agency said this week that its board deferred a vote on a renewal of the development assistance package for the Philippines "subject to a further review of concerns around rule of law and civil liberties." Duterte, whose administration has been criticised by Washington over a bloody crackdown on illegal drugs, unleashed a barrage of expletives-laden tirade. He said the Philippines can do without US aid, called Americans "hypocrites", while praising China for offering what he said was a huge financial assistance. How do you enhance the aesthetic of an email or make an instant message chic? Neither eloquence nor carefully curated emoji can really lift a digital communication beyond the banality of an Amazon receipt. To make a real impression, pull out a pen. Uber's self-driving cars will keep ferrying passengers around San Francisco, the ride-hailing company said a few hours before state prosecutors threatened to haul before a judge if the service is not suspended immediately. In a sharply worded letter yesterday, attorneys with the California's Department of Justice demanded that get a special state permit if it wants to continue. If not, "the attorney general will seek injunctive and other appropriate relief," according to the letter. Though there was no deadline in the letter, a spokeswoman for California transportation regulators, Melissa Figueroa, told The Associated Press in a text that the state would take action "early next week" if doesn't comply. Uber began the pilot project Wednesday with a few Volvo SUVs that are tricked out with a suite of sensors allowing them to steer, brake and accelerate. A person sits behind the wheel, just in case. Officials with Uber and the state have talked several times this week after the state Department of Motor Vehicles issued a similar legal threat. The leader of the company's self-driving program, Anthony Levandowski, described those as "frank conversations" which left him unswayed. State lawyers insist that Uber's cars are "autonomous vehicles" which need the permit to ply public roads. Levandowski said he respectfully disagrees, arguing Uber does not require the permit that 20 other testing the technology in California have gotten because the Volvos have backup drivers behind the wheel monitoring the cars. That means the Volvos are not "autonomous vehicles" under the state's definition, he argued. Levandowski likened the Volvos' abilities to those of Tesla cars that have the Autopilot feature which allows them to steer without a person touching the wheel and to brake and accelerate without a person touching the pedals. He questioned why the thousands of Teslas on California roads don't need a permit if Uber's cars do. San Francisco's mayor has sided with the state. And a consumer advocacy group suggested that the state should do more than force Uber to stop. "We believe their activity is a criminal offense under the motor vehicle code, punishable with up to six months in jail," John Simpson of the group Consumer Watchdog said in a written statement. "CEO Travis Kalanick should be arrested immediately." But in a sign of the level of interest in the technology, the mayor of Beverly Hills yesterday voiced his support for Uber testing without the state permit. Automobile classifieds portal CarTrade.com, which might go in for an initial public offering in the next two years, is betting on the services segment in used car financing. Retorting to the government's handing over the enquiry into Associated Journals Limited (AJL) Panchkula case 2005 to the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Congress Party on Saturday said it is a 'witch hunt' against the company and that the investigating agency has been overpowered by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's officers. "If any government feels that CBI enquiry is needed into something, they are most welcome. Only thing is that it is clear that it is a witch hunt against the AJL of herald in Panchkula. CBI itself has now become compromised. It is now full of officers of the police from the Gujarat cadre. All of them were known to be very close to the CM of that time, Narendra Modi. None of them were really people who used to come to the Centre. They all came with Mr. Modi. So clearly, CBI is an organisation that has been captured by Modi's officers," Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit told ANI. Terming the CBI as a personal organisation, Dikshit said the agency is controlled by the Prime Minister and the president of the Bharatiya Janata Party Amit Shah. "General talk in government is that the CBI now is little Gujarat. It's not an independent organisation anymore, nor is it known for its professionalism. It's known to become a hatchet organisation for Mr. Amit Shah and Mr. Modi," said Dikshit. The BJP government in Haryana has handed over the enquiry into the alleged re-allotment of a plot to AJL in Panchkula in 2005 to the CBI. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Saturday alleged that it is the BJP-led NDA government's modus operandi to hand over the inquiry into the alleged re-allotment of a plot to Associated Journals Limited (AJL) in Panchkula in 2005 to the Central Bureau of Investigation. Hooda told ANI that the government is indulging in political vendetta and witch hunting by coming after him in the case. "This is their modus operandi. In other cases also they have adopted the same method because once you register a case and then refer to CBI, the CBI does not go for preliminary enquiry. Nothing is wrong done during my tenure. This is just political vendetta and witch hunting. In other cases also they have adopted the same method," Hooda told ANI. The BJP government in Haryana has handed over the enquiry into the alleged re-allotment of a plot to AJL in Panchkula in 2005 to the CBI. "We handed over the case to CBI a few days back. The agency will soon start its inquiry," Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar told the media yesterday. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi will meet the ailing DMK President on Saturday, who underwent tracheostomy at the Kauvery Hospital in Chennai to optimise his breathing. On Thursday night, the former chief minister was admitted to the hospital for the second time in the last three weeks. He was first admitted to the same hospital on December 1 for optimisation of nutrition and hydration and was discharged after he improved substantially. The hospital issued a statement saying Karunanidhi was re-admitted with breathing difficulty due to throat and lung infection, adding that he was stable and being treated. Karunanidhi's daughter and Rajya Sabha MP from Tamil Nadu Kanimozhi said that he had some lung infection and breathing difficulty, adding that he was much better now. Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on Friday accused the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of committing fraud with the farmers in the name of waiving off their debt after coming to power. "Captain Amarinder Singh and Arvind Kejriwal are the greatest frauds, who can tell number of lies to win an election. They have been cheating the people by saying that they will waive off the debt of the farmers if they will come to power in Punjab. But state government cannot waive off loans only the Central government can," Badal told the media here. He also slammed Congress for meeting the Prime Minister Narendra Modi over a demand to provide relief for debt-ridden farmers. "Amarinder Singh was the chief minister of Punjab they even had government in the Centre, in their reign not even once Rahul Gandhi went to the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh nor Amrinder Singh to waive off farmers loans," he said. He further said that the Amarinder Singh and the AAP is trying to exploit the sentiments of the people and misleading them. On Friday, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over a demand to provide relief for debt-ridden farmers, said the former has accepted that the situation of farmers is critical in the country, but did not commit anything on waiving off their loans. "Prime Minister accepted that the situation of farmers is critical, But he did not say anything about waiving off their loans, he only heard the matter," said Rahul. He further added that the farmers are committing suicide all over the country and the removal of import duty on wheat by the government is a devastating blow. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Saturday said that the disruption of Parliament was very unfortunate and sad event. "It is very unfortunate and sad. Parliament is meant for debate and discussion. If someone does not like anything, then they can raise their voice on the basis of evidence and proof, but the Congress was trying to hamper progress," Naqvi told ANI. "Because of the Congress, many bills related to farmers, women's development, social and economical empowerment could not be passed in Parliament. Out of the 22 listed bills only the Disability Bill was passed," he added. Naqvi, had earlier taken a dig at Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, saying that he was writing his party's last chapter in free India. "I think that Rahul Gandhi and the Congress Party should understand that with an expired script, they are writing the last chapter of a Congress free India. They should also understand that so many scams took place during their time that it would only hamper their image." Naqvi further said there are so many corruption cases against the Congress Party and its leaders. "If they come out in public domain, they will expose the DNA of the grand old party." he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday filed a case against unknown persons for forging bank accounts in Noida Sector 51 branch of Axis Bank under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The Enforcement Directorate said they will also question bank official. Sources said, earlier today that a case was filed on basis of one of the fake company director's: Nandu Paswan's FIR. The ED has already arrested two Axis Bank managers. Twenty bank accounts of fake companies had been found and deposits of Rs. 60 crores had been made to them. The authorities are concerned about the connivance of some bank executives with racketeers to launder cash ever since the announcement of demonetisation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Gurgaon-based home rental startup Fella Homes which was founded in February 2016, took a major step by acquiring Noida-based rental start-up Lifepad, and has since grown immensely this year. The acquisition occurred in an all-cash-deal and helped them understand the Noida market. The company raised a seed funding of USD two million from an undisclosed investors and utilised it in acquiring new properties and tenants, team building and product development. The branded network of ready to move rental homes start-up aims to cater to a larger number of customers in 2017 with a network of 5,000+ homeowners and 25,000+ tenants. The company has recently already expanded its footprints in New Delhi (market) to provide its customers an access to a larger network of homes to choose from and plans to use the cash from its next round to expand and establish multi-city presence (Pan- India) to simplify the house hunt process. Mr. Digendra Singh Rathore, Co-Founder and CEO, Fella Homes, said, "Fella Homes entered the Delhi rental market by launching premium segment of homes for expats / senior company executives and alike. With their Pan-India expansion on the horizon they will soon capitalize and introduce new segments targeting students, working professionals and expats." "And, to facilitate and ensure the precision in the execution, the company has increased its employee base exponentially. Recently, the company has strengthened its core team by hiring across technology, operation and production division. As of November 2016, Fella Homes has 300+ rental properties amounting to 2000+ beds in Delhi NCR," he added. The company is based out of Gurgaon with operations in Delhi NCR (Delhi, Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad, and has witnessed an unprecedented growth and plans to expand in all metro cities by December 2017. With an objective of the business model 'Next Generation Zero brokerage House Rental Solution' the startup provides fully equipped homes with furniture, appliances and kitchenware, rented on per bed / per room basis. The bed rate starts at INR 6,000. In some cases, a certain part of the rent is fixed to vary from case to case, it ranges from 25 percent to even 100 percent depending on the location and the property condition. Fella Homes not only focuses on solving the problem of quality assurance, but also the trust deficit and inconveniences that user faces while taking a home on rent. Rathore, CEO and Co-founder at Fella Homes further said, "We understand the potential of this market and aim to organise the rental market through extensive use of . We focus on to connecting renters and owners by structuring the processes and build the bridge of trust." He further added, "The company understands the struggle of finding furnished flats that are affordable especially for single men and women and hence plans to build a much-needed ecosystem for a large population. We manage everything that comes with moving into a new place from maintenance to managing rental collection and agreements to entire shifting process." Post demonetization, the company is also promoting complete cashless transactions within their business flow where the tenants and homeowners can enjoy hassle-free transactions. This move will result greatly in injecting the transparency in the home rental eco-system which this sector was yearning from a long time. To push it even further, they have initiated one of a kind model through which other parties can make use of Fella Homes' platform to pay and receive rent payments, completely online, hassle- free. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Skipper Steve Smith and batsman Usman Khawaja struck half centuries as Australia maintained a complete strangehold over Pakistan at stumps on the third day of the opening day and night Test at the Gabba here on Saturday. After losing openers David Warner (12) and Matt Renshaw (six), Khawaja (74) and Smith (63) joined forces and steadied their side's innings. The duo went on to share a crucial 111-run stand for the third wicket before declaring their second innings at 202-5. Chasing a daunting target of 490 runs to win, Australia's Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon took a wicket each to reduce Pakistan to 70-2 at the end of the day's play. Earlier, resuming at the yesterday's score of 97-8, Pakistan were eventually bundled out for 142 runs in reply to Australia's massive first-inning total of 429 runs. Besides Sarfraz Ahmed (unbeaten at 59), none of the other batsmen were able to contribute much in their side's innings. For the home side, Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Jake Ball all bagged three wickets each. It will now be a herculean task for Pakistan when Azhar Ali (41) and Younis Khan (0) will resume the side's second innings on Sunday. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An eye for an eye! Seems like Hugh Jackman, who was mocked by Ryan Reynolds in the hit movie 'Deadpool', is intent on paying him back the same way. Jackman, who is the 40-year-old actor's 'X-Men Origins: Wolverine' co-star, took to his Instagram handle to mock his talented pal, wearing a Ryan Reynolds cardboard mask to deliver his cheeky tirade of insults. Writing next to his short video, Jackman wrote, "@VanCityReynolds asked me to post this 100% real video by him on being honored with a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame today." The audacious Australian began his teasing "tribute" video saying, "You may remember me from such things as People magazine's 2010 Sexiest Man Alive or the 12th best DC Comics movie Green Lantern. Who would have thought just three years after getting a star on Canada's Walk of Fame, I would be getting a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame?" In the movie, Reynolds says, "Whose balls did I have to fondle to get my very own movie?' I can't tell you his name, but it rhymes with 'Polverine.' And let me tell you, he's got a nice pair of smooth criminals down under." In his video clip, the 48-year-old actor then went on rhetorically, "How could a guy who failed his high school drama class be this talented?" "I have no answer for that. But to quote my favorite actor in the world, the great Australian Hugh Jackman, who, by the way, was People's Sexiest Man Alive way before me, Americans are the most generous country on the planet," he continued with a little self aggrandising reference. Ending with a little toilet humour, the 'Real Steel' actor rounded up, "So, thank you, America, and feel free to urinate on my section of the sidewalk" and then let the mask slip to reveal his true identity. The 'Green Lantern' star was honoured with his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame just yesterday and was joined by wife Blake Lively and their two daughters. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India and Tajikistan on Saturday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for cooperation in the exchange of financial intelligence related to money laundering, related crimes and financing of terrorism. The MoU was signed between Financial Intelligence Unit of India and the Financial Monitoring Department under the Bank of Tajikistan. Another MoU was signed between the Committee of Television and Radio under the Government of Tajikistan and the Prasar Bharati of India for cooperation on Broadcasting in Exchange of Audio Visual Programmes. A protocol amending the agreement between the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Government of India for the avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income was also signed. An announcement of initiation of bilateral investment treaty between the two sides also made. The MoUs were signed after wide-ranging talks on bilateral, regional and international issues, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon here. The two leaders expressed satisfaction at the close cooperation between the two secular, peace loving, neighbouring countries. President Rahmon paid a State visit to India from December 14-18 when his official programme included ceremonial reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan, meetings with President Pranab Mukherjee, Vice President M. Hamid Ansari and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Banquet hosted by President Mukherjee. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Kyrgyzstan President Almazbek Sharshenovich Atambayev, will be on a four day official visit to India beginning tomorrow. He will be accompanied by his spouse Raisa Atambaeva. President Atambayev will be leading a high-level delegation comprising of Ministers, senior officials and business leaders during his visit. The visit will be President Atambayev's first visit to India in his capacity as President. He will have official engagements on December 20 . President Pranab Mukherjee will receive President Atambayev and host a dinner banquet in his honour. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also hold bilateral discussions with the visiting President and host a lunch for him. During the visit, President Atambayev is expected to attend a Joint Business Forum. The two countries share excellent relations marked by strong ties in all areas including Political and Defence, Economy and Commerce, Education and Human Resource Development, Culture and Tourism. The visit comes right after a very successful visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Kyrgyzstan in July 2015, which will further cement the traditionally cordial and close ties between the two sides. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Continuing its tirade against Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation and in the wake of the twin scam attack by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the on Saturday launched yet another attack on him by drawing comparisons with Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, saying that the former only survived on his oratory skills, but simply failed to produce any tangible results. The BJP government in Haryana has handed over the enquiry into the alleged re-allotment of a plot to AJL in Panchkula in 2005 to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). "The people are now coming to know that this man (Modi) is like Mussolini, who is an excellent orator, but unsuccessful in working. So, in order to deviate from this, he brought in the move to demonetise," leader told ANI. Commenting on the recent controversy surrounding vice-president Rahul Gandhi's statement of exposing the Prime Minister's corruption activities, Aiyar said this was the result of the government not letting Gandhi speak in parliament, as he would have exposed the Prime Minister. "I had prior information that they (the government) know that Rahul ji has some documents, some evidences, which are going to prove that Modi ji himself is indulged in corruption. This is why he did not want a discussion about it to be held in parliament. Had it been raised in parliament, the Prime Minister would have been forced to answer and would have been caught," said Aiyar. Branding the Prime Minister Modi as a fascist, the Congress leader further said that the former only claims to be a democrat but was the exact opposite. "It is only our constitution which has held our democratic values together and restricted the Prime Minister, otherwise this man would have done the same what Pakistan Ministers did in 1950s," he added. Echoing similar sentiments, senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad also trained his guns at the Prime Minister saying that the BJP, in order to save itself from any attack, diverts people's attention by saying anything, adding that the ruling party is now talking about the Associated Journals Limited (AJL) case, because it wants to divert attention from the issue of demonetisation. "In the past we have seen, whenever there is attack on the BJP, they say anything to divert the attention of people. They have been enquiring the case (AJL) since so many years, but have been able to found nothing," said Azad. Expressing concern over the early repatriation of the Brus Refugees, which was more likely to start by November, is still on hold in the northern Tripura District. MHA officials have been frequently visiting the camps to take stock of the situation, especially pertaining to demands made by the Brus for early repatriation to their home state of Mizoram. Recently, a high level team led by the Special Secretary to the Ministry of Home Affairs (Internal Security), M. K. Singla, visited the camps in North Tripura district to discuss their early repatriation. "We have been putting our efforts and the Centre is trying hard in every possible way to help them. I feel great to meet the Bru refugees, who have been staying in the camps for 19 years, and we have taken note of the issues they are facing. We will take every possible measure to fulfill their demands and the centre is in full support of us," M. K. Singla, Secretary to the Ministry of Home Affairs. Singla also visited two evacuee camps at Ashapara and Naisingpara. He, along with other officials of North Tripura and security officials, also held a meeting with the leaders of Mizoram Bru Displaced People's Forum (MBDPF). He further interacted with the inmates of the camps, discussed their issues and explained to them about the facilities they will get after repratriation. Meanwhile, the inmates were seen holding placards demanding birth certificates to the new-born babies, caste certificate and Adhar card, written agreements, allotment of land to each family, updating inmates' list as well as deployment of central security forces in villages of Mizoram where they shall be repatriated. "There have been lots of demands put by the inmates but it depends on how these are handled, whether they can be worked out or not. Auction takes place every year and whoever gets it have the right to cultivate. So it is nothing new and it has been an old tradition in Mizoram on how agriculture land is used. Apart from that, there are several other demands like establishing schools and we are soon going to sort it out," Singla said. Earlier in November, the process of identification of displaced Brus was started. It is to be noted that about 35,000 Bru/Reang from neighbouring Mizoram took shelter in six evacuee camps in Kanchanpur subdivision of North Tripura district in a phased manner since 1997 following ethnic clashes with Mizos over land dispute. Such an effort on part of the Centre is expected to solve their issues and fulfill their legitimate demands. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) raided the premises of four bullion traders yesterday and discovered suspicious transactions carried out by them in Mumbai. Upon investigation, it was discovered that the traders have deposited 69 crore rupees in old notes post demonetisation. The ED also froze Rupees 1.2 crore rupees in their bank accounts. Meanwhile, the ED today seized Rs. 30 lakh, out of which 18 lakh were in new notes, attached with 2.5 kg gold. The currency and gold were seized from the premises of a tailor's shop in Mohali and Chandigarh in Punjab. Earlier today, the ED filed a case against unknown persons for forging bank accounts in Noida Sector 51 branch of Axis Bank under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The Enforcement Directorate said they will also question bank official. Sources said, earlier today that a case was filed on basis of one of the fake company director's: Nandu Paswan's FIR. The ED has already arrested two Axis Bank managers. Twenty bank accounts of fake companies had been found and deposits of Rs. 60 crores had been made to them. The authorities are concerned about the connivance of some bank executives with racketeers to launder cash ever since the announcement of demonetisation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Lauding the government's demonetisation move, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday said no ordinary Prime Minister could have taken the decision to ban high-value currency notes. "Was the decision on currency ban easy? Could any ordinary Prime Minister take such a decision? Modi ji thinks for the benefit of the nation. I believe only an able Prime Minister could have taken this step," Chouhan said in an exclusive interview with Smita Prakash, Editor, ANI. Talking about the government's 'Swachchta Abhiyan', Chouhan said earlier the people used to make fun of the drive but now they have embraced it. Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley earlier today called the government's decision to ban 500 and 1,000-rupee notes as courageous and said India now has the capacity to take and implement a decision on notes ban. "India has capacity to take decision on demonetisation, it's no longer a fragile economy," the Finance Minister told a gathering of industry leaders at the 89th annual general meeting of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry or FICCI in Delhi. He said notes ban will have long term benefits and the whole process of re-monetisation will be done soon as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is pushing in money. Taking a dig at the previous Congress government, the Finance Minister said the decision of notes ban now marks the "new normal in India." Prime Minister Modi announced the decision to ban high-value denomination earlier on November 8. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistan Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar on Saturday said that he had decided to resign over growing criticism following the report submitted to the Supreme Court by the inquiry commission on the August 8 Quetta carnage which highlighted government inaction against militant groups. "I went to the Prime Minister (Nawaz Sharif) to tell him that I wanted to resign from my position but was told by him that the decision was unacceptable," the Express Tribune quoted Nisar as saying while addressing a press conference in Islamabad. "The report was one sided and was released without including the interior ministry's narrative," said Nisar adding "personal attacks were also hurled at me for no reason." The minister said "I had decided to respond to the allegations much earlier as the media resorted to personality bashing for the last two days,"adding "this could lead to harm to national institutions and war against terrorism as the country was facing a sensitive security situation." On Friday, following a judicial commission's damning report on the August 8 Quetta carnage, opposition Pakistan People's Party (PPP) lawmakers demanded that the interior minister be removed from his post. Yesterday, the PPP also submitted an adjournment motion against Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan in the National Assembly Secretariat, claiming that he was incapable of playing a role in combating terrorism. Based on investigations into the Quetta incident, the report said Nisar 'displayed little sense of ministerial responsibility' and that there was a continued delay on part of his Ministry to take steps against militant groups and proscribed organisations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah on Saturday cautioned Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi to avoid asking questions of the government if he did not want them to backfire on him. "Rahul Baba, you don't ask any question from us. You always make a mess out of it and cause damage to yourself," Shah said. Gandhi had earlier claimed that he had information in his possession about the personal corruption of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Shah was addressing a Parivartan rally in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh. Shah said, "Rahul had said that unprovoked firing is still going on at the LOC and nothing has changed. I will explain to him what has changed. Earlier, Pakistan was the one which started and ended the firing but now, Pakistan starts the firing and the Indian Army ends it." "The opposition has also wasted the entire winter session by shouting. They did not have the will to hold any kind of discussion on demonetisation in Parliament," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Chiding Rahul Gandhi for attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi on yet again, Union Minister of Law and Justice Ravi Shankar Prasad on Saturday said the Congress Vice President is crossing all limits of morality by speaking in such a shameless fashion. "Rahul Gandhi is crossing limits of dignitiy. He is speaking in a shameful fashion. He is speaking a lie. For 10 years, his government remained mired by corruption. Congress' allies kept on plundering the country in 2G and coal scams, but they did not take any action against them," Prasad said. "Farmers were dying, while the nation's money was being siphoned off into foreign countries, but they did nothing to bring back the money. Today, Narendra Modi's government is working with honesty; working to bring back the money stashed in foreign countries; an SIT (Special Investigation team) has also been formed, but Rahul Gandhi is troubled, because the corrupt people, whose money is at stake, most of them have the protection of the Congress Party, and therefore, he never protested against black money openly," alleged Prasad, who is also the Union Minister for Information Technology. He said the entire country knows what the Congress party had done to do away with black money. "We are saying it categorically that in the 10 years of Manmohan Singh's government, neither Congress President Sonia Gandhi nor you (Rahul Gandhi) or the government had made any effort to flush out black money and to tackle corruption. Rather corruption flourished under the protection of your government, and his claim that loans of many people were waived (by the Congress government) is a complete lie and futile," said Prasad. Lauding the measures taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, he said, "Today, you can see strict action being taken and raids being conducted daily, which will be conducted even further. The country is with Modiji." Addressing a gathering at Margao in Goa, Rahul on Friday said the " drama" is not a fight against corruption and black money, but rather "it is an attack on honest and poor people" who have worked hard to earn their money. The Congress vice president said the government's decision to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes turned out to be a "fire bomb" that has affected the poor. "Narendra Modi launched a new marketing scheme, saying that it was a surgical strike on corruption and black money. But this was not a surgical strike, it was a fire bombing on poor people," he said. He said in the last two-and-a-half years, Prime Minister Modi waived off Rs 1,10,000 crore loans of the rich people and post the Prime Minster waived off liquor baron Vijay Mallya's loan worth Rs 1200 crore. He said the Congress Party is ready to support if the government is serious about eradicating corruption in the country. "The Congress wants to eradicate corruption from country. If the NDA government wants to take a step against it, the party will give its 100 per cent support," he said. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu said here today that even though the investment in railways has been stepped up by three times in the last two years as compared to the last decade, the sector is still suffering from a lack of investment. Prabhu was addressing the 89th Annual General Meeting of FICCI. He said the government at present is not only relying on the traditional budgetary sources for investment, but other external sources. "While public investment was a key source of investment, the railways has opened various sectors for private participation. The areas include manufacturing of diesel and electric locomotives, railway station redevelopment, integrated multimodal transport system. It has initiated railway station redevelopment and different models are implemented in Habibgunj, Bhubaneswar, Gandhinagar and Surat," he said. Prabhu specified that one of the significant steps by railways is bringing structural changes in management for faster decision making process and will bring accountability in railway operations. Talking about the Rail Vikas Shivir, he said that 1.3 million employees shared innovative ideas in rail operations and advanced a roadmap for substantial progress of the sector. Emphasizing the challenges in the sector, the minister said that the railways is suffering from lack of investment, customer service, capacity augmentation, freight and timely service. The biggest impediment for growth is lack of infrastructure and the government is continuously working in a positive direction, he added. Indian Railways has immense expenditure pressure being the largest employer and extremely low freight growth. The government has stressed on multiple revenue streams, monetization of assets for railway revenue and created a separate Non-Fare Revenue Directorate to find ways for generating substantial revenue from sources other than passenger fares and freight, he added. Earlier, Prabhu said the government is currently working on various equity models, including joint ventures with state governments, PPP and private participation to mobilize resources for investment in railways and also remove impediments like land acquisition, law and order etc. in the sector. This will enable faster infrastructure development and phenomenal growth of railways. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sri Lanka and Malaysia have expressed satisfaction with the progress made over the years and reaffirmed their determination to take their bilateral relations forward by exploring new areas of cooperation including in political, trade and investment, education, tourism, human resource, training and cultural relations and people-to-people contact. Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena undertook an official visit to Malaysia from December15 to 17 at the invitation of the Malaysian Prime Minister Mohammad Najib Tun Abdul Razak. Prime Minister Najib Razak and President Sirisena held in depth discussions on all aspects of Malaysia-Sri Lanka relations, and exchanged views on regional and international issues of common concern. The bilateral discussion between the two leaders was held in a warm and cordial atmosphere. Both leaders recognised the need to engage at the highest level towards further enhancement of bilateral relations between the two countries. The two sides agreed that every effort will be made to encourage and promote exchanges between Government officials and leaders of private sector with a view to further expand the relations at official and private sector levels. President Maithripala Sirisena apprised Prime Minister Najib Razak of the current status of the national reconciliation process, constitutional reform and economic development strategies undertaken by the National Unity Government of Sri Lanka. Prime Minister Najib Razak welcomed and appreciated the commitment of the National Unity Government of Sri Lanka to good governance and reconciliation and expressed the support of the Government of Malaysia for Sri Lanka's efforts in this regard. The two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthen bilateral trade and investment cooperation, and to deepen their economic engagement for mutual benefits. President Maithripala Sirisena assured that the Malaysian investors would enjoy a conducive investment climate in Sri Lanka, and invited those Malaysian investors to pro-actively look at the attractive investment opportunities in Sri Lanka. Both leaders welcomed the significant interest shown by Malaysian companies to partake in the business opportunities provided by Sri Lanka. Malaysia and Sri Lanka agreed to explore the possibility of initiating the Malaysia-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Both sides reaffirmed their desire to promote greater opportunities for students to pursue their higher studies in each other's country. The two leaders also acknowledged the increasing two-way tourist movement and recalled the close cultural affinity of the peoples of the two countries, including the presence of a large Sri Lankan community in Malaysia, which is a positive factor in fostering and sustaining current and future linkages to imbue greater dynamism to the friendly relations between Malaysia and Sri Lanka. Both leaders were unanimous in their rejection of violent extremism, and in expressing their strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestation, and called upon all States to reject terrorism and bring perpetrators of terrorism to justice. Both sides agreed to continue to sharing information and best practices with a view to address the challenges posed by terrorism, and other traditional and non-traditional threats. The two countries underscored the need to adhere to the main objectives and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and norms of International Law based on trust, equality, and cooperation. The two leaders emphasized the need for concerted efforts to build confidence and mutual understanding and strengthen stability regionally and internationally. Both agreed that international issues should be resolved through peaceful dialogue and diplomatic means. Malaysia would continue to promote the moderation agenda and mediation approach, promote the enhancement of UN peacekeeping operations, support peace building in countries emerging from conflicts and encourage continued discussion on the comprehensive reform of the United Nations Security Council. Both leaders witnessed the signing of five Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) namely the MoU on Tourism Related Activities, MoU on Cooperation in The Field of Youth Development, MoU on the Recruitment, Employment and Repatriation of Workers and MoU in the Field of Culture, Arts and Heritage and MoU between the Sri Lanka Council For Agricultural Research Policy (SLCARP) and Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI) on Scientific Research and Technical Cooperation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Myuran Sukumaran (left) and Ben Quilty in Kerobokan prison's art workshop On November 10, 2012, three days after Julia Gillard flew to Bali to chair a democracy forum with her Indonesian counterpart Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Mary Farrow went on Facebook to send a message to the Australian artist Ben Quilty. Farrow was a supporter of Myuran Sukumaran, the Bali Nine drug smuggler who had applied for presidential clemency four months earlier. Sukumaran, then 31, was facing death. His application said he had been working to better himself behind bars. On November 10, 2012, three days after Julia Gillard flew to Bali to chair a democracy forum with her Indonesian counterpart Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Mary Farrow went on Facebook to send a message to the Australian artist Ben Quilty. Farrow was a supporter of Myuran Sukumaran, the Bali Nine drug smuggler who had applied for presidential clemency four months earlier. Sukumaran, then 31, was facing death. His application said he had been working to better himself behind bars. Farrow didnt know Quilty personally, but had seen his Archibald Prize-winning portrait of Margaret Olley and thought shed try her luck. So she explained how Sukumaran had taken up painting at Indonesias Kerobokan Prison, and how it was the challenge of a lifetime. He was going to enter a portrait of his lawyer, Julian McMahon, into the Archibald, even though he wouldnt be eligible because he hadnt lived in Australia during the previous 12 months. He had, of course, been locked up in Kerobokan since his arrest in 2005. Sukumaran had found peace and salvation in art, Fallow said, but he needed some constructive advice. Could that be you or someone you know? A few days later, Quilty sent a message back: I will help. Were it not for the Bali Nine, Quilty may never have travelled to Bali. Based in the NSW southern highlands, his adventures abroad tend to follow a certain pattern. In 2003, he travelled to Paris after winning the Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship. In 2007, he spent four months in Spain on an Australia Council residency. Four years later he found himself working in Afghanistan, an official war artist for the Australian War Memorial. And earlier this year he joined Richard Flanagan in Lebanon, Greece and Serbia, documenting the exodus of Syrian refugees. But Bali? It wasnt his thing. Its not for me to go to a Third World country and get massages, Quilty says. Never has been. That Facebook message, though, had made Quilty curious. Like so many others in Australia, he had followed the case of the Bali Nine as it played out in front of the cameras. The fate of the nine young Australians had seemed inevitable from the moment of their arrest in April 2005, trying to smuggle heroin out of Indonesia. Denpansar judges handed down their sentences less than a year later. While seven of the nine were ordered to spend the rest of their lives behind bars, a harsher sentence awaited the pair seen to have leadership roles: death by firing squad for Sukumaran, the enforcer, along with his friend, the godfather Andrew Chan. For Quilty, there was something else that caught his attention. Its common for artists who have achieved success to be pestered for advice, and he usually recommends a combination of hard work and art school. In this instance, though, there were encouraging signs. Sukumaran was also especially hungry to learn. He was interested in thick paint, and this resonated with Quilty, himself an impasto specialist. Thats why I engaged, he says. The questions he asked very clearly showed that hed made some progress and that hed tried, and I thought it was just so remarkable that someone in that circumstance was trying. It was also against the notion that I had of him. Id only heard the press of him being this evil monster, the enforcer. So I just decided to go there and meet him. More than 18 months have now passed since Sukumarans execution, and Quilty still stirs with passion and anger about the loss of his friend. As he looks back on those transformative years, recalling all the highs and the terrible lows, theres also a distinct sense of admiration for Sukumarans achievements and character especially now, on the eve of a new exhibition in Sydney dedicated to the work of a man who entered prison as a criminal and left it as an artist. Its a refuge, Quilty says. For me, thats what art is. | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE! Source: The Australian, Ashley Wilson, December 17, 2016 Thirteen soldiers have been killed and 48 others wounded in a blast in Turkey's central province of Kayseri, said Turkey's Armed Forces. Anadolu state news agency quoted police sources, as saying that the car bomb targeting a public bus carrying off-duty soldiers exploded near Erciyes University campus Meanwhile, a temporary ban has been imposed by Turkey's Supreme Board of Radio and Television which includes live broadcast from the scene, footage taken from the time of the blast and afterwards, and images of bodies. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) For booking of OLA Cabs through its UVA Point dealer network MPS Infotecnics announced that the Company has entered into an agreement with 'ANI Technologies' (OLA) for booking of OLA Cabs through its UVA Point dealer network. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Eleven opposition members of the Telangana assembly were suspended on Saturday from for a day for disrupting its proceedings. Speaker Madhusudhana Chary suspended nine legislators of main opposition Congress party and two of Telugu Desam Party (TDP) after legislative affairs minister Harish Rao moved a resolution. The opposition lawmakers were insisting for a debate on their demand for disqualification of the legislators who defected to ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS). As the speaker rejected their adjournment motion, the legislators trooped into the well of the house. Amid the uproar, Harish Rao moved a resolution for their suspension for one day. The speaker announced their suspension and asked them to leave the house. Congress leader K. A. Jana Reddy termed the suspension as unfortunate. He said never in the past such action was taken against the members without a warning. The opposition parties were unhappy over the delay that in disqualification of defected MLAs. The speaker said the matter was under his consideration and members should wait for his decision. More than a dozen legislators of opposition parties have crossed over to TRS during last two years. --IANS ms/ahm/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 12-year-old boy attempted twice to launch terrorist attacks in the western German city of Ludwigshafen this and last month, a local prosecutor confirmed on Friday. The boy tried to target a local Christmas market on November 26 and the areas near the city hall on December 5 with explosives, but failed both times to ignite them, Xinhua news agency reported. The backpack with explosives was noticed by passengers near the city hall and reported to the police, prompting the next investigation. The boy, born in Ludwigshafen with dual German and Iraqi nationality, was allegedly strongly radicalised and could have been instigated by the Islamic State, local media reported. He is currently staying at the local youth office. He will not be charged because of his age, according to the prosecutor. --IANS lok/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Three soldiers were killed after gunmen opened fire on an army convoy in south Kashmir's Pulwana district, the army said on Saturday. According to security officials, militants fired incessantly at the vehicles carrying army men near the Kadlabal area of Pampore. The militants then fled from the spot, but a massive search operation was underway. It was the second attack in Pampore this year. Army convoys have been attacked several times along this stretch of the highway that connects Srinagar and Jammu and is used to carry supplies to the Srinagar-based 15 Corps that acts as nerve centre to battle militancy in the valley. The attack comes just days after two militants were killed on in separate encounters with security forces in Anantnag and Baramulla districts. --IANS sq/ahm/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Five female airport workers along with a driver were killed after gunmen fired bullets on their vehicle in Kandahar city, capital of Afghanistan's Kandahar province, on Saturday, media reported. "The firing occurred at around 5.30 a.m. in Deh Khoja locality of the city. The victims were travelling to office before their minibus came under attack in the city," Samim Khpalwak, provincial government spokesman, told Xinhua. The attackers fled the scene shortly after the firing and an investigation has been launched into the incident. He said a pursuit operation has been launched against the fleeing rebels. No group or individual have claimed of responsibility so far. However, the official blamed "the enemies of peace and stability", a term referring to Taliban militants, for the attack. The Taliban outfit had banned education for girls and confined women in house during its six-year reign collapsed in late 2001. Violence has been on the rise since the drawdown of foreign military forces over the past two years as the Afghan security forces struggle against a surge in attacks by anti-government fighters. --IAN ahm/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The eighth edition of the high-profile biennial Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, a conclave of industrial investors, will be held in state capital Gandhinagar between January 10 and January 13 with 12 countries partnering the event. The event, which was initiated by Narendra Modi as Chief Minister in 2003, invited investment commitments of Rs 51,000 crore, of which 66 per cent projects have either been commissioned or are under advanced stages of implementation. Giving this information, state Chief Secretary J.N. Singh told reporters here on Saturday that the 8th edition of Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit "will be bigger and grander". He added the scale of the event will be bigger than earlier editions held under Modi, though Singh did not name him. The Summit will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister, who will throw open a Global Trade Show as well as chair a Global CEOs Roundtable. Modi will also declare open a five-week long Nobel Laureate Exhibition. Singh said the exhibition would be accompanied by panel discussions "where participants will have a unique opportunity to interact with these global minds on science and learn about the scientific developments across the world". "We will also have dedicated seminars on 'Make In Gujarat', as an extension of 'Make in India'. For the first time we are organizing 'Action Seminars' to enable 'Make your own policy environment'. The idea is to make Vibrant Gujarat a truly global platform to ideate, engage and collaborate," he said. Additional Chief Secretary (Industries and Mines) P.K. Taneja said 12 countries would partner the event as against eight in the previous edition, "which reflects the growing interest in Gujarat worldwide". "Through the 8th edition, we are also extending our commitment to encourage startups and MSMEs in the state. Additionally, we are also reaching out to other state governments to be a part of Vibrant Gujarat to truly represent our theme of 'Connecting India to the World'. I am confident of the attendees finding the summit interactive, knowledge driven and engaging," he added. The 12 partner countries are Australia, Britain, Canada, Denmark, France, Japan, Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, Sweden, UAE, and US. The event will be supported by seven partner organisations - Australia India Business Council, Indo-Canada Chambers of Commerce, Japan External Trade Organization, UAE India Business Council, UK India Business Council, US India Business Council and British Council. --IANS desai/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The year 2016 would go down in the annals of the Indian industry history as the one in which the central government was the driving force in increasing non-life penetration and awareness with various schemes, experts said. The year also saw an acquisitive HDFC group with its non-life company HDFC Ergo General buying L&T General Insurance for Rs 551 crore ($81 million), while HDFC Standard Life is waiting for regulatory approvals for the acquisition of Max Life Insurance. During the year, foreign partners of some insurance companies increased their stakes while the insurance regulator allowed setting up of branch offices by foreign re-insurers. The non-life sector is expected to reap a bumper premium harvest of around Rs 18,000 crore from the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), the new crop insurance scheme. The major portion of the general insurance sector's growth is from crop insurance. "It is one of the biggest positive impacts the industry is experiencing. Thanks to the new crop insurance, the miscellaneous insurance business portfolio of the general insurers was showing a growth of 25% in October 2016. Normally the portfolio would shows a growth of 5-10%," R Chandrasekaran, Secretary General, General Insurance Council of India, told IANS. According to him, the crop insurance premium income is around Rs 10,000 crore till October 2016 for the industry. The other innovative scheme of the central government that is increasing insurance awareness and penetration is the Rs 10 lakh accident insurance for railway passengers (initially for 92 paise and now free for tickets purchased online). "All passengers who buy tickets online will get free insurance cover worth Rs 10 lakh," Minister Arun Jaitley said recently. Jaitley said nearly 1.1 million passengers per day will be covered under the accidental insurance scheme as more number of people are expected to buy train tickets online. He also announced that online payment for public sector insurance companies (life insurance and general insurance) will get 10% discount on general insurance and 8% discount on life insurance for new policies sold. According to Chandrasekaran, the industry is expected to close the current fiscal with a total premium of around Rs 1,20,000 crore, up from around Rs 96,400 crore earned in the previous fiscal. Queried whether the industry is in a consolidation phase with HDFC Ergo General buying out L&T General, experts replied in the negative and added that more new players are looking at the Indian market. "The foreign partners of major players have increased their stakes in their Indian ventures. There is growth in the top line and hence there will not be any sellout," a senior industry official not wanting to be quoted told IANS. He said 14 private non-life insurers have a premium income of Rs 1,000 crore and they are growing along with others. Many are also struggling due to competition. "There is good growth opportunity and hence the existing promoters would stay put and may be foreign partners will increase their stakes. Companies that do not have a foreign partner may look for one," the official added. According to Chandrasekaran, the concern for the industry is that underwriting losses (simply put premium income minus claims paid) not only continue to exist but the overall profitability is also under pressure due to competitive price pressures. Further, all non-life insurers are adequately capitalised. Unlike the life insurance players needing regular doses of capital infusion to meet their expenses, there is not much of a need for heavy capital infusion for the general insurers. The year also saw the issue of a nuclear liability insurance policy to Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL). Queried whether consolidation in the industry is likely to be the trend, V Manickam, Secretary, Life Insurance Council, told IANS: "Few companies are looking to consolidate. But only time will tell if that is going to happen, as there is huge potential in this sector." According to Manickam, the life insurance sector has grown exponentially this fiscal. "The new business premiums garnered by the industry is Rs 87,343 crore for April-October 2016, up by more than 30%, as compared to Rs 66,998 crore for the same period last year," Manickam said. Listing out several regulations brought in by the insurance regulator, Manickam added: "We hear that the Authority (Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India) and its board has already cleared IRDAI's Regulation on Payment of Commission and Rewards Regulation, 2016." "I believe implementing this regulation will be a challenge to the industry, if the regulator does not give the insurers sufficient time frame/window of six months to one year to change their systems, products and the like," Manickam said. The year also saw ICICI Prudential Life Insurance coming out with a premium public issue and getting listed on the stock exchanges while foreign joint venture partners in some Indian life insurers hiked their stakes in their life insurance companies. The BJP on Saturday said that Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi's promise at a rally on Friday to take action against corrupt party leaders within "two minutes", was the "joke of the day". Gandhi vowed to act against the corrupt in his party at a public rally in South Goa. "He is speaking like a dictator? How can he deal with corrupt Congress leaders within two minutes? This was the best joke of the day," Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Damu Naik told a press conference on Saturday. "In five years, we will give a shining Goa, and in Goa if there is even a bit of corruption, we will take cent per cent strict action in two minutes," Gandhi told a public rally in Margao town, located some 40 km from the state capital. Naik also said that the rally of one of the top Congress leaders attracted only about 10,000 to 12,000 people, while the BJP rallies held in each assembly constituency attract that much audience. --IANS maya/nir/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Freddy Daruwala, who is currently riding high on the success of "Force 2", says riding bikes gives him a sense of freedom and is a way of meditation. Freddy, who was also seen in Akshay Kumar starrer "Baby", wants to go for a road trip to the North on his new bike. "Bike riding gives me a sense of freedom. It's a type of meditation. When I am riding, my thoughts are not shadowed by other things. I just enjoy the wind," Freddy said in a statement. The actor, who has finished shooting for "Commando 2", featuring Vidyut Jamwal, has bought a new bike, which specializes in off road trips. Freddy, who is proud of his new possession - a 1982 retro motorcycle - plans to start his journey from December 20 and may also celebrate New Year up in the hills with his friends. --IANS dc/nv/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Blog Hinangai While there is much discussion in Guam about the economic benefits of increasing the islands military presence, the damages/dangers that they represent are rarely mentioned. This blog, a supplement to the Peace and Justice for Guam Petition, is meant to counter that by providing information about the US military in Guam, with the hopes of steering policy away from a dangerous unilateralist course to more sustainable notions of regional development and a strengthening international solidarity. The Oommen Chandy faction of the Congress party's Kerala unit on Saturday expressed its unhappiness over the way the party high command has been handling the affairs of the state unit. Party's Kerala unit Vice President and former state minister M.M. Hassan, speaking to reporters on Saturday, pointed out that the manner in which the high command went about naming the 14 district party chiefs last week was not in keeping with the normal practice. "When the list came out, it became very clear that one faction had been given the upper hand and this has been brought to the notice of the high command also," said Hassan. Congress in Kerala has always revolved around two or more groups led by senior leaders. The legendary factional feud in the state unit, which began soon after the Emergency was declared in the country and lasted until the early 2000s, centred around K. Karunakaran and A.K. Antony. However, all through, Karunakaran had the last laugh. But after 2004, when Chandy took over as the Chief Minister from Antony, for all practical purposes, Chandy reigned supreme, with the other faction led by Chennithala always playing second fiddle. However, after the rout of the Chandy-led UDF in the May 2016 assembly polls, he went into a shell and Chennithala appeared to emerge as the new leader. When the District Congress Committee presidents were being named, Chandy got just three, while Chennithala managed close to eight, and the rest were taken by the close aides of state party chief V.M. Sudheeran. Among the three top leaders here, Chandy is the one, who unlike the other two, does not have much support in Delhi. Earlier this week, Chandy expressed his displeasure by not travelling to Delhi along with other party legislators to join a protest rally against demonetisation. Ever since Sudheeran was appointed as the state party chief in 2014, much against the wishes of a huge majority of the state leaders, Chandy has been keeping aloof from the party high command. His relations with the high command took a further dip when he was snubbed by the latter by denying his closest aide Benny Behanan, a sitting legislator, the seat to contest the polls which he had won the last time. But Chennithala, knowing fully well the huge ground support that Chandy enjoys across the state as the most popular leader of the party, said that even he (Chennithala) is also not happy with the revamp. "It was Chandy who had first suggested that we all should stage a protest in Delhi, but later due to a pressing engagement, he had to cancel the Delhi trip," said Chennithala. Meanwhile, sources close to Chandy revealed that he is playing the wait-and-watch game and is in no hurry to make any moves. --IANS sg/nir/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tibetan Prime Minister-in-exile Lobsang Sangay on Saturday said that a meeting between Dalai Lama and President Pranab Mukherjee sent a message of hope to the Tibetans living in Tibet and to governments around the world. Asking China not to dictate its terms to India, Sangay said: "India is a sovereign country and the head of the state is free to meet anyone he wishes to. China shouldn't be dictating its terms to India." His reaction came a day after China's objection to Dalai Lama's December 10 meeting with Mukherjee at the Rashtrapathi Bhavan in New Delhi during a children's summit. China said New Delhi must respect Beijing's "core interests" to avoid "any disturbance" in the bilateral ties. India on Friday downplayed China's protest, saying the event attended by the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader was "non-political". Beijing accuses the 14th Dalai Lama, who fled to India in 1959, of secessionist activities in Tibet. However, the spiritual leader claims that he only wants more autonomy for Tibet. The office of Dalai Lama is based in this north Indian hill station. --IANS vg/ahm/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With the country logging into the digital world to become a cashless economy, the threat of data breach loomed over both public and private enterprises, with several such cases being reported through the year -- forcing the government to wake up from its slumber and prepare for digital war. In one of the financial sector's biggest cyber threats, millions of debit cards were compromised after a malware-related security breach was detected in a particular ATM network in October. The State Bank of India (SBI), HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and YES Bank were among those which reported several of their customers' debit cards being compromised. India was also listed among the top five in the world to be attacked by ransomware -- malware that forces its victims to pay a ransom through certain online payment methods to regain their data -- as reported by Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab, a leading software security group operating in almost 200 countries and territories worldwide. In September, Trend Micro Incorporated, a global leader in security software and solutions, reported that over 180 Indian companies were victims of ransomware in the first six months of 2016. Indian businesses lost over $1 million from data losses and downtime in the last 12 months, a survey by EMC Corporation -- the world's largest data storage multinational -- revealed in July. According to EMC, 46 per cent of organisations in India suffered unplanned system downtime and/or data loss due to external or internal security breaches. Amid this, Pavan Duggal, the country's leading cyber law expert, lamented that Indian Cyber law does not have adequate provisions to deal with the growing cyber threats. "The Information Technology Act, 2000, amended in 2008, still does not comprehensively deal with all relevant issues in the cyber security ecosystem. India not being a signatory to any international treaty on cyber crime complicates the intrinsic ability of the immense law and legal frameworks to provide effective remedies against cyber crimes which are committed from abroad," Duggal told IANS. With increased 4G and 3G penetration, the internet user-base in India is expected to double to 600 million users by 2020 from the current 343 million -- so the threat will only grow. "With the surge in digital transactions via e-wallets and other online payment gateways, mobile frauds are expected to grow to 60-65 per cent in the country by 2017," warned leading industry body Assocham and global research firm EY in December. According to Oracle India Managing Director Shailender Kumar, security breaches have moved information security from a hidden corner of the IT function to a topic of strategic importance to both business and society. "Towards the beginning of 2016, cyber security had started to become a boardroom discussion. It has emerged to be a key concern for IT and business managers alike this year. In 2017, if security is not attended to, it will negatively impact not only the brand reputation but also the shareholders' trust, revenue loss and result in higher risks for organisation," Kumar told IANS. With more and more Indians buying phones, enhanced security for the devices became another concern this year. India is the second-largest mobile phone market globally, with over one billion mobile subscriptions. Of this, smartphone users account for approximately 240 million subscriptions, which is expected to grow to 520 million by 2020, said a joint study by Assocham and Deloitte released in December. The threat gets bigger with more and more people embracing mobile digital payments in the wake of demonetisation. "Mobile continues to be an area of exposure. As we get more and more used to transactions with mobile banking or e-commerce, mobile becomes more of a financial gateway and the implications are huge," said Anand Ramamoorthy, Managing Director, South Asia, Intel Security. Keeping this in mind, the IT industry's apex body Nasscom and the Data Security Council of India (DSCI) launched a detailed road map for the next 10 years. Titled "Growing Cyber Security Industry, Road Map for India," the report identifies Managed Security Service (MSS), Security and Vulnerability Management (SVM) and Network Security (NS) as attractive emerging opportunities globally. Nasscom-DSCI have also established the Cyber Security Task Force (CSTF) initiative that aims to create one million cyber security jobs and 1,000 cyber security start-ups by 2025. As the year drew to an end, the hacker group "Legion" broke into the Twitter accounts of the Congress Party, its Vice President Rahul Gandhi, controversial liquor baron Vijay Mallya and TV journalists Barkha Dutt and Ravish Kumar, threatening to leak data that will create "chaos" in India. The government later asked the micro-blogging website to strengthen its security and announced measures like audit of the Indian IT infrastructure and setting up a task force to quicken action on cyber security. Highlights of the Indian cyber security scene in 2016: * The government announced it will set up the National Cyber Coordination Centre (NCCC) to provide near real-time situational awareness and rapid response to cyber attacks; expected to be operational by March 2017. * India poised to build a cyber security product and services industry of $35 billion by 2025 and generate a skilled workforce of one million in the security sector. * The Ministry of Electronics and IT ordered review of the IT Act 2000 and set up a crack team to respond to cyber security incidents quickly. * Nasscom and the Data Security Council of India (DSCI) launched a detailed road map for the next 10 years. (This is a part of a series of articles from IANS that look back at the year that was. Nishant Arora can be contacted at nishant.a@ians.in) --IANS na/vm/ky/sac (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Foreign ministers from Iran, Russia, and Turkey are likely to meet in Moscow on December 27 to discuss the situation in Syria following the recent developments in the country. "Our Foreign Minister has done his utmost effort to finalize the meeting of Foreign ministers of Iran, Russia, and Turkey in Moscow on Dec. 27," said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi according to the official IRNA news agency. The meeting would seek to find effective ways to deal with the ongoing situation in Syria, he said, adding that Iran has been the first to propose ceasefire in the Arab state, relief aid transfer to the civilians, and dialog among the Syrians, said Qasemi. Iran announced Friday that the Islamic republic is ready to send humanitarian aid to Syria. Es'haq Jahangiri, Iran's First Vice President, made the remarks in a phone conversation with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, urging for Tehran-Ankara cooperation to diplomatically resolve the crisis in Syria. Over 8,000 rebels and their families have been evacuated from their last strongholds in Syria's northern city of Aleppo since the announcement of truce on Thursday. Nearly 15,000 people, including 4,000 rebels, were set to evacuate eastern Aleppo as part of a Russian-Turkish deal to end the presence of rebels in the city. In exchange for the evacuation in eastern Aleppo, rebels in the northwestern province of Idlib will allow civilians to leave the besieged Shiite towns of Kafraya and Foa. With the evacuation, the Syrian army will take over the whole Aleppo city, as it has already controlled 99 percent of the rebel-held areas in the eastern part of the city. --IANS ahm/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A man suspected to be connected to terror outfit IS was detained in Himachal Pradesh's Kullu district on Saturday by an NIA team, police said. Abeeb Khan, of Bengalauru and a suspected member of Islamic State, was picked up by a team of the National Investigation Agency. He used to visit a church regularly in Sidhwan in Banjar. "He's currently under interrogation by the NIA. No case has been registered so far," a senior state police official told IANS. He said the NIA had arrested two suspects in New Delhi and Khan was in touch with them for the past few months. --IANS vg/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Days before Christmas, the Mizoram government signed a ceasefire agreement with a militant outfit to facilitate people of the Christian-dominated state to celebrate the carnival and New Year under undisturbed ambience, an official said here on Saturday. The Mizoram government has been holding peace talks with Manipur-based terror outfit Hmar People's Convention-Democratic (HPC-D) to find a solution of the outfit's demand for an autonomous council. The third round of talks between the Mizoram government and the HPC-D held in Aizawl on Friday in which the outfit members deposited three AK-47 rifles, one INSAS rifle, four point 9 mm pistols, 17 magazines of different arms and 74 rounds of ammunition. These arms and ammunition were earlier snatched by the terror outfit from the Mizoram police. The six-member HPC-D team was led by the group's working chairman L. T. Hmar and the outfit's leaders from Manipur and Mizoram while the government delegation was headed by additional secretary (home department) Lalbiakzama. "We have signed a temporary ceasefire agreement with the militant outfit to make easy people of the state to celebrate Christmas and New Year under a peaceful environment. The third rounds of talks were held under friendly atmosphere," Lalbiakzama said, adding that both sides agreed to resume the fourth round of talks by mid-February next year. The first round of peace talks between the Mizoram government and the HPC-D was held on August 10 and the second round on October 5-6. Lalbiakzama said that issues discussed in the talks included more autonomy and power to Sinlung Hill Development Council, which was functioning since 1994 in the northeastern part of the state neighbouring Manipur where a large number of tribals belonging to Hmar tribes are living. HPC-D Aleader L. T. Hmar after the meeting, said : "The demand for Hmar autonomous district council was no longer included in the talks." The Manipur based militant outfit of the Hmar tribals has been triggering intermittent violent activities in Mizoram since 1994 demanding a separate autonomous district council under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution by carving out areas adjoining southern Manipur, northern Mizoram and southern Assam. The negotiations between the state government and the HPC-D reached an impasse in 2013 on the issue of extension of the period of suspension of operations. A six-month ceasefire between the Mizoram government and the militant outfit expired on July 31, 2013. The state government held inconclusive talks with the outfit on August 14, 2013, to extend the period of ceasefire. After the talks broke down over suspension of operations against the terror group, a host of leaders of the outfit were arrested. On March 28, 2015, the HPC-D guerillas ambushed a legislator's convoy near Zokhawthlang village in north Mizoram, leaving three policemen dead and six others seriously wounded. Mizoram is the first and only state in India which received Rs 182.45 crore from the central government in 2000-01 as "Peace Bonus" for keeping peace after decades of insurgency. As Mizo National Front's founder leader Laldenga, a former Indian Army official, became Chief Minister in 1986 after his group took to mainstream politics, peace and law and order returned to the Christian-majority Mizoram. --IANS sc/sm/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said the world needs to press ahead in the struggle against climate change. In his final press conference as Secretary-General, Ban on Friday said the UN must maintain the impetus that resulted in the signing of the Paris Agreement on climate change, Xinhua news agency reported. "Climate action means jobs, growth, cleaner air and better health. Leaders from across the globe and on every front understand this -- from Fortune 500 CEOs to governors and mayors," he said. "The Paris Agreement on climate change is a precious achievement that we must support and nurture," Ban said. "There is no turning back." The accord, which was signed by 194 nations and came into effect last month, is considered one of the most important achievements of Ban's tenure, which officially ends on December 31, when Antonio Guterres will take over the post. However, the election of Donald Trump as US president has cast a shadow of uncertainty over the pact's implementation. In recent days, Trump said he was considering whether to pull out of the Paris Agreement, which he suggested could make the US economy less competitive with rivals such as China, even though Beijing is also a signatory to the pact. Four years ago, Trump described climate change as a "hoax invented by China" to harm the US. --IANS py/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Terming note ban a (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi-made disaster for the country, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday accused the NDA government of aiding the rich at the cost of the poor through demonetisation. "Demonetisation, which was meant to curb black money and root out corruption, is a Modi-made disaster, as over 100 people died standing in queues at banks for a few notes across the country," said Gandhi at a public meeting in this Karnataka town, about 500 km from Bengaluru. Addressing a huge rally to mark the birth centenary of former Prime Minister and his grandmother Indira Gandhi, Gandhi said only the rich had benefitted from the note ban at the cost of the poor, farmers and labourers in millions across the country. "The Modi government came to power in the name of the poor but is sounding death knell to the hapless population to help about 50 super rich families. Who are these families holding most of the wealth in the country? You can see them touring foreign countries with Modi at the government cost. This is your Prime Minister whom you had reposed hopes of bettering your lives," he alleged. Noting that Modi failed to realise that black money hoarders invest their ill-gotten wealth in real estate, gold and in foreign banks, Gandhi said a mere six per cent of unaccounted wealth was in cash while 94 per cent was either deposited in Swiss banks or in real estate. "Unfortunately, in the name of the poor, honest and tax-paying people, Modi is going after them and ignoring the remaining 94 per cent," he said. Remembering his grandmother on the occasion, Gandhi also said he was sad over the plight of the ordinary people facing hardship due to cash crunch for over a month. "I want to ask Modiji why his government had not disclosed names of those who had stashed their black money in Swiss banks even after its government gave the list. Why he is not acting against crooks like Lalit Modi and liquor baron Vijay Mallya, who are staying in London?" asked Gandhi in his speech in Hindi. --IANS fb/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Soon after Facebook and Twitter clarified that they will not help US President-elect Donald Trump's idea of developing a Muslim registry, tech giants like Google, Apple and global cab-hailing app company Uber also said they will also oppose such an effort. "In relation to the hypothetical of whether we would ever help build a 'Muslim registry' -- we have not been asked, of course we would not do this and we are glad -- from all that we have read -- that the proposal does not seem to be on the table," Buzzfeed quoted a Google spokesperson as saying on Saturday. But if it's ever asked to participate, "of course (Google) would not do (it)," the spokespserson added. An Apple spokesperson also noted that the company "thinks people should be treated the same no matter how they worship, what they look like, who they love". "We have not been asked and we would oppose such an effort," the Apple spokesperson added. Uber also clarified with a "No," stressing that it would not help Trump build a Muslim registry. On December 4, US-based news website Intercept reported that of the nine major tech giants, including Facebook, Apple and Google, only Twitter declined to help if US President-elect Donald Trump seeks to create a national Muslim registry. According to the report, the firms were asked if they would sell their services to help create a national Muslim registry -- an idea recently refloated by President-elect Donald Trump's transition team -- and only Twitter said no. Nearly 10 days later, Facebook broke the silence and said that it would not help US President-elect Donald Trump's administration to create a list of Muslims present in the US. In a statement to the Intercept, Facebook said: "No one has asked us to build a Muslim registry, and of course we would not do so." Facebook broke its silence after 22 different advocacy groups petitioned those companies to respond. Microsoft returned with an answer saying, "We're not going to talk about hypotheticals at this point." "We oppose discrimination and we would not do any work to build a registry of Muslim Americans," Microsoft PR head Frank X. Shaw was quoted as saying. Oracle CEO Safra Katz, who is slated to join Trump's transition team, declined to respond to Buzzfeed News' question. Meanwhile, IBM, IT giant SRA International, Canada-based Information technology consulting company CGI and Management consulting company Booz Allen Hamilton were yet to respond. --IANS qd/sku/na/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said DMK President M. Karunanidhi would soon return home from hospital. Gandhi flew down here in a special aircraft to visit Karunanidhi admitted in a hospital. Speaking to reporters Gandhi said he met Karunanidhi and enquired about his health. He also conveyed Congress President Sonia Gandhi's wishes to Karunanidhi for a speedy recovery. Gandhi was accompanied by Tamil Nadu Congress Chief S. Thirunavukarasar and other party leaders like E.V.K. S.Elangovan. DMK Treasurer M. K. Stalin was present when Gandhi met Karunanidhi. Karunanidhi, 92, was admitted to Kauvery Hospital on Thursday night due to breathing difficulty as well as throat and lung infection, the hospital said. He underwent a tracheotomy on Friday to optimise his breathing. "He is stable, on antibiotics and is being treated by a team of doctors," the hospital said. Karunanidhi's second spell of hospitalisation this month comes after a short interval. It was on December 7 that Karunanidhi was discharged from the hospital after being admitted on December 1. --IANS vj/ahm/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has announced a cabinet reshuffle, which is the fourth change in his government since 2014. Prayut, a former army chief, came into power after a bloodless coup in 2014, Xinhua news agency reported. Prayut on Friday switched or appointed 12 ministers and deputy ministers. The highest-level changes were the country's justice, education and industry ministers. The reshuffle was approved on Thursday. The changes take effect immediately. --IANS py/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) It was our privilege that the Honble Prime Minister is presiding over this conference. But today we have a presiding spirit as well you can see his photograph on the wall behind: Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, father of the second wave of liberation. Forty five years ago this land saw millions fleeing tyranny and taking shelter in my country. That year was one of deep pain and hope, as tyranny was defeated by the people. Our fathers generation saw its share of suffering. We have seen it, too. Why are we gathered here? For one reason to ensure that the next generation does not suffer. Wondering how could a city be made 'smart' with a "meager" sum of Rs 500 crore, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday said his government has launched programmes to create 'smart villages' so that people do not need to move to cities. "I do not know how a city could be made smart at a meager sum of Rs 500 crore over a period of five years. Anyways this is a Central government scheme," he said at a meeting here in the fourth phase of his 'Nishchay yatra'. He said in the remaining four years of its term, his government aims at creating through the implementation of "seven resolves"- programmes for providing free electricity connection, toilets, drinking water, and sewage connection to all areas. "When all villages of Bihar become smart, who would feel like moving to cities for better civic amenities?" the Chief Minister asked. As part of the "Nishchay yatra" launched on November 9, Kumar is crisscrossing the state to take feedback on the "seven resolves". Accompanied by ministerial colleagues Bijendra Prasad Yadav, Chandrasekhar and state police chief P K Thakur, the Chief Minster highlighted the measures his government has initiated with special focus on youths and women by way of "seven resolves". Kumar exhorted women to keep a close vigil on people engaged in liquor trade. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav speaks to Radhika Ramaseshan on the impending Assembly elections, and its aftermath in the state and the feuds that nearly tore the Yadav family asunder. Congress Vice President on Friday said that it would take him only two minutes to crack down against Goa party leaders accused of corruption, once the party comes to power in the coastal state. "In five years, we will give a shining Goa and in Goa if there is even a bit of corruption, we will take cent per cent strict action in two minutes," he told a public rally in South Goa Margao town, located about 40 kms from Panaji. Gandhi also said that land conversions and casino-related issues were rampant in the state and that Goa was as much in trouble under the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government at the Centre and the BJP-led coalition government in the state. "The manner in which the whole of India is in trouble, so is Goa. I talked about unemployment. I spoke about land, casino issues. I want to assure you that when Congress comes to power in Goa, it will work for the poor and common people. We will work towards building Goa," he said. The coastal state is slated to go to polls in early 2017. Stage is set for the 8th edition of the four-day Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, which begins on January 10, 2017 in Gandhinagar, state chief secretary J N Singh said today. As many as 12 countries and seven global organisations have joined as partner countries and organisations, he said. The Summit, being held on the theme, "Connecting India to the World," will also have representatives from various states attending the events, with Arunachal Pradesh and some other North-Eastern states having shown interest, while efforts are on to take neighbouring states on board, Singh added. The 2017 Summit will also see for the first time a five-week long Nobel Laureate Exhibition and panel discussions with 8-10 Nobel laureates in attendance, Singh said. Twelve countries which have partnered the Summit are Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Japan, Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, Sweden, UAE, UK, and the USA. Seven partner organisations - Australia India Business Council, Indo-Canada Chambers of Commerce, Japan External Trade Organisation, UAE India Business Council, UK India Business Council, US India Business Council, and British Council - will also support the Summit, Singh said. "The 2017 Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, to be held between January 10-13, will be the most exciting global event at least in India. It will by far exceed any such event being done by other states. It is also an example of cooperative federalism with several states setting up their platforms, and discussing their ideas," Singh told reporters here. He said Gujarat has received active support from Centre's Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Department of Biotechnology, and Ministry of External Affairs for its organisation, which have guided the state in its organisation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, apart from inaugurating the Summit on January 10, will on January 9 inaugurate redeveloped Gandhinagar railway station which will have a multi-storey hotel at railway station, among other facilities as part of a pilot project plan to develop railway stations into socio-economic activities hub, he said. Modi will also inaugurate an international stock exchange of BSE at GIFT City and a Nobel laureate exhibition, a Global Trade Show on January 9. He will chair a Global CEO round table, which will be a closed-door event with select global and Indian CEOs on January 10, Singh said. Then, on January 11 and 12, as well as on January 13, a host of seminars on 'Make In Gujarat, action seminar, and other events will be held, the chief secretary said, adding Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is likely to be present in GST Seminar. Other seminars on International Financial City, Aerospace, Defence, Plastics, Pharmaceuticals, among others will be held during the Summit. For the first time "action seminars" will be organised where discussions will be held among practitioners, experts, industry leaders, incubators, academic innovation centres, civil society and government representatives, on the possibilities of "make your own policy" environment, Singh said. Singh ruled out the adverse impact of demonetisation on the signing of MoUs or investment intentions at the Summit, and said in fact, this may open up opportunities for companies in digital space and service sectors. So far, from 2003 till 2015, 51,738 MOUs/investment intentions were signed in Vibrant Gujarat Summits, out of which 34,234 projects are in implementation stage, additional chief secretary (industries and mines) P K Taneja informed reporters. A 16-year-old girl, who had come to Delhi around 10 days ago to look after her injured uncle and aunt, was allegedly raped by three men, including the landlord of the house where her relatives were living in east Delhi's New Ashok Nagar area, police said today. The girl was finishing the last chores of the day when one of the accused, allegedly put a handkerchief on her face and abducted her along with two other men on Thursday around 9-9.30 PM, said a police officer. They then took turns to allegedly sexually assault her while she was not in her senses. Her uncle and aunt had recently met with an accident and the girl, who belongs to Bihar, had come to Delhi around 10 ago to look after them, police said. They are not in a condition to walk properly and were quite worried after they couldn't find her, they said. When the girl came back, she narrated her ordeal to her aunt who made a PCR call, police said. A case under sections 376 D (gangrape), 328 (Causing hurt by means of poison, etc., with intent to commit an offence) IPC and relevant section of POCSO has been registered, they added. The accused, identified as Prashant (40), Vikas Singh and Sanjeev, both aged 30 have been arrested, said a senior police officer. Prashant is the landlord of the place where the girl's uncle and aunt stay and the other two accused live as tenants in the nearby room. The girl is currently undergoing counselling through an NGO. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Four persons have been arrested with illegally exchanged new high-value currency notes worth over Rs 4 lakh and a significant amount of Nepalese currency near the Indo-Nepal border in Bahraich district, police said today. The arrests were made at Rupaidiha township yesterday after the police received information that the four had illegally exchanged old Indian and Nepalese currency notes with new ones having denomination of Rs 500 and Rs 2,000. Rs 4.77 lakh of new currency notes in the denomination of Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 were seized from them. Nepalese currency valued at Rs 76,000 was also seized, SP Saligram Verma said. Demonetised Indian currency notes having a face value of Rs 63,000 was also seized from them, he said. The Income Tax department has been informed of the seizure and the four were being questioned, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rapper 50 Cent says his first experience with Yoga was way different from what he expected it to be. The 41-year-old musician said that his foray into yoga was nothing short of a rude awakening, reported People magazine. "I didn't know what I thought I was going to do. I thought I was going to stretch in a sauna, just stretch and have a good time. It started out good, and then the ladies started going faster and faster. "It was difficult moves for you to put your body in different spaces and I was like, 'What?' and I'm looking around to see if other people are having the same experience. "I ended up in a class that was a little too advanced for me," the rapper, whose real name is Curtis James Jackson III, said. The rapper may not be heading back to the yoga studio anytime soon, but he did confess to having more respect for those who practise it. "You can't just step in thinking you can do what they do because you see these hot girls going in the room with the yoga mat. You're like, 'I can do that, whatever they doing in there'. No, you can't," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A police head constable shot himself dead under the Vijayawada police commissionerate area today but the reason for the act remained a mystery. A senior police official said David Raju (55), posted as Station Writer at Gannavaram police station for the last one year, shot himself with a service weapon this afternoon at a private property at nearby Purushottapatnam village. "As a Station Writer, Raju was in charge of weapons in the police station. He reported for duty as usual this morning. Shortly thereafter, he took a revolver and went out on his scooter. "Later we received information that he was found dead," the police official said. Though a suicide note was said to have been recovered from Raju's person, police remained tight-lipped about its contents. The head constable's family members, who rushed to the scene from his native village, told the police that Raju did not have any financial problems or family issues. Further probe is on. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Maharashtra BJP president Raosaheb Danve today courted a controversy with his remark asking voters to accept 'Laxmi', the goddess of wealth, during the polls. "On the eve of elections, Laxmi comes to your house and you should accept it," Danve said during a civic poll campaign meeting at Paithan in Aurangabad district today. Elections to municipal councils are being held in the state at present. Opposition Congress objected to Danve's remarks, saying it amounted to asking people to accept money during election campaign and asked the State Election Commission to register a case of violation of model code against him. "Danve's statement amounts to an appeal to the voters to accept money during poll campaign," state party spokesperson Sachin Sawant said. "Congress will approach the SEC but the Commission should take cognisance of Danve's remarks on its own," Sawant said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) : Noted animal rights campaigner, Heritage Animal Task Force has demanded a probe into the frequent deaths of wild elephants inside Athirappilly-Vazhachal forests in Thrissur district, about 260 kms from here. In the last 17 days, carcasses of five wild jumbos with wounds all over the body, have been found inside the forest area, the HATF said in a letter sent to Director of Project Elephant, under the Union Ministry of Environment and Forest. The Thrissur-based outfit also enclosed the photo of one of such wounded carcasses along with the letter, which was released to media. HATF secretary V K Venkitachalam said in all the five cases, the lower level forest officials, ranging from Range officer to Forest Guard, supervised the post mortem of such carcasses. "It is in violation of a state government order dated September 10, 2015, which specifically states that the conduct of the post mortem of any carcass of protected wild species surfaced inside forest area must be done only in the presence of Chief Conservator of that territory," he said in the letter. Such an order was issued by the government after the revelation of a poacher that his gang had killed 21 tuskers from forest areas of Athirappilly,Vazhachal, Edamalayar, Pooyamkutty and Mathikettan in the state during the period between 2011 to 2013, it said. The then State Forest Minister Thiruvanchur Radhakrishnan had directed the Forest Secretary to issue the G.O. "But for the past 17 days, all the carcasses of five elephants were subjected to post mortem without the physical presence of the central circle conservator of Thrissur who have office at Paravattany which is only 40 kms away from the Athirappilly- Vazhachal Area," he alleged in the letter. The campaigner also stated that the viscera samples of the dead animals were not sent to the Hyderabad-based Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, to verify the actual cause of its death. The forest department was yet to conduct any formal inquiry into this type of serial deaths of wild elephants inside a forest area which was developed using crores of money granted by UNESCO, he said adding a comprehensive probe should be conducted into the incidents. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Australia were chasing runs in pursuit of a declaration and holding a massive lead of 489 runs over Pakistan on the third day of the day-night first Test at the Gabba today. Skipper Steve Smith did not enforce the follow-on after Pakistan were dismissed for 142, some 287 runs behind on the first innings. Instead Australia amassed a formidable lead over the beleaguered tourists heading into the tricky twilight session under lights. Smith went after the runs and brought up his 19th Test half-century off 59 balls with his eye on a declaration. But he was caught at long-on by Rahat Ali going for a heave off leg-spinner Yasir Shah for 63 off 70 balls with 11 fours. Usman Khawaja, out cheaply in the first innings, cracked 74 off 109 balls before he was splendidly caught by Misbah-ul-Haq off Rahat nearing the dinner break. Nic Maddinson once again failed and was out for four off just three balls before he was caught off Wahab Riaz. Both openers were out before tea. David Warner fell for 12 when he went to hit Mohammad Amir through midwicket only to miscue his pull shot to Wahab Riaz at mid-on, while Matthew Renshaw was caught at second slip off Rahat Ali for six. The highest winning run chase in the fourth innings at the Gabba stands at 236 for seven by Australia against the West Indies in 1951. When Pakistan's turn to bat comes they will have to go beyond the record highest-ever Test run chase of 418 for seven set by the West Indies against Australia in Antigua in 2003. Earlier Pakistan's last two partnerships battled for almost an hour before they were all out for 142 to trail Australia by 287 runs. Wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed earlier top scored with a fighting unbeaten 59 off 64 balls as the tourists added 45 runs to their overnight total 97 for eight. Sarfraz and Mohammad Amir put on a stubborn 54 runs for the ninth wicket before Amir was adjudicated caught behind off a faint edge, detected by Hot Spot. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has registered a money laundering case in the alleged forging of a customer's identity to conduct huge illegal transactions in an Axis Bank branch in Noida for conversion of black funds into white post demonetisation. The individual, identified as N Paswan, in his complaint filed with the police has claimed that his identity has been forged and a current and a savings account were opened in his name in the said branch which were allegedly used to launder crores of rupees post demonetisation. Officials said the ED registered a criminal complaint under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) taking cognisance of the police FIR on a complaint filed by Paswan, a resident of Delhi's Pitampura area. They said while the bank branch, in sector 51 of Noida, is already under scanner by the Income Tax department owing to alleged dubious transactions using shell companies, the ED has come into picture to probe proceeds of crime which were generated through use of various fake accounts which also have "fake or weak" KYC (Know your customer) details. They said the amount under scanner of the central probe agency is over Rs 60 crore. Officials added that the agency is probing more than two dozen accounts in the bank here which could have been used to perpetrate the crime of money laundering, in the wake of the scrapping of Rs 1000/500 notes. Meanwhile, the ED also conducted searches on the premises of four bullion traders in Mumbai yesterday in a similar probe. The agency has also sought freezing of few bank accounts of these traders as part of its probe, they said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Swaraj Abhiyan leader Prashant Bhushan today backed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's demand for establishment of a commission to probe the source of funding of political parties, saying the move to exempt them from paying tax while depositing old notes will make them a medium to convert black money into white. Bhushan also accused the central government of "constantly lying" on the issue of demonetisation and said the figures of old 500 and 1000 notes in circulation is being changed constantly. Addressing a conference, Bhushan said the central government is not serious about taking any decision to tackle the menace of black money. "By allowing them to deposit old notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 will make political parties a means to convert black money into white," the activist-lawyer said, as he questioned the lack of transparency in funding of political parties. Bhushan, who is known to be an ardent critic of his one-time friend Kejriwal, said the formation of the commission as demanded by the Delhi chief minister is very important. "There is already an existing loophole that is being exploited by most of the major political parties to convert black money into legitimate political donations up to Rs 20,000. "Taking advantage of this clause, most parties declare an overwhelming majority of their income as cash donation under this limit and escape scrutiny of the source of its donations," Bhushan said. Yogendra Yadav, president of Swaraj India, political arm of Swaraj Abhiyan, claimed that the government has a list of blacklisted tax haven countries, but they have now removed Cyprus from the list with retrospective effect from 2013. "So there will be no scrutiny of funds which have been channeled from the country," Yadav said. Swaraj Abhiyan also announced a 'Halla Bol' rally at Jantar Mantar tomorrow against black money and corruption. Yadav claimed the rally will attended by "anti-corruption crusaders" Justice (retd.) Santosh Hegde among others. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) has slammed the government for its demonetisation move, saying farmers are not getting cash despite having money in their bank accounts. "After standing in queue for the whole day, the banks are allowing withdrawal of only Rs 2,000," BKU president Naresh Tikait said. He claimed about 4,000 garment manufacturing units have been badly affected, and 6,000 labourers became jobless in Muzaffarnagar district alone. Meanwhile, agitated customers locked down an SBI branch in Kakroli village yesterday, alleging that the bank employees misbehaved with women. Later, police rushed to pacify angry customers. In another incident in the district, employees of Kandhla Nagar Palika staged dharna outside a State Bank of India branch here for not being able to withdraw their salary. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actress Blake Lively gushed about her husband Ryan Reynolds after he earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The 29-year-old actress took to Instagram to praise the "Deadpool" star for his big honour- hours after attending the ceremony with him and their two daughters for the family's first public appearance. "Proud is a pitiful word to describe how I felt today," Lively captioned a picture that showed her, Reynolds and their 2-year-old daughter James standing on the star. "@vancityreynolds The permanence of your impact is undeniable... Always has been, but now we have a fancy (star) to show for it," she continued. Reynolds, 40, also took to the photo-video sharing app, expressing his gratitude to the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. "This is one of those 'pinch me' moments. But not in the creepy way my Aunt used to do it," he joked. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a suspected case of murder, the body of a Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) employee was found in a field at Bawana area, police said today. Krishna Kumar (58), was an assistant ticket inspector in DTC. Yesterday at around 8 PM he left his house at Nangal Thakran village to irrigate his field, they said. His body was found lying in a pool of blood in the field later that night, a police officer said. The body has been sent for postmortem and a case under Section 302 (punishment for murder) of the IPC has been registered against unknown persons, police said. Locals and family members are being questioned to know whether Kumar had enmity with anyone which could have led to the incident, they said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The body of woman Maoist Ajitha, killed in an alleged encounter along with another Maoist leader in Nilambur forests last month, was buried in the city outskirts today in the presence of police officials. About 35 persons, comprising friends and relatives of the slain Maoist, paid their last respects to 45-year-old Ajitha at the public burial ground at West Hill following permission granted by Kerala High Court, police said. A police team including the Assistant Commissioner of Police (North, were present during the burial The body has been buried instead of being cremated so as to facilitate a second post-mortem, if needed, police added. Earlier, the body, which had been preserved at the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital mortuary for more than three weeks, was handed over to Bhagat Singh, a lawyer practising in Madurai and the Madras High Court who claimed to be a friend of Ajitha, and others. He had filed a petition in the High Court seeking a direction to claim the body for giving it a decent disposal. The body of Maoist leader Kuppuswamy Devaraj was cremated here on December 9. Ajitha and Devaraj, a central committee member of the outlawed outfit, were gunned down in an alleged encounter in Nilambur forests in Malappuram district on November 24 during search operations by a 60-member elite team of the Thunderbolt Force, based on a tip-off that some Maoists were camping in the area. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Buddhist woman priest was stabbed to death allegedly by unidentified persons at Buddha Vihar in Amingaon area here, police said today. The blood-stained body of the woman, identified as C S Lama, was found near her room at Buddha Vihar in North Guwahati's Amingaon area this morning. Police suspect that Lama, who was staying there for the last 25 years, was stabbed to death last night. Sniffer dogs were pressed into service. The dogs led the police to three persons living in the nearby village and they have been taken into custody. Further investigations are on, police added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) : Eminent writer C Radhakrishnan wastoday conferred with the Mathrubhumi Literary Award for this year in recognition of his richcontribution to the field of literature. The award was presented by renowned writer M T Vasudevan Nair at a function, presided by Mathrubhumi Managing Director M P Veerendra Kumar, MP. Managing Editor ofthe daily P V Chandran,Malayalam University Vice Chancellor K Jayakumar and Kerala Sahitya Akademi Vice President Khadija Mumtaz werealso present Radhakrishnan was selected by a panel chaired by novelist M Mukundan, with Sethu and Sarah Joseph being other members. The award, instituted by the leading Malayalam daily in 2001, carries a cash prize of Rs two lakh, a citation and a statuette. The writer-cum-filmmaker was chosen for this year's Ezhuthachan Award, the highest literary honour of the Kerala government. Recipient of several coveted honors, including the National Literary Academy of India, Kerala Literary Academy, Vayalar Awardand Padmaprabha Puraskaram, Radhakrishnan was born in Chamravattom in Ponnani taluk in Malappuram district on February 15, 1939. Many of his works had garnered much attention at the publishing stage itself. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) CBI has arrested two employees of cash department of Reserve Bank of India in Bengaluru in connection with alleged conversion of Rs 1.99 crore of demonetised currency with specified bank notes of Rs 2,000 and Rs 100. CBI sources said Senior Special Assistant Sadananda Naika and Special Assistant A K Kavin were arrested for unauthorised exchange of the currency and have been booked under charges of criminal conspiracy and cheating besides provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act. Both the accused have been sent to four days of CBI custody by a special court in Bengaluru, they said. "It is alleged that both the accused and other unknown officials of RBI, Bengaluru entered in criminal conspiracy with unknown others," CBI spokesperson Devpreet Singh said. She said in furtherance with the criminal conspiracy, the accused, along with other unknown officials, who were entrusted with the responsibility of new currency notes, "fraudulently" gave away new notes to the tune of Rs 1.99 crore to officials and others. It is alleged that the exchange was done in violation of exchange limits imposed by the Bankers' Bank. CBI had earlier arrested another employee of in a separate case in which currency worth over Rs six lakh was converted by him using his influence over officials of State Bank of Mysore. China, the world's top energy consumer, will install over 110 million kilowatts of solar power by 2020, official media reported today. China will install at least 105 million kilowatts of photovoltaic power capacity by 2020, according to the solar power development plan for the next five years released by National Energy Administration (NEA). The country will reduce the costs for producing photovoltaic power and lower its price by at least 50 per cent compared with that of 2015, the plan said. China produced the world's largest installed capacity of photovoltaic power in 2015, with an annual growth rate of over 33 per cent from 2011 to 2015, state-run Xinhua agency reported. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad today said nearly 10 lakh people have received training in digital payment system in the last 4 days. "We have a web portal which was set up around 4 days ago on digital payment training. As per latest data, 10 lakh people have registered for it out of 9.5 lakh have been trained, 31,000 shopkeepers have been trained across 476 districts," Prasad said at FICCI's 89th Annual General Meeting. He further said the government is paying Rs 10 per individual, Rs 100 for a training camp and Rs 200 for training each shopkeeper. The government has chalked out a plan to train 1.2 crore people under awareness and training programme on digital payments. He said that demonetisation is a part of a transformative programme which is aimed for stronger and more movable digital economy. Speaking at another event, DigiDhan Mela, Prasad said the government will organise fair across the country to help people enroll for Aadhaar, open bank account and make digital payments. "Our MPs, MLAs will go in their areas to help people. I have asked Venkaiah (Naidu) Ji to work with Urban Development Ministry to take this type (DigiDhan Mela) of programme deep down for people," Prasad said. Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan said that he has already started awareness programme in his constituency, conducted road shows, meeting with the merchants. The two-day event 'DigiDhan Mela', organised at National Stadium here, saw participation of 29 banks, 18 wallet companies, UIDAI for Aadhaar enrolment, Jio Money etc to help people make digital payments. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union Minister Vijay Sampla today blamed the policies of previous Congress governments for the "agricultural crisis" in the country and said the BJP government is working on a far-sighted policy for the sector. "The policies of the successive Congress governments during the past seven decades are responsible for the agricultural crisis in the country," he said. "The Congress leaders could have discussed this important issue during the Winter Session of Parliament, but they instead chose otherwise and disrupted the House proceedings. Now in the wake of the upcoming assembly elections, they realised their mistake and showed up in front of the Prime Minister," the Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment said. Sampla, the Punjab unit president of BJP, said the people of the poll-bound state are fully aware of the politics played by the Congress over agricultural issues. He said the farmers of Punjab have not forgotten the "step-motherly" treatment meted out to them by the Manmohan Singh government in 2008. "Not even a single paisa reached the farmers of Punjab when he announced the Rs 70,000 crore debt waiver for the farmers of the nation," he claimed, adding Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh and the party's then leadership had failed to come to the rescue of farmers. Sampla said the way out of this agricultural crisis is a far-sighted policy, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government at the Centre is continuously working upon. "The present government allotted Rs 35,984 crore for the agriculture sector this financial. This is the largest sum ever allotted for the agri-sector by any central government since Independence," he said. With the improvement of irrigation facilities and policies like the crop insurance scheme, new targets have been set to enhance and create new sources of income for the farmers, he said. "A farmer-friendly environment is being created so that the farmers spend less on chemical fertilisers, thereby increasing their earning. These initiatives of the central government will soon bear fruit," Sampla added . (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A local court today issued notices to NSUI Odisha unit President Itish Pradhan and proprietor of a local website Pradip Pandey besides directing banning the circulation of the sex tape allegedly featuring a Mayor. The senior judge civil division, Bhubaneswar, directed the ban on the circulation of the video tape following a case filed by the Mayor Ananta Narayan Jena yesterday. The said Mayor had also filed a defamation suit of Rs 1 crore against Pradhan and Pandey. The issue came to fore when social media aired the video-tape purportedly featuring three persons including a woman. NSUI state President Pradhan had alleged in a press conference that one of the person in the video appeared like the Mayor. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has sought the intervention of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in bringing back the mortal remains of a man from Delhi who died in Japan recently. The wife of the deceased, Radha Debi, a resident of Ambedkar Nagar, has approached the Commission saying she is financially weak and unable to bear the expenses for bringing back the body of Gopal Ram (48) for performing last rites. Swaraj, who recently underwent kidney transplant is recuperating at AIIMS. "The woman has approached the Commission to seek assistance for repatriation of her husband's body to India for performing last rites. She has informed that she has no means of ensuring the same as her family is financially weak and is unable to bear the expenses for the same. "The family is severely distressed and needs your kind support. As we all aware you have been extremely pro-active in resolving such matters. Therefore, I am forwarding the representation along with this letter for your kind perusal. Hoping for your support in this matter," DCW Chairperson Swati Maliwal said in a letter to Swaraj. Maliwal also wished the minister a fast and speedy recovery. Gopal had gone to Tokyo, Japan in September last year to work as a cook in a hotel. According to his son, he was fired from the job within three months after which he started working in some local shop. His financial condition was bad because of which he was in distress. However, on December 10, the family received a call from a person who worked with Gopal, saying that he has passed away following a heart attack. "Since then we have been in touch with Indian Embassy officials in Japan and also have written letter to the MEA but they have asked us to arrange for several documents and it is becoming extremely difficult for us to arrange things as we are financially not sound. "We want the government of India to help us bring back the body of my father so that we can perform his last rites," Jatin said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rebel and government forces agreed today to allow "humanitarian cases" to leave two besieged government-held Shiite villages in northwestern Syria, a step that would allow the resumption of civilian and rebel evacuations from eastern Aleppo which were suspended a day earlier, Hezbollah's media arm and a monitoring group said. The opposition's Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the evacuation of some 4,000 people, including wounded, from the villages of Foua and Kfarya was expected to start today. It later reported that 29 buses were heading toward the two villages to start the evacuation process, adding that insurgents in the area rejected allowing 4,000 people to leave and saying they will only allow 400 people to be evacuated. The Syrian army said another 25 buses left later today heading to the two villages. It was not immediately clear whether the alleged evacuation limits set by the insurgents in the two villages would undermine evacuation efforts in Aleppo. Hezbollah fighters have joined the Syrian war fighting along with President Bashar Assad's forces. Opposition activists blamed the Lebanese group for blocking the main road south of Aleppo and blocking evacuations from rebel-held eastern neighbourhoods of the city. The Aleppo evacuation was suspended yesterday after a report of shooting at a crossing point into the enclave by both sides of the conflict. Thousands were evacuated before the process was suspended. An amateur video posted online by opposition activists yesterday showed scores of men, women and children running away from a crossing point for fear of being shot at. The video appeared genuine and corresponded to other reporting of the events by The Associated Press. The Syrian government has said that the village evacuations and the one in eastern Aleppo must be done simultaneously, but the rebels say there's no connection. Hezbollah's Military Media said the new deal also includes the rebel-held towns of Madaya and Zabadani near the border with Lebanon where tens of thousands of people are trapped under siege by government forces and the Lebanese group. A Syrian state TV correspondent, speaking from Aleppo, said Saturday that the main condition for the Aleppo evacuation to resume is for residents of Foua and Kfarya to be allowed to leave. In Moscow, The Russian foreign ministry said Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov today called his counterparts in Turkey and Iran to discuss the Syria crisis. The ministry's read-out said all three discussed the Aleppo evacuation and humanitarian efforts and stressed "the importance of continuing to coordinate efforts of the international community to provide humanitarian aid to those in need." They agreed to meet soon. Separately, Russia's Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu spoke by telephone today with his Iranian and Syrian counterparts, as well as the chief of the Turkish intelligence service, to discuss the crisis in Aleppo, including "concrete steps to create conditions for a lasting cease-fire in Syria. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Escalating his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi today trashed of high value currency notes as a Modi-made disaster and charged that he had attacked the economic system of the country to benefit the one per cent super rich. For the first time in the history of India, Prime Minister has attacked the poor people of this country. Usually the Prime Minister works for the country. They work for the economy, but Narendra Modi has attacked our economic system, Gandhi alleged at a Congress rally here in north Karnataka. "As it is said a man-made disaster, in the same way is Modi-made disaster, the Congress Vice-President said as he targeted the Prime Minister squarely blaming him for the hardships post- . More than 100 people had died, he claimed, adding, Fidel Castro (Cuban revolutionary) was remembered in the Parliament and we stood in silence for two minutes as a mark of respect to him, but BJP leaders did not have two minutes time for these hundred people. Who is responsible for their deaths? Narendra Modi is responsible....In the last two and half years Narendra Modi government has been attacking the poor, he said. Accusing the Modi government of trying to divide India, he said on the one side, there were one per cent super rich who have private aircraft, flashy vehicles and big businesses and on the other, there were 99 per cent of people who are honest like farmers, labourers, small traders and middle class who toil every day for the sake of the country and their lives. In the last two and half years, one per cent super rich in this country have amassed 70 per cent of India's wealth and if you look deep into this one per cent, only 50 families have major portion of India's wealth. You know their names; these are the people who travel with Narendra Modi to America, Japan, and Australia, Gandhi said. Congress wants to get rid of corruption from India and whatever step the BJP government takes whether it is big or small if it is against corruption we will give it full support, he said. RJD president Lalu Prasad today said demonetisation would meet the fate of 'Nasbandi' of the Congress rule and announced protest across Bihar on December 28. During a day-long meeting of RJD MPs, ministers, legislators and office-bearers, Prasad and other leaders of the party highlighted people's woes following the scrapping of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes. Addressing the RJD leaders, Prasad criticised the move and said, "It will meet the fate of 'nasbandi' (forced sterlisation) during the Congress rule in the past." Prasad and his party have been on the forefront of protest against the demonetisation decision inside and outside Parliament. Several prominent RJD leaders had shared dais with TMC chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during her demonstration against demonetisation in Patna on November 30, though Prasad himself was not present. Asked how he saw Nitish Kumar getting praise from Centre on demonetisation, Prasad, whose RJD is a partner in the grand alliance government, said, "Nitish Kumar's approach is similar to our's...All of us are standing together against hardship caused to masses due to high-value currency invalidation." Nitish Kumar and his party JD(U), which has supported demonetisation, had kept away from Banerjee's demonstration. Economist Mohan Guruswamy, who was advisor in the NDA government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, was also invited to speak on adverse impact of demonetisation. Guruswamy gave a detailed slide presentation with the help of data and charts to tell RJD leaders how demonetisation would cause a drop of 2.5 per cent in the country's GDP by the end of the current fiscal. In the meeting Prasad, Tejaswi Yadav, Abdul Bari Siddiqui, who is the finance minister in the Nitish Kumar government, and a host of senior leaders spke on the woes of poor people and farmers standing outside banks and ATMs for withdrawal of cash. Prasad said, "After the December-28 dharna, leaders of all the parties, national as well regional, would be invited to a rally later in Patna." He said the date of the rally would be announced later. Making a scathing attack at the Prime Minister, the RJD chief said "after seeing that demonetisation is failing, the PM has shifted the issue now and is talking about cashless, PayTm." "On the one hand the PM talks of going ahead of China and on the another hand he is favouring a company (PayTm) in which the Chinese have a major share," he said. During over half-an-hour of presentation, Guruswamy said though former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had predicted a fall of two per cent in the GDP due to demonetisation, his view is that the decline would amount to about 2.5 per cent by the end of the financial year. Guruswamy claimed, "22 crore daily workers have been adversely affected by the demonetisation." He said of the total amount of unaccounted money, only 4 per cent is in the form of cash while major chunk of 46 per cent is invested in land and building, 26 per cent in jewellery and 24 per cent is parked abroad. "Modi is after only this 4 per cent of the black money which is in the form of cash which could not bear any result other than causing miseries to common people, especially the daily wagers," he added. "Approximately Rs 30 crore of black money is expected to be unearthed through the demonetisation. A total of Rs 42,000 crore would be spent in reprinting this volume of scrapped notes," Guruswamy, who taught Economics at Harvard University, said. Handing over a pamphlet with views of Guruswamy on note scrapping, Prasad told RJD workers to hold "jan jagran" (public awareness meeting) at grassroots level from December 20-26 to make them aware of truth of demonetisation. Actress Kangana Ranaut has once again spoken about her spat with Hrithik Roshan, saying she "felt naked" when her personal letters were made public and she would often cry herself to sleep. Hrithik, 42, and Kangana had slapped each other with legal notices earlier this year. The actor claimed he never had an affair with 29-year-old Kangana and she should apologise while the actress maintained otherwise. Speaking about her experience in third person at Reebok's FitToFight awards, Kangana said she is proud of her ability to stay in love even though "my world or environment" does not allow or respond in the same way. "I know the things I'm going to say, will get me into trouble, but I wouldn't be doing justice to the evening if I hold back," said Kangana, adding that being a storyteller, she would like to talk in third person. "There was this young girl in the mountains. She had a lot of fire in her and was very unusual, extremely dreamy, impractical, naive and stubborn. She was 14, when she saw a picture of a man and she fell in love with him. That picture led her to cross oceans, deserts, mountains and landscapes. "She is standing under stars with the man and this man kisses her and he says I love you. What happens is that this man says that she is not a normal girl, she has a lot of fire in her belly. And she isn't even a human, she is a lion... So, the man gets scared of this woman and that's when the whole love story becomes a tragedy." Kanagana said what she was not prepared for was the "extreme brutality". "I am talking because people have seen how I have put up a strong front to fight but nobody has seen what I feel as a woman, when I am subjected to that kind of brutality. The letters that I might have written, which were brutally exposed to the world. "... Every letter that you've written to your lover holds a lot of vulnerability? You are exposing part of your soul or yourself, not to the world, to an individual. I felt extremely naked in front of the world. I cried for nights in my room and the worst was most of it was not even genuine or authentic," she claimed. The actress said she chose not to answered to that brutality in the same spirit but she was scared when the letters were made public. She asked her sister Rangoli about the nature of those letters and was told that most of them express a desire for a man. "I said I would not go and defend myself for that. What is wrong in that? This is the very mindset that I did not want to encourage... It was a very traumatic time for me." Kangana said she is an ambitious career woman who does not see anything wrong in having everything and the scandal attacked this aspect of her personality. "You may become this successful woman but it does not change men and their expectations from you... They think you can't have everything... I don't want to be a little keep or mistress... Today it still hurts when they write it as the ugliest scandal and fight. For me, it is not. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congolese crisis talks to ensure a peaceful transition of power were suspended today, Catholic church negotiators said, announcing they would resume only a day after President Joseph Kabila's last legal term in office ends. The announcement follows nearly a week of church-led negotiations between Kabila's ruling power and opposition parties to determine a path forward after December 20, when Kabila's second term ends. The Congolese constitution bans presidents from a third term, but Kabila has showed no signs of stepping down and no elections have yet been planned, leading international observers to fear the situation could descend into violence. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Philippine president said today he would "set aside" a ruling by an international arbitration tribunal that invalidated Beijing's claims to most of the busy South China Sea, because he doesn't want to impose on China. President Rodrigo Duterte made the remarks when asked in a conference if a US think tank report that China apparently installed anti-aircraft and anti-missile weapons on its new artificial islands in the disputed waters would affect his perception of Beijing. The Philippines claims the reefs that were turned by China into man-made islands. Duterte, who took office in June, has taken steps to mend relations with China that grew hostile during the time of his predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, over the long-unresolved territorial disputes. The Aquino administration took the disputes to international arbitration in a move backed by Washington after China seized a disputed shoal in 2012. "In the play of politics, now, I will set aside the arbitral ruling. I will not impose anything on China," Duterte said. He explained his position partly by repeating his threat to remove American forces out of the Philippines after the Obama administration criticised his government's bloody crackdown on illegal drugs. "I will demand that they go out of my country. What's the use of keeping, hosting them when they think we are a bunch of criminals?" Duterte asked. "Go, go out. If you do not believe in us, why deal with us? Son of..." Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr said yesterday the Philippines won't take any steps against China in response to the report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies late Wednesday that China appears to have installed weapons to guard against missile attack on its seven newly created islands. Asked if his department plans to issue any statement or ask China to clarify, Yasay said, "We want to make sure that there will be no further actions that will heighten the tensions between the two countries, particularly in the Scarborough Shoal." He was referring to a disputed fishing area off the Philippines' northwestern coast where tensions recently eased when Chinese coast guard ships allowed Filipinos to fish after blocking them from the area since 2012. China's change of tact came after Duterte met his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Beijing in October. Yasay told reporters in Singapore, where he and other officials accompanied Duterte on a visit, "there is nothing that we can do about that now, whether or not it is being done for purposes of further militarising these facilities that they have put up." "We cannot stop China at this point in time and say 'Do not put that up.' We will continue to pursue peaceful means at which all of these can be prevented," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A nasty fight erupted outside a bank here after a woman attempted to jump the queue to withdraw money, prompting police to fire in the air. The woman identified as Shanti tried to jump the queue at the Punjab National Bank's Aahar branch here. Those waiting for their turn got agitated and protested, SP (rural) Jagdish Sharma said. The woman then called five youths, who on arrival at the bank started beating those protesting against Shanti's behaviour. Policemen present on the scene fired in the air to disperse the warring group. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As part of plans to merge some of the tribunals into larger entities to avoid identical functions, the government is looking to converge the Cyber Appellate Tribunal (CyAT) and TDSAT. Sources in the government today said that CyAT is proposed to be merged with the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) and a Cabinet note to this effect will be moved shortly. CyAT adjudicates matter related to Information Technology and is seen carrying much significance at a time when the government is pushing for digital payments. CyAT, however, has been headless since July 2011. Law and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad at DigiDhan Mela today said the government is "working to rationalise tribunals, merge tribunals. A decision of the Cabinet on it is expected very soon after which it will be resolved." In response to a letter from Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar with regard to the appointment of chairperson at CyAT, Prasad said the position fell vacant on July 1, 2011 and thereafter the IT Ministry came out with advertisement on three occasions but it could not be materialised. "I have been raising this issue of vacancy in Parliament since 2012 but people have not taken issue of cyber crime and cyber disputes seriously. It is now that the government is proposing to merge CyAT with TDSAT which is good. Instead of keeping it vacant, it will be start functioning," Chandrasekhar said. He said that with growing number of internet users and government move to push for digital payments, it is extremely important to have cyber dispute settlement mechanism. Seeking to cut red tape, an inter-ministerial group of secretaries has "unanimously" agreed to reduce the number of tribunals from 36 to 18 as the government feels that most of these bodies are performing "identical functions". The Department of Legal Affairs in the Law ministry will be the nodal agency for administration of various tribunals. As of now, the tribunals are handled by various ministries. The sources said the merger of tribunals will be implemented in a phased manner. A Constitutional bench of the Supreme Court had some years ago suggested bringing tribunals under administrative control of the Law Ministry. The Department of Legal Affairs had recently written to all Union ministries and departments to furnish details of tribunals functioning under their administrative control and explain the "possibility of merging the functions of tribunals with some other tribunals". There are 36 tribunals functioning in the country dealing with subjects such as income tax, electricity, consumer protection, company laws and railway accidents. Questioning the efficacy of tribunals, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had recently voiced concern over the low rate of disposal of cases by them and said there was a need to ascertain whether these institutions were delivering justice or were acting as a "barrier" in it. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Six persons were killed and thirteen rpt thirteen injured in two accidents in Banaskantha and Surat districts today, police said. Four pilgrims were killed and seven others were injured near the temple town of Ambaji in Banaskantha district when an SUV and a car collided head-on with a truck this morning. The victims were from Anand district, police said. Four pilgrims in SUV died on the spot. Four others in the SUV, and three people in the car were injured and shifted to a government hospital at Palanpur, the police said. The accident took place on the state highway between Ambaji and Khedbrahma, 8 km from the temple town. The deceased were identified as Poonabhai Parmar, Vinod Prajapati, Banshilal Padhiya and Lakshman Padhiya. In Surat, a school van mowed down a labourer couple sleeping on the footpath in Khatodara locality this morning. They were identified as Lalsinh Tila and his wife Sumitraben Tila. Six others sleeping on the footpath were injured. They were taken to the government hospital, police said. The driver of the van, Yakub Vasava, was arrested. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Gunmen shot dead five female airport workers and their driver in southern Afghanistan today, underlining the threat to employed women in the country. The women were in a van driving to the airport in the southern Kandahar province when at least three gunmen on motorcycles opened fire at them, provincial spokesman Samim Kheplwak told AFP. "All the women and their driver aboard the van were killed. The attackers fled the area and we have launched an investigation," he said. Kandahar International Airport Director Ahmadullah Faizi said the women were employees of a private company who would provide luggage and body search services for female passengers. He said the women were concerned about their security after receiving death threats from people who disapproved of their career. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but Kandahar females who work outside their homes have long been at high risk of attack from Taliban militants and other insurgent groups. Afghan women have made giant strides since the Taliban regime was ousted in 2001, but they are still absent from public life and continue to suffer high levels of violence, oppression and abuse. The Afghan attorney general's office recorded more than 3,700 cases of violence against women in the first eight months of 2016, with 5,000 cases recorded in the whole of the previous year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Palestinian Islamist group Hamas said today a Tunisian engineer murdered in the North African country was one of its leaders, accused Israel of the killing and vowed to avenge him. Mohamed Zaouari, a 49-year-old engineer, was murdered at the wheel of his car outside his house in Tunisia's second city, Sfax, on Thursday. Al-Qassam Martyrs Brigade, the armed wing of Hamas that controls the Gaza Strip, told AFP today that drone expert Zaouari was killed by "Zionist treachery", referring to Israel. It said Zaouari had worked for the "resistance" for 10 years, and announced a day of mourning. "Zaouari's assassination in Tunisia is aggression against the resistance, and Al-Qassam Brigades and the enemy should know that the blood of the leaders will not be wasted and lost in vain," it said in a separate statement. Tunisia's Islamist Ennahdha movement has called for an investigation into the killing, which it said posed a threat to the country's stability. Authorities in Tunisia have said at least five suspects have been detained in Sfax, Tunis and Djerba, and four vehicles seized along with two guns equipped with silencers. Private radio station Mosaique FM reported that Zaouari's body was riddled with 20 bullets. Israel has ignored the Hamas allegation, despite its record of assassinating members of militant groups abroad, including in Tunisia. In 1988, the head of the Palestine Liberation Organisation military wing Khalil al-Wazir, better known as Abu Jihad, was killed by Israeli commandos in Tunisia with another senior PLO figure, Saad Sayil. Agents from the Jewish state's spy agency Mossad failed in 1997 in an attempt to kill Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal in Jordan with poison. Mossad is also believed to have been behind the 2010 murder of top Hamas militant Mahmud al-Mabhuh in a Dubai hotel. And Imad Mughniyeh, a top operative with Lebanon's Shiite group Hezbollah, was killed in Damascus in a 2008 bombing that drew immediate threats of retaliation against Israel. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Madras High Court has directed the Tamil Nadu government to provide a compensation of Rs three lakh with interest to a man who had claimed to have sustained injuries during a police probe into a theft case in Thanjavur district in 2010. Justice M V Muralidaran gave the direction while disposing of a petition filed by victim Selvaraj's mother Banumathi, seeking a compensation of Rs five lakh and action against police officials who allegedly beat him up during the investigation. The judge ordered payment of compensation with interest at the rate of six per cent per annum from July 19, 2010, within six weeks from the date of receipt of the order copy. After perusing the medical records produced by the petitioner, the court, in its order yesterday, said, "The offenders who assaulted the petitioner's son were not prosecuted by the state since it did not investigate the case (theft) properly." The Right to Life and Right to Justice are fundamental rights of the citizens of this country under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, the court said. "Keeping the above distinction in mind, if we look at the facts of the present case, it will be clear that the petitioner's son was seriously injured and hence the petitioner being the mother of the victim is entitled to claim the compensation on behalf of the victim," it said. "Further, the petitioner's son became victim of crime and he is entitled for getting compensation under Section 357-A of CrPc. Therefore, this court comes to a conclusion that the state is liable for payment of compensation to the petitioner's son," the court said. The petitioner had alleged that her son was taken to the house of an advocate, Chithiraiselvan, on April 20, 2010 and ruthlessly beaten up by a group, which asked him to reveal the whereabouts of some stolen properties. Later, they took him to Poothalur police station, where the then Sub-Inspector of Police, Abdul Latheef, forced her son to confess to having committed the theft and hit him on his hand with iron-edged baton, she alleged. Police had said he was picked up in connection with the theft case. She said her son sustained severe head injuries and was admitted to a private hospital. Representations were made to the state government with all medical records of the treatment given to Selvaraj in various government and private hospitals in Thanjavur and Madurai but there was no response, the petitioner said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Madras High Court has dismissed petitions filed challenging the by-laws introduced for the election of moderator and deputy moderator of the Church of South India (CSI). The first bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice M Sundar on Thursday dismissed the appeals filed by three members of CSI, who sought to know whether the procedure prescribed for election in the by-laws can be in derogation of the constitution of CSI. The bench observed that the election has to take place from among the Bishops, who in a religious hierarchy are at the highest level. "They from amongst them would find a suitable person and that too by unanimity or a overwhelming majority of two-third. The matter does not end at this since the Synod would have to ratify the same by a simple majority." The final say thus remains with the Synod, it noted. This cannot ipso facto be called a derogation of the Constitution, especially when the by-laws have been approved, as also the amendment to the Constitution, it said and dismissed the appeals. The appellants had contended that bye-laws have introduced a new system of election in derogation of the constitution of CSI. Instead of electing the Moderator and Deputy Moderator By a majority of votes of 406 Synod members of the electoral college, a principle of only ratification of the Moderator as proposed by the 22 Bishops is sought to be brought in place, they submitted. As per the laws, the Bishops would meet and nominate one from among themselves either unanimously or by two-third majority subject to the condition that he is not due to retire in the ensuing term. Though for such a nomination, an overwhelming mandate is required, the fact remains that the Synod would be confronted with either approving or disapproving the nomination made by the Bishops by a majority of votes. If someone is not proposed by the Bishops despite a majority of the Synod Members, the said person would stand no chance. The appellants said these provisions were contrary to the CSI constitution. However, the CSI counsel submitted that they are not dealing with a registered body like a society and thus analogous principles cannot apply to it. He further contended that the power of the Synod was in no manner curtailed and thus the right to election would be of the 406 persons. No doubt, the Bishops would meet before to nominate a person from among themselves either unanimously or by two-third majority. Such a nomination while sought to be put before the Synod, if it did not appeal to them, could be rejected by a simple majority, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rejecting his plea for relief, the Rajasthan High Court has directed a representative of Skylight Hospitality, a firm linked to Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra, to appear before Enforcement Directorate (ED) which had summoned him in connection with a controversial land deal in Bikaner. The representative had moved the high court challenging the summons issued by the ED to him earlier this year. Dismissing his plea, Justice P K Lohra said last evening that the representative of Skylight Hospitality will have to appear before ED but allowed the presence of his lawyer "at a reasonable distance" during questioning. Opposing the plea, ED's counsel Rajeev Awasthi argued that the summons was issued to a specific person and he is supposed to appear before the agency instead of challenging the same in the court. The (ED) had issued the notice to the firm under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The probe is related to the purchase of 275 bigha land allegedly by the company in the Kolayat area of the border town of Bikaner in Rajasthan. The central probe agency had registered a criminal case of money laundering in this case last year on the basis of FIRs filed by the state police after the local tehsildar had made a complaint. The ED has not mentioned the name of Vadra or any company linked to him in the FIR but it named some state government officials and some "land mafia". While filing the case, it had also taken cognisance of reports that had referred to a firm allegedly linked to Vadra which had purchased some of these Bikaner located lands. Vadra has denied any wrongdoing even as Congress has maintained that the action is "sheer political vendetta". Rajasthan government had in January last year cancelled the mutation (transfer of land) of 374.44 hectares of land, after the land department claimed to have found that the allotments were made in the names of "illegal private persons". The tehsildar had said in the complaint that the government land in 34 villages of Bikaner, to be used for expanding the army's firing range in the area, was "grabbed" by the land mafia by preparing "forged and fabricated documents" in connivance with government officials. ED suspects that huge amounts of money was laundered in this case by people buying land at cheap rates through forged documents. The state government had, while cancelling the mutations, said these were not issued by the Commissioner, Colonisation, Bikaner. The state police had also filed charge sheets in 18 cases in a court in Kolayat last year. Scientists have decoded how the lungs of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients lose the ability to repair damages on their own. Researchers at the Helmholtz Zentrum Munchen in Germany found that the molecule Wnt5a may be to blame for this problem. The first indication of COPD is usually a chronic cough. As the disease progresses, the airways narrow and often pulmonary emphysema develops. This indicates irreversible expansion and damage to the alveoli, or air sacks in the lungs. "The body is no longer able to repair the destroyed structures," said Melanie Konigshoff from the Helmholtz Zentrum Munchen. "In our current work we have been able to show that COPD results in a change in the messengers that lung cells use to communicate with one another," Konigshoff said. Scientists discovered increased production of the Wnt5a molecule, which disrupts the classic (or canonical) Wnt/beta-catenin signalling pathway that is responsible for such repairs. "Our working hypothesis was that the relationship between different Wnt messengers is no longer balanced in COPD," said Hoeke Baarsma, scientist at Research Unit Lung Repair and Regeneration (LRR) of Helmholtz Zentrum Munchen. The team correspondingly searched for possible interference signals. "In both the pre-clinical model and the tissue samples from patients, we found that in COPD tissue particularly the non-canonical Wnt5a molecule is increased and occurs in a modified form," said Baarsma. According to the researchers, stimuli that typically cause a reaction in COPD, such as cigarette smoke, additionally lead to increased production of Wnt5a and consequently to impaired lung regeneration. In the next step, the researchers were able to show where the misdirected signal originates: "It is produced by certain cells in the connective tissue, the so-called fibroblasts," Baarsma said. When pulmonary epithelial cells were treated with the Wnt5a derived from the fibroblasts, the cells lost their healing ability. The scientists were also able to use antibodies directed against Wnt5a in two different experimental models to slow down the lung destruction and better maintain the lung function. "Our results show that the classic Wnt/beta-catenin signal cascade is disrupted by the Wnt5a ligand. This is a completely new mechanism in association with COPD and could lead to new therapeutic approaches, which are urgently needed for treatment," Konigshoff added. The study was published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Income Tax Department today seized Rs 9 lakh new currency notes during a raid at a Ludhiana-based jewellery outlet, the owner of which also surrendered unaccounted wealth of Rs 15.40 crore. The income tax sleuths seized about Rs 14 lakh cash and one kg gold in this operation, I-T officials said. The searches were launched at a prominent jewellery shop at college road and residence of the jeweller in Gurdev nagar on Thursday and continued till last night, they said. The jeweller has surrendered Rs 15.40 crore as undisclosed income, officials said adding some incriminating documents was also recovered during the operation. Preliminary investigation conducted by the department has revealed that the jeweller allegedly sold gold jewellery at higher rates, helping customers to convert their black money into white post demonetisation move by the Centre. Meanwhile, in another search operation, the I-T department seized Rs 25 lakh in new currency notes from a jeweller in Chandigarh. The currency seized was in Rs 2,000 denomination, officials said. Besides, a huge cash deposit by the jeweller was found during the raid on thursday which could be over Rs 20 crore, they said. Newly-appointed Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) chief Poonam Mahajan today said the immediate task before her is to build a new team with a special focus on the upcoming Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. Mahajan (36), daughter of late party leader Pramod Mahajan and currently the Lok Sabha member from Mumbai North-Central, was appointed the president of BJYM, the youth wing of BJP, on December 15. The first-time MP replaced Anurag Thakur, who was at the helm for over six years. "I need to build a new team as I will be heading the organisation for the next three years. The immediate focus is upcoming elections in Uttar Pradesh, for which BJYM would start holding meetings after three months," Mahajan told PTI in an interview here. "As the (about the appointment) broke, many people from UP, who were close to my father contacted me. It was a pleasant surprise for me, as he is not forgotten. His work in those days is helping me, too, to get in touch with people. I will see how it benefits BJP in the (UP) Assembly elections," she said. Uttar Pradesh is the largest state in the country in terms of Assembly and Lok Sabha seats. BJP won 71 out of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in 2014 general elections. Our approach is going to be on a new PPP model, she said adding, "it is Politician-Public Participation, where our cadres will work as an agent of the change our elected government is bringing in. You can call it a facilitator or amplifier of government's decisions and policies. A party needs to have such cadre that will take government's decisions to the people". Talking about the Narendra Modi-led Centre, she said it might face some opposition from people, but the ruling dispensation does not face any political challenge. "With such a strong political mandate and the speed of achieving development, the Modi government does not face political opposition. If there is any likelihood of opposition, it would come from people," she said. Mahajan said protests by some communities, like Jats in Haryana, New Delhi and UP, and Patel community in Gujarat and Marathas in Maharashtra were "politicised" to some extent. "There was an effort of dividing the youth of the country through such rallies, who are otherwise highly ambitious. But on a larger scale, these rallies signify their hope and aspiration. Most of the protests did follow the law and it was a peaceful demonstration," she said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Russia wants India and Pakistan to resolve all their differences, including the Kashmir issue, through peaceful means, the Russian envoy said here today. Replying to a question, Russian Ambassador to Pakistan Alexey Y Dedov said his country wants Pakistan and India to resolve all differences, including the Kashmir issue, through peaceful means. He said Pakistan and Russia are also closely cooperating in efforts for restoration of peace in Afghanistan, Radio Pakistan reported. Talking about the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project, Dedov said Russia strongly supportsthe project as it is crucial for Pakistan's economy and regional connectivity. He pointed out that CPEC is component of China's Silk Road and his country was also working on a similar Eurasian Economic Union and China and Russia are holding discussions to merge the two projects. Asked about North-South gas pipeline project of Pakistan, the Russian Ambassador said they are eager to realise the project at the soonest. The Ambassador said the two countries are closely cooperating in different areas but there is need to enhance the volume of bilateral trade. Russia and Pakistan rebuilding their ties after decades of mistrust during the Cold War and have recently given gestures in deepening ties. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Stating that they live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges, India and Tajikistan today decided to strengthen defence cooperation and inked a pact to share financial intelligence to counter money laundering and financing of terrorism. The pact was among three signed by the two countries after comprehensive talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on strategic issues including threats posed by radicalisation and extremism, trade and investments. "We assessed the broad progress achieved under different pillars of our bilateral engagement, including our partnership in defence and security. "India and Tajikistan live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges and threats. The threat from terrorism endangers not just our two countries. It casts a long shadow of violence and instability over the entire region," Modi said at a joint press meet with Rahmon. Combating terrorism has, therefore, been an important area of cooperative engagement between the two countries, the PM said. "We appreciate Tajikistan's role in the Central Asian region as a mainstay against forces of extremism, radicalism, and terrorism. President Rahmon and I agreed today to strengthen action on this front based on mutually agreed priorities," he said. On his part, Rahmon said terrorism and extremism undermine all developmental efforts worldwide. A joint statement issued after the talks said the two leaders discussed situation in the region and stressed that terrorism and extremism seriously threaten peace, stability and progress of all countries. "The two leaders agreed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be eliminated without any distinction between good and bad terrorists and called for an end to sponsorship, support and provision of safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists," the statement said. Modi and Rahmon reaffirmed their resolve to work for early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UN General Assembly. Apart from MoU concerning Cooperation in the Exchange of Financial Intelligence related to money laundering, related crimes and financing of terrorism, the two sides also inked pacts on broadcasting of audio visual programmes and protocol amending the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion and announced initialling of document on Bilateral Investment Treaty. On further deepening of security cooperation, the Prime Minister said this will be done on multiple levels - through reinforcing overall bilateral security cooperation, through greater training, capacity building and information exchanges and through active coordination in regional and multilateral contexts. India's membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation will also be a valuable platform to work closely on regional security and counter-terrorism efforts with Tajikistan, he said. Describing Tajikistan as "valued friend and strategic partner in Asia", Modi said they have also agreed on the need to increase the scope and scale of our economic engagement, especially trade and investment traffic including in hydel- power and Information Technology. Agreeing that peace, stability and prosperity in Afghanistan are important for the region, the two countries are joined in steadfast support of the Afghan people and their aspirations for a peaceful and prosperous nation, he added. Asserting that pharmaceuticals and healthcare would be areas of priority action, Modi said they shared the view that enhanced surface connectivity is crucial to realise the promise of our economic partnership for the benefit of our countries. "India supports initiatives to develop the existing port and transport infrastructure and connecting it through road and rail network to Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Central Asia. "In this respect, we will work to build trade and transit links through Chahbahar port in Iran. India is also engaged in facilitating the International North South Transport Corridor with other members, including Tajikistan. Our planned accession to the Ashgabat Agreement will further help in linking us to Tajikistan and Central Asia," the Prime Minister said. (REOPENS DEL 20) The joint statement said Prime Minister Modi and President Rahmon agreed to celebrate the 25th year of establishment of diplomatic relations next year in a befitting manner through festivals, cultural events, conferences and other means of mutual interaction. They also called for greater exchanges of films, TV programmes and other cultural creations between the peoples of the two countries. Modi and Rahmon expressed satisfaction at the excellent cooperation between the two countries on multilateral and international forums including at the UN with the visiting dignitary reiterating support of Tajikistan to India's candidature for permanent membership of an expanded UN Security Council. President Rahmon thanked India for co-sponsoring resolution strongly moved by Tajikistan for declaration of years 2018-28 as 'International Decade of Action: Water for Sustainable Development'. A 32-year-old Indian-origin immigration manager for an IT company has pleaded guilty for committing H-1B visa fraud in the US. Hari Karne, who hails from Hyderabad, faces a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a USD 250,000 fine if convicted. According to federal prosecutors, Karne's conspirators recruited foreign workers with purported IT expertise who sought work in the US. The conspirators then sponsored the foreign workers' H-1B visas with the stated purpose of working for SCM Data, a US- based company, and MMC Systems' clients throughout the US. When submitting the visa paperwork to US Citizenship and Immigration Services, the conspirators represented that the foreign workers had full-time positions and were paid an annual salary, as required to secure the H-1B visas. "Contrary to these representations and in violation of the H-1B programme, the conspirators paid the foreign workers only when they were placed at a third-party client who entered into a contract with SCM Data or MMC Systems," the Department of Justice said in a press release. "The conspirators told the foreign workers who were not currently working that if they wanted to maintain their H-1B visa status, they would need to come up with what their gross wages would be in cash and give it to SCM Data and MMC Systems so the companies could issue payroll checks to the foreign workers. "Karne, who was a US immigration manager with SCM Private Limited in India, which had service agreements with SCM Data and MMC Systems, admitted that he advised foreign workers to pay SCM Data and MMC Systems in cash the approximate amount they were supposed to be paid by the companies in order to generate false payroll records," federal prosecutors alleged. Karne further admitted that in February and March 2015, in response to a US Department of Labour audit, he assisted SCM Data and MMC Systems in the preparation of false leave slips for foreign workers that were submitted to the US Department of Labour's to conceal the fact that the foreign workers were not paid during those time periods as required by federal law. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Former chairman of Atomic Energy Commission Dr Anil Kakodkar has said that the kind of work done by Indian scientists and engineers in space research and technology has proved that the other countries' notions about India's capabilities in the field were wrong. "Other countries had been saying that it would be difficult and costly for India to carry out space research and achieve success in the launch of satellites. But with due respect to their work and experience of those countries, I would like to say that the kind of work being done by the Indian scientists and engineers is noteworthy. They have done a commendable job," he said. "If USD 1,000 spent on building something in foreign countries, the same is done by our scientists and engineers in just around USD 400," Kakodkar said. The eminent nuclear scientist was addressing the 51st conference of Akhil Bhartiya Marathi Vidnyan Parishad here last evening. Listing out India's achievements in space programmes, he said, every Indian should be proud of the fact that the engineers and scientists have contributed towards it in some way or the other. He also lauded the contributions made by the College of Engineering, Pune (CoEP) and IIT-Bombay in the country's space missions and urged other institutions to follow suit. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) is planning to set up campus in West Bengal and has already made a payment Rs 50 crore for 50 acres of land it received from the government, the states Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim today said. The will come to Bengal. It has made a payment Rs 50 crore for 50 acres received from our government. Wipro, Cognizant had also asked for more land for setting up their campus, Hakim told reporters in the Assembly. Corvallis student earns degree Ashlyn Boatwright of Corvallis graduated from the University of San Diego on May 22. Boatwright earned a bachelors degree in environmental studies. Cornell honors Scio woman Amanda Bentz of Scio was one of 180 Cornell College students named to the spring semester deans list. Bentz earned high honors, which signifies a grade-point average of 3.8 to 3.99. Local students receive degrees A total of 637 candidates for degrees were presented at the Linfield College commencement exercises on May 29. Local residents receiving bachelors degrees are listed below. Students graduating cum laude carried a grade-point average of 3.650 to 3.799; magna cum laude graduates carried a 3.800 to 3.899; and summa cum laude carried a 3.900 to 4.000. Albany: Kevin A. Bostwick, Bachelor of Science, accounting (magna cum laude); Tanner Joseph Corrado, BS, chemistry (summa cum laude); Michaela Amber Etherton, BS, human performance: exercise science (summa cum laude); Nicole Marie Kachel, BS, nursing; Danielle E. Kastrava, BS, nursing; McKenzie Clare Olson, BS, nursing; Alicia N. Paullin, BS, accounting; Daniel W. Ripplinger, BS, accounting (magna cum laude); AmieJoe Roper, BS, nursing; Sunan R. Waters, BS, nursing. Alsea: Bailey J. Smith, BS, economics. Corvallis: Christopher A. Bessler, BS, nursing; James A. Cleary, Bachelor of Arts, political science; Garrett M. Miller, BS, elementary education; Alissa Ann Runyon, BS, physics (magna cum laude); Jennifer Suzanne Sylvester, BS, nursing; Clarissa M. Thomas, BS, nursing; Pendrey Pauline Trammell, BS, psychology (cum laude). Jefferson: Melissa Renee Wagner, BS, nursing. Lebanon: Brandy Lee Tyler, BS, nursing (cum laude); David S. Willcox, BS, accounting. Talent: Franklin A. Lime Ma, BS, human performance: exercise science (cum laude). PHS alumnus makes deans list Stefan Faridani, the son of Adel Faridani and Lorri Hendon of Philomath, was named to the spring deans list of Macalester College. A graduate of Philomath High School, Faridani was a junior at Macalester last spring. The deans list at Macalester is published at the end of each semester. A student must have achieved a semester grade-point average of at least 3.75, be taking 12 or more credits on a regular grading option, have no grades below C minus and have no withdrawal or incomplete grades for the semester. Fair honors student's artwork Baker Celis, a fourth-grader from Ashbrook Independent School, was honored during a reception held last August at the Oregon State Fair in Salem. Bakers artwork was among those chosen from more than 1,500 pieces submitted to the Oregon Agriculture in the Classroom Foundation. The winning art is published in a school-year calendar and distributed statewide. Baker chose to draw Dungeness crabs for the contest because he had visited Newport and thought crabs were cool. Each winning student received a $50 award and a certificate. The artwork was displayed at the State Fair. Calendars are free to Oregon teachers; others can order the calendar for $4 at orgeonaitc.org/shop. Local woman joins Rensselaer Makayla Wahaus of Corvallis joined more than 1,700 freshmen when Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute began classes Aug. 29. Founded in 1824, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is America's oldest technological research university. Iran formally requested a meeting of the commission that oversees its nuclear deal with world powers to complain about the renewing of sanctions by the United States, state television reported today. The request was made in a letter by Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to the European Union's foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, calling for "a meeting of the joint commission outlined in the nuclear deal... Regarding the recent actions of the United States." On Thursday, Washington extended the Iran Sanctions Act -- which mostly seeks to limit Iran's oil and gas trade -- for another decade. Although it received overwhelming support from the US Congress, the act will have no effect since its measures are suspended as long as the nuclear deal remains in place. President Barack Obama has said that renewing the act was pointless, and symbolically allowed it to become law without signing it, although he denied it was a breach of the nuclear deal which came into effect last January. Iranian leaders, including supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Hassan Rouhani, disagree, calling it a "clear violation". The nuclear deal allows for the signatories -- Iran, the US, Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia -- to hold a "joint commission" to discuss claims of a violation. Iran has been frustrated by the limited economic benefits of the accord, which removed many international sanctions in exchange for curbs to its nuclear programme. Although it has managed to significantly ramp up its oil exports, Tehran has struggled to rejoin the international financial system because Washington has maintained a raft of other sanctions related to non-nuclear issues that have helped deter major Western banks from returning to Iran. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Iran summoned the top British diplomat in Tehran for the second time this month to complain about criticism of its actions in Syria, state television reported today. The move came after British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson called in the Russian and Iranian ambassadors in London on Thursday to express his "profound concern" over their countries' role in the "suffering" of the people of Aleppo. "Following the ill-considered statements and positions of British officials concerning the role of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Syrian crisis, the British charge d'affaires was summoned to the ministry of foreign affairs to receive the protest," a statement published by state broadcaster IRIB said. A charge d'affaires was summoned as ambassador Nicholas Hopton is currently out of the country. Iran has provided substantial military and financial support to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and played a key role in overwhelming rebel forces in Aleppo over the past month. Tensions between Tehran and London have mounted just three months after the two countries restored full diplomatic relations. It was only a week ago that Iran summoned Hopton to complain after Prime Minister Theresa May told Gulf allies that Britain would help "push back against Iran's aggressive regional actions". The two countries severed diplomatic relations in 2011 when protesters stormed the embassy in Tehran, angry over Britain's role in sanctions imposed over Iran's nuclear programme. They restored relations following a nuclear deal between Iran and major powers last year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An ITBP constable today shot a 30-year-old man dead and injured his sister in Choti Koilara village here following a dispute over a trivial issue. Krishna Kumar Jaiswal who was at the village on leave, had a heated debate with his neighbour Collector Yadav over parking of the latter's motorcycle last night, SP D P N Pandey said. This afternoon, Jaiswal beat up Yadav over the same issue and as his sister rushed to help him, opened several rounds from his licenced .315 bore rifle, the SP said. Both Yadav and his sister were rushed to Varanasi hospital where he succumbed to injuries. Four of those named in the FIR, including Jaiswal have been arrested while the hunt was on for two others, the SP said. Additional force has been deployed in the area and the situation is under control. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Jammu and Kashmir has "no vestige" of sovereignty outside the Indian Constitution and its own, while the citizens of the state are "first and foremost" citizens of India, the Supreme Court has held. The apex court observed this while terming as "wholly incorrect" the conclusion arrived at by Jammu and Kashmir High Court which had held that the state has "absolute sovereign power" to legislate laws touching the rights of its permanent residents regarding their immovable properties. "The State of Jammu & Kashmir has no vestige of sovereignty outside the Constitution of India and its own Constitution, which is subordinate to the Constitution of India," a bench of Justices Kurian Joseph and R F Nariman said. "It is therefore wholly incorrect to describe it as being sovereign in the sense of its residents constituting a separate and distinct class in themselves. The residents of Jammu & Kashmir, we need to remind the High Court, are first and foremost citizens of India," it said. The apex court said this while holding that provisions of the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002 (SARFAESI Act) are within the legislative competence of Parliament and can be enforced in Jammu and Kashmir. The bench set aside the verdict of Jammu and Kashmir High Court that had held that any law made by Parliament, which affects the laws made by state legislature, cannot be extended to Jammu and Kashmir. "The High Court judgment begins from the wrong end and therefore reaches the wrong conclusion. It states that in terms of Section 5 of the Constitution of Jammu & Kashmir, the State has absolute sovereign power to legislate in respect of laws touching the rights of its permanent residents qua their immovable properties," the apex court said. It further said, "We may also add that permanent residents of Jammu & Kashmir are citizens of India, and there is no dual citizenship as is contemplated by some other federal Constitutions in other parts of the world". The apex court judgement came on the appeal by State Bank of India (SBI) against the high court verdict which had held that the SARFAESI Act would collide with the Transfer of Property Act of Jammu & Kashmir, 1920. SARFAESI is an enactment which entitles banks to enforce their security interest outside the court process to take possession of secured assets of the borrower and sell them outside the court process. The apex court, in its 61-page verdict, also said it was "disturbing to note that various parts of High Court judgment speak of the absolute sovereign power of Jammu & Kashmir." "It is necessary to reiterate that Section 3 of the Constitution of Jammu & Kashmir, which was framed by a Constituent Assembly elected on the basis of universal adult franchise, makes a ringing declaration that the State of Jammu & Kashmir is and shall be an integral part of the Union of India. And this provision is beyond the pale of amendment," it said. The apex court, while setting aside the high court order, held that provisions of the SARFAESI Act can be applied to Jammu and Kashmir. "We therefore set aside the judgment of the High Court. As a result, notices issued by banks in terms of Section 13 (Enforcement of security interest) and other coercive methods taken under the said Section are valid and can be proceeded with further," the bench said. The high court had held the Act was inapplicable for banks like the SBI which are Indian banks. The people in Jammu today gave a cold shoulder to the one-day bandh call by JKNPP against the state government's decision of sanctioning ex-gratia relief to the family of slain terrorist Burhan Wani's brother, killed in a militancy-related incident in the Valley. All the shops and business establishments remained open and the traffic also plied normally. "There was absolutely no impact of Jammu bandh in the region as the shops and other business establishments remained open and the traffic plied normally," a police officer said. The activists of the the Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP) held a march and burned tyres near the Jammu Press Club but the protest was peaceful, the officer said. Terming the sanctioning of relief to the kin of the Hizbul Mujahideen commander as a betrayal by the PDP-BJP coalition, the JKNPP chairman appealed to the civil society of Jammu to support the bandh. The state government had announced an ex-gratia for the next of kin of 17 persons, including Wani's brother, who were killed in militancy-related incidents in the Valley, while giving a week's time for filing of any objection before the formal orders are issued. Wani's killing by security forces in an encounter in south Kashmir's Kokernag area on July 8 triggered unrest in the Valley which has left as many as 86 people dead. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Maharashtra MoS for Home Ranjit Patil today suspended an Assistant Police Inspector for dereliction of duty in an assault case in which a 10-month-old girl was brutally beaten up by the caretaker of a play school-cum-day care centre, after the issue was raised in the state assembly. Cutting across party lines, members also demanded stringent laws to deal with such cases relating to creches, where working parents leave their children for their upkeep throughout the day. Raising the issue through a Calling Attention motion, members Sunil Prabhu, Prashant Thakur, Ashish Shelar and others drew the attention of the House, demanding action against the API of Kharghar Police Station for trying to delay the registration of a case in connection with the incident. Jayant Patil (NCP), Manisha Choudhary (BJP) and Virendra Jagtap (Congress) questioned the laxity in investigating the case. They said the API was expected to register a case under relevant sections forthwith, but he instead told the complainant to wait until the Senior Police Inspector comes on duty. The members said that the API indulged in delaying tactics and allowed the owner to tamper with the CCTV footage. Patil told the House that the incident came to notice in the morning but a case was registered late in the evening. Shelar criticised the police over the bail granted to one of the accused booked under section 307 of the IPC. The members demanded that there should be stringent laws including compulsory registration of creches, training to maid servants and caretakers, besides installation of CCTV cameras. They suggested the state government run creches, along with with old-age homes, to ensure the safety of children. The House unanimously demanded suspension of the officer, following which Patil announced it on the floor of the House. Yesterday, Navi Mumbai Police arrested Priyanka Nikam, the owner of the creche at Kharghar after Bombay High Court rejected her application for pre-arrest bail. Caretaker Afsana Sheikh, who allegedly beat up the 10-month-old girl, has been arrested. A CCTV video showing Sheikh beating up the girl had gone viral on the social media last month, triggering protests in the area. Police have registered a case of attempt to murder as well as relevant offences under the Juvenile Justice Act against Nikam and Sheikh. Police earlier arrested Nikam under section 324 of IPC (voluntarily causing hurt), but she got bail. Later when police pressed the attempt to murder charge, she moved the court for pre-arrest bail. Navi Mumbai police commissioner Hemant Nagrale had said the police would produce Nikam in a local court and seek her police remand. Lt Governor Kiran Bedi today visited on her bicycle the A P J Abdul Kalam Residential Colony in the neighbouring Uppalam Assembly segment. This was in keeping with her promise made some weeks ago that she would visit residential colonies every week end to know the amenities available to the residents. She had already visited earlier on bicycle the Police Residential quarters in neighbouring Gorimedu and the Government Staff quarters in Lawspet. Accompanied by officials of the Department of Electricity, the Municipality of Puducherry and the Raj Nivas, who all came in their bicycles, she held talks with residents and fishermen by halting at various points and also announced on the spot decisions to dispose of their grievances. Opposition AIADMK legislator A Anbalagan who represents the Uppalam segment was also present and explained to the Lt Governor the various requirements of the housing colony. A release from office of Lt Governor said that the Lt Governor announced during her visit formation of a Residents Welfare Association for the Abdul Kalam nagar with the legislator as its patron. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A group of lawyers allegedly assaulted an Additional City Magistrate (ACM) and three Provincial Civil Services officials, and ransacked the Sub-Divisional Magistrate's office here, police said today. Following the incident PCS officers stalled all revenue and land related works while lawyers announced they would not attend local courts. The officers have registered a case against two advocates, including an office-bearer of the Lucknow Bar Association, in the incident which took place yesterday, they said. An FIR was lodged against Additional District Magistrate (ADM)-Finance Nidhi Srivastava, ADM-West Jai Shankar Dubey and ACM 3 Anil Kumar Singh on the complaint of the lawyers, but was later expunged, police said. Meanwhile, the PCS Officers Association today announced that more than 1,100 officers will go on strike from Monday if the accused are not arrested immediately. "Today, in a meeting of the PCS Officers Association it was resolved that officers will be on strike from Monday if the accused are not arrested," association general secretary Pawan Gangwar said here. The association has also resolved to seek action against the SSP Lucknow Manjil Saini for police inaction in this connection, Gangwar said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 33-year-old man has been arrested from Dwarka today for murdering an elderly woman and looting her apartment 12 years ago. Acting on a tip-off, the Crime Branch of Delhi Police arrested the accused, who was absconding for 12 years, from near Metro Bridge in Dwarka, Ravindra Yadav, Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime), said. He had come back to Delhi two months back and was residing at Sector-16A in Dwarka with a fake identity, the officer said. In the intervening night of January 25 and 26, 2004, Raju, who was a civil contractor, along with Dharmender, Arun Kumar and Vikas Yadav, had killed Indira Devi (65), who was residing alone at her apartment in Vikaspuri. They then looted cash and jewellery from the flat. Raju was hired by the woman for painting work in the apartment. He had deputed Dharmender, Arun Kumar and Vikas Yadav for the job. Dharmender, Arun, both residents of Bihar, along with a jeweller Vijay, who had purchased the looted jewellery, were arrested. Raju and Vikas absconded and were declared proclaimed offenders by a court. For the last 12 years, Raju was hiding at in Nepal, Punjab and Bihar, the officer said. Dharmender was sentenced to life imprisonment, while Vijay was awarded two-year imprisonment by the court. Arun was given benefit of doubt and acquitted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 30-year-old man was shot dead at Bharsi village in Shamli district, police said today. The incident occurred last evening when the victim Shabbir was visting his sister's house. Police said his body has been sent for post-mortem, adding that the shooters have not been identified yet. In another incident, a person with a past criminal record was shot dead by some unidentified people at Khandarawli village in Shamli district yesterday. The deceased Sadiq had been released from jail recently, police said. In a third incident, the body of an employee of the agriculture department, Ran Singh, was found in suspicious circumstances at Kairana in Shamli district yesterday. Police said the body has been sent for postmortem and investigation is on. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Unidentified militants today snatched away 3 loaded weapons from security personnel in Tamenglong district, police said. The incident occurred at Nungkao within the limits of Tousem police station when the militants took away the weapons from a team of 6th Manipur Rifles and 7th Indian Reserve Battalion based in the area, concluded the police officer. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah today hit out at the Modi government and accused it of "betraying" the countrymen with its false promises. Addressing a party rally here at which Rahul Gandhi was also present, Siddaramaiah alleged the countrymen's hopes during the 2014 Lok Sabha polls were belied and Modi did not fulfil the promise to deposit Rs 15 lakh into every individual's account out of the recovered black money stashed abroad. "It will not be wrong to say that Modi betrayed the people of the nation who went by his words," he said. The economy of the country had totally collapsed under Modi's government,he claimed. Siddaramaiah also said the Modi Government shouldwaive the loans of farmers to the tune of 50 percent and the state government will share an equal burden, due to consecutive drought faced by the state. The state has suffered a crop loss of Rs 25,000 crore and 139 taluks were reeling under drought, he said. "We have fulfilled almost all promises we made during the previous Assembly elections in 2013 and hence we will come to power in the state," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress today asked Narendra Modi to stop "insulting" former heads of government a day after the Prime Minister cited a book to say Indira Gandhi paid no heed to the Wanchoo Committee's recommendation to demonetise high- value currency notes in 1971. "Stop insulting former prime ministers. Change the narrative and mindset... From Jawaharlal Nehru to Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Manmohan Singh to Indira Gandhi it is a long list. "When you insult them you do not insult Indira and Nehru, you also insult Lal Bahadur Shastri and Morarji Desai who demonetised high-value currency in 1978," Party's Deputy Leader in Rajya Sabha Anand Sharma said at the FICCI conference. The Prime Minister Narendra had yesterday cited a book to say that when the then Finance Minister Y B Chavan went to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and supported the exercise, she asked, "Only one question. Are no elections to be fought by the Congress party?" Accusing Congress of putting its interests before the country's, he had said what should have been done in 1971 has been done now by his government and that the delay in launching demonetisation caused a lot of damage to the country. In a retort, the Congress leader said, "It is sad... 1971 was the year when India gave Indira Gandhi a massive mandate. The same year we were challenged by the then East Pakistan. India had 10 million refugees. "Genocide was going on in what is now known as Bangladesh. China, siding with Pakistan, had moved troops to the border. India had the courage and strength to take the decision and the rest is history." The country celebrated Vijay Diwas yesterday to mark the win over Pakistan in the 1971 war. "It was a day to salute Indira and not insult her", he said. Taking a dig at Modi for calling himself a fakir, Sharma said, "I do not have that kind of a wardrobe but I will not call myself a fakir. We are public servants. We must serve people and understand their pain. We must have humility." Asked as to when Rahul Gandhi will make public the graft charges against Modi he claims to have proof of, Sharma said, "It will be done at the right time". He alleged that BJP purchased land in many states before the Prime Minister announced the decision to scrap high-value notes on November 8 and demanded the Centre bring a white paper on demonetisation. "Crores of rupees were deposited in banks and all that information should come through a white paper," he said. Sharma said the government in power needs to maintain balance "before issuing any narrative and for good governance. It is important to have a responsible opposition". (REOPENS DEL41) Sharma said bringing about reforms is an ongoing process, which was started in the 1950s by Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi and carried forward by Rajiv Gandhi. "It was in their tenures that major reforms in India's manufacturing and services, particularly IT and communications and telecom, were announced. It was under the able leadership of Rajiv Gandhi that India saw the first big revolution in IT," he said. The Congress leader stressed the need for looking at reforms from a holistic standpoint. "Reform needs to encompass social, economic, judicial and administrative areas and the captains of the Indian industry should be the first channel to take the reform process forward. Highlighting the prowess of the Indian industry under the UPA government and the state of economy when it relinquished office, he pointed that it was under that government that GDP of India rose from USD 480 billion to over USD 2.1 trillion in a span of 10 years. This, he mentioned, was a remarkable achievement which only some countries of the world were able to achieve. "It was under the UPA government that policies such as RTI, Money Laundering Act and Whistle Blower Bill were launched. The Insurance Bill which was pending for seven years because of the then opposition government and it was only under the UPA government that it was passed," he said. Dwelling on demonetisation, Sharma said that any government decision has to be well thought out. Quoting Mahatma Gandhi, he said the reform should be for the poorest of poor and that no government has a legal right to demonetise a currency. "The same needs to be done by passing a law and not by a diktat," he said. Sharma said that the whole act of demonetisation is giving wrong signals to the global market and "it appears as if the whole Indian economy was based on black money". "All this has led to disruption in weekly wages, slower economic growth, and a perpetual shut down of the Indian industry," he added. He claimed that 101 people died in queues. ATMs are not functioning. People have lost jobs and are suffering. "It is actually fight against India's economy. There is a financial anarchy today. India's economy is in a shut down mode. All villages do not have banks. So what we have achieved? "The formidable reputation of RBI stands shattered today. It will take a long time to restore the same reputation. These are hard realities," he said. Police have booked the CISF constable, whose son's driver was arrested for allegedly raping a 20-year-old woman in south Delhi's Moti Bagh area, for "misusing" an MHA parking sticker. Omkar Singh was issued a Ministry of Home Affairs parking sticker by the Ministry of Agriculture in 2014 since he had to visit the ministry for handing over files and other work reasons, said a senior police officer. The sticker was valid from January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014. After the expiry, Singh didn't return the sticker. Instead, he gave it to his son, Mohit, who pasted it on his car in which the girl was allegedly raped by the driver on December 14. "A complaint was received from an authorised officer of Ministry of Agriculture regarding misuse of parking label which was entrusted to Omkar Singh of CISF. "Based on the complaint, a case under sections 406 (Punishment for criminal breach of trust) and 34 (Acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of IPC was registered at South Campus police station yesterday and Singh was arrested today morning," said the officer. He was produced before the Patiala House court and was granted bail on a bond of Rs 25,000, he added. The girl, a resident of Noida, who was on a job-hunt, was allegedly raped in a car in south Delhi's Moti Bagh area by accused Avneesh (28), driving a car which had a sticker of the Home Ministry on December 14. The accused driver was arrested on December 15. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Myanmar government forces have started launching attacks on the headquarters of the military wing of one of the country's ethnic rebel groups, the group said today. Tang San, a battalion commander for the Kachin Independence Army, said government forces have been using "fighter jets and heavy weapons continuously" on the headquarters in northeastern Myanmar since early yesterday. Ethnic rebel groups in the northeast have been waging attacks on government forces since last month. They have said that the attacks are in response to military pressure, but that they are still interested in peace talks to try to end decades of fighting between the government and ethnic minority groups. Lamai Gum Ja, a member of the Peace Talk Creation Group, a committee of businessmen and community leaders from Kachin state involved in the peace process, said there have been reports of casualties on both sides from the military's most recent attacks, though the numbers are unclear. He also said his group has written letters to the country's leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, but has not heard back from her. "She has been quiet about it, but the fighting is getting more and more serious," he said. Khin Maung Myint, a lower house member of parliament from a constituency in Kachin, said that the military is doing whatever it wants. "The military doesn't want to change," he said. Government officials were not immediately available for comment. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actress Naomie Harris says she found it "intimidating" when she discovered she was starring alongside the likes of Will Smith and Helen Mirren in "Collateral Beauty". The 40-year-old actress said she felt the performance pressure while working with some of of Hollywood's finest actors, reported Female First. "It was really intimidating I have to say. At the read through I was a bit like, 'Oh my gosh! I have to act with all of these incredible people. "But they were so nice and so down to earth. Really, really lovely and so supportive," Harris said. The actress said, the cast - which also includes Kate Winslet and Keira Knightley - were all really "supportive" and "down to earth". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Mumbai Congress has received nearly 1,400 applications from aspiring candidates to contest the upcoming municipal elections in the megapolis, party's city unit president Sanjay Nirupam said here today. "As many as 2,000 forms had been distributed, of which nearly 1,400 aspiring candidates filled the forms and sent back to the party office," Nirupam told PTI. He said a committee headed by former state Health Minister Suresh Shetty will meet the aspirants and profile the wards in each district over the next few days. "A compiled data of the scrutinised candidates and the district-wise wards will be sent to the district parliamentary boards, which in turn will select the probable candidates and forward the same to the Mumbai Regional Congress Committee (MRCC) for final decision," Nirupam added. The district parliamentary boards comprise the Lok Sabha and Assembly constituencies candidates, heads of the frontal organisations. Elections to the municipal corporations, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), are slated to be held in February next year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) There is a need to concentrate on states like UP, Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, MP and Rajasthan which are lagging behind in the education sector when compared to the other states, Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said today. Inaugurating the 29th All India Urdu Book Fair at the powerloom town of Bhiwandi in the district, the Minister said "As far as education is concerned, statistics reveals that Muslim, Hindu and other community members progressed in states of Kerala, TN, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat while it was not so in other states. There is a dire need to pay attention to this." He said that the present government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi had taken up several measures to promote Urdu language and various steps have been taken in this direction. The minister, who praised Urdu as a lovely language and the script as nothing but an example of calligraphy, said the Urdu Academy and Council have come out with several publications. Even the Wikipedia has an assistance in Urdu which was not there previously. On standard of education in government schools and on issue of dropouts, the Minister said, "The government has decided to take several measures to ensure that the standard of education in the government schools in the country improves and the issue of dropouts is addressed." He appreciated role played by various educational institutions, universities, research centres in addition to the NGOs in promoting Urdu language. He said plans are afoot to go in for online teaching of Urdu where every one can take education in their spare time. The Minister said the World Urdu Conference will be held in Delhi in March 2017. On the occasion, Javdekar gave slogan -- 'Sabko Siksha, Aachi Siksha'. "If the 'Talim' (teaching) improves everything improves and the country makes progress," said Javdekar. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US President Barack Obama has warned Donald Trump that any tinkering with the decades-old One-China policy could invite a "very significant" reaction from Beijing, days after the President-elect questioned the policy's relevance. "The idea of One China is at the heart of their conception as a nation and so if you are going to upend this understanding, you have to have thought through what the consequences because the Chinese will not treat that the way they will treat some other issues. "They will not even treat it the way they issues around the South China Sea, where we have had a lot of tensions. This goes to the core of how they see themselves," Obama told reporters at a White House conference yesterday. "Their reaction on this issue could end up being very significant. That does not mean that you have to adhere to everything that has been done in the past, but you have to think it through and have planned for potential reactions that they may engage in," Obama said. He was responding to a question on recent phone conversation between Trump and the Taiwanese President and the President-elect questioning the relevance of One China Policy. At the same time, he indicated that Trump could bring in some freshness in foreign policy. "I think all of our foreign policy should be subject to fresh eyes. I am very proud of the work I have done. I think I am a better president now than when I started. But you know, if you are here for eight years in the bubble, you start seeing things a certain way and you benefit from, the democracy benefits, America benefits from some new perspectives," he said. Obama said it should be not just the prerogative, but the obligation of a new president to examine everything that has been done and see what makes sense and what does not. Given the importance of the relationship between the US and China and how much is at stake in terms of the world economy, national security, the US presence in the Asia- Pacific, China's increasing role in global affairs, there is probably no bilateral ties that carries more significance. And where there is also the potential if that relationship breaks down or goes into full conflict mode that everybody is worse off, he said. "I think it is fine for him to take a look at it. What I have advised the President-elect is that across the board on foreign policy, you want to make sure that you are doing it in a systematic, deliberate, intentional way," Obama said. (Reopens FGN 9) "Since there is only one president at a time, my advice to him has been that before he starts having a lot of interactions with foreign governments other than the usual courtesy calls, that he should want to have his full team in place, that he should want his team to be fully briefed on what is gone on in the past. "And where the potential pitfalls may be, where the opportunities are, what we have learned from eight years of experience so that as he is then maybe taking foreign policy in a new direction, he has got all the information to make good decisions, and by the way, that all of government is moving at the same time and singing from the same hymnal," Obama said. With respect to China and let's just take the example of Taiwan, there has been a longstanding agreement essentially between China and the US, and to some agree the Taiwanese, which is to not change the status quo, he said. Taiwan operates differently than mainland China does. China views Taiwan as part of China, but recognises that it has to approach Taiwan as an entity that has its own ways of doing things, Obama said. "The Taiwanese have agreed that as long as they are able to continue to function with some agree of autonomy, that they won't charge forward and declare independence. "And that status quo, although not completely satisfactory to any of the parties involved, has kept the peace and allowed the Taiwanese to be a pretty successful economy and - of people who have a high agree of self-determination. What I understand for China, the issue of Taiwan is as important as anything on their docket," Obama added. Noting there is no alternative to political engagement, National Conference working president Omar Abdullah today said the Centre should start a comprehensive dialogue with various stakeholders in Jammu and Kashmir as well as with Pakistan in order to achieve sustainable peace. "New Delhi needs to realise that it has to talk to various stakeholders in Jammu and Kashmir and resume the dialogue process with Pakistan if it wants to see normalcy and peace in Kashmir," Omar, a former chief minister, said addressing party workers in Kupwara, 100 kms from here. Omar said his party had conveyed these thoughts to the Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister when the opposition parties from the state had called on them during the course of the recent unrest. "We asked the central government to realise that neighbours cannot afford perpetual hostility and peace was the only sustainable option," he said. Reminding the Centre of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's efforts and policy viz-a-viz Kashmir, Omar said, "We asked them to adopt a similar policy of reconciliation and resolution rather than pushing the people of the state into a corner of suffocation and hopelessness." Omar asked the Centre to change its "rigid stance" and adopt a nuanced and humane policy of engagement rather than treating a political issue through law and order mechanisms. The NC working president said the PDP-BJP experiment in Jammu and Kashmir had turned out to be monumental political failure that had wreaked havoc with peace and stability in the state. It had also brought about a complete collapse of the administrative machinery rendering developmental works defunct, he said. "While National Conference remains committed to its struggle for the restoration of Autonomy, we have always maintained that we will welcome any other solution that is acceptable to the people of Jammu and Kashmir as well as New Delhi and Islamabad," Omar said. He said National Conference, while standing by its own proposed solution and agenda, will continue demanding that New Delhi initiates an unconditional political engagement with all other stakeholders, including the Hurriyat leadership, to end the turmoil and bloodshed in Kashmir. "Distorting and misrepresenting the ground situation in Kashmir at various fora won't change the ground reality. The problem in Kashmir isn't a derivative of terrorism or black money but that of an unresolved political dispute," Omar said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed. Morality cannot be legislated, but behavior can be regulated. Judicial decrees may not change the heart, but they can restrain the heartless. A right delayed is a right denied.Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats away its vital unity. Hate destroys a man's sense of values and his objectivity. It causes him to describe the beautiful as ugly and the ugly as beautiful, and to confuse the true with the false and the false with the true. Martin Luther King Jr. No one is born hating another person People must learn to hate and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite. Nelson Mandela We can disagree and still love each other, unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist James Baldwin There is a fine line between free speech and hate speech. Free speech encourages debate whereas hate speech incites violence. Newton Lee The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything. Albert Einstein Pakistani film exhibitors and cinema owners are likely to end a self-imposed ban on screening of Indian films on Monday that was put in place amid escalating tensions between the two countries following the Uri terror attack. Zoraish Lashari, Chairman of the Film Exhibitors Association, told reporters that after thorough discussions with parties concerned, it has been decided screening of Indian films would resume from December 19. "The cinema owners and other stakeholders in the industry have been hit by the decision to impose a temporary suspension on screening of Indian films. A lot of investment has been made into upgrading or building new cineplexes and multiplexes and the business at this time is dependent on screening of latest Indian films," he said. Lashari said the cinema owners and exhibitors had only taken a self-imposed suspension of screening of Indian films and that it was not a ban. The Pakistan Film Exhibitors and Distributors Association, which includes most owners of cineplexes, multiplexes and single screen cinemas in the country, had announced to "temporarily" stop screening Indian films soon after tensions escalated between Pakistan and India over cross border firing incidents in late September. The exhibitors and cinema owners had taken the decision voluntarily after the Indian Motion Pictures Producers' Association (IMPPA) announced a ban on Pakistani artistes and technicians working in India. Sources in the industry told PTI that most of the cinema owners, exhibitors and importers of Indian films had got panicky after Pakistani films including old and fresh releases and even latest Hollywood movies failed to fill up the halls. "Plus in recent weeks several Indian films have been released while everyone is eagerly anticipating the release of Aamir Khan's "Dangal"," a source said. One source, however, said some cinema owners were still apprehensive of any backlash from religious parities or groups once they resumed screening of Indian films and have asked for protection if required. "A private media group is presently trying to import and release "Dangal" in Pakistan," the source added. Lashari said that first unreleased Indian films would be screened after which they would have negotiations with Indian distributors to continue the import of movies into Pakistan. Pakistan's leading English newspaper "Dawn" had in a editorial last month termed the ban on screening of Indian films in Pakistani cinemas as "damaging" and said Pakistani cinema houses were losing money because of the move. "Political concerns are indeed genuine, but they should not come at the cost of cultural exchanges that bring benefits to both sides of the border," the editorial had said. The Media and Marketing Manager of a major chain of cineplexes, Sabina Islam, said 75 per cent of the revenues generated in the industry came from screening of Indian films. Pakistan is considered as the third largest market for Indian films. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistan's Sindh province will amend the recently-passed Minorities Bill which criminalises forced conversions in the Muslim-majority country, weeks after two hard-line Islamic parties opposed the law by claiming it was part of a conspiracy to make Pakistan a liberal and secular country. Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Nisar Ahmad Khuhro yesterday said the Sindh Criminal Law (Protection of Minorities) Bill, 2015, was sent to the governor for his assent and whether he gives his assent or not, in both the conditions it would be reviewed and amended by the assembly. Khuhro, who is also the Sindh chapter president of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), said that according to religious teachings, religion could not be changed forcibly, therefore, no Muslim could think contrary to the teachings nor could legislate such a law, Dawn reported today. He said the marriage of a person aged below 18 years was already banned and there was no restriction of the age on change of religion, therefore, it should not be linked with the age of marriage as such this misunderstanding ought to be removed, the report said. "Forcible conversion to the religion and solemnising wedding under 18 years of age was contrary to the Shariat and constitution and the Sindh assembly has not carried any legislation against Shariat and the constitution but only forcible conversion of religion under 18 years of age and getting married has been declared illegal," the daily quoted Khuhro as saying. The Sindh Assembly last month adopted the bill against forced religious conversions and recommended a five-year jail term for perpetrators and facilitators of forced religious conversions will be handed a three-year sentence. Under the bill, forcibly converting a minor is also a punishable offence. Adults will be given 21 days to consider their decision to convert. A Hindu lawmaker Dr Ramesh Kumar and civil society members last month criticised two religious political parties for opposing the bill. The Jamaat-i-Islami and the Jamiat Ulema Islam-F were opposing the law, claiming the law is part of a conspiracy to make Pakistan a liberal and secular country. Jammat-ud-Dawah (JuD) chief and Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed oppossed the bill on December 5 and threatened to launch a movement against the law. "We will take other political and religious organisations on board in our movement against this anti-Islam law. We will not remain silent on this controversial law and launch a countrywide movement to force the Sindh government to withdraw this anti-Islam law," Saeed had said. Cases of forced conversions have regularly been reported from different parts of Sindh including Jacobabad, Tharparkar, Mithi, Umerkot, Kashmore, Kandhkot, Ghotki, Sukkur and Larkana. According to the South Asia Partnership-Pakistan (SAP-PK), at least 1,000 girls mostly Hindus are forcibly converted to Islam in Pakistan every year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) NCP president Sharad Pawar today hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for dragging Indira Gandhi into the demonetisation debate, asking why other premiers after her, including Atal Bihari Vajpayee, did not take the note ban decision. The NCP veteran said Modi was trying to project himself as a bigger leader than Gandhi by making such a statement. "According to him (Modi), Indira Gandhi did not go in for demonetisation as suggested by her Finance Minister Y B Chavan. So even PMs after her, including Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and even Finance Minister in the BJP regime Yashwant Sinha or the then Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani did not take such a decision," Pawar told a press meet here. Modi had yesterday trained guns at the former PM Indira Gandhi, claiming that she overlooked a suggestion in 1971 for demonetisation by the then Finance Minister Y B Chavan. Pawar said, "It is not right to say nothing has happened in the country in past 70 years. In the 70 years, Congress has not been in power all the time. Modi himself was chief minister of a state for 13 years." "All leaders including Pandit (Jawaharlal) Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi, Vajpayee, Morarji Desai and Charan Singh have contributed to the country's development. How can one say nothing has happened in 70 years and development is taking place only since last two years," he said. Pawar said he had supported the decision of demonetisation as it was good for eradication of black money. But, its implementation has been flawed and the central government is responsible for the hardships faced by the common man. "The central government is guilty of not putting in place an alternative system like pumping in enough lower denomination notes after the scrapping of high denomination currency notes," he said. He said when people are standing in queues for their own money, several people have been caught with bundles of new currency notes in searches across the country. "From where have people got this amount of cash ... It is from the banks which are under the control of central government," he claimed. The NCP supremo said agriculture sector has been badly affected as farm produce is not getting a good price and small scale industries and labourers were also hit. Claiming that in Uttar Pradesh, potato prices have crashed to Rs 6-7 per kg from Rs 18-20 per kg in last one month, he said, "No steps have been taken to ease the hardships faced by the people." Asked if the Opposition plans an agitation against the government over demonetisation, Pawar said, "If necessary, agitation can be launched, but people will suffer because of such protests." He warned that the long-term impact of the decision would be lay-off of employees by corporates. The former Union Agriculture Minister was also critical of the curbs imposed on the district cooperative in the wake of demonetisation. "They were not given new currency and not allowed to accept old notes. I am being told that just because district cooperative banks are held by politicians such a negative approach was adopted. It shows the central government's attitude towards the district banks and credit societies which are the backbone of rural economy," said Pawar. He also referred to the negative reaction of District Central Cooperative Bank Association (DCCB) head Dilip Sanghi, who served as a minister in Modi government in Gujarat. "Even Sanghi who was minister when Narendra Modi was Chief Minister has criticised the decision of the central government to impose restrictions on DCCBs post-demonetisation," said Pawar. He rejected the BJP's contention that its success in the local body polls in Maharashtra was an endorsement of demonetisation. "We know more than them how to win local body polls. Only now we don't have that power," Pawar said. The NCP leader said he had supported demonetisation as an action against black money. "It is like saying that the operation was done but the patient died because of lack of post-operative care," he said. On being criticised for sharing dais with Modi, Pawar shot back saying, "Is Modi PM of Pakistan?". "In a democratic set up, one has to interact with leaders cutting across party lines. Didn't the Congress delegation meet the PM yesterday?" he asked. Pawar, who served as Defence Minister from June 1991 to March 1993, also voiced concern over terrorist attacks on security forces in Jammu and Kashmir and criticised the government for its "failure" in tackling the situation along borders. "Between February 4 and December 9 this year, there have been 162 attacks by terrorists out of which 104 have been on security forces. As many as 57 jawans and officers have been martyred. This has never happened before," he claimed. He said the people in the border areas have been living a difficult life. They have to stay awake all night. The central government has failed to tackle this situation. "When in Opposition, Modi had criticised the then government of going soft on terrorism and people of the country felt that the '56 inch chest' would do wonders if voted to power," he added. Pawar said the need of the hour is to strengthen the security forces and their morale. "After the surgical strikes, people were made to understand that terrorism will end, but infact, there have been more incidents (of terror strikes)," he said. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis tonight informed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be laying foundation stone for the proposed world class Chhatrapati Shivaji Memorial project in Arabian Sea on December 24. Modi will also be visiting Mumbai and Pune for the stone laying ceremony of Metro Rail Project on the same day, Fadnavis told a post Assembly Session press conference here in Vidhan Bhavan. The Chhatrapati Shivaji memorial project will be taken up in two phases and an approximately Rs 2,300 crores will be spent in the first phase. Expressing his satisfaction on the smooth functioning of Winter Session here, Fadnavis said a record number of 27 bills were taken up for discussion and 23 of them were passed. He said the issues concerning Vidarbha region were given appropriate time. Fadnavis appealed to all the party legislators from Vidarbha to come together and join hands in development of the region. On the issue of Nagpur-Mumbai Super Communication Expressway which is known as 'Samruddhi Marg', he appealed to the legislators from Wardha and Amravati district to come across the table to sort out differences. "We should learn to forget differences and join together like leaders in western Maharashtra and Konkan to make it (Vidarbha region) a prosperous region," Fadnavis said. The State government has drawn a roadmap for development of the region, he said. Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe- Patil criticised the state government for not waiving off loans of farmer and not compensating farmers who have suffered huge losses due to the fall in prices following demonetisation. The prices of agriculture products have sharply dropped after the scrapping of old currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Turkish authorities have detained a woman on suspicion of shooting dead in Istanbul one of the country's most prominent writers of self-help popular psychology books, reports said today. Beki Ikala Erikli, 48, was murdered late on Thursday at her apartment building by an attacker who fired three bullets into her at close range. A woman named Sinem Koc, 31, was late detained late yesterday on suspicion of the murder, the Hurriyet and Sabah dailies said. The suspected weapon was also found. Istanbul's Jewish weekly newspaper Salom said Erikli was a member of the city's small Jewish community. But there is currently no suggestion of any ethnic or religious motive to the killing. The reports said the suspect had trailed Ikala Erikli to the apartment she used as an office and and then killed her as she came out. Erikli was especially known for a hugely popular self-help book named "Living with the Angels". On social media, she described herself as an "author and spiritual teacher devoted to enabling everyone to connect to their inner voice, intuition, or angels. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Nationalist protesters stormed the local headquarters of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) in the central Turkish city of Kayseri and several other Turkish cities after an attack that left 14 soldiers dead. With the government pointing the finger at the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) for the attack earlier in Kayseri, the protesters yesterday took out their anger on the HDP in a string of revenge attacks. In Kayseri, protesters broke into the building where the HDP office is located, scattering papers and furniture on the street and removing the HDP sign from the entrance, images taken by the Dogan agency showed. A group then ascended to the top of the building, setting off a fire and draping from the top a giant red flag with three crescent moons, the insignia of right-wing Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). The HDP said similar attacks also took place on its offices in seven districts in Istanbul as well as branches in the cities of Erzincan, Ankara and Canakkale, and the town of Darica east of Istanbul. Pictures showed chaos in its offices in the Kartal district on the Asian side of Istanbul, with furniture and papers strewn on the floor. Meanwhile reports said there was an explosion at HDP offices in the Beylikduzu district of Istanbul, although there were no casualties. In a statement, the HDP accused the authorities of turning a blind eye to the attacks. "Those who fail to take measures to prevent these attacks give an opportunity for provocations," it said, while urging caution from its own supporters. The government has said the outlawed PKK, which is fighting a bitter insurgency against the Turkish security forces in the southeast, was likely behind the attack earlier that left 14 Turkish soldiers dead. The HDP denies any links to the PKK but the government accuses the party of being the political front of the militants. Several HDP MPs including its co-leaders are currently under arrest over alleged links to the PKK. The HDP earlier condemned the attack on the soldiers "in the strongest possible terms". But it added: "We have long passed the stage of settling with messages of condemnation. We all must stand together for peace, democracy, justice and freedom against violence, to end this pain." Turkish media said that yesterday's protesters in Kayseri were supporters of the Grey Wolves, a militant wing of the MHP who were hugely prominent in the 1980s and 1990s. Kayseri is seen as one of the strongholds of the nationalist party in Turkey, although the ruling Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP) has made inroads there in recent years. Meanwhile, angry right-wing protesters also attacked an outdoor meeting of the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) in central Kayseri, the Hurriyet daily said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India has made a fresh request to Denmark seeking extradition of Niels Holck aka Kim Davy, an accused in the 21-year-old Purulia arms drop case. The fresh efforts come after previous attempts to bring him to India for facing prosecution failed as the courts in Denmark rejected the extradition plea. CBI sources said a fresh request has been sent to Denmark but refused to divulge the new grounds under which it has been sent, citing confidentiality. Meanwhile, the Danish Justice Minister Soren Paulson was quoted by Copenhagen-based newspaper 'Berlingske' as saying that they have received the request from India. "Public Prosecutions will now consider the request under the provisions of the Extradition Act," the web site of the daily quoted a press release from the minister's office. "He stresses that it is important that the matter be treated as soon as possible, and with the thoroughness that such matters require," it said. The Danish government had accepted India's request for extraditing Davy, who was wanted in the infamous Purulia arms drop case, but he challenged the proceedings in a city court in Copenhagen which rejected the extradition. The Danish authorities challenged the decision in the High Court which also rejected their plea citing poor prison conditions, including overcrowding, torture and human rights record of India. The Danish legal authorities then decided not to pursue the matter further and refused to file an appeal in the Supreme Court there against the High Court decision. CBI sources said Indian authorities were not a party to the case and cannot directly intervene. They said the courts were not considering the merits of the alleged crime but on the prison conditions and human rights issues in India. The case relates to the incident on the night of December 17, 1995, when an AN-26 aircraft dropped arms and ammunition in West Bengal's Purulia district. The consignment had hundreds of AK-47 rifles, pistols, anti-tank grenades, rocket launchers and thousands of rounds of ammunition. The crew consisted of five Latvian citizens and British national Peter Bleach all of whom were arrested. Davy, a Danish citizen and the prime accused in the case, had escaped. The crew were released from a prison in Kolkata in 2000 after requests from the Russian authorities, while Bleach was given a presidential pardon in 2004 following requests by the UK government. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Outgoing US President Barack Obama has alleged that Russia, under the direction of its President Vladimir Putin, was behind cyberattacks during the American election and had hacked into servers and email systems of the Democratic Party and the Hillary Clinton Campaign which helped President-elect Donald Trump. "What I can tell you is that the intelligence that I've seen gives me great confidence in their assessment that the Russians carried out this hack. Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin," Obama told reporters during a White House conference, indicating Putin's involvement. "They hacked into some Democratic Party e-mails that contained pretty routine stuff, some of it embarrassing or uncomfortable because I suspect that if any of us got our emails hacked into there might be some things that we would not want suddenly appearing on the front page of a newspaper or a telecast, even if there was not anything particularly illegal or controversial about it," he said yesterday. A worried Obama lashed out at Russia for its alleged effort to influence the US election, saying the country does not produce anything and lacks innovation. "We've got to think what is happening to our political culture here. The Russians can't change us or significantly weaken us. They are a smaller country, they are a weaker country, their economy doesn't produce anything that anybody wants to buy except oil and gas and arms. They don't innovate," Obama said. "But they can impact us if we lose track of who we are. They can impact us if we abandon our values. Putin can weaken us just like he's trying to weaken Europe if we start buying into notions that it's OK to intimidate the press, or lock up dissidents, or discriminate against people because of their faith or what they look like," he said. Terming it a "pretty hierarchical operation", Obama said there was not a lot of debate and democratic deliberation, particularly when it comes to policies directed at the US. "We have said and I will confirm that this happened at the highest levels of the Russian government and I will let you make that determination as to whether there are high-level Russian officials who go off rogue and decide to tamper with the US election process without Vladimir Putin knowing about it," he said. Obama said he had raised the issue when he met Putin recently in China. "In early September when I saw President Putin in China, I felt that the most effective way to ensure that that did not happen was to talk to him directly and tell him to cut it out, there were going to be some serious consequences if he did not. And in fact, we did not see further tampering of the election process. But the leaks through Wikileaks had already occurred," he said. "The truth is, that there was nobody here who did not have some sense of what kind of effect it might have. I am finding it a little curious that everybody is suddenly acting surprised that this looked like it was disadvantaging Hillary Clinton, because you guys wrote about it every day, every single leak about every little juicy tidbit of political gossip, including John Podesta's risotto recipe," he said. This particular concern around Russian hacking is part of a broader set of concerns about how the US deals with cyber issues being used in ways that can affect the infrastructure, affect the stability of financial systems, and affect the integrity of institutions like election process, Obama said. "Just as I told Russia to stop it and indicated there will be consequences when they do it, the Chinese have in the past engaged in cyberattacks directed at our companies to steal trade secrets and proprietary technology, and I had to have the same conversation with President Xi," Obama said. "What we've seen is some evidence that they have reduced but not completely eliminated these activities, partly because they can use cutouts," he said. Noting that one of the problems with the internet and cyber issues was there is not always a return address, Obama said by the time one catches up to it, attributing what happened to a particular government could be difficult and not always provable in court. "Even tough our intelligence communities can make an assessment," he said. Dubbing demonetisation as "Modi-made disaster", Rahul Gandhi today claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi would write off Rs 8 lakh crore loans of the 50 rich families who funded his election campaign from the money people have deposited in banks after the note ban. "Those 50 families have made Narendra Modi and helped him sit on the chair. With their money he fought elections and became PM ... I will give it in writing that in 50 days things will not come back to normalcy and people's money will be in the bank for three to five months, and you would see the Indian economy getting stalled. "And you will also see, after two to three months that the poor people's money will go into the pockets of those 50 families. You will see, Rs 8 lakh crore loan of these 50 families written off," he said addressing 'Notebandi Rally' here. "If this doesn't happen you can ask me. This is the truth of this suited-booted government. It has snatched your money and axed your legs. Your money will go in the pockets of those rich," he said. Gandhi alleged that about Rs six lakh crore was deposited in the banks in September before the announcement of demonetisation move and the money belonged to BJP and Modi's friends. "In September six lakh crore rupees was deposited in the bank. Before this, that much money was not deposited in any bank. Whose money was it? It was the money of Narendra Modi's friends and BJP's friends. This is the truth and we will tell this truth to the people," he said. "As it is said a man-made disaster, in the same way demonetization is Modi-made disaster," the Congress Vice-President said as he targeted the Prime Minister squarely blaming him for the hardships post-demonetisation. Ours is the fight for poor and honest people and we will fight it across India. We will remove this suited-booted government from Delhi and we will show how it is done, he said. "For the first time in the history of India, Prime Minister has attacked the poor people of this country. Usually the Prime Minister works for the country. They work for the economy, but Narendra Modi has attacked our economic system," The Congress leader also referred to the lavish wedding reception hosted by Karnataka politician G Janardhan Reddy for his daughter where, he claimed, Rs 500 crore in new currency notes was spent. "Here is a case where at a marriage function in (Janardhan) Reddy's family we got to see Rs 500 crore in new currency notes. Also, before the (demonetisation) decision was made, the BJP members in Bihar and Odisha bought property," he alleged. Gandhi said the decision of demonetising Rs 1000 and Rs 500 currency notes was neither aimed against corruption and black money, nor the one per cent rich people of the country, but the honest, the poor farmers and workers of India. "The decision of demonetisation is not against corruption and black money. It is also not against the one per cent rich people of India. The decision is against the honest, farmers, poor people and workers of India," he said. Noting that "all black money is not cash and all cash is not black money", Rahul asked why Narendra Modi was "protecting" those having ill-gotten money in Swiss banks and not revealing their names in Parliament. "All Swiss bank account holders' names have been submitted in a list. We have been asking for the past two- and-a-half years for revealing the names of the thieves on the floor of Parliament. Why hasn't he not revealed the names? Why Narendra Modiji is protecting them?" he said. He also demanded that Vijay Mallya and Lalit Modi, wanted in India for financial wrongdoing, be brought back from London. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday called on DMK patriarch Karunanidhi, who is undergoing treatment for lung and throat infection at a private hospital here, and said the leader was doing well. "I just met him, I wanted to personally wish him a speedy recovery. I was very happy to see that he is doing well and the doctors told me that he is going to go home pretty soon and that is good news," he told reporters. Flanked by senior party leaders including Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president Su Thirunavukkarasar and DMK treasurer M K Stalin, he hailed Karuananidhi as a "leader of the Tamil people, leader of Tamil Nadu, so I thought I would come and wish him personally." To a query, he said, "Yes I met him (Karunanidhi), I said hello to him and he is doing well hopefully he will be out (of the hospital) soon and Congress president (Sonia Gandhi) has also sent her regards to him." 92-year-old Karunanidhi was admitted to Kauvery Hospital here on the night of December 15 following complaints of difficulty in breathing due to throat and lung infection. On Friday, he underwent tracheostomy at the hospital to optimise breathing and later the hospital said the DMK chief's condition was stable. Last night, after the tracheostomy procedure, his condition improved and even he watched a Rajinikanth starrer 'Batcha' on his laptop. This is the first visit that Rahul Gandhi is paying a visit to Karunanidhi in last many years. Even during his several previous visits to Tamil Nadu Gandhi he did not call on the nonagenarian leader though Congress and DMK are allies. Weeks ago, when he had visited Apollo Hospitals here to enquire about the health of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, there were expectations in the DMK camp that he could pay a visit to party patriarch Karunanidhi as well. However, he did not visit the DMK chief then. Rahul Gandhi was accompanied by senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh during his brief visit. After visiting Karunanidhi, Rahul Gandhi immediately took a flight to Delhi from here. Former Union Minister and Rajya Sabha MP, P Chidambaram, TNCC president Thirunavukkarasar, Congress Legislature Party leader Ramasamy received him at the airport and also later saw him off. Jharkhand cadre IPS officer Rajiv Jain was on Saturday appointed as the new chief of Intelligence Bureau (IB) while Anil Dhasmana will head external intelligence agency RAW. Both the officers will have a tenure of two years. Jain, who is at present serving as the Special Director in the IB, will take over on January 1 after the incumbent Dineshwar Sharma completes his two-year tenure on December 31. A recipient of President's Police Medal, the 1980-batch officer has served in various departments of the IB including the sensitive Kashmir desk. He was advisor to the previous NDA government's interlocutor on Kashmir K C Pant when talks were held with separatist leaders like Shabbir Shah. In another appointment, Anil Dhasmana will take over the reins of the Research and Analysis Wing, an organisation which looks after the external intelligence of the country. He succeeds Rajinder Khanna who completes his tenure this year end. Dhasmana, a 1981-batch officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre, has been with RAW for the last 23 years during which he has served on important desks including Pakistan. A whopping Rs 1,00,10,000 (one crore ten thousand) were deposited in a dormant account of a labourer at Khidiya branch of Bank of India in Hoshangabad district of Madhya Pradesh after demonetisation. Bank officials said it was a "clerical mistake". Asaram Vishwakarma, the labourer, learnt about the fortune sitting in his account with the Bank of India branch when he received an Income Tax notice dated November 30, seeking explanation. Vishwakarma at first did not understand the notice as it was in English. A school teacher translated it for him. The notice, signed by Ashok Kumar Mangnani, Assistant Director of Income Tax, Bhopal, reads, "IT department is in possession of information that you have entered into financial transactions of Rs 1,00,10,000 between November 9, 2016 and November 17 without quoting your Permanent Account Number (PAN)." However, BOI branch manager Vinod Jalodia today said, "Vishwakarma had deposited Rs 10,000, but by mistake a clerk made a wrong entry of Rs 1,00,10,000 in his account. "He deposited 20 notes of Rs 500 denomination but by mistake the entry showed that he deposited 20,000 currency notes of Rs 500," the manager said. "We have informed the IT officials about the error after Vishwakarma came to us," he added. IT officials could not be contacted for more information. Sources said the IT office in Bhopal has issued notices to around 1,000 account-holders in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh seeking explanation about suspicious transactions in their accounts post-demonetisation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Enforcement Directorate has recovered about Rs 30 lakh cash and 2.5 kg gold from the premises of a prominent tailor in Chandigarh as part of its operation to unearth illegal cash. The seizure comes three days after ED officials recovered Rs 2.19 crore cash from a cloth merchant. Acting on tip off, the sleuths of ED swooped down on the premises of Maharaja Tailor in Mohali (Punjab) and at sector 22 in Chandigarh. The seizure included Rs 18 lakh in Rs 2,000 denomination and while the rest was in Rs 100 and 50 denominations, ED official said. The ED sleuths said that they were verifying how the notes were exchanged and from whom, the owners of the shop bought the gold. Officials were examining the bill books of the shop. The owners of the tailoring shop had allegedly bought 2.5 kg gold at a rate of Rs 44,000 per 10 gram after demonetisation, they said. Investigations were underway, ED officials said. Meanwhile, the Chandigarh Police had arrested a senior bank employee of a private bank in Mohali for allegedly providing new currency to cloth merchant Inderpal Mahajan on commission basis. ED had seized Rs 2.19 crore including Rs 17.74 lakh in Rs 2,000 denomination, Rs 12,500 in Rs 500 denomination from the house of Mahajan on December 14. Protesters began gathering in the streets of Seoul for the eighth straight week today, pushing their demands for the swift and permanent removal of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-Hye. Organisers said the mass rally would march on the Constitutional Court whose nine justices are considering the validity of the impeachment bill passed by the national assembly more than a week ago. The court has 180 days to make a ruling, but the protesters are pressing for a swift judgement. Although Park has been stripped of her substantial executive powers, she is allowed to retain the title of president and continue to live in the presidential Blue House while the court deliberates. The protesters are adamant that she should resign immediately and face criminal prosecution. But Park still has her supporters, many of them elderly voters who remain steadfast admirers of her father, the late military dictator Park Chung-Hee -- credited as the architect of the South's economic transformation but vilified as an authoritarian rights abuser. Several thousand Park loyalists attended their own rally near the court earlier in the day to demand the impeachment bill be thrown out. Waving national flags and clutching red roses they carried banners denouncing the anti-Park protests as a leftist conspiracy. Yesterday, Park's legal team formally submitted a 24-page rebuttal of the impeachment charges to the court, arguing that they had no legal basis. "We can't accept that there was any violation of the constitution by the president... The impeachment motion should be rejected," one of her lawyers, Lee Joong-Hwan, told reporters. Park was impeached on numerous counts of constitutional and criminal violations ranging from a failure to protect people's lives to bribery and abuse of power. Most of the charges stemmed from an investigation into a scandal involving the president's long-time friend, Choi Soon-Sil, who is currently awaiting trial for fraud and embezzlement. Prosecutors named Park a suspect in the case -- a first for a sitting president -- saying she colluded in Choi's efforts to strong-arm donations from large companies worth tens of millions of dollars. The impeachment process was ignited and fuelled by public outrage at Park's behaviour, with the weekly mass demonstrations demanding that politicians take a proactive role in removing her from the presidential Blue House. The National Assembly has played its part, but the country now faces a lengthy period of uncertainty at a time of slowing economic growth and elevated military tensions with nuclear-armed North Korea. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Maharashtra Governor Vidyasagar Rao today stressed on the urgent need to revive the interest of students in Science and devise ways to get the brightest of the lot attracted to the subject if India wants to rise as the next superpower and bring home the long overdue Nobel Prize. "More than ever Science is under threat of neglect and apathy. Urgent intervention is needed from the government, planners, educationists and science leaders to stop the declining interest of students and apathy of society towards science if we wish to make any reasonable progress in various spheres of life," Rao said after opening the 51st conference of Akhil Bhartiya Marathi Vidnyan Parishad here last evening. "I firmly believe that India can become a superpower only if it accords urgent attention to science and technology. We can address our challenges like poverty, hunger, disease, sanitation, malnutrition, water and energy insecurity only through the power of Science, technology and innovation. I might sound alarmist. But I sincerely feel that we need national level intervention to revive the interest of students in science and make our institutions of science dynamic centres of learning, research and innovation," he said. India was actively contributing to the field of Science and Technology centuries long before modern inventions were made. The contribution the Indian civilization to human knowledge and advancement has been rich and varied. Unfortunately, long spells of foreign domination did great harm to our education system; to our Science and technology and to our spirit of enquiry and innovation," he said. The Governor said that it has been 86 long years since CV Raman won the Nobel Prize for Physics. "Another Nobel Prize in Science is long overdue for India. Our scientific fraternity must rise to this challenge and work towards this goal to revive the interest of Indians in Science," he said. "If we wish to develop scientific temper and spirit of enquiry among our children, the beginning will have to be made from our schools. The first and foremost thing," he said "that we must do is to promote education in mother tongue. In addition, the Governor said, "Secondly we must adopt interactive, responsive and participatory methods of teaching and learning. The present education system lays undue stress on examinations and result. There is no place for creative thinking and expression of innovative ideas. This must change. In his address to delegates from all over the state Rao said, "As Governor and as Chancellor of Universities in the state, I find that there is no worthwhile interaction taking place between our institutions of science and our schools and colleges. Both are working in exclusion of one another." "I do feel that there should be a regular interface between these institutions and our schools and colleges. Our schools are nurseries of future scientists and innovators. We must not neglect them," he said. "I feel our institutions of Science must organize regular workshops and continuing education programmes for teachers and share with them innovative practices of learning. There are concepts like Science Festival in many advanced countries. I think school and every Science institution must organize a Science festival every year. It should explain to the common man in simple terms what it is doing for society. We need to think, how the best and the brightest students could be attracted to Science," he said. "Sixty-nine years ago, India won freedom from the foreign rule. But the real freedom will come when people are freed of ignorance, superstition, poverty, hunger, disease and under-development. I believe that science can help us achieve real Independence and shape the future of India. I want Marathi Vidnyan Parishad to prepare the nation for this second freedom movement. Together we can realize and fulfill the dream of Dr A P J Abdul Kalam to make India self-reliant and self-assured," Rao said. He said Marathi Vidnyan Parishad should impress upon the governments to increase the funding for science which is currently less than even 1 per cent of our GDP. "It should encourage the private sector organizations to support science education, science fairs and such other scientific activities in schools and colleges. Kottapuram Fort, a stop on India's ancient trade route and part of Kerala Tourism's 'Muziris Heritage Project', is a venue in the ongoing Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB) 2016. A giant scroll painting by the late Chinese artist Li Bo'an is exhibited at the fort. The scroll, titled 'Walking Out of Bayan Har', measures 1.88 m high and 121.5 m wide. It has been reproduced on plastic and stretched out at the fort. "The artwork has the quality of a mural painting on paper - something that is rare not only in China but anywhere in the world," the organisers said in a release here. Kottapuram fort, built in 1523 by the Portuguese, was captured by the Dutch in 1663. Before the Portuguese, there were the Romans, the Greeks, the Chinese and the Arabs who came to the Malabar Coast in search of fragrant spices, specifically pepper, also known as black gold. The fort, situated at the mouth of the Periyar in Thrissur district, is one of the 12 venues for the four-month-long Biennale. Excavations in the fort area - located on the Malabar trade route - have reinforced historical evidence of Chinese trade with Kerala. Among the many items dug up are coins, inscriptions and porcelain from China. KMB 2016 curator Sudarshan Shetty, whose curatorial vision for the art extravaganza involves invoking the meaning of tradition and exploring it through fresh perspective, said the ancient fort was an apt location to showcase Li Bo'an's work. "There have been many archeological discoveries in this area. There is a lot of history about China's relationship with India here," said Li Tuo, who presented a talk on the scroll painting at Kottapuram fort yesterday. The scroll depicts 266 Tibetan villagers living under the foot of the Bayan Har Mountain. The artist spent 10 years working out of his living room, painting a few meters at a time on the artwork, which he did not get a chance to see in its entirety during his lifetime. "The scroll exhibited is a print on plastic. The original was created with traditional Chinese materials: ink, brush and thin Chinese paper. It is remarkable that he painted such immense figures in this way on this kind of very fragile paper. The effect is miraculous," Li Tuo is quoted as saying the release. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal today said that his government intended to prepare a master plan to develop Madhupur Satra, seat of Vaishnav culture, in Bengal's Coochbehar district as an "epicentre of cultural tourism." Sonowal, along with Deputy Commissioners and Superintendents of Police of Assam's Dhubri and West Bengal's Cooch Behar district visited the Satra, the Vaishnav onastery, according to a press release issued by the Assam government. Sonowal asked the Assam Cultural Affairs Department to develop a plan for building a guest home, a kitchen and toilets and directed the Dhubri Deputy Commissioner to raise the height of the boundary wall around the Satra. The chief minister also directed the officials to evolve a stratgey by January 17 to free the Satra Land from encroachers and the Assam Government will take up the matter with the higher authorities in the Bengal Government, the release said. The Satra, built in the 15th century, is a treasure trove of historical documents and manuscripts and is the final resting place of Srimanta Sankardev, the great Vaishnavite saint of Assam. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Ten passengers were killed and another 21 wounded today when a van and a bus collided on a highway in Sri Lanka's former war zone of Jaffna, police said. All those killed in the head-on collision along the A-9 highway were passengers travelling in the smaller vehicle, police said adding that three of the wounded were in critical condition. The crash involved a van heading to Jaffna town and a bigger bus travelling in the opposite direction, police said, adding that an investigation was underway. A police officer told AFP it was the worst crash in the area that he could remember. Last month, the government proposed significantly raising the average traffic fine of 500 rupees to 25,000 rupees ( USD 166) in a bid to reduce the number of accidents on Sri Lankan roads. About 3,000 people are killed in traffic accidents in the south Asian country annually. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sri Lanka has secured USD 1.34 billion in loans from the World Bank to boost the cash-strapped island's economy over the next three years, the finance ministry said today. The loans would be at concessionary rates and repayments spread out over 15 years, the ministry said in a statement. "This is a great victory for us and it will help us in the fiscal consolidation programme that the new government has started," Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake said. There was no immediate comment from the World Bank. The new government, which came to power in January last year, also secured a USD 1.5 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund in June after facing a balance of payments crisis. The IMF last month described Sri Lanka's performance since the rescue as "broadly satisfactory", but said it needed to build its dwindling foreign reserves. On Wednesday, the ports minister said talks were under way to sell part of Sri Lanka's loss-making USD 1.4 billion harbour to a Chinese company in January to help pay off crippling debts. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sashastra Seema Bal will soon raise a full-fledged combat intelligence wing comprising around 1,000 personnel in order to better secure the "sensitive" and porous borders of Nepal and Bhutan. SSB, which mans the 1,751-km-long Nepal border and 699-km-long Bhutan border, has also seized fake currency with face value of Rs 6.45 lakh from areas on Nepal frontier post demonetisation. SSB Director General Archana Ramasundaram, interacting with media persons here before the 53rd Raising Day of the force on December 19, said the paramilitary force has sent a proposal to the government to raise close to 1,000 personnel as part of its maiden combatised intelligence network that it wants to deploy on these borders. The force, till now, used to rely on its non-combatised officials and regular troops for this task at these two borders. "The border (Nepal) is very sensitive and the influence of elements of various types in these areas have mushroomed ...We have proposed to have our full-fledged intelligence wing in the force. The proposal has been sent to the Home Ministry," the DG said when asked a question on increasing Chinese activities in Nepal. While she said she would refrain from commenting on specific operational and classified aspects along this border, she said the force is keeping a "watch" on every activity along this frontier on India's east. She added the intelligence wing, once raised, will be deployed on both the borders that the force guards with a special impetus on activities along Nepal as heavy cross- border movement takes places across this frontier. "There is no fencing on this (Nepal) border and there are different challenges here. We also have to keep the sensitivity of people in mind as the local population on both sides have relations and interactions across the border we guard," she said. The DG added the force, raised in 1963 in the aftermath of the 1962 Chinese aggression, will have a new structure for intelligence gathering, analysis and dissemination. A senior official said the new intelligence wing will be raised on the lines of the famed 'G' wing (General wing) of the Border Security Force which has some of the major kills and operations to its credit in the Kashmir Valley and the Naxal-hit states. Talking about other challenges on the borders, Ramasundaram said the Nepal frontier was sensitive when it comes to tackling the menace of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) and the force has seized a total of 6.45 lakh such forged currencies after the government demonetised Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 on November 8. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) St Stephen's College family mourned the deaths of its three students who drowned in Periyar river in Kerala during a trip yesterday. A condolence meeting was held on the college's seminar room around 11 am which was attended by Prinicpal Prof John Varghese, Bursar Dr Renish Geevarghese, teachers, staff and students. An inter-faith prayer was held wherein religious scriptures were recited. "St stephen's College is deeply saddened by the demise of its students who were on a trip to Kerala. The entire college community joins the bereaved families in this tragic moment," Varghese said. Aditya Patel, Anubhav Chandra and Kenneth Jose, and a private resort owner Benny, had drowned last evening in Periyat at Paniyeli Poru- a tourist spot. Varghese said the college administration has facilitated the travel of bereaved families to Kerala and take back the bodies. Jose's family who belonged to Wayanad (Kerala) reached and his body was sent back. Patel's family has also reached Kerala from Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh) while Chandra's family were travelling from Jehanabad in Bihar to take back his body, he said. After the incident, the bodies were recovered and kept at the Taluk hospital at Perumbavoor. Patel and Chandra were final year students of Sanskrit undergraduate programme while Kenneth had recently joined the college as an undergraduate student of Chemistry. The teachers of Aditya and Anubhav remembered them as bright young boys who were good in studies and enthusiastic about extra-curricular activities. "They were very good students. They were good at studies and actively participated in the activities of various societies of which they were members," said AD Mathur of Sanskrit department of the college. Police said the students had gone to Kerala as part of a group of 11 students and 2 wardens to visit famous tourist spots in the state. The incident occurred at Paniyeli Poru where the river has dangerous clusters of slippery rocks, near Perumbavoor in Ernakulam district, they said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Lt General Ranbir Singh, General Officer Commanding, Strike 1 and all ranks of Mathura garrison paid homage to the brave soldiers of Strike 1, who made the supreme sacrifice during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War against Pakistan, at the war memorial here. "Basantar Day is celebrated to commemorate the heroic deeds of our soldiers who fought gallantly in the Battle of Basantar, during 1971 war," Defence PRO Gargi Mullick Sinha said. The day is known from the famous Battle of Basantar, which took place in 1971 in Shakargarh Bulge, Pakistan," she said. The battle of Basantar was one of the greatest tank battle, ever fought by the elite Indian Tank Regiments - 17 Horse and 4 Horse, who destroyed 46 of enemy's patton tanks. According to the defence PRO, while 2/Lt Arun Khetarpal of 17 Horse was awarded Param Vir Chakra (Posthumous) for his heroic actions during the battle, then Major Hoshiar Singh of 3 Grenadiers was awarded Param Vir Chakra for his exemplary courage and leadership in ensuring that enemy's nefarious design were defeated thoroughly. The Yodhas of Strike 1 stood in reverence to honour the martyrs and rededicate themselves to uphold the honour of the nation, on this glorious day. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Punjab Congress today criticised Akali leaders Sukhbir Singh Badal and Harsimrat Kaur Badal for allegedly misleading people on the party's promise to waive farmers' loans, saying their statements on the issue smacked of ignorance. Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee leaders Sunil Jakhar, Manpreet Singh Badal and Sukhbinder Sarkaria accused Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal and Union Minister Harsimrat Badal of misleading farmers after PPCC chief Capt Amarinder Singh recently met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue. Sukhbir Badal has accused Capt Amarinder of committing a fraud by promising farmers a loan waiver, saying even if Congress were to come to power in Punjab it could not fulfil the promise. "You promised farmers in Punjab that you would get their loans waived off when you come to power. However, even before the elections could be held, you were seen at the PM's door begging the Prime Minister to waive off these loans," he said. The state Congress unit said the party was seeking Modi government's support at the Centre to alleviate the suffering of farmers across the country. It stressed that Capt Amarinder was committed to fulfil his promise to waive off the loans. Contrary to what the Badals are trying to project with their "misleading propaganda", the fact is that Capt Amarinder has categorically said the debts of farmers in Punjab will be waived off once he comes to power, the PPCC leaders said. Sukhbir and Harsimrat were trying to befool the people ahead of the Assembly elections in the state by twisting facts and making baseless charges against Capt Amarinder, they said. These tactics would not help the Badals escape the wrath of the people in the coming elections, which would witness a rout of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) in the state, they said. The PPCC leaders also charged the Badals with playing with the sentiments of farmers, with their "deceptive" statements. Capt Amarinder has made an avowed commitment to waive off the loans and the matter was raised during the meeting with Modi in New Delhi as part of the Rahul Gandhi-led delegation, they said. They said the PPCC chief has waived off the loans before too during his previous tenure as the state's chief minister. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Needling BJP over the washed out winter session of Parliament, ally on Saturday asked the ruling partner to take cognisance of its party patriarch L K Advani's "tears" and called for a special session to discuss the demonetisation issue. Terming Advani as the 'Bhishma Pitamah' of Indian politics, the Sena said he has raised a question mark over parliamentary democracy in the country. "It should be noted that Advani is not a Congress leader. One must bear in mind that he has been at the forefront of the anti-Congress politics," an editorial in Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' said. It recalled that in May 2014, while entering the Parliament building, PM Narendra Modi had knelt and placed his forehead on the green carpeted steps and also shed tears. "But due to the 'tamasha' of parliamentary proceedings in the last two years, the soul of the Parliament (building) has lost and it is shedding tears," it said. "Parliament is meant to debate serious issues of concern to people. But the opposition raises questions and creates chaos, while the government runs away from these issues. This is the picture today," the Sena said. "People are standing in queues for Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,000. However, crores in 'pink' (new Rs 2,000) notes are being recovered from the houses of the rich. "If the government is not going to say anything on this, if the PM is not going to respond, then a special session of Parliament should be convened and the RBI Governor should be summoned in Parliament," the editorial said. "Nowadays, the Prime Minister sometimes gets emotional. It will be nice if cognisance is taken of the tears shed by Advani on the state of affairs of Lok Sabha and democracy," it said. The Sena remarks come after Advani, for the second time during the Winter Session of Parliament, expressed anguish and concern over the way the session was a washout with daily adjournments. He reportedly even told a few MPs that he felt like resigning from Lok Sabha owing to his distress at the proceedings, adding that "Atalji (former PM Vajpayee) would have been very upset seeing this". Afghan-oriented militant groups like the Taliban and the Haqqani Network retain freedom of action from inside Pakistani territory, the has said, while asserting that the US has been clear in urging Islamabad to deny safe havens to terror outfits. "Afghan-oriented militant groups, including Taliban and Haqqani Network senior leadership, retain freedom of action from safe havens inside Pakistani territory," the said in its six-monthly report to the Congress. "The United States continues to be clear with Pakistan about steps it should take to improve the security environment and deny safe havens to terrorist and extremist groups," the report said. Militant groups, including the Taliban and Haqqani senior leadership, retained safe havens inside Pakistani territory and sustained Pakistani efforts to disrupt active Haqqani Network threats were not observed during the reporting period, the said in its report ending November 2016. The Pentagon, in its report running into nearly 100 pages, said the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region remains a sanctuary for various groups. These include the Taliban, al-Qaeda, AQIS, Haqqani Network, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), ISIL-K, and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. "This sanctuary and these groups remain a security challenge for both countries and pose a threat to regional stability and security," it said. Collectively, terrorist and insurgent groups continue to present a formidable challenge to Afghan, the US and coalition forces, the report said. There is a high concentration of terrorist and extremist organisations operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan, with several known designated organisations operating in the two countries, creating a complex threat environment, the Pentagon said. Of the groups involved in the Taliban-led insurgency, the Haqqani Network remains the greatest threat to US, coalition and Afghan forces and continues to be a critical enabler of al-Qaeda, it said. Haqqani Network leader Sirajuddin Haqqani's role as Taliban deputy has solidified Haqqani influence within the Taliban, the Pentagon said. Sirajuddin Haqqani's position has likely allowed the Haqqani Network to increase its area of operations within Afghanistan and provided the Taliban with additional operational and planning capabilities, it said. The Pentagon said although al Qaeda's core leadership in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region has been degraded, elements continue to seek safe haven on both sides of the border to regenerate and conduct attack planning. "The continued development of an al-Qaeda affiliate in the region, al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), highlights the dynamic nature of the region's terrorist and militant landscape, posing risks to the mission and to US interests," it said. Structure talk therapy alone can help treat people with social anxiety disorders, rather than taking medications like the famous "happy pill", a new study has found. Researchers from Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)and the University of Manchester in the UK examined the effects of structured talk therapy and medication on patients with social anxiety disorders. Until now, a combination of cognitive therapy and medication was thought to be the most effective treatment for these patients. The findings show that cognitive therapy on its own has a much better effect over the long term than just drugs or a combination of the two. "We've set a new world record in effectively treating social anxiety disorders," said Hans M Nordahl, professor at NTNU. Nearly 85 per cent of the study participants significantly improved or became completely healthy using only cognitive therapy. Social anxiety is not a diagnosis, but a symptom that a lot of people struggle with, researchers said. For example, talking or being funny on command in front of a large audience can trigger this symptom. On the other hand, social anxiety disorder - or social phobia - is a diagnosis for individuals who find it hard to function socially and anyone with this diagnosis has high social anxiety. Medications, talk therapy or a combination of these are the most common ways to treat patients with this diagnosis. NTNU researchers set out to examine which of these approaches is most effective. "A lot of doctors and hospitals combine medications - like the famous "happy pill" - with talk therapy when they treat this patient group," said Nordahl. "It works well in patients with depressive disorders, but it actually has the opposite effect in individuals with social anxiety disorders," he said. "Happy pills," like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), may have strong physical side effects. When patients have been on medications for some time and want to reduce them, the bodily feelings associated with social phobia, like shivering, flushing and dizziness in social situations tend to return. Patients often end up in a state of acute social anxiety again. "Patients often rely more on the medication and don't place as much importance on therapy," said Nordahl. "They think it's the drugs that will make them healthier, and they become dependent on something external rather than learning to regulate themselves," he said. "So the medication camouflages a very important patient discovery: that by learning effective techniques, they have the ability to handle their anxiety themselves," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Thousands of trapped civilians and rebels waited desperately today for evacuations to resume from the last opposition-held areas of Aleppo after the operation was suspended by the Syrian regime. A rebel representative told AFP that an agreement had been reached to allow more evacuations from the city, which has been ravaged by some of the worst violence of the nearly six-year war that has killed more than 310,000 people. But there was no confirmation from President Bashar al-Assad's regime or its staunch allies Russia and Iran, which are under mounting international pressure to end what US President Barack Obama denounced as the "horror" in Aleppo. Obama called yesterday for impartial observers to monitor efforts to evacuate civilians from the devastated city and warned Assad that he would not be able to "slaughter his way to legitimacy". Families spent the night in freezing temperatures in bombed out apartment blocks in Al-Amiriyah district, which was the departure point for evacuations before they were halted on Friday, an AFP correspondent reported. Many had not had a proper meal in days and were surviving on just a few dates. A lot of people had burned all possessions they could not carry with them, determined not to allow them to be looted by government troops and militia who have recaptured almost the entire city. The government blamed rebels for the suspension of the evacuation operation which had begun on Thursday, saying they had tried to smuggle out heavy weapons and hostages. The opposition accused the government of halting the operation in a bid to secure the evacuation of residents from Fuaa and Kafraya, two villages under rebel siege in northwestern Syria. In return the rebels want the evacuation of the towns of Madaya and Zabadani in Damascus province which are besieged by the regime. "We are working on a resumption of the operations today (Saturday)," said Al-Farook Abu Bakr, a representative of the hardline Islamist rebel group Ahrar al-Sham. "There will be evacuations from Fuaa and Kafraya, as well as Madaya and Zabadani, and all the residents of Aleppo and the fighters will leave." The precise number of people still trapped in the last rebel-held pocket southwest of central Aleppo is unclear. UN envoy Staffan de Mistura estimated that as of Thursday there were around 40,000 civilians and perhaps as many as 5,000 opposition fighters in the rebel enclave but the world body has since acknowledged there is uncertainty about the figures. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister of the Tibetan government in-exile Lobsang Sangay today criticised China for objecting to Dalai Lama's meeting with President Pranab Mukherjee asserting India did the "right thing" which Beijing "should not" oppose. Sangay made the remarks on the sidelines of an event where a report on the 'Middle Way Approach' to the Tibet issue was released by the 'Central Tibetan Administration' (CTA) here. "His Holiness the Dalai Lama attending Nobel laureate event at Rashtrapati Bhavan and him meeting the President is India's business and I think the Indian government did the right thing. He is India's honourable guest and the Chinese should not comment on or criticise what he or India does," Sangay told PTI. India has dismissed Chinese objection to the Dalai Lama's meeting with Mukherjee at the Rashtrapati Bhavan during a children's summit few days back. Sangay, who was re-elected in July, said that China looks "anxious and sometimes paranoid" reacting to the CTA's activities, adding that China's "hardline policies" towards Tibet have failed. China considers the Dharamsala-based Tibetan government-in exile illegal. Asked about the future of CTA's dialogue with China, which virtually collapsed in 2010, Sangay said the Xi Jinping-led Chinese administration needs "to treat the Dalai Lama as the solution" and not as an obstacle. "I hope the Chinese leadership realise that their policy on Taiwan failed. They did the waiting game and it failed. And I hope they see the Dalai Lama as the solution and not the problem. "I hope in Xi Jinping's second term (as President) he will relook and review the Tibet policy and realise that the hardline policies have failed," he said. The middle way approach, conceived by the Dalai Lama and described by him as a "win-win solution", is a moderate policy propounded by the CTA that seeks "genuine autonomy" for the Tibetan People without challenging the "unity and stability" of China. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bollywood actor Govinda apparently has no plans to return to political life, saying it took him nearly a decade to forget the days of politics. "It took (me) nearly nine-ten years to come out and forget the days of politics. I request you to not ask this," he told reporters after inaugurating Jaipur Wax Museum at Nahargarh fort here. The "Kill Dil" actor, who had won Lok Sabha election from Mumbai North constituency in 2004 on Congress ticket, also evaded question on demonetisation. Govinda, who was accompanied by his wife Sunita, unveiled the statue of Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan at the museum which has 32 wax statues of personalities like Mahatma Gandhi, APJ Abdul Kalam, Mother Teresa, Bhagat Singh, among others. He said he did not give permission to install his wax statue because his 'Guruji' did not allow him for this. Museum Director Anoop Srivastava claimed that it is the first such museum to be set up at a historic site. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Delhi Police have arrested two members of the notorious 'Tillu Gang', which used to extort money from businessmen in the city. The arrested have been identified as Sandeep and Deepak, both residents of Tajur Kalan village of Outer Delhi, police said. The duo last morning made a threat call to businessman Pradeep, who approached the police after knowing that the accused had tried to break open the shutter of his office at Bakhtawarpur by gun shots. Acting on a tip-off and with help of technical surveillance, the police nabbed the duo from Murthal in Haryana, yesterday itself, DCP (Outer) M N Tiwari said. Two country-made pistols, four live cartridges and one mobile phone used in the crime was seized from their possession, he said. "The accused would terrorise the businessmen by firing on their enterprises to extort money. Both are the member of Tillu Gang," DCP Tiwari said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The United Kingdom faces a Christmas of discontent as labor unions threaten to disrupt airports, rail services and mail deliveries. The Unite union and aviation services company Swissport announced negotiation plans today intended to avert a December 23 walkout by 1,500 baggage handlers, check-in staff and other workers at 18 airports. Unite general secretary Len McCluskey says he hopes "fairness will prevail" in Tuesday's talks. At British Airways, a fourth of the airline's cabin crew members are planning a two-day strike starting on Christmas Day December 25. British Airways condemned Unite's timing and vowed to ensure that all customers reached their holiday destinations. Strikes at Southern Railway already have disrupted much of England's train services this month. The Communication Workers Union plans a Post Office strike starting Monday through Christmas Eve. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Security officers restored order today at a prison in the central English city of Birmingham one day after an estimated 600 inmates seized control and launched a destructive rampage. Authorities called yesterday's 13-hour takeover of HMP Birmingham the worst prison uprising since the 1990 riot in Strangeways in Manchester, which lasted 25 days and left one prisoner dead. No staff members were injured during the Birmingham unrest but one prisoner remained hospitalised today with a suspected broken jaw and eye socket. Trouble flared as prisoners rushed a guard and stole his keys, giving them eventual access to all four wings of the Victorian-era prison in England's second-largest city. Inmates lit fires, set off fireworks, broke into guards' offices to steal clubs and helmets, and smashed windows and toilet blocks. A stream of security vans came and went today from the prison. The Justice Ministry said at least 240 Birmingham inmates were being transferred to other prisons nationwide while more than 1,000 remaining would face greater restrictions on movement. Justice Minister Liz Truss said the reasons for the security failure will be fully investigated, while those convicted of rioting will face longer sentences. She said: "Violence in our prisons will not be tolerated and those responsible will face the full force of the law. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In an attack on security forces in Manipur, militants today attacked a small post of India Reserve Battalion (IRB) at Nungkao in Tamenglong district and took away nine sophisticated arms and ammunition, police said. In the attack that took place at around 12 PM, the suspected hill based militants looted four SLRs, three INSAS rifle, one AK rifle and another automatic firearm and ammunition. This is the fourth attack on security forces suspected to be carried out by the militants in the last three days. Three policemen were killed and 14 others injured in different incidents after the militants ambushed state forces at Lokchao and Bongyang in Chandel district, and Noney town in Noney district on Thursday. Of these attacks, today's is the first incident in which weapons has been carried away. However, unconfirmed reports said altogether 20 weapons were taken by the militants. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistan Army successfully test-fires an enhanced version of an indigenously-designed cruise missile that can hit targets at 700 kms with all kinds of warheads, bringing many Indian cities within its range. Aleppo: Fierce fighting shook Syria's Aleppo killing at least seven people, as sources says a deal for the evacuation of civilians and fighters from remaining rebel-held areas was on hold. Islamabad: Pakistan says it has held first-ever consultations with Russia over important global and regional issues amid warming ties between the former Cold War rivals. Thursday Aleppo: Hundreds of civilians and rebels leave Aleppo under an evacuation deal that will allow Syria's regime to take full control of the city after years of fighting. Islamabad: Pakistan terms as "absurd" and "irresponsible" Home Minister Rajnath Singh's remarks that the country would be splintered into 10 if it failed to quell terrorism, saying the comments were in "complete violation" of all diplomatic norms. Dhaka: Toughening her stance against fundamentalist groups like Jamaat-e-Islami, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina warns that those who had sided with Pakistan Army and rehabilitated war criminals during the country's 1971 liberation war will be tried. Friday Washington: China "unlawfully" seizes an unmanned US naval probe in international waters in the South China Sea, the Pentagon says, a move sure to heighten tensions around Beijing's military presence in the disputed area. Islamabad: Pakistan's new army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa confirms the death sentences of 13 "hardcore" terrorists involved in the killing of 325 people in "heinous" attacks on civilians and security forces, his second such endorsement since taking command of the army last month. Islamabad: Pakistan summons India's Deputy High Commissioner and strongly condemns the alleged "unprovoked ceasefire violations and targeting of a school van", carrying children, by Indian forces. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Vietnamese comedian Minh Beo has been sentenced to 18 months in state prison for sexually assaulting a 16-year-old boy in California. Orange County prosecutors said yesterday the 38-year-old must also register as a sex offender. The comedian, whose real name is Minh Quang Hong, pleaded guilty in August to oral copulation of a minor and attempting to commit a lewd act on a child under the age of 14. The second charge stemmed from a meeting he arranged with a police officer posing as a 13-year-old boy. He is known in Vietnam as Minh Beo, meaning "Fat Minh." He has been popular in stage, TV and movie comic roles and has his own theater in Ho Chi Minh City. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Regional West African leaders said The Gambia's president Yahya Jammeh must step down next month when his term runs out, just over a week after he challenged the result of an election in which he had already conceded defeat. The 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) issued its call in a statement at the end of a summit in Nigeria. "The Authority calls on President Yahya Jammeh to accept the result of the polls and refrain from any act likely to compromise the transition and peaceful transfer of power to the president-elect," they said. The summit vowed "to take all necessary action to enforce the results" of the December 1 poll, without spelling out what the measures would be. Opposition leader Adama Barrow was declared the winner of the presidential ballot and Jammeh initially conceded defeat, only to reverse his decision a week later, condemning "unacceptable errors" by election authorities and calling for a new vote. The summit in Abuja was attended by 11 heads of state but without the leaders of four members including The Gambia. Earlier, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who is also ECOWAS chairwoman, said Jammeh's reversal "threatened peace", calling on him in a statement on December 10 "do the right thing and take actions to facilitate a smooth and peaceful transition in The Gambia." Gambian security forces seized the country's Independent Electoral Commission earlier this week, drawing international condemnation. Yesterday Johnson-Sirleaf said a prompt resolution of the crisis was essential. "It is now important that the Authority, at this summit, considers recommended measures to bring this matter to successful conclusion before January 19, the constituted date when the mandate of the incumbent president expires," she told the summit. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, the UN top envoy for West Africa, said the global body would support efforts to resolve the election logjam. "The UN remains concerned by some of the worrisome developments that occurred during the post election period in The Gambia," Chambas said after the opening of the summit. These included "in particular, the seizure of the headquarters of the Independent Electoral Commission by the Gambian military," he added. The summit also appointed Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama to mediate in the dispute and report back to the regional grouping On Tuesday, Sirleaf led a heavyweight delegation to The Gambia to seek to broker a deal, meeting both Jammeh and Barrow but Sirleaf announced at the end of the talks there was no deal. The situation has been further complicated by Jammeh's political party filing a legal challenge against the result at the Supreme Court. The African Union, the UN, local and international rights groups have asked Jammeh -- who has been in power for 22 years -- to step down. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray today said the basic purpose of the Centre's demonetisation had been "defeated" as people were dying in bank queues and terrorist attacks were still taking place. "There are jawans who faced the enemy bullets and served the country....But after retirement they are unable to get their own money and it is extremely unfortunate that they are dying with their own bullets now," he said at a function here. "While announcing demonetisation, they (BJP) said it will eliminate the chances of terrorist attacks. But has it happened? Our jawans are dying as before," he said. Lashing out at the Union government over the hardship caused to common man, Shiv Sena chief also questioned the objective behind the decision. BJP MP Subramanian Swamy, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut and other Sena MPs were present on this occasion. Without naming Modi, Uddhav said, "Even if your intention is good, why are you causing agony to people? The Sena chief also took a swipe at Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad over his reported remark that pain caused by demonetisation was like "labour pain" and people will reap joy after it is over. "I want to ask Prasad whether he actually knows what labour pain is. Go and ask that pregnant lady who lost her life while standing in queue," Uddhav, whose party is an ally of BJP, said. Uddhav also challenged the Union ministers to announce their plans to construct the Ram Mandir (at Ayodhya). All Sena legislators and the entire Shiv Sena would stand "like a rock" behind the government in that case, he said. Meanwhile, Subramnaian Swamy, earlier today termed late Sena founder Bal Thackeray as the true face of Hindutva, adding that Uddhav was carrying forward his father's legacy very well. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistan has said it would not accept any modifications or changes in the Indus Waters Treaty after India strongly pitched for bilateral redressal of differences with it while implementing the 56-year-old accord. "Pakistan will not accept any modifications or changes to the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT). Our position is based on the principles enshrined in the treaty. And the treaty must be honoured in...Letter and spirit," Special Assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi told Dawn . His remarks came after India strongly pitched for bilateral redressal of differences with Pakistan while implementing the Indus Waters Treaty. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup had said on Thursday that given the will, there is no reason why the technical design parameters on which Pakistan has raised objections cannot be sorted out by experts from both sides on projects like Kishenganga. India believes that these consultations should be given adequate time, Swarup had said. However, Dawn reported that India's request for more time alarmed Pakistan. "Islamabad argued that India used the same strategy on previous occasions, completing a project during the dispute and then insisting that since the project was already complete, it could not be modified," the report said. The treaty, signed in 1960, gives India control over the three eastern rivers of the Indus basin -- the Beas, Ravi and Sutlej -- while Pakistan has the three western rivers -- the Indus, Chenab and Jhelum. The IWT also sets up a mechanism, the Permanent Indus Commission, which includes a commissioner from each country. The current dispute revolves around the Kishenganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric plants. India is building the plants on the Kishanganga and Chenab rivers, which Pakistan claims violates the IWT. Tensions over the water dispute increased late last month when Prime Minister Narendra Modi threatened to block the flow of waters into Pakistan, the daily said. Both sides had already completed the process proposed in the IWT and approached the World Bank only after the commission declared it "a dispute" as required, experts were quoted as saying. "Dragging it through an already exhausted process will not help," an expert said. "Pakistan was seeking a court of arbitration because only the proposed court had the authority to consider both legal and technical aspects of the dispute. A neutral expert could only consider the technical aspects," the daily said. Pakistan argues that the designs of the two Indian projects violate both legal and technical provisions of the treaty. India, however, has opposed Pakistan's efforts for setting up a court of arbitration. Earlier this week, the World Bank announced pausing of the two separate processes initiated under the IWT to allow the two countries to consider alternative ways to resolve their disagreements. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) (BP) became the second Western oil major to renew a 40-year onshore concession in Abu Dhabi on Saturday after almost two years of negotiations to improve terms to help operate the United Arab Emirates' biggest oilfields. The British oil company signed an agreement with state-run Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) giving it a 10% stake in the Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Petroleum Operations (ADCO), which operates the concession. "BP becomes a 10% shareholder in ADCO," ADNOC said in a statement. ? "The agreement includes BP becoming asset leader for the Bab asset group within the concession." The ADCO concession, including the Bab, Bu Hasa, Shah and Asab fields, has total resources of between 20-30 billion barrels of oil equivalent over the term of the concession.? The fields produce 1.6 million barrels per day (bpd) and are expected to reach 1.8 million bpd from 2017. Total was the first oil major to renew the concession, securing a 10% stake in January last year and putting its peers under pressure to improve terms after ADNOC said the French company made the best offer. Asian and other Western oil firms also bid for stakes after a deal with major oil in the concession first granted in the 1970s expired in January 2014. Total and BP had both held 9.5% equity stakes in the ADCO concession since the 1970s. Shell and Exxon were also partners in the old concession. Since then other Asian energy were granted smaller stakes.? INPEX Corporation of Japan, and GS Energy of South Korea received 5% and 3% stakes respectively. ADNOC said it, "continues to look for partners to take up the remaining 12% stake of the 40% earmarked for foreign partners." As part of the deal, BP said it would issue 392,920,353 of new ordinary shares to be held on behalf of Abu Dhabi's government at a price of 4.47 pounds ($5.58) per ordinary share. This represents approximately 2% of BP's issued share capital, excluding treasury shares. ($1 = 0.8004 pounds) A unit of AG conceded that it misled investors and violated securities laws and will pay more than $40 million to settle charges that it misinformed clients about how it routed orders to anonymous trading platforms known as dark pools, regulators said on Friday. The bank agreed to pay $37 million to settle charges from federal and New York state regulators, and an additional $3.25 million to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Wall Street's self-funded regulator. In settling with both the New York Attorney General and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), also admitted that its marketing materials about how it routed orders to various dark pools were misleading. The problems were due to a computer coding error, according to the documents related to that settlement. FINRA's charges against the bank, meanwhile, revolved around "deficient disclosures" by the bank's own dark pool trading platform itself. The bank settled that matter without admitting or denying any wrongdoing. " is pleased to have resolved these matters," Deutsche spokeswoman Amanda Williams said in a statement. "We believe that all concerns described in the settlements, which do not allege intentional wrongdoing or misconduct, have been remediated." The SEC in recent years has been on the prowl for violations of complex equity market structure rules that are designed to ensure fairness for all investors. Those cases have targeted exchanges, brokers and dark pools for a variety of problems, from misleading investors about their services, to giving some investors an edge by providing them with faster access to trading data. This marks the third joint case filed this year against a big bank by the SEC and New York in connection with dark pools. Barclays and Credit Suisse previously settled charges in connection with misleading investors in dark pools, a type of alternative trading platform that is similar to an exchange, but with less price transparency. But the SEC and New York's case against Deutsche is distinct. Unlike those two prior cases, which involved the banks misleading investors in their own dark pools, Friday's main case against Deutsche Bank centres on problems with its order router known as SuperX+. Order routers are computers that decide where client orders should be sent in order to obtain the best possible execution. The SEC and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman alleged that the bank marketed this router as having a competitive edge because of its "dark pool ranking model," which was able to review multiple dark pool trading venues and determine which one would provide an investor with the best deal. But a coding error that lasted from January 2012 through February 2014 led the bank to use stale data to rank the various dark pools. The stale data caused at least two dark pools not affiliated with Deutsche Bank to receive inflated rankings, and the SEC said millions of orders would have been sent elsewhere by the SuperX+ if the data had been properly updated. "Broker-dealer customers expect to be told if a routing program like Deutsche Bank's does not function properly, relies on stale data, and routes millions of orders contrary to the described methodology," said Robert Cohen, the co-chief of the SEC Enforcement Division's market abuse unit, in a statement. AG has agreed to pay more than $200 million into a fund created to cut diesel pollution, part of its agreement over about 80,000 3.0-liter diesel vehicles that emitted more than the U S legal limit, a person briefed on the settlement told Reuters. The agreement is expected to be announced as early as Monday, and is in addition to $2.7 billion that VW previously agreed to pay to offset emissions from about 475,000 2.0-liter diesel vehicles. On Friday, U S District Judge Charles Breyer, at a hearing that had been delayed for several hours for additional negotiations, said the parties have made "substantial progress and I am optimistic that there will be a resolution." Breyer gave the sides until Monday to report whether they can reach a final agreement on resolving the fate of the 3.0-liter vehicles. A sticking point over a comprehensive deal has been how much VW will agree to offer owners in compensation for getting vehicles repaired or selling them back. Talks among Volkswagen, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and lawyers for the suing owners have gone on for weeks. Reuters reported on November 15 that had reached agreement with U S regulators for a mix of buybacks and fixes for the 80,000 polluting Audi, Porsche and VW 3.0-liter vehicles. The agreement includes a buy-back offer for about 20,000 older Audi and VW SUVs and a software fix for 60,000 newer Porsche, Audi and VW cars and SUVs, the sources said. A separate, more complex fix is expected to be offered for the older vehicles. in June agreed to put $2.7 billion over three years into a trust fund created to cut diesel pollution. The additional $200 million will be added. States can use the money to replace and scrap or retrofit older vehicles with new models equipped with better exhaust cleaning technology. For example, school systems driving buses 10 years old or older could get Volkswagen money to buy new models. Other eligible vehicles include tugboats, ferries, freight switchers, transit buses, medium and heavy duty trucks, airport ground support vehicles and ocean going vessels, according to settlement documents. Older diesel engines emit air pollutants linked to a range of serious health problems including asthma, lung and heart disease, other respiratory ailments, and premature death, the Environmental Protection Agency said. With the $200 million to offset 3.0-liter emissions, Volkswagen has agreed to spend up to $16.7 billion to resolve U.S. diesel emissions cheating allegations. Volkswagen is also expected to face billions in fines as part of a separate potential settlement with the Justice Department to resolve an ongoing criminal investigation and a civil suit alleging civil violations of the Clean Air Act. In June, VW agreed spend up to $10.03 billion and offered to buy back 475,000 2.0-liter vehicles and offer compensation of $5,100 to $10,000 per owner. VW began buying back vehicles last month. The 2.0-liter diesel vehicles have software that allowed them to evade emissions rules in testing and emit up to 40 times the legally allowable emissions in onroad driving. The 3.0-liter vehicles have an undeclared auxiliary emissions system that allowed them to emit up to nine times allowable limits. VW has been barred since late 2015 from selling any U.S. diesels and has not said if it will resume diesel sales. A massive shift in Asian gaming is expected on the heels of Japans parliament giving the green light to casinos this week. For the hospitality sector, the market expectation is that hotels and upscale retail will be major beneficiaries. Over the next year more explicit rules will be rolled out and it is estimated that it will take five years to see the first projects open. In terms of locations, Tokyo, Osaka and Yokohama have been widely named as key locations. No doubt the news will cause concern in other gaming markets in Asia such as Macau and most certainly the large-scale new gaming districts in Metro Manila. What is clear, is that much like the evolution of gaming in the US, which once was a one trick pony starring Las Vegas, these days the widespread casinos across the American landscape have created new micro markets. The key economic reports this week are November New and Existing Home sales. Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas! ----- Monday, Dec 19th ----- ----- Tuesday, Dec 20th----- ----- Wednesday, Dec 21st ----- ----- Thursday, Dec 22nd ----- ----- Friday, Dec 23rd ----- 1:30 PM ET,, At the University of Baltimore 2016 Midyear Commencement, Baltimore, MarylandNo economic releases are scheduled.7:00 AM ET: The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) will release the results for the 10:00 AM:for November from the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The consensus is for 5.53 million SAAR, down from 5.60 million in October.Housing economist Tom Lawler expects the NAR to report sales of 5.60 million SAAR in November, unchanged from October's preliminary pace.During the day: The AIA'sfor November (a leading indicator for commercial real estate).8:30 AM ET: Thereport will be released. The consensus is for 256 thousand initial claims, up from 254 thousand the previous week.8:30 AM:(third estimate). The consensus is that real GDP increased 3.3% annualized in Q3, revised from 3.2% in the second estimate.8:30 AM:for November from the Census Bureau. The consensus is for a 4.0% decrease in durable goods orders.8:30 AM:for November. This is a composite index of other data.9:00 AM:for October 2016. This was originally a GSE only repeat sales, however there is also an expanded index. The consensus is for a 0.5% month-to-month increase for this index.10:00 AM:for November. The consensus is for a 0.3% increase in personal income, and for a 0.3% increase in personal spending. And for the Core PCE price index to increase 0.1%.11:00 AM: thefor December. 10:00 AM ET:for November from the Census Bureau.This graph shows New Home Sales since 1963. The dashed line is the October sales rate.The consensus is for an increase in sales to 580 thousand Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate (SAAR) in November from 563 thousand in October.10:00 AM:(final for December). The consensus is for a reading of 98.0, unchanged from the preliminary reading 98.0. Greens minister Shane Rattenbury called for the implementation of a birds per hectare scale to ensure greater transparency for the consumer. He said the term 'free range' would be hotly debated and a new term for ethical egg farming could come into play as the new standard was established. If you're bait fishing this summer, focus on using the smallest sinker possible for the conditions. Sinkers shouldn't be thought of as 'anchors' to keep your rig on the ocean floor. Sinkers should be used to get your bait into the 'strike zone' and keep it there for as long as possible. Big sinkers are really only for very deep water or very strong currents. "The idea of the architect was that you could walk up the hill and be on top of our representatives in government, and be able to show that this is democracy," he said. Mustafa Abdul Wahid, acting executive president of the National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA), told Daily News Egypt that operators face having their licences revoked in some circumstances. Etisalat, Orange and Vodafone are the three operators that can now provide 4G services in Egypt after a hard-fought negotiation with the NTRA in competition with Telecom Egypt, which has had a licence for some time. The 4G service licence obliges companies to provide good 3G service in the areas where 4G signals may be weak to ensure that all clients have access to decent communication services, Abdul Wahid told the newspaper. He said the list of sanctions contained in the 4G licence agreement includes terms about the quality of service that companies are obliged to provide. They include deterrent penalties for companies if they go below a stipulated quality. He said sanctions also include a fine of up to 25% of the insurance value paid by the company, amounting to 100 million Egyptian pounds ($5.6 million) each time. This fine will be payable if companies delay payment for the service or break any of the contract terms, reported the newspaper. In theory the new licences are for unified services, allowing the three companies to provide fixed services in competition with Telecom Egypt. However, Abdul Wahid told the newspaper that the companies had not yet submitted requests to begin fixed services. Etisalat and Orange each have 10MHz of spectrum for 4G services and Vodafone which has a complex relationship with Telecom Egypt has 5MHz. Not all of the spectrum is immediately available, as NTRA has to evict current users. Millennial Moms Review: 2022 Acura MDX is pretty close to the perfect family car I dont know if perfect is attainable, especially considering weve got the world of options when it comes to modern vehicles. Were spoiled and, as such, we have very specific needs and wants. Driving-wise, the 2022 Acura MDX is one of my favourite ... Our Promise: Welcome to Care2, the world's largest community for good. Here, you'll find over 45 million like-minded people working towards progress, kindness, and lasting impact. Care2 Stands Against: bigots, racists, bullies, science deniers, misogynists, gun lobbyists, xenophobes, the willfully ignorant, animal abusers, frackers, and other mean people. If you find yourself aligning with any of those folks, you can move along, nothing to see here. Care2 Stands With: humanitarians, animal lovers, feminists, rabble-rousers, nature-buffs, creatives, the naturally curious, and people who really love to do the right thing. You are our people. You Care. We Care2. Aspen Insurance Holdings promoted an executive to the newly-created role of Group Chief Operating Officer. Guy Carpenter & Co. appointed a veteran executive to the newly-created role of president, International. Novae Group plc, the specialist listed Lloyds insurer, appointed a new head of cargo. *** Aspen Insurance Holdings named Richard Thornton to the newly-created position of Group Chief Operating Officer. Thornton is set to take on his new role in addition to his responsibilities as group head of strategy. Hell give up his current role, however, as group chief risk officer. Thornton joined Aspen as Group Head of Strategy in March 2014, and was appointed Group Chief Risk Officer the following September. Before joining Aspen, Thornton was a partner at Oliver Wyman, leading the development of its general insurance practice in the United Kingdom and Europe. Aspen plans to appoint a new Group Chief Risk Officer in the coming months. *** Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC appointed James Nash to the newly-created role of president, International, pending regulatory approval. Currently, Nash runs Guy Carpenters Asia Pacific operations. Hell continue reporting to Peter Hearn, Guy Carpenters president and CEO, and relocate to London. Nash joined Guy Carpenter in 1985 and assumed his present position in 2008. Guy Carpenters new International Division will consist of all operations in the Europe, Middle East and Africa, Latin America and Caribbean, and Asia Pacific regions. Nashs successor the Asia Pacific region will be announced in 2017. *** Novae Group plc, the specialist listed Lloyds insurer, appointed Helen Steadman as head of cargo. Steadman was most recently at Mitsui Sumitomo Syndicate, where she was the class underwriter for cargo. Before that, she was a vice president at Marsh Ltd. Steadman has more than a decade of cargo underwriting experience. Steadman will report to Darren Carr, Head of Marine. Sources: Aspen Insurance, Guy Carpenter & Co. Novae Group Lexus has gone through a transformation, from being the subdued alternative to the likes of BMW or Mercedes to a brand with bold styling, and this has paid dividends in its sales. By now, weve got accustomed to its new styling and the spindle grille that features in all new products, such as the IS and GS, but the one that started this revolution has just been released. Four years after stealing the show at the 2012 NAIAS in the form of the LF-LC concept, Lexus has finally rolled out the production version of its luxury coupe, the LC, and handed over the keys to motoring journalists. Now that the embargo is lifted, the first reviews from the press launch are starting to come in. So, apart from its dashing looks, does the LC 500 have what it takes to lure customers away from its (mostly German) competition in the grand touring class? Lets see what this reviewer has to say Video Daimler and BMW are reportedly considering combining their respective car-sharing services in an attempt to compete with Uber. German publication Manager Magazin and reported by Autonews, claims that BMWs service, DriveNow and Daimlers, Car2Go, will operate on a shared platform but are anticipated to retain their individual brand names. It is thought that the car-sharing services could also be joined by BMWs ParkNow and ChargeNow brands alongside Daimlers internet platform Moovel and its tax cab agent Mytaxi. BMW and Daimler have failed to comment on the reports but any possible collaboration could face one significant obstacle. Sixt, a rental car company, owns a 50 per cent stake in BMWs DriveNow car-sharing program and in a statement, ruled out the possibility of DriveNow and Car2Go combining. A combination of DriveNow and Car2Go is out of the question for Sixt. Our cooperation with BMW is going extremely well, the company said. As it stands, Car2Go operates more than 14,000 vehicles globally while DriveNow operates about 5,390 vehicles in Europe. PHOTO GALLERY After teasing us with a series of drag races between their electrified prototype and the Tesla Model X, Bentley Bentayga and Ferrari 488 trio, Faraday Future is now ready to give us a taste of their performance. The venue for these so-called powertrain tests is a testing ground in Irwindale, California, where the FF prototype looked to put the Bentayga, the Model X and the 488 Italian supercar to shame in a straight line. So could it really be that easy? Well, according to Faraday Future VP of propulsion engineering, Peter Savagian, its simple math really. Initially, they went from a 4-second 0-60 mph (96km/h) sprint time to 3.4 seconds, and then to somewhere below 3 seconds which is where you want to be. During the video, youll here that its all down to torque and mass, so if Faraday Future can build a lighter car than the Model X, with more torque being sent to the wheels, mathematically its going to be winning a whole bunch of drag races, even against Ludicrously fast rivals. So yeah, time for you to see just how quickly this thing takes off. VIDEO Although the Ferrari 250 GTO will likely remain the worlds most valuable automobile for decades to come, other members of the 250 family are also extremely valuable, none more so than the 250 GT SWB Berlinetta by Scaglietti. The model enjoyed its world premiere at the Paris Salon in 1959 and replaced the LWB Tour de France in Ferraris line-up. Visually, the GT SWB Berlinetta doesnt look all that different to its predecessor but under the skin, its wheelbase is 200 mm shorter and enabled the model to become one of the most successful racing cars in Ferrari history, claiming 250 class and overall victories. The model in question is chassis number 2639 GT and was built in 1961 as a street version. It was sold new to an owner in Genoa, Italy but shortly after, was exported to the United States where it resided for years in California and Texas. In the 1980s, it returned to Europe but was ultimately acquired by the current seller in 2011 and welcomed back to the U.S. Having undergone a comprehensive restoration, it has one Best of Show at Concorso Italiano and received Patinum Awards at the Ferrari Club of America International and the XXV Cavallino Classic Concours dElegance. RM Sothebys will auction off the model during its Amelia Island event on 10-11 March 2017 and expects it to sell for around $9.5 million. PHOTO GALLERY Opel may have facelifted the Mokka X earlier this year, but they are already working on a second generation. The replacement of the subcompact SUV is due to hit the assembly lines in Eisenach from 2019, as the company has officially announced. Part of Opels strategy of rolling out 29 new models until the turn of the decade, seven out of which will go on sale next year, the Mokka X will also be joined by new generations of the Corsa and Adam. The superminis are scheduled to roll off the production line in Zaragoza, Spain, in the same year as the subcompact SUV. Two other important models that will expand the brands foray into the SUV segment are the Crossland X and Grandland X, which will be launched in 2017. PHOTO GALLERY Auto insurance companies are starting to charge their customers more and the reason, they claim, is all the new tech features their cars are laden with. State Farm, the largest auto insurer in the U.S., for example raised its rates in Illinois by 5.9 percent, effective October 31, something that affects 1 out of 3 drivers in the state. This is the second increase this year, after a 2.7 percent raise in February, and it reflects what they expect to pay in claims. Cars are just getting more expensive to repair, due to the technology, company spokeswoman Missy Dundov told The Chicago Tribune. Weve seen a huge increase in what it costs to pay out our claims. State Farm is not alone in following this policy: Geico also plans to raise its insurance rates by an average of 3.5 percent, while Allstate has already implemented a 6.9 percent increase since June. All blame the latest tech features new cars come equipped with for that. Now were not just replacing a bumper for a fender-bender, were replacing the cameras or the sensors in that bumper, said Allstates Meghan Sporleder. Were seeing newer, more sophisticated models costing much more to repair, especially with some of the more advanced safety features. Both State Farm and Allstate were quick to point out that they are in no way discouraging new car buyers for opting for the latest safety equipment. We absolutely support technology that saves lives and minimizes injuries, said Sporleder, but that comes at an increased cost. Photo Gallery Photo: Swiss Solar Tech Last year's first ever Solar Fare in Penticton attracted almost 600 people to Okanagan College, and this year the event looking to grow younger and larger. Hosted by the First Things First Okanagan Society, the event brought green technology, like electric cars, solar panels and geothermal energy, under one roof alongside panel discussions and guest speakers. Returning in 2017, the event will be held April 21-22 at Penticton High and the Shatford Centre. Organizer Jim Beattie says they made the decision to hold the event at Pen High in an attempt to attract a younger audience than last year. We had a lot of people come that were from 30 up to maybe 75 and 80, but we didnt have many young people, he said, noting the first day will be set aside for the students. The second day will be open to anyone, allowing the public to learn more about green technologies. Another organizer, Brent Voss said that while the older generation may be excited about savings on their power bill, the torch carriers are going to be the youth. Speakers will be addressing classes in the run up to the event on specific topics requested by teachers, such as climate change and green energy. Last year the event was such a success, pre-registration will be available for some events. With a new set of solar panels perched on the roof of Penticton High this year, Beattie says many teachers there are excited about students learning more about the technology. This year's theme is Energy: Our Present, Our Future. Photo: Contributed Breaking new ground for women in Hollywood, Miss Sloane represents a new kind of female lead one in which her sex is absolutely secondary to the role. Jessica Chastain (The Martian) plays titular character Elizabeth Sloane, a highly successful Washington lobbyist with sweeping confidence as she struts through scene after scene, bulldozing anyone who stands in her way. Smart as a whip, obsessive, cold and calculating, Sloane has shunned a life of simple pleasures such as marriage, children or even eating "I'm waiting for the food pill," in favour of winning. As Sloane tells us in the first direct-to-camera moments of the film, "Lobbying is about foresight, anticipating your opponent's moves and devising counter-measures. I was hired to win." Her career moves are calculated and she eschews weakness of any kind, including empathy or compassion for those she works with. Her co-workers are in awe of her ability if just a little afraid of her wrath should they not meet her impossibly high expectations. Her motives are so single-focused, it almost seems disingenuous when she turns down a lucrative contract by the gun lobby to kill a bill promoting background checks. Claiming that even she has a moral compass, she laughs in the client's face, much to the chagrin of her boss, the owner of the firm. When she is approached by a small firm pushing to get the same gun bill passed, she jumps ship and takes half her staff with her. The ones who remain seem relieved they no longer have to work under her tyranny and a few relish the opportunity to beat her at her own game. At the new firm, Sloane brings her militaristic approach and expects the new team to march to her pace or get out of her way. New boss Rodolfo Schmidt (Mark Strong Imitation Game) is wondering if he's taken on more than he can handle, but is willing to let the newcomer do what she was hired to do. In an initial meeting, long time staffer Esme Manucharian (Gugu Mbatha-Raw Free State of Jones) tells Sloane that they can't expect to win, just come closer than they have in the past in the hopes that next time it will go through. Sloane's eyes narrow as she tells her unequivocally that if she doesn't expect to win, she needs to quit. Manucharian is the polar opposite of Sloane as well as the film's moral compass and we know that at some point, these two women are going to butt heads. No powerful protagonist is without a weakness and we soon discover Sloane hires escorts for sex, is addicted to uppers and is unable to sleep at night. She has been burning the candle at both ends and something is bound to break. Directed by John Madden (Shakespeare in Love), the film is gorgeously shot. Hyper-close ups put Sloane under the microscope and a lovely variety of interior and exterior shots bring the story to life. Talented supporting actors such as Sam Waterston and John Lithgow have been well cast in interesting character roles and the film certainly wasn't without a budget. So what went wrong? The problem lies in the script, written by newcomer Jonathan Perera, which is long (a whopping 132 minutes) and as excessively wordy as a David Mamet play. Despite ample opportunity, Sloane never reveals her true motives for anything she does, which leaves her character flat and us unsympathetic to her fate. In addition, several plot "twists" are contrived and predictable and the ending is well, dumb. For a film that portends to be "one step ahead at all times," Miss Sloane is just not as smart as it thinks it is. The result is an entertaining but forgettable foray into the underbelly of Washington politics. I give this film 3 out of 5 hearts. This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet. Photo: Contributed Coast Hotels Hotel owners in Osoyoos are asking the town to lobby the province for changes to the tax code for Airbnb and short term rentals. The Osoyoos Hotel and Motel Association says while the town has been making efforts to fight illegal short term rentals, change from the province is needed to actually make an impact. Currently, residents who offer fewer than four rooms to rent do not have to collect provincial sales tax. The association is asking for government to put an end to that exemption, which they say has created an unclear business environment and made it all but impossible for municipalities to effectively enforce the rules. In their request to council, the group claims a vacancy rate of zero in peak months has lost existing and potential employees due to this chronic rental shortage. The municipalities of Whistler and Sun Peaks have both made similar requests of the province already, stating the move would encourage renters to register their business income and increase compliance with local bylaws. Council will debate sending a letter to the province on the topic at Mondays meeting. Photo: Getty Images One of two planned overdose prevention sites in Kelowna has been scrapped. Earlier this week, Interior Health announced it had partnered with the Living Positive Resource Centre to operate two sites in the city, one at the resource centre on Asher Road in Rutland, the other in the former Kelowna Health Unit building downtown on Ellis Street. Now, Interior Health has announced the site in Rutland will not be opening. In a news release issued late Friday afternoon, IH said after working through the process, it became apparent they would not be able to offer the service at that location. Interior Health said it is looking at other options for an overdose prevention site in Rutland. The downtown site opened at noon Friday. It will begin regular operating hours next week, Tuesday to Saturday from noon to 7:30 p.m. The site is different than a supervised consumption site in that it will not be supervised. The area will be staffed, but staff will not be watching anybody. However, staff will be there to assist with Naloxone and breathing assistance if it is needed. What if Trump nominated... let's say... Pam Geller to be ambassador to Israel? Who would stop Miss McConnell from ramming her through the confirmation process? Don't ask me why Trump passed over Geller, but he seems to have found some just as loathsome, No, not Ann Coulter. We don;'t know what Trump has in mind for her. But some crony of his, David Friedman, a lawyer who counseled him on how to cheat stakeholders in his myiad bankruptcy cases was just named ambassador to Israel. I'm sure Sheldon and Miriam Adelson are wagging their tails. Right after the election, the reported that Hillary Clinton had won a landslide victory-- among American Jews. "With 68% of Jews voting Clinton and 28% voting Trump, the results were comparable to those four years ago, when 68% voted for President Barack Obama against 31% for Mitt Romney." When I was growing up in Brooklyn, everyone was Jewish in my neighborhood and everyone was a Democrat. There were rumors that there were some rich Jews not far away who were Republicans and who supported the U.S. War against Vietnam. I never met any. Apparently The Donald did. He's nominating an unhinged Jewish crackpot and far right fanatic, David Friedman, to be the American ambassador to Israel. He's further right than Netanyahu and some say-- though not I-- that he might have some trouble being confirmed by the Senate. Matthew Rosenberg, writing for theyesterday described the odious Friedman as "a campaign adviser who has questioned the need for a two-state solution and has likened left-leaning Jews in America to the Jews who aided the Nazis in the Holocaust." Friedman, who has no diplomatic experience, has instead a first goal-- moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem instead of Tel Aviv. was even harsher-- and more realistic-- towards Friedman, who they reminded their readers is all for more settlements on Palestinian land and fervent in his opposition to a two-state solution and who called President Obama an anti-Semite. I wonder how many Senate Democrats are going to vote to confirm this bloodthirsty warmonger. If the Adelsons were asked tp create their ideal ambassador in a lab they probably wouldn't have come up with someone as extreme as Friedman! He said he was looking forward to taking up his post in the US embassy in Israels eternal capital, Jerusalem, indicating Trumps determination to overturn years of US policy and move the embassy from Tel Aviv. The change would be a potentially explosive gesture in the Middle East, as the status of Jerusalem is one of the issues in the long-stalled Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. Also controversial is Friedmans presidency of the American Friends of Bet El Institutions, an organisation that supports a large illegal West Bank settlement just outside Ramallah. His links with Bet El, along with recent revelations that the family charity of Jared Kushner, Trumps son-in-law, gave money to one of the West Banks most hard-line ideological settlements, suggests the settler movement will have an unprecedented number of advocates in the heart of Washington. Announcing the appointment in a statement, Trump said: [Friedman] has been a long-time friend and trusted adviser to me. His strong relationships in Israel will form the foundation of his diplomatic mission and be a tremendous asset to our country as we strengthen the ties with our allies and strive for peace in the Middle East. The announcement appears to have caught Israeli analysts by surprise. The Haaretz columnist Chemi Shalev said Friedman made Israels rightwing prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, seem like a leftwing defeatist. From where Friedman stands, he said, most Israelis, never mind most American Jews, are more or less traitors. Friedman disagrees with the general international consensus that the settlements are illegal and he opposes a ban on settlement construction on the West Bank and in East Jerusalem. He wrote in the Jerusalem Post during the US election campaign that Israel would feel no pressure under a Trump administration. America and Israel will enjoy unprecedented military and strategic cooperation, and there will be no daylight between the two countries, he said. In a column for the Israel National News website, he compared the liberal Jewish US lobby group J Street to concentration camp prisoner-guards and described its supporters as smug advocates of Israels destruction delivered from the comfort of their secure American sofas-- its hard to imagine anyone worse. He went further at the Saban forum earlier this month, saying J Streets supporters were not Jewish, and theyre not pro-Israel. The J Street president, Jeremy Ben Ami, said in a statement on Thursday: J Street is vehemently opposed to the nomination of David Friedman. This nomination is reckless, putting Americas reputation in the region and credibility around the world at risk. The National Jewish Democratic Council tweeted: Trump must stand for a strong US-Israel relationship and take it seriously. [There] hasnt ever been a less experienced pick for US ambassador to Israel. Lara Friedman, of Americans for Peace Now, tweeted: I dont know about the Palestinians, but I know Jews who truly care about Israels security, democracy & place in the world are outraged. Like Trump, Friedman is an admirer of Vladimir Putin, and has portrayed the Russian president as fighting Islamic State in Syria despite little of the Russian war effort being focused on Isis. Vladimir Putin gets it, Friedman wrote in November last year. He may be a thug, as he was recently described by Senator [Marco] Rubio, but he knows how to identify a national objective, execute a military plan, and ultimately prevail. It may protect the past but the Greater Vernon Museum & Archives is looking to the future. 2017 is expected to be a year of strategic planning for the board of directors and staff. It is hoped a new purpose-built cultural facility that would be shared with the Vernon Public Art Gallery is on the horizon. As well, the creation of the Greater Vernon Museum & Archives Society last September will enable the society to actively fundraise for a new facility. We're really bursting at the seams right now, said museum curator Tracy Satin. In fact, I often say there's not even room for a button in here. We have to be strategic in what we are collecting and in evaluating the collections. Most definitely in a new building we're going to need lots of storage but we really want to have most of that area for display and telling the stories of the community. Satin said the museum doesn't have room for a whole exhibition on the Ukranian internment during the First World War or another on Vernon's Chinatown. Both are stored at an off-site facility. It would be great to get them back within our walls. The museum already has a number of small displays in public facilities around Greater Vernon and there are plans for more. Look for new travelling exhibits, new programs such as the Vernon Museums field school and kids series, and for us out participating in a number of community events, stated a museum press release. Photo: Contributed A long called for amenity in Osoyoos may be getting another look in 2017. The towns draft 2017 budget has earmarked $30,000 for a feasibility study into an aquatic centre. A report to council indicates Osoyoos completed a similar study in 2008, but much has changed since then. Following the narrowly avoided closure of Osoyoos Secondary, local discussion focused on making the town more attractive to families thinking about moving to the area. The correctional centre will forever be an employer in the area so something may need to be done to overcome the draw of Oliver with its hospital and new high school, the report reads. It goes on to state there is a sense of local optimism stemming from growth in real estate and the Baldy Mountain investor's interest in the community. With a new round of federal infrastructure grants on the horizon for 2017/18, the time may be right to make sure the project is shovel ready. If there is need for a borrowing referendum, it can coincide with the 2018 elections. The similarly sized District of Vanderhoof recently won federal grant money to build a pool. The public there also voted to borrow $4M for the project. If approved, the feasibility study would be complete in the fall of 2017. Photo: Contributed Volunteers at Enderby Food Bank. You can expect Santa and Mrs. Claus to ride along with Enderby firefighters on their journey through town on Sunday. The fire department is holding its annual Santa Truck Food Bank Drive and will be up and down city streets to collect funds and food donations. Cash donations go a lot further than food donations, said Scott Hemenway, chairman of the local food bank. Every dollar you give to the food bank we can get three times as much for that as what you buy. The need has never been greater in Enderby with 165 Christmas food hampers handed out to families Thursday and Friday, reaching about 400 people. As well, parents were able to pick out a toy for each child. This community is incredibly generous. We are very, very grateful. The volunteers as well have been unreal. I think well over 1,000 hours have been put in over the last three days. Although Enderby realtors held a recent food drive, Hemenway said almost every item was used for the hampers and the fire department's food drive will fill the shelves again. Photo: Google Maps A suspect has been ordered to stand trial in B.C. Supreme Court on a host of charges connected to a fatal shooting in the small Shuswap community of Celista earlier this year. Richard Allen Williams, 60, was arrested by the RCMP on Feb. 11. Chase RCMP had responded to the incident on Feb. 7, finding three injured adult males at the scene two of whom had suffered serious gunshot wounds while a third man was treated for a minor gunshot wound and released. However one of the victims later died of his injuries in hospital. Williams is charged with attempted murder with a firearm, discharging a firearm with intent to wound or maim, assault with a weapon, aggravated assault, break and enter and disguising face with intent to commit offence. He was expected to appear for a preliminary inquiry in a Kamloops courtroom this week but is heading straight to trial, court records show. Photo: Google Maps A man used a knife to fight with police in Kamloops Friday night. Just after midnight, police received a report of a man walking in the Tranquille Road area in a t-shirt, waving his arms erratically. Police found the man at Tranquille Road and Clapperton Avenue and observed he was under the influence of some type of drug. The man became uncooperative with police and brandished a knife while fighting off the officers. A police dog, along with several other officers, were used to arrest the man. The man faces charges of resisting arrest and possession of a weapon and remains in custody. Photo: Google Maps Police arrested a drunk driver who crashed into several parked cars and left the scene Friday night. At 7:45 p.m., the RCMP received a report of a man who had driven into several parked cars on the 100 block of Seymour Street. Police began searching for the driver and found him a short time later, driving near the Halston Connector area. The 30-year-old man was arrested for impaired driving and failing to remain at the scene of an accident. The man has been released from custody, but is awaiting a future court date. Photo: Sue Reuzi A car ended up in the ditch off the side of Highway 97 Saturday morning, after crashing near Summerland. One lane of the highway in the southbound direction was closed as crews worked to remove the white sedan. The cause of the crash or the condition of any of the people involved is unknown at this time. The Nevada Association of Realtors honored its leading members at an awards event recently in Las Vegas naming longtime industry leader David R. Tina as its 2016 Nevada Realtor of the Year and recognizing others from around the state for their continued service to their association, their profession and their communities. Tina, a longtime Las Vegas Realtor, served as NVARs 2016 president after being president-elect in 2015. He is also a past president of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors and has volunteered on numerous NVAR and GLVAR committees. He is the owner and broker of Urban Nest Realty in Las Vegas. At its annual awards event Dec. 8 in Las Vegas, NVAR also presented awards to the following longtime members: Paul Bottari Realtor Active in Politics Award for government affairs advocacy and activities. Bottari, of Wells was honored for playing a leading role in NVARs initiatives supporting private property rights and other causes that are vital to the industry. Bottari has been a Realtor for more than 30 years and has served on NVAR committees since 1994. Leroy Buck Schaeffel Nevada Distinguished Realtor Award for ongoing and consistent service to NVAR and the real estate profession. Schaeffel, of Mesquite, is a longtime Southern Nevada Realtor who has served on the GLVAR Board of Directors and volunteered to serve on several NVAR and GLVAR committees. He was elected to serve as NVARs treasurer for 2017. Diane Brown Joe Nolan Award recognizing spirit, passion and professionalism in serving fellow Realtors in Nevada. Brown, of Incline Village, is a longtime Northern Nevada Realtor who has served on numerous local and state association committees over the years. She currently serves as a state director representing Nevada for the National Association of Realtors. Heidi Kasama Realtor Achievement Award for outstanding service to local and state associations, as chosen by NVARs president. Kasama, of Las Vegas, is a past president of GLVAR who has served in other leadership positions with the state and local associations. She will serve as NVARs president-elect for 2017 and will be its president in 2018. 125 YEARS AGO December 12, 1891: William Smiley of Deeth, took four carloads of beef steers to San Francisco last week. Lieutenant-Governor Poujade arrived from the west Monday and went to Tuscarora for the purpose of inspecting the Tuscarora Guards. The Trustees of Elko school district, at their last meeting, re-elected the present teachers to preside over the respective departments for the ensuing term. The bridge contractors were given twenty days additional time in which to complete the Hot Springs bridge. They stated that there was some delay in completing the iron work of the bridge. 100 YEARS AGO December 11, 1916: Last week was a red letter day for Tax Collector Miller, who took in the sum of $77,621.39 from Monday until Saturday. All taxes must be paid before Wednesday evening at six oclock, and this morning when the force went to work in the treasurers office there were 600 who had yet to see the collector. The board of education is meeting today in the commissioners room in the court house, and are interviewing the several architects who are desirous of superintending the erection of the Elko high school building. There were eight of them and the decision will not be made possibly before tomorrow. As to the site, the board has not yet come to a decision. December 13, 1916: Lamoille Valley, 20 miles to the south of town, is being swept by an epidemic of mumps. This disease is no respecter of persons, attacking both the young and old, and in many cases the patients are seriously ill. Dr. Rand, who is located at Lamoille, was taken sick with the disease a short time ago, and when the people were deprived of his services, the epidemic took a sudden jump. It is spreading to Pleasant Valley, and to be in style in that section of the county you must have a fat face. 75 YEARS AGO December 11, 1941: U.S. DECLARES WAR ON NAZIS, ITALY. President Roosevelt signed both the house and senate resolutions this afternoon declaring that a state of war exists between the United States and Germany and Italy. The house unanimously passed the bill to allow soldiers to fight anywhere. All coastlines were on the alert today and troops were on the move. President Roosevelt said, The long-known and long-expected has taken place. The forces endeavoring to enslave the entire world are now moving toward this hemisphere. Never before has there been a greater challenge to life, liberty and civilization. Delay invites greater danger. I therefore request the congress to recognize a state of war between the United States and Germany and between the United States and Italy. Elko experienced its first blackout last night. In the words of George Greathouse, air raid warden, the test was only partially successful because the signal was a fizzle. However, he expressed the opinion that the cooperation of the city was 200 percent. Steps are being taken to secure a signal which can be heard throughout the entire city. Another alarm will be sounded shortly, which will not be advertised. The purpose of this blackout will be to determine whether or not the new signal is effective December 13, 1941: In view of the action of the Japanese, German and Italian governments in declaring that a state of war exists with the government of the United States, Postmaster Mary C. McNamara of Elko has received instructions from Washington, directing that all visitors be excluded from the federal building and that heads of all departments in the building furnish their employees with suitable identification so that they may be easily recognized by the custodial force and watchmen. In view of the fact that large numbers are expected to be in the post office building during the holiday season, it is requested that business be transacted as promptly as possible and that groups do not congregate in the lobby. 50 YEARS AGO December 13, 1966: Nearly a foot of snow and a Friday morning temperature of 10 degrees below zero, slowed to a near stand-still construction on the Deeth Freeway segment of Interstate Highway 80, 15 miles west of Wells. Construction of the 9.6 miles, termed the costliest most complicated project in the State Highway Departments 47 year history, is approximately 70 percent complete, according to Harold Rasmussen, resident state highway engineer. Steel girders are now in place for two of Nevadas longest highway bridges, 820 feet each, to span the Humboldt River and Southern and Western Pacific main-line railroad tracks. December 14, 1966: White & Alter Construction Co of Elko submitted the low bid for the Northside and Southside school additions and was awarded the contract at the meeting of the Elko County School Board last night. The contract calls for 10 additional classrooms at the Southside school plus 10 classrooms and additional office space at Northside. Supt. Bob Zander noted that the contract For Northside calls for rest rooms for teachers at the school, which are not now available. The building of the 20 new classrooms will eliminate the half-day sessions currently prominent in the Elko elementary schools. December 17, 1966: Two northern Nevada ranches have been joined together to create one of the largest holdings of deeded lands in the state (130,000 acres) with the purchase of the Hadley Ranch north of Carlin, by neighbor, the McKinley Cattle Co. of Elko. Combination of the two ranches creates a cattle empire in control of some 200,000 acres of land stretching along U.S. Highway 40 and the Humboldt River between Elko and Carlin running 30 miles northward. 25 YEARS AGO December 14, 1991: Jacques G. Errecart has passed his architectural registration examination and is now a licensed Nevada architect. Errecart, 27, passed the examination on his first appearance, the only candidate in a field of 71 to do so. He is among 12 candidates to pass the test in 1991. Shawn Hall recently joined Northeastern Nevada Museum as assistant director, announced Museum Director Howard Hickson. Halls new position will include management of the archives, research library, collections and building operations. Hall came to Elko from the Nevada State Museum in Carson City, where he served as assistant curator of history. December 16, 1991: Local contractors are donating time and equipment to improve the road to the SnoBowl, located in the Adobe Range north of town. SnoBowl spokesman Charles Chester said the group wasnt able to build a new road to the site for this season, so it settled on making the old road passable hauling in gravel, installing culverts and grading some sections. Canyon Construction and Ruby Dome Construction have lent equipment and operators to the effort, the City of Elko donated some culverts, BriCo, Inc. has offered fuel for the equipment and Dean Stitzel has volunteered the use of his gravel pit. Chester said the road work should be done this week and the Elko Ski Club then can bring in the rope tow it has used in the past on Adobe Summit. RENO The Winnemucca Mining Industry Foundation has been honored by the Nevada Association of School Boards for increasing funding opportunities for Nevada students. Barrick Gold Corp. is a major contributor to the foundation. The Organizational Friend of Public Education award, presented by the NASB on Saturday, Nov. 19, recognizes the invaluable service provided to Nevadas children by the foundation who advocates on behalf of K-12 public education. Our communities and our industry will only benefit from encouraging students to continue their education, said Nigel Bain president, Winnemucca Mining Foundation and trustee representing Barrick. These students are the future innovators who will improve and advance the mining industry. The Mining Industry Foundation was formed in 1992 by several Winnemucca mine operators and supporting businesses with the goal of encouraging Lowry High School graduates in Winnemucca, Nev. to pursue higher education. Since its inception, the foundation has continued to raise money benefitting student and teacher activities, campus tours and scholarships. The foundation was nominated for the award by the Humboldt County School Board. Over the past 10 years, Barrick has donated $52,000 to the foundation. Employees at Barricks Turquoise Ridge Joint Venture also regularly volunteer, mentoring students and hosting mine tours for those wishing to learn more about the professional careers offered in mining. For more information visit nvasb.org/assets/2016_press_release.pdf. The Elko Daily Free Press is counting down the days until marijuana is legal in Nevada by answering questions concerning the law and the drug. Q: Who will be regulating marijuana sales, and how? Question 2 mandated that the Department of Taxation would be responsible for establishing licensing qualifications and procedures and regulating retailers, distributors and growers. Stephanie Cladstein of the Nevada Department of Taxation told the Free Press that the model is already there and it is just a matter of getting the regulations adopted and setting standards. The department has been looking at program models in states that have already legalized the substance for non-medical use. They are currently working on writing temporary regulations. A task force has been set up by the governor to deal with the new law. Cladstein said the agency would be holding public workshops during the first quarter of 2017. The forums will be held in Carson City and Las Vegas and a phone number will be provided for others in the state to call in with questions and suggestions. This will help the state set up a temporary model for regulating the substance. The provision gives the Department of Taxation one full year to have the regulations in place and accept applications. According to a document titled Retail Marijuana on the departments website, the agency is limited in issuing the number of licenses according to population. The limits are: Up to 80 stores in counties with a population of more than 700,000. Up to 20 stores in counties with a population between 100,000 and 700,000. Up to 4 stores in counties with a population between 55,000 and 100,000. Up to 2 stores in counties with a population of fewer than 55,000. Marijuana growing facilities will be expected to pay a 15 percent tax on wholesale sales of marijuana. Tax for retail purchases will be according to state and local sales tax rates. Retailers will collect the necessary taxes and pay them to the state. 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. ELKO A partnership between Citys Redevelopment Agency and a private business has resulted in the demolition of a building in ill repair. According to Denise Bradshaw, the building that she owned was torn down because it was dangerous and produced little tax income growth, a portion of which funds the RDA. Bradshaw said she and engineer Mike Lostra originally approached the City and RDA with an idea for utilizing partial funding from RDA resources for the demolition of the building. Part of RDAs mission is to rid the downtown area of blight and dilapidated buildings, slowly improving the overall look of that part of the city. There is no risk to the city or agency for funding this project on the back end, said City Planner Cathy Laughlin. This is exactly what redevelopment calls for. During a public meeting with the Redevelopment Advisory Council, the advisory board of RDA, the majority of the board voted to help finance the project so that new construction could begin. At the time, board member Catherine Wines and Mayor Chris Johnson were not in agreement with the consensus because of the projects eligibility for funding and the precedent it would set for other businesses. The vacant building housed a number of small businesses over the years. Bradshaw intends to build a law office on the cleared property in which to house her own business and other offices. Her current office is located at 603 Pine St. The cost to RDA in assisting with the toppling of the old structure amounts to less than 5 percent of the entire project. She said what the city will get back in the long run in tax increment growth will be worth it. Over the last eight years Laughlin estimated that there has been a 90 percent tax growth increase in the community due to the removal of old, depreciated buildings and the erection of new businesses such as Marshalls, The Maverik and others. Bradshaw has lived in Elko since 1995. She calls this her home. After finishing a bachelors program through Great Basin College she went to law school and returned to practice in 2007. She has owned her own law office since 2013. This community has been good to me, Bradshaw said. Regarding the criticism directed by the mayor and Wines, Bradshaw said she respects their opinions. Its official homeless people are bad for business. Even the folks at Elkos premier homeless advocacy group say so. The plan to move Elkos temporary homeless campsite to a permanent location next to the FISH (Friends in Service Helping) Thrift Store took a surprise turn this week when the Elko City Council changed course and decided to start looking for other options. The City had put considerable time and effort into preparing to move the camp, even budgeting for the quarter-million dollars it would take to purchase the land. The councils decision followed a change of course from FISH, which wrote the City a letter outlining the problems that having homeless people next to a cash-generating business would pose. Homeless people steal things and drive away good customers, the group explained. Actually, the decision to keep the homeless at arms length isnt a big shift for FISH, whose original mission wasnt about giving them a hand-out, it was about giving them a hand-out-of-town. The concept was sold to city leaders as a plan to give immediate, temporary travel aid to transients in trouble and act as a referral and information office for all other social service agencies in the community, according to Free Press files. Handing out gas vouchers was seen as a way to reduce panhandling. The groups mission has expanded considerably over the years, of course, along with the homeless population. Theres nothing unique about Elkos situation. Our neighbors in Salt Lake City are having a similar uproar over the homeless and their impact on businesses and communities. The difference is that the SLC mayor and city leaders are shoving a new plan down the throat of multiple communities without even notifying affected property owners. Here in Elko the city government has openly discussed its efforts in dealing with the various advocacy groups. The problem now is deciding what Elko can do next. I think weve exhausted all of our available land that the City has, Councilman John Patrick Rice said at this weeks council meeting, explaining that the current location off Hot Springs Road was considered the best spot of any owned by the City. If another property isnt found, the only option will be to extend the use of the temporary camp site, possibly even converting it into a permanent site. The City of Elko is stuck between a rock and a hard place, Rice said. I want to assure everyone and Im sure this council cares very much about the welfare of the homeless population in our community. And were doing everything we can with the resources we have available to us, to manage this. Rice considers the homeless situation to be larger than what the City alone can handle, and he called for advocacy groups to contact county officials and state lawmakers in the search for better solutions. Im not interested in making a campground a permanent strategy for managing our homeless population, he said. We agree with Rice that the current location of the humanitarian camp is not ideal. But a camp site must be maintained if the City wants to continue its policy of not allowing people to pitch their tents anywhere they want including along the Humboldt River. We hope a better permanent site can be found soon, but we cant help being skeptical when even the homeless advocates dont want the homeless in their own backyard. Editor: In Washington D.C. (aka The Swamp), there has been a cavalcade of shady deals and even shadier characters, putting money and power ahead of principle. Failure to investigate and prosecute the Clinton corruption chronicles would be a crime against justice and only guarantees that political corruption would multiply. Does Congress have the backbone for it? They dont like passing judgment on their own. Adherence to our Constitution and the rule of law is last on their list. We are manipulated by corrupted language; the meaning of commonly used words is changed to control the people who use them. A few political weaponized-doublespeak: Islamophobia, homeless, climate, hate speech, multicultural, comprehensive immigration reform, undocumented, gender, identity, reproductive rights, white privilege, diversity and tolerance, and the list goes on and on. Stop creating revolutionary emotionalism! Congress has permitted large numbers of less-educated people to move here from abroad and across our southern border to the detriment of our economy, workforce, and environment at huge and ongoing costs to the taxpayer. A change to our welfare program(s) is an absolute necessity. Made up of national and international bankers, The Federal Reserve created in 1913 by Woodrow Wilson, is unconstitutional and illegal. Article l, Sec. 8 of our Constitution states that only Congress has the power to issue, print currency and determine its value, but our nation has tolerated this illegal bank for over a hundred years. It is neither Federal nor does it have any reserves. Many invisible owners of the Fed are global elites who want a one-world government. The Democrats really betrayed this country by blocking an audit of the Federal Reserve Bank earlier this year. Congress lacks statesmen, defenders of liberty and our sovereignty; they manipulate our freedoms by threats of lawsuits and withholding of federal funds, by issuing regulations, directives, and often memos. Sometimes their evolution" or "revelation" on issues coincides with adjusting the truth to get elected again. Just because the political winds have shifted, we cannot relax and hope that all will be OK. We have to be continual watchdogs and keep barking at their door. (1-800-833-6354) Thelma Homer Elko A person stands near the Apple logo at the company's store in Grand Central Terminal, in New York. The European Union's crackdown on corporate tax avoidance has landed on Apple with its demand that the U.S. tech giant pay Ireland up to 13 billion euros ($14.5 billion) plus interest in back taxes. (Mark Lennihan / AP) "The Maxforce" is the European Union team that ordered Ireland to collect billions of euros in back taxes from Apple Inc., rattled the Irish government, and spurred changes to international tax law. You'd think it might have earned the name by applying maximum force while investigating alleged financial shenanigans. It didn't. It's just led by a guy named Max. A European Commission official gave the nickname to the Task Force on Tax Planning Practices in honor of its chief, Max Lienemeyer, a lanky, laid-back German attorney who rose to prominence vetting plans to shore up struggling banks during Europe's debt crisis. Since its launch in 2013, the Maxforce has looked at the tax status of hundreds of companies across Europe, including a deal Starbucks had in the Netherlands, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles's agreement with Luxembourg, and its largest case Apple in Ireland. Advertisement Lienemeyer's team of 15 international civil servants pursued a three-year investigation stretching from the corridors of the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, to Ireland's Finance Ministry and on to Apple's leafy headquarters in Cupertino, California. Much of it outlined for the first time here, this story chronicles a growing clash between Europe and the U.S. and a shift in the EU's approach to the tax affairs of multinationals. The Maxforce concluded that Ireland allowed Apple to create stateless entities that effectively let it decide how much or how little tax it pays. The investigators say the company channeled profits from dozens of countries through two Ireland-based units. In a system at least tacitly endorsed by Irish authorities, earnings were split, with the vast majority attributed to a "head office" with no employees and no specific home base and therefore liable to no tax on any profits from sales outside Ireland. The U.S., meanwhile, didn't tax the units because they're incorporated in Ireland. Advertisement In August the EU said Ireland had broken European law by giving Apple a sweetheart deal. It ordered the country to bill the iPhone maker a record 13 billion euros ($13.9 billion) in back taxes, plus interest, from 2003 to 2014. One example the Commission cites: In 2011, a unit called Apple Sales International recorded profits of about 16 billion euros from sales outside the U.S. But only 50 million euros were considered taxable in Ireland, leaving 15.95 billion euros of profit untaxed, the Commission says. Though the EU says its goal is "to ensure equal treatment of companies" across Europe, Apple maintains that the Commission selectively targeted the company. With the ruling, the EU is "retroactively changing the rules and choosing to disregard decades of Irish law," and its investigators don't understand the differences between European and U.S. tax systems, Apple said in a Dec. 8 statement. Apple, which has some 6,000 workers in Ireland, says its Irish units paid the parent company a licensing fee to use the intellectual property in its products. The Irish companies didn't own the IP, so they don't owe tax on it in Ireland, Apple says, but the units will face a U.S. tax bill when they repatriate the profits. "This case has never been about how much tax Apple pays, it's about where our tax is paid," the company said. "We pay tax on everything we earn." Ireland on Nov. 9 appealed the Commission's ruling at the EU General Court in Luxembourg, arguing it has given Apple no special treatment. Irish Finance Minister Michael Noonan has said he "profoundly disagrees" with the ruling and that Ireland strictly adheres to tax regulations. The government says Ireland has no right to tax non-resident companies for profits that come from activities outside the country. "Look at the small print" on an iPhone, Noonan said after the EU released its ruling in August. "It says designed in California, manufactured in China. That means any profits that accrued didn't accrue in Ireland, so I can't see why the tax liability is in Ireland." In the coming weeks, the EU is expected to publish details of the Maxforce investigation. At about the same time, Apple will likely lodge its own appeal in the EU court. Though Apple will have to pay its tax bill within weeks, the money will be held in escrow, and the issue will probably take years to be resolved. This story is based on interviews with dozens of officials from the EU, Ireland, and Apple, though most didn't want to speak on the record discussing sensitive tax matters. A Maxforce representative declined to make Lienemeyer available for an interview. Ireland's Office of Revenue Commissioners (the equivalent of the American Internal Revenue Service) says it can't comment on specific companies. Advertisement Lienemeyer began assembling the Maxforce in late spring of 2013 with a mandate of scrutinizing tax policies across Europe in search of any favoritism. Direct subsidies or tax breaks to court a specific company are illegal in the EU to prevent governments aiding national champions. His first hire the person who would oversee the Apple probe was Helena Malikova, a Slovak who had worked at Credit Suisse Group in Zurich. He quickly added Kamila Kaukiel, a Polish financial analyst who had been at KPMG, and Saskia Hendriks, a former tax policy adviser to the Dutch government. As the four initial members began their investigations, they got a head start from a U.S. Senate probe of the tax strategies of American multinationals. The Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations said Apple shifted tens of billions of dollars in profit into stateless affiliates based in Ireland, where it secured a tax rate of less than 2 percent. At 9:30 a.m. on May 21, 2013, senators gathered in Room 106 of the Dirksen Office Building. Included in the evidence presented that day was a 2004 letter from Tom Connor, an official at Ireland's tax authority, to Ernst & Young, Apple's tax adviser. Connor's question: A unit of the tech company hadn't filed a tax return; Was it still in business? E&Y responded two days later that the division was a non-resident holding company with no real sales. "There is nothing to return from the corporation tax standpoint," E&Y wrote. The Senate exhibits didn't include Connor's response if there ever was one. At the hearing, Arizona Republican John McCain castigated Apple as "one of the biggest tax avoiders in America." Democrat Carl Levin of Michigan peered over the glasses perched on the tip of his nose and said Apple uses "offshore tax strategies whose purpose is tax avoidance, pure and simple." Crucially, though, Levin told the crowded room that under U.S. law, there was little the panel could do to force Apple to pay more tax. Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook passionately defended the company's actions, telling the senators "We don't depend on tax gimmicks." The Senate revelations raised eyebrows at the Maxforce's office in Madou Tower, a 1960s high-rise in the rundown Saint-Josse neighborhood of Brussels. Three weeks after the Senate hearing, Lienemeyer's team asked Ireland for details of Apple's tax situation. The Irish tax authorities soon dispatched a representative carrying a briefcase filled with a bundle of bound pages. The Irish could have simply sent the material via e-mail, but they were cautious about sharing taxpayer's information with the EU and have a ground rule to avoid leaks: never send such documents electronically. Advertisement Michael Noonan, Ireland's finance minister, following a Bloomberg Television interview in Dublin, Ireland, on Aug. 30, 2016. (Aidan Crawley / Bloomberg) While the Irish government remained bullish in its public statements, saying Apple hadn't received any favors, behind the scenes tensions were rising. Through the summer of 2013, the Finance Ministry assured government ministers that the EU investigation would amount to nothing, according to people familiar with the discussions. But those assertions seemed less confident than earlier communications. There was a sense that Apple had worked out its Irish tax position in a vastly different era, and no one remembered many details of the negotiations decades earlier. In 1980, the four-year-old company the Apple III desktop had just been released created several Irish affiliates, each with a different function such as manufacturing or sales, according to the Senate report. Under Irish laws dating to the 1950s designed to shore up the moribund post-war economy, as a so-called export company Apple paid no taxes on overseas sales of products made in Ireland. To comply with European rules, Ireland finally ended its zero-tax policy in 1990. After that, Apple and Ireland agreed that the profit attributed to a key Ireland-based unit, the division discussed in Tom Connor's letter, be capped using a complex formula that in 1990 would have resulted in a taxable profit of $30 million to $40 million. An Apple tax adviser "confessed there was no scientific basis" for those figures, but that the amounts would be "of such magnitude that he hoped it would be seen as a bona-fide proposal," according to notes from a 1990 meeting with the Irish tax authority cited by the EU. The equation didn't change even as Apple began assembling the bulk of its products in Asia. Ireland and Apple started to make changes a few months after the Maxforce began looking into their tax relationship. In October 2013, Finance Minister Noonan announced he would close the loophole that let stateless holding companies operate out of Ireland. The EU says Apple changed the structure of its Irish units in 2015. As the Maxforce stepped up its probe in June 2014, Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny was wooing potential investors in California. At a San Francisco event to promote Irish entrepreneurs, Governor Jerry Brown quipped that he had thought Apple "was a California company," but according to tax returns, "they're really an Irish company." News clips show Irish officials looking on stony-faced as the governor makes his jest. Advertisement With Lienemeyer's team digging further into the issue, Apple's concern deepened. In January 2016, CEO Cook met with Margrethe Vestager, the EU competition chief and Lienemeyer's ultimate boss on the 10th-floor of the Berlaymont building, the institutional headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels. Vestager, a daughter of two Lutheran pastors, has a reputation for being even-handed but tough, cutting unemployment benefits while advocating strict new rules for banks when she served as Denmark's finance minister. While she has acknowledged that her team had little experience with tax rulings in a November interview with France's Society magazine, she said, "We learned on the job" Vestager says enforcement of EU rules on taxation is a matter of "fairness." In the meeting with Cook she quizzed him on the tax Apple paid in various jurisdictions worldwide. She told the Apple executives that "someone has to tax you," according to a person present at the meeting. In a Jan. 25 follow-up letter obtained by Bloomberg, Cook thanked Vestager for a "candid and constructive exchange of views," and reasserted that Apple's earnings are "subject to deferred taxation in the U.S. until those profits are repatriated." Subsequent correspondence became more heated. On March 14, Cook wrote to Vestager that he had "concerns about the fairness of these proceedings." The Commission had failed to explain fully the basis on which Apple was being investigated, and the body's approach was characterized by "inconsistency and ambiguity," Cook said. Margrethe Vestager, the competition commissioner of the European Commission, at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, on Sept. 14, 2016. (Jasper Juinen / Bloomberg) Apple contended that the EU had backtracked on a 2014 decision recognizing that its two Irish subsidiaries were not technically resident in Ireland, and therefore only liable for taxes on profits derived from Irish sources. Now, Cook said, it seemed the Commission was intent on "imposing a massive, retroactive tax on Apple by attributing to the Irish branches all of Apple's global profits outside the Americas." Advertisement "There is no inconsistency," an EU spokesman said in a Dec. 15 statement. Only a fraction of the profits of the subsidiaries were taxed in Ireland, the statement said. "As a result, the tax rulings enabled Apple to pay substantially less tax than other companies, which is illegal under EU state aid rules." Cook's entreaties did little to sway Vestager, and in August she phoned Noonan to tell him the results of the Maxforce investigation: The Commission was going to rule against Ireland. Late in the afternoon of Aug. 29, Irish officials began hinting to reporters that Apple's tax bill amounted to billions and "could be anything." At noon the following day, Vestager told a packed press conference in Brussels that the Commission had decided Apple owed Ireland 13 billion euros. Though that would be equivalent to 26 percent of the 2015 national budget, Ireland didn't want the windfall, saying the ruling was flawed because the country hadn't given Apple any special treatment. The decision sparked a political crisis as left-leaning members of Enda Kenny's fragile minority administration saw a potential bonanza for taxpayers that the world's richest company could well afford. Even as Noonan toured television studios vowing to appeal the decision, independent lawmakers demanded that Ireland take the money. Facing a potential revolt that could bring down the government, Kenny and Noonan eventually bowed to demands for a review of the country's corporate tax system. But they said they would fight the case, and on Sept. 7, Irish lawmakers overwhelmingly backed the motion for an appeal. Officials from Lienemeyer's team and other EU offices say they have gathered tax information on about 300 companies, looking for what they deem to be favorable treatment by governments across Europe. While they don't expect all of those to yield payoffs as hefty as that from their investigation of Ireland and Apple, they say a worrying number require the kind of maximum force that the Maxforce can apply. "We focus on outliers where you're looking at something that is off the radar screen," Lienemeyer's boss, 50-year-old Dutchman Gert-Jan Koopman, who is in charge of state-aid enforcement at the EU, said at a Brussels conference in November. "If you're paying a fair amount of tax then there is absolutely nothing to worry about." Advertisement Bloomberg's Stephanie Bodoni and Aoife White contributed. Trump Grill, located inside Trump Tower, could possibly be the worst restaurant in America, according to Vanity Fair. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) The Vanity Fair review was bad enough. A chunk of decor fell on the magazine's critic as she dined at Trump Grill, she wrote. The menus were misprinted, and the reviewer used the word "flaccid" twice in one sentence describing the Szechuan dumplings. As for the filet mignon, it "came out overcooked and mealy, with an ugly strain of pure fat running through it. ... The steak slumped to the side over the potatoes like a dead body inside a T-boned minivan." Advertisement But the real damage to the reputation of President-elect Donald Trump's titular steakhouse may come not from the magazine, but the masses. The New York restaurant's Yelp rating has lost an entire star since the Vanity Fair review published Wednesday afternoon and continues to suffer as a Twitter spat between Trump and the magazine keep it in the news. Advertisement The rating hovered just above 2 stars by lunchtime on Friday and some of the new negative reviews looked fairly suspect. "I tried to get in but there was a giant wall around the building," read one, posted on Thursday and appearing to describe the Mexican border Trump promised to fence off rather than Trump Tower, where the restaurant is housed. "I was asked to pay for the wall. So, I tried to pay with my WomanCard, but they wouldn't accept it." "Trump Grill Could Be The Worst Restaurant In America," said the headline on the Vanity Fair article. The incoming Republican president, who has been at loggerheads with the magazine's editor Graydon Carter for decades, was not impressed. (Jim Watson / AFP/Getty Images) Now Yelp itself is trying to rescue Trump Grill from the trolls, deleting reviews its employees think have less to do with the food than the furor around its namesake. The online review giant has tried to clean up skewed reviews before, including after a tow-truck driver turned away a Bernie Sanders supporter and went viral, for example. But Yelp's relatively new "cleanup" program might face its biggest test with the attack on Trump Grill, which held a 4-star rating before the political rise of its landlord. To be fair, it was Vanity Fair that first mixed food and politics. Sitting in an overflow table outside the restaurant, critic Tina Nguyen scorched the grill's "French-ish paintings," the Ivanka's Salad and a chocolate cake "that tastes like Tums." But Nguyen's review also wondered what her dining experience "says about the Trump presidency." Advertisement "Perhaps it's a sign that Trump is in over his head," she wrote, "and a shallow, mediocre man who runs a shallow, mediocre business empire." The review went viral on Wednesday. Trump, in typical style, responded the next morning in a tweet: "Has anyone looked at the really poor numbers of @VanityFair Magazine. Way down, big trouble, dead! Graydon Carter, no talent, will be out!" Has anyone looked at the really poor numbers of @VanityFair Magazine. Way down, big trouble, dead! Graydon Carter, no talent, will be out! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 15, 2016 The tweet led, inevitably, to more stories about the grill. And about Trump. A Los Angeles Times gossip column detailed a quarter-century old feud between Trump and Vanity Fair's editor, Graydon Carter, over the mogul-turned-pol's allegedly short fingers. Advertisement Trump Grill's average rating had fallen one star in the weeks between Trump's election and the Vanity Fair review. It has fallen another full star since, teetering near a rating of 2.1 by mid-Friday. Vanity Fair had claimed Trump Grill "could be the worst restaurant in America," and the public seemed to agree. But many of the new Yelp reviews seem to bend political. "First thing that hits you is the horrible decor," reads one captured by Uproxx. "I guess you'd call it Trump Tacky." At some point on Thursday, as the grill's Yelp star sank, a red box popped on the review page. An "Active Cleanup Alert." Advertisement "This business recently made waves in the news, which often means that people come to this page to post their views on the news," Yelp warned. "As a result, your posts to this page may be removed." A Yelp spokesman said the cleanup may not actually begin for a day or so, "because we sometimes receive hundreds and even thousands of photos and reviews in response to media attention." An executive explained the cleanup program's purpose in October, after launching it last year. The online review giant's vice president for corporate communication cited a pizza parlor owner who hugged President Barack Obama in 2012, leading to "a mishmash of thousands of political viewpoints" on the review page. "Our goal is to be transparent with the actions we take to protect the quality of content on our site, preserve consumers' freedom of speech, and shield businesses from online harassment," the exec wrote in a blog post. Advertisement It's not clear how many other review pages are being scrubbed. But disclaimers that "this business is being monitored by Yelp's Support team" still appear on the pages of those targeted by trolls in the past. One is Amyx Hardware, a Tennessee store that made national news last year after a "No Gays Allowed" sign was seen in its window. Today, the store's page features four reviews, all for one star. "I found myself being badgered for being a woman with short hair and dressing 'like a demon,'" one complains. That's nothing compared to the wrath against Ken Shupe, a South Carolina tow truck driver who told a local news station that he refused to tow a stranded driver with a Bernie Sanders bumper sticker earlier this year. Shupe's story went national. ("Why a Trump-backing tow truck driver says he refused service to a Sanders supporter," read a Washington Post headline.) Patrons are reflected in a mirror as they eat in the atrium outside Trump Grill at Trump Tower in New York on Dec. 15, 2016. (Jim Watson / AFP/Getty Images) A Google search shows that his company's Yelp review fell to a single star in the aftermath, and the site now lists the business as "closed." Advertisement Could the same fate befall Trump Grill, or can Yelp weed out the fake reviews from the real ones? The steak shop didn't always face such existential questions. Its first Yelp review appeared in the early weeks of the Obama administration, when Trump was just a reality TV star with a catchphrase. "You're Fired! hahaha," Lynn N. from Oklahoma wrote in 2008, as she gave three stars to Trump Grill's sorbet trio and brownie a la mode. "Both desserts were too expensive," she wrote. "But c'mon ... how many can say they ate at a 'grill' named after Trump!?!" The answer, as Yelp now knows, is anyone who wants to. The chocolate salami from Alain Roby's cookbook is an easy treat to put together for holiday parties or gifts. Its resemblance to real salami makes for a whimsical and impressive presentation. (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune) Chef Alain Roby thinks big when it comes to something sweet. For decades, the professional pastry chef has made a name for himself fashioning fantastically outsize creations in both chocolate and sugar. You might recall the 20-foot-8-inch skyscraper he made for televisions Food Network that broke a Guinness World Records record for tallest chocolate building. Or maybe the 12-foot-10-inch cooked sugar building, which also erased a Guinness record, or the worlds largest candy cane, which stretched some 51 feet, or the 1,250-pound chocolate cake he made for Martha Stewarts show. Today, his All Chocolate Kitchen in Geneva serves as a framework for his vision. The center of the space is dominated by what he calls an enchanted tree fashioned out of 1,200 pounds of white, milk and dark chocolate and festooned with, among other items, birds spun from sugar. On display are a life-size astronaut, a Chicago Blackhawks player, a jazz musician and Eros, the winged god of love and don't forget the ceiling-scraping rig that's designed to pump chocolate instead of oil. Advertisement "Because I'm nuts," Roby replies when asked why he works on such a large scale. "I go wild and have fun with it. I do something crazy and say, 'That's it.'" Until the next inspiration strikes. His latest project is a 5-foot white-chocolate castle atop a 3-foot base. Roby said he wanted to create something tall to put behind the gelato counter that could be illuminated in a changing array of colored lights. Advertisement "People say this place is so magical and so great. So why not a castle?" he said. Look closely at the castle, as with all of Roby's projects, and savor the details. Windows are made from leaf gelatin, white chocolate paillettes serve as shingles on the castle's eight turrets, a spun sugar Santa sits perched on the ramparts. (Sadly, some of the figures are missing hands; snapped off by visitors. Roby used to replace them, but they'd be broken again, so he stopped.) What sort of chocolate does he use for sculpting? If there's a manufacturer acting as a sponsor, he'll use its brands. Because the chocolate is being put to decorative use, Roby said, it doesn't have to be expensive or even particularly fresh. Chocolate past its use-by date is perfectly good for sculpture. Roby uses white chocolate for some of his sculptures. Does he consider it "real" chocolate? Roby's answer to this perennial debate comes after some diplomatic waffling and discussion of the components of chocolate. "No, not chocolate. No," he says. "Real chocolate, for me personally, is dark, semisweet, bitter chocolate." For the holidays, try one of creations, scaled more to the home cook: chocolate salami. 33 S. Third St., Geneva, 630-232-2395, www.allchocolatekitchen.com wdaley@chicagotribune.com Advertisement Twitter @billdaley Chocolate salami Prep: 15 minutes, plus cooling time Cook: 8 minutes Chill: 2 hours Makes: About 45 slices Advertisement "You won't find this salami at your local deli!" writes Alain Roby of Geneva's All Chocolate Kitchen in his book, "Alain Roby's American Classics." He suggests serving this salami with fresh strawberries or using it as a topping for a dessert "pizza" made with brioche, a recipe for which is also in the book. For the cookies, Roby suggests biscotti or Biscoff; we used Chessmen. Make the pieces about pea size, so they resemble the fat in real salami. 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter 1/4 cup cocoa powder Eat. Watch. Do. Weekly What to eat. What to watch. What you need to live your best life ... now. > 3/4 cup sugar 2 eggs, lightly beaten 2 cups crumbled butter cookies Advertisement Confectioners' sugar 1. In a medium saucepan, heat the butter with the cocoa powder and sugar, stirring occasionally, until the butter melts and sugar dissolves, about 8 minutes. Slowly stir the eggs into the mixture; bring to a simmer. Pour the crumbled butter cookies into a large mixing bowl; add the chocolate batter. Stir to combine thoroughly. Allow the batter to cool completely, about 1 hour. 2. Once cool, move the batter to wax paper or parchment paper; roll to form a 1-inch tube. Freeze, at least 2 hours. To serve, unroll the chocolate salami from the paper; cut into 1/4-inch slices. Nutrition information per slice: 62 calories, 4 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 21 mg cholesterol, 6 g carbohydrates, 4 g sugar, 1 g protein, 15 mg sodium, 0 g fiber "Hamilton" fans lined up around the block outside the PrivateBank Theatre on Saturday afternoon for a shot at winning tickets in the show's first live lottery in Chicago. And even those who didn't come away with a seat to the afternoon matinee were lucky enough to see a holiday #Ham4Ham performance from the production's stars. They did not throw away their shot. By 11:30 a.m., a line filled with bundled up Hamil-fans stretched down West Monroe Street and turned the corner. The hit musical's devotees, willing to stand outside on another chilly Chicago day, entered their names into a bucket and hoped that the power of Lin-Manuel Miranda would be with them when names were called at noon. Advertisement Just before the drawing, cast members including Miguel Cervantes (Hamilton) and Joshua Henry (Aaron Burr) came out to a makeshift stage, complete with Christmas tree, to the left of the theater. "This feels like our home now," Cervantes said. "And we're going to be here for as long as you want us." Advertisement In the spirit of #HamJams, the series of online performances from the Chicago cast led by Henry, the group began a remixed version of "My Shot." Leading the performance was Cervantes, who brought up the megaphone after cries of "We can't hear you!" popped up from the crowd. Miguel Cervantes and the cast of "Hamilton" perform a "My Shot" remix at the first #Ham4Ham in Chicago. (Chicago Tribune) Cervantes rapped about his baby daughter Adelaide, who was diagnosed with childhood epilepsy as he was auditioning for "Hamilton." Cervantes and his wife are joining forces with CURE, a charity dedicated to finding a cure for epilepsy. A "Jingle Bells" singalong followed, with the crowd split into two groups: A. Burr and A. Ham. The call and response resulted in what could have been the largest group of carolers downtown Chicago has ever seen. And then, the moment everyone was waiting for. The first winners were called. Screams erupted from those lucky few. "It looks like there's like 500, 600 people here," said Pete Locharernkul, 45, who's visiting from New York. "So it was kind of cool to get my name called." Rachel Butler, 25, was supposed to be on a flight leaving Chicago at 2 p.m. "I have to change my flight right now," Butler said, after winning tickets. Winner Juan Gonzalez, 37, made his way downtown from Logan Square. "I figured it would be easier than the online lottery," he said. He was right. Advertisement Joel and Lori Katcher from Schaumburg, both "Hamilton" fans, were in town to celebrate their 44th anniversary. "This is unbelievable," said Joel Katcher. "We usually go to a play but we never thought we would get in to see this." The first name called was Grace Ligon, 18, from Burr Ridge. Ligon yelled out from her wheelchair as she was announced as a winner. She wanted to buy her mom "Hamilton" tickets for Christmas. "I want to say one thing to my mom," Ligon said in the lobby of the PrivateBank. "Merry Christmas." Cervantes popped into the lobby and gave her a big hug. She screamed. Advertisement "I can't believe I'm going to see this play," she said. RELATED STORIES: 'Hamilton' star opens up about daughter's epilepsy See Lin-Manuel Miranda slur, swear and giggle on 'Drunk History' Review: 'Hamilton' makes the most of its Chicago shot Performance of 'Hamilton' in Chicago disrupted Watch the latest movie trailers. Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 122 Sophie Turner as Jean Grey, anger management student, in "Dark Phoenix." The film, the latest in the "X-Men" franchise, costars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender and Jessica Chastain. Read the review. (Twentieth Century Fox) The Chicago-based CityFiles Press and its writer-editors Richard Cahan and Michael Williams have made a name for themselves over the past decade as one of the Windy City's most active small publishing outfits, releasing typically excellent new titles almost all with a strong Chicago angle at an average of one a year. Most feature photography with substantial accompanying texts, including "Richard Nickel's Chicago: Photographs of a Lost City" (2008) and "Vivian Maier: Out of the Shadows" (2012), both with texts by Cahan and Williams, and "Gotta Go Gotta Flow: Life, Love, and Lust From Chicago's South Side" (2015), with photographs by the late Michael Abramson and poems by National Poetry Slam champion (and West Side native) Patricia Smith. Advertisement Now CityFiles is striking out in a new, less regional, more ambitious and more potentially controversial direction with "Un-American: The Incarceration of Japanese Americans During World War II," published last month. Cahan and Williams once again share the writing and editing duties, illuminating photographs by Dorothea Lange and Ansel Adams as well as a selection from about 7,000 images shot by government photographers documenting the Roosevelt administration's now infamous decision to round up about 117,000 Americans of Japanese descent in 1942 and place them in internment camps. The writer-editors provide commentary and context for many of the photos. They also tracked down 25 surviving former prisoners and included their stories in the book. Advertisement Why this topic, and why now, for CityFiles? "It's a big departure for us as far as who we're appealing to, broadly, but we don't think we've ever been just provincial or local," Cahan told me. "We think we tackle issues that are universal, and approach those topics with a Chicago focus because that's where we live. The challenge with this book is that we have a strong Chicago following, and now we're trying to expand that." Of course, the treatment of Japanese-Americans during the war was discussed during the presidential campaign by surrogates of President-elect Donald J. Trump as a historical precedent for a national registry of Muslim-Americans. "They're talking about the Japanese-American experience during World War II as a justification for a Muslim registry, which indicates to me that they're not getting the lessons that should be learned from what happened back then," Cahan says. "Those people lost everything, and it was un-American. It shows what can happen to a country like America when fear prevails. Japanese-Americans were not the enemy; Japan was. Now, ISIS is the enemy, not Muslim-Americans, and I'm surprised that people aren't sophisticated enough to understand that. We group things together so quickly, and it's disheartening. Certainly Michael and I have never written a book as relevant as this one." A trio of suburban public library districts Cook Memorial, Indian Trails and Vernon Area are participating in "One Book, One Community," a program that brings readers together by having them read the same book. This winter's book, "The Story Hour" by Thrity Umrigar, explores the relationship between an Indian woman who tries to commit suicide after immigrating to America and feeling trapped in a loveless marriage and her psychologist. The Society of Midland Authors is accepting submissions for its annual literary awards, which will honor books published in 2016 by Midwestern authors (defined as those who reside in, were born in or have strong ties to Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota or Wisconsin). Categories include adult fiction and nonfiction, biography/memoir, poetry, and children's fiction and nonfiction. Submissions must be postmarked by Jan. 7. Kevin Nance is a freelance writer and photographer. Roosevelt University psychology major Ashanti McCall, 22, passed away unexpectedly on Dec. 7 and her mother, Sabrina McCall, and her 15-year-old brother, Jaden Dupaty, accepted a diploma on her behalf. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune) (Erin Hooley, Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune) Friday was going to be the biggest day in Ashanti McCall's young life. The date of her graduation from Roosevelt University had been set on her phone's calendar for weeks. She meticulously planned for her commencement ceremony, debating whether to send back her gown after it arrived earlier this year because she wasn't sure it fit properly. Advertisement But when the day came, it was her 15-year-old brother who walked across the stage at the downtown Chicago university to pick up McCall's diploma. McCall, who had fallen ill over the Thanksgiving holiday but seemed to have recovered, collapsed near her Roseland home on Dec. 7. She died shortly afterward at a nearby hospital of causes that still are not clear. Wearing his sister's cap and gown and a multicolored stole that read "Black Student Union President," Jaden Dupaty forced a smile when he reached his hand out for McCall's diploma, his sister's photo projected onto a black screen above him. Advertisement "To me it seems like the world is just a big blank for me right now," Dupaty said later. "If Ashanti was here right now, I'd be cheering her on, just being her typical little brother." McCall was a psychology major who hoped to use her degree to advocate for abused children. She had discovered her passion during an internship at the Uhlich Children's Advantage Network in Chicago, which works with children who have suffered trauma. Her mother, Sabrina McCall, recalls her daughter often crying when she came home, distraught over what she had seen. In May, McCall won Roosevelt University's Matthew Freeman Social Justice Award for her work with abuse victims, as well as her work as a peer mentor in the university's Academic Success Center. McCall graduated in 2012 with the last class of Maria High School on the Southwest Side, and had worked as the office secretary at St. Sabina Catholic Church every Saturday since she was 16. She considered the Rev. Michael Pfleger, the church's pastor, a father figure. Pfleger, who led her memorial service Thursday, said McCall was "young of age but with an old soul." "Our church seats 1,200, and it was filled. Everybody that got up to speak, whether students from Roosevelt or family members, would just talk about her maturity. Her wisdom," Pfleger said. Throughout her short life, she made an effort to befriend "misfits of society" and "people who were outcasts for a reason," her mother said. "I remember having conversations with her, people would tell her, 'You're so beautiful and so popular, why do you get involved with these people?'" Sabrina McCall said. "And she would shut them down and say, 'It's really none of your business.'" She initially was denied admittance to Roosevelt, but got in after meeting with counselors. She studied hard, putting off a relationship with a boyfriend in her final semester to concentrate on finishing with top grades. Advertisement McCall had a history of seizures. Over Thanksgiving, she made three trips to the emergency room in 48 hours, but it remained unclear what was wrong with her. After a week's rest, she seemed to have recovered and went back to school. On Dec. 7, Sabrina McCall was at work in Schaumburg when she received news that a neighbor had found Ashanti McCall face-down on the sidewalk, unresponsive, near 111th and South Wallace streets, less than a block from the family's home. McCall was taken to Roseland Community Hospital, where she was eventually moved onto a ventilator. Within two hours she was dead "without rhyme or reason," Sabrina McCall said. The family was told an ovarian cyst may have ruptured, but her mother still can't understand. "What was the thing that took my daughter from me?" she asked on Friday. "My faith can comfort me, saying this was what was supposed to happen. But my flesh does not agree at all." McCall and other family members sat through Roosevelt's commencement ceremony in silence. Afterwards, friends and family gathered at the Academic Success Center, where refreshments were served and where a colorful, congratulatory banner with McCall's name hung over her old desk. It was a space where McCall and two friends, Eric Chaney and Jazmine Terrell-Harley, both 23, had spent many hours joking around. They said she could make anyone laugh and was filled with compassion, recalling how she once fed the homeless leftover food from a Black Student Union event. Advertisement "She could have a million more problems than you, but would always help you first," Terrell-Harley said. Terrell-Harley, who was with McCall the evening before her death, said she felt uneasy accepting her own diploma onstage Friday, stung with the pain of knowing her best friend couldn't share that moment. "It was very hard. That was something we both planned on doing together," she said. "It was something we looked forward to this whole last year." meltagouri@chicagotribune.com Twitter @marwaeltagouri Six Illinois Department of Transportation employees were fired and another eight were disciplined this year after a state investigation discovered that Emergency Traffic Patrol drivers had filed hundreds of false reports about helping stranded motorists on Chicago-area expressways. The investigation of IDOT's Emergency Traffic Patrol Division by the executive inspector general's office ran from 2012 to 2016. The probe concluded that several IDOT drivers made up reports about helping motorists to make it look like they were doing more work than they were, the inspector general's report said. In other cases, the drivers recorded inaccurate information in reports about people they actually had assisted. Advertisement One of the drivers who was fired, John Shealey, repeatedly filled in reports using false license plate numbers that were based on his parents' birth dates, the report said. Shealey could not be reached for comment. The inspector general's report was completed in January but not made public until Friday, after disciplinary measures were taken. Advertisement The report found that the drivers were pressured to perform a certain number of driver assists per day, and that program supervisors failed to ensure the work was being done honestly. It also found that Emergency Traffic Patrol managers "either knew of or suspected the reporting of false assists by drivers but did nothing about it, or chose to purposefully insulate themselves from the knowledge of this systematic problem." Two supervisors and four drivers were fired. Two other supervisors received 15-day suspensions, and six drivers received 10-day suspensions, according to a Sept. 28 letter from Bruce Harmening, chief of IDOT's Bureau of Investigations and Compliance in the Office of Finance and Administration. The inspector general's office included the letter, addressed to Executive Inspector General Margaret Hickey, in documents it released on Friday. Harmening told Hickey in an Aug. 11 letter that Emergency Traffic Patrol management had implemented controls to prevent fraudulent reporting by drivers and that all drivers had been retrained. Emergency Traffic Patrol officers are supposed to assist stranded drivers on state highways. Officers may need to change tires, provide emergency gas or jump-start batteries. Shealey had been investigated by IDOT auditors for filing false reports and was suspended for 10 days in 2012. The inspector general's office then began a probe to see if there were other problems in the unit. The investigation also found drivers leaving their jobs for long periods while they were supposed to be on duty. Shealey, for example, was found to be off work for more than three hours on June 17, 2013, and more than five hours on June 18, 2013. Instead of working, he was found to be in restaurants or gas stations or parked on side streets, the report found. Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. > Another driver was found to have repeatedly passed motorists on the side of the road but filed false reports claiming he was giving help. A supervisor who was fired, Zenon McHugh, admitted to investigators that he had heard "shop talk" among drivers about falsifying assist reports but had not inquired about them. McHugh also told investigators, "If no one is looking, it's not a problem," the inspector general's office reported. Advertisement McHugh could not be reached for comment. But IDOT later issued a statement: "The inspector general investigation was ongoing when the new administration arrived. Once we had the results, the Illinois Department of Transportation began to take immediate action and worked independently to institute several changes to ensure that this never happens again, including firings, suspensions and establishing new protocols to hold employees to the highest possible standards. Our top priority always will be the safety of the traveling public. We will implement other changes as necessary to keep that commitment." In 2014, all but two of the drivers cited in the investigation and all but one of the supervisors made more than $100,000 annually, the report said. mwisniewski@chicagotribune.com Twitter @marywizchicago Chicago is a big dot on the architectural map because of its pre-eminent role in the invention of the office skyscraper, a development that transformed the skylines of cities worldwide. But thanks to the Great Recession, it's been seven years since a major downtown office building opened here. Now we have a new one, and its exuberant curves take full advantage of its prominent riverfront site. River Point, as the 52-story office building at 444 W. Lake St. is known, has a clear kinship with 333 W. Wacker Drive, the great 1983 high-rise with curving green glass walls that exquisitely mark a bend in the Chicago River. Though River Point doesn't meet the high bar of its neighbor across the river, it enhances the waterfront with its sleekly sculpted form and an inviting 1.5-acre plaza. Advertisement Good modernism, this tower shows, is not incompatible with the making of good cities. Designed by New Haven, Conn., architects Pickard Chilton and developed by the Chicago office of Houston-based Hines, the $500 million project transforms a challenging site that marred the riverfront with exposed railroad tracks and a surface parking lot. A lot of engineering acrobatics, devised by Seattle-based structural engineers Magnusson Klemencic Associates, went into this significant shift. Advertisement The plaza is essentially a land bridge, supported by concrete beams that span tracks on which passenger trains still run. To avoid hitting the tracks, some of the office building's steel columns lean inward. In addition, some of the tower's caissons had to be shifted so they didn't pierce the Chicago Transit Authority's Blue Line tunnel 60 feet below the site. Anybody who thinks architecture is all style, no structure, should pay a visit to 444 W. Lake. The new River Point building at 444 W. Lake St. on Dec. 7, 2016. (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune) Which is not to deny that there's style here or that River Point departs from the old Chicago norm of boldly expressing the underlying steel frame. It doesn't. But there is a structural rationale for the building's most distinctive feature: the tall parabolic arch at its base, which is echoed (without structural rationale) by a shallower arch at the tower's top. In essence, the architects dramatized the base with an angled glass wall that follows the tilt of the leaning columns. Slice a plane into a curving facade like this one and you get a parabolic arch. Even if that geometry is lost on you, the aesthetic effect should be apparent: A swoopy exuberance that, for some, will evoke the Space Age optimism of the 1960s and, for others, will summon the dynamic digital-age designs that were all the rage before the 2008 crash. As it turns out, River Point was designed before the recession. Hines was ready to build it but had to hold off until the economy recovered. The site, a right triangle at the confluence of the Chicago River's north, south and main branches, invites a memorable statement. And with some exceptions, that's what the designers have delivered. From afar, the tower's curves offer a rare, if somewhat bland, departure from the right-angled lockstep of the skyline. At closer range, you might notice how the tower joins with 333 to form a double-curved gateway to the river's south branch. The new River Point building at 444 W. Lake St. on Dec. 7, 2016. (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune) From closer still, you can take in the visual pleasure of the tower's angled glass wall, which is framed by the parabolic arch and composed of super-transparent, low-iron glass at lobby level and conventional glass above. In a wonderful and unanticipated touch, the angle creates a mirror effect, reflecting the river's shimmering water and boats skimming across it. Even the tower's chief designers, Pickard Chilton's Anthony Markese and Jon Pickard, admit they didn't expect that. The parabolic arch is more bulky and rib-like than it appeared in renderings, a shortcoming largely due to the fact that it must also serve as a gutter that funnels rainwater away from the building's main entrance. Such are the nitty-gritty conflicts of form and function. Once internal lighting is installed and the top and bottom arches glow from within, River Point may achieve its full aesthetic potential. Advertisement The tower's urban design is also a success, with the exception of a hard-edged precast concrete wall that lines a new riverwalk beneath its plaza. The wall is there because Amtrak required that the plaza be high above river level, allowing clearance for its trains. The project's landscape architect, Houston's James Burnett, has tried to camouflage the wall with pear trees, grasses and ivy. They are essentially a fig leaf. Even so, River Point's plaza offers much-needed open space and spectacular views of the skyscraper-lined waterfront. The open space is tailor-made, with a curving pedestrian path that echoes the facade's parabolic arch. Ample seating encourages people to use the space, as does a ramp that leads to the plaza from Lake Street. While the public is helping pay for this public space, via a city subsidy that covered a significant chunk of the plaza's cost, that was money well spent considering the alternative the maintenance of a waterfront eyesore that would have undercut the city's drive to engage and beautify the river. The new River Point building at 444 W. Lake St. on Dec. 7, 2016. (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune) Significantly, the tower's distinctive form has not come at the expense of function. A recent tour of several office floors revealed amply-sized column-free floors and striking views created by floor-to-ceiling windows. The developers took care to shield tenants from the racket of passing "L" trains on Lake Street with a triple-layered glass facade. The main lobby, at plaza level, is enriched by travertine walls, a subtly lit scalloped ceiling and a sense of expansiveness created by huge sheets of angled low-iron glass. The care and cost lavished on the lobby speak to the aesthetic ambition of this project a welcome shift from the bare-boned, vanilla apartment buildings that have been taking up space in Chicago's skyline but adding little oomph. One waits with anticipation and trepidation to see whether River Point and its neighbors the soon-to-be-open 150 North Riverside office tower and planned skyscrapers at Wolf Point create a distinguished high-rise cluster that's more than the sum of individual parts. So far, so good. bkamin@chicagotribune.com Advertisement Twitter @BlairKamin The Independent Police Review Authority has determined that a Chicago police officer was justified in fatally shooting 25-year-old Ronald Johnson III in the back in October 2014. In a ruling released Friday evening, the agency that investigates shootings by police stated that Officer George Hernandez was justified in shooting the African-American man as he ran from police because evidence supports officers' contention that he had a gun. Advertisement Attorneys for Johnson's family have alleged that officers planted the gun and conspired to cover up the truth about Johnson's shooting on the South Side. Ronald Johnson III, 25, was fatally shot Oct. 12, 2014, by Chicago police. (Family photo) IPRA ruled that the preponderance of the evidence indicated that Johnson was armed and Hernandez reasonably believed he was a threat. Witnesses gave conflicting statements, IPRA wrote, but investigators recovered a Browning 9 mm pistol with grass and Johnson's blood on it beneath his hand. The IPRA report states that agency officials do not believe that all shootings of people fleeing with guns would be justified. Advertisement "In this case, there are specific and numerous circumstances that make such use of force reasonable," the report said. "It's the same old incompetent IPRA. Nothing has changed," said attorney Michael Oppenheimer, who represents Johnson's mother in her wrongful death lawsuit in federal court. "Their investigation was jaded and didn't take into account much of the evidence against Hernandez. Their ruling is a sham." Johnson's shooting generated controversy as grainy video of the shooting was released late last year just after the city was forced to release footage of Officer Jason Van Dyke shooting black teen Laquan McDonald 16 times. The McDonald video led to sustained protests fueled by long-standing grievances about police conduct, particularly among African-Americans, and the U.S. Justice Department is continuing to investigate whether Chicago police have systematically violated citizens' rights. Mayor Rahm Emanuel, meanwhile, has tried to stay ahead of federal authorities by announcing a series of reforms. Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 35 Dorothy Holmes, the mother of Ronald Johnson III, prepares to speak at Chicago's City Hall on Dec. 23, 2015. City attorneys accused Holmes of threatening harm to the officer who shot and killed Johnson in October 2014. But attorneys for the officer later withdrew a request to have Holmes punished. (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune) Before the McDonald video was released, IPRA had almost never ruled a shooting by police unjustified, and Tribune investigations have shown the agency to be slow and prone to clearing police, even when evidence suggested misconduct. After the scandal erupted, however, Emanuel replaced the agency's leader with former federal prosecutor Sharon Fairley, who has acknowledged shortcomings in IPRA's past work and ruled several shootings unjustified. Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. > Fairley will be the first head of the Civilian Office on Police Accountability, the agency that city officials are building to replace the beleaguered IPRA. In the McDonald case, Van Dyke is charged with murder, but Cook County prosecutors declined to press charges in Johnson's shooting. According to prosecutors, early on Oct. 12, 2014, Johnson and others left a party near 53rd Street and King Drive before a gunman shot out the rear window of their vehicle. Later, police responding to calls of shots fired saw Johnson running east on 53rd with a gun in his right hand, and officers pursued him, prosecutors said. He was confronted by an officer who tried to arrest him, but a scuffle ensued, and Johnson broke free as the officer fell to the ground, according to prosecutors. Then Hernandez arrived, and video showed he opened fire about two seconds after exiting his car as Johnson ran toward a park with his back to officers. Advertisement Two of the five shots struck Johnson, one in the back of his shoulder and the other in the back of the leg, autopsy reports show. dhinkel@chicagotribune.com Twitter @dhinkel The USNS Bowditch, a T-AGS 60 Class Oceanographic Survey Ship, sails in open water. The USNS Bowditch, a civilian U.S. Navy oceanographic survey ship, was recovering two drones on Thursday when a Chinese navy ship approached and sent out a small boat that took one of the drones, said Navy Capt. Jeff Davis. (U.S. Navy Photo / AP) BEIJING China said Saturday its military seized a U.S. Navy unmanned underwater glider in the South China Sea but it would give the drone back. But President-elect Donald Trump tweeted later that the Chinese government should be told "we don't want the drone they stole back" and "let them keep it!" This comes after United States officials had confirmed that they "secured an understanding" for the return of the device. Trump's evening tweet may extend one of the most serious incidents between the American and the Chinese militaries in years. Advertisement The Chinese navy on Thursday seized the drone, which the Pentagon said was being operated by civilian contractors to conduct oceanic research. The U.S. lodged a formal diplomatic complaint and demanded the drone back. Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun issued a statement late Saturday saying that a Chinese navy lifeboat discovered an unknown device in the South China Sea on Thursday. Advertisement "In order to prevent this device from posing a danger to the safe navigation of passing ships and personnel, the Chinese lifeboat adopted a professional and responsible attitude in investigating and verifying the device," Yang said. The statement said that after verifying that the device was an American unmanned submerged device, "China decided to transfer it to the U.S. through appropriate means." The U.S. said that "through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return" the unmanned underwater vehicle, according to a statement from Peter Cook, spokesman for U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter. We should tell China that we don't want the drone they stole back.- let them keep it! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 18, 2016 But Trump, after holding a rally to thank supporters for his election, took to Twitter to criticize the deal. "We should tell China that we don't want the drone they stole back.- let them keep it!" the president-elect tweeted Saturday evening. He earlier in the day had blasted the seizure. Misspelling "unprecedented," he tweeted: "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented act." He later reissued the tweet, correcting the spelling. The U.S. said China's "unlawful seizure" came in international waters. Yet China pointedly accused the U.S. of long sending ships "in China's presence" to conduct "military surveying." "China is resolutely opposed to this and requests the U.S. stop such activities," it said. "China will continue to maintain vigilance against the relevant U.S. activities and will take necessary measures to deal with them." Advertisement Earlier Saturday, China's foreign ministry said the country's military was in contact with its American counterparts on "appropriately handling" the incident, though it offered no details on what discussions were underway. The drone was seized while collecting unclassified scientific data about 92 kilometers (57 miles) northwest of Subic Bay near the Philippines in the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety, Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said Friday. "It is ours. It's clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again," Davis told reporters. He said the drone costs about $150,000 and is largely commercial, off-the-shelf technology. The USNS Bowditch, which is not a combat ship, was stopped in international waters Thursday afternoon and recovering two of the gliders when the Chinese ship approached, Davis said. The two vessels were within about 450 meters (500 yards) of each other. He said the USNS Bowditch carries some small arms, but that no shots were fired. According to the Pentagon, as the Chinese ship left with the drone, which is about 3 meters (10 feet) long, its only radio response to the U.S. vessel was, "We are returning to normal operations." Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the seizure of the glider occurred inside the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, not China, and appeared to be a violation of international law. Advertisement China delineates its South China Sea claims with a roughly drawn sea border known as the "nine-dash line" that runs along the west coast of the Philippines. However, it hasn't explicitly said whether it considers those waters as sovereign territory, and says it doesn't disrupt the passage of other nations' shipping through the area. The U.S. doesn't take a position on sovereignty claims, but insists on freedom of navigation, including the right of its naval vessels to conduct training and other operations in the sea. Davis said that the incident could be the first time in recent history that China has taken a U.S. naval vessel. Some observers have called it the most significant dispute between the sides' militaries since the April 2001 midair collision between a U.S. Navy surveillance aircraft and a Chinese fighter jet about 110 kilometers (70 miles) from China's Hainan island that led to the death of a Chinese pilot. The drone seizure seemed likely to fray the already tense relations between U.S. and China. Beijing was angered by Trump's decision to talk by phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen on Dec. 2, and by his later comments that he did not feel "bound by a one-China policy" regarding the status of Taiwan, unless the U.S. could gain trade or other benefits from China. China considers the self-governing island its own territory to be recovered by force if it deems necessary. There also have been increased tensions over Beijing's ongoing military buildup in the South China Sea, mainly the development and militarization of man-made shoals and islands aimed at extending China's reach in the strategically vital area, through which about $5 trillion in global trade passes annually. Associated Press President-elect Donald Trump has named Rep. Mick Mulvaney, R-S.C., as his director of the Office of Management and Budget, signaling his intent to slash spending and address the deficit as president. Mulvaney, 49, was elected to Congress in 2010 in the wave that brought in a cohort of younger, staunchly conservative members into the House. Advertisement He has been an advocate for spending cuts, often taking on his own party to push for more aggressive curbs to government spending. "We are going to do great things for the American people with Mick Mulvaney leading the Office of Management and Budget," Trump said in a statement. "Right now we are nearly $20 trillion in debt, but Mick is a very high-energy leader with deep convictions for how to responsibly manage our nation's finances and save our country from drowning in red ink. Advertisement "With Mick at the head of OMB, my administration is going to make smart choices about America's budget, bring new accountability to our federal government, and renew the American taxpayer's trust in how their money is spent," he added. Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 21 Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions, the first senator to endorse Trump, is known for his hardline views on immigration. Sessions could face obstacles in his confirmation hearing, even with Republicans in control of the Senate. He withdrew from consideration for a federal judgeship in 1986 after being accused of making racist comments while serving as a U.S. attorney in Alabama. AP (Carolyn Kaster / AP) Trump has announced plans for increased defense spending in a massive infrastructure bill. Adding Mulvaney to his administration could help ease concerns from fiscal conservatives about the cost of such plans and their effect on the deficit. A founding member of the House Freedom Caucus, which pushed House Speaker John A. Boehner out of power in 2015, Mulvaney is an advocate of a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Among Mulvaney's chief duties will be overseeing the most dramatic overhaul of the nation's tax code since President Ronald Reagan. Trump has pledged to streamline the process for individual households and slash the rate for corporations from 35 percent to 15 percent. The reforms are a central component of the administration's promise to boost economic growth to 4 percent -- or higher -- a message that resonated with voters still bruised by the Great Recession but that many economists believe is unsustainable. In addition, Trump has argued stronger growth would mean his tax proposal would not contribute to the national debt, and he has vowed not to cut expensive but popular entitlement programs such as Medicare and Social Security. But experts have been skeptical of those claims, and Mulvaney would be responsible for reconciling the numbers. One analysis by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimated Trump's tax plan would cost more than $5.3 trillion over the next decade. Even after factoring in faster economic growth, Trump's proposals are expected to add at least $2.6 trillion to the debt over the next decade, according to the nonpartisan Tax Foundation. While Mulvaney hails from South Carolina, he's spent the last few years learning Spanish and has been one of just a handful of GOP lawmakers able to appear on Spanish-language television programs to explain and defend Republican policies. Robert Durst leaves federal court in an Orleans Parish sheriff's vehicle after his arraignment April 14 in New Orleans. (Gerald Herbert / Associated Press) Robert Durst, the eccentric heir to a real estate fortune, told Los Angeles prosecutors last year that he was high on methamphetamines during interviews he gave for the 2015 HBO miniseries "The Jinx," according to court papers released Friday. The series covered Durst's links to three tragedies involving his wife, who disappeared in 1982 and is presumed dead, his best friend who was shot execution-style in her Beverly Hills home in 2000, and a former neighbor in Texas who Durst admitted shooting, chopping up and dumping in a bay in 2001 in self-defense. Advertisement A jury acquitted Durst in the Texas case and he was a free man until the night before the final episode of the miniseries aired. In it, Durst is caught muttering into a microphone during a bathroom break: "What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course." Apparently tipped to the contents of that explosive final interview, authorities arrested Durst in New Orleans, where he had been staying in a hotel under a fake name. He had marijuana, a .38-caliber revolver, more than $40,000 in cash and a mask, according to court papers. Advertisement Days later, while sitting in a New Orleans jail, Durst gave a nearly three-hour interview to prosecutors from Los Angeles who were investigating his links to the slaying of Susan Berman, the friend of Durst's who was discovered with a single bullet wound to the back of the head in Beverly Hills. Durst has since been charged with that murder. He has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial. On Friday, a transcript of the March 15, 2015, jailhouse interview was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court. In it, Durst claims he was intoxicated during the filming of the HBO series, including when he uttered the apparent confession. "I was on meth, I was on meth the whole time it should have been obvious," Durst said. "I think the reason I did it had to be because I was swooped, speeding," he added. I was on meth the whole time. Robert Durst Attorneys for Durst filed papers Thursday challenging some of the evidence against him in the Berman case, including the New Orleans jailhouse interview, during which he had no attorney representing him. L.A. County Deputy Dist. Atty. John Lewin had previously told the court that Durst voluntarily participated in the questioning, The transcript includes a portion in which LAPD Det. Mike Whelan read Durst his Miranda rights. "Anything you say may be used against you in court. Do you understand?" Whelan asked. "I understand," Durst replied. Durst is currently serving a seven-year federal prison term for illegal possession of the .38-caliber revolver at the time of his New Orleans arrest. He was transferred from an Indiana penitentiary to Southern California in November. Advertisement In his first court appearance last month, Durst sat in a wheelchair and pleaded not guilty, telling the judge, "I did not kill Susan Berman." In the wide-ranging jailhouse transcript, Durst touched on his bitterness toward his wealthy family, who granted control of the business to a brother. At one point, he explained his lack of personal ambition and success as a kind of pacifism: "I don't like to fight." He also described turning down an interview request from TV journalist Connie Chung because she'd previously done a long piece on boxer Mike Tyson that made him out to be a good guy, despite his many run-ins with the law. "I never felt like that," Durst said. "I never felt that I was really a good guy." At another point during the interrogation, Durst described himself as "the worst fugitive the world has ever met," referring to his six weeks on the lam in 2001 when facing murder charges in Texas. When Lewin said it was "mind-boggling" to him that Durst hadn't tried to flee the country before the HBO series aired, Durst said he'd been suffering from "inertia". "I just didn't really, really, really think that I was gonna end up arrested," he added. Advertisement When Durst said he was surprised that his lawyers allowed him to take part in the documentary, Lewin reminded him that his legal team had repeatedly discouraged him from participating. But as the interview drifted in and out of episodes in Durst's complicated life, Lewin kept prompting him to talk about the slaying of Berman, the daughter of a Las Vegas mobster whom Durst met while both were studying at UCLA. His efforts to elicit a confession included complimenting Durst, repeatedly, on his unusual honesty and brutally frank self-assessments. But when that failed, Lewin confronted Durst more directly, asking,"If you had killed Susan, would you tell me?" "No," Durst replied. Times staff writer Richard Winton contributed to this report. matt.hamilton@latimes.com Advertisement jack.dolan@latimes.com Ameriabank: At the Vanguard of Armenia's Banking Sector STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders Google Ad PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox UCOMS SPECIAL OFFER OF THE UNLIMITED INTERNET IS NOW TERMLESS There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol Armenia and Azerbaijan to do so without delay An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan". UCOM AND PES-PES CONTINUE COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PROJECT Google Ad The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022 Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces LEVEL UP ONLY FOR STUDENTS: UCOM OFFERS X2 AND X3 MORE INTERNET STATEMENT BY SECRETARY ANTONY J. BLINKEN This criminal act is another proof that the Armenophobia policy. Tatoyan Nikol Pashinyan, Nancy Pelosi discuss a number of issues related to the Armenian-American agenda and regional developments Delegation by Nancy Pelosi Accompanied by Alen Simonyan Visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi Arrives in Yerevan Armenian Revytech, global technology leader SAP and financial services software specialist SAP Fioneer sign a cooperation agreement With 120 million drams donated by Mikael Vardanyan, the defenders of the homeland will be treated in a new building OSCE Chairman-in-Office and OSCE Secretary General call for immediate cessation of hostilities along Armenia-Azerbaijan border Statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh The China Philharmonic Orchestra delighted Cubans on Thursday night in the first of two concerts in Havana with a repertoire that included Western classics and traditional Chinese music. Performing for the first time in the island, the Chinese orchestra took the stage of Cuba's National Theater and charmed the public with its perfect execution. The group headed by Long Yu, one of the most renowned Chinese directors, played for almost two hours. "Having an orchestra of such high standard in Cuba, with wonderful musicians and a great director undoubtedly is something exceptional. In our country any cultural event that comes from China is of great interest to our people," Cuban Culture Minister Abel Prieto, who attended the concert, told Xinhua. "In the second concert we will see how cultural cooperation becomes a reality as the director of the Cuban Symphony Orchestra, Enrique Perez Mesa, will be directing the China Philharmonic Orchestra," he said. Li Nan, president of the China Philharmonic Orchestra, said the group as an "envoy of music" has toured around the world and this first visit to Cuba is very special. "Cuba is known for its cultural level and respected for its arts and culture. This visit is a great honor for us," said Li. The orchestra's second concert in the island coincides with the premiere of the musical group 16 years ago in China, an occasion that is pure coincidence. "We are happy to have the 16th anniversary here in Cuba. No full philharmonic orchestra has performed in Cuba before and for us this is a milestone," added Li. Before visiting Cuba, the musical group performed in Canada and the United States as part of their "Tour of the Americas." The China Philharmonic Orchestra has become China's top orchestra and a leading figure in Asia with an international reputation. Ameriabank: At the Vanguard of Armenia's Banking Sector STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox UCOMS SPECIAL OFFER OF THE UNLIMITED INTERNET IS NOW TERMLESS There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol Armenia and Azerbaijan to do so without delay An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan". UCOM AND PES-PES CONTINUE COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PROJECT Google Ad The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022 Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces LEVEL UP ONLY FOR STUDENTS: UCOM OFFERS X2 AND X3 MORE INTERNET STATEMENT BY SECRETARY ANTONY J. BLINKEN This criminal act is another proof that the Armenophobia policy. Tatoyan Nikol Pashinyan, Nancy Pelosi discuss a number of issues related to the Armenian-American agenda and regional developments Delegation by Nancy Pelosi Accompanied by Alen Simonyan Visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi Arrives in Yerevan Armenian Revytech, global technology leader SAP and financial services software specialist SAP Fioneer sign a cooperation agreement With 120 million drams donated by Mikael Vardanyan, the defenders of the homeland will be treated in a new building OSCE Chairman-in-Office and OSCE Secretary General call for immediate cessation of hostilities along Armenia-Azerbaijan border Statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh You are here: Home Flash Iran's vice president said Friday that the Islamic republic is ready to send humanitarian aid to Syria, Press TV reported. Es'haq Jahangiri, the First Vice President, made the remarks in a phone conversation with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim. Jahangiri urged Tehran-Ankara cooperation to diplomatically resolve the crisis in Syria. He stressed the importance to put joint effort to prevent an increase in killing and bloodshed in the region, including in Syria, and to save civilians trapped and besieged in different regions across the country. "Regional issues can be resolved more quickly through the expansion of cooperation and growth in coordination between Iran and Turkey," the Iranian official added. Jahangiri also said that Turkey's security and stability is important for Iran, and the two neighbors should cooperate in the fight against extremism and terrorism. Yildirim, for his part, said the humanitarian situation in eastern Aleppo city of Syria is alarming and his country is ready to do its best for civilians in Aleppo. The evacuation of rebels and their families started on Thursday, and over 8,000 have already left toward the western countryside of Aleppo. You are here: Home Flash A Chinese navy fleet left a port in Zhanjiang in southern China's Guangdong Province for an escort mission in the Gulf of Aden on Saturday. A Chinese navy fleet leaves a port in Zhanjiang in southern China's Guangdong Province for an escort mission in the Gulf of Aden on Dec. 17, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] This is the 25th convoy fleet sent by the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy for the missions since 2008. The fleet is composed of two missile frigates, a supply ship, two ship-borne helicopters, dozens of special combat soldiers, and more than 700 seamen and officers. Chinese fleets have escorted more than 6,000 ships and successfully rescued or aided more than 60 Chinese and foreign ships. They have carried out humanitarian rescue and safeguarded sea lane security. A woman talks with a salesman at a property market fair in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province.[Photo/China Daily] China will strictly limit credit flowing into speculative buying in the property market in 2017, according to the Central Economic Work Conference statement issued on Friday. "Properties are for residential use, not speculation", the statement said. The country will speed up efforts to build a long-acting mechanism for stable and healthy development of real estate, and planners will employ multifaceted policies involving financing, land, fiscal investment and legislation to curb a housing bubble as well as wild volatility in real estate, the statement said. Financing must be put under control, and on the micro level, financing policy has to support the reasonable purchase of housing for self-use and strictly reduce financing flowing to speculative buyers, the statement said. Legislation for the real estate leasing market should be speeded up, and the development of institutional, large-scale home leasing businesses should be accelerated. The housing market will be better regulated, including development, distribution, and agents, Premier Li Keqiang said. Analysts said a "long-term mechanism" is expected to focus on joint efforts involving fiscal, taxation and credit policies, as well as legislation to create an ecosystem that enables the real estate market to serve its original purpose of providing housing. "Only with a long-acting mechanism will the real estate market attain a fundamental condition that will enable top-tier cities to decrease speculation and lower-tier cities to decrease inventories", said Ni Pengfei, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. A long-term mechanism for the healthy development of the Chinese real estate market that looks at supply, demand, finance and taxes is essential. The current curbs and financial restrictions only treat the symptoms of underlying imbalances within the market. A more comprehensive and long-term, multifaceted approach to treating the root causes of these imbalances is what is needed for the sustained, healthy development of the market," said James Macdonald, head of Savills China Research. More than 20 cities in China have launched a series of short-term curbs on purchases and have tightened financing to limit speculative buying and slow hurdle too-fast-growing housing prices. Policymakers may also look at other tools to change the diverging situation with excess inventories in lower-tier cities and short supply of housing in key cities. That could be achieved by encouraging population flows, creating more job opportunities and enhancing living standards in lower-tier cities, and using transportation infrastructure to develop satellite cities. "Young professionals living in serviced apartments pay monthly rent instead of a huge sum for the down payment on an apartment. This shows how infrastructure helps to reshape housing market conditions", said Liu Yueqi, manager with Shanghai Feng Rui Real Estate Ltd. A worker at a steel company in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, in January 2015.[Photo/China Daily] That China will maintain mixed ownership reform as a key facet of State-owned enterprise reforms was the consensus at a top level economic work conference on Friday. Mixed ownership will generate substantive progress in sectors such as power, petroleum, natural gas, railway, civil aviation, telecommunication and military, according to a statement issued at the close of the Central Economic Work Conference. Mixed ownership should be carried out with good governance, strengthening incentive as well as enhancing efficiency, the statement said. The conference, which ended on Friday and was held by the country's top leaders to map out economic and reform plans, is closely watched by investors for clues on policy priorities and economic targets for the year ahead. China will also focus on improving product quality and core competitiveness to bolster the real economy next year, the statement said. The country will continue to push forward its innovation-driven development strategy and improve its business environment to allow overseas investment to play a bigger role in strengthening the real economy, it said. The national economy has recovered from the soft patches this year, and investment has picked up in many key sectors since September. China's industrial output expanded by 6.2 percent year-on-year in November, thanks to the electronic equipment and automobile sectors, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. Energy consumption, a barometer for economic activity, grew by 5 percent year-on-year from January to November, compared with 4.8 percent in the first 10 months, according to the National Energy Administration. Economists suggest reducing tax and barriers for entrepreneurs to further stimulate the real economy and prevent excessive funds from flowing into fields outside the real economy. "China needs to accelerate its financial reforms and innovate to extend substantial financial support in the real economy," said Zong Liang, deputy director of the Institute of International Finance at the Bank of China. "Many of the country's real economy sectors are not making profits, and corporations and enterprises face a higher taxation than they should," he said. According to Huang Zhilong, macro-economy research chief at the Suning Institute of Finance in Nanjing, active private investment comes only when the country's real economy is booming. Current private investment into the real economy is challenged by a series of hurdles such as high barriers to entry, financing difficulties and heavy tax burdens, he said. Proposal of 1997 is on the table of negotiations; dont believe in other tale (video) At the Government session hall during the Armenian National Congress (HAK) 2nd (20th) conference with Levon-Levon vociferations, standing up in honour and applauding the attendees welcomed the RA First President, HAK leader Levon Ter-Petrosyan. Before his speech he refused to answer questions. He came to the conference with his grandchild Lyusya. He noted in his speech that root of all the evil in the country, injustice, violation of human rights is corruption. He says that default and April events must have sobered the RA authorities to change disastrous strategy over Karabakh issue, but, according to his words, Prime Ministers behavior was disappointing. He touched upon nation-army term, which has been largely used recently, Putting aside the implementation of 1000 drams new tax, which is connected with this ideology, I will only touch upon its political contents. For that we should find out what is hidden under such a concept. There were three successful cases of nation-army in the world. He says that the authors of the Armenian variant of nation-army term should answer these questions- which problem it can solve, how many resources are needed for its implementation, The RA authorities pin great hopes on Diaspora Armenians. It is absolute illusion and self deception. Why should they assist, when the authorities plunder the country? In order to imagine the volumes of the economic plunder by the authorities, I can say, that it would be quite enough for Karabakh having 300 000 population, and the army equipped with the modern armament. If the economic situation wasnt in disaster, the authorities wouldnt adopt 1000 drams shameful law for assisting the families of the deceased servicemen. It damaged the countrys dignity, made us a laughing stock before the whole world. He states that the impression of nation-army term is that it will boost migration and NKR and Armenia will finally left without Armenians, The regime is intended to carry out it at the expense of nations elimination. Later we may have a strong army, but it is a question whether we will have a nation or not. The regime aims at creating a new pre-election brand by this idea; to become a fighter (fidayi) by the whole nation, Istanbul- ocean of blood, no inch of land etc. This idea is from genre of tale. It will blast like the previous balloons. One must not be too clever to understand that it is maintenance of status quo with another wrapping. Touching upon the NK conflict settlement, Levon Ter-Petrosyan noted that it is important to normalize the relations with Turkey, Yet our authorities adopted the policy of eternal confrontation which has no prospects. It means for another 18 years continue to oppress the nation leaving nothing from Armenian and the NKR. The conflict settlement is the settlement of relations with Turkey. Solve that issue, other issues will be solved automatically- it is the NKR phase option, after which Turkeys issue will also be solved. As of now proposal of 1997 is on the table of negotiations. Dont believe in another tale. I have also grounds to think that even lower status than in 1997 is put on the table of negotiations. He highlighted that in case of the victory of HAK in elections and having significant representation in the NA, elimination of new armament, normalization of relations with Turkey, the NK conflict settlement must be included in the pre-election project. An employee sorts parcels at a logistic center of ZTO Express during the Alibaba Singles Day global shopping festival in Beijing. [Photo/Agencies] ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc, the Chinese delivery service that gets most of its business from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, is considering options such as building its own cargo fleet or purchasing a stake in an existing carrier, as it expands operations overseas. The Shanghai-based company, whose shares started trading in New York in October, had been debating the need to buy aircraft or charter flights for five years but couldn't justify the cost, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Lai Meisong said in an interview on Thursday. "But we definitely need to do this in the future as we build our international delivery service," Lai said at his office in Shanghai, declining to elaborate. "We are definitely going to have our own airplanes and airplane companies or buy a stake in airlines." Faced with intense competition from local rivals such as SF Express Group Co, STO Express Co and YTO Express Group Co, Lai is setting the stage for ZTO's next phase of growth as he rolls out international services. Shares of ZTO have fallen 34 percent in New York trading since its $1.4 billion initial public offering on Oct 27. SF and YTO have built their own fleet for air-cargo transportation. SF has 36 Boeing Co cargo freighters, while YTO has five freighters and expects to have 30 to 50 by 2020, according to data from the respective companies. Alibaba, which uses ZTO to fulfill orders, accounted for 75 percent of the delivery company's parcel volume in the first half of this year. Volume rose about 51 percent year-on-year to 1.1 billion parcels in the third quarter of this year, driving revenue to 2.35 billion yuan ($338 million). Bloomberg China is urging banking regulators at various levels to make banks strengthen their management of creditors' rights in order to stop steel and coal companies from dodging payment of debts. During the process of capacity reduction in the steel and coal industries, some companies are using the opportunity to dodge debts through bankruptcy or by selling or transferring assets, said the China Banking Regulatory Commission in a guideline published on its website on Friday. The CBRC, along with the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said banks should stop providing lending and settlement services to those companies that refuse to correct their behavior. Banks should post information about defaults by these companies on the national credit information sharing platform, so that all banks can carry out punishment jointly. The national banking regulator also forbade banking institutions from offering loans to new steel and coal projects that violate government rules or to companies that are increasing their capacity against regulations. For those companies that meet China's industrial policies, already have started to reduce capacity and are restructuring their business, banks should form creditors' committees - temporary organizations set up by at least three banks that are creditors of a company having difficulty in repaying a large amount of debt, the CBRC said. These committees will implement debt restructuring by adjusting loan maturity, lending rates and repayment methods for the company. "Banks will continue to support rational credit demands from high-quality coal enterprises rather than recalling loans in advance and stopping lending to them," said Zhang Anshun, director of the CBRC Shanxi Office. The regulator encouraged banks to offer syndicated loans to qualified steel and coal companies for mergers and acquisitions. Wu Qing, director of the comprehensive research office of the Research Institute of Finance at the Development Research Center of the State Council, said: "Policymakers should find solutions for cutthroat competition triggered by excess capacity in the steel and coal industries by imposing control of prices and capacity utilization and encouraging mergers and acquisitions that enhance market competitiveness. Leading dairy firm China Huishan denied fraud charges published by Muddy Water LLC, a due diligence based investment firm that conducts investigative research on public companies. Huishan says that its operations are proper and that its financial report disclosure is true and accurate. The Hong Kong-listed dairy company ranks No 1 in Northeast China and No 5 in the national market, with the 3.09 billion yuan ($444 million) worth of liquid milk sales in fiscal year 2016, according to public information. The mainland plant, which carried out a $1.3 billion listing in Hong Kong in 2013, was suspended when down 2.14 percent on Friday morning, following the report from the US-based short seller. "Since at least 2014, the company has reported fraudulent profits largely based on the lie that it is substantially self-sufficient in producing alfalfa. We found overwhelming evidence that Huishan has long purchased substantial quantities of alfalfa from third parties, which gives us no doubt that Huishan's financials are fraudulent," according to Muddy Water's report. Huishan did not reply directly to the charge, but a publication on Huishan's website says it has planted 3,780 hectares of alfalfa along Liaohe River and Linghe River. "This can basically meet the demand of the company. And the company plans to expand the alfalfa planting as its business expands." Chen Jiao, chief agriculture analyst of Industrial Securities, said the dairy industry suffered excess problems in the past two years, but is now on the verge of recovery. "Unless there is a serious problem with the company itself, no one would go against the trend." Modern Farming, one of the most shorted dairy stocks in Hong Kong, rose over 60 percent during the past three months, which may force short sellers to return borrowed shares at a higher price, according to Chen. ATHENS - The 320 milion euro ($334 million) agreement for the transfer of a 24-percent stake in the Greek power grid operator ADMIE from Greece's Public Power Corporation (PPC) to China's State Grid International Development (SGID) was signed here on Friday. The Chinese company won an international tender in October 2016 and the complex sale process was completed in record time, PPC chairman and CEO Manolis Panagiotakis noted during the signing ceremony. Greek environment and energy minister Giorgos Stathakis celebrated the deal's having moved one step further, cementing the close economic relations between Greece and China, Greek national news agency AMNA reported. Addressing the event, Greek officials welcomed the "strategic partnership", stressing that Chinese investors had once again cast a vote of confidence in the prospects of the company and in Greece. ADMIE has major technological potential, an excellent workforce and plans to expand its network, Panagiotakis said. In early 2017, a PPC shareholders' meeting will form the "Pubic Holding Company ADMIE" to which the operator's shares will be transferred. At the end of the process, the Greek state will own 51 percent of ADMIE shares, SGID 24 percent, and other investors the remaining 25 percent. BEIJING - The just-concluded Central Economic Work Conference on Friday confirmed that the supply-side structural reform will continue unabated into 2017, and that "seeking progress while maintaining stability" will be the guiding principle in governance and economic work next year. Overseas pundits, including those who have expressed concerns about China's economy, have voiced optimism that the Chinese economy will overcome the headwinds as long as the supply-side structural reform continues. Over the past 30 years, China's economy has maintained sustained rapid growth and created a miracle. This year, China has achieved steady growth with its gross domestic product (GDP) expanding 6.7 percent year on year in the first three quarters. The government set a growth target range of 6.5 percent to 7 percent for this year. Paul Sheard, executive vice president and chief economist of S&P Global, noted the fact that China, one of the largest economies in the world, has a 35-year track record of near double-digit growth, which demonstrates the country's potential, provided the reforms continue. Meanwhile, the famous economist Jim O'Neill, who has created the BRIC nations acronym, said China is transforming from an investment-driven economy to one driven by consumption. "Transition is underway," he said. "Chinese consumption is not as strong as it was, but it is still growing by about 10 percent." "Chinese consumers' share of GDP is slowly rising. That is what the world wants, and that is what China wants," the economist said. O'Neill forecast that for the rest of this decade, China's economy will probably grow at between 6 percent and 7 percent, and for an economy that was about $11 trillion in size, that is "pretty good." Nicholas Lardy, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in the United States, said the Chinese economy is transforming from an investment- and industry-driven model to a consumption- and service-oriented one. The service sector has made great contributions to economic growth, and consumption has become an important source of the growth, he said, adding that these factors laid a solid foundation for a sustained and stable high rate of growth. Despite these achievements, there are problems ahead. Looking forward, against the backdrop of a weak global economy and trade, excessive productivity and contradiction between supply and demand remain serious problems in China, and some financial sectors face risks. O'Neill said China needs to carry out more reforms, especially in its credit system, and let the market play a bigger role. Margit Molnar, head of the China Desk of the Economics Department of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), said China's fiscal reform "has been very successful," adding that China has changed its budget law in 2014, which came into effect in 2015, to allow local Chinese governments to issue bonds. Moreover, China has decided to promote the Belt and Road Initiative, improve its investment environment and open up many more fields to become more globally integrated. On the Belt and Road Initiative, Molnar said "it was not just a trade and investment type of integration that people have thought in the beginning, but it really goes into areas like intellectual property rights or environment or climate change, or collaboration in areas that people never thought such an initiative could cover." For example, Dragana Mitrovic, professor of political science at the University of Belgrade, said the Serbian public and business communities, and especially local communities, are now expecting to see more direct Chinese investments in the real economy of Serbia. BEIJING - China will strengthen its efforts to introduce foreign investment in 2017, said a statement issued Friday after the Central Economic Work Conference. Efforts will be made to build a law-based business environment, to promote the introduction of foreign investment, and to give better play to foreign-funded businesses their important role in promoting the development of the real economy, according to the statement. The three-day conference, which concluded Friday, saw Chinese leaders and senior officials sketch out the country's guiding economic policies and priorities for the next year. Foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Chinese mainland rose 3.9 percent year on year to reach 731.8 billion yuan ($113.79 billion) in the first 11 months this year, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed Thursday. BEIJING - China will increase its financial support for mergers and acquisitions (M&As) in the steel and coal industries, an official statement has said. The loan ratio for legitimate M&As could be raised to as high as 70 percent of the total value of a transaction, according to the statement jointly published by the China Banking Regulatory Commission, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Meanwhile, the government should strictly control credit delivery to prevent it from funding illegal new production capacity in the steel and coal industries. Banks and banking institutions should not provide credit support to illegal steel and coal projects and should stop loaning to relevant companies, the statement said. China is the world's largest producer and consumer of steel and coal. Cutting overcapacity is a high priority as the two industries have become a drag on growth. In February, the government announced that steel capacity should be cut by between 100 and 150 million tons by 2020, 45 million tons of which should be achieved in 2016. Coal capacity reduction has been set for half a billion tons over the next few years, with 250 million tons expected for 2016. Progress came faster than expected. In late November, the State Council announced that both targets for the year had been achieved ahead of schedule. Zhao Ming, president of Honor, shows the latest smartphone, Honor Magic, at Friday's release. [Photo provided to China Daily] Firm says handset can sense its environment, learn from owner's patterns of behavior Huawei Technologies Co Ltd unveiled an artificial-intelligence-enabled smartphone on Friday, as the world's third biggest handset maker ramped up its resources to experiment with cutting-edge technology and new industrial design. Honor Magic, released by Huawei's sub-brand Honor, comes with dual cameras in both the front and the rear. It is also equipped with the Shenzhen-based firm's latest fast-charging technology which promises over 90 percent of battery strength with a half-hour charge, faster than most rival products. Zhao Ming, president of Honor, said it took four years for Huawei to develop the new handset so that it can not only automatically sense its environment, but also have the ability to learn from an owner's behavioral patterns and use. "For example, as soon as you arrive at a movie theater your e-ticket will automatically pop up on the smartphone screen, because the phone knows that you have arrived at your destination," Zhao said. Huawei says that the longer owners use the handset, the smarter it becomes. "If I send out a message saying 'let's meet at our regular bar', the phone will know which bar I am talking about and can automatically map the best route to get there," Zhao added. The new model, priced around 3,700 yuan ($531), comes amid increasing concerns about whether the smartphone sector has hit the ceiling point for innovation, as products increasingly look and operate similarly. In October, Xiaomi Corp unveiled its concept phone MIX, whose display features a 91.3 percent screen-to-body ratio, arguably the highest on any smartphone, as part of its efforts to differentiate its handsets. "Although Apple has already achieved some similar AI functions on its iPhones, the offerings on Honor Magic are more intelligent and more suitable for Chinese consumers," said James Yan, research director at Counterpoint Technology Market Research, in a written comment. Yan said Huawei was providing consumers with one-stop AI services for different scenarios, such as traveling, shopping and going to movies, rather than scattered AI services. "But it is also of crucial importance to protect user data and privacy," Yan added. Established in 2013, Honor was initially designed by Huawei as an internet brand to compete with Xiaomi. But as online sales hit a ceiling, it is also trying to gain ground in the bricks-and-mortar market. So far, Honor has been sold to over 100 million users. Jin Di, research manager at International Data Corp China, said in a report that better AI services would be one of the key areas for smartphone vendors to focus on going forward. Honor Magic became available in the Chinese mainland on Friday evening. Tourists visit Jingshan Park in central Beijing on Friday afternoon as smog started to shroud the city. SUN JUN/CHINA DAILY "Smog is coming!" That was what Yan Jie and her friends mostly talked about on Friday afternoon on social media. "I saw a picture showing smog rolling in from the south to replace the blue sky in the north," said the 30-year-old Beijing resident. Most of Yan's friends live in Beijing and are enthusiastic fans of the popular TV series Game of Thrones. "I feel horrified at the thought of choking air, so I borrowed the saying 'Winter is coming' from the TV series to describe how I feel about smog," she said. Yan added that she would stay at home with her baby for the weekend and turn on air purifiers. Satellite pictures updated hourly by the Beijing Environmental Monitoring Center showed thick smog gradually moving in from south to north. Many Beijing residents shared similar feelings as they discussed the approaching thick layer of haze on Friday on social media like WeChat and micro blogs. "In the morning, I was confused as to why the government had issued a red alert, since the sky was still blue," said Zhan Minghui, 33, who works for an internet company. "Now I think the early warning is necessary, and I hope it will work." The Beijing government announced the red alert, the highest emergency response level against air pollution, on Thursday night. The alert, the first of this year, took effect at 8 pm on Friday and was expected to be lifted on Wednesday, when air quality is forecast to improve. With the red alert in place, private car owners are allowed to use the roads only on alternative days based on odd or even license plate numbers. The city's education authority also ordered kindergartens, primary schools and private training centers to suspend classes. Middle schools can decide for themselves whether to cancel classes. Restrictions are also imposed on the city's industrial production activities. Twenty-one other cities in northern and central parts of the country also activated red alerts for smog. On Friday afternoon, parts of Hebei, Shandong and Henan provinces were shrouded in thick smog, according to the National Meteorological Center. The smog was forecast to become thicker and reach peak levels over the weekend in Beijing, Tianjin and many cities in Hebei province. Visibility is expected to be less than 500 meters in some areas, the center said. People in Shanghai can now plan their own funerals by signing a prepaid contract with a funeral services provider detailing arrangements for their last rites. Fu Shou Yuan International Group, the largest death care and funeral services provider in China, has started to offer reservations for such a service in Shanghai. It plans to officially launch the program next year, a pioneering move in a culture where people generally shun topics about death. "We want to provide family members with peace of mind and ensure that elderly people have no regrets in life," said Xing Weidong, assistant to the general manager of Fu Shou Yuan in Shanghai. "Many young people in China are the only child in their family, so a young couple needs to take care of four elderly people. They might be at a loss as to what to do when their loved ones pass away. This is when we step in and help," Xing said. Funeral planning is common in Western countries and has gained popularity in Japan in recent years. In Shanghai, Fu Shou Yuan offers three funeral-planning packages priced at 6,800 yuan ($977), 12,800 yuan and 21,800 yuan. People can pick everything from the burial clothing to cremation urns to flowers. The purchase of cemetery plots is not included. Clients need to pay the service fees in a lump sum. Supervised by the government, the company will set up a trust fund to hold the payment, which will be used when client dies. The flow of money can be tracked by clients via the company's online system. The contract has no time limit, so people can plan decades in advance, and details can be updated as needed, Xing said. Earlier this year, the company started a pilot program in Hefei, Anhui province, and received more than 300 orders in eight months. About 80 percent of the orders have been for people between ages 65 and 70. Statistics show that more than 36 percent of Shanghai's registered population will be 60 or older by 2020. Song Meixian, an 82-year-old woman at a nursing home in Shanghai, is considering buying the service. "I have seen many old friends around me pass away without being properly attended to, so I think this service can be really helpful. It can ensure that I have the funeral I want," she said. China's elderly population will double from 212 million in 2014 to around 400 million by 2050, according to the National Health and Family Planning Commission. Some people are reluctant to embrace the plan. Xue Guoming, a 58-year-old Shanghai resident, said he did not like the idea. "Dwelling on arrangements related to death will give me bad luck." Wu Shiqing, a 24-year-old woman, said the service sounds appealing, but she would not buy it for herself. "The packages with price tags are too commercial for a sensitive topic like death," she said. Wu Yiwei contributed to this story. Former political adviser found guilty of taking advantage of his posts File photo of Ling Zhengce. Ling Zhengce, a former senior political adviser of Shanxi province, was sentenced at a local court on Friday to 12 and a half years in prison for taking bribes. Ling, former vice-chairman of the Shanxi Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, was found guilty of taking advantage of his posts to offer help for others in project examinations and approval, business operations and promotions between 2001 and 2014, according to a verdict from Changzhou Intermediate People's Court in Jiangsu province. Ling accepted bribes worth more than 16 million yuan ($2.3 million) either personally or through his son. He was fined 1.5 million yuan, and his illegal gains must be turned over to the State, the court ruled. The court showed leniency as Ling admitted his crimes, gave account of cases that were not found by investigators and voluntarily turned over his profits, according to the judges. Ling, 64, is a brother of Ling Jihua, former vice-chairman of the CPPCC. The latter was sentenced on July 4 to life in prison for taking bribes totaling 77.08 million yuan, illegally obtaining State secrets and abusing his power. In another development on Friday, a senior official at the Ministry of Justice was placed under investigation for suspected graft, according to the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China, the country's top anti-graft watchdog. Lu Enguang, head of the ministry's political affairs department, was suspected of "serious discipline violations", using the usual euphemism for graft, according to statement from the commission's website. It gave no other details. Lu has been the first vice-ministerial level official with the Ministry of Justice that was put under graft probe since a massive anti-corruption campaign was launched in the country in late 2012. Lu, a native of Yanggu in Shandong province, worked as deputy head of the ministry's political affairs department since May 2009. Lu assumed his current position in November last year, and had previously worked in the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security and in the publishing industry. A nursing home in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, offers rewards to encourage people to visit their parents and relatives. According to Fuxing Nursing Home, people who visit the home more than 30 times in two months can get a voucher worth 200 yuan ($29). A 100-yuan voucher will be given if they visit more than 20 times in two months. The voucher can be used to pay for the nursing home's fees. Yin Zongyin, a director of the home, said that the rewards, though not too much, have successfully reminded many people to visit. The policy was issued about two months ago. Before that, of the 512 seniors in the home only 137 were visited twice a month, 126 once a month and 134 once every two months. No one visited the 77 who often say they feel lonely, he said. But since the coupon was introduced, 129 seniors have had people visit them more than 30 times, 38 more than 20 times and 60 more than 10 times, according to the nursing home. "Nursing homes can provide professional services to the seniors, but we cannot provide the emotional comfort that only their children and relatives can give," Yin said. Xiang Furong, a nurse with the home, said that the average age of the 512 seniors is 81 years old. Many of them want to be accompanied by their blood relatives, not by nursing home workers. "Some of the relatives feel ashamed when they know the policy," said Xiang. "After they visit the home, some seniors have better appetites and more smiles on their faces." Wei Mouwen, dean of Fuxing Nursing Home, understands the dilemma people face when deciding whether to spend time at work or take care of elderly family members. "For those bread-earners whose parents are getting old, they might not be able to have enough time to visit the home. For couples who are the only children in their families, they need to take care of four parents and their own children." Wei said that with the senior population increasing rapidly, more families will face the problem of supporting their parents. According to the National Health and Family Planning Commission, 222 million Chinese, accounting for more than 16 percent of the population, were 60 or older at the end of 2015. That number grows by about 10 million every year. To encourage more people to support seniors, local governments are also rolling out more policies. For example, Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu province, has offered money to those who take care of their family members at home. Beijing has planned similar policies, which will give salaries to jobless people who take care of their family members. Beijing also suggests that people who take care of elderly family members be given holidays, including celebrating seniors' birthdays, going to hospitals and organizing activities on the Chongyang Festival for the elderly, according to a five-year work plan of the city. Chinese students need better guidance and tools to help them forge the ability of "reading to learn", educators from China and abroad said at a conference about the teaching of English held in Beijing on Friday. Wang Mengyan, director of ETS TOEFL Junior Management Center in China, said at the conference that many Chinese people have learned English for at least a decade and began to realize that reading is not only about understanding the meaning of the text. "Rather, it's more about forming a person's own way of thinking, including critical thinking," she said. "Chinese students need specific tools to do this and one tool that turns out be very helpful is graded books." Terry Wolfson, principal of Dalian American International School in Liaoning province, said reading is the foundation of learning in the US education system. So it relies a lot on teachers to help children achieve their goal of learning at different phases, Wolfson added. "Looking at my experience as an educator from America and a secondary school principal for a couple of years, we have a concept that every teacher in our building needs to be a teacher of reading," she said, adding that whether the class is art, science or English, the teacher should work to help students master the strategies of reading needed at that specific period of time. The conference was organized by the 21st Century English Education Media Group, which is administered by China Daily and is dedicated to the education of Chinese young people with global vision and the ability to communicate globally, said Qu Yingpu, deputy editor-in-chief of China Daily. "The group is also the host of the nationally renowned 21st Century English Speaking Competition, which attracted more than 600,000 elementary school, secondary school and college students to participate last year," Qu said, adding that the group has more than 10 English publications for teachers and students from elementary school to college. The conference brought together educators from China and abroad to share views on important issues in English education, including Chinese students studying overseas, reforming the teaching of English and the importance of reading. Awards were also issued at the conference to some English learning platforms, brands and schools to honor their contribution to China's English education during the past year. A new 700-member Chinese United Nations peacekeeping infantry battalion will be in place in South Sudan within a week, China's Defense Ministry said on Friday. The new peacekeeping force will take over the duties of the previous Chinese troops stationed in the capital Juda since December last year. The UN Security Council passed a resolution backing a peacekeeping mission in South Sudan in 2014, after civil war broke out in the country in 2013, two years after it gained independence from Sudan. In July, two Chinese peacekeepers, Li Lei and Yang Shupeng, died after their vehicle was struck by a shell when it was guarding a refugee camp near the UN compound in Juba. The new troops began their 12-month deployment on Dec 4. They are being transported to Juba in six separate groups with the fourth one, consisting of 120 troops, arriving on Thursday. The new troops immediately began transition missions and training, ranging from logistics to city patrols. With careful preparation and help from previous Chinese peacekeepers, the new peacekeepers are ready to undertake various missions independently, battalion commander Ding Hailong said. UN peacekeeping troops are tasked with protecting civilians, UN staff and humanitarian workers, conducting patrols and providing security escorts. File photo of South China Sea. [Photo/Xinhua] BEIJING - Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Yang Yujun said late Saturday that China has decided to hand over the US underwater drone it captured in its waters to the United States in an appropriate manner. According Yang's statement on the website of the defense ministry, on the afternoon of December 15, a Chinese naval lifeboat located an unidentified device in the waters of the South China Sea. In order to prevent the device from causing harm to the safety of navigation and personnel of passing vessels, the Chinese naval lifeboat verified and examined the device in a professional and responsible manner. Upon examination, Yang said, the device was identified as an underwater drone of the United States. The Chinese side has decided to hand over it to the US in an appropriate manner. Both sides have been maintaining communication on the issue, Yang noted. The US side's unilateral move to dramatize the issue in the process is inappropriate, and not conductive to its settlement. "We regret that," Yang added. It is worth emphasizing that for a long time, the US military has frequently dispatched vessels and aircraft to carry out close-in reconnaissance and military surveys within Chinese waters, Yang said. "China resolutely opposes these activities, and demands that the US side should stop such activities. China will continue to be vigilant against the relevant activities on the US side, and will take necessary measures in response," said the spokesperson. An airline recently told a man that his autistic son would not be allowed to board a flight with him because "the boy's behavior was odd" as he was reportedly seen yelling and frenetically walking back and forth in the busy airport. The incident sparked an online debate, with some netizens supporting the airline's decision, because they believed the 13-year-old boy's behavior was troubling other passengers. Another group contends that the airline's ground staff's decision was arbitrary, especially because they didn't provide the necessary help to the boy who did no one any harm. Was it a careless decision? Was it discriminatory? Was it wrong? In our daily life we often make decisions based on prejudice against, lack of knowledge about or fear of somebody or something that behaves or looks different from "normal". It is easier to walk away than trying to understand those who don't fit our perception of normal. Unfortunately, this seems to be common in many countries, including China. Concerted efforts of the government, educational institutions, familiessociety as a wholewill be needed to remove the prejudice against people with disabilities, especially children, and help them become full citizens who enjoy all the rights and public services. Sadly people with disabilities are often invisible in society. And if they remain invisible, the barriers against them will never be removed. Studies have shown that the lack of access to some essential services such as education and healthcare makes people with disabilities more vulnerable to poverty. To break the vicious cycle of poverty and foster a more inclusive society, we need to start from childhood. China has made great progress in improving the well-being of children in general, but the same cannot be said about kids with disabilities. Statistics from the China Disabled Persons' Federation show that only 72 percent of children with disabilities aged between 6 and 14 years receive the nine-year basic education, compared with nearly 100 percent for children of the same age group in general. For those children with disabilities who have access to education, half of them attend special schools and still face innumerable challenges in finding suitable jobs. In other words, they end up on the margins of society because they have not been imparted the proper knowledge and skills needed to compete in mainstream society. Inclusive education is the key to creating a truly inclusive society. Inclusive education means children with disabilities attend mainstream schools and, while following the same curricula as all other children, they also receive special attention and encouragement from specially trained teachers in classrooms equipped with all the necessary resources. Since 2012 intensive pilot intervention programs have been launched in Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, and the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. Teachers have been equipped with necessary skills and knowledge to design personalized study plans for children with disabilities, and resource classrooms have been set up with tools and toys that can be used for mental and physical stimulation and rehabilitation of such children. Last year, world leaders adopted the ambitious Sustainable Development Goals, which set a clear benchmark for progress toward a world in which every child will have the right to life, development, protection and participation. There is still a long way to go before all the barriers that prevent children with disabilities from living a fully inclusive life are removed. Save the Children, along with some other NGOs, is committed to joining hands with partners and individuals to make sure that all children, including children with disabilities, receive quality education by 2030. The author is country director for Save the Children China. CAI MENG/CHINA DAILY US President Barack Obama's tenure will end next month, leaving behind eight years of roller-coaster China-US ties. Facing the rise of a big country such as China, the Obama administration's China policy has been multi-dimensional and complicated. Obama established the US-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue in April 2009 and the US-China High-Level Consultation on People-to-People Exchange in November the same year. The two mechanisms have helped deepen mutual understanding even when bilateral ties soured. As such, they are a valuable institutional legacy of Obama. Thanks to his visit to China in November 2009, Obama became the first US president to visit Beijing in the first year of office. He underplayed the issues of human rights and Tibet, paid greater attention to commerce and trade, and thought highly of Sino-US cooperation, prompting US think tanks to raise the concept of the "Group of 2". But China was reluctant to accept the G2 concept, reiterating its status as a developing country and its non-alignment principle. The response made Obama better understand the complexity of Sino-US relations and Beijing's resolve to defend its own interests and stance. Obama's initial policy toward China triggered considerable objection in the US, with many opposition leaders pressing him to change his stance. The change came suddenly in late January 2010 with the US Defense Department announcing $6.4 billion worth of arms sales to Taiwan. In February, Obama hosted the Dalai Lama in the White House. At the end of 2011, he announced the "pivot" to Asia strategy, which escalated tensions in the South China Sea and East Asia. And to counter China's proposal on regional free trade, he proposed the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement. These changes in the Obama administration's China policy harmed mutual trust, leading to strategic frictions. Since late 2012, however, the new Chinese leadership has shown greater resolve and capability to safeguard the nation's core interests. In 2013, China marked its air-defense identification zone over the East China Sea and began island constructions in the South China Sea. The US-supported arbitration case in the Sino-Philippine dispute in the South China Sea intensified the conflict between Washington and Beijing. But the arbitration later proved to be a farce because of China's effective counter-measures. President Xi Jinping visited the US in August 2013 and proposed building up a "new type of major-country relationship". But Obama has been beating around the concept, possibly because he doesn't want Washington's allies in Asia to believe the US has accepted China as an equal. Yet despite the increasing trade frictions and political differences between the two sides, their economic and people-to-people relations are becoming stronger. By the end of 2015, the US had invested $77.47 billion in China, and by the middle of this year, China had invested $64.6 billion in the US. The bilateral trade volume has increased from $298.3 billion in 2009 to $558.3 billion. Last year, people from the US and China made 4.75 million trips to each other's countries, and there are more than 320 direct flights a week between the two countries. In 2013, China proposed the Belt and Road Initiative (the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Maritime Silk Road), to promote shared development along the routes, which is in line with global interests, including that of the US. A bitter fact for Obama to swallow is that he has prevented many US enterprises from benefiting from the initiative by misjudging China's intentions as aggressive and invasive. China's GDP was 30 percent of the US' in 2009; it is about 50 percent now. This shows Obama's policy to contain China's rise has not succeeded, which should be an important lesson for Trump. The author is a writer with China Daily. liyang@chinadaily.com.cn Guo Yuhai, chief designer of a typeface based on Chinese writer Lu Xun's handwriting at Foundertype. [Photo by Feng Yongbin/China Daily] When Steve Jobs made his commencement speech to students at Stanford University in California in 2005 he told of how the calligraphy class he attended at Reed College in Portland, Oregon, years earlier had influenced him. "I learned about serif and sans serif typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter combinations, about what makes great typography great," he says. "It was beautiful, historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can't capture, and I found it fascinating." The aesthetics of calligraphy he learned later turned into a wide choice of fonts in the Macintosh computer he co-invented with Steve Wozniak in the early 1980s, giving lay people the tools to express themselves artistically through their writing in the digital world. However, on the other side of the Pacific, Chinese people were then still struggling with digitally inputting characters, and of course designing various typefaces to use on computer came much later. If you visit Disneyland in Shanghai, which opened in June, and closely look at all the signs you may notice that each is not only in both English and China, but that they also bear similar typographical characteristics. A view of the roof of the Gongwang Art Museum. The building is part of an arts complex that houses an art archive and another museum. [Photo provided to China Daily] When officials of Fuyang approached Wang Shu in 2012 with an offer to have him design an arts center, the Pritzker Prize-winning architect had a rather unusual condition. He wanted to have a hand in designing homes for the local villages as well. Fuyang is located about an hour's drive from Hangzhou, Zhejiang province and it sits on the north bank of the Fuchun River, a place renowned for its natural beauty. Earlier this year, it became a district under the city of Hangzhou. The local administration promptly acceded to Wang's request. The prospect of securing the services of this famous figure in the architecture world was reason enough to do so. In a display of just how much they revered Wang, the local authorities dedicated a prime piece of land near a mountain and by a river to the arts center. Should that piece of land in this location be used for real estate development today, it would be valued at a staggering 1 billion yuan ($150 million). Such was Wang's influence. The arts center will comprise three buildings, Gongwang Art Museum, Fuyang Archives and Fuyang Museum, all of which will be designed by Wang. The Gongwang Art Museum is already open to public while the other two segments are still undergoing construction. Wang, 53, is the first Chinese to win the world's top prize in architecture. Based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, he is currently the dean of the School of Architecture at the China Academy of Art. Art works on display at the Gongwang Art Museum. [Photo provided to China Daily] The Gongwang Art Museum in Fuyang, a district under Hangzhou city, celebrated its grand opening on in September with an exhibition featuring Chinese landscape art. Titled Shanshui, a Manifesta, the exhibition is aimed at establishing the museum's identity through a dialogue about artworks from the present and the past. The exhibition, which will be held till Dec 23, features more than 30 ancient masterpieces loaned from the Palace Museum in Beijing and the Nanjing Museum of Jiangsu province. The showcase also includes creations by dozens of contemporary artists. The natural landscape, defined as "mountains and rivers" (shanshui) in traditional Chinese culture, is the embodiment of the Chinese spirit, said the museum curator Gao Shiming, who is also the vice director of the China Academy of Fine Art. Gao says that while Chinese artists today can easily be as adept in technical skills as the ancient masters, much of the connection with nature has inherently been lost in the modern world. He added that this new museum represents the mission of today's artists to rebuild this connection and re-establish China's own cultural identity. "We believe the new museum, carrying the name of Gongwang, will be able to bring the art of shanshui to the contemporary context. I hope there will be more chapters of the Shanshui Manifesta that can be spread to the whole world," says Gao. Among the ancient masterpieces are the original works by legendary artist Huang Gongwang. Several copies of his renowned scroll Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains which were produced by generations of artists through centuries are among the exhibits. These works reflect Huang's aesthetic ideas and creative methods, as well as reveal his great impact in China's landscape art. Outside the hall that contains ancient treasured pieces are contemporary art works, including oil paintings, charcoal drawings, audio and multimedia installations, as well as ink paintings. Renowned Chinese musician Zhu Zheqin has also been invited to participate in the exhibition. "This is a museum for all your senses, not just your eyes," says Gao, explaining his decision to invite Zhu. Zhu is a recognized world music artist who has in the past few years been researching Buddhist music. She had borrowed an ancient 500-year-old qinga music instrument in the shape of an inverted bellfrom Jingci Temple for her installation at the museum. The qing is found on a platform beside a shallow pool of water at the museum and ripples are formed every time someone strikes the instrument. The water movements are captured by video cameras before being projected onto the walls. Many of the contemporary artists featured in the exhibition hail from the China Academy of Art. While some have gone the traditional route with their art works, others have adopted new techniques and materials for their creations. "It doesn't have to be ink art. Ink is not the only means for Chinese expression. It is the spirit that counts," says Gao. Clothing donation program in Ludian, Yunnan province. [Photo provided to China Daily] China today has about 55 million people living in deprived areas in the country's remote mountainous areas, besides tens of millions of families who struggle to care for children with special needs. The numbers who need help prompted the China Soong Ching Ling Foundation to work with clothing brand Uniqlo to set up a special project to help with poverty alleviation and provide care for special children. The goal is to use the clothing brand's experience and resources to help these people. Together, the foundation and Uniqlo aim in three years to collect 5 million pieces of clothing to help people in need. To reach its goal, the company is contributing 3.88 million yuan to the project. Besides, nearly 500 of its stores nationwide will hold special programs for these children, and invite them to its shops to boost their social interaction. China Daily recently spoke to Tang Jiuhong, the Minister of Funds at the Soong Ching Ling Foundation and Fast Retailing Group Executive Vice President, Uniqlo Greater China CEO Pan Ning. UNICEF Wash Program in Chongqing [Photo provided to China Daily] How is poverty alleviation done through the Soong Ching Ling Foundation's public welfare projects? How is the policy reflected in cooperation with a clothing brand? Tang Jiuhong: Precision poverty alleviation is a guideline of the central government's poverty alleviation programs. A charity practitioner like me, and compassionate individuals and enterprises want the policy to be implemented properly. So, we evaluate projects first based on whether the recipients are poverty-stricken. Then, we decide whether the project is good for poverty alleviation, and whether it is accessible to the individuals who need help. The charity practitioners' ultimate goal can be achieved only if the recipients' life can be improved, either ideologically or spiritually. This time, we are working with Uniqlo to create a new vision and operational approach for the foundation's philanthropic tenets. We hope that by jointly leveraging some of its social resources, we can act as a role model. Sometimes, a smile can give recipients strength. In fact, clothes, especially beautiful ones which you send to poor children and poor families are not only a form of social compassion, but more importantly let them develop a yearning to better themselves. This was not the case in our earlier public-benefit projects. Therefore, the setting up of such a project with Uniqlo helps us devote ourselves to precision poverty alleviation. This fills a blank page in our foundation, so we attach great importance to it. Why did your company agree to work with the Soong Ching Ling Foundation? Pan Ning: This is mainly because we are like-minded. Both sides, along with many charitable social forces have a common belief in the power of public institutions and enterprises to promote social development, so that improved living conditions can ensure a better future for society as a whole, especially with regard to children and adolescents. Working with the China Soong Ching Ling Foundation has been effective in setting up a platform through which these children can gain confidence through interactive activities, which in turn can help connect them with the wider community. Designer Tracy Reese speaks to a reporter at the opening of the Black Fashion Designers exhibit at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. [Photo/Agencies] As a girl, Tracy Reese thought she might be an architect. Then she caught the fashion bug. She knew, of course, that designers who are black like her existed. She used to snap up Willi Smith at The Limited growing up in Detroit. She headed to New York with high hopes. "When I first came to New York my eyes were really opened to the breadth of the industry, but I was looking for our place in it," recalled Reese, who has dressed first lady Michelle Obama. Reese, along with other noted designers of color, Jeffrey Banks and Laura Smalls among them, spoke at the opening Tuesday of a new exhibition, Black Fashion Designers, at The Museum of the Fashion Institute of Technology. Running through May 16, the show offers a glimpse into exactly how impactful designers of color have been through the decades, including Reese, Banks and Smalls. Smalls has seen her dresses worn seven times by the departing Obama. They also know the challenges of striving for beauty in design while attempting to break through in an industry still dominated by whites. The newly discovered spider. Sumukha J.N/AFP The sorting hat from the Harry Potter series. Sumukha J.N/AFP Indian scientists have discovered a new species of spider that looks "uncannily" like the sorting hat in the Harry Potter series, and they have named it after the hat's owner, Godric Gryffindor. Ardent fans of the boy wizard came across the 7-millimeter-long spider in October last year during a survey of the lush Western Ghats mountain range in southwest India. "My colleagues and I are geeks, and we all thought,'Hey, this curious little spider looks exactly like the sorting hat.' It was uncannily similar,"Mumbai scientist Javed Ahmed said on Thursday. "So we made a pact that if this turns out to be a new species, we will name it after the sorting hat," he added, referring to the magical headwear that assigns students to their houses at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the hugely popular series. By June, Ahmed and his fellow scientists were "100 percent" sure it was a new species, so they went ahead and named the pointy-shaped and nocturnal spider Eriovixia Gryffindori. A review by experts confirmed that the spider, which mimics the shape of leaves to avoid predators, was indeed a newly discovered species. The discovery was published in December's Indian Journal of Arachnology and sparked a wave of excitement on social media, with Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling taking to Twitter to express her delight. "I'm truly honoured! Congratulations on discovering another #FantasticBeast!" Rowling tweeted to Ahmed. After the tweet was sent, Javed said,"I was so thrilled!" (Photo : Getty Images) Myanmar officials said they will handle ongoing war appropriately and ensure it does not reach China borders. Advertisement Myanmar authorities on Thursday vowed to ensure that the ongoing war in the country will not reach the mainland borders. The initiative comes after Chinese officials of the People's Liberation Army aired their concerns during a five-day state visit in Myanmar. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement "As a country, we will work to ensure that the issue to do with the border is handled appropriately," a military personnel for Myanmar said, noting that the Myanmar army would see to it that every resident in the Myanmar-China border would be safe and the region would not be affected by the ongoing war. "We will work to ensure that no Chinese resident is injured and ensure stability." The move followed after Zhao Zongpi, a commander at the PLA's western district, said that the war in Myanmar had already started penetrating into the Chinese community, The Independent reported. Zhao said that stray bullets had already hit the border and the war had already damaged a great deal of property in the region. "China is concerned at the armed clashes in northern Myanmar injuring Chinese border resident," Zhao said. "We hope Myanmar can strengthen border management, prevent stray bullets from entering into China and more importantly maintain the peace and tranquility in the border." The currently ongoing war is believed to have started on Nov. 20 this year after three ethnic-bound groups, namely, the Kachin Independence Army, Ta'ang National Liberation, and Myanmar Democratic Alliance attacked Myanmar security teams in Muse and Kutkai towns. China has, however, been on a mission to foster peace in the region. Wang Yi, China's Minister for Foreign Affairs, said that the Chinese state is ready to assist in any way to ensure that the region regained peace. Advertisement Tagschina, Myanmar, PLA, Myanmar war (Photo : US Navy) U.S. Navy underwater glider. Advertisement The United States has filed a formal diplomatic protest over China's inexplicable seizure on Dec. 15 of an "underwater glider" being operated by the U.S. Navy in international waters of the South China Sea off the Philippines. China has so far refused to respond or explain why a naval vessel of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) shadowing the USNS Bowditch (T-AGS 62), a Pathfinder-class oceanographic survey ship, seized the glider about to be retrieved by the U.S. ship. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement The Bowditch was designed for oceanographic sampling and data collection and the handling, monitoring and servicing of remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) such as underwater or ocean gliders, which are a class of unmanned underwater vessels (UUVs). The U.S. Navy said the seizure of the glider took place in international waters some 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay in the Philippines. It said there is no precedent in recent memory for an act of high seas piracy such as this. It said the glider wasn't a military glider but an unclassified UUV conducting "routine operations in accordance with international law." The gliders measure events such as salinity and temperature. The Bowditch was retrieving one vehicle when a Chinese warship arrived and stole the second UUV using a small boat. The U.S. sent radio messages requesting the drone be returned but the Chinese warship ignored the messages it confirmed receiving. "We call upon China to return our UUV immediately, and to comply with all of its obligations under international law," said the Pentagon in a statement. Hawkish Republicans demanded retaliation for the Chinese piracy. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain said this wanton deed requires a strengthened US military posture in the South China Sea to deter future aggression. "This brazen provocation fits a pattern of increasingly destabilizing Chinese behavior ... and this behavior will continue until it is met with a strong and determined US response," said Sen. McCain stated. Some political analysts, however, surmise China might be sending a message to President-elect Donald Trump over their displeasure about Trump's dismissal of the One China Policy and his buddying up to Taiwan. "Knowing Chinese military officials for many years and how orders are communicated from the highest power centers in Beijing down to commanders on the ground or water, this was very likely a highly planned and escalatory move to show China will not take matters lightly when it comes to President-elect Trump's phone call and comments on Taiwan, or Chinese actions overall," said Harry Kazianis, director of defense studies at the Center for the National Interest. Another reason for this act of piracy is China's intention to quickly advance its own ocean glider program that lags far behind the U.S. China will reverse engineer the unidentified glider it stole from the U.S. Navy. China has continued developing deep-diving underwater gliders despite a decades-old U.S. ban on exports of these vehicles to China out of concern China will put the torpedo-shaped gliders to military use. Last August, Chinese media revealed a Chinese underwater glider named Haiyi-7000 that plunged 5,751 meters into the Mariana Trench, the world's deepest ocean trench, had aroused the interest of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), China's armed forces. That depth was about 250 meters shy of the world record for underwater gliding of 6,000 meters set in 2009 by a Seaglider developed by researchers at the University of Washington. Another UW Seaglider also holds the world's endurance record, operating for nine months and five days in the Pacific Ocean. An underwater glider is an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) that uses small changes in its buoyancy to convert vertical motion to horizontal motion, thereby propelling itself forward with very low power consumption. Underwater gliders, which are motorless and have wings, trace an up-and-down sawtooth motion through the water. This method of propulsion allows gliders to travel farther than AUVs powered by electric motor-driven propellers. The United States is the world leader in this technology while the U.S. Navy is one of its biggest backers. A huge advantage of military underwater gliders is they can cruise noiselessly and autonomously beneath the surface without human intervention for days, months or even an entire year. All the while, the gliders keeps collecting military data or monitoring activity over a vast ocean area. An underwater glider armed with an explosive warhead can also be programmed to attack underwater targets such as enemy submarines. But, like wolves, armed gliders can be unleashed in packs of up to 100 vehicles to deny enemy submarines access to specific areas. The Haiyi-7000 is one of a number developed by a team from the Shenyang Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences led by Prof. Yu Jiancheng. It was launched from Tansuo-1, the academy's new 94 meter research ship, which is part of the government's rapidly expanding scientific research fleet. Advertisement Tagsunderwater glider, United States, Piracy, china, USS Bowditch, unmanned underwater vessels, UUV, John McCain (Photo : US Navy) U.S. Marines' F-35B lands aboard the USS America. Advertisement The United States said U.S. Marine Corps F-35B stealth jet fighters will be deployed aboard the new Royal Navy supercarrier, the HMS Queen Elizabeth, when this warship begins patrols of the South China Sea in 2021. UK Secretary of State for Defense Sir Michael Fallon signed an agreement with U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter to allow Marine F35Bs to deploy from HMS Queen Elizabeth. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement The British stealth fighters to see action from the HMS Queen Elizabeth will be F-35Bs, the same aircraft flown by pilots of U.S. Marine Corps Aviation, the air component of the USMC. The first Royal Navy F-35Bs will be deployed aboard the carrier in 2018. F-35Bs from the Royal Air Force will also become operational in the same year. The Marine's Northrop Grumman F-35Bs and F-35Bs from the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm will deploy alongside each other when the HMS Queen Elizabeth begins her first operational tour in 2021. The F-35B is the short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) variant of the F-35. It can take-off and land vertically like a helicopter from the decks of Nimitz-class aircraft carriers (CVN); amphibious assault ships (LHD) and the America-class amphibious assault ships (LHA) The Marines plan to purchase some 340 F-35Bs to replace current inventories of both the F/A-18 Hornet (A, B, C and D-models), and the AV-8B Harrier II jump jet, in the fighter and attack roles. The announcement of the joint strike force aboard the Queen Elizabeth comes a week after the commander of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) strongly warned the United States and the UK against conducting any more "freedom of navigation and flight" patrols in the South China Sea. PLAN Commander Admiral Wu Shengli said China firmly opposes interventions in the South China Sea from countries outside the region, an indirect reference to the U.S. and the UK. He also said China stoutly opposes "unprofessional and unsafe acts" by ships or aircraft in the South China Sea, including attempts to use "freedom of navigation and flight" as an excuse to compromise Chinese sovereignty over the South China Sea and to destabilize Asia. "The construction work on the Nansha (Spratly) Islands, which are our own territory, is completely lawful and reasonable," claims Admiral Wu. "There are defense facilities, but most of the infrastructure on the islands is to serve civilian purposes. They can provide a wider range of public services to neighboring nations and the entire international community." The U.S. Navy has been conducting what it calls "Freedom of Navigation Operations" in the South China Sea since early this year. The UK also said its Royal Navy will begin naval patrols of the South China Sea in 2021 after its first supercarrier, the HMS Queen Elizabeth, becomes operational. Admiral Wu also suggested that other countries should respect historic facts; resort to negotiation for disputes; enhance mutual trust and personnel exchanges and improve joint drills. An International Court of Arbitration in The Hague last July 12, however, issued a ruling invalidating China's claim to own the South China Sea based on its alleged historical rights. The court found China had infringed Philippine sovereignty by seizing islands rightfully owned by the Philippines. China has refused to obey the court's ruling telling it to return the islands to the Philippines. Advertisement TagsF-35B, U.S. Marine Corps, HMS Queen Elizabeth, South China Sea, U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps Aviation, Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm, Admiral Wu Shengli (Photo : Getty Images) 'The Global Times', in an editorial published last Friday, said China must act immediately to conquer Taiwan. Advertisement The Chinese Communist Party mouthpiece, The Global Times, has called on Beijing to prepare for the use of all-out military force as a means to take control of Taiwan and its people. In an editorial published on Friday, The Global Times newspaper strongly encouraged China to take a more aggressive stance in dealing with Taiwan, considered by China as its breakaway province, amid the rising tensions with the United States. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement "It might be time for the Chinese mainland to reformulate its Taiwan policy, make the use of force as a main option and carefully prepare for it," the commentary read. Dire Consequences The opinion piece urged China to immediately prepare for a military invasion of Taipei as it warned that any move made by the renegade province towards independence would result in dire consequences. According to the editorial, once Taiwan independence forces refuse secession and take steps to push for independence, the Chinese army will, in no time, punish them militarily. "Getting ready to achieve reunification through the use of force can pose a serious deterrence to Taiwan independence," the commentary added. "One China" Policy The explosive new editorial was published amid Beijing's rising tensions with Washington over President-elect Donald Trump's recent remarks that the US' decades-old "One China" policy should be scrapped unless China enters into a bargain of sorts with Washington. The US' "One China" policy officially solely recognizes the Chinese government over Taiwan. "I fully understand the One China policy, but I don't know why we have to be bound by a One China policy unless we make a deal with China having to do with other things, including trade," Trump was quoted as saying in an interview with Fox News. Sino-US Bilateral Relations China has condemned the remarks with the foreign ministry calling on the US leaders to be careful and sensitive in dealing with Taiwan-related matters in order to avoid any disruption or damage in the Sino-US bilateral relationship. Earlier, China was reportedly infuriated after Trump took on a phone call by Taiwan president Tsai Lng-wen, the first contact between the leaders of US and Taiwan in 40 years, in total disregard of the longstanding One China policy. A recent survey conducted by a Chinese polling agency has shown that majority of the Taiwan people are content with the status quo rather than push for independence or be reunified with the Chinese mainland. Advertisement TagsGlobal Times, Communist Party of China, military force, Secession, Taiwan, Taiwan Straits, Reunification, One China policy (Photo : CCTV) DF-21D. Advertisement A target missile representing China's DF- 21D "carrier killer" ballistic missile was destroyed by a pair of U.S. Navy RIM-174 Standard Extended Range Active Missile (ERAM), or Standard Missile 6 (SM-6), off the coast of Hawaii on Dec. 14. The test was held to prove the capability of the SM-6 fired from the navy's Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to shoot down the DF-21D, which China claims can sink a navy carrier over a thousand kilometers off the Chinese mainland. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement The medium-range ballistic missile target representing the DF-21D was the most capable and maneuverable ballistic missile deployed in the Pacific. It was built by Lockheed Martin's Targets and Countermeasures team. The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and the USS John Paul Jones, which is equipped with the Aegis Combat System Baseline 9.C1, fired two SM-6 Dual I missiles against a "complex, medium-range ballistic missile target." The SM-6 Dual I version is designed to successfully intercept a ballistic missiles in the terminal phase, or the last few seconds before missile impact. The Dual I upgrade adds a more powerful processor running more sophisticated targeting software to hit a warhead plummeting from the upper atmosphere at extreme speed. All 62 operational Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are equipped with the SM-6 and the Aegis Combat System. Each destroyer can carry 96 missiles of various types. The test, designated Flight Test Standard Missile-27 (FTM-27), proved the sea-based terminal endo-atmospheric defensive capability of the SM-6 and met the test's primary objective, said the MDA. "This test demonstrated the capabilities MDA and the Navy are delivering to our fleet commanders," said MDA Director Vice Admiral James Syring. "The SM-6 missile and the Aegis Weapon System continue to prove that they are critical components of our nation's multilayered, robust ballistic-missile defense system." The SM-6 missile uses an explosive warhead to destroy a ballistic missile unlike other U.S. missiles such as THAAD and the Standard Missile-3 that use non-explosive hit-to-kill technology. "The recent ballistic missile defense test off the coast of Hawaii demonstrates, yet again, that Aegis can successfully execute complicated missions against a complex, medium-range ballistic missile target," said Paul Klammer, director, Aegis BMD, for Lockheed Martin. Aegis Baseline 9 is the key to Aegis modernization, and merges area anti-air warfare with ballistic missile defense into a truly integrated air and missile defense. The Aegis Baseline 9 enhancements enable Aegis to continue to evolve to counter advanced threats such as the DF-21D. The DF-21D is a road mobile, medium-range, anti-ship designed to sink U.S. Navy aircraft carriers with its maneuverable re-entry vehicles. China probably operates seven anti-ship missile brigades, each equipped with up to 32 DF-21D launchers. Chinese videos show DF-21 missiles launched in salvos of six at a time. Advertisement TagsDF- 21D "carrier killer" ballistic missile, RIM-174 Standard Extended Range Active Missile (ERAM), Standard Missile 6 (SM-6), Missile Defense Agency, USS John Paul Jones (Photo : USAF) USAF laser fighter. Advertisement The high-energy laser being developed by the U.S. Air Force for its fighters won't arm either the Northrop Grumman F-35 Joint Strike Fighter or the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor stealth fighters. The program to build the airborne lasers is named "Self-Protect High Energy Laser Demonstrator (SHiELD) Turret Research in Aero-Effects (STRAFE) and is under the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). Like Us on Facebook Advertisement Northrop Grumman in August was awarded a $39.3 million contract related to the development of a laser-based self-defense system for the USAF. Northrop Grumman will also develop and deliver an advanced beam control system for integration as part of a complete laser weapons system into a tactical pod for USAF fighter aircraft as part of the SHiELD segment. On the other hand, STRAFE will increase the knowledge and understanding of aero-optic disturbances in a supersonic environment by collecting data during engagement scenarios. Work on SHiELD/STRAFE is expected to be completed by the end of August 2021. SHiELD, which will be housed in a large pod on the side of a jet, will destroy incoming missiles. In contrast, current laser systems only divert missiles away from a U.S. jet. Future improvements intend to increase the laser's power output for longer range and greater destructive power. Unfortunately, the Air Force's most advanced jets, the F-22 Raptor and F-35, most likely won't mount the SHiELD since the bump created by the pod will negate their stealth characteristics and make them more visible to air and ground radars. Instead, ShiELD will arm the Air Force's fourth-generation fighters such as the Boeing F-15 Eagle and Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon. AFRL, however, seems to be leaning towards the F-15, a combat proven fighter that entered Air Force service in 1976. AFRL's SHiELD program, which is sponsored by Air Combat Command, aims to demonstrate a high-energy laser on a tactical aircraft in 2021. Funding the future laser jets will be an Air Force request for $2.5 billion in their fiscal 2017 budget to Congress. Sources said AFRL engineers might combine many small lasers (similar to those in a Blu-Ray player) into a powerful high-power beam with over 10 kilowatts of power. Advertisement TagsU.S. Air Force, Northrop Grumman F-35 J, Northrop Grumman F-22 Raptor, stealth fighter, Self-Protect High Energy Laser Demonstrator, SHIELD, Turret Research in Aero-Effects (STRAFE), air force research laboratory After Cow Slaughter and Beef Ban and Rohit Vemula issues, Pawan Kalyan has took to twitter today to reveal his thoughts on Patriotism. He made some very interesting points. To whom Do I have to Prove my PATRIOTISM, True Patriotism will come into experience when an Individual or a Political party goes beyond caste, creed,class, religion,region , ethnic n linguistic differences. Patriotism cannot be seen through as one Partys perspective or ideals. The true meaning of Patriotism is deeply rooted in Human values and it is holistic in nature. In democracy, differing with Ruling Partys opinion or policy cannot be labelled as anti-national. Even if they want to take such extreme view about their opponents, first let them hear out.. with out stifling their voice, then take the needed action. In haste, if they take any action it will only backfire as it did..in the JNTU students sedition case and it was proven that the tape was doctored. A simple evening to spend time with family and friends to watch a movie has been made into a Testing Ground to prove ones patriotism. Why not Political Parties start their meetings with National Anthem, why only cinemas? why not the highest offices in the country? Those who preach and enforce laws -Why dont they lead us by example?? So they are SIGN POSTS?? And when I see all this it reminds me of American Economist Thomas Sowells words: Are we turning the law into a trap for honest people and bonanza for charlatans ? Tomorrow I will post about AP- Special Status. JAI HIND!! tweeted Pawan Kalyan a while ago. Canadian diplomats visit pastor imprisoned in North Korea Diplomats from Canada this week paid a rare visit to North Korea and were able to see a Canadian pastor serving a life sentence for subversion, a foreign ministry official said. Hyeon Soo Lim, who served at one of the largest churches in Canada, was sentenced to hard labor for life in December 2015 for what North Korea says was an attempt to overthrow the regime. Chantal Gagnon, a spokeswoman for Canadian Foreign Minister Stephane Dion, confirmed a report by North Korea's KCNA news agency that said the diplomats visited the country from Tuesday until Thursday and saw Lim. "We are still very concerned about his health, well-being and continued detention and are working actively to secure his release," she said. "This case is absolutely a priority for us," she added, declining to give details of Lim's health. In a statement, Lim's Toronto-area church said "we are hopeful that this is a positive sign that we will see Reverend Lim released and home soon." Canada established diplomatic relations with Pyongyang in 2001 but froze them in 2010. Ottawa now says it will only talk to North Korea about regional security, human rights and consular cases. The church has said Lim visited North Korea more than 100 times since 1997 and helped set up an orphanage and nursing home. In January, Lim told CNN he spends eight hours a day digging holes at a labor camp where he has not seen any other prisoners. Her Passion For Justice Burned Like White Heat: Who Was Eglantyne Jebb? Today is when the Church of England remembers Eglantyne Jebb, the founder of Save the Children who (having been born on 25 August 1876) died on this date in 1928. Eglantyne whose nickname was 'white heat' because of her passion for justice was a British humanitarian with a strong social conscience who was raised into a large, wealthy family before training to be a teacher. However, after just a year of teaching Eglantyne moved to Cambridge to look after her sick mother. Some time during her twenties, Eglantyne had a vision of Jesus which acted as the formative experience of her life, after which she would always, when faced with a challenge ask: 'What would Christ do?' After various pieces of charity work and a book Cambridge, a Study in Social Questions Eglantyne became aware of the situation facing children in Germany and Austria-Hungary towards the end of World War I which spelled defeat for their side. Eglantyne campaigned for the British government to end an economic blockade there and to help the children of these enemy countries. On April 15, 1919, the Save The Children Fund was founded by Eglantyne and her sister Dorothy to help these children. Surprisingly, its official launch at the Royal Albert Hall in London on May 19, 1919 saw large sums of money raised for the fund. As peace returned to Europe, Eglantyne focused this now internationally growing movement on a declaration of rights for children. In 1925, the first International Child Welfare congress was held in Geneva, and the declaration was widely discussed and supported by organisations and governments. An extended version would be adopted by the United Nations in 1959, and it was one of the main inspirations behind the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. After many months of suffering from a thyroid problem, Eglantyne died at a nursing home in Geneva. She is remembered there at St. George's cemetery. IS Shows No Sign Of Weakening As Mosul Battle Enters Third Month Islamic State fighters have stepped up counterattacks on Iraqi forces in Mosul amid bad weather as the U.S.-backed offensive to capture their last major city stronghold in Iraq enters its third month. With cloudy skies hampering coalition air surveillance, the militants carried out attacks in three districts of eastern Mosul, al-Quds, Ta'mim and al-Nur, over the past four days, residents and security officials said on Friday. "We heard clashes and explosions and then somebody shouting on the loudspeaker of the mosque 'Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, the Islamic State is staying'," said a Ta'mim resident. The campaign that started on Oct. 17 has turned into the biggest battle in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003. The humanitarian situation of the besieged population is causing alarm amid reports of food, water and fuel shortages, while the fighting is making access to hospitals difficult. Nearly 100,000 people have fled the city, according to the International Organization for Migration. More than 100,000 Iraqi soldiers, Kurdish fighters and Iranian-backed Shi'ite volunteers are taking part in the offensive. The latter are attacking the militants supply lines in a remote and semi-desert area west of Mosul to avoid fanning sectarian tensions with the city's Sunni population. The Iraqi military estimate the number of militants in the city at 5,000 to 6,000. They are dug in amid the city's remaining population of about one million, moving through tunnels and using suicide car bombs, sharpshooters and mortar fire to slow the advance of the Iraqi forces. A mainly western coalition is providing air and ground support to the offensive, led by the U.S. with more than 5,000 troops deployed in Iraq. The fall of Mosul would mark the defeat of the ultra-hardline Sunni group in the Iraqi half of the caliphate that also extends over parts of Syria. The city is by far the largest seized when they overran about a third of Iraq in 2014 and is the place where their leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, declared his theocratic dictatorship. At the current pace of advance, the offensive is likely to extend into next year, beyond the initial forecast of Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi who pledged to take the city in 2016. The U.S-trained Counter Terrorism Service, which is spearheading the fighting inside the city, has so far taken about half of its eastern side. Mosul is divided in two parts by the Tigris River that runs through its centre. Four of the city's five bridges have been destroyed to hamper the movement of the militants and their ability to bring car bombs and weapons from the western side. The fifth was also hit, but only at its edges, only allowing pedestrians to cross. Iraqi forces are holding off using field artillery and air bombardments to avoid civilian casualties, hoping to wear down the militants' resistance, depleting their numbers and their stock of car-bombs, two analysts in Baghdad said. "It is a matter of time before Daesh are defeated inside Mosul," said Ihsan al-Shammari, who heads the Iraqi Centre for Political Thought think-tank. "Their ammunition and equipment are being depleted." The Iraqi government also hopes that internal uprisings would break out against the militants, facilitating the advance of the army. These haven't happened so far because Islamic State, in the first days of the offensive, killed and detained hundred of ex-members of the security forces it deemed hostile to its harsh rule. No estimate for civilian casualties has been given by the warring sides. The United Nations last month said the fighting in eastern Mosul was overwhelming the capacity of the government and international aid groups. The United Nations earlier this month said nearly 2,000 members of the Iraqi security forces were killed across Iraq in November, a figure Iraq denied without indicating the losses among its troops. Pope Seeks Deal As He Chairs Talks Between Colombian President And Rival Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and opposition leader Alvaro Uribe were unable to find common ground on a peace accord with Marxist FARC rebels, even with the mediation of Pope Francis when they met at the Vatican on Friday. On his third visit to the Vatican, Santos appealed to Francis for support in ending a 52-year war that has killed more than 220,000 people and displaced millions. "We need your help," said Santos, who signed a modified peace deal in November after a previous pact was rejected in a plebiscite. He gave the pope a gift of a pen made from a machine gun bullet. Francis, an Argentine who has helped broker diplomatic efforts in Cuba and Venezuela, then received Uribe, a right-wing senator and former president who has been one of the harshest critics of the new peace deal. The former allies also met Francis together for around 20 minutes. A photograph released by the Vatican showed them sitting side by side at a table in the pope's private study. It appears no consensus was reached. "I told ex-president Uribe that we are always ready, as we have said in previous occasions, to continue dialogue, to reach agreement about how the peace accord should be implemented," Santos said after the joint meeting. Uribe argues the new deal is not tough enough on Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebels since it does not include opposition demands that they serve traditional jail sentences and be barred from forming political parties. "If the government allows room to examine certain issues, we could look for options," Uribe said, reiterating a previous demand. Santos won this year's Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to reach an accord, under which some 7,000 rebels are now heading to special demobilization areas to hand in their weapons. Francis has repeatedly expressed support for the deal over four years of negotiations. At Friday's meeting, he presented Santos with a medal and copies of the three encyclicals produced during his papacy. Amid all the death and carnage that erupted in 2016, there was still plenty of room for companies to make fools of themselves. Unlike previous years, some businesses managed to break away from the tried-and-true social media fails to actual real-world blunders. We're fascinated by homes that rise above the rest in terms of popularity. Each week, we count the clicks and run down the most popular homes on realtor.com. Now, we're ready to close the books on 2016 (in all ways imaginable)so we're counting down the most popular properties of the entire year. Nearly 365 days' worth of your clicks have been tabulated, and we weren't completely shocked by this year's winner. The country's biggest fixer-upper was the subject of one of our most popular articles of the year. Located in Texas, the mammoth structure is still looking for a buyer willing to spend $3.6 million on a home that's only a little more than halfway done. A former Harris County deputy constable will not face criminal charges in a case involving the destruction of as many as 21,500 pieces of evidence, his lawyer confirmed on Friday. On Friday, a Harris County grand jury took no action against Chris Hess, a former corporal with the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable's Office. Two side-by-side Houston businesses were vandalized overnight in the 4900 block of North Freeway and a man suspected in the case had been arrested. The break-ins happened just after midnight Saturday off U.S. 45 between East Burress Street and Airline Drive. It is not enough for family-owned pastry shops to bow to the gay marriage mob. Now, they're being targeted by the social justice mafia. At my alma mater, radical Oberlin College in Ohio (which boasts hapless Baltimore mayor and rioters' champion Stephanie Rawlings Blake and bizarro feminist actress and fake rape accuser Lena Dunham as graduates), the operators of a small-business bakery are under siege by vengeful students and administrators trying to crush them under the wheels of the race-baiters' bandwagon. The true victim in this latest tale of political correctness run amok is Gibson's Bakery - a quaint shop founded in 1885 that still bakes all its goods using original recipes. On Nov. 9, according to the city police report I obtained, shop employee Allyn Gibson caught a 19-year-old Oberlin College student allegedly stealing two bottles of wine and hiding them under his shirt. "As officers approached the area, Oberlin Police Sgt. (Victor) Ortiz, and Officer (Raymond) Feuerstein both stated they observed Gibson lying on his back with several individuals kneeling over him punching and kicking him with several other individuals in the immediate area. Officers attempted to gain control of the situation and were met several times with resistance from several different individuals." Allyn Gibson attempted to stop the alleged thief, Jonathan Aladin, from leaving the store and tried to take a photo him as he bolted. Gibson got whacked in the face with his own phone. Aladin then reportedly ran while throwing the two bottles of wine on the floor, becoming "violent" and "grabbing and hitting Allyn." Aladin ran out with two females who were with him in the store. Gibson followed and tried to detain the alleged shoplifter again on the street. Gibson's right as a shop employee to detain a suspected thief with probable cause until police arrive is protected under Ohio statute. As the females punched and kicked him, police officers who had arrived on scene during the beating wrote: "Allyn had several abrasions and minor injuries including what appeared to be a swollen lip, abrasions to his arms and wrists and a small cut on his neck." Aladin was charged with robbery and inflicting harm and faces a court hearing in the case this week. The two females, Endia Lawrence and Cecelia Whettstone, were charged with assault. You can guess what happened next. Aladin, who is black, became the new poster boy of institutional racism and oppression. Students organized protests and shrieked about "racial profiling," claiming that the bakery had a history of discriminating against customers "of color." It gets worse. Leading the charge in the latest War on Small-Biz Bakeries is the Oberlin College dean of students, Meredith Raimondo, who joined the baying mob in bullying the Gibson family. She disseminated flyers libelously asserting that Gibson's is a "racist establishment with a long account of racial profiling and discrimination." Convicted in the crazy Oberlin College court of public opinion, the school refused to renew its longstanding daily order of donuts and bagels. For a small business with razor-thin margins, losing that order could be devastating. Never mind that the "racism" charge is a brazen lie. As the police department pointed out, since 2011, there had been four robberies at the store including Aladin, "and he was the only black person. There were 40 adults arrested for shoplifting in five years, and 32 were white. There were six adult black suspects arrested and two Asians, and 33 of the 40 were college students." And never mind that Trey James, a Gibson's employee who is himself black, bluntly told the student newspaper that race had nothing to do with the incident. "If you're caught shoplifting, you're going to end up getting arrested," he told the Oberlin Review. "When you steal from the store, it doesn't matter what color you are. You can be purple, blue, green, if you steal, you get caught, you get arrested." Never mind, either, that Oberlin is ground zero in fake hate crime claims - from the notorious 2013 sighting of a "KKK robe-wearing" menace on campus who turned out to be a female student wearing a blanket to Lena Dunham's disgraceful attempt to blame a college Republican for sexually assaulting her. She retracted the story after Breitbart.com blogger John Nolte and others in new media exposed the hoax. Back in the 1990s, Asian-American students claimed that a phantom racist had spray-painted anti-Asian racial epithets on a campus landmark rock. It turned out that it was a warped Asian-American student who perpetrated the dirty deed. During my time there, a black student accused the elder Mr. Gibson of racism after he told the student she was not allowed to sit at an outside table because she hadn't purchased any items from his store. Ohio talk radio host Bob Frantz, who has rallied sane, decent and hard-working members of the community to support the Gibson family, told me a Facebook page supporting the bakery had been censored by Facebook. (No surprise: Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg is a fervent, damn-the-facts supporter of Black Lives Matter.) It is time for real justice to prevail over truth-sabotaging, violence-stoking, thug-coddling social justice. If you are not actively fighting the mob, you're enabling it. Michelle Malkin is a senior editor at Conservative Review. For more articles and videos from Michelle, visit ConservativeReview.com. Her email address is malkinblog@gmail.com. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate This week the New York Times wrote about a Charitybuzz bidding war for a special audience with Ivanka Trump, the daughter of President-elect Donald Trump. One of the top bidders in the charity auction happened to be Russell Ybarra, the owner of the Houston-area Tex-Mex empire that includes Gringos Mexican Kitchen and Jimmy Changas. On Friday morning the bidding was sitting at $72,888 with four days left in the auction, but just before midday the auction was missing from the Charitybuzz website. CASTRO AND TRUMP: What Castro's death and Trump's election mean for Cuba's economic awakening Ybarra is known for his various charitable activities in the area, including his work with the PTSD Foundation of America and its Camp Hope location in northwest Houston. He founded the first Gringo's location in Pearland in the early '90s and now presides over 10 locations across the area, with three more in the planning stages. There are now four Jimmy Changas locations. On Friday Ybarra told Chron.com that he was attracted to the auction because it benefits St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital, a charity that he raises money for annually. Im guessing it will go for at least $100K when it's over. The best part is that it all goes to St. Jude, other than the small percentage Charitybuzz receives for listing it, Ybarra said in the hours before it was taken down. Hes a fan of Trumps daughter and thinks she will be an articulate asset to him as he starts his term next year. EARLIER THIS YEAR: Two of Houston's most-popular Tex-Mex chains won't allow 'open carry' "She'll be able to offer to the presidency a unique perspective very few children of past presidents have ever had simply because of her age, her educational background and the fact that she has three children," Ybarra says. In the New York Times piece which was published on Thursday, Ybarra was profiled as one of a handful of powerful people vying for a chance to have a cup of coffee with Ivanka. Some believe the fundraising to possible be problematic, as Ivanka is playing a major role in the Trump transition process and she and her husband are expected to have influence in a Trump White House. The Trump family has done auctions like this in the past, but with outcome of the election this year it is controversial. During the presidential campaign, Trump often accused Hillary Clinton of "selling" access to the State Department through the Clinton foundation. BACKING OUT: Texas GOP elector resigns rather than vote for Donald Trump Ybarra told the Times reporter that his reason for bidding including in part being able to tell Ivanka to persuade her father to remain relaxed and far in his immigration law dealings. Ybarra employs a great deal of immigrants at his location and he has their best interests in mind, he says. Ybarra also told the Times that he thinks Ivanka is a more open-minded and reasonable person. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate No injuries were reported in two structure fires that prompted the quick action of first responders Thursday evening, according to officials. There were no injuries in a blaze that initiated in the garage of an occupied two story home in the 13000 Block of JBK Memorial Drive in Willis, according to North Montgomery County Fire Department Fire Chief Jason Oliphant. Crews immediately began protecting residents on scene with the help of Lake water provided by Fire Boat 94 and the assistance of the Montgomery, Conroe, Cut and Shoot and Needham Fire Departments. "The fire was contained to the garage portion of the residence," he said. "The Montgomery County Fire Marshal's Office is investigating (the cause) at this time." He strongly emphasized the need for homeowners to ensure smoke detectors are working in the house. "That's what notified the residents from their detectors went off in the house," he said. "Smoke detectors are a must." Smoke detectors are provided by MCESD #1 for residents within its jurisdiction. For more information call (936) 856-5111. Gas Station Fire Lt. Dustin McDonald with the Montgomery County Fire Marshal's Office said no injuries were reported in a structure fire that started in the back of an abandoned Chevron gas station on the corner of North Loop 336 West and Texas 105. The fire call went out at 9:12 p.m. The cause of the fire is under investigation and at least one person was questioned on scene, McDonald station. No further information was available. U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents arrested two men Thursday after finding 32 migrants inside a refrigerated tractor trailer near the Texas-Mexico border, a news release said. The incident occurred around midnight Thursday in Falfurrias, which is about 160 miles south of San Antonio, where agents at the checkpoint called for an additional inspection of a tractor trailer following an alert from a canine unit, according to a news release issued Friday. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A former Houston police officer accused of trying to hire an assassin to kidnap and sexually assault his estranged wife and another woman was fired from HPD in the 1980s after he lied to and threatened to kill a supervisor, according to personnel files obtained Friday by the Houston Chronicle. Clarence McNatt, 63, joined the Houston police force in July 1982 and trained at the Houston police academy, according to records from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement. He was suspended indefinitely in 1986 for violating rules that govern outside employment, HPD spokeswoman Jodi Silva said earlier this month. The HPD personnel records obtained Friday show that then-police Chief Lee Brown tried to fire him on Oct. 14, 1986, for insubordination, incompetency, conduct unbecoming of an officer, neglect of duty and lying during an investigation of his unauthorized outside employment while he was on paid leave in April and May of that year after being injured while on duty on March 12. McNatt got a police union attorney to help him appeal the firing. The department was not allowed to remove him from the payroll until April 1987, after an independent arbitrator upheld his firing. MARITAL PROBLEMS: Police reveal troubles in McNatt's marriage The independent arbitrator ruled that McNatt "became the head of a mini-syndicate" of HPD officers who worked at a Houston nightclub and restaurant. The way the officers were paid showed "a web of deceit spun by (McNatt) and the nightclub managers," the police chief wrote to arbitrator David H. Brown. A supervisor, Sgt. Valdez, grew suspicious of McNatt and visited the restaurant at 10:15 on a Saturday night, finding the officer there despite orders not to work while on the paid leave, according to the personnel records. The officer told the sergeant he was just there for a meal, not to work. As part of an extensive attempt to cover up his wrongdoing, the police chief wrote to the arbitrator, McNatt told other officers to lie, "threatened to get Sgt. Valdez in trouble with the Police Department and even threatened to kill Sgt. Valdez." The independent arbitrator found McNatt guilty of disgraceful conduct because he told witnesses to lie and threatened the life of a superior officer. He also was found guilty of conduct unbecoming an officer because, the arbitrator wrote, "A lying police officer is a disgrace to the force." The arbitrator ruled that the chief's decision to fire McNatt "was supported by just cause." Within months of leaving HPD, McNatt joined the police force of Ames, a small town in Liberty County where records show he spent just 16 months. A few years later he worked 30 months for the department in the Galveston County town of Clear Lake Shores, where he obtained an Advanced Peace Officer certification before he left police work in 1995. OFFICERS IN HOT WATER: Texas officers who got in trouble with the law McNatt later authorized HPD to disclose his personnel records to the Pearland Police Department, the records show. On Jan. 11, 1993, a Capt. Chapman from that department signed a request to view McNatts records. The next year, on Feb. 10, the former HPD officer authorized HPD to release the records to the Kemah Police Department. A Kemah officer, whose signature is illegible, signed a request to view McNatts records on March 2, 1994. Those inquiries likely came in response to job applications by McNatt. However, state records show he did not work for either department. The two police departments that did hire him Ames and Clear Lake Shores are not listed as having reviewed his records. Pasadena police arrested McNatt on Nov. 30 after two undercover detectives posed as hitmen. The police had received information that he was looking to hire someone to kidnap and sexually assault two women. McNatt offered to pay detectives $500 for the acts but eventually paid the officers $100 cash and three gold rings containing various stones. When he was arrested, police said, they found items in his car that could have been used to bind and torture victims. Because of those items, he is charged with solicitation to commit capital murder and two counts of solicitation to commit aggravated kidnapping with intent to commit sexual assault. McNatt was convicted in 1996 of the manufacture, sale or distribution of a decoding device. His punishment included a fine and a year of probation with the condition that he not consume alcohol and submit to monthly urine tests. He remained in the Harris County Jail as of Friday afternoon, held on $250,000 bail and charged with one count of soliciting capital murder and two counts of soliciting aggravated kidnapping. andrew.kragie@chron.com The Los Angeles Times reported on Friday night that court papers show accused killer Robert Durst told prosecutors last year that he was high on methamphetamine while being interviewed for a controversial documentary about his life. "The Jinx," a 2015 HBO miniseries, traced the mysterious disappearance of his wife in New York in 1982, his acquittal on murder charges in the 2001 dismemberment killing of a neighbor in Galveston, and the killing of his friend Susan Berman in Los Angeles in 2000. The summers final Live on the Waterfront concert was held Wednesday evening at Prince Arthurs Landing. The popular series in Thunder Bay has completed nine weekly shows that began on July 13. Wednesdays concert was unique as it was held one hour later in the evening to mesh with the 10 p. We attempted to send a notification to your email address but we were unable to verify that you provided a valid email address. Please click here to update your email address if you wish to receive notifications. Otherwise, you may click here to disable notifications and hide this message. While hysteria and fearmongering over the governance of a Republican president have become standardGeorge W. Bush was frequently referred to as Bushitlerpresent-day anti-Trumpers have taken the acrimony to another level. Sadly, public schools are on the frontlines. Just six days after the election, the teachers union in Los Angeles supported students who skipped school to protest the politics of fear, racism and misogyny. As educators, as people spending every day with students and caring about each students future, we believe we have a sacred role in times like these, the union said in a statement. Sacred? Too bad the union didnt use its newly discovered religious faith to preach to the students that if they are indeed so upset with the president-elect, they should vent their dissatisfaction after the school day or on a weekend. San Francisco social-studies teacher Fakhra Shah claims she knows first-hand what its like to be on the receiving end of anti-Muslim slurs and stereotyping. The United Educators of San Francisco posted her Lesson Plan on the 2016 Election on its website. DO NOT: Tell [students] that we have LOST and that we have to accept this, it emphatically advises teachers. We do not have to accept ANYTHING except that we must and will fight for justice against an unjust system and against unjust people. The anger and denial here is just the tip of the iceberg: (I know that [students] might curse and swear, but you would too if you have suffered under the constructs of white supremacy or experienced sexism, or any isms or lack of privilege. You would especially do so if you have not yet developed all of the tools necessary to fight this oppression. It is our job to help them develop these tools, ie the language etc., Lets not penalize and punish our youth for how they express themselves at this stage. ) (Hate mongering people see this as an invitation to use profanity, keep your hate to yourselves, our students are not hateful.) The rest of this alarming and borderline illiterate lesson planwith links to left-wing magazine Mother Jones and the George Soros-funded website Democracy Now!continues in a similar vein (and, to be appreciated fully, should be read in its entirety). While teachers are free to accept or reject the lesson plan, the idea that any teacher would use any part of it is truly alarming. Theres more. Down the peninsula from San Francisco is Googles home city of Mountain View. At the local high school, Holocaust scholar Frank Navarro compared Trump with Hitler in an attempt to show his students that the 2016 election is a reflection of the past. Navarro was put on paid leave on November 10, but returned to the classroom a week later. In Texas, under the watchful eye of a teacher, two tenth-grade students staged a skit featuring The Assassination of Donald Trump. Parents were outraged by the performance, in which one of the boys made a gunfire sound effect with his cell phone as the other boy, portraying Trump, fell to the ground in mock death. The teacher and his students were reprimanded. Recall that when a second grader nibbled a Pop Tart into the shape of a gun in Maryland a couple of years ago, he was suspended for two days. Maybe had he chewed a second Pop Tart into a replica of George W. Bush, and pointed his gun at it, he too could have gotten away with a reprimand. An eighth-grade student in Alabama was paddled by the assistant principal for writing Trump on the blackboard, allegedly because the time for discussing the election had passed. (Alabama is one of 15 states with laws allowing corporal punishment in schools.) Does anyone doubt that if the student had written IHillary on the board, he would have received a pat on the back instead of a beating? In Montgomery County, Maryland, anti-Trump students severely beat up a classmate for wearing a Make America Great Again cap. Ditching school, the irony-challenged perpetrators brandished signs reading, Love Trumps Hate. To state the obvious, bullying is wrong, but its especially galling when bullying is condoned and encouraged by teachers. Educators owe it to their students to tell them that the election is over, and that Trump won fair and square. Marching and screaming wont change anything. Fanning flames and ratcheting up the indoctrination of our kids is unacceptable. If they must develop post-election lesson plans, why not focus on how the Electoral College works? Or on the great tradition our country has for a peaceful transfer of power? Teachers might suggest to their students that they follow the advice of President Obama, who said that we should give Trump a chance. Photo by Jeff Swensen/Getty Images OHIO-DEATHROW Austin Myers, left, is on death row for the January 2014 death of Justin Back. Timothy Mosley has been sentenced to life without parole. (Ohio Department of Corrections) The plan was to rob Justin Back's place and kill him. Austin Myers would distract him, giving Timothy Mosley an opening to choke Back with a garrote made out of two handles and a wire cable. Then, the two 19-year-olds would dump Back's body and douse it with septic enzymes so that it would decompose faster. Almost everything went according to plan. Almost. In January 2014, court records say, Myers and Mosley showed up at Back's home in rural Waynesville, Ohio, under a false pretense that they wanted to hang out and watch movies with the 18-year-old. Myers lured Back into the kitchen as Mosley came up from behind. But the garrote ended up across Back's chin, and not his neck. Back tried to escape, and all three teens ended up fighting on the kitchen floor. Panicking, Mosley improvised. He pulled out a pocket knife and stabbed Back 21 times. As the knife pierced his skin and flesh, Back begged Myers for help. Back didn't know Mosley, but he'd known Myers since they were in middle school. "Relax; it will be over soon," Myers told Back, according to testimony. Back died of blood loss, court records say. His assailants cleaned up the crime scene, wrapped Back's body in a blanket and dumped it in a wooded area in a neighboring county. There, Myers fired two rounds into Back's corpse before pouring the septic enzymes. Mosley and Myers were eventually convicted in the death. Both had hatched an elaborate plan to rob and kill Back. But their fates took opposite turns. Mosley, the one who used the garrote and knife on Back, is in prison for life. Myers, who ignored Back's pleas for help but didn't strike the fatal blow, has been sentenced to die. The disparity in the punishments for the two men was the result of their own legal decisions. Mosley struck a plea deal that spared him from a death sentence. Myers decided to go to trial and was convicted. His death sentence is now the subject of an appeal to the Ohio Supreme Court, which could hear it next year. The state's justices must decide whether Myers should have received the same punishment as Mosley, or whether he was more culpable and deserving of the harshest punishment of all - even if he did not strike the fatal blow. His appellate attorney, Timothy McKenna, said Myers's sentence should be reduced to life without parole. "The state is arguing that both defendants planned the murder, both are equally culpable," McKenna said. "If you believe that, then why is our client getting the death penalty and the other guy is getting life without parole?" But Warren County Prosecutor David Fornshell said that if anybody deserved any degree of mercy, it wasn't Myers but Mosley. He'd been cooperative, even pointing investigators to evidence that incriminated not only Myers, but also himself. Although Mosley was the attacker, the idea to kill Back came from Myers, Fornshell said. He added that there was never any indication that Myers, who was caught on a store surveillance video buying the garrote and whose fingerprints were found on it, intended to plead guilty. Franklin Zimring, a law professor at the University of California at Berkeley, said the case presents a problematic scenario in which the punishment is based not on the level of culpability but on who decides to cooperate. "It's crystal clear that the difference between life or death is electing a jury trial, not what happened at the crime scene," said Zimring, who has written about capital punishment. "The thing that makes that forcefully problematic is that the only difference between life and death is the procedural decision that the defendant made." But Warren County Common Pleas Court Judge Donald Oda II said in court records that Myers is more culpable because Mosley would not have had any reason to hurt Back if it weren't for Myers, who'd known Back since middle school. "Myers was the brains, but Mosley was the weapon that he used. He came up with all the plans to do it," said Back's stepfather, Mark Cates. "He chose to get Mosley to help him. He chose Justin." Looking back, Mark Cates says he wishes Myers and Mosley had made other choices on the afternoon of Jan. 28, 2014. They could have waited a couple more weeks to rob, and no one would have been home. Back would have left to join the Navy, and Cates and his wife would have been at work. But the teens - specifically Myers - chose to rob the Cates house, knowing that there was a safe inside and knowing that Back would be home. "He had a choice; Justin didn't have a choice," Sandy Cates, Back's mother, said of Myers. "He could have stopped it. He could have called 911. He could have stepped in. He could have helped save Justin, but he didn't. Again, that was his choice." And for that, Back's parents believe Myers should die. As for Mosley, they believe he earned the right to keep his life after he showed remorse. "He did own up to what he did," Sandy Cates said. "That's the difference." Although Oda, the judge, called the plea agreement with Mosley "troublesome," he wrote that Myers "does not escape culpability just because Mosley cannot be put to death for his crimes." Fornshell said the plea deal was a risk that prosecutors were willing to take and believes it was the "best strategic decision." "Because we believe strongly that Tim [Mosley] providing that information helped the jury better understand what the whole case was about, what Tim's role was and what Austin's role was," Fornshell said. McKenna, Myers's attorney, said that in cases involving plea deals, the less problematic defendant is usually the one who testifies against the more blameworthy one. He argues that in this case, the level of culpability is the same. Myers had just turned 19 at the time of the murder. Mosley was also 19. "Teens' brain simply aren't developed enough to understand what's happening to them to get the death penalty," McKenna said. Oda agreed, citing statements that Myers made to the jury: "If you kill me, it won't fix anything." "It won't bother." "It won't hurt me." "I won't feel anything." Those are the words of a child, the judge wrote. "The defendant does not understand how precious life is - at his age, it would be virtually impossible for him to have such an appreciation." Executions of people who did not directly kill the victim are extremely rare. The Death Penalty Information Center lists just 10 such instances that didn't involve contract killings. An additional 11 involve contract killings, in which the person who was executed had contracted to have the victim killed. None of those executions were in Ohio, which has executed 53 people since 1976. If executed, Myers would be the youngest defendant to be put to death in the state. For Mark and Sandy Cates, justice was served when Myers was sentenced to death - and efforts to reverse that sentence only brings them back to the worst moment of their lives. "We need closure," Sandy Cates said. "Every time there's an appeal, every time there's something legal coming up, literally, it tears your heart out." "We've lost Justin over and over and over and over," she added. "And we're never going to have any closure until all appeals are done. We need it to be over at some point." This story was written by Kristine Guerra of The Washington Post. John Glenn was a courageous Marine, a trail-blazing aviator, a heroic astronaut. Glenn, who died on Dec. 8, age 95, also was a remarkably successful officeholder in Ohio, a state that, politically speaking, defines the word fickle. Ohioans got to directly elect U.S. senators starting in 1914. Their first choice: Marion Republican Warren G. Harding. Harding didn't seek a second term in 1920, but ran for president and won. Usually, though, Ohio's senators want second terms. But in the 102 years Ohioans have directly elected senators (before then, the General Assembly did) voters have rarely given Senate incumbents of either party more than two terms. (In the 1800s, on the other hand, the legislature kept Mansfield Republican John Sherman in the U.S. Senate for decades.) While not every popularly elected Ohio senator (for example, the late former Gov. George V. Voinovich, a Republican) seeks a third term, those who do can find it a hard sell. Voters wouldn't give these senators a three-peat: Democrats Atlee Pomerene (1922) and Frank J. Lausche (1968), the latter denied renomination by Democrats; and Republicans Simeon Fess (1934); John W. Bricker (1958); and Mike DeWine (2006). In fact, the only Ohio senators who've landed more than two terms since popular election began were the first Bob Taft, a Cincinnati Republican, elected in 1938, re-elected in 1944 and 1950; Greater Cleveland Democrat Howard M. Metzenbaum, elected in 1976, re-elected in 1982 and 1988; and Democrat Glenn, a son of Muskingum County, later of Franklin County: Ohioans gave John Glenn four Senate terms. Glenn won his first Senate term in 1974, beating Cleveland's Republican mayor, Ralph J. Perk, by 1 million votes. Glenn was re-elected in 1980 (by 1.6 million votes, beating Greater Cleveland Republican Jim Betts). Glenn was re-elected again in 1986 (by 777,000 votes, beating then-U.S. Rep. Thomas N. Kindness, a Hamilton Republican). And Glenn was re-elected a final time in 1992 (by 416,000 votes, beating then-Lt. Gov. DeWine, a Cedarville Republican). That's a remarkable record, considering how closely divided Ohio's voters often are. Glenn's Ohio successes didn't usher him to the White House. But John Glenn's Ohio resilience was remarkable. It helped that Glenn was far shrewder at practical politics than he liked to let on. And Glenn wasn't obviously ideological, a big plus in a state whose politics are said to be "issue-less." (Meanwhile, though, Glenn had been politically and socially close to the Kennedys, a family that defines what passes for liberalism these days.) Ohioans elected and re-elected John Glenn to the Senate not because of the issues he raised in Washington - "nuclear nonproliferation" is a critical topic, but it's unlikely many Ohioans lose sleep over it - but because of the characteristics Glenn exemplified and the ideals he represented. That good reputation was one reason the so-called Keating Five savings-and-loan affair stung Glenn so badly, though the Senate Ethics Committee determined only that Glenn had "exercised poor judgment." Likewise, campaign debt racked up by an ill-fated 1984 Glenn presidential bid haunted him, too. Still, Ohioans never faltered in their respect for Glenn, for what he was, for what he'd done, and for the long and happy marriage he and Annie Glenn shared. Given political antics at Ohio's Statehouse and the U.S. Capitol, bystanders can forget that voters sometimes want more than pork-barrel and patronage from officeholders. Voters also want to see ideals and character in public life, to show what can be, not just what is, someone to look up to, not down on. That's what John Glenn brought to Ohio politics, and why Ohioans elected him so often, and will miss him so much. Thomas Suddes, a member of the editorial board, writes from Athens. To reach Thomas Suddes: tsuddes@gmail.com, 216-999-4689 Have something to say about this topic? Use the comments to share your thoughts, and stay informed when readers reply to your comments by using the Notification Settings (in blue) just below. Frontier plane at Gate 9, Hopkins Airport Frontier Airlines will resume flying to four West Coast cities from Cleveland in April 2017. (Chuck Crow, The Plain Dealer) (Chuck Crow) CLEVELAND, Ohio - Frontier Airlines will resume nonstop service from Cleveland to several West Coast cities in April, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle and Portland. These flights first launched in spring 2016, part of a major Frontier expansion at Cleveland Hopkins. But the routes were seasonal, with no guarantee that they would return for a second year. They're back on the schedule - with rock-bottom prices, including $79 one-way fares to San Francisco and Seattle in late April. One route, however, didn't make the cut: Frontier has eliminated its Cleveland to Philadelphia flight, which also launched in spring 2016. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Cleveland to Philadelphia route had the least full planes of the new Frontier cities, with a load factor of 76 percent in July; Los Angeles and San Francisco routes, on the other hand, were more than 90 percent full that month. The airline announced its new schedule, which extends through early June, this week. Routes to all four West Coast cities will run three or four days a week, depending on the destination. Service to Atlanta and Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, also resume in late April, with three flights per week to each of the southern cities. Jim Faulkner, a spokesman for Frontier, said the airline frequently reallocates planes seasonally, adding capacity to places like Florida and Las Vegas in the winter. For example, Frontier is flying three flights a day from Cleveland to Orlando on some days this month. Despite years of speculation about which country will quit first, the 17-nation euro zone will become one country bigger when Latvia joins on January, 1. The eastern European nation with a population of just two million has been a member of the European Union (EU) free market since 2004, but finally got the green light to join the single currency zone last June. It follows in the footsteps of two other former Soviet satellite sates, Estonia and Slovakia. As of Wednesday, Latvians will be able to exchange lats for euros free of charge at a fixed rate of 0.7 to 1 euro. There will be a two-week period during which both currencies will be in circulation, before the lat ceases to be legal tender on January 15. (Read more: Track currencies live with CNBC) Latvia and Europe Latvia's ascension to the euro zone will consolidate its integration with the rest of Europe and the Western world, which started when Latvia became first a member of NATO and the UN (United Nations) and then the EU after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The country remains poor compared to those in Western Europe its GDP per capita of $21,905 was only two-thirds of the EU average in 2012, while Germany's was $41,245 but is posting far healthier growth than most; the Latvian economy is seen expanding 4 percent this year. In comparison, the euro zone economy is forecast to contract by a further 0.6 percent. Furthermore, Latvia is viewed by many on the continent as an exemplar of how austerity and growth can be combined. After being hit hard by the global financial crisis of 2008, the country received a 7.5 billion euro ($10.3 billion) loan from the EU, International Monetary Fund and neighboring Nordic countries and implemented the most savage austerity program seen on the continent, trimming the size of its deficit by nearly 17 percent. Measures included slashing public sector wages by an average of 25 percent, widespread job cuts, reductions in state benefits and hikes to indirect taxes. (Read more: Krugman can't admit he was wrong on austerity: Latvia PM) To qualify for joining the euro, Latvia had to meet five economic "convergence criteria", which include price and exchange rate stability and low levels of government debt and deficit. Why Latvia wants to join Given its success in fending for itself, Latvia's decision to join the euro zone which is slowly beginning to recover from a crippling four-year government and banking debt crisis has left many scratching their heads. (Read more: A 'Happy New Year' for Italy? Don't bet on it) However, membership will come with several benefits, including reduced transaction and exchange rate costs when exporting to the euro zone, to which Latvia exports 30 per cent of its goods. Membership will also reduce the economic risk from the country's large external financing requirements and high level of foreign exchange debt. In addition, Latvia will likely become more attractive for foreign direct investment once it joins. This is partly because the cost of doing business with other euro zone countries will fall, making it more appealing for companies looking for a European base. But it is also because participation in a wider bloc may reassure investors the economy would be supported were it to flounder. From a PR perspective, joining the euro zone also helps Latvia emphasize its post-2009 recovery. "Latvia still seems to be being penalized for the fact that it was at the center of the crisis in the region in the immediate aftermath of the 2008/09 crisis, but this fails to give it due credit for the massive adjustment it has undertaken since then," said Standard Bank in a research note this month. The downside for Latvia The loss of control over monetary policy will reduce Latvia's ability to respond to economic shocks. This is a particularly important for Latvia given its small, open economy. However, the country does have a strong record on economic adaptation, given the success of the severe fiscal measures, internal devaluation and structural reforms it imposed following the crisis. Nonetheless, membership is controversial among the Latvian public, who doubt the benefits of harnessing the country to a zone mired in political and economic difficulties. Other concerns include price rises, inconvenience and loss of national sovereignty and identity. When membership was announced in June, public support for joining stood at only 38 percent.. Will other countries follow Latvia? Lithuania is the only other country seen joining the euro zone in the short-term, and is expected to join at the start of 2015. Other potential members like Poland, Bulgaria and Romania are yet to join the Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM) a means of pegging national currencies to the euro which is one of the "convergence criteria" for joining. However, if Latvia's ascension goes smoothly, other eastern European nations may warm to the idea of the single currency. An EU survey in April this year found that 54 percent of respondents across the region thought joining the euro would be negative for their country. Only 39 percent thought it would be positive a proportion that has remained consistent since 2012. (Read more: Couldyou be going out for a Polish soon?) Also worth watching in Latvia The country is without a government or leader following the resignation of Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis, who accepted responsibility for a supermarket collapse which killed 54 people in November. While negotiations to appointment a new prime minister and cabinet continue, Dombrovskis will preside during Latvia's ceremonial ascension to the euro, which takes place at 12:20 a.m. local time on Wednesday. By CNBC's Katy Barnato. Follow CNBC on Twitter: @CNBCWorld Some 25 years after the fall of communism, the Czech Republic's capital, Prague, has become a favorite shopping destination of Russian and Chinese rich. Parizska Street is the go-to luxury shopping district in the heart of the capital, sitting on the edge of the touristy Jewish quarter, it has become the equivalent of London's Bond Street, according to head of Central Eastern Europe (CEE) retail for commercial property group JLL, Beatrice Mouton, who is based in Prague. Read MoreRussian links to EUfar right exposed by French loan Christian Dior store, left, and a Boucheron jewelry store in central Prague, Czech Republic Martin Divisek I Bloomberg via Getty Images Securing retail space on Parizska has become increasingly expensive and is no longer easy to come by as demand has risen, Mouton said. "You have a number of retailers enlarging their stores, most recently Louis Vuitton. They already had a smaller unit at the corner of Parizska Street and they just opened a second store, which is much bigger, close to 800 square meters, last week," Mouton told CNBC. Read MoreCzech Republic Rocked by Spying and Corruption Scandal Cartier, Burberry , Christian Dior have expanded stores on the street in recent years, luxury leather goods maker Tod's has just opened a store there and designer ski wear brand Moncler is set to open up shop there shortly. Tourism is behind Prague's luxury drive and the city was named the world's fifth best travel spot in 2014 by TripAdvisor, based on millions of reviews from travelers around the world. The city has become Europe's sixth most visited city and has the lowest unemployment rate among Central European capital cities according to Cushman & Wakefield data. Between 2000 and 2013, the number of international tourists visiting Prague for both leisure and business doubled, reaching 4.75 million in 2013, according to JLL. The Czech Republic's accession to the EU in 2004 also boosted Prague's tourism industry, with guests' arrivals rising by nearly 28 percent in that year alone, the group said. Read MoreCzech Police Detain Prime Minister's Aide: Reports Prague, Old Town Hall (15th Century), Town Square and Church of our Lady Tyn (1365) at dawn. Getty Images watch now After a very public collapse of its financial sector in 2013, Cyprus' banking system is on the mend, the country's finance minister told CNBC, while insisting that the upcoming elections in Greece would not affect its economic recovery. "We're in a much better situation," Minister of Finance Harris Georgiades told CNBC Monday. "We are definitely out of the danger zone now, and the recession seems to have run its course. We are very optimistic that the new year will see a return to positive growth rates." Cyprus has been battling an economic slump compounded by the collapse of its financial system two years ago, which saw the country secure a 10 billion euro ($11.8 billion) bailout overseen by the so-called troika made up of the European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund. But this was not before one of the country's financial behemoths, the Cyprus Popular Bank, was wound down and another the Bank of Cyprus was recapitalized by measures including the seizing of depositors' uninsured savings above 100,000 euros ($120,000). Read MoreWhy top investors are betting on Bank of Cyprus 'Not able to finance growth' Now, after four years of recession, the country's central bank governor, expects growth of 0.5 percent in 2015. It is also preparing two international debt issues this year, Georgiades told Reuters last week, although the details are yet to be confirmed. Speaking to CNBC in Nicosia, Cyprus' capital, Georgiades said the economy had stabilized after its "severe crisis." "Cyprus was led into an unprecedented crisis, the public finances and banking system were in a severe crisis and the real economy in a deep recession. But the last two years were years of correction, of reform, of consolidation and we already have very tangible and very positive results," he said. watch now Looking ahead, Georgiades insisted that the country was determined to reform its economy. "We are not only interested in mitigating the crisis but in creating the foundations for a much more viable, long-running economic model," he added. Not everyone is convinced that the banking sector is fully recovered, however. Stelios Platis, managing director of financial services advisory firm MAP S.Platis, told CNBC that while things in Cyprus were much better than two years ago, the banking sector was, "not at the point where it is able to finance growth." "But I think the conclusion is that the bail-in works better as a deterrent rather than as a remedy measure, especially for systemic banks. I think that's the lesson to be learnt from Cyprus," he said. The Greek factor Despite Georgiades' optimism, there are concerns about possible contagion from a key risk factor in the region: the upcoming general elections in Greece. Radical left-wing, anti-bailout party Syriza could win the vote, potentially undermining the austerity measures and reform policies implemented as a condition of Greece's international bailout, and such a possibility has weighed on European markets over recent weeks. "Despite our close links to Greece we have a separate economy. The links of the past are not there anymore," he said, adding that the elections were not a problem for Cyprus, Read MoreGreek stocks tank as snap election called "We are implementing our own effort of reform and consolidation, we are seeing results, we have a stable economy nowadays and we are determined to grow. Even though, for the good of the Greek people, we hope that no problems will arise in Greece either." The NPL problem Another issue plaguing Cyprus is the high number of non-performing loans (NPLs), which the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in October should be a "key priority" for the country. The IMF said it needed to implement, "strong private-sector debt-restructuring framework, including legislation to facilitate foreclosures, complemented by a modernized insolvency regime." According to the IMF, by July 2014, corporate NPLs stood at 50 percent and, "were highly concentrated, with construction NPLs now at over 73 percent and NPLs on primary-residence mortgages are around 40 percent." Georgiades admitted that NPLs were a hangover from the country's "unsustainable credit expansion" in the past, but insisted the problem had "reached its peak" and that ongoing loan restructurings would see the number of NPLs decline. Conflicts that impact whole regions are the biggest threat to world stability in 2015, the World Economic Forum (WEF) warned on Thursday. Following Russia's incursion into Ukraine's Crimea region last year, and the subsequent rounds of global sanctions and counter-sanctions, experts interviewed by the Switzerland-based body voted international conflict the biggestand most likelydanger for the next 10 years. watch now "In the 25th year after the fall of the Berlin Wall, geopolitical risks are back on the agenda," said WEF in its "Global risks 2015" report, published a week before the body's flagship meeting in Davos, Switzerland. "The dispute over Crimea in March 2014 serves as a forceful reminder of the consequences of interstate conflicts with regional consequences that seemed long forgotten and unfathomable." Read More25 years after the Berlin Wall: What's changed? The report is the tenth published by WEF and is based on a survey of 896 respondents working across the world in business, government, academia and non-governmental organizations. It was conducted between mid-July and the end of September 2014. Russia weighs Pro-Russian activists seize the main administration building in Donetsk, Ukraine. Alexander Khudoteply | AFP | Getty Images In the ongoing case of Russia and the West, WEF highlighted the widespread impact of the tensions. "(It) has caused disruptions in the supply of gas to European countries, while sanctions imposed by the European Union and the Russian Federation have restricted access to specific sets of goods and forced some companies to review the architecture of their supply chains," the report said. Read MoreRussia braces for 'junk' downgrade as oil drags Analysts have warned that relations between the West and Russia could worsen rather than improve in 2015. Alastair Newton, senior political risk analyst at Nomura, rated Russia as the second-biggest country- or region-specific risk for financial markets this year, behind the Middle East and North Africa. "I see little prospect of an easing of tensions with Russiaindeed, if anything, the contrary as the Russian economy slows further," he said in a forward-looking report published earlier this month. Terrorist attacks Geopolitical risks for 2015 go far beyond Russia, however. The threat posed by Islamic militant groups was thrown into sharp relief by last week's terrorist attacks in Paris, in which 17 people were killed. Al Qaeda claimed responsibility for the attack on French satirical magazine "Charlie Hebdo," Reuters reported on Wednesday. WEF also warned of the rise of Islamic State (Isis), which it said had brought the possibility of both "state collapse" and the "failure of national governance" to the fore. Both of these issues made it into WEF's top five concerns looking ahead. "The rapid rise and brutality of Isis, as well as the response of the international community, may underlie the increased likelihood and impact attributed by respondents to the risk of the deployment of weapons of mass destruction and the higher potential impact than in previous years associated with large-scale terrorist attacks," the WEF report said. 'Extreme weather events' "Extreme weather events" such as floods and storms, and the major damage to property, infrastructure and environmental damage, as well as human loss, caused, were also ranked highly by WEF. In particular, the body warned that 15 of the world's 20 megacitiesthose with over 10 million inhabitantswere located in coastal zones threatened by sea level rises and storm surges. Read MoreWorld seeing 'alarming' global warming: World Bank "Heat waves, extreme rainfall and drought-related shortages of water and food will increasingly test the resilience of infrastructure in these and other cities," the report said. Unemployment The Qatari royal family's application to create a 200 million ($302 million) palace in the heart of London has been rejected by Westminster City Council's planning office. Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser al Missned, one of the Qatari ruler's three wives, purchased the houses separately for an estimated 120 million in 2013. A view of 1 Cornwall Terrace Oli Scarff | Getty Images News | Getty Images Now, the billionaire royals from the Gulf state wanted to knock together two mansions in the ultra-expensive Regent's Park area in Westminster in London. They hoped to create a lavish palace with 17 bedrooms, 14 lounges, four dining rooms, a swimming pool, cigar lounge and juice bar. In one bureaucratic swoop, however, the application was turned down by Westminster City Council officer Matthew Rees, who said the development would be out-of-sync with the council's plans for addressing the shortage of homes in the area. Read MoreHow Qatar became Europe's top power-broker Sheikha Mozah, the wife of Qatar's Emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani. Ben Stansall | AFP | Getty Images In a planning document available online, Rees recommended that Westminster refuse permission for making the two houses numbers 1 and 2 Cornwall Terraceinto a single dwelling. He said combining the houses would amount to the "loss of a family-sized unit of residential accommodation" and was contrary to the council's strategy to optimise housing provision in the area. "It is not considered that there are such exceptional circumstances to allow a policy departure, and it is recommended that permission be refused," Rees stated. Read MoreForget buying,wealthy Russians now renting in London It seems that petro-dollars don't always talk. The Qatari royal family had offered 850,000 towards the council's affordable housing fund, but Westminster did not permit the payment, saying it would not mitigate for the loss of a family-sized house. The Shard, also owned by the Qatari royal family Andrew Errington | Moment Mobile | Getty Images A floor hand for Raven Drilling, works on an oil rig drilling into the Bakken shale formation outside Watford City, North Dakota. Oil prices ratcheted up on Thursday on news that Saudi Arabia launched a military operation in neighboring Yemen, however analysts remain skeptical that geopolitical tensions will sustain the rally. Brent crude oil futures rose almost 6 percent to as high as $59.71 a barrel, before settling around $58.30. "It's understandable this has stirred up the market a little bit, but at this point it's really just a knee jerk reaction," Victor Shum, vice president, IHS Energy Insight told CNBC. "There is no disruption of physical crude oil supply. In any case, crude exports out of Yemen are quite small," he said. Supply-demand still key Broader supply-demand dynamics in the oil market will likely remain the key driver for oil, Shum said. "There's a lot of crude in the market looking for buyers. It's a buyer's market today. Even if Yemen's crude supply is disrupted, there will be no problem for its customers to find alternative supplies," he said. Shum says the risk to his prognosis is if there is an escalation in geopolitical tensions that leads a disruption of global oil trade flows. Read MoreSaudiArabia, allies launch air campaign in Yemen While Yemen is a relatively small oil producer, it is significant to global energy trade because of its location at the tip of the Arabian Peninsula on the Bab el-Mandab, a strategic shipping lane. More than 3.4 million barrels of oil per day passed through Bab el-Mandab in 2013, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. "That would be a risk to the oil price, right now there isn't such a threat," he said. Short-term reaction Daniel Ang, investment analyst at Phillip Futures also dismissed Thursday's move in oil prices as a short-term reaction. "The market is reacting to the possibility that these conflicts could effect both regional production as well as energy trade routes," he said. "But overall, global supply is very strong." "We do expect to see heavy resistance at $58.15 for Brent May'15 should [prices] persist to move up," he added. Wake up call? Jonathan Barratt, chief investment officer at Ayers Alliance Securities, has a different view. Barratt believes the upswing in oil prices could be a "wake up call" for net oil importers to stock up on crude before it moves higher. "Oil consuming nations who haven't bought before might step in, and this could act as a support for oil prices," he said. watch now Military intervention by Saudi Arabia in the conflict in Yemen is ringing alarm bells around the Middle East and the world. Yemen, a historically impoverished and lawless Middle Eastern state, has been the poor relation to its oil-rich neighbors for decades. Its population, subject to a series of puppet governments since the British were driven out in 1967, is malnourished and mismanaged. It's not hugely surprising that guerrilla fighters from other parts of the Middle East, including some from Al-Qaeda, have often hidden out in its countryside. Here, we take a look at the background to the current conflict and why it is so important to the region. Location, location Take a look at where Yemen is. Yemen was a British colony for more than a century and has been a key conduit for East-West trade for hundreds of years. The port of Aden, currently under threat by Yemeni rebel Houthi forces, was where ships used to stop to refuel as they carried goods from the eastern part of the British empire to the U.K. This strategic importance continues today. More than 3.4 million barrels of oil per day passed through Bab-el-Mandeb the two-mile strait between Yemen and Africa - in 2013, according to U.S. government statistics. watch now If that strait was closed, or became unsafe due to attacks from anti-Western forces, oil tankers could be forced to sail all the way around South Africa to reach European, North American, and South American markets. Saudi Arabia, one of the richest and most influential countries in the Gulf region, borders Yemen, so fighting there represents a threat to its prized stability - particularly given that many of its oilfields are in the south of the country, closer to Yemen. The Saudis also have plenty of money and equipment for a war. One out of every seven U.S. dollars spent on defence imports across the world in 2015 will be spent by Saudi Arabia, according to forecasts by research company IHS. World's top weapons importer now in Middle East Religious divides watch now There are many who forecast that Yemen will be or already is the site of a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran, emblematic of the increasingly fractious divide between Sunni and Shiite Muslims. Yemen has a Sunni majority, but also a significant Shiite minority, with some estimates suggesting the split is around 70:30 Sunni-Shiite. Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, is overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim, but with a significant Shia population near some of its oilfields. The Sunni-majority Gulf states of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain are behind Saudi Arabia in the coalition of Middle Eastern states which has launched military action in Yemen. Oman, which also has a border with Yemen but a smaller Sunni population, is steering clear of supporting the intervention. Yemen's Houthi rebels, who are from the Shiite branch of Islam, don't appear to have used the extremist tactics, such as suicide bombings or massacres, of other Sunni militant groups like Islamic State (ISIS) or Al-Qaeda. Yet they do appear to have the support of Iran, which has raised Saudi concerns further. Will the US get involved? The West's nuclear negotiations with Iran are closer to a positive conclusion than they have been for decades, so the U.S. is unlikely to do anything which would throw them off course such as send in troops to Yemen. What will happen if the Houthi rebellion is quashed? Jim Cramer reminded investors on Friday that there needs to be another reason for stocks to fly higher outside of President-elect Donald Trump. "I think it is worth getting some exposure to these Trump-free bull markets, simply because you need to stay diversified," the "Mad Money" host said. After all, if Republican senators hold Trump's agenda hostage, investors will want stocks that can power higher while that agenda is on hold. Leading the charge of the Trump-free zone are the optical networking plays like Ciena , Finisar , Oclaro and Lumentum . These are all companies that make components for fiber optic networks to help move huge amounts of data. "Their businesses are doing incredibly well, ergo, their stocks are going higher. End of story," Cramer said. It's that time again! Jim Cramer rang the lightning round bell, which means he gave his take on caller favorite stocks at rapid speed: Alcoa : "Alcoa is the spinoff of Arconic. We like Arconic. My charitable trust has a big position in Arconic because where Klaus [CEO] is ... Alcoa is more commodity and I do not want to own the commodity maker. It has moved too much." MFA Financial : "I see that 10 percent yield and I've immediately got to throw the red flag. That is a challenge to that stock's yield." Noble Corporation : "No, that one is I think too dicey. I stand for the stock of Schlumberger." Mid-America Apartment Communities : "I'm not buying the self-administered, self-managed real estate investment trusts here. I don't think they work." They call it "The Matrix." No, we're not talking about Morpheus asking Neo to choose between a red and blue pill. The name refers to the massive sorting facility at the heart of FedEx 's high-tech headquarters in Memphis Tennessee. It's just one part of the 880 acre "world hub," with 42 miles of conveyor belts sorting more than 2 million packages each day. That huge number spikes during the holiday season, with approximately 160 cargo-carrying FedEx planes arriving and departing from the Memphis airport each night. Overall the company predicts it will handle 355 million packages between Thanksgiving and Christmas, that's 10 percent more than last year thanks in large part to the rise of e-commerce. "The planning process started literally as soon as we were done [last year] and now we're heading into our Super Bowl that's what this is," Memphis Hub Senior Manager Walter Kirkeminde told CNBC in an interview. To handle the surge, 55,000 seasonal workers will be added to the workforce to meet the delivery demand. FedEx has made other investments as well, including 30 new planes and $2 billion dollars of capital into the ground segment. Will all of it be enough to keep up with the demand and keep costs under control? The challenge has kept the competition fierce between FedEx and competitor UPS. So far FedEx still has the upper hand in terms of market share, but the "brown" company is putting up a good fight. During the most recent quarter, "UPS's volumes were up 5 percent. That's very strong in the current economic conditions. But FedEx's were up 10 percent," said Donald Broughton of Avondale Partners. Luis Suarez on Friday said he was delighted after signing his lucrative contract extension at Barcelona through to June 2021. I am very happy. Its what I wanted and the club too and so I feel huge satisfaction, Suarez told Barca TV, saying the deal showed the recognition of the club to his contribution since signing from Liverpool in 2014. Every game with Barcelona is special, added the 29-year-old. The Uruguay international strikers new deal features a 200 million-euro (167 million, $208 million) release clause. Suarez has scored 97 goals in just 116 appearances since arriving from Anfield. Barca president Josep Maria Bartomeu was among several of the clubs top brass as Suarez put pen to paper. The Catalan club were keen to tie down their centre forward who forms part of an explosive attacking triumvirate with Lionel Messi and Neymar. The club have already persuaded Neymar to sign a new deal also through to 2011 and are working on an extension for Messi. The bronze 1-cent coins from 1956 to 1973 are small sized and in a scalloped shape. Cents issued from 1885 to 1954 were larger. The 5-cent coin was the first to abandon silver, beginning in 1907, only the second year the denomination was issued. Copper-nickel was the composition until 1942. The 50-cent coin of British Honduras was the colonys largest denomination coin, as all denominations above that were issued as paper money. The first 10-cent coin for British Honduras was issued in silver in 1894, when three denominations were added to the coinage system in the colony. When considering coins of the British Empire, collectors often think of those from Australia, British India, Hong Kong or various Pacific Islands. Not as many think of the coinage that served Britains holding in Central America, British Honduras. Yet this small colony on the Caribbean was part of the globe-spanning British Empire for more than a century, and in that time issued coins sporting the visages of four different British monarchs. When considering coins of the British Empire, collectors often think of those from British India, or perhaps those of British West Africa, or of Australia, or even those of Hong Kong or various Pacific Islands. Not as many think quickly of the coinage that served Britains holding in Central America, British Honduras. Yet this small colony on the Caribbean was part of the globe-spanning British Empire for more than a century, and in that time issued coins sporting the visages of four different British monarchs. British colonialization When the British monarchy got serious about building a colonial overseas empire, Spain and Portugal had already been in the business for centuries. Admittedly, by the 1600s, England was well along in the game, however, claiming land in North America that would ultimately become Canada and the United States. But Central and South America had long been carved up between the two nations on the Iberian peninsula. One can argue that the Treaty of Tordesillas, giving Spain all the land west of a meridian 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands, and Portugal all the land to the east, remains one of the most famous and largest land deals of all time. Connect with Coin World: Sign up for our free eNewsletter Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter After all, it basically chopped the world in two for Spain and Portugal. It was negotiated between those two countries with the help of the Vatican and Pope Alexander VI, largely so that there would be no war over newly found lands west of the Atlantic. The area that would become British Honduras had long ago been part of the Mayan Empire, and became part of what was called New Spain. But it was never heavily colonized until British business concerns saw some potential in extracting raw materials, largely mahogany. The timing turned out to be good for British business, because newly independent Mexico was at war with the Maya who still lived in the area. Status as a crown colony was formalized in 1871. With colonial status and British rule came all the trappings and details of being part of a well-run, global empire, including a monetary system. A decimal system based on 100 cents to a dollar was implemented. From the first issue of 1-cent pieces in 1884 all the way until what would become the final issue of any British Honduran coin in 1973, the lowest denomination was a 1-cent piece made of bronze, while the highest coin denomination was a 50-cent piece, originally a silver piece weighing in at 11.62 grams, roughly equivalent to United States half dollars of the day (the Seated Liberty half dollars weighing 12.44 grams after 1853). All denominations of 1-dollar and higher were produced as paper money. Understanding the coinage For many collectors, an interest in the coins of British Honduras may begin with something as casual as finding a single handsome example in some dealers bargain bin, or perhaps with a visit to this tropical Caribbean vacation spot with its blue waters and Mayan ruins. As far as the dealers bins, many of the colonys more recent coins were minted in base metal compositions, and are extremely affordable. As for trips to the country, well, its using its own coins now. But were getting a bit ahead of ourselves here. Lets put this system into some order. First, the cents. British Honduras 1-cent coins were first issued in 1885, and then issued intermittently through 1973. They started out as bronze coins that would do a U.S. or Canadian large cent proud. Four years of cents sport Queen Victoria on the obverse, which probably helped make her the most popular figure and image on coins, at least for her time. The 1-cent pieces of Kings Edward VII, then George V, then George VI take a collector all the way up to 1951. A single issue of 1954 is the first for which Queen Elizabeth graced the obverse, a change that turned out to go along with a drastic reduction in size. The issues from 1956 to 1973, the small cents as it were, complete the denomination, this time struck in a scalloped shape. Next, the larger coins. Larger denomination British Honduran coins have one thing in common they all began as silver issues, even the little 5-cent pieces of 1894. Along with the small 5-cent coins, which had only a 0.0346-ounce silver content, were 10-cent, 25-cent, and 50-cent pieces dated 1894, and all showing a crowned Queen Victoria on the obverse and the value on the reverse. A date set of just the 1894 issues might serve as a good starting point for what could become a larger collection from this small colony. Coins lose silver over time As the 19th century ended and the 20th century unfolded, some of the colonys denominations had their precious metal content degraded or completely removed. The 5-cent pieces were the first of the coins of British Honduras to see their silver removed, as the issue of 1907 (only the second year the denomination was minted) was made of copper-nickel. This composition served for the issues under Kings Edward and both Georges, until 1942, when the composition changed to nickel-brass, until the end of the series. The three higher denominations fared somewhat better in retaining precious metal content. The 10-cent pieces were produced in silver up until 1946, when they were changed to copper-nickel. The 25-cent pieces saw the switch to copper-nickel in 1952. And the big 50-cent pieces hung onto their silver until 1954. After those dates, each subsequently was produced in copper-nickel to the colonys final days. For a collector who wishes to assemble the coins of British Honduras into one set, an obvious line or border is the point at which the coins went from being minted in silver to being produced in a base metal, copper-nickel alloy. All of those made in base metal are going to be very inexpensive, with the possible exception of the few Proof examples produced as far back as 1894. But even those Proof coins are not particularly costly for the avid collector today, simply because the modern collector base for such coins is not all that large. Collecting approaches vary A bigger challenge would be trying to assemble the silver versions of each of these coins, and in higher circulated or Uncirculated condition when possible. As mentioned, there is not too much to gather when it comes to the 5-cent piece, but some of the larger denominations will require a bit of patience. For example, the 25-cent pieces and the big 50-cent pieces were coined in 1894 and 1895, then again in 1897 and 1901, then with King Edwards royal image in 1906 and 1907, then with George Vs face in 1911 and 1919. The 25-cent pieces each contain 0.1728 ounce of the precious metal, while the 50-cent pieces have exactly twice that much, 0.3456 ounce in them. Thus, even worn examples are pegged to the price of silver (which is $5.18 per 50-cent piece when silver trades at $15 per ounce), and its fair to expect a premium for any examples preserved in grades at About Uncirculated or any level of Uncirculated. But thats the heart and soul of the challenge patiently searching for each coin in a grade that still has some eye appeal. The independent nation that arose from the colony of British Honduras is Belize. The first coins to proclaim Belize on them, back in the 1970s, still also bore the image of Queen Elizabeth on their obverses, but the days of a colony known as British Honduras had passed. One legacy of that time is a wonderfully easy and engaging series of coins waiting for the interested collector. MU takes 'breather' on demo project Crowder Hall, which houses the University of Missouri's Military Science Department and ROTC programs, is getting a reprieve from demolition. I just got back from Mexico City, which tourists usually avoid because they don't feel safe there. It's a shame, too. Mexico City is awesome -- and can be safe. Three years ago, I wrote a piece here called "Digital nomad survival tips you can use anywhere." The column was based on everything I had learned (often the hard way) about how to stay safe while living and traveling abroad since 2006. In the past three years, however, new tech has emerged that enhances safety even further. And I've learned a few new tricks as well. Here are my best, most surprising new ideas about how to travel while protecting your money, property, health and life. Take Uber or Lyft instead of taxis Like most major international airports, the main Mexico City airport allows only licensed, authorized taxis to pick up arrivals. So it's pretty safe to take a cab from the airport. In and around the city, however, it's possible that a random taxi might be a fake -- a honeypot for tourists. The crime goes down like this: You get into a fake or stolen taxi and the driver takes you to a dark street. An armed accomplice or two gets in, and they take you to ATMs and force you to withdraw money. They might even keep you past midnight so you can max out withdrawals for the next day as well. Once they've taken away everything you've got, they leave you on a dark street in a bad neighborhood with no money, ID or phone. These so-called "express" or "fast food" kidnappings peaked in Mexico City 15 years ago, but still happen occasionally. Uber and Lyft are safer. Drivers can't commit crimes or even provide mediocre service and keep driving in the system. Anyone with less than a five-star rating is at risk of being deactivated. Like most "sharing economy" services, both are reputation-based. So despite occasional headlines to the contrary, you're unlikely to get robbed or attacked by an Uber or Lyft driver. When you use the app to call a car, you get the name and license plate before you get in. You can use the app to make sure the driver is on the intended route. Also: Uber offers something called "Trip Tracker" in the family profile. That lets family or friends track your ride in real time, and retain a detailed route thereafter. You can also share your ETA with anyone via text message. Mike Elgan In the rare countries without Uber or Lyft, such as Cuba, you just hop in a stranger's car and hope for the best. (Here the author attempted a Photo Sphere inside a Cuban taxi in the middle of nowhere.) Everywhere else, you can take advantage of the reputation-based sharing economy for added safety. It's important to note the safety value of being able to summon a ride to anywhere, rather than hoping that a cab will appear by chance. Also: Uber announced this week that it will distribute devices called Uber Beacons, which are Uber logo-shaped lights that affix to the window. Passengers can set the color from the Uber app, making it easier to identify the right car. The company said nearly all Uber drivers will have Beacons by the end of next year. Always keep your phone charged and connected You can't get an Uber or Lyft, seek out directions, know where you are, make calls, text for help or information or use your apps if your phone is not connected to the Internet or has a dead battery. That's why you should always carry a Google Fi phone for (cheap, flexible) connectivity and a pocket-size battery pack. Also: Conserve battery power by turning off location, turning on airplane mode and use low-battery mode when you don't need these features. Use Maps without a connection Sometimes you travel outside mobile data coverage areas. You can, however, always have maps, directions, business information and directions. GPS location works directly with satellites, so as long as you have the map on your phone, you can find out where you are and how to get where you're going. Google enhanced offline maps about a year ago, adding turn-by-turn directions and information about businesses, such as operating hours. While you still have an Internet connection, open Google Maps on your phone, tap on the three-line "hamburger" menu icon and choose "Offline areas." Choose "Custom area." Pinch, swipe and zoom until the map shows the whole area you'll be traveling in, then tap "Download." Later, if you find yourself without a connection, you'll still have maps, directions and all the rest. Bonus tip: You can set up multi-stop directions in Google Maps, including walking directions. Inexplicably, however, the app doesn't have a "save" feature for them. One wrong move -- a misdirected tap or swipe on the screen -- and you can lose the directions. To save them, simply share them with anyone via a messaging app from Maps' "More options" menu (this works even if you share without a connection -- the point is to save the directions, not share them). Later, if you lose your directions and don't have a connection, you can bring them back by tapping on the link in your messaging app. The safest backpack is clothing I always carry electronics with me while traveling. At a minimum, I carry my battery pack, charging cables, extra smartphone (for the Google Fi hotspot) and my mobile keyboard. Sometimes I carry Google Glass (hey, don't laugh -- how else am I going to take pictures like these?), an iPad, sunglasses and more. I'm a big fan of SCOTTeVEST clothes, which are loaded with pockets. My favorite is a jacket called the Off The Grid Jacket, which has 29 pockets. It also compresses to take up very little space in my luggage. In general, backpacks identify you as a traveler carrying expensive things. And they can be nabbed. It's far safer to carry stuff on your physical person. AirBnB Experiences are safer When you go places, you do things. Some of these things require special transportation, guide, and other resources, which have to be arranged somehow. In many countries, this is informal, and happens through word of mouth. While staying on a remote Central American island a few years ago, my wife and I wanted to visit a small Mayan ruin. Getting there required a boat trip back to the mainland and up a river. I asked a few local men who were hanging out at a store how we might arrange such a trip, and they told me: "Go up this street, turn left when you see a white fence, look for a blue house on stilts. Don't approach the house, just shout 'Fido' at the house." So we did. Fido shouted back when and where to meet at his boat the next day. His boat was like a low canoe with an outboard motor, which died after we entered the mouth of the river. Fido tried to start the motor as the boat drifted back out to sea and the water churned with with fresh-water crocodiles (they love that tender, American meat). Eventually, Fido got the boat going again and everything turned out OK. But clearly this isn't an optimal process for choosing which strangers you'll bet your life on. AirBnB recently launched a better way to arrange activities like this. It's called AirBnB Experiences. Like AirBnB and other sharing economy services, Experiences is reputation-based, so you can know that the people you're dealing with are good at what they do. Always use video surveillance Home doorbell cams, like the Ring Video Doorbell, are a great way to add security to your home. People assume that these are for homeowners to permanently mount as a replacement for a conventional doorbells. But who says you can't take it with you? Mike Elgan Take a Ring Video Doorbell with you wherever you travel. Here's the view of the author's door and stairwell in an AirBnB apartment in Marseille, France. I take my Ring Video Doorbell everywhere I go. I attach it to the wall next to the door of wherever I'm staying abroad using something called mounting putty, which is a Silly Putty-like substance available at any hardware store. I always rent AirBnBs with Wi-FI. I connect the doorbell to the Wi-FI network. Then, when my wife and I return from being out and about, I use my phone to check for motion-activated video of anyone who came to the door or who might have broken in. I also sleep better knowing that any motion outside will sound the app on my phone. The only place this doesn't work is in Cuba, where home Wi-FI is illegal. Note that you can also use a Ring Stick Up Cam for this purpose, but not the newer Ring Video Doorbell Pro, which requires an electrical connection. Best of all, you can use one or two of these products to watch your home while you're a way, and use another to protect you wherever you are. All the cameras are viewed and controlled in the same app. There are other comparable products on the market as well. A last bit of advice New technology and new products make traveling safer than ever. My best ideas for staying safe are easy, affordable and powerful. One final word of advice: Visit Mexico City! It's an amazing place with a million things to see and do and the best street food in the world. And it's safe -- if you use mobile technology to your advantage. Like pantomime villains, militant trade union leaders appear to revel in the indignation they induce from the public. The determination to cause as much disruption as possible over Christmas is scarcely disguised. A perverse delight is taken by the unions where strike action on the most unreasonable of pretexts, by the smallest number of their members, can cause widespread misery. The more exasperated the commuters, the happier it makes Mick Cash and Len McCluskey. Aslef and RMT are causing train strikes which may spread from the south east to Merseyside. The Communication Workers Union are calling out Post Office counter staff on December 19, 20 and 24. Cash-handlers who deliver money to branches will walk out on December 22 and 23. As Alec Shelbrooke MP says: Once again hard working people, who the unions are supposed to represent, are going to see their plans to wind down with family and go away on breaks theyve saved all year for, be wrecked by union Grinches. It is not enough just to condemn the strikes as unacceptable although if the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, and the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, were to do so that would be welcome. If the Government regards strikes in essential services as unacceptable, then they should stop accepting them. That means that further trade union reform is required. Chris Philp, the Conservative MP for Croydon South, proposes the following three measures: When a strike occurs on critical public infrastructure, it should be that at least a 50 per cent service is maintained Canada has similar provisions. It should be mandatory to attend mediation at conciliation service, Acas, when a strike has been called or is ongoing. There should be a legal requirement for strikes on critical public infrastructure to be reasonable and proportionate. A leader in the Daily Mail this morning suggests going further: Airports, the Post Office and the trains are vital parts of our national infrastructure. Their efficiency will be essential to ensuring Britain is competitive as we reach out to the world post-Brexit. The case for a strike ban in these critical industries grows stronger with every action. There is still the absurdity that taxpayers provide huge subsidies to the trade unions. There are those employed in the public sector who in reality are full time union officials. There is free office space provided to unions by the state. Worst of all, there is the widespread practice of the state collecting union subs the check off system which leads some staff to conclude that union membership is compulsory. Free trade unions should operate independently of the state and should be truly voluntary. During the Coalition Government the Lib Dems scuppered trade union reforms even those that would have been very popular with the public, including Lib Dem voters. This year planned changes to the political levy and thresholds for strike ballots were watered down in return for the trade unions campaigning for Remain in the EU referendum. As Mark Wallace notes there will still be some tighter rules come in next year but even if they were already in force they would not avert our present woes. Demands are growing for this unfinished business to be addressed. I see no benefit in the Government delaying. Getting on with this unfinished business would be morally right and a boost to economic confidence. It would also be hugely popular not least with millions of trade unionists. Of course the Labour Party hugely dependent on trade union funding would put up a fight. So be it. CORNWALL, Ontario The winner of this years United Way Celebration Sleigh was drawn at noon on Friday, Dec. 16. Todd Rozon of Rozon Insurance drew Carl Major as the winner of the 2016 United Way Celebration Sleigh and the $5, 000 worth of prizes it contains. For a month the Celebration Sleigh has been sitting at the entrance of Baxtroms Independent Grocers, for $3 hopeful winners entered to win the whole prize. As mentioned the sleigh itself was worth $5, 000 in gifts and other prizes that were all donated by local businesses to the United Way of SD&G. The United Way however estimates that they raised much more in selling off raffle tickets for the contest. United Way of SD&G Executive Director Lori Greer said that the focus of the campaign was to raise awareness that all that the United Way does would not be possible without community support. We really wanted to drive home that our donors are our heroes, theyre superheroes, she said. Also drawn was the winner of the Travel Quest Gift Certificate which was donated by Your Credit Union. Bonnie Brisebois drew Kelsey Lemires name as the winner of that coveted prize. Anyone who donated more than $25 to the United Way during this campaign was entered into that draw. So far, the United Way has raised 75 percent of their $700, 000 goal. Campaign Chair Bill Makinson wanted to emphasize that even though the campaign was coming to a close, that residents could and do support the United Way year round. The Gujarat government's high-profile biennial global business summit, to be held from January 10 to January 13, is unlikely to see any focus on the controversial demonetization move of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, despite growing apprehensions that it would sharply slow down India's economy and lead to the flight of capital from the country. Addressing newspersons on the summit in Ahmedabad, Gujarat chief secretary JN Singh claimed that demonetization would positively impact on the summit outcome, as it is being held against the backdrop of the bold Modi move, leading to a great leap forward towards opening up floodgates of online transactions.However, he said, during the panel discussion on finance, which would focus on Government of India's effort to introduce goods and services tax (GST) across the country, and in which Union finance minister Arun Jaitley would participate, there would be no discussion on demonetization. He added, It is a temporary phenomenon. We are aiming at long-term gains.Singh informed newspersons that, while 10-odd Nobel laureates will be participating in Vibrant Gujarat meet and participate in a discussion especially meant for them, none of those who have won Nobel prize in economics have been called. Only those who have won Nobel prize in science and technology have been invited. Eight to ten will participate, he said.Apart from finance, an official communique said, the issues to be discussed at the summit would be biotechnology, food processing, textiles, aerospace and security, plastics, engineering, heavy engineering and automation, chemicals and petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals and health. Issues related with climate change including promotion of solar power does not find mention in the list.Answering a question whether top India-born Nobel laureate in economics, Prof Amartya Sen, who is known to be sharp critic of demonetization, has been called, Singh answered in the negative, hastening to add, There is going to be no discussion on issues related with economics at the summit. No economists have been called.While Prof Sen has described demonetization as despotic and authoritarian , American economist, Nobel laureate Paul Krugman, has characterized it as highly disruptive, pointing out, it is not going to change the overall behaviour towards black money in India.Upbeat about the summit, the top Gujarat officials said, this is going to be a much bigger event than the earlier Vibrant Gujarat biennial events, held ever since 2003. To be held in the presence of Modi, PK Taneja, additional chief secretary, industries, said, this time, instead of eight in 2015 as many as 12 countries are going to partner with the Gujarat government at the summit.These countries are, he said, Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Japan, the Netherlands, Singapore, Sweden, United States, United Kingdom and United Arab Emirates. We do not expect a high-profile political delegation from the US, because January would mark transition in the US government, Taneja said.Similarly, Taneja said, there would be seven partner institutions that have decided to support the Vibrant Gujarat summit, as against five in 2015. These are Australia-India Business Council, Indo-Canada Chambers of Commerce, Japan External Trade Organization, UAE-India Business Council, UK-India Business Council, US-India Business Council, and British Council.Answering a question, Taneja sad, so far 51,738 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) have been signed since 2003 at different Vibrant Gujarat summits. Of these 34,232 MoUs are either under implementation or have been commissioned, he said, noting, Implementing MoUs is a long drawn out process, having various phases, hence all cannot be realized. Security News Amit Yoran: Partners Will Be Key Part Of His Strategy As Tenable Network Security's CEO Sarah Kuranda Share this Amit Yoran, the new CEO at Tenable Network Security, told CRN that he plans to drive a strong channel focus at the vulnerability assessment and management company. "I'm a firm believer in channel-based distribution models," Yoran said. "The channel will play an increasingly critical role in Tenable's future." Yoran assumes the top role at Tenable Network Security on Jan. 3, filling a vacancy left by the departure of former CEO Ron Gula in June. He has served as president of RSA since October 2014, taking the role after joining the company as part of its 2011 acquisition of NetWitness. [Related: RSA President Amit Yoran Takes CEO Spot At Tenable Network Security] Yoran said Tenable already has a "strong history of working successfully with their channel" and it is "already in the DNA" of the company to work with partners. He cited his background at RSA, where over the past few years, he led an "aggressive transformation" to move the company towards a partner-led, go-to-market strategy. Yoran said he expects there will be a lot of overlap between the partner bases, as both companies focus on VARs and other partners that look to take their customers through technology transformations and leverage new technologies. Chris York, regional partner at GuidePoint Security, a Herndon, Va.-based Tenable partner, said he was glad to see Yoran brought on board as CEO. "I think its a great move for Tenable," York said in an interview with CRN. "I think Amit is a very well-respected security thought leaders in the space. I think Tenable is going to be very fortunate to have a leader like Amit on board." As a partner, York said he was glad to see Tenable continue its growth with the channel, which he said the company is already executing "very well" on, by bringing in a leader, like Yoran, who has led a company with a strong partner focus in the past. He said he is particularly looking forward to expanding GuidePoint's vulnerability management managed service with Tenable as a partner. "[Yoran] matches up well with what Tenable's direction is around their go-to-market strategy with the channel I think its a great thing for us personally," York said. He said GuidePoint's business with Tenable is already seeing "substantial" growth year-over-year. York said that push with partners is also key for Tenable to differentiate itself in the vulnerability management market, where he said "Tenable is one of the only players in that space that is 100 percent channel focused." In addition to driving business through partners, Yoran said his main goal is to set the stage for Tenable to continue growing at a rapid pace. The company has been on a high-growth trajectory, growing billings by 40 percent, unveiling the acquisition of container security company Flawcheck in October, and landing $230 million in Series B funding last year. "There's is a lot of opportunity. I would say agenda item No. 1 at Tenable is to keep the momentum that we've got going," Yoran said. "As technology has evolved and enterprise use of technology evolves, we need to make sure Tenable remains on the leading edge of those changes and bring that risk perspective to the CISO [chief information security officer] and the business leadership. That is going to be critical to the company's success going forward," Yoran said. "I just want to make sure that we continue to lead the market with best of breed technology in threat vulnerability management space," he said. Each Academic year has a test Assessments , yes, but which one? FSA, EOC, SSA or SAT, quesaco? The initials of the tests that punctuate the school life of your children in Florida. From elementary school to the last months of high school, these mostly national examinations have undergone many changes over time to adapt more and more to the course of student life, even if they are not all decisive in passing In the top year. What subjects do they concern? What is their influence? It is not only your child who will learn his lesson tonight ... The Florida Standard Assessments (FSA) He is the successor to the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT). The FSA passes each year in the main subjects, and to sanction the end of an education in the college or the high school. The FSA in the main subjects What's this ? The Florida Standard Assessments is a test that evaluates the level of students in the main academic subjects (Maths and Language). It is "standardized", meaning it is established according to specific criteria defined for each grade by the State of Florida. The schools are awarded a grade from A to F according to the results obtained by their students in this test. This score is very important because it determines whether the institution is eligible for financial aid and rewards or, on the contrary, penalties. How? The FSA is done on computers. However, paper versions are available for Grades 3 and 4. When? The test is given in the spring, so that the results are returned before the end of the school year. For which year (s)? : Students are tested each year from grade 3 to 10 in Reading and Writing (the test is then called ELA, Exam of Language Arts) and grade 3 to 8 in Math. The score, and after? The state of Florida uses the "percentile rank" method to evaluate test results. This system indicates which percentage of children did worse or better than yours for the test. Thus, if a student is in the 84th percentile, you can congratulate him, because this means that 84% of Florida's other students have done worse than him! Another similar means of notation used is the T-Score. If your child received a T-score of 50, this means that half of the students did less well than him, and so the other half, better. The score goes from 1 (low) to 5 (excellent) and a score of 3 is considered a satisfactory score. Then, scores are sent to students, schools and districts and are posted on the Florida Department of Education website. EOC (End Of Course exam) What's this ? The EOC is an examination that sanctions the end of an education during college or high school in Florida. Indeed, if certain general subjects are on the program each year, algebra or geometry are taught only for 1 or 2 years. At the end of their apprenticeship, the student receives this specific test, to validate his achievements. The End of Course exam covers the subjects of History-Geo (Civics and U.S. History), Science (Biology 1), and more recently in Maths (Algebra 1, Geometry and Algebra 2). How? The EOC test is performed on computers but paper versions are available for some cases. The test lasts 90 minutes and there are 2 sessions. It must have a maximum of 68 questions. When? In spring in general, but several other sessions are possible.Group of Young Students Studying together at Library For which year? The year in which the curriculum is taken, which can be different or the level of the student in previous years (one can follow Algebra 1 in grade 8 if one is very advanced in math, but also in grade 9 if one is Less good, ditto for geometry ...). The score, and after? It goes from 425 to 575 and gives a level from 1 (low) to 5 (excellent). Namely, the score obtained at the Geometry EOC is 30% of your final average in the material, then to your squares! The Statewide Science Assessment (SSA) The SSA is a standardized examination that sanctions the level of science students according to the new NGSSS (Next Generation Sunshine State Standards) criteria. How? The Statewide Science Assessment consists of 2 sessions of 80 minutes with a break in the middle of each session. The test is carried out over two days for grade 5 and one day for grade 8. When? In the spring generally. For which year? The test is administered for grade 5 and 8 students. The score, and after? The score goes from 140 to 260 for the 2 grades, which gives a level of 1 (low) To 5 (excellent). Level 3, once again, indicates that the student has validated his or her achievements. The Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) What's this ? Created in 1926, the SAT is a standard test widely used by colleges and universities in the United States to assess the general level of High School high school students. It has been developed and is administered by the College Board, an independent American organization. The College Board certifies that the score obtained at the Scholastic Assessment Test, correlated with the general average of a pupil (GPA), accurately reflects his level of knowledge and performance for college entrance. How? The SAT remains a paper test over 3 hours plus 50 minutes for a test, in Maths, Critical Reading and Writing. The Maths section takes place in 2 steps (with and without calculator). When? It is possible to pass the SAT 7 times in the year, at the beginning of the month, from October to June. In this case, registrations are made on the College Board website. For which year (s)? Some pass the first year of high school (Freshman) but possibility of passing it in grade 11 (Junior) and 12 (Senior). The score, and after? The SAT thus concerns 3 domains, Maths, Critical Reading and Writing. Each section is rated 200 to 800 and the national average is around 500, all sections combined. Students receive their scores via the internet about 3 weeks after the test, and 6 weeks later. Meet founding editor-in-chief of Food Network Magazine and chef Maile Carpenter, who calls New York City and Old Lyme home. She will be bringing her culinary expertise on food, trends and good taste to the pages of Sunday Arts and Style. S: What do you leave out for Santa on Christmas Eve? Maile Carpenter: We usually leave two cookies for Santa and a carrot for Rudolph, but this year, my 7-year-old said that Santa probably gets tired of eating so many cookies from so many houses, and she suggested that he might like a gift instead. So hes getting a glittery red snowflake ornament from a Dollar Store. Merry Christmas, big guy! S: When do you start thinking about a New Years Eve party, and what do you serve? MC: I dont start thinking about New Years Eve until Christmas is over. (One holiday at a time, right?) The problem with New Years Eve is that it lasts a couple hours longer than most of our parties would! To break up the night, I plan a big sit-down dinner for around 9 or 9:30 p.m. and then I serve snacks on either side of the meal usually something light like soup shooters and roasted vegetables with dip beforehand, then cheese and fruit afterwards. I used to put together an over-the-top menu for New Years Eve, but I was missing out on a lot of the fun, so I scaled back and now I serve lasagna. I love Ina Gartens turkey sausage lasagna recipe, and you can make it in advance and have it ready to go into the oven later that night. Oh, and to keep the party going after dinner, I usually bring out an ice cream cake roll around 11:30 with a ton of sparklers in it. S: Any favorite hors doeuvres that are a must? MC: People always seem grateful when you serve something moderately healthful, especially when theyre settling in for a long night of eating and drinking. But Im not sure raw veggies are the answer (based on the fact that when I serve them, no one eats them). So I usually roast a couple of types of vegetables (thin carrots, parsnips, Brussels sprouts) with olive oil, salt, garlic and thyme, and I serve those warm with a blue cheese or ranch dip. S: Ideas for a New Years Day dinner? MC: Order a pizza youve earned it! S: Whats your No. 1 resolution for 2017? MC: Im going to try to get my kids to eat more than just pasta and meatballs. Youd think that between a food editor and a chef, wed have no trouble in this department, but my husband and I cant even get our daughters to eat a taco! Its not often that foes and supporters of abortion can find common ground, but they do seem to agree on one thing this years presidential election has brought the debate over this hot-button topic to a turning point. The election of Republican Donald Trump has certainly galvanized the anti-abortion movement, said William Dunlap, a professor of law at Quinnipiac University. Trump has, among other things, announced his intention to nominate a staunchly anti-abortion judge to the vacant slot on the Supreme Court, and has expressed interest in overturning the landmark abortion legislation Roe V. Wade. In the wake of his election, a piece of strong anti-abortion legislation in Ohio that banned abortions after a heartbeat was detected passed the state legislature. Ohio Gov. John Kasich vetoed that ban, but signed another piece of legislation banning abortions after 20 weeks. In Connecticut, abortion advocates said pieces of legislation like those in Ohio are probably unlikely, even during a Trump presidency. But that doesnt mean there arent concerns, said Sarah Croucher, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Connecticut. Croucher said her main worry is the possibility that the new administration would stop funding for Planned Parenthood particularly since there is only one independent, non-Planned Parenthood abortion provider in Connecticut, Hartford GYN Center. Abortion is the minority of what Planned Parenthood does, and theyre constantly a moving target, Croucher said. On the other side of the coin, anti-abortion activists are cheered that the tide seems to be shifting, and they at least partially attribute that shift to Trumps election. Its a different environment now, said Kristi Hamrick, spokeswoman for Americans United for Life, a national anti-abortion group. All kinds of issues are going to be looked at now that werent looked before. Not going anywhere Following the mixed results in Ohio, Hamrick said she believes there will be even more pieces of anti-abortion legislation passed in states around the country. In the past week, Americans United for Life published the report Unsafe: How the Public Health Crisis in Americas Abortion Clinics Endangers Women, which details what it calls unsafe conditions in abortion clinics in 32 states. Connecticut is not among them. But even states not mentioned in the report are part of what Hamrick calls an exteme abortion environment in the United States. She said thats an environment she expects to change in the next four years. During the election, those who supported Trumps Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton included Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards. It was really clear during Hillarys campaign that she allied herself with the professional abortion industry, Hamrick said. Trump, meanwhile, has continued to take an anti-abortion stance in the weeks following his victory, and has discussed the possibility of overturning Roe v. Wade and leaving decisions about abortions legality to individual states. In Connecticut, that likely wouldnt change much, Croucher said. We in Connecticut have a state thats committed to the right to choose, she said. Abortion isnt going anywhere. However, overturning the decision would disenfranchise many people in other states, which is still a concern, said Kafi Rouse, vice president of public relations and marketing for Planned Parenthood of Southern New England. Millions of women could be forced to travel out of state for abortions, or forgo care entirely, she said. Providers in jeopardy Another way the shifting culture around abortion could land in Connecticut would be if Planned Parenthood were to lose federal funding. During the campaign, Trump said he planned to defund Planned Parenthood as long as the agency offered abortions, though he did speak in favor of some of its services, including cancer screenings. Planned Parenthood states abortions make up only 3 percent of the services it provides. Though the Hyde Amendment prevents federal funding from go toward abortion unless the pregnancy is result of rape or incest or the abortion is necessary to save the life of the woman it has been a frequent target of defunding attempts. If those attempts gain traction during the Trump administration, that could be problematic for the future of Planned Parenthood. In Connecticut, its a particular concern for reproductive rights advocates, as the agency is the primary abortion provider in the state. The closing of Summit Womens Center in Bridgeport last year left Fairfield County without a non-Planned Parenthood abortion provider. Croucher said she doesnt think the concerns about the possibility of Planned Parenthood losing funding will lead to the opening of other clinics but thats not what most reproductive rights supporters are looking for anyway. We dont necessarily need more clinics, she said. We need to protect what weve got. Rouse, meanwhile, said Planned Parenthood will never stop fighting to allow women access to its services. She said donations to and request to get involved with the agency have gone up since the election. Still, she echoes Crouchers worries about the agencys future. Theres definitely uncertainty, Rouse said. We are definitely concerned with what was mentioned during the election. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The first substantial snow of the season came at a good time: Early in the morning and on a Saturday, when most people didnt have to drive to work. The snow that began falling before 5 a.m. left several inches of snow across Connecticut before it turned into rain. Up to 7 inches inches of snow fell across Fairfield, New Haven and Litchfield counties. Along the immediate shoreline, between 5.3 and 3.6 inches had fallen. By 9:30 a..m., the precipitiation had turned to sleet and freezing rain along the shoreline. The National Weather Service posted a winter weather advisory until 2 p.m. Saturday because some areas had the threat of freezing rain. Roads remained slippery and treacherous until late Saturday morning. The state Department of Transportation got an early jump on the storm with its 634 plows on the road and with help from independent contractors. Local public works crews were also up before dawn plowing and treating roads. The job was made easier because it was a powder snow and fewer cars were on the roads because it was a weekend. Most people took the advice from police to stay home so road crews could do their jobs. Avoid travel if you're able to, state police posted on their Facebook page around 9 a.m. Lots of issues statewide, please give DOT space to work. Into Saturday afternoon, temperatures in inland areas like Danbury, Oxford and New Milford had temperatures a few degrees below freezing. This caused areas of freezing rain on untreated surfaces. Temperatures were expected to rise above freezing Saturday night. More Information Snowfall totals New Fairfield: 7 inches. Seymour: 6.3 inches. Bethel: 6 inches. Brookfield: 5.7 inches. Hamden: 5.7 inches. Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford: 5.3 inches. Easton: 5.1 inches. Bethel, Weston, Shelton and Orange: 5 inches. Ridgefield: 4.5 inches. New Canaan: 4.3 inches. Stamford: 4.2 inches. Newtown: 4.1 inches. Norwalk and Ansonia: 4 inches. See More Collapse With temperatures in the teens Sunday night, expect a big freeze-up on roads, sidewalks and driveways. It would be wise to have some snow/ice melt and sand ready. While there have been no major accidents, there were dozens of spinouts and fender benders across southwestern Connecticut. State Police say they responded to more than 160 accidents since snow started falling early Saturday. Northbound Route 8 in Shelton was partially closed around 9 a.m. after several cars were unable to move through the heavy snow. State Police closed two lanes to keep oncoming traffic away from the stuck vehicles. Although plows had passed through the area, the quick-falling snow made the roads slippery again. By 10 a.m., Interstate 95 was clear and wet, but many entrances and exits remained snow-covered and slippery hours later. While most drivers followed police advice to slow down and give themselves extra distance between vehicles, there were some who took chances. Many passed slow-moving vehicles, drove with no headlights on and didnt clear snow from their cars. Some snow, especially in hilly and colder areas, may last until Christmas. There is a chance of some rain and snow Thursday night. The forecast: Sunday: Light rain likely before 7 a.m. then rain, mainly after 7 a.m. Patchy fog before 11 a.m. High near 51. Southwest wind around 11 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 90 percent. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half an inch possible. Monday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 27. North wind 5 to 8 mph. Monday night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 19. Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 35. Tuesday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 25. Participants at the event The event aims to help clear concerns over food safety in Vietnam. At this Diplohack, NGOs, diplomats, IT professionals and food producers, amongst others, joined forces to discuss and develop innovative ideas on pathways to build trust in the food chain. "You need a value chain that guarantees your food is safe from farm to fork. For this, all the stakeholders should be connected, and all the stages should be traceable and strictly supervised, said Arie Veldhuizen, Agricultural Counsellor at the Embassy of the Netherlands. For example, recently, two Dutch and two Vietnamese have cooperated to establish a sustainable and traceable safe pork value chain, with a trademark that can be trusted by all people in Vietnam. Vietnamese urban consumers, especially those from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city, are becoming wealthier, more health conscious and internet savvy. They also have ever busier lives full of activities on a daily basis. Surveys show that consumers are very worried about the safety and the sources of their food but despite these concerns, they are also slow to embrace new concepts, for example organic vegetables, on a broad scale. At the same time, the number of farmer groups that grow safe and organic vegetables in Vietnam is growing steadily, hand in hand with the Vietnamese consumers increasing appetite for these kinds of vegetables, and it is the hope that the outcomes of this Diplohack will help these consumers and farmers find each other to their mutual benefit. In Sweden, a number of government agencies constantly monitored and traced food products. Apart from investigating, they also make sure that producers marking their products with different certificates follow the rules and regulations of those certificates, said Camilla Bjelkas, Cultural Officer at the Swedish Embassy. Food is very important, and across the world, people everyday concern themselves with whether the food they buy and eat is safe, healthy, nutritious and quality. To make these decisions, people need information about where and how the food is produced, how it has been handled and how it should be used. However, accessing this information can be difficult, and this Diplohack tackled the questions of who should provide this information, in what format and by what means, and not least, the question of what it takes for us to trust the information we receive. A Diplohack is a new way of bringing together civil society, industry, students, IT experts and diplomats to brainstorm and come up with new ideas on how to tackle important issues in society. What makes a Diplohack so powerful is that it combines the skillset from different fields, making the discussions and solutions multi-dimensional and creative./. Civil War Gala to be held Saturday in Somerset The 14th annual Col. Robert Cummins Civil War Gala will be held at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Somerset Church of the Brethren, 606 Berlin Plank Road in Somerset. The State Emergency Service of Ukraine has received engineer equipment and vehicles from the Chinese government under a technical assistance project. "We thank you for the technical assistance project (CNY 50 million) in the form of specialized equipment from the Chinese government to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine," Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov wrote on his Facebook page on Friday. He said that under the intergovernmental agreement between China and Ukraine on the provision of rescue equipment to the State Emergency Service Ukrainian response groups accepted 25 equipment units and vehicles, 32 special equipment kits and spare parts worth CNY 50 million (over UAH 185 million). Avakov said that the equipment and vehicles are intended to use in manmade and natural disaster emergency response and recovery. "This is only one of the projects we are developing with China. We are working perfectly with Ambassador [to Ukraine] Du Wei and have several projects under implementation. We would soon present their results," the minister said. Former mayor of Kherson, member of Kherson City Council Volodymyr Saldo, who earlier claimed he had been abducted in the Dominican Republic and then arrested on charges of abduction of a person in that country has returned to Ukraine, media outlet zn.ua reported. "He arrived in Kherson by plane, by a regular flight," his aide, Olha Spivakina, told zn.ua on Friday. In her words, he "arrived in Kherson as an ordinary citizen, not being on Interpol's wanted list." As was reported, the 112.Ukraine television channel reported on August 25 with reference to the Ukrainian Embassy to Cuba that former Kherson Mayor Volodymyr Saldo had been detained on suspicion of kidnapping in the Dominican Republic. Ukraine's Foreign Ministry confirmed the detention of a Ukrainian citizen in the Dominican Republic on charges of abduction of another person, without disclosing the identity. Late in August 2016, the ex-mayor's wife, Liubov Saldo, claimed her husband had been abducted in the Dominican Republic and had been subject to tortures for 50 days. According to her, a man who named himself Denys Pashchenko invited Saldo to the Dominican Republic in June for negotiating a possible joint venture. "After Volodymyr arrived in the Dominican Republic, there were no direct phone calls, only messaging. Allegedly because of bad communication," she said. "Later on I learnt that all messaging was at gunpoint, with a bag on his head," she said. She claimed that Dominican police arrested Saldo on August 19 upon Pashchenko's application and on charges of alleged abduction of Pashchenko. Saldo ran for Kherson mayor as a Nash Kray Party nominee in 2015 but lost. He is currently a member of Kherson City Council. Mick Cash, general secretary of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers. One commentator has said Cash's union is a 'worst offender' in trace union militancy This week has witnessed a deeply troubling resurgence in trade union militancy and on a scale rarely seen since the 1970s. Across several major industries, a group of Marxist union dinosaurs are hell-bent on inflicting misery on millions of people trying to go about their lives, with strikes cynically aimed at causing maximum disruption over the Christmas period. The worst offenders are the rail unions Aslef and the RMT, which have brought the Southern train network to its knees. In the process, they have subjected commuters to a year-long nightmare in which jobs have been lost, homes had to be sold and family life was disrupted almost beyond endurance. Yes, Southerns operating company is woefully incompetent, but the unions are using a blatant lie about safety to block new trains on which drivers and not conductors open the doors, a practice which has been in use for more than 30 years. Then there is the Post Office, where the Communication Workers Union is resisting changes to generous career average pension schemes (largely unheard of in the private sector) and has boasted it will create absolute chaos, with five days of strike action from Monday. Parcel deliveries will face major disruption, which is bound to mean presents arriving late. Good will to all men? Forget it. Also holding a gun to the heads of the public over Christmas is the Unite union, with strikes about pay by British Airways cabin crew due to start as soon as Wednesday. These could stop thousands heading abroad for holidays or family reunions. If there was ever any doubt, these strikes are part of an organised strategy, check-in staff, baggage handlers and cargo crew at 18 airports last night announced a 48-hour walkout from December 23. It is no coincidence that all this industrial action involves former nationalised firms, where antediluvian union attitudes still hold sway. The Southern Rail strikers have brought commutes to a halt this past week Airports, the Post Office and the trains are also vital parts of our national infrastructure. Their efficiency will be essential to ensuring Britain is competitive as we reach out to the world post-Brexit. The case for a strike ban in these critical industries grows stronger with every action. By standing up to the unions, Mrs Thatcher made history and transformed Britain from an economic basket case into a flourishing modern economy. For Theresa May whose sound instincts on this issue the Mail does not doubt for a minute the latest acts of union sabotage are a huge opportunity. Jeremy Corbyns Labour which unashamedly takes vast union donations is utterly compromised. By taking on the unions, Mrs May could win a huge mandate from the electorate against the tiny minority of bully-boy wreckers whose cynicism this Christmas is sickening millions of Britons. And how to win an election (Part Two) This week has also brought into sharp relief the extent of austerity cuts to council-funded care services. Residential homes going bust at an alarming rate Half of councils cutting meals on wheels Home visits of just 15 minutes Costs to rise with the new minimum wage... A care home in Southampton Ministers response? To allow rises in council rates, which are only a further tax on hard-working families. Meanwhile we still spend 12 billion a year and rising to hit an absurd foreign aid target. Just how absurd was revealed this week when MPs savaged the International Development department for spending a quarter of a billion pounds on an airport in the South Atlantic where commercial planes cant land. We should be grateful that at least the money didnt go into the pockets of foreign dictators and their henchmen like so much aid cash does. Yes, Britain must help those parts of the world less fortunate than us. But we also have a moral duty to look after the sick and elderly in our own backyard, who paid taxes throughout their lives with the not-unreasonable expectation that they would be looked after in old age. The 0.7 per cent foreign aid target put into law by David Cameron just to prove he really cared was political posturing at its worst. It has resulted in Britain, whose citizens are already huge private donors, paying more per capita than almost any other country in the world. This paper believes that, as austerity bites further, this situation is unsustainable. Ever since Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt stood shoulder to shoulder against Hitler, it has been an axiom of British stategy that Prime Ministers should enter into a close partnership with the U.S. President. Some of these partnerships have become legendary: Harold Macmillan and John F.Kennedy in the Sixties; Maggie Thatcher and Ronnie Reagan in the Eighties. There was also a close bond though it led to the calamity of the Iraq War between Tony Blair and George W. Bush. So it is utterly fascinating that Theresa May seems determined to be the exception to this rule. She has snubbed an invitation from President-elect Trump to visit him informally at his home in Trump Tower, New York, before he enters the White House. And she has refused to allow Nigel Farage the only British politician who knows Donald Trump well to act as an intermediary between the Trump camp and Downing Street. Even though Britain and the US are facing in opposite directions when it comes to crucial foreign policy issues, Britain desperately needs the US as an ally as we leave the EU Furthermore, Mrs May is not just personally antipathetic to Trump. She is also opposed to his policies. Lets take as an example his eye-catching determination to strike a deal on military and diplomatic relations with President Putin of Russia. Mrs May is flatly opposed. Indeed, last week she allowed MI6 chief Alex Younger to issue an explicit repudiation of Trumps policy towards Russia. Speaking from his headquarters in Vauxhall, South London, Younger said of the threats that exist in the modern world: The risks at stake are profound and represent a fundamental threat to our sovereignty; they should be a concern to all those who share democratic values. Britains spy chief did not name either Putin or Russia, but no one was left in doubt about whom he was speaking. The same disconnect between Britain and Americas leader-in-waiting applies when it comes to the terrible civil war raging in Syria. Trump sees Syrias President Assad as, above all else, an ally in the fight against Islamist terror. It has been a principle strategy for British Prime Ministers to be in close partnership with US Presidents since the days of Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt but Theresa May seems determined to be the exception Mrs May disagrees. She has made it plain she wants Assad out at all costs even it that means confrontation with his great ally and protector, Putins Russia. We know this because Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has called for a no-fly zone in Northern Syria, a policy that if we pursued it would automatically have led to military confrontation with Russia, whose fighter jets rule those skies. Mrs May, who has been all too quick to slap Boris down, significantly did not do so on this occasion. The British Prime Minister is also on a collision course with the U.S. over Saudi Arabias air bombardment in the Yemen, where it is attacking rebel forces who overthrew the internationally recognised government two years ago. The U.S. has recently put an end to some arms sales to the Saudis because it believes the level of civilian casualties caused by their bombing in Yemen is much too high. Theresa May strongly disagrees. She is determined to carry on selling arms to Saudi Arabia regardless. All of this takes Britain into an unprecedented situation. Of course we have fallen out with our trans-atlantic ally before, most famously when President Eisenhower pulled the plug on the British invasion of Egypt in 1956, during the Suez debacle which became one of our greatest military humiliations. As Mr Trump is about to become the leader of the most powerful country in the world, he and Mrs May should re-assess what has long been called the Special Relationship In 1983, Maggie Thatcher angrily protested over the U.S. invasion of our former colony, Grenada, which she was not told about by Ronald Reagan before his troops went in. But never since World War II have Britain and the U.S. been facing in opposite directions over so many crucial foreign policy issues at the same time. I have sympathy for Mrs Mays reluctance to do business with Donald Trump. He is a braggart, a bigot and a bully. If I were American, I would not have voted for him. Yet, the inconvenient fact remains that he will be inaugurated as the President of the United States in just under six weeks time. That means he is about to become the leader of the most powerful country in the world, and an ally which Britain desperately needs as we prepare to depart from the European Union. Yesterdays newspapers carried telling pictures of Theresa May at this weeks summit meeting in Brussels, where she appeared to be shunned and isolated by European leaders. Mrs May has snubbed an invitation from President-elect Trump to visit him informally at his home in New York and is opposed to his policies With that backdrop, it is nothing short of extraordinary that she should spurn our most powerful ally one which is very well disposed towards Britain. Lets not forget that Trump admires Britain. He knows this country fairly well, and in particular, Scotland, where his mother was born and bred. He supported Brexit and when it happened it became his inspiration to overturn the American liberal establishment. Love him or hate him, President-elect Trump could be our greatest international asset as we forge a new identity away from the European Union. Our first task should be to strike a trade deal with the U.S., but that will surely only happen if our Prime Minister makes an effort to cultivate the American leader. The problem at the moment is that Mrs May is listening to the advice of the Foreign Office. She is very unlucky that the UKs Ambassador in Washington, Kim Darroch, is the worst possible man for the job. He has one of those profoundly conventional bureaucratic minds which sycophantic diplomatic correspondents love to describe as brilliant. Mr Trump admires Britain. He knows this country fairly well, and in particular, Scotland, where his mother was born and bred. He supported Brexit and when it happened it became his inspiration to overturn the American liberal establishment Darroch had one task when he was appointed Ambassador last January. That was the patriotic duty to cultivate a close relationship with the next U.S. President. He failed miserably. When the election result became clear, he didnt even have a phone number to ring the Trump camp. In what was a huge error of judgment, he had put all his chips on Hillary Clinton. Since election day, Darroch has made matters worse, playing by the book and advising the Prime Minister to wait until Donald Trump is in the White House to make her first visit. I have no doubt that Darroch is a useful man to have around in normal times, or when a cocktail party needs to go off without a hitch. When the unexpected happens this lifelong bureaucrat is, frankly, out of his depth. The threat right now is that if he and Mrs May do not make a shrewd re-assessment of what has long been called the Special Relationship, Britain may be dangerously isolated in an increasingly uncertain world. Why Mr Osborne is so wrong about Syria George Osborne's Commons speech in favour of intervention in Syria this week has been greatly praised. However, it contained a series of howlers which revealed that the former Chancellor has no grasp of what is really going on in the Middle East. George Osborne's Commons speech in favour of intervention in Syria this week has been greatly praised, but, it contained a series of howlers which revealed that he has no grasp of what is really going on in the Middle East The most serious of Mr Osbornes misapprehensions concerns the rise of Islamic State. He says that Britains non-intervention in Syria permitted Isis to flourish. This is wrong, and needs to be corrected. After the fall of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, Al-Qaeda jihadists came together with Saddams defeated generals to create a new and terrifying group known as Al Qaeda in Iraq. This later mutated into Isis, the murderous terrorist group that the world now knows. Isis therefore owes its genesis to the catastrophic American and British decision to invade Iraq in 2003. It has nothing to do with the parliamentary vote in 2013 which rejected air strikes against President Assads forces. Contrary to what George Osborne thinks, the emergence of Isis after the Iraq War is strong and persuasive evidence that intervention does not work. My children and I are sitting quietly around the kitchen table in satisfied silence. Just as I happily muse that I really cant eat another thing, I catch sight of a box of creamy shell-shaped pralines on the wooden island. Maybe one, with a cup of rich, smooth coffee, to round off a day of delicious eating. When I'm asked to try out Lidls Christmas Day range, which is going to cost less than 70 for breakfast, lunch and dinner for a family of four - INCLUDING WINE - I think its a Christmas cracker joke. What a ridiculous idea! I have a hazy, Dickensian Christmas past recollection of spending hundreds of pounds on food for the big day. When I log into various websites this is confirmed. Every Christmas, I have historically put aside any Scrooge like tendencies and blown almost 50 on a ready stuffed turkey crown, not to mention over 20 on Champagne and well over 10 per bottle of wine. Christmas Day food for under 70, INCLUDING wine? Writer Alice Smellie managed it! How she did it: Alice spent a total of 66.61 The suggestion that the entire day could cost under 70 is frankly risible. Surely there's going to be significant compromise on quality? The last thing you want when faced with a family who think you cant cook very well (true) is cheap tasting food. But then I reason that if I save money, theres more to spend in the January sales, and perhaps I wont spend a month pretending that Ive been kidnapped when I see letters from the bank. I am given a seemingly never-ending shopping list and head to my nearest large sized Lidl, in the beautiful cathedral city of Wells, where I spend a happy half hour filling a trolley to the brim and then doing a double take at the final - unbelievably low - total which is, as promised, under 70. 66.61, in fact. But I suspect its going to be a long day of cooking. Instead of my customary ready-made side dishes - idle, yes, but also time-saving - its all fresh food. Breakfast is a fest of scrambled eggs and smoked salmon on crusty, low GI seeded bread Breakfast like kings: Alice and children Lara, 8, Archie, 11, and Oscar, 10, start the day well Alice's children, willing guinea pigs for the Christmas Day food challenge, enjoy croissants and jam My three children, Archie, 11, Oscar 10, and Lara, 8, are over the moon the next morning when they are served scrambled eggs with smoked salmon on crusty low GI multiseed bread, followed by croissants with fruit packed strawberry jam and fresh orange juice. The food is five star, but the waitress service a bit grumpy. We may be doing a faux Christmas, but Im not quite feeling festive. The eggs and salmon take minutes to make, and are a protein packed start to the day, a vital consideration when there are so many ways of burning off energy; walks in the fields, roller blading on new skates, lifting heavy glasses of wineUsually I think croissants are a bit of a cop out - one bite and theyre gone, but these are freshly made, and - at only 29p each - are enormous, buttery and flaky. Alice was seriously impressed with the feast of Turkey crown with all the trimmings I look gloomily at the turkey and assorted vegetables. Time to spend the entire day cooking. But then I realise that the turkey crown is ready to roast, so I just need to put it in the oven for around three hours. The Deluxe Goose Fat Potatoes are frozen (thank you Lidl. Who wants to peel potatoes ever, particularly on Christmas Day?) and the vegetables simply require boiling or steaming. Its around half an hour of prep, including mixing the red cabbage with some red wine, and braising it in a big pot. I also check the prosecco as I work - no stone left unturned in my food reviews. Couldnt be simpler. But what if it all ends up tasting like a cheap microwavable meal for one, given its low price, I wonder? Im still unconvinced, although admittedly, the house smells divine and the turkey crown looks incredible. I carve steaming delicate slices of meat and the children - very much in character by now and clamouring for crackers and paper hats - pile their plates high with perfectly cooked carrots, crispy potatoes that are fluffy inside, fresh sprouts, and the purple cabbage (this last is a lie, Oscar visibly flinches), sloshing gravy over the lot. Alice and her children fell upon the lunch, piling their plates high with perfectly cooked veg Christmas perfection: Divine parsley and onion rich stuffing balls and pigs in blankets It's divine. I have three helpings of the turkey, the potatoes are perfect, and the gravy - to which I added the turkey juices - savoury perfection, especially with the sage and onion rich stuffing, which I made into balls. A surprise winner is the port and cranberry jelly, which has the tart taste of a high end product, but costs 99p. The children cant get enough of it. I estimate that the whole thing costs around 5.86 per head. Ive had takeaway sandwiches costing more than that! 'The wine deserves a special mention' - Alice enjoyed the rich, fruity Rioja Joven (3.99) The wine deserves a special mention. It could have been as stressful to source as a pot of myrrh, but wasnt, thanks to the helpful staff at Lidl in Wells, where the award winning Rioja Joven had sold out. Hardly surprising at 3.99! For information on safe drinking head to drinkaware.co.uk. When I enquire about the possibility of getting some, the store manager dials a number, has a conversation, and it is delivered overnight to the store. Its very popular, he tells me. I drink a toast to Chris in Lidl, as I savour a glass of the rich, fruity red. The children are thrilled with the sophistication of the Grape Spritzer. We turn our attention to pudding. I think Christmas pudding is such a waste of time, I say, plonking the dark, steaming and fruit packed confection on the table. Archie gasps in faux horror and clutches his heart. I gather its amazing. Whatever. I love the buttery mince pies with rich brandy cream and the incredible Lemon and Raspberry Semifreddo, a creamy, lemony concoction with dried raspberries and pistachios on top. This is my favourite of all, says Lara. I wonder whether I could get away with serving it at dinner parties and passing it off as my own. (A: No. Its far too nice). The Christmas pudding was 'amazing', as was the Lemon and Raspberry Semifreddo, right Our mock Christmas becomes ever more like the real thing as we lie in front of the telly all afternoon - unable to move - watching the Secret Life of Pets. And, just like Christmas Day, although we thought wed never eat again, by 6pm, people are stirring and looking for nibbles. So I bring out another spread - of pork pies, cold meats and cheeses, with some crusty baguette and sea salt crackers. The last deserves some sort of Smellie Award for Taste. I ask Oscar, who loves a cracker, for his thoughts. I dont like them, he says. Whoops. I LOVE them! he shouts, like a mini Simon Cowell judging X Factor. The children adore the cold meats and I scoff gently oozing Camembert and Wensleydale with dried cranberries. It has been a long day. But we are all replete and have just enough energy to be very impressed. I have one complaint. The box of chocolates isnt expensive enough. I cant justify hiding them from the children as adult food, which means they have consumed the majority. Thinking about it, perhaps thats no bad thing. Buttery mince pies and Belgian Sea Shell praline chocolates are perfect after dinner treats Mini pork pies, a selection of cheeses and delicious cold meats made the perfect dinner Over five years, they couple hit all seven continents, Advertisement Mike and Anne Howard embarked on their honeymoon five years ago. The couple wed in 2011 - and after a decade working 9-to-5 jobs, they quit, sold most of their belongings and rented out their home before setting off to see the world. Since then, they've hit all seven continents and more than 50 countries, but they're still going strong on what is quite possibly the longest honeymoon in history. And incredibly, the thrifty couple are traveling the world on less than USD $25 a day. Scroll down for video Mike and Anne Howard embarked on their honeymoon five years ago and have seen fifty countries They're spending their extended honeymoon exploring places like this old rail yard in Bristol The Howards got to the top of this New Zealkand mountain the quick way, thanks to the helicopter in the background Although it was difficult giving up seeing their families regularly and giving up steady jobs where they'd both gotten promotions, the Howards have no regrets. 'We thought, you know, waiting till we are 65 and retired to follow our dreams seemed like a really risky plan,' Mike, 39, told the Washington Post. 'Lets get out there and travel while we are young and healthy.' When they started their trip, the Howards had a budget of $39 a day each, to cover the food, accommodation, transport and leisure activities. Later, they cut it down to just $12.20 each daily - although the amount spent varied depended on the country, with countries in south east Asia costing far less than England, Japan and Australia. The couple found the mother of all strangler figs driving along the back roads of Guanacaste in Costa Rica Initially, the couple's travel funds came from their savings - but now, they make an income from their travel website HoneyTrek.com The couple trekking along the Tuckerman Ravine, a glacial cirque on the southeast face of Mt. Washington Still going: Mike and Anne Howard shared this picture from their trip to Antarctica on their fifth wedding anniversary Epic: The couple got married in 2011, then quit their jobs to travel the world. Above, the couple in Peru Round the world: The Howards have visited all seven continents and more than 50 countries But Mr Howard insists that despite being frugal, the couple are still having incredible experiences like hiking in the mountains of Patagonia and driving through the Scottish Highlands in a camper van. 'We arent trying to live as cheaply as possible; we are trying to live as large as possible,' he said. Initially, the couple's travel funds came from their savings - but now, they make an income from their travel website HoneyTrek.com which offers practical tips for long-term travellers. Strike a pose: The couple dressed to impressed as the celebrated the Day of the Dead event in Mexico The couple urge globetrotters to choose a town or village to stay in for longer periods rather than speed around a whole country to catch all the sights Living large: Despite being frugal, the couple are still having incredible experiences everywhere they go On top of the world: The couple, who run travel website HoneyTrek.com pose on Mount Rainier in Washington They also share their travel hacks in lectures, recently giving a Smithsonian Associates talk called 'Travel Hacking 101: How to Travel Longer For Less.' Their advice for cutting costs includes making the most of frequent flier miles, volunteering and house-sitting. They also urge globetrotters to choose a town or village to stay in for longer periods rather than speed around a whole country to catch all the sights. 'You have to be somewhere at least a week to begin to get a feel for how people live there,' Anne said. Two Ukrainian servicemen injured in Donbas in past 24 hours Two Ukrainian soldiers were injured in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) zone in the past 24 hours, Ukrainian Defense Ministry spokesman Andriy Lysenko has said. "None of the Ukrainian servicemen were killed but two soldiers suffered injuries in hostilities near the settlement of Nevelske over the past day," he told a press briefing in Kyiv on Saturday. A total of 383 mortar mines and 96 artillery rounds were fired upon Ukrainian government forces' positions, he said. On Friday, December 15, Lysenko reported that one Ukrainian soldier was injured in the ATO zone in the past 24 hours. Like many highly organised women, BBC presenter Victoria Fritz had left little to chance when it came to her pregnancy. A meticulous planner, she had discussed the options for her baby's birth with her GP and, aware that her job took her all over the country, even made notes of good city hospitals nationwide 'just in case'. 'I have to say I didn't think I would need them,' she reflects now. Scroll down for video Victoria remembers going into 'complete panic' when her waters broke live on television Yet Mother Nature had other ideas, and last month, Victoria went into labour five weeks early shortly after she had discussed the day's business news live on air from BBC Breakfast's Salford studios in Greater Manchester. With Victoria hundreds of miles from her London home and from her husband Dan, it was down to fellow presenter Sally Nugent to step in and, thanks in no small part to Sally, baby William was born safely by caesarean section at Manchester's St Mary's Hospital six hours later. All of which meant that his mother, normally known for her razor-sharp grasp of global business affairs and an unflappable on-air demeanour, went from delivering the news to becoming a headline herself. Now that her son is home and safe Victoria, 32, has told the dramatic story of his birth in full Yet there was also a frightening coda to this off-air drama: William developed breathing problems and spent the next two weeks in a high- dependency unit surrounded by tubes and wires. Only now that he is safely home is Victoria, 32, able to relive in full the dramatic events leading up to her son's arrival and the traumatic days that followed. 'It feels surreal,' she says, cradling William in her arm in a cosy sitting room complete with immaculately decorated Christmas tree. Victoria was in Manchester when she went into labour miles away from her London home and husband Dan (pictured) News reader Victoria Fritz had just been presenting BBC Breakfast when her waters broke 'Everything happened so quickly. But if you are going to be thrown a curve ball, than you couldn't do better than have someone like Sally on your side. 'We are so grateful to her and all of the doctors and nurses at St Mary's. 'We just feel incredibly blessed to have been able to bring our son home.' 'Last Christmas we weren't even planning on having a baby and now here we are, as new parents, looking forward to our first Christmas as a family.' Today William, who was just over 6 lb at birth, has grown to a healthy 7 lb 11oz, and like any other new parents, Victoria and Dan, 34, are adapting to night feeds and nappy changes at their home in South-East London. Clad in a snug babygro, their four- week-old son snoozes away in his mother's arms as we chat, oblivious to his starring role. Although she and Dan married five years ago, Victoria, a Cambridge economics graduate, confesses that it was quite a surprise when she discovered she was pregnant in the spring. 'Everyone else I knew was starting to have babies but my mindset was more 'all in good time',' she says. 'Last Christmas we weren't even planning on having a baby and now here we are,' she said 'We had just bought a house which we were renovating and the news agenda was packed this year with referendums and elections, and a lot of my focus was on that.' Victoria carried on working shifts for BBC News, BBC World and Breakfast, the latter requiring her to travel up the Salford studios from home and stay overnight. But by the time she made the journey on the afternoon of Sunday, November 13, she had decided it was to be her last. 'At seven-and-a-half months pregnant, I realised I probably didn't need to be navigating the Tube with my suitcase,' she continues. 'The afternoon before I left, I'd planted 500 tulip bulbs so looking back I was obviously nesting like mad maybe subliminally I knew what was coming.' Perhaps she did: Victoria admits that she and the Breakfast team enjoyed frequent jokes about the chances of William making an early appearance. 'I'd had a few twinges the previous day and I had asked the make-up lady, Jane, and Sally whether it was normal,' she recalls. 'They both said 'Oh yes, completely' so I didn't think anything of them but my producer Kate was joking that it would be good for the programme's ratings if I went into labour.' Victoria said the Breakfast team at the Salford studios made jokes about William arriving early William developed breathing problems and was put in a high-dependency unit after birth Her appearance went without a hitch: Victoria interviewed EasyJet's CEO Carolyn McCall about their end-of-year figures before returning to her nearby hotel room for a nap, tired from her 4am start. 'I was still experiencing the odd twinge but I just thought this was part of the last few weeks,' she says. She thought differently when her waters broke. 'I went into a complete panic for about 30 seconds,' she recalls. 'There was a lot of swearing. It's funny what comes into your head. 'I remember wondering what on earth I was going to tell the hotel about the carpet.' Survival mode then kicked in. 'I knew I had my medical notes with me, which was a good start, and I realised I had to just take a deep breath and try to take charge of the situation.' Her first call was to her barrister husband Dan, whose phone went straight to voicemail. Victoria couldn't get in contact with her lawyer husband Dan to tell him she was giving birth 'I knew he was in court but I had to try. 'All I could do was go through to the head clerk at his chambers and ask him to get an urgent message to Dan that I was in labour,' she recalls. 'I later found out that he had a female judge presiding over his trial who told him that he had to leave immediately.' Her next call was to her editor to say she wouldn't be in the next day. With admirable calm, Victoria then called a taxi to get her to hospital. By now she was having contractions every three minutes not ideal circumstances under which to pack up your hotel room and check out. 'It was incredibly surreal, never more so than when I was sitting in the lobby waiting for my cab,' says Victoria. 'I just remember thinking I had to take it one step at a time.' That carefully planned list of city hospitals also proved to be of little help the cab driver took one look at his panting passenger and took her to the nearest one, the Salford Royal. Victoria's journey would not end there, however: although doctors performed a scan and informed her she was 2cm dilated, they also told her that because her baby was in the breech position, meaning he was lying feet rather than head first and making the birth potentially less straightforward, they had to refer Victoria to another hospital St Mary's. Moreover, she had to make her own way there. Failing to reach her husband Victoria rang fellow presenter Sally Nugent who rushed to her Stranded in a city she didn't know, it was time to call in the cavalry in the shape of Sally Nugent, 45. 'I suddenly felt very alone. I was standing inside a hospital I didn't know in an area I didn't know,' Victoria recalls. 'I was on my own and it was becoming clear that I was going to have this baby really soon. That's when I realised I needed help and so I called Sally.' Her 'funny, kind and pragmatic' colleague is 'exactly the sort of person you want alongside you in a crisis', she says. 'She was honestly the first person who came to mind.' Sally arrived as quickly as she could to spirit Victoria to St Mary's in her car, although not quite as quickly as she had planned. 'We drove straight into stationary traffic,' recalls Victoria. 'We were timing my contractions on her dashboard clock and by now they were coming thick and fast. 'I was starting to panic a bit but Sally told me not to worry, that it would be ages before I gave birth. 'Later on she told me she had made that up to keep me calm.' Finally the traffic parted and the duo arrived at St Mary's maternity unit, where doctors hastily leafed through Victoria's medical notes while she attempted to fill them in on her history in between contractions. 'They gave me gas and air and I had Sally at my left shoulder shouting encouragement.' She needed it although doctors had decided a caesarean section was the safest option given the baby's breech position, they also had to carry out blood tests, and that meant a 45-minute wait. 'By now my contractions were coming every minute and I was in quite a lot of pain. 'I said I couldn't wait that long but Sally was holding my hand and saying, 'Yes you absolutely can.' 'She just kept buoying me up, she was just amazing,' says Victoria. With Dan stuck on the M6 many miles south, it also fell to Sally to accompany Victoria into theatre when surgeons were finally able to perform her C-section. 'Sally sat right by my head throughout,' says Victoria. 'She even brought in my phone to take photos.' Finally, at 7pm, just six hours after her waters had broken, baby William emerged into the world weighing 6 lb 1oz. 'I remember this almighty pop when his head came out,' smiles Victoria. He was pronounced healthy and robust and she was able to give her newborn son his first cuddle. 'Part of me couldn't believe he was here,' she says. 'He was so tiny and perfect. I wanted so badly for Dan to meet him.' Six hours after her waters had broken, baby William emerged into the world weighing 6 lb 1oz It was another hour before Dan finally arrived, but events quickly took a turn for the worse. 'The doctors and nurses were very good at not alarming us but said they needed to take a closer look at William as his breathing was quite fast.' In fact, William's premature arrival meant that his lungs had not had a chance to fully develop. This, combined with what doctors believed was a possible infection which may also have triggered Victoria's labour meant he needed help to breathe. The lowest point of all came the following night when Victoria, still recovering in hospital from her surgery, received a midnight visit from a nurse who told her that William had been moved to NICU, or neonatal intensive care. 'It was very frightening. They said it would be better if I didn't go up to his ward for an hour while they settled him.' Together with Dan, who was staying in a nearby hotel, the terrified couple could only wait. Worryingly William's premature arrival meant that his lungs had not fully developed 'The first time I saw him after he was transferred, there were tubes everywhere and obviously that's an incredibly upsetting and worrying sight. 'We didn't know what we would find,' she says quietly. His anxious parents looked on as baby William was given oxygen and tube-fed hourly. 'The nurse told us he just needed a little more help with his breathing. It was such a relief that he was OK.' William was clearly made of stern stuff: he got stronger every day as his parents watched from his bedside. Now discharged from hospital, Victoria and Dan were able to stay nearby in rooms provided by the charitable wing of McDonald's, the Ronald McDonald House Charities, which offers accommodation to families while their child is in hospital. 'We were really grateful,' she says. 'There were lots of other parents there, all going through similarly uncertain times, and we all looked out for each other.' After eight days, William was well enough to be transferred to the couple's local hospital in Woolwich, where he remained for a further week until, at the start of December, Victoria and Dan were finally able to bring him home. Victoria recalls sitting down to dinner cooked by her husband. 'Out of nowhere big fat tears sprung to my eyes,' she says. 'It was the first time I'd cried in two weeks. Partly out of exhaustion, partly out of relief and perhaps partly the sudden and overwhelming recognition of the responsibility of becoming a parent.' They seem to be coping admirably and say they have been buoyed by messages of support from all over the world. After eight days, William was transferred to Woolwich hospital, where he stayed for a week 'We have had so many lovely messages and cards and we arrived home to a bottle of champagne from Carolyn McCall too,' Victoria smiles. And what of her erstwhile birth partner, Sally? 'We've not had chance to see each other yet but I've sent her lots of photographs,' says Victoria. 'She was utterly brilliant, I have to say, and I will be for ever grateful to her for coming to my rescue. If she hadn't been there, I wouldn't like to think how difficult and scary it could have been.' She is grateful for something else too. 'Thank goodness I wasn't out on location when I went into labour,' she says. 'Only a few weeks earlier I was off the coast of Scotland at dawn on a boat chasing a giant tanker of shale gas. McDonald's isn't exactly associated with haute cuisine. But perhaps all that could soon change, if these new dishes are anything to go by. Mini burgers with thick patties served in brioche buns, delicate chicken morsels on melba-style toast and boozy cocktails have all been created for a secret Christmas menu. But while these items may look nothing like normal McDonald's fare, everything on the special menu was made with the same ingredients that the chain uses everyday in its UK stores. Mini burgers with thick patties served in brioche buns and delicate chicken morsels on melba-style toast are among dishes created for a secret Christmas menu at McDonald's These delicate dessert canapes featuring a honeycomb shard were made for a one off fine dining McDonald's event Sadly, you won't be able to buy these canapes or cocktails at a McDonald's anytime soon as they were just created for a one-off event at the Leicester Square branch of McDonald's on Thursday. But everything made on the night was designed to be a posher version of an item on the normal McDonald's menu - and rivalled food and drink served up at one of the chain's higher-end rivals such as Byron and Gourmet Burger Kitchen. One canape was a slice of grilled chicken on a slice of melba-style toast, rolled in a spiced crumb on a dot of sauce and topped with a green tuille. It looks nothing like the Chicken Legends normally served at McDonald's - but every ingredient on the canape also goes into the Legend sandwiches. McDonald's made refined versions of its normal menu items for one night only, including an alcoholic version (left) of its Spiced Cookie Latte (right) This 'Fancy Fish N' Fry' is a refined version of the classic Fillet O' Fish at McDonald's A McDonald's development chef creates the dessert canape of brownie topped with cherry, marshmallow and honeycomb shard This delicate canape of a rosti topped with egg and bacon is a fine dining version of the classic McDonald's Egg and Bacon McMuffin (inset), and its Hash Brown One canape was a slice of grilled chicken on a slice of melba-style toast, topped with a green tuille (left). It looked nothing like the Chicken Legends (right) normally served at McDonald's The chicken was removed from its breaded coating, while the crumb was used to season the meat and create the tuille. The toast was just a normal McDonald's burger bun sliced thinly and toasted. Another morsel was a delicate rosti topped with cheese, egg and candied bacon - a play on the restaurant chain's famous Egg McMuffin, and its Hash Brown. The McDonald's drinks were given a much more adult touch with a range of boozy cocktails on offer on the secret menu. Its festive Spiced Cookie Latte was turned into a Spiced Espresso Martini, while its Honeycomb McFlurry was transformed into a Honeycomb Hard Shake. Mini sliders were tiny versions (left) of the new McDonald's Signature Collection (right), which feature burgers with thicker patties and brioche buns McDonald's turned its Honeycomb McFlurry (right) into a Honeycomb Hard Shake (left) for the event The Berry Burst Bramble (left) is an alcoholic version of McDonald's Berry Burst iced fruit smoothie (right) Mini sliders were tiny versions of the new McDonald's Signature Collection, which feature burgers with thicker patties and brioche buns. McDonald's worked with its team of development chefs, called the Chef's Council, on the night to create the fine dining versions of its normal menu items. The chain's UK food development director, Duncan Cruttenden, explained why they transformeg ordinary fast food into sumptuous canapes. 'We are always working to inform and reassure people about the great taste and quality of our ingredients and tonight has given us the chance to demonstrate this even further,' he told Femail Food&Drink. These Egg Baskets were a refined version of McDonald's Egg and Bacon McMuffin Food writer Imogen Blake (pictured with the Egg Rosti and the Berry Burst Bramble) at the McDonald's fine dining event McDonald's made an alcoholic version (left) of its Toffee Latte (right) at the event 'The menu showcases the quality and versatility of our ingredients, and everything we've used can be found on the McDonald's UK menu. We've had a lot of fun taking apart our menu items and rebuilding them into canapes for our Christmas party and it's been great to hear the positive feedback from those tucking into them. 'The cocktails are a personal favourite our McCafe range has proved incredibly popular this year so we couldn't resist adding a festive boozy twist. 'The Spiced Cookie Espresso Martini has been a firm favourite tonight, although my favourite is the Berry Burst Bramble. We've taken our range of blended ice and speciality coffee drinks and tweaked them into new versions of classic cocktails.' More school nurses are needed to fight the teenage anxiety epidemic (pictured: stock photo) Every now and then, I wonder if those clever people at NICE the NHS watchdog have taken leave of their senses. They seem to live on another planet from the rest of us. This week, they proposed that, in an attempt to tackle the atrocious state of our childrens teeth, teachers should supervise pupils brushing their molars. As if teachers havent got enough to do! You can see it now: the next generation might not be able to read or write, but at least theyll have white smiles. Public bodies like NICE, sitting in their ivory towers, are always doing this. They identify a problem but then the solution is simply to dump the issue onto a front-line profession. With a quarter of all children already having tooth decay by the age of five, theres no doubt that something does need to be done. Years ago, this sort of thing would fall under the remit of the school nurse. But, sadly, school nursing in this country has been in terminal decline, with fewer and fewer nurses covering ever-more pupils, often across multiple schools. Despite Government targets to ensure that every secondary school would have a school nurse by 2010, the number has in fact dropped, and continues to fall. Since 2012, the number of school nursing posts has plummeted by 13 per cent. A study last year found that a quarter of these nurses worked overtime every day. A Royal College of Nursing survey of school nurses a few years ago found that two-thirds feel they are overstretched and not given enough support. And its only getting worse not helped by the fact that as the number of school nurses declines, the number of pupils is rising. Chronic under-investment in this area has meant that presently there is roughly one nurse per 3,000 pupils. It means nurses are covering multiple schools and are often only able to deal with the most severe problems, such as child protection issues. Other areas of child welfare fall by the wayside. Take, for example, the rise of head lice. Im sure many readers of my generation and older will remember the nit nurse coming round and rummaging through childrens hair. A few kids in each class would be hoiked out and sent home because they had nits. How things have changed. With the decline in school nurses, head lice have been allowed to go largely unchecked. Increasingly, it falls to parents noticing there is a problem and by the time they do, theres every chance that the nits have been lurking for several weeks and have already been passed on to other children. But the real problem isnt head lice or dental cavities. What concerns me is that school nurses can make a real difference to young peoples emotional and mental well-being. Schools are not just about education. They are about the welfare of the child as a whole. SECRET OF REAL FESTIVE CHEER Money really cant buy happiness, according to a landmark conference on wellbeing at the London School of Economics. The true secret to being happy is social relationships and good mental and physical health. I cant say Im surprised. Yes, wealthy people tend to live longer and are less stressed but plenty of other research has shown that once you have a basic standard of living, with enough food and adequate shelter, everything else in terms of material wealth turns out to be a bit meaningless. While in this consumer age its almost a heresy to say it, its not stuff that makes us happy but other people. In fact, the LSE study found that having a partner made people far happier than doubling their salary. Bear that in mind when you are trudging round the shops buying yet more Christmas gifts this weekend. I used to work in palliative care and have seen a lot of people die. I have never heard someone, on their deathbed, saying that they wish theyd earned more money, or that they wish theyd had the latest iPhone. But I have heard lots of people say in their dying days that they wish theyd spent more time with their family. In the modern world, were constantly told that in order to be happy, we have to consume. But this isnt true. At this time of year, its particularly important that we try to remember this. Advertisement I have very fond memories of the school nurse when I was at school. She was always there with a kind word, ready to listen and dispense advice, as well as a paracetamol. For some children, the school nurse may be their sole point of contact with a healthcare professional, and the only opportunity they have to discuss problems they are trying to cope with, either in school or at home, which are having an impact on their mental well-being. It worries me that there is a generation of children who are growing up without access to this resource, especially in an age of social media bullying and of spiralling anxiety among young people. In October, the NSPCCs Childline service said it had handled more than 11,000 counselling sessions for anxiety in youngsters over the previous year a 35 per cent increase on 2014-15. The charity said: Worryingly, the problem appears to be getting worse. P erhaps if more of those making the calls could talk to a school nurse, they would get the help they needed face-to-face before they felt compelled to pick up the phone. Many of the problems that dominate the lives of adults, such as depression, anxiety, alcohol and drug misuse, have their origins in childhood. Someone spotting the early warning signs when these problems first become evident could make all the difference. It takes time and effort to build a relationship with the child. No one is better placed to do this than the school nurse. Their view isnt clouded by judgments on academic performance, or how a child behaves at home. So we mustnt let the school nurse disappear. It seems to me a false economy not to invest in this now. We dont want a generation of children forced to try to work out their problems for themselves. Why tackling male inequality is vital Philip Davies MP has been voted on to the Women and Equalities Committee. He will join feminist MPs in scrutinising the work of the Government Equalities Office, which is leading the Governments drive to meet the UNs goal on equality for women. What makes the Conservative MPs appointment so surprising is that he is the parliamentary spokesman for the Campaign Against Political Correctness and a fierce critic of feminism. He successfully lobbied for the International Mens Day debate in Parliament last month. I dont agree with much that Philip Davies says or does. But I do think there is a serious issue here that is frequently overlooked in the gender equality debate. I think its right that a man who is championing mens rights is on the equalities committee. Yes, women do face discrimination. But so do men. It cuts both ways. There are many inequalities men face which, if women suffered them, would be immediately held up as examples of unacceptable sexism. This is particularly the case in health, where men face tremendous inequality. Yet the suggestion that this warrants serious debate and some form of action has been met with apathy and ridicule by some MPs. NHS RECONSIDERING SENIOR PERKS Simon Stevens, head of NHS England, told MPs this week that he thought some of the perks older people get, such as free bus passes, should be reconsidered if there is to be any hope of tackling the social care funding crisis. At last, someone speaking some sense. Yes, it would be lovely to be able to provide these kinds of things to everyone, regardless of their income, in recognition of a lifetime of hard work. But how can a cash-strapped State justify giving out bus passes and winter fuel payments to millionaires? Advertisement Suicide disproportionately affects men its the biggest cause of death in young men. In fact, on the day that Labour MP Jess Phillips was sneering at the debate about mens equality, another 13 men killed themselves. Men are also more likely to die in work-related accidents. They are less likely to go to see their doctor, more likely to be addicted to drugs or alcohol, and more likely to smoke. Research into male-related cancers such as in the prostate receives less funding compared with female cancers such as breast, yet men are 58 per cent more likely to die from cancer than women. They are more likely to be the victims of violence, and more likely to be murdered or be disabled as a result of violence. Yet while there are attempts to tackle violence towards women, there are no strategies to tackle this for men. Life expectancy for men is currently about four years below that of women. This means that, in one generation, million years of life are lost by men in the UK alone. Of course, none of this diminishes the inequalities faced by women, and the best way to tackle these issues is for men and women to work together. What is your earliest memory? Lying in bed with my toy Blue Rabbit, wishing as hard as I could that she would come alive so that we could play together. What sort of child were you? Nerdy. Highly swottish. And from the age of 11, bespectacled. When I see such kids now I tell them: Its OK if you dont fit in right now, for the bookworm often does get to go to the ball. What is the worst thing anyone has ever said to you? Cripes, what have the socialmedia trolls not said? Too fat, too thin, too much make-up, too little. For some reason, my slight speech impediment really enrages them. When was the last time you cried? Watching Hillary Clintons speech saying to every little girl watching... Who would be your dream dinner date? Sherlock Holmes. I would like to spend an evening with him, although I think he could be wearing as a housemate. What has been your most embarrassing moment? Once on holiday I won a karaoke competition (they cant have had many entrants that night). I didnt realise that the winning performance was always filmed, and replayed on the TV in the hotel bars for the whole of the following day. What was the song? Careless Whisper by George Michael. Tell us a secret about yourself I have a Tudor sleeping pattern. I like to spend nine hours in bed, which seems a lot, but I always wake up in the middle of the night, like they did, to make the most of the moonlight. What one law would you change if you could? I would make it obligatory to study history at secondary school. I think its sad that some children dont get the chance. Which words or phrases do you most overuse? Did you know that Henry VIII had a special servant whose job was to wipe up after he used the toilet? Who would play you in the film of your life? The girl who was Lucy in the film of The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe [The Chronicles Of Narnia]. She even had my haircut. I fell narcissistically in love with her. What is the worst job youve done? Peeling the garlic for the pie fillings in the butchers shop where I used to work. The garlic used to get under my thumbnail and sizzle my flesh there; it was agonising. What are you scared of? Im not great with heights, which is unfortunate because as one of the curators of Hampton Court Palace Im often expected to climb up on scaffolding to see repairs in progress. Describe the best night of your life It was the time I spoke to the centenary meeting of the Womens Institute in the Albert Hall. It was amazing to hear 5,000 women laughing at once. When was the last time you cried? Watching Hillary Clintons speech saying to every little girl watching... What one skill should every man or woman have? Concision. Most things in life go on for 20 per cent too long. Have you ever had a nickname? One very old friend calls me Lucifer. Im not going to reveal why. When I was appointed to my job as chief curator of Historic Royal Palaces at quite a young age, some people called me the Evil Embryo. What song do you want at your funeral? A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square. Most romantic moment youve had is When I was ill in hospital and my husband washed my hair for me. That was true love. What is your most treasured possession? Blue Rabbit, as above. She had another life (as a male) with another member of the Worsley family before she entered my possession in 1976. Whats the best piece of advice youve ever had? Youll be cleaning toilets for a career if you waste your time doing a history degree. Advice from my dad. It spurred me on. Last film you saw? Spectre. OK, the fact that its an old film shows I dont get out much, but Id never miss a James Bond. Last book you read? Im rereading A N Wilsons biography of Queen Victoria. Hes bonkers but Im seeing jokes I missed first time round. Last gig you went to? Jools Holland and his orchestra. Jools let me conduct them for a tiny bit the power went right to my head. Hedda Gabler 2hrs 30mins Lyttelton stage, National Theatre, London Until Mar 21 Rating: Ive never seen a Hedda Gabler who wasnt encased in a boned, tightly laced corset. Ruth Wilsons Hedda isnt even wearing a bra, just a loosely figure-skimming silk slip. It is not corsetry, propriety, a patriarchal society or being the daughter of a general or wife of a dreary academic that fence in this Hedda. She creates her own confines by refusing to get out there and create her own identity and embrace life. By turns clever, cruel, self-absorbed, snobbish, mean-spirited, manipulative and bored beyond endurance, her only real talent is for destruction. Ruth Wilsons Hedda isnt even wearing a bra: it's not corsetry, propriety, a patriarchal society or being the daughter of a general or wife of a dreary academic that fence her in In one terrifying scene, having dashed dozens of flowers to the floor, she skewers some survivors to the wall with a staple gun. Killing things comes easily to Hedda. But, ultimately, even her most desperate efforts blow up in her face. A compelling Wilson registers every flickering emotion in this vile, mercurial but ultimately pitiable woman. A lusciously alluring smile tightens into a mean, lipless sneer. An icy glare melts into hot, childlike tears of frustration. In Ivo van Hoves bold, modern-dress staging of Patrick Marbers spare new version of Ibsens 1890 play, the action unravels in a vast, high-tech apartment, near empty but for a grubby uncovered sofa, an upright open piano and her fathers pistols in a glass case on the wall. In Ivo van Hoves bold, modern-dress staging of Patrick Marbers spare new version of Ibsens 1890 play, the action unravels in a vast, high-tech apartment Look more closely. The room has no doors. Its a prison, with no escape for Hedda. And the ever-present maid, Berte, in black, is both her jailer and her accomplice. The other characters come and go through the auditorium. IT'S A FACT Ibsen's last words were: 'On the contrary!' His nurse had told a visitor that he was a little better, after a series of strokes. He died the next day. Advertisement As the predatory judge the only character who sees Hedda for what she is, a coward who has craved power over men and failed even at that Rafe Spall is chilling, pouring tomato juice over Hedda in a sort of bloody and humiliating baptism, to stir up her revenge. Sinead Matthews plays Mrs Elvsted, the girl Hedda had shamelessly bullied at school, with a lovely sensuality, which explains why she, and not Hedda, became the muse to Heddas former lover, Lovborg (Chukwudi Iwuji). A dark, devastating, triumphant Hedda for our times. Peter Pan Olivier stage, National Theatre, London Until Feb 4 2hrs 30mins Rating: Theres something distinctly disconcerting about Paul Hiltons Peter Pan. Hes not a boy exactly but a spindly, petulant, Puck-ish grown-up who has evidently resisted growing up. When he gets sad and angry, he cuts the heads off his friends teddy bears. And hes at the fractured heart of this playful and provocative if slightly long take on J M Barries 1904 tale. Theres something distinctly disconcerting about Paul Hiltons Peter Pan (above with Madelein Worrall's Wendy). Hes not a boy exactly but a spindly, petulant, Puck-ish grown-up who Marvellous Madeleine Worrall plays a mumsy Wendy, a dab hand at sewing back Peters shadow and telling bedtime stories. Needless to say, she falls for Peter. What are your true feelings for me? she boldly asks him. Tiger Lily does this, groans emotionally arrested Peter. Funny for us, piercing for Wendy. Just as hearts are worn on sleeves in Sally Cooksons staging, so the magic is made manifest. Anna Francolini (above) doubles as Mrs Darling and the villainous pirate Captain Hook, creating two sharply contrasting mother-figures, which was Barries original intention Neverland is a graffitied adventure playground where the motherless Lost Boys leap around like monkeys. Flying requires a wonderful thought and fairy strings, actually carefully weighted ropes operated by other members of the cast going up and down on ladders. Anna Francolini doubles as Mrs Darling, in frothy petticoats, and the villainous pirate Captain Hook, with silver teeth, creating two sharply contrasting mother-figures, which was Barries original intention. Meanwhile, Tinker Bell is a man (Saikat Ahamed) in a tutu, but its Nana, the canine nanny played by big, beaming, black, boyish Ekow Quartey in white frilly bloomers, who really steals the show. Gatsby Leicester Square Theatre, London Until Jan 15 2hrs Rating: This musical Gatsby gives you a good swig of the novels cocktail of despair and violence Being known as Prince Harrys ex may be a curse, but Cressida Bonas trails just the right note of high-society glam as Twenties It girl Daisy Buchanan. This show is described as a musical but its a play with songs by Joe Evans and it opens in an amusement park, fulfilling F Scott Fitzgeralds description of East Coast decadence as a funfair seen from under dark trees nearby. The cast double up, drink mint juleps and do the charleston. Bonas overdoes Daisys Kentucky drawl but she exudes moonstruck beauty, and Bradley Clarksons brutal Tom casts Ludovic Hughess nervy, reticent Gatsby in a new light. Unlike Baz Luhrmanns emotionless film, Linnie Reedmans seedy-speakeasy production has a real sense of mood. It may look like a load of flappering glitz but it gives you a good swig of the novels cocktail of despair and violence. Robert Gore-Langton Mr Popper's Penguins Criterion Theatre, London Until Dec 31 1hr Rating: If you are looking for a show for younger children then this is highly recommended If you are looking for a show for younger children three and over then this is highly recommended. A humble house-painter, Mr Popper, has a passion for the Antarctic. One day a crate arrives and out pings a puppet penguin, hilariously handled by two squawking actors. The waddling critter makes a beeline for the goldfish bowl and then the fridge. A second penguin ensures lots of little penguins and a crippling fish bill for the childless Poppers. The answer? They go into showbiz with a family penguin act. The story is based on Richard and Florence Atwaters Thirties novel (made into a Hollywood film with Jim Carrey) and the hand-made-style staging is by Pins and Needles Productions with cheery, unthreatening songs by Luke Bateman and Richy Hughes. The kids around me seemed to love it. The scenes of baby penguin anarchy roused even the smallest tots from thumb-sucking indifference to roaring approval. A sub-zero but heart-warming family show. The deadly swine flu has returned to the Capital, piggybacking on the winter chill. Two patients have tested positive at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and one at the neighboring Safdarjung Hospital. Delhi authorities need to start worrying as the Capital saw over 4,000 patients last winter with a dozen deaths. Groups vulnerable to H1N1 infection include pregnant women, children under five, the over- 65s and those with serious medical conditions 'People diagnosed with influenza cases bearing fewer complexities have been reported in the past one month. However, at least two patients have tested positive for swine flu till now,' Dr Randeep Guleria, who heads the respiratory division at AIIMS, told Mail Today. In 2009-10, the H1N1 swine flu pandemic spread from central Mexico to 74 other countries including India, killing an estimated 2,84,000 people, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The respiratory illness originated in pigs, but is now a human disease spread by coughing and sneezing. Symptoms are similar to those produced by standard, seasonal flu fever, cough, sore throat, body aches and chills. Vulnerable groups include pregnant women, children under five, the over-65s and those with serious medical conditions. Dr Guleria said influenza treatment is being given to the patients based on health ministry guidelines. 'We have adequate amount of the drug Tamiflu, diagnostic kits and other equipment required for treatment of the disease.' 'Currently, there is nothing to raise worries about an epidemic of the kind seen last year,' he said. According to health ministry guidelines, to prevent and contain the outbreak of Influenza-A H1N1 virus, screening, testing and isolation of the patient is done at both government and private hospitals. Two patients in AIIMS were tested positive of swine flu Category A and B patients are the ones with mild fever plus cough/sore throat with or without body ache, headache, diarrhoea and vomiting. They should be treated for the symptoms, which may require home isolation and Oseltamivir. The patients should be monitored for their progress and reassessed at 24 to 48 hours by the doctor. No testing of the patient for H1N1 is required. Patients should confine themselves at home and avoid mixing with public and high-risk members in the family. Category C patients are the one complaining of breathlessness, chest pain, drowsiness, fall in blood pressure, sputum mixed with blood, bluish discolouration of nails, etc. These include children with influenza-like illness who had a severe disease as manifested by the red flag signs (Somnolence, high and persistent fever, inability to feed well, convulsions, shortness of breath, difficulty in breathing, etc). All these patients require testing, immediate hospitalisation and treatment. At Safdarjung Hospital, one patient has been diagnosed with swine flu. 'He is in critical condition and undergoing treatment in ICU,' a senior doctor told Mail Today. A patient has his blood taken to be tested at a fever clinic especially set up to cater to those suffering from fever, one of the main symptoms of several mosquito-borne diseases, at Ram Manohar Lohia hospital RML Hospital too is reportedly examining some suspected cases. Experts say such cross-species infections occur most commonly when people are in close proximity to large numbers of pigs, such as in barns, livestock exhibits at fairs, and slaughterhouses. 'When the severity of the infection increases in the body it affects lungs, causing breathlessness and posing a threat to life,' said Dr Guleria. India recorded over 1,800 deaths during the 2009-10 swine flu pandemic, with 600 of them reported in Maharashtra. The outbreak in 2013 killed at least 600 people. The most common cause of death is respiratory failure, apart from pneumonia (leading to sepsis) high fever (leading to neurological problems), dehydration (from excessive vomiting and diarrhoea), electrolyte imbalance and kidney failure. Some of the same anti-viral drugs that are used to treat seasonal flu also work against H1N1 swine flu. Oseltamivir (Tamiflu), peramivir (Rapivab), and zanamivir (Relenza) seem to work best, although some kinds of swine flu don't respond to oseltamivir, say experts. With the decreasing temperature, cases of swine flu are likely to go up, said doctors, as the virus becomes more active in dropping temperature. 'For preventive measures, people should use masks in crowded places,' Dr Guleria said, adding that good standards of hygiene must be followed. Recommendations to prevent spread of the virus among humans include using standard infection control, such as frequent washing of hands with soap and water or with alcohol-based hand sanitizers, especially after being out in public. See more news from India at www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome The case angered the country as the authorities failed to make Delhi safe for women The woman was waiting for a public transport and decided to take a lift offered by a cab driver, who later raped her A young woman was allegedly raped in a car belonging to a CISF cop in south Delhi hours before the fourth anniversary of a 23-year-old student's fatal gang rape in the Capital that prompted nationwide revulsion and hit international headlines. The 20-year-old Noida resident came to Delhi in search of a job was reportedly raped by a cab driver when she was waiting for public transport near AIIMS around 11pm on Thursday. After a fruitless day of job hunt, the woman was waiting for a public transport, when man driving a Maruti SX4 sedan bearing the stickers of Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) offered her a lift. Nirbhaya's mother Asha Devi during floral tribute on the occasion of 'Nirbhaya Chetna Diwas' 16 Descember 2016 Programme Organised by Nirbhaya Joyti Trust at Janter Manter in Delhi 'When the victim boarded the car, Aman (the driver) took a route towards Dhaula Kuan. He stopped the vehicle near South Campus and attacked her. He threatened her with dire consequences and raped her inside the car,' said Ishwar Singh, DCP of south district. The woman tried her best to escape, but the accused managed to hold her captive till 1.30 am on Friday. She finally managed to kick him and get out of the car. Police arrested the cab driver who allegedly raped a 20-year-old woman in Moti Bagh The woman found some policemen patrolling nearby, who immediately called the emergency response vehicle of the local police station. A team comprising of female constables also reached the spot within 15 minutes and searched the entire area, but failed to find the car or its driver. The incident sparked anger on a day remembered for the brutal gang rape of a woman by six assailants aboard a moving bus on December 16, 2012. The 23-year-old, who came to be known as Nirbhaya, died 13 days later. The case and the ensuing protests drew national and international scrutiny, prodding lawmakers to toughen punishments and set up fast-track courts. A woman was allegedly raped in a car in Delhi's Moti Bagh area on the evening of December 15, 2016 'We took the victim to the AIIMS trauma center and conducted a medical examination on her which confirms rape,' DCP Ishwar Singh said. 'The police team accompanied by the victim resumed the search in the morning hours and managed to find the suspected car just 100m away from the incident spot,' Singh added. Police said that the vehicle got an MHA sticker, as a relative of the CISF head constable worked in the home ministry Police discovered that the car belonged to a CISF personnel from south Delhi's Kotla Mubarakpur area. He told the police that his son had given the car to the accused a week ago on rent. He also helped cops locate the man's home at a slum cluster in Moti Bagh. 'Since the accused's phone was switched off, the police took help of technical analysts,' said the DCP. 'We rounded up his friends and acquaintances for questioning to get a lead on his whereabouts. The efforts finally paid off when the accused was located in a slum in Moti Bagh where he was about to begin a drinking session with a friend. He was brought to the police station and arrested after a brief interrogation,' Singh briefed media personnel. The police team searched the car for forensic and biological evidence and seized several articles including the woman's cellphone that she had left behind. Rahul said blamed the government for removing the import duty In a sudden turn of events, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on last day of the Parliament's winter session that also brought to fore the differences within the Opposition. While the opposition parties led by Congress met President Pranab Mukherjee over the issue of demonetisation, Gandhi led another delegation of party leaders to meet Modi raising the farmers' plight in poll-bound Punjab. This sprung a surprise in the political circles in the backdrop of Gandhi's fierce attack on the Prime Minister over demonetisation. Sources said the Prime Minister gave the delegation a patient hearing and told Rahul Gandhi to keep meeting him. Gandhi, however, said the PM did not say anything on loan waiver even as he admitted the hardships faced by the farmers. 'The PM just listened, he said nothing about waiving loans,' Rahul told the reporters. The Congress delegation highlighted the plight of farmers and demanded a loan waiver for them. During the meeting, top Congress leaders presented a memorandum to Modi on demands of farmers which also included reducing power bills to half and remunerative MSP for farm produce. Opposition leaders address the media after a meeting with President Prnab Mukherjee over demonetisation Division in the opposition unity cropped up at the last minute as Gandhi chose to meet the PM separately in Parliament House on farmers' issues. Gandhi has been targeting the Prime Minister often, with his latest offensive being on demonetisation. On Wednesday, Rahul had claimed to have information about 'personal corruption of the Prime Minister', but the BJP dismissed it as a joke. After the meeting, the Congress vice-president said that Modi heard them patiently but did not commit anything. The BJP termed Rahul's meeting with PM Modi a mere photo-op and advised the Congress vice-president to implement 'Fasal Bima Yojana' in states ruled by it 'Every single day, a farmer is committing suicide in Punjab. Farmers are committing suicide all over the country.' 'The government has removed the import duty on wheat. This is a devastating blow.' 'So, we went to the Prime Minister to request him on behalf of farmers of this country to waive their loans,' Gandhi said after the meeting that lasted for slightly over 10 minutes. The BJP, however, termed it a mere photo-op and advised the Congress vice-president to implement 'Fasal Bima Yojana' in states ruled by it. 'It is only a photo-op. If Rahul Gandhi is so concerned about farmers, he should first take a delegation to Virbhadra Singh in Himachal Pradesh and ask why the Congress government has not implemented the Fasal Bima Yojana there,' BJP spokesperson Srikant Sharma said. Pakistan is attempting to put on a brave face against terrorism in its backyard, but India is still not sure whether its neighbour is serious or is just posturing for the international audience. Top government sources said that Indian government is keeping a close watch on the proceedings as Pakistani army and government has made a lot of noise about terrorism that is close to India's stand. 'The new Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa has just taken over and there is still a lot to be done before we are convinced,' a senior official said. Top government sources said that Indian government is keeping a close watch on the proceedings as Pakistani army Soon after taking over as the Army Chief, Bajwa removed the chief of notorious intelligence agency ISI Lt Gen Rizwan Akhtar and shunted him out as the head of the National Defence University. Akhtar was seen as a hardliner against India and was believed to have been working towards strengthening anti-India terrorist groups. Meanwhile, Pakistan Prime Minister's Advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz last week admitted that their government was presented with 'insufficient evidence' on alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav, who is under detention in Pakistani captivity. However, the Pakistan Army establishment later played down the comments by former Aziz. India has been strongly denying the allegation that Jadhav was an Indian spy and has asked Pakistan to release the ex-Indian Navy officer. BJP hopes to hijack legacy of the tallest farmer icon and former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh The Bharatiya Janata Party's latest poll strategy for the upcoming state assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh in 2017, is to rally farmers of the state behind its cause by appropriating the legacy of the tallest farmer icon and former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh. Singh belonged to the affluent Jat community that makes roping him to the saffron cause significant in the overall caste equation of the polls, especially in Western UP. The BJP is getting ready to celebrate Singh's birth anniversary on December 23 all across western UP, especially in his native village, Noorpur in Hapur district in the neighbourhood of Ghaziabad. The party has also instituted a 'Kisan Samman Samaroh' or a festival to felicitate farmers. The party's UP spokesperson, Chandra Mohan, said: 'The Modi government has shown that we are the only ones capable of and willing to give the farmers their due and fulfill the dreams of Charan Singh and the peasant economy that he envisioned in his times.' 'We are very excited to embark on this celebration. Apart from felicitating the peasants, we are also going to garland all the statues of the former PM in the state, and party workers and leaders will also voluntarily commit themselves to physical labour in fraternity with the hard working peasants and farmers,' he said. Political observers say that the move is clearly aimed to garner the support of backward classes. BJP leaders attend the 'Kisan Swabhimaan Rally' in UP and now it institutes a 'Kisan Samman Samaroh' - a festival to felicitate farmers. According to many reports, Jats make up nearly 16-17% of the population of the western part of the poll-bound state. Singh's legacy, the BJP believes, is also up for grabs as the natural heir to it, his son Ajit Singh, who heads the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), has lost most of his sway with the community. Party insiders also told Mail Today that the BJP had thrown a spanner in the works of BSP supremo Mayawati by making a strong pitch to appropriate Dalit icon Babasaheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar. There was also a corresponding bid to rally non-Yadav castes among the OBC group to the party's fold as the Yadavs are seen to be traditional voters of the Yadav-dominated Samajwadi Party leadership. What has added to the Jat orientation of BJP is the recent communal clashes in this part of the state, a vicious reality since the Muzaffarnagar riots of 2013. One that has frayed the social fabric of the region which many argue was built and sustained by Singh when he was at the helm of affairs and which took a hit since his death. The ruling party at the Centre that is eyeing to use the recent family feud among the satraps of Samajwadi Party (SP) and the sagging fortunes of BSP leader Mayawati to come to power in a state poll that is billed as the semi final to the 2019 general elections. International organizations send over 9 tonnes of humanitarian aid to non-government controlled areas of Donbas The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Mission and People in Need (PIN) philanthropic organization have sent over 9 tonnes of food and medicines to non-government controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The press service of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine reported on Saturday that the trucks with humanitarian aid from ICRC and PIN passed the Novotroitske and Mayorsk checkpoints. Siddiqui will soon be seen as Sultana Daku, in a British production on the Indian dacoit set in pre-Independence India There is a whiff of international cinema on Nawazuddin Siddiqui's plate lately but the actor is clearly not overwhelmed. He has signed up to star as Sultana Daku in a British production on the Indian dacoit set in pre-Independence India and also has a small but important role in Garth Davis' Lion starring Nicole Kidman and Dev Patel. The actor, however, would underplay his foreign trek, insisting he signed these films because he loved the roles. 'Why would I chase international projects? I am proud of Indian cinema and I am getting more than my share of meaty roles. I am happy with the reception my efforts get. It makes no sense to run after the Hollywood tag for the heck of it,' he says. If roles from foreign shores are falling in his lap despite not trying, it is only a sign of his growing fame. Nawaz betrays a contented grin when you tell him that. 'I don't believe in fame,' he smiles. 'Fame has never been the focus of life. Love for whatever you do can itself be the driving force at work. I am not interested in commercial results,' insists Nawaz. Nawazudin has cultivated an earthy brand power and has a come a long way Fame, though, has a way of winning over those it loves. In just about four years that he burst onto the scene with Gangs Of Wasseypur in 2012, after over a decade of struggle, Nawaz is today hailed as much more than just a talented actor. He has cultivated an earthy brand power and has emerged as ambassador of sundry aam aadmi products. 'An actor should take up endorsement as any other acting job. Personally, though, I endorse a product only if I identify with it. The product in question is reaching out to an audience that loves me, after all. Whether it is a film role or an advertisement I work on my terms,' says the actor, who recently signed up as the endorser of the retail portal addbooks.com, which aims at being a platform that lets small shopkeeper reach out to buyers. Nawazuddin with filmmaker Anurag Kashyap in Ghoomketu 'I am not a mall person,' laughs Nawaz, explaining why the concept of small shops fascinates him. 'I still go to local shops to buy whatever I need.' He has clearly been quick in picking up the benefits of smart marketing. He has learnt to talk on subjects as varied as brand endorsement and online trends with equal aplomb. 'I would give importance to being a brand ambassador only to the extent that it is a mark of an artist's connectivity with the audience,' he avers. He has become quite cybersavvy too, garnering quite a following on Twitter and launching an official website. 'I don't feel the need to use social media to share thoughts with fans. To me it works as a tool for professional publicity. Twitter can be a great medium to expand one's work, too. Beyond that, its indiscriminate use can be dangerous,' he points out. 'The growth of technology cannot be denied. What one needs to keep in mind is we have to first learn how to consume any new technology that comes out,' he feels. You mention how technology in the world of cinema is shrinking the size of the screen, and Nawaz is not too impressed. 'Mobile apps and online streaming cannot take away magic of the big screen. Cinema's emotions cannot be savoured on smaller screens. Movies are all about nuances and need to be blown up for impact,' he feels. The actor will soon start preparing for Sultana Daku, and getting into the garb of the British era dacoit who roamed the Uttar Pradesh heartland will demand some homework. 'It is one of those roles that needs preparation. As an actor, the preparation bit excites me. Filmmaking and its details always fascinate me and every time I step before the camera the rush of facing it makes the experience a new one all over again,' he says. Each role means living a new life, too. 'My approach for a role depends on the character. A character such as Manjhi needs a method approach.' 'One needs to fall back upon research as well as imagination. One has to live the role in one's mind.' 'A role like Badlapur on the other hand demands spontaneity. You just have to listen attentively to the director and let yourself go,' he says. He may shy away from fame, but Nawaz has not been able to stay away from the ills of limelight. This year, he had double trouble with the law. Mumbai Police registered an FIR after a woman in his residential society lodged a complaint under section 354 (assault or criminal force on woman with intent to outrage her modesty) following a parking argument. Later, his brother Minazuddin's wife alleged that her husband and his siblings were harassing her for dowry. 'I struggle to live with such negative aspects as an actor. Controversies comes from quarters you least expect. At times, people lie just to harass you. I have come to understand that it is all a part of my profession,' says Nawaz. We move away from controversies to Khan-talk. He worked with Salman Khan in 2015's Bajrangi Bhaijaan, and will be seen with Shah Rukh Khan in Raees. And who can forget 1999's Sarfarosh where Nawaz, then a junior artist, grabbed attention with the one scene he shared with Aamir Khan? 'It sounds like a cliche but it is true when I say that it was great working with all of them. Aamir, Salman and Shah Rukh Khan have different styles, but are equally involved. I would love to work them again if I get the right role. They teach you so much and have been stars for so long, which is an achievement.' If the Khans defy changing trends, Nawaz is all for an overhaul every now and then. One woman's gas bill went from 99 to 656 thanks to a faulty meter Mrs B.T. writes: I received a bill for gas and electricity from Scottish Gas totalling 1,028. To say I was shocked is putting it mildly. I contacted the company immediately and it was found I had a faulty meter. I contacted them again a few months later, and then a few months after that, as I was still getting excessively high readings rising from 99 one month to 409 a month later, and then to 656. It said an engineer would call, but no one has arrived. My direct debit is normally 81 a month, but Scottish Gas wants to increase this to 452. I am a pensioner and there is no way I can afford this. TONY HETHERINGTON REPLIES: By the time I contacted Scottish Gas, things had gone from bad to worse. You had received a bill for 950, and the company had started collecting more from your bank account. An engineer called and was supposed to fit a new smart meter, but actually installed a standard meter instead. Scottish Gas has investigated and told me the meters were working without a problem until last March, when the company accepts that readings went badly wrong. It told me: We are sorry for the billing issues and the problems changing the customers gas meter. A new smart meter will now be fitted at a time convenient to you, and Scottish Gas has recalculated your bills right back to March. By the time you read this you will have received a refund of 465, and your direct debit payments have been cut back to the original 81 a month. Scottish Gas has also sent you flowers and an apology. I invested nearly $60,000 (about 47,000) in Property Horizons Group and North Dakota Developments and received no return on my money Nicholas Pervez, above, worked for NDD, which claimed to build homes for oil workers Ms L.F.W. writes: I came across an article you wrote regarding Property Horizons Group and North Dakota Developments. Unfortunately, I had already invested nearly $60,000 (about 47,000). I received no return on my money, and in May last year the Securities & Exchange Commission took action against NDD and its two bosses. Recently though, I started receiving emails from a company called Platinum Wealth Investments, offering full or fractional shares in offshore leisure properties. I found striking similarities between it and the two earlier companies, and the emails are from Nicholas Pervez, who is senior broker at Platinum, but was the commercial paralegal for NDD. TONY HETHERINGTON REPLIES: North Dakota Developments and its sales arm, Property Horizons Group, were run from Milton Keynes by Robert Gavin and Danny Hogan. The pair claimed to be building accommodation for workers in North Dakotas booming oilfields. According to legal documents filed in the US, they raised more than 40 million some claim it was double this figure by offering investors a guaranteed return of 25 per cent. I warned in May 2014 that the scheme was illegal. In effect, it was operating an unlicensed unit trust, with investors lumped together as part-owners of the hotel-style buildings. This is a criminal offence punishable by up to two years in prison, but the Financial Conduct Authority simply told the duplicitous duo to stop breaking the law and give people their money back, though they even tried to wriggle out of that. The sad fact is that the watchdog nowadays spends much of its time investigating City offences such as insider dealing and market manipulation, which could be handled by the Fraud Squad or the Serious Fraud Office. Protecting ordinary investors is so far down its list of priorities that it has almost become invisible. Last year, US watchdog the Securities & Exchange Commission charged NDD and its bosses with operating a Ponzi scam dipping into new investors money to pay off earlier investors. Investigators found none of the four supposed hotel sites was fully operational one did not even have planning consent for work to begin. The watchdog said the group misappropriated more than $25 million of investors funds. North Dakota Developments and Property Horizons Group claimed to be building accommodation for workers in North Dakotas booming oilfields Gavin and Hogan failed to turn up in court or to file any defence, and judgment was given that they had committed securities fraud. Now let us look at Platinum Wealth Investments Limited (PWI). It uses an address in Central London, but I found it is actually run from Northampton. Although he has not registered himself as a director of the company, it is 100 per cent owned by Nicholas Pervez, who describes himself as a commercial property paralegal and an investment broker. He says his job title at PWI is managing partner. According to his CV, his work for North Dakota Developments meant he was responsible for legal matters from initial to closing of a property investment purchase. He was, he says, providing continual review to ensure that all legal terms and conditions were met. Well, we can see how that turned out. Pervez told me: Although I was previously employed by NDD, this does not mean that what occurred was under my control or that I was the decision maker in the fraudulent activities of both directors of NDD Group. He added that he felt betrayed and victim of such devastating activities. He was now selling stakes in offshore developments that are already up and running, he explained, including a resort area in Barbados as well as student flats in Manchester. So far, so good. But there are still unanswered questions hanging over Pervezs new company. He claims: PWI is registered under the Data Protection Act and we take all reasonable care to ensure personal details are kept secure. Yet the Information Commissioners Office told me: We have searched our records and can find no registration in the name of Platinum Wealth Investments Limited, PWI Limited or Nicholas Pervez. Then there is the companys legal registration. PWI claims to be company number 724859027. False. According to Companies House, there is no such number, and while PWI is registered, its identity number is different. I asked Pervez about his companys registration and his false claim to be registered to hold customers personal data. He offered no comment or explanation. He is now facing trouble from Companies House. PWI was supposed to tell officials who really controls the business, but the deadline passed more than three months ago without any statement naming Pervez as the real boss. Those officials have now pencilled in January 8 to strike off PWI when it will cease to exist. If any investors have cash lodged with the company, perhaps as the downpayment on a posh property in the Caribbean, I suggest they make a beeline for a lawyer and try to recover their money. Things could get a lot tougher after January 8. One man received a false speeding ticket Speeding? No, crooks pulling a fast one A.T. writes: I have just received an email with a Notice of Intended Prosecution from Greater Manchester Police, saying that on November 30 I was photographed driving at 81 miles an hour on Hyde Road in Stockport, where the limit is 30mph. I have never been to Stockport in my life, and live hundreds of miles from there, and on November 30 both I and my car were at home, with witnesses. Do you think my car licence plate has been cloned? TONY HETHERINGTON REPLIES: Your licence plate is safe. Thousands of people have received almost identical emails. They are a scam. The emails invite people to click on a link to see the photographic evidence against them. Do not. Clicking on the link infects your computer with a program that allows crooks to gain access to your banking details. Detective Inspector Martin Hopkinson, of Greater Manchester Police , said: We would never send out correspondence via email requesting payment of fines, nor would we ask for your personal and financial information. The tremors beneath the surface at Marks & Spencer briefly broke into the open this week with the decision of Robert Swannell to step down as chairman. In spite of M&S's struggles with fashion competitors and the internet, the store group retains its totemic status among British consumers and has high brand recognition overseas. Even modest eruptions attract great attention. Swannell previously advised M&S from his lofty seat at Schroders/Citi for several decades before taking the top job at the retailer. He was the 'go to' figure of his day when it came to High Street deals. M&S boss Steve Rowe, the firm's former head of food, has been tasked with turning around the iconic brand At Schroders / Citi he was highly regarded as a genuine, patrician investment banker who was as concerned with a good outcome for his deal-making as the fat fees for his employers. Doubtless they were still very welcome. His finest hour as an adviser to M&S was to recall Sir Stuart Rose to action in July 2004, carefully orchestrating the defeat of a bid by 'King of the High Street' Sir Philip Green, who had armed himself with cash provided by Bank of Scotland. But in spite of Swannell's immense knowledge of the financial underpinnings of retail, he never looked entirely comfortable as M&S chairman when he took on the role in 2011. It is always said that the job of the independent chairman, if they are doing the business for shareholders, is to sack the chief executive. The criticism of Swannell, both inside the company and out, was that he never did enough to restrain the ambition of Marc Bolland, the former chief executive. Bolland made a valiant effort to turn M&S around and the vaunting success of the food stores is a tribute to the former chief executive's marketing skills together with the sheer hard work of his successor Steve Rowe. The last boss also brought M&S's online offering into the 21st century and modernised the company's logistics. But Bolland was never entirely comfortable with women's fashion, the core of the business, and was too fond of vanity projects. The very expensive French store on the Champs-Elysees in Paris, the partnership with Dutch designer Marcel Wanders and a home furnishings deal with Conran fall into this category. When Bolland left earlier this year, Swannell's first choice of replacement was Carolyn McCall, EasyJet's chief executive. She judged the turnaround too complex and decided to stay with the no-frills airline. That made room for the head of food and M&S lifer, Steve Rowe. After conducting his strategic review, Rowe decided that Bolland's international expansion was too expensive at a time when the mainstream domestic business was losing clothing sales. Rowe's decision to pull out of China, but stay in Hong Kong, has been enormously contentious inside the company. The Marks & Spencer brand has strong recognition in mainland China and some executives pushed back against closure. Rowe recognised that his own job largely depended on restoration at home, a two- or three-year time frame, whereas investment in China is a long-term proposition. He and colleagues have understood that the proliferation of M&S sub-brands, both in Britain and overseas, had gone far too far. The British consumer might just about understand that Per Una is something special and Autograph more cutting-edge than other brands. But the cold reality is that M&S customers want the durability and quality represented by the M&S name. Overseas, the sub-brands have no traction at all. It is M&S that is trusted by the customers and it won't be that surprising if, over time, most of the sub-brands gradually vanish. The new concept of catering for 'Mrs M&S', mentioned by Steve Rowe, seems to have been an accident rather than a carefully thought-out marketing call. There is a tendency in some quarters to see M&S as being finished as a fashion brand and the clothes being suitable only for an older generation. Certainly it is challenged by Next (just ahead of it in market share) and High Street newcomers including Primark, H&M, Zara et al. Yet nearly a quarter of its customers are under 25 years old and website data shows that demand from around the world for M&S lingerie and children's clothing remains as robust for ever. All the signs (reports of over-crowded chicken sheds notwithstanding) is that M&S is having a bumper Christmas for food. Providing it can get the turkeys and special meat orders to customers, without the ugly queues outside some stores as in 2015, food sales should not be disappointing. Simplifying the clothing offering and making it more user-friendly will take some time, but it is not the hopeless task that some people might imagine. My own view has always been that M&S turning in on itself by axing overseas stores is a huge mistake and will be seen as such by M&S's post-Rowe chief executive. Shareholder short-termism has encouraged too much chopping and changing. A drugs firm has been accused of ripping off the NHS by hiking the cost of one of its drugs by more than 12,000 per cent. According to the competition watchdog, Actavis UK abused its dominant position by increasing the price of hydrocortisone shortly after purchasing the rights to sell the drug from another firm. The cost of a 10mg pack of the drug rose from 79p in April 2008 to 88 by March 2016, and the price of 20mg tablets increased by nearly 9,500 per cent to 102.74 over the same period. Actavis UK increased the price of hydrocortisone shortly after purchasing the rights to sell the drug. The cost of a 10mg pack of the drug rose from 79p in April 2008 to 88 by March 2016 The NHS had previously paid only 1.07. As a result, between 2008 and 2015 NHS annual spending on the drug rose from 522,000 to 70million. Hydrocortisone is used to treat Addison's disease, a life-threatening condition caused when adrenal glands do not produce enough natural steroid hormones. Around 943,000 packets of the tablets were distributed over the past year. According to the Competition and Markets Authority's findings, Actavis UK was able to increase the price of the drug, which it purchased from Merck, Sharp and Dohme in 2008, once it became generic because it was the only drug of its kind on the market and was no longer subject to price regulation. The company has seen its earnings rocket massively in recent years, but it has a complicated structure. The drug maker, which is based in Barnstaple, Devon, saw profits for the year to December 31 increase from 44million in 2014 to 88million in 2015. RIP OFF PHARMA GIANTS Watchdogs are cracking down on rip-off drug prices. Earlier this month, Pfizer was fined 84.2million over a drug it makes to control epilepsy seizures. The US firm and British company Flynn Pharma were accused of charging excessive and unfair prices. As a result the NHS bill for the drug increased from 2million in 2012 to 50million in 2013. Flynn was fined 5.2million. Earlier this year, GlaxoSmithKline was hammered by the CMA for effectively paying off rival companies that wanted to make cheap copies of its best-selling antidepressant paroxetine. Glaxo was fined 37.6million. From this, directors paid a dividend to the firm's holding company, Actavis Holding II, of 81.1million in 2015 despite receiving nothing the year before. At the time of its last report and accounts, Actavis Holding II had 125.9million in investments. The firm's ownership is made further opaque because Actavis UK was recently bought by Israeli firm Teva for 33billion in August. However, in October, Intas, one of India's biggest privately owned drug makers, announced it planned to buy Actavis UK for 600million after Teva was forced to sell parts of its business for competition reasons. As a result, Teva claimed it had no 'effective control' over the hydrocortisone product following the CMA decision because it was in the process of handing over the business. It added that generic medicines had saved the NHS more than 13.5billion a year overall and claimed its products accounted for more than 3.2billion of the amount. It said in a statement: 'Teva is proud of our track record in bringing cost savings to the NHS as the UK's largest generic medicines manufacturer. 'Although the pricing of the acquired Actavis product (Hydrocortisone) under investigation was never under Teva's effective control, Teva believes that intervention by the CMA in prices for generic medicines raises serious policy concerns regarding the roles of both the CMA and the Department of Health.' Top tipple: Gin distiller Sipsmith is to be taken over by a Japanese spirits conglomerate British gin distiller Sipsmith is to be taken over by a Japanese spirits conglomerate. Beam Suntory, which also owns Jim Beam and Maker's Mark bourbon, is paying an undisclosed sum for the company in an attempt to cash in on the popularity of gin. Sipsmith, which creates a range of specialist gins and vodkas, said the takeover by the Japanese giant would allow it to expand its brand all over the world. Under the deal, Beam Suntory aims to sell Sipsmith alongside its other major brands, which include Yamazaki whisky, Laphroaig Scotch and Courvoisier cognac. This would include new markets for Sipsmith, such as South and Central America The Chiswick-based distillery was established in 2009. Its founders, Sam Galsworthy and Fairfax Hall, will continue to run the operations which will remain in the capital. Media Secretary Karen Bradley will not decide whether to intervene in Rupert Murdochs 11.7 billion deal to acquire full control of Sky until after the European Commission has been formally notified of the plan. The last time Murdoch made an offer for the company it was five months before the EC was informed. It had been thought Bradley would choose whether to issue a public intervention notice within ten working days of last Thursday when 21st Century Fox made its formal offer. Media Secretary Karen Bradley (pictured) will not decide whether to intervene in Rupert Murdochs deal to acquire full control of Sky until after the EC has been notified of the plan But the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said the ten-day period will not begin until the relevant competition authority understood to be the EC is notified. That was the case six years ago when Murdoch last attempted to acquire the pay-TV giant. Sky has considerable interests on the Continent following its acquisition of Foxs Italian and German businesses in 2014. Murdochs bid to take control of Sky or BSkyB as it was then was announced on June 15, 2010, but was not referred to the European Commission until November 3 after the two sides had failed to agree a takeover proposal. It was only on November 4 that the then Secretary of State Vince Cable referred the bid to regulator Ofcom. The EC approved the proposal on competition grounds the following month, but Murdoch withdrew the offer in the wake of the phone hacking scandal. Fox already owns 39 per cent of Sky and has offered 10.75 per share to buy the outstanding 61 per cent. Fox already owns 39 per cent of Sky and has offered 10.75 per share to buy the outstanding 61 per cent James Murdoch, chairman of Sky and also chief executive of Fox, has said he is confident the latest deal would pass regulatory muster and would be completed before the end of next year. However, some independent investors, including Standard Life and Royal London, are demanding more information from the shareholders committee about the advice they considered before recommending Foxs offer, while noting that Skys shares were trading at the offer price last February. The 10.75-a-share, all-cash offer which the committee recommended to investors values Sky at 18.5 billion. Three-quarters of independent shareholders must support the deal for it to go ahead. A delay in referring the bid to Brussels could lead to a slowdown of the entire deal. Bradley is likely to ask regulator Ofcom to investigate whether the acquisition would give Murdoch too much power over the media and it will report back in 40 days. Sources note that the media sector has changed dramatically since the last bid for Sky. Facebook is now the third biggest source of news behind the BBC and ITV. A real estate developer plans to buy and destroy the Minnesota home once owned by the man who killed 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling, whose 1989 disappearance haunted Minnesota for nearly three decades. Developer Tim Thone said the idea came to him on December 10, while he watched a news story about the case that broke open this year, when Danny Heinrich led authorities to the field where he buried Jacob's remains. Heinrich later admitted to kidnapping, sexually assaulting and killing the boy. Real estate developer Tim Thone (pictured) plans to buy and destroy the Minnesota home once owned by the man who killed 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling, whose 1989 disappearance haunted Minnesota for nearly three decades Danny Heinrich (left) led authorities to the field where he buried Jacob's remains. Heinrich later admitted to kidnapping, sexually assaulting and killing the boy (right) The news report included a brief shot of Heinrich's house, which was up for sale in Annandale, about 50 miles northwest of Minneapolis. Thone said the house reminded him of the emotional scars left by the case. 'I thought, "That house just can't be there,"' Thone said. Thorn and his wife were young parents when Jacob was snatched from his bike by a masked gunman and disappeared. 'After that, we didn't let them play in the front yard,' he said of his four children. 'As parents, and as Minnesotans, it had a profound effect.' This October 2015 photo shows the home of Danny Heinrich in Annandale, Minnesota Thone, who lives east of Minneapolis in Woodbury, expects to buy the one-bedroom foreclosed house and tear it down by Christmas as a present for his adult children. The effort will cost Thone about $74,000. Annandale Mayor Dwight Gunnarson said Heinrich's house was a constant reminder to residents and would've always had a stigma. Thone is hoping the lot will remain empty, TwinCities.com reports. He told the website: 'We don't want a memorial on this site. We don't want an ice cream parlor or a park with somebodys name on it. 'We want the memory of the predator not to be there.' Thone's not taking donations, and told the website: 'I don't want a penny. But when your kids come home from college, give them one extra hug. 'And then maybe take one present from under the tree and say that instead of that, you are going to send some money to the Wetterling Foundation.' Pictured are Jacob's mother Patty Wetterling and her son, Trevor, during a press conference in September Heinrich, 53, publicly confessed in September to abducting, sexually assaulting and killing Jacob. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison on a child pornography count that allowed authorities to finally close the case. As part of his plea bargain, prosecutors agreed not to charge Heinrich with murder. Jacob's 1989 abduction led his parents to launch a national center to prevent child exploitation. His mother Patty Wetterling told KARE: 'I am thrilled that this house will (be) taken down. What a generous gift of healing during this holiday season!' Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte told the United States on Saturday to prepare for repeal of an agreement on deployment of troops and equipment for exercises. He also declared that money given to the country by American anti-poverty groups isn't needed. Duterte, however, suggested relations could improve under President-elect Donald Trump. 'I like your mouth, it's like mine, yes Mr. President. We are similar and people with the same feathers flock together,' he said during a news conference after arriving back home after visiting Cambodia and Singapore. But returning his focus to the present US administration, which has criticized Duterte over reports of state-sanctioned street killings in his campaign against drugs, he delivered a different message. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said he's prepared to repeal VFA, which allowed visiting American troops legal status in his country 'We do not need you,' Duterte said in a news conference after arriving from visits to Cambodia and Singapore. 'Prepare to leave the Philippines. Prepare for the eventual repeal or abrogation of the VFA.' The Visiting Forces Agreement, signed in 1998, accorded legal status to thousands of US troops who were rotated in the country for military exercises and humanitarian assistance operations. 'Bye, bye America and work on the protocols that will eventually move you out of the Philippines,' he said, adding that his decision would come 'any day soon' after reviewing another military deal, Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement. Duterte said he doesn't need American money and can get it from China A US State Department spokesman, Justin Higgins, said officials had seen Duterte's statements, but the United States had 'not received any official requests from Philippine officials to alter any of our many issues of bilateral cooperation.' Duterte was visibly upset and vented his anger on Washington because of a decision by the board of the Millennium Challenge Corp, a US poverty reduction agency, to defer a vote on the re-selection of Manila for compact development due to human rights issues. 'We do not need the money. China said they will provide so many,' he said. 'The politics here in Southeast Asia is changing.' Manila has been getting fierce criticism from human rights activists over its state-sanctioned killings of suspected drug dealers Six months into the crackdown, 5,000 Filipinos, including police, suspected users, and suspected dealers involved in drugs have been killed Two suspected drug dealers, bound and with faces wrapped in packaging tape were found by a passerby and reported to police on November 17, 2016 in Pasay city, Philippines On Friday, Duterte said while in Singapore that when he was mayor of Davao City that he would ride the city streets on a motorbike 'looking for encounters to kill' drug pushers, according to Channel News Asia. White House spokesman Josh Earnest called the admission 'deeply troubling.' But Duterte remained unbowed, saying, 'It's not genocide, it's about crime. If you are fighting drug addicts and criminal, I can go as many as I want and for as long as there are drug pushers in the streets in my country... this campaign will go on until the last day of my term.' Duterte claimed that during a call with President-Elect Donald Trump, Trump approved of his method. 'He wishes me well, too, in my campaign, and he said that, well, we are doing it as a sovereign nation, the right way,' he said, according to the New York Times. 'I could sense a good rapport,' the Philippines leader said about Trump, according to CBS. 'He was wishing me success in my campaign on the drug problem. He understood the way we are handling it and he said that theres nothing wrong in protecting your country.' A one-antlered deer that was captured at a New York City public housing complex died Friday before it could be relocated. The white-tailed buck died after prompting a tug of war between New York City and state officials over its fate. 'We offered yesterday to take possession of the deer and transport it to a suitable habitat,' the state Department of Environmental Conservation said in a statement. 'The city did not accept our offer until just before noon today, and while we were arriving on scene the deer died in the city's possession.' Earlier reports said the deer was to be relocated upstate. Scroll down for video Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, had offered 'to do everything we can to save the deer' The deer had been wandering around the Polo Grounds housing complex (pictured) The buck drew crowds for about two weeks at Jackie Robinson Park in Harlem, where it was known to residents either as J.R. or as Lefty because of its missing left antler. But after it jumped a fence into the courtyard of a housing project Thursday, the deer was tranquilized, captured and taken to Animal Care & Control. Tributes to the Harlem deer poured into Twitter, with many comparing the critter to Harambe, the gorilla who was shot and killed at the Cincinnati Zoo when a toddler jumped into his enclosure City officials announced plans to euthanize the deer, saying that transporting it upstate would contravene state wildlife policy and that the deer would not survive the stress of being moved anyway. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Thursday night that the state would move the animal despite the policy. City officials initially declined the offer but state DEC staffers headed to the city to collect the deer on Friday. The deer died around noon. The deer is pictured on a Harlem street, next to a fire hydrant and a bunch of recycling 'This was an animal that was under a great deal of stress for the past 24 hours and had been tranquilized for much of that time,' Sam Biederman, a spokesman for the city parks department, said afterward. 'Unfortunately, it has died.' 'The death of the animal indicates it would not have survived the transportation and relocation,' he told the New York Daily News. Governor Cuomo disagreed, blaming the deer's death on the city's slowness, saying that an offer to transport the deer was made Thursday, but ignored until Friday. It's not clear how the deer got onto Manhattan island in the first place. President Barack Obama declared Friday that Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime, Iran and Russia are responsible for the carnage in Aleppo and argued there was nothing Washington could have done to stop the war, short of a military takeover of Syria. And he warned Assad, who has been engaged in a brutal civil war against opposition forces since 2011, that he will not be able to 'slaughter his way to legitimacy.' 'The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo,' he told an end-of-year news conference. Scroll down for video Barack Obama holds a year-end press conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House 'This blood and these atrocities are on their hands,' he said. Obama also admitted to reporters that he had asked himself whether the United States did enough to halt the conflict. 'There are places around the world where horrible things are happening and - because of my office, because I'm president of the United States - I feel responsible,' he said. 'Is there something I could do that would save lives and make a difference and spare some child who doesn't deserve to suffer?' But the president said there had been no public appetite for the kind of large-scale US military intervention earlier in the war that he believes would have been the only way to halt it. 'Unless we were all in and going to take over Syria we were going to have problems,' he said. 'It sounded like the right thing to do but it was going to be impossible to do this on the cheap.' President Obama holds a year-end press conference addressing email hacking and cyber security at The White House Syrian President Bashar al-Assad gesturing during an interview with AFP in the Syrian capital Damascus in February 2016 The US leader, who leaves office on January 20 to make way for President-elect Donald Trump, called for impartial observers to deploy to monitor efforts to evacuate civilians from the city. Obama's White House has been engaged in a diplomatic effort to convince Russia to bring Assad to the table to negotiate a peace deal with the Syrian opposition. But all attempts to secure a ceasefire have rapidly broken down, and now Russia is working with Turkey to oversee an evacuation of the last rebel-held pocket of Aleppo. On Friday, the Syrian government suspended that operation, trapping thousands of civilians and rebel fighters in the city and increasing fears of a bloodbath to come. A member of forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad sits near damaged buildings in Aleppo's Salaheddine district A Syrian child is carried during an evacuation operation of rebel fighters and their families from rebel-held neighborhoods on December 15 An elderly Syrian man is carried during an evacuation operation of rebel fighters and their families An elderly Syrian woman in a wheelchair waits next to a bus during an evacuation - Obama said there was nothing Washington could have done for Syria other than a full scale military takeover. Right: an injured woman reacts at a site hit by airstrikes in the rebel held area of Old Aleppo UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that Aleppo had become 'a synonym for hell' and urged 'the parties to take all necessary measures to allow safe resumption of this evacuation process.' Senior US officials, including Secretary of State John Kerry and Washington's ambassador to the UN Samantha Power, have warned Assad against carrying out a Srebrenica-style massacre. They have also warned the defeat of Aleppo will not end the civil war but instead foment extremism among Assad's opponents and have called for war crimes investigations. Syrian children watch on as buses depart during an evacuation operation of rebel fighters and their families Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad sit on a tank as a convoy of buses and other vehicles take people out of eastern Aleppo But Washington has not been able to mediate the start of a credible peace process, nor separate so-called 'moderate rebels' from Al Qaeda-linked extremists. 'I cannot claim that we've been successful and so that's something that, as is true with a lot of issues and problems around the world I have to go to bed with every night,' Obama said. 'But I continue to believe it was the right approach given what realistically we could get done.' More than 310,000 people have been killed since early 2011, when Assad brutally repressed anti-government protests and provoked a civil war. A Syrian boy lights candles and writes the word 'Aleppo' during a demonstration in support of the inhabitants of the embattled Syrian city on December 16, 2016 in Thessaloniki, Greece More than half the population has been displaced, with millions becoming refugees, placing a huge burden on neighboring countries and sparking a political crisis in Europe. Meanwhile, the Islamic State jihadist group has taken advantage of the chaos to seize part of eastern Syria and set up a 'capital' in the city of Raqa. US troops and warplanes are helping locally recruited militias fight Islamic State in the east, but have not intervened against Assad, who has Russian military backing. U.S. Department of Justice not to meet with Onyschenko The U.S. Department of Justice has said that the department is not planning to meet fugitive Ukrainian MP Oleksandr Onyschenko. In the usual conditions the U.S. Department of Justice and law enforcement agencies are ready to meet people who claim they have evidence of violation of U.S. legislation, the department said. The fact of the meeting does not prove that the legislation was violated or information is adequate. The department said that it does not have any plans to hold meetings with Onyschenko. Onyschenko is suspected of organizing a criminal scheme to embezzle funds for the extraction and sale of natural gas involving activities of PJSC Ukrgazvydobuvannia, resulting in the loss of UAH 3 billion. Ukraine's parliament voted to bring Onyschenko to justice, as well as to detain and arrest him. However, on the eve of the vote, Onyschenko fled Ukraine. He was put in the wanted list on August 8. Early December Onyschenko claimed to have turned over compromising materials on Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to the U.S. government. The United States has more than doubled its offer of a reward to $25 million for information leading to the capture of the Islamic State's self-proclaimed caliph. The State Department had previously offered $10 million for information that helps the U.S. determine the location of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, or arrest and convict him. The agency says that under al-Baghdadi, ISIS has been responsible for thousands of deaths in the Middle East, including American citizens, and terrorist attacks elsewhere. The reward for the capture of the leader of the Islamic State group, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has been increased to $25 million from $10 million Mugshot of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi The U.S. State Department's Rewards for Justice program previously offered $10 million for information on al-Baghdadi, announced in October 2011. The increase was announced in a statement on Friday. Al-Baghdadi, an Iraqi whose real name is Ibrahim al-Samarrai, declared himself the caliph of a huge swath of Iraq and Syria two years ago. His exact location is not clear. Reports have said he may be in the ISIS-held city of Mosul, Iraq, or in ISIS-held territory to the west of the city, close to the border with Syria. Kurdish officials believe that growing pressure resulting from a coalition military assault on Mosul is causing al-Baghdadi and his top lieutenants to move around and try to hide themselves. Anyone with information about al-Baghdadi is asked to contact the Rewards for Justice office via e-mail (no2daesh@rewards4justice.co), by phone (1-800-877-3927 in North America), or by mail (Rewards for Justice, Washington, D.C., 20520-0303, USA. Al-Baghdadi delivering a sermon at a mosque in Iraq during his first public appearance Maj. Gen. David Haight was stripped of his two-star ranking An Army major general has been stripped of his stars and demoted to lieutenant colonel after a 30-year military career because of a long extramarital affair and a 'swinger' lifestyle. Embattled Army Major General David Haight was demoted by three steps to the rank of lieutenant colonel, a steep and rare downgrade for a senior officer, Army Secretary Eric Fanning said Friday. The demotion will cost him $43,000 in annual retirement pay, based on pay scales for a lieutenant colonel and a two-star general with 30 years in the Army. And it slams the door on what was once a promising career. Fanning approved the board's recommendation and made the final decision. Philandering is a violation of military law. An Army inspector general investigation concluded that Haight had an inappropriate sexual relationship with a woman who was not his wife, and that he misused government resources, including a department cell phone and computer, for a 'high volume' of personal calls and emails. Haight's attorney, Army Lt. Col. Sara Root, said Haight regrets his conduct but that it did not detract from his multiple combat tours. 'He has sacrificed a lot for his country. He's not a threat to his country and would never do anything to harm it,' she said, according to USA Today. She insisted he had never been targeted by spies or divulged national secrets. A demotion of three grades is unusual, and is based on Army regulations that require a three-member board to determine an officer's retirement rank when the person has been found guilty of misconduct. The board had to decide whether Haight served satisfactorily in his current rank, and if not, he could be demoted to the last rank in which his service would be considered satisfactory. The demotion suggests that the board concluded that Haight's misconduct stretched back through his time as colonel and was serious enough to make retirement at the more senior grades not possible. Haight and mistress Jennifer Armstrong, right, were together for 11 years, said Armstrong U.S. Army Infantry School Commandant David B. Haight is promoted to Brigadier General, April 5, 2013 at the Maneuver Center of Excellence as his family stood around him Under the regulations, 'one specific act of misconduct may or may not form the basis for a determination that the overall service in that grade was unsatisfactory, regardless of the period of time served in grade.' The investigation, which was launched in January, was triggered by anonymous complaints sent to then-Gen. Philip Breedlove, who was the top US general for NATO at the time, and to the Army and Defense Department inspectors general. According to the report, Haight was verbally counseled at least twice by a senior officer in November 2015 after initial complaints were filed and before the full investigation began. The counseling, it said, included assistance for possible marital problems, the perception of a relationship with someone who was not his wife, and other personal issues. In December, more anonymous allegations of misconduct came in, and one included a sexually explicit photograph. And the inspector general ordered a full investigation on January 4. Haight, above, served multiple combat tours and had a 30 year Army career before it was stripped from him because of a 'swinger' lifestyle The probe revealed that Haight conducted an affair for nearly 11 years, and also at times was involved in a 'swinger' lifestyle. He was married during the entire time of the relationship, and has four children. According to the report, Haight reminded the woman a number of times to communicate with him through another email address because his government accounts were monitored. 'I really would prefer all this traffic be on other net,' he wrote in one email, cited by the report. The report found that between June-November 2015 he called mistress Jennifer Armstrong, who was a government contractor, more than 80 times from his government cellphone, for a total of more than 1,400 minutes of conversation. It also found that they exchanged more than 800 personal emails between October 2010 and November 2015, including many that were sexually explicit. Often he signed them with 'ILY,' an abbreviation for 'I love you.' Armstrong told USA Today in August that the general was leading a double life, one that included her and swingers clubs. Haight, who dealt with the highest government secrets, could have easily been a target for blackmail if his secret life had been discovered by a foreign adversary, officials anonymously told the outlet. There were also sexual liaisons with strangers at swingers' clubs, it was reported, as well emails of erotic photos between other swingers. Officials said that affairs are against military policy because they open up the person to blackmail and threats. Haight was also exchanging erotic photos with other swingers that could have made him a target for blackmail Haight was also a key adviser to Admiral Mike Mullen, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, during the 2011 raid that killed Osama bin Laden. Armstrong, 49, said that their relationship began 11 years ago with a flirty email about Haight's 'terrific smile' when she was stationed in Iraq and escalated to a full-blown affair, trysts with other women and couples, and promises of a future together. 'I gave him the best years of my life,' she told the outlet. Haight had been serving as director for operations at US European Command in Stuttgart, Germany. He was pulled from the job and has been working as a special assistant to the Army deputy chief of staff for military operations. Police found Manrique under a ceiling fan circulating the gas around the home Manrique was seen tampering with pipes in the roof days before the tragedy Fernando Manrique, wife Maria Lutz and their two autistic children were gassed when family of four were found dead inside Sydney home Harrowing details have emerged of the moment police were confronted with the bodies of a family-of-four and their dog killed in a horrific murder-suicide. Fernando Manrique, wife Maria Lutz and their autistic children - Elisa, 11, and Martin, 10 - were found poisoned to death by carbon monoxide inside the Davidson house on Sydney's Northern Beaches on October 18, The Sydney Morning Herald reported. Police were called to the home after Ms Lutz, originally from Colombia, did not show up to work at the canteen at St Lucy's School in Wahroonga and the children did not arrive for school. But rather than a common 'welfare check', authorities were met with the chilling sight of a slumped over Mr Manrique underneath a ceiling fan, circulating the odourless, colourless and ultimately fatal gas. Scroll down for video Fernando Manrique, his wife Maria Lutz and their autistic children Elisa, 11, and Martin, 10, were found poisoned to death by carbon monoxide gas inside their family home Police were called to the Davidson house in the Northern Beaches on October 18 after Ms Lutz did not show up to work at the canteen at St Lucy's School in Wahroonga The alarm was raised when worried friend and fellow canteen worker, Nichole Brimble hadn't heard from the mother-of-two, who was normally prompt in responding to phone-calls and messages. Ms Brimble was insistent that police do a thorough search of the home when they went to check on the family. They had called her to say there appeared to be no signs of a disturbance. But her concerns were not placated, Ms Brimble asked whether the family pet, a bull mastiff, Tequila is in the garden and whether the family cars are parked outside. When police confirmed they were parked outside the Sydney home, she called it strange, so police looked through the glass doors where the gruesome discovery was made. After finding the slumped figure of Manrique, authorities found the bodies of Ms Lutz and 11-year-old Elisa in a bedroom towards the back of the family home. In the next bedroom, young Martin lay lifeless next to Tequila the dog. The family were gassed to death in an apparent murder suicide. Authorities were met with the chilling sight of a slumped over Manrique underneath a ceiling fan, circulating the odourless, colourless and ultimately fatal gas Authorities found the bodies of Ms Lutz and 11-year-old Elisa in a bedroom towards the back of the family home. Martin was found in another bedroom It is believed Manrique installed a gas system through the house when he was spotted working on the roof with power tools two days before the tragedy. It was reported he set up an elaborate system of pipes to pump odourless carbon monoxide gas into the house, which resulted in his family's deaths. Gas bottles were found inside the kitchen and police said they were not seeking any other suspects in the deaths. It is understood the family were struggling with the challenges of raising the two non-verbal children and had drifted in the months before their death. Ms Lutz had been desperate to return to her native Colombia so her family could help raise the two kids as Mr Manrique often travelled for work. It is understood the family were struggling with the challenges of raising the two non-verbal children and had drifted in the months before their death The 'house of horrors' grandmother who was accused trying to kill her step-grandchildren by setting fire to their beds and holding the bedroom door shut has been cleared of attempted murder charges. The 60-year-old woman from Morayfield, north of Brisbane, was set to stand trial over four counts of attempted murder but the charges were dropped by the Crown following new evidence. Detectives had alleged the woman set fire to the beds of her step-grandsons, aged 11 and 9, using accelerant before holding the bedroom door shut, The Courier Mail reported. Scroll down for video The 60-year-old woman from Morayfield, Queensland was set to stand trial over four counts of attempted murder but the charges were dropped by the Crown following new evidence She was also accused of trying to kill the 11-year-old twice before - allegedly trying to suffocate him with a pillow and a tea towel as he slept. Two children have died in the home since 2013 one three-year-old boy and the woman's seven-month-old grandson. The case against the grandmother was withdrawn from the Brisbane Supreme Court on Wednesday. A spokeswoman from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions said new evidence meant there would be 'no reasonable prospects of success' for the prosecution. In a separate and unrelated matter the grandmother is due in Caboolture Local Court on Monday charged with misconduct with a corpse this charge is related to another child. Detectives alleged the woman set fire to the beds of her step-grandsons, aged 11 and 9, using accelerant, before holding the bedroom door shut Anne Frank may not have been betrayed to Nazi occupiers but captured by chance, new research has hinted. It has always been theorised that the young Jewish diarist and her family were discovered by Gestapo officers in 1944 after a tip off from an unknown informant. But a study published by the Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam says there is no conclusive evidence to support the claim despite decades of speculation. Ronald Leopold, executive director of the museum, said the new research 'illustrates that other scenarios should also be considered'. Scroll down for video Anne Frank may not have been betrayed to Nazi occupiers but captured by chance, new research has hinted The bookcase (left) hiding the entrance to the secret annex which housed the family of Anne (right) and other Jews in hiding One possible theory is that the raid that led to Anne's arrest could have been part of an investigation into illegal labor or falsified ration coupons at the canal-side house where she and other Jews hid for just over two years. Anne kept a diary during her time in hiding that was published after the war and turned her into a globally recognized symbol of Holocaust victims. She died in the Bergen-Belsen Nazi concentration camp at age 15, shortly before it was liberated by Allied forces. The new research points to two men who worked in the building on Amsterdam's Prinsengracht canal and dealt in illegal ration cards. They were arrested earlier in 1944 and subsequently released, Dutch records show. The arrests are also mentioned in Anne's diary. Such arrests were reported to an investigation division based in The Hague and the report states: 'During their day-to-day activities, investigators from this department often came across Jews in hiding by chance.' But a study published by the Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam (pictrued) says there is no conclusive evidence to support the claim despite decades of speculation Another possibility raised by the report is that the raid was part of an investigation into people being allowed to work to prevent them being called up as forced labor and sent to Germany. 'A company where people were working illegally and two sales representatives were arrested for dealing in ration coupons obviously ran the risk of attracting the attention of the authorities,' the report says. It adds: 'The possibility of betrayal has of course not been entirely ruled out by this, nor has any relationship between the ration coupon fraud and the arrest been proven. A former doctor for USA Gymnastics, already facing sexual assault charges in a Michigan court, was arrested Friday on federal child pornography charges. Dr. Larry Nassar was arrested in Holt, Michigan, and transported to federal court in western Michigan. He appeared without a lawyer and remains in custody. Nassar has been under scrutiny since September when two gymnasts, including a member of the 2000 U.S. women's Olympic team, said they were sexually abused by him when they were teens. He denies it. Dr. Larry Nassar, a doctor who formerly worked for USA Gymnastics and is facing sexual assault charges has been indicted on child pornography charges (2008 photo) A federal indictment charges Nassar with possession of child pornography, and receipt and attempted receipt of child pornography, the IndyStar reported. The indictment says Nassar received child pornography and possessed thousands of images, from 2003 through 2016. A federal indictment charges Nassar with possession of child pornography, and receipt and attempted receipt of child pornography The indictment, obtained by the newspaper, alleges: 'The images of child pornography possessed included images that involved a minor who had not attained 12 years of age.' It says from between 2003 and 2016, Nassar had child pornography, and file names included 'pedo-vicky_10_year_old_orgasm' and 'Kelly 13 young girl,' IndyStar reported. In November, the Michigan attorney general's office charged Nassar with sexually assaulting a girl at his home in Ingham County. The allegations aren't related to his time as a gymnastics doctor. He has pleaded not guilty. Those assaults allegedly occurred between 1998 and 2005, when the girl was aged between six and 12. She was not a gymnast, patient or family member, Attorney General Bill Schuette said last month. He said Nassar, a former associate professor of osteopathic medicine at Michigan State University, committed 'predatory, menacing' acts and 'stole this young lady's childhood'. 'This is the tip of the iceberg,' Schuette said during a November news conference. Besides working for Indianapolis-based USA Gymnastics, Nassar was a doctor at Michigan State University and treated gymnasts from all over Michigan. Over 50 people have filed sexual assault complaints about Nassar with Michigan State police, IndyStar reported. Nassar has been under scrutiny since September when two gymnasts, including a member of the 2000 U.S. women's Olympic team, said they were sexually abused by him when they were teens. He denies it. Pictured is the 2000 U.S. women's Olympic team Lawyers for 13 women and girls recently told Michigan State that they plan to sue the school over alleged sexual assaults by Nassar. At least three other lawsuits against Nassar are pending. Nassar was fired in September by Michigan State. Allegation: Rachael Denhollander (pictured) has said that Nassar molested her when she was 15, in 2000 Indianapolis-based USA Gymnastics has said that it cut ties with Nassar after learning of athlete concerns about him in the summer of 2015 and notified the FBI. In August, gymnast Rachael Denhollander came forward and said that Nassar had abused her while he was on the faculty of Michigan State University in 2000. She claimed that he had abused her five times when she was just 15, touching her genitals and breasts. She had gone to him for treatment after suffering back pains. Her mom was in the room when the abuse took place but Nassar would position himself so that his actions could not be seen, she said. Tom Michell found a surviving penguin after an oil slick in Uruguay in 1976 Had I been told as a child that my life would one day run parallel with that of a penguin that for a time, at least, it would be him and me against the world I would have taken it in my stride. After all, my mother had kept three alligators at my grandparents house in genteel Esher in Surrey. She hadnt intended to keep alligators. Born in Singapore, when it was still a British colony, she had lived there until she was 16, when her parents decided to return to England. Upon leaving, she was given three eggs as a memento by her best friend. They had hatched, naturally, in her cabin during the long voyage and so, naturally, she had to take them home with her. By the time I was born in 1952, they were long gone from her life, taken away by keepers from Chessington Zoo after they became too big and too dangerous. But her passion for the exotic clearly burned in me, too, and in 1973 I left our family home in rural Sussex to teach at a boarding school in Argentina. By 1976 I had acquired some expat friends called the Bellamys and when school broke up for the winter holidays, which in those southern climes begin in July, they lent me the keys to their apartment in Punta del Este, the seaside resort in neighbouring Uruguay. Strolling around the harbour on the last day of my holiday there, I was captivated by the sight of two penguins pursuing shoals of sprats. The fish seemed almost defenceless against an adversary who twisted and turned with breathtaking speed and agility and I was only surprised that there werent more penguins there to feast on such rich and easy pickings. The bird that Tom Michell found after an initial clean up with butter and washing-up liquid The reason quickly became apparent. As I continued further along the seashore, I saw that the whole beach appeared to be covered with black lumps in a black carpet. Hundreds of penguins lay dead in the sand, covered in the thick, suffocating oil from a slick dumped by one of the many tankers which washed out their holds at sea before collecting new consignments. Each wave piled more birds on top of those already there, while further out every new breaker swept another grim batch of black carcasses towards the shore. Clearly, thousands of penguins had died in a horrifying manner while they were making their way north along their ancestral migration routes just as their forebears had done for millions of years. The sight was so sickening that I could only wonder what future lay ahead for any civilisation tolerating such desecration. I was consumed by such thoughts when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a movement. Not from the churning spume of the surf, but from the stillness on the beach. One valiant bird was alive; a single surviving soul lying on its belly and covered in tar like the others, but making little spasmodic jerks of its head and wings. Death throes, I assumed. I had to end its suffering as quickly as possible. So I headed towards it, clearing space under each footstep with as much decency and respect for the dead birds as was possible. I had no clear plan of how I would administer the coup de grace. But all thoughts of such violence vanished from my mind as that solitary penguin struggled to its feet, flapped its sticky wings at me and stood its ground, only knee-high but ready to fight for its life. I suddenly felt a surge of hope. Could it survive if cleaned? But how would I approach this filthy and aggressive bird? We stood there, eyeing each other suspiciously. How a healthy Megellanic penguin should look. Michell found the penguin after an oil slick while on holiday in Uruguay Quickly, I scanned the scraps of wood, plastic bottles, and other bits of rubbish found along the high-water mark on this and every other beach tainted by our advanced society. Among them I found a piece of fishing net. Gladiator-like, I dropped this over the penguins head before pushing it over with a stick and grabbing its feet. As it twisted and turned in its efforts to escape, I lifted the furious creature clear of the beach and away from my body, discovering for the first time how heavy penguins could be. And so I walked the mile back to my friends apartment with a flapping 10lb bird whose darting raptor beak could skewer my leg if my quickly tiring arms allowed it to come within striking distance. Fortunately the fearsome concierge, who occupied an office under the stairs and scrutinised every visitor as they went in and out, was not around for some reason. The coast was clear but as soon as I entered the apartment I realised that I had not given a thought to the practicalities of cleaning a penguin. Elegant and tasteful, the Bellamys flat was the last place to bring an oil-soaked bird and while the possibility of doing anything that might benefit my charge now seemed very remote, the chances of making a terrible mess, upsetting my hosts, and getting injured into the bargain, all seemed very real. I was tempted to take the bird straight back to the beach but then I remembered that I always travelled with a handy string bag, like a large version of the nets that oranges are sold in. One-handed, I shook it out and dropped the penguin inside before slipping a broomstick through the handles and suspending it between the backs of two chairs I placed in the bathroom. Deftly, I placed newspaper on the floor beneath the creature. Satisfied that I had contained it, I then remembered that we had used butter to remove tar from beach towels when we were children. I had some in the fridge and collected it together with some margarine, olive oil, soap, shampoo and detergent. After filling the bidet with warm water, I lifted the bag from its temporary support and placed it in the bowl, only for its increasingly irate occupant to clamp one of my fingers in its powerful bill. First blood to the bird! Damn you! Let go! I yelled as I prised its beak open as gently as my pain and fury would allow. It could have opened a tin of beans with that thing and it had inflicted a deep, painful cut which bled profusely and hurt as much as if I had jammed my finger in a heavy door. I still carry the scar to this day. Leaving the bird in the bidet, I ran my finger under cold running water, glowering at the penguin who stared straight back at me with belligerent eyes. Damn you! I said again. Im trying to help you! Cant you even understand that, birdbrain? After Id stopped the flow of blood, I was ready to return to the fray. I suspended the bird between the chairs again and, as it floundered ineffectually in the bag, I held its head with newspaper and brute force, finally managing to encircle its beak with the stout rubber bands I had found while searching for cleaning equipment. Right, you! I said. Come here! My finger throbbed and any sympathy I might have felt had all but gone down the drain with my blood. Satisfied that the bird was finally subdued, I put it back in the bidet and worked a handful of washing-up liquid into the short, stubby feathers on its back. The string bag worked perfectly as a restraint, holding it gently without restricting the cleaning. Suddenly, the exhausted penguin lay still, a docile and co-operative partner in this clean-up operation. It was as if he had understood that I was trying to rid him of that disgusting oil rather than commit murder. He no longer looked defiantly straight at me like an aggrieved captive, but was turning his head from side to side, regarding me quizzically with each eye in turn as if checking that I was paying proper attention to the delicate task I was undertaking. When the washing-up liquid was finished, I started with the shampoo. Standing upright in the bidet, he allowed me to do my work with no resistance at all and an hour later I had a recognisable penguin. His back feathers were black again, if not sleek and shiny, and his tummy feathers, though not pristine, were at least a greyish sort of white. Slowly, my focus moved beyond him and out around the bathroom. His shaking after each wash had deposited a thin film of dirty detergent, oil and water over a fair proportion of the walls and, I saw as I looked in the mirror, over me, too. Although he was now clean to the touch, I didnt want him wandering free in the flat so I placed him in the tub while I started to clean both the bathroom and myself. He seemed exhausted and lay on his tummy, watching me while I took a shower and pondered what to do with him. I had to leave for Buenos Aires early the next morning and there was no way I could keep a penguin in the small flat I had at the school. Neither did I have time to find a zoo which might take him here. There was no question about it. I would have to return him to the ocean that night. But all the while a little voice was nagging at me, suggesting that washing him with detergent might have removed his natural waterproofing, ensuring that he would become waterlogged and drown the moment he was back in the sea. Michell cleaned the penguin up and tried to return him to sea but the penguin wouldn't leave But with no opportunity in those days to Google how to re-waterproof a penguin I resorted to what I thought was common sense, trying to get him seaworthy again by rubbing butter and olive oil into his feathers until he resembled a greased-up swimmer. Once I was satisfied he was saturated with all the materials available to me, I put him in a shopping bag to hide him from the harridan thinly disguised as a concierge. Together, we quietly headed back out on to the coast road which was all that separated the Bellamys apartment from the Atlantic. The beach there was pleasantly sandy with no sign of the ill-fated penguins that had blanketed the shore elsewhere. Placing him at the waters edge, I expected him to rush into the sea and swim away, happy to be free once more. But he didnt. He walked straight back to my side. Worse still, he was looking at my face, directly into my eyes even, and appeared to be talking to me. Why are you trying to send me back to that deadly oily ocean so soon after weve met and become friends? Go on, I said. Go and find your fellow penguins. You cant come with me! But instead he just stood at my feet, looking at me pathetically. I cant go back! I cant swim now youve washed out my water-proofing. Oh, hell! This was not going according to plan. I picked him up, carried him out on to some nearby rocks, then skipped back to a higher point and watched as the next wave came in and he disappeared from view. I waited, straining my eyes to catch sight of him swimming off through the water. But, after a few moments, the sea receded again and he was gone. I must have missed him amid the reflections from the surface. Goodbye, little bird, I said. May your path be untrammelled and untroubled! But as I turned to go, there again, struggling out of the water, was a bedraggled penguin. He must have swum round in a circle and failed to find his way out into the open sea. I would just have to try again. Picking him up, I carried him even further out and placed him at the far end of the rocks where his way would be clear. I hadnt got even halfway back when my stepping stones disappeared under the foam and I found myself stumbling up to my knees in freezing water. Hell! I gasped as I missed my footing and fell in to a cold wave. I emerged and looking down at the water streaming from my clothes on to the sand, saw a pair of feet next to mine. Michell decided that he would have to sneak the bird back to Argentina with him as he had to return for work Waters cold, isnt it? Look! Im soaking wet thanks to you! I said to the penguin. His amused look seemed to say: And your waterproofing doesnt work either, does it? I demanded that he get back to his own kind and, walking rapidly back up the beach with water squirting from my shoes, headed towards the flat, only to look back and see the bird was running up the beach after me. The sea wall was too high for him to surmount so I was sure hed have no option but to find his own way back to the sea. But as I crossed the road I glanced back once again and there he was, scaling the rocks and about to follow me. Stop! I yelled at both the penguin and a speeding van hurtling towards us but, although the driver didnt hear me, the bump I dreaded didnt come. When the vehicle had passed there was the penguin, walking across the road. I rushed over and picked him up. He was soaking wet and felt very cold. What am I going to do with you? I asked. Carefully, I put him back into the bag, folded the top over and, holding him against my chest for warmth, took him back to the flat. There I returned him to the bathroom and dried him once again. I was reluctantly coming to the conclusion that I would have to try to take him back to Argentina with me and maybe that wouldnt be such a bad thing. If I left him at the zoo in Buenos Aires Id be able to see him from time to time. Relieved that I had hit upon a sensible solution to the problem, I set out for dinner at a local restaurant with my mind at ease. It was still early and with no other diners to talk to I finally relaxed and opened my book. This was Juan Salvador Gaviota, (John Saviour Seagull), a Spanish translation of the novel Jonathan Livingston Seagull. It was a best-seller of the time but despite my best efforts, I found I could not focus on it at all. I was thinking about a certain penguin in a bath and how the poor thing must have swallowed significant quantities of oil. He would almost certainly be dead when I got back and all I had done was make his final hours more miserable. Michell named the penguin Juan Salvador Pinguino after the character Juan Salvador Gaviota, in the Spanish novel Jonathan Livingston Seagull. I kept looking at the book, but the words just danced on the page in front of me: Juan Salvador, Juan Salvador. All of a sudden I found I was hoping against hope that the penguin would survive because, as of that instant, he had a name and that name was Juan Salvador Pinguino (John Saviour Penguin). I ate my meal with undue haste, settled the bill and raced back to the flat, expecting the worst. But on opening the front door I knew all was well because I could hear him running up and down in the bath and flapping his wings in welcome. As I entered the bathroom he looked at me in his inimitable way: Im so glad youre back! Youve been an awfully long time, he seemed to be saying. Grinning from ear to ear, I felt relief flooding through me. That was the moment at which he became my penguin and I knew that, whatever the future held, Juan Salvador and I would face it together. The 34-year-old was starved, beaten, branded and brutalized by the women She has told police that two Hispanic women kidnapped her on November 2 Sherri Papini's abductors hid their faces from her when her head wasn't covered, according to authorities. The mysterious disappearance of the California mother is still a priority, the Shasta County Sheriff's Office has told local media. Papini, the 34-year-old mother of two children, disappeared on November 2 after leaving home to jog. She was kidnapped, tortured and starved, for three weeks, before she was discovered bound near Interstate 5 in Yolo County. Sherri had been able to somehow flag down a passing motorist, who helped her to safety. Scroll down for video Sherri Papini's abductors hid their faces from her when her head wasn't covered, according to authorities. Sherri Papini is pictured with her husband, Keith Papini Keith Papini 'has been cooperative and even volunteered for a polygraph, which he passed', Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko has said. The couple and their children (pictured) recently left their home in Redding and moved to an undisclosed location in the wake of her abduction KRCR-TV says that it asked Shasta County's Sheriff Tom Bosenko why there have been no suspect sketches. Bosenko told the TV station sketches require a lot of information from the victim. He told the news outlet Papini's head was covered the majority of the time - and when it wasn't, the kidnappers faces' were concealed. He also revealed to the TV station that authorities are waiting for the Department of Justice to process evidence. Bosenko told KRCR that Sherri and her husband Keith Papini have been cooperative with police. He also revealed that the sheriff's office doesn't have a reason to doubt Sherri suffered kidnapping and torture. It was previously revealed that Keith has not been ruled out as a suspect in his wife's disappearance. He 'has been cooperative and even volunteered for a polygraph, which he passed', Bosenko told the New York Post. 'We are keeping an open mind and looking at all avenues,' Bosenko said. Police are still searching for the suspects who police say Sherri has described as two Hispanic women who dumped Sherri on the side of a highway on Thanksgiving Day in Yolo County. The couple and their children recently left their home in Redding, California, and moved to an undisclosed location in the wake of her abduction. In an interview with ABC News Sherri's husband revealed that it was too difficult for his wife to be at the home given what happened to her in the 22 days that she was held captive, and that he was not sure that they would ever return to the house. There are still many questions that remain unanswered in the case. Sherri was kidnapped, tortured and starved, for three weeks, before she was discovered bound near Interstate 5 in Yolo County. She had been able to somehow flag down a passing motorist Horror house: Sherri (above on a family vacation) was kept isolated and shackled in a basement where she was beaten and branded during her 22 days in captivity Keith also detailed the 'very mixed emotions' he felt when he heard his wife's voice for the first time during his interview. He said that he received a call from the police officer who arrived on the scene after his wife was released by her captors on a California freeway, and in the background he could hear his wife screaming his name. 'It's very emotional. And, "I love you, I love you, I love you, Oh my God, you're here. You're back. Where are you?"' said Keith. The Shasta County Sheriff's Department is still looking for clues to determine why Sherri was targeted and the motive of her kidnappers in their ongoing investigation. TIMELINE OF SHERRI PAPINI'S KIDNAPPING November 2: Sherri Papini fails to pick up her two children from daycare and is reported missing by her husband Keith November 10: Keith Papini is ruled out as a suspect after passing a lie detector test November 18: The FBI joins the search for Sherri as an anonymous donor offers $50,000 for her return November 22: Christine Everson spots a woman she believes to be Sherri Papini at a rest stop in Redding, just miles away from the missing woman's home. The woman refuses to engage Everson in conversation after she approaches the dark SUV she is sitting in, the same tupe of car police are now looking for in the case. Everson leaves but reports her sighting to police. November 23: Cameron Gamble, a local 'negotiator', appears in a video on behalf of the anonymous donor to inform Sherri's captors the ransom was now 'off the table'. Instead it was turned into a $100,000 reward for information November 2 Sherri flags down a passing motorist at the intersection of I-5 and County Road 17 and is taken to hospital Advertisement Bill Garcia, a private detective who has been looking into the case, said in an interview with Today that he believes that Sherri may have been a sex trafficking victim. 'I suspect based on the types of injuries Sherri incurred, the beatings, the broken nose, the cut hair, especially the chains and the branding, indicate that most likely it was one of these sex trafficking groups,' said Garcia. When asked about sex trafficking being a possible motive Bosenko would only say: 'We don't know if this was related to any cartel or sex trafficking.' Bosenko told DailyMail.com on December 7: 'Right now we have no known reason why she was abducted, we do not know if she was specifically targeted or if this was a random abduction. 'It's still an active and ongoing investigation and we're still looking for the reasons or the motive for this abduction. 'Abductions are generally rare, especially in this area, but I mean in general an adult abduction is an unusual occurrence.' He also spoke about the fact that Sherri's captors branded her with some sort of message, which neither he nor her husband Keith will share details about. 'I would think that that was some sort of either an exertion of power and control and or maybe some type of message that the brand contained,' Bosenko has said. 'It is not a symbol, but it was a message.' Keith has revealed that his wife's captors kept her in restraints at all times, whether she was inside the house or out with them in a vehicle. 'She had a metal chain around her waist. She had a bag over her head,' said Keith. 'She was chained anytime she was in a vehicle. They opened the door... they cut something, freed her restraints that were holding her in the vehicle and they pushed her out.' They even kept her chained up after releasing her on the side of the road at around 4am on the morning of Thanksgiving. Bosenko said at a news conference last month that Sherri said the younger of the two suspects has long curly hair and a thick accent, with pierced ears and thin eyebrows. Pictured is Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko He said that Sherri described the older woman as having thick eyebrows and straight black hair with streaks of gray. Keith said his wife told him that she screamed until she was 'coughing up blood' trying to get a motorist to stop before realizing that her chains might be scaring them away because it looked like she had broken out of prison. After she realized this Sherri hid the chains and was able to flag down a driver, according to Keith. Sherri was reported missing by Keith after going out for a jog near their home in Redding on November 2 and failing to return. Keith said he first grew concerned when he learned that his wife had failed to pick up their two children from daycare. He traced her discarded iPhone to the side of the road about a mile from their home where he found it tossed on the ground with her running 'ear buds'. A missing persons appeal was launched soon after, with posters littering the local town of Mountain Gate and scores of social media pleas for Sherri's return. Gone girl: Sherri (above in a family photo from earlier this year) was reported missing by Keith after going out for a jog near their home in Redding on November 2 A Tennessee man has found it in his heart to forgive the two teens who allegedly started a blaze that killed his family. Michael Reed, who wrote an open letter to the two teens, lost his wife, Constance Reed and his two daughters, Lily and Chloe Reed. 'We will pray for you. Every day. We will pray for your parents and your family members. Every day. We will pray for your peace. We will show you grace. Why? Because that's what Jesus would do,' he wrote on his Facebook page. Reed said that he wrote the letter because he wanted to get his feelings off of his chest, USA Today reported. Michael Reed (right), who wrote an open letter to the two teens allegedly who allegedly started the Tennessee wildfires, lost his wife, Constance Reed (left) and his two daughters, Lily and Chloe Reed Reed said that he wrote the letter because he wanted to get his feelings off of his chest. 'Forgiveness isn't for you. It is for my son. It is for Constance (center right), Chloe and Lily (left with mother)' 'Forgiveness isn't for you. It is for me. It is for my son. It is for Constance, Chloe and Lily. It is for this community who all lost so much in this tragedy.' The two teens are accused of starting the wildfires that left 14 dead, injured 175 and destroyed 2,400 homes and businesses. They are currently sitting in a Sevier County detention center but if they are convicted of aggravated arson, they could each be facing prison terms of 60 years. If the duo are slapped with more serious charges, including first-degree murder and are convicted, they could be jailed for life. Reed says the boys are too young to 'know God's design' and 'haven't lived enough of life to know the consequences of their actions'. The deadly wildfires caused more than $500 million in damage as they tore through a tourism community in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains. The two teens are accused of starting the wildfires that left 14 dead, injured 175 and destroyed 2,400 homes and businesses. Three of the 14 who perished in the fire were Reed's wife and daughters (pictured) Reed says the boys are too young to 'know God's design' and 'haven't lived enough of life to know the consequences of their actions' Reed said that he believes his wife would want him to forgive as a testament to God's devotion in their life 'If in fact they did set the fire, and they did it on purpose, I cannot think of a punishment severe enough for them,' Kent Emmons, whose home was destroyed, told CNN. 'Everything is on the table,' is how local prosecutor James Dunn presents the case against the juveniles, who remain anonymous because they are under the age of 18. It's not yet known whether prosecutors will charge them as adults. Reed wrote that as 'humans it is sometimes hard to show grace'. 'We hold grudges. We stay angry. We point the finger and feel we have to lay the blame somewhere. It's human nature and completely understandable. 'But I did not raise my children to live with hate. I did not teach my girls or my son to point the finger at others.' Reed told the newspaper that he believes his wife would want him to forgive as a testament to God's devotion in their life. The teens are currently sitting in a Sevier County detention center but if they are convicted of aggravated arson, they could each be facing prison terms of 60 years. Remains of a van and home smolder in the wake of the wildfire If the duo are slapped with more serious charges, including first-degree murder and are convicted, they could be jailed for life. The remains of several businesses after the wildfire that started on November 30 Fire erupting on the side of The Spur on Highway 441 between Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. In Gatlinburg, smoke and fire caused the mandatory evacuation of downtown and surrounding areas A bond hearing was supposed to have taken place within three days of their December 7 arrest but so far nothing has been scheduled. Also, despite charges being levied, authorities have not yet determined if the youths had intentions to do harm to people and property. The next charge after first-degree murder would be reckless homicide, which is punishable by up to 12 years in prison, or criminally negligent homicide, which is up to six years. The remains of Cupid's Chapel of Love, in Gatlinburg. Amid deadly wildfires in the Great Smoky Mountains, the city nicknamed the wedding capital of the south lost one of its most recognizable places to get married As the full extent of the catastrophic damage reveals itself, authorities who early on suspected arson, have since confirmed that the blaze was man-made Drought conditions and high winds helped the fire spread through the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains The fires blew into the city on November 28 on gusts around 87 miles per hour that knocked down power lines and started other fires. People fled the city on foot or by car as walls of fire closed in. Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters put a dollar figure on the damage for the first time at a news conference on Tuesday, where officials also defended their emergency response in the Gatlinburg area and promised to conduct wide-ranging reviews of what can be done better. For the first time since the fires, Gatlinburg officially reopened to the public last Friday, and its main downtown district was largely unharmed. 'It was a great sight, a beautiful sight, to see this weekend our streets once again filled with visitors and locals alike,' Gatlinburg City Manager Cindy Cameron Ogle said. The remains of a home smolder in the wake of the fire. The teens are currently sitting in a Sevier County detention center while prosecutors decide what will happen to them next At the time, thousands of people were evacuated from the area with the damage estimated to be around $500 million Great Smoky Mountains National Park officials defended the way they fought the fire, which started November 23 at just 1 acres in a remote part of the park and traveled 5 miles to singe Gatlinburg five days later. The embers either hopped around, starting new fires that dropped more embers, or the embers somehow sailed airborne for miles. That happens in extreme conditions in the West, but it's 'nearly unheard of' in the East, said Park Deputy Superintendent Clay Jordan. 'First, we believe there was no way we could have controlled the fire prior to the wind event,' Jordan said. 'And second, the reality is that we believe that no number of firefighters or fire engines could have stopped the spread of the fire in such extreme wind conditions.' Senior Pastor Kim McCroskey inspects a statue outside the remains of the family life center at Roaring Fork Baptist Church in Gatlinburg. The church and the center burned down Although they've levied charges, authorities have not yet determined what, if any, intentions the two youths had when they first lit the fire Smoke fills the air and surrounds businesses and resorts in the wake of a wildfire November 30, 2016, in downtown Gatlinburg, Tennessee. The town reopened for business last Friday Also on Tuesday, Gatlinburg Fire Chief Greg Miller further explained why a text message evacuation notice was never sent. On November 28 at 8.30pm John Mathews of the Sevier County Emergency Management Agency tried to call the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency to discuss sending the text, and that was about when two cell towers went down, Miller said. Miller said TEMA tried to reconnect to get approval of the language of the alert, but couldn't, and didn't send the message because the wording wasn't approved. 'That's important to note because we didn't want an inappropriate message to be disseminated which could have evacuated people toward an area of concern, rather than away from it,' Miller said. For decades it has been the default security question used by banks and many other financial institutions. But now the Royal Bank of Scotland is no longer asking customers for their mothers maiden name in an effort to be more inclusive. The policy change is designed to reflect modern family structures, which as well as customers whose mothers did not marry or change their names, may now include those with same-sex parents. People with two fathers would not have a mothers maiden name, while those with two mothers would perhaps not know which one to choose, causing confusion. 'More inclusve': The Royal Bank of Scotland is no longer asking customers for their mother's maiden name in an effort to reflect modern family structures The bank told the Mail it had replaced the question with a memorable word, because not every customer would find the old question suitable. The move by RBS, which is 73 per cent owned by taxpayers, comes just days after the UKs fertility regulator approved the creation of babies from three people, a development that also makes the maiden name question out of date. A bank spokesman said: Our approach is to provide flexibility and recognise that one size doesnt fit all. 'We simply offer people the more inclusive choice to use a memorable word. RBS has re-examined all mentions of mothers, fathers and families in official security questions and paperwork. Marjorie Strachan, the banks global head of inclusion, has said: We are looking at unconscious bias. 'Using neutral language can be a good starting point. 'RBS is to be applauded for removing this gender bias': Veteran gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell on the move Veteran gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell welcomed the move. He said: Requiring a mothers maiden name does not seem to be a very secure question. Fraudsters could easily find it out. 'Gender-based questions are usually not necessary or desirable and wont work for non-traditional families. RBS is to be applauded for removing this gender bias and especially for opting for more robust security questions. It is thought other banks may now follow suit. Most, including Barclays, are still believed to require a mothers maiden name as a security question, but Santander said it has never used it. Tesco Bank said it was used only as a back-up if people failed their initial security questions, while at Metro Bank it is one of several questions customers can choose. A spokesman said: Customers are given a list of nine options to select from, including questions such as their favourite team, a memorable date and mothers maiden name. 'We pride ourselves on listening to customers, and to date no one has raised this. Ricky Knox, founder of the new banking app Tandem, said: Banking needs to be personal. Some will want to use a mothers maiden name, and thats fine. All our customers are required to select a combination of three questions, covering subjects such as a favourite film, childrens book or a teacher who inspired them. Too much to think about: Some banks give customers as many as nine options to choose from for security questions The RBS decision follows other changes by banks to be more sensitive towards gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexual families and customers. Metro Bank customers who consider themselves neither male nor female can now choose to be referred to using the gender-neutral term Mx when opening accounts or taking out a loan. The title is designed for those in the process of changing sex or those who do not identify themselves as either male or female. Danny Hamer, of Metro, said: Making sure our customers and colleagues feel comfortable and accepted is a real priority for us. We hope that todays announcement will help encourage others to follow in our footsteps. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin has said that Ukraine is working on a list of sanctions against Russia over the unlawful imprisonment of Ukrainian citizens, BBC Ukraine has reported. "We will try to update the list as soon as we will have clear information about those involved in the trials against our political prisoners. We need real evidence to add someone to the sanctions list," Klimkin said. The minister also said that Foreign Ministry is verifying information about Ukrainian prisoners in Russia not only from their relatives, but also international human rights watchdogs and lawyers. "We are preparing new supplements to the sanction list," he said. As reported, on October 17, 2016 Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko extended sanctions against some companies and individuals in response to Russian aggression against Ukraine. A total of 335 individuals were included in the list. These are the types of questions stumping Australian school children as test results plummet compared to other countries. This week's NAPLAN national report revealed students were not meeting standards in the yearly reading, grammar and punctuation, spelling and numeracy tests. More than half of year 9 students this year did not achieve to results the NSW Government declared they needed to qualify for the HSC. This week's NAPLAN national report revealed students were not meeting standards in the yearly reading, grammar and punctuation, spelling and numeracy tests Questions from the year 5 no calculator NAPLAN maths test Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority chief executive Robert Randall said the results were not showing any improvement. 'We need to raise our expectations and strive for improved results across the board,' he said. Some of the questions in example tests published by NAPLAN might stump some adults, but educators questioned whether the tests were still too easy. More questions from the year 5 maths test Some of the questions in example tests published by NAPLAN might stump some adults, but educators questioned whether the tests were still too easy Questions in the year 5 (aged 10) and 7 (aged 12) maths tests, where calculators are not allowed, range from simple arithmetic to geometry, basic algebra, and pattern recognition. They had to place tiles in a square and determine its shape, calculate volumes and perimeters, solve math logic puzzles, and divide 5,427 by 9 in their head. The language conventions tests focused heavily on spelling, punctuation, and picking the right word to complete a sentence. Students had to know the difference between you're and your, whose and who's, and an ellipsis, comma, colon and full stop. Questions from the year 7 no calculator NAPLAN maths test NAPLAN assessments are undertaken every year in May, right across the country testing reading, writing, language conventions and numeracy levels. The results are then released publicly so parents, educators and the community can make educated comparisons between schools. Disappointing NAPLAN results comes after Australian students were revealed to be two years behind their top international counterparts and performing worse across most subjects. Australia was above the OECD average, but sat equal 10th in science, equal 12th in reading and equal 20th in maths out of 72 countries, according to OECD's Program for International Student Assessment. Students had to identify and correct the wrongly-spelled word Questions from the year 7 NAPLAN language conventions test That report came just a week after the four-yearly Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study showed Australia slipping in its rankings. The country ranked 27th for both year 4 maths and science, 17th in year 8 maths and science. Australia finished behind the likes of Kazakhstan, Bulgaria, Lithuania and Serbia. DID YOU GET THE RIGHT ANSWERS? Question Answer Year 5 maths Q11 603 Q12 C Q28 A Q30 A Q33 756 Q38 10 Q40 7 Year 7 maths Q2 D Q4 B Q12 B Q18 30 Q28 22 Q31 80 Year 7 language conventions Q19 fatigued Q26 excitement Q36 Whose Q45 D A doting grandfather who was due to celebrate his 70th birthday with a family party was killed when he tried to stop a gang of ruthless career criminals stealing his delivery van, a court heard yesterday. James Ray had been dropping off sacks of soap power when the thieves who had been trawling business parks looking for vehicles to steal jumped in and attempted to drive off. The retired pub landlord tried to grab hold of his Transit van in an attempt to stop it being driven away but is thought he was pushed off and he fell to the ground leaving him with fatal head injuries. Grandfather James Ray died on his 70th birthday after he tried to stop three career criminals from stealing his car He died hours later in hospital on the morning of his 70th birthday itself with his wife Vivian, 68, and two children Adrian and Catherine - who had been planning a party for him - at his bedside. The stolen van was recovered 600 metres away from the scene of the tragedy. At Manchester Crown Court, three men who hail from Irish travelling families were facing jail after being convicted of manslaughter. Described as 'professional thieves', the trio were behind thefts of items worth 220,000 from commercial premises over a four month period in which cars, vans, power tools, surveillance equipment and cash were taken. To avoid suspicion the gang would pose as workmen in hi-visibility jackets during reconnaissance trips on potential targets and used getaway cars fitted with false plates. They would claim to be looking for scrap if challenged. Mr Ray, from Easingwold, near York, described as a spritely, family man had formerly been landlord of the Spotted Ox in nearby Tockworth but had sold the pub in 2002 and began working for his son-in-laws family delivery firm. The three criminals jumped in the Ford Fiesta and attempted to drive off whiel Mr Ray was dropping off sacks of soap powder The tragedy occurred at noon on November 12 last year just a day before Mr Ray was due to celebrate his birthday with his wife, children, four grandchildren and other family members at his home. He was delivering a tonne of detergent from his family business to the Plantation Industrial Estate in Ashton under Lyne and was unloading 25kg sacks one-by-one, against the shutters of an empty industrial launderette, when he was targeted by the thieves who had been keeping watch from their Ford Fiesta which they bought nine days earlier in cash for use in crime. Neil Fryman prosecuting told an earlier hearing: 'These men were not opportunists but part of a very sophisticated and highly organised gang of men - a determined group of professional thieves who were going to steal whatever the risk to anyone in their way. Sadly Mr Ray was in their way - it may have been an accident waiting to happen. 'They took the decision to take his van knowing hes either in the van at the back or right next to it. 'If youre taking the van you stand the risk the person will hold onto it and try to protect their goods. They took it and carried on regardless - hes killed as a result of them taking the van in a very reckless way, knowing theres a real risk of injury. The retired pub landlord tried to grab hold of his car to stop it being driven away but it is thought he was pushed off and he fell to the ground leaving him with fatal head injurie CCTV captured the moment the gangs Fiesta drove into the yard before both it and the Transit are driven away at speed in convoy. Both stopped nearby where the van was dumped and the thieves sped off in the Fiesta. Police were first alerted when a member of the public reported the abandoned van and Mr Ray was found 25 minutes later. According to a pathologist Mr Ray suffered injuries consistent with 'accelerated and propelled fall.' Patrick Cawley, 21, of Chadderton, near Oldham, and Patrick McDonagh, 20, of Milnrow, near Rochdale admitted manslaughter and conspiracy to steal. Mark Ward Jnr, 24, of Rochdale was convicted of manslaughter after a trial. He admitted conspiracy to steal. Wards father, Mark Ward Snr, 44, of Heywood was convicted of conspiracy to steal. Accomplices Leslie Simpson, 39, of Rochdale admitted conspiracy to steal and Faisal Hussain, 23, of Rochdale, admitted burglary and theft. Mr Ray left behind his wife, two children and four grandchildren. The three men face jailtime after being convicted of manslaughter At the time of the tragedy Det Supt John Chadwick of Greater Manchester Police said: 'John would have been an easy target at 70 years old at the premises with nobody there. He was a sprightly family man and still working aged 70 and his family are understandably absolutely devastated. 'Instead of celebrating his birthday they are going to have to start planning his funeral. I dont think any of us could put ourselves in that position.' The US intelligence community will soon disclose an estimate of the number of Americans whose electronic communications have been caught in the crosshairs of online surveillance programs intended for foreigners. The estimate, requested by members of the US House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, is expected to be made public as early as next month, said the letter by US lawmakers seen by Reuters on Friday. Its disclosure would come as Congress is expected to begin debate in the coming months over whether to reauthorize or reform the so-called surveillance authority, known as Section 702, a provision that was added to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act in 2008. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper was sent a letter by 11 members of the House Judiciary Committee about NSA intelligence A letter from 11 members of the House Judiciary Committee was sent to National Intelligence Director James Clapper and the NSA confirming they would reveal how many Americans' digital information had been picked up by the government 'The timely production of this information is incredibly important to informed debate on Section 702 in the next Congress and, without it, even those of us inclined to support reauthorization would have reason for concern,' said the letter signed by 11 lawmakers, all members of the House Judiciary Committee. The letter was sent on Friday to National Intelligence Director James Clapper. It said his office and National Security Agency (NSA) officials had already briefed congressional staff about how the intelligence community intends to comply with the disclosure request. Clapper's office confirmed the letter had been received but declined further comment. Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act allows spying on foreigners' data - but intelligence agencies were 'incidentally' collecting the information of American citizens too The lawmakers termed their letter an effort to 'memorialize our understanding' of the intelligence community's plan to provide an estimate in real numbers, not percentages, as soon as January, that can be shared with the public. The government has long held that calculating the number of Americans subject to Section 702 surveillance might be technically impossible and would require privacy intrusions exceeding those raised by the actual surveillance programs, which were originally intended to counter foreign espionage. Intelligence officials have said that online data about Americans is 'incidentally' collected under Section 702, due to a range of technical and practical reasons. Critics have assailed such collection as back-door surveillance of Americans without a warrant. NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden first leaked that government agencies could spy on American's messaging data and web traffic Section 702 will expire on December 31, 2017, absent congressional action. It enables two internet surveillance programs called Prism and Upstream that were revealed in a series of leaks by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden more than three years ago. Prism gathers messaging data from Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple and other major tech companies that is sent to and from a foreign target under surveillance. Upstream allows the NSA to copy web traffic flowing along the internet backbone located inside the United States and search that data for certain terms associated with a target. Clapper, who is stepping down next month, suggested in April that providing an estimate of Americans surveilled under Section 702, a figure some have said could tally in the millions, might be possible, while defending the law as 'a prolific producer of critical intelligence.' A three-month-old baby was found dead with his throat slit near the body of his mother inside their Texas home. Shanna Riddle Vandewege, 36, and her son Diederik were found dead Thursday night at their house in Fort Worth, authorities said. Police are investigating the deaths as homicides. Vandewege's husband Craig found the bodies after coming home from work Thursday, according to Vandewege's father. The couple had moved to Texas from Colorado earlier this year and welcomed their son after three miscarriages. Fort Worth police haven't ruled out anyone as a suspect and told the DailyMail.com Friday evening that they weren't looking at anyone specifically for the time being. Scroll down for video Shanna Riddle Vandewege (left), 36, and her son Diederik (center) were found dead Thursday night at their house in Fort Worth, Texas. Vandewege's husband Craig (right) found them both after coming home from work, according to Vandewege's father Vandewege's father told WFAA that Craig had found the home 'in disorder' on Thursday before he saw his wife's and his son's bodies. Fort Worth police told the Star-Telegram that they received a call around 9.30pm saying a man had come to the house on Cactus Flower Drive and found a woman and a child, both dead. Authorities haven't said whether it appeared the home was broken into. The baby died of an incised wound to the neck, the medical examiner said Friday. Authorities haven't announced a cause of dead for his mother. Little Diederik (pictured with his mother) had his throat slit, according to the medical examiner. The mother's cause of death hasn't been announced Craig (pictured) and his wife had been trying to have a child for a long time and had gone through three miscarriages before welcoming Diederik (pictured with his father) Vandewege, a registered nurse, and Craig, who according to Vandewege's father works at Cotsco, had moved to Fort Worth earlier this year. The new mother was still on maternity leave. The family home appeared in a picture published by CBS DFW with crime scene tape barring the entryway. The pair had tried to have a child for a long time before conceiving Diederik. Police told WFAA they had interviewed Craig and that he was cooperative. Vandewege, according to her father, was 'always happy' and deeply loved. Vandewege, according to her father, was 'always happy' and deeply loved. She shared this photo of her baby's feet not long after the little boy's birth Craig (left) and Vandewege, a registered nurse, had moved to Fort Worth from Colorado earlier this year. Vandewege was still on maternity leave when she died Thursday The mother of a public schoolboy turned murderous gangster insists he is innocent, even as she has been cleared of conspiring to uncover a key witness who helped put him behind bars. Even after going through the trials, Diana Lank, 61, said she felt she was doing the right thing for her son, Rupert Ross, 34 - currently serving life for gunning down an underworld rival outside Wandsworth prison. 'If the truth had come out in the beginning, I wouldn't be here. I didn't choose this path,' she told The Times. Cleared: Diana Lank, 61, pictured, walked free from the Old Bailey after being acquitted by a judge of conspiring with two police detention officers to commit misconduct in a public office She said that after Ross was convicted, she started looking into the case. 'He's my son and I love him,' she said. 'But Rupert and Leon are innocent, that's more to the point.' 'It is clear to me that the police didn't do their job properly.' Ms Lank was cleared of plotting to find the identity of a protected witness in her son's murder trial. The wealthy Chelsea boutique owner was accused of trying to track down the witness who anonymously gave evidence to help convict her 34-year-old son Rupert Ross of murder. Ms Lank walked free from the Old Bailey after being acquitted by a judge of conspiring with two police detention officers to commit misconduct in a public office. The court heard how Lydia Lauro, 33, made persistent efforts to discover the identity of the witness by hacking into the intelligence database with the help of fellow police detention officer Hayden Cheremeh. Earlier this year, Cheremeh, 36, a former police community support officer (PCSO), and Lauro were found guilty of the plot between November 1 2011 and May 22 2013. They will be sentenced on January 20. Ms Lank, who ran a boutique on the King's Road in Chelsea, was accused of being the 'chief organiser' of the plotters. But after nearly 40 hours of deliberations, jurors in her retrial were unable to agree a verdict. Following consideration by the Crown, prosecutor Mark Heywood QC announced it would not seek a second retrial, a move normally reserved for the most serious cases. Trial Judge Anthony Morris QC was invited to formally enter a not guilty verdict at the Old Bailey hearing. The case surrounded Ms Lank's son, Dulwich College ex-pupil Rupert Ross, now 35, and Leon De St Aubin, 39, who were jailed for life for the killing of Darcy Austin-Bruce outside Wandsworth jail on May 1 2009. Aubin's girlfriend Lauro got a job as a civilian worker at Hammersmith Police Station two months after they were convicted in 2011. No retrial: Ms Lank was accused of trying to track down the witness who anonymously gave evidence to help convict her 34-year-old son Rupert Ross of murder Lydia Lauro, 33, made persistent efforts to discover the identity of the witness by hacking into the intelligence database with the help of fellow police detention officer Hayden Cheremeh. Both were convicted this year She accessed the intelligence system at Hammersmith Police Station by persuading fellow Metropolitan Police detention officer Cheremeh into doing her a 'big favour'. The retrial had heard how Lauro used Cheremeh's log-in to get into the Met's intelligence system and passed information to Ms Lank. Drug dealer Darcy Austin-Bruce was shot down outside the gates of Wandsworth Prison in 2009 The restricted information was about a young woman who had given evidence from behind a screen, using a voice-altering device and under a pseudonym. It was then 'passed on to others ... who should not have had access to it', the court was told. The police detention officers had 'abused the very great trust placed in them', Mr Heywood said. 'A trust which all of us have in those people employed in that kind of role to deal properly with full regard to confidentiality.' The court heard that Lauro even considered using the detention of a judge's son for being drunk and disorderly to contact his father but was advised by Cheremeh to 'take care'. In November 2011, Ross, from Fulham, and firefighter Aubin, from Chelsea, were handed a minimum term of 30 years for murder. Their trial at the Old Bailey had heard how Ross disguised himself as a lawyer to gun down his rival outside Wandsworth jail in south London after getting caught up in the drug-dealing underworld. He wrote in his diary that he was 'living a gangster lifestyle, making good money and living a fast life'. Convicted: Rupert Ross, 34, left, and Leon De St Aubin, 39, right, were jailed for life for the killing of Darcy Austin-Bruce outside Wandsworth jail on May 1 2009. Ross was from a wealthy background, with some of his family working as lawyers, but fell under the spell of drugs. He shot Mr Austin-Bruce, 20, five times outside the jail in May 2009, having been tipped off from inside the jail that the victim would be visiting someone inside. Afterwards, Ross was sped away on a stolen moped. A former detective who has been publicly accused of lying under oath at the inquest into Daniel Morcombe's death has threatened to sue the Queensland Police Service. Dennis Martyn told the inquest Assistant Police Commissioner Michael Condon, who was in charge of the homicide squad at the time, dismissed Brett John Cowan as a suspect. Mr Martyn told the inquest when he approached Mr Condon with the idea that Cowan was 'your man' he responded with 'f*** off - you wouldn't know anything', The Courier-Mail reported. Scroll down for video Former Queensland detective Dennis Martyn is threatening to sue the police service after he was labelled a liar by senior police Assistant Police Commissioner Michael Condon accused Martyn of lying under oath during an inquest into the death of Daniel Morcombe Morcombe was killed by Brett John Cowan, pictured, who was jailed for the crime eight years after the boy's disappearance Mr Martyn told Condon who was head of the homicide squad that Cowan was his 'man' but he was told to 'f*** off', the inquest heard (Daniel Morcombe pictured) Mr Martyn went to Cowan's home following Daniel's disappearance and told the inquest within minutes the convicted paedophile admitted to driving past the bus stop where the boy was last seen the same day he went missing. Mr Martyn says that visit took place on December 21, 2003, but evidence from Cowan's car was not tested until eight years later. At the inquest Mr Condon denied the conversation between him and Mr Martyn ever took place and has labelled it an 'outrageous lie', claims he repeated outside the court. 'That officer committed perjury on oath. Cowan was never dismissed,' Mr Condon said. 'That officer committed perjury on oath. Cowan was never dismissed,' Mr Condon said Mr Martyn says that visit took place on December 21, 2003 - but evidence from Cowan's car was not tested until eight years later Now Mr Martyn is threatening legal action over the claims he lied at the inquest and says the senior police officer has defamed him. 'You can be jailed for life for perjury and here is one of the most senior officers in Queensland saying I have committed a crime with absolutely no evidence. 'He has the power to bring that charge, he knows the judicial system well. So charge me.' Mr Condon was asked to leave the inquest while Martyn gave his evidence - he also left when Kenneth King, another detective on the case, spoke. Mr King and Mr Martyn both worked for Task Force Argos - a team targeting child sex offenders - at the time of Daniel's disappearance. A family of four has been winched to safety after the pilot's helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing in a national park. The Robinson 44 helicopter left Sydney Airport and was flying along the coastline near Bundeena, south of Sydney, before it had to land in the dense bushland of the Royal National Park, around 10am on Saturday, 9News reported. Peter Butler, the pilot, was travelling with his daughter Kate, son-in-law Chris Gale and his three-year-old grandson Finn Gale, when the chopper's engine started to experience mechanical failure. Scroll down for video The grandfather pilot was travelling with his daughter, son-in-law and three-year-old grandson when he was forced to make an emergency landing after the chopper started to experience engine failure 'It was about 35 seconds from the time I was aware there was a malfunction and you have to put the aircraft in autorotation immediately. That worked well, we put the aircraft over the ground and we landed successfully,' he said. The family was met by paramedics and treated for cuts and bruises. Mr Butler confirmed that his family was doing well after the accident, to 9News. He also thanks the Westpac rescue chopper crew for airlifting them out of the dense bushland. Westpac Life Saver's Chief Executive Officer Stephen Leahy said they had to search for the helicopter in the thick bushes, The Daily Telegraph reported. The pilot Peter Butler (pictured) confirmed that he and his family was doing well after the accident Westpac Life Saver CEO Stephan Leahy praised the pilot for landing the chopper safely in the dense bushland near Bundeena, south of Sydney 'We winched a rescue crew officer into the bush about 150m away from the helicopter. He has crawled on hands and knees to get to the aircraft,' Mr Leahy said. 'There was extensive damage to the helicopter, however the pilot did such a good job to be able to minimise the damage.' The family was met by paramedics and treated for cuts and bruises. , including her hero Beau Ryan who saw her days before her death at the funeral of brave cancer warrior Kia Lettice on Advertisement Hundreds of mourners have gathered to farewell Kia Lettice, 22, nearly a week after the beautiful young woman tragically lost her fight against cancer. The 22-year-old from Narrabri, New South Wales, had been fighting metastatic gastric ovarian cancer for eight months but lost the battle on Sunday night, dying peacefully in her sleep surrounded by friends and family. Her courage in the face of such an evil illness touched the hearts of many including her hero Beau Ryan, who rushed to her bedside following a touching plea on Facebook. Hundreds of mourners have gathered to farewell Kia Lettice, 22, nearly a week after the beautiful young woman tragically lost her fight against cancer The 22-year-old will forever be in the hearts and memories of those who loved her Ms Lettice's partner Steve (pictured right hugging a woman in black) penned an emotional poem titled 'Princess' Mourners wore purple at an emotional service at Narrabri Lawn Cemetery on Friday which concluded with the release of balloons. Purple was Kia's favourite colour and the same hue as the dress she wore in her inspirational 'princess' photoshoot. Princess was recurring theme throughout the celebration of Ms Lettice's life, and the title of an emotional poem penned by her partner Steve Page. Every day Ill cry for you to come home Kia Lettice's boyfriend Steve Page Princess you are real life and now in the stars,' he wrote in the poem that featured on the order of service. 'It is all just like a dream, not as real as it seems, 'Crying, lost and alone, every day Ill cry for you to come home. 'So today you are laid to rest 'Strong I have been as you wanted me to, but today I let my heart go please take it with you.' Beautiful poems were included in the order of service as hundreds paid their respects Her courage in the face of such an evil illness touched the hearts of many including her hero Beau Ryan, who rushed to her bedside following a touching plea on Facebook Ms Lettice died of cancer just days after she met her Footy Show hero Beau Ryan (pictured together) Kia was laid to rest to rest at Narrabri Lawn Cemetery, the service was followed by a release of balloons Following the service at Narrabri Lawn Cemetery, Ms Lettice was then remembered at the Crossing Theatre, which holds 800 people at full capacity. What was made clear during the service was that Kia was a fighter to the end. The Narrabri Rugby League Club formed a guard of honour and the section of road outside the theatre was closed as the hearse drove by with her red and black coffin which was adorned with flowers of white, purple and green. Many clung to each other, overcome with grief at the loss of the cancer warrior. Kia's brothers were among those who carried the coffin, she was the youngest in her family. The 22-year-old from Narrabri, New South Wales, had been fighting cancer for eight months but lost the battle on Sunday night Mourners wore purple which was Kia's favourite colour The grief was too much for many in attendance, who will greatly miss the much loved 22-year-old Kia's brothers were among those who carried the coffin, she was the youngest in her family A stunning blank and white image from the princess photo-shoot was displayed at her funeral on Friday The Narrabri Rugby League Club formed a guard of honour and the section of road outside the theatre was closed as the hearse drove by Ms Lettice's school photos show how a little girl blossomed into a much adored young woman On the Tuesday night before she passed away, Ms Lettice was given only hours to live and her family travelled hours to be at her side. Her childhood friend, Australian rugby sevens star Mahalia Murphy, posted a heartfelt appeal on Facebook in the hopes the 22-year-old could see her hero before she died. URGENT REQUEST!!! Any assistance to boost my friend up? She is currently in Prince of Wales hospital and has roughly four hours to live as she's fighting cancer,' she posted. 'She wants Greg Inglis or Beau Ryan to come see her. If everyone can share this or get in contact for me this would be much appreciated.' The NRL superstar (pictured left) rushed to Ms Lettice's bedside after she was given hours to live The order of service where balloons and flowers were part of the tributes Mourners make their way to the service for cancer victim Kia Lettice The courageous Ms Lettice was remembered at the Crossing Theatre, which holds 800 people at full capacity A mourner holds a rose as he reads through the order of service at the 22-year-old's funeral on Friday The Footy Show host left dinner at his parent's house in Shellharbour and made the two hour journey to the Prince Of Wales Hospital in Randwick, in Sydney's east, just to lift her spirits. And the brave 22-year-old defied all expectations, smiling and laughing over the visit on Wednesday morning. I feel very special, especially because I love Beau Ryan', Ms Lettice had told Daily Mail Australia following the visit. 'And he kissed me too,' she added. Her father Noel said it was the happiest he had seen his daughter in months. 'It was great to see that smile on her face - it really sparked her up. I haven't seen her smile like that in a month,' Mr Lettice said. The 22-year-old from Narrabri, New South Wales, had been fighting metastatic gastric ovarian cancer for eight months but lost the battle on Sunday night The Narrabri Rugby League Club formed a guard of honour and the section of road outside the theatre was closed as the hearse drove by She passed away peacefully on Sunday night - with her mother breaking the tragic news on social media In a heart-breaking status posted on Sunday night, Ms Murphy confirmed the loss of her beautiful friend - who she said would forever be in her heart But sadly the aggressive cancer proved too much for the brave young woman, She passed away peacefully on Sunday night - with her mother breaking the tragic news on social media. 'It saddens me to announce that Kia Louise Lettice, my beautiful angel has passed, she passed peacefully in her sleep and with loved ones around,' her mother Patti posted on Facebook at 8.30pm. In a statement issued to Daily Mail Australia, Ms Lettice added: '(We) would like to thank everyone for their support through this journey and sad time. In a heart-breaking status posted on Sunday night, Ms Murphy confirmed the loss of her beautiful friend - who she said would forever be in her heart. 'Heart breaking to share with all that the beautiful Kia Louise Lettice has sadly left us today,' Ms Murphy wrote. 'She has touched a lot of people's heart around the world and is now pain free and in better hands with the man above and her passed loved ones. 'No one will ever forget you big bright blue eyes & your big beautiful smile! Fly high beautiful girl and watch over your loved ones. You left this world with a bang sister!' The 22-year-old will be greatly missed by the friends, family and countless others she leaves behind, but her brave fight will no doubt remain an inspiration to many. Smiling amidst unthinkable pain: Kia was told she had just hours to live on Tuesday but couldn't keep the grin off her face after the visit by Ryan (pictured with parents and partner) Ms Lettice will be greatly missed by the friends, family and countless others she leaves behind, but her brave fight will no doubt remain an inspiration to many The stunning Ms Lettice pictured during her inspirational 'princess' photo shoot. What was made clear during the service was that Kia was a fighter to the end One of the grand jurors who viewed evidence related to JonBenet's murder refused to say who he believes killed the six-year-old beauty queen - after bragging he 'highly suspects' he knows the identity of the killer. The man testified anonymously on Friday night's episode of 20/20 on ABC, which took a look back at the case 20 years afterwards. He was part of the jury that voted to indict JonBenet's parents John and Patsy on charges related to the murder of their daughter after a year-long grand jury trial. The district attorney nullified the findings of his grand jury and declared there wasn't sufficient evidence to indict the little girl's parents. Friday night's juror, however, said he believed John and Patsy should have been tried, based on the evidence he had seen. But the man told host Amy Robach there would have been no way for a jury to find the parents guilty. He then said he had a strong feeling he knows who killed JonBenet - but copped out when Robach asked for a name. Scroll down for video A grand juror who worked on the JonBenet Ramsey case 20 years ago testified anonymously on Friday night's episode of 20/20 on ABC (pictured) The man said he 'highly suspects' he knows who killed the six-year-old pageant queen (pictured) on Christmas night 1996 - but refused to name names Friday night's grand juror believes JonBenet's parents John and Patsy (pictured) should have been indicted on charges related to their daughter's murder - but believes it would have been impossible for a jury to find them guilty Infuriated viewers expressed their disappointment on Twitter after the grand juror refused to say who he believed killed JonBenet 'I wish not to answer that question,' the man said, infuriating viewers who had sat through the rest of the episode eager to hear the big reveal. The grand juror did say he believed Patsy and John should have been indicted on charges related to their daughter's murder. When asked if he believed that John and Patsy should have been tried, he said: 'Based on the evidence that was presented I believe that is correct.' When asked however if he thought that the district attorney would have been able to get a jury to find the parents guilty, he said: 'There is no way that I would have been able to say, "Beyond a reasonable doubt, this is the person."' He then added: 'And if you are the district attorney, if you know that going in, its a waste of taxpayer dollars to do it.' Robach then asked the juror if he knew who murdered the young girl after the evidence that was presented to the grand jury. 'I highly suspect I do,' said the juror. He also spoke about the trip the grand jury members took to the Ramsey home, and being in the basement where the young girl's body was found by her own father, just hours after she was reported as missing to police. 'In the basement where she was found, it was actually kind of an obscure layout. You come down the stairwell and you had to go into another room to find a door that was closed. It was a very eerie feeling. It was like, "Somebody had been killed here,"' said the juror. John and Patty Ramsey (pictured in the 1990s with their children Burke and JonBenet) were never formally indicted because the DA refused to sign the documents The grand jury voted to indict the Ramseys on four counts but they were never formerly indicted. Patsy's child abuse indictment is pictured The accessory charge declared that the two 'did unlawfully, knowingly and feloniously render assistance to a person, with intent to hinder, delay and prevent the discovery, detention, apprehension, prosecution, conviction and punishment of such person for the commission of a crime' A handwriting expert who examined the ransom note left in the case said on Friday night's episode it is very likely that the letter was written by the child beauty queen's mother Patsy. 'It's highly probable that she wrote the ransom note,' handwriting expert Cina Wong said. Wong spent three weeks examining the note and comparing it to 100 examples of Patsy's handwriting back in 2000, and found multiple similarities between the two. For instance, the ransom note had the letter 'A' written in four different variations, and Patsy wrote that same letter in those some four ways. In total, Wong found more than 200 similarities in the writing of the ransom note and the 100 samples of Patsy's penmanship. Handwriting expert Cina Wong said during the episode that it is 'highly probable' that JonBenet's ransom note was written by her mother Patsy (samples of the ransom note on left and Patsy's handwriting on the right) In total, Wong found more than 200 similarities in the writing of the ransom note and the 100 samples of Patsy's penmanship she examined Wong (above) spent three weeks examining the note and comparing it to 100 examples of Patsy's handwriting back in 2000 Friday's episode featured archive footage of the investigation and excerpts of home videos, showing the Ramsey family in happier times. Patsy had just recovered from ovarian cancer when JonBenet died. The family, originally from Atlanta, was 'high society' for Boulder, according to the segment. The episode included footage from an interview given by Patsy and John on CNN just five days after the murder. 'As a mother my heart went out to this couple, but my journalistic brain said to me "This isnt right, they should be talking to the police, not to the public," ' investigative reporter Diane Dimond said on Friday's show. John later said they had done the interview reluctantly, pressed by their friends who didn't want JonBenet's parents to be painted as guilty. In the end, the grand jury voted to indict the Ramseys on four counts but they were never formerly indicted because the DA refused to sign the documents. The grand jury planned to indict John and Patsy for child abuse resulting in death and accessory to a crime. The child abuse charge stated that John and Patsy 'did unlawfully, knowingly, recklessly and feloniously permit a child to be unreasonably placed in a situation which posed a threat of injury to the child's life or health, which resulted in the death of JonBenet Ramsey, a child under the age of sixteen'. The accessory charge declared that the two 'did unlawfully, knowingly and feloniously render assistance to a person, with intent to hinder, delay and prevent the discovery, detention, apprehension, prosecution, conviction and punishment of such person for the commission of a crime, knowing the person being assisted has committed and was suspected of the crime of Murder In the First Degree And Child Abuse Resulting In Death.' Boulder police and prosecutors are now planning a new round of testing on DNA evidence found in the case. The tests would also tap into an FBI database that includes genetic profiles from more than 15.1 million known offenders. Garnett and Boulder police Chief Greg Testa said that they have already discussed the matter with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation during a meeting just before Thanksgiving. The body of JonBenet was found bludgeoned and strangled hours after she was reported missing and covered by a white blanket with a nylon cord around her neck, her wrists bound above her head and her mouth covered by duct tape. Her skull was also cracked. John and Patsy had called the police to report her kidnapping and said they found a note demanding a ransom of $118,000 for her safe return - and that they had not contact the authorities. Despite this, police arrived to their home shortly after in clearly marked vehicles. John and Patsy would remain the primary suspects in their daughter's death for more than a decade, and it was not until 2008 that police finally cleared them of any wrongdoing. At that time, Patsy had been dead for two years after a lengthy battle with ovarian cancer. No one in the family was ever charged in the death of the six-year-old, but for years tabloids and members of the public believed they were the culprits of this unspeakable crime. Most of these stories focused on parents John and Patsy, but some went so far as to claim that Burke had been responsible for his sister's death - despite the fact that he was only nine years old at the time. Appearing on Barbara Walters Presents American Scandals, John said that he and his late-wife Patsy did everything they could to protect their son Burke from learning that he was being accused of murdering his sister. 'We tried to shield him from that,' John said of the tabloid reports about Burke. 'Friends would ask us, "What can we do to help?" We said, "Next time you go in the supermarket, call the manager over when you see our childs photo on the front cover, and ask him to remove it." A lot of them did that.' The body of JonBenet was found bludgeoned and strangled hours after she was reported missing and covered by a white blanket with a nylon cord around her neck, her wrists bound above her head and her mouth covered by duct tape Scene: The grand jury member said he got a 'very eerie feeling' when he saw the basement of the Ramsey home (pictured), which the jury visited Stories would point to the fact that Burke was in the house when JonBenet was reported missing, but his parents always stood firm on the fact that he was sleeping the entire time and did not wake up until after they called police. He was exonerated by DNA evidence in May of 1999, a little more than two years after the murder. Burke, who is now 28-years-old, has mostly avoided the public spotlight since his sister's death. John also said that he still believes the killer will be found. 'I think we will have two ways that will happen,' John told Walters in their interview. 'It will either be a DNA match or someone who knows something will become angry or bitter against this person and will tell.' Male DNA was found on the underwear of JonBenet when her body was discovered, but authorities have never been able to match it to a suspect. There was also a bowl of pineapple found in the kitchen when the young girl was first reported missing but police on the scene allowed someone to clean the bowl. This ended up being a crucial error as JonBenet was found with pineapple in her stomach when her body was examined by the coroner. The house was not sealed off by police and friends and family were allowed to come and go during the initial investigation, contaminating the crime scene. Another look: Boulder police and the district attorney recently said that they will be retesting the DNA evidence in the case (John and Patsy are pictured in 1996) Keeping quiet: JonBenet's brother Burke (pictured above at his mother's funeral) recently spoke about the murder John - who was briefly linked to Natalee Holloway's mother Beth in 2007 and remarried in 2011 to Jan Rousseaux - also discussed how he lost his millions after the death of JonBenet when he decided to move the family out of Boulder and back to Atlanta, not realizing the stigma that would be placed on him by the public and how difficult that would make it for him to obtain a job. 'I was told by a very experienced FBI person that most victims of violent crime end up broke,' said John. 'It's very expensive to deal with the justice system. You make bad decisions - you sell your home, you quit your job, you move, you change jobs.' In addition to losing JonBenet, John had also lost his oldest daughter from a previous marriage in 1992. Elizabeth was 22-years-old when she died in a car accident. As a result of what he has gone through, he now has advice for others who might face a similarly tragic situation. 'When something really tragic happens in your life, put your life in park. Give your checkbook to a trusted friend. Avoid making any big decisions,' said John. 'Because you're just not capable of making good decisions.' The neighbour of a 50-year-old man charged with four counts of advocating terrorism has revealed disturbing details about the accused. The unnamed man allegedly posted videos to social media encouraging people in overseas conflict zones to commit terrorist acts. The man's neighbour claims his behaviour had prompted her to suggest he should of been placed on a 'national security watch list',The Advertiser reported. Scroll down for video The neighbour of a South Australian man who has been charged with alleged terror offences has claimed there are disturbing details about the man (his image and name have been suppressed) His behaviour allegedly included spying on the woman and taking down her car registration and purchasing alcohol even though it was against his religious beliefs. 'It's funny, he's a Muslim but he's always at Dan Murphy's,' she said. The man also allegedly wrote a detailed manifesto in which he called himself an 'exiled' Arab Israeli. The man was arrested on Thursday after information was passed to the South Australian Joint Counter Terrorism Team through the National Security Hotline. He was arrested while already in custody in Adelaide's Yatala Jail and when his case came before the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Thursday his identity was concealed The unnamed man allegedly posted videos to social media that encouraged people in overseas conflict zones to commit terrorist acts (his image and name have been suppressed) The man was already being held at Yatala Prison in Northfield pictured) by counter terrorism police following a tip off and was arrested there on Thursday But police have moved to allay public fears over the allegations. 'There are no current or impending threats to the Australian community as a result of these activities,' they said in a statement. Kuchma about Savchenko's meeting with ORDLO representatives: we have only one negotiation platform in Minsk Ukraine's representative to the Trilateral Contact Group for Donbas, second Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, welcomes efforts of everyone who wants to help to release hostages, but he stressed that there is only one platform for negotiations in the Minsk format. Commenting on a meeting of Ukrainian parliamentarian Nadia Savchenko with representatives of separate areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions (ORDLO) where they allegedly discussed the release of hostages, Kuchma told reporters that "we have only one platform for negotiations Minsk, and everything that concerns these problems we have there. I do not recognize other platforms." He said that he welcomes efforts of each person, political forces and parliament to help in the process of releasing hostages. "We should thank these people if there are some human relations and one can influence this process, but I do not believe in it," he said. Parents from the elementary school where both Scott Baio's and Nancy Mack's children study are outraged over an alleged assault that took place during a school function. Baio filed a police report accusing the wife of Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer, Chad Smith, of battery. He claimed he was assaulted by Mack over his support of President-elect Donald Trump. Baio filed a police report over the incident that took place last Saturday at their kids' elementary school event in Thousand Oaks, California. The Ventura County Sheriff's Office is investigating the incident, but the school is also investigating and Mack could be looking at a ban from school events, sources told TMZ. Parents from the elementary school where Scott Baio's and Nancy Mack's children study are outraged over an alleged assault that took place during a school function. Baio (pictured) filed a police report accusing the wife of Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer, Chad Smith, of battery He claimed he was assaulted by Mack (right with husband Chad Smith) over his support of President-elect Donald Trump. Baio (left with his wife Renee) filed a police report over the incident that took place last Saturday at their kids' elementary school event in California Baio reportedly told law enforcement that Mack confronted him at an event he was attending with his daughter. Sources told the site that parents were angry over the incident and have filed complaints with school officials. The actor claimed Mack kept asking him how he could support a man who said 'Grab them by the p****' after the pair met at the event for the school where their children study. According to TMZ, Baio told the sheriff's office that Mack repeatedly used the notorious phrase attributed to Trump. Baio reportedly asked Mack to stop as there were children present. He said Mack then grabbed him under his arms and began shacking and pushing him. Sources close to Mack said she did not assault the actor and was merely demonstrating how Trump hugs a woman. An official at the private school wouldn't say what, if any, action would be taken against Mack, TMZ reported. 'Our highest priority is the safety and privacy of our children and their families,' the school official said. Baio's wife, Renee Baio, also repeated her husband's claims on Twitter and posted a picture of Mack taken from video she says she has of the incident. She also said that Mack verbally assaulted their nine-year-old daughter, asking her repeatedly if she would like to be 'grabbed by the p****'. Sources close to Mack (right) said she did not assault the actor and was merely demonstrating how Trump hugs a woman '@TMZ NO 'hugging' she grabbed @ScottBaio HIT & SHOVED HIM TWICE PUT HER FINGER IN BB'S FACE YELLED @ HER VILE THINGS,' Renee tweeted. Baio also claimed that she has video of the altercation. Mack didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Scott Baio's endorsement of the billionaire businessman was rare in showbusiness circles, as many celebrities backed Hillary Clinton. He had previously campaigned for Ronald Reagan in his youth. During a speech to the Republican National Convention, Baio said: 'Let's make America again'. He added: 'It doesn't mean getting free stuff. It means sacrificing, winning, losing, failing, succeeding, sometimes doing the things you don't want to do, including the hard work in order to get where you want to be. 'Is Donald Trump a messiah? No. He's just a man, a man who wants to give back to his country, America. A country that has given him everything.' He described Clinton as a 'woman who somehow feels she's entitled to the presidency'. Advertisement A group of US Marines came home for the first time in nine months on Friday, giving their loved ones long-overdue hugs. The Marines arrived Friday for a homecoming at Camp Pendleton in Oceanside, California, where they were reunited with their wives and children. Friday marked their return from a nine-month deployment in the Middle East, where they joined the anti-Isis campaign Operation Inherent Resolve. The Marines are part of the special purpose Marine air-ground task force - crisis response. One of them met his baby daughter for the first time as he arrived to Camp Pendleton. Hai Vuong held the newborn tenderly as his wife Yenny looked on. Little Reagan held a sign as she waited for her father to arrive and was later pictured in his arms. US Marine Hai Vuong (center) looked at his baby daughter Annie for the first time as his wife Yenni (left) looked on at a homecoming at Camp Pendleton in Oceanside, California, on Friday Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Bossie (right) comforted his son Jonah at Friday's homecoming. Bossie and the other Marines in the group were away for nine months while they joined an anti-ISIS campaign in the Middle East US Marine Zach Bell walked to his car with his wife Alicia after being reunited with her for the first time in nine months. The deployed Marines are part of the special purpose Marine air-ground task force - crisis response Little Reagan reunited with her father Dan Emry, who picked her up for the first time in nine months as he came home Friday Marines hugged their loved ones on Friday as they finally got a chance to embrace those they had missed during their nine-month deployment in the Middle East Harrison Otis was pictured hanging on to his father's leg as Captain Stephen Otis arrived for the California homecoming US Marine Branden Palmer kissed his daughter Abigail and hugged her tightly while his young son Declan sat on his shoulders The Fresno officers who shot and killed an unarmed white teenager last summer will not face criminal charges. Fresno District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp and her office announced Friday they had found that Noble's death 'did not involve any criminal conduct' by Fresno police officer Raymond Camacho and Robert Chavez. Noble died on June 25 after being shot four times by police. Bodycam footage shows the officers telling him to show his hands and warning him that he will get shot if he doesn't comply. The police chief said last week that the first three shots fired at Noble were justified given the circumstances, but thought the officers had enough time to use other techniques instead of firing the fourth shot. Scroll down for video - WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT The two Fresno officers who shot and killed 19-year-old Dylan Noble (pictured) in June will not face criminal charges, the district attorney's office announced Friday Smittcamp's office, however, reviewed all four shots and declined to press charges. The police chief also previously clarified that the four shots had been ruled justified. Noble was pulled over in June after police received reports about a man carrying a rifle. Bodycam footage shows that Noble didn't immediately comply with the officers' orders, walking around instead of dropping to the ground. 'You're gonna get shot, man,' one of the officers tells Noble. Noble died after being shot four times by police. Bodycam footage (pictured) shows the officers telling him to show his hands and that he will get shot if he doesn't comply Noble's mother and father have each filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the police. Fresno police chief Jerry Dyer told the Fresno Bee last week that the first three shots were justified because Noble posed an immediate threat to the officers. But he said the cops could have avoided firing a fourth time. 'I recognize that time and distance can become distorted during a stressful incident,' Dyer said. 'However, it is my belief that after reviewing all of the evidence in this case, that 14 seconds provided sufficient time to the officer to consider and employ other potential alternatives which may have minimized the need for the fourth and final round to be fired.' Officers Camacho and Chavez still work at the department and will receive additional training. Vladimir Putin's spies have launched a 'campaign' of cyber attacks and espionage against Britain in a bid to destabilise the West. Whitehall officials believe Russia to be undertaking a programme of misinformation and unconventional warfare in an effort to undermine the UK. Prime Minister Theresa May is due to chair a National Security Council summit in the near future as Government officials consider a plan of action in response to Moscow. According to The Times, the increasing threat from the Kremlin was first discussed by the Cabinet Office in October. Scroll down for video Vladimir Putin's spies have launched a 'campaign' of cyber attacks and espionage against Britain, with Theresa May due to chair a National Security Council summit in response Britain is sending tanks, drones and 800 troops to Estonia next year as part of the biggest military build-up on Russia's borders since the Cold War A source told the newspaper: 'There was an agreement on the need to do more across Whitehall to understand and assess and formulate options on how to respond to Russian activities.' It is feared Russian tactics may include the discrediting of British troops due to be deployed in Estonia next year through sham pub brawls and traffic accidents. Britain is sending tanks, drones and 800 troops to Estonia as part of the biggest military build-up on Russia's borders since the Cold War. It comes after Barack Obama publicly challenged Russia following reports that November's general election was hacked under President Putin's watch. It comes after Barack Obama publicly challenged Russia following reports that November's general election was hacked under President Putin's watch The increasing threat from the Kremlin was first discussed by the Cabinet Office in October The outgoing President promised the US would retaliate to the suspected espionage, adding: 'Don't do this stuff to us, because we can do this to you.' The current global climate and rise in unconventional warfare tactics saw the head of the British armed forces call for increased efforts to flush out spies. Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach also warned that Britain should be 'really worried' that the international consensus-based approach to peace and security, developed after the Second World War, was now challenged by states such as Russia. A 'full-spectrum' response is required - integrating diplomacy, the military, economic influence, technology and the media, and 'closer attention' to counter-espionage and counter intelligence, he said. He added that Britain is in a 'strategic state-on-state era of competition' which requires us to 'wonder and worry' about the response to propaganda, hybrid warfare and cyber attacks. Concerns remain that Moscow influenced the United States presidential election won by Donald Trump by allegedly hacking email accounts linked to his rival Hillary Clinton Yaroslav Mudry (rear) was encountered by the HMS Sutherland (front) at the entrance to the English Channel His comments follow the Russian incursion in Ukraine and worries that Moscow influenced the United States presidential election won by Donald Trump by allegedly hacking email accounts linked to his rival Hillary Clinton. 'Russian communications through Russia Today and many other media forms are very before us in many parts of the world,' he said. 'Many people have alleged political subversion, propaganda rather than information. 'And there's no doubt, it's not a secret, that Russia is using cyber as a part of this power. 'This is in direct competition with our approach to sustain the rules-based order.' On Friday, a Russian warship was escorted by the Royal Navy for the second time in a fortnight. Yaroslav Mudry was encountered by Navy frigate HMS Sutherland at the English Channel entrance. She was monitored while sailing through UK waters as diplomatic tensions rise between Moscow and London. The Yaroslav Mudry had recently been operating in the Mediterranean Sea and Indian Ocean. She then sailed across to the Caribbean to visit Cuba and Trinidad. HMS Sutherland and a Merlin helicopter joined French and Dutch warships in following the Yaroslav Mudry. Ayman Faisal suffered severe burns after drinking drain cleaner A mother fears her son will never speak again after he suffered severe injuries from drinking drain cleaner in a supermarket. Ayman Faisal was strapped in his buggy while he was shopping with his mother, Saira, in Safa Superstore in Moss Side, Manchester. But as Saira's back was turned to pick something up, Ayman, then two, reached out and grabbed a bottle of drain cleaner, which contained caustic soda, and drank it. The youngster was rushed to Manchester hospital after suffering severe burns to his mouth, airway, oesophagus and stomach. Now aged six, he cannot speak and has to be fed through a tube in his stomach. His family are now suing the shop and the manufacturer of the drain cleaner. Mrs Faisal says the bottle appeared to have a child lock top, but this did not work and the top could simply be unscrewed. Both shop and manufacturer were unavailable for comment. The 37-year-old, from Rusholme, Manchester, said: 'I was on my way home for lunch when I realised we needed a couple of things, so called into the shop. 'Ayman was strapped into his pushchair and I was reaching to get something. Doctors had to put a permanent tracheostomy tube in his neck so he could breathe and a feeding tube in his stomach to enable him to eat 'It was only for a few seconds, but when I turned back I saw his lips had gone purple and blue and there was blood coming out of his mouth. 'I didn't know what it was or what had happened at first, I just knew it was something bad. 'I remember screaming at the staff to phone an ambulance while I tried to get as much as I could out with my hands. 'I was terrified. All I kept thinking was 'please don't let me lose my son.'' Ayman was taken to Royal Manchester Children's Hospital where he spent around a month in intensive care. He was then moved to a general ward where he remained for six months after the incident in January 2013. Doctors had to put a permanent tracheostomy tube in his neck so he could breathe and a feeding tube in his stomach to enable him to eat. His mother, who also suffered burns to her hands and feet, decided to speak out after learning another child had also been burned in similar circumstances. She said: 'While Ayman was in hospital, I was told of another child who had been brought in after being injured by the same product. 'It's too late to change what has happened to my son now, but I hope doing this will stop it from happening to anyone else.' Saira (left) and Ayman at their home in Manchester. Saira says the family is now suing the company who manufactured the cleaner and the shop Ayman can now only eat or drink special milk with all the nutrients he needs, administered via the tube in his stomach. He cannot speak, but has learned to communicate with sign language or by using a 'talker' - a device similar to that used by scientist Stephen Hawking. Lawyers for the family say a two-year-old should not have been able to remove the cap of the bottle, supplied by manufacturer Active Brand Concepts Ltd, and that it should have been displayed on a shelf out of reach of children at the shop. Alicia Rendell, a serious injury specialist at law firm Slater and Gordon, who is representing the family, said: 'It is hard to imagine how devastating this has been for Ayman and for Saira to see her only child go through such pain and suffering. 'We have also been approached by another mother who says her daughter suffered severe burns after she was able to open the same product. Tourists in the government-controlled area of Aleppo have been posing for selfies among the ruins of destroyed buildings and vehicles. Groups took pictures in front of the Syrian city's historic citadel despite the widespread destruction caused by four years of civil war. It comes as thousands are still trapped in the eastern side of the city, which has been the focal point of the between Syrian national forces and anti-Assad rebels. The government was evacuating civilians following a ceasefire but suspended the operation yesterday after reports of a shooting. The first tourists to enter Aleppo since the evacuation of the city have been spotted posing for selfies despite the widespread death and destruction Groups posed with selfie sticks, pictured, outside the historic citadel in the government controlled area of the city even as thousands of people are being displaced from their homes Others even sat in cars destroyed in the conflict, pictured, and posed for photos Much of the Old City of Aleppo has been destroyed, including the former customs building, pictured, but it has not stopped people posing for pictures Evacuations were suspended until rebels allow residents of two besieged Shiite villages to leave to government-controlled areas. Syrian state TV said the main condition for the Aleppo evacuation to resume is for residents of Foua and Kfarya to be allowed to leave. The Syrian government pulled out its buses, that since Thursday, had been ferrying out people from the ancient city that has suffered under intense bombardment, fierce battles and a prolonged siege. At least 6,000 civilians and rebels, including 2,700 children, are believed to have fled the city since it was mostly recaptured by government forces. However, thousands of cold and hungry people remain stranded in the rebel-held east of Syria's largest city. 'Aleppo is now a synonym for hell,' UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told reporters in New York. The citadel is in the Old City part of Aleppo, which has been ravaged by the fighting. As the government has regained control, more people have entered the historic part of the city, pictured Much of what is left in the Old City is just rubble after years of shelling in the area Thousands of civilians are still trapped in war-torn eastern Aleppo after evacuations from the city were suspended Fighting destroyed the 11th century minaret of Aleppo's famed Ummayad mosque and heavily damaged the citadel. The mosque's minaret, dating back to the 11th century Seljuk period, was destroyed during clashes in April 2013, leaving a pile of blocks, some featuring elegant motifs. At the citadel, part of the imposing ramparts have collapsed, and at the entrance, the traces of fire could be seen on blackened walls. The citadel is believed to be one of the oldest castles in the world, and although it is unknown exactly when the current building was erected, the site itself has been significant since the third millennium BC. Aleppo's covered market is the largest in the world, and served for centuries as a gathering place for artisans and traders. They came from across the globe to its 4,000 shops and 40 caravanserais, roadside inns for travellers. But now the market's walls are scarred by years of gunfire, rockets and mortar rounds. The Syrian government pulled out its buses that since Thursday had been ferrying out of the country's largest city The villages of Foua and Kfarya which lie in Idlib province, have been besieged by insurgents A new deal is being negotiated to complete the evacuation of rebel-held areas ofthe city. A Syrian rebel official and a government official said early on Saturday the evacuation of Aleppo would resume and the two Shi'ite villages would be evacuated, as well as the wounded from two towns near the Lebanese border and east Aleppo. But sources said negotiations between pro-government and opposition forces, plus their international backers, were still going on to finalise how the evacuations would take place and how many people would leave. A senior Syrian rebel official from the powerful Ahrar al Sham group involved in the talks said the deal was being held up by Iran and its allied Shi'ite militias who were insisting people be allowed to leave the two besieged Shi'ite villages of Kefraya and al-Foua before letting the Aleppo evacuation happen. 'Iran and its sectarian proxies are using the humanitarian situation of our people in besieged Aleppo and preventing civilians from leaving until the evacuation of their groups in al-Foua and Kefyra,' Munir Sayal, the head of the political wing of the movement, told Reuters in a telephone interview. At least 6,000 civilians and rebels, including 2,700 children, are believed to have fled the city since it was mostly recaptured by government forces Thousands of cold and hungry people still remain stranded in the rebel-held east of Aleppo As darkness fell on Saturday afternoon and temperatures began to fall below freezing there was no sign the evacuation was happening. A resident in Aleppo told Reuters that nobody had left the rebel-held enclave and no buses had entered. He said he had heard gunfire near where people were supposed to wait for buses. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said thousands of cold, scared and injured people were still in east Aleppo waiting to leave. It said it had received some indications that a deal would be reached soon. The Syrian government official, part of the evacuations negotiating team, said: 'It was agreed to resume evacuations from east Aleppo in parallel with the evacuation of (medical) cases from Kefraya and al-Foua and some cases from Zabadani and Madaya.' The towns of Madaya and Zabadani are blockaded by pro-government forces. The Syrian government says the evacuations of the villages in Idlib province, which are besieged by insurgents, and the one in eastern Aleppo must be carried out simultaneously, but the rebels say there is no connection. Rebel sources said pro-government Shi'ite militias had detained and opened fire on a convoy carrying evacuees from east Aleppo on Friday. A Syrian military source denied the accusations but said the convoy was turned back to Aleppo. The foreign minister of Turkey, a main backer of the rebels, said he was talking to his counterpart in Iran, a top ally of the Syrian government, to try to resume the evacuation. Exactly how many people are left in Aleppo is unclear, but a U.N. source said there were plans to evacuate 100,000 people from eastern Aleppo alone The Aleppo evacuation was suspended yesterday after a report of shooting at a crossing point The opposition's Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the evacuation of some 4,000 people, including wounded, from the villages could start on today. Exactly how many people are left in Aleppo is unclear, but on November 21, before the most recent wave of evacuations, CNN reported that around 1 million people were still in the city. Advertisement By the year 2050 it's estimated there will be more plastic than fish in the sea. And so, in a determined effort to change that, one international photographer is using a mythical creature of the ocean to lead the fight. Benjamin Von Wong from Quebec, Canada, hopes mermaids will help teach people about the damage being done to the earth by plastic bottles. Canadian photographer Benjamin Von Wong has produced an incredible photoshoot using mermaids to show how damaging plastic is to the ocean The Canadian artist used 10,000 plastic bottles to create his photography masterpiece Over an amazing series of photographs Mr Von Wong mixes the mermaid's beauty with the stark reality of the toll plastic bottles are taking on the ocean Currently in Australia, the photographer is spruiking a recent shoot showcasing the mythical creature drowning in a sea of plastic - proving how much 'mermaids hate plastic'. The end result was an incredible series of pictures, mixing the mermaid's beauty with the stark reality of the toll plastic bottles are taking on the ocean. 'I think this is my proudest showcase,' Mr Von Wong told Daily Mail Australia. Among the different scenes made by Mr Von Wong was this photo of a mermaid inside a water droplet Mr Von Wong (pictured left) received a delivery of 10,000 plastic bottles from an American waste company Inside a warehouse in the United States, Mr Von Wong and an army of volunteers set out to create a mermaid wonderland with 10,000 plastic bottles Inside a warehouse in the United States, Mr Von Wong and an army of volunteers set out to create a mermaid wonderland with 10,000 plastic bottles. Over three days the team set up a variety of dynamic photoshoots, carefully sorting bottles to create the mermaid masterpiece. 'It took 25 people two days to clean the 10,000 plastic bottles,' Mr Von Wong said. 'I didn't want them to represent brands, and also wanted them to be clean so the warehouse we used for the shoot wouldn't become sticky.' The photographer's Change.org petition has already received close to 9,000 supporters. He hopes that by showing how much 'mermaids hate plastic', the world may be able to help its oceans. After the shoot Mr Von Wong (pictured left) and his girlfriend took their turn posing in the plastic bottle sea A seven-year-old girl calmly walked into a Damascus police station before blowing herself up, Syrian media has reported. The explosion in the bustling Midan neighbourhood of the Syrian capital wounded three police officers, said the Al-Watan daily, which is close to the government. 'A seven-year-old girl entered the police station, carrying a belt that was detonated from afar,' the paper posted on its Facebook page. A police source told Al-Watan that the little girl had appeared lost and asked to use the bathroom when the explosives went off. A seven-year-old girl calmly walked into a Damascus police station before blowing herself up, Syrian media has reported A police source told Al-Watan that the little girl had appeared lost and asked to use the bathroom before the explosives went off A clip filmed at the scene of the incident, in the centre of Damascus, shows parts of the building reduced to rubble in the blast. At one stage in the report, the camera shows the child's remains, which have been blurred out. The girl's explosive device was reportedly detonated by her handlers, who were outside the building at the time. Although rebel groups have fired rockets and mortar rounds into the capital, explosions inside the city itself are rare. A clip filmed at the scene of the incident, in the centre of Damascus, shows parts of the building reduced to rubble in the blast The explosion, in the Midan neighbourhood of Damascus, wounded three police officers A news report showed the girl's remains at the scene, which had been blurred out Syrian state news agency SANA said earlier there were preliminary reports about a 'terrorist explosion at the Midan police station in Damascus', while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed there had been a blast in Midan but said it could not specify the cause. Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP that 'one woman' was killed in the blast, but it remained unclear whether she was a suicide bomber or a bystander. Pope Francis has talked about his fears about growing old amid concerns for his health on his 80th birthday. Addressing a crowd of cardinals at the Vatican, he told the audience he felt frightened by the idea of old age and asked them to pray for him. The rest of his birthday was spent sharing breakfast with homeless people before celebrating Mass as greetings flowed in from around the world. Pope Francis has asked Catholics to pray for him amid concerns for his health as he turns 80 The Pope told the audience of 60 cardinals: 'For some days now, I have had in mind a word that seems ugly: Old age, a thought that frightens.' But then he recalled his words during his first papal greeting in 2013, when he said: 'Old age is the thirst for knowledge. I hope it will be the same for me.' In 2015, Pope Francis told a crowd in Ostia, Italy, that he was a 'bit old and a bit sick'. A year earlier, he explained he would only sit on the Vatican throne for 'a short time' before going 'to the Father's house'. During the rest of his low-key birthday, the pope chatted individually with homeless people at a hostel. The guests offered the pope a bouquet of sunflowers. They were invited from among those staying around St. Peter's Square and at nearby showers for the homeless established by the pope's almsgiver. Greetings arrived from all corners of the globe in the form of both personal messages and succinct tweets with the hashtag #Pontifex80. Addressing cardinals at the Vatican, he told the audience he felt scared by the idea of old age He told cardinals: 'I have had in mind a word that seems ugly: Old age, a thought that frightens' Pope Francis meets President of Malta Marie Louise Coleiro Preca and her husband Edgar Preca at the Apostolic Palace As well as turning 80 he celebrated the 47th anniversary of his priestly ordination on the 13th Pope Francis, right, flanked at right by Mons. Konrad Krajewski, celebrates his 80th birthday sharing a breakfast with homeless people before celebrating Mass with cardinals U.S. President Barack Obama said Francis 'has inspired people around the world with his message of compassion, hope and peace'. Italian President Sergio Mattarella, recalled the pope has called on Europeans to show solidarity with the less fortunate. Boxer Amir Khan has vowed to 'sort out' the feud that has torn his family apart, days after his father branded his wife Faryal 'evil'. Speaking at a charity gala in Washington, the Brit told MailOnline that he wants to put an end to the bitter divide. A war of words has broken out between his wife and family, which has seen Faryal labeled a 'golddigger', while she says she has been bullied 'physically and mentally' by her in-laws. Scroll down for video Boxer Amir Khan (right) vowed to bring an end to the feud between his family and wife Faryal (left) He made the comments at a fundraiser for the Amir Khan Foundation Last night he appeared alongside his wife at a fundraiser for the Amir Khan Foundation - but barely spoke to her all evening. The couple exchanged strained smiles and furtive glances as tensions mount over the falling out. The boxer told MailOnline: 'Whatever happened, happened. Inshallah one day it will be sorted out. 'We want to be one family. It will take time but everything will be sorted out.' Holding his daughter in his arms, Khan said: 'The hardest thing about being a boxer is being separated from my family.' Faryal, who spent most of the evening with her family at her side, did not join her husband on the podium. Amir Khan spoke at the event last night, and said the rift was difficult for him When Khan was asked by a young girl if she could become a boxer, he responded: 'My wife boxes.' The family feud, which insiders say intensified after Faryal posted a selfie on Instagram which Khan's family said had too much flesh on show, was the talk of the event. Among those who came along to the fundraiser was Parveen Chaudrey, who said: 'In-laws should help Faryal, not drag her through the mud - I'm on Team Faryal.' Speaking to the crowd gathered at the foundation event, Khan said: 'Tell your kids to work hard, show them what we can do to help people' After Faryal appeared on ITV's This Morning this week, the boxer's father, Sajjad Khan blasted his daughter-in-law. He warned her: 'The writing's on the wall.' Sajjad told MailOnline exclusively: 'She is pushing Amir to the limit with her accusations and I feel very sorry for my son. Khan's family were reportedly upset when Faryal posted this image on Instagram earlier this year 'It's not fair. While he is out working so hard with his foundation, helping people he doesn't even know but who are so deprived and he just wants to make them happy, look what his wife's doing? 'She's not picking up the phone calling us to try and make amends. No, with her big ego she's gone on national TV and stuttering through the interview. It's crazy.' Speaking to the crowd gathered at the foundation event last night, Khan said: 'Tell your kids to work hard, show them what we can do to help people.' Amir asked for contributions to support Thirst Relief, a program to build water wells that will 'change lives in a poor community'. Foundation trustee, Riz Malik, a close friend of Khan, said: 'This foundation is not based on any religion, color, caste or creed.' Odesa-based Malynovsky district court has extended pre-charge detention of five defendants in the May 2 events in Odesa, 2014, in particular clashes and a fire on the Hretska Square, for 60 days. An Interfax-Ukraine correspondent has reported that under a court ruling Evgeniy Mefedov and Maxim Sakaulov, Serhiy Dolzhenkov, Vladyslav Romaniuk and Serhiy Korchynsky are left detained until February 14, 2017. As reported, early December the judicial panel of Odesa-based Malynovsky district court was reshuffled as one judge became ill. The court then ruled to restart the consideration of the case from the beginning at, having satisfied a claim filed by one of the defendants in connection with the replacement of the judge. On May 2, 2014, 48 people died and 200 were injured due to the mass riots and fire in Odesa. Most victims of the tragedy died at the Trade Unions House. The investigation revealed that the riots in Odesa were organized and deliberately planned. Various law enforcement agencies of Ukraine started about a dozen criminal proceedings into different facts. In particular, the Main Department of Internal Affairs of Ukraine in Odesa region launched a series of criminal proceedings into the facts of injury and death of people in clashes of pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian activists. Later, the Central Investigation Department of Ukrainian Interior Ministry in Odesa region took over these criminal proceedings. Some of these cases have already been transferred to court. The most high-profile of them is the case on the events on the Hretska Square, where the first clashes between pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian activists occurred. There are more than 20 suspects in this case, including two Russian citizens. They are all representatives of the so-called Antimaidan movement. In addition, the Prosecutor's Office of Odesa region and the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office are investigating the activities of officials of the Main Department of the Interior Ministry of Ukraine in Odesa region and the Main Department of the Ukrainian Emergency Situations Service in Odesa region during the events of May 2. The pretrial investigation into at least one criminal proceeding on the events of May 2 is being conducted by Ukraine's Security Service in Odesa region. Advertisement Hundreds of prisoners are being transferred from HMP Birmingham following the riots that took place yesterday. A total of 240 inmates will be removed from the premises after 600 took over the Winson Green prison for 12 hours. A spokesman for the Ministry of Justice confirmed the inmates will be distributed to other prisons across the country. It is thought the riot was sparked with inmates reacted angrily to TVs not working. Specialist officers who stormed the jail were covered in paint by inmates, and footage of the aftermath shows the inside of the prison smeared in white. Scroll down for video Footage taken in the aftermath of the prison shows white paint which was thrown over specialist officers A member of prison staff arrives at HMP Birmingham on Saturday morning after the disturbance on Friday at the prison Prison staff carry riot shields on their way out of the prison after regaining control from the 300 inmates who rioted A member of staff with a riot shield leaves the prison, and right, a workman goes into the prison, watched on by other staff members Covered in paint: Members of the 'Tornado Team' at HMP Birmingham were covered in paint after a disturbance at the prison yesterday He said: 'The prison remains calm and ordered with additional staff on site to offer support. The Prison Service will continue to work closely with G4S to manage the prison safely over the coming days. 'A full assessment of the damage is underway. Initial reports indicate that two wings suffered superficial damage with more serious damage to a further two wings. 'A limited regime is being offered to those who were not involved in the disturbance and staff continue to work closely with West Midlands Police. 'A thorough investigation into the disturbance is underway.' Prison affairs academic Alex Cavendish tweeted around 200 have been moved out of the prison so far, and several were heard shouting they hadn't been fed for two days. Last night, up to 300 riot officers stormed HMP Birmingham and won back control. Tornado teams - made up of former SAS soldiers and specialist officers - were sprayed with paint, covering their helmets. Sticking together: The 'tornado team', consisting of SAS soldiers and specialist officers, were called to help after G4S, who run the prison, were forced to hand over control to the Prison Service Transportation time: The first prisoner transportation vehicle was sent to the prison in the early hours of this morning Under control: More than 100 prison vans were photographed standing by at the Winson Green prison in the early hours of this morning after police regained control of the prison Prisoners defeated: Tornado teams are sent to prisons to deal with major disturbances alongside fire fighters and paramedics in riot gear Ratchet cuffs: Hundreds of inmates were caught up in the disorder, which was said to have been started after the prisoners were unhappy with a lack of heating, hot showers, 'c***' food and cut gym time Ready to go: More transportation vans were photographed outside of the prison earlier today Alex Cavendish tweeted around 200 prisoners have been moved out of the prison at 11.45am Fire hoses were also used as weapons and security gates were rammed with a heavy metal food trolley. A tweet by West Midlands Chief Constable Dave Thompson confirmed all public order trained officers would have been called to duty last night. As a result, forces in Essex and Lancashire were recruited to police the streets during 'Black Eye Friday' - the most popular evening for work Christmas parties and one of the busiest nights of the year for emergency services. Justice Secretary Liz Truss said said the incident will be investigated thoroughly. 'I want to pay tribute to the bravery and dedication of the prison officers who resolved this disturbance,' she said. 'I also want to give my thanks to West Midlands Police, who supported G4S and the Prison Service throughout the day, ambulance crews and the fire service who also provided assistance. 'This was a serious situation and a thorough investigation will now be carried out. Violence in our prisons will not be tolerated and those responsible will face the full force of the law.' At least two wings, the pharmacy, gym and the exercise yard of the prison were in the hands of criminals after the prison went into lockdown at 9am on Friday morning. Mr Cavendish said an 'inside informant' told him the trouble started after some keys were stolen from a prison officer, who was putting some inmates back in their cells after they were caught breaking lights. He added the officer had been threatened with a 'used syringe'. The scale of the disorder forced G4S to hand control of the Category B jail to the Prison Service. March: Twelve hours after the riot broke out, prison officers took back control of the prison In your face: Police officers in riot gear outside HMP Birmingham were prepared to storm the jail which became overrun Protection: Officers with helmets and riot shields group together in a line before heading for HMP Birmingham Team work: There are concerns that prisoners have caused thousands of pounds worth of damage inside the jail G4S said one prisoner suffered a broken jaw and eye socket during the riot. All prison staff were accounted for and none were injured, a Ministry of Justice spokeswoman said. Mike Rolfe, national chairman of the Prison Officers Association, who last month protested over safety concerns, said more than 30 staff had left the jail in recent weeks and compared the trouble to the notorious Strangeways riot 26 years ago. 'This prison is a tough place to work, it serves a very big area, it serves a large, dangerous population of prisoners, but it's not unlike many other prisons up and down the country - ones that have very similar inmates,' he told BBC Radio 4's The World Tonight. 'And we've been warning for a long time about the crisis in prisons, and what we are seeing at Birmingham is not unique to Birmingham, but it certainly would seem that this is the most recent worst incident since the 1990 Strangeways riot.' Mr Rolfe accused the Government of not funding the prison system properly and said such disturbances are becoming more frequent as a result. The 53-year-old added offices had 'abandoned the wing' where the incident started. According to protocol, if prisoners gain control of a set of keys, officers have to 'withdraw to a place of safety', Mr Cavendish said. Inmates gained access to the offender management unit (OMU), where their paper records are stored. He added some were burnt during the riot. Fire spread inside the G4S-run prison as inmates gave a running commentary on the violent disorder using mobile phones already smuggled into their cells. Screaming inmates were heard earlier shouting 'I can't breathe' as they ran away from thick black smoke which filled corridors and cells. Distraught relatives said their loved ones, who were without food and medicine, hung outside of windows calling for help. G4S help: Staff for the security company arrive at HMP Birmingham on Friday afternoon after prisoners took over Ready: Hundreds of riot officers stormed HMP Birmingham and took back control of the prison from rioting inmates Armour: Police wore heavy riot gear to protect them from the prisoners who had caused bedlam in the Category B jail Watch: Officers from across the country were called in to back up underfire colleagues who couldn't control the prison Dog protection: Officers had to use dogs to try and control the rioting prisoners Force in numbers: Extra police officers were called to HMP Birmingham after the prison was overrun at 9am on Friday Team: Riot officers from across the country have been drafted in to help struggling colleagues at Winson Green Ready: Riot police arrive at Winson Green prison in Birmingham on Friday night, run by security firm G4S, several hours after the disturbance started on Friday morning Medical help: Paramedics dressed in riot gear were called after several prisoners were seriously injured during the riot Riot continues: Officers carrying shields and heavy protective clothing prepare to go inside the prison and face the inmates Support: A female police officer speaks to family members in the reception at Winson Green prison who were waiting to see their loved ones An extra 80 prison and Tornado officers backed by police dogs were sent on Friday night to HMP Birmingham - Britain's third largest prison. Prisoners were heard shouting 'we want food' and had let off firecrackers off. Tornado teams are sent to prisons to deal with major disturbances alongside firefighters and paramedics in riot gear. Roads were closed as police sealed the prison's perimeter. The latest disturbance is the third in English prisons in less than two months. One relative said her brother, who is a prisoner in HMP Birmingham, was 'screaming for help' during the riot. 'The smoke is that thick on the landing that he can't breathe,' she said. 'He said it is absolute chaos. He is screaming for help and they are not doing anything.' The water supply to the prison was turned back on so prisoners could combat the spreading fires. The chaos inside was revealed in social media photos showing two heavily-tattooed grinning inmates wearing helmets and clutching riot shields while swearing in selfies. Chaos: Prisoners in riot gear take a selfie inside Britain's third biggest prison where 600 prisoners had taken over Gloating: Two prisoners in Winson Green could not hide their excitement at getting hold of riot helmets and shields Violence: Prisoners took over wings, the pharmacy and exercise areas by smashing through doors with batons (pictured) or opening them with keys Carnage: Fires were lit inside the prison (pictured) as violence during the day increased with computers thrown from windows and property damaged Inside control: Prisoners in HMP Birmingham called the outside world on smuggled in phones and said they had 'smashed up' the prison, left - and they claimed to have keys, right. The social media images were deleted soon afterwards In control: This photograph appears to show inmates celebrating having a free run of much of the Winson Green prison Fire: Smoke rises up from inside the Birmingham prison after reports that rioting inmates have let off firecrackers Drama: Prisoners were in control of the central N and P wings and had been trying to get to the high security G wing where sex offenders are held Another extraordinary image showed the keys taken from an officer threatened with a dirty syringe and an inmate smashing a door with a baton. The pictures were posted on Twitter with the caption 'HMP Birmingham it's going off, the lags are taking over', then deleted within seconds. Up to 600 men 'smashed up' and started fires in the Victorian jail because there has been no TV to watch and the gym is closed. One source talking to the rioters said the prisoners had taken control of the gym and they were trying to take control of the health care.' Speaking last night, the source said: 'They've taken control of the N and P wings. They are close to the G wing which is where the vulnerable prisoners including mainly sex offenders are. If they get into the G wing then it will cause uproar and there will be people killed tonight'. On duty: Dozens of police officers and prison officers were drafted in to Winson Green prison after the violence escalated Ready: Police march towards the Birmingham jail where 600 inmates have taken over two wings and the exercise yard Aid: Paramedics in riot gear arrive at the Birmingham jail, where one prisoner may have a slashed neck and is one of several who were injured Eye in sky: A police helicopter hovers over the giant jail, where prisoners were said to be in the exercise yard More than 1,000 inmates were put in lockdown after trouble erupted. G4S officers were said to have been threatened and two are injured, one with a broken arm and another with a head injury. There were also reports of a 'badly injured' prisoner with a 'slashed' neck. Mr Cavendish said officers started lights were broken inmates controlling fire hoses. Prisoner Stefan Paraszko, 60, pictured, who was released yesterday, said: 'it's horrendous in there' One prisoner said at the time: 'The guards have completely lost control. The TV antenna has been broken and we have not been able to watch TV for a couple of days now'. One unnamed inmate added: 'I have been in riots before and this is, by far, the worst I've come across', while another prisoner on P Wing said: 'They cancel gym all the time, the showers are cold, the food is c**p, the heating is never on and we never get our mail on time. We've had enough'. Another said: 'It's a dangerous place at the moment. People are walking around with knives and G4S have no control.' The Government has warned that rioters will have their sentences extended. A Ministry of Justice spokesman said earlier: 'We are absolutely clear that prisoners who behave in this way will be punished and could spend significantly longer behind bars.' Fire engines and ambulances were called amid reports the laundry room and gym may be alight and computers in a study area were used as missiles. A steady stream of prison officers in black overalls carrying riot shields and equipment arrived on foot and in vans. One of the specially-trained units of up to 15 men and women had arrived from HMP Long Lartin near Evesham, Worcestershire. As a police helicopter hovered overhead, curious motorists drove past the jail as the build-up of emergency services, including ambulances, continued. Response: A Tornado team made up of former SAS soldiers and specialist officers (pictured) were sent in with riot shields Riot: Firefighters arrive at Britain's third biggest prison, which was in the midst of a riot after prisoners snatched keys and threatened an officer with a syringe Patrol: Sniffer dogs were being used at the scene but prison officials insisted the public and residents were safe Help: A steady stream of prison officers in black overalls carrying riot shields and equipment arrived on foot and in vans Shield: Equipment is carried into HMP Birmingham after the disturbance by prisoners spread to two further wings Injuries: Officers were threatened and two were injured, one with a broken arm and another with a head injury Back up: Uniformed officers arrived in riot vans and surrounded the perimeter of HMP Birmingham - Britain's third largest jail Law and order: Officers had also filed into the main entrance of the prison, parts of which are not are out of control Insight: Winsome Moncrieffe-Mithcell said six inmates had 'gone crazy' because they denied their medication Protection: Paramedics dressed in special suits used in riots and terror attacks enter the prison with medical supplies and water People waiting to visit loved-ones inside - or waiting for their release - said they could hear blaring alarms coming from up to four wings. The prison is run by private firm G4S and has endured a series of controversies this year, including deaths of inmates. In 2011 they had to spend 500,000 on new locks for every door when bungling guards lost some keys. An inmate from inside P Wing said: 'It started with seven of them on the netting and it just escalated from there. Everything was getting smashed up though. The windows were being smashed up and fires were set. 'I'd never seen anything like this before. The biggest issue for most of us is the lack of exercise. They have stopped from using the gym and from having any exercise. When we were told that we were not getting exercise everyone went mad. They have had enough. 'We saw some guards near the doors with shields and helmets earlier but they all ran off. It means the prisoners were able to move between the two wings. I would say there were about 400 of us and no guards at all.' One said that an inmate died two weeks ago, and the alleged suicide has upset the prisoners. Another said six inmates have 'gone crazy' because they were denied their medication. Emergency: G4S was believed to be awaiting national assistance to recover the two wings involved in the incident Family: People waiting to visit loved-ones inside - or waiting for their release (pictured through the glass) said they could hear blaring alarms Former prisoner Stefan Paraszko, 60, who was released on Thursday, said: 'I was there for four-and-a-half months and there's been a few deaths in that time. 'I didn't see anything kick off but it's horrendous in there. 'There's a lack of staff and they don't give a s***. You're not scared of the prison officers. You don't look up to them. Nobody has time for anything. Everyone always says they're too busy.' Facebook user Winsome Moncrieffe-Mitchell called for the Army to be brought in. She said: 'Mutiny at Winson Green prison right now over medication not being subscribed. 6 inmates gone crazy. 'Smashing up the place right now making it worse for others chu. See what too much cut backs can do, now the officers are hiding the inmates have taken the keys and open two floors of doors. 'Praying hard no one gets hurt. Army needs to get there fast.' The Victorian category B prison, which was built in 1849 and is close to the city's centre in Winson Green, can hold 1,450 adult remand and sentenced male prisoners. It is understood that the admin office the prisoners had gained access to is part of one of the two wings which were sealed off. Inside: The Victorian category B prison run by G4S, which was built in 1849 and is close to the city's centre in Winson Green, can hold 1,450 adult remand and sentenced male prisoners. A prison insider previously revealed problems at the prison, including drug smuggling. He said: 'Before G4S took over there were lots of experienced staff who were paid good money. Now they've got new less experienced staff in who can't cope. 'Threats, drugs - it's almost constant. Drones are buzzing all over Winson Green.' In 2014 it emerged G4S was forced to spend almost half a million pounds changing all of the locks at a prison they were contracted to run - after blundering guards lost the keys. The firm has to replace every lock and key at HMP Birmingham, known as Winson Green jail, when the set of keys vanished in October 2011 - costing 499,000. The embarrassing blunder came just days after G4S took over the management of the prison - with 1,400 being confined to their cells while the premises was searched. The gaffe is just one in a series of embarrassments for the company - who had to pay out 70million after failing to provide enough guards for the London Olympics. Quarters: The riot is believed to have started in the P Wing when a prison officer was overpowered by inmates Formerly known as Group 4 - the company earned an unfavourable reputation for losing prisoners they were minding. The latest disturbance is the third in English prisons in less than two months. On November 6 a riot at category B Bedford Prison saw up to 200 inmates go on the rampage, flooding the jail's gangways in chaotic scenes. Just days earlier, on October 29, a national response unit had to be brought in to control prisoners during an incident at HMP Lewes in East Sussex. A spokesman from the Prison Governors Association said the disturbance at the Birmingham jail 'comes at a very difficult time for Noms (National Offender Management Service) on the back of recent riots and at a time when the prison estate is already bursting at the seams'. Shadow justice secretary Richard Burgon said the disturbances at the Birmingham jail were 'hugely concerning' and claimed the Justice Secretary was 'failing to get this crisis under control'. Tory chairman of the Commons Justice Committee, Robert Neill, told Channel Four News the Government had been warned by his watchdog group of MPs that a 'time bomb was ticking' as prisons were in 'crisis'. When it was suggested this could be the worst prison riot in years, Mr Neill said: 'Certainly looking that way, yeah, and this is a problem which has happened both in privately and publicly-run systems, so it applies across the piece. 'I think that does indicate that we have got a situation where if people are locked down 22/23 hours a day, as we have discovered, that breeds tension, that breeds violence, and, as you rightly say, we are not actually keeping prisons secure enough to stop contraband getting in.' Shadow home secretary Diane Abbott told Channel Four News 'private companies should not be involved in taking away people's liberty. Actually, it's clear that G4S don't have the quality of staff to manage a crisis like this.' Hundreds of people have rolled down the hill outside Parliament House in Canberra on Saturday in protest of the lush green lawn being fenced for security reasons. The event, organised by architecture graduate Lester Yao, was originally intended for just friends and family but grew to about 300 people. Shortly after 10am on Saturday, the masses started to roll down the hill in protest of a fence being erected around the grounds. Hundreds of people roll down the hill outside Parliament House in Canberra as a peaceful protest against a fence being erected around the grounds Mr Yao described the event to Nine News as 'a very simple yet powerful symbol of democracy'. 'It's a really beautiful symbol of what our democracy is, to be able to say this is a freedom that we have,' he told the ABC. Despite the light-hearted aspect to the event, it represented a much more serious issue. Despite the light-hearted side to the event, it represented a much more serious issue What was supposed to be a small event for family and friends, turned into something much larger About 300 people showed up to take advantage of one of the last times they might have access to the grounds Protester Edward Patching said Australia was about to lose one of its long cherished freedoms Protester Edward Patching said Australia was about to lose one of its long cherished freedoms. 'We're one of the few countries in the world where through our national parliament we can actually walk on top of our politicians, be on top of them,' he told the ABC. The security issues at Parliament House follow a more serious protest which was staged at the grounds just last month. Angry protesters glued their hands to the rails at Parliament House and they chanted from the public gallery in support of asylum seekers. The possibility that the grounds at Parliament House will be secured by a fence follows a more serious protest which was staged at Parliament just last month Angry protesters glued their hands to the rails at Parliament House and they chanted from the public gallery in support of asylum seekers Dramatic scenes erupted as protesters claimed detention on Nauru and Manus Island represented a 'state of emergency', as asylum seekers continued to be abused Dramatic scenes erupted as protesters claimed detention on Nauru and Manus Island represented a 'state of emergency', as asylum seekers continued to be abused. Some protesters from the group Whistleblowers, Activists and Citizens Alliance screamed loudly as they were dragged by security guards. As part of the controversial protest, some group members stood in the pond fountain which they died red, to represent blood shed by asylum seekers. It is expected the lawn outside Parliament House will be fenced off for security purposes over the summer recess. 'World leaders in cruelty' one man's sign read as he protested outside Parliament House in November Kim Jong-un's nuclear missiles can reach the United States and Europe, it was revealed at a government briefing. The alarming announcement came after it was suggested North Korea's rockets could travel a few thousand kilometres. However, Lee Sang-haw, director general of the South's North Korean nuclear affairs bureau, said the distance could be a lot more than previously predicted. He said that 'Europe is also within range' along with the US - and the whole NATO alliance, reports Michael Havis at the Daily Star Online. Scroll down for video Kim Jong-un's nuclear missiles can reach the United States and Europe, it was revealed at a South Korean government briefing North Korea's KN-08 missile - which is still being developed - could end up having a range of 12,000km - making the whole of Europe a potential target. A senior ministry source told the website that extent of the country's weapons was 'classified' information after Mr Sang-haw would not release further details. They source said: 'I am not able to share everything I know because much of the intelligence is classified and I don't want to go into precise details. 'There are different assessments of North Korea's ballistic missile capabilities, but what is for sure is as they repeat tests, they learn something important.' The alarming announcement came after it was suggested the 32-year-old's rockets could travel a few thousand kilometres Chris Ogden, an expert in Asian security at St Andrews University, said the information could 'broaden the potential of a nuclear attack'. He said it was 'unclear' why Jong-un would wish to target Europe and added: 'The key enemies above all others are South Korea and the US, and by extension Japan, not Europe. This awe-inspiring footage shows a shark being eaten alive by a group of killer whales which then passes it to two calves. The sevengill shark can be seen squirming in the orca's mouth before going still during the encounter in Monterey Bay, California. The three killer whales were part of a larger group made up of 25 individuals who soon swarmed on the carcass. The sevengill shark can be seen squirming in the orca's (pictured) mouth before going still during the encounter in Monterey Bay, California The gang wear the shark down and take opportunistic bites at its fins, flipping the shark on to its back in the process The crystal clear footage was captured by wildlife photographer Slater Moore using a drone while he was giving a tour with Monterey Bay Whale Watch. The footage was then posted on Facebook. The whales are seen capturing the adult shark which writhes in pain as it tries to escape. The gang wear the shark down and take opportunistic bites at its fins, flipping the shark on to its back in the process. Marine expert Mary Jane Schramm said the orca deliberately turned the shark upside-down in its mouth to paralyse it . 'They flip them over on their backs and all of a sudden they slip into what's called tonic immobility,' she told KTVU. 'Some animals if they're attacked by a predator, instead of fleeing or fighting, they simply become still.' The whales then try and drown the shark by dragging it deep beneath the waves to prevent it from swimming. 'It is very likely that some of these whales have only been sighted a few times or haven't been identified at all.' The company wrote in the video's comment section on their Facebook page, 'we may go five years between sightings.' The three killer whales were part of a larger group made up of 25 individuals who soon swarmed on the carcass by lifeguards at the The boy had to be A four-year-old boy had to be resuscitated at a public swimming pool on Saturday after he nearly drowned. It is believed the young boy either fell or jumped in the deep end of a leisure centre swimming pool in Fairfield, Sydney, on Saturday afternoon at 3pm. Lifeguards hauled the boy out of the water and performed CPR and saved the boy. It is believed the young boy either fell or jumped in the deep end of a leisure centre swimming pool in Fairfield on Saturday afternoon at 3pm Police attended the scene to investigate. Paramedics rushed the boy to Liverpool Hospital where he remains in a stable condition overnight. But Pentagon said the $150,000 glider is 'clearly marked' as belonging to the US China claims it did not know the drone belonged to the US when it removed it China has accused the US of 'hyping up' its seizure of a US Navy drone just hours after Donald Trump ramped up his rhetoric against the country. Trump took to Twitter on early Saturday morning to lash out at China for seizing the unmanned drone two days ago in the South China Sea. 'China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented (sic) act,' Trump wrote in a misspelled tweet. Trump deleted his original tweet, posted at 4.30am, after he was ridiculed online and later issued the same message with the correct spelling. His inflammatory message came just hours after a Chinese official said the country was in talks with the American military for a 'smooth resolution' over the drone. Donald Trump has accused China of stealing a US Navy drone, just hours after a Chinese official said the country was in talks with the US military for a 'smooth resolution' Trump fired off his criticism nearly two days after the Chinese Navy seized an unmanned underwater glider right in the South China Sea on December 15 But China's Defense Ministry has since changed their tone, hitting back with a biting response as it revealed the drone would be returned. 'China decided to return it to the US side in an appropriate manner, and China and the US have all along been in communication about it,' the statement read. 'During this process, the US side's unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue,' it added. 'We express regret at this.' The US said late Saturday that it had 'secured an understanding' through 'direct engagement with Chinese authorities' that the drone would be returned. The capture - the first of its kind in recent memory - took place on December 15 just as the USNS Bowditch, an American oceanographic survey ship, was about to retrieve the unmanned underwater glider. When the Bowditch stopped to collect the underwater equipment, a Chinese warship that had been following it dropped a boat into the water the pulled up alongside the US vessel and snatched the drone, according to CNN. The USS Bowditch had been sampling and data collection of surface, midwater and ocean floor measurements, and US officials received no reply from the Chinese when they radioed to state the drone was American. Trump's comments come just weeks after he potentially thrust US relations with China in chaos after calling Taiwan's president and criticizing China's government The US crew had hoped to start communications with the Chinese vessel to get the drone back, but the ship eventually responded to say it was returning to normal operations and left the area, according to NBC News. The Department of Defense released a statement, saying it was: 'not the sort of conduct we expect from professional navies.' US officials issued a formal diplomatic complaint over the seizure and demanded the return of the $150,000 drone, which was collecting unclassified scientific data. 'It is ours. It's clearly marked as ours,' Navy Capt Jeff Davis said on Friday. 'We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again.' Meanwhile, China's Defense Ministry claimed that a Chinese navy lifeboat had discovered what first appeared to be a peace of 'unidentified equipment'. Defense Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun said the vessel removed the item 'in order to prevent this device from posing a danger to the navigation of passing ships and personnel'. 'The Chinese lifeboat adopted a professional and responsible attitude in investigating and verifying the device,' he added. It was only then, Yajun claimed, that the Chinese navy realized it was a US drone. A Chinese Navy warship has seized an underwater drone deployed by an American oceanographic vessel in international waters in the South China Sea. Pictured is a Chinese ship in the Bohai Sea The incident took place on December 15 northwest of Subic Bay just as the USNS Bowditch (pictured), an oceanographic survey ship, was about to retrieve the unmanned vehicle The statement also accused the US of deploying ships to conduct 'renaissance and military surveying' in China's presence. 'China is resolutely opposed to this and requests the US stop such activities,' Yajun said. The United States has maintained that the drone was operating lawfully while conducting a 'military survey' in the South China Sea. 'It's a sovereign immune vessel,' a US official said of the drone, adding that it was 'clearly marked in English not to be removed from the water - that it was US property'. Arizona Sen John McCain, who is the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, called the seizure a 'flagrant violation of the freedom of the seas'. 'China had no right to seize this vehicle. And the United States must not stand for such outrageous conduct,' he wrote in a statement released on Saturday. 'This brazen provocation fits a pattern of increasingly destabilizing Chinese behavior, including bullying its neighbors and militarizing the South China Sea.' 'Freedom of the seas and the principles of the rules-based order are not self-enforcing. American leadership is required in their defense. But that leadership has been sorely lacking,' he added, hitting out at Obama. Before the defense ministry issued its statement, China said on Saturday that it was in contact with its American counterparts on 'appropriately handling' the seizure, one of the most serious incidents between the two militaries in years. 'According to (our) understanding, the US and Chinese sides are working on appropriately handling this matter through channels between the two militaries,' the foreign ministry said in a statement. The drone conflict now seems to be resolved, but critics are still poking fun at Trump's most recent spelling mistake. Even Merriam-Webster, a publishing company known for its dictionaries, joined in by linking a definition to the word 'Huh'. 'Good morning! The #WordOfTheDay is...not 'unpresidented'. We don't enter that word. That's a new one,' the tweet read. Trump deleted the original tweet and rewrote it with the correct spelling of 'unprecedented', but the ridicule continued. Trump deleted the original tweet and rewrote it with the correct spelling of 'unprecedented' Critics took an easy shot at the president-elect's spelling mistake, and the Merriam-Webster Twitter account joined in with the mockery SPELLING ERRORS IN TRUMP'S TWEETS December 15, 2016: 'If Russia, or some other entity, was hacking, why did the White House waite so long to act?' December 10, 2016: 'Reports by @CNN that I will be working on The Apprentice during my Presidency, even part time, are rediculous & untrue FAKE NEWS!' July 29, 2016: 'Hillary Clinton should not be given national security briefings in that she is a lose cannon with extraordinarily bad judgement & insticts.' July 24, 2016: 'Looks to me like the Bernie people will fight. If not, there blood, sweat, and tears was a total waist of time. Kaine stands for opposite!' March 18, 2016: 'Heading to Phoneix. Will be arriving soon. Tomorrow a big day. Tremendous crowds expected!' March 6, 2016: 'All of the phony T.V. commercials against me are bought and payed for by SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS, the bandits that tell your pols what to do' February 26, 2016: 'Lying Ted Cruz and leightweight chocker Marco Rubio teamed up last night in a last ditch effort to stop our great movement. They failed!' February 26, 2016: 'Leightweight chocker Marco Rubio looks like a little boy on stage. Not presidential material.' February 26, 2016: 'Wow, every poll said I won the debate last night. Great honer!' January 31, 2016: 'Ted Cruz is totally unelectable, if he even gets to run (born in Canada). Will loose big to Hillary. Polls show I beat Hillary easily! WIN!' January 19, 2016: 'Wow, the highly respected Governor of Iowa just stated that 'Ted Cruz must be defeated.' Big shoker! People do not like Ted.' June 25, 2015: 'I hear that dopey political pundit Lawrence O'Donnel, one of the dummer people on television, is about to lose his show- no ratings? Too bad' Advertisement The president-elect's inflammatory tweet comes just weeks after he potentially thrust US relations with China in chaos after calling Taiwan's president and criticizing China's government. Chinese admiral Yang Yi said he was unsure of the reasoning behind seizing the drone, but said Trump's recent comments had hurt the relationship between the two nations. 'It's natural for us to take possession of and research for a bit these types of things that America sends to our doorstep,' Yang told the Global Times. 'The louder they shout, the more their protests ring hollow.' China's media outlets have speculated whether Trump's protocol-shattering call with Tsai Ing-wen and his subsequent Twitter tirade against Beijing's policies could upend the delicate balance between the world's two largest economies. 'Provoking friction and messing up China-US relations won't help 'make America great again',' a front-page opinion piece in China's People's Daily said. The newspaper is a mouthpiece for the country's Communist Party. The nationalist Global Times newspaper's Chinese edition also ran a page-one story on Trump's 'inability to keep his mouth shut', damning his 'provocation and falsehoods'. Trump fired off two tweets on Sunday blasting China for devaluing its currency, taxing American imports, and building military installations in the South China Sea. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, pictured, called Britain a 'source of threats, corruption and misery' The supreme leader of Iran has launched a sensational attack on Britain, labelling it a 'source of threats, corruption and misery' days after Theresa May hit out at the country's 'aggressive' behaviour in the Gulf. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the 'policies and the actions of the British in the past two centuries a source of evil and misery for the peoples of the region'. Iran faces much opposition in the Gulf over Middle East conflicts, including the fighting in Syria in which it is an ally of President Bashar al-Assad and is widely believed to have sent troops to support his forces. Last week Mrs May called on Gulf Arab heads of state to work with London 'to push back against Iran's aggressive regional actions, whether in Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, Syria or in the Gulf itself'. 'So I want to assure you that I am clear-eyed about the threat that Iran poses to the Gulf and the wider Middle East,' she told the Gulf Co-operation Council summit. She also spoke about last tear's nuclear deal with Iran that 'neutralised' the chance of Iran obtaining such arms. Mrs May told the summit: 'We secured a deal which has neutralised the possibility of Iran acquiring nuclear weapons for over a decade. 'It has already seen Iran remove 13,000 centrifuges together with associated infrastructure and eliminate its stock of 20 per cent enriched uranium. 'That was vitally important for regional security.' Khamenei accused the United States and Britain of provoking conflicts among the main Sunni and Shi'ite branches of Islam and said: 'The old British policy of 'divide and conquer' is seriously on the agenda of Islam's enemies.' The Iranian Supreme Leader, pictures, also said Britain was a 'source of evil' in the Gulf region for the past 200 years It comes after Theresa May, pictured, hit out at Iran's 'aggression' while speaking at a summit of Gulf countries earlier this month Iranian media reported on Saturday that the foreign ministry had summoned a top British diplomat in Tehran to protest against British criticism of its actions in Syria. The move came after British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said on Thursday he had summoned the ambassadors of Russia and Iran to convey his 'profound disquiet' over events in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo. Legendary jewel thief Doris 'Diamond' Payne, 86, appeared in court on Friday, showing off her charm as she acknowledged her criminal history spanning six decades. Payne, who faces a shoplifting charge for stealing a $2,000 diamond necklace on Tuesday, assured the judge that she's never been late for a court appearance. She made her 'respect for judges' known, adding: 'I'm not denying that I have a history. I do.' When the judge set bond at $15,000, and restricted her from leaving the state, Payne promised to obey the law and thanked him for being fair. Legendary jewel thief Doris 'Diamond' Payne, 86, appeared in court on Friday, showing off her charm as she acknowledged her criminal history spanning six decades A friend, Sonjia Williams, told NBC she hoped to arrange her release, but the senior citizen remains in custody at the DeKalb County Jail in Georgia. The 86-year-old has traveled the world, swiping millions of dollars worth of jewels by making staff 'forget' she was carrying them. Payne - a career criminal who was once wanted on two continents - swore off her life of crime more than a decade ago. But it seems that old habits die hard. Doris Payne, 86, was arrested Tuesday and charged with shoplifting for trying to steal a necklace worth $2,000 at a Georgia mall And on Tuesday, she was arrested at a Von Maur department store just outside Atlanta after police say she put a $1,995 diamond necklace in her back pocket and tried to leave the store. Sweet, elegant and immaculately turned out, Payne may be the world's most unlikely international jewel thief. But authorities said Payne has lifted pricey baubles from countless jewelry stores around the world, and the senior citizen once bragged about a $500,000 heist in Monte Carlo. The legend of Payne's thefts have long fascinated the public and media, with countless news stories and a 2013 documentary film, 'The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne,' detailing her feats. Matthew Pond, who co-directed the film, said Payne was loved the attention and adrenaline rush, telling NBC: 'She likes playing the part and getting into the role. She's a bit of an actress.' When asked about her exploits in an interview with The Associated Press earlier this year, she said simply: 'I was a thief.' Court papers in Atlanta reference six cases prior to the alleged theft last year, mostly in southern California, dating to 1999. Career criminal: Payne was arrested twice in 1965, first on May 10 (left), and again on June 3 (right) Notorious: Payne was arrested again, pictured on her arrest in 2009, (left) and again in 2013 (right) At it again: The jewel thief was arrested again last year, on October 23, 2015, after police say she slipped a pricey pair of earrings into her pocket at an upscale Atlanta shopping mall But Payne's career as an international jewel thief began decades ago with a criminal record dating back to 1952. Since then she has stolen hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of jewelry including her most notable theft - a 10-carat diamond ring, valued at $500,000, from Monte Carlo in the 1970s. Payne fled to France, and was detained in Nice before being extradited back to Monte Carlo. She was held there for nine months before being released, as authorities were unable to locate the stolen gem. Authorities have said she has used at least 22 aliases over the years and probably got away more often than she was caught, though she has done several stints in prison. The Jewelers' Security Alliance, an industry trade group, sent out bulletins as early as the 1970s warning about her. Payne, who appeared effortlessly elegant and spoke with calm deliberation during the interview with the AP, nevertheless grew cagey when asked about her methods. 'I don't dictate what happens when I walk in the store. The people in charge dictate what happens with me when I walk in the store,' she said. 'I don't tell a person in the store I want to see something that costs $10,000. They make those decisions based on how I present myself and how I look.' Born to a coal mining father and a seamstress mother in the remote and impoverished town of Slab Fork, West Virginia, in 1930, Payne was the youngest of six children. Doris Payne (pictured posing for a photo in Atlanta in January of this year) has been arrested multiple times during the past 60 years Although a family move to Cleveland, Ohio, when broadened her horizons somewhat as a teenager, she still faced the injustice and suppression that was the lot of many black women in those days of American history. Kirk Marcolina, producer of The Life And Crimes Of Doris Payne, said: 'She always wanted to become a ballerina but one day somebody told her she couldn't - there were no black ballerinas. 'She realized she had to find another way of getting out of that small town and seeing the world. Stealing jewels eventually became the way she did it.' In the documentary, Doris revealed how she first learned her trademark distraction trick as a teenager when a store clerk eagerly ditched her when a white customer came in. She walked to the door, a small gold watch still clasped around her wrist. Although she gave it back that time, she realized how easy it would have been to walk away with the prize. Sweet, elegant and immaculately turned out, Payne may be the world's most unlikely international jewel thief From there, she worked her way up from bargain jewelry to some of the most expensive stores across the globe, hitting targets as far afield as Britain, France, Italy, Monaco and even Japan. Aged just 23, she walked out of a Pittsburgh jewelry store with a diamond valued at $22,000. She developed a winning strategy - dressing nicely, carrying a designer handbag and arming herself with a detailed story - that she used to charm jewelry store employees. Faced with a well-to-do woman with money to spend, store employees would relax their rules and bring out multiple high-value pieces at once, and Payne would quickly slip the expensive baubles on and off until the employee lost track and she could easily leave with one in hand. Over time, she has been connected to 22 aliases, nine dates of birth, and five Social Security numbers, but is nevertheless so brazen about her crimes that she once gave her occupation as 'jewel thief' in court papers. But the international lifestyle has come at a heavy price for the cunning Payne: she has an Interpol file dating back to the 1970s, a U.S. criminal record 20 pages long and has served a string of jail terms including a nearly five-year prison stint in Colorado. In a 2005 jail interview, Payne remembered her exploits with amusement and explained how she stole diamonds because they were easiest. For her, the thefts were about the thrill, not the money. Theres never been a day that I went to steal that I did not get what I went to do,' she said in her documentary. A wanted poster was issued for Payne and her suspected accomplice Harold Brondfield in 1966 over the theft of two rings 'I dont have any regrets about stealing jewelry. I regret getting caught.' That sentiment proves problematic for judges faced with the elderly offender. In 2010, she asked one to be lenient because she was 'truly sorry that this went on as long as it did,' but that wasn't enough. 'You won't stop,' Judge Frank Brown said at the time, explaining his decision to sentence her to five years which was at the high end of the possible verdicts. 'Thats the problem here... Shes a thief. Shes charming. Santa Clauss wife, thats who she is.' After that punitive sentence, Doris vowed to leave her life of crime. But in 2013, just three months after she had been released from jail, she was up to her old tricks. When Doris walked into El Paseo Jewellers in Palm Desert, California staff were delighted. White-haired and elegant, not in the best of health but articulate and elegantly turned out, she told them she had just had a $25,000 insurance payout and wanted to spend the cash on a present for herself. The international lifestyle has come at a heavy price for the cunning Payne: she has an Interpol file dating back to the 1970s, a U.S. criminal record 20 pages long and has served a string of jail terms, she is pictured in her cell at Clark County jail in Las Vegas, in 2005 Salespeople fussed around her, helping her try on gem-encrusted necklaces and rings and, when her hip began playing up, finding her a chair to rest her legs. After making arrangements to complete her purchase of a diamond and white gold pinkie ring the next day, they helped her hobble to the door. What staff did not realize was that the $22,500 the ring was still on her finger. The Los Angeles Times reports that the manager of El Paseo Jewelers only realized that the ring was missing hours after she had gone. She sold the ring to a nearby pawnshop for $800, and as part of the sale, she had to give her thumbprint, which eventually tipped off authorities. In 2014, she was sentenced to spend two years in jail and two years under mandatory supervision after the judge took pity on her age and ill health. Payne is pictured in court in 2013 after she walked out an El Paseo jewelers with a $22, 500 ring just three months after she was released All a ruse: Over time, she has been connected to 22 aliases, nine dates of birth, and five Social Security numbers (Payne pictured in a Las Vegas courtroom in 2005) After an early release, she was arrested again last year for allegedly pocketing a $690 pair of earrings from a Saks Fifth Avenue department store at a mall in Atlanta's upscale Buckhead neighborhood. Payne is truly in a league of her own in the pantheon of jewel thieves, Jewelers' Security Alliance president John J. Kennedy said. 'It's extraordinarily rare for a criminal to have that lengthy of a career,' he said. 'Usually they either stop because they have enough money and they don't want the risk anymore, or they're dead.' Kennedy said people often ask him about her, fascinated and even amused by the story of this elderly woman who has committed so many thefts. 'We're all laughing, but it's not funny,' he said. 'She goes in and she takes product from people, and it causes a lot of grief for people.' Men fleeing Aleppo risk recruitment by jihadi groups operating in northern Syria, where an al-Qaeda-linked group has its main hub. Civilians fleeing Aleppo are moving to Idlib province, where there are more than 50,000 rebel troops, including fighters loyal to Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, a proscribed terrorist group linked to al-Qaeda. One man who claimed to fight with Jabhat Fatah al-Sham in Aleppo, and whom escaped to Idlib yesterday, told MailOnline: 'I will stay on fighting until I am killed.' The man, who gave his name as Abu A, left Aleppo for Idlib when the last JFS members fled the city. He said: 'I will continue in the same faction. I think that a majority of people will join Fatah al-Sham or a group in Jeish al-Fatah, because a violent battle will start here soon.' He denied there were any official recruitment plans taking place, 'as jihad is a choice, not mandatory.' Scroll down for video Civilians fleeing Aleppo are in danger of being recruited to terror gangs when they move into Idlib province, where there are more than 50,000 rebel troops Rebels who wish to continue fighting the Russia and Iran-backed Assad regime will likely include 'embittered young men' from Aleppo, according to analysts. Jeish al-Fatah (Army of Conquest) is the main rebel coalition in Idlib province, which includes factions ranging from moderate rebels to proscribed jihadi groups like Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, formerly Jabhat al-Nusra. After the fall of Aleppo, Idlib is now the main rebel stronghold against the Assad regime, where the risk of growing extremism could benefit the brutal dictator. The region is one of the poorest in Syria, already home to hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people. Much of its infrastructure has been destroyed in intense bombing campaigns by Russia and the Assad regime in previous months. Extremist groups designated as terrorists such as JFS and Isis held little sway in Aleppo, with estimates of JFS fighters in the city swinging between 100 and a couple of thousand. But in Idlib, which borders Turkey, men who previously did not sympathise with JFS's ideology may be lured into its ranks. 'JFS/al-Qaeda is one of the biggest winners from the fall of Aleppo', Syria analyst Kyle Orton told MailOnline. 'In simple military terms those who wish to continue the fight against the pro-regime coalition likely to include many embittered young men from Aleppo City, unless the regime annihilates them all are now moving into a phase where that cannot be done from governed areas but has to be done by guerrilla warfare, and in that al-Qaeda clearly has a tactical advantage.' JFS also recently subsumed Jund al-Aqsa, another jihadi terrorist group operating in Idlib, that the UK says is probably behind a civilian massacre that took place in Syria in 2014. In Idlib, which borders Turkey, men who previously did not sympathise with JFS's ideology may be lured into its ranks Tensions within the Ahrar al-Sham group, also part of Jeish al-Fatah, mean thousands of men will arrive in Idlib to a divided and spatting rebel scene, where moderate rebel voices risk being overshadowed by hardliners. Jihadi recruitment in Idlib would ultimately benefit the Assad regime, analysts believe. There are vast moderate civilian populations in the province, too, who have suffered living under Jabhat Fatah al Sham control, with restrictions on radio broadcasts and playing music. 'Assad worked from the start to make this binary between himself and terrorists', Mr Orton continued. 'By deporting people to Idlib, Assad continues this strategy: let the angry, displaced populations herded into Idlib join and empower al-Qaeda even further.' The Syrian government may use the presence of Western-proscribed terrorist organisations in Idlib to excuse a future all-out assault on the area. 'When the Assad regime turns on the Idlib pocket, the 'international community' is going to find it very difficult to find a voice in which to protest when Assad presents it not wholly falsely as an effort to defeat al-Qaeda.' Idlib is the Assad regime's priority for military operations over Deir al-Zour, in eastern Syria, where Isis currently holds swathes of territory. Mobile phones could soon be blocked from working while cars are being driven to deter people from using them at the wheel. Almost one in three motorists admitted they have used their phone while driving and 17,500 people were taken to court last year. The Department for Transport will have an 'exploratory meeting' with mobile phone companies and network providers early next year to discuss the new technology. Almost one in three drivers admitted they have used their phone at the wheel in 2016 and 17,500 people were taken to court last year Ministers will discuss how the revolutionary software can make it impossible to make phone calls or monitor text messages and emails when driving. It is not clear whether the technology would also block the phones of any passengers. Campaigners are currently trying to make the offence as socially unacceptable as drink-driving, reports Matt Chorley at The Times. Smartphone manufacturers are being urged to create a 'drive safe' mode - similar to the 'flight mode' option, which will block calls, texts and emails. Transport secretary Chris Grayling introduced tougher punishments earlier this year if people get caught on their phones while driving. Those guilty of the offence will receive six penalty points and a 200 fine - which doubled after Grayling's announcement. And in a bid to reduce the amount of dangerous driving, new motorists who use mobile phones face an automatic ban if caught. Drivers who kill someone while on the phone face life behind bars. But Lord Woolf, a former lord chief justice, slammed the plans and urged ministers not to 'create more offences' as the number of prisoners in the UK keeps rising. Transport secretary Chris Grayling introduced tougher punishments earlier this year if people get caught on their phones while driving Earlier this week, Victims' Commissioner Baroness Newlove, said: 'It is time to make using a mobile phone while driving just as unacceptable as not wearing a seat belt or drink-driving. 'We need better education and hardhitting messages to ensure the next generation know what could happen.' The proposed move comes after more than four in ten drivers (41 per cent) said they were worried about other people at the wheel, a survey by the RAC found. A fifth of motorists believed it was safe to check social media and sent text messages when sitting in traffic - despite being against the law. A Department for Transport spokesman: 'We are determined to crack down on mobile phone use at the wheel. The law chief who has decided to prosecute two British paratroopers for the murder of an IRA commander had previously worked for leaders of Sinn Fein, it has been revealed. Before becoming Northern Ireland's public prosecutor in 2011, Barra McGrory represented Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness while running a private practice. The lawyer also played an influential role in securing amnesty for hundreds of people suspected of being IRA members, as well as alleged Hyde Park bomber John Downey. It comes after it was announced that two British veterans would be prosecuted for murder over the killing of an IRA commander in Northern Ireland more than 40 years ago. Before becoming Northern Ireland's public prosecutor in 2011, Barra McGrory represented Gerry Adams (left) and Martin McGuinness (right) while running a private practice Mr McGrory (pictured) also played an influential role in securing amnesty for hundreds of people suspected of being IRA members, as well as alleged Hyde Park bomber John Downey The former soldiers had twice been assured they would not be hauled before the courts for gunning down Joe McCann at the height of the Troubles. The pair, known as Soldier A and Soldier C, are the surviving members of the 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment patrol that opened fire on the terrorist in 1972. The men, now 67 and 65, are expected to stand trial next year for the Belfast killing and face jail if convicted. In his role as Director of Public Prosecutions, Mr McGrory is the man behind the decision to bring charges against the pair. Official IRA man: Joe McCann, 24, was shot dead in disputed circumstances in Belfast Since taking on the public position, he has already stood down from at least six cases due to a 'conflict of interest', according to The Telegraph. While practicing privately, he represented Mr McGuinness during the Bloody Sunday inquiry, when it was wrongly alleged the Northern Irish Deputy First Minister was the IRA gunman. In response to Mr McGrory's involvement in the prosecution, Conservative MP Sir Henry Bellingham called for an end to the 'hounding' of British troops. 'There is no new evidence, but what has changed is that the DPP in Northern Ireland is now Barra McGrory, QC - the same person who represented Martin McGuinness in the Saville inquiry. 'This is the person who is prepared to move away from credible evidence to political decision-making, which I find very worrying. 'It has to be stopped. There are potentially 278 more cases involving the security forces 'I do not want any more veterans to be dragged out of their retirement homes any more than I want Sinn Fein councillors to be dragged out of council chambers.' In revenge for the killing of McCann, which sparked days of riots, the IRA shot five British soldiers, killing three in Belfast, Derry and Newry. Among them was Nicholas Hull of the Royal Anglican Regiment, who was shot by an IRA sniper in West Belfast. The marksman was never brought to justice for the crime. Earlier this week, Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon vowed to safeguard British troops from such witch-hunts. It is thought to be the second historical military prosecution relating to the Troubles. Ex-Warrant Officer (Class 1) Dennis Hutchings, 75, was charged with attempted murder over the fatal shooting of an IRA suspect later found to be innocent in 1974. The men are likely to appear in court next year over the death of Mr McCann (pictured in 1971) Lawyers acting for soldiers A and C were angered by the decision of the Public Prosecution Service of Northern Ireland (PPS), which is headed by lawyer Barra McGrory, who used to work for leading Republicans Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness. Philip Barden, of Devonshires Solicitors, said: Now 44 years after the shooting of Mr McCann and in their retirement years and having served their Queen and country for many years, they are accused of murder and must fight to clear their names. This is no way to treat those who serve our country. Their treatment differs from that of suspected IRA bomber John Downey, who escaped prosecution for the 1982 Hyde Park terror blast, which left four soldiers and seven horses dead, because he had been given a police guarantee he was immune from prosecution. Downey always denied involvement and pleaded not guilty at the Old Bailey in 2014. Mr Hutchings, of Cornwall, who is due to stand trial next year, said: This is a total witch-hunt. It is shambolic. British troops feel totally betrayed when they think they could be hauled into court and put on trial for doing their duty and protecting the country from terrorists. Colonel Richard Kemp, who served eight tours in Northern Ireland in the 1980s and 1990s, said: This is blatantly part of a politically motivated vendetta against British troops who served in Northern Ireland. Its objectives are to appease IRA terrorists and their families and to portray British soldiers and police as being equivalent to the terrorists themselves. IRA terrorists deliberately and cold-bloodedly set out to murder, maim and destroy. British soldiers were sent onto the streets by the government to save lives and maintain law and order. Military prosecutions involving N. Ireland The McCann case is said to be the second military prosecution involving Northern Ireland since the 1990s. Another ex-soldier was charged last year with an unrelated Troubles killing. Retired corporal Major Dennis Hutchings, from Torpoint in Cornwall, was accused of an attempted murder in County Tyrone in 1974. In 1999 Paratrooper Lee Clegg was cleared of murdering a Belfast teenager. Files on the 1972 Bloody Sunday shootings by soldiers in Londonderry are with prosecutors. Retired corporal: Major Dennis Hutchings, from Torpoint, Cornwall, was accused of an attempted murder in County Tyrone in 1974 Advertisement After the soldiers were told in May that their files had been passed to the PPS, Soldier C, a grandfather-of-one from Hampshire, said: How can this be justice? It is a disgrace. I was doing my duty in Northern Ireland, trying to protect the public and keep the peace. Now I am being thrown to the wolves. McCann, 24, was one of the Official IRAs most prominent activists. He was regarded by members of the security forces as a terrorist who would be armed and not hesitate to use his weapon to resist arrest. On April 15, 1972 weeks after Bloody Sunday two Royal Ulster Constabulary Special Branch officers recognised him near Belfast city centre and decided to arrest him. Soldier A, Soldier C and a colleague on patrol nearby were ordered to help. As McCann fled, it is claimed the soldiers shouted at him to stop or they would shoot. When he failed to halt, the three paras opened fire and he was killed. After an RUC investigation at the time, the soldiers were told they would face no further action. In 2010, the troops were traced by Northern Irelands Historical Enquiries Team (HET), which reviewed the case then told them the matter was closed. But its report in 2013 found the soldiers were unjustified in gunning down the IRA commander, saying he was unarmed. Prosecutors reviewed the case after the Northern Ireland Attorney General, John Larkin, referred it to the Director of Public Prosecutions in March 2014. Mr Larkin had been pushed by the dead IRA commanders family for a fresh inquest. Soldier A and C will receive court summons in the next few weeks. Last week the Mail told how up to 1,000 retired soldiers in their 60s and 70s faced a police witch-hunt some 40 years after they battled terrorism in Northern Ireland. Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) chiefs were blasted for re-examining every single British Army killing during the Troubles. McCanns widow, Aine, welcomed the decision. Her solicitor Kevin Winters said: This is some measure of justice after all these years. The PPS said the decision to prosecute was reached following an objective and impartial application of the test for prosecution. A former Fort Worth police officer who served 21 years of a life sentence for raping a 13-year-old girl was acquitted of the crime by a jury on Friday. Brian Franklin, who was freed in May after his accuser admitted that she lied when she didn't acknowledge a previous sex assault, was sentenced to life in prison in 1995 after being convicted of raping the girl a year prior. 'I knew it was going to come,' Franklin told KDFW-TV on Friday. 'I wasn't surprised.' Scroll down for video Brian Franklin (seen left after the not guilty verdict on Friday) was convicted for raping a 13-year-old girl in 1995 and sentenced to life in prison. His 1995 mug shot is seen on the right Franklin (seen center with his fist in the air) and his attorney Dick DeGuerin (center) celebrate the not guilty verdict with his family in a Fort Worth courtroom He was released on $10,000 bail by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals after it ruled that he did not receive a fair trial, but Tarrant County prosecutors retried the 56-year-old man for assaulting the girl in her father's backyard in 1994. Franklin's guilt was called into question when his accuser testified two years ago that she lied in part of her testimony, but the woman, now in her 30s, is standing by her accusation that Franklin raped her. The court said the perjured testimony also led others to give false testimony at the trial. The teenage accuser testified in 1995 that she had never had sex before accusing Franklin of raping her. Franklin, seen above in court in August 2014, has steadfastly maintained his innocence Franklin is seen hugging a well-wisher after the not guilty verdict on Friday Prosecutors had no DNA evidence tying Franklin to the crime, so they relied solely on the girl's testimony But she later told authorities that her stepfather had sexually assaulted her for years, including during Franklin's trial, and that she had been too scared to admit that with her stepfather ever present. Prosecutors had argued that because she had never had sex, the injuries she sustained to her genitals could only have been caused by Franklin. Because there was no DNA evidence tying Franklin to the girl, it was on the strength of her testimony that the officer was convicted, according to The Dallas Morning News. The stepfather pleaded guilty to injury of a child and received 10 years of probation. He has since died, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports. Franklin was convicted of aggravated sexual assault and sentenced to life imprisonment. He was eligible for parole in 2025. Sam Jordan, spokeswoman for the Tarrant County district attorney's office, said Thursday that the case against Franklin will be sent to a grand jury to decide whether he should be indicted. 'We feel that the evidence still substantiates the claim against him,' Jordan said, later adding: 'It was a police officer. We call on them to protect a child, not cause harm to them.' Franklin graduated from the police academy in the early 1980s and was an officer with Fort Worth police when he was accused in the attack. He was friends with the girl's father and was convicted almost entirely on her testimony. Japanese banks have threatened to move some operations out of London within six months unless Theresa May reveals more details of her Brexit plan Japanese banks have threatened to move some operations out of London within six months unless Theresa May reveals more details of her Brexit plan. Executives from banks including Nomura and Daiwa Capital Markets - which employ thousands of people in the UK - gave the ultimatum on December 1. They spoke at a meeting with City minister Simon Kirby and international trade minister Mark Garnier, according to The Financial Times. Japanese firms fear the European Union will strip firms based in Britain of the passporting rights that allow them to sell services on the Continent. Chancellor Philip Hammond noted their concerns on a trip to Tokyo. He said: Its fairly binary for them: they either have access to their markets or they dont have access. If they have full access to the markets from London they can continue operating as now. 'If they dont, they will have to restructure the way their operations address the European market. Although many foreign banks are demanding a confirmation passporting rights would be kept after Article 50 is invoked, Mr Hammond cannot guarantee this. Anti-Brexit campaigners have warned their removal could lead to a mass exodus from London. Executives from banks including Nomura and Daiwa Capital Markets - which employ thousands of people in the City - gave the ultimatum on December 1 However, an insider at a major Japanese bank dismissed the claim, saying: I dont think theres going to be wholesale movement to the Continent.' Some staff might have to be employed in Europe to deal with customers there, the insider admitted, but the numbers would probably be very small. Both Mitsubishi UFJ, Japans largest bank, and its rival Mizuho Bank already have offices on the Continent. Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe was confirmed as his party's sole candidate for the next presidential election in 2018, when he will be 94. Dressed in a jacket emblazoned with his own face, the politician - known for his unashamed self-promotion - called for an end to infighting within the ruling ZANU-PF over his eventual successor. Supporters at a party conference sang a song titled 'Mugabe should rule until eternity' as the veteran leader rose to give a speech. 'We came with our problems, which we heard. We also came knowing we had differences. We agreed our differences should end and fighting should stop,' said Mugabe, who has faced unprecedented protests this year. Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe was confirmed as his party's sole candidate for the next presidential election in 2018, when he will be 94 Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe was confirmed as his party's sole candidate for the next presidential election in 2018, when he will be 94 Supporters at a party conference sang a song titled 'Mugabe should rule until eternity' as the veteran leader rose to give a speech Mugabe, the only ruler that the southern African nation has known since independence from Britain in 1980, has come under pressure from a deteriorating economy, corruption and cash shortages that have seen the central bank introducing a new 'bond note' currency in November. In July, he was deserted by some of his once stalwart supporters, war veterans that have backed him in previous elections. Still, Mugabe retains unrivalled support in ZANU-PF, which is grappling with factional fights as party officials manoeuvre for advantage in a post-Mugabe era. ZANU-PF's various entities, including the youth and women's wings, confirmed him as the sole candidate to contest the 2018 election at the end of a two-day conference on Saturday, which was held in Masvingo town, 300 km (186 miles) south of the capital, Harare. Delegates wait for Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe to officially open the session That means potential successors who wish to challenge Mugabe for the leadership of the party would have to wait for the 2019 party congress when ZANU-PF chooses its leaders. There are two camps vying to succeed Mugabe, with one with faction supporting Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa while another backs first lady Grace Mugabe. In one of its resolutions, the ZANU-PF Youth League said presidential term limits should be abolished and Mugabe should be declared life president. Under the constitution adopted in 2013, Mugabe can only serve one final term. Political analysts say Mugabe runs an effective patronage system that rewards supporters and punishes those who seek to challenge his rule, as happened to his former vice president of 10 years Joice Mujuru in 2014. Thousands of people marched through London today to protest the 'lack of action' in Aleppo. Protesters went through central London, including past Christmas shoppers in Oxford Street waving banners and signs about the Syrian crisis. According to the Express, protesters chanted 'drop aid not bombs' as they moved through Piccadilly. Thousands of people marched through London including past shoppers in Oxford Street People waved banners asking for the protection of civilians and to stop the 'genocide' Police line the route as crowds wait for the marchers to continue their journey through the capital A protester covers his face from the cold while holding a banner reading 'medics under fire' The route began at Marble Arch, where the group met at 12.30pm. An hour later they were setting off toward Oxford Street, and travelled through Regent Street, then down Pall Mall and finally down White Hall to finish at 10 Downing Street, where they held a rally. According to the group's Facebook event, nearly 5,000 people were interested in attending. People marched past shoppers on Oxford Street, juxtaposed by the Christmas lights Police keep an eye on the protesters as they moved from Marble Arch toward Downing Street A post's on the group page read: 'An activist in Eastern Aleppo said what bothered her most wasn't the hunger due to the lack of food, but the silence of the international community regarding their situation. 'Today it is Aleppo, but tomorrow the same thing may happen in Idlib and other cities in Syria. We must push the international community to put an end to the atrocities.' Doctors staged a 'die in' protest outside Parliament today to show solidarity towards Syrian medics. Medact, a public health charity, called on doctors and nurses to gather in Parliament Square, London, and pretend to be dead to raise awareness of the impact of conflict on civilians and health workers. Since the war began in Syria in 2011, the group said there have been more than 382 attacks on 269 healthcare facilities, with more than 126 reported this year alone. Several medics lay 'dead' outside of parliament earlier today to show solidarity with Syrian doctors and people The protest was held as part of a day-long awareness drive, which started with the doctors seeing off a convoy of trucks, packed with medical supplies, which are heading towards Aleppo Director of Medact, Dr David McCoy, said: 'Health workers in the UK cannot turn a blind eye to the continued disregard of international humanitarian law in Syria and elsewhere and the targeting of our profession' Director of Medact, Dr David McCoy, said: 'Health workers in the UK cannot turn a blind eye to the continued disregard of international humanitarian law in Syria and elsewhere and the targeting of our profession. 'Our message is clear: hospitals, healthcare facilities and those working to treat and care for their fellow human beings must be protected. 'Let our colleagues do their job - let them treat their patients.' The die-in was held as part of a day-long awareness event, which began with the 'People's Convoy' leaving Chelsea and Westminster hospital at 11am, before a march took place from Marble Arch. The 'People's Convoy' is a convoy of trucks and lorries that is carrying medical equipment to help rebuild a children's hospital in Aleppo that was destroyed. The heavy goods vehicles will pass through France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria, before crossing Turkey and reaching the Turkey/Syria border. Organisers think the journey will take between six and seven days. Advertisement Surfers from around the world descended on the coast of Portugal to ride some of the biggest waves on earth. Professional wave riders gathered at Praia do Norte in Nazare, around 80 miles north of Lisbon, to take on swells as high as five storey buildings this morning. Nazare's giant waves are increasingly attracting surfers from around the world, as it becomes part of the World Surf League Big Wave Tour. The waves are now famous for being among the largest in the world. Praia do Nortete is one of the most westerly points in Europe, meaning that the wind sweeps across the Atlantic unhindered causing the unfathomably large swells. The biggest wave ever surfed was at Nazare. Hawaiian Garret McNamara took on the mammoth 78 ft high wave in November 2011. Scroll down for video Among the surfers was Briton Andrew Cotton who is pictured riding one of the big waves at Praia do Norte on December 17, 2016 in Nazare, Portugal Mr Cotton, from Plymouth, is a father-of-two who started surfing on the North Devon coast at the age of seven Alex Botelho of Portugal rides a wave during a big wave session at Praia do Norte on December 17, 2016 Alex Botelho, from Portugal, attended the event. He is well known to be one of the best European big wave riders Mr Botelho (pictured) was voted as the best Portuguese free surfer of the year in 2015 French Brazilian surfer Eric Xavier rides one of the huge waves at Praia do Norte Professional wave riders gathered at Praia do Norte in Nazare, around 80 miles north of Lisbon, to take on swells as high as five storey buildings The biggest wave ever surfed was at Nazare. Hawaiian Garret McNamara took on the mammoth 78 ft high wave in November 2011 Surfers from around the world descended on the coast of Portugal to ride some of the biggest waves on earth Praia do Norte is one of the most westerly points in Europe, meaning that the wind, sweeps across the Atlantic unhindered causing the large waves The waves, near the fishing village of Nazare, are now famous for being among the largest in the world A mob beat to death an elderly couple accused of witchcraft in eastern India. Three people have been arrested over the lynching, police said. The couple, in their late sixties, had been suspected of using black magic to kill their neighbours in a remote tribal district of Jharkhand state. It is the second such killing in the region in two weeks. After rumours spread that the couple had killed four people with witchcraft, the mob set upon them, beating them to death and burning down their house. More than 2,000 people were killed in India on suspicion of witchcraft between 2000 and 2012 (stock image) 'The accused said they killed the couple in revenge to the death of their four relatives, who they believe were killed by the couple using witchcraft,' a local police officer said. Last week a 60-year-old woman was burnt to death in another village by her neighbour on suspicion of having used black magic to kill a newborn baby. Police arrested the neighbour and charged her murder. Experts said belief in witchcraft and the occult remains widespread in many tribal and remote areas of India, where incidents of human sacrifices have also been reported. More than 2,000 people were killed in India on suspicion of witchcraft between 2000 and 2012, according to the National Crime Records Bureau. Many of the victims were women. President Obama took some time out of his final press conference of the year to defend Hillary Clinton, chiding the press for what he said was unfair coverage. Obama hit out at the media after one reporter asked if Russia's reported hacking of the Democratic Party to help Trump was partially to blame for Clinton's loss. 'I think she's worked tirelessly on behalf of the American people and I don't think she was treated fairly during the election,' Obama said as he avoided critiquing Russia outright. 'I think the coverage of her - and the issues - was troubling,' he added. President Obama took some time out of his final press conference of the year to criticize reporters for what he said was 'troubling' coverage of Hillary Clinton during her campaign Obama also criticized the media for its 'obsession' with the hacked emails from both the Democratic National Committee and senior aide John Podesta. 'I'm finding it a little curious that suddenly everyone's acting surprised that this looked like it was disadvantaging Hillary Clinton, because you guys wrote about it every single day,' Obama told the room full of reporters. 'Every single week. About every little juicy tidbit of political gossip, including John Podesta's risotto recipe.' 'This was an obsession that dominated the news coverage.' Obama's comments echoed what he said during an earlier interview with NPR as he discussed the Russian hack. Although the president refused to say if he agreed the hack's motivation was to help Trump, he said the intended result of the leak of emails was clear. 'What the Russian hack had done was create more problems for the Clinton campaign than it had for the Trump campaign,' he said. 'There's no doubt that it contributed to an atmosphere in which the only focus for weeks at a time, months at a time, were Hillary's emails, the Clinton foundation, political gossip surrounding the DNC.' Obama said he believed Clinton has 'worked tirelessly' for the American people and said he did not believe she was 'treated fairly during the election' A day after Obama's comments, it was revealed that the FBI and CIA agreed on an assessment that found Russia intervened in the election to help Trump win. Although Obama didn't outright endorse the assessment, he promised that Russia would face repercussions. 'I think there is no doubt that when any foreign government tries to impact the integrity of our elections...we need to take action,' he said on NPR. 'And we will - at a time and place of our own choosing. Some of it may be explicit and publicized, some of it may not be.' The president revealed on Friday that he had warned Vladimir Putin in September to stop meddling in American political campaigns, telling the Russian president to 'cut it out' when they met face-to-face at a G20 meeting in China. Obama, who said that there was no further evidence of Russian tampering after his warning, did not go so far as to say Putin was directly responsible for the hacking - but made sure to hint at it. hite House foreign policy adviser and spy historian have also resigned A former head of MI6 is one of three intelligence experts who have resigned from a Cambridge University security forum over fears of Russian influence. Sir Richard Dearlove has severed ties with the Cambridge Intelligence Seminar - a forum for spy researchers and former employees in the field. Former White House senior foreign policy adviser Stefan Halper and top espionage historian Peter Martland have also left. Sir Richard Dearlove (left) has severed ties with the Cambridge Intelligence Seminar - a forum for spy researchers and former employees in the field to meet They have fears the group has been infiltrated by Russian spies who want to influence its direction. Mr Halper, who worked for presidents Nixon, Ford and Reagan, said he had stepped down due to 'unacceptable Russian influence on the group', the Financial Times reported. The highly respected group was set up by MI5's official historian, Christopher Andrew. High profile Whitehall guests have attended including Sir Simon Fraser, the former permanent undersecretary at the Foreign Office. President-elect Donald Trump's choice for US national security adviser, Mike Flynn, has also taken part in discussions. Sir Richard, Mr Halper and Mr Martland fear a new publishing house, Veruscript, which has funded some of the seminar's costs and an intelligence journal, could be run by Russian spies. Russian security teams may want to take control of the group's weekly discussions on highly sensitive material held in Corpus Christi college, it is feared. Russian security teams may want to take control of the group's weekly discussions on highly sensitive material held in Corpus Christi college (pictured) it is feared The three resigned before the Autumn term. Sir Richard confirmed his resignation, but declined to comment further. The FT said Mr Martland did not respond to a request for comment. The paper has been unable to independently substantiate their claims. Prof Andrew rubbished claims the group had links to Russian spies. He said his resignation in the spring was not related to the infiltration allegations. Editor-in-chief of the new journal, Neil Kent, said the Russian spy allegations were 'inconceivable'. Russian physicist, Gleb Cheglako, who set up Veruscript said it was founded using family money. He added it would be editorially independent of the organisation which runs it, AGC Partners. It has helped fund The Journal of Intelligence and Terrorism Studies, although Mr Kent said different funding sources would be required in the future to keep the 50,000 a year publication afloat. In the 1930s a group Cambridge students were recruited by Russia as spies. The group, known as the Cambridge Five, included Kim Philby and Guy Burgess. British intelligence material was sent to the Russians to boost the communist cause. Russian President Vladimir Putin watches the launch of a missile during naval exercises in Russia's Arctic North The fears of new Kremlin influence come amidst concern Russian is targeting Britain. Whitehall officials believe Russia to be undertaking a programme of misinformation and unconventional warfare in an effort to undermine the UK. Prime Minister Theresa May is due to chair a National Security Council summit in the near future as Government officials consider a plan of action in response to Moscow. According to The Times, the increasing threat from the Kremlin was first discussed by the Cabinet Office in October. It is feared Russian tactics may include the discrediting of British troops due to be deployed in Estonia next year through sham pub brawls and traffic accidents. Britain is sending tanks, drones and 800 troops to Estonia as part of the biggest military build-up on Russia's borders since the Cold War. Montreal police seized 40 pounds of cannabis on Friday after raiding six dispensaries that opened across the city the day before, according to the Montreal Gazette. Marc Emery, an advocate of marijuana legalization in Canada and the man behind a chain of dispensaries in the country, was arrested along with his wife Jodie Emery and eight others. Marc Emery, acknowledged police were likely to crack down on his newly opened shops on Thursday. While Canada is moving towards legalizing marijuana, the drug is still illegal. Scroll down for video Montreal police launched raids against illegal cannabis stores opened by the self-proclaimed 'Prince of Pot,' Marc Emery (left), and his wife, Jodie (right) Canadian Marc Emery was extradited in 2010 to the United States and sentenced to five years after pleading guilty to selling marijuana seeds to American clients from his Vancouver-based store. After spending just over four years behind bars, he was released early in August 2014 on good behavior and flown from a facility in Louisiana to Detroit, before crossing the border into Windsor, Ontario. He has become a prominent advocate for marijuana legalization in North America, and referred to his dispensaries as 'civil disobedience'. 'Quebec is one of two provinces I have not been arrested in,' Emery previously told the Montreal Gazette. 'Ive been arrested 28 times in Canada for marijuana and Ive seen 34 prisons and jails in all that time. And yet even after 26 years of this kind of civil disobedience, the law still exists.' He added: 'Marijuana prohibition has never been legitimate, there has never been a real public policy reason for why this law exists. Its a complete abomination and anyone who enforces this despicable law is a despicable person. Jodie Emery tweeted on Saturday saying: 'I was arrested at our hotel in Montreal last night, released hours later with no charges. Under investigation. My first time in handcuffs!' She added: 'Marc Emery should be getting out of jail in Montreal today. We have no phones or computers, so I can only post updates occasionally. #MyHero' Jodie Emery tweeted about her arrest on Saturday and said her husband 'should be getting out of jail in Montreal today' Hundreds of customers lined the street throughout the day on Friday to make their first pot purchases at the Mount-Royal, Montreal location. Trudeau told reporters in Montreal on Friday that 'until we've changed the law, the current laws exist and apply.' Ottawa is moving 'properly and responsibly,' to legalize marijuana, Trudeau said, but the current law governing cannabis will stand until new legislation is ratified. Marc Emery was extradited in 2010 to the United States and sentenced to five years after pleading guilty to selling marijuana seeds to American clients from his Vancouver-based store Uber is on a collision course with California regulators after announcing its plans to defy a state order to halt the test program for its self-driving cars. The company's self-driving cars were unveiled to the public in San Francisco on Wednesday, but the California Department of Motor Vehicles has already ordered Uber to obtain a special permit or 'cease' the program. Anthony Levandowski, Uber's vice president for advanced technologies, argued that a special permit was unnecessary because their cars did not fall under the state's legal definition of an autonomous car. He explained that the cars still 'require someone in the driver's seat monitoring it at all times'. While a permit only costs $150, getting one would require the company to report every crash to the state. It would also need to disclose every incidence of a monitor taking control of the car during testing, the LA Times reported. Uber is on a collision course with California regulators after announcing its plans to defy a state order to halt the test program for its self-driving cars The self-driving cars were unveiled to the public in San Francisco on Wednesday, but the California Department of Motor Vehicles has already ordered Uber to obtain a special permit Anthony Levandowski argued that a special permit was unnecessary because their cars did not fall under the state's legal definition of an autonomous car In a sharply-worded letter, lawyers with the California's Department of Justice demanded that Uber obtain a special state permit - or face legal action. The ridesharing giant disputed the order on Friday, arguing that their self-driving cars did not fall under the legal definition of autonomous vehicles. 'We respectfully disagree with the California DMV's interpretation of autonomous regulations, in particular that Uber needs a permit to operate in San Francisco,' Levandowski told a conference call with journalists. Under California law, autonomous vehicles operate 'without active physical control or monitoring'. Levandowski said: 'While these are considered state of the art today, they still require monitoring by a vehicle operator at all times.' He added: 'We have a person sitting in the driver's seat, and there's also a person next to them looking at the system and trying to confirm that everything is going well. 'They are able to override and take control of the vehicle at any time,' he added. Levandowski said Uber was having 'frank conversations' with regulators and hoped to convince them that its autonomous cars were no different from Tesla's. Drivers can to turn over a number of operations to an onboard computer under Tesla's Autopilot system, but the cars still need a human behind the wheel. The LA Times reported that a permit only costs $150, but getting one would require the company to publicly report every crash, and every time a monitor takes control of the car during testing. Levandowski said was 'an important issue of principle'. Levandowski said Uber would not seek the permit, calling it an 'uneven application of statewide rules'. Levandowski (pictured) said Uber would not seek the permit, calling it an 'uneven application of statewide rules' 'We cannot in good conscience sign up for regulation of something we are not doing,' he said 'We cannot in good conscience sign up for regulation of something we are not doing,' he said. The announcement by the global ridesharing colossus came two days after state regulations said the testing program was not authorized. In a letter to Uber, DMV counsel Brian Soublet said the permit is required to protect public safety. 'It is illegal for the company to operate its self-driving vehicles on public roads until it receives an autonomous vehicle testing permit,' he wrote. 'It is essential that Uber takes appropriate measure to ensure safety of the public. If Uber does not confirm immediately that it will stop its launch and seek a testing permit, DMV will initiate legal action.' This is the moment a self-driving Uber jumped a red light in San Francisco during a trial run Government officials also called for Uber to stop its testing after one of the self-driving cars was caught on camera jumping through a red light and almost slamming into a pedestrian. Uber defended its new fleet, which launched on Wednesday, and said the incident was the result of human error. The driver who was behind the wheel at the time has been suspended. Backers of autonomous vehicles say the technology can reduce more than 90 percent of accidents, which mostly are due to human error. Since its debut in 2010, Uber has grown into a worldwide phenomenon despite regulatory hurdles and resistance from traditional taxi operators. I had been up for 27 hours and was flat-out exhausted, but the news sent jolts of adrenaline through me like Id never experienced before. A Special Forces team hunting the man we called High Value Target No 1 had pulled someone from a hole in the ground. He answered the description. And my bosses at the CIA were grilling me, the expert. Could this burly, unkempt man truly be Saddam Hussein, the ruthless dictator of Iraq? The most wanted man in the world? Scroll down for video Could this burly, unkempt man truly be Saddam Hussein, the ruthless dictator of Iraq? The most wanted man in the world? It was December 13, 2003, and Id been in Iraq for eight weeks a CIA analyst looking for leads that might take us to Saddam and his notorious henchmen. That was when I was called to see Buzzy Krongard, the CIAs executive director. The war to topple the regime had been going for nearly nine months, yet when it came to Saddam, all wed turned up were Elvis sightings, as we called them. Until, that is, troops searching a farm near Saddams home village of Tikrit found a large bearded man concealed in a tiny underground bunker. Now a group of senior officers were quizzing me in Krongards office; how, they asked, would I make a definitive identification? I told them about the tribal tattoos on Saddams right hand and wrist, the bullet scar on his left leg and that his lower lip tended to droop to one side, something I picked up from studying videotapes. Krongard interrupted me: We need to make sure this is Saddam and not one of those body doubles. The myth and it was a myth that Saddam maintained multiple lookalikes was a source of wry amusement to those of us who worked in intelligence, but I decided silence was the better part of valour and started compiling a list of questions only the dictator could answer. The military was flying the putative Saddam to Baghdad airport that night and it was decided wed make the identification there. In late 2007, I was summoned to give a detailed presentation to George W. Bush at the Oval Office. What kind of a man had Saddam been, he asked me? At midnight, after a long wait, the convoy was ready. Men in night-vision goggles drove us at 100mph down the Airport Road, a no-go zone at night. At the airport, a side road led to a series of low-slung blockhouses that once housed Saddams Special Republican Guard. Inside, I found pandemonium and another wait until finally a GI said, OK, guys. Youre up. Suddenly the door opened and I immediately found myself sucking in air. There he was, sitting on a metal folding chair, wearing a white dishdasha robe and blue quilted windbreaker. There was no denying that the man had charisma. He was big 6ft 1in and thickly built. Even as a prisoner who was certain to be executed, he exuded an air of importance. Author John Nixon I spoke first through a translator. I have some questions Id like to ask you, and you are to answer them truthfully. Do you understand? Saddam nodded. When was the last time you saw your sons alive? I expected Saddam to be defiant, but I was taken aback by the aggression of his reply: Who are you guys? Are you military intelligence? Mukhabarat [civilian intelligence]? Answer me. Identify yourselves! I noted his tribal tattoos and that his mouth drooped. Now I needed to see his bullet wound. There was so much we wanted to know. How had he escaped from Baghdad? Who had helped him? He would not say, answering only the questions he wanted to. Why dont you ask me about politics? You could learn a lot from me, he barked. He was especially vocal on the rough treatment hed received from the troops who brought him in, launching a long diatribe. I was incredulous. Here was a man who didnt think twice about killing his own people complaining about a few scratches. He lifted his dishdasha to show the damage to his left leg. I saw an old scar. Was it the bullet wound, I asked him. He assented with a grunt the final piece of proof. Wed got him. Capturing Saddam was all very well, but now we had to get to the truth about his regime, and in particular the weapons of mass destruction that had been the pretext for the invasion. His response was simply to mock us. Former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein moments after his capture by US forces You found a traitor who led you to Saddam Hussein. Isnt there one traitor who can tell you where the WMDs are? He warmed to the subject, saying Americans were a bunch of ignorant hooligans who did not understand Iraq and were intent on its destruction. Iraq is not a terrorist nation, he said. We did not have a relationship with (Osama) bin Laden, and did not have weapons of mass destruction... and were not a threat to our neighbours. But the American President [George W Bush] said Iraq wanted to attack his daddy and said we had weapons of mass destruction. Ignoring his goading, we asked Saddam if hed ever considered using WMDs pre-emptively against US troops in Saudi Arabia. We never thought about using weapons of mass destruction. It was not discussed. Use chemical weapons against the world? Is there anyone with full faculties who would do this? Who would use these weapons when they had not been used against us? This was not what we had expected to hear. How, then, had America got it so wrong? Saddam had an answer: The spirit of listening and understanding was not there I dont exclude myself from this blame. It was a rare acknowledgment that he could have done more to create a clearer picture of Iraqs intentions. Was he playing with us, twisting the truth to spare his pride? Debriefing The President: The Interrogation Of Saddam Hussein, by John Nixon, is published on December 29 by Bantam Press at 16.99 I asked about his notorious use of chemical weapons against the Kurdish city of Halabja during the Iran-Iraq war. He became furious. I am not afraid of you or your president. I will do what I have to do to defend my country! Then he turned to me and sneered: But I did not make that decision. We decided to close the briefing. As Saddam left the room, he glared at me. I have annoyed quite a few people in my life, but no one has ever looked at me with such murderous loathing. My superiors were delighted at the progress we were making, yet something nagged at me about the exchange. My gut told me that there was some truth in what Saddam had said. He was incensed about Halabja. Not because his officers had used chemical weapons he showed no remorse but because it had given Iran a propaganda field day. It was not the only thing that would surprise me. For example, in my years studying Saddam, I never doubted the received wisdom that his stepfather in Tikrit beat him. Many eminent psychiatrists who had analysed him from afar said this was why Saddam was so cruel and why he wanted nuclear weapons. Yet, in the course of my further interrogations, Saddam turned our assumptions upside down, saying his stepfather was the kindest man he had ever known: Ibrahim Hasan God bless him. If he had a secret, he would entrust me with it. I was more dear to him than his son, Idham. I asked about the CIAs belief that Saddam suffered great pain from a bad back and had given up red meat and cigars. He said he didnt know where I was getting my intelligence, but it was wrong. He told me he smoked four cigars every day and loved red meat. He was also surprisingly fit. The CIA profile of Saddam suggested he was a chronic liar, yet he could be quite candid. Our perception that he ruled with an iron grip was also mistaken. It became clear from our interrogations that in his final years, Saddam seemed clueless about what had been happening inside Iraq. He was inattentive to what his government was doing, had no real plan for the defence of Iraq and could not comprehend the immensity of the approaching storm. Saddam was quick, too, to deny involvement in 9/11. Look at who was involved, he said. What countries did they come from? Saudi Arabia. And this [ringleader] Muhammad Atta, was he an Iraqi? No. He was Egyptian. Why do you think I was involved in the attacks? Saddam had actually believed 9/11 would bring Iraq and America closer because Washington would need his secular government to help fight fundamentalism. How woefully wrong he had been. During our talks, we often heard muffled explosions. Saddam inferred things were not going well for the US forces and took pleasure in the fact. You are going to fail, he said. You are going to find that it is not so easy to govern Iraq. History has proved him right. But back then, I was curious why he felt that way. Because you do not know the language, the history, and the Arab mind, he said. Its hard to know the Iraqi people without knowing its weather and its history. The difference is between night and day and winter and summer. Thats why they say the Iraqis are hard-headed because of the summer heat. THE ONE SUBJECT THAT MADE HIM CRY Doting dad: Saddam and Rana The only time Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein showed any emotion during my interviews was when we discussed his daughters, Rana and Raghid. His eyes became watery and his voice quivered. I miss them terribly, he said. I enjoyed a wonderful relationship with them. They loved me very much, and I loved them very much. Saddam also said he was proud of his murderous sons Uday and Qusay, but realistic about their shortcomings. He sometimes found it necessary to punish them. Uday was a particular problem for him. He said he was incensed when he learned that Uday kept a fleet of Bentleys, Jaguars and Mercedes in a garage protected by Republican Guard soldiers, saying: What kind of message are we sending to the Iraqi people, who must suffer under sanctions and do without? Saddam had the cars torched after a drunk Uday shot and wounded Saddams half-brother Watban at a family party. The altercation prompted the 1995 defection of Hussein and Saddam Kamel, the husbands of Saddams two daughters, to Jordan. Advertisement He chuckled and added: Next summer, when it is hot, they might revolt against you. The summer of 1958 got a little hot. In the 1960s, when it was hot, we had a revolution. You might tell that to President Bush! It was several years and several more postings to Iraq before I could explain the realities of Iraq to the President, face to face. By now, Saddam had been tried and executed, finally dispatched in late 2006. But in late 2007, I was summoned to give a detailed presentation to George W. Bush at the Oval Office. What kind of a man had Saddam been, he asked me? I told him that he was disarming at first and used self-deprecating wit to put you at ease. The President looked as if he was going to lose his cool. I quickly explained that the real Saddam was sarcastic, arrogant and sadistic, which seemed to calm Bush down. He looked at Vice-President Dick Cheney and their eyes locked in a knowing way. As I was leaving, he joked: You sure Saddam didnt say where he put those vials of anthrax? Everyone laughed, but I thought his crack inappropriate. America had lost more than 4,000 troops. Several months later, I was asked to go back to the White House. This time, the President looked annoyed and distracted and asked for a briefing on the Shia cleric called Muqtada al-Sadr, the leader of the Mahdi Army, then engaged in dangerous insurgency against the coalition. This was not on the agenda. Trying to gain a few seconds, I said: Well, that is the $64,000 question Bush looked at me and said: Why dont you make it the $74,000 question, or whatever your salary is, and answer? What an a***hole! In his 2010 memoir, Bush wrote: I decided I would not criticise the hardworking patriots of the CIA for the faulty intelligence on Iraq. But that is exactly what he did. He blamed the agency for everything that went wrong and called its analysis guesswork while hearing only what he wanted to hear. I do not wish to imply that Saddam was innocent. He was a ruthless dictator who plunged his region into chaos and bloodshed. But in hindsight, the thought of having an ageing and disengaged Saddam in power seems almost comforting in comparison with the wasted effort of our brave men and women in uniform and the rise of Islamic State, not to mention the 2.5 trillion spent to build a new Iraq. John Nixon, 2016 Defence Minister Marise Payne has slammed her colleages after rumours she was afraid to appear on television because of her weight. Senator Payne has taken aim at her male colleagues in the Australian Liberal Party, telling them to 'get a mirror' after the rumours alleged she'd had a mental breakdown and had fears of televised appearances because she was 'too fat'. She said she had 'nothing printable' to say about the alleged rumours, The Daily Telegraph reported. Australian Defence Minister Marise Payne (pictured) has slammed her colleagues after rumours she was afraid to appear on television because of her weight Senator Payne (pictured) said she had 'nothing printable' to say about the alleged rumours 'My colleagues across the board have been fabulous. I don't know. Ask the guys who need a mirror,' Senator Payne said. Her comments came after a report there was a 'nasty' campaign to undermine her being carried out by some members of the government, according to the ABC. My colleagues across the board have been fabulous. I don't know. Ask the guys who need a mirror. Defence Minister Marise Payne Senator Payne recently had surgery for an abdominal infection which forced her to miss weeks worth of work. High-level regional security talks with her Japanese counterparts had to be re-scheduled to 2017 due to her health. Some of her colleagues have questioned her position in the high-profile role, however, Senator Payne told The Daily Telegraph she was 'looking forward to getting back to work'. She made history in 2015 after Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull made her Australia's first female defence minister. Coalition MP George Christensen during question time at Parliament House in December. It's not implied he was involved in the rumours Advertisement Peering into the lens with a beaming smile, she is uncommonly at ease in front of the camera for a 13-year-old girl, and exudes the radiant personality which will one day catch the eye of a prince. These exclusive pictures of Meghan Markle as a child in California provide a revealing glimpse of how she grew up in circumstances far removed from her glamorous life today as the Hollywood actress who has captured the heart of Prince Harry. But for her family, she is still the same Meghan and whatever the future of her Royal romance, they pledge that she will always be our princess. The actress, now 35, who stars in legal TV drama Suits, has been to the UK four times in the last three months to see Harry, 32, who is said to be besotted with her. Scroll down for video Teen with a dream: A 13-year-old Meghan Markle, pictured, beams for the camera while practicing her calligraphy. She grew up in circumstances far removed from her glamorous life as an actress today Baby face: Meghan, pictured left with her father Tom, right, and nephew Thomas, centre, may or may not end up marrying Harry but 'will always be a princess' to her family Last week, the pair were photographed together for the first time after seeing a West End play. But back in 1994, wearing an oversized brown jumper and a wide grin, Meghans thoughts were on practising calligraphy, a skill she would later use to supplement her income as an up-and-coming actress. IS THIS LOVE? HARRY'S VERY REVEALING PLAYLIST Judging by the music Harrys been listening to on his secret music streaming account, the young Royal is feeling romantic and happy. Five days ago, as Meghan Markle landed in London for a pre-Christmas break with him, Harry played the emotive Beautiful Life by Lost Frequencies. And two months ago, as it was revealed he and Miss Markle were getting serious, he played Is This Love? by Bob Marley, with its famous lyric, I want to love you, and treat you right. Advertisement Her former sister-in-law Tracy Dooley, who took the photo, recalled urging, Smile, Meghan! As some of the other pictures show, the young Meghan was not always so pleased to be snapped. Glancing at the photo of Meghan holding a bag of popcorn during a trip to feed ducks in Lake Balboa Park in Los Angeles, Ms Dooley, speaking exclusively to The Mail on Sunday, recalled: That was a paparazzi shot. She was in the middle of feeding the ducks and she turned around. Thats why she has that face. Its an, Oh, yeah, another picture face. Meghan looked even more glum in two other photos with her young nephew Thomas as a toddler and a baby, but according to Tracy who now lives in Medford, Oregon she was always in good spirits and wasnt a moody teenager. Accounts manager Ms Dooley, 51, recalled how Meghan loved playing with the kids and would delight Thomas and his brother Tyler by tickling their faces with her big soft hair, making them laugh and laugh. She will always have a special place in our hearts, she added. She will always be our princess. On duty: The teenaged Meghan is pictured babysitting nephew Thomas here and was clearly not afraid to play around with her styles, judging by her hair Candid camera: Meghan, pictured here aged 11, was captured in a surprise 'paparazzi' shot in a Los Angeles park here, and it would not be the last time someone took her picture unawares In one photograph, also taken in 1994, Meghan is shown with her father, Thomas Markle Snr, now aged 72 and living in Mexico. His son, Meghans half-brother Thomas Jnr, 50, was formerly married to Tracy. The baby between Meghan and her father is Meghans nephew (also called Thomas). He is now aged 25 and a pizza restaurant boss. By the time these photos were taken, Meghans father had already divorced her mother, Doria Ragland, 60, a yoga teacher. Recalling his aunt, Thomas told The Mail on Sunday: She was always really caring about other people and affectionate. She grew up with really strong roots. Stunning: The actress, now 35, pictured, has made a name for herself on US legal drama Suits, which films in Toronto, and met Prince Harry in May while he was in Canada promoting the Invictus Games Prince Harry's, pictured, secret music streaming account suggests he is feeling romantic and happy, after recently playing the emotive Beautiful Life by Lost Frequencies He added that Meghan, who is a global ambassador for charity World Vision Canada, really advocates for people who dont have much in life. Shes a very giving person. He said her maternal instincts were strong, adding: She will be the best mother in the world. When she has a kid, shes going to love that kid more than anything. Harry and Meghan met in May in Canada when he was promoting the Invictus Games, the Paralympics-style competition he founded for wounded veterans. Michael Sheen is stepping back from his acting career to fight against the rise of the 'hard populist right' as an activist. The accomplished stage and screen actor said the 'demagogic, fascistic' change in politics, including the election of Donald Trump, has prompted his desire to counter it. The 47-year-old Welshman said that through grassroots organising in his home town of Port Talbot, he will fight the rise of the 'hard populist right' which has emerged in the UK, the US, France and Austria. Sheen stars in the new film, Passengers, alongside A-listers sci-fi Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence (pictured) Michael Sheen and his partner, the comedian and actress Sarah Silverman 'It means that I would work less as an actor, and possibly stop,' he told The Times. 'Once I'm in, I'm fully in, and this is big. It will be a big change for how people relate to me.' Sheen has already been outspoken on a number of issues including protecting the NHS and criticising potential changes to freedom of information legislation. He has also called for the Government to support steel workers and visited a refugee camp to speak out about the plight of Syrian children affected by war. Sheen stars in new film, Passengers, alongside A-listers sci-fi Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence. He has been praised for his portrayal of Arthur, an android bartender, who has to figure out the balance between being robotic and human. Previous roles include playing Tony Blair in The Queen, David Frost in Frost/Nixon, and Brian Clough in The Damned United. Sheen played Tony Blair in The Queen, a film about the monarch's reaction to Princess Diana's death in 1997 In 2009 he played journalist David Frost who came up against president Richard Nixon Advertisement Donald Trump arrived in Alabama on the last stop of his 'Thank You' tour on Saturday afternoon, where he thanked his supporters and reiterated several of his key campaign promises. Trump, who was last at the Ladd-Peebles Stadium in August 2015, took to the stage on Saturday and said: 'This is where it all began. Remember that incredible rally we had?' 'I'm here today for one reason...To thank the people of Alabama. We are really the people who really love this country.' After giving a special mention to key supporters, including veterans, law enforcement, and evangelicals, Trump promised to 'be smart with how we spend our money,' shining a spotlight on Boeing's Air Force One deal again. He said: 'We're not going to spend $4.2 billion on Air Force One. Boeing is going to do a much less expensive plane than that.' Donald Trump was greeted by the Azalea Trail Maids as he stepped off the plane in Alabama on Saturday afternoon High school girls apply to become one of the trail maids every fall to become ambassadors of the city of Mobile. They are known for their lavish antebellum outfits Trump appeared shocked by the surprise as he stepped off his plane to give a speech on the last stop of his 'Thank You' tour The Azalea Trail Maids smiled as they waited for Trump to step off his plane in Mobile. They had been tasked to greet him Four of the Mobile Azalea Trail Maids later braved the rain in their ample dresses to walk the field at Trump's thank you rally Trump looked surprised when he got off his plane to see the Azalea Trail Maids and went to meet them in person Trump, who drew 30,000 supporters at the Mobile rally in 2015, took to the stage on Saturday in the rain. He singled out his supporters, calling out the Southern states, as well as evangelical Christians, veterans, law enforcement and servicemen for their support while emphasizing his anti-establishment rhetoric. He said: 'They defied the pundits, defied the pollsters, and the special interests, and delivered a historic win for the American worker and the American people.' As supporters cheered and chanted, 'Build that wall!', Trump promised to uphold respect for the American flag, crack down on illegal immigration and bolster the military. But Trump, who has called for an end to caps on the military budget, made sure to add: 'We will be smart with how we spend our money.' During several points of his speech, Trump accused the media for being 'dishonest' and emphasized his win despite all odds. He gave the crowd a play-by-play of how he found out he had won state after state, replaying the Election Night and the story of his shocking victory. Trump also called the electoral vote 'genius' several times. The president-elect briefly called to the stage his pick for Attorney General, former Alabama senator Jeff Sessions, as well as his former campaign manager Kellyanne Conway, whom he congratulated for becoming the first woman in US history to lead a successful presidential campaign. His former press secretary Hope Hicks made a brief appearance on stage too and Trump praised her for being really talented. He also pointed out Franklin Graham, the son of Reverend Billy Graham, in the crowd and thanked him for his support. The president-elect gave the crowd a play-by-play of how he found out he had won state after state on Election Night Trump also reminded the crowd that Time Magazine had named him 'person of the year' - but bashed the publication for not calling him 'man of the year', which he believes would have made more sense The tycoon at one point conducted what he called a 'free poll', asking the crowd if they'd prefer products made in the United States to say: 'Made in America' or 'Made in the USA'. The crowd cheered louder for the second option Trump during his rally promised to rebuild the country's infrastructure, telling the crowd Americans would go back to the 'old days' when products were marked: 'Made in America'. He then conducted what he called a free poll, asking the crowd whether the tag should say 'Made in America' or 'Made in the USA'. He said one, then the other, judging what the public preferred based on the loudness of their cheers. The crowd seemed to favor 'made in the USA', screaming loudly and chanting: 'USA! USA!' while Trump smiled. 'OK. Can we do one more poll?' Trump asked. 'What the hell its raining but were all soaking wet so it doesnt matter.' He then reminded the crowd that Time Magazine had named him 'person of the year' - but bashed the publication for not calling him 'man of the year'. The president-elect settled the matter by asking the crowd to cheer for the option they preferred, giving them a choice between 'person of the year' and 'man of the year'. The public seemed to favor 'man of the year', which was Trump's choice too. 'I thought so. And its pretty simple: if its a woman you say woman of the year,' he said. The president-elect briefly called to the stage his former campaign manager Kellyanne Conway, whom he congratulated for becoming the first woman in US history to lead a successful presidential campaign Conway addressed the crowd briefly, thanking them for supporting Trump and vice-president-elect Mike Pence. She wished the crowd a merry Christmas, adding: 'If you celebrate a different holiday, God bless you too' Trump also pledged to defeat ISIS and 'keep radical Islamic terrorists the hell out of our country'. He didn't give much detail about how he would beat the terror group but said he would rely on 'extreme vetting' and stop immigration from zones where he considered it was impossible to properly screen people before they arrive. Trade and manufacturing jobs were also part of Trump's speech, as he pledged once again to negotiate what he believes are better trade deals and taxing companies that move jobs outside of the United States. The president-elect bragged several times about how little money he spent on his campaign. 'When you spend less money and win thats much better than the other way,' he said. 'Another person spent $22 million - I cant say who because theyre all friends of mine now.' Trump also ribbed the Clinton camp for canceling a planned Election Night fireworks display. 'Fireworks just dont work when you lose,' he said. The president-elect gave the crowd an idea of what he would have said in his concession speech if he had lost. He said he would have kept it short, telling the public: 'Ladies and gentlemen, thank you. My supporters, I love you very much. It was a movement but a movement that didnt work.' Then, Trump said he would have thanked his family and his wife before telling the crowd goodbye. Trump took to the stage on Saturday in the rain and singled out his supporters, thanking the Southern states, as well as evangelical Christians, veterans, law enforcement and servicemen The president-elect also called to the stage Jeff Sessions, his nominee for Attorney General. Sessions, a former Alabama senator, reminisced about Trump's 2015 rally in Mobile, which attracted 30,000 people Former Trump press secretary Hope Hicks made a brief appearance on stage too. Trump praised her for being really talented Trump also said he and his campaign broke the proverbial 'blue wall' - a block of states that were projected to always remain in the Democratic camp. 'They had the blue wall that was unbreakable. Boy did we shatter that wall, that wall was shattered. That wall will never be the same,' Trump told the crowd. The president-elect lashed out at Nobel prize winner and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, who tweeted on Friday: 'Thought: There was (rightly) a cloud of illegitimacy over Bush, dispelled (wrongly) by 9/11. Creates some interesting incentives for Trump.' Trump accused Krugman of suggesting he wished for another 9/11-style attack to strengthen his support base. He called Krugman a 'clown', adding: 'This guy is a demented person and thats why the New York Times is failing. I had a great meeting with them but theyll never change.' Conway addressed the crowd briefly, thanking them for supporting Trump and Vice-President-elect Mike Pence. 'This is the year the voters said "I'm taking my country and my party back,"' she said. Conway then wished the crowd a merry Christmas, adding: 'If you celebrate a different holiday, God bless you too.' Sessions meanwhile was introduced by Trump as a 'very, very special guest'. He thanked the president-elect and reminisced about Trump's 2015 rally in Mobile. That day, according to Sessions, marked the beginning of Trump's 'movement'. Members of the audience prayed as they waited to listen to Trump during the thank you rally in Mobile on Saturday Supporters took a moment to say a prayer as they waited for the president-elect to take the stage at his thank you rally Trump also pledged to defeat ISIS and 'keep radical Islamic terrorists the hell out of our country'. He didn't give much detail about how he would beat the terror group but said he would rely on 'extreme vetting' for immigration The president-elect gave an idea of what he would have said in his concession speech if he had lost. He said he would have kept it short, telling the public: 'My supporters, I love you very much. It was a movement but a movement that didnt work' 'Suck it up, Buttercup': A supporter came to the thank you rally bearing a sign with a tough message for Trump opponents Who does Father Christmas vote for? A man showed up dressed as Santa Claus to Trump's final thank you rally in Mobile Don't rain on my parade: Trump supporters tried to stay dry in the dire weather during the president-elect's final rally The tycoon earlier in the day was greeted on the tarmac by high school girls known as the Azalea Trail Maids, who are chosen every year to serve as ambassadors for Mobile in their pastel antebellum outfits. Trump, who took to the stage about half an hour late, tweeted earlier Saturday: 'Mobile, Alabama today at 3:00 P.M. Last rally of the year - "THANK YOU ALABAMA AND THE SOUTH" Biggest of all crowds expected, see you there!' Authorities in the city sparked a controversy after they took to a public park and cut down a 50-foot cedar tree that was decorated with ornaments and placed in the stadium in preparation for Trump's arrival. Colby Cooper, the chief of staff under Mayor William Stimpson, tweeted: 'Great day in @City_of_Mobile! Team did the impossible getting ready to welcome President-Elect @realDonaldTrump with 50ft Christmas tree!' This is the horrific moment a man was swept away into the sea to his death during stormy weather in Spain. The video shows the man, who is wearing a bright yellow coat, being swept away by a fast-flowing torrent of water in Alicante on Saturday. At one point, he tries to take refuge by his stranded car but has his feet pulled from under him. Footage shows the man attempting to take refuge by his stranded car before having his feet pulled from under him in Alicante Two police officers were also filmed wading into the water in a desperate attempt to search for the man, as they waited for reinforcements to arrive. Shocked witnesses in a nearby apartment filmed the tragedy, which saw the victim being swept away into the sea before disappearing from view. One witness said: 'It all happened so quickly, within a minute'. Emergency services rushed to the scene and searched for half an hour before finding the man's body. It is believed the man was either going to get provisions or trying to reach his car, despite the emergency services advising people not to go out. The accident happened in the Finestrat district of Alicante. Mayor Perez Llorca later confirmed a body had been retrieved in a cove. He was swept away by a fast-flowing torrent of water during stormy weather Shocked witnesses in a nearby apartment filmed the tragic incident, which took place in the Finestrat district of Alicante It is believed to be the same area where a British couple were swept away by storms five years ago. The man's identity and nationality have not been released but it is understood he lived locally and was aged in his 60s or 70s. A 30-year-old man was also killed when his car crashed during the storms and overturned into a ditch. Police said it seemed he managed to get out but drowned in the water. His body was found by firefighters. The bad weather brought between 100 and 140 litres of rain per square metre in 12 hours, with gusts of wind of up to 40 miles an hour. Rescue services received more than 700 calls and had to help when 89 caravans at a Benidorm camping site had to be evacuated. Jeremy Corbyn walked out of a Christmas karaoke party for Labour MPs where they sang Tony Blairs 1997 Election-winning anthem Things Can Only Get Better accompanied by chants of: We Want Tony! The humiliated Opposition leader left as MPs insulted him at the noisy booze-up. They also sang The Beatles Back In The USSR an attack on him for failing to take a tougher line over Russias bombing of Aleppo in Syria and Madonnas Like A Virgin, a dig at his ridiculed claim to have been forced to sit on the floor of a crowded Virgin train. Dozens of Labour MPs joined arms to sing D-Reams Things Can Only Get Better and used their own secret anti-Corbyn WhatsApp messaging system to mock him and Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell, defiantly posting a video of themselves in full voice. In harmony: female Labour MPs at the karaoke party included from left, Jess Phillips, who once told Diane Abbott to 'f*** off'; Stella Creasy, who has claimed Labour is 'running on empty'; Lucy Powell, who has said Corbyn was 'brutally exposed' in the EU referendum; and anti-Semitic hate victim Luciana Berger The karaoke revolt was part of a Labour Christmas Uprising against Mr Corbyn last week as: A Labour peer suggested to his face he should follow the lead of unpopular French Socialist president Francois Hollande and quit. At a thinly attended meeting of his demoralised Shadow Cabinet, a glum Mr Corbyn said it was quicker to name the people present than list who was absent. A Labour MP revealed his contempt for Corbyn in a rude Christmas card to the party leader. The karaoke party occurred on Tuesday at the Westminster Kitchen bar and grill, one of Mr Corbyns favourite haunts. Attended by about 60 Labour MPs, he hoped the sing-song would restore harmony with backbench critics. But it ended in a musical protest and complaints from angry residents about noise. MPs LET RIP... MPs posted messages on social media from the party venue, a restaurant owned by Corbyns friend Ibrahim Kebab King Dogus, below. Jeremy and co left after I sang Back In The USSR and everyone sang Things Can Only Get Better. Ilford South MP Mike Gapes, 11.08pm Lets ask John McDonnell to sing Money For Nothing. Edinburgh South MP Ian Murray, 8.31pm Advertisement Mike Gapes sang Back In The USSR a jibe at Corbyns pro-Russian sympathies. Gapes, who has previously called on Corbyn to give an unambiguous condemnation of Russias bombing of Syria, declared: I dedicate this song to the downfall of the Soviet Union. Its never been more topical! Gapes later boasted he had sparked Corbyns walkout. While Corbyn and McDonnell glad-handed MPs in a charm offensive, another anti-Corbyn MP, Ian Murray, used Whats-App to goad McDonnell, accused of spendthrift policies joking: Lets ask John McDonnell to sing [Dire Straits] Money For Nothing! When Edinburgh MP Murray and Stoke MP Ruth Smeeth grabbed the microphone and sang Things Can Only Get Better, dozens of fellow moderate MPs joined a rousing chorus. One shouted: We want Tony! Corbyn and McDonnell, together with Corbyn cronies Baroness Chakrabarti and Left-wing MP Richard Burgon, had exited amid jeers. Murray resigned from Labours Front Bench this year with a devastating attack on Corbyn. Smeeth was targeted by pro-Corbyn, anti-Semitic trolls. Labour MP Mary Glindon sang Like A Virgin and teased Corbyn for refusing to join in, saying: Go on Jeremy, sing I Did It My Way. Significantly, Corbyns deputy, Tom Watson, a constant thorn in his side, stayed on at the event. Other Labour MPs at the party included Lucy Powell, who said Corbyn was brutally exposed in the EU referendum; anti-Semitic hate victim Luciana Berger; Stella Creasy, who has claimed Labour is running on empty and Jess Phillips who once told Diane Abbott to f*** off. Westminster Kitchen owner, Kurdish-born Ibrahim Dogus, known as Londons Kebab King, is a longstanding Labour supporter and friend of the party leader. MPs partied towards midnight, and the food and drink bill came to more than 3,000. LABOUR MP SENDS CORBYN A VERY UNSEASONAL GREETING The message inside this card makes it hard to believe that Neil Coyle was one of the MPs who nominated Jeremy Corbyn for the Labour leadership. Little more than a year later, he writes to Corbyn: I hope you have a better Christmas than Labours poll ratings. The Bermondsey MP has said he regrets nominating Corbyn, whose team put Coyle, 37, on a hit list of critics this summer. Advertisement Corbyn faced more abuse at a packed meeting with Labour peers when ex-union chief Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe told him to emulate Francois Hollande who is not standing for re-election as Frances president after dire poll ratings. Francois Hollande has decided to stand down in the interests of his party, said Brooke, who was ennobled by Blair. What do you think about that? Labour sources said there was an excruciating silence when more than half his Shadow Cabinet failed to turn up for a meeting last week. Award-winning Channel 4 News journalist Waad al-Kateab, her doctor husband Handra and their 11-month-old daughter are among up to 40,000 people still trapped inside the ever-shrinking enclave of eastern Aleppo, where rebels are holding out against the forces of the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies. They are holed up in the besieged districts last functioning hospital along with a handful of other medical staff, a few dozen activists and dozens of the injured, many of whom lie sprawled across the floor in an extremely perilous state, some slowly dying. Waad who is seven months pregnant with her second child and her neighbours have endured months of artillery shells and air strikes in the rebel-held sector and are desperate to escape. Scroll down for video Up to 40,000 people, including Channel 4 News journalist Waad al-Kateab, her husband and their 11-month-old daughter, are still trapped in Aleppo amid reports of civilians being taken off a convoy of buses headed for safety, pictured, and instead executed Last week, she provided a searing eyewitness account of the brutal last days of the battle for Aleppo. Here, compiled from her messages and reports, we chronicle the harrowing, tumultuous events from the past week, seen through her eyes. She details how hope has turned to despair, amid reports of civilians being hauled off a convoy of buses taking refugees to safety and executed by Syrian and allied militia. SUNDAY, DECEMBER 11 The rebels claimed to have halted the Syrian governments advance into East Aleppo even as artillery shells and Russian air strikes continued to rain down. A spokesman for the White Helmet civil rescue force described the bombardment as unreal. Waad says: The days look like each other. All the things which sustain life food, fuel and medicine have been declining day by day. 'There is no space left in the hospital, with blood all over the floors and walls, and no empty beds. Even the nursery room has been used as space for the wounded. Much of Aleppo is in ruins, pictured, after four years of explosive battles between President Bashar al-Assad's national forces and Syrian rebels MONDAY The Syrian Army said that the battle for Aleppo was in its final phase. A senior Syrian general claimed the rebel fighters did not have much time and needed to surrender or die. There is heavy shelling around the hospital, mortars are flying. I am waiting for my husband to come back. 'The situation is that there are still six neighbourhoods being held by rebels. 'The regime captured many areas, so the situation is about negotiation, we are told, between the rebels, regime and the Russians. 'No one talks any more about aid convoys coming in to break the siege only of us having to leave our home. Rebel fighters, pictured, agreed a deal with national forces to have a ceasefire to allow for mass evacuation after the UN became involved TUESDAY The UN reported mass executions of women and children were taking place. Foreign Office Minister Tobias Ellwood said the West had blinked in 2013 and missed an opportunity to bring Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to account. Urgent plans were drawn up by the UN to evacuate civilians and fighters. There is some news the first bus is due to leave. A rebel told us that the regime is serious so maybe the first bus will leave soon. 'The injured who are due to leave are at this hospital, so I plan to travel with them to the crossing point to film it. 'We know that the regime is too close to us and there will be a big massacre if it takes our area. Women and children, pictured, were reported to be looking afraid as preparations for evacuation were under way 'A lot of the injured in the last days were attacked when they made a group to go together to government areas. 'Ive seen a lot of children, a lot of women, they were so afraid. They were surprised because they were saying: We are going to a regime area, why do they kill us? 'I dont want to go out from the city. Its my Aleppo, its my lovely city. Maybe its just some faith in our hearts to be strong. 'Maybe this disaster will be finished and well be OK. WEDNESDAY As an uneasy truce held, the world watched as a huge fleet of green buses sent to rescue thousands of civilians stood empty as Iranian-backed militiamen prevented people boarding them. After a stand-off of several hours, the shooting and shelling began again, with each side blaming the other, and hopes for peace shattered. We waited to find out where the crossing point would be. The Arab Red Crescent were meant to let people here know. 'When we were told the location, we went to the front line/crossing area to discover what was going on. 'The first evacuation was to be civilians, injured ones Im told. We waited for about two to three hours for the crossing to happen we waited but it didnt happen. 'They then said the Russians, Iranians and Syrian government would let people leave a few hours later. So we went home. Thousands of rebel fighters and Aleppo civilians are still trapped within the city as an uneasy truce between the two sides struggles to stay in place 'The hospital is full. We need water. We are cooking now because we didnt eat all day. 'Its midnight, and theres heavy shelling. Someone from the White Helmets was here in the hospital and I went with him to the site of an attack to the building where they were searching for people. 'I think it might be the last time I film with the White Helmets before we leave the city. 'The Red Crescent will be travelling with the injured people leaving, so I hope theyll be OK. There are no doctors with them. I hope everything will be OK. THURSDAY Hopes of a breakthrough. The buses lined up again, and this time we're allowed to transport thousands from Aleppo. But Waad filmed a convoy of cars and ambulances carrying the injured which was itself fired upon. Despite these setbacks, UN sources estimated 8,000 people were brought out. The cars were full of civilians and injured. They were to go to al-Ramousa where the Red Arab Crescent was waiting for them. A lot of people were waiting for permission to leave. 'We were there when the regime forces attacked waiting for the Red Crescent to take the injured and their families out but the injured are now back at the hospital. Some have bad injuries. [Later that day]: We are now planning on leaving the city. Im packing and well go in the morning. Figures have been spotted carrying their belongings through the rubble as they head towards evacuation points FRIDAY The last convoy that attempted to leave with around 400 people in 20 vehicles passed through a Russian checkpoint before being stopped by Shia militia fighters with tanks. Accompanying representatives of The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) were apparently forced to leave. Young men of fighting age were picked out from the convoy, buses were searched and mobile phones, valuables and documents confiscated. There were unconfirmed reports that up to three of the men pulled from the buses were killed on the spot, and that the pregnant wife of one of those who was killed was dragged away and arrested after putting up resistance. After more than four hours, the buses were sent back to eastern Aleppo. Aleppo is now a synonym for hell, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told reporters in New York, urging a resumption of the evacuation. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon told the world 'Aleppo is a synonym for hell' We were going to leave this morning, but then someone told us not to because of an incident at the crossing. 'We had seen some cars leaving to go to the crossing but then regime forces attacked them and arrested a lot of people. 'We were planning to go, but the injured started arriving in the hospital and they were so bad so we stayed to treat them. 'But when we saw so many injuries we realised something terrible had happened; then we heard about the incident at the crossing point. 'We heard that the deal was broken because of a problem between Russian and Iranian forces. The huge fleet of green government buses, pictured, have been taking civilians away but the departures stopped on Friday after more fighting broke out 'I just came back from the front line crossing point where the injured people were and one person was dead. 'When people tried to leave Aleppo, Syrian forces and militias started to attack the buses. 'They killed people, and arrested a lot of people. I heard accounts from people who came from there to the hospital and they told me what happened. 'Now it seems there is no deal. Theres still a ceasefire but no safe way to get out of the city. 'I dont know if we will leave because we dont trust that it will be safe. Many people were arrested in the so-called safe corridor, so how can we leave? 'How can they talk about safe corridors and then they do that? The trust has run out. YESTERDAY Another ceasefire is brokered, raising hopes that the evacuation would resume. But last night, hours after the announcement, aid agencies were still waiting for the operation to start. We are waiting to hear about this new deal. We are hoping to leave, but there are still lots of injured people arriving in the hospital. Now families and children remain in limbo as they face an anxious wait to see if they can leave 'They've seen and experienced too much': Experts say hundreds of youngsters trapped in Aleppo have 'shell shock' after months of air strikes and chemical weapons attacks Hundreds of vulnerable children remained trapped in Aleppo last night as the suspension of evacuation convoys from the war-torn city continued. According to medical experts, the youngsters are severely traumatised and malnourished after spending months in the last rebel-held enclave of the city, which has been devastated by air strikes and chemical weapons attacks. One British expert described children as having the so-called thousand-yard stare which is normally seen in combat veterans because they have been exposed to so much violence and trauma. The children are expected to spend another night in freezing temperatures in eastern Aleppo along with thousands of elderly civilians and casualties of the Syrian regimes relentless bombing campaign. The first child from Aleppo to make it to safety, pictured, was described as having a 'thousand-yard' stare by British Army officer Colonel Hamish de Bretton-Gordon Meanwhile, talks were ongoing between rebel leaders and Syrian Army chiefs in a bid to resume the evacuations in Aleppo and for similar programmes to start in the neighbouring province of Idlib. A deal depends on a ceasefire between Syrian rebels and President Bashar al-Assads forces. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said last night it was aware that a new agreement could be reached and called on all parties on the ground to do their utmost to end this limbo. The convoys taking the most vulnerable children from Aleppo were suspended on Friday after reports of shootings at a crossing point into the enclave. Videos posted online showed men, women and children running for their lives. Last night, former British Army officer Colonel Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, an expert on Syria, said 75 per cent of Syrian children are suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as a result of their exposure to the conflict. He said: These children have been touching death for the last four weeks, living in shelters. In 17 out of the last 21 days, the regime has dropped chlorine barrel bombs. Psychologically theyre not in a good place. Three out of four have PTSD and in 50 per cent of these cases they are incontinent. The children need hope, they need to be loved and cajoled, and to be warm. Around 500 children evacuated from Aleppo last week have arrived at Bab Al Hawa hospital two miles from Syrias border with Turkey. Turkish fighter jets are patrolling the airspace over the facility to prevent any attacks. Colonel de Bretton-Gordon said the rescued children reminded him of soldiers who had spent too long on the front line. Around 500 children evacuated from Aleppo last week have arrived at Bab Al Hawa hospital two miles from Syrias border with Turkey I was a soldier for 23 years and I thought I had seen every evil that could be done on a battlefield, he added. But what has happened in Aleppo over the last few weeks surmounts that by a huge factor. And the children have gone through that, theyve seen and experienced too much. I saw a picture of an injured boy by an ambulance. 'He had what we call in the military a thousand-yard stare; his eyes had lost focus, he looked empty and done in. Ive been assured this boy is at Bab Al Hawa now. I just hope he has had some sleep and some colour has come back to his eyes. 'He represents the children of Aleppo who we in the West have let down. Former Foreign Secretary David Miliband said the 2013 Commons vote against sending British troops to Syria in support of a US intervention had created a vacuum in Western leadership and sowed a great deal of confusion. Sonny Bill Williams has a second child after wife Alana Raffie gave birth to baby girl Aisha overnight. The New Zealand rugby star announced his daughter's arrival on his Twitter account at about 5am on Sunday, implying she was born late last night. The photo shows a shirtless Williams holding the tiny newborn in his arms against his chest next to her bed while she was still attached to medical equipment. Scroll down for video Sonny Bill Williams has a second child after wife Alana Raffie gave birth to baby girl Aisha overnight in Sydney Williams married Raffie (R) in 2013 and they had their first daughter Imaan (L) the year after 'Aisha Williams, our gift from the most high came into this world struggling, but alhamdulillah (praise god) after a long night shes improving,' he wrote. Williams married Raffie in 2013 and they had their first daughter Imaan the year after. His new arrival comes just a few days after fellow code-jumping star Jarryd Hayne became a father with his rumoured girlfriend who he met on Instagram, Amellia Bonnici, 25, is believed to have given birth to a baby girl in a private hospital in Queensland's Gold Coast, The Sunday Telegraph reported. 'Aisha Williams, our gift from the most high came into this world struggling, but alhamdulillah (praise god) after a long night shes improving,' he wrote Williams is a New Zealand rugby star in both union and league Sources told the publication Bonnici, 25, gave birth 'a few days ago' and both parents are 'besotted' with their new child. The name of the child is yet to be revealed. Hayne's manager declined to comment when contacted by Daily Mail Australia. Hayne and Bonnici met on Instagram early this year, and the 28-year-old athlete was surprised to discover she was pregnant, it was claimed. It is believed the pregnancy played a part Hayne quitting the San Francisco 49'ers and returning to Australia to play for the Gold Coast Titans. Williams with his young daughter Imaan The couple have remained silent on the topic of Bonnici's pregnancy. Hayne has repeatedly declined to comment, as have family members. Bonnici grew up in Tuncurry, NSW, where her parents still live. She was a student at Great Lakes High School, before graduating and moving to Sydney. She was living in the beachside suburb of Coogee, when she met Hayne early this year through Instagram, New Idea claimed. China to set up national-level IPR court of appeals Beijing sets up Chinas first ever intellectual property court in 2014. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com] A senior Chinese judge on Friday said the Supreme People's Court (SPC) is considering a national appeal court specializing in intellectual property rights (IPR). Tao Kaiyuan, vice president of the SPC, made the remarks during a conference in Beijing. "[We] shall make the establishment of a national-level IPR court of appeals a national strategy," Tao said, adding that the SPC will come up with a more detailed plan after consultation. A leading group comprised of senior judges will coordinate judicial reform in IPR cases in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, she said. Chinese courts heard 133,863 IPR cases in 2014, 19.5 percent more than the year before, according to a judicial IPR white paper. Specialized IPR courts were established in 2014 in Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai leading to a significant improvement in IPR regulation. According to Tao, the three courts have heard more than 30,000 cases in the past two years. With hundreds of flights and train journeys delayed because of fog and strike action across the country, glancing up at a station sign is becoming associated with anger and frustration. But South West Trains has lightened the mood on platforms on some of its routes into London by giving the station names an injection of Christmas cheer. Ash Evans tweeted this video showing the changed names as the service headed to London 'Winterloo'. Ash Evans, a south London based doctor, spotted the festive sign and posted the video online New Malden became New Mald-wine, while Raynes Park became Raynesdeer Park The south London based doctor said it was 'excellent work' by the railway operator, which is usually the target of frustration. The video shows New Malden becoming New Mald-wine, and Raynes Park becoming Raynesdeer Park. Wimbledon and Earlsfield don't quite get the festive pun treatment, but the next stop of Clapham Junction becomes Clapham Jingle Bells. Vauxhall becomes Deck the Vauxhall before the service terminates at London Winterloo. Clapham Junction became Clapham jingle bells in a fun nod to the popular song Vauxhall was one of the most impressive changes, becoming Deck the Vauxhall London Waterloo, the train's final destination, became London Winterloo On another of the network's routes, Surbiton became Snowbiton, and Kingston became Three Kingston. Twickenham became Twinkleham and Windsor became Windsor Wonderland, while Mortlake got a Merry Mortlake addition. Ash's video has been shared more than 50 times on Twitter, but one eagle-eyed commuter spotted the service was 'only seven minutes delayed'. Another said they had seen Alton listed as 'Angelic Alton' earlier in the day. Anna Ludwinski tweeted: 'Loving the festive notifications at Wimbledon today.' Rebecca Whyte appreciated the name changes, which included Twinkleham for Twickenham Shirley Mukisa said the place names made her smile and posted a picture that including Surbiton becoming Snowbiton The pavement cafes are filling up; couples are holding hands in the sunshine. You could be in St Tropez except that a bottle of good chardonnay is about a tenner here and dinner for two costs less than 20. This is the pretty town of Alacati on Turkeys Izmir peninsula, a fertile crescent as long as the French Riviera but without the silly prices. Its pronounced Alla Chatter which means red roofs. As recently as ten years ago there were only 18 hotels, now there are more than 400 most of them small and calling themselves butik. Fashionable retreat: Alacati is like the French Riviera - only without the crazy prices This is because the chic set from Istanbul has descended on Alacati in droves, opening hotels and restaurants and building smart villas close to the peninsulas glorious beaches which attract expert windsurfers. Just be aware that any hotel within 100 yards of a mosque does not have a drinks licence but our hosts at the Zeytin Konak obligingly send out for some wine. Zeytin Konak is a collection of four elegant mansion houses converted into a hotel, with lovely stone-flagged floors and two pools surrounded by lavender bushes. Our second base is Cadde 75 hotel, another butik delight, with stripped floors, wrought iron beds and lovely blue and white bed linen. But what thrilled my nine-year-old daughter Katya most was that everyone was so friendly. Turkish people really seem to like children, dont they? she says. Seeing anywhere through the eyes of a child is charming even for the most jaded traveller. All those things that annoy the hell out of adults (Bob Marley songs sung in Turkish) go unnoticed. Katya sees only wonder in almost everything. Rules: Any hotel within 100 yards of a mosque does not have a drinks licence in Alacati You simply must visit one of the two Ferdi Baba restaurants, one in Alacati marina, the other in Cesme, the beach resort of Alacati. Both have lovely views of bobbing yachts, sublime seafood and a cold counter groaning with imaginative starters. At both our hotels, we particularly enjoy our breakfasts of fruit, yoghurt and the wonderful pisi tiny hot pastries which you split open and fill with jam. A basket of 12 is put in front of the two of us and somehow disappears. The only thing I suggest you avoid is manti, a stuffed pasta dish with dollops of hot yoghurt on top. Half an hours drive from Alacati is the Urla winery, which produces 200,000 bottles a year and theyre so good that they have won more than 150 awards and are served in Michelin-starred restaurants in London. Ghosts of the past: For an ancient history fix, the ruins of Erythrai are a short drive away The vinery owner, Can Ortabas, has somehow found time to create his own arboretum, where he has amassed 1,938 species of trees from around the world. For an ancient history fix, the ruins of Erythrai are a short drive away and are atmospheric, especially if, like us, you find youre the only people there. It is one of the 12 Ionian cities of Asia Minor and now theres just the amphitheatre and a couple of houses but the views from the highest seats are impressive. If your stay includes a Saturday, then you have to visit Alacati market, where 200 stalls groan with fruit, wild herbs, fabulous pickles and pastries. We pick up some leather loafers for under a tenner, and there was even, dare I say it, a stall selling Mac and Chanel make-up the provenance of which remained unknown. Im a dog lover and many of my trips abroad have been marred by the sight of emaciated canines roaming the streets. But not here. The dogs all look well-fed and content and are friendly, thanks to a civic programme of neutering, chipping and encouraging restaurant owners to feed them at closing time. Bravo, I say. There are many contenders for the title of worlds best cruise ship, but for my money Seabourn Quest is leagues ahead of the competition. The crew are exemplary, the food superb and the vessel itself sumptuous and contemporary leading hotels could learn a thing or two from this outfit. Launched in 2011, the 32,000-ton Quest is the epitome of elegance. The ship boasts a beautiful pool surrounded by wooden decking, a central hub called Seabourn Square with a library, reception and patisserie, and a range of excellent bars and restaurants. Preikestolen (above), or Pulpit Rock, which at nearly 2,000ft above sea level offers stunning views of the Lysefjord Seabourn is all-inclusive so the price you pay covers drinks and gratuities and access to all dining venues, including the superb Grill By Thomas Keller restaurant. But it was the wonderful two-week itinerary that really turned our heads. We sailed from Copenhagen to the North Cape passing Scandinavias picturesque fjords, glaciers and scenic islands such as Vigur, Storstappen and Lofoten. Here, Seabourn lets you go at your own pace gaze at Norways spectacular Aurlandsfjord from the comfort of your balcony, or join the Ventures team and kayak your way around the sights. Seabourn lets you go at your own pace gaze at Norways spectacular Aurlandsfjord (above) from the comfort of your balcony, or join the Ventures team and kayak We choose the latter and spent four hours marvelling at the awe-inspiring Sognefjord, Norways longest and deepest. Being in a two-man boat allowed us to experience the majesty of the fjords in a way that would be impossible aboard the Quest. Feeling energised, we spent the next day hiking to the Preikestolen, or Pulpit Rock, which at nearly 2,000ft above sea level offers stunning views of the Lysefjord. Vertigo sufferers take note: this is not for you. However, the King Crab Safari in Honningsvag, Norways northernmost city, will appeal to everyone. Accompanying fishermen as they catch gigantic crabs and cook them on an open fire is a great way to experience the local culture. By the end of the first week, wed lapsed into typical cruise-ship-passenger mode and explored the picture-postcard destinations of Olden and Bergen at a leisurely pace before rushing back to the Quest for lunch. Seabourn (above) is all-inclusive so the price you pay covers drinks and gratuities and access to all dining venues, including the superb Grill By Thomas Keller restaurant Theres a focus on enrichment, with daily lectures from the ships expedition team as well as other experts. On our cruise they included Dr Coleen Batey, senior lecturer in archaeology at the University of Glasgow and an authority on the Viking Age. These relaxed diversions were typical of the onboard ambience, which encourages a slow pace of life no poolside lap-dancing here, thank you very much. Seabourn Quest admittedly isnt for everyone. The atmosphere is sedate, and its an expensive proposition when compared with other cruise ships. If youre after excessive noise and constant stimulation, there are plenty of cruise lines to choose from. I hope Seabourns ethos never moves an inch. I like trains, I do but the problem with filming a TV series called Extreme Railway Journeys is that whenever you find yourself temporarily travelling in comfort, you soon have to change and get on the kind of train many Westerners wouldnt dream of clambering aboard. In the course of making the show, I travelled more than one complete circumference of the globe on the oldest, slowest and most uncomfortable trains on the planet. So its lucky I enjoy the extreme. Rust relic: An old train complete with fresh graffiti Chriss crew encountered on a journey from Chile to Bolivia Where's the platform? Chris gets off a train in Botswana However, its not the trains themselves Im interested in Ive never considered myself a trainspotter but I love the stories behind the railways. Today we take trains for granted, but the tales of how the railways were built is fascinating and often horrific. For some remote communities, trains are the only way they can stay in touch with other humans. In Bolivia, for example, theres a train that goes right up over the Andes, to heights of about 15,000ft. Its the most extraordinary rail journey Ive ever been on. Im not that big on engineering, but you cant help wondering: my God, how did they build a railway right up there? Despite the slow speed, we struggled with altitude sickness while on board our cameraman was very ill but for the locals, this service is a lifeline. They just appear out of nowhere alongside the track, stick their hand out and wait for the train to stop. We saw lots of traditionally dressed Bolivian women with weather-beaten faces wearing big black hats and wonderful, colourful clothes, and carrying huge bags. These sacks were intriguing. They were nothing more than folded-up sheets, but they held everything from potatoes and eggs to shoes. We even saw one woman with a baby tucked inside! These locals might go about ten miles before getting off and then suddenly disappear into nowhere. It really makes you think: without that train, these people couldnt exist. Theyd never be able to reach larger cities and their village alone would be unable to support them. It was a similar story in the Congo. The distances between towns are massive in this part of Africa and its thick, thick jungle at every turn. The River Kwai Bridge, which was made famous by the 1957 film Bridge On The River Kwai, starring Alec Guinness Without the railway, villagers couldnt communicate with anybody else apart from their immediate family. There are no roads and obviously no airports. That said, the train is hardly to be relied upon. It was six days late when we tried to take it. There was no station office or timetable, just a chalk marking simply stating: Not today. You do not want to break down in the middle of the night in a tunnel in the Congo, trust me It was the first train in the series we wanted to film and we were standing on the empty platform thinking: Weve got a series about railways and we havent seen a train yet! We were filming the station, the bridges, me looking at my watch everything except the train! Furthermore, when it did eventually arrive nearly a week later, it proceeded to break down in a tunnel in the middle of the night due to an electrical fault it was terrifying. You do not want to break down in the middle of the night in a tunnel in the Congo, trust me. The Congo-Ocean Railway has always been plagued with difficulty, never more so than during the time of its construction under French colonial administration in the 1920s. More than a quarter of the 127,000 men who were conscripted from all over equatorial Africa to work on the line died from malaria, sleeping sickness, dysentery or sheer exhaustion. Epic delays: Villagers scramble aboard as a train arrives in the Congo, where distances between towns are massive Further tragedy ensued during the building of the infamous Bamba Tunnel in the Mayombe jungle, also in West Africa. When the workforce began digging, they were turning over earth that had not been touched for hundreds of years which unbeknownst to the men was emitting great jets of carbon monoxide. Worker after worker collapsed owing to the poisonous gas but because it was colourless and odourless, nobody understood what was happening, with many believing it to be voodoo. About 80 per cent of the men died on the spot. At the Botswana border, wed been driving in our 4x4 for only six miles or so when we came to a roadblock and these very large policemen approached, waving their AK-47s at us The Death Railway from Thailand to Burma has an equally terrible history, as its name suggests. In 1942, during the Second World War, prisoners of war and slave labourers were used by the Japanese to build this line intended to transport supplies to troops in Burma in incredibly unpleasant conditions. Thousands died. Its estimated that for every sleeper laid, a man lost his life. While exploring the railway, we filmed on the River Kwai Bridge made famous by the 1957 film Bridge On The River Kwai, starring Alec Guinness. But today the place is like a funfair with blaring pop music. They even sell I crossed over the River Kwai T-shirts its truly awful. Zimbabwe, too, was eye-opening. I was seriously apprehensive about going there and my concerns proved not unfounded. At the Botswana border, wed been driving in our 4x4 for only six miles or so when we came to a roadblock and these very large policemen approached, waving their AK-47s at us. In the middle of the road there was a table piled high with US dollars (the Zimbabwean dollar has completely collapsed) and they were telling us Your lights are not working of course they werent on, as it was 2pm and there was bright sunshine. The Death Railway (above) from Thailand to Burma has a terrible history, as its name suggests But then they spotted our camera and were instantly suspicious. What is this? What are you filming? What is this recorder? they asked before holding their hands out for money. Ive never had that before. We went on to encounter six more roadblocks between the border and Bulawayo (the second-largest city in Zimbabwe) with policemen asking for money each time. Youre not going to argue. You could end up in prison if you crossed the wrong people there. My favourite place we visited on the show has to be Buenos Aires; its one of the most beautiful cities on Earth. I liked it so much that Ive been back already with the missus, and we loved it. Two-thirds of the city is made up of lovely, wide avenues with thousands of trees plus the Malbec and steaks are incredible. As told to Harriet Mallinson The book of Chris Tarrants Extreme Railway Journeys is published by John Blake, priced 20. Ive been to Asia a number of times but somehow never made it to Thailand. The plan was there was no plan. Just three weeks of winter sunshine, island-hopping with a girl pal a relaxing break from my job as a weather forecaster on ITV. After flying to Bangkok, we didnt waste any time flying direct on to Krabi on the west of the mainland. There was no time for adjusting to the time difference a beach was waiting! Railay Bay in Krabi is picture-perfect Thailand and the ideal place to kick off a holiday. One of Lucy's stops was Phuket (above) where she met up with friends from Hong Kong Long-tail boats parked in neat rows bobbed along the shoreline with crystal-clear turquoise water lapping at the limestone cliffs. The cliffs are popular with climbers. I didnt quite muster the courage to scale a sheer rock face in a harness although we did clamber up a 70-degree slope using just ropes. It was totally worth it. After the initial steep incline, we found ourselves in rainforest-style terrain with a breathtaking view of the entire peninsula. The striking white cliffs and dense tropical jungle-style greenery define Krabi. We drank our body weight in fresh coconut milk and pina coladas in our first couple of days as we acclimatised to our new surroundings and gradually began to relax. Afternoons were spent deciding where to sunbathe after simple lunches mostly of satays and papaya salads. Lucy, pictured during her break in Thailand, spent three weeks island hopping for her holiday We called the latter papaya salad roulette as you never knew how spicy it was going to be. Some were well into blow-your-socks-off country. I lost count of the number of massages we had, each one leaving me blissfully light-headed and floppy. Standard dinners were home-made Thai wraps served with fresh pineapple juice and local rum and eaten sitting on the beach under the stars, the cool sand between our toes. We loved the bars with their boho beanbags, low tables and bamboo terraces overlooking the bay. We didnt want to leave Railay Bay in Krabi, but we had arranged to head to Phuket to meet up with some expat friends over from Hong Kong for the weekend. We stayed at the famous Slate hotel. Buzzy: Revellers at Sing Sing club (above), which Lucy says was one of the best clubs she's ever been to This was a few notches up from our simple accommodation in Krabi. Its a huge hotel with a choice of three pools surrounded by tropical plants and even our room came with its own courtyard, plunge pool and outside bathtub. Nai Yang Beach was within stumbling distance. Quiet and unspoilt, it was a fitting location for sundowners and more popular with locals swinging in their hammocks than tourists. From Phuket, the hotel arranged our transfers to Koh Lanta via the island of Phi Phi, where we stopped off for the day and hired a long-tail boat to go snorkelling. With just us onboard, our guide tailor-made the whole afternoon and we even found an idyllic little secluded bay for lunch away from the crowds. We then took one of the many public ferries. They can be crazily busy with gap-year backpackers, but we found that paying a small supplement allowed us to stretch out on the top deck and sunbathe. Blue heaven: Boats on the beach at Krabi, Lucy's first stop on her three-week break in Thailand I didnt think I could be any more relaxed until I arrived in Koh Lanta. It was low-key compared to Krabi and Phuket a bit more like stepping back in time and with a slightly hippy vibe. I saw as many home-made signs for beachside yoga as I did for happy hours. We stayed at a relaxed retreat in a bamboo bungalow. Walking up the several flights of steep steps to the bungalow was a workout in itself, probably a good thing with the lack of exercise we were doing. The resort was on the edge of Phra-Ae Beach which is home to a string of rustic restaurants and chilled-out bars. Beach barbecues became an evening ritual barefoot, still in our sundresses, bikinis and smelling of suncream with hair crispy from the seawater. Im sure all this made the freshly barbecued fish and local Singha beer taste even better. For a change of scenery we took a tuk tuk to nearby Long Beach three miles of soft sand fringed by shady tall pine trees. The shade was something we were craving after going out on paddleboards in the strong late-afternoon sunshine. Koh Lanta (above) was low-key compared to Krabi and Phuket a bit more like stepping back in time and with a slightly hippy vibe Id only paddle-boarded once before but the still, clear waters of the Andaman Sea were the ideal place to get into the swing of it. After a very floppy few days in Koh Lanta, it was time to mentally prepare ourselves to head back to London life. We booked last-minute flights to Bangkok using our phones it was surprisingly easy to get wi-fi on the island. Arriving in Bangkok at rush hour was an assault on the senses. But the Skytrain system was easy to navigate and our hotel was within walking distance of a station. Hotel Muse couldnt have suited us better. In a brilliant location, it was a calm sanctuary in the craziness of Bangkoks streets. Our suite was huge, with the comfiest beds. Someone had suggested we go to a club called Sing Sing its one of the best Ive ever been to, buzzy and with friendly staff. With espresso martinis in hand, we made friends from all over the world. I already plan to go back. Most of the passengers I meet on my frequent flights to Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, are there to explore the citys charming cobbled streets, or else they are heading further afield to pretty Lake Bled or the magnificent medieval seaside town of Piran. But that could change next year. The country has a new attraction an industrial town sitting on the bank of the countrys longest river. While much of Europe nervously awaits the inauguration of Donald Trump as the next US President, most people in Sevnica are expecting a huge boost in tourism. Scroll down for video The towns main tourist attraction is undoubtedly the castle (above), which offers superb views across the old town and St Nicholas Church to the River Sava Star attraction: Americas First Lady-in-waiting, Melania Trump Sevnica, about 50 miles from the capital, is where The Donalds third wife, Melania, was born. She may have left the town as a teenager, but thats not going to stop local entrepreneurs from celebrating her rise to the White House by renaming their most expensive pancakes, pizzas and cakes after Melania, and dusting them with edible gold. Sevnicas sights include the five-storey apartment block in the Naselje Heroja Maroka area where Melania and her elder sister, Ines, grew up, and the white villa that their parents, Amalija and Viktor, built in the hills. The towns main tourist attraction is undoubtedly the castle, which offers superb views across the old town and St Nicholas Church to the River Sava. The castle features baroque and Renaissance interiors, four towers, and a fresco in a disguised Lutheran chapel (it was built to look like a farm building to hide its real purpose). My main reason for visiting Slovenia over the years has been to sample its top-quality wines. Slovenias varieties may not be as well known as those produced in neighbouring Italy and Austria, but the country has been making wines since before the Romans arrived. The city of Maribor boasts the worlds oldest living vine (about 450 years) and it has produced wine for VIPs such as Bill Clinton. Sevnica is in the heart of Posavje, the smallest of Slovenias three wine regions. But it is of interest to tourists like me because it is the only one that produces more bottles of red than white. The stunning Lake Bled scenery (above) is one of the many sights that tourists flocking to Slovenia will see The star grape here is blaufrankisch, which was probably brought to the region when it was part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Sevnica Castles own vineyard uses this grape and the castle even hosts an annual blaufrankisch festival in June. If beer is more to your taste, head to the spa town of Lasko, about a 30-minute drive north of Sevnica. Every July the town and a local brewery host a beer and flower festival, which is a great way to attract new tourists. And in the nearby town of Zalec, officials recently spent about 300,000 on a fountain spewing five different beers. If youre feeling a bit peckish after a glass or two of the local brew, crepes are ubiquitous in Slovenia, filled with local honey or walnuts, or smothered with chocolate spread. As a homage to Melania, a restaurant at Lisca, a town about six miles from Sevnica, has pimped its pancakes with the finest American-inspired ingredients: blueberries, a bourbon and vanilla filling, ice cream, cream and edible gold dust. Its surely a pancake fit for a First Lady if Melania ever decides to return to her roots. She gave birth to son Forest Sage on Monday. And Teresa Palmer made her first public appearance while out in Adelaide on Friday, with husband Mark Webber, 36, two-year-old son Bodhi Rain, and their newborn. The 30-year-old was all smiles as she showed off her post-pregnancy frame in an all-black ensemble. Scroll down for video Content: Teresa Palmer, 30, was all smiles and showed off her slender post-pregnancy frame, as she was spotted out in Adelaide on Friday, with husband Mark Webber, 36, two-year-old son Bodhi Rain and newborn Forest Sage Teresa highlighted her post-pregnancy frame in head-to-toe black. A sleeveless round-neck top was paired with loose-fitting black trousers that skimmed over her lean legs. Ensuring she was light on her feet, Teresa sported patent black loafers and accessorised with a pair of trendy cat eye sunglasses. Cool and casual: The actress highlighted her post-pregnancy figure in a round-neck black top teamed with loose-fitting black trousers Allowing her signature blonde locks to fall effortlessly around her face and shoulders, the actress also appeared to go makeup-free. Looking a picture of content, the Adelaide-born star was all smiles as she carried her newborn in a tie-dye baby carrier. Husband Mark cut a casual figure in a white loose-fitting T-shirt, paired with camouflage shorts and simple black trainers. Low-key: Husband Mark cut a casual figure in a white round-neck T-shirt, paired with camouflage shorts, simple black sneakers, a black cap and dark sunglasses Keeping accessories to a minimum, the screenwriter and director donned a black cap and pair of dark sunglasses. Mark's numerous arm tattoos were visible as he held onto the stroller. Two-year-old son Bodhi Rain looked cute as a button in a casual ensemble, as he was seated in the pram's underneath carrier. Noticeably absent on the outing was Mark's eight-year-old son Isaac Love, whom he shares with ex Frankie Shaw. Bundle of joy: Teresa took to Instagram on Tuesday to announce the birth of her precious son Forest Sage Palmer, with a sweet picture taken by photographer Gemma Peanut Teresa took to Instagram on Tuesday to announce the birth of her precious son Forest Sage Palmer, with a sweet picture taken by photographer Gemma Peanut. 'Our sweet littlest love is here. Forest Sage Palmer was born yesterday in Adelaide [South Australia] on 12/12 at 12:18pm,' she revealed. The Hacksaw Ridge star went into detail about the arrival, explaining he weighed 8lb 4oz [3.8 kilograms] and was 20 inches long. Official: Mark revealed the name for their unborn child earlier this year as he shared an image on social media of a patch of sand where he had written his three son's names 'Our hearts are so full and blessed,' she continued to gush on Instagram. Mark soon after posted to his account: 'Our new sweet little boy is here. Forest Sage, born on 12/12, just after 12pm. We're in bliss. Thanks for all the love and well wishes, we love you too.' Earlier in the year, Teresa revealed she would be relocating to Australia from the U.S to give birth to her son. Family ties: Forest is the second child for the actress and Mark, who also share two-year-old Bodhi Rain 'It's cool, we get to be in Australia, meet the midwife, get our house in Australia all ready because that's where we will be birthing. So we'll be bringing our new son home to our house in Adelaide,' she shared on her blog, Your Zen Mama. Mark revealed the name for their unborn child earlier this year as he shared an image on social media of a patch of sand where he had written his three son's names. Teresa and Mark met in 2012 and married in Mexico in 2013 while she was pregnant with their first child, Bodhi Rain. Chrissy Teigen alighted back in Los Angeles on Thursday after a jaunt across the country to New York City. When she was spotted emerging from LAX that day, though, she'd still stuck to a distinctly New York City brand of chic. She was seen in black and white ensemble featuring a coat, tie and top hat as she pushed her baby daughter Luna in her pram. Back in town: Chrissy Teigen was spotted emerging from LAX on Thursday after a jaunt across the country to New York City The 31-year-old had opted for a simple black crew neck top, meaning the rather loose black tie dangled free of any collar. Though most of her coat was covered in white skulls over a black field, it did feature a shawl lapel in solid black, as well as turned-back cuffs in the same colour. Her hat's brim concealed a bit of her sunglasses, which matched not only the hat but also her stiletto boots and her figure-hugging trousers. A burgundy purse served as the pop of colour. Family time: She was seen in black and white ensemble featuring a coat, tie and top hat as she pushed her baby daughter Luna in her pram The Lip Sync Battle co-hostess married her current husband John Legend in 2013, and the pair welcomed their firstborn this April. In this year's December issue of Cosmopolitan, she rhapsodised about giving birth on medication, saying: 'Honestly, it was the life, lying in bed watching Bravo, not feeling a thing! But I find the most random things to be fun.' As she recalled: 'John actually had a performance that night. He was like: "I dont have to go," but I said: "Just do it. Im gonna be sitting here eating popsicles for the next 24 hours. Its fine."' Flying formally: The 31-year-old had opted for a simple black crew neck top, meaning the rather loose black tie dangled free of any collar She explained that 'It was, like, a Mark Zuckerberg event or something a few blocks away. So he went.' Yet whilst she was in hospital and he at work, 'I was so hungry, but you can only have soup in case you have to go into surgery. So I texted John while he was performing and was like, "Please bring me something!"' She recalled: 'He said all they have is rack of lamb. I was like, "Bring it to me!" My doctors are gonna hate me but I was eating lamb chops, popsicles, and watching Bravo. Then I woke up and they were like, its time.' They're one of Sydney's hottest power couples and are renowned for their glamorous lifestyle. But in an interview with the Daily Telegraph this week, Terry Biviano revealed that she and her former NRL star husband Anthony Minichiello are very grounded in their parenting methods. One week after lavishing their three-year-old daughter Azura Tresor with a no-expense spared birthday party, the 41-year-old socialite told the publication that she takes motherhood 'very seriously.' Scroll down for video 'We take parenting very seriously': Terry Biviano, 41, revealed to the Daily Telegraph this week, that her and husband Anthony Minichiello, 36, will always make family a priority 'Anthony and I take parenting very seriously, we love being parents,' she gushed. 'And we love being a mummy and daddy, especially to Azura because she is such a good girl. She added: 'Your priorities change. You realise what's really important in life, and that's your family and your children and your partner.' Pretty in pink: Terry's comments come a week after the couple went all out, hosting a lavish third birthday party, complete with hundreds of balloons and a three tiered cake, for their daughter Azura Tresor (pictured) The couple recently went all out for their little girl, hosting a lavish affair, complete with hundreds of balloons and a three tiered cake. Among the extravagant decorations were over 1000 pink balloons and a personalised lolly cart, which saw the adorable birthday girl's name emblazoned on the side. Pictures from the luxurious event held at Sydney's Watson's Bay Boutique Hotel, saw the family unit posing for photos among a sea of pink decorations. Shades of pink: Pictures from the luxurious event held at Sydney's Watson's Bay Boutique Hotel, saw the family unit posing for photos among a sea of pink decorations Detail: The event space was filled with hundreds of balloons and featured Minnie Mouse ears on the tables In line with the event's Disney Minnie Mouse theme, little Azura wore custom mouse ears made with pink beads and flowers by Viktoria Novak. The adorable toddler wore a pink dress to match her ears and tiny pink shoes as she walked around her birthday wonderland. Terry joined her daughter with a pair of white fabric mouse ears which matched her elegant white playsuit. She paired the outfit with white heels and accessorised with pearl earrings and a simple gold bracelet. Anthony cut a more casual figure in a white button-up shirt, beige pants and brown loafers, accessorising with a brown belt and sturdy watch. Sweet: Among the extravagant decorations were a lolly stand with miniature cakes Too cute: In line with the event's Disney Minnie Mouse theme, little Azura wore custom mouse ears made with pink beads and flowers by Viktoria Novak Terry and Anthony both took to social media to thank the long list of people who helped make the event extra special for their daughter. Over 1000 balloons provided by BubblemooBalloons and a massive three tiered cake made by Cake Me Pretty were the show stoppers at the event. Terry and Anthony thanked photographer Serena Cece for capturing the event and expressed their happiness for their daughter's birthday. Doting: The Sydney-based couple often share precious family snaps to their respective Instagram accounts There will be no Glastonbury in the grounds of Longleat in 2019, because the owners of the Wiltshire estate, Viscount and Viscountess Weymouth, fear thered be too much mud to clean up. Glasto founder Michael Eavis wanted to move the festival from Worthy Farm in Somerset, where it has been held for 46 years, as it has outgrown the land he owns. Michael Eavis, founder of Glastonbury, wanted to move the festival to Longleat from Worthy farm But although the Weymouths have decided against the music event, they are happy to open the doors of their ancestral seat to the downmarket Noel Edmonds gameshow Deal Or No Deal. I hear next Thursdays episode has been filmed in Longleats stately Great Hall. Contestants play for a 250,000 jackpot, and it seems Longleats owners banked a tidy sum, too. When I asked how much producers paid, a spokesman told me the commercial arrangement is private. Baroness Scotland could use a sympathetic ear after being vilified for spending an estimated 450,000 of taxpayers money on refurbishing her grace-and-favour Mayfair mansion. Happily, Prince Charles appears to be a friend in need. Weeks after the spendthrift Labour peer was criticised for her scandalous waste of money hiring celebrity decorator Nicky Haslam to draw up makeover plans featuring 10,500-worth of wallpaper and 16,000 on fabric linings for windows, Baroness Shameless enjoyed a private tete-a-tete with Charles at Clarence House. Prince Charles has been a friend in need to Baroness Scotland, above, inviting her to a private chat at Clarence House The Princes aides decline to reveal what they discussed, but he certainly shares her expensive tastes. Prince Philip memorably called his son precious and extravagant for keeping a retinue of 22 staff. Charles even spent 6 million refurbishing Clarence House at taxpayers expense. It makes Baroness Scotlands marble window sills and 2,000 dishwasher look positively frugal. Film star Kate Beckinsale dropped out of Oxford University to focus on acting, but now her higher education dreams could soon be realised by her daughter Lily, 17, who has won a place in college. Kate shared these pictures online in which Lilys father, actor Michael Sheen, hugs Kate, and then Lily Kate said she was 'unbelievably proud' of her daughter Lily who got into Cambridge Kate, 43, shared these pictures online in which Lilys father, actor Michael Sheen, hugs Kate, and then Lily. The appropriate fatherly response when you find out your girl got into college: burst into tears, drop everything, rush over and pick up everyone even remotely involved, wrote Kate . Lily Beckinsale we are so unbelievably proud of you. Ed Balls has won the public vote for his 'dad moves' but will have to do more tonight Ed Balls got the public vote for his galumphing dad moves on Strictly Come Dancing, but hell have to put in some even more fancy footwork today. Tonights Strictly finale in London clashes with the wedding of Eds former political aide Alex Belardinelli, who is marrying Ellie Gellard . . . in Paris. Ellie works for Eds wife, Labour MP Yvette Cooper. At the same time, the BBC is counting on the former Shadow Chancellor to join this years contestants for one last performance tonight. Balls was at the pre-wedding festivities in Paris last night, but will skip todays ceremony to dash back onto the dancefloor. Darcey Bussell wants to learn to speak French because she says it would make her feel more cultured. The Strictly judge says: I have the basics down but Id love to be fluent. Its just such a beautiful cultured language. Im not French at all, even though Bussell is a French name! Emerald Fennell uses Mane 'n Tail shampoo, which is for horses, as she read about it in a magazine As the daughter of society jeweller Theo Fennell and star of Call The Midwife, Emerald Fennell has the pick of every hairdresser in London. But the 31-year-old admits: Ive started using Mane n Tail shampoo which is for horses. 'I read about it in a magazine and I am easily led. Two graduating students at Chongqing University painted their college's landmark architecture, such as the main gate and the library, onto ginkgo leaves that are scattered all over the campus. The tribute is the students' unique way to commemorate their memorable college lives. [Photo: Chinanews.com] She's an outspoken critic of Scientology after spending most of her teen and adult life as a member of the organization. And in an interview for Larry King Now, Leah Remini pulled no punches when asked about it's most famous adherent Tom Cruise. 'He thinks Im the devil,' the actress, 46, told the veteran talk show host. Remini claimed: 'Tom and most Scientologists, all Scientologists, are taught to believe that people like me are literally the devil, that we mean them harm.' Outspoken: Former Scientologist Leah Remini has said Tom Cruise thinks she's 'literally the devil' and claimed that all Scientologists are taught that those who leave the organization 'mean them harm' Asked by King whether she thought the Top Gun star was sincere in his beliefs, she replied that he's a 'dedicated and loyal Scientologist'. Remini claimed: : 'Tom is very well-aware of what is Scientology, truthfully. He is very well-aware that its an organization that is defrauding people out of their lives ' 'But in his heart, I believe he believes it.' Critic: The actress, 46, made the remarks during an interview with Larry King as she promotes her A&E documentary series Leah Remini: Scientology And The Aftermath Devout: The Hollywood movie star, pictured at the inauguration of the Church of Scientology in Madrid in September 2004, has been a Scientologist for 30 years. In October, he told ITV News that he considers it 'a beautiful religion' and is 'very proud' to be a member Remini was raised in Scientology from the age of nine but left the organization three years ago, in July 2013. Since then she has become a vocal critic of Scientology and last year published the memoir Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology. She currently has a documentary series called Leah Remini: Scientology And The Aftermath airing on A&E. Asked by King if she thought Cruise is 'delusional;,' the King Of Queens star said that she did, in the same way that she was delusional whilst a believer. 'I could say that about myself at the time,' she explained. 'I didnt want to look. I didnt want to believe that what Ive been involved in my whole life was a lie, that it was damaging and hurting people,' she said. 'Yeah, you can say I was delusional.' Tell all: Remini was raised in Scientology from the age of nine and left the organization in 2013. Last year she published a memoir Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology Back in October, Cruise, who has been a Scientologist for 30 years, praised his faith. calling it 'a beautiful religion.' In a rare comment about Scientology, the actor, 54, told ITV News at the Jack Reacher 2: Never Go Back premiere in London: 'It's something that has helped me incredibly in my life, 'It's something, you know, without it, I wouldn't be where I am,' he continued. 'So it's a beautiful religion. I'm incredibly proud.' Larry King Now airs on Ora.TV and Hulu. She flashed plenty of flesh while partying at a star-studded bash in Paris the night before. But Eva Longoria went undercover quite literally as she arrived at LAX airport on Friday. The 41-year-old Telenovela star was spotted in an all black ensemble complete with dark oversized shades and a wide-brimmed fedora. Scroll down for video Who's that girl? Eva Longoria went undercover and was covered almost completely head-to-toe while arriving at the LAX airport on Friday The former Desperate Housewives actress opted for comfort in a cosy sweater with matching loose-fitting trousers. She carried an additional black jacket in one arm and finished off her laid-back look with crisp white sneakers. Eva pulled her roller luggage which carried a fuzzy brown pillow and large navy leather handbag. Incognito: The 41-year-old Telenovela star was spotted in an all black ensemble complete with dark oversized shades and a wide-brimmed fedora The Golden Globe nominee showcased her natural beauty and youthful appearance with minimal cosmetics in just a touch of rosy blush and nude lip gloss. She was all smiles after an evening of partying in the City Of Love with supermodel Doutzen Kroes and Soo Joo Park. Eva seemingly attended a L'Oreal Paris bash - posting a selfie alongside her fellow brand ambassadors to her Instagram page. Laid-back look: The former Desperate Housewives actress opted for comfort in a cosy sweater with matching loose-fitting trousers The brunette beauty flashed her ample cleavage in a plunging floral jumpsuit which featured a revealing mesh panel at the front. She went braless in the sheer number which put on an eye-popping display and gave social media followers a sexy glimpse of all her best assets. It has been a hectic week for the Texas-born beauty as she jetted to Dubai on Monday in support of the Global Gift Gala. Sheer beauty! The Golden Globe nominee flashed plenty of flesh while partying at a star-studded bash in Paris the night before Gorgeous gals! Eva seemingly attended a L'Oreal Paris bash - posting a selfie alongside her fellow brand ambassadors Doutzen Kroes and Soo Joo Park She spent the afternoon with Melanie Griffith, who was honoured with the Global Gift Humanitarian Award. Eva has supported the organization for years, attending its events in countries such as Spain and France. The Global Gift Foundation is a 'non profit organization that aims to create a positive impact on the lives of children, women and families who are in need,' according to their site. She's one of Hollywood's most in-demand leading ladies. But Scarlett Johansson was all about French chic on Friday evening as she attended the Yummy Pop Grand Opening Party at Theatre du Gymnase in Paris. The classic blonde beauty was accompanied by her husband Romain Dauriac - both of whom came up with the idea for the gourmet popcorn store, working together to see it come to fruition. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO Taking a pop! Scarlett Johansson oozes Parisian glamour as she and husband Romain Dauriac launch popcorn shop Yummy Pop in Paris just in time for Christmas The couple - who were married in a private ceremony at a ranch in Montana on October 1, 2014 - enjoyed a grown-ups only night out in the city of lights, away from daughter Rose, 2. Their store is situated in the heart of the historic Parisian district of the Marais and Scarlett has explained that she has always dreamed of owning a shop dedicated to fancy popcorn. 'It has been a dream of mine and my family for several years to bring our favourite American snack to our favourite European City!' Scarlett said in a statement when the idea was first annoucned. Pop in and see them! Scarlett Johansson was all about French chic on Friday evening as she attended the Yummy Pop Grand Opening Party at Theatre du Gymnase in Paris Mmmm... yum! The classic blonde beauty was accompanied by her husband Romain Dauriac - both of whom came up with the idea for the gourmet popcorn store 'I am so excited to introduce Yummy Pop, a labour of love and Epicurean enthusiasm. My hope is for Yummy Pop to become a Parisian snacking staple and a symbol of friendship between my two most beloved cities, Paris and New York.' Although the store had its soft opening in October, Friday was the grand opening in which the actress served punters herself. The attractive couple looked suitably chic at the event as Scarlett stunned in a crisp white sleeveless silk blouse, tied loosely at the front in a semi-knot. She wore gold pearls around her next, highlighting her blonde cropped hair. and kept her pale skin's clean look but adding a splash of red lipstick as a finish. Pop along: Their store is situated in the heart of the historic Parisian district of the Marais and Scarlett has explained that she has always dreamed of owning a shop dedicated to fancy popcorn Eye-popping: 'It has been a dream of mine and my family for several years to bring our favourite American snack to our favourite European City!' Scarlett said in a statement when the idea was first annoucned Pop out for a taste: Although the store had its soft opening in October, Friday was the grand opening in which the actress served punters herself The actress wore slick black trousers that featured a gold zip detail up the side, and black heels. She carried a large rose gold bag decorated with a padded detail. Her husband kept it all back with a two-piece suit, and opted for a turtle-neck underneath. The pair met through Scarlett's tattoo artist and Romain - a French journalist - was the editor of French urban art magazine Clark before becoming the manager of a creative agency. She wore gold pearls around her next, highlighting her blonde cropped hair. and kept her pale skin's clean look but adding a splash of red lipstick as a finish. Pop-ular! The attractive couple looked suitably chic at the event as Scarlett stunned in a crisp white sleeveless silk blouse, tied loosely at the front in a semi-knot Pop, fizz! The store is known already for its intriguing varieties of popcorn, including truffle, parmesan and sage flavour as well as real Vermont maple and strawberries and cream The store is known already for its intriguing varieties of popcorn, including truffle, parmesan and sage flavour as well as real Vermont maple and strawberries and cream. Romain's sister is thought to manage the shop which makes its produce fresh on the premises with seasonal ingredients. The couple worked with New York chef Will Horowitz to produce the exceptionally flavoured snacks. Scarlett spent the evening posing with her array of guests, often standing in front of a Christmas tree-shaped tower of popcorn. She seemed in great spirits, clearly over the moon with her new venture. She's known for keeping it real. And Octavia Spencer couldn't contain her excitement when President Obama showed up at a screening of her new film Hidden Figures Thursday night in Washington, DC. 'Our screening was with #FLOTUS but #POTUS surprised us. Humbling bc he has a million things to do but stopped by to say hello!!!!' Octavia captioned her regram of the White House's official photo. Hunbled: Octavia Spencer couldn't contain her excitement when President Obama made a surprise appearance at a screening of her new film Hidden Figures in Washington on Thursday Michelle Obama hosted a private White House screening of the biopic about three black female engineers who worked at NASA. Octavia was joined by co-stars Taraji P. Henson, Janelle Monae and Kevin Costner, who all came out for the event. The three stars took part in a panel discussion in South Court Auditorium in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex to answer questions about the new film. Casting call: Octavia was joined by co-stars Taraji P. Henson, Janelle Monae and Kevin Costner, who all came out for the event Questions? The stars took part in a panel discussion before the film began And just before the screening began, the first lady came out to say a few words about the film, which has garnered critical praise. She acknowledged the 'remarkable' film for celebrating American history and telling some of the lesser known stories. 'We sought out the very best minds in math and engineering at the time, people with diverse perspectives who could think in ways that no one had ever thought before - p eople like many of you in this room, the people like Katherine Johnson, and Mary Jackson, and Dorothy Vaughan.' Big premiere: The screening came one day after the cast celebrated the new film at the New York City premiere Paying tribute: Octavia - wearing a St. John's peplum dress - stars in the film celebrating three women who broke barriers at a time when it was almost impossible to do so She paid tribute to the three women the film is based on. 'These women couldnt even drink from the same water fountain or use the same bathroom as many of their colleagues and folks didnt always take these women seriously because they were black, and also because they were women,' she continued. The screening comes just days after the New York City premiere where the stars came together to celebrate the new film. Dynamic trio: Taraji P. Henson plays Katherine G. Johnson, the woman who formed a powerful trio of 'human computers' with colleagues Dorothy Vaughan (played by Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (played by Janelle Monae) In the film, Taraji P. Henson plays Katherine G. Johnson, the woman who formed a powerful trio of 'human computers' with colleagues Dorothy Vaughan (played by Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (played by Janelle Monae) that helped propel the space program's first-ever orbit around earth by astronaut John Glenn and his crew on February 20, 1962. As the daughter of Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis, the question of what to buy them for Christmas must be challenging. However, Lily-Rose Depp looked laden as she stepped out shopping on Friday in West Hollywood. The 17-year-old actress and model kept it casual while carrying three brown paper bags packed full of goodies. Holiday shopping: Lily-Rose Depp looked laden with gifts as she stepped out on Friday in West Hollywood The teen wrapped up in an oversize grey harlequin hoodie, which she teamed with a black skirt. Braving the cooler LA weather, the star bared her legs and added box-fresh white Nike trainers. The face of Chanel's new No. 5 L'Eau fragrance showed off her pretty features and flawless skin enhanced by kohl and a peachy lip hue. Low key: The 17-year-old actress and model kept it casual, while carrying three brown paper bags packed full of goodies The Paris native left her brunette tresses loose with a centre parting as she set about her errands alongside a pal. Lily-Rose covered the December issue of British Vogue, gossiping therein about her famous parents, who were in a relationship from 1998 to 2012. To hear their daughter tell it, they 'werent very strict'. 'Theyve always trusted me to be independent and make my own decisions,' she explained. 'There wasnt really anything to rebel against.' Effortlessly stylish: The teen wrapped up in an oversize grey harlequin hoodie, which she teamed with a black mini skirt Natural beauty: She appeared to have applied make-up to head to the store, as she showed off her pretty features and flawless skin, enhanced by kohl and a peachy lip hue Busy day: The face of Chane's new No.5 L'Eau fragrance left her brunette tresses loose and in a centre parting as she set about her errands alongside a pal Though she'll occasionally post on Instagram - promoting, for example, her new film Planetarium, or her new British Vogue cover shot by Bruce Weber - she's not nearly as prolific on the platform as fellow celebrity models like Gigi Hadid. 'Ive really stopped using it in a personal way,' she confided. 'I never like revealing too much about myself. Once you start giving people that look into your life, then they just want more and more.' Lily has been busy in the last few months promoting new film, Planetarium, which was first unveiled at the Venice Film Festival in September. Depp's girl: The star has been supportive of her famous father Starring alongside Oscar winner Natalie Portman, the film follows two sisters who tour 1930s France as mediums. They cross paths with a visionary French producer while performing in Paris, who is keen to capture them on film - but trouble ensues. The film was released on November 16 in France. In late August, a single photograph of a wounded child in the back of an ambulance captured the horror and tragedy of the civil war tearing Syria apart. The world stood still as Omran Daqneesh, five, sat quietly covered in blood and dust as members of Syria's Civil Defence group tended to his head wounds. Now, Jennifer Hawkins and Ruby Rose have joined dozens of celebrities across the globe to lend their support for those still suffering in war torn Syria. Scroll down for videos 'My thoughts are with the people affected': Jennifer Hawkins has joined celebrities across the globe to show her continued support for those still suffering in war torn Syria Posting a picture of a city reduced to rubble, supermodel Jennifer shared her shock and heartbreak and urged others to do the same. 'I just can not believe what is happening in the world right now. It's heartbreaking. My thoughts are with the people affected,' she started. Later adding: 'You can also donate to the International Red Cross or Doctors without Borders.' 'What has been happening in Syria is truly shocking': Australia's Next Top Model host Megan Gale has joined her co-star to share her concern and support for those in Aleppo 'Distressing images like this one, though graphic, are reflective of what life is like in Aleppo,' said Megan in her heartfelt post on Instagram Joining her on Instagram was her Australia's Next Top Model co-star Megan Gale, who vented her own views on the 'atrocious acts across the world this year.' 'There have been many atrocious acts across the world this year but what has been happening in Syria is truly shocking not to mention heartbreaking,' she began. 'Distressing images like this one, though graphic (sorry I know it's hard to see) are reflective of what life is like in Aleppo right now,' she added referencing a picture of a small child cover in blood. 'We can donate': Ruby Rose also took to social media to urge fans and followers to think about those in Aleppo and shed light on the conflict overseas 'It's the time of year when everyone is putting money towards parties and Christmas presents etc, but I urge you to PLEASE consider setting an amount aside to donate towards people that need it most. 'People who will most certainly not be celebrating Christmas but will also be battling just to survive,' she finished. Orange Is The New Black star, Ruby Rose took to Twitter on Thursday to urge fans and followers to donate as well saying a little help can go a long way. 'We will never come close to even understanding': Vampire Diaries star Phoebe Tonkin shared an image of Omran Daqneesh, five, covered in blood and dust in the aftermath of an airstrike 'I can't even look without crying': Phoebe went on to describe the atrocities being seen in Syria from Omran Daqneesh to Aylan Kurdi, three, who washed ashore a beach in Europe 'We can donate, we can pray and we can speak and carry the messages of the fragments we know of what's happening in Aleppo but we need more.' Vampire Diaries star Phoebe Tonkin also shared her thoughts referring back to the troubling image of little Omran adding she would never come close to understanding his pain. She wrote: 'This little boy, who has witnessed and experienced such horrors that most of us lucky enough to have phones to be scrolling Instagram right now will never come close to even understanding. 'This photo was taken in August, the photo of the child washed up on shore that I can't even look at without crying was taken even longer ago. Global battle: Priyanka Chopra and Paris Hilton were among the celebrities globally to also comment on the tragic situation being faced in Aleppo 'We have marched the streets for each other many times this year, demanding change in our governments, challenging policies, protesting pipe line plans. 'We need to apply the same level of passion, anger and resilience towards this situation too. '... This isn't fair. It's Christmas in just over a week. Why not nix gifts this year in lieu of donating to one of the many charities that are helping displaced and hurt civilians in Aleppo,' she finished. Overseas, the Kardashian clan, Madonna, Naomi Campbell, Priyanka Chopra, Bette Midler and Paris Hilton, to name a few, also did their part in raising awareness. A city at war: Thousands of people are still believed to be trapped in Aleppo when evacuation convoys were suspended yesterday in the Syrian city Refugees: It is not clear how long the suspension will last, and whether it will delay a ceasefire which was arranged to move residents and rebel fighters Thousands of people are still believed to be trapped in Aleppo when evacuation convoys were suspended yesterday in the Syrian city, reported Associated Press. It is not clear how long the suspension will last, and whether it will delay a ceasefire - which was arranged to move residents and rebel fighters. The Aleppo evacuation was suspended after a report of shooting at a crossing point into the enclave. The Syrian government pulled out its buses that since Thursday had been ferrying out people from the city - that has suffered fierce battles and a prolonged siege. Horrifying: Earlier this year, a video of five-year-old Omran Daqneesh reminded the world of the horrors being faced in the Syrian city Aleppo 'The carnage in Syria remains a gaping hole in the global conscience,' U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement. 'Aleppo is now a synonym for hell,' he finished. More than 2,700 children have been evacuated in the past 24 hours, including the sick, wounded and those without their parents, UNICEF said. Hundreds of other vulnerable children, including orphans, remain trapped, the humanitarian organisation added. 'We are extremely concerned about their fate. If these children are not evacuated urgently, they could die,' a statement read. Tragedy: Meanwhile, in September last year an image of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi who washed ashore on a beach near Turkish resort of Bodrum Devastating: It was later reported that his five-year-old brother, Galip, had also met a similar death Earlier this year, a video of five-year-old Omran Daqneesh reminded the world of the horrors being faced in the Syrian city Aleppo. Meanwhile, in September last year an image of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi who washed ashore on a beach near Turkish resort of Bodrum. It was later reported that his five-year-old brother, Galip, had also met a similar death. Both boys reportedly hailed from the northern Syrian town of Kobani, the site of war between Islamic state insurgents and Kurdish forces last year. She's the Australian DJ and actress known for her edgy style. And Ruby Rose, 30, has changed up her look by dying her hair bright pink this week. Taking to Instagram to flaunt her newly-dyed 'do, she shared a selfie on Saturday as she cuddled up to her dog. Scroll down for video Thinking pink! Ruby Rose, 30, has changed up her look by dying her hair bright pink Ruby wrote in the caption: 'When your dog is comatose and you don't know where she finishes and your jacket starts.' She later posted another selfie highlighting her new hair colour, writing: 'Magenta'. On Saturday, Ruby and girlfriend Jessica Origliasso confirmed that they will be spending Christmas in Australia. Afterwards, they plan to return to the United States together. New 'do! She later posted another selfie highlighting her new hair colour, writing: 'Magenta' 'We are going to be spending some time with my family and her family': Ruby will spend Christmas in Australia with her girlfriend Jessica Origliasso (L) Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, Jess revealed she and Ruby will be spending the festive season with each other's families. 'She is going to be flying out here in a few days and we are going to be spending some time with my family and her family,' said the Veronicas star. 'We will head to the US after that,' she added. Puppy love: The couple recently started dating again, after breaking up eight years ago Last month, rumours swirled that the pair had rekindled their romance after posting a series of romantic photos on Instagram. And Jess later confirmed to Nova FM the couple were official dating - after breaking up eight years ago. Jess explained she and Ruby fell back in love while filming the Veronicas' music video for On Your Side. 'We just reconnected over doing this video': Jess previously explained she and Ruby fell back in love while filming the Veronicas' music video for On Your Side 'It is our love story in this video,' Jess said. 'It's about the dynamic, the highs and the lows of people in love, in a relationship.' Speaking of her new romance, Jess described it as 'the craziest thing.' 'We have been friends for eight years. A really long time and it was just honestly the craziest thing. 'From the beginning I've always seen the chemistry': Jess' twin sister Lisa Origliasso (L) has said she wasn't surprised the pair had reconnected after eight years 'We just reconnected over doing this video. (Ruby) wrote and directed it, and is in it with us, and we just sort of fell in love,' she added. Ruby and Jess reportedly first dated in 2008, in what was rumoured to be an on-again-off-again relationship. 'When we first got together way, way back, it was hard to know how much to share,' Jess previously said. 'She reminds me exactly how much last time definitely happened': Jess and Ruby romance began in 2008, but it appears they never stopped loving each other While their original relationship was thought to have ended years ago, Jess said Ruby has a very long memory. 'She reminds me exactly how much last time definitely happened. She doesn't let me forget anything,' the 31-year-old revealed. 'I don't know, it's just a crazy thing when you care about someone for so long and then you have the chance to be able to reconnect.' She's enjoyed a stellar year, appearing in blockbuster films Suicide Squad and Whiskey Tango Foxtrot. But Australian actress Margot Robbie is back home for Christmas, sharing an Instagram photo from Queensland's Gold Coast on Friday. The 26-year-old wore a wide-brimmed hat and reflective sunglasses, as enjoyed cocktails at Bam Bam Bakehouse at Mermaid Beach. Scroll down for video Home for the holidays! Margot Robbie, 26, is back home for Christmas, sharing an Instagram photo from Queensland's Gold Coast on Friday She wore a striped T-shirt and dark denim overalls that showed off her toned figure. Margot styled her blonde hair in loose waves and accessorised simply with a straw wide-brimmed hat and shades. Beaming for the camera, the Hollywood star drew attention to her pearly whites and flawless complexion. Hot property: It's been a stellar year for the Australian actress, appearing in blockbuster films Suicide Squad and Whiskey Tango Foxtrot Popular: Margot will reprise her role as supervillain Harley Quinn in Suicide Squad spin-off, Gotham City Sirens. Pictured with Will Smith in Suicide Squad The trip Down Under is a well-earned break for the former Neighbours star, as her career goes from strength to strength. Last Sunday, Margot won Best Actress in an Action Movie for her role in Suicide Squad at the Critics' Choice Awards in LA. She will also reprise her role as supervillain Harley Quinn in spin-off Gotham City Sirens, it was recently announced. Meanwhile, she is dating Tom Ackerley after they met in 2013 on set of World War II drama Suite Francaise in France. Bliss: Margot is dating Tom Ackerley (L) after they met in 2013 on set of World War II drama Suite Francaise in France Celebrities can seem mysterious to many of their fans. But Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence wanted to help enlighten viewers when they answered the internet's most burning questions in a Wired video released on Friday to promote their new film Passengers. The duo answered questions from Google's autocomplete list, which reflects the most popular questions about the stars people are asking currently. Opening up: Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence wanted to help enlighten viewers when they answered the internet's most burning questions in a video released on Friday Jennifer, 26, showed up looking business casual in a dark blazer and a blue and black pattern shirt that showed off just a hint of her decolletage. Her blonde tresses were cropped short at the shoulder and sported a very slight wave. She looked camera ready thanks to some light rose lipstick, ample blush and some stylish eye make-up. Chris, 37, decided on a similar look, which also featured a blazer in addition to a striped shirt. Nothing fancy: Jennifer, 26, showed up looking business casual in a dark blazer and a blue and black pattern shirt that showed off just a hint of her decolletage Valuable intel: J.Law opened the questioning with a very innocuous 'is Jennifer Lawrence a natural blonde?' Opportunistic: 'What is Chris Pratt doing,' was Chris's first question, which he answered in a snarky fashion by suggesting he is currently promoting his latest film Passengers, which he proclaimed to be the best film 'in the history of movies' Of course the hunk had groomed his facial hair and brunette locks to perfection. J.Law opened the questioning with a very innocuous 'is Jennifer Lawrence a natural blonde?' 'Are any of we?' she responds, before answering more seriously 'yeah, not this blonde, but yeah, technically blonde.' 'What is Chris Pratt doing,' was Chris's first question, which he answered in a snarky fashion by suggesting he is currently promoting his latest film Passengers, which he proclaimed to be the best film 'in the history of movies.' Crazy: Later, the questions devolved into more absurd queries, such as 'is Chris Pratt dead?' Consummate professionals: While Jennifer couldn't stop laughing when presented with the out-of-the-blue inquiry, Chris responded in deadpan 'only on the inside' Later, the questions devolved into more absurd queries, such as 'is Chris Pratt dead?' While Jennifer couldn't stop laughing when presented with the out-of-the-blue inquiry, Chris responded in deadpan 'only on the inside.' Their latest movie Passengers is a sci-fi flick that follows a spaceship on its way to a distant colony planet with over 5,000 passengers - who are in an induced hibernation. However, a malfunction occurs, causing inhabitants Jim Preston (Pratt) and Aurora Lane (Lawrence) to awaken ninety years early. The film is set for release on December 22nd. He's the Bachelorette 'geek' who transformed into unlikely ladies' man. But it seems the female attention is too much for Rhys Chilton, as he's now wearing a WEDDING RING to stop women asking him on dates. This comes after it emerged the 30-year-old was still legally married when he appeared on the Network Ten dating show. Scroll down for video 'I'm wearing my ring from now on': On Saturday, The Bachelorettes Rhys Chilton revealed he is wearing a WEDDING RING to stop female fans from asking him out on dates In his Instagram story on Saturday, a shirtless Rhys is pictured holding up his hand to reveal a wedding band. In the caption, the model revealed he's gone to extreme lengths to stop female fans from trying to sleep with him. 'I'm wearing my ring from now on,' Rhys wrote. 'A symbol of my zero interest in dating': The 30-year-old model, from Brisbane, revealed he is wearing the ring to stop female fans from trying to sleep with him 'As a symbol of my zero interest in dating.' The caption was followed with a laughing and crying emoji. While the ladies' events professional appeared on The Bachelorette, it was revealed he was in fact legally married. Get a piece of Rhys! During The Bachelorette, Rhys had a reputation for being a 'geek' but has since reinvented himself into a sex symbol Rhys previously told Woman's Day he married a woman called Kelsi, but the marriage did not last. 'Kelsi and I met in Queensland almost three years ago,' he explained. 'We fell in love and after six months of dating decided to get married. 'We had an intimate wedding attended by close friends and family. Taken? In September, it emerged Rhys was married, despite taking part in The Bachelorette He continued: 'Unfortunately, shortly after our marriage we started to grow apart and ultimately decided to end our relationship. 'We have been separated for two years and are currently in the process of finalising our divorce.' He was eliminated by journalist Georgia Love on The Bachelorette after it emerged he was just looking for publicity. Chinese Consulate General in San Francisco hosts a reception Thursday welcoming the returned Flying Tigers who made the final Hump fly in China. (Han Shasha/Peoples Daily Online) San Francisco, Dec. 15, Larry Jobe cried into my arms as I hugged him after the aircraft landed in Chinas Guilin, said K.C. Ma, vice president of the Flying Tigers Historical Organization at the welcome reception held by the Chinese Consulate General in San Francisco on Thursday. Larry Jobe, president of the historical organization, among other 4 crew with an average age of above 70, re-flied the Hump, known as the most dangerous aircraft route in China during World War II. Larry Jobe spoke at the reception that Obstacle and barrier after barrier loomed in our path, from mechanical and political issues to weather. Each was overcome in turn. This truly turned into a flight of friendship and relationship building as we progressed along the nearly 7000-mile route in a 72-year old aircraft. The Flying Tigers Historical Organization bought a 1944 C-47 aircraft from Australia. Five crew flied the aircraft, named Buzz Buggy, from Australia, through Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar and "across the hump" to Kunming, then on to Guilin, China from August this year. However, the old aircraft had a catastrophic engine failure and made a single engine landing halfway on its journey in Surabaya, Indonesia On 17 August. This is just one of the adventurous stories. Luo Linquan, consul general of Chinas Consulate General in Francisco commented that It is noteworthy that the volunteer crew headed by Larry Jobe, President of the American Flying Tiger Historical Organization, worked painstakingly and even risked their lives to make this impossible mission possible during the 3-month flight journey, experiencing tons of untold hardships, including two engine failures. With the help from relevant countries and organizations, the plane landed in Guilin, southeast Chinas Guangxi province after 97 days flights. As planned, the plane will be permanently stationed and displayed in Guilin Flying Tiger Heritage Park. During WWII, Japan invaded and controlled the coast areas of China, Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and then Burma. "Flying the Hump" was the only option to re-supply the forces fighting the Japanese from within China. And it was one of the most dangerous flying routes at the time. About 600 Allied Aircraft were lost crossing the Himalayas to supply the Flying Tigers in China. Luo said, there are countless moving stories about the Flying Tigers and their friendship with Chinese people. General Chennault and his Flying Tigers are heroes known to every household in China and their heroic endeavors wound up as a brilliant chapter in Sino-U.S. cooperation in fighting fascism during WWII, which forms an important component in the history of Sino-U.S. relations, and which will never be forgotten by Chinese people. Luo also emphasized Florence Fangs support to the historical organization. Florence Fang, chairwoman of the Florence Fang Family Foundation, donated USD $175,000 to help the organization buy the aircraft. Abigail Breslin was 10 years old when she starred as wannabe pageant star Olive in the hit independent film Little Miss sunshine. Fast forward 10 years and the actress, now 20, has successfully translated her childhood stardom into a steady Hollywood career. But on Thursday night in LA, Breslin re-lived her famous role that earned her a best supporting actress Oscar nomination at a special 10th anniversary celebration of Little Miss Sunshine Breakout role: Abigail Breslin found fame and earned an Oscar nomination for her role as Olive in 2006's Little Miss Sunshine and helped celebrate the film's 10th anniversary Thursday The Scream Queens star joined the movie's co-directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris at the historic Palace Theatre for the screening and party hosted by Cinespia. The comedy premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2006 where it was picked up for distribution by Fox Searchlight. It earned a total of four Academy Award nominations including best picture and won two - best supporting actor for Alan Arkin and best original screenplay for Michael Arndt. Back together: Breslin, 20, joined the film's co-directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris for a special screening at LA's Palace Theatre Ensemble: The independent comedy starred from l-r, Alan Arkin, Steve Carell, Paul Dano,Breslin, Toni Collette and Greg Kinnear Quirky: The plot revolves around Olive's dream to win the Little Miss Sunshine pageant in California and the family set out on a 800-mile journey in a VW van to take her to the contest The quirky movie starred Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette, Steve Carell and Paul Dano in addition to Abigail and Arkin. The dysfunctional family sets out on a 800-mile trip in a VW van so that Olive (Breslin) can take part in the Little Miss Sunshine pageant in California. The characters have to deal with several challenges and come to terms with aspects of their own lives while at the same time supporting Olive in her dream. The Home and Away star has just wrapped filming for the year. And Pia Miller is making the most of her summer break, flaunting her slim figure at Coogee Beach on Saturday before flying to Melbourne with her son. The 33-year-old actress sizzled in a stylish black swimsuit while showing off her flawless complexion and messy hair. Beach babe! Pia Miller is making the most of her holidays, spending Saturday at Coogee Beach, Sydney before travelling to Melbourne with her 13-year-old son Isaiah Pia appeared to have taken a dip in the ocean as she appeared make-up free and perfectly windswept. She playfully smiled for the camera, as her beachy brunette hair fell across her face. The swimsuit, which retails at $160 from Heyy Dream Swim in Geelong, accentuated Pia's slender waist. Holiday mode! Pia plays police officer Katarina 'Kat' Chapman on TV soap Home And Away, which finished filming for the year on Friday Later that day, the mother-of-two travelled to Melbourne with her son Isaiah. The Chilean-born beauty posed for an Instagram photo with the 13-year-old as they sat in a car together. 'Melbourne hangs with my little man,' she wrote in the caption, alongside the hash tag: 'Son love'. Doting mother: Pia and her eldest son, 13-year-old Isaiah, shared an Instagram as they spent time together in Melbourne on Saturday Son dates! It comes just days after she took her youngest son Lennox on a family 'date' Pia kept up her summery look with a daisy print outfit and a light application of natural-look makeup. It comes just days after she took her youngest son Lennox on a family 'date', and shared photos of the trip on Instagram. Isaiah and Lennox have two different fathers, but share a close relationship with each other. She failed to appear at her husband Oliver Curtis' appeal hearing on Friday, which saw his insider trading conviction upheld - meaning he will spend the Christmas holidays behind bars. But on Saturday, it was back to normal for socialite Roxy Jacenko, as she went to an exclusive salon in Double Bay, Sydney for her hair appointment. The 36-year-old also took along her two young children - Pixie, five, and Hunter, two - who have been told their father is away on business as he serves out his prison sentence. Back to normal? On Saturday, Roxy Jacenko took her children - Pixie, five, and two-year-old Hunter - to a salon in Sydney's Double Bay, the day after her jailed husband Oliver Curtis lost his appeal and learned he will spend Christmas behind bars The Sydney publicist wore her trademark black sunglasses as she carried her son into the upmarket hairdressers. Wearing her engagement and wedding rings, the Sweaty Betty PR founder also accessorised with diamond stud earrings. She styled her blonde hair in a low ponytail, wore a simple white T-shirt and a pair of loose-fitting denim shorts. Mother and son: The Sydney socialite, 36, styled her blonde hair in a low ponytail, wore a simple white T-shirt and a pair of loose-fitting denim shorts Beauty treatment: The Sweaty Betty PR founder was photographed arriving at Shane Jones Hairdressing for her appointment while carrying her son Hunter She finished off her causal look with w hite sneakers and a Louis Vuitton handbag. As she made her way inside the salon, Roxy could be seen holding her son Hunter. During the visit, Roxy had a hair colouring while little Pixie got two complimentary coloured hair extensions. Blonde ambition: The Sydney publicist wore her trademark black sunglasses as she carried her son into the upmarket hairdressers Where's daddy? The hair appointment comes as the Jacenko family prepares to spend the Christmas holiday with Oliver Curtis, after he lost his appeal on Friday Once in the chair, Roxy was photographed smiling and laughing as she balanced Hunter on her lap. Meanwhile, Pixie showed off her kid-friendly hair extensions in a recent Instagram photo. The salon trip comes after Roxy revealed she is telling her children their father Oliver is overseas on business. Show of support? Wearing her engagement and wedding rings, the Sweaty Betty PR founder also accessorised with diamond stud earrings Family outing: As she made her way inside the salon, Roxy was seen cradling her young son Roxy told The Daily Telegraph she saw no benefit from telling her children their father is spending a year in prison. 'Every parent is different, but one thing I have learnt since becoming a mum is that you need to parent in a way that works for your children,' she said. 'Children aren't robots and you parent in a way that works for the individual. 'When they are older I will obviously address it with them as and when I have to, but for now, normality is my only focus.' Georgia Love and Lee Elliott shared a romantic kiss before attending a Pancare charity event in Melbourne on Saturday. Lee had organised the fundraiser with his male Bachelorette co-stars in honour of Georgia's late mother Belinda. Belinda sadly died from pancreatic cancer in October, just days after the dating show finale was broadcast. Scroll down for video True love! The Bachelorette's Georgia Love and Lee Elliott shared a romantic kiss before attending a Pancare charity event in Melbourne on Saturday Since Belinda's death, Georgia becoming an ambassador for Pancare Australia. And Lee came up with the idea of hosting a charity lunch with the Bachelorette boys to raise money for the organisation. He gave fans the chance to buy a 'date' with their favourite reality TV stars. And over the weekend, 12 lucky ladies were rewarded with an exclusive lunch at Morris Jones and Co. restaurant. Bittersweet: The couple appeared happier than ever following an eventful year which saw them fall in love on TV - but also lose Georgia's mother to pancreatic cancer Georgia and Lee looked happier than as ever as they made their way inside the restaurant. Georgia looked chic in an off-the-shoulder white jumpsuit and black caged shoes. Her boyfriend looked dapper in black skinny jeans, a white shirt and blazer. Love rivals? What love rivals? The charity lunch was a fun affair as the former Bachelorette hunks enjoyed catching up with each other and meeting the fans They couldn't keep their hands off each other as they exchanged a romantic look. They even stopped on the street for a kiss before they meeting up with their friends from The Bachelorette. The charity lunch was a fun-filled affair and the former love rivals enjoyed catching up and meeting the fans. And in one photo, Courtney Dober re-created a Bachelorette rose ceremony with his friend Jake Ellis. Showing their support: While not all of the Bachelorette cast were able to attend, the fans who paid generously for the lunch date were not left disappointed A good cause: This week, Georgia thanked those who bid on tickets to the lunch, revealing they had raised almost $10,000 Earlier this week, Georgia thanked those who bid on tickets to the lunch, revealing they had raised almost $10,000. 'I am so proud of my man for not only coming up with the idea but organising the whole thing and am so humbled and touched that so many of the boys are getting on board to help out such an important and worthy cause,' she gushed. 'Now to those of you lucky enough to be going along on Saturday, have fun!' She famously struggled with body dysmorphia and anorexia in the past. And Chloe Lattanzi was visibly upset as she spoke about her eating disorder on Access Hollywood earlier this week. 'I don't know why I'm getting emotional,' the 30-year-old said, as she promoted her debut album, No Pain. 'I don't know why I'm getting emotional': Olivia Newton-John's daughter Chloe Lattanzi became upset as she discussed her past eating disorder on Access Hollywood this week She continued: 'I just wasn't enough, simply put. No matter what I did I just wasn't enough. 'If I was 82 pounds (37 kilograms) I didn't think I was fat, I just thought I looked normal.' Despite her past problems, the singer insists that she's happier than ever these days. 'I just wasn't enough, simply put. No matter what I did I just wasn't enough,' explained Chloe 'If I was 82 pounds (37 kgs) I didn't think I was fat, I just thought I looked normal,' she said Discussing the release of her debut album, which was recorded 12 years ago, Chloe said: 'Now at my age I'm finally happy and confident and I want to put this out for people to hear.' She continued: 'I'm healthy now. I want to get past this image of Chloe and anorexia and stuff, I'm a musician now.' 'Yes, I have my hard days like any other person, but I just want it to be left behind now,' she concluded. 'I want to get past this image of anorexia and stuff': The 30-year-old singer made it clear she was leaving her troubled youth behind her. Pictured with her mother Olivia Newton-John My, how you've changed! Chloe looks remarkably different now (R) compared to her younger years (L) as it's rumoured she spent $415,000 on plastic surgery to achieve a Barbie doll look The aspiring singer has been focusing on her entertainment career lately, including a role in SyFy Channel movie Dead 7. Chloe and her fiance, jiu jitsu instructor James Driskell, have also moved to Oregon to open a marijuana farm. It was previously reported her mother Olivia Newton-John financed the business, but Chloe claimed she 'had nothing to do with it'. TV host and mother-of-four Rebecca Judd admits she relies on a strict routine to get everything done. But as the AFL WAG relaxed in a Noosa park with her children and husband Chris last week, she appeared relaxed and carefree. The 33-year-old was seen keeping an eye on her two eldest children as she sat on the floor of the playground. Mummy duties! Rebecca Judd looked carefree as she relaxed at a playground in Noosa recently while her two children played on the equipment Bec cut a slim figure in active wear from her own brand, Jaggad. The speech pathologist teamed patterned full length tights with a cropped black singlet and a pair of monochrome Nike shoes. She accessorised the look with a wristwatch and a pair of stylish sunglasses. Adventuring: Her children were seen having fun as the glamorous WAG looked on Bec spent time helping her children navigate the playground, from peeking into tunnels to pushing her son Oscar on the swings. Elsewhere, the Melbourne socialite was pictured sitting cross-legged as she looked at her mobile phone. Her former AFL star husband Chris was also spotted checking up on the couple's newborn twins in a double pram. What's new? Bec looked content as she checked her phone during the family outing Touching base: Taking a break from playing, Chris Judd was spotted lying down next to his wife Earlier in the trip, Bec and Chris were spotted at the beach with body boards teaching their children how to catch waves. The high-profile couple have had their hands full since welcoming identical twin boys less than two months ago. In an interview with Today's Lisa Wilkinson, Bec revealed what it takes to juggle her busy career with being a mother-of-four. Super dad! Former AFL player Chris Judd was hands on with the couple's young children at the park and was seen pushing his daughter Billie on the swing All four at once! At one point, he was seen taking newborn twins Tom and Darcy for a walk around the park as he checked in on the two eldest children Daydreaming: Bec cut a casual figure in tights and a crop top from her activewear range Admitting she's a 'crazy routine lady,' the model admitted she's hired a nanny and enlisted the help of family members. 'I've got a part-time nanny, she's with us three days a week and then Chris' family who live down the road, which is great,' she said. She also revealed her mother will be moving to Melbourne from Western Australia for 12 months to help with the growing family. Her little guy! Later, the 33-year-old was seen strolling along the beach with her son Oscar Helping hand: Bec has admitted she's hired a nanny and enlisted the help of family members following the birth of her twins Tom and Darcy earlier this year Mother knows best! Bec also revealed her mother will be moving to Melbourne from Western Australia for 12 months to help with the growing family They're known for the endless energy and squeaky clean image. Yet, it appears Jedward, 25, have turned their back on their usual matching ensembles for matching abs as they flaunted their incredibly taut stomachs on Twitter. Unveiling a more grown-up image, the Dublin twins said goodbye to their clean-cut appearance as they went topless in a number of saucy black and white images, that showcased their rippling physique to perfection and equally set their fans into a frenzy online. Scroll down for video Abs-lotuely fabulous: It appears Jedward, 25, have turned their back on their usual matching ensembles for matching abs as they flaunted their incredibly taut stomachs on Twitter Looking decidedly moody in the collection of photos, John and Edward Grimes opted to forgo captioning their shots as they made their gym honed abs the main attraction. Former X Factor star Edward posed in a pair of low-slung denim that rested loosely below his hips to accentuate his impressive transformation. Completing his look, he draped a biker inspired leather jacket over his muscular frame as he smoldered to the camera with ditching his signature high quiff for a floppier style. Following his brother's lead, John brooded to the camera, working both his abs and pout in a winter warming fur coat. Back in the day: The brothers looked decidedly different to their usual image (pictured in 2011) He can stomach it: Unveiling a more grown-up image, the Dublin twins said goodbye to their clean-cut appearance as they went topless in a number of saucy black and white images Since the photos made it onto social media, fans of the two-time Eurovision hopefuls have been left in a tizzy and have been commenting in their droves about the pics. One fan on Instagram wrote: 'What actually happened to them...Im so confused'. While another said: 'When did Jedward get fit?' Before a loyal fan on Twitter wrote under the pics: '@planetjedward honestly I'm surprised you have body hair!! Didn't think you did but I'm pleasantly surprised ;)' Daring: Fans were caught off guard by their ab rippling display Wrapped up: Following his brother's lead, John brooded to the camera, working both his abs and pout in a winter warming fur coat Claim to fame: The Irish act first leaped to fame on the sixth series of The X Factor in 2009, and even though they finished sixth in the competition, they went on to be a success (pictured in 2015) The Irish act first leaped to fame on the sixth series of The X Factor in 2009, and even though they finished sixth in the competition, they went on to be a success. Under the guidance of their manager Louis Walsh, the boys released two double platinum selling albums in Ireland called Planet Jedward and Victory as well as a third studio album, Young Love. The patriotic twins have also represented Ireland for the last two years at the Eurovision song contest, and finished in 8th with 119 points in 2011, and in 19th place with 46 points in 2012. Breaking onto the TV scene, the pair have appeared on Celebrity Big Brother and even made a cameo appearance in the 2015 film, Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No! alongside pal Tara Reid. The Bachelor's Alex Nation has been enjoying quality time with her son Elijah, six. The pair spent Friday outdoors, with Elijah playing on his bike before a walk along the beach. But they opted for an indoor activity on Saturday, going to see Rogue One: A Star Wars Story at the cinema. Scroll down for video Date night! The Bachelor's Alex Nation took her son Elijah, six, to see Rogue One: A Star Wars Story in style on Saturday Alex shared an Instagram photo of Elijah enjoying a chocolate milkshake before the pair went in to the theatre. He posed for the picture with the straw in his mouth and smiling for the camera. 'My Gold Class date today,' the 25-year-old wrote in the caption. Taking in the view: The Bachelor's Alex Nation shared a picture of her son sitting peacefully and watching the sunset at the beach on Friday afternoon On Friday, Alex shared a photograph of her son sitting on the beach and staring up at a picturesque sunset. 'Chasing sunsets with my little soulmate,' she captioned the image shared with her 106,000 followers. Last week, Elijah turned six years old and enjoyed birthday lunch with his family at a restaurant in Melbourne. Birthday boy! Last week, Elijah turned six years old and enjoyed birthday lunch with his family at a burger restaurant in Melbourne A picture posted to Alex's social media account shows Elijah holding a burger with a Happy Birthday candle stuck into it. Earlier that day, Alex shared a photo of her son holding a giant balloon shaped like the number six. 'Six years ago today I held you for the first time and looked at you in complete awe,' she wrote in the caption. Quality time: Alex often shares endearing messages directed at her son on her Instagram page 'Six years on, I still look at you in the very same way. 'Little man, I am so proud to be your mum and you have filled my life with an abundance of love and happiness. Happy Birthday you little legend.' It came weeks after Alex and Elijah took part in a magazine photo shoot with her boyfriend, The Bachelor's Richie Strahan. She's treating her beau to a romantic birthday trip to Vienna. And Vicky Pattison couldn't look more smitten as she puckered up to her boyfriend John Noble as they took in the sights of the Austrian city earlier this week. The former Geordie Shore star, 29, was wrapped up warm in style as she lapped up the attention from the hunk, who she recently revealed was the only man she had ever loved. Scroll down for video Having a smooch: Vicky Pattison, 29, couldn't look more smitten as she puckered up to her boyfriend John Noble as they took in the sights of the Austrian city earlier this week Showing off her enviable frame in a grey knitted dress and chic black coat, the reality star found it difficult to part from her lover. Vicky strutted along in a pair of sexy thigh-high boots which flashed a slither of her toned legs. The I'm A Celebrity winner accessorised like a pro with a navy handbag, black beret and over-sized shades which framed her immaculately styled brunette tresses. The feisty stunner was unable to wipe the content from her face as she strolled along with John, who looked super stylish himself. Stylish: Showing off her enviable frame in a grey knitted dress, chic black coat, and knee-high boots the former Geordie Shore star found it difficult to part from her lover Stunner: The I'm A Celebrity winner accessorised like a pro with a black beret and over-sized shades which framed her immaculately styled brunette tresses Their loved-up display comes after Vicky took a swipe at all her former partners by insisting John is 'The One'. In a gushing 29th birthday tribute on last week, Vicky wrote: 'Huge happy birthday to the only man I have ever loved... And the most amazing human I know!!! Happy 29th gorgeous boy... Let's have a good one!!!' He was quick to return the favour, posting the same cosy snap of the pair alongside the caption: 'Spoilt rotton off my partner in crime! 29 today.' Her shout out will come as a blow to her exes, including her former Geordie Shore co-star Ricci Guarnaccio, who she was briefly engaged to in 2012 before a very acrimonious split in 2013. She has gone on to enjoy short-lived romances with Spencer Matthews, Mario Falcone, and was linked to Alex Cannon, who she also declared she 'loved' when he appeared on CBB earlier this year. Capturing the moment: The feisty stunner was unable to wipe the content from her face as she took selfies with John, 29, who looked super stylish himself The One? Vicky has taken a swipe at all her former partners by insisting that new beau John is 'The One', saying he is 'the only man I've ever loved' in a birthday message She also dated reality bad boy Stephen Bear after they met on Ex On The Beach, before another nasty split. Meanwhile, the pair kicked off their Vienna strip with a snap of themselves sipping on cocktails at the airport, which she captioned: 'Vienna here we come....' Their trip has also been packed full of activities, including rooftop cocktails, a horse-drawn carriage ride and a visit to the opera. Summing up the mood of the getaway, Vicky captioned one panoramic shot of their drinks at a bar: 'Vienna for @johnnoblejn 's birthday is everything'. Well-rested: The couple were clearly incredibly pleased with their city break in Austria, littering their social media accounts with loved-up selfies together Romantic! They enjoyed a special tour of the city with a ride in a horse-drawn carriage The pair appear to be spending some much-needed alone time together during their European break in Austria, after being separated by Vicky's presenting job on the other side of the world. However her new beau flew out to meet her in Australia, where she was filming ITV2's I'm A Celebrity... Extra Camp, as a sweet surprise for her 29th birthday. Vicky then made the relationship public on her Instagram, when she posted a selfie of the pair alongside her mum enjoying a dinner Down Under to celebrate the milestone. Today's Lisa Wilkinson and Today Extra's David Campbell have reflected on a difficult 2016 for Channel Nine, with each of their co-hosts making headlines. Between Karl Stefanovic's marriage breakdown and a controversial anti-Muslim immigration stance taken by Sonia Kruger, it was undoubtedly a challenging year for the network's stars. 'I think we all have to be honest, and say that 2016 was one of the toughest years on record,' David told The Sunday Telegraph. Scroll down for video It was one of the toughest years: Today Extra's David Campbell and Today's Lisa Wilkinson (R) reflected on a difficult 2016 for Channel Nine, which included Karl Stefanovic's (L) marriage breakdown and the controversial anti-Muslim immigration stance taken by Sonia Kruger David continued: 'There was a lot of bile that rose to the surface. Well all be glad to get this year behind us and start afresh.' Both morning TV hosts have witnessed their fair share of controversy this year. In July, Sonia Kruger used a on-air segment to call for an end to Muslim immigration in Australia, explaining that as a mother she no longer felt safe due to terrorism acts in other parts of the world. Controversial: In July, Sonia used an on-air segment to argue for Muslim immigration to be banned in Australia, citing the terrorism fears she held as a mother The opinion drew a firestorm of debate on social media, with Sonia refusing to back down or apologise for her stance. For Karl, it was the breakdown of his marriage to Cassandra Thorburn after 21 years in September, which resulted in significant media scrutiny But despite the difficulties, Lisa also said there was some positives, with the Today show topping Sunrise in metro city ratings. Break-up: Karl's split from wife Cassandra Thorburn resulted in media scrutiny for Nine 'Its taken ten years of Karl (Stefanovic) and I being together and the gap consistently closing every year. Weve been working hard and made the viewers our number one priority,' she said. While Karl has been on an end-of-year hiatus from Channel Nine, Lisa and David will sign off 2016 when they host Carols By Candlelight on Christmas Eve. Lisa said the event was a perfect way to finish the year. 'As we become more disconnected in society, that moment on Christmas Eve is when people remember what that connection feels like,' she remarked. China and Russia recently vetoed a UN Security Council draft resolution that calls for a seven-day humanitarian truce in Syria's Aleppo. Some media accused China of being anti-humanitarian and someone even pointed an accusing finger at China. The draft resolution tackles a temporary ceasefire in Aleppo in order to clear ways for humanitarian aid. It seems like a reasonable choice to demand ceasefire at first sight, but such humanitarian aid loses all its meaning when putting in the context of current Syrian situation. After the turmoil broke out Aleppo, which the second largest city in Syria, the rebels occupied the city and created a large number of refugees. In the past, not a single Western country raised humanitarian draft decisions. They only started calling for humanitarian aid after the government forces fought back in Aleppo. After Russia intervened in the Syrian crisis in September last year, the Western world used widening humanitarian access as excuses to seek compromises from Russia and Syria. Rightly after Syrian military announced that they have taken most parts of the urban areas and the battle would be soon ended, the Western countries jumped out to preach the urgency of the humanitarian issue. The time they chose is pretty interesting. Among all kinds of forces against Syrian government, the most ferocious Al-Nusra Front has been deemed as a terrorist group by the UN. Russia, on many occasions, proposed the West to separate the Al-Nusra Front from the rebels, but no response has been heard yet. It makes the outsiders wonder whether they couldnt or wouldnt separate them. Russia met rebuttals from the Western countries again when it suggested that all the armed rebels should be withdrawn from the controlled area by Al-Nusra Front and from Aleppo. Things were pretty clear now: the Western countries only want to use humanitarian aid as an excuse to retain the controlled area by the rebels in Aleppo. Because it is obvious that the upper hand is in the party who controls Aleppo. Some media pointed out that some countries are using Aleppo as leverage to achieve their political hidden agendas instead of protecting humanitarianism. Humanitarianism is a responsibility for both parties engaged in the war. Some Western media blamed Russia for the Syrian crisis in an one-sided manner, but seldom covered the anti-humanitarian behaviors of the other party. The recent on-the-field coverage of rebels in Aleppo showed numerous large-sized barns and arsenals. With the refugees starving outside the warehouses, the goods and materials held them show nothing but irony. Those who learn about the history of the Middle East must know well who have caused these hot potatoes. Before pointing their fingers at China, those countries should understand their own role in the turmoil of the Middle East. Chinas permanent representative and ambassador to the UN said that humanitarian issue should never be a political one in his speech given after vetoing the draft resolution. The words were quite to the point. China, always a practitioner of humanitarianism, has inherited the humanitarian spirit from its traditional culture. What China vetoed are those under-the-table agendas in the name of humanitarianism. Speaking of the Syrian crisis, there exist so many distorted facts and hidden truth. Faced with instability, disasters and tortures, it requests the international society to view the facts in an objective way in order to defend justice and restore peoples faith in humanitarianism. Gamble Breaux has lashed out at The Real Housewives of Sydney again. On Sunday, The Real Housewives of Melbourne star called the Sydney cast 'feral.' 'The are completely feral,' she told The Herald Sun. 'The are completely feral!' Gamble Breaux didn't hold back when discussing the cast of The Real Housewives of Sydney 'The fact is Sydney is brassy, but Melbourne is gold,' she continued. This isn't the first time that Gamble has clashed with the Sydney Housewives. In September, she lashed out at Lisa Oldfield, who had made repeated attacks on the Melbourne cast in the media. Ouch! 'The fact is Sydney is brassy, but Melbourne is gold,' Gamble said. Pictured: The Real Housewives Of Sydney cast The originals: Gamble shot to fame on The Real Housewives of Melbourne (pictured) Taking to Facebook, Gamble commented: '(Anna Wintour) wannabe can eat my p***y lips! 'Good luck riding off our ratings you stupid old cow. Blood sucking ticks like you wouldn't survive in Melbourne.' After Lisa dissed the Melbourne ladies yet again, Gamble responded again with another slam. 'Good luck riding off our ratings you stupid old cow!' Gamble (L) previously slammed Sydney star Lisa Oldfield (R) 'I hear Real Housewives of Sydney is already getting rave reviews... from its cast!' she told Daily Mail Australia. 'I suggest Lisa save her petty bulls**t for the unfortunate women she will be spending the next four months with.' The Real Housewives of Sydney is set to premiere in February. Jarryd Hayne's rumoured girlfriend Amellia Bonnici has welcomed their first child, The Sunday Telegraph reported. Amellia, 25, is believed to have given birth to a baby girl in a private hospital in Queensland's Gold Coast. Sources told the publication Amellia gave birth 'a few days ago' and both parents are 'besotted' with their new child. Scroll down for video It's a girl! Jarryd Hayne (L) and his rumoured girlfriend Amellia Bonnici (R) welcomed their daughter into the world 'a few days ago', The Sunday Telegraph reported The name of the child is yet to be revealed. Jarryd's manager declined to comment when contacted by Daily Mail Australia. Jarryd and Amellia met on Instagram early this year, and the 28-year-old athlete was surprised to discover she was pregnant, it was claimed. Meanwhile, Jarryd has moved the 25-year-old brunette into his apartment in the Gold Coast and vows to support her. First time father: Amellia, 25, is believed to have given birth to a baby girl in a private hospital in Queensland's Gold Coast. Pictured: Jarryd in June 2016 It is believed the pregnancy played a part Jarryd quitting the San Francisco 49'ers and returning to Australia to play for the Gold Coast Titans. The couple have remained silent on the topic of Amellia's pregnancy. Jarryd has repeatedly declined to comment, as have family members. Amellia grew up in Tuncurry, NSW, where her parents still live. She was a student at Great Lakes High School, before graduating and moving to Sydney. She was living in the beachside suburb of Coogee, when she met Hayne early this year through Instagram, New Idea claimed. Considering Jarryd's faith - and Amellia's presence at a service of the controversial church recently - it is possible they will raise the child with the help of Hillsong. Since joining in 2008, after an altercation in a Kings Cross alleyway which almost saw him shot, Jarryd has become a supporter of the church. Lindy Klim has spent her 39th birthday looking forward to 2017, after the past year saw her split from husband Michael and become engaged to property developer Adam Ellis. On Saturday, the model took to Instagram to tell her 91,000 followers she had spent her birthday reflecting on a rather emotional 12 months. Back in February, Lindy and Michael separated after almost 10 years of marriage. She later claimed to have discovered his 'secret girlfriend' Desiree Devari in late 2015, an allegation the former Olympic swimmer strongly denies. 'How glad I am to see the year behind me': Lindy Klim spent her 39th birthday looking forward to 2017 after splitting from her husband Michael and becoming engaged to Adam Ellis Since their separation, Lindy has gone on to find love with British expatriate Adam. The couple, who are based in Bali, got engaged in October. In the accompanying Instagram photo, Lindy showed off her slender figure on a couch against a cool tropical backdrop. Looking every inch the Balinese beauty, she wore a strappy black dress which showed off her slim, ageless figure. Former flames: In February, Lindy and Michael Klim separated after almost 10 years of marriage. She later claimed to have discovered his 'secret girlfriend' Desiree Devari in late 2015, an allegation the former Olympic swimmer strongly denies. Pictured in October 2015 Meanwhile, she styled her hair back in an elegant bun and accessorised with a pair of gold drop earrings. 'Today is my birthday as I sit thinking how glad I am to see the year behind me I couldn't be more excited for what I have ahead of me,' Lindy wrote in the caption. 'Feeling blessed,' she concluded. New love! After her split, Lindy began dating British property developer Adam Ellis (R). They got engaged in October. Pictured in October 2016 She added the hash tag 'On top of the world' and thanked her loved ones, including her fiance Adam. Lindy's reflective post comes as her former husband Michael, 39, enjoys his new girlfriend Desiree. Last month, the former athlete told News.com.au he and Lindy were in a good place co-parenting their three children. 'I'm very happy now': Michael Klim has found love with new girlfriend Desiree Devari (L) 'I'm very happy now and settled. We want to move on with our lives, and be happy moving on,' Michael said. 'Lindy and I have joint custody and our time with the kids is split equally. 'My priority is just making sure their transition is smooth and they are happy,' he concluded. Anna Faris has coughed up a check to settle a $5,000 fine after her pet dog was found homeless. The 39-year-old actress was hit with the penalty after her Chihuahua named Pete - that she adopted from Kinder4Rescue four years ago - was found emaciated and wandering the streets in North Hollywood, California last month. The actor's husband, Chris Pratt, also caught flack in 2011 for trying to give their family cat away on Twitter. Young pup: Anna Faris has paid a $5,000 fine after her dog, Pete, was found homeless last month. Pete is pictured here with Faris close to the time of his adoption several years ago Before and after: Pete was found looking emaciated in North Hollywood in November Laurel Kinder, who runs the Kinder4Rescue center, addressed Faris on the organization's official Facebook page. 'The puppy you adopted from us years ago was found starving on the street. Someone brought it into a vet, scanned the microchip, we've been calling you for days, no return call,' she wrote. 'Did you read your contract about giving our dogs away and the $5,000 fine?' Social media shaming: The North Hollywood shelter's owner, Laurel Kinder, said that Anna Faris signed a contract upon adoption, in this since-deleted Facebook post from November 19 The post, which has since been deleted, went on to say: 'If you were panicking looking for your lost dog you certainly would've contacted us or the microchip company. I'm not sure what you're guilty of that this dog ended up in this condition, you signed a four page contract. 'How does this dog end up on the street Anna? Being a celebrity does not excuse you from following the rules or respecting the rescue you adopted the dog from, or abiding the contract. 'This is why people are not allowed to give Kinder4Rescue dogs away they have adopted from us because they become disposable, get passed around and end up on the street like this.' Pets: The couple apparently also have (or had) cats This isn't the first time the family has been shamed on social media for their animal care choices. When Pratt, 37, made a joke on Twitter about whether any of his followers would like to take in their aging cat, he was met with death threats. This incident took place just over five years ago, at which time Pratt reportedly said he found the cat a good home. About Pete being found, Anna's representative previously said: 'Anna is thrilled that the dog has been found, and is ensuring all necessary arrangements are made to bring the dog home.' It's not clear at this time whether Pete will return to the Faris-Pratt home or whether he will be available for adoption by another family. It's fair to say that 2016 hasn't been the best of years for Kim Kardashian and Kanye West. But while the pair could be forgiven for wanting to skip this holiday season, they seem to be determined to celebrate even more than ever. And in images of their Bel Air mansion - shared by Kim's BFF Jonathan Cheban - their home simply glitters with an over-the-top array of Christmas lights. 'KimYe house lit!' Kim Kardashian and Kanye West's Bel Air mansion sparkles with over-the-top Christmas lights Strand after strand of white lights hangs from the huge building, lighting up the night sky. Jonathan titled the video: 'KimYe house literally lit af'. Kim's three-year-old daughter North can be heard chattering away in the background of the video, which he posted on Instagram. Stunning: Kim's BFF Jonathan Cheban's home glitters with an over-the-top array of lights Visible from space? Strand after strand of white lights hangs from the huge building, lighting up the night sky Earlier the 42-year-old had posted a Snapchat raving about the size of their Christmas tree. 'Oh my god Kim, this tree is huge! It's literally Rockefeller Center in Bel Air!' Jonathan gushed as he showed his Snapchat followers a glimpse of the massive spruce all lit up. In the background Kim, 36, can be heard saying 'Just lights no ornaments'. 'Oh my god!' Jonathan Cheban was bowled over by the size of Kim Kardashian's Christmas tree on Thursday night Indeed the humongous tree twinkled with dainty lights and nothing else. 'Only a Kimye tree can be the size of a tree in Rockefeller!' Jonathan said in another clip. The beautiful tree was pictured being delivered to Kim and Kanye's home on December 2nd and needed at least six people to maneuver into the mansion doorway. 'It's literally Rockefeller Center in Bel Air!' Jonathan screamed in Snapchats he shared from Kimye's mansion Tasteful decor: In the background Kim can be heard saying 'Just lights no ornaments' Meanwhile it was reported earlier this week that Kim and Kanye are still a couple despite divorce rumours. After spending a cosy evening at home in their mansion on Wednesday an insider told E! News: 'They were very sweet together and were very much together,' 'They are going through a lot but, from what it seems like, they are doing it together and getting through it. It's been a very rough year for her. 'Just because the paparazzi don't see him, they're like, "Oh, Kanye's not with Kim anymore." That's bulls**t,' the source said. Reunited: Kanye, 39, is reportedly back at home now with Kim after his little jaunt to New York to hang out with president-elect Donald Trump Extravagant: Kim's BFF added a cool money filter to one of his Snapchats Kanye made headlines this week when he met with President-elect Donald Trump in New York. The two discussed the possibility of the rapper becoming an 'ambassador of sorts,' according to E! News. Meanwhile, the Keeping Up With The Kardashians star has stepped back from the public since she was the victim of an armed robbery in Paris in October. The rapper has also kept a low profile after spending more than a week being treated for exhaustion at UCLA Medical Center in Westwood, Los Angeles. Forget dinner and a movie - date night with Sofia Vergara is way more interesting. The Colombian bombshell put her famous curves on display during an evening out with her husband on Saturday - taking to Instagram to wake up her 11 million followers with a sexy shot of herself in a teeny bikini. The 44-year-old actress showcased her toned and tan legs as well as her taut tummy as she sprawled out above a glass top pool half dressed. Good morning! Sofia Vergara put her famous assets on display taking to Instagram to wake up her 11 million followers with a sexy shot of herself in a teeny bikini on Saturday Sofia wrote, 'Good morning!' and added a couple of ocean wave emojis along with a fish. The sultry image shows Sofia in an animal printed swimsuit cover-up from kaftan go-to label Camilla which was pulled up to reveal a lot of flesh along with her tiny black bikini bottom. The brunette beauty left her long locks down while she flung her arms over her head and wore a large smile on her beautiful face. While it's uncertain of the Modern Family actress' whereabouts, she posted a string of other photos on Instagram revealing some clues. Date night: A blurry photo revealed she was with her husband of one year, Joe Manganiello. She and the Magic Mike star, 39, celebrated their wedding anniversary in November Sofia shared a photo of herself with the caption, 'Ready for the rehearsal dinner party' and included more ocean wave emojis. The dark picture shows the beauty trying to keep her hair from blowing in front of her face on Friday night as she stood solo in front of an ocean backdrop with a nearly full moon. Sofia looked beautiful in a tight black tank top which she paired with a purple, black and white printed maxi skirt. Whereabouts unknown: On Friday night the actress, 44, was all dressed up and 'Ready for the rehearsal dinner party' Another photo - albeit very blurry - revealed she was accompanied by her handsome husband of one year, Joe Manganiello. The Magic Mike hunk, 39, was dressed casually in a white T-shirt and jeans and embraced his sexy spouse with one arm which rested low on her back. Sofia's caption read: 'Weeeeekend' along with more ocean wave emojis. Annalynne McCord was spotted on Friday at Sunset Plaza in West Hollywood, California. Her edgy look managed to channel 90s style but still felt current, tweaked with modern trends. The actress, 29, looked cheery and refreshed as she took a break from acting and activism for the evening out with a friend. Scroll down for video Taking a break: Annalynne McCord was spotted out with a friend on Friday evening at Sunset Plaza in West Hollywood, California The star looked effortlessly chic in a black knit, hi-lo sweater that she wore off the shoulder. She paired the top with cut-out leggings with mesh insets and over-the-knee black boots with a roper heel. The 90210 reboot alum accessorized with a dainty black choker with a simple pendant and a light pink sling bag with a gold chain strap. Edgy outfit: The star looked effortlessly chic in a hi-lo sweater that she wore off the shoulder McCord has been very busy professionally as of late, having landed the roles of Jessica Sanders in The Night Shift and Melanie Warner in Secrets and Lies. But she's also found the time to remain outspoken on social issues. A self-proclaimed human rights activist, she has been using her social media to bring awareness to issues she feels strongly about. The actor and producer shared an image on December 14 of a man fleeing violence in Aleppo, carrying a dead baby covered in debris. 'This image triggers such pain for me. A casualty of innocence. A life cut short before it had a chance to begin,' she wrote. 'And then I ask myself, 'But what kind of world would this little life have grown up in?' Perhaps, he has been spared. Hardly -in conditions such as those, but truly... when will we awaken? Why are we so content to continue on in this nightmarish sleep?' McCord is also the President of together1heart, an organization whose mission is to provide support for women and children who are victims or who are at risk of becoming victims of slavery. In that capacity, she recently shared a poem she wrote about the plight of these victims to social media. In it she celebrated those who have already donated to her organization and called on her fans and followers to do the same. #BeyondTheVeil: The organization held a masquerade ball fundraiser on December 10 in Los Angeles, which also happened to be Human Rights Day The organization held a masquerade ball fundraiser on December 10, which also happened to be Human Rights Day, dubbed #BeyondTheVeil. In addition to combating worldwide slavery, the focus of the event was looking inward beyond the masks people were in public and discovering inner beauty. When it comes to oversharing, Bachelor couple Amanda Stanton and Josh Murray are among the worst offenders. But while the pair were always happy to flaunt their love on social media, a series of cryptic tweets have led fans to believe that there may be trouble in paradise. 'Never mistake someone's kindness for weakness,' wrote mother-of-two Amanda on Saturday morning, while her boyfriend shared an image of his dog in the back seat, alongside a pile of belongings. Trouble in paradise? Amanda Stanton and Josh Murray shared posts over social media on Friday and Saturday that seem to suggest the couple are no longer together Dog days: The former pro baseball player shared a photo to his Instagram story on Saturday that showed his dog in the backseat of his car on what might be a road trip back to Atlanta Also questionable were the pair of posts the Bachelor franchise alums shared over the past few days, separately snuggled up to Amanda's oldest daughter, Kinsley. Josh's post seemed to imply his time with the littler girl might be coming to an end. 'I will always love this precious little angel,' he wrote on Friday. On Saturday a source close to the couple confirmed to Us Weekly that the couple had split. Amanda, 26, found fame on Ben Higgins' season of the Bachelor, while Josh, 32, won Andi Dorfman's season of the Bachelorette. Questionable: The Bachelor alums posted an interesting pair of photos over the past few days, both snuggled up to Stanton's oldest daughter, Kinsley, age 4, but not together All dressed in white: The aesthetician shared a sponsored post for David's Bridal on Friday, wearing a wedding gown next to fellow social media influencer Mikala Thomas He later ended that engagement and got engaged to Amanda on the finale episode of season two of Bachelor in Paradise, which aired in September. Fans have also noted that Josh and Amanda have been more reserved with their affectionate posts, as of late. The last time both reality stars shared a photo together was in early December, when they attended fellow Bachelor fan-favorite Becca Tilley's blog and YoUTube launch, and the KIIS FM Jingle Ball in Los Angeles. Murray shared his photo on December 7 and Stanton shared hers on December 3. Pregnant writer and WAG Phoebe Burgess is currently in her third trimester. And husband Sam Burgess has gushed about her in a new interview with Stellar Magazine, with the Rabbitohs star, 28, admitting she's been 'amazing' throughout the experience. Sam also said he's liked being her rock throughout the process, telling the publication: 'I've really enjoyed being her support through this because she is a huge support for me in my career.' Scroll down for video Happy time: Sam Burgess has gushed about wife Phoebe, saying she's been 'amazing' throughout her pregnancy, as they prepare to welcome their first child (seen in September) 'She's really a joy to be around 95 per cent of the time,' Sam jokingly added. 'Phoebe is an amazing woman,' he said. Phoebe told the publication that she and Sam are going to have 'an amazing family' and that their baby will be both 'cheeky' and 'competitive.' Bumping along nicely! Phoebe told the publication that she and Sam are going to have 'an amazing family' and that their baby will be both 'cheeky' and 'competitive' At the weekend, Phoebe took to Instagram to share a sweet image of herself with her man, saying they are on the 'homestretch' of her pregnancy, being 33 weeks. 'The two of us before it becomes the three of us,' the blonde beauty captioned the happy snap, where she stands in a flowing black maxi dress. Sam looks smart in beige shorts with a blue and white striped shirt and boat shoes. The pair have yet to find out if they're welcoming a boy or girl, but Phoebe has joked online that their baby has it's father's lips, joking he or she is 'pouting already' alongside an ultrasound image. Not long now! At the weekend, Phoebe took to Instagram to share a sweet image of herself with her man, saying they are on the 'homestretch' of her pregnancy, being 33 weeks Sweet! The pair have yet to find out if they're welcoming a boy or girl, but Phoebe has joked online that their baby has it's father's lips They've also decorated their nursery in a gender neutral colour scheme, being mainly white. Phoebe and Sam met two years ago through mutual friends before getting married in an intimate ceremony last year, in her native Bowral. Sam confirmed their pregnancy news in July. That month, Phoebe told the Today Show that her first child is going to be a 'big baby and hungry baby' if their child is like Sam. 'Honestly, it's been amazing ride and we were able luckily to tell everyone that we wanted to tell and then it's come out and we can share it with everyone. I can't wait,' she added. Peter Stefanovic popped the question on a romantic European holiday in July. But on Sunday, Sylvia Jeffreys revealed that despite his perfect proposal, her Christmas gifts for her fiance might be a little less glamorous. 'If I got him a pile of Cherry Ripes and tins of tuna, he'd probably be a very happy man,' the Today newsreader revealed in an interview with Body + Soul. Scroll down for video Loved up: Despite Peter's romantic proposal, Sylvia revealed her Christmas gifts for her fiance could be less-than-glamorous 'A few pairs of undies wouldn't go astray either,' she added. The Queensland-born beauty will be spending the festive season in Sydney with her beau, refuelling before a big 2017. In the interview, the 30-year-old star revealed her Christmas rituals include an afternoon nap, prawns and pudding. 'The best part is that because it's [the pudding] not anyone else's favourite, there's always plenty of leftovers'. Sylvia, who is known for keeping fit and healthy, says she'll try and keep up her fitness routine over the silly season. TV power couple: The stars will spend Christmas in Sydney refuelling before a big year, that could include their wedding Her weekly workout includes three Pilates classes, two runs and a yoga session. However, the star isn't too worried stating: 'I think it's important to not think about how you look and know that in January things are going to get back on track.' Sylvia also revealed her parents would come down from the sunshine state to spend the day with her and Peter. However, it's unknown if Peter's brother and Sylvia's co-host, Karl Stefanovic, will also spend the day with the pair. Romantic: Peter popped the question in a French vineyard in July The 42-year-old recently separated from his wife, Cassandra Thorburn. Last month it was announced that Peter will join 60 Minutes as a journalist in the new year. And although no official wedding date has been announced, the TV power couple are expected to tie the knot in the near future. [File photo] The China-Russia relationship has been maintained at a high level since the beginning of 2016. The all-round cooperation on all fronts has not only brought benefits to the two peoples, but played a positive role in ensuring regional stability and world peace. The strategic collaboration between China and Russia has become the ballast stone in maintaining world peace and stability. The main function of the ballast stone is to stabilize an object and keep balance. Starting from the beginning of this year, the international situation was riddled with complicated challenges and hidden turmoil, leading to dozens of black swan events. Under such circumstances, propositions made by China and Russia, featuring positive influence and great energy, have played a crucial role in their respective development and international peace. The importance of the China-Russia relationship to world peace and stability equals that of mutual trust in China-Russia relationship. Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held five meetings this year. Such frequent high-level communications, which were rarely seen in the international society, have charted the course of the China-Russia relationship and cement mutual trust in politics and strategies. By using the 15th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation as well as the 20th anniversary of the establishment of strategic partnership of coordination as platforms, China and Russia have launched all-round exchanges and cooperation based on an ever-lasting friendship. They prioritize each other in diplomacy, regard each other as critical for development, support each other on issues concerning core interests, back each other in choosing the right development path suitable to respective national conditions, and contribute to the prosperity of both countries. The ongoing cooperation in various fields has added momentum to the bilateral relationship. This year, both nations officially started the negotiation on economic and trade agreement of China and Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), marking an early achievement in connecting the Belt and Road and the EEU. During President Putins state visit to Beijing in June, the two countries enriched the cooperation fruits from alignment of the Belt and Road and the EEU by reaching important consensus on building Eurasian partnership. Moreover, both countries, based on a package of cooperation and balanced interests, have promoted comprehensive, pragmatic and mutually beneficial cooperation in the nuclear field, furthered pragmatic cooperation in investment, finance and energy fields, pioneered collaboration on SMEs, agriculture and technological innovation, and also launched strategic projects such as long-range wide-body plane and heavy transport helicopter (HTH). Thanks to the joint efforts, bilateral trade volume of China and Russia has picked up and the trade structure has been improved. More and more personnel exchanges have given bilateral ties a personal touch. Over 200 events were held under the framework of the year of media communication. An exhibition hall on the site of the 6th National Congress of the CPC was completed and opened to the public as scheduled, becoming a new symbol of China-Russia friendship. With more and more Chinese tourists going on the tour of revolution, China will continue to be the biggest source of overseas tourists for Russia. A Shenzhen-based university was officially established by Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) and the Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT), showing that the cultural and personnel exchanges between the two countries have moved to the joint management of schools and improvement of soft power. The ice cream that was presented by Putin to Xi became popular among the Chinese in a short time. China and Russia also play a stabilizing role by guarding peace and justice. Both permanent members of the UN Security Council, China and Russia share similar standpoints and perspectives in international affairs, strongly oppose Cold War mindset and zero-sum games, and devote to international justice and world peace. This year, both heads of state released a joint declaration on global strategic stability and development of information cyberspace, and their foreign ministers also issued statements to promote international law. Such efforts have lifted China-Russia international cooperation to a new high and generated widespread positive influence on the international society. Attaching great importance to the security and stability in Korean Peninsula, Central Asia and other neighboring areas, both countries opposed the possible deployment of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system in South Korea, and accelerated the resolution of hotspot political agendas such as Ukraine and Syria crises. Both countries have made their voices heard loud and clear in the international affairs and contributed their solutions to address challenging issues in the world arena. Looking into the next year, the international situation may become even more complicated, thus posing greater challenges for the development of both China and Russia. With the joint efforts and cooperation, the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination will continue to serve as a ballast stone in order to further promote prosperity in both countries and enhance world peace and stability. The ex-wife of actor Alan Thicke has shared her heartbreak at his death last week. Gloria Loring described the loss of her ex-husband as 'profoundly sad' in an interview with Us Weekly, in which she shared her favourite memories of the Growing Pains actor. 'Alan was definitely a big presence in our family,' she said. 'If he entered the room, the party started. He just had a great sense of humor and a wonderful energy. We all loved him.' As they were: Gloria Loring with her ex-husband Alan Thicke back in 1986 Despite being divorced for more than 20 years, Gloria had spent Thanksgiving with her ex at the house of their pop star son Robin Thicke. And she had only kind words for the man with whom she spent 16 years of marriage. 'He was entertaining the people,' Gloria said of Alan. 'He was talking and visiting and quipping and throwing the funny lines around and just being the host. He was always the host. 'When we were married, I was in the kitchen and he was the host. And he had a very funny line. In fact, I told him, I said, "I swear, I stayed married [to you] a lot longer than I would have because you were so darn funny."' Proud: The former couple were the parents of pop star Robin Thicke, and his brother Brennan, while Alan also had son Carter, from his second marriage Alan was a Canadian-born TV host, writer, composer and actor well-known in his homeland before making his name in the United States, most notably with the ABC series Growing Pains. On that comedy, which aired from 1985 to 1992, Thicke played Dr Jason Seaver, a psychiatrist and father-knows-best who moved his practice into his home so his wife could go back to work as a reporter. Along with his clients, he had three (later four) kids under foot, including his oldest son, Mike, played by breakout heart-throb Kirk Cameron, who served as a constant source of comedic trouble for the family. Happy memories: Gloria only had praise for her former husband, with whom she is seen in 82 Born in Ontario, Canada, in 1947, Thicke was nominated for three Emmy Awards for his work in the late 1970s as a writer for Barry Manilow's talk show, and later for a satirical take on the genre in the variety show America 2-Night. He composed several popular theme songs, including the original theme for The Wheel of Fortune and other shows including The Facts of Life and Diff'rent Strokes. In the 1990s and beyond, Thicke stayed busy as a celebrity TV host and with guest shots on dozens of series, including How I Met Your Mother and, this year, the Netflix series Fuller House and the NBC drama This Is Us. Chill: Robin Thicke's girlfriend April Love Geary was spotted grocery shopping in Los Angeles on Saturday Relaxed: The 22-year-old model sported a black track jacket with matching leggings and white high-tops Netanyahu urges settlers to allow peaceful eviction Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Friday on residents of a wildcat Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank to refrain from violence against security forces during their imminent eviction. "My heart is with you," Netanyahu said in an address to 40 families facing a court order to leave the Amona outpost by December 25 because it was found to have been built on private Palestinian land. The Amona residents had rejected early Thursday a government proposal to leave voluntarily, raising fears of violence as the relocation deadline approached. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chairs the weekly cabinet meeting at his office in Jerusalem on December 11, 2016 Abir Sultan (POOL/AFP/File) "I call on everyone to act responsibly -- do not harm IDF (Israel Defence Forces) soldiers or security forces in any way. These are our sons," Netanyahu said in a video posted on his Facebook page. "There is no room for violence," he said, calling on Amona parents to keep their children away from the outpost during the eviction, the date of which is not publicly known. Netanyahu also stressed the importance of upholding the law which also applies to illegal Arab construction in Israel. "The court ruling binds us all, it binds the government too. But the law must be equitable. The same law that necessitates Amona's evacuation necessitates the evacuation of illegal construction in other parts of our country," he said. "I have therefore ordered to expedite the demolition of illegal construction in the Negev, in Wadi Ara, the Galilee, the centre -- in all parts of the country," Netanyahu said of areas with significant Arab populations. "I won't tolerate double standards in enforcing construction (laws) between Israeli citizens, whether Jewish or Arab." The dispute over whether to demolish the Amona outpost northeast of Ramallah has taken on international importance because of concern over settlement expansion in the West Bank, occupied by Israel since 1967. All Israeli settlements in the West Bank, including annexed east Jerusalem, are seen as illegal under international law, but Israel differentiates between those it has approved and those it has not. Settlements such as Amona -- those that Israel has not approved -- are called outposts. Amona residents responded to Netanyahu's video, saying they "were not seeking empathy." Gambia's Jammeh: from TV concession to courtroom drama Longtime Gambian leader Yahya Jammeh, who initially conceded defeat in a December 1 presidential poll, has lodged a Supreme Court case to challenge the result, despite pressure from the international community for him to cede power peacefully. The opposition in the small West African country, however, fears Jammeh will use a judicial system -- considered by experts to lack independence -- to give legitimacy to his attempt to hang on to power. The legal complaint Workers prepare to remove an electoral poster for longtime Gambian leader Yahya Jammeh, after he conceded defeat in a presidential poll SEYLLOU (AFP/File) The ruling Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction (APRC) filed a complaint with the Supreme Court on December 13 alleging that opposition leader Adama Barrow was "not duly elected or returned as president, and that the said election was void". The court challenge came after Jammeh had surprised observers by conceding defeat after 22 years in power on television, before changing his mind. It said the country's Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) had violated electoral law, announced a December 5 recount without the consent of the APRC, and that its returning officers intimidated legitimate voters and turned them away on election day. The Supreme Court The Gambia's Supreme Court has lain dormant since May 2015 with Chief Justice Emmanuel Fagbenle, a Nigerian, the only current sitting judge. Judicial independence is "the exception rather than the rule," said Niklas Hultin, an assistant professor at the US's George Mason University and Africa specialist. "Where the Supreme Court and other high-level courts have asserted their independence, there has usually been some kind of retribution on the part of the executive," he added. Jammeh fired several judges last year after they commuted the death sentences of former military officers to life imprisonment. Judges needed Jammeh needs to appoint four more Supreme Court judges for the constitutionally required panel of five to hear the challenge, and six if the decision requires a judicial review. Complicating matters, the target of his complaint, the Independent Electoral Commission, is represented by Jammeh's own Attorney-General. The Gambia's most influential lawyers' group, the Bar Association, has described any future hearing as therefore "fundamentally tainted". A Bar Association statement said the challenge was "tantamount to one being a judge in his own cause considering that the outgoing president has already pre-empted the outcome of court process by declaring the election result as a nullity". President-elect Barrow says Jammeh has left cases against the government to stack up by failing to appoint justices. "There are a pile of cases that are waiting... but he doesn't care about it," Barrow told AFP. "And now he has a case, if he appoints judges we will see this is personal interest, and not in the interests of justice." Leverage Senegalese political analyst Babacar Justin Ndiaye believes Jammeh's aim is to obtain better terms for his exit, given the universal condemnation of his volte-face and lack of other options. "It's a strategy of giving him time, making the situation worse, wearing down the international community and finally to look for some sort of compromise, an arrangement," he told AFP. Jammeh has "played his cards well", Ndiaye said, leveraging his continued support from important sections of the military to keep the Gambian population from taking to the streets against him. If Jammeh wins the case at some point in the future, new elections could be called with a President Barrow in State House. That would be a "unprecedented" situation in Africa, according to Ndiaye. International reaction The United States has said it does "not believe (the case) will be heard by a credible court dedicated to ensuring the integrity of The Gambia's democratic process", a reaction that was notably more hardline than the UN and regional bloc ECOWAS. "It is OK for the legal process to be going on," the UN's west Africa envoy Mohamed Ibn Chambas told AFP Wednesday. "That legal process has nothing to do with the term of his mandate," he added. Maiduguri overwhelmed by victims of Boko Haram insurgency Ali Bukar didn't know anyone when he arrived in Maiduguri with 43 people in tow and not a coin in his pocket. Bukar was fleeing the brutal killings of civilians by the Boko Haram Islamists in northeast Nigeria -- along with his wives, his sons, their wives and grandchildren. They slept in a parking lot "until a man took pity on us," he said. Children play at one of the local communities hosting internally displaced people, in Maiduguri, north-eastern Nigeria Stefan Heunis (AFP) Around one million people have flooded the capital of Borno state seeking to escape the insurgency that Boko Haram has waged since 2009. The camps set up for displaced people are not sufficient, so many residents of Maiduguri have opened their doors to these victims of conflict. But now years later the refugees still cannot return to their home villages, and struggling city residents are starting to blame the influx for problems in the community. Between 70 to 90 percent of the displaced in Maiduguri have relied on the compassion of the local people to survive. Bukar and his family have never stayed at a camp. A local merchant had welcomed them to his home and fed them for a year, the scar-faced old man told AFP. But then they had to leave because the financial burden became too much, Bukar said. Today the family is living in a so-called "hosting community", one of hundreds of such private places where refugees are sheltered around the city. "I couldn't just sit there and watch people die of hunger, I had to help them," said Baba Kura Al-Kahi, the boss of these hosting communities, a local businessman who made his fortune in real estate and in 2013 turned over some land he owned to the displaced. - Boko Haram epicentre - Today many refugees are squatters on construction sites, in schools, in public housing, while thousands of others are taken in by relatives or members of their ethnic group, often Kanuri or Hausa. Neighbours have organised aid, growing food for the most needy, bringing them clothes and sheets and cooking utensils. But "resources are overstretched, especially with regards to water and sanitation, with regards to hospital facilities, with regards to even food security issues," the Borno state governor, Kashim Shettima, told AFP. Still Maiduguri, after years of being under siege, has a semblance of normal life compared with the devastated hinterland. The city's ceasefire has been pushed back four hours to 10:00 pm. Soldiers and checkpoints are less noticeable and merchants and passers-by have returned to the centre city's sidewalks. The schools, which were closed for two years, reopened last month. Over the past year, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari's government has made repeated announcements that Boko Haram is close to being defeated, and Shettima considers the battle "over" and predicts that hundreds of thousands of displaced people will have returned to their homes by May But this is the cradle of Boko Haram Islamists and they have not disappeared. Just last weekend, a new suicide bombing hit Maiduguri's busy market, killing one person and injuring 18 others. The two bombers were girls thought to be only seven or eight years old, a hallmark of the jihadist group which often uses women or girls in such operations -- especially in Borno state -- the epicentre of their insurgency. - Begging and prostitution - And the economy of the region has been ravaged by war. Unemployment is sky high at around 35 percent or more, according to the Borno governor. In the streets of Maiduguri the number of beggars in rags who bang on the windshields of the cars stopped at red lights has mushroomed. The city's ills are now being blamed on the refugees, these waves of people who have flooded Maiduguri and doubled its population since the Boko Haram revolt began. The insurgency has left more than 20,000 people dead and 2.6 million displaced in northern Nigeria. The governor says the displaced camps "are the source of many problems", including networks for prostitution and drug trafficking. "The residents helped as much as they could but now they are more and more critical." a journalist in Maiduguri who requested anonymity told AFP. "The people are afraid of the crime and epidemics that can arise," Yannick Pouchalan, director of Action against Hunger in Nigeria, says "it is clear that Maiduguri cannot offer a decent life to all these people," Yet compared to the villages, the refugees, especially the youth, find the city has more to offer. "If you are 15, and you can take advantage of the security, the services of a big city and have access to the internet... you're surely not going to go back home to your village," Pouchalan says. A warehouse made available for internally displaced people at one of the hosting communities in Maiduguri, north-eastern Nigeria Stefan Heunis (AFP) One of the abandoned towns on the outskirts of Maiduguri in Borno State, north-eastern Nigeria Stefan Heunis (AFP) China has objected to the Dalai Lama meeting with Indian President Pranab Mukherjee earlier this month, saying the talks had negatively impacted ties between the Asian neighbours. The Tibetan spiritual leader met with Mukherjee at the Indian presidential palace in New Delhi during a child welfare summit attended by Nobel laureates and world leaders on December 10-11. 'The Chinese side is firmly opposed to any form of contacts between officials of other countries with him (the Dalai Lama),' Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a regular media briefing Friday. The Dalai Lama visits the Capitol in Washington, DC Beijing vigorously lobbies against foreign leaders meeting the Dalai Lama 'in any form' and accuses him of seeking Tibetan independence through 'spiritual terrorism' Indian President Pranab Mukherjee 'We urge the Indian side to... fully respect China's core interest and major concerns, (and) take effective means to remove the negative impact caused by the incident, so as to avoid disturbance to the China-India relationship.' India's external affairs ministry brushed off Beijing's objections, saying the Dalai Lama and Mukherjee had met at a 'non-political' event, local media reported. The Dalai Lama fled to India after a failed uprising in 1959, but is still deeply revered by many Tibetans in China. Beijing vigorously lobbies against foreign leaders meeting the Nobel Peace Prize laureate 'in any form' and accuses him of seeking Tibetan independence through 'spiritual terrorism'. Artist brings beauty to war-damaged Gaza home Dutch artist Marjan Teeuwen walks past a column formed from rubble to show off her latest creation, a barren house in the Gaza Strip where doorless rooms face into bleak, empty space. The 'Shaath House' in Khan Yunis in the south of the Palestinian territory was largely destroyed by an Israeli attack in the 2014 Gaza war but Teeuwen, 52, specialises in turning unwanted places into works of art. Working with Palestinian engineers and artists and the Palestinian Red Crescent, she is "transforming a demolished house into a beautiful sculpture" which will serve briefly as a museum. Dutch artist Marjan Teeuwen specialises in turning unwanted places into works of art, with her latest work 'Shaath House,' a barren house in the Gaza Strip SAID KHATIB (AFP) There is one major difference however between the Gaza house and her previous works, in the Netherlands, Russia and South Africa. Teeuwen usually works in buildings that are due to be destroyed in a few months, turning them into temporary exhibits in what she describes as juxtaposition of the opposing forces of construction and destruction. "(But) for the first time I started in a building which was destroyed already, which was destroyed by war," she told AFP. Perhaps Teeuwen's most famous work in the Netherlands saw her transform four empty houses due for demolition into a minimalist space with tilted floors and caved-in walls. But in Gaza, they had to start by rebuilding one of the walls destroyed during the war. The team closed it with rows of bricks and breeze blocks stacked on top of each other but without cement, which is sparse in Gaza, leaving space for light to come through. Inside the exhibition, which took Teeuwen three months, she has used rubble and chips of tiles from the war to construct a column which snakes upwards to the ceiling. Floors have been twisted upwards or collapsed inwards, while some interior walls were removed completely. Others fall diagonally or are deliberately disjointed to create the feeling that "everything is on edge," a written guide to the work said. - 'We love art and beauty' - More than 120,000 homes were partially or fully destroyed in the 50-day war in 2014, which led to the deaths of 2,251 Palestinians and 73 Israelis, according to the United Nations agency for Palestinians (UNRWA). 71,000 have been repaired, while 12,000 are in the process, UNRWA spokesman Chris Gunness said. A further 57,000 are yet to be repaired or rebuilt. Dressed in black, Teeuwen talked to her colleagues by a fire to keep warm in the winter air, despite the sun poking through holes in the roof. "My message to the Palestinian people is visit this place and see the beauty," she said. Mohamed Abu Dagga, Teeuwen's assistant, said he hoped the artwork would send a "message" about Gaza. "Despite the blockade and all the wars the Palestinian people still love art and beauty and life," he said. Gaza has been under an Israeli blockade for a decade, while Egypt has also largely closed its border with the beleaguered Palestinian enclave -- which is run by Islamists Hamas. Mohammed al-Najjar, 40, from a nearby town, is still waiting for war-damaged his home to be rebuilt. "I hope I find help to build a home like this," he said. After being shown to the public the Shaath House building will eventually be demolished, as the owner wants to construct a family home. Working with Palestinian engineers and artists and the Palestinian Red Crescent, artist Marjan Teeuwen is turning a damaged Gaza house into "a beautiful sculpture" SAID KHATIB (AFP) S. Korea protests put pressure on impeachment court Tens of thousands of protestors turned out in Seoul for the eighth straight week Saturday, pushing for the immediate and permanent removal of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-Hye. Unlike previous weeks, the demonstrators didn't have the streets of the capital all to themselves, with a sizeable rally by Park loyalists seeking to buttress support for the beleaguered president. The main anti-Park protest began with a gathering in central Seoul, with organisers putting the peak turnout at around 600,000. Police put it much lower at 60,000. A protester holds a placard with a portrait of South Korea's President Park Geun-Hye, during an anti-government rally in Seoul Jung Yeon-Je (AFP/File) It then split into three columns, marching on the presidential Blue House, the office of the prime minister and also on the Constitutional Court whose nine justices are considering the validity of the impeachment bill passed by the national assembly more than a week ago. The court has 180 days to make a ruling, but the protesters are pressing for a swift judgement. Although Park has been stripped of her substantial executive powers, she is allowed to retain the title of president and continue to live in the Blue House while the court deliberates. The protesters are adamant that she should resign immediately and face criminal prosecution. Park still has her supporters, many of them elderly voters who remain steadfast admirers of her father, the late military dictator Park Chung-Hee -- credited as the architect of the South's economic transformation but vilified as an authoritarian rights abuser. - Flags and roses - Police said around 30,000 Park loyalists attended their own rally near the court earlier in the day to demand the impeachment bill be thrown out. Waving national flags and clutching red roses they carried banners denouncing the anti-Park protests as a leftist conspiracy. On Friday, Park's legal team formally submitted a 24-page rebuttal of the impeachment charges to the court, arguing that they had no legal basis. "We can't accept that there was any violation of the constitution by the president... the impeachment motion should be rejected," one of her lawyers, Lee Joong-Hwan, told reporters. Park was impeached on numerous counts of constitutional and criminal violations ranging from a failure to protect people's lives to bribery and abuse of power. Most of the charges stemmed from an investigation into a scandal involving the president's long-time friend, Choi Soon-Sil, who is currently awaiting trial for fraud and embezzlement. Prosecutors named Park a suspect in the case -- a first for a sitting president -- saying she colluded in Choi's efforts to strong-arm donations from large companies worth tens of millions of dollars. - Public outrage - The impeachment process was ignited and fuelled by public outrage at Park's behaviour, with the weekly mass demonstrations demanding that politicians take a proactive role in removing her from the presidential Blue House. The National Assembly has played its part, but the country now faces a lengthy period of uncertainty at a time of slowing economic growth and elevated military tensions with nuclear-armed North Korea. The man charged with steering the country through these dangerous waters is a former prosecutor who has never held elected office. As Park's prime minister, Hwang Kyo-Ahn became the temporary guardian of her sweeping executive powers the moment after she was impeached. The protesters have called on him to resign as well, arguing that he is too tainted by his association with the president to wield her authority. The mass rallies, some of which drew crowds of more than one million people, have been passionate but good-natured so far, with no clashes despite a heavy police presence. South Korea politics Park South Korean President Park Geun-Hye addresses the nation from the presidential Blue House in Seoul, on November 29, 2016 Jeon Heon-Kyun (AFP/File) Mourners remember life, career of US astronaut John Glenn Mourners gathered at a memorial service for groundbreaking astronaut John Glenn on Saturday in his home state of Ohio, capping two days of remembrances for the first American to orbit the Earth. Glenn, who later in life also became the first senior citizen in space, was remembered as a national hero who believed in selfless service to his country. He died last week at the age of 95, after a lifetime spent in the US Marines, the American space program, the Senate, and as a university professor. Visitors to the National Air and Space Museum walk past a tribute to former US astronaut and senator John Glenn, the first American to orbit the earth MARK WILSON (Getty/AFP/File) At the public memorial service in the state capital Columbus, Vice President Joe Biden said Glenn exemplified America's view of itself as a "country of promise, opportunity, always a belief for tomorrow." "He knew from his upbringing that ordinary Americans can do extraordinary things," said Biden, who served in the US Senate with Glenn. "If you're looking for a message to send for our time here on Earth, and what it means to be an American, it's the life of John Glenn." The former astronaut, who was born in a small town in Ohio, enlisted in the Marines following Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. He served in World War II and the Korean War as a pilot, and later became a military test pilot. Glenn was one of the "Original Seven" pilots recruited into America's nascent space program in 1959. The pilots' saga was recounted in the classic movie "The Right Stuff." Two days of mourning The state of Ohio held ceremonies over two days, complete with full military honors, ending with the memorial service held at a 2,500-seat auditorium on the Ohio State University campus home to the Glenn College of Public Affairs. The memorial service was attended by dignitaries, high-ranking government officials and members of the public who got tickets. The service included a platoon of 40 Marines who marched three miles (4.8 kilometers) to accompany the hearse carrying Glenn's body from the Ohio Statehouse to the auditorium. Glenn's flag-draped coffin lay in state at the Statehouse rotunda Friday, allowing thousands of visitors to pay their final respects in an honor granted to only eight other people in Ohio's history. At the memorial, speakers -- including his adult children Lyn and David -- remembered Glenn's long career in public service. "The potential for government to do good was something he never forgot. This was not an abstract concept to him. This was real life," Lyn Glenn said, recounting that her father was a child of the Great Depression and remembered the positive effects of Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal programs. She also pointedly referred to recent conversations she had had with her father over the current state of US politics. "You never allowed your name or picture to be used to make money," Lyn Glenn said in addressing her father, "because you said you were a government employee and it wouldn't be right to make money from government service. "In today's word, your words almost seem quaint, but they should be standard," she added. 'Standing on John Glenn's shoulders' In 1962, Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth, one year after Russia's Yuri Gagarin became the first person ever do so. After his 23-year career in the US military and space program, Glenn entered the US Senate as a Democrat, and made two unsuccessful tries for the party's presidential nomination. In 1998, Glenn made history again when he returned to space at the age of 77, becoming the oldest astronaut ever. "We are standing on John Glenn's shoulders as we pursue a human journey to Mars," said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, who recounted a warm relationship with the former astronaut and Annie, Glenn's wife of more than 70 years. A frail Annie Glenn was in attendance at the memorial service, sitting in the front row of the auditorium next to Biden. "John made us look up, not only to the sky... but toward a higher purpose that we as a country are always striving to achieve," Bolden said. Glenn died surrounded by family at a Columbus hospital on December 8. He had been in declining health and had spent more than a week in hospital. Connie Schultz, a family friend and a journalist, said Glenn had been aware that he was nearing the end of his life, recounting a recent visit in which the late astronaut used a car metaphor. Glenn said: "You can only replace the parts so long... eventually you need a new chassis," Schultz recounted. US Secretary of State John Kerry (center R) joins other officials in paying his respects to former astronaut and US senator John Glenn in the Rotunda of the Ohio Statehouse Bill Ingalls (NASA/AFP) Pakistan knuckle down in fight to save pink-ball Test Pakistan were in a backs-to-the-wall struggle to save the day-night first Test as Australia took a strangle-hold on the third day at the Gabba on Saturday. At the close, the tourists were hanging in at 70 for two with Azhar Ali not out 41 and 112-Test veteran Younis Khan not off the mark after facing 19 balls. Pakistan trailed by 419 runs. Pakistan made a much better fist of playing in the tricky twilight session with the pink ball losing just two wickets after their catastrophic seven for 24 in the first innings on the previous evening. Australia's batsman Steven Smith plays a shot in front of Pakistan's wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed on the third day of their day-night first Test match, in Brisbane, on December 17, 2016 Saeed Khan (AFP) The openers lasted into the 12th over before Starc got Sami Aslam to edge to Matt Renshaw at first slip for 15. Babar Azam fell to spinner Nathan Lyon in the final half-hour when he edged to Steve Smith at slip for 14. It was slow going but at least the tourists were not shedding wickets in clumps to keep the Australians at bay and still with two long days to play. "We have had some very good partnerships and we are hopeful of getting some more partnerships," Pakistan batsman Asad Shafiq said. "We are taking this game step by step, hour by hour, and we are looking for the good batting opportunities here." Australia will be pressing hard on Sunday's fourth day to win the series opener where they have yet to lose at the Gabba in 27 Tests stretching back to 1988. "We wanted to have a crack at them at night time," senior batsman Usman Khawaja said, explaining Australia's decision not to enforce the follow-on. "We wanted to try and get a big lead, give our bowlers another little rest, it's tough for the bowlers to back up in the hot humid conditions. "We've got two days and they need to chase 400-odd, you always want to be in this position, but we've got to do a lot of hard work early tomorrow." - Thwarted by technology - The highest winning run chase in the fourth innings at the Gabba stands at 236 for seven by Australia against the West Indies in 1951. But Pakistan will have to go well beyond the record highest-ever Test run chase of 418 for seven set by the West Indies against Australia in Antigua in 2003. Skipper Smith chose not to enforce the follow-on after Pakistan were dismissed for 142 in the first session, even though they were 287 runs in front on the first innings. Instead Australia amassed a formidable lead over the beleaguered tourists to set up a declaration during the dinner break to capitalise on bowling in the final twilight session. Smith went after the runs and brought up his 19th Test half-century off 59 balls with his eye on a declaration. But he was caught at long-on by Rahat Ali going for a heave off leg-spinner Yasir Shah for 63 off 70 balls with 11 fours. Khawaja, out cheaply for four in the first innings, cracked 74 off 109 balls before he was splendidly caught by Misbah-ul-Haq off Rahat nearing the dinner break. Nic Maddinson once again failed and was out for four off just three balls before he was caught off Wahab Riaz. Both the Australian openers were out before tea. David Warner fell for 12 when he went to hit Mohammad Amir through midwicket only to miscue his pull shot to Wahab Riaz at mid-on, while Matthew Renshaw was caught at second slip off Rahat Ali for six. Earlier Pakistan's last two partnerships battled for almost an hour before they were all out for 142. Wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed top scored with a fighting unbeaten 59 off 64 balls as the tourists added 45 runs to their overnight total 97 for eight. Sarfraz and Mohammad Amir put on a stubborn 54 runs for the ninth wicket before Amir was adjudicated caught behind off a faint edge, detected by Hot Spot. Technology again thwarted Pakistan when after repeated replays Rahat Ali was given run out by Warner for four. Replays showed that Rahat's bat was millimetres off the ground when the bails were dislodged by Warner's throw from mid-off. Missing Chinese activist 'handed over state secrets': media A prominent Chinese human rights lawyer who had been missing for almost a month was held in police custody and "confessed" to handing over state secrets, official media said. Jiang Tianyong took on numerous high-profile cases, including those of Falun Gong practitioners, Tibetan protesters and victims of the 2008 contaminated milk powder scandal before being disbarred for his activism in 2009, according to campaign group Amnesty International. He disappeared on November 21 en route to Beijing from Changsha, the capital of the central province of Hunan, where he had gone to inquire about the situation of a detained human rights lawyer. Foreign journalists interview Chinese rights lawyer Jiang Tianyong outside the Chaoyang hospital in Beijing, in 2012 Mark Ralston (AFP/File) On Friday a Communist Party newspaper reported that he had been arrested after using another person's documents to board the train and was held in administrative detention for nine days. "Investigations showed... that he was in possession of documents containing state secrets and was in contact with foreign structures, organisations and persons, and illegally handed over state secrets abroad," the website of Fazhi Ribao (Legal Daily) said, citing police sources. The newspaper reported that since December 1, Jiang had been subject to a "criminal coercive measure" -- a vague term which indicates a restriction on freedom of movement. "Jiang Tianyong confessed the relevant crimes," the daily added. Forced confessions are common in China, where courts are overseen by the ruling Communist Party. UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights Philip Alston met Jiang on a visit to China in August and said last week he feared the disappearance was in part a retaliation against the lawyer's assistance to UN experts. President Xi Jinping has overseen a tightening of controls on civil society since assuming power in 2012, closing avenues for legal activism that had opened up in recent years. While the government initially targeted political activists and human rights campaigners, it has increasingly turned its attention to the lawyers who represent them. [File photo] Education authorities in Beijing's Haidian district have sent psychologists to the Zhongguancun No. 2 Primary School, which is in hot water for a much publicized bullying incident. The professional team of psychologists will provide counseling to students, teachers and parents for half a month starting December 15th. The Haidian district education department will also improve the students' daily management rules of Zhongguancun No. 2 Primary School and enact a team building scheme for the class where the bullying incident occurred. The head of the department said a team will start an overall investigation into school bullying in the whole district, organize experts, school faculty and authority staff to formulate a scheme to prevent school bullying. Schools in Haidian district will also set up an anti-bullying team. An article titled "Say No to School Bullying" has been widely circulated online since last week. A mother of a 10-year-old student at the Zhongguancun No. 2 Primary School wrote that her son had been bullied by his schoolmates. The mother claimed her boy was humiliated by two other students in a toilet on November 24th. One bully allegedly blocked the toilet door while the other threw a garbage bin filled with used toilet paper and urine onto her son's head. The two boys laughed at her son and ran away after the incident, which reportedly lasted for less than a minute. But the school later denied the incident as "bullying" or "violence" after an investigation. A statement from the school said the three students "have a normal relationship, and they communicated with each other normally both inside and outside the classroom." The statement added that "they may occasionally give one another nicknames but do not have obvious conflicts." Mosul battle leaving legacy of environmental damage The battle to retake Mosul from the Islamic State group is leaving a legacy of environmental damage and health risks that will pose dangers to people for years to come. Iraqis have already paid the initial price from burning oil wells and a sulphur factory that IS set alight south of Mosul, Iraq's last jihadist-held city which is the target of a major military operation launched two months ago. The fires, combined with water pollution and the potentially toxic remains of destroyed buildings, military equipment and munitions, will also present longer-term threats to people in areas around and inside Mosul. Blackened sheep graze as oil wells, set ablaze by retreating Islamic State (IS) jihadists, burn in the background, in the town of Qayyarah, some 70 km south of Mosul on November 20, 2016 Odd Andersen (AFP) "We are concerned about how the pollution will affect the health of local populations and negatively impact their capacity to rebuild quality, sustainable livelihoods within those affected areas," said Jenny Sparks of the International Organization for Migration. A United Nations report on environmental and health risks in the Mosul area said that "hundreds of people were treated for exposure to chemicals, and millions are exposed to soot and gases from the burning oil wells". "The events are occurring in an already environmentally degraded region, threatened by substantial environmental legacy risk from previous conflicts, coupled with serious desertification and land degradation primarily caused by unsustainable agricultural practices," the report said. IS set fire to oil wells before the Qayyarah area was recaptured by Iraqi forces in August, and these have burned for months, turning sheep that graze in the area black with soot. "We can't sell our sheep any more. We have had some sheep die, other times people won't buy them because they look black," said Jaber, a 16-year-old shepherd. Iraqi civil defence forces have been battling the Qayyarah fires, and while they have extinguished some, others are still burning. - Destroyed buildings, polluted water - IS also set fire to the Mishraq sulphur plant south of Mosul, and while the blaze was eventually put out, it had already blanketed nearby areas with a haze of smoke that caused respiratory problems for those who inhaled it. However, the aftermath of a 2003 fire at the same plant offers some cause for optimism, according to the UN report. "Even though the vegetation and crops had been badly damaged by the fire, natural recovery was advancing well two years later," it said. Houses and other buildings damaged or destroyed by air strikes and shelling also pose a risk to civilians trying to return and rebuild their homes. "Crushed building materials contain harmful substances, pulverised cement, household wastes and chemicals which can cause exposure hazards to civilians and people dealing with the rubble," the UN report said. The destruction of ammunition and weapons depots can also "leave a toxic footprint", while "destroyed military material such as tanks and armoured vehicles often contains various toxic materials", it said. Water pollution associated with the conflict is another potential problem, according to Eric Solheim, the head of the United Nations Environment Programme. "The dumping of bodies, hazardous materials and oil into water sources have all been reported and are major causes of concern," Solheim said. Inadequate disposal of waste also poses risks, the UN said. "Collapse of environmental governance can further lead to accumulation of solid household, medical and industrial waste, and if not dealt with properly, can result in increased burning of solid waste and resulting environmental health risks, or the outbreak of communicable diseases," it said. Iraqi forces in Mosul Thomas SAINT-CRICQ, Sabrina BLANCHARD, Simon MALFATTO (AFP) IS fighters set the fields ablaze to slow government forces advancing on Qayyarah as part of their drive to wrest back Mosul from the clutches of the jihadists Odd Andersen (AFP) Workers tasked with putting out the fire in an oil well assemble a water pipeline in the town of Qayyarah, some 70 km south of Mosul on November 20, 2016 Odd Andersen (AFP) The operation to retake Iraq's second city of Mosul from Islamic State group jihadists began on October 17, 2016 Ahmad al-Rubaye (AFP/File) Zimbabwe's Mugabe wins party support for 2018 election Supporters of Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe chanting "tongai, tongai baba" (rule, rule father) endorsed on Saturday the 92-year-old leader for a 2018 election run. The endorsement, which is likely to result in his 36-year rule being extended, was greeted with thunderous applause by thousands of party faithful attending the ruling ZANU-PF's annual conference. Mugabe accepted dressed in a green floral jacket bearing his own portrait and a map of Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe, 92, has been in power since independence from British colonial rule in 1980 Jekesai Njikizana (AFP/File) The veteran leader has held power since independence from British colonial rule in 1980 and has always avoided naming a successor or laying out plans to retire. He once quipped that he would rule until he turned 100. The conference, held in the southeastern town of Masvingo, expressed "its support to the president and first secretary comrade Robert Mugabe as the sole candidate for the forthcoming 2018 elections", deputy secretary Eunice Sandi Moyo said. The absence of a clear successor to Mugabe has sparked infighting including verbal exchanges on social media in recent weeks between factions angling for his position. Accepting his endorsement, Mugabe called for unity. "We agreed that conflicts should end. Infighting should end. The party ideology should be followed," he said. Mugabe, who has been dogged by rumours of poor health and is usually animated during lengthy political addresses, spoke slowly during his short acceptance speech. - 'Rule forever' - He stressed that discipline among party members should be maintained and that "leaders should be respected". "Let us be one. We are one family, the family of ZANU-PF, bound together by the fact of understanding between its members," he said. Large portraits of a younger Mugabe were displayed around a huge marquee where the conference was held, with the majority of about 9,000 delegates donning shirts emblazoned with their leader's face. "We want President Mugabe to rule forever and ever because of his clear leadership," one elated delegate, Janet Mazviwanza, told AFP. Despite his popularity within the party ranks, Mugabe this year faced unprecedented calls for him to step down, including a series of rare public protests over his failure to turn the ailing economy around. Critical cash shortages prompted the government at the end of November to introduce the much disliked 'bond notes' -- equivalent to the US dollar. Zimbabwe abandoned its own dollar currency in 2009 after hyperinflation hit 500 billion percent rendering it unusable. Unemployment in the country is currently at about 90 percent, and thousands of companies have closed in the last three years. Among the protest groups at rallies in recent months have been university graduates who wore their caps and gowns to show their anger at the lack of jobs. The street protests led police to ban demonstrations in the capital Harare, with some activists arrested. Zimbabwe's cash-strapped government has on several occasions failed to pay the salaries of civil servants on time, and workers have this month been informed that they will only get their pay in January. During the five-day ZANU-PF conference, the party raised concern at the abuse of social media and the national flag. Recently the Zimbabwean flag has been used as a symbol of political defiance by protesters and social activists who challenged Mugabe's government. Early this year, #ThisFlag social media movement led by Pastor Evan Mawarire saw a wave of internet activism, as people expressed anger at the growing economic meltdown. "There are however some concerns about the use of social media at a time when political parties are preparing for 2018 elections," read a report by the party central committee. "This phenomenon has been worsened by people who want to create chaos and destabilise the country." Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe attends a meeting with the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association in Harare in April 2016 JEKESAI NJIKIZANA (AFP/File) Congo crisis talks suspended until Wednesday Congolese crisis talks to ensure a peaceful political transition have been suspended, Catholic church mediators said, announcing they would resume Wednesday, the day after President Joseph Kabila's last legal term in office ends. "Direct negotiations are suspended", said Monsignor Marcel Utembi, the head of the Congolese bishops conference (CENCO). The announcement ended 11th-hour talks on Saturday between Kabila's ruling party and opposition groups to find a path forward for the Democratic Republic of Congo after December 20, when Kabila's second term ends. Opponents of Congolese President Joseph Kabila (C) accuse him of delaying the presidential vote in the hope of tweaking the constitution to extend the Kabila family's hold over the nation Junior D.Kannah (AFP/File) The political transition talks won't resume until December 21, Utembi said. "There is no deal," said Jean-Marc Kabund, the secretary general for the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) party of the main opposition leader, Etienne Tshisekedi. "The ruling majority is sitting on its positions and refuses to offer any concessions on matters that require a political response," he said. The Congolese constitution bans presidents from serving a third term, but Kabila has shown no signs of stepping down and no elections have yet been planned, prompting fears the situation could descend into violence. The 45-year-old president has signalled his desire to remain in power until a successor is chosen in an election, but some opposition figures want him to hand over to a transitional leadership while awaiting the vote. - Fears of violence - The CENCO-sponsored talks had brought together the ruling party and fringe opposition groups, allied against a mainstream opposition coalition led by the 84-year-old Tshisekedi. The latter accuse Kabila of delaying the vote in the hope of tweaking the constitution to extend his family's hold over a nation hugely rich in minerals that is almost the size of western Europe. Kabund, speaking to the media after the talks broke up, said: "We call on the people to carry out their responsibilities with respect to the... date marking the end of Kabila's mandate," referring to a midnight Tuesday deadline. The church mediators have warned that failure to find a political settlement would lead to "an uncontrollable situation". The international community has also warned the current tension could descend into violence, and Western diplomats in Kinshasa this week urged all non-essential nationals to leave the country. The opposition coalition had threatened to mobilise in the streets from December 19 until Kabila left office, but did not immediately call for protests following the suspension of talks. But on Saturday leaflets calling on people to remove Kabila from power began to circulate in Kinshasa, a city of 10 million where the head of state is notoriously unpopular. Some two decades ago, Congo sunk into the deadliest conflict in modern African history, its two wars in the late 1990s and early 2000s dragging in at least six African armies and leaving more than three million dead. A democratic handover would break ground for Congo's 70 million people who since independence from Belgium in 1960 have never witnessed political change at the ballot box. In the last few years hundreds of people have died in political violence in the capital Kinshasa and elsewhere. Tshisekedi and his allies had threatened nationwide protests from Monday to press Kabila to step down, but opted to hold off pending the negotiations. The government has ordered that social networks including Facebook and WhatsApp be blocked from 11:59 pm (2259 GMT) on Sunday. Police set up road checkpoints in Kinshasa, while the Republican Guard patrolled the capital's administrative district on Saturday near the presidential palace, AFP journalists reported. A Belgian plane on a regular flight to dispatch material for military cooperation was sent back by authorities immediately after landing in Kinshasa on Saturday, a Western diplomat said. The government frequently accuses Western powers of colluding with the opposition. Mugabe: Liberation hero turned despot Zimbabwe's veteran leader Robert Mugabe once quipped that he'd rule his country until he turned 100. On Saturday, his ruling ZANU-PF party endorsed the 92-year-old leader as its candidate for the 2018 presidential election, bringing him closer to achieving his wish. From crushing political dissent to ushering in disastrous land reforms that saw the economy crumble, many accuse Mugabe of turning the regional breadbasket into a food importer. Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe speaks at the party's annual conference on December 17, 2016 in Masvingo Jekesai NJIKIZANA (AFP) The leader who is currently Africa's oldest president, having clung to office for 36 years, has shown no sign of loosening his grip. "His real obsession was not with personal wealth but with power," said biographer Martin Meredith. "Year after year Mugabe sustained his rule through violence and repression -- crushing political opponents, violating the courts, trampling on property rights, suppressing the independent press and rigging elections," said Meredith. The former political prisoner turned guerrilla leader swept to power in 1980 elections after a growing insurgency and economic sanctions forced the then Rhodesian government to the negotiating table. He initially won international plaudits for his declared policy of racial reconciliation and for extending improved education and health services to the black majority. But his lustre faded quickly. -Tainted leader- Mugabe, whose party commands most of its support from the ethnic Shona majority, is tainted by the mass killing of the minority Ndebele people in a campaign in the early 1980s known as Gukurahundi, which killed an estimated 20,000 suspected dissidents. The violence on the Ndebele was unleashed by his North Korean-trained Fifth Brigade. Yet it was the violent seizure of white-owned farms nearly two decades later that would complete Mugabe's transformation from darling of the West into international pariah -- even if his status as a liberation hero still resonates in most of Africa. Aimed largely at placating angry war veterans who threatened to destabilise his rule, the land reform policy wrecked the crucial agricultural sector, caused foreign investors to flee and helped plunge the country into economic misery. At the same time, critics say, Mugabe has clung to power through repression of human rights and by rigging elections. -Early years- Born on February 21, 1924, into a Catholic family at Kutama Mission northwest of Harare, Robert Gabriel Mugabe was described as a loner, and a studious child known to carry a book even while tending cattle in the bush. After his carpenter father walked out on the family when he was 10, the young Mugabe concentrated on his studies, qualifying as a schoolteacher at the age of 17. An intellectual who initially embraced Marxism, he enrolled at Fort Hare University in South Africa, meeting many of southern Africa's future black nationalist leaders. After teaching in Ghana, where he was influenced by founder president Kwame Nkrumah, Mugabe returned to Rhodesia where he was detained for his nationalist activities in 1964 and spent the next 10 years in prison camps or jail. During his incarceration he gained three degrees through correspondence, but the years in prison left their mark. His four-year-old son by his first wife, Ghanaian-born Sally Francesca Hayfron, died while he was behind bars. Rhodesian leader Ian Smith denied him leave to attend the funeral. -Health rumours- In the recent years the aging Mugabe's health has been increasingly under the spotlight, particularly after he fell down a staircase after addressing supporters last year. He also read a speech to parliament in September apparently unaware that he had delivered the same address a month earlier. In September he laughed off rumours of his own death, as he returned home from Dubai. Mugabe, who is banned from travelling to the European Union, regularly travels to Singapore for what is officially called a routine health check-up. Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe attends a meeting with the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association on April 7, 2016 in Harare JEKESAI NJIKIZANA (AFP/File) Vigilantes in south Mexico free 20 captives after standoff MEXICO CITY (AP) Armed residents of a community in southern Mexico on Friday released 20 suspected criminals they had taken captive in a standoff with a local drug gang leader who they accused of kidnapping and extorting townsfolk. The release came with the mediation of authorities in Guerrero state. Roberto Alvarez Heredia, spokesman for the Guerrero Coordinating group that brings together state and federal security forces, said 14 of the captives were turned over to their families, while only four were handed over to prosecutors for possible ties to drug traffickers. The strange standoff emerged after residents of Totolapan, tired of kidnappings, extortion and killings, formed a vigilante group and seized the 20 people as well as Mrs. de Almonte Salgado, mother of local drug gang boss Raybel Jacobo de Almonte, known as "El Tequilero." They then posted videos offering to release El Tequilero's mother in exchange for Isauro de Paz Duque, a construction engineer abducted the previous day by the gang in an apparent extortion attempt. The tactic apparently worked and a worried-looking de Paz Duque was released Wednesday night in the town square. Townsfolk then turned de Almonte Salgado over to state police, who apparently handed the humbly dressed woman over to the gang. The exchange was recorded on a video shot by Guerrero state human rights officials. On Friday, Totolapan residents released the 20 remaining captives. The state government had sent about 220 soldiers and police to try to defuse the situation in Totolapan, which has been effectively controlled for years by the Tequileros' gang. The region is a hotbed of opium-growing. Car bomb kills 13 Turkish soldiers on bus; 7 suspects held ISTANBUL (AP) A suicide car bomber set off an explosion Saturday that demolished a public bus transporting off-duty soldiers in Turkey's central province of Kayseri, killing 13 troops and wounding 56 other people, authorities said. Saturday's blast comes a week after a car bomb attack claimed by Kurdish militants killed 44 people, mainly riot police, and wounded over 150 others near a soccer stadium in Istanbul. Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said the identity of the Kayseri attacker was known and that seven people had been taken into custody in connection with the attack. Police were searching for five others. A public bus is burning at the scene of a car bomb attack in central Anatolian city of Kayseri, Turkey, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016. A public bus was heavily damaged and dear and injured were reported. Turkish authorities have banned distribution of images relating to the Istanbul explosions within Turkey. (IHA via AP) Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said the suicide bomber ambushed a commando brigade on weekend leave in the city of Kayseri. The Turkish army said 48 troops were among the wounded in Saturday's "treacherous attack." The state-run Anadolu Agency said the explosion at the entrance gate to Erciyes University hit a bus transporting off-duty soldiers. Speaking in Kayseri, Health Minister Recep Akdag told reporters 56 people had been wounded in the attack, including four who were in critical condition. Images taken moments after the explosion showed a smoking public bus, still in flames, with its windows blown open and its interior blackened. There was no immediate claim of responsibility but the statements of top officials suggested suspicion was focused on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, which Ankara and the West consider a terrorist organization. Kurdish militants have claimed multiple attacks against soldiers and police across Turkey this year in violence that has also caused many casualties among civilians. "Turkey is under a combined attack by terrorist organizations, especially the divisive terrorist organization," President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a statement Saturday, referring to the PKK. Turkey has fought the PKK for decades in a conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of lives. The collapse of a two-and-a-half year cease-fire in July 2015 set the stage for a violent new chapter and ushered vast security operations in Turkey's predominantly Kurdish southeast. Turkey is also at odds with Western-backed Kurdish factions fighting against Islamic State extremists in neighboring Syria and Iraq. Turkey views these groups as extensions of the PKK. "We know that these attacks we have endured are not unrelated to happenings in Syria and Iraq, or even our economical fluctuations," Erdogan said. A state of emergency was declared following a botched July 15 coup attempt in Turkey and remains in force. The Turkish government has detained tens of thousands of people and fired tens of thousands of others for alleged ties to a cleric-led movement it says was behind the attempted coup, a claim the group denies. As usual with attacks in Turkey, the prime ministry office imposed a temporary blackout on coverage of Saturday's explosion and urged media to refrain from publishing anything that may cause "fear in the public, panic and disorder and which may serve the aims of terrorist organizations." ___ Ayse Wieting, Bulut Emiroglu and Neyran Elden in Istanbul also contributed reporting. Rescue services members work at the scene of a car bomb attack in central Anatolian city of Kayseri, Turkey, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016. A public bus was heavily damaged and dear and injured were reported. Turkish authorities have banned distribution of images relating to the Istanbul explosions within Turkey. (IHA via AP) Rescue services members work at the scene of a car bomb attack in central Anatolian city of Kayseri, Turkey, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016. A public bus was heavily damaged and dear and injured were reported. Turkish authorities have banned distribution of images relating to the Istanbul explosions within Turkey. (IHA via AP) Rescue service members work at the scene of a car bomb attack in central Anatolian city of Kayseri, Turkey, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016. A public bus was heavily damaged and dear and injured were reported. Turkish authorities have banned distribution of images relating to the Istanbul explosions within Turkey. (IHA via AP) Police find ETA weapons trove in southern France, arrest 5 MADRID (AP) Spanish and French police have made five arrests after discovering a suspected weapons trove for the Basque militant group ETA in southern France, the French interior minister said Saturday. Human rights group criticized the arrests, saying they involved well-known peace activists. French Interior Minister Bruno Le Roux said the arrests were made late Friday night when police found explosives and guns in a house in the French town of Louhossoa. A cameraman films a house where arrests of Basque activists took place late Friday night in Louhossoa, southern France, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016. Spain's Interior Ministry says Spanish and French police have made three arrests upon discovering a suspected weapons trove for the Basque militant group ETA in southern France. (AP Photo/Bob Edme) "They are the result of excellent cooperation" with Spanish authorities, Le Roux said. Spain's Interior Ministry had previously announced three arrests in Louhossoa. Local media reported those arrested included the founder of an ecologist group, Jean-Noel Etcheverry; the former president of the Basque Chamber of Agriculture, Michel Berhocoirigoin; wine grower Michel Bergougnan; and two journalists, Beatrice Haran-Molle and Stephane Etchegaray. French Lawyer Michel Tubiana, honorary president of the League of Human Rights, said those arrested wanted to destroy ETA weapons. "They are members of civil society who have only one concern, that ETA implements its commitment to disarm," Tubiana told BFM television. Anaiz Funosas, president of the peace movement Bake Bidea, told the AP "the five arrested people are well-known supporters of the peace process. They were implementing a first step in the disarmament process." The green party Europe Ecology called for their "immediate release." In 2011, ETA announced it was renouncing violence in its campaign for independence for the Basque regions of northern Spain and southwest France. It has yet to disarm or disband. It is blamed for over 800 deaths from 1968 to 2010. ___ Bob Edme in Bayonne, France, contributed to the story. French police officers stand outside a villa during a search operation in Louhossoa, southwestern France, Friday, Dec. 16, 2016, targeting the Basque separatist group ETA. (AP Photo/Bob Edme) French police officers stand outside a villa during a search operation in Louhossoa, southwestern France, Friday, Dec. 16, 2016, targeting the Basque separatist group ETA. (AP Photo/Bob Edme) Egypt denies Osama bin Laden's son entry CAIRO (AP) Security officials at Cairo International Airport say Omar bin Laden, son of the former leader of al-Qaida Osama bin Laden, has been denied entry to the country and was deported to Turkey. Omar bin Laden and his wife arrived Saturday from Qatar but after checking details of his Saudi passport, security officials found his name on a list of those banned from entering the country. West African leaders aim to enforce Gambian election upset ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) West African leaders promised Saturday to enforce the results of a Gambian election that was won by a little-known businessman backed by an opposition coalition but rejected by the country's longtime coup leader. A summit of the Economic Community of West African States ended with all leaders stating they will attend the Jan. 19 inauguration of Gambia's new president, Adama Barrow. They also pledged to "guarantee the safety and protection of the president-elect," who has said he fears for his life. FILE- In this Saturday Dec. 3, 2016 file photo, Gambian President elect Adama Barrow sits for an interview with the Associated Press at his residence in Yundum, Gambia. West African leaders are promising to enforce the results of a Gambian election upset being challenged by the countrys longtime coup leader. A summit of the Economic Community of West African States ended Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016 with all leaders stating they will attend the inauguration on Jan. 19 of newly elected businessman Adama Barrow. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay file) Gambian President Yahya Jammeh surprised his fellow citizens by conceding defeat the day after the Dec. 1 vote, and then changed his mind and called for a new election. The United Nations, the United States and the African Union have all condemned the move. The summit in Abuja, Nigeria, attended by 11 presidents with Jammeh absent, agreed "to take all necessary actions to enforce the results" of the Gambian election. It called for Jammeh to accept the results and refrain from compromising a peaceful handover of power. A new deployment of soldiers across the country risks increased intimidation and harassment, the U. N. high commissioner for human rights, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, warned late Saturday. "This is deeply worrying, given the record of human rights violations in Gambia, including excessive use of force against demonstrators, arbitrary detention and deaths in custody, as well as allegations of torture and ill-treatment of detainees," Zeid said. The summit named a mediation committee headed by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari with his deputy Ghana President John Dramani Mahama, who conceded defeat in an election a few days after Gambia's. It was Ghana's first electoral defeat of a sitting president. The president of the West African community, Marcel de Souza, said this week that if diplomacy fails, a military intervention and "draconian measures" must be considered for Gambia. He spoke in an interview with Radio France International. Jammeh's defiance challenges the first regional community in the world to agree to military interventions in member states accused of abusing human rights and democratic principles. It has spent 25 years nurturing democracy in a region once prone to military coups. Jammeh acted after an opposition coalition official said he should be prosecuted for rights abuses. Jammeh used the excuse of errors in the vote tally, ignoring the country's Independent Electoral Commission, which said the winner remains Barrow with a revised count of 227,708 votes to Jammeh's 208,487. The ruling party filed a court challenge against the results Tuesday, a constitutional move complicated by the fact that Gambia's Supreme Court does not have a quorum. The United States said it doubts it is "a credible court dedicated to ensuring the integrity of Gambia's democratic process." Jammeh on Tuesday sent troops to take over the electoral commission's office in Banjul, the capital, shortly before a delegation of West African leaders arrived on an inconclusive mission. Jammeh seized power in a bloodless coup in 1994 in the country of 1.9 million people known for its beaches. ___ Faul reported from Lagos, Nigeria. Liberia President, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, is photographed after the ECOWAS Heads of State and Government summit in Abuja, Nigeria, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016. West African leaders are promising to enforce the results of a Gambian election upset being challenged by the countrys longtime coup leader. (AP Photo/ Olamikan Gbemiga) Nigeria President Muhammadu Buhari, arrives for the Economic Community Of West African States, ECOWAS, Heads of State and Government summit in Abuja, Nigeria, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016. (AP Photo/Olamikan Gbemiga) Booby found on UK beach flown back to Caribbean home LONDON (AP) Norman the booby bird may have clocked up the most unlikely air miles in aviation history. The red-footed booby, a native of tropical zones, was discovered on a southern English beach Sept. 4, some 5,000 miles (8,000 kilometers) from his nearest Caribbean habitat. It was first recorded sighting of the species in Britain. Named Norman by his rescuers, the starving, dehydrated bird spent months under heat lamps as a Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals wildlife center nursed him back to health. Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 17 By Elena Kosolapova Trend: Azerbaijan is a country that is strategically important for the region, commander of the US Transportation Command, Air Force General Darren McDew told reporters in Baku Dec. 17. He noted that it is his first visit to Azerbaijan and he thanked the Azerbaijani people for hospitality. General McDew also noted that he is thankful for meeting Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev, who is a great leader. President Ilham Aliyev is building road networks and rail networks in Azerbaijan, and this contributes to the countrys economy as well as to economies of the entire region, General McDew said. He noted that Azerbaijan a country with 25 years of independence makes a strong and independent partner for the US. The high-ranking US official also said that he discussed with President Aliyev as well as the defense minister the long-term interstate cooperation, and more importantly, what this cooperation would look like decades later. General McDew also offered his condolences regarding the recent accident in the Caspian Sea, with missing oilmen. Merkel's top adviser to meet Michael Flynn next week BERLIN (AP) The news magazine Der Spiegel reports that German Chancellor Angela Merkel is sending a top adviser to New York next week to meet with President-elect Donald Trump's designated security adviser. Der Spiegel wrote Saturday that Christoph Heusgen will meet with Michael Flynn. The German news agency dpa reported that a government official would only confirm that Heusgen is traveling to the U.S. early next week for talks, but did not give any details. FILE - In this Feb. 17, 2016 file picture Christoph Heusgen, foreign policy advisor of German Chancellor Angela Merkel uses his mobile device as he arrives for the cabinet meeting at the chancellery in Berlin. News magazine Der Spiegel reports Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016 that German Chancellor Angela Merkel is sending one of her top advisers, Christoph Heusgen, to New York next week to meet up with President-elect Donald Trumps designated security adviser Michael Flynn. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber,file) After Trump's election last month, Merkel pledged to "do everything to work well with the new president," but insisted that the basis for cooperation has to be "democracy, freedom and human rights worldwide, and to strive for an open and liberal world order." Nevada elector: Electoral College baffles friends overseas RENO, Nev. (AP) A native of East India, Dr. Rachakonda Prabhu is having a hard time explaining the Electoral College to his friends around the world. The 69-year-old Las Vegas physician is one of Nevada's six Democratic presidential electors who will ceremonially cast their ballots for Hillary Clinton on Monday afternoon at the state Capitol in Carson City. Clinton carried the western swing state and won the most votes at the polls nationally in the November election. But GOP President-elect Donald Trump's big upsets in Midwest battleground states helped him claim the most electoral votes, 306-232. It baffles Prabhu's international colleagues. "They are shocked and surprised that somebody could lose the popular vote by 2.5 million and still win the election," he said in an interview. "They just don't understand that." "I tell them it's an old system established by the Founding Fathers," said the longtime friend of retiring Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev. "I tell them it was good when it was working for the last 200 years. But it might be time for a change." Prabhu a regular contributor to Democratic candidates who also sometimes gives to GOP campaigns backed Clinton from the start, as did two other Nevada electors. The other three supported Bernie Sanders in the February caucuses. The diverse group includes: A retired African-American woman from Minden. A Hispanic state assemblywoman from Reno. A retired union worker from rural Fallon. A 22-year-old Las Vegan who recently graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno. An IT specialist at UNR who helped craft databases to pinpoint precincts statewide with the biggest potential for Sanders. "I ended up voting for Hillary, but I didn't put a lot of energy into getting her elected not like I did with Sanders, in any way, shape or form," said Greg Gardella, 52, the technology manager at UNR. Paul Catha, past president of Nevada's Young Democrats, still believes Sanders was "the right candidate." But the UNR grad ended up working for months as a party field organizer for Clinton, seven days a week, sometimes 18 hours a day. "It's a little bittersweet, but we carried Nevada," Catha said. Unlike some states where anti-Trump forces are trying to persuade electors to abandon him, Nevada law requires they adhere to statewide results. If they don't, the secretary of state must reject their ballots and appoint replacements, repeating the procedure if necessary until it's done legally. "I've had people who I knew from the Sanders campaign suggest I vote for him, but it was always jokingly," said Catha, who's looking forward to his next "college" assignment. Larry Jackson of Fallon, a rural caucus representative on the state party's executive board, liked Sanders' platform and appeal to youth. But he's anxious to cast his ballot for Clinton. Trump worries him more than any new president since Ronald Reagan, who he associates with high unemployment. "I don't believe he (Trump) is going to be for the working people," said Jackson, 68. "He's taking care of his financial interests and people of his income bracket. " Two of Nevada electors have done this before, both Clinton loyalists. Assemblywoman Teresa Benitez-Thompson, the incoming majority leader, cast her 2012 vote for President Barack Obama and Jo Etta Brown of Minden for John Kerry in 2004. Brown remembers voting for John F. Kennedy in 1960. "That's the first time I became interested in politics. I found him to be very inspirational," said Brown, who now has a leadership role with the Alliance for Retired Americans after advocating for decades for women, minorities and seniors. She's no fan of Trump, but is willing to give him a chance. Chicago Police: 4 fatally shot in South Side home CHICAGO (AP) Chicago police say four people were shot to death and one was critically injured at a home on the city's far South Side. Officer Jose Estrada with the police department said officers responded at about 12:40 p.m. Saturday to a call that someone had been shot. When they arrived, four people were dead and the fifth was critically injured. A 2-year-old child was not injured. Estrada said police do not yet know exactly when the people were shot, the circumstances of the shooting or the names of the victims. He says no arrests have been made. Veteran war correspondent Michael Nicholson, who reported on armed conflicts in a career spanning more than 50 years, has died. The 79-year-old former ITN presenter died on December 11 while on a cruise with his wife Diana, ITV News announced. He covered conflicts including the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus and the Gulf War after joining the network in 1964. Former News At Ten anchor Sir Trevor McDonald said: Michael Nicholson was almost without doubt the finest television journalist of his generation. We mourn the passing of @ITN legend Michael Nicholson. From Saigon to Sarjevo he devoted his life to shining a light on the darkest stories John Hardie (@JohnMHardie) December 16, 2016 The BBCs Nick Robinson remembered him as a giant of TV news. Nicholson was also known for smuggling a nine-year-old orphan out of war-torn Sarajevo and bringing her back to the UK where he adopted her. Orphaned Natasha Mihaljcic won the correspondents heart while he reported on children being trapped by shelling in the besieged Bosnian capital in 1992. With fellow journalists John Suchet and Trevor McDonald in 1997 (Neil Munns/PA) He wrote a book about the events and it inspired the 1997 film Welcome To Sarajevo, which was directed by Michael Winterbottom. Former foreign secretary David Miliband has warned of house-to-house murder being carried out in war-torn Aleppo. Mr Miliband, president of the US-based charity International Rescue, which still has aid workers in the Syrian city, expressed fears that the carnage would spread to Idlib next. The truth is theres chaos, people are looking to find their families, and people are reporting, some of them, that the ceasefire is holding, others that there is no safety at all, and its sheer terror. David Miliband And that is the only way to describe this because people are fleeing from appalling bombardment, and house-to-house murder thats being documented by the UN, and they dont know if its going to follow them from Aleppo to Idlib, he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme. Mr Miliband also criticised the 2013 Commons vote against then prime minister David Camerons bid to back US military intervention after the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime. Opposition to Mr Camerons stance was led by then Labour leader Ed Miliband. Though the ex-foreign secretary did not mention his brother by name, he said the Commons decision had contributed to a vacuum of Western leadership. Civilians must not be targets. International law must be respected. Our work inside #Syria & how you can help here: https://t.co/Ys2igdBQr9 pic.twitter.com/v3hDC7V9lP IRC - International Rescue Committee (@RESCUEorg) December 16, 2016 I think that was quite important. The red line over chemical weapons needed to mean something to uphold international norms, never mind American credibility and support. Secondly, I think that the vote, which after all, I think Im right in saying, 560 MPs voted to support military action under certain conditions, they just couldnt agree with each other as to what those conditions should be. Teenager Anne Frank may not have been betrayed to Nazi occupiers, but captured by chance, a new study has said. The study by the Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam says despite decades of research there is no conclusive evidence that the young Jewish diarist and her family were betrayed to the Netherlands German occupiers during the Second World War, leading to their arrest and deportation. Ronald Leopold, executive director of the Anne Frank House museum, said new research by the museum illustrates that other scenarios should also be considered. A headstone dedicated to Anne and her sister Margot on the site of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp (Arthur Edwards/The Sun/PA) One possible theory is that the August 4 1944, raid that led to Annes arrest could have been part of an investigation into illegal labour or falsified ration coupons at the canal-side house where she and other Jews hid for just over two years. Anne kept a diary during her time in hiding that was published after the war and turned her into a globally recognised symbol of Holocaust victims. She died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp at 15, shortly before it was liberated by Allied forces. The new research points to two men who worked in the building on Amsterdams Prinsengracht canal and dealt in illegal ration cards. They were arrested earlier in 1944 and subsequently released, Dutch records show. The arrests also are mentioned in Annes diary. (Chris Radburn/PA) Such arrests were reported to an investigation division based in The Hague and the report says: During their day-to-day activities, investigators from this department often came across Jews in hiding by chance. Another possibility raised by the report is that the raid was part of an investigation into people being allowed to work to prevent them being called up as forced labour and sent to Germany. A company where people were working illegally and two sales representatives were arrested for dealing in ration coupons obviously ran the risk of attracting the attention of the authorities, the report says. It says the possibility of betrayal has of course not been entirely ruled out by this, nor has any relationship between the ration coupon fraud and the arrest been proven and says further research is necessary. A tropical bird found washed up on a British beach has been flown 5,000 miles (8,000km) home to the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean in time for Christmas after being nursed back to health. The red-footed booby bird was discovered underweight and dehydrated on a pebble beach at St Leonards-on-Sea, near Hastings in East Sussex, on September 4. The bird, nicknamed Norman, underwent intensive care at the RSPCAs Mallydams Wood wildlife centre where he spent time under a heat lamp to ward off the cold and ate sprats to build up his strength. Mystery surrounds how the young bird managed to be blown off course and end up on a UK beach where he was found by East Sussex resident Gail Cohen. Norman was nursed back to health (RSPCA/PA) But now Norman, the first red-footed booby bird recorded in the UK, is settling in at a nature reserve in the Cayman Islands after being transported on a 12-hour British Airways flight from Heathrow on Thursday. Mallydams wildlife rehabilitation team manager Richard Thompson said: It is just fantastic to see Norman make his way home after the team here have worked so hard nursing him back to health and full strength. We are used to dealing with native seabirds here like gulls and terns but he is the first booby bird we have ever seen here at the RSPCA and the UK. It is amazing to think weve had a hand in his care. Norman has done so well especially when you consider how weak and dehydrated he was when he came in. We have been keeping a close eye on him along the way and keeping him warm with heat lamps. RSPCA wildlife vet Barbara Watson flew alongside Norman to keep an eye on his progress and carry out vet checks before and after the flight. Ms Watson said: I never imagined in my career I would be asked to treat a booby bird as they have never been seen over here before. It is incredible to think how he got to the south coast of England. Following his epic journey home, Norman is due to spend 30 days in quarantine before he is released to join other booby birds. A rare Asian elephant has been born at Chester Zoo. The unnamed female calf was born to 12-year-old mother Sundara overnight after a 22-month gestation. Keepers at the zoo said both mother and daughter are doing well and visitors will be able to see the new arrival from Saturday. BREAKING NEWS: Endangered Asian elephant born overnight! Our CCTV caught the amazing moment and the calf's first attempts at standing up. pic.twitter.com/nubDriDThI Chester Zoo (@chesterzoo) December 17, 2016 The calf is the 19th elephant to be born at Chester Zoo in its 85-year history and brings the current size of its herd to seven. Five, including the new calf, are part of the same family called the Hi Ways. Elephants are born into captivity in the UK only once or twice a year. Keepers at the zoo watched the birth remotely via CCTV cameras so as not to disturb the herd. The calfs name will be decided in the coming days. Richard Fraser, assistant team manager of elephants at Chester Zoo, said: The arrival of a calf is a great family occasion for the elephant herd and brings the whole group together. (Peter Byrne/PA) As soon as Sundara began showing early signs of labour, you could see the rest of the family knew something special was about to happen. This was Sundaras second pregnancy and the birth was pretty much perfect. She delivered her calf on to soft sand with all the family gathered around. Sundara then gave her a series of little kicks to gently stimulate and encourage her to her feet. Minutes later, the new arrival was up and standing and making her first attempts to suckle. Theres always a lot of excitement among the elephants whenever theres a birth. Its a hugely positive event for the herd. Asian elephants are native to South and South East Asia and are listed as endangered. There are between 35,000 and 40,000 in the wild and managed breeding programmes. They live to approximately 50 to 60 years old. (Peter Byrne/PA) Mike Jordan, collections director at Chester Zoo, said: Sundaras new calf is a fantastic addition to the zoos Hi Way family of elephants and we hope that news of her arrival will generate more much-needed awareness of these incredible animals and the pressures for survival that they are faced with in the wild. In India, Asian elephants are regularly injured and killed in conflicts with humans. They wander into villages, destroying crops and property as they go, and this often results in forceful retaliation by villagers. War photographer Paul Conroy has joined a convoy carrying much-needed medical equipment to the Syrian border for a new hospital in Aleppo marking his first return to the region since the blast which nearly killed him. In 2012 the photojournalist from Liverpool was badly injured in the Syrian city of Homs, alongside acclaimed war reporter Marie Colvin who was killed in the same blast, when the media centre they were in was shelled. Departing from Londons Chelsea and Westminster hospital on Saturday, a lorry carrying supplies headed for the war-torn country to build a new childrens hospital in Aleppo as the evacuation of thousands of civilians from east of the city continues. Paul Conroy Spending the years since the incident and death of his colleague recovering, of his first journey back, he said this is his "first opportunity" to show "solidarity" and remind the Syrian people that "theyre not forgotten". He said: "A few years ago I was in Homs lying in the rubble next to my dead partner Marie Colvin and Remi Ochlik. We were taken to a hospital field clinic and the treatment I had I had a toothbrush, a bottle of iodine and an office stapler to put my leg back together. That hasnt changed. Doctors and medics are some of the most-hunted people in Syria." Dubbed the Peoples Convoy it has been set up by CanDo, The Syria Campaign, Doctors Under Fire and The Phoenix Foundation and it will take six to seven days to reach the border between Turkey and Syria. Urgent join us to dover and make a huge convoy, we will get it to aleppo https://t.co/l1zqoXW5JD Paul Conroy (@reflextv) December 16, 2016 Organisers say it was the bombing of the last childrens hospital in east Aleppo in November, forcing it to close, which prompted their emergency response. Dr Rola Hallam, a consultant anaesthetist at the Royal Free Hospital in London and founder of the CanDo campaign said seeing images of the deliberate targeting of the medical facility was a devastating blow to her and what prompted the campaign idea. The 37-year-old British Syrian added: These are war crimes which have been allowed to continue with impunity and I felt it was time that we, the people, took action. Today is the day! #PeoplesConvoy sets off at 11am today from Chelsea & Westminster hospital to Syria to build a new children's hospital. Doctors Under Fire (@DrsUnderFire) December 17, 2016 In the 10 days since the launch of the crowdfunding campaign more than 155,000 has been raised to cover the cost of kitting out the new childrens hospital. Dr Hallam said the amount raised has been like a ray of light and hope. She added: This is a display of the best of humanity 3,000 people from around the world have clubbed together to not only raise the money needed to set up the hospital, but well over the target. I think this is such a strong message to Syrian civilians, their doctors and humanitarians, that they are not forgotten, they are seen, they are heard and people do care. The convoy is set to travel through Europe, after meeting with another equipment-packed truck in Calais, France, before heading into Turkey, where, at the border the trucks will be handed over to the Syrian partners of the project the Independent Doctors Association. Quizzed on whether he is concerned about the dangers of the Syrian border, especially with an alleged million dollar bounty on his head, imposed by President Bashar Assad, Mr Conroy said he is not that worried. I look at what the people are going through (in Syria) the risk Im taking by going down there doesnt, it is far out weighed by their problems, he added. Friends #PeoplesConvoy launching today from London. on Facebook live from 11am UK time. Tune in https://t.co/tLDHSDjrx7 #syria @CanDoAction Rose Alhomsi (Razan) (@tweets4peace) December 17, 2016 Joining Dr Hallam and Mr Conroy for the journey will be emergency medicine doctor, Saleyha Ahsan, who is also a co-founder of Doctors Under Fire, as well as Dr Zaher Sahloul, a founder of the American Relief Coalition for Syria. In 2012 rebel fighters took control of eastern Aleppo, but this week following a major offensive to take it back, waged by President Assad, most of the besieged city was recaptured. Thousands of civilians have since been evacuated from east Aleppo, Syrias largest city, which has been left destroyed by four years of fighting and Russian airstrikes. Jack Carty showed nerves of steel to convert Naulia Dawais injury-time try and steer Connacht to a terrific 20-18 European Champions Cup win over Wasps at the Sportsground. The Irish provinces Galway ground rocked to its foundations as Carty sent over the decisive conversion from far out on the right, a kick which means Wasps, Toulouse and Connacht are now tied on 13 points each at the top of Pool Two. Dai Youngs side, who were 32-17 winners at home last week, were on course for a double when they won a scrum against the head and Dan Robson fed Josh Barrett for a 72nd minute try. Jack Carty Full time: Connacht 20 - 18 Wasps #CRLive #ChampionsCup Incredible scenes here at the Sportsground - fantastic support once again! Connacht Rugby (@connachtrugby) December 17, 2016 That came after two Jimmy Gopperth penalties which had erased Connachts 13-7 half-time lead, the hosts ending the first half with a Danie Poolman try from fly-half Cartys cross-field kick. But the vast majority of the 8,090 crowd were delighted with Connachts late sprint finish, a last-gasp maul seeing Fijian newcomer Dawai plunge over on his debut. It was left to Carty to decide the outcome and the 24-year-old nailed the difficult kick before being enveloped by his team-mates. Having missed his first place-kick of the night, Carty redeemed himself with a well-struck 42-metre penalty in the eighth minute, rewarding Quinn Rouxs graft at the breakdown. But the hosts midfield was opened up by Thomas Young, who was not held in the tackle, and his break added to by the supporting Nathan Hughes saw scrum half Joe Simpson finish off just to the left of the posts, with Gopperth converting. Connacht were unable to profit from Cartys half-break and Wasps almost opened the second quarter with another try. Inspired by a John Muldoon poach, the hosts just about held them at bay from two close-in mauls. The sin-binning of home full-back Tiernan OHalloran for not rolling away was not as keenly felt as it should have been, the ever-threatening Matt Healy releasing Bundee Aki for a surge downfield. Ultan Dillane also got on the ball before a 31st minute penalty allowed Carty to close the gap to 7-6. Although Wasps managed to even up the scrum battle and then force the issue later on, Connachts forwards were packing more of a punch in the loose and off a cleverly-worked lineout, Cartys crafty cross-field kick out to the left bounced for the waiting Poolman to dot down. An excellent touchline conversion from Carty sent the westerners into the second half on a real high, before Wasps smart defence led by skipper Joe Launchbury marched Connacht back and Gopperths 53rd-minute penalty reduced the arrears to three. The hosts had most of the territory but were getting little change out of referee Jerome Garces. A harsh penalty considering Matt Mullans angle of scrummaging was sent wide by Gopperth on the hour mark. The New Zealander was back on target in the 67th minute to draw Wasps level, as the visitors ball-carrying threat increased. Winger Bassett was hauled down short via a clever chip from Robson, Simpsons replacement. Heartbreak for Wasps who gave their all, but incredible spirit from @connachtrugby to clinch it with the last play of the game. 20-18 Wasps Rugby (@WaspsRugby) December 17, 2016 Akis counter-rucking skills won a relieving scrum for Connacht but Wasps, with Mullan allowed to come in on an angle, forced the turnover and Robsons inviting pass sent Bassett over in the left corner. Gopperth was unable to convert, though, and Connachts never-say-die spirit was rewarded in the dying seconds. Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 17 By Elmira Tariverdiyeva Trend: Journalists know, that one event can be presented from completely different angles, highlighting one part and leaving the other one out. Unfortunately, this is exactly what happened with coverage of an event hosted by the Azerbaijani embassy in the US jointly with the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. The Hanukkah celebration, held on Dec. 14 in the new Trump International Hotel in Washington, was a real celebration of religions friendship and an example of how one country can unite seemingly completely opposite poles of modern policy. Aside from that, the event noted people, including Azerbaijanis, that played a major role in helping Israel fight the devastating forest fires last month, for which Tel Aviv is very grateful. One of the most important moments of the event was the fact that thanks to Azerbaijan's participation, the celebration of the Jewish holiday was attended by Maen Rashid Areikat, a Palestinian diplomat and present chief of the Palestine Liberation Organization delegation in Washington DC. This is an amazing example of mediation of Azerbaijan, which, being a Muslim country and a member of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), evokes trust of Palestinians and simultaneously, has excellent relations with Israel. Who else could've established a dialogue between the representatives of the Palestinian people and Israelis, if not Azerbaijan - the country known for its unique model of multiculturalism and tolerance, which is now used as the basis for state policy. Along with that, having tight relations with Israel, to which testifies the successful visit of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to Baku on Dec. 13, Azerbaijan can play a bridging role between the Palestinian people and the Israelis. This is important from the standpoint of attempts to establish peace in volatile Middle East region. However, instead of paying attention to this incredible process of beginning dialogue between the conflicting parties, many journalists unfortunately focused on a negligible episode - when several Jewish organizations in the US boycotted the Hanukkah celebration held in the hotel owned by the newly elected US President Donald Trump, as they dont agree with this election. By digging deeper, it becomes clear that most of the Jewish organizations that have "boycotted" the event, were not even invited to it. The thing is that these organizations have controversial reputation in the eyes of the Jewish lobby in the US, and thus weren't in the limited list of those invited to the event. Some media outlets picked this up, and the raised noise may affect the relations between the US and Israel, as it was noted in the statement of Morton A. Klein, president of the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA), published on the organizations website. The boycotting organizations owe Azerbaijan an apology, according to Klein. The Trump Administration may well be offended by the Jewish boycotters opposition to holding the Hanukkah event at a Trump Hotel. An apology to Trump is also in order, noted ZOA president in his statement. The boycotting groups seem to care more about displaying their partisan anti-Trump animus than about the serious mistake of offending the next president of the United States, which would negatively impact their duty to promote strong US-Israel relations as promote relations with moderate Muslim countries like Azerbaijan, added Klein. He also noted that the boycotters complaints about the partys location are also inappropriate. The Trump hotel was chosen due its proximity to the White House, the hotels ability to provide kosher food, and for the convenience of invitees who were also attending the White House Hanukkah party on the same day, added Klein. The are also surprising lies, which, for some reason, was spread by some US journalists, about that the hosting side paid hundreds of thousands of dollar for the reception. This can be easily checked just by contacting the hotel's administration directly, and inquire about the price for the 200-person event, with kosher food. The sum doesn't exceed $12,000. And for US journalists this is a lot easier to check than for Azerbaijani journalists. Apparently, someone needed a scandal, and success of Azerbaijan's diplomacy, including in such an important country as the US, don't give rest to representatives of some other diasporas. Very few events organized by embassies of other countries can boast about being attended by a large number of diplomatic missions accredited in the US, which also says a lot about respect for Baku and the Embassy of Azerbaijan in particular. Fourth RBS investor group prepares to settle fundraising claim By Kirstin Ridley and Andrew MacAskill LONDON, Dec 15 (Reuters) - A small group of Royal Bank of Scotland retail shareholders is close to joining three other investor parties and settling a 4.0 billion pound ($5 billion)-plus lawsuit against the bank out of court. State-controlled RBS offered five investor groups 800 million pounds last week in an effort to draw a line under allegations that it misled shareholders during a 12 billion pound fundraising at the height of the financial crisis in 2008. One industry source familiar with the situation said he expected a formal announcement over the next few days that the small retail shareholder group, led by lawyer Leon Kaye, would become the fourth group to accept the offer. Three institutional investor parties agreed to the RBS offer last week. This would leave the RBoS Shareholder Action Group the last claimants still considering whether to take the cash on offer or proceed to trial in one of the largest and most complex lawsuits in English legal history. "The Action Group notes that the Leon Kaye Group, representing 0.6 percent of the claimants by value, has indicated its agreement in principle with RBS's offer," a spokesman for the group said. "We are considering our position with RBS and its advisers." RBS said in a statement it was pleased to have settled with some claimants and was hopeful of settling with the remaining groups. The RBoS Shareholder Action group, which represents around 27,000 retail investors and more than 100 institutions, including Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Aberdeen Asset Management, says its claim is worth around 1.8 billion pounds, including interest and costs. It is the only claimant group to pursue both the bank and former directors over alleged recklessly optimistic statements that gave a "grossly misleading impression" about the bank's financial health in 2008. RBS's Chief Executive Ross McEwan has said he is worried about the damage a trial could inflict on the bank's battered reputation. But he also said RBS could not agree to a deal that was unfair to shareholders. The case has cast a long shadow over the Edinburgh bank, which remains 73 percent state-owned since it was rescued in a 45 billion pound bailout. A six-month trial to establish liability has been scheduled for next March. A second trial to establish any damages will follow. RBS, which has already run up a legal bill of more than 90 million pounds, has said the case may not be settled before 2023 if it goes to trial. Credit Suisse's Illy expects 3 to 5 Swiss IPOs in 2017 By Joshua Franklin ZURICH, Dec 15 (Reuters) - There will be at least three initial public offerings in Switzerland in 2017, a senior Credit Suisse investment banker said on Thursday. These transactions could come from the health, financial, industrial, consumer, service and technology sectors, Marco Illy, the bank's chairman of corporate and investment banking in Switzerland, told reporters. "I would say definitely three, but it might also very likely be five," Illy said. There have been five new listings this year on Switzerland's SIX stock exchange, the largest of which was VAT Group with a transaction size of 621 million Swiss francs ($603 million). The total IPO transaction volume in 2016 was around 900 million francs, Switzerland's lowest since 2011, Credit Suisse said. Credit Suisse expects that to rise next year to more than 4.5 billion francs, which Illy described as a "conservative prediction". Swiss IPO volumes will likely be boosted by Credit Suisse's own partial flotation of its domestic unit, Credit Suisse (Schweiz). It plans to sell a stake of 20-30 percent in the second half of 2017 subject to market conditions. Illy, who is leading the IPO process, said there will be investor demand for a bank which generates recurring income, is nationally focused and offers an attractive dividend. Credit Suisse is also working with two other unnamed financial institutions which are considering IPOs, Illy said. Monte dei Paschi in last-ditch effort to lure retail investors By Stephen Jewkes and Silvia Aloisi MILAN, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Troubled Italian bank Monte dei Paschi di Siena sought on Friday to convince 40,000 retail investors to take part in its last-ditch rescue plan, warning them they could face bigger losses if they did not convert their bonds into shares. Italy's third biggest bank has until the end of this month to raise 5 billion euros ($5.2 billion) in equity or face the risk of being wound down, potentially triggering a wider banking and political crisis in Italy. Should the privately-funded plan fail, the government is ready to step in with state money to keep the Siena-based bank in business, though such a move would require both retail and institutional investors to share in losses. Monte dei Paschi said on Friday market watchdog Consob had given the go-ahead to the extension of a voluntary debt-to-equity offer to retail investors owning 2.1 billion euros of its junior debt. The offer runs from December 16 to 21. The bank, noting there could be no certainty Rome would pump in public money, warned that any state aid could force bondholders to convert their securities on worse conditions than those of the lender's voluntary debt swap offer. Underscoring its vulnerability, the bank said on Friday deposits had fallen by 6 billion euros between September 30 and December 13. Outflows have totalled 2 billion euros since a December 4 referendum on constitutional reform which triggered the resignation of Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, throwing the bank's rescue plan into disarray. With the clock ticking, the chances of the bank pulling off the fundraising look slim, and bankers and analysts say state intervention looks increasingly on the cards to help restore confidence. Sources close to the matter said on Thursday Italy was ready to inject 15 billion euros into the Tuscan lender and other weak banks. An emergency decree could be approved next week as soon as the results of Monte dei Paschi's debt swap and share sale are known. In its prospectus for the reopened debt swap offer, the bank said the European Central Bank had told it that under a negative stress-test scenario, the lender has "a 29-day time horizon in which it can meet its liquidity needs without resorting to new intervention." The stress-test scenario assumes a liquidity outflow of 10.3 billion euros within a month. Shares in the bank fell 3 percent by 1513 GMT. Besides the bond conversion, the bank's last attempt to avert state aid also envisages selling shares to cornerstone investors and on the market. However, a source close to the matter said on Thursday that Qatar's sovereign wealth fund - which bankers had said could invest 1 billion euros - had yet to make up its mind about whether to put money in the bank. "Qatar is still at the window," the source said. Following the political turmoil triggered by Renzi's resignation, JPMorgan and other investment banks that had made a preliminary commitment to underwrite the share sale walked out of the deal, citing adverse market conditions. Monte dei Paschi estimates the cost of its rescue deal, including fees paid to investment banks, at 558 million euros, it said in the prospectus published on Friday. The ECB last week rejected Monte dei Paschi's request for more time to raise the funds, saying a delay could trigger a further deterioration in the bank's liquidity and capital position, putting its survival at risk. ($1 = 0.9576 euros) Red Cross urges all sides in Aleppo to resume evacuation GENEVA, Dec 16 (Reuters) - The International Comimttee of the Red Cross (ICRC), a leading agency in the evacuation of the wounded and civilians from east Aleppo, called on all sides on Friday to resume the operation, which was suspended hours earlier. "Regretfully the operation was put on hold. We urge the parties to ensure it can be relaunched & proceed in the right conditions," Robert Mardini, ICRC regional director for the Near and Middle East, said in a tweet giving no further details. Odebrecht ex-exec says Brazil president negotiated donation -report SAO PAULO, Dec 16 (Reuters) - A former senior executive at Odebrecht SA testified that Brazilian President Michel Temer took part in a 2010 meeting regarding donations to his party in return for deals with state oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA, Folha de S.Paulo reported on Friday. The newspaper report, the third in a week tying Temer to a vast corruption scandal that has resulted in senior executives and politicians being jailed, is contributing to a political crisis threatening to derail his austerity agenda. The former head of Odebrecht's industrial engineering unit, Marcio Faria, gave details of the meeting at Temer's office in Sao Paulo in a proposed plea bargain, Folha reported, without naming sources. More than 70 Odebrecht executives, including jailed former Chief Executive Officer Marcelo Odebrecht, have been offering testimony as part of a leniency agreement with prosecutors. Ex-Nusra front agrees to Syrian villages evacuation - rebel source BEIRUT, Dec 16 (Reuters) - A Syrian rebel source said Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, formerly known as Nusra Front, had agreed to let injured people out of the besieged Shi'ite villages of Foua and Kefraya in Idlib province. As the last rebel group to agree to the evacuation, the source said the evacuation could start as early as today. Protesters block all exits from Polish parliament WARSAW, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Protesters blocked all exits from the Polish parliament after opposition parties accused the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party lawmakers of illegally passing the budget for next year. The exits were protected by over a hundred policemen, who in turn were surrounded by hundreds of protesters chanting that lawmakers will remain blocked and calling on the head of the ruling party to come out and face them. Smoggy Beijing, under alert, orders factories to shut or cut output By Josephine Mason and Meng Meng BEIJING, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Beijing's city government ordered 1,200 factories near the Chinese capital, including a major oil refinery run by state oil giant Sinopec, to shut or cut output on Saturday after authorities issued the highest possible air pollution alert. On Friday, China's environmental watchdog issued a five-day warning about choking smog spreading across the north and ordered factories to shut, recommended residents stay indoors and curbed traffic and construction work. Red alerts are issued when the air quality index (AQI), a measure of pollutants in the air, is forecast to break 200 for more than four days in succession, surpass 300 for more than two days or overshoot 500 for at least 24 hours. The Beijing Municipal Environmental Monitoring Centre showed an air quality reading of 297 by Saturday afternoon as haze started to envelop the capital, after an earlier reading of around 120. Levels in the 301-500 band are considered hazardous to health. Traffic on the city's roads was lower than usual as residents complied with limits on car use and many of the city's 22 million residents sat out the haze at home. "I'll just take a rest and not go outside," said Wang Jianan, a 23-year-old Beijing resident and teaching assistant. With Christmas just a week away, others resorted to dark humour to help cope with the latest episode of toxic air. One Beijing resident posted a cartoon on WeChat, China's mobile messaging platform, showing Santa Claus on his slay almost completely obscured by smog, saying: "I can't find China." The city's municipal government said in a statement Sinopec's 10 million tonne-per-year Yanshan refinery, a Shougang Group steel product plant and a Cofco factory that makes instant noodles and crackers were among 500 companies it had ordered to limit output. The statement also listed 700 companies that had been ordered to suspend operations altogether. The national environmental watchdog was sending more than a dozen inspection teams to check that factories and heavy manufacturing plants were complying with the crackdown, it said. The hazardous air underscores the challenge facing the world's second-largest economy as the government battles pollution caused by the coal-burning power industry and other heavy industry after decades of breakneck economic growth. The government's colour-graded warning system was adopted as part of its crackdown on smog. More than 40 cities have issued warnings, with 22 on red alert, including top steelmaking city Tangshan in Hebei province around Beijing, and Jinan in coal-rich Shandong province. Syrian rebels say new deal reached to secure Aleppo evacuation BEIRUT, Dec 17 (Reuters) - A new deal has been reached to complete the evacuation of rebel-held areas of east Aleppo which had stalled over demands from pro-government forces that two villages besieged by rebels also be evacuated, a Syrian rebel told news channel al-Arabiya al-Hadath on Saturday. Rebel official al-Farouk Abu Bakr, speaking from Aleppo, said the deal comprised an evacuation from the two Shi'ite villages besieged by insurgents, the evacuation of wounded people from two towns besieged by pro-government forces near the Lebanese border, and the full evacuation of rebel-held eastern Aleppo. The villages of al-Foua and Kefraya in Idlib province are besieged by insurgents. The towns of Madaya and Zabadani are blockaded by pro-government forces. On Friday, the second day of the operation to evacuate fighters and civilians from the last opposition-held area of Aleppo was suspended after pro-government militias demanded that wounded people also be brought out of al-Foua and Kefraya, and protesters blocked the road out of Aleppo. The chaos surrounding the Aleppo evacuation reflects the complexity of Syria's civil war, with an array of groups and foreign interests involved on each side. Rebel sources said pro-government Shi'ite militias had detained and opened fire on a convoy carrying evacuees from east Aleppo on Friday. A Syrian military source denied the accusations but said the convoy was turned back to Aleppo. Abu Bakr told al-Hadath the previous agreement was breached on Friday by pro-government militias who detained "hundreds" of people trying to leave, leading to some deaths. "Now we are working on international guarantees to guarantee the safety of those who leave Aleppo so that such violations are not repeated," he said. A Syrian rebel source said Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, formerly known as the Nusra Front, had not initially agreed to the evacuation of the two villages. The source later said Nusra had agreed, but a Nusra source denied this. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war, said no busses or ambulances had yet entered al-Foua or Kefraya, but the operation was expected to begin soon. Another rebel official confirmed to Reuters that a deal on the evacuation of Aleppo, al-Foua and Kefraya had been reached and that it should go ahead. Officials from the Syrian government or the military alliance fighting in support of it could not be reached for immediate comment. Abu Bakr did not say how many people would be evacuated from al-Foua and Kefraya. Bin Laden's son denied entry to Egypt CAIRO, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Osama bin Laden's son Omar was refused entry to Egypt on Saturday, airport sources said, giving no reason why his name was on a list of people banned from the country. Omar, 34, Osama bin Laden's fourth-eldest son, was travelling with his British wife Zaina al Sabah from Doha, and they asked to be sent to Turkey, the sources said. The couple, who lived in Egypt for several months in 2007 and 2008, were previously denied entry to the country in 2008. Omar bin Laden broke with his father in 2001 after living in Afghanistan for much of 1996 to 2001. In an interview with Reuters in 2010, Omar said he was working with Saudi Arabia and Iran to end his separation from a group of brothers and sisters that dates back to the chaos in Afghanistan following the al Qaeda attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Omar said bin Laden's children were trying to be "good citizens of the world" but suffered from the lack of a father and the stigma of being the al Qaeda leader's children. None were part of al Qaeda, he said at the time. "We are working with the Iranian government and with the Saudi government at the moment to have my mother's children and grandchildren join us," he said. Details added (first version posted on 13:12) Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 17 Trend: Azerbaijan and Israel have reached an agreement regarding the Iron Dome missile defense system, Yavar Jamalov, Azerbaijans defense industry minister, told reporters Dec. 17 in Baku. Azerbaijan will purchase the mentioned defense system from Israel. The agreement was reached between the Azerbaijani Defense Industry Ministry and Israels relevant structure, said Jamalov. Iron Dome is a mobile all-weather air defense system developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Israel Aircraft Industries. The system is designed to intercept and destroy short-range rockets and artillery shells fired from distances of 4 kilometers to 70 kilometers away and whose trajectory would take them to a populated area. Turkish jets pound IS targets in Syria, kill at least 20 -military ANKARA, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Turkish warplanes have pounded Islamic State targets in northern Syria in the last 24 hours, killing at least 20 militants, the military said in a statement on Saturday. In addition to the 64 targets hit, the military said another 206 Islamic State targets were hit by artillery and other weaponry in its latest operations in northern Syria. Red Cross asks for quick agreement on Aleppo evacuation plan BEIRUT, Dec 17 (Reuters) - The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) asked Syria's warring parties to agree quickly on a plan to evacuate people from east Aleppo and provide "solid" safety guarantees on Saturday, a day after the evacuation stalled. "We're ready to resume facilitating the evacuation according to our humanitarian mandate. But we now expect all the parties on the ground to provide us with solid guarantees in order to keep the operation going. They're the ones who have to protect the people and provide safe passage," said ICRC head in Syria Marianne Gasser in a statement from Aleppo. The ICRC said thousands of cold and scared people including women, children, the sick and injured, remain in eastern Aleppo waiting for the evacuation operation to continue. "People are expecting us to continue the evacuation. It's important that the parties on the ground do their utmost to end this limbo," Gasser said. "People have suffered a lot. Please come to an agreement and help save thousands of lives." The ICRC said it had managed to evacuate around 10,000 people, many of whom were in a critical medical condition. The World Health Organization (WHO) representative in Syria Elizabeth Hoff, speaking from west Aleppo, told Reuters she was not sure there was time for the evacuations to begin on Saturday. "It is a quarter past one in the afternoon already. The Russians (who are overseeing the operation) are not keen on working through the night," Hoff said. Hamas blames Israel for killing of drone expert in Tunisia GAZA, Dec 17 (Reuters) - The Palestinian Hamas group in Gaza blamed Israel on Saturday for the killing in Tunisia this week of a Tunisian national it described as one of its drone experts, and threatened retaliation. Hamas's armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, said Mohammed Zawari, who was gunned down near the city of Sfax on Thursday, had been a member of the group for 10 years and had been supervising its drone programme. Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, did not offer any evidence to support its accusation. A spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. "Qassam Brigades mourns the martyr of Palestine, martyr of the Arab and Muslim nation, the Qassam leader, engineer and pilot Mohammad Zawari, who was assassinated by Zionist treacherous hands on Thursday in Sfax," a statement posted on the group's website said. "The enemy must know the blood of the leader Zawari will not go in vain," the statement said. The Tunisian interior ministry said Zawari was killed in his car by multiple gunshots in front of his house in El Ain, near Sfax, on Thursday. Four rental cars were used in the killing and two handguns and silencers were seized, the ministry said. Television footage aired on local media showed a black Volkswagen with its windows apparently shot out. A judicial spokesman from Sfax, Mourad Tourki, told Tunisian radio Shems FM eight Tunisian nationals had been arrested in connection with the killing. One of the suspects is a Tunisian journalist based in Hungary, arrested along with a cameraman. Two other suspects, one of them a Belgian of Moroccan origin, are still at large, Tourki said. Authorities have not commented on who is suspected of being behind the killing. Local media said Zawari had returned to Tunisia in 2011 after spending two decades abroad, including in Syria. They gave his age as 49 and said he was a technical director in a private engineering firm and a model aircraft expert. Israel has in the past voiced concern that armed groups in Gaza and Lebanon would deploy drones carrying explosives inside its borders in a future war. Hamas and other Islamist militias have fired thousands of rockets at militarily superior Israel in previous conflicts, but have made scant use of drones. In September the Israeli army said it had intercepted a drone off the coast of Gaza. It was the first such incident reported since the 2014 Gaza war, when a U.S.-supplied Israeli Patriot missile destroyed an unmanned Hamas aircraft over the southern Israeli port city of Ashdod. Israel is itself a world leader in drone technologies and has used the vehicles extensively in combat. The Government has decided to look for suitable lands for the proposed industrial zones in the Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-Western Provinces and to secure them within three months. Sources close to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said at a recent meeting with provincial politicians. They said the Prime Minister had directed the provincial politicians to select suitable land in Mirigama, Kalutara and the Sabaragamuwa Province for these zones which were to be set up in addition to the industrial zone in Hambantota and the financial city in Colombo. An industrial zone has been envisaged for Matara as well. (Yohan Perera) 26-year-old Japanese woman who was in the country as a tourist had complained to Galle Police that a steward of the hotel she was staying at had sexually abused her. She had gone outside to take a shower since the bathroom of the hotel was located outside. Realizing that she had closed the room door accidentally leaving the keys behind, a steward had been asked to go and fetch her keys. The steward who had managed to retrieve the keys with the aid of a hook sent through a window of the room she was occupying and had been humbly thanked by the Japanese woman. The unsatisfied steward had replied to the woman that a mere thank you was not enough and had stroked her breasts. Officers at the Galle Police Womens and Childrens Bureau had taken the suspect into custody. (D G Sugathapala) Malaysian King Sultan Muhammad said he had directed the Malaysian Government to give every required support to Sri Lanka. He praised the activities of the new government of Sri Lanka and commended the manner in which the consensual government functions. The official meeting between President Maithripala Sirisena and the King of Malaysia Sultan Muhammad was held yesterday at the Palace of the Malaysian King. President Sirisena explained the King about the actions taken by the consensual government on reconciliation, amendment of the constitution and the economic development. He also thanked the Malaysian government for the assistance provided to Sri Lanka. The president also expressed his confidence about the assistance would be given by the government of Malaysia to achieve future development goals. AFP - A Singaporean private banker was sentenced to two weeks jail yesterday for fraud relating to Malaysias 1MDB financial scandal, becoming the second person convicted in the international multi-billion dollar affair. Allegations that huge sums were misappropriated from the Malaysian state fund through money laundering have triggered a massive corruption scandal embroiling Prime Minister Najib Razak. Prosecutors say Yvonne Seah, a former director at the Singapore branch of Swiss bank BSI, helped forge documents and failed to report suspicious money transfers from accounts allegedly linked to Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho, a close family friend of Najib. Seah, 45, was sentenced to a fortnight in jail after pleading guilty to three charges of forgery and failure to report suspicious transactions related to the investment fund. She was also fined Sg$10,000 ($7,000) by a Singapore district court. Seah had faced a maximum penalty of four years jail and a Sg$20,000 fine. Seahs superior Yak Yew Chee, a former managing director of BSI, was last month sentenced to 18 weeks jail and fined Sg$24,000 for similar offences. Prosecutors said the actions of Seah and her colleagues had brought about a certain degree of disrepute to (Singapores) financial system. Such conduct must be stamped out through the imposition of a deterrent sentence, they said. Singapore, a regional financial hub, is known for its transparency and strong stance against corruption. Since news of the scandal broke, several countries have launched criminal investigations, including the United States and Switzerland. Singapore is the first country to successfully convict figures relating to the saga. A 66-year-old Ukraine woman was found dead in a house at Medagama in Gampaha yesterday, Police said. They said initial investigations revealed that she had attempted to commit suicide on several occasions earlier. Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 17 Trend: Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev has offered condolences to his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the terror attack in the Kayseri province. We were deeply saddened by the news that Turkish soldiers were martyred and injured as a result of a horrible terror attack in Kayseri, said President Aliyev in his letter. We condemn this bloody accident, support you fight against the evil of terrorism, and always stand by brotherly Turkey, noted the president. On behalf of the people of Azerbaijan and on my own behalf, I extend my deepest condolences to you, the bereaved families, loved ones of those who died and the brotherly people of Turkey, and wish the injured the swiftest possible recovery, added President Aliyev. May Allah rest the souls of the dead in peace! Oil rose on Friday, edging closer to new 17-month highs, after Goldman Sachs boosted its price forecast for 2017 and producers showed signs of adhering to a global deal to reduce output, Reuters reported. Brent futures rose $1.19, or 2.2 percent, to settle at $55.21 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose $1, or 2 percent, to settle at $51.90 per barrel. That put both contracts on track to rise for a fourth week in the last five, with Brent up around 23 percent during that time and U.S. crude up about 20 percent. The premium of the Brent front-month over the same U.S. contract closed at $2.26 a barrel, its highest since the end of August. "We're up today because Goldman Sachs bumped up its oil estimates and the Russians said their oil companies would reduce output," said Phil Davis, managing partner of venture capital fund PSW Investments in Woodland Park, New Jersey. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed to reduce output by 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd) from Jan. 1, its first such deal since 2008. Russia and other non-OPEC producers plan to cut about half as much. Those deals, clinched over the past two weeks, have boosted expectations that a two-year supply overhang will clear soon and prices remain near highs last seen in July 2015. Russia said on Friday that all of the country's oil companies, including top producer Rosneft, had agreed to reduce output. Other oil producers including Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have notified customers that they will cut from January. "While the market will eventually need to see some evidence of an actual reduction in output, talk of production cuts and notices of lower allocations sent to refiners are sufficient to support market sentiment for now," Tim Evans, Citi Futures' energy futures specialist, said in a note. The prospect of lower production led U.S. bank Goldman Sachs to raise its WTI price forecast for the second quarter of 2017 to $57.50 per barrel from $55. However, there are doubts about the willingness of other OPEC members to reduce output. Iraq, OPEC's second-biggest producer after Saudi Arabia, has signed new deals that will increase sales to Asian customers such as China and India despite its commitment to reduce output by 210,000 bpd. Libya, which is allowed to ramp up production as part of the OPEC deal, is close to increasing output crimped by unrest after a group of oil guards said they reopened a long-blockaded pipeline linking some of the country's biggest oilfields. In the United States, meanwhile, energy companies this week added oil rigs for a seventh week in a row, extending a seven-month drilling recovery, according to data from Baker Hughes. Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 17 By Elchin Mehdiyev, Maksim Tsurkov Trend: Azerbaijans economic model covering the last 10 years has proved to be valuable, Shahmar Movsumov, executive director of the State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ), told reporters in Baku. "Over the last decade, this economic model has turned Azerbaijan into a completely new country and helped create modern infrastructure. However, in the new economic environment this model ceased to provide the necessary impetus, he said. The oil prices fell in the world markets, manat has devaluated, the budget income has decreased, but this is an objective process. For this reason, a search for new economic models was initiated, the president gave relevant instructions and new structures were created," said Movsumov. He reminded that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has earlier signed a decree endorsing Strategic Road Maps for the national economy and main economic sectors. "These documents cover not only the economy in general, but also its separate spheres, said Movsumov. These are irreproachable documents which include all the necessary priorities and tasks. From this viewpoint, the country is in need of high-level economists. Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev discussed in a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday the possibility of a meeting between the Syrian conflicting parties in the countrys capital city of Astana, the presidents press service said in a statement, Sputnik reported. "The presidents of Russia and Turkey discussed with the head of the state the most important issues on the regional and international agenda. The Russian and Turkish leaders expressed interest in holding peace talks in Astana between the conflicting sides in Syria. Nursultan Nazarbayev supported this initiative and expressed readiness to provide a platform for such talks in Kazakhstans capital," the statement read. Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 17 By Fatih Karimov Trend: The UK will release Irans detained oil equipment, Dariush Amir Sardari Goudarzi, deputy director of Iranian Oil Pipelines and Telecommunications Company said. Goudarzi said that a "UK company", has recently released two oil transfer turbines which were held in the country due to international sanctions, Mehr news agency reported Dec. 17. Goudarzi did not name the UK company, or name whether the company was official or private. The turbines, belonging to one of the Iranian oil transfer centers were sent to the UK for repairs, before implementation of the international sanctions against the Islamic Republic, he said, adding that the turbines will be shipped to Iran within two months. Last month, Alireza Ebadi, operator of phase 20 and 21 projects of the South Pars gas field said that companies from France, Spain and Japan have released the held up equipment used on Phases 20 and 21 of the South Pars field. The foreign companies refused to deliver goods to Iran once international sanctions were imposed, Ebadi said, adding that after the sanctions removed last January, numerous foreign manufacturers expressed readiness to resume activities and provide equipment for the field' phases. The equipment includes solenoids, pumps, valves, reservoirs, as well as refinery equipment, he added. Iranian First Vice President Es'haq Jahangiri has expressed the Islamic Republics readiness to send humanitarian aid to conflict-ridden areas in Syria, urging joint Tehran-Ankara efforts to diplomatically resolve the crisis in the Arab country, Press TV reported. Jahangiri made the remarks in a phone conversation with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim on Friday. With the help of each other, [we] have to prevent an increase in killing and bloodshed in the region, including in Syria, and make efforts to save civilians trapped and besieged in different regions across the country, he said. Jahangiri also called for the swift delivery of relief aid to Syria, saying, The Islamic Republic of Iran has been ready for the dispatch of humanitarian aid to Syria since yesterday (Thursday). He further expressed hope that that Iranian and Turkish political officials could in through cooperation "take serious steps toward settling Syrias issues diplomatically. Regional issues can be resolved more quickly through the expansion of cooperation and growth in coordination between Iran and Turkey, the Iranian official added. Turkeys security and stability is important for Iran, Jahangiri said, called for cooperation and mutual assistance in the fight against extremism and terrorism. Yildirim, for his part, said the humanitarian situation in eastern Aleppo is alarming and his country is ready to do its best for civilians there, according to an informed source at the Turkish prime ministry. On Thursday, Syria announced the liberation of Aleppo from the grip of foreign-backed terrorists as the evacuation of civilians and militants from the militant-held eastern part of the city was taking place. However, the process has come to a halt due to terrorists opening fire on a convoy at one of the crossing points. The source further cited the premier as saying that Turkey is willing to cooperate with Iran to evacuate civilians from eastern Aleppo and provide humanitarian aid to those in need in the region. Iran-Turkey cooperation is important both in Iraq and Syria as they are influential states capable of foiling plots hatched for the region, Yildirim said. Touching on Jahangiri's upcoming visit to Turkey, he said bilateral and regional ties will be discussed in the trip. Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 17 By Khalid Kazimov Trend: Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has criticized the UK Prime Minister Theresa May for her recent remarks regarding Iran being a threat to the region. The leader described Mays remarks as impertinent, accusing the UK of bringing the regional nations misery over the past two centuries, Khamenei's website reported. Iran's Supreme Leader made the remarks on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad. Earlier in December during a conference in Bahrain, Theresa May said she was "clear-eyed" about the threat posed by Iran to the security of the Persian Gulf and wider Middle East. Meanwhile, Khamenei also called for unity among Muslims, addressing a group of senior Iranian officials and the ambassadors of Islamic countries to Iran. The Supreme leader further accused the US of creating discord among Muslims. Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 17 By Fatih Karimov Trend: Irans Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has sent a letter to European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini demanding a session of JCPOAs Joint Commission over extension of sanctions against Tehran by US. In his letter, Zarif has underlined Irans full commitment to the nuclear deal(Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) the country struck with the six world powers (the US, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany) last year, Tasnim news agency reported Dec. 17. On Dec. 15, the US President Barack Obama declined to sign a renewal of sanctions against Iran for the next 10 year but let it become law anyway, in an apparent bid to alleviate Tehran's concerns that the US is backsliding on the nuclear deal. The US lawmakers recently re-authorized the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA), which was first introduced in 1996 to punish investments in Iran's energy industry based on accusations that Tehran was pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program. Iranian leaders including President Hassan Rouhani have sharply criticized the motion describing it as a breach of the last years landmark nuclear deal. On Dec. 13, Rouhani ordered the countrys Atomic Energy Organization (AEOI) to start certain nuclear activities as an answer to US "breach" of the nuclear deal. In a letter to Ali Akbar Salehi, head of the AEOI, Rouhani ordered the organization to plan for manufacturing of nuclear marine propulsion and fuel for it. Rouhani also ordered Zarif to follow up implementation of predicted mechanisms in the JCPOA to address violations cases. Iranian president has given Zarif one month to submit a report on the issue, meanwhile Salehi will have three months to submit a scheduled plan on implementation of Rouhanis decree. Athabasca Oil Corporation engages in the exploration, development, and production of light and thermal oil resource plays in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin in Alberta, Canada. The company operates through Thermal Oil and Light Oil segments. Its principal properties are in the Greater Placid and Greater Kaybob areas near the Town of Fox Creek in northwestern Alberta; and the Leismer and Hangingstone projects located in the Athabasca region of northeastern Alberta. The company produces light and medium crude oil, tight oil, conventional natural gas, shale gas, and natural gas liquids; and bitumen from sand and carbonate rock formations. As of December 31, 2021, it held approximately 889,000 net acres of mineral resource leases, licenses, and permits, which include approximately 347,000 net acres of oil sands leases and permits, and approximately 337,000 net acres of petroleum and natural gas leases in the Athabasca region of northwestern Alberta; approximately 204,000 net acres of petroleum and natural gas leases in northwestern Alberta; and had an interest in approximately 254 gross wells of bitumen, crude oil, and natural gas. The company was formerly known as Athabasca Oil Sands Corp. and changed its name to Athabasca Oil Corporation in May 2012. Athabasca Oil Corporation was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada. Carter's, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, sources, and markets branded childrenswear under the Carter's, OshKosh, Skip Hop, Child of Mine, Just One You, Simple Joys, Carter's My First Love, little planet, and other brands in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: U.S. Retail, U.S. Wholesale, and International. Its Carter's products include babies and young children products, such as bodysuits, pants, dresses, knit sets, blankets, layette essentials, bibs, booties, sleep and play products, rompers, and jumpers; and OshKosh brand products comprise playclothes, such as denim apparel products with multiple wash treatments and coordinating garments, overalls, woven bottoms, knit tops, and bodysuits. The company also provides products for playtime, travel, mealtime, bathtime, and homegear, as well as kid's bags and diaper bags under the Skip Hop brand. In addition, it offers bedding, cribs, diaper bags, footwear, gift sets, hair accessories, jewelry, outerwear, paper goods, socks, shoes, swimwear, and toys. The company operates 18,800 wholesale locations, including department stores, national chain stores, and specialty stores. As of December 31, 2021, it operated 980 retail stores. The company also sells its products through its eCommerce websites, such as carters.com, oshkoshbgosh.com, oshkosh.com, and skiphop.com, as well as other international wholesale accounts and licensees. Carter's, Inc. was founded in 1865 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The following companies are subsidiares of Quanta Services: (De) Lazy Q Ranch LLC, 1 Diamond LLC, 1Diamond AS, 618232 Alberta Ltd., 8246408 Canada Inc., Advanced Electric Systems, Advanced Electric Systems LLC, Advanced Utility Testing & Maintenance LLC, Alexander Publications LLC, Allteck GP Ltd., Allteck Limited Partnership, Apprenticeship Programs Inc., Arby Construction, Arcanum Chemicals LLC, Arnett & Burgess Oil Field Construction Limited, Arnett & Burgess Pipeliners (Rockies) LLC, Arnett & Burgess Pipeliners Ltd., B&N Clearing and Environmental LLC, Banister Pipelines Constructors Corp., Banister Pipelines Constructors GP Ltd., Banister Pipelines Limited Partnership, Brent Woodward Inc., Brink Constructors Inc., Brink Constructors Inc. A Corporation Of South Dakota, Brown Engineering and Testing, CAT SPEC Ltd., CAT-SPEC Limited Partnership, CAT-SPEC Limited Partnership (Regd Name) CAT SPEC Ltd., CAT-Spec Limited Partnership, Canadian Utility Construction Corp., Cat Spec Limited LP, Cat Spec Ltd, Cat Spec Ltd. L.P., Cat Spec Ltd. LP, Cat Spec. Ltd. LP, Cat-Spec Ltd (A Domestic limited Partnership), Cat-Spec Ltd LP, Cat-Spec Ltd., Cat-Spec Ltd. L.P., Cat-Spec Ltd. LP, Cat-Spec Ltd. Limited Partnership, Catalyst Changers Inc., Chatham Electric, Citadel Industrial Services L.P., Citadel Industrial Services Ltd., Citadel Industrial Services Ltd. L.P., Citadel Industrial Services Ltd. Limited Partnership, Coe Drilling Pty Ltd., Computapole, Conam Construction Co., Consolidated Power Projects Australia Pty Ltd, Conti Communications Inc., Crux Subsurface Canada Ltd., Crux Subsurface Inc., Cutting Technology - 1 Diamond LLC, DB Utilities Inc., DE Lazy Q Ranch LLC, DNR Pressure Welding Ltd., Dacon Corporation, Dashiell (DE) Corporation (Dashiell Corporation), Dashiell Corporation, Dashiell Corporation DBA Dashiell (DE) Corporation, De Mears Group, De Mears Group Inc., Delaware Quanta Technology LLC, Delaware Underground Construction Co., Didado Utility Company Inc., Digco Utility Construction L.P. Digco Utility Construction Limited Partnership, Dorado Specialty Services L.P., Dorado Specialty Services Ltd., Dorado Specialty Services Ltd. L.P., Dorado Specialty Services Ltd. Limited Partnership, Dorado Specialty Services. Ltd. L.P., Driftwood Electrical Contractors, EHV Power ULC, ELITE PIPING & CIVIL L.P., ELITE TURNAROUND SPECIALISTS LTD, Elite Fabrication Ltd. Elite Fabrication LP, Elite Piping & Civil Limited Partnership, Elite Piping & Civil Limited Partnership, Elite Piping & Civil Lp, Elite Piping & Civil Ltd L.P., Elite Piping & Civil Ltd., Elite Piping & Civil Ltd. L.P., Elite Piping & Civil Ltd. Limited Partnership, Elite Piping and Civil L.P., Elite Turnaround Specialists L.p., Elite Turnaround Specialists Limited Lp, Elite Turnaround Specialists Limited Partnership, Elite Turnaround Specialists Limited Partnership, Elite Turnaround Specialists Ltd Lp, Elite Turnaround Specialists Ltd., Elite Turnaround Specialists Ltd. L.P., Elite Turnaround Specialists Ltd. LP, Elite Turnaround Specialists Ltd. Limited Partnership, Energy Consulting Group LLC, Enscope, Enscope Pty Ltd, FIC GP LLC, Field Personnel Services LLC, First Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC, First Infrastructure Capital GP L.P., Five Points Construction Co., G-Tek, G-Vac, GEM Engineering Co., Grand Electric Inc., Great Lakes Line Builders, Grid Creative Inc., Grid Manufacturing Corporation, Grid Training Corporation, H.L. Chapman Pipeline Construction Inc., Haverfield Aviation, Haverfield Aviation Inc., Haverfield International Incorporated, Heritage Midstream LLC, IM Electric Inc., IUC ILLINOIS LLC, IUC Nebraska LLC, InfraSource Construction LLC, InfraSource Field Services LLC, InfraSource Services LLC, InfraSources Construction LLC, Infraestructura ETP de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V, Infrasource Engineering Company PC, Infrasource Iowa Underground LLC, Infrasource Of Pa LLC, Integracion Tecnologica del Peru SAC, Intermountain Electric Inc., Intermountain Electric Inc. A Corporation of Colorado, IonEarth LLC, Irby Construction Company, Irby Construction Company Inc., Iron Mountain M.J. Electric LLC, Island Mechanical Corporation, J.C.R. Construction Co. Inc., J.C.R. Utility Construction Co., J.W. Didado Electric Inc., J.W. Didado Electric LLC, J.w. Didado Electric, JBT Electric LLC, Kingston Contracting Inc., Lazy Q Ranch LLC, Lazy Q Training Center LLC The Lazy Q Lineman School, Legend Foundation Services, Lex Engineering Ltd., Lindsey Electric L.P., Logical Link, Longfellow Drilling, M. G. Dyess Inc., M. J. ELECTRIC LLC IRON MOUNTAIN, M. J. Electric LLC, M. J. Electric LLC - Iron Mountain, M. J. Electric LLC DBA M. J. Electric Iron Mountain LLC, M.J. Electric LLC DBA M.J. Electric Iron Mountain, M.J. Electric LLC Iron Mountain, MTS Field Services, MTS Field Services (Richmond Co), MTS Quanta LLC, Manuel Bros. Inc., Marathon Construction Services, Mears Canada Corp., Mears Equipment Services LLC, Mears Group Inc., Mears Group Pty Ltd, Mears Installation LLC, Mearsmex S. de R.L. de C.V., Mejia Personnel Services LLC, Mercer Technical Services, Microline Technology Corporation, Mid America Energy Services Inc., NACAP Niugini Ltd., NC Northstar Energy Services Inc, NGI Construction, NGI Construction Inc., NGI Construction Inc. (FN), NLC CA. Inc., NLC FL. Inc. Northwest Lineman Center, NLC ID. Inc. Northwest Lineman College, NLC TX. Inc., NPC Energy Services LLC, Nacap Australia, Nacap PNG Limited, Network Communication Services, North Houston Pole Line L.P., North Houston Pole Line Limited Partnership, North Sky Communications, NorthStar Energy Services Inc., Northern Powerline Constructors Inc., Northstar Energy Solutions LLC, Northwest Lineman Center, Northwest Lineman College, Northwest Lineman Training Center, Northwest Lineman Training Center Inc., Nova Constructors LLC, Nova Constructors LTD, Nova Equipment Leasing LLC, Nova Group Inc, Nova Group Inc (CA), Nova Group Inc., Nova Group Inc. DBA NGI Construction, Nova NextGen Solutions LLC, O. J. Pipelines Canada Corporation, O. J. Pipelines Canada Limited Partnership, O.J. Industrial Maintenance, O.J. Pipelines Canada, One Call Locators Canada Ltd., P.D.G. Electric, PAR Electrical Contractors Inc., PDG Electric Co., Par Internacional S. de R.L. de C.V., Performance Energy Services Guyana Ltd., Performance Energy Services L.L.C., Phasor Engineering Inc., Phoenix North Constructors Inc., Phoenix Power Group Inc., Potelco Inc., Potelco Incorporated, Power Delivery Program Inc., Price Gregory International Inc., Price Gregory Services LLC, Probst Construction Inc., Probst Electric Inc., QEPC, QEPC Power Solutions LLC, QES GP LLC, QP Energy Services LLC, QPS Engineering LLC, QPS Engineering LTD., QPS Engineering PLLC, QPS Environmental, QPS Flint Construction, QPS Flint Tank Services, QPS Global, QPS Global Services, QPS Global Services (Richmond Ci), QPS Professional Services, QPSE, QS Mats, QSI Engineering Inc., QSI Finance (Australia) Pty Ltd., QSI Finance (Cayman) Pvt. Ltd., QSI Finance Canada ULC, QSI Finance GP (US) LLC, QSI Finance I (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., QSI Finance I (US) LP, QSI Finance II (Australia) Pty Ltd., QSI Finance II (Lux) S.a r.l, QSI Finance II (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., QSI Finance III (Canada) ULC, QSI Finance III (Lux) SARL, QSI Finance IV (Canada) ULC, QSI Finance IX (Canada) Limited Partnership, QSI Finance V (US) L.P., QSI Finance VI (Canada) ULC, QSI Finance VII (Canada) Limited Partnership, QSI Finance VIII (Canada) ULC, QSI Finance X (Canada) ULC, QSI Inc., QSN Lux Holdings I SCSp, QSN Lux Holdings II SCSp, QSN Lux Holdings III SCSp, QSN Lux Holdings IV SCSp, QTSL LLC, QUANTA FOUNDATION SERVICES, Quanta APL GP II Ltd., Quanta Asset Management LLC, Quanta Associates L.P., Quanta Aviation Services LLC, Quanta Canada GP ULC, Quanta Canada Holdings III Limited Partnership, Quanta Canada Holdings LP, Quanta Canada III GP Ltd., Quanta Capital GP LLC, Quanta Capital LP L.P., Quanta Capital Solutions Inc., Quanta Cares, Quanta EPC Services, Quanta Electric Power Construction LLC, Quanta Electric Power Construction Management Inc., Quanta Electric Power Services LLC, Quanta Electric Power Services West LLC, Quanta Energized Innovations Ltd., Quanta Energized Services U.S. LLC, Quanta Energized Services of Canada Ltd., Quanta Energy Services LLC, Quanta Environmental Solutions, Quanta Equipment Company LLC, Quanta Government Solutions Inc., Quanta Holdings I (Netherlands) B.V., Quanta Holdings II (Netherlands) B.V., Quanta Infraestructura de Chile SpA, Quanta Infrastructure Services LLC, Quanta Infrastructure Services S. de R.L. de C.V., Quanta Inline Devices LLC, Quanta Inspection Services, Quanta Insurance Company Inc., Quanta International Holdings (US) LLC, Quanta International Holdings II Ltd., Quanta International Holdings Ltd., Quanta International Limited, Quanta Kingsvale LP Ltd., Quanta Lines Pty Ltd., Quanta Maine Services LLC, Quanta Middle East LLC, Quanta Pipeline Services Inc., Quanta Power Australia Pty Ltd, Quanta Power Generation Inc., Quanta Power Inc., Quanta Power Solutions India Private Limited, Quanta Resource Development, Quanta Services Africa (PTY) Ltd., Quanta Services Australia Pty Ltd., Quanta Services Chile SpA, Quanta Services Colombia S.A.S., Quanta Services Costa Rica Ltda., Quanta Services Guatemala Ltda., Quanta Services International Holdings II LP, Quanta Services International Holdings LP, Quanta Services Management Partnership L.P., Quanta Services Netherlands B.V., Quanta Services Panama S. de R.L., Quanta Services Peru S.A.C., Quanta Services Puerto Rico LLC, Quanta Services of Canada Ltd., Quanta Subsurface Canada Ltd., Quanta Subsurface LLC, Quanta Tank Services, Quanta Technology Canada ULC, Quanta Technology LLC, Quanta Technology UK Ltd., Quanta Tecnologia do Brasil Ltda., Quanta Telecom, Quanta Telecom Services, Quanta Telecommunication Services, Quanta Telecommunication Services LLC, Quanta Telecommunications Services LLC, Quanta Underground Services, Quanta Underground Services (Culpeper Co), Quanta Underground Services (Spotsylvania Co), Quanta Underground Services Inc., Quanta Utility Engineering Services Inc., Quanta Utility Installation Company Inc., Quanta Utility Operation LLC, Quanta West LLC, Quantecua Cia. Ltda., R. R. Cassidy Inc., RMS Holdings LLC, RMS Holdings LLC (Delaware), RMS Welding Systems, RMS Welding Systems LLC, Ranger Directional, Realtime Engineers Inc., Realtime Utility Engineers Inc., Redes Andinas de Comunicaciones S.R.L., Riggin & Diggin Line Construction, Rms Welding LLC, Rms Welding Systems LLC, Road Bore Corporation, Ryan Company Inc. The, Ryan Company Inc. of Massachusetts, Ryan Company Inc.(The), Seaward, Seaward Corp, Seaward Corporation, Service EC (DE) Inc., Service Electric Company (DE), Service Electric Company Inc., Service Electric Company of Delaware, Servicios Par Electric S. de R.L. de C.V., Servicios de Infraestructura del Peru S.A.C., Southwest Trenching Company Inc., Specialty Tank Services L.P., Specialty Tank Services LP, Specialty Tank Services Limited Partnership, Specialty Tank Services Limited Partnership, Specialty Tank Services Ltd., Specialty Tank Services Ltd. (LP), Specialty Tank Services Ltd. L.P., Specialty Tank Services Ltd. LP, Specialty Tank Services Ltd. LP, Specialty Tank Services Ltd. Limited Partnership, Stronghold General LLC, Stronghold Holdings (BVI) Limited, Stronghold Inspection L.P., Stronghold Inspection Limited Partnership, Stronghold Inspection Limited Partnership, Stronghold Inspection Lp, Stronghold Inspection Ltd L.P., Stronghold Inspection Ltd., Stronghold Inspection Ltd. L.P., Stronghold Inspection Ltd. Limited Partnership, Stronghold Limited Partnership, Stronghold Ltd., Stronghold Ltd. Limited Partnership, Stronghold Management Holdings LP, Stronghold Specialty General LLC, Stronghold Specialty Ltd., Stronghold Specialty Ltd., Stronghold Specialty Ltd. Limited Partnership, Stronghold Tower Group LP, Stronghold Tower Group Ltd LP, Stronghold Tower Group Ltd., Stronghold Tower Group Ltd. LP, Stronghold VI LLC, Subterra Damage Prevention Specialists Ltd., Summit Line Construction, Sumter Utilities Inc., T. G. Mercer Consulting Services Inc., TA Construction, TC Infrastructure Services Ltd., Taylor Built, Texas Specialty Tank Services Ltd. LP, The Aspen Utility Company LLC, The ComTran Group Inc., The Hallen Construction Co. Inc., The Massachusetts Ryan Company Inc., The Ryan Company Inc Of Massachusetts, The Ryan Company Inc., The Ryan Company Inc. (Massachusetts), The Ryan Company Inc. of Massachusetts, The Ryan Company Incorporated of Massachusetts, The Ryan Company Of Massachusetts Inc., The Ryan Company of Massachusetts, The Ryan Company of Massachusetts (FN), Tom Allen Construction Company Inc., Tom Allen Construction Company of Delaware, Trans Tech Electric, TurnKey Automation Limited Partnership, TurnKey Automation Limited Partnership, TurnKey Automation Ltd., TurnKey Automation Ltd. Limited Partnership, TurnKey Automation Ltd. Limited Partnership, TurnKey I&E Ltd., Turnkey Automation Ltd. L.P., Turnkey Automation Ltd. LP., UCC Underground Construction Co. Inc., Ucc - Underground Construction Co., Underground Construction Co. Inc., Underground Construction Co. Inc. (Delaware), Underground Electric Construction Company LLC, Utilco Inc., Utility Fleet Services, Utility Line Management Services Inc., Utility Testing & Maintenance LLC, Utility Training Services Corporation, VALARD Polska sp. Z o.o., Valard, Valard, Valard Construction (Ontario) Ltd., Valard Construction (Quebec) Inc., Valard Construction 2008 Ltd., Valard Construction Australia Pty Ltd, Valard Construction LLC, Valard Equipment (AB) Ltd., Valard Equipment GP Ltd., Valard Equipment Limited Partnership, Valard Geomatics (Ontario) Ltd., Valard Geomatics BC Ltd., Valard Geomatics Ltd., Valard Mechanical Ltd., Valard Norway AS, Valard Sweden AB, Valard Zagreb d. o. o., Wade D. Taylor Inc., West Coast Communications, Winco Helicopters, Winco Inc., Winco Inc. an Oregon Based Corporation, Winco Powerline Services, Winco Powerline Services Inc., Winco Powerline Services Inc., Winco Services Inc., World Fiber Inc., and mmit Line Construction Inc.. Read More Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 17 By Orkhan Quluzade Trend: 23:29 (UTC+04:00) At least 14 soldiers have been killed, 56 others have been injured after a car bomb targeted a public transportation bus near a university campus in central Turkish province of Kayseri, a statement by the Turkish military said on Saturday, Daily Sabah reported. Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said that security forces have identified the perpetrator of the attack and seven suspects have been detained, and five are sought in relation to suspected PKK-led terror attack in Kayseri. 13:12 (UTC+04:00) Thirteen servicemen were killed, 48 injured following the explosion on campus of the Erciyes University in the Kayseri province in Turkey, the website of the General Staff of Turkeys Armed Forces reports. The wounded were sent to the universitys hospital. Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan obtained the necessary information on the incident from Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces Hulusi Akar. 11:38 (UTC+04:00) Three servicemen were killed following the explosion in Turkeys Kayseri province, the Dogan news agency reported citing the sources in the countrys law enforcement agencies. As reported, the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) terrorist group may stand behind the explosion. Meanwhile, Turkeys Radio and Television Supreme Council imposed a ban on the publication of news about the Kayseri explosion, according to Anadolu news agency. 10:52 (UTC+04:00) The explosion took place at 08:45 local time, near a bus with military personnel, the Dogan news agency reported. A mined car drove up to the bus and exploded, according to eyewitnesses. The IHA news agency reports several were killed in the explosion. 09:35 (UTC+04:00) An explosion occurred on the campus of the Erciyes University in Turkeys province of Kayseri, TRT Haber reported Dec. 17. The exact number of wounded people is not reported yet. Rescue teams and ambulances were sent to the explosion site. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @o_quluzade SunTrust Banks, Inc. operates as the holding company for SunTrust Bank that provides various financial services for consumers, businesses, corporations, institutions, and not-for-profit entities in the United States. It operates in two segments, Consumer and Wholesale. The Consumer segment provides deposits and payments; home equity and personal credit lines; auto, student, and other lending products; credit cards; discount/online and full-service brokerage products; professional investment advisory products and services; and trust services, as well as family office solutions. This segment also offers residential mortgage products in the secondary market. The Wholesale segment provides capital markets solutions, including advisory, capital raising, and financial risk management; asset-based financing solutions, such as securitizations, asset-based lending, equipment financing, and structured real estate arrangements; cash management services and auto dealer financing solutions; investment banking solutions; and credit and deposit, fee-based product offering, multi-family agency lending, advisory, commercial mortgage brokerage, and tailored financing and equity investment solutions. This segment also offers treasury and payment solutions, such as operating various electronic and paper payment types, which comprise card, wire transfer, automated clearing house, check, and cash; and provides services clients to manage their accounts online. The company offers its products and services through a network of traditional and in-store branches, automated teller machines, Internet, mobile, and telephone banking channels. As of December 31, 2018, it operated 1,218 full-service banking offices located in Florida, Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Maryland, South Carolina, and the District of Columbia. SunTrust Banks, Inc. was founded in 1891 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The following companies are subsidiares of Thermo Fisher Scientific: 236 Perinton Parkway LLC, 27 Forge Parkway LLC, ABR--Affinity BioReagents, ACI Holdings Inc., ARG Services LLC, ASPEX Corporation, Abgene Inc., Abgene Limited, Acoustic Cytometry Systems Inc., AcroMetrix LLC, Acros Organics B.V.B.A., Advanced Biotechnologies Limited, Advanced Scientifics (ASI), Advanced Scientifics Inc., Advanced Scientifics International Inc., Affymetrix Biotech Participacoes Ltda., Affymetrix Biotech Shanghai Ltd, Affymetrix Inc, Affymetrix Japan K.K., Affymetrix Pte Ltd, Affymetrix UK Ltd, Afora S.A.U., Ahura Scientific, Alchematrix Inc., Alchematrix LLC, Alfa Aesar, Alfa Aesar (China) Chemical Co. Ltd., Alfa Aesar (Hong Kong) Limited, Allergon AB, Alphine Mountain Limited, Ambion Inc., Apogent Denmark ApS, Apogent Finance Company, Apogent Holding Company, Apogent Technologies Inc., Apogent Transition Corp., Apogent U.K. Limited, App-Tek International Pty Ltd, Applied Biosystems B.V., Applied Biosystems Finance B.V., Applied Biosystems International Inc., Applied Biosystems LLC, Applied Biosystems Taiwan LLC, Applied Biosystems Trading (Shanghai) Company Ltd., Applied Biosystems de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Applied Scientific Corporation, Avances Cientificos de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Avocado Research Chemicals Limited, B.R.A.H.M.S. Biotech GmbH, B.R.A.H.M.S. GmbH, B.R.A.H.M.S. UK Ltd, BAC BV, BAC IP BV, Barnstead Thermolyne LLC, Beijing Phadia Diagnostics Co Ltd, Bender MedSystems GmbH, BioTrove Corporation, BioTrove International Inc., Bioanalysis Labsystems S.A., Biochemical Sciences LLC, Biolab, BmT GmbH Laborprodukte, Bonsai Tecnologies - Sistemas para Biotecnologia e Industria Unipessoal Lda, Brammer Bio, Bumi-Sans Sendirian Berhad, CAC Limited, CB Diagnostics AB, CB Diagnostics Holding AB, CEPH International Corporation, CHK Holdings Inc., CRS Robotics, CTPS LLC, Capitol Scientific Products Inc., Capitol Vial Inc., Cellomics Inc., CellzDirect Inc., Cenduit GmbH, Cenduit LLC, Cezanne S.A.S., Chase Scientific Glass Inc., Chromacol Limited, Clintrak, Clintrak Clinical Labeling Services LLC, Clintrak Pharmaceutical Services LLC, Cohesive Technologies (UK) Limited, Cohesive Technologies Inc., Columbia Diagnostics Inc., Compendia Bioscience Inc., Comtest Limited, Consolidated Technologies Inc., Consultores Fisher Scientific Chile Ltd, Core Informatics, Core Informatics LLC, Core Informatics UK Ltd., D-finitive Technologies Inc., DCG Systems B.V., DCG Systems C.V., DCG Systems G.K., DCG Systems GmbH, DCG Systems Korea Ltd., DCG Systems LLC, DPI Newco LLC, DSM Pharmaceutical Products Inc., Dharmacon, Diagnostix Ltd., Dionex (China) Analytical Ltd, Dionex (Switzerland) AG, Dionex (UK) Limited, Dionex Austria GmbH, Dionex Benelux B.V., Dionex Brasil Instrumentos Cientificos Ltda, Dionex Canada Ltd., Dionex China Limited, Dionex Corporation, Dionex Denmark A/S, Dionex Holding GmbH, Dionex I LLC, Dionex Pty Ltd., Dionex S.A., Dionex S.p.A., Dionex Singapore Pte Ltd., Dionex Softron GmbH, Dionex Sweden AB, Distribution Solutions International Inc., Doe & Ingalls Investors Inc., Doe & Ingalls Limited, Doe & Ingalls Management LLC, Doe & Ingalls Properties II LLC, Doe & Ingalls Properties LLC, Doe & Ingalls of California Operating LLC, Doe & Ingalls of Florida Operating LLC, Doe & Ingalls of Maryland Operating LLC, Doe & Ingalls of Massachusetts Operating LLC, Doe & Ingalls of North Carolina Operating LLC, Doublecape Holding Limited, Doublecape Limited, Drakeside Real Estate Holding Company LLC, Duke Scientific Corporation, Dynal Biotech Beijing Limited, EGS Gauging Ltd., EGS Gauging Technical Services Company, EP Scientific Products LLC, Ecochem N.V., EnviroEquip Pty Ltd, Epsom Glass Industries Limited, Equibio Limited, Erie Electroverre S.A., Erie Finance Limited, Erie LP Holding LLC, Erie Scientific Company of Puerto Rico, Erie Scientific Hungary Kft, Erie Scientific LLC, Erie U.K. Limited, Erie UK 1 Limited, Erie UK 2 Limited, Erie UK Holding Company, Erie UK Senior Holding Limited, European Laboratory Holdings Limited, Eutech Instruments Europe B.V., Eutech Instruments Pte Ltd., Eutech Instruments Sdn Bhd, Ever Ready Thermometer Co. Inc., FEI Asia Pacific Co. Ltd., FEI Australia Pty Ltd, FEI CPD B.V., FEI Company, FEI Company Japan Ltd., FEI Company of USA (S.E.A.) Pte Ltd., FEI Czech Republic s.r.o., FEI Deutschland GmbH, FEI EFA Inc., FEI EFA International Pte. Ltd., FEI Electron Optics B.V., FEI Electron Optics International B.V., FEI Europe B.V., FEI France SAS, FEI Global Holdings C.V., FEI Hong Kong Company Limited, FEI Houston Inc., FEI Italia Srl, FEI Korea Ltd., FEI Melbourne Pty Ltd., FEI Microscopy Solutions Ltd, FEI Munich GmbH, FEI Norway Holding AS, FEI SAS, FEI Saudi Arabia LLC, FEI Servicos de Nanotecnologia Ltda., FEI Technologies Inc., FEI Technology de Mexico S.A. de C.V., FEI Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., FEI Trondheim AS, FEI UK Ltd., FHP LLC, FRC Holding Inc. V, FS (Barbados) Capital Holdings Ltd., FS Casa Rocas Holdings LLC, FS Mexicana Holdings LLC, FSI Receivables Company LLC, FSII Sweden Holdings AB, FSII Sweden Holdings I AB, FSIR Holdings (UK) Limited, FSIR Holdings (US) Inc., FSUK Holdings Limited, FSWH Company LLC, FSWH II C.V., FSWH International Holdings LLC, Fermentas China Co. Ltd, Fermentas Inc., Fermentas International, Fermentas Sweden AB, Fermentas UK Limited, Fiberlite Centrifuge LLC, Finesse Scientific Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Finesse Solutions AG, Finesse Solutions Inc., Finnzymes Oy, Fisher Alder S. de R.L. de C.V., Fisher Asia Manufacturing Ventures Inc., Fisher Bermuda Holdings Limited, Fisher BioImage ApS, Fisher BioPharma Services (India) Private Limited, Fisher BioSciences Japan G.K., Fisher BioServices Inc., Fisher Bioblock Holding II SNC, Fisher CLP Holding Limited Partnership, Fisher Canada Holding ULC 1, Fisher Canada Holding ULC 2, Fisher Canada Holding ULC 3, Fisher Canada Limited Partnership, Fisher Chimica BVBA, Fisher Clinical Logistics LLC, Fisher Clinical Services (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Fisher Clinical Services (Bristol) LLC, Fisher Clinical Services (Colombia) LLC, Fisher Clinical Services (Korea) Co. Ltd, Fisher Clinical Services (Mexico) LLC, Fisher Clinical Services (Peru) LLC, Fisher Clinical Services (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Fisher Clinical Services Colombia S.A.S., Fisher Clinical Services GmbH, Fisher Clinical Services Inc., Fisher Clinical Services Japan K.K., Fisher Clinical Services Latin America S.R.L., Fisher Clinical Services Limited Liability Company, Fisher Clinical Services Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Fisher Clinical Services Peru S.R.L, Fisher Clinical Services Pte Ltd., Fisher Clinical Services U.K. Limited, Fisher Emergo B.V., Fisher Germany Holdings GmbH, Fisher Hamilton China Inc., Fisher Hamilton Mexico LLC, Fisher Holdings ApS, Fisher Internet Minority Holdings L.L.C., Fisher Laboratory Products Manufacturing (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Fisher Luxembourg Danish Holdings SARL, Fisher Manufacturing (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Fisher Maybridge Holdings Limited, Fisher Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Fisher Scientific (Austria) GmbH, Fisher Scientific (Hong Kong) Limited, Fisher Scientific (M) Sdn Bhd, Fisher Scientific (SEA) Pte. Ltd., Fisher Scientific A/S, Fisher Scientific AG, Fisher Scientific Australia Pty Limited, Fisher Scientific Biotech Line ApS, Fisher Scientific Brazil Inc., Fisher Scientific Central America Inc., Fisher Scientific Chile Inc., Fisher Scientific Colombia Inc., Fisher Scientific Company, Fisher Scientific Company L.L.C., Fisher Scientific Costa Rica Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada, Fisher Scientific Europe Holdings B.V., Fisher Scientific GTF AB, Fisher Scientific Germany Beteiligungs GmbH, Fisher Scientific GmbH, Fisher Scientific Holding Company LLC, Fisher Scientific Holding HK Limited, Fisher Scientific Holding U.K. Limited, Fisher Scientific Holdings (M) Sdn Bhd, Fisher Scientific Holdings (S) Pte Ltd, Fisher Scientific International LLC, Fisher Scientific Investments (Cayman) Ltd., Fisher Scientific Ireland Investments Unlimited, Fisher Scientific Ireland Limited, Fisher Scientific Japan Ltd., Fisher Scientific Jersey Island Limited, Fisher Scientific Korea Ltd, Fisher Scientific Latin America Inc., Fisher Scientific Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Fisher Scientific Mexicana S. de R.L. de C.V., Fisher Scientific Mexico Inc., Fisher Scientific Middle East and Africa Inc., Fisher Scientific Norway AS, Fisher Scientific Operating Company, Fisher Scientific Oxoid Holdings Ltd., Fisher Scientific Oy, Fisher Scientific Pte. Ltd., Fisher Scientific S.A.S., Fisher Scientific S.L., Fisher Scientific SPRL, Fisher Scientific The Hague I B.V., Fisher Scientific The Hague II B.V., Fisher Scientific The Hague III B.V., Fisher Scientific The Hague IV B.V., Fisher Scientific The Hague V B.V., Fisher Scientific U.K. Limited, Fisher Scientific UK Holding Company 2, Fisher Scientific UK Holding Company Limited, Fisher Scientific Unipessoal Lda., Fisher Scientific Venezuela Inc., Fisher Scientific Worldwide (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Fisher Scientific Worldwide Holdings I C.V., Fisher Scientific Worldwide Inc., Fisher Scientific de Mexico S.A., Fisher Scientific of the Netherlands B.V., Fisher Scientific spol. S.r.o, Fisher Servicios Clinicos (Chile) LLC, Fisher Servicios Clinicos Chile Ltda, Fisher WWD Holding L.L.C., Fisher Worldwide Distribution SPV, Fisher Worldwide Gene Distribution SPV, Flux Instruments, Fuji Partnership, G & M Procter Limited, G V Instruments Limited, GV Instruments Canada Ltd., GV Instruments Inc, Gatan Inc, General Scientific Company Sdn Bhd (M), Genomed molekularbiologische und diagnostische Produkte GmbH, Gerhard Menzel B.V. & Co. KG, Gold Cattle Standard Testing Labs Inc., Golden West Indemnity Company Limited, Goring Kerr Detection Limited, Greenville Service Company Inc., HENO GmbH i.L., Hangar 215 Inc., Helmet Securities Limited, Henogen, HighChem, HyClone International Trade (Tianjin) Co. Ltd, Hybaid Limited, I.Q. (BIO) Limited, IDnostics AG, ILS Laboratories Scandinavia AB, Inel Inc., Inel SAS, InnaPhase Inc., InnaPhase Limited, IntegenX, Intrinsic BioProbes Inc., Intrinsic Bioprobes Inc., Invitrogen (Shanghai) Investment Co. Ltd., Invitrogen Argentina SA, Invitrogen BioServices India Private Limited, Invitrogen Europe Limited, Invitrogen Finance Corp., Invitrogen Holdings LLC, Invitrogen Holdings Ltd., Invitrogen Hong Kong Limited, Invitrogen IP Holdings Inc., Invitrogen Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Ion Torrent Systems Inc., Ionalytics Corporation, JSC Thermo Fisher Scientific, Jouan LLC, Jouan Limited, Jouan SA, Kendro Containment & Services Limited, Kendro Laboratory Products Ltd, Kettlebrook Insurance Co. ltd., Keystone Scientific, KonTEM GmbH, Kyle Jordan Investments LLC, LIFE TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION, LTC Tech South Africa PTY Ltd., La-Pha-Pack GmbH, Lab Vision (UK) Limited, Lab Vision Corporation, Lab-Chrom-Pack LLC, Lab-Line Instruments Inc., Labomex MBP S. de R. L. De C.V., Laboratoire Service International - L.S.I, Laboratory Management Systems Inc., Laboratory Specialties Proprietary Ltd., LambTrack Limited, Laser Analytical Systems Inc., Liberty Lane Investment LLC, Liberty Lane Real Estate Holding Company LLC, Life Sciences International (Poland) SP z O.O, Life Sciences International Holdings BV, Life Sciences International LLC, Life Sciences International Limited, Life Technologies AS, Life Technologies Australia PTY Ltd., Life Technologies BPD AB, Life Technologies BPD UK Limited, Life Technologies Brasil Comercio e Industria de Produtos para Biotecnologia Ltda, Life Technologies Chile SpA, Life Technologies Clinical Services Lab Inc., Life Technologies Co. Ltd., Life Technologies Czech Republic s.r.o., Life Technologies DaAn Diagnostic (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd., Life Technologies Europe B.V., Life Technologies Finance Ltd., Life Technologies Finland Oy, Life Technologies GmbH, Life Technologies Holdings PTE Ltd., Life Technologies Inc., Life Technologies International B.V., Life Technologies Japan Ltd., Life Technologies Korea LLC, Life Technologies Limited, Life Technologies Magyarorszag Kft, Life Technologies New Zealand Ltd., Life Technologies Norway Investments US LLC, Life Technologies Polska Sp z.o.o., Life Technologies SA, Life Technologies SAS, Life Technologies s.r.o, Linkage Biosciences Inc., Linkage Biosciences S.a.r.l., Loftus Furnace Company, Lomb Scientific, Lomb Scientific (Aust) Pty Limited, MTI-GlobalStem, Marketbase International Limited, Matrix MicroScience Inc., Matrix MicroScience Ltd., Matrix Technologies Corporation Limited, Matrix Technologies LLC, Maybridge Chemical Company Limited, Maybridge Chemical Holdings Limited, Maybridge Limited, Medical Analysis Systems Inc., Medical Analysis Systems International Inc., Medical Diagnostics Systems Inc., Metavac LLC, Microgenics Corporation, Microgenics Diagnostics Pty Limited, Microgenics GmbH, Microm International GmbH, Microm Laborgerate S.L.U, Molecular BioProducts Inc., Molecular Probes Inc., Molecular Transfer Inc., NAPCO Inc., NERL Diagnostics LLC, NOVODIRECT GmbH Labor- und Industrie- Megerate, Nalge (Europe) Limited, Nalge Nunc International (Monterrey) LLC, Nalge Nunc International Corporation, Nanjing WeiKangLe Trading Industrial Co Ltd, NanoDrop Technologies LLC, National Scientific Company, Navaho Acquisition Corp., Neomarkers Inc., New FS Holdings Inc., NewcoGen PE LLC, Nihon Dynal K.K., Niton Asia Limited, NovaWave Technologies Inc., Nunc A/S, ONIX Systems Inc., OXOID CZ s.r.o., Odyssey Holdings Corporation, Odyssey Luxembourg Holdings S.a r.l., Odyssey Luxembourg IP Holdings 1 S.a r.l., Odyssey Luxembourg IP Holdings 2 S.a r.l., Odyssey Venture Corporation, Omega Data Systems, One Lambda Inc, Onix Holdings Limited, Orme Scientific Limited, Owl Separation Systems LLC, Oxoid (ELY) Limited, Oxoid 2000 Limited, Oxoid AS, Oxoid Australia Pty. Limited, Oxoid Company, Oxoid Deutschland GmbH, Oxoid Holding SAS, Oxoid Holdings Limited, Oxoid Inc., Oxoid International Limited, Oxoid Investments GmbH, Oxoid Limited, Oxoid N.V., Oxoid New Zealand Limited, Oxoid Pension Trustees Limited, Oxoid Senior Holdings Limited, Oxoid UKH LLC, PAX - DSI Acquisition LLC, PE AG, Pacific Rim Far East Industries LLC, Pacific Rim Investment LLC, Panomics L.L.C., Panomics S.R.L., Patheon, Patheon API Inc., Patheon API Manufacturing Inc., Patheon API Services Inc., Patheon Austria GmbH & Co KG, Patheon B.V., Patheon Banner U.S. Holdings Inc., Patheon Biologics (NJ) LLC, Patheon Biologics Australia Pty Ltd, Patheon Biologics B.V., Patheon Biologics LLC, Patheon Calculus Merger LLC, Patheon Cooperatief U.A., Patheon Development Services Inc., Patheon Finance LLC, Patheon France SAS, Patheon Holdings B.V., Patheon Holdings I B.V., Patheon Holdings II B.V., Patheon Holdings SAS, Patheon I B.V., Patheon I Holding GmbH, Patheon Inc., Patheon International AG, Patheon Italia S.p.A., Patheon KK, Patheon Life Science Products International GmbH, Patheon Manufacturing Services LLC, Patheon Pharmaceuticals Inc., Patheon Pharmaceuticals Services Inc., Patheon Puerto Rico Acquisitions Corporation, Patheon Puerto Rico Inc., Patheon Regensburg GmbH, Patheon Softgels B.V., Patheon Softgels Inc., Patheon U.S. Holdings Inc., Patheon U.S. Holdings LLC, Patheon UK Limited, Patheon UK Pension Trustees Limited, Pelican Acquisition Corporation, Perbio Science (Canada) Company, Perbio Science AB, Perbio Science BVBA, Perbio Science France SAS, Perbio Science Inc., Perbio Science International Netherlands B.V., Perbio Science Invest AB, Perbio Science Nederland B.V., Perbio Science Projekt AB, Perbio Science Sweden Holdings AB, Perbio Science Switzerland SA, Perbio Science UK Limited, Phadia AB, Phadia Diagnosticos Ltda, Phadia GmbH, Phadia Holding AB, Phadia International Holdings C.V., Phadia Korea Co. Ltd, Phadia Luxembourg Holdings S.a.r.l., Phadia Malta Holdings Limited, Phadia Oy, Phadia Real Property AB, Phadia Sweden AB, Phadia Taiwan Inc., Phadia US Inc., Phadia s.r.o., Pharmacaps Mexicana SA de CV, Phenom-World B.V., Phenom-World Holding B.V, Phenom-World Innovations B.V., Phinotex, Pierce Biotechnology Inc., Pierce Milwaukee Holding Corp., Pierce Milwaukee Inc., Polychromix, Power Sweden Holdings I AB, Power Sweden Holdings II AB, Power Sweden Holdings III Aktiebolag, Princeton Gamma-Tech Instruments LLC, Princeton Security Technologies, Prionics AG, Prionics Asia Ltd., Prionics Deutschland GmbH, Prionics France SAS, Prionics Italia S.r.l., Prionics Lelystad B.V., Prionics USA Inc., Priority Air Express LLC, Priority Air Express Pte. Ltd., Priority Air Express UK Limited, Priority Air Holdings Corp, Priority Solutions International, Promedica Pty Limited, Proxeon, Proxeon Biosystems ApS, Qiagen, REP GBP I-B Blocker Inc., Raymond A Lamb Limited, Remel Europe Limited, Remel Inc., Richard-Allan Scientific Company, Robbins Scientific LLC, Robocon Labor- und Industrieroboter Gesellschaft m.b.H, Rupprecht and Patashnick, Rupprecht and Patashnick (R&P), Russell pH Limited, S.C.I. du 10 rue Dugay Trouin, SCI Inno 92, STC Bio Manufacturing Inc., Samco Scientific (Monterrey) LLC, Samco Scientific LLC, Saroph Sweden AB, Schantz Road LLC, Seradyn Inc., Shanghai Life Technologies Biotechnology Co. Limited, Shanghai Thermo Fisher (C-I) Trading Co. Ltd, Shanghai Thermo Fisher (S) Trading Co. Ltd, Southern Trials (Pty) Ltd., Specialty (SMI) Inc., Spectra-Physics AB, Spectra-Physics Holdings Limited, Spectra-Physics Holdings USA LLC, Spectronex, Staten Island Cogeneration Corporation, Sterilin Limited, Stokes Bio Ltd., Sweden DIA (Sweden) AB, SwissAnalytic Group GmbH, Systems Manufacturing Corporation, TFLP LLC, TFS Breda B.V., TFS LLC, TFS Singapore HK Limited, TFSL Financing GP LLC, TFSL Senior GP Holdings 2 LLC, TK Partnership, TKA Wasseraufbereitungssysteme, TMOI Inc., TPI Real Estate Holdings LLC, TSP Holdings I LLC, TWX LLC, Technology Design Solutions Pty Ltd, Thermedics Detection de Argentina S.R.L, Thermo Allen Coding Limited, Thermo Asset Management Services Inc., Thermo BioAnalysis LLC, Thermo BioAnalysis Limited, Thermo BioSciences Holdings LLC, Thermo CIDTEC, Thermo CRS Holdings Ltd., Thermo CRS Ltd., Thermo Cambridge Limited, Thermo Cayman Holdings Ltd., Thermo Corporation, Thermo DMA Inc., Thermo Detection de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Thermo Dutch Holdings Limited Partnership, Thermo EGS Gauging LLC, Thermo Eberline Holdings I LLC, Thermo Eberline Holdings II LLC, Thermo Eberline LLC, Thermo Electron (Calgary) Limited, Thermo Electron (Chile) S.p.A., Thermo Electron (Karlsruhe) GmbH, Thermo Electron (Management Services) Limited, Thermo Electron (Proprietary) Limited, Thermo Electron A/S, Thermo Electron Australia Pty Limited, Thermo Electron Export Inc., Thermo Electron Holdings SAS, Thermo Electron Industries, Thermo Electron LED GmbH, Thermo Electron LED S.A.S., Thermo Electron Limited, Thermo Electron Manufacturing Limited, Thermo Electron Metallurgical Services Inc., Thermo Electron North America LLC, Thermo Electron Pension Trust GmbH, Thermo Electron Puerto Rico Inc., Thermo Electron SAS, Thermo Electron Scientific Instruments LLC, Thermo Electron Sweden AB, Thermo Electron Sweden Forvaltning AB, Thermo Electron Weighing & Inspection Limited, Thermo Elemental Limited, Thermo Environmental Instruments LLC, Thermo Fast U.K. Limited, Thermo Finland Holdings LLC, Thermo Finland Holdings MT1 B.V., Thermo Finland Holdings MT2 B.V., Thermo Finnigan LLC, Thermo Finnigan Limited, Thermo Fisher (CN) Luxembourg Holding S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher (CN) Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher (CN) Malta Holdings Limited, Thermo Fisher (CN-I) Luxembourg LLC, Thermo Fisher (CN-II) Luxembourg LLC, Thermo Fisher (Cayman) Holdings I Ltd., Thermo Fisher (Cayman) Holdings II Ltd., Thermo Fisher (Finland Holdings 2) LLC, Thermo Fisher (Finland Holdings) Limited Partnership, Thermo Fisher (Gibraltar) II Limited, Thermo Fisher (Gibraltar) Limited, Thermo Fisher (Heysham) Limited, Thermo Fisher (Kandel) GmbH, Thermo Fisher CHK Holding LLC, Thermo Fisher China Business Trust, Thermo Fisher China Business Trust II, Thermo Fisher Costa Rica Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada, Thermo Fisher Cyprus Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Detection Mexico LLC, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics (Ireland) Limited, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics AB, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics AG, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics AS, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics Aps, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics Austria GmbH, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics B.V., Thermo Fisher Diagnostics GmbH, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics K.K., Thermo Fisher Diagnostics Limited, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics NV, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics S.L.U., Thermo Fisher Diagnostics S.p.A. , Thermo Fisher Diagnostics SAS, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics Sociedade Unipessoal Lda, Thermo Fisher Eurobonds Ltd., Thermo Fisher Financial Services Inc., Thermo Fisher GP LLC, Thermo Fisher German Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Germany B.V., Thermo Fisher India Divestco Private Limited, Thermo Fisher India Holding B.V., Thermo Fisher Insurance Holdings Inc., Thermo Fisher Insurance Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Investments (Cayman) Ltd., Thermo Fisher Israel Ltd., Thermo Fisher Production et Services SAS, Thermo Fisher Project Cyprus LLC, Thermo Fisher Re Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Asheville) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Australia) C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Barbados) Holdings Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Breda) Holding BV, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Bremen) GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific (CN) Limited Partnership, Thermo Fisher Scientific (China) Co. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific (China) Holding Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific (China-HK) Holding Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific (DE) Holding S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Ecublens) SARL, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Finance I) B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Finance I) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Finance II) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Finance III) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Finance III) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Fuji) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Holding II) B.V. & Co. KG, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Hong Kong) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific (IVGN) B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific (IVGN) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Johannesburg) (Proprietary) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Mexico City) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Milwaukee) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Mississauga) Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Monterrey) S. De R.L. De C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific (NK) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN) Austria Holding GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN) UK LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN) UK Limited Partnership, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN-I) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN-II) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN1) UK Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Panama) B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Panama) Dutch LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Praha) s.r.o., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Real Estate 1) GmbH & Co. KG, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Real Estate 1) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Schweiz) AG, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Shanghai) Instruments Co. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Shanghai) Management Co. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Suzhou) Instruments Co. Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific AL-1 LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific AU C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific AU II Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific AU LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific AU Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Africa Proprietary Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Aquasensors LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Australia Pty Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific B.V.B.A., Thermo Fisher Scientific BHK (I) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific BHK (II) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Baltics UAB, Thermo Fisher Scientific Beteiligungsverwaltungs GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific Biosciences Corp., Thermo Fisher Scientific Brahms LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Brasil Instrumentos de Processo Ltda., Thermo Fisher Scientific Brasil Servicos de Logistica Ltda, Thermo Fisher Scientific C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cayman Investments LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Chemicals Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific China (C-I) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific China (S) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific China Holdings I B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific China Holdings II B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific China Holdings III B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific China Holdings IV B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Chromatography Holdings Aps, Thermo Fisher Scientific Chromatography Holdings S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus I C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus I Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus II C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus II Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus III C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus III Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus IV C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus V C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Denmark Senior Holdings ApS, Thermo Fisher Scientific Erie 1 Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Erie Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Erie Financing S.a r.l, Thermo Fisher Scientific Europe GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific FLC B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific FLC Finance C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific FLC II B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific FLC LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific FSIR Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific FSIR Financing S.a.r.l, Thermo Fisher Scientific FSUKHCO Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Falcon Senior Holdings Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific Finance Company BV, Thermo Fisher Scientific GENEART GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific Germany BV & Co. KG, Thermo Fisher Scientific GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific HR Services Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Holdings (Cayman) I, Thermo Fisher Scientific Holdings (Cayman) II , Thermo Fisher Scientific Holdings Europe Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific IT Services GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific India Holding LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific India Pvt Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Investments (Luxembourg) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Investments (Malta) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Investments (Sweden) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Investments (Sweden) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Investments Malta (Sweden Financing) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Invitrogen Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Japan Holdings I B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Japan Holdings II B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Japan Holdings III B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific K.K., Thermo Fisher Scientific Korea Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific LSI Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life CV GP Holdings II LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life CV GP Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Enterprises C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Enterprises GP LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Financing (Cayman), Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Financing C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Financing Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Holdings I C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Holdings II C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Holdings III C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Holdings Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life International GP Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life International Holdings I C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life International Holdings II C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments GP LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments I S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments II S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments III S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments IV S.a.r.l, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments Malta Holding I LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments Malta Holding II LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments Malta I Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments Malta II Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments US Financing I LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments US Financing II LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life NL Holdings GP LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Netherlands Holding C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Senior GP Holdings II LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Senior GP Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Senior Holdings C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Senior Holdings II C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Senior Holdings Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Switzerland Holdings GP LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Tech Korea Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Enterprise Holding Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Investment I LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Investment II LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Investment UK I Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Investment UK II Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Investments Holding LP, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Israel Investment I Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Israel Investment II Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Luxembourg Holding LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Enterprise Holdings S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg German Holdings S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Life Technologies UK Holding S.a r.l, Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Sweden Holdings I S.a r.l, Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Sweden Holdings II S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Venture Holdings I S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Venture Holdings II S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Thermo Fisher Scientific Malta Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Messtechnik GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific Mexico City S. de R.L. de C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Middle East Holdings Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific Milano Srl, Thermo Fisher Scientific NHK Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific New Zealand Holdings, Thermo Fisher Scientific New Zealand Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Norway Holdings AS, Thermo Fisher Scientific Norway US Investments LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Odyssey Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Odyssey Holdings Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Operating Company LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Oy, Thermo Fisher Scientific PN2 C.V, Thermo Fisher Scientific PN2 LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific PRB LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific PRB Malta Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific PRB S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Panama I Cayman Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Peru S.R.L., Thermo Fisher Scientific Pte. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific Re Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific SL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Senior Financing LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Senior Holdings Australia LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific South Africa Proprietary Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific SpA, Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra Malta Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra-Physics Holdings Luxembourg I S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra-Physics Holdings Luxembourg II S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra-Physics Investments Malta Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Switzerland Holdings C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific TR Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Taiwan Co. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific Vermogensverwaltungs GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific West Palm Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Wissenschaftliche Gerate GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific Worldwide Investments (Cayman), Thermo Fisher Scientific eCommerce Solutions LLC , Thermo Fisher Senior Canada Holdings LLC, Thermo Foundation Inc., Thermo Gamma-Metrics Holdings Pty Ltd., Thermo Gamma-Metrics LLC, Thermo Gamma-Metrics Pty Ltd, Thermo Holding European Operations LLC, Thermo Hypersil Ltd, Thermo Hypersil-Keystone LLC, Thermo Informatics Asia Pacific Pty Ltd., Thermo Instrument Controls de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Thermo Kevex X-Ray LLC, Thermo Keytek LLC, Thermo LabSystems Inc., Thermo LabSystems S.A., Thermo Life Science International Trading (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., Thermo Life Sciences AB, Thermo Luxembourg Holding S.a.r.l., Thermo Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Thermo MF Physics LLC, Thermo Measurement Ltd, Thermo Measuretech Canada Inc., Thermo Neslab LLC, Thermo Nicolet Limited, Thermo Onix Limited, Thermo Optek (Australia) Pty Ltd., Thermo Optek Limited, Thermo Optek S.A., Thermo Orion Inc., Thermo Portable Holdings LLC, Thermo Power Corporation, Thermo Process Instruments GP LLC, Thermo Process Instruments L.P., Thermo Projects Limited, Thermo Quest S.A., Thermo Radiometrie Limited, Thermo Ramsey Italia S.r.l., Thermo Ramsey LLC, Thermo Ramsey S.A., Thermo Re Ltd., Thermo Scientific Microbiology Pte Ltd., Thermo Scientific Microbiology Sdn Bhd, Thermo Scientific Portable Analytical Instruments Inc., Thermo Scientific Services Inc., Thermo Securities Corporation, Thermo Sentron Canada Inc., Thermo Sentron Limited, Thermo Shandon Inc., Thermo Shandon Limited, Thermo Suomi Holding B.V., Thermo TLH (UK) Limited, Thermo TLH L.P., Thermo Trace Pty Ltd., Thermo-Fisher Biochemical Product (Beijing) Co. Ltd., ThermoLase LLC, ThermoSpectra Limited, Trek Diagnostic Systems LLC, Trek Diagnostic Systems Ltd., Trek Holding Company II Ltd., Trek Holding Company Ltd., Trex Medical Corporation, USB Corporation, Union Lab Supplies Limited, United Diagnostics Inc., VG Systems Limited, Westover Scientific Inc., ZAO PE Biosystems, eBioscience GmbH, eBioscience Ltd, eBioscience SAS, and picoSpin LLC. Read More VMware, Inc. provides software solutions in the areas of modern applications, cloud management and infrastructure, networking, security, and digital workspaces in the United States and internationally. It offers VMware multi-cloud solutions, including VMware vSphere, a data center infrastructure that provides the fundamental compute layer; vSAN and VxRail, which offers holistic data storage and protection options to applications running on vSphere; and vRealize Cloud Management solutions that manages hybrid and multi-cloud environments running in virtual machines and containers, as well as VMware Cloud Foundation, a cloud platform that combines its vSphere, vSAN, and NSX with vRealize Cloud Management into an integrated stack and delivers enterprise-ready cloud infrastructure for private and public clouds. The company also provides networking solutions, such as VMware NSX, NSX Distributed and Gateway Firewalls, NSX Network Detection and Response Engine, NSX Advanced Load Balancer, Tanzu Service Mesh, and VMware SASE; security solutions consisting of VMware Carbon Black Endpoint, Workload, and Container; and digital workspace solutions comprising Workspace ONE Unified Endpoint Management, Access, Intelligent Hub, and Horizon. In addition, it offers application modernization solutions, such as Tanzu Application and Operations Platform, Tanzu Application Service Platform, Tanzu Observability, Tanzu Community Edition, and Tanzu Labs; and cloud management solutions, including vRealize Cloud Management, vCloud Suite, and CloudHealth by VMware Suite. The company sells its products through distributors, resellers, system vendors, and systems integrators. VMware, Inc. has a strategic alliance with Amazon Web Services to build and deliver an integrated hybrid solution. The company was incorporated in 1998 and is headquartered in Palo Alto, California. 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 Headline changed, details added (first version posted at 11:38) Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 17 By Orkhan Quluzade Trend: 12:30 (UTC+04:00) Thirteen servicemen were killed, 48 injured following the explosion on campus of the Erciyes University in the Kayseri province in Turkey, the website of the General Staff of Turkeys Armed Forces reports. The wounded were sent to the universitys hospital. Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan obtained the necessary information on the incident from Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces Hulusi Akar. 11:38 (UTC+04:00) Three servicemen were killed following the explosion in Turkeys Kayseri province, the Dogan news agency reported citing the sources in the countrys law enforcement agencies. As reported, the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) terrorist group may stand behind the explosion. Meanwhile, Turkeys Radio and Television Supreme Council imposed a ban on the publication of news about the Kayseri explosion, according to Anadolu news agency. 10:52 (UTC+04:00) The explosion took place at 08:45 local time, near a bus with military personnel, the Dogan news agency reported. A mined car drove up to the bus and exploded, according to eyewitnesses. The IHA news agency reports several were killed in the explosion. 09:35 (UTC+04:00) An explosion occurred on the campus of the Erciyes University in Turkeys province of Kayseri, TRT Haber reported Dec. 17. The exact number of wounded people is not reported yet. Rescue teams and ambulances were sent to the explosion site. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @o_quluzade 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. The following companies are subsidiares of Xerox: A B S Digital Limited, Acorn Business Machines (Holmfirth) Limited, Alloy Acquisitions Corp. LLC, Altodigital Networks, Altodigital Networks Limited, American Photocopy Equipment Company of Pittsburgh LLC, Amici, Arena Group, Arena Group Holdings Limited, Arena Group Limited, Arizona Office Technologies Inc., B 2 Business Systems Limited, Back2Business Limited, Bessemer Insurance Limited, Bessemer Trust Limited, Boise Office Equipment Inc., Bright Ceramic Technologies Inc., Bunch CareSolutions, Business Systems (North Wales) Limited, CPAS Systems, CREDITEX - Aluguer de Equipamentos S.A., CTX Business Solutions Inc., Capitol Office Solutions LLC, CareAR Holdings LLC, CareAR Inc., Carolina Office Systems Inc., Carr Business Systems Inc., Chicago Office Technology Group Inc., ComDoc Inc., Competitive Computing, Concept Group, Concept Group Limited, Connecticut Business Systems LLC, Consilience Software, Continua Limited, Continua Sanctum Limited, Conway Technology Group LLC, Copyrite Business Solutions (Holdings) Limited, Copyrite Business Solutions Limited, Copytrend Limited, Criterion IT Limited, Customer Value Group, Dahill Office Technology Corporation, Digitex, Digitex Canada Inc., Docucentric Holdings Limited, Document Systems, Document Systems, Eastern Managed Print Network LLC, Elan Marketing Inc., Electronic Systems Inc., Fovia (Innovation) Limited, G-Five Inc., GDP Technologies Inc., Global Imaging Systems, Global PR Corporation, Groupe CT, Gyricon LLC, Healthy Communities Institute, Heritage Business Systems Inc., ITEC Group, Image Technology Specialists Inc., ImageQuest Inc., Imagetek Office Systems, Impika, Impika SAS, Inland Business Machines Inc., Institute for Research on Learning, Integrity One Technologies Inc., Intrepid Learning, Invoco Group, Irish Business Systems, LRI LLC, LaserNetworks, LaserNetworks Inc., Lateral Data, Learn Something, Lewan & Associates Inc., Limited Liability Company Xerox (C.I.S.), M & S Reprographics Limited, MRC Smart Technology Solutions Inc., MT Business Holdings Inc., MT Business Technologies Inc., MWB Copy Products Inc., Mail A Doc Limited, Merizon Group Incorporated, Michigan Office Solutions Inc., Minnesota Office Technology Group Inc., Mitral Systems Limited, Mr. Copy Inc., Nemo (AKS) Limited, NewField IT, NewField Information Technology LLC, NewField Information Technology Limited, Northeast Office Systems LLC, Osprey Business Systems Limited, PARC China Holdings Inc., Pacific Services and Development Corporation, Palo Alto Research Center Incorporated, Platinum Digital Print Solutions Limited, Powerland, Precision Copier Service Inc., Quality Business Systems Inc., Quilver Business Services Limited, R. K. Dixon Company, RRXH Limited, RRXIL Limited, RRXO Limited, RSA Medical, Rabbit Copiers Inc., Reflex Digital Solutions (UK) Limited, Reprographics Egypt Limited, Saxon Business Systems Inc., Smart Data Consulting, SoCal Office Technologies Inc., Stem Networks Limited, Stewart Business Systems LLC, Stewart of Alabama Inc., StrataCare, Talegen Holdings Inc., Tektronix - color printing, Text Comm Limited (in receivership), The Xerox (UK) Trust, The Xerox Foundation, Time Business Systems Limited, Triton Business Finance Limited, Una-Stem Limited, Veenman B.V., Veenman Financial Services B.V., WDS, WaterWare Internet Services, XC Asia LLC, XC Global Trading B.V., XC Trading Hong Kong Limited, XC Trading Japan G.K., XC Trading Korea YH, XC Trading Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., XC Trading Shenzhen Co. Ltd., XC Trading Singapore Pte Ltd., XEROX CZECH REPUBLIC s r.o., XESystems Foreign Sales Corporation, XFS Secured Borrowing 2020-1 LLC, XHC Acquisition Corp., XMPie, XMPie Inc., XMPie Ltd., XRI Limited, XRO Limited, Xerox (Europe) Limited, Xerox (Ireland) Limited, Xerox (Nederland) BV, Xerox (Romania) Echipmante Si Servici S.A., Xerox (UK) Limited, Xerox (Ukraine) Ltd LLC, Xerox A/S, Xerox AG, Xerox AS, Xerox Argentina Industrial y Comercial S.A., Xerox Austria GmbH, Xerox Bulgaria EOOD, Xerox Business Equipment Limited, Xerox Business Services Bulgaria EOOD, Xerox Business Solutions Inc., Xerox Business Solutions Southeast LLC, Xerox Buro Araclari Servis ve Ticaret Ltd. Sti, Xerox Canada Inc., Xerox Canada Ltd., Xerox Canada N.S. ULC, Xerox Capital (Europe) Limited, Xerox Capital LLC, Xerox Computer Services Limited, Xerox Comercio e Industria Ltda, Xerox Corporation, Xerox DNHC LLC, Xerox Dienstleistungsgesellschaft GmbH, Xerox Distributor Operations Limited, Xerox Egypt S.A.E., Xerox Equipment Limited, Xerox Equipment UK Limited, Xerox Espana S.A.U., Xerox Exports Limited, Xerox Finance AG, Xerox Finance Leasing S.A.E., Xerox Finance Limited, Xerox Financial Services B.V., Xerox Financial Services Belux NV, Xerox Financial Services Canada Ltd., Xerox Financial Services Danmark A/S, Xerox Financial Services Finland Oy, Xerox Financial Services LLC, Xerox Financial Services Norway AS, Xerox Financial Services SAS, Xerox Financial Services Sverige AB, Xerox Foreign Holdings LLC, Xerox Foreign Sales Corporation, Xerox GmbH, Xerox Health Care LLC, Xerox Hellas AEE, Xerox Holding Deutschland GmbH, Xerox Holdings (Ireland) Limited, Xerox Holdings Inc., Xerox Hungary Trading Limited, Xerox IBS Limited, Xerox IBS NI Limited, Xerox India Limited, Xerox International Joint Marketing Inc., Xerox Investments Europe B.V., Xerox Israel Ltd., Xerox Italia Rental Services Srl, Xerox Kazakhstan Limited Liability Partnership, Xerox Latinamerican Holdings Inc., Xerox Leasing Deutschland GmbH, Xerox Leasing GmbH, Xerox Limited, Xerox Luxembourg SA, Xerox Mailing Systems Limited, Xerox Manufacturing (Nederland) B.V., Xerox Maroc S.A., Xerox Mexicana S.A. de C.V., Xerox Middle East Investments (Bermuda) Limited, Xerox N.V., Xerox Overseas Holdings Limited, Xerox Overseas Inc., Xerox Oy, Xerox Pensions Limited, Xerox Polska Sp. z o. o, Xerox Portugal Equipamentos de Escritorio Limitada, Xerox Products Limited, Xerox Products UK Limited, Xerox Professional Services Limited, Xerox Realty Corporation, Xerox Renting S.A.U., Xerox Reprographische Services GmbH, Xerox S.A.S., Xerox S.p.A., Xerox Secured Borrowing 2020-1 LLC, Xerox Servicios Compartidos Guatemala y Compani Limitada, Xerox Servicos e Participacoes Ltda, Xerox Shared Services Romania SRL, Xerox Sverige AB, Xerox Technology Services India LLP, Xerox Technology Services SAS, Xerox Telebusiness GmbH, Xerox Trading Enterprises Limited, Xerox Trinidad Limited, Xerox UK Holdings Limited, Xerox XHB Limited, Xerox XIB Limited, Xerox Xf Holdings (Ireland) DAC, Xerox de Chile S.A., Xerox del Ecuador S.A., Xerox del Peru S.A., Zeno Office Solutions, Zeno Office Solutions Inc., Zoom Imaging Solutions Inc., and inVentiv Patient Access Solutions. Read More UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Filippo Grandi called on the warring sides in Syria on Saturday to immediately cease hostilities in eastern Aleppo so that all civilians could have a chance for safe evacuation, Sputnik reported. "All military action must halt. All remaining civilians must be allowed safe conduct out from Eastern Aleppo. Priority must be placed on saving lives. Civilians should not be hostage to negotiations," Grandi said in a statement. According to Grandi, humanitarian organizations should be provided with free access to all areas in Syria. "UNHCR and partners have provided trauma help to more than 8,000 children in recent days For the sake of civilian protection everywhere, Syrias conflict must be ended, now, and without delay," Grandi added. On Friday, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that Aleppo was now under full government control with the Syrian army operation to retake the eastern districts completed. Civilians and militants were leaving the city amid a ceasefire agreement between the remaining pockets of resistance and government forces. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier called on Saturday for lifting the blockade of evacuation of civilians from eastern Aleppo and said that Moscow, Tehran and Damascus should provide the city with the necessary level of security, Sputnik reported. "FM Steinmeier on #Aleppo: The situation is desperate. Blockage of evacuation must be lifted immediately The Syrian regime and its supporters in Russia and Iran must guarantee the safety of remaining people in #Aleppo and protect evacuations," the German Foreign Ministry said on its Twitter page. Perrone Robotics, a Charlottesville company that makes software for self-driving cars, wants to relocate to downtown Crozet. Earlier this week, the Crozet Community Advisory Committee endorsed a rezoning with proffers that would make this possible. Greg Scharer, chief operating officer of Perrone Robotics, said keeping his company in Central Virginia instead of moving to Silicon Valley made it less likely for employees to be stolen by other technology companies. We see the hub that Crozet is becoming as an opportunity to attract people, Scharer told the committee. Im attracting relatively youthful employees who want to be able to walk from their work to get goods and services. In this modern era of filmmaking, $7 million might not cover the cost of the storied haute cuisine served to the stars and crew members working on high-budget movies. Thats the amount of money it reportedly took to make the recently released picture Manchester by the Sea. The widely acclaimed film proves that even when youre working within the constraints of a bread-and-bologna budget, cinematic magic can be achieved. The film opened last week at Regal Stonefield Stadium 14 in Charlottesville. A Saturday matinee crowd that nearly filled the theater provided the kind of attendance that can make filmmakers offer up whispers of thanks. The fact that the films production designer, Ruth De Jong, has local ties likely will help gin up moviegoing interest in these parts. How the 35-year-old artist and designer came to use her talents on award-winning pictures like There Will Be Blood and Tree of Life shows how far aptitude, ambition and a lunchbox-toting work ethic can take a person. De Jong moved with her family to Albemarle County in 1995 and enrolled as a freshman at Western Albemarle High School. After graduating, she attended Texas Christian University, where she earned a degree in painting and photography. After completing her first year at TCU, De Jong returned home for summer break. Around the same time, Schuyler Fisk, daughter of filmmaker Jack Fisk and actress Sissy Spacek, also had returned to the nest. Schuyler was back from making the movie Orange County, De Jong said during a recent telephone interview. We were introduced by mutual friends, and we, as well as our families, became really close. Jack and I would often talk about fine arts, and as I was graduating from TCU, I was applying for graduate school at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. One night, Jack said to me, Dont go to grad school. I said that was exactly what I wanted to do, because I wanted to move to New York and become a painter. And he said, You should come and work for me. Thats how the whole thing started. De Jong first worked with Fisk on the Academy Award-winning film There Will Be Blood. She became his art director and worked with him on other films for the next 10 years. Fisk wanted De Jong on his team for the filming of The Revenant, but the timing was off. By then, she had started De Jong & Company, an interior design and furniture business in Los Angeles, with her brother Peter. At the time, Manchester by the Sea was beginning to show the first signs of life. Matt Damon and John Krasinski had the original idea for the movie and asked Kenneth Lonergan to write the script. Lonergan later would get the nod to direct the film. Casey Affleck plays the main character, Lee Chandler. He has been nominated for a best-actor Golden Globe Award for his portrayal of a tortured soul who is further crucified by merciless circumstances. Prior to the Golden Globe nomination, the National Board of Review selected Manchester by the Sea as its best film. The movie received four NBR awards, including best actor for Affleck, best original screenplay and breakthrough actor honors for Lucas Hedges, who plays Lee Chandlers nephew, Patrick. Oh, wow, De Jong exclaimed with a laugh when she was asked for a brief overview of the film. Well, Caseys character has experienced a tragedy in his life, and hes trying to cope with that. Then, his brother passes away, and he is called to come back to his hometown, where he has to face that tragedy as well as deal with taking care of his brothers teenage son. Kenny was interested in exploring human suffering and how people deal with pain and loss. Instead of tying it up with a pretty bow at the end of the film, as in a perfect quintessential Hollywood story, he kind of lets it hang out there without a resolution. There can be hope, but there doesnt have to be an answer to make all this better. As people were leaving Regal Stonefield Stadium 14 after a recent screening of Manchester by the Sea, a patron was heard thanking an attendant for showing the movie. At its debut nearly a year ago at the Sundance Film Festival, the audience gave the film a standing ovation. Ellyn Vaught traveled from her home in Culpeper to see the movie. For the following few days, she found her thoughts constantly returning to it. I liked the movie very much, Vaught said. It made me think, made me feel, made me angry, sad, happy I swear I was freezing in the theater not because of the temperature, but because of the snow scenes. The pictures of the town, the scenes of the weather, the music. They were so powerful and so present in the story that they took on the importance of characters. Beautiful, lonely, dark, dreary, foreboding all this in one shot of the ocean with snow falling. Humorous asides and scenes throughout the picture provide levity from the emotional drubbing. The parleys between uncle and nephew, heated at times, rang true for Vaught, who is the mother of teenage daughters. Believe me, teens can be sad, funny, infuriating and insufferable all in the same moment, Vaught said. I enjoyed the 16-year-old boy trying to make his mark with girls, music and with his wishes about his father. What I took away from the movie, and one of the reasons I really like it, was that not everything ends up with a nice, tidy, happy ending. I also felt that not everything can be fixed, which is a hard concept for me as a mother. I am a problem solver, but no one could solve or even lessen Lees pain. De Jong was given the script and, after reading it, she met with Lonergan and one of the producers, Kevin J. Walsh, in Los Angeles. During the meeting, she was told that the budget was less than $10 million and that it was to be shot on location in and around Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts. I knew I didnt have a huge budget to go in and build and create, De Jong said. I knew I would have to go into this town and find existing locations that we would dress. It was very much about reading the script and diving into who the characters were. That helped me to decide what type homes they would have, types of cars they would drive and how they would dress and go about their daily lives. As a production designer, we take a script, read it and then we make it come to life. Its a sad story, and Kenny wasnt interested in hitting you over the head with it, mood-wise. He didnt want it to be dark and gloomy. We very much depicted real life. When De Jong arrived on location in February 2015, the Boston area had been hit by a blizzard that left 9 feet of snow on the ground. She dealt with this by making the snow an important character in the picture. When the snow slowed scouting efforts, De Jong used the time to do research on the areas history and people. She had coffee and shared meals with folks who would have been similar to Lee Chandler and his former wife, Randi, played by Michelle Williams. The people of the town were really incredible in opening up their homes and lives to me, De Jong said. You get really creative when youre working with a tight budget, and you figure out how to stretch the money you have and make it work. Its a constant conversation with the producers and director in how to juggle things around. Its a matter of, if we let go of this, then we can gain these things. If we keep this, then well have to get rid of that. But I think all the locations together really paint a beautiful backdrop of this familys daily life. The emotional pain Lee Chandler suffers is particularly sharp because its happening to a good man. That he is able to survive at all is something of a victory. I think the film is brilliant, to be honest, De Jong said. When we were filming, I wasnt sure how it would turn out. It was my first time working with Kenny. I think hes brilliant, and, being a playwright, his thing was rehearsing. He loves to rehearse with the actors, and they would rehearse for hours on end. I was much more used to a rigid shooting schedule where, when you show up on the set, the cameras begin rolling shortly thereafter. But Kenny would take these long pauses, sometimes for hours on end, to be rehearsing with the cast. Myself and other crew members had this great fear: Are we ever going to finish this film? Is this actually going to be able to be cut together? De Jong said she never doubted the director. But it was only when she saw the end product that she fully realized what his attention to detail had wrought. When I watched the film for the first time at Sundance, I was speechless, De Jong said. I cried, and its not often I will cry in a film Ive worked on. I saw Casey after that screening, and he cried during it, as well. Its so powerful and moving that it blew me away. I dont know that Ive had that experience before with a film. It was amazing. A fuel tanker skidded off a Baltimore highway and exploded on Saturday morning, sending sheets of fire in the path of the approaching traffic and triggering a deadly 55-vehicle pileup on the ice-coated roadway, Maryland officials said, Reuters reported. The accident on Interstate 95, which occurred at about 5 a.m., left two people dead, including the driver of the fuel truck, said Lieutenant Kevin Ayd, spokesman for the Maryland Transportation Authority Police. The fiery pileup was one of dozens of crashes in the Baltimore-Washington area as freezing rain slowly accumulated into an icy sheet on roadways in the early morning darkness. A second multi-vehicle crash occurred at about the same time along Interstate 95 in Baltimore, part of a major north-south corridor along the U.S. East Coast. One person was killed in that accident when one of the drivers exited his vehicle and was struck by oncoming traffic. In the 55-vehicle pileup, a bystander's video shows the skidding fuel truck hitting a barrier and flipping over in a gap between the north and southbound lanes. As the fireball spread, approaching cars and trucks can be seen attempting to stop but instead plowing into one another. "I want to share my deepest condolences to those affected by this morning's multi-vehicle crash," Baltimore Mayor Catherine Push said in a statement. "Today's icy road conditions remind us all that it is imperative to exercise extreme caution due to severe weather." The crash forced the closure of the northbound lanes on the highway. Photos posted online showed dozens of emergency vehicles and tow trucks on the scene. "We do not know when I-95 will be reopened," Ayd said. "We urged motorist to stay off the road until conditions improve." SUFFOLK A judge has dismissed six of seven felony charges against Del. Rick Morris, finding prosecutors have enough evidence to move forward on only one count. Media outlets reported that reporters were barred from attending Thursdays hearing, at which Judge Robert S. Brewbaker Jr. certified to a grand jury one felony charge of cruelty and injuries to children. Prosecutor Shukita Massey declined to pursue seven misdemeanor domestic assault charges against Morris. She didnt comment on why the charges were dropped. According to court documents, the 48-year-old lawmaker is accused of hitting a boy with a belt and wooden spoon, punching him and throwing a hose nozzle at him. Its not clear which incident pertained to the remaining charge. Morris attorney, Nicole Belote, said he doesnt intend to resign. A car bomb attack on a bus carrying off-duty military personnel killed 13 soldiers and wounded 55 in the central Turkish city of Kayseri on Saturday, an incident President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blamed on Kurdish militants, Reuters reported Dec. 17. The blast, a week after deadly twin bombing targeted police in Istanbul, is likely to further outrage a public angered by a series of attacks this year - several claimed by Kurdish militants, others by Islamic State - and a failed coup in July. It is also likely to increase tension in Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast, where militants from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) have waged a three-decade violent insurgency that has seen some of its worst fighting in the last year. "The style and goals of the attacks clearly show the aim of the separatist terrorist organization is to trip up Turkey, cut its strength and have it focus its energy and forces elsewhere," Erdogan said in a statement. "We know that these attacks we are being subjected to are not independent from the developments in our region, especially in Iraq and Syria." Erdogan confirmed that 13 people had been killed and 55 wounded. All of those killed and 48 of the wounded were off-duty military personnel, according to a military statement. Two area women are hoping that a recent filing will stall or halt the execution of their pit bull. According to an injunction motion filed in Albemarle County Circuit Court on Friday, Greene County residents Toni Stacey and Aubrey Wells are fighting the execution of their dog Niko, who currently resides at the Charlottesville-Albemarle SPCA. On July 8, 2015, in Albemarles Circuit Court, Stacey was found guilty of being in control of a dangerous or vicious dog after Niko was alleged to have killed a neighbors cat months earlier. Along with an order for $4,100 in restitution, the judge ordered that Niko be put down. Nikos owners have appealed the decision on a local and state level, but to no avail. Since then, the 5-year-old chocolate Staffordshire Terrier has remained in the control of the SPCA and the countys animal control unit, awaiting an execution that has been scheduled for Sunday. News of Nikos impending demise infiltrated social media, culminating in a campaign by Buffalo, New York-based animal welfare organization Against All Oddz Animal Alliance to adopt the pup and spare his life. The organization, self-labeled as zealous advocates for animals that deal with dogs in the legal system, issued a news release Thursday saying it intended to broker an agreement to save Niko, whom the group believes may have been unfairly prosecuted. He has been convicted of killing a cat while he was at large despite no eyewitnesses to the act, the release states. Despite the murky circumstances, all appeals have been exhausted and it is understood that being accepted into AAOAA is Nikos last hope. The group has since sent certified letters to Commonwealths Attorney Robert Tracci and Judge Cheryl Higgins explaining their success in dealing with animals who have bitten in the past. Tracci has not responded to requests for comment on the matter. Our track record is impeccable, and from everything we know, Niko should be far easier to work with and place in a safe and loving environment than almost all of our other dogs that we have placed and that are now thriving, said AAOAA founder Matthew Albert. I am very hopeful that [Tracci] and I can have a good conversation and I will provide the commonwealth with assurance that Niko will be kept in a very safe and loving environment ... far away from Albemarle. A Facebook page linked to the release, Prayers for Niko/Niko Strong, has accrued more than 3,600 members. The local SPCA issued a release of its own the following morning, acknowledging that Niko has been in its care in the organizations capacity as the countys pound, which must occasionally act as a custodian of animals subject to court action. The wheels of justice turn slowly and Niko has been with us for approximately two years, the release states. During this time, he has received the same quality care as all animals in our shelter. The release goes on to state that Niko has been declared vicious by the countys general district and circuit courts, and that the SPCA has no involvement with the court proceedings. It is not a party to the proceedings, cannot provide evidence that implicates Niko as vicious, or comment on the evidence that already exists in the case, the release states. While the pup has been ordered to be humanely euthanized, the release continues, the SPCA has no role in that decision. During the approximately two years Niko has been in our care, we have done everything possible to manage a very unfortunate situation for everyone involved, the release states. The care provided has exceeded what Niko would experience at many pounds throughout Virginia as we awaited a courts decision. Later on Friday, Wells and Stacey made a final effort to stall the planned execution by filing a motion to temporarily suspend the enforcement of the judges 2015 ruling. The filing argues that because Niko is technically Wells property, his being put down would be an unconstitutional deprivation of property in violation of due process because Wells was not provided a chance to defend Niko and argue as to why his life should be spared. Nikos execution would create irreparable harm for Wells, it continues, while sparing him would create little to no cost for the county, the SPCA and animal control. To stall the court order also would serve the public interest, the motion adds. To allow ones irreplaceable personal property to be destroyed without a proper hearing for all interested parties would undermine the fundamentals of our judicial system and the foundation of our social and legal framework, the motion states. The attorney for Nikos owners said late Friday that the court had yet to respond to the motion, but its hoped the matter will be taken up before Sunday. Joan Kille Connock, 78, recently of West Palm Beach, Florida, passed away on Wednesday, December 14, 2016. Mrs. Connock was born to Wesley Grant Kille and Helen Thompson Kille, July 13, 1938, in Salem, Ohio.As a child of an Air Force officer, she lived in a number of localities in the U.S. during her youth. In 1960 she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Education from McNeese State College, Lake Charles, La. She taught Middle School students in Louisiana, Nebraska, on Air Force bases in the Philippines, France, and Germany, and in several locations in Virginia before moving to Culpeper, Va. She taught at the Culpeper Middle School for 17 years. During this time she served two terms as President of the Culpeper County Education Association.After her retirement from teaching, she served as a member and Vice-Chairman of the Culpeper County School Board, representing the Catalpa Magisterial District, from 1994 to 2000. She was a recipient of the Culpeper County Education Association's Golden Apple Award in 1999.She was a member of the Culpeper Presbyterian Church. She was a member of the National Education Association, the Virginia Education Association, and the Culpeper County Retired Teachers Association.She and her husband enjoyed visiting new places and derived much joy by traveling extensively throughout the United States and in many other countries.In addition to her parents she was preceded in death by her daughter, Karen Anne Connock.Surviving Mrs. Connock is her husband of 51 years, Robert Henry Connock, Jr.; her son, Robert Grant Connock and his wife, Jennifer of Royal Palm Beach, Fla.; her brother and his wife, Grant and Maureen Kille of Suffield, Conn.; her sister-in-law and her husband, Marjorie and James Pierce of Columbia, Md.; and five nieces.A funeral service will be held on Monday, December 19, 2016, at 2 p.m. at Culpeper Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Wayne Bernardo officiating. The family will receive friends from 1:30 p.m. until the service.Interment will follow in Fairview Cemetery.In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Culpeper Presbyterian Church, 215 S. Main St. Culpeper, VA 22701.An online guestbook and tribute wall are available at www.foundandsons.comFound and Sons Funeral Chapel of Culpeper is serving the family. World leaders have condemned a terror attack in central Turkey's Kayseri province that martyred at least 14 soldiers and wounded 56 others, Anadolu reported. The Turkish General Staff said in a statement the car bomb targeted a public bus carrying off-duty troops near the Erciyes University campus at 8.45 a.m. local time. Pakistan's head of the foreign affairs ministry, Sartaj Aziz condemned terrorist attack in "strongest" terms. "We condemn in the strongest possible terms the terrorist attack that took place in Kayseri today," said Aziz. Aziz extended condolences to the government and Turkish people "on behalf of the Prime Minister, the government and the people of Pakistan". "We reiterate our unwavering solidarity with Turkey and reaffirms strong belief that the brotherly people of Turkey would be successful in their resolute fight against the scourge of terrorism," Aziz added. President Vladimir Putin conveyed condolences to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and said Russia was "ready" to cooperate with Ankara in fighting against terrorism, Kremlin press service said. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also talked to his Turkish counterpart on the phone following the attack and conveyed his condolences. Germany has denounced the terror attack and voiced solidarity with Turkey in the fight against terrorism. Nothing can justify this perfidious violence," German Foreign Ministry said in a press release on Saturday. We share the grief, stand in solidarity with Turkey, the statement said. Germanys EU minister Michael Roth expressed condolences and sympathies to the families and relatives of the victims. In his Twitter account, Roth said: "I condemn the horrific terror attack in Kayseri. My thoughts are with the victims and their families. What Turkey really needs is peace." France also expressed condemnation and voiced support for Turkey's fighting against terrorism. "We offer our condolences to the families of the victims and their families," Jean-Marc Ayrault, the French foreign minister said in a written statement. "We express our solidarity with Turkey in the fight against terrorism." In a written statement, Thorbjorn Jagland, the secretary-general of the Council of Europe, said terrorist attacks must stop. "They lead only to human suffering and serve no political goal. The Council of Europe stands by Turkey and its people in these difficult times, Jagland added. Miss Canada Anastasia Lin (Photo : National Press Club Live/YouTube) Miss Canada Anastasia Lin is finally competing in the Miss World beauty pageant. She was Canadas representative in 2015 but was denied a visa then. She instead went to Hong Kong and tried to get a connecting flight to Sanya, a seaside resort city on Hainan Island, China where the pageant was held. Advertisement However, authorities in Hong Kong, who are under China, stopped Lin from boarding the plane, so Lin who was born and raised in China but migrated to Canada when she was 13 watched the 65th Miss World Beauty pageant only on TV. Chinese authorities blocked her from entering China because she spoke against the country. Besides being a member of Falun Gong, the spiritual movement banned by Beijing authorities, Miss Canada has been vocal about her criticism of the Chinese government. The Miss World organizers made it up to Lin by allowing her to represent Canada this 2016. But while the Miss World 2016 contest is being held in Washington DC, she is still being muzzled the second time. Miss Canada has been banned from talking to media and specifically instructed not to tackle human rights issue during the pageant, New York Times reported. Despite being so far from China, the Miss World contest is still influenced by the Chinese government because the contest, even if based in London, has Chinese companies as major sponsors. It explains why the pageant has been held in Sanya six times since 2003. The muzzle goes beyond words but even what Miss Canada can and cannot do. During the duration of the contest, Lin was not allowed to attend the U.S. premiere of the movie The Bleeding Edge. She is a cast of the film which deals with the illegal harvesting of body organs of dissidents through a program run by the Chinese government. Lin was also disallowed initially to meet with an official from the U.S. State Department, but the Miss World organization eventually allowed her on the condition that a representative of the pageant chaperone her. 'Running Man' is a long-running SBS variety program in South Korea. (Photo : YouTube/SBS Running Man) According to the latest reports, "Running Man" is set to end in February 2017. Song Jihyo and Kim Jongkook are expected to rejoin the cast until the show reaches its closing stages. These unexpected turn of events happened after "Running Man" fandom expressed its anger over SBS's decision to eliminate Jihyo and Jongkook from the cast. What followed was an online uproar among fans, which further triggered SBS to rethink about its decision. Advertisement After the hullabaloo, "Running Man's" producers and cast gathered on Dec.16, Friday, in Seoul for an emergency meeting to resolve the crisis. That is when they settled their differences and agreed on a verdict. It is said that the meeting between the two parties was lengthy and deep and that they decided not to end the show on such a sad note. They also decided to include all the six members of the cast in the show till its last episode. Prior to the emergency meeting, reports claim that "Running Man" cast had earlier organized another secret meeting to discuss on how they would leave the show together. Although it is not clear if it happened, the departure of Jihyo and Jongkook was the main bone of contention. Earlier on, "Running Man" had apologized to the two actors. The exact message from the television network was that it never knew that their decision to leave the cast had not been mutual. "Running Man" crew had revealed through the official SBS blog that there was a miscommunication regarding the unveiling of the show's forthcoming second season at the beginning of 2017. That is when it proceeded to issue an apology to the cast, and particularly to the two long-time actors. "With the news of the unexpected reorganization being released, we hurt both Song Ji Hyo and Kim Jong Kook, two members who we have treated like family for the past seven years," the "Running Man" statement reads. "In regards to that aspect, we would like to sincerely apologize to both of them." "Running Man" further expressed regret over its lack of consideration and reflection towards the situation and directed its admission of guilt towards all members of the cast. According to My Daily, Jihyo and Jongkook had not been informed of their exit from the show until the last moments. Jihyo reportedly was only notified that "Running Man" was set to undergo changes. She then learned later of her departure after news reports started streaming to the public. Also, Jungkook's agency reportedly only came to learn of the impending changes to "Running Man" a fortnight ago. But as far as updates from the show were concerned, he only got the information about his exit on Dec. 12. Apparently, "Running Man" has had a big shake up this year. It all started when Gary announced that he was about to leave the show, and now it appears that more adjustments are happening. The good news is that Jihyo and Jongkook are back and "Running Man"cast is as complete as the fan base wants it. Here is a video of the story: Lena Headey attends the premiere of HBO's 'Game Of Thrones' Season 6 at TCL Chinese Theatre on April 10, 2016 in Hollywood, California. (Photo : Getty Images/Alberto E. Rodriguez) The salary of "Game of Thrones" actress Lena Headey was revealed amidst a legal battle between her and former husband Peter Loughran. Headey reportedly makes several million dollars when she plays Cersei Lannister in HBO's fantasy series. Loughran is asking Headey to pay $40,000 of his attorney's fees as he cannot afford to do so. He stated she earns about more than a million per episode of "Game of Thrones," according to new court documents filed last week and obtained by E! News. Advertisement The former husband and wife are fighting over the custody of their only child, Wylie Elliot Loughran, 6, the actress' eldest of two children. The boy is currently spending half the time with each of his dad and mom. The 43-year-old actress has said to have paid her ex husband $20,000 in attorney's fees to comply a previous court order. In his filing, Loughran stated his ex wife, who is earning more than a million dollars and with a savings exceeding $1 million is capable to pay spousal support. He lives in an apartment that costs $3,300 rental and is receiving $9,000 in child support. Headey's ex who is also known as a musician is said to be a former hairstylist who is now unemployed and is looking for a job. Headey reportedly urged him to quit his job when they were still married so he could take care of their son. Headey was among the main stars of HBO's multi Emmy-awarded series to band together to negotiate a $1.1 million pay per episode for the show's last two seasons, Season 7 and 8 to be aired in 2017 and 2018, respectively. The other stars who worked with the pay negotiation were Emilia Clarke, Peter Dinklage, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and Kit Harington, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The fantasy drama is said to have 13 episodes left, seven and six for seasons 7 and 8. Headey appeared in eight episodes in "Game of Thrones" Season 6. Being one of the Tier A or highest-paid stars of the show does not guarantee though that her character will survive until the last episode. Here is one of Headey's interviews where she talks about her "Game of Thrones" character. Total value of transactions through digital mode at Mother Dairy and Safal outlets, which was Rs 13 lakh per day before November 8. New Delhi: Digital transactions at Mother Dairy booths and Safal outlets in the national capital have increased substantially in the wake of demonetisation, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh said today. Mother Dairy is presently accepting payments through SBI Dairy Smart card and PayTM mode. It is also exploring other digital modes like Aadhar enabled payment service (AEPS). "Total value of transactions through digital mode at Mother Dairy and Safal outlets, which was Rs 13 lakh per day before November 8, has increased to Rs 78.84 crore per day post demonetisation," Singh told reporters after visiting a few Mother Dairy and Safal outlets located in Lutyens zone. Initially, people faced some problems but gradually they are switching over to digital payments, he said. Mother Dairy Managing Director S Nagarajan said that PayTM has been installed in almost all milk booths and Safal outlets, while SBI dairy smart cards in 787 booths and 87 Safal outlets. "There are still many Safal outlets where SBI smart card service is not there. We will cover all in the next 2-3 weeks," he told PTI. He also mentioned that at present the Point of sale machines at Mother Dairy outlets can process SBI Smart cards and not other debit cards. "We are not allowing other digital cards because the company will have to pay merchandise charges of 2 per cent. It is a cost on the company. So, we are exploring other digital platforms like AEPS, Unified Payments Interface which are less expensive mode," he said. Mumbai: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday said infrastructure investment needs a booster and his next Budget in February will focus on encouraging more public as well as private spending to boost economic growth. Speaking at an award function, he said India aspires to become a developed economy from a developing economy and a 7- 7.5 per cent GDP growth does not satisfy its requirements. "Therefore spending more and now" is the focus, he said adding infrastructure spending "certainly needs a booster." The Finance Minister said there is a long-term potential of more resources getting into the system and that is going to be the top priority. "Therefore, the areas where we were lacking, whether in terms of encouraging investment of the private sector and so on, I think these are going to be the areas where budget should concentrate on," he said. The government is likely to advance the date of budget presentation for 2017-18 to February 1 next year as against the usual date of February 28. On the impact of demonetisation on the economy, Jaitley admitted that "altering this normal is extremely disruptive" but "in the long run you will have a higher GDP, a higher revenue and probably far cleaner economy and far cleaner public life." He further said it was "a courageous decision to withdraw 86 per cent of the paper currency, replace it and then say that replacement will now be substantially and significantly in digital." Regretting that a small section of people was trying to take advantage of the situation, Jaitley said, "This Indian normal where recovery of taxes is terrorism and non-payment is a way of life has to change. With this new normal that is being created, if we succeed in doing, India would be a happier place." On the controversy relating to tax scrutiny of political parties, Jaitley said, "This is a complete media creation" and pointed out that no changes have been made in the law in that regard. "Has a single change made in the last two months or so or in the last two-and-a-half years with regard to taxation of political parties? The answer is "No". "Nothing has been done, whatever was the existing system which has been existed for the last 15 years is continuing and if somebody creates a political party for the purposes channelising funds obviously law will step in." Referring to the issues relating to roll out of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), Jaitley said that some political parties were trying to delay its implementation but it cannot be postponed beyond September 2017. "I am conscious of that fact that the current political attitude of some political parties is to delay the implementation of GST but the Constitutional mandate is very clear," he said, adding the old taxation regime can continue for one year from the date of notification which was September 16, 2016. "Nobody has the luxury of time to be in the position to pressurise if not blackmail and say it will be deferred. The Constitution today mandates that the GIST has to come in place before September 16, 2017 and states who do not do it willl ose the right to collect taxes." Observing that all issues except the one relating to division of assesses between the Centre and states have been sorted out, Jaitley hoped that states would resolve that issue also. "It's more a turf issue. At least one state has suggested that which translated into simple language means, the 93 per cent of total assessment should be done in the states. "India is a union of states. Federalism does not mean that union becomes so weak that its ability to hold federal India itself is weakened, I am sure this one issue, we will rise above resolve this issue," he said. The GST Council will once again attempt to resolve the issue of cross empowerment at its next meeting on December 22-23. Status of telecom towers will be available on the portal. Jaipur: The Department of Telecom (DoT) is set to launch a portal Tarang with data on all mobile towers and transmitters across the country in a month that will allow a user to check the radiation compliance status. "Status of the towers will be available on the portal which will be launched in a month. Those who...want to get the radiation level checked of towers will be done by the government and he will be informed," Union Minister of State for Communications Manoj Sinha told reporters here. Telecom Secretary J S Deepak said, a fee of Rs 5,000 would be charged for the test to be conducted by the government. "We conduct test on random basis and through this portal and on payment, test of specific tower would be done," he added. Addressing an awareness programme on EMF emissions and telecom towers, the minister said, there are myths about the radiation and its impact on health which need to be eliminated by creating awareness. "Mobile connectivity and broadband are a necessity today and without infrastructure for this, we can not make our society cashless. There is a misconception...that electromagnetic emission from towers cause adverse impact on health. There are studies conducted by WHO and various countries but no study has so far established this fact," the minister claimed. Sinha further said that permissible limit for the radiation in India is ten times less than those in other countries. "It is necessary to install more towers to meet today's demand but due to this myth, there are difficulties in installing new towers. We want to create awareness among the people. The government is responsible and concerned for public health but some misconceptions prevail and they need to be addressed by awareness," he said. He also said that the government has allowed the telecom companies to install towers on the buildings of post offices and other government offices and asked the state governments to issue permission in their respective states too. "Norms are tight in India and we take stern action on violation of norms," the minister said, while asking the telecom companies and the state government officials to run awareness campaigns. Rajasthan Industry Minister Rajpal Singh, Mayor of Jaipur Municipal Corporation Ashok Lahoti, government officials and telecom companies were also present at the event. Mumbai: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday echoed the views of Prime Minister Nardendra Modi who had earlier said that the entire process of remonetisation will be completed within a short period of time. Earlier at an event, Modi had said that the country needed only 50 days from now to remonetise new currency notes back into the banking system. Jaitley who was speaking at FICCIs annual general meeting on Saturday said that Reserve Bank of India will be able to complete the exercise very soon. India has capacity to take decision on demonetisation. It's no longer a fragile economy, he said. He reiterated his earlier statement that demonetisation has it is very clear long-term benefits to offer "even if we have to bear short-term inconveniences." Citing the Constitutional compulsion in implementing the GST, Jaitley said that ideally GST should start from April 1, 2017 and Constitutional necessity for it to come into force between April 1 and September 16. Jaitley also highlighted the transition the country has undergone in the last year. "India has witnessed many changes in last one year. We now have a Monetary Policy Committee." The MPC in RBI was set up on the lines of Federal Open Market Committee in the US and similar bodies in other developed economies. Mumbai: One of the most interesting and unusual collaborations of all time , Aanand L Rai has joined hands with Anurag Kashyap and has signed him for two films under his home production, Colour Yellow Productions. Kashyap who has deep admiration for Rai and even spoke highly of his last film, Tanu Weds Manu Returns, will now direct 2 films for the producer. Interestingly, the first film will move away from Kashyaps signature off-beat and edgy flavor and instead will be a small-town love story. Sources reveal that the film will be shot in Bareilly , Varanasi and Lucknow and will go on floors in February next year. Adds the source, Anurag will be directing a love story set in a small town and has been traveling extensively across Uttar Pradesh,scouting for locations. He finally zeroed in on Bareilly , Varanasi and Lucknow. The film is extremely close to Anurags heart since it reconnects him with his roots. The director hails from UP and is happy to revisit the locations he fondly remembers. The cast is underway and they will start shooting in February next year. Mumbai: Shraddha, who was all set to sip coffee with M S Dhoni star Sushant Singh Rajput, has cancelled her Koffee With Karan shoot owing to medical emergency at home. A source close to Shraddhas team has informed Deccan Chronicle that the actresss chauffeur was rushed to a nearby hospital following a massive cardiac arrest. The actress is in hospital now, attending to her driver and supporting his family in this difficult time. New Delhi: There is no doubt that Rajkumar Hirani's biopic on Sanjay Dutt, starring Ranbir Kapoor, is one of the most anticipated films of 2017. The preparations for the film have already begun and previously we had seen a picture of Ranbir along with Hirani, Sanjays wife Maanayata and Vicky Kaushal. Since the announcement of the film, there have been numerous reports related to Ranbirs look in the film. Some have claimed that he will put on weight for his character and some have claimed that he will grow his hair for the part, though none of the reports have been confirmed yet. Numerous reports have also claimed that Ranbir has been interacting with Dutt to learn more about his life and mannerisms. Sanjay Dutt, however, opened up about the biopic at the Young FICCI Ladies Organisation's event in Delhi where he was accompanied by his sister Priya Dutt and Pooja Bhatt. About the biopic, Dutt was reported as saying, "My life might be interesting, thats why a director like Raju Hirani liked it. Ranbir is playing me, but his condition is quite bad. He calls me everyday. He wants to spend days and weeks with me, but I can't spend more than half an hour with anybody. I have been trying to avoid him, it is a difficult role for him to play. He is a fine actor though." Pooja also said, Tell Ranbir that this is not how it works. You have to live, you have to fall, no one can become Sanjay Dutt like that. The generation today, nobody says anything without a PR person, nobody steps out without a stylist. When Sanju cut his hair in that mohawk style and wore that ganji, it became a rage. I don't think that just by spending weeks with Sanjay, Ranbir will be able to play him. Maybe he needs a few more knocks." The biopic is also set to star Anushka Sharma and Sonam Kapoor. Type 98 main battle tanks of the People's Liberation Army Ground Force. (Photo : PLA) One of the newspapers of the Communist Party of China (CPC) has for the third time urged China to invade Taiwan or the Republic of China and dismiss peaceful reunification. The strident calls for bloody action is the third made by the newspaper, the most inflammatory among the mouthpieces owned by the CPC, was triggered by Donald Trump's phone conversation with Taiwan President Tsai Ing- wen two weeks ago. Advertisement The tabloid, which has made a name for itself by its hate-filled denunciations of the U.S., said in an editorial that China should prepare to invade Taiwan. "It might be time for the Chinese mainland to reformulate its Taiwan policy, make the use of force as a main option and carefully prepare for it," said the tabloid. China might "introduce a series of new Taiwan polices, and may not prioritize peaceful reunification over a military takeover if Trump (insists) on his provocations." The tabloid calls on China to make rapid preparations for a cross strait attack, and warned any step towards formal independence by Taiwan could result in consequences inimical to Taiwan.. "Once Taiwan independence forces violate the Anti-Secession Law, the Chinese mainland can in no time punish them militarily," said the editorial. "Getting ready to achieve reunification through the use of force can pose a serious deterrence to Taiwan independence. "The military status quo across the Taiwan Straits needs to be reshaped as a response and punishment to the current administration." The U.S. severed diplomatic relations with Taiwan in 1979 after adopting the "One China" policy in 1972 that recognized Beijing as the sole Chinese state despite the existence of two governments. The avoidance of any personal communication between the presidents of both countries is because of the One China policy. Trump's phone conversation with President Tsai, which the White House said was made by Ms Tsai, is the first between a U.S. president or president-elect and a Taiwanese president in over three decades. Trump administration officials confirmed the president-elect did speak with President Tsai. They said Trump "noted the close economic, political, and security ties" between Taiwan and the United States. Trump later tweeted: "The President of Taiwan CALLED ME today to wish me congratulations on winning the Presidency. Thank you! "Interesting how the US sells Taiwan billions of dollars of military equipment but I should not accept a congratulatory call." Trump said it was hypocritical for Washington to provide Taipei with weapons but prevent the U.S. and Taiwanese leaders from communicating. Taiwanese officials said President Tsai did congratulate Trump on his election victory, and also shared her ideas on other matters such as Taiwan's domestic economy and national defense. The U.S. is legally bound by treaties to defend Taiwan in the event of war with China. "The two briefly exchanged views on affairs in Asia," said the office of Ms Tsai in a statement. Trump later suggested the U.S. scrap the One China Policy. "I fully understand the One China policy, but I don't know why we have to be bound by a One China policy unless we make a deal with China having to do with other things, including trade," he said. Mumbai: Kareena Kapoor Khan, who stepped in the world of Indian cinema at the age of 20 with her debut film Refugee, was never keen on finishing college. Since academic performance never held much of an importance to the actress, she often bunked her classes and accompany sister Karisma Kapoors at her shoot. It was after marrying Saif Ali Khan that Bebo regretted discontinuing her education. While talking a magazine, Kareena said, I do regret skipping education. I meet Saif and his friends, and I feel like we get stuck in this whole thing of movies and monies, without having anything else to fall back on. The actress now tries to travel, meet different people and explore new things in life and thats exactly what she wants for her child. His family and friends are so well-read; some are Rhodes scholars, and most have studied at Oxford, Cambridge or Winchester. He is so particular about academics with his kids, Sara and Ibrahim as well, and I am happy that he will be so with this child too. I come from a family which has been obsessed with the movies, but as I have grown older, I have realized there is more to life than just that. Now I try to travel, meet different people, explore new things. And I want that for my child, Kareena said. Mumbai: Amid reports that Rajinikanth turned down his request to dub for the Tamil version of upcoming film 'Dangal', actor Aamir Khan said they felt the southern megastar's voice didn't suit his character. As per reports, Aamir had screened the film for Rajinikanth and also requested him to dub for his character for the Tamil version, which was turned down politely by Rajinikanth. "The film will be dubbed in Tamil and Telugu. I did approach Rajini sir and he loved the film. We both felt his voice is too recognisable, as he is too famous. We felt his voice will not suit my face. He loved the film and is very encouraging," Aamir told reporters here at the teaser launch of 'Secret Superstar'. He said a dubbing team will take a call to find a suitable voice for the Tamil version. Aamir and Rajinikanth had worked together in 1995 film 'Aatank Hi Aatank'. Asked about collaborating with the south star again, Aamir said, "I would love him to do Hindi films. I would love to work with him. I am a big fan of him. I am looking forward to 'Robot 2'." It seems like Bollywood actress Sonakshi Sinha will finally be back in Tamil post her much-talked about film, Lingaa, with Superstar Rajinikanth. This time around, she has been approached for the Tamil remake of Mtown blockbuster, Bhaskar the Rascal. The Malayalam movie, directed by Siddique, had Mammootty and Nayanthara in the lead, who played parents to small kids. The film was a family entertainer, where Mammootty essayed a short-tempered widower, while Nayan played a single parent. Earlier Rajinikanth was approached by the makers to reprise Mammootty but since he turned down the offer, they were waiting for the right choice. Finally, Arvind Swamy, who made a comeback with Thani Oruvan, was finalised for the male lead. Interestingly, the actor has become a name to reckon with now, as his Dhruva, the Ttown version of Thani Oruvan is doing well in AP. Sources say that Nayan, when approached, was not keen to do the film yet again in Tamil. The remake rights have been bought by producer Murugan, who earlier did films like Jannal Oram and the recent Shenbagakottai. He confirms that Swamy has been brought on board and did agree that they wanted Nayanthara to be part of Tamil as well. Siddique will be directing the Tamil version as well, Murugan told DC. He was, however, tight lipped about Sonakshi being on board. A source close to him informed us that Amala Paul is also a strong contender to play the heroine. But in all probability, the Akira star seems to be the front runner as she has agreed to hear the script, he adds. Actress Sunainaas performance in Deekays Kavalai Vendam was unanimously appreciated by critics and the audiences. While the actress is in talks with several projects in Tamil and Telugu, she has now been signed on for Samuthirakanis Thondan, which will feature Vikranth in the lead role. Confirming the news, Sunainaa says, I am really happy to have bagged this project and will join the sets on December 23. I am currently shooting for a Telugu project and I am looking forward to be a part of this ambitious team. Rumours were abuzz that the actress will be essaying Samuthirakanis pair. When asked, Sunainaa neither confirmed nor denied the news. I think its too early to talk about my characterisation. All I can say is that Thondan will deal with a lot of important societal issues, she explains. While Samuthirakani plays an ambulance driver in the film, Vikranth plays an ambulance attendant. The film is touted to be an action-drama and is set against the backdrop of a small-town. It will concentrate on the lives of four major characters. THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Actor Dhanya Mary Varghese, her husband and actor John Jacob and his brother Samuel Jacob were arrested by the city police in connection with a Rs 130 crore real estate scam. The accused, who were absconding for quite sometime, were arrested from a hideout in Nagercoil on Thursday night. Johns father Jacob Samson hailing from Muttada here was arrested earlier in this connection. According to police, a construction firm, Samson and Sons Builders and Developers, run by the accused collected about Rs 100 crore from customers offering around 500 flats and 20 villas in various parts of the district. Another Rs 30 crore was collected from many investors offering attractive returns. As the firm failed to handover projects on time, the customers approached the police. Investors who did not get the assured returns also approached the police. Subsequently Mr Jacob, who was the companys chairman, was held last month. Dhanya was heading the marketing wing of the firm and her husband was MD and his brother a director. Dhanya shot into prominence for her 'girl next door' looks that Malayalis loved. Despite being active in Malayalam and Tamil industry for seven years Dhanyas presence was forgettable with a bunch of flop movies and average performances. Police said many of the customers of the firm were Non-resident Indians. A probe is also on to trace any investments made by the accused. A team led by city crime detachment assistant commissioner M.S. Santosh and Peroorkada circle inspector Suresh Babu is probing the case. Sonu Anna Jacob always had a penchant for anchoring. But it was a Facebook post by television-host-turned-actor Jewel Mary that led Sonu to emceeing. I had received offers from television channels to host shows. But, I couldnt take them up as I was busy with my studies. I saw Jewel Marys post about a firm looking for emcees, almost eight months ago. I applied for it and got it, says Sonu, who moved to acting later. She is now a part of Midhun Manuel Thomas latest venture Alamara. I have been doing shows inside and outside the state. And, one day I come across the audition call for Midhun Chettans movie.. I play the character Divya, sister of Sunny Waynes character, in the movie. She is a naughty person and is there throughout the movie. I am happy that I could do a significant character in my debut movie, she adds. Sonu had acted in a video song Onavarnagal before. That was the first time I faced the camera, she says. The shooting of Alamara was held in Kochi and Bengaluru. I was the only first-timer on the sets. Obviously, I was a little tense, she smiles. But, prior to the shoot, Midhun chettan brought me to the set and introduced me to actors and briefed me the technical aspects of movie making so that I would have a clear idea about what it takes. That was a relief, adds Sonu, a native of Punalur. She is currently settled in Ernakulam with her parents and brother. Sonus combination scenes were mostly with Seema G. Nair, Renji Panickar, and Sunny Wayne. I had a 13 to 14-day shoot. The whole experience was good, says the 22-year-old. Ask her about her future plans, she says, I want to continue emceeing. Also, I am listening to other scripts. My CA final examinations will be in 2018. So, I have enough time to pursue my passion. I want to do more movies with good characters, she signs off. Ram Charans new release Dhruva may not have fared as well as expected, but its leading man is not crying over spilt milk. On the contrary, he feels that the film and his team did well during these times of recession. We knew the financial situation was unfavourable prior to our films release. But we had no choice except to release on time. We were prepared for a meltdown and expected at least 30 percent of the audience to stay away, he says. All of us worked towards economizing on the budget without compromising on the product. Considering everything, I am happy with the outcome, adds Ram Charan. On why he chose to do a remake of a Tamil film, Ram Charan shoots back gently, Better a decent remake than a bad original. Content is king now. It doesnt matter what the source of the content is or where its coming from, as long as it is workable. We liked the Tamil original and decided to do it in Telugu with some changes. With Arvind Swamy playing a powerful villain in the film, did Ram Charan ever feel he was giving the co-actor too much footage? Ram Charan laughs off the assumption and says, Content dictates my decision to do a film. I have gone wrong in my selection of roles recently. It is no longer important for me to be seen in every frame as I know my fans want me on the screen. But hero-worship should not be allowed to corrupt the plot and narrative of a film. My fans should go to see a good film, not just me. Otherwise they wont remain my fans for too long. Ram says he couldnt consider a postponement of Dhruva because his fathers film is also coming up for release. What choice did I have? My fathers film Khaidi No. 150 is all set for a Pongal (January 13) release. I couldnt push my own release to clash with his film as it is a very important film. It is my fathers 150th release and we cant afford to make even one false move. I am not just his son, but also the producer of this film, he says. Fans that are eager to see the father and son together need not go home disappointed. We have done a song together and I have a small cameo too. Just a token presence for sentimental reasons. My fathers film doesnt require my presence, says the doting son. Ram Charan moves to his next project in February. Right now, my focus is on the release of my fathers film. Were planning a much bigger release for Khaidi No. 150 than Dhruva. Naturally, I can only breathe easy after Pongal. I will start my next film after my fathers film is released, he says. Ram Charan has been married to Upasana Kamineni for four years now. When asked the recipe for marital happiness, the actor says, I wish I knew. I am still trying to discover it! Is fatherhood on the cards anytime soon? I am a child myself! protests the 31-year old matinee idol. Give us more time to enjoy each others company. But yes, fatherhood will happen soon, he says. A volunteer in Burkina Faso puts her arm in a box with mosquitoes to test "Faso Soap", a project to create a cheap product to repel mosquitoes and protect people from malaria. (Photo: AFP) Ouagadougou: Thrusting their arm into a box full of hungry mosquitoes, a group of brave volunteers in a Burkina Faso laboratory test an innovative weapon in the fight against malaria -- soap. The team behind the "Faso Soap" project aims to create a cheap, accessible product to repel mosquitoes and protect people from a disease that claimed nearly 500,000 lives in 2015, most of them in Africa. With one eye on a stopwatch, Gerard Niyondiko, the Burundian researcher behind the special soap, watches the behaviour of around a hundred hungry female mosquitoes. The volunteers wait to be bitten, but the odorous liquid -- a secret mix of local plant oils -- applied to their skin beforehand protects them from the cloud of hungry insects. In the small laboratory in Burkina Faso's National Centre for Malaria Research and Training in Ouagadougou, Niyondiko has been working since June to test the effectiveness of the soap at repelling mosquitoes and refine the recipe using different oils. In West Africa, "malaria kills a child every two minutes", Niyondiko says. Of the 214 million people infected with malaria in 2015, 88 percent of cases were registered in Africa, according to the World Health Organization. Among them, 438,000 died and children are the most vulnerable. Protection for all The idea of using soap came from seeing that malaria continued to spread despite the distribution of mosquito nets. "Mosquito nets offer protection during sleep but they keep the heat and the most vulnerable populations can't afford to buy repellent for the whole family to protect them the rest of the time," Niyondiko said. "So we thought about a product used in the everyday life of these populations, which doesn't require any change of habits." Soap was ideal, he said, because "it's a product that even the poorest households buy and the whole family can share it". "If we manage to integrate (malaria) prevention into this product which is already available at an accessible price, it will mean we can save people who are unwilling or unable to spend more to protect themselves," he said. The project is targeting the six countries worst affected by malaria in sub-Saharan Africa, which includes Burkina Faso. "We are working on prevention with a new tool: bringing together two things which don't at first glance have anything in common: hygiene and malaria," said Lisa Barutel, 28, one of Niyondiko's two associates on the project. By using local essential oils as repellent, Niyondiko and his team hopes to keep costs to a minimum. "Our aim is not to get rich. We want to save 100,000 lives by 2020," he said, echoing the project's slogan. Invention for everyone After training first as a chemist, Niyondiko won a bursary to leave Burundi and study for a master's degree at the International Institute for Water and Environmental Engineering in Ouagadougou. There in 2013 he met Frenchwoman Barutel, who was in charge of helping students with their projects. She set up an incubator for projects with a social aspect in Ouagadougou and helped Niyondiko gather funding. Faso Soap hit the headlines in 2013 when it won the $25,000 Global Social Venture Competition, an international award run by a network of business schools around the world. But a lack of funding put the project into standby mode until 2015, when it relaunched with a more scientific approach and partnered with a French start-up specialising in micro-encapsulation, a technique to allow the soap's active ingredients to work effectively for longer. A crowdfunding drive earlier this year raised 70,000 euros ($73,000). The laboratory tests now are being done in line with a scientific protocol so the soap can be approved by WHO and afterwards used in other countries. There are two stages of development to go before the soap can be released to the public, and Barutel said she hopes to "help a whole country" with their "invention for everyone". Optimists may also have less inflammation in their bodies, a condition that can negatively affect heart health, experts say. (Photo: Pixabay) People who expect good things to happen in the future are more likely than less-optimistic peers to survive the decades following a first heart attack, a study in Israel suggests. The results dont prove that optimism extends life, but doctors should nevertheless consider including optimism training in patients rehabilitation after heart attacks, the study team writes in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. It is important to note that optimism is not simply a rosy glow over the world; in contrast, optimists are more likely to acknowledge risks and plan how to cope with them, senior author Yariv Gerber said by email. Optimists may be more likely to face challenges such as making the lifestyle changes recommended after heart attacks, added Gerber, who chairs the epidemiology and preventive medicine department in the school of public health at the Sackler Faculty of Medicine at Tel Aviv University. Optimists may also have less inflammation in their bodies, a condition that can negatively affect heart health, he noted. To examine the link between optimism and heart attack patients survival, researchers studied 664 people who were under age 65 in 1992 and 1993 when they had their first heart attacks. The average age at the time of the heart attack was 52; 15 percent were women. While they were in the hospital recovering, participants completed a Life Orientation Test, which assessed their general level of optimism or pessimism. In 2015, researchers followed up to see who was still alive. They found that 284 patients, or 43 percent had died. After accounting for things like age, sex, education, employment, smoking, as well as emotional factors like depression and social support, the study team found that people who had scored in the top-third for optimism right after that first heart attack were 33 percent less likely to have died in the intervening years than those with scores in the bottom and middle thirds. The most optimistic people were also more likely to be educated, employed and to have social support, the study found, and optimists were less likely to smoke or be depressed. An increasing number of scientific studies have shown a connection between emotional wellbeing and physical health, said Heather Rasmussen, a psychologist at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, in email to Reuters Health. Optimists may be more likely to have healthier behaviors and to seek out positive social support from people in their lives, said Rasmussen, who was not involved in the study. Other researchers have suggested that optimism and positive emotions could even have effects on a person's biology, Rasmussen said. All of these ideas have some research support - but we need additional studies to further figure out these relationships. It may not be possible to turn someone into an optimist, as the trait may be inherited or based on past experiences, Gerber noted. However, even if people cannot learn to be optimistic, they can learn ways of coping or behaving that optimists use. In other words, even if you cannot turn a person into an optimist, you may be able to teach him/her to behave like one, Gerber said. Rapper Eminem walks backstage during the 52nd Annual GRAMMY Awards held at Staples Center on January 31, 2010 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo : Getty Images/Christopher Polk) Brooklyn rapper Duval Clear, who is professionally known as Masta Ace, turned 50 on Dec. 4. One of the celebrities who greeted the rapper on his birthday is Detroit rapper Marshall Mathers III, who is professionally known as Eminem. Masta Ace celebrated his 50th birthday in New York City. During the event, a video of Eminem paying tribute to the Brooklyn rapper, was shown on a projector. Advertisement In the video, Eminem raps the verse of Masta Ace in the 1988 song "The Symphony." Aside from Masta Ace, the rap song, which was produced by Marley Marl, also featured his fellow Juice Crew members Big Daddy Kane, Craig G and Kool G Rap. Eminem, who considers Masta Ace as an inspiration, recorded the video at his Shady Records studio. At the end of the video, the "Rap God" rapper thanks Masta Ace for being one of his biggest influences when he was young. On May 13, Masta Ace released his fifth studio album titled "The Falling Season." The album has 24 tracks including the collaboration songs "Nana" featuring Deion, "High School S-t" featuring Torae, "Bang Bang" featuring Beej and Cormega, "Mothers Regret" featuring Heroine, "Mr. Bus Driver" featuring Nikky Bourbon," "Me and AG" featuring AG, "Labyrinth (Frankie Beverly)" featuring LT, "Young Black Intelligent (Y.B.I.)" featuring Pav Bundy, Hypnotic Brass Ensemble and Chuck D, "Say Goodbye" featuring Bundy and Wordsworth and "3000 Avenue X" featuring Your Old Droog. In October, Master Ace was added to the Marvel's hip-hop variant album cover series. his 1995 LP titled "Sittin' on Chrome" was included in the collection, The Boom Box reported. Before 2017, Masta Ace will be performing in Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, Norway and Sweden. He will also perform at B.B. King Lues Club and Grill in New York, New York on Dec. 29 and at Wellmont Theater in Montclair , New Jersey, on Dec. 30, according to Bands in Town. Watch Eminem rap Masta Ace's "The Symphony" verse here: Hyderabad: The states of Telangana and AP are not in the list of top five states that insure their health. Five states, namely, Mahar-ashtra, TN, Karnataka, Delhi and Gujarat contributed 69 per cent of the total health insurance premium, according to the annual report of the Hyderabad-based Insurance Regulatory Development Authority released on December 15. The IRDA report said, Rest of the 31 states and UTs including Andhra Pradesh and Telangana contributed 31 per cent of the total health insurance premium. Maharashtra alone contributed Rs 7,715 crore, that is, 32 per cent of total health insurance premium. On the other hand, the health insurance premium from the eight sister states of North Eastern India (including the state of Sikkim) was only Rs 195 crore (0.80 per cent) for the year 2015-16. The report revealed that the premium collection in the health segment continued to surge ahead at Rs 27,457 crore in 2015-16 from Rs 22,636 crore in 2014-15, registering a growth of 21.30 per cent. During the financial year the general insurance and standalone health insurance companies have settled 80.35 lakh health insurance claims and paid Rs 21,759 crore towards claims. Meanwhile, the life insurance industry in the country recorded a premium income of Rs 3.6 lakh crore during 2015-16 as against Rs 3.2 lakh crore in the previous financial year, registering growth of 11.84 per cent. Around 8.54 lakh claims were settled with a total payout of Rs 12,636 crore. The claim settlement ratio of LIC was better than that of the private life insurers. Settlement ratio of LIC had increased to 98.33 per cent, said IRDA. The number of claims rejected was 15,157 for an amount of Rs 736.51 crore. The number of claims pending at the year-end was 6,031 and the amount involved was Rs 444.23 crore. Motor business continued to be the largest non-life insurance segment with a share of 43.89 per cent. An IRDA official said, Instances have been brought to the notice of the authority that insurers are not complying with the orders of Consumer Forums, Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, and Awards of Insurance Ombudsman. All insurers have to comply with the orders of judicial and quasi judicial bodies as per time lines specified in the orders or within 60 days of receipt of the order by the insurer in cases where no time limit is specified in the order. If the insurer chooses to prefer an appeal against the order, such appeal shall be preferred within the stipulated time limit as per applicable rules and the customer should be informed. The Overseas Travel Insurance sector has issued 22.39 lakh overseas travel insurance policies covering 39.29 lakh persons. Bangkok and Pattaya are destinations that Indians visit a lot but if you spend enough time in the city of Chiang Mai in northern Thailand, you cant miss people raving about Pai. Situated amidst the hills of northern Thailand, Pai is a perfect example of a typical Thai village which is now seeing increasing tourist footfall. becoming a new tourist attraction. While hopping onto a mini bus from Chiang Mai bus station is an option for many tourists, I would suggest riding to Pai by renting a motorbike. Motorbike rentals are scattered all around the town and you can get one for about 250 THB or Rs 500 a day. Its what you probably pay to rent a two-wheeler in Goa. As soon as you weave your way off the traffic of Chiang Mai, youll understand why so many recommended you to visit Pai. Youll also understand why the joy of riding trumps a stiff bus ride. Highway 1095 that connects Chiang Mai to Pai is a drive through a breathtaking view of rolling mountain ranges, coffee plantations, tropical forests, and paddy fields. The density of rice fields increases as you get closer to Pai. Beware, however, as the road to Pai is treacherous. Extreme caution is advised. The 130-kilometre stretch is laced with steep climbs and slopes, back-breaking roads and 762 hairpin bends. No wonder riders wear bruises and bandages as a mark of pride and claim the Pai ride as a bragging ride. Besides, Pais markets sell tea coasters, fridge magnets, laptop stickers and t-shirts which help you further to boast about your trip. During the 4-6 hour ride, you can stop by one of the many quaint coffee shops to drain away weariness and refill your batteries. Here are some tips if you decide to ride Route 1095 Do a thorough check-up of the bikes you rent. Make sure everything is working fine including brakes, engine, lights and horns. Make sure to fill up. The tank tends to empty faster once youve covered half of it. You dont want to get stranded! A GPS can be incredibly helpful. If youre going far off the beaten path, its essential. If youre an inexperienced rider, start somewhere rural. Overall, if you have a chance to explore Pai by motorbike, do it. The experience is nothing short of magical. In September 2011, Venkat went on a solo trip to Ladakh after which he quit his job to devote nearly all his time for travelling and exploring. A doctor who claims to be an Ayurved has been accused of negligence that resulted in the death of a four-month-old baby boy while under his treatment in Bhongir on Friday. Hyderabad: A doctor who claims to be an Ayurved has been accused of negligence that resulted in the death of a four-month-old baby boy while under his treatment in Bhongir on Friday. The child was being treated for pneumonia for the past few days. Parents and relatives of the child assaulted the doctor and handed him over to the police which is investigating the matter. Mohammed Basheeruddin, 45, a resident of Bhongir, runs the Sheema Poly Clinic. The board at the clinic says Dr Md Basheeruddin BSc and BAMS from Osmania and children specialist. Basheeruddin had been treating Banu since he was born as he was sick. The baby recovered. But, for the past four days, he had high fever and was again brought to Dr Basheeruddin, who diagnosed pneumonia and started treatment. Since he only had an out-patient facility, the parents would come every day and return home in the evening. On Friday morning, when the doctor was checking the baby, the child fell unconscious and was later found dead. The shocked parents informed their relatives who rushed to the clinic and damaged furniture and assaulted Basheeruddin. Hyderabad: Panjagutta police arrested two people including a home guard for looting cash from a trader, who came to exchange new currency with demonetised currency. Police said that the Home Guard S. Naresh, who works with ACB and his friend Naveen looted `12 lakh from the victim a day ago. Mahesh and Venkanna from Nalgonda district had come to Hyderabad with Rs 12 lakh in Rs 2,000 notes. The accused looted their money and escaped, said an officer. Police found that Naveen had lured the traders to Hyderabad promising hefty commission for the cash exchange. He had convinced them that one party in Hyderabad want to exchange more than 15 lakh rupees in demonetised currency. Medininagar: A newly married woman was allegedly raped by her husband and his two friends at gun point at Rahaiya village in Palamau district, a police officer said on Friday. The accused, Afzal Ansari, had recently got married to the woman of the same village, Deputy Superintendent of Police Hiralal Ravi said. According to an FIR registered on the basis of the statement given by the victim, Ansari reached home along with his two friends - Bablu Singh and Afzal Mian - on Wednesday night. He then raped his wife and allowed his friends to commit the heinous crime in turn, police said, adding that the accused also recorded the act and threatened the woman with dire consequences. The victim, however, managed to escape the next morning and informed her parents, who took her to the police station. But the Officer-in-Charge reprimanded them and sent them back without registering a case, Ravi said. The DSP said he has directed to register a case against the accused, who were reported at large. Thiruvananthapuram: A 19-year-old youth was arrested on Saturday in connection with gold chain snatching and robbery cases in Thiruvananthapuram and Kanyakumari district in neighbouring Tamil Nadu. He was wanted in 13 gold chain snatching cases in both states, police said. Around 22 sovereigns of gold was recovered from the youth. He was nabbed while travelling along with his 21-year-old brother on a motorcycle with fake number plate at Anchalikode. The search is on to nab the brother said police sources. Kottayam: The father of ragging victim Avinash has filed a complaint with the police alleging that his son was physically and mentally harassed by a nine- member group of senior students of the Nattakam government polytechnic college. Sivadasan of Irinjalakuda, who filed the complaint with Mr K.G. Simon, Kottayam district police chief in- charge, on Friday said that the gang had undressed his son, a first-year student, and made him take push-ups on December 2. The accused forcibly fed the boy with liquor mixed with some substances. When Avinash came home, he was admitted to the Mother Hospital, Thrissur, with kidney complaints. The college authorities had failed to take any action against the guilty. Sivadasan urged the police to arraign the accused under the Kerala prohibition of ragging Act 1998 and SC/ST atrocities Act. The complaint was also forwarded to the Chingavanam sub- inspector of police. DC correspondent adds from Thrissur Dr P.M. Jayaraj, nephrologist at Mother Hospital, said that both the kidneys of Avinash were damaged due to excessive physical activity creating myoglobin protein in the blood which is filtered by the kidneys. If the amount of this protein is too high that will adversely affect the kidneys. Avinash is put on haemodialysis and he will recover within three weeks, he said. Meanwhile, the Nattakam polytechnic college has suspended the 9 students who allegedly ragged Avinash. A 20-year-old woman, was driven around in a car for over two hours and raped by a driver in South Delhis Moti Bagh area. New Delhi: A 20-year-old woman, who had come to Delhi from Noida to look for a job, was driven around in a car for over two hours and raped by a driver in South Delhis Moti Bagh area on late Wednesday night. The incident came to the light on Friday on the fourth year of the December 16 gangrape, which had triggered massive outrage forcing the government to come out with stricter legal provisions to deal with crimes against women. The girl, a resident of Noida, was waiting for a bus near AIIMS on Wednesday evening when the accused, Avneesh, 28, driving a car which had a home ministry sticker on it, offered to drop her. The police said the accused is the driver of a man whose father works in Central Industrial Security Force. Avneesh allegedly raped the girl inside the car in an isolated area in Moti Bagh and held her captive inside the cab. She, however, managed to flee around midnight and was found by a police patrol which brought her to South Campus police station on early Thursday morning. The accused was caught from the slums near the spot where the cab was parked. The accused was identified as a resident of Etah in UP. He has been staying in Delhi for the last three-four years. He is married with two kids. Earlier, he was a school cab driver. When the fruits they were carrying were examined carefully, it was found that they had carefully removed the fruit inside by making a small hole at the pedicel and had stuffed ganja into it. Bengaluru: The Parappana Agrahara police have arrested four people in separate cases while they were trying to sneak ganja inside the central prison in the last two weeks. The accused had concealed the contraband in sweet lemon and biryani packets. The police, who had information about ganja being smuggled into the prison, had kept a watch on the movement of suspicious persons. In one such case, Naveen Kumar, 26, and Sanjay, 20, both residents of Bapujinagar off Mysuru Road, were held when they were trying to smuggle the contraband hid inside sweet lemon. When the fruits they were carrying were examined carefully, it was found that they had carefully removed the fruit inside by making a small hole at the pedicel. Then they had stuffed ganja into it, without peeling or damaging the outer layer. Their questioning revealed that they wanted to give it to their friend, Ashoka, who was lodged in the jail. They had taken appointment to meet him and had planned it this way as it would not gain the attention of the prison staff, an official said. The police seized 402 grams of ganja from the duo. In another operation, Sanju, 21, a resident of Austin Town, was arrested when he was caught smuggling ganja packets hidden in biryani parcel. His friend, Abhilash, is lodged in the jail and is a drug addict. To supply ganja to him, Sanju had brought ganja hid inside the parcel. He had kept ganja sachets first and then had packed the parcel with biryani to cheat the prison staff. Based on information, the parcel was checked and his idea fell flat, the police said, adding that 402 g of ganja was seized from the accused. Meanwhile, Balaraju, a resident of Chikkabegur, was caught when he was trying to pass on ganja packets to an inmate. Ganja weighing 150 grams was seized from him. East Zone DCP Dr V. Ravinder displays the money recovered from a gang that had lured and robbed a man who had offered to exchange new currency. (Photo: DC) Hyderabad: Nine members including three junior artistes who were trying to exchange demonetised currency with new notes for a commission were arrested by the Suryapet police on Saturday. Police seized Rs 10 lakh currency in Rs 2,000 denomination notes from the gang. Police identified D. Raghav Rao, a farmer from Prakasam district in AP, as the kingpin of the first gang. He gathered Rs 5 lakh in new currency from nearby villages and chose Suryapet to exchange it for old notes as it was located on the Vijayawada-Hyderabad highway. He hired junior artistes M. Jivan Kumar, G. Narayana and K. Ramalinga Chary, apart from two others, D. Nageshwar Rao, farmer C. Raji Reddy, police said. Based on a tip-off, the police nabbed them and recovered the money. Suryapet Superintendent of Police Parimala Hana Nutan said they had intended to innocent persons who want to dispose of their old currency. They had planned to offer to exchange Rs 5 crore at about 20 per cent commission, she said. Their plan was to threaten anyone coming with a large amount of cash in the guise of police, and make off with the money. Another three-member gang came to Suryapet on Saturday morning to exchange Rs 5 lakh in new currency for old notes. Police nabbed O. Lingeshwar Reddy, O. Anil Kumar and M. Naresh Kumar and seized the currency, mobiles and a car from their possession. Student in gang robs exchanger A student was among a gang of six persons arrested by the police for robbing a trader when he came to exchange new currency for demonetised currency at Malakpet. The gang had followed the victim, C. Santhosh Kumar, stopped his vehicle on road and beat him up before snatching the cash bag containing `5.7 lakh. The police said one of the gang members had lured him to come to the city with the money by promising to fix a meeting with someone who would pay a hefty commission for the new currency. One of the suspects, Deshapaka Ravi Kumar, a student at Polytechnic College at Hayathnagar, called the victim and told him that a person wanted to exchange Rs 6 lakh in demonetised currency with new notes. He offered a five percent commission. Believing him, the victim came with Rs 2,000 and Rs 100 notes on December 13,, said Dr. A. Ravinder, DCP East Zone On the instructions of Ravi, the victim came to Moosarambagh on his two-wheeler, keeping the cash box on the footrest. At Landmark Apartment, when he parked his bike, three persons beat him up, took the cash and the bikes key and fled, he said. The police officer said the incident took place at 8.45 pm, and the other members of the gang kept watch over the area to prevent any passersby from coming to the victims rescue. Kim Go-Eun and Gong Yoo star in the tvN drama 'Goblin.' (Photo : YouTube/blaze31078) tvN's "Goblin," also known as "Guardian: The Lonely and Great God," has come under fire for indirectly promoting pedophilia to viewers. Many netizens were said to be upset with the brewing romance between Kim Go-Eun and Gong Yoo's characters in the show. "Goblin" has been getting attention for its A-list cast and refreshing storyline. The hype was so prominent that it even ousted other popular Korean dramas such as SBS' "The Legend of the Blue Sea" and KBS 2TV's "Descendants of the Sun." Advertisement However, as early as the fifth episode, many viewers are already voicing concern over the love line plot between Gong and Kim's character. In the show, the former transforms into a 936-year-old immortal goblin and protector of souls, while the latter portrays a senior high school student. With this, many netizens took to the drama's official website, as cited by All Kpop, asking screenwriter Kim Eun-Sook to reconsider the love angle between the two. They even stressed that the dialogues between the two lead stars are uncomfortable to watch. "Do I have to watch a drama that portrays a pedophile in 2016?" one netizen wrote. "The man who looks like he is middle aged and a minor falling for each other is being portrayed as romance...It's disgusting." Despite that, "Goblin" was crowned the most influential television show for the first week of December. It took the first place with a record of 7,449 points, ruling over SBS' "The Legend of the Blue Sea" and MBC's "Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-Joo," according to CJ E&M, as cited by The Kpop Herald. With the show's growing popularity at home and abroad, the "Train to Busan" actor's brand reputation has also increased. It was reported that around 50 to 65 advertisers have contacted Gong's agency, Management Soop, to secure a potential endorsement deal with him. Check out Gong and Kim's on-screen romance in tvN's "Goblin" here: Bhopal: A tribal girl in a Madhya Pradesh district was allegedly gang raped by a local BJP leader and his five accomplices for refusing to withdraw a molestation case filed against him by her, police said. The incident took place in Amla in Baitul district. According to the victim, who is admitted in a serious condition in the district headquarters hospital at Baitul on Saturday, the local BJP leader, a former ward member, along with his five accomplices broke into her house late on Thursday night and abducted her. I was taken to nearby jungle and raped for 36 hours by the six. They beat me before raping me I was threatened of dire consequences if I did not withdraw the case of molestation filed against the former ward member, the key accused. I was abandoned in the jungle when I became unconscious. I later walked 13 km to reach Baitul and called my in-laws on phone to narrate my ordeal. They took me to the womens police station to lodge FIR against the accused. But, I was asked to go to Azad police station to lodge the case. The Azad police station again turned me back asking me to go to Amla police station to file FIR, she said. However, her in-laws rushed her to the hospital when her condition worsened.The incident triggered public outrage in the state. State home minister Bhupendra Singh ordered a probe into the incident. Chennai: The CBI registered a case against three employees of Suramangalam head post office in Salem for alleged malpractice in exchanging old notes worth nearly Rs 50 lakh between November 8 to November 16 after the central government announced demonetisation. Cases of criminal conspiracy and cheating along with a section under prevention of corruption Act were slapped against V. Vasudevan, postmaster, M. Sekhar, treasurer and Murugesan, cash overseer, all working in Suramnagalam head post office. CBI sources said that the case was registered on Thursday based on reliable information that the three had exchanged Rs 49.72 lakh worth of old notes in an unauthorised way in a weeks time and obtained pecuniary benefits to themselves. Of the total Rs 49.72 lakh, an amount of Rs 45.21 lakh was exchanged in an unauthorised way while another Rs 4.51 lakh was exchanged without request slip at exchange counters of the post office. It may be noted that the various central agencies had been actively hunting for black money holders and government and bank employees who had been illegally helping such black money hoarders to exchange old notes after the central government scrapped old Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes. While the income-tax department had been unearthing huge stash of old and new notes, sleuths from enforcement directorate had been following the possible money laundering moves of such black money hoarders while the CBI had been slapping cases on government employees helping such hoarders exchange notes illegally. Chittoor: A daily wage worker in the Chittoor district of AP was shocked when he received a message about Rs 1.26 crore credited to his account in Andhra Bank branch at Gurramkonda on Wednesday. The relatives and friends of the worker Nazeer were elated and also astonished when he disclosed the bank balance to them. However, the elation evaporated after bank officers declared that a technical error led to the wrong message. They also released the bank statement to make things clear. Branch Manager Afsar Ali said Nazir requested a bank correspondent of Saptagiri Grameena Bank Ms Sarada to deposit Rs 250 in his Andhra Bank account on December 14. She deposited the amount as desired by Nazir, but Nazir received a message on his mobile that Rs 1.26 cr was credited to his account. After a while, he received another message that it was a technical error and the sum was not credited to his account. Without noticing the second message, Nazir rushed to the bank after giving publicity to the deposit. Mr Afsar Ali told Nazir that no such amount was credited into his account and distributed the bank statement to the media. Belagavi: Escalating his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi on Saturday trashed demonetisation of high value currency notes as a "Modi-made disaster" and charged that he had attacked the economic system of the country to benefit the one per cent "super rich." "For the first time in the history of India, Prime Minister has attacked the poor people of this country. Usually the Prime Minister works for the country. They work for the economy, but Narendra Modi has attacked our economic system," Gandhi alleged at a Congress rally in Belagavi in north Karnataka. "As it is said a man-made disaster, in the same way demonetisation is Modi-made disaster," the Congress Vice-President said as he targeted the Prime Minister squarely blaming him for the hardships post-demonetisation. More than 100 people had died, he claimed, adding, "Fidel Castro (Cuban revolutionary) was remembered in the Parliament and we stood in silence for two minutes as a mark of respect to him, but BJP leaders did not have two minutes time for these hundred people." "Who is responsible for their deaths? Narendra Modi is responsible. In the last two and half years Narendra Modi government has been attacking the poor," he said. Accusing the Modi government of trying to divide India, he said on the one side, there were one per cent super rich who have private aircraft, flashy vehicles and big businesses and on the other, there were 99 per cent of people who are honest like farmers, labourers, small traders and middle class who toil every day for the sake of the country and their lives. "In the last two and half years, one per cent super rich in this country have amassed 70 per cent of India's wealth and if you look deep into this one per cent, only 50 families have major portion of India's wealth." "You know their names; these are the people who travel with Narendra Modi to America, Japan, and Australia," Gandhi said. "Congress wants to get rid of corruption from India and whatever step the BJP government takes whether it is big or small if it is against corruption we will give it full support," he said. Asserting that demonetization was not against the rich but against the poor, middle class, farmers, labourers and small traders, Gandhi said "all black money is not cash, and all cash is not black money." "Who has black money, it is with those 50 families, and it is with one per cent super rich in this country," he said. "All the black money is not in cash, India's thieves are clever, and as soon as they get money they invest it in land, real estate, gold or in foreign bank accounts like Swiss bank." According to government figures, he said six per cent of black money is in cash, 94 per cent in real estate, big buildings and in foreign bank accounts. Claiming that the Swiss government had given a list of Swiss bank account holders' names to Indian government, he said the Congress had been asking the government to table the names of "these thieves" in the Parliament for the last two and half years. "Why is it not being tabled? Why is Modi protecting them? Why are Lalit Modi and Vijay Mallya sitting in London? Why are they not in India? Why didn't you get them back? Vijay Mallya is India's thief. After demonetisation why did you waive Rs 1200 crore loan of this man? Answer me why did you feed him a toffee of Rs 1200 crore?" Gandhi said Modi knows that most part of black money is in Swiss bank, real estate and in huge buildings, "but I don't know for what reason instead of going after 94 per cent black money, he is after the six per cent. Instead of going after one per cent super rich he is behind 99 per cent. He is not after thieves, but behind poor farmers, labourers," Gandhi said. Chennai: DMK on Saturday deferred its December 20 general council meeting where party treasurer M K Stalin was expected to be elevated as working president. Stalin's elevation is on the cards as both party chief M Karunanidhi and veteran leader K Anbazhagan, who is also the party General Secretary, have not been keeping well lately. The general council meeting was postponed in view of the hospitalisation of Karunanidhi, Anbazhagan said. In a release, he said a new date for the general council meeting will be announced later. Another DMK headquarters release said Karunanidhi will be in the hospital for "some more days" to undergo treatment. The party asked party cadres and friends to avoid visiting him and "cooperate". The party had made a similar appeal when Karunanidhi was admitted to the hospital for drug-induced allergy in October. The party also quoted Kauvery Hospital's health bulletin yesterday which said Karunanidhi was stable having undergone the tracheostomy procedure. Although generally active, 92-year-old Karunanidhi was not keeping well in the recent past and he did not campaign in the November bypolls in Tamil Nadu though he hit the campaign trail for the May 2016 Assembly election. In the run up to the Assembly polls this year, the nonagenarian leader had said that he would be the chief minister if his party won the May 16 assembly election and his son M K Stalin has to wait "till nature does something to me". In October, he however gave ample indication that Stalin was on his way to become the party chief. "From his prison days (during emergency, 1975-77) where he faced a lot of hardships, he has worked very hard and elevated himself systematically to the position of future president of DMK," he had said. Also, Stalin's supporters, for the past few years, have been impressing upon the party leadership to pass on the baton to their leader. Stalin is the leader of opposition in the Assembly and party Treasurer. Chennai: In a case of suspected murder of a young woman by a Facebook friend, a 22-year-old BBA graduate was found dead in a lodge room close to her house in Mylapore on Thursday night. Police said that E. Nivetha of Veeraperumal Koil Street in Mylapore was found dead in room no. 210 of a lodge in Picnic Plaza on RK Mutt road on Thursday night after she went missing from her home on Wednesday evening at around 4.30. The lodge is hardly 2 km away from her house. Nivetha had completed her graduation in a private college for women in Teynampet and was attending an accounting course. At around 11.30 pm on Thursday, lodge staff found the room door closed but not locked. When there was no response, the lodge staff went inside and found the woman dead. There were strangulation marks on her neck. On receiving information, a team from theMylapore police station rushed to the spot recovered the body and sent it to government Royapettah hospital for autopsy. Police, after initial enquiry, said the victim had rented the room on Wednesday evening claiming it was for her friends. On Thursday morning, two youths had checked into the room and at around 9.30 am Nivetha too had come to the room. Later in the day the youths left the room and only at night was Nivethas body found with strangulation marks, police said. Police revealed that Nivetha had met one of the youths through Facebook and they started contacting each other over the phone. Police said they did not know if they were in a relationship. A special team has been sent to Bengaluru to trace the suspected killers. Police refused to divulge any details of possible sexual activities before the woman was killed. The victims father works in a paper shop. Chennai: DMK President M Karunanidhi, who was readmitted to Kauvery Hospitals on Thursday night, underwent tracheostomy on Friday to optimise breathing and his condition was stated to be stable. The 92-year-old was rushed to the hospital late Thursday night in his specially designed vehicle after the DMK patriarch experienced breathing issues. The hospital had last night said he was admitted with breathing problems due to throat and lung infection. DMK President and former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Dr Kalaignar M Karunanidhi, readmitted at Kauvery Hospital, Alwarpet, Chennai on 15th December 2016 with breathing difficulty due to throat and lung infection, has undergone tracheostomy to optimise breathing, the Kauvery Hospital said in its medical bulletin. It further said the DMK is stable, on antibiotics and is being treated by a team of doctors. The DMK's official Twitter handle and Mr Karunanidhi's Twitter handle tweeted the press release minutes after the hospital released it. Mr Karunanidhi's hospitalisation on Thursday night came seven days after he was discharged from the same hospital after a weeklong stay. DMK leaders said on Friday that Mr Karunanidhi's health is improving and that there was no need for worry. His family members were attending on him at the hospital, while a few political leaders also visited him. DMK treasurer M.K. Stalin, Rajya Sabha MP, Kanimozhi and former Union minister M.K. Alagiri were at the Kauvery Hospital. The DMK chief has not been seen in public functions after falling ill with a drug-induced allergy in October. New Delhi: Congress on Saturday asked Narendra Modi to stop "insulting" former heads of government a day after the Prime Minister cited a book to say Indira Gandhi paid no heed to the Wanchoo Committee's recommendation to demonetise high-value currency notes in 1971. "Stop insulting former prime ministers. Change the narrative and mindset... From Jawaharlal Nehru to Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Manmohan Singh to Indira Gandhi it is a long list. "When you insult them you do not insult Indira and Nehru, you also insult Lal Bahadur Shastri and Morarji Desai who demonetised high-value currency in 1978," Party's Deputy Leader in Rajya Sabha Anand Sharma said at the FICCI conference. The Prime Minister Narendra had on Friday cited a book to say that when the then Finance Minister Y B Chavan went to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and supported the exercise, she asked, "Only one question. Are no elections to be fought by the Congress party?" Accusing Congress of putting its interests before the country's, he had said what should have been done in 1971 has been done now by his government and that the delay in launching demonetisation caused a lot of damage to the country. In a retort, the Congress leader said, "It is sad... 1971 was the year when India gave Indira Gandhi a massive mandate. The same year we were challenged by the then East Pakistan. India had 10 million refugees. "Genocide was going on in what is now known as Bangladesh. China, siding with Pakistan, had moved troops to the border. India had the courage and strength to take the decision and the rest is history." The country celebrated Vijay Diwas yesterday to mark the win over Pakistan in the 1971 war. "It was a day to salute Indira and not insult her", he said. Taking a dig at Modi for calling himself a fakir, Sharma said, "I do not have that kind of a wardrobe but I will not call myself a fakir. We are public servants. We must serve people and understand their pain. We must have humility." Asked as to when Rahul Gandhi will make public the graft charges against Modi he claims to have proof of, Sharma said, "It will be done at the right time". He alleged that BJP purchased land in many states before the Prime Minister announced the decision to scrap high-value notes on November 8 and demanded the Centre bring a white paper on demonetisation. "Crores of rupees were deposited in banks and all that information should come through a white paper," he said. Sharma said the government in power needs to maintain balance "before issuing any narrative and for good governance. It is important to have a responsible opposition". Clearing the air on tax exemption with regard to depositing old notes by political parties, the Finance Ministry today categorically said they do not enjoy "any immunity" and are liable to be questioned like anyone else by the tax authorities. Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia clarified that political parties can not accept old 500 and 1,000 rupee notes as donations as both these bills have ceased to be legal tenders. "All reports on the alleged privilege to political parties are false & misleading. Political parties have not been granted any exemption or privilege, post demonetisation & introduction of Taxation Amendment Act, 2016," he said in a series of tweets. "Post demonetisation, no political party can accept donations in Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes since they were rendered illegal tenders. If there is any discrepancy, political parties are as liable to be questioned by IT authorities as is anyone else. They enjoy no immunity," he added. He said that income and donations of political parties fall in the purview of Sec 13A of the Income Tax Act 1961 and there is no change in its provision. "This is a provision of law which is more than 35 years old and no change is made in that now," Adhia said. Earlier the Central Board of Direct Taxes said that there are enough provisions in the Income Tax Act to scrutinise the accounts of political parties even though their income is tax exempt. Donations to registered political parties are exempt from income tax subject to certain conditions including audit of accounts and all donations above Rs 20,000 taken in tax, it said. Clarifying on reports that it cannot scrutinise tax returns of political parties, CBDT said: "There are enough provisions in the Income Tax Act to scrutinise the accounts of the political parties and these political parties are also subject to other provisions of Income -tax including filing of return." The exemption from Income-tax is given to only registered political parties subject to certain conditions, which are mentioned in Section 13A of I-T Act, which includes keeping and maintaining books of accounts and other documents as would enable the Assessing Officer to deduce its income therefrom "In respect of each voluntary contribution in excess of Rs 20,000, the political party will have to maintain a record of such contributions along with the name and address of such person who has made such contribution," the CBDT said in a statement. Further, the accounts of each political party are to be audited by a Chartered Accountant. Besides, political parties have to submit a report to the Election Commission about the donations received within the time-frame prescribed. The crew consisted of five Latvian citizens and British national Peter Bleach all of whom were arrested. Davy, a Danish citizen and the prime accused in the case, had escaped. (Photo: Videograb) New Delhi: India has made a fresh request to Denmark seeking extradition of Niels Holck aka Kim Davy, an accused in the 21-year-old Purulia arms drop case. The fresh efforts come after previous attempts to bring him to India for facing prosecution failed as the courts in Denmark rejected the extradition plea. CBI sources said a fresh request has been sent to Denmark but refused to divulge the new grounds under which it has been sent, citing confidentiality. Meanwhile, the Danish Justice Minister Soren Paulson was quoted by Copenhagen-based newspaper 'Berlingske' as saying that they have received the request from India. "Public Prosecutions will now consider the request under the provisions of the Extradition Act," the web site of the daily quoted a press release from the minister's office. "He stresses that it is important that the matter be treated as soon as possible, and with the thoroughness that such matters require," it said. The Danish government had accepted India's request for extraditing Davy, who was wanted in the infamous Purulia arms drop case, but he challenged the proceedings in a city court in Copenhagen which rejected the extradition. The Danish authorities challenged the decision in the High Court which also rejected their plea citing poor prison conditions, including overcrowding, torture and human rights record of India. The Danish legal authorities then decided not to pursue the matter further and refused to file an appeal in the Supreme Court there against the High Court decision. CBI sources said Indian authorities were not a party to the case and cannot directly intervene. They said the courts were not considering the merits of the alleged crime but on the prison conditions and human rights issues in India. The case relates to the incident on the night of December17, 1995, when an AN-26 aircraft dropped arms and ammunition in West Bengal's Purulia district. The consignment had hundreds of AK-47 rifles, pistols, anti-tank grenades, rocket launchers and thousands of rounds of ammunition. The crew consisted of five Latvian citizens and British national Peter Bleach all of whom were arrested. Davy, a Danish citizen and the prime accused in the case, had escaped. The crew were released from a prison in Kolkata in 2000 after requests from the Russian authorities, while Bleach was given a presidential pardon in 2004 following requests by the UK government. This is the fourth attack on security forces suspected to be carried out by the militants in the last three days. (Photo: Representational Image) Imphal: In an attack on security forces in Manipur, militants on Saturday attacked a small post of India Reserve Battalion (IRB) at Nungkao in Tamenglong district and took away nine sophisticated arms and ammunition, police said. In the attack that took place at around 12 pm, the suspected hill based militants looted four SLRs, three INSAS rifle, one AK rifle and another automatic firearm and ammunition. This is the fourth attack on security forces suspected to be carried out by the militants in the last three days. Three policemen were killed and 14 others injured in different incidents after the militants ambushed state forces at Lokchao and Bongyang in Chandel district, and Noney town in Noney district on Thursday. Of these attacks, today's is the first incident in which weapons has been carried away. However, unconfirmed reports said altogether 20 weapons were taken by the militants. Chief of Staff, Eastern Naval Command Vice-Admiral Atul Kumar Jain salutes after laying a floral wreath at the Navy War Memorial as part of the 45th anniversary of Vijay Diwas on the Beach Boad. (Photo: DC) Visakhapatnam: The Eastern Naval Command (ENC) has observed the 45th anniversary of Vijay Diwas on Friday by paying tributes to the valiant personnel of the Armed Forces who made supreme sacrifices in various operations, including the 1971 War. A floral wreath was placed at the Amar Jawan Jyoti, the Navy War Memorial on RK Beach by ENC chief of staff Vice-Admiral Atul Kumar Jain. Russian senior naval officer Deputy Chief of Flotilla, Pacific Fleet, Rear Admiral Eduard Mikhailov, who is on a visit to Visakhapatnam to participate in Indra-Navy Bilateral Exercise also placed a wreath and paid homage to the martyrs. A 50-man Guard paraded at the venue and a two-minute silence was observed as a mark of respect to the martyrs. The Defence Services across the country celebrate Vijay Diwas on De-cember 16 to commemorate Indias historic victory against Pakistan in the 1971 War. On this momentous day, the Pakistani forces under the command of Lieutenant General A.A.K. Niazi surrendered in Dhaka, in the presence of the three tri-service theatre Commanders of the Indian Armed Forces. It was on this day in 1971 that a declaration of cease-fire was brought into force, ending the Indo-Pak War and resulting in the birth of the sovereign country of Bangladesh. Hyderabad: A 62-year-old man and his friend allegedly forged the Governor's signature on MLA/MLC and Rajya Sabha MP nomination documents to get himself and his friend elected as an MLA and Rajya Sabha MP respectively. Maramraju Raghava Rao, a resident of Sainikpuri, who was earlier involved in cheating cases, sent the forged documents to the Governors office with an RTI application seeking why the nominations have not been implemented. Following a direction from Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan, CID sleuths arrested Raghava Rao on Saturday and a search is on for his friend Matta Raghuvamshi. CID officials said Raghava Rao and Raghu Vamshi forged nomination documents with the signature of the Governor and the CM to get elected as an MLA and MP. One wanted to get elected as MLA in the Governor's quota and the other wanted to get elected as a Rajya Sabha MP in the President's quota, said a CID official. They forged all documents and sent it to the Governor's office. The RTI enquiry application stated that all these were signed by the Governor and they have been nominated for the post, and why no official order has not been issued, the CID official said. The documents looked as if they were issued by the Governor. But they were fake, he added. The Governor asked the CID to investigate the source of the RTI query and find the duo. Police found they had been cheating people in the name of trusts. Hyderabad: The MIM on Saturday told the Backward Classes Commission that it wanted an increase in reservations between 9 and 12 per cent for socially, economically and educationally backward Muslims to reflect the proportion of backward sections in the community or the proportion of Muslims to the states population, by overcoming all legal hurdles. MIM MLAs, led by partys Floor leader in TS Assembly Akbaruddin Owaisi, submitting a memorandum to the commission, said, We feel that earmarking 12 per cent quota for SEBC Muslims under the BC reservations is the most crucial for TS governments onerous task, especially in view of the unenviable experience of erstwhile united Andhra Pradesh in providing the 4 per cent quota for SEBC Muslims in the state. The MIM said that previous governments had lost the opportunity to secure the 4 per cent quota for Muslims by getting the legislation relating to the same placed under the ninth Schedule of the Constitution of India with the help of the Union Government. MIM told the commission that the G. Sudheer commission of inquiry showed that nearly 82 per cent of the Muslim population in Telangana remained socially and educationally backward. It requested the commission to extend time for making submissions and suggestions. It urged the commission to visit other states, particularly Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Bihar that have been implementing reservation for the backward sections of Muslims, so that the models adopted by them can be adapted by TS. Meanwhile Old city has 18-hr power cuts: Owaisi The Bhadradri thermal power project in Manuguru in Khammam district, where work has been halted by a National Green Tribunal order over environmental issues, would be commissioned in 2017-18, power minister G. Jagadish Reddy told the Assembly on Saturday. He said the government was taking all the measures to put the project back on track. MIM floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi rubbished the claims of the state government over 24x7 power supply. He said the Old City had been witnessing power cuts every day, which extended to 18 hours in some areas. Mr Jagadish Reddy said the power cuts were due to the poor transmission and distribution network. The police is also investigating the role of the banks chairman Cheemala Jagadish Yadav in this process. (Representational Image) HYDERABAD: The Central Crime Station police here on Saturday arrested the chief executive officer of Gokul Cooperative Urban Bank on the charge of cheating eSeva run by the Information Technology department of the Telangana state government by way of misappropriating its funds. Suspect J. Balaiah Yadav allegedly diverted more than Rs 3.06 crore through issue of loans for him and other office-bearers of the bank without proper security. The police is also investigating the role of the banks chairman Cheemala Jagadish Yadav in this process. They have taken loans in lakhs of rupees in their own names without offering any proper security and used the money for buying cars, gold etc., for themselves. As many as 12 people including directors and higher officials of the bank are suspected to have misused the funds, said CCS Deputy Commissioner of Police Avinash Monaty. We have arrested the CEO as he is responsible for the entire operation. A probe is on and more arrests will follow, an investigation official said. Loans given on benami names In February 2004, the bank had been given permission to establish the eSeva facility as a franchisee centre on a prepaid model. The ESD had opened a current account in Gokul Bank for transactions of eSeva money. Over the years Rs 9,13,04,842 was credited to this account by citizens depositing money towards various government charges, said a probe official. The banks functionaries started loaning money from this amount to themselves, using benami names. Later when the ESD submitted its cheques the bank could clear cheques for only Rs 5,66,80,166. It didnt clear the rest of the amount Rs 3,06,24,676 and failed to repay the amount for a year, said the officer. Following a complaint from the government, the police started a probe and booked a case of cheating and breach of trust against the bank. Chennai: Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi called on DMK patriarch Karunanidhi on Saturday, who is undergoing treatment for lung and throat infection at a private hospital here, and said the leader was doing well. "I just met him, I wanted to personally wish him a speedy recovery. I was very happy to see that he is doing well and the doctors told me that he is going to go home pretty soon and that is good news," he told reporters. Flanked by senior party leaders including Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president Su Thirunavukkarasar and DMK treasurer M K Stalin, he hailed Karuananidhi as a "leader of the Tamil people, leader of Tamil Nadu, so I thought I would come and wish him personally." To a query, he said, "Yes I met him (Karunanidhi), I said hello to him and he is doing well hopefully he will be out (of the hospital) soon and Congress president (Sonia Gandhi) has also sent her regards to him." 92-year-old Karunanidhi was admitted to Kauvery Hospital here on the night of December 15 following complaints of difficulty in breathing due to throat and lung infection. Yesterday, he underwent tracheostomy at the hospital to optimise breathing and later the hospital said the DMK chief's condition was stable. Last night, after the tracheostomy procedure, his condition improved and even he watched a Rajinikanth starrer 'Batcha' on his laptop. This is the first visit that Rahul Gandhi is paying a visit to Karunanidhi in last many years. Even during his several previous visits to Tamil Nadu Gandhi he did not call on the nonagenarian leader though Congress and DMK are allies. Weeks ago, when he had visited Apollo Hospitals here to enquire about the health of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, there were expectations in the DMK camp that he could pay a visit to party patriarch Karunanidhi as well. However, he did not visit the DMK chief then. Rahul Gandhi was accompanied by senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh during his brief visit. After visiting Karunanidhi, Rahul Gandhi immediately took a flight to Delhi from here. Former Union Minister and Rajya Sabha MP, P Chidambaram, TNCC president Thirunavukkarasar, Congress Legislature Party leader Ramasamy received him at the airport and also later saw him off. Bengaluru: A two -year- old toddler from Pakistan, Zeenia, recently underwent a bone marrow transplant that cured her of the rare Hemaphagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) disease, at Bengalurus Narayana Health City. The disease left her bone marrow without enough white blood cells and highly prone to infections. The little girl's father, Zia Ulla, a marketing and sales professional from Sahiwal near Lahore in Pakistan, tried a few hospitals in Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi but found that they were wary of doing the Haploidentical Stem Cell Transplant needed to cure her. We did not want to risk Zeenias life and were looking for hospitals that had done such transplants in the past when a friend suggested Narayana Health City, he recounted. While the obvious choice for a bone marrow donor was a sibling, Zeenia's parents believed their seven-and-a-half month old son was too young to be put under such pressure. But on arriving at Narayana Health City, they were told Ryan could safely donate some of his bone marrow to his little sister and so in August 2016, his first stem cell was extracted, making him the youngest donor in the country. Since the donor was very young, we decided to extract the marrow in two phases separated by six weeks so that his health was in no way compromised. Then by using small marrow extraction needles and with the assistance of our able team of anesthetists and others, we successfully extracted enough marrow to help cure Zeenia, explained DR Sunil Bhatt, senior consultant and head of the Paediatric Hematology, Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant unit at the Mazumdar Shaw Cancer Centre, Narayana Health City. Although the hospital has done some 650 odd transplants, it has treated only some three cases similar to Zeenias in the past. But it was successful in doing the transplant and the child, who was admitted to the hospital for five weeks, was discharged a month ago, fully cured. Zeenia's grateful father says he will one day bring his daughter back to the city to meet the doctors who gave her another shot at life. The family also intends to remain in touch with the doctors and regularly update them about Zeenias health. "Once we return to Pakistan we want to start an online page and share our story with the public at large. The page will also act as a platform to create awareness about the illness and the possible treatments," added Mr Zia. Kochi: Four persons, including three undergraduate students of Delhis St. Stephens College, drowned in Periyar river near Perumbavoor on Friday evening. They were identified as Kennet Jose, 21, Pulikattil Veetil, Meppadi, Waynand, Aditya Patel, 21, hailing from Uttar Pradesh, Anubhav Chandra, 21, of Bihar and Benny Abraham, 50, of Aliyattukudi Veetil, Kallungal Road, near Perumbavoor. Jose, Patel and Chandra were third-year students of BSc physics at St. Stephens College and were on a holiday trip to Kerala. The tragedy took place around 5 pm when the students were bathing near Irumalakkadavu at Paniyeil Poru, a major tourist attraction on the banks of Periyar. The students were staying in a resort owned by Benny near Irumalakkadavu. Benny jumped into the river to rescue the students when he saw them drowning after being caught in a whirlpool. Hearing the commotion, the local people rushed to the spot and managed to pull out the four, but their lives could not be saved. The spot is known for its death traps for tourists because of strong undercurrents, though the water is only few feet deep, police said. The three were part of a 19-member team of students, including Maria, daughter of Benny, who had come on a study tour. They reached Kerala three days ago and visited Wayanad and Thrissur before reaching Perumbavoor on Friday afternoon. Benny was the assistant manager of the Kolenchery branch of National Insurance Company. He is survived by wife Eliamma, daughters Susan, Raichal, Maria and son-in-law Ray John. Kennet Jose leaves behind his mother Sisy and siblings Dennet and Beninta. The bodies of the deceased were kept in the mortuary of Perumbavoor taluk hospital. Minister V.S. Sunilkumar, MLAs Eldhos Kunnappilly, Eldhos Abraham, Antony John and former MLA Saju Paul and several others visited the hospital and paid homage to the dead. The university has decided to give five types of cards to alumni based on their contributions centenary card for Rs 500, gold card for Rs 1,000, platinum card for Rs 5,000, VIP card for Rs 1 lakh. Hyderabad: Osmania University on Saturday launched the separate website for the centenary celebrations on Friday. The website gives the history of the university, pictures from the archives of visits from renowned personalities including Nobel laureate Sir C.V. Raman, and former President Neelam Sanjiva Reddy. Most information is brief, and will not whet the appetite of those wanting to know more about the university. OU officials said that some information such publications and the Osmania Song will be uploaded soon, centenary celebrations calendar will be uploaded as and when they are finalised. The website has a payment gateway for those who desire to financially contribute to the centenary celebrations. The money will be used to construct infrastructure including hostels and classrooms as part of celebrations. The university has drawn up a plan for about Rs 100 crore. The university has decided to give five types of cards to alumni based on their contributions centenary card for Rs 500, gold card for Rs 1,000, platinum card for Rs 5,000, VIP card for Rs 1 lakh. A custom card is also on offer. Those who pay the Rs 1 lakh for the VIP card will be invited for dinner on the inaugural day of centenary celebrations. The names of all donors will be listed on the website regardless of their contribution. A similar gateway has been incorporated for alumni residing abroad with the same cards but the donations sought is in dollars. THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Based on the state police intelligence report, four state BJP leaders are expected to be provided with Y category security soon. BJP state president Kummanam Rajasekharan, former president P.K. Krishnadas and general secretaries M.T. Ramesh and K. Surendran will get Y category security and expenses will be borne by the state government. On December 10, a team of Central Reserve Police Force officials visited the state BJP office and the homes of these senior party leaders. Usually, Y category security is provided to all the Union ministers. Mr Kummanam told this newspaper that CRPFs director general K. Durga Prasad asked his commandant in charge of security and investigations, Ved Prakash who held talks with him and other state BJP leaders. It is the responsibility of the Kerala police to provide security to the four BJP leaders. We have been informing police about threats we have been receiving. Recently, the police intelligence team had nabbed a few offenders and they came to the conclusion that our lives are under threat. Accordingly, we are now hoping that the Kerala police will give us with Y category security, said Mr Kummanam. It is reliably learnt that these four BJP leaders were receiving threat from supporters of a particular political party as well as from terrorist organisations. BJP sources told this newspaper that Ved Prakash interacted with chief protocol officer of the state as well. There are unconfirmed reports that from January, all the four state BJP leaders will get Y category security by a 11-member police team round the clock and two security men will be always with them round the clock. Intelligence ADGP R. Sreelekha confirmed to DC that already these four leaders are being provided security by the Kerala Police. I cant talk more as it is an internal security matter, said Ms Sreelekha. Hyderabad: Nearly a dozen members of the Congress and TDP were suspended on Saturday from the Telangana Legislative Assembly over their demand for debate on defection of Opposition MLAs into ruling TRS. The suspension of nine Congress and two TDP MLAs for the day came as the Opposition members entered the well of the house. Talking to reporters after suspension, Congress MLA M Bhatti Vikramarka alleged that their suspension and alleged defection of Opposition members into TRS was against principles of democracy. The ruling TRS MLA G Suneetha told reporters that the Congress members tried to stall the House as they did not want the good work being done by the government to be discussed in the House. It was decided to take up any adjournment motion after Question Hour but Congress members tried to stall the proceedings, she said. Congress and TDP adopted double standards on defection as Opposition YSR Congress members have joined the ruling TDP in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh now and Opposition members were admitted into Congress when Y S Rajasekhar Reddy was Chief Minister in undivided Andhra Pradesh, she alleged. Owaisi alleged that the demonetisation was announced only to bail out collapsing banking industry on account of mountains of bad debts and a few big corporates who were debt-ridden. (Photo: File) Hyderabad: MIM floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi on Friday advised Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao against blindly supporting Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his demonetisation drive. Instead, Mr Owaisi asked him to support people who are facing several hardships for nearly 40 days due to the cash crunch. The debate on the Central governments ban on high value notes in the Legislative Assembly led to an exchange of words between Mr Owaisi, the Chief Minister and BJP floor leader Kishan Reddy. Mr Owaisi alleged that the demonetisation was announced only to bail out collapsing banking industry on account of mountains of bad debts and a few big corporates who were debt-ridden. He said all claims of banning high value notes to check black money, terrorism etc are a farce. Commenting on Mr Chandrasekhar Raos support to the BJP on the note ban, Mr Owaisi said, This is a strange situation! We are supporting the TRS and the TRS is advocating for the BJP. Too much of an advocacy is not good. Mr Rao, however, objected to Mr Owaisis remarks saying that he was not advocating for anyone but only supporting it in the interest of nation with the confidence in the PMs decision. Mumbai: Questioning BJP over the washed out winter session of Parliament, ally Shiv Sena on Saturday asked the ruling partner to acknowledge its party patriarch L K Advani's worries and called for a special session to discuss the demonetisation issue. The Sena remarks come after Advani expressed anguish and concern for the second time over the logjam in the Parliament during its winter session. Terming Advani as the 'Bhishma Pitamah' of Indian politics, the Sena said he has raised a question mark over parliamentary democracy in the country. "It should be noted that Advani is not a Congress leader. One must bear in mind that he has been at the forefront of the anti-Congress politics," an editorial in Sena mouthpiece Saamana said. The article remarked that the soul of the Parliament has been "lost" in the drama in its proceedings over the past two years. "Parliament is meant to debate serious issues of concern to people. But the opposition raises questions and creates chaos, while the government runs away from these issues. This is the picture today," the Sena said. Saying that the Prime Minister gets emotional at times, the editorial pressed the government to take cognisance of the situation and also called for a special session to discuss demonetisation. "If the Prime Minister and the government are not going to say anything on this, then a special session of Parliament should be convened and the RBI Governor should be summoned in Parliament," the editorial said. Hyderabad: The Telugu Desam, a part of the NDA government at the Centre, has decided to lodge a complaint against the CBI and Enforcement Directorate with the Prime Minister over the tardy pace of investigation and failure to file chargesheets against YSR Congress president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy who is facing trial for disproportionate assets. TD leaders believe someone at the Centre is responsible for the investigation agencies languid approach to the case. We strongly believe that someone is behind this; otherwise, how is it possible that the trial is yet to be completed and Jagan still unpunished, five years after the case started? said TD politburo member Somireddy Chandramohan Reddy. Mr Chandramohan Reddy said that Supreme Court had been categorical in its direction to all trial courts in the country to complete proceedings within a year in cases involving public representatives that invite imprisonment of two years or more. The Supreme Court direction came in 2013; CBI filed cases against Jagan in 2011. But stil, nothing is moving in the trial courts except adjournments. We believe that the investigating agencies are not seriously following up the matter in the courts, the TD leader told DC on Friday. How can such things happen in such a high profile case, especially when there is a direction from the apex court, the TD leader asked. The role of investigating agencies in the delay came up during the TD politburo meeting chaired by TD president N. Chandrababu Naidu recently, who too expressed surprise over the situation. Hyderabad: The TS Legislative Assembly was well and truly rocked by protests over defection of Opposition MLAs into the ruling TRS on Saturday. Nine Congress and two TD MLAs were suspended for a day after they stormed into the Well of the House demanding a debate over defections and disqualification of the defectors. Congress moved an adjournment motion over the issue but the Speaker disallowed it. The TD, which has been hit the hardest by the defections, too extended support to the adjournment motion. As many as 12 of its MLAs have crossed over to the TRS. As soon as the House convened on Day-2, Congress and TD MLAs stormed the podium protesting against the large-scale defections into TRS. Repeated requests by Speaker S. Madhusudhana Chary to agitating members to resume their seats proved futile. Legislative Affairs minister T. Harish Rao then moved the resolution for suspension of the MLAs. The suspended MLAs include J. Geetha Reddy, D.K. Aruna, G. Chinna Reddy, T. Jeevan Reddy, Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka T. Rammohan Reddy (Congress) A. Revanth Reddy and Sandra Venkata Veeraiah (TD). When Prime Minister Narendra Modi annulled high denomination currency notes on November 8, the decision was received enthusiastically by BJP MPs, who were convinced with his argument that this will root out corruption. But the mood in the party has changed following reports of growing anger among the people who have been hit by the liquidity crunch. Though no BJP lawmaker has voiced reservations in public, MPs from UP did convey their apprehensions about the adverse fallout of demonetisation to party president Amit Shah at a meeting last week. Their objections were, however, brushed aside by Shah who told the MPs in no uncertain terms, This is not a Manmohan Singh government... this is a Narendra Modi government and once he takes a decision, theres no going back on it. The MPs were instructed that instead of complaining, they should convince their voters about the merits of demonetisation. Congress Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor is not particularly popular with his party colleagues. He invariably manages to annoy them with his statements that he does not agree with the Congress strategy to block proceedings in Parliament and that the Opposition can pin down the government by allowing a debate. Last year, the Thiruvananthapuram MP was pulled up by Congress president Sonia Gandhi for going public with details of a closed-door party meeting in which Mr Tharoor had opposed the partys decision to derail parliamentary proceedings. Although he was reprimanded, Mr Tharoor continues to stand firm on his stand that the Opposition should allow a debate in Parliament. He recently aired his views publicly again. Upset with him for taking a position contrary to party line, the Congress partys Lok Sabha leader Mallikarjun Kharge recently took a dig at Mr Tharoor in the presence of Mrs Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. Pointing out how BJP members had not allowed Opposition MPs to speak in Parliament, Mr Kharge told Mr Tharoor, I hope you will have some kind words for us now. Mr Tharoor was speechless. Though Punjab Congress president Capt. Amarinder Singh and campaign committee chief Ambika Soni are known to be on friendly terms, differences have cropped up between the two over the selection of candidates for next years Assembly polls in Punjab. While Mr Singh has been generous in accommodating former SAD members, Ms Soni has expressed her reservations about rewarding new entrants with tickets. Ms Soni argued that they should avoid fielding Akali leaders indiscriminately, particularly those who are tainted as it weakens the Congress campaign on drug menace in the state. The large-scale entry of Akali Dal ticket seekers, she said, lends credence to the AAPs charge that this is a case of match-fixing by Mr Singh and Punjab deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal of the Akali Dal who have a secret understanding. Despite Ms Sonis objections and protests from the party rank and file, Mr Singh is going ahead with induction of Akali Dal members. Last week, Ms Soni was greeted by one such Akali leader who informed her that he had joined the Congress. Ms Soni was stumped as she was not informed about his entry. The irrepressible Samajwadi MP, Amar Singh, was once known for his flashy lifestyle and the lavish parties he hosted that were invariably attended by Bollywood celebrities and political bigwigs. He took pride in showing off his fleet of cars which included a Bentley. But Mr Singh proclaims he is a changed man after he spent a stint in the cold following his expulsion from the SP. He has become more philosophical now. Mr Singh said he will now desist from any display of wealth. To begin with, he has decided to travel to the Parliament House in a Nano. He has placed an order for the low-cost car. Mr Singh maintains his decision to switch to a simpler lifestyle was inspired by Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose. Mr Singh wants to emulate them, as he has now understood that people have greater respect for those who chose a frugal lifestyle. despite their privileged background. Hence the decision to drive a Nano. It is also a fact that driving to Parliament House in a small car makes for an excellent photo-op. Transitions in Indian politics have never been smooth. In fact, they have caused a lot of fury, unhappiness and divisions among various parties. J. Jayalalithaa, who had been the face of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) since the early 90s, had never appointed a second-in-command. Though many may say Ottakara Panneerselvam fit the bill, one wonders whether a number 2 really mattered back then. The discussion on who will lead the party now has spurred a debate over the politics of succession in general. In politics, particularly Indian rajneeti, the demi-god status that some of our netas enjoy is something that is known to all. While Mr Panneerselvam has been anointed the chief minister of Tamil Nadu, the ultimate queen and the leader of the AIADMK is said to be Jayalalithaas confidante Sasikala Natarajan (a.k.a. Chinnamma). But Ms Sasikala has never contested a single election and had never been appointed the second-in-command by Amma (i.e. Jayalalithaa). A faction within the AIADMK wants Chinnamma to be the party chief. It may be recalled that when Jayalalithaa was in jail, she didnt let Ms Sasikala run the government; instead, she handed over the reins to Mr Panneerselvam. But with Ms Sasikala performing the last rites of Jayalalithaa, her long-time companion, things became clear Chinnamma will be calling the shots in the AIADMK. Not long ago in Maharashtra, when Shiv Sena supremo, Bal Thackeray decided to anoint his son Uddhav as the heir to his party, instead of nephew Raj, the party got divided. A disgruntled Raj broke away from the Sena to launch his own party: the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). Needless to say, the sainiks were confused as to who their leader was, since it was Raj who was seen with the senior Thackeray, while Uddhav was busy honing his skills in photography. Also Read: Political heirs who failed to make it big What happened in Orissa after the death of Biju Patnaik is no different: the Biju Janata Dal, decided to anoint Naveen Patnaik, a reluctant politician, sidelining many seniors. Similarly, Parkash Badal, though very old still, is holding the chair, as his son remains a deputy and is heir apparent. The Shiromani Akali Dal, for a party that is said to be the outcome of a movement, is now centred on a single family the Badals. In Uttar Pradesh, the Yadav clan has been fighting a bitter battle within the family. Anurag Chaturvedi, a senior journalist and former editor, claims that our political parties arent democratic, but feudal. You have one person who rewards (party members) and hes the same one who punishes them. This is the tribal instinct, not democracy. The next leader is chosen from the family, and not on the basis of merit, he said. Political Heirs: Why blame Indians alone? In the United States, the Democrats had picked Hillary Clinton as their candidate for the presidential polls and she is the wife of former President Bill Clinton. In America, the senior Bush and junior Bush have ruled the nation. One may argue that voters were mature enough to reject feudalism this time by voting for Donald Trump instead of Ms Clinton, but this sparks off a debate that has no conclusion. Coming back to India, the only solution that Congress leaders have found for every problem is to get a Gandhi. When the likes of Sitaram Kesari were locked in bathrooms to elect a Gandhi for the presidents post, break-up was inevitable. Sharad Pawar floated his own party (the Nationalist Congress Party) and leaders like P.A. Sangma quit the Congress. Even today, while party vice-president Rahul Gandhi is being prompted to lead the party, his failures at times causes Congress leaders to go knocking on Priyanka Gandhi Vadras door. Politicians feuds arent for any political good and they arent part of an agenda that is for the betterment of the people. It appears that they are no less than a fight for property, the division of which is for personal gain, said Mr Chaturvedi. In Karnataka, when H.D. Deve Gowda decided to make his son, Kumaraswamy, the chief, senior leaders quit, including Siddaramaiah who is now the chief minister of the state from the Congress party. The stories of leaders like Sharad Pawar, and M. Karunanidhi are very different. Mr Pawar (aka Saheb) is caught in a strange dilemma. He wants his daughter, Supriya Sule, to lead the party but his nephew Ajit Pawar (aka Ajitdada) wields a lot of power in the NCP. Ms Sule has managed to become a member of Parliament, but her big brother isnt allowing her to get a foothold in state-level politics. The succession here is in limbo. Till the last Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) chief Karunanidhi wasnt ready to let go of his claim to the chief ministers chair, but his fondness for his son M.K. Stalin came out in the open. This has divided the Karunanidhi family brothers Stalin and M.K. Alagiri, and to some extent their sister Kanimozhi too. Politics, particularly Indian rajneeti is one thing that can unite foes and divide families. Ditto with Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, who is in a quandary with his big brood! Many of his children aspire to become chief minister. Women Power: While most of the examples discussed above are of leaders with families, our country has many parties which are nothing but one-man armies. Mamata Banerjees Trinamul Congress, Mayawatis Bahujan Samaj Party, or for that matter Naveen Patnaiks BJD, are led by unmarried leaders. Many claim that the future of the BSP after Mayawati is bleak, as she has not appointed her deputy, unlike her mentor Kanshi Ram. For that matter, Ms Banerjee (aka Didi) has pinned her hopes on her nephew Abhishek. But will he manage to take on the partys heavyweights to pave his own way? Mr Patnaik has a strong team, but will a (Jay) Panda be acceptable to the party cadre? But why the rush to have only a Thackeray, or a Yadav, or a Badal to lead the party? Answer: Because voters in India still see their leader as a messiah who will solve their problems. Remember the Narendra Modi phenomenon, where everyone voted for one man, which worked in favour of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The BJP has rarely been dependent on one person. When Atal Behari Vajpayee was ageing the party turned to L.K. Advani and then Mr Modi. The same thing happened in the Congress after Indira Gandhis death: Rajiv Gandhi appeared as the only option, or for that matter Indira Gandhi after the Nehru-Shashtri era. Many a time, the surname is what stops opponents from growing and keeps factions under control. It is a double-edged sword. Political commentator Nilu Damle put it like this: It was once said that even a lamp post would get elected if Jawaharlal Nehru were to endorse it. If a lamp post could go to the legislature, no wonder Indira Gandhi could effortlessly become the president of the Congress party, and subsequently the Prime Minister of India. Talk to anybody in the Congress, AIADMK or the Shiv Sena, they will say this is the way all political parties work in this country. Policy, programme, ideologies are not important, its the dynasty or the proximity to the power centre that matters. Lack of support for the proposal of cadre review for officers of the Kashmir Police Service and reservation of two IPS posts of IGP and three IPS posts of DIG for state cops has created a rift within the PDP-BJP coalition government. During a recent state Cabinet meeting the ministers belonging to BJP strongly resisted chief minister Mehbooba Muftis proposal to convert IPS cadre posts for promotion of KPS officers. This proposal also has the support of some PDP ministers but coalition dharma prevailed, for at least this instance. Those in the know say that the BJP does not want to disturb the existing cadre arrangement of IAS, IPS and IFS officers. These services have been complaining about cadre posts being diverted to accommodate state service officers. But the coalitions strength will be truly tested if the chief minister persists with pushing the proposal, as seems very likely. Watch this space for updates. UPSC showcasing babu history Delhi probably has the highest number of museums in the country, and there are growing. On the heels of the recently inaugurated Rashtrapati Bhavan Museum comes a first-of-its-kind museum dedicated to Indian bureaucracy. The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has recently opened a museum in its office building which possesses a rich treasure of archival material. It was inaugurated by UPSC chairperson Alka Sirohi. The museum showcases the history, development and growth of administration in India, like original pamphlets, documents, reports and other records. The material, which is on display, covers the period since the founding of the UPSC in 1916, up to 2015. Sources say that 147 articles have been displayed currently. Among the outstanding objects on display at present are pamphlets of the civil service of India, 1916 and 1918 examination, Indian Imperial Police Service Examination, 1926, Combined Competitive Examination 1938 and pamphlets of various other examinations. It also showcases books authored by babus, mementos received from different organisations and panels with lists of the toppers of civil services and other all-India services examinations. It might prove a boon to scholars and historians, and even the general public, interested in this field of study. Bound to silence Time was when the Modi government encouraged bureaucrats to use social media to reach out to the public. At the time it was seen as a winning step, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi injecting some much-needed fresh thinking to rejuvenate the ossified bureaucratic functioning. It was also seen as a step towards freeing babus from the shackles of their political masters. That noble thought has now been tossed aside, as the Modi government struggles to contain the fallout of the demonetisation announcement. The government has shown its extreme sensitivity to criticism, especially that emanates from within itself. The railway ministry has issued a gag order on all its employees, barring them from using the social media to criticise the government or its policies and actions. Failure to comply, it says, will invite disciplinary action. Sources say that the railway order is similar to the draft notification of July 18 attempt on the IAS, IPS and Indian Forest Service (IFoS) officers through a draft notification issued on July 18, to amend the All India Service Rules, which was an attempt to gag the IAS, IPS and IFoS officers. It is the same story in some states, especially the BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh, where senior bureaucrats have got into trouble for their Facebook posts or Twitter comments. The campaigns preceding the Brexit referendum in Britain and Donald Trumps victory in the US exacted their toll. In both countries insults to and even physical attacks on Muslims and immigrants followed. In December 2015, well before the referendum in Britain and the presidential election in the US, Prof Sara Lipton asked in an incisive article: Do harsh words lead to violent acts? At the moment when hate speech seems to be proliferating, it is a question worth asking. Her answer was clear: Attorney Gen. Loretta E. Lynch recently expressed worry that heated anti-Muslim political rhetoric would spark an increase in attacks against Muslims history shows that a heightening of rhetoric against a certain group can incite violence against that group, even when no violence is called for... Prof. Lipton added: Todays purveyors of anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant, anti-police and anti-abortion rhetoric and imagery may not for a moment intend to provoke violence against Muslims, immigrants, police officers and healthcare providers. But in the light of history, they should not be shocked when that violence comes to pass. The West was slow to act. Hate speech was treated as part of the wider problem of public order. There were legal quibbles about an intention to incite hate and the consequences of hate speech. Britain moved to curb the menace half a century ago, beginning with Race Relations Act, 1965. Two replacements followed in 1968 and 1976, capped by the Public Order Act, 1986. Section 17 of this act of 1986 defines racial hatred to mean hatred against any group of persons defined by reference to colour, race, nationality (including citizenship) or ethnic or national origins. However, as distinguished QCs Geoffrey Robertson and Andrew Nicol pointed out in their work Media Law, prosecutions for violating this law which can be brought only with the attorney generals consent, are comparatively infrequent. The hallowed First Amendment to the US Constitution textually contains no qualification to the right to freedom of speech. But the US Supreme Court has ruled more than once on what it called group libel or fighting words. In 1942, the court held in the leading case of Chaplinsky vs New Hampshire: It is well understood that the right of free speech is not absolute at all times and under all circumstances. There are certain well-defined and narrowly limited classes of speech, the prevention and punishment of which have never been thought to raise any constitutional problem... A decade later, it reaffirmed this ruling that if an utterance directed at an individual may be the object of criminal sanctions, we cannot deny to a state power to punish the same utterance directed at a defined group. Yet, there is a clear flaw in this reasoning, which makes harm, actual or potential, or the public order, the gist of the offence. But public order means more than the absence of violent conflict. It means the peaceful order of civil society and the dignity of the citizen. Indian law was amended in 1972 by inserting Section 153-B to the Penal Code. It punishes with imprisonment any who makes any imputation that any class of persons cannot, by reason of their being members of any religious, racial, language or regional group or caste or community, bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established or uphold the sovereignty and integrity of India, or asserts Its sweep is impressive. Its non-enforcement tells a sorry tale. The remedy lies in removing the fatal flaw of the states power to prosecute and invest it in the citizen provided he secures the leave of a high court judge to launch the prosecution. By arrangement with Dawn Its not often that Indian space scientists chuck out precious cargo from their rockets, but will try their hand at it soon, albeit in the name of safety. Safety? Certainly, of the crew, when the space agency gets a formal go-ahead from the government for the departure of two Indians on a journey into Space onboard an Indian rocket. An upcoming test will demonstrate how the crew could bailout safely in case a snag threatens to spell a disastrous end, just minutes after the rocket zooms from the Sriharikota range the countrys spaceport near Chennai. We are getting ready for the pad abort test. It will happen soon, says A.S. Kiran Kumar, Chairman, Isro. Simply put, the test flight will show how fast the crew could punch out from the rocket in the event of an emergency, thus avoiding a repetition of the disaster which wrecked US space shuttle Columbia, and resulted in the death of seven crew members including mission specialist Kalpana Chawla. Simultaneously, Indian Space scientists are getting their act together for this ambitious mission, designing space suits, an environmental control and life support system on board the spacecraft, and a host of other critical systems needed for a safe journey of Vyomanauts. All these systems and their tests will be completed before GSLV-III, the most powerful rocket designed by India, is human-rated or declared safe for a journey into Space by Indians. Current projections indicate the first journey of Indians onboard an indigenous rocket and from India soil could be in 2020-21. Incidentally, all these critical systems and their tests are being accomplished with an infinitesimal part of the Rs 12,500 crore allocation sought by ISRO for the human spaceflight (HSF) programme. Reason: the government has maintained that it is not an approved programme and therefore, a small amount of about Rs 100 crore has been sanctioned for pre-project studies. Indian Space scientists, who made history by reaching Mars in their first attempt, however, have lost the race to China in the launch of manned space flights. China has had two manned flights since 2013, and is inching towards a permanent space station by 2022. China, however, started way early, launching its manned space programme in 1992. It also plans to launch its maiden Mars mission in 2020 to match India and other nations. Indian Space scientists are confident of a go-ahead by the government, along with the budget support, but are wary of critics who often pose questions on big-ticket outings into Space at a time when the country has not solved poverty and hunger. These critics carped about the Rs 450 crore spent on the Mars mission until the Prime Minister revealed how it had cost less than Rs 7 per kilometre to reach the Red Planet. These scientists argue that the humans Space flight programme is not another catch-up effort but to develop technologies and systems for future expeditions. Besides, the technological spin-offs could help the country leapfrog in a wide spectrum of sectorsfrom communications to medicine. In short, these scientists intend to develop a fully-autonomous three-ton orbital vehicle (a spaceship) to transport a two-member crew to orbit and return to Earth after a few orbits to two days. The extendable version of the spaceship will allow flights up to seven days, rendezvous and docking capability with space stations. Isro would receive assistance in crew selection and training from Russia under an agreement signed in March 2008. One option was a flight of an Indian onboard a Soyuz capsule in the run-up to an Indian mission, but that was dropped. The process of crew selection, too, awaits a nod from the government with the space agency likely to bank of the Indian Air Force and the Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Bengaluru, to pick potential candidates. Irrespective of whether this wait gets longer on not, Indian Space scientists are spending long hours to be mission-ready with all technologies being developed on home soil. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. Lenovo is planning to launch Chrome OS version of its 2-in-1Yoga Book laptop sometime around next year. According to Laptop Mag, VP and General Manager of Lenovos Android and Chrome Computing Business Jeff Meredith confirmed in an interview for Toms Guide innovation Award that it will be offering a third version of the Yoga Book running Chrome OS next year. We've had a lot of interest, said Meredith of a Chrome OS-powered Yoga Book. Its an interesting idea for education, especially with the form factor. At present, Yoga Book is available in two versions, one running on Windows 10 and another running Android 6.0 Marshmallow. In his interview, Meredith also confirmed that the Real Pen will work on Chrome OS version in the same way as it does on the Android version of the Yoga Book. Over time, we probably see the Android and Chrome versions melding together, especially based on the fact that we've now seen Chrome roll out the Google Play store capability into Chrome, Meredith told Laptop Mag. We'll probably maintain the three distinctive products throughout this year at least," he added. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. Facebook Inc said on Thursday it would take measures to prevent fake news spreading on its platform. Users would find it easier to flag fake articles as a hoax, and organizations would be deployed to check facts. Top officials in Germany's ruling coalition said on Friday they planned legislation to crack down on "hate speech" and fake news on Facebook and other social media platforms, and impose stiff penalties if such messages were not quickly removed. Politicians are worried about how hate speech and fake news could sway public opinion ahead of elections next year in which Merkel will be running for a fourth term and facing an increasingly popular far right. "There has only been talk for too long. Now we in the coalition will take action at the beginning of next year," Volker Kauder, a senior member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU), said in a statement. Facebook Inc said on Thursday it would take measures to prevent fake news spreading on its platform. Users would find it easier to flag fake articles as a hoax, and organizations would be deployed to check facts. The statement suggested the ruling coalition was not altogether convinced by the steps announced by Facebook. Kauder said the legislation would require social media companies to set up offices that would respond to complaints from people affected by hateful messages within 24 hours. "We plan to impose high penalties that would affect companies like Facebook if they do not meet their responsibilities," Kauder said. Thomas Oppermann, who heads the Social Democrats in parliament, told Der Spiegel magazine Facebook could face fines of up to 500,000 euros if they did not remove fake news and other inappropriate messages within 24 hours. "Facebook did not avail itself of the opportunity to regulate the issue of complaint management itself," Oppermann told Spiegel. "Now market dominating platforms like Facebook will be legally required to build a legal protection office in Germany that is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year." German Justice Minister Heiko Maas told Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper the government was carefully monitoring Facebook's approach to removing illegal content and would draw "urgent legal consequences" if removal rates did not increase. "We expect clear improvements in Facebook's removal practice. The standard must be German law," the paper quoted him as saying. Germany is seen as a front-runner when it comes to forcing Facebook to step up efforts to police online hate speech, which has risen here following an influx of almost one million migrants, mainly from the Middle East, last year. The issue of fake news has taken on new importance in recent weeks after warnings by German and US intelligence agencies that Russia is seeking to influence elections and sway public opinion in both countries. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. The website, after a special request of team members, have also pinned a YouTube like to Rick Astleys famous track Never Gonna Give You Up. After its much publicised shutdown in August with its boss allegedly being arrested by the US Justice Department in Poland, Kickass torrents is back. No, it is not a mirror or a clone of the original one, but the original one in its full glory. According to TorrentFreak report, Kickass Torrents original staffers have brought the defunct website back to life under a new domain name, with all its old content and former glory. The website however, looks to be under construction right now with a message being displayed saying, Servers load have been affected, there are other few sources of this issue, its not just one. We are working to fix this as soon as possible. One thing is for sure, we are not going anywhere, even as much (people) behind this acts want us to. Cowards always choose the shadows to commit their acts, and I do personally hope they know how to pray, they will need it. The website, after a special request of team members, have also pinned a YouTube like to Rick Astleys famous track Never Gonna Give You Up which is an assumption that this message is for the community suggesting that Kickass Torrents is here to stay. The staffers have pointed out that their site has a proper DMCA takedown procedure, which is similar to websites like YouTube which states that they do not store any copyrighted material on their servers. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. Prosecutors said they belonged to a group in Bucharest called "Bayrob" that in 2007 began to develop and deploy malware sent through emails. Three Romanian nationals have been extradited to the United States to face charges that they operated a cyber fraud scheme in which they infected at least 60,000 computers and stole at least $4 million, U.S. prosecutors said on Friday. Bogdan Nicolescu, 34, Tiberiu Danet, 31, and Radu Miclaus, 34, were charged in an indictment filed in federal court in Cleveland with charges including wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The trio were extradited to the United States this week after being arrested in Romania earlier this year, prosecutors said. In court on Friday, Danet and Miclaus pleaded not guilty. Nicolescu has not yet been arraigned, court records show. Danet's lawyer confirmed his client pleaded not guilty. A lawyer for Miclaus did not respond to requests for comment and an attorney for Nicolescu could not be identified. Prosecutors said they belonged to a group in Bucharest called "Bayrob" that in 2007 began to develop and deploy malware sent through emails claiming to be from entities like Western Union, Norton AntiVirus and the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. Prosecutors said after users clicked on an attached file, the malware would get installed on the computer. It would then harvest email addresses from contact lists or email accounts, which then received email with the malware as well, they said. More than 60,000 computers were infected, prosecutors said. Once infected, the defendants could control these computers to collect information including credit card details, user names and passwords, they said. They also used the infected computers to mine for digital currencies like bitcoin, causing the devices to become unusable or slow, prosecutors said. When users with infected computers visited websites like Facebook or eBay, the defendants would redirect the computer to a nearly identical site, allowing them to steal account credentials, prosecutors said. They also placed over 1,000 listings for cars, motorcycles and other goods on auction sites like eBay with photos infected with malware that would redirect a victim who clicked on the image to fake webpages, prosecutors said. These webpages prompted users to pay through a nonexistent "escrow agent" who wired the money to others in Eastern Europe, who then gave it to the defendants, prosecutors said, resulting in about $4 million in losses. Symantec Corp, which in a statement claimed credit for helping unearth the "Bayrob" gang, said the group had stolen up to $35 million USD from victims through various means. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. U.S. government officials said the leaders of Congress and the chairmen of the two intelligence committees, known as the "Gang of Eight," have been briefed on the CIA's conclusion. Republican members of Congress are complaining that U.S. intelligence agencies are refusing to brief them widely on a classified CIA report that concluded Russia hacked Democratic Party data in an effort to help Donald Trump win the presidency. The Republicans said Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has refused their requests for full briefings of Congress' two intelligence committees. U.S. government officials said the leaders of Congress and the chairmen of the two intelligence committees, known as the "Gang of Eight," have been briefed on the CIA's conclusion. Nevertheless, Representative Devin Nunes, the California Republican who chairs the House Intelligence Committee and is a member of President-elect Trump's transition team, as well as the Gang of Eight, has called for a briefing for his entire committee on the CIA assessment, which the Washington Post reported on last week. "The committee is vigorously looking into reports of cyber-attacks during the election campaign, and in particular we want to clarify press reports that the CIA has a new assessment that it has not shared with us," Nunes said.Representative Ron Johnson, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said his panel also has asked for a briefing but the CIA refused. "It is disappointing that the CIA would provide information on this issue to the Washington Post and NBC but will not provide information to elected members of Congress," Johnson said in a statement on Friday. Three U.S. government sources, who all asked for anonymity to discuss classified information, told Reuters that the while the full congressional committees have not been briefed, the congressional leadership has, which is the standard procedure for briefing Congress on sensitive intelligence. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence said in a statement that because President Barack Obama last week ordered the intelligence community to conduct a full-scale "review of foreign efforts to influence recent presidential elections from 2008 to the present," the agencies would not comment further until the study is completed. BRIEFING TO FOLLOW ODNI, which oversees all 16 U.S. intelligence agencies, said that when the review is complete, the U.S. intelligence community "stands ready to brief Congress." The office said it also would make the study "available to the public consistent with protecting intelligence sources and methods." The CIA based its conclusion about Russia hacking to influence the election not on irrefutable evidence but largely on its analysis of the fact that the Russians hacked both political parties while only publicizing information damaging to Democrats and their presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton, said a fourth U.S. official familiar with the agency's work.The FBI, which has responsibility for counterintelligence investigations inside the United States, did not endorse the CIA's finding because it does not meet the standards of evidence necessary to win a conviction in a U.S. court or identify individuals whose hacking violated American law, the fourth official said."The CIA's case would never hold up in court but it is almost impossible to reach a different conclusion than the agency did based on the selective nature of what the Russians did and did not choose to publicize," the official said. ODNI has not endorsed the CIA's conclusion but does not dispute it. Two sources said there was "no daylight" between ODNI and CIA on the issue. An ODNI spokesman said the agency would not comment beyond its official statement. The debate over Russian hacking, which three officials said has continued after Election Day and extends beyond the election to multiple U.S. government agencies, as well as to private firms and individuals, also is opening a rift between Trump and some Republican members of Congress. The president-elect continues to dismiss the intelligence agencies' conclusion that Russian President Vladimir Putin directed the hacking of this year's election but Republicans such as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senator John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, are calling for a full investigation. On Friday, Senator Richard Burr, Republican chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, announced his committee will conduct a review in the new year of U.S. intelligence on Russian activities, including the classified information that led to the Obama administrations Oct. 7 statement that Moscow was behind the hacking of U.S. political institutions. The review also will cover Russian cyber activity more broadly, he said in a statement. Burr said the review will include interviews of both Obama and Trump officials, including the issuance of subpoenas if necessary to compel testimony. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. At Hot Bites, the trendiest nightclub in the capital of Borno State, northern Nigeria's many cultures cavort, with dancers in veils next to writhing women in sexy glittering dresses. (Photo: Representational Image: Youtube grab) Maiduguri: At Hot Bites, the party is in full swing and there is beer, dancing and boy-meets-girl until curfew time hits Maiduguri, the cradle of the Boko Haram jihadist movement. "We need to move on," said 18-year-old Fatima, her almond-shaped eyes rimmed with eyeliner, teetering on high heels with a dress sporting a plunging neckline. "Maybe I can find my future husband here," she said with a laugh. Nightlife is slowly returning to the northern city, where the Boko Haram insurgency erupted in 2009 and has since spread havoc and destruction across Nigeria and its adjoining countries. At Hot Bites, the trendiest nightclub in the capital of Borno State, northern Nigeria's many cultures cavort, with dancers in veils next to writhing women in sexy glittering dresses. Beer flows as indulgent soldiers watch on, taking a welcome break from the rigours of the frontline. After years of being under siege, Maiduguri is attempting to return to normal. The ceasefire has been pushed back four hours to 10 pm, and there are fewer policemen and soldiers on the streets. Boko Haram's violent campaign for a hardline Islamic north has claimed more than 20,000 lives in Nigeria alone and led to more than 2.6 million people to flee their homes. Teens like Fatima have spent half their lives living in fear: fear of being abducted, raped or killed, or having someone in the family murdered. I just drink beer But tonight, Fatima is out to snare a man, and has dropped her hijab toward that end. "I live with my grandma, so I can't dress like that, she doesn't even know I came here," she said, adding: "I changed my clothes on the way." Although Borno is conservative, Sharia was decreed in the state in 2001 well before the Boko Haram insurgency broke out Maiduguri has always been more relaxed, attracting youths from across the north seeking more freedom and fun. Christians and Muslims party together at Hot Bites, grooving to hits from Afropop stars such as Wizkid or Mr Balogun, born more than 1,000 kilometres (600 miles) down south in Lagos, Nigeria's teeming seaside economic capital. Muna, her hair tucked under a black turban and a cigarette in hand, downs a third beer perched on a bar stool. "I just drink beer, I don't take anything else," she said, adding that many of her peers did drugs. Tramadol a powerful pain killer which is used by Boko Haram fighters and can lead to addiction is sold round the corner. Heroin and cocaine are also easily available in Maiduguri, humanitarian workers say. Can't live without music But revellers at Hot Bites know that the conflict is not over, that Islamist fighters are hiding out at the nearby Sambisa forest and that they have to scrupulously respect the curfew. Some hardened veterans lock themselves in and party all night long over weekends. "We are free to do what we want" in the pulsating nightclub, said a 32-year-old official named Sunday. "Everybody is welcomed, except for Boko Haram." Hot Bites' owner Ayo Deji organises poolside parties with local artists on Sunday afternoons. "We suffered too much. Young people just want to relax and forget the troubles," Deji said, adding that Boko Haram members or their cohorts would spy on the young to see if they were adhering to traditional Islamic mores. "When Boko Haram was there, they forbid us to listen music. Even on the phone you couldn't listen to music or they shoot you," he said. But that left him undeterred. "They can launch bombing attacks, I've never stopped listening to music. We, the Nigerians, cannot live without music!" he said. Tunis: Tunisia's Prime Minister said on Friday that his government would seek to amend a controversial law that allows men who rape underage girls to avoid punishment by marrying their victims. Youssef Chahed's comments come two weeks after a Tunisian court approved the marriage of a 13-year-old girl to a relative who made her pregnant, under the terms of Article 227. The ruling infuriated non-governmental organisations who said the girl was raped. Dozens of people staged a protest outside parliament on Wednesday, denouncing Article 227 as a "backward" piece of legislation that should be revoked. Discussion of a draft law to be submitted to parliament to amend the article should be a "priority" pending a review of "all articles concerning the fight against violence targeting women", Chahed told Mosaique FM radio. Article 227 states that a man who has sex with a girl under 15 years old without the use of force can be sentenced to a six-year jail term but proceedings against him would be halted if he marries his victim. A bill to counter violence against women was drafted in 2014 but is still waiting to be discussed in parliament. "Our country can no longer refer to laws that are old fashioned and which do not reflect the spirit of rights and liberties," said the 41-year-old prime minister. Chahed, whose country is viewed as being ahead of most Arab countries on women's rights, said Friday that 2017 "will be the year of the child" in Tunisia. He said he will strive to draw up a strategy to improve the lives of children in Tunisia, particularly in the field of education. A planned wedding party for the girl involved in the recent case has been scrapped after the government's child protection office called for the marriage to be annulled. "When it's a 13-year-old child, we can't talk of a sexual relation with consent. It's rape," the agency's representative Houda Abboudi said earlier this week. "The court's decision didn't take into account the interests of this child," she said. A Syrian man pulls their belongings after he was evacuated with his family from Aleppo, near Idlib, Syria. (Photo: AP) United Nations: An emergency meeting of the Security Council has been called to consider the situation in war-torn Syrian city of Aleppo, France's ambassador to the United Nations said Friday. Francois Delattre told reporters outside Security Council chambers that his country and Germany asked for the Friday meeting. He said if an agreement can't be reached on safely evacuating civilians and enabling humanitarian aid into the besieged city under the eye of international observers, France and its partners could call for an emergency special session of the 193-member General Assembly. Delattre said France had already begun drafting a resolution for consideration by the council. Evacuations from eastern Aleppo sealed the end of the Syrian rebels' most important stronghold and marked a watershed moment in the country's civil war, now in its sixth year. An overnight evacuation effort stalled after an eruption of gunfire raised fears that a peaceful surrender of the opposition enclave could fall apart with thousands of people believed to be still inside. Delattre said the council meeting would include a briefing by UN humanitarian affairs chief Stephen O'Brien. "We keep having conflicting reports about what exactly is happening on the ground," he said. Russia is a key ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his war with opposition rebel groups. Russia's UN ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, said the most urgent task in Syria now is to end all military activities and resume negotiations between the government and opposition. Churkin told the Security Council on Friday that "Damascus has more than once confirmed its readiness to take part in these negotiations." New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully told Security Council members prior to a closed meeting on Aleppo that the council has so far been unable to meet its responsibilities of removing civilians and providing humanitarian aid to the city. "Unless that is going to change, it is our view that an emergency special session of the General Assembly is an appropriate next step," he said. Outgoing Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the UN stands ready to help rescue as many people as possible - even as the overnight rescue operation had to be suspended. Speaking to reporters during his final news conference at UN headquarters Friday, Ban called the war in Syria "heart-breaking for me." Still, he said thousands of people were evacuated from eastern Aleppo overnight with the help of UN agencies, the Red Cross and the Arab Red Crescent, including 194 patients who were moved into hospitals in other parts of Syria and Turkey. "I feel very much regret we had to stop this operation at this time," he said. Barack Obama, right, and Russia's President President Vladimir Putin pose for members of the media before a bilateral meeting at the United Nations headquarters. (Photo: AP) Washington: President Barack Obama put Russia's Vladimir Putin on notice, Friday, that the US could use offensive cyber muscle to retaliate for interference in the US Presidential Election, his strongest suggestion to date that Putin had been well aware of campaign email hacking. "Whatever they do to us, we can potentially do to them," Obama declared. Caught in the middle of a post-election controversy over Russian hacking, Obama strongly defended his administration's response, including his refusal before the voting to ascribe motive to the meddling or to discuss now what effect it might have had. US intelligence assessments say it was aimed at least in part on helping Donald Trump defeat Hillary Clinton, and some Democrats say it may well have tipped the results in his favor. Though Obama avoided criticizing President-elect Trump by name, he called out Republicans who he said fail even now to acknowledge the seriousness of Russia's involvement in US elections. Obama expressed bewilderment about GOP lawmakers and voters who now say they approve of Putin, and he said unless that changes the US will be vulnerable to foreign influence. "Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave," Obama said as he closed out the year at a White House news conference. Afterward he left for the family's annual vacation in Hawaii. Obama declined to state explicitly that Putin knew about the email hacking that roiled the presidential race, but he left no doubt who he felt was responsible. He said that "not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin" and repeated a US intelligence assessment "that this happened at the highest levels of the Russian government." Obama said he confronted Putin in September, telling the former KGB chief to "cut it out." That was one month before the US publicly pointed the finger at Russia. Suggesting his directive to Putin had been effective, Obama said the US "did not see further tampering" after that date. The President has promised a "proportional" yet unspecified response to the hacking of the Democratic Party and Clinton's campaign chairman. Emails stolen during the campaign were released in the final weeks by WikiLeaks. On Friday, CIA Director John Brennan said in a message to employees that the FBI agrees with the CIA's conclusion that Russia's goal was to help Trump win. Trump has dismissed the CIA's assessment and talk about Russian hacking as "ridiculous," while arguing both Democrats and the CIA are trying to undermine the legitimacy of his victory. Clinton has even more directly cited Russian interference. She said Thursday night, "Vladimir Putin himself directed the covert cyber attacks against our electoral system, against our democracy, apparently because he has a personal beef against me." Obama said he'd leave it to political pundits to debate the question of whether the hacking swayed the election outcome. He did, however, chide the media for that he called an "obsession" with the emails that were made public during the election's final stretch. He said his reticence to detail publicly the US response to Russia reflected a need to retaliate "in a thoughtful, methodical way." "The idea that somehow public shaming is gonna be effective, I think doesn't read the thought process in Russia very well," Obama said. Accusations of Russian election interference have heightened the already tense relationship between Washington and Moscow. Separately, Obama has blamed Russia for standing in the way of international efforts to stop the civil war in Syria, where government forces have beaten back rebels in Aleppo. Obama said he feels "responsible" for some of the suffering in Syria, but he defended his decision to avoid significant military action there. He said that while military options short of invasion were tempting, it was "impossible to do this on the cheap." Still, he pinned the bulk of the blame on Russia, as well as Iran, for propping up Syrian President Bashar Assad. "This blood and these atrocities are on their hands," he said. Meanwhile, the President rejected any notion that the dispute over hacking was disrupting efforts to smoothly transfer power to Trump. Despite fiercely criticizing each other during the election, Obama and Trump have spoken multiple times since the campaign ended. "He has listened," Obama said of Trump. "I can't say he will end up implementing. But the conversations themselves have been cordial." The President did weigh in on Trump's decision to speak with the leader of Taiwan, a recent phone call that broke decades of US diplomatic protocol. Obama advised Trump to "think it through" before making changes in the One-China policy, in which the US recognizes Taiwan as part of China. In a moment of self-reflection, Obama acknowledged he had not been able to transfer his own popularity and electoral success to other Democrats. His party is now reeling from the White House loss and failure to win back either the House or Senate. "It is not something that I've been able to transfer to candidates in midterms or build a sustaining organization around," Obama said. "That's something I would have liked to have done more of, but it's kind of hard to do when you're dealing with a whole bunch of issues here in the White House." White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough, second from left, sits across the table from President-elect Donald Trump's incoming White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, third from left, during a meeting in his office, with former Chiefs of Staffs. (Photo: AP) Washington: Donald Trump's White House Chief of Staff designate Reince Priebus huddled with a dozen of his predecessors on Friday, including John Podesta, the Hillary Clinton campaign chief now at the centre of the Russian hacking controversy. Priebus sat in the White House office he is set to occupy from January 20, after a lunch invitation from its current occupant Denis McDonough. Around the long rectangular table sat a dozen White House gatekeepers going back to Jimmy Carter's administration. They included Podesta - Bill Clinton's Chief of Staff - who was on the receiving end of Russian hacking during the campaign for the White House. In the brief glimpse journalists were given of the meeting, Podesta, who was Clinton's 2016 campaign chairman, sat sternly as other participants laughed and joked. In the last weeks of the campaign, WikiLeaks dumped thousands of emails - ranging from the politically explosive to the mundane - hacked from Podesta's Gmail account. In an article in The Washington Post on Friday Podesta decried a "Russian plot to sabotage Hillary Clinton's campaign and elect Donald Trump." The White House has pointed to Russian President Vladimir Putin's direct involvement. Priebus was one of the few establishment Republicans to back Trump early on. He has never held senior government office, so may well have asked for tips from figures who ran the White House during the Cold War, after 9/11 and the Iran hostage crisis. A White House official said the meeting was "part of the president's directive for a smooth transition to the next administration." In 2008, then White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten held a similar meeting for his successor, Obama's first top aide Rahm Emanuel. Washington: The US intelligence community will soon disclose an estimate of the number of Americans whose electronic communications have been caught in the crosshairs of online surveillance programs intended for foreigners, US lawmakers said in a letter on Friday. The estimate, requested by members of the US House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, is expected to be made public as early as January, the letter said. Its disclosure would come as Congress is expected to begin debate in the coming months over whether to reauthorize or reform the so-called surveillance authority, known as Section 702, a provision that was added to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act in 2008. "The timely production of this information is incredibly important to informed debate on Section 702 in the next Congress and, without it, even those of us inclined to support reauthorization would have reason for concern," said the letter signed by 11 lawmakers, all members of the House Judiciary Committee. The letter was sent on Friday to National Intelligence Director James Clapper. It said his office and National Security Agency (NSA) officials had already briefed congressional staff about how the intelligence community intends to comply with the disclosure request. Clapper's office confirmed the letter had been received but declined further comment. The lawmakers termed their letter an effort to "memorialize our understanding" of the intelligence community's plan to provide an estimate in real numbers, not percentages, as soon as January that can be shared with the public. The government has long held that calculating the number of Americans subject to Section 702 surveillance might be technically impossible and would require privacy intrusions exceeding those raised by the actual surveillance programs, which were originally intended to counter foreign espionage. Intelligence officials have said that online data about Americans is "incidentally" collected under Section 702, due to a range of technical and practical reasons. Critics have assailed such collection as back-door surveillance of Americans without a warrant. Section 702 will expire on December 31, 2017, absent congressional action. It enables two internet surveillance programs called Prism and Upstream that were revealed in a series of leaks by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden more than three years ago. Prism gathers messaging data from Alphabet Inc's Google, Facebook , Microsoft, Apple and other major tech companies that is sent to and from a foreign target under surveillance. Upstream allows the NSA to copy web traffic flowing along the internet backbone located inside the United States and search that data for certain terms associated with a target. Clapper, who is stepping down in January, suggested in April that providing an estimate of Americans surveilled under Section 702, a figure some have said could tally in the millions, might be possible, while defending the law as "a prolific producer of critical intelligence." Republicans James Sensenbrenner, Darrell Issa, Ted Poe and Jason Chaffetz signed the letter, in addition to Democrats John Conyers, Jerrold Nadler, Zoe Lofgren, Hank Johnson, Ted Deutch, Suzan DelBene and David Cicilline. Washington: Michelle Obama says the White House needs a "grown-up," and that the nation will come to appreciate President Barack Obama. In an interview with Oprah Winfrey set to air Monday on CBS, the First Lady says the US is feeling what it's like to not have hope. She says "hope" was more than a slogan for her husband's campaigns and asks: "What else do you have if you don't have hope?" Obama also says the President served in ways the people will eventually appreciate. She says the White House needs a "grown-up" who can reassure the public during a crisis. The Obamas campaigned against Donald Trump, arguing that he's unfit to be president. Michelle does not mention Trump by name. Dalai Lama, left, interacts with fellow Tibetan at an event to inaugurate the Dalai Lama Institute for Higher Education on the outskirts of Bangalore. (Photo: AP) Beijing: China expressed dissatisfaction on Friday after exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama met President Pranab Mukherjee, saying it hoped India would recognise the Nobel Peace Prize winning monk as a separatist in religious guise. Mukherjee hosted the Dalai Lama and other Nobel Peace laureates at a conference on children's rights at the presidential palace on Sunday. Those who attended, and spoke, included Princess Charlene of Monaco and the former President of East Timor, Jose Ramos-Horta. India had ignored China's "strong opposition and insisted" on arranging for the Dalai Lama to share the stage with Mukherjee, and meet him, Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a daily news briefing in the Chinese capital. "China is strongly dissatisfied and resolutely opposed to this," he said, adding that the Dalai Lama used the guise of religion to engage in separatist activities and China opposed any form of official contacts with him. China wanted India to recognise the "anti-China, separatist essence of the Dalai Lama clique and take steps to banish the negative impact of this incident" to avoid disrupting ties between the Asian giants, Geng said. While the Dalai Lama has had private meetings with Indian leaders, Sunday's conference was the first public event, said the political head of the Tibetan government in exile based in Dharamsala. "There are many European governments shying away from hosting His Holiness," he told Reuters. "Here you have the president of India hosting His Holiness. I think is a powerful message to the world, and particularly to Beijing." China regards the Dalai Lama as a separatist, though he says he merely seeks genuine autonomy for his Himalayan homeland Tibet, which Communist Chinese troops "peacefully liberated" in 1950. The Dalai Lama fled into exile in India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule. China also expressed displeasure with India this month over the visit to a sensitive border region of another senior Tibetan religious figure, the Karmapa Lama, Tibetan Buddhism's third-most-senior monk, who fled into exile in India in 2000. India is home to a large exiled Tibetan community. Manila: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte threatened, on Saturday, to end a military pact with the United States in a "tit-for-tat" response to American aid being deferred because of concerns about his deadly crime war. Duterte reacted angrily to the announcement by the US government this week that a decision on a multi-year aid package potentially worth hundreds of millions of dollars had been put off. "Bye bye America," Duterte said, after threatening to end a 1998 Visiting Forces Agreement that gives the legal framework for US troops in the Philippines. "Tit-for-tat. If you can do this, so do we, it ain't one-way traffic." The American Millennium Challenge Corporation announced this week that a decision had been deferred over whether to continue giving aid, after an initial five-year package worth more than $430 million expired in May. "This decision reflects the Board's significant concerns around rule of law and civil liberties in the Philippines," US Embassy spokeswoman Molly Koscina said on Thursday. The US government set up the Millennium Challenge Corporation to promote economic growth and reduce poverty around the world. However countries can only qualify if they "demonstrate a commitment to just and democratic governance, investments in its people, and economic freedom", according to the corporation's website. The United States has been a vocal critic of Duterte's war on drugs, which has claimed about 5,000 lives since he took office in late June, with President Barack Obama urging Duterte to prosecute it "the right way". The criticism has severely strained ties between the long-time allies, with Duterte angered at what he insists is unfair interference in the Philippines' sovereign affairs. Duterte has made repeated threats to downgrade or even end military and diplomatic ties, while moving to establish closer ties with US rivals China and Russia. Duterte has already curtailed many of the war games held between the two nations in the Philippines. Duterte on Saturday said he was hoping for bilateral relations to improve when US President-elect Donald Trump takes office in 2017. "I will just wait, I will let Obama fade away," Duterte said in a long press conference in his hometown of Davao that began shortly after midnight when he returned from a state visit to Singapore. But Duterte, a socialist who has said he admires the leadership styles of Russia's Vladimir Putin and China's Xi Jinping, also signalled he would lead the Philippines away from the United States even with a friendly Trump as US President. "I am not inclined to side with you (the United States) any more," he said. Berlin: German weekly Der Spiegel reports that a high-ranking Taliban member recently tried to enter Germany and apply for asylum. The magazine reported on Friday that Abdul Rauf Mohammad, who was the Taliban's Health Minister in Afghanistan during the late 1990s, arrived in Frankfurt from Saudi Arabia several weeks ago. Spiegel reported that border police discovered he was using a forged passport, whereupon he tried to apply for asylum for himself and his family. The request was rejected after it was discovered that he had received asylum in Norway but was deported in 2014, citing national security reasons. He reportedly flew back to Afghanistan, via Saudi Arabia. German officials declined to comment publicly on the case, saying Taliban members had the same right to privacy as everybody else. London: The number of Indians granted visa to study at UK universities has registered a 6% increase for the first time since 2009. According to latest UK government statistics, between July and September 2016, 8,692 student visas known as Tier 4 visas were granted to Indian applicants, compared with 8,224 issued during the same period in 2015. Sponsored visa applications from Indians to study in the UK increased by 5% between 2015 and 2016 to 9,207, the largest number since 2013. "The increase is an important market breakthrough point," Richard Everitt, Director of Education at British Council India, told the 'Times Higher Education'. He attributed the increase to "deeper relationships between UK and Indian universities, greater transparency over the Tier-4 visa application process and an increase in scholarship opportunities". However, Vivienne Stern, Director of Universities UK International, warned against the sector getting "over-excited" about the "slight upswing" in Indian visa applications and acceptances. "We are working really hard to address misconceptions about the UK as a destination for study," she said. India is the third-largest category in terms of student visa applications after the US and China. The latest visa figures come in the wake of reports that the UK Home Office was finalising plans to cut annual student visa figures by nearly half, from the current 300,000 to 170,000. A UK Home Office spokesperson said: "We want to strengthen the system to support the best universities and those that stick to the rules to attract the best talent". "The British people have sent a clear message that they want more control of immigration and we are committed to getting net migration down to sustainable levels in the tens of thousands." Milan: Italy's highest court has ordered a re-trial of former top executives at defence group Leonardo Finmeccanica over allegations of bribery in a 2010 contract to provide a dozen VVIP helicopters to India. In April, a Milan appeals court sentenced former Finmeccanica CEO Giuseppe Orsi to four and a half years in prison for corruption and falsifying invoices, overturning a previous lower court ruling. Bruno Spagnolini, former head of the group's helicopter unit AgustaWestland, was sentenced to four years in jail over the Rs 3,600 crore contract. The case went to the highest court after the two executives launched an appeal. Both executives will now have to be tried again in front of Milan's appeals court. Last week, former air chief SP Tyagi was arrested over alleged irregularities in the VVIP chopper deal. The VVIP chopper deal was cancelled in 2014 after Orsi was arrested on suspicion of paying bribes to secure the deal. AgustaWestland had opposed India's decision to cancel the order and the contract is currently suspended and the subject of international arbitration in Paris. The case against Finmeccanica itself was dropped by prosecutors back in 2014 while AgustaWestland agreed on a 7.5 million-euro settlement with the court the same year. Tehran: Iran's Foreign Minister in a letter to the European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini has called for a joint commission meeting on the nuclear deal over the extension of U.S. sanctions against Iran. Iran's official IRNA news agency is reporting Saturday that Mohammad Javad Zarif has requested that Mogherini inform all P5+1 nation members to hold a joint commission meeting over extension of U.S. sanctions against Iran. American lawmakers voted to extend some sanctions against Iran for another 10 years and although President Barack Obama declined to sign the act it still became law. Iran believes the U.S. has violated the nuclear deal by renewing the Iran Sanctions Act, which eased sanctions in exchange for curbs on Iran's nuclear program. Describing the war-ravaged Syrian town of Aleppo as a "synonym for hell", UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has said the international community has collectively failed the people of Syria and the carnage there remains a "gaping hole" in the global conscience. In his last press conference as the UN Secretary-General, Ban delivered stark warnings on two issues at the forefront of international concern--- Syria and South Sudan. He stated that "the carnage in Syria remains a gaping hole in the global conscience and South Sudan faces a risk of genocide as the country leaders have squandered a peace agreement." "Aleppo is now a synonym for hell," Ban said here yesterday, bidding farewell to the UN press corps. "We have collectively failed the people of Syria. Peace will only prevail when it is accompanied by compassion, justice and accountability for the abominable crimes we have seen," Ban said. On another front, he noted that this week will mark the third year of conflict in South Sudan, and he deplored that "the country's leaders have betrayed their people's trust, and squandered a peace agreement." "Most immediately, my Special Adviser (on the Prevention of Genocide, Adama Dieng) has warned of the risk of genocide," he said, urging the UN Security Council to take more concerted action, including through punitive measures. Ban will complete his 10-year service as the world's top diplomat on December 31, passing the baton to his successor Antonio Guterres, who was sworn in this past week. "This has been a decade of unceasing test," he said. "But I have also seen collective action change millions of lives for the better," Ban said. As the Syria crisis enters its sixth year, civilians continue to bear the brunt of a conflict marked by unparalleled suffering, destruction and disregard for human life. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), 13.5 million people require humanitarian assistance, including 4.9 million people in need trapped in besieged and hard-to-reach areas, where they are exposed to grave protection threats. Confirming the seizure of an unmanned underwater drone of the US by its navy in the disputed South China Sea, China today said both sides are "appropriately handling" the issue while a Chinese military official said that the issue will be "resolved successfully". "According to (our) understanding, the US and Chinese sides are working on appropriately to handle this matter through channels between the two militaries," the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in its first reaction on the incident while replying to queries from the media outlets here. Earlier, Chinese military confirmed that it has received a request from the US to return its underwater drone seized by the PLA Navy warship in the disputed South China Sea (SCS) and said that the issue will be "resolved successfully". A Chinese military source confirmed that they received a "claim request" from the US for an underwater drone after a Chinese warship seized it during a security check in the SCS, state-run Global Times reported in its web edition. China believes that the incident will be "resolved successfully," the daily quoted a PLA (People's Liberation Army) source as saying. Earlier reports from Washington said the request was made by the US after its unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) was picked up by a Chinese naval ship about 80 kms northwest of Subic Bay in the Philippines on December 15 just just as the USNS Bowditch, an oceanographic survey ship, was about to retrieve it. "We call upon China to return our UUV immediately, and to comply with all of its obligations under international law," Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said in the statement. US officials said the UUV is an unclassified "ocean glider" system used around the world to gather data on salinity, water temperature and sound speed. The incident, first of its kind in the tense stand off between US and Chinese navy in the disputed SCS came in the backdrop of increasing strains between the two countries over US President-elect, Donal Trump's criticism of China on building of military installation in the SCS and his questioning of One China policy after holding talks with Taiwanese President, Tsai Ing-wen which drew strong diplomatic protests from Beijing. China has become more assertive over the SCS after an international tribunal this year struck down its claim over all most all of the area. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have counter claims over the South China Sea. Also, amid increasing tensions, China's first aircraft carrier conducted its maiden live fire drills on a massive scale along with a host of naval ships, aircraft and submarines, four years after it was commissioned. China has also confirmed it is building military facilities in some of the reclaimed islands saying that the deployment of necessary defencive facilities on some islands in the SCS is legitimate and normal. Reacting to the reports showing satellite images of the military facilities in the islands revealed by US think tank, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said on Thursday that the SCS islands are China's inherent territory and it is building necessary defencive facilities on its own territory which is completely normal and has nothing to do with militarisation. Commenting on the UUV seizure by China, analysts said it reflects the new competition between Beijing and Washington in the area and an aggressive signal by China to show that is ready to act. "It's not the first time that the US deployed a drone in the South China Sea area, but it's the first time the Chinese military seized it. There must be a reason for it... It could have threatened the interests of China's islands, or China's ships and submarines. It must have been damage to Chinese interests that caused the seizure," Zhao Xiaozhuo, the director and a senior colonel at the Centre on China-America Defence Relations at the Academy of Military Science, a PLA think-tank told Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post. "China has been very restrained about the military intervention from the US. They have been on the edges of Chinese territories all the time. This time the Chinese military took action. It must be because of some actions taken by the US side," he said. Zhao said both sides would probably resolve the issue through negotiation. "China wants to send out a signal that if you spy on us underwater and threaten our national security, we have measures to deal with it," said Wu Shicun, president of the Chinese government-affiliated National Institute for South China Sea Studies. "On the South China Sea issue, we took in humiliations with a humble view in the past. I think that era has finished now," it said. Former Air Chief Marshal S P Tyagi was today sent to judicial custody till December 30 after CBI said he was not required for further custodial interrogation in AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam. Special CBI judge Arvind Kumar also sent Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan, co-accused in the case related to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA-2 regime, to jail after the probe agency did not seek their further custody. After the agency's submission, all the three accused moved their bail applications, which will be heard on December 21 as the CBI sought time to reply to the applications. During the proceedings, the counsel appearing for Tyagi submitted before the court that the Italian top court had ordered retrial of ex-Finmeccanica executives in VVIP chopper scam case, which makes CBI's stand weak in the current case. The court, however, said it will take up the matter on next date of hearing on December 21. The court had on December 14 extended the CBI remand of Tyagi and the two others by three days after CBI had said it was a "very serious" case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as "interest of the nation was compromised". The agency had earlier submitted in the court: "It is a very high-profile case and we need proper material. One part of the crime was committed in India while various other angles are in foreign land." Tyagi's counsel had told the court that he was "a decorated war hero of the nation" and "CBI, which was termed as 'a caged parrot' by the Supreme Court, is trying to tarnish his image". Earlier, Tyagi's counsel had claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a "collective" one and Prime Minister's Office(PMO) was also a part of it. CBI had alleged that Tyagi had "abused his official position" and when he was the Air Chief Marshal, he had made huge investments in land and other properties and had not disclosed the source his income. It was also alleged that Khaitan was the "brain" behind how the bribe money reached India and several firms through which the money travelled came into existence and Sanjeev was known to alleged European middleman Carlo Gerosa. 71-year old Tyagi, who had retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by the agency in connection with the case. The CBI had also claimed that alleged European middleman Guido Haschke's statement, which was received through LR (Letter Rogatory), proved that he was assured by Sanjeev Tyagi that the latter's brother was going to be Air Chief Marshal. The accused persons, however, had alleged that the "CBI was trying to extract the confession using force". Stating that they live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges, India and Tajikistan today decided to strengthen defence cooperation and inked a pact to share financial intelligence to counter money laundering and financing of terrorism. The pact was among three signed by the two countries after comprehensive talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on strategic issues including threats posed by radicalisation and extremism, trade and investments. "We assessed the broad progress achieved under different pillars of our bilateral engagement, including our partnership in defence and security. "India and Tajikistan live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges and threats. The threat from terrorism endangers not just our two countries. It casts a long shadow of violence and instability over the entire region," Modi said at a joint press meet with Rahmon. Combating terrorism has, therefore, been an important area of cooperative engagement between the two countries, the PM said. "We appreciate Tajikistan's role in the Central Asian region as a mainstay against forces of extremism, radicalism, and terrorism. President Rahmon and I agreed today to strengthen action on this front based on mutually agreed priorities," he said. On his part, Rahmon said terrorism and extremism undermine all developmental efforts worldwide. A joint statement issued after the talks said the two leaders discussed situation in the region and stressed that terrorism and extremism seriously threaten peace, stability and progress of all countries. "The two leaders agreed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be eliminated without any distinction between good and bad terrorists and called for an end to sponsorship, support and provision of safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists," the statement said. Modi and Rahmon reaffirmed their resolve to work for early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UN General Assembly. Apart from MoU concerning Cooperation in the Exchange of Financial Intelligence related to money laundering, related crimes and financing of terrorism, the two sides also inked pacts on broadcasting of audio visual programmes and protocol amending the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion and announced initialling of document on Bilateral Investment Treaty. President-elect Donald Trump today slammed China for seizing an American naval drone in international waters of the disputed South China Sea, even as the Pentagon demanded its immediate release amid outrage from US lawmakers. "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented (unprecedented) act," Trump said in a tweet this morning. Trump was reacting to reports that China has seized an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) on December 15 in the South China Sea while it was being recovered by a US Navy oceanographic survey ship. In a statement, Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook has called upon China to immediately return the American UUV. "The UUV is a sovereign immune vessel of the United States. We call upon China to return our UUV immediately, and to comply with all of its obligations under international law," Cook demanded. Top Republican Senator John McCain, Chairman of the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee, said the act of China is a "flagrant violation" of the freedom of seas. "The Chinese Navy's seizure of a US unmanned oceanographic vessel in international waters is a flagrant violation of the freedom of the seas. China had no right to seize this vehicle. And the United States must not stand for such outrageous conduct," McCain said. "This brazen provocation fits a pattern of increasingly destabilising Chinese behaviour, including bullying its neighbours and militarising the South China Sea. And this behaviour will continue until it is met with a strong and determined US response, which until now the Obama administration has failed to provide," he alleged. "Freedom of the seas and the principles of the rules-based order are not self-enforcing. American leadership is required in their defence. But that leadership has been sorely lacking," he said. "We are not witnessing a China committed to a 'peaceful rise'. Instead, we are confronting an assertive China that has demonstrated its willingness to use intimidation and coercion to disrupt the rules-based order that has been the foundation of security and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region for seven decades," McCain said. "We must adapt US policy and strategy to reflect this reality and ensure we have the necessary military forces, capabilities, and posture in the region to deter, and if necessary, defeat aggression," he said. Jharkhand cadre IPS officer Rajiv Jain was today appointed as the new chief of Intelligence Bureau (IB) while Anil Dhasmana will head external intelligence agency RAW. Both the officers will have a tenure of two years. Jain, who is at present serving as the Special Director in the IB, will take over on January 1 after the incumbent Dineshwar Sharma completes his two-year tenure on December 31. A recipient of President's Police Medal, the 1980-batch officer has served in various departments of the IB including the sensitive Kashmir desk. He was advisor to the previous NDA government's interlocutor on Kashmir K C Pant when talks were held with separatist leaders like Shabbir Shah. In another appointment, Anil Dhasmana will take over the reins of the Research and Analysis Wing, an organisation which looks after the external intelligence of the country. He succeeds Rajinder Khanna who completes his tenure this year end. Dhasmana, a 1981-batch officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre, has been with RAW for the last 23 years during which he has served on important desks including Pakistan. It was in the year 1883 that 31-year old artist Leonid Pasternak first met Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy, who was by then an international celebrity. His long novels, War and Peace (1869) and Anna Karenina (1878), had made him a household name. Paradoxically, the enormous success of his writing, and rapidly growing wealth on account of the royalties, had driven the Russian master to depression, midlife crisis, and religious disenchantment. Tormented by inner conflict, existential despair and philosophical questions about the meaning of life in the face of death, Tolstoy had, by the 1880s, become a white-bearded patriarch in peasants clothing living among the poor. When the 55-year-old novelist visited the 21st Wanderers exhibition in Moscow, Pasternak was understandably excited. Tolstoy suddenly began to look hard at the pictures, as if he were drilling a hole in the air, he recalled in his memoirs. I saw the flash and the flare of lightning. I saw a thunderstorm with muffled peals of thunder rumbling behind the storm-clouds. This was the Tolstoy whom I later tried to depict in my profile portrait against the stormy sky. A warm friendship quickly sprang between the two from the meeting. Full of admiration for Pasternaks illustrations, Tolstoy frequently invited him to his Moscow and country residences. He became Pasternaks frequent model and was depicted in a variety of settings and media. In the late 1890s, when Tolstoys third long novel Resurrection was serialised in a journal, Pasternak sketched and illustrated it with unbridled interest and enthusiasm. His ability to capture the novels moods and characters delighted the author. Pasternak and his wife Rozaliya, an accomplished pianist, were deeply influenced by Tolstoys personality, moral idealism and integrity as man and artist. Decades later, Leonids son, Boris Pasternak (who went on to win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1958), would write about his parents reverence towards Tolstoy; and how the whole house was imbued with Tolstoyan spirit. Lydia, Leonids daughter, too, had similar recollection. The time was characterised by a spiritual atmosphere and a Tolstoyan element combined with the experience of music. When Tolstoy died in a little country railway station in November 1910, Leonid and Boris Pasternak hurried there to pay their last respects. Leonid, in fact, made the last drawing of Tolstoy on his deathbed. Leonids monograph on Leo Tolstoy containing paintings and essays was published in Berlin in 1932. Most of the copies were sadly destroyed in 1933, when the Nazis took pride in publicly burning books. Lightning draughtsmanship Leonid Pasternak, the youngest of a large family of nine children, loved sketching from an early age. However, his financially struggling parents discouraged his early forays into art; they did not hesitate to even destroy some of his early pictures. Later, while pursuing his legal studies, Leonid continued to chase art by living frugally. His first major sale of a painting took place in 1888 when Letter from Home (30 x 40 cm /pencil on paper /1888) was purchased by art collector Pavel Tretyakov for 2000 roubles. When his second major picture, The Blind Childrens Prayer, was rejected by a jury in 1890, Leonid along with his younger Moscow colleagues founded a progressive artists collective: Group of Thirty-Six artists. His finances began looking up only in the early 1890s as he gained recognition as a talented illustrator and portraitist. In 1894, he joined the staff of the Moscow School of Painting where he remained for more than 25 years. Leonid, who had seen life at the lower end of the social ladder in his youth, worked in his studio and home relentlessly producing evocative sketches, watercolours, charcoals and oil paintings. His art was characterised by his lightning draughtsmanship and impressionist painting technique. A true family person, he often sketched his near and dear ones, capturing their characteristic moods and manners. Leonids children saw him as a man of unquestionable loyalty and integrity, with an exaggerated sense of responsibility and duty which made his personal life more austere and difficult than it need have been. According to Lydia, he was a man of dreamy, gentle disposition, kind and altruistic, slow and uncertain in anything but his work, modest, retiring, and with a genuine dislike of being in the limelight, which at times was not easy for him to avoid. He also had a wonderful sense of humour, and an ability for impersonation; observing and drawing were for him a natural necessity, like sleeping and breathingit was fascinating to watch him at work; when painting a portrait the speed, the ease and decisiveness with which he worked were truly amazing, and in direct contrast with his usual bearing. Politically, Leonid was known to take a moderate position infected by a spirit of revolution, although in 1905, he had in a letter to his friend expressed horror at the number of victims already claimed by the Revolution. In 1917, he was called to the Kremlin to paint a group portrait of leading Bolsheviks including Lenin and Trotsky. The painting was bought by the state but destroyed in the 1930s because too many of the leaders it portrayed had since been declared enemies of the people. Pasternak was forced to flee to Germany with his wife and their two daughters, Lydia and Josephine, from Stalins Russia in 1921. (Boris and his brother Alexander remained in the Soviet Union.) In emigration, Leonid created portraits of Albert Einstein, Rainer Maria Rilke, and John Osborne, among others. As the Nazis took power in Germany, Leonid and his family considered returning to Russia in 1938. Boris, while wanting them to come back, also tried to dissuade them from coming since he feared danger to their lives if they came. The family moved to Oxford, England in 1938. Heartbroken after his wife died in 1939, and saddened by rare contact with his sons, Leonid spent the last six years of his life as a semi-recluse at Lydias home in Oxford, where he died on May 31, 1945 at the age of 83. During the past year, Nicole Kidman has had what she describes as a massive amount of work, both as an actress and a producer. But the one thing she wanted more than anything was to accept the offer to star in the Broadway production of the award-winning play Photograph 51, which was such a success for her in the West End. She played Rosalind Franklin, the X-ray crystallographer whose work at Kings College London in the 50s led to the discovery of the DNA double helix. Her colleagues James Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins were awarded a Nobel Prize; Franklin was not and her significant contribution has only been acknowledged posthumously. Its a great play and a great role, and I would have had an amazing time, she says ruefully. But we had a family meeting and my kids said No. They didnt want to go to New York for four months and I get it. I am not a single girl and not a childless woman, and I need to bow down to that. Kidman, who has two daughters, Sunday Rose, eight, and Faith, five, with the musician Keith Urban, now lives in Nashville, but we meet to discuss her latest film, Lion, at the Four Seasons hotel in Beverly Hills. She is in the middle of a particularly hectic schedule and has taken a brief break from filming Sofia Coppolas The Beguiled, a remake of the 1970 film that starred Clint Eastwood. I was shooting in Louisiana, got on a plane and went straight home to Nashville, so I was able to take my kids to school, spend the morning with Keith and then got on another plane to come here to Los Angeles to fulfil my obligation to Lion and then I go straight back to Louisiana again, she says, showing no sign of fatigue or jet lag. Real life significance In Lion she plays a real-life Australian, Susan Brierley, who, with her husband, adopted two Indian boys and raised them in Hobart, Tasmania. The film is based on the book, A Long Way Home, by one of the boys, Saroo Brierley (played by Dev Patel), who was adopted after being found on the streets of Calcutta when he was five years old. Twenty-five years later, with the help of Google Earth, he set out to find his real mother in an Indian village, the name of which he could not recall. The story has particular emotional significance for Kidman, who has a grown-up son and daughter, Connor, 21, and Isabella, 23, whom she adopted when she was married to Tom Cruise. After she and Cruise split up in 2001, Kidman shared custody of the children, but they chose to go to live with their adoptive father, were brought up as Scientologists, and over the years it has been reported that their relationship with Kidman has been vexed. Earlier this year there were stories of an emotional reunion with Isabella following her daughters marriage to Max Parker, an IT specialist. Asked at the time about her relationship with her parents, Isabella said, Of course (we talk), theyre my parents. Anyone who says otherwise is full of s--t. When I read the script, I didnt know it was a true story and I was still so moved, the 49-year-old actress tells me. I just wanted to be in it. I hadnt played an Australian woman like this, so it was my way of connecting back to my country. And I loved the message of unconditional love. The movie is a love letter to my children who are adopted and its not about anything other than I wanted you and whatever your journey is, I am here to love and support you. Thats what I connected to. I wanted to make the film for them. When you are an adoptive mother, of course you think about the birth mother and the birth parents and what it all means and how our lives are intertwined in some way, whether the child chooses to find the birth parents or not, she says. Home sweet home I sense a desire for reconciliation in Kidman and indeed a few weeks after we speak she gives an interview to an American magazine where she talks in glowing terms about the first time she met Tom Cruise in an audition for Days of Thunder (He got out of the car and walked through and I was like, Ah. My jaw dropped); and about their subsequent marriage and adoption of Connor and Isabella (It was a beautiful marriage and all of those things that came out of it. Two beautiful children. The rest is history.) For the last 10 years Kidman has been settled in Nashville with Urban. I love it there, I really do, she says. I am lucky because I travel, but in terms of a home base, its so good for us. Its very quiet and easy, and its just a really lovely way of life. Keith has lived there for 25 years. So when I met him he said, How do you feel about Nashville? And I was like, Absolutely, I will move. And I did, but I think I could move pretty much anywhere if I loved somebody. Im not attached to an environment I am probably far more attached to a person. So having to move somewhere would never be a deal-breaker for me. She goes on, Its an easy, simple life there. On weekends, well go to peoples houses and everybody is around the piano and playing the guitar and singing. For me, the highlight is being around a whole different type of people. I have been around actors and filmmakers my whole life, so now I love being around musicians and seeing what gets put into their music. I get to sit in the background and listen and watch and hum along and its beautiful. She and Urban met at an Australian promotional party in Los Angeles in January 2005 and quietly dated for several months before becoming engaged. They married in June the following year in Sydney, but four months later her new husband checked into the Betty Ford clinic in California for 90 days of rehab for alcohol abuse. She stuck by him, encouraging him in his recovery. I learnt an enormous amount having a relationship with someone in recovery, she says. We were in a bad, painful place and managed to step through it. I love him for his honesty and bravery. Simply put, hes a wonderful, wonderful man and Im very lucky to have him though as this article goes to press there are reports that she and Urban have enrolled in a $10,000 couples retreat. Kidman has come through bad times the failed marriage to Cruise, separation from her adopted children and the recent death of her father and is now, she tells me, down on my knees grateful for my life and truly I mean that. I dont think I would ever have imagined this. But also, if I really think about it, what I do is make movies. I was lucky enough to get a job when I was 14 and Im still doing pretty much exactly the same thing that I was doing then and with the same amount of passion. Cashing in on the startup boom in Bengaluru, leading investor and former Infosys director T V Mohandas Pai is confident of reaching the 200-mark in investing his hard-earned money in the Indian startup ecosystem. Till date, I have invested over $325 million in 160 companies. I have 10 funds to look after my investments, and the double century will happen within one year, said Pai, who is the current chairman of Manipal Global Education. Ecosystem creation He pointed out that the effort is to create an ecosystem so that budding entrepreneurs will find it easy to materialise their dreams. We are a country with lots of youngsters having innovative ideas. It is an opportune time for them to make these ideas a reality, so that various problems can be solved. It will take our country to prosperity, he said. When asked how he foresees himself as the next billionaire, he said, It is a long way to go. Bengaluru is home to billionaire investors like N R Narayana Murthy, Nandan Nilakeni, Kris Gopalakrishnan, and S D Shibulal. Pai, who is the head of Aarin Capital Partners, pointed out that 60% startups may fail. I can also find that 30% will return 2X money, and 10% may give 3X to 4X money. We cant say that all of them will give money, but quite a few of them will fetch money. I dont fear in investing in startups at all, he said. The former CFO and HR Head at Infosys is spearheading his investment strategies with 10 fund houses, including his family fund 3one4 Capital. Besides technology and life science companies, mobile-to-consumer, B2B, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, I am investing in companies fostering women entrepreneurship and mid-tier real estate, he said. Pai pointed out that his investments are ranging from seed, Series A and Series B funding. I have also invested in mid-cap public markets, he said. Pai declined to give details of investments he has made. Besides LetsVenture, funds of fund Aarin Capital, Zodius Capital, Saha Capital, and Silicon Valley Fund, Pais investments are handled by Singular Capital Investment, Neev Capital, Exfinity Venture Partners and Ideaspring Capital. ToneTag is the recent investment made by Pai. I have given them a target of achieving 1000X growth. But I am okay with 100X, he said. To share with friends and brethren The Gospel of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (the Everlasting Gospel), and to prepare a people to stand when He returns to redeem His remnant. Also, to share relevant information of current events, and to show how they relate to prophecy; By means of articles, editorials, opinions, scripture readings, and poetry. Disclaimer Endrtimes does not necessarily endorse or agree with every opinion expressed in every article/video posted on this site. The information provided here is done so for personal edification; It's up to the reader to separate truth from error, and to examine everything (like the Bereans) from a Biblical perspective. Let the Holy Scriptures be you guide! - - - FAIR USE NOTICE: These pages/videos may contain copyrighted () material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Such material is made available to advance understanding of ecological, POLITICAL, HUMAN RIGHTS, economic, DEMOCRACY, scientific, MORAL, ETHICAL, and SOCIAL JUSTICE ISSUES, etc. It is believed that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior general interest in receiving similar information for research and educational purposes. The U.S. House of Representatives earlier this month passed the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act (WIIN Act) which, among other projects, authorizes over $91 million to address the public safety issues and potential economic and property damages associated with bluff and beach erosion in Encinitas and Solana Beach. Just before the bill passed, Congressman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) met with Solana Beach Mayor David Zito in Issas Washington, D.C. office to discuss the WIIN Act and the importance of the Army Corps sand replenishment efforts to the safety and economy of the district. I am proud to deliver on a top priority for the communities of Encinitas and Solana Beach, Congressman Issa said in a news release. Erosion of the beaches and bluffs in our area have presented significant safety concerns we can correct through the careful work of the Army Corps of Engineers and our local and federal leaders. Just this week, I had the pleasure of meeting with Mayor Zito of Solana Beach where he stressed what an incredible difference this project will make for the future safety and economy in our area. I am excited to move this project forward. In its entirety, the bipartisan legislation helps address the needs of the harbors, locks, dams, flood protection and other water resources across California. In addition to the provisions for local sand replenishment, the WIIN Act increases water deliveries to California farmers in the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California; builds long-term water infrastructure in California and around the nation; and modifies environmental restrictions that have hindered the states ability to capture water during the rainy season. Submitted press release Odette Saleh Mikhail, a 70-year-old victim of the Sunday Cairo church bombing, died on Friday at Demerdash Hospital after succumbing to her injuries Egypts health ministry announced on Friday that the death toll from Sunday's St. Peter and St. Paul Church bombing in Cairo has risen to 26 after a 70-year-old woman who was caught in the blast died of her injuries, state news agency MENA reported. Odette Saleh Mikhail died on Friday at Cairo's Demerdash Hospital. Health minister advisor Sherif Wadie said that the number of injured victims who remain hospitalised stands at 23, three of whom remain in critical condition. The initial death toll from the suicide attack was 23, mostly women, with 49 people injured. The death toll rose to 25 by Monday. Sunday's church bombing is one of the bloodiest attacks on churches in Egypt in years. The explosion caused severe damage to parts of the church building. The Egyptian government declared three days of mourning after the attack. The Islamic State militant group claimed responsibility for the bombing in a statement issued on SITE intelligence group on Tuesday, bragging that it killed 80 "crusaders" in the suicide operation. Egypts authorities has battling an Islamist insurgency in North Sinai for several years, mostly against Islamic State affiliate Ansar Beit Al-Maqdis, who regularly carry out deadly attacks against army and police personnel. Search Keywords: Short link: By Jim ODonnell 15 December 2016 (Yale e360) The Dinaric Mountains of southeastern Europe are home to three of the continents largest carnivores the Eurasian brown bear, the Eurasian wolf, and the Eurasian lynx. They roam widely through woodlands of ash, oak, beech, and pine that run the length of the range from Greece to the Alps. The jagged cliffs and sheer-sided canyons, cut by some of the last free-flowing rivers on the continent, offer near-ideal habitat for these animals. This Balkan region, already threatened by the construction of highways and dams, is now being carved into increasingly constricted and less hospitable chunks by a new threat: border fencing. In the summer of 2015, as a flood of refugees from the Middle East and Africa streamed into Europe, Hungary closed its border. That left Slovenia as the main refugee conduit into Western Europe. Alarmed at the massive tide of migrants, Slovenia began building a razor-wire security fence along its 670-kilometer (416-mile) border with Croatia, giving little if any consideration of the environmental impacts on the wildlife. Those effects are now being felt by the regions migratory wild animals. The Croatian-Slovenian border area is currently home to scores of bears that, according to DNA testing and satellite tracking, have long roamed freely between the two countries and beyond. Of the 10 or 11 wolf packs found in Slovenia, five traditionally have regularly moved across the Slovenian-Croatian boundary where the fence is now being erected. The threatened lynx also counts as homeland this area that was for centuries a borderless frontier of valleys, hills, and farmland. On his most recent trip into the mountains along the Slovenian-Croatian border, biologist Djuro Huber counted 11 dead roe deer, all caught up in the fencing. The deer stumble into the barriers while foraging. In a desperate bid to escape, they drive themselves further into the razor wire, entangling themselves and eventually dying of blood loss. Certainly many more died, but the border officials try to remove them before [they are] photographed, says Huber of the University of Zagreb in Croatia. But it is what we dont see that troubles me the most. [] The big problem, concluded the University of Zagrebs Huber, is that from Mongolia to the United States to Europe, building fences and walls thats a trend. [more] By Chris Mooney 16 December 2016 (Washington Post) Scientists at institutions in the United States and Australia on Friday published a set of unprecedented ocean observations near the largest glacier of the largest ice sheet in the world: Totten glacier, East Antarctica. And the result was a troubling confirmation of what scientists already feared Totten is melting from below. The measurements, sampling ocean temperatures in seas over a kilometer (0.62 miles) deep in some places right at the edge of Totten glaciers floating ice shelf, affirmed that warm ocean water is flowing in towards the glacier at the rate of 220,000 cubic meters per second. These waters, the paper asserts, are causing the ice shelf to lose between 63 and 80 billion tons of its mass to the ocean per year, and to lose about 10 meters (32 feet) of thickness annually, a reduction that has been previously noted based on satellite measurements. This matters because more of East Antarctica flows out towards the sea through the Totten glacier region than for any other glacier in the entirety of the East Antarctic ice sheet. Its entire catchment, or the region of ice that slowly flows outward through Totten glacier and its ice shelf, is larger than California. If all of this ice were to end up in the ocean somehow, seas would raise by about 11.5 feet. This ice shelf is thinning, and its thinning because the ocean is delivering warm water to the ice shelf, just like in West Antarctica, said Don Blankenship, a glaciologist at the University of Texas at Austin and one of the studys co-authors. [more] Egypt's interior ministry said that the suspected mastermind behind the Sunday attack on church in Cairo had travelled to Qatar in 2015, where he met and conspired with members of the Muslim Brotherhood Egypts foreign ministry called on the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) on Friday to accurately read the Egyptian stance towards Sundays church bombing, which left 26 people dead and more 40 injured. The foreign ministrys statement came in response to a statement by the GCC Secretary-General Abdul Latif bin Rashid Al Zayani on Thursday where he expressed the GCC's displeasure at a Monday statement by the Egyptian interior ministry which inserted the name of Qatar in the details of the "heinous crime." "We were hoping that the GCC secretary-generals statement would reflect an accurate reading of the Egyptian stance, the foreign ministry statement read. The only official statement issued by the [Egyptian] interior ministry about the attack included verified and accurate information about the terrorist involved in the attack, and his recent moves outside Egypt," the statement added. Al Zayani warned against "haste in releasing accusatory statements, which could negatively affect the close ties between the GCC and Egypt," and urged the countries to communicate through official channels before releasing any statements. Al Zayani also stated that GCC countries have condemned the attack and expressed solidarity with Egypt in its war against terrorism, saying that Egypt's security is important to the security of the GCC countries. The foreign ministry statement expressed appreciation for the support and solidarity reflected in Al Zayanis statements but insisted that the relations between Egypt and other Arab countries should stay strong and immune, and not to be exposed to shocks or suspicions due to inaccurate reading of the situations. On Monday, Egyptian authorities accused the banned Muslim Brotherhood organisation of involvement in Sundays bombing of the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Cairo, which left 26 dead and more than 40 injured. Egypt's interior ministry said in a statement broadcast on state TV that the suspected mastermind behind the attack, Mohab Moustafa El-Sayed Kassem, had travelled to Qatar in 2015, where he met and conspired with members of the Muslim Brotherhood residing in the Gulf country. Qatars foreign ministry said on Tuesday that Doha rejects having its name mentioned in connection with the bombing. The Qatari foreign ministry confirmed that Kassem had legally visited Qatar in December last year, but denied any wrongdoing on the part of the Qatari government towards Egypt. The Qatari statement added that Doha has strongly condemned and denounced the terrorist attack. The Egyptian statement said that Kassem returned from Qatar to carry out terrorist attacks in Egypt with full financial and logistical assistance from the Muslim Brotherhood. Egypt-Qatar relations have witnessed tensions since the 2013 ousting of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, who had close relations with the Qatari government. Cairo has accused Doha of harbouring fugitive leading members of the Muslim Brotherhood, who have been convicted on various criminal charges in Egyptian courts. Egypt designated the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist group in late 2013. The Islamic State militant group claimed on Tuesday responsibility for the bombing in a statement published on its affiliated news outlet AMAQ. Search Keywords: Short link: If theres one company that invokes nostalgia in todays world, its Nokia. From our very first mobile phones to much of our first experience with mobile internet and even mobile photography, the Finland-based company remained our prime favourites for much of the beginning of this millennium. However, the advent of Android and Nokias momentary refusal to switch to Android saw its decline in sales and popularity. A partnership with Microsoft for introducing Windows Mobile-powered smartphones and the eventual takeover failed commercially, and 2016 saw the eventual death of the Nokia brand as we knew it. However, with Microsoft fading out Nokia and its Lumia line of smartphones from its business, words had already begun of a possible comeback by Nokia. Enter, HMD Global Oy. The Finnish company that has its headquarters right in front of Nokias global headquarters in Finland was formed in May 2016, after acquiring Microsofts feature phone business, Nokias old mobile business and a licensing agreement. This allows it to make smartphones, and use the legendary Nokia brand on the devices. So, who is HMD Global? What are their plans? Can we really expect smartphones from Nokia that will be equivalent to the innovative, practically indestructible and fun-to-use devices that the likes of Nokia N-series, Prism, XpressMusic and more, were? A company that derives its dna from Nokia Some may argue that the new Nokia phones are not really Nokia. Interestingly, HMD Global is actually more Nokia than you would imagine. The companys hierarchy includes CEO Arto Nummela, President Florian Seiche and Juho Sarvikas. Of them, Nummela was involved with Nokia since the mid-90s for product development and marketing, Seiche led sales and marketing, and Sarvikas was also among the hierarchy for product management, all at Nokia. Looking beyond the Nokia lineage, each of them have been involved with Nokia and Microsoft during their botched partnership, and have individually had years of experience as executives in companies that have been pivotal in the evolution of mobile communication. Take HMD Globals President Florian Seiche, for instance, who was with Siemens, Orange (now Vodafone) and HTC before his stints with Nokia and Microsoft. HMD Global's DNA is heavily ingrained in the Nokia of old days While HMD Global Oy is strictly centered around Nokia and the resurgence of the brand, the companys leadership infuses confidence of sorts regarding the dna of HMD Global, and how Nokias return will shape up to be. As CEO Nummela stated in an interview with The Economic Times, Every product, marketing, will be the true to the Nokia brand and the foundation of it. Stability, quality, reliability and then we're bringing in innovation where it matters the most for consumer, and removing the clutter. This will be seen through Nokia lineup coming to life again. HMD Global has also declared worldwide operations, and its very first product, the Nokia 150 feature phone, has been released globally. We are not yet sure in terms of the infrastructure being used by HMD. At its peak, Nokia owned an extensive network of manufacturing and assembly units, and it will be interesting to learn about how the new phones will be made. We reached out to HMD Global Oy, and as of now, are waiting for responses on further details of its specific operations. What kind of phones can we expect? Well, for one, we will finally be privy to Android phones by Nokia. On the other hand, we literally know very little of the new devices. One name that has been around for a while is the Nokia D1C - a name that we are quite certain wont make it to the commercial release. As of now, the Nokia D1C is expected to be a mid-range smartphone, powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 SoC, options for 2GB/3GB of RAM, 5-inch/5.5-inch screen sizes, 13MP/16MP rear camera options, 8MP front cameras, 16GB native storage, and run on Android Nougat customised with Nokias Z launcher. All of this hints at a budget smartphone, and recent reports point at pricing between Rs. 9,999 and Rs. 12,999. Meanwhile, another unspecified rumour suggested a flagship device running on Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 SoC with options for 5.2-inch or 5.5-inch Quad HD OLED displays. There has also been words of a highly inexpensive variant that may run on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 SoC, 1GB of RAM and Android Nougat. Till now, though, none of these seem too concrete, and the most plausible speculation right now seems to be the Nokia D1C. The Nokia Android phones: Somewhat Lumia? Amidst all of these, is CEO Nummelas promise that the key differentiator will be the brand Nokias emotional connect with the audience. While expecting an Android-powered Nokia smartphone with the build and design of, say, a Nokia N82 or Nokia N93i would be a distant dream, we may actually see HMD sticking to the Lumia design language. In recent memory, the Nokia Lumia 520 was a major success, offering a sturdy build with neat, funky appeal. Other devices like the Lumia 830 also had good designs, from which HMD/Nokia may take cues. Will the new Nokia-branded smartphones house familiar designs? The leaked renders do not seem to suggest so, but its never too far-fetched for wishful thinking. When do we see the first Nokia smartphone? While a release date has not yet been specified, HMD Global will reportedly be present at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, in February 2017. A recently published memo pointed at a major focus on smartphones, so we do expect a global launch at around the same time. As of now, HMD Global has not given out further information, and we wait to hear the first official announcement. Until then, were all waiting for the epic, long-awaited launch of Nokia-branded phones, powered by HMD Global. How J.T. Tuimoloau became Ohio State's next dominant defensive end A multifaceted skill set shaped by playing multiple sports and training with family set J.T. Tuimoloau to become Ohio State's next star defensive end. Egypt opened the Rafah border crossing with the Gaza Strip Saturday for three days, the state-run MENA news agency reported. The crossing will be open in both directions to allow humanitarian cases to cross. The Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Sinai is the only way for 1.8 million Palestinians in Gaza, who have been living under Israeli siege since 2006, to enter and exit the Strip. The crossing has been mostly closed by Egyptian authorities since October 2014 on security grounds. Cairo periodically opens the border for short periods to allow civilians with foreign passports, Palestinian students, and those with medical needs to travel back and forth. Search Keywords: Short link: Unilever to buy US-based hair care products maker Living Proof British-Dutch multinational consumer goods company Unilever Plc yesterday struck a deal to buy US-based hair care products maker Living Proof Inc, in order to expand its personal care portfolio. Unilever did not disclose the financial terms of the deal, which is expected to close in early 2017. For Unilever, this deal is among the latest of several small acquisitions it has carried out recently to boost its personal care business. Since the past year, it has acquired Kate Somerville, Dermalogica, Ren, Dollar Shave Club and Murad. Living Proof, in which fashion icon and actor Jennifer Aniston had acquired minority stake in 2012, was formed in 2005 by Polaris Venture Partners and Dr. Robert Langer, an Institute Professor at MIT. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company manufactures and supplies hair care products, which include shampoos, conditioners, styling treatments, overnight products, styling creams and mousses, nourishing creams, styling sprays, thickening mousses, thickening creams, root lifting sprays, mask treatments, protection and repairing products, texture mists, extender sprays, hair serums, shaping hairsprays, texture volumizers, and travel kits. The company sells its products through its online store, as well as through salons, retailers, specialty beauty stores, and fashion specialty retailers in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, Singapore, and Thailand. Alan Jope, president personal care at Unilever said, ''We are delighted to be adding Living Proof to our portfolio of Prestige brands. The Prestige Hair retail market is very attractive and offers significant potential for growth. Through compelling product result demonstrations and influencer driven marketing, Living Proof is already a successful business in this space and we look forward to further developing and growing this wonderful brand.'' ''I am extremely proud of Living Proof's growth over the years and the difference our products make to people's lives. Unilever shares our deep commitment to science, quality and innovation, making them the ideal partner to take us to the next stage of our journey," said, Grace Ray, CEO of Living Proof. Living Proof will be part of Unilever's Prestige portfolio, which includes brands such as Dermalogica, Kate Somerville, Murad and REN. The United States and China are in a fresh row over the alleged seizure of a US underwater drone by a Chinese navy warship in the international waters in the South China Sea. The US has demanded that China "immediately" return its underwater drone, ''unlawfully'' seized by Chinese navy in international waters in the South China Sea. The incident occurred on 15 December, in the Subic Bay, about 100 miles from a nearby port, US defence officials said on Friday. The drone was used by USNS Bowditch, an oceanographic vessel operating in the region, for collecting data in international waters in the South China Sea, officials said. The Chinese warship, a Dalang III-class vessel (ASR-510), seized the UUV in full view of the American ship, just as the ship was about to retrieve the unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), which was mapping the sea floor and collecting oceanographic data, US officials said. "Using appropriate government-to-government channels, the Department of Defence has called upon China to immediately return an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) that China unlawfully seized on December 15 in the South China Sea while it was being recovered by a US Navy oceanographic survey ship," Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said. The USNS Bowditch (T-AGS 62) and the UUV - an unclassified "ocean glider" system used around the world to gather military oceanographic data such as salinity, water temperature, and sound speed - were conducting routine operations in accordance with international law about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, Philippines, when a Chinese Navy PRC DALANG III-Class ship (ASR-510) launched a small boat and retrieved the UUV, he said. The USNS Bowditch (T-AGS 62) is owned by the US Navy but operated by Military Sealift Command around the world to gather military oceanographic data such as salinity, water temperature, and sound speed. ''The ship ''supports worldwide oceanography programs, including performing acoustical, biological, physical and geophysical surveys,'' according to the website. The Chinese naval vessel allegedly slowed Bowditch and used a smaller craft to retrieve the drone. The US ship informed the Chinese crew that the vessel was US property; but, did not receive a response from the Chinese, says a CNN report. The Pentagon said, its only radio response to the US vessel was, ''We are returning to normal operations.'' The US Department of State lodged a formal protest Friday and officially demanded the return of the drone, a Slocum Glider worth $150,000. "Bowditch made contact with the PRC Navy ship via bridge-to-bridge radio to request the return of the UUV. The radio contact was acknowledged by the PRC Navy ship, but the request was ignored," he said. "The UUV is a sovereign immune vessel of the US. We call upon China to return our UUV immediately, and to comply with all of its obligations under international law," Cook demanded. Senator Ben Cardin of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee termed the China's seizure of an US Navy unmanned scientific research submersible in international waters off the South China Sea as a remarkably brazen violation of international law. "No matter its motivation, China needs to explain its actions and immediately return the undersea drone, untampered with, to the United States," he said. "China's increasingly aggressive behaviour in the South China Sea - including the militarisation of the artificial features that it has built in the region, in direct contradiction of a pledge made by President Xi Jinping not to do so - is deeply disturbing, and not consistent with the actions of a nation seeking to build a constructive and cooperative relationship with the United States," Cardin said. "The United States has a deep and abiding interest in freedom of navigation and the free-flow of commerce in the Asia-Pacific region, and a steadfast commitment to our regional allies and partners in maintaining stability, security and the rule of law, including safe passage in international waters," Cardin said. The incident comes amid assertive Chinese actions in the South China Sea, including installation of weapon systems in the disputed islands. European regulator grants conditional approval to Danone's WhiteWave Foods acquisition The European regulator yesterday approved French yogurt giant Danone SA's acquisition of US organic food producer WhiteWave Foods Co subject to conditions. In June, Danone agreed to buy WhiteWave for $10.4 billion in order to double the size of its business in the US. (See: Danone to buy US organic foods producer WhiteWave Foods Co for $10.4 bn) The deal is Danone's largest since it acquired Dutch baby foods group Numico in 2007 for $16.8 billion. The European Commission (EC) cleared the deal subject to Danone selling a large part of its "growing-up milk" category in Belgium, as an acquisition would have left Nestle as the only competitor in the country. Danone is active in the European Economic Area (EEA) mainly in dairy products but also in early life nutrition products. WhiteWave manufactures plant-based products such as soy milk and yoghurts under its Alpro and Provamel brands. Alpro products also include plant-based "growing-up milk" (for children aged 1 to 3 years). The EC said that its investigation revealed that the proposed transaction would leave only one other competitor, Nestle, on the market for "growing-up milk" in Belgium. The EC had concerns that the merged entity would not have faced sufficient competitive pressure from the remaining player in this market. The EC added that Danone has committed to address these concerns by divesting a large part of its "growing-up milk" business in Belgium. The divestment will completely remove the overlap between the companies in Belgium on the overall "growing-up milk" market, comprising both dairy and plant-based products, as well as on the sub-market only for plant-based products. WhiteWave Foods, earlier a subsidiary of Dean Foods till it was spun off in an IPO in 2012, is a packaged food and beverage company that manufactures and sells branded plant-based foods and beverages, coffee creamers and beverages, premium dairy products and organic produce throughout North America, Europe and through a joint venture in China. Its brands include Silk, So Delicious, Alpro, Vega, Horizon, Wallaby Organic, Earthbound Farm and International Delight. The Denver, Colorado-based company employs around 3,000 people and generates $3.9 billion in annual revenues. Around 86 per cent of its annual revenues come from North America, while 14 per cent from Europe. Since becoming a public company in 2012, WhiteWave sales have increased at a 19 per cent compound annual growth rate through 2015, and have doubled its operating income during this period. The deal will allow Danone to have one of the most extensive portfolios of brands and products in fresh dairy, organic foods and beverages and plant based alternatives to milk and yogurt. It also diversifies Danone's portfolio and broadens its presence in North America. The transaction will create a leading US refrigerated dairy player, as well as one of the top 15 largest US food and beverage manufacturers. Post closing, Danone's North America footprint would increase from 12 to 22 per cent of its total portfolio. Danone, a Fortune 500 company with 2015 revenues of over of 22.4 billion, is one of the world's most successful health food companies and the world's largest yogurt maker. It has recently been making divestments in Europe and huge acquisitions in emerging markets, including Russia, China and India. Emerging markets now account for 49 per cent of the company's sales, while North America contributes 10 per cent, France and Russia account for 11 per cent each. With 160 plants and around 100,995 employees, Danone has a presence in all five continents and over 120 countries. It is No 1 in fresh dairy products, No 2 in packaged water and baby nutrition.' Five people were killed on Saturday when the bus they were travelling on crashed on the Cairo-Alexandria Agriculture Road, Al-Ahram Arabic website reported. Initial investigations revealed that the bus crashed after it was struck by a spare tire that flew off the top of another vehicle. The driver of the privately-owned bus was injured in the crash. In 2015, Egypt saw 25,500 road fatalities and14,500 car accidents, the official statistics agency CAPMAS reported in its Economic cost of road accidents in Egypt in 2015 study published in August 2016. According to a 2015 global status report on road safety published by the World Health Organisation, Egypt's fatality rate ranked 16th among Arab countries and 109th globally out of 180 countries. Search Keywords: Short link: The Supreme Court verdict allowing tax collections on mobile towers installed within municipal corporation area has paved way for the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) to collect arrears of Rs80 crore from different mobile service providers. It will now also be able to make assessment of such towers under property tax and would be able to get a regular income of Rs20 crore per year. Following area-based evaluation system, SMC used to make assessment of mobile towers considering them liable to pay property tax. However, different mobile tower companies had approached the court against this. The high court in an April 2013 order had said that local bodies cannot collect taxes on mobile towers and it must also refund the taxes collected so far. The SMC appealed against the high court order in the Supreme Court. After four years of hearing, the apex court on Friday accepted the petition of SMC. It concluded that municipal bodies can make an assessment and collect the taxes for mobile towers. "Now, we will be able to claim Rs80 crore as arrears and would also be earning about Rs20 crore per year as taxes from mobile tower companies," said Sharad Mehta, deputy commissioner finance, SMC. The haul included 171 kilogrammes of heroin; crew of ship arrested and ship seized Egypt's army foiled a bid to smuggle of 171 kilogrammes of heroin on board an Iranian ship in Red Sea waters, a statement by the Ministry of Defence read Saturday. Arrest were made by the navy who acted on intelligence that the suspected ship had entered into Egyptian territorial waters. The ministry statement said that the general command of the armed forces ordered that naval forces send a unit to the vessel for inspection purposes and that during the search they found 319 bags of "white powder", equal to 171 kilogrammes, hidden in the floors of the ship's toilets. The statement added that the ship's name is ABADAN, and its crew included seven persons: four Iranians, two Indians, and one Pakistani. The crew have been all arrested and the ship seized and taken to a naval base. Search Keywords: Short link: Egypt's Prosecutor-General Nabil Sadek ordered on Saturday that the remains of the victims of last Mays EgyptAir crash in the Mediterranean be handed over to their families. Sadek ordered the High State Security Prosecution to hand over the remains of the Egyptian nationals to their families, and that the remains of the foreign nationals be sent to to their countries in coordination with their respective embassies. There were 30 Egyptians on board the Paris-Cairo flight, as well as 15 French citizens, two Iraqis and one passenger each from the UK, Canada, Belgium, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Sudan, Chad and Portugal. A statement from Sadeks office said that he reviewed the reports of the aviation investigative committee and forensic authority before issuing the order. Last Thursday, Egypt's civil aviation ministry announced that traces of explosives were found on the remains of the victims, and that the new findings have been submitted to the general prosecution. The prosecutor-general has ordered the High State Security Prosecution to continue investigations after the new findings. On 19 May, EgyptAir flight MS804 crashed into the eastern Mediterranean, killing all 66 people on board. No one has claimed responsibility for the crash. Search Keywords: Short link: As I wrote about earlier this week, rather than stepping up and doing the right thing in the Flint Water Crisis, Gov. Snyder is spending taxpayer dollars in court trying to get out of distributing water in Flint, Michigan as its residents continue to struggle with the poisoning of their drinking water with the powerful neurotoxin lead. Despite knowing about the presence of lead in Flint for nearly a year and a half if not more, due to lack of action on the part of Gov. Snyders administration, there are still fully 43% of homes in the beleaguered city that still test positive for lead. Yesterday, a federal appeals court panel rejected Gov. Snyders appeal in a 2-1 decision of the U.S. 6th Circuit Court: A federal appeals court on Friday refused to stay a judges order that requires the State of Michigan to make regular deliveries of bottled water to Flint households that dont have a working water filter on their kitchen taps. Fridays 2-1 ruling by the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals marks the third time a federal court has told the state to begin the water deliveries, which the state argues is unnecessary and too costly. U.S. District Judge David Lawson has twice ordered the state to start the bottled water deliveries to all households that the state cant demonstrate has a properly installed and maintained water filter to remove lead contamination. The state continues to fight Lawsons order and filed a new motion this week saying the water deliveries arent needed because the unfiltered tap water in Flint now meets federal standards under the Safe Drinking Water Act. The City of Flint says in court filings it supports the states request to stay Lawsons order. The majority on the 6th Circuit said the states disingenuous claim that the daily delivery of bottled water would be at an expense of $10.5 million a month, is not supported by the record. Its time for Gov. Snyder to quit wasting money on court battles to avoid doing what he should be doing. This is a moral issue, not a legal issue. People are suffering and Gov. Snyder is directly culpable for this given that it was HIS appointed Emergency Managers that made the decisions leading up to the poisoning of Flints drinking water. Many people are not able to schlep cases of water back to their homes from distribution centers in freezing cold weather. And they should not have to. Theres one sentence in the reporting above that perplexes me and thats that the City of Flint says in court filings it supports the states request to stay Lawsons order. I would think that Mayor Weaver and her administration would be eager to see the state fulfilling its responsibilities in this situation and not letting them off the hook. A recent article featured in a post from the Great Lakes Education Project told the story of Denisha Meriweather, an intelligent, dynamic and motivating individual whose life was changed by the school choice policies promoted by Betsy DeVos. The title of the article on The Hill is, Why we must give Betsy DeVos and school choice a chance. Let me explain why giving Betsy DeVos and school choice a chance is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea. First, lets understand where this article is coming from. Denisha Meriweather used a corporate tax break program that Betsy DeVos helped get passed in Florida that allows corporations to divert up to 75% of their tax payments as donations to private school voucher programs in the state. As reported by Mercedes Schneider, heres how Ms. DeVos explains this program: DeVos: The Tax Credit Opportunity Scholarship is a tax credit against corporate taxes in the state of Florida. So, if you have a business that pays Florida state corporate taxes, you can redesignate up to, I believe its 75 percent [Pozzuoli: Right.] of your corporate tax burden to the state annually into a scholarship fund. That scholarship fund is then vouchered out, or given out in incremental amounts [Pozzuoli: Right.] to low-income students and their families to choose the school or educational setting that is going to work best for them. Pozzuoli: So then, the child and their family can use the voucher and attend a private school [DeVos: Exactly.] or parochial school or whatever? DeVos. Exactly. Pozzuoli: And so, since there are no state monies involved, it is all essentially all private monies with the tax credit method. DeVos: Exactly. Pozzuoli: Okay. DeVos: Exactly. Because those funds never go into the state coffers to begin with. Pozzuoli: So, for some of our corporate partners who will watch this, this is really an opportunity [to invest]. DeVos: its a great opportunity. Absolutely, it is. Alert readers may wonder what the impact might be of corporations diverting up to 3/4ths of their corporate tax responsibilities to subsidize tuition at private and Christian schools in Florida. Thats 75% less going to public schools, police and fire departments, road and bridge maintenance, and countless other public goods. One might further wonder about the wisdom of allowing persons, or corporations, to decide where their tax dollars should be directed. Should an individual be able to decide that they dont want their taxes to go towards libraries? [Oops, Jeb Bush already did that: In May 2006, as part of a US$448.7-million line-item veto of state funding, he cut a total of US$5.8 million in grants to public libraries, pilot projects for library homework help and web-based high-school texts, and funding for a joint-use library in Tampa.) Should a corporation decide that they dont want their taxes to go towards supporting the government department or agency that regulates their industry? What Ms. DeVos and the Republican leadership in Florida dont seem to understand is that public taxes are collected to go towards providing necessary services dedicated to the public goodroads and infrastructure support; clean water and air; excellent public schools for all children; well-supported public safety organizations, like fire and police departments. Its not an a la carte system where persons decide what they want to pay for, and what they dont want to pay for. And public tax dollars should not be spent on subsidizing attendance at private and Christian schools. Which leads us to 2. The school that Ms. Meriweather attended was a private Christian school. The amount of the voucher she received through Floridas Tax Credit Opportunity Scholarship was around $4000. The tuition of the private Christian school she attended was around $6000 per year, plus uniforms, books, and fees. So, the voucher Ms. Meriweather and her family received may have helped, but it certainly did not cover the full cost of attending the school. This is one of the under-reported problems with voucherswhile the rhetoric around vouchers promises to level the playing field, and allow poor children to attend the private school of their choice, the vast majority of children and families dont receive enough in the form of vouchers to attend the school of their choice. In fact, theres an insidious but unmistakable scent of racism and classism associated with voucher programs. As an example: Jeb Bush, former Governor of Florida and a huge supporter and close friend of Betsy DeVos, sent his own children to the elite Gulliver Prepatory School in FL, where tuition for grades 6-12 rings up at an eye-popping $36,840 per year. Ms. Meriweathers $4000 voucher wouldnt have covered textbooks and uniforms at Gulliverhardly a game changer. The subtle, yet obvious message here is that while Jeb and Betsy want the public tax money that allows poor children almost afford to attend some low-level private and Christian schools, they have no intention of letting those children go to the same elite private and Christian schools that their children attend. 3. Ms. Meriweather is not simply an intelligent, dynamic and motivating individual whose life was changed by the school choice policies promoted by Betsy DeVos. Shes an employee of Step Up For Students, a state-approved nonprofit scholarship funding organization that helps administer the very Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program she benefitted from. Ms. Meriweather has also been writing versions of this article at least since she graduated from college in 2014. So, to date, the only job Ms. Meriweather has secured as a result of receiving her voucher is working for the organization that gave her the voucher, and trying to influence public opinion on the worth and value of vouchers. So, Betsy DeVos GLEP is promoting an article by an employee of the very group that administers her corporate tax work around voucher initiative in Florida as an example of how vouchers will work nationally. The logic here seems circular, flimsy, and not terribly convincing. Kind of like vouchers themselves, come to think of it. The Egyptian cabinet decided in a meeting on Saturday to issue compensations to the families of the victims of the Sunday bombing at the St. Peter and St. Paul Church in Cairo, Arabic Ahram website reported. The families of those who died in the blast will receive EGP 100,000 and an exceptional monthly pension of EGP 1,500 per victim. Those injured in the bombing and were hospitalised for more than 72 hours will receive EGP 40,000 and will have their medical fees paid. The suicide bombing was one of the bloodiest Egypt has seen in years, killing 26 people, mainly women, and injuring over 40 others. The explosion also caused severe damage to several parts of the church. The health ministry said on Friday that 23 of those injured in the attack remain hospitalised, three of whom are in critical condition. 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Woodward, IV and Michael C. Blumm At a time when humanity must reverse course before plunging over a climate cliff, the American public has elected a president who seems to have both feet on the fossil fuel accelerator. If there is a mechanism to force the Trump Administration to put the brakes on dirty energy policy, a lawsuit brought by 21 young people against the Obama administration may hold the key. Two days after the presidential election, on Nov. 10, a federal district court in Oregon issued a path-breaking decision in Juliana v. U.S. declaring that youthindeed, all citizenshold constitutional rights to a stable climate system. The youth, aged nine to 20 years old, seek a court-supervised plan to lower carbon dioxide emissions at a rate set by a science-based prescription. The judicial role is analogous to court-supervised remedies protecting equal opportunity for students after Brown v. Board of Education. The Juliana v. U.S. decision could be a legal game-changer, as it challenges the entire fossil-fuel policy of the U.S. Cruel Irony Environmental lawsuits typically rely on statutes or regulations. But Juliana is a human rights case that bores down to legal bedrock by asserting constitutional rights to inherit a stable climate system. The court, which ruled the suit can proceed to trial, rightly described the case as a civil rights actionan action of a different order than the typical environmental casebecause it alleges that government actions have so profoundly damaged our home planet that they threaten plaintiffs constitutional rights to life and liberty. The litigation, variously called a ray of hope, a legal long shot and a Hail Mary pass, yielded its groundbreaking decision not a moment too soon. At a rally for action on climate in 2014. The decisions made by adults will have broad implications for the planet todays youth will live on as adults. Joe Brusky / Flickr The year 2016 is the hottest year on record and Arctic sea ice has hit its lowest recorded level. Heated ocean waters threaten coral reefs and marine ecosystems. To have any hope of reversing or stalling these effects of climate change, the world must restrict fossil fuel production and ultimately switch to safe renewable energy. Even continued production solely from currently operating oil and gas fields will push the planet to 1.5 degrees Celsius over preindustrial temperatures, beyond the aspirational limit set by the global Paris agreement on climate change. President-elect Trump, who notoriously claimed that climate change was a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese, has said he plans to immediately approve the highly contentious Keystone pipeline, open public land to drilling, rescind Obamas Clean Power Plan, eliminate NASAs climate research and withdraw from the Paris climate agreement. He intends to spur production of US$50 trillion worth of shale, oil, coal and natural gas. The 70-year-old president-elect will not live long enough to witness the worst consequences of rapidly expanding fossil fuel development. The cruel irony for young people is that actions taken during Trumps time in office will lock in a future of severe disruptions within their projected lifetimesand sea level rise that could make coastal cities uninhabitable. James Hansen, formerly the nations chief climate scientist at NASA, has warned, Failure to act with all deliberate speed functionally becomes a decision to eliminate the option of preserving a habitable climate system. Sea levels are projected to rise at least three feet, and perhaps much more, in the lifetime of children today, inundating some locations and making storm surges more dangerous. The Juliana lawsuit and others like it argue that citizens have a right to a stable climate. NOAA Constitutional Argument For decades, the political branches have promoted fossil fuel consumption despite longstanding knowledge about the climate danger. President Obama ignored warnings when he charted a disastrous course of increased fossil fuel production early in office. In a last moment of opportunity to avert climate tipping points, Americans should recall an elementary school civics lesson: The U.S. has three, not two, branches of government. The founders wisely vested an independent judiciary with the responsibility of upholding the fundamental liberties of citizens against infringement by the other branches. As the president-elect promises to ramp up fossil fuel production and dismantle Obamas recent climate measures, and with no obvious statutory law to prevent him from doing so, only a fundamental rights approach carries any hope of trumping Trump. In Juliana, the youth asserted their fundamental rights under the Constitutions substantive due process clause and the public trust doctrine. This is an ancient principle requiring government to hold and protect essential resources as a sustaining endowment for citizens. They contended that government infringed on their rights to life, liberty, and property by promoting fossil fuel policies that threaten runaway planetary heatingthereby jeopardizing human life, private property and civilization itself. The principle of public trust law, dating to the time of Roman Emperor Justinian, holds that natural resources, including the sea, the shores of the sea, the air and running water, are common to everyone. It has since become part of U.S. jurisprudence. Petar Milosevic / Wikipedia Judge Ann Aikens Juliana decision in November upheld both public trust and substantive due process rights under the Constitution and allowed the case to go forward. I have no doubt that the right to a climate system capable of sustaining human life is fundamental to a free and ordered society, she wrote, explaining that public trust rights, which both predated the Constitution and are secured by it, cannot be legislated away. The opinion is bound to have a rippling effect. The case is actually part of a wave of atmospheric trust litigation (ATL) cases and petitions across the U.S. and in other countries. Launched by the group Our Childrens Trust in 2011, the legal campaign asserts youths rights to a stable climate system and seeks court-supervised climate recovery plans. Recent victories in Massachusetts, Pakistan, the Netherlands and Washington state indicate widespread judicial concern over the political branches failure to confront the climate emergency. The youth plaintiffs hope that the dominoes continue to fall in their favor in time to thwart climate catastrophe. As ATL moves forward globally, the Juliana case will proceed to trial as early as next summer or fall. The plaintiffs attorneys aim to show the governments deliberate indifference to mounting climate danger. Already dubbed the trial of the century, this is the first time that U.S. fossil fuel policy will confront climate science in court. Any government denial of climate change will have to confront the scrutiny of a fact-finding judge. Consent Degree From Obama? The case also offers President Obama a fleeting opportunity. Five days after the election, Sec. of State Kerry proclaimed that President Obama would use his last days in office to do everything possible to meet our responsibility to future generations to be able to address this threat to life itself on the planet. If so, the most viable way might be to offer a partial settlement of the Juliana case before going to trial. One form of settlement could be an enforceable consent decree consisting of interim steps to halt further fossil-fuel mining and infrastructure development. Such a settlement would help secure Obamas measures to close the Arctic to drilling and halt coal leasing on federal lands. Young Americans could use a down payment on the colossal climate mortgage hanging over their future. And President Obama could use a climate legacy. It may be worth his time now to sit down with the plucky millennials who sued him to save the planetbefore his time in office runs out. Mary Wood is the Philip H. Knight Professor of Law at the University of Oregon. Charles W. Woodward, IV is a post graduate research fellow at University of Oregon. Michael C. Blumm is the Jeffrey Bain Scholar & Professor of Law at Lewis & Clark. Reposted with permission from our media associate The Conversation. Despite opposition from conservation and wildlife groups, Colorado announced plans to kill mountain lions and black bears so that more mule deer will be available for hunters. Adult mule deer buck. Yellowstone National Park/NPS The state is currently home to just more than 400,000 mule deer. The target population set by Colorado Parks & Wildlife (CPW) is 525,000 to 575,000. In the 1800s, both white-tailed and mule deer were hunted with abandon until they became so scarce that most people just stopped hunting them. Federal and state conservation legislation beginning around 1900 allowed deer to recover. Beginning in the 1970s and 1980s, however, as energy development grew in Western Colorado, mule deer populations began to decline. The White River herd, which once numbered 100,000 animals, is now down to 32,000. Populations in the states central and northern mountains, and those on the eastern Plains, are stable. Anyone who has visited a national park or hiked the forests and shrub lands of the West has likely encountered mule deer. Mule deer range west of the Missouri River and are smaller than white-tailed deer, which are more common in the East. They can be seen in most of Colorado, in the Yosemite Valley, along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon and in the foothills of Los Angeles. Mule deer are often unafraid of humans in areas such as these where hunting is prohibited and interactions are common. Mountain lionsalso known as cougarstake a particular liking to mule deer. Wolves, coyotes and bears also prey on the species. But natural predation is not seen as the leading cause of mule deer declines in Colorado. A mountain lion on the hunt. Dan Zukowski Both the pro-hunting Mule Deer Foundation and the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) cite loss of habitat as a primary cause. We believe that habitat degradation from energy, and residential development, which has been confirmed by CPW biologists for years, should be the primary focus of scientifically-based wildlife management, said Brian Kurzel, regional executive director for the NWF. Colorados plan calls for the killing of up to 15 mountain lions and 25 black bears each year for the next three years using cage traps, culvert traps, foot snares and hunting dogs. The $4.5 million wildlife management plan would then be followed by a six-year study to see how the deer population responds. There is concern that the CPWs decision is driven by money and a desire to favor hunting, which generates $693 million in annual economic benefits in northwest Colorado alone. Last year, 34,000 mule deer were taken legally by hunters. The CPW gets 90 percent of its revenue from hunting and fishing licenses. But not even hunters are buying into the plan. Brett Ochs, a Colorado resident who describes himself as someone who has been hunting in Colorado for more than three decades, wrote in the Boulder Daily Camera, Killing predators to arbitrarily see if it will boost mule deer populations is unsustainable and not sound wildlife management. He argued that CPW should use revenues from hunting fees to improve habitat and migration corridors. Other states have tried to boost deer populations by removing predators from the landscape, but time and time again these studies have failed to increase deer populations, said Andrea Santarsiere, senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. Mountain lions are a game animal in Colorado. Even though CPW says it has no idea of the population of the species in the state, it allowed the killing of 467 big cats during the 2014-2015 hunting season. Many argue that killing a few more is not the answer. Deer in Colorado suffer from lack of habitat and habitat degradation, largely due to expansive oil and gas drilling and invasive plant species. Without adequate nutrition, deer will not thrive no matter how many predators CPW removes, Santarsiere added. Mule deer herds in northwestern Colorado were once so prolific that the area was known as the mule deer factory. But thats the area where drilling has dramatically increased in recent years. The NWF report reveals that 8,965 new wells were dug between 2005 and 2012. Crude oil production in Colorado grew 64 percent from 2007 to 2011, while natural gas production rose 27 percent during the same period. In 2012, Colorado was the sixth leading producer of natural gas and the ninth leading producer of oil in the U.S. More than 90 percent of new wells use hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. https://twitter.com/EcoWatch/statuses/717337695442247680 expand=1] In a comprehensive NWF report on mule deer in Colorado, the organization refers to a similar issue in a neighboring state. Research has shown that two mule deer herds in western Wyoming, parts of which have been heavily drilled the last decade or so, have shrunk by at least 30 percent, the report says. Researchers dont pin all the decline on energy development, but note that deer avoid well sites. Last month, the Obama Administration canceled 25 oil and gas leases in western Colorado and added restrictions on others. Even though all were inactive leases, the executive director of the West Slope Colorado Oil and Gas Association, David Ludlam, considered the cancellation of the leases to be a last-ditch shot across the bow from President Obama. Colorado State University wildlife biologists reminded CPW commissioners in a letter dated Dec. 10 that road construction and oil and gas development had damaged large areas of deer habitat, and argued against the plan to cull cougars and bears. The scientific consensus is clear and compellingpredator control is a costly and ineffective management tool to increase mule deer populations, they wrote. For more information on the history of mule deer, watch here: [vimeo https://vimeo.com/102666609 Whatever his voters intended, we can abandon the notion that President-elect Donald Trump is a right-wing populist. Right-wing, yes, authoritarian, probably, demagogue certainly. But his cabinet gives the lie to populism as part of his character. Wall Street may have paid Hilary Clinton hundreds of thousands of dollars to make speeches; but it is Trump who has given Wall Street four cabinet slots, three of them to Goldman-Sachs alumni. (Imagine the outcry if a President Clinton had done that). Theres a clutch of corporate CEOssate, labor, small business; a retired military trionational security advisor, defense and homeland security; Republican senators, governors and congressmen make up the remainder, plus Ben Carson, who had conceded he was not qualified for such a post. So far, we have four billionaires. Best piece yet on Trump's Interior pick, Zinke @EcoWatch https://t.co/Pj4JYW44g1 Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) December 16, 2016 Based on his choices Trump doesnt like or respect Hispanics, but admires Russia greatly. Trump himself just explained that he wanted a cabinet of people that made a fortune! His argumentmaking a fortune is proof that someone is a great negotiator and thats the job of the cabinet. This is hardly the stuff of populism, right or left. His choices reveal some other traits. He leans toward inside financial manipulators, military brass and the businesses that dominated the American economy of his youthfossil fuels, manufacturing and real estate. He has no interest in the major drivers of the economy of the futuretechnology, communications, services other than finance. The American Greatness he aspires to, as many said during the campaign, is the world as it existed before 1970. This is pure reaction, nostalgia as politics, memory as vision. If anyone has any questions left about Donald Trump's #energy plans, check out his new website. https://t.co/ZNxaXph1P8 via @EcoWatch NRDC (@NRDC) December 14, 2016 Steve Bannons choice as senior counselor is clearly the most outrageous. For a while it was hard to decide which of the choices ranked as the second most appallingwas it a labor secretary who wants to drive down wages for working Americans, an U.S. Environmental Protection Agency administrator who believes that the cornerstone of the agencys missionclean air and pure water for every Americanis outrageous federal overreach or an interior secretary who wants to turn Americas public lands over to commercial interests? Even Climate Denier Glenn Beck Calls Trump's New Chief Strategist Steve Bannon 'Terrifying' https://t.co/SFgmC80JgW @dotearth @tcktcktck EcoWatch (@EcoWatch) November 16, 2016 Sadly, those have all been, in the pun of the moment, trumped by the choice of Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson as secretary of state. Tillerson has a rock-solid record of putting the interests of the oil and gas industry ahead of those of the U.S. He never repeated, but also never retracted, the explicit statement by his predecessor, Lee Raymond, that ExxonMobil was not an American company and did not make its decisions based on whats good for the U.S. Trump Taps Exxon's Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State, Confirms 'Support of Big Oil and Putin' https://t.co/OA47LMjMJ1 @OpenSecretsDC EcoWatch (@EcoWatch) December 13, 2016 He should be asked in his confirmation hearings whether he ran the company as an American or rogue, enterprise. The evidence is fairly clear. ExxonMobil was the first oil company to challenge U.S. foreign policy on channeling the oil wealth of Iraq through its central government, signing an oil exploration agreement with the Kurdish Authority. More ominously, when the U.S. was imposing sanctions on Russia, Tillerson maneuvered to complete an Exxon well drilling project in the Arctic Ocean even after the U.S. imposed sanctions. Exxons completion of the well enabled Putin to prove to the world that Russias Arctic reserves were a reality, strengthening his hand is withstanding the pressure of sanctions. It also established Exxon as a reliable friend of the Russian autocrat, insuring Exxons billion dollar joint ventures from hostile Russian action while they remained suspended by sanctions. But Exxon-Mobil went further, negotiating new deals with Russian oil companies already slated for sanctions by the West at that summers St. Petersburg Economic Forum. One observer commented that By defying the White House, the oil majors salvaged what would have otherwise been an embarrassing event for the Kremlin. Tillerson openly boasted of lobbying against and evading the impact, of the sanctions, boasting that Our views are being heard at the highest levels. There has been no impact on any of our business activities in Russia to this point, nor has there been any discernible impact on the relationship with Rosneft, one of the sanctioned Russian oil companies closest to Putin. Later sanctions bit. The company has reported that it has lost a billion dollars to the final Western crackdown on investing in Russia. Raymonds view that Exxon is not an American company, which Tillerson clearly shared, is not surprising. ExxonMobils reserves are predominantly70 percentforeign. (Canadian tar sands are the largest single portion of those foreign reserves). So, relationships with the governments of places like Russia, Nigeria and Qatar are extremely important to Exxon and Tillerson. But Russia, after Canada, is uniquely important to Exxon (and Tillersons pension which is tied to the companys stock price). Exxons deals position it, once sanctions are gone to exploit, the countrys Arctic shelf, estimated to contain 105 billion barrels of oil and gas, more than the U.S. and Canadian Arctic combined. Putins Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavroy, has publicly endorsed the choice of Tillerson as a pragmatist. Media coverage of Tillersons Putin connections have focused on one aspect of the US conflict with RussiaPutins aspirations to recover influence and perhaps actual control over areas on Russias borders which were formerly part of the Soviet Empireparticularly the Ukraine and the Baltic. But there are looming and more immediate threats to American interests. Over the last four months, Russia has constructed a new partnership with OPEC to manipulate global oil markets, limit supply and raise prices. Under the unprecedented agreement signed in Vienna side by side with OPEC, Russia along with Oman, Azerbaijan and the Sudan, agreed to cooperate with OPEC and coordinate cuts in production. Markets responded to these events by raising oil prices by 12 percent. Russia has now joined Saudi Arabia and Iran in declaring war not only on climate protection, and the long term survival of the planet, but on the core short term economic interests of U.S., Japanese, Indian, Chinese and European drivers, shippers and economiesaffordable fuel. Global economic growth is once again threatened by manipulated oil markets. Exxon is a key beneficiary if producers win this economic war. And Exxons CEO has just been nominated to govern the U.S. response to this war. Its as if after Pearl Harbor Franklin Roosevelt had nominated a key Japanese industrialist to mobilize American industry to win the war. Tillerson should face some tough questions in his confirmation hearings. And then his nomination should be quashedthe Senate should not confirm the first secretary of state in American history whose primary demonstrated loyalty was not to the U.S. By Jim Gurley Winona County, Minnesota has placed a total ban on the strip-mining of frac sand, a necessary component of fracking. This is thought to be the first such countywide ban in the nation. The Winona County Board of Commissioners on Nov. 22 voted 3-2 to ban the mining, processing or trans-loading of frac sand in the county, which is located in the environmentally delicate and beautiful Mississippi River bluff lands of southeast Minnesota. Frac sand being transported by barge in the Upper Mississippi River between Iowa and Wisconsin. Ric Zarwell Frac sand is an essential ingredient in fracking, which fractures shale deep underground. The frac sand (also known as silica sand) props open those fractures so that bubbles of oil or gas can flow to the surface. Fracking, a type of extreme energy extraction, cannot take place without this special silica sand. (Although there are more expensive alternatives such as imported ceramic beads or resin-coated sand.) The sand were familiar with (sand boxes or beach sand) is angular and variable in size, whereas frac sand is almost pure quartz and must be spherical, extremely crush-resistant and uniform in size. The best type of this valuable sand is found in the Upper Midwest, with Wisconsin holding 75 percent of the nations frac sand market. But the industry has been somewhat stymied in Minnesota due to intense and organized citizen opposition by such groups as Winona Countys Citizens Against Silica Mining (CASM) and Minnesotas Land Stewardship Project which spearheaded the ban campaign. Frac sand mining from the sky in Wisconsin, October 2013. Ted Auch This ban applies only to rural areas, not to the city of Winonawhich already has a half-dozen operations, including a mine within the city limits. City leaders, working behind the scenes, enabled the industry to get a substantial foothold in Winona in 2011 prior to public discussion, debate or significant local media coverage. As the central transport hub (rail and barge) for the region, the city of Winona has seen intense controversy and protest. Citizens took direct action in 2012 when they dumped frac sand on the steps of city hall. In 2013, more than 100 people blocked the trucks with their bodies and shut down two large operations simultaneously, resulting in 35 arrests. Citizens shut down two frac-sand facilities April 29, 2013 in the city of Winona, Minnesota, resulting in 35 arrests. Here citizens block frac-sand trucks from unloading at the citys port on the Mississippi River. Andrew Link / Winona Daily News Ban supporters cite several concerns. Frac sand is a known carcinogen leading to cancer and silicosis (a fatal and incurable lung disease). Frac-sand trucks emit diesel exhaust, which is linked to lung cancer. Chemicals used in settling ponds are concerning, as are the threats to groundwater from the leaching of heavy metals. Citizens block trucks carrying frac sand during the 2013 Winona, Minnesota protest by locking arms at the Hemker processing facility. People near frac sand operations suffer a loss of a sense of place, as entire bluffs are obliterated with mountain-top removal; stress and sickness from the 24/7 bright stadium lights and noise, and the hundreds of 80,000-pound semis that pass their houses daily. Economically, tourism dollars are jeopardized, property values are often devalued for those who refuse to sell, roads are degraded or destroyed, and taxpayers are burdened with the added costs of monitoring and enforcement. (The industry has often flagrantly ignored regulations.) When applying for a permit, the industry promises reclamation of the land afterwards, sometimes saying it will be better than before for native plants or crops. But experts warn that soil is a living organism that takes many years to form. And extractive industries have a history of declaring bankruptcy once theyve taken the resource, leaving the residents to deal with the resulting problem. The two commissioners who opposed a ban warned of impending lawsuits, saying that regulating the industry made more sense than banning it. They offered an alternative ordinance that would have limited the number of mines. But the county attorney, Karin Sonneman found that such a ban, with proper findings of fact, would be defensible in court. Ban opponents also cited property rights, saying that taking away the possibility for a landowner to strip-mine constituted a taking under the U.S. Constitution, and interfered with interstate commerce. County Attorney Sonneman disagreed. I cannot control anyone who wants to sue this board, but I can certainly make darn well sure that the boards decisions are supported by the law and the facts, she said. An average of 80 percent of citizen comments received on this issue favored a ban. Commissioner Greg Olson said the case is strong. Referring to an industry attorney who threatened a lawsuit, Olson said, Id put more weight on the public who has spoken at that podium than I do on a letter from an attorney in Minneapolis. We represent the citizens of Winona County as a whole and I think theyve been clear. Johanna Rupprecht, an organizer with the Land Stewardship Project, reflected on the victory. Im really pleased that a majority of the county board listened to the will of the citizens and followed through on passing the ban even in the face of threats and pressure of outside interests, Rupprecht concluded. By Caroline Mosley The proposed Mountain Valley Pipeline would carry natural gas 300 miles from northwest West Virginia to southern Virginia, crossing the Appalachian Trail and clearing trees on its way. Cutting through one of the most celebrated hiking trails in America, the proposed Mountain Valley Pipeline threatens wildlife habitat, recreational lands and the health of local Appalachia communities, while setting a terrible precedent of building energy infrastructure through our national forests. The construction of the pipeline sets a dangerous precedent, requiring the clearing of 125 foot wide corridor of forest lands protected by the Forest Services Roadless Rule. Under the protection of the Roadless Rule, these unspoiled forest lands are protected from road building, logging, mining and other development. Starting 90 minutes south of Wheeling, West Virginia, the pipeline would wind south through the state before cutting east across Appalachian Trail and ending 30 minutes north of Danville, Virginia. Through Dec. 22 the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is seeking public input on the proposed plan to build the Mountain Valley Pipeline. We need to speak up and tell FERC Secretary Kimberly Bose to revise the current plan and more directly address the pipelines lasting impacts on the Appalachian Trail and adjacent wildlands, like Brush Mountain Wilderness Area and Peter Mountain Wilderness Area. The proposed pipeline path. Mountain Valley Pipeline We need to speak up for the trail that 3 million Americans enjoy each year. If we dont, some of the most iconic viewpoints, like Angels Rest, along the Appalachian Trail in Virginia will look out upon an ugly swath of destruction that dissects habitat and threatens waterways. What a pipeline cutting through the Appalachia could look like from Angels Rest, a popular lookout point in Virginia. Appalachian Trail Conservancy Your voice is importantFERC will evaluate public input when deciding on a final plan by next spring. We must speak up for the Appalachian Trail and other roadless regions before its too late! A Terrible Example for Our Wildlands Undermining the Forest Service Roadless Area Conservation Rule sets a dangerous pattern for the nearly 58.5 million acres of wildlands protected from road construction, mining and timber harvesting. This crucial conservation policy protects treasured backcountry land, but powerful logging and energy industries constantly seek to weaken the rule. The American black bear is a common sight in the Appalachian Mountains. Tim Lumley / Flickr If the Roadless Rule can be circumvented for the Mountain Valley Pipeline, it opens up the door for energy companies to build in other roadless areas containing cherished forests and critical wildlife habitat. Right now there are at least four other pipelines currently being considered in the mid-Atlantic region. We need to speak up now or pipelines could soon be criss-crossing the mountains of Appalachia. We Cant Destroy Our Natural Heritage for a Needless Pipeline A 3.4 mile section of the proposed pipeline would slice through Jefferson National Forest, part of one of the largest areas of public lands in the eastern U.S. Popular for hiking, mountain biking and hunting, it is not uncommon to see black bears, deer and songbirds among the 230,000 acres of precious old growth forests that preserve a piece of the Appalachia unmarred by human impacts. Millions of hikers enjoy the Appalachian Trail every year, like this hiker along Dismal Falls in Virginia. John Hayes / Flickr Building a pipeline through the trail would devastate a precious piece of American history. Cutting through the trail, the longest hiking-only footpath in the world, would be a slap in the face to the millions of people visiting the trails that wind through our East Coasts forests, mountains and valleys. Do We Even Need Another Pipeline? A September 2016 report explains existing energy infrastructureincluding pipelinesis sufficient for meeting the regional needs of the area. Additional interstate natural gas pipelines, like the Atlantic Coast and Mountain Valley projects, are not needed to keep the lights on, homes and businesses heated, and existing and new industrial facilities in production, wrote the researchers. Local communities and wildlands will suffer from needless destructive development from a pipeline and become even more dependent on fossil fuels. There is simply no need for a pipeline if it is unnecessary for energy needs and will irreversibly harm a precious part of Americas natural history. We need FERC to evaluate the regions need for pipelines and more carefully consider the irreversible impacts of infrastructure on wild landscapes. For 90 years, the Appalachian Trail has been an integral part of our hiking trail history. We cannot let this pipeline take that away and set a dangerous example for the rest of our protected wildlands. Add your voice: No natural gas pipeline through the Appalachian Trail! (Photo: REUTERS / Ahmad Masood)U.S. President Barack Obama folds his hands in a traditional Indian greeting after he addressed a gathering at Siri Fort Auditorium in New Delhi January 27, 2015. Obama weighed in on one of India's most sensitive topics as he wound up a visit on Tuesday, making a plea for freedom of religion to be upheld in a country where relations between Hindus and minorities have come under strain. Freedom of religion or belief is the decisive test for respect of all other fundamental freedoms, yet while violent harassment of Christians hits areas in the Middle East and Africa, Western nations face a different type of oppression, says a top Vatican official. Nations in the West are marked by the push to eliminate religion from public life, said Monsignor Antoine Camilleri, the Holy See's under-secretary for relations with the States on Dec. 14. "To act and speak out publicly as a committed Christian in one's professional life has never been more threatened," said Camilleri. He delivered the keynote address at the opening of a conference hosted by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in Vienna titled "Towards a Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration: A Regional Perspective." "Freedom of religion or belief is the litmus test for respect of all other human rights and fundamental freedoms, since it is their synthesis and keystone," he said. Religious freedom is the "litmus test" of respect for all other fundamental human rights, since it is their "synthesis and keystone," the Vatican's representative said. He noted that that safeguarding such freedom guarantees that other rights will also be ensured for all people, regardless of belief, since it involves consciousness and dignity. INTOLERANCE AGAINST CHRISTIANS Discrimination and intolerance against Christians, which target men and women, not because of their race, sex or language, but because of their faith, represent a violation and a direct challenge to the freedom of religion or belief, Turning to the "barbaric persecution of Christians" in the Middle East, Camilleri said "the atrocities committed against Christians in Syria and Iraq are so horrific that words cannot adequately respond, and their plight must not be forgotten." He noted the gruesome bombing of the St. Peter's Coptic Orthodox cathedral in Cairo Dec. 11 that killed at least 25 people, Catholic News Agency reported. The Vatican aide said it offers proof of the "shadow of violent extremism and terrorism" in the country. Yet, he also cautioned that such persecution is also taking place "at the very doorstep" of the OSCE headquarters in Vienna. "We must recognize that discrimination and intolerance, including hate crimes, impact many Christians and Christian communities, despite a frequently encountered notion that in this part of the world such discrimination or intolerance does not occur," he said. Simply belonging to the majority religion seems to exclude Christians from being considered victims of intolerance, Camilleri said, but stressed that such a view "is not based on reality." "The continuous attacks against Christian churches and religious buildings, time and time again...easily disprove the notion that Christians do not suffer intolerance," he explained. He cited many cases of premeditated acts of destruction against churches and religious spaces and symbols, including crosses and other Christian artifacts, as well as the theft and "sacrilegious misuse" who what Christians consider holy, as an example. All of these, Camilleri said, are examples "of not only disrespectful, but intolerant, and in most cases criminal acts committed with a bias motive." He turned to new patterns of intolerance popping up in Western nations and quoted the last pontiff, Pope Benedict XVI, who said that religion "is not a problem for legislators to solve, but a vital contributor to the national conversation." "There are those who would advocate that the voice of religion be silenced, or at least relegated to the purely private sphere," he said. DISCOURAGING CHRISTMAS Camilleri said others argue "that the public celebration of festivals such as Christmas should be discouraged, in the questionable belief that it might somehow offend those of other religions or none." A recent example came when a priest who serves as chaplain of the cemetery in the Italian city of Cremona desisted from setting up a traditional Nativity scene for fear of offending Muslims and those of other faiths. Camilleri said others "paradoxically" argue with the intention of eliminating discrimination that Christians who have public profiles "should be required at times to act against their conscience," Such examples are part of "what may rightly be called 'anti-Christian sentiment,'" and represent "a new form of intolerance and discrimination against Christians...based on setting the freedom of religion or belief against some general notion of tolerance and nondiscrimination." When it comes to tolerance and non-discrimination, such matters should never be used or interpreted in a way that would restrict religious freedom or belief, he said. "Every right entails obligations and duties," he said. "Therefore, a self-professed Christian cannot claim that freedom of religion or belief entitles him to call for violence against non-believers." The Syrian government suspended the evacuation of civilians and fighters from the last rebel-held parts of Aleppo on Friday, leaving thousands of people trapped and uncertain of their fate. Russia, which helped to broker the evacuation deal with Turkey, said its operation was now "complete" with all women and children moved from the city. Ankara and a Syrian military source said the evacuation had been suspended but was not yet over. "The evacuations are not over and many people still want to leave the area," said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. Amid the confusion, a convoy of evacuees that had already left the east when the operation was suspended was forced to return and reenter rebel territory, an AFP correspondent said. The delicate operation to bring the last civilians and rebels out of east Aleppo began on Thursday and had continued through the night, with thousands of people leaving in buses and ambulances. But on Friday morning it was abruptly suspended, with the government accusing rebels of violating the terms of the deal. "The evacuation operation has been suspended because the militants failed to respect the conditions of the agreement," a security source told AFP. State television said: "The terrorist groups violated the agreement and tried to smuggle heavy weapons and hostages from east Aleppo." The International Committee of the Red Cross, which has supervised the evacuation, confirmed it was on hold. The opposition accused the government of suspending the operation in a bid to secure the evacuation of residents from two villages under rebel siege. "The regime and its militias... stopped the evacuation operation in another attempt to involve Fuaa and Kafraya," said Yasser al-Youssef of the Nureddin al-Zinki rebel group. Fuaa and Kafraya are Shiite-majority villages in Idlib province that have been under rebel siege since 2015. The government and its other main ally Iran have reportedly sought to add an evacuation of civilians from the villages to the terms of the deal for Aleppo. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, also said the suspension appeared to be related to the two villages. It said pro-government fighters were blocking the road out of Aleppo that the evacuation convoy had been using and rebels were refusing the evacuation of residents of Fuaa and Kafraya. The evacuation of the last pocket of rebel territory in Aleppo began on Thursday under a deal brokered by Russia and Turkey. The operation had been scheduled to begin on Wednesday, but was delayed over government objections, including over Fuaa and Kafraya. Clashes resumed for several hours before the deal was revived, and on Thursday afternoon buses and ambulances began transporting evacuees to rebel territory in the west of Aleppo province. The evacuations ran through the night, with residents and rebels boarding green government buses and ambulances and later leaving in private vehicles. Initially, evacuees were leaving via a single convoy that travelled back and forth between Aleppo and the west of the province. But overnight, the vehicles began returning individually to collect more evacuees as soon as they had dropped off their passengers. The Observatory estimated some 8,500 people had left before the operation was suspended, including around 3,000 rebel fighters. Syrian state media reported a figure of around 8,000. Ahmad al-Dbis, a doctor helping coordinate the evacuation of the wounded, said at least 500 evacuees had wounds or illnesses requiring medical attention. From a gathering point near the town of Khan al-Aasal, people were travelling further west, heading either to camps for the displaced or to stay with relatives or friends. The departures began a month to the day after government forces launched a major offensive to retake all of Aleppo and secure the regime's biggest victory in more than five years of conflict. In a video message to Syrians on Thursday, President Bashar al-Assad said the "liberation" of Aleppo was "history in the making". But US Secretary of State John Kerry said what had already happened in the city was "unconscionable", raising concerns for the "tens of thousands of lives that are now concentrated into a very small area of Aleppo". The UN Security Council will meet later on Friday to discuss a French call for international observers to monitor the evacuation and ensure aid deliveries. It is unclear how many people remain in east Aleppo, with tens of thousands fleeing to territory held by the government or Kurds in recent days but perhaps tens of thousands still inside. The evacuations have been emotional for departing residents who were desperate for relief after months of bombardment and siege but tearful at the prospect of potentially permanent exile. In the dust on the window of one of the buses departing Thursday someone had traced: "One day we will return". "The scene was heart-breaking," said ICRC Syria head Marianne Gasser. "People are faced with impossible choices. You see their eyes filled with sadness." More than 310,000 people have been killed since the conflict began with anti-government protests in 2011, and over half the population has been displaced, with millions becoming refugees. Diplomatic efforts -- including several rounds of peace talks in Geneva -- failed to make headway in resolving the conflict, which saw a turning point last year when Russia launched an air war in support of Assad. On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow was "actively negotiating" with rebels through Turkish mediators. "The next step (after Aleppo) will be to reach agreement on a complete ceasefire across all of Syria," he said on an official visit to Japan. He added that the parties were proposing fresh peace talks, possibly in Kazakhstan. Search Keywords: Short link: Considered to be the Ten Best UFO Photos Ever Taken I am sure that we could add more pictures to this list but these are considered ten o... Fourteen Turkish soldiers were killed and dozens more wounded Saturday in a suicide car bombing blamed on Kurdish militants targeting off-duty conscripts, the latest in a string of attacks to rock Turkey in recent months. The government said all signs so far suggested the the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) was behind the bombing in the city of Kayseri, a usually calm industrial hub in the heart of Anatolia. Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said a total of 56 people were wounded, half a dozen of them seriously. The death toll has risen from 13 to 14 after one more soldier died in hospital, the official Anadolu news agency said. Television pictures showed the bus reduced to a smouldering wreck by the blast, which came a week after 44 people were killed in a double bombing in Istanbul after a football match hosted by the top side Besiktas. That attack, which targeted a police bus, was claimed by the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK) seen as a radical offshoot of the PKK. No claim has come so far for the Kayseri bombing. "All indications at present point to the PKK," Deputy Prime Minister and government spokesman Numan Kurtulmus told NTV television. He said that the materials used in the bombing were similar to those used in the Istanbul attack last week. "You don't just buy these at the shopping mall... there is a logistical support," he said. Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said that the attack was carried out by a "suicide bomber", without giving further details. Fifteen suspects have already been detained over alleged involvement in the plot, Kayseri state prosecutor Mustafa Arslanturk was quoted as saying by Anadolu. The bus -- carrying low-ranking privates and non-commissioned officers -- was attacked after leaving the commando headquarters in the city to take the off-duty soldiers on a shopping trip. Those killed were in their early 20s, reports said. Turkish television broadcast harrowing footage of relatives bidding farewell to the coffins at a military airport. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the "acts of terror" in Turkey were "aiming at all 79 million of our citizens together with our soldiers and police." "We will fight decisively against these terror organisations in the spirit of a national mobilisation," he said. Turkey has seen a spate of deadly bombings in a bloody 2016 blamed both on Islamist and Kurdish militants that have left dozens dead and put the country on daily alert. In June, 47 people were killed in a triple suicide bombing and gun attack at Istanbul's Ataturk airport, with authorities blaming the Islamic State (IS) militants. Another 57 people were killed in August in a suicide attack by an IS-linked bomber at a Kurdish wedding in the southeastern city of Gaziantep. Kurdish militants have twice struck with bombings that killed dozens in Ankara in February and March. The attacks have come with the civil war still raging in neighbouring Syria, where Turkey is staging its own incursion to expel Islamist and Kurdish militia from the border area. Turkey is also still reeling from a failed July 15 coup blamed on the US-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen that has been followed by a relentless purge of his alleged supporters from all state institutions. One of the main cities of central Turkey, Kayseri is a key industrial hub with a population of over one million and a stronghold of Turkish nationalists. The city lies close to the famous landscapes of Cappadocia, a magnet for tourists around the world, and well west of the main fighting between PKK and security forces in the southeast. Following the bombing, dozens of protestors stormed the offices of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) in Kayseri, draping a Turkish nationalist flag from the top floor, footage posted on social media showed. The HDP condemned the attack on the soldiers "in the strongest possible terms" but said the country has "long passed the stage of settling with messages of condemnation." EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini in a phone call to Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said the bloc was committed to working with Ankara against terror but emphasised "full respect of the rule of law" must be guaranteed, her office said. Search Keywords: Short link: UN Security Council on Friday extended the mandate of its peacekeeping mission in South Sudan for a year, demanding an end to the fighting as the war entered its fourth year After days of tough negotiations, UN Security Council council unanimously adopted a US-drafted resolution that extends the mandate of the 14,000-strong peacemaking mission in South Sudan UNMISS force to December 2017. According to the measure, the mission will include a new regional force of 4,000 troops, which the council decided to deploy in August but has yet to hit the ground. The resolution threatens sanctions against those who undermine South Sudan's stability and warns that the council will consider "appropriate measures" including an arms embargo "to address the evolving situation." US Ambassador Samantha Power described the measure as an "upgrade" of the UNMISS mission, which has come under criticism for failing to protect civilians during the three-year war. Russia, China, Venezuela and the three African countries on the council have balked at Washington's handling of the crisis in South Sudan. They oppose an arms embargo and sanctions. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon harshly criticized South Sudan's leaders ahead of the vote, saying they had "betrayed their people's trust and squandered a peace agreement." "Tens of thousands lie dead," he added before urging the council to take stronger action "including through punitive measures." Ban warned last month that South Sudan faces a "very real risk of mass atrocities" and that peacekeepers would be powerless to stop such a bloodbath. A recent report criticized the peacekeepers for failing to protect civilians, including women who were raped by government soldiers during heavy fighting in July not far from the gates of a UN compound in Juba. The world's youngest nation, South Sudan descended into war in December 2013, leaving tens of thousands dead and nearly 3 million people displaced. The country won independence from Sudan in 2011 with strong support from the United States. Search Keywords: Short link: Israel handed Palestinian authorities the bodies of seven Palestinians killed carrying reportedly out attacks, or during clashes or arrests over a period spanning six months, the army said Friday. The move was "in accordance with government directives," a military spokeswoman told AFP, and came a week after the Israel government informed the High Court it would be willing to return seven out of 10 bodies of Palestinians from the West Bank that it had been holding. The remaining three were not to be returned at this point because they were allegedly affiliated with the Islamist resistance Hamas movement. Four of the Palestinians whose bodies were returned Friday came from the Hebron area of the occupied West Bank, a focal point in the recent wave of attacks, with the other three hailing from the Tulkarem and Nablus areas to the north. One body belonged to a man suspected of criminal activity who was shot dead by Israeli occupation forces in September, and another assaulted Israeli soldiers during a riot in October, the spokeswoman said. The other five -- one of them a woman -- were Palestinians who had either attempted to or succeeded in carrying out stabbing or car-ramming attacks on Israeli occupation forces or civilians since June, according to the spokeswoman. A wave of Palestinian knife, gun and car-ramming attacks erupted last year amid Israeli attacks on Al-Aqsa mosque and Palestinian demonstrations, but the violence has greatly subsided in recent months. Since October 2015, 243 Palestinians, 36 Israelis, two Americans, a Jordanian, an Eritrean and a Sudanese have been killed, according to an AFP count. Many of the Palestinians killed were carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks. Most were shot dead during protests or clashes, while some died in Israeli air strikes on Gaza. Many analysts say Palestinian frustration with the Israeli occupation and illegal settlement-building in the West Bank, comatose peace efforts and their own fractured leadership have helped feed the unrest. Since the start of the wave of violence, Israeli forces have confiscated the bodies of killed Palestinians, often for several months, as a means of deterrence and to prevent clashes during funerals. Under former defence minister Moshe Yaalon, the occupation army had started to return the bodies to try to reduce tension. His successor Avigdor Lieberman ordered a resumption of the policy in June, but apparently modified it to apply only to those affiliated to militant groups. *This story was edited by Ahram Online Search Keywords: Short link: Amidst all the brouhaha about demonetisation, the issue of curtailing the deployment of black money by politicians for funding election campaigns appears to have been sidelined. That illegal funds are used by political parties and their candidates standing for elections is hardly a secret. In fact it is often contendedand rightly sothat the politicsbusinesscrime nexus which is facilitated by the use of black money in elections represents the fountainhead of corruption in the country or, to use an Indian analogy, the Gangotri of graft. When unscrupulous business persons or criminals invest in a politician, they expect a return on their investments which, in turn, invariably vitiates the working of the political economy by injecting corruption into the system. None of this is new or for that matter unique to this country. But one should be wary of claims about demonetisation cleansing the country of corruption by drastically curbing the use of black money by politicians. Still, there could be some basis for speculation that the 8 November decision to withdraw high-denomination currency notes from circulation was aimed at hurting the political opponents of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) before the Uttar Pradesh elections. Within days of the demonetisation decision, Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi wrote to the government calling for a slew of electoral reforms that could, among other things, curtail the use of black money in elections. He argued that bribery and paid news be made cognisable offences. He suggested that the Election Commission of India (ECI) be given powers to deregister political parties. At present, out of the 1,900-odd registered political parties in the country, barely 400 have put up candidates who have contested elections over the past decade or so. Given that parties registered with the ECI are granted exemption from payment of income tax on donations received, it is well known that innumerable dummy political parties have been set up primarily to launder black money. Zaidi urged the government to accept the recommendation made by the Law Commission in 2015 that only a fifth of the total income of a party or 20 crore (whichever is lower) be allowed in the form of anonymous donations. At present, a political party is exempt from declaring the source of a donation, provided it is less than 20,000 as per the provisions of the Income Tax Act. Political parties choose friendly auditors to approve their books of account. A huge loophole in the law is that while there is a ceiling on the amount that can be spent by a candidate on election campaigning, no such limit applies to a political party. Other recommendations made by the Law Commission and the ECI have been placed in cold storage; in bureaucratic parlance, these suggestions are being examined by a task force in the law ministry. One of the most blatant examples of bending the law to legalise particular kinds of donations to political parties came in the Finance Act of 2016. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley quietly inserted a clause to retrospectively amend Section 23(1) of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) to change the definition of an Indian company to include a corporate entity in which foreign shareholding is within the limits specified by the government. Why was this done? In March 2014, just before the general elections, the Delhi High Court had declared illegal donations given to the BJP and the Congress by foreign sources, in this case, companies associated with the Vedanta/Sterlite/Sesa Goa mining and metals conglomerate headed by Anil Agarwal. Before it was amended, the FCRA included in its definition of a foreign source a corporate entity in which foreign shareholdings exceeded 50%. Even as the current BJP government as well as the earlier Congress-led one have tightened norms for receiving foreign funds that are applicable to non-governmental organisations, the countrys two largest political parties came together to withdraw their petitions filed in the Supreme Court challenging the order of the Delhi High Court declaring illegal the donations they had received from the Vedanta Group in a case that had been initiated by the Association for Democratic Reforms. The same representatives of the BJP and the Congress who were most upset about the retrospective amendment to the Income Tax Act in the Vodafone case did not utter a murmur of protest when the FCRA was amended with effect from September 2010 when the relevant law came into force. It should also be noted that the FCRA was amended through a money bill, although the act is administered by the Ministry of Home Affairs, not the Ministry of Finance. More than a week after his momentous demonetisation decision, Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed state funding of elections and the simultaneous holding of elections to the Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies in order to cut costs and to reduce the use of black money in elections. This is not the first time these suggestions have been made. In 1998, a committee headed by former Union Home Minister Indrajit Gupta had recommended that elections be partially funded by the government as is the case in certain countries. Similar suggestions had been made in 1999 by the Law Commission and in 2008 by the Administrative Reforms Commission. The Government of India already bears particular election-related expenses incurred by political parties in the form of free broadcasting facilities provided by the state-owned Doordarshan and All India Radio. But state funding of elections will not eliminate the use of black money in elections nor reduce the incidence of corruption unless such moves are accompanied by many changes in extant laws and rules relating to the funding and functioning of political parties. Turkey will set up a camp in Syria to host people evacuated from the city of Aleppo but will continue to take in the sick and wounded to its own hospitals, Turkish officials said on Friday. Two potential sites, around 3.5 km (2.2 miles) inside Syria, have been identified for a camp with the capacity to host up to 80,000 people, two senior officials told Reuters. "Work on the infrastructure for the camp will begin shortly," a separate official from Turkish aid organisation IHH said by phone from inside Syria. The camp will be jointly set up by the Turkish Red Crescent, disaster agency AFAD and IHH. The IHH official said evacuees had so far largely found shelter with relatives in and around Syria's Idlib province, southwest of Aleppo, but that work to identify those with nowhere to go was underway. Turkey has taken in 55 wounded and sick evacuees, according to Hasan Aydinlik, head of an emergency response division of Turkey's health ministry. He told reporters at the Cilvegozu border crossing that one of the wounded had died in hospital while three including a young child were in serious condition. Close to 8,000 people - rebel fighters and civilians - have been evacuated from the last rebel-held areas of Aleppo under a ceasefire deal brokered by Russia and Turkey that would see the Syrian government retake the city. Turkey is already sheltering around 2.7 million Syrian refugees. Officials said Ankara was working to increase the number of buses used for the evacuation to speed up the process. An aid official with Syrian NGO Shafak, working inside Syria on the Aleppo evacuation, said he expected more people to come towards the Turkish border on Friday as the villages in the countryside west of Aleppo were full. Aleppo had been divided between government and rebel areas of control in the nearly six-year civil war, but a lightning advance by the Syrian army and its allies that began in mid-November saw the insurgents lose most of their territory. Search Keywords: Short link: A curious anniversary falls this weekend. On December 18, 1912, the infamous Piltdown hoax was unveiled to an astonished audience of the Geological Society of London by lawyer and amateur archeologist Charles Dawson (1864-1916) and Arthur Smith Woodward (1864-1944) of the British Museum. What they showed was nothing short of amazing: the apparent remains of a human-like skull attached to an ape-like jaw. Allegedly unearthed at the Piltdown gravel pit in East Sussex, England, it was hailed as the missing link a truly history-making discovery! It would take nearly 41 years to expose the artifact as a fraud. On November 21, 1953, officials of the British Natural History Museum revealed the shocking truth: Piltdown man was a hoax, the combination of three species, a medieval human cranium, the jaw of a centuries-old young orangutan, and some fossilized chimpanzee teeth. Various culprits have been proposed, including famed Jesuit philosopher Teilhard de Chardin (1881-1955) and physician/novelist Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930). But most recent investigation suggests that the imposture was likely perpetrated by Dawson alone in an effort to gain recognition and election as a Fellow into the Royal Society (see Piltdown hoax solved, Forbes, August 10, 2016). Writing for Harpers on the second anniversary of the Piltdown exposure, paleontologist Loren Eiseley (1907-1977), not one to look at an event or a phenomenon superficially, asked, Was Charles Darwin Wrong About the Human Brain? Eiseley noted that Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913), co-discoverer of the theory of natural selection, was unimpressed with the Piltdown find from the beginning. Writing to a friend in August 1913 (just three months before his death), Wallace exclaimed, The Piltdown skull does not prove much, if anything! Why, asked Eiseley, had Wallace, almost alone among the scientific community, so summarily dismissed this apparently stunning missing link? The answer was simple: he did not believe in a skull which had a modern brain box attached to an apparently primitive face and given, in the original estimates, an antiquity of something over a million years. The archeological discovery would have confirmed Darwins Descent of Man in dramatic fashion. Indeed Piltdown man was, from a Darwinian perspective, even something that would have been predicted. But Wallaces voice of lonely protest, observed Eiseley, underscored the abyss which yawned between man and ape that Darwinians at the time blissfully ignored. Having observed primitive cultures in South America and the Malay Archipelago for more than twelve years, Wallace concluded (quoting Eiseley) that humans mental powers were far in excess of what they really needed to carry on the simple food-gathering techniques by which they survived. Certainly no process of natural selection was adequate to produce such superior powers of art, reason, and morals. For Wallace, the human brain freed mankind from the tyranny of natural selection: Here, then, we see the true grandeur and dignity of man. On this view of his special attributes, we may admit, that even those who claim for him a position as an order, or a sub-kingdom by himself, have some show of reason on their side. He is, indeed, a being apart, since he is not influenced by the great laws which irrestistibly modify all other organic beings (Contributions to the Theory of Natural Selection, 1870). How, then, do we account for this impressive array of human attributes? Wallace thought that mankind might well have emerged comparatively recently, and that the rapid evolution of the modern human brain would confirm that distinct and higher agencies have been responsible for these mental attributes and attainments. Eiseley confessed, Since the exposure of the Piltdown hoax all of the evidence at our command and it is considerable points to man, in his present form, as being one of the youngest and newest of all earths swarming inhabitants. . . . Today, with the solution of the Piltdown enigma, we must settle the question of the time involved in favor of Wallace, not Darwin. Although Eiseley thought some other wholly naturalistic explanation might account for the late and virtually saltationist expansion of the human intellect, he confessed that science . . . has yet to explain how we have come so far so fast, nor has it any completely satisfactory answer to the question asked by Wallace long ago. Today we still wait for an explanation, and it must be admitted that various speculations along the lines of blind chance and necessity or natural selection remain as unsatisfactory as when Eiseley was writing more than sixty years ago. A century after Wallaces dismissal of Piltdown man, science still confirms Eiseleys assessment and Wallaces vindication. The chart below shows the timeline for ascending brain size/body weight estimates for Sahelanthropus, Australopithecus afarensis, early Homo, Homo habilis, Homo erectus, H. heidelbergensis, Neanderthals, and H. sapiens. This chart shows relative brain size as cm3 per 50 kg of body weight. Adapted with modifications from Robert Jurmain, Lynn Kilgore, et al., Introduction to Physical Anthropology, 2013-2014 ed. (Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, 2014), p. 357, and Homo habilis, Encyclopedia Britannica, updated August 15, 2015. Clearly brain size and capacity has not only increased, but increased at a very late and remarkably accelerated pace. Of course brain size is not the only measure of intellectual capacity, other factors may be involved. Some, for example, emphasize that Neanderthals, the closest historically to humans, possessed brains that were larger in absolute size to us. But as recent analysis has uncovered, the Neanderthal brain was quite different from its human counterpart. Being much more elongated than globular, the indications are that Neanderthals reached large brain sizes along different evolutionary pathways. Their speculation that unique patterns of brain development in H. sapiens would have become a target for positive selection merely begs Wallaces original question (see Gunz et al., Brain development after birth differs between Neanderthals and modern humans, Current Biology, Nov. 2010). So the question remains: How did humans acquire such vast intellectual capacities so comparatively recently and so rapidly? Wallace called upon an Overruling Intelligence to explain human intelligence and many other features of complexity in biology and the cosmos. While Darwinians continue to search for some naturalistic cause, others, like British physician James Le Fanu, point out that the disappointments in high-tech solutions to the nature of the intellect and the human mind so touted by the human genome project and promised in the Decade of the Brain in the 1990s should force a reassessment of our species as truly unique (Why Us?: How Science Rediscovered the Mystery of Ourselves, 2009). Eiseleys long forgotten but intriguing article is fortunately now available as The Real Secret of Piltdown in a new 2-volume set of his collected essays. As we reflect on the 104th anniversary of arguably sciences greatest fraud, Eiseleys conclusion rings is as pertinent today as when it was first written: The true secret of Piltdown, though thought by the public to be merely the revelation of an unscrupulous forgery, lies in the fact that it has forced science to reexamine carefully the history of the most remarkable creation in the world the human brain. If the Cambrian period of 530 million years ago poses serious challenges to Darwins insistence upon slow, incremental change in the amazingly rapid proliferation of animals over a mere 5 to 6 million-year timespan (see Darwins Doubt), then how much more should the transformational changes in the human brain over the past 100 to 200,000 years cause as serious reevaluation of the nature of human beings and the means by which they came to be. If the Cambrian explosion is just too much change over too little time to be explained by Darwinian processes, the human brain is way too much change over way too little time. Perhaps Wallaces view of the Piltdown hoax still holds an important lesson for us today. Maybe the most dramatic explosion of all is the one that rests within our crania. Image: Studying the Piltdown skull, by John Cooke [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons. All signs so far indicate that the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) was behind a deadly bombing on a bus carrying Turkish soldiers that left at least 13 dead and dozens wounded, a top minister said on Saturday. "All indications at present point to the PKK. We have to take into account all possibilities but the signs at present point to the PKK," Deputy Prime Minister and government spokesman Numan Kurtulmus told NTV television in an interview. Search Keywords: Short link: This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The deep-pocketed, outspoken Washington lawyer who assembled Donald Trumps 64-member agricultural advisory committee isnt backing down his criticism of the president-elects leading candidate for agriculture secretary, despite pressure from the Republicans own staff. All of you need to know that I have been advised that a person on the Trump transition team believes I have been causing problems regarding the USDA secretary selection, attorney Gary Baise wrote Friday in an email sent to about 100 people that included Trumps transition team, members of the advisory committee, Capitol Hill staff, Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin and former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Trumps pick for energy secretary. I have been told indirectly to back off!!! Rest assured I will not. I am speaking and reflecting you, Mr. Trump and agricultures best interests (and) not some politically correct solution. The email, obtained by the San Antonio Express-News, follows news that Baise and others were riled up over Trumps leading candidate, North Dakota Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, a Democrat. While the move would open her Senate seat to a Republican giving the GOP more leverage in the narrowly controlled Senate Baise said its not what committee members had in mind when they supported the New York City billionaire. All of you stuck your necks out when it was not possible to do so, he wrote. We need a secretary who thinks likewise. Baise, reached about the email Friday, said he was told Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, floated the Heitkamp name to bring the Republican tally to 53 and have one more senator on each one of a whole bunch of critical committees. He confirmed the authenticity of the email and said he sent it to the entire Trump team. Heitcamp spokeswoman Julia Krieger did not immediately return a request for comment. An email for comment to Trumps press office wasnt returned. But members of the advisory committee, which includes Perry, House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway, R-Midland, and Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller, say they had been promised a seat at the table on agricultural policy. Many believed Obama Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, an Iowa Democrat, failed to have their back on measures such as unfavorable foreign trade pacts, various environmental rules and a proposal to reclassify cotton so it would be eligible for certain subsidies. Baise added that he wasnt all that impressed with news that Idaho Gov. C.L. Butch Otter, a former president of potato product bigwig Simplot, had eclipsed Heitkamp as the front-runner. Otter spokesman Jon Hanian confirmed that the governor was being vetted for the position, declining further comment. Hes got an agricultural background but its a lot like Tom Vilsacks, Baise said. I dont think its deep in terms of production agriculture. While Trump has been moving at a fast clip to fill his Cabinet, choices to lead agriculture and veterans affairs remain holdouts. The president-elect reportedly has vetted only two members of the advisory committee to lead the USDA, Nebraska cattleman Charles Herbster and former Georgia Gov. Sonny Purdue. Trump spokesman Jason Miller, when asked Friday why the nomination was taking so long, told reporters the president-elect considered agriculture secretary a very big deal. President Barack Obama announced Vilsack as his pick on Dec. 17, 2008. Right now Trump is either three or four Cabinet picks ahead of incoming President Obamas pace from eight years ago so I strongly disagree with the assessment that were somehow behind the pace on things, Miller told reporters on the call. Voter Guide: What to know for the midterm election Your guide to the Texas and San Antonio races and candidates on the Nov. 8 ballot. Miller, embattled by a series of gaffes such as a taxpayer-paid trip to Oklahoma for a Jesus shot painkiller and a tweet that called Hillary Clinton by the C-word, was named early on as a pick and remained a Trump loyalist throughout Trumps own pile of unfavorable press. In an earlier interview with the Express-News, Miller said Baise tapped him to help assemble the advisory committee at a time when many were fearful of being associated with Trump. Right now were trying to figure out how to get him in the winners circle and how to raise him some money, Miller said. And were looking for policy development as we go along. Its kind of flowing together. Miller spokesman Mark Loeffler this week said Miller had not yet been called for an official interview. Baise, a principal at OFW Law, was the chief of staff for the first Environmental Protection Agency administrator and specializes in taking on federal agencies for big industry clients like the U.S. Grain Council and Agricultural Retailers Association. In August, he told the Express-News that Sam Clovis, co-chairman of the Trump campaign, had asked him to assemble an advisory committee that would help Trump understand and resonate with rural voters. Its common sense, he said. New Yorkers dont know much about agriculture. Small number of people, but its a huge swath when you look at everything from the input side of agriculture to the production side to the political side. lbrezosky@express-news.net BEIRUT, Lebanon - Around 1,000 people were evacuated from the remaining rebel-held districts of the Syrian city of Aleppo on Thursday, part of a process that could become one of the greatest victories of the war for President Bashar Assad and a major blow to his foes. After new violence in Syria's second-largest city stopped the evacuation Wednesday and delayed it Thursday morning, long lines of government buses and ambulances crossed into the rebel-held enclave and returned with about 1,000 evacuees, according to Russia, which helped carry out the agreement, and the World Health Organization, which monitored it. Assad hailed the evacuation in a video released by his office, comparing it to historical events such as the birth of Christ, the revelation of the Quran, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the two world wars. "I want to confirm that what is happening today is history that is being written by every Syrian civilian," Assad said, smiling in a dark blue suit. "Its writing did not start today. It started about six years ago when the crisis and the war on Syria began." If successful, the evacuation deal will signal a major turning point in Syria's conflict. Since early in the war, Aleppo, once the country's industrial center, has been split, with the government holding the west and rebels holding many neighborhoods in the east. But military aid for the Syrian government from Iran, Russia and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah turned the tide in the government's favor, allowing it to surround the rebels. The loss of any foothold in Aleppo would be a major blow to the opposition, which would then hold sway in only one of Syria's provincial capitals, Idlib, where the Syrian branch of al-Qaida is a major force. It was unclear how many people, both civilians and fighters, remained in eastern Aleppo. When the area was besieged by government forces and their allies, the U.N. reported that more than 250,000 people were stuck inside. Speaking to journalists in Geneva, Jan Egeland, the U.N. humanitarian adviser for Syria, said an estimated 50,000 people had fled. Iran formally requested a meeting of the commission that oversees its nuclear deal with world powers to complain about the renewing of sanctions by the United States, state television reported Saturday. The request was made in a letter by Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to the European Union's foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, calling for "a meeting of the joint commission outlined in the nuclear deal... regarding the recent actions of the United States." On Thursday, Washington extended the Iran Sanctions Act -- which mostly seeks to limit Iran's oil and gas trade -- for another decade. Although it received overwhelming support from the US Congress, the act will have no effect since its measures are suspended as long as the nuclear deal remains in place. President Barack Obama has said that renewing the act was pointless, and symbolically allowed it to become law without signing it, although he denied it was a breach of the nuclear deal which came into effect last January. Iranian leaders, including supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Hassan Rouhani, disagree, calling it a "clear violation". The nuclear deal allows for the signatories -- Iran, the US, Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia -- to hold a "joint commission" to discuss claims of a violation. Iran has been frustrated by the limited economic benefits of the accord, which removed many international sanctions in exchange for curbs to its nuclear programme. Although it has managed to significantly ramp up its oil exports, Tehran has struggled to rejoin the international financial system because Washington has maintained a raft of other sanctions related to non-nuclear issues that have helped deter major Western banks from returning to Iran. Search Keywords: Short link: This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The debate over a Texas transgender bathroom bill has sparked a lot of talk about its economic impact and fantasies of sexual predators descending on little girls so much that its easy to overlook the human-scale dramas and absurd dilemmas that such a law would create. This week, two visitors to the San Antonio Express-News Editorial Board offered a glimpse of just that. Meet Ashley Smith and Ginger Main Chun. Smith is a local architect. Shes also a transgender woman. I knew when I was very young that I was female, she said. I was depressed and unhappy for many, many years, well into adulthood. When I finally did transition, it was really just to save my life. Although she is now a female, Smith is listed on her birth certificate as a male. You can get your birth certificate updated depending on which state you were born in, she said. I happened to be born in a Deep Southern state, and changing my gender on my birth certificate is very difficult. In North Carolina, people now are required to use restrooms in public buildings that correspond with the gender listed on their birth certificate. Should the Texas Legislature pass a similar law, it would profoundly impact Smiths daily life. All of her clients, she said, are Texas universities. So I am worried on many levels about this legislation, Smith said. One is that every time I go to a meeting with a client, and Im not out to my client maybe some of them know, some of them dont, I dont know I need to go take a bathroom break during a meeting with a bunch of mechanical and electrical engineers or staff people at a university, what could happen? It could negatively affect my company, my career, she continued. It could cause a ruckus. I would really just like to avoid that. Advocates of a Texas bathroom bill are courting this confusion: in effect, requiring a woman to use the mens restroom and, by the same measure, forcing a man to use the womens restroom the same situations they say they want to outlaw. Chun is the mother of a transgender teen. Her 16-year-old daughter transitioned this year. My child was depressed and my child was having issues until we were able to make this transition, Chun said. And it is a 100 percent turnaround in her happiness and well-being and ability to function. Her daughter is a high-school junior in the North East Independent School District: a musician, at the top of her class and involved in University Interscholastic League Academics. When she returned to school this year as a female, she encountered virtually no conflict. It was already a nonissue with most of the kids at the school, Chun said. The school was very supportive. I had heard some rumors that the principal would not be supportive, but we basically avoided the principal. Everybody else the teachers, the counselors everybody else has been 100 percent supportive. Everybody, that is, except for those advocating for the bathroom bill, including Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, and state Sen. Donna Campbell, R-New Braunfels, who would reopen Chuns daughters old wounds. My child walking into a mens room at her high school would be an issue because she does not look like a boy, Chun said. Chuns daughter has had her birth certificate changed to reflect her female gender, an outcome of what Chuck Smith, CEO of Equality Texas, called an underground railroad of attorneys who help people do this. In Texas, most of these changes occur in Bexar County because you have judges here that will grant them, he added. There are not judges in Houston that will do this. Considering the difficulty and expense of this process, a bathroom bill that relies on birth certificates would produce two classes of transgender citizens and create even more inequality. I asked Ashley Smith how she would deal with this. I really dont know, she said. Maybe in some cases I would be able to sneak by. Maybe I would feel like it creates so much awareness in people like me that I would feel sort of paranoid, and I would eventually want to move away. And that, it seems, is the actual wish of the bills proponents. bchasnoff@express-news.net As freezing weather looms in the National Weather Service forecast for Sunday and Monday, Haven for Hope is receiving more people seeking shelter and Animal Care Services is urging owners to bring their pets inside. If theres a time to start figuring out a way to bring your pet more into your family, now is the time, Animal Care Services spokeswoman Lisa Norwood said. NWS meteorologist Jason Runyen said a strong Arctic surge from Canada and farther north will make its way through San Antonio this weekend. It will affect much of the country. Chilling winds and temperatures as low as the teens will blow into the area Sunday and Monday. The weather is expected to warm slowly Tuesday and Wednesday. Today, is expected to be warmer than average, with temperatures reaching up to 80 degrees before dropping. Haven for Hope spokeswoman Laura Calderon said the campus has averaged 500 to 650 people seeking shelter indoors this past week. Thursdays headcount totaled 725 people, Calderon said. That may be in anticipation of the weather changing and people wanting to be there already, she said. During extreme temperatures, indoor areas such as the cafeteria and chapel are cleared to make way for people seeking a warm place to sleep. Once people finish eating about 6 p.m., tables are cleared, floors mopped and sleeping mats laid down. Men and women are kept in separate locations, she said, as part of standard procedure. Should more people approach than the rooms can accommodate, space can be made in other areas of the campus. Were not going to turn anyone away. We will open up areas until everyone has an interior space, she said. As for pets, Animal Care Services Norwood said that although its understandable that not every owner can bring theirs inside, its a requirement by law that the animals have adequate shelter. The first thought is Hey, its winter, my pets got a coat, right? Not necessarily, she said. The cold impacts them just like it impacts us. San Antonio city code Chapter 5 defines the structure as requiring a roof and three ... sides and a fourth side allowing access that is protected from the elements and a floor that is elevated enough to keep the shelter dry. Our officers are given the heads-up that as we get severe temperatures coming in, that they are to take zero tolerance with violations of the law, especially with animals left outdoors with no protection, Norwood said. The animal shelter is accepting donations of blankets, towels and sheets, which can be dropped off anytime without an appointment at 4710 Texas 151. The facility already has an adequate number of beds for animals. jbeltran@express-news.net Twitter: @JBfromSA This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A jury Friday sentenced Lars Itzo to 15 years in prison for killing his wife, Debora Kelly, with a shotgun in a hallway of their North Side home last year. Itzo, 49, showed no emotion as the sentence was pronounced. The jury had found him guilty of manslaughter Thursday, but not guilty of murder, after a week-long trial. Itzo told police he shot Kelly, 48, because he mistook her for an intruder. The jury forewoman entered the courtroom in tears after the panel had decided the sentence. Jurors had deliberated about five hours, at one point telling state District Judge Steven Hilbig they were deadlocked. RELATED: S.A. man left tennis-ball size hole in wife Manslaughter is a second-degree felony and Itzo could have received up to 20 years in prison. He had applied for probation but because the sentence exceeded 10 years, he does not qualify for it. The jury also levied the maximum fine of $10,000. He must serve at least half his prison term before being eligible for parole. Personally, I would like to take a gun and shoot him, the victims mother, Anne Kelly, replied when asked during sentencing testimony Friday what an appropriate punishment would be. But Itzos defense attorney, David W. Phillips, had argued Thursday that his client was not guilty of anything other than committing the biggest mistake of his life by shooting Kelly. Prosecutors had pressed for a murder verdict, accusing Itzo of faking his efforts to help his dying wife, though they did not offer any explicit theory on a motive. RELATED: 9 shocking revelations from the Frances Hall trial They cited police testimony that Itzos grief seemed forced on the night of the shooting. Officers said his hands were clean and there were no bloody footprints or smears around the body that would comport with his 911 call, in which Itzo can be heard in a panicky voice talking to a dispatcher telling him how to stop Kellys bleeding and perform CPR, and his own testimony that he followed those instructions. Itzo testified that he thought his wife was in bed with him when he heard suspicious noises and grabbed a sawed-off shotgun. Experts said the single gunshot that killed Kelly was fired from three to four feet away. Itzo said he shot at a looming figure in the dark hallway and didnt realize it was his wife until he heard her moan. They had been married for two years. I just dont know why someone would not take three seconds to reach over and make sure your wife was next to you. It doesnt make any sense to me, Lars, Anne Kelly said, looking at the defendant. Jim Kelly, the victims father, said he was demoralized by the manslaughter verdict. Asked what he remembered about his daughter, he said in tears, I regret not having doubled or tripled the time I spent with her. And he asked himself aloud , in answer to another question, why he hadnt shot Itzo himself. Defense witness Jake Standifer said he and Itzo, a general contractor, had been friends since 2000. Ive learned a lot about him and believe in his honesty and integrity. He feels very strong about his faith. Society has already lost a great, charitable person, Standifer said of Kelly, arguing for probation. I dont see the purpose of losing another one. bselcraig@express-news.net This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate By the looks of the raucous crowd on the steps of City Hall on Friday, passers-by might have thought Manuel Medina was there announcing that hes running for mayor. Hes expected to at some point soon, but the hoopla just more than a week before Christmas was to announce that Medina appointed a campaign treasurer, the initial step of any campaign that allows a candidate to raise and spend funds. Medina, the Bexar County Democratic Party chairman, also announced that he has created an exploratory committee perhaps a first in a San Antonio mayoral race that he says will continue to examine whether he has a credible path to victory. But theres little doubt that he wont soon launch a campaign. Taking questions from reporters after his announcement, Medina said hes infusing his would-be campaign with $250,000 of his own money. Thats more than Mayor Ivy Taylor and Councilman Ron Nirenberg, who recently declared hes running for mayor, listed in contributions on their semi-annual campaign finance reports that posted in July. The infusion of cash, he said, will ensure hes not beholden to special interests. Candidates get their contributions. Special interests get their special favors, and taxpayers get stuck with the bill, he said. Medina also spoke as if he were already a candidate. He enumerated several things hed address as mayor, including generational poverty on the West Side and institutional violence on the East Side, uncontrollable growth on the North Side or income inequality citywide. Surrounded by supporters after the press conference had officially ended, Medina promised that on day one hed get to work addressing mass transit first from San Antonio to Austin, and then potentially to Monterrey, Mexico. Theres a lot of enthusiasm, a lot of excitement and a lot of support for a new mayor here in San Antonio, because there are a lot of necessities in our community that we want to fight for, he said. No one expects people to change things overnight, but they do expect us to make progress. Steeped in Democratic politics, Medina rejected the notion that hes bringing partisanship to a nonpartisan race, saying it was already there. Hes attempting to connect Taylor to the GOP through Brad Parscale, who ran digital operations for President-elect Donald Trumps campaign. The San Antonio Express-News reported this week that Parscale owns several domains that piggyback on the names of local politicians who are running or have considered mayoral campaigns. Those URLs redirect to Taylors campaign website, which his company built. Taylor pushed back, saying the work shes done for San Antonio transcends partisanship. Weve accomplished a great deal under my leadership, from securing our water future and negotiating a new police contract to partnering with the private sector to fight homelessness among veterans, she said in a statement. Democrat or Republican labels have had nothing to do with our success. Our agenda is about giving all San Antonians the opportunity to get ahead, not bowing to one political party or another. Medina also called Nirenberg the races centrist, a moniker the two-term councilman accepts. Medina, who doesnt plan to step down as party chairman unless he wins the mayoral race, said he and his team have already been out in the community, talking to voters. Theres a general consensus that we need a new mayor at City Hall, he said. Thats a point on which he and Nirenberg agree. I think one area we do agree and has been demonstrated by the conversations he said hes had, theres clear consensus in our community that we need new leadership in the mayors office, Nirenberg said. But getting there through partisan divisiveness is not something San Antonio needs. But they diverge from there. Nirenberg said voters are tired of the partisanship demonstrated in Washington, D.C., and Austin. jbaugh@express-news.net Twitter: @jbaugh This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 2 1 of 2 Courtesy photo Show More Show Less 2 of 2 Photos courtesy of KRGV, Courtesy / Photos courtesy of KRGV Show More Show Less Amid foggy and wet conditions, a prison transport bus crashed Friday morning in Willacy County, resulting in non-life-threatening injuries to several of its passengers, authorities said. The accident occurred west of Raymondville around 7:25 a.m. when the bus, transporting 16 prisoners and two correctional officers, rolled onto its side, according to a Texas Department of Criminal Justice statement. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate WASHINGTON Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro returns to San Antonio next month out of government for the first time in more than seven years, leaving behind an agency whose missions could be threatened by Congress and the new administration. President-elect Donald Trumps campaign vow to make inner cities a beneficiary of $1 trillion in infrastructure work over a decade brings a measure of hope to advocates of affordable housing. But Trumps selection of Ben Carson, the retired neurosurgeon and his primary campaign foe, as the new HUD secretary poses one of the mysteries in the series of new cabinet appointees who have expressed doubts about their agencies missions. As a physician, Carson may understand better than others who might have gotten the HUD job the connection between housing and health. Dr. Carson has an unprecedented opportunity to change health outcomes for the entire country. The relationship between housing and health is irrefutable, said Emily Benfer, a law professor and director of Loyola Universitys health justice project in Chicago. More Information Castro's HUD tenure Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro is returning to San Antonio in January and President-elect Donald Trump has named noted surgeon Ben Carson to replace him. Here are highlights of Castro's tenure at HUD since joining the Obama administration in July 2014. Lowered home ownership costs. Over objections on Capitol Hill, engineered a cut in mortgage insurance premiums that save Federal Housing Administration borrowers about $900 yearly; Fought segregation. Completed long-awaited Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule to promote integrated neighborhoods consistent with 1968 Fair Housing Act; Reduced homelessness. Played a leading role in federal initiatives that cut chronic homelessness over 20 percent and veterans' homelessness by one-third; Narrowed digital divide. HUD's ConnectHome programs brought low-cost or free internet access to public housing thanks to tech companies; Addressed scandal. Worked closely with HUD inspector general and began ethics training at headquarters and public housing agencies to tackle long-standing problems. See More Collapse But Carson, besides knowing little about housing and community development, has displayed little interest in the topics. In one of the few times he has weighed in, he wrote in an op-ed last year that Castros drive to stem segregation in public housing with a new HUD rule smacked of a failed social experiment and could bring public housing to wealthy neighborhoods. Carson could delay or roll back the fair housing rule, completed in July 2015, and scuttle other Castro-led advances at HUD, such as proposed regulations for lead-based paint. Last week, the House Freedom Caucus, an alliance of several dozen of the most conservative U.S. House Republicans, recommended killing HUDs new anti-smoking rule for public housing, along with more than 200 other Obama administration regulations and directives. Castro said the new administration ought to leave the smoke-free regulation alone. The rule, finished just two weeks ago, bans cigarettes, cigars and even hookahs in and around units and offices of more than 3,100 public housing authorities. San Antonios and several hundred other housing agencies already had banned smoking on their own. Its a no-brainer, Castro said in an interview. I have heard over and over from public housing authorities how popular their smoke-free policies have been, and that even smokers recognize the value. The transition Castro has not conveyed his thoughts to Carson because the two have not spoken. Castro says he told emissaries of Trump that he is available. The Trump team stayed true to its early business-friendly approach when it named a Quicken Loans executive, Shawn Krause, to head the administrations four-person landing team that has been showing up at HUD. As recently as last month, Krause was listed as a lobbyist on Quicken disclosure forms filed with Congress. Since last year, her company has aggressively defended itself against Justice Department charges of filing false claims on mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration, part of HUD. The staff at HUD reports cordial dealings with her thus far. In just over a month, Castro will return to San Antonio off the public payroll for the first time since 2009, the year he won election to the first of his two terms as mayor. He intends to make speeches for hire and to finish a book that he is precluded by HUD from even talking about publicly by agency ethics rules - rules that he has worked as secretary to strengthen. Castro received an advance from his publisher, Little, Brown and Co., but stopped writing the family biography after he was chosen by Barack Obama in mid-2014 as HUD secretary. At 42, Castro, among those vetted as Hillary Clintons potential running mate, is viewed as having a promising political future. Allies have said a run for the White House in 2020 is a possiblility. Castro has taken pains to say nothing about his future after having endured a round of bad publicity at an inopportune time - days before Clinton picked a vice-presidential candidate - for answering political questions in an interview. By most accounts, Castro has enjoyed successes at HUD while dealing with constrained spending and a shortage of willing partners on Capitol Hill. I think hes done well, despite all the obstacles, said Diane Yentel, president and CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, a nonprofit born four decades ago after Richard Nixons moratorium on federal housing. Six months after he got to Washington, Castro took the initiative to lower mortgage insurance costs for Federal Housing Administration borrowers, a move that saved families an average of $900 a year. A GOP-led committee blistered him on Capitol Hill, warning that he was about to drain the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Funds mandated reserve. Not only has it not gone down, it has gone up, Castro said in the interview. The fair housing rule that troubled Carson was completed last year to comply with the 1968 Fair Housing Act, a pillar of civil rights legislation from the Great Society programs of President Lyndon Baines Johnson. Castro shares credit for a recent drop in homelessness, particularly among veterans. And he counts among his achievements successes in persuading tech companies to provide internet access in many cities public housing, including in San Antonio. Through all of these efforts, Ive tried to layer the bricks and mortar with greater opportunity for people who live in HUD-assisted housing, Castro said. Whats ahead for HUD? Like many interest groups that have been given conflicting signals, those around HUD look for signs of hope from Trump. Trumps statements while running for office suggested a snapshot of inner cities before gentrification arrived and young professionals returned. In the Oct. 9 debate, he spoke of African Americans in inner cities enduring a 45 percent poverty rate. Studies of Census data show that most African Americans live outside urban areas and that 24 of them percent live below the poverty rate. Federal budgets could pose the biggest threat to HUD, given a return of spending caps next year and Trumps promise to divert non-defense spending to the Pentagon. But Benson Buzz Roberts, who heads the National Association of Affordable Housing Lenders, said he is encouraged by Trumps pronouncements about investing. The goal of investment might best be reached through the new infrastructure spending Trump talks about, coupled with an investment tax credit to rehab homes in downtrodden areas, Roberts said. The president-elect has spoken about trying to attract investment in distressed neighborhoods and the importance of making those neighborhoods good places to live, Roberts said. He has said he is committed to helping these neighborhoods, so I take him at his word. Trumps choice of a physician to head HUD, even one unversed in housing bureaucracies, adds more hope. There are opportunities for him because maybe better than anyone, said the housing coalitions Yentel, he will understand the clear link between health and housing. bill.lambrecht@hearstdc.com District 9 is this citys most reliably Republican council district. Sylvia Romo is a lifelong Democrat, with a stint as a party county chair, and two decades in elective office with a D next to her name. So, at first glance, Romo and District 9 might look like a bad fit. But Romo, the former Bexar County tax assessor-collector, is seriously mulling a run for the North Side council seat being vacated by Joe Krier. I am exploring the possibilities, Romo said, adding that she expects to make a decision by the end of the month. Im calling key people, Im looking at the stats and evaluating the issues. Im taking this seriously. Romo, 73, a resident of the north-central Whispering Oaks neighborhood, understands the conservative politics of her home district. A quick rundown of District 9 council members over the past 20 years Tim Bannwolf, Carroll Schubert, Kevin Wolff, Louis Rowe, Elisa Chan and Krier offers an unbroken parade of austerity minded Republicans. But Romo argues that even with her early 90s tenure as Democratic party chair, she generally has not been seen as a hyper-partisan figure. For one thing, I dont like labels, she said. I dont think they accurately reflect the situation and the needs of the community. If you look at my past, Ive had large bipartisan support. If you look at my contribution reports, I got support from both Republicans and Democrats, because they knew that I could be impartial, and they knew that I was effective. And thats all they were concerned about. In 2012, as Romo completed her 16-year stint as the countys first female tax assessor-collector (following two terms in the Texas House), she stood as one of the most reliable vote-getters in Bexar County over the previous generation. But her 2012 bid for Congress ended badly, when veteran Austin Rep. Lloyd Doggett trounced her in the U.S. District 35 primary by a margin of more than three to one. In 2014, Romo flirted with another political run, when Leticia Van de Putte stepped down from the Senate to run for mayor. Sensing that name recognition could carry extra weight in a short special-election race, Romo filed for Van de Puttes seat. She entered the race despite the fact that she lived a few hundred feet outside of the SD 26 boundary line, arguing that state residency requirements didnt apply to special elections. A week later, sensing that she could be facing an expensive legal battle, she dropped out. Romo, a certified public accountant, devoted much of her energy in the Texas House to boosting small businesses, at one point proposing a state constitutional amendment that would allow for a bonding fund devoted to female and minority entrepreneurs. She left the Lege with sufficiently strong bipartisan credentials that in 2001, Republican Gov. Rick Perry considered appointing her Texas secretary of state. While the District 9 council race is still taking shape, Romos most serious competitor would seem to be Marco Barros, the president/CEO of the San Antonio Area Tourism Council. Barros fits the profile established by Krier, who entered City Hall with 20 years of experience as president and CEO of the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce. Romo said she has spoken briefly to Krier on the phone, but hopes to meet with him soon to talk about her possible candidacy. She suggests that her accounting background could set her apart in the District 9 race. Im a fiscal person, she said. I understand money, and I think those are factors that are sometimes missing in political candidates. Shaw makes his move against Warrick The long-speculated emergence of William Cruz Shaw in District 2 became official Saturday. Shaw, a local attorney, had a public squabble with District 2 incumbent Alan Warrick over the summer, when Warrick pushed Shaw to step down from the Zoning Commission. Warrick argued that Shaw was violating the City Charter by campaigning for the council while serving on the commission. Shaw told me Friday there was nothing personal in his motivation to challenge Warrick. He said a small committee of East Side activists approached him to run, and the push became stronger after the Zoning Commission conflict went public. Im from the community. Ive been living in it, working in it, investing in it, Shaw said. And I got so much support, I cant turn my back on them. ggarcia@express-news.net Twitter: @gilgamesh470 The Palestinian Hamas group in Gaza blamed Israel on Saturday for the killing in Tunisia this week of a Tunisian national it described as one of its drone experts, and threatened retaliation. Hamas's armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, said Mohammed Zawari, who was gunned down near the city of Sfax on Thursday, had been a member of the group for 10 years and had been supervising its drone programme. Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, did not offer any evidence to support its accusation. A spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. "Qassam Brigades mourns the martyr of Palestine, martyr of the Arab and Muslim nation, the Qassam leader, engineer and pilot Mohammad Zawari, who was assassinated by Zionist treacherous hands on Thursday in Sfax," a statement posted on the group's website said. "The enemy must know the blood of the leader Zawari will not go in vain," the statement said. The Tunisian interior ministry said Zawari was killed in his car by multiple gunshots in front of his house in El Ain, near Sfax, on Thursday. Four rental cars were used in the killing and two handguns and silencers were seized, the ministry said. Television footage aired on local media showed a black Volkswagen with its windows apparently shot out. A judicial spokesman from Sfax, Mourad Tourki, told Tunisian radio Shems FM eight Tunisian nationals had been arrested in connection with the killing. One of the suspects is a Tunisian journalist based in Hungary, arrested along with a cameraman. Two other suspects, one of them a Belgian of Moroccan origin, are still at large, Tourki said. Authorities have not commented on who is suspected of being behind the killing. Local media said Zawari had returned to Tunisia in 2011 after spending two decades abroad, including in Syria. They gave his age as 49 and said he was a technical director in a private engineering firm and a model aircraft expert. Israel has in the past voiced concern that armed groups in Gaza and Lebanon would deploy drones carrying explosives inside its borders in a future war. Hamas and other Islamist militias have fired thousands of rockets at militarily superior Israel in previous offensives by the latter on Gaza, but have made scant use of drones. In September the Israeli army said it had intercepted a drone off the coast of Gaza. It was the first such incident reported since the 2014 Israeli offensive on Gaza , when a U.S.-supplied Israeli Patriot missile destroyed an unmanned Hamas aircraft over the southern Israeli port city of Ashdod. Israel is itself a world leader in drone technologies and has used the vehicles extensively in combat. In 2010 a Mossad hit-team assassinated Hamas operative Mahmoud al-Mahbouh in Dubai. *This story was edited by Ahram Online. Search Keywords: Short link: Ag chemical dealer meetings to provide timely updates Prepare for the 2023 growing season by attending one of the two Ag Chemical Dealer Update meetings presented by ISU. Egg industry leaders have welcomed a decision to implement a housing order to protect the country from highly pathogenic avian influenza. The Government's chief vet announced a housing order covering the whole of England. Similar orders were implemented by the devolved Governments of Scotland and Wales to protect against the possible spread of avian influenza from other countries in mainland Europe. At the time the orders were made AI had not been found in the United Kingdom. However, H5N8 bird flu has since been confirmed on a turkey farm near Louth in Lincolnshire. The housing orders were made in response to calls from the poultry sector. It wanted free range birds housed as a precaution against high path H5N8, which had been discovered in wild birds in Austria, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine and the Russian Federation. There were fears that migrating wildfowl could carry the virus to the United Kingdom and infect free range units. Chief veterinary officer Nigel Gibbens said at the time: "We are closely monitoring the situation across Europe and have scaled up surveillance in response to the heightened risk. "As a precaution, and to allow time for poultry and captive bird keepers to put in place appropriate bio-security measures, we have declared a 30-day prevention zone to reduce the risk of infection from wild birds. "Even when birds are housed, a risk of infection remains so this must be coupled with good bio-security - for example disinfecting clothing and equipment, reducing poultry movement and minimising contact between poultry and wild birds," he said. 'Free range status is safe' The British Free Range Egg Producers Association (BFREPA) is one of the organisations that called for birds to be housed. An official housing order means that the birds' free range status will be maintained for the duration the order. The association's chief executive, Robert Gooch, said: "We support the housing order, although we are conscious that there could be some stress amongst members' birds that are ranging freely. Producers may need to think about extra enrichment and inspections." He stressed that members would not lose their free range status. Some members had contacted the association concerned about this, but Mr Gooch said producers could be assured that free range status was safe. Mark Williams, chief executive of the British Egg Industry Council (BEIC) and chairman of the Poultry Health and Welfare Group (PHWG), said: The Poultry Health and Welfare group welcomes Defras decision to bring in enhanced bio-security requirements for poultry and captive birds, including temporarily housing poultry in England. The poultry industry has been liaising closely with Defra to ensure we are best prepared should the risk of bird flu heighten, and contingency plans are in place and under constant review. Most birds can be taken inside their houses within a matter of hours. Where birds like geese and game cant be housed, measures will be put in place to ensure separation from wild birds. Farmers urged to take reasonable measures Gary Ford, NFU chief poultry adviser, said many NFU members, particularly on the Eastern side of the country, have been calling for such a decision for 'several weeks' now, as the risk posed by AI in the migratory wild bird population throughout Europe to the commercial poultry sector has increased. He said: "Where it will not be possible practically to house all free range birds, farmers are urged to take reasonable measures to prevent contact with wild birds. Given that this is a mandatory housing requirement, producers will be able to retain their free range status both eggs and poultry meat for a period of up to twelve weeks from the date of the decision, although the zone is, currently, for 30 days only. The Government had previously resisted appeals from the British poultry industry to order that free range birds be housed. At a recent avian influenza roadshow event organised by the industry's Poultry Health and Welfare Group, Gary Ford said that at that time Defra had concerns about going ahead with such an order. He said Defra felt there was a lack of clear evidence that housing free range birds was an effective disease mitigation measure. There was also a concern that housing birds used to ranging could have an impact on their health and welfare if they were no longer allowed to range. NFU Cymru Conference: Farmers need more help to 'weather current storms' By Todd Hubbs, Darrel Good, and Scott Irwin Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics University of Illinois We recently began a series of articles to evaluate the history of corn and soybean yields and deviations from trend yield in Brazil and Argentina. The objective of the yield analysis is to provide a basis for forming expectations about the likely yields of the 2017 crops. The first three articles focused on the alternative sources of historical yield estimates, the selection of the appropriate series to use in the analysis for both corn and soybeans, and the selection of the best-fitting trend model for each commodity and country (farmdoc daily, November 2, 2016; November 9, 2016; November 16, 2016). Yesterday's article focused on first and second crop corn yield trend estimates and trend deviations in Brazil (farmdoc daily, December 14, 2016). Today's article examines corn yield trend estimates and trend deviations in Argentina. Over the last decade, Argentina is the third largest exporter of corn in most marketing years. Historical Corn Yields and Deviation Patterns As previously discussed in the farmdoc daily article of November 9, 2016, we chose a logarithmic trend to fit the corn yield data for Argentina over the 1961-2016 period. The yield estimates are provided by the USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) and are based on past trends, expert opinion, industry intelligence, and estimates from the Argentina Ministry of Agribusiness. We use average corn yield estimates, not adjusted for varying weather conditions from year-to-year, for the period 1961 through 2016 to determine the form of the trend that best fits those yield estimates and to calculate the trend yield for 2017. We did not find evidence for a trend shift during this sample period as we did for Brazil. It also should be noted that using yields that are not adjusted for varying weather conditions actually results in a slight under-estimate of trend yield due to the asymmetric effect of weather on actual yields (Swanson and Nyankori, 1979; Tannura, Irwin, and Good, 2008). That is, poor weather reduces yields more than good weather improves yields so that the impact of technology (trend) is under-estimated due to sharp reductions in yield from poor weather years. Our previous research on U.S crop weather models that adjust for the asymmetric effect of weather on crop yields indicates the downward bias is about one-tenth of a bushel for the trend coefficients (Irwin, Good, and Tannura, 2009). Figure 1 shows corn yield trends in Argentina with the logarithmic trend. A logarithmic trend implies that yields have increased at a constant percentage rate rather than a constant bushel rate over time. For Argentina, the logarithmic trend estimates an average 2.9 percent annual increase in yields from 1961 through 2016. The fit of the trend is quite high, with an R2 of 0.93. That is, trend explains 93 percent of the annual yield variation over the 56-year period. Average yields in that country have been in a wide range above and below trend over the past ten years, after a sustained period of above average yields beginning in 1997 and running through 2007. The last ten years do provide an indication of a flattening yield trend during this volatile period. Only time will tell, but it would not be completely surprising if the rate of increase in yields has slowed as yields have become higher and as advanced technology becomes more fully adopted. Historical deviations for national average Argentine corn yields for the period 1989-2016 are shown in Figure 2. Building on a previous analysis of international grain yields in this farmdoc daily article by Carl Zulauf (November 11, 2015), we investigate the yield variability of Argentine corn production in more detail. Over the 56-year period, the average Argentine corn yield was above trend in 28 years and below for 28 years. The largest deviation below trend was approximately 26 bushels per acre in 2012. At approximately 25.5 and 21 bushels greater than the average corn yield trend, 2007 and 2010 provided the two largest positive deviations. The average positive deviation was 6.98 bushels while the average negative deviation was -6.04 bushels. Argentine historical trend deviations are unusual, it that the average positive deviation is larger than the average negative deviation. It is clear that the last decade has been highly variable in Argentine corn production with three of the largest trend deviations occurring in this period. Implications An examination of the national average corn yields in Argentina for the period 1961 through 2016 reveals an upward yield trend with substantial annual variation. Yields have not increased by a constant bushel value per year, but have increased by a constant percentage value. The estimated logarithmic corn yield trends point to a 2017 average corn yield of 137.1 bushels per acre, 9.65 bushels above the 2016 average yield and 4.4 bushels above the record yield of 2010. Based on the projections of harvested acreage in the USDA's December 9 World Agricultural Production report, yields at trend value would result in 2017 Argentine corn production of 1.525 billion bushels, 460 million bushels (43 percent) larger than the estimate for the 2016 crop. This projection is contingent on Argentine corn yields continuing on the logarithmic trend despite the noticeable flattening of corn yields in this recent volatile period. Current World Agricultural Production report projections calculate a 25.9 percent increase in Argentine corn production for 2017. In future articles we will examine soybean yield trend and historical deviations in Brazil as a basis for evaluating yield risk in 2017. Then we will analyze the historical deviations from trend yield in soybeans for Brazil and Argentina as a basis for evaluating yield risk in 2017 for those crops and evaluate conditional yields for each country under El Nino climate events. Source:farmdocdaily It would seem that the continuation of live sheep and cattle exports are dependent on what price the Greens are charging on the day, while the fate of gene technology will depend on the need for "numbers", not on the science. Where to eat and drink in the Fayetteville area this weekend At least 38 Islamic State (IS) militants fighters have been killed in US-led coalition air strikes this week near Syria's ancient city of Palmyra, a monitor said on Saturday. The Islamist militants retook Palmyra in central Syria on December 11, just eight months after the army backed by Russia drove them out. On Thursday, US-led coalition aircraft destroyed heavy weaponry seized by the Islamist militants when they retook the city, the coalition said. A statement on Friday said the strikes destroyed an air defence artillery system, 14 tanks, three artillery systems, two IS-held buildings and two tactical vehicles. Among the Russian weaponry IS captured around Palmyra were thought to be modern surface-to-air missiles, or SAMs, giving Islamist militants the potential capability to shoot down aircraft, a coalition official told AFP. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group based in Britain, said that "at least 38 IS members were killed in the air strikes". The strikes, near the Tiyas military air base northeast of Palmyra, helped regime forces gain some ground west of the fabled city, said the Observatory. Palmyra is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and its recapture by IS gave the Islamist militants a propaganda boost as they face assaults on two of their key strongholds -- Raqa in Syria and Iraq's second city Mosul. Search Keywords: Short link: Tens of thousands of protestors turned out in Seoul for the eighth straight week Saturday, pushing for the swift and permanent removal of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-Hye. Unlike previous weeks, the demonstrators didn't have the streets of the capital all to themselves, with a sizeable rally by Park loyalists seeking to buttress support for the beleaguered president. The main anti-Park protest began with a gathering in central Seoul, with organisers putting the turnout at around 300,000. It then split into three columns, marching on the presidential Blue House, the office of the prime minister and on the Constitutional Court whose nine justices are considering the validity of the impeachment bill passed by the national assembly more than a week ago. The court has 180 days to make a ruling, but the protesters are pressing for a swift judgement. Although Park has been stripped of her substantial executive powers, she is allowed to retain the title of president and continue to live in the Blue House while the court deliberates. The protesters are adamant that she should resign immediately and face criminal prosecution. Park still has her supporters, many of them elderly voters who remain steadfast admirers of her father, the late military dictator Park Chung-Hee -- credited as the architect of the South's economic transformation but vilified as an authoritarian rights abuser. Police said around 30,000 Park loyalists attended their own rally near the court earlier in the day to demand the impeachment bill be thrown out. Waving national flags and clutching red roses they carried banners denouncing the anti-Park protests as a leftist conspiracy. On Friday, Park's legal team formally submitted a 24-page rebuttal of the impeachment charges to the court, arguing that they had no legal basis. "We can't accept that there was any violation of the constitution by the president... the impeachment motion should be rejected," one of her lawyers, Lee Joong-Hwan, told reporters. Park was impeached on numerous counts of constitutional and criminal violations ranging from a failure to protect people's lives to bribery and abuse of power. Most of the charges stemmed from an investigation into a scandal involving the president's long-time friend, Choi Soon-Sil, who is currently awaiting trial for fraud and embezzlement. Prosecutors named Park a suspect in the case -- a first for a sitting president -- saying she colluded in Choi's efforts to strong-arm donations from large companies worth tens of millions of dollars. The impeachment process was ignited and fuelled by public outrage at Park's behaviour, with the weekly mass demonstrations demanding that politicians take a proactive role in removing her from the presidential Blue House. The National Assembly has played its part, but the country now faces a lengthy period of uncertainty at a time of slowing economic growth and elevated military tensions with nuclear-armed North Korea. The man charged with steering the country through these dangerous waters is a former prosecutor who has never held elected office. As Park's prime minister, Hwang Kyo-Ahn became the temporary guardian of her sweeping executive powers the moment after she was impeached. The protesters have called on him to resign as well, arguing that he is too tainted by his association with the president to wield her authority. The mass rallies, some of which drew crowds of more than one million people, have been passionate but good-natured so far, with no clashes despite a heavy police presence. Search Keywords: Short link: Alex Reid has slammed Katie Price as a "spiteful bully". Alex Reid The 41-year-old cage fighter was furious when his former spouse appeared to poke fun at his cross-dressing as female alter ego Roxanne when she spoke a recent encounter with Eddie Redmayne, who played Danish painter Einar Wegene, the first man to undergo a sex-change operation, in 'The Danish Girl'. Katie said: "I went to a party recently with all these A-listers and, I wasn't starstuck, but you're still in a room with this. They all knew who it was - and I was like, 'How do they know who I am? Little me.' "I was talking to Eddie Redmayne about the scene he did in 'The Danish Girl'. I was telling him he played it well because it reminded me of someone I knew. I said, 'You actually played that part really well.'" But Alex was annoyed by Katie's story and took to Instagram to slam her. He wrote: "@MissKatiePrice would think in 6yrs you'd of got bored talking about me.Theres a reason why you have no real friends "Your a spiteful bully! #bully #cyberbully #harrassment #letitgo #gossipgirl (sic)." Earlier this year, Alex criticised his ex-wife for having "little" understanding of transvestism and for having the audacity to suggest he could undergo a sex change in the future after she claimed she wouldn't be surprised if he "does end up being a transgender". Alex rubbished he ex-partner's suggestion, insisting he identifies as male and always will and branded her comments as having the potential to incite "hate and prejudice against the trans community". In a statement released to BANG Showbiz, Alex said: "Katie Price's comments have a wide and very damaging reach, potentially inciting hate and prejudice against the trans community. Firstly, in expressing her ignorance towards what it is to be a cross-dresser, as opposed to being transgender opens to the door to further criticism for those going through what can be a very emotional time. "Secondly, in suggesting I 'needed help' and that such help was offered and denied, further highlights how little she understands of the fundamental nature of someone who cross-dresses. The sniggering and coquettish giggling (on the show) actually upset me more for those facing ridicule every day, perhaps going through transition, as it somehow became a joke, something to be laughed at and made fun of, which is so far away from what the original topic was about. The panel were meant to be highlighting the fantastic work of Eddie Redmayne in 'The Danish Girl', a film based on the support of a woman for her transgender husband. What an insult to the movie and those who inspired it by allowing her to speculate on whether I was going to become a woman in future years ... For the record, I have no intention at any point of transitioning into a woman." Kanye West is "recovering". Kanye West The 39-year-old was rushed to hospital in Los Angeles with suspected "temporary psychosis" in November and friends say he is getting better but it will take time. A source told PEOPLE: "He's recovering, but not recovered. He's sick and every day he gets better. "This is something he will deal with for life, but he can conquer it." And an insider recently revealed that Kanye didn't handle the "pressure" of fame very well and things had started going downhill for the rapper in late October. A source said: "The pressure had gotten to him and he didn't handle it well. He made himself exhausted. But [the exhaustion] was a symptom of the problem, not the problem itself ... He wasn't making a lot of sense when he talked, and he was texting a lot of strange stuff to people. Not dangerous, but he just didn't make a lot of sense. "Part of loving Kanye is that he sometimes is talking on a different level from you, and you just listen. But this was a lot more alarming. When Kanye gets like this, he doesn't sleep. So, you'd wake up to like 20 texts. The more tired he got from not sleeping, the less sense he was making. He wasn't in a good head space." Meanwhile, Kim is reportedly "annoyed" at her husband for not following doctor's orders and resting. A source said: "Kim still denies they are getting a divorce, but things are definitely not great between her and Kanye. Kanye is supposed to rest and focus on his mental health. "Instead, he has had a very busy week and is done resting. Kim acts annoyed. She also seems miserable and is spending a lot of time with her family." James Norton admits accepting the role of James Bond would be a "big decision". James Norton The 31-year-old actor has been heavily tipped to take over from Daniel Craig as the iconic spy, and while he thinks the speculation is "very flattering", he insists it isn't a decision he has to make in the near future. He said: "It's very flattering, but a lot of people are taking the hype too seriously. "Anyway, I'm a huge fan of Daniel Craig, so I hope he does another one or two. "It would be a big decision, but at the moment it's not one I have to make." James was "apprehensive" about venturing out to Hollywood, but now has a different attitude to trying to make it big Stateside following his recent experiences working on 'Flatliners'. He said: "I just filmed a remake of 'Flatliners' I was apprehensive about Hollywood because I love London, but I had an amazing experience." But if he does make it in Hollywood, James is likely to find even more restrictions on what he can do outside of work for insurance reasons than he does now working on UK TV drama series 'Grantchester'. He said: "Someone bought me a parachute jump which I haven't done yet. "But I'm not even allowed to cycle to work while we're filming, so I'm probably not allowed to do the jump either." James can see a lot of similarities between himself and his 'Grantchester' alter ego, clergyman Sydney. He told Woman magazine: "We both studied Theology at Cambridge. I have wonderful memories of wandering down the Cam horribly hungover on a Sunday when I was a student and going to sit in The Green Man pub, which we now visit while filming, for a theological debate." Coldplay's Will Champion feared he'd blinded himself at Glastonbury. Coldplay The 38-year-old drummer accidentally poked himself in the eye with his sticks towards the end of the band's headline set at the world-famous music festival and couldn't enjoy the celebrations afterwards because he was in so much pain. He said: "I hit myself in the eyeball with a drumstick on the penultimate song. I couldn't see out of my left eye, so I was a little bit worried. "Afterwards, everyone else was high-fiving and saying, 'It was amazing' and I was sort of cowering, thinking, 'I've blinded myself...' "During the song we did with Michael Eavis, I had to have my eyes closed for the whole thing cos my eye was bleeding. It was a little bit of a comedown." One of the highlights of the year for the 'Adventure of a Lifetime' group was performing at Wembley stadium, but Will - who has daughter Ava, 10, and twins Juno and Rex, eight, with wife Marianne - admits the end of the shows was surreal for him because he was back home to his family so soon after coming off stage. He told Q magazine: "It's a real thrill to play in London and it does feel like a homecoming. "You feel the warmth that people are really happy to be there. "After one of the shows, I did a runner straight from the stage. "I had to get home with my kids and I was at home in 20 minutes when people were probably still standing in front of the stage waiting to get out of the stadium. "That was one of the weirdest moments I've had actually, it was a really strange feeling, to be back in my home helping my kids get into bed and then just being in a completely quiet, empty house 20 minutes after having come off the stage at Wembley Stadium." Divyanka Tripathi Divyanka Tripathi is considered as the diva of television industry. Her role of Ishima from the show Yeh Hai Mohabbatein is most liked by the audiences. The actress shocked her fans by getting married to her co-actor Vivek Dahiya, and hogged limelight for the grand affair! Mouni Roy Not only is her show Naagin 2 is topping the TRP charts, the actress Mouni Roy is also considered as the top actress in the television industry. Mouni is considered as a style queen in television industry. The actress also received The Most Stylish TV Personality at Hindustan Times Most Stylist Awards 2016. Mouni Roy and Mohit Raina's relationship has been in news since a long time, but the actors are yet to confirm the same! Mouni also made her Bollywood debut with item song "Nachna Aaonda Nahin" in Tum Bin 2. Hina Khan Hina Khan is another style icon of television industry. The actress is in news for quitting the longest running show Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai. Hina's tantrums on the sets became the headlines. There were also rumours that the actress would enter Bigg Boss 10 house, but she was on the show supporting her on-screen son Rohan Mehra! There is also news that Colors had offered her a new show Chandrakanta, but the actress has denied it as she is taking time to get into any project! Sriti Jha Sriti Jha, who is seen playing the role of Pragya in the show Kumkum Bhagya, is another popular actress in the television industry. Her personal life has always been a topic of discussion among her fans! There are rumours that the actress is dating Kunal Karan Kapoor! The duo was also spotted together on a few occasions. Nia Sharma It won't be wrong if we say Nia Sharma is Sonam Kapoor of Television industry! The Jamai Raja actress had recently bagged third spot in the list of Sexiest Asian Women. Nia recently quit the show Jamai Raja as she didn't want to age on screen! Helly Shah Helly Shah is famous among the audiences for her role of Swara in Swaragini. The show recently came to an end. The actress was also seen on the dance reality show Jhalak Dikhlaa Jaa 9. According to reports, Helly Shah is the youngest actress in Eastern Eye 50 Sexiest Asian Women list 2016. Tejaswi Prakash Wayangankar Another gorgeous actress from the show Swaragini is Tejaswi Prakash Wayangankar, who has impressed the audiences with her role Ragini. Initially, the actress planned to quit as she didn't want to play negative role. But later, due to audiences demand, the makers changed Tejaswi's role to positive and the actress didn't quit! Drashti Dhami Drashti was seen playing the role of Rani Gayatri in the show Ek Tha Raja Ek Thi Rani. The actress quit the show as she was not ready to play a mother on screen. The actress is now seen on a new show - Pardes Mein Hai Mera Dil that started a month ago. Drashti has also bagged the fourth spot in Eastern Eye 50 Sexiest Asian Women list. Surbhi Jyoti After Qubool Hai, Surbhi Jyoti took a break. Although she was on a break, she was active on social media and kept her fans update. The actress will be seen in a web series Tanhaiyaan, opposite Barun Sobti. This web series is also produced by Qubool Hai producer, Gul Khan. The shooting has already started and the audiences are waiting for the show to air on Hot Star soon! Sanaya Irani Sanaya married her long time boyfriend and co-star from the serial Miley Jab Hum Tum , actor Mohit Sehgal in Goa in a Punjabi wedding in January this year (2016). The actress was seen in a web series I Don't Watch TV. The actress was to make her comeback with the show Meenu Mausi, but the show has been halted. Apparently, she is in talks for other show as well. The actress has bagged the sixth place in Eastern Eye 50 Sexiest Asian Women list. Jasmin Bhasin Jasmin Bhasin became a household name with her role of Twinkle from the show Tashan-E-Ishq. There were also rumours that the actress was insecure with the parallel track! The show went off air because of low TRPs. The actress will be back with her new show Dil Se Dil Tak. The show will also have Sidharth Shukla and Rashami Desai in the lead roles. There are also rumours that Jasmin is dating is Suraj Wadhwa. Anita Hassanandani Another Yeh Hai Mohabbatein actress who managed to stay in news this year is Anita Hassanandani. The actress was also seen showcasing her comic skills on Comedy Nights Bachao! Anita also launched TheBag-Talk.com in partnership with High Spirit Commercial Ventures, a bag manufacturer and exporter! CALGARY, ALBERTA -- (Marketwired) -- 12/16/16 -- Canadian Equipment Rentals Corp. (the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: CFL) today announced that it has entered into a Fifth Amending Agreement with its senior lenders. This agreement expires on February 28, 2017 and allows management to continue to execute on the commitment to reduce the Company's balance sheet leverage. The recently announced sale of the Waste Management division, which closed on December 1, 2016, was a material step forward in this process. Management continues to sell down underutilized equipment and explore alternative sources of capital. The Company is also seeing strong demand for oilfield rental equipment going into the winter drilling season which is a positive sign for the energy service division. About Canadian Equipment Rentals Corp. Canadian Equipment Rentals Corp. is a Canadian public corporation with two operating divisions: Energy Services and General Rentals. The Energy Services division is engaged in the rental of surface rentals and accommodations to the Western Canadian Oil and Gas Industry. The General Rentals division is engaged in the rental of industrial and construction equipment. The Company trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "CFL". FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS Certain statements included or incorporated by reference in this press release constitute forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, including management's assessment of expected activity levels continuing through 2016, and expected decrease in demand for rental equipment over the next year as well as forecasted economic measures for the Province of Alberta and oil and natural gas prices and the effect on drilling programs as a result of the decline in oil prices. Forward-looking statements or information may contain statements with the words "anticipate", "believe", "expect", "plan", "intend", "estimate", "propose", "budget", "should", "project", "demand", "may have been" or similar words suggesting future outcomes or expectations. Although the Company believes that the expectations implied in such forward-looking statements or information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on these forward-looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that such statements will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements or information based on current expectations, estimates and projections involve a number of assumptions about the future and uncertainties. Although management believes these assumptions are reasonable, there can be no assurance that they will be proved to be correct, and actual results will differ materially from those anticipated. For this purpose, any statements herein that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements or information contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new contrary information, future events or any other reason, unless it is required by any applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements or information contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Contacts: Austin Fraser President P: (403) 930-5433 E: afraser@cercorp.ca Ken Olson Chief Financial Officer P: (403) 930-5434 E: kolson@cercorp.ca Montreal, Quebec--(Newsfile Corp. - December 16, 2016) - Cyprium Mining Corporation (TSXV: CUG) ("Cyprium" or the "Company") announces the resignation of Mr. Robert Boisjoli, Jonathan George and Carlos Arzola as director of the company. Mr. Ronald Keenan also resigned as director and interim CFO of Cyprium. Cyprium announces the appointment of Mr. Adrian Morger as director and interim CFO of the Company. Mr. Morger was born in Switzerland and has studied economics whilst specializing in the banking industry. Mr. Morger started his career in 1992 as Commercial Apprenticeship at Raiffeisenbank. After studying Business Economist at the University of Applied Sciences in Chur (1998-2001) he worked as Fund Manager Alternative Investments at Internationale Fonds Service AG (IFOS) in Vaduz, Liechtenstein. From 2006 to 2009 he served as Head of Fund and Manager Selection for VP Bank AG in Vaduz, Liechtenstein. In March 2009 he founded and started Everest Wealth Management AG. In January 2015 he founded and started Falknis Wealth Management AG. Cyprium continues to evaluate financing opportunities in order to fund the development of the Potosi mine located in the State of Chihuahua in Northern Mexico. About Cyprium Mining Corporation For the description of Cyprium Mining's business and the Company's Forward Looking Statement Disclaimer which form an integral part of this news release please visit our website at: http://www.cypriummining.com/en/investors/disclaimers For further information, please contact: Alain Lambert, Chairman and C.E.O. Email: ir@cypriummining.com Neither TSX Venture Exchange Inc. nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange Inc.) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release contains "forward-looking information" (within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws) and "forward -looking statements" (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995). Such statements or information are identified with words such as "anticipate", "believe", "expect", "plan", "intend", "potential", "estimate", "propose", "project", "outlook", "foresee" or similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding an outlook. Such statements include, among others, those concerning the Company's anticipated plans for developments of the Company and its mining projects. Such forward-looking information or statements are based on a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions which may cause actual results or other expectations to differ materially from those anticipated and which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, management's expectations regarding future growth, plans for and completion of projects by Company's third party relationships, availability of capital, and the necessity to incur capital and other expenditures. Actual results could differ materially due to a number of factors, including, without limitation, operational risks in the completion of Company's anticipated projects, delays or changes in plans with respect to the development of Company's anticipated projects by Company's third party relationships, risks affecting the ability to develop projects, risks inherent in operating in foreign jurisdictions, the ability to attract key personnel, and the inability to raise additional capital. No assurances can be given that the efforts by the Company will be successful. Additional assumptions and risks are set out in detail in the Company's MD&A, available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information or statements are reasonable, prospective investors in the Company's securities should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements because the Company can provide no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking information and statements contained in this news release are as of the date of this news release and the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise this forward-looking information and statements except as required by law. Investors should also note that the Potosi silver mine and La Chinche property have no established mineral resources or mineral reserves as defined by NI 43-101. The Swiss parliament passed a law on Friday aimed at curbing immigration by giving local people first crack at open jobs, skirting voters' demand for outright quotas, which it feared could disrupt close ties with the European Union. The European Commission gave the law a cautious welcome while it checks with members on how to handle non-EU member Switzerland, whose treatment will be scrutinised for hints on what Britain might expect as it negotiates its EU divorce. The Swiss legislation "appears to go in the right direction" by not setting quotas of EU citizens able to work there, a Commission spokesman told a news conference in Brussels. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker was due to talk with Swiss President Johann Schneider-Ammann later on Friday, and an EU-Swiss committee meeting was planned for Dec. 22. Brussels has so far shown scant inclination to compromise on the free movement of people - the principle underpinning Swiss access to the EU's single market of 500 million - so as not to encourage Britain after its June Brexit vote. The bill's lack of upper limits on immigration to a country of 8.3 million, whose population is already a quarter foreign, prompted the right-wing Swiss People's Party to say politicians had defied the people's will as expressed in a 2014 referendum. The SVP, the largest party in parliament, has accused other parties of caving in to Brussels and shirking their duty to stand up for Swiss sovereignty. Its members held up signs in the chamber reading "Breach of the constitution" and "Mass immigration continues". AVOIDING A ROW But a clear majority in parliament did not want to risk a row with the EU, Switzerland's main trading partner, which could retaliate by abrogating other bilateral accords governing trade worth about 7 percent of Swiss economic output. The debate in Switzerland in many ways mirrors that in Britain, where voters decided to quit the EU in part as a way to control immigration, which critics said was putting too much strain on social infrastructure. The British government declined comment on the Swiss vote. Rather than the quotas voters had demanded, the law says that, at times of economic upheaval, employers in sectors or regions with above-average jobless rates must inform local job centres of vacancies and get the names of job seekers. The presumption is that local residents will be more likely to register with the job centres - although, to the annoyance of the SVP, cross-border commuters and any citizens from EU or EFTA countries will be allowed to do so, enabling the government to argue that they meet the EU's non-discrimination test. The right-wing isolationist group AUNS said it would try to force a vote under the Swiss system of direct democracy on abrogating the free movement accord with the EU, saying voters had to stop Switzerland from becoming "a colony of the EU". OPEN BORDER Nearly 1.4 million EU citizens live in Switzerland and more than 300,000 commute in from neighbouring countries. The Swiss think that gives them leverage with Germany, France and Italy, whose leaders may not want to have to explain to voters - especially in border regions where populist partie are strong - why they can no longer work in high-wage Swiss jobs. Passage of the law cleared the way for the Swiss government to extend free movement of people on Friday to the latest EU member, Croatia. That, in turn, will restore Swiss access to the EU's Horizon 2020 programme, which funds research projects. In any event, Swiss citizens look set to vote in a second referendum on whether to impose curbs on immigration or reaffirm close economic ties with the bloc. Many analysts think they will opt to uphold the bilateral accords that smooth business ties with the EU. But the wave of migrants that arrived in Europe last year, and a sense that the EU is increasingly divided and ineffective, could make it a close call. "You have seen what became of (German Chancellor Angela) Merkel's good idea (to welcome refugees from Syria). I would say 'yes' to quotas," said Siegfried, a retiree from Winterthur who did not give his family name. Others interviewed at random in Zurich disagreed. Conrad Hottinger, a retired engineer from Herrliberg, said parliament had found an elegant way out of a policy dilemma triggered by "mean" far-right populist politics. "The people have said many times that the bilateral accords have priority. This (the 2014 referendum) was a political chess move by the populist right," he said. Search Keywords: Short link: Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - December 17, 2016) - CardioComm Solutions, Inc. (TSXV: EKG) ("CardioComm Solutions" or the "Company") today announced that it is conducting a non-brokered private placement equity financing under which it intends to issue up to 13,000,000 units at a price of $0.05 per unit, for gross proceeds of up to $650,000. The Company's shares have been trading at between $0.065 and $0.115 since the start of December with a TSXV VWAP of $0.0729. Under the terms of the subscription agreement, there is no minimum offering amount and each $0.05 unit will be comprised of one common share of the Company and one common share purchase warrant exercisable for two years at an additional share at a price of $0.075. The securities to be issued under the financing will be subject to a four-month hold period. The terms of the financing are subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange. As previously announced, the Company has undertaken efforts to increase its awareness within the North American institutional investor marketplace. The Company again discloses its commitment to raise sufficient financing to both retire its current outstanding LOC of $900,000, due to be paid at the end of December 2016, and to generate additional funds for general working capital. This private placement announcement complements the Company's continued efforts to meet these funding objectives. About CardioComm Solutions CardioComm Solutions' patented and proprietary technology is used in products for recording, viewing, analyzing and storing electrocardiograms (ECGs) for diagnosis and management of cardiac patients. Products are sold worldwide through a combination of an external distribution network and a North American-based sales team. The Company has earned the ISO 13485 certification, is HPB approved, HIPAA compliant, and has received FDA market clearance for its software devices. CardioComm Solutions is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, with offices in Victoria, B.C. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: Etienne Grima, Chief Executive Officer 1-877-977-9425 investor.relations@cardiocommsolutions.com www.cardiocommsolutions.com Forward-looking statements This release may contain certain forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and business of CardioComm Solutions and certain of the plans and objectives of CardioComm Solutions with respect to these items. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future and there are many factors that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Vkansee, the NYC- and Shenzen, China-based creator of an under-glass and patented and ultra-thin optical fingerprint sensor, raised $10m in funding. Backers included Infotech Ventures, Yunnan Huizhong Fund, Shenzhen Qianhai Greatwall Fund and Superpix Micro Technology. The company, which has raised $12m in total funding, intends to use the capital to conduct R&D activities, develop new products and manufacture and distribute its sensor to meet demand for higher biometric authentication security on laptops, phones and other mobile devices. Immediately, the funding will support the production of test wafers for manufacturers and suppliers to evaluate the sensors for device integration in 2017. Led by president Jason Chaikin, Vkansee develops a secure under-glass patented and ultra-thin optical fingerprint sensor which enables mobile security for payment applications, data storage, access control, etc., across a variety of mobile and connected devices. The company has 32 employees across offices in Beijing, Shenzhen and New York. FinSMEs 16/12/2016 Malayalam actor Dhanya Mary Verghese has been arrested for involvement in Rs 130 crore real estate fraud. She had been absconding for over a month before the police nabbed her. The Times of India reports that she was arrested in Nagercoil along with her husband John Jacob. The couple and her father-in-law Jacob Samson have been operating a real estate firm called Samson and Sons Builders and Developers. Deccan Chronicle reports that the firm collected over Rs 100 crore from its customers by offering around 500 flats and 20 villas in multiple parts of the district. The remaining Rs 30 crore were collected from investors by in lieu of promising returns. When the firm failed to stick to its commitments in the given time period, both the investor and customers filed complaints with the police. Hindustan Times reports that Samson, the chairman of the firm, was arrested last month as a consequence. Since then, Verghese, John and his brother Samuel had been absconding. The Indian Express reports that though Verghese is not a director in the firm, she misled the investors and customers by claiming herself as a director on the official website of the firm. Thus, she was arrested for that offence. The Kerela police said many of the customers of the firm were Non-Resident Indians. A probe is also on to trace any investments made by the accused, as per the report by Deccan Chronicle. She has done over 20 films in Malayalam, her first being Nanma in 2007. Prior to that, she had done two Tamil films - Thirudi in 2006 and Sanjay Ram's Veeramum Eeramum in 2007. She was last seen in the 2012 film Ennennum Ormakkay. Post that, she also appeared in a Malayalam television series Deivathinte Swantham Devootty. Verghese has also had a successful run in modelling. She married John in 2012 and was blessed with a boy the next year. Pahlaj Nihalani, the Chairman of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), has rubbished the rumours that he was biased towards Aditya Chopra's Befikre in terms of cutting the kissing scenes from the film. When the first promo of Befikre released earlier this year, Papon's song Labon Ka Karobar celebrated physical love through a dozen couples kissing each other in the city of love, Paris. Nihalani, who is popularly considered 'sanskari', did not cut a single kissing scene on the grounds that expression of such love was normal in a Western city like Paris. However, months before the release of Befikre, Nihalani had cut a kissing scene in the Hollywood film Sam Mendes' Spectre. Imtiaz Ali's Tamasha and Karan Johar's Ae Dil Hai Mushkil also suffered similar fates. Now, Johar's next production Ok Jaanu is set to hit the theatres next month. It is a romantic comedy that revolves around a live-in relationship based in Mumbai. Thus, it is quite organic that there will be intimate scenes between the lead couple in the film. As Nihalani had deleted a couple of such scenes from Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, there were speculations that Ok Jaanu will also go through the scanner with the same level of scrutiny. However, The Indian Express reports that Nihalani has assured the fans of Dharma Productions that Ok Jaanu will go through a fair screening process. He clarified that no scenes involving Ranbir Kapoor and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan were deleted from Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, adding that the kiss between Kapoor and Anushka Sharma was removed as it was found 'unduly prolonged' by the board. Nihalani also rubbished the rumours that Yash Raj Films had greased his palms to ensure a smooth release of Befikre. "So, I am corrupt if I dont cut the kisses. I am corrupt and sanskaari if I cut the kisses. I might as well go with the first option," he says, as per the report by The Indian Express. Why aren't there girl buddy movies? Why can't there be a movie about a bunch of girlfriends going on a road trip? Can female actors be friends? The Trip is the latest show on Bindass and is about four girlfriends from different walks of life going on a road trip to Thailand for a bachelorette as one of them is going to get married. The four main leads in the movie are played by Lisa Haydon, Shweta Tripathi, Mallika Dua and Sapna Pabbi and kudos to the casting team, it's spot-on. Lisa Haydon plays Shonali Dutt who is a budding musician, living in with her boyfriend Neil played by Monish Anand (read: cute), who wants to succeed but on her own terms. Ananya Makhija, played by Shweta Tripathi, is smart, articulate and an absolute romantic at heart. She is the one who is about to get married, making her dreams of a big fat Indian wedding come true. A bit of buzz kill and also new to the group is Sanjana Kapoor, played by Sapna Pabbi, who is helping Ananya loose weight through yoga, is opinionated and strong-headed. Fun, humorous and a bit of a bully, Nazia Malik portrayed perfectly by Mallika Dua, is the cherry on the cake. Lakshya Raj Anand, who has previously worked as an Assistant Director in movies like Bang Bang and Ek Tha Tiger, has made his directorial debut with The Trip. Considering the way it's all put together, it's hard to believe that it's his first. Writers Amit Babbar and Rohit Kishore Bagai penned down something relatable yet fresh. The visuals are amazing and the music works perfectly well too. >While all of this worked, what did not really go down well was what probably gives the money: sponsor integrations. Web series these days have several multiple sponsors. That's alright but the craft involved in seamlessly integrating them is important. About 5 seconds of a sponsor's TVC on Shonali's Facebook wall was a bit of a force fit. What I cannot wait is for the visuals as they road trip it from Delhi to Thailand (DOP Sanket Shah is a pro at this) and for several other interesting characters that are going to be introduced as the series goes forward (P.S. the actor playing Arjun Khanna, the one who is getting married to Ananya, is going to be an eye candy of a surprise). The Trip Episode 1 was just about perfect. It ends with Neil proposing to Shonali and that leaves the audience with just the right amount of curiosity building over the week for Episode 2. P.S. The version on TV is shorter and politically correct than on the one on the internet, so watch the extended episodes on Facebook page of Bindass after you're done raising their TRPs on TV. New Delhi: CBI has arrested two employees of cash department of Reserve Bank of India in Bengaluru in connection with alleged conversion of Rs 1.99 crore of demonetised currency with specified bank notes of Rs 2,000 and Rs 100. CBI sources said Senior Special Assistant Sadananda Naika and Special Assistant A K Kavin were arrested for unauthorised exchange of the currency and have been booked under charges of criminal conspiracy and cheating besides provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act. Both the accused have been sent to four days of CBI custody by a special court in Bengaluru, they said. "It is alleged that both the accused and other unknown officials of RBI, Bengaluru entered in criminal conspiracy with unknown others," CBI spokesperson Devpreet Singh said. She said in furtherance with the criminal conspiracy, the accused, along with other unknown officials, who were entrusted with the responsibility of new currency notes, "fraudulently" gave away new notes to the tune of Rs 1.99 crore to RBI officials and others. It is alleged that the exchange was done in violation of exchange limits imposed by the Bankers' Bank. CBI had earlier arrested another employee of RBI in a separate case in which currency worth over Rs six lakh was converted by him using his influence over officials of State Bank of Mysore. Aizawl: Days before Christmas, the Mizoram government signed a ceasefire agreement with a militant outfit to facilitate people of the Christian-dominated state to celebrate the carnival and New Year under undisturbed ambience, an official said in Aizawl on Saturday. The Mizoram government has been holding peace talks with Manipur-based terror outfit Hmar People's Convention-Democratic (HPC-D) to find a solution of the outfit's demand for an autonomous council. The third round of talks between the Mizoram government and the HPC-D held in Aizawl on Friday in which the outfit members deposited three AK-47 rifles, one INSAS rifle, four point 9 mm pistols, 17 magazines of different arms and 74 rounds of ammunition. These arms and ammunition were earlier snatched by the terror outfit from the Mizoram police. The six-member HPC-D team was led by the group's working chairman LT Hmar and the outfit's leaders from Manipur and Mizoram while the government delegation was headed by additional secretary (home department) Lalbiakzama. "We have signed a temporary ceasefire agreement with the militant outfit to make easy people of the state to celebrate Christmas and New Year under a peaceful environment. The third rounds of talks were held under friendly atmosphere," Lalbiakzama said, adding that both sides agreed to resume the fourth round of talks by mid-February next year. The first round of peace talks between the Mizoram government and the HPC-D was held on 10 August and the second round on 5-6 October. Lalbiakzama said that issues discussed in the talks included more autonomy and power to Sinlung Hill Development Council, which was functioning since 1994 in the northeastern part of the state neighbouring Manipur where a large number of tribals belonging to Hmar tribes are living. HPC-D A leader LT Hmar after the meeting, said, "The demand for Hmar autonomous district council was no longer included in the talks." The Manipur-based militant outfit of the Hmar tribals has been triggering intermittent violent activities in Mizoram since 1994 demanding a separate autonomous district council under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution by carving out areas adjoining southern Manipur, northern Mizoram and southern Assam. The negotiations between the state government and the HPC-D reached an impasse in 2013 on the issue of extension of the period of suspension of operations. A six-month ceasefire between the Mizoram government and the militant outfit expired on 31 July 2013. The state government held inconclusive talks with the outfit on 14 August 2013, to extend the period of ceasefire. After the talks broke down over the suspension of operations against the terror group, a host of leaders of the outfit were arrested. On 28 March 2015, the HPC-D guerillas ambushed a legislator's convoy near Zokhawthlang village in north Mizoram, leaving three policemen dead and six others seriously wounded. Mizoram is the first and only state in India which received Rs 182.45 crore from the central government in 2000-01 as "Peace Bonus" for keeping peace after decades of insurgency. As Mizo National Front's founder leader Laldenga, a former Indian Army official, became chief minister in 1986 after his group took to mainstream politics, peace and law and order returned to the Christian-majority Mizoram. New Delhi: The Congress asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to stop "insulting" former heads of government, a day after the Prime Minister cited a book to say Indira Gandhi paid no heed to the Wanchoo Committee's recommendation to demonetise high-value currency notes in 1971. "Stop insulting former prime ministers. Change the narrative and mindset. From Jawaharlal Nehru to Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Manmohan Singh to Indira Gandhi, it's a long list. When you insult them you do not insult Indira and Nehru, you also insult Lal Bahadur Shastri and Morarji Desai who demonetised high-value currency in 1978," the party's deputy leader in Rajya Sabha, Anand Sharma, said at the FICCI conference. Modi had cited a book to say that when the then Finance Minister YB Chavan went to Indira Gandhi in support of the exercise, she asked, "Only one question. Are no elections to be fought by the Congress party?" Accusing the Congress of putting its interests before the country's, he had said what should have been done in 1971 has been done now by his government and that the delay in launching demonetisation caused a lot of damage to the country. Replying to this, the Congress leader said, "It is sad. 1971 was the year when India gave Indira Gandhi a massive mandate. The same year we were challenged by the then East Pakistan. India had 10 million refugees. Genocide was going on in what is now known as Bangladesh. China, siding with Pakistan, had moved troops to the border. India had the courage and strength to take the decision and the rest is history." The country had just celebrated Vijay Diwas on Friday to mark the win over Pakistan in the 1971 war. "It was a day to salute Indira and not insult her," Sharma said. Taking a dig at Modi for calling himself a fakir, Sharma said, "I do not have that kind of a wardrobe but I will not call myself a fakir. We are public servants. We must serve people and understand their pain. We must have humility." Asked as to when Rahul Gandhi will make public the graft charges against Modi he claims to have proof of, Sharma said, "It will be done at the right time." He also alleged that BJP purchased land in many states before the prime minister announced the decision to scrap high-value notes on 8 November and demanded the Centre bring a white paper on demonetisation. "Crores of rupees were deposited in banks and all that information should come through a white paper," he said. Sharma said the government in power needs to maintain balance "before issuing any narrative and for good governance. It is important to have a responsible opposition". It is becoming abundantly clear that all the hoopla and about going after black money through demonetisation was more of a spoof. The media, particularly the social media, was hyper about how many stashes of black money political parties had lost, with names like Mamata Banerjee, Mayawati and Arvind Kejriwal figuring conspicuously. Then there was plenty of news about politicians from various parties caught with lakhs or crores of cash. That the banks too were laundering cash without political involvement itself is questionable. But the fact remains that bulk of the cash seized as 'black money' is new currency. All this while frequent briefings including the current withdrawal limit of Rs 24,000 a week is not respected by many banks because they simply dont have the cash unless you can stand in queues for days drawing Rs 4,000 or Rs 6,000 each day. Statements of more money being sent to rural areas, but then many news channels show chaos in rural areas as well. So why not come clean and admit it will take 4-6 months to set things right, instead of 2-3 weeks which banks admit is impossible? In the backdrop of the above, it was a shocker to hear revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia telling reporters that political parties depositing the demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in their account(s), will not face income tax investigation so sky is the limit. Adhia was replying to in response to a question that whether the government is also investigation political parties/political treasuries depositing their own cash in banks. Adhia specifically said, "If a deposit is in the account of a political party, they are exempt. But if it is deposited in individuals account then that information will come into our radar. If the individual is putting money in his own account, then we will get information." But politicians are no fools in such matters; stash mustve gone white already through accounts of followers, Jan Dhan, whatever. Sections 13A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 grants exemption from tax to political parties in respect of their income from house property, other sources, capital gains and income by way of contributions received from any person. Significantly, Adhia's statement came on a day winter session of Parliament ended with all the shouting and sloganeering about demonetisation, AgustaWestland helicopter scam, allegations, counter allegations of which the end result remains a question mark in the same vein as over past decades. For that matter in the case of AgustaWestland, no defence deal or scam can happen without the express involvement of the defence secretary and the DG (Acquisition), who before signing defence deals, make sure that the bribes reach the intended beneficiaries. Even Gen VK Singh, former COAS and presently MoS (External Affairs) states clearly in his autobiography that the corruption pipeline goes right up to the PMO. So let us see how thorough this probe and prosecution will be and with what end result. Does this explain why AK Anthony is doing jumping-jack putting all the blame on the IAF, least CBI probes how much was his cut in the AgustaWestland scam and what route it followed? The 1993 Vohra Committee report while establishing the nexus between governmental functionaries, political leaders and others with various mafia organisation and crime syndicates, enabling development of significant muscle and money power to operate with impunity, had finally opined that "leakage whatever about the linkages of crime Syndicate senior Government functionaries or political leaders in the states or at the centre could have a destabilizing effect on the functioning of Government." So, naturally there was no follow up to this report. But in this era of digitisation and connectivity (no matter not complete) all you need is an opinion poll pan-India as to which cross-section has and makes maximum black money in India, the overwhelming majority will be the political parties and politicians, corporate-with-blessings of the polity, and the like. In fact, that is the talk in every nukkad, shop, bank, gatherings of any size. But then is not what the 1993 Vohra Committee Report was implicitly pointed out? So, if the bulk of the black money and loot is with the political parties, even though bulk is not in currency, where do we go from here what sort of black money recovery are we executing? Sure Sections 13A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 grants exemption from tax to political parties in respect of their income from house property, other sources, capital gains and income by way of contributions received from any person. But given that government has launched a war against black money and corruption, why could Sections 13A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 not be amended before the demonetisation drive was launched. This should have been very much possible considering the surreptitious manner in which FCRA Act 2010 was amended, legalising foreign donations from unknown sources? Why couldnt a limit be put on what the political parties can deposit in their account and beyond which what percentage would be taxed, and how steep? After all, there are financial limits laid on electioneering also. Leaving limitless deposits by political parties without any taxation actually amounts to a farce being played about fighting a war against black money and corruption through demonetisation, permitting other hoarders now to deposit any amount with 50 percent taxation notwithstanding. When Modi recently remarked about state funding of elections, he was aware that money matters in politics because parties need ever-increasing resources for administration and election campaigns. But he was possibly looking for solutions to problems like: how money should not be allowed to buy access to decision-making power; how to sanction illicit donations and prevent trading in influence; should the state impose limits on corporate donations; and, should parties receive public funding? But looking at the mammoth political expenditure in our country, would it be ethical to use public funds for elections, what will be the tax burden on the common man, and how will it affect development? If that is the reason for the impossible drive of going cashless overnight without adequate infrastructure and education, to simply tax every transaction, it certainly needs a serious relook. It doesnt take any intelligence to realize that next couple of years, India will need a mix of cash and cashless. If we dont want to admit it, that is a different issue. The litmus test for Modi, therefore, is how to draw the black money out from the political parties, without which the war on black money will be largely ineffective. The author is a veteran Lt. Gen. Violence is immortal. Out of helplessness, it is predicted; out of fear, it is anticipated. It breaks into the warm walls of the psyche and freezes in one dark corner of it. Time and again, it sends chills down the spine. Since 2012, on each 16 December, a sharp coldness returns to stab Delhi in the back. This was the night that turned a 23-year-old paramedic, against her will, into a symbol of oppression against women. Raped, injured and left to die on a busy Delhi road, her own identity had an anonymous end. Jyoti Singh lives on as Nirbhaya, a reminder that violence lives next door. Back then, debates on moral conditioning and legal action took off like missiles, turning public discourse into a battlefield of spontaneous opinions. But there was one more factor that needed some serious addressing, and it still does. Her rapists had a history of drug addiction. For over 25,000 drug addicts in need of urgent relief in the capital, the government offers only five drug de-addiction centres, which too are jointly run by NGOs and are struggling for clearance of funds. Why doesn't the 2013 Mental Health Care Bill feature a provision for rescue services, where the doctors have the right to pick up addicts from the street and cure them? Drugs are about denial and quite rarely will an addict want to believe that he or she is in need of help; even families and friends don't want to accept it as a problem. Hemant Kumar, a family counsellor at the Nasha Mukti Kendra in Amberhai in Dwarka, Delhi was an addict for nearly two decades. He says that there is great restlessness and a wave of nastiness that takes over an addict and at that point acts like robbery, inflicting harm on someone, to raping or abusing a woman, become vents for the rage erupting inside. Are women in Delhi, then, not vulnerable at the hands of those afflicted with drug problems, who roam around uncured? According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), a total of 3,37,922 cases of crime against women (both under various sections of IPC and SLL) were reported in the country during the year 2014, as compared to 3,09,546 in the year 2013; thus showing an increase of 9.2 percent during the year 2014. Incidents of incest rape (rape by blood relatives like father, brother etc.) in the country have increased by 25.7 percent during 2014 over the previous year (from 536 cases in 2013 to 674 cases in 2014). Delhi (140 cases with 144 victims) has reported the highest number of such incidents followed by Maharashtra (94 cases with 102 victims) and Kerala (62 cases with 63 victims). There were 713 victims for 674 reported incest rape cases in the country during the year 2014. Crimes have continuously increased during 2010-2014 with 2,13,585 cases reported in 2010, which increased to 2,28,649 cases in 2011, which further increased to 2,44,270 cases in 2012 and 3,09,546 cases in 2013. In 2014, a total of 3,37,922 such cases were reported. The rate for crimes against women was reported as 56.3 in 2014. Delhi has reported the highest crime rate (169.1) compared to 56.3 at all India level during the year 2014, followed by Assam (123.4), Rajasthan (91.4), Tripura (88.0), West Bengal (85.4), Madhya Pradesh (79.0) and Telangana (78.3). Rape cases in the capital are registered by the police, who give the statistics to the NCRB and are reported by the media. But what about women in conflict zones, where an overcast of political complications shadows the crimes against them? "In Kashmir, women have directly and indirectly been victims of violence, I would say, survivors of violence. Whether it is a women being raped, beaten up or humiliated by the government forces or even often due to domestic violence. The indirect impact of violence on women has also been when their male family members are subjected to torture, killing or kidnappings by the forces. When a son is arrested, it is the mother who faces the impact of it or if her husband has been arrested or treated inhumanely," said Fahad Shah , a journalist and writer from Kashmir. Munaza Rashid, lawyer at the Kashmir High Court, said that Jyoti Singh's rape wasn't planned. In Kashmir, assaults against women in villages are planned. "During the recent agitation that has lasted five months, there were plenty of reports about pellets being fired at the men but no one talked about how the armed forces go and attack the homes of the protesters, where the wives and daughters of these men are. They know what will hurt these men the most. In some cases, in the name of a combing operation, they intrude into their private belongings - sanitary pads and undergarments - and perform an act of mental molestation," Rashid said. She explains that if this issue is raised, it will be perceived as an attempt to malign the forces. She says that women's issues in Kashmir need to be raised by women's voices that are independent and not bound by the Hurriyat or political agenda. Since three years, she informs, civil society activism has grown and women are finding a platform to open up in front of other women. In 2014, 23 February was declared Kashmiri Women's Resistance Day. On this day, in 1991, a Battalion of the 4th Rajputana Rifles of the 68th Brigade had conducted a cordon-and search operation in the adjacent Kunan- Poshpora villages in Kupwara. The villagers allege that when the army cordoned off the village, the men were taken to a field for interrogation overnight and the women were gang-raped in their homes. "In North Kashmir, three to four years ago, a woman's husband was in jail. Whenever she went to visit him, she'd be raped by the jailer. To protect her husband from his onslaught, she kept quiet," informs Ifrah Butt of J&K Coalition of Civil Society, research and advocacy based in Srinagar. At a sessions court during the hearing of the Kunan-Poshpora case, a senior Army counsel had said, recounts Butt, that it is like ''flogging a dead horse'', implying that the women should let go of it. In the North East, another part of the country torn by violence, women are fighting another kind of battle. More than 15,000 women were raped in Assam in the last 15 years. On 12 December, to commemorate Nupi Lan or Women's War that was fought in 1904 and 1939, the Representation of Women in Peace Negotiations Bill, 2016 was submitted to the Parliament. "We have proposed the framework of a peace committee for women that will be their voice in governance," said Kalyani Mathur, Project Officer at Control Arms Foundation of India. Sadly, only two women have participated in the 17 peace talks on the North East. "The government only talks to men with guns. Women have been absent in every form of decision making. We want to change the power-dynamic," said Binalakshmi Nepram, founder of the Manipur Gun Survivors Network, which has saved and help rebuild more than 20,000 lives displaced and damaged by violence. In the capital, there is a concentration of five to seven lakh Indians from the North East and 66 percent come here for higher studies. In a place like Manipur, explains Nepram, a three year degree will take five years because of constant combing operations, bandhs and lockdowns. Once, a lock down had lasted for 100 days, she recounts. When they migrate to Delhi, there's a great chance that they will be perceived as 'sexually available', owing to differences that stem, quite naively and only, from culture. In 2014, the rape of girl by a Phd-IIT scholar was being portrayed as a case of stove-burning by the Police, till the girl's sister demanded a second post-mortem and strangulation marks were detected. Multiple cases of rape and murder of North Eastern girls have surfaced in Munirka, South Delhi, in the last three to four years. "After the Jyoti Singh incident, we submitted recommendations for special protection measures for rape in conflict areas. Justice Verma recorded it in his almost 600-page document, but when the Government of India drafted the Anti Rape Law, the whole section of rape in conflict areas had been taken out," she said. The Delhi office of CAFI has counselled many rape victims from the North East and even packed their bodies and sent them back home. 'Ache waqton ki tammana mein rahee umra rawaan'. It seems that women in the country will have to wait a long time to witness good times, where they can feel safe and free. El-Sisi met with Volcar Chowder, the head of the parliamentary bloc of the ruling coalition in the German Bundestag, Saturday, discussing regional crises and bilateral relations Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has reiterated his call on uniting efforts to fight terrorism in the wake of the St Paul Church bombing in Cairo Sunday that killed 26 with dozens injured. "The terrorist church bombing reflects again the importance of uniting international efforts to fight terrorism and eliminate its roots," El-Sisi said Saturday during a meeting with Volcar Chowder, the head of the parliamentary bloc of the ruling coalition in the German Bundestag. A statement from the presidency said that El-Sisi hailed cooperation with Germany and seeks to reinforce bilateral relations, especially on an economic level. The president also said that Egypt is working hard to develop its economy and resolve its structural dysfunctions that have hampered its progress for years. El-Sisi also underlined the importance of cooperation between the two countries to confront common challenges resulting from current crises in the region, including illegal immigration, calling for a comprehensive strategy to deal with the phenomenon, and to reach political settlements to current disputes in the region. Presidency spokesman Alaa Youssef said that Chowder expressed his condolences to the victims of the church bombing and praised the way Egyptian authorities dealt with the incident, including acting swiftly to see its perpetrators brought to justice. Chowder also hailed progress in bilateral relations over the past few years, expressing his appreciation for the pivotal role of Egypt in the Middle East as a pillar of stability and security, along with its efforts in fighting terrorism. Chowder also said that Germany is keen to boost economic cooperation with Egypt and help in its development efforts. He praised the Egyptian government's latest reforms and the awareness of the Egyptian people. He added that Germany is willing to provide Egypt all the support it needs in its development pathway, including in education, technical training and job creation. Search Keywords: Short link: Three soldiers were killed and two others injured in a terrorist attack on an army convoy at a crowded place at Pampore on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway on Saturday. "Three soldiers have been martyred in a terrorist attack on a convoy at Pampore. Search operations are underway," an army official said. Terrorists attacked,security forces retaliated; Public was present so couldn't fire openly bt terrorists were forced to run away:IG(Ops)CRPF pic.twitter.com/F2SylDv95j ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016 He said further details were awaited. A police official said two soldiers were also injured in the attack that took place at the place crowded with civilians at Kadlabal in Pampore town of Pulwama district on Saturday afternoon. He said the security forces exercised restraint and did not retaliated in order to avoid civilian casualties. Terrorists attacked an army convoy in Pampore, Pulwama district (J&K); Search operation underway. (Visuals deferred by unspecified time) pic.twitter.com/AF05dq7RuK ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016 Preliminary investigations suggest that the militants might have used motorcycles to carry out the deadly attack, the official said, adding search operations were going on in the surrounding areas to track down the assailants. The army convoy was on its way from Jammu to Srinagar when the attack took place. With inputs from PTI New Delhi: The government appointed vice-chief of army staff Lt Gen. Bipin Rawat as the new army chief, superseding his two senior officers, while vice chief of air staff Air Marshal BS Dhanoa has been made the new chief of the Indian Air Force. "The government has decided to appoint Lt Gen. Bipin Rawat, vice chief of army staff, as the next chief of army staff with effect from the afternoon of 31 December," the Defence Ministry said in a tweet. It also tweeted that Air Marshal BS Dhanoa will take over as IAF chief with effect from afternoon of 31 December. Rawat will replace General Dalbir Singh, while Dhanoa will take over from IAF chief Arup Raha. Lt Gen Rawat, an infantry soldier, superseded senior most army commander Lt Gen. Praveen Bakshi, who headed the Eastern Command and was next in line to be the army chief, besides Southern Command Chief PM Hariz. Government sources said Lt Gen. Rawat was found best suited among the Lt Generals to deal with emerging challenges, including a reorganised and restructured military force in the north, continuing terrorism and proxy war from the west, and the situation in the North East. They said Lt Gen. Rawat has tremendous hands-on experience of serving in combat areas and at various functional levels in the Indian Army over the last three decades. He has handled various operational responsibilities in many areas, including along the LoC with Pakistan, the LAC with China and in the North-East. He is known for his balanced approach towards soldiering, compassion, and connect with civil society. His experience as GOC-in-C Southern Army Command in mechanised warfare has been focused towards the western borders, in coordination with the other two services, the sources said. Supersesion in the army is not new though there has not been any such instances in the recent past. In 1983, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had appointed Lt Gen. AS Vaidya as army chief superseding Lt Gen. SK Sinha, who resigned in protest. Earlier in 1972, the Gandhi government side-stepped the very popular Lt General P S Bhagat, one of the handful of Indian Victoria Cross awardees from World War II, who was in line to succeed General (later Field Marshal) Sam Manekshaw. This was done by giving his junior, General GG Bewoor a year's extension, during which time Bhagat retired. Bewoor, thus, succeeded Manekshaw. Defence Ministry sources said the focus was on suitability and merit for the selection of the new army chief. They said that Lt Gen. Bakshi, an armoured corps officer, spent most of his career in Jodhpur and had two postings in Kashmir, but the positions he was in were not considered field posting. They added that Lt Gen. Hariz had no experience in operational areas in terms of counter insurgency or seeing action along the LoC. With Lt Gen. Rawat's sudden promotion as the army chief, the line of succession in the force will get affected. The IAF, which has also seen supersession in the past, was set for a smooth transition with Dhanoa, the first in line for the post, named its new chief. He was commissioned into the fighter stream of the IAF in June 1978. He has served in various squadrons and in the Intelligence Directorate of Air Headquarters. Rawat was commissioned in the Fifth Battalion of the Eleven Gorkha Rifles in December 1978, from IMA, Dehradun, where he was awarded the 'Sword of Honour'. The general officer has vast experience in high altitude warfare and counter insurgency operations. He commanded an infantry battalion along the Line of Actual Control in the Eastern sector, a Rashtriya Rifles sector and an Infantry Division in the Kashmir Valley. He has tenanted instructional appointments at Indian military academy, Dehradun and Army War College, Mhow. By Maya Palit In July 2015, disability activist Nidhi Goyal told the media a hair-raising story about a young woman she had met in Gujarat. The young woman was visually challenged and her father had been secretly giving her birth control pills. Like many others in the country, he was labouring under the misconception that women with disabilities give birth to babies with disabilities, and the greater misconception that a person with disability does not have the right to be a parent. Her story is one of several instances that demonstrate the urgency of having laws in place to protect women with disabilities, who are especially vulnerable to discrimination. With debates over demonetisation and corruption dominating the Winter Session of the Rajya Sabha, the chances of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill (2014) being discussed by the Upper House were looking slim. That was until Wednesday, when the Bill was passed without discussion with 119 amendments. The Bill will protect approximately 2.68 crore people with disabilities in the country. The Bill has been praised for bringing in a more nuanced and expansive understanding of disability, as it now recognizes 19 conditions, including autism, Parkinsons Disease and the impact of acid attack far more than the seven that were in the first version of the Persons with Disabilities Act (1995). The most significant changes are the revision of the notion of guardianship, and that penalties have been introduced for violations of the Act. Two decades ago, there were no penal provisions, but now people can be punished with a jail term from six months up to two years, and a fine of between Rs 10,000 and Rs 5 lakh. Although, the disheartening thing about the Bill is that it hasnt improved all that much on its clauses about women with disabilities. According to studies carried out by the research institute PRS Legislative, the Penalty for outraging the modesty of a woman clause (Clause 105b) in the bill has ended up reducing the minimum penalty for offenders against women with disabilities. The minimum sentence is six months, as opposed to existing laws in the Indian Penal Code that give offenders a minimum sentence of one year. Shockingly, this was not amended in the new version of the Bill. The Bill has been pretty disappointing on other fronts too. Although Clause 3 acknowledges that special measures should be taken to protect the rights of women and children with disabilities, last year womens rights activists campaigned for the incorporation of a separate sub section that would address the needs of women with disabilities and follow the guidelines set out by the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The problems with the previous bill include Clause 105f, which stated that the Bill penalized anyone who performed forced sterilization on women with disabilities, but it made an exception for those with severe disabilities in their cases, a guardian is allowed to consent for the procedure, said Amba Salelkar, a legal researcher who works with the Equals Centre for Promotion of Social Justice. This is a negation of womens consent, and the denial of their full legal capacity is one of the major problems with the Bill. Because of course, women in general have their decision-making powers severely curtailed. The practices that keep impacting women like the institutionalization of people with disabilities are not adequately dealt with under the Bill. The Bill is set to regulate establishments and set up guardianship for people with disabilities, but really it gives no credence to how women with disabilities can further exercise their legal capacity and live independently within the community, she added. According to the recommendations laid out in a proposed draft (in possession of The Ladies Finger) that was prepared by Salelkar and gender rights activist Nidhi Goyal, Women and girls with disabilities are often at greater risk, both within and outside the home, of violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation. This is why they suggested a set of expansive measures, like the implementation of gender-specific programs, encouraging the representation of women with disabilities in decision-making bodies, collecting data on the barriers that prevent women with disabilities from entering education, disseminating information on sexual and reproductive health, and creating short stay facilities that could protect women victims of abuse. There certainly need to be measures in place that protect women with disabilities from abuse and violence, but the State also has positive obligations towards them, like ensuring bathroom facilities for them. And these need to be addressed in the form of tangible changes rather than tokenism. It appears that the Bill has been watering down, rather than expanding its approach to the issues faced by disabled women. According to Salelkar, the 2011 draft had an entire section devoted to the subject, which was then diluted in 2012 and then even more in the 2014 Act. A Bill about disability naturally needs to take a multipronged approach when it comes to women with disabilities, because of the double discrimination they face, which is why we campaigned last year for the inclusion of a separate chapter on women with disabilities. It is sad that that has been missed out and that the Bill has been passed without discussion, she said. The new Bill has a provision under Clause 13 that allows people to appeal against a district courts decision about their guardianship. This could prove to be helpful for women who are being treated unfairly by their guardians, an improvement that has left some experts thinking that the useful amendments in the new Bill could have a positive impact on women. If I were to zoom out and look at the bill in its entirety, Id say it has come a long way, particularly with the guardianship clause. But the issues that confronted women still stand, like the lower stringency for termination of pregnancy (you require one rather than two medical personnel to confirm that the medical procedure had to be undertaken) and the lower penalties for outrage of a womans modesty, said Nivedita Rao, a legal analyst who works with PRS Legislative. There seemed to be a lot of quipping amongst MPs in the Rajya Sabha session about disability being hard to interpret, and that everyone in the House suffers from some form of intellectual disability. Perhaps a more useful discussion could have taken place about increasing protection for women with disabilities from sexual harassment and forced sterilization. Who knows, they might even have found the time to incorporate demands for a more expansive section on women into the Bill. The Ladies Finger (TLF) is a leading online womens magazine delivering fresh and witty perspectives on politics, culture, health, sex, work and everything in between. By Ila Ananya In 1983, the Supreme Court (SC) delivered what it considered a progressive, gender-sensitive judgment in Bharwada Bhoginbhai Hirjibhai versus State of Gujarat. The case involved the sexual abuse of two 10-year-old girls one of whom had been raped by their friends father in Gandhinagar. It became a landmark judgment when the SC declared (much to everyones surprise after its horrifying acquittal of the accused in the Mathura rape case) that the survivors sole testimony was enough to convict the accused. This judgment would have actually been an important one had the SC stopped here. Instead, evidently feeling the need to justify its decision, it went on to explain why it believed that an Indian woman (as opposed to women from the "western world") wouldnt falsely accuse someone of rape. Predictably, and among other things, the court said that Indian women would not want to admit any incident which is likely to affect her chastity had ever occurred". It said this would mean risking the loss of "love and respect of her own husband and near relatives", that she would be ostracised, and that she would have to brave the whole world. Perhaps it was unintentional, but with this, the SC successfully constructed the stereotype of the rape survivor. This and other soul-crushing factors about the legal system makes Mrinal Satishs new book absolutely mandatory reading for those interested in justice for victims of sexual violence. Mrinal Satish, Associate Professor of Law, and Executive Director of Centre for Constitutional Law, Policy and Governance at the National Law University, Delhi, strongly argues in his latest book that such stereotypes have not only influenced the prosecution of rape cases, but also their sentencing. His book, Discretion, Discrimination and the Rule of Law: Reforming Rape Sentencing in India, looks at sentencing by High Courts (HC) and the SC in more than 800 rape cases between 1984 and 2009. It provides solid evidence for what we have suspected all along that rapes by acquaintances rather than by strangers invite lighter sentences; that courts impose lower sentences on defendants when the raped woman is unmarried and sexually active; or that the absence of injuries on her results in a lower sentence on the defendant. Keeping the SCs Bharwada judgment in mind, Satish argues that the sentencing stage of a rape case is further impacted by the same stereotypes that influenced it during its prosecution stage where virginity is considered to be of utmost importance to a woman. "The most surprising finding was the extent of impact that medical examination had on the adjudication process, says Satish about his findings. In cases where the two-finger test was performed, or where the womans sexual history had been considered in court, sexually active, unmarried women saw lighter sentences being imposed on the accused. In his book, Satish then goes on to give the example of the SC noting the pitiable state (there is no monsoon season in her life, in the courts words) of the rape survivor who remained unmarried in the case of Madan Gopal Kakkad versus Naval Dubey. According to Satish, men who had raped unmarried virgins got higher sentences because the courts considered the survivors loss of virginity an irreparable damage. Another stereotype that Satish points to in his book is the perception of the survivors protestations. An infuriating example of a rather singular approach to consent is the SCs acquittal of the two policemen accused in the Mathura rape case. It was pointed out that because the 16-year-old had not raised an alarm and there were no marks of injury on her body, she was a liar habituated to sexual intercourse. The data, argues Satish, can be seen as the absence of injuries leading to lighter sentences all of which the Delhi HC conveniently ignored in the case Mohd. Habib vs. State, when it acquitted the accused because he didnt have any injury marks on his penis, even though the 7-year-old child he had raped had injuries on her body. In August 2015, RAHAT, a programme that provides socio-legal support for rape survivors, published a report according to which, in a whopping 91 percent of cases, the rapists were known people, as opposed to the 9 per cent of cases where the accused were strangers. While these figures themselves take some time to sink in, looking at them in the light of Satishs findings becomes even more depressing. As Satish writes, Literature on rape suggests that juries and judges consider rape by a stranger as being the most traumatic form of rape. Its no wonder then that known people, whether relatives or neighbours (it was sometimes even assumed that the rape survivor and accused were in a relationship even if the former stated otherwise), all got lower sentences than strangers did. Such prejudicial sentencing has arguably led to Indias high rates of sentence reversals when the convictions were challenged in higher courts. In many cases, these sentence reversals often were even below the minimum sentence. A court has the right to impose a sentence lower than the minimum if it has adequate and special reasons for doing so, a reasoning that is implemented in as vague a manner as it sounds. In his book, Satish provides us with statistics that put all of this into perspective on appeal, HCs have overturned guilty verdicts in 44 per cent of rape cases, and 37 per cent of gang rape cases. The SC has also overturned guilty verdicts given by Trial Courts in 36 per cent of the cases, and have overturned guilty verdicts given by HCs in 53 per cent of the cases (in cases of gang rape, this number is at 48 per cent). The solution, as Satish suggests, is to develop a consistent policy for sentencing in India, perhaps by setting up a body to do just this. In most cases, along with the rape stereotypes at play, the courts consider other mitigating factors even those like the defendant losing his employment because of the conviction that really dont need to be taken into consideration in his sentencing. The existence of a body that drafts sentencing guidelines could ensure that these unwarranted disparities, as Satish calls them, can be done away with to a large extent, if not entirely. The Ladies Finger (TLF) is a leading online womens magazine delivering fresh and witty perspectives on politics, culture, health, sex, work and everything in between. Krishen Khanna is one of Indias leading and last surviving modernists. Twenty-four new monochromatic works by Khanna were part of an exhibition at the recently opened Saffronart Gallery, The Claridges, New Delhi. At 91, the handsome, suave artist still charms listeners in a jiffy with anecdotes drawn from a very interesting life. In a conversation with Firstpost, Khanna held forth on his deep friendship with the late MF Husain, his love for poetry, and how sadly his paintings depicting Partition have not had a cathartic effect. Please tell us a little bit about your friendship with MF Husain... I was very close to MF... It all began with him seeing my work. Then we kept meeting in Mumbai. He borrowed a book Art, a very important document produced in Britain that influenced lot of painters and turned people towards the formal aspect of painting from me to read. Three days later when I came back to my flat, I found a parcel with a painting from him. There was a note in it in Urdu saying: Mujhe maaf kijiye. Woh kitab joh maine apse li thi woh toh taxi mei reh gayi. So he sent me one of his paintings in lieu of it. I thought, Acha hua gum ho gayi. I still have that painting and I cherish it as a gift of friendship. MF was friends with my father as well and would often visit us in Shimla. On one such trip, he reached late in the night and slept in the drawing room. My mother made him tea the next morning but he was not there. She asked me, Where has your friend disappeared? I told her maybe hes gone out for a walk and will return in sometime. But hours passed and MF was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, I got a call from him. I asked, Kahan ho? He said Thaane mein. He had gone to Mall Road in his car and had been held by the police to pay a fine of Rs 60. There were also other people in the police station a young woman with her sheep. She was being asked to pay Rs 40 which she did not have. So MF gave them Rs 100 and told the police to adjust the 40 rupees for the bakriwali. Another time, he was driving in Mumbai when a man hitched a ride. He said he had lost money and asked MF for some. To which MF who was driving barefoot said, Mai kya kar sakta hun, mai toh is gaadi ka driver hun! He had a great sense of humour! Bal Chhabra bought a lot of paintings... MF was going to Japan for an exhibition and needed a few paintings to fill up the gallery since he did not have as many (as were needed). So Bal lent him those paintings he had bought from him. MF sold those paintings in Japan! He wanted to pay the money to Bal, but he never took money for those paintings. Then, MF bought a Volkswagen when he was in Germany. He drove all around and then went to Paris to meet Akbar Padamsee. When he was coming back to India he wanted to sell the car and told Akbar to find a buyer. Akbar said he could buy the car. So MF promptly handed over the keys to him. No money dealing was ever done... Money did not matter to any of us; there was so much love and friendship. We were all in the age group of 24-25 and there was a hunger to see and appreciate one anothers work. Several letters exchanged between MF and me, in Urdu, are now all lost. Those that were exchanged between Raza and I have been published in book form by the Vadhera Gallery. Much like RK Laxman, your subject has been the common man. As an artist, what were your thoughts when you would begin to paint? Hindustan is a big place. Most people are common people. It depends on how you look at people, at animals, around you. I just react to people as they are. My concern is to portray humanism. Its about how much you empathise with people. In terms of graphics, there is tension in the painting where the cow and man are pulling in different directions. Your paintings also dealt with Partition. Did they prove cathartic to your memories of Partition? Did they not provide a sort of healing? There is no catharsis here. Ive started painting these pictures now. Immediately after Partition, the question of survival was paramount. One doesnt think of painting and colours. I got a job in a bank. They were happy to have me. There has been no healing. I have painted and those memories have entered into another physical existence. Youve said that youre not into the business of art. But isnt art all about business today auction houses, expensive paintings, socialising, cocktail circuits? It has definitely turned into business. But I dont know how much people understand art today. I left a cushy job to become an artist. Money wasnt important. On my first exhibition in Mumbai, I sold only one painting. Today its more about chasing success. In our time, that did not matter. You used to paint abstracts earlier. What made you turn to depicting the human form that is similar in some ways and yet very different in your paintings? When god makes human beings, no two beings are alike. I am no god, but I create different faces. The human form is there for all to see. The similarity in faces is all about style. How was studying art at Lahores Mayo School, as compared to todays art schools? I didnt study. I used to attend evening classes because I had a job. They used to have a model for you to see and paint. But I was against this model business. Today it is more mechanistic. They teach you how to make art. Art doesnt happen like that. It is instinctive. Raza once said When your painting is 40-50 percent ready, tab tak apka fan, jo apne seekha hai, usme dikh jaye and then the goddess should come and breathe life into it. Until this happens, nothing can come alive. A Far Afternoon, the documentary by Sruti Harihara Subramanian captures your life on celluloid. How was the experience? What is interesting is that this girl made a documentary for the first time. For me, it was a very quiet experience. She would sit and watch me paint and never intrude. The title was taken from Conrad Aikens poem A Letter from Li Po. The film got international acclaim, won two National Awards in the Best Art/Cultural film category and Best Music. Do you also write poetry since literature is your other passion? Literature is a passion and poetry comprises a compression of thoughts, a precision with a string of words, the way they penetrate your heart, the way the thoughts are woven; everything. I dont write poetry but I certainly do remember a lot of poetry. I used to write when I was a boy of 18. Theres so much good poetry that it doesnt need my intervention. [He goes on to recite from Chaucers Prologue to Canterbury Tales.] I want to write something not poetry, but time is too short. Penguin produced a book of essays written by me The Time of my Life more than a decade ago. Are there any images specifically that stay on in your mind and that youd like to capture in your work? For me its a season of repetition and return. The past is coming back to me now. Do you have a favourite colour? All colours are good when they find their appropriate place and any colour however brilliant applied where it is not needed, becomes ugly and violent. At a time when India was grappling with the evils of colonialism, an enlightened ruler placed himself proudly on a cosy cushioned throne under the shelter of morpankh (peacock feather) in a palatial abode in the city of Vadodara (or Baroda as it was called back then). Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III was on good terms with the British and never revolted against them, violently or non-violently. However, the silent guardian of the Indian culture was constantly occupied in reforming his state within the framework of the British. Though he never collided with the British, history suggests that he never let the colonisers interfere in his administration. In fact, even after roping in renowned British architect Major Charles Mant to design his palace, he ensured that the historic structure remains deeply rooted in the Indian soil. Lukshmi Vilas Palace stands at the confluence of two rivers Western craft and Indian heritage. Sayajirao was a well-read and well-travelled man who imbibed a part of all the territories he treaded and in turn, translated all of them into perhaps his most cherished possession yet the Lukshmi Vilas Palace. The palace incorporates nuances of both Indian and Western architecture. It is a fine example of what came to be known as the Indo-Gothic architecture, a style that borrows from Indo-Islamic architecture and the Gothic Revival architecture from Victorian Britain. At a time when the suppressed Indian masses were battling with European invaders, Italian marvel Feliccis marble sculptures co-exist peacefully with the prolific Indian painter Raja Ravi Varmas paintings. In fact, Varma was a like-minded individual of Sayajirao as his artwork was based on European techniques but depicted Indian mythology. Chandeliers and stained glass windows from Belgium adorn the ceiling and the walls of the palace respectively. The light that falls on the floor in the grand Durbar Hall through the Belgian glass does not make it look any less Indian. Mughal motifs dominate the wide spread though the floor has been done in the Venetian Mosaic style. The palace also boasts of elevators and telephone lines modern facilities that were unheard of in India at that time, given the palace was completed in 1890. However, the facilities were put to good use in order to reach the remote corners of the palace periphery. Sayajirao also connected the remote corners of the country by housing various symbols associated with prominent rulers of the other states. As soon as one enters the armoury section of the palace, small statues of the brave Maratha ruler Shivaji and the heroic Maharana Pratap Singh of Rajasthan hold their ground, looking each other in the eyes. Two swords stand out in the armoury. One is the sword of Aurangzeb, the infamous Mughal ruler. His sword is a unique piece of craft and war mastery as the inside edge is sharper which makes one wonder the Herculean strength that Aurangzeb possessed for him to use that sword with skill and swiftness. The other sword is that of Durga. Nine incarnations of the much-revered goddess are engraved into the sword one below the other. The rationale behind the design is not only for adornment but also to inspire the warrior as one always inspects his sword before stepping into the war. From West Bengal to Rajasthan, states across the breadth of the country find themselves represented in parts of the majestic palace that was built by a Gujarati ruler of a Marathi lineage. What is equally refreshing is the provision of an audio tour for tourists which educates them about historic facts rather than having a verbose tour guide narrate folklores of the erstwhile ruler. Thus, it is clear that the descendants of Sayajirao continue to modernise Lukshmi Vilas Palace which stands undoubtedly as the most magnificent bridge between the east and the west. Nagpur: Nationalist Congress Party leader and former Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar came down heavily on the Centre on Friday for its demonetisation move saying that the cash crisis won't go away even after the 50-day deadline that ends on 30 December. "In new year too, the poor and needy people will continue to stand in long queues daily and still they won't have sufficient money in their hands. Demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes has badly affected the rural economy especially farmers and daily workers," Pawar told Fistpost in an exclusive interview. The NCP leader questioned the sudden shift of focus of the Central government from combating black money to going towards a cashless economy. "People stood with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's demonetisation decision to support his war on black money. But after one week the Prime Minister changed his focus towards a cashless economy. So people who live in semi-urban and rural areas think that it was just a ploy to win polls. But I personally wonder how Modi hypnotised the citizens of the country where everyone is suffering but waiting for the 50-day deadline to get over," said Pawar. He said that even after 40 days it now looks like a decision gone wrong as the ATMs are also dry on cash. "We are seeing it on TV every day how the hoarders have managed to siphon off new currency notes of Rs 2,000 while the common men are still queueing up for cash. People got their salaries but they cannot withdraw it due to insufficient money in banks. Terrorists have managed to get hold of the new Rs 2,000 notes but the common man still does not have money which he earned," the NCP leader said. Buoyed by the cash management problems post demonetisation and the flak that BJP is receiving for it, Pawar was hopeful that his party could see better days ahead as the ongoing civic are already an indication to that. "I am confident that in the next 100 days there are 24 Zilla Parishad and 297 Panchayat Samiti elections that would be held by March 2017. The NCP will bounce back as the number one party in the state. After almost 30 months (of BJP's ruling) at the Centre and two years in the state, the situation has become worse day by day. People are waiting for acchhe din which BJP assured during the election campaign," the NCP leader said. In the second phase of civic polls, BJP won five municipal council president posts out of 14 whereas NCP became the largest party by winning 93 corporators in Pune and Latur districts. BJP is at number two position with 81 corporators. "If you study the first phase and second phase of council polls you observe that the number of BJP corporators has dropped. In the third and fourth phases of council polls NCP will deliver good results compared to the first phase," Pawar said. The NCP leader said that his party has a strong footing in rural Maharashtra. "Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis personally campaigned ahead of the Baramati council election against me. But the results show that the voters are standing with me. I personally thanking the people of Baramati. We developed the city and voters stand by the party which vouches for development. In this election, BJP is using all tactics to become the number one party. Since the BJP is in power, I can frankly say that it is giving the ruling party some benefits in these polls," he said. In the first phase of council polls, the ruling BJP had won the highest number of seats with 893 out of the total 3,727 seats. It had also won 51 municipal council president posts, followed by Shiv Sena at 25, Congress 23 and NCP with 18 in the same category. The NCP leader said that the Chief Minister was determined to break the Pawar bastion in Baramati and despite having several meeting with guardian minister Girish Bapat, the NCP won 35 out of 39 seats including the post of the president. In the no holds barred interview, Pawar admitted to being a loudmouth earlier and for which he had to pay a heavy price politically. "I am not a soft spoken leader. Whatever is there in my mind I always speak out in front of anyone. I am already facing punishment for that. But the reality is now I am controlling myself. I have never lied in my life. I don't give false promise to anyone," he said. However, as opposed to his claims on the principles of truth he adheres to, Pawar was fast to juxtapose it with the campaign style of the BJP. "BJP is using all the global mantras of marketing. BJP is good in marketing. We are far away from this marketing tantra. They always blamed us but we failed to counter them. But now people know the reality and the common man would teach a lesson to them," the NCP leader said. Although he did not dwell upon the matter much, the NCP leader was optimistic that he would come clean of the irrigation scam that he has been linked with for the last couple of years. "There was only an allegation on me with regards to the irrigation sector. The matter is in court I could not comment on it. But I will come out clean. I am fully cooperating with the Anti-Corruption Bureau," Pawar said. On a day the Narendra Modi government laid out the contours of new black money declaration scheme for tax cheats, it also left a big loophole that could potentially cause the entire exercise to fall apart exempting deposits made by political parties from tax scrutiny and subsequent investigation. This move is absurd, lacks logic and raises a big question on the very intent of the Modi government to unearth black money in the system at any cost. Reason: The opaque political funding is the foundation of black money in any economy. It is that evil that feeds and nurtures all other forms of illegal cash in the system. Unless political funds are brought under tax scrutiny, everything else the government does in the name of black money hunt will be seen with suspicion. The government move also show how there is a clear double standard for the common man and political parties when it comes to black money hunt. The aaam aadmi is supposed to bare it all, answer questions, face harassment even if his money is legit but politician enjoys a God-given immunity. Take a look at what the revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia told reporters. "If it is a deposit in the account of a political party, they are exempt. But if it is deposited in individual's account then that information will come into our radar. If the individual is putting money in his own account, then we will get information." The Section 13A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 is what gives immunity for political parties in respect of their income from house property, other sources, capital gains and income by way of voluntary contributions received from any person. Political parties will merrily use this opportunity to put their black money (money for which there is no real source or income that is not taxed) on the table and would say that they got it all from small donors (cash donations less than Rs 20,000 does not need any source). It is not difficult to make backdated donation receipts. This defeats the entire purpose of black money operation. Analysis by Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and National Election Watch in past few years shows that about 75 percent of the sources of funds to political parties remain unknown. Here is where the real problem lies. When political parties arte party to accepting black money, how do one expect an honest action from them against the very same black money? It is not a surprise that none of the opposition parties, including principal opposition party, Congress and its (occasionally) fiery leader Rahul Gandhi hasnt uttered a word on political black money and hasnt offered to give an example by daring to give own partys financial details or declining any law-given immunity. Thats understood because all drinks from the same pot and it taste sweet. But the larger question is why is it that always the common man suffer and the rich and powerful get away? Why the double standard? The ongoing demonetisation exercise, originally launched to counter black money and fake currency, has inflicted maximum pain on the poor, not the rich and powerful. The layman waits for hours in ATM/bank queue, face unemployment and financial loss, commits suicide because he couldnt find enough cash for his daughters wedding amid the black money fight of the government, while the rich smiles all the way to the backdoors of banks. Even in the post-demonetisation era, they have lavish weddings and joy of seeing bundles of new currency notes in their backyards, while it is a miracle for the aam aadmi even if he get hold of a few pieces of new currency. PM Modi certainly owes an answer to 125 crore Indians, of which a good number are hard working middle class, on the governments double standard to the common man and the political parties when it comes to the issue of black money. Read the full text of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's statement here. Belagavi (Karna): Escalating his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi on Saturday trashed demonetisation of high value currency notes as a "Modi-made disaster" and charged that he had attacked the economic system of the country to benefit the one per cent "super rich." "For the first time in the history of India, Prime Minister has attacked the poor people of this country. Usually the Prime Minister works for the country. They work for the economy, but Narendra Modi has attacked our economic system," Gandhi alleged at a Congress rally in north Karnataka. "As it is said a man-made disaster, in the same way demonetization is Modi-made disaster," the Congress Vice-President said as he targeted the Prime Minister squarely blaming him for the hardships post-demonetisation. More than 100 people had died, he claimed, adding, "Fidel Castro (Cuban revolutionary) was remembered in the Parliament and we stood in silence for two minutes as a mark of respect to him, but BJP leaders did not have two minutes time for these hundred people." "Who is responsible for their deaths? Narendra Modi is responsible....In the last two and half years Narendra Modi government has been attacking the poor," he said. Accusing the Modi government of trying to divide India, he said on the one side, there were one per cent super rich who have private aircraft, flashy vehicles and big businesses and on the other, there were 99 per cent of people who are honest like farmers, labourers, small traders and middle class who toil every day for the sake of the country and their lives. "In the last two and half years, one per cent super rich in this country have amassed 70 per cent of India's wealth and if you look deep into this one per cent, only 50 families have major portion of India's wealth." "You know their names; these are the people who travel with Narendra Modi to America, Japan, and Australia," Gandhi said. "Congress wants to get rid of corruption from India and whatever step the BJP government takes whether it is big or small if it is against corruption we will give it full support," he said. Asserting that demonetization was not against the rich but against the poor, middle class, farmers, labourers and small traders, Gandhi said "all black money is not cash, and all cash is not black money." "Who has black money, it is with those 50 families, and it is with one per cent super rich in this country..," he said. "...All the black money is not in cash, India's thieves are clever, and as soon as they get money they invest it in land, real estate, gold or in foreign bank accounts like Swiss bank." According to government figures, he said six per cent of black money is in cash, 94 per cent in real estate, big buildings and in foreign bank accounts. Claiming that the Swiss government had given a list of Swiss bank account holders' names to Indian government, he said the Congress had been asking the government to table the names of "these thieves" in the Parliament for the last two and half years."Why is it not being tabled? Why is Modi protecting them?" "Why are Lalit Modi and Vijay Mallya sitting in London? Why are they not in India? Why didn't you get them back? "Vijay Mallya is India's thief. After demonetization why did you waive Rs 1200 crore loan of this man? Answer me why did you feed him a toffee of Rs 1200 crore?" Gandhi said Modi knows that most part of black money is in Swiss bank, real estate and in huge buildings, "but I don't know for what reason instead of going after 94 per cent black money, he is after the six per cent. Instead of going after oe per cent super rich he is behind 99 per cent." "He is not after thieves, but behind poor farmers, labourers," Gandhi said. President Barack Obama said Friday he had confronted Vladimir Putin in person over allegations of Russian hacking when they met ahead of the US election, telling him to "cut it out" and promising a firm response. Just five weeks before he leaves the White House, the outgoing president has vowed to retaliate against Moscow over the cyber-meddling, which US intelligence says was designed to help Republican Donald Trump defeat Hillary Clinton, a Putin critic. "Our goal continues to be to send a clear message to Russia or others not to do this to us because we can do stuff to you," the US president told a year-end press conference, at which he went the furthest yet towards pinning direct blame for the hacks on Putin. "Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin," Obama said. "I mean, this is a pretty hierarchical operation last I checked, there's not a lot of debate and democratic deliberation, particularly when it comes to policies directed at the United States." After being alerted over the summer to Russian cyber attacks on his and Clinton's Democratic Party, Obama said, his chief concern was to ensure the hacking did not escalate and hamper the vote counting last month. "In early September when I saw President Putin in China, I felt that the most effective way to ensure that that didn't happen was to talk to him directly and tell him to cut it out and there were going to be serious consequences if he didn't," Obama said. "And in fact we did not see further tampering of the election process," he added. Regarding specific acts of retaliation, Obama said some would be carried out publicly, but that in other cases, "the message will be directly received by the Russians and not publicized." "At a point in time where we've taken certain actions that we can divulge publicly, we will do so," Obama said. "Part of why the Russians have been effective on this is because they don't go around announcing what they're doing," he added. Obama also said there was "some evidence" of China curbing cyber espionage in response to US warnings. "I had to have the same conversation with President Xi (Jinping) and what we've seen is some evidence that they have reduced but not completely eliminated these activities," he said. Obama's traditional year-end press conference -- held as tensions soar with Russia -- was expected to be closely watched by his elected successor Trump, who has pledged to foster closer ties with the Kremlin and has dismissed intelligence reports of Russian hacking. The president warned that while Russia remained a minor world power in his view, it had shown the potential to undermine American values. "They are a smaller country, they are a weaker country," he said. "But they can impact us if we lose track of who we are. They can impact us if we abandon our values. "Mr. Putin can weaken us just like he's trying to weaken Europe if we start buying into notions that it's okay to intimidate the press. Or lock up dissidents." Obama voiced concern over polling that suggests a third of Republican voters approve of Putin, saying: "Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave." But he also reached out directly to Trump, saying: "My hope is that the president-elect is going to similarly be concerned with making sure that we don't have potential foreign influence in our election process." He urged Trump to back mounting calls for a "bipartisan, independent" look into the allegations of Russian meddling. Such a process, he said, could "give the American people an assurance not only that votes are counted properly, that the elections are fair and free but that we have learned lessons about how internet propaganda from foreign countries can be released into the political bloodstream." Search Keywords: Short link: Chennai: DMK president M Karunanidhi on Friday underwent tracheostomy at a private hospital in Chennai to optimise breathing and his condition was stable. The 92-year-old leader, who was readmitted to Kauvery Hospital in Chennai late on Thursday night with breathing difficulties due to throat and lung infection, has undergone tracheostomy to optimise breathing, Dr S Aravindan, Executive Director, Kauvery Hospital, said in a statement. "Karunanidhi is stable," he said, adding that the former chief minister is being treated with antibiotics and being monitored by a team of doctors. Meanwhile, senior DMK leaders kept thronging the hospital to enquire about the health of the party supremo. Karunanidhi's readmission to the hospital comes about a week after he was discharged from there on 7 December, following week-long treatment for drug-induced allergy. On 25 October, DMK had announced that Karunanidhi was suffering from allergy "caused by a medicine he has been using" and advised rest by doctors. Meanwhile, ANI reported that Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi is travelling to Chennai on Saturday to meet the DMK chief. Rahul was recently in Chennai to attend the funeral of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa. Rahul Gandhi to visit Chennai today to meet DMK's M Karunanidhi who was readmitted with breathing difficulty due to throat, lung infection ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016 The leader, who has of late not been seen regularly in public, has confined himself to his home, although he has been issuing statements and reacting on key matters such as demonetisation. He had also skipped campaigning during the by-election to three state Assembly seats last month. Ruling AIADMK won all three constituencies. Kalaignar Seithigal, a pro-DMK Tamil news channel, reported that Karunanidhi was doing well and added that the leader even briefly watched popular 1995 Rajinikanth film "Baashha" on his laptop. Meanwhile, leaders of political parties, including Tamil Nadu Congress Committee chief Su Thirunavukkarasar, former TNCC chief E V K S Elangovan, CPI senior leader Tha Pandian, PMK leader and Dharmapuri Lok Sabha MP Anbumani Ramadoss, and VCK chief Thol Thirumavalavan visited Kauvery Hospital and enquired about the health of the DMK patriarch. Thirumavalavan told reporters that the DMK chief has improved and was now able to sit on a chair. With inputs from PTI Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has targeted the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), saying the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will clean the civic body's functioning, reduce corruption and improve development. "The BMC will not function the way it currently is. There will be total transparency, zero corruption," Fadnavis said. Speaking to Firstpost after the conclusion of the Winter Session of state Legislature in Nagpur, Fadnavis indicated the BJP has big ambitions for the upcoming civic assembly polls to be held in Mumbai in March 2017. "BJP has more MLAs from Mumbai than any other party. It clearly means we have a strong presence here. Every party wants to grow. BJP also wants to grow, not just in Mumbai but throughout the state," he said. The BJP's ally, both in state and national politics, Shiv Sena, controls the BMC, and has been in power for the last 15 years. But the BJP fared better in the last Assembly elections held in 2014, winning 15 seats from Mumbai to Shiv Sena's 14. Fadnavis said the seat sharing agreement between the two would have to reflect this shift. "We are ready for an alliance with Shiv Sena. But they need to know the strength of BJP has gone up. We are positive about an alliance, but not eager. We want the ratio of seat sharing be changed, to reflect BJP's improved performance in the last state elections," he added. "If you ask me, in a personal capacity, BJP is ready to tie up with Shiv Sena for civic polls across the state in March. There are 10 municipal corporations, 26 zilla parishads and 297 panchayat samitis which will have elections in March. Shiv Sena came to us with negotiations for municipal council polls at the last minute, so we couldn't have an alliance in many places," Fadnavis said. He added that he enjoys a good rapport with Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray. "There is no rift or misunderstanding between us. There are some issues at the local level, but we speak to each other and sort it out. So we are ready to discuss seat sharing with Shiv Sena for BMC and zilla parishad polls, both. But they need to know our existing strength," he said. But Fadnavis dodged the question of what if negotiations break down and if his party be willing to go it alone? "I have a good rapport with Uddhavji. Don't worry, we are natural allies and we'll sort out the alliance issue in the coming few days. Both parties know the benefits of an alliance. I have full freedom to take a decision about the future of an alliance with Shiv Sena," he said, adding that the Centre has also given the go-ahead for a tie-up with Sena. "I have received a full mandate from the Centre to go ahead and have a tie-up with Shiv Sena. To prove its majority in the BMC and 10 other corporations, an alliance is a must. I am ready to do it. But at the same time, Sena must acknowledge BJP's growth in Mumbai since the 2014 Assembly election. Seat sharing percentages should be on the basis of this growth," he said. There are 15 BJP MLAs as compared to 14 from Sena. In the BMC, BJP has 34 corporators to Sena's 78. But it could also be because of the pre-poll seat-sharing agreement that had the Sena fight over 150 seats while BJP contested just 69. But while Fadnavis and national leaders have been speaking in favour of the alliance with Sena, other BJP leaders including the party's Mumbai president Ashish Shelar and MP Kirit Somaiya openly attacked tie-up. If an alliance led by BJP comes to power in the BMC, Fadnavis said, there will be a different work culture, one focusing on transparency and development. "We will rid the BMC of corruption and boost investment here. The BMC's annual budget is more than Rs 32,000 crore, while the MMRDA operates with a budget of just Rs 4,500 crore. However, when it comes to investments, MMRDA has ongoing projects worth over Rs 70,000 crore. We will ensure BMC projects are bigger than MMRDA's, and also more helpful and beneficial for Mumbaikars. There are so many inquiries going on involving corruption within the civic body in Mumbai. Special Investigation Teams have been formed. We want a corruption-free BMC," he said. The corruption within the BMC has been an issue that Fadnavis has increasingly been highlighting in recent weeks. He also spoke of the manner in which BJP governments have been functioning at the Centre at in different states, including Maharashtra. "I held over 50 meetings while campaigning for the municipal council polls. Whenever I spoke of demonetisation, the people attending the meeting started applauding and raising their hands and saying they stand with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It's the confidence the common man has in the BJP. They all want honest, corruption-free governments. Like we did in the country and in Maharashtra, we will once again prove we have the confidence of the people," he said. He denied that post-demonetisation angst might hamper the BJP's chances of success at the upcoming civic body polls. "The BJP will once again be number one. People are facing shortage of money, but they are with Modiji. They still back the BJP because they know that whatever decision Modiji has taken, it has been for the good of the nation. They are enduring short term difficulties because they know the long-term gains will be worth the effort," Fadnavis added. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has finally come of age as a politician. He addressed his maiden rally in Goa on Friday, kickstarting his party's campaign to dethrone the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from power in the poll-bound state. The scion of the Gandhi-Nehru family, serving his third term as member of Parliament, spoke for 33 minutes, that too extempore surely a record of sorts! Coming of age as a politician, however, is totally different from becoming a leader; he is expected to gauge the mood of the crowd, know the place, the local issues and timing of what he says. The only entertaining moment for the modest crowd that turned out of the Gandhi rally came when the organisers played the campaign CD that the Congress party vice-president had released moments ago. Music and Goa are inseparable. As the crowd starting dancing to the peppy tunes, Gandhi was forced to get up from the comfort of his chair and clap musically, till the number was played out. Gandhi reached the Fatorda ground at Goa's commercial capital Madgaon a good 105 minutes behind schedule, and the organisers had done little to keep the crowd engaged or entertained. Gandhi waved at the crowd and took his seat on the dais, getting lukewarm response but happily listening to local Congress leaders showering praise on him and his family, not realising that sycophancy is the biggest hindrance in rebuilding the 131-year-old party. The process to please Gandhi was initiated by Luizinho Falerio, the incumbent state unit president. He started his address in the local dialect Konkani, and conveniently switched over to English whenever he wanted Gandhi to clearly understand what he was saying, ignoring that a large majority among the crowd did not follow English. He heaped praise on the family Indira Gandhi, her son Rajiv Gandhi, and the current president of the Congress party Sonia Gandhi before turning to her son Rahul Gandhi attributing his visit to Goa to his love for the state. Interestingly, this was Gandhi's first ever political engagement in Goa despite the fact that he has been the virtual number two in the party behind his mother since 2007 first as the national general secretary, and then as vice president. "We have walked from North Goa to South Goa, but under your leadership the Congress party will run," Falerio ended his speech by referring to the 266-km long Jan Jagruti Padyatra of the party, the two-week long walkathon to awaken the Goan voters. Gandhi led the walk for its two-km concluding stretch on Friday. The septuagenarian leader of Opposition in the outgoing state Legislative Assembly, Pratapsingh Rane, was not to be outdone. He gave Konkani a complete miss by switching to Hindi, which both Gandhi and the crowd could follow. "I had seen your great grandfather (Jawaharlal) Nehru as a kid, and now I am seeing you today. We look up to you as the next prime minister of India, and that day is not far," Rane said. Both Falerio and Rane are in the race to be anointed Congress' chief ministerial candidate for Goa. While Falerio is two-time Goa chief minister, Rane has been CM four times. They had Digambar Kamat and Ravi S Naik, two other former chief ministers, for company on the dais. Doused in praise, Rahul was encouraged to mention Sonia Gandhi, and he informed the crowd that his mother has always liked the unpolluted air of Goa and the warmth of its people, as he stood on the dais overlooking the gigantic multi-purpose stadium named after his great grandfather. He used up the remainder of the 33 minutes to criticise the man who came between him and his prime ministerial aspirations in the 2014 general elections the incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During his speech, he said Modi was in cahoots with the super-rich and that demonetisation was an exercise to help them at the cost of the poor and the middle class. Gandhi used the rally to probably say what he wanted to in the washed out Winter Session of Parliament. The earthquake he had been threatening of, never happened in Goa, and one was left doubting if he could ever bust the Modi balloon, another term he had used while campaigning in New Delhi, saying the BJP was not allowing him to speak in Parliament, as it would cause an earthquake and it would bust Modi's balloon. The Congress vice-president was so focused on busting the symbolic balloon of Modi, whom he termed as a liar and feku, that he even imitated the way Modi laughs! One was left wondering if he was canvassing for the general elections or Goa polls. Never once did he talk about the BJP government in Goa that the crowd and party workers wanted to listen to. He blamed Modi for killing Goa's fishing industry and for wiping out the tourism industry, displaying his lack of local knowledge. Goa is witnessing one of the best tourism seasons in recent years, with hotels witnessing near full occupancy and hiking tariff by 100 percent for the Christmas-New Year week as well as for the entire January month in view of heavy bookings and return of the Russian-speaking tourists. Only when a bored section of the crowd started leaving the venue, that Gandhi remembered that he was in Goa and had to seek votes for his party. But here again, he tripped badly. He termed land and casinos as two major issues, forgetting casinos were opened in Goa during the Congress party rule. In a way, he admitted that his party's leaders were also corrupt, as he ended his speech by promising instant and strict action anybody accused of corruption once his party forms the government in Goa. "He shredded Modi to pieces, it was a nice speech. But I am somehow disappointed that he did not talk about the BJP government of Goa. I am not too sure what impact it will have on voters considering BJP is not seeking votes in Goa on Modi's name," a Congress party ground worker, who identified himself as Vincent, said. Even the fence sitters among the voters who came for the rally appeared far from impressed. "I came to see and hear Rahul Gandhi. Negative campaigning and Modi bashing may not get the Congress any votes," said Madgaon-based businessman Hamsit said. "We have lived under Portuguese dictatorship for 450 years. The last five years of BJP dictatorship is worse. I was expecting Rahul Gandhi to talk about how the BJP government has destroyed Goa's future, promise voters that the Congress party would nominate new and honest faces as its candidates. But it appears the same old leaders accused of corruption would again get preference," rued Mario D'Costa, who claimed to be a die-hard Congress party worker. It was apparent that Rahul Gandhi has not learnt any lessons after leading the party to a historical defeat in the 2014 general elections, where his entire focus was on attacking Modi, but yielded poor results. The Congress vice-president, who could soon replace his mother Sonia as the national president of the party, may have given the wrong message to the local cadres of the party that blaming the Modi government for all ills facing the nation, especially Goa, could be their passport to power. Chennai: Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday called on DMK patriarch Karunanidhi, who is undergoing treatment for lung and throat infection at a private hospital in Chennai, and said the leader was doing well. "I just met him, I wanted to personally wish him a speedy recovery. I was very happy to see that he is doing well and the doctors told me that he is going to go home pretty soon and that is good news," he told reporters. Flanked by senior party leaders including Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president Su Thirunavukkarasar and DMK treasurer M K Stalin, he hailed Karuananidhi as a "leader of the Tamil people, leader of Tamil Nadu, so I thought I would come and wish him personally." To a query, he said, "Yes I met him (Karunanidhi), I said hello to him and he is doing well hopefully he will be out (of the hospital) soon and Congress president (Sonia Gandhi) has also sent her regards to him." 92-year-old Karunanidhi was admitted to Kauvery Hospital here on the night of 15 December following complaints of difficulty in breathing due to throat and lung infection. On Friday, he underwent tracheostomy at the hospital to optimise breathing and later the hospital said the DMK chief's condition was stable. After the tracheostomy procedure, his condition improved and he even watched a Rajinikanth starrer 'Batcha' on his laptop. This is the first visit Rahul Gandhi is paying to Karunanidhi in last many years. Even during his several previous visits to Tamil Nadu, Gandhi did not call on the nonagenarian leader despite Congress and DMK being allies. Weeks ago, when he had visited Apollo Hospital to enquire about the health of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, there were expectations in the DMK camp that he could pay a visit to party patriarch Karunanidhi as well. However, he did not visit the DMK chief. Rahul Gandhi was accompanied by senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh during his brief visit. After visiting Karunanidhi, Rahul Gandhi immediately took a flight to Delhi from Chennai. Former Union Minister and Rajya Sabha MP, P Chidambaram, TNCC president Thirunavukkarasar, Congress Legislature Party leader Ramasamy received him at the airport and later, saw him off. Jammu: Shiv Sena activists on Saturday staged a protest and burnt an effigy of Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti over the ex-gratia to the kin of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani's brother who was killed in anti-insurgency operations in the Valley. Shiv Sena activists led by senior leader Radhay Maharaj staged the protest on Jammu-Pathankot highway in Kathua. Raising anti-government slogans, they blocked the highway and burnt effigy of the chief minister. Maharaj said it was very unfortunate that the BJP-PDP government in the state has cleared the ex-gratia. He said that by giving compensation to the family members of Burhan Wani, Mehbooba has shown her "real face". Khalid was killed in anti-insurgency operations carried out by security forces in Tral in Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir on 13 April last year. Sydney: Tsunami warnings were issued for several nations on Saturday after a major 7.9-magnitude earthquake struck off Papua New Guinea, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre and the US Geological Survey said. The PTWC said hazardous tsunami waves could hit coastal areas of Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Nauru, and the Solomon Islands, while New Zealand's Ministry of Civil Defence issued a warning for all of the country's coast. The earthquake struck 60 km to the east of Taron, New Ireland, at 8.51 pm local time at a depth of 75 km, the USGS said. The quake was originally recorded at 8.0 before being revised down to 7.9. "Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are vulnerable to earthquake shaking. Some casualties and damage are possible," the USGS said on its website, as it issued a yellow alert for shaking-related fatalities and losses. Quakes are common near Papua New Guinea, which lies on the 4,000-kilometre-long Pacific Australia plate, which forms part of the "Ring of Fire", a hotspot for seismic activity due to friction between tectonic plates. In 2013, the neighbouring Solomon Islands were hit by a devastating tsunami after an 8.0-magnitude earthquake rattled the region. That tsunami left at least 10 people dead, destroyed hundreds of homes and left thousands of people homeless. Rome: Italy's highest court has suspended a sentence handed earlier this year to the former boss of aerospace and defence group Finmeccanica, Giuseppe Orsi, for false accounting and corruption in connection with the sale of 12 luxury helicopters to India, Italian media reported. The Friday decision came after both the defence and the prosecution had requested a suspension, on grounds that the Milan appeals court's sentence in April differed too greatly from an earlier ruling. In April, Orsi was sentenced to four-a-half-years years in jail for false accounting and corruption. Also handed a four-year jail term on the same charges was Bruno Spagnolini, former head of AgustaWestland, a subsidiary of Finmeccanica. The pair had been sentenced to two years in prison in October 2014 for false accounting. The court of cassation has referred the case back to the appeals tribunal. Italian media believe that the case will be closed when the statute of limitation expires in March 2017. The case against Orsi and Spagnolini resulted from an investigation launched in 2012 into the sale of 12 luxury helicopters to the Indian government. Orsi was arrested in 2014 and resigned as chief executive of the aerospace group a short while later. India cancelled the deal with AgustaWestland in January 2014 amid allegations that the company paid bribes to win the 556-million ($753 million) contract. The aborted deal was a severe setback for Finmeccanica, having already been hammered by the global financial crisis. Social media has been flooded by posts and hashtags expressing sympathy for the victims of the battle of Aleppo, and hate against the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad. If we take stock of the media houses based in Nato countries, and Gulf Co-operation Council countries (GCC), like New York Times and Al Jazeera, we get a picture of a free, rebellious and democratic Aleppo being besieged by a totalitarian and murderous Assad regime. However, on the other end of the spectrum are news agencies based in Russia and Iran, like RT and Farda News. According to reports published by them, the Syrian Army has liberated Aleppo after four years of brutal occupation by terrorists. But even if there are contradictory interpretations of events in Aleppo, Indian citizens are primarily being fed the former i.e the US/GCC narrative. According to New York Times, Aleppo's civilians offer their "final scream". According to Qatar-based Al Jazeera, there may be no tomorrow for the millions in Aleppo. Syrian forces have been indiscriminately shelling and killing civilians, they say. Qatar has even cancelled its national gala, to mourn the victims of the onslaught. In this context, let's closely examine the sources and methods Al Jazeera uses. It follows United Nations (UN) reports when it wishes to, like in the case of the current crisis, and rejects UN as a tool of western imperial powers, like in the case of the Iraq war. Or take electricity as an example: Many reports over the past few months, including one by the UN, claim that the basic power infrastructure of the city has been impaired, and yet, there are tweets and videos flowing out of the region. All of them show English-speaking Syrians talking about an imminent massacre of civilians. Interestingly, Al Jazeera Arabic doesn't talk about the battle in such apocalyptic terms. Even more interestingly, many Saudi Arabia-based Arabic language agencies like Al-Riyadh and Saudi Press Agency are relatively silent about the Aleppo debacle of Saudi-US-backed rebels. Either the terms of the ongoing conflict are more clear for the average Arabic speaker than the average English reader, or the GCC simply refuses to talk about its defeat. Al Jazeera English is breaking new grounds for Shia-Sunni sectarian divide outside the Arab world. The South Asian and global readers of Al Jazeera English, inevitably, end up being exposed to a sectarian narrative of the Syrian crisis. On the other hand, RT published an article, referring to reports by Canadian journalist Eva Bartlett, showing the white helmets, who are being lauded as courageous volunteers of Aleppo by Al Jazeera, saving the same girl three times in as many months, after three different airstrikes. She further argues that most of the reporting done by the anti-Assad agencies is through the news they receive from rebel sources. All of this falls in line with the general Russian and Syrian claim that white helmets are a bogus group funded by US and Saudi Arabia, and are being used as a cover for terrorists. RT quoted Assad as saying that the West "seemed to care more about saving terrorists than civilians", He further added that the West is reprimanding him because "we defeated the terrorists more than we should have". The Iranian newspapers, much like the Syrian official press, on the other hand, are more direct in portraying the advancing army as a liberating force. The Farda newspaper writes: . (The unspeakable condition of the people under terrorists' captivity; the liberation of Aleppo has revealed the secrets about the slavery of the population of this great city over the last four years.) It is crucial that these newspapers do not use the sectarian rhetoric, as the rebels frequently do. For Iran, as well as Syria and Russia, these are terrorist forces backed by western empires. It is important to note that they are refraining from naming even the Saudis directly. Now let us look closely at the unholy nexus between Islamic fundamentalism and American imperialism against the secular anti-US pro-Iran Assad government. We will have to rewind to the Arab Spring, and observe there were a few countries where popular protests were more manufactured than spontaneous. Libya was engulfed in a civil war, so were Yemen and Syria. Gaddafi was killed by US-backed forces, but Assad survives. The rebels, armed by US and GCC, like al-Nusrah, front are fundamentalist Wahabbi organisations which are strictly anti Shia, and lampoon the evil Shia nexus of Iran-Syria-Hezbollah. It's interesting that the US has banned al-Nusrah, calling it a terrorist organisation, but continued to help them as a legitimate rebel group. On the other hand, an overwhelming Sunni army continues to fight for Assad, irrespective of the fundamentalist rebels' attempts to paint this as a sectarian and religious war. And on the liberal side, these details are conveniently forgotten, instead attention is paid to the alleged cruelty of Assad, and the scale of deaths on the rebel side, on their "freedom-loving" quest. All of this reminds us of the landmark year of 1979, when the Islamic world started a new chapter in its history; 1979 was a watershed year in Islamic history. Two fundamental things happened: The Iranian revolution, and the war between two superpowers inside the Muslim world, for the first time in Cold War history. The former was the first successful anti-imperialist and democratic revolution under the banner of Islam. It should be kept in mind that Nasser's socialist and secular anti-imperialist revolution could be countered by the Saudi monarchy as "anti-Islamic". However, the revolutionary trends in Iranian Islam are far more significant, as they resulted in the first democracy in the name of Islam, and hence an ideological threat to the Saudi monarchy. Even if we criticise Khomenei's brand of totalitarianism, we cannot deny that the popular mobilisation produced many varied anti-imperialist figures of radical Islamic reform, whose ideas were more eclectic and influenced post-79 intellectuals throughout the Muslim world. The reaction from the Saudi camp was immediate. Iraq, supported by Arab countries and the US, attacked Iran in the midst of the revolution, which was then a country fighting with its own army of the pro-US Shah era. Russia, the main coloniser of Muslims across inner Asia for two centuries at the expense of the Persian zone of influence, played an important role in this region's history. The revolutionary Iran then condemned USSR as an imperial power, and decried Communism as a materialist and anti-Islamic ideology. The second episode in 1979 started with the intrusion of imperial Russia into Afghanistan, and a similar backing, funding and arming of the anti-Shia fundamentalists there by the US and Saudi camp through Pakistan. Al-Qaeda and Osama bin Laden were the products of these times, just like al-Nusrah and ISIS are the current products of US and Saudi intrusion into Syria and Iraq. The liberal media like Al Jazeera and New York Times are giving legitimacy to the Saudi brand of Sunni fundamentalism, which is closely linked to US imperialist endeavours in the region. Besides, they possess their own publications funded by their oil money to brainwash the Muslim youth. The anti-Shia rhetoric has been on the rise in west and south Asia and throughout the Muslim world, and it is directly related to the geopolitical struggle against Iran and its allies in the region. We should not forget that before the US decided to punish Taliban, it was Iran which sustained and supported the Northern Alliance against the extremist group. More recently, it has been Iranian help which has defended Baghdad against ISIS, it is Iran's help which sustains Hezbollah as the only active ground force against Israeli occupation. And yet an attack on Iran and its allies by the most fundamentalist of Sunni elements, backed by the imperial powers of Saudi and US skips our notice; the violence perpetrated by al-Nusra in Aleppo skips our notice; but all of a sudden, we are very agitated about the few thousands allegedly killed in the same Aleppo. This propaganda is damaging the core of Muslim society; take for example the suicide attacks on Shias in Pakistan, or increasing popularity of conspiracy theories about Jewish origins of Shiism. We need to be critical about the news reports coming out of the conflict zone, as there are parties interested in radicalising the Muslim youth along sectarian lines. The heart rendering pictures of Aleppo, a city where hopefully this bloody civil war is witnessing its final denouement, only serves to re-emphasise the tragedy that the Syrian people have faced for the last five years. Row after row of destroyed apartment blocks in Aleppo stand as grim testimony to the ravages of war. Thousands of old and young people have died in this bombardment. Hundreds more are trying to escape as President Bashar Assads army moves in a pincer action to free the eastern sector of the city of these rebel forces. What is of equal concern is the fact that many of the architectural wonders that Aleppo so proudly boasted of have also been destroyed. The city whose history goes back to the 3rd millennium BC enjoys a strategic location being on the old Silk Route. Having been home to a mixed population of people, its culture speaks of its inherent eclecticism as it boasts of colourful souks, a beautiful old medieval castle called The Citadel and the Great Umayyad Mosque all of which are in ruins thanks to the continuous aerial bombing inflicted by Russian planes. Convoys of people fleeing this battle zone bring back memories of a trip that women journalists from the Indian Women Press Corps (IWPC) made in April 2009 at the invitation of the Jouhina publishing group. Our first stop was Aleppo which remains one of Syrias largest towns. Walking through the streets of Aleppo, a man came up to us and offered us warm, freshly baked bread. He told us he wanted to welcome Indian women to his country. Aleppo has one of the longest souks in Syria whose shopkeepers were on familiar terms with Bollywood. They reminisced about Madhuri Dixit and Hritik Roshan even as they spoke nostalgically about the Raj Kapoor and Nargis era. We eagerly made purchases of tablecloths, carpets, ceramic items and jewellery. Their sweet shops were chock-a-block full with a variety of sweets including guz ( nougat), trays of pastry filled with crushed walnuts (baqlawa), pistachio-topped pastries (kanafi) and candied fruit. Many of the shopkeepers revealed that they were frequent travellers to India. Aleppo has a Great Mosque which is one of the oldest in the world. It was built way back to AD 715, though it was largely rebuilt in the 13th century. This Great Mosque has borne the brunt of the fighting. It was occupied by the rebel forces but in the last few days has been taken over by Assads forces. From there, our group had travelled to the desert city of Palmyra which is a UNESCO world heritage site and is lovingly called 'Bride of the Desert' because of its strategic location linking the Syrian capital Damascus with its neighbour Iraq. We journalists were awestruck by its 2000-year old Roman colonnade and its wonderful open air amphitheatre where Andhra journalist and writer Bhagyalakshmi recited her poems out loud. Islamic state militants captured this desert oasis in May 2015 and proceeded to destroy the Temple of Bel which dated back to AD 32 and the Temple of Baalshamim which consisted of a structure of stone block several stories high fronted by six towering columns. They also blew up an Arch of Triump built by the Roman emperor between AD 193 and AD 211. Fortunately, the Islamic State group was forced out by a Syrian and Russian military campaign in May 2016. From there we proceeded to Damascus which is an extremely multi-cultural city. Syria, unlike Pakistan, has made no attempt to disassociate itself from its non-Islamic past. In fact, the Christain quarter in Damascus has many old churches belonging to the Greek Orthodox, Syrian Orthodox, Roman Catholic Maronite and Amrnian sects. Jesus Christ spent many years in Syria and the people of the Maalula village speak Aramaic, a language spoken during Christs lifetime. During the eight days, we journalists spent in Syria, we had little idea that the country would implode in this manner. We often stopped to talk to the man-on-the-street and while they did admit that Assad was authoritarian, there was little indication that some people opposed him so vehemently. The country could be seen to be making progress in the area of education and health with Asma Assad herself having launched initiatives in the area of autistic care and of the elderly. There was hardly any military presence in Syria during that period we were there even though it was surrounded by hot spots such as Iraq, Iran, Palestine and Israel. Even at Golan, there was little military presence although a variety of telecom equipment had been installed at the Israel end. The people came across as belonging to a proud, multicultural society. They were proud of their ancient civilization which went back 7000 BC. Syria had been ruled by the Assyrians, Babylonians, Acaemid, Persians, Greeks, Byzantine, Muslim kings, Ottoman Turks and the French. "We are paying a heavy price for having stuck our necks out for the Arab cause," Basil Zeno, an archaeology student studying in a college of archaeology told us. This seemed to be the general opinion across a wide strata of people. During an interaction President Assad's wife, the British-born Asma Assad, had with us, she revealed how she had once travelled incognito all across Syria. A former financial analyst who grew up in London, her concerns then were to contend with the large numbers of Iraqis who had sought refugee in her country. "Our main concern is to feed and help rehabilitate the 1.5 lakh Iraqi refugees who have sought refugee in our country following the Irqai war." Today, Syria has itself become a nation or refugees with more than half its population having sought asylum in countries outside its borders. The rebels vow to regroup and continue their fighting. For the people in this besieged nation, we can only hope that peace returns to their land in 2017. By Ben Blanchard and Steve Holland | BEIJING/WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. BEIJING/WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. China will return an underwater U.S. drone seized by a naval vessel this week in the South China Sea, both countries said on Saturday, but Beijing complained the United States had been "hyping up" the incident.The drone, known as an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), was taken on Thursday, the first seizure of its kind in recent memory. The Pentagon went public with its complaint after the action and said on Saturday it had secured a deal to get the drone back."Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States," Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said in a statement.The incident drew criticism from U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to take a more aggressive approach in dealing with Beijing.The drone, which the Pentagon said was operating lawfully and was clearly marked as U.S. property, was collecting data about the salinity, temperature and clarity of the water about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, off the Philippines.It was seized on Thursday just as the USNS Bowditch was about to retrieve it, U.S. officials said.The Defence Ministry said a Chinese naval vessel discovered a piece of "unidentified equipment," and checked it to prevent any navigational safety issues before discovering it was a U.S. drone."China decided to return it to the U.S. side in an appropriate manner, and China and the U.S. have all along been in communication about it," the ministry said on its website."During this process, the U.S. side's unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate, and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue. We express regret at this," it added. Trump, a Republican who takes office on Jan. 20, waded into the dispute on Twitter on Saturday."China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act," Trump said in a tweet early on Saturday from his seaside resort club Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, where he plans to spend the holidays.HEIGHTENED CONCERNS The drone incident has raised fresh concerns about China's increased military presence and aggressive posture in the disputed South China Sea, including its militarization of maritime outposts.New satellite imagery shows China has installed weapons, including anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, on all seven artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea, a U.S. research group said this week.Without directly saying whether the drone was operating in waters Beijing considers its own, China's Defence Ministry said U.S. ships and aircraft have for a long period been carrying out surveillance and surveys in "the presence" of Chinese waters."China is resolutely opposed to this, and demands the U.S. stops this kind of activity," it said.China will remain on alert for these sorts of activities and take necessary steps to deal with them, the ministry said without elaborating. The Global Times, published by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily, earlier cited an unidentified Chinese source as saying they believed the issue would be resolved smoothly.Trump has previously complained about the South China Sea build-up. He has threatened to declare China a currency manipulator and force changes in U.S.-Chinese trade policy, which he says has led to the greatest theft of American jobs in history.Trump has also raised questions about whether Washington would stick to its nearly four-decades-old policy of recognising that Taiwan is part of "one China."He irked Beijing by taking a congratulatory phone call from President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan after his Nov. 8 election victory. China lodged a diplomatic protest.The 10-minute telephone call was the first of its kind since U.S. President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of "one China."President Barack Obama said on Friday it was fine for Trump to review Washington's policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the U.S. relationship with Beijing. (Additional reporting by Roberta Rampton and Jonathan Landay in Washington, Josephine Mason and Meng Meng in Beijing; editing by Ian Geoghegan, G Crosse) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Between the heat and dust of demonetisation and the pounding of mortar shells across the Line of Control, the twin prongs occupying all headlines and mind space, a fast-evolving development demands our equal and undivided attention for the deep import it holds for the future. India is in dire need of a new China policy. The delicate equilibrium that defined a major part of the three decades following 1962 Sino-Indian war coalesced into a more stable relationship with the signing of the Border Peace and Tranquility Agreement in 1993. As former National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon, who played no small part in the signing of the contract during the PV Narasimha Rao government, writes in his book Choices: Inside the Making of India's Foreign Policy (176 Pages, Brookings Institution Press, 18 October, 2016), the agreement kept quiet one of the longest-running border disputes in the world across the Line of Actual Control (LAC) as both India and China got down to developing their economies and deepening their mutual engagement in other fields. The deal formalised the status quo and ensured peace despite disagreements over the delineation of international boundary in no less than 16 places. This, writes Menon, has been possible because both countries saw merit in de-linking bilateral trade and normal state-to-state relationship from the "restrictions and inhibitions of the war". The strategy has served India well for at least a quarter of a century, a surprisingly long time considering the dynamic nature of foreign policy, but not anymore. There are increasing signs now that the balance of power between India and China has changed. There is now less equilibrium between both nations who may not yet be on a path of direct confrontation but find themselves frequently locking horns on several issues on their divergent paths towards emerging as new 21st century powers. Not just clashing of mutual interest, a reevaluation of Sino-Indian relationship has also become imperative due to a shift in the balance of international order. As US seeks to look more inward, signaling an end to the post-Cold War era equilibrium where it was the sole superpower, the wane of American hegemony has coincided with the rise of China as a mercantile power rooted in a revisionist culture under President Xi Jinping. Since the turn of the millennium, as Menon points out in his book, Beijing has clearly abandoned Deng Xiaoping's 24-character-strategy "Observe calmly; secure our position; cope with affairs calmly; hide our capacities and bide our time; be good at maintaining a low profile; and never claim leadership." Under a nationalist president, China now sees no merit in hiding its capacities and maintaining a low profile. It is bent on reclaiming the leadership mantle from a retreating US. By adopting a muscular and aggressive foreign policy, seeking a greater say in the global geopolitical order and recalibrating its strategic and maritime relationship with neighbours, Beijing no longer believes in biding its time. In the recent years, it has invested considerable resources in increasing its land influence over Asia and Eurasia. It is building a formidable network of ports and other related infrastructure throughout the Indian Ocean and Western pacific littorals that may serve as the initial platform for its eventual global ambitions. This has obviously resulted in a heightening of tensions with India, the other regional power and US, the incumbent global superpower. Even a cursory look at recent developments reflect a new exceptionalism in China's beliefs the mark of a nation confident about its rise. It bends rules when it comes to own strategic and military interests (like disregarding the Hague Tribunal Ruling on South China Sea) but when it comes to honoring strategic interests of other nations, it throws the rulebook. Consider the way it has unilaterally stalled India's inclusion in the NSG Club by citing the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Beijing is furious with Donald Trump receiving a congratulatory telephone call from Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen and says the US President-elect is undermining One China policy, yet does not blink twice before siding with Pakistan on Kashmir, showing a scant regard to New Delhi's One India policy. China's wielding of influence hasn't been restricted to its geopolitical hypocrisy. As Reuters reported, China has recently installed weapons, including anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, on all seven of the artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea in blatant violation of international rules on a disputed area. It even went to the extent of seizing on Thursday an underwater drone deployed by a US oceanographic vessel in South China Sea, triggering a formal diplomatic protest and a demand from Pentagon for its return. US Senator Ben Cardin told Reuters on Friday that the seizure was "a remarkably brazen violation of international law." This is to point out that if China is not afraid of cocking a snook at the US, it will barely bat an eyelid while doing so against India. As The Telegraph reported, China on Friday read the riot act and threatened India with a downgrading of bilateral ties because President Pranab Mukherjee had on 11 December played host to the Dalai Lama at Rashtrapati Bhavan during the opening ceremony of a children's summit. India has dismissed its concerns, saying that the Tibetan spiritual leader was attending a non-political event, but this building of pressure is consistent with China's posturing. It had recently issued a similar threat against India over its $1 billion aid to Mongolia another country that became subject to Chinese bullying by hosting the Dalai Lama. It had even warned India of "endless trouble" in Sino-Indian ties if, as PTI had reported, India raises objections to China's cargo service with Nepal, calling India's aid to Mongolia "a bribe" to counter Beijing influence. India has so far acted with reticence but New Delhi can afford to ignore the provocations only at its peril. This is not to say that India should wade headlong into a war with China. The Dragon uses provocations as a strategic tool to send across a message. It's message to India is clear and unequivocal that it is a bigger political and military power and New Delhi should take that into account while formulating its strategic interests. From India's point of view, the time is ripe for a re-engagement based on mutually agreeable interests. Peace with a China is imperative if India is to pursue its own trajectory to greatness. Washington: US president-elect Donald Trump picked a conservative Republican lawmaker as his budget director at the White House, saying he believes he would help in responsibly managing the finances of the world's biggest economy, currently under a debt of nearly $20 trillion. Nominated as director of the office of management and budget, Congressman Mick Mulvaney, 49, of South Carolina brings a wealth of experience on economic, budgetary, and fiscal issues to his new role, the Presidential Transition Team said in a statement. "We are going to do great things for the American people with Mick Mulvaney leading the Office of Management and Budget," Trump said. Mulvaney has long been a strong voice in Congress for reining in out-of-control spending, fighting government waste and enacting tax policies that will allow working Americans to thrive. "Right now we are nearly $20 trillion in debt, but Mick is a very high-energy leader with deep convictions for how to responsibly manage our nation's finances and save our country from drowning in red ink," said the President-elect. "With Mick at the head of OMB, my administration is going to make smart choices about America's budget, bring new accountability to our federal government, and renew the American taxpayer's trust in how their money is spent," Trump said. Getting America's fiscal house in order is a key component of Trump's America First plan to create millions of jobs and grow the economy, the transition team said in a statement. Trump will have to balance the spending cuts, alongwith delivering on his pre-poll promises of drastic tax cuts and a big infrastructure boost. In his statement, Mulvaney said the Trump administration will restore budgetary and fiscal sanity back in Washington after eight years of an out-of-control, tax and spend financial agenda, and will work with Congress to create policies that will be friendly to American workers and businesses. "Each day, families across our nation make disciplined choices about how to spend their hard earned money, and the federal government should exercise the same discretion that hardworking Americans do every day," he said. A lifelong resident of the Carolinas, Mulvaney attended Georgetown University where he graduated as an Honor Scholar the highest award given to students of the Georgetown School of Foreign Service in International Economics, Commerce and Finance. After college, he attended law school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on a full academic scholarship. By Roberta Rampton and Julia Harte | WASHINGTON WASHINGTON President Barack Obama on Friday defended the U.S. approach toward the civil war in Syria, saying he understood the desire for action to end the conflict but it would have been impossible to do "on the cheap" without a full U.S. military intervention."Unless we were all in and willing to take over Syria, we were going to have problems," Obama told a news conference, noting that it would have required "putting large numbers of U.S. troops on the ground, uninvited, without any international law mandate."Obama's remarks came as efforts to evacuate civilians from the last opposition-held areas of the Syrian city of Aleppo ground to a halt on Friday after weeks of bombardments by the Syrian army that have deprived insurgents of nearly all their territory in the city, a divided zone during the nearly six-year civil war.A Syrian official source said the evacuation was halted because rebels had sought to take out people they had abducted with them, and they had also tried to take weapons hidden in bags. This was denied by Aleppo-based rebel groups. Obama denounced claims from the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and its allies that all innocent civilians who were trapped in Aleppo had been able to leave, saying the reports were efforts to "obfuscate the truth"."Humanitarian organizations who know better and who are on the ground have said unequivocally that there are still tens of thousands that are trapped and are prepared to leave," Obama said at Friday's news conference. "So right now our biggest priority is to get them out." Obama also addressed President-elect Donald Trump's vow at a rally in Pennsylvania on Thursday to "get the Gulf states to give us lots of money" to help "build safe zones in Syria". He said any safe zones would need to be maintained by on-the-ground forces unless Trump can secure the cooperation of the Assad regime and its allies.The United States will continue pressing the United Nations Security Council to help improve the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians in the besieged city, and to monitor for any potential use of chemical weapons in Syria, Obama said. "Responsibility for this brutality lies in one place alone: with the Assad regime and its allies, Russia and Iran," he said. "This blood, and these atrocities, are on their hands." (Additional reporting by Jeff Mason and David Alexander; Editing by James Dalgleish) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Aleppo, Syria: Responsibility for atrocities committed in Aleppo lies with Syria and its Russian and Iranian backers, US President Barack Obama said Friday as Damascus suspended the evacuation of civilians and fighters from the city's last rebel-held areas. Denouncing the "horror" in Aleppo, Obama called for impartial observers and warned President Bashar al-Assad that he would not be able to "slaughter his way to legitimacy". "The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo," he told an end-of-year news conference. "This blood and these atrocities are on their hands." UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon earlier warned that Aleppo had become "a synonym for hell" and said the United Nations urged "all necessary measures" for a safe resumption of the evacuation. The Security Council could vote as early as this weekend on a French-drafted proposal to allow international observers in Aleppo and ensure urgent aid deliveries. US Ambassador Samantha Power said after a closed-door council meeting that UN officials were ready to be sent quickly to Aleppo. "The presence of independent observers can deter some of the worst horrors," she said. French Ambassador Francois Delattre said: "The immediate priority is to save lives, to stop the massacres and to avoid a new Srebrenica," referring to the massacre of Bosnian Muslims during the Balkan wars. Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, however, argued that it would take weeks to send monitors to Aleppo. Besieged villages Turkey and a Syrian military source said the evacuation from the city had been suspended but was not yet over, while Moscow insisted the operation was "complete", with all women and children moved from the city. Amid the confusion, a convoy of evacuees that had already left the east when the operation was suspended was forced to turn back, an AFP correspondent said. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), supervising the evacuations, said it was looking into reports of shooting before the convoy was turned back. The delicate operation to bring the last civilians and rebels out of east Aleppo began on Thursday and continued overnight, with thousands leaving in buses and ambulances. But on Friday morning it was abruptly suspended, with the government accusing rebels of violating the terms of the deal. State television said rebels had tried to smuggle out heavy weapons and hostages. The opposition accused the government of suspending the operation in a bid to secure the evacuation of residents from Fuaa and Kafraya, two villages under rebel siege in northwest Syria. The government and Iran have reportedly sought to add an evacuation of civilians from the villages to the terms of the Aleppo deal. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said pro-government fighters had blocked the road the convoy had been using and rebels were refusing the evacuation of residents of Fuaa and Kafraya. Evacuating the last rebel pocket in Aleppo had been scheduled to start on Wednesday, but was delayed by a day because of government objections, including over Fuaa and Kafraya. Clashes resumed for several hours before the deal was revived, and buses and ambulances began transporting evacuees to rebel territory in western Aleppo province. Video message The Observatory estimated some 8,500 people had left before the operation was suspended, including around 3,000 rebels. Syrian state media reported a figure of around 8,000. Ahmad al-Dbis, a doctor helping coordinate the evacuation of the wounded, said at least 500 evacuees had wounds or illnesses requiring treatment. From a staging area near the town of Khan al-Aasal people were travelling further west, heading either to camps for the displaced or to stay with relatives or friends. The departures began a month to the day after government forces launched a major offensive to retake all of Aleppo and secure the regime's biggest victory in more than five years of conflict. In a video message Thursday, Assad said the "liberation" of Aleppo was "history in the making". But US Secretary of State John Kerry said what had already happened there was "unconscionable", raising concerns for the "tens of thousands of lives that are now concentrated into a very small area of Aleppo". It is unclear how many people remain in east Aleppo, with tens of thousands fleeing to territory held by the government or Kurds in recent days, but perhaps tens of thousands are still inside. 'Heart-breaking' The evacuations have been emotional for departing residents desperate for relief after months of bombardment and siege, but also tearful at the prospect of potentially permanent exile. In the dust of one bus window, someone traced: "One day we will return". "The scene was heart-breaking," said Marianne Gasser from the ICRC Syria. "People are faced with impossible choices. You see their eyes filled with sadness." A blast at a Damascus police station, meanwhile, was caused by a seven-year-old girl being sent in carrying "a bomb" that was detonated remotely, state news agency Sana said. It was believed to be the first time such a young child has been used to detonate an explosive device in the war. A police source told the Al-Watan daily that she asked to use the bathroom and the explosives detonated. More than 310,000 people have been killed since the conflict began with anti-government protests in 2011, and over half the population has been displaced, with millions becoming refugees. Diplomatic efforts including several rounds of peace talks in Geneva failed to make progress in resolving the conflict, which reached a turning point last year when Russia launched an air war in support of Assad. By Roberta Rampton and Jeff Mason | WASHINGTON WASHINGTON President Barack Obama on Friday strongly suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally authorized the computer hacks of Democratic Party emails that American intelligence officials say were aimed at helping Republican Donald Trump win the Nov. 8 election.But with only a month left in office, during a sombre press conference before leaving for a family holiday in Hawaii, Obama spoke despairingly about the "nasty" state of U.S. politics, saying the chasm between Democrats and Republicans has made it possible for Russia to cause mischief.Obama said he has "great confidence" in intelligence reports he has seen showing that Russians hacked into emails belonging to the Democratic National Committee and to John Podesta, who was campaign chairman for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.The leaked emails revealed details of paid speeches Clinton gave to Wall Street, party infighting and comments from top aides to Clinton who were shocked about the extent of her use of a private server to send emails while secretary of state.The leaks led to embarrassing media coverage and prompted some party officials to resign. Obama, who campaigned vigorously for Clinton, said she was treated unfairly and found the media coverage of her troubling."This happened at the highest levels of the Russian government," Obama said when asked whether Putin was personally involved in the hacks. He added that "not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin."Obama said he warned Putin in September to stop meddling in American political campaigns, telling his Russian counterpart to "cut it out" during a face-to-face encounter in China at a Group of 20 meeting. Obama said he did not believe that U.S. electronic voting systems were tampered with.Obama, however, stopped short of directly blaming Putin and said he also wanted to give U.S. intelligence officials more time to produce a report that is due before he leaves office on Jan. 20 and Trump is sworn in as his successor.RETALIATION FOR CYBER ATTACKS Obama called Russia a smaller and weaker country than the United States that "does not produce anything that others want to buy, except oil and gas and arms." The comments underscored what Obama called the "sadly deteriorated" relationship between Washington and Moscow, which are also at odds over Russia's role in Syria's civil war and its aggressive actions in Ukraine. Russia has denied U.S. accusations that it was behind the hacks. Two senior government officials told Reuters that the Federal Bureau of Investigation backs the CIA's view that Russia indeed intervened to help Trump win the presidential election.Trump has maintained that he won the election fairly and has bristled at suggestions that Moscow influenced the outcome. But at one point during the heated presidential campaign, he publicly encouraged Russia to hack Clinton's emails.Trump spoke glowingly in the campaign about Putin, and since winning the election he has named top aides who have ties to Russia, including his nominee for secretary of state, Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N) Chief Executive Rex Tillerson. Obama left open the door to U.S. retaliation against Russia to discourage further cyber attacks - countermeasures that may be up to Trump to implement.Obama said he has had "cordial" discussions with Trump since the election and has stressed that he would do everything he can to ensure a smooth transition. But the outgoing president also criticized Trump's fellow Republicans broadly.Referencing polls showing that more than one-third of Republicans approve of Putin, who used to lead the KGB spy agency, Obama said that conservative icon "Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave." "In some cases, you have voters and elected officials who have more confidence and faith in a foreign adversary than they have in their neighbours," Obama said. CHINA AND SYRIA Adding to the gloomy tone of Obama's remarks, he addressed two other difficult foreign policy issues that will outlast his time in the White House. Obama warned about the economic and geopolitical consequences of any breakdown in the U.S.-China relationship, and said Trump should think carefully about the diplomatic repercussions if he decides to "upend" longstanding U.S. diplomatic norms.Trump angered China earlier this month when he took a congratulatory phone call from Taiwan's president, Tsai Ing-wen - the first call of its kind since 1979 when President Jimmy Carter acknowledged Taiwan as part of "one China."Obama also condemned attacks on Syrian civilians trying to flee the city of Aleppo, blaming President Bashar al-Assad and his allies in Russia and Iran for "atrocities."Obama defended his decision to keep U.S. troops out of Syria and avoid military intervention, although he acknowledged the protracted anguish has weighed on him."Everything else was tempting because we wanted to do something and it sounded like the right thing to do, but it was going to be impossible to do this on the cheap," he said. (Reporting by Roberta Rampton, Jeff Mason and Julia Harte; Writing by Richard Cowan and Roberta Rampton; Editing by Alistair Bell and Leslie Adler) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Islamabad: Pakistan has said it would not accept any modifications or changes in the Indus Waters Treaty after India strongly pitched for bilateral redressal of differences with it while implementing the 56-year-old accord. "Pakistan will not accept any modifications or changes to the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT). Our position is based on the principles enshrined in the treaty. And the treaty must be honoured in letter and spirit," Special Assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi told Dawn News His remarks came after India strongly pitched for bilateral redressal of differences with Pakistan while implementing the Indus Waters Treaty. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup had said on Thursday that given the will, there is no reason why the technical design parameters on which Pakistan has raised objections cannot be sorted out by experts from both sides on projects like Kishenganga. India believes that these consultations should be given adequate time, Swarup had said. However, Dawn reported that India's request for more time alarmed Pakistan. "Islamabad argued that India used the same strategy on previous occasions, completing a project during the dispute and then insisting that since the project was already complete, it could not be modified," the report said. The treaty, signed in 1960, gives India control over the three eastern rivers of the Indus basin the Beas, Ravi and Sutlej while Pakistan has the three western rivers the Indus, Chenab and Jhelum. The IWT also sets up a mechanism, the Permanent Indus Commission, which includes a commissioner from each country. The current dispute revolves around the Kishenganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric plants. India is building the plants on the Kishanganga and Chenab rivers, which Pakistan claims violates the IWT. Tensions over the water dispute increased late last month when Prime Minister Narendra Modi threatened to block the flow of waters into Pakistan, the daily said. New Delhi sought the appointment of a "neutral expert" while Islamabad asked the World Bank to appoint the chairman of the Court of Arbitration. The IWT recognises the World Bank as an arbitrator. Both sides had already completed the process proposed in the IWT and approached the World Bank only after the commission declared it "a dispute" as required, experts were quoted as saying. "Dragging it through an already exhausted process will not help," an expert said. "Pakistan was seeking a court of arbitration because only the proposed court had the authority to consider both legal and technical aspects of the dispute. A neutral expert could only consider the technical aspects," the daily said. Pakistan argues that the designs of the two Indian projects violate both legal and technical provisions of the treaty. India, however, has opposed Pakistan's efforts for setting up a court of arbitration. Earlier this week, the World Bank announced pausing of the two separate processes initiated under the IWT to allow the two countries to consider alternative ways to resolve their disagreements. With inputs from agencies By Pawel Florkiewicz and Lidia Kelly | WARSAW WARSAW Polish opposition leaders called on Saturday for days of anti-government protests and vowed to maintain a blockade of parliament's main hall that the ruling party condemned as an illegal attempt to seize power.About two dozen members of the opposition Civic Platform (PO) took turns to sit in the legislature's plenary hall through the night and the party's leader said they would remain there for the next few days. "We will be on the streets until they are done destroying the country," Mateusz Kijowski, the leader of the Committee for the Defence of Democracy movement, told protesters. Several thousand people protested in Warsaw and other cities after police broke up a blockade of the entrances of the parliament building in Warsaw in the early hours.Poland's biggest political standoff in years began on Friday when opposition lawmakers objecting to plans by the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party to curb media access to parliament blocked the plenary hall podium ahead of a budget vote.PiS lawmakers later moved voting to another area without media access, prompting accusations they had passed the 2017 budget illegally, breaching the constitution. The clash with the opposition has highlighted a growing divide in eastern Europe's largest economy, with some Poles increasingly angry over the PiS government's efforts to assert more control over state institutions. "If it becomes clear that it is impossible to talk to (PiS lawmakers), we should have early elections," Ryszard Petru, head of the liberal Nowoczesna grouping, told protesters at parliament. A snap election is unlikely, however, as PiS holds an outright majority in parliament and would be able to overrule any vote of no confidence.Poland's Western allies have also expressed concerns over a push by the government to reform the constitutional court, saying it contravened democratic standards.But despite criticism at home and abroad, the eurosceptic PiS enjoys steady support among many Poles eager to hear its message of higher welfare, more Catholic values in public life and less dependence on foreign capital. PRESIDENT CALLS FOR CALM European Union Council President Donald Tusk, former head of the PO -- Poland's largest opposition party -- urged authorities to respect the constitution and warned about the risks of disregarding "the European model of democracy.""I appeal to those who have real power to respect and regard the people, constitutional principles and morals," Tusk, who has a long-standing feud with PiS head Jaroslaw Kaczynski, told a cultural conference in Poland's western city of Wroclaw."Those who undermine the European model of democracy, attack the constitution and good customs, expose all of us to strategic risks. By throwing away the spirit of freedom and community, they write the next act of Poland's solitude," he added. Government officials deny behaving undemocratically and have accused opposition leaders of fomenting dissent.Interior Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said the opposition blockade of parliament was an "illegal attempt to seize power," while Prime Minister Beata Szydlo accused opposition lawmakers of being focused on "brawls".Later in the day, however, Kaczynski told the speaker of the upper house of parliament to organise a meeting with media outlets on Sunday to discuss the new plan for journalists' access, PAP news agency reported, citing government sources.Meanwhile, Polish President Andrzej Duda, a PiS ally, called on all sides to calm down. "I am ready to mediate in this matter," he said in a statement.A Reuters correspondent in Warsaw and other journalists were not allowed to enter parliament on Saturday, which PO leader Grzegorz Schetyna called unacceptable."Parliament cannot be governed by censorship," he told a news conference. "It cannot be without journalists." (Additional reporting by Pawel Sobczak and Justyna Pawlak; Writing by Justyna Pawlak and Lidia Kelly; Editing by Catherine Evans and Helen Popper) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Washington: President Barack Obama has alleged that Russia possibly under President Vladimir Putin's directions carried out cyber attacks during the US presidential polls, as he urged his successor Donald Trump to ensure that the American election process is not under potential "foreign influence". "What I can tell you is that the intelligence that I've seen gives me great confidence in their assessment that the Russians carried out this hack. Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin," Obama told reporters during a White House news conference, indicating Putin's involvement. "They hacked into some Democratic Party e-mails that contained pretty routine stuff, some of it embarrassing or uncomfortable because I suspect that if any of us got our emails hacked into there might be some things that we would not want suddenly appearing on the front page of a newspaper or a telecast, even if there was not anything particularly illegal or controversial about it," he said on Friday. A worried Obama also lashed out at Russia for its alleged effort to influence the US election, saying the country does not produce anything and lacks innovation. "We've got to think what is happening to our political culture here. The Russians can't change us or significantly weaken us. They are a smaller country, they are a weaker country, their economy doesn't produce anything that anybody wants to buy except oil and gas and arms. They don't innovate," Obama said. Obama assured Americans that the ballot itself was not rigged and promised to "send a clear message to Russia or others not to do this to us, because we can do stuff to you." "But they can impact us if we lose track of who we are. They can impact us if we abandon our values. Putin can weaken us just like he's trying to weaken Europe if we start buying into notions that it's OK to intimidate the press, or lock up dissidents, or discriminate against people because of their faith or what they look like," he said. Terming it a "pretty hierarchical operation", Obama said there was not a lot of debate and democratic deliberation, particularly when it comes to policies directed at the US. "We have said and I will confirm that this happened at the highest levels of the Russian government and I will let you make that determination as to whether there are high-level Russian officials who go off rogue and decide to tamper with the US election process without Vladimir Putin knowing about it," he said. Obama said he had raised the issue when he met Putin recently in China. Obama also hopedhis successor Donald Trump will show equal concern to ensure that the American election process is not under a potential "foreign influence". "My hope is that the president-elect is going to similarly be concerned with making sure that we don't have a potential foreign influence in our election process. I don't think any American wants that. And that shouldn't be a source of an argument," Obama said. The US President also called for bipartisan unity on the issue. By Laila Bassam and Lisa Barrington | ALEPPO, Syria/BEIRUT ALEPPO, Syria/BEIRUT A new deal is being negotiated to complete the evacuation of rebel-held areas of Syria's east Aleppo which ground to a halt on Friday after demands from pro-government forces that people also be moved out of two villages besieged by insurgents.A Syrian rebel official and a government official said early on Saturday the evacuation of Aleppo would resume and the two Shi'ite villages would be evacuated, as well as the wounded from two towns near the Lebanese border and east Aleppo.But sources said negotiations were still going on to finalise how the evacuations would take place and how many people would leave. By Saturday afternoon there was no sign it was being implemented, with only an hour to go before sunset. A point of contention in talks this week has been the number of people who will be allowed to leave the Shi'ite villages of al-Foua and Kefraya in Idlib province, which are besieged by insurgents. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said thousands of cold, scared and injured people were still in east Aleppo waiting to leave. It said it had received some indications that a deal would be reached soon. "It was agreed to resume evacuations from east Aleppo in parallel with the evacuation of (medical) cases from Kefraya and al-Foua and some cases from Zabadani and Madaya," said the government official, part of the evacuations negotiating team.The towns of Madaya and Zabadani are blockaded by pro-government forces.The operation to evacuate fighters and civilians from the last opposition-held area of Aleppo was suspended on Friday, its second day, after pro-government militias demanded that wounded people also be brought out of al-Foua and Kefraya, and protesters blocked the evacuation road out of Aleppo.There were recriminations on all sides and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said "Aleppo is now a synonym for hell".The chaos surrounding the Aleppo evacuation reflects the complexity of Syria's civil war, with an array of groups and foreign interests involved on each side.Aleppo had been divided between government and rebel areas in the nearly six-year war, but a lightning advance by the Syrian army and its allies that began in mid-November after months of intense air strikes deprived the insurgents of most of their territory in a matter of weeks.BEATEN AND ROBBED Numerous activists, rebels and east Aleppo residents shared reports and videos of people fleeing the sound of shooting, being detained and returning home badly beaten and robbed of their possessions near a checkpoint as they tried to leave the city on Friday. Syrian rebel official al-Farouk Abu Bakr, speaking from Aleppo to news channel al-Arabiya al-Hadath on Saturday, said the previous evacuation deal was breached by pro-government militias who detained "hundreds" of people trying to leave, leading to some deaths. A Syrian military source denied this, but said a convoy trying to leave Aleppo was returned back to the city."Now we are working on international guarantees to guarantee the safety of those who leave Aleppo so that such violations are not repeated," Abu Bakr said. An activist and teacher inside rebel-held Aleppo, Wissam Zarqa, told journalists via a messaging app that he spent Friday in the cold with his family hoping to leave. He said he did not feel safe trying to flee Aleppo after hearing about the attack on the convoy. The Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) and the ICRC said guarantees were needed to protect people trying to leave."We're ready to resume facilitating the evacuation according to our humanitarian mandate. But we now expect all the parties on the ground to provide us with solid guarantees in order to keep the operation going," said Marianne Gasser, head of the ICRC in Syria."They're the ones who have to protect the people and provide safe passage."NO BUSES YET A resident in Aleppo told Reuters that by late afternoon nobody had left the rebel-held enclave and no buses had entered. He heard gunfire near where people were supposed to wait for buses.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war, said no buses or ambulances had entered al-Foua or Kefraya. It said around 20,000 people, of whom roughly 4,500 are pro-government fighters, were in the villages.A military news outlet run by Damascus's ally Hezbollah said evacuation buses were heading to the two villages. Iran, one of Syria's main allies, had demanded that the villages be included in any ceasefire deal, rebel and United Nations officials have said.Though both Russia and Iran back Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, rebels have blamed Tehran and the Shi'ite groups it backs in Syria for obstructing Moscow's efforts to broker the evacuation of east Aleppo.The Observatory said 8,000 people, including some 3,000 fighters and more than 300 wounded, left the city in convoys of buses and ambulances in the evacuations that began on Thursday morning.Rebel officials say the numbers evacuated are much lower, with no fighters having left. The U.N. says around 30,000 people remain in rebel-held Aleppo, of whom a number would be taken to Idlib province, which is mostly controlled by hardline Islamist groups, and the rest would go to government-held city districts.Idlib is already a target for Syrian and Russian air strikes but it is unclear whether the government will push for a ground assault or simply seek to contain rebels there for now.Turkey has said Aleppo evacuees could also be housed in a camp to be constructed near the Turkish border to the north.OVERNIGHT BOMBING The Observatory said war planes bombed insurgent-controlled areas west of Aleppo overnight and north of Aleppo on Saturday. Syrian state media reported on Saturday that a number of fighters south of Damascus had surrendered their weapons to the state in the towns of Zakiya and al-Deirkheyba as part of local truces.Through a series of so-called "settlement" agreements and army offensives, the Syrian government, backed by Russian air power and Iranian-backed militias, has been steadily suppressing armed opposition to its rule in the capital city's suburbs.Russian President Vladimir Putin, Syria's most powerful ally, said on Friday he was working with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to try to start a new round of Syrian peace talks aimed at securing a nationwide ceasefire.A senior Syrian opposition leader, Riyad Hijab, said he was willing to attend the talks if the aim was to set up a transition government. Assad has ruled out stepping down as part of a political solution to the war. Aleppo, a once-flourishing economic centre with renowned ancient sites, has been pulverised during the war that has killed more than 300,000 people, created the world's worst refugee crisis and allowed for the rise of Islamic State.The United States has watched from the sidelines as the Syrian government and its allies, including Russia, pinned down the rebels in an ever-diminishing pocket of territory, culminating in a ceasefire this week.Even with victory for Assad in Aleppo, the war will be far from over. Insurgents retain their rural stronghold of Idlib province as well as other territory in western, northern and southern Syria, and the jihadist Islamic State group holds swathes of the east and recaptured the ancient city of Palmyra this week. (Reporting by Laila Bassam in Aleppo and Lisa Barrington and Tom Perry in Beirut; Writing by Anna Willard; Editing by Dale Hudson) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. This week Lenovo launched the K6 Note and Moto M smartphones, and Yoga Book Windows 10 2-in-1, Nokia introduced 105 feature phone, Honor introduced its Magic smartphone at an event in China and Xiaomi introduced its Mi electric scooter. Check out the latest launches and announcements that happened this week in our weekly roundup. Motorola this week launched Moto M smartphone. It features an unibody metal design, fingerprint sensor on the back, 5.5-inch 1080p Super AMOLED screen, Helio P15 SoC, 16MP rear camera, 8MP front-facing camera, 4G VoLTE and a 3050mAh battery with Turbo charging. It comes in Gold and Silver colors and is priced at Rs. 15999 for 32GB model with 3GB RAM and Rs. 17999 for 64GB model with 4GB RAM. It is available exclusively on Flipkart. Lenovo launched K6 Note smartphone in India that packs a 5.5-inch 1080p display, is powered by an Octa-Core Snapdragon 430 processor, has a fingerprint sensor, 4G VoLTE support and a huge 4000mAh battery. It comes in Dark gray, Gold and Silver colors and is priced at Rs. 13,999 for the 3GB RAM variant, while the 4GB RAM variant costs Rs. 15,499. It will be available through retail stores across India starting today, December 17th. Lenovo also launched Yoga Book ultra slim Windows 10 2-in-1. It sports a 10.1-inch Full HD IPS display, is powered by Intel Atom X5 processor with 4GB of RAM and has a magnesium aluminium alloy body. It has two panels that open up like an ultra-thin notebook. It is just 9.6mm when closed, tapering to 4.05mm at its slimmest edge and weighs just 690 grams. is priced at Rs. 49990 and is available exclusively on Flipkart. Honor announced Magic smartphone with a 5.09-inch Quad HD 3D curved glass AMOLED display, Octa-Core Kirin 950 SoC, Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) with new Honor Magic Live OS, dual 12-megapixel rear cameras promising, fingerprint sensor, 2900mAh built-in battery with support for Magic Charge fast charging technology that can charge up to 90% in just 30 minutes. It comes in Golden black and Porcelain white colors and is priced at 3699 yuan (US$ 532 / Rs. 36100). Check out our hands-on and photo gallery here. Xiaomi this week introduced Mi electric scooter that has a maximum speed of the scooter is 25km/h. It has a folding design that lets you fold it in just 3 seconds with a press of a button. It offers 30km on a single charge. It comes in black and white colors and is priced at 1999 yuan (US$ 289 / Rs. 19530 approx.). Xiaomi also introduced a new version of 20000mAh Mi power bank with support for Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 and two-way fast charging support. It offers dual 5.1V / 3.6A output when two devices are connected, and supports 5V/2.4A-9V/2A-12V/1.5A with support for Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 when using single port. It also has fast charging support for charging the power bank. It is priced at 149 Chinese Yuan (Rs. 1450 / US$ 21 approx.), same as the predecessor and goes on sale on December 19th. Nokia unveiled two affordable feature phones Nokia 150 and Nokia 150 Dual SIM this week. These have 2.4-inch QVGA displays, come with built in FM radio and MP3 player. These come in black and white color, are priced at $26 and will be available globally in select markets rolling out first in APAC, IMEA and Europe in Q1 2017. Gionee launched P7 with a 5-inch HD display, 1.3GHz Quad Core processor, 4G VoLTE support and a 2300mAh battery. It comes in White, Latte Gold and Grey colors and is priced at Rs. 9999. Swipe Technologies launched Elite Star, the companys latest budget 4G smartphone with support for VoLTE. It comes in Black and White colors, is priced at Rs. 3333 and is exclusively from Flipkart. It also launched Elite Max with 5.5-inch 1080p display, Octa-Core Snapdragon 430 SoC, 4GB RAM and 4G VoLTE for Rs. 10,999. It comes in Onyx Black color and is available exclusively from Flipkart. Noble Skiodo launched 32 inch Smart TV 32SM32N01. It has a 32-inch (1366768) LED display with 178-degree viewing angle, runs on Android 4.4.4 operating system, has 1GB of DDR3 RAM, 4GB internal storage, 2 x USB and 3 x HDMI ports. It is available on Amazon.in at an offer price of Rs. 15,699 as well as retail stores. This week Fossil expanded line of hybrid smartwatches with new models from Diesel, Armani and Kate Spade. All these models sport analogue look but come with a number of smartwatch features such as activity tracking, sleep tracking, message notifications and more. Emporio Armani Connected watches are available starting at $245 while prices for Diesel Timeframe start at $225. Pricing for the Kate Spade Metro Grand collection start at $250. Lenovo will launch Chrome OS version of Yoga Book next year, according to a latest report from Laptop Mag. Lenovos Android and Chrome Computing Business Group president and VP Jeff Meredith confirmed that the company will release the Chrome OS version of Yoga Book in 2017. Currently there are two versions of the Yoga Book running Windows 10 and Android 6.0 Marshmallow. A Chrome OS model was in demand for a long time now. Lenovo already sells Chrome OS versions of other devices in the Yoga line. The upcoming Chrome OS version of Yoga Book will still feature the same drawing features. Real Pen Stylus and Halo Keyboard. Meredith went on saying that the Chrome OS version of Yoga Book will be aimed at school children for educational purposes. There is no word on the exact release date of the Chrome OS powered Yoga Book. Source Oil prices are notoriously volatile, and their actions in 2016 were no exception. Prices plunged to start the year as supplies piled up in storage due to resilient shale production and rising output from OPEC. Speaking of which, OPEC spent most of the year arguing within itself, instead of working together to fix a problem that had grown worse due to its decision to battle shale producers for market share. That said, as the old oilfield mantra goes, "The cure for low oil prices is low oil prices," which has certainly been the case this year. Here's a look back at the rapidly evolving oil market of 2016. How low will it go? Crude oil prices fell into what seemed like a bottomless pit in early 2016, with analysts trying to one-up each other with bold calls on where crude would bottom. Several analysts put out abysmal oil price targets in late 2015 and early 2016 warning that crude could drop to $20 per barrel or even as low as $10 per barrel. Each made a bone-chilling case for why crude could continue crashing with no end in sight. It turned out that most of these fear-driven calls were wrong, though crude did bottom out in the mid-$20s by early February: Several factors enabled crude prices to hit bottom. Shale producers not only swore off growth, but several cut investment spending well beyond the level needed to maintain their current production level. For example, leading Bakken Shale producer Whiting Petroleum (WLL) announced an 80% reduction in its capex budget from the prior year. While that capital would enable Whiting Petroleum to complete projects it started in 2015, the company planned to wind down its completion operations by mid-year, which would result in a double-digit production decline by the end of 2016. Meanwhile, several producers in Canada, including Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ 1.27%), shut-in production from heavy oil wells because they were losing money on these barrels after Canadian crude crashed into the teens making it the cheapest crude in the world. Overall, Canadian Natural Resources shut-in 900 barrels of heavy oil per day, as well as significantly reducing its heavy oil drilling program, resulting in a 17% year-over-year decline in its primary heavy crude oil production during the first quarter. Finally, after a long hibernation, OPEC tried to reemerge as a factor in the oil market by attempting to work together on a coordinated production freeze with non-members, including Russia. That said, the initial talks did not lead to an agreement to freeze output, though they did start heating up oil prices. Breathing a sigh of relief All the spending and production cuts from North American oil producers began to have their desired effect on oil prices, which rose sharply off the bottom. That said, crude seemed to hit the ceiling at around $50 per barrel and bounced between that level and $40 per barrel for much of the summer: It seemed like any time crude stayed around $40 per barrel for too long that OPEC would pipe up and say it was working on another framework agreement to freeze its output. That would send oil prices back up toward $50 a barrel, which seemed to cool off OPEC's desire to reach an agreement. Meanwhile, with crude prices bouncing off the bottom and holding steady in a new trading range it gave North American oil companies more confidence to increase investments in new wells. Whiting Petroleum, for example, signed several well participation agreements with financial partners, which enabled it to continue completing wells. Canadian Natural Resources, likewise, took advantage of rising prices to restart shut-in production and its stalled heavy oil drilling program. Another factor steadying oil prices was the growing view that an improvement in oil market fundamentals was just over the horizon. Oilfield service company Core Labs (CLB 2.84%), for example, noted these improving market fundamentals when it reconfirmed its outlook in July for a "V-shaped worldwide commodity recovery beginning in the second half of 2016." Driving that view at the time was the expectation that U.S. oil production would decline by 940,000 barrels per day this year, which represents a 10.1% year-over-year decrease, while worldwide declines would add up to a 3.3% decrease in production. According to Core Labs, these reductions, when combined with a continued increase in global oil demand, "should create a tight crude oil supply market for the second half of 2016, and result in increased crude prices." Core Labs reaffirmed that view in October while noting that U.S. production was declining faster than expected and would be down 11% this year. Core also pointed out that China's year-over-year decline rate reached 10%, pushing production to a six-year low. These factors, along with renewed OPEC talks, reinforced Core Labs' view that oil prices would be on the upswing. OPEC to the rescue? That upswing came at the end of November when OPEC members agreed to cut their production by 1.2 million barrels and go back to their former quota system. That announcement shocked the oil market, sending crude spiking nearly 9% that day to more than $50 a barrel. Two weeks later OPEC announced that it persuaded several non-member countries to reduce their output by roughly 560,000 barrels per day in the first half of 2017. This agreement pushed crude prices to nearly $55 per barrel, which was crude's highest level in more than a year. The aim of these agreements is to drain the market's oil stockpiles, which were nearly filled to the brim earlier this year causing the oil market to panic and analysts to forecast impending doom. That said, the nations pledging to make cuts need to follow through with their agreed output cuts for the agreement to work. Further, shale producers like Whiting Petroleum cannot go back to their free-spending ways and rack up debt to drill more wells. In other words, the jury is still out on whether these agreements will just provide a short-term lift to the market, or send oil prices even higher in 2017. Negotiations over whether Uber must stop its newly launched self-driving car service in San Francisco have concluded without a clear resolution, according to California transportation regulators. The state has threatened legal action if the ride-hailing company continues to pick up passengers in a handful of cars without having gone through a permitting process. Uber says the cars are exempt from the permit requirement because they have a backup driver behind the wheel who must monitor the car's performance. State officials had a "positive conversation" Thursday with Uber about "how the company plans to comply with state regulations for self-driving vehicles," Melissa Figueroa, a spokeswoman for California's State Transportation Agency, told The Associated Press. Talks will resume Friday morning, she said. Uber did not immediately reply to requests for comment. Meanwhile, the cars could be seen traveling San Francisco's streets Thursday evening. RED LIGHT WARNING The two sides met privately in Sacramento the same day that dash cam video posted online showed a self-driving Uber run a red light on Wednesday, the same day the company launched the pilot program with several Volvo SUVs. On Thursday, Uber said in a written statement that the driver was suspended and attributed the infraction in front of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art to "human error." That was an apparent reference to the company's policy that employees behind the wheel of the cars must constantly monitor them and be prepared to take over if the technology stops working, or is about to do something dangerous or illegal. Far from playing defense, Uber offered the driver's failure as evidence of the need to continue pushing ahead a technology that proponents say will one day drive far more safely than humans. "This is why we believe so much in making the roads safer by building self-driving Ubers," the company said in a written statement, which said the red light-running car was not one of those in its pilot program and was not carrying passengers. Getting a permit is not a complicated or lengthy process, and regulators would likely approve Uber's application, as they have permits for 20 other companies. Instead, Uber has insisted it will not apply out of principle, saying its cars do not meet the state's legal definition of an "autonomous vehicle" and therefore do not need a permit. Though the cars are tricked out with sensors so they can steer, accelerate and brake, and even decide to change lanes, Uber says they are not nearly good enough to drive without human monitoring. And, according to Uber's reading of state law, that means they are not, legally speaking, "autonomous vehicles" that need special state permission. PUSHING THE LEGAL LIMIT Pushing legal boundaries is a proud tradition at Uber. During its meteoric rise into a multibillion dollar company, Uber has argued with authorities in California and around the world about issues including driver criminal background checks and whether those drivers should be treated as contractors ineligible for employee benefits. Both the California Department of Motor Vehicles and its parent transportation agency insist Uber is wrong and hours after the self-driving service's launch the state sent a letter saying the service was illegal because it lacked the permits. "If Uber does not confirm immediately that it will stop its launch and seek a testing permit, DMV will initiate legal action," DMV Chief Counsel Brian Soublet wrote the company. He referenced the possibility of taking Uber to court. San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee joined the chorus of officials denouncing the move, calling it unlawful and ill-advised in a statement. Lee said he was worried about the safety of the city's cyclists and pedestrians, especially with the experiment launching in a week when streets are slick with rain. Meanwhile, the company is sending another message to California: Other places want us if you don't. In a blog post Wednesday, the leader of its self-driving efforts, Anthony Levandowski, warned that "complex rules and requirements could have the unintended consequence of slowing innovation" and named several places outside California he characterized as being "pro technology." ___ Pritchard reported from Los Angeles. Contact him at https://twitter.com/lalanewsman. Federal railroad regulators endorsed an ambitious and costly plan to rebuild the congested Northeast Corridor over the next 30 years by shoring up crumbling infrastructure, running more trains and building new tracks that would allow speeds of up to 220 mph on a stretch of the Washington-Boston route. The Federal Railroad Administration's plan unveiled Friday aims to cut down on delay-causing bottlenecks and increase capacity and reliability by upgrading outdated bridges and tunnels including ones into New York City that are more than a century old and realigning tracks to eliminate speed-restricting curves. The FRA estimates the $120 billion plan would cut travel times between Washington and New York by 35 minutes, to about 2 hours and 10 minutes, on the fastest trains and save 45 minutes to an hour on trips between Boston and New York, which now take close to 4 hours. Amtrak's Stephen Gardner, who's in charge of business operations on the corridor, said the plan affirms the railroad's "long-held view that rebuilding and expanding the Northeast Corridor is essential for the growth and prosperity of the entire region." The FRA's plan is the first comprehensive look at the future of the 500-mile corridor, which handles about 2,200 trains and 750,000 passengers each day on commuter and intercity trains. The agency said it's the product of a four-year process that sought input from state and local officials and residents, as well as Amtrak and commuter railroads. Now it's up to the states, railroads and President-elect Donald Trump to give their approvals and figure out which aspects of the plan to prioritize. Not everyone is on board. Sen. Richard Blumenthal declared a part of the plan calling for new tracks from Old Saybrook, Connecticut, to Rhode Island "dead on arrival," even after the FRA opted to recommend a tunnel instead of elevated tracks through the historic town of Old Lyme. He contends the plan will still devastate neighborhoods, marshlands, commercial districts and tourist attractions along the state's southeastern Connecticut shoreline. Blumenthal, D-Conn., questioned the project's environmental and quality-of-life impacts on those communities, as well as the cost. Rep. Joe Courtney, also a Democrat, said one estimate put the proposed tunnel's cost at $20 billion, leaving local activists concerned that cheaper above-ground tracks could still be built. They're also worried the tunnel could harm the environment. Matthew Lehner, public affairs director for the FRA, said that Friday's recommendation is just one step in the process and that construction couldn't begin on any aspect of the plan without the support and agreement of state leaders. Elsewhere, work has begun on some projects incorporated into the FRA's plan. They include a $20 billion project to build new, expanded tunnels under the Hudson River between New York and New Jersey and a $4 billion project to replace a 143-year-old tunnel in Baltimore. Among other provisions in the plan: a new Amtrak stop at Philadelphia's airport, eliminating the need for some travelers to reach the city and switch to a commuter train; increased service to parts of southern New England; and a new level of service that makes stops at a variety of commuter rail stations and major city hubs. Straighter tracks would enable trains to reach 220 mph between Baltimore and Wilmington, Delaware. The fastest trains on the system currently top out at 150 mph, with a project underway to boost that to 160 mph near Trenton, New Jersey. U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., said implementing the FRA's plan is vital to the growth of the region, which is expected to add 7 million people by 2040. Currently, the Northeast is responsible for about 30 percent of the nation's jobs and 20 percent of its gross domestic product, according to federal data. "They recognize that the Northeast Corridor is not adequate for today and is not an adequate transportation pathway for tomorrow," Booker said. "The fact that we're choking growth and productivity is unacceptable." ___ Associated Press writer Susan Haigh in Hartford, Connecticut, contributed to this report. As cable companies lose subscribers, the industry is looking for ways to win back cord-cutters or shift them to new products. DISH Networkpioneered these efforts with its Sling TV pure-digital live television service and now AT&T (NYSE: T) has joined the party with its similar (but not the same) DirecTV Now product. In this segment fromIndustry Focus: Consumer Goods, the cast looks at the new AT&T service, how it works, and how it compares to competing offerings on the market. A full transcript follows the video. 10 stocks we like better than AT&T When investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy right now... and AT&T wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. Click here to learn about these picks! *Stock Advisor returns as of Nov. 7, 2016 This podcast was recorded on Dec. 13, 2016. Vincent Shen: DirecTV Nowis currently available for free trial. Why don't you give me some basics, Dan? How much is it, and what are customers getting? Dan Kline:DirecTV Nowis your latest alternative to cable. It's live streamingcable channels. And the promo offer is a $35 a month package, which,in theory, AT&T is taking a bath on, though,let's assume they'venegotiated some good deals there, for at least a short time. You get about 100 cable channels, including, in some markets, local channels, but that'svery limited, like,if you live in New York, you might get NBC, but you can only watch certain programs on demand. But in general, you're getting the top cable companies like TBS, TNT. It's very similar toDishSling,orSonyPlayStation Vue, whereyou don't have cable,you want to watch some live TV,you want some sports,and you're going to payand you're going to get a streaming-only cable service. Shen:Yep.I should add, there's four tiers to the service -- Kline:Which are made a little bitirrelevant by the promo offer right now. Shen:Yeah. They have cute names. The first tier is $35 a month, it's calledLive a Little. The next one's $50,Just Right. And then the promo one isGo Bigwhich is usually $60, but the current promotional rate is $35. Kline:And they say they're going to honor that forever. Now, forever, for AT&T, is not trustworthy. Just like they're going to grandfather your unlimited plan forever, and then slowly make it terrible for you. But, in the short term, it's probably the cheapest per-channel deal. Dish Sling is at about 22 channels for $20, it varies a little bit how many channels. Shen:And you can stack on additional, right? Kline:You can add stuff. So, it's probably $35 for 100 channels. And 20 of those channels aren't stupid ones you don't watch. Most of them are good channels. Shen:Thefull network list isn't available,at least that I could find, but a pretty good sampling of them are here. And as you mentioned, it includes most of the big networks. And like you mentioned, if you can get it, it includes three of the big -- Kline:No CBS. Shen:No CBS. And then, the biggest package isGotta Have It$70 a month.I'm trying to think if there was any other ... so, there's thepromotional offer that's $35 ... Kline:And there's a promo where you can get HBO and one of the other pay services for $5. Shen:Andsome perks that come with the service are, the fact thatyou can cancel it at any time, there's no annual contract, no fees that way, and there's no waiting for a cable guy to come install it, no box,it will stream directly to your smart TV, your phone, your tablet, your PC,any devices you have likeAppleTV,the Amazon Fire TV Stick. There's also a bunch of on-demand titles, too, right? Kline:And they'll give you those devices. If you commit to three months, they'll give you an Apple TV.I will point out that Apple TV is $149, and 35 times three, I can't do that math live on their air ... Shen:But it's less than $149. Kline:It's $105. So,if you were thinking about an Apple TV,getting this for three months justto play with it while you're traveling is worth it, just to try it. Daniel Kline owns shares of Apple. Vincent Shen has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Amazon.com and Apple. The Motley Fool has the following options: long January 2018 $90 calls on Apple and short January 2018 $95 calls on Apple. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Boasting more than 50 main battle tanks and more than 600 armored personnel carriers (APCs), Peru's army looks like a pretty fearsome fighting force -- on paper. In fact, it's more of a paper tiger. Peru's army on parade. Image source: Galeria del Ministerio de Defensa de Peru. The vast majority of Peru's tanks are old Soviet T-55s, first designed in the 1950s, while most of its APCs are American and German relics dating from the 1960s. And while the country at one point had plans to purchase a fleet of modern main battle tanks from China, those plans fell through a few years ago, when Peru was unable to come up with the needed cash -- all of which leaves its ground army in a pretty sorry state. But fear not. General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) is about to ride to Peru's rescue. Stryking a deal Last week, in something of a surprising development, the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agencyrevealed to Congress that the Peruvian government is seeking to purchase a whole fleet of modern armored personnel carriers from General Dynamics. Specifically, Peru seeks to acquire 178 reconditioned Strykers, each equipped with a .50 Cal M2 machine gun and a Remote Weapon Station to operate it. General Dynamics will act as the prime contractor on the sale, which will be worth $668 million. DATA SOURCE: YAHOO! FINANCE. What it means to Peru While a less robust weapons platform than the Chinese tanks that Peru was eyeing a few years ago, General Dynamics' Strykers also cost significantly less -- just $3.5 million per unit, or about 60% of what China wanted for its tanks. Even so, there's a real question whether Peru will be able to afford the purchase. Current U.S. plans call for less than $1 million in annual foreign military aid for Peru, which means that the country must pay for these Strykers out of pocket. That said, if the sale does go through as planned, here's what it means for General Dynamics. What it means to General Dynamics General Dynamics is a company probably best known for its armored vehicles -- primarily Abrams main battle tanks and Stryker APCs. What you may be surprised to learn, though, is that such ground "combat systems" are actually General Dynamics' smallest business division. According to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence, General Dynamics actually gets more revenue from its civilian Gulfstream business jet business, from the construction of submarines and surface warfare vessels for the Navy, and even from information technology sales, than it does from selling Strykers and Abrams(es). That being said, Combat Systems is no slouch in the profits department, generating 15.6% operating profit margins for General Dynamics on each dollar of sales. This implies that investors can expect General Dynamics to reap as much as $104.5 billion in profits on the sale of $668 million worth of Strykers to Peru, or about $0.34 per share. Should you buy General Dynamics stock? Based on these numbers, it seems the Peruvian Stryker sale will add roughly 2.2% to General Dynamics' $30.9 billion annual revenue stream, and about 3.6% to annual profits. It's an above-averagely profitable deal for General D. But is it reason enough to buy the stock? Probably not. To know whether General Dynamics stock is a "buy," you need to look beyond any one arms sale, no matter how profitable, and examine the valuation of the stock as a whole. So let's do that: DATA SOURCES: YAHOO! FINANCE, S&P GLOBAL MARKET INTELLIGENCE. What can we tell from this chart? Well, right off the bat, General Dynamics' price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio looks pretty expensive relative to its slow projected growth rate. The 18.8 P/E, divided by 7% growth, works out to a PEG ratio of nearly 2.7. (Value investors generally prefer to invest in stocks selling for a PEG ratio of 1.0 or below.) Even factoring in the 1.8% dividend yield brings the stock's total return ratio down to only 2.1. Both those valuations seem expensive (an impression reinforced by the 1.7 P/S ratio, which is about 70% above my rule-of-thumb valuation for defense stocks). Meanwhile, General Dynamics' free cash flow has been lagging reported net income of late, with the result that the company's price-to-free cash flow ratio (48.9) looks expensive in the extreme. So what's the upshot of all this? General Dynamics is a terrific company, big, profitable, and winning business around the globe. General Dynamics is not, however, a cheap stock. If you're looking for bargains in the defense industry, you're best advised to look elsewhere. 10 stocks we like better than General Dynamics When investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy right now... and General Dynamics wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. Click here to learn about these picks! *Stock Advisor returns as of Nov. 7, 2016 Fool contributorRich Smithdoes not own shares of, nor is he short, any company named above. You can find him onMotley Fool CAPS, publicly pontificating under the handleTMFDitty, where he's currently ranked No. 345 out of more than 75,000 rated members. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Vices seem to have a way of being present through economic good times and bad, and that dynamic can make sin stocks that serve those vices attractive for long-term investors. Looking over the market in 2017, the sin stock landscape has changed from previous years. The alcohol business has consolidated, casino companies are making very little money outside of Asia, and smoking seems to be dying a slow death. Still, there are a few attractive sin stocks on the market. Image source: Getty Images. Riding the craft brewing trend Consolidation in the beer business has left AB InBev (NYSE: BUD) and Molson Coors Brewing Co. (NYSE: TAP) as the two power players in the industry. And that will allow both to push their weight around with suppliers and distributors. But they're both extremely expensive with AB InBev trading at 56 times earnings and Molson Coors going for 36 times earnings. The better bet in beer right now is Boston Beer Co. Inc. (NYSE: SAM), which trades for 27 times earnings and is riding a long-term growth in the craft beer business. In 2015, overall beer sales fell 0.2% in the U.S. but craft beer was up 12.8% and exports of craft beer jumped 16.3%. Boston Beer is no longer a small brewer, but it still holds some of the craft brewing cachet consumers want. And with a better valuation than bigger buyers, it's a solid sin stock to own in 2017. Cocktail, anyone? Another very stable business is making spirits, which is the specialty of Brown-Forman Corporation (NYSE: BF-A) and Diageo plc (NYSE: DEO). Brown-Forman owns such brands as Jack Daniels, Woodford Reserve, and GlenDronachi while Diageo has Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff, and Crown Royal among its many brands. You can see below that despite not being a growth business, the spirits business is very stable and comes with high margins. BF.A revenue (TTM) data by YCharts. Dividend yields of 1.6% from Brown-Forman and 3.6% from Diageo are attractive as well. And with cash consistently coming in from sales of a diverse set of spirits these are dividends to count on long term. The best stocks in gaming Casino stocks today are struggling to decide whether the future is getting brighter or more risky. After two years of gaming declines, Macau is now on the rise again, but a new crackdown on ATM withdrawals by Chinese citizens has investors worried. In the U.S., the gaming market isn't growing very much, but Las Vegas has become a place of stability for gaming operators. It's through thatlensthat MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) and Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS) provide the best opportunity for investors. Las Vegas Sands has an incredibly diverse business in Las Vegas, Macau, and Singapore, which throws off billions of dollars in cash flow each year. The most important use of that cash flow today is through paying a dividend, which stands at a 5.2% yield today. MGM Resorts is the steady player in gaming, operating primarily in Las Vegas. I recently highlighted that less exposure to Macau and a declining debt load have made MGM a top-performing stock for investors over the past two years. And with Las Vegas continuing to grow at a slow and steady pace, MGM will be a great stock for 2017 as well. 10 stocks we like better than Apple When investing geniuses David and TomGardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter theyhave run for over a decade, the Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tomjust revealed what they believe are theten best stocksfor investors to buy right now... and Apple wasn't one of them! That's right -- theythink these 10 stocks are even better buys. Click hereto learn about these picks! *StockAdvisor returns as of December 12, 2016The author(s) may have a position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns and recommends shares of Apple. Travis Hoium owns shares of Molson Coors Brewing. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Anheuser-Busch InBev NV and Boston Beer. The Motley Fool recommends Diageo. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Oil prices are notoriously volatile, and their actions in 2016 were no exception. Prices plunged to start the year as supplies piled up in storage due to resilient shale production and rising output from OPEC. Speaking of which, OPEC spent most of the year arguing within itself, instead of working together to fix a problem that had grown worse due to its decision to battle shale producers for market share. That said, as the old oilfield mantra goes, "The cure for low oil prices is low oil prices," which has certainly been the case this year. Here's a look back at the rapidly evolving oil market of 2016. Image source: Getty Images. How low will it go? Crude oil prices fell into what seemed like a bottomless pit in early 2016, with analysts trying to one-up each other with bold calls on where crude would bottom. Several analysts put out abysmal oil price targets in late 2015 and early 2016 warning that crude could drop to $20 per barrel or even as low as $10 per barrel. Each made a bone-chilling case for why crude could continue crashing with no end in sight. It turned out that most of these fear-driven calls were wrong, though crude did bottom out in the mid-$20s by early February: WTI Crude Oil Spot Price data by YCharts Several factors enabled crude prices to hit bottom. Shale producers not only swore off growth, but several cut investment spending well beyond the level needed to maintain their current production level. For example, leading Bakken Shale producer Whiting Petroleum (NYSE: WLL) announced an 80% reduction in its capex budget from the prior year. While that capital would enable Whiting Petroleum to complete projects it started in 2015, the company planned to wind down its completion operations by mid-year, which would result in a double-digit production decline by the end of 2016. Meanwhile, several producers in Canada, including Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE: CNQ), shut-in production from heavy oil wells because they were losing money on these barrels after Canadian crude crashed into the teens making it the cheapest crude in the world. Overall, Canadian Natural Resources shut-in 900 barrels of heavy oil per day, as well as significantly reducing its heavy oil drilling program, resulting in a 17% year-over-year decline in its primary heavy crude oil production during the first quarter. Finally, after a long hibernation, OPEC tried to reemerge as a factor in the oil market by attempting to work together on a coordinated production freeze with non-members, including Russia. That said, the initial talks did not lead to an agreement to freeze output, though they did start heating up oil prices. Breathing a sigh of relief All the spending and production cuts from North American oil producers began to have their desired effect on oil prices, which rose sharply off the bottom. That said, crude seemed to hit the ceiling at around $50 per barrel and bounced between that level and $40 per barrel for much of the summer: WTI Crude Oil Spot Price data by YCharts It seemed like any time crude stayed around $40 per barrel for too long that OPEC would pipe up and say it was working on another framework agreement to freeze its output. That would send oil prices back up toward $50 a barrel, which seemed to cool off OPEC's desire to reach an agreement. Meanwhile, with crude prices bouncing off the bottom and holding steady in a new trading range it gave North American oil companies more confidence to increase investments in new wells. Whiting Petroleum, for example, signed several well participation agreements with financial partners, which enabled it to continue completing wells. Canadian Natural Resources, likewise, took advantage of rising prices to restart shut-in production and its stalled heavy oil drilling program. Another factor steadying oil prices was the growing view that an improvement in oil market fundamentals was just over the horizon. Oilfield service company Core Labs (NYSE: CLB), for example, noted these improving market fundamentals when it reconfirmed its outlook in July for a "V-shaped worldwide commodity recovery beginning in the second half of 2016." Driving that view at the time was the expectation that U.S. oil production would decline by 940,000 barrels per day this year, which represents a 10.1% year-over-year decrease, while worldwide declines would add up to a 3.3% decrease in production. According to Core Labs, these reductions, when combined with a continued increase in global oil demand, "should create a tight crude oil supply market for the second half of 2016, and result in increased crude prices." Core Labs reaffirmed that view in October while noting that U.S. production was declining faster than expected and would be down 11% this year. Core also pointed out that China's year-over-year decline rate reached 10%, pushing production to a six-year low. These factors, along with renewed OPEC talks, reinforced Core Labs' view that oil prices would be on the upswing. Image source: Getty Images. OPEC to the rescue? That upswing came at the end of November when OPEC members agreed to cut their production by 1.2 million barrels and go back to their former quota system. That announcement shocked the oil market, sending crude spiking nearly 9% that day to more than $50 a barrel. Two weeks later OPEC announced that it persuaded several non-member countries to reduce their output by roughly 560,000 barrels per day in the first half of 2017. This agreement pushed crude prices to nearly $55 per barrel, which was crude's highest level in more than a year. The aim of these agreements is to drain the market's oil stockpiles, which were nearly filled to the brim earlier this year causing the oil market to panic and analysts to forecast impending doom. That said, the nations pledging to make cuts need to follow through with their agreed output cuts for the agreement to work. Further, shale producers like Whiting Petroleum cannot go back to their free-spending ways and rack up debt to drill more wells. In other words, the jury is still out on whether these agreements will just provide a short-term lift to the market, or send oil prices even higher in 2017. 10 stocks we like better than Core Laboratories When investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy right now... and Core Laboratories wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. Click here to learn about these picks! *Stock Advisor returns as of Nov. 7, 2016 Matt DiLallo owns shares of Core Laboratories. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Core Laboratories. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. By now, you've heard the news: President-elect Donald Trump hates Boeing (NYSE: BA) -- and Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), too. In a series of tweets, Trump took aim at the two biggest players in the U.S. defense industry last week. First, Trump blasted Boeing's contract to build a pair of new Air Force One jets for the White House, painting it as a $4 billionboondoggle and demanding that the Air Force "Cancel order!" The president-elect later explained, "We want Boeing to make a lot of money, but not that much money." Mayday, Mayday, Air Force One! You've got a bogey on your six! Image source: Getty Images. A few days later, Trump unleashed a similar tweet storm against Lockheed Martin, decryingthe company's trillion-dollar-plus F-35 stealth fighter program as "out of control." (Lockheed Martin investors will recall that we warned you about that one -- Trump has been criticizing the F-35 all year long.) On the plus side, Trump didn't specifically call for canceling the F-35 program, as he did for Air Force One. However, the president-elect did make the ominous observation that "billions of dollars can be saved on military (and other)purchases after Jan. 20." So, what does all of this mean for investors? How investors are reacting For their part, Boeing investors don't seem to be reacting at all. Since Trump's attack on the Air Force One program's costs, for example, Boeing shares have actually gained1.4% in price. The reaction at Lockheed Martin, on the other hand, has been a bit more severe. Since the Dec. 6 attack on Boeing stock foreshadowed potential broader salvos fired at the defense industry in general, Lockheed Martin shares have actually sold offby 5.5%. The Lockheed-specific tweets that emerged on Monday contributed less than 1% to that sell-off, which tells us that investors had already buckled themselves in to prepare for the coming tweet storm. Are they right? Both reactions make a lot of sense. In the case of Boeing, we're talking about a $95 billion-a-year business here. Even if the Air Force One contract were to be valued at $4 billion (many experts dispute that figure), it would only represent, at most, a couple of weeks of revenue for the aerospace giant being put at risk. Lockheed Martin's F-35, though, is a warhorse of a different color. Already, Lockheed Martin depends on the F-35 fighter jet to provide 21% of its $50 billion in annual revenue. Over time, as the program matures into full-rate production and begins pumping out hundreds of aircraft a year, we believe the F-35 could grow to account for fully 50% of Lockheed Martin's business. Donald Trump's attack on the F-35 program, therefore, poses an existential threat to Lockheed Martin -- a threat much more severe than the attack on Boeing's tiny 747 production line. Reading between the lines What's more, there's a subtext to what Trump is saying here that could actually turn out to be good news for Boeing. Military experts tell usthat there's as much as a 100-airplane gap between the number of airplanes the Pentagon needs to fulfill its mission and the number of airplanes it actually has on hand. That's a gap that's expected to grow as older planes retire, requiring newer planes to replace them. Currently, Lockheed Martin's F-35 is the plane expected to fill America's fighter jet gap. But if the F-35 program gets canceled -- or even curtailed in size -- that means the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps will need to buy other fighter jets to fill the gap. For Boeing, which makes F-15 fighters for the Air Force and F/A-18s for the Navy and Marines, a threat to Lockheed Martin's F-35 program could actually be good news -- promising a new lease on life for Boeing's defense business. 10 stocks we like better than Boeing When investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy right now...and Boeing wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. Click here to learn about these picks! *Stock Advisor returns as of Nov. 7, 2016. Rich Smithdoes not own shares of, nor is he short, any company named above. You can find him onMotley Fool CAPS, publicly pontificating under the handleTMFDitty, where he's currently ranked No. 345 out of more than 75,000 rated members. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. His second term hasnt even begun yet, but if the fiscal cliff negotiations are any indication, the next four years of President Barack Obama will look a lot like the last four. Once again, the President resorted to the same playbook he used for much of his first term: abdicate from his leading role in Capitol Hill negotiations leaving the legislative process entirely up to Congress, an institution known to produce chaos, act surprised when chaos ensues, and blame Republicans. On issue after issue the stimulus package, Obamacare, his last-minute push for immigration reform hes been missing in action when presidential leadership was sorely needed. David Laska If only they werent such intransigent obstructionists, Obama laments, enlightened Congressional Democrats would be moving forward with the work of the American people. Obama has conjured an image of Congressional Republicans infused with an almost mythical ability to stand in the way of the most powerful political office in the world. But any longtime political observer would recognize that Congressional Republicans opposition to this President is no stronger than Congressional Republicans' opposition to Bill Clinton under Speaker Newt Gingrich, or for that matter Congressional Democrats opposition to Ronald Reagan under Speaker Tip ONeill. Yet President Clinton worked with Speaker Gingrich to pass welfare reform, cut taxes and balance the federal budget, and President Reagan worked with Speaker ONeill to produce federal budgets and promote peace in Northern Ireland. So whats the missing ingredient in the Obama administration? Its Obama. On issue after issue the stimulus package, Obamacare, his last-minute push for immigration reform hes been missing in action when presidential leadership was sorely needed. His absenteeism is directly responsible for the presence of the fiscal cliff in the first place. In four years, the President has only produced one federal budget that has passed the Senate, in 2009. In 2010, his budget did not face a vote. In 2011, it was defeated 97-0; in 2012, 99-0. Instead, the federal government has been operating on continuing resolutions, temporary measures that fund the government for a few months at a time. This is a recipe for disaster. Last summers debt ceiling negotiations and last weeks fiscal cliff negotiations demonstrate just how real the possibility of disaster is. The debt ceiling negotiations cost the United States our AAA bond rating, and the fiscal cliff negotiations nearly cost Americans the largest tax increase in history, at a time when we can ill afford it. Perhaps Americans shouldnt be surprised at Obamas failure to govern effectively. After all, this is a President who, prior to assuming office, had never actually governed. He relied instead on his formidable political skills to guide him through his first term and reelection bid. If anyone still doubted that Obamas 2012 tax the rich! mantra was a political rather than an economic tactic, they got their answer on Monday, when a room full of Obama supporters interrupted the President with applause and cheers at his announcement that tax rates on the wealthiest Americans would increase permanently. Obama billed the people in the room as middle class Americans. Is this really the face of the American middle class, so jealous and petty that they would cheer a tax hike on wealthy Americans that would only fund the government for nine days? No. It was a room full of Obama partisans recruited off of Twitter for a piece of political theatre. But the election is over: Barack Obama will be a two-term President. Its time to put politics and demagoguery aside and govern. President Truman had a sign on his desk that read, The Buck Stops Here. Thus far, Obamas has read Out to Lunch. Follow us on twitter.com/foxnewslatino Like us at facebook.com/foxnewslatino Its difficult for me to imagine the full effects of segregation and discrimination that soldiers of the Borinqueneers, the U.S. Armys 65th Infantry Regiment, may have faced on a daily basis while defending their country and protecting our freedom. The Borinqueneers served, gallantly fought, and many died, as members of this segregated unit of the regular Army during WWI, WWII, and the Korean War. They were unarguably the largest and longest standing unit of its kind in U.S. history. They served during a different era. Were talking 60 years ago and more. While todays Latino-Americans still face significant amounts of prejudice, both overt and covert, it must have been even more intense, disheartening, and hurtful way back then. They were soldiers a long way from home. This Latino-American unit was mainly made up of Puerto Ricans, but also included recruits with other Latino backgrounds, and even some mainlanders as they were called at the time. The Borinqueneer who later achieved the highest rank, a Mexican-American from Texas, became the first ever Latino-American Four-Star Army General. His name is Richard E. Cavazos. He holds more awards for heroism, military leadership and service than most. These include two Distinguished Service Cross awards, our nations second highest individual military honor for heroism, one from Korea and the other from Vietnam. The late Modesto Cartagena, a Borinqueneer who served in WWII and Korea, is the most decorated Puerto Rican soldier in US history. He holds the Distinguished Service Cross, as well as the Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star with oak leaf cluster and V device, the Purple Heart, and many others. The Borinqueneers are credited with the final battalion-sized bayonet assault in U.S. Army history. In early 1951, while fighting in Korea, two battalions of the 65th fixed bayonets and charged straight up hill toward the enemy, over running them and overtaking the enemys strategic position. General Douglas MacArthur said of the Borinqueneers, The Puerto Ricans forming the ranks of the gallant 65th Infantry give daily proof on the battlefields of Korea of their courage, determination and resolute will to victory, their invincible loyalty to the United States and their fervent devotion to those immutable principles of human relations which the Americans of the Continent and of Puerto Rico have in common. They are writing a brilliant record of heroism in battle and I am indeed proud to have them under my command. I wish that we could count on many more like them. During Korea, the Borinqueneers were awarded 10 Distinguished Service Crosses, 256 Silver Stars, 606 Bronze Stars, and 2,771 Purple Hearts. Deaths in Korea among the Borinqueneers numbered 750 men. Of these, over 100 are still listed as Missing in Action. They never came home. Today, a nationwide, all-volunteer group of individuals and organizations, known as the Borinqueneers Congressional Gold Medal Alliance, has formed and is dedicated to achieving the Congressional Gold Medal for the Borinqueneers. The Congressional Gold Medal has been awarded to other minority veterans who served in segregated military units, including the Native American Navajo Code Talkers, the African-American Tuskeegee Airmen, the Japanese-American Nisei, and the African-American Montford Point Marines. All of these are well-deserved honors, and the Borinqueneers must be added to this list now! Currently, the alliance is asking all like-minded Americans to write to or e-mail their two U.S. Senators and one U.S. House of Representatives member and ask for their support. The Congressional Gold Medal for the Borinqueneers requires approval by Congress. Links to the Congressional directories are below. Please heed this important Call to Action right away. A sample letter/email is available at: http://www.65thcgm.org/ Rape is a strong word. It elicits an intense reaction and gets our attention which is exactly what my colleague Charles Krauthammer did while making a point about whether we should automatically hand over $60 billion dollars for the Hurricane Sandy relief bill. "I think what Boehner did in postponing the vote until today was absolutely right," Krauthammer said on Special Report. "That was a rape of the Treasury. $60 billion, including a ton of pork. The part that was essential that passed today was to replenish the flood insurance. That's right, and the rest ought to be debated in regular order." On the other side, there's New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. Always the deficit hawk, Christie is going the other way on this one and he's taking no prisoners. Just ask John Boehner, who is being eviscerated by the New Jersey Governor. Christie wants our money and he wants it now. "There is only one group to blame for the continued suffering of these innocent victims: the House majority and their speaker, John Boehner," said Christie. But since when is the Speaker of the House responsible for weather patterns? Krauthammer's argument (which I agree with) and Christie's (which I don't) is about the divide between government assistance and dependency. One is nice to have; the other you can't live without. One is appreciated; the other is expected. One is an add-on to what we can do for ourselves; the other makes us less apt to fend for ourselves. I learned this lesson in 1992 while covering Hurricane Andrew. My coverage was heralded by President George H.W. Bush and the Florida Association of Broadcasters, but it wasn't really about what I did as much as it was about what we did. Back then there was no expectation that after a disaster FEMA was solely responsible for our welfare. So even though Andrew was, at the time, "the worst and most expensive natural disaster in U.S. history, we felt responsible for our own welfare. The day after Hurricane Andrew hit, flying in a helicopter into the heart of the devastation, I was struck by what truly resembled a war zone. Not a single building was standing in parts of Florida City, Homestead and huge swaths of South Dade. It was as if a mega ton bomb had ripped every home from its foundation, leaving in its place instead vessels from an ocean miles away, both large and small. Upon landing I was approached by frightened, crying parents clutching their kids and wondering what would happen to them. Not knowing what to say, I reluctantly told them "everything would be OK." But FEMA was nowhere in sight, it was just us, standing amid the devastation wondering where would we begin, where would we turn? That moment, after wiping my own tears, I went on the air and reported simply: "These people need help." Then I reported what they needed, specifically "baby formula in Old Cutler, building supplies in Country Walk, bottled water in Naranja." Within hours, whatever I asked for seemed to be on the way. Ferried by cars, trucks and even planes from centralized locations in other parts of Florida unaffected by Andrew, the shipments kept coming. For two weeks straight, we stayed on their air coordinating one of the most comprehensive unofficial relief efforts in Florida history. It was about neighbors helping neighbors people hearing of a need, making a promise to help and fulfilling it. In the end, we moved an estimated 60,000 tons of supplies. Without FEMA. Would we have done the same if we assumed it were somebody else's job? Would we have just assumed it was the government's responsibility? Would we have acted as quickly, or would we have waited for FEMA and FEMA funds? Would truckers, mechanics, pilots and business owners have stopped everything they were doing? Would they have rolled up their sleeves and gone to work for free, or would they have waited to get a check or even the promise of a check from FEMA before shipping or hauling supplies? I would like to think the answer to those questions is no. But my sense is that we are slowly being conditioned to think that all we need is FEMA and that only the government can or will provide. FEMA is part of the answer, but not the entirety of it. Just as with Andrew, Hurricane Sandy brought together devastated communities. We saw the power of neighbors helping neighbors, the power of volunteering, the generosity of people giving to those most in need. We saw millions of dollars raised in telethons and through charities. People took in those who had lost everything. It was moving and inspiring to see the best in people emerge. It reminded me of what I saw during Hurricane Andrew. And that's what must not get lost in this political debate. For while there is no question we should encourage the government to help our neighbors in a time of need, encouragement can turn into expectation and, worse, dependency and we will not be better for it. Last October, Cuban dictator Raul Castro promised to lift restrictions on Cubans wanting to travel abroad. The new policy, set to go into effect on January 14th, will supposedly do away with the prohibitive exit fees and the required letter of invitation from a resident of the country being visited. This simplified process is part of Raul Castros efforts to mollify an increasingly restless population that has largely been confined to the island nation since brother Fidels rise to power in 1959. Few serious observers of the Castro regime expect that this new policy will in any way make freedom of travel a reality for the majority of the Cuban people. The Cuban dictatorships restrictions on foreign travel have always been at odds with the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, specifically Article 13: Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country. To think that Cubas apparatchiks will now cede control of its migration policies is a stretch for even the most die-hard Castro apologists. Controls on travel and migration serve as a convenient pressure valve that the regime can open or close depending on the economic situation at home and/or the amount of unrest in the population. Raul Mas Canosa Under the new policy, the regime will still control who gets issued a passport. The Cuban government has cautioned that travel will continue to be denied to those individuals who they feel might represent a drain on the human capital created by the Revolution. This last phrase typifies the Cuban communist view of its citizenry: individuals are devoid of any self-worth or accomplishment. Success is the product of the states paternal generosity. Therefore, the state can decide who gets to travel and who gets to stay home. Those unfamiliar with Cubas recent history fail to realize just how manipulative and successful the Castro brothers have been at maintaining control over the population and cementing their long standing dictatorship. Tightly supervised migration and travel has been an integral part of the regimes strategy to maintain itself in power. Historically, the Cuban government has encouraged the exodus of the elderly or those considered unproductive or counter-productive members of society. It is estimated that up to 25 percent of the 125,000 refugees who fled the island during the Mariel boatlift of 1980 were in fact criminals or mental patients released by the authoritarian state. Controls on travel and migration serve as a convenient pressure valve that the regime can open or close depending on the economic situation at home and/or the amount of unrest in the population. The security apparatus of the state carefully controls who enters the island and for how long. Tourists and Cuban exiles bearing dollars for family members (and to pay the obligatory Cuban import duties and surtaxes) are welcomed with open arms. However, human rights advocates like Alan Gross, arrested in 2009, are quickly rounded up and thrown in jail. Mr. Gross remains incarcerated, serving a 15-year sentence, despite the urgent pleas of diplomats, world leaders and even Pope Benedict XVI. He remains an unfortunate bargaining chip kept in the pocket of the Castro regime until such time as they deem it convenient and useful to release him. They already tried and failed to pawn him for five convicted Cuban spies. A similar policy applies to Cubans wanting to leave the island. Only those considered reliable communists, or expendable and apolitical burdens on the state, can easily travel or migrate abroad. Skilled doctors and athletes can only travel or work abroad under the watchful eye of accompanying state security agents and with the explicit threat of familial retribution should they defect. I speak with experience on the Castro brothers migration policy. Shortly after his ascendancy into power, Fidel Castro encouraged the departure of what he disparagingly called gusanos, the worms of Cuban society who wanted nothing to do with the new Communist regime. Thousands of successful middle class families, including doctors, lawyers, engineers and others, fled in droves in the early 60s. My family was among the fleeing gusanos. The policy continued until the regime noticed that their hospitals, their power plants, the courts, and industrial enterprises everywhere were quickly being depleted of the talent needed to run them. They immediately halted the mass exodus. My father, an experienced farm veterinarian, was considered too valuable to be allowed to emigrate. As a result, our family was torn apart and I spent most of my childhood without a father. We were not reunited until I reached high school. The new Cuban travel policy promises more of the same. More suffering for the Cuban people kept isolated on an island prison. More entrenchment by the Castro regime and its cronies. More manipulation of a gullible worldwide media. More indifference by a U.S. government that shows little interest in the enslavement of 11 million people just 90 miles from its shores. Nothing will change. In her four-year term, Hillary Clinton has not only been the State Department's most traveled secretary of state in history, she's also been a frequent flier to Latin America and the Caribbean. In 22 trips to the region (including Canada), she traveled to 31countries. Can we expect the same level of attention from secretary of state nominee, Senator John Kerry? Not likely, though that may not be a bad thing. In contrast [to Hillary Clinton] , Senator Kerry has shown little interest in the sorts of development issues that would make him look south. Christian Sabatini By 2008, U.S. political capital in the region was badly damaged. In the first four years of President George W. Bush's administration, a number of high-level government officials made little effort to hide their preferences for specific candidates or parties in elections in Nicaragua, Bolivia and Venezuela, violating a long-standing policy in place since the presidency of President Bush's father to support the process of democratic elections regardless of their outcomes. Moreover the brief embrace of the seizure of power in Venezuela during the confusion that erupted on April 11, 2002 after troops, acting on orders from President Hugo Chavez, fired on protestors further inflaming regional suspicions that the U.S. was up to its old habits of interventionism in the region. While the Bush Administration course-corrected in its later years, the perception and lingering suspicion remained. For many, inside and outside the United States, the election of President Barack Obama was an opportunity to reset the relationship. But politics in the region had changed too much. A new generation of populist presidents in Venezuela, Ecuador and Bolivia, the so-called ALBA alliance, (largely as a means to assert their own sovereignty) refused to let the old suspicions die. At the same time, concerns about their intentions, within their own countries and outside of it, remained, irrespective of the party in the White House. President Obama and his Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, did bring a new tone that helped smooth over relations, especially with the other countries in the hemisphere, but there was no going back to the days of regional consensus and partnership with the United States that had marked relations under President Bush (father) and President Clinton (husband). In the early years of the administration, Clinton tried. She travelled with President Obama to the Summit of the Americas in April 2009 in Trinidad and Tobago and went to the Organization of American States (OAS) General Assembly in June the same year. But these high-level efforts did not reward her efforts, nor did the subsequent trip to the Summit of the Americas in Colombia last year. Chavez and several other countries friendly to his project turned these into platforms to embarrass the United States rather than focus on concrete problems such as security and development that were on the agendas. Most of the real work on issues near and dear to her heart was done on her bilateral trips. It was Secretary Clintons personal interest and dedication to development and social inclusion that drove her engagement in much of the region and will differentiate her foreign policy from any future tenure under Senator Kerry. Since her time as First Lady, Secretary Clinton has shown a deep commitment to health, womens rights and economic empowerment issues. Development issues became a centerpiece of her visits whether it was women's leadership in Peru, economic empowerment in Colombia and of course Haiti, which she visited four times. Her commitment to social inclusion also led to the creation of a social inclusion division within the Western Hemisphere Bureau. In contrast, Senator Kerry has shown little interest in the sorts of development issues that would make him look south. While on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and in his capacity as a special emissary for the Obama administration, his focus has been on the traditional areas and themes of U.S. foreign policy, the Middle East, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and China. None of this is to say that, should he become Secretary of State, Senator Kerry will ignore the region nor that he wont bring special skills that are relevant to the hemisphere. For one, it is quite likely that several crises in the region will force him to become involved, among them the challenge of narcotics trafficking and security in Mexico and Central America, the complex political transition in the midst of high levels of polarization in Venezuela, and the process of change in Cuba coming in part from the possible (though never certain) death of Fidel Castro (who is 86) and/or Raul (who is 81). For another, the prism of development may not be the most appropriate approach to a changed region. The existence of the Venezuela-led ALBA countries and the economic and diplomatic rise of Brazil could well benefit from diplomatic tools and approaches from other regions. The question then is: Given all the pressing issues on any secretary of states agenda, when and why he will he need to look south? The massacre of the youngsters of Sandy Hook Elementary School was a kick in the guts. Coming on the cusp of Christmas, just as families were gathering for the holiday, the mindless slaughter in Newtown Connecticut filled us with fear, outrage and the determination to do something to change Americas culture of violence. Suddenly nothing else matters nearly as much as gun control; not the fiscal cliff, the deal ceiling, not Hurricane Sandy, Benghazi-gate, not Afghanistan, Syria, nor the presidents new cabinet, nothing. The fickle spotlight of public attention has fastened for this second on guns and what if anything the nation will do about gun violence. It is crazy that a growing percentage of all the people so mistrust their own government that they want to keep arsenals of military-style assault weapons. Geraldo Seizing the moment, long-ignored gun control advocates mobilized; even as the stunned firearms industry and its reliable acolytes at the NRA, the Gun Owners of America and similar groups struggled initially to find an appropriate response to the obscene bloodshed. Stunned, if not embarrassed into silence by that widespread anguish, the powerful pro-gun lobby eventually rallied. Deciding the best defense was a good offense, it dug out its traditionally irresistible arguments against any new gun restrictions. Marching under the banner of the broadest possible interpretation of the Second Amendments right to keep and bear arms, within two weeks, the pro-gun lobby resumed its arrogant swagger. Guns dont kill people, people kill people. The only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is with a good guy with a gun. Even reforms as benign as mandatory criminal and mental health background checks for all gun purchasers were soon being condemned as harbingers of government confiscation of lawful firearms. The tactic is tried and true. Whenever outrage builds for enhanced gun control, whether following the mass shooting at Virginia Tech or that involving Arizona congresswoman Gabby Giffords two years ago in Tucson, last summers bloodletting at the Aurora Colorado movie theater or the Milwaukee-area Sikh temple, the gun lobby has adroitly managed to weather the first rush of outrage and soon bounce back, confident that outside the big cities, most Americans dont care much about limiting access to guns. If we did, there wouldnt be almost 300 million weapons in private hands. But what became clear once the holiday ended was that this time is different. The searing memory of the deaths of the innocent first-graders killed as their teachers and principal gave their lives trying to protect them did not fade. For the first time in a generation, Washington remains focused on moderating our promiscuous indifference to gun violence. Vice President Joe Biden has been meeting the various interest groups and the hope is they will soon hammer out some modest reform; maybe making school violence a specific federal crime but it will be a tough. My fear isnt the fight, which is worthy and overdue. My fear is that the righteous battle over gun control, which disproportionately affects the Latino community, will distract from the presidents promise about comprehensive immigration reform in this first year of the second term. True, he has been exceptionally kind to the immigrant community in recent months in contrast to his harsh, early if-you-catch-them-deport-them days as president. Whatever his reasons, Mr. Obama should be congratulated for making it easier now for immigrant families to remain together and so forth. But now the president must memorialize his commitment of reform to the immigrant community, the legal half of which voted for him overwhelmingly in November guaranteeing him the White House. It is not unreasonable to hope he wont forget the Americans who helped him keep the job. By all means stay the course on gun control. All of us understand its urgent necessity. It is crazy that a growing percentage of all the people so mistrust their own government that they want to keep arsenals of military-style assault weapons. By all means find a compromise that keeps the country safer and heals the doubts. But forget us not. It was his political will. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez briefly returned to Venezuela on December 8th and demanded that new elections be called should he be incapacitated to inaugurate his new term. Afterwards, he returned to Cuba to undergo a fourth cancer operation. The President has not spoken or written since then, which has aggravated worries about his health. The heirs did not fulfill his last will. The Venezuelan Constitution clearly establishes January 10th, 2013, as the date for taking office and therefore beginning the government period. Chavez was unable to appear before the National Assembly (Congress) as ruled by the law. However, new elections are not programmed for the time being since a particular interpretation issued by the Supreme Court determined that Chavez could be sworn in as soon as he is able to do so, with no determined time frame for his recovery. The judges also refused to name a medical commission to evaluate his medical condition, another regulation included in the Constitution. Although Chavez is still president, he has not been seen, heard or read in the last month. In other words, he is a president unable to act as a president. Andres Canizalez Public authorities in Venezuela are co-opted by Chavez supporters. Before the decision made by the Supreme Court, the countrys National Assembly reached an agreement which confirmed that the President had been awarded a health permit with no expiration date. Accordingly, Chavez will still be the president of Venezuela, even though his health condition is unknown. The countrys Supreme Court refused to call upon the mechanisms described in the Constitution for temporary absences of the head of state, which would have implied an intern presidency of the current president of parliament, Diosdado Cabello. According to this rule, new elections should be organized after 180 continuous days of temporary absence. Anticipating this particular scenario, Chavez appointed Nicolas Maduro as his candidate for the new presidential elections in his last television broadcast aired on December 8th. The lack of agreement inside the government party due to divisions between Cabello and Maduro seems to be the main explanation for not complying with Chavezs detailed instructions. The current situation is difficult to grasp even for Venezuelans. There is an elected president, Hugo Chavez, who is supposed to take office in an uncertain moment in the future. In the meantime, Maduro is running the country but he is not ranked as the president since he is still the executive vice president and chancellor. The vice president position is not elected by voters but appointed by the President, which complicates the current situation: if Maduro had accompanied Chavez as his partner selected by votes, he could clearly assume the head of the State. The Constitution establishes that absolute absences from the president after 180 continuous days should be substituted by the president of parliament, because he is the second high-ranked public officer elected by voters. This is not occurring in the moment. For the past 18 months since the cancer was diagnosed Chavez has been absent from the country in several opportunities, but he was very cautious to appear in government functions. Therefore, he exercised the presidency of Venezuela from Cuba. Although Chavez is still president, he has not been seen, heard or read in the last month. In other words, he is a president unable to act as a president. In the official strategy, the absence and silence of the leader is used to mythologize the figure of Chavez. The main thesis of the government is to tell all Venezuelans: Chavez is you; Chavez is the people. Every political heir is adamant in citing the commander, in remembering anecdotes, in rekindling the sentimental flame saying that Chavez is willing to give his life for the poorest. I had the distinct privilege last month of serving on a panel with Adm. Thad Allen, a senior vice president at Booz Allen Hamilton and the former commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, and acting Customs and Border Protection Chief Operating Officer Tom Winkowski. The forum, entitled Strategies for Border Management in a Globalized, Networked Environment," was hosted by the Aspen Institute, a prestigious think tank hosting some of the worlds most prominent scholars and thinkers. Our discussion is available online at Aspens website, but I thought there were some interesting items that Id like to share. Since the event was held in mid-December, the "fiscal cliff" was on everyones minds. Though Congress dealt with the question of taxes in the New Years agreement, the spending issue was punted for several weeks, so the specter of the deep spending cuts of sequestration is still very much alive. Mr. Winkowski assured the audience that CBP, the agency that oversees freight and people coming across our borders, was assessing its options under a possible sequester and that border security would remain robust. Adm. Allen pointed out, however, that even if in the near term we dodge sequestration, the countrys long-term debt situation will not allow for business as usual and that all agencies, including border security agencies, will continue to operate in an environment of uncertainty. I believe theyre both right. CBP employs some of the finest men and women in the federal government. Deputy Commissioner David Aguilar and his team at CBP will devise creative strategies to ensure our borders remain secure should they be faced with big spending cuts. But Adm. Allens point cant be discounted. Our federal government, with its over $16 trillion debt wont be able to fund expansive bureaucracies and ever-expanding social insurance programs forever without some serious changes. A new way of doing business is in order. This led the panel discussion to public-private partnerships. I believe that in order to manage our borders and the billions in commerce that cross through our ports of entry each year, we must begin to investigate seriously new ways of funding the requisite staff and infrastructure that can keep pace with growing trade flows, which I am hopeful will spike when this soft economy is a thing of the past. The private sector, local municipalities and state governments have a role to play here. In California, for example, leaders in Imperial County are mulling a plan that would bring private investment to the table to fund an expansion of the Calexico West port of entry. As Imperial Countys intergovernmental relations director Bob Ham told the Imperial Valley Press, The only way that we are going to get this port of entry done is if we take the bull by the horns, find our own financing and do it ourselves. Unfortunately, current federal law is murky when it comes to these P3 projects. But legislation in the last Congress would have made them possible, and we remain hopeful that 2013 will have good things in store for border communities looking to positively affect their local ports infrastructure. Finally, a note about Mexicos new administration. I was heartened to hear Mr. Winkowski speak in high regard for President Enrique Pena Nieto. We both agree that the new president understands the need for security but that he also clearly recognizes our shared borders importance to both of our countries economic health. I will be visiting with officials from Mexicos customs service and newly appointed team members within the administration later this month, and I am confident that we will encounter professionals committed to secure and efficient trade flows. I applaud the Aspen Institute for their willingness to focus on issues that dont always earn big headlines but that are critical to our security and our overall economic competitiveness. I hope more of Washingtons idea factories will begin to contemplate border management and its implications for our country. A new travel law in Cuba allowing Cubans to travel abroad without an exit visa or a foreign invitation goes into effect Monday, allowing people on the island to travel to and from the United States and potentially establish residency here. At its core, the overhaul of Cuba's decades-old migratory law, announced three months ago, eliminates the much-detested exit visa known as the "white card" and is perhaps the most highly anticipated of a series of reforms initiated under President Raul Castro. But travelers will still need a visa to travel to almost every country in the world. The Cuban government has listed 15 countries in which Cubans are allowed to travel to without a visa: Hungary, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Slovakia, Barbados, Liechtenstein, Malasia, Granada, Saint Cristobal and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Moldavia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. It will create more of a revolving door instead of an escape hatch. Ted Henken, a professor of Latin American studies at Baruch College in New York The new rules also raise from 11 to 24 months the amount of time Cubans can be gone without losing residency rights. That will make it easier for people to work or study abroad longer while maintaining ties to the island, potentially sending money to relatives or even returning with hard-currency earnings to invest in newly legalized small businesses or cooperatives. The law also has implications for U.S. diplomatic relations with the island -- Cubans who reach American soil get to stay and usually gain U.S. residency within a grants them residency within a year. The Cuban law's two-year window means there will be a one-year overlap during which immigrants can establish U.S. residency without losing their right of return, potentially spawning a new class of Cuban binationals able to move back and forth seamlessly between the two countries. The stated aim of the United States' Cuban Adjustment Act is to provide refuge for those fleeing oppression, not easy citizenship for those who wish to straddle both worlds, and some Cuban-American lawmakers have already talked of revisiting the policy. Observers predict it will result in only a modest initial increase in trips by Cubans, who must still get entry visas to travel to most countries, including the United States. And critics note that the law includes a "national security" clause that could be used to bar exits by government opponents, skilled workers and those privy to sensitive information. "The immigration reform is no different from all the others," Cuban dissident Berta Soler, leader of the opposition movement knows as Ladies in White said to AFP. "There will always be some filter. In the end, the government will choose who can or cannot exit the country." But if applied evenhandedly, the opening would eliminate one of the biggest human rights criticisms leveled against a country that has long controlled who can leave, leading opponents to call Cuba an island prison. "What's important about it is people see this as a symbolic step of some importance more than a substantive one," said Geoff Thale, a Cuba analyst at the Washington Office on Latin America think tank. "It symbolizes the end of the state intruding in the same way it used to in people's regular lives." The new law has a number of concrete provisions that will benefit many Cubans. The measure greatly simplifies travel by scrapping the exit visa, and doing away with the requirement that Cubans provide a letter of invitation from someone in their country of destination. In the past nearly all exit visa applications were granted, and relatively quickly, but the costs were prohibitive to many in this country where wages average $20 a month. Between various application and notarization fees, it ran to $300 or more a trip, and some Cubans paid an additional $200 to $300 to people overseas for invitation letters. Now, islanders need only make a one-time $100 application for a passport, renewable for $20 every two years. "It will create more of a revolving door instead of an escape hatch," said Ted Henken, a professor of Latin American studies at Baruch College in New York. "They're removing another thorn in the crown of thorns that a lot of Cubans have to wear." The migratory law is a PR coup for the Cuban government, which bristles at outside criticism of its human rights record. It also gives Havana ammunition in its crusade against the 50-year U.S. embargo, which bars most Americans from traveling to the island. "Cuba permits its citizens to come travel here. We don't permit our citizens to travel there without a regulatory framework that is probably stricter than what the Cubans are going to adopt," Thale said. "So it does look hypocritical." As with many things in Cuba, the effect of the reform will come down to how it is implemented. A key article gives authorities the right to deny passports in some cases, including people facing criminal investigation, those with outstanding debts or for "reasons of Defense and National Security." The latter provision has widely been interpreted to mean that people in strategic professions, such as military officers, athletes or government figures with access to sensitive information, could be turned down just as they were in the past. One litmus test will be how Cuba handles dissidents, who are officially considered traitors and are routinely denied travel permission. But like many Cubans, 16-year-old Ana Liliam Garcia is excited at the thought of seeing the world beyond this Communist-run island smaller than the state of Pennsylvania. Once an impossibility, today she dreams of meeting several relatives in Florida and maybe even Mickey Mouse. "My cousins and my uncles, they're all in Miami," Garcia said, her eyes lighting up as she talked about a new law taking effect Monday that will let most islanders travel abroad without seeking government permission or paying for costly exit visas. "I would like to see Disneyland in the United States. I'll be able to travel!" The Associated Press contributed to this report. Follow us on twitter.com/foxnewslatino Like us at facebook.com/foxnewslatino It seems to me that everyone is talking: Democrats, Republicans, congressmen, senators, the president, immigration advocates, chambers of commerce; people of different races, religions and colors. Mostly the talk is positive, the line is the same immigration reform is needed and it is needed now. So, the ever-optimist in me says this time it will happen; it has to happen. Although we have gone down this path so many times before, and somehow it has never worked out, I am truly hoping for the sake of America that an agreement is reached that is embraced by the majority of the constituencies. It will serve us all very well to ensure that all that are willing are able to become Americans by choice, even if the process is long and hard as it surely will be. Rosario Marin, Former U.S. Treasurer In the ugly process of law-making, there is no perfect law, no perfect outcome; but an agreement can be fashioned so that the majority gets a little of what they had hoped. While I want to remain positive, experience has shown me that reaching that kind of agreement will not be easy. Not everyone will get everything they want and some will get nothing they want. But just because we will never reach Utopia, it doesnt mean we shouldnt love earth. We have more than two decades of trying to get this right and we havent. Both Democrats and Republicans have utilized this issue to benefit themselves. We dont have to go far to see that when the last real attempt at immigration reform during President George W. Bush was moving forward and came ever so close to become law, it was then Senator Barack Obama and Senator Harry Reid that stopped it. Needless to say, for the last four years there has not even been a single piece of legislation on immigration reform offered by the president of Senator Reid and yet in the most ironic of ways, it has been the Republicans that got branded as being against immigration reform. Go figure. I am not blind to the awful rhetoric that was being used by the Republicans, but it was a trick they walked ever so willingly into, for there was not even a piece of true immigration reform. The executive order the president advanced at the last minute before his reelection to secure the Hispanic vote only delayed the deportation of young people who came here through no fault of their own. That order is hardly the answer to all the prayers of the 12 million people who desperately need to have their stay regularized. But the president succeeded in making a band aid look like major surgery. Immigration reform is on the minds of many people and many good-hearted Americans understand that the greatest country in the world must continue to live up to its remarkable legacy of equality of opportunity. In this great country there are no first-class and second-class citizens, only American citizens. It will serve us all very well to ensure that all that are willing are able to become Americans by choice, even if the process is long and hard as it surely will be. The Obama administration has ignored the very serious issues that threaten our national security in the Western Hemisphere for the past four years. The violations of human rights, constitutional order, suppression of democracy and increased relations with some of the most vile dictators in the world by the rogue regimes of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, the Castro brothers in Cuba, and Ecuador President Rafael Correa stands in direct opposition to the ideals of the American people. One cannot detract from the ongoing crises facing the Middle East or growing concerns in North Africa, but this administration must realize that ignoring what is happening in our own hemisphere will only encourage other rogue regimes to increase their presence in Latin America and, in turn, threaten our national security and economic well-being. This administration has made clear that Latin America and the Caribbean are an afterthought by failing to take a proactive leadership role in the region and increase cooperation with responsible democratic nations. This lack of leadership and attention to the region has allowed the likes of Iran and Syria to take a much more active role in the region, not only in a diplomatic and economic capacity, but also by creating a foothold for extremist organizations that openly target Americans and U.S. interests. The Obama administration must end its failed Latin American policies and seriously address the issues that the U.S. faces before its too late. The administrations approach of appeasement and engagement with brutal dictatorships in Cuba and Venezuela has only emboldened their abuse and suppression of democracy and human rights. In Cuba, the administration has eased restrictions on travel and remittances as political detentions by the Castros forces dramatically rose in 2012 and will likely increase again in 2013. The Castro regimes thugs have taken it a step further by brutally beating members of human rights opposition groups like the Ladies in White, and subjecting political prisoners to the most inhumane and unsanitary conditions imaginable. These savage tactics have been the same playbook for Fidels protege in Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, where human rights and freedom of speech are under siege. For example, a constitutional crisis has ensued due to Chavez remaining in a Cuban hospital and unable to attend the inauguration on January 10 as mandated by the Venezuelan Constitution. The administration should seize this opportunity to demand freedom and transparency for the Venezuelan people, and not succumb to Chavezs ploys to maintain power. It would be naive to think that engaging a Chavista regime that openly facilitates the illicit narcotics trade, assists the Iranian and Syrian regimes and is a gross human rights violator will yield positive results. Another extremely troubling issue has been the administrations failure to adequately address Irans expansion into the Western Hemisphere. Over the last few years Tehran has increased its subversive actions and diplomatic and economic relations with radical regimes in Latin America. Last year, Ahmadinejad made two visits to the region in an attempt to gain support from like-minded tyrants, such as the Castros in Cuba, Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua, Correa in Ecuador, Chavez in Venezuela, and Evo Morales in Bolivia. The administration has failed to produce sensible, effective policies to counter Irans influence in Latin America. We cannot allow the Iranian regime to parade around the region in direct defiance of responsible democracies in the region, exporting hate and violence to the brutal tyrannies of Venezuela, Cuba, and others in the region who seeks to subvert American ideals and suppress their populations. However, these actions, or inactions, are not limited to a few countries in the region. In Nicaragua, Ecuador, and Bolivia, the administration has extended the proverbial olive branch only to see no forthcoming changes in these establishments repressive and coercive policies. The harsh truth is that these despots would do anything to maintain their grip on power and will use any means at their disposal to do so. The administration must finally see the truth that these regimes will continue their nefarious ways as long as President Obama and his advisors fail to stand up to these dictators. These failures by the administration will not stay in the Western Hemisphere. For every brutal act President Obama ignores, for every human right that is denied, the rest of the world will be watching and taking note. The failure to address these very real issues in our region will only embolden regimes elsewhere and diminish our standing abroad. It is our duty to provide strong leadership that will support our allies, defend our interests, and ensure that human rights and freedom are being respected. These goals can only be achieved through true democratic reforms and responsible rule of law and not through the appeasement of sadistic power-hungry tyrants who have held their nations hostage for so long. The nations capital was crowded but with only a fraction of the spectators who in 2009 braved colder temperatures to witness the inauguration of the first African-American president. Back then, the country was weary of two wars and anxious of an economy that was beginning to unravel. This is the political and economic context that explains why changethe slogan of the 2008 Obama campaign became the currency of choice among ordinary citizens. Four years later, I stood in the National Mall to witness President Barack Obama take his second oath. In four years, he led the overhaul of our health care system, instituted more regulation of the financial system, has drawn two wars to a close, and is staying the deportation of millions of illegal immigrant students and military service members the DREAMers. He appointed the first Latina to the Supreme Court Sonia Sotomayor who in another first, administered the oath to the Vice President. Yet in this time frame, so much has not happened: the latest unemployment rate is 7.8 percent, the same as it was in January of 2009, the median household income has dropped while the number of Americans living below the poverty level has risen, according a recent NBC/Wall Street Journal poll. Millions of the undocumented who are not DREAMers live terrified that at any moment their families will be ripped apart since this president didnt keep his promise of comprehensive immigration reform but stepped up deportations. Another characteristic of the presidents first term was the ugly gridlock that slowed down, at times to a grinding halt, the peoples business. Not a trace of it today, as Democrats and Republicans stood side by side, the pomp and circumstance a sign that partisan politics is on hold. But this political truce may soon evaporate, leaving in the lurch so many pressing issues the president touched upon in his Inaugural speech such as gun control, jobs, entitlement reform, climate change and immigration. In at least one respect, tomorrow is different. In November, Latino voters were the key in the coalition that delivered re-election to the President Obama. Whether celebrities walking the Latino Inaugural Ball red carpet like Eva Longoria or the waiters inside the Kennedy Center, the feeling the last few days among Hispanics is not that we have arrived (in fact, many noted that in the Southwest, Latinos have been here before it was the United States). Rather, after our historic vote, the consensus is that our time is now. But shaping our now and our future requires a daily commitment of political and civic participation that will send a clear message to our leaders to set aside ideology and party to negotiate, stand firm, at times compromise, ultimately vote for issues that will make our country more prosperous and secure. The president is being tasked with leading our country to a better tomorrow. It is up to all of us, especially a new emerging political voting bloc, to hold him accountable. The work, our work begins. It's really hard to convince someone to do something for somebody elseespecially if you don't know very much about who they are. It's kind of like the way that President Barack Obama has shown he knows very little about Hispanic-Americans. So when I went went to American Heritage High School in Plantation, Fla., to ask students about the social policy priorities of Obama's second term, I wasn't surprised by their responses. The "personal priorities" of these 17-year-olds from affluent families attending a prep school in South Florida were somewhat predictable. These put climate change and gay rights at the top of the list by a whopping 35 and 30 percent, respectively. What's more interesting is that they put gun control as number three. But then I turned the question around on them. I asked, "Forget about what you want and tell me what what you think the president should do strategically." Let me pause here for some reflection. First, on gun control. It's a red-hot issue, but it's also red meat for the base. That means if President Obama moves in a heavy-handed way to severely restrict gun rights in any way, the backlash will be swift, furious and, from a political perspective, completely unnecessary. Even if successful, an Obama win on gun control will give the NRA the sympathy it craves and the power to make life a living hell for the Democrats. Remember what the health care lobby did post Obamacare? Exactly. Now let's move on to gay rights, or more specifically, same sex marriage. It is very much an issue where the president has collected enormous amounts of political capital for a variety of reasons, including coming out in support of same sex couples' right to marry in May of last year and now becoming the first president to mention gays in an inaugural speech and bring the matter front and center. Obama presently owns the issue, and it's not like the LGBT community is looking for an excuse to vote Republican. So why make waves? In the end, this is one that will be decided by the courts, not the White House. And the president would be smart to not interfere. Number three is climate change. Going to battle with Congress on this issue would be extremely messy. That's why even environmental advocacy groups are telling the president to steer clear of turning this into a political hot potato. Eric Pooley, senior vice president of the Environmental Defense Fund, is admitting that this is not a year one priority, warning supporters that "serious climate legislation isn't in the cards this year." That leaves us with comprehensive immigration reform, which with each passing day appears more and more possible. The headline in Wednesday's Washington Post that elicited a multitude of collective "wows" from my colleagues around the country said it all: "Poll: Most back path to citizenship for illegal immigrants as Republican opposition declines." The story goes on to say that more than 6 in 10 Americans now favor allowing undocumented immigrants to eventually become U.S. citizens, according to a new Associated Press-GfK poll. The story also points out that the major increase in support is driven by a turnaround in Republicans opinions after the 2012 elections. Which brings us back to my students when asked what the President should do strategically. These 17-year olds were able to put aside their own personal wants and needs and choose rationally what makes the most sense for the country. An overwhelming majority--62 percent--said the president should push first and foremost for comprehensive immigration reform that creates a pathway to citizenship for the the 6 to 10 million Latinos who are presently living in the shadows. Let's hope the president takes on an issue that even 11th graders prioritize. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta lifted the ban on women serving in combat. The president applauded the seminal event; pairing it with another recent landmark -- the repeal of the ban on gays in the military. Today, every American can be proud that our military will grow even stronger, with our mothers, wives, sisters and daughters playing a greater role in protecting this country we love, President Obama said. The move will open more than 230,000 frontline combat positions to women, with emphasis on Army and Marine infantry units. And there is overwhelming support for integrating the combat military. Aside from the issue of fairness, it makes sense. The biggest reason the West still trumps the East is that we have freed women and they have not. As in American society, women already hold key jobs in many areas of the U.S. Armed Forces. The truth of the presidents remark noted, however, if I am not hugely mistaken, the confluence of those two events: Gays in the military and women in combat will provide plenty of fodder for Comedy Central and Saturday Night Live skits and one-liners. Right-wing talk radio will make it a metaphor and feast on the gag. Stereotypes aside, those with experience in war already know that women can handle combat. Over the last forty years, scores of combat assignments and long dusty roads, Ive run into many women warriors and watched as they drove everything from Jeeps to jets, not to mention some of the best and bravest of our correspondents. I remember in November 2001 outside the northern Afghan town of Kunduz running into an Alliance commander who shared with us that he had been in radio communication with the pilot of the AC-!30 gunship that had just chopped up the Taliban corpses we were looking at. Informing us the pilot was a woman, the commander said: That was one angry lady. Before I get to why its not a slam-dunk happy story, let me pass along some of the near universal positive reviews, especially from our 22,700 Latinas who make up over 10% of the women in the military. Our Bryan Llenas interviewed Consuelo Castillo Kickusch for Fox News Latino. The woman who had been the highest ranking Latina in combat support at the time of her retirement told Bryan: Latinas will excel, they will rise, and they will succeed, the Mexican American said. Latinas in the barrio are tough women. Many of us have had to deal with a lot of things. That is so, but is the nation ready for substantially more female casualties? How about prisoners-of-war? But thats not even the bad news. Men are men and women are women and if you think this move will not result in a huge upswing in domestic crises within our already stressed military families, then you're being short-sighted. As it is now, the soldier goes overseas for a year. Hes in his early twenties, so is she, maybe she's already a mom or pregnant and theyre apart. Now you add a whole lot more ladies into the mix and even Israeli security could not keep them apart. Olga Custodio, the first Latina USAF pilot told our colleague Bryan Llenas that the peril of sexual attraction is over-rated: Sexual tension, my God. Youre at war. If you are disciplined enough to fight and hold a gun you have to be disciplined enough to control yourself. That is probably true for many soldiers. However, having squatted in forward operating bases around the world, there is lots of intimacy. Going co-ed in a position that is way forward will add challenges to an already challenging environment. Im sure the military will sort it out. The hard part will be putting all those young people together under often exigent circumstance, and keeping them apart. The wife of Brigadier General Jeffrey Sinclair who is facing adultery and sex charges described infidelity as a war wound. Rebecca Sinclair added: Im not looking to excuse the behaviorWhat Im trying to say that I can see how it happens. I am an immigrant. I am Mexican-American. I should be a Republican. But most Latinos are not Republicans and three-quarters of those who voted in the last presidential election decided to favor President Obama. As our president embarks on his second term and Congress is expected to tackle immigration reform, Republicans should consider the many issues in modern politics that make Latinos open to persuasion to conservative arguments. A few of these issues include the role of government, worry about debt, taxation, and the role of tradition and religion in public life. Republicans, we are here. We dont hate you. Stop repeating talk points and actually get to know us enough so that you can sell your ideas to us Marta Martinez As an immigrant, it is for me a constant source of amusement that many Americans complain about their government with a passion usually reserved in the rest of the world for hard core dictators. Although we may not be as vocal, we get it. Big government is inefficient. Many of us have experienced first-hand or through our relatives corrupt governments full of employees that at best did nothing and at worst made the lives of individuals and businesses more difficult. We know government needs to keep in check and modified to be better. However, most of us are looking to make government not only smaller, but smarter. Many Americans worry about becoming Greece; we have lived Greece. Or worse, we lived in Latin America during the 1980s. Many of us are here because the economies in our native countries collapsed spectacularly and we were unable to find jobs and opportunities there. As governments in our countries grew, they kept borrowing and spending with corrupt schemes until the whole system became unsustainable. Most of us worry about the debt ceiling and the deficit. We are open to the virtues of balanced budgets and making government spending a real investment in the future. Although we do not have a philosophical opposition to taxes, we very much dislike paying them ourselves. Taxes are better on thy neighbor. And despite all those theories about taxes and motivation, most of us would prefer to be richer even if it meant paying higher taxes. Latinos are not choosing to have a lower median income than whites to avoid taxation. Help us become wealthier. Lets start with immigration reform. Let our family members negotiate higher salaries without the fear of being asked for a Social Security card or being deported. Markets do not work their best with fear. People take lower salaries and substandard working conditions not because they dont know better, but because they feel vulnerable or they dont have a choice. An immigration reform that puts all workers on equal footing will make the labor market fairer for everybody in America. At the core, many Latinos are social conservatives, with families at the center of our lives, both personally and politically. We worry that our children are losing their bearings in a materialistic and individualistic world. We value the celebration and maintenance of traditions and do not see the need to hide our religious beliefs in public life. Abortion makes us uneasy, although only the most radicals amongst us, in particular celibate priests, do not think the pill is a great invention. And yet, despite all of these common values and fears, we voted overwhelmingly to re-elect President Obama and are considered by many a solid Democratic bloc. As true conservatives, our families and our communities come first. I, and many like me, could not get ourselves to vote for a candidate and a party that would make life for our families and neighbors more difficult. We have already spent money on the education of undocumented youth and we use the services of their parents every time we go out to eat. Should we not make sure that society gets the maximum benefits from their presence? Yes, those 11 million people broke the law by crossing a border without permission or overstaying their visas. If you were in their situation, were the choice would be to commit a victimless crime or see your family go hungry, wouldnt you do the same? No matter how these people, our people, made it here, they are a reality that cant be ignored. As the prospect of a massive immigration reform that may include a path to citizenship for 11 million immigrants, around 80 percent of them Latinos, Republicans in the House and Senate may be asking themselves why vote to make citizens individuals that are likely to increase the ranks of their adversaries. But ethnicity is not political destiny. Politicians of any party cant afford to ignore us and should try to find common ground with us. Republicans, we are here. We dont hate you. Stop repeating talk points and actually get to know us enough so that you can sell your ideas to us. Give every Latino citizen and 11 million more people a political choice. Who knows, you may learn a thing or two about being conservative from us. President Obamas second term is officially underway, but one of his top priorities for his second term was made apparent well before he took the oath of office. Because of a confluence of tragic events, the president made clear that guns and gun ownership would be in the spotlight. This is not a column about gun control. Other commentators have already said plenty about that subject and its a topic that will continue to use up plenty of ink. But I do want to touch on the connection between guns in America and our proximity to Mexico and cartel violence in that country. Illegal firearms trafficking requires a lot of U.S. inspection resources devoted to preventing the illegal export of guns and ammo, but like all government resources, theyre finite. In March 2009, Customs and Border Protection stood up its Outbound Programs Division in the Office of Field Operations. As then Commissioner Alan Bersin said in testimony provided before the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control in March 2011, the division is focused on stemming the flow of firearms, currency, stolen vehicles, and fugitives out of the United States. This is no small job. In fiscal year 2010, CBP seized more than 1,900 southbound weapons. According to the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, from January 1, 2010 to October 5, 2010, a total of 5,329 weapons seized in Mexico were traced using ATFs firearms tracing system, known as eTrace. During the same period, the Mexican Defense Ministry reported approximately 16,000 weapons recovered throughout Mexico. In June 2011, the same senators who received testimony from then-Commissioner Bersin released the report Halting U.S. Firearms Trafficking to Mexico, which contained recommendations on how to stem the tide of illegal gun trafficking that had aided cartel violence south of the border. Recommendations included expanding Mexican law enforcements access to the ATF eTrace system, to requiring background checks at gun shows so as to aid in ATFs ability to track guns used in crimes in Mexico. The outbound inspection efforts undertaken by CBP are to be applauded. The agencys work to ensure that contraband doesnt end up at a crime scene in Mexico is a huge reason why our relationship with Mexico remains strong. But still, the calls from the Mexican government over U.S. gun control policies are not lessening. The Mexican government has lamented the expiration of the U.S. assault weapons ban since 2004. In an event in Ciudad Juarez last year, then-Mexican President Felipe Calderon held a press conference in front of a huge sign that read No More Weapons; the sign was made of decommissioned arms. But CBP can only do so much. And its resources could be diminished just as the demands on the agency continue to grow. On one hand, trade flows into the U.S. continue to increase and will hopefully continue to do so as Americans buying power expands as the economy recovers. On the other hand, the debate over sweeping government-wide spending cuts is about to hit a crescendo. If some solution isnt found, then government agencies like CBP will be forced to make tough decisions about how to deploy their limited resources, and inbound inspection efforts could win out over the southbound side. Every CBP officer inspecting outbound freight is one that is not assigned to the inbound lanes to help alleviate the long lines that have come to characterize the ports along the U.S.-Canada and U.S.-Mexico borders. As I travel across our southwest border I am often asked why CBP is conducting inspections that Mexican Customs should be performing. It is more than just guns and cash they are looking for, but it may be time for Mexico to conduct these inspections on their own soil or for the U.S. to look for increased opportunities to partner with state and local law enforcement to do the job while ensuring that legitimate southbound trade and travel flows arent needlessly interrupted. Mexico needs to take a hard look at its expectations. Both countries want to prevent arms smuggling. But the U.S. alone cannot prevent the passage of every illegal gun into Mexico. Mexican law enforcement must play an increasingly active role in de-arming its cartels. No matter the outcome of the gun control debate in the U.S., Mexico must recognize that CBP and ATF are being forced to do more with less. Even though I have been a U.S. Citizen for decades, I waited with anticipation the President's speech on immigration reform. I was looking for a genuine desire to solve one of the most important problems facing our nation. While the President emphasized the fact that his principles for immigration reform mirror those of the bipartisan Senate working group, I was struck by a few comments he made and some that were left out. A huge concern I have is that he was silent on a guest worker program (...) If in fact he is looking for a comprehensive reform, that is an item that must be included Rosario Marin, Former U.S. Treasurer First of all, his demand that Congress act expeditiously on this policy issue only underscores his own failure to address the issue for almost five years. I would rather have Congress achieve the right reform, than reach a quick but careless solution. Some of his comments, far from getting Congress to come along, sounded more like a scolding. Furthermore, his bravado was more a display of pandering to the faithful than extending a hand to those who could oppose him. What was he thinking? It led me to question whether he truly wants reform, or just wants to score political points. I have been involved in the political process long enough to recognize how difficult the task is. One has to walk ever so gingerly to reach the desired outcome because even little things could blow up a carefully drawn compromise. His comment that unless Congress deals with it quickly, or else he will send in a bill and demand that they vote on it, was more upmanship than leadership. He knows full well that he has no power to send a bill to Congress and he has no power to schedule a vote; that power belongs to the speaker of the house. Again, it just was a good sound bite but nothing else. A huge concern I have is that he was silent on a guest worker program and nothing in his documents talks about the need to have such a program in place. If in fact he is looking for a comprehensive reform, that is an item that must be included. On the other hand we have Republican congressman Lou Barletta, who obviously did not read a sensitivity memo widely distributed last week that gave pointers to Republican congressmen when talking about immigration reform. Sadly, his comments only showed his lack of understanding of the Hispanic community and why Republicans have failed to garner more of their votes. I was dismayed by the ignorance he showed stating that most undocumented immigrants are uneducated, government-dependent individuals who would not support the party. Let me be clear: undocumented immigrants dont vote but their children, grandchildren and relatives DO and they are U.S. citizens who are doctors, lawyers, businessmen and women! That he is unable to understand this basic fact only shows how far we have to go to educate the highly educated congressman. According to the U.S. Census there are 50 million people of Hispanic descent living in the U.S.; only 11 million are undocumented. And while a significant number are still under the age of 18, the number of Hispanic voters continues to grow on a yearly basis. This is just simple math, Congressman Barletta. Needless to say, achieving immigration reform is going to be very difficult. We have challenges from the left and the right, from the President who is beholden to the unions to the Congress and yet we have eight senators, Democrats and Republicans, who are risking tremendous political capital to achieve real reform. While I may be disappointed by some comments from the liberals and conservatives, I am not discouraged. I believe wholeheartedly that in spite of all this rhetoric, a compromise will be reached and the greatest country in the world will be better by it. Despite all the spin, Mitt Romney's blistering defeat in November wasn't just his defeat. It was a defeat for the entire GOP. More than that, it was a defeat and a rejection of bankrupt ideas and their positions on a host of issues, chief among them immigration. In the days and weeks that followed, we heard a lot about the GOP having to do some "soul- searching," that they needed to figure out how to reach out to minorities, that they had to "rethink" their stance on immigration. Republicans are still captive to the likes of Sheriff Joe, Jan Brewer, David Vitter and Jeff Sessions, and afraid of a Tea Party backlash Rick Sanchez It seemed Republicans had hit rock bottom. Yet three months later, the Republicans haven't done much soul-searching and they're not making the changes needed in order to survive as a relevant 21st century political party. Why? The Republicans still haven't hit rock bottom. They still have their enablers telling them to stay the course, and they have ideological fundamentalists on the far right pulling them back from change, from compromise, from progress. Did Romney receiving only 27 percent of the Latino vote (17 points less than President Bush, and 7 points less than candidate McCain) not send the message clearly enough that the GOP is going in the wrong direction? No. The Republicans still have more to lose more they must lose before they are faced with the reality that they have a problem. A few days ago, The New York Times ran a story, "House Group Works to Present its Own Immigration Plan," that described how a super top-secret, clandestinely-selected bipartisan group of congressmen have been meeting secretly for four years to solve our nation's immigration issues. The article named the Democrats, but only guessed which Republicans might be meeting in the tree house with their secret decoder rings. Two things struck me: firstly, four years and still no progress? And secondly, why all the secrecy? Why couldn't the Republicans be named? Are they too ashamed to be seen as trying to compromise, or simply too afraid of the backlash? Why weren't these Republicans being lauded as heroes, as visionaries, working to rebuild their party from November's ashes instead of hiding in the shadows like pariahs? Because the Republicans haven't hit rock bottom. Members of the group are apparently forbidden from speaking to reporters about their secret agenda. And even the Democrats in this secret group have remained mum to apparently not shame their Republican compadres. Heaven forbid they should be found to be discussing immigration reform with the enemy. It all seems strange for a party trying to rebuild and reach out to Hispanics. Instead of leaked stories in The New York Times, one would think Republicans would be holding news conferences talking about how they "get it" and are working hard with Democrats to fix the country's immigration issue. But they can't and they won't, because despite November's thumping, the inmates are still running the asylum. Republicans are still captive to the likes of Sheriff Joe, Jan Brewer, David Vitter and Jeff Sessions, and afraid of a Tea Party backlash. But wait the story gets better (or worse, depending on your perspective). A recent Los Angeles Times article that read a bit like a Tom Clancy novel recounted how Illinois Senator Dick Durbin, a Democrat, met Florida Senator Marco Rubio, a Republican, at the Senate gym in the wee hours of the morning to ask him to work on immigration reform. Durbin spotted Rubio on the stationary bike and approached him: "Marco, you got to be there," Durbin said. "I want you there because of your position in the party." I imagine this conversation in whispers, with Durbin perhaps passing Rubio a note in invisible ink. Or maybe handing him a self-destructing taped message about the mission impossible that is immigration. A Democrat having to ask a Republican to work on immigration? Doesn't sound like a party willing to learn from November's election by working on changing themselves. Why the secrecy? Why a 5:30 am meeting in a gym? More importantly, why does a Hispanic senator have to be coaxed by a Democrat to lead on arguably the most emotional issue for Hispanics in America? And why do Republicans not yet understand the importance of immigration reform to the future of the GOP? Republicans are being dragged by Democrats to the edges of an issue that they should be confronting head on. There should be no guilt, no shame and no fear in supporting immigration reform and in reaching out to Hispanics who, like the majority of Republicans, are pro-family, church-attending, hard-working people who love America. On Tuesday evening, it was announced Senator Marco Rubio would provide the GOPs response to President Obamas State of the Union address next week. No surprise, there Rubio is the GOPs rising star. What sent the Web into a tailspin of commentary: Rubio will present his remarks in both English and Spanish. While the majority of Americans cheer and praise the unique, historic move, criticisms nonetheless abound from both sides of the political aisle. Comments on Twitter range from: the GOPs token Hispanic and its shameless pandering to this prevents Latinos assimilation and (shockingly) Rubio has divided loyalties. Inclusion is simply American and good communication is simply good politics. A.J. Delgado Such criticisms are not only offensive (to both Latinos and non-Latinos) but woefully counterproductive. Consider the following: 1) Spanish is the second-most spoken language in the United States. 2) Nearly 50 million Americans speak Spanish. 3) Over 16 percent of the United States population is Hispanic. 4) Hispanics are the fastest-growing group in the nation. 5) In the 2012 presidential election, both candidates produced Spanish language ads. 6) Mitt Romney earned only 27 percent the Hispanic vote. With these statistics in mind, how is Rubios Spanish-language address anything but a terrific idea, not only for the GOP but simply on a universal level, a welcoming-embrace of our national diversity? If a rising political star in either political party speaks fluent Spanish, the question should not be Why is he delivering remarks in both English and Spanish? but rather Why isnt he? As for the Youre in America, speak English! usual cry, many fail to realize that English is one of the most difficult languages, from a linguistic standpoint, to learn, particularly in adulthood. The assumption that some Latinos do not speak fluent English simply because they have not made the effort is both false and lacks compassion. Take, for example, Josie. She emigrated from Guatemala 15 years ago as an adult. A hard-working, taxpaying hairstylist with a deep love for this country, one is hard-pressed to find a greater patriot. But Josies English is limited despite taking a course, she has trouble with the language structure. Although she is interested in becoming more cognizant of the political debate in America, and to ensure a strong nation for her son, her lack of English fluency often limits her participation. Yet how did Josie receive the news of Rubios Spanish-language address? Her DVR is already set. Or how about 16-year-old Alex? A high school student born in America, his English is perfect. His Cuban abuelitas, however, is not. This is the first time they can sit, watch, and discuss a major address together where the speakers voice is not clouded by a network translator. Even for those millions of Latinos who are bilingual, many are nonetheless more comfortable in their native language. Whats the harm in communicating to them in the most effective way possible? All should applaud this historic move inclusion is simply Americanand good communication is simply good politics. So to Rubio, using a word we can all understand, I say: Bravo. The White House announced Thursday that First Lady Michelle Obama will be traveling to Chicago to attend the funeral of Hadiya Pendleton, the 15-year old majorette shot in the back and killed just two weeks after performing with her high school band at President Obamas second inauguration. The visit by Mrs. Obama comes after many local residents implored the president to come home to Chicago to help quell the horrific gun violence that is raging less than a mile north of the current Obama family home and not far from the familys previous home in the Kenwood neighborhood of the Windy City. A petition was posted on the White Houses We the People website calling on the First Family to attend the funeral. Many of the petitioners asked why the cry for gun control only becomes impassioned when white kids are shot. We lost a classroom full of children in Connecticut which sparked national outrage that needs to be translated into action, but in Chicago, we sometimes lose a dozen or more young people every weekend, said Luis Gutierrez, who represents Chicago in Congress. It is not only the broader population which suffers from selective outrage when it comes to gun violence. Remember how you felt when black 17-year old Trayvon Martin was shot dead by Latino vigilante George Zimmerman near Orlando Florida a year ago. Then, their passion fueled by the feeling that Trayvons slaying was race-based, tens of thousands marched in Sanford Florida and in communities across the country. When 15-year old Hadiya was killed in Chicago, in a black on black gun crime, barely 150 protestors joined the Reverend Jesse Jackson to march from Martin Luther King Jr. College Prep High School, where Hadiya was a student, to the park where she was shot dead a few blocks away. Unlike Trayvons death, which generated widespread rage and calls for justice, Hadiyas death generated quiet despair and embarrassment that yet another black youngster had been cut down by a black neighbor. Too many bullets and too many guns are killing the next generation and we have got to make it stop, said Rep. Gutierrez. Yes, we do have to make it stop. But the brutal reality is that none of the national legislation so far proposed to reduce gun violence in the wake of the Sandy Hook school and Aurora Colorado movie massacres would have saved either Trayvon Martin or Hadiya Pendleton. Zimmerman was a legal gun owner. Chicago already has the toughest gun laws in the country. Yet Hadiya was the 42nd homicide victim of gun violence this year in Chicago, where killings in 2012 climbed to well over 500. Chicago and similarly murder-plagued cities like New Orleans, Philadelphia and Detroit dont need more gun control. They need criminal control. And New York knows how to do it. Jaws dropped when NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly disclosed recently that in 2012, 96 percent of all shooting victims and 97 percent of all shooting suspects in the city were black or Latino. The other cities mentioned have similar harsh realities. Black kids are killing black kids. And brown kids are killing brown kids. That is why police precincts in cities in which gun violence raises above a certain level must adopt New Yorks Stop-and-frisk policy. I know how irksome it is for minority youngsters to be rousted by cops. Many report that they are stopped regularly in their own neighborhoods. Having lived a large chunk of my life on mean streets in high-crime neighborhoods, I understand their frustration with having cops in their faces. But saving their lives is more important than saving their feelings. What happened in Newtown, Oak Creek, Columbine, Aurora and Tucson is different than what is happening on a daily basis on the streets of Camden, Trenton, New Orleans, Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia and Newark, among other cities. The horrendous massacres by madmen wielding assault weapons require a government response that is clashing with the 2nd Amendment. The remedies being proposed, particularly the crying need for universal criminal background checks deserve serious consideration. But even if adopted, those measures will only marginally affect the urban murder rate. They will not save black kids from other black kids or Latino kids from other Latino kids. That ongoing slaughter on our streets can only be remedied when the police in high gun violence precincts are enabled to stop and frisk anyone they deem to be behaving suspiciously. I know it stinks, but thats life, and life is better than the alternative. Remember Hadiya Pendleton. Really, isnt it time for the Church of Rome to look beyond Europe when it picks the 267th pope? And might it not cast its gaze to Latin America, the most concentrated cluster of Catholics in the world? The answer, sadly, is probably not. The shock announcement of the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI sets up a papal conclave unlike any in living memory. The physical presence of a pope emeritus in the Vatican will undeniably affect how those cardinals who gather in the Sistine Chapel will determine his successor. And, as tempting as it might be for those princes of the church to continue the string of electing non-Italian popes, there will be a powerful wind in the chamber pushing them back toward a safe, noncontroversial choice. This is natural. After the seat-of-his-pants papacy of John Paul II, who crisscrossed the world and helped bring down communism during his 27 years on the Throne of Peter, and the nearly eight years of Benedicts equivocal leadership, who could blame the college of cardinals for sinking back into the calming arms of an Italian, steeped in the traditions and molded in the model of the 20th Century? There is no shortage of non-Italians being bandied about by the instant experts on all things Vatican. And some of them hail from Latin America: The Argentine-born Leonard Sandri was the Vaticans chief of staff in John Pauls final years and knows the Vatican better than some members of the Swiss Guard. However, Sandri is one of those officials who made as many enemies as friends and may be too old for the job. Odilo Pedro Scherer, archbishop of Sao Paolo has struggled to keep that massive archdiocese and indeed, the rest of Brazil in line with the Churchs conservative doctrines. That is not always easy in a country burgeoning in population and economic importance as is Brazil. Oscar Andres Rodriguez Maradiaga, the archbishop of Tegucigalpa, had some buzz around him when he arrived for the 2005 conclave that elected Benedict. But somehow, behind the thick walls of Vatican secrecy, his star faded. Rodriguez is an authority on third-world issues, especially its massive and in some eyes, impossible-to-repay, debt. He is a solid conservative on moral issues, such as same-sex unions and abortion. This may be his time, but his piddling support the last time around is not encouraging. Finally, there is the Catholic Churchs reluctance to rush into anything. The Vatican thinks in centuries, not news cycles. It has been an established institution for 2,000 years, and is not impressed by trends or tabloid headlines. This is the right time for a Latino pope. As a reporter in Mexico, Central and South America twenty years ago, I could feel the age-old adherence to the Church as a teacher seeping away, year by year. Masses were crowded, but the average age of the congregation must have been in the low seventies. A bishop of Rome who knows his way around Morelos, or Medellin or Belen de Escobar would be a massive boost to the Church in the new world. The cardinals who gather in Rome next month will have a lot to ponder about their last choice of pope and the one they are about to create. After the showmanship of John Paul II and the sudden decision by Benedict to abdicate, the electors may be seeking safety, not shock, as they retire to their barebones rooms to search their souls. There will be Latinos among them capable of accepting the burden of the papacy. But they may be hidden in the long shadows of tradition and a diminishing appetite for the unexpected. Fox News Latino's full interview with Congressman Charles Rangel, conducted by Juan Williams, is posted above. Charles Rangel, the 82-year-old congressman from New York, a Democrat, said in a Fox News Latino exclusive interview that Sen. Marco Rubio embarrassed himself and the Republican Party with a poor response to President Barack Obamas SOTU address. "Most people were embarrassed by his performance, he didn't live up to the expectations that Republicans had," said Rangel. In his response to the presidents speech, Rubio appeared nervous and he began to sweat, appearing to dab his forehead left and right and also wiping his mouth. He then appeared to have trouble speaking because his mouth was dry and his breathing became labored. Finally he reached out of the television shot to get a bottle of water and quickly drink from it. He did not appear to be the polished political figure that Republicans had been advertising. Rubio, 41, the Florida senator who is the son of Cuban immigrants, has been described as a savior for the Republican Party by Time Magazine. His response to the SOTU was broadcast in Spanish as well as in English in the hopes of trying to reverse big losses by the GOP in 2012 that are being attributed to the failure to attract Latino voters. For example President Obama won over 70 percent of the Latino and many senate races in several states appear to have been decided by the rising numbers of Latino voters. Rangel, the son of a Puerto Rican father who represents a heavily Dominican and Puerto Rican district in Harlem, described the Republican Party as using Rubio to disguise the fact that they have been antagonistic to Latinos' political interests, beginning with immigration reform. "No matter what you hear about expanding the Latino base, they're talking about how they need them to get elected, they need them to save the Republican Party. But they never said they need them because they need Americans and we need the diversity," said Rangel. Rangel mentioned in the interview that hes hearing from his constituents that Republicans have to prove they like Latinos in order to make a convincing case to win their votes. The split between the older Democrat Rangel and the younger Republican Rubio is representative of a larger political split in the Latino community. At the moment Republicans are failing to attract Latino immigrants from Latin America and the Caribbean, even as the GOP continues to do best with Latinos who come from Cuba. The Republicans' hope is that the bilingual Rubio can make inroads with the larger and growing base of non-Cuban Latinos. Rangels open expression of disdain for Rubio could be a first act in the political drama to come when a prominent young Democrat of Mexican heritage, Julian Castro, the mayor of San Antonio, begins his rise as a competitor for Rubio. When Pope Benedict announced his surprise resignation on Monday, I began to think like many others that this might be an opportunity for the Catholic Church to change. Some began wondering from where the next pope might hail many have asked whether it's time for a pope from the "New World" rather than Europe. But this news actually reminded me the lingering controversy still plaguing the Catholic Church: Its global sexual abuse crisis. While I'm a practicing Catholic and go to mass regularly, I also disagree with some church doctrine. One area where I disagree most is whether priests should be allowed to marry, whether there's still a place for celibacy in the 21st century and whether celibacy has been a good thing for the Catholic Church. For gay men of a different generation, being a priest allowed them to be respected in a world where they might otherwise have been shunned and marginalized. Rick Sanchez No matter the next popes nationality, he will undoubtedly have to face this issue. The question is not if, but for how much longer, the Catholic Church will continue requiring priests to be celibate. My answer: Not much longer. The reason is simple: demographics, economics and a seismic cultural shift. But today, at least in the U.S., gays have finally earned acceptance and tolerance. And that is a huge political and cultural shift. Gays have fought for and won the right not to be discriminated against in the workplace. They have won the right to marry in an increasing number of states. More than that, they have won societal and cultural acceptance. From television to movies, from medicine, law and even politics, homosexuals have become an important, visible and vibrant part of the fabric of our society. And in a world where homosexuals no longer need to hide in the shadows and mask their lives, they can hold practically any position in any profession they want. Being a priest is no longer a preferred option; it's merely one of many. I think the only way to increase that labor pool is to change the qualifications required to become a priest. Doing away with the requirement of celibacy, and allowing priests to marry, will mean more straight men will begin to consider the priesthood. That, in turn, will increase the pool of potential priests available to the Catholic Church. To be sure, economics has also played a role in the Catholic Church maintaining the celibacy of priests. Think about this: if your employer required that you couldn't marry nor have children in order to keep your job, don't you think that they could also justify paying you less? A single man is willing to work for less than a man who has a family to support. Priests who are married need higher salaries to support their families. So it made economic sense to shun hiring priests who could marry. But celibacy and attracting closeted homosexuals as priests has also brought a heavy economic cost on the Catholic Church, one that has far outweighed the benefits. American dioceses have been decimated, and even driven into bankruptcy, because of the settlements in sexual abuse cases. The U.S. Catholic Church has paid out over $1 billion in settlements. And so celibacy has a cost too, one that is far greater financially than allowing priests to marry. For all these reasons, change will come. In my view, demographics, not dogma, will dictate the future of the Catholic Church. Economics, not ideology, will force a new approach. In the past, the Catholic Church could afford to buck societal trends and not change doctrine. A changed world accepting of gays has been a reality that the church has so far been able to ignore for the most part. But the new pope won't have that luxury very much longer, and the church will no longer be able to afford its old policies. Let's hope the new pope realizes that the world has changed, and that for the good of Catholics worldwide, he will have the courage to chart a new course that allows priests to have full lives a course that finally brings the church into the 21st century. An increasing number of people plan to celebrate Christmas and New Year on their own, an online poll suggests. Employment portal Job Korea asked 3,004 people over 20 or over last month about their plan for year-end parties and found that 53.6 percent look forward to convivial festivities, down from last year's 59.8 percent. Some 25.6 percent said they have no plans yet, and a whopping 20.8 percent said they will not celebrate with anyone. One salaried worker in his 40s said he used to attend six or seven year-end parties but has only three lined up this year. He admitted that one reason is new anti-bribery laws that cap gift-giving to influential people, so there are fewer occasions where get-togethers are necessary to grease the wheels. The positive identification Thursday of the killer ex-LAPD cop Christopher Dorners burned remains ends one of Southern Californias most terrifying crime sprees. Matched by dental records, Dorners charred corpse had been removed the day before from the ashes of a mountain cabin where a furious shootout, the final chapter of this bizarre drama, played out in a hail of gunfire and flames. That it happened as the president prepared to address the nation on critical issues including gun violence, made it even more relevant and surreal. For six days, as the whole world watched, the disgruntled rogue officer spread murder and mayhem throughout Southern California. Driven by hatred of the force that fired him five years before for lying, he vowed to wage "unconventional and asymmetrical warfare" and warned cops connected to his firing and their families that they "will now live the life of the prey." knew that if he did that and pretended that what happened to him was part of a bigger picture, then his crimes would be minimized and his status enhanced. Geraldo In the end, the closest Dorner got to inflicting pain and suffering on the Police Department he hated was the cold-blooded murders of the daughter of the retired police captain who represented him in his failed disciplinary hearing, and her fiance. His other victims were officers from adjacent Riverside and San Bernardino counties that had nothing to do with his original complaint. Yet, Dorner disrupted life throughout a huge swath of Southern California and beyond. After edgy police in Torrance California mistakenly shot two women delivering newspapers, by the Sunday night of the 55th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles police nerves were so frayed and the manhunt so intense, black men were driving around with banners and T-shirts that read, Dont Shoot, Im Not Dorner. Although there are some unresolved issues, like why the cabin where the fugitive holed up for five days was not properly searched despite being a stones throw from the command post authorities had set up in the Big Bear ski resort, now it is over, and everyone is relieved. Im relieved for the families who have lost love ones and the family of the San Bernardino County deputy (killed in the final shootout), and the others, all of whom were killed in cold blood, the mayor of Los Angeles, Antonio Villaraigosa, told me in an exclusive interview. Theres a sigh of relief but theres also a sense of loss right now, because so many people lost their lives. So it is bittersweet. There is something else I find deeply troubling in the aftermath of this urgent drama. Many of the African-American callers to my show on Talk Radio 790 KABC have voiced measured sympathy for the devil, saying things like, "What Dorner did was wrong, but hes right about racism within the LAPD." "Nothing or not much has changed with the LAPD since the bad old days of the Rodney King riots, the Ramparts scandal or the O.J. Simpson trail." "I get stopped and harassed by LA cops all the time." "Dorner was driven to do what he did." It is shocking, mainly because to many of these callers, the perceived racial wrong suffered by Dorner seems to outweigh the magnitude of his violence. Earlier Thursday I interviewed Bill Bratton, the superb former chief of the LAPD (from 2002 to 2009), credited with inventing community policing, drastically reducing crime and vastly improving the relationship between cops and the minority community. He was frustrated and upset by the sentiments expressed by so many callers. Im sorry they have this opinion, but this is not the reality," he said. "All the polling done by the LA Times, which has been one of the harshest critics of the department, shows that consistently 2/3 of Latinos and blacks are very supportive of the LAPD. The LAPD of 2013 is not the LAPD of the early 1990s. Does racism still exist in America? You better believe it. It will take a long time to heal the wounds because every time the wounds start to heal, something like this happens, the scabs are peeled back and the haters come out. And the haters lead the charge, he went on. But the majority, which as you know doesnt tend to speak out but in the polls, the majoritys opinion has changed. Crime is down 60, 70 percent. Its a different city, is it perfect? No, Will it ever be? No, but it continues to improve under the leadership of (current LAPD chief) Charlie Beck. And again, Im sorry people feel this way, I obviously have a very different point of view. The slain killer ex-cop Christopher Dorner cleverly cast his personal beef with the LAPD in terms of race and social justice. He knew that if he did that and pretended that what happened to him was part of a bigger picture, then his crimes would be minimized and his status enhanced. Dont buy into his campaign of spite and deceit. He is undeserving of sympathy. Save it for the parents, spouses and children of the people he killed. As Chief Bratton told me, He certainly picked a hell of a way to clear his name. Hell be remembered as a murderer. After the elementary school shooting in Newtown, Conn., that took the lives of 26 innocent souls in mid-December 2012, numerous world leaders expressed their condolences and solidarity with the United States. One of these leaders was Enrique Pena Nieto, Mexicos new president who had been inaugurated just two weeks prior to the massacre. He must have viewed the shooting with a strange sense of irony, given that his country has been plagued with drug-related massacres in a daily basis for almost a decade. Pena Nieto, along with many Mexican citizens, is probably also keeping an eye on the ensuing debate over new gun control measures, possibly hoping for restrictions that will keep Mexican drug cartels weapons of choice from heading south across the border. Despite the abundance of firearms on the streets of Mexico, it is incredibly difficult for Mexican citizens to legally obtain a firearm, although the Mexican constitution has a provision similar to our own Second Amendment. Even if a Mexican is able to successfully navigate the gauntlet of paperwork, fees and personal recommendations required to obtain a permit, he or she is limited to purchasing firearms with very low stopping power.38-caliber or weakerand can only buy them at Mexicos sole gun shop. Mexican cartels obtain these firearms from several different places, but the United States is arguably the closest, cheapest, and most convenient source. Sylvia Longmire Yes, you read that correctly. In the entire country of Mexico, there is only one store where citizens can legally buy firearms, and its run by the army. Thus, it should come as no surprise that there are only about 6,000 firearms legally registered in Mexico. As a result of these restrictions, Mexicos bloodthirsty drug cartels have had to resort for decades to arming themselves through the black market. If you think the internal gun control debate in the United States is bad, you should listen in on the debate over where the black market guns in Mexico come from. To make a very long story short, the U.S. government asserts that the majority of illegally owned firearms in Mexico to the tune of about 70 percent are purchased in the United States. This assertion is largely based on trace data obtained from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Gun rights advocates and lobby groups like the National Rifle Association (NRA) contend that this claim is false, that trace data is inexorably flawed, and that most firearms in Mexico come from internal Mexican sources, Central America and other third-world countries. They also believe the trace data is manufactured and an attempt by the Obama administration to leverage those statistics into enacting highly restrictive gun control measures. For the record, the Mexican government supports the U.S. governments stance. Former Mexican President Felipe Calderon had no trouble during his tenure pointing the finger of blame at the United States for all the guns flooding his country. After the movie theater massacre in Aurora, Colorado in July 2012, Calderon posted a message on Twitter that said, Because of the Aurora, Colorado tragedy, the American Congress must review its mistaken legislation on guns. It kills. In December 2010, he made the bold and unprecedented move of using the rare privilege of time on the Congressional floor to call for the reinstatement of the expired 2004 assault weapons ban. It is in this context that Mexicos collective ears perked up after the current gun control debate began here in light of the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting in December 2012. The term assault weapons ban started getting thrown around rather liberally, and some politicians have gone beyond just wanting to reinstate the old ban. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-California) introduced a bill into Congress last month that would ban the sale, transfer, manufacture and importation of 100 specialty firearms and certain semiautomatic weapons. The bill would also apply the same pariah status to magazines capable of holding more than ten rounds. To understand the impact that both the old ban and the new proposed ban would have on southbound weapons trafficking, its important to know what firearms Mexican cartels prefer to use and the manner in which they purchase those firearms. According to ATF and Mexican government seizure statistics, the most commonly recovered firearms in Mexico are .223-caliber Bushmaster rifles (one of these was found at the scene of the Sandy Hook massacre), 7.62mm Romarm/Cugir rifles (a.k.a. AK-47 variants), .223-caliber DPMS, Inc. rifles (a.k.a. AR-15 variants), and 5.7mm Fabrique Nationale Herstal pistols (which go by the brand name FiveSeven). It should be noted that these pistols are capable of firing armor-piercing ammunition. Mexican cartels obtain these firearms from several different places, but the United States is arguably the closest, cheapest, and most convenient source. Cartels hire U.S. citizens with no criminal history known as straw purchasers, or strawmen to walk into gun shops or attend gun shows and legally buy everything on their cartel-provided shopping list. The straw buyer fills out the appropriate ATF forms and submits to a background check, which he or she usually passes. After the purchase, the straw buyer hands off the weapons to a middle man, who makes arrangements for the guns to be transported across the border into Mexico and into cartel hands. It should be noted that currently it is legal to manufacture, sell and own all of these firearms. However, if Senator Feinsteins proposed gun ban were to miraculously become law, all that would change. It specifically names 157 types of firearms to be prohibited, including all AK-47 and AR-15 variants, all Thompson rifles, Uzi-type pistols, and many more. Cartel straw buyers would no longer be able to purchase their favorite firearms through easy and legal means. Even private face-to-face sales of these weapons would be prohibited, and American gun enthusiasts would be more likely to stockpile and fiercely protect these guns rather than make a possibly shady sale that might land them in jail. This situation would have a huge negative impact on cartel logistics. With one of their primary sources of preferred firearms effectively dried up, they would have to resort to much more costly and time-to-transport intensive sources. This isnt to say that most of the guns currently on Mexican streets would magically disappear, but the flow of these weapons from external sources into Mexico would certainly slow down, and perhaps allow seizures by Mexican authorities to finally get ahead of the curve. This is the ultimate desire of the Mexican government and citizenry. It would also be a huge political and diplomatic victory for the U.S. government, which is tired of being at the pointy end of Mexicos index finger. In reality, however, this situation is a pipe dream. Despite the slight shift in American attitudes about assault weapon ownership as a result of Sandy Hook and Aurora, we still remain a gun-loving nation and have a Congress largely under the thumb of the gun lobby. Much of America was visibly bristling at President Obamas recent 23 gun control-related executive actions, most of which had to do with tightening up background checks and none of which had to do with restricting gun purchases. But its clear that the odds of any sort of gun ban legislation actually making it to Obamas desk for signature in the near future are slim to none. This is sure to be very disappointing for the Mexican government, and probably a source of amusement for Mexican cartels. However, through all the political mess, this manages to leave the Obama administration sitting pretty with its drug war-ravaged neighbor, able to say, Hey, we tried! and blame the gun lobby for its inability to slow down the southbound flow of firearms through legislation. This isnt to say that anti-gun legislation is the silver bullet for keeping assault weapons out of Mexico, because it certainly isnt. Mexico has a lot of internal problems to solve, with corruption at the top of the list, before it can make a meaningful dent in the weapons trafficking crisis. It shouldnt rely on the political temperature changing in another country as a means to improve its security situation. It also shouldnt expect the U.S. government to change its gun laws to appease another country, or for any reason other than because its whats best for the safety of the American people. However, this doesnt mean that significant measures cant be taken to strengthen the enforcement of our existing gun laws or that actions cant be taken that would place more scrutiny not restrictions on the sale of firearms preferred by Mexican cartels. Unfortunately, the debate over such baby-step measures will continue in earnest for some time on this side of the border, meaning the Mexican people will need to keep looking inward for possible weapons trafficking solutions. I support the authority of the president, relying upon his commander in chief powers, to kill enemy combatants according to the laws of war even those who are American citizens. Few people could credibly question the authority of American forces to kill an armed member of al-Qaida confronted on the battlefield. Most Americans would also agree that if that same al-Qaida member is an American citizen, our military forces are not required to call time out before using force, nor required to provide a battlefield mini-hearing to satisfy some notion of due process. Under either scenario, members of al-Qaida constitute the enemy; they are combatants on the battlefield and may be killed or detained according to the laws of war. Unless there are changes to the current practice, I believe it likely the Court will at some point review the legality of the presidents drone program against Americans. Alberto Gonzales, Former U.S. Attorney General Long distance killings via unmanned aerial drones, however, present a more difficult legal question, and raise concerns over the scope of presidential power to kill American citizens without due process. The use of unmanned drones makes sense given the improving technology and the evolving threats to U.S. interests. The question is not their effectiveness but whether their current use is lawful. The Obama administration asserts it employs a careful review process prior to each drone killing to ensure that only enemy combatants are targeted. Our government also claims that its procedures satisfy constitutional requirements of due process given the necessities and circumstances of an ongoing conflict. This may be true; however, the Supreme Court has said that the authority of the president in dealing with an American citizen is not absolute. The most notorious killing by drone involved American Anwar al-Aulaqi. Based on the public reporting (which in turn is based virtually entirely on executive branch sources), it appears al-Aulaqi was a member of al-Qaida, advocated violence against the United States and became involved at an operational level. It appears highly doubtful from the facts presented by the administration that, even if given an opportunity, al-Aulaqi could have presented a credible defense that he was not an enemy combatant. Consequently, the governments actions are arguably justified in his case. The circumstances, however, for the next American target may not be so obvious. There are two decision points the government must maneuver in the killing of American citizens by unmanned aerial drones. The first is the governments determination that an American is an enemy combatant. The second involves the timing and manner of executing the kill order against an enemy combatant according to the laws of war. It is the first decision point that implicates concerns over due process and which may, in time, arouse the interest of the courts. As to the second, once a target has been lawfully designated as an enemy combatant, then the commander in chief must be able to take action against this target at the moment of his choosing, consistent with national security and the laws of war. To require otherwise, would be an infringement on the presidents constitutional powers, and place the safety of Americans at risk. While someone like al-Aulaqi may not be entitled to judicial process, he, like other Americans, is entitled to due process under the circumstances. Constitutional scholars agree the president is at his strongest legal position when he acts on his own constitutional authority along with a statutory grant of authority from Congress. Courts have been more deferential to executive actions when the two elected branches of government are in accord during a time of armed conflict. No president wants to ask Congress for authority to exercise war making powers when he believes he already has it under the Constitution; and I am not recommending that the president do so here with respect to long distance targeted killings of Americans. I am merely observing that the presidents legal authority is stronger when coupled with congressional authorization. President Bush was criticized in some circles for what was seen by critics as an unconstitutional assertion of power to detain and interrogate enemy combatants. Many of those same critics are silent today with respect to President Obamas unilateral decision to kill enemy combatants. The Supreme Court, on the other hand, has not been timid in reviewing executive action in the war on terror. While I have not always agreed with the degree of the Courts involvement nor with its decisions, I respect and acknowledge its authority to interpret the Constitution in defining the limits of government power. For this reason, unless there are changes to the current practice, I believe it likely the Court will at some point review the legality of the presidents drone program against Americans. The passage of any legislation will be contentious, in part, because any new law will have to accommodate the presidents constitutional authority as commander in chief. However, statutory authorization could provide some consistency and predictability in the designation process. Congressional action may also ease the concerns of those who believe that concentrating the power to kill Americans into the hands of one individual is a threat to liberty and a step down the road toward tyranny. The nation is abuzz with talk of immigration reform. Following an election in which Latino voters played a critical role, members of Congress from both parties, the president and even certain conservative pundits have called for reform. Not everyone, of course, is thrilled. But, as the immigration debate heats up, we must be mindful of who participates in the discussion. And media outlets, their audience and elected officials must not allow extremists to drive the conversation; hate groups and their allies, who have harmed our nation, should not receive a platform. Debate should not be hijacked by those embracing debunked race science and peddling fear of demographic change under the guise of impartial policy analysis. Daniel Altschuler After years when Republican intransigence made immigration reform politically impossible, a bipartisan group of senators released principles last month, including a pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants. The president followed with a speech endorsing reform. Public reactions have been diverse. Immigrant rights organizations and unions have applauded that progress is being made, while expressing alarm that the proposed path to citizenship would be contingent upon further border security. Business leaders, who typically embrace immigration reform as good for the bottom line, also seem pleased. Still, some sectors, including agriculture, have expressed concern over workplace electronic verification of immigration status, due to the potential for costly errors. Meanwhile, those traditionally opposed to any legalization, including House Republicans like Lamar Smith, denounced the released principles as amnesty that rewards lawbreakers. Fueling the restrictionist chorus are three organizations: the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) and Numbers USA, who have long opposed legalization measures. These groups are frequently quoted in major media outlets, but their views are far from mainstream. Instead, as the anti-racist Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has found, FAIR is a hate group, while Numbers USA and CIS are closely aligned to it through the network of well-known bigot John Tanton. Tanton formed FAIR in 1979 because of fears that immigration fuels overpopulation. His goal: to limit immigration by any means necessary. In the meantime, he and FAIR president Dan Stein were quoted as variously opposing a Latino onslaught (Tanton), supporting the need for a European-American majority (Tanton) and decrying many Central Americans as hating America (Stein). Tanton once wrote: Can homo contraceptivus [meaning whites] compete with homo progenitiva [meaning Latinos] if borders arent controlled? These ideological roots, coupled with Tanton, Stein and FAIRs associations with eugenicists and extremist groups, led the SPLC to identify it as a hate group. Tanton sought greater legitimacy for his fringe views by creating CIS, arguing that We need to get CIS fully-funded and entrenched as a major Washington think tank, one that can venture into issues which FAIR is not yet ready to raise. CIS, like FAIR, has gained a wide audience for its half-baked research, which inevitably concludes that immigration should be radically limited and that undocumented immigrants should be rounded up and deported, irrespective of human and economic costs. The story is similar for Numbers USA. Led by Roy Beck, long-standing Tanton ally and former editor of Tantons racist journal, Numbers USA was also incubated by FAIR and Tanton. The Tanton network has heavily influenced the immigration debate. Having learned to avoid publicly espousing the racist views behind their formation, these groups use less racialized messages to gain traction and have built a national network of supporters capable of action. For instance, Numbers USAs widespread mobilization of calls and faxes into Congress helped thwart comprehensive immigration reform in 2007. And FAIRs legal arm, the Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI), has been behind many legislative efforts to crack down on immigrants in states like Arizona and Alabama. Tantons network has had dire consequences. In Suffolk County, New York, where my organization works to increase civic participation among immigrants, FAIR provided organizing support to anti-immigrant efforts that created a climate of fear in which hate crimes became rampant. This culminated in the hate murder of Ecuadorian immigrant Marcelo Lucero. We cannot let Tantons network divert public debate again. While we must respect freedom of speech, journalists and policymakers examining immigration do not have to ask for these organizations opinions. Debate should not be hijacked by those embracing debunked race science and peddling fear of demographic change under the guise of impartial policy analysis. Reasonable people disagree on much about immigration reform: How should we determine how many future immigrants to accept? What is the right balance between family- and employment-based visas? How much enforcement is enough given scarce resources? These tough questions require vigorous debate about values and economics, but not input from groups driven by a thinly veiled agenda of hate and fear. Its time that we stop inviting the Tanton network to the table. The year that the next president of the United States takes office will mark the centennial of Puerto Ricans being a part of our nation as citizens. But after 24 presidential elections and 17 presidents, the American citizens of Puerto Rico are still waiting to cast their first ballot in a presidential election or have proportional and voting representation in Congress. Because Puerto Rico is a possession of the United States, the Constitutions Territory Clause gives Congress ample power to legislate over the island. Ending the anomaly of depriving a community of American citizens of the most basic political rights will require not only action from Congress, but also principled leadership from the president. The major advances that Puerto Rico has made in its slow progress toward full self-government within the union did not result from sudden initiatives in Congress but reflected the policies of each administration. In 1898, President McKinley declared war against Spain and ordered the occupation of Puerto Rico. Woodrow Wilson asserted in 1916 that favorable Senate action on the bill that would confer American citizenship to the residents of the Island was a matter of capital importance. He followed the policy of Theodore Roosevelt who recommended that Puerto Ricans be made U.S. citizens. Harry Truman brought about legislation to make the governorship of Puerto Rico an elected office beginning in 1948. He also pursued that the people of Puerto Rico adopt a constitution which, according to President Truman, will virtually put them on a statehood basis, except they won't have two Senators and Representatives in the Congress." It became effective in 1952. Other presidents have taken a keen interest in the civil rights of the American citizens of Puerto Rico. Gerald Ford proposed that the people of Puerto Rico and the Congress of the United States begin now to take those steps which will result in statehood for Puerto Rico. Ronald Reagan thought that the president should take the lead in persuading the people of Puerto Rico and all Americans that statehood would be good for all of us. Moreover, during his first State of the Union address, George H.W. Bush, while expressing that he favored statehood, asked Congress to take the necessary steps to let the people decide in a referendum. However, for too many years people at the Hill and the White House have stated that it is up to the people of Puerto Rico to seek a change in the islands political status, as if our Constitution sanctioned the consent of citizens to subordination and inequality. With the plebiscite held on November 6, 2012, the American citizens of Puerto Rico withdrew any plausible consent to Congress ruling over the island by virtue of the Constitutions Territory Clause. The ballot had two questions. Voters were first asked if they wanted Puerto Rico to remain a territory. Of 1.8 million voters, 54 percent said they do not want the current status to continue. Voters were then asked to express their preference among the non-territorial status options. Of the 1.4 million people who chose an option, 61 percent voted for statehood. Moreover, the total number of votes for statehood on the second question exceeded the number of votes for the current status on the first question. Clearly, more people want Puerto Rico to be a state than to continue as a territory. The choice of the people of Puerto Rico deserves action. But ultimately, we as a nation must decide if our Constitution recognizes the same rights to all Americans. The answer was yes when the Civil War was fought to end slavery, when women were recognized the right to vote, and when the Supreme Court decided that separate was not equal. And the answer should be clearly and unequivocally the same for the American citizens of Puerto Rico. Our forefathers never envisioned that the United States would keep territories indefinitely, as imperial powers sought to keep colonies, thereby denying fundamental rights to some citizens. Given the intent of the framers of the Constitution, the residents of Puerto Rico must either preserve their American citizenship with all its rights and obligations under statehood or renounce it to govern themselves separately as a nation. There is no provision in the Constitution for second-class American citizenship. Whether the centennial of the American citizenship of the residents of Puerto Rico is cause for national celebration or embarrassment may depend on the stance taken by the President. Puerto Ricos territorial status is morally wrong and constitutionally unacceptable. Bringing it to and end will require principled leadership and the ability to work with Congress. The residents of Puerto Rico have already endured 95 years of unequal citizenship. But it is never too late to do what is right. If the election for United States Senator were being held today and the candidates in New Jersey were Cory Booker the Democrat and Geraldo Rivera the Republican Republicans back Rivera 54-23 percent over Booker. Since I did beat Booker among registered Republicans, that could have been the headline of the Quinnipiac University poll released on Thursday February 21, 2013. Instead, the pollsters chose the more traditional approach. Citing Bookers dominance among all other political, gender, income, age and regional groups in the state, they write, If TV personality Geraldo Rivera is just testing the water for a U.S. Senate run in New Jersey, he might find that the water is colder than the Atlantic Ocean in February. New Jersey voters will ultimately be called upon to choose between someone who represents the Democrats philosophy of government as surrogate parent, and the Republicans philosophy of government as safety net. Geraldo Rivera The meteorological metaphoric point missed by the highly regarded New York-based Quinnipiac pollsters, but not by this New Jersey-based seafarer is that the warm Gulf Stream runs just off the Jersey Shore, even in February 2013; as it will when the election is held in November 2014. Stating the obvious, a year and nine months is a long way away. Moreover, Thursdays poll results, showing the Newark mayor beating me 2-1 among all voters in a hypothetical matchup for Senate, misses certain other relevant points. Unlike Mayor Booker, a fine man and tireless campaigner, I have never run for office. Moreover, until I stated publicly two weeks ago in these pages that I was considering a run for the seat being vacated by retiring Senator Frank Lautenberg, most New Jersey voters didnt even know that I am a registered Republican. The fact that GOP voters given the option choose me over the omnipresent Mayor Booker is a source of pride and a place to begin building a viable candidacy, if I decide to take the plunge into the perennially roiling waters of Jersey politics. Without deep scrutiny, I assume there are vast areas where the mayor and I agree. Certainly on most social issues, like gay marriage and the pressing need for comprehensive immigration reform. On abortion rights, I again assume we are on nearly the same page. Roe vs. Wade is the law of the land, although I believe very late-term and partial-birth procedures should be severely circumscribed unless there is profound justification. That caveat aside, neither the mayor nor I want Uncle Sam in the bedroom. So aside from personality, selecting the senator should depend on economic and tax policy, and what the candidates believe is the appropriate relationship between the citizenry and the federal government. Taking nothing away from the mayors eager and earnest approach to public service, New Jersey voters will ultimately be called upon to choose between someone who represents the Democrats philosophy of government as surrogate parent, and the Republicans philosophy of government as safety net. They are different. In broad strokes, one is the party of profligate compassion paid for with other peoples money; the other styles itself the party of self-reliance, social responsibility and the individual freedom to be all you are capable of becoming. If in the thrall of public and private sector unions, and enthusiastically backed by the organized elderly, would a Senator Booker have the wherewithal to vote to raise the retirement age, require enhanced contributions to pension and health benefits, or otherwise contain the unsupportable entitlements that are on course eventually to bankrupt the nation? I would. As future deficits loom ever larger, would he break with Democratic orthodoxy on public spending and regulatory creep? Would he oppose future tax increases or proposed public works projects that work for the special interests but not quite as effectively for the people of New Jersey? I would. As a militantly moderate Republican, I would also work for bipartisan cooperation on tax policy. I would advocate the closing of the obscene and reckless loopholes that allow too many profitable corporations to avoid taxes altogether. I would support policies that encourage the repatriation of foreign profits by U.S. businesses, perhaps with a partial tax amnesty. Likewise, I would be for maintaining current rates on ordinary and investment income, and would fight vigorously against any increase of the death tax on savings and investments already taxed during life. In its state-by-state analysis of possible senate contests, The New York Times referred to me Wednesday as the former TV talk show host. I am that, and did get my nose broken in a rumble with the skinheads, and did find nothing inside Al Capones vault but an empty Gilbeys Gin bottle, etc. etc. The Quinnipiac poll called me a Television personality, which is true too. But Im also a veteran investigative reporter and battle-tested war correspondent with deep, personal ties to the United States military. (Were any service members or their families surveyed by Quinnipiac?) I won a Peabody Award for playing a key role in the liberation of the developmentally disabled from the grim institutions that existed before the closing of Willowbrook. And for better and worse, Ive been part of the American conversation for as long as the mayor of Newark has been alive. Ive earned the right to continue pondering the awesome possibility of running for the United States Senate from New Jersey, even if pollsters continue to bury the lead. We are just days away from the sequester kicking in $85 billion in automatic budget cuts affecting defense and domestic programs. President Obama has called the specter of sequester a meat-cleaver that would put us in seemingly mortal danger. He says people will lose their jobs. He says the sequester is brutal, and that it will eviscerate things of dire importance. According to the president, everything from our national defense, military readiness, disaster response, healthcare, education, medical research, border security, air traffic control and airport security will be affected, weakened, reduced and put at risk. It all sounds very dangerous. And scary. So who could be behind such an ominous idea? Who could be behind the sequester and the doom that is about to befall us? Whether its crony capitalism, corporate welfare, pork barrel spending, government waste or non-essential government bureaucracy, most Americans would not mind, notice or even be affected if we cut $85 billion in spending. Rick Sanchez On Friday, Bob Woodward wrote an Op-Ed in The Washington Post where he asked (and answered) that very same question: who is responsible for the sequester? And the simple answer is one that Woodward learned of first-hand when he wrote his most recent book, "The Price of Politics": President Obama and his administration came up with the sequester. Yes, as unbelievable as it may seem, the most vocal sequester protester is actually the sequester requester. Its a fact that President Obama has been trying to run from. Hes tried to blame Republicans, and tried his best to scare people about what might happen if the sequester comes to pass. Worse than all of this, President Obama has even outright lied about his role in making the sequester a reality. During the third presidential debate, the president said, The sequester is not something that Ive proposed. It is something that Congress has proposed. But that was false. Woodward whose reporting is renown and meticulous, and has caught presidents in lies before (Watergate, anyone?) tells a different story: The president had this wrong. My extensive reporting for my book shows that the automatic spending cuts were initiated by the White House. [And] Obama personally approved of the plan to propose the sequester to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). And so the sequester was President Obamas idea, he supported it and he pushed for it. But he's done a 180 and is now leading the sequestration condemnation. The president now believes that $85 billion in spending cuts will be the end of the world as we know it. He tells us the sky is falling. But like Chicken Little, hes wrong. $85 billion in cuts may sound like a big number until you realize that our budget is $3.6 trillion. Are we to believe that cutting 2.3 percent of our budget will cripple us? Are we to believe that we wont be able to survive on 97.7 percent of our current spending? According to the president, yes. And he has painted a doomsday scenario for us. If the sequester happens, there will be less airport security, less air traffic controllers, and thus travel will be unsafe. Food inspections will be cut and with our food supply at risk, what will we eat? With travel and food impacted, I suppose well all just stay home and starve. Call it starvation by sequestration. Last week, President Obama said, the threat of these [sequester] cuts has forced the Navy to delay an aircraft carrier that was supposed to deploy to the Persian Gulf. Question: if the USS Truman is so important to our national defense, if our Navy is being hampered by the sequester and were now at risk, why are we advertising this to our enemies, Mr. President? The reason is simple: its not true. If we were truly at military risk, I cannot believe our Commander in Chief would simply share this with the world. And that leaves only one explanation: these fantastic claims of sequestration fabrication are solely for domestic consumption. The fact is that the Navy chose not to send the USS Truman to the Persian Gulf for pure partisan politics. Not sending the aircraft carrier helps bolster the presidents case against the sequester. To believe the sequester is preventing us from sending the USS Truman to the Gulf is to believe that the Navy cannot cut anything else from its budget, that it cannot find anything else to cut, that everything else is more important than deploying the USS Truman. The civilian workforce? Pay raises? Office supplies? Uniforms? A million other items? President Obama thinks that these things are all untouchable, but sending an aircraft carrier to Irans backyard is expendable. This either makes President Obama the worst military tactician in history, or a brilliant political one. The former is too frightening, so I choose to believe the latter that this is simply sequestration misrepresentation, that these claims about the sequester are scare tactics, political theater designed to help the president win a political endgame. It also means that President Obama is either unwilling or unable to make any cuts at all. But as individuals, we know this is ridiculous. Its not how we live our own lives. And it defies common sense. We all have checkbooks we have to balance. Income versus expenses. We have credit card bills we have to pay. And if we dont have enough income coming in, if our expenses are too high, we have to cut our spending. If you or I had to cut 2.3 percent of our budget, to do with less than 3 percent of what we have now, could we do it and survive? Could we still have food, clothes and money for gas and all the essentials we need while shaving less than 3 percent from our spending? We all know the answer is yes. But for some reason, Washington is allergic to common sense. Instead of doing what any responsible person would do, our government is spending money it doesnt have, printed on paper it bought on credit from China. And the president would rather scare us than solve the problem. Hed rather engage in the worst kind of manipulative partisan politics the politics of fear than actually suggest different spending cuts he likes. If President Obama doesnt like the sequester that he himself suggested, if the sequester is really doomsday, if the cuts are dangerous and will affect our national security, then why not find another $85 billion in cuts that aren't so apocalyptic? The fact is theres plenty to cut starting with the presidents BS. Whether its crony capitalism, corporate welfare, pork barrel spending, government waste or non-essential government bureaucracy, most Americans would not mind, notice or even be affected if we cut $85 billion in spending. If we are to balance our national checkbook, cuts are essential and $85 billion is as good a number as any. It is as subtle as the meat cleaver or blunt axe the president has been complaining about in his negotiations with Republicans over sequestration, those blind, mandatory budget cuts that begin today. In what seems a bold, blatantly political move, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has released hundreds of illegal immigrants from detention. ICE claims it did that because it fears not having enough money to keep them detained since its budget has now been reduced by sequestration. What will really tick me off is if the two sides use this petty incident to delay meaningful action on comprehensive immigration reform. Geraldo Rivera I cant prove the following scenario actually happened. In fact, as youll see, Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, denies any presidential involvement; but I can just picture this imagined conversation happening in the Oval Office. Mr. President, those damn Republicans are not going to blink. Theyre insisting on these cuts, complains Gene Sperling, director of the National Economic Council, the presidents go-to man on money issues. Hmm, how can we make them feel the pain of their intransigence? asks the 44th POTUS as he glides/paces the famous room. I got an idea, replies the cunning, thoughtful Sperling. Lets release some of the 30,773 illegal immigrants were detaining. That will make the annoying Tea Party people crazy. Plus, you can make an economic argument. Each immigrant is costing ICE from $122 to $164 a day to hold. Let enough of them go and youve got the cuts covered. I like it Gene. Release a few hundred from Arizona first. The nice ones; the Juan and Maria fruit-picking church-goers. Well show that Governor Jan Brewer not to wag her finger at me, replies the boss, not to mention that obnoxious Sheriff Joe. By the way, did you ever read Bob Woodward the Riot Act for reporting that these cuts were my idea? I did, Mr. President, but it didnt turn out too well. He went public with my saying he would regret his reporting. If something like that scene happened, it would be a fitting conclusion to what could be called President Obamas hold-my-breath budget tantrum. He refused until the die was about to be cast to moderate his intransigent pre-condition that this budget cut deal must also include a tax increase deal, which could easily wait a few months without any injury except to the presidents pride. So Bob Woodward claims convincingly that presidential adviser Sperling threatened that he would regret reporting that sequestration was the presidents bad idea. As the White House and reporter Woodward negotiate what really happened between them, the ham-handed tactic of releasing illegal immigrants on unsuspecting communities without notice corroborates the view that the sequestration impasse made the president fighting mad. Dont get me wrong. I actually smiled when I heard that the first 300 immigrants released by ICE were in Arizona, hotbed of the anti-illegal immigration movement, home of papers please and the scolding angry lady governor. No other legal provocation could provoke such indignant howls. These are aliens with felony convictions, who have been released into my county, Paul Babeau, energetic sheriff of Pinal County told Wonkblog, CNN and several other media outlets. Reacting to the surprise release of about 50 illegal immigrants from the Pinal County jail, which he oversees, he called it a mass budget pardon, adding it was done, without warning and under a cloak of secrecy. Its outrageous and would put criminals on the streets. Equally activist, but more rhetorically flamboyant Sheriff Joe Arpaio offered to take in the released detainees free of charge, eager -he said- to have them as residents in his notoriously uncomfortable tent city where he promised to give one and all his trademark inmate pink underwear. What are they trying to do, stimulate or pressure Congress? Its just going to make them agitated. Its a stupid game when you really look at it thats going to backfire, he told Politico. On Thursday, White House press secretary Jay Carney scrambled to contain the spreading notion that the super cool Obama White House had hotly backhanded its opponents, saying, "these low-risk, non-criminal detainees are under a less expensive form of monitoring to ensure detention levels stayed within ICEs overall budget. All of these individuals remain in removal proceedings. Priority for detention remains on serious criminal offenders and other individuals who pose a significant threat to public safety. This step affected a few hundred detainees, as you know, out of the over 30,000 currently in ICE detention. Whatever. What will really tick me off is if the two sides use this petty incident to delay meaningful action on comprehensive immigration reform. Spite runs deep in the nations capital; especially when theyre forced to wield cleavers or axes. Follow us on twitter.com/foxnewslatino Like us at facebook.com/foxnewslatino For a young man, Air Force Major John Pustay had already accomplished a lot. The New Jersey native had served as a military officer in South Korea and Japan, earned a doctorate and taught at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Although only one military officer had made it into the first class of fifteen White House Fellows in 1965, he decided to apply to the prestigious program anyway. After a grueling selection process, he was chosen in 1966. He was assigned to work for Secretary of State Dean Rusk. President Johnson opened a window for Pustay to witness firsthand how our nations top leaders personally cope with the burdens of immense responsibility, impossible expectations and often-brutal public criticism Charles Garcia In his first month as a Fellow, Secretary Rusk sent him to the Oval Office to take notes for him at an impromptu meeting between President Lyndon Johnson and some of his most trusted foreign policy advisors. The Vietnam War was in full swing and the meeting was to discuss our response to an insurrection within South Vietnams leadership, and to select bombing targets in North Vietnam. Pustay recalled the small group huddled around LBJ: Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, National Security Advisor McGeorge Bundy, Director of Central Intelligence Richard Helms, and General Earle Wheeler, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The young major listened intently and took notes so he could give Secretary Rusk a proper briefing on the important meeting. So everybody leaves, and I am the junior guy so I am going to be the last guy out, Pustay recalled And as Im leaving the president taps me on the shoulder and he says, Would you like to have a bourbon and branch water? I didnt know what the heck branch water was, but if the Commander in Chief asks you to have bourbon and branch water, you probably ought to do it. The president summoned a steward who produced a bottle of bourbon and a pitcher of clear liquid. Pustay discovered much to his relief that branch water is just a Southern term for fresh water. The two men settled onto the sofa in the Oval Office, Pustay sipping his bourbon, the president his scotch and soda, while engaging in small talk for almost an hour. During a lull in the conversation, Pustay swirled the amber liquid in his glass and marveled at the fact that he was actually sitting in the Oval Office sharing a drink with the president. He smiled to himself and took another sip, enjoying the whiskeys rich flavor and smoky aroma, and he was about to congratulate the president on his fine taste in bourbon when he looked up to see Johnsons eyes welling with tears. Mr. President, Pustay said. I didnt realize, perhaps, the gravity of the situation we discussed in that meeting, and the decisions that you had to make there. No, thats not it, Johnson said in his soft drawl. I am very sad right now because this is still Jack Kennedys house. Jack had charm he was witty, and handsome. And here I am, just a poor Texas school teacher, a dirt farmer. Since we got back from Dallas, the only one who has ever accepted me here at the White House is Lady Bird. Pustay sat with President Johnson, reflecting on the private thoughts of the man who dominated public life with the historic passage of sweeping Great Society legislation aimed at eliminating poverty and racial injustice. President Johnson continued to talk about some of the burdens of this great office. Starting to feel self-conscious that he was taking up too much of the presidents valuable time, Pustay said, Sir, I think its probably time for me to leave. More On This... Yeah, young man, Johnson said. You know, thanks for listening. Whether or not he intended it, President Johnson had opened a window for Pustay to witness firsthand how our nations top leaders personally cope with the burdens of immense responsibility, impossible expectations and often-brutal public criticism a side of their essential humanity the general public rarely gets to see. That experience showed Pustay early on that even the most powerful leaders are human, and at the core, its emotion that drives human behavior. It taught him that if you want to be a great leader you must have a laser-like focus on your people so simple, yet easy to overlook. He recalled that lesson often throughout his distinguished military career. It undoubtedly helped guide him as he rose to the rank of three-star general, served as the lead advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and led the National Defense University as its president. Far too many managers identify their organization by the product or service it provides. The fact is that we are in the people business hiring, training and managing people to deliver the product or service we provide. If people are the engine of our success, then to be great leaders we have to put our people first. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then what can be said about the Bloomberg Businessweek cover, The Great American Housing Rebound? Its insensitive and ignorant. It stereotypes. Discriminates. Demonizes. Scapegoats. And its misleading. Faces of color are cast as caricatures and the greedy benefactors of the housing crisis when the truth is that Latinos were disproportionately the victims. The truth is that minorities are more often than not the victims of predatory practices by unscrupulous banks and mortgage companies. Wells Fargo had to pay $175 million for predatory lending practices against minorities. Bank of America/Countrywide paid $335 million for similar tactics. With the United States economic crisis far from over, the magazines cover feeds ignorant fears that Latinos are to blame for the nations problems. Is the mortgage on your house more than what its worth? Are you having a tough time selling your house? Has the value of your house; the houses in your neighborhood gone down? Well, now you know who to blame. Its the Latinos, the minorities of course! Propaganda like the Bloomberg Businessweek cover leads to feelings of resentment that can act to incite violence and hatred against Latinos, which is what has been happening when it comes to issues of immigration in this country. All this for a story in which race and ethnicity are not factors and are not even mentioned. Bloomberg Businessweeks cover also raises questions: Why didnt anyone see that this cover was a problem? Where were the safeguards to make sure this kind of thing did not happen? Josh Tyrangiel, Bloomberg Businessweeks editor, has apologized, saying, "Our intention was not to incite or offend. If we had to do it over again we'd do it differently." Thats a start. The National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) and like kind minority journalism organizations offer assistance in ensuring that people of color are represented and portrayed fairly and accurately. NAHJ extends its hand to Bloomberg Businessweek to help in meeting their commitment to excellence in journalism and championing diversity. The Internet has given rise to yet another unlikely kind of star -- men who promote cosmetics on YouTube. Most men were drawn to makeup after searching for products to cover up their acne. Men's interest in cosmetics products is not exactly new, but that they openly demonstrate their use and review them on social media is a relatively recent phenomenon in Korea. Viewer responses are deeply polarized, ranging from fanatical support to bitter criticism. Among those who tune into their blogs are many women, who feel that men offer an interesting new angle. The trend has also spilled over into cable TV. The OnStyle channel started airing a show earlier this month called "Lipstick Prince," where eight male celebrities learn how to put on makeup. The program claims that the age of "sexy men wearing makeup has arrived." According to market researcher Euromonitor International, the Korean market for men's cosmetics was scaled at W1.24 trillion in 2015 and that will grow to an estimated W1.5 trillion this year (US$1=W1,187). As an immigrant to the United States from Latin America, I am saddened as I watch Hispanics building political ties with the progressives in the Democratic Party. But Im not surprised. The Republican Partys future within the atino community is looking dim. In the November presidential election, Mitt Romney scored only 27 percent of the Hispanic vote. A new Gallup report released last week concluded that Hispanics across all age groups will remain lopsidedly Democratic throughout their lives. The future of Hispanic outreach in the freedom movement is going to be education, and it needs to start at the local level. Ana Puig Here lays the irony a majority of Hispanics hold personal values in direct contrast to the ideas of the progressive movement. Historically, Hispanics are the most conservative component of America's melting pot. We are individuals who praise God, family and country above all things. We leave our homelands (often leaving loved ones behind) in order to build a better future for ourselves and our families. We come to America because it offers the greatest opportunity to work hard, make money and dream big. So what is going on here? Republicans are getting it all wrong with Hispanic outreach because they view their efforts through a lens of political strategy, when they should be focusing on values and community building. They run dense television ads about economic statistics every four years, and expect to grab the attention of families who are working multiple jobs to pay the bills. Its time to take a page from the Democrats playbook, and get out and organize at the community level. Educate people on the benefits of economic empowerment, and take the time to explain how free enterprise is actually the most compassionate agenda for the poor and underprivileged. Last weekend, FreedomWorks held a training summit for 80 grassroots leaders from 22 states across the country. We didnt talk about political campaigns, or winning over the minority vote. The Hispanic population is not a voting bloc to chase, though we currently hold about 10 percent of the electorate. Instead, we spent the entire weekend talking about building a community outside of the political party system. We aim to educate and build relationships with people who share our values of individual freedom and economic opportunity, not pander to people during election years. The future of Hispanic outreach in the freedom movement is going to be education, and it needs to start at the local level. We as individuals need to start pushing back against the indoctrination of the left, and correcting the myth that big government is helpful to society. When I talk to Hispanics in my community, I explain how reckless government policies led to the housing crisis that cost many Latinos their jobs and homes. I discuss how the presidents health care law is estimated to cause at least 7 million Americans to lose their current health care coverage, and I educate people on how energy regulation will determine whether or not people can afford to drive their cars, power their homes, and pay for groceries. As Marco Rubio said in his response to the State of the Union address, More government isnt going to help you get ahead. Its going to hold you back. More government isnt going to create more opportunities. Its going to limit them. I see a bright future for a strong relationship between Hispanics and the freedom movement. Both share the same core values. The missing link has already been identified. All we must do is roll up our sleeves and not give up. I challenge each individual in the freedom movement to get off the couch and become ambassadors for these ideas in your community. Start talking to your families, your neighbors, and your friends about these issues because the Republican Party is not going to do it for you. There is reason to be cautiously optimistic about the road that lies ahead toward immigration reform. After four years of inaction, the president is now focused on repairing his legacy with the Hispanic community. On the other hand, after the lessons learned from the 2012 presidential elections, a broad group of conservatives have embraced the concept of a long-lasting fix to our broken immigration system. Across the nation, conservative governors are not only paying attention, but coming out in full force for reform. Jennifer Korn There is new momentum for immigration reform and conservatives are leading the way. This week, the Hispanic Leadership Network (HLN), a national organization that strives to engage Hispanics on center-right issues, launched an advocacy campaign in support of fixing our broken and antiquated immigration system. The campaign includes a six-figure ad buy on ABC, FOX, and Univision. The ad, entitled Be Part of the Solution, features former Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez calling on Washington to pass immigration reform that grows the economy and respects the rule of law. Last month, Secretary Gutierrez resigned his senior position at Citigroup Inc. to become chairman of a pro-immigration reform super PAC. He will not only be an invaluable ally in HLNs advocacy campaign, but a powerful force in his own right as the legislative process moves forward. HLNs paid media campaign is only one of a series of initiatives aimed at growing our members across the nation and activating them to play a key role in the grassroots movement behind a bipartisan deal to fix our broken immigration system once and for all. HLNs members support the work of the Senate, led by Senator Marco Rubio, to achieve a reform that addresses the main problems of our broken system strengthening our southern border, overhauling our legal visa system, implementing a viable temporary worker program, and creating a fair but tough plan for earned legal status. Also this week, HLN Co-Chair Jeb Bush will jump-start the public debate beyond the halls of Congress with the official launch of Immigration Wars. In the book, Governor Bush and constitutional lawyer Clint Bolick lay out a strategy to do away with all that is wrong with our current system and have a fresh, new start. Immigration Wars offers sensible advice to all conservatives. In the last few weeks, we have also been encouraged by the news of other conservative governors who have added their voices to the chorus advocating for immigration reform. Those include Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin and Governor Bill Haslam of Tennessee. In calling for reform, it became evident that these leaders understand that immigration reform is needed to further our economic development. In Washington, the push to overhaul our immigration system has now been embraced by the top brass of conservative congressional leaders, from Speaker John Boehner to former vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan. Across the nation, conservative governors are not only paying attention, but coming out in full force for reform. Even in the media, conservative commentators like Sean Hannity have jumped in the reform bandwagon. Lastly, and more importantly, poll after poll shows that there is an increasing appetite among conservative voters to see this issue resolved. This momentum and new appreciation for the changing face of our electorate should give conservatives in Congress the impetus to do what is morally right, economically wise, and politically prudent. For the next days and weeks there will be many Op-Eds and articles analyzing the impact of the premature demise of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. His legacy will be dissected; the effects of his political and economic model he dubbed 21st Century Socialism will be fiercely defended by his admirers and sharply criticized by his detractors. Who will take charge next? Will elections be called within 30 days as is demanded by the constitution? Who will face now acting President Nicolas Maduro for the highest political prize in the land? Will there be a resurgence of the famous battle between Maduro and National Assembly President Diosdado Cabello? And what role will the government of Cuba have in a post-Chavez Venezuela? All of these are important issues and deserve all the attention they will receive. He seemed genuinely baffled on the very rare occasions when his opponents pointed out that the country was not his personal fiefdom and the national treasury was not his petty cash box. Joel Hirst Nevertheless, for a moment its important to step back, take a breath and consider what just occurred. The political tsunami that was Hugo Chavez and his Bolivarian Revolution cannot be understated. A cursory glance through the pages of Latin American newspapers over the last decade or in conversations with politicians and academics serve to ratify the tremendous impact that placed this individual at the center of regional politics for more than ten years. Like other famous Latin American caudillos figures such as Juan Peron, Rafael Trujillo, Ernesto Che Guevara, and Fidel Castro Hugo Chavez seemed to be the incarnation of an era. Through his endless seven hour tirades, punctuated with abusive language and obscure historical analysis he enthralled his followers. Expropriate it he would often yell, grinning maniacally as his mobs applauded the most recent of the almost 1,000 nationalizations (expropriations) that destroyed the private sector of his country. He would sing rancheras for hours and one time he spent more than 45 minutes personally knocking down walls for the building of a new metro all live-fed on the radio and TV takeovers which he was so fond of and that fed his narcissism so well. He seemed to relish his controversial foreign policy even more. His constant attacks on the United States frustrated American policymakers to no end. Expelling American Ambassadors, verbal fights with the King of Spain and episodes of grade-school name calling left world leaders scratching their heads. There was not a controversy that Chavez did not seek out whether it be 9/11 truther conspiracies or doubting whether man actually made it to the moon; and in the last years blaming the United States for the cancer that eventually killed him. There was also not a tyrant the world over who did not find solidarity in Hugo Chavez. Robert Mugabe, Saddam Hussein, Fidel Castro, Mahmood Ahmadinejad, Muammar Gaddafi, Daniel Ortega, and Bashar al Assad all turned to Chavez for support and largesse. As with all dictators, the Caribbeans latest despot could be wicked. He personally sentenced Judge Maria Lourdes Afiuni to prison, where she still sits today. He arbitrarily closed RCTV, the largest and oldest TV station in the country; payback for its unwaveringly critical editorial line. He ordered the preparing of massive lists of his adversaries like the Maisanta List with the names of 3.5 million of his personal enemies. He centralized all power in himself, nano-managing Venezuela through midnight cabinet meetings and twilight phone calls that always kept his ministers on pins and needles. He did not blink an eye when using judicial process, the tax services and regulatory agencies to persecute those who opposed him. And he seemed genuinely baffled on the very rare occasions when his opponents pointed out that the country was not his personal fiefdom and the national treasury was not his petty cash box. There is no doubt that Venezuela is today a better place for his passing. Besides his larger-than-life persona and endless material for policy makers, political analysts and freedom activists to chew on, the truth of the matter is that after the inebriation of his 14 years in office wears off, all he has left Venezuela with is a bad hangover. Nevertheless, friend and foe alike must admit that Hugo Chavez was one of the great men. Not great in terms of goodness he was not a good man. But great in that he emerged from roots deep in rural poverty, negotiated the takeover of his country and maneuvered it for a time to the center of hemispheric politics. This is no small feat; in point of fact they are tremendous shoes for Nicolas Maduro a failed bus driver to attempt to fill. Like most Catholics, I found the news of Pope Benedicts resignation startling and dislocating. Yet I knew at once that only humility of sacrificial proportions could impel this Pope to such a move. This Pope in particular, because a man with his keen intellect and clear vision would anticipate the resultant turmoil of anxiety in the minds and hearts of faithful Catholics and triumphant glee in the busy writings of the Churchs legion of critics. Pope Benedict carried on the legacy of Pope John Paul II, visiting much of the Spanish-speaking world and bringing the message, literally, that God is love, to us all. Dr. Grazie Pozo Christie Pope Benedict no doubt knew that his haters would take this opportunity to happily announce, once again, the quick demise of an institution they consider hopelessly stuck in the mud of the past. In their view, an institution that refuses to adapt to our brave new world must die. Helpful critics have jumped in to suggest all the obvious changes she must make: married priests, women priests, a warm embrace of same sex marriage. While the professional critics were busy stating their case for a new, progressive church, I have been recalling my own experiences with the papacy as a Catholic Hispanic woman. I was ten years old and present at Pope John Paul IIs first official international papal trip to Mexico in 1979. He passed right in front of our apartment building in Guadalajara. It made the most tremendous impact on me. We were all in such a fervor when he came. A fervor of belonging and of membership in the most beautiful, true, divine/human institution, the Church. The months leading up to the visit were full of the most longing anticipation. We sang every day during recess the song that Roberto Carlos wrote for the Pope's visit: Amigo. The song taught us that Pope John Paul II was our friend. That Jesus was our friend. The choir of children who greeted the Pope in Mexico City sang this song on his arrival, broadcast to hundreds of millions of people worldwide. We still sing it in Mass today, and it still brings tears to our eyes. My American children know all the verses by heart. Hispanics are fiercely proud of our membership in the Church. Perhaps we owe this to Pope John Paul, our friend, who smiled at us as he passed down avenue where we worked and played. Who humbly kissed the pavement at the airport in Mexico City. Who made our beautiful Virgencita de Guadalupe (La Virgen Morena) our Empress and gave Juan Diego his due on earth. He brought us in, right to Rome, right to the center of it all. And we deeply respect the Church just as it is. Just as Jesus gave her to us. We do not wish to make it "fit in" with current cultural prejudices and attitudes. She is beautiful and perfect to us, because she is the best part of us. Pope Benedict carried on the legacy of Pope John Paul II, visiting much of the Spanish-speaking world and bringing the message, literally, that God is love, to us all. We are proud of him, not ashamed, and we watched his last papal audience with the deepest affection. Of course, the Churchs critics cannot believe that a 2000 year-old institution, holding fast to her values and morals with the same tenacity seen in her early martyrs, can be anything but hopelessly wrong. But we know better. As we bid farewell to this Pope and look with anticipation to the next, we know we are looking at the guardians of the Churchs timeless truths, truths that will still be standing when the current batch of critics is long gone. He was sitting behind a bank of microphones in a park in Caracas, the Venezuelan capital, when we met. The grand leader was holding forth on his weekly Sunday radio program during which he typically talked for five or more hours nonstop without notes or guests. Wearing what would later become his signature outfit, a polyester track suit festooned with the red, yellow and blue colors of the Venezuelan national flag, he gave me a withering look that would have melted a less confident man. In the end, he was less the heroic liberator Simon Bolivar than he was a male version of Argentinas Evita; beloved, flashy, but impractical and ultimately counter-productive. Geraldo He knew I worked for Fox News, because for the preceding week, aside from reporting on the special recall election that then threatened his presidency, I had been excoriating this boisterous anti-American buffoon on Venezuelan television as an undemocratic, socialist thug. With good connections in the country from the decade my old daytime talk show, dubbed in Spanish, had been syndicated in Venezuela my middle and upper class friends assured me that Chavez was about to be relegated to the garbage heap of history in a recall election that was a week or so away. My former syndicator at the private television network Venevision and others I knew in the country convinced me that this ebullient character had no chance. His regime had been battered by broad labor unrest in the crucial oil industry, and aside from the countrys poorest residents, Chavez seemed to have no support. Importantly, unlike his victories in the 1998 and 2000 elections, in which widespread voter fraud were suspected, this time the recall was being monitored by international observers including former U.S. President Jimmy Carter. It was 2004 and his oil rich nation was deeply divided as the dramatic recall election approached. Huge demonstrations snaked through the sprawling capital. Everyone was passionately engaged, and it seemed the flamboyant man who channeled the liberator of his country, Simon Bolivar, was really just a Fidel Castro wannabe. And unlike his Cuban counterpart, he seemed about to be booted from his job. That was certainly the way I saw it at the time. Like most North American old hands I picked this mercurial former paratrooper as a sure loser. His erratic behavior and awkward embrace of Cuban-style militant socialism earned him the scorn of the Bush Administration and made him a laughingstock outside the notorious slums of Caracas. Chavez did have most of those poorer folks in his corner; but his opponents seemed to consist of the entire Venezuelan business and upper class communities, and the middle class. So I was as dismissive of him as he was of me that Sunday afternoon. In my Spanish language interviews, I compared April 11th, 2002 the date of massive, violent anti-Chavez protests in Caracas to our own September 11th catastrophe; a seminal, disastrous event. At least 20 protestors died in those demonstrations, scores more were wounded. For a time, a U.S.-sponsored coup even displaced Chavez from the presidency. Aside from the poor, his only friends were radical regimes like Ahmadinejads Iran, Assads Syria, Gaddafis Libya, Ortegas Nicaragua and Castros Cuba, or militant revolutionary movements like the FARC narco-terrorists, which he supported in neighboring Colombia. Returned to power a few days after the 2002 coup, by the time of the 2004 recall, Chavezs rule seemed to hang by a thread. To make a long story short, Chavez shocked me and the rest of the world and defeated the recall with almost 60 percent of the vote. With that hurdle behind him, he became increasingly radicalized, using his countrys vast oil wealth to annoy the United States, branding us imperialists and comparing President George W. Bush to the devil. He made arms deals with the Russians, vastly beefed up his nations armed forces, and generally made himself a royal pain in Americas butt. But Chavez was a more complex figure than just the anti-Yankee cartoon. Despite his radical posturing he did manage to improve the quality of life for his people. The rate of poverty which in 2002 was 48.6 percent, by 2011 had dropped to 29.5 percent. He inspired many of the disadvantaged in Venezuela and throughout Latin America. In the end, though, he was less the heroic liberator Simon Bolivar than he was a male version of Argentinas Evita; beloved, flashy, but impractical and ultimately counter-productive. Francis I is already a pope of several firsts. He is the first pope to be born in Latin America, a region that counts more than 400 million Catholics and is destined to play a progressively larger role in the church as Catholic demographics shift south from Europe and North America. He is the first pope who belongs to the Jesuits, the pioneering religious order that has left its mark on all facets of Catholic life, from education to science and the arts. And, perhaps most obviously, he is the first pope to take the name Francis. By choosing a name that honors both his Jesuit roots as well as the founder of an order often thought to be the enemy of his own, Francis I may be gesturing to a desire on his part to move past the enmity and infighting in the Vatican. Patrick Hornbeck Though Vatican Radio announced that the new pope chose his name in homage to Francis Xavier, one of the founders of the Jesuits, a missionary to Asia, and now a patron saint of missionaries, it is hard to imagine that in selecting his name, Francis I was not also thinking about another, at least equally influential Francis. In the early thirteenth century, a wealthy young man known to history as Francis of Assisi put aside his worldly goods and chose to follow Jesus in a life of poverty. The religious order that he founded, the Franciscans, has long been associated with the reform of the church. According to legend, at the beginning of his ministry Francis experienced a vision in which Christ told him, Go and repair my house which, as you can see, is falling into ruin. Early Franciscans lived in extreme poverty, especially in comparison to the members of more sumptuous medieval religious orders. Many distinguished themselves as scholars, administrators, mystics. Several centuries later, it was a Franciscan, Pope Clement XIV, who ordered the suppression of the Society of Jesusthe same order that has now produced the first Francis to sit on the papal throne. With all this as background, what significance can we find in Jorge Mario Bergoglios papal name? First, he has signaled that he intends to be a true pontifex, a word that we usually translate as pontiff but that in Latin literally means bridge-builder. By choosing a name that honors both his Jesuit roots as well as the founder of an order often thought to be the enemy of his own, Francis I may be gesturing to a desire on his part to move past the enmity and infighting in the Vatican and the church at large that recently have been so often in the news. Second, at a time when many Roman Catholics, especially in the developed world, are questioning the relevance of the churchs pomp and circumstance to their own lives, Pope Franciss first actions hint at a pontificate that will seek to emulate the spiritual simplicity of Francis of Assisi. Eschewing the tradition of his recent predecessors, the new pope chose not to wear the elaborate papal mozzetta, or short velvet cape, when he appeared on the balcony of St. Peters Basilica. Instead, Francis I presented himself to the world in a simple white cassock, a sartorial choice that will no doubt have left some traditionalists aghast. Then he asked the people of Rome to bless him with their prayers before he delivered his first official blessing. In doing so, he echoed the motto that then-Cardinal Bergoglio took as archbishop of Buenos Aireslowly, and yet chosen. His record there points to a style of ministry that contrast sharply with the elitist, clericalist mindset that many Catholics say is driving them away from the church and from their practice of the faith. There is one final detail that should not escape our attention. Leaks from the last conclave, in 2005, have revealed that Cardinal Bergoglio was the runner-up to Joseph Ratzinger, who recently made history by becoming the first pope in modern history to resign. That a new group of cardinals would turn back to Bergoglio this time around suggests, as one commentator has already put it, that Francis I has a mandate to enact what many Catholics see as necessary reforms in the churchs administration. Will Pope Francis I be able to repair the house that is the Roman Catholic Church? Only time will tell. But its a safe bet that this night will not have seen the only firsts of his pontificate. First, he has signaled that he intends to be a true pontifex, a word that we usually translate as pontiff but that in Latin literally means bridge-builder. By choosing a name that honors both his Jesuit roots as well as the founder of an order often thought to be the enemy of his own, Francis I may be gesturing to a desire on his part to move past the enmity and infighting in the Vatican and the church at large that recently have been so often in the news. Second, at a time when many Roman Catholics, especially in the developed world, are questioning the relevance of the churchs pomp and circumstance to their own lives and struggles, Pope Franciss first actions hint at a pontificate that will seek to emulate the spiritual and material simplicity of Francis of Assisi. Eschewing the tradition of his recent predecessors, the new pope chose not to wear the elaborate papal mozzetta, or short velvet cape, when he appeared on the balcony of St. Peters Basilica. Instead, Francis I presented himself to the world in a simple white cassock, a sartorial choice that will no doubt have left some traditionalists aghast. At the same time, the motto that then-Cardinal Bergoglio took as archbishop of Buenos Aireslowly, and yet chosenseems to hint at a vision and style of ministry that contrast sharply with the elitist, clericalist mindset that many Catholics say is driving them away from the church and from their practice of the faith. There is one final detail that should not escape our attention. Leaks from the last conclave, in 2005, have revealed that Cardinal Bergoglio was the runner-up to Joseph Ratzinger, who recently made history by becoming the first pope in modern history to resign. That a largely new group of cardinals would turn back to Bergoglio this time around suggests, as one commentator has already put it, that Francis I has a mandate to enact what many Catholics see as necessary reforms in the upper reaches of the churchs administration. Will Pope Francis I be able to repair the house that is the Roman Catholic Church? Only time will tell, but its a safe bet that this night will not have seen the only firsts of his pontificate. The story of the 65th Infantry Regiment Borinqueneers is one that can appeal to almost everyone. The legendary Borinqueneers, los Borinquenos, were the largest and longest-standing, segregated Latino-American military unit in U.S. history. Hailing from Puerto Rico, the Borinqueneers overwhelmingly distinguished themselves in service, sacrifice and heroism. They fought very bravely in WWI, WWII, and Korea, all the while enduring the additional hardships of segregation and discrimination. They were ordered ... to exclude rice and beans from their rations, even though most were young soldiers a long way from home in both distance and cultural heritage. Larry Bystran Today, an all-volunteer, non-partisan, nationwide initiative called the Borinqueneers Congressional Gold Medal Alliance is dedicated to ensuring that the U.S. recognizes this unit and preserves the rich history of their truly unique and noteworthy service for future generations of Americans. Similar segregated military units have already received the Congressional Gold Medal: the Tuskegee Airmen, the Navajo Code Talkers, the Montford Point Marines, and the Nisei Soldiers. All of these were well-merited. The Borinqueneers must be added to this list now. Its high time that we paid them back just a little! The youngest of our Borinqueneer heroes are in their 80s, having served in the Korean conflict. This is our one chance to exert some influence in Congress, and make sure that the Borinqueneers are recognized while some of them are still alive. This great cause is extremely worthy and just, and if youre Puerto Rican, regardless of your political feelings on the ultimate status of the special island, it should touch your soul very deeply. During Korea, the 65th Inf. Reg. Borinqueneers earned 10 Distinguished Service Crosses, 256 Silver Stars, 606 Bronze Stars, and 2,771 Purple Hearts. 750 of the 65th were killed in action, and more than 100 are still missing in action. They never came home. Those who did were never the same. The Borinqueneers are credited with the final battalion-sized bayonet assault in U.S. Army history. In early 1951 while fighting in Korea, two battalions of the 65th fixed bayonets and charged straight up hill toward the enemy, over running them and overtaking the enemys strategic position. General Douglas MacArthur had high praise for the unit. Despite this renowned record of service during an extremely difficult and dirty war, the Borinqueneers routinely faced additional hurdles brought on by wide disregard for their distinct and often misunderstood and ridiculed differences in culture and language, as well as the ugly specter of discrimination. At one point, the proud soldiers were ordered to shave off your moustaches until you can prove that youre men. They were also ordered to paint over the beloved word Borinqueneers on their military vehicles, and to exclude rice and beans from their rations, even though most were young soldiers a long way from home in both distance and cultural heritage. We should not allow the legendary Borinqueneers to become a fading footnote in American history and in the history of Latino-Americans and Puerto Ricans in the U.S. On behalf of the Borinqueneers Congressional Gold Medal Alliance, I urge you to contact your one U.S. House of Representatives member and your two U.S. Senators. Passage of the Congressional Gold Medal legislation requires two-thirds of each chamber to become co-sponsors of the bill. Thats 290 U.S. House members and 67 U.S. Senators. For most of us who have never contacted our U.S. legislators before, simple instructions are available on the alliances website at http://www.65thCGM.org and Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/BorinqueneersCGMAlliance. Please support this great cause and contact Congress ahora! The fifth graders at Centerville Elementary School in Lancaster County, Pa., have been performing A Christmas Carol for decades. But this year that tradition came to an abrupt end. Parents told local reporters the play was canceled because two parents complained about a line in the Charles Dickens holiday classic. Click here for a FREE subscription to Todds Newsletter: a must-read for Conservatives! The unnamed parents took offense at the words uttered by Tiny Tim, God bless us, every one," television station WHTM reported. I was very surprised because its going on for decades and its a tradition at the school that everyone looks forward to, resident Jane Burkhart told the television station. Like many in this deeply religious community, she was saddened by the cancelation. Click here to join Americas favorite Conservative Facebook Community! One little line shouldnt ruin it for every kid, Burkhart said. Charles Dickens is a class author, not a religious author. Principal Tom Kramer addressed the controversy in a message posted on the elementary schools website. You can read the entire message by clicking here. We understand that some parents are upset that the play was cancelled, but we have heard from families on both ends of the spectrum, including those who expressed appreciation that the play, as it had traditionally been prepared and delivered, was cancelled, he wrote. Kramer went on to reject reports that their decision was based on one or two families. Thats just not true, he said. He did not specifically address the parents allegations that the play was cancelled because of the line, God bless us, every one. But he did seem to hint at some sort of issue. Our decision is rooted in the desire to be respectful of the many cultural and religious backgrounds represented by the students attending Centerville Elementary, he wrote. Thats a mighty big clue, folks. In order to be tolerant and diverse, public schools have to eradicate any mention of God. But to be fair the school administration says their decision was mostly because of the amount of time it took to produce the show (about 20 hours). Given the changes in state standards in recent years, we could not defend the commitment of this kind of instructional time to something not part of the fifth-grade curriculum, he wrote. Heaven forbid the teachers try to introduce the children to the world of the performing arts. The principal also pointed out that producing and performing a play is not part of the written curriculum for fifth grade. So, after more than 40 years of Christmas productions featuring Tiny Tim and Ebenezer Scrooge, hes just now figuring that out? Randy Wenger is the chief counsel for the Independence Law Center in Harrisburg. Hes also a longtime resident of Lancaster County. As a constitutional attorney I hate to see traditions taken away in my own community, he told me. What does this communicate to our kids? It says that anything religious is really not appropriate in public life. Its something youre supposed to keep to yourself. Wenger said Lancaster County is a conservative area and has a rich history of religious liberty. It seems like people are trying to take aware our traditions left and right, he said. We need to do something to push back. But this year, Im afraid Tiny Tims goose has been cooked by the Ghost of Christmas Intolerance. Bah, humbug indeed. The United States is planning a significant military presence of 13,500 troops in Kuwait to give it the flexibility to respond to sudden conflicts in the region as Iraq adjusts to the withdrawal of American combat forces and the world nervously eyes Iran, according to a congressional report. The study by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee examined the U.S. relationship with the six nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council -- Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman -- against a fast-moving backdrop. In just the last two days, Saudi Arabia's ruler named Defense Minister Prince Salman bin Abdul-Aziz as the country's new crown prince after last week's death of Prince Nayef, and Kuwait's government suspended parliament for a month over an internal political feud. The latest developments inject even more uncertainty as the Middle East deals with the demands of the Arab Spring, the end to U.S. combat operations in Iraq at the end of 2011 and fears of Iran's nuclear program. "Home to more than half of the world's oil reserves and over a third of its natural gas, the stability of the Persian Gulf is critical to the global economy," the report said. "However, the region faces a myriad of political and security challenges, from the Iranian nuclear program to the threat of terrorism to the political crisis in Bahrain." The report obtained by The Associated Press in advance of Tuesday's release provided precise numbers on U.S. forces in Kuwait, a presence that Pentagon officials have only acknowledged on condition of anonymity. Currently, there are about 15,000 U.S. forces in Kuwait at Camp Arifjan, Ali Al Salem Air Base and Camp Buehring, giving the United States staging hubs, training ranges and locations to provide logistical support. The report said the number of troops is likely to drop to 13,500. Several members of Congress, most notably Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., had pressed for a residual U.S. force to remain in Iraq, but the failure of the two countries to agree on whether American troops should be granted legal immunity scuttled that idea. Instead, officials talked of positioning a strong U.S. force just across the border in Kuwait. The strategy preserves "lily pad" basing that allows the military to move quickly from one location to the next. As it recalibrates its national security strategy, the United States is drawing down forces in Europe while focusing on other regions, such as the Middle East and Asia. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has said he envisions about 40,000 troops stationed in the Middle East region after the withdrawal from Iraq. By comparison, a cut of two Army combat brigades and the withdrawal of two other smaller units will leave about 68,000 troops in Europe. During the 1991 Persian Gulf War, some half a million U.S. forces were in the Middle East region. The United States maintained about 5,000 troops in Kuwait from the end of the Gulf War to March 2003, when U.S. and coalition forces invaded Iraq to topple the regime of Saddam Hussein. The U.S.-led invasion was in response to reports, later discredited, that Iraq was developing weapons of mass destruction. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry, D-Mass., who asked his staff to conduct the study, said in a statement: "This is a period of historic, but turbulent change in the Middle East. We need to be clear-eyed about what these interests are and how best to promote them. This report provides a thoughtful set of recommendations designed to do exactly that." The 37-page report raises questions about how the United States can leverage its financial aid to force change in the Middle East. Late last year, two Democrats -- Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon and Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts -- opposed the U.S. sale of spare parts and equipment to Bahrain, arguing that the ruling Sunni monarchy was violating human rights and using excessive force to crack down on protests. The State Department went ahead earlier this year with the sale of some military equipment, saying it was for Bahrain's external defense and support for the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, which is based in the country. Bahrain stands as a strategic ally to counter Iran. The report said the Unites States "should not be quick to rescind security assurances or assistance in response to human rights abuses but should evaluate each case on its own merits. U.S. government officials should use these tools to advance human rights through careful diplomacy. ... The United States should make clear that states must not use arms procured from the United States against their own people engaged in peaceful assembly or exploit the U.S. security umbrella as protection for belligerent action against their neighbors." The report also recommended that the United States promote the development of the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Arab League while strengthening bilateral links to the six countries; seek opportunities for burden-sharing on operations such as missile defense, combat air patrol and maritime security; and push for the integration of Iraq into the Arab fold. The report emphasized that the region is critical as a counterbalance to Iran, whose conventional military includes 350,000 ground forces, 1,800 tanks and more than 300 fighter aircraft. It also has ballistic missiles with the range to target regional allies, including Israel. The following is the transcript of Gregory Hicks' testimony before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on the events of Sept. 11, 2012, in Libya. GREGORY HICKS, FORMER DEPUTY CHIEF OF MISSION IN LIBYA: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. As -- as I remember September 11, 2012, it was a routine day at our embassy, and until we saw the news about Cairo - and I remember sending a text message to Ambassador Stevens saying, ``Chris, are you aware of what's going on in Cairo?'' And he said no. So I told him that the embassy -- in another text - that the embassy had been stormed, and they were trying to tear down our flag. And he said, ``Thanks very much.'' And, you know, then I went on with -- with -- with business. Closed -- closed the day, and I went back to my villa and was relaxing, watching a television show that I particularly like, and at 9:45 p.m. -- and all times will be Libyan times, a six-hour time difference -- the RSO John Martinec ran into my villa yelling, ``Greg! Greg! The consulate's under attack.'' And I stood up and reached for my phone because I had an inkling or thought that perhaps the ambassador had tried to call me to relay the same message. And I found two missed calls on the phone, one from the ambassador's phone and one from a phone number I didn't recognize. And I punched the phone number I didn't recognize, and I got the ambassador on the other end. And he said, ``Greg, we're under attack.'' And I was walking out of the villa, on my way to the Tactical Operations Center, because I knew we would all have to gather there to mobilize or try to mobilize a response. And it was also a -- a bad cell phone night in Tripoli. Connections were weak. And I said, ``OK,'' and the line cut. As I walked to the Tactical Operations Center, I tried to reach back on both of the numbers, the unknown number and the ambassador's personal number and got no response. When I got to the Tactical Operations Center, I told people that the ambassador -- that I had just talked to the ambassador and what he said. At the time, John Martinec was on the phone with Alec Henderson in Benghazi, the RSO there, and I asked one of our D.S. agents who -- what number did I reach Ambassador Stevens on. And he said, ``Oh, that's Scott Wickland's telephone. Scott Wickland was Ambassador Steven's agent in charge, his personal escort for that night, and was with him in the villa during the attack. So I asked -- when John Martinec got off the telephone, I asked him what was going on. And he said that the consulate had been breached, and there were at least 20 hostile individuals armed in the -- in the compound at the time. So I next called the annex chief to ask him if he was in touch with the Benghazi annex to activate our emergency response plan. REP. DARRELL ISSA: "Please explain the annex chief so that people that don't know as much would understand that. No, go ahead, please." HICKS: "OK, thank you. And he said that he had been in touch with the annex in Benghazi, and they said they were mobilizing a response team there to go to the -- to our facility and provide reinforcements and to repel the attack. With that knowledge, I called the operations center at the State Department, approximately 10 p.m. to report the attack and what we were doing to respond to it. The next thing I did was to begin calling the senior officials in the government of Libya that I knew at the time. And so, I dialed first the President Magariaf's chief of staff and reported the attack and asked for immediate assistance from the government of Libya to assist our folks in Benghazi. I followed that up with a call to the prime minister's chief of staff to make the same request and then to the MFA, America's director. MFA is Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The defense attache was, at the same time, calling the leadership of Libya's military with the same purpose, to ask them for assistance. Once that was done, I called again to Washington to report that these -- actions had been commenced. Over the night we -- over that night, that is basically how our team operated. I was talking to the government of -- of Libya, reporting to the State -- State Department through the operations center, and also staying in touch with the annex chief about what was going on. Let me step back one minute, if I could, and say that I also discussed with the annex chief about mobilizing a Tripoli response team, and we agreed that we would move forward with a -- chartering a plane from Tripoli to fly a response team to Benghazi to provide additional reinforcements. The defense attache was also reporting through his chain of command, back to AFRICOM and to the joint staff here in Washington about what was going on in the country. David McFarland, our political section chief, had just returned from Benghazi, where he had been our principle officer for the previous 10 days. And so, he jumped into this picture by reaching out to his contacts in - in Benghazi and trying to get them, at the local level there, to respond to the attack. And he also was in touch with our local employee there, as well -- excuse me if I check my notes here. This is a long -- the attack unfolded in four phases or the night unfolded in four phases. The first phase was the attack on our consulate. This story is well known, I think. The Benghazi response -- the consulate was invaded, the -- Villa C where the ambassador and Sean Smith and Scott Wickland were hiding in the safe area was set on fire. The attackers also went into another building. They were unable to enter the tactical operations center in Benghazi, because of improvements to that facility that had been made. They -- Scott attempted to lead the ambassador and Sean Smith out of the burning building. He managed to make it out. He tried repeatedly to go back in to try to rescue Sean and the ambassador but had to stop due to exposure to smoke. The response team from from the annex in Benghazi, six individuals, drove the attackers out of our compound, and secured it temporarily. There have been estimates as high as 60 attackers were in the compound at one particular time. There were repeated attempts by all of the RSOs and by the response team from the annex to go into the burning building and recover -- try to save Sean and the ambassador. They found Sean's body and pulled it out but he was no longer responsive. They did not find the ambassador. I spoke with a medical officer, one of our medical officers after the attack and the heroism of these individuals in repeatedly going into a petroleum based fire cannot be understated. Petroleum -- according to this -- to our regional medical officer, petroleum based fires emit enormous amounts of Cyanide gas. They told me one full breath of that would incapacitate and kill a person if exposed to it. A second -- it was noticed that a second wave of attackers was coming to attack the facility. And our teams evacuated, five RSOs and Sean Smith in one vehicle that suffered heavy fire, but they managed to break through and get to the annex, and in -- the annex team also withdrew from the facility and the second wave of attackers took it over. After the second phase of the evening occurs, the timing is about 11:30 or so. The second phase commences after the teams have returned to the annex, and they suffer for about an hour and a half probing attacks from terrorists. They are able to repulse them and then they desist at about 1:30 in the morning. The Tripoli response team departs at about midnight and arrives at about 1:15 in Benghazi. If I may step back again to Tripoli and what's going on there at this point. At about 10:45 or 11:00 we confer, and I asked the defense attache who had been talking about AFRICOM and with the joint staff, ''Is anything coming? Will they be sending us any help? Is there something out there?`` And he answered that, the nearest help was in Aviano, the nearest -- where there were fighter planes. He said that it would take two to three hours for them to get onsite, but that there also were no tankers available for them to refuel. And I said, ''Thank you very much,`` and we went on with our work. Phase III begins with news that the ambassador - the ambassador's body has been recovered, and David McFarland, if I recall correctly, is the individual who began to receive that news from his contacts in Benghazi. We began to hear also that the ambassador has been taken to a hospital. We don't know initially which hospital it is, but we -- through David's reports we learned that it is in a hospital which is controlled by Ansar Sharia, the group that Twitter feeds had identified as leading the attack on the consulate. We're getting this information as the Tripoli response team arrives in Benghazi at the airport. Both our annex chief and the annex chief in Benghazi and our defense attache are on the phone during this period trying to get the Libyan government to send vehicles and military -- and-or security assets to the airport to assist our response team. At this point, this response team looks like it may be a hostage rescue team, that they're going to -- we're going to need to send them to try to save the ambassador who is in a hospital that is, as far as we know, under enemy control. Our contacts with the government in Tripoli are telling us that the ambassador is in a safe place, but they imply that he is with us in the annex in Benghazi, and we keep telling them no, the -- he is not with us. We do not have his -- we do not have him. About 12:30 at the same time that we see the Twitter feeds that are asserting that Ansar Sharia is responsible for the attack, we also see a call for an attack on the embassy in Tripoli. And so we begin to - we -- we had always thought that we were in -- under threat, that we now have to take care of ourselves and we began planning to evacuate our facility. When I say our facility, I mean the State Department residential compound in Tripoli, and to consolidate all of our personnel in -- at the annex in Tripoli. We have about 55 diplomatic personnel in the two annexes. On that night if I may go back, I would just like to point out that with Ambassador Stevens and Sean Smith in Benghazi there are five diplomatic security agents -- assistant regional security officers. With us in -- in our residential compound in Tripoli, we have the RSO John Martinek, three assistant regional security officers protecting 28 diplomatic personnel. In addition, we also have four special forces personnel who are part of the training mission. During the night, I am in touch with Washington keeping them posted of what's happening in Tripoli and to the best of my knowledge what I am being told in Benghazi. I think at about 2 p.m. the -- 2 a.m., sorry, the Secretary of State Clinton called me along with her senior staff were all on the phone, and she asked me what was going on. And, I briefed her on developments. Most of the conversation was about the search for Ambassador Stevens. It was also about what we were going to do with our personnel in Benghazi, and I told her that we would need to evacuate, and that was -- she said that was the right thing to do. At about 3 a.m. I received a call from the prime minister of Libya. I think it is the saddest phone call I have ever had in my life. He told me that Ambassador Stevens had passed away. I immediately telephoned Washington that news afterwards, and began accelerating our effort to withdraw from the Villas compound and move to the annex. The -- excuse me. Our team responded with amazing discipline and courage in Tripoli in organizing withdrawal. I have vivid memories of that. I think the most telling, though, was of our communications staff dismantling our communications equipment to take with us to the annex and destroying the classified communications capability. Our office manager, Amber Pickens, was everywhere that night just throwing herself into some task that had to be done. First she was taking a log of what we were doing. Then she was loading magazines, carrying ammunition to the -- carrying our ammunition supply to the -- our vehicles, and then she was smashing hard drives with an axe. Allen Greenfield, our management officer, was a whirlwind of activity organizing the vehicles to -- lining them up, finding the drivers, making sure everybody was getting the things that they would need for the coming days. John Martinek was a mountain of moral support, particularly to the guys who were in Benghazi, just on the phone talking them through the whole ordeal. David McFarland on the phone constantly all the time talking to his contacts in Benghazi urging -- urging them to help. Lieutenant Colonel Phillips and Lieutenant Colonel Arnt and Lieutenant Colonel Gibson mountains of strength. I'm still in awe of them. They asked me, in one of the phone calls, when were you going to move to the annex, and I said, ''We'll move at dawn,`` because none of our people had great experience driving the armored suburbans that we were going to have to use. Our local staff drove for us as part of our security procedures. They of course were not there that night, and we would have to go through check points, militia check points on the way to the annex to get there, and I didn't want our people to be going through those check points, because I didn't know what to expect from the militias. And so we moved at dawn. We arrived at the annex, at least my group I think at about 4:45 perhaps, maybe 5 a.m., and a few minutes later came the word of the mortar attack. If I could return to Benghazi a little bit and talk through Tripoli. I am sorry if I bounce back and forth. The Tripoli team was -- basically had to stay at the Benghazi airport because they had no transport and no escort from the -- the Libyans. After the announcement of Chris' passing, military escorted vehicles arrived at the airport. So the decision was made for them to go to the annex. One of the -- before I got the call from the prime minister, we'd received several phone calls on the phone that had been with the ambassador saying that we know where the ambassador is, please, you can come get him. And our local staff engaged on those phone calls admirably, asking very, very good, outstanding, even open ended questions about where was he, trying to discern whether he was alive, whether they even had the ambassador, whether that person was with the ambassador, send a picture, could we talk to the ambassador? Because we knew separately from David that the ambassador was in a hospital that we believe was under Ansar Sharia's call, we -- we suspected that we were being bated into a trap, and so we did not want to go send our people into an ambush. And we didn't. We sent them to the annex. Shortly after we arrived at the annex the mortars came in. The first was long. It landed actually among the Libyans that escorted our people. They took casualties for us that night. The next was short, the next three landed on the roof killing Glen and Tyrone, and severely wounded David. They didn't know whether any more mortars were going to come in. The accuracy was terribly precise. The call was the next one is coming through the roof, maybe if it hit -- two of the guys from team Tripoli climbed up on the roof and carried Glen's body and Tyrone's body down. One guy, Mark Si, full combat gear, climbed up there strapped David a large man, to his back, carried him down a ladder and saved him. In Tripoli, we had -- the defense attache had persuaded the Libyans to fly their C-130 to Benghazi and wanted to airlift -- we had -- since we had consolidated at the annex, and the Libyan government had now provided us with external security around our facilities, we wanted to send further reinforcements to Benghazi. We determined that Lieutenant Gibson and his team of special forces troops should go. The people in Benghazi had been fighting all night. They were tired. They were exhausted. We wanted to make sure the airport was secure for their withdrawal. As Colonel Gibson and his three personnel were -- were getting in the cars, he stopped. And he called them off and said -- told me that he had not been authorized to go. The vehicles had to go because the flight needed to go to Tripoli -- I mean, to Benghazi. Lieutenant Colonel Gibson was furious. I had told him to go bring our people home. That's what he wanted to do -- paid me a very nice compliment. I won't repeat it here. So the plane went. I think it landed in Benghazi around 7:30. The other thing that we did was -- and I -- and I want to mention Jackie Lavesk's name in this hearing. She was our nurse. We initially thought that we would -- that she should go to Benghazi. One of the special forces with Lieutenant Colonel Gibson's team was -- was our last military-trained medic available. He had a broken foot in a cast. I still remember him walking -- walking to go and get in the car with his machine gun, carrying a machine gun on his shoulder. Jackie, I -- I -- I refused to allow her to go to Benghazi, because I knew we had wounded coming back. I knew David was severely wounded. And I knew others were wounded as well. And Jackie had just made terrific contacts with a hospital in town. And so, we sent -- we went her -- I sent her to that hospital to start mobilizing their E.R. teams and their doctors to receive our wounded. So when the charter flight arrived in Tripoli, we had ambulances at the hospital -- at the -- at the airport waiting. Their doctors were ready and waiting for our wounded to come in, to be brought in to the operating room. And they certainly saved David Oven's leg. And they may have very well have saved his life. And they treated our other wounded as well, as if they were their own. European Union leaders meeting Thursday in Brussels agreed to extend sanctions on Russia for another six months, EU officials said. The one-day summit, which ran late into the evening, capped a turbulent year for the 28-member group as questions loom over the integrity and future of the organization. The decision to extend sanctions on Russia came as no surprise. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande said this week that they would support extending sanctions in light of Russia's failure to abide by the Minsk agreements on Ukraine. The decision, to be announced officially in the next few days, came despite growing pressure among investors and energy interests in Europe, including within Germany itself, for sanctions to be rolled back. Analysts said the poor momentum for continued actions to punish Russia had been spurred on by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's stated willingness to work more closely with Russia to resolve conflicts and combat terrorism. Analysts had said the EU would be unlikely to announce any new sanctions against Moscow over Syria, but EU leaders Thursday strongly condemned the Syrian government's Russian-backed assault on parts of Aleppo and called for a halt to the violence. "I have been talking constantly to Russia, and Russia makes commitments that it is not keeping. Now it is time for us to conclude a cease-fire," Hollande told reporters. next Image 1 of 2 prev Image 2 of 2 Amid rising tensions between Moscow and Washington, the administration of Russian president Vladimir Putin is considering setting up an air base in Cuba, according to the Washington Post. Russian officials have been hinting at an interest in bringing back a military base presence in Cuba, but arent saying outright of any concrete plans or what discussions, if any, they are having with officials of the island nation that sits a mere 90 miles from U.S. shores. Citing Russian news reports, the Post said that Russian Deputy Defense Minister Nikolai Pankov indicated that the military is reviewing the closing of an intelligence base in Cuba as well as that of a naval base in Vietnam in the early 2000s. Cuba closed the base, according to published reports, because of financial problems associated with it, as well as U.S. pressure. Russia is looking to expand its global presence, the Post reported, to compete, in a way, with the United States. As for our presence on faraway outposts, we are working on this, Pankov said. The Post said that Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for Putin, would not elaborate about restoring a presence in Cuba and Vietnam. All he would acknowledge, the Post said, was that Russia finds itself having to look for ways to address global developments. Russia just ratified a treaty with Syria last week that enables it to have its first permanent air base in the Middle East. Putin has repeatedly expressed support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The Soviets established the base in Cuba following the 1962 missile crisis, which involved Moscows desire to put nuclear weapons in Cuba. That base, which was located about 150 miles from U.S. shores, offered the ability to the Soviets to intercept U.S. communications. Some international affairs experts remain skeptical about a return of a Russian base to Cuba. I will believe this is a real possibility when I hear it from Cuba and Vietnam. A country needs to want this, Olga Oliker, director of the Russian and Eurasia program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., told the Miami Herald. Russia is looking to increase its global posture from a prestige point of view, to show that it is a world power, and, like the United States, it also has global bases, said Oliker. The question is what would Russia offer [Cuba and Vietnam] in exchange for the countries allowing these bases. Im not sure how interested the Cubans are given the recent restoration of relations with the United States. Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter & Instagram Margarita Cedeno, the vice president of the Dominican Republic, is asking her fellow Dominicans in the United States to vote for Hillary Clinton. In a video released Tuesday, Cedeno asks Dominicans to vote for the former secretary of state on Election Day next week. Its the first time in its history that a member of the Dominican executive branch has openly campaigned for a candidate in the U.S. presidential race. Its the only option for progress, Cedeno said in the Spanish-language video with subtitles in English. Support her with your vote and avoid losing your rights. The vice president, who is married to ex-Dominican President Leonel Fernandez, said she is worried about womens rights and that her compatriots would become second-class citizens under a Donald Trump presidency. On Nov. 8, you have the opportunity to ensure that this doesnt happen, Cedeno said. Put your trust in a smart and qualified woman such as Hillary Clinton Because she is the only choice that guarantees dignity, respect and the future of Latin Americans in the United States. Spokespersons with the offices of the president and vice president have not responded to calls for comment. It is unclear if the video was an independent project by Cedeno, promoted by the Clinton campaign or had the backing of Dominican President Danilo Medina. Clinton and her husband, ex-President Bill Clinton, have traveled several times to the Dominican Republic and have met with Fernandez and Cedeno as well as other government officials. Based on reporting by the Associated Press. Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter & Instagram The 11 Electoral College voters in Arizona appear undaunted in their decision to cast their ballots Monday for President-elected Donald Trump, despite the tens of thousands of emails, hundreds of letters and even alleged death threats. Its out of hand when you have such a small group of people that is pushing so hard against millions if not hundreds of millions of people who still appreciate this whole system, Arizona elector Robert Graham told Fox News on Saturday. The Electoral College is part of the Constitution. Graham, chairman of the Arizona Republican Party, suggested some of the 11 electors are also being followed and have received death threats but that such tactics are really more annoying than anything. Elector Ed Robson, a Phoenix homebuilder, said those who have sent the stack of letters are idiots. The 11 electors are all Republicans because Trump won the Arizona election with 49 percent of the vote compared to Democrat Hillary Clinton's 45 percent. They were picked by the state party and will gather Monday to formally cast their votes. All swore to party officials that they will back Trump, even though they're not legally bound to do so, and plan to hold to that pledge. "I look at it this way -- when you're asked to be an elector, it's an honor and you should be humbled that you're being selected to represent your party," said elector and retired nurse Carole Joyce. "And when it's a presidential candidate who won the election for your party I can't imagine anything but voting for that individual." Some opponents of Trump are planning protests across the nation as the electors gather, including at the state capitol in Phoenix. Daniel Brezenoff -- a California activist who started a petition on Change.org to Make Hillary Clinton President -- told Fox News on Saturday that Trump is unqualified to lead the country. That is why the founding fathers created the Electoral College, to protect from a man like Donald Trump becoming commander in chief, he said. The petition now has more than 4 million signatures, but its almost certain Trump will get 270 of the 538 Electoral College votes he needs Monday to officially become president. Some of those in Arizona have contacted others to urge them to stand firm, but others say that's not necessary. "I don't think there's any need for me to, because all the electors in Arizona, all 11, are voting for Donald Trump,' said Jane Lynch, a longtime GOP activist and former state party official. "There's no doubt about it, so there's no need for me to reach out to anybody." The Associated Press interviewed eight of the 11 Arizona electors, part of a national effort to reach all 538 people who will vote on the presidency. The AP interviewed more than 300 -- quizzing them on the unique pressure they've received this year, their voting position and whether they believe the Electoral College needs to be changed because it does not reflect the national popular vote. The universal answer on changes to the Electoral College among Arizona electors was that it should be kept as is because it helps reflect the nation as a whole. "I believe that the Electoral College was one of the most forward-thinking ideas of the founders of this country," said Bruce Ash, a Tucson businessman and Republican National Committee member. "It allows for the will of the people across the whole width and breath of this country to be properly represented in a presidential election. It is part of the reason that we have had the kind of leadership, both good and bad, through our country's history." Arizona Republican electors have a recent history in holding their ground, even when it hurts their own party. In 2012, several party officials serving as Electoral College members for Arizona questioned President Barack Obama's eligibility to be president, voicing concerns that later drew disavowals from then-Gov. Jan Brewer and another Republican elected officials. All 11 Arizona electors cast their votes in 2012 for defeated Republican nominee Mitt Romney, who won the state's popular vote. The slots are awarded to states according to the size of their congressional delegations and generally go to party loyalists and activists. Then-state Republican Party Chairman Tom Morrissey and two current or former GOP county chairmen spoke up during the 2012 ceremony to voice doubts about Obama's eligibility as a native-born U.S. citizen. "I am signing this document with concern about the legitimacy of the birth certificate that I have seen presented by Barack Hussein Obama," Morrissey said at the time. This year, the state's electors are solidly behind the man who gathered the most electoral delegates on Nov. 8. "I'm going to be voting for Donald Trump and the reason is, and I will give you the cliche -- he will make America great again, he is already," Mesa resident and elector Sharon Giese said. "He's doing a terrific job and he hasn't even been inaugurated yet." The Associated Press contributed to this story. Qatar's first Christian church has no cross, no bell and no steeple. And when 5,000 faithful flock to Our Lady of the Rosary to celebrate its historic consecration this weekend, they pray no one will notice. Father Tom Veneracion, the parish priest, is worried about a backlash. "The idea is to be discreet because we don't want to inflame any sensitivities," he says. "There isn't even a signboard outside the church. No signs at all." Qatar's fledgling Catholic community considers its sprawling $15 million saucer-shaped facility a victory. A 15-minute drive into barren desert, it has been built with the blessing of the nation's emir. But some people in this Muslim country have branded it an offense; one prominent politician has called for a national referendum to determine its fate. And as the church lookd forward to its first Easter service, the controversy is getting considerable attention among this gas-rich country's press. "The cross should not be raised in the sky of Qatar, nor should bells toll in Doha," wrote Lahdan bin Issa al-Muhanada, a leading columnist in Doha's Al-Arab newspaper. But Abdul Hamid al-Ansari, the former dean of the Islamic law school at Qatar University, disagrees. He wrote that having "places of worship for various religions is a fundamental human right guaranteed by Islam." Sitting in his sparse office in the portable building that has served as a makeshift chapel for his congregation for the last six years, Veneracion said he was bewildered by the dispute. "It is confusing to us," said the priest, a soft-spoken man from the Philippines who seemed genuinely caught off guard by the controversy. "We tried to be discreet, and I think there's an atmosphere generally in the Gulf that's fairly anti-Christian, but that's mainly to do with what's happening in Iraq and Afghanistan. "It has nothing to do with us at all." In Doha, the call to build a Catholic church has grown as waves of migrant workers from South Asia and the Philippines arrived in the Gulf, answering the call for cheap labor to fuel the region's runaway economy. But the Christian immigrants have sometimes collided with the native Qatari population, which practices Wahhabism, a strict interpretation of Islam. Native Qataris account for only 200,000 of the country's population of 900,000. The Vatican estimates there are 100,000 practicing Catholics in Qatar. They attended underground services until seven years ago, when Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, the country's current ruler, granted permission to five denominations to open churches. The Sheikh, who seized control from his father in a 1995 palace coup, is a staunch U.S. ally, and the move is part of a broader push to promote Qatar as an open and tolerant society, in order to attract tourism and business. Veneracion says that the church, when it's completed, will serve as a place for "prayer and inter-faith dialogue." The grounds boast a catechism building and conference center. A wedding party has already booked a ceremony and reception in May. When Our Lady of the Rosary opens its doors, it will make Saudi Arabia the only Gulf state that still bans churches. But it remains unclear if Qataris will accept the church, or whether a backlash will force it to close its doors. Rashed al-Subaie, a Qatari engineer, wrote in a letter to the Al-Watan newspaper that Christians should practice their faith only "in line with public morals without being given licenses to set up places of worship." Christians should "worship their God in their homes," he wrote. But Qatar's Catholic faithful remain resolute. A few days ago, Lourdes Carvallo and her elderly mother attended what they prayed would be one of their last morning services in the makeshift chapel. The 38-year-old housewife from Goa, India, was born in Qatar and grew up attending underground mass in neighbors' homes. She said: "We have been waiting for this for such a long time and we are feeling very hopeful, because finally we will have a proper place of worship." The latest data breach to hit Yahoo could prompt users to switch to a different email service. That is, if the company's previous security lapse didn't already send them toward the exits. Yahoo on Wednesday said that a billion user accounts had been hacked in 2013, a crime that wasn't discovered until law enforcement contacted the company this fall. The revelation came just three months after the company disclosed that 500 million accounts had been compromised in 2014. According to the company, both data breaches were linked to state-sponsored actors. The stolen information includes names, phone numbers, birthdates, passwords, and security questions that could be used to reset a password. If you're a Yahoo email user who has lost confidence in the service, leaving your email account behind can seem intimidating. The same goes if you're switching from Gmail, Outlook, or any other service. But it's fairly simple. Here's how to make the move. 1. Open the New Email Account Email service providers are more than happy to nab one anothers customers, so many offer a feature to import data from one service to another. If you're switching to Gmail from another service, click Import Mail and Contacts under the Accounts and Import tab and enter your account credentials; Google can pull from Yahoo, Outlook, and AOL. Outlook.com settings include a Connected Accounts feature, which can pull email from up to 13 separate accounts. Youll have to go to another menu to sync contacts: Select People in the main Outlook Mail menu, then go to Manage > Import contacts. Switching to Yahoo takes a little more work. You have to enable an export setting in your old account first. In Gmail settings, for instance, select Enable POP for all mail in the Forwarding and POP/IMAP Settings tab. Then in Yahoo, go to the Options tab, then Mail Accounts, then Add. Importing contacts is much simpler: Just click on the Contacts tab and click on import contacts. If you check email in a browser, that's all you need to do. But if you also make use of your computer's built-in email software, read on. 2. Sync Your Desktop Clients Both Windows and Mac OS X have native mail and contacts clients that can sync data with online accounts. If you use those built-in tools, you need to tell them about your new email account. In Mail for Windows 10, select Manage Accounts in Settings, then click Add Account. If you use Googles two-step authentication feature (and you should), you may have to log in and give Windows permission to access your account. Once youre logged in via Mail, the People and Calendar apps will have access to the account, as well. Similarly, in Mac OS X, you can add email, contacts, and calendars all at once; in System Preferences select Internet Accounts then click on the + in the lower-left corner and follow the on-screen prompts. 3. Use a Backup Service This step is optional. But in addition to switching to a new account, you may also want to save an archive to a hard drive. This will give you access to your old emails even if you're offline. If that's what youre after, consider downloading or signing up for third-party software specifically designed to capture and save emails. MailStore Home, for one, is a free piece of Windows software that can back up mail from any internet account, servers such as Microsoft Exchange, or email clients including Mozilla Thunderbird. The tool creates an archive that lets you search both messages and attachments, and it has a one-click export feature can restore emails in bulk or individually. For remote access to your email data, consider the Dropmyemail service, which for $1.67 a month will keep a secure, searchable archive of your emails in the cloud. Once it's synced with an email account (the service supports all the top email providers), you can download and restore messages or migrate them to a new server. 4. Bonus Advice: Dont Forget Flickr! If you use the popular photo-sharing site, remember that your Yahoo credentials are also your Flickr credentials, so deleting Yahoo will also wipe out your pics. To download your photos, go to Camera Roll view; click Select All and then Download. Youll be left with a .zip archive file, which you can extract on your desktop or upload to Google Photos. Copyright 2005-2016 Consumers Union of U.S., Inc. No reproduction, in whole or in part, without written permission. Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertisers on this site. Chicago police say four people were shot to death and one was critically injured at a home on the city's far South Side. Officer Jose Estrada with the police department said officers responded at about 12:40 p.m. Saturday to a call that someone had been shot. When they arrived, four people were dead and the fifth was critically injured. A 2-year-old child was not injured. Estrada said police do not yet know exactly when the people were shot, the circumstances of the shooting or the names of the victims. He says no arrests have been made. The shootings come near the end of the deadliest years in recent history in Chicago, where there have been more than 700 homicides. A judge has ruled the prosecutors of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl won't be able to harness some of the most emotionally powerful evidence against him at his court martial next year. The judge decided they can't present evidence at trial that soldiers were wounded searching for Bergdahl after he walked off his post in Afghanistan in 2009. Army Col. Jeffery Nance ruled Friday he won't allow this evidence because the risk is too great military jurors would act on emotion rather than logic and unfairly show bias against the defendant. Nance says the military can present evidence dangerous missions were undertaken, bringing Bergdahl's comrades into contact with the enemy. But they can't use evidence of injuries at trial. Bergdahl is charged with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy. He has asked for a pardon. A Delaware man convicted of fatally stabbing a psychiatrist who once treated him has been sentenced to life in prison. Christopher Frick pleaded guilty but mentally ill in September in the killing of 55-year-old Caroline Ekong. The Wilmington News Journal reports (http://delonline.us/2i0TZAw ) Frick was sentenced Friday to life in prison, plus 25 years. Authorities have said he plotted Ekong's death for at least a year. They say Frick was angry that Ekong refused to let him leave a psychiatric facility. Frick apologized Friday and said he wishes he could take it back. Three mental health experts concluded that Frick suffers from a host of mental disorders. His plea means he will receive psychiatric treatment while incarcerated. Ekong's daughter, Koko Ekong, said Friday that her mother was a "woman of integrity." Officials say an officer was wounded and the suspect was killed in a shooting in Oregon on Friday night. Officials reported that officers were investigating the male suspect for a DUII related incident when the shooting occurred in a Walmart parking lot in Dallas, Oregon. The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene. The officer was reportedly shot in the leg. Dallas City Councilman Micky Garus posted on Facebook saying the officer was expected to be fine. He said in the post that the officer is okay and receiving care at a hospital. No other details were immediately available. Officials have identified a police officer who was shot and critically wounded in Washington state as 61-year-old Mike McClaughry, who is known by the nickname "Mick," police said. Mount Vernon Police Lt. Christopher Cammock said at a Friday briefing that McClaughry suffered a gunshot wound to the head while investigating a reported shooting in a Mount Vernon neighborhood north of Seattle. McClaughry is a father of three and a grandfather who started working with the Mount Vernon Police Department in 1985. Cammock said, "Service might not adequately describe what Mick has done for our community," adding he was the first to run a drug abuse resistance education program, becoming a father figure to many. He has also been active in scouting and as a field training officer, training about three-quarters of the officers who currently work at the police department, Cammock said. McClaughry remained in critical condition at a Seattle hospital Friday afternoon although Cammock said he has shown some improvement. "The news is more positive than negative as to his condition," Cammock said Friday. "He is resilient." A repeat felon arrested in the officer's shooting was ordered held on $1 million bail Friday. Ernesto Lee Rivas, 44, was taken into custody overnight following an hour-long standoff at a home in Mount Vernon, during which he repeatedly fired at officers, the Washington State Patrol said. Hostage negotiators spent several hours communicating with him. Two juveniles were also arrested and prosecutors said they were being held on $500,000 bail each. McClaughry was shot when he was canvassing the neighborhood for witnesses to a report of another shooting Thursday evening, in which the victim was grazed by a bullet. McClaughry was taken to Skagit Valley Hospital and was stabilized before being transferred to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Earlier reports said the officer was in serious condition, but the hospital said Friday his condition was critical. The neighborhood where Thursday's shooting happened in Mount Vernon, about 60 miles north of Seattle, was closed by police while officers and a SWAT team were attempting to negotiate. The shooting came less than a month after a Tacoma police officer was killed responding to a domestic violence call. Officer Reginald "Jake" Gutierrez, 45, was fatally shot Nov. 30. The suspected gunman was killed by a sheriff's marksman, ending an 11-hour standoff. Rivas made an initial court appearance Friday. On advice from his attorney, he answered no questions not even to confirm his identity, the Skagit Valley Herald reported. Prosecutors have 72 hours to file charges. Rivas has an extensive criminal record that includes eight felony convictions, according to court and patrol records. In 1998, he reached a plea deal with Yakima County prosecutors that saved him from a life sentence for a third-strike conviction for his part in the abduction and interrogation of four people he believed stole a woman's necklace, according to a Yakima Herald-Republic story. Instead of life, he was sentenced to 15 years and gloated about it to a police detective in the courtroom, saying with a smile, "Oh, by the way, does that mean I got four balls and a walk?" The sentence angered Yakima police Detective Eric Walls, the Herald-Republic reported at the time. In a statement to the judge, he said Rivas should never be allowed to leave prison. Records reviewed by The Associated Press show Rivas was convicted of unlawful firearm possession in 2011, and in November 2015, the mother of Rivas' then-4-month-old child obtained a domestic violence protection order against him, saying he had been stalking her at her job at a Dollar Tree store in Mount Vernon. "He sits outside my work for long periods of time, comes into my workplace and complains about me," she wrote in a petition for the order. "He almost hit me with his vehicle while I was getting carts, yelling at me in front of customers." The issue, she said, was that he wanted possession of a Chevy Suburban they owned. She sought police help to retrieve a key to the vehicle from him. The agency's spokeswoman, Laura Allen, said Thursday it will continue to monitor events in the Philippines before the next board review in March 2017. The Philippines had been slated for another aid package after its previous five-year, $434 million poverty reduction program was completed in May under Duterte's predecessor, Benigno Aquino III. Duterte took office in June. A U.S. government aid agency, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, said this week that its board deferred a vote on a renewal of the development assistance package for the Philippines "subject to a further review of concerns around rule of law and civil liberties." Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr. said the uncertainty over the aid package emerged after President Rodrigo Duterte declared he would chart a foreign policy independent of the United States. The Philippines' top diplomat criticized the United States on Friday for deferring a decision on a major aid package over human rights concerns and said the Philippines can survive without it. The U.S. decision is among the first signs of how concerns about the rule of law and human rights under Duterte could entail economic costs. The U.S. government, along with European Union and United Nations officials, has raised concerns about Duterte's crackdown on illegal drugs, which has left more than 2,000 suspected drug users and dealers dead in purported gunbattles with police. More than 3,000 other deaths are being investigated to determine if they were linked to illegal drugs. Duterte has lashed out at President Barack Obama, his administration and other critics of his crackdown with expletive-laden tirades. "If we will be given this assistance... we first have to bow down to the impositions of conditions that they are making and this is something that we feel is not conducive to strengthening our relationship with friends, especially traditional allies, especially close friends," Yasay said at a news conference in Singapore, where he and other officials are accompanying the president on a two-day visit. "This has always been our appeal to America. Treat us with mutual respect and treat us as a sovereign equal," Yasay said. "You cannot just simply (say) that... 'we would like to give this to you but you have to toe the line insofar as our policy is concerned.'" Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said at the same news conference that Duterte's government does not condone extrajudicial killings or human rights violations. Yasay said the proposed U.S. aid for the Philippines is potentially larger than the first package granted to the country but that Filipino economic experts believe the loss of the assistance "will not really have a great impact." "This is what our economic experts say, we're not really bothered by it, we will not be sleepless over this decision," he said. To the accompaniment of deafening traditional music and trailed by a crowd of hundreds, Turkmenistan's president inaugurated his lavish new palace in the heart of the Central Asian nation's gleaming capital Wednesday. The $250 million complex built by French construction company Bouygues replaces the more squat golden-domed palace located a few blocks away. The landmark appears to represent President Gurbanguli Berdymukhamedov's determination to expunge all signs of the personality cult dedicated to the former Soviet country's previous leader, after whom the old presidential palace was named. It may also be a display of one-upmanship in Central Asia, where presidents have seemingly tried over the years to outdo one another in the grandness of their offices. The new presidential palace is topped by three golden domes and, the president said, will be able to meet all the needs of government. But it is likely to draw criticism from government opponents, all of whom have been ruthlessly hounded out of the country, about waste and misspending while many Turkmens still endure poverty and hardship. However, hundreds of people, including many bearded town elders and small children, waited under the searing sun for the president to arrive for the opening ceremony as they listened to folk music performances and watched traditional dances. After performing the ribbon-cutting, Berdymukhamedov walked into the vast entrance hall followed by a large crowd that also included top government officials and diplomats. The original presidential palace was named after the first post-independence leader, President Saparmurat Niyazov a mercurial and often megalomaniacal character who officially went by the title of Turkmenbashi, or Father of the Turkmens. Berdymukhamedov succeeded Niyazov, who died in December 2006. As part of a concerted effort to dismantle Niyazov's personality cult, it is now no longer mandatory for high school students to sit an exam on the rambling spiritual guide written by Niyazov; and the name of the first month of the year has been restored to January from Turkmenbashi. While eschewing many of Niyazov's excesses, Berdymukhamedov remains deeply fond of the grandiose, overblown style that has come to distinguish the capital, Ashgabat. Once a Communist-era backwater, rebuilt into a typically drab provincial Soviet city after a devastating earthquake in the 1940s, Ashgabat was radically transformed by Niyazov into a vast collection of curiously designed government buildings and starkly white apartment blocks. The result is remarkable, although visitors note that the city is frequently deserted and bears little by way of native personality. No other city in Turkmenistan has received such treatment. As well as building this palace and some of the country's most outlandish government offices, French company Bouygues also built the first presidential palace in 1997. The company once drew Niyazov's ire when the golden dome on a gigantic mosque it built in the leader's home village began to turn green. Niyazov's original presidential palace was once notable for its flamboyant appearance, but it was subsequently outstripped in architectural stature by large buildings in oil-rich Kazakhstan and even impoverished Tajikistan. A Norwegian dressed as a police officer gunned down at least 84 people at an island retreat before being arrested, police said Saturday. Investigators are still searching the surrounding waters, where people fled the attack, which followed an explosion in nearby Oslo that killed seven. The mass shootings are among the worst in history. With the blast outside the prime minister's office, they formed the deadliest day of terror in Western Europe since the 2004 Madrid train bombings killed 191. Police official Roger Andresen told reporters that the total death toll was now 91 and that a suspect was in custody being questioned for both assaults and is cooperating with the investigators. Though police did not release his name, Norwegian national broadcaster NRK identified him as 32-year-old Anders Behring Breivik and said police searched his Oslo apartment overnight. NRK and other Norwegian media posted pictures of the blond, blue-eyed Norwegian. "He is clear on the point that he wants to explain himself," Roger Andresen told reporters Saturday. More On This... How to Make Sense of What Happened In Oslo National police chief Sveinung Sponheim told NRK that the suspected gunman's Internet postings "suggest that he has some political traits directed toward the right, and anti-Muslim views, but whether that was a motivation for the actual act remains to be seen." Andersen said the suspect posted on websites with Christian fundamentalist tendencies. He did not describe the websites in any more details. A police official said the suspect appears to have acted alone in both attacks, and that "it seems like this is not linked to any international terrorist organizations at all." The official spoke on condition of anonymity because that information had not been officially released by Norway's police. "It seems it's not Islamic-terror related," the official said. "This seems like a madman's work." Norway has not changed its threat level after twin attacks on the capital and a nearby island retreat, the justice minister said Saturday. Justice Minister Knut Storberget told reporters Saturday the government was in constant discussion with police and were continually assessing it. "The debate on the threat level is ongoing," Storberget said. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg told reporters Saturday that he had spent many summers on the island of Utoya, which was hosting a youth retreat for his party. Utoya is "my childhood paradise that yesterday was transformed into Hell," he said at a news conference in the capital at which Storberget also appeared. Johan Fredriksen, another police official, said Saturday a SWAT team was put on standby after a bombing in Oslo. When asked how long it took the SWAT team to arrive at the island after the shooting began, Fredriksen said: "It takes the time it takes to drive fast." He said that was about 30 minutes. Police initially said about 10 were killed at the forested camp on the island, but some survivors said they thought the toll was much higher. Police director Oystein Maeland told reporters early Saturday they had discovered many more victims. Maeland said the death toll could rise even more. He said others were severely wounded, but police didn't know how many were hurt. The island is about 500 yards (meters) from one shore of Tyrifjorden lake, an oddly shaped body of water that is 15 miles (25 kilometers) at its longest and 8 miles (12 kilometers) at its widest. next Image 1 of 2 prev Image 2 of 2 Ukraine has said it wants to restore natural gas deliveries from energy-rich Turkmenistan as it tries to reduce reliance on Russia for the fuel. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko's office said in a statement Friday that the option was discussed during talks with the visiting Turkmen foreign minister. The meeting took place Thursday. Until 2006, Turkmenistan supplied Ukraine with 36 billion cubic meters (1.3 trillion cubic feet) of gas annually in exchange for cash and goods. Turkmenistan wishes to widen its client base, while Ukraine wants to wean itself off Russian gas, so any deal would be eagerly embraced by both parties. A deal would require acquiescence from Kazakhstan and Russia as transit nations, however. Kazakhstan is unlikely to pose an obstacle, but Russia would be expected to be less forthcoming. A military official in the Libyan capital says a helicopter has been shot down near Tripoli, killing at least 14 of its 23 passengers. Tripoli Chief of Staff spokesman Col. Ali al-Sheikhi says two high-ranking officers allied to the Islamist-backed Tripoli government were on board. Al-Sheikhi says the helicopter departed at noon to transport salaries to the town of Surman and was shot down near the Almaya area west of Tripoli. He added that 14 bodies had been retrieved so far and survivors had yet to be found. Libya has fallen into chaos since the 2011 toppling and killing of longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi. The internationally recognized government is confined to the country's east, while a rival Islamist-led government holds the capital, Tripoli. Norway is offering asylum seekers thousands of dollars to leave the country as the global refugee crisis intensifies, and hundreds of people have taken the government up on its offer, The Local reports. A family with two children is eligible for up to $9,300 dollars and free flights home, the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration told the media outlet. More than 900 people reportedly have accepted. [Refugees] thought that when they came to Norway they would get protection rather quickly, the head of The Norwegian Directorate of Immigrations return unit told local broadcaster NRK, The Local adds. Instead, applications for family reunification can often take years, and an increasing number of refugees fleeing conflict in the Middle East and Africa dont want to wait. Earlier this year, the number [of applications] was an average of 100 per month. In October, there were 150 and in November there were 230 applications, the International Organization for Migration spokesman Joost van der Aalst told NRK, The Local reports. Housing-related challenges in Norway are also discouraging refugees from staying, as many find themselves in remote communities where work is difficult to procure, The Local adds. The Norwegian Directorate of Immigration has said it may be necessary to cut the amount of economic support offered to asylum seekers in the future. Refugees whose asylum applications have been denied also have the opportunity to apply for financial assistance to return home. Click for more from The Local. Its been almost 30 years since the Iran-contra scandal, but for some in the Nicaraguan highlands the war has never ended. Rebel fighters in the Central American nations forested mountains are once again setting up ambushes against the government, getting into firefights with the military and hoping to overthrow President Daniel Ortegas administration just like they did in the 1980s. The contras, also referred to as the rearmed, may be a shadow of their former fighting force they have little money and bemoan the lack of international funding a la the Reagan administration but the rebels are still causing havoc in a country that is becoming increasingly more politically divided. Just last week a skirmish with the contras left a number of soldiers, police officers and civilians dead. The war between the Nicaraguan government and the contras officially ended over 25 years ago when Ortega was voted out of office. But Ortega ran for president again and won back his seat in 2006, ushering in economic and social reforms that have boosted his popularity with the poor and working class, but also angering many who condemn his control over everything from the elections to the police to the courts. There is also widespread anger over the political favors granted to Ortegas family and friends that have turned many into millionaires. Ortegas friends and family now own fuel companies and television stations and some people are comparing him to the dictator he helped overthrow, Antonio Somoza. Daniel Ortega wasnt anything, and now he owns half of Nicaragua, a contra fighter named Tyson told the New York Times. Its not just the contras, however, who are upset with the Ortega government. Student activists, opposition lawmakers and other protestors are speaking about the apparent corruption and graft taking place in Nicaragua. Its a legitimate social cause, Gonzalo Carrion, the director of the Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights, told the Times. Despite the deadly attacks and skirmishes, the Nicaraguan government has so far steadfastly refused to acknowledge that the contras have reemerged from the highlands. There are no armed groups in this country, Julio Cesar Aviles, the army chief, said last year. I have said it on multiple occasions. Human rights groups, however, say that the Nicaraguan government is waging a covert assassination campaign against the contras. Last year, one rebel was ambushed and killed inside his house, while two more died when a backpack delivered to them by a courier exploded. In 2011, the most notorious contra leader was shot to death and his successors bullet-riddled body was found later that year in a ditch in neighboring Honduras. While many of the contras have vowed to keep fighting one posted a video to Facebook promising that 45 different groups will attack state institutions until Ortega holds fair elections others admit that their fight is difficult as their numbers and money dwindle. There are not so many fighters, because they are killing them, Rafael Antonio Lanzas, a contra rebel told the Times. Another problem facing the contras is the difficulty of winning over the hearts and minds of the countrys poor. Nicaragua is the second poorest nation in the Western hemisphere, behind Haiti, and the Ortega government has a loyal following among the impoverished thanks to programs like Houses for the People, which distributes houses to the poor at discount prices. Still the rebels say that the Nicaraguan people are getting a raw deal as Ortega and his friends continue to amass personal fortunes. Nobody goes to war because they like it, Tyson said. The Nicaraguan people are getting robbed. Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter & Instagram Despite Venezuelas growing economic crisis, President Nicolas Maduro spared no expense to celebrate Fidel Castros 90th birthday last Saturday. According to opposition lawmaker Carlos Berrizbeitia, Maduro spent at least $400,000 traveling to Havana with a group of folk music artists to put on a concert in honor of Castro, the political mentor of late President Hugo Chavez and a close ally of Venezuela. The event was transmitted live on two Venezuelan public TV channels and hosted by Winston Vallenilla, a popular TV personality who entered politics in 2013 when he supported Maduro and was later appointed president of Venezuelas largest public TV station. Maduro used the presidential airplane, which requires around $25,000 to operate per hour, Berrizbeitia told Fox News Latino. "The trip to Cuba is two hours long, so he spent around $100,000 to go and come back. A second plane made the trip to Cuba, transporting musicians, technicians, journalists, government ministers and military personnel to protect the president. $185,000 had to be used for that and to pay hotel says and food. The rest of the money was spent in the satellite transmission of the concert and to pay the artists and technicians, Berrizbeitia said. The lawmaker, a member of the National Assemblys Controllership Commission, based his calculation on the national budget, which estimated $124 million for government travels to other countries this year. The trip to Cuba could have cost more, but we dont know exactly because of the government's secrecy over public expenditures, Berrizbeitia said. He said in total about 80 people made the trip from Venezuela to Cuba. First lady Cilia Flores, Minister of Culture Freddy Nanez and actor Roberto Messuti, another supporter of Maduro's, also made the trip. The president and his wife stayed two days, but the majority of the group spent more than three days in Havana. Since taking power in 2013, Maduro has traveled to Cuba 16 times, according to an FNL count. If each of those presidential flights costs $100,000, as Berrizbeitia calculates, then the government has spent, at absolute minimum, $1.6 million taking trips to Cuba. Last April, during the Summit of Americas in Cuba, Maduros government paid for 1,500 people to travel to Cuba. At the time, a government loyalist told FNL that the trip cost more than $600,000 without taking into account how much Maduro spent on lodging and air travel. Since oil prices plunged in 2015, Venezuela hasnt had the funds to import basic goods such as food and medicine, what has created acute shortages. Most of the country has gone hungry. There is just no justification for this kind of spending during an economic crisis like this one, Berrizbeitia told FNL. Senior officials should set an example of austerity and use financial resources to help the people. Maduro has traveled to 35 different countries in four different continents during his three years in office, according to a count by FNL. He has spent 134 days, more than four months in total, outside of Venezuela. Berrizbeitia said that Maduros most expensive trip was to China in January 2015. The expense was more than $1 million on that occasion. He traveled with his whole family, the lawmaker said, and they all stayed in expensive hotels. President Barack Obama is praising the peace accord in Colombia as an "achievement of historic proportions." Obama says the U.S. is proud to have played a modest part in encouraging the talks that led to the breakthrough deal to end the Western hemisphere's longest-running war. Obama noted the deal faces challenges in implementation, including approval by the Colombian people in an October referendum. Obama made the remarks at a meeting with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos. The leaders met on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly gathering in New York. A Bogota attorney, Humberto de la Calle, has been resoundingly hailed as hero in the last month for his deft handling of the peace talks with Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). De la Calle's colleagues say it was his steady demeanor, ability to listen and deep legal understanding as an author of Colombia's 1991 constitution that cinched a deal with the country's biggest rebel group. It also helped that he knew the FARC up close, having sat across from chief rebel negotiator Ivan Marquez during a failed attempt at peace two decades earlier. "Humberto was the rock of the negotiations, respected by all sides," said Bernard Aronson, who served as President Barack Obama's envoy to the talks. "He brought a lawyer's precision to the substance but also a political leader's understanding of the larger context and public opinion." Santos presented Obama with a bound copy of the agreement and thanked the American president for supporting the process. Santos says U.S. deserves some credit for an agreement that will change both Colombia and the larger region. Colombia's peace accord is standing out as a bright spot for a troubled Latin America at the high-level U.N. General Assembly gathering. Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos basked in world praise as he formally submitted the peace deal with FARC to the U.N. Security Council. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that "in a time of armed conflicts in many other paces, peace in Colombia sends a powerful message of hope in the world." He praised Santos for his "vision and determination." Santos received a warm embrace from Venezuelan Ambassador Rafael Ramirez after the ceremony. Earlier in the week, Latin America's bitter divisions were on display when Venezuela and six other Latin America countries walked out as Brazilian President Michel Temer addressed the General Assembly, protesting the impeachment of his predecessor. Based on reporting by The Associated Press. Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter & Instagram Joshua Holt, the Utah man imprisoned in Venezuela on weapon charges for almost five months now, is included on a list of 21 political prisoners the government has agreed to release in the following weeks, according to a source familiar with the ongoing negotiation with the opposition. He's on the list. The government is also expected to release two congressmen, journalists, Twitter users, students and protesters, the source, who asked to remain anonymous, told Fox News Latino. He said the release should happen on or before Dec. 6, the date set for Holts court hearing the fourth one, after the first three were suspended and also the date set for a third round of negotiations between the two sides of the deeply divided Venezuela. Jeannette Prieto, lawyer of the Utah man, said she visited the 24-year-old, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, on Monday and found him in good condition. Hes fine. A doctor had seen him [the previous] Thursday and they will run some medical tests, but hes OK, she told FNL. According to the unidentified source, the complaint of cruel and inhumane treatment brought by Prieto last month has been decisive in bettering Holts living conditions. Edder Jimenez, president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Caracas, has been monitoring the case of Holt and his wife, Thamara Caleno Candelo, also a Mormon, since the beginning of their ordeal. He said that the postponement of hearings has affected his mood, but he remains hopeful. He has strengthened spiritually. He has his Bible and we pray for this process to end well, Jimenez said. Holt and his Venezuelan wife face weapons charges after authorities during a raid allegedly found a small arsenal they say was intended to assist the U.S.s efforts to undermine President Nicolas Maduros socialist rule. Holt and his wife have insisted that the weapons were planted. The mediation of Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Thomas Shannon is deemed crucial in the dialogue process. He visited the South American country in late October and allegedly held a meeting with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Oct. 31. Six political prisoners have been released since Oct. 30, when the government and the opposition started a dialogue. One of them was longtime prisoner Rosmit Mantilla, a congressman from the opposition detained on May 2, 2014 during a protest against President Nicolas Maduro. He was released on Nov. 17. According to the NGO Foro Penal Venezolano, 108 political prisoners remain behind bars in Venezuela. The opposition says the government uses intimidation tactics to keep them quiet. The government is known for its use of blackmail, FNLs source said. They release a political prisoner and then they demand that we silence ourselves, that we dont criticize them. If we do, they wont release any other prisoners. Denmark says it has received another request from India to extradite a Danish national accused of involvement in an arms smuggling case 21 years ago. Niels Holck has admitted taking part in dropping assault rifles, rocket launchers and missiles from a cargo plane in eastern India in 1995. Indian police said they were meant for an Indian revolutionary group. While a Briton and a five Latvians were arrested by Indian authorities, Holck previously known as Niels Christian Nielsen escaped. Justice Minister Soeren Pape Poulsen said Friday authorities would look into this "obviously important" case. In 2002, India asked Danes to extradite Holck. Two courts overturned a government decision, saying Holck would risk torture or other inhumane treatment in India, leading to tense diplomatic relations between the countries. Dozens of people have participated in a gay pride event in highly conservative Montenegro where authorities are promising to boost gay rights as part of efforts to join the European Union. Hundreds of policemen deployed Saturday in downtown Podgorica, the capital, to prevent possible attacks from extremists. Participants in the pride march carried banners reading "born this way" or "equality for everyone." Activist Danijel Kalezic says Montenegrin gays no longer want to hide. "We don't have enough support from our fathers, mothers, siblings or relatives," he said. Montenegro's government has announced plans to introduce gay partnership as part of its pro-EU agenda. Initial pride events several years ago were marred with incidents. Security officials at Cairo International Airport say Omar bin Laden, son of the former leader of al-Qaida Osama bin Laden, has been denied entry to the country and was deported to Turkey. Omar bin Laden and his wife arrived Saturday from Qatar but after checking details of his Saudi passport, security officials found his name on a list of those banned from entering the country. The officials, speaking anonymously according to regulations, said Omar bin laden and his wife were allowed to leave for Turkey according to their choice. next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 West African leaders at a summit in Nigeria are discussing the Gambian president's refusal to accept electoral defeat. Military intervention is among options. Longtime ruler Yahya Jammeh conceded defeat in the Dec. 1 polls, then changed his mind and called for new elections. The United Nations, the United States and leading West African countries have condemned him. On Saturday, the chair of the Economic Community of West African States, Liberia's President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, urged leaders to decide "measures to bring this matter to successful conclusion before Jan. 19," when Jammeh's mandate expires. Community president Marcel de Souza said Friday a military intervention must be considered if diplomacy fails to persuade Jammeh to step down. He seized power in a 1994 coup and is accused of gross human rights abuses. Mali's National Assembly has rejected the idea of trying former President Amadou Toumani Toure on treason charges. The former president was overthrown in a March 2012 coup that ushered in an era of instability throughout the Sahara Desert nation. He lives in exile in neighboring Senegal and could now return home unless the government takes other action. Youssouf Toure, a National Assembly spokesman, said Saturday that members voted overwhelmingly 104-to-5 not to pursue charges. The allegations against the former president stems from accusations that his leadership had left the military in such a state of disarray that it could not defend Mali against foreign jihadists. The French military ousted the jihadists from power in northern Mali in 2013 but extremist remnants continue to launch attack on U.N. and Malian forces. A car bomb blast killed 13 Turkish troops and wounded 55 persons, most of them military personnel, in the central Anatolian province of Kayseri on Saturday morning, according to official figures. In a statement, the Turkish armed forces said the car bomb went off at 8:45 a.m. and targeted on-leave military personnel from the Kayseri Commando Brigade. The army said 48 troops were wounded and said that civilian citizens may have also been hurt in the "treacherous act." Speaking in Kayseri shortly after the blast, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said 55 people had been wounded in total and that six were in critical condition. "We are determined in our fight against terrorism," the minister said. Speaking alongside him at a joint press conference, Turkish Chief of Staff Hulusi Akar vowed to continue the "fight against terrorists inside and outside the country" until "every last terrorist is neutralized." There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. The state-run Anadolu Agency said the car bomb went off at an entrance gate of Erciyes University, hitting a public transportation bus that included on-leave soldiers among its passengers. Images taken moments after the explosion showed a smoking public bus, still in flames, with its windows blown open and its interior blackened. The blast comes a week after a car bomb struck riot police posted outside a soccer stadium in Istanbul following a match. That attack killed 44 people, mostly police officers, and wounded scores of others. Kurdish militants, who tend to target military and police, claimed the Istanbul attack. Turkey is facing a wide range of security challenges including renewed conflict in the predominantly Kurdish southeast. Turkey is a member of NATO and partner in the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group, which has been blamed for multiple attacks in Turkey. A state of emergency was declared following a botched July 15 coup attempt. Speaking about the Kayseri explosion, Vice Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak said in remarks broadcast on NTV that "treacherous factions" had taken aim at commandos from the Kayseri Airforce Brigade, who had been "training exclusively for the safety of our people." Turkey's prime ministry office imposed a temporary blackout on coverage of the explosion and urged media to refrain from publishing anything that may cause "fear in the public, panic and disorder and which may serve the aims of terrorist organizations." next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 Pope Francis is celebrating an active if low-key 80th birthday, sharing breakfast with eight homeless people before celebrating Mass with cardinals. The Vatican said that the pope chatted early Saturday with each of the homeless guests four Italians, two Romanians, a Moldovan and a Peruvian and shared with them Argentinian cakes before heading to Mass. Speaking to the cardinals, he contemplated the aging process, telling them, "For some days now, I have had in mind a word that seems ugly: Old age, a thought that frightens." But then he recalled his words during his first papal greeting in 2013, when he said: "Old age is the thirst for knowledge." To the cardinals he added: "I hope it will be the same for me." The Pentagon said Saturday that China will return a U.S. Navy drone seized in the international waters of the South China Sea. "We have registered our objection to China's unlawful seizure, of a U.S. unmanned-underwater vehicle, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said. Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States." President-elect Donald Trump tweeted the following Saturday night: Earlier Saturday, Trump sent a tweet that accused the Chinese of stealing the drone and ripping it out of water. He tweeted at about 7:30 a.m. Saturday. Trump, a Republican, called the seizure Thursday unpresidented, though he needed to delete and replace the original tweet to correct the spelling of the word. China's seizure is being considered by some observers as one of the most significant disputes in years between the world super powers and follows Trumps post-election victory call with the president of Taiwan. The call alarmed old guard foreign policy experts who said it undermined the United States decades-long One China policy that recognizes mainland China over Taiwan. Before the Pentagon announcement, China had indicated that efforts were underway to resolve the issue, saying it was in contact with American counterparts regarding the "appropriately handling" of the unmanned underwater glider. However, the one-sentence comment by the countrys foreign ministry offered no details on what discussions were underway or why China on seized the drone, which the Pentagon says was being operated by civilian contractors for oceanic research. The U.S. said it issued a formal diplomatic complaint over the seizure and demanded the drone's return. "According to (our) understanding, the U.S. and Chinese sides are working on appropriately handling this matter through channels between the two militaries," the foreign ministry said in its statement, which was faxed to The Associated Press. China's defense ministry did not immediately respond to questions on the issue. The drone was seized while collecting unclassified scientific data about 57 miles northwest of Subic Bay, near the Philippines in the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety, the U.S. Navy said Friday. "It is ours, a Navy spokesman said. It's clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again," The spokesman also said the drone costs about $150,000 and is largely commercial, off-the-shelf technology. The most recent, significant dispute between the countries militaries was perhaps in April 2001 when a U.S. Navy surveillance aircraft and a Chinese fighter jet nearly collided about 70 miles from China's Hainan island, which led to the death of a Chinese pilot. Whatever the outcome of the drone incident, the incident is likely to fray the already tense relations between U.S. and China. Beijing was angered by Trump's decision to talk Dec. 2 by phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and by his later comments that he did not feel "bound by the One China policy, unless the U.S. could gain trade or other benefits from China. China considers the self-governing island its own territory to be recovered by force if it deems necessary. There also have been increased tensions over Beijing's ongoing military buildup in the South China Sea, mainly the development and militarization of man-made shoals and islands aimed at extending China's reach in the strategically vital area through which about $5 trillion in global trade passes annually. In one of the few reports in state media about the drone's seizure, a newspaper published by China's ruling Communist Party cited an unidentified military official as saying that a "smooth resolution" to the matter is expected. A Chinese navy ship discovered an "unidentified device" Thursday and was checking on it for the sake of maritime safety, the Global Times quoted the official as saying. "China has received the U.S. request to return the device, communication is open between the relevant departments of the two sides and I believe this matter will obtain a smooth resolution," the officer was quoted as saying. In a separate report, the paper quoted retired Chinese admiral Yang Yi as saying China considered itself well within its rights to seize the drone. "If China needs to take it, we'll take it. (America) can't block us," Yang was quoted as saying. Yang said he was unsure of the purpose of seizing the drone, but didn't think the matter qualified as a "military conflict." However, he added that the chances of a confrontation had risen following Trump's recent comments, which were seen as testing China's bottom line on Taiwan and other sensitive issues. "It's natural for us to take possession of and research for a bit these types of things that America sends to our doorstep," Yang said. "The louder they shout, the more their protests ring hollow." The Associated Press contributed to this report. next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 A deadly car bomb attack hit the central Anatolian province of Kayseri on Saturday morning, according to Turkish media reports. State-run Anadolu Agency said the car bomb went off at an entrance gate of Erciyes University, hitting a public transportation bus that included on-leave soldiers among its passengers. The report said the explosion had caused casualties but did not give a toll. Police and ambulances rushed to the site of the blast. Kayseri Governor Suleyman Kamci said the "car bomb exploded beside a bus" and had caused fatalities. "Unfortunately we have martyrs and wounded," he said in remarks carried by the private Dogan news agency. Turkey's prime ministry office imposed a temporary black out on coverage of the explosion and urged the media from to refrain from publishing anything that may cause "fear in the public, panic and disorder and which may serve the aims of terrorist organizations." next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 Security officers have restored order at a prison in the central English city of Birmingham one day after an estimated 600 inmates seized control and launched a destructive rampage. Authorities called Friday's 13-hour takeover of HMP Birmingham the worst prison uprising since the 1990 riot in Strangeways in Manchester, which lasted 25 days and left one prisoner dead. No staff members were injured during the Birmingham unrest but one prisoner remained hospitalized Saturday with a suspected broken jaw and eye socket. Justice Minister Liz Truss says the reasons for the riot will be fully investigated, while those convicted of rioting will face longer sentences. She said: "Violence in our prisons will not be tolerated and those responsible will face the full force of the law." Frigid temperatures didnt stop Stafford County residents and state and local officials from gathering to celebrate the groundbreaking ceremony at Widewater State Park on Friday morning. The ceremony marks the beginning of the propertys long-awaited transformation into a state park. Onlookers applauded as the officials dug their shovels into the frozen earth overlooking Aquia Creek on the future site of the canoe launch. When you get in a boat, take it out on the river and look back at the community, you gain an entirely new perspective, said state Sen. Scott Surovell. We needed to make this river more accessibleit is an amazing asset. Widewater State Park, a 1,100-acre peninsula between Aquia Creek and the Potomac River, has a rich history. U.S. presidents enjoyed hunting and fishing on the grounds, and it was once the site of piloted flight attempts by Samuel P. Langley in the early 1900s. Several Hollywood movies, including Houseboat and A Kiss to the President, included scenes filmed at Widewater. Although the state acquired the park in 2006 from Dominion Resources, and drafted the initial development plans just two years later, the recession prevented officials from putting those plans into action. The park finally received enough funding to open after the General Assembly approved a bond bill in March that funds the initial construction phase. The $7.5 million Phase 1 developments are expected to be completed in about 15 months. Phase I of the Department of Conservation and Recreations master plan calls for the construction of a visitor center with restrooms, contact station, canoe launch, picnic shelters, playground, two staff residences, utility infrastructure and road developments, among other improvements and amenities. Del. Mark Dudenhefer, RStafford, a driving force behind the development of the park, said getting the first phase of the project funded was no small task in the current budget climate. Although Dudenhefer hoped to secure funding for the entire project, he is happy to see that it is finally gaining momentum. With the first stage of construction underway, it will not be long before the community will be able to enjoy several new park amenities. We have a lot of work to do, Dudenhefer said. This is a long-term project. But we are making progress. As the Stafford area continues to experience rapid growth, there is a rising need in the community for more parks. Craig Seaver, state parks director, said the why of state parks is about more than running bulldozers around and creating fancy facilities. Seaver said parks are still relevant today. The creation of a state park at Widewater will provide recreational activities for the community, contribute to the economy of the state, increase real estate values by 20 percent and address health issues by getting people outdoors and exercising. The park will reach thousands of people for years to come, Seaver said. Providing a recreational experience for Virginia residents and creating memories for folks is why we do this. The plan to create a state park at Widewater has received varied responses from the community. The park is divided into five parcels situated between private lands, which largely consist of residential properties. Stafford Supervisor Jack Cavalier said one of the main concerns is that the roads cannot support park traffic. Phase I includes some road improvements, and Dudenhefer said widening and improving the roads will continue to be a top priority. In addition, Cavalier has held several community meetings to ensure the public has a voice in the process. I want to recognize all the local residents who came out here on this toasty morning, Cavalier said. This is state property in our backyard, so it will impact us. We want to have as much influence as we can. Cavalier believes the creation of a state park is the best way to maintain the integrity of the community. The alternative to a state park would be a massive development in Widewater, which would forever change the landscape here, Cavalier said. The park will be a wonderful asset. Conservation and Recreation Director Clyde Cristman said the only way for the state to get the park right is with the input of the community. He said working around the neighborhoods in developing the park has been a challenge, but also an asset. This is a community, Cristman said. The best neighbors sit down at the dining room table and talk their issues out. We want to get this rightthis is your park. A proposal to ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy has been revived by several Virginia lawmakersincluding Republican Del. Mark Cole of Spotsylvania County. The bill, called the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, is similar to recent legislation signed by Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a Republican. It would prohibit abortions at or after 20 weeks of pregnancy, with exceptions for medical emergencies, but none for rape or incest. Del. Dave LaRock, RLoudoun County, recently filed the bill, and Cole is one of three co-sponsors. Lawmakers will discuss the proposal during the session that begins Jan. 11. Obviously, Im pro-life, and I think government has a responsibility to protect innocent life, and I think this is a reasonable compromise, Cole said in an interview. The anti-abortion movement appears to be gaining steam on the heels of Republican Donald Trumps presidential victory. The president-elect has promised to appoint Supreme Court justices who oppose abortion, and Vice President-elect Mike Pence said over the summer that a Trump administration would see Roe vs. Wade consigned to the ash heap of history where it belongs. Nebraska approved the first 20-week ban in 2010, and 14 states have followed suit, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive-health research organization. Last week, NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia Executive Director Tarina Keene sent a letter asking next years candidates for Virginia governor about their positions on LaRocks bill. A press release that included a copy of the letter called the proposal a dangerous and unconstitutional measure. Since the election of Donald Trump, women are fearful for the future, especially regarding their ability to make personal healthcare decisions free from political intrusion, Keene wrote in the letter. Virginia women want to know where you stand. LaRock unsuccessfully put forward similar legislation during the 2015 and 2016 General Assembly sessions. During this years session, Cole; Sen. Bryce Reeves, RSpotsylvania; and Del. Bobby Orrock, RCaroline County, were among 33 co-sponsors. If LaRocks bill passes, it would face a possible veto by Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe. The bill states that a doctor can perform an abortion after 20 weeks only if the mother would otherwise face death or irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function, not including psychological or emotional conditions. It would be a Class 4 felony for a physician to perform an abortion in violation of the law. LaRock cites disputed evidence that fetuses can feel pain at around 20 weeks. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists says a fetus does not have the capacity to experience pain until after viability. Virginia already has some of the countrys most restrictive abortion laws. The state prohibits third-trimester abortions, mandates ultrasounds, and requires state-directed counseling that includes information designed to discourage abortions, according to the Guttmacher Institute. Also, second-trimester abortions must be performed in hospitals. Anna Scholl, executive director of the left-leaning ProgressVA, said anti-womens health legislators in Virginia have proposed more than 75 abortion restrictions since 2010. Every womans pregnancy is different, and she should be able to make the best decision for her and her family in consultation with her doctor, Scholl said. Its entirely inappropriate for the General Assembly to be interfering in these very private, personal doctor-patient decisions. Cole said he thinks the anti-abortion movement has some momentum, adding that pro-lifers have done a good job at the grassroots level of educating folks on the issue. He said polls have found support for anti-abortion measures. In 2014, for instance, a Quinnipiac University National poll showed that 60 percent of respondents backed a 20-week abortion ban. I think the publics been educated, Cole said. A majority of people do not favor abortion on demand. UPDATE (3:15 p.m.): All lanes of I-95 South have now reopened. Several miles of traffic congestion still exist at the time of reopening. UPDATE (2:30 p.m.): The traffic has backed up most major roadways near the city of Fredericksburg, including Route 3 in both directions and U.S. 1 South. UPDATE (1:35 p.m.): All lanes of I-95 South remain closed at exit 126. Traffic is being diverted to U.S. 1 South at that exit. According to VDOT, six miles of congested traffic is stuck behind the collision site. The entrance ramps at the intersection of I-95 South and U.S. 17 in Stafford have been closed to limit traffic. Icy conditions led to a flurry of wrecks in the Fredericksburg area Saturday, the latest closing Interstate 95 southbound in Spotsylvania County. The Virginia Department of Transportation reported the latest crash at 12:30 p.m., saying all southbound traffic was being diverted to U.S. 1 at Exit 126 in Spotsylvania. VDOT spokeswoman Kelly Hannon said drivers should expect significant delays on I-95 and U.S. 1 in that area. An earlier crash closed northbound lanes at Thornburg for more than an hour. VDOT began advising drivers early Saturday morning to stay off the roads until conditions improved, but many ignored that warning, leading to a number of accidents. Virginia State Police Sgt. Les Tyler said there had been no serious injuries or fatalities reported as a result of the slippery road conditions in the Fredericksburg region. But several accidents closed northbound Interstate 95 northbound near Thornburg in Spotsylvania County for more than an hour this morning. The accidents, according to Tyler, were five separate crashes all within a two-tenths of a mile area before 8 a.m. They involved three tractor-trailers and six passenger cars. Three people were transported with minor injuries, he said. Drivers were detoured at Exit 118 and routed to U.S. 1 before returning to the interstate at Exit 126. Stafford County briefly closed parts of U.S. 17 and Centreport Parkway this morning and Fredericksburg police reported numerous minor accidents. VDOT said it had more than 175 trucks spreading sand and salt to melt ice and provide additional traction on state-maintained roads in the Fredericksburg area and Northern Neck. Temperatures in the region climbed above freezing around noon and are expected to continue to rise through the day, melting away the ice. For the latest weather-related closings and delays, visit fredericksburg.com/app/closings. The research at the Hutch has given me my life, said the Lewiston, Idaho resident. At the point she enrolled on the trial, her cancer had come back despite multiple conventional therapies, including a transplant of blood-forming stem cells. Its almost like winning the lottery every day for the past 18 months. Dedicated to providing immunotherapies for cancer patients in clinical trials, the facility enables intensive monitoring of each patient to help scientists understand why some respond to experimental immune therapies and others do not, with the goal of developing curative approaches for every person with cancer bench to bedside then back to the lab and back to the clinic, Maloney said. While Florence received her experimental treatment before the clinic opened, all of the new participants in her clinical trial are now seen there, as well as participants on four other trials. Next year, the Hutch anticipates 12 trials, thanks to the doubled patient capacity the clinic offers. There have been more than 200 patient visits so far to the 9,222-square foot facility since its soft opening in October, said Maloney, who holds the Leonard and Norma Klorfine Endowed Chair for Clinical Research. And this week, the first patient seen at the new clinic completes therapy and heads home. Her advanced, treatment-resistant leukemia is in complete remission, Maloney said. As a physician, nothing is more encouraging, he said. But theres much more to do and thats why this clinic is so important. Superpowering patients own immune systems Rally for Marijuana Legalization in Newark, Drug Rehab Newark Comments ( December 11, 2016 ) Newark, NJ -- DelawareOnline reports dozens gathering in Newark to demand marijuana legalization on the 83rd anniversary of the end of alcohol prohibition. Pro-marijuana protesters claim the current lack of legalized marijuana use is hypocritical given the dangers of alcohol consumption. Cannabis Bureau of Delaware organized the event to raise awareness about how to bring marijuana legalization to fruition. Drug Rehab Newark, which provides addiction treatment in Newark, understands the medical benefits of marijuana and the potential for economic recovery with legalization of marijuana. However, Drug Rehab Newark urges the public to do thorough research about the benefits and risks associated with legalizing marijuana. A representative of Drug Rehab Newark comments, "Utilizing the anniversary of the end of alcohol prohibition to advance the pro-marijuana cause is a crafty tactic, but does not negate the need for thorough research regarding the pros and cons of marijuana legalization. In states that have legalized recreational use of weed we have seen an increase in drugged driving accidents and crimes against dispensaries and stores selling marijuana. Smoking of any kind increases the chance of developing certain cancers regardless if it is tobacco or marijuana. Do your research and know the facts." About Drug Rehab Newark 52885: Drug Rehab Newark provides addiction treatment in Newark to people from all areas of the United States. By providing a personalized combination of holistic and traditional treatment methods to all clients, Drug Rehab Newark helps ensure long-lasting sobriety by addressing the individual causes of addiction. Amenities such as access to a full gym, spa, and salon services ensure that healing occurs on all fronts, to better build a stable foundation for a life of sobriety. Weekly events such as outings, barbeques, and community gaming and movie nights provide a unique experience unlike that offered by other facilities in Newark. For more information, visit www.drugrehabnewark.org/ or call 973-947-8129. For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Matteson Partners Taking On New In-House Legal Recruitment Clients (Mon 29th May 17) Huong Nghiep A Au Vocational Guidance School Launches New Major (Thu 25th May 17) FSP unveils new Industrial and Gaming power solutions at COMPUTEX 2017 (Wed 24th May 17) The Best Free Keylogger of 2017 Has Been Announced by the Official Remote Keylogger (Tue 23rd May 17) The Remote Keylogger Development Team Announces An Update to the Official iPhone Keylogger (Thu 11th May 17) CaptureStream Announces its New Streaming Video Recorder and Downloader (Mon 8th May 17) $11 Million in Heroin Discovered in Speeding Big Rig, West Palm Beach Drug Rehab Comments ( December 11, 2016 ) West Palm Beach, FL -- WRBF reports that a traffic infringement turned into an unsuspected drug bust when highway patrol officers discovered 200 pounds of heroin on a tractor trailer bound for Canada. The street value of the drugs seized by California Highway Patrol officers is estimated at $11 million. Officers uncovered the thwarted drug trafficking scheme when they noticed suspicious activity after pulling the driver over for speeding. Drug sniffing canines detected the heroin, which was hidden in boxes marked as skin care products. Large scale drug bust operations impact the entire country, not just the immediate areas where they occur. Even centers providing heroin rehab in West Palm Beach see and commend the important work of keeping these dangerous substances off of our streets and out of our communities. West Palm Beach Drug Rehab knows that ending the substance abuse epidemic takes the combined effort of everyone from coast to coast. A representative of West Palm Beach Drug Rehab comments, "Rather it is across the country or down the street, the efforts of our law enforcement agencies in keeping dangerous drugs like cocaine off of the streets is commendable and a necessary component in ending the substance abuse epidemic we are currently facing. While prison reforms and legal changes must be made to help those with substance abuse disorders who end up in legal trouble get treatment rather than ineffective punishment, the ongoing fight to stem the flow of illicit substances in our communities goes a long way in helping us heal. In seizing the 200 pounds of heroin, those California Highway Patrol officers potentially saved thousands of lives. It is this kind of service and duty that we must commend and appreciate." About West Palm Beach Drug Rehab 45879: West Palm Beach Drug Rehab serves citizens from all 50 states in efforts to combat the substance abuse epidemic. Accepting over 80 insurances and offering alternative payment options, West Palm Beach Drug Rehab works to keep the focus on healing, not cost. Clients of the facility are provided personalized treatment programs which utilize both traditional and holistic means to promote rejuvenation of the mind, body and spirit. Upon completion of rehabilitation, clients also have access to resources for continued care provided by West Palm Beach Drug Rehab. For more information about West Palm Beach Drug Rehab visit http://westpalmbeachdrugrehab.org/ or call (561)513-5749. For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Matteson Partners Taking On New In-House Legal Recruitment Clients (Mon 29th May 17) Huong Nghiep A Au Vocational Guidance School Launches New Major (Thu 25th May 17) FSP unveils new Industrial and Gaming power solutions at COMPUTEX 2017 (Wed 24th May 17) The Best Free Keylogger of 2017 Has Been Announced by the Official Remote Keylogger (Tue 23rd May 17) The Remote Keylogger Development Team Announces An Update to the Official iPhone Keylogger (Thu 11th May 17) CaptureStream Announces its New Streaming Video Recorder and Downloader (Mon 8th May 17) Santa Cruz SEO Unveils New Website To Better Focus On Local Online Marketing Santa Cruz SEO has recently specialized in localized SEO, and has refurbished its website from the ground up to reflect this new focus, helping local small businesses punch above their weight online. -- Search Engine Optimization is one of the most essential strategic tools small businesses can utilize when looking to maximize their impact online. Optimizing a web presence is a highly technical process requiring detailed research and precise application, meaning many SMEs are without the means and resources needed to see the best results. Fortunately, Santa Cruz SEO is able to focus their efforts on local audiences for local businesses, generating the maximum return on investment for customers. They have just launched a new website to better explain their unique position. The new website (SantaCruzSEO.co) is built within a fully responsive framework, enabling it present information seamlessly on any device or screen size. The website features a comprehensive introduction to their services and unique attributes, as well as helping people see the advantages and possibilities of a professionally managed SEO campaign. While the company has fixed its focus on Local SEO, they nevertheless still retain a national reach. They have created extraordinary successes for clients in and around Santa Cruz, but can do the same for any local market nationwide, to help more small businesses experience greater success. A spokesperson for Santa Cruz SEO, Inc. explained, "Local SEO is essential to any business looking to attract new customers. We are happy to be able to provide these services to clients who are looking for expert help in defining their online approach. We aim to maximize the number of leads generated, and the number of those leads converted into sales. On our new website, we demonstrate many of these best practises, while explaining how our beneath-the-hood strategies help to maximize exposure in the places where it matters most. We look forward to helping more businesses than ever take advantage of this improved, locally focused approach." About Santa Cruz SEO: Santa Cruz SEO is a search engine optimization company based in Santa Cruz, founded in 2011. Their experienced team is fully committed to providing the highest quality SEO and web development services to business customers in Santa Cruz and nationwide. When it comes to business success, their proven strategies can light the path toward maximum ROI and online marketing. For more information, please visit http://santacruzseo.co/ Contact Info: Name: Joe Webster Email: info@santacruzseo.co Organization: TOLM, Inc. Address: 1200 Pacific Ave Suite 235-U Santa Cruz, CA 95060 Phone: (831) 425-0595 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/santa-cruz-seo-unveils-new-website-to-better-focus-on-local-online-marketing/153472 Release ID: 153472 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Offshore Support Vessel Market to reach 38.53 Billion USD by 2020 The offshore support vessel market was dominated by Tidewater Inc. (U.S.), Edison Chouest Offshore (U.S.), Bourbon SA (France), and Hornbeck Offshore (U.S.), in 2014. These market players have also been active in the competitive developments of the offshore support vessel market -- The report "Offshore Support Vessel Market by Type (Anchor Handling Tug Supply, Platform Supply Vessel, Multipurpose Support Vessel, Standby & Rescue Vessel, Crew Vessel, & Others), by Depth (Shallow & Deepwater), & by Region - Global Forecast to 2020" , defines and segments the global offshore support vessel market with an analysis and forecast of the market size. Browse 79 market tables and 55 figures spread through 195 pages and in-depth TOC on "Offshore Support Vessel Market" Speak to Analyst: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/speaktoanalyst.asp?id=1212 The offshore support vessel market is expected to reach USD 38.53 Billion by 2020, at a CAGR of 5.8% from 2015 to 2020. The market is driven by rising demand for oil & gas, which is met by increasing investments in emerging economies with proven oil & gas reserves offshore. Offshore support vessel market for AHTS vessel to grow at the highest rate The market has been segmented into vessel type, depth, and region. By vessel type, the market has been subsegmented into Anchor Handling Tug Supply (AHTS), Platform Supply Vessel (PSV), Multipurpose Support Vessel (MPSV), standby & rescue vessel, crew vessel, and others. The AHTS vessel segment is expected to exhibit the highest growth rate during the forecast period. The growth can be attributed to offshore ultra-deepwater E&P activities which have increased production from basins with proven oil reserves in deepwater environments. Deep water application is estimated to drive the offshore support vessel market with the highest growth rate On the basis of application, the market has been segmented into shallow and deepwater segments. The shallow water application of offshore support vessel is estimated to lead the market, whereas deepwater application is projected to witness the highest growth. Asia-Pacific and South America are expected to drive this subsegment, due to rising exploration activities and new discoveries of oil & gas reserves in deepwater sedimentary basins. Asia-Pacific is estimated to be the global leader in offshore support vessel market, by value, for the next five years. Asia-Pacific is among the largest consumers of oil & gas, followed by North America. Recent discoveries of oil & gas in the offshore basins in Australia, Gulf of Thailand, and South China Sea, and high demand from Malaysia & Indonesia are expected to drive the market for offshore support vessel in this region. The leading players of the offshore support vessel market include Bourbon SA (France), Farstad Shipping ASA (Norway), Seacor Marine LLC (U.S.), Swire Group Ltd. (Hong Kong), Tidewater Inc. (U.S.), Gulfmark Offshore Inc. (U.S.), Havila Shipping ASA (Norway), Hornbeck Offshore (U.S.), the Maersk Group (Denmark), REM Maritime as (Norway), Siem Offshore Inc. ( Norway), Solstad Offshore ASA (Norway), Vroon Group (The Netherlands), Edison Chouset Offshore ( U.S.), Harvey Gulf International Marine, LLC. (U.S.), and Island Offshore Management AS (Norway). Contracts & agreements was the most commonly used strategy by top players in the market, constituting more than half of the total development share. These market players have also been active in the competitive developments of the offshore support vessel market Request for Customization: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestCustomization.asp?id=1212 The study answers several questions for the stakeholders, which include OEMs, EPC companies, offshore field operators, offshore service providers, distributers & suppliers, consulting firms, private equity groups, investment houses, equity research firms, and other stakeholders. Primarily, the report provides information about market segments and helps stakeholders to decide their focus areas in next two to five years for prioritizing efforts and investments. About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets is the largest market research firm worldwide in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. For more information, please visit http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/offshore-support-vessel-market-1212.html Contact Info: Name: Rohan Organization: MarketsandMarkets Source: http://marketersmedia.com/offshore-support-vessel-market-to-reach-38-53-billion-usd-by-2020/153624 Release ID: 153624 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Del Mar Author Pens Intriguing History Gift Book About "Edelweiss" Beach Cottage In "Edelweiss: Chronicle of a Del Mar Beach House," Juliana Maxey-Allison combines local history, memoir, and tips for restoring a vintage home. Her easy writing style is supported by original drawings, old and new photos, and fascinating ephemera from her research and restoration. -- When she lived in Manhattan, Juliana Maxey-Allison wrote for "The New York Times Magazine," "New York," "Self," "Ladies Home Journal," and other publications. But after returning to the West Coast in 2004, she turned her talents to writing the life story of Edelweiss, the old Victorian cottage she had lovingly restored in the 1970s. In contemporary Southern California, where bulkier, more massive development can overwhelm or displace older residences, Edelweiss is one of three (soon to be just two) remaining original Del Mar houses. Published December 6th, Maxey-Allison's "Edelweiss: Chronicle of a Del Mar Beach House 1885 to Now" reveals the backstory and the characters that make these originals so interesting and worth preserving, as it combines local history and memoir with tips on researching and revitalizing a vintage home. The author started by mining her own family archives and unearthing old real estate records, relating what she found to what was going on in the wider world at the time. The result is a captivating tale of the Edelweiss house, its people -- from pioneers to celebrities, and its life, not only as a residence but as a general store, post office, ice cream parlor, candy store, and "animal house." The story begins with the author's first look at the house in 1972, then doubles back to the origin of the cottage in 1885. In the early 1880s Jacob Taylor sized up the scrappy brush-covered site then called Weed, and gambled that trains would soon bring people to this spot on the San Diego County coast. Taylor, Del Mar's first real estate developer, envisioned and built an extravagant tourist destination. The house at 227 10th Street was part of his dream made manifest. Julie Maxey encountered the sagging, slouching, peeling "old Victorian beach cottage" almost a century later and couldn't resist it. "Bright and new in 1885 at the start of Del Mar," she writes on page 1, "it now sagged, it slouched, its white paint now patched and grayed, its right angles all askew. Actually, there weren't any right angles left. ... "Inside, all was silent, sepia-toned, spooky, empty with a kind of hang-dog haunted look, dust flecks flickering on shafts of light. Not a Victorian fantasy. Any plush clutter, any original flourishes were long gone. No velvets. No fringe. No chandeliers, no stained-glass windows. No frills. Nothing fussy. No carving or inlay. Only old wood. "And it might be for sale." To support the author's easy writing style, she and her editors at Dayton Publishing (Solana Beach, California) assembled the illustrations: pen-and-ink drawings by Seattle artist Abigail Maxey and others; black-and-white photos from the archives of the Del Mar Historical Society, the Library of Congress and local newspapers; family snapshots of the renovation process; and pictures of Edelweiss today by photographer Elizabeth Zusev. At 80 pages, "Edelweiss" is shorter than other Del Mar histories -- among the best-known, "Del Mar: Looking Back" by Nancy Ewing (the definitive source, 1988, 320 pages) and more recently "Del Mar Days, Book 1: People and Events" by Gene Schwartz (a collection of his newspaper columns, 2016, 200 pages so far, with two more volumes to come in 2017). "Julie's goal was different," says publisher Linnea Dayton. "Rather than a comprehensive, information-packed reference, her book is a 'bite-size' local history, capturing the feel of moving through Del Mar's first century with the fascinating inhabitants of Edelweiss. The book introduces several intriguing mysteries." For instance: how this Del Mar beach cottage acquired its Swiss-chalet look; why so many of its owners were women; and whether Edelweiss was really the hideaway of celebrities Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. in Del Mar's star-studded 1920s and '30s. "It's a great read," says Bob Gans, Del Mar Foundation's president. "Even more important," says Larry Brooks, president of the Del Mar Historical Society, "thank you, Julie for restoring Edelweiss for us instead of subjecting it to the omni-present California bulldozer." For more information, please visit http://www.daytonpublishing.com Contact Info: Name: Linnea Dayton Email: publisher@daytonpublishing.com Organization: Dayton Publishing LLC Address: P. O. Box 1521, Solana Beach, 92075 United States Release ID: 153567 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Building Panels Market Global Key Vendors, Manufacturers, Suppliers And Analysis Market Report 2022 Building Panels Market Information Report by Panel Type (Wooden, Concrete, Structural Insulated and Vacuum Insulated), by Materials (Concrete, Metal, Wood, Plastics, and Silica), by Application,by End Use and by Region - Global Forecast to 2022 -- Market research future published a half cooked research report on Building Panels Market. Building Panels market is expected to grow with the CAGR of about 6% from 2017 to 2022. With increasing population, construction activities are increasing as well as factors like reduced power, less need of labor, and reduced time consumption will drive the Building Panels market. Market Highlights Building panels may refer to as buildings in a structural insulated panels or pre-fabricated concrete blocks. Building panels are used to build the external and internal features of a building. The surge in global population requires supporting infrastructure and utility construction. This is ultimately driving the building panels market. Also reduced power, less need of labor, and reduced time consumption are also drive the global building panel market. However strict government regulations on the use of certain chemicals hampers the growth of building panels market and is expected to register a significant growth of 6% in the next five years. Request a Sample Copy @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/sample-request/building-panels-market-research-report-global-forecast-to-2022 Key Players The leading players in the Building Panels markets are o Panasonic Corporation o Saint-Gobain o CRH Plc. o Lafarge o Evonik Industries AG o Huntsman International LLC. o Dow Corning Corporation o Fletcher Building Limited o Atlas international o Boral Limited. Taste the market data and market information presented through more than 50 market data tables and figures spread in 110 numbers of pages of the project report. Avail the in-depth table of content TOC & market synopsis on "Building Panels Market Research Report - Global Forecast to 2022" Intended Audience o Building Panels manufacturers o Distributer & Supplier companies o consultants and Investment bankers o Government as well as Independent Regulatory Authorities European region held the major share within the Building Panels Market Asia-Pacific region dominated the Global building panels market, because increasing the industrialization & urbanization activities and rising the need of housing with increasing population. Scope of the report This study provides an overview of the Building Panels industry, tracking market segments across the categorized four geographic regions. The report provides a six-year forecast for the market size in terms of value for North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and rest of the World. The scope of the study segments the Building Panels market based on Panels Type, Materials, Application, & End Use. Browse full report with detail TOC @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/building-panels-market-research-report-global-forecast-to-2022 Table of Content 1. Executive Summary 2 Scope Of The Report 2.1 Market Definition 2.2 Scope Of The Study 2.2.1 Research Objectives 2.2.2 Assumptions & Limitations 2.3 Markets Structure 3 Market Research Methodology 3.1 Research Process 3.2 Secondary Research 3.3 Primary Research 3.4 Forecast Model 4 Market Landscape 4.1 Five Forces Analysis 4.1.1 Threat Of New Entrants 4.1.2 Bargaining Power Of Buyers 4.1.3 Threat Of Substitutes 4.1.4 Segment Rivalry 4.2 Value Chain Of Global Building Panels Market 5 Industry Overview Of Global Building Panels Market Continue........ List of Tables Table 1 World Population By Major Regions (2015 To 2030) (Million) Table 2 Global Building Panels Market: By Region, 2014-2022 (Usd Million) Table 3 Global Building Panels Market: By Region, 2014-2022 (Kt) Table 4 North America Global Building Panels Market: By Country, 2014-2022 Table 5 Europe Global Building Panels Market: By Country, 2014-2022 (Usd Million) Continue......... LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Global Building Panels Market Segmentation Figure 2 Forecast Methodology Figure 3 Five Forces Analysis Of Global Building Panels Market Figure 4 Value Chain Of Global Building Panels Market Figure 5 Share Of Global Building Panels Market In 2014, By Country (In %) Figure 6 Global Building Panels Market, 2015-2022, (Usd Billion) Continue....... This research report has provides the insights, on various levels of analyses such industry analysis, market share analysis leading market players and their profiles. This report also helps in studying the target segments by providing views on emerging & high-growth segments and market conclusion. Together the market data comprise and discuss with the basic assessments on the competitive scenarios & strategies, of the global cold insulation market, including the high-growth regions, countries and their political, economic and technological environments. Furthermore the project report also provides the views over the historical market values as well as, pricing and cost analysis of the same. Related Report Global Sandwich Panel Market Information by Material (Polyurethane, Mineral wool, and Others) by Types (Wall Panels, Roof Panels, Facade Panels, and others) by Application (Commercial, Industrial, and others) and Region - Forecast to 2021.Know more about this report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/global-sandwich-panel-market-research-report-forecast-to-2021 About Market Research Future: At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services. MRFR team have supreme objective to provide the optimum quality market research and intelligence services to our clients. Our market research studies by products, services, technologies, applications, end users, and market players for global, regional, and country level market segments, enable our clients to see more, know more, and do more, which help to answer all their most important questions. For more information, please visit https://www.marketresearchfuture.com Contact Info: Name: Akash Anand Email: akash.anand@marketresearchfuture.com Organization: Market Research future Address: Hadapsar, Pune - 411028 Phone: +1 646 845 9312 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/building-panels-market-global-key-vendors-manufacturers-suppliers-and-analysis-market-report-2022/154041 Release ID: 154041 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Miami Digital Consulting SEO Online Business Marketing Agency Launched Sales Funnel RX, a Miami digital consultancy company specializing in digital marketing services, was officially launched. By using LEAN 6 Sigma methodology to facilitate the marketing process, the company aims to help small and mid-size businesses develop a solid online presence. -- Sales Funnel RX, a Miami digital consulting agency specializing in digital marketing services, was officially launched. More information is available at http://salesfunnelrx.com. Recent decades have seen a sharp increase in online marketing investments, as businesses become more and more aware that the internet can significantly grow their profits. Recent surveys show that up to 90% of all clients have used online reviews or Google searches in making their customer decisions. Coupled with an ever-expanding social media, the overall online market is growing tremendously. This translates into large investments being made in digital marketing, as companies are constantly looking for social media marketing solutions, search engine optimization (SEO) and other digital marketing services. As a response to this increasing digital marketing demand, many SEO agencies have appeared over the recent years, offering a diversity of services tailored to both local and global businesses. However, many of these agencies offer less than adequate services, as they use unspecialized staff, incapable of providing competitive digital marketing solutions. Sales Funnel RX is a new digital consulting agency specializing in helping offline businesses develop a solid online marketing strategy. The company focuses on sales and marketing alignment, digital marketing training, and sales and marketing automation. The company is presided by Tony Dicks, a certified LEAN Six Sigma Black Belt with over 14 years of sales and marketing experience with Fortune 500 and private company. According to Tony Dicks, effective marketing, both on and offline, has to do with the means of getting clients: "Everybody who thinks marketing is just advertising, or just logos and colors and designs, is sadly mistaken. Marketing is everything that has to do with gaining and retaining a customer." Unlike other digital marketing companies, Sales Funnel RX applies LEAN 6 Sigma methodology to facilitate a repeatable, measurable sales and marketing process, in an effort to increase marketing ROI (return of investment). Sales Funnel RX specializes in helping small and mid-size businesses improve their online reputation and leverage digital marketing tools such as SEO and social media marketing to reach more potential clients. Interested parties can find more information by visiting the above-mentioned link. For more information, please visit http://www.salesfunnelrx.com Contact Info: Name: Tony Dicks Organization: SalesFunnelRx Address: 247 SW 8th St #859, Miami United States Phone: 305-791-1812 Release ID: 154270 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Smart Contact Lenses Market 2016-2027: Market Segments, Trends, Key Players Strategies and Growth Analysis Global Smart Contact Lenses Market Information by Types (Rigid gas-permeable (RGP), Daily-wear soft lenses, Extended-wear, Extended-wear disposable, Planned replacement and others) - Research Report forecast to 2027 -- Market Overview Smart contact lenses are like implants however they don't require surgery and can usually be inserted or removed by the user. They're neither on nor under the skin full time. They're exposed to both air and the body's internal science. Contact lenses sit on the eye, thus can upgrade vision. They're presented to both light and the mechanical development of blinking, so they can gather vitality. Key Players for Smart Contact Lenses Market: Some of the key players in this market are: o Samsung (South Korea) o Sony (Japan) o Alcon (US) o Google (US) Request a Sample Copy of Report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/sample-request/global-smart-contact-lenses-market-research-report-forecast-to-2027 Market Segmentation Global Smart Contact Lenses market has been segmented on the basis of types which consist of rigid gas-permeable (RGP), Daily-wear soft lenses, Extended-wear, Extended-wear disposable, planned replacement and others. Taste the market data and market information presented through more than 60 market data tables and figures spread over 115 numbers of pages of the project report. Avail the in-depth table of content TOC & market synopsis on "Global Smart Contact Lenses Market Research Report- Forecast To 2027" Access Report Details @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/global-smart-contact-lenses-market-research-report-forecast-to-2027 Brief Table for Contents for Global Smart Contact Lenses Market 1. Report Prologue 2. Introduction 2.1 Definition 2.2 Scope of the Study 2.2.1 Research Objective 2.2.2 Assumptions 2.2.3 Limitations 2.3 Market Structure 2.4. Market Segmentation 3. Research Methodology 3.1 Research Process 3.2 Primary Research 3.3 Secondary Research 3.4 Market Size Estimation 3.5 Forecast Model 4. Market Dynamics 4.1 Drivers 4.2 Restraints 4.3 Opportunities 4.4 Mega Trends 4.5 Macroeconomic Indicators 5. Market Factor Analysis 5.1 Value Chain Analysis 5.2 PORTERS Five Forces 5.3 demand & supply: gap analysis 5.4 Pricing Analysis 5.5 Investment Opportunity Analysis 5.6 Merger and Acquisition Landscape 5.7 UP-Coming trends in Global Smart Contact Lenses Market 5.7.1 Market trends 5.7.2 Technological trends 5.7.3 Insurance & Regulations 5.7.4 Others 6. Global Smart Contact Lenses Market by Types 7. Global Smart Contact Lenses Market by Region CONTINUED... Get In-Depth Table of Contents of this Report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/request-toc/global-smart-contact-lenses-market-research-report-forecast-to-2027 About Market Research Future: At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services. MRFR team have supreme objective to provide the optimum quality market research and intelligence services to our clients. Our market research studies by products, services, technologies, applications, end users, and market players for global, regional, and country level market segments, enable our clients to see more, know more, and do more, which help to answer all their most important questions. In order to stay updated with technology and work process of the industry, MRFR often plans & conducts meet with the industry experts and industrial visits for its research analyst members. For more information, please visit https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/global-smart-contact-lenses-market-research-report-forecast-to-2027 Contact Info: Name: Akash Anand Organization: Market Research Future (MRFR) Address: Office No. 528, Amanora Chambers Magarpatta Road, Hadapsar, Pune - 411028 Maharashtra, India Phone: +1 646 845 9312 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/smart-contact-lenses-market-2016-2027-market-segments-trends-key-players-strategies-and-growth-analysis/154176 Release ID: 154176 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Smart Connected Assets and Operations Market worth 215.53 Billion USD by 2022 Smart Connected Assets and Operations Market by Module (Hardware-Sensors, Processors, Network Connectivity- Wired & Wireless; APM Software & Platform, and Services- Professional & Managed), Industry, and Geography - Global Forecast to 2022 -- The report "Smart Connected Assets and Operations Market by Module (Hardware-Sensors, Processors, Network Connectivity- Wired & Wireless; APM Software & Platform, and Services- Professional & Managed), Industry, and Geography - Global Forecast to 2022", was valued at USD 103.82 Billion in 2015 and is expected to reach USD 215.53 Billion by 2022, at a CAGR of 10.26% during the forecast period. Factors such as growing demand for better operational performance, reduction in cost & energy, and increase in manufacturing agility are driving the growth of the smart connected assets and operations market. Browse 65 market data tables and 74 figures spread through 198 pages and in-depth TOC on "Smart Connected Assets and Operations Market - Global Forecast to 2022" Buy Now @ https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Purchase/purchase_report1.asp?id=131281533 Early buyers will receive 10% customization on reports. Automotive and transportation expected to hold the largest market share during the forecast period The automotive and transportation sector held the largest share in the smart connected assets and operations market in 2015, followed by the healthcare sector. The IoT platform in transportation application provides a range of infotainment, traffic, navigation, vehicle maintenance, security, and safety features. IoT in transportation forms an entirely novel mobile platform by bringing together component suppliers, auto manufacturers, telecom vendors, and content providers. APM Software and platform for smart connected assets and operations market expected to grow at the highest rate between 2016 and 2022 The APM software and platform plays an important role in the smart connected assets and operations market. The companies have already installed set up with the traditional equipment and hardware. For connecting the assets and operations smartly, IIoT platform and software is required, which is used to manage the asset's performance (APM software) to generate better operational performance. Therefore, the APM software and platform market is expected to grow at a higher rate than the hardware components. Smart connected assets and operations market in APAC likely to grow at a high rate during the forecast period Several initiatives have been taken up by the Government of India such as Make in India and Digital India is one of the major factors supporting the growth of the smart connected assets and operations market in APAC. As China and Japan are the leading countries in semiconductor and electronics industry, due to this the scope for smart connected assets and operations system is high. Such initiatives by the government and companies are driving the smart connected assets and operations market. Major players operating in the smart connected assets and operations market include Intel Corporation (U.S.), Cisco System Inc. (U.S), IBM Corporation (U.S.), ARM holding plc (U.K.), General Electric Company (U.S.), Texas Instruments (U.S.), Cypress Semiconductor (U.S.), Rockwell Automation (U.S.), NXP Semiconductor (Netherlands), and STMicroelectronics N.V. (Switzerland). About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets is the largest market research firm worldwide in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. For more information, please visit http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/smart-connected-assets-and-operations-market-131281533.html Contact Info: Name: Rohan Email: newsletter@marketsandmarkets.com Organization: MarketsandMarklets Address: MarketsandMarkets , 701 Pike Street Suite 2175, Seattle, WA 98101, United States Phone: 1-888-600-6441 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/smart-connected-assets-and-operations-market-worth-215-53-billion-usd-by-2022/154414 Release ID: 154414 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Alfalfa Market Analysis 2016-2021 with Industry Chain Structure, Competitive Landscape The Alfalfa Industry Research Report of 150 pages and providing rich tables and figures to support the Alfalfa market analysis is now available. -- For people who are keen on the Alfalfa Market the Global and Chinese Alfalfa Industry, 2011-2021 Market Research Report would be a useful report to refer to as it is an exhaustive study on the present market scenario of this industry. The report also gives a special insight into the growing Global & Chinese market of this industry. The report summarizes key statistics of the market and the overall status of the manufacturers in this industry. The report is a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individuals interested in the industry. The report encapsulates all the latest news and developments in the industry along with the progress in the technology front. The information summary helps the reader of this report to be updated on all the activities of the industry. It mentions the recent trend in this market along with a market outlook both at the Global and Chinese market level. The report mentions top eight manufacturers of this market. The details covered in this portion include a detailed profiling of the company along with its products offerings, product information over the period of 2011-2016 along with the key contact person in the firm. So a person looking to diversify the business knows his competitors and also has a fair idea on the business offerings of its competitors. The Alfalfa Market report covers the capacity of production of this industry along with production value, supply and consumption. It includes the level of competition in this market and the performance of the players in specific geography like USA, EU, Japan and China. Order a copy of this report at http://www.market-research-reports.com/contacts/purchase.php?name=491766 The total market analysed in this report is divided by company, by country, and by application or type for the competitive landscape analysis. The report also estimates 2016-2021 market development trends of Alfalfa industry. Analysis of upstream raw materials, downstream demand, and current market dynamics is also carried out. To end with the Alfalfa Industry report includes ten proposals which cover the market entry strategies, suggestions on managing economic challenges and various marketing channels. This section of information is very useful for a prospective market player who is planning to startup something new in this industry. In order to prevent the new players in the market from any unpleasant experiences and safeguard against market giants there is a feasibility analysis of New Project Investment. The investment research gives a snapshot of all the pros and cons of this industry as well as speaks about the opportunities and threats. Overall, the report provides an in-depth insight of 2011-2021 Global and Chinese Alfalfa market covering all important parameters. Major Points from Table of Contents Chapter One Introduction of Alfalfa Industry 1.1 Brief Introduction of Alfalfa 1.2 Development of Alfalfa Industry 1.3 Status of Alfalfa Industry Chapter Two Manufacturing Technology of Alfalfa 2.1 Development of Alfalfa Manufacturing Technology 2.2 Analysis of Alfalfa Manufacturing Technology 2.3 Trends of Alfalfa Manufacturing Technology Chapter Three Analysis of Global Key Manufacturers Chapter Four 2011-2016 Global and Chinese Market of Alfalfa 4.1 2011-2016 Global Capacity, Production and Production Value of Alfalfa Industry 4.2 2011-2016 Global Cost and Profit of Alfalfa Industry 4.3 Market Comparison of Global and Chinese Alfalfa Industry 4.4 2011-2016 Global and Chinese Supply and Consumption of Alfalfa 4.5 2011-2016 Chinese Import and Export of Alfalfa Chapter Five Market Status of Alfalfa Industry 5.1 Market Competition of Alfalfa Industry by Company 5.2 Market Competition of Alfalfa Industry by Country (USA, EU, Japan, Chinese etc.) 5.3 Market Analysis of Alfalfa Consumption by Application/Type Chapter Six 2016-2021 Market Forecast of Global and Chinese Alfalfa Industry 6.1 2016-2021 Global and Chinese Capacity, Production, and Production Value of Alfalfa 6.2 2016-2021 Alfalfa Industry Cost and Profit Estimation 6.3 2016-2021 Global and Chinese Market Share of Alfalfa 6.4 2016-2021 Global and Chinese Supply and Consumption of Alfalfa 6.5 2016-2021 Chinese Import and Export of Alfalfa Chapter Seven Analysis of Alfalfa Industry Chain 7.1 Industry Chain Structure 7.2 Upstream Raw Materials 7.3 Downstream Industry Inquire More On This Report at http://www.market-research-reports.com/contacts/inquire-before-buy.php?name=491766 About Us: Market Research Reports is an aggregator of syndicated market research studies that offer current and future market intelligence across multiple industrial verticals through is high quality database. Additionally, with help of our sales and research experts focus, Market Research Reports aims to help you take business decisions accurately and on time, every time. For more information, please visit http://www.market-research-reports.com/491766-alfalfa-industry Contact Info: Name: Ritesh Tiwari Email: sales@market-research-reports.com Organization: Market Research Reports Address: UNIT no 802, Tower no. 7, SEZ Magarpatta city, Hadapsar, Pune, Maharashtra 411013, India Phone: + 1 888 391 5441 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/alfalfa-market-analysis-2016-2021-with-industry-chain-structure-competitive-landscape/154162 Release ID: 154162 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Spaceship from Battlefield Earth Book to Appear in Hollywood Christmas Parade 30 foot spaceship from L. Ron Hubbard's bestselling novel "Battlefield Earth" will appear in the Hollywood Christmas Parade broadcasting on the 16th of December 2016. -- An estimated 500,000 people lined the streets of Los Angeles on November 27th, 2016 to watch the various celebrities riding in cars, equestrian performances, marching bands, floats and of course Santa Clause in the Hollywood Christmas Parade. The parade is now in its 85th year and a tradition of Hollywood. Millions more will be able to watch it when it airs on TV as a national two-hour special premiere. This year, Galaxy Press presented their 30 foot spaceship float from the bestselling novel "Battlefield Earth" by L. Ron Hubbard. Riding on the float was Jonnie Goodboy Tyler played by Aaron Groben and Chrissie played by Lauren Compton. Also riding the float was the cruel alien, Terl. The float was escorted by a group of Scotsmen including a band of bagpipers and drummers. "Battlefield Earth" has garnered a considerable amount of attention this year topping the charts as the #1 book and audiobook on Publishers Weekly, while the audiobook was also named Best of 2016 by AudioFile Magazine. The characters from the book have been seen across the US over the last few months from Los Angeles to NY to Atlanta, and now as a feature in the Hollywood Christmas Parade. The parade will air on the CW Network on Friday, 16 December at 8:00 PM and 7:00PM CT. It will also air on the Hallmark Channel and the Armed Forces Network on Wednesday, 21 December at 3:00 PM and 2:00 PM CT. For more information about airing times go to HollywoodChristmasParade.org. The "Battlefield Earth" book and audiobook are still available in all major bookstores such as Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million and BookWorld as well as online. The "Battlefield Earth" eBook will be discounted on Amazon for $0.99 through the holidays. For more information about the Battlefield Earth float in the parade, go to GalaxyPress.com. For more information, please visit https://www.battlefieldearth.com Contact Info: Name: Emily Jones Organization: Galaxy Press Address: 7051 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, 90028 United States Phone: +13234663310 Release ID: 154366 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) iWork4Self Reveals New Case Study On Denver Real Estate Attorneys Find out if a real estate attorney is necessary to have in Denver and why. -- iWork4Self revealed their new case study today on Denver Real Estate Attorneys. Does a person need them?. This case study demonstrates that To find out if an attorney is needed for a real estate transaction in Denver. The case study also made it obvious how much real estate attorneys typically charge in Denver. Knowing what attorneys charge from the beginning is very important to know, so there won't be many financial surprises later on down the road. Standard hourly fees range from $90-$225 typically for a real estate attorney in Denver. However, a flat fee can usually be negotiated for minor transactions. So, are real estate attorneys needed in Denver? In short. the answer would be yes if a real estate deal was complex or risky. If the transaction were a typical sale of a single family home then a real estate attorney probably wouldn't be necessary. Most real estate transactions aren't created equal and the more experience of cases an attorney has had is usually a very good indication. Contacting attorneys that are trusted in other fields is a very good way to get a referral of a good real estate attorney. Many times properties have been altered or additions have been created to enhance the property. Only a real estate attorney would know how to find out if these alterations or additions were done lawfully on not. iWork4Self owner Spence Lawrence says there are many people looking for insights and answers about Denver real estate attorneys. Does a person need them?. This case study reveals in a practical way what's possible with the right information and guidance. The case study is available at http://bizmobileapps4u.com/realestateattorneydenve.... About iWork4Self iWork4Self was founded in 2015 and serves the online marketing, lead generation, and data research industry. It is known for generating leads for small businesses online and helping them get top ranking search results. . For more information, please visit http://iwork4self.com Contact Info: Name: Spence Lawrence Email: support@iwork4self.com Organization: iWork4Self Address: 9888 W Belleview Ave #2063, Littleton, 80123 United States Phone: +13024289462 Release ID: 154639 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global Energy Management Information Market Research Report 2016 Global Energy Management market is valued at $14.32 billion in 2014 with CAGR of 11.7% it is expected to reach $29.32 billion by 2022. -- Energy Management Information Industry Description The Global Energy Management market is valued at $14.32 billion in 2014 with CAGR of 11.7% it is expected to reach $29.32 billion by 2022. The increasing demand for cost reduction, enhanced effiiciency and carbon management are driving the market growth. The technological advancements leading to enhanced product quality with user-friendly designs are the key market trends observed. The latest design requires less time to operate and low skilled labor thus reducing the maintenance cost. Favorable government regulations and policies are fueling the Energy Management market. The lengthy return on investment is the only major hurdle impacting the market growth. The opportunities for Energy Management market lies in increase in demand for Energy management from both commercial and residential sectors. IEMS segment has the largest market for energy management systems and would continue to grow at a considerable rate during the forecast period. Building Energy Management System (BEMS) is likely to grow swiftly and would drive the market significantly by the year 2022. The European government provides support and subsidies to encourage adoption of Home Energy Management System (HEMS), thereby reating more demand and contributing to the global market. The adoption of BEMS is expected to grow rapidly due to its varied application in verticals namely, Telecom and IT, Municipal, University, School, and Hospital System (MUSH), Educational institutions and Universities, Healthcare and Commercial building etc. Request for Sample Report @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/sample-request/222034-energy-management-information-global-market-outlook-trends-forecast-and-opportunity-assessment-2014-2022 Global energy management market is mainly segmented by component, by end user, by vertical and by geography. Based on component, energy management markets are further segmented into smart thermostats, smart plugs, load control switches (LCS), and in-house display. Based on end user, energy management markets are further segmented into home energy management system (HEMS), building energy management system (BEMS). Based on vertical, energy management markets are further segmented into power and energy (P&E), manufacturing, municipal, university, school, and hospital system (MUSH), Telecom & IT, office and commercial building. Energy Management market, by geography is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Rest of the World. Asia-Pacific is forecasted to be one of the most profitable markets in terms of growth, given the economy is evolving rapidly. The key players in the Energy Management market include, Siemens AG, General Electric Company, CA Technologies, Cisco Systems, Inc., Eaton Corporation Plc, Honeywell International, Inc., Elster Group GMBH, Emerson Process Management, and Schneider Electric Se. What our report offers: - Market share assessments for the regional and country level segments - Market share analysis of the top industry players - Strategic recommendations for the new entrants - Market forecasts for a minimum of 8 years of all the mentioned segments, sub segments and the regional markets - Market Trends (Drivers, Constraints, Opportunities, Threats, Challenges, Investment Opportunities, and recommendations) - Strategic recommendations in key business segments based on the market estimations - Competitive landscaping mapping the key common trends - Company profiling with detailed strategies, financials, and recent developments - Supply chain trends mapping the latest technological advancements Leave a Query @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/enquiry/222034-energy-management-information-global-market-outlook-trends-forecast-and-opportunity-assessment-2014-2022 1 Executive Summary 2 Preface 2.1 Abstract 2.2 Research Scope 2.3 Research Methodology 2.4 Research Sources 3 Market Trend Analysis 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Drivers 3.3 Restraints 3.4 Opportunities 3.5 Threats 4 Porters Five Force Analysis 4.1 Bargaining power of suppliers 4.2 Bargaining power of buyers 4.3 Threat of substitutes 4.4 Threat of new entrants 4.5 Competitive rivalry 5 Global Energy Management Market, By Component 5.1 Introduction 5.2 Smart Thermostats 5.3 Smart Plugs 5.4 Load Control Switches (LCS) 5.5 In-House Display 6 Global Energy Management Market, By End User 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Home Energy Management System (HEMS) 6.3 Building Energy Management System (BEMS) 6.4 Industrial Energy Management System (IEMS) 7 Global Energy Management Market, By Vertical 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Power and Energy (P&E) 7.3 Manufacturing 7.4 Municipal, University, School, and Hospital System (MUSH) 7.5 Telecom & IT 7.6 Office and Commercial Building 8 Global Energy Management Market, By Geography 8.1 North America 8.1.1 US 8.1.2 Canada 8.2 Europe 8.2.1 Germany 8.2.2 France 8.2.3 Italy 8.2.4 UK 8.2.5 Spain 8.3 Asia Pacific 8.3.1 Japan 8.3.2 China 8.3.3 India 8.3.4 Australia 8.3.5 New Zealand 8.3.6 Rest of Asia 8.4 Rest of the World 8.4.1 Latin America 8.4.2 Middle East 8.4.3 Africa 8.4.4 Others 9 Key Developments 9.1 Agreements, Partnerships, Collaborations and Joint Ventures 9.2 Acquisitions & Mergers 9.3 New Product Launch 9.4 Expansions 9.5 Other Key Strategies 10 Company Profiling 10.1 Siemens AG 10.2 General Electric Company 10.3 CA Tecnologies 10.4 Cisco Systems, Inc. 10.5 Eaton Corporation Plc 10.6 Honeywell International, Inc. 10.7 Elster Group GMBH 10.8 Emerson Process Management 10.9 Schneider Electric Se Buy now @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/checkout?currency=one_user-USD&report_id=222034 Continued... Contact Us: Sales@Wiseguyreports.Com Ph: +1-646-845-9349 (US) Ph: +44 208 133 9349 (UK) For more information, please visit https://www.wiseguyreports.com/sample-request/222034-energy-management-information-global-market-outlook-trends-forecast-and-opportunity-assessment-2014-2022 Contact Info: Name: Norah Trent Email: info@wiseguyreports.com Organization: WISE GUY RESEARCH CONSULTANTS PVT LTD Address: Office No. 528, Amanora Chambers Magarpatta Road, Hadapsar Pune - 411028 Maharashtra, India Phone: +91 841 198 5042 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/global-energy-management-information-market-research-report-2016/154587 Release ID: 154587 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Project Portfolio Management (PPM) Market worth 4.63 Billion USD by 2020 [148 Pages Report] Project portfolio management (PPM) market categorizes the global market by platform type, by deployment type, by end user, by business solutions, by industry vertical & by regions. -- According to a new market research report "Project Portfolio Management (PPM) Market by Platform Type (Software and Services), Deployment Type (On-Premises and Cloud), End User, Business Solutions, Industry Vertical, and Region - Global Forecast and Analysis to 2020", The PPM market size is estimated to grow from USD 2.52 Billion in 2015 to USD 4.63 Billion by 2020, at a CAGR of 12.9% from 2015 to 2020. Browse 71 market data Tables and 49 Figures spread through 148 Pages and in-depth TOC on "Project Portfolio Management (PPM) Market - Global Forecast and Analysis to 2020" http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/project-portfolio-management-software-market-225932595.html Early buyers will receive 10% customization on this report. PPM software solutions and related services are being increasingly used by enterprises to optimize resource utilization and mitigate risks associated with specific projects. With the growth of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), the PPM software market is expected to gain traction in the next five years, owing to the need to provide real-time updates about projects to the teams. Expansive penetration of mobile devices to drive the PPM market The major forces driving the PPM market include the widespread penetration of robust computing mobile devices among enterprises, escalating business optimization needs, increasing complexities within projects, and the growing popularity of cloud-based software. Enterprises are looking for PPM software solutions and services that can provide them real-time and dependable project updates for efficient accomplishment of various projects. Furthermore, the emergence of cost-efficient cloud-based PPM software is boosting the growth of the PPM software market among Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) that have constraints in adopting expensive solutions. NPD solution to play a key role in the PPM software market The IT solution segment of the PPM market is expected to hold the largest market share owing to the widespread need for enterprise software products to meet the dynamic needs of businesses due to technological shifts, whereas the New Product Development (NPD) solution segment is expected to play a key role in changing the PPM software market landscape during the forecast period. BFSI industry vertical is expected to hold the largest market share The Banking, Financial Services and Insurance (BFSI) vertical is expected to hold the largest market share in the PPM software market, as this vertical has experienced tremendous technological advancement in the form of e-banking, mobile banking, and its associated services such as the use of credit, debit, smart cards, and Centralized Fund Management System (CFMS), among others. These advancements in the BFSI industry led to the entry of more complex projects, which in turn, created the need for PPM solutions. Industry verticals such as healthcare and pharmaceutical, IT & telecom, government & utilities, and manufacturing are expected to be the key growing sectors during the forecast period. North America expected to dominate the PPM software market The report also covers the total PPM software market by region. North America is expected to hold the largest market share and Asia-Pacific (APAC) is expected to grow at the highest CAGR from 2015 to 2020, due the growing awareness among SMEs and increasing investments in cloud and mobility in developing countries such as India, Singapore, and Malaysia. Make an Enquiry @ http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_Buying.asp?id=225932595 The major vendors in the PPM software market include Changepoint, Microsoft, CA Technologies, Hewlett-Packard, and Oracle. The scope of the report covers detailed information regarding the major factors influencing the growth of the PPM software market such as drivers, restraints, challenges, and opportunities. A detailed analysis of the key industry players has been done to provide insights into their business overview, products and services, key strategies, new product launches, mergers & acquisitions, partnerships, and recent developments associated with the PPM software market. About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets is world's No. 2 firm in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. For more information, please visit http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/project-portfolio-management-software-market-225932595.html Contact Info: Name: Mr.Rohan Organization: MarketsandMarkets Source: http://marketersmedia.com/project-portfolio-management-ppm-market-worth-4-63-billion-usd-by-2020/154776 Release ID: 154776 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Internet of Things (IoT) in Smart Cities Market worth 147.51 Billion USD by 2020 [135 Pages Report] Internet of Things (IoT) in Smart Cities Market report categorizes the global market by Solutions such as Remote Monitoring & Data Management, by Platform like Application & Device Management, by Applications and by Geography. -- According to a new market research report "Internet of Things (IoT) in Smart Cities Market by Solutions (Remote Monitoring, Data Management) Platform (Application & Device Management) Application (Building Automation, Energy Management, Transportation) - Global Forecast to 2020", The IoT in Smart Cities Market estimated to grow from USD 51.96 Billion in 2015 to USD 147.51 Billion by 2020, at an estimated Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 23.2% during the forecast period. Browse 63 market data Tables and 46 Figures spread through 135 Pages and in-depth TOC on "Internet of Things (IoT) in Smart Cities Market - Global Forecast to 2020" http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/iot-smart-cities-market-215714954.html Early buyers will receive 10% customization on this report. The major growth drivers of this market include increasing demand for intelligent cities globally and the rising demand for IoT devices. More than 200 smart city projects across the globe provide huge opportunities in this market for IoT vendors, service providers, platform providers, and consulting companies. Growing concept of connected cities and increasing deployment of connected devices to open major opportunities The market smart city has considerably grown over the past few years and the emergence of disruptive technologies such as IoT and connected devices has further augmented the opportunity areas for IoT in smart cities. The advancement in IoT technologies, cloud-based platforms, and services are marked with increasing IoT application and has led to significant investment in smart cities. The development of smart devices such as smart meters, home gateways, smart appliances, and smart plugs would also act as an opportunity for the IoT in smart cities market. Government policies, privacy and security issues, inadequate financial incentives for utilities and interoperability and standard interface are the major restraints of the overall growth of this market. Data management solutions sub segment expected to hold the most promising potential for next five years The IoT in smart cities market has been segmented into solutions, services, technologies, platforms, and applications. The data management and location analytics solution sub segment is projected to grow at a high growth rate and present good market opportunity during the forecast period. System integration services hold a major share in the IoT smart cities services segment. The increasing integration of ICT and IoT with different industries is considered as the primary driver influencing the growth of the IoT in smart cities services market. Make an Enquiry @ http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_Buying.asp?id=215714954 North America contributes maximum market share in 2015 North America is expected to hold the largest market share and dominate the IoT in smart cities market from 2015 to 2020, with the growing number of smart city projects and increasing grants from the U.S. government. Asia-Pacific and Middle East & Africa offer potential growth opportunities due to large-scale infrastructure development and growing number of smart city projects. The major vendors covered in the IoT in smart cities market for this study include Bosch Software Innovation, Cisco Systems Inc., Huawei Technologies, IBM Corporation, Intel Corporation., Schneider Electric, SAP SE, Symantec Corporation, ThingWorx, and Verizon Communications. MarketsandMarkets segments the IoT in smart cities market on the basis of solutions: location analytics, network security, application security, real-time streaming analytics, network bandwidth management, remote monitoring system and data management solutions; services: system integration services and other services; platforms: device management, application management, and connectivity management platform; technologies: satellite networks, cellular networks, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Near Field Communication (NFC), and Wi-Fi; applications: transportation, infrastructure management, building automation, energy management, intelligent cities service, and emergency and incident management; and regions. A detailed analysis of the regional markets has been done to provide insights into the potential future business opportunities in different regions. About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets is the world's No. 2 firm in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. For more information, please visit http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/iot-smart-cities-market-215714954.html Contact Info: Name: Mr.Rohan Organization: MarketsandMarkets Source: http://marketersmedia.com/internet-of-things-iot-in-smart-cities-market-worth-147-51-billion-usd-by-2020/154772 Release ID: 154772 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Bruce Plaxen Named To The 2017 Maryland Supers Lawyers List Maryland injury attorney Bruce M. Plaxen has been named to the 2017 Maryland Super Lawyers List. This is the 11th consecutive year Mr. Plaxen has been named to the list. -- Plaxen & Adler, P.A. is proud to announce that Bruce M. Plaxen has been selected to the 2017 Maryland Super Lawyers List. This is Mr. Plaxen's 11th consecutive year being named to the list. "Each year, we try to be even better than the year before," said firm founder Bruce Plaxen. "We strive to offer zealous, comprehensive representation to our clients throughout Maryland, in courtrooms and in negotiations." Super Lawyers describes their multiphase attorney selection process as starting off with peer nominations and evaluations combined with independent research. Attorneys are then selected on an annual, state-by-state basis, and evaluated on 12 indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement. About five percent of attorneys in each state will make the final list each year. A Super Lawyers designation one year does not guarantee inclusion the next year. A champion for civil justice and a trusted client advocate As an attorney whose career has been focused on protecting the rights of the injured, Bruce Plaxen has dedicated the last 34 years to fighting on behalf of civil justice. Bruce Plaxen has served on the Board of Governors of the Maryland Association for Justice for the past 24 years. He served as President of the Maryland Association for Justice in 2001-2002 and was honored as Trial Lawyer of the Year in 2009. As an active leader in the Maryland Association of Justice, Bruce Plaxen has served on numerous committees; he served as the Chairman of the Political Action Committee from 2001 through 2016. He has also been a longtime member on the Executive Committee of the American Association of Justice. Some of his other honors and accolades include: o An AV-Preeminent rating from Martindale Hubbell, with a perfect score for both client and peer ratings o Membership in the Million Dollar Advocates Forum o A three time winner of The Wiedemann Wysocki Citation of Excellence from the American Association for Justice o The State University of New York at Albany Distinguished Alumni Award o Leadership in Law Award from The Daily Record o A two time winner of The Maryland Association for Justice Presidents Award About Bruce Plaxen As a founding partner of the Maryland injury law firm of Plaxen & Adler, P.A. Bruce Plaxen has dedicated his work to representing injury victims. He helps clients to overcome the challenges they may face after a serious injury caused by the negligence of another person. Mr. Plaxen has earned a reputation for being aggressive and well prepared, and he is a leader in plaintiffs' bars, both in Maryland and nationally. Plaxen & Adler, P.A. offers comprehensive counsel to clients throughout Maryland. The firm maintains multiple offices, and the attorneys primarily focus their practice in the areas of: o Auto and trucking accidents o Workers compensation o Catastrophic injuries o Medical malpractice o Premises liability o Social Security Disability o Nursing home neglect and abuse o Animal attacks o Products liability For more information, please visit https://www.plaxenadler.com Contact Info: Name: Bruce Plaxen Organization: Plaxen & Adler, P.A. Address: 10211 Wincopin Cir, Suite 620 Columbia, MD 21044 Phone: (410) 730-7737 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/bruce-plaxen-named-to-the-2017-maryland-supers-lawyers-list/154627 Release ID: 154627 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Packaging Printing Market To Reach Worth $587.19 Billion USD By 2020 The global packaging printing market is marked with intense competition due to the presence of a large number of both, big and small firms. Mergers and acquisitions, investments, and expansions are the key strategies adopted by market players to ensure their growth in the market. -- According to the new market research report on "Packaging Printing Market by Ink Type (Water Based & UV Curable), Printing Technology (Flexography, Rotogravure, Offset, Digital), Material (Paper & Paperboard, Flexible & Rigid Plastic, Glass & Metal), Application (Food & Beverages, Cosmetics & Toiletries, and Healthcare) - Trends & Forecast to 2020" defines and segments the global packaging printing market with analysis and forecasting of the global revenues for packaging printing. It also identifies the driving and restraining factors of the market with analysis of trends, opportunities, and challenges. Browse 257 tables and 63 figures spread through 299 pages and in-depth TOC on "Packaging Printing Market - Trends & Forecast to 2020" Speak to Analyst: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/speaktoanalyst.asp?id=153207109 The market is segmented and revenues are forecasted on the basis of major regions, such as North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Rest of the World (RoW). The key countries are covered and their market sizes have been forecasted for each region. Further, the market is segmented and revenues are forecasted on the basis of application. The packaging printing industry has a positive outlook due to high growth in the packaging industries. Rising per capita income and rising demand for innovative printing are accelerating the demand for packaging printing. Consumer preferences in emerging economies such as China, India, Brazil, and South Africa are gradually shifting from traditional packaging to new innovative packaging printing. The market for packaging printing is observed to be matured in developing economies such as Europe and North America. The reason behind this is the high disposable income. The Asia-Pacific region formed the largest market for packaging printing, in terms of volume, having accounted for 2978.65 Billion A4 sheets in 2014. North America accounted for the second-largest market, with a share of 29 in 2014. The global market for packaging printing is projected to grow at a CAGR of 6.26% from 2015 to 2020, to reach USD 587.19 Billion by 2020. The development of economies plays an essential role in increasing the demand for packaging printing in the global market. The key parameters that determine the growth of packaging printing in developing economies are increase in consumption and demand for convenient packaging. The growing GDP (PPP) in emerging markets such as China, India, and Brazil is estimated to drive the demand for packaging printing. This report estimates the market size of the global packaging printing market in terms of value (USD billion). In this report, the market is segmented based on product type, material, application, and region. Market drivers, restraints, challenges, raw materials, and product price trends are discussed in detail. Market share, by participant, for the overall market is also discussed in detail. The global packaging printing market has grown exponentially in the last few years and this trend is expected to continue. The global packaging printing market is marked with intense competition due to the presence of a large number of both, big and small firms. Mergers and acquisitions, investments, and expansions are the key strategies adopted by market players to ensure their growth in the market. Companies such as Quad/Graphics (U.S.), Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (U.S.), Xerox Corporation(U.S.), E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (U.S.), and WS Packaging Group (U.S.) are some of the prominent companies in the packaging printing market. Request for Customization: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestCustomization.asp?id=153207109 About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets is the largest market research firm worldwide in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. For more information, please visit http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/packaging-printing-market-153207109.html Contact Info: Name: Rohan Organization: MarketsandMarkets Source: http://marketersmedia.com/packaging-printing-market-to-reach-worth-587-19-billion-usd-by-2020/154854 Release ID: 154854 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) SEO Los Angeles Go Celebrates Digital Launch Party To Kick Off New Year SEO Los Angeles GO is celebrating the launch of their new search marketing service in the Los Angeles, CA area by hosting Kotton Grammer, world's top SEO at office launch party. Further information can be found at http://seolosangelesgo.com. -- In a slightly different approach to launching its new search marketing service, SEO Los Angeles GO, a Digital Marketing Agency in Los Angeles, CA has decided it will hosting Kotton Grammer, the world's top SEO at office launch party, and this is expected to take place January 1st, 2017. Kotton is recognized as being the leading SEO on the planet and earns more than anyone else on the planet in this niche. Where most businesses tend to just advertise on the local radio, SEO Los Angeles GO has decided to be a little more radical. Jim Beals, Owner at SEO Los Angeles GO, says: "We wanted to be amazing launch party at downtown office complete with gorgeous models both male and female with the launch of our new search marketing service because wanted to do something that had never been done before. It should be really worthwhile and we're hoping it to be able to bring together many of the business owners that operate in the downtown LA area. It should go great unless the sun might not come up!" SEO Los Angeles GO has always made a point of standing out when compared to other Digital Marketers in the Los Angeles, CA area. This launch celebration is just one of the many ways it does so. This is a great chance for Los Angeles, CA entrepreneurs to to come together with other companies in LA and celebrate together by supporting the hard working, trusted and dedicated business owners from Los Angeles. SEO Los Angeles GO has been serving the Los Angeles, CA area since 11/1/16. To date it has served over 16 customers and has become recognized as Southern California's fastest growing digital agency. It can be found on 515 S. Flower Street, 36th Floor near Downtown area. Jim Beals also said: "While SEO Los Angeles GO may not be the only business with this kind of offering, local residents are choosing SEO Los Angeles GO because we are the top rankers in the city for Google page one results." When asked about the new search marketing service, Jim Beals said: "We think it's going to be a hit because nobody else is able to produce the same results". Further information about SEO Los Angeles GO and the new search marketing service can be discovered at http://seolosangelesgo.com. For more information, please visit http://seolosangelesgo.com/ Contact Info: Name: Paul Tufts Email: paul@juicedseo.com Organization: SEO Los Angeles GO Address: 515 S. Flower Street 36th Floor, Los Angeles, 90071 United States Phone: +12138938641 Release ID: 154660 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Compare and Evaluate Mobile Application Security Vendors Through MarketsandMarkets DIVE Report [54 Pages Report] Vendor DIVE: Mobile Application Security Q4 2015 covers the comprehensive study of the key vendors offering solutions for mobile application security. -- The report "Vendor Comparison in Mobile Application Security, 2015: MnM DIVE Matrix", This report excludes the vendors that offer only services in the mobile application security market, such as Intel Security (McAfee), Trustwave, Dell SecureWorks, MobileIron, and others. Browse 54 pages and in-depth TOC on "Vendor Comparison in Mobile Application Security, 2015: MnM DIVE Matrix" http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/mobile-application-security-vendor-dive-112076041.html MarketsandMarkets released its Vendor DIVE report on mobile application security, Q4 2015. The report covers the comprehensive study of the key vendors offering solutions for mobile application security. The report outlines the findings and analysis on how well each mobile application security vendor performs within the criteria. The Vendor DIVE helps vendors to get detailed information regarding their competitors on the basis of their product offerings and business strategies. This report is instrumental in helping the stakeholders such as mobile application security vendors, system integrators, value-added resellers, and other channel partners, in making concurrent business choices on the deployment of mobile application security solutions. Vendor Landscape Most of the vendors provide a complete mobile application security suite inclusive of multiple testing techniques, be it Static Application Security Testing (SAST), Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST), or Interactive Application Security Testing (IAST). These vendors are competing to provide an innovative combination of testing techniques to the end users to address the rising concern about mobile application security. They focus on critical features, such as behavioral analysis, binary code analysis, and proactive testing, to deploy robust application security mechanisms for mobile applications. The following vendors are included in the report: IBM HP WhiteHat Security Veracode Checkmarx Cigital Rapid7 Pradeo Appthority Arxan Technologies Vendor DIVE Methodology The Vendor DIVE methodology involves extensive research to identify the key vendors offering mobile application security solutions. A comprehensive list of mobile application security vendors was prepared, through secondary research referring to annual reports, press releases and investor presentations of companies, white papers, directories, and databases. Based on their breadth of product offering, organization size, and other selection criteria, the list was narrowed down to select the key 10 vendors. Make an Enquiry @ http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/speaktoanalyst.asp?id=112076041 During the production cycle of the report, in-depth interviews were conducted with various primary respondents, which include key opinion leaders, subject matter experts, directors, and C-level executives of selected mobile application security vendors to obtain and verify critical qualitative and quantitative information. This primary data was collected mainly through questionnaires, mails, and telephonic interviews. Scoring Methodology After completion of the data gathering and verification process, the scores and weightage for the shortlisted vendors against each parameter were finalized. Based on the extensive secondary and primary research, each criterion for the selected vendors was scored on the scale ranging from 0 to 10. After the ratings were finalized, each vendor was placed in the Vendor DIVE matrix based on their score in product offering and business strategy in the mobile application security market. About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets is the world's No. 2 firm in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. For more information, please visit http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/mobile-application-security-vendor-dive-112076041.html Contact Info: Name: Mr.Rohan Organization: MarketsandMarkets Source: http://marketersmedia.com/compare-and-evaluate-mobile-application-security-vendors-through-marketsandmarkets-dive-report/155232 Release ID: 155232 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Low Voltage Cable Market to reach 147.3 Billion USD by 2020 Low voltage cables & accessories market is expected to grow faster in developing countries where the T&D industry is in the growth stage. -- According to the new market research report "Low Voltage Cable Market by Overhead (Conductors, Fittings & Fixtures, Others), by Underground (PVC Cables, XLPE Cables, Cable Terminations, Cable Joints, Others), by End-User (Infrastructure, Industrial, Renewables) and by Region - Global Trends & Forecast to 2020", the low voltage cable & accessories market is expected to reach USD 147.3 Billion by 2020, and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 7.0% from 2015 to 2020. Browse 82 tables and 63 figures spread through 188 Pages and in-depth TOC on "Low Voltage Cable Market" Speak to Analyst: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/speaktoanalyst.asp?id=241151974 The report presents an in-depth analysis of various market dynamics such as drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges. Along with market dynamics, the report also gives an insight into various market parameters, such as market share ranking analysis, value chain analysis, and the recent market activities of the leading players for sustainability. These market activities include mergers, acquisitions, new product developments, collaborations, joint ventures, and partnerships. In 2014, Asia-Pacific dominated the global low voltage cable & accessories market, and accounted for a share of around 40%. The increasing industrialization and urbanization in Asia-Pacific is a major factor for the growth of the low voltage cable & accessories market in this region. The major countries contributing to the growth of the global low voltage cable & accessories market are China, U.S., India, Germany, U.K., Brazil, Canada, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and Japan. The leading players in the global low voltage cable market include Prysmian S.P.A (Italy), Nexans S.A. (France), General Cable Corporation (U.S.), Sumitomo Electric Industries (Japan), and NKT Cables Group GmbH (Germany). The key companies operational in this market are currently focusing on contracts & agreements and expansions to enhance their market reach into untapped markets. Companies are attempting to benefit from the potential the opportunities in the emerging economies of Asia-Pacific through strategies, such as joint-ventures, mergers & acquisitions, and partnerships & collaborations. Make an Enquiry: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_Buying.asp?id=241151974 The report includes Porter's Five Forces model and Value chain analysis. It also describes the competitive landscape of major market players, based on strategies, such as new product developments, mergers & acquisitions, facility expansion, agreements & collaborations, and contracts. Key developments have been identified for the major market players to determine the growth strategies implemented by them. Additionally, the study provides a comprehensive review of the major market drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges in the low voltage cable market. Stakeholders This report includes the following stakeholders: o Raw material suppliers o Manufacturers o Power companies o Cable manufacturing companies o High voltage cable accessories equipment manufacturers o Government and research organizations o Energy associations o Environmental associations o Investment banks Request for Customization: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestCustomization.asp?id=241151974 About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets is the largest market research firm worldwide in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. For more information, please visit http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/low-voltage-cable-market-241151974.html Contact Info: Name: Rohan Organization: MarketsandMarkets Source: http://marketersmedia.com/low-voltage-cable-market-to-reach-147-3-billion-usd-by-2020/155214 Release ID: 155214 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Marine Engines Market worth 11.06 Billion USD by 2020 This growth is attributed to growth in international seaborne trade, stringent environmental norms to reduce harmful gas emissions, advent of new technologies, and growth in the shipbuilding industry. -- The report "Marine Engine Market by propulsion (2 stroke, 4 stroke, diesel electric & others), by power 000' HP (up to 20, 20-40, 40-60, 60-80 & above 80), by vessels (commercial, offshore support, & inland waterways) by fuel & by region - Global Forecast to 2020", defines and segments the global marine engines market with an analysis and forecast of the market size. Browse 91 market data tables and 61 figures spread through 171 Pages and in-depth TOC on "Marine Engine Market " Speak to Analyst: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/speaktoanalyst.asp?id=261640121 The marine engines market is expected to grow from an estimated USD 9.10 Billion in 2015 to USD 11.06 Billion by 2020, at a CAGR of 4.0% during the forecast period. Rise in international seaborne trade and growing need for efficient & reliable power for propelling ships are driving the marine engines market across the globe. Higher functional advantages drive the growth of diesel electric engines Among the three major types of propulsion systems, diesel electric engines are considered to be the best alternative when compared to other conventional propulsion systems, such as two stroke engines. This segment is estimated to grow at a higher rate when compared to two stroke and four stroke propulsion systems due to stringent environmental norms to reduce harmful gas emissions. Increasing preference for LNG and its hybrid fuels The report also segments the marine engines market on the basis of fuel used, which includes HFO, IFO, MDO, MGO, and others. HFO-based marine engines have been widely accepted in the past few years, but LNG-based marine engines are at an emerging stage. Increasing emission control regulations and recent revisions in IMO standards have led to an increasing use of low sulfur oils such as MDO and MGO, replacing the use of bunker oil (HFO). However, most marine engines use HFO as it is a conventional fluid and is more economical than other marine engine fuels. In future, LNG and its hybrid fuel is expected to grow at a higher CAGR compared to other fuels during the forecast period. Asia-Pacific is the dominant market for marine engines In this report, the marine engines market has been analyzed with respect to five regions, namely, North America, South America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Middle East & Africa. Asia-Pacific will continue to dominate the market with growth in the shipbuilding market in China, Japan, South Korea, and India. To provide an in-depth understanding of the competitive landscape, the report includes profiles of some of the leading players in the marine engines market including Caterpillar Inc. (U.S.), GM Powertrain (Italy), Rolls Royce (U.K.), Wartsila Corporation (Finland), and Mercury Marine (U.S.) among others. Dominant players are trying to penetrate developing economies and adopting various methods to grab the market share. MarketsandMarkets broadly segments the marine engines market on the basis of application, by propulsion mechanism, by power capacity, by fuel, and by location. The study covers more than 25 vessel types including bulker, containership, general cargo, reefer, tanker, tugs, chemical carrier, LNG carrier, LPG carrier, product carrier, special carrier, and other carrier. Make an Enquiry: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_Buying.asp?id=261640121 Stakeholders: The stakeholders for the report include: o OEMs/Marine Engine Manufacturers - Caterpillar Inc. (U.S.), GM Powertrain (Italy), Rolls Royce (U.K.), Wartsila Corporation (Finland), and Mercury Marine (U.S.) among others o Shipbuilding Companies- These include Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (Japan), Samsung Heavy Industries (South Korea), Hyundai Heavy Industries (South Korea), China State Shipbuilding Corporation (China), and Sumitomo Heavy Industries (Japan) among others Request for Customization: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestCustomization.asp?id=261640121 About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets is the largest market research firm worldwide in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. For more information, please visit http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/marine-engine-market-261640121.html Contact Info: Name: Rohan Organization: MarketsandMarkets Source: http://marketersmedia.com/marine-engines-market-worth-11-06-billion-usd-by-2020/155227 Release ID: 155227 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Toronto Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Company Celebrates Its 16th Anniversary Register IT, a Toronto Digital Marketing Company, is celebrating its 17 year anniversary and reveals some of its challenges it faced getting this far and plans for the upcoming future. More information on the business can be found at www.registerit.ca -- Toronto SEO Company, Register IT is celebrating their 16th Anniversary, which commemorates 17 wonderful and challenging years of helping companies be found online and do business online. This is a huge milestone for the Oakville, Ontario, Canada-based Digital Marketing business, which has provided SEO, PPC, Reputation Management and Website Development to small and medium sized business owners & entrepreneurs since 1999. Register IT got it's start in 1999 when they saw the demand for digital marketing and data management via professionally designed websites, search engine marketing, pay per click advertising and social media as the internet was taking hold. One of the earliest challenges Register IT faced was in the early years, was to be able to deliver amazing content fast as not everyone had unlimited or high speed internet back then. This same challenge is now come full circle as mobile phones are taking a large market share of internet surfing devices, and the need for fast loading simple, efficient websites has come full circle. Back in 1999 it was sometimes difficult to convince a business that they needed to be on the internet and not just the yellow pages; these days, the same problem is repeating itself when trying to explain to businesses that not having a mobile friendly site is detrimental to their being found online, and therefore, their bottom line. While every business of course faces challenges, some, like Register IT are fortunate enough to enjoy real successes, wins and victories. They have been fortunately to remain a boutique shop that gets business mainly through word of mouth. Happy customers refer more customers. In fact, they were so busy with word of mouth business in the early years that they didn't have time to create their own website and marketing campaigns! Sarvy Emo, CEO at Register IT was quoted when discussing the Digital Marketing Company. "Register IT has been fortunate to work with some of the best Canadian companies out there, including Lamborghini Canada, The People Bank and many more. We thrive on helping businesses large or small get their web marketing strategy rolling and seeing results." Register IT's CEO, Sarvy Emo says "We're delighted to be celebrating our 17 Year Anniversary. I believe the secret to getting this far in business today is honesty, integrity and helping our customers succeed in their vision.". Register IT has big plans for the upcoming year, including launching their own website builder, Piece of Cake, and introducing Reputation Management to their roster of services.Register IT is always striving to keep up with technology and upcoming trends, both in marketing strategies and social media. Register IT would also like to thank friends, customers and all its partners for their well wishes on this happy occasion. More information on the business can be found at www.registerit.ca For more information, please visit http://www.registerit.ca Contact Info: Name: Sarvy Emo Organization: Register IT Address: 1534 Oxford Avenue, Oakville, L6H 1T9 Canada Release ID: 155025 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Medium Voltage Cables & Accessories Market worth 51.24 Billion USD by 2021 Increase in renewable energy generation, rapid industrialization & urbanization, and government initiatives undertaken to expand T&D systems would drive the market for medium voltage cables & accessories. -- The report "Medium Voltage Cables & Accessories Market by Overhead (Conductors, Fittings & Fixtures), Underground & Submarine (MI Cables, XLPE Cables, Cable Terminations, Cable Joints), End-User (Infrastructure, Industrial, Renewables), & by Region - Forecast to 2021", The medium voltage cables & accessories market is expected to grow from an estimated USD 37.52 Billion in 2016 to USD 51.24 Billion by 2021, at a CAGR of 6.4% from the 2016 to 2021. Increase in renewable energy generation, rapid industrialization & urbanization, and government initiatives undertaken to expand T&D systems would drive the market for medium voltage cables & accessories. Browse 106 market data Tables and 52 Figures spread through 189 Pages and in-depth TOC on "Medium Voltage Cables & Accessories Market" Speak to Analyst: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/speaktoanalyst.asp?id=15193142 Industrial sector to dominate the medium voltage cables & accessories market during the forecast period Medium voltage cables & accessories have been categorized into three segments (by installation), namely, Industrial, infrastructure, and renewables. The industrial sector held around half of the medium voltage cables & accessories market share in 2015. Growth in construction would eventually increase the number of medium voltage cables & accessories being used in the construction process. This drives the market for medium voltage cables & accessories for the industrial sector. Underground medium voltage cables & accessories within the installation segment to hold the major share during the forecast period On the basis of installation, the medium voltage cables & accessories market has been segmented into underground, overhead, and renewables. The underground sector dominated the market, followed by infrastructure. Continuous refurbishment of medium voltage cables & accessories is essential in the underground segment. They have to be replaced in order to maintain the cables according to the soil condition. Therefore, the market for medium voltage cables & accessories in underground segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. Asia-Pacific would see the highest growth for the medium voltage cables & accessories market The report covers five regions, namely, Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa. The Asia-Pacific region is expected to witness high growth rate for medium voltage cables & accessories from 2016 to 2021. Moreover, increase in the renewable power generation would drive the medium voltage cables & accessories market. The report also provides an in-depth understanding of the competitive landscape, along with profiles of the leading medium voltage cables & accessories market players such as Prysmian S.p.A (Italy), General Cable Technologies Corporation (U.S.), Nexans (France), NKT Cables (Germany), and ABB Ltd. (Switzerland). Make an Enquiry: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_Buying.asp?id=15193142 Target Audience: o Power companies o Cable manufacturing companies o Medium voltage cable accessories & equipment manufacturers o Engineering, procurement, and construction contractors o Insulation raw material suppliers o Metal ore (copper, aluminum, and their alloy) suppliers o Government and research organizations o Consulting companies in the energy sector o Energy associations o Environment associations o Investment banks Scope of the Report: o This study estimates the medium voltage cables & accessories market, in terms of USD till 2021 o It offers a detailed qualitative and quantitative analysis of the market o It provides a comprehensive review of the major market drivers, restraints, opportunities, challenges, and technological trends of the market o It covers various important aspects of the market. These include analysis of supply chain along with Porter's five forces model, competitive landscape, market dynamics, market estimates in terms of value, and future trends in the medium voltage cables & accessories market. Request for Customization: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestCustomization.asp?id=15193142 About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets is the largest market research firm worldwide in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. For more information, please visit http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/medium-voltage-cable-market-15193142.html Contact Info: Name: Rohan Organization: MarketsandMarkets Source: http://marketersmedia.com/medium-voltage-cables-accessories-market-worth-51-24-billion-usd-by-2021/155217 Release ID: 155217 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Talc Global Market To Reach US$ 1.6 billion And Growing At A CAGR Of 4.6% By 2021 WiseGuyReports.Com Publish a New Market Research Report On - "Talc Global Market to Reach US$ 1.6 billion and Growing at a CAGR of 4.6% by 2021". -- The global talc market is expected to reach approx. US$ 1.6 billion by 2022 A recent report published by Beige Market Intelligence on Global Talc Market Strategic Assessment and Forecast Till 2022 provides a detailed analysis of the present scenario and growth aspect of worldwide talc market. The report provides a detailed market segmentation: By Deposit Type o Magnesium Carbonate o Serpentines o Aluminium Silicates o Other By End Users o Plastics o Ceramics o Paper o Paint o Personal Care o Roofing o Rubber and Cables o Others By Geography o APAC o EMEA o Latin America o North America By Country o Africa o Australia o Canada o China o Europe o India o Japan o Middle East o US Get Sample Report @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/sample-request/822818-global-talc-market-strategic-assessment-and-forecast-till-2022 For more information or any query mail at sales@wiseguyreports.com Global Talc Market - Market Size and Dynamics According to the analysts at Beige Market Intelligence "The worldwide talc market is estimated to cross US$ 1.6 billion by 2022, growing at a CAGR closed to 4.6%". Talc is one of the most prominently used mineral fillers due to its relatively easier availability, high performance-to-cost ratio, and the wide usage in various end-user applications. The mineral, which is widely recognized for keeping skin dry and as an extender for various plastic composites, has gained demand in the past few decades. The worldwide demand for talc is estimated to reach approx. 7.33 million ton by 2022, growing at a CAGR of 2.9%. A satisfactory description of the various deposit types and end user segment is provided in the research report. Over the past decade, the consumption of talc in end uses pertaining to plastics and personal care flourished while the same has witnessed a sluggish growth in segments related to ceramics and roofing. This market research report includes a detailed analysis of the pricing factors. Prices of talc during the forecast period are expected to rise by as much as 10% due to the robust demand from the APAC and MEA markets. While, the price is forecasted to rise over the forecast period, the same is expected to face headwinds over the forthcoming two years because of higher inventory of steatite and subdued prices of its substitutes, particularly calcium carbonate. Global Talc Market - Trends, Drivers, and Challenges The market is going to witness a profound inclination as innovative talc formulation in personal care and baby care is increasing widely. Furthermore, non- commoditization of the industry and market consolidation are among the few other emerging trends described in the market research report. The key factors that are driving the consumption in polymer applications are the need for better product performance at reasonable costs and the evolving need for product differentiation. Among the other acceptable growth driving factors are stable infrastructural outlook in developing countries to revive the demand for ceramic tiles. For more information request a sample here: www.beigemarketintelligence.com/request-sample Global Talc Market - Geographical Segmentation The report includes the market analysis of different regions such as North America, APAC, EMEA and Latin America. The report outlines the major market share holder and the market size analysis of all the regions and provides the market size and forecast of the key countries. APAC region expected to be the largest market. China hosts some of the best quality talc deposits and can remain as a favorable sourcing destination. China, the US, and India have some of the largest resources and are among the leading five producers of the material in the world. The EMEA's talc revenues is expected to reach approx. US$389 million by 2022. US will remain to be a key consumer with an accountable unit of sales. Global Talc Market - Market Share and Key Vendors This market research profiles the major companies in the market and provides the competitive landscape and market share of key the players.The report covers the entire market outlook regarding the value chain operating within the market. The major vendors included in the research report Imerys, Mondo Minerals, Minerals Technologies, IMI FABI, American Talc Company. Other vendors Golcha Minerals, Magnesita, Nippon Talc, Liaoning AIHAI Talc, HuaMei Talc Development Co. Ltd., Jai Vardhman Khaniz, BeiHai Group, Guilin Guiguang Talc, Hayashi-Kasei, Haicheng Xinda Mining. Complete Report Details @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/reports/822818-global-talc-market-strategic-assessment-and-forecast-till-2022 Why should you buy this report? The report gives reasonable answers for the following questions which leads you to know the in- depth market analysis such as 1. How has the market been performing and what are some of the current changes which are expected to change the landscape in the coming years? 2. What are the various factors that can affect the market and in what way over the next few years? 3. What are the emerging trends and challenges for the market over the next five years? 4. What is the market size and market forecast for each product segment? 5. Which regions are going to have the largest market share and what are the factors propelling the market growth in that region? 6. Which are the key countries and the market size and market forecast in the key countries? 7. Which companies are the key vendors in the market? 8. What are the strategies used by the top vendors, and what are the opportunities to grow? 9. Which companies are the emerging vendors in the market? Table Of Contents - Major Key Points Section 1 Research Methodology Section 2 Executive Summary Section 3 Report Coverage 3.1 Report assumption 3.2 Scope of the Report 3.3 Currency Exchange Rates 3.4 Market Derivation Section 4 Introduction 4.1 Talc and its Occurrence 4.2 Properties Section 5 Key Market Trends 5.1 Non-commoditization of the Industry and Market Consolidation 5.2 Plastics as a Major Consumption Segment for Talc 5.3 Innovative Talc Formulations in Personal and Baby Care Segment 5.4 Low Tonnage Purchases and Exports to Alter Distribution Channels for Talc ........CONTINUED For more information or any query mail at sales@wiseguyreports.com Buy 1-User PDF @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/checkout?currency=one_user-USD&report_id=822818 ABOUT US: Wise Guy Reports is part of the Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. and offers premium progressive statistical surveying, market research reports, analysis & forecast data for industries and governments around the globe. Wise Guy Reports features an exhaustive list of market research reports from hundreds of publishers worldwide. We boast a database spanning virtually every market category and an even more comprehensive collection of market research reports under these categories and sub-categories. For more information, please visit https://www.wiseguyreports.com Contact Info: Name: Norah Trent Email: sales@wiseguyreports.com Organization: WiseGuy Research Consultants Pvt Ltd. Address: Office No. 528, Amanora Chambers Magarpatta Road, Hadapsar Pune - 411028 Phone: +1-646-845-9349 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/talc-global-market-to-reach-us-1-6-billion-and-growing-at-a-cagr-of-4-6-by-2021/155205 Release ID: 155205 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Consumer And Enterprise NAS 2016 Global Market Expected To Grow At CAGR 24% And Forecast To 2021 WiseGuyReports.Com Publish a New Market Research Report On - "Consumer and Enterprise NAS 2016 Global Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 24% and Forecast to 2021". -- The global Consumer and Enterprise NAS is expected to cross US$ 44 billion till 2021 A recent report published on Global Consumer and Enterprise NAS Strategic Assessment and Forecast Till 2021 provides a detailed analysis of the present scenario and growth aspect of the worldwide consumer and enterprise NAS for next five years. The report provides the detailed market segmentation by By User Type (In Revenue and Shipment) o Consumer NAS o SOHO NAS o SMB NAS o SME NAS o Large Enterprise NAS By Geography (In Revenue and Shipment) o North America o Europe o APAC o Latin America o Middle-East and Africa For each region, the report provides break down by user type i.e. Consumer, SOHO, SME, SMB, and Large Enterprises Get Sample Report @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/sample-request/822819-global-consumer-and-enterprise-forecast-till-2021 For more information or any query mail at sales@wiseguyreports.com By Top Countries o US o UK o China o Japan Consumer and Enterprise NAS - Market Size and Dynamics Market research analysts at Beige Market Intelligence, forecast the Worldwide Consumer and Enterprise NAS market to grow at a CAGR of around 24% during the forecast period. This growth of data is not only confined to consumers, SOHO, and SMBs. SMEs or large enterprises are also going to witness it. The users, who are running short of primary storage such as in device storage in mobile and external hard disk; left with two options, which are data storage in cloud or storing data in NAS devices. However, NAS is highly economical and secure than cloud. A detailed analysis between cloud storage and NAS storage cost comparison have been mentioned in the report. Consumer and Enterprise NAS - Users Type Analysis In terms of revenue; all the user segments-individual consumers, SOHO, SMBs, SMEs, and large enterprises-are going to witness an remarkable growth. Similarly, the CAGR of the user segments can vary from 16% to 48%. In 2012-2014, there was a slog in the growth rate of consumer NAS, due to the fall in the shipment as well as ASP. This trend will continue for a while and going to be revived by the increase in Smart home and Home automation. Beige Market Intelligence analysts have discussed two types of business model that have evolved in the developed nations, which include NAS as an integral part of Smart Home and Home Automation. Moreover, adoption of NAS by SOHO and SMBs compare to cloud storage is an emerging driver of the market in all the geographical segment. The report includes a detail cost analysis of NAS for each users Segments. It also compared the cost of NAS with cloud storage. Consumer and Enterprise NAS - Drivers, Restrains, and Trends NAS for Smart home and home automation is a key driver in the market. In addition significant growth in data and piling up of unstructured data will enhance the demand for storage devices. However, cloud storage and SAN will pose a threat to the growth of NAS devices in the user segment. This is because, the cloud provides a cost-effective solution to individual consumer for short run than NAS. One of the emerging trend in the market is integration of remote synchronization and remote access features by the vendors in their upcoming NAS models to minimize the threat of cloud storage as an alternate to NAS. Moreover, vendors are also reducing the ASP of NAS products to overcome the market challenges and to combat declining penetration. Consumer and Enterprise NAS - Geography Analysis The report includes the market analysis of different regions such as North America, APAC, Europe and Latin America. The report outlines the major market share holder and the market size analysis of all the regions and provides the market size and forecast of the key countries. In 2015, North America led the worldwide NAS storage market. It was followed by Europe, where Nordic region was showing the potential growth. In the recent days, the North American market has shown significant growth in shipment of NAS products than other geographies. The reason being, increasing use of NAS by individual consumer, SOHO, SMBs. In Europe, the declining ASP of NAS devices is expected to pull down its contribution to the overall market by a bit. APAC is the most emerging geography, which is going to witness a CAGR of approx. 27%, and going to witness significant increase in market share. This significant growth in market share is primarily due to increasing construction of new data center in SEA and China. Complete Report Details @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/reports/822819-global-consumer-and-enterprise-forecast-till-2021 Consumer and Enterprise NAS - Market Share and Key Vendors The report also provides in-depth analysis of 12 leading vendors and 13 emerging vendors. The report further provide market share for the following: o Consumer NAS o SOHO NAS o SME NAS o SMB NAS o Large Enterprise NAS The competition in NAS market is intense in the individual consumer and SOHO segment, and it is expected to intensify further. It will lead to an intense price war among vendors, which will increase the shipment but reduce their profit. The major players identified within the report are Apple, Buffalo Technology, Dell, Dell EMC, Hitachi Data System, HP, NetApp, NETGEAR, QNAP, Seagate, Synology, and Western Digital. Other Vendors are Asustor, Cisco system, Direct Data Networks, Drobo, Fujitsu, LeiCie Group S.A., Lenovo EMC, Nfina Technology, Oracle, Overland Storage, Promise Technology, Quantum, Tegile, Thecus, Transporter, Unylogix, X-IO Technologies, and Zyxel. Why should you buy this report? The report gives reasonable answers for the following questions which leads you to know the in- depth market analysis such as 1) How has the market been performing and what are some of the current changes which are expected to change the landscape in the coming years? 2) What are the various factors that can affect the market and in what way over the next few years? 3) What are the emerging trends and challenges for the market over the next five years? 4) What is the market size and market forecast for each product segment? 5) What is the market size and market forecast for each user type? 6) Which regions are going to have the largest market share and what are the factors propelling the market growth in that region? 7) Which are the key countries and the market size and market forecast in the key countries? 8) Which companies are the key vendors in the market? 9) What are the strategies used by the top vendors, and what are the opportunities to grow? 10) Which companies are the emerging vendors in the market? ........CONTINUED For more information or any query mail at sales@wiseguyreports.com Buy 1-User PDF @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/checkout?currency=one_user-USD&report_id=822819 For more information, please visit https://www.wiseguyreports.com Contact Info: Name: Norah Trent Email: sales@wiseguyreports.com Organization: WiseGuy Research Consultants Pvt Ltd. Address: Office No. 528, Amanora Chambers Magarpatta Road, Hadapsar Pune - 411028 Phone: +1-646-845-9349 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/consumer-and-enterprise-nas-2016-global-market-expected-to-grow-at-cagr-24-and-forecast-to-2021/155195 Release ID: 155195 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Andrews Carpet Services Of Perth Launches New Website Upgraded website features a responsive, mobile-friendly design and includes many pictures and videos of company's carpet, upholstery, and tile cleaning work, Andrews Carpet Services reports. -- Andrews Carpet Services, one of the area's leading tile and Carpet cleaning companies, launched a new version of its website at www.andrewscarpets.com.au. The new site makes use of responsive technology to display perfectly on devices of all kinds, including smartphones. The new version of the Andrews Carpet Services website also features improved navigation and an upgraded visual design, making it even easier and more enjoyable to learn about the company's upholstery, carpet, and Tile and Grout Cleaning services. Thanks to decades of experience and the best, most powerful equipment, Andrews Carpet Services delivers cleaning results that no other company in the area can match. The new Andrews Carpet Services site includes videos and photographs that display the difference, and visitors can also easily request a free quote for their own home or business. "Our new website is now online, and the early feedback has been extremely encouraging," said Andrews Carpet Services co-owner Allan Snapes, "When my father started in the business more than thirty years back, he was determined to show the difference that top-quality carpet, upholstery, and tile cleaning services can make. Since then, Andrews Carpet Services has built up an area-wide reputation for delivering results that exceed the expectations of clients. Our new website makes it easy to see at a glance how Andrews Carpet Services stands out. Whether they visit with a smartphone or a computer, we think visitors are going to be impressed with what they see." With decades of experience in the industry, Andrews Carpet Services is one of the Perth metropolitan area's best-reviewed and most frequently recommended companies of its kind. Equipped with powerful, state-of-the-art equipment that goes far beyond what most competitors use, highly trained Andrews Carpet Services cleaning technicians treat every stretch of carpet, upholstery, or tile as if it were their own, producing results that greatly exceed the norms. That commitment to delivering exceptional results allows Andrews Carpet Services to stand behind each job with a rock-solid guarantee. At the same time, the company also maintains the most competitive pricing to be found in the Perth area. This uncompromising approach to service has made Andrews Carpet Services a top choice for both domestic and commercial clients throughout the area, with glowing testimonials rolling in regularly. The new Andrews Carpet Services website makes it even easier and more enjoyable than before to learn about Perth's top company of its kind. With a clean, responsive design, the new site is packed full of information about the whole range of Andrews Carpet Services. The website is also stocked with pictures and videos that show the kinds of cleaning results that Andrews Carpet Services delivers. About Andrews Carpet Services: Providing the best in carpet, upholstery, and tile and grout cleaning for Perth-area homes and businesses, Andrews Carpet Services combines decades of experience with state-of-the-art cleaning equipment and a commitment to exceeding the expectations of clients. For more information, please visit http://andrewscarpets.com.au/ Contact Info: Name: Allan Snapes Organization: Andrews Carpet Services Address: 31 Covent Fairway Pearsall, WA, 6065 Australia Phone: 0404093046 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/andrews-carpet-services-of-perth-launches-new-website/155386 Release ID: 155386 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Nora Gray Announces Workshop Schedule For January 2017 The boutique will hold three milk paint workshops for beginners, reports www.nora-gray.com. -- As DIY enthusiasts seek more environmentally friendly ways to build and craft, many are discovering "milk paint," a type of paint made from milk protein, lime, and non-toxic pigments. Ideal for distressing furniture and creating other unique finishes, milk paint is safe to use and discard. Nora Gray, a boutique that specializes in vintage chic, will be offering a Miss Mustard Seed milk paint workshop for beginners in January of 2017, according to www.nora-gray.com. The workshop is two hours long and will be offered on three different dates. Said owner Staci Huey, "The workshop is designed to cover everything the beginner needs to know about Miss Mustard Seed milk paint. Students will learn how to mix the paint to the correct consistency, and they'll make sample boards to learn the art of distressing. All the materials are included in the price of the workshop. We keep the classes small, so we encourage anyone who is interested to go ahead and register to reserve a spot." With creativity near and dear to the hearts of Nora Gray owners and staff, all of the furniture that they sell in the shop is hand-painted in house with Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint, which they also retail to customers. Each piece of furniture is unique, with a distinctive color and finish. "We have worked wonders with the milk paint, giving old furniture a completely new look," said Huey. "We're thrilled to be able to offer this product to our customers and teach them how to use it for their own projects." In addition to hand-painted furniture and home decor items, Nora Gray has a wide selection of Boutique Clothing available online and in the shop. Inspired by the owners' love of thrift store treasures, the store specializes in clothing for women and children in styles that are both trendy and one-of-a-kind. Their women's fashions include casual clothes for all body types, from svelte to curvy. In addition to Online Boutique Clothing, the website features a wide array of shoes and accessories, like hand-crafted hats, scarves, jewelry, and handbags. Products for children and infants include clothes, shoes, blankets, and toys. For customers outside of Indiana, Nora Gray offers free shipping on all orders of $75 or more. Visitors to the website have the option to subscribe to an email list which will inform them about new products, specials, and email-only giveaways. About Nora Gray Nora Gray is a one-of-a-kind boutique that features clothing, shoes, accessories, children's items, furniture, and home decor. The owners are proud to sell American-made products, most of which are handmade or re-styled by in-house and local artisans. The boutique is also a Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint retailer, and they offer regular workshops to teach customers how to use milk paint. Located in Berne, Indiana, Nora Gray has a store front as well as an online store. The owners and staff love meeting new customers, and they invite everyone to browse the online store or drop in and say hello. For more information, please visit https://www.nora-gray.com Contact Info: Name: Staci Huey Organization: Nora Gray Address: 156 W. Main St. Berne, IN 46711 Phone: 260 849 4119 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/nora-gray-announces-workshop-schedule-for-january-2017/155375 Release ID: 155375 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Pembroke Pines Reputation Marketing Review Management Beta Services Announced Vision On TV, a reputation management agency based in Pembroke Pines, Florida, launched a beta review marketing program for local businesses. The company creates custom review video commercials highlighting positive reviews and client feedback, in an effort to improve business reputation and market reach. -- Vision On TV, a digital marketing agency based in Pembroke Pines, Florida, announced a beta review marketing and reputation management program for local businesses. More information is available at http://visionontv.net. Internet marketing has grown tremendously over the past years, and one of the most influential factors has been online review management. Recent studies show that more than 90% of all clients have used online reviews or Google searches to find online services, which means that offline businesses can see a potential doubling in clients by investing in online marketing. A Neilson report shows that 70% of consumers trust online reviews, with a similar proportion choosing businesses with a minimum of 6 - 10 online reviews. Review management is therefore essential, as negative reviews can have a detrimental impact on a business' online reputation. Vision On TV launched a beta program designed to help online businesses market their positive online reviews through a custom commercial video. This solution helps avoid any negative consequences of negative reviews, as the highlight is placed on positive feedback and prompt response to client's requests. The Pembroke Pines reputation marketing company launched this beta program to highlight the importance of online reviews, as well as help local businesses leverage the potential of sites such as Google, Facebook and Yelp to improve their online visibility and increase their reputation. Vision On TV creates video commercials between 45 and 60 seconds long that highlight positive feedback and user experience. The company uses professional spoke models, films in a Hollywood-like studio, professionally edits the video and highlights a five-star review of the client's choice. The Pembroke Pines review management company uses graphics and animations to create compelling visuals that promote a positive business image. The company runs the beta program for a limited time only and invites interested local businesses to schedule an appointment at 1-754-600-8696, or by visiting the above-mentioned website. For more information, please visit http://visionontv.net Contact Info: Name: Darren Aikens Email: info@visionontv.net Organization: VisionOnTv Address: 2114 N Flamingo Rd, Pembroke Pines United States Phone: 954-600-8696 Release ID: 155410 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) New Kozco Energy Group Reports Detail Proven Ways of Reducing Energy Usage As one of Adelaide's top energy-efficiency specialists, company regularly helps businesses and residents save energy, and new website updates explain how, Kozco Energy Group reports. -- Kozco Energy Group was formed to help people and companies throughout South Australia save energy. Now, brand-new resources at the Kozco Energy Group website explain concrete ways of improving Energy Efficiency. From eye-opening energy audits and Solar Panels that produce impressive returns on investment, to Australian-made Ducted Air Conditioning systems that control and reduce energy usage by utilising the unequalled performance of True Inverter Technology and smart control systems, there are many options to learn about and explore. Since arising from the merger of two Adelaide-area pioneers, South-Australian-owned Kozco Energy Group has showed many families and businesses how to consume less energy, therefore keeping more money in their pockets. The informative new resources at the company's website make it even easier than before to get started. "Since the very beginning, Kozco has been about one thing: helping our clients save energy," said Kozco Energy Group Technical Director Wayne Faranda, "That mission is more important than ever, and we're always looking for new ways of making progress. Whether in the form of energy audits that show where this crucial resource is being wasted or by installing solar panels and highly efficient air conditioning equipment, there are many effective ways of saving energy. That's something we're proud to show every day through our work with our clients. The new features at our website also do an excellent job of detailing the many options for saving energy that now exist." Every year, the Australian Department of Industry, Innovation, and Science releases an update covering energy consumption across the country. With Australia taking on an increasing role as a net exporter of energy, domestic consumption totals for 2014 through 2015 nonetheless rose after a much-heralded decline over the preceding two-year period, according to this year's edition of the report. While plenty of progress of various kinds has been made, lowering energy consumption therefore remains a subject of vital concern. Kozco Energy Group was formed through the merger of two South Australian companies dedicated to that goal, and has continued their shared mission in even more effective ways since. By offering a full range of efficiency-oriented air conditioning, solar, and electrical products and services, Kozco Energy Group helps homes and businesses in the Adelaide area and beyond consume less energy. From affordable energy-efficiency audits that highlight areas ripe for improvement to the selection, installation, and maintenance of solar panels or energy-saving ducted air conditioning equipment, Kozco Energy Group delivers solutions that can help clients save thousands of dollars annually. New and updated guides, blog posts, and other features at the Kozco Energy Group website now make it even easier to learn about these and other options. Visitors to the Kozco Energy Group website can also make use of a convenient contact form to request a free, no-obligation consultation. About Kozco Energy Group: Helping Adelaide-area businesses and residents consume less energy and cut costs, Kozco Energy Group offers a full range of highly efficient air conditioning, solar panel, and electrical products and services. Kozco Energy Group: "Experience the Difference" For more information, please visit http://kozco.com.au Contact Info: Name: Wayne Faranda Organization: Kozco Energy Group Address: 52 Days Road Croydon Park, SA 5007 Australia Phone: 1300056926 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/new-kozco-energy-group-reports-detail-proven-ways-of-reducing-energy-usage/155454 Release ID: 155454 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Children's Christmas Picture Book For Sparking Creativity Elman Kidlit Launched Santa's Snowy Adventure, the children's picture book by Tracy Elman, has been released on Kindle ahead of the holidays. Children will enjoy the story for its excitement and the colorful illustrations throughout. -- Tracy Elman's children's Christmas book has been launched on Kindle ahead of the holidays, so that more people can enjoy the story before Santa arrives. Called Santa's Snowy Adventure, the book explores what happens when Santa's sleigh gets frozen to the ice and it takes the teamwork of all the reindeer in order to free the sleigh and save Christmas. Full details can be found on the Amazon page listing at: http://amzn.to/1S7JRmv. Tracy Elman has crafted an enjoyable children's story packed with entertaining characters who have been beautifully illustrated throughout the book. In the award-winning Santa's Snowy Adventure, it falls to Jeffery the surfer reindeer to be sure Christmas isn't missed all around the world. On the Amazon page listing, it explains that Tracy has written a wonderfully magical way about the special time of year, and has cleverly woven messages for children into the text so that while they enjoy the story for the adventure and the mystery, they learn about important matters at the same time. Children will learn about the virtues of working together, keeping promises, and being good all year round so that Santa will come to their home and reward them with presents. Santa's Snowy Adventure offers engaging characters, and a wide range of detailed, colorful illustrations so that children can be prepared for some of the challenges they may face as they grow up. Through the entertaining story, engaging drawings and life lessons, the book will help to spark creativity and ensure that children develop a personal sense of integrity and teamwork. In addition to this, children's picture books are proven to help encourage child development in a range of different ways, so young readers will pick up the story through illustrations and engage with what's happening on the page. Tracy is known for her voice in the Robby's Quest audiobook series, and has voiced over 65 characters. She is a creative thinker who can captivate readers with her originality and storytelling. Interested parties can find out more about her books on the Amazon listing provided above. For more information, please visit http://www.TracyElmanBooks.com Contact Info: Name: Tracy Elman Organization: Tracy Elman Address: 25350 Magic Mountain Parkway, Ste 300 Valencia, CA 91355, Santa Clarita United States Phone: (818) 453-0242 Release ID: 155425 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Free Freightnet Membership List your company in the Freightnet directory. It's Free, it's Easy and your company can be displayed in front of potential freight buyers within 24 hours. An export agreement to sell pigs trotters to China has still not been implemented two years after it was announced by former Defra secretary Liz Truss. A Tory party conference speech in 2014 during which Ms Truss said she was opening up new pork markets in Beijing was widely mocked on social media. It was also lampooned by the satirical TV programme Have I Got News For You. See also: Truss slams disgraceful reliance on food imports Now Bristol East MP Kerry McCarthy has used a parliamentary written question to ask Defra what progress has been made on implementing the so-called pigs trotters protocol with China. Defra minister George Eustice replied, saying: The importance of reaching agreement for the export of UK pigs trotters to China continues to be raised at the highest levels. Most recently, current Defra secretary Andrea Leadsom had raised the issue during a meeting with the Chinese minister in Beijing last month, said Mr Eustice. Chinese commitment The Chinese minister had committed to prioritising the UK application, he added. Mr Eustice said the UK was continuing to press the Chinese authorities for completion of the UK application to allow exports of UK pigs trotters to commence as soon as possible. Speaking afterwards in parliament, Ms McCarthy said: Its been two years since the then environment secretary announced with great fanfare plans to sell pigs trotters to China. She added: As my written question this week revealed, we are still no closer to signing the pigs trotters protocol. If it takes this long to reach an agreement to sell pigs trotters, what does that say about our ability to reach all the other trade deals we need in the wake of Brexit? International trade secretary Liam Fox responded: Im very intent that our agricultural exports continue apace and I shall continue to push pigs trotters as fast as they can possibly go. House of Commons speaker John Bercow described this as a very alluring prospect, to be accomplished by the honourable gentleman, probably not without sweat or emotion. Remaining vigilant to disease in the poultry industry and adopting the latest technologies were two keys points discussed at a major poultry conference in the Republic of Ireland on 9 November. Organised by Bord Bia, the state agency in Ireland that promotes food, the conference attracted about 200 delegates from the poultry and egg sector. Speakers at the event in the Hillgrove Hotel touched on all aspects of production as well as a look at how the industry is performing worldwide. The theme for this years conference, which takes place every two years, was Innovation Supporting Sustainability. See also: Reducing antibiotics in poultry farming It was fitting the event was held in Monaghan as the county is home to three of the Republics seven Bord Bia Quality Assured slaughter plants for poultrymeat. Local economy benefits Irelands minister of state for food, forestry and horticulture, Andrew Doyle, opened the conference highlighting the importance of the sector to the local economy. The minister said: Poultry and eggs is an important sector within the Irish agricultural economy accounting for approximately 3% of the gross agricultural output and proudly supports about 6,000 jobs, most of these in rural areas. Output at producer prices in 2015, amounted to 190m [163m] and the value of poultrymeat exports amounted to 320m [275m]. On the back of increasing demand for poultry protein and low feed costs, the outlook for the sector is positive for the remainder of 2016 and into next year. There are challenges, of course, not lease the impact of the decision by the UK to exit the EU. Bord Bia estimates that over 90% of poultrymeat produced on the island of Ireland and 95% of all eggs consumed in Ireland are Quality Assured and the inherent value this gives to the product does not escape the consumer. The competitive advantage In terms of challenges for our agri-food sector, the UK Brexit referendum is obviously foremost in our minds, too, and in government it is very much our number one priority. It is essential we retain our national competitiveness as much as we possibly can while mitigating the effects of a possible disruptive exit by Britain from the EU. The effects on our agri-food sector are already been felt by exporters hugely affected by the weakening sterling rate against the euro lately. I am listening closely to what exporters have to say, and Minister Creed is chairing a meeting of a stakeholder forum for the agri-food sector specifically focus on Brexit-related issues. This will continue to be our priority in the immediate future and there will be further announcements on help which we may be able to offer on mitigating the negative effects of a British exit from the EU. Research has shown that 99.5% of shoppers In Ireland buy poultry and egg products and only 20% of them are willing to pay more than 35c (30p) for an egg. It was also noted half of the shoppers would not spend more than 16/kg (14) on poultrymeat. In terms of global markets, avian influenza really shook up the poultry and egg markets in 2015, according to Rabobanks Nan-Dirk Mulder. Mr Mulder said the disease had moved across from Asia as far as western Africa and into America as well as numerous outbreaks in central European regions. China prospects Looking forward the Rabobank expert said China was the big swing factor in 2016 and will be in 2017. China is a key market in the future, he said. Although their production and consumption are quite high, they currently balance out each other. Therefore imports and exports have been very low. This will change in the next few years as there is a delay in the breeding stock cycle in China. Once more birds become productive this trend will change and China will be back on the market in force. It definitely is the country to aim for if you want to sell poultry in the years to come, he added. Mr Mulder went on to say that demand is increasing for slower growing poultry in the future and that the Nordic countries are growing the fastest in terms of general poultry production. Of course he mentioned Brexit and said: The UK is the biggest net importer of poultrymeat in the EU. The main concerns for Ireland and other EU countries are trade barriers and how these, if implemented, would affect their trade with the UK. South Africa and Ukraine are becoming major exporters of poultry into the EU also and this is another major factor in terms of the EU industry in the next few years. The UK egg industry is 85% self-sufficient in its production of eggs producing 34 million eggs on a daily basis. Egg consumption in the UK increased in 2015 by eight eggs per person per year to 191. The demand for cage-free Mark Williams, chief executive of the British Egg Industry Council (BEIC) focused on new demands for cage free poultry and how Brexit will bring challenges and opportunities for the UK industry. Mr Williams said: About 35-40% of the staff on egg farms are migrant labour. This increases to 55-60% in the packing industry. Brexit has brought our sector a bonus in that it has pushed the price of imports up allowing us to use more of our own production, but in turn the price of feed has also gone up as it has to be imported too. One of the major concerns is if the government will seek to protect our high standards in future trade negotiations, or will it be free trade? Concerns for Irish poultry farmers is whether there will be a border between the Republic and Northern Ireland. I do hope for a soft Brexit and I think there will be concessions in terms of free movement of people during the negotiations. Poultry housing Perhaps the most interesting topic of the conference surrounded technology for poultry housing. Well-known poultry farmer and consultant, David Speller, farms 180,000 broilers on his own farm in Derbyshire plus contract manages 10 other global sites with 3 million birds producing 20 million birds a year. Mr Speller is an advocate of new technologies and has installed numerous examples of advanced kit on his farm. He said while there is a concern technology is being developed quicker than farmers can understand it, there is room for good technology that can improve the margins of a flock. In the past six years, Mr Speller has invested 2.5m on new technologies and says he benefits to the tune of 35,000-40,000/year from this. Recruitment dilemma He said: Recruiting staff these days is a huge problem. We can get good staff that are good with animals but are poor with technology. Some farm managers these days dont even have cameras on their telephones. We need to become more involved with immersive technology and robots with mobile sensors. Other things such as electronic water regulators would be a huge benefit. Plus, I would like to see more autonomous computer control of sheds too, he said. However, the adoption of new technology can bring with it some challenges. Mr Speller said: Initial capital outlay is a major factor, as is the recruitment of staff who see the vision. Staff that are good with animals normally means poor with technology. Some of the new equipment cannot stand up to the demands of high-pressure cleaning and harsh detergents and disinfectants in the houses. Another major challenge is poor internet speeds on farm and the cost of continual development of technology, he added. Huawei Mate 9 News & Update: Huawei Confirms to Launch Mate 9 For Early 2017 In Australia About a month ago, news broke that China's tech giant, Huawei is making steps to break into the U.S.A. smartphone market with their latest device, the Huawei Mate 9. It seems like they're not slowing down anytime soon. In the latest news, Huawei bringing the Mate 9 to the "Land Down Under" has surfaced, giving the Aussies a chance to experience Huawei's premium phablet, acording to Finder. Huawei has just recently unveiled their new Mate 9 phablet last November, but it was later announced that the premium phablet will reach Australia in the first quarter of 2017 and it will go on sale. Compared to competitor products which largely revolve around Qualcomm's Snapdragon chipsets, the Mate 9 has its own Huawei's Kirin chips, specifically the Kirin 960. Back in November, Huawei revealed two models of the Mate 9 with a standalone model with a higher resolution display. It has additional storage and RAM. As of writing this article, no words form Huawei if it will release that model here in Australia at this stage. Huawei Mate 9 includes the latest EMUI 5 software. This has been added to make easier to keep home screen uncluttered. With that, you can leave apps that you don't often use in the drawer. How to enable app drawer Enabling this app is easy, according to Android Central. You just need to drag down your Notification shade and press the cog icon so you can go to Settings. Once you enter the setting, tap Home Screen Style, then select drawer. To check your app drawer, go back to your home screen, then you can re-arrange the apps. Take note, you need re-arrange the apps in the new launcher because the widget placements can't be carried over. Microsoft Windows 10 Smartphone Latest News & Update: Windows 10 Mobile, Out of Stock In The UK! While iOS and Android smartphones are dominating, several users still prefer anything out of the norm. Luckily, there's Microsoft to offer something different yet, worth trying. With Windows 10 mobile, every possibility users have never thought of, becomes possible. In fact, according to Neowin, stores in the UK that sell Microsoft Windows 10 smartphones have run out of stock. Although this is likely to happen, it is still surprising! Just last November, Microsoft has also run out of Lumia 950 and 950 XL after huge price cuts on its mobile devices. And now, the company is facing the same fate with its Windows 10 smartphones. This week, Microsoft has then again cut off the price for its Lumia 650 only for a limited time. It was supposed to end this December 16, however, it has become unavailable already. Sad thing is, there's no response yet whether it will get restocked or not. The same thing goes with Lumia 550 which famous for its wide viewing angle. What Made Windows 10 Buyable? According to TechRadar, Windows 10 smartphones have developed lots of customization compared to the previous OS version. Fans loved the new features and improvements and although there were minor issues, it still came out beyond expectation. The tiled design has also improved a lot since it has allowed full customization. Window Phone 8.1 lets users resize the tiles, however, Windows 10 brings more room for personalization. Adding a photo as the background of the device or the tiles is possible and perhaps, this is the coolest thing that Microsoft smartphone has done. The transparency of the tiles can also be adjusted according to the user's preference. Compared to Android devices, Microsoft Windows 10 smartphones offers just as much when it comes to personalization and way better than iOS devices. Probably, this is what enticed many users especially for those who are into personalization. In the meantime, let's be hopeful that it'll get stocks again, soon. Nokia 150, Nokia 150 Dual Sim Latest News & Updates: Nokia Trying To Make A Comeback; Specs Of The New Phones Released! HMD Global, a company headquartered in Finland that now has the exclusive rights to use the Nokia brand name, has recently announced the launch of the Nokia 150 and the Nokia 150 Dual Sim smartphones in its bid to take a pie of the global smartphone market. In launching these two models, HMD Global hopes to make a successful comeback in the market that it had once dominated. Nokia was one the first companies to introduce affordable mobile phones in the world market. It can be recalled that Nokia was once the world's dominant cellphone maker. However, it missed the shift to smartphones. With the launch of the Nokia 150 and the Nokia 150 Dual Sim, HMD Global is looking to recover its standing in the smartphone industry. Outstanding Battery Life A press release from the company stated that Nokia 150 and the Nokia 150 Dual Sim have remarkable battery life so to ensure users they can stay connected longer. Its talk time lasts up to 22 hours and standby times up to 31 days for the Single SIM and 25 days for the Dual SIM variant. Other Features That Reflect The Quality Nokia Is Known For Nokia 150 and Nokia 150 Dual Sim are expected to have identical functional features. They take us back to the old days with features like MP3 player, Bluetooth, Nokia's SLAM sharing technology, VGA camera with LED flash. The new models will also have Snake Xenzia, the trademark Nokia game. They have a 2.4-inch QVGA display screen and operating system of Nokia Series 30+ OS. Nokia's comeback with Nokia 150 and Nokia 150 Dual Sim may not be able to excite everyone since the phones don't come with high-powered cameras, an internet access, or a touchscreen - features that most mobile users are looking for these days. Yet it could be, at best, a second budget device. iOS 10 Jailbreak Release Date, Latest News & Update: Pangu, Lucas Todesco Quitting On Apple Crack Rollout, Admit Task Unfeasible Following the release of iOS 10.2 from Apples end, the wait for the iOS 10 jailbreak continues. But is there really one coming or is everyone banking on false hopes. Despite loopholes in security, the fact that hackers are unable to exploit and use these to their advantage is a big mystery. Apple may have done just enough to ward off ambitious iOS 10 jailbreaks, not to mention technically paying off the talented hackers through their Apple Bounty Program. Lucas Todesco, an individual hacker who has gained prominence with his hacking efforts via YouTube, tweeted that Apple may have successfully covered all bases. It suggested that coming up with an iOS 10 jailbreak is nearly impossible, per reports. For the Apple Jailbreaking Community, hearing this from credible groups like Pangu would be more convincing. The Chinese hacking group is under close watch though their continued silence leaves a lot to be desired for an iOS 10 jailbreak to come out in the open. At the moment, many are still holding on to the possibility of seeing an iOS 10 jailbreak in the coming weeks. It was believed that Pangu would come out with one once iOS 10.2 is out, ZDNet reported. Could it be deja vu to that MOSET 2016 showcase? There are circulating rumors that Pangu may have just quite the iOS jailbreaking game. Seeing that their last one was for iOS 9.3.3, there is fair reason to believe so. If December ends with no iOS 10 jailbreak to show, that could be the sign most will dread. Hence, it justifies the dish of an earlier post hinting that Apple may have truly covered all bases. It could be a dark day for the Apple Jailbreaking Community meaning a new power in the iOS jailbreaking game may be needed. Will it be an individual or a group of hackers pegged to continue efforts to provide the jailbreaking community with a working crack? Microsoft Surface Pro 5 Release Date, Latest News & Update: Flexible All-in-One Could Be The MacBook Pros Big Downfall Apple continues to paddle through the heavy tides with the MacBook Pro 2016 and Microsoft is further pushing them down the line with its Surface Book i7. Unless the Cupertino company finds a way to appeal to customers in 2017, more trouble lies ahead with the Surface Pro 5. As mentioned in a previous post, Microsoft continues to push Apple to the wall by offering a trade-in program for the Surface Pro. The deal has reportedly been taken up by a lot of disgruntled customers which dont speak well for the MacBook Pro 2016. The good news is that Apple can make up for the lackadaisical MacBook Pro 2016 with an improved version next year. But will they have enough time to stop the bleeding especially if the Surface Pro 5 comes out? Right now, the Microsoft Surface Pro 4 is standing out as the wise buy for techies. It is a flexible solution which covers buyers looking for a tablet or laptop. Much of this is because of its flexibility though attention has been more on the specs. On Apples end, the Surface Pro 4 is a threat not only to the MacBook Pro but also to its tablet, the iPad Pro. To offset the threat, it may all boil down to the choice of processor the Intel Kaby Lake. As most know, this is one feature that has become a yardstick for upcoming devices. This is one area that told heavily on the MacBook Pro 2016 aside from the 16 GB RAM limit. Given that Microsoft has opted to wait for the chipset to become available, the Surface Pro 5 is expected to come out with Intel Kaby Lake inside. If so, this means the Surface Pro 5 will be able to provide native support for 4K display and Thunderbolt 3. Hence, it all boils down to improved performance, so Apple will have to find a way to factor that in for its rumored MacBook Pro 2017, per reports. Apple Latest News & Update: iPhone Users Can Now Download The iOS Support Application In The US The iOS Support Application is now available to US iPhone users. The standalone iOS support app helps users schedule software and hardware repair appointments. According to TechCrunch, Apple's iOS app was first launched in the Netherlands and Italy. The app will roll out to more countries in the upcoming weeks. iPhone and iPad users will be expecting a faster and more fluent way of customer service within a few taps. The New Standalone iOS Support Application Simplifies Apple's Support Line The new feature is part of Apple's renewed efforts for customer service. 2016 is one of Apple's worst years considering the amount of complaints it has so far received. It is well documented that several users have complained about faulty iPhone units. The iOS support application has been available to US users since December 14. With the new support app, Apple users can discuss their problems with technical representatives. Representatives will predetermine the best date for repairs. The App schedules appointments in Apples Stores and authorized third party companies. iOS Support Application Is Apple's Answer To Critics Of Apple Customer Service According to iTech Post, users will see all the devices registered under their Apple ID. A product panel will show options that include details of various Apple gadgets. Owners of iOS devices can view support history to keep track of reoccurring issues. Users won't have to call Apple support numbers for important queries. The iOS support application download is Apple's answer to frustrated iPhone users. The Cupertino Company received ridicule when customers observed the lack of a serious solution. Apple had a share of issues this year along with Samsung's exploding batteries. Users are looking forward to the new app, they're looking forward to Apple's new iOS support. According to their official website, the company aims to simplify customer service. It looks like Apple is taking care of business after all. Pakistan has a long history of political violence. Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was assassinated in December 2007 in a gun and bomb attack after holding an election rally in the city of Rawalpindi. Google Pixel Release Date, News & Update: Compatible With All US Major Carriers, BUT T-Mobile Not Selling? Google Pixel smartphones that are sold in the United States is SIM unlocked. In fact, every version of the said phone can work with all major carriers such as Sprint, AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. For those who were able to purchase a Google Pixel phone via the internet or other source, the model number on the back should either indicate "G-2PW2100" or "G-2PW4100", which means that the handset is unlocked and works on all the four major US carriers. Otherwise, the Google Pixel handset will unlikely work on Sprint or Verizon, and it is likely a global model, according to reports. This happens because Verizon has reportedly made sure that the customers will feel the need to use their Google Pixel on Verizon with its "only on Verizon" commercial ads in the US at that time. The ads, however, do not imply any type of SIM lock policy or network restrictions. Incidentally, reports suggest that the only difference between the Google Pixel bought in the Google Store and the Verizon Pixel is that the handsets from Verizon has a locked bootloader. It should be noted, though, that the locked bootloader does not affect any type of carrier used on the phone. In fact, reports indicate that a customer can purchase a Google Pixel from Verizon, and then cancel the Verizon service later, taking the Google Pixel smartphone to T-Mobile without losing their OTA updates, including the advanced network features like Wi-Fi and VoLTE calling. Although both features are supported by all major carriers with the Google Pixel, support does not differ according to where the handset was bought, Android Police reported. Meanwhile, T-Mobile is confirmed to display the Google Pixel in stores, but the carrier will reportedly not sell one. The carrier will reportedly begin showing off the Google Pixel in stores, but it won't actually sell you one. This is due to the fact the Google Pixel smartphones are Verizon-exclusive at the carrier level, though Google sells the handset through its online storefront. T-Mobile reports mean that instead of selling Google Pixel phones, T-Mobile will direct its customers to Google Store. The carrier offers a deal by giving away a $350 bill credit for the next two years to those who buy a Google Pixel and sign up for T-Mobile, according to report. Watch Google Pixel & Pixel XL Review! Nintendo Switch Release Date, News & Updates: Preview Tour Happening in Six Cities; Tokyo Event on January 12 The Nintendo Switch is set to launch in March 2017, and Nintendo is already actively promoting the new console. According to the company, they will introduce the Nintendo Switch via a preview tour, beginning in January next year. Nintendo Switch Early Preview in Six Cities Engadget wrote that the Nintendo Switch is set to begin its global tour in New York from Jan. 13 to 15, 2016. Next, it will be showcased in Toronto and Pax South in San Antonio from January 27 to 29. The Nintendo Switch will be presented in Washington from February 10 to 12, Chicago from February 17 to 19, and San Francisco from February 24 to 26. The Nintendo Switch preview tour will end in the first quarter of 2017. The hybrid console will be introduced in Los Angeles from March 3 to 5, and SXSW and Pax East from March 16 to 18. Each Nintendo Switch preview tour presentation will last three days. The first two days in every major city, however, will only be for invited guests, while the third day will be available for testing for every interested user. The Nintendo Switch showcase at PAX and SXSW will allow full access to the general public. Nintendo Switch Tokyo Event in January Before their preview tour, Nintendo promised that they will feature more details about the upcoming device on January 12. The company will reportedly host a livestream from Tokyo, Japan, where they will talk about the product's price, launch titles and official release date. The Verge noted that the Nintendo Switch global tour will only cover six cities, with five in the United States and the last in Canada. Nintendo advised interested gamers to come early to see and try the Nintendo Switch, since space will be limited and guests will be accommodated based a first-come, first-serve basis. Nintendo stated that the Sunday stop of each tour will be open free to the public, to give everyone a chance to experience the Nintendo Switch. Select launch games will reportedly be playable at the preview tour. iPhone 2016 News & Update: Filings Indicate Apple Could Be Developing A Dual-SIM iPhone For China, India Apple filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China documents that describe a dual-SIM feature. The Cupertino-based tech giant submitted the documents in March 2016 and it was published in September with Li Su, principal architect for cellular software, as the inventor. Li Su and two other wireless cellular engineers of Apple, Guojie Dong and Ming Hu, were listed on the patent as inventors of the dual-SIM card technology in its similar application in the U.S. which was approved earlier the second week of December, Fortune reports. The dual SIM would allow the users to have different wireless services, often one for personal use and the other for business. Popular In Asia Other phone brands have been offering the dual-SIM feature for a few years now. It is popular in Asian countries such as China and India. Apple appears to be addressing the issue of limiting its ability to increase sales in these nations if it does not include a dual-SIM feature on its iPhones. However, outside the two Asian giants, the dual-SIM may not be a viable option because it would risk the mechanism which operators see the locked iPhone with contract, Jessie Ding, Canalys analyst, said. The possible introduction of a dual-SIM option in the two countries could be to reverse the slump in sales by 30 percent as local prefer made-in-China brands such as Vivo and Oppo with those features. But filing of a patent may not necessarily translate into these inventions being included in future iPhone models. Before the launch of the iPhone 7, there were leaks of photos that support dual-SIM cards. SIM Priority The patent application says it would use two separate antennas. It would be the phone that would determine SIM priority. A SIM card actively used in a phone call gets priority over the other SIM card which uses data, according to Mybroadband. However, one impact of a dual-SIM on an iPhone is it would drain the gadgets battery faster since iPhone batteries are one of the least powerful. The city of Corvallis has been honored by a federal agency for the manner in which it uses federal funds to build low-income affordable housing. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has ranked Corvallis first in Oregon in its administration of HOME Partnerships funding. Corvallis ranked first in all of the evaluation categories and was 25th among 579 jurisdictions participating nationally. Cities and other entities were rated on their ability to identify, develop and commit funding to projects that meet the programs requirements. HUD also evaluates the success of each local HOME program based on the percentage of tenants and owners who meet certain income thresholds. Corvallis has ranked first in the state before, said Kent Weiss, housing and neighborhood services division manager, but 2016 marks the first time the city has led in all categories. "These numbers show that we're going beyond what other jurisdictions are able to accomplish," Weiss said. "We're reaching people with the greatest need for this type of housing." Weiss and housing division employees Joe DeMarzo and Terri Heine have been working on using the HOME funding since the program began in 2001. The city has worked with a number of partner organizations in dispensing the funding, including Willamette Neighborhood Housing Services, Benton Habitat for Humanity, Home Life and Corvallis Housing First. "I can't speak highly enough about the partnership and the quality of the relationship with the city," said Jim Moorefield, executive director of Willamette Neighborhood Housing Services. "For many years this has been one of the most productive working relationships we have." The city has used HOME funds and Community Development Block Grants to assist in the creation of 370 affordable housing units. A total of 205 were through loans to low-income buyers purchasing a first home and 165 came via grants or loans for new construction or acquisition of existing units. The city has spent $7.9 million in federal funds on the various projects. Among the buildings the funds have helped are Benton Habitats Kendra Place house, Home Lifes Fillmore Fourplex, Corvallis Housing Firsts Partners place and Willamette Neighborhood Housing Services projects such as the Julian Hotel, Alexander Court, Lancaster Bridge and Seavey Meadows. Little hero from Bruser Berg : Praise for a boy who turned in a bundle of money Bonn A young Syrian refugee found money on the street and turned it in. He is being praised for his honesty. Abdallah Kiwan is a little hero - not only for his parents, but for many residents of Bruser Berg in Bonn-Hardtberg. Teilen Teilen Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Tweeten Tweeten Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Drucken Many people are praising him. We are very proud of him, says his mother Manar Hredeen. The nine-year-old boy was on his way home from a youth center when he saw a bundle of something lying on the street. When he took a closer look, he saw that it was money. It had apparently slipped out of someones purse or bag and was lying on the sidewalk. For Abdallah, who left Syria several months ago and came to Germany with his family, it was immediately clear that he could not keep the money. He gave it right to my mother, said his sister Laila. The mother, Manar Hredeen was uncertain at first what to do so she went to the helpers who ran the clothing donation center at St. Edith Stein. She had know the helpers for some time already and had a close relationship to them. I knew they would be able to help me with the situation, explained the young Syrian mother to GA. Search for owner of the money Together, the team at the clothing bank made a sign asking for the owner of the money to come forward. The person would have to identify exactly what was lost, said Sabine Spiegelberg of the clothing bank. When you rub your hands together to warm them, the friction creates heat. The same thing happens during earthquakes, only on a much larger scale: When a fault slips, the temperature can spike by hundreds of degrees, high enough to alter organic compounds in the rocks and leave a signature. A team of scientists at Columbia Universitys Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory has been developing methods to use those organic signatures to reconstruct past earthquakes and explore where those earthquakes started and stopped and how they moved through the fault zone. The information could eventually help scientists better understand what controls earthquakes. Lamont geophysicist Heather Savage and geochemist Pratigya Polissar began developing the methods about eight years ago, building on techniques used by the oil industry. Their unique pairing of two fields rock mechanics and organic geochemistry made possible innovations that are changing how we look at earthquakes. The process starts in the field, along a fault where scientists either chip off or drill samples from inside the fault zone. When sediments in a fault zone are heated by the friction of an earthquake, that short but powerful burst of heat alters the chemical composition of organic material inside the rock. (The same process over long periods of time creates oil and gas.) Scientists can examine the organic compounds in those samples and compare the ratio of stable molecules to unstable molecules to measure their thermal maturity and determine how hot each sample became. If even a tiny structure within a fault has had an earthquake, we can actually see the difference between how hot that piece of the fault got versus everything outside of it, Savage said. What we want to figure out is where the earthquakes in this big fault zone were actually happening. Do they all happen to one side? Are the distributed throughout? Are they all clustered on the weakest material within the fault zone? What this does is give us a picture, almost like a heat map, of the fault itself, and the hottest places are where the earthquakes happened, Savage said. When temperatures are high enough, rock can melt, creating glass-like pseudotachylytes. Geologists have used these melted rock remnants for several years, but finding them is rare. Savage, Polissar, and their team are looking closer, to the molecular level, where they can measure the thermal maturity of common organic compounds to determine how hot the sample became. They often test for methylphenanthrenes, organic molecules that are fairly common in faults within sedimentary rocks between 1 and 5 kilometers below ground. In deeper faults, some 10-14 kilometers down, the scientists can look for diamondoids, which are among the most thermally stable organic compounds. To put their molecular data into context, the scientists also need to understand how rocks in the fault react to heat and pressure. In Lamonts Rock and Ice Mechanics Lab, Savages team can test rock samples under a wide range of high pressures and temperatures. From their experiments, they can develop models that show how much shear stress and displacement are required to generate specific levels of heat in specific types of rock, and then how that heat will decay through diffusion. Using these models, the scientists can then look at the geochemical analysis of their samples, determine the temperatures the compounds were exposed to in the past, and estimate the friction from the earthquake and how far the fault slipped. For example, when the team tested samples from the Pasagshak Point megathrust on Alaskas Kodiak Island, they measured the ratio of thermally stable diamondoids to thermally unstable alkanes and determined that the temperature during a past earthquake would have risen between 840C and 1170C above the normal temperature of the surrounding rock. From that temperature rise, they were able to estimate that the earthquakes frictional energy would have been 105-227 megajoules per square meter, likely a magnitude 7 or 8 earthquake. Using their experimental friction measurements, they could then estimate that the fault must have slipped 1-8 meters. At the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting today in San Francisco, Genevieve Coffey, a graduate student in Savages team at Lamont, presented early results from their highest-density testing yet, involving samples taken in transects along the Muddy Mountain thrust in Nevada. One surprise was that the places where one might expect to see high temperatures because of the local structures in the rock were not necessarily the locations where they found it, Coffey said. Structural variability along a fault does not necessary indicate that slip has occurred along that section, she said. Savages team is working on similar experiments at the San Andreas fault, and the Japan trench where the Tohoku earthquake began, and they are working with colleagues on techniques to date the earthquakes. The important step for us is to determine how each of those compounds reacts to time and temperature, Savage said. Thats going to tell us about the physics of the earthquakes in that fault, which in the long run could lead to a better understanding of earthquake hazards. Note: The above post is reprinted from materials provided by Columbia University. PayPal VS Paytm: Find Out What the Dispute is All About News oi -Samden Sherpa PayPal accuses Paytm of using a 'deceptively and confusingly similar' logo. Lately, Paytm has seen a huge growth in its user base and has been a huge beneficiary of the demonetization move. However, while Paytm may be soaring high, all's not going well for the e-wallet company for the past couple of days. Not only the e-wallet and online payment app service has been facing technical issues and outage problems but a new controversy has erupted. Top 10 Smartphones that Dominated Google Search As reported by NDTV, PayPal, one of the early pioneers of global digital payments systems has now filed a complaint against its Indian counterpart Paytm, accusing it of stealing its logo. As such, PayPal has appealed to the Indian authorities to refuse the trademark registration application from Paytm in India, citing similarities between the two company's logos. The Californian-based company, PayPal, has also explicitly accused Paytm of using a logo that was "deceptively and confusingly similar" to its own. In addition, the notice given by PayPal states that Paytm has slavishly adopted the two-tone blue color scheme of the trademarked PayPal logo. PayPal also mentioned that it has been using its trademark logo across several countries since 1999 and is registered in all countries where it operates, including India. Is Nokia India's top 4G LTE Network Vendor? More importantly, Paypal was concerned that the similarities between the logos were of such nature as to deceive the public and cause confusion. PayPal has argued about the fact that there was no reason for the Applicant (Paytm) to adopt the identical colors and color scheme other than to take advantage of the reputation the Opponent (PayPal) has built up into this combination in connection with its popular services. The company has also requested to refuse the application on the basis it may dilute the brand equity of PayPal. So within such grounds, PayPal has asked authorities to refuse the trademark application as the logo can deceive the consumers and it also bears great similarity with PayPal's logo. On the contrary, Paytm has declined to comment on the allegations. Currently, the company is in the final stages of getting its logo registered. Click Here for New Smartphones Best Online Deals Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications Kickass Torrents Makes a Comeback, Maintains the Original Look With Much Safer Content News oi -Sneha Kickass Torrents is back with the original look and much safer content. Kickass Torrents makes a comeback, maintains the original look with a much safer user interface than ever before. The website was shut down after the founder, Artem Vaulin was arrested in Poland early this year. Even after the U.S Justice Department had seized the domain name, torrent was not completely dead, as several other similar websites flooded the internet, but failed to replace Kickass Torrents. Kickass Torrents is now fully operational and maintains the original look of the website. But, when trying to access the website, it took some time to load, which surely indicates that the site is under heavy traffic, and that the user's are delighted on Torrents' return. In a report by TorrentFreak, Kickass Torrents stated that the majority of the original staffs, admins and moderation team members had joined them back after Kat.cr went down, and this is an extremely proud moment for them. BSNL Introduces Unlimited Local and STD Calls At Rs. 99/Month With No Upfront Cost Reports also revealed that the company had a tough time putting back the website all over again. Kickass Torrents official also added that they are being extremely careful this time, and hence have made additional effort to keep only "safe elements" available on the website, keeping safety of the community their utmost priority. Adding on to that, the company officials said that all the major uploaders had started to share content for the website even before the torrent engines returned, and the torrent community could expect to see uploads coming up from all the names they trust. SEE ALSO: Super Mario Run Released Globally For iOS, To Hit Play Store Soon: Everything You Should Know Kickass Torrents is now coming under a similar takedown procedure as YouTube and hence will not be storing any copyrighted material on their website like earlier. Click Here for New Smartphones Best Online Deals Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications Top 10 Smartphones that Dominated Google Search Features oi -Harish Kumar Take a quick look at what are all the phones searched by people over the country. Days after releasing the top games and apps of the year 2016, Google, today released the list of top searches that recorded in the year. If the gaming space is topped by Pokemon Go (launched in India recently), the mobile phone area was topped by Apple iPhone 7. Top 10 Most-awaited 6GB-7GB-8GB RAM Smartphones of 2017 There are quite some surprises on the list, and we must mention the much-hyped Freedom 251 also got a place. Let's take a quick look at what are all the phones searched by people over the country. #1. Apple iPhone 7 Key Features 4.7-inch (1334 x 750 pixels) IPS 326 ppi display, 1400:1 contrast ratio, 3D Touch Quad-core A10 Fusion 64-bit processor with six-core GPU, M10 motion co-processor 2GB RAM 32GB, 128GB and 256GB storage options iOS 10 Water and dust resistant (IP67) 12MP Rear camera 7MP front camera TouchID Fingerprint sensor, Stereo speakers 4G VoLTE WiFi 802.11 ac with MIMO Bluetooth 4.2, NFC, GPS with GLONASS 1960mAh built-in battery with up to 10 days standby Click Here For More Details. #2. Freedom 251 Key Features 4-inch (960 x 540 pixels) qHD IPS display 1.3GHz quad-core processor 1GB RAM 8GB internal memory expandable memory up to 32GB with microSD Android 5.1 (Lollipop) Dual SIM 3.2MP rear camera with LED flash 0.3MP front-facing camera 3G,WiFi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth, GPS 1450mAh battery Click Here For More Details #3.Apple iPhone SE Key Features 4.0 inches 640 x 1136 pixels iOS 9.3.2 Dual Core 1.84 GHz Twister 16/64 GB Internal Memory 2 GB of RAM 12.0 MegaPixels Camera Non-removable Li-Po 1642 mAh battery Click Here For More Details. #4. Apple iPhone 6s Key Features 4.7 Inch Retina HD Display With 3D Touch A9 Chip With 64-Bit Architecture Embedded M9 Motion Coprocessor Force Touch Technology 12MP ISight Camera 5MP Front Facing Camera Touch ID Bluetooth 4.2 LTE Support 1715 MAh Battery Click Here For More Details. #5. Google Pixel Key Features 5-inch (1920x 1080 pixels) AMOLED display with Corning Gorilla Glass 4 protection 2.15 GHz Quad-Core Snapdragon 821 processor with Adreno 530 GPU 4GB LPDDR RAM 32GB / 128GB internal storage Android 7.1 (Nougat) 12.3MP rear camera with LED flash 8MP front camera Fingerprint sensor 4G VoLTE WiFi 802.11ac 2x2MIMO (2.4/5 GHz) Bluetooth 4.2, GPS, USB Type-C, NFC 2,770mAh battery Click Here For More Details. #6. 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Best Mobiles in India Despite the Confusion Flipkart is Explicitly Selling OnePlus 3 at Rs. 18,999 News oi -Samden Sherpa If you are planning to buy the device from Flipkart, then make sure that it is an authentic one and that it comes with a warranty. Well just a day ago, if you happened to visit Flipkart's website, you might have been greeted by a rather surprising sight. A dedicated poster listing the sale of OnePlus 3 smartphones for under Rs. 20,000. This had further led to Carl Pei, CEO and Co-Founder of OnePlus to question Sachin Bansal, Co-Founder of Flipkart, asking for an explanation on how come the device was put up on sale on the website and at such a low price. Next Generation Sony Xperia XA Leaked in a New Video However, while Flipkart is yet to reply to the question posed by Carl Pei, now, the e-commerce site has explicitly detailed that the OnePlus 3 will be available for as low as Rs. 18,999, which is Rs. 9,000 cheaper than the current price of the phone on Amazon India, the exclusive retail partner for the smartphone. As reported by NDTV, the sale will start at 4 pm on December 18. But, before you get all excited or have already started contemplating on buying the device, there are few facts that you should know. It has been known fact that OnePlus is exclusively partnered with Amazon and not Flipkart to sell its products in India. So the question that arises is, how can Flipkart list the OnePlus 3 on its website. While neither Bansal nor Flipkart has provided a clear reply, reportedly, Flipkart told NDTV that "Flipkart was a marketplace which helped sellers connect with customers across the country. All the sellers of Flipkart were mandated to adhere to stringent guidelines. The prices and discounts for all the company's sales were decided by the participating sellers and brands. Videocon Launches ULTRA30 with VoLTE Support and a Large Battery Pack As such, the blurry statement given by Flipkart has failed to clarify whether the OnePlus 3 smartphones being sold on its site were genuine or not. Amidst such confusing situation, the Chinese smartphone manufacturer has warned interested buyers against the sale. OnePlus stated that the company has an exclusive partnership with Amazon in India and has advised customers to purchase OnePlus products only through official channels as the company cannot guarantee the authenticity of the products sold elsewhere. Nonetheless, if you are planning to get the device make sure that it is an authentic one and that it comes with a warranty. Click Here for New Smartphones Best Online Deals Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications OnePlus 3T to be Manufactured in India from Early 2017 News oi -Chakri Kudikala As promised, OnePlus will build the OnePlus 3T in India, starting 2017. OnePlus, the Chinese smartphone vendor, made a name for themselves in a short span of just two years. The company's OnePlus One was a huge hit, which was followed by the little success of OnePlus 2 and OnePlus X. And, for the fourth time, the company is bang with the OnePlus 3, which is one of the best Android phones of 2016. Having said that, just a month ago, the company announced the successor to the not so old- OnePlus 3, namely, the OnePlus 3T. The OnePlus 3T is not a huge upgrade from the OnePlus 3. However, it brings on some essentials to the list. Also Read: Flipkart Teases OnePlus 3 on Sale Under Rs. 20,000; What's This? Carl Pei Asks Sachin Bansal At the launch event earlier this month, OnePlus said that their OnePlus 3T would be manufactured in India. The Chinese company hasn't revealed any plans on how they will start the process in India or with whom they are partnering with in India. In speaking to Reuters in a phone call, Vikas Agarwal, the general manager of OnePlus India, said that the company would start manufacturing the phone in India itself, maybe in January itself. He also gave a hint that they will collaborate with Foxconn to set up a plant in India. As we already know about the fact that OnePlus 3T is exclusive to Amazon India and the e-commerce giant has received over 200,000 registrations for the Rs. 29,999 model. Agarwal also quoted that they have lost nearly 30 percent of sales due to the stock unavailability. Apart from this, the Chinese smartphone company is setting up six new service centers in India to meet the customer demand. Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications Retired Russian Military Officer Sentenced To 12 Years For Treason December 16, 2016 A Moscow court has sentenced a retired military officer to 12 years in prison after convicting him of treason, a charge that is usually linked to alleged espionage. Retired Colonel Aleksei Sinyakov was found guilty of high treason on December 15 and sentenced the same day. The court also ruled that Sinyakov will be stripped of his rank as a colonel. The court did not make the details of the case public, as it was classified as Top Secret, and the trial was held behind closed doors. Sinyakov's case is one of several in 2016 in which Russian citizens have been charged with high treason. Russia's Supreme Court said in April that 28 people were convicted of high treason in 2015. With reporting by TASS, Meduza, and Interfax Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/russia-colonel-suinyakov -high-treason/28179970.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Coalition Strikes Continue Against ISIL in Syria, Iraq From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release SOUTHWEST ASIA, Dec. 16, 2016 U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Iraq yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today. Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports. Strikes in Syria Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 15 strikes in Syria: -- Near Ayn Isa, three strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit, destroyed an ISIL-held building and damaged two supply routes. -- Near Dayr Az Zawr, two strikes damaged a modular oil refinery and an excavator. -- Near Palmyra, 10 strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed 14 tanks, three artillery systems, two ISIL-held buildings, two tactical vehicles and an air defense artillery system. Strikes in Iraq Fighter aircraft and rocket artillery conducted three strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq's government: -- Near Huwayjah, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL-held building. -- Near Haditha, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL-held building and a vehicle. -- Near Mosul, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit; destroyed five ISIL-held buildings, two fighting positions, a heavy machine gun, a bulldozer and a rocket-propelled grenade launcher; and suppressed three tactical units and a mortar. Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike. Part of Operation Inherent Resolve The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Airstrikes Destroy ISIL's Captured Tanks From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release SOUTHWEST ASIA, Dec. 16, 2016 Coalition aircraft destroyed 14 tanks and other equipment near Palmyra, Syria, that had previously been captured by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant forces. ISIL seized the tanks and other military hardware from Tiyas Military Airfield near Palmyra, Syria, between Dec. 11-13. "The [Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve] commanding general, [Army] Lt. Gen. Stephen J. Townsend, made it clear during his Dec.14th press conference that we would strike the equipment before it posed a threat to counter-ISIL operations," said Air Force Col. John Dorrian, the CJTF-OIR spokesperson. "We will not allow ISIL to maintain capabilities that threaten Coalition or partner forces." The attacks occurred during daylight hours from late morning to early evening yesterday. Three artillery systems, two ISIL-held buildings, two tactical vehicles and an air defense artillery system were also destroyed in the strike. The equipment was destroyed in the vicinity of the Palmyra Airport, northeast of the city along a highway. During the operation, 16 coalition aircraft fired 22 munitions destroying 22 targets, task force officials said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S. Department of Defense Press Operations News Release No. NR-448-16 December 16, 2016 Statement by Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook on Incident in South China Sea Using appropriate government-to-government channels, the Department of Defense has called upon China to immediately return an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) that China unlawfully seized on Dec. 15 in the South China Sea while it was being recovered by a U.S. Navy oceanographic survey ship. The USNS Bowditch (T-AGS 62) and the UUV -- an unclassified "ocean glider" system used around the world to gather military oceanographic data such as salinity, water temperature, and sound speed - were conducting routine operations in accordance with international law about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, Philippines, when a Chinese Navy PRC DALANG III-Class ship (ASR-510) launched a small boat and retrieved the UUV. Bowditch made contact with the PRC Navy ship via bridge-to-bridge radio to request the return of the UUV. The radio contact was acknowledged by the PRC Navy ship, but the request was ignored. The UUV is a sovereign immune vessel of the United States. We call upon China to return our UUV immediately, and to comply with all of its obligations under international law. http://www.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/1032611/ NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S. Department of Defense Press Operations News Release No. NR-447-16 December 16, 2016 DOD Releases Report on Enhancing Security and Stability in Afghanistan Today the Department of Defense provided to the Congress a report on "Enhancing Security and Stability in Afghanistan" covering events during the period from June 1 - Nov. 30. The report was submitted in accordance with requirements in Section 1225 of the Fiscal 2015 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) as amended by Sections 1231 and 1531 of the Fiscal 2016 NDAA. The Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) effectively executed their 2016 summer campaign plan and largely maintained their commitment to implementing key reforms and operational imperatives as part of a more sustainable security strategy that allocates forces across the country more efficiently. During Taliban offensives, the ANDSF successfully repelled the insurgents or quickly retook any territory that was lost. Although the ANDSF denied the insurgency any strategic success over the last several months, the ANDSF have also demonstrated the need for continued U.S. and coalition support to address persistent capability gaps and deficiencies. http://www.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/1032611/ NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address USS Mason Arrives in Belfast Navy News Service Story Number: NNS161216-07 Release Date: 12/16/2016 9:22:00 AM By By Petty Officer 3rd Class Janweb B. Lagazo, USS Mason (DDG 87) Public Affairs BELFAST, United Kingdom (NNS) -- The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Mason (DDG 87), part of the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group (Ike CSG), and the embarked detachment of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 74 arrived in Belfast, U.K., Dec.15, 2016 for a scheduled port visit to enhance the United States' and United Kingdom's relations as the two nations work together for a stable, secure and prosperous Europe. Mason's visit marks the 75th anniversary of the opening of Base One Europe Londonderry, the first and largest U.S. Navy base in the European theater during WWII. A wide range of events and receptions has also been organized by Mary Pat Kelly, author of "Proudly We Served: The Men of the USS Mason (1995) and director of the film "Proud" (2004) to commemorate USS Mason's (DE 529) visit to Derry and Northern Ireland. Mason's presence in the North Atlantic is a demonstration of the U.S. Navy's continued commitment to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the collective security of the European region. Quotes: "The entire crew is very excited to be visiting Belfast. The U.S. enjoys a wonderful friendship with Northern Ireland and the UK, and Mason itself has a rich heritage with Belfast and Derry. We are looking forward to a relaxing and enjoyable visit before returning to our operational schedule." - Cmdr. Christopher J. Gilbertson, from Minneapolis, commanding officer , USS Mason "I'm looking forward to this port visit because of what it means to me and the Navy. This is my first time vising the U.K., and I'm excited to experience all this history and culture. It's also an honor to have the chance to participate and celebrate the history of USS Mason (DE 529) with Derry and all of Northern Ireland." - Petty Officer 2nd Class Eric Khabbaz, from Orange, Calif., works as a boatswain's mate "A strong maritime presence has never been more important to maintaining the flow of commerce and the freedom of the seas." - Lt. j.g. James Sightler, from Greer, S.C., navigator of USS Mason (DDG 87) Quick Facts: * Mason will be presented with the 2016 Paddy Hone Award by 1998 Nobel Laureate John Hume during a celebration of the 75th anniversary of the opening of Base One Europe, the largest Navy and Marine Corps base in the Atlantic during WWII, as well as to commemorate the 1943 visit of USS Mason (DE 529), the first all African-American crewed ship of the U.S. Navy, to the Londonderry and Belfast areas. * Strengthening partnerships during the port visit to the United Kingdom demonstrates the shared commitment we have to promote safety and stability within the region, while seeking opportunities to enhance our interoperability with allies like the U.K. * Mason departed Norfolk, Virginia, June 1, 2016, as part of the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group * Ike CSG includes the CSG-10 staff, Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 26 staff, the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69), Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 3, the guided-missile cruisers USS San Jacinto (CG 56) and USS Monterey (CG 61), and the DESRON 26 ships: guided-missile destroyers USS Roosevelt (DDG 80) and USS Nitze (DDG 94). * U.S. 6th Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, conducts the full spectrum of joint and naval operations, often in concert with allied, joint, and interagency partners, in order to advance U.S. national interests, security and stability in Europe and Africa. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Coast guards of Philippines, China vow to enhance cooperation People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 19:35, December 16, 2016 MANILA, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines Coast Guard(PCG) and the China Coast Guard (CCG) agreed to strengthen cooperation and mutual trust in certain maritime issues, according to a joint statement released on Friday in Manila. The PCG and CCG held the first meeting on Thursday and Friday in Manila, discussing the establishment of the Joint Coast Guard Committee (JCGC) as the initial cooperation platform for both sides. The statement said the JCGC, once established, will serve as a venue for both Coast Guards to strengthen mutual trust, deepen confidence, intensify communications and exchange, enhance friendly cooperation based on equality, reciprocity, and consensus. Both sides had a friendly exchange of views on the establishment of the JCGC, including the principles of the organizational structure, terms of references, and operational procedures, the statement said. The two sides also explored possible programs of maritime cooperation, including combating drug trafficking and other maritime crimes, marine environmental protection, maritime search and rescue, and capacity-building in related areas. During the meeting, the two sides had a substantial discussion on an interim arrangement for a proposed hotline communication. It was also agreed to convene the second organizational meeting and the inaugural meeting of the JCGC in February 2017 in Philippines. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN bans Gambian army chief from visiting Sudan Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 7:16PM The United Nations has banned the Gambia's army chief, General Ousman Badjie, from visiting Gambian troops serving as peacekeepers in Sudan's Darfur region. "The UN has decided to cancel General Badjie's visit to Gambian peacekeepers in Sudan," a diplomatic source told media on Friday. There are 213 Gambian military personnel deployed in Darfur as peacekeepers under the UN command. Analysts say by canceling the visit the UN is mounting pressure on the Gambian general not to take sides with President Yahya Jammeh, who initially conceded defeat in the recent presidential election, but has now challenged the results of the vote held on December 1, citing "abnormalities." In an apparent show of loyalty to the incumbent president, the Gambian military on December 13 occupied the election commission's headquarters. Jammeh has rejected the vote and called for "fresh and transparent elections which will be officiated by a God-fearing and independent electoral commission." General Badjie, who had initially shown support to President-elect Adama Barrow, later changed sides after Jammeh's backtrack on concession. He arrived at a high-level meeting with West African leaders in Banjul this week wearing a badge bearing Jammeh's face, indicating his change in loyalty. The diplomatic source said there were serious concerns about General Badjie's visit to Sudan given the critical situation in Banjul. The streets of the Gambia's capital were reported by media to be calm on Friday night although soldiers were seen placing sandbags in strategic locations across the city. Mounting international pressure International pressure from community leaders all around the world is mounting on the Gambia to accept Barrow, who is scheduled to be inaugurated in January. Barrow, who won more than 43 percent of the votes, has accused the incumbent of damaging the country's democracy by refusing to accept the results. Jammeh, who took power in a coup in 1994, has gained a reputation in the past 22 years as a ruthless leader. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Settlement bill to have negative consequences for Israel: UN chief Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 6:25PM United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says Israel should reconsider its settlement bill or face the "negative legal consequences" of its approval. "I strongly urge legislators to reconsider advancing this bill, which will have negative legal consequences for Israel and substantially diminish the chances for Arab-Israeli peace," the outgoing UN chief said in his final briefing at the UN Security Council on Friday on the situation in the Middle East. On December 7, Israeli lawmakers approved a hugely-controversial bill legalizing some 4,000 settler units built on private Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank. In the first of three readings needed to turn the bill into law, 57 members of the Knesset voted to approve the draft. Fifty-one voted against it. More than half a million Israelis live in over 230 illegal settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem al-Quds. The Palestinian Authority wants the West Bank as part of a future independent Palestinian state, with East al-Quds as its capital. Built on occupied land, the Israeli settlements are internationally condemned as illegal. The United States, Israel's strongest ally, Germany, the country least critical of Tel Aviv in Europe, United Nations officials, and the European Union have strongly criticized the bill. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Chinese warship captures US Navy underwater drone Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 6:21PM A Chinese warship has captured US Navy underwater drone collecting information in the South China Sea, according to the Pentagon. US Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, on Friday did not name the underwater glider but claimed that it was collecting unclassified scientific data in the sea. He said the US State Department has filed a formal diplomatic protest, known as a demarche, to China and is demanding the drone's return. Earlier, a US military official told the Reuters news agency that the drone was deployed by an American oceanographic survey ship in international waters in the South China Sea. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the incident occurred on December 15 northwest of Subic Bay off the Philippines just as the USNS Bowditch was about to retrieve the drone, called the unmanned, underwater vehicle (UUV). "The UUV was lawfully conducting a military survey in the waters of the South China Sea," the official claimed. "It's a sovereign immune vessel, clearly marked in English not to be removed from the water - that it was US property," he said. The South China Sea has become a source of friction between the United States and China since Washington launched its so-called Pivot to Asia strategy some five years ago. The Obama administration has argued that no region is more important to the United States' long-term interests than Asia. China has repeatedly criticized US military presence in the region. Observers believe America's efforts to increase its presence in the Asia-Pacific region are aimed at containing China, and the policy has increase the chance of confrontation Beijing and Washington. China accuses the United States of meddling in the regional issues and deliberately stirring up tensions in the South China Sea. Tensions between China and the US escalated in November 2013 after Beijing declared an air identification zone over the East China Sea. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address South Sudan opposition welcomes president's call for national dialogue Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 5:32PM South Sudan's opposition has welcomed President Salva Kiir's call for "national dialogue" to put an end to three years of civil war. Former Vice President Riek Machar's SPLM/A IO party "welcomed the national dialogue as a way of achieving peace, but it must not be led by President Salva Kiir," party spokesman Nyarji Roman said in a statement on Friday. On Wednesday, Kiir called for a "national dialogue" open to all, asking for forgiveness "for any mistakes I might have committed." The president said the initiative aims to "save the country from disintegration." A bloody civil war in South Sudan began on December 15, 2013, when Kiir accused his former deputy, Machar, of plotting a coup against him. The two parties then got involved in a cycle of retaliatory killings that have split the impoverished country along ethnic lines. Tens of thousands were killed in the war and over three million were forced from homes. South Sudan has witnessed a new wave of conflict since July 8, when gunfire erupted near the state house in Juba as Kiir and Machar were holding a meeting. More than 300 people were killed in the clashes. Machar, who fled the country after the clashes, called for war against the government on September 25, ending an internationally-backed peace deal. The ex-vice president is currently in exile in South Africa. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pakistan says cross-border firing by Indian troops kills school bus driver Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 4:57PM Pakistan's officials say a Pakistani school bus driver was killed after Indian troops opened fire across the two countries' de facto border in the disputed region of Kashmir. Local official Sardar Zeeshan Nisar said on Friday that the latest cross-border fire, which occurred along the Line of Control (LoC), also wounded several children. "A shell landed near a school bus in Mohra village of Nakyal sector, leaving the driver dead and eight children wounded." The Pakistani army's media wing said in a statement that the firing was a violation of a 2003 ceasefire. It added that Pakistani troops responded to unprovoked Indian firing in the area. "Pakistani troops effectively responded and targeted Indian posts from where fire was coming." Indian and Pakistani forces have been engaged in clashes in the disputed region over the past months. Each side accuses the other of provocation. In recent months, authorities on both sides closed hundreds of schools along frontier areas due to the ongoing cross-border shooting. Relations between India and Pakistan have been strained in the recent months, with New Delhi blaming Islamabad for a raid on an army base in Indian-controlled Kashmir in September, which killed 19 soldiers. The Indian army blamed Pakistan-based militants for the assault. Islamabad denies any role in the deadly assault. Diplomatic tensions heightened between the two sides in late October, when India ordered one employee of the Pakistani High Commission out of the country, saying he was a suspected spy. Islamabad expelled an Indian diplomat in a tit-for-tat move. In addition, Pakistan has recently accused eight Indian diplomats of conducting acts of "espionage and terrorism" against Islamabad. Police, protesters clash in Srinagar Meanwhile, security forces in Indian-controlled Kashmir have used tear gas to disperse protesters as they chanted pro-independence slogans. Hundreds of protesters gathered near a main mosque in the capital city of Srinagar and chanted pro-freedom and anti-India slogans after Friday prayers. The angry demonstrators also hurled stones at Indian forces. The region has been the scene of protests and tight security since early July when Indian forces killed a leading pro-independence fighter. The protests have left nearly 90 civilians and two policemen dead and thousands more injured. Muslim-majority Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan, but claimed in full by both, since the two countries gained independence from Britain in 1947. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN warns of 'power vacuum' in Colombia Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 3:13PM The United Nations has warned of a "power vacuum" in Colombia caused by the slow implementation of the November 24 peace agreement between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Ravina Shamdasani, the spokeswoman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, told reporters on Friday that "practical aspects of the demobilization and disarming of FARC members set out in the accord are not being prioritized." Under the peace deal, FARC members are expected to gather in 27 zones where they will be demobilized and disarm. However, the spokeswoman said "none of these zones are equipped to adequately receive them" after two weeks into the demobilization process. The UN official said people in the zones lack access to safe drinking water, food, health services and electricity. Shamdasani said it was important to ensure that "combatants do not abandon the peace process" during the initial days of demobilization process. She also referred to a "similar lack of preparation and facilities" as well as a lack of concrete security measures in the so-called pre-concentration points where the FARC fighters have been gathering prior to the demobilization. "As FARC guerrillas leave areas that are traditionally under their control, the state has not yet fully stepped in, leaving a power vacuum," Shamdasani said. "Armed and criminal groups are vying for the control of illegal economic activities in these areas." According to the UN rights office, some 61 people have lost their lives in Colombia, most of them human rights activists and social leaders in rural areas. The spokeswoman said that more than a third of the deaths occurred after the first peace deal was struck in September. The UN also called on Colombia's government to designate a crisis manager with executive authority to tackle problems. "We are also calling for immediate, determined and visible state action on the ground to provide security and basic services, and to begin implementing all aspects of the accord to ensure that it lives up to the promise of peace for Colombia," the spokeswoman said. The initial deal, negotiated for some four years, was sealed on September 26 between the two warring sides but it was rejected unexpectedly by a razor-thin margin in a referendum on October 2, with opponents, led by former President Alvaro Uribe, saying that it was too lenient on the rebels and called for revisions. The final revised edition, however, was signed by the government and FARC on November 24 and won unanimous approval by both the senate and lower house of congress in late November and early December, respectively, ending 52 years of a deadly violence. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address 12 soldiers killed in militant attack on Burkina Faso army post Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 1:26PM Twelve Burkina Faso soldiers have been killed in an attack by dozens of unidentified assailants on a military post in Nassoumbou commune of the northwestern province of Soum. The province's high commissioner, Mohamed Dah, claimed extremist militants were behind the Friday attack. The army said the attack was carried out at about 5:00 a.m. local time on the military post, located about 30 kilometers from Mali's border. "About 40 heavily armed individuals who have not yet been identified" carried out the attack, the army said in a statement. Reports said those killed in the attack were mostly army soldiers but gendarme soldiers were also among them. It was not stated whether any assailants were killed or injured in the attack. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the assault. The attackers had also set fire to tents and military vehicles, according to reports. Militant attacks are seldom launched in the West African country. However, Burkina Faso's neighboring country, Mali, harbors many active militants. Authorities are concerned that the extended desert borders between the two countries could become a transit point for militants to cross over into Burkina Faso and carry out terrorist attacks there. A newly-formed militant group led by a combatant formerly loyal to Algeria's Mokhtar Belmokhtar claimed to have attacked a Burkinabe military post in September, and unidentified gunmen killed three Burkinabe soldiers and two civilians in October. In January, Takfiri terrorists linked to al-Qaeda staged a hostage-taking attack on a hotel in Burkina Faso's capital, Ouagadougou, which left 29 people dead. The attackers stormed a hotel where UN staff and Westerners regularly stayed. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Yemen on verge of famine amid Saudi attacks: UN officials Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 11:6AM The United Nations aid official in Yemen says the country is on the brink of famine, with a Saudi-led war having battered its economy and preventing distribution of food supplies to the hunger-stricken. Jamie McGoldrick, the world body's Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen, told Reuters on Friday that almost half of the country's 22 provinces had officially been rated as being in an emergency food situation. The course of the plight has been translated to a five-point scale. The situation places Yemen in the fourth stage. Yemen's former President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi resigned last year in spite of calls on him to revise the decision. The Riyadh-allied former head of state has been seeking to forcibly return to power since March 2015 on the back of the Saudi warfare. More than 11,400 people have died in the Arabian Peninsula's poorest nation since the war began, according to the latest tally by a Yemeni monitoring group. McGoldrick described the economy as "shredded." "I know there are some worrying developments and the deterioration we've seen in the economy and the health services and the ability to supply food would only give us an estimate that things are going to get much worse," McGoldrick said. Reports, meanwhile, said Yemen's biggest traders had stopped new wheat imports due to a crisis at the Central Bank. The complication was caused in September when Hadi ordered the bank to be relocated from the capital Sana'a to the port city of Aden, where he and his loyalists are currently based. The UN official said, "Throughout the whole of this country kids are dying." Eight out of 10 Yemeni children are stunted by malnutrition and every 10 minutes a child dies due to preventable diseases, UN figures have shown. Lack of funding and the fortunes of war have prevented the United Nations from properly distributing foodstuff through the country, where the offensive has left more than half of its 28 million people "food insecure," with seven million of them enduring hunger. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Philippines not worried after US deferred aid package: Minister Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 9:9AM The Philippines says it could live with even less aid from the United States after Washington said it was halting a decision on a major aid package to Manila. The US embassy in the Philippines said on Thursday that it had missed out on a second aid grant to Manila after it was "deeply troubled" by remarks made by President Rodrigo Duterte. Duterte had said in a speech on Monday that as a former mayor, he would patrol on a motorcycle, hunting for criminals to kill. He said that he was "really looking for an encounter to be able to kill." The US decision reflected "significant concerns around the rule of law and civil liberties in the Philippines," said Molly Koscina, a spokeswoman for the embassy. She made the remarks after the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), a US poverty reduction agency, said it had deferred this week a vote on a renewal of the development assistance package for the Philippines. The MCC wrote on its website that for a country to receive funding, it "must demonstrate a commitment to just and democratic governance, investments in its people and economic freedom." The Philippines Economic Planning Minister Ernesto Pernia, however, said his county was not worried about the decision. "It's not going to be anything of significance," he said. "Given the amount of investments that many countries are interested in putting in, I would not lose sleep over that." He said the Duterte government could tap other sources of financing in the region, including the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). Duterte has pledged to increase infrastructure spending to help lift economic growth of more than 100 million in the country. "The AIIB president was here the other day. He was trying to sell assistance," said Pernia, adding that the government would also talk to Japanese and Korean officials looking for projects to invest in. In October, the Philippine president suggested severing ties with the US after the White House criticized Manila's war on drugs, which has so far killed more than 2,300 suspected drug sellers and users. He also called on the US to withdraw its special forces troops from Philippines' Mindanao island, to where they dispatched in 2002 for what it called training and advising Philippine military units fighting local militants. Duterte said he was looking forward to relations improving under president-elect Donald Trump with whom he spoke on the phone in early December. He said Trump had encouraged him for the drug war and wished him well. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia, NATO schedule security talks Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 8:16AM Russia and NATO are set to hold talks on issues of high mutual interest, the Western military alliance has announced, amid increased hostilities between the two sides. Envoys from NATO will hold a formal meeting with the Russian envoy to the alliance on Monday, said NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg in the capital of Belgium, Brussels, on Thursday. The meeting was organized after Moscow agreed to discuss the conflict in eastern Ukraine and as the alliance seeks to avoid any escalation of an East-West stand-off. 'When tensions run high' The meeting is scheduled to take place at the NATO-Russia Council (NRC), the forum bringing together NATO ambassadors and Russia's top envoy to NATO. It would be the third time the NRC will convene this year. "The NATO-Russia council is an important platform for dialog and I have invited the members of the NATO-Russia council to a meeting on Monday," Stoltenberg said. "We will meet at ambassadorial level and we will meet at the NATO headquarters. We will discuss and address topics of relevance for European security, importantly Ukraine." "When tensions run high, as today, it is even more important to have direct dialog with Russia," he said. Russia has repeatedly voiced concerns about the US-led alliance's military build-up near its borders. The Russian permanent representative to NATO, Alexander Grushko, said he would raise at the meeting Moscow's concerns about NATO's plan to send multinational forces to the Baltics and Poland from next year. "We count on having a frank discussion about the security situation in Europe, taking into account those factors that have an impact on it, including, of course, the consequences of NATO reinforcements on the eastern flank," Grushko said. NATO has suspended all practical cooperation with Russia as part of efforts by the US, Europe, and their allies to exert pressure on the Kremlin following the Crimean Peninsula's separation from Ukraine and adhesion to Russia. It came after the majority ethnic Russians in Crimea voted to join the Russian Federation in a referendum in 2014. The West has described the development as an "annexation" of the territory by Russia. Western countries have also imposed heavy economic sanctions on Moscow over Ukraine. NATO also aims to send "battle groups" to the Baltic states and Poland early next year. The forces will consist of 40,000 troopers from the United States, Germany, Britain, Canada, and elsewhere. The move will be the biggest foreign military buildup near Russian borders since World War II. In response to the US-led alliance's aggressive moves, Russia has beefed up its southwestern military capacity and slapped its own sanctions on the opposite side. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia-Japan peace deal remains elusive Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 7:56AM The leaders of Russia and Japan have failed to reach a peace deal to formally end World War II hostilities between them following a meeting in the Japanese capital of Tokyo. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met in Tokyo on Friday to discuss a potential resolution of a dispute over the Kuril islands, a row that dates back to the WWII era. While they signed economic agreements during their Friday meeting, they failed to reach an agreement on the islands, which Japan calls the Northern Territories. Putin arrived in Japan to discuss the matter on Thursday. He held a first meeting with Abe in the southwestern city of Nagato on the day he arrived. They held a joint news conference in Tokyo, where they held a second meeting, on Friday. During the presser, Putin said Russia attached more importance to the signing of a peace deal with Japan than to its economic interests. "For me, the most important thing is to sign a peace deal [with Japan] because that would create the conditions for long-term co-operation," he said. The four islands were seized by the ex-Soviet Union in the final year of World War II. Japan says the Soviet Union took the islands illegally. Moscow, however, cites the San Francisco Peace Treaty of 1951, which abolished Japan's sovereignty over the islands, dismissing Japanese complaints. For his part, Abe said during the presser that the path toward striking a deal with Russia over the islands was "difficult." He said the objective could not be achieved without mutual trust. The difficulty Abe was referring to was in part put on display on Friday, when the two leaders made references to history in what sometimes appeared to be tacit lectures addressed to the other side at the joint presser. Putin did say, however, that Russia may relax rules for Japanese citizens to visit the Kuril islands in the Pacific. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pentagon Says Chinese Warship Seizes U.S. Underwater Drone In South China Sea RFE/RL December 16, 2016 The Pentagon says a Chinese warship has seized an unmanned U.S. Navy underwater glider that was collecting unclassified scientific data in the South China Sea. Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis says the United States has issued a formal diplomatic complaint about the incident and is asking for the return of the underwater drone. Davis said a U.S. Navy ship was recovering two unmanned gliders about 85 kilometers northwest of a U.S. naval base in the Philippines when the Chinese warship approached and took one of the small drone vessels. He said the Chinese ship acknowledged radio messages from the U.S. ship but did not respond to demands for the small vessel to be returned. U.S. officials say the drone -- about 3 meters long and less than 1 meter wide was lawfully conducting a military survey in the waters of the South China Sea. They described the drone as a "sovereign immune vessel, clearly marked in English not to be removed from the water" and saying that it is U.S. property. The Pentagon later confirmed that the value of the drone is about $150,000. Davis said: "It is ours, and it is clearly marked as ours and we would like it back. And we would like this not to happen again." China's embassy in Washington said it had no immediate comment about the incident, which is likely to fray already tense relations between the United States and Beijing. China in recent years has been building up military maritime outposts in the South China Sea. Beijing was angered by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's decision to talk by phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen on December 2. Trump also has said he does not feel "bound by a one-China policy" regarding the status of Taiwan, unless the United States gains trade or other benefits from Beijing. China claims that most of the South China Sea is its own territorial waters -- a position that has led to maritime territorial disputes with Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Indonesia. China's government has estimated the South China sea may contain some 17.7 billion tons of crude oil. With reporting by Reuters, AP, AFP, and dpa Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/pentagon-united-states -china-drone-south-china-sea/28180786.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address No Breakthrough On Russia-Japan Islands Dispute RFE/RL December 16, 2016 Russian President Vladimir Putin's trip to Japan has produced an agreement to hold talks on joint economic development of four islands claimed by both countries, but no breakthrough in the territorial dispute that dates back to World War II and beyond. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced the agreement on December 16, after two days of talks with Putin in Japan. Both Putin and Abe said joint development of the islands, which Russia calls the Southern Kuriles and Japan calls the Northern Territories, would be an important step toward a peace treaty. The dispute over the four islands seized by Soviet troops at the end of World War II has prevented Moscow and Tokyo from signing a treaty formally ending the war. But reaching agreement on joint development of the small, windswept islands northeast of Japan's Hokkaido could be difficult, as observers say Russia is interested in Japanese investment but is highly reluctant to cede sovereignty over the islands. Russia says that any development should be governed by Russian laws. Japan has called for an arrangement that Abe has said would not "infringe the sovereignty positions of either side." Putin's trip to Japan was his first official visit to a member of the Group of Seven (G7) leading industrialized nations -- the United States, Britain, France, Italy, Germany, Canada, and Japan -- since Russia angered the G7 by seizing Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. In an interview with Japanese media before the trip, Putin said the sanctions that Japan has joined Western countries in imposing on Russia were an obstacle to cooperation. With reporting by AP, Reuters, and AFP Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/russia-japan-kurile- island-dispute-putin-abe/28179870.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pentagon Urges China to Return 'Unlawfully Seized' Underwater Drone to US Sputnik News 21:41 16.12.2016(updated 23:26 16.12.2016) The US Department of Defense said China must immediately return a US unmanned underwater vehicle it "unlawfully seized" in the South China Sea. WASHINGTON (Sputnik) Earlier in the day it was reported that a Chinese warship seized a US unmanned underwater vehicle in the international waters in the South China Sea region. "Using appropriate government-to-government channels, the Department of Defense has called upon China to immediately return an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) that China unlawfully seized on Dec. 15 in the South China Sea while it was being recovered by a US Navy oceanographic survey ship," the release stated. The USNS Bowditch and the unmanned vehicle were conducting routine operations on Thursday in accordance to international law about 50 nautical miles from Subic Bay, Philippines when a Chinese warship sent a small boat to retrieve the unmanned underwater vehicle, the release said. The Chinese warship received a radio request from the Bowditch requesting the return of the seized vehicle, but ignored it, according to the release. The underwater vehicle is an unclassified "ocean glider" system used to gather military oceanographic data such as salinity, water temperature and sound speed. Washington and Beijing interests clash in the South China Sea, with China and US allies, including the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, Brunei and Vietnam, having competing claims to the territory. The US Navy continues patrols in the area despite Chinese protests. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN rights chief urges Gambian leader to respect results of presidential election 16 December 2016 The increased military presence deployed across Gambia since President Yayha Jammeh rejected the election result risks heightening the current climate of intimidation and harassment in the country, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights warned today. "This is deeply worrying, given the record of human rights violations in The Gambia, including excessive use of force against demonstrators, arbitrary detention and deaths in custody, as well as allegations of torture and ill-treatment of detainees," Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said. The High Commissioner also urged the Gambian authorities to allow people to exercise their rights to peaceful assembly, association and freedom of expression. "All those responsible for human rights violations must be held accountable." President Jammeh, who initially accepted his loss in the elections, later rejected the results published by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) and filed a petition with the Supreme Court. Mr. Zeid urged the President and all political parties to respect the result of the elections, the democratic process and the independent status of the IEC, whose premises were taken over by the army on Tuesday and officials ordered to leave. "All parties should conduct themselves in a manner that contributes to a peaceful atmosphere during this crucial period and, in particular, avoid using inflammatory language. We urge all sides to reaffirm their commitment to democracy and to work to ensure that there is a peaceful handover of the presidency by 18 January in line with the freely expressed desire and will of the Gambian people," the High Commissioner stressed. "President Jammeh and his Government should avoid resorting to threats or acts of intimidation, including against Mr. Barrow and his supporters, and members of the IEC," he added. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Possibility of genocide in South Sudan is 'all too real,' Ban warns in opinion piece 16 December 2016 Given the scale of the disaster in South Sudan, the United Nations Security Council, regional organizations and the international community must step up to their responsibility to the help the country's people, who have suffered through three years of bloody conflict, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today in an opinion piece published by Newsweek. The UN chief recalled that following decades of war, South Sudan became the world's newest country five years ago and when he attended the 2011 independence celebrations in the capital, Juba, "hopes were high that the long-suffering people of the oil-rich country would finally see the fruits of a peace dividend after a prolonged civil war. Instead, the people of South Sudan now face a more dismal anniversary." South Sudan has faced ongoing challenges since a political face-off between President Salva Kiir and his Vice-President Riek Machar erupted into full blown conflict in December 2013. The crisis has produced one of the world's worst displacement situations with immense suffering for civilians. Despite the August 2015 peace agreement that formally ended the war, conflict and instability have also spread to previously unaffected areas in the Greater Equatoria and Greater Bahr-El-Ghazal regions of South Sudan. Mr. Ban said tens of thousands have been killed, the country's social fabric has been "shattered," the economy is ruined, millions have fled their homes, and hunger and poverty prevail. More than six million people are in need of life-saving aid. "Meanwhile," he wrote, "restrictions imposed by the Government of South Sudan on the UN Mission in the country," known as UNMISS, and humanitarian organizations continue to tighten. He also pointed to the ways in which the Government has betrayed its people's trust: "President Salva Kiir has pursued an ethnically-based strategy to suppress dissent, muzzle the media, exclude significant South Sudanese actors in the peace process, and unilaterally implement an agreement to reach elections." Other leaders in the country have intensified the conflict by "manipulating ethnicity for political gain." He warned that "the risk of these mass atrocities, which include recurring episodes of ethnic cleansing, escalating into possible genocide is all too real." Stakeholders in the region and the UN Security Council have been in a deadlock on how to respond to the conflict, despite the fact that thousands continue to die and suffer horrendous crimes. Mr. Ban insisted that the international community must meet its responsibilities, and noted that while leaders such as the former Malian President Alpha Oumar Konare (the African Union High Representative for South Sudan) had made important strides, far greater action is required. While the Secretary- General has taken important measures to improve UNMISS, he noted that the conflict would not be resolved simply by reinforcing the peacekeeping Mission. He called for a cessation of hostilities and an authentically inclusive political process and that if it were to not happen immediately, the Security Council should impose an arms embargo along with targeted sanctions to elicit peaceful cooperation from all parties. He added that perpetrators of crimes must be held accountable at all levels. Noting that as the rainy season ends and both sides are gearing up for "another vicious cycle of violence," Mr. Ban said swift action is critical and all leaders within the country are responsible for the restoration of inclusive dialogue. "If they fail," he concluded, "the international community, the region, and the Security Council in particular, must impose penalties on the leadership on both sides. We owe this to the people of South Sudan, who have suffered far too much, for far too long." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN refugee agency chief launches appeal to support thousands displaced in Lake Chad Basin 16 December 2016 The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, launched today a multi-million dollar inter-agency appeal to provide support to nearly 500,000 people who have been affected by the Boko Haram insurgency, including those in Niger, Chad, and Cameroon, as well as Nigerian refugees. "This is one of Africa's largest displacement crises and the world cannot afford to brush it under the carpet," said Mr. Grandi before a ceremony in Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon, where he announced the Nigeria Regional Refugee Response Plan (RRRP). Earlier the week, Mr. Grandi visited refugees and internally displaced people in Niger, Chad, and Cameroon. He will visit those in Nigeria in the coming days. "The suffering and desperate conditions in the Lake Chad region are among the harshest I have seen. Refugees, returnees and host communities who have survived violence and trauma by the Boko Haram insurgency urgently need help," he said. The United Nations and its partners are seeking $241 million over the next year to support some 460,000 people through the 2017 Nigeria RRRP. More than half of the funds ($154.29 million) will be allocated to refugees in Niger, with $67.25 million for operations in Cameroon and $19.61 million for those in Chad. The request for 2017 is a $43 million increase from this year's plan. While security in the host countries has improved, refugees remain insufficiently protected, lack durable shelter, food, and health care, are facing malnutrition, and need access to water, sanitation, and hygiene as well as education and a means of livelihood. Environmental damage is also an issue throughout the host countries. Stepped up funding from the international community is essential, particularly because the situation remains unpredictable and there are no immediate prospects of a resolution or an opportunity for return. Meanwhile, the Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is urging the international community to invest in development programmes for refugees and the host communities. During his field visits, Mr. Grandi noted the innovative development taking place to benefit both groups of people, including gas distribution projects in Diffa, Niger, and boats for fishing communities in Baga Sola, Chad. Throughout 2016, refugees faced continued conflict, displacement, and suffering in an area already facing extreme poverty, harsh climatic conditions, disrupted economic activity, and limited or destroyed infrastructure. The UNHCR is therefore urging humanitarian aid agencies to work with governments in order to reach more people in need and calling for urgent funding so that such work can continue. Separately, aid groups in the region are seeking more than $1 billion from donors in order to support some 1.8 million people within Nigeria. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address China Seizes US Navy Underwater Drone in South China Sea By Carla Babb December 16, 2016 The Chinese Navy has seized a U.S. naval underwater drone from international waters in the South China Sea. The Pentagon has used diplomatic channels to call for the immediate return of the unmanned ocean glider and to ask that China not repeat these types of incidents. Although unmanned, the glider still retains the protections of a sovereign U.S. vessel. "This is an action that's not in keeping with international law," Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis said. "It's certainly not something we consider to be commensurate with [China's] level as a professional military." Davis told reporters a civilian-manned Navy oceanographic research vessel was in the process of recovering two underwater ocean gliders that were "stopped dead in the water" about 93 kilometers from Subic Bay in the Philippines when a Chinese military vessel approached Thursday. The Chinese DALANG-III Class ship, hull number ASR-510, dispatched a smaller vessel into the water and snatched one of the unmanned gliders as the U.S. Navy ship was retrieving the other one. "There were multiple attempts over bridge-to-bridge radio to demand it back," said Davis. "[The Chinese Navy] acknowledged the communications on bridge-to-bridge radio, so it wasn't a radio problem, but ignored the requests for it to be returned," he added. Davis said the Chinese gave no reason for taking the U.S. underwater drone, which he said has a retail value of about $150,000. As the Chinese vessel was leaving, the only communication its crew sent to the U.S. Navy ship was, "We are returning to normal operations," according to Davis. The Pentagon says the glider drone measures unclassified information, including water temperature, clarity, salinity, and how fast sound travels through the water. The bathometric data is gathered to help with sonar use in the water, among other things, and is collected by the U.S. military in international waters across the globe. The two gliders being recovered had run a pre-programmed route and had stopped in the South China Sea's international waters for a routine recovery mission, according to Davis. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address BlackBerry Ltd said China's TCL Communication Technology Holdings Ltd would make and offer BlackBerry-marked cell phones internationally, the Canadian cell phone pioneer's first permitting bargain since its move to a product organization. The devices made by TCL, which likewise makes Alcatel-marked cell phones, will be combined with BlackBerry's security software and service suite, the organization said on Dec 15. BlackBerry is wagering its future on the more gainful business of making software and overseeing cell phones after to a great extent surrendering the cell phone market to opponents, for example, Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd. BlackBerry said in September that would outsource the development of its cell phones, and after a month propelled its last cell phone the Android-based DTEK60, which was made under a concurrence with TCL. The new understanding gives TCL, the fourth-biggest handset producer in North America, the privilege to make and offer BlackBerry-marked cell phones in all nations aside from India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and Indonesia, some of BlackBerry's greatest handset markets. BlackBerry in September marked an arrangement giving Indonesia's BB Merah Putih the rights to make and offer new gadgets in that nation, its biggest handset market. Nova Launcher 5.0 Beta Update Includes Google Pixel... No Mobile Payment App in India is Completely Secure: Qualcomm Microsoft says the 'disappointment of the new MacBook... With Boko Haram on Backfoot, Cameroon, Nigeria Reopen Border By Moki Edwin Kindzeka December 16, 2016 The border between Nigeria and Cameroon has been completely reopened for the first time in three years. It's a key sign of progress in the war against Boko Haram. Officials from the two countries met this week in Yaounde to review security issues. They were welcomed by a military band before sitting down to discuss Boko Haram. Officials here say the threat of terrorist attacks has been greatly reduced due to joint cross-border military raids targeting the Islamist militant group. They say that the border between Cameroon and Nigeria is now completely reopened, a process that began last month. "Only a secured environment can provide avenue for meaningful trade and commercial activities as well as unimpeded exchange of goods and services," General Abba Mohammad Dikko, the head of the Nigerian delegation told VOA. "The unflinching cooperation and support of Cameroon has indeed curtailed the menace of the Boko Haram sect in all its ramifications. Success against Boko Haram will end movement of refugees across boundaries and create an enabling environment for the return and repatriation of internally displaced persons back to their ancestral lands," he added. Insurgency origin The Boko Haram insurgency began in northeastern Nigeria in 2009, eventually spreading to neighboring Cameroon, Chad and Niger. The conflict has displaced 2.7 million people, according to the U.N. At least 20,000 people have died in the violence. But an end to the conflict, while welcome, will present fresh issues, said Professor Saibou Issa, a historian and member of the Cameroon delegation. "We know today that thousands of people especially young men from Cameroon, Nigeria and Chad joined Boko Haram," said Issa. "As progressively Boko Haram attacks are diminishing, it is may be time to think about how the states are going to cope with these young people. There is the challenge of managing the vigilantes who are contributing a lot in fighting against Boko Haram." Cameroon's northern border areas were hit hard by the insurgency. Farming and trade ground to a halt. But the area is slowly returning to life, said the governor of the Far North region of Cameroon, Midjiyawa Bakari. "We have been authorized by the heads of state to open the border between Nigeria and Cameroon and people are very happy," Bakari said. "Schools have been reopened. We have trucks coming from Maiduguri to N'djamena through Fotokol, Cameroon, and from Cameroon to Nigeria and also the cows." Security concerns remain, with both countries warning about Boko Haram's continued use of female suicide bombers, described by officials here as the last lashes of a dying monster. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Trump Nominates Controversial Figure as Ambassador to Israel By VOA News December 16, 2016 U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has nominated a controversial figure to become the country's next ambassador to Israel. Bankruptcy lawyer David Friedman, with far-right leanings, is Trump's choice. Friedman has expressed his opposition to a key tenet of U.S. policy in the region: the two-state solution of an Israeli and Palestinian state living peacefully side by side. He has also compared liberal Jews in the U.S. to the Jews who helped the Nazis during World War II. In a statement acknowledging his nomination, Friedman said he looked forward to doing his job "from the U.S. embassy in Israel's eternal capital, Jerusalem." The U.S. embassy is in Tel Aviv. Both Israel and Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their capital, and its status has long been a part of peace negotiations. Friedman was an adviser to Trump during the campaign when Trump said he would move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a measure sure to raise international objections, especially from the Arab world. Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat told the Associated Press this week he has talked with Trump's staff about relocating the embassy to Jerusalem. Barkat said his conversations have led him to believe Trump is serious about making the move. Past U.S. presidents have advocated moving the embassy to Jerusalem, but never actually took action on the matter. Friedman is also is a proponent of annexing the West Bank, something most of the international community considers illegal. "This nomination is reckless," said Jeremy Ban-Ami, the president of J Street, a leftist pro-Israel, U.S.-based organization. "Friedman should be beyond the pale for senators considering who should represent the United States in Israel." The conservative Jewish-American Zionist Organization for America welcomed news of Friedman's nomination. The group said Friedman has "the potential to be the greatest U.S. ambassador to Israel ever." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Zimbabwe's Mugabe Tries to Unite Fractious Party By Sebastian Mhofu December 16, 2016 Africa's oldest head of state, President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, says he has no immediate plans to step down. In fact, on Friday the Zimbabwean leader said he was not happy with some members of his ruling ZANU-PF party who are calling for him to resign. Speaking at the official opening of the ZANU-PF annual conference in Masvingo, about 300 kilometers south of Harare, the 92-year-old leader urged his party to unite as Zimbabwe heads toward its next elections in 2018. His party has two factions angling to succeed the Zimbabwean leader. Mugabe accused the factions of using social media to attack each other, saying "we must not settle our issues through Facebook and Twitter." "There is a new culture of indiscipline in the party by some of the members who are here," Mugabe said. "They do what they want. There is even contempt and arrogancetumwe twacho hanzi VaMugabe hatichivade, zvino zvausasavade wati zvoitwa seiko iwe pachezvako." In the Shona language, he says there are some who say they no longer like Mugabe. He asks them: What do you want done? It is almost taboo in ZANU-PF to discuss who will replace Mugabe, who has been at the helm of Zimbabwe since it won independence from Great Britain in 1980. But with Zimbabwe's collapsed economy showing no signs of life, and with the president set to turn 93 in February, such talk has begun - even though the president is choosing not to hear. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Give proof or end hacking accusations, Russia tells US Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 11:2AM Russia has rejected allegations by the United States government that Russia interfered in the recent presidential race in the US. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warned US officials on Friday that they should either prove the claims or stop "indecently" accusing Russia. "Either stop talking about it or finally provide some evidence. Otherwise it looks indecent," Peskov said to reporters in Japanese capital, Tokyo, on Friday. Peskov's remarks came after the White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest claimed on Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin had played a direct role in attempt to interfere with the 2016 US presidential election, which was held on November 8. Earnest said Putin had personally ordered Russian agents to hack the Democratic Party organizations. Earnest's comments came after NBC News reported on Wednesday, citing anonymous US intelligence sources, that Putin became involved in the hacking operation during the election campaign as part of a "vendetta" against Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. In 2011, when she was US Secretary of State, Clinton had undermined the legitimacy of the Russian parliamentary elections and reportedly attempted to incite anti-government protests. Russia has denied the hacking allegations. On Tuesday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova said in a Facebook post that the allegations of hacking by Russia looked liked "banal infighting between US security services." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address White House backs claim Putin directed US election hack Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 2:23AM The White House has suggested President Vladimir Putin was personally involved in a covert Russian mission to intervene in the 2016 US presidential election. White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said on Thursday that he shared the view of US intelligence officials, reported by NBC News, that Putin played a direct role in the hacking operation aimed at interfering with the US election. Earnest stated that it was "pretty obvious" that Putin was involved, dramatically upping the ante in a dispute between the Obama administration and the Kremlin. Meanwhile, White House Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes said that the Russian president maintains tight control on government operations. "I don't think things happen in the Russian government of this consequence without Vladimir Putin knowing about it," said Rhodes. "Everything we know about how Russia operates and how Putin controls that government would suggest that, again, when you're talking about a significant cyber intrusion like this, we're talking about the highest levels of government," he told MSNBC television. "And ultimately, Vladimir Putin is the official responsible for the actions of the Russian government," he stated. US intelligence officials believe with "a high level of confidence" that Putin became involved in hacking during the American election campaign as part of a "vendetta" against Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, NBC News reported on Wednesday. The anonymous officials, purportedly having direct access to the information, told the news network that Putin personally instructed how material hacked from US Democratic lawmakers was leaked and otherwise used. The officials argued that the Russian president was not only seeking a "vendetta" against Clinton but also wanted to expose massive corruption in American politics and to "split off key American allies by creating the image that [other countries] couldn't depend on the US to be a credible global leader anymore." In 2011, Clinton then US secretary of state publicly challenged the integrity of the Russian parliamentary elections, and reportedly attempted to incite street protests against the government of Putin. The American officials claimed that the Russian leader has never forgiven Clinton over these anti-Russian moves. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia Challenges U.S. To Prove It Meddled In Election RFE/RL December 16, 2016 The Kremlin is challenging the United States to prove allegations of Russian meddling in the U.S. presidential election, saying that Washington should provide evidence or stay silent. "It's necessary to either stop talking about this or show some proof already," Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told journalists on the sidelines of Putin's summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo. "Otherwise it looks quite unseemly." Peskov spoke a day after President Barack Obama said the United States would "take action" against Russia for interfering in the election. "I think there is no doubt that when any foreign government tries to impact the integrity of our elections...we need to take action and we will," Obama said in an interview with National Public Radio that was released late on December 15. "At a time and a place of our own choosing. Some of it may be...explicit and publicized; some of it may not be," Obama told NPR. He said, "Mr. Putin is well aware of my feelings about this, because I spoke to him directly about it." His comments came as the White House has grown increasingly explicit in suggesting Russian President Vladimir Putin personally ordered the hacking and subsequent leaking of internal Democratic e-mails in an attempt to help elect Republican Donald Trump over his Democratic opponent HIllary Clinton. Earlier on December 15, White House deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes said the cyberattacks, which U.S. intelligence has accused Russia of directing, would have required Putin's approval. "I don't think things happen in the Russian government of this consequence without Vladimir Putin knowing about it.... When you're talking about a significant cyber intrusion like this, we're talking about the highest levels of government," Rhodes told MSNBC. His remarks followed recent media reports citing unidentified U.S. intelligence officials as saying that a CIA assessment had determined that Russia's aim was indeed to help President-elect Donald Trump defeat Democratic rival Hillary Clinton in the November 8 election. Both the Kremlin and Trump have dismissed the allegation. In October, Obama authorized the U.S. director of national security and the Department of Homeland Security to issue a statement saying that they are "confident" the Russian government "directed" the hacking of e-mails of individuals and groups, including political organizations. Though the statement did not name the targets, it was a clear reference to cyber-breaches of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and Clinton's campaign, among others. Leaked e-mails from those intrusions are widely seen as having damaged Clinton in the election. The October statement did not name Putin or suggest that the alleged Russian effort was aimed at helping Trump, who has pledged to seek a warming of ties with Moscow that have been badly strained over the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria. The televised comments by Rhodes came less than 24 hours after an NBC News report that U.S. intelligence officials believe with a "high level of confidence" that Putin was personally involved in Russian efforts to interfere in the election. Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said the Kremlin considered the NBC News report to be "laughable nonsense." Without explicitly denying it, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he was "stunned" by the report and added, "In my view, the stupidity and absolute futility of...an effort to convince someone of this is obvious." Discrediting Democracy The Reuters news agency later cited three unidentified U.S. officials as saying that Putin supervised Russian intelligence agencies' hacking of the U.S. election and shifted the goal from discrediting U.S. democracy to helping Trump. "This began merely as an effort to show that American democracy is no more credible than Putin's version is," Reuters quoted on of the officials as saying. "It gradually evolved from that to publicizing (Hillary) Clinton's shortcomings and ignoring the products of hacking Republican institutions, which the Russians also did." By autumn, it became a bid to help Trump's campaign because "Putin believed he would be much friendlier to Russia, especially on the matter of economic sanctions" than Clinton," the official was quoted as saying. Meanwhile, Secretary of State John Kerry told reporters on December 15 that he is confident that the U.S. administration in the coming weeks will disclose further details on the alleged Russian hacking. Kerry declined to comment on Putin's potential involvement or the possibility that the cyberattacks were aimed at helping Trump. But he said he believes Obama's administration will soon disclose more details about the cyber-intrusions. "Now we have to get out the facts, and I'm confident we will in the months ahead," Kerry said. Trump is set to take office on January 20. Kerry defended Obama, who campaigned for Clinton in the election, against critics who have said he should have come out more forcefully on the alleged Russian hacking campaign ahead of the vote. Kerry cited the public statement accusing Moscow of directing the effort. "The president understood and made clear it's a serious matter. It was a serious matter then, and it's a serious matter now as even more information comes out," Kerry said. With reporting by RFE/RL correspondent Carl Schreck, Reuters, AP, and NBC News Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/obama-warns-us -will-take-action-against-russia- meddling-in-election/28179409.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US Increases Reward on IS Leader to $25 Million By VOA News December 16, 2016 The United States has more than doubled to $25 million the reward for information leading to the capture of Islamic State leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The U.S. State Department's Rewards for Justice program announced the increase Friday from $10 million, saying the threat Baghdadi poses has increased significantly in recent years. The reward will be paid to anyone who can offer "information leading to the location, arrest or conviction" of the militant. "Under al-Baghdadi, ISIL has been responsible for the deaths of thousands of civilians in the Middle East, including the brutal murder of numerous civilian hostages from Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States," the State Department said, using an acronym for Islamic State. It said Islamic State also has "enabled or directed terrorist attacks beyond the borders of its self-declared caliphate." Baghdadi declared himself the leader of a Muslim caliphate two years ago. He generally keeps a low profile, but last month he released an audio message urging his supports to defend the Islamic State-held city of Mosul, Iraq. Baghdadi's location is not known, but some believe he could be in Mosul or in territory outside the city, near the border with Syria. Officials believe that the coalition military assault on Mosul could cause Baghdadi or his top officials to move around to remain hidden. Baghdadi has been reported injured or dead multiple times, but the claims have never been verified. In a statement released to the media in early July 2014, Baghdadi widely condemned the West and summoned all Muslims, especially those with military, medical, administrative and public service experience, to emigrate to the caliphate to "take up arms and fight, fight!" NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Obama: Told Russia to 'Cut It Out' on Hacking, Didn't See Further Tampering By VOA News December 16, 2016 President Barack Obama says after U.S. officials realized Russia had hacked the Democratic National Committee email system, he told Russian President Vladimir Putin to "cut it out" during a G-20 meeting in China in September. During his final year-end news conference on Friday, Obama said officials were alerted earlier this summer to Russian hacking of the DNC. He told reporters at the White House that his main concern was to ensure the cyberattacks did not escalate, compounding the problem, and "affect the actual election process itself." To make sure that didn't happen, Obama said when he saw Putin in China, "I felt that the most effective way ... was to talk to him directly and tell him to cut it out and there were going to be serious consequences if he didn't." "We did not see further tampering of the election process, but the leaks from Wikileaks were already out there," he added. When asked if he believed the U.S. held a free-and-fair election in November, Obama said: "I can assure the public that there was not the kind of tampering with the voting process that was a concern and will continue to be a concern. That the votes that were cast were counted, they were counted appropriately. We have not seen evidence of machines being tampered with. That assurance I can provide." Obama defended how his administration handled the DNC hacking. "We handled it the way it should have been handled," he said, saying they allowed law enforcement to do their jobs. He said if he had commented more on the hacking, the issue "would have become a political scrum." Obama said with the "hyperpartisan atmosphere" of the election, his main concern was the integrity of the election process. He says he wanted to make sure Americans understood the White House was trying to "play this thing straight." He also took the media to task for their role in election coverage, saying, "I'm finding it a little curious that everybody's acting surprised that this would have undermined the election of Hillary Clinton because you guys wrote about it every day. ... This was an obsession that dominated the news coverage. "This was not some elaborate, complicated espionage scheme. They hacked into some Democratic party emails that contained fairly routine stuff. Some of it embarrassing or controversial. ... And then it just took off," Obama said. "But the truth of the matter is that everybody had the information." He said the hacking of the emails, and the daily leak of the information, raised several issues, including the growing challenges of cybersecurity. "We are a digital culture," Obama said. "There is not a branch of our government that somebody is not phishing for something ... and this is why for the last eight year (he has struggled) with how to do we continually upgrade our cybersecurity system." When asked about Syria, Obama said the country is "one of the hardest issues I've faced." He denounced the "horror" in Aleppo on Friday and called for impartial observers after Syria's government suspended the evacuation of civilians and fighters from the last rebel-held areas. Obama said President Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime and its Iranian and Russian backers are solely responsible for the slaughter of civilians in Aleppo. "This blood and these atrocities are on their hands," he said. "The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian regime on the city of Aleppo." He said he understands the desire for action to end the conflict, but it would have been impossible to do "on the cheap" without a full U.S. military intervention. "Unless we were all in and willing to take over Syria, we were going to have problems," Obama told reporters. He said any U.S. involvement would have required "putting large numbers of U.S. troops on the ground, uninvited, without any international law mandate." Asked about President-elect Donald Trump, Obama said their conversations have been cordial and have included specific suggestions. Obama said he would make himself available to Trump, as previous presidents have made themselves available to him. He said Trump "is still in transition mode." "As I've said before, I think that the president-elect is still in transition mode, from campaign to governance. ... He still has campaign spokesman sort of filling in and appearing on cable shows. There's just a whole different attitude and vibe when you're not in power as when you're in power," the president added. When asked what were the risks of Trump ignoring reports of Russian hacking, and denying them. Obama said, "The Russians were responsible for hacking the DNC. ... That should be a bipartisan issue, that shouldn't be a partisan issue. "My hope is that the president-elect is going to be similarly concerned that we shouldn't have foreign interference in our election process," Obama said. "The transition from election season to governance season is not always smooth. You know it's bumpy. When Donald Trump takes the oath of office and is sworn in, he's got a different set of responsibilities and considerations." At one point, Obama raised a statistic from a poll that one-third of Republican voters approved of Russian President Putin, the former head of the KGB. "Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave. And how did that happen? ... Because for too long, everything that happens in this town, everything that's said, is through the prism of, does this help or hurt us relative to Democrats? Relative to President Obama?" he said. "We've lost track of what we're about and what we stand for." Obama began the news conference by reviewing his administration's successes and failures of the past eight years. Obama began the news conference by saying this one was special in that he would be reviewing not only the past year, but efforts over his entire presidency. It will be the president's final year-end news conference -- he leaves office on January 20. He highlighted low unemployment numbers, millions who now have health care coverage, restoring relations with Cuba, and getting nearly 200 nations to sign on to a climate agreement as advances during his two terms as U.S. president. "By so many measures, our country is better now than when we started," Obama said. Shortly after the afternoon news conference, Obama and his family will leave for Hawaii, where they vacation for the holidays. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Authorities: IS Fighter in Syria Plots Terror in Indonesia By Noor Zahid, Irna Sinulingga December 16, 2016 One of Indonesia's most wanted men is a computer geek skilled at bomb-making who joined the Islamic State in Syria, where police say he now directs terror attacks against his native land. Indonesian authorities say they have linked Bahrun Naim to a string of terror attacks and plots to destabilize his homeland. He reportedly directs IS operations in Indonesia through the Telegram app favored by IS in Raqqa, which is the militant group's de facto capital in Syria, the officials said. On Friday, Indonesia's anti-terror police said they arrested 11 suspected terrorists linked to Naim's network. Police said the group had planned to attack the presidential palace in Jakarta. Naim, 33, was the alleged ringleader of a terror plot in Jakarta that was foiled over the weekend. Authorities said a female would-be suicide bomber and a suspected IS loyalist were arrested while planning to attack high-profile targets in the nation's capital. "They learned how to assemble a bomb from Bahrun Naim," police commissioner Awi Setiyono told reporters. Using social media channels and contacts in Indonesia, Naim has been actively recruiting people from Syria for terror activities and funds terror plots in the country, Indonesian police said. Coordinating activities Authorities said they thought Naim was the leading coordinator for IS activities in Indonesia. "Bahrun Naim continuously tries to appeal to people in Indonesia, as well as in countries like Malaysia and Singapore, to carry out terror activities for IS," Sidney Jones, director of Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict, a Jakarta-based research group, told VOA's Indonesian service. Naim has been tied to a number of attacks and failed terror plots in Indonesia this year, including a July suicide bombing in the Javanese city of Solo, police said. He was identified as the mastermind of coordinated bomb and gun attacks in central Jakarta in January that killed eight people, including the four attackers. IS claimed responsibility for the incidents. Naim was also linked to a suspected militant arrested during a raid last month. Police said that during the raid, they found enough chemicals to build a bomb twice as powerful as the one used in the Bali bombing in 2002, which killed 202 people, according to Reuters. "On the orders of Bahrun Naim, they formed small cells and assembled bombs with other suspected militants," police commissioner Setiyono told reporters. Naim is known to be an expert in explosives, analyst Jones said. "He has written some sort of a guidebook containing instructions on how to make bombs," she added. Radical groups According to media accounts, Naim was born in Central Java's Pekalongan city in 1983. He grew up in Solo, a city where radical groups have had a longtime presence, and graduated with a degree in computer technology in 2005. Naim was arrested on suspicion of involvement in a terrorism network in November 2010, and he was convicted in June 2011 of illegal possession of ammunition. The court, however, found insufficient evidence to pursue the terror charges, Indonesian authorities said. He fled the country in early 2015. Authorities tracked him to Syria, where they say he has continued strengthening his terrorist network in Indonesia. Naim has used Telegram message channels to communicate with his network in Indonesia and has taught followers how to assemble explosives, Setiyono said. "Bahrun communicates also through Twitter and sends messages to people, not only in Indonesia but also in several other countries," Wawan Purwanto, an intelligence analyst at Indonesia's anti-terror agency, told VOA. "He [Naim] has a huge influence over his network. He brings new inspiration to his followers through social media," Purwanto said. "In fact, people are influenced by what he posts on social media." Blog on terrorist attacks According to the BBC, Naim reportedly maintained a blog, portraying himself as a "freelance journalist." He has published posts on how to carry out terrorist attacks, make bombs and dodge surveillance. The blog also praised several attacks carried out by IS and its affiliates, the BBC reported. Attempts by VOA to access the blog found that it had been blocked. Islamic State remains a threat to Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country, authorities said. As many as 384 Indonesians have joined IS, according to Indonesia's counterterrorism agency. Most of those have traveled to Syria and Iraq. Indonesian authorities last month said they were investigating the reported death in Iraq of a prominent IS commander from Indonesia, who was defending the militant stronghold of Mosul during a U.S.-backed military effort to dislodge the group. Andy Lala and Ahadian Utama of VOA's Indonesian service contributed to this report from Jakarta. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address S.Korean frontrunner in presidential poll argues for delay of THAAD deployment People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 08:48, December 16, 2016 South Korea's frontrunner in presidential polls on Thursday made out his case that the deployment of a U.S. missile defense system in his country must be delayed to allow the next government to review it. Moon Jae-in, former head of the main opposition Minjoo Party, told foreign correspondents in Seoul that the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) installation issue must be postponed to let next administration to reconsider it. The frontrunner in recent presidential surveys said the THAAD deployment is a matter having gains and losses from the perspective of national security of South Korea. The Park Geun-hye administration, Moon said, failed to go through the process of finding a public consensus in the U.S. anti-missile battery installation, while refraining from making diplomatic efforts on China and Russia. Seoul and Washington abruptly announced their agreement in July to deploy one THAAD battery in southeast South Korea by the end of next year. Commander of U.S. forces stationed in South Korea indicated the installation within the second half of 2017. China and Russia have expressed strong oppositions to the U.S. missile defense battery that can peer into territories of the two countries. South Korea, which had maintained a position of so-called "three Nos" meaning no proposal, no negotiation and no decision, declared the deployment as a bolt from the blue. Moon, the runner-up to President Park in the 2012 election, said it is not appropriate to continue to push the THAAD installation in current situations that the president is impeached and the prime minister serves as acting president. President Park was impeached last Friday by 234 to 56 in the 300-seat National Assembly, suspending her from office immediately. Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn assumed temporary presidential power until the constitutional court rules on it up to 180 days. "It is desirable for next administration to make a rational decision (on THAAD deployment) after sufficient efforts to find public consensus and diplomatic efforts (on neighboring countries)," said Moon. Moon has maintained first place in presidential polls for the seventh consecutive week at 24.0 percent, up 0.9 percentage points from the previous week. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US Military Tests Ground Forces Communication With Space-Based IR Satellites Sputnik News 03:01 16.12.2016 The US military tested the latest version of the ground-based Joint Tactical Ground System (JTAGS) that communicates with space-based infrared satellites. WASHINGTON (Sputnik) The US military tested the latest version of the ground-based Joint Tactical Ground System (JTAGS) that communicates with space-based infrared satellites, the Army said in a press release. "Military operational testers recently conducted the first operational test in 20 years of the Joint Tactical Ground Station (JTAGS) that communicates with the Air Force's space-based infrared satellites (SBIRS)," the release stated on Thursday. "The system that underwent the recent testing was a new version of the system." The new JTAGS system provides real time alert information to forces on the ground to facilitate force protection efforts, defense, and attack operations, the release explained. SBIRS, is an orbiting network of satellites in Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO), payloads in Highly Elliptical Orbit (HEO), and flexible ground processing and control systems that provide a continuous view of the Earth's surface. Five JTAGS are deployed worldwide as part of the US Strategic Command's Tactical Event System. Army Space and Missile Defense Command Soldiers operate JTAGS to provide 24/7 support to theater operations. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address CNS Liaoning leads live-fire drill People's Daily Online By Zhao Lei (China Daily) 11:02, December 16, 2016 China recently carried out the first live-fire exercise for its aircraft carrier battle group in the Bohai Sea, the People's Liberation Army Navy said on Thursday night. Dozens of ships and aircraft from the CNS Liaoning carrier battle group and the North Sea Fleet took part in the massive exercise. They fired more than 10 air-to-air, anti-ship and air defense missiles, the PLA Navy said in a statement. It did not disclose the exact time of the exercise. The Liaoning performed various drills with several destroyers and frigates, involving scenarios such as reconnaissance, aircraft interception, sea strikes as well as missile defense. Multiple groups of J-15 carrier-borne fighter jets used air-to-air and anti-ship missiles to hit targets during the exercise, according to the Navy. The statement also quoted chiefs of the Navy's training bureau as saying that the event was planned as part of the aircraft carrier's training schedule and aimed at verifying capabilities of personnel and weapons. Videos of the Liaoning's J-15 fighters firing missiles were broadcast on China Central Television, the first time images of J-15 live-fire exercises have been shown to the public. Rear Admiral Chen Yueqi, commander of the Liaoning carrier battle group, said the exercise is a "milestone" for the unit. "It enabled us to explore how to organize a carrier battle group exercise and to test the training levels of our sailors and pilots. It can also boost the battle group's efforts to become combat ready as early as possible," he told CCTV. Commander Xu Ying, chief of a J-15 squadron that participated in the event, was quoted by the State broadcaster as saying that through the exercise, pilots improved their use of tactics and weapons and enhanced confidence in their equipment. Though the Navy did not disclose components of the carrier battle group, Zhang Junshe, a senior researcher at the PLA Naval Military Studies Research Institute, told China Daily that he thinks the battle group would have three Type 052C or Type 052D destroyers, both of which have advanced vertical-launch missile systems and cutting-edge air defense radar, three Type 054A frigates, one replenishment ship and one attack submarine. "The recent exercise is really a landmark for the carrier battle group because it means the group's ships and aircraft have achieved a high level of integration and cooperation and that the unit is closer to gaining combat readiness," Zhang said. "Next, the group would focus on honing its air defense and counter-submarine capabilities." Wu Peixin, an aviation industry observer in Beijing, said the news indicates that the J-15 fighter force has obtained initial operational capability. "The J-15 is as mighty as the United States' F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. It is capable of carrying out multiple operations such as fleet air defense and anti-ship strikes," he said. The Liaoning was commissioned in the PLA Navy in September 2012 in Dalian, Liaoning province. Its battle group took shape in December 2013, when the carrier and several escort vessels, including two guided missile destroyers, two guided missile frigates and an attack submarine took part in a long-range formation drill in the South China Sea. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Chinese battle group conducts live-fire drills Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 5:50AM A Chinese naval battle group, involving a homemade aircraft carrier, has conducted a live-fire drill in northeastern waters in a show of force amid an escalating war of words with the United States. The Chinese Defense Ministry announced on Thursday that dozens of ships and aircraft had taken part in the exercise "a few days ago" in the Bohai Sea in eastern China. It was the first time aircraft carrier Liaoning was participating in a live-fire drill. The ships and aircraft engaged in air-to-air, air-to-sea, and sea-to-air combat drills that featured guided missiles being tested. The ministry said the objective of the exercises was to test weapon performance and train personnel with reconnaissance and early-warning systems in air interception, sea assault, air-defense, and anti-missile maneuvers. It posted photos of Chinese-developed J-15 fighters on the deck of the Liaoning. The aircraft carried live ammunition and performed strike exercises, it said. The drills were held amid heightening tensions between the US and China over Washington's military presence in contested waters near China and a drama involving US President-elect Donald Trump's controversial stance on Taiwan. Washington has taken sides in regional territorial disputes with China's rival claimants. China says Washington is deliberately escalating the situation in the territory and US patrols in the contested waters are "illegal" and "provocative." The Chinese Defense Ministry has urged the US to respect China's national sovereignty in the contested waters. China has also recently been engaged in a war of words with Trump's administration-in-waiting. Trump recently took a phone call from Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, angering China, which regards self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory. Trump later said he did not feel bound by decades of US diplomatic protocol recognizing such sovereignty unless China made certain economic and political concessions to Washington. The remarks have set off a string of stern reactions from Chinese authorities, who have said Sino-US relations would be at stake if Washington dropped the so-called One China policy of recognizing Chinese sovereignty over Taiwan. China has also warned Taiwan against feeling emboldened by Trump's behavior. Since Trump's phone conversation with Tsai, China has sent military aircraft close to Japanese territory near the Miyako Strait and reportedly sent a bomber to circumnavigate disputed territory in the resource-rich South China Sea, flights its air force has described as "routine." The US Pacific commander threatened on Wednesday that it would continue to challenge China's "assertive, aggressive behavior in the South China Sea," which is one area of territorial disputes between China and several regional countries. Meanwhile, China has reacted to statements by a US think tank that said on Wednesday that China had been installing anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems on artificial islands in the South China Sea. China's Defense Ministry said on a verified social media account that the islands were mostly for civilian use, and that necessary military installations there were for self-defense. The Chinese military has said it will increase its air and maritime patrols in the territory in accordance with its defensive needs. China claims sovereignty over most of the sea, which is a key shipping lane, serves as a crossing for more than 5 trillion dollars in maritime trade, and has rich fishing grounds and a potential wealth of mineral resources. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address No country can be exception to One China principle: Chinese FM Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 3:4AM Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has lambasted US President-elect Donald Trump's recent remarks concerning Washington's possible backtrack on the so-called One China policy, stating that the principle forms the basis for mutual ties and no country can be an exception to it. China's Foreign Ministry stated late on Thursday that Wang told his French counterpart Jean-Marc Ayrault that the Taiwan issue concerns China's sovereignty and territorial integrity. "The One-China principle is the prerequisite and basis for other countries to develop their relations with China and that when it comes to this vital issue of right or wrong, no country can be an exception," the statement pointed out. Trump drew Chinese authorities' ire on December 11, when he told Fox News that he did not feel "bound" by the One China policy unless Washington made "a deal with China having to do with other things, including trade." The One China policy refers to the recognition by other countries of Chinese sovereignty over self-ruled Taiwan. The US adopted the policy in 1979, and has since been maintaining only unofficial ties with Taiwan. Earlier this month, Trump received a phone call from Taiwanese leader Tsai Ing-wen, gravely breaching the diplomatic protocol and enraging Beijing officials. On Wednesday, a top Chinese official warned that any alteration in the United States' adherence to the policy would harm bilateral ties between Beijing and Washington. "If this basis is interfered with or damaged, then the healthy, stable development of China-US relations is out of the question, and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait will be seriously impacted," spokesman for Beijing's Taiwan Affairs Office An Fengshan said. On Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang stressed that non-commitment to the One China principle could prompt China to sever cooperation with the US in major spheres. If the principle is "compromised or disrupted, the sound and steady growth of China-US relations as well as bilateral cooperation in major fields would be out of the question," Geng said. He highlighted that Beijing considers Taiwan a "core interest" that affects China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and that adherence to the One China policy is the "political bedrock" for relations with the US. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address India Racing to Develop Amphibious Warfare Hub in Indian Ocean Sputnik News 18:45 16.12.2016 Having recently commissioned eight amphibious warfare ships, the Indian Navy is now looking to procure larger vessels of the same class. New Delhi (Sputnik) To augment its amphibious capability, the Indian Navy has launched the eighth ship of MK-IV project. LCU-L58 is the last vessel in the series of eight landing craft utility ships designed and built by the state-owned GRSE for the Indian Navy. The ships facilitate the landing of troops and military equipment on islands in a situation where it has come under adverse occupation. All the previously commissioned ships are anchored with the Andaman and Nicobar Tri-Services Command at Port Blair, very near the Malacca Straits. The 62-meter ship displacing 830 tons has an overall beam of 11 meters and a hull draught of 2.2 meters. The Indian Navy expects them to play a significant role in the transportation of main battle tanks, armored vehicles and troops of the Indian Army during amphibious operations. The LCU has a lift capacity for up to 170 fully equipped soldiers. GRSE had signed a $313 million project with the Indian Navy in year 2011. The seventh ship of the LCU MK-IV class was launched on November 24, 2016. These ships will augment the process of development of amphibious warfare hub in different islands of the Indian Ocean. Defense sources say that Indian Army Chief General Dalbir Suhag's visit to Andaman and Nicobar Tri-Services command this week to review amphibious warfare capabilities in the region. Currently, about 3,000 soldiers trained in amphibious warfare are deployed at Andaman & Nicobar Islands. The Indian Navy will also soon open commercial bids for procuring new Landing Platform Docks (LPD) amphibious warships. Local manufacturers L&T and Reliance Defense had qualified for the technical bids. The four ships costs will cost approximately $ 3.7 billion and should be delivered to Indian Navy in the next 10 years. According to the sources the displacement of these ships will be anything between 35,000 and 40,000 tones. Currently, India's amphibious warfare capability consists of nine older tank landing ships of various sizes and capabilities. The Shardul class ships are latest ones which are hybrids of LST and LSD design. They are an evolution of the Magar class amphibious landing ships. Shardul and Magar class can carry 10 armored vehicles, 11 armored personnel carriers and more than 500 troops. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iraqi Air Force kills 20 Daesh commanders near Mosul Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 2:10AM Nearly two dozen high-ranking figures of the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group have been killed when Iraqi Air Force fighter jets carried out an airstrike near Mosul as government forces and their allied fighters are trying to boot the extremists out of the strategic northern city. The Iraqi Defense Ministry, citing information provided by the Directorate of General Military Intelligence, announced in a statement on Thursday that the military aircraft targeted Daesh terrorists during a meeting west of Mosul, located some 400 kilometers north of the capital Baghdad. The ministry added that 20 commanders and 50 members of the terrorist group were killed in the aerial attack. The slain militants were apparently planning attacks on the strategically important city of Tal Afar, situated 63 kilometers west of Mosul. The statement came on the same day that Brigadier General Yahya Rasool, the spokesman for the Iraqi Joint Military Command (JOC), said security personnel have liberated half of the districts in the northern province of Nineveh from Daesh's grip. Rasool stated that government troopers have wrested control over 46 neighborhoods out of a total 56 on the eastern flank of Mosul, noting that counter-terrorism forces are controlling 40 neighborhoods while army soldiers hold sway in six others. The senior Iraqi military official added that the Iraqi forces and their allies have laid complete siege to Mosul, noting that operations inside the city are going ahead cautiously in order to protect civilians and infrastructure. Meanwhile, Lieutenant General Raed Shaker Jawdat, commander of the Iraqi Federal Police Forces, said security forces arrested a member of Daesh media center, identified as Saleh Najem Abdullah, during an operation in al-Shura area south of Mosul. Saraya al-Jihad (Jihad Brigades), a division of the pro-government Popular Mobilization Units, also announced that its fighters killed nine Daesh militants and destroyed four vehicles rigged with explosives, when the terrorists sought to launch an assault west of Mosul. Separately, Hashd al-Sha'abi fighters fired a Kornet missile at an explosives-laden Daesh bulldozer in the village of Sharia, which lies west of Tal Afar, destroying the crawler as it was moving towards pro-government forces. On October 17, Iraqi army soldiers, supported by Hashd al-Sha'abi fighters and Kurdish Peshmerga forces, launched a joint operation to retake Mosul from Daesh terrorists. The Iraqi forces' advance has, however, been slowed down due to the presence of hundreds of thousands of civilians, many of whom are prevented from leaving Mosul by Daesh. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Daesh Leader Hiding in Bunker Near Mosul - Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Chief Sputnik News 21:12 16.12.2016 Daesh leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, is currently hiding underground near the city of Mosul, Iraqi Maj. Gen. Fadhil Jalil Barwari said on Friday. MOSCOW (Sputnik) He added that al-Baghdadi was detained ten years ago, and Iraqi forces "have enough information about him to track him." "We believe he is now in Biaj, west of Mosul, hiding in an underground bunker. He changes his location all the time, and he also changes his appearance," the commander of Iraq's elite Counter-Terrorism Service told Niqash portal. Earlier in the day, the US State Department increased the reward for information on al-Baghdadi to $25 million from $10 million. In November, the Iraqi armed forces press service said that al-Baghdadi fled Mosul amid the Iraqi troops' military operation to retake the northern Iraqi city. Daesh, which has controlled Mosul since 2014, is outlawed in many countries including Russia and the United States. On October 17, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi announced the start of a military operation to recapture Mosul from Daesh with the help of airstrikes by the US-led international coalition. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iraq: UN refugee agency steps up response as Mosul conflict displaces nearly 100,000 16 December 2016 With the number of people displaced from Mosul approaching 100,000 since the military operation to oust terrorists from the Iraqi city began three months ago, the United Nations refugee agency is bolstering its capacity to host and support civilians fleeing the fighting. "We have been stepping up winter distributions, providing thermal blankets and quilts to 11,200 people around Mosul, and we plan to step up distributions in coming days to reach an additional 5,000 families," Adrian Edwards, spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, told reporters in Geneva. According to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), 96,864 people have so far been displaced since October 17, when a military campaign began in order to oust terrorists from the city. The bulk of new arrivals 57,000 people are currently being sheltered in UNHCR-supported camps in the area. UNHCR has six camps receiving people from Mosul, with another three under construction. The nine sites would have a capacity for 102,000 people. Significant numbers have also been fleeing Hawija in Kirkuk ahead of an offensive. In Kirkuk, additional camps are hosting people mainly displaced from Hawija. UNHCR's Mosul emergency response fund, set at $196.2 million, is 57 per cent funded. The largest funding gap is for the winter programme and the agency is urging donors to help close the shortfall to prepare for possible additional displacement and help offset the miserable living conditions. Assistance items distributed to the newly arrived families in camps include blankets, mattresses, stoves, plastic sheets, kitchen sets, quilts, insulation sleeping mats, tent insulation kits and heaters. In response to questions, Mr. Edwards confirmed that the figure he had quoted, 96,864 people, was the number of people that UNHCR had registered as displaced. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Libya Against Presence of Foreign Troops on its Territory - Parliament Speaker Sputnik News 20:42 16.12.2016 Libya will not agree to allow the presence of foreign military forces on its territory, Aguila Saleh, the speaker of the country's internationally recognized parliament in Tobruk, told Sputnik Friday. CAIRO (Sputnik) He added that Libya was interested in arms supply, foreign military experience and training of servicemen, since the country had "a strong army, men, ready to fight, if they are provided with arms." "We will not allow to have any foreign troops on our territory. This is unacceptable," Saleh said. Libya has been in a state of turmoil since 2011, when a civil war began in the country and its longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown. In December 2015, Libya's rival governments the Council of Deputies based in Tobruk and the Tripoli-based General National Congress agreed to create the Government of National Accord (GNA), to form the Presidency Council and to end the political impasse. Troops loyal to Libyan National Army General Khalifa Haftar support the Libyan parliament based in Tobruk. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Libya's Tobruk-Based Parliament to Offer New Roadmap on Political Settlement Sputnik News 14:47 16.12.2016 The Tobruk-based Libyan parliament will soon offer a new roadmap on political settlement as it believes the UN-backed Presidential Council has failed to govern the country, Libyan Parliament Speaker Aguila Saleh told Sputnik Friday. MOSCOW (Sputnik) As agreed in December 2015, the two Libyan rival parliaments the Tobruk-based Parliament and the Tripoli-based New General National Congress established a UN-backed Libyan Political Dialogue as a mechanism of reconciliation and formed the Government of National Accord. "The Presidential Council, as we see it, is unable to cope with the affairs in the country. We expect that the parliament in the coming days will offer a new road map to reach a political agreement," Saleh said. He added that the Council had failed to offer any solutions for the country. "Prices have grown, Libyan dinar has fallen, they [members of the council] were unable to offer anything," the speaker stressed. The UN-backed Presidential Council moved into the Libyan capital in March 2016 after the General National Congress gave up power. A total of 145 of its members joined the government's advisory body. The Tobruk-based parliament refuses to recognize the authority of the Government of National Accord and the Presidential Council without bringing the matter to a vote of confidence. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Libya to Return to Pre-Conflict Oil Output Levels by Mid-2017 Sputnik News 14:24 16.12.2016 Libyan oil output will climb back to its normal levels by the middle of 2017, Aguila Saleh, the speaker of the country's internationally recognized parliament in Tobruk, told Sputnik Friday. CAIRO (Sputnik) Libya has the largest oil reserves in Africa and the tenth largest globally. Since 2011, when country's longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi was toppled, Libyan oil production had dropped from 1.65 million barrels per day to 250,000 in August 2016. "Oil production began to grow, and in the beginning or the middle of the [next] year it will reach its normal level," Saleh said. As agreed in December 2015, the two Libyan rival parliaments the Tobruk-based House of Representatives and the Tripoli-based New General National Congress established a UN-backed Libyan Political Dialogue as a mechanism of reconciliation and formed the Government of National Accord, which is yet to be supported by the House of Representatives. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pakistan government failed to curb militancy: Court Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 1:44PM Pakistan's top court has ruled that the government has failed to curb militancy and extremism across the violence-wracked country. A commission set up by the Supreme Court to investigate a deadly Taliban assault in southwestern city of Quetta last August said in a scathing report on Friday that the Interior Ministry and the counter-terrorism department had been responsible for security lapses that enabled the attack. The 86-page report, which is based on recorded statements from 45 officials, says they "categorically failed" in their tasks. It was not immediately clear what impact the report could have or what action could follow. On August 08, a bomb explosion ripped through a major hospital in the restive city of Quetta in southwest Pakistan. Pakistani media reports said at least 70 people were killed when the bomb went off in the emergency ward of the hospital. About 120 people were injured in the incident which took place when a group of lawyers had gathered in the hospital to accompany the body of a prominent attorney who had been shot earlier in the day. Bilal Anwar Kasi, who was the former president of Balochistan Bar Association, was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in the city. Both a pro-Taliban militant group in Pakistan, known as Jamaat-ur-Ahrar, as well as the Daesh terror group claimed responsibility for the bomb blast at Quetta hospital. Also in October, a deadly siege of a police training academy on the outskirts of Quetta in the restive Balochistan Province left over 60 people dead and wounded over 100 others. The attack lasted several hours and ended after fierce gun battles between security forces and the assailants. The report comes as Pakistanis hold memorial ceremonies marking the second anniversary of another Taliban school attack in the northwestern city of Peshawar On December 16, 2014, a group of militants mounted an attack against the Army Public School in Peshawar, massacring 154 people, most of them children. Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was carried out in retaliation for an ongoing Pakistani military offensive against the militants in the country's tribal belt. Thousands of people have been killed over the past decade as a result of the surge in violence in Pakistan. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address South Korean president Park's impeachment was illegal: Lawyers Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 10:46AM Lawyers for South Korea's suspended president Park Geun-hye say a parliament vote to impeach her has no legal foundation and the country's constitutional court should restore her powers. The South Korean parliament voted last week by a 234-56 margin to impeach Park over a scandal involving her long-time confidante, Choi Soon-sil, who is currently awaiting prosecution for fraud. Prosecutors had said the president colluded with Choi in coercing large corporations into paying tens of millions of dollars in "donations" to organizations under Choi's control, an accusation Park's lawyers previously denied. The constitutional court now has six months to rule on the validity of the parliament's impeachment vote. Park's lawyers, however, submitted a 24-page rebuttal to the court, saying the allegations "of her law violations aren't backed by evidence." "We can't accept that there was any violation of the constitution by the president The impeachment motion should be rejected," said one of her lawyers, Lee Joong-hwan, on Friday. The lawyers said that it was unlikely that the president would appear before the court. Park said last week that she would respond "calmly" to the result of the impeachment process and would wait for the constitutional court's verdict. If six of the court's nine justices support the impeachment vote, Park would be removed permanently and a new presidential election would be held within 60 days. If not, her powers would be restored. She has currently been stripped of her presidential powers but keeps her title and her official residence. Her Prime Minster Hwang Kyo-ahno assumed presidential authority late on Friday and became acting president. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Navalny Calls Minsk Accords A Priority If Elected President RFE/RL December 16, 2016 Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny has followed his declaration of intent to run in Russia's next presidential election by saying one of his top priorities if elected would be to implement the Minsk accords aimed at ending the conflict in Ukraine. Speaking to Current Time TV, the Russian-language network run by RFE/RL and VOA, on December 15, Navalny said that "the first measure that we must carry out is implementation of the Minsk accords." Those accords -- agreed among Ukraine, Russia, France, and Germany in the Belarusian capital in February 2015 -- called for elections, a return of border control, and other measures to end the conflict in eastern Ukraine that has killed more than 9,700 people as Kyiv battles Russia-backed separatists. "Putin himself talks about this endlessly but does practically nothing about it," Navalny said. "The Minsk accords were signed by Russia, they need to be fulfilled, and that would be the first step to resolving the situation with Ukraine." The United States, European Union, and allies responded to Russia's seizure of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine with economic sanctions and other punitive measures. The Minsk accords call for pulling out all foreign armed groups from the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine, withdrawing heavy weaponry, returning control of Ukraine's border to Kyiv, and ensuring local elections in parts of Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk regions that are held by Russian-backed separatists. Russia's next presidential election is scheduled for March 2018, although there has been speculation lately that Putin might move that forward to 2017. Navalny, who announced on December 13 he would run for president but has not yet officially registered for the as-yet unscheduled election, also said he would seek a "fair" referendum in Crimea so that the inhabitants of Ukraine's Russian-annexed peninsula can choose if they want to be with Ukraine or Russia. Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine in March 2014 after covertly flooding the peninsula with troops to secure key facilities, taking control of the regional legislature, and staging a referendum on annexation that was denounced as illegitimate by Ukraine, the United States, and the UN General Assembly. Navalny has frequently tread a cautious line on topics that resonate particularly in nationalist circles, including migration and the possible return of Crimea, whose Soviet-era handover to Ukraine is seen as illegitimate by many Russians. In October 2014, Navalny vowed that Crimea "will remain part of Russia and will never again in the foreseeable future become part of Ukraine." In the wide-ranging interview with Current Time, Navalny said another of his priorities if elected would be to assure that money hidden abroad by oligarchs close to Russian President Vladimir Putin is returned to the country. He said he has confidence that foreign states would cooperate with any efforts to recover such funds. "If the position of Russia itself will be such that we request that money stolen from Russian citizens be returned, it will be returned for the most part," he said. Navalny, who rose to prominence as an anticorruption blogger before entering politics, operates the Anticorruption Foundation (FBK) in Moscow. He said upon announcing his election bid on December 13 that he wants to be the voice of "those tens of millions of people who work honestly, raise children, pay taxes, love their country but whose voice the authorities do not hear" and who are "ignored, robbed, deprived of the dignified life they deserve." He has said money returned to the country would be channeled toward hospitals and education. Putin served two presidential terms before stepping aside for four years, then returning for a third term in 2012. Navalny, 40, faces an uphill battle to get on the ballot for a presidential race in which it is still unclear whether Putin would run again for office or step aside in favor of a Kremlin insider. Russian authorities have thrown numerous impediments in Navalny's way as he has emerged as one of the country's most active opposition figures, with a proven ability to bring out tens of thousands of voters. Navalny ran for mayor of Moscow in 2013, finishing second with more than 27 percent of the vote. Ahead of the election, the Kremlin sought to discredit him with embezzlement charges, saying he used his position as an unpaid consultant to the governor of Russia's Kirov region to try to steal timber from the state-run forestry company. He was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison but after a protest by supporters in Moscow, was released without explanation. As Navalny now prepares to run for the presidency, he faces the likelihood that the Kremlin will again seek to tar him with criminal charges. A retrial of the alleged embezzlement case is now under way in Kirov, east of Moscow, and earlier this month the Russian state prosecutor's office demanded that Navalny's FBK publish information on its sources of funding. The state prosecutor's demand raises the possibility that Navalny's foundation will be charged with receiving foreign funding -- a punishable offense under Russia's controversial foreign agents law. The FBK's says all of its financing is through donations by Russian citizens. Speaking to Current Time, Navalny said he would also seek to finance his upcoming run for the presidency through citizens' contributions. "The first two days of fund-raising, which we are doing through small donations, showed us that we most likely will be able to finance a full-fledged election campaign based precisely upon small individual contributions," he said. He estimated he would need a budget of some 1 billion rubles ($16 million) for campaigning but did not provide details regarding his campaign strategy. Asked if he feared that trying to collect funds across Russia in his presidential bid could make him an easy target for new Kremlin charges of financial misdoing, Navalny said he refused to be deterred by such possibilities. "If we live and make plans while taking into account what kind of accusations they can trump up against us, we will not be able to do anything at all," he said. Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/navalny-minsk -accords-presidential-election- russia-putin/28180646.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Italy Resisted Efforts To Broaden, Further Extend EU Sanctions On Russia December 16, 2016 Italy resisted efforts by some European Union countries to extend EU sanctions on Russia by a year instead of six months and to broaden the sanctions to cover alleged Russian crimes in Syria, EU members said. "We had a discussion that luckily ended without considering the option -- which would have been wrong, I think -- to react to the situation in Syria and Aleppo with EU sanctions against Russia," Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said after an EU summit in Brussels on December 15. He said "a majority of countries" agreed with Italy that imposing more sanctions on Russia, on top of those already imposed for Russia's aggression in Ukraine, would have been "a mistake." Italy was among the countries that also objected to a move by Poland to extend the existing sanctions on Russia by a year rather than by six months, EU members said. "Some of our colleagues would prefer maybe 12 months, but in fact it...was clear from the beginning that what is possible to maintain is our current format," said European Council President Donald Tusk. Poland and others were concerned that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump might seek to ease pressure on Russia when he takes office next year, but Tusk said it was too early to know what Trump's policy will be. Based on reporting by AP, AFP, Reuters, and dpa Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/italy-says-blocked- european-union-widening-prolonging- sanctions-russia/28179495.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia's Paramilitary Mercenaries Emerge From The Shadows Aleksandr Gostev, Robert Coalson December 16, 2016 On December 9, the Kremlin marked the Day of Heroes of the Fatherland with a lavish event attended by "more than 300 military personnel and civilians who have demonstrated particular courage and heroism, including Heroes of the Soviet Union, Heroes of Russia," and other top honorees. President Vladimir Putin personally addressed the audience and thanked them for their service. From state media coverage of the event, St. Petersburg investigative journalist Denis Korotkov identified among the guests a man who he has been writing about for several years: Dmitry Utkin, who uses the nom de guerre "Vagner" and is believed to be the head of an unregistered private military contracting agency called ChVK Vagner. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on December 15 confirmed that Utkin, 46, was at the reception, adding that he qualified because he holds the Order of Courage. Asked why Utkin had been given the honor, Peskov only said: "Usually they give it for courage." Korotkov and others who have been researching the shadowy world of Russian mercenaries see Utkin's presence as the clearest indication yet of the key role paramilitary mercenary formations have played in Russian foreign policy for at least the last five years, particularly in Ukraine and Syria. "Their function [in Syria] is very unclear," Korotkov told RFE/RL. "Based on how they are trained at their camp in Russia, it would seem to be preparation for special forces. That is -- for reconnaissance, work with diversionary groups, and things like that. Based on information coming out of Syria at first- or secondhand, the Vagner group is often used as elite infantry, which naturally leads to casualties much greater than special forces typically see. But who coordinates this work and who commands them, I don't know." It is a murky topic for many reasons, not least because mercenary activity is illegal in Russia. But by all indications, Russia has been using private military contractors in close cooperation with the military in ways similar to those pioneered by the United States in the early 2000s, particularly during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Using open-source material and contacts within Russian security structures, Korotkov has traced Utkin's career in detail. Prior to 2013, he was a brigade commander of the special forces of the GRU, Russia's military intelligence service. Utkin retired in 2013 and began working for the Moran Security Group, a company founded by Russian military veterans that carries out security and training operations around the world, specializing in security against piracy. The same year, senior Moran managers were connected with the formation of a St. Petersburg-based organization called the Slavonic Corps, which advertised online looking for mercenaries to "protect oil fields and pipelines" in Syria. According to various media reports, Utkin was given the sobriquet Vagner because of his affection for "the attributes and ideology" of Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime. The name ChVK (the Russian abbreviation for Private Military Company) Vagner first appeared in 2014, with reports that mercenaries from the group were fighting with Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine. In 2015, reports indicated that they had moved back to Syria, and Korotkov published the first reports of Russian mercenaries on the ground in Syria and their recruitment in St. Petersburg just weeks after the beginning of Russian bombing raids there in October 2015. The Vagner mercenaries reportedly played an important role in helping the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad recapture of Palmyra in May. Around the time that ancient city was captured, Korotkov said he received reports that several Vagner mercenaries had been given Russian military honors for fighting there, but he was unable to confirm them. However, the Kremlin reception on December 9 seems to have provided at least some confirmation. The Rossia state television channel showed retired Colonel Andrei Troshev, a veteran of the Soviet war in Afghanistan who officially retired in 2014. At the time of his retirement, Troshev had not received the Hero of Russia medal, but he was clearly wearing one at the Kremlin reception. Ruslan Leviyev, an analyst with the Conflict Intelligence Team project, first identified Vagner mercenaries from a video of killed "Russian soldiers" posted by the militant group Islamic State (IS) in Palmyra on March 17. His team also identified 51-year-old retired Major Sergei Chupov, who was reported killed in Syria on February 8, as a Vagner mercenary on the basis of interviews with his friends and relatives in St. Petersburg. Leviyev said he is convinced the mercenaries are equipped and supported by the Russian Defense Ministry and its main intelligence directorate, known as the GRU. "For one thing, their training ground is adjacent to the training ground of the GRU's 10th Brigade [in the Krasnodar region]," he told RFE/RL. "If their existence was not approved by the government, then that would be impossible -- that they would be right next to an elite GRU special-forces base. "Moreover, there are the photographs of the killed mercenaries that were published by IS -- you can see weapons that only elite GRU special-forces units have," Leviyev added. "We can also see on photographs posted [by mercenaries] that they are moving around Syria in Russian military aircraft. They are photographed next to Defense Ministry helicopters and airplanes. It is clear that they are getting help, transportation, and weapons from the government of Russia, from the Defense Ministry." Leviyev pointed out that the mercenaries in groups like Vagner are different from the unprofessional volunteer fighters who appeared in the early days of the conflict in eastern Ukraine. "These are all people with considerable experience," he said. "As a rule, they are over 30 and have served in the military. There are some quite old people, like Sergei Chupov, who was 51. As a rule, these are not just some volunteers like we saw in Donbas, former miners or auto mechanics. These are people with real military experience serving in well-prepared military units." Journalist Korotkov estimated that at least 600 mercenaries have fought with Vagner in Syria since 2014. He estimated as many as 60 have been killed there. Leviyev said it is difficult to be precise on such numbers. "The people we have spoken with who say they know people fighting with this mercenary group say that in the period of Russia's official involvement in Syria [since October 2015], several dozen of them have been killed," he told RFE/RL. "We have not been able to confirm this. As a rule, even those who are fighting as mercenaries have bereaved posts published by their relatives and friends, as was the case with Sergei Chupov. But we haven't seen a flow of grief that would indicate dozens of dead." The website militaryarms.ru reports that the Vagner forces are distinguished by "their very high percentage of losses, which is not characteristic of private military companies." The report says that in both Donbas and Syria, "Vagner mercenaries work in the most dangerous situations, often moving out in the first wave of an attack and storming population centers and enemy positions." The appearance of Utkin and Troshev at the Kremlin function on December 9 raises another important issue, Leviyev says. "I am not sure we can really use the word 'mercenary' in the sense that it is used in the Russian Criminal Code," Leviyev said. "As far as the military honors they have been given, from my point of view it is not possible to do that officially. They do get medals and this information is confirmed by various sources and some documents, but there are rules...and according to the rules it is not possible to give state medals to people fighting in such units on the territory of another country." Russian officials last week acknowledged that 23 active military personnel had died in Syria since its bombing operations there began 14 months ago, according to state broadcaster RT. RFE/RL Russian Service correspondents Andrei Sharogradsky and Mark Krutov contributed to this report Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/russia-paramilitary -mercenaries-emerge-from-the-shadows- syria-ukraine/28180321.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russian Defense Ministry Confirms $1.6Bln Budget Cut in 2017 Sputnik News 19:03 16.12.2016(updated 20:10 16.12.2016) The Russian defense budget is expected to shrink by six percent or 100 billion rubles (some $1.62 bln) in 2017, Deputy Defense Minister Tatiana Shevtsova said Friday. MOSCOW (Sputnik) Shevtsova clarified that in monetary terms the expenditures by the Defense Ministry would be cut by around 100 billion rubles, but would not affect remuneration of servicemen or military retirement pensions. "According to draft budget for 2017-2019 prepared by the Finance Ministry, the federal expenditures will be reduced by six percent," Shevtsova said. The Russian Defense Ministry transferred more than 41 billion rubles (about $664 million) to the federal budget this year from sales of illiquid assets and property rent. "As for the revenues part of the budget, today 99.8 percent of Russian Defense Ministry's income plan was implemented. We ensured the transfer of over 41 billion rubles to the federal budget profit for the needs of the Russian economy. It is our activity, when we lease something or sell illiquid [assets]," Shevtsova told journalists. She added that the level of execution of the federal budget in 2016 was expected to reach 99.9 percent. According to Shevtsova, the Russian Defense Ministry has not misused state funds in the past three years. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Funding for Russia's Operation in Syria Part of Defense Ministry General Budget Sputnik News 13:37 16.12.2016(updated 16:16 16.12.2016) The funding of the Russian Aerospace Forces' operation in Syria is a part of the general budget of the Russian Defense Ministry. MOSCOW (Sputnik) The financing for the Russian Aerospace Forces' operation in Syria is within the general budget of the Russian Defense Ministry, there is no separate budget, a high-ranking federal official said Friday. "There is no separate budget for the operation in Syria only in the framework of the general budget of the Defense Ministry," the official told RIA Novosti. Russia started delivering air strikes on terrorist facilities in Syria on September 30, 2015, following a request for military assistance from Syrian President Bashar Assad. The United States with its allies have been conducting an operation against Daesh terrorist organization in Syria and Iraq since 2014. In Syria, the US operation is conducted without the consent of the country's authorities. Washington refuses to coordinate its action against Daesh with Russia, despite repeated proposals from Moscow. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iran ready to dispatch humanitarian aid to Syria: First VP Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 4:31PM Iranian First Vice President Es'haq Jahangiri has expressed the Islamic Republic's readiness to send humanitarian aid to conflict-ridden areas in Syria, urging joint Tehran-Ankara efforts to diplomatically resolve the crisis in the Arab country. Jahangiri made the remarks in a phone conversation with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim on Friday. "With the help of each other, [we] have to prevent an increase in killing and bloodshed in the region, including in Syria, and make efforts to save civilians trapped and besieged in different regions across the country," he said. Jahangiri also called for the swift delivery of relief aid to Syria, saying, "The Islamic Republic of Iran has been ready for the dispatch of humanitarian aid to Syria since yesterday (Thursday)." He further expressed hope that that Iranian and Turkish political officials could in through cooperation "take serious steps toward settling Syria's issues diplomatically." "Regional issues can be resolved more quickly through the expansion of cooperation and growth in coordination between Iran and Turkey," the Iranian official added. Turkey's security and stability is important for Iran, Jahangiri said, called for cooperation and mutual assistance in the fight against extremism and terrorism. Yildirim, for his part, said the humanitarian situation in eastern Aleppo is alarming and his country is ready to do its best for civilians there, according to an informed source at the Turkish prime ministry. On Thursday, Syria announced the liberation of Aleppo from the grip of foreign-backed terrorists as the evacuation of civilians and militants from the militant-held eastern part of the city was taking place. However, the process has come to a halt due to terrorists opening fire on a convoy at one of the crossing points. The source further cited the premier as saying that Turkey is willing to cooperate with Iran to evacuate civilians from eastern Aleppo and provide humanitarian aid to those in need in the region. Iran-Turkey cooperation is important both in Iraq and Syria as they are influential states capable of foiling plots hatched for the region, Yildirim said. Touching on Jahangiri's upcoming visit to Turkey, he said bilateral and regional ties will be discussed in the trip. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Syrian army in full control of eastern Aleppo: Russia Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 1:25PM The Syrian military has wrested full control of the militant-held eastern Aleppo, scoring a major victory against terrorists in the strategic northwestern city, Russia says. "The operation by the Syrian army aimed at liberating the militant-controlled neighborhoods of eastern Aleppo has been completed," Russian Defense Ministry's Center for Reconciliation in Syria said in a statement on Friday. Syrian government forces "continue to eliminate isolated pockets of militant resistance" in eastern Aleppo, the statement read. It further noted that more than 9,500 people, including over 4,500 militants and 337 wounded, have been taken out of eastern Aleppo. All women and children have been evacuated, but in some parts of the city, "there are still groups of militants from radical and irreconcilable gangs, who are firing at Syria troops," it added. Separately on Friday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu announced that negotiations were being planned in conjunction with Russia to bring together representatives of Syria's warring sides in Kazakhstan. Speaking at a news conference in Ankara, Cavusoglu also said that Russian President Vladimir Putin had told his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, that any new Syria talks would be complementary to Geneva discussions. Earlier on Friday, Putin said all parties in Syria must now work toward paving the way for a "nationwide" ceasefire after the liberation of Aleppo. In another development on Friday, diplomats said France was drafting a United Nations Security Council resolution in a bid to ensure international observers for Aleppo evacuations and enable humanitarian aid to reach the city. This is while he UN Under Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O'Brien will brief the Security Council later on Friday on the evacuation process. The developments come as evacuations of civilians and militants from eastern Aleppo have been suspended after terrorists opened fire on the convoy at one of the crossing points. The move by the militants is seen as a violation of a truce deal brokered by Russia and Turkey stipulating the evacuations. The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed the suspension, saying, meanwhile, that terrorist groups such as Ahrar al-Sham "have prevented buses and ambulances from entering Fuaa and Kafraya, despite pledging that they would let the evacuation go ahead." The two government-held villages, situated in Idlib province, are under militant siege. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Aleppo evacuation suspended as militants breach ceasefire Iran Press TV Fri Dec 16, 2016 7:39AM Evacuations of civilians and militants from eastern Aleppo have been suspended after terrorists opened fire on a convoy at one of the crossing points, Syrian state television says. The report on Friday also said the militants tried to take with them captive they had seized and were holding in the enclave under their control. Lebanon's al-Manar TV said the Syrian army stopped the process because the terrorists had violated the ceasefire deal. The Lebanon-based al-Mayadeen TV said buses that were parked at the Ramouseh crossing point left the area after it was targeted by gunmen. Protesters earlier blocked a road being used to evacuate militants from Aleppo, demanding the evacuation of people from two Shia villages in Idlib province, al-Manar reported. They demanded that the villages, Fua'a and Kefraya which are besieged by terrorists, be included in the ceasefire deal. According to a Press TV correspondent, the militants on Friday prevented the residents from leaving the two villages despite an agreement apparently reached the day before. Earlier in the day, Russia's Defense Ministry said more than 6,400 people, including over 3,000 militants, have been transferred out of Aleppo as part of a ceasefire deal brokered by Russia and Turkey. Turkey is one of the key supporters of militants who are facing total rout in Aleppo, and have intermingled with civilians in the face of advancing Syrian forces. Ankara and other supporters of the militants have used civilians to press for a ceasefire deal under which armed groups are given a free passage to leave the city and have ultimately got one. In their bid to secure a safe passage for the militants, the West and its regional allies have gone on an unprecedented media campaign to highlight the civilian situation in the city, often with sketchy details. On Friday, footage showed buses waiting to take more people out of Aleppo, which was recently restored to full government control. An unnamed Turkish official said close to 8,000 civilians had been evacuated from Aleppo. The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also said the total number of the evacuees included some 3,000 militants. The International Committee of the Red Cross said the evacuation operation, which started on Tuesday, could take days. Russia seeks "nationwide" truce Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday all sides in Syria must now work toward paving the way for a "nationwide" ceasefire in Syria after the liberation of Aleppo. Speaking at a news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo, Putin said he had agreed with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to hold peace talks on Syria in Kazakhstan's capital, Astana. "The next step is to reach an agreement on a total ceasefire across the whole of Syria. We are conducting very active negotiations with representatives of the armed opposition, brokered by Turkey," Putin told reporters. The talks would be in addition to UN-brokered talks that have been taking place intermittently in Geneva, Putin told reporters. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Aleppo Evacuation Suspended Amid Conflicting Truce Violation Accusations RFE/RL December 16, 2016 The evacuation of civilians and rebel fighters from remaining rebel-held territory in the Syrian city of Aleppo was suspended on December 16 amid conflicting allegations of cease-fire violations. The Syrian government said it was suspending the evacuations because a convoy leaving Aleppo was fired on by the rebels. However, a rebel official and pro-opposition Orient TV claimed that pro-government Shi'ite militias fired on bus convoys leaving Aleppo, the Reuters news agency reported. Reuters quoted an unnamed Syrian government official overseeing the evacuation as saying: "The operation is not yet complete. There are many who should have left. But the operation halted before its end." It was not immediately clear how long the suspension would last. It was announced several hours after the evacuations resumed for a second day on the morning of December 16. Earlier in the day, Syrian state TV was reporting that four convoys with fighters and civilians had departed from the rebel enclave in eastern Aleppo. Meanwhile, the Russian military said that the evacuations have been "completed." It claimed that all women and children have been taken out of eastern Aleppo. The statement from what the Russian Defense Ministry calls its Center for Reconciliation in Syria said that government forces are carrying out a final sweep to clear out the last remaining rebels in the city -- although the Associated Press reported that there was no evidence of this on the ground. The Russian statement said that some die-hard militants have stayed behind and are firing on Syrian government forces. The World Health Organization (WHO) said the evacuation of civilians and wounded people had been halted and aid agencies and vehicles ordered to leave the area without explanation. "The ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross) and SARC (Syrian Arab Red Crescent) and WHO [were] informed to leave the area with ambulances and buses, no reason was given," WHO representative Elizabeth Hoff, speaking from western Aleppo, told a news briefing in Geneva. "I assume the message came from the Russians who are monitoring the area," she said. "The worrying part of this is there are still in besieged enclaves of Aleppo high numbers of women and infants, children under 5 that need to get out." 'Nothing Short Of A Massacre' Earlier, Syrian state TV was reporting that the evacuations continued for the second day, saying four convoys with fighters and civilians departed from the rebel enclave in eastern Aleppo December 16. The evacuation was being conducted under a cease-fire deal brokered by Russia and Turkey after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces and their allies drove rebels out of most of eastern Aleppo in an offensive that has been sharply criticized by the UN and Western governments. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry accused Assad of committing "nothing short of a massacre" in Aleppo. "We are convinced that the killing and suffering in Syria could stop, and it could stop very, very quickly if Russia and the [Syrian] regime made the decision to do so," Kerry said on December 15. Four Syrian organizations accused Russia, a key ally of Assad in the more than five-year-old civil war, of involvement in war crimes in Syria. In a letter to a UN inquiry on Syria, the group said that Russian air strikes in the Aleppo area have killed some 1,207 civilians, 380 of them children. "Evidence clearly indicates that Russia has committed or been complicit in war crimes in Syria," says the letter, which listed 304 alleged attacks carried out in Aleppo primarily between July and December. The letter was signed by the Syrian Civil Defense search-and-rescue group, also known as the White Helmets, the Syrian Network for Human Rights, the Independent Doctors Association, and the Violations Documentation Center. Russia has said it stopped conducting air strikes in Aleppo in mid-October. Rebels had controlled the eastern part of Aleppo, Syria's biggest city before the civil war, since 2012, and the capture of most of the city is a major victory for Assad. Astana Talks Russian President Vladimir Putin said on December 16 that "the next step" would be "to reach agreement on a complete cease-fire across all of Syria." Speaking during a visit to Japan, Putin said that he and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan were working to launch a new round of peace negotiations between the Syrian government and the opposition. Putin said the proposed talks could take place in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. Putin didn't mention any involvement of the United States or the United Nations in the new round of Syria peace talks. However, he played down the idea that the proposed Astana talks would sideline or overshadow similar talks brokered by the United Nations that have been held intermittently in Geneva. "It won't compete with the Geneva talks, but will complement them," Putin said. Putin's remarks come a day after UN envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said the United Nations would have to broker any Syria talks for them to have legitimacy. Russia has given Assad crucial military and diplomatic backing throughout the conflict, which began with a forceful government crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in 2011 and erupted into a civil war that has killed more than 250,000 people. Moscow helped turn the tide in the government's favor with a major campaign of air strikes that began in September 2015 and that Western governments say has mainly targeted rebels rather than Islamic State militants. The United States is leading a coalition targeting IS militants who sezied large parts of northern Iraq and Syria in 2014. With reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/syria-aleppo-evacutaitons- truce-holds/28179641.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address This is the Whole Story of Aleppo's Liberation by Syrian Army Sputnik News 21:24 16.12.2016(updated 21:25 16.12.2016) On Friday, the Russian Defense Ministry's reconciliation center reported that the Syrian army's operation to liberate the eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo was completed, drawing the line under a long-time battle for the city. MOSCOW (Sputnik) Aleppo is the second largest city in Syria and the capital of the Aleppo province. Before the Syrian conflict broke out in 2011, Aleppo was the country's economic capital and the largest industrial center. Since August 2012, the western part of the city has been controlled by the Syrian army while the eastern part was occupied by various Islamist and insurgent groups, the most active of which were Daesh and al-Nusra Front, outlawed in Russia. Over the years of warfare, neither side of the conflict has managed to gain a serious advantage, however the conflict resulted in the decrease of Aleppo population from 2.5 million to less than a million. In early February 2016, the Syrian Armed Forces supported by patriotic militias broke the four-year blockade of the settlements in the north of the Aleppo province. The government forces cut off main supply routes of terrorists running from Turkey to the northern Aleppo's suburbs. The Syrian army and militia achieved a significant breakthrough in their fight against terrorists after the ceasefire announced on February 27. The ceasefire did not concern the groups recognized as terrorist organizations by the UN Security Council (UNSC). On March 31, Russian military delivered some four tonnes of humanitarian aid Aleppo's suburban town of Balat, which has become the first batch of humanitarian aid delivered to the settlement since the beginning of the conflict. Throughout April, the terrorists regularly carried out large-scale missile and mortar attacks against the districts of Aleppo controlled by Damascus, including the residential areas. On April 27, an attack on the al-Quds hospital in Aleppo killed 14 people, including three doctors. The Syrian government claimed that the Ahrar ash-Sham group allegedly supported by Turkey was behind the attacks on Aleppo. In early June, Aleppo was caught in fierce battles. The Syrian Foreign Ministry addressed the United Nations condemning the militant attacks. In mid-June, the Syrian armed forces stopped a major offensive by the al-Nusra Front in the north of the Aleppo province near the Syrian-Turkish border. On June 25, the troops of the Syrian army with support of militia carried out an offensive near the districts of Khalidiya and Bani Zeid in Aleppo. Damascus forces established control over a cotton plant and several residential buildings. In early July, the military activities in Aleppo itself intensified after the Syrian army and militia repelled an attack of Jaysh al-Islam on the Mallah farms in the northern suburb of Aleppo, liberated the farmlands and cut off the terrorists' main supply route from the Turkish border down the Castello Road. On July 10, the Syrian Armed Forces, supported by aviation and artillery, defeated the troops of al-Nusra Front and Jaysh al-Islam in northern Aleppo. On July 28, the Syrian government army established control over the Handarat refugee camp to the north of Aleppo. On the same day, the army liberated Bani Zeid, which was the largest stronghold of the terrorists in Aleppo. It became possible to storm the district after the government forces surrounded the occupied areas in the eastern and northeastern Aleppo in a dense circle and cut off all supply routes of the militants from the province of Idlib and Turkey. On July 28, Moscow and Damascus launched a large-scale humanitarian operation to help the civilians of Aleppo. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced that three corridors would be open for the civilians as well as for the militants, who expressed wish to surrender and to leave the city, and one more corridor for the militants with arms and machinery. On July 30, Syrian Reconciliation Minister Ali Haidar announced that the militants from the armed groups in eastern Aleppo had divided into two groups, one of which wanted to surrender and the other to continue fighting. In early August, the Syrian army blocked the major part of the militant forces in Aleppo. The western districts of the city were controlled by the army while the eastern districts were occupied by the terrorists. Intensive warfare continued in the southwest and the south of the city. Some 5,000 to 8,000 militants from various groups united under the leadership of the al-Nusra Front. The terrorists continued their attempts to unblock the supply routes for their accomplices in the eastern districts and to break the blockade. Eventually, the militants seized the areas of military schools and a major part of the 1070 housing project. On September 4, the Syrian army liberated strategically important areas in southern Aleppo, an Air Force school and a combat service support school. On September 22, the government forces began a military operation in the eastern districts of Aleppo. In September, the United Nations reported that the airstrikes on Aleppo resumed. The Syrian military claimed that their aviation did not target a single civilian facility or civilian infrastructure and only targeted the military facilities and aggregations of terrorists with thorough prior reconnaissance and monitoring. On October 8, the Syrian Army liberated the Huweija district. On October 15, Syrian engineers found a tunnel east of the citadel in the old city and blew up part of it. During the conflict, militants had been digging tunnels between the buildings in the historical part of the city in order to organize subversive attacks in the rear of Damascus forces. On October 18, Russia's Aerospace Forces and the Syrian Air Force stopped airstrikes at the Aleppo area. Russian and Syrian aircraft stayed 10 kilometers (6 miles) away from the city for a week. On October 23, the government troops launched an offensive in southern part of the city. The hostilities resumed after a three-day humanitarian pause announced so that the terrorists and civilians could leave the eastern part of the city. The terrorists refused to leave and threatened to kill those civilians who would attempt to flee. On October 28, the terrorists attacked the Syrian Armed Forces deployed in the southwestern part of the city. The army and militias repelled two attacks. According to the military intelligence's information, the terrorists used the humanitarian pause to redeploy over 8,000 fighters to the southern and northern parts of Aleppo. They attempted to break into the eastern districts of the city where large groups of their supporters had been blocked. On October 30, militia units reported that the terrorists used shells containing poisonous gas to attack them and Syrian Army units deployed near the military academy in southwestern Aleppo. Throughout November, the Syrian Armed Forces gained considerable ground in eastern Aleppo, seizing approximately half of the territory from the terrorists. According to the Russian Defense Ministry's center for Syrian reconciliation, by late November the government troops have liberated over 40 percent of eastern Aleppo. On December 5, a mobile Russian military hospital was attacked in Aleppo. During the attack two Russian medics were killed and one more was injured. The Russian Defense Ministry described it as premeditated murder and cast the blame upon it on the so-called moderate opposition and its Western sponsors. On December 7, the Syrian Army liberated two more districts in eastern Aleppo bringing a total number of them to 47. Breaking through the defense lines of terrorists in the historic part of the city, the Syrian Army forced the terrorists to flee to the southern districts, their last enclave of resistance. Government troops liberated over 80 percent of eastern Aleppo, which the terrorists had controlled since 2012. During the battle for Aleppo, Russia had repeatedly contributed to establishment of humanitarian pauses in the city, all of which came to nothing due to the UN humanitarian bodies' inability to deliver aid and because of the militants' actions. On December 8, the Syrian Army suspended fighting for the largest relief operation to allow civilians leave the city. On December 9, Lt. Gen. Sergei Rudskoy, the chief of the Russian General Staff Main Operational Directorate said at a briefing that the Syrian Army had liberated 52 districts in eastern Aleppo in successful offensive operations. On Monday, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov said that the Syrian Army had established control over 96 percent of Aleppo after liberation of another five districts in eastern Aleppo. On Tuesday, Damascus forces had been involved in mop up operations in Salaheddine district On Thursday, Lt. Gen. Viktor Poznikhir, the first deputy chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the Russian General Staff said that the militants had been driven from all the district in Aleppo and a total number of liberated districts had reached 105. According to the Monday estimates of the reconciliation center, more than 100,000 civilians including 40,000 children have been evacuated from Syria's eastern Aleppo since the government operation to liberate the city began. The reconciliation center added that over 2,000 militants had laid down their arms since the beginning of the operation and almost everyone was granted amnesty. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Over 2,700 Children Evacuated From Aleppo Within 24 Hours - UNICEF Sputnik News 20:18 16.12.2016 Almost 3,000 children have been rescued from the Syrian city of Aleppo within the last 24 hours, however, hundreds remain trapped, UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake said in a statement on Friday. WASHINGTON (Sputnik) Earlier on Friday, the Russian Defense Ministry's center for Syrian reconciliation said that the Syrian army's operation to liberate the eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo was over, and that the Syrian government troops were eliminating separate hotbeds of militant resistance. The reconciliation center said earlier in the day that over 6,000 people, including some 3,000 militants, had left eastern Aleppo for the Idlib province in several convoys in the first 24 hours of the evacuation operation, which kicked off on Thursday. "More than 2,700 children have been evacuated from east Aleppo in the past 24 hours, including some who were sick, wounded or without their parents," Lake stated. "However, hundreds of other vulnerable children, including orphans, remain trapped inside that part of the city." Lake said that the trapped children are facing dire consequences if not immediately evacuated. "UNICEF and our partners are on standby with transport and teams to evacuate these children to safety. We implore all parties to the conflict to let us do so safely and immediately," he added. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Syrian Army's Operation to Liberate Militants-Controlled East Aleppo Ends Sputnik News 14:55 16.12.2016(updated 16:06 16.12.2016) The Syrian army's operation to liberate militants-controlled eastern Aleppo has ended, the Russian Defense Ministry said. "The operation of the Syrian army on the liberation of militants-controlled eastern districts of Aleppo has been completed." According to the Russian center for Syrian reconciliation, the Syrian government forces are eliminating separate hotbeds of militants' resistance in Aleppo. Earlier in the day, a Syrian state-run TV channel reported that militants shelled an evacuation corridor from eastern Aleppo in the Ramuse district and violated an agreement with the Syrian government by attempting to take hostages with them. The Syrian army has been sent to the area. On Thursday, the Russian General Staff said that a total of 105 districts in Aleppo had been freed by the Syrian army. Syrian President Bashar Assad called the liberation of Aleppo a "watershed moment" on Thursday. An operation to evacuate militants and their families, as well as civilians who wanted to leave eastern Aleppo, had been held with the assistance of the Russian center for Syrian reconciliation and the ICRC staff. Currently, the evacuation "of all those who wanted to leave eastern Aleppo" has ended. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Aleppo Reports Conflict Amid Accounts of Massacre by Iran-backed Militias By Jamie Dettmer December 16, 2016 Russia said the operation to evacuate civilians and insurgents from eastern Aleppo has been completed, but opposition leaders say there are tens of thousands remaining in once rebel-held neighborhoods and accuse Iranian militias and Hezbollah of executing several men in the last convoy to leave the city. According to Syrian opposition leaders, a convoy that left Aleppo Friday carrying 800 people, including rebel fighters, was stopped by Iranian-commanded militias in the Jisr al-Haj district, who forcibly disarmed the insurgents in breach of the cease-fire agreement, seized the team of civil defense workers overseeing the convoy evacuation, and killed three of them. "Militias forced everyone to get off the buses, confiscated all individual weapons, forced men to get undressed to their underwear, killed three men and injured 7 others, then forced the convoy to go back to the besieged area of Aleppo city, and some buses are still missing," said Ahmad Abo Al-Nour, who witnessed the events. Another eyewitness among the evacuees said that about 20 buses accompanied by members of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and International Red Cross in separate cars successfully navigated a checkpoint controlled by Russian soldiers but were subsequently stopped at a checkpoint by Shi'ite militiamen from the Lebanese movement Hezbollah. Hezbollah killings reported According to the eyewitness, who did not want to be named in this article, the convoy was halted for 15 minutes, then tanks and Hezbollah militiamen surrounded the convoy, fired indiscriminately in the air and expelled the accompanying Red Cross and Red Crescent workers. The militiamen forced all the men to get off the buses and confiscated their weapons and mobile phones. Accompanied by his pregnant wife, a fighter who tried to resist was killed along with four others. They seized some of the civil defense cars and ambulances and forced the rest of the convoy back to the besieged pocket in eastern Aleppo. Russia, a key ally of the Syrian government, said the Aleppo evacuation was complete, with all rebels and their families who wanted to leave having done so. It put the number of evacuees at more than 9,500. Opposition leaders and Turkish officials disputed the Russian claim, saying thousands still wanted to leave. Speaking in Ankara, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said consultations were still underway with Russia and Iran, another key ally of President Bashar al-Assad, as well as "elements on the ground." Massacre fears In light of the Russian announcement that the evacuation of civilians and fighters from a sliver of territory still controlled by the insurgents is now complete, fears are mounting that a full scale massacre may unfold. U.N. officials say between 6,000-8,000 people have been evacuated this week from eastern Aleppo after regime forces recaptured most rebel districts. They estimate 50,000 people remain in a pocket still held by anti-Assad insurgents. That pocket, however, may be shrinking rapidly. Russian military officials Friday said regime forces were inside the pocket, and there were unconfirmed reports of pro-government units engaging in mopping up operations. There still are high numbers of women and infants that need to get out, according to World Health Organization officials. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has accused the Syrian government of carrying out "nothing short of a massacre" in Aleppo, and he has warned that the way in which Aleppo falls will determine whether peace talks will even be possible in coming weeks. Russian President Vladimir Putin urged all sides to agree on a nationwide cease-fire. Speaking Friday during a visit to Japan, he said Moscow and Ankara were working on a round of peace talks to be held in Kazakhstan between the Assad government and opposition. Syrian officials provided a different version of what's happening with the evacuation. They said Friday they had suspended the operation, which U.N. officials had calculated would take weeks, because rebels had failed to observe an agreement to lift their own siege of two pro-government Shi'ite towns, Foua and Kefraya, which lie west of Aleppo in neighboring Idlib province. Fighters and civilians who have been evacuated were taken in convoys to rebel-held parts of Idlib. Stalled evacuation A Syrian official overseeing the operation told the AFP news agency the evacuation had been halted "because the militants failed to respect the conditions of the agreement." Syrian state media also accused rebels of trying to smuggle captives and heavy weapons as they left the besieged enclave. Later on Friday, rebel commanders said an al-Qaida-linked militia group had agreed to ease its siege on Foua and Kefraya, and that evacuations from the two towns were likely to start shortly. Whether that would lead to a resumption of the evacuation from eastern Aleppo remains unclear. Seven-year-old Bana al-Abed and her mother, Fatemah, whose plight in eastern Aleppo has captured the world's attention through Twitter, appealed Friday for help to U.S. first lady Michelle Obama in a video message sent to NBC News. "I talk to you as a mother," Fatemah said in the message. "I implore you to help us ... because we are so afraid." The message ends with a plea from seven-year-old Bana: "Hello, Mrs. Obama. Please help us." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Syria Suspends Aleppo Evacuation By VOA News December 16, 2016 The Syrian government suspended the evacuation of civilians from eastern Aleppo Friday after blasts and gunfire were hard in parts of the city and both rebels and government forces accused the other of breaking the fragile cease-fire agreement. The Syrian government ordered trucks and buses that had been carrying people out of the rebel-held parts of Aleppo to turn around as the army set up roadblocks along the highway that had been used in the evacuation. Turkey, which has been heavily involved in the Aleppo peace process, said the suspensions are temporary. "The evacuations are not over and many people still want to leave the area," said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. Trading blame Syria's government says the rebels broke the agreement by trying to smuggle heavy weapons and hostages out of Aleppo. The rebels, though, accused the government of suspending the evacuation as a way to pressure them into releasing civilians from two government-held Shi'ite villages currently under siege by the rebels. The government says the evacuations in the Foua and Kfarya villages must coincide with those in eastern Aleppo, but the rebels say the two are unrelated. It is not clear when the evacuations will resume. Russia's Defense Ministry, however, says the evacuation is "complete" and, "All of the women and children have been moved from the rebel-controlled neighborhoods." The ministry says only "radical and intransigent" militants remain. Peace talks Earlier, Russia's president said his country is working with Turkey to start a new round of peace talks on Syria with a goal of a nationwide cease-fire. Speaking Friday during a visit to Japan, Vladimir Putin said he and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan propose holding negotiations between the Syrian government and opposition, possibly to take place in Kazakhstan's capital, Astana. His comments came as more civilians prepared to leave the destroyed city of Aleppo after thousands of people fled Thursday under the cease-fire brokered by Russia and Turkey that essentially ceded what has been a divided city to Syrian government control. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said Thursday at a rally in Pennsylvania the United States would create "safe zones" in Syria. "We'll build and help build safe zones in Syria, so people will have a chance." Trump said, "When I look at what's going on in Syria, it's so sad." The president-elect, in his first comments on the U.S. role in Syria since winning the election, said he would ask Persian Gulf nations to contribute to the financing of the zones. The United Nations Security Council was expected to meet in an emergency session Friday to discuss Aleppo. France, which called for the meeting, wants international observers on hand to monitor the evacuation of civilians, which is taking place after years of fighting in the city. Previous cease-fires collapsed almost immediately, putting a halt to evacuation efforts. The conflict in Syria, which began nearly six years ago as a protest against the government, has so far killed more than 310,000 people and forced millions of people to flee their homes. Violence continues Meanwhile, an explosion hit a southeastern neighborhood of Syria's capital, Damascus, on Friday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitoring group. The group reported that one person was killed, but could not confirm whether the person was a suicide bomber or a bystander. State media, however, reported that a blast at a police station in Damascus' Midan neighborhood was caused by a young girl who blew herself up. The developments come one day after convoys of ambulances and buses pulled away from Aleppo, which was a crown jewel of Muslim and Arab history and culture before the Syrian civil war left it in ruins. The buses left eastern Aleppo and went into government-held territory before eventually making it to another rebel-held part of the province. Some of the evacuated civilians praised Allah for saving them even as they left behind the bodies of friends and relatives under slabs of concrete that used to be schools, homes and stores. Scores of wounded civilians arrived in Turkey Friday for treatment. Syrian rebels hold on to only a sliver of eastern Aleppo after Syrian forces, with Russian military support, began their push to retake the city. President Bashar al-Assad said Thursday that history would be made with what he referred to as the "liberation of Aleppo." "What is happening today is the writing of a history written by every Syrian citizen. The writing did not start today. It started six years ago when the crisis and war started against Syria," Assad said in a video posted to his official Twitter account. Assad likened his government's recapture of Aleppo to other historical events, including the birth of Jesus and the fall of the Soviet Union, and said history would be permanently altered. Kerry criticizes terrorizing of civilians In Washington, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said, "We have witnessed indiscriminate slaughter, not accidents of war, not collateral damage, but frankly purposeful, cynical policy of terrorizing civilians." Kerry said the United States is going to work to save lives and continue pushing all parties in Syria toward a resolution and allow full access by humanitarian groups throughout all of Syria. "We believe this is a moment where the Syrian regime and the Russian military have an opportunity to make the decision to, a strategic decision I might add, for peace." With tens of thousands of lives still concentrated in a small part of Aleppo, Kerry said the last thing anybody wants to see is another Srebrenica - the Bosnian town where 8,000 Muslim men and boys were massacred in 1995 during the war in the Balkans. "There is absolutely no justification whatsoever for the indiscriminate and savage brutality against civilians shown by the regime and by its Russian and Iranian allies over the past few weeks, indeed over the past five years," Kerry said. U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter criticized the Russians Thursday for failing to carry out their stated reasons for becoming involved in Syria, which was to help in the political transition. "The Russians came in I'll remind you to Syria saying that they were there to promote precisely that political transition. And they haven't done that. And they also said they were coming in to fight ISIL (Islamic State) and they haven't done that either," Carter said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address What Does Trump Gain from Taiwan Call, What Can China do? By Steve Miller December 16, 2016 China has expressed "serious concerns" about President-elect Donald Trump's decision to call into question the United States' continued adherence to the "one China" policy. Since 1979, no United States president or president-elect has spoken directly with Taiwan. It's a policy based on a series of communiques between Washington and Beijing and grounded in the Taiwan Relations Act. White House spokesperson Josh Earnest called the practice an important diplomatic tool saying, "commitment to this policy has advanced the ability the United States to make progress in our relationship with China." After the president-elect took a call from Tsai Ing-wen, the president of Taiwan, and said he didn't know if the U.S. should be bound by the "One China" policy, Earnest explained why Beijing was so quick to respond to Trump's comments. "The Chinese government at Beijing places an enormous priority on this situation," said Earnest, "and it's a sensitive matter and some of the progress that we have made in our relationship with China could be undermined by this issue flaring up. It's also unclear how the people who live in Taiwan benefit from this issue flaring up the response from the Chinese government in the aftermath of this call has primarily been to ratchet up the rhetoric against Taiwan." The United States has routinely provided weapons and other military equipment to Taiwan, and a recently passed bill has provisions for yearly military exchanges with Taipei. The EastWest Institute's Jonathan Miller explains why there are concerns about Trump's approach to nearly four decades of U.S. foreign policy. "More concerning to me than the phone call itself were the comments he made since that point," said Miller, pointing to the president-elect's "Twitterstorm where he berated China for its activities in the South China Sea." Miller points up that the "most divergent change is his comment in a recent interview with Fox News seemingly bartering one-China policy, dangling that as something that could be bartered for economic concessions." Possible motives The Center for the National Interest's Harry Kazianis analyzes Trump's motivation. "I think it's a one word answer: leverage. If you look at the people who are advising Donald Trump right nowthese are all people [who] are [aligned] in one fact: that the United States needs to push back on China. And they've all called for in one way or another to have a much more robust relationship with Taiwan," said Kazianis. Kazianis notes that the longstanding policy of "agreeing to disagree" on Taiwan formed the bedrock of the relationship between Washington and Beijing. Miller says he isn't necessarily ready to take Trump literally. "He sees himself [as a businessman]," said Miller, "He talks about doing deals. He likes to push buttons as well." Chinese actions What can Beijing do to counter Trump's statement? Kazianis tells VOA that China was largely caught unprepared for the remarks, but currently feels the best response to the president-elect is through editorials and interviews. "Their response will be very different when he takes the Oval Office on January 20th," he said. Kazianis lists several possible actions for China to take, "it just depends on how far they're willing to go." China could implement a sea blockade, cutting off Taiwan's trade partners and weakening it economically. Beijing also could move in other military assets like aircraft carriers and fly fighters in the region. "Keep in mind, one of the reasons the Chinese military has been rebuilt in the last 20 to 25 years is if Taiwan ever tried to declare independence to take back that so-called renegade province," said Kazianis. These are merely possibilities that hinge on the implementation of Trump's foreign policy and not the actions of, as Kazianis notes, a private citizen poised to take the highest office in the United States. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Dutch PM Confident Parliament Will Pass EU-Ukraine Association Agreement December 16, 2016 Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte says he is confident parliament will approve a compromise he secured from other European Union leaders on an EU-Ukraine pact. Rutte's government on December 16 prepared legislation clearing the way for parliament to approve the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, despite the rejection of the trade pact by Dutch voters in an April advisory referendum. The fresh legislation comes a day after EU leaders offered additional guarantees about the trade pact demanded by The Netherlands. In a special statement, EU leaders who met in Brussels on December 15 said Ukraine's Association Agreement "does not confer on Ukraine the status of a candidate country for accession to the union, nor does it constitute a commitment to confer such status to Ukraine in the future." The statement also says the pact "does not contain an obligation for the union or its member states to provide collective security guarantees or other military aid or assistance to Ukraine." The Netherlands is the only EU country that has not ratified the deal. The trade pact is vital to Kyiv's efforts to establish closer ties with the West since mass protests toppled pro-Russian Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich in early 2014. Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/rutte-european -union-pact-ukraine/28180530.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address A Wise County Circuit Court judge recently denied motions from both Virginia Uranium Inc. and the Commonwealth of Virginia, as the company continues to fight against a statewide ban on uranium mining. Judge Chadwick Dotson denied both a summary judgment motion by the state as well as a partial summary judgment motion by Virginia Uranium. The summary judgment motion was an attempt by the state to prevent the case from going to trial because there is no genuine issue of fact disputed. In his opinion, Dotson said that the alleged deprivation of economic value in the mineral estate is such a total deprivation was precisely at issue in the case. Additionally, Dotson said the case was not subject to Res Judicata retrying the same case because the uranium company argued in favor of the Atomic Energy Act in federal court, rather than a Virginia law about property rights. Using the same argument, Dotson denied a cross-motion from Virginia Uranium. While it is undisputed that plaintiffs hold private property rights, the extent of those property rights is in dispute, Dotson said in the opinion. Additionally, Dotson said whether the property was damaged by the ban was also in dispute by the case. Additional court dates for the case have not yet been set. Metcalfe reports for the Danville Register & Bee. As 2016 comes to a close, many use this time to look back and consider the successes and the shortcomings of the past year. While useful, I dont want to spend my time looking to the past. The past is useful for learning and studying but we cannot live there. We cannot continue to look back if we want to move forward. Id rather spend my time thinking about what we should expect from 2017. And what I hope in 2017 is to see our local leadership embrace collaboration and move forward with a united vision for the entire Dan River Region. This isnt a far-fetched pipe dream. During the past 18 months, the Danville Regional Foundation has been working to help build relationships across municipal and state lines focusing our meetings on how we can bridge our resources in economic development, health improvements and educational opportunities. While participating in these meetings and gatherings, Ive looked around the table multiple times and come to a realization. Do you know that our region has seen a change in leadership at almost every level of our local government over the past year? The changes have occurred incrementally either through elections, staff turnover, retirements, new roles or new opportunities. Each of our localities are poised to meet 2017 well staffed and with their eye to the future. In Danville, we have new elected leadership on city council with new roles that have been assigned within the council. We have a new city manager and a new deputy city manager. We also have a new director of community development. In Pittsylvania County, 2016 brought a new economic development director and a new county administrator. We also have new members on the board of supervisors. Caswell County has two new county commissioners, a new health director, soon a new school superintendent and a new economic development position. I want to take this opportunity to recognize that with new leadership come new expectations. I want to respectfully remind new and established leadership what economic development expert Ted Abernathy told us almost 18 months ago: Keep doing what you are doing, do it better, and you will fail. Given the rapid rate of change, we must do better and we must do it differently. I want to speak directly to our new leadership. Whether youre new to the area and coming in with fresh eyes, or whether you have moved to different responsibilities within a familiar organization, the Dan River Region needs for you to succeed as leaders. Were counting on you. The Dan River Region needs you to embrace your role and lead us toward prosperity. We have come so far over the past several years but we still have much to accomplish if we are to compete regionally, nationally and internationally for the best people, the best jobs and the best quality of life a region of our size can provide. As we move into 2017, I want to challenge you with what we, your community, needs from you this coming year and beyond. First, as I said before, we need you to lead us fearlessly with a united vision and purpose. At the end of the day, we all want the same outcomes good jobs with competitive wages, residents that find fulfilling work inside and outside of the office and a community that provides the best amenities for a region of our size. Our methods may differ and opinions may clash over how we get there but our vision remains the same to make this region the best it can be for all residents. Its important not to forget this in the din of every day decision-making and problem solving. Second, we need you to be leaders that are willing to take risks, go against the status quo and, even when necessary, make unpopular decisions for the greater good all while working together to build a future that transforms our community. No one enters public service intending to be unpopular. We all want to be accepted and admired its our human nature. But public service, at its best, requires that those in leadership roles ask the hard questions, look critically at issues and provide the best solution that may or may not be the most popular path. Transformation at its best is welcomed with the best of intentions but more often than not true transformation causes problems and issues associated with change. No one said this work is easy and no one realistically expects it to happen overnight. What we do expect is that decisions, easy and difficult, are made that benefit all residents and all communities equally while creating a home that people will become homesick for. And lastly, we expect you to lead us to positive change and show us whats next. You are positioned to use your knowledge, your access to information and your roles to help us dream big and focus not on what might have been but on what is around the corner. Lead us forward and provide opportunities for us to serve, to create and to dream with you. This is our community and the ownership created from being part of the process is what will bring us together and make us stronger. Were ready, willing and able. And I for one believe that 2017 will be a very good year for the Dan River Region. I expect nothing else. To the editor: I know I speak for the many people who want Donald Trumps presidency to work. I truly do. Remember, you cant blame Barack Obama and the Democrats anymore and Mitch McConnell cant say he will not work with this president like he did when Obama took office. Also, there cant be any more gridlock since its in the Republicans lap now. But many of Trumps appointments, to me, are very questionable. Trump said he wanted to drain the swamp of the donor class during the election, but they now dictate his new cabinet. Trump is turning our government over to the very rich and these people know nothing about how the middle class or the poor struggle each and every day to make ends meet. Its a corporate wish list that would eliminate protections for working people and our environment and efforts to rein in Wall Street. Trumps pick for Treasury, Steven Mnuchin, is an example of this a veteran of Goldman Sachs and Wall Street who wants less regulation. Scott Pruitt for EPA doesnt believe in climate change at all. Betsy Devos for Education believes in charter schools more than public education. Attorney General nominee Jeff Sessions believes in the past where there will be no more LGBT rights or a womans right to her own body in other words, no abortion rights at all. Tom Price for Health and Human Services wants to privatize Medicare and leave seniors like myself to fend for themselves at the hands of the greedy insurance companies. Trump wants Andy Puzder for Labor; I cannot imagine someone more unsuited for this job. The working people of this country will suffer for sure. If confirmed he will have the potential to reverse some of Obamas notable efforts to bolster protections for workers, families and retirement savers. Hes totally against raising the minimum wage and was against the ACA from the beginning. Puzder praised the contribution of low-paid immigrant workers. We need to go forward in this country and not undo the good things that have been done to make all Americans lives better. I truly hope that I am wrong about these people and Trump does have more success than Obama had since both Congress and the Senate will work with him I hope for the good of all Americans and not just the rich. I have my doubts with his new cabinet though. ROBERT HAYDEN Blairs Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - December 16, 2016) - Coronet Metals Inc. (TSXV: CRF) (FSE: 2CM) (OTC Pink: CORMF) ("Coronet" or "the Company") is pleased to provide update on current developments and Company strategy. Through its wholly-owned subsidiary, "White Caps Mining Company" ("WCMC"), the Company controls the former producing White Caps Gold Mine and processing mill, along with an estimated 250,000 tonnes of historic tails and mine dumps * ("The White Caps Gold Project"). The White Caps Gold Project is located in the historic Manhattan mining district of south-central Nevada, which consists of ~2,800 acres & 121 patented and unpatented mining and mill site claims, only 13 miles south of Kinross' multi-million ounce Round Mountain Gold Mine. The Manhattan mining district is considered one of the more underexplored areas in Nevada. Coronet's strategy: To continue CRF's consolidation of claims in the Manhattan mining district- in addition to the Company's existing land package, Coronet is aggressively pursuing opportunities to secure additional adjacent claims which should greatly enhance scale and opportunity Moving to generate near term cash flow from existing tailings and dumps- With the encouraging initial metallurgical results and with confirming the tonnage of the tailings and dumps under way, the Company is well positioned to enter into commercial production in the near-term. To Ultimately re-develop the historic White Caps underground Mine. Plans to re-enter and explore the White Caps Mine is critical to Coronet's strategy Recap: Further to the September 30, 2016 press release 6 holes have been proposed to drill the White Caps mine dumps and 23 holes for drilling the White Caps tailings dumps totaling approximately 2,700 feet (820 meters) of drilling, The sonic drilling contract for the White Caps Gold Mining Project tailings and mine dumps was awarded to BoartLongyear ("Boart"), one of the leading experts in using sonic drilling. Hydrometallurgical test work was performed by EnviroLeach Technologies Inc., a 100% Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Iberian Minerals ("Iberian") (TSX-V: IML). Met-Solve Laboratories and ALS Global performed independent verification of the sample solutions and solids. The results exceeded expectations and the Company is compiling the results which will be released in the next weeks. Due to the very encouraging Phase I results, the Company is immediately starting phase II testing at EnviroLeach. Coronet's priorities in 2016: Drill the White Caps mine dumps and the White Caps tailings dumps to confirm tonnage Complete further metallurgical test work With the drilling and metallurgical test work completed, the Company will upgrade and/or verify the historical estimates of the quantity of the gold bearing tailings and mine dumps as a NI 43-101 mineral resources or mining reserves Develop pilot plant and small scale commercial production Completion of arrangements to secure additional adjacent claims which should greatly enhance scale and opportunity Re-entry and exploration of historical WC underground Mine Mr. Fred Tejada, P.Geo, a Director of the Company, is a Qualified Person under the meaning of Canadian National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the technical information contained in this news release. * References to tonnages are historical estimates. The estimated tonnage of 250,000 tonnes was provided by the two different mining engineering companies in October 2011 that the Company engaged to provide an estimate. The stockpile measurement is a technique to measure the volume and weight of commodity stockpiles. It is a scientific/ instrumental method, using Total Station equipment to determine the volume of the stockpile quantity. While the Company believes that the historical tonnage estimate is useful to guide future work on the project it cautions readers that these historical estimates should not be relied upon. A qualified person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimates as NI 43-101 mineral resources or mining reserves nor did/does Coronet treat the historical estimates as current mineral resources or mining reserves. The Company will have to conduct independent surveying, drilling, sampling and assaying of the tailings and mine dumps to determine the NI 43-101 tonnes and grades of the tailings and mine dumps. In conjunction with that, the Company will have to continue with independent metallurgical analysis to verify recoveries. This work will form the basis to upgrade or verify the historical estimates as NI 43-101 mineral resources or mining reserves. About Coronet Metals Coronet Metals Inc. is engaged in the business of acquiring, exploring and developing natural resource properties, with a focus on precious mineral properties/projects which have the potential for both near-term cash flow and significant exploration upside potential. Coronet's White Caps Gold Project is near the town of Manhattan in Northern Nye County. The Project is well in line with its strategy of consolidating the Manhattan mining district, developing the tailings & dumps and to create significant exploration upside. The Company has launched a fresh new web site so please visit www.coronetmetals.com for more information on the project, the history of the area and up to date information regarding its near-term plans, execution and strategy. Forward Looking Information This news release contains forward-looking statements and other statements that are not historical facts. Forward-looking statements are often identified by terms such as "will", "may", "should", "anticipate", "expects" and similar expressions. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations are risks detailed from time to time in the filings made by the Company with securities regulations. The reader is cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of any forward-looking information may prove to be incorrect. Events or circumstances may cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted, as a result of numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. As a result, the Company cannot guarantee that any forward-looking statement will materialize and the reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking information. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. Forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and the Company will only update or revise publicly any of the included forward-looking statements as expressly required by Canadian securities law. 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. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION AND ENQUIRIES: Theo van der Linde President and CEO Tel: +1 604-336-3193 Email: tvanderlinde@coronetmetals.com Calling all technologists, entrepreneurs and urbanists: Boston is ready for its next wave of innovation.On Dec. 9, the city released a request for information (RFI) calling for new ideas to help it deliver better services while keeping in mind that adding human value is the primary driver for new technology. But one thing the city wants companies to keep in mind: to please keep the sales speak at home and be ready to deliver a fully thought-out plan after speaking with residents and interest groups that have a stake in the city.Our call went out to anybody who is interested in creating some sort of product that adds definitive value to the streets of Boston, said Jackie Lender, Harvard Presidential City of Boston Fellow. Providing great and exemplary services is something we always strive for.Writing the RFI in colloquial language, void of overly technical jargon, was a conscious decision, said Lender, who co-wrote the request with Boston Chief of Streets Chris Osgood . It is vital, she said, to have the RFI be as open as possible to maximize the number of players coming in to improve Boston.Co-chair of the Mayors Office of New Urban Mechanics (MONUM) Nigel Jacob noted that when thinking about Boston's future, we need to make sure it is as livable a city as possible, dealing head-on with issues of equity, he said, adding that too often, businesses will pitch Internet of Things (IoT) devices or smart city technologies that come with a big flashy PowerPoint presentation, but are backed up by little to no human value.Earlier this year, MONUM issued a soft release of their Smart City Playbook , with tips and notes for smart city tech vendors and IoT devices. The playbook was really getting at an issue that repeatedly arose for city officials.We had been having the same conversations over and over, said MONUM Co-chair Kris Carter.The playbook gives Bostons potential partners a baseline knowledge of what city officials are looking for. Boston wants to know who else have they talked to, Carter said, and what kind of response they have received from Boston residents and interested parties.The RFI allows us to surface all these different players, said Jacob. Frankly, in Boston we have an embarrassment of riches in different vendors, researchers, thinkers and designers. We want to get everyone who has something at stake at the table to discuss how new technology can have the greatest value added for all Boston residents."Urban designers are key to the projects. Often the technology is there; it's just a matter of how well it can be incorporated into everyday life and how easily accessible it is for residents.Rather than a presentation by salespeople, Boston is looking for collaborations that affect real people. In the playbook the city acknowledges that while getting pitches for internal systems is useful, they are currently interested in solutions to residents' real problems.Boston is opening itself and its resources to IoT vendors. The city houses tens of thousands of assets in the public right of way that could potentially become connected and smart, according to the RFI. The set of available resources is broken down into priority assets, including streetlights, fire boxes, city-owned fiber lines, and secondary assets including parking meters, manholes and non-emergency public fleet vehicles.Certain restrictions apply to the coloring of certain assets; for example, city fire hydrants must maintain their black-and-red tops.The city is ready to embrace the private partnerships that can add value to their citizens' lives. By listing all of the available resources for civic engineers and city planners, Boston has shown it is ready for business.We are not looking for pitches that oversell products; we are looking for partners who have good ideas on how to solve hard problems," Jacob said. "Boston is increasingly a city of haves and have-nots; similar to how we align policy with human level impact in mind, we want to use technology in the same way. (TNS) -- WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheelers departure next month leaves in doubt his signature initiative: the net neutrality rule thats reviled by cable and telephone companies.The groundbreaking set of regulations, passed in 2015 by Wheeler and his Democratic majority, forbids internet service providers from blocking or slowing rivals content. Companies such as AT&T Inc., Verizon Communications Inc. and the cable industry led by Comcast Corp. sued to block the rule, saying it gave the agency too much authority.They lost that case but some Republicans have vowed to take up the cause and overturn the regulation when they have control of Congress, the White House and the FCC.Wheeler, who announced Thursday that he will leave the commission on Jan. 20, when Donald Trump is scheduled to be sworn in, said it may not be so easy. Even though the Republicans will gain a 2-1 FCC majority, federal law requires that they show good reasons if they are to change the rule, Wheeler said at a news conference.Therell be a burden to demonstrate what has changed so drastically since the rule was passed in 2015, Wheeler said. Then the question of course is ultimately going to be resolved by the courts which have backed the agencys approach.Congress could supersede an FCC rule, but legislation that guts the rule could be blocked by Senate Democrats who support net neutrality.Earlier attempts to write a replacement all failed to muster sufficient support in the face of a certain veto by President Obama. Thats no longer a factor, Kevin Werbach, a professor at the University of Pennsylvanias Wharton School, wrote in an essay posted on medium.com. As congressional reversals of signature Democratic policies go, this one would be an easy lift.Congress likely will begin examining ways to revoke net neutrality early in 2017, Rep. Marsha Blackburn, a Tennessee Republican, said in a speech earlier this month.Republicans must seize the opportunity before them to roll back Chairman Wheelers overreach, Blackburn said. She called for both parties to work together.Senator Ron Johnson, a Wisconsin Republican who sits on the commerce committee that oversees the FCC, said, I look forward to working with the new FCC on rolling back harmful, partisan regulations that choke investment and innovation in the communications sector.The regulation was backed by President Barack Obama. Trump hasnt been explicit about his view of the rule.In a 2014 tweet, Trump called net neutrality, then under consideration, an attack on the internet that would serve to target conservative media. He named critics of net neutrality to his transition team, including one who has called the regulation crony capitalism designed to benefit so-called edge companies a category that includes companies such as Alphabet Inc.s Google and Netflix Inc.The rule is supported by Google, Netflix, Twitter Inc., Yelp Inc. and other web companies that need to go through internet service providers in order to reach customers.Wheelers departure will leave three seats to be filled by Trump nominees, all of whom must be confirmed by the Senate: a Republican to give the party a third seat on the panel, and Democrats to replace Wheeler and Jessica Rosenworcel, who didnt win confirmation to a second term before the Senate adjourned last week.Chairman Wheeler has served this country with distinction, departing Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said.The Nevada Democrat, who is retiring after 30 years in office, urged Obama to re-nominate Rosenworcel next month when a new Congress is seated. Reid said he had commitments from Republican leaders in the Senate that they would confirm her and there is now no reasonable excuse for not holding a vote.Other rules passed by Wheelers FCC are also targets for Republicans. They include privacy rules imposing obligations on carriers such as AT&T and Verizon Communications and ownership rules that restrict TV-station combinations by companies such as Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc.Wheelers been in office since 2013, and Republicans are eager to begin pruning rules he passed without their votes, such as the net neutrality measure. We need to fire up the weed whacker, Ajit Pai, the agencys senior Republican who may become acting chairman upon Wheelers departure, said in a Dec. 7 speech.A former venture capitalist and lobbyist for the cable and wireless industries, Wheeler surprised some analysts with an activist agenda opposed by his former employers, highlighted by the net neutrality rule that has survived a court challenge by the cable and telephone industries.Wheeler proposed but couldnt pass rules regulating rates for high-speed business lines, and tried but didnt succeed in wresting control of the set-top box market from cable providers led by Comcast.Wheelers FCC helped to kill Comcasts proposed purchase of Time Warner Cable Inc. Along with antitrust regulators he signaled to Sprint Corp. it couldnt buy T-Mobile US Inc., heading off one possible deal. It wasnt all no his FCC approved AT&Ts purchase of satellite-TV provider DirecTV, and Charter Communications Inc.s purchase of Time Warner Cable.Its unclear whether the agency will take up AT&Ts proposed $85.4 billion purchase of HBO and CNN owner Time Warner Inc. The companies are assessing whether to retain the FCC licenses that would give the agency jurisdiction over the deal, AT&T Chief Executive Officer Randall Stephenson said at a congressional hearing on Dec. 7.Wheeler, 70, followed the template of former Chairman Kevin Martin, a Republican, who left on Obamas inauguration day although he had more than two years remaining in his term.Wheeler could have chosen to remain a commissioner, without the presidential designation as chairman, until his term runs out in 2018. That would have created a temporary 2-2 tie, lasting only until the Senate confirmed a successor for another Democrat who is leaving the agency.The FCC at full strength has five commissioners, with a maximum of three from any political party, and the chairman selected by whoever is president. Henkel is the first winner of the Surcar International Award for Environmental Footprint with its Bonderite Thin Film 1800 Series zirconium oxide pre-treatment process for car bodies. The award went to Henkels Surface Technologies team in Asia Pacific and partner, Qoros Auto Co., in recognition of a joint project implemented at the paint shop of Qoros manufacturing site in Changshu near Shanghai. The Bonderite Thin Film process is more environmentally friendly than traditional zinc phosphate treatments. For example, while eliminating the use of heavy metals, such as zinc and nickel, it involves significantly fewer processing steps and less rinsing, which can reduce water consumption by 20%. In addition, it produces far less solid waste. The process also operates at ambient temperatures, thus reducing energy consumption by 70%. In contrast to traditional treatment processeswhich involve at least 12 individual steps, three of which require heatingthe Bonderite thin film technology comprises only seven steps, and only two of those need extra heat. In 2013, Qoros was the first company in China to rely on Bonderite zirconium pre-treatment. In the meantime, Henkel has installed eight Bonderite thin film body pre-treatment lines in China. Since its introduction to the market in 2008, the process has experienced exponential growth. According to Mark Hyde, Asia-Pacific Business Director, Automotive Surface Treatment for Henkel, some nine million cars per year are now being treated with the new system. We have reference customers on five continents. The zirconium-based Bonderite thin film technology is appealing to automotive manufacturers everywhere, but especially in China, which has the strictest regulations on emissions and waste water discharge in the world. This is another acknowledgment of Henkels innovation leadership in the area of surface technologies and our competitive lead in the market. Mark Hyde The Surcar Congress for the body finishing and painting industry was inaugurated in 1964 in France. In 2014, for the first time, the event was held Shanghai. Members of the Supreme Courts conservative majority are questioning the continued use of affirmative action in higher education. In lengthy arguments Monday, the justices wrestled with persistent, difficult questions of race. The justices heard from six different lawyers in challenges to policies at the University of North Carolina and Harvard. Those policies consider race among many factors in evaluating applications for admission. One conservative justice likened affirmative action to giving some college applicants a head start in a footrace. But a liberal justice said universities are the pipelines to leadership in our society and suggested that without affirmative action minority enrollment will drop. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate GREENWICH Concerns about Fire Department response times and capabilities in the north end of the community are continuing, as the department spells out the rationale for recent changes and promotes them as an overall benefit to public safety. New staffing policy, which eliminates the deployment of two- and four-firefighter engines, is being viewed as a positive step to some, a negative to others. All professional engines in Greenwich are now staffed by three firefighters. The loss of four-person crews in the northeast and northwest corners of town where distances from firefighting facilities are the greatest is causing the most worries to some residents. The new staffing started Nov. 28. For those of us in the backcountry who have pleaded for better fire coverage, we have a very heightened concern level especially during winter months when hazardous, slippery weather conditions slow response times to emergency incidents, said a neighborhood leader, Allen Williams. The town used to staff the two stations that serve the north end, Glenville and North Street, with professional four-person crews, but those engines have shifted to three-person crews. Fire stations in Byram, Old Greenwich and Cos Cob will go from two-firefighter crews to three. The town is also served by a significant force of volunteer firefighters. Crews with four firefighters have greater capacity to attack a fire, and critics of the new staffing say the move is a significant departure from the highest safety standards. Williams, the president of the Northwest Greenwich Association, said the change has raised anxiety about emergencies. The four-man crew gave residents a better comfort level, and a feeling of improved fire protection. While I do understand the reasons for the move, there's now a safety risk for homeowners, residents, workers, students, and especially for first responders themselves, he said. Assistant Fire Chief Robert Kick said the new system is functioning well. The departments leadership is highlighting the move away from two-person crews as a positive step. The re-deployment is working exactly as we knew it would, Kick said. We eliminated the two-firefighter engine companies, which was our primary objective. We no longer have under-staffed fire apparatuses pulling up to fire scenes. The three-person model is used in 70 percent of suburban communities across the country that are comparable to Greenwich, he stressed. Its a good model, it will work, he said. As to the loss of four-firefighter crews in the the north end of town, Kick said the departments leadership had to look at the whole picture. The call volume downtown is much greater, the fire volume downtown is much greater, he said. He called the volunteer companies in the north end great resources, as well, saying they provide another layer of protection. It will be a seamless transition in the backcountry, he said. The department as a whole is in a much better place. There has been opposition to the new staffing formula from some members of the department. The shift essentially means the town has decided to rob Peter to pay Paul, by sabotaging properly staffed fire engines to marginally improve the safety on understaffed fire engines, said a fire department acting lieutenant, Kevin Coyner. The firefighter said the town should continue to work toward implementing four-person crews. There are no shortage of impartial studies that clearly state that four firefighters can perform significantly faster and more effectively than three, and three obviously better than two, said Coyner, who serves on the towns retirement board. He estimates that it would add $25 a year to the average homeowners tax bill to staff four-person crews, which he finds a reasonable addition. Kick acknowledged that some are unhappy about the move. But there are 20,000 people that live in the Old Greenwich, Riverside and Cos Cob section who will enjoy greater fire protection, he said. And thats where weve had the fires in the last few years. And Byram our greatest population density is there, now we have a third firefighter on that engine. Financial and budgeting constraints made the move a necessity. Some people think there are dollars out there for us to hire people, but theres just not, the assistant chief concluded. Plans to build a firehouse in the northwest quadrant of town, tied in with more personnel, have been repeatedly stymied by budget-cutters in town government, over the objections of First Selectman Peter Tesei. Williams, of the Northwest Greenwich Association, said there are long-term hopes that the town administration will eventually accede to a new firehouse. The ideal solution is to build and staff a fire station somewhere in the northwest section of town, he said. "The short-term solution is to hope, and pray, that volunteers at the Glenville Volunteer Fire Company and the Round Hill Volunteer Fire Company happen to have members in town who arrive at the scene of an emergency at the same time, or sooner, than the career engine crews. They will ultimately become that fourth man so that fire and rescue operations can safely proceed without waiting for additional manpower to arrive. Tesei said he approved of the three-person crews. I support the Fire Department Administrations decision to utilize its only available option to deal with the staffing issue, he wrote in an email. The three-person assignments safely follow an industry standard for communities our size and with departments comparable to our size, many of which handle double the call volume of Greenwich. It appears that plans for new staffing and new facilities are not under consideration. The Board of Estimate and Taxation and the Representative Town Meeting each have spoken on this issue, Tesei wrote. Without the financial support of those two bodies, the issue was dealt a death blow last spring, despite years of lobbying by me and the fire department administration, as well as residents of the Northwest corner. What if? Its the kind of question that invites dreams of what might be. It also invokes the harsh reality of what is. Immigration specialist Alex Arevalo hears a lot of what if at this time of year: what if I visit family in my native country during the holidays? For Americas 11 million undocumented residents who live in the shadows, a holiday visit with family is not an option. If they leave, they cant return. Anyone undocumented for less than a year is barred from re-entry for three years; its 10 years for those here longer. Arevalo, a caseworker and accredited non-attorney legal specialist who heads the Immigration Services program at Catholic Charities of Fairfield County (CCFC), knows what it means to live in the shadows. He was barely 16 when ordered by his father to leave El Salvador and escape conscription during the countrys civil war. Two older brothers had already fled to America. Traveling alone, he risked his life during a perilous journey through Mexico to the United States border, which he crossed in 1990. For the next decade, Arevalo struggled to survive without documentation, graduating from Norwalk High School in 1994 and earning a B.A. in psychology from Southern Connecticut State University. He credits his survival to his mentor, the late Monsignor Frank C. Wissel, former pastor of Saint Mary Parish in Greenwich, who died in 2014. In 1993, Wissel welcomed Arevalo to the Saint Maximilian Kolbe House of Studies for Boys in Bridgeport, which Wissel founded in 1983, and where he was then director. Wissel pushed Arevalo to pursue education. But even with a college degree, Arevalo could not lead a normal life. Given his undocumented status, there was no path out of the shadows. That changed when President Clinton signed the Legal Immigration Family Equity Act in December 2000. This legislation enabled Arevalo to apply for a green card without returning to El Salvador for a ten-year re-entry prohibition. It gave me a chance to dream of a new life, Arevalo wrote in a biographical account that celebrated his becoming an American citizen on Oct. 24, 2012. Through his work with CCFC, Arevalo dedicates his life to helping others pursue their dreams. The immigration program he runs was established by CCFC in 2006 to address the needs of Fairfield Countys sizable foreign-born population. This program, with its mission to welcome the stranger, provides comprehensive legal counseling, case management, and advocacy. It offers a variety of specific services to assist with such things as adjustments in immigrant status, family reunification, work authorization, political asylum, visa extensions, and citizenship applications. It also screens for victims of human trafficking and domestic violence, and assists those fleeing war, natural disaster, and persecution. With one and one-half paid staff in Bridgeport and a part-time volunteer at New Covenant Center (NCC) in Stamford, the program handles over 350 cases annually, with 100 carried over monthly. According to CCFC, theres a significant unmet need for services in Fairfield County, especially in Stamford, which has Connecticuts highest percentage of immigrants. To meet this need, the agency is seeking funding for a full-time case manager in Stamford. This complements what were doing, NCC executive director John Gutman said during a recent interview at NCC that included Arevalo, and CCFCs director of development, Bill Morin. Gutman noted that a full-time immigration specialist would be a welcome addition to NCCs holistic network of existing supportive services. At the start of our interview, they told the story of a young woman from Columbia, now a Harvard freshman, who spent her childhood in the shadows. At her high school graduation in June, she revealed her undocumented status during her valedictorian speech. Shes among 150 young people Arevalo has helped emerge from the shadows through registration in DACA, President Obamas 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy initiative that protects young people from deportation. Over 700,000 young people have registered; hundreds of thousands more are eligible. But now, with talk of deportation, those whove registered, and their families, may be the most vulnerable. Build that wall? What if we, a diverse nation of immigrants, shine light into the shadows and build bridges instead? What if we keep dreaming the American Dream? Alma Rutgers served in Greenwich town government for 25 years. Her blog is at blog.ctnews.com/rutgers/. These are the best offers from our affiliate partners. We may get a commission from qualifying sales. The Galaxy Beta program is currently in the full swing of things and part of that program is taking suggestions and feedback from participants of the program. According to a reply received from a tester, Samsung is pleased to announce that it it trying to improve the features of the Fingerprint Scanner. A beta program tester suggested that the fingerprint scanner should work similarly to the way the Google Pixel (XL) allows you to swipe up or down to control pull down or hide the notification shade. Samsung replied to the tester, thanking them for their suggestion. Source: SamMobile If you ask me, before implementing any gestures, perhaps Samsung should see how it can improve the accuracy of the US-variants fingerprint scanners. Contrary to the Exynos-variant of the Galaxy S7, the US version with the Snapdragon 820 has an average performing scanner. We expect the scanner on the Galaxy S8 to be much improved. Does this confirm that Samsung will actually implement these features? No. But that still leaves a possibility. And with the news that the Samsung Galaxy S8 might have a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner, there could be even more reason to implement the fingerprint scanner with gestures. Via We all know the sad story of the exploding Samsung Galaxy Note7 that lived a very short life and got recalled and discontinued due to safety concerns. Initially, Samsung had blamed a battery supplier for the issue, but as it later turned out that wasn't the case and the company struggled to find the exact cause. Samsung committed to investigating and revealing the cause of the issue by the end of the year, and it seems that the Korean maker is set to make good on that promise. The internal investigation is apparently complete and Samsung has sent the findings report to the Korea Testing Laboratory and UL (an American safety organization), among others. The report is, however, yet to be released to the general public (us included). Meanwhile, Instrumental suggested that extremely tight internal margins were the reason for the exploding batteries, but that remains to be confirmed by Samsung's own analysis. Source | Via Haiti - FLASH : Gang leader "Lele" shot dead in Cite Soleil On Friday the dangerous gang leader Jean Hilaire Ladouceur, alias "Lele", actively sought for his involvement in the assassination of Rigaud Claude Clermont, a young police officer of 24 years of Petion-ville https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19501-haiti-security-a-young-24-year-old-police-officer-savagely-assassinated.html was shot dead during a shootout in Cite Soleil. According to a police source "Lele" tried to take refuge in Cite Soleil to escape the police and would have meet a strong opposition of a Gang to Soleil 17, which would have refused to hide him. A confrontation followed, which ended with an exchange of shots in which "Lele" was killed. In addition, as part of the assassination of Rigaud Claude Clermont, the National Police of Haiti (PNH) arrested two members of the "Lele" gang : Maxonne Jean Louis and Regine Guillaume. The policeman Clermont's service weapon was found in the possession of one of the two men. During their interrogation, the two members of the Gang would have confessed their participation in the assassination of the young police officer. See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19516-haiti-justice-mayor-of-petion-ville-accused-claims-his-innocence.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19501-haiti-security-a-young-24-year-old-police-officer-savagely-assassinated.html PI/ HaitiLibre Haiti - Justice : Temporary suspension of mass releases of detainees As part of the fight against prolonged pre-trial detention, following the announcement of the release Thursday of 500 new prisoners, after the 250 already released Monday 12 December https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19508-haiti-news-zapping-politics.html and face the concern expressed by human rights organizations, the Port-au-Prince Government Commissioner, Jean Danton Leger, has agreed to suspend temporarily the announced releases. He pointed out that this temporary suspension was in the interests of transparency, in order to allow these organizations to see the files, to ensure that there were no dangerous criminals on the list and to eliminate all traces of suspicion before their release. Recall that since Danton Leger assumes the charge of the Prosecution, more than 2,000 prisoners have already regained their freedom... https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-19253-icihaiti-justice-more-than-2-000-prisoners-released.html See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19508-haiti-news-zapping-politics.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19483-haiti-news-zapping-politics.html https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-19253-icihaiti-justice-more-than-2-000-prisoners-released.html HL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - Diplomacy : Accreditation of 2 new Ambassadors (India and Egypt) Friday at the National Palace, de facto President Jocelerme Privert received the credentials of two new Ambassadors extraordinary and plenipotentiary accredited in Haiti: Tsewang Namgyal (Republic of India) and Atef Mohamed Salem Sayed Elahl (Arab Republic of Egypt). After officially receiving their credentials, President Privert separately had a tete-a-tete with the two diplomats in the presence of the Haitian Chancellor Pierrot Delienne. He wished them a good stay in the country while promising them his frank collaboration as Head of State. He said he was open to working with representatives of all foreign countries to facilitate investments that would facilitate job creation and improve conditions necessary for the development of Haiti. The two diplomats undertook to represent their country worthily, to work in full collaboration with the Haitian government while respecting the principles dictated by laws, conventions and treaties. Following the presentation of their credentials, the two new Ambassadors each presented a floral offering to the Haitian National Pantheon in memory of the Heroes of Independence of Haiti. At the end of this brief ceremony, Mrs. Michele Frisch, the General Director of the Museum of the Pantheon invited the two diplomats to visit the permanent and temporary exhibition rooms, to discover the history and culture of Haiti. SL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - Social : TOYP 2016, lists of the 10 Outstanding Young Person The Junior Chamber International Haiti (JCI Haiti), with the support of the American Embassy, the Embassy of Canada and other partners, has the immense pleasure to announce the final result of the contest the Ten Outstanding Young Person 2016. Launched in August 2016 throughout the country under the theme "Young Leaders Haitians for the Sustainable Development Objectives (SDO)" https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-18706-haiti-notice-registration-opens-for-the-competition-young-leaders-2016.html the process of identifying these ten young models of Haitian society for the year 2016 has been long. JCI Haiti reiterates its warmest congratulations to the various candidates who submitted their files. There is no doubt that they are very numerous throughout the country, these remarkable young Haitians who positively influence each community in various fields. After interviewing the applicants and verifying all the information provided, it is with pleasure that the JCI Haiti TOYP Committee publishes the results of the final report of the Jury composed of Gerald Oriol Junior, Former Secretary of State for the Integration of People with Disabilities, D'jimy Malval Director of Alternative Networks at SOGEBANK, Yves Bernard Remarais, Former President of JCI Haiti, Marie Alice Theard and Indran Amirthanayagam of the U.S. Embassy. Final result of TOYP JCI HAITI : Fortil Romel : Achievement in business, economy, or business ; Salomon Jean Marie-Junior : Political, legal and / or governmental affairs ; Andre Rock : Leadership and / or Academic Achievement ; Senadin Anned-Linz : Leadership and / or Academic Achievement ; Jean Jean Roosvelt : Cultural Realization ; Leandre Marc Nahum : Moral and / or environmental leadership ; Joseph Walter : Contribution to the rights of children, world peace and / or human rights ; Cincir Amos : Humanitarian and / or Voluntary Leadership ; Baptiste Skason : Personal development and / or personal achievement ; Pierre Samuel : Medical innovation. See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-18706-haiti-notice-registration-opens-for-the-competition-young-leaders-2016.html HL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - News : Zapping politics... FLASH: Rejection of requests for disqualification of advisers to the BCEN The Provisional Electoral Council announced that requests for disqualification of electoral advisers from the National Electoral Disputes Bureau (BCEN) requested by the various parties were rejected https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19527-haiti-flash-publication-of-final-results-possible-delay.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19518-haiti-flash-bcen-hearings-postponed-sine-die.html Great Children's Festival at the Palais National This Saturday morning from 9:00 am started at the National Palace, the big annual celebration organized by the presidency for children... Privert asks the CEP to be responsible The de facto President of the Republic, Jocelerme Privert, asked the CEP to take responsibility for the completion of the electoral process so that "the country could be endowed with legitimate authorities on 7 February 2017" to avoid "[...] a real chaos and anarchy, with the dysfunction of all the republican institutions." In addition, Privert denounces protest movements in streets that are violent during the period of challenge, specifying that the police must do their work while specifying that "The Constitution recognizes the Right to the people to express their concerns about the elections, through the peaceful way but witout broken." Large reforestation campaign Friday morning "Food For The Poor" has begun a major reforestation campaign at Grand'Anse. The convoy carries about 2,000 seedlings of avocado, 1 tonne of local maize seed, 1 tonne of local black bean seed, a quarter of a tonne of pea stump and half a tonne of vegetable seed (tomatoes, okra, aubergines, lettuces , Cabbage, carrots, etc...) Canada, community evening at the Embassy of Haiti 467/5000 A community evening was held Thursday at the Canadian Embassy in Haiti. The Ambassador of Haiti to Canada, Frantz Liautaud and the Embassy staff have given a warm welcome to members of the Haitian community. Very friendly atmosphere and good humor can summarize this evening which testifies of the will of the Chef de mission to maintain privileged relations with the Haitian community of the region of Ottawa and its great region. The Department of Vienne on mission to the country The Department of Vienne, France, has been engaged for several years in a decentralized cooperation in the fields of health and education with the city of Marigot, in the southeast of Haiti. Bruno Belin, the President of the Department, is currently carrying out a mission with the members of the Association Vienne Haiti Solidarite. They went to the lycee Henri Christophe where a university scholarship program was set up, as well as to Macary (10km from Marigot), whose health center is supported by the French Department. HL/ HaitiLibre The Distinguished Gentleman of Gospel croons his way through the holiday season with a special sacred Negro Spiritual "Mary Had A Baby". This gentle Christmas melody is a lyrical story of the birth of our Savior set on a canvas of traditional gospel music. "For me, there is no spiritual more beautiful than Mary Had A Baby," Conrad shares. "While there are several arrangements of this work, the one on which this recording is based stands alone in the Christmas repertoire! Dr. Roland Carter's arrangement captures the simple melodic beauty of the Virgin Birth." Conrad brought on Martin Luther Wardlaw (of The Wardlaw Brothers) to assist in arranging and producing "Mary Had A Baby" based on the arrangement by Dr. Roland Carter, Professor Emeritus, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. "Sacred Christmas music is special because it recounts and celebrates the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ," Conrad continues. "What better way to recognize and acknowledge the miracle that happened more than 2000 years ago, and what it means to the entire world, than through music?" "Mary Had A Baby" is available on all digital music outlets along with Conrad's current gospel album THANKFUL. Trustee Akina Responds to Questions at OHA Board Meeting Affirms Commitment to Native Hawaiian Advancement News Release from Office of OHA Trustee Kelii Akina December 16, 2016 HONOLULU, HI- On Thursday, the Board of Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs held its second meeting since its reorganization. Newly elected Trustee-at-Large Kelii Akina, Ph.D. took the occasion to respond to questions about his positions on Native Hawaiian issues. The following are excerpts from both Trustee Akina`s verbal remarks to the Board and his position paper on Native Hawaiian issues, which he distributed to the Trustees at the Board meeting. I have no opposition to the self-determinism of our Hawaiian people, Trustee Akina said at the Board meeting. I support the self-determinism of the Hawaiian people, but I do believe that the path that will get us into trouble is when [we] use our state agency, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and its funds, in a way that is unconstitutional, because that is counterproductive to the entire process. In his position paper, Trustee Akina presented his views on Native Hawaiian entitlements: You should also know that I am completely committed to the protection of the primary Hawaiian entitlements as secured by law. These include the Hawaiian Homelands and the Ceded Lands trusts. I affirm these rights of native Hawaiian beneficiaries and do not promote taking assets away from Hawaiians to give to non-Hawaiians. With respect to the Ali`i trusts, Trustee Akina stated: I also affirm the rights of the Alii trusts, such as the Kamehameha Schools, to use their private property rights (as the estates of private individuals) according to the wills of their benefactors. I am, after all, a proud alumnus of Kamehameha Schools as are my four children. #### Kelii Akina, Ph.D., is a community leader who is known for the phrase he has coined, "E Hana Kakou" - Let's work together! Over the past several years as a public policy adviser at the legislative, congressional and international levels, Dr. Akinas mission has been to preserve the Aloha Spirit by which native Hawaiians and people of all races are welcomed and encouraged to work together for a better future for all our keiki. He is president and CEO of the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii, a nonprofit, independent think tank and Trustee-at-large of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this news release do not reflect those of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs or its Board of Trustees. VIDEO: Dec 15 OHA BoT Meeting Background: Akina OHA: Crucial Recommendations for Achieving Fiscal Sustainability Background: Akina to OHA: E Hana Kakou In garda interviews, Byrne took responsibility for the drugs and said he was trying to get rid of them in a quick sale. A man who threatened to kill hotel staff who found cannabis herb in his room is now in rehab and will not be jailed if he continues to make good progress, a judge has said. Keith Byrne (32), who has 44 previous convictions, made threats to staff and told them he had a lawyer "on speed dial". Byrne, of Ballyogan Lawn, Ballyogan, Carrickmines, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possession of cannabis herb valued at 300 and making threats to kill or cause serious harm to staff at Bewley's Hotel, Sandyford in February 2014. Judge Melanie Greally noted that Byrne was now in a residential rehabilitation programme and was making good progress. She adjourned the case until October and said if he continued to make strides in treatment and engaged in services, she would deal with the matter in a non-custodial way. At Byrne's previous court appearance, Gda Sean Balfe told Sinead McMullen, prosecuting, that staff had seen different people going to and coming from Byrne's room. At about 2am he and another man went down to the lobby. Abusive When staff said the second man had to remain in the lobby because he was not a guest, Byrne became abusive. When asked by a member of staff to calm down, he responded by saying he would slit him "from ear to ear". "My sister is a solicitor and I have a barrister on speed dial," he said. He then told staff his girlfriend was ill in the room. When a member of staff went to check, a woman answered the door. In the room was a large bag containing cannabis herb. In the lobby, Byrne was overheard telling someone to get the "stuff from under the bed". Byrne then told a staff member that he would murder him. When Byrne discovered the staff member had the bag of cannabis herb, he produced a screwdriver and threatened to stab the man. He then fled the scene. In garda interviews, Byrne took responsibility for the drugs and said he was trying to get rid of them in a "quick sale". Barry Ward, defending, said Byrne was now free from any substance abuse. He submitted that this was a drug-fuelled event, but his recent engagement with rehabilitation has been "exemplary." Ross Hutch has been warned his life is under threat Gangland target Ross Hutch was last night charged over an attempted cash-in-transit van robbery. The 24-year-old, who scooped 33,000 in cash and prizes on RTE's Winning Streak last year, was arrested yesterday in Dublin's north inner city. He was taken to Store Street Garda Station where he was questioned over the botched robbery of a cash van. It was collecting money from a parking meter on Green Street in the north inner city at the beginning of the month. During the incident, a raider grabbed the keys for the vehicle but did not escape with any money. Warned No one was injured in the raid and no firearms or weapons were produced. Mr Hutch, who has been repeatedly warned that his life is under threat from the warring Kinahan gang, is being questioned under the Criminal Justice Act. He is scheduled to appear before Dublin District court this morning at 10.30am. Last month, Mr Hutch, a nephew of Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch, was subjected to a brutal attack as he sat eating lunch in a Dublin cafe. A video of the assault showed the assailant launch a series of punches on him during the unprovoked incident. A number of garda det- ectives were in the restaurant at the same time and they arrested a man. The suspect was questioned at Store Street Garda Station. Mr Hutch appeared on Winning Streak in September 2015, when he scooped 33,000 for his brother, Edward Jnr. Since then, however, the family have been struck by several tragedies, starting with the murder of cousin Gary. Ross Hutch's father Eddie (58), a taxi driver, was gunned down by the Kinahan cartel last February at their home in the north inner city. Ross Hutch has spent much of the past six months hiding out in hotels and hostels under a false name. He was close by when his cousin, Gareth Hutch, was shot dead in Dublin last May. Mr Hutch is currently before the courts charged in connection with the theft of a man's iPhone worth 875 at Marino Mart in October. During a hearing, a judge made an order barring Mr Hutch from the Clontarf, Fairview and Marino areas. He held that a request to order him to obey a curfew was "a little excessive". In relation to an application for him to sign on regularly at a garda station, the defence said that Mr Hutch has "huge personal security difficulties". Judge Anthony Halpin agreed that ordering him to sign on may well jeopardise his security and he refused to make that a condition of bail. Landlords are threatening a backlash in response to a new law aimed at capping rent increases at 4pc a year. The move, by Housing Minister Simon Coveney, caused three days of bitter political rows with Fianna Fail, underpinning the minority coalition and other opposition parties who have said the measure is not good enough. Parking However, a group representing landlords has also warned it may withdraw from state-subsidised rent schemes and introduce a series of new charges for tenants on things such as keys, parking and administrative costs to claw back some cash. Government chief whip Regina Doherty, of Fine Gael, rounded on the Irish Property Owners' Association (IPOA), which represents 5,000 landlords, saying it was an "outrageous" warning. "It's statements like that which give landlords a bad name," she said, questioning how many property owners the organisation actually represents. Ms Doherty defended the new law, saying it would help tenants keep their homes by moderating rent increases. She thanked opposition parties for their help in ensuring passage of the law, despite difficulties, including a mistake in the drafting process. However, the IPOA said it was seriously contemplating its strategy for the future. The rent caps are expected to apply in Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) covering all of Co Dublin and Cork city from next month. Limerick, Waterford and Galway and Dublin's commuter belt are expected to be included from later next year. Other parts of the country can then be designated as RPZs. "Property owners could not get sufficient income to maintain their property. The measures being introduced are so severe that rents will not cover costs and devaluation of property will be significant, all adding to the exit of the investor," the IPOA warned. "It is notable that the Government and those demanding change are oblivious to the huge burden that all these measures will have on the tenants and the loss of supply." The IPOA said service charges, registration fees, car parking fees, letting costs and call-out payments are being examined. Damages Landlords could pass on the property tax to tenants. Other charges include full compensation for damages and legal costs for anti-social behaviour. Following a row over mistakes in the legal text, Mr Cove- ney said his department had checked the new wording to ensure that rents in designated areas do not increase by more than 4pc per year. He added that his team worked late into the night and took advice from the Attorney General. Some TDs have warned that rents could rise by 8pc. A boy is facing trial accused of raping a young girl at a park in Dublin earlier this year when he was 14. Now aged 15, appeared before Dublin Children's Court yesterday after he was charged in the presence of his mother at a south Dublin garda station. The teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, "was cautioned and the arrest was explained to him in ordinary language at which he confirmed he understood", Judge John O'Connor was told. In reply to the charge, the boy said "No comment" before he was given a copy of the charge sheet and taken to the court. A detective garda sergeant confirmed that the case "will go forward on indictment". This means the youth will be tried before a judge and jury at the Central Criminal Court. curfew Gardai asked for bail to be imposed. The judge told the boy he must obey a 10pm to 7am curfew and warned that he cannot have contact directly or indirectly with witnesses or the 14-year-old girl he is accused of raping. He said this included calling, texting, internet contact or through another person. The boy quietly said "Yes" when asked if he understood that the consequences of breaking the bail would result in him being remanded in custody. The teenager, who has not yet indicated how he will plead, was ordered to appear again on a date next month when it is expected he will be served with a book of evidence and returned for trial. Candidates with no legislative history not uncommon Maryland's candidates for governor do not have long legislative records. Wes Moore has none at all. Analysis shows that is not uncommon. #MBN Cable channel loses lawsuit against suspension order MBN, a cable TV channel, on Thursday lost a lawsuit against the government's order to suspend its operation for six months for accounting fraud. The Korea Communications Commis... #Hybe Q3 Hybe posts highest Q3 revenue ever Hybe, the entertainment company behind K-pop superstars BTS, on Thursday reported a revenue of 445.5 billion won (US$314 million) for the third quarter of the year, up 30.6 percent... An imposing Egyptian-style pyramid greets visitors at the entrance to Indias biggest art festival, the Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB). Slovenian artist Ales Stegar is busy taking a team of visitors into the dark interiors of the mammoth structure, titled The Pyramid of Exiled Poets. Covered with cow dung cakes, mud and bamboo mats, the pyramid is meant to represent a tomb for cast-out poets. It is a tribute to those who have lost their lives and homes for airing their writings, he says. A couple of metres away, Chilean artist Raul Zurita is inviting visitors to walk through his Sea of Pain, an installation of placid, dimly lit, ankle-deep water meant as a reminder of the mounting woes of Syrias refugees. The artist has dedicated his work to 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi, whose body washed ashore in Turkey last year. Slovenian artist Ales Stegar walks out of his mammoth installation, titled The Pyramid of Exiled Poets. (Image by Special Arrangement) Anamika Haksar, meanwhile, is blending theatre and art in an installation that comments on growing injustice and inequality on the subcontinent. Titled Composition on Water, she is using Dalit writers texts as the foundation for improvisation, encouraging actors to experiment with the audience so that each performance begins, unfolds and ends differently. This biennale is aimed at triggering a dialogue between multiple perspectives and possibilities, says curator Sudarshan Shetty. Titled Forming in the Pupil of an Eye, more meanings emerge as one keeps the inner eye open. An art biennale, incidentally, is a large-scale curated event held once every two years to bring art, artists and art lovers together without an eye on commerce; art cannot be bought at a biennale and artists participate for the prestige of having been invited. Chilean artist Raul Zurita is inviting visitors to walk through his Sea of Pain, an installation of placid, dimly lit, ankle-deep water meant as a reminder of the mounting woes of Syrias refugees. A total of 97 artists from 31 countries have descended on coastal Kerala for its three-month celebration of art, which has left Kochi and its neighbouring Muziris awash in colour as art works pop up on walls, pillars and streetsides. Argentine writer Sergio Chejfec, for instance, is writing an 88-chapter novel on the walls of Aspinwall, the sprawling seafront heritage property a one-time trading complex that is the main venue of the KMB. The KMB is spread across 12 venues and 500,000 sq feet, with the art on display ranging from lampooning cartoons to mammoth installations, mellifluous music and thought-provoking performing art. ART APPRECIATION This is the experience of a lifetime, says Deepa Shah, 24, an IT professional from Bangalore. I liked the pyramid very much. Once inside you really feel these poets singing in front of you. Feudalism and Imperialism, part of a special show of works by the little-known rebel artist Brij Mohan Anand. (Image courtesy BM Anand Foundation) There is no commercial angle, adds K Meedu, 23, a professional dancer from Thrissur. It is truly art for arts sake and you can see world famous artists in the midst of an enthusiastic audience. Among the repeat visitors was Unnikrishnan Nair, 38, a school teacher from Palakkad who has been to every edition of the biennale since it was launched in 2012. This time has been the most organised so far, and the selection of works is amazing, he says. My favorite is the giant mural by PK Sadanandan, featuring icons and narratives inspired by mythology. Natural colour is used in the 15-metre-long and 3-metre-wide work. Among the 22 volunteers who have put their lives on hold to help plan and organise the mammoth endeavour is recent architecture graduate Pavneet Singh, 24, who has come all the way from Chandigarh, driven by his love for art. Graffiti on a public wall in Kochi celebrates the three-month-long art event. It is nothing to do with my profession. But art is my first love and I wanted to be a part of the biggest art event going, he says. I just finished my course, so this is my break. Ill be here for a month. REBELS WITH A CAUSE About 2 km from the main venue, at Gallery OED, a collective of 16 artists from Artists in Residence, a 45-year-old US-based womens art initiative, have 16 of their works on display. Our art offers a wealth of inquiry and insight into mutable and shifting senses of identity that might be defined by gender, race, ethnicity or geography, says curator Kathyryn Myers. Theres also a special exhibition of the work of rebel artist Brij Mohan Anand (1928-1986), a relatively unknown painter whose highly political art served as a raised voice against neo- imperialism and cultural indoctrination in the last century. The works of such undiscovered artists best capture the spirit of their time as seen from the common mans perspective, said acclaimed filmmaker Shaji N Karun, inaugurating the exhibition. Take a dekko at the last edition of KMB here Another interesting feature of the third edition is the Student Biennale, where works by 470 aspiring artists from 46 art schools across the country ranging from Imphal Art College in Manipur to Goa College of Art in Panaji are on display. The student biennale platform will channel the energies of the mammoth art event into the Indian art education system. It is expected to mature into a space to explore diversity of styles and creativity, says artist Bose Krishanmachari, co-founder of KBM. People have taken it up in a big way. Kochi is now on top of the art map, adds fellow co-founder Riyas Komu. What next? Organisers are upbeat after Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who inaugurated the event, promised it a permanent venue. Currently, besides Aspinwall, some of the venues spread out across Kochi and Muziris include the Pepper House and Kashi cafes, the Durbar Hall grounds, the Dutch Warehouse godown and the heritage Kottapuram Fort. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court asked on Saturday the Election Commission of India (ECI) if it had a tentative schedule for the upcoming assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. A division bench headed by justice Amreshwar Pratap Sahi asked the poll panel to provide information by December 22. The court order came on a PIL filed by activist Pratibha Pandey. The PIL had sought directions from the court to the ECI for conducting assembly polls in April-May next year, after the completion of the full tenure of the present assembly. Petitioners lawyer Ashok Pandey said the tenure of the present assembly will end on May 27, 2017. The counsel for respondents -- Union of India and ECI -- were present at the time of hearing, Pandey said. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in a span of two days charge-sheeted over 15 people, including some serving and retired central government employees, in two corruption cases involving over 1 crore. The charge sheets in the cases, one pertaining to fraud in Life Insurance Corporation (LIC)s money back policy and another over purchase-related irregularities at Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) in Bhopal, were filed before the special CBI court on Thursday and Friday. Eight of the accused, mostly LIC employees, were charge sheeted in the money back policy fraud case on Thursday. The judge issued arrest warrants against the accused owing to non-appearance in the court. According to CBI sources, the money back policy fraud case was lodged against the accused in June for withdrawing claim money amounting to 6 lakh between 2008 and 2013. The accused had deposited the siphoned off money into the bank account of a state government peon and later withdrawn the entire amount. The accused were booked in June for corruption, cheating and fraud and criminal conspiracy. The second case pertained to corruption and fraud in purchase of several items from private suppliers for the BHEL-Bhopals residential township project from 2008 to 2013. Investigations led CBI to unearth the nexus between some BHEL officials and private suppliers. The nexus allegedly led to tampering and manipulation of computerized data of BHEL related to the procurement from private suppliers in the years prior to the fraudulent purchase. The alleged fraud resulted in a loss of around 1 crore to BHEL. Based on the findings, CBI lodged a case of corruption, cheating and fraud and criminal conspiracy against 13 accused, including BHEL officials and employees and at least four individuals linked to the private suppliers. The 13 accused against whom charge-sheets were submitted in the special CBI court on Friday, include five retired BHEL officials (up to the rank of deputy general manager), four serving BHEL officials and four private suppliers. The court will next hear the case on January 12, CBI sources said. MP chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday came down heavily on whistleblowers and RTI activists, saying some of them are dirty (kuchh gande hote hai) when you look into their lives. At the inaugural ceremony of the service meet of IAS Officers Association, Chouhan said media keeps waiting for spicy news and publishes stuff regarding allegations following which the matter is probed for some years. But, till then, the respect of the person against whom the allegations were levelled is maligned, chief minister said. Chouhan showered praises on states bureaucracy, saying the officers are among the best in the country. Credit for remarkable agriculture growth rate, leading growth rate and successful implementation of schemes such as Ladli Laxmi Yojna goes to the employees and officers of the state, he said but sounded caution that all the responsibilities of administrative services were important. There is no need for pity and sympathy Adopt zero tolerance towards corruption. Honour those who fight with injustice. Culprits should be punished and innocent should not be harassed, he said. The chief minister said there should be no unnecessary delay in public welfare works and decisions. He said the administrative service is the work to rebuild a state. Without getting affected by success or failure, accept challenges. Work continuously with patience. Do not fly high being successful and do not hide face in case of failure, he said. Chouhan said administrative services are commitment of life towards public welfare. This is not a profession but mission, he said. Talking about the aim of the meet held at RCVP Naronha Administration and Management Academy, chief secretary BP Singh said cultural and amusement activities during the meet eliminate hesitation among the officers and develop understanding. Moreover, it increases mutual respect and affection, he said. President of Association RS Julaniya said new relations develop in the environment of casual cooperation and mutuality during the meet. Blessed are those who never get a hangover even after drinking like a fish all night. But for the less fortunate of us, dont let those mean headaches and puffy eyes stop you from partying your heart out this happy season. We present 10 unusual cures for your morning-after blues. Drink some more alcohol Instead of a single malt, opt for a vodka-based cocktail (Shutterstock) Yes, you read that right. But dont go straight for your favourite single malt. Master mixologist Yangdup Lama, who owns the Gurgaon-based Cocktails & Dreams Speakeasy, swears by vodka to cure a bad hangover. He suggests shaking up a Bloody Bloody Mary with vodka (45ml), fresh lime juice (15ml), coriander paste (5ml), 1 slit green chilli, 3 drops each of truffle oil, Tabasco and Worcestershire sauce. Finally, top it up with 60ml of fresh tomato puree. And some more! Try a vodka -based drink infused with lime and orange juice, Tabasco and sweet vermouth (Shutterstock) Some drinks give you hangovers, some cure them. Corpse Reviver is a family of cocktails that has been known to cure hangovers throughout history. Most of its recipes have been lost to time, but Lama has saved an easy vodka-based one up his sleeve. It is simply 45ml of the liquor shaken and served on crushed ice with fresh lime juice (15ml), fresh orange juice (60ml), 2 drops of Tabasco and 10ml of sweet vermouth. Burn it up If even the thought of more alcohol makes you nauseous, then burn that nasty hangover. Oh dont start groaning just yet we dont want you to hit the treadmill. Because mixologist and beverages consultant Irfan Ahmed has a quick recipe that means you neednt move many muscles. He suggests a shot of one teaspoon each of Worcestershire sauce and lime juice, mixed with 4 drops of Tabasco, 5 drops of angostura bitters, and half a teaspoon of cumin powder+chaat masala+black pepper+salt. Top off with some fizzy ginger ale, and youre sure to knock your hangover out. Grab the hair of the dog A concoction made with fresh orange, lime and ginger juice, maple syrup and a pinch of paprika lessens the effect of a hangover (Shutterstock) No, not literally! No dog will be harmed in the making of this cure. Hair of the dog is a colloquial expression that refers to alcohol consumed with the aim of lessening the effects of a hangover. Lama has an alcohol-free version of this remedy. It includes fresh orange juice (60ml), fresh ginger juice (5ml), maple syrup (10ml), fresh lime juice (10ml) and half a pinch of paprika all shaken with lots of ice. Keep calm and simply have a buttered toast Toasted bread slathered with honey and butter can work wonders for a hangover (Shutterstock) If the thought of mixing up these concoctions above while nursing a headache gives you a worse headache, then just keep it simple and turn on the toaster. Ahmed suggests that you apply generous layers of butter and honey on a piece of hot toast, sprinkle some Italian pizza spice mix and have it with two to three glasses of water. Turn to Jim Morrison for help Author Patrick Meanor s Jim Morrison Hangover Cure comprises an ice-cold watermelon, sprinkled with lots of salt (Shutterstock) In the hilarious hangover help-book The Wrath of Grapes: A Complete Hangover Cookbook & Guide to the Art of Creative Suffering, author Patrick Meanor lists a cure which he calls the Jim Morrison Hangover Cure: an entire ice-cold watermelon sprinkled with lots of salt. Bury your feverish face in it for maximum results, he suggests. We suggest that you enjoy it slowly with some Doors for company. Shake it baby No, not your sore legs from your all-night drunk dancing. We mean a very thick milk shake, particularly vanilla or chocolate. Have it with a wholewheat toast drenched in butter with a little garlic salt sprinkled on it. Its our four-star second most highly recommended elixir, after gazpacho, Meanor writes in his book. Do something cheesy Adding cheese to some hot soup is a delicious way to get rid of a hangover (Shutterstock) And we dont mean turning up at your beloveds with a bunch of flowers and some chocolate, while looking like a wreck. Make or order in some hot onion soup and add lots and lots of Parmesan and Swiss cheese to it. Meanor suggests that you have it with garlic bread, which is also loaded with more Parmesan cheese. Definitely a very cheesy, very delicious way to get rid of a hangover. Deny it, hide it, rock it Just because you have a terrible hangover and no time to take care of it with any of the above, doesnt mean you cant make it to that important morning meeting in time and still look like a million bucks. Publicist and serial party hopper Aleem Siddiqi has a brilliant trick to hide your hangover if you cant get over it. Use concealer, he says simply. Dab it around your puffy eyes, on your sweaty forehead and youre good to go. Down an aerated beverage on the way, just in case, he adds. Make some love While there is no conclusive research on whether sex can cure a hangover, there is some science behind its effectiveness (Shutterstock) If all else fail, have sex. And then sleep it off. There is no conclusive research yet that proves sex cures hangovers, but there is some science behind its effectiveness. According to the Alcohol Hangover Research Group, there is a build-up of cytokines in our body after a session of drinking. These little proteins make us nauseous, sore and give us that headache. Now when we have sex, our bodies produce oxytocin that helps block cytokine production, which in turn might help cure hangovers. Not a bad way to start the day, no? From HT Brunch, December 4, 2016 Follow us on twitter.com/HTBrunch Connect with us on facebook.com/hindustantimesbrunch Rhonda Byrne says that her life is virtually unrecognisable from what it was before she discovered The Secret. A 2006 documentary-style film, it featured a string of interviews with people who used the power of positive thinking and the law of attraction (thoughts become things) to get their desired emotional or material pursuits. Later that year, Byrne followed the film with a self-help book by the same name. The book became a bestseller and got translated into over 40 languages. My life is unrecognisable when it comes to harmony in the areas people consider to be the most important relationships, health and money, she says, in an early morning phone call from Los Angeles. But one of the most incredible things is that the mind has become quiet. No matter whats going on in the world, I have peace inside of me because I know everythings okay. Thats worth everything. Unlocking the code Byrne has had challenging times, especially in 2004, when her father suddenly passed away. She was working on six documentary films, and things began to go wrong. One night, her accountant called to say she had lost six million dollars on the films and that there was more at stake. I collapsed into despair. My mother didnt want to go on without my father. It felt as if I was being hit from all sides. There didnt seem to be enough of me to go around or to help everybody deal with everything, she recalls. Her daughter then gave her a copy of Wallace D Wattles The Science of Getting Rich, and Byrne decided to focus on positives rather than negatives. With a background in TV production in Australia, she set about filming the experiences of people she called secret teachers whose belief in the law of attraction had changed their life. The Secret was the beginning to show people to put themselves, and not somebody else, on a pedestal My job was to help people break free from the conditioning of limitation and unworthiness, she says. Four books later, Byrne has recently published How The Secret Changed My Life, a compilation of stories from readers who applied The Secrets teachings in their daily lives. From a man in Sydney using it to realise his dream of singing with Stevie Wonder, to a Los Angeles-based Indian woman getting an extension on her Green card, the stories are varied and dripping with optimism. There are letters from as far off as the Canary Islands to Lebanon. The 73 stories were chosen from over 30,000 submitted to their website. These stories were chosen just for the variety and the diversity, the way people used The Secret. They demonstrate how easy it is, says Byrne. Byrne has also had personal interactions with people attempting to use the law, such as a 40-year-old woman who had been told she could never conceive. I had her behave as if the baby was already there. One month later, she was pregnant, says Byrne. Laws and limitations Many have criticised the books teachings, stating that it gives false hope to people and does not encourage dealing with the root cause of problems. When Byrnes second book, The Power which urges people to believe in love and gratitude was released in 2010, the New York Times wrote a disparaging review, titled Fight The Power, saying it was useless to argue with books like these. Byrne shrugs off the censure. The Power sold millions of copies and was a really big NYT bestseller. Im often asked how I feel about sceptics I dont feel anything. Im just giving what I have found, which changed my life. And if that helps people, its amazing, she says. In January 2007, Byrne was a guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show along with four teachers from the film. The appearance plunged her into the mainstream, taking the message of The Secret to millions across the world. Oprah had endorsed it herself, when in an interview with Larry King, she said its message was what shed been trying to share with the world on her show for the past 21 years. The message is that you are responsible for your life, said Winfrey. In fact, just two months later, Winfrey had a woman on her show, who, inspired by The Secret, had decided to heal herself after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Trying to dissuade her, Winfrey had said, The medical community has been able to perform what many people call miracles. Its irresponsible on your part to not take advantage of that... Referring to the incident, Byrne says that Winfrey wasnt being critical. While she didnt deny the law of attraction, she said that it wasnt the only law. And shes right. Byrnes discoveries have also suffered the old-wine-in-a-new-bottle syndrome, with critics saying that positive thinking has existed for centuries and that she had merely repackaged an existing notion. Thats true. Its been there since the beginning of time. I was recently reading Yoganandas autobiography, and his master is explaining the power of thought to him. And this was a couple of hundred years ago. And if you go back thousands of years ago, to the ancient mystery schools in Egypt, they knew what thought creates, she says. So during her research, Byrne decided to make the law of attraction more accessible. I decided to make it tactical for everyday life. And I think thats why it became so big, because it was written very simply, she says. Rhonda Byrnes latest, How The Secret Changed My Life, is a compilation of real-life stories of people who incorporated The Secrets teachings in their daily lives Looking ahead Byrne doesnt think the principles of The Secret propagate materialism. If somebody wants more money, I understand that because even Ive been in difficult times. Somebody wanting more money is very different from somebody who will harm other human beings to get it. I dont want to contribute to the idea that the former is bad, she says. And despite her successful franchise theres a Hollywood film and another book she plans to write next year that will be a very big revelation money is the last thing on her mind. My spiritual journey, my work to help people, my search for truth, to expand my consciousness and happiness thats what I focus on, she says, adding that shes also been very mindful since The Secret came out. Is that why she does very few interviews? Yes, she says. I have a lot of respect for the media, but Im a really private person. I dont want to be put on a status that is incorrect. I just want to do my work, help people and have them know that Im exactly like them. If theyre special, Im special. Theres no difference and its important to me to maintain that. To sceptics, she says: Forget about the words the law of attraction. Instead, just ask yourself, do I feel better when Im positive? Do I feel bad when Im negative? The fact is, if you give your attention to positivity, your life will become unrecognisable. Just like her own. Follow @TheCommanist on Twitter From HT Brunch, December 18, 2016 Follow us on twitter.com/HTBrunch Connect with us on facebook.com/hindustantimesbrunch SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Bank accounts and lockers, which have been opened in the last one month, will be monitored closely to check transaction patterns and rule out any discrepancy. Both savings and current accounts of first timers, or otherwise, will be scrutinised. Besides, transactions and transfers of money from one account to another will also come under the scanner. There could be a possibility that bank accounts have been opened in the wake of the demonetisation exercise with the main intention of parking unaccounted cash... we will monitor transactions and any discrepancy or suspicious deposits will be reported to the higher authorities and agencies, a senior government official, who did not wish to be identified, told HT. The income-tax department has already recovered stashes of unaccounted cash from thousands of people after the government announced its decision to stop the circulation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes on November 8 . On Thursday, taxmen had unearthed Rs 10.80 crore of cash, of which R8.8 crore was in new currency notes. Read | Govt asks tax cheats to come clean by March, releases mail id for black money tip-offs Sushil Chandra, chairman, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), said the department was getting real time information. We are conducting searches and seizures based on solid information and we have increased our surveillance, he said. A cashier counts scrapped Rs 500 notes at a bank in Allahabad. (AP File Photo) Deposits, which have come into savings accounts opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, are also being scrutinised more thoroughly to curb money-laundering activities , a bank official said. Investigations undertaken by the tax department have already revealed suspicious deposits in some Jan Dhan accounts. The finance ministry had earlier said that an undisclosed amount of Rs 1.64 crore has been deposited by individuals, who have never filed income-tax returns. The majority of the depositors were from Midnapore in Kolkata, Ara in Bihar, Kochi and Varanasi. The government, meanwhile, has made it mandatory to quote the permanent account number for opening bank accounts. Read | No post-mortem of records of small traders, factories before note ban: PM Modi SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON It turns out that the indelible ink meant to identify people who exchanged cash at bank never reached most of the branches, after all. On November 15, the government said it would apply indelible ink on a person exchanging old high-value currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 to ensure that the same people do not queue up to convert their unaccounted cash. Most bank branches did not receive this indelible ink, though soon after, the government stopped the exchange of currency notes altogether, said a senior bank official, seeking anonymity. Besides, sources also said that bank officials, who have come under the scanner for alleged misconduct, had discretionary powers to service customers after the November 8 note ban. While all transactions were undertaken under CCTV cameras, the recordings were never noted or checked to take preventive action. In the initial phase, bank officials were not on the radar and this gave a few of them the confidence to indulge in misdeeds, Jagvinder Brar, partner, forensic services, KPMG said. While the finance ministry and bank associations said these incidents did not reflect the entire banking community, they underlined the need to take strict action against the erring officials. The Reserve Bank of India on Tuesday directed banks to ensure that all transactions at the branches and currency chests are done under CCTV cameras to promote transparency. The central bank also asked banks to preserve the recordings of the operations from November 8 to December 30. This is aimed to facilitate co-ordinated and effective action by the enforcement agencies in dealing with matters relating to illegal accumulation of new currency notes, the RBI said in its guideline. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Just when the Supreme Court is determined to impose outdated and unnecessary concepts of patriotism, in the mistaken belief our love of our country needs to be more visibly displayed and re-inforced, a novel by a former foreign secretary offers a refreshingly different perspective on true service to India. Its hero Michael Marco is a shabbily-dressed, soft-spoken Somalian former diplomat. Everything about him suggests hes unimportant, uninformed and irrelevant. Except hes not. Read: National anthem at movie halls: Whos standing up, whos raising questions The novel Ambassador Marcos Indian Instincts comprises many storylines which converge around Marco but the one that concerns me today is a political tale about India-Pakistan relations and the Indian PM. The story is set in a time when India-Pakistan relations have deteriorated so precipitously that war seems imminent and the only hope for peace is an initiative by the UN secretary general. The prime minister recommends this Somali diplomat as Indias representative and entrusts the fate and security of the country to the skills and persuasive talents of a foreigner. That would be unthinkable in the world we live in. But Krishnan Srinivasans PM has unshakeable faith in Mr Marco. Ultimately the UN initiative is scuppered and the PM appoints Marco special advisor. Thereafter Marcos insights and understanding open the PMs eyes to an unseen threat that could have toppled his government as well as that of his Pakistani counterpart. A bit like Poirot, Marco has thought deeply about whats happening and spotted the imminent danger. For this hes awarded the Padma Vibhushan. The citation simply reads for his inestimable services to the Republic of India. Only the prime minister knows what they were and how much India owes him. Read: Diplomatic doodles The author, Krishnan Srinivasan, describes the PM as a grey-haired close-bearded man of medium height and stocky build, around sixty, with broad strong hands. He wears long-sleeved loose-fitting shirts over white churidar pyjamas with contrasting coloured waistcoats. Hes never had the benefit of a conventional education and his English is strongly accented. And he dominates his cabinet. Srinivasans story is, of course, fiction and Marco a figment of his imagination but together they raise issues about patriotism, nationalism, duty and service that are very pertinent today. You dont have to be an Indian citizen to serve this country. Patriotism does not need to be ritualistically displayed. Nationalism does not preclude seeking the services of a foreigner. Srinivasans prime minister understands this. The author may have intended us to reflect on the present India-Pak situation and Narendra Modis handling of it but I believe the lesson Ive drawn for our Supreme Court judges is more interesting. And, now, let me go one step further. Read: How Indias intervention in Bangladesh shaped south Asia I know no people more patriotic than the British and theyre devoted to their sovereign but the Union Jack is sold in London on socks and undies and the Queen is the butt of many popular jokes. If you play God Save The Queen in cinema halls theyd barge out, offended theyve been asked to prove their loyalty in such childish knee-jerk ways. Indeed, in the 1930s the Oxford Union overwhelmingly defeated the motion This house would fight for King and Country but less than a decade later the same young undergraduates laid down their lives in the second world war. Only Hitler couldnt anticipate or understand that. Theres something very British about Marcos phlegmatic style and manner and I admire Srinivasans PM for appreciating this quality. It makes me wonder if theres more to this novel than meets the eye. The views expressed are personal SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Among the more fascinating figures in modern Indian history is Jayaprakash Narayan. Radical socialist and hero of the Quit India movement while the British ruled us, he had three distinct careers after Independence: as a labour leader and Socialist Party activist; as a Sarvodaya worker and striver for peace in Kashmir, Nagaland, and the Chambal Valley; and finally as the leader of a nation-wide movement against the authoritarian regime of Indira Gandhi. Read: Why we must listen to Jayaprakash Narayan on Kashmir It was while he was a social worker that Jayaprakash Narayan was asked to be the Chief Guest at the annual convocation of my alma mater, the University of Delhi. The function was held on 23rd December 1966, almost exactly 50 years ago. JP began his Convocation Address by speaking of the less than satisfactory state of higher education in the country. He noted that the examination system seldom discounts neglect of studies (namely, that one could be irregular in classes, yet commit notes and guides to memory and get high marks). University teachers for their part, remarked JP, seldom lead, inspire or interest the student to the gathering of knowledge. JP then spoke of politics on the campus. He thought political parties had the right to set up branches in universities, but believed that the students union, the collective body that represented the concerns of all students, should be truly non-partisan. Moving from the university to society at large, JP deplored the precipitous decline in the standards of public behaviour, the growing indiscipline in all walks of life. He felt that the blame for this must be placed squarely at the door of the Congress Party. They had been in power ever since Independence, and the slippage in their own standards of conduct had set the tone for every other [form of] public behaviour. From the dominant political party in the India of the time, JP moved on to the dominant religion. Speaking as a Hindu himself, JP voiced his serious concern over the state of the Hindu religion as it is found in practice. For some important sections of the Hindu community, he pointed out, piety or religiosity is only a means to obtain divine sanction for unethical behaviour, such as black-marketing, tax-evasion, profiteering, etc. Meanwhile, for the mass of the Hindu people, the Hindu religion means nothing more than a few mythological tales, crass superstition, some taboos and observances. In this ritualistic, instrumental, practice of Hinduism, remarked JP in 1966, religion as a formative, humanising, ennobling force hardly seems to have survived. The great movements of religious reform of the 19th and early 20th centuries have spent their driving force, he noted, and the outer dead shell of karma kanda is all that seems to be left of the Hindu religion, nothing or very little of the inner core. Read: 19th-century politics for a 21st-century society In his travels around the country, JP found that it was not uncommon to meet the catholicity of Vedantism in words accompanied with the most narrow-minded caste observances in deeds. He added that we talk glibly about the tolerance of the Hindu religion, yet do not raise an eye-brow when men, women and children are butchered for no other crime than of belonging to another religion. JPs strictures were relevant when he issued them, and may be even more relevant today. As a Hindu, he saw the need to renew the life-affirming aspects of his faith. He worried that the revivalism that is now taking place will push Hindu society further backwards, and may incidentally destroy even what we have of the unity of the nation. JP then remarked (accurately, in my view) that the Hindu religion is a strange mixture of good and bad, the sublime and low, the most emancipated thought and the most bigoted obscurantism. He thought that what happens to the future of Hindu society depends upon which of these strains are to be selected and nourished and propagated. JP had started life as a Congressman. Even after he left the party, he retained a close personal friendship with Jawaharlal Nehru. Nehrus daughter Indira Gandhi was prime minister in 1966, yet JP did not hesitate to remind his audience of how the Congress had contributed to the decline of public morality in independent India. Read: How Narendra Modi resembles Indira Gandhi JP was courageous in taking on the ruling Congress, and perhaps even more courageous in taking on the extremists of his own faith. He was speaking in the wake of the march on Parliament led by sants and sadhus, demanding a total ban on cow slaughter. That march had witnessed a greater deal of violence than had been seen in the city since the dark days of 1947. What would JP have made of the gau rakshaks of today? He would surely have been appalled by them. I do not believe that JP would have been impressed either by the New Age gurus who now presume to speak for Hinduism, around whom flock upper-class Indians in search of personal consolation. In consorting with the rich and powerful, these gurus have done little to address problems of caste and gender inequality, which still so deeply disfigure social life in the India of 2016, as they did when JP addressed the students and teachers of Delhi University back in December 1966. Ramachandra Guhas books include Gandhi Before India. You can follow him on Twitter at @Ram_Guha The views expressed are personal SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Defence minister Manohar Parrikar is never at a loss for words. Neither is he shy of contradicting himself. After saying that there are no plans to induct women into combat roles in the Indian army something President Pranab Mukherjee said would be done in his speech during the budget session of Parliament the irrepressible Mr Parrikar now says that there should be an all-women battalion. He feels that psychological barriers had been broken with the induction of three female fighter pilots. But, he has also added that this battalion will come up gradually so as not to compromise the Armys primary task of guarding national security. Make of this what you will, I am baffled as to how this pans out. His explanation is: There is the thinking that soldiers will not listen to a woman commanding officerI dont agree. But if there is some initial resistance, an all-women battalion would take care of it. Is it Parrikars contention that an all-women battalion is the only force that can make a male soldier listen to orders from a woman officer? He should do so because he is bound by the rules to listen to his officer, irrespective of gender. Read: No plan for inducting women in army combat roles: Defence minister Parrikar Parrikar says women on warships where there are separate cabin facilities is fine, but not on unigender submarines. But we are getting ahead of ourselves here. The idea of an all-women battalion hardly serves to bring about gender parity in the army. If at all women are to play a greater role in the armed forces, they should not be segregated into exclusively female zones. Most of the women who have joined the forces, and the percentage is not very high in India, are actually resentful of any preferential treatment. They feel that it creates friction with their male colleagues and that they did not join the army thinking it would be a Sunday school picnic. Yet, the same prejudices we see in the workplace place constrain them. One is that male colleagues dont feel comfortable as their banter could be misunderstood by the women present. The other is that women are not psychologically strong enough to withstand the enormous pressure. Parrikar is, however, right that infrastructure is a major impediment for women to be deployed in many places. But the question of infrastructure obtains even for men. The lack of proper facilities in camps and barracks is well known but little has been done to improve things. The army is in dire need of modernisation and this means bringing in more technology. This is an advantage for women as the greater the technology employed, the fewer the boots on the ground. This will boost the number of women coming into the army at present it is 1,514 women officers, the navy has 439 and the air force 1,584, bringing the total to 3,537, which is negligible for the vast defence services that we have. Read: Navy to soon increase role of women, but no combat positions yet Despite Parrikars espousal of an all-women battalion, there should be no effort to push this idea. The armed forces purpose, that of defending the nation, simply does not warrant any forced gender equality in the form of all-women battalions. It should simply function on the principle of the best man or woman for the job. One thing one often hears is that we had a tradition of women warriors like Laxmibai of Jhansi, Razia Sultana and Chand Bibi, to name a few. And, yes, women did take part in the freedom movement. But this did not become a tradition and women were largely unseen in the defence realm until the early nineties. Read: A first for army: 2 women officers scale Mt Everest Such is the mystique surrounding the army and perceptions of how you have to be as tough as hobnailed boots to join it, that many women, I am sure, would not think of it as an employment option. Mercifully, today despite all the prejudices they face, women are venturing into fields that were not considered appropriate for them before. Our women wrestlers are a case in point. When it comes to imparting skills to women, the options still are the tried and tested ones of health work, teaching and social work. But why not encourage women, especially in rural areas, to think of the forces as an option? For this, there should be more defence training schools, which should not be a problem, given the vast and skilled manpower available in the form of retired soldiers who can man these. Letting women know the army is a career option and one in which they have to function in a gender-neutral environment will do a lot more for womens advancement in the defence forces than an all-women battalion. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Twenty-one years of working as a nurse and I have never seen anything like that, said a nursing sister from Safdarjung hospital, who was on duty at the gynaecological emergency on December 16, 2012. The rape victim was wheeled in naked, covered only by a white sheet. She was conscious and in pain. She was conscious till she was given anaesthesia in the operation theatre. I can only imagine the kind of pain she must have been in, yet she spoke to all of us respectfully, she said. In 20 months since January 2015, the nine government hospitals in Delhi received over 3,000 rape and molestation cases. One-third of such victims were minors. In cases where the victim is minor, the guardians are reluctant in coming forward as the perpetrator is usually a relative. We cannot even counsel the child as they are barely able to understand what is happening. We try to tell them about good touch and bad touch, but thats all we can do, said a doctor from the gynaecology department of Safdarjung hospital. The maximum number of rape cases almost 30% was recorded at Lal Bahadur Shastri hospital in east Delhi, followed by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (22.5%) in South Delhi. Read: Four years after Dec 16: Number of rape cases in Delhi have increased Across the street from AIIMS, Safdarjung hospital receives at least one or two rape cases daily. Little has changed in the hospital in the four years since December 16, 2012. Victims of sexual violence are required to visit at least three different building in the hospital, accompanied by a police woman, to get all procedures completed. A victim is first taken to the main emergency building, where a cop sitting in a small room called the one-stop centre off the main receiving area registers a medico-legal case. A big pink register is filled in with details of the event and the injuries reported by the victim. Then the victim is sent for a medical examination and is referred to the gynaecological emergency, about 500 metres from the one-stop centre. On the way, the victim needs to even cross the mortuary, either on foot or on a stretcher, depending on her condition. At the gynaecological emergency, the doctor on duty takes her to either of the two examination room and records the physical injuries and collects samples using a SAFE (Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence) kit. We have to take vaginal swabs, cheek swabs, nail clippings etc. We also need to take her clothes as evidence. Then, we need to conduct the PV test, obviously after taking consent from the victim or the guardian, if the victim is a minor, said a doctor on duty. Per Vaginal (PV) test, better known as the two-finger-test, interestingly, has been banned by the Supreme Court stating because it violates the right to privacy and dignity of the rape victim. It, however, continues to be a part of the routine examinations for rape victims at Safdarjung. After a tetanus shot and a contraceptive pill, the victim is referred to the ART centre for HIV prophylaxis a short-term antiretroviral treatment to reduce the likelihood of HIV infection. Then, she has to go somewhere for counselling, said a doctor, who was clueless about where the counsellors office is. We just advice HIV treatment and counselling on the prescription, but I dont know where she has to be taken. The police personnel know and they accompany the victim, the doctor said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari on Thursday appointed new presidents for 14 districts. This is first set of major appointments by him since his elevation as head of the party on November 30. Sources privy to the development said Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), two Delhi MPs, and two former state unit chiefs had played a major role in selecting names for the coveted posts. Although Tiwari said the party had tried to strike a balance by accommodating each section of the society, there has been no representation of Dalit, minorities and women in the panel. Sources said out of 14, five names had strong RSS backing while eight names were recommended by two former Delhi BJP heads. Read: BJPs laddoo drive to thank Delhi residents off to a damp start Another senior state leader said choices of four MPs were completed ignored and names proposed by RSS and a former Delhi BJP president were included in the final list which had surprised party functionaries. The state unit of BJP is divided into 14 districts for smooth functioning. Each district comprises five assembly constituencies and 20 municipal wards. The district presidents are: Roshan Kansal (Keshav Puram), Arvind Garg (Chandni Chowk), Ajay Mahavaar (Northeast), Pravesh Verma (Navin Shahdara), Lalit Joshi (Mayur Vihar), Santosh Pal (Shahdara), Bharat Bhushan Madaan (Karol Bagh), Anil Sharma (New Delhi), Vedpal Maan (Northwest), Ramesh Khanna (West), Suman Prakash Sharma (Najafgarh), Azad Singh (Mehrauli), and Mithilesh Singh (South Delhi). However, Tiwari denied that the list was influenced by a group of leaders or any individual. The BJP has a lot of capable and diligent workers but only 14 names were to be chosen. It is not right to say that the list bears a stamp of a particular leader or supported by one individual. Read: Delhi BJP chief to meet party councillors next week Still, we have 50 posts for which names are to be announced. We will try to accommodate representation of each section of the society. No one will be left out. Bigger and significant posts are still remaining, said the newly appointed party chief. Tiwari said new working committee would soon be appointed. Names of state office bearers such as vice presidents, general secretaries, secretaries, and treasurers are expected to be finalised before January 10, he said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Delhi Police arrested a CISF head constable for allegedly misusing a Union home ministry sticker that was found on a car in which a 20-year-old woman was allegedly raped by a driver in Moti Bagh on Wednesday. Police said when investigation into the rape case was on, an agriculture ministry official sent a complaint, accusing CISF head constable Omkar Singh of misusing the sticker entrusted to him by the ministry. Singh had reportedly passed on the sticker to his son, Mohit Pawar the owner of the car in which the woman was allegedly raped. Pawar used the sticker to avoid paying toll and for free parking. Sources said Pawar had blackened the validity date on the sticker and illegally used his car as a cab. Since the car had an MHA sticker on the windshield, it was not stopped at barricades or flagged down by traffic cops. Read: Woman allegedly raped in car in Delhis Moti Bagh area, accused arrested The CISF initiated a departmental probe against Singh and said action would be taken against him. He is posted at the motor transport department of the force. The sticker was issued to Singh to give him access to Krishi Bhavan for official reasons. After the stickers validity ended, Singh did not return it to the ministry and instead blurred out the portion where its validity was mentioned. His son kept using the sticker as a pass at many places to avoid paying toll tax. On top of that, he hired a driver and was using his private car for commercial purposes, a senior police officer said. Pawar had been using the car to earn extra money for the past two years. He had hired the driver, Avneesh, two months ago, he added. Police said Pawar will be questioned in the case. We have registered a case of criminal breach of trust against Singh and he has been arrested. He was later let out on bail, said DCP (south) Ishwar Singh. Meanwhile, the arrested driver, Avneesh, has been sent to judicial custody. During questioning, Avneesh has reportedly told the police that he had helped the woman by giving her a blanket and allowing her to sleep inside his car for the night as she did not wish to return home. The woman, however, told the police that she was confined in the car by the driver, who then allegedly raped her. Initially Avneesh was in denial but on sustained interrogation he confessed to the crime. We also recovered the womans phone from his car that she had dropped when she escaped, a police officer said. Read: Mobile phone in a white, long car: How Delhi Police solved Moti Bagh rape case SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The traffic police will continue its crackdown on diesel vehicles entering the city at night. The drive started after Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung issues a slew of instructions to reduce alarming levels of pollution in Delhi. The traffic police conducts drives to fine polluting vehicles within and at the city borders. Delhi cannot be viewed in isolation because lakhs of vehicles enter the city from other states where pollution control norms are not strict. If we are able to control these vehicles at the entry points itself, we will be able to bring down pollution levels considerably, a senior traffic official said. Starting Sunday, teams will be deployed at entry points to check pollution under control (PUC) certificates of diesel vehicles. In heavy vehicles apart from visible emissions, weight and maintenance will also be checked. Sources said overnight drives will be conducted through the week at various entry points. In a meeting organised by the L-G to review steps taken to control pollution, special commissioner of police (traffic), Ajay Kashyap, said 58,209 vehicles had been checked at the borders in the last week itself. Out of these, 11,585 non-destined vehicles were turned back. The report submitted before the L-G reads that apart from these, 6,962 vehicles have been challaned for not carrying PUC certificates and 92 vehicles were pulled up for carrying uncovered construction material. Seventy one diesel vehicles older than 15 years were impounded, Kashyap confirmed. He said constant checks and inspections by all the government agencies through the month of December ensured the levels of pollution remained under control, especially after almost a week of severe levels seen in early November. On Saturday, the pollution levels in the city did not see much alteration. The air quality index recorded by ministry of earth sciences System of System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) was 317, which is considered very poor. A man who was on the run for 12 years after murdering a 65-year-old woman in Delhi was arrested from Dwarka sector 16-A on Saturday. The accused, Raju alias Painter (33), and his three associates - Dharmender, Arun Kumar and Vikas Yadav - had murdered Indira Devi (65) at her Vikaspuri flat late on January 25 night in 2004. Raju was a small-time civil contractor and was hired by Devi to paint her flat. He deputed Dharmender, Arun and Vikas for this work. On realising that Devi was living alone in the flat -- her only daughter was settled abroad -- the men robbed and murdered her. They fled with cash and jewellery. Dharmender and Arun were arrested with a jeweller, Vijay, who had purchased the booty. Raju and Vikas were absconding and were declared proclaimed offenders by a city court. Ravindra Yadav, joint commissioner of police (crime branch), said Raju lived in Darwasa (Nepal), Punjab and Bihar for more than 12 years. Two months ago, he came to Delhi and started living with his family in Sector-16-A, Dwarka area and changed his name to Pramod. On December 12, we received information that Raju was residing somewhere in Sector-16-A, Dwarka with the Pramod Pandit and that would come near Metro Bridge, Sector-16-A, Dwarka. A trap was laid and Raju was apprehended, said Yadav. During interrogation, Raju confessed to his crime. Raju told police that in 2003, he had painted Devis flat and she hired him again a year later. He said he and his associates tied Devis hands and legs and strangulated her. Vikas Yadav is still on the run. Four years after the horrific gang rape of a paramedical student exposed gaping holes in our system to deal with crimes against women, a study of nine Delhi hospitals has shown that they are not equipped to handle victims of rape, molestation and domestic violence. The study includes 25 dispensaries apart from the Delhi government hospitals. The researchers from Maulana Azad Medical College (MAMC) showed 76.4% doctors and 88.7% nursing staff have no training in dealing with people affected by gender-based violence. They reviewed the medical facilities available and interviewed 739 doctors, medical superintendants, nurses and other staff members. Only 14.2% of the doctors surveyed asked the right questions and 16.4% could identify violence based on history and examination. The SAFE (Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence) kits were available in the hospitals but none of the dispensaries had it. The kit is used to collect forensic evidence in cases of rape. And, it is important that even dispensaries have these kits because in several cases dispensaries can be the first point of contact for victims, said Dr Suneela Garg, professor in the department of community medicine at MAMC. Counselling were available at eight hospitals and 11 dispensaries, but counsellors were present in three of the nine hospitals and two of the 25 dispensaries. The study found 40.4% of doctors and 47.1% of the nurses knew the protocols to deal with victims of gender violence. Read more: Four years after Dec 16: Number of rape cases in Delhi have increased Seven of hospitals and none of the dispensaries had officially designated nodal officers for managing such cases. Two of the nine hospitals surveyed had IEC (information, education and communication) material on sexual abuse or rape. More than 72% doctors and nurses said the lack of private screening space was a major hurdle in examining victims of violence. Facility for bathing after examination was available in 44% hospitals and none of the dispensariesm, the study found. Basic amenities were missing in some hospitals and dispensaries. Two of the nine hospitals and 12 dispensaries did not have emergency contraceptives and four hospitals and 12 dispensaries did not have STI prophylaxis treatment given to prevent sexually transmitted infections. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, will hold a workshop to propose a national project for the scientific validation of Panchgavya, a concoction prepared by mixing five cow products urine, cow dung, milk, curd and ghee. The two-day workshop will deliberate on five subjects with 125 scientists from other IITs, National Institute of Technology (NITs) and research laboratories. The scientists will discuss ways in which Panchgavya and related products can be used for rural development, medicinal purposes and food items, officials said. The national brainstorming-cum-consultative workshop on Scientific Validation and Research on Panchgavya is being organised by Center for Rural Development and Technology, IIT, Delhi and supported by Unnat Bharat Abhiyan, a flagship scheme of the HRD Ministry, being coordinated by IIT Delhi. Professor VK Vijay, head of the centre and national coordinator of UBA, told HT the workshop aims at validating claims on Panchgavya and related products, which already exist in the country. Scientific validation of Panchgavya and related products and its certification is very much required for its wide application but it has not yet been done. We will look at whether these claims are really effective or not. Once we validate and certify then these products can become much popular, he said. The five subjects areas are Uniqueness of Indigenous Cows, Panchgavya in Agriculture, Panchgavya in Medicine and Health, Panchgavya in Food and Nutrition and Panchgavya For Utilities, Products & Processes. He said though it is claimed these products are sustainable and beneficial in most of the aspects, its application is restricted to a few regions and communities. The use of Panchgavya and its related products is being done in various parts of the country. In Ayurveda it is used to treat diseases like cancer. There are many patents on cow products in India and abroad, he said. He said the five subject areas will look at validating the uniqueness of indigenous cows and their products over exotic cows, and validating Panchgavya and related products as medicine against human and animal diseases such as cancer, diabetes, blood pressure. Keynote presentations will also look at scientific analysis and certification of Panchgavya and related products for use in products such as soaps, mosquito coils, dhoop, wall panels, and insulators, he said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Before getting into the fateful cab in which she was raped on Wednesday night in Moti Bagh, the 20-year-old spent an hour trying to get a public transport to Noida. But she couldnt get one. When a man driving a cab offered to drop her at her destination for Rs 20, she took the offer rather than choosing to be stranded on the rape capitals streets on a winters night. With Delhis poor bus service, and auto drivers refusing rides, many cabs operate illegally as share taxis without any fear of being impounded. Neither the transport department, nor the traffic police initiated any lasting crackdown on the illegal taxis, many of them run even without a licence, looking to make a quick buck. HT found a number of spots where cabs are illegally operating as shared taxis for rates much cheaper than that of cab aggregators and radio taxis. Read: Woman allegedly raped in car in Delhis Moti Bagh area, accused arrested A number of such eager drivers line up during the night at Mayur Vihar Phase 1 and Akshardham to take multiple passengers to Noida or Ghaziabad for as low as Rs 10-20. I have taken such cabs a couple of times to travel to Wazirabad in North Delhi from Kashmere Gate ISBT. They wait until the cab is full, but the journey is more comfortable as the cars are air-conditioned and most importantly, it is cheap, said Rup Kishore, who works in a spare parts shop in Kashmere Gate. The illegal cabs run mostly on the Delh-NCR route as travel to workplace in Noida and Gurgaon. Unauthorised private buses run between Delhis bus terminals and neighbouring states of Haryana, UP and Rajasthan. They operate mostly at night and run without an inter-state permit. Crackdowns keep happening as we have teams deployed for the purpose. In May, we seized 52 buses that were illegally plying in the city, a government official explained. It has been seven months since the last crackdown. Even cars plying under cab aggregators arent safe as many of them still do not have the mandatory GPS trackers, said a traffic police official. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Eight residents of Delhi write open letters discussing sexual abuse and rape. In Part 5, a Delhi policeman writes to his colleagues. My dear colleagues, The night of December 16, 2012 is not easy to forget. A young professional with high ambitions, who could have been related to any one of us, lost her life because six men turned savage. There are new rules, guidelines and amendments added in our law after a nationwide protest, but I feel that effort is worthless unless we change our mindset towards women. In the process of researching the history of Delhi Police as part of my job, I visit police stations and meet station house officers most of them my batch mates, sub inspectors and constables. Though I find you all reasonably sensitive, allow me to share my thoughts and experiences, and offer a few suggestions. We, as custodians of law, need to sensitise ourselves while dealing with rape survivors. It is our duty to ensure that they trust us. Many victims dont want to come to our police stations, not because they are scared but because some have an impression of us as insensitive. We, as custodians of law, need to sensitise ourselves while dealing with rape survivors. It is our duty to ensure that they trust us. And they are not to blame. As investigators, it is our responsibility to build trust in the victim, assuring her that we will hear her out and help her in all possible ways, no matter what situation she was in, who was she with, and how she was dressed. She, who approaches us for help, is one who has faith in us and it must be mutual. Our challenge should be to live up to her expectations. Let us not disappoint her by making her feel as if she made a mistake coming to the police station. For us, it may be just another case file piling up on top of many others, but let us be considerate to understand that she has just been through her worst nightmare, which may scar her for life. Understand that when she comes to us she feels defeated and vulnerable, and, as first respondents, it is our responsibility to put her at ease. Offer her a glass of water, hear her out. Imagine the courage she must have gathered to talk to you. The thought of how you would react must have crossed her mind a thousand times. A sexual assault is sudden and unexpected. Let us never assume that she could have prevented rape by taking precautions, resisting more forcibly, avoiding drinking and so on. A rape is a rape. It is not the time to lecture her. Explain to her the legal process, her rights as the complainant. Let us convince her that we are there to nail the rapist. Let us never assume that she could have prevented rape by taking precautions, resisting more forcibly, avoiding drinking and so on. A rape is a rape. It is not the time to lecture her. I understand we have immediate legal tasks to perform, such as recording of statements, medical examination, and starting the investigation, but let us give her some time, some space. Her level of cooperation could be different. She could be numb, in shock, having difficulty expressing or comprehending what had happened. She may be angry. Let us be patient. In some cases, her families, too, could blame her for her suffering. But we have to be supportive. I remember a case when I was a sub-inspector in Seelampur many years ago. A woman came to the police station to register an FIR but she was very reluctant to give her statement. When a woman officer took her to a separate room to find out why she was hesitant, she said she could not narrate her ordeal in front of her mother. She was shy. Friends, on our part, let us refrain from asking awkward questions that may make her uncomfortable. For us it may be a technical query, but for her it is much more than that. After December 16, 2012, Delhi took the lead in registering cases of crime against women and we all should be proud of that. It means we are succeeding in getting women to complain against abuse. In a way, we are empowering them. Many started calling Delhi the rape capital. In my opinion, that is a misinterpretation. The number of rape cases have shot up, not because there were more incidents but because more women are now fearlessly coming forward to register complaints and report cases. We should take this as a compliment. Still, a lot needs to be done and the efforts are on. We can either be immature and make the victims experience worse, or help her recover physically and heal mentally. Friends, she may or may not overcome the trauma in her lifetime but a little healing touch on our part will remain imprinted on her mind forever. The decision is ours. Jai Hind Rajender Kalkal is a police officer posted in the Delhi police museum as an inspector (research). He has lived in the city for over 25 years. When Gopal Ram left for Tokyo, Japan, in September 2015, he was flush with hopes and dreams of a better future for himself, and his family. Little did he know that a little over a year later, his family would not even be able to afford to bring his remains back home. Gopal Ram passed away from a cardiac arrest on December 10. His family is still struggling to get his body back to India. The Indian Embassy in Japan has been asking for documents like a letter authorising somebody to receive his remains in Tokyo, and also an income certificate to prove that we are not able to afford his repatriation. We dont know anybody in Japan that we can authorise to receive my fathers body. The income certificate is also taking a long time with every government official I meet asking me to either come later or meet somebody else, said his oldest son, Jatin, a Chartered Accountancy student. The 48-year-old worked as a cook in India but with three children under the age of 25, he hoped that an agents offer to send him to Tokyo would ease some of his financial pressure. It was an agent based in Hauz Khas who said that he would arrange a job and a visa for my husband for Rs2.5 lakh. My husband was lured with promises of a better quality of life, and a higher salary. Lekin is do paise ke chakkar mein, aadmi ka jaan hi nikal gayi (But in the race to earn more, he lost his life), said Radha Devi, his wife. After the first three months, Gopal Ram allegedly stopped getting his salary, so he was not able to send home any money. They used to make him do menial jobs like wash dishes at the first place, and did not even pay his salary. He then shifted jobs and was working as a cook at a hotel or restaurant. But even there he was not paid regularly. He was paid once six months ago, but even that cash a friend borrowed from him, with promises that he will pay to pay back. The friend gambled it all away. We have not received any money from him in more than six months, said Jatin. The family has been struggling to make ends meet and afford food. My house is mortgaged. I had to borrow money from my neighbours to buy rice. The only source of income I have now is the rent I get from leasing a room. This is no more than Rs3,000 per month. You tell me if it is possible to survive and feed three children with that amount. How will we be able to afford the lakhs of rupees needed to transport him home? asks Devi. She has since contacted the Delhi Commission for Women, which escalated the issue to External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj in an official letter on Friday, for some respite. I just want to see him once before he is gone forever, said the tearful wife. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Surinder Koli, the prime accused in the Nithari killing cases, was awarded the death penalty again by a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court in Ghaziabad on Friday. This is the seventh of the 17 cases in which trial has been completed at Ghaziabad. Koli has been found guilty and awarded the death penalty in all the seven cases so far. On Friday, Koli was awarded the death penalty for the murder of a 12-year-old girl, who hailed from Darjeeling and had come to stay at her aunts house at Nithari. The girl had gone to a local vegetable market on the morning of July 24, 2006, but did not return. She was lured by Koli inside his employer, Moninder Singh Pandhers, house in Sector-31 Noida. Pandhers mobile locations indicted his presence in Punjab during the period when the girl was killed by Koli in his house. Koli attempted rape, strangulated her and later chopped the body parts of the victim before throwing them behind the house in polythene bag. He was also awarded life imprisonment for abduction, 10 years imprisonment for attempted rape and seven years imprisonment for destruction of evidence, said JP Sharma, public prosecutor, CBI. Read More: Surinder Koli held guilty in sixth Nithari case Koli was chargesheeted by CBI in 16 out of 19 Nithari cases. He had been contesting his cases without any hired lawyers, but a Supreme Court advocate, Ravindra S Garia, took up his cases. During arguments on conviction, Garia said that he had put forward his argument but attracted the attention of the court over several issues related to the case. Repeated applications seeking inspection of documents and copies were dismissed. We had also put up an application under section 329 of CrPC but this was dismissed. We later approached Allahabad high court and notices were issued to the UP government. The CrPC requires that a trial court if faced with material indicating unsound mind of the accused should before proceeding trial hold a preliminary trial to ascertain whether the accused is mentally capable of facing trial, he said. Till date, we have not been provided all copies of the exhibited documents on which the prosecutions case if based. In such case, it was unethical for me to put forward my arguments in the case, he added. Read More: At 1.40am, Supreme Court stays Surinder Kolis hanging Before the seventh case judgment, Kolis ailing mother Kunti Devi also arrived from her native place in Uttarakhand and met her son inside Dasna jail on Thursday. She is old and was barely able to walk. Still, she undertook the long journey and met her son. Koli told her of his innocence and said that he will keep fighting the legal battle, said Narayan Singh, a villager from Kolis native place at Mangrukhal. One of Kolis earlier cases, decided at Ghaziabad, was commuted to life imprisonment by the Supreme Court. The other cases are pending appeal at Allahabad high court. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The South Corporation has decided to approach lieutenant governor Najeeb Jung against alleged misbehaviour of the members of Delhi Assemblys Question and Reference Committee. Based on the feedback received from the officials who attended the meeting on Monday, the SDMC standing committee criticised the functioning of Assembly panel and blamed the Delhi government for putting undue pressure on the officials to go beyond their legal capacity. The standing committee has passed a resolution to take legal action, if required, and also discuss the matter in house. The Q&R committee had convened meeting with commissioner on the basis of MLA Sourabh Bhardwaj complaint in assembly regarding no installation/ replacement of LED lights, outdoor gym equipments etc. But then the corporations officials were asked to take oath which is unlawful. The process is done only when summon is issued to the officials, said Shailendra Singh, standing committee chairman. According to him, the committee kept senior officers waiting for long time besides treating them badly. Our committee never held any project related to AAP MLAs, he said. When additional commissioner along with the SDMC engineer-in-chief appeared before the Q&R committee, the behaviour of committee member Saurabh Bhardwaj was inappropriate. He repeatedly harassed them despite providing of all the details, said Farhad Suri, leader of opposition. Suri said the meeting had been called on Bhardwajs complaint and he could not act like a judge in the matter. The SDMC standing committee members also said the assembly panel tried to publicise the matter. They reported in the media about contempt action against SDMC commissioner despite the fact that the SDMC Commissioner can never be summoned as witness as per sub- Rule 172 of the Legislative Assembly, said Subhash Arya, leader of house. On the other hand, Bhardwaj said the standing committee is a political body and could not be the spokesperson for the officials. If officials have any problem they can take the issue with the chief secretary. Our committee has done everything within the constitutional provision. We invited the media because we want to keep everything transparent. If the SDMC thinks that any unlawful thing has happened that it can challenge it in court, he said. Unfortunately the additional commissioner who represented commissioner has no answers for the decision taken by him. Also, commissioner is trying to avoid the answers about his arbitrary decision on files, said Bhardwaj. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The MP department of higher education (DHE) has set in motion a plan to make all the government and private colleges in MP adopt cashless transactions. In an order issued on December 12, MB Ozha, director, directorate of higher education, directed all the colleges to start taking digital payments from December 15 onwards. He also asked colleges to encourage students to use debit cards or e-wallets for payments. The department will now hold camps to train principals in use of mobile wallets and other modes of digital payments. The principals would in turn train the teachers who will then train the students. Every college in the state will have at least two pointy of sale (PoS) machine. Speaking to Hindustan Times, RS Verma, additional director, DHE (Indore division), said that the department has already completed the formalities to implement the orders successfully across Indore region. The students today are tech-savvy. They will have no problem adapting to the new system said Verma. Thirty-two teaching departments under university teaching department (UTD) are also going cashless. Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya (DAVV) vice-chancellor Narendra Kumar Dhakkad said they had started accepting cashless payments long ago as all the transactions --- from payment of college fee to exam fee --- was being done through MPOnline. Some small transactions were in cash, but too would be now accepted through digital mode. Nearly 270 colleges across eight districts are affiliated to DAVV. The colleges have on their rolls nearly 2.75 lakh students, including 1.75 lakh from Indore, pursuing different courses. Students praise move Students praised the move to adopt digital payments saying it would bring transparency and curb the flow of unaccounted money in education Institutions. Dewansh Upadhyay (18), a BCom student from Arihant College and native of Seoni Malwa, said, It is a very good decision to stop the malpractices by colleges. Now colleges cannot force students to pay in cash and they will have to issue receipts for every transaction. Aman Gupta, 20, pursuing BTech from International Institute of Professional Studies (IIPS) at UTD said, Many students faced difficulty in depositing fee in cash. This decision will go a long way in helping such students. A special enforcement drive to curb traffic violations had reaped huge dividends for the traffic police in Gurgaon. As of December, the department has collected over 5 crore in fines from erring drivers. The drive began on August 17 to improve the traffic conditions by reducing congestion on city roads. As many as 2.23 lakh vehicle owners were penalised for various violations, a police officer said. This includes nearly 19,000 for wrong parking, 11,000 for wrong side driving and 3,700 other for driving on no-entry lanes, he said. So far, we have penalised 5,200 people and recovered 5.2 crore from them as fine during the drive. An enhanced enforcement also serves as a deterrent, said Y Puran Kumar, joint commissioner of police. As many as 8,700 vehicles were towed away and another 7,700 impounded during the drive, he said. Of this, 2 crore was collected from August 17 till October 2 and another 3 Crore till this week, Kumar said. Those penalised included drivers of autorickshaws, taxis and other vehicles. Those caught not wearing seat belts and indulging in drink driving were also fined. The checks were carried out mainly on MG Road, Cyber City, Huda City Centre and other metro stations, Sohna Road, Old Delhi Road, among other areas of the city. These regular drives were started after monsoon rains triggered miles-long snarls on Gurgaon roads, including the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway. Pertinently, the scrapping of old currency notes has affected the drive as well. The extent of the exercise and fine collection have reduced following November 8, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the demonetisation. On a given day before demonetisation, the traffic department used to issue 2,500 challans across the city. Post demonetisation, that figure has reduced to 1,000 a day. After November 8, a majority of fines imposed are paid later at the traffic office and the documents confiscated by police personnel released. The traffic police, like other departments, are also switching to cashless modes of payments and have promised to give up cash-based transactions by next month. The department has provided card swipe machines to on-duty personnel to recover fines from violators on the spot. It has also started the process of purchasing point of sale machines for the challan branch at Traffic Tower in Sushant Lok. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A new review of recent research has found that starting school later has a positive impact on teenagers, including longer sleep duration and a reduced number of car accidents. Carried out by a team of representatives from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Sleep Research Society, and American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine, the review looked at 18 peer-reviewed studies published before April 2016 as part of the National Healthy Sleep Awareness Project. The findings, published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, showed that starting high school later in the morning was associated with various positive outcomes among teenagers. When school started up to 60 minutes later, students slept for an extra 19 minutes a night during the week, and when school started more than 60 minutes later students gained around 53 minutes of extra sleep a night. Starting school later was also associated with less subjective daytime sleepiness, and lower differences between sleep durations on school and weekend nights. The review also found a possible link between a later school time and a decrease in lateness or truancy, and a possible positive association with better behavioural health. However the results showed mixed results for a link between later school times and an improvement in grades or standardised test scores. Commenting on the findings lead author Timothy I. Morgenthaler said, Many people believe that school start times are one of the big reasons students do not get enough sleep. For optimal health the American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends that adolescents between the ages of 13 and 18 years should sleep 8 to 10 hours per 24 hours on a regular basis, although data suggests around 69 percent of high school students achieve less than 8 hours sleep on a school night. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine also state that due to a natural shift in the timing of the bodys internal circadian clock during puberty, most teens have a biological preference for a late bedtime, which does not suit the current early school start times. What genre does Star Wars belong to? Obviously science-fiction (sci-fi), right? Casual Star Wars fans and people who have never seen the movies would agree. Space, lasers, faster-than-light travel all standard sci-fi tropes, so Star Wars equals sci-fi, correct? Wrong. Star Wars is epic-fantasy at its grandest. Think more Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and less Star Trek and 2001: A Space Odyssey. Star Wars stories are built on strong fantastical narrative elements like magic (the force), mythical weapons (light sabres), order of knights (the jedis), giant monsters, strange creatures, a heros journey, a princess in peril, an evil empire, a prophecy, the chosen one and many more. Even if one chooses to disregard all these arguments, comments of the creator of the multi-billion dollar franchise George Lucas should drive the point home. In a discussion at the Sundance Film Festival last year Lucas had said, Star Wars really isnt a science-fiction film; its a fantasy film and a space opera. Read | Rogue One review: This is our generations Star Wars story. Go own it And since its inception, narrative laced in epic-fantasy has been the franchises safe space. Through all the good (the original trilogy), the safe (Episode-VII) and the terrible (the prequels) fantasy storytelling has remained the constant. But the rule book has been torn. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is not a fantasy film. Rogue One is not a space opera. Rogue One though is still very much Star Wars, it also happens to be the boldest film in the franchise since the 1980 release, Empire Strikes Back. With Rogue One, a spin-off (or Anthology Film as Disney calls it) not being part of the main episodic stories director Gareth Edwards has the freedom to go genre hopping. Rogue One is a film that is distinctly two parts; the short first act is subtle homage to old Westerns while the second and third acts have a very strong war-film vibe. With the Skywalkers mostly out the picture, the film introduces the members of the Rebellion as a rag-tag group of guerillas fighting in the lawless planet of Jeddah. Freeing prisoners, assassinating people, destroying property; there is a distinct lack of empathy among rebel forces for their actions. The imperial forces are even more ruthless, willing to kill anyone and destroy cities to retain or strengthen their authority. The red desert planet of Jeddah is the wild, wild west. Read | The Force beckons again: Rogue One review by Rashid Irani At the end of the first-act, Rogue One the war-film begins to take shape. The Empire as always is not so subtly is depicted as a Nazi-style occupying force. This time with prisoner labour camps, hundreds of uniformed troopers, scores of battle stations, a weapon of mass-destruction and scheming commanders. At first tiny group of rebels, with more heart than brains, begin to band together for a suicide mission to help neutralize the Empires super weapon. The effort eventually snowballs into a full scale war mission by the rebel alliance. War film tropes, they are all there, the sneaking into the enemy base, the Saving Private Ryan style beach battles, warplane dogfights in space, heroic sacrifices and a copious amount of death. Read | Star Wars: Rogue One promises to be an early Christmas gift for its devotees What makes Rogue One unique though is the narrative is driven by protagonists who are - in the larger scheme of things - common foot soldiers. The Star Wars movies have always revolved around heroic Jedi Knight and evil Sith Lords with the power to bend planets to their will. Rogue One is about the little guy, the one whose blaster fire is used to be a wonky sound effect in the background at best. Rogue One strips away the mythical powers, the political wrangling, the magical weapons and titular heroes. In doing so director Gareth Edwards probably tells the most human of all Star Wars stories. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Nine movies have made the cut to compete for a nomination for the best foreign-language film Oscar, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Thursday. The shortlist includes Maren Ades Toni Erdmann, a German comedy about a troubled father-daughter relationship, which added a Golden Globe nomination in the foreign-language category on Monday after sweeping the board at the weekends European film awards. Other frontrunners include The Salesman, a drama about violence and its consequences by Iranian Asghar Farhadi, whose 2011 movie A Separation won the foreign-language Oscar, and Xavier Dolans Canadian drama Its Only the End of the World, which bagged the Cannes Grand Prix. Isabelle Huppert in a still from Elle. Among the snubs were Paul Verhoevens drama Elle, a French rape revenge comedy, and Neruda, Pablo Larrains biopic about the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda -- although the director can expect his English-language film Jackie to pick up nominations for major honors. Foreign language films are whittled down from 85 entries by several hundred Los Angeles-based Academy members. The Academys Foreign Language Film Award Executive Committee bumps up their six choices to nine to make up the shortlist. Nominations for the 89th Annual Academy Awards are expected to be announced on January 24, and the ceremony itself set for February 26 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. The films are: Tanna (Australia) Its Only the End of the World (Canada) Land of Mine (Denmark) Toni Erdmann (Germany) The Salesman (Iran) The Kings Choice (Norway) Paradise (Russia) A Man Called Ove (Sweden) My Life as a Zucchini (Switzerland) Follow @htshowbiz for more Fifty days of inconvenience to the people will bring 50 years of relief from black money, BJP president Amit Shah said on Saturday, asking voters in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh to bear the hardship caused by the ban on high-value banknotes. Shahs defence of the governments shock announcement was an apparent counter to chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and BSP chief Mayawatis stringent criticism of the demonetisation exercise which they say has caused immense hardship to the people. We know line is there (in banks and ATMs), people are facing difficulty. But (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi has sought 50 days. The inconvenience of these 50 days will provide relief from black money for the coming 50 years, Shah at a rally in Shahjahanpur in west UP. The BJP leader said only those who had stashed black money worth crores were suffering. Have you seen the faces of Mamata (Banerjee) and Mayawati...their faces have lost glow, they have started looking 10 years older in a day, he said in his 40-minute address. Shah also predicted a BJP win in the assembly elections next year. No one can stop BJP from coming into power in UP. Even if all the (opposition) parties are united, they will not be able to stop BJP, he said drawing applause from around 30,000 people. The party is attempting to end a 15-year wait to grab power in the countrys most populous and politically crucial state. Shah said in the last 15 years, UPs development had suffered under SP and BSP rules and people were now looking for parivartan (change). Akhilesh Yadav knows he is going to lose in the election. He is scared of Modijis popularity, he said, adding that the chief ministers recent talk of an alliance with Congress proved his desperation. (With agency inputs) The BJP on Saturday said that Congress vice president Rahul Gandhis promise at a rally on Friday to take action against corrupt party leaders within two minutes, was the joke of the day. Gandhi vowed to act against the corrupt in his party at a public rally in South Goa. He is speaking like a dictator? How can he deal with corrupt Congress leaders within two minutes? This was the best joke of the day, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Damu Naik told a press conference on Saturday. In five years, we will give a shining Goa, and in Goa if there is even a bit of corruption, we will take cent per cent strict action in two minutes, Gandhi told a public rally in Margao town, located some 40 km from the state capital. Naik also said that the rally of one of the top Congress leaders attracted only about 10,000 to 12,000 people, while the BJP rallies held in each assembly constituency attract that much audience. Three wild elephants, including a calf, were killed after they were hit by a speeding train engine in Nagaon district of central Assam early on Saturday morning. The incident took place when the engine hit a herd of elephants crossing the railway tracks around 4:50am between Kampur and Jamunamukh stations located nearly 125km east of Guwahati. With this, the number of wild elephant deaths after being hit by speeding trains in the state increased to eight this month. Three elephants, including two pregnant females (who later delivered two stillborn calves), were killed at Hojai in Nagaon district by the Kanyakumari-Dibrugarh Vivek Express on December 5. A day later, another a speeding train killed a nine-year-old male and injured an adult female at Banglapara in Goalpara district. The injured pachyderm succumbed to injuries few days later. Both incidents had prompted the state forest department to hold emergency meetings with Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) officials and it was decided to limit speed of trains to 15 km/hr at elephant corridors. The fresh incident is very unfortunate. We are taking the issue seriously and efforts are underway to increase coordination between forest and railway officials, forest minister Pramila Rani Brahma told Hindustan Times. She maintained Saturdays incident was due to carelessness of the engine driver and instructions have been issued to the forest department to register an FIR against him. Orders were also issued to start a monitoring cell at the headquarters of the forest department to keep track of movement of wild elephant herds by remaining in constant touch with forest staff on the ground. The spot of accident is not within the vulnerable area as marked by forest department. It is about 13km away from the area where caution had been advised by the forest department, Pranav Jyoti Sharma, CPRO-NFR, stated. Reduced forest cover and inadequate food source are responsible for the increased incidents of man-animal conflict being reported from across Assam, which has nearly 6,000 wild elephants. Last month, a female elephant and her young calf had fallen into a deep pit at Patanjalis mega food park in Tezpur district. While the calf was rescued, the female, which had sustained injuries during the fall, died. There have also been incidents of wild elephants getting electrocuted and poisoned by farmers desperate to protect their crops from the marauding herds of pachyderms. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested two employees of the cash department of Reserve Bank of India in Bengaluru for alleged conversion of Rs 1.99 crore of demonetised currencies with banknotes of Rs 2,000 and Rs 100. CBI sources said senior special assistant Sadananda Naika and special assistant AK Kavin were arrested for unauthorised exchange of the currency, and have been booked under charges of criminal conspiracy and cheating besides provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act. Both the accused have been sent to four days of CBI custody by a special court in Bengaluru. Read: No I-T exemption for political parties on donations, says FM It is alleged that both the accused and other unknown officials of RBI, Bengaluru entered in criminal conspiracy with unknown others, CBI spokesperson Devpreet Singh said. She said the accused, along with other unknown officials who were entrusted with the responsibility of new currency notes, fraudulently gave away new notes to the tune of Rs 1.99 crore to RBI officials and others. It is alleged that the exchange was done in violation of exchange limits imposed by the Bankers Bank. The CBI had earlier arrested another employee of RBI in a separate case in which currency worth over Rs 6 lakh was converted by him using influence over officials of the State Bank of Mysore. Read: Rs 13 lakh to Rs 78 crore: Digital payments at Mother Dairy, Safal skyrockets Punjab Pradesh congress committee president Captain Amarinder Singh on Friday raised the issue of the economic plight of the debt-ridden farmers of Punjab at a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Amarinder, who was part of the Congress delegation led by party national vice president Rahul Gandhi, said farmers, burdened with loans, were committing suicide in Punjab and other parts of the country. Talking to mediapersons after the meeting at Parliament House, Amarinder said the problems of the farmers had compounded due to lackadaisical approach of the NDA government. Amarinder said the Congress had sought the prime ministers support to alleviate the debt and other woes of the farmers. The Prime Minister, he said, assured to look into the matter. Amarinder spoke about Punjab farmersand leaders from Uttar Pradesh spoke about the situation in their state. Responding to questions from mediapersons, Captain Amarinder said the demonetisation had aggravated the problems of the farmers. In Punjab, where farmers were totally dependant on cooperative banks for their cash requirements, 7,000 of the 12,700 villages had no bank branches or ATMs, he pointed out, asking the Modi government how the farmers could be expected to survive in such a situation. Amarinder made it clear that even if the Modi government failed to extend any support, he was committed to waiving off the loans of the farmers in the state. Neither the farmers nor the arhtiyas would have to pay a single penny out of their pockets to settle the outstanding loans, he promised. The plight of the farmers in Punjab, said Amarinder, had been worsened by the Badal governments anti-farmer policies. He adds that bungling in procurement, non-payment of dues to farmers, procurement at lower than MSP and delayed harvesting in border areas due to evacuation triggered by BJP-led war hysteria led to the problems of farmers. Chhattisgarh police claim their increased use of technology and change in strategy to counter left-wing extremism have Maoists in the state on the run. A record total of 133 Maoists have been killed in Chhattisgarh so far this year, while 41 security personnel have been slain during operations, according to police data. The 2016 body count of Maoists is the highest in a year since the formation of Chhattisgarh in 2000, according to police records. In 2015, a total of 47 Maoists were killed, while 47 security personnel were slain. Police claim their success is rooted in intelligence-based operations and a more aggressive approach, primarily in Bastar region. Maoists lord over large tracts of Bastar, which accounts for most of the bloodshed in left-wing extremism in the state. Earlier, Maoists were working on an offensive strategy, now they have been forced to concentrate on defence, said a senior police officer involved in anti-Maoist operations in Chhattisgarh. Their strategy was to attack police teams, ambush convoys and attack police stations, but in the last one year they are continuously moving along the banks of some small rivers and trying to protect themselves from security forces, added the officer, declining to be named because he is not authorised to speak to the media. The officer, however, cautioned security forces were yet to reach many areas in Bastar. Till 2015, security forces largely concentrated on targeting Maoists inside the jungles, using long-range patrols and securing their own bases. This year, patrolling was stopped and forces move only on the basis of concrete intelligence inputs. DM Awasthi, special director general (Naxal) of Chhattisgarh, confirmed this tactical switch. We have changed our strategy this year. More than half a dozen teams of 400 to 700 security personnel are sent to different parts of the jungles in Bastar and a surprise raid is done after technological coordination. This has rattled them (Maoists). Incidentally, the post of the special DG (Naxal) was created this year. The special DG (Naxal) was also given the charge of intelligence wing, which existed separately, to aid quicker operations. Police are now monitoring the quality of intelligence daily, and at times, on an hourly basis. Technology helped us contain the casualties among security forces, said an officer of Chhattisgarh intelligence wing. BOX: Conflict 2016 Bloodshed, arrests and surrender Encounters: 202 Maoists killed: 133 Civilians killed: 55 Security personnel killed: 41 Maoists surrendered: 1,202 Maoists arrested: 881 Explosives recovered Landmines: 94 Tiffin bombs: 101 Pressure cooker bombs: 9 Pressure IEDs: 43 Pipe bombs: 30 Detonators: 2,160 Grenades: 25 Weapons recovered AK -47: 1 INSAS rifles: 5 SLRs: 4 *All figures till Dec 15 SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Former air chief marshal SP Tyagi was on Saturday sent to judicial custody till December 30 after the CBI said he was not required for further custodial interrogation in AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam. Special CBI judge Arvind Kumar also sent Tyagis cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan, co-accused in the case related to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA-2 regime, to jail after the probe agency did not seek their further custody. After the agencys submission, all the three accused moved their bail applications, which will be heard on December 21 as the CBI sought time to reply to the applications. During the proceedings, the counsel appearing for Tyagi submitted before the court that the Italian top court had ordered retrial of ex-Finmeccanica executives in VVIP chopper scam case, which makes CBIs stand weak in the current case. The court, however, said it will take up the matter on next date of hearing on December 21. The court had on December 14 extended the CBI remand of Tyagi and the two others by three days after CBI had said it was a very serious case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as interest of the nation was compromised. The agency had earlier submitted in the court: It is a very high-profile case and we need proper material. One part of the crime was committed in India while various other angles are in foreign land. Tyagis counsel had told the court that he was a decorated war hero of the nation and CBI, which was termed as a caged parrot by the Supreme Court, is trying to tarnish his image. Earlier, Tyagis counsel had claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a collective one and Prime Ministers Office(PMO) was also a part of it. CBI had alleged that Tyagi had abused his official position and when he was the Air Chief Marshal, he had made huge investments in land and other properties and had not disclosed the source his income. It was also alleged that Khaitan was the brain behind how the bribe money reached India and several firms through which the money travelled came into existence and Sanjeev was known to alleged European middleman Carlo Gerosa. 71-year old Tyagi, who had retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by the agency in connection with the case. The CBI had also claimed that alleged European middleman Guido Haschkes statement, which was received through LR (Letter Rogatory), proved that he was assured by Sanjeev Tyagi that the latters brother was going to be Air Chief Marshal. The accused persons, however, had alleged that the CBI was trying to extract the confession using force. DMK president M Karunanidhi will have to be in hospital for a few more days for treatment, the party said on Saturday, adding that friends and others are requested not to visit. The party also postponed its general council meeting that was slated to be held here on December 20 owing to Karunanidhis ill-health. In a statement issued here the DMK party, citing Kauvery Hospitals Friday statement, said Karunanidhi was stable. According to the statement, Karunanidhi will have to be in the hospital for treatment for some more days and hence party members, friends and others are requested not to visit the Kauvery Hospital to see him in person. DMK general secretary K Anbazhagan in a statement announced the postponement of partys general council meeting scheduled to be held here on December 20 under the chairmanship of Karunanidhi. Karunanidhi, 92, was admitted to Kauvery Hospital on Thursday night due to breathing difficulty as well as throat and lung infection, the hospital said. He underwent tracheotomy to optimise breathing on Friday. He is stable, on antibiotics and is being treated by a team of doctors, the hospital said. Karunanidhis second spell of hospitalisation this month comes after a short interval. It was on December 7 that Karunanidhi was discharged from the hospital after being admitted on December 15. Lt Gen Bipin Rawat was named the next army chief on Saturday, as the government abandoned a three-decade-old tradition of elevating senior-most officers as service chiefs. The vice-chief will succeed Gen Dalbir Singh, who retires on December 31. 1. Lt Gen Bipin Rawat joined the Indian Army in December 1978. 2. Rawat won the Sword of Honour when he graduated from the Indian Military Academy in 1978. 3. He was commissioned into the 5/11 Gorkha Rifles. 4. He is second consecutive chief from the Gorkha Rifles. Gen Dalbir Singh was commissioned into 4/5 Gorkha Rifles. 5. Gen Rawat is from a military background. His father was also a lieutenant general. 6. Rawat was commanding the Pune-based Southern Command before he was appointed the army vice-chief. 7. Rawat miraculously survived a chopper accident when he was the commander of the Dimapur-based Headquarters 3 Corps. 8. Rawat, who learnt his art in Kashmir and the northeast, headed the Indian brigade during the UN peacekeeping operation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2008.Indian peacekeepers performed splendidly under his leadership. The general is credited with providing dynamic leadership under the UN banner. The Indian peacekeepers switched their approach from a velvet glove to an iron fist under his leadership. Also read: Five things you need to know about the new IAF chief Dhanoa The government said on Saturday that Air Marshal BS Dhanoa will take over as the new chief of air staff. Dhanoas appointment is on expected lines, as he will be the senior-most air marshal when Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha retires on December 31. Here are five things to know about him. Air Marshal BS Dhanoa joined the IAF as a fighter pilot in June 1978. His father, SS Dhanoa, was the chief secretary of Punjab. A Kargil war veteran, he was part of Indias air campaign. Dhanoa was awarded the Yudh Seva Medal. He is currently the IAFS vice chief. Before that, he headed the South-Western Air Command. He will be the third Sikh to head the IAF after distinguished military leaders Arjan Singh and Dilbag Singh. Read | Lt Gen Bipin Rawat appointed army chief, Air Marshal BS Dhanoa is new air force chief At a gender sensitisation workshop for Delhi Police a few months ago, a constable left many in disbelief when he said that a woman invites rape when she eats junk food and wears skimpy clothes. Trainer Pratistha Arora was surprised, too, but not shocked. As project director with the Centre for Social Research, Arora regularly holds gender sensitisation classes for Delhi police personnel. The constables reaction was just one of several instances when she had to deal with a highly patriarchal mindset among a section of the police. A senior officer, visibly embarrassed, interrupted and tried to explain to the constable that there is no justification for rape. In a city where a rape is reported every 4 hours, experts such as Arora say lower-rung policemen see training and sensitisation courses as something forced upon them. In 2015, Delhi police registered 2,199 rape cases. Not all, but most of them come only because they have been told by their superiors to attend the session. Most of the junior officers come from the neighbouring states of Delhi, where the society is predominantly patriarchal. The way the police look at rape cases will change only if the mindset changes, she adds. A long ordeal Rishikant, who runs an NGO Shakti Vahini, says going to the police station is only the beginning of a harrowing ordeal for survivors. Often, rape survivors end up spending hours at police stations because of the paper work. Police call counsellors as it is mandatory. If it is not done, doctors refuse to conduct the medical examination, says Rishikant, who goes by his first name. Over the years, his NGO has rescued many trafficked women, most of them rape survivors, from across the country. A woman has just been through the worst trauma and now she has to remember it again in front of a cop. Imagine what she goes through when everyone walks into the room and is staring at her. It is the same at the government hospital, where a woman has to wait in front of everyone, he adds. Read: The girl who was raped: How the system breaks survivors Toffee and sweets In 2015, nearly 50% of Delhis rape victims were minors, shows official data. And out of the 928 cases involving underage victims, 621 were under the age of 16. Experts say not all policemen are trained to deal with minor victims. Police still offer toffee or sweets to talk to a minor rape victim at police stations to get them to speak. Is that the way to deal with such cases? It is time we need experts to deal with rape cases specifically, says Rajat Mitra, a Delhi-based clinical psychologist who has worked with city police for over a decade. Mitra says he has submitted more than 1,000 reports to courts in trial of rape cases. Investigation of rape cases requires experience and expertise. As cops are overworked, they do not have the time to probe such cases thoroughly because of which the conviction rate is still low. In most European countries and in Australia, Mitra points out, there are separate units to investigate rape cases. Apart from the two-finger test, how many officers ask doctors to note every evidence about the cuts and bruises on her body? These are minor but important evidence in court. In the past five years, Delhi Police have managed conviction in less than 50% of the rape cases. The most number of convictions, 49.25%, were in 2012. Conviction of cases registered in 2015 was a mere 29.37% but police contests that most of these cases are still awaiting hearing or pending trial. Read: Why Delhis public transport is still a war zone for women Themselves unequal Arora says one of the surprising facts that emerged during her discussions with women constables was that they felt the patriarchal bias themselves. Women constables said they themselves felt they were not treated as equals. Women regularly tell us their male colleagues often tease them about not having any work pressure. Male constables believe women come to have tea at police stations and go home on time, she says. In Delhi Police, the men-women ratio is about 23:2. There are only about 7,000 women cops in comparison to 74,000-odd male cops. Officials say women cops are stretched thin and handle too many rape cases. The police are trying to get more women into the force, with growing awareness that women find it more comfortable to deal or narrate their ordeal to women officers. There is no proof that women will be able to investigate crimes against women better but we should start somewhere. So let us start by getting more women officers, a senior police officer says. Time for a change Often accused of being rude and insensitive, most psychologists believe sessions on gender sensitisation are of not much help. You can teach gender sensitisation to a teenager in school but not to a 30-40 year old constable or head constable, who has lived all his life believing in certain principles, a psychologist who regularly works with the police tells HT. Former Delhi police commissioner Ajai Raj Sharma believes the police department has to change with time. There was a time when it was assumed that cops had to be strict with the public. We have to change. Todays requirement is totally different. Constables and junior officers are the first responders when anyone approaches a police station. The selection criteria must change. Experts will have to sit and decide how to get the best of men and upgrade the standard of those who come into the force in the junior ranks. Read: Rape threat hangs over women even at homes Most officers HT spoke to said there was little change in the scene since the December 16, 2012, gang rape and murder that had shocked the nation and forced the country to strengthen its rape laws. The number of women officers has increased, patrolling has gone up and women help desks have come up at every police station. But the number of rape cases has increased over the years. Big cases shake up only the top brass. Cases such as the Swiss diplomats rape or the December 16 gang rape created awareness in the society. Everyone wanted the police chief and the then senior ministers to resign, says Mitra. But the awareness and the change do not percolate to the junior officers. This is part of the HT series, #LetsTalkAboutRape. Join the conversation and tell @htTweets what you think using the hashtag. The series features illustrations by Liza Donnelly, a celebrated New York-based cartoonist and writer best known for her work in The New Yorker Magazine. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Government has formed an inter- ministerial task force, to be headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modis Principal Secretary Nripendra Mishra, to look into all the strategic aspects of Indus Water Treaty (IWT) with Pakistan. A formal notification to this effect was issued on Friday, a top government functionary said on Saturday, adding other members of the team include NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar and Secretaries in ministries of Finance, Environment, Power and Water Resource. Besides, chief secretaries of Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab, the states from where the six Indus system rivers flow, will be invitees in the task force. The task force is mandated with taking all important strategic and policy decisions. It is an all-powerful body which will take decisions regarding the treaty, he added. The committee has been formed nearly three months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a review meeting on the 56- year-old water distribution pact with Pakistan in the aftermath of series of cross-border terror strikes including Uri attack. Read: World Bank pauses Indus Waters Treaty processes by India, Pakistan to resolve row In that meeting, it was also decided that India would exploit to the maximum water of Pakistan-controlled rivers including Jhelum. Meanwhile, a source said the World Bank, which has paused two separate mechanisms, will send an expert to discuss with both India and Pakistan their versions on designs of Kishenganga and Ratle projects being constructed by India in Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan had in September approached World Bank, flagging concerns that the design of the Kishenganga project was not in line with the criteria laid down under IWT. It had then demanded the international lender to set up a Court of Arbitration to look into the matter. ReadL Indus Waters Treaty issues can be solved with Pak bilaterally, says India Refuting the claims made by Pakistan, India had asserted that the project design is well within parameters of the treaty and urged the World Bank to appoint a neutral expert as the issue is a technical matter as suggested in the treaty. Under the Indus Waters Treaty, signed between India and Pakistan in 1960 and to which the World Bank is also a party, the global body has a specified role in the process of resolution of differences and disputes. Read: Pakistan says wont accept modifications in Indus Waters Treaty with India India has formed a task force to look into all strategic aspects of the Indus Waters Treaty even as Pakistan has said it will not accept any modifications or changes to the 56-year-old pact that is under severe strain following heightened tensions between the two countries. The inter-ministerial task force, to be headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modis principal secretary Nripendra Mishra, is an all-powerful body mandated to make all important strategic and policy decisions regarding the pact, an unnamed government functionary was quoted as saying by PTI. A formal notification on the task force was issued on Friday. Its members include National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, foreign secretary S Jaishankar and secretaries of the finance, environment, power and water resources ministries, the official said. Earlier, Tariq Fatemi, special assistant to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, was quoted by the Dawn newspaper as saying that Pakistan would not agree to any changes to the treaty. Pakistan will not accept any modifications or changes to the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty. Our position is based on the principles enshrined in the treaty. And the treaty must be honoured in...letter and spirit, Fatemi said in Washington. Read | Pakistan says wont accept modifications in Indus Waters Treaty with India The developments came close on the heels of the World Bank, which brokered the treaty, announcing a pause in two processes to look into disputes over the Kishenganga and Ratle projects in order to protect the treaty. External affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup told reporters on Thursday that resolving such issues would need time. India has always believed the implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty, which includes redressal of the technical questions and differences, should be done bilaterally between India and Pakistan, he said. We believe these consultations should be given adequate time. His remarks about more time to settle differences alarmed Pakistan, the Dawn reported. Pakistan argued India had used a similar strategy on previous occasions and completed a disputed project before insisting it could not be modified as it was already complete, the report added. The Indian task force was formed nearly three months after Modi reviewed the water-sharing treaty after a series of cross-border terror attacks, including one on an army camp in Uri. The government had then decided India would exploit to the maximum waters of the rivers assigned to Pakistan by the pact, including Jhelum. The treaty gives India control over three eastern rivers of the Indus basin Beas, Ravi and Sutlej and Pakistan has the three western rivers, Indus, Chenab and Jhelum. The World Bank, which has a role under the treaty in the resolution of disputes, is expected to send an expert to India and Pakistan to discuss the Kishenganga and Ratle projects. Read | The World Banks halting of the Indus Water Treaty is a blessing in disguise Pakistan approached the World Bank in September and alleged that the design of the Kishenganga project was not in line with the treatys provisions. It demanded the setting up of a court of arbitration. India rejected these charges and asked the World Bank to appoint a neutral expert. (With inputs from agencies) Russia wants India and Pakistan to resolve all their differences, including the Kashmir issue, through peaceful means, the Russian envoy said on Saturday. Russian ambassador to Pakistan Alexey Y Dedov said Pakistan and Russia are also closely cooperating in efforts for restoration of peace in Afghanistan, Radio Pakistan reported. Talking about the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project, Dedov said Russia strongly supports the project as it is crucial for Pakistans economy and regional connectivity. He pointed out that CPEC is component of Chinas Silk Road and his country was also working on a similar Eurasian Economic Union and China and Russia are holding discussions to merge the two projects. Asked about North-South gas pipeline project of Pakistan, the Russian Ambassador said they are eager to realise the project at the soonest. The Ambassador said the two countries are closely cooperating in different areas but there is need to enhance the volume of bilateral trade. Russia and Pakistan rebuilding their ties after decades of mistrust during the Cold War and have recently given gestures in deepening ties. Stating that they live in an extended neighbourhood which continues to face multiple security challenges, India and Tajikistan on Saturday decided to strengthen defence cooperation and inked four pacts including one to share financial intelligence to counter money laundering and financing of terrorism. The pacts were signed after comprehensive talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on strategic issues including threats posed by radicalisation and extremism, trade and investments. We assessed the broad progress achieved under different pillars of our bilateral engagement, including our partnership in defence and security. India and Tajikistan live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges and threats. The threat from terrorism endangers not just our two countries. It casts a long shadow of violence and instability over the entire region, Modi said at a joint press meet with Rahmon. Combating terrorism has, therefore, been an important area of cooperative engagement between the two countries, the PM said. We appreciate Tajikistans role in the Central Asian region as a mainstay against forces of extremism, radicalism, and terrorism. President Rahmon and I agreed today to strengthen action on this front based on mutually agreed priorities, he said. Rahmon said terrorism and extremism undermined all developmental efforts worldwide. President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon inspects the guard of honour during the ceremonial reception at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Saturday. (Raj K Raj/HT photo) A joint statement issued after the talks said the two leaders discussed the situation in the region and stressed that terrorism and extremism seriously threaten peace, stability and progress of all countries. The two leaders agreed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be eliminated without any distinction between good and bad terrorists and called for an end to sponsorship, support and provision of safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists, the statement said. Modi and Rahmon reaffirmed their resolve to work for early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UN general assembly. Apart from MoU concerning Cooperation in the Exchange of Financial Intelligence related to money laundering, related crimes and financing of terrorism, the two sides also inked pacts on broadcasting of audio visual programmes and protocol amending the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion and announced initialling of document on Bilateral Investment Treaty. An Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) constable on Saturday shot and killed a 30-year-old man and injured his sister in Choti Koilara village in Shahjahanpur following a parking dispute. Krishna Kumar Jaiswal, beat up his neighbour Collector Yadav over parking of the latters motorcycle on Friday night, SP D P N Pandey said. On Saturday afternoon, fight over parking space escalated and Jaiswal opened fire at Yadav and his sister from his licenced .315 bore rifle, the SP said. Yadav succumbed to bullet injuries while his sister is admitted to a hospital in Varanasi. Four were named in the FIR. While Jaiswal was arrested, the police are searching for two others, SP said. An ISIS suspect from Bangalore was arrested from a church at Banjar town in Kullu district on Saturday. Himachal Pradesh director general of police (DGP) Sanjay Kumar confirmed the arrest of Abid Khan,23, alias Abu Mohammad, who belongs to Bangalore. After the arrest of Khan, police beefed up security at various points in the town. The suspected member of terror outfit Islamic State used to visit a church in Sidhwan in Banjar frequently. He had reportedly converted to Christianity and knew at least six languages and was allegedly planning to go to Israel to learn Hebrew, police said. He had been living the church for the last 4-5 months and in the meantime had also visited Srilanka, SP Kullu Padam Chand said. The DGP said a case has been registered under Section 419 (punishment for cheating by personation) of the Indian Penal Code and under Section 18 (punishment for conspiracy), 19 (punishment for harbouring) of unlawful activities prevention Act, 1967. He said that the suspect was living here in a church (Chapel) at Sidhwan with fake identity of Paul C Neo. During the initial interrogation, Abid has revealed that he was influenced by ISIS ideology. Abid will be produced in local court tomorrow. During the interrogation, the suspect reportedly told police that he was planning to escape to Indonesia to his female friend and from there he had planned to go to Seria. His plans remained grounded because he had no money. He knows 5-6 international languages, a police official revealed, requesting anonymity. During the search of his room at chapel, police have recovered a laptop, mobile and few other documents. Police is also interrogating the priest of that church- Believers Church- Kamlesh. Kamlesh is also under scanner because Abid had been living with him, a senior police official said. Sources said on the tip-off received from central intelligence agencies, local police nabbed Abid Khan. During the search, all identity proofs recovered from him were on his original name. Police sources said NIA had arrested few people in Bangalore in January this year and Abid was under scanner since then. Arrest of ISIS suspects has also raised question over security of defence offices, major hydro power projects in Himachal Pradesh. Himachal Pradesh share state border with Jammu and Kashmir while international border with China. In a landmark verdict, the Supreme Court has ruled that the state of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) has no vestige of sovereignty outside the Constitution of India and that its residents were first and foremost citizens of India. A bench of justice Kurian Joseph and justice Rohinton Fali Nariman rejected the assertion of the J&K high court that the states sovereignty cannot be challenged or altered. It is therefore wholly incorrect to describe it as being sovereign in the sense of its residents constituting a separate and distinct class in themselves. The residents of Jammu & Kashmir, we need to remind the high court, are first and foremost citizens of India, the bench added. The bench said that the high court that gone out of its way to refer to a sovereignty which does not exist. It is rather disturbing to note that various parts of the judgment speak of the absolute sovereign power of the state of Jammu & Kashmir, it said. It added: It is necessary to reiterate that Section 3 of the Constitution of Jammu & Kashmir, which was framed by a Constituent Assembly elected on the basis of universal adult franchise, makes a ringing declaration that the state of Jammu & Kashmir is and shall be an integral part of the Union of India. And this provision is beyond the pale of amendment. The top courts verdict came on an appeal by State Bank of India against a high court verdict which had held that the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002 (SARFAESI Act) would collide with the Transfer of Property Act of Jammu & Kashmir, 1920. SARFAESIs provision entitles banks to auction properties to recover loans. Motorcycle-riding militants fired on an army bus in southern Kashmir on Saturday, killing three soldiers, but the fatalities could have been higher had the driver not kept going despite being shot, police said. Most of the soldiers were returning from leave or moving to their new deployment, and were unarmed. The attack occurred around 2pm at a crowded place in Pampore, limiting the soldiers ability to retaliate with full force an army spokesman said. The wounded soldiers were moved to the base hospital in Srinagar but three of them did not survive. Two security personnel, including the driver of the army bus, were wounded. The bus was going from Jammu to the states summer capital Srinagar. The shooting led to panic in the area, and the attackers fled once the soldiers prepared to retaliate. Security personnel at the site of the Pampore attack. (Waseem Andrabi/HT Photo) After years of decline, militant violence increased in Kashmir this year, deepening a chill in ties with Pakistan whom India directly or indirectly blamed for at least three deadly attacks on military bases in Pathankot in Punjab and Kashmirs Uri and Nagrota. The attack comes at a time Kashmir has been limping back to normal after the killing of militant Burhan Wani by government forces sparked five months of protests across the region that left some 90 people dead. Highlights Motorcycle-riding militants fired on an army bus in southern Kashmir on Saturday, killing three soldiers. Fatalities could have been higher had the driver not kept going despite being shot. Militant violence increased in Kashmir this year, deepening a chill in ties with Pakistan A bad year in terms of security force casualties just got worse, Omar Abdullah, the leader of Jammu and Kashmirs main opposition party National Conference, said in a Twitter post following the attack. Officials said security forces cordoned off the attack site and launched a search for the attackers. This was the fourth militant attack on security force this year in Pampore on the outskirts of Srinagar, including two major holdups. Eight CRPF personnel were killed and 20 injured on June 25 in an ambush on a convoy in the towns Frestbal area. Two militants had also been killed in the attack. In February, five security personnel and a civilian were killed after militants first attacked a CRPF convoy and then stormed the landmark EDI building on the Srinagar-Jammu highway. An ensuing encounter lasted about 48 hours and ended with the killing of three militants. The building saw another militant holdup in October. A man, arrested on charges of smuggling of illicit liquor in Gajansoo area on the citys outskirts, died after allegedly being tortured by police, leading to large-scale protests in the area. Two police personnel have been suspended in connection with the alleged torture and death of the man. Rinku Kumar was arrested on December 13 for allegedly smuggling 67 pouches of illicit liquor which were seized by a police team and was released on bail two days later, a police officer said. He said during the night, Kumar complained of pain and was shifted to Government Medical College and Hospital Jammu where he passed away on Friday morning. Alleging that Kumar was tortured in police custody, the relatives of the deceased held a protest and tried to ransack the Gajansoo police post. As the protest grew, police ordered a magisterial enquiry into the entire incident and ordered suspension of two police personnel. We have suspended two policemen from the police station and ordered an inquiry into the entire incident, SSP Jammu Sunil Gupta said. Two farmers allegedly attempted suicide in separate incidents in two Madhya Pradesh banks, police said on Saturday, underlining rising desperation among people unable to withdraw cash since the shock ban on high-value notes. In Uttar Pradeshs Aligarh, one person allegedly suffered a heart attack and died on Saturday after he was unable to deposit money in his bank account as the branch did not function due to ruckus created by some people over withdrawing cash. The incidents will give opposition parties a fresh handle to attack the government over its decision to scrap 500-rupee and 1000-rupee banknotes which they say have led to the death of more than 100 people across the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has defended the clampdown, saying the short-term pain of will lead to long-term gains for the country. Since the November 8 announcement, MP too has seen snaking queues in banks and ATMs with people lining up for long hours, most of them to withdraw cash. Police said a 40-year-old soyabeen farmer, identified as Radheyshyam Prajapati, allegedly consumed pesticide while standing in queue at a Central Bank of India branch in Mandsaur on Saturday. He was said to be depressed after failing to encash a cheque despite visiting the branch for 23 days, police added. Mandsaur collector in-charge Arjun Singh said action will be taken against bank officials if any negligence was found on their part. The farmer was admitted to a government hospital. In Ashok Nagar, a 45-year-old farmer allegedly tried to hang himself inside the Madhyanchal Grameen Bank at Pranpura after he was allegedly refused to withdraw Rs 10,000 for three consecutive days. Bank employees overpowered him and sent him home. Kushwaha said he wanted to withdraw money for treatment of his son who is suffering from typhoid. He was standing in queue, but when his chance came, our cash was exhausted, bank manager Vivek Kumar Jain said. We are helpless, we cannot help everyone. However, no police complaint was lodged over the suicide attempt. (With inputs from HTC Lucknow) West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and her Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal questioned on Saturday the governments decision to give income tax exemption on deposits by political parties in demonetised notes. Banerjee said the timing of the announcement showed there may be an ulterior motive. Her statement came a day after revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia said political parties depositing old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in their accounts would be exempt from income tax, provided the donations were below Rs 20,000 per individual and properly documented. They need to clarify that #DeMonetisation means it is #DeMonetisation for all. Same rules for everyone. If 500/1000 are illegal tender, then how are they trying to show that there is a division btwn common people & political parties? Banerjee said in a series of tweets. Even the timing of these statements show that there may be an ulterior motive. Is there a motive? Are they trying to give a hidden message to cadre of one political party? Why these confusing and misleading statements now? They must clarify, she said. Delhi chief minister Kejriwal demanded a commission to probe the source of funding of political parties. He sought to link the Centres tax exemption decision to the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, suggesting the announcement was the outcome of the parleys between the two. Read: Govt asks tax cheats to come clean by March, releases mail id for black money tip-offs Common people are being investigated if they deposit Rs 2.5 lakh individually. But if political parties are not going to be investigated even if they deposit Rs 2,500 crore following the decision, then it is wrong. We demand setting up of an independent commission to probe into bank accounts details of political parties over the past five years, to investigate into their sources of funding, Kejriwal said at a press conference. He also asked the Centre to make public details of money deposited by all political parties post-demonetisation and sought removal of the less than Rs 20,000 donation cap for tax exemption, saying each paisa the parties receive should be declared. The income tax returns filed by AAP right from its formation until now are being enquired into. We are presenting each of the receipts and vouchers to the income tax department. We are not scared, what other parties, BJP, are scared of? Why they too should not be probed? he asked At a press conference on Friday, Adhia said the government is not tinkering with the tax exemption available to political parties and they are free to deposit old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes in their bank accounts. But these deposits will be subject to the condition that individual donations taken in cash do not exceed Rs 20,000 and are properly documented with full identity of the donor. If it is a deposit in the account of a political party, they are exempt. But if it is deposited in individuals account then that information will come into our radar. If the individual is putting money in his own account, then we will get information, he had said. Kejriwal and Banerjee had last month addressed a rally against the governments demonetisation move. After the protest, the BJP slammed the two leaders for their campaign, saying they were hurt by the Narendra Modi-led governments decision. On Saturday, Trinamool Congress chief Banerjee said: It is most unfortunate how there are confusing and misleading statements coming from senior govt officials, said the West Bengal CM, who has been vociferous in her opposition to the Centres demonetisation move. From introducing military lessons in schools to compulsory hoisting of the national flag, education must help make students more patriotic than they are, a group of ministers has suggested to the countrys top education policy-making body. Among their other suggestions are building more military-focused schools, teaching biographies of national heroes and making the singing of the national anthem mandatory for children to create an ecosystem of morals, ethics and patriotism. The ideas were pushed by several central ministers as well as those from BJP-ruled states at a meeting of the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) on October 25. The minutes of the meeting were accessed by HT this week. CABE is the highest advisory body on education for central and state governments. Read | RSS holds high-profile event to influence Indias education policy The suggestions echo an increasingly strident brand of nationalism whose rise has coincided with the election of Prime Minister Narendra Modis government two years ago. Many oppose this resurgent nativist wave as just a means to curb personal freedom and dissent. In the October 25 meeting, Deepak Joshi, Madhya Pradeshs minister of state for school education, suggested that more Sainik schools be built than state-run Kendriya and Navodaya Vidyalayas because nationalism and patriotism is need of the hour. Read | Allahabad school manager who banned national anthem jailed, tension grips area Highlights A group of ministers has suggested to the countrys top education policy-making body that education must help make students more patriotic. Among their other suggestions are building more military-focused schools, teaching biographies of national heroes and making the singing of the national anthem mandatory. The ideas were pushed by several central ministers as well as those from BJP-ruled states at a meeting of the Central Advisory Board of Education. He further suggested that chapters on the role of freedom fighters and stories of national heroes could be included in the upcoming policy, according to the meetings minutes. The government is in the process of overhauling the countrys education policy. Joshis idea of military education was echoed by Mahendra Nath Pandey, Union minister of state for human resource development, who said, Military education should be provided to students to promote the idea of patriotism and nationalism. He felt that due importance be given to girls education and value education. Discussions also included shortages of teachers, skill development, the state of midday meals in schools, how to push yoga, rising dropout rates and the possibility of imparting lessons in mother tongue. Read | CBSE helps promote RSS ideologues through educational contests Vijay Goel, minister of state (independent charge) for youth affairs and sports, stressed on instilling patriotism and nationalism in the curricula. Terming moral-and value-based education as the need of the hour, Kunwar Vijay Shah, minister of school education of Madhya Pradesh, suggested schools and government offices compulsorily fly the Tricolour. For Himanta Biswa Sarma, minister for higher, secondary and elementary education in Assam, the focus must be on developing an eco-system where students could learn and develop patriotism. But this isnt the first time government ministers have spoken of the need for education to be more patriotic. In February, the central government decided to fly the Tricolour atop a 207-feet mast in all central universities across the country to evoke nationalistic sentiments on campuses, many of which were at that time rocked by anti-establishment protests. Read | Communities fear govt-proposed edu policy may infringe on minorities rights SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Kashif Jan, the handler of Pathankot airbase attackers and a top Jaish-e-Mohammad operative, had masterminded attacks on a police station in Kathua and an army camp in Samba of Jammu and Kashmir on March 20 and 21 last year. The revelation came following the scrutiny of his Facebook chats that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) is likely to submit as part of its soon-to-be filed chargesheet in the Pathankot airbase attack. Besides Jan, the NIA will press charges against Jaish chief Masood Azhar, his brother Rauf Asghar, another handler Shahid Latif and the four dead attackers. In Facebook chats with Jaish operatives on March 20 and 21, 2015, Jan admitted to planning the attacks in Kathua and Samba the same day and named the four who attacked Kathua and Samba, saying they were Mujahideen, sources said. Five persons were killed in an early morning attack on a police station in Kathua while three Army men were injured in the Samba attack. The NIA teams had visited Kathua and Samba during its probe into the Pathankot airbase attack. The NIA managed to procure the chats from Facebook through formal legal assistance from the US authorities, a home ministry official said on condition of anonymity. The agency managed to crack Jans Facebook account as it was linked with a mobile number (+923453030479) on which the four Pathankot attackers frequently called before and during the attack for guidance. A review of the chats also showed that on January 2, while the operation to neutralise to the terrorists at Pathankot was on, a Facebook user in Pakistan named Ahmed Zarquari uploaded the photo of Nasir, one of the attackers who entered the airbase. Till then no one in India had a clue about the real names of attackers. Jan immediately sent a message through Facebook chat to Zarquari to delete the photo. But Zarquari told Jan that he had merely shared the photo, which was originally uploaded by another Facebook user by the name of Waseem. Following instructions from Jan, both Zarquari and Waseem deleted Nasirs photo. In another chat on January 2, a Facebook profile named Hamja Mehmood Shakir asked Jan whether the attack had ended as claimed by an Indian news channel, to which the handler replied in the negative. Later, another user named Mohammad Zia asked for an update on Pathankot and Jan told him it was over. A Facebook profile named Martyr Saddi Shah then asked Jan about the damage to the airbase while another user, Mohammad Ashir congratulated Jan on the attack. Records showed that Jans mobile number was registered with the Facebook account on October 30, 2012 and the account was deactivated on January 5, 2016immediately after the Pathankot attack was over. Read: Pathankot airbase was on Pak terrorists hit list for six years SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Finance minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday declared that political parties were as liable to be questioned by income tax authorities as anyone else and they enjoyed no immunity whatsoever. There is no question of sparing anyone, and the political class is no exception, Jaitley said, responding to a barrage of criticism on social media and elsewhere. In this era of instant outrage, a 35-year-old law is presented as a new law being passed by the NDA government. Jaitleys clarification came after reports that political parties were free to deposit old demonetised notes as long as they produced receipts of cash donations less than Rs 20,000. The minister said the government had not granted political parties any exemption post demonetisation. Income and donations of political parties fall in the purview of Section 13A of the Income Tax Act, 1961. There is no change in its provisions, he said. No political party can accept donations in Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes after November 9. Any party doing so would be in violation of law, he said. Parties could deposit their cash in old currency provided they could explain the source of income and their books of accounts reflect the entries prior to November 9. Political parties also have to submit audited accounts, income and expenditure details, and balance sheets. And IT sleuths are free to question them if there is any discrepancy in their books or records. Jaitley also asked other parties to emulate PM Narendra Modi. Modi had earlier asked all party MPs and MLAs to submit their bank account details post-demonetisation. In doing so, Jaitley said Modi had set a new example of propriety in public life. The statement, however, did not address the larger concerns about gaps in law. Many, however, believe that the existing law does leave some holes. For one, the election commission has already asked the government to withdraw tax exemption to registered parties if they dont contest polls. There are 1,900 registered parties in India but only 400-500 of them have contested elections over the past decade. Read more | Political parties get tax exemptions for old notes but subject to conditions Fearing that India is buying time to complete two disputed water projects, Pakistan made it clear it would not accept any modifications or changes to the Indus Waters Treaty after New Delhi said on Friday it was ready to bilaterally resolve its differences with Islamabad over the pacts implementation. The treaty, signed in 1960, gives India control over the three eastern rivers of the Indus basin - the Beas, the Ravi and the Sutlej - while Pakistan has the three western rivers- the Indus, the Chenab and the Jhelum. The IWT also sets up a mechanism, the Permanent Indus Commission, which includes a commissioner from each country. Read: Indus Waters Treaty symbolises Indias enduring strategic naivete, negligence Talking to Dawn on Friday, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi said: Pakistan will not accept any modifications or changes to the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty. Our position is based on the principles enshrined in the treaty. And the treaty must be honoured in...letter and spirit. Earlier, external affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup told reporters in New Delhi that the resolution process required more time. India has always believed that the implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty, which includes the redressal of the technical questions and differences, should be done bilaterally between India and Pakistan, he said. We believe that these consultations should be given adequate time. Read: Why Indus Waters Treaty is a bad bargaining chip for India Indias request for more time, however, alarmed Pakistan. Islamabad argued that India used the same strategy on previous occasions, completing a project during the dispute and then insisting that since the project was already complete, it could not be modified. The current dispute revolves around the Kishanganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric plants. India is building the plants on the Kishanganga and Chenab Rivers, which Pakistan says violate the IWT. Tensions over the water dispute increased late last month when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi threatened to block the flow of water into Pakistan. International experts fear that the threat, if implemented, could lead to armed clashes between the two sides. New Delhi sought the appointment of a neutral expert while Islamabad asked the World Bank to appoint the chairman of the Court of Arbitration. The IWT recognises the World Bank as an arbitrator. Pakistanis argue that the designs of the two Indian projects violate both legal and technical provisions of the treaty. India, however, opposes Pakistans effort for setting up a court of arbitration. The disagreement persuaded the World Bank to announce earlier this week that it was temporarily pausing its arbitration and it was doing so to protect the treaty. Authorities across New Delhi, Kolkata, Midnapore and Rajkot seized over Rs 3 crore including Rs 32 lakh in new Rs 2000 bank notes on Friday. In the national capital, the Income Tax department seized Rs 1.4 crore, including Rs 8 lakh in new currency in searches on the premises of a civil contractor as part of its anti-black money drive post demonetisation. Officials said the seizure was made from a civil sub contractor identified as PL Soni in Karol Bagh area. The seizure of new currency was made in the denomination of Rs 2000 notes. The old notes that were seized include the demonetised currencies of Rs 1000/500 and also the legal tender of Rs 100, they said. The department also conducted a survey operation at the Krishna Nagar branch of Axis bank here in connection with a probe, they said. In West Bengal, police seized Rs 1.48 crore in demonetised notes in Kolkata and Rs 8 lakhs in Rs 2,000 notes in West Midnapore district, arresting five people in the two cases. Kolkata police seized Rs 1,48,50,000, entirely in old Rs 500 notes, from an organisation in central Kolkata and arrested three people in connection with this case, a senior officer of the city police said. During questioning, the trio allegedly said that the amount was meant to be delivered to one Govinda Agarwal as part of a business deal. We are probing whether this was part of a hawala deal or not, the officer said. In West Midnapore district, the police seized Rs 8 lakh in Rs 2,000 notes near Debra and arrested a man who runs an NGO, and his driver. Police said the force intercepted Purna Sankar Gangulys car and seized Rs 8 lakh in Rs 2,000 notes, which he allegedly exchanged for Rs 10 lakh in demonetised notes. Ganguly was returning from Debra and heading to Midnapore after exchanging the notes from someone who took Rs 2 lakh as commission. Police said they were investigating how Ganguly obtained so much cash in Rs 2,000 notes and if any bank official was involved in the case. In Rajkot, police seized Rs 16.35 lakh cash in valid currencies in two separate incidents and detained three people. The cash comprised Rs 16 lakh in denomination of 2000 rupee and rest in Rs 100 bill, police said. In the first incident, one Hiren Joshi was nabbed with 400 notes of Rs 2000. Based on a tip off, we intercepted Joshi near Kothariya colony area late last night. Upon searching his bag, we found Rs 8 lakh in cash. All notes were of Rs 2000 denomination, said Bhaktinagar police sub-inspector M J Dhadhal. According to police, Joshi told them he has been asked by a person to deliver these notes to an auto spare parts dealer. Since Joshi could not give any specific details about the source of cash, we have detained him and informed Income Tax department about the cash seizure. We have also launched a hunt to nab the supplier as well as receiver of these notes, Dhadhal added. In another incident on the outskirts of the city, police nabbed two persons with Rs 8.35 lakh cash, including Rs 8 lakh in Rs 2000 bills and Rs 35,000 in Rs 100. Criticising the central governments decision to exempt political parties from paying income tax while depositing old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal demanded on Saturday setting up of a commission to probe sources of funding of political parties. Kejriwal, who is the convener of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP,) sought to link the Centres tax exemption decision to the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Friday, suggesting the announcement was an outcome of the parleys between the two. Common people are being investigated if they deposit R 2.5 lakh individually. But if political parties are not going to be investigated even if they deposit R 2,500 crore following the decision, then it is wrong, he said. We demand setting up of an independent commission to probe into bank accounts details of political parties over the past five years, to investigate into their sources of funding, Kejriwal said. Alleging that AAPs treasurer is being summoned by the income tax department on a daily basis, he asked the Centre to do the same for all parties including the BJP and the Congress. The Centre should make public details of money deposited by all political parties post-demonetisation. Even funds or donations that are less than Rs 20,000 must be brought under tax scrutiny as each paisa the parties receive should be declared, the chief minister said. He said that the income tax returns filed by AAP right from its formation until now are being enquired into. We are presenting each of the receipts and vouchers to the income tax department. We are not scared, what other parties, BJP, are scared of? Why they too should not be probed? he asked. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi will meet DMK president M Karunanidhi, who is admitted to the Kauvery Hospital in Chennai, on Saturday. The DMK chief underwent tracheostomy at the hospital after complaining of difficulty in breathing. The former Tamil Nadu chief minister was admitted to the hospital for the second time in the last three weeks on Tuesday. He was first admitted to Kauvery Hospital on December 1 for optimisation of nutrition and hydration, and was discharged after his condition improved. The hospital issued a statement on Thusday night, saying Karunanidhi was readmitted with breathing difficulty due to throat and lung infection, but he was stable and under treatment. Karunanidhis daughter and Rajya Sabha MP from Tamil Nadu, Kanimozhi, told ANI that he was suffering from a lung infection and breathing difficulty, adding that he was much better now. Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi met on Saturday DMK patriarch Karunanidhi, who is undergoing treatment for lung and throat infection at a private hospital in Chennai. I just met him, I wanted to personally wish him a speedy recovery. I was very happy to see that he is doing well and the doctors told me that he is going to go home pretty soon and that is good news, he told reporters. Flanked by senior party leaders including Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president Su Thirunavukkarasar and DMK treasurer M K Stalin, he called Karuananidhi a leader of the Tamil people, leader of Tamil Nadu, and said he wanted to wish him personally. To a query, he said, Yes I met him (Karunanidhi), I said hello to him and he is doing well. Hopefully he will be out (of the hospital) soon and Congress president (Sonia Gandhi) has also sent her regards to him. 92-year-old Karunanidhi was admitted to Kauvery Hospital on December 15 following complaints of difficulty in breathing due to throat and lung infection. He underwent tracheostomy on Friday and the hospital said the DMK chiefs condition was stable. The government elevated the deputies at the countrys top spy agencies the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) on Saturday. As the new IB chief, Jharkhand-cadre IPS officer Rajiv Jain will sharpen focus on coordinating the governments financial surveillance programme after the demonetisation move. He is now the senior-most special director at the domestic intelligence agency. Highlights The government elevated the deputies at the countrys top spy agencies the IB and the R&AW New IB chief Rajiv Jain will sharpen focus on coordinating the governments financial surveillance programme after demonetisation. Anil Kumar Dhasmana, the new R&AW chief, has worked extensively with the external intelligence agencys Pakistan desk. Anil Kumar Dhasmana, who joined the R&AW in 1993 from his parent cadre Madhya Pradesh, has worked extensively with the external intelligence agencys Pakistan desk. Jain and Dhasmana will have a fixed tenure of two years each. Dhasmana, a 1981-batch IPS officer, was made the agencys pointsman by National Secuirty Adviser Ajit Doval for intra- committee meetings over the past several months. He is now deputy to Rajinder Khanna, the agencys chief, who retires on January 1. Current IB chief Dineshwar Sharma too retires the same day. Jain, a 1980-batch officer, joined the IB in 1989 as assistant director and later became a hardcore, a moniker used for officers permanently drafted into the agency. Jain has handled assignments as chief of Subsidiary Intelligence Bureau (SIB) the name given to units in state capitals. He headed the Ahmedabad SIB between 2005 and 2008, and later in Delhi from 2008 to 2012. The Delhi SIB is considered one of the most crucial assignments and two officers, Syed Asif Ibrahim and Rajiv Mathur, who headed this unit, went on to become IB bosses. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A whopping Rs 1,00,10,000 (one crore ten thousand) were deposited in a dormant account of a labourer at Khidiya branch of Bank of India in Hoshangabad district of Madhya Pradesh after demonetisation. Bank officials said it was a clerical mistake. Asaram Vishwakarma, the labourer, learnt about the fortune sitting in his account with the Bank of India branch when he received an Income Tax notice dated November 30, seeking explanation. Vishwakarma at first did not understand the notice as it was in English. A school teacher translated it for him. The notice, signed by Ashok Kumar Mangnani, Assistant Director of Income Tax, Bhopal, reads, IT department is in possession of information that you have entered into financial transactions of Rs 1,00,10,000 between November 9, 2016 and November 17 without quoting your Permanent Account Number (PAN). However, BOI branch manager Vinod Jalodia today said, Vishwakarma had deposited Rs 10,000, but by mistake a clerk made a wrong entry of Rs 1,00,10,000 in his account. He deposited 20 notes of Rs 500 denomination but by mistake the entry showed that he deposited 20,000 currency notes of Rs 500, the manager said. We have informed the IT officials about the error after Vishwakarma came to us, he added. IT officials could not be contacted for more information. Sources said the IT office in Bhopal has issued notices to around 1,000 account-holders in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh seeking explanation about suspicious transactions in their accounts post-demonetisation. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Saturday claimed that several politicians have become beggars after the demonetisation move by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Some people had made it their business to loot Goa. After the surgical strike by (Narendra) Modiji in which he demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes, several politicians turned beggars, Parrikar said addressing BJPs Vijay Sankalp rally in Ponda constituency. He claimed that one of the politician even suffered heart attack and had to clarify that the attack had no relation to the demonetisation. That politician went on sending messages to the people that his heart attack was not due to demonetisation, the Minister further claimed. Parrikar said during his tenure as Goa chief minister some people had approached him with the fear that a bridge was not getting completed. There was one bridge in the state whose foundation stone was laid three times by earlier governments. When I became chief minister, I took up the work of constructing the bridge, he recalled. I announced that I will complete the bridge in six months but people did not believe me. Next day some people met me and said it is good that the bridge should be completed in time, but we had heard that the bridge is not getting completed as it requires narbali, Parrikar said. I asked people to just stop thinking that way and said if they want they can sacrifice chicken, the Minister added. Nationalist Congress Party president Sharad Pawar on Saturday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his statement about Indira Gandhi refusing to scrap high-value notes. On Friday, Modi attacked the Congress for opposing demonetisation, and narrated how in 1971, then PM Gandhi refused demonetisation fearing she would lose elections. The root of the problem is that for the Congress, the party is more important than the country. But for the BJP, it is the other way around, Modi said. Pawar on Saturday asked why BJP governments after Gandhis time led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Morarji Desai that included BJP stalwarts like LK Advani had not taken this decision. Now, you are blaming Indira Gandhi, but when you had power, your governments also did not take this decision. You are praising yourself for the decision taken, thats fine. At least dont criticise others, Pawar told media persons at the partys office in Mumbai. Read | There is no comparison between Modi and Indira. Absolutely not: Sonia Gandhi Following reports about stacks of new notes surfacing after raids across the country, the NCP chief questioned the government about the security gaps and asked about back door deals. When the common man cannot get new notes, how are so many banknotes being found in raids? Are there back door deals being done? This cannot happen without nexus with official administration. It is the governments responsibility to safeguard the new currency, Pawar said. He criticised the government about poor implementation, saying the Centre failed to provide an alternative payment mode. It has affected agriculture, smallindustries, Pawar said. The decision is affecting the nation economically; small traders are not getting jobs. They are not able to pay salaries. People cant withdraw from their own accounts. Bank employees are working but owing to lack of notes, they face public rage. The Modi governments shock announcement to scrap Rs500 and Rs1,000 on November 8 threw the nation into a frenzy overnight, with people still in long queues in the scramble to exchange old notes. The Centre maintains the move will weed out black money, but has come under Opposition fire. In a sarcastic take on Congress vice president Rahul Gandhis claim that there would be an earthquake if he speaks on personal corruption of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, NCP president Sharad Pawar on Saturday said the MPs were worried what would be their fate in case that happened. Members of Parliament were scared and worried how they would get out of the Parliament building after the quake. But, since there was no earthquake, there is a feeling that we can sleep peacefully, the veteran politician said when asked what he thought of Gandhis claim. Read | An earthquake will come if I speak in Parliament on demonetisation: Rahul Referring to wash out of the winter session of Parliament, Pawar said he had never seen the ruling party stalling the proceedings in Parliament or Legislature in his 50 years of legislative career. Shiv Sena activists on Saturday staged a protest and burnt an effigy of chief minister Mehbooba Mufti over the decision to grant ex-gratia to the kin of Khalid Wani -- brother of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani -- who was killed in anti-insurgency operations in the Valley. Shiv Sena activists, led by senior leader Radhay Maharaj, raised anti-government slogans and blocked the Jammu-Pathankot highway in Kathua. Read: Relief for Burhan Wanis brother puts Mehbooba Mufti in a tight spot Maharaj said it was very unfortunate that the BJP-PDP government in the state had cleared the ex-gratia and by giving the compensation to the family members of Burhan Wani, Mehbooba had shown her real face. Khalid was killed in anti-insurgency operations by security forces in Tral in Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir on April 13, 2015. Soon Kolkata people may get to travel in driverless suburban trains. Driverless trains based on Grade of Automation 3 (GoA 3) is not a dream now in Kolkata. There is a target that all the new metro rakes in city from March 2018 would be GoA 3 grade driverless rakes, Director, research design and standards organisations of indian railways, Yatish Kumar said. In GoA 3, start and stop of a train is automated while human intervention is needed to operate the gates. The new rakes will be imported from China for existing metro including new East-West and Dum Dum-Garia metro routes, he said on the sidelines of CII organised manaufacturing excellence. Chennai, Bangalore and Lucknow already operates the GoA 3 rakes. Whereas, Kumar said, GoA 4 doesnt need any human intervention and one such rake is currently under trial in New Delhi Metro. Expressing deep sorrow over the death of three students on their trip to Kerala, St. Stephen College Principal, Professor John Varghese on Saturday said that the College faculty is helping the families of the students in every possible way. The members of the faculty present there are assisting the families to handle the procedures and whatever possible from their side. We hope that the bodies will be handed over today sometime, Varghese told ANI. He further expressed his gratitude to the Kerala government, the alumni and staff members for their support in this hour of need. Three students of the college, who were on a holiday trip to Kerala, drowned in the Periyar River in Ernakulam district on Friday. A local resort owner who was with them drowned as well. The incident took place when Anubhav Chandra from Jehanabad district of Bihar, Aditya Patel from Gorakhpur district of Uttar Pradesh and Kenneth Jose from Keralas Wayanad had moved away from their group of 13 students, to visit the location by the side of a private resort in the evening. Anubhav and Aditya were third year Sanskrit students, while Kenneth was a first year Chemistry student. Delhis St Stephens College on Saturday organised a condolence meet to commemorate the lives of four people three students and a parent who died in an accident in Kerala on Friday. The students were Anubhav Chandra and Aditya Patel, both third-year Sanskrit students, and Kennet Jose, a first-year Chemistry student. The students were part of a group of 13 and were in Kerala on a college trip organised by the Malayalam Literature Society earlier this week. They had gone to visit a resort near Perumbavoor, which was run by Benny Abraham, the father of another student in the group, Maria Benny. Initially one student waded into the Periyar river and got caught in a swirl. The parent, who is native to the area, went to rescue him. The other two boys followed him to help. Unfortunately, all four lost their lives, said John Varghese, the principal. Reports claim that the part of the river that claimed their lives was a restricted area marked as dangerous. Read: St. Stephen College faculty helping families of drowned students: Principal Sadenned students and faculty members remembered the three students at the meet as socially and culturally active students. Our college has some of the countrys best students. To lose even one is a national loss. Here, we are dealing with the loss of three illustrious students For us, they were family, said principal Varghese. Kennet had a pleasantness about him. He was also a very good student. I will really miss him, a teacher of one of his classes said. Anubhav and Aditya were active members of the Hindi Sahitya Sabha and the Sanskrit literary society. Aditya was a university topper. He was also an excellent writer. He had a way with his words, said Pankaj Mishra, an associate professor in Sanskrit. Abhijeet, a hostel-mate of Anubhavs, said, He was always willing to go out of his way to help others. The last time I saw him was when he came to my room to say goodbye before the trip. I cant remember how I responded. If I had known I would not meet him again, I would have said something. Kennets family, residents of Wayanad, have collected his mortal remains from Perumbavoor, and are taking him back home. The college has made arrangements for Anubhav and Adityas family members to travel to Kochi to take their remains for final rites. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A dry state for almost six decades, Gujarat has now made its prohibition law even more stringent. But thats only for locals who could now end up in jail for three years and pay a hefty Rs 5 lakh fine if caught with a liquor bottle. For visitors and tourists though its good cheer as access to alcohol has been made easier. The guests can raise a toast by just walking into the hotel liquor shop and furnishing certain documents. Now, a click of the mouse can get them the permit required to consume liquor in Gujarat. Thats two sides of the Gujarat prohibition model strict for residents and friendly for tourists. The prohibition policy started becoming tourist-friendly during the last few years of the Narendra Modi rule in the state and remained so under his successor Anandiben Patel, with more and more hotels getting licences to run liquor shops. Besides, the process for on-arrival permits at airports and hotels and even e-permits had been eased. And now, the Vijay Rupani government that faces crucial assembly elections next year seems to have succumbed to the demands of two electorally important communities OBCs and Patidars to make the law tougher for locals. For the promotion of world class business events like the biennial Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors Summit (VGGIS) and tourism fairs like Rann Utsav (Desert Festival) both conceived and promoted by Narendra Modi as Gujarat chief minister the home department had to accept the suggestions of the tourism department to ease the prohibition policy for visitors, said a top official from the home department. On the other hand, the government on Thursday, while announcing an ordinance for stricter punishments to tipplers and bootleggers, called it the need of the hour. These (amendments) will help stop social, economical and moral deterioration of society, said minister of state for home Pradeepsinh Jadeja. Under their leader Alpesh Thakor, the OBC communities that account for 40 per cent of Gujarats over six crore population, had joined hands with SCs and STs to press for a stricter prohibition law and its better implementation. Thakor also got support from Hardik Patel, who is spearheading the Patidar quota agitation, and Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani. Besides Patidars and OBCs, the Rupani government also aims to win over women voters with Thursdays ordinance. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Controversy, apprehension, note-ban blues and delay have hit four major political parties preparation at a time when the 2017 UP assembly elections are just a few months away. In fact, the 2012 UP Vidhan Sabha elections were announced on December 24, 2011. The seven-phase polling began on February 8 and the results were out on March 6. The new chief minister was sworn in on March 15. If the Election Commission decides to stick to the same schedule, it is a matter of time now when the polling dates will be declared. Hindustan Times presents a status report on candidate selection, which has obviously been hit by demonetization, by four major political parties barely one and a half months before the polling date (in case Election Commission decides 2012 dates) Controversy dogs SP Take the case of the Samajwadi Party (SP), it has declared candidates for 175 of the total 403 Uttar Pradesh Assembly seats and is, in fact, facing some embarrassing moments due to a few of its early selectionsthe recent being its candidate from Kanpur Cantt Atiq Ahmed. Atiq along with his henchmen was caught on camera creating ruckus in an agriculture university in Allahabad recently, giving opposition parties one more opportunity to pin point SPs ties with criminal elements, something which has created a wedge between chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and his uncle and SP state president Shivpal Singh Yadav in the past also. Despite opposition from Akhilesh, Shivpal and Mulayam merged criminal-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansaris Quami Ekta Dal (QED) into the SP. Then the party gave tickets to murder accused Aman Mani Tripathi, who at present is in CBI custody. The party began distributing tickets in March this year for 144 of total 177 seats where it had lost elections. Subsequently, the party announced more candidates and some alterations on the lost constituencies. The party now has shifted focus on the seats that it had won in 2012. In the seat distribution exercise, it is the state president Shivpal Yadav who is calling the shots under the party chief Mulayams patronage. BJP:In demand despite note-ban blues As for the BJP, party insiders claimed that it is facing a problem of plenty owing to growing demand for kamal ka phool, despite demonetization whose impact the partys fortunes in UP is anybodys guess as of now. The BJP is deploying cadres to explain to the poor and the backwards, especially among the OBC and Dalits which make up for more than 70% of the states electorate, how they would gain from the currency ban in the longer run. Read | Inside the BJP machine: The UP design The partys first list is expected little after Prime Minister Narendra Modis January 2 rally in Lucknow. BJP chief Amit Shah said in Lucknow recently that party will field maximum young candidates in 2017 UP polls-- reason why many are pushing the case of their wards. The average age of candidates could be from 35 years to 50 years this time, a source said. BSP candidates on edge The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which took the lead over its rivals in finalising candidates for all 403 assembly seats in UP, has already replaced 115 aspirants. The remaining candidates are on the tenterhooks as party chief Mayawati is likely to replace those with a poor chance of winning. The final list was likely to be released after the Election Commission announces the UP assembly elections, a senior party leader, who did not wish to be named, said. The candidates will be on test till then, he said. The BSP won the 2007 assembly election on the social engineering formula. But successive defeats in the 2012 assembly election and the 2014 Lok Sabha polls forced Mayawati to amend her strategy. A senior BSP leader said, To regain lost ground, we are planning to give tickets to 125 Muslims, 100 Dalit and 80 EBC candidates. The remaining 100 tickets might be distributed among the upper caste and backwards caste candidates. Cong, running late, yet no hurry The Congress is banking on six to seven channels to get feedback before making any announcement about its candidates. Read | UP polls: Congress plays ball with hard-nosed Samajwadi Party A process to select candidates had begun early this year in the party with senior party leaders announcing candidates will be announced six months before polls. But the party leadership continues to seek panels of possible candidates one after the other even now. We hope an announcement of candidates will be made by the end of December 2016, said a party leader. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Saturday flew in Rs 5,000 crore in a heavily guarded cargo plane to cash parched Uttar Pradesh, an official said. The state was reeling under a grave cash crunch since the November 8 demonetisition of higher currency notes, leading to chaos, anger and law and order situation at many places. The money soon after landing at the Chaudhary Charan Singh international airport was wheeled into the regional RBI office. The currency was sent to Lucknow for further distribution across the ATMs and banks includes Rs 500 and Rs 2000 notes. The cash will be distributed evenly between the RBI offices in Kanpur and Lucknow. Congress MLA Jitu Patwari was arrested on Friday when he remained adamant on continuing his protest after being stopped from distributing potatoes free of cost to the people hit by demonetisation. The Indore City Congress Committee had organised a demonstration at Rajwada Square, the citys busiest commercial area, under which party leaders were to distribute potatoes free to the people to protest the currency devaluation. Demonetisation has hit sale of vegetables The Congress leaders said demonetisation has hit sale of vegetables, especially potatoes, as farmers are forced to sell their stocks for 3 to 5 per kilo instead of 15 per kilo. It was better to distribute potatoes free to people, they contended. Patwari, who represents Rau assembly constituency, led about 200 farmers to Rajwada when they and their potato laden tractors were stopped near Manikbag. Altercation gave way to scuffle between policemen and demonstrators, after the protesters were not given permission to march ahead with the tractors. Congress MLA Jitu Patwari carries a sack of potatoes on his back in Indore on Friday. (Shankar Mourya/ HT photo) Cong activists dump potatoes at the Collectorate Road An agitated Patwari and some of his supporters got down and walked up to the collectorate with sacks of potatoes on their backs. They dumped potatoes at the Collectorate Road as a mark of protest. Patwari then sat outside the collectorate gate amidst scuffle. I wanted to demonstrate peacefully but the police used force to stop me. Now, I will not move from here come what may, Patwari told mediapersons. Potatoes dumped on the floor of collectors office in Indore on Friday. (Shankar Mourya/ HT photo) City Congress president Pramod Tandon, party leader Antar Singh Darbar and others rushed to join Patwari at the collectorate. The agitation continued for over an hour following which the police picked up Patwari from the gate and took him to jail. A large police force was deployed at Rajwada, the collectorate and Manikbag to keep situation under control. INDORE Questions were yet again raised on security arrangement at Indores Maharaja Yeshwantrao Hospital, the states biggest government-run hospital, after a man was caught allegedly touching a female patient in an inappropriate way. The accused, Sajan Solanki, was arrested under Section 151 of CrPC (arrest to prevent the commission of cognizable offences), Sanyogitaganj police station in-charge Kamlesh Sharma said. After being admitted some days ago, Lalita from Khandwa underwent an operation on Thursday. Sajan had entered her ward. The patients family doubted Sajans intention as he touched the patient even as none of duty doctors came for routine check. On Friday afternoon, Sajan was caught by the patients family when he reached the ward and handed over to the police in the campus. During search, Sharma said, police found an identity card on the basis of which police came to know that Sajan is a DMLT (Diploma in Medical Laboratory Technology) student and came to the hospital without permission. Hospital superintendent Dr VS Pal said hospital management will look into the matter and will take relevant steps. Well have to talk with police and will ensure no repeat of such incidents, he said. Past incidents of irregularities at MYH February 2016: An unidentified woman stole a newborn. The woman was later arrested and the baby reunited with the parents. April 3, 2016: A three-month-old boy go missing from hospital. A woman was arrested and the baby rescued. June 18, 2016: The body of a stillborn was taken by a dog from the burns unit of MY hospital. The decision of the Central Bureau of Narcotics (CBN) to import 18,558 tonnes of poppy seeds (posta dana) from Turkey has come as a double whammy for farmers of Neemuch-Mandsaur belt, who are already reeling under ill-effects of demonetisation. The narcotics department has invited tenders on December 12 for sale of Turkish posta dana, and a trader can purchase up to 90 metric tonnes of them. For this, a security deposit of Rs 1,000, along with the tender document, has to be submitted to the narcotics department between December 14 and December 21. The contract will be valid for four months. Kisan Congress leader Om Diwan said that many farmers of Neemuch-Mandsaur region have poppy seeds with them, but they have been unable to sell them for the past one month due to the demonetisation and lack of cash among the traders. On top of this, the decision to import poppy seeds from Turkey will act as a further dampener because Turkish poppy seeds are much cheaper than the Indian ones. While Indian poppy seeds sell at around Rs 400-Rs 500 per kg, the price of Turkish poppy seeds are around Rs 300 to Rs 325 per kg. Given the difference in price, who will buy the Indian variety? Om Diwan asked. Official sources, requesting anonymity, said that poppy seeds from Turkey are not exactly grown there, but from the North-West Frontier Province in Pakistan, where opium is grown illegally. It is for this reason that those poppy seeds are sold so cheaply, a source said. When a reaction was sought, local MP Sudhir Gupta said that he is aware of the decision to import poppy seeds from Turkey. According to my information, the cap on import of poppy seeds has not been lifted totally. Only a small amount is being imported and the interest of the local farmers wont be affected, Gupta said. Situation at banks across Indore on Friday eased to a great extent with people facing less hardship in withdrawing or depositing money following a cash crunch triggered by recall of old 500 and 1,000 banknotes on November 9. Some ATMs, however, are running dry. Sources said one reason for many ATMs still running dry could be that banks were focusing more on keeping enough cash with their branches then on ATMs. Bank officials, however, maintained that barring a few, ATMs were non-functional due to technical reasons. The banking operations at all our branches (in Indore) have now become normal. Most ATMs are also functional, although some could be non-functional due to technical reasons such as connectivity issues or some problem in the machinery. While demand-supply mismatch exists to some extent, there is no severe cash shortage, State Bank of India (SBI) regional manager Virendra Kumar told HT. Another official said there was huge rush on Tuesday when banks opened after three consecutive holidays but it reduced on Thursday and situation was almost normal at most private and public sector bank branches on Friday. An HDFC bank official requesting anonymity said: The demand for cash could go up again ahead of the Christmas holidays and ATMs could also come under stress, but I dont see much problem for the next seven days. The central government has taken a series of measures to step up printing of new currency, especially 500. As reported in HT, army is assisting employees of Bank Note Press in Dewas, near Indore, to tackle huge demand for currency following demonetisation. The third edition of Bengal Global Business Summit to be held in the city on January 20 and 21 is likely create an unenviable precedent with no Union minister attending the event that aims to attract big ticket investments to the state. Sources at state secretariat Nabanna told HT that if this indeed happens then it will surely send a negative signal about Bengal as a potential investment destination to business delegates from within and outside India. Confirming that the government is still to communicate with any Union minister regarding attending the summit, sources said that there is a strong apprehension among top officials and the political leadership that central ministers, if invited, might use the platform to praise the Narendra Modi governments demonetisation move, which chief minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee is stridently opposing. Both the first and second Bengal Global Business Summit held in 2015 and this year were attended by Union finance minister Arun Jaitley. To add to the weight, he graced the occasion along with a host of his Cabinet colleagues. Investments in any state need central involvement in terms of clearances. The Union governments role is all the more important in case of foreign direct investments. Therefore, the absence of any central minister at the summit will reflect poorly on this states relationship with the Centre, a state government official said. Sources said that President Pranab Mukherjee has agreed to be the chief guest at the summit though an official confirmation is awaited. Around 3,000 delegates are expected to attend the event, including those from countries like the US, Japan, Germany, China, Italy and Russia. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Denying the Oppositions allegation that he was not being able to give enough time towards his responsibility of handling the states home department, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday said he was working overtime as home minister of the state. I am working overtime as home minister and I can work longer hours to handle the responsibilities, Fadnavis said in reply to Opposition leader in the assembly, Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patils allegations that the former was not being able to give time to the department. The Opposition has been demanding that there should be a separate home minister to handle the important portfolio that deals with maintaining law and order and tackling crime in the state. In reply to the debate, Fadnavis also refuted the allegations that crimes against women were on the rise in the state. We expanded the scope of the crime against women because of which certain crimes such as molestation are also being recorded as rape. Further, people are now encouraged to report the crimes. As such, the number of such cases are increasing,he said. The situation has changed since 2013 and more people are coming forward to register complaints of crime against women, he said. Fadnavis was referring to the incident of rape and murder in Delhi in December 2012 that led to angry reactions from across the nation. He also said that 97% of the crimes against women were found to be committed by people they know. He also said that the number of serious crimes has decreased by 5% in 2016 as compared to the previous year. Talking about the incidents of attacks on police personnel, Fadnavis said the government has taken them seriously and made changes in the law to ensure stern punishment for the accused. The two-year sentence is being increased to five years, he pointed out. Earlier, Vikhe-Patil and NCP legislator Jayant Patil came down heavily on the state government, accusing it of failure to control the deteriorating law-and-order situation in the state. Productive session of the legislature Though the Parliaments winter session was a washout, Maharashtra legislature worked to clear 23 bills in its ten-day long session. Assembly speaker Haribhau Bagde said the assembly worked for 66 hours 40 minutes while 3 hour 10 minutes were wasted due disruption over various issues. It worked for an average 6 hours 40 minutes every day. The budget session of state legislature will start in Mumbai from March 6, 2017. Will request Centre to invest in agriculture Fadnavis said he would request Prime Minister Modi to ask the banks to invest more in agriculture since they now have funds post-demonetisation. He however turned down Oppositions demand for loan waiver for the farmers. Nagpur metro trial runs to start by 2017 Fadnavis said the metro in Nagpur was being built at a fast pace and its trial runs would be started by the end of 2017. He also said Nagpur will get new passenger terminal and air cargo hub at the airport. Study to find out causes of infection Public health minister Deepak Sawant told the assembly that a study is being conducted into the reasons of child deaths in tribal areas. Besides, malnutrition, it is doubted that infection is a major reason for deaths among the children. As such, a study is being conducted to find out what kind of virus is responsible for the same. A report on the same is expected in a month, he said. Read There is corruption in BMC: Maharashtra CM jibe at ally Shiv Sena Ten months after the discovery of gravitational waves created by the merger of two black holes, scientists from the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have identified another celestial object that could be generating gravitational waves . Two physicists have theoretically established that there is a strong indication that a population of neutron stars can generate continuous gravitational waves, making their detection possible. Neutron stars, created by the death of a giant star, are the densest observable objects in the universe, with a star of a citys size, having a mass about 1.4 times that of the sun. The finding comes months after the discovery of gravitational waves created by the merger of two black holes, different by 7 times the mass of the Sun. Gravitational waves are faint ripples in the fabric of space-time, first predicted by Albert Einstein in 1916. As gravitational waves are not absorbed or reflected by matter, they carry information on the motion of objects as stars and planets in the universe. This helps understand the creation of the universe and its history. In the 1970s, it was theoretically worked out how fast these neutron stars could spin. This would predict relatively low spin rates of neutron stars, implying a weak possibility that they emitted gravitational waves. We have shown theoretically that while the spin rate can be very high (more than 1,000 times a second) for many neutron stars, it is not observed. The maximum spin rate observed is only slightly more than 700 times per second. This low observed spin rate could imply there is gravitational radiation, gravitational wave, which is slowing them down, said Sudip Bhattacharyya, lead investigator, department of astronomy and astrophysics, TIFR. So now there is a very strong indication that a population of neutron stars is continuously emitting gravitational waves. Previously, gravitational waves were found only from black hole mergers. But these gravitational wave signals last only for a fraction of a second. Black hole mergers are a transient source, and therefore it is difficult to study gravitational waves for long. Neutron stars continuously generating gravitational waves can be studied almost permanently, said Bhattacharyya, adding experimental physicists can now test their prediction by searching for these waves. The study will be published in The Astrophysical Journal of the American Astronomical Society. A century after Einstein said it A century after Albert Einstein first predicted gravitational waves in 1916, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) Scientific Collaboration of 1,006 members from 15 countries announced the discovery of gravitational waves in February. Gravitational waves: One of Einsteins most important theories was proved right: what you need to know about gravity waves What are they? Gravitational waves are faint ripples in the fabric of space-time first predicted by Albert Einstein in 1916 but never discovered because the equipment to detect them did not exist. How are they created? They created by massive movements in the universe, such as two black holes colliding, massive stars exploding, or the birth of the Universe some 13.8 billion years ago What is Indias role? 60 Indian scientists from nine Indian institutes were involved in the research and analysis of data generated from the detector. 2 black holes were merged to create the gravitational wave, which were separated by 7 milliseconds in the two LIGO detectors at Hanford and Lousiana. 1.33 billion light years taken by the gravity wave signals, which travelled to earth on September 14, 2015. Mass of one black hole: 29 times the mass of the sun, Mass of the second black hole: 36 times the mass of the sun. The mass of the final black hole: 62 times the mass of the sun. The power generated is equivalent to 3 solar masses, with 50 times the luminosity of all stars in the universe. What is LIGO? LIGO is a system of two identical detectors in Livingston, Louisiana, and Hanford, Washington built by scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and California Institute of Technology to detect incredibly tiny vibrations from passing gravitational waves. US $ 620 million: Cost of the twin detectors Source: LIGO Scientific Collaboration; Nature SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Eight of ten Indian girls are not allowed to enter religious shrines when they are on their period; six of ten girls said they are not allowed to touch food in the kitchen, and 3 of 10 are asked to sleep in a separate room. That menstruation taboos still have firm roots in Indian society was revealed in a study by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). Funded by the UNICEF and published in the British Medical Journal, the study tried to find out how much access adolescent girls have to menstrual hygiene in India. The study used data about 97,070 girls collected by 138 earlier studies on menstrual practices in India, between the years 2000 and 2015. India prides itself as a young nation, but these results show religious taboos and restrictions faced by girls are very common. None of these restrictions have any scientific backing, said professor Sivakami from TISS School of Health System Studies. Sivakami, who was a co-author of the study with researchers from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine in the UK, said the findings suggest scientific knowledge about mensuration among girls is inadequate. The study also found that half of all adolescent girls part of the study had no idea about menstruation when they got their first period. Activists fighting gender discrimination said such restrictions imposed on women during their periods have become so common that they are now accepted as social norms. There is a mindset that women are impure especially during her periods. The most disturbing thing is women themselves believe that. I know women who dont enter mandirs in their own homes, said Trupti Desai, founder of the Bhumata Brigade that successfully broke the ban on entry of women into the inner sanctum of the Shani Shingnapur temple in Maharasthras Ahmednagar. Read: Hormonal changes during periods may impact a womans decision making Fitness everyday: When you should exercise during your menstrual cycle Menstrual hygiene day: 8 natural ways to relieve period pain, stress Bollywood actor Salman Khan was officially appointed as a brand ambassador for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporations (BMC) campaign against open defecation in the city. On Saturday, Khan met civic chief Ajoy Mehta and Yuva Sena chief Aaditya Thackeray, and donated five mobile toilets, each with six seats, to the BMC. Mehta and Khan urged citizens to participate in the campaign and use toilets instead of defecating in the open. Khan said, It (open defection) is not at all cool. Khan said, People doing it (defecation) in the open is a bad visual... After learning about the BMCs initiative, I wanted to contribute to the city where I live. We are the ones who litter, not ragpickers, and we have to stop doing this to keep our city clean. I urge the citizens to use and maintain these toilets. After using a toilet, leave it clean so others can use it too. Salman Khan was roped in for the campaign because of an underwhelming response to the Individual Household Latrines (IHHL) scheme, which mandated a grant of Rs5,000 to each household for constructing toilets, civic sources said. In addition, the BMC has managed to provide only 1,276 community-toilet seats (in slums) and 200 public toilet seats in the past two years. Two years after identifying 118 locations where open defecation took place, the BMC is still to rid 21 areas of the practice owing to lack of mobile or permanent toilets. Mehta assured 24X7 water and electric supply for toilets. I have asked ward officers to make sure water and electricity supply is in place. We will also provide mobile toilets for areas under the Coastal Regulation Zone. A presentation on the initiative was shown to Khan and Thackeray who were informed that 22,000 sanitation workers of the solid waste management department are working to make the city clean. The actor urged citizens to volunteer towards this cause. A short film starring Khan will be shot as part of the awareness campaign. Mehta said one of the mobile toilets provided by Khan has already been placed at Macchimar Nagar in Colaba. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Actor Salman Khan has accepted the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporations offer to become the brand ambassador for its Open Defecation Free (ODF) drive. As a brand ambassador of the civic bodys drive, the 50-year-old actor will extend support to BMC in keeping the megapolis clean, in tune with the Centres Swachh Bharat campaign. Salman today met municipal commissioner Ajoy Mehta and accepted BMCs proposal in this regard. He has also decided to donate five state-of-the art mobile toilets for the campaign. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Mehta thanked the actor for discharging his duties towards the society. Our administration is making every step to keep the city clean and the actors active contributions in our efforts would definitely give a fillip in our efforts, Mehta said. Having a large fan following and being a popular actor, Salmans support in terms of offering five mobile toilets across city would help us reducing the cases of open defecation, he said. Salman said he was happy to be a part of the civic bodys campaign through his Being Human foundation and would try to sensitise and educate people of Mumbai about the menace of open defecation. In a mega-city like Mumbai, this looks really awkward to find people defecating in open. I will try my best to tell them to do away with this practice, he said. A senior BMC official said in the coming days the civic body will be shooting some audio-video presentations which would be aired through different media to educate people about the menace of open defecation. According to an estimate of the civic body, there were over 117 major open defecation spots in city, mainly located across the plots owned by government departments and agencies, which have been reduced to 21 in the last two years following its extensive drive against the menace. Currently, major open deification spots are in Colaba, Bhandup, Chembur, Malad, Kurla and Andheri, the officer said, adding BMC has a plan in place to eradicate this social evil by building toilets. Seeing Salmans vast fan following, BMC had approached him last month to be associated with its drive. Earlier, BMC had declared 12 out of Mumbais 24 wards ODF and chalked out an action plan for other wards, which it aims to make ODF by the year-end. The areas which are now ODF include Dongri, Pydhonie, Chira Bazar, Bhendi Bazar and parts of Marine Drive. The state government on Friday said that a policy to regulate day care centres and play schools would be announced soon. The step was taken in view of an incident in Navi Mumbai in which a nine-month-old baby was assaulted by a help in Poorva Day Care Play School at Kharghar on November 21. Minister of state for home Ranjit Patil said that an assistant police inspector of the concerned police station would be suspended for not taking seriously a complaint by the girls parents. The issue was raised in the state assembly on Saturday by Sunil Prabhu, Prashant Thakur and several other legislators by way of a calling-attention notice. During the debate, Patil said the grisly incident prompted the government to prepare a comprehensive policy to regulate the functioning of day care centers and playschools in the state. There will be certain rules which will have to be followed by those running these centres, he said. Women and child development minister Pankaja Munde said the policy would make it mandatory for day care centres and playschools to be registered with the government, install closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras, and get their employees registered with the police. She also said the government would work out a mechanism to train those who are looking for jobs to be assistants in day cares and playschools. On the demand of legislators, Patil announced the suspension of the assistant police inspector of Kharghar police station who did not file a complaint immediately. The brutal assault of a 10-month-old girl by a worker at Poorva Day Care Play School, Kharghar, in November shocked the city. The assault was captured by a CCTV camera and the footage quickly went viral. The police had filed case against the owner of the day care and arrested her and the worker, Patil said. Read Kharghar day cares owner deserves no relief, says Bombay high court SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON In an indirect attack on ally Shiv Sena, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday criticised corruption in Mumbais civic body. The CM said there was a need to improve how the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) functions. Fadnavis, speaking informally to media persons on the last day of the state legislatures winter session, also said an alliance with the Sena was possible only if the party acknowledged the BJP has gained strength politically. Fadnavis remarks are an indication the BJP wants to team up with the Sena ahead of the crucial Mumbai civic polls in February 2017, but only if it works out in its favour; and also that the Sena should not take its partner for granted. Fadnavis newfound aggression comes after the BJPs victory in the first two phases of the civic polls. The BJP has been repeatedly slamming its ally, holding it responsible for scams even though it is a partner in the ruling alliance of the civic body. Scams of hundreds of crores in Mumbais civic body have come to light. There is no transparency. There is a need to monitor its functioning and bring in transparency, Fadnavis said. Over the past year, probes into road works and storm water drains desilting scams have been underway, largely after the BJPs city unit aggressively campaigned for such investigations. Fadnavis took the example of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) that he heads to point out the use of funds by the authority, and by the BMC. The MMRDA has a budget of Rs4,000 crore, but is handling projects worth Rs70,000 crore; the BMC with a budget of Rs30,000 crore is building far fewer projects, he said. When asked about an alliance, Fadnavis indicated the Sena would have to step down and concede more seats to the BJP. The alliance is possible if the Sena acknowledges BJP gained strength since 2014. The BJP should get seats on the basis of its strength now. . The seat-sharing formula agreed by the two parties in 2012 was tilted in favour of the Sena. After winning more Assembly seats (16) in the 2014 Mumbai elections than the Sena (15), the BJP wants a bigger share of the power pie. It has been preparing to contest on its own as the party leadership is keen to win power in the civic body that runs Indias financial capital. The Sena is reluctant to concede seats to the BJP. This has led to friction between the two parties and its leaders have been constantly targeting each other. Fadnavis said the government is also planning to make provision for directly elected mayors for smaller cities but ruled out such a decision in case of major cities like Mumbai, Pune and Nashik. Read: Shiv Sena intensifies attack on ally BJP in Maharashtra The Shiv Sena-BJP fight over Mumbai can get nasty After poll wins, BJP says ready to go with Shiv Sena for BMC, Thane SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has registered a money laundering case in the alleged forging of a customers identity to conduct huge illegal transactions in an Axis Bank branch in Noida for conversion of black funds into white post demonetisation. The individual, identified as N Paswan, in his complaint filed with the police has claimed that his identity has been forged and a current and a savings account were opened in his name in the said branch which were allegedly used to launder crores of rupees post demonetisation. Officials said the ED registered a criminal complaint under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) taking cognisance of the police FIR on a complaint filed by Paswan, a resident of Delhis Pitampura area. They said while the bank branch, in sector 51 of Noida, is already under scanner by the Income Tax department owing to alleged dubious transactions using shell companies, the ED has come into picture to probe proceeds of crime which were generated through use of various fake accounts which also have fake or weak KYC (Know your customer) details. They said the amount under scanner of the central probe agency is over Rs 60 crore. Officials added that the agency is probing more than two dozen accounts in the bank here which could have been used to perpetrate the crime of money laundering, in the wake of the scrapping of Rs 1000/500 notes. Meanwhile, the ED also conducted searches on the premises of four bullion traders in Mumbai yesterday in a similar probe. The agency has also sought freezing of few bank accounts of these traders as part of its probe, they said. The Haryana government has asked the department of town and country planning (DTCP) to prepare a detailed report of each and every project launched by realty major Unitech so as to provide relief to hapless home buyers. The directions were issued during the district grievance committee meeting chaired by Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Tuesday while hearing the complaints of the buyers. The CM also directed the company directors to cooperate and provide necessary information if they dont want to face action, sources said. While Gurgaon town and country planning officials will prepare a project-wise report, the government will analyse the findings submitted by the National Institute of Financial Management (NIFM) about the financial health of Unitech. The NIFM was roped in April after the CM said that a committee be formed under the deputy commissioner of Gurgaon to take stock of the assets and liabilities of the company. On April 10, 2016, the CM chairing a similar grievance meeting had initiated action against the company to save the investment of thousands of apartment buyers in the ailing company. DTCP officials also said that recent directions of the CM were aimed at bringing the issue to a conclusion. RS Bhath, assistant town planner, Gurgaon, said that they will prepare a report of every project of the company in Gurgaon, and send it to the headquarter in Chandigarh. We will find out the actual status of the projects on ground. How many projects are launched, how many actually being built, the number of towers in a project, the number of apartments sold, the facilities, and details of permissions that were taken, said Bhath. To prepare the report, DTCP officials will visit every site, and communicate with representatives of the apartment buyers in each project. The district administration meanwhile said that it had received the NIFM report. We have sent the report to additional chief secretary, town and country planning department, who will analyse the report and make recommendations. It is confidential and the details cant be shared, said TL Satyaprakash, deputy commissioner, Gurgaon. Senior Unitech officials present in the grievance meeting agreed to cooperate with authorities, and provide necessary information. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Noida authoritys health department will follow the administrative structure of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi to provide better sanitation facilities to residents, officials said. Officials said that once the department starts functioning on the lines of Delhis, door-to-door municipal waste collection and transportation to landfill sites will improve. The department will also be able to effectively deal with crises such as the recently concluded 10-day strike by sanitation workers, which has left the city covered in garbage. The Uttar Pradesh government on December 16 promoted project engineer Raghunandan Singh Yadav to the post of senior project engineer (SPE), who will head the health department. The state government also created 57 posts that include assistant project engineers and junior engineers. Noidas health department will mimic that of the MCDs health department. We hope to improve our services once the required staff and facilities are in place. We will streamline the collection of municipal waste, Yadav said. Till now, the health department of the authority has been functioning with around 3,000 sanitation employees, to collect waste and transport it to landfill sites. Also, the department has two project engineers, who report to the deputy chief executive officer (DCEO). Two project engineers, along with the junior engineers and assistant project engineers, were controlling the sanitation workers. However, as per the new structure, the department will have two divisions. Each division will be headed by two project engineers, who will report to SPE. The new system will enable us to manage activities related to sanitation in a more professional manner. In the absence of a proper administrative set-up, managing such a huge number of workers was not easy, Yadav said. The Noida authority, in September, had proposed the new structure for the health department. The UP government gave its approval on December 16. Sanitation employees ended their 10-day strike on Friday. We will ensure that the roughly 4,000 tonnes of municipal waste lying on roads are cleaned in the next three-four days, Yadav said. Saumya Srivastava, deputy chief executive officer of the Noida authority, said, I have got garbage transported from sectors 24, 4, Harola and 19. Our teams are on the job and we hope to ensure proper cleanliness of the city in four days. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Sat Sri Akal ji, main Hira Singh Bhattal di dhee haan, kirpa kar ke votan mainu pauna (Greetings, I am the daughter of Hira Singh Bhattal, please vote for me). This was how former Punjab chief minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal made her maiden poll speech in 1972, standing in front of a rural audience. Listening to my speech, the villagers burst into laughter, and I had no place to hide. My father got up and stretched my speech for five minutes, and we headed for the next meeting, recalls Bhattal, who was 27, when she was pushed into politics. Busy preparing for her MA, Punjabi, exam, she was a reluctant politician. RISE OF A DAUGHTER Then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had urged her father, a former MLA from Sherpur and a freedom fighter, to make her contest the polls. She lost the elections, but was noticed by then chief minister Giani Zail Singh, an erstwhile comrade of her father in the Praja Mandal movement, who helped her take baby steps on the political ladder by appointing her a member of the state khadi board. Now at 71, Bhattal is known for her command over political idiom and oratorical skills that impress rural audiences. Bhattal says she would have gone much further in her political career had she been adept at English. AN ACCIDENTAL CM A hardcore Congress loyalist, Bhattal opposed militancy in Punjab, which brought her close to Beant Singh. Consequently, she managed to upstage Harcharan Singh Brar, who took over as Punjab chief minister after the assassination of Beant Singh. Brar chalee gayee, Bhattal aa gaya, was how people described her rise and assertive nature when she became the CM. She had been in saddle for only three months when the 1997 elections were announced and the Akali Dal came into power. Though she has no big claims to make as a CM, the stint made her a hard bargainer. Her brinksmanship was evident during Captain Amarinder Singhs term as CM from 2002-07. She sought Capts removal in 2005, and continued to protest in Delhi for over a month until she was made the deputy CM. Though Capt and Bhattal were mired in several heated exchanges, its all water under the bridge now, and the duo fondly address each other brother and sister. A Congress old-timer Ved Parkash Gupta, who was district Patiala president in 1997 when Bhattal was Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president, calls her a brave politician who fights for her rights both within and outside the party. While observers claim Bhattals clout in Congress is on the decline, she says she is satisfied with the way things are shaping up. READY FOR A FIGHT Gearing up for her 10th election, seventh in a row from Lehragaga, which she has wrested a record five times since 1992, Bhattal is pitched opposite Shiromani Akali Dals Parminder Singh Dhindsa. But Bhattal is ready for a fight. Its a lesson she has gleaned from life the hard way. Bhattal, who married Lalli Sidhu, a landlord of Changali Wala village that falls in her fathers constituency, was widowed when she was pregnant with their second child. Her son, Rahul Sidhu, was born three months after her husbands death. Ours was a love marriage. Lalli, a typical sardar, wanted me to leave politics or shift to his home constituency. I chose the second option to carry forward my fathers legacy, she recounts. Her first victory from Dhanaula in Barnala in 1980 fetched her the deputy ministers post in the Darbara Singh government. FAMILY OF FREEDOM FIGHTERS Bhattals parents Hira Singh Bhattal and Harnam Kaur were freedom fighters, who fought against both the British and the rulers of princely states. Bhattal was born in 1945 when her mother was out on parole from Patiala jail after contracting tuberculosis. Those were tough days. The British seized my fathers house and 100 bighas, Bhattal says. Though she had three sisters and two brothers, only her brother Kuldeep Singh joined politics and became a legislator from Dhanaula. AMBITIOUS SON Bhattals son Rahul Sidhu, who is seen as her heir apparent, is president of the youth wing in Sangrur parliamentary constituency. Campaigning for his mother, he says: Right now I am working from behind the scenes, but in politics, things can happen suddenly. Bhattals son-in-law Vikram Bajwa is also a contender from Sahnewal that he lost to Akali Dals Sharanjeet Singh Dhillon in 2012. Bibi ji (Bhattal) is an experienced politician and has an important role to play in the Congress, says Vikram, who was active in student politics. Meanwhile, unfazed by her strong opponent, Bibiji is gearing up for another tough fight. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Women are unsafe in City Beautiful. Danger lurks in public spaces and local transport. Security gaps have only widened. The shocking gang rape at knife point of a 21-year-old call centre employee in the Sector-29 forest area late on Monday evening echoes the bone-chilling December 16 Delhi gang rape four years back. The Nirbhaya case, as it came to be known, shook the collective conscience of the nation regarding crime against women. So much for better policing through CCTV cameras. Police failed to identify the accused, two men including an auto-rickshaw driver, due to defunct cameras. Sources said police failed to procure footage from CCTV cameras including those at the Tribune Chowk, one of the main traffic points in the city. Safety lessons have eluded Chandigarh police and the local administration repeatedly. Even public transport is unsafe in the city. This does not only reflect a negligent attitude towards womens safety but a laid back attitude towards residents safety. TRAFFIC SP BLAMES UT ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT We faced problems procuring footage from CCTV cameras installed along the route which the auto driver took on Monday. Some were found defunct. A camera installed by traffic police at an important point at the Tribune Chowk was found defunct, said a senior police officer. Superintendent of police (traffic) Eish Singhal blamed the UT engineering department for the delay in executing the proposal of installing new cameras in the city. There are 100 cameras installed by traffic police at important city points. Most of them were installed between 2008 and 2009 and few are lying defunct, he said. Singhal added, A proposal for installing new cameras was sent to the UT engineering department a long time back but theyve done nothing about it. Chandigarh is being looked after by 13,000 cameras. Moreover, the administration claimed to have put the whole city under CCTV surveillance under the smart city project which has not happened yet . Superintendent of police (city) Navdeep Singh Brar said, Over 10,000 cameras were installed at sensitive points under project Nigehban with the help of city residents. These cameras have proven helpful in solving cases. Only recently, we solved a murder in broad daylight of an 18-year-old boy at Bhaskar Colony in Sector 25. The crime was captured by CCTV cameras installed close to the spot. ZEROING IN ON GREEN AUTO Police is trying to identify the three-wheeler used in the crime from among all the green auto-rickshaws that ply in the city. Tough call? We have crucial details about the colour and make of the auto-rickshaw used in the crime. There are around 6,000 CNG and LPG autos that ply in the city. Every auto does not have a Chandigarh number. We have gathered information about all such three-wheelers in the city, said Brar. Police have also recovered CCTV footage from CNG and LPG pumps in the city to identify the accused. Cops are going through the dump data of phone calls made in the vicinity around the time when the crime was committed. Police also released a sketch of one of the two accused and announced a `50,000 reward for any information on the accused. A senior police officer said over a 100 auto-rickshaws have been rounded up in the case so far. POLICE INFORMED IN THE MORNING The victim, in her statement, said after finishing work, she hired an auto-rickshaw from the road dividing Sector 34-21 for Hallomajra on Monday. She stated that there was one more person sitting in the vehicle other than the driver. She stated that despite her protests, the auto-rickshaw driver took her to the Sector-29 slip road. She was dragged to the forest area where the two men raped her. While the auto driver fled, the other man accompanied her to a bus stop nearby and threatened her to not reveal the incident. The victim was deeply shocked by the incident and was unable to inform police immediately. She narrated the incident to her mother, following which the police control room was informed at 7am the next day. PARENTS SCARED The incident has left parents worried in the city. The situation is no different for police. A head constable of Chandigarh police said, My daughter takes tuition classes and commutes by auto-rickshaws. I have no courage left to allow her to commute by public transport. Sources in the department said police have detained a man and are probing his role as the accused. But senior police officers including city SP Navdeep Singh Brar denied any such development. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Non-availability of cash is leading to frustration, thus defeating the purpose of demonetisation, said Sukhbir Singh Badal, deputy chief minister of Punjab, here on Friday. Sukhbir, who is president of the Shiromani Akali Dal that is partner of the BJP in the state and in the Union government, explained in response to a query: Demonetisation (of the old notes of Rs 500 and 1,000) is a good step, but non-availability (of cash) is leading to frustration of residents. We have already taken up the issues and asked the Union government to ensure cash is made available. We have even requested to allow co-operative banks to disburse cash. He was speaking at the inauguration of the long-in-the-works Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Inter-State Bus Terminus (ISBT) at SAS Nagar. He also inaugurated a Transport Bhawan, Transport Safety Bhawan and Excise and Taxation Bhawan in the town. Already on a project-opening and stone-laying spree ahead of the state elections due in barely a couple of months, Sukhbir said the foundation of the six-laning project for the Kharar-Ludhiana expressway and four-laning of the Rupnagar-Phagwara road would be laid on December 19. A four-lane elevated road from SAS Nagar to Kharar would be completed in a year and a half, he also promised, and further declared that the SAS Nagar road to Patiala via Sirhind would also be upgraded as a four-lane expressway. Taking potshots at both the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), he said, Punjab Congress president Capt Amarinder Singh is suddenly exhibiting love for Punjab and meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for issues concerning the state. Where was Captain earlier? He is doing all this with an eye on the elections... This posturing is nothing but a political stunt. On AAP boss and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, he described the AAP and Congress as part of the same stock. Turning around Kejriwals allegations, he said the two opposition parties have a tacit understanding to contest the elections as a friendly match. A relatively lacklustre function to mark the release of the Congress manifesto for MC elections was livened up with a candid admission, on the controversial issue of voting rights to nominated councillors, from four-time city MP and ex-railway minister Pawan Bansal. I am also to be blamed to some extent and am partially, a Gunahgar (guilty party) in the decision to allow voting rights to nominated councillors, he said at the manifesto-release press conference. NOMINATED COUNCILLORS MAKE 25% OF HOUSE The issue has been a talking point for long as the nine nominated councillors make up 25% of the total House strength of 36. Elections for 26 is to be held on Sunday and the city MP is an ex-officio member. The nominated councillors were meant to be persons of proven expertise in their chosen field who would advise the House as it made decisions. However, with voting rights granted since Chandigarh got its MC in 1996, their role has been subject to scrutiny with some of these councillors getting involved in active party politics to curry favour and perhaps win another nomination. Bansal also admitted that the relevant change in law was done in haste. When I was MP in 1991, we made some changes in the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act 1976, but it was done it haste. There is no provision in the Constitution of voting rights for nominated councillors as well as the MP in local bodies... we have realised that there were lapses in the way the Act was interpreted. The matter is in court, let it decide. Interestingly, the Congress realisation that voting rights to nominated councillors needs a rethink has come at a time when it is not in power in the House. An exception to this Congress stand was seen in December 2015 when its leader Poonam Sharma was the mayor. Then, former Union minister Manish Tewari had even opposed the appointment of nominated councillors. BJP HAS FILED PETITION AGAINST VOTING RIGHTS Since 1998, the BJP has been opposing voting rights to nominated councillors in the MC House. Last month, BJP councillor Satinder Singh had filed a petition in the Punjab and Haryana high court challenging their voting rights. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Enforcement Directorate has recovered about Rs 30 lakh in cash and 2.5 kg gold from the premises of a tailor as part of its operation to unearth illegal cash. The seizure comes three days after ED officials recovered Rs 2.19 crore cash from a cloth merchant in Chandigarh. Acting on a tip-off, ED sleuths swooped down on the premises of Maharaja Tailor in Mohali (Punjab) and at sector 22 in Chandigarh. The seizure included Rs 18 lakh in Rs 2,000 denomination and the rest was in Rs 100 and Rs 50 denominations, an ED official said. The ED officials said they were verifying how the notes were exchanged and from whom, the owners of the shop bought the gold. Officials were examining the bill books of the shop. The owners of the tailoring shop had allegedly bought 2.5 kg gold at a rate of Rs 44,000 per 10 gram after demonetisation, they said. Investigations were underway, ED officials said. Meanwhile, the Chandigarh Police had arrested a senior bank employee of a private bank in Mohali for allegedly providing new currency to cloth merchant Inderpal Mahajan on commission basis. The ED had seized Rs 2.19 crore including Rs 17.74 lakh in Rs 2,000 denomination, Rs 12,500 in Rs 500 denomination from the house of Mahajan on December 14. The income tax (I-T) department stopped the operation of two branches of the Jamshedpur Urban Cooperative Bank (JUCB) founded by city-based builder and banker Hare Ram Singh after detecting laundering of old notes with new 2000 bills worth over 10 crore, and benami properties worth over 100 crore. Singh is a founder member of JUCB set up in 2001. In raids on Friday and Saturday at JUCB branches and nine business establishments of Singhs Chandra Group, the Jamshedpur I-T investigation wing also seized 2.50 crore cash in demonetised 500 and 1000 banknotes, documents on unaccounted investments worth 50 crore, and gold. The quantity of gold could be ascertained after the groups nine sealed lockers are opened next week. I-T sources said computer hard discs have been seized and money transfer from at least three private banks to JUCB and channelisation of the amount to about 4000 people were being examined. New 2000 notes were channelised through JUCB by three private banks to launder black money into white for commissions in the range of 25-30%, the sources said. The raids are continuing. We can assess the exact magnitude of the yields only after we are able to open the sealed lockers and check the 25 frozen accounts after Singh and fellow group directors return to the city, Vijay Kumar, I-T (investigation) deputy director, told HT, refusing to disclose further. The department has identified real estate investments, and about a dozen properties in Jamshedpur, Uttar Pradesh and other cities. Documents showing recent unaccounted investments worth a few crores in Groups three schools DAV at Patelnagar, Central School at Adityapur and Vig School at Chota Govindpur apart from Chandra Construction and under-construction multiplex-cum-mall in Golmuri area here, an IT official said on condition of anonymity. Filing of returns was not proper, and books were not maintained in most of the establishments, including JUCB and the three schools, the official said. JUCB had come under scanner in 2010 when a cooperative department investigation had found financial irregularities and recommended cancellation of its licence to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). But the then cooperative officer who was later posted here as ADC somehow saved it. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The makers of Tamil drama Visaaranai, which was not shortlisted in the nine movies that have advanced in the Foreign Language Film category at the upcoming 89th Oscars, said they did their best to highlight the critically-acclaimed film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Thursday announced the top nine contenders for the category. National Award winning filmmaker Vetrimaaran, who has directed the movie, along with the films executive producers Guneet Monga and Aalif Surti, who were in Los Angeles for the campaign for two months, issued a joint statement in reaction to the news. The statement read: We did our best to ensure that the film was viewed widely by opinion makers and committee members and the fact that we made it to the top contenders list in both Hollywood Reporter and Variety shows that the film did make an impact, which is a first for a Tamil film, and huge for an Indian film at the Oscars. But finally we have to accept that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voting members preferred nine other films in a year which had an all-time high record of 85 competing films. The team is confident it will get better and better every year for India, now with the government supporting our films. And it wont be long before an Indian film wins the Best Foreign Language Film Award at Oscars. Visaaranai is based on the novel Lock Up by auto rickshaw driver-turned-writer M Chandrakumar, highlighting organised crime within the police force. Featuring Dinesh, Samuthirakani, Ajay Ghosh and Kishore in the lead, it was produced by southern star Dhanush. We really want to thank Dhanush for producing the film and making the campaign happen and for supporting it, the team said. Visaaranai was the ninth Tamil film to have been chosen as a hopeful to bring the Oscar statuette to India. Kamal Haasans Hey Ram (released in 2000) was the last film in the language to compete. Mother India, Salaam Bombay! and Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India are the only Indian films that made it to the top five in the Best Foreign Language Film category at the Academy Awards, but none have won the honour. The 89th Academy Awards, to be held next year, will mark the 60th anniversary of the Foreign Language Film category. A still from Vetrimaaran's Tamil film Visaaranai. The chosen films this year are: Tanna (Australia), Its Only the End of the World (Canada), Land of Mine (Denmark), Toni Erdmann (Germany), The Salesman (Iran), The Kings Choice (Norway), Paradise (Russia), A Man Called Ove (Sweden) and My Life as a Zucchini (Switzerland). This list will be winnowed down to the categorys five nominees by specially invited committees in New York, Los Angeles and London. Final nominations for the 89th Oscars will be announced on January 24, 2017, ahead of the presentation ceremony on February 26, 2017. ott:10:ht-entertainment_listing-desktop Model and Malayalam film actress Dhanya Mary Varghese has been arrested for financial fraud of Rs 130 crore, said police on Friday. Varghese, her husband John and his brother Samuel, were on the run after complaints filed by clients, who had booked apartments from Samson Builders, owned by Johns family, but the company failed to honour the contracts. Dhanyas father-in-law, Jacob Samsun, a former state government employee, was arrested last month, and the trio picked up from Tamil Nadus Nagercoil. According to police, Varghese, even though not a director in the company, had misled clients by stating on the company website that she was a director. The actress along with her husband John Jacob, Managing Director of the Samson and Sons Builders and Developers Private Ltd, and his brother Samuel Jacob, were taken into custody from Nagercoil on complaints from various persons who had invested in apartments and villas promised by the developers, police said. According to police, Varghese, even though not a director in the company, had misled clients by stating on the company website that she was a director. Their real estate company had taken up various projects in Thiruvananthapuram city in 2011, promising to deliver 500 flats and 20 villas within two years.They had collected Rs 100 crore as advance during booking from various people, including non-resident Keralites and another Rs 30 crore promising high interest, police said. However, when they failed to deliver the promised flats, several people filed complaints with police. Varghese made her debut in the Tamil film Thirudi and later entered the Malayalam industry, where her popular films include Nanma, Thalappavu, Vairam, and Kerala Cafe. Follow @htshowbiz for more ott:10:ht-entertainment_listing-desktop Turkeys Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu spoke 13 times on Friday with his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif, to discuss the situation in Syrias second city of Aleppo, a Turkish diplomatic source said. The Syrian government on Friday suspended the evacuation of civilians and fighters from the eastern sections of Aleppo, leaving thousands of people trapped and uncertain of their fate. The delicate evacuation operation began on Thursday under a ceasefire deal brokered by rebel backer Turkey and Russia, which supports President Bashar al-Assads regime. But on Friday morning it was abruptly suspended, with Damascus accusing rebels of violating the fragile accord. Turkey has since stepped up diplomatic efforts with the major actors including Iran -- another key regime backer. Cavusoglu spoke 13 times with his Iranian counterpart since Friday morning, the diplomatic source told reporters. Read| Now a synonym for hell: Aleppo evacuation halted as ceasefire stutters The Syrian opposition has accused the government of suspending the operation in a bid to secure the evacuation of residents from Fuaa and Kafraya, two villages under rebel siege in northwest Syria. The Syrian government and Iran have reportedly sought to add an evacuation of civilians from the villages to the terms of the Aleppo deal. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, also said the suspension appeared to be related to the two villages. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday called for all sides to respect the Aleppo deal. Read| Between guilt and outrage, West looks helpless over Aleppo China said Saturday that its military seized a US Navy unmanned underwater glider in the South China Sea to ensure the safe navigation of passing ships, in one of the most serious incidents between the two militaries in years. The Chinese navy on Thursday seized the drone, which the Pentagon said was being operated by civilian contractors to conduct oceanic research. The U.S. said it issued a formal diplomatic complaint over the seizure and demanded the drones return. Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun issued a statement late Saturday saying that a Chinese navy lifeboat discovered an unknown device in the South China Sea on Thursday. In order to prevent this device from posing a danger to the safe navigation of passing ships and personnel, the Chinese lifeboat adopted a professional and responsible attitude in investigating and verifying the device, Yang said. The statement said that after verifying that the device was an American unmanned submerged device, China decided to transfer it to the U.S. through appropriate means. The statement also accused the U.S. of long deploying ships in Chinas presence to conduct military surveying. China is resolutely opposed to this and requests the U.S. stop such activities, it said. China will continue to maintain vigilance against the relevant U.S. activities and will take necessary measures to deal with them. Earlier Saturday, Chinas foreign ministry said the countrys military was in contact with its American counterparts on appropriately handling the incident, though it offered no details on what discussions were underway. The drone was seized while collecting unclassified scientific data about 92 kilometers (57 miles) northwest of Subic Bay near the Philippines in the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety, Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said Friday. It is ours. Its clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again, Davis told reporters. He said the drone costs about $150,000 and is largely commercial, off-the-shelf technology. The USNS Bowditch, which is not a combat ship, was stopped in international waters Thursday afternoon and recovering two of the gliders when the Chinese ship approached, Davis said. The two vessels were within about 450 meters (500 yards) of each other. He said that the USNS Bowditch carries some small arms, but that no shots were fired. According to the Pentagon, as the Chinese ship left with the drone, which is about 3 meters (10 feet) long, its only radio response to the U.S. vessel was, We are returning to normal operations. President-elect Donald Trump blasted the seizure. Apparently misspelling unprecedented, he tweeted Saturday: China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented act. He later reissued the tweet, correcting the spelling to unprecedented. Last weekend, Trump was criticized on social media for bad spelling in a tweet in which he accused CNN of reporting rediculous fake news. Hours later, he put out a fresh tweet correcting the spelling to ridiculous. Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the seizure of the glider occurred inside the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, not China, and appeared to be a violation of international law. China delineates its South China Sea claims with a roughly drawn sea border known as the nine-dash line that runs along the west coast of the Philippines. However, it hasnt explicitly said whether it considers those waters as sovereign territory, and says it doesnt disrupt the passage of other nations shipping through the area. The U.S. doesnt take a position on sovereignty claims, but insists on freedom of navigation, including the right of its naval vessels to conduct training and other operations in the sea. Davis said that the incident could be the first time in recent history that China has taken a U.S. naval vessel. Some observers have called it the most significant dispute between the sides militaries since the April 2001 mid-air collision between a U.S. Navy surveillance aircraft and a Chinese fighter jet about 110 kilometers (70 miles) from Chinas Hainan island that led to the death of a Chinese pilot. Whatever the outcome, the incident is likely to fray the already tense relations between U.S. and China. Beijing was angered by Trumps decision to talk by phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen on Dec. 2, and by his later comments that he did not feel bound by a one-China policy regarding the status of Taiwan, unless the U.S. could gain trade or other benefits from China. China considers the self-governing island its own territory to be recovered by force if it deems necessary. There also have been increased tensions over Beijings ongoing military buildup in the South China Sea, mainly the development and militarization of man-made shoals and islands aimed at extending Chinas reach in the strategically vital area, through which about $5 trillion in global trade passes annually. In one of the few reports in state media about the drones seizure, a newspaper published by Chinas ruling Communist Party cited an unidentified military official as saying that a smooth resolution to the matter is expected. A Chinese navy ship discovered an unidentified device Thursday and was checking on it for the sake of maritime safety, the Global Times quoted the official as saying. China has received the U.S. request to return the device, communication is open between the relevant departments of the two sides and I believe this matter will obtain a smooth resolution, the official was quoted as saying. In a separate report, the paper quoted retired Chinese admiral Yang Yi as saying China considered itself well within its rights to seize the drone. If China needs to take it, well take it. (America) cant block us, Yang was quoted as saying. Yang said he was unsure of the purpose of seizing the drone, but didnt think the matter qualified as a military conflict. However, he added that the chances of a confrontation had risen following Trumps recent comments, which were seen as testing Chinas bottom line on Taiwan and other sensitive issues. Its natural for us to take possession of and research for a bit these types of things that America sends to our doorstep, Yang said. The louder they shout, the more their protests ring hollow. China on Saturday said the situation triggered by its militarys seizure of a US underwater drone from the South China Sea (SCS) will be handled appropriately and resolved successfully, several hours after the capture triggered one of the most serious incidents in the region in years. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a single statement that the Chinese military was in communication with American counterparts on appropriately handling the situation, which developed after the US unmanned drone was seized. According to (our) understanding, the U.S. and Chinese sides are working on appropriately handling this matter through channels between the two militaries, the Associated Press said, quoting the foreign ministry. Separately, the state-run tabloid, the Global Times quoted an unnamed Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) source as saying that the incident will be resolved successfully. The PLA officer confirmed to the newspaper that they received on Saturday a claim request from the US for an underwater drone after a Chinese warship seized the craft during a security check in the South China Sea. The Pentagon had confirmed the incident at a news briefing on Friday and said the drone used commercially-available technology and sold for about $150,000, Reuters reported. The drone was seized while collecting unclassified scientific data about 92 kilometers (57 miles) northwest of Subic Bay near the Philippines in the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety, Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said Friday , the AP report said. The Chinese state media has barely reported the incident, with the Global Times carrying only a brief report on it. A Chinese navy ship discovered an "unidentified device" Thursday and was checking on it for the sake of maritime safety, the report said. Though the incident seemed to have been resolved, the seizure is the latest in a series of exchanges between the US and China in the last couple of weeks. It began with US president-elect Donald Trumps unprecedented phone conversation with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen and then his questioning of Washingtons one China policy, which basically means the US sees Taiwan as part of China; Beijing claims Taiwan and sees it as a breakaway region. The two countries have verbally clashed on several occasions in the past with Washington and Beijing accusing each other of militarising the SCS region, which China claims nearly in its entirety. Beijing is locked in disputes with several countries like Philippines and Malaysia over the ownership of islands in the region. Global trade worth more than $ 5 trillion passes through the SCS and the region is said to be rich in oil and gas reserves . Chinas defense ministry said on Saturday it plans to return an underwater US drone seized this week by a Chinese naval vessel in the South China Sea, but complained the United States was hyping up the incident. The drone was taken on Thursday, the first seizure of its kind in recent memory. It prompted the Pentagon to go public with a diplomatic complaint, and drew criticism from US President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to take a more aggressive approach in dealing with Beijing. The drone was collecting data about the salinity, temperature and clarity of the water about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, off the Philippines, and was seized just as the USNS Bowditch was about to retrieve it, US officials said. Read | Unpresidented Trump tweet on China sets off deluge of mockery The defense ministry said a Chinese naval vessel discovered a piece of unidentified equipment, and checked it to prevent any navigational safety issues before discovering it was a US drone. China decided to return it to the US side in an appropriate manner, and China and the US have all along been in communication about it, the ministry said on its website. During this process, the US sides unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate, and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue. We express regret at this, it added. Highlights Chinas defense ministry said it plans to return an underwater US drone seized this week by a Chinese naval vessel in the SCS The drone was collecting data about the salinity, temperature and clarity of the water about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay. The Pentagon has said the drone was operating lawfully and was clearly marked as US property. Trump, a Republican who takes office on January 20, weighed into the dispute on Twitter on Saturday. China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act, Trump said in a tweet early on Saturday from his seaside resort club Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, where he plans to spend the holidays. The Pentagon has said the drone was operating lawfully and was clearly marked as US property. Read | China says row over seized US underwater drone will be resolved smoothly: Report Without directly saying whether the drone was operating in waters China considers its own, Chinas Defense Ministry said US ships and aircraft have for a long period been carrying out surveillance and surveys in the presence of Chinese waters. China is resolutely opposed to this, and demands the US stops this kind of activity, it said. China will remain on alert for these sorts of activities and take necessary steps to deal with them, the ministry said without elaborating. The Global Times, published by the ruling Communist Partys official Peoples Daily, earlier cited an unidentified Chinese source as saying they believed the issue would be resolved smoothly. Heightened concerns But the drone incident has raised fresh concerns about Chinas increased military presence and aggressive posture in the disputed South China Sea, including its militarization of maritime outposts. New satellite imagery shows China has installed weapons, including anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, on all seven artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea, a US research group said this week. Trump has previously complained about the South China Sea build-up. He has threatened to declare China a currency manipulator and force changes in US-Chinese trade policy, which he says has led to the greatest theft of American jobs in history. Trump has also raised questions about whether Washington would stick to its nearly four-decades-old policy of recognizing that Taiwan is part of one China. He irked Beijing by taking a congratulatory phone call from President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan after his Nov. 8 election victory. China lodged a diplomatic protest. The 10-minute telephone call was the first of its kind since US President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of one China. President Barack Obama said on Friday it was fine for Trump to review Washingtons policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the US relationship with Beijing. Read | China says it seized US Navy drone to ensure safety of ships China unlawfully seized an unmanned US naval probe in international waters in the South China Sea, the Pentagon said Friday, a move sure to heighten tensions around Beijings military presence in the disputed area. The underwater vehicle was taken around 50 nautical miles (90km) northwest off Subic Bay in the Philippines late Thursday in a non-violent incident, said Captain Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman. The event unfolded as the civilian-crewed USNS Bowditch was retrieving a pair of naval gliders that routinely collect information on water temperatures, salinity and sea clarity. What happened The civilian-crewed USNS Bowditch was retrieving a pair of naval gliders that routinely collect information on water temperatures, salinity and sea clarity. A Chinese Dalang-III class submarine rescue ship then stopped within 500 yards (meters) of the Bowditch and snatched one of the probes. Pentagon says it called upon China to return the unmanned vehicle immediately, and to comply with all of its obligations under international law. The seized vessel is off-the-shelf technology that is commercially available for about $150,000. Data it gathers are unclassified and can be used to help submarines navigate and determine sonar ranges in murky waters. A Chinese Dalang-III class submarine rescue ship then stopped within 500 yards (meters) of the Bowditch and snatched one of the probes. The Americans safely hoisted the other one back onto their ship. Davis said he could not recall another time when something like this has happened, and the Pentagon issued a statement calling on Beijing to immediately return the probe that it had unlawfully seized. The US personnel were asking over bridge-to-bridge radio to please leave it there, Davis said. Other than a brief acknowledgment that it had received the message, the Chinese ship did not respond. The only thing they said after they were sailing off into the distance was: We are returning to normal operations, Davis said. Read| China holds first live-fire drills with aircraft carrier, warships Washington has issued a formal request through diplomatic channels to ask for the probe back. It is ours. It is clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again, Davis said. Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said China had acted unlawfully. The UUV (unmanned underwater vehicle) is a sovereign immune vessel of the United States. We call upon China to return our UUV immediately, and to comply with all of its obligations under international law, Cook said in a statement. Heightened tensions Davis said the seized vessel is off-the-shelf technology that is commercially available for about $150,000. Data it gathers are unclassified and can be used to help submarines navigate and determine sonar ranges in murky waters. The incident comes as President-elect Donald Trump has repeatedly infuriated Beijing, by questioning longstanding US policy on Taiwan, calling Beijing a currency manipulator and threatening Chinese imports with punitive tariffs. This was very likely a highly planned and escalatory move to show China will not take matters lightly when it comes to Trump, said Harry Kazianis, the director of defense studies at the conservative Center for the National Interest. Beijing is showing it has the capability to respond in a time and place of its choosing. Unless it is prepared to ramp up regional tensions, Washington has few options except to ask for the underwater vehicle back. Senior Republican Senator John McCain said the United States should not tolerate such outrageous conduct. This brazen provocation fits a pattern of increasingly destabilizing Chinese behavior, including bullying its neighbors and militarizing the South China Sea, McCain said. This behaviour will continue until it is met with a strong and determined US response, which until now the Obama administration has failed to provide. The incident comes amid broader tensions in the South China Sea, where China has moved to fortify its claims to the region by building out tiny reefs and islets into much larger artificial islands. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam have competing claims in the South China Sea, which is laced with the worlds most heavily traveled international trade routes. While the United States takes no position on sovereignty claims in the South China Sea, it has repeatedly stressed all maritime claims must comply with international law. The US military has conducted several freedom of navigation operations in which ships and planes have passed close to the sites Beijing claims. Such missions have provoked angry rebukes from China, which accuses Washington of provocation and increasing the risk of a military mishap. The USNS Bowditch is a research and survey vessel, and does not look like a warship. The Chinese ships hull number was ASR-510, the Pentagon said. President Barack Obama said on Friday it was fine for President-elect Donald Trump to review Washingtons one-China policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the US relationship with Beijing. For China, the issue of Taiwan is as important as anything on their docket, Obama told a news conference. The idea of one China is at the heart of their conception as a nation and so if you are going to upend this understanding, you have to have thought through what ... the consequences are. China lodged a diplomatic protest earlier this month after Trump, a Republican, spoke by phone with President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan. The 10-minute telephone call was the first of its kind by a US president-elect or president since President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of one China. The idea of one China is at the heart of their conception as a nation and so if you are going to upend this understanding, you have to have thought through what ... the consequences are. China considers Taiwan a wayward province, to be taken back by force if necessary. Obama noted that, under the decades-old policy, China had recognized Taiwan was its own entity that did things its own way, while Taiwan had agreed that, with some autonomy, it would not declare independence. That status quo, although not completely satisfactory to any of the parties involved, has kept the peace and allowed the Taiwanese to be a pretty successful ... economy and a people who have a high degree of self-determination, Obama said. The Democratic president said he had advised Trump that foreign policy had to be conducted in a systematic, deliberate, intentional way. Read| One-China policy cornerstone of peace across Taiwan Strait, China warns US Theres probably no bilateral relationship that carries more significance and ... where theres also the potential, if that relationship breaks down or goes into a full conflict mode, that everybody is worse off, he said of the U.S.-China ties. The Chinese will not treat that the way theyll treat some other issues. They wont even treat it the way they treat issues around the South China Sea, where weve had a lot of tensions, Obama said. He said Beijing would not treat a departure from US policy toward Taiwan lightly. The Chinese will not treat that the way theyll treat some other issues. They wont even treat it the way they treat issues around the South China Sea, where weve had a lot of tensions, he said. Taiwan reiterated it was committed to keeping the status quo in its relations with China and in promoting peace and stability, and thanked Washington for deepening U.S.-Taiwan relations. A statement from Taiwans Presidential Office said Tsais government looked forward to strengthening that relationship under Trumps administration. (Additional reporting by Julia Harte and David Alexander; Additional reporting by J.R. Wu in TAIPEI; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Paul Tait) The CIA and FBI have both concluded that Russia intervened in the US presidential election aiming to help Donald Trump win, The Washington Post reported Friday. Amid a partisan political debate that the two key US agencies were split over Russian intentions, the Post said the Federal Bureau of Investigation had reached the same conclusion as the Central Intelligence Agency -- that Moscow hoped to damage the White House prospects of Democrat Hillary Clinton. Also in accord was director of national intelligence James Clapper. The Post said that was made clear in a message CIA director John Brennan had sent to the US spy agencys staff. Earlier this week, I met separately with FBI (director) James Comey and DNI Jim Clapper, and there is strong consensus among us on the scope, nature, and intent of Russian interference in our presidential election, Brennan said in a message to the agencys workforce, the Post reported, citing US officials who saw the message. The three of us also agree that our organizations, along with others, need to focus on completing the thorough review of this issue that has been directed by President Obama and which is being led by the DNI. Under pressure from Congress and the political parties to show proof of the agencies conclusions, last week Obama ordered a review of election-related cyberattacks to be completed before he leaves office on January 20. We are committed to ensuring the integrity of our elections and this report will dig into this pattern of malicious cyberactivity timed to our elections, take stock of our defensive capabilities and capture lessons learned, said White House deputy press secretary Eric Schultz. We are going to make public as much as we can.... This is a major priority for the President. Supporters of South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who has been impeached over a corruption scandal, rallied on Saturday for her reinstatement, countering weeks of large protests calling on her to step down immediately. Hundreds of thousands of protesters have thronged the streets of Seoul on recent weekends, demanding her resignation over the influence-peddling scandal involving a close friend. Another such rally was set for later on Saturday. Parks presidential powers have been suspended since a Dec 9 impeachment vote in parliament was passed by a wide margin, which set the stage for her to become South Koreas first elected leader to be thrown out of office. The Constitutional Court must first uphold the motion. Supporters of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-hye wave their national flags during a rally opposing her impeachment near the Constitutional Court in Seoul, South Korea. (AP Photo) Park, 64, is accused of colluding with long-time friend Choi Soon-sil, who has been indicted and is in custody, to pressure big businesses to make contributions to non-profit foundations backing presidential initiatives. Read| Lawyers for South Korean President Park say impeachment has no legal basis Saturdays pro-Park rally near the court a few blocks from the presidential Blue House drew largely older people who said those behind the movement to oust her were misguided. The people who love this country have come out to save the country despite the hardship, Kim Ku-ja, 69, said with the national flag draped over her. Supporters of South Korea's President Park Geun-Hye lay red roses near the presidential house during a rally against the impeachment of the president in Seoul on December 17. (AFP) She blamed the media for fuelling anti-Park sentiment, focusing their coverage too much on the views of younger and liberal voters and on criticism that Park received cosmetic procedures while in office. Whats so wrong about a woman getting Botox shots? Why is that a problem? Kim said. Parks supporters have been in the minority in the weeks of protests demanding her removal, with huge rallies over seven straight weekends packing the streets of downtown Seoul. A supporter holds a portrait of South Korean President Park Geun-hye during a rally opposing her impeachment near the Constitutional Court in Seoul, South Korea on Dec 17. (AP Photo) However, Park has resisted the push and indicated she would not step down, fuelling concern that the political crisis could drag on for months. She has denied wrongdoing but apologised for carelessness in her ties with Choi. Parks lawyers struck a defiant note on Friday in their first comments since the impeachment vote, saying the motion had no legal basis and should be overturned by the Constitutional Court, which has 180 days to review the case. If the impeachment is upheld or Park steps down voluntarily, a new election has to be held in 60 days to pick a new leader who will serve a single five-year term. Parks term was originally set to end in February 2018. Anne Frank may not have been betrayed to Nazi occupiers, but captured by chance. A new study published Friday by the Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam says that despite decades of research there is no conclusive evidence that the Jewish diarist and her family were betrayed to the Netherlands German occupiers during World War II, leading to their arrest and deportation. Ronald Leopold, Executive Director of the Anne Frank House museum, said in a statement Friday that new research by the museum illustrates that other scenarios should also be considered. One possible theory is that the Aug. 4, 1944, raid that led to Annes arrest could have been part of an investigation into illegal labour or falsified ration coupons at the canal-side house where she and other Jews hid for just over two years. Anne kept a diary during her time in hiding that was published after the war and turned her into a globally recognized symbol of Holocaust victims. She died in the Bergen-Belsen Nazi concentration camp at age 15, shortly before it was liberated by Allied forces. The new research points to two men who worked in the building on Amsterdams Prinsengracht canal and dealt in illegal ration cards. They were arrested earlier in 1944 and subsequently released, Dutch records show. The arrests also are mentioned in Annes diary. Such arrests were reported to an investigation division based in The Hague and the report says that, During their day-to-day activities, investigators from this department often came across Jews in hiding by chance. Another possibility raised by the report is that the raid was part of an investigation into people being allowed to work to prevent them being called up as forced labour and sent to Germany. A company where people were working illegally and two sales representatives were arrested for dealing in ration coupons obviously ran the risk of attracting the attention of the authorities, the report says. It adds that, The possibility of betrayal has of course not been entirely ruled out by this, nor has any relationship between the ration coupon fraud and the arrest been proven, and says further research is necessary. Clearly, the last word about that fateful summer day in 1944 has not yet been said, it adds. As China said it was appropriately handling the seizure of a US Navy underwater drone, which has triggered a tense standoff, president-elect Donald Trump waded in on Saturday by saying Beijing stole the vessel. China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented (he meant unprecedented) act, Trump tweeted. His tweet may not help matters as Pentagon officials have they were trying to determine if the incident in the South China Sea had anything to do with Trumps telephone call with Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen, which irritated the Chinese. President Barack Obama has not weighed in on the drone seizure yet, even when he was asked a question about China and Taiwan at his yearend news conference on Friday, and has allowed the Pentagon to deal with it. We call upon China to return the underwater vehicle immediately and to comply with all of its obligations under international law, Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said in a statement on Friday. China to return the drone Chinas defence ministry responded on Saturday it had been in talks with the United States about returning the drone, but the US was not helping by hyping up the issue. China decided to return it to the US side in an appropriate manner, and China and the US have all along been in communication about it, the ministry said on its website. During this process, the US sides unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate, and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue. We express regret at this, it added. The state-run nationalistic Global Times tabloid earlier quoted an unidentified Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) officer as saying the incident will be resolved successfully. The PLA officer told the daily that Beijing had received on Saturday a claim request from the US for an underwater drone after a Chinese warship seized the craft during a security check in the South China Sea. US officials said the Chinese seized the drone while it was collecting unclassified scientific data about 92 km northwest of Subic Bay near the Philippines in the South China Sea, which China claims. Capt Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said this was the first time the Chinese had seized a US naval vessel which had largely commercial, off-the-shelf technology that costs about $150,000. The incident could increase tensions at a complex time, with China installing weapons on its man-made artificial islands in the South China Sea. The US has been constantly challenging Chinas claims and sent a destroyer close to the islands in October, drawing warnings from two Chinese warships. Beijing later called the visit illegal and provocative. The two countries have verbally clashed on several occasions, with Washington and Beijing accusing each other of militarising the South China Sea. Beijing is locked in disputes with several countries such as the Philippines and Malaysia over the ownership of islands in the region. Global trade worth more than $5 trillion passes through the waters and the region is said to be rich oil and gas reserves. US President-elect Donald Trump got plenty of attention on Twitter on Saturday for a post accusing China of stealing a US Navy drone. And guess what? This time it was a typo, not Chinas criticism, that became a talking point. He likely meant to type unprecedented, since unpresidented is not a word. Trump deleted the tweet after about an hour, replacing it with one correctly using the word unprecedented. Last weekend, Trump was criticised on social media for bad spelling in a tweet in which he accused CNN of reporting rediculous fake news. Hours later, he put out a fresh tweet correcting the spelling to ridiculous. His Twitter typos are not unprecedented. Trump, who often takes on Twitter to condemn his oppositions has a glaring history of erring. Since Trump began his campaign in 2015, he has regularly used the Twitter handle, one that reaches to more than 17 million followers. And hiccups were aplenty. Here are some of the Trumps Twitter hiccups In March 2016, shortly before the Arizona state primary, Trump misspelled the name of the states capital city. @realDonaldTrump you spelled Phoenix wrong Trump Tall G (@Tall_Guy92) March 19, 2016 In January 2016, Trump claimed that Ted Cruz would Loose to Hillary Clinton. Another Shoker though he meant Shocker Wow, the highly respected Governor of Iowa just stated that "Ted Cruz must be defeated." Big shoker! People do not like Ted. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 19, 2016 Payed or Paid All of the phony T.V. commercials against me are bought and payed for by SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS, the bandits that tell your pols what to do Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 7, 2016 Dumb and Dumber - Trump attempted to ridicule political analyst Lawrence O Donnell. "one of the dummer people on television" pic.twitter.com/JP6zZpxelb James Cook (@JamesLiamCook) June 25, 2015 Its an Honer to have him as the next President. Is that your honer or are you just happy to see me pic.twitter.com/jzdBDgoFrH Elizabeth Plank (@feministabulous) February 26, 2016 And thats a Barrack. Donald Trump misspelled US President Barack Obamas first name. The dying @NRO National Review has totally given up the fight against Barrack Obama. They have been losing for years. I will beat Hillary! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 22, 2016 Soon after Facebook and Twitter clarified that they will not help US President-elect Donald Trumps idea of developing a Muslim registry, tech giants like Google, Apple and global cab-hailing app company Uber also said they will also oppose such an effort. In relation to the hypothetical of whether we would ever help build a Muslim registry -- we have not been asked, of course we would not do this and we are glad -- from all that we have read -- that the proposal does not seem to be on the table, Buzzfeed quoted a Google spokesperson as saying on Saturday. But if its ever asked to participate, of course (Google) would not do (it), the spokespserson added. An Apple spokesperson also noted that the company thinks people should be treated the same no matter how they worship, what they look like, who they love. We have not been asked and we would oppose such an effort, the Apple spokesperson added. Uber also clarified with a No, stressing that it would not help Trump build a Muslim registry. On December 4, US-based news website Intercept reported that of the nine major tech giants, including Facebook, Apple and Google, only Twitter declined to help if US President-elect Donald Trump seeks to create a national Muslim registry. According to the report, the firms were asked if they would sell their services to help create a national Muslim registry -- an idea recently refloated by President-elect Donald Trumps transition team -- and only Twitter said no. Nearly 10 days later, Facebook broke the silence and said that it would not help US President-elect Donald Trumps administration to create a list of Muslims present in the US. In a statement to the Intercept, Facebook said: No one has asked us to build a Muslim registry, and of course we would not do so. Facebook broke its silence after 22 different advocacy groups petitioned those companies to respond. Microsoft returned with an answer saying, Were not going to talk about hypotheticals at this point. We oppose discrimination and we would not do any work to build a registry of Muslim Americans, Microsoft PR head Frank X. Shaw was quoted as saying. Oracle CEO Safra Katz, who is slated to join Trumps transition team, declined to respond to Buzzfeed News question. Meanwhile, IBM, IT giant SRA International, Canada-based Information technology consulting company CGI and Management consulting company Booz Allen Hamilton were yet to respond. Gunmen shot dead five female airport workers and their driver in southern Afghanistan today, underlining the threat to employed women in the country. The women were in a van driving to the airport in the southern Kandahar province when at least three gunmen on motorcycles opened fire at them, provincial spokesman Samim Kheplwak told AFP. All the women and their driver aboard the van were killed. The attackers fled the area and we have launched an investigation, he said. Kandahar International Airport Director Ahmadullah Faizi said the women were employees of a private company who would provide luggage and body search services for female passengers. He said the women were concerned about their security after receiving death threats from people who disapproved of their career. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but Kandahar females who work outside their homes have long been at high risk of attack from Taliban militants and other insurgent groups. Afghan women have made giant strides since the Taliban regime was ousted in 2001, but they are still absent from public life and continue to suffer high levels of violence, oppression and abuse. The Afghan attorney generals office recorded more than 3,700 cases of violence against women in the first eight months of 2016, with 5,000 cases recorded in the whole of the previous year. . Gunmen on motorcycles shot dead five female airport workers and their driver in southern Afghanistan on Saturday, underlining the dangers facing employed women in the conservative, conflict-torn country. The women, employees of a private company that provides luggage and body search services for female passengers, were in a van driving to the airport in Kandahar when three gunmen opened fire at them. All the women and their driver aboard the van were killed. The attackers fled the area and we have launched an investigation, provincial spokesman Samim Kheplwak told AFP. The women had been concerned about their security after receiving death threats from people who disapproved of their career, Kandahar airport director Ahmadullah Faizi said. Taliban militants who implemented a harsh version of Sharia law during their 1996-2001 rule, not allowing women to work outside their homes, said they were not behind the killings. But employed women have long faced a high risk of attacks from insurgent groups and conservative Islamists. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said the killing of innocent civilians and women showed the weakness of the enemies of Afghanistan. The United Nations also condemned the killings and called for a prompt, effective, impartial and transparent investigation into the incident. Afghan women have made giant strides since the Taliban regime was ousted in 2001, but they are still absent from public life and continue to suffer high levels of violence, oppression and abuse. The Afghan attorney generals office recorded more than 3,700 cases of violence against women in the first eight months of 2016, with 5,000 cases recorded in the whole of the previous year. Palestinian Islamist group Hamas said on Saturday that a Tunisian engineer murdered in the North African country was one of its leaders, accused Israel of the killing and vowed to avenge him. Mohamed Zaouari, a 49-year-old engineer, was murdered at the wheel of his car outside his house in Tunisias second city, Sfax, on Thursday. Al-Qassam Martyrs Brigade, the armed wing of Hamas that controls the Gaza Strip, told AFP today that drone expert Zaouari was killed by Zionist treachery, referring to Israel. It said Zaouari had worked for the resistance for 10 years, and announced a day of mourning. Zaouaris assassination in Tunisia is aggression against the resistance, and Al-Qassam Brigades and the enemy should know that the blood of the leaders will not be wasted and lost in vain, it said in a separate statement. Tunisias Islamist Ennahdha movement has called for an investigation into the killing, which it said posed a threat to the countrys stability. Authorities in Tunisia have said at least five suspects have been detained in Sfax, Tunis and Djerba, and four vehicles seized along with two guns equipped with silencers. Private radio station Mosaique FM reported that Zaouaris body was riddled with 20 bullets. Israel has ignored the Hamas allegation, despite its record of assassinating members of militant groups abroad, including in Tunisia. In 1988, the head of the Palestine Liberation Organisation military wing Khalil al-Wazir, better known as Abu Jihad, was killed by Israeli commandos in Tunisia with another senior PLO figure, Saad Sayil. Agents from the Jewish states spy agency Mossad failed in 1997 in an attempt to kill Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal in Jordan with poison. Mossad is also believed to have been behind the 2010 murder of top Hamas militant Mahmud al-Mabhuh in a Dubai hotel. And Imad Mughniyeh, a top operative with Lebanons Shiite group Hezbollah, was killed in Damascus in a 2008 bombing that drew immediate threats of retaliation against Israel. Protests and looting broke out in parts of Venezuela on Friday due to a lack of cash after the socialist government suddenly pulled the nations largest banknote from circulation in the midst of a brutal economic crisis. Waving the now-worthless 100-bolivar bills, pockets of demonstrators blocked roads, demanded that stores accept the cash, and cursed President Nicolas Maduro in a string of towns and cities around Venezuela, witnesses said. Read | Protests, looting in Venezuela as most-used banknote is demonetised Last weekend, Maduro gave Venezuelans three days to ditch the 100-bolivar bills, arguing that the measure was needed to combat mafias on the Colombia border despite warnings from some economists that it risked sparking chaos. Heres how the country reacted: A 100-bolivar note with Merry Christmas written on it are seen on the desks of lawmakers from Venezuela's United Socialist Party (PSUV), before a session of the National Assembly in Caracas. (Reuters Photo) Venezuelans lined up to deposit 100-unit banknotes before they turned worthless. (AFP Photo) A man shows 100 Bolivar notes whilst queuing outside Venezuela's Central Bank (BCV), in Caracas. (AFP Photo) People queue outside Venezuela's Central Bank (BCV), in Caracas, to change 100 Bolivar notes. (AFP Photo) A handout picture released by the Venezuelan presidency shows President Nicolas Maduro holding a new 10,000 Bolivar note during a television programme in Caracas. (AFP Photo) People walk next to broken showcases after a shoe shop was looted in Maracaibo, Venezuela. (Reuters Photo) A handout picture shows people protesting due to a lack of cash outside Venezuela's Central Bank (BCV). (AFP Photo/Panorama) A man burns a 100-bolivar bill during a protest in El Pinal, Venezuela. (Reuters Photo) A man holds a bone and a placard that reads "Maduro: communist, unhappy, damn. Resign, now", in front of a pole covered with 100-bolivar bills during a protest in El Pinal, Venezuela. (Reuters Photo) People protest on the Troncal 5 road over the lack of cash as the new bank notes have not appeared, in San Cristobal, in Venzuela's Tachira state. (AFP Photo) People queue outside Venezuela's Central Bank (BCV) in Caracas. (AFP Photo) People queue to deposit their 100 bolivar notes. (Reuters Photo) A man places a placard on a truck, which reads: Maduro, you're stealing our future and our freedom, during a protest due to a lack of cash in El Pinal, Venezuela. (Reuters Photo) Italys highest court on Friday ordered a re-trial of former top executives at defence group Leonardo Finmeccanica over allegations of bribery in a 2010 contract to provide a dozen helicopters to the Indian government. In April, a Milan appeals court sentenced former Finmeccanica CEO Giuseppe Orsi to four and a half years in prison for corruption and falsifying invoices, overturning a previous lower court ruling. Bruno Spagnolini, former head of the groups helicopter unit AgustaWestland, was sentenced to four years in jail over the 560 million euro ($585 million) contract. The case went to the highest court after the two executives launched an appeal. Both executives will now have to be tried again in front of Milans appeals court. Last week, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested former air force chief SP Tyagi, 71, who was at the centre of allegations of impropriety in the order of 12 helicopters meant to fly senior politicians. The deal was cancelled in 2014 after Orsi was arrested on suspicion of paying bribes to secure the deal. AgustaWestland opposed Indias decision to cancel the order and the contract is currently suspended and the subject of international arbitration in Paris. The case against Finmeccanica itself was dropped by prosecutors back in 2014 while AgustaWestland agreed on a 7.5 million-euro settlement with the court the same year. Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has harshly criticized UK Prime Minister Theresa Mays recent comments about Iran posing a threat to the region. In remarks published on his website Saturday, Khamenei called the UK a source of evil and misery for the peoples of the region for the past two centuries. Earlier this month, May told a summit of Gulf leaders that their countries must all, work together to push back against Irans aggressive regional actions, whether in Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, Syria or in the Gulf itself. British riot police on Friday regained control of a prison after more than 300 inmates took part in a serious disturbance that led to a partial lockdown. A specialist Tornado Team, which handles prison riots, was sent in to deal with the incident at the privately run prison in Birmingham, central England. The team were sent in at 8.35 pm local time, and the four wings affected were brought under control shortly after 10.00 pm, according to a Ministry of Justice statement. All prison staff were accounted for, with no reported injuries, while one prisoner required hospital treatment. This was a serious situation and a thorough investigation will now be carried out, said Justice Secretary Elizabeth Truss. Security firm G4S, which runs the facility, earlier said a disturbance had spread from two prison wings to four during the day. Our teams withdrew following a disturbance and sealed two wings, which include some administrative offices, said G4S managing director Jerry Petherick. A security source confirmed to AFP that riot teams had placed the affected areas in lockdown after inmates overran parts of the prison. Local media reported that trouble flared when a security guard was threatened with a syringe by one inmate while another took his keys. The prison can hold 1,450 inmates and is where suspected serial killer Fred West committed suicide while awaiting trial in 1995. The latest disturbance is the third in English prisons in less than two months. In November around 200 prisoners went on the rampage at a jail in Bedford, central England, while the previous month a jail in Lewes, southeastern England, was the scene of a six-hour standoff between inmates and riot officers. Britains largest prisons union, the Prison Officers Association (POA), said the latest incident was a stark warning to the Ministry of Justice that the prison service is in crisis. Prison staff took industrial action last month over what union leaders described as the volatile and dangerous state of prisons, reporting an increase in violence, self harm and deaths in custody. The issue of H-1B visas did come up at the President-elect Donald Trumps Tech Summit earlier this week, with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella stressing its importance in bringing and retaining talent. Trump listened, but made no promises. The Trump transition team had issued a statement after the meeting, but gave no details, except that the President-elect and the tech leaders discussed job creation. It made no mention of immigration, a thorny issue between him and Silicon Valley. But a leading web publication focused on IT news, Recode quoted sources in a report saying, Nadella pointed out that much of the companys spending on research and development was in the US, even if 50% of the sales were elsewhere, so that immigration would benefit those here. To the surprise of many in the group, Trump responded favourably. Lets fix that, he said, without any specifics, and went on to ask, What can I do to make it better? Apples Tim Cook brought up STEM (science, technology engineering and math) education and so did Facebooks Sheryl Sandberg, with added emphasis on the need for focussing on women and unrepresented minorities. Alphabets Eric Schmidt urged Trump on upgrading governmental information-technology programmes and mentioned Trump could become the Software President. The President-elect misheard that as soft president. President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with technology industry leaders at Trump Tower in New York. (AP Photo) Amazons Jeff Bezos reportedly spoke about how hard it was for foreign companies to operate in China, and Teslas Elon Musk spoke about climate change, an issue he is passionate about, and others spoke about job creation and infrastructure spending. Indian interest in the meeting was H-1B, a temporary work permit for skilled foreign workers used by many Indian IT companies operating in the US, such as Infosys, TCS and Wipro to bring trained hands from India for outsourced contracts. Trump and his team have been critical of the programme so far. Although Trump concedes that H-1B has advantages and that he has used it for his businesses, he has hinted at restrictions to protect Americans from being replaced by foreigners. Jeff Sessions, Trumps nominee for attorney general, has been an outspoken critic of the programme and, as senator, introduced two legislations to reduce the annual intake from 85,000 and make it prohibitively expensive. It wasnt quite clear from Recodes account of the meeting if Trump will indeed do something to bring in more talent, as Nadella, the Indian-American CEO, seemed to be making a case for. He did offer to fix the problem. After the British Librarys 2015 announcement that 1,000 rare books published in India between 1713 and 1914 would be digitised, new funding is making it possible to digitise 3,000 more such books from its large collection. The project, titled Two Centuries of Indian Print, is unlocking material that includes one of the very first Bengali cookbooks, an early railway book containing rules and etiquette for travelling in steam trains, an early copy of the New Testament translated into Bengali by a British missionary, and one of the earliest translations of Shakespeares plays in Bengali. The project has benefited from an additional donation of nearly 500,000 from the Newton Fund, which will allow for the digitisation of the South Asian Vernacular Tracts series, of which the library holds approximately 6,000 volumes. Watch | How the British Library is digitising two centuries of Indian printed books The library said the books are rare and fragile publications, many of which do not survive in other library collections, meaning they are hugely in demand by researchers. This new funding will digitise more than one million pages. The project is being undertaken in partnership with the School of Cultural Texts and Records of Jadavpur University, Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology and the School of Oriental and African Studies, working with the National Library of India, National Mission on Libraries and other institutions in India. Many books to be digitised were published in colonial Calcutta, which emerged as the largest centre of print culture outside Europe and north America by the early 19th century. The library said demand for early Bengali printed works in its collection is particularly high. The project will make them available to researchers beyond the librarys reading rooms, giving global access. Roly Keating, the librarys chief executive, said: By digitising some of the riches held in our South Asian printed collections, we want to enable people all over the world to appreciate Indias great cultural heritage in new and innovative ways." SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A British Muslim woman in her 20s was forced to the ground in a busy shopping area in London and dragged along by her hijab by two teenaged men in what authorities said was a hate crime. The woman was walking alone in Chingford, east London, when she was accosted by her attackers. Scotland Yard is now appealing for information on the incident that occurred earlier this week. The London Ambulance Service attended and treated the victim, aged in her 20s, for her injuries at the scene. It was reported that two unknown males approached the victim from the side, pulled off her headscarf and then pushed her to the floor, a Metropolitan Police statement said. The suspects are described as two white males, aged 17 to 19. They were wearing all black clothing. No arrests have been made, it said. There has been a rise in hate crime allegations across the UK following the EU referendum. Figures released by the UK National Police Chiefs Council showed reported incidents rose to 58 per cent in the week following the vote for Brexit on June 23 and levels have remained high throughout the year. Tell MAMA (Measuring Anti-Muslim Attacks), the UKs anti- Islamophobia group, called the latest incident horrific and said women were being disproportionately targeted in attacks on Muslims. A Met Police spokesperson said: The service has long since recognised the impact of hate crime on communities and the hidden nature of this crime, which remains largely under- reported. Positive action is taken to investigate all hate crime allegations, support victims and their families and bring perpetrators to justice. Lying in a hospital bed in northern Syria, Aleppo evacuee Ali Tarab pleads to be quickly taken to neighbouring Turkey for proper treatment for his shattered leg. It was one of Bashars barrel bombs that did this to us, Tarab says, referring to President Bashar al-Assads regime. The elderly man was badly injured in a recent barrel bomb attack in war-ravaged Aleppo, a city that has suffered horrific violence for more than four years, and whose opposition-held areas were being evacuated this week. Tarab and his two teenage sons -- one of whom is just 14 -- are among thousands of civilians who have been bussed out so far under a fragile deal negotiated by regime backer Russia and Turkey, which supports the rebels. Pointing to his sons in the beds next to him, Tarab says: He had his leg ripped off... And look at what happened to me. When the attack occurred, Tarab and his boys were out trying to find a cobbler to fix 14-year-old Bilals shoes. I was standing next to my brother. The bomb fell and I was thrown to the ground, and I lost my hand and my leg, Bilal told AFP, weeping as he recalled the incident. Residents in a government-held part of Aleppo's Salaheddin neighbourhood look out from the balconies of their damaged houses at the road. (AFP Photo) The other son described a road littered with the victims of the attack that day. There were many bodies on the street, we were not the only ones to be injured, he said. Since 2012, Assads regime has launched numerous bids to recapture opposition-held areas of Aleppo, resorting to near-daily air strikes and barrel bomb attacks despite UN criticism. Then last month, Russian-backed government forces stepped up the offensive in a bid to crush the rebellion there once and for all. Ill-equipped hospital Staff at the three-storey hospital in the Syrian border town of Bab al-Hawa, located some four kilometres (2.5 miles) from Turkey, were rushing on Friday to treat the wounded coming out of the deadly Aleppo siege. But one Syrian doctor at the hospital, which is guarded by armed men, said there was simply not enough medical equipment to treat the wounded. The Syrian doctor, who declined to give his name, said he hoped that the injured could be referred to better-equipped facilities across the border in Turkey. Ankara has said that the evacuees in need of treatment will be allowed in. A Syrian child, evacuated from Aleppo, sits in a field hospital bed near Idlib, Syria. (AP Photo) They came to my hospital yesterday (Thursday), said the doctor, as he showed a team of AFP correspondents into a hospital room where a two-year-old girl and her brother were being treated. The girl had a hand injury, while her brothers leg was wounded. The doctor said he needed better equipment in order to be able to operate on the children. My hospital doesnt have any money to treat them, he said. The hospital at Bab al-Hawa has received 100 patients -- 30 of them were children -- since the evacuation began on Thursday. All of the injured are because of the strikes from aircraft, he said. The doctor explained that the flow of patients had stopped arriving Friday after evacuations were suspended, leaving thousands of people trapped and uncertain of their fate. Now they stopped coming because of problems in Aleppo, he said. Screams of agony Russia on Friday said the evacuation operation was now complete with all women and children moved from the city. Turkey however said it had been suspended but was not yet over. Appeals came in from around the world for the evacuations to resume, with UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon warning that Aleppo had become a synonym for hell. Some of the civilians who managed to flee Aleppo have been taken to Turkey. Since the beginning of the evacuation, over 50 heavily injured (people) have been taken to Turkey, Kerem Kinik, president of the Turkish Red Crescent, told AFP. The injured are all civilians... from besieged Aleppo, he added. Many others desperate for proper treatment remain, however. An injured Syrian woman from Aleppo reacts as she is being transported from the Syrian side of the Bab al-Hawa border crossing to a hospital in Turkey. (AFP Photo) The UN peace envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, said late Thursday he believed around 50,000 people, mostly civilians, were still trapped in the citys east. Bulent Yildirim, head of the Turkish Islamic charity IHH, said only a tiny fraction of people trapped in the siege have been evacuated so far, adding that there were not enough buses to ferry people out. I believe the evacuation process will take 20 to 25 days, he said, pledging to keep working round the clock until the evacuations are finalised. The team of AFP journalists visited the Bab al-Hawa hospital as part of a convoy organised by the IHH. The journalists spent two hours visiting the hospital, where they heard the injured screaming in agony, before being taken back across the Turkish border along the road where heavily injured civilians were being ferried in Syrian ambulances to Turkish territory. Diplomats sought to salvage the evacuation of eastern Aleppo after it stalled on Friday amid recriminations by both sides in Syrias civil war, raising fears the cease-fire could collapse with thousands still desperate to escape the rebel enclave. The Aleppo evacuation was suspended after a report of shooting at a crossing point into the enclave. The Syrian government pulled out its buses that since Thursday had been ferrying out people from the ancient city that has suffered under intense bombardment, fierce battles and a prolonged siege. The carnage in Syria remains a gaping hole in the global conscience, said UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon. Aleppo is now a synonym for hell. The carnage in Syria remains a gaping hole in the global conscience. The halt also appeared to be linked to a separate deal to remove thousands of people from the government-held Shiite villages of Foua and Kfarya that are under siege by the rebels. The Syrian government says those evacuations and the one in eastern Aleppo must be done simultaneously, but the rebels say theres no connection. The foreign minister of Turkey, a main backer of the rebels, said he was talking to his counterpart in Iran, a top ally of the Syrian government, to try to resume the evacuation. A closed emergency meeting of the UN Security Council was held on the crisis in Aleppo, discussing a French proposal to have independent monitors oversee the evacuation of civilians and fighters. The council meeting ended with diplomats saying they would convene again this weekend. The ceasefire and evacuation marked the end of the rebels most important stronghold in the 5-year-old civil war. The suspension demonstrated the fragility of the cease-fire deal, in which civilians and fighters in the few remaining blocks of the rebel enclave were to be taken to opposition-held territory nearby. Members of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent carrying a girl on stretcher, while arriving in western rural Aleppo, Syria. (Aleppo 24 via AP Photo) In announcing the suspension, Syrian state TV said rebels were trying to smuggle out captives who had been seized in the enclave after ferocious battles with troops supporting President Bashar Assad. Several opposition activists said Syrian troops shot and killed four people in one bus, but the incident could not be independently confirmed. The Lebanon-based pan-Arab Al-Mayadeen TV broadcast images of the government buses apparently returning evacuees to eastern Aleppo after the road was closed. Al-Manar TV, the media arm of the Lebanon-based Hezbollah militant group that supports Assad, said Syrian government supporters had closed the road used by evacuees from Aleppo, demanding the wounded from Foua and Kfarya be allowed to leave. Syrian state media said rebels shelled a road that was supposed to be used by people leaving the villages. But the oppositions Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Hezbollah fighters backed by Assad ally Iran had cut the road to protest a lack of progress in the evacuations. Buses that arrived at a collection point in the Hama countryside to pick up evacuees from the villages waited for hours to no avail. A Syrian boy lights candles and write the word "Aleppo" during a demonstration in support of the inhabitants of the embattled Syrian city of Aleppo, in Thessaloniki. (AFP Photo) Later, two rebel spokesperson privy to the talks said the fighters besieging the villages, including the al-Qaeda linked Fatah al-Sham Front, had agreed to evacuate several hundred wounded from the villages. Turkeys state-run Anadolu Agency said Prime Minister Binali Yildirim had called Iranian presidential deputy Ishak Cihangiri and told him he was ready to cooperate with Tehran on the evacuation issue. Reports differed on how many people remain in the Aleppo enclave, ranging from 15,000 to 40,000 civilians, along with an estimated 6,000 fighters. There also were contradictory reports on the number of evacuees. Syrian state TV put it at more than 9,000; the Syrian state news agency said 8,079 opposition fighters and their families have left; and Russia, a key Assad ally, said over 9,500 people, including more than 4,500, were taken out. More than 2,700 children have been evacuated in the past 24 hours, including the sick, wounded and those without their parents, Unicef said. Hundreds of other vulnerable children, including orphans, remain trapped, it added. We are extremely concerned about their fate. If these children are not evacuated urgently, they could die, Unicef said in a statement. There are still high numbers of women and infants, children under 5, that need to get out, added Elizabeth Hoff, Syrian representative for the World Health Organization, speaking by phone from western Aleppo. During Thursday nights evacuation, Pawel Krzysiek of the International Committee of the Red Cross told The Associated Press he could sense fear, desperation (and) anxiety among those waiting to escape. The civilians including children and the elderly, the wounded and the sick were out in the cold, burning the plastic, trying to get some sort of heat to warm themselves, said Krzysiek, who is still in Aleppo. Its the people leaving their house behind, their lives behind. It is very often they are facing impossible choices and this all occurs at the very individual level and it is difficult to compare with anything else, he said. People wait for evacuation. (Reuters Photo) This is what the people are going through with their families, their relatives. This is really something very personal for them. I have seen sadness. I have seen really sadness in the people eyes. Heartbreaking sadness, broken lives, heartbreaking stories, Krzysiek added. Before the operation was suspended Friday, four convoys of ambulances and buses left Aleppo, Syrian state TV said, noting that some evacuees used their own vehicles. At the United Nations, US ambassador Samantha Power said she favours a French-drafted resolution calling for independent international monitors to oversee the evacuation. But Russian ambassador Vitaly Churkin said it takes weeks to deploy observers. Power said the Security Council could possibly vote this weekend on the resolution, but if there was a stalemate, an emergency special session of the General Assembly was possible. Churkin said Russia opposed that idea. In a year-end news conference, US President Barack Obama said he feels responsible for some of the suffering in Syria, but he defended his decision to avoid significant military action there. He put the bulk of the blame on Russia, as well as Iran, for propping up Assad. This blood and these atrocities are on their hands, he said. In Japan, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a new peace initiative, saying he and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan were working to set up talks between Damascus and the opposition. Putin said they would take place in Astana, the capital of the Central Asian country of Kazakhstan. Bassma Kodmani of the High Negotiations Committee, Syrias main opposition group, told the AP that her group supports the call for resumed peace talks but it wants them to take place under UN auspices and that it doesnt believe Astana was the appropriate place. Sick people wait to be evacuated from a rebel-held sector of eastern Aleppo, Syria. (Reuters Photo) Several rounds of UN-mediated indirect peace talks this year in Geneva were suspended with no progress. Also on Friday, Syrian state media reported that a 7-year-old girl wearing a belt of explosives walked into a police station in the capital of Damascus, and her bomb was triggered by remote control, killing her and wounding a policeman. US President Barack Obama said Friday he had told his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin back in September to cut it out or face consequences for the hackings into major American institutions, but had refrained from responding aggressively publicly before polling day as he did not want to risk an even greater attack and appear to be taking sides in the election. Not anymore. Russia will pay a price. Our goal continues to be to send a clear message to Russia or others not to do this to us, because we can do stuff to you, Obama said addressing reporters at his annual year-end news conference. He added, repeating what he said in a radio interview earlier, the retaliation will be carried out in a thoughtful, methodical way. Some of it we do publicly. Some of it we will do in a way that they know, but not everybody will. Obama defended his earlier restraint, after the hackings were discovered and Russia involvement was established last summer, saying, In this hyper-partisan atmosphere when anything that was said by me or anybody in the White House would immediately be seen through a partisan lens, I wanted to make sure that everybody understood we were playing this thing straight -- that we werent trying to advantage one side or another. But that did not stop him taking it straight to Putin on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in China, in September as the most effective way to ensure that that didnt happen was to talk to him directly and tell him to cut it out, and there were going to be some serious consequences if he didnt. Obama said the threat worked, and there we did not see further tampering of the election process. But the stolen data had been passed on to WikiLeaks, which began to release them in a daily dump in the late stage of the campaign. Hillary Clinton has called the hacking as an attack on the US and blamed it and FBI director James Comeys letter to the Congress about new evidence in the investigation into her private email server, for her defeat in the elections. President Obama also addressed the horrific situation in Aleppo, Syria. Asked if he felt any personal moral responsibility for it, he said chose a course of action that was in the best interest of the US given the circumstances. Unless we were all in and willing to take over Syria, we were going to have problems, and that everything else was tempting because we wanted to do something and it sounded like the right thing to do, but it was going to be impossible to do this on the cheap, he said. Obama has been criticised for failing to act against the Assad government for crossing a red-line he drew for it on the use of chemical weapons. He had balked, citing lack of Congressional sanction. That was technically correct, but only as an excuse. Asked about President-elect Donald Trump accepting a congratulatory call from the President of Taiwan, which has angered the Chinese and caused concern even in the US, Obama indicated Trump should hold off till he is fully in charged, and briefed. In a subtle rap on the knuckle for Trump and his stir-the-pot advisers, Obama said one China is at the heart of their conception as a nation if you are going to upend this understanding (US recognition of that centrality of the issue), you have to have thought through what the consequences are, because the Chinese will not treat that the way theyll treat some other issues. Read| Consensus among FBI, CIA that Russian hacks aimed to boost Trump: Report The US is stronger and more prosperous than it was eight years ago, US President Barack Obama has said, attributing it to a series of steps taken by him during his two four-year terms. Almost every country on Earth sees America as stronger and more respected today than they did eight years ago. In other words, by so many measures our country is stronger and more prosperous than it was when we started. It is a situation that Im proud to leave for my successor, Obama told White House reporters during his last year ender press conference. On foreign policy, Obama said when he came into office when the US was in the midst of two wars. Now nearly 180,000 troops are down to 15,000. Bin Laden, rather than being at large, has been taken off the battlefield, along with thousands of other terrorists, he said. Read| Obama says he told Putin to cut it out or face consequences on hackings Over the past eight years no foreign terrorist organisation has successfully executed an attack on our homeland that was directed from overseas. Through diplomacy, we have ensured Iran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon without going to war with Iran, Obama said. We opened up a new chapter with the people of Cuba. And we have brought nearly 200 nations together around a climate agreement that could very well save this planet for our kids, he added. Recollecting January 2009 when he became the 44th President of the United States, Obama said unemployment rate was on its way to 10 per cent. Today it is at 4.6 percent, the lowest in nearly a decade, Obama stated. Over the past eight years no foreign terrorist organisation has successfully executed an attack on our homeland ... we have ensured Iran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon without going to war , Obama said. Weve seen the longest streak of job growth on record, and wages have grown faster over the past few years than at any time in the past 40, he said. When I came into office, 44 million people were uninsured. Today we have covered more than 20 million of them. For the first time in our history, more than 90 per cent of Americans are insured. In fact, yesterday was the biggest day ever for healthcare, more than 670,000 Americans signed up to get covered, and more are signing up by the day, Obama said. Weve cut our dependence on foreign oil by more than Weve cut our dependence on foreign oil by more than half, doubled production of renewable energy, enacted the most sweeping reforms since FDR to protect consumers and prevent a crisis on Wall Street from punishing main street ever again. None of these actions stifled growth as critics are predicted. Instead, the stock market has nearly tripled, he said. Obama highlighted that since he signed Obamacare into law, US businesses have added more than 15 million new jobs, and the economy has undoubtedly become more durable than it was in the days when the US relied on oil from unstable nations and banks took risky bets with American peoples money. Last year the poverty rate fell at the fastest rate in almost 50 years, while the median household income grew at the fastest rate on record, he said. In fact, income gains were actually larger for households at the bottom and the middle than for those at the top. And we have done all this while cutting our deficits by nearly two-thirds, and protecting vital investments that grow the middle class, said the US President. Obama said after he leaves office he intends to continue to work with organisations and citizens doing good across the country on these and other pressing issues to build on the progress that the country has made. Pakistani film exhibitors and cinema owners are likely to end a self-imposed ban on screening of Indian films on Monday after their revenue was hit. The ban was put in place amid escalating tensions between the two countries following the Uri terror attack in September. Zoraish Lashari, the chairman of the Film Exhibitors Association, told reporters that after thorough discussions, it had been decided the screening of Indian films would resume from December 19. The cinema owners and other stakeholders in the industry have been hit by the decision to impose a temporary suspension on screening of Indian films. A lot of investment has been made into upgrading or building new cineplexes and multiplexes and the business at this time is dependent on screening of latest Indian films, he said. Lashari said the cinema owners and exhibitors had only imposed a self-imposed suspension of screening of Indian films and that it was not a ban. The association, which includes most owners of cineplexes, multiplexes and single-screen cinemas in the country, had announced they would temporarily stop screening Indian films soon after tensions escalated between Pakistan and India over cross-border firing incidents in late September. Sources in the industry told PTI the reversal of that decision came after Pakistani films and even the latest Hollywood movies were failing to fill cinema halls. Plus in recent weeks several Indian films have been released while everyone is eagerly anticipating the release of Aamir Khans Dangal, a source said. One source, however, said some cinema owners still feared backlash from religious parties or groups once they resumed screening of Indian films and have asked for protection if required. Lashari said that first unreleased Indian films would be screened after which association members would hold negotiations with Indian distributors to continue the import of movies into Pakistan. Pakistans leading English newspaper Dawn had in an editorial last month termed the ban on screening of Indian films in Pakistani cinemas as damaging and said Pakistani cinema houses were losing money because of the move. Political concerns are indeed genuine, but they should not come at the cost of cultural exchanges that bring benefits to both sides of the border, the editorial had said. A senior manager of a major chain of cineplexes, Sabina Islam, said 75% of the revenue generated in the industry comes from screening of Indian films. Pakistan is said to be the third largest market for Indian films. Pakistan interior minister Chaudhry Nisar on Saturday said that he had decided to resign over growing criticism following the report submitted to the Supreme Court by the inquiry commission on the August 8 Quetta carnage which highlighted government inaction against militant groups. I went to the Prime Minister (Nawaz Sharif) to tell him that I wanted to resign from my position but was told by him that the decision was unacceptable, the Express Tribune quoted Nisar as saying while addressing a press conference in Islamabad. The report was one sided and was released without including the interior ministrys narrative, said Nisar adding personal attacks were also hurled at me for no reason. The minister said I had decided to respond to the allegations much earlier as the media resorted to personality bashing for the last two days,adding this could lead to harm to national institutions and war against terrorism as the country was facing a sensitive security situation. On Friday, following a judicial commissions damning report on the August 8 Quetta carnage, opposition Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) lawmakers demanded that the interior minister be removed from his post. Yesterday, the PPP also submitted an adjournment motion against Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan in the National Assembly Secretariat, claiming that he was incapable of playing a role in combating terrorism. Based on investigations into the Quetta incident, the report said Nisar displayed little sense of ministerial responsibility and that there was a continued delay on part of his ministry to take steps against militant groups and proscribed organisations. President Rodrigo Duterte on Saturday threatened to terminate a pact that allows US troops to visit the Philippines, saying bye-bye America as he reacted with rage to what he thought was a US decision to scrap a major aid package over human rights concerns. A US government aid agency, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, said this week that its board deferred a vote on a renewal of the development assistance package for the Philippines subject to a further review of concerns around rule of law and civil liberties. The US agency has clearly not voted to scrap or approve the aid package, but Duterte unleashed a barrage of expletives-laden tirade upon his arrival in his southern hometown in Davao after back-to-back visits to Cambodia and Singapore. I understand that we have been stricken out of the Millennium Challenge. Well, good, I welcome it, Duterte said with apparent sarcasm. We can survive without American money, he said. But you know, America, you might also be put to notice. Prepare to leave the Philippines, prepare for the eventual repeal or the abrogation of the Visiting Forces Agreement, he said, referring to a 1998 accord that governs American forces visiting the Philippines for joint combat exercises. You know, tit for tat ... if you can do this, so (can) we. It aint a one-way traffic, Duterte said, adding tauntingly: Bye-bye America. The 71-year-old Duterte, who describes himself as a left-wing politician, has made similar threats before and after taking office in June, but he and his officials have walked back on many of his public statements, causing confusion. While calling Americans sons of bitches and hypocrites, Duterte praised China as having the kindest soul of all for offering what he said was a huge financial assistance. So, what do I need America for? he asked. He also said Russia can be a very important ally, adding: They do not insult people, they do not interfere. Philippine foreign secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr. also criticized the US aid decision, saying it happened after Duterte declared he would chart a foreign policy independent of Washington. The Philippines had been slated for another aid package after its previous five-year, $434 million poverty reduction program was successfully completed in May under Dutertes predecessor, Benigno Aquino III. The agencys spokeswoman Laura Allen said Thursday it will continue to monitor events in the Philippines before the next board review in March 2017. The US decision is among the first signs of how concerns about the rule of law and human rights under Duterte could entail economic costs. The US government, along with European Union and U.N. officials, has raised concerns about Dutertes crackdown on illegal drugs, which has left more than 2,000 suspected drug users and dealers dead in purported gunbattles with police. More than 3,000 other deaths are being investigated to determine if they were linked to illegal drugs. Duterte, who has had a difficult relationship with President Barack Obama, said he would change his mindset if President-elect Donald Trump appeals to him. I have talked to Trump, he was very nice, very courteous. I could not sense any hostile drift, or even the manner he was saying it, so, in deference, Ill just wait. I will let Obama fade away and if he disappears, then I will begin to reassess, Duterte said, adding that he and Trump acknowledged each others similarly brash manners. We talk in the same language, Duterte said. He recalled that when he told Trump in a recent phone call that I like your mouth, its like mine, he said Trump responded by saying Yes, Mr. president, were similar. And you know, people with the same feather flock together, Duterte said. Pope Francis celebrated an active if low-key 80th birthday on Saturday, sharing breakfast with eight homeless people before celebrating Mass with cardinals as greetings flowed in from around the world. The pope chatted individually with each of the homeless guests four Italians, two Romanians, a Moldovan and a Peruvian at the Vatican hotel where he resides, and shared Argentinian cakes with them before heading to Mass, the Vatican said. The guests offered the pope a bouquet of sunflowers. They were invited from among those staying around St. Peters Square and at nearby showers for the homeless established by the popes almsgiver. Speaking to the cardinals, Francis contemplated the aging process, telling them, For some days now, I have had in mind a word that seems ugly: Old age, a thought that frightens. But then he recalled his words during his first papal greeting in 2013, when he said: Old age is the thirst for knowledge. He added: I hope it will be the same for me. I thank you all for your kindness. Please do not forget to pray for me. Pope Francis (@Pontifex) December 17, 2016 Saturday is a working day in the Vatican, and Francis kept up his usual pace, meeting also with Maltas president and holding an audience with members of Nomadelfia community, a secular group whose lifestyle emulates early Christians, who sang Happy Birthday. Greetings arrived from all corners of the globe in the form of both personal messages and succinct tweets with the hashtag #Pontifex80. US President Barack Obama said Francis has inspired people around the world with his message of compassion, hope and peace, while Italian President Sergio Mattarella, recalled that the pope has called on Europeans to show solidarity with the less fortunate, in particular migrants and all those who live at societys margins. The pope has sent enough birthday cakes for 1,500 people to kitchens serving the poor and homeless in Rome. A new deal has been reached to complete the evacuation of rebel-held areas of Syrias east Aleppo which ground to a halt on Friday over demands from pro-government forces that people also be moved out of two villages besieged by rebels. Syrian rebel official al-Farouk Abu Bakr, speaking from Aleppo to news channel al-Arabiya al-Hadath on Saturday, said the deal comprised an evacuation from the two Shia villages besieged by insurgents, the evacuation of wounded people from two towns besieged by pro-government forces near the Lebanese border, and the full evacuation of rebel-held east Aleppo. A Syrian government official also said the stalled evacuation of Aleppo would resume, alongside some evacuations from the four besieged towns and villages. It was agreed to resume evacuations from east Aleppo in parallel with the evacuation of (medical) cases from Kefraya and al-Foua and some cases from Zabadani and Madaya, said the government official, part of the evacuations negotiating team. The Shia villages of al-Foua and Kefraya in Idlib province are besieged by insurgents. The towns of Madaya and Zabadani are blockaded by pro-government forces. The operation to evacuate fighters and civilians from the last opposition-held area of Aleppo was suspended on Friday, its second day, after pro-government militias demanded that wounded people also be brought out of al-Foua and Kefraya, and protesters blocked the road out of Aleppo. There were recriminations on all sides and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Aleppo is now a synonym for hell. Rebel sources accused pro-government forces they identified as Shia militias of detaining and opening fire on a convoy carrying evacuees from east Aleppo on Friday. Abu Bakr told al-Hadath the previous agreement was breached by pro-government militias who detained hundreds of people trying to leave, leading to some deaths. A Syrian military source denied this, but said a convoy trying to leave Aleppo was returned back to the city. Now we are working on international guarantees to guarantee the safety of those who leave Aleppo so that such violations are not repeated, Abu Bakr said. The chaos surrounding the Aleppo evacuation reflects the complexity of Syrias civil war, with an array of groups and foreign interests involved on each side. Aleppo had been divided between government and rebel areas in the nearly six-year war, but a lightning advance by the Syrian army and its allies that began in mid-November deprived the insurgents of most of their territory in a matter of weeks. Iranian Demands The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war, said no buses or ambulances had yet entered al-Foua or Kefraya, but the operation was expected to begin soon. It said in the villages there are about 20,000 people, of whom roughly 4,500 are pro-government fighters. Iran, one of Syrias main allies, had demanded that the villages be included in any ceasefire deal, rebel and United Nations officials have said. Though both Russia and Iran back Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, rebels have blamed Tehran and the Shia groups it backs in Syria for obstructing Moscows efforts to broker the evacuation of east Aleppo. Earlier this week, the government side demanded the evacuation of wounded people from al-Foua and Kefraya for the Aleppo deal to proceed. Rebels initially accepted the demand, but on Friday it emerged that one group, formerly known as the Nusra Front, had not agreed to it. The Syrian Observatory said 8,000 people, including some 3,000 fighters and more than 300 wounded, had left the city in convoys of buses and ambulances in the evacuations that began on Thursday morning. Rebel officials say the numbers evacuated are much lower, with no fighters having left. The head of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Syria said no one knows how many people are left in rebel-held Aleppo, and the evacuation could take days. The UN says around 30,000 people remain in the crowded enclave of rebel-held Aleppo, of whom a number would be taken to Idlib province, which is mostly controlled by hardline Islamist groups, and the rest would go to government-held city districts. Idlib is already a target for Syrian and Russian air strikes but it is unclear whether the government will push for a ground assault or simply seek to contain rebels there for now. Turkey has said Aleppo evacuees could also be housed in a camp to be constructed near the Turkish border to the north. Putin seeks ceasefire Russian President Vladimir Putin, Syrias most powerful ally, said on Friday he was working with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to try to start a new round of Syrian peace talks aimed at securing a nationwide ceasefire. A senior Syrian opposition leader, Riyad Hijab, said he was willing to attend the talks if the aim was to set up a transition government. Assad has ruled out stepping down as part of a political solution to the war. Aleppo, a once-flourishing economic centre with renowned ancient sites, has been pulverised during the war that has killed more than 300,000 people, created the worlds worst refugee crisis and allowed for the rise of Islamic State. The United States has watched from the sidelines as the Syrian government and its allies, including Russia, pinned down the rebels in an ever-diminishing pocket of territory, culminating in a ceasefire this week. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said on Friday his administration would build safe zones to try to help civilians trapped in Syrias bloody conflict, an idea that President Barack Obama said would be too hard to enforce. Responsibility for this brutality lies in one place alone: with the Assad regime and its allies Russia and Iran. And this blood and these atrocities are on their hands, Obama said on Friday. The Syrian White Helmets civil defence group and other rights organisations accused Russia of committing or being complicit in war crimes in Syria, saying Russian air strikes in the Aleppo region had killed 1,207 civilians, including 380 children. Even with victory for Assad in Aleppo, the war will be far from over. Insurgents retain their rural stronghold of Idlib province, and the jihadist Islamic State group holds swathes of the east and recaptured the ancient city of Palmyra this week. Afghan-oriented militant groups like the Taliban and the Haqqani network retain freedom of action from inside Pakistani territory, the Pentagon has said, while asserting that the US has been clear in urging Islamabad to deny safe havens to terror outfits. Afghan-oriented militant groups, including Taliban and Haqqani network senior leadership, retain freedom of action from safe havens inside Pakistani territory, the Pentagon said in its six-monthly report to the Congress. The United States continues to be clear with Pakistan about steps it should take to improve the security environment and deny safe havens to terrorist and extremist groups, the report said. Militant groups, including the Taliban and Haqqani senior leadership, retained safe havens inside Pakistani territory and sustained Pakistani efforts to disrupt active Haqqani network threats were not observed during the reporting period, the Pentagon said in its report ending November 2016. The Pentagon, in its report running into nearly 100 pages, said the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region remains a sanctuary for various groups. These include the Taliban, al-Qaeda, AQIS, Haqqani network, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), ISIL-K, and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. Read| Take demonstrable steps against Haqqani network to get $ 400 mn aid, US to Pak This sanctuary and these groups remain a security challenge for both countries and pose a threat to regional stability and security, it said. Collectively, terrorist and insurgent groups continue to present a formidable challenge to Afghan, the US and coalition forces, the report said. There is a high concentration of terrorist and extremist organisations operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan, with several known designated organisations operating in the two countries, creating a complex threat environment, the Pentagon said. Of the groups involved in the Taliban-led insurgency, the Haqqani network remains the greatest threat to US, coalition and Afghan forces and continues to be a critical enabler of al-Qaeda, it said. Haqqani Network leader Sirajuddin Haqqanis role as Taliban deputy has solidified Haqqani influence within the Taliban, the Pentagon said. Sirajuddin Haqqanis position has likely allowed the Haqqani network to increase its area of operations within Afghanistan and provided the Taliban with additional operational and planning capabilities, it said. The Pentagon said although al Qaedas core leadership in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region has been degraded, elements continue to seek safe haven on both sides of the border to regenerate and conduct attack planning. The continued development of an al Qaeda affiliate in the region, al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), highlights the dynamic nature of the regions terrorist and militant landscape, posing risks to the mission and to US interests, it said. The Trump Organization has cancelled a licensing deal for a hotel in Azerbaijan and is taking steps to do the same for a project in neighboring Georgia, part of recent efforts by the president-elect to extricate his business from thorny relationships five weeks before he takes office. Both projects either involved or were associated with people tied to politics, partnerships that could have raised problems once Donald Trump becomes president. The moves by Trumps company follow a cancellation earlier this week of a licensing deal for a hotel in Brazil. The Trump Organization also recently shut down four companies registered in Delaware that had no business operations but appeared tied to Saudi Arabia, possibly vehicles for future projects in the country. Trump lawyer Alan Garten said Friday that developers in the projects in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Brazil failed to meet terms of licensing deals. He described the moves as normal housekeeping and not part of a strategy to reduce potential conflicts of interests. He said the Trump Organization had no moves underway to cancel any other overseas ventures. Read| Trump pledges no new business deals while he is president Government ethics experts have been urging Trump to sell his vast holdings and hand the cash to someone with no ties to the president-elect to invest in a way unknown to him, following the practice of most recent presidents. They say ridding himself of his ownership stake in his business, not just managerial control, is the only way to assure he wont put private profit ahead of the public interest in shaping tax, regulatory and foreign policies. Trump has resisted such a clear break. He has tweeted that he would leave managerial control of his business to his two adult sons and some executives. He said he will hold a news conference next month to discuss details. Trump has stakes in about 500 companies in more than 20 countries around the globe, though many of the foreign ventures involve him just lending his name to buildings owned by others. In Azerbaijan, Trumps partner drew the scrutiny of The Associated Press and other news outlets amid questions about corruption and the countrys status as a waypoint for money laundering. The partner, Anar Mammadov, is the son of Azerbaijans transportation minister. The father was described in leaked American diplomatic cables as notoriously corrupt, even for Azerbaijan. Though the exterior of the project has been largely constructed, it disappeared from a list of planned Trump Organization projects on the companys website last year amid construction delays and questions about the strength of Anar Mammadovs finances. Trump earned between $2.5 million and $2.8 million in hotel management fees from the unopened hotel, according to the financial disclosures filed by his campaign. Trump licensing deals generally involve the receipt of a significant minority stake in the property, too. The Georgia project is for a tower in the Black Sea resort town of Batumi. Trump lawyer Garten said the president-elects company sent a default notice earlier this month to the developer because it had not lived up to terms of the licensing deal. Garten described the move as typically a first step to canceling a deal. Just last week, Trumps development partner told Bloomberg News that the long-stalled project would go ahead, and that talks are on. In Brazil, the Trump Organization had a deal with a developer putting up a hotel in Barra da Tijuca, an upscale suburb of Rio de Janeiro. The hotel was supposed to be finished in time for the Rio Olympics in August, but only a portion of it is operational even today. In October, prosecutors in Brazil said they were investigating millions of dollars in questionable investments in the hotel by two small Brazilian pension funds. The probe is part of a larger investigation into corruption in Brazilian pension funds. The decision was made because the project was behind schedule, Trump spokeswoman Christine Lin said in a statement. The change took effect on Thursday. She did not answer follow-up questions on whether the investigation prompted the decision. The Rio hotel is owned by LSH Barra. In a statement Friday, that company said the parting was amicable and was unrelated to the corruption probe. Spearheading the project was Paulo Figueiredo Filho, grandson of Joao Figueiredo, the last of the dictators who ran Brazil between 1964 and 1985. In a Facebook post earlier this week, Figueiredo said he was no longer involved in the project. He said he lamented Trump was pulling out, but that his admiration for him hadnt changed one millimeter, and expressed hope of doing deals with him again. Another Trump project in Brazil, Trump Towers Rio, is also being examined as part of pension investigation. Announced in 2012, construction of the office towers has not begun. ___ AP Writers Peter Prengaman and Mauricio Savarese contributed to this report from Rio de Janeiro. Horwitz reported from Washington D.C. US President-elect Donald Trump said on Friday his administration would build safe zones to try to help civilians trapped in Syrias bloody conflict, an idea that President Barack Obama said would be too hard to enforce. Trump and Obama spoke separately of the conflict after efforts to evacuate civilians from the city of Aleppo ground to a halt on Friday after weeks of bombardments by the Syrian army. Were going to try and patch that up and were going to try and help people, said Republican Trump, who takes over from Obama on January 20. Were going to build safe zones, he told supporters at a rally in Florida. Were going to get the Gulf States to pay for the safe zones. Were going to build safe zones. Were going to get the Gulf States to pay for the safe zones, Trump said. However, Obama earlier told reporters that the idea presented a continued challenge because safe zones would require protection by ground forces, something to which the Syrian government and its backers in Moscow and Tehran would be unlikely to agree. Obama said he hoped Syria and Russia would respond to international pressure over the tragedy and work with Turkey to let the remaining civilians in Aleppo flee safely. Read| No money, hospitals: People wounded in Aleppo desperate for treatment Obama, a Democrat, has been preoccupied with the Syrian conflict during much of his time in the White House but has steadfastly resisted calls to engage militarily and instead focused on trying to broker a diplomatic solution. I cannot claim that weve been successful. And so thats something that, as is true with a lot of issues and problems around the world, I have to go to bed with every night, Obama said on Friday. Obama, who ran for office on a promise to bring US troops home from the Middle East, said US intervention would have run into problems unless we were all-in and willing to take over Syria. Everything else was tempting because we wanted to do something and it sounded like the right thing to do, but it was going to be impossible to do this on the cheap, he said, defending his decision and blaming Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for the bloodshed. Responsibility for this brutality lies in one place alone: with the Assad regime and its allies, Russia and Iran, he said. This blood, and these atrocities, are on their hands. Read| Now a synonym for hell: Aleppo evacuation halted as ceasefire stutters US president-elect Donald Trump has tapped South Carolina Republican Representative Mick Mulvaney as his budget director, naming a tough-on-spending conservative and an advocate of balancing the federal budget to the important post. An official on Trumps transition team, who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter before it is officially announced, confirmed Trumps pick Friday evening. Mulvaney, 49, was elected in the 2010 tea party wave and is a founder of the hard-right House Freedom Caucus, whose members pushed former Speaker John Boehner from power and have caused heartburn for current Speaker Paul Ryan. He is one of the more hard-charging members among House conservatives. As director of the Office of Management and Budget, Mulvaney would be responsible for crafting Trumps budget and overseeing the final issuance of major regulations. Mulvaney has taken a hard line on budget matters, routinely voting against increasing the governments borrowing cap and pressing for major cuts to benefit programs as the path to balancing the budget. Actually balancing the federal budget requires deeper spending cuts than the GOP-controlled Congress can probably deliver on, especially if Trump prevails on revenue-losing tax cuts and a big infrastructure package next year. Mulvaney met with Trump in New York last week. His nomination would require Senate confirmation. Other congressmen to take on the budget post include David Stockman, R-Mich., Ronald Reagans first OMB director, and Leon Panetta, who ran the budget office during Bill Clintons first term. Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, was one of George W. Bushs OMB directors. UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon has hinted that he might run for the presidency of his native South Korea. Bans term as the worlds top diplomat expires at the end of December. In his final press conference as UN chief, Ban said after some rest he will return to South Korea and consider how best to help his country, BBC reported. South Koreas next presidential election is scheduled to be held in December, 2017. However, a poll could take place within two months after the countrys parliament voted to impeach current President Park Geun-hye over an influence-peddling scandal -- allowing a close friend to profit from her connections with the presidency. Read: The rise and fall of South Korea president Park Geun-hye If the countrys constitutional court upholds last weeks impeachment vote, she will become the first South Korean President to be deposed in the countrys democratic era - and a new presidential election will be held within 60 days. The constitutional court has 180 days to make a final ruling. The UN chiefs comments came amid ongoing protests here in the South Korean capital. Large crowds are expected to gather this weekend to demand that Park resigns immediately, and to urge the constitutional court to formally remove her from office. This will be the eighth consecutive week of protests against Park. While the rallies have been largely peaceful, there are fears that demonstrators could clash with thousands of the presidents supporters who have planned their own protest near the court. Supporters of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-hye march during a rally at downtown Seoul, South Korea on Saturday. (AP photo) Parks lawyer, Lee Joong-hwan, said the court should restore the Presidents powers because there is insufficient evidence to justify her removal. The case against Park rests on her relationship with long-time friend Choi Soon-sil, who faces charges of coercion and abuse of power. It is alleged that after Park became the president in 2013, Choi, 60, used their friendship to pressure powerful corporations into donating to foundations she controlled and then siphoned off funds for her personal use. Prosecutors say Park had a considerable role in the alleged corruption. The President has denied that, but apologised for putting her trust in her jailed friend. Chois criminal trial will begin on December 20. Beijings city government has ordered 1,200 factories near the Chinese capital, including an oil refinery run by state oil major Sinopec and a Cofco food plant, to either shut or cut output following its highest possible air pollution warning. Environmental authorities issued a red alert that started on Friday night and will run until Wednesday after warning of a smog build-up across Chinas north. That will mean curbs on traffic and construction work and advisories for schools, hospitals and businesses. The municipal government said in a statement Sinopecs 10 million tonne-per-year Yanshan refinery, a Shougang Group steel product plant and a Cofco factory that makes instant noodles and crackers were among 500 companies it had ordered to limit output. It also listed 700 companies that must suspend operations altogether. Red alerts are issued when the air quality index (AQI), a measure of pollutants in the air, is forecast to break 200 for more than four days in succession, surpass 300 for more than two days or overshoot 500 for at least 24 hours. The AQI reading in Beijing on Saturday was 120. Ten cities in the province of Hebei, which surrounds Beijing and is the nation top steel-producing region, have been issued with red alerts for smog. Steel plants there have been forced to cut output. The worlds second-largest economy has been battling environmental degradation left by decades of breakneck economic growth. The governments colour-graded warning system was adopted as part of its crackdown on smog. US President-elect Donald Trump got plenty of attention -- but not the kind he was looking for -- after a tweet Saturday calling out China for its seizure of an unmanned US naval probe. China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters -- rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented (sic) act, the real estate magnate wrote on his favourite platform. Unpresidented quickly became a top trending topic on Twitter in the United States, as online wags savaged the incoming president for the unfortunate misspelling. TrumpSpellCheck -- Unpresidentedly effective, tweeted Harry Potter author JK Rowling. Dear world, most Americans really wish we could be #unpresidented, another Twitter user wrote. In so many ways "unpresidented" pretty much sums up 2016. Patrick Strudwick (@PatrickStrud) December 17, 2016 So we're going from one of the great orators in US History to a guy who spells #unpresidented. This is fine. Julie DiCaro (@JulieDiCaro) December 17, 2016 Trump promised to tighten cyber-security, but he doesn't even know how to use spellcheck on Twitter. #unpresidented Michael J. Smith (@Road_2_Ft_Worth) December 17, 2016 Washington- "I cannot tell a lie" Nixon- "I cannot tell the truth" Trump- "I cannot tell the difference"#unpresidented #saturdaymorning BROKEN PROMISELAND (@VoteAngryNow) December 17, 2016 Someone should let Trump know that when a word in your tweet is underlined in red, it doesn't mean "tremendous word choice" #unpresidented Emily McDowell (@emilymcdowell_) December 17, 2016 Trump deleted the tweet after about an hour, replacing it with one correctly using the word unprecedented. While many mocked the deeply divisive political novice, famous for his verbal tics and gaffes, supporters jumped to his defense and said critics were piling on about a typo while ignoring the bigger problem. Trump was referring to Chinas seizure on Thursday of an unmanned US naval probe in international waters of the South China Sea, a serious provocation as tensions rise between the two superpowers. Trump has repeatedly infuriated Beijing in recent weeks, questioning longstanding US policy on Taiwan, calling Beijing a currency manipulator and threatening Chinese imports with punitive tariffs. The Pentagon on Friday called on Beijing to immediately return the probe that it had unlawfully seized. President-elect Donald Trump on Friday thanked Hindu-Americans for their support in his election, saying he did great with Hindus, a community he had earlier said he loved and wooed at an election rally in New Jersey. He meant to thank the Indian-American community and started by saying, We have a lot of people here tonight from the (sic) India. He then narrowed down to the Hindus. We did great with the Hindus. Trump has been traveling to battlegrounds states that he won to thank voters and supporters, and was in Florida, a key state that he won comfortably. He started by citing African Americans and Hispanics for their support and then Indian-Americans, before he segued to Hindus. Looking for them in the audience, he said, Where are they? We have a big group. There they are. I want to thank you. You folks were amazing. They were amazing and voted and they were fantastic. Read| Trump says will investigate visa abuses; Indian workers may face tough scrutiny In October, Trump became the first presidential nominee of a major US party to reach out to Indian-Americans, pitching himself to them directly at a rally in Edison, New Jersey. He professed his love for Hindus there, saying, I love Hindu (in the singular) and that under his administration, India and the US will be best friends. Trump spoke glowingly of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling him a great man, and used an election slogan inspired by one used by the Indian leader in his own campaign: Abki bar Trump sarkar. The Trump family son Eric Trump and his wife Lara Trump then visited several Hindu temples over Diwali in Virginia and Florida. The Trump campaign also released an advertisement in which he was seen saying Aab Ki Baar Trump Sarkar. Republican Hindu Coalition chairman Shalabh Salli Kumar said all this had an impact on the voting pattern of Indian-Americans, who traditionally have been strong Democratic supporters. Read| Trump picks Indian-American consultant, Obamacare critic to overhaul healthcare This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The Texas and Houston economies continued to improve last month, adding jobs at slow but steady pace as the oil industry stabilizes after a two-year downturn. The state added nearly 21,000 jobs in November, the eighth consecutive month of employment gains, while the unemployment rate slipped to 4.6 percent from 4.7 percent in October, the Texas Workforce Commission reported Friday. Employment in mining and logging, the sector that includes oil and gas extraction and services, increased jobs for the second consecutive month, adding 3,200 jobs in November after adding 500 in October. In Houston, employment growth maintained its slow pace, according to the U.S. Labor Department. The metropolitan economy created about 16,000 jobs over the past year, a growth rate of about a half-percent, about the same as October. The area's unemployment rate, which is not adjusted for seasonal variations, was 4.9 percent in November, up from 4.8 percent a year ago. "This is one more brick in the wall of keeping us from having negative year-over-year job growth at any point throughout this downturn," said Parker Harvey, regional economist with Gulf Coast Workforce Solutions. The steady job growth in November is the latest indicator showing that Houston is shaking off the worst of the oil bust and beginning a broad recovery. Oil has moved past $50 a barrel, following agreements by major global producers to cut output, while the number of operating oil and gas rigs continues to climb. U.S. drillers put 13 more rigs into operation last week, the fifth consecutive week of increases, the Houston oilfield services company Baker Hughes reported Friday. More Information November snapshot 21,000 Texas jobs added in November. 4.6% State unemployment rate. 16,000 Houston jobs added over past year. 4.9% Houston unemployment rate. See More Collapse Earlier this week, the Houston Association of Realtors reported November's single-family home sales increased nearly 23 percent from a year ago, the biggest jump since July 2013. The Institute for Supply Management-Houston also reported this week that its index of regional production showed the local economy in November expanded for the second consecutive month. Economists expect the growth to continue next year. In a forecast last week, the Greater Houston Partnership projected the metro area will add nearly 30,000 jobs in 2017, roughly double the number it gained last year, but far below the gains during the boom years between 2011 and 2014, when employment growth averaged about 100,000 jobs a year. "The worst of the downturn is over, but our legs are still quite wobbly," said Patrick Jankowski, senior vice president of research for the Greater Houston Partnership. "We need to get some strength underneath us before we start to see stronger growth on a monthly basis." How fast the local economy grows will largely depend on the recovery of the oil industry, economists said. The partnership's forecast doesn't anticipate a sustained recovery for Houston's oil and gas industry until oil prices top $60 a barrel. Oil settled at $51.90 a barrel in New York on Friday. In Houston, where executives of major energy companies have declared the worst of the downturn over, job losses have slowed. The mining and logging sector posted a year-over-year decline of 7,900 jobs in November, compared to 8,400 in October and 10,200 in September. In a forecast for Texas released Friday, Wells Fargo Securities, a unit of the San Francisco bank Wells Fargo & Co., projected a modest rise in crude oil prices next year driven in part by the OPEC agreement to cut production by more than 1 million barrels a day. That will likely result in a ramp up in drilling at sites that can operate profitably in that price range, it noted. Mark Vitner, managing director and senior economist at the bank, said he also expects to see investments in pipeline infrastructure and refinery expansions in the coming years. "The Texas energy sector is going to be a source of growth for a long time," he said. Other areas of Houston's labor market have posted solid gains over the past year. The leisure and hospitality sector, which includes restaurants and hotels, has added 16,700 jobs from November 2015, a 5.4 percent annual increase. Employment in educational and health services, which includes universities and hospitals, grew by 14,500 jobs, a 3.9 percent increase. Trade, transportation and utilities, which includes retail, added 10,500 jobs from a year ago, an increase of nearly 2 percent. Such a boost is typical during the holiday season, when retailers and logistics companies add temporary workers to meet higher demand. Statewide, the leisure and hospitality sector drove much of the overall growth with 5,700 added jobs last month. Employment in education and health services increased by 4,700 jobs in November. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The public has long been wary of used cars and the claims of roadworthiness by the dealers who sell them. On Friday, the nation's main advertising regulator issued a ruling that consumer groups complained will give used car dealers too much leeway in the disclosures they are required to make. The Federal Trade Commission, in a decision that also drew criticism from a senator, said General Motors and two big used-car chains could advertise their used vehicles as having been carefully inspected and repaired even if the cars might still be subject to safety recalls for problems that had not been fixed. The only requirement would be that the dealers must advise buyers that the cars could be subject to recalls and tell them how to determine if they are. There would be no requirement that any recall problems be specified or that any repairs be made. The ruling follows a succession of high-profile cases in which automakers concealed crucial information from car owners, including General Motors' failure to disclose a deadly ignition switch flaw, Volkswagen's misrepresentation of pollution emissions, and Honda's failure to report potential safety problems for more than a decade. Used car dealers, in particular, have drawn criticism for selling vehicles under recall without addressing their defects, including violently exploding air bags that have been linked to 11 deaths in the United States. Under lobbying pressure from the used-car industry, efforts to introduce tougher laws for used cars have languished in Congress. "The disclosure requirements do more to deceive than fully inform, and worse, could protect unscrupulous dealers," said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. The ruling, in the form of a settlement with GM and the two car chains over their advertising claims, will be in effect for 20 years. The settlements could set a buyer-beware precedent for other used car dealers to adopt, consumer groups warned. "It is the worst thing the FTC has ever done on any issue because it is allowing false advertising," Rosemary Shahan, president of Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety, one of the groups that had been lobbying for months against the settlement. The FTC's action, which the agency defended as providing consumers with enough information to make informed purchases, is at odds with the position of the country's main auto safety regulator, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which has called for used-car dealers to fix items subject to a recall before selling a vehicle. But the safety regulator does not have the authority to order such fixes. Also included in the settlement were two dealership chains that faced complaints and settlements similar to General Motors: Jim Koons Management Co., which sells vehicles in Virginia, Maryland and Delaware; and Lithia Motors of Medford, Ore., which sells vehicles in 17 states. In settling the case, GM, Koons and Lithia neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing, but agreed that in the future such ads would include a prominent disclosure that the vehicle "may be subject to recalls for safety issues that have not been repaired" along with information on how to check for recalls. The FTC also said it had reached similar settlements with three other chains - CarMax, Asbury Automotive Group and West-Herr Automotive Group. Religious minorities in the United States are far more likely to have attended college or a vocational school than members of the Christian majority, according to a review of census and survey data from 151 countries released on Tuesday that found wide gaps in education among followers of the world's major religions. The review was based on data from 2010 and was conducted by the Pew Research Center, which also found an education gap between men and women within religious groups. The researchers said the educational differences among the faiths were rooted in immigration policies that favor the educated, as well as in political, economic and historical factors. There were 267 million Christians in the United States when the data was collected, but only 36 percent of them had a postsecondary education, including college or a vocational school, the researchers said. That made them the least-educated religious group in the country. Jews in the United States were more than twice as likely as Christians to have a postsecondary degree, and Hindus were almost three times as likely, Pew said. Buddhists, Muslims and those who said they were religiously unaffiliated also were more likely to have a college degree than those who identified themselves as Christians. Conrad Hackett, the lead researcher, said that Christians in the United States were among the best-educated Christians on the planet but that only 20 percent of Christians worldwide had a postsecondary degree. Those in North America had 12.7 years of schooling on average, higher than the average of 9.3 years among Christians globally. "There are other countries where Christians are more likely to have a postsecondary degree, but the United States stacks up quite well in that regard," Hackett said. "It's just that these minority populations are really quite exceptional." That is largely a byproduct of immigration policies that favor highly educated and highly skilled applicants who have the financial means to set up life in a new country, he said. Eighty-seven percent of Hindus in the United States and 64 percent of Muslims were born overseas, compared with 14 percent of Christians, according to the report. The opposite was true in most European countries, however, where Muslim communities have grown in recent years largely as a result of the arrival of refugees or low-skilled migrants. The largest gap was in Germany, where Muslims had, on average, 4.2 years less education than non-Muslims. In some smaller European countries - including the Czech Republic, Hungary, Ireland, Portugal and Slovakia - Muslims were more highly educated than non-Muslims, partly as a result of immigration systems that favored highly skilled applicants, the report said. The study also found a connection between education levels and the number of people who described themselves as having no religious faith, Hackett said. In the United States, the religious tended to be less educated than the nonreligious, he said. "The higher the level of education in a country, the larger the share of people with no religion tends to be," he said. "Atheists and agnostics, or people with no religion in particular, have higher education levels than the religiously affiliated do in the U.S." Worldwide, Jews were the most highly educated major religious group, with an average of 13.4 years of schooling, while Hindus and Muslims were the least educated, with an average of 5.6 years each, according to the report. The report said that Buddhists attended school for an average of 7.9 years, Christians for an average of 9.3 years, and the religiously unaffiliated for an average of 8.8 years. The gender gap was widest among Hindus, with women receiving 2.7 years less education on average than men, and Muslims, whose women received 1.5 years less education. Buddhist women received 1.1 years less education than men, Christian women received 0.4 years less, and unaffiliated women received 0.8 years less. There was no educational gender gap among Jews, the researchers said. Geography is a major factor in determining the level of educational attainment for all religious groups and helps explain the wide gap between Hindus and Jews, Pew said. Most Jews live in two wealthy countries with generally high education levels: the United States and Israel. The vast majority of Hindus - 98 percent - live in three developing countries with weak education systems: India, Nepal and Bangladesh. Hindus living outside those three countries enjoy high rates of educational attainment; 87 percent of Hindus living in North America have college degrees. Geography also explains differences in educational attainment within religious groups. For example, Muslims in the wealthy countries of Europe and North America have more years of schooling than Muslims in the Middle East, Asia or Africa, the report said. The same holds true for Christians, the world's most widely dispersed faith, with 2.2 billion adherents spread across every inhabited continent. Christians in Europe and North America had higher education levels than those in poorer countries, but the group also had high education levels as a whole. The study found that 67 percent of them had some secondary or postsecondary education in 2010, and 91 percent had received a formal education at some level. The study includes data from 151 countries, which Pew said represented 95 percent of the 3.6 billion people in the world who were over the age of 25 in 2010. It did not measure the quality of people's education, focusing instead on the number of years they were enrolled in school. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Driving north of Santa Fe, the pink rock of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains gives way to a verdant valley on the banks of the Rio Grande. Tribal ancestors of the San Ildefonso Pueblo settled here in the 1300s, and their descendants still call it home. Elmer Torres welcomes our band of tourists to the pueblo. Standing under a massive cottonwood tree in the pueblo's dusty plaza, encircled by the adobe homes of tribal members, he tells us the story of his people. As he talks, a crow begins to caw on cue from the yellow leaves of the tree, which Torres estimates is 300 years old. In the Tewa language of the pueblos, the tribe is known as Po-woh-ge-oweenge, or "place where the water cuts through." San Ildefonso is the name given the pueblo by the Catholic church. "Our ancestors settled in these mountaintops," Torres says, pointing toward the beautiful backdrop of the Jemez Mountains. The Anasazi, or ancient people, had been forced by drought from the great cliff cities they built at Chaco Canyon and Mesa Verde. They first settled in the cliffs of what is now Bandelier National Monument before moving down to the banks of the Rio Grande. The kiva and the church are both central to pueblo culture. The old circular kiva sits in the center of the plaza. Most of the structure is underground, but its visible adobe walls and the ladder used for entry look like ancient relics. Built in 1930, it hasn't been used since the '70s. A new adobe building is used for the tribe's ceremonies today. San Ildefonso has about 750 tribal members, says Torres, a former governor of the pueblo. If you go San Ildefonso Feast Day: Ceremony starts at dawn Jan. 23 (no photos allowed); 505-455-2273; governorsassistant@sanipueblo.org. From Santa Fe, take U.S. 84/285 north 15 miles, exit NM 502 and go 6 miles west to the pueblo information center. Bandelier National Monument: Guided or self-guided tours through cliff dwellings, petroglyphs and masonry walls. Mani Loop trail is 1.2 miles. $20 per vehicle. 15 Entrance Road, Los Alamos; 505-672-3861, ext. 517; nps.gov/band. Four Seasons Rancho Encantado: 65-casita resort on 57 acres in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Spa, restaurant, horseback riding, adventure tours. From $329 per night; 800-819-5053; fourseasons.com/santafe. Adventure Partners: Guided tours in the Santa Fe area. Four Seasons Rancho Encantado; 505-946-5823; adventurepartners.com. See More Collapse We're here as guests at the nearby Four Seasons Rancho Encantado. There's no better way to explore a culture than through food - and that's the inspiration for the new Taste of Place culinary experience. Four Seasons resorts around the world are now offering itineraries and adventures to acquaint guests with the local food culture. At Rancho Encantado, that means pueblo cooking. The plaza where we're standing is often a giant playground for the children. On this day, a couple of friendly dogs checked us out. Torres points out a mound of prayer feathers nearby. "We teach our children at an early age to have respect for sacred places and not to disturb the prayer feathers," he says. Meanwhile, his wife, Deborah Torres, has been busy cooking. She baked fresh bread in her outdoor mud oven, called an horno, and slow-cooked pork for an exquisite chile colorado made from dried Hatch chiles. She serves it up with posole, chicken enchiladas and tamales. Sitting outside under the yellow cottonwoods and blue skies, we savor each bite and then ask for seconds. The Torreses invite everyone back for San Ildefonso's Feast Day Jan. 23. While many of the rituals are closely guarded, the public is welcome for each pueblo's Feast Day. The event celebrates the namesake saint with a Mass, but the highlights are the buffalo, deer and Comanche dances. Pueblo dances are more communal prayers than performances, so the atmosphere may be more reverent than celebratory. Blessings come from these dances, Elmer Torres says, and the event gives outsiders a glimpse of this community's rituals, which have been preserved for a thousand years. The Torres family owns and runs Than Povi Fine Art Gallery on pueblo lands. San Ildefonso is best known as the home of the late potter Maria Martinez, whose fine black polished pottery is rare. I ask if the Maria pot at Than Povi is for sale. "If someone wants to pay $30,000 or more," Elmer Torres says. The gallery represents 100 artists from the 22 tribes of New Mexico and has an impressive collection of pottery, paintings, rugs and jewelry. After our Taste of Place adventure at San Ildefonso and a tour of Bandelier guided by an archaeologist, we head back to the Four Seasons for a different culinary experience. Chef Kai Autenrieth has only been at Rancho Encantado a few months, but he has already made a mark with his global cooking. The German-born, Swiss-trained chef is a bit of a nomad; he has worked for Four Seasons properties in Australia, Tanzania, Saint Lucia and most recently the island of Nevis. At Terra restaurant, he is experimenting with New Mexico favorites like Hatch chiles and moles to see how they fit into his international repertoire. His filet mignon with green chile mash potatoes and crab calabasitas hits all the right notes, as does his pork in cherry mole. Now if he can just get the Torres' recipe for chile colorado. A winter's day in Santa Fe The crowds are gone, adobe buildings are lit with luminarias, and when it snows, the town feels magical. Here are some other highlights during winter in Santa Fe: Canyon Road: On the half-mile walk up Canyon Road to visit 100-plus galleries, you'll see everything from historical works and American Indian pieces to contemporary paintings and sculpture, folk art and jewelry. The Christmas Eve Farolito Walk is a treasured tradition. Meow Wolf: The immersive art experience, funded by Santa Fe resident George R.R. Martin, is an avante-garde adventure that fills a former bowling alley. Visual and performance artists have teamed up to put together a trippy tour that somehow works for adults and children alike. The collective is hosting a "galactic jungle" New Year's Eve party. Ghost tours: A city as old as Santa Fe would have to have its share of macabre history. Take the nighttime tour and see if your hotel is haunted. Flamenco: Make reservations for the Saturday night flamenco show at Santa Fe's oldest restaurant and bar, El Farol. Sunset spot: Watch the sun go down over the Sangre de Cristo mountains from the deck of Rancho Encantado. Sit back with a hot toddy next to the fire pit. Snow day: The Valles Caldera National Preserve is otherworldly when covered in snow, and it has miles of trails for cross-country skiers and snowshoers. Winter hike: The 3-mile trail at Kasha-Katwe Tent Rocks National Monument, 40 miles west of Santa Fe, is home to fanciful volcanic rock formations and ribbons of narrow canyons. The top of Canyon Trail offers a view of Rio Grande Valley and Sangre de Cristo, Jemez and Sandia mountain ranges. Clouds roiled on the horizon, saturated and spitting as six of us waited in the sterile anteroom of the Northern Alaska Tour Co.'s aviation office in Fairbanks. A giant map of the state hung on the wall, and my gaze returned to it repeatedly. There we were, landlocked in Alaska's center. Farther north, beyond the massive Yukon River valley, was Deadhorse, an oil town at the mouth of Prudhoe Bay. East of Deadhorse, cleaving to the landmass below it and perched on the blue Beaufort Sea, was our destination: Kaktovik, the only occupied village in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Here, polar bears converge every fall, waiting for sea ice to form so they can head out and live adrift throughout the winter. Along with five friends, I was waiting for clearance to board a plane to Kaktovik and see polar bears up close. Ours was a day trip, and tours on subsequent days were full, which meant that if we couldn't fly out of Fairbanks, we wouldn't get to Kaktovik. Autumn in Alaska is a volatile time of year, weather-wise. It can be sunny one day, snowy the next. In theory, that's part of the excitement. But waiting for our flight clearance, I was cursing the rain gods. Listed as "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act, polar bears have become a potent symbol of the impact of climate change. This is because they rely on sea ice for their survival - they need it to hunt seals, their primary prey - and climate change has contributed to the ice's record low levels. A NASA researcher estimates that since 1979, more than 600,000 square miles of winter sea ice has melted away. Additionally, the ice that remains thinned by 65 percent between 1975 and 2012. As it has diminished, mortality among young and old polar bears has increased, and federal scientists have documented an overall population decline over the past 20 years. Polar bears traditionally congregate in and around Kaktovik, an Inupiat village of about 250 residents, while awaiting fall sea-ice formation. The bears are attracted to the village in part because of its annual bowhead whale hunt, allowed under native treaties. Residents may harvest up to three whales each year. Villagers rely on whale meat to subsist through the harsh winter, and they leave the blubber and other inedible (to humans) whale parts to satiate the hungry bruins. Counterintuitive as it may seem, the system has been working well for decades. Feed the predators and coexist. It's only in recent years that a tourism industry has cropped up around the practice, with people like me willing to travel above the Arctic Circle for the chance to visit this forlorn and distant place and see the bears in their native habitat. Some environmentalists warn that global warming could destroy polar-bear habitats and ultimately lead to the species' extinction. It's widely accepted that a loss of sea ice will force major adaptation upon the bears, and the population decline will probably continue. I hope we defy the gloomiest predictions, but I decided to take this fall trip in part because I wanted to see polar bears in the wild before it was too late. More Information If you go WHERE TO STAY Pike's Waterfront Lodge: 1850 Hoselton, Fairbanks, 877-774-2400; pikeslodge.com. A comfortable hotel with easy access to Fairbanks International Airport and downtown, Pike's also has a robust breakfast buffet, included in the price. King room starts around $230 per night. WHERE TO EAT Silver Gulch Brewing & Bottling Co.: 2195 Old Steese Highway N., Fairbanks, 907-452-2739; silvergulch.com. The burgers are large and the craft brews rich at America's most northern brewery. Entrees average $20. LuLu's Bread and Bagels: 475 Riverstone Way, Fairbanks, 907-374-3804; lulusbagels.com. The artisanal loaves, pastries and delicious salads and soups make LuLu's an excellent choice for hearty breakfasts and lunches. Sandwiches start at $6. WHAT TO DO Northern Alaska Tour Co.'s Polar Bear Expedition: 907-474-8600; northernalaska.com/polar-bear-expedition. Since 1986, the Northern Alaska Tour Co. has led clients throughout Alaska's Arctic, taking visitors to remote local communities and showcasing some of the most unique landscapes and cultures in the world. One-day polar-bear tours require a minimum of four people, and if the minimum is not met, guests will receive a full refund. Lunch is included in the price of the tour, and the day starts about 8 a.m. and ends about 7 p.m. The polar-bear expeditions operate for about a month, starting in late August or early September. Cost for 2017 is $1,799 per person; reservations required. MORE INFORMATION explorefairbanks.com. See More Collapse Just when I was beginning to wonder whether our trip would be canceled because of the quixotic Fairbanks weather, the rain stopped and tour company manager Matt Atkinson rushed my group to the tarmac. We hustled into the Piper Navajo Chieftain piloted by Heather Zulkanycz, buckled up, taxied to the runway and, after getting clearance from air-traffic control, took to the sky. Within minutes, civilization gave wsay to a lush and broad wilderness snaked with rivers. From cruising altitude, the muted colors of fall created a mosaic that mesmerized me until clouds descended and obliterated the view. After an hour of flying through fog, the gray broke to reveal an endless panorama of some of the steepest, most rugged mountains I'd ever seen: the Brooks Range. For a moment, I forgot all about the bears and lost myself in this landscape, equal parts dazzling and intimidating. We refueled in Deadhorse and then flew another hour to Kaktovik, landing on the long, sandy strip that constitutes the Barter Island runway (I tried not to notice the ocean waves lapping at its edges.) Then Heather herded us into a waiting van and drove into town, a remarkably isolated outpost with buildings constructed of abandoned shipping containers. Kaktovik is the opposite of a tourist trap. There are no souvenir shops, no ice cream stands. This is a town with only a few dirt roads and very few cars. Locals drive four-wheelers. We saw a post office and a fire station but no grocery store. We ate a quick lunch at a cafeterialike restaurant and then met up with Vejborn Reitan, our local guide, and set out to see the bears. The first ones we saw were on the beach, en route from the airstrip to town. They were gathered around large chunks of blubber, refuse from a recently harvested whale. Three bears, their muzzles red with blood, ignored us as we slowed down to take a good look. But Reitan moved us along. The locals are private about their traditions, reticent about discussing them and completely opposed to being photographed by outsiders. We tried to respect that, but it was hard. Seeing polar bears so close sent a jolt of energy through the van. We were mere feet from one of the biggest, fiercest animals in the world, and they were as oblivious to us as cows grazing in a field. Reitan promised that we'd see a lot more, and we quickly realized he was right. They were everywhere. Some loafed in the fresh air, others gnawed on large blocks of blubber. We saw very little separation of people and bears; there were no fences separating wildlife areas from residential ones. Reitan ushered us onto a fishing boat, and we set out on the ocean. Though high winds kept us close to shore, we saw even more bears. They were huge, with paws the size of a child's head, clearly visible through binoculars. But they were also cute. Even bears with bloody muzzles, that had been gorging themselves on whale leftovers, looked sweet and innocent and cuddly - easy to say with whitecaps and a boat's hull between us. Add in the cubs, which were adorable, and my group of six was smitten. Our five-hour tour was more visual than it was educational. At least that was my initial reaction - as an amateur naturalist, I've been on more than my share of nature tours. I expected an impassioned lecture from our guide on bear biology and climate change, and I thought I'd end the day armed with enough facts to feel like I could actually do something to help polar bears. (I realize the irony in this expectation; simply getting to Kaktovik burned significant amounts of fossil fuel, a major contributor to climate change.) But my time in Kaktovik left a much greater impression than a guide's memorized spiel could have. As I stepped off the boat and onto the rocky shore, heart beating with the thrill of sharing the air, the world, really, with wild polar bears, I understood in a visceral way the intricate complexity of that world. I also saw clearly how insignificant I was in the big picture. This is one reason I travel - to see how others live and to remind myself of my small role. My life couldn't be more different than those of the friendly residents of Kaktovik who waved as they passed us in 4x4s. Their weather is wind and rain, their skies gray and damp. And yet, despite their isolation, they are a vibrant community with traditions and a culture they're not willing to exploit to appease the thousands of global tourists who flock to their village each fall. During my brief stay, I ate the tastiest chicken soup of my life, complete with talons in the broth, and stopped in at the eclectic Waldo Arms, one of two ramshackle (but very popular, especially among wildlife tourists and film crews) hotels in the village. I experienced the thrill of flying in a bush plane with an unflappable pilot who managed to land smoothly even as 20-knot crosswinds swept across our path. In other words, I spent a day in the life in a remote Alaskan village perched on what felt like the end of the Earth and saw with my own eyes the animal many consider most at risk of one of the greatest man-made threats of all time. Members of the Gonzalez family meandered through the auditorium at Light of the World Christian Fellowship on Friday. Stuffed animals had met the Gonzalez family as they entered the church auditorium. The their right, piles of toys lined the walls. In front of them, blankets were placed on display, and to the left were stacks of games. Every year, the Humble Area Assistance Ministries conducts a toy drive to help families afford Christmas. Millie Garrison, executive director of the organization, expected to serve 2,000 children this year. "It's a community project, and it is wonderful for the families that live here," she said. "Most of our families are working poor. They do OK all year-round, but Christmas is a little too much that they don't have any room in their budget." Some families, HAAM only sees at Christmas, she said. Others are in crisis after a job loss in the family. HAAM's annual toy drive gave parents the opportunity to "shop" for their kids, though some, like the Gonzalezes, picked out their own presents. Each child could receive two gifts out of sections divided by gender and age. Each family also received a blanket or a boardgame and stocking stuffers. Children over the age of 13 even had a choice of gift cards. Donations fluctuate daily, Garrison said. Friday, the church was filled with volunteers from State Farm and the Lake Houston chamber of commerce. Volunteers, or elves, went around with each family and helped them pick out presents. It's the second year Light of the World has hosted the event, and Pastor Jerry Martin said it was a privilege. "It brings together the nonprofits, corporations, volunteers and churches to meet a need in our community," he said. "It goes against kind of the message that's been portrayed in media about the divisiveness in the country. I don't think we're as divided as they say we are. I think we come together a lot more." Garrison added, "It's our people helping our kids." CORPUS CHRISTI - This city of 320,000 on Friday was coming to grips with the second full day of a water emergency as residents waited in long lines to get their family's share for everyday needs. At one distribution center, 50-year-old Albert Villarreal inched his pickup along, after waiting in line for half an hour. "It's been a mad scramble," said Villarreal, who has lived in Corpus Christi for three decades. "People have been freaking out, trying to get water all over town." Volunteers sat on the yellowed grass, waiting for more water as an unceasing line of cars stretched around a corner. It was one of the brief lulls throughout the day, when they had given out all the water they had and were waiting for more to arrive. "Got a truck coming in, guys!" shouted a police officer to the volunteers a few minutes later, as a truck loaded with water pulled up and maneuvered through the Greenwood Senior Center parking lot. As Corpus Christi entered the second full day of restricted water use, more neighborhoods were declared safe to use tap water for washing or bathing, but not for drinking, city officials said Friday afternoon. The eastern and western portions of the city where water had been declared safe for all uses earlier Friday remain that way. In addition, residents of a section of south-central Corpus Christi can use their water for bathing, showering, flushing toilets and washing clothes, according to a news release the city said had been approved by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 'Backflow issue' blamed Much of the city has been without safe drinking water since late Wednesday, when officials began receiving reports of possible contamination. Officials later tied it to Up River Road, where Valero Energy Corp. has two refineries that produce various petroleum products, including asphalt. Valero on Thursday blamed it on a "backflow issue" from an Ergon Asphalt & Emulsions Inc. plant next to Valero. Before full service can be restored, the city will have to flush water multiple times from three tanks in the downtown area over 24 hours, Corpus Christi Mayor Dan McQueen said at a noon news conference. He also mentioned flushing some of city's water distribution lines. Until the water source receives an OK, volunteers have sprung into action. The staging area near the senior center was one of six water distribution sites set up throughout this coastal city. For 12 hours, employees from the city and parks and recreation department, police officers and firefighters distributed thousands of cases of water. Forming a makeshift assembly line at the senior center, they passed along 24-packs of Everest and Ozarka water bottles, neatly stacking them in piles on the pavement. "We have a large representation from the whole city of Corpus Christi here," said Lt. James Lerma with the Corpus Christi Police Department, who helped supervise distribution near the senior center. Starting at 4 p.m. the day before, the group handed out 1,041 cases, lugging case after case into trunks and onto backseats. By late Friday afternoon, they had handed out at least double that amount, Lerma said. The water came by truck from a main staging area at Del Mar College. "Come on, come on, come on," one volunteer said, gesturing for the endless line of cars to move forward. A woman driving a white Subaru pulled up and said the cases could be placed in the back of the hatchback. "If you have time, you can come back around," a volunteer in a neon green T-shirt told the driver before she pulled away. "We're here till 9." As she waited in her car, Sandra Medrano said she had been getting by with sponge baths over the past couple days since she wanted to make sure she had bottled water for her two dogs. "It's kind of rough, but I'm making it out," she said. "I'm working with it. Just as long as it doesn't last another week." Within minutes, the site was out of water again. 'Scary' situation As the cluster of volunteers waited once more for a shipment, Lisa Briseno hesitantly approached. The mother of five had come from her house across the street on foot. Because she does not own a car, she couldn't join the line. She said she hoped those in cars would not think she was trying to cut the line. "I just want to ask," Briseno said. "Everybody needs water, but it's not worth fighting. We all do need water." The situation has made Briseno worry for her children, who range in age from 8 to 21. She wanted to make sure they did not get sick from the water. "It's scary," Briseno said. "A situation like this is scary." Corpus Christi residents have been tense about their water system after multiple boil-water notices in recent years. "I'm hearing the same things you're hearing," McQueen told a reporter who asked about previous water problems at an earlier update Friday. Late Thursday, Ergon issued a statement saying it was in contact with the TCEQ and "working cooperatively to provide all information to ensure state officials can remedy the situation as quickly as possible." TCEQ inspectors found that parts of the water system were safe for all uses after they reviewed the system's design and engineering controls and determined the release of contamination from the refinery area could not reach them, TCEQ spokesman Terry Clawson said in an email. He did not answer questions about how any contaminant makes its way into the city's water pipes, what samples TCEQ staff took at the site or what the test results were. Corpus Christi's drinking water comes from Lake Corpus Christi, Choke Canyon Reservoir and Lake Texana, all more than 30 miles from the city, according to its most recent water conservation report. AUSTIN Texas education officials are preparing to unveil their first iteration of the state's new A-through-F grading scale for schools and school districts, but warn the report card is a work in progress. The Texas Education Agency will release letter grades on how each school and district performed under the state's new accountability system to legislators later this month, TEA officials said Friday. The report will serve as both a progress report to state lawmakers wanting a preview of the new grading scale they passed two years ago, and as an indication to parents, schools and districts about how their schools will measure up. "It will stigmatize these kids, stigmatize these teachers and do absolutely nothing to help them," said Clay Robison, spokesman for the Texas State Teachers Association, who predicted the new scale will assign low letter grades to schools serving a disproportionate number of low-income or minority students because they tend to score lower on standardized tests. "You don't fix these things by slapping a D or an F on a school campus." Commissioner Mike Morath cautioned Friday that the preliminary letter grades will not provide the full picture of how Texas schools and districts fare given that it only will measure four out of the five categories that ultimately will factor into the grades. The new tool will help parents, educators and the public keep schools accountable in hopes they can improve, Morath said. "Whatever we do tomorrow should be better than what we're doing today," he said, "so, creating a system that allows for continuous improvement, I think, is entirely appropriate and, in fact, quite good for our kids." Under the new system, it will be mathematically possible for all schools to earn an A, he said, adding the percentage of schools that meet that threshold in several categories now is "not high." Area schools push back Several school superintendents and board members across the state are pushing back against the new accountability measures, passing resolutions in opposition to the state law on the basis that letter grades are superficial and lack the nuance to account for schools and districts with challenging student populations. Houston Independent School District decided this month to make fighting the new grades a top priority in the 2017 legislative session. In Spring ISD, Superintendent Rodney Watson said his district likely will receive an average rating and many of its schools could be graded as C or lower. "Like the current accountability system, the new system does not take into account poverty levels, language barriers and other factors that influence academic performance and challenge some of our students to a greater degree than students in affluent suburban neighborhoods," Watson said. 5 major components The new measure calculates school and district quality using five major components: student test scores, growth in student test scores, progress closing performance gaps, college or career readiness and a self assessment by the school district. The report card due out later this month will lack the self-evaluation measure from school districts, Morath said. Districts must decide by early 2018 how they want to measure themselves. Oft criticized by superintendents and school boards as relying too much on standardized testing, the current version of the new accountability measure will allow the state to base a portion of the grade on raw test scores or students' academic growth, whichever measure is highest, according to Morath. He said he plans to continue refining the letter grade formula leading up to the 2018 implementation date. Shelby Webb contributed to this report. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate In her first major action as Harris County's incoming district attorney, Kim Ogg announced Friday she had shown 40 prosecutors the door in a massive shake-up that eliminated a senior level of supervisors and career trial attorneys. Ogg, who was elected in November as the county's chief prosecutor, notified 37 attorneys Friday that their services would not be needed when she takes office Jan. 1. Three others retired before Ogg's emails went out. "Change is coming," she told reporters after news broke that more than 10 percent of the 329 lawyers in the DA's office would not be returning in the new year. "Like any good team that has suffered some under-performing seasons, we're changing management. My administration is heading in a new direction." The terminations had been expected as Ogg - who ran on a campaign of reform - installs her own lieutenants and administrators with a new organizational structure. Ogg said outgoing DA Devon Anderson's administration asked that initial decisions be made before Ogg is sworn in. The timing of the release, however, gave Anderson an opportunity to take a shot at her successor, releasing a statement that the new administration "fired by email 37 experienced prosecutors 9 days before Christmas." "With her first act as District Attorney, Ogg is endangering the citizens of Harris County," Anderson said. "The dedicated prosecutors let go today had a combined 685 years of service." Ogg swiped back, noting that Anderson had refused to meet with her until Friday. "The announcement by the current administration that this somehow makes people less safe is irresponsible," Ogg said. "'This decision does not make people less safe. It's simply a change in management. The business of the DA's office will go on." Widespread firings or personnel changes are not uncommon when a new official takes over a large agency. The DA's office, which had been stable for decades, first saw massive change in 2008 when Republican Pat Lykos fired her predecessor's top lieutenants after also winning on a reform platform. 'Difficult process' Under Anderson, the district attorney's office has a hierarchy that includes about six bureau chiefs, more than 20 division chiefs and dozens of trial and section chiefs who oversee staff lawyers. Ogg got rid of a number of Anderson loyalists and some prosecutors tied to scandals that have erupted over Anderson's three-year tenure. Ogg said the majority of her termination decisions fell on longtime employees who worked as supervisors. She declined to discuss specific employees but said her primary focus was to eliminate management positions created by her predecessor. "It's a difficult process and one that is entirely necessary," she said. "Of the lawyers who were released or given the opportunity to resign, most are eligible to retire. Few of them handle cases on a day-to-day basis." Some of the highest-ranking prosecutors to go include First Assistant Belinda Hill, Chief of Staff Kathy Braddock and top lieutenants Maria McAnulty, Karen Morris, Roe Wilson, Dick Bax and Jane Waters, all of whom were bureau chiefs. Craig Goodhart and Terrance Windham, who also were bureau chiefs, recently retired. Other well-known prosecutors who were asked to leave the office include three division chiefs: Julian Ramirez over civil rights; Bill Moore over major frauds; and Lance Long over the major narcotics cases. Also notified that they will be leaving are Alison Baimbridge, who prosecuted high-profile DWI cases and other vehicular homicides; Alan Curry, an appellate chief who successfully argued before the U.S. Supreme Court; and Inger Chandler, who headed the conviction review section. Most prosecutors who lost their jobs could not be reached for comment late Friday. Emails explaining that they would not be invited to stay were sent out around noon, and two people who asked not to be identified said many staffers were in tears. One prosecutor who did comment was Nathan Hennigan, who said he spent Friday calling the families of murder victims to tell them he would no longer be working on their cases. He said he did not know why he was targeted and accused Ogg of taking her advice from disgruntled defense attorneys. "It seems to me that her vision for the office is more concerned with those who commit crimes than the victims of crimes," he said. "If that's her vision, she's probably right - I don't have a place in that kind of office." Hennigan, and Justin Keiter, who also was terminated, successfully prosecuted former MD Anderson cancer doctor Ana Maria Gonzalez-Angulo for poisoning her lover and colleague. The duo secured a 10-year-prison sentence for assault in 2014. More moves likely Some of those asked to leave had been at the center of controversies that have dogged Anderson's tenure in office, including a trial prosecutor under Goodhart's direction who jailed a mentally ill rape victim for almost a month to ensure she would testify against her attacker. Goodhart and former prosecutor Connie Spence, who recently was appointed as a magistrate judge, made headlines earlier this year when a judge found they committed misconduct in the death penalty trial of British citizen Linda Carty. That misconduct did not rise to the level of meriting a new trial, the judge ruled. Anderson also was criticized during the political campaign for her handling of evidence destruction at the Precinct 4 Constable's Office. Defense attorneys complained that they were not notified that evidence was missing, even as prosecutors continued to press for plea bargains. Using those debacles as leverage, Ogg, a Democrat, was able to oust the GOP incumbent in November's election. Ogg apparently is not done yet with making changes to the office. Other staffers, such as investigators and paralegals, were not included in Friday's actions and are expected to learn their fates in the new year after Ogg's transition team reviews their resumes and the organizational structure. 'change is coming' to the courthouse Microsoft says it would not assist government authorities in building software designed to discriminate against Muslims or any other group. "We've been clear about our values," the company said in a statement. "We oppose discrimination and we wouldn't do any work to build a registry of Muslim Americans." The statement came in response to inquiries about a petition making the rounds in technology circles in which signatories pledge to not assist with U.S. government in any effort designed to target Muslims, immigrants, or other groups. The open letter is a reference to President-elect Donald Trump's campaign-season statement that he supported requiring Muslims in the U.S. to sign on to a registry. As of Thursday, more than 1,300 people, including employees of Microsoft, Amazon.com, Facebook and Google, had signed the pledge, which makes references to a history of genocides and deportations carried out, at times, with the aid of businesses. The technology to build such a database exists, in basic off-the-shelf software and the demographic markers collected or inferred by companies such as Facebook and Google. But questions surrounding discriminatory software have taken on symbolic importance as the technology industry, generally open to immigration and a believer in the inclusive public tone of much of corporate America, reacts to the election of a president-elect whose stance on immigration and other policies have raised fears of discrimination. Contacted by The Intercept, a digital news site, big technology companies this month were mostly silent on the creation of such a database. Twitter and Facebook have said they would not participate. Microsoft has sued the government four times to challenge requests for information and Microsoft's ability to be transparent about those requests. One lawsuit challenged a nondisclosure order attached to a national security letter. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate WASHINGTON - Donald Trump's selection of a hard-line, pro-Israel advocate as his U.S. ambassador to the Jewish state could signal the end of decades of American support for the establishment of an independent Palestine. The president-elect's transition team has asked the State Department to assess how to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, according to one official, underscoring Trump's commitment to back Israel in ways no American leader has. Trump isn't the first incoming president to promise to move the embassy from Tel Aviv. But his team's State Department request and comments from aides and advisers suggest he will be the first to charge into what promises to be a diplomatic and political minefield. The ambassador-designate, David Friedman, has long ties to Israel's settler movement and has supported stances on the far right of Israel's political spectrum, well beyond those of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Orthodox Jewish lawyer from New York has suggested Trump would support Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank, effectively eliminating the possibility of a Palestinian state. He has served as president of American Friends of Bet El Institutions, which supports a settlement. "This is about as sharp a break with past policy as I've seen in the last 25 years," said Aaron David Miller, a Mideast adviser under five U.S. presidents. Incoming U.S. leaders have often massaged the long-recited policy points on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, such as when Bill Clinton's team stopped calling Israeli settlements in east Jerusalem and the West Bank "obstacles to peace" or when George W. Bush eliminated the high-profile position of special Middle East coordinator. Bus since President Jimmy Carter, each has stopped short of building an embassy in Jerusalem. Doing so could be perceived as recognizing Israel's right to the entire city, even though the U.S. has promised for years to help found a Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital. And it would isolate the U.S. from almost the entire international community, including its closest European allies and the Arab states on which it relies to fight the Islamic State and other threats. "Moving the embassy was always considered too risky, too sensitive, and it was never clear how it really advanced U.S. interests," Miller said. Going through with the move, he added, "will feed every jihadi's wildest dreams" because it will feed into the notion of a Jewish takeover of the city. Palestinian reaction was fierce Friday. Moving the embassy "would be the end of the peace process as a whole," chief negotiator Saeb Erekat told reporters in the West Bank, having recently returned from Washington. Trump said Friedman would "maintain the special relationship" between the U.S. and Israel. Friedman said he looked forward to carrying out his duties from "the U.S. embassy in Israel's eternal capital, Jerusalem." Also voicing anger were liberal Jewish and pro-peace organizations such as Americans for Peace Now, which said Friedman would add "fuel to the Israeli-Palestinian fire." Tune in Sunday night to watch "The Breakthough Prize" awards ceremony, which is being re-aired on FOX. You'll see a truly worthy Houstonian receive this prize along with its attendant award of $3 million, no strings attached, at a red-carpet ceremony in Silicon Valley. Award winner, Huda Zoghbi, 61, grew up in Beirut. This first generation American's life exemplifies not only the dogged determination that it takes to make scientific breakthroughs but her loyalty to her adoptive home of Houston. It was chance that brought Zoghbi to Texas to begin with. The Lebanese city of her birth was plagued with civil war just as she was entering medical school at the American University of Beirut in 1975. With bombs falling all around her city, Zoghbi moved into the medical school to study in safety, at one point sleeping in a tiny room within the ladies room. That summer, after her parents' house was damaged by bombs and her brother was injured by shrapnel, Zoghbi was sent to stay with a sister in Texas. Medical school in the U.S. had already started but determined to continue her education, she was ultimately accepted at Meharry Medical School, a historically black institution in Nashville. Zoghbi examined her first patient with Rett syndrome when she returned to Texas and became a resident in pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine. Today we know that medical condition affects 1 in every 10,000 females. Back then the patient's symptoms, an uncoordinated gait, a decline in language skills and ultimately an inability to live independently, were seldom recognized in neurology clinics. Heartbroken that she was unable to give the girl's parents any hope, Zoghbi set her sights on finding a way to help girls born with this devastating neurological disease. Her resolve led her to shift from clinical practice to research and to master the field of molecular genetics. No one knows where breakthroughs in basic research may lead, if they lead anywhere at all. But it's the curious scientist who won't give up who achieves them. Zoghbi persisted in her quest despite professional uninterest. In the 1980s, Zoghbi drove the back roads of rural Texas and Louisiana in order to identify families with children that shared common symptoms. She convinced people to open their doors to be interviewed and to give blood, all in hopes of finding the genetic code that programmed them for this disease. It reached the point where she stopped sharing with colleagues the nature of her research, which had no apparent commercial applications, as pointed out in a recent profile of Zoghbi by Chronicle reporter Todd Ackerman. But Zoghbi's stubbornness and single-minded focus has paid off. In 1999, 16 years after she diagnosed her first Rett patient, she discovered the gene responsible for it. Not only that but insights gained in the Rett research and other similar projects are proving helpful in developing therapeutic targets for more common devastating diseases such as autism, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. "It's thrilling to see we are beginning to understand the language of life and translate it to help mankind," Zoghbi told Ackerman. Zoghbi's now leading the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, a first-of-its-kind center. At a time when too many medical schools are reducing their investment in basic research, the NRI is designed to promote and support it. In addition to devoting her professional skills and leadership to the Institute, Zoghbi will donate the majority of her $3 million Breakthrough Prize to support education and research initiatives at the NRI and other institutions that impacted her career. While she has had many offers to lead prestigious institutions around the world, Zoghbi is grateful to Baylor for taking a chance on her years ago and has elected to stay. As result, our city has become a worldwide destination for life scientists around the globe. In a video played before the presentation, Zoghbi said she will "not retire until I find a treatment for any of the diseases that I work on." We believe her. Vulnerable kids Regarding "Kids beaten 'like dogs' (Page A1, Dec. 7), the story about 7 adopted children in Fort Bend County shocked and saddened me. The fine reporting should continue to make clear the failures of adoptive parents, the Child Protective Services investigators, the state and local officials responsible for caring for these least capable of self-care and self-actualization. The story made clear that the meager amount paid to parents of adopted children with special needs do not begin to assure the children a decent and productive life. Olive Hershey, Houston Hospital expenses Regarding "MD Anderson battles $111m deficit" (Page A1, Thursday), that a nonprofit like MD Anderson should have both an $111 million deficit and a $2.8 billion cash reserve is mysterious enough given the institution's tax-exempt status as an agency of the state of Texas. The article and the MD Anderson spokesman suggest that there are troubles on the revenue side with patient access to the center and with the reimbursement insurers are giving the center for its pricey care. That care is deemed to be of higher quality, but perhaps the market disagrees. The other half of the equation is what the institution is spending all that money and, more important, what value is being derived from those expenses on people, buildings, research and education. This goes largely unaddressed in the article. Greater examination of the expenses of MD Anderson, and more intense assessment of the value of these expenses which were purported to generate new cancer cures, are in order. Leonard Zwelling, Bellaire Having a party Regarding "Texas professor advises against using the word 'holiday' when planning office parties" (Chron.com, Thursday), I'm a community event coordinator and it's a party - for the HOLIDAYS - that are all in November, December and January, and you do not need to be religious to enjoy and appreciate them. That said, on a basic level I get it. At schools, it's "winter break" to avoid the issue entirely. Kelly Force, posted via Facebook Six area residents were injured Friday morning as highways became treacherous with a thin coat of ice, the Missouri State Highway Patrol said. Two persons were injured at about 9 a.m. in a three-vehicle crash on U.S. 60 at Dunn. Cpl. Terry Nelson said vehicles driven by Andrea L. Ratteree, 28, of Cabool; and Calvin G. Collins, 45, of Willow Springs, had stopped due to an accident and a car driven by Terra R. Brown, 18, of Willow Springs, slid and caused a chain-reaction accident involving the other two. Brown, who wasnt wearing a seat belt, was sent by ambulance with moderate injuries to Mercy Hospital in Mountain View. A private vehicle took Ratterree to Ozarks Medical Center Clinic at Mountain Grove with minor injuries. Ratterree and Collins were wearing seat belts. A Plato man was injured at about 9 a.m. Friday in Laclede County when his 2003 Isuzu Rodeo slid off the right side of I-44 and struck a 2015 Volvo tractors trailer. Lawernce W. Casey, 63, had moderate injuries and was transported to Mercy Hospital in Lebanon. Three Bucyrus residents were injured at about 10:30 a.m. when a 2014 Ford truck driven by Alver J. Cancel, 76, lost control on ice-covered U.S. 60 two miles west of Highway MM, traveled off the roadway and overturned. Cancel, Sandra S. Cancel, 74; and Ryder J. Bennett, 101, were taken by Mercy ambulance to Texas County Memorial Hospital at Houston. Bennett and Alver Cancel had minor injuries. Sandra Cancel had moderate injuries. All three were wearing seat belts, and the truck was totaled, said Tpr. Jacob Sellars. Subscribing to our services is a three step process. First you have to create an account and then you have to pick if you want to subscribe to digital and or print. Some people only want to be a digital subscriber to get access online and others want to also receive the print edition. If you are already a print subscriber and want online access, it is free, you simply have to create an online account and then attach your print subscription account number to the online account you create. CP An aide to Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre has been fired after a video of him allegedly smoking crystal meth was posted online. Jean-Francois Thibault no longer works for the mayors office, spokeswoman Catherine Maurice told the Montreal Gazette. He had worked for Coderre since 2014, arranging logistics ahead of the mayor's appointments. Advertisement This behaviour is unacceptable to the mayor, Maurice said. She added that the mayors team would support Thibault in getting help. A video obtained by TVA Nouvelles that shows Thibault lighting and smoking a pipe was published on Thursday. Thibault later admitted that he was smoking crystal meth, the report said. The news broke just hours after Coderre said that he would have zero tolerance for illegal marijuana dispensaries in Montreal. Advertisement Dossier boutiques illegales Marijuana a Mtl:Tolerance zero pour ceux qui ne respecteront pas la loi actuelle. DenisCoderre (@DenisCoderre) December 15, 2016 La Presse previously reported Thibault owed the city $11,000 in unpaid parking tickets. The situation is reminiscent of the scandal that enveloped former Toronto mayor Rob Ford in 2013. The Toronto Star and American website Gawker reported watching a video clip in which Ford appeared to be smoking the illicit drug, and making racist and homophobic remarks. A video of Ford smoking crack cocaine was made public in August, about five months after his death from cancer. Also On HuffPost: OTTAWA Liberal cabinet ministers, parliamentary secretaries and MPs might like to ask Santa if they can keep their portfolios or get a promotion. The Huffington Post Canada has learned a winter shuffle is being contemplated. Last December, when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed his 35 parliamentary secretaries 23 men and 12 women the MPs were told their portfolios had a one-year mandate. Advertisement Their positions have been extended a few weeks as the prime minister looks to rejig his cabinet, a senior source said. Trudeau may: Elevate strong performers, such as Finance Minister Bill Morneaus parliamentary secretary, Francois-Philippe Champagne Reward hard workers, such as International Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland Or dump weaker performers from the inner circle, such as Democratic Institutions Minister Maryam Monsef. [The parliamentary secretaries] are extended until the House returns in January while we evaluate their partnerships with them, Kate Purchase, Trudeaus director of communications, told HuffPost in an email. Late Friday evening, after this story was published, Purchase sent an email saying "nothing on the horizon" was planned regarding a cabinet shuffle. Advertisement Rotating parliamentary secretaries may help Trudeau with the management of an ambitious and talented caucus. There are currently 182 Liberal MPs, many of whom are men or women from traditional areas of strength for the party who may not have the gender, demographic, ethnic or religious criteria that increase their chance of landing a cabinet post. Parliamentary secretaries earn $16,800 on top of their $170,400 base salary as MPs. While most are expected to answer questions when their ministers are not in the House of Commons, some have been given additional responsibilities. Former Toronto police chief Bill Blair, for example, was charged with leading a federal-provincial task force on the legalization of marijuana. Another who got extra duties was former Toronto municipal councillor Adam Vaughan, who was given the mandate of helping the government address national housing challenges. Advertisement The job of a parliamentary secretary can often be a stepping stone to cabinet as its a way for backbench MPs to showcase their abilities. Conservative MP Michelle Rempel, for example, was a particular strong performer as parliamentary secretary to then environment minister Peter Kent. She was later promoted, by prime minister Stephen Harper, to minister of state for Western economic diversification. Trudeau has 29 cabinet ministers 30 including himself. Fifteen are women. He promised gender equality in his cabinet during the last election and received international recognition for his commitment. The Ottawa guessing game of who will go where has already begun. Over the summer, there were persistent rumours that Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion would be shuffled out of his portfolio next year and sent to Paris to be Canadas ambassador to France. Dion told HuffPost at the Liberals summer caucus that he wasn't interested in changing positions any time soon. Cabinet ministers earn $81,500 on top of the $170,400 base salary. UPDATE - Dec. 17, 2016: This story was updated with comments from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's director of communications Kate Purchase. The story originally stated Purchase neither confirmed nor denied a post-Christmas cabinet shuffle. Advertisement Also on HuffPost Pieces of Amber with trapped insects can sell for big bucks. There was a time in the Dominican Republic when - for a flat $15 - you could stick your hand into a barrel full of amber and keep as many pieces as you could grab. Similar good deals on amber were offered in places around Mexico's southernmost state of Chiapas and northern Europe's Baltic Sea, among several other spots. A fossilized tree resin, amber is much more expensive today - especially if the likes of a prehistoric bug or a leaf was trapped in the resin. We're talking many hundreds of dollars, sometimes thousands depending on size, color and what's caught inside. Chiapas is one of the world's main sources of the ancient gemstone, sold here principally in the 16th century colonial town of San Cristobal de las Casas. The latter city is just a 45-minute drive up in the mountains above the country's capital at Tuxtla Gutierrez. Shops around San Cristobal sell gorgeous handicrafts. Tours of the country tyically start with an arrival and overnight stay in Tuxtla Gutierrez, followed the next day by a short drive to the Grand Canyon-ish Sumidero Canyon. There, you'll take a two-hour boat ride through a winding river flanked by cliffs thousands of feet high. Then it's back to Tuxtla for dinner (ranging from hot menus to ones straight out of blast furnaces) and a little shopping - a sort of prelude to the big-time shopping coming up at the next overnight stop, San Cristobal de las Casas. Advertisement At San Cristobal you get the feeling you might be on another planet vs. Tuxtla. For one thing, unlike Tuxtla it's chilly up there. For another, many of the 130,000 "Coletos" as the locals are known dress like they did centuries ago when the Spanish conquistadores ruled these parts. What's more, at times the whole town looks like a stage for a giant handicrafts show. One shopping area is a maze of hundreds of side-by-side tents surrounding San Cristobal's main cathedral. Browse around and you'll find stunningly gorgeous shawls, blouses, placemats, tablecloths, blankets and jewelry, all hand made, and all at bargain prices (and even lower depending on your haggling skills). A must-see in the city is a cobbled, half-mile-long "tourist walkway" including virtually wall-to-wall-amber shops dotted here and there by restaurants, bakeries, bars, old-time government buildings and charming inns. Be careful, there's a lot of phony amber floating around. Experts at the city's Amber Museum say you can use simple tests to tell the real thing. Is it light and warm? That's amber. Is it heavy and cold? That's just doctored up glass. Another test: Rub it, and if it smells like incense, it's probably genuine. Advertisement Look around, and chances are you'll run across hundreds of little hand-made souvenirs of a masked guy holding a piece of wood looking like an AK-47 rifle. The guy was Chiapas' more or less state hero, Subcomandante Marcos, the nom de guerre of the leader of what he named the Zapatista Army of National Revolution in the early 80s. Besides putting Chiapas on the map (for a while, news coverage of the rebellion showed up almost nightly on TVs around the world) the event seems to have spawned a sort of cottage industry around the area - tee-shirts, dolls, keychains and other souvenirs bearing a likeness of the charismatic Marcos. In 2014, he reportedly announced that Subcomandante Marcos "no longer exists." Palenque is one of the top sites of the Mayan empire. The state offers a smorgasbord of other tours. For instance, one is a five-hour drive north of San Cristobal to Palenque, one of the most-visited sites of the whole Mayan empire. Here, tourists are awed by towering pyramids, the tombs of ancient kings and other spectacular monuments, more than 200 in all, in a city once home to 10,000 people. Another runs south from Tuxtla to Chiapas' beach resorts along the Pacific. Some go east to other colonial cities such as Comitan de Dominguez and then on to the natural wonders of the 820,000-acre Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve. Still others go on to archaeological sites, like the sprawling Mayan ruins at Yaxchilan and Bonampak at the eastern edge of the state bordering Guatemala. Advertisement Jesus had his Judas, General George Washington had his Benedict Arnold, and the 9/11 victims' families have their betrayers in Republican Senators Lindsey Graham (S.C.), John McCain (Ariz.), and Orrin Hatch (Utah). The Senators are attempting infanticide of the 10-weeks-old Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA) which was enacted with their support to assist the 9/11 families in obtaining judicial redress for the 9/11 terrorist abominations. To paraphrase attorney Joseph Welch's rebuke of Senator Joseph McCarthy during the Army-McCarthy hearings, have Senators Graham, McCain, and Hatch no sense of decency in putting the interests of the misogynist, religiously bigoted, tyrannical Kingdom of Saudi Arabia without a crumb of loyalty to the United States above the interests of American citizens? Words cheapen the detestation these Senators have earned. If the rule of law means anything, it means that power is subservient to justice. The loathsome doctrine that the King can do no wrong was repudiated here by the American Revolution. That repudiation was reinforced in 1974 when President Richard Nixon was compelled to resign because he endorsed and practice the noxious theory that if the President does it ,it means it's legal. Foreign sovereign immunity from suit is an odious relic of law serving power rather than justice. The immunity exists only at the sufferance of Congress, which severely clipped its wings with JASTA. Until its enactment, only foreign sovereigns listed by the United States as state sponsors of terrorism could be sued in the United States for complicity in international terrorism inflicting death or other serious injury on Americans. At present, the list is confined to Iran, Syria, and Sudan. Advertisement JASTA, however, authorizes suit against any foreign sovereign complicit in an act of international terrorism in the United States that kills or injures persons or property in the United States caused by tortious acts of the foreign sovereign or its officials, agents, or employees anywhere in the world. The actionable tortious conduct must be more than negligence or a failure to act. The July 15, 2016, release by the House Intelligence Committee of a substantially declassified 28 pages of the Joint Congressional Inquiry Committee's post-mortem on 9/11 provides credible evidence of material support by Saudi Arabia or its agents to one or more of the 9/11 terrorists. During JASTA's short infancy, no foreign jurisdiction has retaliated with laws that would expose the United States to liability under reciprocal circumstances. The probability of retaliation in the future is slim to none. The United States enjoys huge military or financial leverage over virtually every nation in the world. We have military bases or lily pads in 130 countries. We forced Belgium to repeal a law that exposed high level civilian and military officers of the United State to prosecution for war crimes or crimes against humanity by threatening to remove NATO headquarters from Brussels. Even in the remote likelihood that an adverse judgment for complicity in international terrorism was entered against the United States by a foreign tribunal, it would be unenforceable. No foreign jurisdiction commands the power to compel the United States to do anything. Advertisement Why then the attempted infanticide of JASTA by the three unholy Senators? Follow the money. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has hired an army of lobbyists to urge a congressional amendment. It would prohibit liability absent proof that the foreign sovereign "knowingly engaged" with a terrorist organization, including the financing of terrorism. Material assistance to a terrorist organization, simpliiciter, would not trigger foreign sovereign liability under the amendment, but would continue to expose American citizens to criminal prosecution by the Unites States! Senators Graham, McCain, and Hatch are eager to do the bidding of the Kingdom because of its nexus to the multi-trillion dollar military-industrial complex. It is heavily represented in South Carolina, Arizona, and Utah. Between October 2010 and October 2014 alone, Saudi Arabia concluded agreements to purchase more than $90 billion worth of United States weapons manufactured by such giants as Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Sikorsky Aircraft, and General Electric. These arms deals bring jobs and profits to defense contractors with presences in South Carolina, Arizona, and Utah to the delight of Graham, McCain, and Hatch. They are willing to subordinate the interests of the 9/11 victims' families in justice to the raw financial power of Saudi Arabia and the military-industrial complex against which President Dwight Eisenhower warned. Their attempted infanticide of JASTA makes them like men who would dine with Jesus at the Last Supper and breakfast the next morning with Pontius Pilate. Is that what these Senators want on their epitaphs? Do you have enough passion in your life? Passion is the difference between playing the piano and being a pianist; it's who you are, not just what you do. Passion makes you leap out of bed in the morning, eager to start your day. Dr. Robert Vallerand at the University of Quebec has studied passion more than anyone, and he asserts that passion is self-defining. According to Vallerand, "Passion is a strong inclination towards a self-defining activity that people love, that they consider important, and in which they devote significant amounts of time and energy." "Passion is the genesis of genius." - Galileo It's important to note that passion doesn't require expertise--although there is a correlation, it's not a given. Vallerand and two other researchers studied 187 musicians and found that those who focused on perfecting their performance--what Vallerand calls "mastery"--developed a higher level of expertise than those who focused on merely being better than other musicians. If passion defines you, it makes sense that your personal best will be about you and no one else. Advertisement So what does passion look and feel like? A great way to understand passion is to consider what makes passionate people different from everybody else. 1. Passionate people are obsessed. Put simply, passionate people are obsessed with their muse, and I don't mean that in an unhealthy OCD sort of way. I'm talking about a positive, healthy obsession, the kind that inspired the quote, "Do what you love, and you'll never work a day in your life." No matter what else is going on, their thoughts keep returning to their passion. Not because they feel burdened and pressured by it, but because they're just so dang excited about it. They're obsessed with their muse because it inspires them and makes them happy. 2. They don't waste time. You won't find passionate people wandering around a park all afternoon playing Pokemon Go. They don't have time to be bothered with things that don't matter or things that just kill time. They devote every minute available to their passion, and it's not a sacrifice, because there's nothing else they'd rather be doing. 3. They're optimistic. Passionate people are always focused on what can be rather than what is. They're always chasing their next goal with the unwavering belief that they'll achieve it. You know how it feels when you're looking forward to a really special event? Passionate people feel like that every day, and their optimism is driven by emotional intelligence. 4. They're early risers. Passionate people are far too eager to dive into their days to sleep in. It's not that they don't like to sleep; they'd just much rather be pursuing their passion. When the rooster crows, their minds are flooded with ideas and excitement for the day ahead. 5. They're willing to take big risks. How much you want something is reflected in how much you're willing to risk. Nobody is going to lay it all on the line for something they're only mildly interested in. Passionate people, on the other hand, are willing to risk it all. 6. They only have one speed--full tilt. Passionate people don't do anything half-heartedly. If they're going, they're going full tilt until they cross the finish line or crash. If they're relaxed and still, they're relaxed and still. There's no in between. Advertisement 7. They talk about their passions all the time. Again, we're talking about people whose passions are inseparable from who they are, and you couldn't form much of a relationship with them if they couldn't be real about who they are, right? It's not that they don't understand that you don't share their obsession; they just can't help themselves. If they acted differently, they'd be playing a role rather than being authentic. 8. They're highly excitable. You know those people who probably wouldn't get excited if an alien spaceship landed in their front yard? Yeah, that's not how passionate people operate. It's not that they're never calm, or even bored. It's just that it takes less to get them excited, so they get excited more frequently and stay excited longer. One theory is that they devote their energy to just one or two things, so they make more progress, and that momentum fuels their excitement. 9. They're all about their work. Passionate people don't worry about work/life balance. Their work is who they are, and there's no separating the two. It's what they breathe, live, and eat, so there's no such thing as leaving it at the office. Asking them to do that is tantamount to asking them to deny who they are. And they're OK with that because there's nothing else they'd rather be doing. Bringing It All Together Now that you know what separates passionate people from everybody else, do you think you have enough passion in your life? Uber is hearing Tommy Petty. It won't back down in its dispute with the California Department of Motor Vehicles over putting its robot cars on California roads without a license to drive. My nonprofit Consumer Watchdog had advocated the test robot cars be impounded and the California Attorney General has sent a letter telling Uber it will take the company to court. So why is Uber so emboldened in its defense of the robot car fleet and economy? California regulation not only requires a human driver behind the wheel, it also demands "disengagement" reports any time the robot cars fail. Uber doesn't want to tell the public why and how often its robot cars fail. Advertisement That's embarrassing information, as Google discovered when it reported its test robot cars failed 350 times in 450,000 miles on California roads. The technology is simply not ready for the road and Uber doesn't want the public to know how unready it is. On the first day a test car was caught on video rolling through a red light. Uber claimed it was human error, but without "disengagement" reports we will not know for sure. Advertisement Tesla never disclosed a fatal crash of its Tesla on "Auto pilot" in China, until video of the death surfaced on Chinese television. It's gripping. Uber cites Tesla as the reason it should not have to disclose problems, since the company's "Auto pilot" isn't subject to testing regulation. But Uber is deploying a fleet of vehicles that allegedly drive themselves with a human ready to step in, not simply a function like Autopilot that deals with in lane navigation. And Tesla is no model for safety. The CA DMV has a new proposed regulation that would force Tesla to rename its technology. Uber's CEO Travis Kalanick and Tesla's Elon Musk have both been named to Trump's inner circle of tech advisors. Musk met with Trump at his tower this week. Perhaps they know something DMV doesn't about president pardons, but for now Uber will have to see the CA Attorney General in court next week if it doesn't get license. We think Kalanick should be charged for letting its cars drive without licenses, which could come with jail time. It you own a renegade dog and it bites a person, you can go to jail. Shouldn't Kalanick be personally charged if his unlicensed robot cars cause damage? He better be ready to stand by them because if one kills someone, or even a dog, he will face jail time. Licenses protect licensees as well as the public. Advertisement If you think that's unlikely, check out the Tesla video from China of the robot car running into a sweeper. The driver sure didn't see it coming. Your New Life Overseas With Kids The advantages to raising children abroad are many, from a second (or even third) language to a second passport. Children raised overseas are generally self-confident, open-minded, and resourceful. They learn to make friends easily and to adjust and to adapt quickly. If you're hesitating making an international move because you have children, you're making a mistake. That, however, is not to say that raising kids in another country is easy. When you make a move overseas with children, they, specifically the options for their education, become your priority. Moving with children also means that you must move full-time or at least that you must schedule your part-time life in your chosen haven around their school calendar. Advertisement My daughter Kaitlin, age 8 at the time, cried herself to sleep every night during our first year living in Waterford. She was fiercely opposed to the idea of leaving her grandmother, her cousins, her friends, and her school in Baltimore behind, and she made sure we were painfully aware of that fact every single day. "You've ruined my life!" she sobbed night after night as she fled from the dinner table to her bedroom and slammed the door. My husband Lief and I thought we were doing precisely the opposite. We believed we were enriching Kaitlin's life and expanding her horizons. But, I have to admit, some nights I'd lie awake wondering if maybe Kaitlin weren't right. Maybe launching a new life in a foreign country at age 8 would translate into years of psychotherapy down the road. Our first year in Paris it was Kaitlin's little brother Jackson, age 4 at the time, born in Ireland, who struggled through the transition. Advertisement "Give him six weeks," his preschool teacher advised me every morning when I dropped him off. "At this age, he'll adapt very quickly. In six weeks, he'll speak French, and he'll be fine. You'll see." Meantime, every morning, as I'd turn to leave, Jackson would wrap his arms around my ankles, crying and begging, "Please don't make me stay here... they don't have an English voice, and I can't find my French voice." I'd pull myself free and race out the door and down the street, fighting back tears myself and wondering, again, if this moving around the world with kids thing was really such a good idea. Six agonizing weeks later, though, and,voila, seemingly overnight, Jackson spoke French. He'd adjusted; he'd made friends. In truth, our lifestyle has been easier for Jack to handle than Kaitlin. While Jack was born into it, Kaitlin might say she was yanked. On the other hand, it was Kaitlin's idea to move from Waterford to Paris. Kids in Ireland take what is called a "Gap Year" at age 15, between what would be their freshman and junior years of high school in the States. For this year, many study or take internships abroad. As they approached their Gap Year, Kaitlin's friends began making plans to attend school in the United States, Britain, and elsewhere. Kaitlin decided she'd like to spend the year in Paris. Advertisement We'd been enjoying Irish country life, but, by this time, we were wanting for more cosmopolitan distractions. We took Kaitlin's suggestion, therefore, as an opportunity for another family move. In the essay Kaitlin prepared as part of her admissions application for St. John's College in Annapolis three years later, she wrote, "I fought against my family's move to Ireland and resisted life in that country completely. But, if not for Ireland, I probably wouldn't have gone to Paris. And now I can't imagine not having had the chance to live in Paris..." As I've mentioned, perhaps the most fundamental decision you must make when relocating overseas with children concerns their education. Will you send your child to a local school (where, unless you're moving to Belize or Ireland, for example, he'll need to learn to speak the local language fluently), to a bilingual international school (where he'll have the opportunity to learn the new language but will take classes, as well, in his native tongue), or to an American school (where he'll be largely insulated from the local culture and community)? In Ireland, Kaitlin attended a local private school. In Paris, we enrolled Jack in the local public school. (In France, public schools are more highly regarded than private ones. Kids get kicked out of public school for not meeting study or discipline standards, not vice versa.) In Panama, Jackson is attending the French school, from which he'll graduate next year with a French bac (fingers crossed). In other words, just as we've chosen to go local with our lifestyles overseas, so, too, we've gone local with our children's education. Why drag the kid to a new country only to enroll him in a school that could as easily sit in any U.S. suburb? We considered this question head-on in Paris, where the American School of Paris was one of our options for Kaitlin's education in this city. Kaitlin and I visited together, and we both had the same reaction. Advertisement The American School of Paris could be the American School of Any American Town. Every student is from the States, as is every member of the faculty. English is the only language spoken. The curriculum, the calendar, the sporting events, the special events, the locker rooms... everything about the school is as it would be Stateside. Nothing wrong with this, per se, but it seemed a shame to us for Kaitlin to miss out on the chance to learn French, to make friends from all over the world, and to become part of the Paris teenager scene. In addition to schooling options, moving with children you also must consider health care and local kid-friendly opportunities. Are there parks, playgrounds, private tutors, and places where the child could go to study the guitar, to learn to dance, or to take karate lessons? Likewise, you must think more seriously about residency options. With a child, you can't as easily reside under the radar. I don't recommend residing overseas without proper papers under any circumstances, of course, but, over the years, I've known expats in France, Panama, Thailand, and elsewhere who've never gotten around to legalizing their stays. Sometimes, this is not a big deal. With school-aged children, it can be more difficult. This restriction, especially, can take a number of countries off the list of options, as it would be difficult or even impossible to organize legal residency for you and your family. Moving abroad with children, your biggest worry might be their ability to adapt and to adjust. It has been mine. Having now moved my then 8-year-old daughter from the States to Ireland, then my then 14-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son from Ireland to France, and, then, most recently, my then 8-year-old son from France to Panama, here's what I can tell you: Your children will be fine. The truth is, their move will be harder on you than it will be on them. They will learn the new language quicker than you will, they will make new friends more easily, and they will assimilate more readily. If you let them. Our first six months in Paris, Kaitlin would sit at the dining room table after dinner doing her homework--all in French. Before our arrival in this country, she'd never studied the language. Then, overnight, she was studying in the language, doing high school math in French. The work would take her hours, after which she'd retire, exhausted and nearly in tears. Advertisement Then she'd have to get up the next morning to return to school, where, again, all lectures, presentations, and course materials were in French. This shouldn't be so hard on her, the mother in me couldn't help but observe. I made an appointment to meet with her advisor at school, who said this: "Kaitlin is struggling, yes. But you must let her struggle. It is good for her." This is the last thing a child wants to hear and the hardest thing for a parent to accept. But I tell you now, it is the right thing, the true thing. After six months of exhausting effort, Kaitlin was bilingual. She retains this asset, which, already, has opened doors for her. Her first year of college back in the United States, it was her overseas experience and her second language that helped her to land a part-time job in a chic photography gallery. Here's my best advice for the parent considering relocating overseas with a family: Don't worry how your children will adjust. Worry how you'll survive the adjustment period. Kathleen Peddicord Original Feature: The Truth About Retiring And Living Abroad With Children Related Articles: Earlier on Huff/Post50: "Obamacare saved my life without a doubt," says Barbara Boros, a California resident with kidney disease. Kendall Brown, "digital nerd and social justice fan," lives with Crohn's disease. "It has nearly killed me, twice," she writes. "It would have killed me, if it weren't for one thing: Obamacare." For Cherry Jackson, a 55-year-old New Orleans resident, new Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act - Obamacare - was a godsend. It helps her pay for her prescriptions. Jackson told the Los Angeles Times: "I thank God for this program." Advertisement By slashing ACA coverage, the incoming Trump administration and the right-wing Congress are conspiring to take health care away from these women. But that is just one step in their plan to strip health care from millions of people and throw them to the insurance corporation wolves. Donald Trump - elected by a minority of voters - has selected Republican Rep.Tom Price of Georgia, a right-wing zealot and multimillionaire, to head the Department of Health and Human Services. Price is dead-set on taking away ACA coverage, gutting Medicaid, and letting insurance corporations take over Medicare. This plan will improve the wellbeing of corporations and billionaires, while leaving tens of millions of people to suffer - and even die - without health care. It amounts to a death sentence: Studies show that people without insurance are 25 to 40 percent more likely to die prematurely than those with insurance. People in the U.S. want less profiteering in health care, not more. But Price and the right wing in Congress want to turn Medicare into a voucher program that funnels public dollars into insurance corporations that rake in billions each year. If that voucher isn't enough for a decent health plan - or any plan at all - then you're on your own. Advertisement Destroying Medicare this way is a betrayal of seniors and all of us who have been paying into the system. We contribute to support each other, not boost insurance corporation profiteering. Price also wants to eliminate Medicaid for about 15 million people who've signed up since the program was expanded, and cut out many more. Medicaid has been providing health care since 1965. Taking it away is a betrayal of the belief that the value of our lives shouldn't be measured by the size of our wallet. But Price doesn't stop there. He wants to let insurance corporations jack up premiums for many people with preexisting conditions. Insurance corporations could charge as much as they want based on your age. The ACA ended that kind of unfair treatment. Price wants to turn back the clock - another betrayal. Price would end guaranteed birth control coverage, allow discrimination against LGBTQ people, and let insurance companies charge women more for coverage. The right-wing Congress is fully behind him, proposing changes that would throw our entire health care system into chaos, cutting coverage for almost 30 million people. Advertisement We don't have to be a heartless and cruel country, valuing corporate profits over people's health. Congress shouldn't cut health care for anyone - whether they get it through the ACA, Medicaid, Medicare, or the Children's Health Insurance Program. Instead, Congress should expand health care to make it available and affordable for everyone. The good news in the upcoming health care fight is that we have solutions right in front of us. Medicare is popular - and a huge success, sustaining seniors and people with disabilities for decades. We must protect it, let it negotiate prices with prescription drug corporations, and make it available to all of us. Neon Tommy / commons.wikimedia.org On this week's "Scheer Intelligence," Robert Scheer speaks with Zev Yaroslavsky, one of the leaders of California's Democratic Party, about the California paradox, or how progressives swept the nation's largest state in the 2016 election while Hillary Clinton got Trumped elsewhere in the country. Yaroslavsky was a member of Los Angeles' City Council before serving on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors for 20 years. He tells Scheer why he believes that the anxiety many Americans feel about the future shaped the result of the 2016 election. Yaroslavsky also talks about Democrats' lack of coherent messaging during the election, which in the minds of many voters stood in contrast to Trump's perceived clarity. Finally, he discusses the value that the increasingly progressive California sees in immigrants. Advertisement Adapted from Truthdig.com Listen to full interview below: Read the interview below: Robert Scheer: Hi, this is Robert Scheer with another edition of Scheer Intelligence, where the intelligence hopefully comes from my guests. In this case, it's Zev Yaroslavsky, who I've known about and known for a very long time. He's just retired as a supervisor of LA County and before that was on the city council. For people who are listening to this who don't come from Los Angeles, that might not sound like that big a deal but in Los Angeles ... The city of Los Angeles is just like the city of Beverly Hills or Santa Monica. We're a collection of a lot of different cities and we come under a county system of government, where a handful of people called supervisors really have the big power here. One reason I was interested in Zev and summarizing his career ... Well there's basically two. One, I've known him as a very idealistic yet hardheaded politician. He started out ... I remember when he was a kid at UCLA and he cared about Soviet Jewry and was demonstrating and so forth on a number of other issues. Then went on to be a practical politician and accomplish a great deal. In many ways the most impressive progressive politician in this part of California. The other thing is we're at a season where the Democrats, and he is a democrat, have done terribly in the country, running against what should have been a very weak candidate, Donald Trump. Hillary Clinton, the anointed democrat, lost. The question is, why is California so different? California is now the deepest blue state around and it has presumably a mixture that's similar to the rest of the country. It has immigrants. It has angry white people. It has problems. Yet in California, voters voted in what I would consider to be a very reasonable fashion. They elected an African-American woman to be our new senator and sent her to Congress. They have supported basically Democrats in power. Advertisement The other night I had Zev Yaroslavsky in my class at USC. I thought he provided one of the most interesting explanations of what went wrong for the Democrats in terms of ... I guess I can use the word their alienation for what should have been their normal base. I'd like to begin with that, Zev, and ask for your assessment of where this party is now. What did this election mean? Zev Yaroslavsky: Well I don't think it was just this party. I think it was both parties. I don't think Donald Trump is your classic Republican. He's Donald Trump. I think at the end of the day, two factors. One is people in the United States all across the country are experiencing a high level of anxiety. It manifests itself through anger and other electoral exercises, but primarily people are anxious. While there has been an economic recovery on paper in this country, and certainly the stock market reflects that and corporate salaries reflect that, the average person, especially between the Colorado River and the Hudson River, has not benefited from that recovery. Seared in the memories of many Americans was the experience of the collapse of the economy in 2008, 2009. Not quite The Great Depression but it reminded me of my dad telling me how it was during The Great Depression. You should eat everything on your plate because in The Depression, we didn't have this. It was seared in his memory 30, 40 years after The Depression. We're only six, seven years out of The Great Recession. People are still nervous, still anxious. They don't know whether their pensions are going to be there for them when they retire. They don't know whether their benefits are going to be taken away from them while they're working. There's just a high level of anxiety. At UCLA I direct the LA Initiative at the Luskin School of Public Affairs. We did a quality of life index. It's an annual project at UCLA that asked Angelenos ... Los Angeles County residents, not just registered voters but all county residents, to rate their quality of life in nine different categories. Then we asked them a couple of standalone questions. One of the questions was in the last few years, have you worried about losing your home and becoming homeless as a result? When we bounced that question around our team, I said, "You know, if 10% of the people say yes to that question, that will be news. That would be quite stunning." Well the number of people, the percentage of people who responded yes to the question of fearing becoming homeless as a result of losing their home was 31%. 31% of Los Angeles County residents have in the last few years feared becoming homeless. 24% of people making between $90 and $120 thousand a year fear becoming homeless. It was one of those light bulb moments. Intellectually I understood this but viscerally, I didn't get it until I saw that figure. I said, "Jeez. One out of three people walking down the streets of this county today have worried in the last couple years of landing on the street." I'm not one of them. I'm thinking to myself, "If I was one of them, what would my psychological quality of life be? What would my married life be? How would my family life be?" It would be pretty miserable because I'd be nervous all the time. Well that's what's going on in LA and in Southern California. It's the same thing I suspect that's going on in the Rust Belt, in Pennsylvania, in the suburbs of Detroit, in Ohio, on and on. That level of anxiety has been totally missed by the political elite. This gets to the second issue. The political elite in Washington, Democrats and Republicans. The political class, as it has been termed, does not walk a mile in the shoes of any of these people who have this high anxiety level. Why should they? A congressman gets a pretty good salary, good benefits, healthcare taken care of, gets a car, car allowance for his district office. They don't pay for a thing. I was a county supervisor for 20 years in Los Angeles County. I was a city councilman for almost 20 years in the city of Los Angeles. The city provided me with a car. The county provided me with a car. My point is that those of us who are in this bubble of the political elite who have everything taken care of ... If I didn't want to pay for a dinner for 40 years, I wouldn't have had to pay for a single dinner. That's not the life that most Americans lead. I made it my business as an elected official to walk a mile in the shoes of my constituents. All of them. The very poor, and I represented a whole lot of very poor people, marginally poor, lower middle class. I wanted to viscerally understand what they were going through. I don't think that's what you get out of Washington today. Scheer: Let me ask you why California is so exceptional because we have white people. Not only white people, but minority should be really angry about what's happened. Black and brown people who graduated from college, according to The Federal Reserve, lost three-quarters of their wealth. This hit brown and black people more and they haven't recovered. They lost thousands. They were targeted but we still also have plenty of angry white people. Why in California did the Democrats do so well? Why do they continue to do so well and what is the difference- Advertisement Yaroslavsky: Well they didn't always do so well. Scheer: I know but I'm talking about now. This Democratic Party. I must say, we could refer to the second coming of Jerry Brown in a way. It seems that in California, people are angry. They have a lot to be angry about. They've lost their homes and so forth but they didn't turn to the right-wing message. They turned to what is a by national standards, a far more progressive Democratic Party than what Clinton represented with this triangulation that's reaching out to Wall Street. After all, the attorney general here who is now our senator, she led the fight against the settlement that Obama wanted to make with Wall Street and said, "You're not giving enough back to help home owners." Right? Why don't we talk about what makes California a center of hope? Yaroslavsky: I'm not sure I can answer that question easily. First of all, we do have a lot of angry whites in California and they vote accordingly. I think it's a progressive ... The coastal California is a very progressive place. It's also economically better off than it was. In 1998, George H.W. Bush beat two caucus comfortably in California. That was the last time that a Republican won. At the same time, you had Pete Wilson, a moderate Republican or at least started out as a moderate Republican and became governor. Arnold Schwarzenegger recalled to Democratic governor in California. I think it would be a mistake for Democrats in California to think that they've got a lock on this- Scheer: No, but let me just throw in a statistic. In this election where the Democrats managed to lose every branch of government on the federal level, California, the Democrats have a super majority in the legislature. Yaroslavsky: Right. Scheer: That is astounding. Yaroslavsky: Well it's astounding but it's a product of redistricting also. Scheer: Well but the whole statewide ticket won. Yaroslavsky: It did. Scheer: At a time when ... We don't have a large African-American population in California, yet we are electing a progressive African-American woman to be our new senator. Yaroslavsky: Well let me take another crack at this. The state of California is a state of immigrants. Just like America is a nation of immigrants, we are really a state of immigrants. Immigrants from overseas and immigrants from places like Iowa and Nebraska. Most people have roots somewhere else or at least they have, certainly their parents do, in California. We have the reality and the benefit of having a robust immigration from Asia, from Latin America, from Europe. Certainly from Canada, which still I think is the number one immigrant population. Advertisement Scheer: Well we have I think a very significant percentage of the undocumented population- Yaroslavsky: No question. Scheer: -that Donald Trump says he wants to ... Aren't we maybe I think 40%? Yaroslavsky: Here's my point. I think that in California there's a different kind of culture than there may be in some other parts of the country about the value ... Not the burden, but the value of immigrants because so many of us either are immigrants ... In my case, my parents were immigrants. I channel them. The attack on immigrants that launched Trump's campaign fell like a lead balloon in California. It just got no traction. We had been through that in California some 20 years ago, 25 years ago with Prop 187 and a couple of propositions on the ballot that targeted people of color, that targeted immigrants, targeted undocumented immigrants. We've matured as a state since then, I believe, but I also warn that as we saw in this election, you've got to be vigilant about these things because people can turn on a dime when they personally feel threatened, insecure, anxious, afraid they're going to be homeless, afraid they can't get medicines, afraid they're going to go hungry. People, human beings do tend to scapegoat. Even in California, it's something to be vigilant about. This is a different state than the Midwest, the Rust Belt. Scheer: Yeah but I think we can learn from this state because in this state, no leading Democratic politician can turn their back on undocumented immigrants. They support it. Yaroslavsky: That's right. Scheer: The unions in this state, service employees and so forth, organize people, whether they're documented or not, to have their rights. The supervisors have supported them. You folks have even voted for a living wage increase in the minimum wage, haven't you, on a county level? Yaroslavsky: We certainly established a living wage. After I left when the minimum wage campaign got going and the city of Los Angeles passed a $15 an hour minimum wage, the county was waiting for the city to act. The county, in terms of where it has jurisdiction on a wage is only in the unincorporated areas of the county. Scheer: Yeah. Yaroslavsky: All the 88 cities can make their own decisions. Scheer: It sets the floor. Yaroslavsky: No question. The county in 2015 voted to ... As did the city, to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by the end of this decade, which is a huge deal. Yeah, there's certain basic things ... I wouldn't even call it ideological. There are differences in the Democratic Party in California. You look at the legislature. There are more liberal, more pro-environment segments or caucuses and less liberal- Advertisement Scheer: More Latinos. Yaroslavsky: Certainly more now. Scheer: Yeah. Yaroslavsky: One thing that the Democratic Party in California understands is the economy stupid. Trump understood that it was the economy stupid. People listen to ... They were open to his argument not because we didn't make the ... Not because he had better looks but because we didn't make the argument. Scheer: We made the opposite. Yaroslavsky: Exactly. Scheer: Let's cut to the chase here. I think there was a world of difference between Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton. You're a politician. Come on, Zev. You're a progressive politician but you're a very successful politician. You're preparing to run for the Senate for the President of the United States. You've been a Senator from New York. What do you do? You go to Goldman Sachs and take three-quarters of a million dollars for three speeches that weren't even speeches. They were little blather there and you don't even cover yourself by saying to these folks in case those speeches become public, and any speech you give should be public, you don't even say, "Hey, you guys bear some of the responsibility." On the contrary, you say, "We need you down in Washington to write better laws because you understand it so bring it." What was this woman thinking? Yaroslavsky: I don't know and you have to ask her, but I'll tell you one thing. That's not the reason she lost the election. I think the reason the Democratic Party and its candidate lost the election is because ... The reason Jeb Bush and John Kasich and all the others on the Republican side didn't get any traction on their side was because they were not in touch with what the people of this country were going through. A big chunk of the people and a critical mass of them who tilted the election from her to him. Scheer: Right, but there were- Yaroslavsky: She should have beaten this guy by 25 points. Scheer: No, she wanted this guy to be the candidate. The Democrats thought they lucked out. We're going to sweep both houses of Congress. We're going to have the White House. They're so out of touch but the person who wasn't out of touch, and I'm not trying to pin you down ... You vote for who you want and support who you want. Yaroslavsky: Well I appreciate that. Scheer: Clearly. There's a big argument of, "Oh, he's for the lesser evil." I don't want to get into all that. We don't have that much time. Advertisement Yaroslavsky: Good. Scheer: I want to say something happened on the Democratic side. I thought Bernie Sanders was going to get two, three percent of the vote. Yaroslavsky: Oh, I didn't. Scheer: Okay. Yaroslavsky: I didn't think he'd get as far as he did but I didn't think he'd stay at three percent. Scheer: Okay. What Bernie Sanders showed in exactly the places where she failed to carry up there in Wisconsin and so forth, Bernie Sanders showed that he could talk to working people, the people the Democrats were supposed to be able to talk to and get them excited and get them to feel that he represented some change. Instead of really incorporating that message and saying, "Okay, let's learn from the primary," the Democrats went back to their old business as usual. They've been criticized by leaders of the party in the states, they didn't address these concerns. Yaroslavsky: I don't disagree with that. I ask my friends who are troubled by this result, "Tell me in one or two sentences what the Democratic message was in this presidential general election." I can't tell you what it was. I can tell you what his was. I don't think any of us know exactly the reason why. Maybe over time it'll become clear. Maybe they were playing defense all the way along. It's uncharacteristic of the Clintons to play defense. They're very aggressive and they take the offense. In this particular election ... They were dealt a few bad hands, but by and large, it was a tough enough election because you had a Democrat who is as popular as he is. He's been around for eight years. It's very unusual, rare in fact, for a Vice President or a member of a party of a two-term incumbent presidency to win. In my lifetime, only George H.W. Bush was able to do it after Regan. It's tough enough to get over that hump but to have no message and to miss the boat about what was going on in the key battleground firewall states. Scheer: We are speaking with Zev Yaroslavsky and discussing what went wrong with this election and what has he learned from 40 years of experience in government. We'll be right back. Advertisement Welcome back to my guest, who is Zev Yaroslavsky. He's been a supervisor in Los Angeles County and one of the major politicians in California. Discussing what went wrong in this election. First of all, we were talking about California and these fools on the East Coast who control the media tend to trivialize this, "Oh, it's California," granola and everything. The fact is we are the sixth largest economy in the world. Yaroslavsky: That's right. Scheer: In the world, okay? What happens in California is very important to the world's economy. California under Jerry Brown and under the legislature really went a different way on a whole number of issues. Certainly immigration, certainly the right to ... You can drive a car if you're undocumented. You can actually graduate law school and practice. All sorts of things have been done for immigrants. The law enforcement authorities here in Los Angeles and elsewhere have said they're not going to cooperate with goons coming in and just grabbing people and so forth. The state has been quite progressive on a number of those issues, social issues. Even on climate change, which you think of as an international issue that has to be negotiated, actually under Jerry Brown, the state has taken a number of initiatives to set a global standpoint. Yaroslavsky: Oh, huge initiatives. Scheer: Well maybe talk about it. That's a positive way to think about moving forward. Yaroslavsky: Well I think California, led by the governor and my good friend and colleague ... We represented parts of the same district, State Senator Stan Pavley, who authored two key pieces of legislation on climate change, on reducing our carbon footprint. California again, we've got to start back 50, 60 years. Environmental problems hit California really hard, especially Southern California. Smog. All of us who grew up here understood what the implications of air pollution were and water pollution. When people went swimming in the ocean and got sick. I guess you could say that in California, once there was a commonality of political interests in Sacramento, they did something about it. They didn't just bemoan it. There wasn't just gridlock but they did something about it. It passed legislation. Even going back to the Pat Brown- Scheer: Well even Schwarzenegger did. Yaroslavsky: Even Schwarzenegger did some ... Yeah, there's no question. He was more of an environmentalist than just about any other Republican that occupied that office. Yeah, climate change has been a huge deal. California, being the sixth largest economy and given the fact that nationally, federal government has not been as aggressive for a variety of reasons, California is leading the way for the United States, as cities have. Los Angeles, the city of Los Angeles under Mayor Villaraigosa and now under Mayor Garcetti made this a big issue. The feeling around the world is among mayors and municipal officials is if our national government isn't going to do anything about it, there's nothing to prevent us from trying to do something about it if we can get into common cause. You have cities like Paris and London and New York and Los Angeles and Chicago and Buenos Aires and Sao Paulo, who are coming together to try to influence the ... Retard the rate of damage that the climate change is doing to our planet and to our communities. If you look around ... This is again another subject, but the climate change, the implications for coastal cities. Many of them heavily populated in Africa, West Africa, East Africa, the Indian subcontinent, Bangladesh. Water level rising just a few feet will impact hundreds of millions of people. Talk about a refugee problem from Syria. It'll make Syria look like a walk in the park. Scheer: Can we really expect either of these parties to find a path out that in California now seems sensible? Okay, we have these 12 million people that are not documented. Can we get a path to citizenship? Can we? These trade agreements suck. People are hurting. One way you can deal with these trade agreements is make people pay their taxes here, support the public schools, give people an opportunity. The sort of thing you did as a county supervisor. Yet when I look at the Democratic administrations we have, sure, they may be the lesser evil but it's still an evil. Isn't it? Why didn't we get immigration reform? Why didn't we get better progress on ... Why is our healthcare ... Okay, we know that Obamacare is better than the alternative, but why didn't they control costs? Why aren't people more enthusiastic about it? You're my model of a progressive politician. I think if you had been in the White House, you would have said, "Hey, let's solve the immigration issue. Hey, let's control the costs-" Yaroslavsky: Well I think there was an effort to solve the immigration issue by this president, by President Obama. I think even George W. Bush for a fleeting moment wanted to solve the immigration issue, but the politics of Capitol Hill and the inflaming of the issue on the hustings did it in. I do believe that there's a path forward to comprehensive immigration reform. I think both parties ... The Democrats certainly understand it and the Republicans understand maybe they got lucky this year, but it's not a sustainable strategy. Just do the math. You don't have to be a rocket scientist. This isn't calculus. This is arithmetic. They got away with it this time. They're not going to get away with it over time. Advertisement Scheer: All right. Let me end with this question. How worried are you? This guy does have ... President-to-be Trump does have his finger on the button. He could do a lot of damage. President of the United States is the most important human being in the world. He could without even thinking, and maybe that's the problem, can cause a lot of harm. Are you losing sleep over this? Yaroslavsky: Well I'm not losing sleep but I tend to sleep better now than I used to. My waking hours are ... Give me stomach aches. Let me put it that way. I'm worried about it mainly because I don't know ... Aside from his behavior and having his finger on the button and his clearly tempestuous personality, I don't know what he stands for. I don't think anybody knows. I'm not sure he knows what he stands for. In a world which is so dynamic and there's so many things changing so rapidly, even in the course of a 24-hour period, dependability or at least knowing where somebody stands is still an important commodity. If I'm getting knots in my stomach over him at the helm, imagine what our friends around the world are feeling. There are a lot of implications to what he's doing. Scheer: Well finally, do you think the Democrat Party that you've been a major figure in, you have, do you think they learned any lessons from this or is it all going to be shoot the messenger? "We were betrayed by Julian [inaudible 00:27:02]. It's Putin." Or what did Hillary Clinton say? "A basket of deplorables." Do you think that there's any kind of serious reexamination of where is the Democratic Party? Why was it in bed with Wall Street? Why was it so dependent upon that money? Are we going to listen to Elizabeth Warren? Are we going to listen to Bernie Sanders? Yaroslavsky: I hope there's a lesson to be learned that will be taken to heart. I don't know how you could be politics as a democrat at the national level these days, having lost to this candidate, to Donald Trump. If it had been any other Republican, it would have been worse. I think that's safe to say. They've got to change the- Scheer: When you say worse, you mean not for the country but for the party. Yaroslavsky: No, no. Worse for the Democrats. Scheer: Oh, yeah. Yaroslavsky: I think it would have been a wider margin. If it had been Jeb Bush, assuming he did not flame out, or any of the other moderate candidates. John Kasich. You think she would have won the popular vote against John Kasich given what we know now? I don't think so. The public was ready for a change. The one thing that we can say with certainty, it was a change election. You could foresee that before the election certainly. As the Trump people said, if we can make change the issue, we will win. They may change the issue. There was no response on our side. There's got to be not a retribution, not a finger pointing at the Democratic Party, but I think everybody's got to take a look in the mirror and say, "What did we miss?" I don't think it's a complicated question. Advertisement Now remember, 107,000 vote difference would have flipped the election the other way. It's not exactly a landslide but it should have been a landslide in her favor. I look at it as what could have been, what should have been 10, 15, 20 points. She basically comes to a draw with him. If we don't want to go through that again, we've got to understand what we missed. I think we compartmentalized our campaigns and didn't have an overarching theme, an overarching message. What was that overarching message? To quote Bill Clinton, this is 25 years ago, "We feel your pain and we're going to do something about it." There was not that empathy that came across in this. I don't mean empathy as a charade, but real empathy. If you're really empathetic with somebody, you're going to do something about it. I think this is the umpteenth wake up call that political parties have had in this country. If the Democrats want to rule again, then they're going to have to come to grips with that. I don't think it's that complicated. I don't think it's necessarily alien to their way of thinking. This is what the Democratic Party should stand for and it's got to be more sensitive about who they get into bed with between elections. I'm fond of the Jesse Unruh quote where, "If you can't take their money and vote against them, you don't belong in politics." Scheer: No, it's more than that. Yaroslavsky: I didn't want to say that. Scheer: "If you can't take their money, drink their booze and sleep with their women and vote against them, you don't belong in politics." Yaroslavsky: This was a family show. I didn't want to ... Scheer: Oh, okay. Let's just hope there is a soul left in some of these leaders. It's time to wrap it up. I want to thank you, Zev, because you certainly didn't lose your moral bearings during these 40 years you were in government and I appreciate that. Yaroslavsky: Thank you. Scheer: I want to thank Josh Scheer and Rebecca Mooney for producing another edition of Scheer Intelligence, and Mario Diaz and Kat Yore for providing the great engineering. See you next week. In April 2016, the inequality newsletter I co-edit started publishing a weekly "Face on the Frontlines" feature. Since then, we've had the honor of spotlighting more than two dozen workers, organizers, artists, students, business leaders, elected officials, and others who are fighting to reverse extreme inequality. All these individuals have kept up our spirits, in difficult times, and reminded us that we can take on formidable obstacles -- and win. As 2016 winds down, I wanted to highlight some of the Faces on the Frontlines who we found especially inspiring. We started our series with Jobs with Justice Organizing Director Erica Smiley, who wrote about the need for labor organizing strategies that can succeed even in the face of anti-union laws and institutions. In our new political landscape, her words have become even more prescient. Advertisement In May, John Mudie, a telecom lineman and union official from Buffalo, New York, reported from the frontlines of a strike involving nearly 40,000 Verizon workers. They faced a CEO -- who was earning $25,000 per day -- out to slash jobs and benefits. A few weeks later, the company backed down off that attack and agreed to add call center jobs and reverse key outsourcing initiatives. In June, we published a piece by restaurant server Christopher Alvear about the need to raise the subminimum wage for tipped workers. In November, we had the pleasure of reporting on two ballot initiatives that successfully did just that. In July, Ben Chin of Maine People's Alliance described his life as the target of a right-wing governor's racist smears. A few months later, that governor declared that Chin and other organizers of ballot initiatives to increase taxes on the wealthy and raise the minimum wage "should be sent to jail." After the election, we were thrilled to interview Ben again -- about his November 2016 ballot victories. In August, we featured Magdalena Zylinska, a housecleaner and organizer from Chicago about the big win on a Domestic Workers Bill of Rights in the state of Illinois. This was the seventh such state victory for the National Domestic Workers Alliance and their allies. Advertisement In early September, IPS Associate Fellow Manuel Perez-Rocha shared lessons from his many years of work against free trade in Mexico and Central America about the likely impacts of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. A main focus of his work has been to fight trade rules that allow private corporations to sue governments over public interest regulations. And so in October we were pleased to report on a victory by Salvadoran activists against one of these corporate lawsuits, in this case over the denial of a mining permit on environmental grounds. Only a few weeks later, we were able to celebrate the demise of the TPP negotiations. In late September, we interviewed Judith Le Blanc, director of the Native Organizers Alliance, about the struggle against the Dakota Access pipeline and the role played by billionaire and big bank investors in the project. After the number of water protectors continued to swell, federal authorities put at least a temporary halt on pipeline construction on December 4, in a huge win for the Standing Rock Sioux and their allies. In October, we ran a commentary by Steve Novick, a member of the Portland, Oregon city council who was pushing a path-breaking proposal for a tax penalty on corporations with extreme CEO-worker pay gaps. On December 8, we had the pleasure of reporting that the proposal had been adopted. And since then we've been hearing from elected officials in many other jurisdictions who are interested in taking similar action and making this a national movement. Many more inspiring "Faces on the Frontlines" can be found at Inequality.org. In 2017, we look forward to getting to know more champions in the fight against inequality and sharing their stories and strategies. Sarah Anderson directs the Global Economy Project at the Institute for Policy Studies. Free subscriptions to the newsletter she co-edits are available at Inequality.org. I have written several pieces under The Future series title: - The Future - Genetic Engineering? - The Future - Destructive Technology Trends - The Future - End Of Capitalism - The Future - The Problem With Longevity - The Future - Technology Without Philosophy - The Future - The Most Important Entrepreneurial Challenge Of Our Time - The Future - Age Of Idiocracy Now, if you agree with my prognosis that both blue collar and white collar jobs are going to disappear at a massive scale due to automation, then you must ask yourself, what is a constructive direction forward? I have two answers to this question. The first is a look at the next 30 years. The second is a longer term, beyond 30-year view. Inequality, Fortune at the Tip of the Pyramid: Today's Entrepreneurial Capitalism is driven by venture capital, which has an inherent tendency to create very large fortunes, but very few of them. How many Googles have you heard of? How many Facebooks? And thus, fortune accumulates in the hands of a few, very few people. In 2014, the top 1% of America's wealthy owned 40% of the nation's wealth. Fortune has been steadily accumulating at the tip of the economic pyramid. Advertisement Fortune in the Middle of the Pyramid: My observation, however, is that in Silicon Valley, we have learned a LOT about how to build successful businesses following the principles of Capitalism. If this knowledge can be broadly disseminated, and a much larger number of entrepreneurs start building successful businesses - doesn't have to be billion dollar businesses - can be million dollar businesses - that would drive fortune in the middle of the economic pyramid. And that is both possible today, and necessary today, given everything else that is going wrong in the global economic system. Democratic, Distributed Capitalism: My vision for Capitalism in its next phase is a distributed, democratic capitalism whereby millions and millions of entrepreneurs build small and medium businesses that are profitable and sustainable in the long term. In other words, we need to create fortune in the middle of the pyramid. Entrepreneurship Education, Incubation, Acceleration: So how is this possible to accomplish? The answer to this question is not finance. It is education. In fact, again, the entrepreneurship ecosystem is misreading the challenge and running after financing as the solution. I don't believe that. I believe entrepreneurship education is of paramount importance. And that is what will drive broad adoption of a Capitalistic system of value creation as well as wealth creation, although, more modest than the billionaire fortunes. No, we will not create a million billionaires and that kind of excess is not necessary. Brexit: Greece Example: Just to give you an example, the morning after the Brexit vote, as Europe watched in horror, I spoke with a Greek entrepreneur who runs a $5M company called MarineTraffic. People are leaving Europe in droves right now. Europe is a fine example of the kind of disaster that Socialism creates. And yet, here, Demitris Memos had created a successful business from Athens that speaks to my vision: democratic, distributed capitalism. As of July 2016, youth unemployment rate in Greece stands at 50.3%. Spain is at 43.9%. Italy is at 39.2%. France is at 24.4%. It's a dreadful, tragic story of several lost generations. If Europe could mint a million entrepreneurs like Demitris, the continent could be saved. Advertisement 1M/1M Vision: This is my work today. In 2010, I founded One Million by One Million - 1M/1M for short - the first global virtual accelerator in the world. Our mission is to help a million entrepreneurs reach a million dollars and beyond in annual revenue, build a trillion dollars in global GDP and 10 million jobs. We run this out of Silicon Valley but work with entrepreneurs all over the world. What we do: The program is first and foremost an online educational program where you get to learn the nuances of technology entrepreneurship from over 700 successful entrepreneurs. We also do active mentoring, and make introductions to potential customers, channel partners, investors, media, analysts, etc. Freshdesk example: One of the companies from the program, Freshdesk, has raised almost $150 million in venture capital and has some 40,000 customers around the world. The company was born in Chennai, but has moved headquarters to San Francisco recently. I am very proud of Freshdesk. Siliguri example: I am, however, equally proud of a different type of entrepreneur that I have encountered through our work. You see, we do these free online mentoring sessions every week. One day, a first year college student from Siliguri, a small town in India in the foothills of the Himalayas, came to the mentoring roundtable and pitched an idea that he was working on. He wanted to use Uber-style GPS-enabled technology to power a small business delivery network in his regional market. I found it fascinating that this boy had come up with a decent concept, found 1M/1M, and was pitching this to me, half a world away. And this happens every week. We work with entrepreneurs from all corners of the world - not just India, but Africa, Asia, Latin America. And of course, US and Europe continue to be big markets for our work. Optimistic in the next couple of decades: I do believe entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial capitalism can be democratized, and wealth can be created in the middle of the pyramid using capitalistic principles. In the next 2-3 decades, the potential for distributed capitalism is very high and the outcome should be extremely positive around the world. Bootstrapping with a Paycheck: Now, the job loss due to automation has already started, as we speak. So, for those in large corporations, I have a simple word of wisdom: start a small side business while you still have a job. Bootstrap your startup with your paycheck. This way, if the axe falls, you have a fallback position. Older Engineers: Layoffs, please note, tend to skew older. The white-collar job loss that is coming will impact older engineers (and older workers in general) much more severely. Start preparing now, while you still have a job, and line up your ducks. You will need to build a micro business of your own. Beyond 30 years: In the 30-50 year timeframe and beyond, technology and automation will create tremendous disruption. 60-80% of ALL jobs will, likely, get automated. At that point, Capitalism fails, and the only solution would be Universal Basic Income. It's not hard to see how President-elect Donald Trump's appointment process veered sharply away from what makes sense for his political positioning. It was when he reacted to stories about his close ally and would-be secretary of state Rudy Giuliani's supposed conflicts of interest by floating Mitt Romney as his alternative choice. That Romney was quickly groveling for the job, giving the lie to all his supposedly discerning rejection of Trump's candidacy during the campaign, was mordantly amusing and ultimately revealing about Romney. But it was also wildly out of synch with Trump's own positioning from the campaign just past. If anything, it got worse as Trump proceeded to make a string of "Walter White" appointments, i.e., people who are antithetical to the purpose of the offices to which they have been nominated. ('Saturday Night Live,' all too often smug and not especially funny when it comes to Trump, scored big when it brought Bryan Cranston in to play his iconic 'Breaking Bad' character, the Southwestern meth king supposedly having been named by Trump as the new head of the Drug Enforcement Agency.) Advertisement In fact, some of Trump's picks are just that darkly comical. They include dim bulb far right ex-Texas Governor Rick Perry as secretary of energy, the department he famously forgot -- during a presidential debate, no less! -- that he had pledged to abolish. Below you can see the lengthy sequence, which includes Perry's fellow candidates "helping" him by trying to prompt his his recollection of the three agencies he would abolish with their suggestions. The footage is funnier than most any scripted comedy skit could be. Then there's Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, like Perry another climate change denier. This poor fellow, supposed to be the new head of the Environmental Protection Agency, is such a zealot anti-regulationist that he doesn't care that his state now suffers from swarms of earthquakes brought on by untrammeled fracking. Like the pick of clueless Perry, who from time to time has tried to match wits with Governor Jerry Brown, heheh, the Pruitt pick is mordantly amusing. Is this some sort of Trumpist satire, perhaps, the former Democrat's caricature of his recently adopted Republican Party's anti-ecology thinking as a sort of performance art? Advertisement If Trump, who did take a lengthy meeting with Al Gore at the estimable Ivanka Trump's urging, really is serious about the nitwit policies that such appointments seem to imply, he is quite delusional about the nature of his extremely slender election mandate. 'Saturday Night Live' scored with this skit featuring the appointment of 'Breaking Bad' icon Walter White as Trump's chief of the Drug Enforcement Agency. He is president-elect only because, as I warned before the election, he ended up winning a few industrial/former industrial states in the great middle of the country -- states previously won by Barack Obama -- by the narrowest of margins against a candidate whose husband's trade policies eviscerated the region's working class. And who herself seeks every excuse under the sun to distract from her unresponsive and stunningly misconceived campaign. (The FBI did it, fake news did it, the Russians did it, etc.) And yet Hillary Clinton, despite her campaign shortcomings and very problematic nature -- never forget that the revelations from Russian intelligence via Wikileaks are all true, speaking of inconvenient truths, though they were given relative short shrift by the campaign and most of the media at the time -- also won the national popular vote. She defeated Trump by nearly 3 million votes, just over two percentage points, the biggest popular vote margin in any of the five elections in which the popular vote loser managed to prevail in the electoral college. Advertisement Many are alarmed by all the generals in the emerging Trump government. There are four four and three-star generals so far in the Cabinet and senior White House staff. In an upcoming piece called "All the President's Generals," I"ll take an in-depth look at them and at how Obama related to his own potential assets with multiple stars. On balance, I'm not bothered by all Trump's generals. They come from a military tradition I'm comfortable with and have demonstrated expertise in their fields. That includes controversial new National Security Advisor Mike Flynn. He's problematic in a way, but is clearly an outstanding intelligence officer. And, as the critical media profiles of Flynn invariably neglect to mention, Flynn was right very early on about Isis while the Obama National Security Council, as I wrote repeatedly while Isis rampaged unchecked, was oh so wrong. No, the problem is not with Trump's generals, it's with Trump's civilians. He promised a cleansing populism, decrying fat cats and cozy insiderism all across the vast country. Yet he is delivering rampant fat cat-ism. The head of controversial Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs as head of the National Economic Council? What is this, the Bill Clinton White House? "Meet the new boss, same as ..." He's put a couple billionaire vulture capitalists in top Cabinet posts on the economy. We're getting a new secretary for the public education system, another billionaire, who wants to privatize schools. A new health secretary who not only wants to roll back Obamacare but also wants to privatize Medicare. There's notoriously clueless presidential candidate Ben Carson, especially ignorant about housing, in charge of a department that provides much of the social safety net he ideologically opposes. A fast food mogul who flourished by exploiting low-wage workers in charge of a Labor Department overseeing the minimum wage. Advertisement You get the gist. And now a proposed secretary of state, ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson, who is supposed represent the broad American interest who instead, never having served in the military or government, has spent his entire adult life pushing the fundamentally amoral transnational interests of the world's largest oil company. There are good reasons why Trump won, as longtime readers know, reasons that go far beyond the mostly bogus excuses dreamed up by all the pols and media types who never understood the election. But Americans simply did not vote for this sort of government. Former Texas Governor Rick Perry, an incongruous pick as secretary of energy, famously forgets his pledge to abolish the department. Frankly, this government is looking, so far, much like the historic pattern of a neo-fascist government, as I warned early this year. Advertisement The leader pushes a brand of anti-intellectual populism, all the while privately aligned with and promoting the interests of very rich hardline conservatives. Ironically, given the controversy over the role of Russian intelligence in releasing damaging information on the Clintons and their national and international political networks through Wikileaks, Trump's new would-be secretary of state is closely and very publicly aligned with the Kremlin. In addition to palling around with one of President Vladimir Putin's closest longtime associates, he even accepted the Russian Order of Friendship from Putin. And to think I've turned down appearing on the RT (Russia Today) news channel to keep my opposition to the foolish new cold war promoted by Clinton in the proper context. I explained the decades long enmity between the Clintons and the Kremlin in July. There's far more to say about the Russian connection to all this and I will get to it as we go forward. Suffice to say for now that, while the Clintons grabbing at this as the latest excuse for her defeat -- she didn't cancel her long-planned election night fireworks show until election eve, you know -- is more than a little pathetic, so too is Trump's insistence that Russia was not involved. That spin certainly will not stand. By Michelle DeFreese Elections have dominated the headlines in 2016. It seems that every major region of the world has been affected by electoral turbulence this year. But Gabon's 2016 presidential election failed to garner the attention of international media despite widespread voter fraud, corruption, and political violence that culminated in the arson of the parliament building in Libreville and left as many as 100 people dead. The stakes are high in oil-rich Gabon, and the election is a troubling sign for economic development and political governance trends in Central Africa. In Gabon, the costs of maintaining the status quo are high. Authoritarian rule has stifled reform and economic growth, which, compounded with Gabon's oil wealth, has led to staggering economic inequality. Meanwhile, the precedent of 50 years of Bongo family rule left voters with little confidence in incumbent Ali Bongo's integrity. Bongo, the son of former President Omar Bongo, was challenged by veteran diplomat Jean Ping. With years of diplomatic service and experience as Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union, Ping won the support of would-be political rivals early in the presidential race. Candidate Roland Desire Aba-a Minko and three other presidential hopefuls withdrew and supported Ping to challenge Bongo. Despite strong political opposition and activism, indications of voter fraud and corruption were prevalent. Haut-Ogooue province--a stronghold of the incumbent Ali Bongo--reported a 99.93 percent voter turnout with 95 percent of the votes in favor of the president. By comparison, the overall voter participation rate in the country was 59.26 percent. Although called a "clear anomaly" by EU election observers, the election result was upheld by the country's constitutional court and electoral commission. Advertisement After the results were announced, Libreville erupted in violence. The parliament building was set on fire by opposition demonstrators protesting the election results. As many as 1,100 arrests were made with estimates of the number of casualties of post-election violence dead ranging from three to one-hundred. The severity of the public reaction and swiftness of the response resembled the protests that followed the 2009 election--a pattern that may very well repeat itself in the 2023 elections. There are few options for intervention in Gabon. Upon opposition leader Ping's insistence, the International Criminal Court (ICC) opened a preliminary probe on September 29, 2016 to determine whether or not it will proceed with a formal investigation into the post-election violence. In addition, a delegation led by Chad's Idriss Deby has been sent by the African Union to mediate the dispute. The United Nations, for its part, did not intervene. And while France, the United States, and the European Union have called for the results of the polling stations to be released, the request has been refused. Still, the region's electoral bodies and commissions, as well as external mediators, have largely failed. The lack of confidence in external mediators and trust in internal powers, as well as perceived superficial adherence among the international community to democratic norms, has frustrated the region's citizens and the diaspora abroad. In an international system plagued by inaction, failures to address anomalies and abuses of transitions of power are precursors to more significant crises. For now, with another seven years of Bongo family rule secured, progress on reducing Gabon's income inequality is unlikely. With looming austerity measures for the 2017 fiscal year, the World Bank anticipates budget cuts for the health sector, which will further constrain services to the country's most vulnerable populations. Advertisement Reinforced by the malaise of the structures designed to oversee transitions of power, the cycles of wealth inequality and disproportionate political influence persist in Central Africa. Unresponsive political systems enable political strongmen and dynasties. Without incentives for institutions to implement change and allow citizens greater political influence, the juxtaposition of poverty and power remains at the core of the continent. Reno Commission puts liquor by drink without food sales on 2023 ballot Hutchinson board acts quickly to respond to brewery's dilemma, but vote is more than a year away. Adams Fire Department Deliver Gifts To Family In Need ADAMS, Mass. A family in need this season got a visit from some local Santas: the Alert Hose Company. But rather than by reindeer-drawn sleigh, the gifts arrived by fire truck this past Sunday morning. Fire Chief Paul Goyette said this year the Fire Department sponsored a family through the Berkshire Community Action Center Elf program. "They asked us to sponsor a family and instill some Christmas cheer to a local family," he said. "So we purchased some gifts and delivered them to a family." Goyette said this is the first time the Fire Department has sponsored a family through the Elf program. Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Independent Climate email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Britains biggest energy company, Centrica, is facing calls for a boycott after it emerged a US subsidiary gave thousands of pounds to a think tank that promotes climate science denial even though the company claims to be a world leader on action to address global warming. A list of donors to the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF), which was leaked to the Texas Observer, shows Direct Energy gave US$20,000 in 2010. And Centrica, which owns British Gas, told environmental campaign group Greenpeace that it had continued to provide funding since then, although it did not provide further figures. As the biggest electricity and gas supplier in the UK, serving about 11 million homes, Centricas business involves producing a large share of the countrys greenhouse gases. However the company says it is internationally recognised as a global leader for action and disclosure on climate change and insists it believes climate change is one of societys greatest global challenges. This view contrasts sharply with those of the TPPF, which has been praised by climate science denier Rick Perry who will be US Energy Secretary under President Donald Trump for opposing the hysteria of global warming. At the TPPFs third annual energy and climate policy summit earlier this month, Senator Jim Inhofe, who once took a snowball into the Senate as evidence against global warming, was one of two keynote speakers. It appeared from Mr Inhofes speech that the event was designed for climate science deniers. He told the audience that all of my heroes were in attendance and added: I look at each one of you as an army of 200, you are voices out there in the wilderness with me and I love all of you for it. Recommended Carney says business must be more honest about climate change risks Mr Inhofe said he had initially believed scientists warnings about climate change. I assumed that was probably right until I found out about the cost, he said. I started looking at it and started talking to some of the scientists and thats when I used the nasty word hoax. Unlike Mr Trump, who has said China was behind the hoax, Mr Inhofe claimed it was a plot by the UN dating back to the 1970s to create a global carbon tax as a source of funds not reliant on member states. If they are able to come up with a carbon dioxide tax or something like that, they dont have to be accountable to anyone, Mr Inhofe said. Thats really what its all about. In June this year, 31 scientific bodies wrote to the US Congress with the basic message that climate change is real, is already happening and is being caused by greenhouse gases produced by human activities. After a near 1C increase in temperatures in little over a century some species are already struggling to cope, with evidence of significant local extinctions of plants and animals. The Arctic is set to be almost completely free of sea ice for the first time in nearly 100,000 years, opening up new shipping lanes and, ironically, allowing oil exploration in previously inaccessible areas. 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Show all 10 1 /10 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A group of emperor penguins face a crack in the sea ice, near McMurdo Station, Antarctica Kira Morris 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Floods destroyed eight bridges and ruined crops such as wheat, maize and peas in the Karimabad valley in northern Pakistan, a mountainous region with many glaciers. In many parts of the world, glaciers have been in retreat, creating dangerously large lakes that can cause devastating flooding when the banks break. Climate change can also increase rainfall in some areas, while bringing drought to others. Hira Ali 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Smoke filled with the carbon that is driving climate change drifts across a field in Colombia. Sandra Rondon 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Amid a flood in Islampur, Jamalpur, Bangladesh, a woman on a raft searches for somewhere dry to take shelter. Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable places in the world to sea level rise, which is expected to make tens of millions of people homeless by 2050. Probal Rashid 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Sindh province in Pakistan has experienced a grim mix of two consequences of climate change. Because of climate change either we have floods or not enough water to irrigate our crop and feed our animals, says the photographer. Picture clearly indicates that the extreme drought makes wide cracks in clay. Crops are very difficult to grow. Rizwan Dharejo 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Hanna Petursdottir examines a cave inside the Svinafellsjokull glacier in Iceland, which she said had been growing rapidly. Since 2000, the size of glaciers on Iceland has reduced by 12 per cent. Tom Schifanella 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A river once flowed along the depression in the dry earth of this part of Bangladesh, but it has disappeared amid rising temperatures. Abrar Hossain 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A shepherd moves his herd as he looks for green pasture near the village of Sirohi in Rajasthan, northern India. The region has been badly affected by heatwaves and drought, making local people nervous about further predicted increases in temperature. Riddhima Singh Bhati 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A factory in China is shrouded by a haze of air pollution. The World Health Organisation has warned such pollution, much of which is from the fossil fuels that cause climate change, is a public health emergency. Leung Ka Wa 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Water levels in reservoirs, like this one in Gers, France, have been getting perilously low in areas across the world affected by drought, forcing authorities to introduce water restrictions. Mahtuf Ikhsan A number of small islands in the South Pacific have also disappeared. TPPF has also received money from oil firms such as ExxonMobil, Chevron and the Koch brothers, business tycoons who have provided large amounts of money to fund opposition to measures designed to address climate change. Craig Bennett, chief executive of environmental campaigners Friends of the Earth, suggested people might want to avoid buying gas and electricity from Centrica because of its support for the group. Until companies think twice about where they put their money, and what that money supports, consumers may think twice about where to buy their energy in the first place, he said. Green Party MP Caroline Lucas said: For a company that has claimed to be at the forefront of action on climate change, it is simply astounding that Centrica is donating money to climate deniers. Now that these links have come to light, we need a clear commitment from Centrica to end all further donations. It is shameful that one of our largest energy companies is linked to this reckless and irresponsible organisation, and I hope an apology will be issued shortly. And she added: If youve ever thought of switching supplier, now is the time to do it! Dale Vince, founder of UK renewable energy company Ecotricity, called for a boycott. The biggest single cause of climate change in our country is energy and so British Gas being the biggest single supplier of gas and electricity in the land are simultaneously the biggest cause of climate change, he said. And they are actually funding climate change denial? Well, I think thats incredible. Centrica told The Independent that the money given to TPPF was not related to its stance on climate change, but because it looked into tax policies, healthcare, safe neighbourhoods and other issues of concern to the subsidiarys staff in the US. However a spokesman for the firm said the money it gives goes into a central fund and is not ring-fenced for any particular project. In an emailed statement, Centrica said: We have a very clear position on climate change and we believe in the need to take material action to reduce the effect of fossil fuels on climate change. We believe the science around climate change is clear and there is an urgent need for precautionary action including setting a meaningful price for carbon dioxide and shifting the energy mix towards a lower carbon future. Centrica has been identified as a global leader for action and disclosure on climate change by CDP, an international non-governmental organisation reporting to investors representing around a third of the worlds invested capital. It added that the company did not make donations to political parties or political organisations and we operate on a politically neutral basis. Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} From now until Christmas, groups of foodies after something special can book themselves a table at Nuno Mendes laidback Portuguese restaurant Taberna do Mercado and tuck into leitao assado Portuguese-style suckling pig and a whole host of side dishes inspired by the country. Deboned, pressed and cooked until the skin turns crisp as a shard of glass, the entire pig is presented as one perfectly-fried block, ready for everyone to dig into, with the legs cooked separately on the side. The task of preparing these pigs falls on the shoulders of head chef Antonio Galapito, who has been working on and off with Nuno for the past seven years. Its no mean feat; the whole process takes three days from start to finish, but the results are stunning. Its no wonder the dish is the centrepiece to many Portuguese Christmas feasts. Once it's split a combination of coriander, white pepper garlic and bay leaves is weighed out for the marinade Portuguese food is very heavy and homely and tends to centre around a few ingredients pork, bacalhau (salted cod), potatoes, carrots and tomatoes, explains Antonio. But with these few elements there are so many different ways of cooking everything. Every region has its own dishes and specialities, and the north and south of the country certainly differ. Every single bone is removed from the meat and set aside in a large pot While Christmas doesnt mean suckling pig for everyone in Portugal bacalhau is the preferred dish in some regions and for many its the desserts that steal the show for Antonio and Nuno its entwined with festive feasting. There are two regions of Portugal that are famous for producing suckling pig, explains Antonio. I come from near Sintra, in the centre of the country, which is where the pigs we work with come from. All the bones and brains are boiled up with herbs and reduced into a thick, incredibly porky sauce The other place is called Mealhada, Bairrada in the northwest, which is very famous for this dish. In Sintra the pig tends to be cooked with lots of paprika and white wine, with the pig split open and cooked over a wood fire, whereas in Mealhada it is flavoured with bay leaf and garlic, but roasted whole so the meat is crisp on the outside and steamed within. Food and drink news Show all 35 1 /35 Food and drink news Food and drink news Healthy living makes us more inclined to binge, research suggests Gluten-free breads, dairy-free milks and other plant-based products have been some of the most favoured foods in British supermarkets this year. However, while were busy filling our shopping trolleys with gluten-free goodness, were also jamming it with junk food and alcohol, new research suggests Getty/iStock Food and drink news Growing list of Vegan celebs Making the switch to veganism is a major lifestyle choice, one that many claim can improve energy levels, lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and clear up any skin issues. Beyonce, Natalie Portman and Jessica Chastain are among the growing list of Hollywood stars who have eschewed animal products from their diets in recent years. Theres also been an increasing number of professional athletes who have gone vegan, such as boxing champions Mike Tyson and David Haye, thus debunking the myth that following a plant-based diet will leave you feeling weak and malnourished. AFP/Getty/NARAS/iHeartMedia Food and drink news McDonald's has announced the launch of a new vegan burger on its menu in Germany This will mark the first time the German franchise of the fast food chain has offered a vegan burger to its customers. The Big Vegan TS burger consists of a patty made from soy and wheat. It is served in a classic sesame seed bun, and contains salad, tomato, pickles and red onion. McDonald's Germany Food and drink news Drinking too many protein shakes could lead to an increased risk of obesity and a reduced lifespan, a new study has claimed Researchers from the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre carried out an investigation to determine the impact excessive consumption of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) has on the body. BCAA supplements are often consumed in the form of powder, which is then added to water to make a shake. Published in journal Nature Metabolism, the study found that while BCAAs help to build muscle, they can also negatively impact an individual's temperament, cause weight gain and lead to a shortened lifespan Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Britain consumes more chocolate than any other country Most people love chocolate but it turns out no one does more than the Brits with the average Brit found to have consumed 8.4 kg of chocolate in 2017, according to new data. Chocolate consumption around the world is on the rise, according to Mintel Global New Products Database (GNPD), which found that in the past year alone, Easter chocolate production has risen by 23 per cent Food and drink news 'Easter eggs should be banned for children under four' Dr Becky Spelman, chief psychologist at Harley Streets Private Therapy Clinic, is calling for Easter eggs to be banned for consumption for children under the age of four, claiming that giving them the opportunity to binge on chocolate so young will give them an unhealthy relationship with food later on. "This is a nightmare situation for parents of this generation as they have no idea how to teach their children to delay their response to cravings, she said, explaining that too many young kids binge on these chocolates because their parents dont know how to stop them. "Once a child starts overeating behaviour at a young age its very hard to turn things around for them in terms of food and their eating habits moving forward, leading to obesity from at very young age," she added PA Food and drink news Pineapple overtakes avocado as the UK's fastest-selling fruit According to Tesco, pineapple has overtaken avocado as the UKs fastest-selling fruit, with sales increasing by 15 per cent in 2017. In comparison, avocado sales rose by just under 10 per cent last year. The popular supermarket says the surge in popularity comes as shoppers buying the versatile fruit are beginning to use it as a main ingredient in everything from curries and barbecues, to juices and cocktails Getty Food and drink news Marks & Spencers launches stoneless avocados Rather than the result of genetic modification, the avocados are formed by an unpollinated avocado blossom. The fruit develops without a seed which in turns stops the growth, creating a small, seedless fruit. Whats more, the skin is actually edible, unlike a regular avocado. The flesh is much like that of a normal avocado - smooth and creamy, pale in colour and rich in flavour M&S Food and drink news Office teabags contain 17 times more germs than a toilet seat, reveals study The average bacterial reading of an office teabag was 3,785, in comparison to only 220 for a toilet seat. Other pieces of kitchen equipment also stacked up highly in their findings, with the bacterial readings averaging at 2,483 on kettle handles, 1,746 on the rim of a used mug and 1,592 on a fridge door handle Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New study shows drinking more coffee leads to a longer life There is good news and a final hope for coffee addicts and lovers. You will now be able to drink coffee for longer as new study shows its can lead to a prolonged life. Scientists showed that those who drank between two and four cups of coffee a day had 18% lower risk of death compared to non-coffee drinkers. PA Food and drink news Coke Zero is replaced with Coke Zero Sugar Coca-Cola is pulling the plug on its Coke Zero. The much loved drink will be replaced with a new improved taste. The move, backed with a 10 million campaign, is said to come from Coca-Cola supporting people to reduce their sugar intake. Coca-Cola want people make this move while not sacrificing sugary taste of Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola Food and drink news Starbucks introduce new avocado spread The avocado craze has grown from hipster brunch restaurants to Starbucks. Starbucks have introduced their new avocado spread earlier this year and it has the internet in debate. Some argue that it not a spread but guacamole while others question if there is any avocado in there at all. When buying the new spread you can also buy an optional toasted bagel. It is a must try for all avocado connoisseurs. Starbucks Food and drink news New Mars chocolate bar The iconic British chocolate bar is about to get its partner in crime. The new bar, named Goodness Knows, will replace the gooey caramel goodness of the mars bar with oats. It is said to be more like a Florentine biscuit with a thin dark chocolate bottom. While being moderately healthy Mars says that is has good intentions. One pack has 154 calories and will sell for about 90p. Mars Food and drink news Wine prices could increase because of Brexit Wine lovers across the UK might soon have to shell out close to a quarter more for their favourite tipple after Brexit, as a weaker pound and sluggish economy takes its toll, a new study shows Rex Food and drink news Chocolate may be good for the heart A new study, published in the British Medical Journal: Heart, found that moderate chocolate intake can be positively associated with lessening the risk of the heart arrhythmia condition Atrial Fibrillation Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Brits throw away 1.4 million bananas each year British families are throwing away 1.4 million bananas that are perfectly good to eat every day at cost of 80m a year, new figures have shown PA/Armin Weigel Food and drink news Rosemary sales spike over exam time There has been a surge a surge in sales of the herb rosemary after a recent study found it helps improve memory. According to high street health food chain Holland & Barrett, sales of the herb have increased by 187 per cent compared to the same time last year Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Gluten-free diets 'not recommended' for people without coeliac disease Avoiding wheat, barley and rye in the belief that a gluten-free diet brings health benefits may do more harm than good, according to a team of US nutrition and medicine experts Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Starbucks launches two new coffee-based drinks Starbucks is launching two new coffee-based drinks in the UK, as it strives to tap into consumers growing appetite for healthy beverages. The Cold Brew Vanilla sweet cream and the Cappuccino Freddo, will both be available in stores throughout the UK from the start of May Twitter/@SbuxCountyHall Food and drink news Cadburys Dairy Milk Tiffin is making a permanent comeback after 80 years The Cadbury Dairy Milk Tiffin, first produced in 1937, is making a permanent comeback to the UK. The raisin and biscuit-filled chocolate bar is being launched after a successful trial last summer saw 3 million chocolate treats at the cost of 1.49 for each 95g bar- purchased by nostalgic customers Cadburys Food and drink news Pizza restaurant makes worlds cheesiest 'Scottie's Pizza Parlor' in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Facebook/Scottie's Pizza Parlor Food and drink news A pizza joint in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Why not eating before a workout could be better for your health A study published in the American Journal of Physiology by researchers at the University of Bath found you might be likely to burn more fat if you have not eaten first Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New York restaurant named best in the world A New York restaurant where an average meal for two will cost $700 has been named the best in the world. Eleven Madison Park won the accolade for the first time after debuting on the list at number 50 in 2010. The restaurant was praised for a fun sense of fine-dining, blurring the line between the kitchen and the dining room Getty Images Food and drink news Why you crave bad food when youre tired Researchers at Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University in Chicago recently presented their results of a study looking into the effects of sleep deprivation upon high-calorific food consumption. Researchers found that those who were sleep-deprived had specifically enhanced brain activity to the food smells compared to when they had a good nights sleep Shutterstock Food and drink news Drinking wine engages more of your brain than solving maths problems Drinking wine is the ideal workout for your brain, engaging more parts of our grey matter than any other human behaviour, according to a leading neuroscientist. Dr Gordon Shepherd, from the Yale School of Medicine, said sniffing and analysing a wine before drinking it requires exquisite control of one of the biggest muscles in the body Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news British dessert eating surges after people ditch healthy eating in February : In heartening news for anyone feeling guilty about quitting their New Year diet, it seems lots of us have given in to our sweet tooths once again. New data from nationwide food-delivery service Deliveroo reveals there was a surge in Brits ordering desserts in February compared to the first month of 2017 Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news US congress debates definition of milk alternatives A new bill has been created that seeks to ban dairy alternatives from using the term milk. Titled the DAIRY PRIDE Act, the name is a tenuous acronym for defending against imitations and replacements of yogurt, milk, and cheese to promote regular intake of dairy every day. It argues that the dairy industry is struggling as a result of all the dairy-free alternatives on the market and the public are being duped too Getty Images Food and drink news Cadburys launches two new chocolate bars UK confectionary giant Cadbury has launched two new chocolate bars, hoping to lure those with a sweet tooth and perhaps help combat some of the challenges it faces from rising commodity prices and a post-Brexit slump in the value of the pound.The companys new products will be peanut butter and mint flavoured. They will be available in most major super markets as 120g bars, priced at 1.49, according to the company Cadburys Food and drink news You can now get a job as a professional chocolate eater The company responsible for some of your favourite chocolate brands think Cadbury, Milks, Prince and Oreo have officially announced an opening to join their team as a professional chocolate taster. The successful candidate will help them to test, perfect and launch new products all over the world. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news MSG additive used in Chinese food is actually good for you, scientist claims For years, weve been told MSG (the sodium salt of glutamic acid) - often associated with cheap Chinese takeaways - is awful for our health and to be avoided at all costs. But one scientist argues it should be used as a supersalt and encourages adding it to food. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Lettuce prices are rising Not only are lettuces becoming an increasingly rare commodity in supermarkets, but prices for the leafy vegetables seem to be rising too. According to the weekly report from the Governments Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, a pair of Little Gem lettuces had an average market price of 0.86 in the week that ended on Friday, up from an average of 0.56 in the previous week thats an almost 54 per cent increase. Getty Images Food and drink news Do-It-Yourself restaurant To encourage more people to cook and eat together, IKEA has launched The Dining Club in Shoreditch a fully immersive Do-It-Yourself restaurant . Members of the public can book to host a brunch, lunch or dinner party for up to 20 friends and family. Supported by their very own sous chef and maitre de, the host and their guests will orchestrate an intimate dining experience where cooking together is celebrated and eating together is inspirational Mikael Buck / IKEA Food and drink news Ping Pong menu with a twist Gatwick Airport has teamed up with London dim sum restaurant Ping Pong to create a limited edition menu with a distinctly British twist; including a Full English Bao and Beef Wellington Puff, to celebrate the launch of the airports new route to Hong Kong Food and drink news Zizzi unveil the Maamgharita Unique pizza art has been created by Zizzi in celebration of the Queens 90th birthday. The pizza features the queen in an iconic pose illustrated with fresh and tasty Italian ingredients on a backdrop of the Union Jack Food and drink news Blue potatoes make a comeback Blue potatoes, once a staple part of British potato crops, are back on the menu thanks to a Cambridge scientist turned-organic farmer and Farmdrop, an online marketplace that lets people buy direct from local farms. Cambridge PhD graduate-turned farmer, Adrian Izzard has used traditional growing techniques at Wild Country Organics to produce the colourful spuds, packed with healthy cell-protecting anthocyanin, which had previously disappeared from UK plates when post-war farmers were pushed towards higher-yielding varieties At Taberna do Mercado we combine the two processes we split the pig open like they do in Sintra but use the flavours of bay leaf, garlic and coriander seed to flavour the meat, he adds. Once its deboned, pressed and fried until crisp, youre left with this great big sheet of meat that you can just devour with your friends. We serve it with a really rich pig sauce made from the bones, and the whole thing is just really fun to eat. The meat is collected between two boards, pressed and chilled overnight. Then it is reheated and fried on a plancha over a low heat until the fat renders down and the skin crisps up While its certainly fun for the diners, it takes Antonio days of prep to get the pork to taste just how he wants it. And its certainly not for the squeamish the whole pig is split open, steamed, then picked clean (head and all) before its ready for pressing. And we fully believe that if youre happy to eat one of the tastiest pork dishes on the planet, you should have no qualms seeing an image or two of how its made. When it comes to side dishes, the suckling pig is usually left well alone after all, with such an intensely porky and deliciously rich plate of food, you don't want to detract from the flavour. But at Taberna do Mercado, Antonio serves many of his other beloved small plates alongside, so diners get plenty to choose from, along with Portuguese charcuterie and cheeses with plenty of chewy grilled bread to ensure no one is left hungry. So there you have it while the sheet of suckling pig is incredibly easy to eat (no bones mean you can simply stick your fork in, twist, and be rewarded with a mouthful of tender, flavourful meat), it takes three days and many different processes to get it to the final stage. Portuguese food might not be as well-known as French, Spanish or Italian, but with dishes like this on the menu it can't be long before we start to appreciate this simple yet delicious cuisine. This article orginally appeared on the Great British Chefs. Visit greatbritishchefs.com for more recipes Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Debenhams has pulled some handbags from its shelves after it emerged that their 'fake fur' pom pom was actually real. The department store says it will be investigating a problem with its supply chain, following an investigation by ITV's Good Morning Britain. A spokesman said an external brand was to blame, and the store took "immediate action" - in line with its no fur policy. The item has now been removed from the shop floor and website, with the spokesman adding: "We are investigating with the brand how this item entered the brands supply chain." The TV investigation followed a tip-off by campaigners, and also saw a reporter go undercover in Forever 21 and Westside, to find the products she believed were real fur. Recommended 15 best vegan accessories In both stores, the reporter said she was told by shop assistants that the items a pom pom bag charm and hooded parka were not real animal fur. To check their legitimacy, she sent the products off to a fur expert who said that they were in fact real. We sent both of these items off to an expert in Leeds who can basically tell if something is real or fake because real fur has a protective layer, you simply cant do things like mother nature, she said. He found that both of these are indeed real fur. The fur expert was also able to identify which animals the fur apparently came from. He said the bag pom pom from Forever 21 was consistent with Angora rabbit while the fur on the parka from Westside came from Racoon Dog. Thats shocking because in 2014, Forever 21 was on a list of retailers who reportedly banned Angora from their shops, because of the way the fur is plucked from these rabbits, its not done in a nice way, theyre still alive, a lot of them are in a lot of pain." Recommended The most counterfeited handbags of all time and how to spot them The Independent has contacted both Forever 21 and Westside for comment. If youre partial to a touch of fur but dont want to run the risk of wearing the real thing there are some key things to look out for. If you part the fur at the base you should see a fabric or mesha base; if you see a leathery substance then its most likely to be real. Similarly, if you have already bought the product, you could try removing a portion of the fur and burning it. If the fur frazzles then its real, if its synthetic it should melt like plastic. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The US is about to launch cyber attacks against Russia, Barack Obama has suggested. The country is intending to "do stuff" to the country in retaliation for what he said was Vladimir Putin's state's interference in the election. President Obama said that the White House intends to send a clear message to Russia that intrusions into its elections and computer systems wouldn't be tolerated. But he didn't make clear what that response would be. President Donald Trump life in pictures Show all 16 1 /16 President Donald Trump life in pictures President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump poses in a rocking chair once used by President John F. Kennedy at his New York City residence Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Developer Donald Trump with his new bride Marla Maples after their wedding at the Plaza hotel in New York Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and Celina Midelfart watch the match between Conchita Martinez and Amanda Coetzer during U.S. Open. She was the date whom Donald Trump was with when he met his current wife Melania at a party in 1996 Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas serving as the grand marshal for the Daytona 500, speaks to Donald Trump and Melania Knauss on the starting grid at the Daytona International Speedwa Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Developer Donald Trump talks with his former wife Ivana Trump during the men's final at the U.S. Open Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and his friend Melania Knauss pose for photographers as they arrive at the New York premiere of Star Wars Episode : 'The Phantom Menace,' Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Billionaire real estate developer Donald Trump talks with host Larry King. Trump told King that he was moving toward a possible bid for the United States presidency with the formation of a presidential exploratory committee Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump answers questions as Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura looks on in Brooklyn Park. Trump said on Friday he 'very well might' make a run for president under the Reform Party banner but had not made a final decision Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Billionaire Donald Trump makes a face at a friend as he sits next to Panamanian President Mireya Moscoso before the start of the 2003 Miss Universe pageant in Panama City Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Entrepreneur Donald Trump is greeted by a Marilyn Monroe character look-a-alike, as he arrives at Universal Studios Hollywood to attend the an open casting call for his NBC television network reality series 'The Apprentice.' Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and Simon Cowell present an Emmy during the 56th annual Primetime Emmy Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and Megan Mullally perform at the 57th annual Primetime Emmy Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump, poses with his children, son Donald Trump, Jr., and daughters Tiffany and Ivanka Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Billionaire Donald Trump told Miss USA 2006 Tara Conner on Tuesday she would be given a second chance after reported misbehavior Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump holds a replica of his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame as his wife Melania holds their son Barron in Los Angeles Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures U.S. property mogul Donald Trump stands next to a bagpiper during a media event on the sand dunes of the Menie estate, the site for Trump's proposed golf resort, near Aberdeen, north east Scotland Reuters He said only that the US would look to send a clear message to Russia, or others, not to do this to us because we can do stuff to you. It's like that at least part of that response will remain secret, he said, claiming that "some of it we will do in a way that they will know, but not everybody will". That was apparently a reference to the US's own cyber weapons and hacking capabilities, which have been expanded over recent years. But it could also refer to other efforts, including traditional intelligence work and spying or sanctions on President Putin's associates. President Obama made the comments at his final press conference of the year, and potentially his last as the US President. In it, he addressed a range of issues but concentrated on intelligence reports claiming that the Russians had launched sustained and damaging hacking attempts on the US election which Hillary Clinton has claimed helped win Donald Trump the Presidency. President Obama said Russian hacking during the election was not "some elaborate, complicated espionage scheme." The unsophisticated nature of what transpired concerns him and "it should concern all of us," he said. During the same conference, he said that he had spoken with President Putin and told him to "cut it out". He also defended his own response to the hacking allegations when they were made at the time. President Obama said with the "hyperpartisan atmosphere" of the election, his main concern was the integrity of the election process. He said he wanted to make sure the U.S. public understood that the White House was trying to "play this thing straight." Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Japanese banks have told the Government they will begin moving operations to the EU within six months unless the Government can provide clarity on the UKs access to the single market. Banks including Nomura and Daiwa Capital Markets, which employ thousands of people in Britain, reportedly held a frank meeting with the City minister Simon Kirby and international trade minister Mark Garnier on 1 December. According to the Financial Times, one senior Japanese finance executive said it would be better for our EU-based customers to have an alternative hub. Ministers have met with top Japanese bank bosses, who reiterated fears about the potential negative impact of Brexit on their UK businesses and urged clarity from the Government about its plans. The Chancellor Philip Hammond has himself conceded on a trip to Japan this week that: Its fairly binary for them: they either have access to their markets or they dont have access. "If they have full access to the markets from London they can continue operating as now. If they dont, they will have to restructure the way their operations address the European market. Labour MP claims it's 'highly probable' Russia interfered with Brexit referendum I've been seeking to cement the UK-Japanese bilateral relationship, Hammond told reporters in Japan this week. Japan is Britain's second-most-important foreign direct investor after the United States. Japanese banks employ 5,000 people, mostly in London, with insurers and other financial groups employing many thousands more. Brexit Concerns Show all 26 1 /26 Brexit Concerns Brexit Concerns Brexit will put British patients at 'back of the queue' for new drugs Brexit will put British patients at the back of the queue for vital new drugs, the Government has been warned forcing them to wait up to two years longer A medicines regulator has raised the alarm over a likely decision to pull out of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), as well as the EU itself. ealth Secretary Jeremy Hunt dropped the bombshell , when he said he expected the UK would quit the EMA because it is subject to rulings by the European Court of Justice. Getty Images Brexit Concerns London to lose status as 'gateway to Europe' for banks One of Germanys top banking regulators has warned that London could lose its status as gateway to Europe for the banking sector after Britain quits the European trading bloc. Andreas Dombret, who is an executive board member for the BundesbankGermanys central banktold a private meeting of German businesses and banks earlier this week in Frankfurt that even if banking rules were equivalent between the UK and the rest of the EU, that was still miles away from [Britain having] access to the single market, the BBC reports. Jason Hawkes Brexit Concerns Exodus The number of financial sector professionals in Britain and continental Europe looking for jobs in Ireland rocketed in the months after the UK voted to leave the European Union Shutterstock Brexit Concerns Brexit is making FTSE 100 executives richer Pay packages of many FTSE 100 chief executive officers are partly tied to how well share prices are doing rather than the CEOs performance -- and some stocks are soaring. ritish equities got a boost since the June vote because the likes of Rio Tinto, Smiths Group and WPP generate most sales abroad and earn a fortune when they convert these revenues back into the weakened pound. Sterlings fall also made UK stocks more affordable for overseas investors. Rex Brexit Concerns Theresa May: UK to leave single market Theresa May has said the UK "cannot possibly" remain within the European single market, as staying in it would mean "not leaving the EU at all". Getty Brexit Concerns Lead campaigner Gina Miller and her team outside the High Court Getty Brexit Concerns Raymond McCord holds up his newly issued Irish passport alongside his British passport outside the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns SDLP leader Colum Eastwood leaving the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns Migrants with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Brexit Concerns Migrants leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Brexit Concerns The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra) which distributes approximately 700 meals daily in the northern Paris camp states that it is noticing a spike in new migrant arrivals this week, potentially linked the the Calais 'jungle' camp closure - with around 1000 meals distributed today EPA Brexit Concerns Migrant workers pick apples at Stocks Farm in Suckley, Britain Reuters Brexit Concerns Many farmers across the country are voicing concerns that Brexit could be a dangerous step into the unknown for the farming industry Getty Brexit Concerns Bank of England governor Mark Carney who said the long-term outlook for the UK economy is positive, but growth was slowing in the wake of the Brexit vote PA Brexit Concerns The Dow Jones industrial average closed down over 600 points on the news with markets around the globe pluninging Getty Brexit Concerns Immigration officers deal with each member of the public seeking entry into the United Kingdom but on average, 10 a day are refused entry at this London airport and between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport for mainly passport irregularities Getty Brexit Concerns A number of global investment giants have threatened to move their European operations out of London if Brexit proves to have a negative impact on their businesses Getty Brexit Concerns Following the possibility of a Brexit the UK would be released from its renewable energy targets under the EU Renewable Energy Directive and from EU state aid restrictions, potentially giving the government more freedom both in the design and phasing out of renewable energy support regimes Getty Brexit Concerns A woman looking at a chart showing the drop in the pound (Sterling) against the US Dollar in London after Britain voted to leave the EU Getty Brexit Concerns Young protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, to protest against the United Kingdom's decision to leave the EU following the referendum Getty Brexit Concerns Applications from Northern Ireland citizens for Irish Passports has soared to a record high after the UK Voted in favour of Leaving the EU Getty Brexit Concerns NFU Vice President Minette Batters with Secretary of State, Andrea Leadsome at the National Farmers Union (NFU) took machinery, produce, farmers and staff to Westminster to encourage Members of Parliament to back British farming, post Brexit Getty Brexit Concerns The latest reports released by the UK Cabinet Office warn that expats would lose a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, healthcare and public services. The same reports added that UK citizens abroad would not be able to assume that these rights will be guaranteed in the future Getty Brexit Concerns A British resident living in Spain asks questions during an informative Brexit talk by the "Brexpats in Spain" group, about Spanish legal issues to become Spanish citizens, at the town hall in Benalmadena, Spain Reuters Brexit Concerns The collapse of Great Britain appears to have been greatly exaggerated given the late summer crowds visiting city museums, hotels, and other important tourist attractions Getty Brexit Concerns The U.K. should maintain European Union regulations covering everything from working hours to chemicals until after the government sets out its plans for Brexit, said British manufacturers anxious to avoid a policy vacuum and safeguard access to their biggest export market Getty Japanese firms, like their US counterparts, have demanded confirmation that passporting would be maintained after the split, an assurance that Mr Hammond simply cannot give at present. Passporting allows EU firms to sell their services across the EUs 31 nations while only being subject to one set of regulations. Without confirmation, the exodus will reportedly begin in mid-2017. Mr Hammond is hoping to secure a transitional deal which will ensure a smooth and orderly Brexit rather than a cliff edge in 2019, when the two-year negotiation period will end. Without such a deal, firms face a mountain of rule changes and regulatory uncertainty. In September the Japanese government issued an unprecedented warning that the countrys firms would move their headquarters out of Britain if EU laws cease to be applicable. Japanese firms employ around 140,000 people in the UK, with Nomura bank, Hitachi and carmakers Honda, Nissan and Toyota all having major bases in the country. On Wednesday, it was revealed that 40 per cent of US firms with UK bases said they are considering moving to the EU because of uncertainty over Brexit. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Michael Sheen is reportedly so disturbed by the rise of far-right populism he is quitting acting to become an activist, and says he does not know if his relationship with Sarah Silverman will survive. Sheen will leave Silverman, his partner of two years, and family in Los Angeles and move to Port Talbot in south Wales to combat the wave of demagogic, fascistic politics he believes has engulfed the West in the past decade. He told The Times: In the same way as the Nazis had to be stopped in Germany in the Thirties, this thing that is on the rise has to be stopped. Its not going to look like this in 10 years time. Everything has shifted. The dice are being rolled again. President Donald Trump life in pictures Show all 16 1 /16 President Donald Trump life in pictures President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump poses in a rocking chair once used by President John F. Kennedy at his New York City residence Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Developer Donald Trump with his new bride Marla Maples after their wedding at the Plaza hotel in New York Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and Celina Midelfart watch the match between Conchita Martinez and Amanda Coetzer during U.S. Open. She was the date whom Donald Trump was with when he met his current wife Melania at a party in 1996 Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas serving as the grand marshal for the Daytona 500, speaks to Donald Trump and Melania Knauss on the starting grid at the Daytona International Speedwa Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Developer Donald Trump talks with his former wife Ivana Trump during the men's final at the U.S. Open Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and his friend Melania Knauss pose for photographers as they arrive at the New York premiere of Star Wars Episode : 'The Phantom Menace,' Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Billionaire real estate developer Donald Trump talks with host Larry King. Trump told King that he was moving toward a possible bid for the United States presidency with the formation of a presidential exploratory committee Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump answers questions as Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura looks on in Brooklyn Park. Trump said on Friday he 'very well might' make a run for president under the Reform Party banner but had not made a final decision Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Billionaire Donald Trump makes a face at a friend as he sits next to Panamanian President Mireya Moscoso before the start of the 2003 Miss Universe pageant in Panama City Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Entrepreneur Donald Trump is greeted by a Marilyn Monroe character look-a-alike, as he arrives at Universal Studios Hollywood to attend the an open casting call for his NBC television network reality series 'The Apprentice.' Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and Simon Cowell present an Emmy during the 56th annual Primetime Emmy Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and Megan Mullally perform at the 57th annual Primetime Emmy Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump, poses with his children, son Donald Trump, Jr., and daughters Tiffany and Ivanka Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Billionaire Donald Trump told Miss USA 2006 Tara Conner on Tuesday she would be given a second chance after reported misbehavior Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump holds a replica of his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame as his wife Melania holds their son Barron in Los Angeles Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures U.S. property mogul Donald Trump stands next to a bagpiper during a media event on the sand dunes of the Menie estate, the site for Trump's proposed golf resort, near Aberdeen, north east Scotland Reuters His steel-making hometown, population 37,000, voted for Brexit and the Welsh actor says his frustration at this has formed, in part, the impetus for his decision to begin his activism back where he began. His fears were exacerbated by the ascension of Donald Trump and the tensions stoked by his divisive rhetoric. Sheen has become increasingly politically and socially active since coordinating the 2011 play The Passion in Port Talbot with hundreds of local people. He works with the children's charity Unicef and has spent months travelling through Britain and Spain looking at community projects he could emulate in his hometown. The greatest service you can do is to serve the whole, is to serve the story that youre a part of, he added. The story is bigger than any one individual within it. In 2015, he gave a blistering, urgent speech about the dismantling of the NHS, the ineffectiveness of modern MPs, who he lambasted for being too careful, tentative, scared of saying what they feel for fear of alienating a part of the electorate, and the importance of conviction. Sheen said the overwhelming reaction to his speech, delivered at a rally in south Wales in the pouring rain, made him realise he could rouse support. He first posited moving back to the UK in an interview with The Telegraph in March. At the time, Sheen presented his plans as a new chapter which would also see him move into directing. Sheen has since clarified his comments in a statement, saying he is only considering putting his acting career on the backburner. The interviewer asked me what that meant for my career and I said it might mean I work less as an actor and maybe even stop for a while, he said on Sunday. Sheen said he might stop acting at some point but added: I dont really know yet. I certainly did NOT equate people who voted for Brexit or Trump with a fascistic 'hard right that must be stopped," he continued. "The majority of people in the UK, including my hometown of Port Talbot, voted for Brexit. That is the will of the people and is to be respected. That is democracy. Given the concerns around the economy in the area I come from and its industrial history I totally empathise with the dissatisfaction with the status quo that the vote was partially an expression of. This post has been updated For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Pope Francis has turned 80 today, a milestone birthday he celebrated by sharing breakfast with eight homeless people in the Vatican before heading to Mass. The Pope continues to be a charismatic, lively and energetic leader of the Catholic Church, despite losing a lung to an infection as a teenager. But becoming an octogenarian has left him grappling with his mortality, according to comments reported by the Associated Press. "For some days now, I have had in mind a word that seems ugly: old age, a thought that frightens." Francis is the Pope who has fought to do things differently to the rest, the man credited with overhauling the Catholic Churchs obsolete, dogmatic image into a more inclusive one. With his more progressive take on divorce and same-sex relationships, Francis helped pull Catholicism into the 21st century in a more forgiving form. He went against his predecessor Benedict XVIs apparent support for 'intelligent design' and declared the theories of evolution and the Big Bang are real. God is not a magician with a magic wand, he told the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in 2014. Just call me Frank: Is Pope Francis the most down-to-earth ever? Show all 2 1 /2 Just call me Frank: Is Pope Francis the most down-to-earth ever? Just call me Frank: Is Pope Francis the most down-to-earth ever? pope-francis1.jpg AP Just call me Frank: Is Pope Francis the most down-to-earth ever? pope-francis2.jpg AP A more austere pontiff, Francis has attacked unfettered capitalism and rejected many of the luxurious trappings offered to each Pope. This includes the palatial papal summer residence at Castelgandolfo which is now a museum. His comments veer off script and he is unafraid to delve into political happenings, memorably remarking that fake news and tabloid-like stories is like being sexually aroused by excrement after the US general election. In June, Francis said the Church should apologise to gay people for the way they have been treated. [Gay people] should not be discriminated against, he said. They should be respected, accompanied pastorally. On other issues, however, Francis has been careful not to stray too far from the positions upheld by his predecessors. While granting all priests the faculty to forgive abortion, he was quick to restate as firmly as I can that abortion is a grave sin. Additional reporting by agencies For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} As Donald Trump prepares for inauguration day, the Trump Grill has been the subject of brutal critique. On Wednesday, Vanity Fair published a harsh takedown of the Trump Tower restaurant, saying the grill "could be the worst restaurant in America." The next day, the president-elect tweeted: "Has anyone looked at the really poor numbers of @VanityFair Magazine. Way down, big trouble, dead! Graydon Carter, no talent, will be out!" Eager to get to the bottom of the controversy, Business Insider visited Trump Grill to see if the restaurant deserves the media's hate or Trump's support. (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider) Trump Grill (or Grille the naming is inconsistent on signage) is located in the basement of Trump Tower, on Fifth Avenue at 57th Street. Visiting Trump Grill in December 2016 is a very different experience than it was even a year ago. To get into Trump Tower, you need to be searched, and the building is mobbed with press, Trump supporters, and gawkers. When we arrived at 3 p.m., the hostess told us the wait would be 20 minutes but that she would call us when our table was ready.We took the opportunity to explore the labyrinthine atrium a bit more and check out the holiday decorations. (While Trump has said that people will say "merry Christmas" under his presidency, our waiter wished us "happy holidays.") The atrium, open to the public, is festooned with fleshy pink marble and flashy gold or maybe bronze plating. Dotting the walls of this marble-and-gold pit are plaques bestowed upon the numerous Trump brands by the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences, an awards group that has questionable ties to Trump. (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider) Five minutes later, our waitress called us and said our table was ready. Trump Grill was packed, primarily with couples who seemed to be visiting New York and visiting the tower as part of a sight-seeing journey. The restaurant is deceptively small, and the back section where we sat was confusingly elevated from the entrance and bar area. Looking at the menu, the first thing that jumps out is how expensive everything is. Trump's infamous taco bowl alone costs a whopping $18. Spending that much on something that Qdoba perfected for $8 requires a drink. So we ordered the You're Fired and The Fifth Avenue. (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider) The You're Fired bloody mary is packed with salt and likely fistfuls of pepper similar to an airplane bloody mary if it were watered down with an oversized glass full of ice. Vanity Fair described the drink as "chunky shrimp-cocktail sauce, heavy on the horseradish, mixed with ice and a lot of vodka." We don't disagree. (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider) Vanity Fair said the Fifth Avenue "tasted like vodka mixed with Crystal Light, the ultimate drink for an 18-year-old pledging a sorority." Again, no disagreement here. The super-sweet concoction seemed to contain no alcohol at all. In fact, it tastes eerily similar to a watered-down glass of PediaSure fruit juice, but without the dubious health benefits or fun animal mascots. (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider) For our main course, we ordered what could be considered the trifecta of Trump Grill staples: the taco bowl, burger, and filet mignon. The taco bowl is a mess of vaguely passable Mexican-esque components, slightly elevated by a fresh and crunchy bowl. It was fine. For $8, we'd buy it again, but there's no reason someone should pay $18 for this faux Tex-Mex jumble. (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider) Much has been made of President-elect Trump's preference for steak well done, but that would have been preferable to our nearly raw "medium rare" filet mignon. The sear was perfectly fine, but the gelatinous center of the meat served without a steak knife left us gagging. (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider) The Platinum Label burger is plagued with problems common to "classy" burgers: a desire to demonstrate its gourmet elements to the ultimate disadvantage of the burger's quality. The brioche bun was simply not as good a simple potato roll. It was too big, instantly mushy from the onions, and it even tasted slightly stale. Price is poor proof of actual quality here. (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider) As we finished up our meal, we ordered two dirty martinis in an effort to fact-check a viral tweet showing a Trump Grill martini served with ice in a wine glass. Our martinis were served in coupe glasses not martini glasses, but close enough, and certainly closer than a wine glass. The bartender told us that the wine glass was probably used because the restaurant ran out of coupes (Here's the tweet). The martinis tasted like rubbing alcohol. But that's what we think most martinis taste like, so don't trust our negativity. They were extremely strong, however we didn't finish ours, but we were stumbling when we left Trump Grill. (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider) At this point, most people had left the restaurant, which curiously serves only lunch and brunch not dinner. The few people who remained were loudly engaged in conversation about how much they loved Donald Trump. The woman sitting next to us went as far as writing a congratulations note to Trump. (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider (Hollis Johnson / Business Insider) "You'll never find a Democrat in this building if you did, they'd have to be killed!" a woman eating with her friend yelled at a man sitting at a table across the room. Other nuggets from conversations impossible not to overhear as we paid the bill: "The real Democrats voted for Donald Trump. The communists did not." "What's wrong with getting along with Russia and some of these countries that are strange?" "You're a woman you could sleep with Trump! What a beautiful man." It seems you won't find anywhere else on earth except perhaps a Trump rally where more people love Trump than Trump Grill. Although opinions at Trump Bar upstairs may be more lubricated. Ultimately, eating at Trump Grill isn't about the food it's about the experience. If you want to celebrate Trump's election, the grill has everything you could ask for: Trump's signature gaudy opulence, supportive dining comrades, and even menu items approved by the president-elect. If you want well-crafted, creative, or good food, look just about anywhere else. Read more: This chart is easy to interpret: It says we're screwed How Uber became the world's most valuable startup These 4 things could trigger the next crisis in Europe Read the original article on Business Insider UK. 2016. Follow Business Insider UK on Twitter. Sign up for a full digest of all the best opinions of the week in our Voices Dispatches email Sign up to our free weekly Voices newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Voices Dispatches email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Planet Earth is effectively defenceless in the face of a dinosaur-killer asteroid strike, a Nasa scientist has warned. And the planet is overdue for an extinction-level event involving a giant space object such as an asteroid or comet following a number of close encounters over the last 20 years, Dr Joseph Nuth said. Large objects from outer space that could cause mass extinctions have tended to hit Earth about 50 to 60 million years apart. The dinosaurs were wiped out 66 million years ago by an asteroid that struck what is now the Gulf of Mexico. Dr Nuth, speaking at Nasas Goddard Space Flight Centre in San Francisco, said that if a potentially dangerous object was on a crash-course with our planet theres not a hell of a lot we can do about it at the moment, according to The Guardian. He said: They are the extinction-level events, things like dinosaur killers, theyre 50 to 60 million years apart, essentially. You could say, of course, were due. Earth had a close encounter with a comet in 1996 and again in 2014, when one passed within cosmic spitting distance of Mars, he said. Scientists had only 22 months warning time for the second pass, less than half the time currently needed to get a craft capable of deflecting such an object into space, Dr Nuth said. Recommended A man from Wigan has sent a meat pie into space Dr Nuth said he had recommended Nasa build an interceptor craft and keep it in storage in order to cut down on the time it takes to organise such a mission. Dr Cathy Plesko, of Los Alamos National Laboratory, told the Guardian that humans could deflect an Earth-bound asteroid or comet with either a nuclear warhead or a kinetic impactor, which is basically a giant cannonball. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A bomb has killed and wounded dozens of people in the central Turkish city of Kayseri. The Turkish military said 13 of its personnel had died and 48 were wounded in the blast which ripped through a bus in the city. Broadcaster NTV said the bus was carrying off-duty soldiers and civilians when the bomb exploded near a bus stop at the campus of Erciyes University. Kayseri's Governor, Suleyman Kamci, said the "car bomb exploded beside a bus" and had caused fatalities. "Unfortunately we have martyrs and wounded," he said in remarks carried by the private Dogan news agency. Deputy Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak told NTV that "treacherous factions" had taken aim at commandos from the Kayseri Airforce Brigade, who had been "training exclusively for the safety of our people". The Turkish government imposed a temporary order banning some reporting of the blast, citing public order and national security reasons. It comes a week after twin explosions outside a football stadium in Istanbul killed dozens of people, including police officers. A Kurdish militant offshoot group claimed responsibility for the Istanbul attack. Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report. More follows For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A mass riot that broke out at one of the UKs largest prisons on Friday was a ticking time bomb waiting to happen, according to a former inmate and prison experts. The disturbance at G4S-owned HMP Birmingham saw up to 600 inmates run riot across four wings after keys were reportedly taken from a member of staff at the jail. Managers were forced to deploy Tornado team and riot squads from other parts of the country in an effort to contain the chaos, which raged for more than 12 hours before officers eventually regained control of all four wings just after 10:30pm. One prisoner was reported to be badly injured as banging, barking dogs, firecrackers and the sound of cheering could be heard beyond the walls of the privately-run category B jail as authorities assembled outside. Inmates reportedly burned prisoner records and threw computers out of windows after gaining access to the jails offender managment unit. Images posted on social media, purportedly from inside the prison, showed inmates wearing officers helmets and brandishing riot gear. They could not be independently verified. While the direct cause of the riot was unclear, the Howard League of Penal Reform said overcrowding, under-staffing and under-resourcing had been breeding frustration and violence among prisoners, while the Conservative Chairman of the Commons Justice Committee said the time bomb was ticking as UK prisons were in crisis. Shadow justice secretary Richard Burgon meanwhile said the disturbances at the Birmingham jail were hugely concerning, and accused Justice Secretary Liz Truss of failing to get this crisis under control. It must be hoped that order can be swiftly and peacefully restored. This is only the latest in a number of disturbances across the prison estate, Mr Burgon added. An image posted on social media thought to be of two prisoners at HMP Birmingham Wayne Broomfield, 43, a former prisoner at HMP Birmingham who spent three years behind bars, told The Independent he believed anger over poor conditions in the prison has been mounting for a long time. Mr Broomfield, who was released in 2000, said: These riots dont surprise me at all. It was awful in there. We would be banged up for 23 hours a day. You were supposed to go for an hour of exercise, but if they were short-staffed then you dont even get your exercise. If there was one officer short then you wouldnt go out. It was terrible being stuck in a cell all day just looking at the painted bricks. On my very first day in there I asked whether they had coffee instead of tea, and the officer said: 'f**k of you little tw** Im not your mate, and no, youre having tea'. All you are in there is a number. The riots have been building up for a long time. It was a ticking time bomb waiting to happen." Alex Cavendish, former prisoner and prison affairs academic, described the riot as probably the most serious riot in a B category prison since Strangeways went up in 1990, but said it was a predictable incident. He told The Independent: Ive been predicting that this was going to happen in Birmingham for some months. Its terribly dysfunctional. There are too few staff, too many prisoners, and too many who have serious drugs problems who are being ignored and not provided with enough support. There have recently been problems with hot water and people being locked up for most of the day. There is also a lot of disquiet among prisoners over the very high rates of self-harm and suicide at the prison and a concern that officers arent doing anything and that mental health support is virtually non-existent. Andrew Neilson, director of campaigns at the Howard League for Penal Reform, said they had been warning of such outbreaks in recent months. Weve been saying for some time now that overcrowding, understaffing and under-resourcing the prisons was causing huge problems," he told The Independent. It has been self-evident in recent weeks from the fact that weve had more suicides behind bars in 2016 than in any other year on record, and that weve escapes from closed condition. Because of overcrowding and because of a lack of staff, prisoners are spending up to 23 hours a day locked in their cells doing nothing, and that is going to breed this kind of frustration, its going to breed violence. Its a false economy, because the money that the Ministry of Justice will have to spend on these sorts of disturbances will run into the millions. Conservative chairman of the Commons Justice Committee, Robert Neill, told Channel Four News the Government had been warned by his watchdog group of MPs that a time bomb was ticking as prisons were in crisis. I think, frankly, we probably did reduce guards too many in the past, and it is good news, in response to our report, the current Justice Secretary has published a very comprehensive reform and safety plan, and is actually now recruiting extra guards, and that takes time to get them trained up," said Mr Neill. "And, of course the emergency problem is now. When it was suggested this could be the worst prison riot in years, Mr Neill said: Certainly looking that way, yeah, and this is a problem which has happened both in privately and publicly-run systems, so it applies across the piece. I think that does indicate that we have got a situation where if people are locked down 22/23 hours a day, as we have discovered, that breeds tension, that breeds violence, and, as you rightly say, we are not actually keeping prisons secure enough to stop contraband getting in. Mike Rolfe, national chairman of the Prison Officers Association, who last month protested over safety concerns, said the serious incident at the prison is another stark warning to the Ministry of Justice that the service is in crisis. A spokesman from the Prison Governors Association said the disturbance at the Birmingham jail comes at a very difficult time for Noms on the back of recent riots and at a time when the prison estate is already bursting at the seams. Managing director for G4S custodial and detention services, Jerry Petherick, said given the scale of the incident and deployment of national resources they had transferred overall operational responsibility to the Prison Service. Our command team remains on site and our staff will be actively involved in the recovery of the affected wings, he added. The Ministry of Justice said the trouble was contained, the perimeter is secure and there is no risk to public, adding that prisoners who behave in this way could spend significantly longer behind bars. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The practically perfect county city of Winchester has been named the best place to live in the UK for quality of life, according to a new survey. The Hampshire city, home to around 45,000 people, has come out as the number one local authority for best quality in the study knocking its fellow Hampshire district of Hart off the top spot, which it has held for the past five years. Hart fell to number 26 in this year's rankings. Winchester, previously heralded the perfect English city in the annual Sunday Times best places to live guide, stands out for its good schools, low crime and broad range of tourist attractions. 10 happiest places to live in the UK It is home to the largest farmers' market in the UK, one of Europe's largest cathedrals and dozens of upmarket shops and restaurants. A high proportion (96.6 per cent) of residents reported being in good or fairly good health compared to a national average of 94.6 per cent, according to the Halifax findings. Life expectancy rates in Winchester were also higher than the national average, with Winchester men expected to live to around 82-years-old, while Winchester women could expect to live until they were 85. Situated only an hours train ride from London and boasting an unemployment rate of just 0.6 per cent, Winchester boasts better job prospects than most UK cities. But despite the new number one spot, the city has also seen the highest house price growth of any UK city in the last 10 years, with house prices going up 79 per cent in the last ten years. And it hasn't always been regarded quite so highly, making a surprise appearance in the first Crap Towns book in 2003 and placing fifth behind Hythe and ahead of Liverpool. The Orkney Islands in Scotland come second in the league table, which suggests the cold isn't all bad, as they it is about as far north as you can go in Great Britain. Wychavon in Worcestershire, the Derbyshire Dales and Hambleton in North Yorkshire were in third, fourth and fifth place, according to the study. To collate the findings, Halifax looked at a range of factors to determine the places with the best quality of life, including life expectancy, health, employment rates, crime, education, broadband access, population densities and the weather. Martin Ellis, an economist at Halifax, said: Looking across a wide range of indicators considered by our research, residents of Winchester in Hampshire enjoy the best quality of life in the UK, benefiting from a combination of above average weekly earnings, low crime rate and good health. On the other hand, there is a cost associated with a high quality of life with house prices in Winchester 9.7 times the average annual local income significantly higher than the UK average of 7.2. Top 10 local authorities with best quality of life 2016 1. Winchester, South East 2. Orkney Islands, Scotland 3. Wychavon, West Midlands 4. Derbyshire Dales, East Midlands 5. Hambleton, Yorkshire and the Humber 6. South Cambridgeshire, East of England 7. Purbeck, South West 8. St Albans, East of England 9. Wokingham, South East 10. Chiltern, South East Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Rioters at HMP Birmingham will face the full force of the law, Justice Secretary Liz Truss has warned. A riot lasting 12 hours broke out at the jail yesterday, involving up to 600 inmates. Riot teams were dispatched to restore order and said they managed to do so shortly after 22:30 on Friday. At least one inmate was injured and was taken to hospital for treatment after sustaining a fractured jaw and broken eye socket. The disturbance began after an officer was rushed by multiple inmates at the jail, which is run by private security company G4S. The chaotic incident is said to have come following months of unease about resources and conditions inside the jail. The Prison Officers Association said the riot was the worst of its kind since the Strangeways jail riot of 1990. National Chairman Mike Rolfe said: We've been warning for a long time about the crisis in prisons and what we are seeing at Birmingham is not unique to Birmingham, but it certainly would seem that this is the most recent worst incident since the 1990 Strangeways riot. Ms Truss has pledged a thorough investigation to establish the cause of the incident and ensure it was not repeated. She said: I want to pay tribute to the bravery and dedication of the prison officers who resolved this disturbance. This was a serious situation and a thorough investigation will now be carried out. Violence in our prisons will not be tolerated and those responsible will face the full force of the law. UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 2 November 2022 A red squirrel gathers nuts in Pitlochry, Scotland Reuters UK news in pictures 1 November 2022 Englands Tara-Jane Stanley scores their sides seventh try against Brazil during the Womens Rugby League World Cup group A match at Headingley Stadium, Leeds PA UK news in pictures 31 October 2022 GBs James Hall competes during the mens parallel bars qualification at the World Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 October 2022 People dressed in Halloween costumes paddle board along the river Avon in Christchurch, Dorset PA UK news in pictures 29 October 2022 Members of the public take pictures as police officers remove activists from a road during a Just Stop Oil protest, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 28 October 2022 A cosplayer attends the MCM Comic Con London 2022 at the ExCel Centre in London Reuters UK news in pictures 27 October 2022 98-year-old D-Day Veteran Bernard Morgan, whose story is among those featured on the giant poppy wall, during the launch of The Royal British Legion 2022 Poppy Appeal, at Hay's Galleria in central London PA UK news in pictures 26 October 2022 A meerkat explores a pumpkin in the enclosure at Wild Place, Bristol, where some of the animals are having pumpkin treats as part of their environmental enrichment PA UK news in pictures 25 October 2022 King Charles III welcomes Rishi Sunak during an audience at Buckingham Palace, where he invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative Party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 24 October 2022 Rishi Sunak celebrates with Tory MPs outside the Conservative Campaign Headquarters after becoming the new leader of the Conservative Party Reuters UK news in pictures 23 October 2022 The Green Man at October Plenty, Borough Market's annual Autumn Harvest festival, in London, which returns for the first time post pandemic PA UK news in pictures 21 October 2022 Sculptor Peter McKenna puts the finishing touches to a pumpkin that will form part of the Planet A Hebden Bridge Pumpkin Trail in the West Yorkshire town PA UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty Recent months have seen mounting criticism of resources for jails, including reduced staffing levels, increased inmate overcrowding and financial cuts. Last month, prison officers went on strike to protest conditions. They returned to work after a High Court injunction ordered them to cease the action. In October, a riot in a Bedford prison saw almost 1m worth of damage to jail resources. Over the last five trading days, positive speculation regarding the much awaited Federal Reserve rate hike brought optimism for the banking industry. On Wednesday, the Federal Open Market Committee increased the target range for the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to 0.500.75%. In addition, signaling confidence in the U.S. economy, the Fed now projects three rate hikes in 2017. Following this announcement, nearly all banks raised their prime lending rates. Notably, the investors turned to profit booking as the banking stocks have been witnessing a bullish trend since the U.S. presidential election in November. Nonetheless, banks are now expected to record an increase in interest income, and the margin pressure is likely to ease to some extent. Further, domestic economic growth will support their financials. Meanwhile, Wells Fargo & Company WFC continued to be in headlines for its accounting scam related matters. While the company is undertaking measures to change its business practices, such matters are expected to remain concerns in the near-term. (Read: Bank Stock Roundup for the week ending Dec 9, 2016) Banks - Major Regional Industry 5YR % Return Banks - Major Regional Industry 5YR % Return Important Developments of the Week 1. Wells Fargo has been hit with restrictions by the U.S. regulators as the bank failed to adequately remedy deficiencies in its resolution plan. The plan, better known as living will, lays out the strategy for a companys fast resolution under bankruptcy in the event of failure of the company or severe financial stress. Notably, this turned out to be the second time this year that Wells Fargo flunked in the living will assessment. (Read more: Wells Fargo Faces Sanctions on 'Living Will' Deficiencies) 2. It looks like Well Fargos accounting scam will continue to trouble it for quite some time. Now, the bank is under the scrutiny of regulators in California and New Jersey for signing up customers for Prudential Financial, Inc. PRU life policies, without their consent. (Read more: Wells Fargo Under Scrutiny in California, New Jersey). In addition, the banking giant has been suspended for two years from conducting broker-dealer services in commercial banking and commercial paper, in its own birthplace, San Francisco. Further, the city has barred the bank from securities investments and counterparty/repurchasing agreements for two years. (Read more: Wells Fargo Barred from Hometown Business for Sales Scam). 3. Wells Fargo has scrapped bonuses for brokers for selling loans. Precisely, the brokers who used to convince clients to take out loans including mortgages, securities-backed loans or lines of credit will not be paid bonus. Wells Fargos brokerage arm will keep pay grid unchanged for 2017 accounting most of a brokers pay, but bonuses for persuading clients to take on loans will be scrapped. Notably, such bonus amount is paid in the form of deferred compensation increasing a brokers annual pay by thousands of dollars. A percentage of the fees and commissions generated from servicing customer accounts are paid by brokerage grids. The banks move is expected to bring the brokerage in line with the main bank where sales incentives have already been changed. Further, through elimination of bonuses, the bank intends to evade further problems and gain back brokers and clients belief on the bank. Further, Wells Fargo has increased the minimum amount of assets in an account for a broker to be paid full compensation. The amount of assets has been raised to $100,000 from $65,000, effective January 2017. The household having less than $100,000 in assets in his account will decrease the brokers pay by flat 20%. However, brokers will be safeguarded from pay cut from those small households if 75% of their clients account in $250,000 or more in assets. Further, brokers have been offered awards for transferring clients also. Precisely, transferring clients to local financial relationship advisers, brokers will be paid $2,000 per household and $100,000 in total. Further, more will be paid who have 65% or more of their households with more than $250,000 in assets. On the other side, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the brokerage industrys self-regulator, is investigating the scandals impact on the banks brokerage unit. Notably, the brokerage employees who have been laid off by Wells Fargo have been contacted by FINRA to discuss the reasons of their retrenchment. The regulators want to be sure whether these employees dismissals relate to scandal or mishandled by Wells Fargo. 4. Fifth Third Bancorp FITB is making an equity investment in San Francisco-based startup online lender, ApplePie Capital, to seek new opportunities in the lending space. This was reported by Wall Street Journal. (Read more: Fifth Third Invests in Fintech Startup to Grow Lending) Price Performance Here is how the seven major stocks performed: Story continues Company Last Week 6 months JPM 0.6% 38.8% BAC 0.3% 73.6% WFC -3.4% 18.0% C 0.3% 43.4% COF -0.1% 39.8% USB -0.1% 26.7% PNC 0.5% 37.3% In the last five trading sessions, JPMorgan Chase & Co. JPM and The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. PNC were the top gainers, with their shares increasing 0.6% and 0.5%, respectively. On the other hand, Wells Fargo shares fell 3.4%. Over the last six months, Bank of America Corp. BAC and Citigroup Inc. C were the best performers, with their shares surging 73.6% and 43.4%, respectively. Also, shares of Capital One Financial Corp. COF jumped 39.8%. What's Next in the Banking Space? Over the next five trading days, banking stocks are likely to perform in the similar manner, unless there is any unforeseenevent. Now See Our Private Investment Ideas While the above ideas are being shared with the public, other trades are hidden from everyone but selected members. Would you like to peek behind the curtain and view them? Starting today, for the next month, you can follow all Zacks' private buys and sells in real time from value to momentum . . . from stocks under $10 to ETF and option moves . . . from insider trades to companies that are about to report positive earnings surprises (we've called them with 80%+ accuracy). You can even look inside portfolios so exclusive that they are normally closed to new investors. Click here for Zacks' secret trades >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report JPMORGAN CHASE (JPM): Free Stock Analysis Report PNC FINL SVC CP (PNC): Free Stock Analysis Report FIFTH THIRD BK (FITB): Free Stock Analysis Report WELLS FARGO-NEW (WFC): Free Stock Analysis Report CITIGROUP INC (C): Free Stock Analysis Report BANK OF AMER CP (BAC): Free Stock Analysis Report CAPITAL ONE FIN (COF): Free Stock Analysis Report PRUDENTIAL FINL (PRU): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Britain must do more to protect itself from a campaign of propaganda and hybrid warfare by Russia including cyber-attacks and fake news, the UK's most senior military officer has said. Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach, the Chief of the Defence Staff, said Britain's competitive edge depended on better counter-espionage in the face of Russia's activities. His comments come as US President Barack Obama publicly warned his counterpart Vladimir Putin that Russia faced retaliation "at a time and place of our own choosing" for having meddled in the presidential election by hacking Hillary Clinton's emails. Sir Stuart told The Times: We need to pay more attention to counter-espionage and counter-intelligence to protect our hard-won research, protect our industry and protect our competitive advantage. Senior UK officials believe Moscow is behind a coordinated attempt to weaken the country by using misinformation and spying tactics. Theresa May is due to discuss the situation at a National Security Council meeting early next year, the paper reported. Top spies and civil servants met at the Cabinet Office to discuss the threat two months ago. According to a Times source, there was an agreement on the need to do more across Whitehall to understand and assess and formulate options on how to respond to Russian activities. And the paper reported that a recent war game in which British soldiers tested how well they could counteract a Russian misinformation campaign concluded that the UK's response mechanisms were simply too slow. A source reportedly said: We need to up our game. Under the current rules, we can't fight an information war and win by trying to match the Russian way of doing things, because we can't do it in a democracy under peacetime rules. Russias increasingly sophisticated propaganda machinery including thousands of botnets, teams of paid human trolls and networks of websites and social media accounts echoed and amplified right-wing sites across the internet during the US election. Mr Putin, a former KGB officer, announced his desire to break the Anglo-Saxon monopoly on the global information streams during a 2013 visit to the broadcast centre for RT, formerly known as Russia Today. His policies in the real world, rather than the internet, are no less concerning for Britain's leaders. Earlier this week Boris Johnson, the Foreign Secretary, summoned the Russian and Iranian ambassadors to the Foreign Office to tell them they deserved no credit for the evacuation of civilians from shattered eastern Aleppo in Syria. The Foreign Secretary told the diplomats of the UK's deep concern at reports of civilians being executed, ambulances being shot at and disappearances carried out by President Bashar al-Assad's forces. Recommended China hits back over seized US Navy drone after Trump tweet On Friday the Royal Navy escorted the Russian frigate Yaroslav Mudry through the English channel, two months after the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov made the same passage along with several other military vessels en route to Syria. Ahead of Mr Putin's December meeting with Shinzo Abe, Japan's Prime Minister, to discuss economic ties, Russia installed a number of anti-ship missile systems on the disputed Kuril Islands, which lie to the immediate north of the Asian nation. A Kremlin spokesman claimed the move should not prevent closer ties between the countries. This month Mr Putin dismissed what he called the "myth" of Russian aggression after the European Parliament voted on a resolution aimed at countering disinformation and hostile propaganda from Moscow, including the use of pseudo-news agencies. He said: We have never been looking for enemies, we need friends. We won't allow any infringement on our interests and neglect of them. In the last few years, we have faced attempts of foreign pressure with all tools involved from the myths about Russian aggression, allegations of meddling in elections to the hounding of our athletes. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Muslim Londoners have donated 10 tonnes of food to help homeless people this Christmas. Thousands of people attended a food drive at East London Mosque in order to make and collect donations. An estimated 7,500 people attended in total, The London Evening Standard reports. After they attended Friday prayers volunteers gathered the supplies, which include rice, pasta, cereal, tinned goods and other items. Donations came from local businesses, colleges, schools and universities. The donations will now be given to local people in need, including those who are living on the streets. More than 90 per cent of the food will be given to people who are not of the Muslim faith. Leaders of other religious groups in the community also attended to show their support. Christian Reverend Gary Bradley was among those who backed the drive, saying it was an example of people from all faiths working together for a common humanity. Homelessness in the UK is increasing, amid rising rents and local authority cuts which are reducing the number of hostel and council housing places available. The number of people living on the streets in England grew at an unprecedented rate between 2015 and 2016, following a spike of around 30 per cent. On any given night, approximately 3,500 people sleep rough on streets in England. Experts have also warned of hidden homelessness which can occur as people do not fit traditional stereotypes of rough sleepers but are homeless nonetheless, for instance those living in unstable or temporary accommodation. Latest figures show that 68,560 households were living in temporary accommodation including B&Bs and hostels between July and September last year the highest since the start of the economic downturn in 2008. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The UK is secretly selling arms to Saudi Arabia and other countries under an opaque type of export licence, it has been reported. The military and defence industry is a major player in the UK economy, worth about 7.7bn a year. But many of the countries buying British arms are run by governments with dubious human rights records, even though the destinations of such exports are supposed to meet human rights standards. Now, according to the i newspaper, an increasing number of military consignments are being sold under the Open Individual Export Licence (OIEL) after quiet Government encouragement in 2015, despite criticism from MPs. Under the OIEL licences, numerous consignments can be exported to one destination under a single licence for up to five years after initial scrutiny. They are supposed to be less sensitive goods but campaigners say this vague requirement is often flouted. Furthermore, the value of OIEL licenced goods does not need to be publicly declared, meaning it is difficult to determine their volume, though it is estimated to be in the tens of millions. For instance, using just 32 OIEL licences, 150 different types of defence and military goods including technology and parts for fighter aircraft have been exported to Saudi Arabia, the newspaper reported. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty Saudi Arabia has been widely condemned for its role in the Yemeni conflict, where its airstrikes have been blamed for large numbers of civilian deaths. Other British goods that have been exported around the world under OIEL licences reportedly include rifles, crowd control weapons and helicopters. While proponents say OIEL licences help efficiency and cut red tape, opponents say they allow inappropriate sales to go through. Andrew Smith, of Campaign Against the Arms Trade, which obtained the data, said: Open licences only exacerbate the lack of transparency in the arms trade. UK arms are playing a central role in the devastation of Yemen, and this means the scale of arms exports could be even higher than we already thought. Arms exports arent just numbers on a spreadsheet, they can have deadly consequences and send a message of support to some of the most abusive regimes in the world. Exports under OIEL licences have increased in recent years, i reported. While there were just 761 granted in 2009, there were 1,866 in 2015. And the figure is set to increase in 2016, when there were 1,100 OIEL licences in the first six months. Anti-arms trade campaigners claimed this means the UK could be more deeply involved in the international arms trade than previously thought and that the exports send a message of support to despotic regimes. Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Brexit could be good news for Britains fishing industry, but it will need continued access to European markets if it is to take full advantage of the opportunities posed. A new report from the House of Lords EU Committee also warned that other EU nations could demand greater access for their ships to UK waters as part of a trade-off for market access. 66 per cent of UK fish exports go to the EU, meaning tariff-free or low-tariff trade must be preserved, the report said. The UK fishing industry represents 0.5 per cent of UK GDP, and is of crucial importance to many coastal towns. Brexit will mean the UK leaves the Common Fisheries Policy, and gains the right under international law to control who fishes within its waters. But the much criticised policy has also helped maintain stocks and prevent over-fishing, aspects which the report recommends must be maintained after Brexit. Lord Teverson, chairman of the Lords EU Energy and the Environment Sub-Committee, said: Many people in the UK fishing industry were vocal supporters of Brexit and there is a strong sense that it presents an opportunity for them to grow and develop the industry. That may very well be the case but if that opportunity is to be taken, while ensuring fishing does not return to the unsustainable levels of the past, we need to ensure the recent positive developments of the Common Fisheries Policy, largely promoted by the UK, are not discarded. Fish stocks are a shared resource and fish dont recognise national borders. We will have to continue managing fish stocks in a responsible and co-operative way to prevent over-fishing. The UK fishing industry relies heavily on trade with the EU. Brexit will involve many trade-offs, and it may very well be that EU member states demand more access to UK waters than some fishers would want in return for our continued rights to sell fish to the European market with zero tariffs. What we are absolutely clear on is that the fishing industry and the coastal communities who rely on that industry should not be overlooked and must be fully consulted. While fisheries is a relatively small part of the UK economy, it is of fundamental importance to a great many people in different parts of the UK, from Brixham to Grimsby and Newlyn to the Shetlands. Those voices must be heard in the negotiations. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Michael Sheen is to give up acting to fight the rise of the far-right, and will leave Hollywood to return to his native Port Talbot in Wales to do so. "In the same way as the Nazis had to be stopped in Germany in the Thirties, this thing that is on the rise has to be stopped," he told The Times. Recommended Hunter S Thompson predicted the rise of Donald Trump Sheen, best known for playing Tony Blair, Brian Clough and David Frost, said: "It will be a big change for how people relate to me. Once I'm in, I'm fully in, and this is big. As soon as you start to be effective, then people try to crush you, because it's dangerous." Last year Sheen gave a speech in Wales defending the NHS which was widely shared on social media, telling the crowd: "There is never an excuse to not speak up for what you think is right." Sheen said the election of Donald Trump had compelled him to take action. "It's not going to look like this in ten years' time. Ever ything has shifted. The dice are being rolled again, he said. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Two teenage boys have been charged with mixing their semen into icing and serving it to their teacher on pastries. The 14-year-olds will appear in juvenile court in Nebraska, in the United States, charged with lewd conduct and breach of the peace after allegedly serving the tainted food to their teacher on 8 December. The allegations met with horror from teaching union representatives and the head of schools in the district in which the plot was said to have been carried out, the Omaha World-Herald reported. Michael Fryda, the local teaching union president, said he was "deeply concerned with any violence perpetuated against teachers and other school employees" and that the alleged crime "was not a harmless prank". According to police, the boys mixed their semen into the icing and added it to turnover pastries they were making at school. Their teacher conducted taste tests of the class' pastries and noticed something was wrong, before another student told her they had overheard the boys' plot, the World-Herald said. Schools superintendent Blane McCann called it a "terrible incident" and told parents in a letter: "Many of you are as upset as I am about what has happened and want answers regarding our plan of action. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty "District leadership and board of education members are in constant discussions to determine the best course of action. Protecting privacy rights, and keeping all of our students, families and staff members safe, is paramount to us. "We have offered our complete support to the staff member involved." Three boys were said to have planned the act, but only two carried it out. The World-Herald reported that no Nebraska state law specifically covers the act forcing bodily fluids on a person, but there are laws against spitting on police officers. Police had originally wanted to charge the boys with a felony, but used misdemeanor statutes instead. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} It has been 39 days since Donald Trump has had to worry about Hillary Clinton, but his supporters can't seem to stop talking about her. Even before Trump took the stage at a boisterous Friday evening rally here, the president-elect's introductory speakers referenced his former Democratic opponent -- and the crowd of thousands, perfectly on cue, chanted, "Lock her up!" One man screamed loudly, "Waterboard her!" When Trump delivered his speech in Orlando, his latest stop on a national "thank you" tour, his throngs of fans repeated their chants: "Lock her up! Lock her up! Lock her up!" If the president-elect loved hearing their plea, he did not say so. Rather, he sought to calm his unruly army of passionate followers. In the run-up to the election, Trump told them, "you people were vicious, violent, screaming, 'Where's the wall?' 'We want the wall!' Screaming, 'Prison!' 'Prison!' 'Lock her up!' I mean, you were going crazy. You were nasty and mean and vicious. And you wanted to win, right?" But the campaign is now over. Victory is in hand. The inauguration is a month away. And Trump, preparing to govern a divided nation, tried to imagine for his fans how they ought to behave. "It's much different," he said. "Now you're laid back, you're cool, you're mellow, right? You're basking in the glory of victory." Trump rallied Floridians at an Orlando amphitheater on a crisp evening, flanked by 16 decorated Christmas trees against a giant painted canvas of a winter wonderland. The first words he uttered after a hearty introduction by Vice President-elect Mike Pence: "Merry Christmas, everyone." Trump made no reference to Russia's alleged meddling in the campaign or respond to President Obama's comments on the matter at a news conference earlier Friday. Instead, Trump spent much of his 50-minute speech reliving what he called a magical election night in which he defied the pundits. He ticked through the battleground states that he turned red -- North Carolina ("our firewall"), Pennsylvania ("always the bride that got away") and Florida ("Did I blow them out of the Panhandle or what?"). And he mocked CNN's John King and other television anchors for "dishonest" exit polling and for predicting that he did not have a credible path to 270 electoral votes. Trump also rolled off key promises of his agenda -- to end illegal immigration, defeat Islamic State terrorists, repeal Obama's Affordable Care Act, renegotiate trade deals and rejuvenate the domestic economy. "The script is not yet written," Trump said of his coming presidency. "We do not know what the page will read tomorrow... but what we do know is that the page will be authored by each and every one of you. You, the incredible American people, will be in charge." Washington Post Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A couple from Long Island, New York was shocked when they discovered an assault rifle was delivered to their home after purchasing a toy for their 6-year-old granddaughter. Joel Berman and his wife, who asked not to be identified, recently purchased a Fisher Price toy airplane from Kohls website. On Wednesday, they received a large package addressed to their names and residence, they asked the UPS employee to place the item in the trunk of the wifes car. After the family drove around with the package for most of the day, they gathered their children and opened the packagerevealing the long, semi-automatic rifle, along with an extended score, ammo clip, and stand. [The rifle had] a rather sophisticated scope, according to the police, the husband told CBS New York. It was not the little Fisher-Price toy we had expected. When the couple called the police, not one, but four police cruisers showed up to their house, a source close to the family told The Independent. The couple also found several copies of an Arizona man's driver's license accompanied by a concealed-weapons permit. The same family friend, an avid gun collector, told The Independent: "If it came to me I would have thanked Santa Claus for coming early." What if it went to someone who was having ill-intentions, and thought this was the greatest opportunity to get a weapon like this? the husband asked the local CBS-affiliate. UPS, the Atlanta-based package delivery company, said theyre investigating the incident and promised to deliver the couples toy airplane before the holidays. UPS does accept shipment of certain firearms in our domestic US system as long as the shipments comply with applicable law and are shipped in accordance with company policies, the company said in a statement. These shipments must be between licensed manufacturers, dealers, distributors, collectors and exclude consumer shipments. UPS puts responsibility with the shippers of regulated goods to follow the requirements for labeling and specific packaging. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} In his final press conference of the year, President Barack Obama has said that he had told President Vladimir Putin to cut it out following allegations that Russia conducted cyber attacks against the United States. What I was concerned about in particular was making sure [the hack of the Democratic National Convention] wasn't compounded by potential hacking that could hamper vote counting, affect the actual election process itself, the president said of his September meeting with his Russian counterpart. He also said that his conversation prevented any further hacking against his countrys election infrastructure. So in early September when I saw president Putin in China, I felt that the most effective way to ensure that that didn't happen was to talk to him directly and tell him to cut it out and there were going to be serious consequences if he didn't. And in fact, we did not see further tampering of the election processbut the leaks... had already occurred." Mr Obama declined to state explicitly that Mr Putin knew about the email hacking that tarnished the presidential election race, but left little doubt about who he thought was involved. He said that not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin and repeated a US intelligence assessment that this happened at the highest levels of the Russian government. In news revealed just as Mr Obama was speaking,CIA Director John Brennan said in a message to employees that the FBI agrees with the CIA's conclusion that Russia's goal was to help Donald Trump win. Mr Trump himself has dismissed the CIA's assessment and has called talk of Russian hacking "ridiculous". President Obama has promised a proportional yet unspecified response to the hacking of the Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman. Emails stolen during the campaign were released in the final weeks by WikiLeaks. However, during his news conference on Friday he went further, warning Mr Putin that the US would not shy away from using cyber methods of their own in retaliation. Whatever they do to us, we can potentially do to them, Mr Obama said. Mr Obama expressed bewilderment about Republican legislators and voters who now say they approve of Mr Putin. He he said unless that changes the U.S. will be vulnerable to foreign influence. Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave, Mr Obama added. The President said the news coverage around the hacking and the leaks that negatively affected Hillary Clintons presidential campaign was troubling - with the media carrying what he called an "obsession" with the flood of Democratic emails that were made public during the campaign -and that she was treated unfairly. He then addressed reports that there was squabbling between the White House and the upcoming Trump administration over Russias apparent interference in Novembers election. President Trump protests Show all 20 1 /20 President Trump protests President Trump protests Patrons hold a sign as people march by while protesting the election of Republican Donald Trump as the president of the United States in downtown Los Angeles, California Reuters President Trump protests Demonstrators rally following the election of Republican Donald Trump as President of the United States, in Oakland, California Reuters President Trump protests Demonstrators march following the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States Reuters President Trump protests Thousands of protesters rallied across the United States expressing shock and anger over Donald Trump's election, vowing to oppose divisive views they say helped the Republican billionaire win the presidency AFP/Getty Images President Trump protests Demonstrators protest outside the Chicago Theatre in Chicago, Illinois Getty President Trump protests A police officer aims a launcher after demonstrators threw projectiles toward a line of officers during a demonstration in Oakland, California Reuters President Trump protests An officer examines a vandalized police vehicle as demonstrators riot in Oakland, California Reuters President Trump protests Demonstrators take over the Hollywood 101 Freeway just north of Los Angeles City Hall in protest against the election of Republican Donald Trump as President of the United States Reuters President Trump protests A woman holds up a sign reading 'Trump you are an Idiot' as demonstrators gather during a protest against President-elect Donald Trump outside the City Hall building in Los Angeles, California EPA President Trump protests A masked demonstrator gestures toward a police line during a demonstration in Oakland, California Reuters President Trump protests Demonstrators protest against the election of Republican Donald Trump as President of the United States, near the Trump International Hotel & Tower in Las Vegas, Nevada Reuters President Trump protests Musician Lagy Gaga stages a protest against Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on a sanitation truck outside Trump Tower in New York City Getty President Trump protests A woman yells as she takes part in a protest against President-elect Donald Trump in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood AP President Trump protests A man dressed in red-white-and-blue sits on the curb during a protest against President-elect Donald Trump in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood AP President Trump protests A protester sets off fireworks during a protest against President-elect Donald Trumpin Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood AP President Trump protests University of California, Davis students protest on campus in Davis, California, U.S. following the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States Reuters President Trump protests An Oakland police officer checks out damage after a window was broken by protesters at a car dealership in downtown Oakland, Calif AP President Trump protests A protester faces a police line in downtown Oakland, Calif AP President Trump protests President-elect Donald Trumpis victory set off multiple protests AP President Trump protests A fire burns during protests in Oakland, Calif AP "What we have simply said are the facts," he told reporters. "Based on uniform intelligence assessments, the Russians were responsible for hacking the DNC, and as a consequence, it is important for us to review all elements of that and make sure we are preventing that kind of interference through cyber attacks in the future." Mr Obama said his reticence to detail publicly the US response to Russia reflected a need to retaliate in a thoughtful, methodical way. The idea that somehow public shaming is [going to] be effective, I think doesn't read the thought process in Russia very well, Mr Obama said. He said he wanted to give US intelligence officials more time to produce a report about the alleged hack that is due before he leaves office on 20 January and Mr Trump is sworn in as his successor. However he was clear that reactions to the issue should not be split down party lines. "That shouldn't be a partisan issue," Mr Obama said. "My hope is the President-elect [Mr Trump] is similarly going to be concerned that we don't have foreign influence in our election process." The President rejected any notion that the dispute over the origin of the hacking was disrupting efforts to smoothly transfer power to Mr Trump. Despite fiercely criticising each other during the election, Mr Obama and Mr Trump have spoken multiple times since the campaign ended. He has listened, Mr Obama said of Mr Trump. I can't say he will end up implementing. But the conversations themselves have been cordial. Mr Obama also addressed two other difficult foreign policy issues during his news conference - both of which will outlast his time in the White House. Mr Obama warned about the economic and geopolitical consequences of any breakdown in the US-China relationship, and said Mr Trump should think carefully about the diplomatic repercussions if he decides to "upend" decades of US policy. Trump angered China earlier this month when he took a congratulatory phone call from Taiwan's president, Tsai Ing-wen - the first call of its kind since 1979 when President Jimmy Carter acknowledged Taiwan as part of "one China." Mr Obama also condemned attacks on Syrian civilians trying to flee the city of Aleppo, blaming President Bashar al-Assad and his allies in Russia and Iran. This blood and these atrocities are on their hands, he said. Mr Obama defended his decision to keep US troops out of Syria and avoid military intervention, although he acknowledged the protracted anguish has weighed on him. "Everything else was tempting because we wanted to do something and it sounded like the right thing to do, but it was going to be impossible to do this on the cheap," he said. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Donald Trump's angry tweet in response to an unfavourable review of his Trump Grill restaurant in Vanity Fair appears to have backfired after the magazine saw a 100-fold increase in the rate of new subscribers. The President-elect of the United States targeted Vanity Fair after it said the restaurant, based in Trump Tower in New York, "could be the worst restaurant in America" and that it "seems like a cheap version of rich". Mr Trump retaliated by saying the magazine was suffering from "really poor numbers" and was "way down, big trouble, dead". That prompted publisher Conde Nast to post a banner at the top of its website declaring itself "the magazine Trump doesn't want you to read". Folio, a media trade publication, reported that following the criticism from the soon-to-be leader of the free world, new subscribers were registering at 100 times the normal rate. Vanity Fair notched the highest number of subscriptions ever sold in a single day at Conde Nast, a company spokesman said. The company said more than a million people had read the review. Folio said Vanity Fair's circulation and revenue were both up year-on-year, and that its website had received 14.3 million unique views in October, a rise of more than a quarter on the same time last year. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Russian President Vladimir Putin gave "a really clear response" when Barack Obama cornered him at September's G20 summit and told Mr Putin to "cut it out" following allegations that Russia conducted cyber attacks against the United States, the Kremlin has said. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Mr Putin had explained Russia's stance on the issue to Mr Obama, Russia's Tass news agency reported. "There was a tete-a-tete conversation and different themes were discussed," Mr Ushakov was quoted as saying. "This theme was touched upon. A really clear reply was given by our side which perhaps did not fit with what Obama was trying to explain to us." Three US officials said on Thursday that Mr Putin had supervised his intelligence agencies' hacking of the US presidential election and turned it from a general attempt to discredit American democracy to an effort to help Donald Trump. Mr Obama told reporters during his last ever end-of-year press conference: "What I was concerned about in particular was making sure [the hack of the Democratic National Convention] wasn't compounded by potential hacking that could hamper vote counting, affect the actual election process itself." He also claimed that his conversation prevented any further hacking against his countrys election infrastructure. "So in early September when I saw President Putin in China, I felt that the most effective way to ensure that that didn't happen was to talk to him directly and tell him to cut it out and there were going to be serious consequences if he didn't. And in fact, we did not see further tampering of the election processbut the leaks... had already occurred," Mr Obama said. He has also warned that the US will retaliate against the hacks. Reuters contributed to this report. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} China will return the US Navy drone it seized in the South China Sea, the country announced on Saturday while accusing the US of hyping up the incident. Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States, said Peter Cook, the Pentagon press secretary. The announcement comes several days after the country ignored repeated requests to return the drone to a research vessel launched 50 miles northwest of the Philippines. The Chinese defence ministry said one of its naval vessels had discovered a piece of unidentified equipment and checked it to prevent any navigational safety issues, before discovering it was a US drone. "China decided to return it to the US side in an appropriate manner, and China and the US have all along been in communication about it," the ministry said in a statement. "During this process, the US side's unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue. We express regret at this. The hyping up of the incident was an apparent reference to a misspelled tweet posted by President-elect Donald Trump about the incident, just day after President Barack Obama had appealed for restraint. In the now-deleted tweet, he wrote: China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented [sic] act. He later tweeted the message a second time, correcting his error. Without directly saying whether the drone was operating in waters China considers its own, the defence ministry said US ships and aircraft have for a long period been carrying out surveillance and surveys in the presence of Chinese waters. China is resolutely opposed to this, and demands the US stops this kind of activity, it said. China will continue to maintain vigilance against the relevant US activities and will take necessary measures to deal with them, the ministry said without elaborating. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty Some commentators speculated the drone was taken by China after Mr Trump took a call from the Taiwanese president, congratulating the businessman on his election win. Beijing regards Taiwan as a breakaway province that is actually part of China, and the US has essentially accepted this situation for decades while selling arms to Taiwan. Tensions between China and the US have escalated in recent years as the former has staked claims to ever-increasing chunks of territory and the latter has sought to maintain a strong military presence in the region. Additional reporting by agencies For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Beijing hit back in the diplomatic spat over its seizure of a US Navy drone in the South China Sea after Donald Trump claimed in a message on Twitter that China has stolen the device. Chinese officials had earlier indicated there would be a smooth resolution of the diplomatic incident, but after the President-elects tweet, they accused Washington of hyping up the issue. The drone's seizure, which followed Mr Trump's call with the president of Taiwan, was described as one of the most serious diplomatic incidents between the two nations in recent memory. In the comment, Mr Trump wrote: "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented [sic] act." A short time later, China's Defence Ministry said that it had been in touch with the Washington about the drone, but the US's "hyping up" of the issue was not conducive to resolving the issue. It was not clear who they thought was responsible for the "hype", but Mr Trump's tweet appeared to be the only possible source. Some interpreted China's decision to take the drone as a warning signal to Mr Trump because of his warmth towards Taiwan. In taking a congratulatory call from Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, Mr Trump broke with US diplomatic practice dating back to the 1970s. As part of its foundational 'One China' policy, Beijing regards the island as part of its sovereign territory. Only on Friday, Barack Obama had attempted to calm the tensions with China. If you are going to up-end this understanding, you have to have thought through what are the consequences," he said of the US stance on Taiwan. The President warned Mr Trump against slipping into "full conflict mode" with Beijing. Because the Chinese will not treat that [Taiwan] the way they will treat some other issues. They wont even treat it the way they treat issues around the South China Sea, where we have had a lot of tensions. This goes to the core of how they see themselves and their reaction on this issue could end up being very significant," Mr Obama added. Some observers on social media also mocked the President-elect's misspelling of 'unprecedented'. The tweet was later resent, apparently by Mr Trump's staff, with the correct spelling. In a statement issued before Mr Trump's tweet, China's foreign ministry had said: "According to [our] understanding, the US and Chinese sides are working on appropriately handling this matter through channels between the two militaries." And a newspaper published by China's ruling Communist Party also cited a military officer as saying that a "smooth resolution" of the matter was expected. According to the US, the drone was carrying out scientific research underwater and was controlled by civilian contractors. US officials had issued a formal diplomatic complaint to China demanding the drone's return. "It is ours. It's clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again," Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis told reporters. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty The drone costs about $150,000 (120,000) and is largely commercial, off-the-shelf technology, Capt Davis added. The USNS Bowditch, which is not a combat ship, was stopped in international waters on Thursday afternoon while attempting to recover two of its gliders when the Chinese ship approached, Capt Davis said. The Chinese ship then took one drone away. According to the Pentagon, as the Chinese ship left with the drone, which is about three meters long, its only radio response to the US vessel was, "we are returning to normal operations". Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the seizure of the glider occurred inside the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, not China, and appeared to be a violation of international law. China delineates its South China Sea territorial claims with a roughly drawn sea border known as the "nine-dash line" that runs along the west coast of the Philippines. However, it hasn't explicitly said whether it considers those waters as sovereign territory, and says it doesn't disrupt the passage of other nations' shipping through the area. The US doesn't take a position on sovereignty claims, but insists on freedom of navigation, including the right of its naval vessels to conduct training and other operations in the sea. Additional reporting by AP and Reuters For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has threatened to terminate a pact that allows US troops to visit the Philippines, saying "bye-bye America" as he reacted with rage to what he thought was a US decision to scrap a major aid package over human rights concerns. A US government aid agency, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, said earlier this week that its board had put back a vote on renewing the development assistance package for the Philippines "subject to a further review of concerns around rule of law and civil liberties". Though the vote has not taken place, Mr Duterte unleashed an expletive-laden tirade upon his arrival in his southern hometown of Davao after back-to-back visits to Cambodia and Singapore. The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Show all 9 1 /9 The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On killing drug addicts These sons of whores are destroying our children. I warn you, dont go into that, even if youre a policeman, because I will really kill you. If you know of any addicts, go ahead and kill them yourself as getting their parents to do it would be too painful The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Message to China I will go there on my own with a Jet Ski, bringing along with me a [Phillipino] flag and a pole, and once I disembark, I will plant the flag on the runway and tell the Chinese authorities, Kill me AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Christmas message to law-breakers If you do not want to stop, and just continue committing crimes, then this would be your last Merry Christmas AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On sex life I was separated from my wife. Im not impotent. What am I supposed to do? Let this hang forever? When I take Viagra, it stands up AFP/Getty Images The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On the drugs trade None of my children are into illegal drugs. But my order is, even if it is a member of my family, kill him'" AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Insulting the Pope We were affected by the traffic. It took us five hours. I asked why, they said it was closed. I asked who is coming. They answered, the pope. I wanted to call him: Pope, son of a wh**e, go home. Do not visit us again AFP/Getty Images The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Joke about rape I saw her face and I thought, 'What a pity... they raped her, they all lined up. I was mad she was raped but she was so beautiful. I thought, the mayor should have been first AFP/Getty The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Insulting Barack Obama "Mr Obama should be respectful and refrain from throwing questions at me about the killings, or son of a bitch, I will swear at you in that forum" REUTERS The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On Abu Sayyaf Islamic militants "If I have to face them, you know I can eat humans. I will really open up your body. Just give me vinegar and salt, and I will eat you. If you annoy me to the fullest... I will eat you alive. Raw" EPA It came after the outspoken leader told the BBC that he had personally killed three men while mayor of Davao. As president Mr Duterte has instituted and overseen a bloody anti-drugs programme predicated on the extra-judicial killing of addicts and dealers, leaving some 4,500 Filipinos dead over five months. On the aid package, he said: "We can survive without American money. But you know, America, you might also be put to notice. Prepare to leave the Philippines, prepare for the eventual repeal or the abrogation of the Visiting Forces Agreement." The 1998 accord governs American forces visiting the Philippines for joint combat exercises. Mr Duterte added: "You know, tit for tat. If you can do this, so (can) we. It ain't a one-way traffic. Bye-bye America." The 71-year-old describes himself as a left-wing politician and made similar threats before and after taking office in June. But he and his officials have walked back on many of his public statements, causing confusion. While calling Americans "sons of bitches" and "hypocrites", Mr Duterte praised China as having "the kindest soul of all" for offering what he said was significant financial assistance. "So, what do I need America for?" he asked. However, Reuters has reported that China is the biggest source of methamphetamine smuggled into the Philippines. Mr Duterte also said Russia could be an important ally. "They do not insult people, they do not interfere," he said. The Philippines had been in line for another aid package after its previous five-year, $434m poverty reduction programme was successfully completed in May under Mr Duterte's predecessor, Benigno Aquino III. The agency's spokeswoman, Laura Allen, said it would continue to monitor events in the Philippines before the next board review in March 2017. The decision is among the first signs of how concerns about the rule of law and human rights under Mr Duterte could entail economic costs. The US government, along with European Union and UN officials, has raised concerns about Mr Duterte's crackdown on illegal drugs. In his news conference, Mr Duterte was pointedly asked how many crime suspects he has killed in the past when he was still a crime-busting city mayor amid his vague and contradicting accounts of his exploits. The former government prosecutor again gave contrasting replies. "Maybe one, two, three. I'm saying, maybe my bullets hit them, maybe not, but after the burumbumbumbum, they're all dead," Mr Duterte said. Replying to another question, he said that he indeed has killed, but did not provide details and tried to justify his actions. "When I tell you now that I killed, do not term them as suspects because all of them died while they were fighting government people." He asked God for forgiveness in advance, saying he may not have time to pray if he's assassinated. "God, forgive me for killing these idiots," Mr Duterte said, then blamed God for the presence of criminals. "You create a human monster so if you are God, why do you have to create these idiots? That's why they die." He told the BBC: "I killed about three of them ... I don't know how many bullets from my gun went inside their bodies. It happened and I cannot lie about it." Mr Duterte, who has had a difficult relationship with President Barack Obama, said he would change his mindset if President-elect Donald Trump appeals to him. "I have talked to Trump, he was very nice, very courteous," he said. "I could not sense any hostile drift, or even the manner he was saying it, so, in deference, I'll just wait. "I will let Obama fade away and if he disappears, then I will begin to reassess." He and Mr Trump acknowledged each other's similarly brash manners, he said. "We talk in the same language," Mr Duterte said. He recalled that when he told Mr Trump in a recent phone call that "I like your mouth, it's like mine", Mr Trump responded by saying, "Yes, Mr President, we're similar." "And you know, people with the same feather flock together," Mr Duterte said. The Associated Press contributed to this report. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Hundreds of child asylum seekers in Calais expecting to come to Britain have been told that their claims have been rejected by the Home Office, it has been reported. An estimated 1,900 children and teenagers are living in camps in Calais, while awaiting asylum to live in the UK. 750 have been brought to the UK, but the others have not been granted or approved for transfer. It is alleged that hundreds have now been told their applications to live in the UK have been rejected. Toufique Hossain, director of public law at Duncan Lewis solicitors, represents a number of the children and told The Guardian that more than a dozen of children he represents had been told their applications have been rejected. He said: From the reports we have received it seems as if this is an organised operation between the Home Office and the French authorities. The children have been told verbally that their asylum claims have not succeeded, but they have not been given any reasons why in writing. This is absolutely shocking. Mr Hossain added: The children are very upset but we are telling them not to run away. Charity and aid workers have expressed concern about the welfare and safety of children left in Calais. Many have been forced to flee their home countries due to war and persecution and are experiencing trauma. A considerable number are unaccompanied minors, meaning that they are not travelling with a parent or guardian- prompting further fears for their safety. In October, following demolition of the 'Jungle' camp in Calais, volunteers based there told The Independent the area has become "like Lord of the Flies" as children try to survive difficult conditions. They described working "round the clock" to deliver water, food and blankets to the children as the winter weather sets in. Calais refugee camp evacuation Show all 15 1 /15 Calais refugee camp evacuation Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees run past a fire in the makeshift migrant camp known as 'the jungle' in Calais, October 2016 AP Calais refugee camp evacuation French authorities say the closure of the slum-like camp in Calais will last approximately a week in what they describe as a "humanitarian" operation, October 2016 AP Calais refugee camp evacuation A painted message saying 'Bye Jungle' on a tent in the camp in Calais, October 2016 Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees set rubbish bins alight as a protest in the makeshift camp 'the Jungle' in Calais, France, October 2016 EPA Calais refugee camp evacuation French riot police advance through tear gas and smoke from a fire to disperse refugees throwing stones and lighting fires at the Jungle migrant camp Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation French CRS riot police secure an area on the eve of the evacuation and transfer of refugees to reception centers in France Reuters Calais refugee camp evacuation Journalists run away from smoke during clashes near a makeshift refugee camp known as 'the jungle' in Calais AP Calais refugee camp evacuation French CRS riot police secure an area on the eve of the evacuation and transfer of refugees to reception centers in Franc Reuters Calais refugee camp evacuation Migrants queue for transportation by bus to reception centres across France, from the 'Jungle' refugee camp in Calais Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees line-up to register at a processing centre in the 'jungle' near Calais, northern France, as the mass exodus from the migrant camp begins PA wire Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation French far-right Front National (FN) party's member of parliament Marion Marechal-Le Pen (L) delivers a speech next to a banner reading "They arrive in Vaucluse, no migrants in our place" as she attends a rally against the hosting of refugees in La Tour d'Aigues Getty Images Calais refugee camp evacuation French police forces secure the area near the 'Jungle' refugee camp in Calais Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Calais refugee camp evacuation Refugees carry their belongings and transfer to reception centers in France A spokesperson for the Home Office said: We have been working with the French authorities to bring children eligible to come here and more than 750 children have arrived so far. We are working closely with the French authorities to ensure the remaining children in their care are provided with information on how to claim asylum in France. The current phase of transfers is being concluded. This is a planned process, done in conjunction with the French authorities. We have interviewed all the children who were transferred from the camp to the children centres in France. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A Cold War-era storage facility in the Netherlands has been reopened and restocked with tanks by the US military, as part of a drive to demonstrate Nato's power amid rising Russian aggression. The Dutch military base in Eygelshoven will house elements of the armys strategically prepositioned critical war stock including Abrams tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles and Paladin self-propelled howitzers. The added equipment will make it possible for the US military to form a heavily armoured brigade in Europe, in addition to the two light ones already in operation. General Ben Hodges told NBC News he did not think a Russian attack was imminent and the measures were precautionary. I think an attack is unlikely, but the best way to keep it unlikely is demonstrating the capability and demonstrating the will, and that is what this APS site [Army Prepositioned Stocks (APS)] represents, he said. Deterrents means you have to have credible capability, so in 2017 what were calling the year of execution were going to take that strategic guidance and implement it. And the manifestation of that is tanks coming back to Europe, rotational forces, enhanced forward presence [...] and more sophisticated exercises to demonstrate that capability. The Defence Authorisation Act, passed earlier in December by Congress with little opposition, approved measures to boost European defenses at a cost of $3.4bn. As part of the proposals, the US will reopen or establish five equipment-storage sites in the Netherlands, Poland, Belgium and two places in Germany, in positions designed to help get weaponry to a location where conflict is possible quickly. Vladimir Putin and the people Show all 11 1 /11 Vladimir Putin and the people Vladimir Putin and the people 561608.bin Vladimir Putin and the people 561611.bin GETTY IMAGES Vladimir Putin and the people 561614.bin EPA Vladimir Putin and the people 561615.bin REUTERS Vladimir Putin and the people 561617.bin AP Vladimir Putin and the people 561618.bin GETTY IMAGES Vladimir Putin and the people 561620.bin PA Vladimir Putin and the people 561621.bin AP Vladimir Putin and the people 561622.bin GETTY IMAGES Vladimir Putin and the people 561624.bin GETTY IMAGES Vladimir Putin and the people 561625.bin EPA The incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump has indicated it will take a warmer approach to Russia, but has not said whether it will change Cognress' plans for rolling extra arms into europe. US and Dutch officials pointed out the warehouses storing the weapons were not on the border of Natos border with Russia, which would be against an agreement with the former Soviet nation and would be perceived as provocative. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Some of the thousands of children caught up in the devastating siege of Aleppo are so traumatised that they have stopped crying. According to the United Nations, at least 2,700 children were among 8,000 evacuees allowed to leave the war-torn Syrian city in recent days. But many more remain trapped in the remaining rebel-held areas. In video footage, aired by Channel 4 News, one toddler, called Aya, sits on a stretcher in Aleppos last hospital, her face covered in dust and dried blood. As chaos engulfs the room around her, the toddler doesnt cry. Her mother, Um Fatima, the only surviving adult of three families whose apartment block was obliterated by a Russian or Syrian bomb, says the family was sleeping when their home was hit. The footage shows the unimaginable horrors suffered by the last remaining civilians waiting for safe passage to neighbouring towns in the rebel-held province of Idlib. Recommended Aleppo evacuations suspended amid ceasefire violations Mahmoud, a teenage neighbour of Um Fatima, cradles his one-month-old brother Ishmael Mohamed who was suffocated to death in the apartment collapse. He says: God will avenge us against this oppressor (Assad). Two other small children, a brother and sister, are seen wandering the blood-stained hospital corridors. They are dust-covered and shell-shocked, looking for their mother. Neither is crying. A nurse is heard asking adults: Are these your children? Evacuation efforts of east Aleppo were halted on Friday following reports of a breakdown in the agreed ceasefire. "Aleppo is now a synonym for hell," UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, urging a resumption of the evacuation. Barack Obama accused Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, along with his Russian and Iranian allies, of committing atrocities. The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo, he said. It should be clear that although we may achieve tactical victories, over the long term, the Assad regime cannot slaughter its way to legitimacy. Speaking from the White House, the US President also called for a broader ceasefire to facilitate a political solution. Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Show all 12 1 /12 Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man crosses a street in Aleppo, December 12, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A vendor sits inside an antique shop in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, December 12, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A view shows part of Aleppo's historic citadel, overlooking Aleppo city, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A view shows part of Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Visitors walk inside Aleppo's Umayyad mosque, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk inside the Khan al-Shounah market, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man walks past shops in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk along an alley in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Visitors tour Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A general view shows the Old City of Aleppo as seen from Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk near Aleppo's Bab al-Faraj Clock Tower, Syria October 6, 2010 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man stands inside Aleppo's historic citadel, overlooking Aleppo city, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters We all know what needs to happen, there needs to be an impartial, international observer force in Aleppo. They can help coordinate an orderly evacuation through safe quarters. There has to be full access for humanitarian aid, he said. Beyond that there needs to be a broader ceasefire that can serve as the basis for a political rather than a military situation. On Thursday, the UN envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, put the number of people remaining in east Aleppo at 50,000. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Former Foreign Secretary David Miliband has warned house-to-house murder is being carried out in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo. He also denounced the appalling bombardment of civilians and raised fears the fighting could spread to Idlib, the rebel-held province where people from Aleppo were being taken during the evacuation. Some 8,000 civilians, including 2,700 children, have been allowed to leave besieged rebel-held areas in the citys east, but the evacuation was halted on Friday after reports a ceasefire, negotiated by Turkey and Russia, had broken down. Journalists on the ground reported militias had been shooting at those trying to flee the city. "Yesterday, they (pro-government forces) opened fire on the people who were trying to escape from this hell - they killed three people," White Helmet rescue worker, Ishmael al Abdullah, told Sky News. "Assad mercenaries killed the three people in cold blood in front of the Red Crescent and all the guys who witnessed that crime Now we are waiting for the new deal. "Up to now we do not trust anyone. Up til now we haven't seen any deal and no one saw up to now the green buses (used to take civilians out of Aleppo)." A new truce has now been agreed, with thousands more civilians and rebel fighters hoping to leave, however rebel forces have accused Iran of blocking evacuation efforts. The country is reportedly insisting that Tehran-aligned groups in al-Foua and Kefraya, two Shia villages, be liberated before resuming Aleppo's evacuation. The United Nations envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, has put the number of people remaining in eastern Aleppo at 50,000. Mr Miliband, president of US charity the International Rescue Committee, told BBC Radio 4: The truth is theres chaos, people are looking to find their families, and people are reporting, some of them, that the ceasefire is holding, others that there is no safety at all, and its sheer terror. And that is the only way to describe this because people are fleeing from appalling bombardment, and house-to-house murder thats being documented by the UN, and they dont know if its going to follow them from Aleppo to Idlib. Mr Miliband also claimed the 2013 Commons vote that prevented David Cameron from sending UK forces to support the US military intervention in Syria had created a vacuum in Western leadership and sowed a great deal of confusion. Opposition to UK intervention was spearheaded by his brother, then Labour leader Ed Miliband. The new evacuation plan, confirmed by both rebel and Syrian government forces, will facilitate the safe passage of civilians and rebels from eastern Aleppo. It will also allow for humanitarian cases from the rebel-held towns of Foua and Kefraya in Idlib province to be evacuated. The new plan will also allow for the evacuation of wounded people from two towns near the Lebanese border, Madaya and Zabadani, which are under siege by government forces. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the evacuation of about 4,000 people was expected to start soon. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said the West has failed the people of Syria. The carnage in Syria remains a gaping hole in the global conscience. Aleppo is now a synonym for hell, he said. As I told the Security Council... we have collectively failed the people of Syria. Peace will only prevail when it is accompanied by compassion, justice and accountability for the abominable crimes we have seen. Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Show all 12 1 /12 Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man crosses a street in Aleppo, December 12, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A vendor sits inside an antique shop in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, December 12, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A view shows part of Aleppo's historic citadel, overlooking Aleppo city, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A view shows part of Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Visitors walk inside Aleppo's Umayyad mosque, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk inside the Khan al-Shounah market, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man walks past shops in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk along an alley in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Visitors tour Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A general view shows the Old City of Aleppo as seen from Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk near Aleppo's Bab al-Faraj Clock Tower, Syria October 6, 2010 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man stands inside Aleppo's historic citadel, overlooking Aleppo city, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters According to US envoy Samantha Power, the United Nations Security Council is set to vote on a French-drafted proposal to allow international observers in Aleppo and ensure urgent deliveries of aid. It came after Barack Obama accused Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, along with his Russian and Iranian allies, of committing atrocities in the city. The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo, he said. We all know what needs to happen, there needs to be an impartial, international observer force in Aleppo. They can help coordinate an orderly evacuation through safe quarters. There has to be full access for humanitarian aid. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Syrian rebels have accused Iran and Shia-backed militias of deliberately holding up a deal to evacuate civilians trapped in the rebel-held city of Aleppo. Iran is reportedly insisting that Tehran-aligned groups in al-Foua and Kefraya, two Shia villages, be liberated before resuming evacuation efforts in Aleppo, according to Munir al Sayal, head of the political wing of the Ahrar al Sham rebel group, which is involved in the negotiations. Evacuation of Aleppos remaining civilians and rebels from the opposition-held area was halted on Friday after reports a ceasefire, negotiated by Turkey and Russia, had broken down. Journalists on the ground reported pro-government militias had been shooting at those trying to flee the city. Iran and its sectarian proxies are using the humanitarian situation of our people in besieged Aleppo and preventing civilians from leaving until the evacuation of their groups in al-Foua and Kefyra, Mr Sayal said. He also stated that Russias assertion that most civilians had already been evacuated from Aleppo showed Moscow was trying to renounce its responsibilities under the deal. Russia has failed to restrain the sectarian Shia militias in Aleppo to complete the deal and Moscow should abide by its commitments, he said. There are still civilians in Aleppo who need to be evacuated in harsh weather conditions and Russian statements that besieged Aleppo is empty is absolving itself from following up on the agreement. It is thought there are something like 40,000 to 50,000 people still in the city. Additional reporting by Reuters Hillary Clinton addresses her staff and supporters about the results of the U.S. election at a hotel in the Manhattan borough of New York, U.S., November 9, 2016. REUTERS/Carlos Barria Former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton on Thursday made her first public statements about Russia's cyberattacks on Democrats during the US election, saying Russian President Vladimir Putin attempted to "undermine our democracy" because of his "personal beef" with her. "We're learning more every day about the Russians' unprecedented plot to swing the election," she told a group of campaign donors at Manhattan's Plaza Hotel on Thursday night, according to audio obtained by The New York Times. "Putin personally directed these attacks ... apparently because he has a personal beef against me," Clinton said. "He is determined not only to score a point against me, which he did, but also to undermine our democracy ... It's part of a long-term [Russian] strategy to cause us to doubt ourselves." Tension between Clinton and Putin goes back to at least 2011, when, as secretary of state, Clinton suggested that Russia's parliamentary elections were not free or fair. Putin perceived her comments as meddling and blamed her for the protests that broke out in Russia afterward. "Putin publicly blamed me for the outpouring of outrage by his own people, and that is the direct line between what he said back then and what he did in this election," Clinton told donors on Thursday, reiterating her obligation to denounce elections that were "so flawed, so illegitimate, that it was embarrassing." "Make no mistake," she said, pivoting back to the Russian hacking campaign. "This is not just an attack against me and my campaign, although that may have added fuel to it. This is an attack against our country. We are well beyond normal political concerns here. This is about the integrity of our democracy and the security of our nation." During an interview with NPR on Thursday, President Barack Obama promised retaliatory action against Russia. The CIA has concluded that Russia intervened in the US election to try to tip the scales toward President-elect Donald Trump. Other agencies haven't gone as far in their assessments regarding the motive, but US intelligence agencies publicly accused Russia of interference in October. Story continues James Comey Clinton also attributed her loss to Trump to the bombshell letter released by FBI Director James Comey just over one week before Election Day. The letter informed members of Congress about new emails related to the investigation into her private email server. "There were some events, some unprecedented factors, that I don't think we can ignore because to do so is at our peril," she said. "Swing-state voters made their decisions in the final days breaking against me because of the FBI letter from Director Comey." Two days before the election, after agents examined the newly discovered emails, Comey announced that the agency would not change its initial recommendation not to indict Clinton for her use of the private server. "That letter most likely made the difference in the outcome," she said, echoing a letter sent out by the campaign's director of opinion research, Navin Nayak, days after the election. "We believe that we lost this election in the last week. Comey's letter in the last 11 days of the election both helped depress our turnout and also drove away some of our critical support among college-educated white voters particularly in the suburbs," Nayak wrote. "We also think Comey's 2nd letter, which was intended to absolve Sec. Clinton, actually helped to bolster Trump's turnout." Listen to Clinton's remarks here: NOW WATCH: Donald Trump's 'strange' morning habit tells you everything you need to know about him More From Business Insider For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A Turkish journalist broke down in tears on live television after watching a video of a child in Aleppo allegedly being operated on without anaesthetic. The footage, purportedly filmed by a medic in a rebel-held part of the city, appears to show a five-year-old reciting verses from the Quran during surgery. It is unknown when the video was shot. Newsreader Turgay Guler was overcome with emotion after the video was aired on the Ulke TV channel. He can be seen holding his head in his hands and struggling to speak after viewing the report. In November, The Independent revealed premature babies were being removed from their incubators after air strikes destroyed hospitals across the city. Doctors Without Borders said more than 30 hospitals had been attacked in eastern Aleppo since early July and that medical supplies had been depleted with no possibility of sending more supplies in. The United Nations has strongly condemned both Bashar al-Assads government and Russia for preventing supplies and medical equipment from reaching civilians trapped in the city. Recommended Children killed while trying to escape eastern Aleppo Some 8,000 people, including 2,700 children, have been allowed to leave besieged rebel-held areas in the citys east, but the evacuation was halted on Friday after reports a ceasefire, negotiated by Turkey and Russia, had broken down. Journalists on the ground reported militias had been shooting at those trying to flee the city. However, a new truce has now been agreed, with thousands more civilians and rebel fighters hoping to leave Aleppo and the surrounding areas. The operation will also allow for the wounded to be evacuated from the rebel-held towns of Foua and Kefraya in Idlib province, and from two towns near the Lebanese border, Madaya and Zabadani. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A suggestion from US President-elect Donald Trumps hard-liner pick for Israeli ambassador that the US embassy in the country will be moved to Jerusalem has been met with condemnation from both Arab and liberal Jewish sources. David Friedman, a bankruptcy lawyer and long-time friend of the incoming US president, was announced as the transition teams candidate for the post late on Thursday. Mr Friedman is a controversial choice, to say the least. He has described Jewish Americans who advocate a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as far worse than those who policed their fellow Jews in Nazi concentration camps, and told Haaretz in June that Mr Trumps administration will support Israeli expansion in parts of the West Bank. A Palestinian state is not an American imperative, he said, adding that Nobody really knows how many Palestinians live [in the West Bank]. Mr Trumps campaign promise to move the US diplomatic operation to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv was widely criticised by most of the international community, including the US's closest allies in Western Europe and the Arab world. Israel annexed east Jerusalem in a move that is not internationally recognised and claims the entire city as its capital - as do Palestinians. But Mr Friedman appears set to make good on the promise, stating on Thursday that I intend to work tirelessly to strengthen the unbreakable bond between our two countries and advance the cause of peace within the region, and look forward to doing this from the US embassy in Israels eternal capital, Jerusalem. 'I saw Israeli bulldozer kill Rachel Corrie' Show all 3 1 /3 'I saw Israeli bulldozer kill Rachel Corrie' 'I saw Israeli bulldozer kill Rachel Corrie' 335079.bin AP 'I saw Israeli bulldozer kill Rachel Corrie' 335078.bin AP 'I saw Israeli bulldozer kill Rachel Corrie' 335077.bin AFP Moving the embassy would be as good as a declaration of war, said Sheikh Ekrema Sabri, imam of the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. This nomination is reckless, putting Americas reputation in the region and credibility around the world at risk, a statement from J Street, a liberal pro-Israel group based in Washington, said, adding the organisation was vehemently opposed to Mr Friedmans nomination. Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, said Jerusalem was a final-status issue to be negotiated between Israel and the Palestinians, who also want it as the capital of a future independent state. No one should take any decisions which may preempt or prejudge (negotiations) because this will be the destruction of the peace process as a whole, Mr Erekat said, according to a transcript provided by an aide. Palestinian American activist Ali Abunimah was somewhat resigned to the news. Obama's policy has been unconditional funding for Israel as it builds settlements. So Friedman simply ends lie that US opposes settlements, he tweeted, adding that Mr Friedmans should be seen as realignment of US official rhetoric with longstanding actual US pro-settlement policy. Israeli man starts charity to get injured Syrians to Israel for medical treatment He went on to theorise that the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement could be galvanised if the US moves to an explicitly pro-settlement stance. A top Jewish settlement advocate was pleased with the appointment, however. [Friedman has] a deep love for all of the land and people of Israel, Oded Revivi, the chief foreign envoy of the Yesha Council said. He looked forward to Mr Friedman providing settlers with a direct line to the American president, Mr Revivi added. Israeli construction over the agreed 1967 Green Line is widely viewed as one of the main stumbling blocks to peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Under current prime minister, right wing Benjamin Netanyahu, settlement construction in the West Bank has gone up by 23 per cent since 2009. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} When the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated Egyptian president, Mohamed Morsi, was ousted by a military coup in July 2013, the countrys Coptic Christians rejoiced. They saw General Abdel Fatah El-Sisi, who initiated Morsis removal and later became Egypts new president, as a saviour. Bishoy Armanious, a 30-year-old electrical engineer from a suburb of Cairo, was among El-Sisis biggest fans. Together with thousands of Egyptians, he took to the streets in support of the general. We had been praying for change to happen, Bishoy muses. El-Sisi saved Egypt from the nothingness Morsi was leading us to. Mohamed Morsis removal in 2013 was celebrated by most Coptic Christians in Egypt (Getty) In the early days after Morsis ouster, many Copts shared Bishoys conviction. Some, like Coptic priest Makary Younan, even claimed El-Sisi had been sent from heaven. But Sisis failure to address longstanding injustices has prompted disillusionment. Many Copts now feel that the president has failed to deliver on the promise of equality he made three years ago. In a sign of mounting discontent, protests amongst the Christian community have swollen in recent months to an unprecedented degree. Once regarded as a pillar of support for the regime, Copts now constitute a growing challenge for the government in Cairo. Many believed General Abdel Fatah el-Sisi was sent from heaven (Getty) Copts are the regions largest minority and constitute about 10 per cent of Egypts population of 92 million. Under successive authoritarian leaders, they have faced systematic discrimination, and many feel they are treated as second-class citizens. Restrictions on the construction of churches are a perennial sore point. Copts have long had to deal with arduous bureaucratic procedures to obtain the documents needed to build, renovate or even patch up a church's toilet. Rumours of new church construction are often enough to cause an outcry and even mob violence. Recommended Egypt to try Isis suspects for plot to kill President and Saudi prince Relations between the state and the church deteriorated precipitously in the 1970s under President Anwar Sadat, who openly flirted with Islamist forces and even exiled Pope Shenouda III, the Coptic Churchs head. Though the relationship recovered following Sadats death, the position of Copts hardly changed for the better, and the building of churches remained a bargaining chip. President Mubarak, who ruled over the country from 1981 until 2011, is said to have approved the building of 10 churches during his first decade in office. At a similar annual rate, his successor Morsi approved the construction of precisely one church. A long-awaited law regulating the construction of churches was passed by Egyptian parliament last August. But the new piece of legislation is nothing to celebrate. As Human Rights Watch argues, the law reinforces the authorities control and contains security provisions that risk subjecting decisions on church construction to the whims of violent mobs. Though some clerics approved of the law, it prompted a flurry of criticism from influential Copts, who argue that it seeks to maintain the states dominance over the Christian community. Ishaq Ibrahim, a prominent researcher at the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), condemned the bill, claiming it empowers the majority to decide whether the minority has the right to hold their religious practices. Violence against Christians peaked in August 2013, leaving a number of churches and homes damaged (Rex) Rising sectarian violence is another problematic issue. Violence against Christians peaked in August 2013, when mobs attacked more than 200 Christian-owned properties. The authorities later vowed to reconstruct the damaged churches and houses, but those promises have only partially materialise. As a result, a many churches remain in ruins, and Christians remain vulnerable. Only two weeks ago, fifteen Coptic homes were attacked in the city of Sohag by up to 2000 assailants. To make matters worse, those who attack Christians or Coptic churches frequently get away with it. Reconciliation sessions the method authorities favoured to resolve inter-communal disputes have done little to alleviate feelings of injustice, commonly allowing perpetrators to walk free. Officially, such meetings are designed to foster communal peace outside the legal system, but the facts on the ground do not line up. A damning report published by the EIPR condemned the practise for fostering discrimination and exacerbating religious differences. Young Coptic Christians have banded together, forming a union known as the Maspero Youth Movement (Rex) On other occasions, the Egyptian government has itself committed violence against Copts. The most brutal example was the October 2011 Maspero Massacre, when 28 predominantly Christian protestors were brutally killed by security forces in central Cairo. Some were run over by tanks. Making the event all the more outrageous is the fact that the protestors had been demonstrating against the torching of a church in the southern city of Aswan. The incident has since come to symbolise the states treatment of the Copts and gave rise to the eponymous Maspero Youth Movement a powerful union of Coptic activists. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty Despite the states abysmal human rights record, a majority of Christians rallied behind El-Sisi when he took control of the country in 2013. Many, like Bishoy, were nervous about former president Morsis Islamist rule, which they feared would exacerbate their precarious position. With Sisi failing to live up to the expectations, however, many are now questioning the president's objectives. Protests flared this summer following a series of high-profile attacks. In one widely publicised event, a 70-year-old Christian woman was stripped naked by a mob of 300 men and paraded through the streets of her village, inducing the anger of Copts nationwide. In June, Islamist mobs assaulted Coptic families in the southern province of Minya, burned a kindergarten run by Christians, and murdered a Coptic Orthodox priest in Sinai. In July, a Christian nun from a well-known monastery in Old Cairo was killed after reportedly being hit by a stray bullet on the Cairo-Alexandria highway, and a pharmacist was stabbed to death and beheaded in Tanta. The regime has been accused of treating Copts as an undesirable tribe (Rex) The attacks prompted tremendous outcry. Copts across the country and in the diaspora staged protests in defiance of the regime. Families of victims travelled from across the country to Cairo in August to demand that the government protect their rights. In Washington, Copts called on the US to pressure the Egyptian government over its negligent handling of sectarian violence. Adding fuel to the fire, a number of Coptic intellectuals signed a petition in September expressing their opposition to the regime when President El-Sisi visited New York for the UN General Assembly. In ecclesiastical ranks, too, dissent is mounting. Bishop Anba Makarios of El-Minya province has repeatedly boycotted reconciliation sessions. At one point, he accused the regime of treating Copts as as an undesirable tribe. Recently, the bishop also reminded President El-Sisi in a tweet that Copts are Egyptians, too. The head of the Coptic church, Pope Tawadros II, has also been criticised for his support of al-Sisi. Despite the warm relationship between the current regime and the Egyptian churches, ordinary Christian citizens ... suffer from discrimination, the same petition criticising al-Sisi read. Government reforms implemented in the 1950s made the patriarch the Coptss main representative in politics, paralysing the once-vibrant Coptic civil society. Resentment has grown among Coptic Christians dissatisfied with the governments failure to deliver on the promise of equality (Rex) Today, his failure to champion Coptic rights has fed into resentment. Disturbed by the Patriarchs pro-government leanings, blogger Wael Eskander went as far as to question the Popes fidelity to the Coptic creed. The pope and the church have shown very little [love], except to the regime, he wrote. The Coptss uncomfortable position in Egyptian society reflects the countrys descent under President Sisi. In recent months, the Egyptian economy has experienced a currency crisis even as the government continues to grapple with Islamist militancy. The 2011 revolution carried a promise of change, but led only to stagnation and not only for Christians. The economy has hit everyones pocketbooks, and minorities such as Shia Muslims, Nubians, atheists and the countrys LGBT community suffer far greater persecution than before. Numerically, the Copts constitute a minority. But their suffering is shared by most Egyptians. Washington Post For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A Muslim businessman has erected an 85-foot Christmas tree in Baghdad in a sign of solidarity with Christians during the festive season. Yassir Saad spent $24,000 (19,000) on the artificial tree, which has a diameter of 33ft (10m), to help Iraqis forget their anguish over the war against Isis. Iraqi forces are continuing to battle insurgent Isis fighters in Mosul, the group's last major stronghold in the country. Saba Ismael, a visitor to the theme park where the tree has been displayed, said it represents love and peace. I wish all Iraqi Christians could return to Iraq and live normal and peaceful lives, she said. Iraqs Christian community has been persistently persecuted since the US-led invasion of the country in 2003. In 2014, Isis stormed into northern Iraq, taking control of Mosul, Iraq's second-largest and once most diverse city. Extremists marked Christian houses with the Arabic equivalent of the letter N for the derogatory term Nazarene and issued threatening ultimatums to leave the city or face death or forced conversion to Islam. An estimated 20 or 30 Christians are thought to remain in the city. Some have been able to return to communities neighbouring Mosul; however, many have found their homes destroyed or ransacked. Christians are not the only religious group to be persecuted by Isis. In August 3 2014, extremist fighters attacked the town of Sinjar in northern Iraq as part of their campaign to eradicate the Yazidi people and purify the region of non-Islamic influences. The group continue to suffer abominable human rights abuses, condemned by the United Nations as genocide. Additional reporting by Associated Press For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Donald Trump hasnt been sworn in yet, but he is already making decisions and issuing statements to world leaders that radically depart from American foreign policy, all to the benefit of his familys corporate empire. Because of this, the next president of the United States is already vulnerable to undue influence by other nations, including through bribery and even blackmail. Given the vast scope of the clashes between the Trumps extensive business dealings and the interests of America, the President-elect vowed during the campaign to eliminate potential conflicts by severing ties to his company yet, with only weeks to go until he takes the oath of office, he hasnt laid out a credible plan. Trumps sole suggestion to date a blind trust run by his children would not eliminate the conflicts, given that the money generated would still go to his family. Moreover, such a trust would be anything but blind: If Trump Tower Moscow goes under construction, Trump will see it while in Russia and know that his kids are making millions of dollars from it. That is why foreign leaders hoping to curry favour will do everything they can to help Trumps family erect more buildings, sell more jewellery and make money through any means possible. Even if the family steps away from its company while Trump is President, every nation on Earth will know that doing business with the Trump Organisation will one day benefit the family. The only way to eliminate the conflicts sell the company, divvy up the proceeds has been rejected by Trump, whose transition team refused to respond to any questions from Newsweek for this article. Duterte has championed the killing of suspected criminals and street children Some of the most egregious conflicts that have emerged involve countries in Asia and its subregions, particularly the Philippines. Global policy on the Philippines has been fraught with tension since the election in May of Rodrigo Duterte as the countrys president. Duterte, who boasted to voters during the campaign that he had shot a fellow law school student for teasing him, has championed the killing of suspected criminals and street children by vigilante death squads. In 2015, he said that if he became president, up to 100,000 people suspected of links to illegal drugs could be killed. Just months after his election, Duterte said he was eager to lead a genocide of up to 3 million drug addicts. Id be happy to slaughter them, he said. At least if Germany had Hitler, the Philippines would have [me]. And in September, an admitted hit man testified to a Senate committee in the Philippines that Duterte presided over a killing campaign when he was mayor of Davao City. As president, Duterte rapidly showed he was little concerned with the legal protections afforded to Filipinos suspected of crimes. During his first three months in office, 850 Filipinos were killed by death squads, apparently on little more than the suspicion that they were drug users and dealers. Since then, the estimated death toll has climbed to 4,500. The carnage has been condemned throughout the Western world; the Parliament of the European Union and two United Nations human rights experts have urged Duterte to end the massacre. One of the experts even appeared to suggest that Duterte and his government could be held legally accountable for committing mass murder in violation of international law. Claims to fight illicit drug trade do not absolve the government from its international legal obligations and do not shield state actors or others from responsibility for illegal killings, said Agnes Callamard, the UN special rapporteur on summary executions. In response to the denunciations, Duterte lashed out at the United States, threatening to align his country more with China. Despite universal condemnation of the ongoing slaughter of Filipinos, Trump signalled his approval of Dutertes policies during a phone call on 2 December. According to Duterte an account that has gone uncontested by Trump the President-elect endorsed his tactics as the right way. Duterte added: [Trump] was wishing me success in my campaign against the drug problem. (He also said Trump invited him to the White House, a courtesy not yet extended to Theresa May, the prime minister of Americas most important strategic ally.) A Trump Tower poster displayed on a roadside billboard in Manila, Philippines (Getty) The Trump transition team did not respond to Newsweek when asked if the President-elect had intended to signal his approval of the carnage in the Philippines; did not believe the conclusions of the UN and Western nations that Duterte ordered the killings; or simply did not understand the magnitude of his comments. One thing, however, is clear: the Trump family has an enormous financial interest in keeping Duterte happy. Trump Tower at Century City in Makati, Philippines, is on the verge of completion, with potential buyers having placed deposits on at least 94 per cent of the condominiums, according to Century Properties, the Trump Organisations business partner there. During the US presidential campaign, Trumps sons Donald Jr and Eric travelled to Makati to shovel some dirt in a ceremony to celebrate the structural completion of the building; a photograph of the two men shovelling alongside top Century Properties executives was posted on the buildings website. On that same website, a line of jewellery by Trumps daughter Ivanka is offered for sale, and it is expected to be available for purchase at the $150m (121m) property. As with almost every property with Trumps name on it built over the past decade, his company is not the developer; it merely sold its name to Century Properties to use on the building. Although details of the transaction are not public, contracts for other Trump branding deals reviewed by Newsweek show that they require a multimillion-dollar up-front payment as well as up to 25 per cent of the developers revenue, year after year. So, under the deal, Trumps children will be paid millions of dollars throughout their fathers presidency by Jose EB Antonio, the head of Century Properties. Duterte recently named Antonio the special government envoy to the United States. The conflicts here could not be more troubling or more blatant: President Trump will be discussing US policy in Southeast Asia with one of his (or his childrens) business partners, a man who is the official representative of a foreign leader who likens himself to Hitler. Also note that the Trump family has an enormous financial interest in Dutertes deadly campaign: rooting out crime in the Philippines is good for the real estate values. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty The Trump familys dealings in the Philippines will set off a constitutional crisis on the first day of Trumps presidency, if anyone in the federal government decides to abide by the law. There is serious debate as to whether Trump will be violating the Constitutions Emoluments Clause which prohibits office holders from accepting gifts from foreign states since the majority of his companys business is with other corporations and developers. That is not the case in the Philippines. The man writing millions of dollars worth of cheques to the Trump family is the Duterte governments special representative to the United States. To argue that these payments will be constitutional if they are paid to the Trump children, and not to Trump personally, is absurd. This conflict demands congressional hearings, and could be an impeachable offence. This unyielding principle that foreign powers cannot be allowed to hold sway over a president dates back to the Founding Fathers. In Federalist 68, Alexander Hamilton wrote of the dangers of such a scenario. Nothing was more to be desired than that every practicable obstacle should be opposed to cabal, intrigue, and corruption, he wrote in reference to the powers bestowed in the constitution. These most deadly adversaries of republican government might naturally have been expected to make their approaches from more than one quarter, but chiefly from the desire in foreign powers to gain an improper ascendant in our councils. Duterte has extraordinary leverage against Trump, and no one will know what impact that might have on the future presidents decision-making Trumps conflicts of interest in the Philippines cannot be resolved so long as anyone in his family has an interest in the building there. Even if his business partner, Antonio, is removed as Dutertes special envoy, Trump wont simply forget that the Makati building exists, that the authoritarian Philippine president has the power to damage the Trump familys financial interests there and that the protection of what is now a high-profile target for attacks is in Dutertes hands. (In the past three years, there have been nine strikes in the Philippines. The most recent, in September, was a bombing that killed 15 people and injured 70; in response, Duterte declared that the country was in a state of lawlessness and ordered police and the military to search all cars and citizens at checkpoints.) The result of all this is that Duterte has extraordinary leverage against Trump, and no one will know what impact that might have on the future presidents decision-making. For example, will Trump ignore the promises he made during the campaign on immigration when it comes to the Philippines, given the devastating impact it could have on the economy there? A report by the research division of Nomura Securities concluded that, under Trumps declared policies, the Philippines economy stands to lose the most of all countries in Southeast Asia. And because many Filipino guest labourers in the United States are undocumented, the report said that a tightening of immigration policies could lead to fewer migrant workers from that country. This could impact remittances inflows back to the Philippines, the report says. The US is host to 34.5 per cent of the total overseas Filipino population, and we estimate accounts for about 31 per cent of total worker remittances. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, remittances from the United States totalled almost $6bn in the first seven months of 2016. Translation: under Trumps immigration policies, huge supports for the Filipino economy could collapse. On 15 November, Moodys announced that Trumps policies would negatively affect the Philippiness credit rating, which could thwart Duterte from keeping his campaign promises of tax cuts and greater spending on infrastructure. Duterte could easily punish Trump for undermining his domestic agenda in the Philippines by taking actions against the familys business interests. And Trump knows that anything he does to alienate Duterte or harm the Philippine economy could threaten his familys wealth. Trump: Clinton may be 'most corrupt person ever to seek presidency' Trump also has serious conflicts of interest regarding China. Part of this, once again, traces from the Philippines. Trump has vowed to label China a currency manipulator that artificially drives down the value of the renminbi, which would make Chinese goods cheaper to import. That would allow the United States to impose duties on Chinese imports to offset any currency manipulation. China is one of the top two export destinations for the Philippines, with about 55 per cent of that trade coming from the electronics business, according to the Philippines Statistics Authority. China then uses a large portion of those Philippines imports for the manufacture of products sold to the United States. Like an international trade version of toppling dominoes, American rules that decrease imports into the United States will, in turn, slam the largest Philippines export business, roiling that countrys economy. The last domino hits Trump Tower at Century City: the global property consultancy services company CB Richard Ellis has attributed increased demand for luxury condominiums in the Philippines to the countrys growing economy. Impose duties on Chinese imports to America today and Trump Tower in the Philippines could fall into bankruptcy soon after, costing the presidents children millions of dollars. So if Trump reverses his promise to have China declared a currency manipulator on day one of his presidency, would it be because someone explained to him that the renminbi has been going up in value over the past 12 months or because he now sees the possibly dire implications to the American economy from a trade war with China? Or would it be because he wants his kids business in the Philippines to prosper? No one but Donald Trump will ever know the truth. Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen plunged the US into a diplomatic row with one phone call (Getty) Theres a similarly disturbing conundrum in Taiwan. On 2 December, Trump with no consultation with State Department specialists on the delicate relations between American and China upended almost 40 years of US policy by taking a phone call from the president of Taiwan, which broke away from the mainland in 1949. The question of whether Taiwan is an independent country or part of China proved to be a major diplomatic challenge after President Richard Nixon normalised relations with China. To avoid conflict, the United States adopted what is called the One China policy, under which the US maintains unofficial relations with Taiwan but does not consider it to be its own country. Because America does not recognise Taiwan as its own political entity, all American leaders since Ronald Reagan have refused to speak to its president. This month, Trump pushed his position even further, saying he saw no reason to be bound by the One China policy that has smoothed Sino-American relations and instead advocating using it as a bargaining chip in trade and other negotiations. If Trump wanted to reverse decades of policy followed by both Republican and Democratic presidents, he should have waited until after his inauguration; presidents-elect are not supposed to interfere in foreign policy. Why did he not wait? Only Trump knows, but allegations have already emerged that the decision may have been influenced by his familys financial interests. Cheng Wen-tsan, mayor of Taoyuan, Taiwan, told The China Times that a representative from Trumps company named Chen Siting, who is also known as Charlyne Chen, had visited to express the familys interest in building a hotel near the citys airport. According to the mayor, Chen also said that Eric Trump would be visiting the island by the end of the year. Since that report, the Trump Organisation has stated that no trips to Taiwan were authorised for the hotels division and that no conversations were under way about such a project. However, on 24 November, Chen told Formosa Television that she had assisted the Trump Organisation in the past to sell some of its properties in Las Vegas to buyers in Taiwan and Shanghai. As first reported in The New York Times, Anne-Marie Donoghue, who identifies herself on her Facebook page as a Trump Hotels Asia sales director, posted a photo from a visit to Taiwan in October, which she described as a work trip; this was one month after the mayor of Taoyuan said he met with Chen. Ivanka and Eric Trump will look to expand their business in China (EPA) Finally, there is the question of whether the Trump Organisation will attempt any deals in China during the next four years. In 2011, Eric Trump publicly stated that the family company planned to expand its brand into China after the completion of the Manila project. That building is almost finished, meaning the Chinese could well be expecting contacts from the Trump family soon. What Trump and his transition team dont seem to understand is that it does not matter whether Sitings trip was authorised, whether Donoghue was in attendance, whether there are discussions going on now or whether contracts are about to be signed. Just the suspicion that Trump might re-establish formal relations with Taiwan for the financial benefit of his children or might use it as a bargaining chip for landing the kind of development deals on the mainland that Eric Trump discussed will now be part of the foreign policy calculations in Beijing, as officials there attempt to deal with the new US president. The conflicts between the commercial interests of the Trump family and US foreign policy extend beyond the many financial benefits for the next president and his children. Already, there is a situation in which the president of the United States could be blackmailed by a foreign power through pressure related to his familys business entanglements. In 2008, the Trump Organisation struck a multimillion-dollar branding deal with the Dogan Group, a large corporation named after its influential family, for a two-tower complex in Istanbul. In 2012, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan presided over the opening ceremonies and met with Trump. But in June of this year, Erdogan called for the Trump name to be removed from the complex because of his anti-Muslim rhetoric; the Turkish president also said presiding over the dedication had been a terrible mistake. Erdogan later told associates he intended to impede Americas use of a critical air force base in Turkey should Trump win the presidency, a Middle Eastern financier with contacts inside the Turkish government told Newsweek. The financier spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid jeopardising relations with his official contacts. In July, members of the Turkish military attempted a coup. Erdogan crushed the plotters, and his government has arrested more than 36,000 suspected participants and shut down 17 media outlets. The primary culprit, Erdogan declared almost immediately, was Fethullah Gulen, a 77-year-old Muslim spiritual leader who has lived in Pennsylvanias Poconos region for many years. Erdogan demanded that the Obama administration extradite Gulen to face charges related to the coup. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has leverage with Trump (Getty) Gulen and Erdogan were allies until 2013, the year a series of corruption investigations erupted regarding government officials accused of engaging in a gas for gold scheme with Iran; Erdogan claimed the man with whom he once shared common goals was the driving force behind the inquiries, which he called an attempted civilian coup. Erdogan has placed Gulen on the countrys list of most-wanted terrorists, but the Obama administration has not acted on the extradition request, and it has told the Turks they would have to produce proof of Gulens involvement in the coup attempt before he could be sent to Ankara, the Turkish capital. Enter Donald Trump. The day of the US election, the news site The Hill published an article by Lieutenant General Michael T Flynn, who has since been named as Trumps national security adviser. The forces of radical Islam derive their ideology from radical clerics like Gulen, who is running a scam, Flynn wrote. We should not provide him safe haven ... It is imperative that we remember who our real friends are. (Flynn, who runs a consulting firm hired by a company with links to the Turkish government, seems unaware that radical Islamic groups like Isis are more likely to decapitate someone like Gulen.) That article, according to the financier with contacts in the Turkish government, led Erdogan and his associates to believe a Trump administration would not demand more evidence to justify deporting Gulen. So, almost immediately, Erdogan stopped condemning Trump and instead voiced support for him. The day after the US election, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim issued a statement directly linking his countrys good wishes for Trump with its desire to get Gulen back. We congratulate Mr Trump. I am openly calling on the new president from here about the urgent extradition of Fethullah Gulen, the mastermind, executor and perpetrator of the heinous July 15 coup attempt, who lives on US soil. The potential extradition of Fethullah Gulen may be used as a bargaining chip (Getty) In a telephone call that same day with Erdogan, Trump passed on compliments to the Turkish president from a senior official with his companys business partner on the Istanbul project, whom the President-elect was reported to have called a close friend. The official, Mehmet Ali Yalcindag, is the son-in-law of Dogan Holding owner Aydin Dogan and was instrumental in the development of the Trump complex in Turkey. That Trump delivered messages from his business partner to Erdogan has been reported in numerous media outlets in Turkey, including some closely tied to the government, and has not been denied by Turkish officials or the Trump transition team. According to the Middle Eastern financier with contacts in the Erdogan administration, Trumps casual praise of a member of the Dogan family prompted Erdogan to believe this relationship might give him leverage over the President-elect. In the past, Erdogan has placed enormous pressure on the Dogan Group, which owns media operations that have been critical of him, by imposing a $2.5bn tax fine and calling for supporters to boycott its newspapers and television stations. Then, just weeks after hearing Trumps kind words about his Dogan business partner, Erdogan lashed out at the Turkish company again. On 1 December, authorities detained Barbaros Muratogl, a 28-year veteran of Dogan who was the companys representative to Ankara. His alleged crime? Maintaining links to the movement led by Gulen, thus connecting the Dogan executive to the attempted coup. In response, Dogan shares fell 8.6 per cent. (The purported evidence against Muratogl: public accusations from an editor at a newspaper owned by a company that competes with Dogan.) Once again, follow the dominoes as they tip over. Erdogan is frustrated in his efforts to grab Gulen; Trump praises a Turkish executive who works with his business partner there, Dogan. A few weeks later, a senior Dogan executive is detained on threadbare allegations. If Erdogans government puts more pressure on the company thats paying millions of dollars to Trump and his children, revenue flowing from the tower complex in Istanbul could be cut off. That means Erdogan has leverage with Trump, who will soon have the power to get Gulen extradited. The financier with contacts in the Turkish government explained the dynamic to Newsweek: Erdogan has something he believes Trump wants, and Trump has someone Erdogan desperately wants. Trumps Buenos Aires building plans were given the go-ahead days after a call to Argentine President Mauricio Macri (Getty) With US security and foreign policy already jeopardised by the President-elects conflicts, a few horrifying instances of potential corruption and abuse of power seem quaint by comparison. For example, in a stunning breach of protocol, Ivanka Trump who supposedly will be on the other side of the dividing line between the Trump businesses and the Trump presidency sat in on her fathers first meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe shortly after the election. At the same time, officials with her clothing company were working on a licensing agreement with Sanei International. The largest shareholder of Saneis parent company is the Development Bank of Japan, which is wholly owned by the Japanese government headed by Abe. Another source of potential corruption that could set off a constitutional crisis is in Argentina. That countrys president, Mauricio Macri, has known Trump for decades because he is the son of one of the President-elects former business associates. (Macri, who is a conservative, supported Hillary Clinton in the election because he didnt like Trumps anti-immigration stance.) For years, Trump has been trying to get an office project going in Buenos Aires but has not been able to gain all the necessary government permits. Instead, his Argentine partners financed a Trump building in Uruguay. Trump and Macri spoke by telephone on 14 November, just after the election. Days later, Jorge Latnata, one of Argentinas most respected journalists, reported on the television programme Periodismo Para Todos (Journalism for All) that Trump asked Macri during the call to deal with the permitting problems that were holding up the Buenos Aires project. Officials for Trump and Macri both denied Trump said it; Reuters subsequently reported that Ivanka Trump was on that call, even though she has no official or proposed government role. Just three days after the phone call, a major Argentine newspaper, La Nacion, reported that after years of delay, the project in Buenos Aires was ready to go. Trumps partners with YY Development Group announced that all but a few administrative problems had been cleared and that they expected to break ground in July. If Argentine officials issued any permits for this project after the US election or do so at any time in the next four years Trump could once again be in violation of the Emoluments Clause. That the funding for the project ultimately came from the Argentine businessmen (Trumps partners) would not change the fact that the government was responsible for raining down riches on the Trump family. White House muscle may be wielded against foreign powers who threaten Trump Organisation interests (Getty) Given the extraordinary power Donald Trump now wields, its obvious that foreign governments and corporations can easily curry favour, bribe or even blackmail him, which is why the Founding Fathers so feared outside influences on the executive branch. Once hes president, Trump does not need to ask for cash to be delivered to his pockets or to those of his children to cross the line into illicit activities and possibly impeachable offences. Macri of Argentina cannot know if his country will be punished by the Trump White House if the remaining permits for that Buenos Aires project are denied. Abe of Japan does not know if a government holdup of Ivanka Trumps deal with Sanei International will lead her impulsive father to call for an American military withdrawal from his country. Erdogan of Turkey has told associates he believes he must keep pressure on Trumps business partner there to essentially blackmail the president into extraditing a political enemy. Duterte of the Philippines believes he has received approval from the President-elect to, at best, abide by or, at worst, continue to authorise the frenzied slaughter of drug users and dealers, and knows he can harm the Trump family if the president ever angers him. America is on the precipice of an unprecedented threat, as allies and enemies alike calculate whether they are dealing with a president they can please merely by enriching his children. President-elect Trump has a monumental choice before him: he can, as he promised during the campaign, protect the sanctity of the presidency which he can do only by selling his company. Or he can remain corrupted by the conflicts between his countrys future and his familys fortune. Newsweek For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The supposedly most ignorant places in the world have been named based on a survey of people's knowledge about their own country. The 2016 Index of Ignorance, produced by Ipsos MORI, includes information from 27,250 interviews of people aged 16 to 64 carried out between September and November. The survey took in populations from 40 countries, with between 500 and 1,000 people surveyed in each. Participants were asked a number of questions about their society, including their country's population, healthcare spending, home ownership and the proportion of Muslims living in their country. The findings were then collated to create the index. The economic status of a country seemed to have less bearing on the results than might be expected. The USA, the richest country in the world, ranked as one of the most ignorant countries, below many less developed countries. However, Malaysia, which is not considered fully developed, was in the top 10 least ignorant countries. The list, from most to least ignorant, is as follows: India China Taiwan South Africa USA Brazil Thailand Singapore Turkey Indonesia Mexico Canada Montenegro World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty Russia Serbia Philippines Hong Kong Israel Denmark Argentina France Vietnam Peru Spain Chile Hungary Japan Belgium Poland Are schools teaching children financial education? Colombia Sweden Norway Italy Germany Australia Malaysia Czech Republic South Korea United Kingdom Netherlands Sign up to Simon Calders free travel email for weekly expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calders Travel email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Simon Calders Travel email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} I just need a minute to breathe, I said, as for what seemed like the millionth time I sat on a rock and inhaled deeply, wishing for more oxygen in the air. Behind me, I could make out the faint sound of someone being sick. This was nothing like my training. Id signed up to climb Kilimanjaro a few months before the November departure, leaving me plenty of time to shape up. I went to exercise classes and training sessions almost every weekday, while weekends became all about walking in the Lakes, the Brecon Beacons and the Home Counties. When the time came, I felt ready. Recommended What to pack for Kilimanjaro The night before the climb was spent in the northern Tanzanian town of Marangu, at a hotel that didn't seem to have changed much in 30 years not the staff, the decor or the sheets. Here I met the rest of the group five other 20- and 30-somethings and our Intrepid Travel guide, Mathew, for a briefing before an early night. The next morning the hotel was bustling. Around 20 porters had arrived, ready to lug our tents, food and kit bags as well as their own stuff while all we would have to carry were our day packs. Over the course of the week I lost count of the number of times we were overtaken by these superheroes, whod run past with up to 15kg on their heads while we pushed on at the speed of pensioners. The porters' morning briefing (Nicola Trup) We were following the Rongai route, which starts on the mountains north side, a couple of hours drive from Marangu, so by the time we got to the gate we were raring to go. But, as Mathew had told us the night before, we had to take it pole pole (slowly, slowly) if we wanted to acclimatise. Never overtake the guide in front, we were warned. November is the beginning of rainy season so we set off in a downpour, waterproofed up to the eyeballs. Tiny children came running up as we passed farming villages on the way to the forest; Id been expecting a lush jungle with monkeys swinging from the trees but thats on the other side of the mountain as I found out on the way down. This, by contrast, didnt feel entirely dissimilar to, say, Surrey, except for the ringtone-like bird calls and the occasional bush pig print. We continued, pole pole, up the gentle incline, before emerging on to the moorland the third of Kili's five distinct zones (farmland and forest being the first two). The rocky path led us through tall grasses and across streams lined with giant groundsels an eccentric pineapple-triffid hybid of a plant, found only on the mountains of East Africa. A giant groundsel (Nicola Trup) By the time we reached Simba Camp the porters had already set everything up. And we had company; a couple of white-necked ravens the size of small cats. They though we couldnt be sure it was that exact pair would keep us company throughout the week, popping up whenever we took a break. For the next few days we fell into a comfortable routine. Our three guides, Mathew, Sam and Faraja, would lead us for a few hours of steady walking punctuated by a packed lunch. On arrival at camp there would be popcorn and hot drinks, card games, a short acclimatisation walk, more card games, dinner and early bed. One of the white-necked ravens (Sarah McWilliam) Along the way, we passed caves and the remains of a light aircraft that crashed in 2008 (caused by poor visibility, apparently), and learned that distances on Kili can be deceptive something that looks about half an hours walk away can in fact more like two hours, and the ridge you thought you were aiming for can often turn out just to be just a blip on the ridge behind it. Mathew had taught us the words to a Swahili song, and whenever there was a lull in conversation, someone would burst out with Jambo, jambo bwana... But as we crossed the alpine desert (Kili's fourth zone) we fell silent, the swishing sound of feet on sand becoming almost hypnotic. So much so that one of our group fell asleep while walking. One night we camped at Mawenzi Tarn, the mountain's only permanent lake. It sits in the shadow of jagged Mawenzi peak which, though not as high as the summit at Uhuru (the fifth zone), can only be undertaken by experienced climbers with serious kit and specialist guides. Sam and Faraja (Nicola Trup) After four days, we reached Kibo Camp, the closest campsite to the summit at Uhuru, where we went to bed at 7pm in preparation for setting off at midnight. Naturally, no one really slept, and in a dreamlike state I pulled on almost every layer I had, poured warm water into my hydration bladder in the hope that it wouldnt freeze (it did) and sat down for a pep talk. Each of the guides had his own words of wisdom. The harder the battle, the sweeter the victory, said Faraja. Don't think about what's happening at home, just think about the mountain, said Mathew. Sam, who's summited hundreds of times and reassuringly once got an 86-year-old up to Uhuru, told us: We are good motivators but you have to motivate yourselves. And so we set off in the dark, head torches on, zig-zagging up the frosty slope. We went pole pole, stopping increasingly often to warm our frozen fingers, catch our breath, drink the last drops of unfrozen water, or in some cases vomit. Faraja, meanwhile, was running up and down alongside us, doing press-ups and singing in an attempt to keep our spirits up. Just looking at him made me tired. Sunrise on the crater rim (Sarah McWilliam) I cant say exactly how long it took to reach Gilmans Point, at 5,680m, but the sun was starting to wake up, even if some of us were doing the opposite. Yet we still had to make our way along the rim of the volcanic crater to get to Uhuru. Vast, cubist glaciers loomed alongside, and the spectacular ice fields stretched out to touch the cloud beyond. Finally, the summit hove into view. As we approached the ramshackle sign informing us that we were at 5,895m, Africas highest point, the six of us burst into tears a mix of excitement, exhaustion and relief that wed made it after seven hours. Group hugs and so many photos ensued, and before we knew it the guides were ushering us away. It was time to come down. The summit (Nicola Trup) Travel essentials Getting there Intrepid Travel (0808 274 5111; intrepidtravel.com) offers the eight-day Klimanjaro Rongai Route trip from 1,428pp, including guides, cooks and porters, five nights camping and two nights in a hotel. Flights not included. Kenya Airways (020 8283 1818; kenya-airways.com) flies daily from Heathrow to Kilimanjaro via Nairobi (first leg on a B787 Dreamliner). Economy returns from 410. More information The Altitude Centre (020 7193 1626; altitudecentre.com) offers mountaineering consultations from 128 and training sessions from 28. tanzaniatourism.com Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} This years Peter Mandelson Memorial Dim Sum Supper was if anything an even more sombre affair than last years. Last Christmas the participants berated themselves for having predicted the 2015 general election wrongly. This years proceedings began with another stern self-admonishment. As minutes secretary, I was sorry to report that last year we predicted Zac Goldsmith would be mayor of London; the Scottish National Party would advance on its nine-seat majority in the Edinburgh parliament (it lost six seats); the EU referendum, in September, would go for Remain; and Hillary Clinton would prevail over either Ted Cruz or Marco Rubio. (In my defence, I also record that I refused to predict the American election, reminding colleagues of confident predictions in 1991 that the Democrats were merely choosing which unfortunate would lose to George Bush Sr in 1992, when they chose Hillarys husband.) Supreme Court Brexit Challenge Show all 13 1 /13 Supreme Court Brexit Challenge Supreme Court Brexit Challenge People wait to enter the public gallery outside the Supreme Court ahead of the challenge against a court ruling that Theresa May's government requires parliamentary approval to start the process of leaving the European Union, in Parliament Square, central London Reuters Supreme Court Brexit Challenge Gina Miller, co-founder of investment fund SCM Private arrives at the Supreme court in London on the first day of a four-day hearing Getty Supreme Court Brexit Challenge A man waves the EU flag in front of the Supreme Court Getty Supreme Court Brexit Challenge Satirical artist Kaya Mar poses with two of his paintings in front of the Supreme Court Getty Supreme Court Brexit Challenge Pro-Europe protestors dressed as Supreme Court Justices stand outside the Supreme Court ahead of the first day of a hearing into whether Parliament's consent is required before the Brexit process can begin. The eleven Supreme Court Justices will hear the government's appeal, following the High Court's recent decision that only Parliament can trigger Article 50 Getty Supreme Court Brexit Challenge The eleven Supreme Court Justices will hear the government's appeal, following the High Court's recent decision that only Parliament can trigger Article 50 Getty Supreme Court Brexit Challenge Businesswoman Gina Miller arrives at the Supreme Court ahead of the first day of a hearing into whether Parliament's consent is required before the Brexit process can begin Getty Supreme Court Brexit Challenge Attorney General Jeremy Wright arrives at the Supreme Court in London EPA Supreme Court Brexit Challenge Protesters outside the Supreme Court in London, where the Government is appealing against a ruling that the Prime Minister must seek MPs' approval to trigger the process of taking Britain out of the European Union PA wire Supreme Court Brexit Challenge A protesters wearing a judge's wigs and robes stands outside the Supreme Court ahead of the challenge against a court ruling that Theresa May's government requires parliamentary approval to start the process of leaving the European Union, in Parliament Square, central London Reuters Supreme Court Brexit Challenge A protester holds up a placard outside the Supreme Court ahead of the challenge against a court ruling that Theresa May's government requires parliamentary approval to start the process of leaving the European Union, in Parliament Square, central London Reuters Supreme Court Brexit Challenge Pro-Europe protestors dressed as Supreme Court Justices stand outside the Supreme Court Getty Supreme Court Brexit Challenge A man waiting to enter the public gallery waves a European Union flag outside the Supreme Court ahead of the challenge against a court ruling that Theresa May's government requires parliamentary approval to start the process of leaving the European Union, in Parliament Square, central London Reuters The dim sum event is now as much an established fixture in the British political calendar as the party conferences and the annual row over Philip Daviess filibustering. It began on 23 December 1998, when I was lunching with a group of friends in Soho and the news came through that Mandelson had resigned from the Cabinet. By coincidence, the same group was lunching just after Christmas two years later, on 24 January 2001, when Mandelson resigned again. The group has gathered every year since, just before or just after Christmas, and its main business is to predict the political year ahead. Even the previous prime minister followed its deliberations. Before the 2015 election David Cameron told me: I read your column, the dinner party, the dim sum. How do you think the Lib Dems are going to do? We need to win a lot of seats off them. He was right, which was one of the reasons we got it wrong. We should have invited him to this years supper, really, but we made our unreliable predictions without him. Recommended David Davis indicates Brexit could be stopped even after Article 50 We started with the Supreme Court: there was a majority verdict in favour of a majority verdict against the Government in January. So a Bill to invoke Article 50 to leave the EU would have to be passed by Parliament. However, we were unanimous that Article 50 would be triggered by Theresa Mays deadline, the end of March. After that, we thought that none of the three Brexit ministers would resign in 2017, although there was a dissenting vote for Liam Fox, the International Trade Secretary, and we agreed that the UK would actually leave the EU in 2019, at the end of the two-year negotiating period. The next business was the French presidency. We were unanimous that Marine Le Pen would not win. This may seem like another complacent view from the politics-as-usual bubble, but the conventional wisdom isnt always wrong and French politics isnt like politics anywhere else. If French voters decide that Brexit-Trumpism is an Anglo-Saxon phenomenon, Le Pen might not even make the final two for the run-off. Most of the dim-summers thought Francois Fillon, the conservative, would win, although there was a vote for Emmanuel Macron, the independent centrist. For the German elections in the autumn of 2017, we struggled to see where the threat to Angela Merkel would come from. The social democrats are her coalition partners and the insurgent Alternative for Germany come up against the nations fear of its own history. So we waved her through. She would therefore continue to be the most important person in deciding the terms of our departure from the EU. After that we were unanimous that the next general election would be in 2020 no early dash for the polls subverting the Fixed-term Parliaments Act and that Scotland would not hold a second independence referendum by then. Then we could put it off no longer. It was time for the aromatic crispy duck. Thus fortified, we proceeded to tackle the hardest challenge. What is going to happen to the Labour Party? We had to start by admitting that we had no idea whether Len McCluskey would succeed in his snap election device to hold onto the leadership of the Unite union in April. If his challenger, Gerard Coyne, the unions West Midlands Regional Secretary, were to win, that would make Jeremy Corbyns position more difficult. But even so it was not obvious when Corbyn would go or, more importantly, who would succeed him. The problem with this years leadership challenge from Owen Smith is that so many of Corbyns supporters, even if they admitted to themselves in the dark silence of the small hours that he wasnt the Messiah, felt that it was unfair. Let Jeremy fail on his own, as Gavin Sibthorpe, Corbyns own events manager, put it in the Vice documentary. End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Show all 14 1 /14 End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Manchester End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Manchester End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Edinburgh Jon Savage End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Edinburgh Colin Hattersley Photography End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Edinburgh Colin Hattersley Photography End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Edinburgh Colin Hattersley Photography End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Edinburgh Colin Hattersley Photography End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Edinburgh Colin Hattersley Photography End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Eden Project, Cornwall End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Eden Project, Cornwall End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Sheffield James Rothwell End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Norwich End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Cardiff End Youth Homelessness Sleep Out 2016 Cardiff The question for us was when that failure would be incontrovertibly evident to enough of what remains of the membership surge. The majority view was that Corbyn would be gone by the time of the 2020 election. The minority insisted that, while it felt as if he must go, analysis suggested he would lead the party into the election, which would be an unusually one-sided contest. The discussion about who might be the next Labour leader bounced inconclusively from Clive Lewis to Lisa Nandy to Keir Starmer and to Angela Rayner, the shadow Education Secretary since July. In the end we concluded that Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London whose term expires on the day of the general election in 2020, might be the best bet, despite the awkward timing. The debate about who would be the next Conservative leader was no more definitive. Boris Johnson, Philip Hammond and David Davis were all mentioned. The familiar golden ageist lament about the paucity of talent on both sides of the House of Commons was rehearsed. But the jasmine tea had arrived and it was time to conclude. Our conclusion so by our recent record this will be completely wrong was that the Conservatives are set for a long era of post-Brexit dominance, like that of the 18 years from 1979 to 1997. Previous Peter Mandelson Memorial Dim Sum Suppers: 2016 predictions; 2015 predictions, 2014 predictions; 2013 predictions. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Today the UK took one step closer to enshrining robust support for domestic violence survivors in law. MPs have voted to back legislation which would increase the availability of support services for people who experience domestic and sexual abuse. While the bill was brought forward, a common question kept recurring: do we really need this? Coupled with: surely we must already have proper domestic violence laws in place? But despite what many believe, the UKs legislation on domestic violence is woefully inadequate and this bill is desperately needed. While the UK has relatively functional laws in criminalising abuse when it occurs, the same cannot be said of laws to prevent abuse in the first place and support victims in the aftermath of such crimes. If we are serious about protecting women, girls, boys, men, and non-binary people, we must take a holistic, comprehensive and strategic approach. Current legal entitlements for domestic violence survivors are sloppy and piecemeal, a chaotic mix of human rights law and case law recently assembled out of a misogynistic legal system which only recognised women as human beings rather than property a mere century ago. Domestic violence survivors are in principle entitled to receive emotional support and refuge, under general laws stipulating that local councils have a duty of care for all residents welfare. However, as domestic violence isnt specifically mentioned in any of these laws and councils are open to interpret what a duty of care actually means (for some it could mean merely handing out leaflets), some victims have been denied access to services they desperately need. Philip Davies MP says a domestic violence treaty is sexist against men This has never been more the case than under austerity, where local authority cuts have slashed refuge places, counselling services and other support for victims. But passing legislation to specifically outline, once and for all, the rights which abuse survivors are entitled to receive and governments are legally bound to deliver ensures this cannot happen. That we have thus far failed to pass separate and specific legislation for domestic violence support services says a lot about the disinterest with which the issue of abuse is treated. It reveals how domestic violence is considered an afterthought, rather than a serious epidemic which affects 7 per cent of women and 4 per cent of men. At the moment, when local authorities or judges hearing civil claims against them consider the rights of abuse survivors, they are asked to wade through rights and welfare afforded to other crimes. Just last month, a woman took a case to the Supreme Court after she faced losing her specially adapted home due to the bedroom tax. It was fitted with panic alarms and CCTV, which the woman requires as her ex-partner had made a number of serious and credible threats to her life. After one of her children moved out of the family home, a bedroom was empty and the council threatened to apply the spare bedroom tax, despite her protestations she could not afford to stay there with the tax and arguments that the property was essential for her safety. The case she took against the council was complex, due to vague, piecemeal and inadequate legislation about the rights survivors should have. A specialist victims bill stipulates and clarifies these duties, making it harder for governments to shirk them. UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 2 November 2022 A red squirrel gathers nuts in Pitlochry, Scotland Reuters UK news in pictures 1 November 2022 Englands Tara-Jane Stanley scores their sides seventh try against Brazil during the Womens Rugby League World Cup group A match at Headingley Stadium, Leeds PA UK news in pictures 31 October 2022 GBs James Hall competes during the mens parallel bars qualification at the World Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 October 2022 People dressed in Halloween costumes paddle board along the river Avon in Christchurch, Dorset PA UK news in pictures 29 October 2022 Members of the public take pictures as police officers remove activists from a road during a Just Stop Oil protest, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 28 October 2022 A cosplayer attends the MCM Comic Con London 2022 at the ExCel Centre in London Reuters UK news in pictures 27 October 2022 98-year-old D-Day Veteran Bernard Morgan, whose story is among those featured on the giant poppy wall, during the launch of The Royal British Legion 2022 Poppy Appeal, at Hay's Galleria in central London PA UK news in pictures 26 October 2022 A meerkat explores a pumpkin in the enclosure at Wild Place, Bristol, where some of the animals are having pumpkin treats as part of their environmental enrichment PA UK news in pictures 25 October 2022 King Charles III welcomes Rishi Sunak during an audience at Buckingham Palace, where he invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative Party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 24 October 2022 Rishi Sunak celebrates with Tory MPs outside the Conservative Campaign Headquarters after becoming the new leader of the Conservative Party Reuters UK news in pictures 23 October 2022 The Green Man at October Plenty, Borough Market's annual Autumn Harvest festival, in London, which returns for the first time post pandemic PA UK news in pictures 21 October 2022 Sculptor Peter McKenna puts the finishing touches to a pumpkin that will form part of the Planet A Hebden Bridge Pumpkin Trail in the West Yorkshire town PA UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty The current attitude towards victim support reveals much about societal attitudes towards domestic abuse, which does not see dignity as something abuse survivors are entitled to as a fundamental and inalienable human right, but rather as an additional extra for which they must work, opt in to, convince society that they have earned. Those who have survived abuse deserve nothing but respect and support they should never have to beg for human rights which common decency owes them. Today, MPs voted to force the Government to ratify the Istanbul Convention, an international treaty which affords these rights. In 2012, the Government agreed to sign it but has failed to do so in the four years since then. MPs have voted for a bill to compel the Government to now live up to that overdue commitment. After today, we still have a long way to go, and MPs will consider it at committee stage, before it again returns to Parliament for a third vote and can be officially approved. There are many more hurdles here to still overcome. However, todays vote marks a remarkable step forward in addressing the fundamentally flawed way this country treats domestic violence survivors and is sorely needed. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} On Monday 19 December, across America, the real votes will be cast that will make Donald J Trump the next president of the United States of America. That is the day that each states electors meet to reflect the view of the people in their state. In most US states, that means the winner takes all; in Michigan, where Trump won by only 10,700 votes, he takes all 16 electoral votes to the college. It may sound confusing, complicated or boring, but it is actually very exciting if your idea of super-exciting is a 226-year-old document. Talk dirty to me, Alexander Hamilton. The President of the US is just that, the president of a bunch of states, not directly a president of the people. It is the voters representing those states, known as the electors, that make the person the president. This year, for only the fifth time in history, the popular vote has been trumped by the electoral college because Donald won more of the smaller states. Even though Hillary Clinton has almost 3 million more votes in the national tally, it doesnt matter. Nigel Farage seen at Trump Tower again The US is a generally successful marriage of independent states. As is often the case in a marriage, it is at its best when no one gets exactly what they want. Clearly, it is not the perfect system, but it isnt an accident. The founders wanted the electoral college for a number of reasons. It was partly as a compromise between larger more populated states versus the smaller rural ones; back then, state identity was stronger, like it is in Europe now. In the EU, people are very clearly French first and then European. The founders also didnt trust a direct popular vote. Partly because the founders were worried the people might be influenced by a foreign power. There are 538 electors, awarded proportionally, meeting throughout the the US on 19 December. But they don't have to necessarily follow the way their state voted. They can, if they choose, vote with their conscience. They could decide to vote for anyone. If they do go their own way, they are known as faithless electors. But if enough of them decide to dump Trump it could cost him the presidency. Trump currently stands at 302 pledged votes. He can afford to lose only 36 and still be elected President. They could decide that, between Trumps business conflicts, his failure to win the popular vote and the continuing revelations of potential interference in the popular-vote result from Moscow, they want to tell him hes fired before he's even hired. Trumps keeping a close eye on the vote to make sure no electors try to defect. If Trump doesn't get the votes, the final decision gets tossed to the House of Representatives which right now is controlled by Trumps party. But the Representatives are old-school Republicans who would probably much rather have a more traditional president. At that point who knows what could happen? It could be anyone. Just in case, probably best to stay by the phone. If the electors are looking for guidance, they can always remember the words of the President-elect himself: The electoral college is a disaster for a democracy. If Trump does win, we might just get the disaster he warned us about. Erich McElroy is an American comedian and pundit based in the UK Donald Trump This is no time to lose your head, but that isn't stopping a lot of liberals from doing so anyway. Democrats who spent months horrified that Donald Trump might not honor a clear election result then gave millions of dollars to Jill Stein (!) to pursue pointless recounts in states that were close, but not recount-level close. Now they are hinting at the idea that the Electoral College should refuse to elect Trump, without quite coming out and saying so out loud. For some reason, former Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta piped up to say electors ought to get intelligence briefings about Russian election interference briefings that would only be relevant if the idea was electors might change their votes based on the information they contain. This is stupid This reaction is bad, for two reasons. One is that baseless challenges to the election result (including by obliquely lobbying the Electoral College to nullify the result) undermine the very electoral institutions that Democrats were correctly saying we need to honor before they knew they would lose the election. The other problem is that the obsessive focus on what was so unfair about this year's election the Electoral College, the FBI, Russia's interference, sexism, and more have all been mentioned allows Democrats to avoid focusing on how their own errors to contributed to the loss. Saying you lost because the system was rigged against you is self-flattery, and it doesn't help you learn anything about what to do next time. A healthier thing would be for Democrats to focus on their own strategic mistakes so they don't repeat them. hillary clinton Next time, nominate better FBI Director James Comey's interference in the election was inappropriate and quite possibly swayed the outcome. The best way to prevent that from happening again is to do what political parties usually do: nominate a candidate who is not under investigation by the FBI. Story continues Clinton failed to offer a compelling message on how she would help middle-income Americans get ahead through work a failure that has been common for Republican and Democratic politicians in recent years, but that Trump managed to avoid. The next Democratic nominee will need to figure out how to convince voters he or she can succeed in fixing the job market where Trump fails. Most importantly, Clinton had major conflict-of-interest issues that positioned her poorly to take advantage of Trump's corruption. I have been amazed by the way so many liberals fully understand in general the insidious power of money and influence in politics, but will not apply their usual critiques to the Clintons or even understand why voters do apply them. The FBI discovered the new emails on the computer of former Congressman Anthony Weiner, estranged husband to close Clinton aide Huma Abadin, shown on the candidate's campaign plane here. Ivanka, meet Huma For example, people have quite reasonably raised concerns that Trump's children will play a role in staffing and policymaking in Trump's administration while also running businesses that are affected by public policy decisions. That is an obvious source of conflict of interest. But Hillary Clinton kept Huma Abedin on the payroll in a senior role at the State Department while she was also being paid by both the Clinton Foundation and Teneo Group, the international consulting firm founded by close Clinton associates. Must this not have been awkward when Clinton Foundation donors or Teneo clients had an interest in decisions made by the State Department? This situation created Trump-like conflicts of interest that did not seem to bother most Democrats at all. Few voters could probably tell you what Teneo Group is, but they looked at Clinton and assessed correctly that her family's business and philanthropic interests created a thicket of conflicts of interest around her. Voters were reasonably suspicious of how much money she and her husband had been able to make by monetizing their contacts and influence, and of what favors they might owe as a result of that. They did not worry as much as they should have about Trump's indebtedness probably because most of the establishment, by any reasonable definition, was in Clinton's corner, and it was hard to imagine Trump was beholden to a group of people who mostly seemed to hate him. Pick a candidate who can capitalize on Trump's failures One lesson from all this is that Democrats should not nominate Clinton again. But since she (presumably, hopefully) will not run again, the bigger and more relevant lesson is that they need to pick a candidate who can effectively hit Trump where it hurts a candidate to whom the label "crooked" will not stick so easily. If they had done so this time, they likely would have beaten Trump. They should also revisit their economic agenda. Over the last eight years, Democrats have offered a suite of policies, many of them quite effective and admirable, that have directed their most obvious benefits at the poor. The proposition was less obvious for middle-income voters people who were already employed and insured, but perhaps upset their incomes weren't rising fast enough and their communities seemed to be crumbling. A candidate with a better pitch for these voters one who understood the skepticism of new, complex government programs at a time of low trust in institutions probably would have beaten Trump. I'll be writing over the next few weeks with some ideas about what a new Democratic economic pitch for the middle class would look like. It's a question that should be at the top of mind for lots of people in our party. It's a much better question than, for example, whether something fishy happened with the voting machines in Wisconsin. Seven million dollars to the Green Party later, you learned that Hillary's problem in Wisconsin was that she got fewer votes than Trump. donald trump Less whining, more winning For all the complaining about how unfair everything was this time, Democrats had the easier hand to play in this campaign than Republicans did. Democrats faced an often-hostile FBI and a meddlesome Russian government. Republicans had Donald Trump at the top of their ticket. I wouldn't trade. Clinton's failure to beat such a disliked, distrusted, and undisciplined candidate as Trump was appalling, and Democrats have a great deal of control over whether they fail similarly next time. As Luigi Zingales wrote last month, drawing on his experience observing Silvio Berlusconi's opponents in Italy, the way you beat the inept clown who runs your country is through normal politics. Instead of focusing your message on how ridiculous he is, focus on how what he's doing isn't working, and how you have better ideas. If Trump is as bad a president as Democrats expect him to be, it should be easy to make that a winning comparison so long as they keep their wits about them in the meantime. NOW WATCH: 'If 43% of eligible voters do not vote, then Democracy is weakened': Obama reacts to protests against Trump More From Business Insider Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} It was an act of war, an intervention by a foreign power that de-legitimises the election of Americas next president. In the more restrained words of its presumed intended victim, Hillary Clinton, it was an act against our country, going well beyond normal political concerns. Call it what you like. For Democrats and the anti-Trump brigade, Russias meddling in the US election the hacking and public dumping via Wikileaks first of Democratic National Committee documents and then, probably more damagingly, of the emails of John Podesta, Clintons campaign chairman, over the last weeks of the campaign has become the main reason for her shock defeat on 8 November. And, on the eve of formal ratification by the electoral college of Trumps victory, and a month before his inauguration, it increasingly appears as the last, best chance of preventing the nightmare, or at least of derailing the Trump presidency almost before it begins. Unfortunately, the impact may be somewhat less than meets the eye. Keep the outrage in perspective. Americas record of meddling in foreign elections is second to none. These days, cyberattacks be they by Russia, China, the US or Israel, whether to steal industrial secrets, to play havoc with an adversarys nuclear programme, or to tamper with elections are standard operating procedure. Trevor Noah: One thing Donald Trump is honest about is his lies And the US seems to have dealt with this one in lackadaisical fashion. It was in September 2015 that the FBI first warned the DNC that it might have been hacked by the Russians, according to an investigation by The New York Times this week. But for months it didnt press the matter and certainly not with the zeal it devoted to Hillary Clintons private email server. Circumstantial evidence that the Russian intelligence services were behind the hacking is overwhelming whatever the protestations of innocence, and despite the Kremlins demand that Washington either put up or shut up. Whether Vladimir Putin personally directed the operation, and whether the goal was general mischief-making or to help secure Trumps victory over a rival who as Secretary of State attracted Putins ire, may never be definitively established. But you cant blame Trump for what happened. For all his useful idiot admiration of the Russian leader, and despite his description of the notion of Russian interference as ridiculous, he didnt carry out the hacking, even if he was the beneficiary of it. Former ambassador to Russia: Putin wanted 'revenge' against Clinton And even the Podesta emails released every day by Wikileaks in the closing stages of the campaign were mostly tittle tattle, the snarky comments of aides. Embarrassing certainly, but surely of less impact on the outcome than the letter of FBI director James Comey to Congress 10 days before the election. That letter not only re-opened the email affair, but transformed the atmosphere of the campaign. At least one study has suggested that it caused a late 1 per cent break in Trumps favour, enough to turn predicted losses in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania into crucial victories. Now none of this means Trump can brush off the Russian factor in his first weeks and months in office, normally a productive time for any administration. Not least, it will complicate the confirmation of Rex Tillerson, the outgping ExxonMobil chief and Trumps choice for Secretary of State, whose own friendly relations with Putin are already a matter of controversy. What is more, his dismissal of Russian involvement has set Trump at odds with the US intelligence agencies on which he will rely, not least in combattng Russia (score another one to the Kremlin). President Obama has promised a government report within the next month, and leading members of Trumps own Republican party in Congress will take up the issue. Recommended FBI backs claim Russia aimed to help Trump win White House By making nice with the Kremlin, the incoming president has broken with 35 years of Republican orthodoxy dating back to Ronald Reagan. Theres even talk, probably wishful thinking, of another Watergate Committee, a repeat of the bipartisan exercise that laid bare an earlier subversion of American democracy. And all the while, other questions linger, fuelled not least by Trumps failure to produce his tax returns. What about his business dealings with Russia? Is the privately owned Trump Organization dangerously in hock to Russian banks? Or is there something else the Kremlin has on Trump? Barring a genuine bombshell, ones best guess is that this too will pass. Even a Congressional probe may be lost in the partisan mire on Capitol Hill. Republicans will depict Democrats as sore losers, ready to use all possible means to discredit the 45th president. Its now up to the US to make sure similar cyberassaults dont happen in future. In the end, youre left wondering less about Russian skullduggery than about the vulnerability of a democracy compared with autocratic, one-party states such as Russia or China. Checks and balances, accountability, a free press and a functioning opposition are not compatible with ruthless and shameless Kremlin-style hardball. Recommended Hunter S Thompson predicted the rise of Donald Trump Hit back, they say, and Obama promises to do exactly that and the US, you can bet your bottom dollar, is the equal of anyone in the hacking business. The problem is, hit back how? Putin and his accolytes knew the US would leap upon the Wikileaks material, however dodgy its provenance. If roles were reversed, he would have no such problems. In Russia, the media knows what it may and may not publish and the second category does not include leaked emails showing Putin in a bad light. But suppose, for arguments sake, the material was published. Could such revelations affect the result of a Russian election? Not likely, with the grip Putin has on proceedings. Or suppose the leaks detailed Putins personal corruption and enrichment? His regime would just insist the whole thing was a lie. And in this world of fake news, many would be persuaded. Of course Washington could go further, attacking and paralysing key Russian infrastructure systems. But as the Kremlin has already shown in Ukraine and Estonia, two can play that game.There are many ways to imagine the early collapse of the Trump presidency. But as matters stand right now, the Russian connection probably isnt one of them. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Paul Hunter suggested this list after the by-election in Richmond Park. 1. Zac Goldsmith. Stood as Conservative candidate for London mayor but lost to Sadiq Khan on 5 May. In October he resigned as an MP and fought a by-election in protest at the Governments decision to go ahead with a third runway at Heathrow airport, losing to Sarah Olney, Liberal Democrat, on 1 December. 2. Norbert Hofer was added to the list by Adrian McMenamin three days after Goldsmiths second defeat. The neo-Nazi lost the Austrian presidential election run-off in May to Alexander Van der Bellen, the Green candidate, by 0.6 per cent. Hofer complained of irregularities, but lost the rerun run-off by 7.6 per cent. The rerun itself was postponed in September because of faulty glue on the voting envelopes, producing the Austrian word of the year, Bundesprasidentenstichwahlwiederholungsverschiebung, postponement of the presidential run-off. 3. Edward Heath. Fought and lost two general elections as leader of the Conservative Party in February and October 1974. Nominated by Paul T Horgan and Jonathan Isaby. Although Heath didnt lose his seat, hundreds of candidates must have contested and lost both elections. 4. Gerry Malone, Conservative minister who lost his seat, Winchester, by two votes in 1997 to Mark Oaten, a Liberal Democrat, and who forced a rerun election in November, which he lost by 22,000 votes. (Thanks to Jonathan Isaby.) 5. Deirdre Wood was Labour candidate in the Greenwich by-election of February 1987, which she lost to Rosie Barnes of the Social Democratic Party. She lost again in the general election four months later, as Oliver Kamm reminded me. 6. Les Byrom similarly lost a by-election before losing again in a general election the same year, for the Conservatives in Wirral South in 1997. Put up by Baldmike. 7. Harold Smith lost in 12 constituencies simultaneously in the October 1974 general election. Jo Green asked if this was a record. The leader of Smiths party, the Campaign for a More Prosperous Britain, Tom Keen, stood and lost in 11 seats in the same election. Recommended Top 10 British towns known worldwide for just one thing 8. Rainbow George Weiss stood unsuccessfully in 13 London seats for the Vote for Yourself Rainbow Dream Ticket Party in the 2005 general election. Mr Memory thinks that his is the record, and said that it was possible to stand in more than one constituency and quite common in the 19th century until the Electoral Administration Act 2006. 9. Arthur Balfour not only lost two general elections as Conservative (Unionist) leader in 1910 (by two seats and one seat respectively, and winning more votes both times), but he also lost the previous election and his Manchester East seat in 1906 (he was returned in a by-election for the City of London a month later). Will Cooling offered the most striking example from an earlier age. 10. John Bickley for Ukip achieved double defeats in successive years, losing the Wythenshawe and Sale East by-election in February 2014 and the Heywood and Middleton by-election in October 2014, followed by losing Heywood and Middleton again in the general election in May 2015 and Oldham West and Royton in a by-election in December 2015. Thanks again to Mr Memory. I kept it to elections lost in the same calendar year, which ruled out Patrick Gordon Walker, who lost his seat, Smethwick, in the general election in October 1964, was appointed Foreign Secretary by Harold Wilson anyway and then failed to get back into the Commons in a by-election in Leyton in January 1965, after which he resigned. He was finally elected for Leyton in the 1966 general election, and returned to the Cabinet, latterly as Education Secretary, but for only two years. Next week: Adjectives that come after the noun (in English), such as president-elect Coming soon: Demonstrably inaccurate book titles, such as Krakatoa, East Of Java (it is to the west), which is also the title of the film It may still be possible to buy the hardback of Listellany: A Miscellany of Very British Top Tens, From Politics to Pop, in time for Christmas. The e-book is now just 2.79. Your suggestions, and ideas for future Top 10s, in the comments please, or to me on Twitter, or by email to top10@independent.co.uk EU Commissioner Phil Hogan has voiced serious doubt over whether Ireland is doing enough to prepare for the "mammoth challenge" likely to be caused by Brexit. Mr Hogan also suggested the Government should be allocating more "resources" to Brussels ahead of the expected triggering of Article 50. "But there also needs to be a greater urgency in Dublin to reflect that once the British trigger Article 50, the centre of power and influence on Brexit will move irrevocably away from London to Brussels," Mr Hogan said. "It's in Brussels that the deal will be done, and this is where Ireland's main strategic focus must be. "I'm not convinced that Ireland is as yet allocating the necessary resources to Brussels to deal with this mammoth challenge." Addressing the Association of European Journalists in Dublin, Mr Hogan had harsh words for the British government. Six months on from the Brexit vote, Mr Hogan said, it is "painfully obvious" that there is still no clear vision in terms of moving forward. "(Brexit minister) David Davis has said the UK would consider the 'Norway model', which means making contributions to the EU budget in exchange for access to the single market," Mr Hogan told the event. "This is in stark contrast to those favouring a 'Hard Brexit', such as (foreign secretary) Boris Johnson who always seems to believe passionately in whatever he's saying at any given time. "Meanwhile, (Prime Minister) Theresa May hides her views on Brexit behind a barricade of cliches." Mr Hogan said that member states can be assured by UK chancellor Philip Hammond, who he said wants to maintain access to the single market. "However, his is often a lonely voice," Mr Hogan said at the event. The ex-Fine Gael minister and TD for Kilkenny/Carlow also said London is showing scant regard for the North. "Regrettably, the Northern Irish peace process and the existing Border arrangements on the island of Ireland seem to get scant attention in London," Mr Hogan said. The ''Maxforce'' is the European Union team that ordered Ireland to collect billions of euros in back taxes from Apple last August, rattled the Government here and spurred changes to international tax law. You'd think it might have earned the name by applying maximum force while investigating alleged financial shenanigans. It didn't. It's just led by a guy named Max. A European Commission official gave the nickname to the Task Force on Tax Planning Practices in honor of its chief, Max Lienemeyer, a lanky, laid-back German attorney who rose to prominence vetting plans to shore up struggling banks during Europe's debt crisis. Since its launch in 2013, the 'Maxforce' has looked at the tax status of hundreds of companies across Europe, including a deal Starbucks had in the Netherlands, Fiat Chrysler's agreement with Luxembourg, and - its largest case - Apple in Ireland. Lienemeyer's team of 15 international civil servants pursued a three-year investigation stretching from the corridors of the European Commission, to the Department of Finance here and on to Apple's leafy headquarters in Cupertino, California. It started when Max Lienemeyer began assembling the 'Maxforce' in late spring of 2013 with a mandate to scrutinise tax policies across Europe in search of any favouritism. Direct subsidies or tax breaks to court a specific company are illegal in the EU to prevent governments aiding national champions. His first hire - the person who would oversee the Apple probe - was Helena Malikova, a Slovak who had worked at Credit Suisse in Zurich. He quickly added Kamila Kaukiel, a Polish financial analyst who had been at KPMG, and Saskia Hendriks, a former tax policy adviser to the Dutch government. The team got a head start from a US Senate probe of the tax strategies of American multinationals. The Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations said Apple shifted tens of billions of dollars in profit into stateless affiliates based in Ireland, where it secured a tax rate of less than 2pc. At 9:30 am on May 21, 2013, US senators gathered in Room 106 of the Dirksen Office Building, in Washington DC. Included in the evidence that day was a 2004 letter from Tom Connor, an official at Ireland's tax authority, to Ernst & Young, Apple's tax adviser. Connor's question: A unit of the tech company hadn't filed a tax return; Was it still in business? E&Y responded two days later that the division was a non-resident holding company with no real sales. "There is nothing to return from the corporation tax standpoint," E&Y wrote. The Senate exhibits didn't include Connor's response if there ever was one. Expand Close Apple ceo Tim Cook complained about the fairness of the case. Photo: AP / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Apple ceo Tim Cook complained about the fairness of the case. Photo: AP At the hearing, Arizona Republican John McCain castigated Apple as "one of the biggest tax avoiders in America." Democrat Carl Levin of Michigan peered over the glasses perched on the tip of his nose and said Apple used "offshore tax strategies whose purpose is tax avoidance, pure and simple". Crucially, though, Levin told the crowded room that under U.S. law, there was little the panel could do to force Apple to pay more tax. Apple ceo Tim Cook passionately defended its actions, telling the Senators: "We don't depend on tax gimmicks." The Senate revelations raised eyebrows at the 'Maxforce' office in Madou Tower, a 1960s high-rise in the rundown Saint-Josse neighborhood of Brussels. Three weeks after the Senate hearing, Lienemeyer's team asked Ireland for details of Apple's tax situation. Irish tax authorities dispatched a representative carrying a briefcase filled with a bundle of bound pages. The Irish could have simply sent the material via e-mail, but they were cautious about sharing taxpayer's information with the EU and have a ground rule to avoid leaks: never send such documents electronically. While the Irish Government remained bullish in its public statements, saying Apple hadn't received any favors, behind the scenes tensions were rising. Through the summer of 2013, the Department of Finance assured ministers that the EU investigation would amount to nothing, according to people familiar with the discussions. But those assertions seemed less confident than earlier communications. There was a sense that Apple had worked out its Irish tax position in a vastly different era, and no one remembered many details of the negotiations decades earlier. In 1980, the then four-year-old technology company created several Irish affiliates, each with a different function such as manufacturing or sales, according to the Senate report. Under Irish laws dating to the 1950s, as an export company Apple paid no taxes on overseas sales of products made in Ireland. To comply with European rules, that tax policy ended in 1990. After that, Apple and Ireland agreed that the profit attributed to a key Ireland-based unit, the division discussed in Tom Connor's letter, be capped using a complex formula that in 1990 would have resulted in a taxable profit of $30m to $40m. An Apple tax adviser "confessed there was no scientific basis" for those figures, but that the amounts would be "of such magnitude that he hoped it would be seen as a bona-fide proposal", according to notes from a 1990 meeting with the Irish tax authority cited by the EU. The equation didn't change even as Apple began assembling the bulk of its products in Asia. Ireland and Apple started to make changes a few months after the 'Maxforce' began looking into their tax relationship. In October 2013, Finance Minister Noonan announced he would close the loophole that let stateless holding companies operate out of Ireland - and the EU says Apple changed the structure of its Irish units in 2015. As the 'Maxforce' stepped up its probe in June 2014, Taoiseach Enda Kenny was wooing potential investors in California. At a San Francisco event to promote Irish entrepreneurs, Governor Jerry Brown quipped that he had thought Apple "was a California company", but according to tax returns, "they're really an Irish company". News clips show Irish officials looking on stony-faced at his joke. With Lienemeyer's team digging further into the issue, Apple's concern deepened. In January 2016, the company's Tim Cook met Margrethe Vestager, the EU Competition Commissioner and Lienemeyer's ultimate boss, on the 10th-floor of the Berlaymont building, headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels. Vestager, a daughter of two Lutheran pastors, has a reputation for being even-handed but tough, cutting unemployment benefits while advocating strict new rules for banks when she served as Denmark's finance minister. While she has acknowledged that her EU team had little experience with tax rulings - in a November interview with France's 'Society' magazine, she said, "We learned on the job" - Vestager says enforcement of EU rules on taxation is a matter of "fairness." In the meeting with Cook she quizzed him on the tax Apple paid in various jurisdictions worldwide. She told the Apple executives that "someone has to tax you", according to a person present at the meeting. In a January 25 follow-up letter obtained by Bloomberg, Cook thanked Vestager for a "candid and constructive exchange of views", and reasserted that Apple's earnings are "subject to deferred taxation in the US until those profits are repatriated". Subsequent correspondence became more heated. On March 14, Cook wrote to Vestager that he had "concerns about the fairness of these proceedings". The Commission had failed to explain fully the basis on which Apple was being investigated, and the body's approach was characterised by "inconsistency and ambiguity", he said. Apple contended that the EU had backtracked on a 2014 decision recognising that its two Irish subsidiaries were not technically resident in Ireland, and therefore only liable for taxes on profits derived from Irish sources. Now, Cook said, it seemed the Commission was intent on "imposing a massive, retroactive tax on Apple by attributing to the Irish branches all of Apple's global profits outside the Americas". "There is no inconsistency," an EU spokesman said in a December 15 statement. Only a fraction of the profits of the subsidiaries were taxed in Ireland, the statement said. "As a result, the tax rulings enabled Apple to pay substantially less tax than other companies, which is illegal under EU state aid rules." Cook's entreaties did little to sway Vestager, and in August she phoned Noonan to tell him the results of the 'Maxforce' investigation: The Commission was going to rule against Ireland. Late in the afternoon of August 29, Irish officials began hinting to reporters that Apple's tax bill amounted to billions and "could be anything". At noon the following day, Vestager told a packed press conference in Brussels that the Commission had decided Apple owed Ireland 13bn. The 'Maxforce' had concluded that Ireland allowed Apple to create stateless entities that effectively let it decide how much -- or how little -- tax it pays. The EU investigators say the company channeled profits from dozens of countries through two Ireland- based units. In a system at least tacitly endorsed by Irish authorities, earnings were split, with the vast majority attributed to a "head office" with no employees and no specific home base - and therefore liable to no tax on any profits from sales outside Ireland. The US, meanwhile, didn't tax the units because they're incorporated in Ireland. The 13bn Apple bill would be equivalent to 26pc of the entire national budget for 2015. But Ireland didn't want the windfall, saying the ruling was flawed because the country hadn't given Apple any special treatment. The decision sparked a political crisis as left-leaning members of Enda Kenny's coalition saw a potential bonanza for taxpayers that the world's richest company could well afford. Even as Noonan toured television studios vowing to appeal the decision, some Independent TDs demanded that he take the money. Facing a potential revolt, Kenny and Noonan eventually bowed to demands for a review of the corporate tax system here. But they said they would fight the Apple case, and on September 7, the Dail overwhelmingly backed the motion for an appeal. Officials from Lienemeyer's team and other EU offices say they have gathered tax information on about 300 companies, looking for what they deem to be favourable treatment by governments across Europe. While they don't expect all of those to yield payoffs as hefty as that from their investigation of Ireland and Apple, they say a worrying number require maximum force from the 'Maxforce'. "We focus on outliers where you're looking at something that is off the radar screen," Lienemeyer's boss, 50-year-old Dutchman Gert-Jan Koopman, who is in charge of state-aid enforcement, said at a Brussels conference in November. "If you're paying a fair amount of tax then there is absolutely nothing to worry about." Though the EU says its goal is "to ensure equal treatment of companies" across Europe, Apple maintains that the Commission selectively targeted the company. With the ruling, the EU is "retroactively changing the rules and choosing to disregard decades of Irish law",and its investigators don't understand the differences between European and US tax systems, Apple said. Apple says its Irish units paid the parent company a licensing fee to use the intellectual property in its products. The Irish companies didn't own the IP, so they don't owe tax on it in Ireland, but will face a US tax bill when they repatriate the profits. "This case has never been about how much tax Apple pays, it's about where our tax is paid," the company said. "We pay tax on everything we earn." Ireland has appealed the Commission's ruling at the EU General Court in Luxembourg, arguing it has given Apple no special treatment. "Look at the small print" on an iPhone, Michael Noonan said after the EU released its ruling in August. "It says designed in California, manufactured in China. That means any profits that accrued didn't accrue in Ireland, so I can't see why the tax liability is in Ireland." In the coming weeks, the EU is expected to publish details of the 'Maxforce' investigation. At the same time, Apple will lodge its appeal in the EU court. Though Apple will have to pay its tax bill within weeks, the money will be held in escrow, and the issue will probably take years to resolve. A 'Maxforce' representative declined to make Lienemeyer available for an interview. The Revenue Commissioners here say they can't comment on specific companies. (Bloomberg) Two of Ireland's richest businessmen have sold a landmark Paris property for 1bn to Norway's sovereign wealth fund in a deal set to generate a profit of more than 50pc. Norges Bank Real Estate Management bought Vendome Saint-Honore, a block of interconnected historic and modern buildings, from Irish horse-racing giants John Magnier and JP McManus. They had bought the previously redeveloped commercial property in 2007 for a reported 650m. It is located beside the exclusive Ritz Hotel at 9 Place Vendome in one of the French capital's most expensive districts. Meanwhile, back home, The Temple Bar Hotel in Dublin city centre has been sold to Ascott, a Singapore-listed real estate company for 55.1m. The off-market transaction was handled by agents JLL, and announced in a statement to the Singapore stock exchange by the purchaser, Ascott. It comes days after the nearby 26-bedroom Trinity Lodge was sold for over 7m to Singapore-headquartered hotel group, Unlisted Collection, in another JLL deal. Commenting on its acquisition of the Temple Bar Hotel, Ascott's CEO, Mr Lee Chee Koon noted that Ireland's "pro-business environment" had attracted some of the world's biggest companies such as Google, Facebook, Microsoft and LinkedIn to establish their European headquarters in Dublin. "Ireland is also used as a launch pad to the European Union by many US companies and the US is amongst Ascott's top source markets globally," he said. "The acquisition will boost Ascott's 1.2bn portfolio in Europe and bring us closer to our target of 10,000 units in the region by 2020." Cork-based retail group Musgrave is to start exporting SuperValu products to China after sealing a deal with internet giant Alibaba. Musgrave, which controls the SuperValu and Centra brands here, will use Alibaba's Tmall ecommerce platform to sell SuperValu breakfast cereals, coffee, jam, biscuits and other products to consumers. The Irish Independent revealed Musgrave's overseas expansion ambitions earlier this year. Musgrave will initially offer 40 own-brand products for sale on Tmall Global, selling directly to Chinese consumers. The company is the first Irish firm with a presence on the platform. It will have a SuperValu storefront on the Tmall Global website. A large number of retailers such as Sainsbury's from the UK, Costco from the US, Spain's Dia, and Germany's Metro also have storefronts on the website. "We are exploring new opportunities to grow our business including export and we are excited by the opportunity to partner with Alibaba," said Musgrave ceo Chris Martin. "In the past five years Chinese consumers are increasingly purchasing overseas through online shopping," he added. "We expect that the heritage of SuperValu and the provenance of our products will be attractive to Chinese consumers. They are seeking out western foods from trusted sources and as we develop in China we will be working closely with Bord Bia and our Irish suppliers who have a reputation for authenticity and quality." SuperValu is Ireland's second-largest grocery retailer. It held the top spot until recently, when Dunnes Stores took the title. Musgrave generated revenue of 3.7bn and a pre-tax profit of 52.8m from continuing operations last year. It also controls the Daybreak franchise, and the Dialprix chain in Spain. Mr Martin told the Irish Independent earlier this year that Musgrave hoped to emulate retailers such as UK-based Waitrose, which exports branded goods around the world. "It plays partly to the Irish diaspora, but more importantly, it places the quality that we are developing (in focus)," he said. "The reality is that you've got to make your product work in the local market. But the fact is, you can go into markets," Mr Martin added at the time. "It's about looking at the catalogue of products, seeing who's interested, seeing what retailers want, and the products absolutely reinforce the sorts of quality that some of the markets are looking for." Family-owned Musgrave has developed a number of own-brand goods for SuperValu under its 'Signature Tastes' label. According to the Central Statistics Office, exports of goods from Ireland to China amounted to 2.28bn in 2015. Imports of goods from China to Ireland totalled 4.4bn. Those figures ranked China as the fifth-largest provider of imported goods to Ireland in value terms, and the eleventh-largest destination for Irish exports. Food accounted for 646m of exports to China in 2015. Chemicals and related products accounted for 754m. Beverages and tobacco exports to China totalled just 6m. In the first 10 months of 2015, 2.6bn of goods were exported to China from Ireland. Solicitor Patricia Cronin speaking to the media after the verdict, with Bernadette Scully (centre, at back) and her partner Andrius Kozlovskis (left, at back), outside the Central Criminal Court in Dublin. Photo: Collins It came when nobody was expecting it and, alerted by a barrister on another case, everybody came running. So early in the day did the unanimous verdict land that it heavily suggested the jury had already arrived at their conclusion the day before and had merely slept on it. As the words "not guilty" were read aloud from the issue paper, Bernadette Scully's sisters all instantly dissolved in hysterical tears of sheer relief. But the mood in the courtroom was far from euphoric - Emily had died. Next Wednesday, the winter solstice, would have been her 16th birthday. Bernadette sat with head bowed for a moment, the shadow of a tiny smile on her face. She appeared stunned but at that point held her composure - even though there were tears in the eyes of her barrister, Ken Fogarty SC. Expand Close Judge Patrick McCarthy / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Judge Patrick McCarthy His closing speech had, arguably, been the most emotional to ever ring out in the Courts of Criminal Justice. Dr Scully had minded her disabled daughter Emily "like a little princess", he had told the jury. His words had been passionate, his outrage shrill and heartfelt, as he said it was an "eye-opener" how this country could "heap such responsibility onto the shoulders of one woman and when it goes wrong, turn around and say: 'You killed her'." Bernadette's partner Andrius Kozlovskis was the first to her side to embrace her. The proceedings had taken just moments and Judge Patrick McCarthy excused the jury from further service for 10 years. As they filed out, one of Bernadette's sisters gave a wave towards them, mouthing: "Thank you." Ever mindful of courtroom etiquette, Judge McCarthy reprimanded her, saying it was "inappropriate to gesture towards the jury". And, finally, Bernadette Scully was free to go, the family flocking around her as they departed. Now, tears streamed down her face as she hugged her sisters and shook hands all round with the media out in the corridor. She had had her loyal supporters throughout the trial. Yesterday, one of them, a woman named Bridget from Dublin, presented one of the sisters with a slightly battered white cyclamen, a hardy winter flowering plant, as a gift for Bernadette. "A survivor," said Bridget, quietly explaining its significance afterwards. Bernadette thanked her with a hug. They went for tea and together drafted a statement before emerging outside and Bernadette's solicitor, Patricia Cronin, read it aloud before the cameras. Bernadette stood behind, her fingers tightly interlaced with those of Andrius. Though she respected the need for Emily's death to be investigated, the proceedings had left her "traumatised and emotionally, physically and mentally exhausted," the statement read. Precious It again repeated Bernadette's evidence that she had not yet had a time to properly grieve for her daughter or to celebrate "her precious life". She had not even been able to attend her funeral. And again, as in evidence, she repeated that Emily had been her "little bird with a broken wing" whom she had loved, cared for and protected. She spoke of how her struggle is "mirrored in the lives of so many people in similar situations in Ireland". "Like me, very many parents and carers of children who are disabled struggle on a daily basis to get access to services and support systems which are very often simply not there." Bernadette's words spoke strongly through the statement. There had been many, many emotional points during this trial, which did much to open a window into the lives of those struggling on a daily basis to care for those who are so profoundly disabled. Everything had been excavated, nothing remained private. We heard of her deep desire to become a mother and of two failed attempts at IVF. "It was very emotional, very painful. You can't just have a baby," she said. Patients would come in with babies and she would not be bitter but "you wished you could have a little baby just like they had," she told the court. We heard how her world turned black when she learned of her daughter's disability. We learned of the gruelling daily grind - of the meals that took an hour and a half to complete, always vigilant against the constant threat of Emily choking. Of the frequent fits, the constant pain and crying endured by the child. All this, catalogued by private disabilities nurse Noreen Roche in her evidence before the court, left Bernadette in tears as she recalled her precious, harrowing routine with her fragile daughter who had relied on her for her every need. She had wept, too, during Professor Marie Cassidy's post-mortem evidence, which had outlined the stark anatomical reasons behind Emily's disabilities. We witnessed her deep distress when the 999 call was played out in court, as she heard for the first time the terror and frenzy in Andrius's voice as he spoke to the emergency services, having found little Emily not breathing in her bed and Bernadette unresponsive following an attempt to take her own life. Tears flowed relentlessly down her cheeks as she heard Andrius begging her to wake up: "Bernie, Bernie, oh Jesus." The emergency services had instructed him to leave her and to go to Emily. He needed to take her out of the bed and lay her down on the floor, they said. We heard his blank hopelessness as he declared: "Emily is dead." It was a most harrowing point in this most harrowing of trials. Worst of all, however, had been Bernadette's palpable distress as she told the court how "everything went quiet" and Emily's "little lips were blue in her face" as she administered a final dose of chloral hydrate on the night of September 15, 2012. "I just took her up in my arms and I just held her and it was just so quiet," she wept. "I knew she was not breathing. I held her and said please don't go. "We had always been together. She was part of me, we went everywhere together." Her daughter's life had been "miserable at times". There had been lovely times too but "everything was bad in the last two years". She still hasn't come to terms with the fact that she has gone and she feels Emily around her, she told the trial from the witness box. "I'm a different person now, I'm sadder," she said of the impact it's had on her life. In its time-honored tradition, the 538 members of the Electoral College meet in 51 locations on Monday to choose a new President. So what will happen during the day and what are the next steps? Ohio electors vote in 2012. Creative Commons: Ibagli On November 8, 2016, voters around the country to choose electors pledged to represent their party candidates in Electoral College voting. In the end, 306 electors were pledged to Donald Trump and 232 were pledged to Hillary Clinton. In the overall popular vote, which is not a factor in the Electoral College, Clinton led Trump by about 2.8 million votes. On December 13, 2016, the states and the District of Columbia filed certificates of ascertainment with a federal government agency. The Office of the Federal Register coordinates the Electoral College process, and on rare occasions, it also handles the administration of the constitutional amendment process. In May 1950, President Harry Truman signed Reorganization Plan No. 20, which transferred the administration of the Electoral College from the Secretary of State to the Office of the Federal Register. Since then, the office has overseen the Electoral College process. The Office and its Archivist receives two documents from each state. One is the Certificate of Ascertainment, which confirms that the states chief executive has validated the election results and the names of qualified electors chosen to represent each candidate. This year, the certificates were due on December 13 under the federal safe-harbor law. Once the certificates are verified, they are posted on the Offices website. On December 19, the Electoral College meetings are held. The Archivist sends general instructions to the state in advance about how the Electoral College meetings should be conducted. Federal law does not allow the states to choose an alternate date for the meeting of electorsit must be held on the first Monday after the second Wednesday in December. Story continues The state legislature designates where the meeting will take place; it is usually at the state capital. At this meeting, the electors for the candidate with the most certified votes cast their votes for President and Vice President. If any electors are unable to carry out their duties on the day of the Electoral College meeting, the laws of each state determine the method for filling vacancies. Any controversy concerning the appointment of electors must be decided under state law at least six days prior to the meeting of the electors. State laws also determine how the Electoral College deals with faithless electors who cast votes for candidates other than those whom they pledged to vote for. In some cases, their votes are registered. According to information about the Electoral College proceedings from the National Association of Secretaries of States, Electoral College voting is conducted between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. local at various state capitals and at the District of Columbia. The Associated Press called the Electoral College vote for Barack Obama shortly before 6 p.m. Eastern Time on December 17, 2012. Of the 51 Electoral College meetings, 23 states and the District of Columbia have provisions requiring that electors vote for the nominees of their pledged parties. In some cases, as in Michigan, faithless electors are disqualified and replaced by alternates. Refusal or failure to vote for the candidates for president and vice-president appearing on the Michigan ballot of the political party which nominated the elector constitutes a resignation from the office of elector, his vote shall not be recorded and the remaining electors shall forthwith fill the vacancy, the Michigan law reads. Its unclear what happens in states that bar faithless electors but dont provide for their disqualification. Most of these states have laws that say electors shall vote for their partys nominee. Colorado law, for example, says each presidential elector shall vote for the presidential candidate and, by separate ballot, vice-presidential candidate who received the highest number of votes at the preceding general election in this state. A Colorado state judge on Tuesday ruled that any faithless electors violating this provision in the state law would suffer the same fate as Michigans faithless electors. After the voting is concluded, the state-level secretaries of states transmit the results to the Office of the Federal Register on or after December 19, 2016 after the electors sign and seal a Certificate of Vote for each state. Other copies go to the Vice President (as president of the Senate) and other officials. As the results of the Certificates of Vote are confirmed by the Office of the Federal Register, they are posted on its website. The certificates must be received by December 28. Then, the Archivist meets with House and Senate clerks by January 3, to prepare paperwork for the January 6, 2017 reading of the votes at a joint session of Congress. During the joint session starting at 1 p.m., the votes are read out loud in alphabetical order by state. Member of Congress can object by voice and in writing to contest a set of votes from a state. But unless the House and Senate agree to disqualify the votes, they are counted in the final tally and a President and Vice President are elected. Scott Bomboy is the editor in chief of the National Constitution Center. Recent Electoral College Stories on Constitution Daily The Interactive Constitution: Understanding The Electoral College What happened the last time we had a Faithless Elector? What happens to a vote-switching Elector on December 19? Faithless Elector Provisions By State State/District Time Faithless Electors Alabama 12:00 Allowed Alaska 11:00 No Arizona not stated in law Allowed Arkansas 10:00 Allowed California 2:00 No Colorado 12:00 No Connecticut 12:00 No Delaware 12:00 No DC not stated in law No Florida not stated in law Allowed Georgia 12:00 Allowed Hawaii 2:00 No Idaho 12:00 Allowed Illinois 10:00 Allowed Indiana 10:00 Allowed Iowa not stated in law Allowed Kansas 12:00 Allowed Kentucky 12:00 Allowed Louisiana 12:00 Allowed Maine 2:00 No Maryland not stated in law No Massachusetts not stated in law Allowed Michigan 2:00 No Minnesota 12:00 No Mississippi not stated in law Allowed Missouri 2:00 Allowed Montana 2:00 No Nebraska 2:00 No Nevada not stated in law No New Hampshire not stated in law Allowed New Jersey 3:00 Allowed New Mexico 12:00 No New York 12:00 Allowed North Carolina 12:00 No North Dakota 1:00 Allowed Ohio 12:00 No Oklahoma 10:00 No Oregon not stated in law Allowed Pennsylvania 12:00 Allowed Rhode Island 12:00 Allowed South Carolina 11:00 No South Dakota 11:00 Allowed Tennessee 9:00 No Texas 2:00 Allowed Utah 12:00 No Vermont not stated in law No Virginia 12:00 No Washington 12:00 Allowed West Virginia not stated Allowed Wisconsin 12:00 No Source: National Association of Secretaries of States Independent TD Joan Collins has lost her Supreme Court appeal over the Finance Minister's issuing of 31bn promissory notes in 2009 for Anglo Irish Bank and other financial institutions. The six judge court unanimously rejected the TD's core argument the minister had no power, under the 2008 law authorising him to issue the notes, to allocated unlimited sums of public money without those first being quantified and considered by the Oireachtas. The Credit Institutions (Financial Support) Act 2008 was enacted with the aim of averting a banking collapse. The notes were essentially 'IOUs' from the State to ensure continuation of Central Bank funding for Anglo, Irish Nationwide Building Society (INBS) and Educational Building Society (EBS) after the bank guarantee of September 2008. Anglo and INBS were later nationalised and, after their successor in title, Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (IBRC), was wound up in 2013, the Anglo note, on which 25bn was then outstanding, was converted into long-term Irish government bonds. Giving the court's judgment, Ms Justice Susan Denham, said the 2008 Act was "undoubtedly exceptional" but was "a permissible constitutional response to an exceptional situation". While the Act did not include a cap on the financial support, the Constitution did not require, either expressly or by implication, such a limit, she held. The Constitution required the functions conferred by it upon the organs of State must be exercised by the appropriate organ, "and no one else", and only in the manner prescribed by the Constitution. In the "extraordinary circumstances" that were the backdrop to the 2008 Act, it was permissible to confer such power on the minister and there was no constitutionally impermissible transfer of power of expenditure from the Oireachtas to the Government. However, while it was unlikely the Oireachtas would concede such "wide ranging power" in less pressing circumstances, if a minister or other body was permitted to provide unlimited financial support without a limit in time or object to another commercial entity, it would not follow from this case that was constitutionally permissible. In this case, the State's potential exposure as a result of the notes was "enormous", the amount involved was "vast" and the impact on the State's finances "significant", she said. Those factors did not render the Act unconstitutional if it was designed to meet an "exceptional" situation, addressing "an extraordinary risk" to the State's economy, she said. It was entirely conceivable the crisis which might be faced might require provision of unlimited financial support, by guarantee or otherwise. If there had to be a cap on the support, that would be a severe limitation on the Oireachtas' power and the court did not accept the Oireachtas was so constrained. Three men have been charged with IRA membership at a weekend sitting of the Special Criminal Court. One of the three was also charged with possession of firearms and ammunition. Sean Walsh (50), of St John's Well, Fair Hill, Co Cork was charged with membership of an unlawful organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army, otherwise Oglaigh Na hEireann, otherwise the IRA on December 14, 2016. Detective Sergeant Patrick Murphy told the three-judge court that he arrested Sean Walsh at 7.47pm yesterday in Cobh under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act and brought him to Cobh Garda Station. When asked if he had any reply after he was cautioned he said: "no". Joseph Walsh (36), of Glengarriff Road, Fairhill, Co Cork was arrested by Detective Garda Oisin Cotter at 7.46pm yesterday at Lower Road, Cobh, Co Cork and charged with the same offence on the same date under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act. Detective Garda Geraldine Daly told the court that she arrested Michael Gilmartin (46), of Chestnut Drive, Cluain Ard, Newtown, Cobh, Co Cork at 7.41pm yesterday at Oliver Plunkett Place in Midleton. She arrested him under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act and for "possession of firearms in suspicious circumstances". Mr Gilmartin was charged with membership of an unlawful organisation on December 14, 2016 and with possession of a semi-automatic, 9mm Walter Pistol and a sawn-off shotgun contrary to Section 27a of the Firearms Act on the same date. He was also charged with possession of 22 rounds of ammunition. Justice Tony Hunt, presiding with Judge Flann Brennan and Judge Gerard Haughton, remanded all three men in custody until next Wednesday for bail hearings and legal aid applications. Bernadette Scully (centre) with sister Teresa (left) leaving the Central Criminal Court, where she was found not guilty of the manslaughter of her daughter. Photo: Collins Courts One of the hardest things about being a parent is when we realise that we aren't able to relieve our children's pain and suffering. One of the hardest things about being a parent is when we realise that we aren't able to relieve our children's pain and suffering. Perhaps this is why there was a collective sigh of relief all around the country yesterday when the news broke that Bernadette Scully had walked free from the court. Because even a cursory glance at this case shows us that Bernadette Scully was a loving mother who did her very best in caring for her daughter Emily. Emily had microcephaly and severe epilepsy, she could not communicate, stand, sit or walk and she had the mental age of a six month old. The level of care this child needed is incomprehensible to most of us and the helpless anguish that Bernadette Scully must have experienced as she watched her child writhe in agony is also unimaginable to most of us. The mother had tried to comfort her daughter over the previous eight days and nights but she said Emily's crying that fateful night was "relentless, you would have a pain in your brain, I was so tired, what else could I do. She was crying, her little body began to go stiff and she let out a shout. I thought in my head about all the medications I could not give her." It's hard to imagine but, every single day, carers all around Ireland have to weigh up similar dilemmas; should I give more pain relief or will it kill them? Defence counsel Ken Fogarty said there were hundreds if not thousands of occasions where Emily could have died but her mother was there to make sure she did not. According to Mr Fogarty, Ms Scully was "falling asunder" as she tried to cope with caring for her daughter and, as Mr Fogarty pointed out, it's just not fair that we as a society think we can dump all the responsibility on the carer and then, when things go wrong, say "you killed her". It was only a couple of weeks ago when Johanne Powell appeared on the 'Late Late Show' to speak out about the plight of carers. Ms Powell eloquently described to Ryan Tubridy how she was at the end of her tether because she didn't have enough support to help her care for her severely disabled child. Johanne's daughter Siobhan is 32 years old and cannot walk, speak or eat solid food. On the 'Late Late', Ms Powell clearly rejected the ridiculous notion that carers are living saints. Most carers are ordinary people who are leading lives of quiet desperation because they have been given an extraordinary burden of care. That they rise to the occasion shouldn't go against them - rather the State should automatically repay the carers for providing a full-time nursing service to a citizen of our country. Because carers have an option. Carers could choose to leave their loved ones at the door of a hospital and, in doing so, demand that their ill relative is cared for. However, this rarely happens because many carers feel that caring for their loved ones is their duty and they are ready and willing to fulfil this duty. This doesn't mean that carers are willing to fight bureaucrats over services; nor does it mean that they don't feel entitled to have a life as well. It most certainly doesn't mean that society should cynically take advantage of the carers' good nature by ignoring their plight. Carers aren't in it for the money and so the very idea of any carer needing to fight for services or support is vile. We cannot plead ignorance any more. We have all heard the stories and we know that many carers are "falling asunder" because they don't have adequate support. The equation is fairly simple; the carers can do the work properly if and when the State supports the carers appropriately. By caring for their loved ones, the carers are saving the State a huge amount of money, and so, the State is morally obliged to provide adequate support and services to the carers. It should be a quid pro quo and maybe, as similar harrowing stories come to light, one day it will be. Tullamore residents were standing behind Dr Bernadette Scully after she was found not guilty of manslaughter. Locals said they believed the jury reached the right decision yesterday in the case of Dr Scully, who was acquitted of the manslaughter of her severely disabled daughter Emily (11) at their home in the Co Offaly town four years ago. Neighbour Nuala Keegan (73) said: "There would be no justice if the verdict was different." "Please God, she'll be able to rebuild her life now," said the mother of two. "As a doctor, she was so understanding and caring and always had a solution. "She was superb as a doctor and she had a kindness that you don't often see in medical situations. She always took the time to explain everything to her patients." Expand Close Mary Jennings in Tullamore. Photo: APX / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mary Jennings in Tullamore. Photo: APX Neighbour Maria O'Neill (59), who owns a bed and breakfast near Dr Scully's home, said she was always a devoted mother who dearly loved Emily. "She has always been my GP and she was adored as a wonderful doctor. Everyone is over the moon at the verdict," said the mother of five. "She is loved, big time. Everybody thinks the world of her. "She gave up her career to care for her child. She devoted herself entirely to her child. She brought her everywhere. "People can never know the hardship that other people are suffering. She sacrificed herself completely to look after her child. I remember the tragedy and everyone was shocked. Definitely everyone in the town has been rooting for her during the trial." Expand Close Joe Lenord in Tullamore. Photo: APX / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Joe Lenord in Tullamore. Photo: APX Throughout Tullamore, the reaction to the verdict was one of warm approval. Annie Nolan (19) said: "She was our family doctor. My mother was praying for her every day. When I told my mother the news, she said 'Thank God'." Annie's friend Amber Brazil (19) said: "She was our doctor too. This is brilliant news. "I always thought this would be the outcome. The jury understood she was a lovely, caring person." Shopping centre manager John Cusack (47) said: "People are relieved. It could have gone either way. It was an unfortunate situation from day one. "At least now there can be closure for Bernie and her family and they can now deal with their grief in the way families should do." Mother-of-two Sarah Fallon (55) said: "The whole town is relieved. She was very good to her child." Mary Jennings, a grandmother in her late 60s, said: "I cried when I heard the news today. "Nobody else would have brought in any verdict except the one that the jury brought in. We know she loved and cared for her little child. "It's a good day for Bernie and her family and it's a good day for Tullamore." Tragedy Mother-of-six Veronica Dunne (73) said: "So glad to hear the news. I knew that she was going to be OK. "It's just a fierce tragedy with the loss of a little child. "I was so sad when it happened. She had been under a lot of stress and it's terrible what happened. Being a mother can be very tough." Joe Leonard (63) said: "I was happy with the verdict. People had to keep an open mind about the arguments for and against. How can we judge a person if we were not in their situation ourselves? "People can debate this but we don't know the burdens that some people carry in their lives," he said. McGrath, of Carmarthen in Wales, but originally from Tullamore, Co Offaly, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to two counts of assault causing harm on September 6, 2015 in No Name Bar on Fade Street, Dublin. A vet who glassed an accountant in a city centre cocktail bar, leaving him with lifelong scarring, has avoided a prison sentence. Stephen McGrath (25) smashed a glass into Mark Relihan's face in a row over whether there was enough space on a bench they were both sitting on. Suspending a three year prison sentence for two years, Judge Petria McDonnell said that she accepted that McGrath's remorse and apology to the victim were genuine. She also imposed 200 hours of community service. McGrath, of Carmarthen in Wales, but originally from Tullamore, Co Offaly, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to two counts of assault causing harm on September 6, 2015 in No Name Bar on Fade Street, Dublin. During a hearing of the case last October, Mr Relihan confronted McGrath over his injuries. After reading his victim impact statement he turned to his attacker and held up a picture of his facial injuries and said: "This is what you've done to me. You see this? This is what you ran away from." Confront McGrath confronted Mr Relihan over whether there was enough space on a bench they were both sitting on. McGrath said he would give Mr Relihan 10 seconds to move and began counting down. Mr Relihan looked at his friends and said "Is this guy for real?" before McGrath smashed a glass into his face. Fragments from the glass also hit another man, Shane O'Riordan, who was standing nearby. Mr Relihan was taken to hospital where he required 17 stitches to his face. Mr Relihan told the court his life had been impacted forever by the "unprovoked, cruel, inhumane act". He has already had some plastic surgery and said he would likely require more. McGrath was in Dublin while on a trip home from Wales, where he works in a veterinary practice treating farm animals. The victim, who works in an accountancy firm, said his professional reputation was left in "tatters" following the attack due to his facial scarring. He said he was a different person mentally and physically and sometimes had to leave social situations due to anxiety. He said he may have to have fat extracted from his torso to fill in a cavity in his face. Judge McDonnell told the victim the cavity looked more like a dimple but said she understood the effect it had on him. Gangland target Ross Hutch has been charged this evening over an attempted cash van robbery. Independent.ie has learned that the 24-year-old, who won 33,000 in cash and prizes on RTEs Winning Streak last year, was detained this morning at Store Street garda station. He was questioned over the botched robbery of a cash van that was collecting money from a parking meter on Green Street in Dublin's north inner city on December 1. During the incident a raider grabbed the keys for the vehicle but did not escape with any money. No one was injured in the raid and no firearms or weapons were produced. Tonight a garda spokesperson has confirmed that Hutch was charged in Store Street station. He will remain in custody overnight and appear in Dublin District Court on Saturday morning. Dublin Fire Brigade rescued a 30-year-old man from the water at the IFSC Photo: DFB Two heroic firefighters rescued a 30-year-old man after he fell into the water at Spencer Dock in the IFSC, Co Dublin early on Saturday morning. The 30-year-old man was unconscious in the water when the firefighters from Dublin Fire Brigade at Tara Street Station jumped in and saved him. Last night at a river rescue in the IFSC, 1 person was taken from the water. Have a plan for getting home if you're out tonight #DFB12Days pic.twitter.com/549MMtkeJ1 Dublin Fire Brigade (@DubFireBrigade) December 17, 2016 The brave firefighters named as Rob Nulty and Stephen Breen rescued the man without hesitation. The 30-year-old man who was unconscious, was taken to the Mater hospital where he is believed to be in a stable condition. Dublin Fire Brigade warned people to "have a plan for getting home if you're out tonight" after the incident. Garda sniffer dogs will sweep a Dublin school next week in response to concerns in the community that drugs are being sold in schools. The Principal of Old Bawn Community School in Tallaght revealed the plan to sweep the school with sniffer dogs before Christmas in a letter to parents this week, according to Echo.ie. Were looking to reassure staff, the Board and parents that OBCS is a drug-free zone, Paul Crone, the school principal, told the website. There have been no previous incidents of drug use or sale in OBCS. The principals letter clarified that the sweep is a preventative measure in a response to an article in The Echo last month, which claimed that teenagers in the area are being used to transport and deal drugs. Were one of the best performing schools in the area when it comes to students progressing onto third level education and alongside protecting the students, we want to also protect their education and support them in continuing to perform well, Mr Crone continued. According to the letter, Gardai will sweep the school before the Christmas holidays and again in January and February to educate staff on what they need to look out. The schools policy is to expel any student in possession of illegal substances, but Mr Crone stressed that they are also implementing educational measures to prevent drug activity in the school. We have also received support from YODA [Youth Drug and Alcohol Service] and the Dominics Drug Project, which will run a programme with [3rd to 6th year] students on drugs and how to be resilient and make the right choices, he said. Well be running these programmes in January and February and as drugs is a delicate issue and people can be afraid to talk, students will be broken up into small groups. A spokesperson from An Garda Siochana told Independent.ie that they cannot comment on named organisations. Residents in a HSE-run home for people with an intellectual disability have been forced to live passive lives with minimal interaction with their local community, according to an inspectors' report. The Glenbow centre in Sligo, which is located in a campus-based setting, was subject to a formal warning letter after a previous inspection by the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa). The centre is home to 42 male and female residents. The last unannounced inspection in August found a range of failings persisted, with residents spending most of their time in the centre. Staff interactions with residents were in the main task-orientated and based around direct care, although they engaged with them in a caring manner, said the inspectors. On the evening of the inspection they saw residents being put to bed with the bedroom doors open, breaching their dignity and privacy. Terminology such as "feeding and toileting" was used and inspectors found the residents spent a long portion of their day in the day room with limited interaction. Some patients had not been involved in an activity for four to five days. Some concerns in relation to fire safety, which were identified during the earlier inspection in March, persisted. Fire notices were not upgraded and the building layout and escape routes were not clearly displayed. Fire doors with ineffective self-closers were left open and some were held open with furniture. The residents were not aware of the procedures to be followed in the event of a fire as they had not been involved in any of the drills. The HSE had also failed to ensure all staff had received training in the management of behaviour that was challenging. One resident had suffered a laceration to the head and it had not been reported to the chief inspector in the required three days. Cancelled operations, rolling theatre closures and scores of beds lying idle are some of the hidden effects of the shortage of nurses in our hospitals. Outside of hospital, too, many community areas are without enough public health nurses and this impacts on the amount of home visits which many vulnerable people receive in their homes. It's also leading to burnout for many staff nurses who must carry the responsibility for patient care. It explains the emphatic result of 90pc in a ballot for industrial action to force health authorities to tackle the shortage. The problems are being felt across all wards but a lack of specialist nurses in critical care, surgery and also in emergency departments is creating serious service blockages. Surgeons can find their theatre lists are cancelled in the morning because nurses have been redeployed to cover the emergency departments or wards. HSE chiefs hope to deck the halls with holly at its Dublin headquarters from December 28-30 when 'walk-in' interviews are offered to emigrant nurses who will presumably be full of the joys of a Christmas at home with the family and may be swayed to take up a job here. But it all seems ill-planned, last-minute and cheap, and so is unlikely to tempt many nurses who now have a good lifestyle, having been lured to the UK and Australia with generous incentive packages, more favourable personal taxation regimes and less-crowded hospitals. There is also competition from our own private hospitals, which have offered cash incentives of up to 6,000. Despite the plea of Health Minister Simon Harris to come home, some nurses who are interested in jobs are also finding there are mixed messages. They may be offered just three-month contracts and in the case of Taoiseach Enda Kenny's local hospital, Mayo General, there is a refusal to fund senior posts. While hospital managers have made a business case to fill senior posts, the funding has not been sanctioned by the HSE. The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, which is threatening industrial action, beginning with a work-to-rule in early February and escalating to work-stoppages if some progress is not made, estimates that there are some 3,500 fewer nurses now than in 2008. In the meantime, the population has been growing and ageing. We will never get back to those 2008 figures and it would also not make good sense in terms of skill mix. Nursing unions must accept more restructuring of posts to include the hiring of healthcare assistants to take over more non-nursing duties. Beaumont Hospital is also piloting the use of physician associates who are widely used in other countries. They are trained to perform roles like taking medical histories and support doctors in their diagnosis under supervision. Stephen McLarnon, who has run nurse recruitment fairs here this year with representatives from top hospitals from abroad, said there will be no overnight fix. He said the working conditions need to improve but, to do this, hospitals need to recruit more nurses. "It's a Catch 22. If you come back to the system now, it is under-resourced and you will be over-worked," he said. "Packages will be a sweetener, the reality is that they want working conditions that are normal." Irish nurses working in the UK are a top target at the three-day recruitment drive over Christmas. They are offered 1,500 relocation expenses, a paid- for registration fee and salary of between 27,483 and 43,800, depending on experience. The relocation incentive package only applies to nurses in the UK and has not been extended to Irish nurses in other countries. New graduates are also being told they will get a full-time job if they want one, according to the HSE. The problem facing hospitals and the wider service is not just about recruitment but also retention. The anecdotal evidence is that of the 90 or so nurses who came back to work here under the HSE incentive drive in recent years, around half have since left. The INMO proposal to hold round table talks with the appointment of a mediator is worth a try because the HSE ideas file on how to reduce the crisis is pretty bare at this stage. There is a desperate need for some fresh thinking that gets past the union rhetoric and the sluggish response by the HSE and, importantly, the Department of Health, which seems bereft of ideas on very many areas of policy these days. Patients cannot be allowed to suffer any more through industrial action but that is what it risks coming to unless there is a new urgency. mark zuckerberg Facebook announced on Friday that it had made another measurement error, this time affecting publishers that use its Instant Articles content platform. It marks the fourth time in recent months Facebook has acknowledged overstating or understating the metrics that publishers or advertisers use to measure the effectiveness of their activity on the platform. In the latest disclosure, Facebook said comScore, a third-party measurement firm it partners with, found the social network was undercounting traffic from iPhone users to their Instant Articles content. Instant Articles is a platform Facebook launched last year in which publishers upload their content directly to Facebook to make it load faster than a standard web page. Publishers can sell their own ads and keep 100% of the proceeds or get Facebook to sell the ad slots for them and allow the social network to take a 30% cut of that revenue. Facebook said in an update to a previous blog post that a recent software update led to iPhone traffic being undercounted from September 30 to November 30. It has now fixed the error, the company added. The Wall Street Journal, which first reported Facebook's latest measurement miscalculation, spoke with a person familiar with the matter who suggested the issue affected some publishers' traffic numbers by 10% to 20%. For most publishers, however, the error affected less than 1% of their traffic, the source said. Facebook began being more up-front about metrics miscalculations in November, when it announced the launch of a new "Metrics FYI" blog series to provide updates on when it discovers errors and bugs. Two months earlier, Facebook's ad boss Carolyn Everson acknowledged that the company could have done better to communicate publicly about a previous video metrics error, which most people found out about through a Wall Street Journal article. Story continues The Metrics FYI blog has now published three separate announcements about measurement errors. First, a series of different metrics errors announced when the blog first launched; then an announcement on December 9 that it had miscalculated metrics on its Graph API for advertisers and the number of likes and reaction emojis page owners see for their videos; and now this Instant Articles error. In all of these cases, none of the errors had any effect on the amount advertisers were charged for Facebook advertising. Facebook will be hoping that its transparent communication about software bugs and measurement issues will reassure advertisers they can trust the data they are receiving from the social network. But the negative headlines could also raise concerns among advertisers and publishers that the Facebook measurement data they plan their social-media activity around has the potential to be inaccurate. NOW WATCH: A psychologist reveals a trick to stop being lazy More From Business Insider There are around 5,000 children and adults in this country who have a severe or profound disability - but there is no planning for their future care from an early age. It is a serious failing in our health service that can leave the person with a disability without a chance to live the fullest life they can. And their family may be left struggling without the supports to cope with the intense pressure of what can involve 24-hour care. How many times have we seen families having to protest outside Leinster House over the years because of cuts in something as basic as the respite grant, which would allow families a brief break from caring? This grant was slashed and only restored in full in the 2016 budget after causing families untold hardship in meantime. Part of the problem which has led to some carers reaching breaking point is rooted in the attitudes which can portray children and adults with this level of disability as a burden. Instead, far-seeing organisations such as Inclusion Ireland have called for a whole family approach to support. It is clear that children born with complex needs will need a strong level of care for the rest of their lives. Yet without a plan, it means their families are left to battle for everything from a medical card to access to occupational therapy. This leads to families becoming unnecessarily distressed and a potential pressure cooker atmosphere. And the person with a disability may have to be placed in institutionalised care. Because the needs of people with a severe or profound disability can become medicalised, they may need residential care. However, there have been no new residential places provided by the HSE since 2008. Inclusion Ireland which works closely with these families have called on Disability Minister Finian McGrath to set up a special unit in the Department of Health to examine the needs of families who have a member with profound or severe disability. This was underlined by a recent study carried out by a research team from University College Cork which looked at the role of siblings in these families. They spoke of taking on the role of "minding" and looking after their brother or sister who was disabled. In families with several children, one sibling often became the "most involved" in the life of the person with a disability. It found that reconciling the "most involved" sibling role with other responsibilities, life situations and life aspirations, resulted in complex emotional tensions for some participants, with feelings of guilt and, in some cases, resentment. One of the main areas where carers have been failed is in the provision of home care supports. This is also felt by the wider community of family carers who number 200,000. There is a clear need to make access to home care a statutory right and to bring in a scheme such as operates for nursing homes under the Fair Deal. Otherwise, carers are left at the whim of the local HSE office - which has to balance its budget and share the care hours out, often so thinly that they are not enough to prevent some carers going over the edge. They are often termed the "silent army" despite saving the State millions of euro thanks to their work. The person who is being cared for is also losing out if they are not allowed to live a fulfilling life, regardless of what stage of disability or illness they are at. The Carers Association said one of the best gifts a carer can get this Christmas would be someone else's time. They might be another relative, neighbour or friend who will allow the carer a break. Most of all let them know they are not alone, and that they can reach out for support. Exhibits displayed at Garda HQ, Dublin in relation to the Unlawful Possession of Explosives at Longford Railway Station on the 16th May 2011. Photo: Gareth Chaney Collins Donal Billings placed a viable device on a bus, threatening the lives of the 31 people on board and causing a judge to brand the act outrageous, highly irresponsible and dangerous. Photo: Collins Courts Events overseas over the past few years forced the gardai to focus much of their anti-terrorist attention and resources to confront the threat posed by international jihadis such as Isil. Behind the scenes, however, there was no pulling back by the Special Detective Unit and other specialist units in combating the possible resurgence of dissident republican groups. Earlier this year, during a display of weaponry and explosives seized from dissidents, the assistant commissioner in charge of crime and security, John O'Mahony, issued a warning that the threat dissidents posed was as serious as ever. He highlighted the growing sophistication of their "engineers" as they aimed to develop their technical capability. The significance of that threat has been underlined in two cases finalised in the Special Criminal Court in the past month. Details emerged of sinister attempts to mount deadly attacks during the State visits of Queen Elizabeth five years ago and Prince Charles last year. The capture and subsequent jailing of Donal O Coisdealbha (25) dealt a major blow to the "engineering" skills of the Real IRA. O Coisdealbha, from Killester, on the northside of Dublin, is a relative of former leading Provisional IRA bombmaker Jim "Mortar" Monaghan, who became known in later years as a member of the Colombia 3. O Coisdealbha was arrested by the Special Detective Unit six days before the visit of Prince Charles and Camilla after coming to the attention of detectives during an investigation into dissident activities. He was placed under surveillance and seen meeting convicted IRA members in two Dublin pubs as well as acting suspiciously at the rear of Glasnevin Cemetery. He was also seen buying cling film, and driving to a house in Wexford. During a search of the house, four improvised rockets, a booster tube, five phones, Semtex and homemade explosives, a timing power unit (TPU), broken circuit board, cortex wire and two detonators were found. In a follow-up search of his locker at NUI Maynooth, where he worked in biomedics, gardai also discovered another TPU and a broken circuit board. Garda evidence was given that it was clear from recorded conversations about a motorcycle and detonators that preparation was well advanced for a bomb attack - and officers believed it was to take place around the time of Prince Charles's visit. Three TDs, Maureen O'Sullivan, Mick Wallace and Clare Daly, were among seven proposed independent sureties on his bail application, but it was refused. O Coisdealbha later pleaded guilty to membership of an unlawful organisation and was sentenced to five-and-a-half years in jail. Then, earlier this week, Dubliner Donal Billings (66), with an address in Drumlish, Co Longford, was jailed for eight-and-a-half years after he was found guilty of possessing an explosive substance at Longford railway station car park on May 16, 2011. Billings's plan was to cause serious disruption to preparations for Queen Elizabeth's visit by planting a bomb on a bus and following up with a series of hoax telephone calls. One of the calls claimed that two mortars were due to explode at Dublin Castle during the State banquet for the queen. All of the calls had to be treated seriously as the device on the bus, with 31 people on board, was viable and capable of causing death and destruction. The bomb was discovered in the luggage hold and included gunpowder, a two-litre bottle of petrol, a TPU, battery and a fuse. If it had exploded, it would have turned into a fireball and seriously injured or killed the bus passengers and the driver. It is understood the device had also been doctored to create the impact of a blast bomb, posing an additional risk of shrapnel inflicting injuries to the passengers. Presiding judge Mr Justice Tony Hunt said Billings placed a device on public transport - an "outrageous, highly irresponsible and dangerous act", which "recklessly exposed passengers, staff and members of the emergency services to very significant risk of serious injury or death". After the discovery, all garda units were placed on high alert and extensive searches were carried out at the other locations where Billings had claimed bombs were planted. During the initial phone call, it was alleged that a bomb had been planted at the Sinn Fein offices in central Dublin. It was searched, along with another bus. A further phone call threatened that two mortars were timed to explode at Dublin Castle at 8pm on the evening of the State banquet. The caller said: "I'm a member of the republican brotherhood, squad A. "Two mortars are set for Dublin Castle at 8pm. This is for the queen of blood and war of Iraq." Searches were carried out but nothing was found. A third phone call warned there were two bombs planted at Cork airport, where Queen Elizabeth II was due to fly out of Ireland. This was also a hoax. Investigators found that the SIM card for the phone used to make the calls had been bought in an O2 shop in Longford shopping centre and additional information was generated through analysis of mobile phone records and CCTV footage from the shopping centre and the railway station. Billings, who had two previous convictions from Northern Ireland in 1973 for possession of explosives, was identified as a suspect. He was placed under surveillance and followed from his home in Drumlish to a Lidl car park in Longford, where he was arrested. In his bag, gardai found the Sim card and handwriting on the packaging including the phone number for Longford garda station, the registration number of the Corduff bus and the Irish words Cor Dubh. Officers also seized a phone from Billings and established that its IMEI, a 15-digit unique number used to identify mobile phones, had been used in conjunction with the 086 number. The phone calls had been made using a mast near Billings's home in Drumlish and they found a bottle of petrol and a makeshift funnel in his car. The two trials serve as a grim reminder of the dangers that dissidents and their sympathisers, although small in number, continue to pose to the security of the State. An Irishman's obituary has gone viral after his family paid the most hilarious and heart-warming tribute to him. Irish-American Chris Connors (67) lost his battle to ALS and pancreatic cancer, but his family made sure his obituary reflected his life to the full. The obituary reads: Chris Connors died, at age 67, after trying to box his bikini-clad hospice nurse just moments earlier. Ladies man, game slayer, and outlaw Connors told his last inappropriate joke on Friday, December 9, 2016, that which cannot be printed here. The obituary, which has gone viral, said Conners died just like he lived, by writing his own rules. Anyone else fighting ALS and stage 4 pancreatic cancer would have gone quietly into the night, but Connors was stark naked drinking Veuve in a house full of friends and family as Al Green played from the speakers, the obit said. Chris enjoyed cross dressing, a well-made fire, and mashed potatoes with lots of butter. His regrets were few, but include eating a rotisserie hot dog from an unmemorable convenience store in the summer of 1986." The obituary recalls some of Chris' most hilarious moments. "Most people thought he was crazy for swimming in the ocean in January; for being a skinny Irish Golden Gloves boxer from Quincy, Massachusetts; for dressing up as a priest and then proceeding to get into a fight at a Jewish deli. "Absolut vodka and Simply Orange companies are devastated by the loss of Connors. "As much as people knew hanging out with him would end in a night in jail or a killer screwdriver hangover, he was the type of man that people would drive 16 hours at the drop of a dime to come see." The heartwarming obituary has gone viral across the world. Irish shoppers are heading to New York in their thousands with empty suitcases to stock up for Christmas. The flow of festive bargain hunters, in search of that cut-rate designer handbag or discounted boots, ebbed since 2007, but it's back with a bang. For holiday-makers it's a chance to sightsee, ice-skate, nab a deal and celebrate your Fendi find over a Manhattan, in Manhattan. For bigger discounts, the Irish have long looked beyond Herald Square and Soho to the Woodbury Common Outlet Mall - a vast outdoor shopping centre, with its own food court, Shake Shack and 220 stores, including Prada, Dior, Tommy Hilfiger, GAP, Ugg, Levi's and Michael Kors. Items are further reduced after Thanksgiving and bigger bargains are prevalent in the run-up to Christmas. A strong dollar means exchange rates aren't as advantageous as previous years - but it hasn't stopped droves of Irish arriving into Woodbury each morning. Mother and daughter Connie and Rikki-Lee Jameson were amongst the first droves of shoppers through the door. Part of a big group of family and friends from Belfast, they also maintained they'd be on the last bus back into NYC that night. They came prepared with empty cases for their wares. For Connie, shopping for two children at home was the aim, but Rikki-Lee was in the market for a Christmas treat. "A handbag, something designer. I'm probably not going to get the chance again," she said. Sisters Clare and Roisin Daly were set for a serious afternoon of retail therapy. Booked six weeks ago, the trip was a last minute impulse and today's purchases would be "on the credit card" Roisin said. Although they admitted they'd be totting up the exchange rate as they went, "it's still cheaper than home for these kinds of shops". Meanwhile, Gavin Stokes and Ciara Sheehy from Tallaght admitted it was "quite far to come" for a shopping excursion. The couple had been saving up for some time for the trip and Gavin was "just going to buy everything" with his $2,000 budget. Hugo Boss was the first port of call, in search of a suit for a wedding. Friends Serena Judd, Bairbre Brennan and Christine Lee from Blanchardstown were having a breather outside North Face. Laden down with bags, the gang were on the first day of their New York jolly and jetlag couldn't keep them away from Woodbury. More currency conscious than some of their Irish shopping counterparts, the group held tight on changing money until after the election. "It's nearly dollar for euro, so you watch it a bit more," Serena said. The big splurge so far had been a Michael Kors bag and some of the biggest savings had been on Ugg boots. So was this a big splash out? No, Christine said. "We're just doing the Christmas shopping here that we'd be doing at home." Meanwhile, Tracy O'Keefe and Sarah Moore said even with the strong dollar, Woodbury was "still cheaper" than shopping in Dublin. The pair from Ballyfermot were shopping for a mix of adults and kids. Would the Christmas shopping be finished when they got back to Dublin on Sunday? "It better be," Tracy said. Big buys were in North Face and Tommy Hilfiger, but there was still time to fill more of the suitcase before heading into the city on the bus at 6pm. Two former British soldiers are to be charged with the murder of an IRA member in Northern Ireland over 40 years ago. Official IRA commander Joe McCann (25) was shot dead in disputed circumstances in Joy Street, in Belfast's Markets area, on April 15, 1972. Notoriously linked to several killings and gun attacks, he was unarmed at the time of the killing by the British Paratroopers, who later said they had expected him to be carrying a gun. Two retired Paratroopers, known only as Soldier A, now aged 67, and Soldier C, aged 64, are said by prosecutors to have been part of a patrol whose members fired on McCann that day. A third patrol member, Soldier B, has died in the years since the incident. "Following a careful consideration of all the available evidence, it has been decided to prosecute two men for the offence of murder," the Public Prosecutions Service said. The controversial decision followed years of investigations and protests from nationalists about the circumstances of the killing. It will cause consternation among some Unionists and elements of the British military and security services. The case was referred to the North's Director of Public Prosecutions, Barra McGrory, by the Northern Ireland Attorney General, John Larkin QC, in 2014. The dead man's family had been pressing for several years for a new inquest to be held. "The decision was reached following an objective and impartial application of the test for prosecution that was conducted in accordance with the code for prosecutors and with the benefit of advice from senior counsel," a Public Prosecution Service official added. The two former British soldiers are expected to appear in court next year. Joe McCann was among the IRA's best-known activists in the early days of the Troubles. The old Royal Ulster Constabulary investigated the killing in 1972 and the authorities decided not to prosecute anyone. The Historical Enquiries Team set up to investigate unresolved killings in the North examined McCann's death in 2012. This is the second military prosecution involving Northern Ireland since the 1990s. Files on the infamous Bloody Sunday killings in Derry in January 1972 are still with prosecutors for decision. Prior to his death, Joe McCann had topped the RUC's most-wanted list and was sent by IRA commanders to Dublin for his own safety. An Official IRA ceasefire was called six weeks after his death. Republicans have always disputed claims that his death was a "set-up" because he opposed a ceasefire. In 1997, republican paramilitaries of all factions attended the unveiling of a commemorative plaque on the 25th anniversary of this death. His funeral was one of the biggest ever seen in Belfast with a cortege which stretched for a mile. In an unlikely tribute, loyalist UVF leader Gusty Spence wrote to McCann's widow from Long Kesh where he was detained. Spence wrote: "I salute your husband as an honourable and brave soldier." The letter was related to an incident where McCann is said to have brokered the release of UVF men detained by the OIRA. Already notorious during his lifetime, in death his legend grew. Up to five people died violently in disturbances in the days following his death. A poster depicting him armed and in silhouette became one of the Troubles' iconic images and he was celebrated in a song still widely sung in nationalist circles. The British government issued a statement signalling that the charges will be contested. "Any member of the military affected by this legal case will rightly be supported throughout and will receive free Ministry of Defence legal representation," the statement said. Another former soldier, Dennis Hutchings, aged in his 70s and from Cornwall, was last year charged with attempted murder dating to 1974. The Rockhill Ramblers saved the uncle of the bride Photo: The Rockhill Ramblers Two members of an Irish wedding band helped to save the uncle of the bride at a wedding last weekend. The Rockhill Ramblers, a Donegal-based band, were playing at the wedding of Siofra Johnston and Ben Relton in Rossnowlagh last Friday when Siofras uncle Alan Johnston collapsed. We were playing a few waltzes and Alan was waltzing around the room with his daughter and he just dropped, Darren Meehan, a member of the band, told Independent.ie. We play a lot of weddings and weve seen people fall over drunk but we knew this wasnt like that straight away. Expand Close The Rockhill Ramblers / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The Rockhill Ramblers As it happens, two members of the band knew exactly what to do. Matthew, a qualified EMT, and Patrick, a nurse, snapped into action to help Alan. They started CPR and shouted to me to get the defibrillator, Darren told Independent.ie. Ryan Hoey, the barman, got the defib and after we shocked him he started to wake up. Alan was in startlingly good form when the on-duty paramedics arrived on the scene. When they were taking him to the ambulance, he said to me, Play on Darren, I might be back! The band spoke to the bride and groom when Alan was taken to the ambulance, and all agreed that the band should play on and enjoy the night now that Alan was safe. It was a brilliant night, because he was talking away before they took him off, Darren said. We all wish Alan a speedy recovery, and thanks to the nurses at the wedding who helped out as well, he added. Two of Alans nieces, Linda and Roisin, were also nurses and helped the band members with Alan. The bride and groom were relieved and delighted that their guests were so well prepared, but they had no idea that Matthew and Patrick were qualified to assist in a cardiac arrest when they booked the band. Its not exactly a selling point, but handy to have I suppose! Darren laughed. If you want these musical heroes at your wedding, you can contact them at their website on rockhillramblers.com. Turkish Airlines has been named best short-haul airline in a poll of over 7,500 Which? members. The Istanbul-based carrier beat Channel Islands airline Aurigny to the top spot, scoring an average customer rating of 80pc. It achieved top marks in two categories (food and drink and customer service) and four stars out of five in cabin environment, boarding and seat comfort. Scandinavian Airlines, Icelandair and Jet2.com completed the top five of the consumer body's report, while Aer Lingus placed 10th with 67pc. Aer Lingus scored four out of a possible five stars for 'boarding', and three out of five for both 'seat comfort' and 'value for money'. Which? Short-haul rankings Turkish Airlines - 80pc Aurigny - 76pc Scandinavian - 75pc Icelandair - 73pc Jet2.com - 71pc Eurowings - 70pc Norwegian - 70pc Swiss - 69pc Lufthansa - 68pc Aer Lingus - 67pc British Airways - 67pc KLM - 67pc Air Malta - 63pc easyJet - 63pc Flybe - 63pc Monarch - 61pc Wizz Air - 59pc Thomson - 56pc TAP Portugal - 54pc Thomas Cook - 52pc Ryanair polled 21st in the list (50pc), followed by Iberia on 49pc, while Spanish low-cost carrier Vueling was the lowest entry at 41pc. Ryanair scored two out of five stars for 'boarding', one out of five for 'seat comfort' and three out of five for 'value for money' in the survey. Expand Close A Turkish Airlines Boeing 737. Photo: Deposit / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A Turkish Airlines Boeing 737. Photo: Deposit "This survey of just 7,500 Which? members is unrepresentative and worthless," a spokesperson for the airline told Independent.ie Travel. "Ryanair is the worlds largest international airline (119m customers) and is also the worlds fastest growing (up 13m customers in 2016)." "Real consumers cannot get enough of Ryanairs low fares and our Always Getting Better customer service," the spokesperson added. Which? is the largest consumer body in the UK, with over 680,000 members subscribing to its magazine, and 350,000 subscribers online. The worlds best long-haul carrier, according to its members, is Singapore Airlines - followed by Emirates (82pc) and KLM (78pc). Which? long-haul rankings Singapore Airlines - 91pc Emirates - 82pc KLM - 78pc Qatar Airways - 77pc Virgin Atlantic - 73pc Etihad - 68pc Delta - 66pc Malaysia Airlines - 62pc Thomson - 61pc British Airways - 60pc South African Airways - 56pc Air Transat - 56pc American Airlines - 52pc Thomas Cook - 51pc Air Canada - 46pc United - 44pc You can view the full Which? airline survey results here. Read more: Local author Sarah Gilbert's novel 'Hello, At Last', goes on sale this Friday. Sarah, who was brought up in Omeath but now lives in Newry, has had close connections with Dundalk for many years. She has worked on UTV, UTV Ireland, RTE, LMFM, Q Radio, and has written, produced and directed a number of radio dramas, and was awarded a Gold PPI for her radio drama 'The Terror Of Leap Castle' for LMFM. 'Hello, At Last' will be on sale in The Gift and Art Gallery, Central News, McEvoys, Clanbrassil St, Londis, Quay St, and Carroll's Book Shop, Park St. She will be signing books McKevitt's Village Hotel, Carlingford this Sunday December 19, 2pm-4pm. Donald Trump Ivanka Eric Jr. President-elect Donald Trump will not liquidate his massive business empire before he moves into the White House, a Wall Street Journal reporter said in a CNN interview on Thursday night. Monica Langley cited an unnamed senior official in the Trump Organization who said the Trump family saw conflict-of-interest issues surrounding the president-elect as a no-win situation. Citing sources who have knowledge of the Trump family's thinking, Langley described their concerns: "How can we put these hundreds of millions of dollars per property on the market? It'd be a fire sale, we'd lose tons of money." Langley added: "Now they're thinking these assets could bring lots of money. Foreign entities, sovereign wealth funds would want to buy and pay lots of money to try to curry favor with the Trump administration." Langley cited one senior official in the Trump Organization who said "we can't win at this point if we tried to liquidate." The president-elect abruptly postponed a news conference on these matters originally scheduled for Thursday, and he said a future announcement had not been scheduled but would happen before the January 20 inauguration. Calls for Trump to shed his multiple business interests which include assets in 20 countries, according to The New York Times have been consistent and loud. Many have suggested that if he does not divest, he would be in violation of the US Constitution's Emoluments Clause upon taking office. That clause prohibits government officials from receiving gifts from foreign nations. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts promised on Thursday that she, along with four other Democratic senators, would introduce legislation to force Trump to divest himself entirely of his business empire. Trump has previously insisted that he will not be involved in his companies' day-to-day operations while he is in the White House, but he is likely to leave two of his sons in charge, leaving the businesses in close proximity. Story continues Watch Monica Langley's comments on Trump's assets: Monica Langley, citing senior source on CNN, reports Trump will NOT divest from his businesses but adds decision could change pic.twitter.com/KLYZJ2TleM JM Rieger (@RiegerReport) December 16, 2016 NOW WATCH: Trump fires back at union leader who alleged he 'lied his a-- off' about Carrier deal More From Business Insider Colm O'Gorman, Executive Director of Amnesty International in Ireland, with Marlene Ofterdinger, Dundalk Grammar Junior School at the Amnesty International Schools' Poster Competition in The Oriel Centre Joan Brady and Colm O'Gorman, Amnesty International in Ireland, with Isabella Callanan, Realt na Mara National School at the Amnesty International Schools' Poster Competition in The Oriel Centre The Dundalk Group of Amnesty International held their 15th annual poster competition prize giving recently in the Oriel Centre. Group co-ordinator Fergal Kilkenny welcomed the students and their families to the venue and spoke about Irish citizen Ibrahim Halawa who is currently over three years in prison in Egypt for 'simply exercising his rights to freedom of expression and assembly'. He told those in attendance of the work group members had been doing in support of this innocent young man. Fergal also read an extract of a letter which he personally received from Albert Woodfox, America's longest serving solitary confinement prisoner of 44 years, who earlier this year was cleared and released. It said: 'My best to you, your family and fellow Amnesty International comrades, you have truly made the world aware of our suffering, Stay strong, Peace Albert'. Competition co-ordinator Joan Brady spoke passionately about the theme of this years poster competition - child refugees. She mentioned those iconic sad images of Aylan Kurdai, the young refugee who died at sea. Joan also commended all entries to this years poster competition and thanked the schools for facilitating the competition. Joan passed onto Colm O'Gorman Executive Director of Amnesty Ireland who she thanked for again this year taking time out of his busy schedule to be with the group on their special night. Colm spoke about many topical human rights issues. While focusing on the refugee crisis the executive director reminded the audience that to see real change each individual should speak up for the rights of others. Colm then presented each winner with their certificate and prize. The event was concluded by Henry Bacik, one of the founders of the group who thanked the children, parents and schools for all the effort made again this year. He thanked Mr O'Gorman for the support he has shown to the group in attending the prizegiving. Special thanks was also given to Kay, Carmel and the team at the Oriel Centre who again made the venue available. Anyone interested in Dundalk Amnesty International can email: dundalkamint@gmail.com. There's a real treat in store when Clermont Chorale presents a concert of carols and seasonal offerings on Sunday December 18 at 5pm in the Church of St Oliver Plunkett, Blackrock. Since returning from a very successful choral trip to Ulm in southern Germany at Halloween, the choir has been rehearsing for this concert which will see them joined by Blackrock Church Choir for some of the programme. Musical director Irene Barr explained how the idea for this concert came about. 'I approached Fr Padraig Keenan PP during the summer about the possibility of Clermont Chorale staging their annual Christmas concert in the newly refurbished church and he was very supportive of the idea.' 'The church of St Oliver Plunkett is a very nice venue for choral music with a lovely acoustic and is an ideal setting for Clermont Chorale,' she continued. 'I invited any members of Blackrock Church Choir, which I also direct, who were interested, to join us for part of the concert and they have been rehearsing with us every Tuesday night in DKIT'. The two adult choirs will also be joined by members of the Children's Liturgy choir on the night and have put together a programme of well-known and new seasonal pieces . Proceeds from the concert will be donated to the Birches Day Centre. Tickets, 15, 10 concession, are available from choir members or in the Clermont Arms, Blackrock. Archbishop Eamon Martin has led tributes to his 'dear episcopal colleague and friend' Bishop Gerard Clifford whose death was announced on Monday and whose Requiem Mass takes place tomorrow (Thursday) at St Patrick's Cathedral. Bishop Clifford, who was born and educated in Bellurgan and remained proud of his North Louth roots, passed away, aged 75, following a long illness. Leading the tributes to Bishop Clifford, Archbishop Martin said: 'We have always held Bishop Gerry in great affection and esteem. 'He was a devoted and generous priest and bishop who reluctantly had to resign from active ministry in 2013 due to ill health. 'Sadly, since then, he has had to endure increasing frailty and illness and he has done so with characteristic courage, patience and faith. 'When he retired, Bishop Gerry acknowledged and thanked the people of the diocese for 'their great warmth and affection'. These were precisely the qualities that everyone received from this good and faithful priest and bishop. 'Bishop Clifford was a holy and humble man who instinctively placed the concerns of others first, as befits a true messenger of the Gospel. 'Born in the border parish of his beloved Lordship and Ballymascanlon, Bishop Gerry was a tireless peacemaker and bridge-builder. He was one of the great figures of the ecumenical movement in Ireland - a role he accomplished through gentle friendship and witness'. Born in the summer of 1941 to parents Thomas and Margaret Clifford, he attended Bellurgan National School and Bush Post Primary School, before transferring to St Mary's College in 1955 for the Intermediate Certificate and from there to St Patrick's College in Armagh. He attended Maynooth and was ordained a priest in June 1967. In 1979 the late Cardinal Tomas O Fiaich appointed him ecumenical and reconciliation officer of the diocese, with a base in Richill, near Portadown. He worked closely with Canon William Arlow in the Church of Ireland. Bishop Clifford regarded his ecumenical involvement as one of the most important aspects of his life as a priest. His interest in ecumenism went back to his student days - his theological degree was awarded for a study of ministry in the Anglican Church. In 1984 Father Clifford was appointed first full-time executive secretary of the Irish Bishops' Conference. He was also joint secretary of the liaison committee which links the bishops of Britain and Ireland, and regularly represented the Bishops' Conference at meetings abroad. Bishop Clifford was appointed as Titular Bishop of Geron in 1991. As a member of the Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference, Bishop Clifford was a member of its Council for Ecumenism (and Dialogue); a member of the Episcopal Commission for Pastoral Care, and was President of CURA from 2010 until 2013. Archbishop Martin said: 'In my visits to Bishop Gerry in recent weeks and months he seemed at peace. May he rest forever in the peace of the Lord whom he generously and faithfully served. May God console his sister Rose, brother Christopher, his extended family, the people, priests and religious of the Archdiocese of Armagh along with his many friends'. Reception of Remains takes place today, Tuesday, at St Patrick's Cathedral, Dundalk, at 7.15pm, followed by Mass at 7.30pm. Lying in repose until Thursday at 11.45am. Evening Prayer on Wednesday at 7.30pm and Requiem Mass on Thursday at noon, followed by burial at Calvary Cemetery, Ravensdale. Fears over dogs roaming in parts of the town were raised at the December meeting of Dundalk Municipal Committee. Councillor Kevin Meenan told the meeting that everyone was aware of the tragic incidents involving dangerous dogs in Britain. He called for greater awareness in Louth of the dangers involved with particular breeds, and the legal onus on owners of other breeds to keep them on a leash while they are in public. Cllr. Meenan said he was aware of a dog roaming in Muirhevnamor which had attacked people. He said he had even heard reports that it was running with a group of children. He added that it could be the case that these dogs are associated with families who people are afraid to approach, so the gardai might need to be involved. Cllr. Emma Coffey agreed that residents needed to be reminded that it was an offence for dogs to be roaming the street without leads. Chairman, Cllr. Mark Dearey, suggested the matter be formally raised with the dog warden. Cllr. Maria Doyle supported the calls, saying that this was not just a concern in Muirhevanmor, but across other housing estates as well. 'I witnessed myself a larger dog attacking a smaller dog,' said Cllr. Doyle. She appealed to the local authority to raise awareness about the issue, and to increase signage informing dog walkers that dogs should be kept on leads in public areas. The council has since re-issued the listed the breeds (and strains/cross-breeds) of dog where restrictions are in place: American pit bull terrier, English bull terrier, Staffordshire bull terrier, Bull mastiff, Dobermann pinscher, German shepherd (Alsatian), Rhodesian ridgeback, Rottweiler, Japanese akita, Japanese tosa, and the Bandog. These dogs (or strains and crosses of them) must be kept on a short strong lead by a person over 16 years who is capable of controlling them, be muzzled whenever they are in a public place, and wear a collar with the name and address of owner. Sales of the Shop Local gift vouchers have hit a record 400,000 since their launch last year, with 220 local shops and businesses now accepting them. Dundalk Chamber of Commerce president Michael Gaynor made the announcement last week and called on the public and the business community to continue to get behind the Shop Local vouchers this Christmas and give them as presents to family and staff. Mr Gaynor said: 'With just over 400,000 sold to date in their first year, they have been a resounding success. The chamber hopes to hit sales of 500,000 and is asking the people of Dundalk to get behind this initiative. Paddy Malone PRO of Dundalk Chamber said the recipient gets gift of choice as they can be spent in toy shops, restaurants, hair salons, gift stores, gyms, beauticians, clothes shops, and much more. The vouchers now come in a 5 denomination as well as 10, 20 and 50s. He said: 'The 400,000 in sales means that at least a million euro will be retained in Dundalk over Christmas. Every euro spent will mean extra jobs in Dundalk which in turn means extra payroll which in turn means a further round of spending 'This also creates a buzz and a positive feel good factor for the holiday period'. Paddy wants local employers to get behind this voucher scheme and give the Shop Local vouchers as the Christmas bonus this year. Employers can save 56% on staff rewards by giving employees a Shop Local voucher instead of cash and businesses can reward their staff with a 500 tax free payment. Under the Small Benefits Exemption Scheme, company directors and employees can receive a non-cash bonus of up to 500 in value on a completely tax free basis each year and he would encourage all employers to buy this voucher for the town'. It is also a fully deductible business expense for your company. If you haven't availed of the Small Benefit Exemption Scheme so far in 2016, Mr Gaynor would encourage people do so before December 31 and use Shop Local gift vouchers for this. He said: 'Directors of a limited company can avail of a 500 tax free payment as they are considered an employee of the business. Unfortunately this benefit does not apply to sole traders or partnerships but it would apply to their employees'. The beauty of these vouchers is that they do not expire and the shops get the full amount back. Members of the public can buy the vouchers in Grants Dublin Street, McCuskers in Earl Street, Central News Clanbrassil Street, Centra Blackrock, Sheelans in Riverstown, Finnegan's in Louth Village and Victory's Centra in Dunleer. You can also purchase them online on www.dundalk.ie/vouchers - there is no charge for delivery - and directly from the Dundalk Chamber of Commerce Office by calling Brenda on 042 9336343 or email accounts@dundalk.ie The full list of outlets redeeming the Shop Local gift vouchers is at shoplocal.dundalk.ie. Dundalk Women's Aid has ambitious plans which will allow it to help more women and children escaping domestic violence. At the moment the organisation is hampered in the numbers it can accommodate due to the size of its premises at the Avenue Road. Plans to relocate to a different premises fell through in 2013 but now there are plans to upgrade and expand the services which it offers on the existing site. 'We are finalising proposals which we will be making public in the New Year,' says Services Manager Ms Lisa Marmion. 'We are really looking forward to 2017 which will see us, if not actually in, certainly well on the way to a new building that will give women and children the accommodation they deserve and allow us to increase our capacity and range of services.' The Dundalk refuge provided accommodation for 61 women and 110 children in 2015 and Ms Marmion says it's expected that this year's figure will be greater. And while the refuge is a crucial part of the work of Women's Aid, providing women fleeing dangerous, even life-threatening, situations with a safe haven, it's not the only service they provide. Women's Aid Dundalk supports families who have moved from the refuge back into the community, provides counselling for women and children, runs special programmes for children, accompanies women to court hearings, and runs a 24 hour help line. Education is another key element of their work. 'We are trying to move the focus away from the victim to holding the perpetrators of domestic abuse accountable for their actions,' says Ms Marmion. 'We do 'victim blaming' very well in Ireland and it's time to move away from that,' she says. 'It used to be that domestic abuse was suffered in silence and we keep our location secret, adding to the sense of shame for the victims.' 'We need to change our way of thinking so that women know that it's not a shame that they have come to a refuge and that it could happen to anyone of us.' She points to the situation in Holland, where women's refuges are painted orange and stand out in the community as a place of safety for women. In addition to the services provided in Dundalk, there are one-to-one outreach clinics in Ardee, Dunleer, Carlingford, Tallanstown and other locations on request. 'A big part of our work is awareness raising and transforming the response which women and children get when they seek help.' Women's Aid works closely with health professionals who deal with the victims of domestic abuse and provides accredited Domestic Violence training for professionals in conjunction with DkIT. 'We also talk to student groups and go into schools, both secondary and primary.' She points out that the recent media campaign has focused on people not being a by-stander if they are aware of someone suffering from domestic violence but to be a witness and offer their support. 'It's all about bringing things out into the light, about supporting people.' * Dundalk Women's Aid 24 hour helpline can be contacted at 042 9333244 Cllr. John McGahon (left), Martin McElligott, Dundalk BIDS Manager, Mary Capplis, LCC, Sinead Roche, Tourism Officer, Cllr. Maeve Yore, Willie Duffy, Tidy Towns and Anita McEneaney, County Museum/Tidy Towns at the launch of the new Christmas Tree Illuminations. Picture: Ken Finegan Dundalk's new Christmas Tree stands tall over the Market Square in Dundalk, thanks to the combined efforts of Dundalk Tidy Towns and Dundalk BIDS. The illuminated Christmas Tree compliments the new illuminations now erected throughout Clanbrassil Street, Earl Street and Park Street and was delivered to the Town Centre just before the weekend. The illuminations are part of a three year plan to Light Up Dundalk at Christmas time and Dundalk Tidy Towns have played a significant role this year via sponsoring the Christmas Tree. Martin McElligott, Dundalk BIDS Manager welcomed the latest addition to the newly lit up town centre. 'We have been looking forward so much to seeing the new tree lit up and becoming a beacon for Dundalk Town Centre. The tree is now up and lit and I have to give huge thanks to Dundalk Tidy Towns, for sponsoring a focal point in Dundalk's Christmas.' Willie Duffy, Chairperson of Dundalk Tidy Towns Committee said he was thrilled to see the brightly illuminated Christmas tree shine over Dundalk town centre. 'We have been more than happy to be involved in sponsoring the new Dundalk Christmas Tree which we hope will be a centrepiece of Dundalk Christmases for many years to come.' The tree was specially ordered from a design company in France, where the new town centre lights had been bought earlier this year. Willie added that the Tidy Towns were delighted to donate the tree to the town. 'It has been tremendous to make this possible with Dundalk BIDS and Louth County Council. 'It is, I suppose, a gift from Dundalk Tidy Towns to the people of our town who help and support us in our work throughout the year. I hope as many of these people as possible get to see it and enjoy what we have worked hard to achieve.' He said that the low energy, LED lighting, fits in with the Tidy Towns sustainable energy initiatives. 'It will be a permanent addition to the Square for many years to come, and the perfect compliment to the new street lighting.' Cllr Mark Dearey, Chairperson of Dundalk Municipal District Committee, said the new illuminated Christmas tree is yet another progressive milestone in Dundalk's Christmas Programme. 'Christmas 2016 is definitely a year to remember for Dundalk at Christmas,' said the chairman. 'We switched on the street illuminations with an historic Dundalk FC team, and now we are celebrating the icing on Dundalk's Christmas cake - our new tree.' 'It is on occasions such as this that we have to be proud of what we are all doing,' said Cllr. Dearey. 'It is fantastic to see Dundalk shining its brightest this Christmas, for all of us who live here and those who are visiting.' A minute's silence was held in memory of the late Sean Bellew, a former member of Dundalk Town Council, when members met for their December meeting last week. Chairman Mark Dearey suspended standing orders in order to pay tributes to the former councillor, who worked as a barrister. Cllr. Conor Keelan recalled how he had sat beside the then Cllr. Bellew for five years during his time on the council. He praised him as a 'very astute and able councillor, and his legal mind was always very much in evidence.' 'Outside of politics he was an avid supporter of Dundalk FC. He was a very bright individual, and he had a very strong interest in history. It is such a real loss, my thoughts are with his parents and family at this time.' Cllr. Keelan's sentiments were echoed by the entire chamber, as members spoke of the shock at his sudden death. 'It is very hard to put into words what has happened,' said Cllr. Marianne Butler. She added she knew he had planned to make the trip with Dundalk FC to Israel, and was so much looking forward to it. 'I think he will be there in spirit to cheer them on.' Cllr. Maria Doyle added that the shock of his passing was compounded by the sudden death just a week earlier of Vanessa Ryan, daughter of the former County Councillor, Jim Ryan. She expressed her sympathy to both families on the very sudden, and sad deaths of two talented young people. Cllr. Kevin Meenan spoke of the former Cllr. Bellew 'as such a great orator.' He joked 'You needed to know your stuff if you were getting into a debate with Sean or you were in trouble.' Cllr. Jennifer Green added 'Sean was vice chair when I was chair, and he was such a great support. He was extremely witty. His death is a sad loss.' Cllr. Emma Coffey remarked that although she did not know him within the chamber, she knew that in his legal dealings he was 'absolutely methodical on his research.' Cllr. Peter Savage added that although he hadn't known Sean, he knew his passing was a tremendous loss to the entire Bellew family. Cllr. Maeve Yore praised him as 'a great man of integrity' who would be sadly missed. Director of Service, Frank Pentony, spoke of the 'great shock and sadness' felt among officials who had known the late Cllr. Bellew. 'He always struck me as a very passionate man, passionate about his work, and his love for Dundalk. He seemed to be a very wise head on young shoulders.' Chairman, Cllr. Mary Dearey, said: 'His loss is immeasurable. He has such intellect, such a great mind, and we heard how he used to consume three and four books every week.' 'It falls on us to extend our very deepest sympathy to Sean's family, and wide circle of friends.' The media firestorm which has engulfed Nate Parker - director, writer and leading actor of the Birth Of A Nation - casts a long shadow over his historical drama about an 1831 slave rebellion in Virginia. The furore around a rape charge dating back to 1999, when Parker was a student at Penn State University and of which he was acquitted, has almost certainly torpedoed any chance of his individual contributions being part of the feverish Academy Awards conversations in the coming months. Judging the Birth Of A Nation purely on its merits, the film provokes the same debates as 12 Years A Slave, albeit with less narrative sophistication and directorial brio. Behind the camera, Parker is ruled by convention and he struggles to generate dramatic momentum that would make the two-hour running time feel less of a slog. However, in a year when the lack of diversity in the global filmmaking community has become a hot-button topic, Parker's achievements on a modest budget should not be underestimated. In his guise as slave-turned-preacher Nat Turner, the filmmaker is far more convincing, surrounding himself with an excellent ensemble cast, who treat the harrowing subject matter with the seriousness it deserves. Slave owner Samuel Turner (Armie Hammer) believes he is more tolerant and understanding than many of his neighbours in Southampton County. His God-fearing mother Elizabeth (Penelope Ann Miller) raised young Samuel with a slave boy called Nat (Parker) as his playmate, and the imposing matriarch taught Nat to read by referring him to the word of the Bible. Nat devours every word and grows up with a belief that he must preach to his people. He falls in love with another slave, Cherry (Aja Naomi King), but when she is brutally assaulted by a gang of white slave owners, led by snarling Raymond Cobb (Jackie Earle Haley), poor Samuel seriously questions the order of his unforgiving world. His friend and fellow slave Hark (Colman Domingo) suffers a similar hammer blow when his wife Esther (Gabrielle Union) is ordered to provide sexual services to one of Samuel's dinner guests. These injustices light an unquenchable fire within Nat. 'The Lord has called me - to stand and fight.' he bellows, leading a rebellion that puts Nat on a collision course with Cobb and the pro-slavery establishment. The Birth Of A Nation is a passionate, yet clumsily conceived, rallying cry for equality, spattered with the blood and tears of men, who acknowledge that violence begets greater violence. Parker conceives some horrifying imagery, such as Cherry's battered face after she is attacked, but he fails to elegantly weave these jolts into a fluid and constantly engaging character study. There are noticeable lulls in the second hour and female characters are defined by their suffering, repeatedly abused in order to pour fuel on the flames of Nat Turner's supposedly righteous crusade. A film featuring two of Wicklow's up-and-coming movie stars has been nominated for a Golden Globe. Irish director John Carney's 'Sing Street' has been given the nod in the musical or comedy picture category alongside '20th Century Women,' 'Deadpool,' 'Florence Foster Jenkins,' and 'La La Land' ahead of the 74th Golden Globe Awards. Staring Ferdia Walsh Peelo from Ashford and Jack Reynor from Blessington, 'Sing Street' is set in 1980s recession-ridden Dublin and has been described as 'a semi-autobiographical tale inspired by the filmmaker's love of music'. It tells the story of 14-year-old Cosmo (played by Ferdia Peelo Walsh) who finds life at home difficult after a change in circumstances forces the family to downsize and he is sent to an inner city school. When he spots a mysterious girl across the playground he asks her to star in a music video for his band. The only problem is, he has yet to find his bandmates or his own musical style. Reynor plays his older brother Brendan, who encourages Cosmo's musical ambitions and gives him classic albums as homework. 'Sing Street' was a breakout role for Walsh Peelo, who hails from Ashford, where he lives with his parents, Toni Walsh and Mick Peelo, and his three siblings, Tadhg, Oisin and Siofradh. The teenager won his first ever film role when he walked into an open audition and impressed the socks off director John Carney, who was looking for a musical teen to take on the lead role. 'I know I was very lucky,' he told this newspaper in February this year. 'I happened to be the right person at the right time. If I had been a year older or younger it probably wouldn't have happened. It's all been very jammy.' Jack Reynor has been a star on the rise for a number of year. He first captured attention in Lenny Abrahamson's 'What Richard Did' in 2012 before going on to secure a role in 'Transformers: Age of Extinction' the following year. He has also starred alongside Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard in the Weinstein Company's feature film of 'Macbeath'. The 2017 Golden Globes Awards will be held January 8 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills. St Fergals National School 4th, 5th and 6th class students with Principal Tom Sargent, Caretaker Joe Carroll and Grace Garde from Hertiage in Schools Wicklow The children from fourth, fifth and sixth class children at St Fergal's National School learned how to plant four bare root apple trees recently. The children learned about the importance of planting the trees, packing the soil with no air-pockets, and how the blossoms would feed the bees. They heard that apples are also a very healthy treat. The school thanked Richard Webb from Bray Grow it Yourself, as the apple trees were donated from the Nationwide KBC Grant. Grace Garde from the Heritage in Schools Wicklow panel, principal Tom Sargent and caretaker Joe Carroll were all involved in the project. Minister Simon Harris with Paul Butcher, John Kavanagh, Maurice Brady and Mark Flynn of Dublin Wicklow Mountain Rescue at their base in Roundwood. The group is to receive 16,321 in funding Groups and organisations in Wicklow will be getting almost 100,000 in Department of health National Lottery Grand Funding. Minister for Health made the announcement recently and has met with some of the recipients to congratulate them. 'I am delighted to have the opportunity to announce the successful grant applicants for Count Wicklow,' he said. 'Bray First Responders, Marino Special School, the Open Door Day Centre, the Order of Malta - Bray, Dublin/Wicklow Mountain Rescue Team and Irish Wheelchair Association Arklow were all successful applicants to the Department of Heath National Lottery Fund. The total sum allocated across the six organisations is 97,909. 'These are fantastic organisations who do great work in our community. 'I wish to congratulate all of the organisations that made successful applications. I know that this is much needed support for excellent projects.' The minister said that there is no doubt that the Wicklow community as a whole will benefit hugely from this funding. The individual organisations have very ambitious plans for this funding.' One of Minister Harris' visits last week was to Bray Cardiac First Responders, to unveil a new AED (defibrillator) at Supervalu on Castle Street. Bray CFR will receive 8,000 from the funding to purchase new AEDs for the Bray area. Also on Friday, he went to Roundwood to meet the Dublin Wicklow Mountain Rescue team at their base. The team will receive 16,321 in funding. On Friday the Minister handed them a letter to confirm the grant for emergency medical equipment. Deputy Andrew Doyle said that the Lottery funding is significant. 'It will make a real impact on the services that volunteers and groups can deliver,' he said. 'It will help them to make a difference to the lives of the many people who use these services.' The Bray and District Soroptimist Club hosted their local final of their public speaking competition in Chamber House recently. Bray Club President Sarah Wray welcomed students, parents and teachers representing Colaiste Chill Mhantain, Wicklow Town; St Gerard's School, Bray; Rathdown School, Glenageary and Holy Child, Killiney. Speaking at the event, Sarah reminded the students of the aim of the Soroptimist organisation in our local communities and of the advocacy work carried out by women for women, highlighting how soroptimism reaches out to young women, encouraging the young women to become part of this global organisation as they pursue futures where they may become social entrepreneurs enabling others at home and abroad. The Public Speaking competition was first established in 1981 and was cofounded by Soroptimist President of Northern Ireland Marie Brownlee and former Bray Club Member and Soroptimist President of Republic of Ireland the late Mildred O'Brien. The competition over the years has rapidly become a lively event supported by young women who confidently speak on topics based on the ideals of Soroptimism - education, empowerment and enabling women and girls globally. Adjudicators on the night included Leah Kinsella, Maeve Miller and Clare Comerford. The three adjudicators had the difficult but enjoyable task of selecting a winning speech. The content and preparation of presentations by the students was highly commended by the adjudicators on topics including Democracy, Empowering Women, Health and Human Rights. The winning speaker was Pragnya Kommalapati who spoke on the empowerment of women. The runner up was Emma Beashel speaking on the topic of democracy. The Regional Final will be held in January in the Glenroyal Hotel. A word of special thanks was given to event organiser Anne Cloney and club members for all their work at this event. Bray Credit Union co-operated fully in the investigation and has now rectified the breaches Bray Credit Union has confirmed that it was subject to a Central Bank investigation, resulting in a fine of 98,000 for failing in its administration of money laundering procedures. 'The Credit Union cooperated fully in the investigation and settled at an early stage in the process,' said Bernie Robinson, CEO of Bray Credit Union. 'The credit union has now rectified the breaches and introduced appropriate controls. There is no suggestion that the credit union was in any way aware of or facilitated money laundering. She said that Bray Credit Union remains one of the strongest, most robust in the country, with assets of 118 million, shares of 98 million and loans of 24 million, as well as over 50 million available to lend. 'Bray Credit Union is thriving with 15 million in new loans drawn down over the last 12 months, and 6 million in new deposits. It is business as usual for us.' They declined to give specifics regarding the nature of the investigation. The fine was imposed for breaches of the Criminal Justice Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (AM/CFT) Act 2010. The lender was also reprimanded for breaches of the act that regulators found had persisted for as long as five years and seven months. Bray Credit Union has 26,886 members and is in the top 11pc of credit unions by asset size. Deputy Pat Casey said that the fine is disproportionate to the infringement and only serves to damage the members. 'The Central Bank since the financial crisis has been placing immense regulatory pressures on the Credit Union movement. While many of these regulatory procedures and processes are necessary and welcome the heavy handed attitude of the Central Bank in relation to the Credit Union boards and their members is placing immense strain on a vital financial service,' he said. 'The scale of this fine when you consider the voluntary and membership ethos of the credit union system is off the scale and does not reflect well on the Central Bank. The Central Bank were asleep when the commercial banks contributed to the financial crash and now that they have woken up they are picking on the easy and soft target. 'I accept that Bray Credit Union did fail in adhering to these administrative regulations but the fine is grossly unjust and puts further unnecessary burdens on the volunteer board and the 27,000 members. The Central Bank should be helping the Credit Union with capacity building measures in order that they can meet the strict regulatory regime now in place.' He said that the credit union had fully cooperated with the Central Bank investigation. 'There was no suggestion that the Credit Union facilitated or was aware of any money laundering and the proper controls are now in place. And yet the Central Bank decides to place this massive fine. This is wrong, plain and simple. This is using a sledgehammer to crack open a peanut.' Bray Credit Union recently awarded and presented two members scholarships for the duration of their college courses. Local students and Bray Credit Union members Ruth Aherne and Liam Morgan have been revealed as the lucky pair have been awarded with a 2,000 per year contribution towards their college fees. Both successfully completed a 200 word essay with their application on 'why I should qualify for Bray Credit Union 1916 Centenary Scholarship', they went on to be shortlisted for an interview with five eminent, independent judges before they were deemed the recipients. Ruth, a former pupil of Rosemount School in Sandyford and living locally is currently studying occupational therapy full-time. 'My family and I are delighted to receive this fantastic scholarship,' said Ruth. 'It will go a long way towards supporting my studies of occupational therapy, and I hope to contribute back to the community as a practising occupational therapist in the future.' As Ruth wrote in her essay: 'the credit unions have proven themselves far more resilient and trusting than the commercial banks. The credit union continued to provide loans to members in Bray during the recession. I wish to help in the revival of social solidarity. Post-recession in particular, we see the absence of solidarity in Ireland, where the gap has widened between rich and poor. History teaches us that it does not bode well for any community to be so divided.' Liam Morgan, a former pupil of Scoil Chualann and Colaiste Raithin, is studying primary school teaching at Marino Institute of Education. 'Bray Credit Union has given me a great opportunity and I'm delighted to have been chosen,' he said. As Liam wrote in his essay: 'my family strongly believe in the power of the community to work together helping each other in a non-profit making way Like Patrick Pearse, a leader of the 1916 rising I hope to become a primary school teacher. The leaders of the 1916 rising wanted an independent nation for their people so that they would have autonomy over the many facets of their lives. The credit union movement embodies these ideals and helps members to improve their lives. When I qualify as a teacher I hope that I would also enable children to reach their potential and become independent citizens of our nation.' Representatives from Bray Credit Union, judges, Ruth, Liam and their families along with a host of invited guests packed Mermaid Arts in Bray recently to wish the two young students well for the future and present both with their scholarship. Bernie Robinson, CEO addressed the audience, thanked all their members who had applied and who had been shortlisted. 'I have been informed by the independent judges that all applications were of a very high standard and I like to wish everyone who applied a very successful future,' said Bernie. President of Bray Credit Union Malachai Duddy congratulated the winners and quoted some extracts from their essays. An accident at Sellafield would pose no immediate health risk in Ireland, a report has concluded A Sellafield accident would pose no immediate health risk in Ireland but strong food controls would be necessary, according to a new report published by the Environmental Protection Agency on the potential radiological impact of a serious accident at the nuclear plant. The study assessed the potential exposure to radiation for people and contamination of the environment for a year following an accident. For each of the worst case scenarios considered, the predicted radiation doses were found to be below levels which would require measures such as sheltering, relocation or the evacuation of people. However, without appropriate food controls, significant radiation doses could be experienced in the year following the accident through the consumption of contaminated food, according to the report. Ireland's National Emergency Plan for Nuclear Accidents provides for the implementation of food controls and measures on farms to reduce radiation doses and ensure food for sale is safe to eat. The EPA study highlights the importance of effective food controls as envisaged in the national plan. 'The report concludes that severe radiological effects in Ireland are unlikely as a result of an accident at the Sellafield fuel reprocessing plan but food controls would be a key priority in order to protect the public,' said Dr. Ciara McMahon, Programme Manager in the EPA's Office of Radiological Protection. She said the assessment was carried out as part of the EPA's role in advising the Government and the public on radiation risks. 'It is an important piece of research as it allows us to focus emergency arrangements on the actual risks we could face in the event of a severe accident at Sellafield', she said. The EPA carried out an in depth study of the consequences of the most severe accidents that were identified in the Sellafield risk assessment combined with weather conditions that carried the radioactive plume across Ireland with rain depositing material on the ground. Four potential accident scenarios were assessed. All involved low probability, severe nuclear accident scenarios and the corresponding potential radioactive releases to the environment. For almost 90% of the time, the prevalent meteorological conditions in Ireland would result in any radioactive plume from Sellafield travelling in an easterly direction away from Ireland. Environmental prediction models were used to calculate the transfer of radioactivity to Ireland via the air. Computer models were used to determine the transfer of radioactivity through the Irish environment and into food and the consequent radiation doses to people. While protective actions have been shown to be effective in ensuring that food for sale is safe to consume, they do have significant socio-economic implications and costs, according to the report. The National Emergency Plan for Nuclear Accidents which can be found on the Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government website is intended to minimise the impact on Ireland and its population in the event of a major nuclear accident abroad. While previous studies showed that the likelihood of a severe accident at Sellafield is low, the accident scenarios studied were those identified as having the greatest potential to have an impact on Ireland. The EPA report complements the recently published ESRI report into the significant economic consequences of a major nuclear event. The term 'radiological impact' means radiation doses to people and food contamination. The full report is available on the EPA website. Showtime Analytics CEO Richie Power with Li Xiangxiong of Yueke/Finixx at the Yueke Customer Conference in Shenzhen, China Showtime Analytics, a company nurtured by the Local Enterprise Office (LEO) in Wicklow have secured 1.2 million in funding from the Chinese internet giant, Alibaba. Greystones men Richie Power and Jolyon Spurling from Showtime Analytics first approached LEO Wicklow in June 2014 with an idea. The Blackrock-based company was founded in 2014 by Richie Power and Joe Spurling from Greystones and Paul Lynch from Dublin, and has grown to 30 employees in less than two years. Co-founder Joe Spurling has a life long association with the cinema industry, starting with the former Ormonde cinema in Greystones. His family co-own and manage the Movies@ cinema group in Ireland, which once included the Ormonde, opened by his grandfather over 40 years ago. The company provides products and services to cinema owners and film distributors that enable them to collate, analyse and visualise operational data in real time. The three founders utilised the Movies@ group and other Irish cinemas to test their technology platform in its pilot phase and has formed the basis for building their products globally. Together with their co-founder Paul Lynch they had put together a piece of analytics software and had been testing it out in a Waterford cinema. Preliminary results of the analytics tool were extremely positive, and with the support of Wicklow LEO in the early stages of their business development, they were able to explore the feasibility of their idea. They were able to develop their software offering, exhibit internationally and start building their team. The new joint venture announced this week in Shenzhen, China will result in a collaboration between Showtime and Yueke/Finixx, a subsidiary of Alibaba Pictures, to develop a range of products targeting the Chinese cinema industry, the second largest in the world with more than 7000 screens. Cork North West TD, Aindrias Moynihan has said that he is disappointed that fellow TD, and current Government Minister, Michael Creed did not fight Ballincollig's corner at Cabinet when the decision to introduce rent caps on high pressure rental zones was agreed. "Yesterday, the Government announced that rental properties in Dublin and Cork City would be subject to a maximum annual rent increase of 4%," he said. "Fianna Fail has significant issues with this proposal including the actual rate of increase, but importantly for people living in commuter communities outside Cork City, the areas that will be covered by the proposal. Ballincollig has experienced massive rental price surges over the last five years. Yet, despite this, it will not be covered by Minister Coveney's proposals," he said. He said he has no doubt that people renting in Ballincollig are undoubtedly disappointed by Minister Creed's decision. "Ultimately the housing crisis can only be overcome by increasing housing supply in the medium to long term. However, we have acknowledged that short term measures are needed to provide rent certainty for tenants over the next three years."he said. Deputy Moynihan said: "Fail published substantial proposals last November to provide rent certainty for people right across the country. It is unfortunate that the Government did not listen to our proposals, and instead run with their own proposals." Children in County Louth will be entitled to free music, arts and coding tuition as part of the Creative Ireland initiative it has been revealed. 'Creative Ireland' is the Government's Legacy Programme for Ireland 2016, the year of commemorations. As outlined by Minister Heather Humphreys, Creative Ireland puts culture and creativity at the centre of public policy, which will benefit artists and citizens here in Louth and nationwide. One part of this initiative is a five year 'Creative Children' plan which will enable every child to access free tuition in a number of subjects. Fine Gael Louth and East Meath TD, Fergus O'Dowd, has said that every child in Louth will have access to free tuition in music, drama, art and coding, as part of the initiative. 'The idea is to ensure that children can participate in the arts from an early age, and it will drive cultural engagement here in Louth and all across the country. It is an ambitious plan, which would make Ireland the first country in the world to guarantee access for every child to tuition and participation in art, music, drama and coding,' he said. 'This will be hugely beneficial in terms of giving them a well-rounded and creative education allowing them to express themselves and discover their talents. The inclusion of coding at early years level is a fantastic idea.' It is also hoped that coding will be introduced as a Leaving Cert subject. One of Ireland's top country music stars will be making a welcome return to Drogheda, when Declan Nerney appears at McHugh's Country Music & Cabaret Club on Thursday December 22nd. The popular Longford man hasn't played in town in over 5 years and his return will be welcomed by his many fans in the area. Declan and his band have a lively programme that has the dancers on the floor all night with hits such as 'Stop the World', 'The Ballad of Big Tom', 'Three Way Love Affair' and ' Rosie Donoughue' .He started playing lead guitar in local Longford band the 'Hi-Lo's' then playing with two Tyrone legends the late Gene Stuart and Brian Coll before fronting his own band and he is now a household name. Declan has just released a new 15 track dvd "Where's the Party" and a new album "One More Kiss"both of which are sure to sell well and bookings are flooding in for his annual trip to Spain in September "The Hooley in the Sun" which saw 580 people travel to Huelva on the Costa De La Luz. He returns there in September with some of Ireland's biggest country music stars including Philomena Begley, Susan McCann, Dominic Kirwan, Brendan Shine, Ray Lynam, Patrick Feeney, John McNichol and Mick Flavin.. The Drogheda Gig is being branded the Christmas Hooley by the Gate. In McHugh's Declan will be supported by Smiley's Country Roadshow playing from 8.45 pm until the band take the stage at 10 pm. Tickets are on sale in McHugh's , Chord Road or from Liam Reilly in the Drogheda Tourist Office in the Tholsel West Street , costing 15 There is wheelchair access to the venue via the Chord Road entrance and the doors open at 8.45 pm. Pick Up and Play Band Sessions is an exciting new programme being launched by Music Generation Louth in January 2017. The course has been developed with a focus on live performance, song writing and music production and is aimed at students of mixed abilities who would enjoy playing pop and rock music as part of a group. Over the course of the term, participants will have the opportunity to play a selection of popular instruments including guitars, bass, drums and keyboards. The programme will run for 16 weeks and will be split into two blocks, with the first block focused on learning to play a selection of current songs. The second block will focus on writing and producing original tracks which will be recorded in the last two sessions, giving the participants an insight into the music production process. The culmination of the course will be an exciting live gig performance of the songs learned and composed over the term. Each participant will also be given access to online video tutorials to help them progress between sessions. The sessions will run weekly at regional centres in Drogheda, Ardee and Dundalk: Monday: Drogheda (St. Oliver's Community College), Tuesday: Ardee (Ardee Community School), Thursday: Dundalk (O'Fiaich College). Three sessions will be available at each centre to facilitate different ages and ability: There will be sessions available for 10-12 years and 13-18 years. Session 1: 4pm - 5pm, Session 2: 5pm - 6pm, Session 3: 6pm - 7pm. Sessions will run for 1 hour at a cost of 120 for the term. Complete an enrolment form at http://musicgenerationlouth.ie/pick-up-and-play . Music Generation Louth staff will contact to you if a place is possible. Fees must be paid in advance of starting the course. Music Generation Louth is a music education service that provides a range of opportunities throughout the county for children and young people to learn music. It is part of Music Generation - Ireland's National Music Education Programme, initiated by Music Network, co-funded by U2, The Ireland Funds, the Department of Education and Skills and Local Music Education Partnerships. A man worth a mention - well, maybe a book in itself, is Fr Ray Collier. A good Clogherhead man, Fr Raymond joined the Columban Fathers in the 60s and was ordained exactly 50 years ago this Christmas. In 1967 Ray was appointed to Mindanao in the Philippines where he ministered in various parishes, but owing to ill health returned to Ireland in 1971 where he was engaged in mission awareness. He was back in Mindanao in 1974 until ill health again necessitated his return to Ireland in 1978. After spinal surgery he was appointed to Solihull, Britain, as house bursar in 1983. The following year he became priest-in-charge of the Columban House in Redington Road, London. But even at this stage, the Columbans had become aware of the multi-cultural changes growing in Britain, ethnic society was a buzz word and they wanted to play their part. Basically, it came down to spreading the word and reaching out to communities. And no better place than the magnificent East End of London to start. Anybody who has walked around Green Street market can sample a whole world in one little spot - the joys of Asia to the hard working Poles, the pride of the Greeks and every African culture you desire. In 1991 three Columbans (Ray Collier, Michael Kelly & Tim O'Keeffe) were appointed to the East End of London to create an "engaging presence" in the reality of East London. Their brief was - there wasn't one! - 'there was no blue-print provided other than to go with one's own Irish and other cultural experiences of God, and not to impose those experiences but be open to a new experience of God in the human realities of the East End of London. '"Engaging Presence" meant living outside Church structures and being open to and generous in our response to the invitations that the Holy Spirit presented to us,' was the attitude of the Columbans. And they became part of the community and Columban Lay missionaries from overseas came and joined them. In 2007, Ray was appointed to be part of a new missionary team experience of Columban priests and Columban Lay Missionaries working together in Birmingham and has worked there since. By the way, Fr Ray's uncle was Fr Tony Collier who was martyred in Korea. Drogheda Community Services Centre celebrated their ten year anniversary last week with a fantastic evening of celebration and songs courtesy of St Peter's Male Voice Choir. The centre opened ten years ago after the Daycare Centre sold it's premises on Fair Street and relocated to the purpose built site in the grounds of the Cottage Hospital. The centre was designed by Turlough McKevitt who is now a board member. Manager Margaret McCullen said: 'We're absolutely delighted to be celebrating our 10th anniversary here in Scarlet Crescent.' Speaking at the 10th annivesrary celebrations, Treasurer Richard Boden said: 'The centre originally operated from Valhalla, the original red brick building on Fair Street before a move to Villa Maria, which was sold to them from the Daughters of Charity with a 15 year interest free loan. The daughters of charity also assisted the Daycare Centre by providing matrons to help out.' The daycare centre was the brainchild of Dermot Kierans and six others; Fr Crowley, a parish priest here many years ago, Sr Anne Brady from the Daughters of Charity, Gerry Clarke from the Red Cross, Mary Kealy of the Soroptomists, the late Gerry Kiernan from the Saint Vincent de Paul and Seamus Yelland from the Order of Malta. 'It was always the vision of the directors, and primarily Dermot Kierans and his then assistant, Canon Jim Nelson, to build a state of the art Daycare Centre and an opportunity arose to sell the building to the borough council who needed extra space, and the proceeds from that together with some additional funding was used to build the daycare centre on the Cottage Hospital site.' explained Richard. 'We've been operating on this site by building a State of the Art Daycare Centre and also housing the other services that we provide here. But as somebody once said to me you're only as good as staff and we've been fortunate not only to have founders who had a great vision but also a fantastic staff who carry on the tradition and the vision of the original founders.' He also paid tribute to the first manager of the centre, Marie Clarke as well as current manager Margaret McCullen and staff Rita Lambe, Nafsika Tsami, Ciaran Buckley, Ciaran Knowles and Sheila Jacob. He said the objective of the daycare centre is to keep the elderly in our community engaged and active and to this end a large range of services are provided onsite including a chiropody services, laundry, meals, hairdressing, art and craft classes, bingo, exercise classes. We also have parties intermittently during the year. We also have a counselling and mediation service, which was started up by Paul Egan. 'We operate the legal aid service with help from local solicitors and we've an entirely voluntary board of directors who provide, legal, accounting, architectural, social work and other professional input to the board all free of charge,' he added. He also acknowledged the input of those who fund the centre, which includes a very succesful Intreo Scheme funded by the state, the centre's own Community Chest, support from a number of local businesses and the Pantomine Society who donate the proceeds from one of their nights each year. Funding is also received from the HSE and Tusla. The Drogheda Cares at Christmas 2016 campaign is underway with sponsorship cards having been distributed to all secondary schools in the town. And this year participants have a choice of fasting or giving up social media for a period. For over 15's the sacrifice lasts for 24 hours while those who are younger have to suffer for only half the time. "We decided to include the social media option this year as it is a major focus in the lives of most young people. Adults can also take part and sponsorship cards are available at the Augustinian shop," said organiser Phil Conyngham. Boomerang Youth Service and Cafe in Fair Street is the local charity for this year. The overseas project for 2016 is the Asra Hawariat Schol in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa. A local knitting group have donated their creations to a charity to help keep those living on the streets warm this Christmas. The Sunflower Cafe knitting group who are based at Sonairte, decided some months ago to knit hats and scarves for the homeless. They began their project in September and recently donated the fruits of their labour to Marie Reilly from the charity Hope for the Homeless. The group meet every Tuesday morning from 10am to 12pm to enjoy a bit of knitting, a cup of tea and a chat. In September, the members decided they would embark on a group project and started knitting hats and scarves to donate to a charity working with the homeless during the harsh winter months. After completing a huge range of hats and scarves the group handed over their creations to Marie Reilly from Hope for the Homeless, who are based around Balbriggan and Stamullen. Every Monday night the charity does a food run to the GPO in Dublin. The knitting group was started by Eileen Butler who is originally from Gormanston. Eileen lived in Clondalkin for a number of years after meeting her husband but three years ago they moved back to Julianstown. Explaining the origins of the group, Eileen said: 'I've been knitting all my life and when I moved to Clondalkin I started a knitting group there. When we moved back I couldn't find a knitting group anywhere so I started one myself and the Sunflower Cafe here at Sonairte very kindly facilitated it. 'I sat there on my own with my knitting for about three weeks and then one day someone came along and then someone brought someone else and it just went from there. It's been up and running now since 2014 so we are going into our third year. We're a great little group with people of all ages in it and everyone really enjoys being part of it. Brendan Fay has been active on campaigns for immigration reform, civil marriage, HIV/AIDS awareness, inclusive parades, policing reform and human rights. He has a BA from Maynooth University (Ireland) and an MA from St. John's University (New York). He taught in New York Catholic high schools for five years. His writings include "Finding Jesus on Christopher Street" in Love, Christopher Street: Reflections of New York City and Gay Love - A Holy Love (in honor of pioneering openly gay priest John McNeill) and "Unfolding the Banners of the Heart." NY Daily News, 11 March 2003. For his work on human rights, Brendan was Grand Marshal of the Queens Pride Parade in 1996 and has received a number of awards including the Carmel Tavadia Award from PFLAG Queens (2001), the Pax et Bonum Award from Dignity San Francisco (2008), The Gormley Award from Dignity NY, The LOFT LGBT Center Edie Windsor and Thea Spyer Equality Award (2014) and NY Gay City News Impact Award (2016). A change in the licensing law could see dozens of new jobs created as part of a Drogheda Food & Drink Trail' - inspired by the town's new brewing companies. Labour's Alan Kelly is putting forward a bill under the intoxicating liqour Bill 2016 to allow small brewers to sell their products on their premises during working hours. At present, they have a licence to brew, but not sell. Geoff Fitzpatrick from Drogheda's Jack Cody's Beer says the change in the law would add hugely to the overall industry in the area. As well as his own firm, there's Dan Kelly's Cider and the Boann Distillery operating locally, along with the Listoke Gin School. 'Visitors come on tours, see how we make the product and at the end are not allowed to buy it!', Geoff stated. Accordingly, they don't really promote tours but if the bill is passed it could lead to a renowned food and drinks trail, based on the Boyne Valley. 'It would create a new dimension to the business for all the businesses locally and create jobs. We employ six here at the moment and that would double and we'd add even more during the summer. The likes of Boann could have 20 or 30 extra people because of its size', Geoff adds. Labour Senator Ged Nash is backing the move. "The craft-beer industry in Ireland is going from strength to strength, with an eleven-fold increase in annual turnover since 2011, and a 29 per cent jump in the number of production microbreweries operating across the country this year, compared to last. "In Drogheda alone, we have Jack Cody's, the new Boyne Brewhouse & Boann Distillery and Dan Kelly's cider. "We know that there is a demand for craft-beer tasting on site. This is part of the experience, no more than when visiting a vineyard in France or the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. "The opportunity to fully capitalise on this potential for 'craft-beer tourism' is being hampered by current licensing regulations, which require producers to have a pub license or an off-licence to sell their produce, made on site, to tourists and visitors. "The legislation that Labour is proposing would rectify that, and be of enormous benefit to the smaller scale and local producers in particular, as well as small batch distilleries and cider makers. "The Bill includes safeguards such as time restrictions of between 10am and 6pm for sales, and fines to ensure owners don't sell alcohol that is not brewed on site. And there's a clause preventing the license holders from applying for the types of exemptions and/or extensions to opening hours that pubs and clubs for example, can apply for. Drogheda man Brendan Fay, a gay activist and filmmaker, and founder of the inclusive St. Pat's for All Parade, was a recipient of the 2016 Presidential Distinguished Service Award for the Irish aboard, presented by President Michael D. Higgins, at Aras an Uachtarain, last Thursday. The award recognised "sustained and distinguished service to Ireland and Irish communities abroad." Brendan was founder of the Lavender and Green Alliance in 1994, and in 1999 founded the St. Pat's for All parade, which takes place on the first Sunday of March in Sunnyside and Woodside, New York, welcoming all. His family lives in the Drogheda area, while his mother was from Annagassan and his father from the Chord Road. Brendan moved from Athy to Drogheda when he was 13 and lived with his brother and five sisters on Scarlet Street. His sisters Carmel, Joan and Mary joined him for the award ceremony in Dublin. Brendan credits his father, Peter Fay, as being a formative influence. "A strong influence was my father Peter. He was a union representative while working at the asbestos factory in Athy and the fishmeal factory in Mornington. I recall as well the Drogheda Augustinians in raising awareness about making a difference in the world. "My father was a strong advocate for the rights of workers and a very decent human being. He was a co founder of the credit union in Athy. For years he sent news clippings from Drogheda about the progress of LGBT rights or the Senator David Norris case in the early 1990s. "Your day will come", he would write.' 'I'll visit my parents grave at St. Peter's cemetery grateful for their support.' Fellow activist Kathleen Walsh D'Arcy was also honoured and he travelled from New York with her. "To receive the award in this the centenary year of 1916 from Irish President Michael D. Higgins -- poet, humanitarian and visionary leader is such a marvellous honour. I look forward to being back in Drogheda and celebrating with family, friends and local LGBT community leaders and my spouse Tom Moulton,' he added. Fay and Moulton were married in July 2003. Their marriage was the subject of a documentary on Irish television in October 2003. In March 2016, Fay, Walsh D'Arcy and many others made history when they marched down Fifth Avenue on St. Patrick's Day, as the first Irish LGBT organization to walk behind its own banner, the culmination of a decades-long effort. 'I carry with me the memory of those who did not survive the AIDS crisis like Irish community and ACT UP leader Robert Rygor. (1954-1994). Robert's parents Stanley and Kathleen visited with my parents in Scarlet Street and were a huge support. 'I return home thanks to the love of New York friends like Jesus Lebron who took the hand of a closeted gay immigrant and brought me from silence and shame to a life of hope and committed activism.' Fay said 'I'm humbled to receive this award as a gay man and to return home to a transformed Ireland. ' The need for additional car parking at Portmarnock Train Station has been a local issue for years and was raised again at last week's meeting of the Malahide/Howth Area Committee where it was recognised that some kind of multi-storey car park at the station may be the most likely solution. Cllr Brian McDonagh (Lab) brought the issue to the committee in a motion calling for the committee to back 'a capacity expansion of secure car and cycle parking' at Portmarnock Train Station. He called on the chief executive of Fingal County Council, Paul Reid to write to the NTA relaying the committee's support for more car parking in the area as the NTA is currently conducting a feasibility assessment of car parking at rail stations. Cllr McDonagh said that by 8am, the current car park at the station is full and there was a large demand locally for increased car parking capacity at the station. He said: 'We want to be encouraging people to park and ride and Portmarnock Train Station is perfect for it.' But the Labour councillor sounded a warning that people should 'not be under any illusions' about what may be required to address the problem. He said the solution may be 'some kind of multi-storey' structure and people would have to make up their minds on that when any planning application is submitted. He said however, that providing more car parking at the station would actually have the effect of reducing car miles and would be positive for the environment. Cllr Keith Redmond (Ren) said it makes 'absolute sense' to consider additional car parking at the station and Cllr Anthony Lavin (FG) also supported the idea. Cllr David Healy (GP) said he had not made up his mind on the issue but said this was a 'valid proposal that needs to be studied'. The local Fine Gael TD who found himself at the centre of a political storm last week as he weighed into the controversy over the murder of Brian Stack more than 30 years ago, said he used Dail privilege to raise the issue because he wanted to 'bring an extra layer of attention on the matter'. Fingal TD, Deputy Alan Farrell told the Fingal Independent that focusing attention on the issue was his 'sole intention' but said he did not want to add any further to comments he had already made on the issue. Last week, Deputy Farrell stood in the Dail to make 'a point of order'. He went on to refer to the Brian Stack case and said: 'I think it appropriate given that Deputy Adams has been afforded the opportunity to explain to the house his involvement and/or his discussions with individuals relating to this case, that the other individuals who are members of this house who he himself has named and which are already in the public domain, that deputies Ellis and Ferris be given an opportunity to address this house.' He was referring to Sinn Fein TDs, Deputy Dessie Ellis and Deputy Martin Ferris who both reacted angrily to his use of Dail privilege to name them. Deputy Ellis said: 'I'm not going to have people put my name out there on something that I have nothing to do with this.' He added: 'I refute any allegations. For the information, the man in question claims to be a solicitor, I was actually in jail for the period. In Portlaoise and before that in America so you should check your facts. You're a disgrace.' Kerry TD, Martin Ferris said: 'In 2013 I met with gardai at their request regarding the death of Brian Stack. I co-operated fully with them and I have nothing to answer for, and it's a disgrace what you have come in here naming.' On Morning Ireland the following day, Deputy Farrell clarified his comments in the Dail and said he was not levelling any accusations against the two Sinn Fein deputies. He said he was 'led to believe' that Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams had passed on the names of Deputies Ferris and Ellis to the Garda Commissioner last year in relation to the investigation. The local Fine Gael TD insisted: 'I think it should be stated very, very clearly here, I implicated nobody.' Deputy Farrell said he simply asked the two TDS to 'make statements in regards to the inclusion of their names in correspondence'. Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams previously made a statement to the Dail about information he had received in relation to the murder of prison officer Brian Stack in 1983. He said that names he had provided to the Garda Commissioner in relation to the Brian Stack case were given to him by Austin Stack, the son of the murdered prison guard, an assertion that Austin Stack strongly denies. Vincent Riou, Paul and Elizabeth Canavan and Chris Monks of Invizbox who won the JumpStart competition A north Fingal start-up has claimed the top prize in the JumpStart competition run by the Learning and Innovation Centre (LINC) at the Institute of Technology in Blanchardstown. The LINC (Learning and Innovation Centre) at the Institute of Technology Blanchardstown (ITB) announced that north Fingal company, Invizbox is the winner of JumpStart 2016, their annual start-up competition. JumpStart 2016 celebrated its seventh year today presenting Paul Canavan of Invizbox with a cheque for 10,000. it was a tough competition between a very high calibre of businesses, with Invizbox and four other companies being shortlisted; Chimnery Spirits, Kickabout, PhysioLInked and Sproose. JumpStart 2016 is sponsored by the LINC, Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Fingal Local Enterprise Office and AIB. Winning company Invizbox was co-founded by husband and wife, Paul Canavan, Elizabeth Canavan from Skerries and Chris Monks from Rush, InvizBox is the world leader in easy to use 'plug and play' devices which secure your communications and provide privacy. All one needs to do is connect your phone, laptop, etc. over WiFi. Your communications are encrypted as they travel across the Internet, keeping them secure from prying eyes. The judging panel for 2016 consisted of Ireland's best known and liked entrepreneurs, Bobby Kerr with other judges including Shane Doyle Vice President for Manufacturing Ireland, Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc, Oisin Geoghegan, Head of Local Enterprise, Local Enterprise Office Fingal, Padraig Challoner, Business Manager at AIB and Declan Lyons, Commercialisation Manager, Enterprise Ireland. Judge, Bobby Kerr said of the winning start up: 'I am highly impressed with the level of professionalism, experience and enthusiasm that was evident at the JumpStart final. Some of these individuals are going to be people you will be reading about in the business pages of the press in a few years time.' Shane Doyle, Vice President for Manufacturing Ireland, Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. said the JumpStart programme is a fantastic experience to be part of with brilliant candidates. It clearly demonstrates that with the aid of the LINC at ITB, the aforementioned spirit is alive and well and generating excellent opportunities.' Invizbox will get a prize of 10,000, an office space at the LINC and mentoring. They will also get access to a structured approach to the development of their business through the 'Create, Learn, Grow' programme. The winning business will receive mentoring on key aspects of business development and access to industry-specific seminars to support innovation and development for the companies as well as access to the academic expertise of the Institute and LINC's facilities and a cohort of students for placements and recruitment. A hapless would-be thief bungled an attempted robbery of a Spar shop in Swords when he could not manage to get a pellet gun he planned to use as weapon, out of his jacket pocket. On Saturday evening at around 6.50pm, a man entered the Spar shop in Holywell estate in Swords wearing a red jacket with a wine hoodie. The hoodie was pulled up over his head and he was wearing sunglasses. The would-be thief was also carrying a brown Dunne Stores bag, presumably for the purpose of collecting his loot. The man approached a male staff member and tried to take what looked like a firearm out of his pocket, but the weapon got stuck. After a short time struggling with the weapon, the robber gave up and decided to flee. He was pursued by the staff member he tried to rob until he disappeared from sight at a nearby block of apartments. In the meantime, another staff member at the shop had phoned Swords gardai who were quickly on the scene and brought the second staff member around the area in their patrol car, to see if he could identify the would-be robber. It was during this patrol of the area that gardai found a red jacket and wine hoodie outside an apartment in the Holywell estate. They called to the address and the door was answered by a male who gave information that gardai later found to be false. A search of the apartment uncovered a pellet gun in the bathroom which led to the arrest of the man who was in his mid-20s. At the time of writing, the arrested man had not been charged. He is understood to be from outside the Swords area. Nobody was injured during the course of the bungled robbery attempt. Winners of the overall award, Clonegal NS pupils Aoife McGrath, Tom Tracey and Sarah Sheppard, with teacher Clodagh Cawley and proprietor Joe O'Reilly A delicious apple and cinnamon oat bread, which was dreamt up by the pupils of Clonegal NS, went on sale last Thursday in O'Reilly's SuperValu, Bunclody, and will remain on sale in store for the coming year, with profits going to the school. In a novel idea, the team at the store challenged six local schools to come up with a new bread or cake that currently isn't sold in store. Daniel O'Reilly explained that they wanted to do something for SuperValu's campaign to get Ireland cooking. They challenged the children in Our Lady of Lourdes, Clonegal, Kildavin, Carrigduff, Ballyroebuck, and Kilmyshall, not only to get creative in the kitchen, but also to think of a business plan for producing and selling their product. A large crowd gathered in store on Friday during the annual Christmas food fair, to hear the verdict of the judges Tom Banville, Jeff Nolan, and head baker Denise Byrne. Announcing Clonegal as the winner, store owner Joe O'Reilly congratulated all involved. Ardfert National School Principal Betty Stack getting some top kitchen tips from the Tralee Culinary Gangsters Paul Cotter and Noel Keane at the school's Taste of Christmas fundraiser in the Ballyroe Heights Hotel recently Noreen Ferris, Aoibhin Ferris, Orliath McGrath,Liaidin Ferris, Caoilfhionn Foley and Toireasa Ferris enjoying the Taste of Christmas with Ardfert NS at the Ballyroe Heights Hotel Ardfert is already hanging for the Christmas dinner after being treated to a mouth-watering demonstration of yuletide cooking in another great fundraising event from Ardfert National School. A Taste of Christmas brought a great crowd out to the Ballyroe Heights Hotel as talented chef and Ardfert NS parent Kevin O'Connor showed exactly how to knock the socks off all with sublime Christmas cooking. And he had a couple of kitchen henchmen to back him up in case his cooking encouraged the crowd to become too lively - the Tralee Culinary Gangsters duo of talented chefs Paul Cotter and Noel Keane! Paul and Noel are hospitality professionals based in Tralee who write a popular blog about food and wild local edibles. Kevin, meanwhile, is one of the best-known chefs in the town and his recent public demonstration in the Square during the Tralee Food Festival went down as a highlight of that particular event. He's also Ardfert NS third-class pupil Emily's dad! Together, the three worked the crowd to perfection in what was the second year ever of the festive feast expose. Principal Betty Stack said the school community was thrilled with how the event went down and that the proceeds will prove a great help to further developments in the New Year. The only problem for all who attended is that Christmas can't come soon enough now, such was the extent to which their appetites were whetted by a menu on the night that included everything from oven-roasted plum tomato soup to wild boar rack and smoked salmon roulade. It's raised nearly 170,000 for charity over the past 20 years, played host to tens of thousands or visitors in that time and kept the ESB on their toes, and now it's only gone and taken All-Ireland gold. Take a bow Templeglantine's Noonan family whose dazzling Christmas light-display has won Energia's Best Christmas House in Ireland contest by a public vote. "We're over the moon, it's incredible," chief lighting engineer at the home Tony Noonan told The Kerryman on Tuesday. Santas, snowmen, reindeer and all manner of Christmas scenes are brought to dazzling life each year at the Noonan's home in what has become a huge draw from people across Kerry, Limerick and beyond. This year, Kerry's Recovery Haven is one of the vital charities set to benefit from the Noonans' donation box. "We put a voting machine to rival the Healy Raes' one into operation on social media and won by 500 votes!" Tony said. "But it's not about us, it's about the charities and the families and children who come to visit. On Sunday alone we hosted 350 children at the house, so it's just incredible," Tony said. Rural Kerry is gearing up for another major fight over threats to vital services, this time in the guise of key Bus Eireann routes between towns and villages that represent the only affordable means of transport for hundreds. Specific threats to Kerry's public transport were flagged this week by National Bus and Rail Union's (NBRU) Dermot O'Leary ahead of a public meeting he will be attending at the Listowel Arms Hotel on Tuesday night. It is feared if cuts currently being outlined to avert insolvency at the semi-state company are made that the main public bus route through North Kerry - number 13 - could be lost entirely, leaving hundreds of passengers who depend on it high and dry. "What more are they going to take from rural Ireland? We've already put up with years of closures, from post offices to garda stations and bank branches and now this? From what the NBRU are telling us we could now lose the main bus route still serving Listowel and the smaller towns and villages of Abbeyfeale, Duagh, Kilflynn on the route from Limerick to Tralee," Listowel Fianna Fail County Councillor Jimmy Moloney told The Kerryman this week. The NBRU is now warning of the 'potential' loss of Bus Eireann's Expressway Service - which includes the Limerick/Tralee and route number 14 from Limerick to Killarney via Kerry Airport. Eight buses ply the number 13 route daily. "The threat comes amid the background of the company giving out licences to private operators but I fail to see how any private operator would find our route viable," Cllr Moloney said, adding: "Hundreds of customers rely on this service from the elderly getting into town on daily business to students who can ill afford cars due to rising insurance costs. "It's time for all politicians to come together and fight this now." Gardai and paramedics rushed to the scene of a four-car accident on the northern outskirts of Listowel early on Saturday morning in the belief they were facing a fatality based on the initial report of the call-out. Three cars and a van were involved in the multiple collision that left one young woman with head injuries that were initially feared to have been very serious and three other men with minor injuries. Four ambulances - from Listowel, Tralee, Newcastlewest and Co Cork - rushed the victims to University Hospital Kerry (UHK) where the young woman was understood to have been in a stable condition in the Aghadoe ward by Tuesday. Her head injuries turned out not to have been as serious as was initially feared and she also suffered a lacerated kidney in the accident. The Kerryman understands the car she was driving and one of the other cars were the first to collide, and did so head-on, with the other driver suffering what was feared to have been a broken pelvis. Those fears were later allayed on closer inspection at UHK which revealed no major damage to his pelvis. The other drivers escaped the crash with more minor injuries, one of them complaining of neck and back pain. Emergency workers who attended the scene said the crash victims were lucky to have escaped with their lives. Plans to build a 33 house estate in Kilcummin have been blocked because the village still doesn't have a proper sewerage scheme. An Bord Pleanala have refused developer Barth O'Neill permission to build a 33 house extension to the existing Pairc Chuimin estate located to the south west of the village. Mr O'Neill had appealed a decision by Kerry County Council (KCC) to block the development on the basis that it was 'premature' before a sewerage scheme in the village had been completed. In his appeal Barth O'Neill said the council's decision to refuse permission for the estate was "out of line with Government policy and the action plan for homelessness." He also argued that as an identical development on the same site was previously granted permission by the council - though it never proceeded - there was "no reason" for the council not to give a green light to the new application. An Bord Pleanala said that as there is still no exact time frame for completion of the, long awaited, sewerage scheme they could not grant permission for the development. The board said that the Government's housing action plan does not constitute formal guidance to councils. They added that while the housing action plan has provisions to fund critical infrastructure - such as the sewerage scheme - no houses can be granted permission until all necessary infrastructure is in place. The board upheld the KCC decision and refused permission on the grounds that the proposal is "premature" and that without the sewerage plant it would be "prejudicial to public health." Irish Water says it hopes to lodge an application for permission to build the sewer scheme by the end of the year. Work on the 8.5 km sewerage scheme and pump station was due to get underway in 2007 but the project suffered numerous delays, which have led to serious knock on issues in the area. Here's another place where Russia is winning since the US presidential election Since Election Day, stocks have been roaring in Russia . Russian stocks are up 16 percent since Nov. 8, based on the performance of the RSX (NYSE Arca: RSX) Van Eck Vectors Russia ETF, while the other emerging markets are down 6 percent collectively, as measured by the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF EEM (NYSE Arca: EEM). Oil's rise above $50 has helped Russia, which depends on its energy industry to remain solvent. President-elect Donald Trump is also expected to push for better relations with Moscow, which U.S. intelligence agencies say hacked into the Democratic National Committee's emails in an effort to throw the election toward Trump. Russian President Vladimir Putin denies it . Brent crude is up 19 percent since Election Day and was trading at just under $55 per barrel Friday. "They're obviously getting benefits both from the sense that the tensions with the West are going to go down and that they're going to have more access to markets, plus the fact that oil has gone up," said Bruce Kasman, chief global economist at JPMorgan. "It's a double positive for them," he said, adding that an agreement to curtail oil output that OPEC reached this month with Russia and some other nonmember states should push crude prices higher. The Moscow Exchange, MICEX-RTS, is up 12 percent since the election, as measured in rubles. The S&P 500 is up 5.9 percent over that time frame, and U.S. small-caps are up about 14 percent. Russia's economy is recovering, and oil prices should help. "We're forecasting 1 to 2 percent growth. I wouldn't call that anything to get excited about, especially after they had a deep recession and now they have a modest growth path," Kasman said. Paul Christopher, head global market strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, said oil is a factor in Russia's stock market rally, but so is Trump. "In general, it's an expectation that Trump will be friendlier to Putin and his leadership than (President Barack) Obama has been," said Christopher. Story continues Christopher said he doesn't expect sanctions on Russia to be lifted. "There could be new sanctions as a result of this hacking case," he said. More From CNBC The board of management at Tralee Credit Union (TCU) is eyeing up another potential amalgamation. TCU held its AGM at Tralee's Rose Hotel on Monday night where CEO Fintan Ryan told members that because the merger with Killorglin Credit Union (KCU) had proved so successful TCU is seeking further opportunities for expansion. To that end Mr Ryan said talks are already underway with another credit union with a view to a merger in 2017. For commercial reasons the identity of the other credit union was not revealed in the TCU annual report. TCU subsumed KCU in December 2014, on the instructions of the Central Bank, when fears of a run on the south Kerry lender emerged after KCU was unable to meet its regulatory reserve requirements. There was much good news reported at the TCU's AGM. Members heard that TCU's total combined assets have now exceeded 200,000, an impressive figure which makes TCU one of the most successful credit unions, and indeed financial institutions, in the state. Fintan Ryan said 2016 had been TCU's busiest year ever for lending with over 9,000 loans valued at over 34 million provided to members. These are backed by cash, assets and investments of 145.4 million TCU's loan book has now reached 64 million, 8 million more than the previous year. Bad loans were also less of a problem at TCU than at many other lenders. TCU had an arrears 'delinquency' rate of just over five per cent, which is half the national average. A District Court judge has questioned the heavy volume of assault cases arising from incidents in Cahersiveen, asking 'whatever is going on?' in the town. A dozen assault cases came before Judge O'Connor at last week's sitting of Cahersiveen District Court, prompting his concern over the volume. "The thing about Cahersiveen is that we seem to be handling more section three assaults than we are handling in Killarney, a much bigger town," he said. "People are being kicked on the head on the ground, suffering broken noses and jaws, he noted," the judge added. Last month Judge O'Connor expressed outrage at an unprovoked assault uploaded on social media. "Whatever is going on in Cahersiveen?" Judge James O'Connor asked. "There's too much of this in Cahersiveen. You never or hardly at all find it in Kenmare, Killorglin, Killarney, GlenbeighWhatever is going on in Cahersiveen?" the judge questioned. Gardai have warned they are now taking a zero-tolerance approach during the festive season. "We are running a campaign aimed at young fellows thinking with their heads, not their feet," Sgt Eoin O'Donovan said. "There will be "zero tolerance" for unprovoked assaults and public order in the town," he added. Wexford people of all ages and fitness levels are gearing up for the return of the GOAL Mile this Christmas, as two venues across the county play host to the popular annual fund raiser over the festive period. Now in its 35th year, the GOAL Mile is held in villages, towns and cities all over Ireland every Christmas and is one of the country's largest and longest-running annual fund raising events and one that will help you shed some of the Christmas turkey. The concept is simple: people run or walk a Mile and contribute whatever they can afford to GOAL on the day. Wexford Miles will be held on St Stephen's Day at The Quay Front, Wexford Town at 11 a.m. and on New Year's Day at Duncannon Beach from 12.30 p.m. For more information or to pick up a sponsorship card, please contact your local organiser, ring GOAL on 01-2809779, or visit www.goalglobal.org. Teresa Delaney, Brocurra, Adamstown, who passed away peacefully in her 92nd year on November 20, was a woman who had a deep love of nature and family. Teresa (nee O'Sullivan) was born on August 22, 1925, to Laurence and Ann O'Sullivan. She grew up in the Camross area and attended school with her cousins the Morrisseys who played with numerous Wexford GAA teams. Teresa married Michael Delaney in 1946 and moved to Brocurra, the Delaney's family home which was standing 400 years at that point. She led a simple and complete life and never asked or wanted for anything as she had everything she ever wanted in her faith, her family and her home. A great mother, Teresa always ensured her children did their chores before they got on with the business of play. Teresa encouraged all her children to do their work and always had their interests at heart. She loved being outdoors, whether it was to see the first swallows take to the skies or the first born lambs in spring and was in tune with nature. Shed love to help out on the farm and enjoyed being busy. Teresa had a very keen interest in the GAA and enjoyed watching matches on the television. A woman of great faith, she loved attending Mass and she tended the graves to ensure they were in order. Teresa enjoyed great health throughout her life and could often be seen walking a couple of miles along roads new her home in Brocurra into her nineties. The only thing that stopped her daily walk was a rainy day, Having lost her own mother at an early age, she knew the importance of the mother figure in the household and also the importance of family values. This was reflected in the great care her children took of her right up until the end. Teresa loved all her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She knew all of their names and was always interested in their careers and wellbeing. She was proud of her grandson Padraic Delaney, the actor, and all of her family for their achievements. A large crowd attended Teresa's funeral Mass at St Abban's Church in Adamstown where warm tributes were paid to her, and her burial afterwards in the adjoining cemetery. Teresa is survived by her children Pat, Mick, Mella, JP, Mary, Rose and Kathleen; sisters Bridget (Moran), Betty (McGrath); brother John (O'Sullivan). She is sadly missed by her loving family daughters-in-law Mary, Sheila and Ailish; sons-in-law Malachy, James, Danny and John; her 25 grandchildren and 13 great grandchildren; nephews; nieces; relatives and friends. She was predeceased by her husband Michael; her sisters Kathleen Dunphy (Galbally), Margaret O'Reilly (Camross), Nancy Doyle (Camross) and Jim Sullivan (Dungeer). May she rest in peace. Two County Wexford-based seafood companies are in the final stages of new product development following their attendance at a series of workshops primarily focusing on the French and Continental markets and discussing the issues affecting the UK market post-Brexit. Seafood companies - Sofrimar and Atlantis Seafoods, from County Wexford - Ballycotton Seafoods, Irish Seaspray, Irish Fish Canners and Morgan's Fine Fish benefited from tailored Innovation surgeries from renowned experts Francois Denis and Mike Burthet. Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), Ireland's Seafood Development Agency hosted the 'Seafood Innovation Academy' workshops at its Seafood Development Centre in Clonakilty. The surgeries were designed to meet the specific needs of the attending companies with a focus on launching products in the French market with Francois Denis and operating on the UK market in the Brexit environment with Mike Berthet. All attending companies were given support from BIM's Seafood Technologists to discuss projects in the pipeline and plans for the coming year around New Product Development and Innovation. Attendees also gained insights into product research from Aiden Lee, Managing Director, Eolas International and in new product development from Daniel Emerson, Managing Director of Stonewell Cider. As a result of participating in BIM's Seafood Innovation Academy, all eight seafood processing companies have now adopted an innovation process in their factories and in the majority of cases are now at final stages of new product development. John Kenny, the managing director of Sofrimar, said the company was trying to add value to the raw fish coming in. 'We're looking at products that have never been on the market before, niche market products. All our products are gluten free.' said Mr Kenny. He said that because of the uncertainty created by Brexit, Atlantis was concentrating on export markets in the European Continent - with Germany, Italy and France perceived as the main customers. 'We find that over the last two years because of added value we have taken on six or seven people and that's where we see the growth,' he said. Atlantis currently employs 52 people in Wexford. Atlantis Seafood recently won the BIM 'Seafood Innovation Award' at this year's Blas na hEireann awards in Dingle for their Kilmore Quay haddock goujon range Deputy Tony McLoughlin was a member of the 'Fine Gael Brexit Response Working Group' which met with a number of political parties in Stormont, Belfast in relation to the challenges presented by Brexit. The Fine Gael delegation, which included, Chair of the North-South Stream of the Brexit Response Group Deputy Fergus O' Dowd T.D. and Senator Joe Reilly, met with MLA's and MP's from the SDLP, Alliance Party and the UUP in three separate meetings in Stormont's Government buildings. Deputy McLoughlin stated: "The overall goal of the meetings in Belfast was to discuss the real concerns and challenges that our island is going to face due to Brexit and to try to begin to find common ground. "We all share common values and we all want to continue to have the economic and social benefits which cross border interaction has given to both sides of the border. "What was clear from the party representatives which we met, was that we are all advocating for as soft a 'Brexit' as is possible and that the voices of all the people on the island of Ireland need to be heard in the 'Brexit' discussions. "There are real concerns at present that the challenges, unique to Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland are possibly being overlooked and not being given the full attention they deserve by London and Brussels. "These include the serious implications for our SME's, agriculture and agri food businesses, the Good Friday Agreement, the Common Travel Area, access to the Single Market, Customs agreements, currency fluctuation and the North South Interconncetor." Over 70 members of the Sligo business community competed in Bank of Ireland's Bond Trader Challenge at the Sligo Radisson Blu Hotel recently. The unique Bond Trader event brought together teams made up of local business leaders to play and learn about the concepts of trading in bonds, stocks, shares, equities and cash through a table quiz style game. The evening began with an overview of how stock markets and bond trading operates, before the teams were given a mix of assets, scenarios and the ability to swap these assets to build their ideal portfolio. Ciaran Tansey, Stephen Vickers , Kevin O Reilly, Conor Woods and Fergal Quinn from were crowned the winners on the night. Head of Bank of Ireland Pensions, Bernard Walsh said, "The Challenge was an opportunity for local business people to work together in teams. Various scenarios were played out with a focus on how the markets react to geopolitical upheavals." A man who was given a four month jail sentence for damaging the wing mirror of a car at a petrol station appealed the conviction at Sligo Circuit Court. The court was told the defendant, Gerard Stokes of Cloona, Enniscrone had already served two months of the sentence imposed at the District Court and was released from prison after lodging his appeal. Stokes, who represented himself, made some strident and at times colourful submissions during his appeal hearing including one where he claimed Judge Cormac Quinn had no authority to impose a sentence on him. Stokes was convicted at the District Court by Judge Kevin Kilrane of damaging the car's wing mirror to the value of 109.43 at Centra, Main Street, Enniscrone on March 18th 2015. He was jailed for four months and served between May 19th and July 19th in Castlerea Prison. At the outset of the appeal, State Solicitor Mr Hugh Sheridan, said two civilian witnesses, Emma Kavanagh and her partner, Derek O'Hara whose car it was were not in court due to a medical appointment and Judge Quinn said he was reluctant in the circumstances to issue a bench warrant. Mr Sheridan suggested the case could be adjourned to January 17th in the circumstances and Judge Quinn spoke of putting the case back for a day. Stokes then asked the court "what case?" Standing at the front of the courtroom and becoming louder and more animated as he addressed the Judge, he said he had been manhandled from the "theatrical next door" (District Court) and brought to prison for three months. He told the Judge: "Your paperwork is not legal and you are not a judge," he said. He also insisted that his name was Gerard and asked the Judge to stop calling him Mr Stokes. He said he didn't mean to be boisterous and stated on several occasions that he wanted to see a piece of paper with his name on it. None had been provided to him, he said. "You haven't got a case," he told the Judge. "You are not a Judge"- defendant. "Very good"- Judge. "Don't 'very good' me man" - defendant. He said he had spent two and a half months in jail when he didn't have to and again claimed there was no case against him. "Everything you do in here is lies, in the realm of conjecture. Show us the proof," he told the Judge. The defendant also stated he was sick to death of being addressed as "Mr Stokes." He banged the bench in front of him a number of times, was pointing at the Judge and was pacing over and back constantly. Handing in his birth certificate he had in a folder, the defendant said there was a comma after the name, Gerard. "Mr Stokes does not exist," he said. Judge Quinn said he was not in a position to hear the case and was attempting to explain the reason when the defendant kept talking over him. "Are you going to continue to interrupt?"- Judge. "I thought we were having a debate"- defendant. "It's a very one side debate" - Judge. Judge Quinn told Stokes that he (defendant) wasn't progressing his appeal in the manner he should. The Judge said: " You are not behaving in a reasonable manner so, on that basis, I find that you are not prosecuting your appeal or that you are coming to court to represent yourself in a proper manner but to disrupt the court. You are not controlling yourself." The Judge added that the defendant had left him with no option but to affirm the conviction of the District Court. Stokes attempted to hand in a number of documents but the Judge said he wasn't reading any of these. He then asked the defendant if he wished to appeal the severity of the four month sentence and Stokes replied that he wanted to "appeal everything." Garda Helen Cusack told the court that at 4.30pm on March 18th 2015 Gardai got a call from Emma Kavanagh stating that Stokes had lashed out and had damaged the car at Centra. Her partner, Derek O'Hara was in the driver's seat at the time. The defendant had a previous conviction in July 2015 for engaging in threatening, abusive or insulting behaviour and another for the cultivation of cannabis for which he was fined 200 in June 2015. Asked if he had any questions for the Garda, the defendant asked her what type of character he was. The Garda replied that he was an interesting character. "I believe he has a problem with the courts"- Garda. "It's not the courts but the paperwork" - defendant. The Judge said he was affirming the conviction of the District Court and asked Stokes if he had anything to say on sentencing. Stokes said he had been forty odd years living in Dublin with no convictions until he came to Sligo but added that he had been "forced to take a stand." Judge Quinn imposed a three months sentence, backdated to May 19th and was deeming that this term had been served. "Thanks very much"- defendant. "And, I don't accept you have any authority to impose a sentence on me," he added. Judge Quinn: "You've had your day in court." "I didn't want a day in court. All I wanted to see was some paperwork" - defendant. A Sligo architects firm has won an international architecture award for proving "the power of good architecture." McCabe Architects, based in at Brooks Building, Finisklin Road, beat off stiff competition from other practices and buildings around Britain and Ireland to be commended for its design for the new Credit Union building in Donegal Town. Their design was the only Irish building shortlisted for the 2016 Natural Stone Awards. The architects were joined by Donegal Town Credit Union, McMonagle Stone and Glebe Builders for the awards ceremony in London on December 2nd. The Right Honourable Michael Portillo awarded Declan McCabe and Daniel McMonagle in front of four hundred guests. The judges said: 'The success of the project was due to its powerful concept, the quality of the craftsmanship, and the enabling effect it has created to sit comfortably in its environment creating a landmark building for Donegal Town to be proud of.' "The Credit Union has seen a 25% increase in membership subscriptions coupled with a 23% increase in loan advances in the first six months after opening, now that's the power of good architecture," they added. The Building Block represents a sea-change for business in the North West. It is designed to be a rallying point for ambition and enterprise. Together with Sligo architect John Monahan of NOJI architects and marketing strategist Denise Rushe of Starling & Company, the vision for a new shared office space, a collaborative area for small new companies, took shape, driven by the local businesses themselves who want to enjoy a dynamic, energised place of work. IDA Ireland's Regional Business Development Manager for the North West, John Nugent, said: "Having been involved in helping to shape this project, I'm delighted to now see it come to fruition. "The availability of suitable property solutions is key to attracting Foreign Direct Investment to regions and The Building Block will enhance our offering to potential investors that need a landing space. The fact that it is a collaborative initiative shows what can be achieved when stakeholders in regions work together towards a common purpose." The Building Block will also provide exciting spaces for presentations and talks with a special HD 'performance wall' and seating for 75 people at evening events hosted by agencies or resident companies. Architect John Monahan, who spearheaded the project and was tasked with the re-design of the building, said: "It has been important to create the right social and informal dynamic to the office allowing people to collaborate and nurture ideas. The interaction of desk space and informal meeting spaces is key to its success. "We started with a blank slate, stripping back the interiors to a concrete ceiling and painted floors and adding a warm textural interior softening the industrial edge. Our signature 'beach hut' meeting rooms, washed out colour palette and warm woods are a nod to Sligo's coastal culture. The result is a calm, informal space designed for creativity and productivity." Denise Rushe, who worked with Monahan on the research and development of the project said: "This signifies a transformative moment for Sligo. In recent years, there has been a great momentum with people looking to return to Sligo after the recession but perhaps having no hook to keep them here. "This building will be our hook; it will provide an inspiring workspace to base your business from with like-minded people. The style of the building will allow you start on the ground floor and literally grow up in to the building, perhaps taking a larger private office space as your business grows." Both Rushe and Monahan will join the board of The Building Block. Building owner and Sligo native Martin Doran, now based in Dublin, saw the opportunity to do something transformative to help the centre of Sligo. He said: "From my experience of living in London and Dublin, and other European cities, the best place to live and work is in the city centre, moving away from long car commutes and moving towards high-end office and residential spaces. Sligo has a lot to offer and we feel the city centre could benefit enormously from a project like this. "We are extremely proud to work with the team of local people in Sligo, to transform this part of Sligo, and hopefully in the process, help people transform their lives by working in a part of Ireland that has so much to offer in terms of the ideal work/life balance," added Doran. A generous donation was made to Wicklow Hospice in memory of the late Forbes Vigors from Wicklow town and formerly of Arklow. The fundraiser was also supported by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) where Forbes worked. Staff raised over 2,500 at a coffee morning in memory of Forbes who passed away in October at the age of 45. 'On behalf of the Canterbury and Vigors family, I would like to thank each and every person who contributed so generously to Wicklow Hospice Foundation in memory of our beloved Forbes,' said his widow Carmel. 'Over 4,250 has been raised. Of this, TII alone raised over 2,500 by holding a coffee morning in honour of Forbes. A special word of thanks goes to Doreen Murray and Ann Lawless in organising this coffee morning and for all the TII staff for their incredible bakes and cakes,' said Carmel. Carmel, on behalf of herself and daughters Evie and Grace, added that supporting Hospice will offer comfort to their family and thanked everyone for their kindness and support. 'Our tremendous loss will help Wicklow Hospice Foundation in their important fundraising efforts to provide a hospice in County Wicklow. Perhaps in time there will be a small measure of comfort in that. Forbes was our ray of sunshine, those who met him were drawn to his warmth,' she said. 'Although his death is so tragic and untimely to us it is fitting that in some way Forbes will be able to bring a little sunshine to those who are in need at the end of their lives. Forbes was an extremely kind man, that is simply how he lived his life in helping others in whatever way he could, providing a funny word, a selfless deed, both professionally and in his personal life. His kindness and goodness shone through,' she said. Carmel added that Forbes would want to help those who are nearing death and give them a more dignified passing. The level of donations received in his memory will help achieve this goal. 'We all wish Forbes didn't have to go and even though we desperately wish him back, everyone here - his family, friends, the road safety team here today and colleagues everywhere, especially TII - can be proud that his passing brings Wicklow Hospice Foundation a little closer to achieving its goal in giving the people of Wicklow dignity at the end of their days, a little comfort when they need it most,' said Carmel. A tropical bird found washed up on a British beach has been flown 5,000 miles (8,000km) home to the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean in time for Christmas after being nursed back to health. The red-footed booby bird was discovered underweight and dehydrated on a pebble beach at St Leonards-on-Sea, near Hastings in East Sussex, on September 4. The bird, nicknamed Norman, underwent intensive care at the RSPCA's Mallydams Wood wildlife centre where he spent time under a heat lamp to ward off the cold and ate sprats to build up his strength. Mystery surrounds how the young bird managed to be blown off course and end up on a UK beach where he was found by East Sussex resident Gail Cohen. But now Norman, the first red-footed booby bird recorded in the UK, is settling in at a nature reserve in the Cayman Islands after being transported on a 12-hour British Airways flight from Heathrow on Thursday. Mallydams wildlife rehabilitation team manager Richard Thompson said: "It is just fantastic to see Norman make his way home after the team here have worked so hard nursing him back to health and full strength. "We are used to dealing with native seabirds here - like gulls and terns - but he is the first booby bird we have ever seen here at the RSPCA and the UK. It is amazing to think we've had a hand in his care. "Norman has done so well - especially when you consider how weak and dehydrated he was when he came in. We have been keeping a close eye on him along the way and keeping him warm with heat lamps." RSPCA wildlife vet Barbara Watson flew alongside Norman to keep an eye on his progress and carry out vet checks before and after the flight. Ms Watson said: "I never imagined in my career I would be asked to treat a booby bird as they have never been seen over here before. It is incredible to think how he got to the south coast of England. "I don't think we will ever really know how - but it is amazing and we are really grateful to everyone that has had a hand in helping him to get him back home safely." Following his epic journey home, Norman is due to spend 30 days in quarantine before he is released to join other booby birds. Captain Shaun Griffiths, who flew BA Flight 0253 from Heathrow to Grand Cayman, said: "All of our customers are special and, despite having flown a number of VIPs before, Norman is by far the most unusual. "The beaches of the Cayman Islands are some of the most beautiful in the world and we are thrilled he can start the new year in the sunshine." Gabriella Tamasi, live animals product manager at IAG Cargo, said the shipment highlighted the air cargo industry's important role in the protection of endangered species. The US said it had issued a formal diplomatic complaint over Thursday's seizure (AP) China has said its military seized a US navy unmanned underwater glider in the South China Sea to ensure the "safe navigation of passing ships", but would give back the drone after determining it was an American device. The United States later confirmed it had "secured an understanding" for the return, seeming to settle one of the most serious incidents between the two militaries in years. The Chinese navy on Thursday seized the drone, which the Pentagon said was being operated by civilian contractors to conduct oceanic research. The US lodged a formal diplomatic complaint and demanded the drone back. Chinese defence ministry spokesman Yang Yujun issued a statement late on Saturday saying that a Chinese navy lifeboat discovered an unknown device in the South China Sea on Thursday. "In order to prevent this device from posing a danger to the safe navigation of passing ships and personnel, the Chinese lifeboat adopted a professional and responsible attitude in investigating and verifying the device," Mr Yang said. The statement said that after verifying that the device was an American unmanned submerged device, "China decided to transfer it to the US through appropriate means". The US said that "through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return" the unmanned underwater vehicle, according to a statement from Peter Cook, spokesman for US defence secretary Ash Carter. The US said China's "unlawful seizure" came in international waters. Yet China pointedly accused the US of long sending ships "in China's presence" to conduct "military surveying". "China is resolutely opposed to this and requests the US stop such activities," it said. "China will continue to maintain vigilance against the relevant US activities and will take necessary measures to deal with them." Earlier on Saturday, China's foreign ministry said the country's military was in contact with its American counterparts on "appropriately handling" the incident, though it offered no details on what discussions were under way. The drone was seized while collecting unclassified scientific data about 92 kilometres (57 miles) north west of Subic Bay near the Philippines in the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety, navy captain Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said on Friday. "It is ours. It's clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again," Capt Davis told reporters. He said the drone costs about 150,000 dollars (120,000) and is largely commercial, off-the-shelf technology. The USNS Bowditch, which is not a combat ship, was stopped in international waters on Thursday afternoon and was recovering two of the gliders when the Chinese ship approached, Capt Davis said. The two vessels were within about 450 metres (500 yards) of each other. He said that the USNS Bowditch carries some small arms, but that no shots were fired. According to the Pentagon, as the Chinese ship left with the drone, which is about three metres (10ft) long, its only radio response to the US vessel was: "We are returning to normal operations." President-elect Donald Trump blasted the seizure. Apparently misspelling "unprecedented", he tweeted: "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented act." He later reissued the tweet, correcting the spelling to "unprecedented". Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said the seizure of the glider occurred inside the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, not China, and appeared to be a violation of international law. China delineates its South China Sea claims with a roughly drawn sea border known as the "nine-dash line" that runs along the west coast of the Philippines. However, it has not explicitly said whether it considers those waters as sovereign territory, and says it does not disrupt the passage of other nations' shipping through the area. The US does not take a position on sovereignty claims, but insists on freedom of navigation, including the right of its naval vessels to conduct training and other operations in the sea. Capt Davis said that the incident could be the first time in recent history that China has taken a US naval vessel. Some observers have called it the most significant dispute between the sides' militaries since the April 2001 mid-air collision between a US navy surveillance aircraft and a Chinese fighter jet about 110 kilometres (70 miles) from China's Hainan island that led to the death of a Chinese pilot. The drone seizure seemed likely to fray the already tense relations between the US and China. Beijing was angered by Mr Trump's decision to talk by phone with Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen on December 2, and by his later comments that he did not feel "bound by a one-China policy" regarding the status of Taiwan, unless the US could gain trade or other benefits from China. China considers the self-governing island its own territory to be recovered by force if it deems necessary. There have also been increased tensions over Beijing's ongoing military build-up in the South China Sea, mainly the development and militarisation of man-made shoals and islands aimed at extending China's reach in the strategically vital area, through which about five trillion dollars in global trade passes annually. AP On the final day of her trial on decade-old negligence charges, International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde told a Paris court she acted in the public interest as she faced charges over her handling of a multi-million euro dispute during her time as France's finance minister. Ms Lagarde told the Court de Justice de la Republique that she carefully weighed the pros and cons before making her decisions. Court president Martine Ract-Madoux said the verdict would be issued on Monday. The trial has been an ongoing distraction to Ms Lagarde's duties at the IMF. The institution was on the front lines of the effort to combat the global financial crisis and provides billions of dollars in loans to countries at risk of default. "In this case, as in all others, I acted in trust and with knowledge of the facts with the sole goal of defending the general interest," Ms Lagarde said as she took to the stand to make her final remarks. The IMF chief is accused of not doing enough to prevent a massive government payout to businessman Bernard Tapie. The case stems from former state-owned bank Credit Lyonnais's disagreement with Mr Tapie over the 1993 sale of Adidas AG, which he owned. She is accused of not being diligent when she gave her green light in 2007 to an arbitration procedure and didn't seek to overturn its subsequent decision to give Tapie an initial award of 285m that led to a massive government payout. If convicted of negligence, Ms Lagarde faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a fine of 15,000. Yesterday, the French prosecutor called on the court to dismiss the "weak" negligence charges against the 60-year-old IMF chief. "Lagarde has been accused of things that don't relate to criminal law, but have to do simply with politics," Jean-Claude Marin said. In France, it isn't entirely unusual for prosecutors to disagree with an indictment written by investigative magistrates. A French prosecutor urged judges in 2015 to clear Ms Lagarde's predecessor at the IMF, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, on charges of aggravated pimping after two weeks of hearings. Mr Strauss-Kahn was eventually acquitted. Protesters outside the Parliament building in Warsaw, Poland on Friday European Council president Donald Tusk has urged Poland's ruling party to respect the country's constitution, people and democratic practices as two days of anti-government protests spread from Warsaw to two other cities. Protesters rallied outside the presidential palace and the parliament building in Warsaw for a second day on Saturday over a government plan to restrict journalists' access to politicians in parliament. The protests came amid rising political tensions over the ruling conservative Law and Justice party's new policies under chairman Jaroslaw Kaczynski and followed a large spontaneous demonstration on Friday outside parliament. Mr Tusk, Poland's former prime minister, invoked the word "dictatorship" and reminded his audience of protests in Poland under communism that ended in bloodshed. "I appeal to those who hold real power in our country to respect the people, the principles and values of the constitution, the standing procedures and good practices," Mr Tusk said in Wroclaw, south-west Poland, where he was attending a cultural event. He warned that whoever was undermining the "European model of democracy" in Poland was "exposing us all to strategic risks". A few hours later, prime minister Beata Szydlo said in a nationwide televised address that the opposition was guided by a sense of "helplessness and frustration" over having lost power and was hurting Poland's interest with its actions. "Noise, perturbation, destabilisation have, alas, become the tools of the opposition parties," Ms Szydlo said, appealing for dialogue, responsibility and calm. The crowd of a few thousand in Warsaw chanted "Freedom! Equality! Democracy!" and waved Polish and European Union flags, a reflection of the pro-European views of many liberal, urban Poles who oppose the ruling party. "This conflict is entering a new, more aggressive phase," said Szymon Roginski, a photographer who joined the protest with his two young sons. "Every day we hear news that makes us understand that we are further and further away from democracy. People have had enough." President Andrzej Duda, who is allied with the ruling party, expressed deep concern and declared a readiness to mediate in the dispute. The ruling party, which has increased welfare spending, still remains popular with many Poles, particularly those outside of the cities and on modest incomes. Some protesters held up copies of the constitution, to show they believe it was not being observed by the ruling party. They also chanted "Solidarity!", reflecting how many link today's protests to the anti-communist opposition of the past. Ryszard Petru, head of the Modern opposition party, told the crowd in Warsaw that Poles would not accept the "dictators" who are trying to restrict the access of journalists to parliament. He even suggested an early election. In Poland's biggest parliamentary crisis in years, opposition politicians protested against the government media plan on Friday, blocking a vote on the budget. Governing party members then voted in another hall, but the opposition says the vote was flawed and illegal. Opposition politicians are now demanding a repeat vote on Tuesday. The senate speaker was to meet with media representatives to discuss the new rules for reporters. AP With Ivanka Trump, the typically minor role of a first daughter could get a major makeover. She was a key player in her father's winning campaign, and people are closely watching the next moves by President-elect Donald Trump's 35-year-old daughter. Ivanka has attended her father's transition meetings with high-profile figures, including the Japanese prime minister and technology leaders, and has indicated her interest in working on policy issues such as childcare. The Trump Organisation executive vice president also owns her own company that sells clothes and jewellery. While three of Mr Trump's adult children are viewed as close advisers, he often highlights Ivanka and has made clear that he would love to have her with him when he moves into the White House. It is not clear whether that would be in a formal position. But Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway suggested this week that there may be an exception to anti-nepotism laws for Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, who runs a property and construction business. Previous first daughters have played a social role in the White House. During Harry Truman's presidency, when his wife, Bess, was home in Missouri, their daughter Margaret would play hostess. But it would be "unprecedented" for Ivanka Trump to serve as a close adviser, said Katherine Jellison, who heads the history department at Ohio University. "If there was ever a first daughter who played such a close advisory role to her dad, she really kept it under cover," Ms Jellison said. Here is what we know so far about Ivanka Trump: THE BUSINESS With the Trump family, everything comes back to the vast family business empire. Ivanka, one of Mr Trump's three children with his first wife, Ivana, is an executive vice president of the business along with brothers Donald Jr, 38, and Eric, 32. Just how the president-elect will handle his business interests remains unclear. Mr Trump has said he will turn management over to his sons and executives. Ivanka has her own business to consider as well. She recently drew criticism after her company promoted a 10,800 dollar (8,647) bracelet she wore during a 60 Minutes interview on CBS. The spokeswoman for the company later apologised. Since then, Ivanka has sought to put some distance between herself and her fashion business. A letter posted on her website said that she would separate her social media accounts from her company's. But questions continue to come up. Earlier this month, Eric Trump offered a Private Coffee with Ivanka Trump in NYC on a charity fundraising website. But after drawing high bids - and a New York Times story - the auction appeared to have been removed from the website on Friday. THE WHITE HOUSE Mr Trump's team said no official decision has been made about Ivanka's role, and she was not made available for an interview for this story. But the president-elect has made his wishes known. "I think we'll have to see how the laws read. I would love to be able to have them involved," Mr Trump said on Fox News of Ivanka and her husband. Congress passed an anti-nepotism law in 1967 that prohibits the president from appointing a family member to work in an office or agency the president oversees. But Ms Conway said on MSNBC's Morning Joe that the law has "an exception if you want to work in the West Wing, because the president is able to appoint his own staff". But Richard Painter, chief White House ethics lawyer under President George W Bush, said: "I don't believe that this statue exempts the White House." He said Ms Conway's interpretation would be reasonable policy because it would bring family members under conflict of interest rules, but added: "I'm just not convinced that's what the statute says." POLICY PLATFORM While much about Ivanka's future role is murky, her policy interests are quite clear. Throughout the campaign she highlighted her interest in issues such as childcare, pay equity and maternity leave. Her father mentioned those issues rarely. Ivanka met with a group of Republican congresswomen on these issues in September. Since the election, she has reached out to members of Congress to continue the conversation, according to Sarah Chamberlain, the president and chief executive of Republican Main Street Partnership, who said she has not heard from the future first daughter. Republican consultant Katie Packer, who opposed Mr Trump, said she welcomed "the spotlight that Ivanka Trump is going to put on these issues". But Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, executive director MomsRising, an advocacy group for women and families, said she was concerned that the president-elect's conservative cabinet picks do not share those interests. "Ivanka Trump is right that childcare and paid family leave are national emergencies, but she was not elected to be president of the United States of America and her dad, who was, has taken the opposite approach," Ms Rowe-Finkbeiner said. WHITE HOUSE HOSTESS Throughout the campaign, Ivanka played a more prominent role than Mr Trump's third wife, Melania, who has focused her attention on 10-year-old son Barron. Mr Trump said last month that Melania and Barron would not move from New York to the White House until the end of the school year. She could still come in for major events, but there is historical precedent for a daughter or sister to step in and shoulder some of the social responsibilities. Since the election, Melania has kept a low profile while Ivanka has been a regular fixture at Trump Tower in New York. This week she appeared in a photo with Kanye West. AP Demonstrators shout slogans during a demonstration to show solidarity with the citizens of Aleppo, Syria, after Friday prayers in front of the Kocatepe Mosque in Ankara, Turkey. The evacuation of remaining residents of rebel east Aleppo has been suspended again after both sides accused the other of breaching terms of the deal. The main road out of east Aleppo was reportedly blocked by pro-regime fighters and 25 buses full of 400 people were prevented from leaving yesterday. Iranian Shia militias fighting alongside President Bashar al-Assad's forces had demanded the evacuation of wounded residents of two Shia villages in Idlib province, besieged by rebels, which became a last-minute condition of the deal. However, opposition fighters appeared to be blocking them from leaving Kefraya and Fua yesterday morning. It was thought the action taken by the militias in east Aleppo was done in a bid to pressure rebels to allow the evacuation in Idlib. "Regretfully, the operation was put on hold. We urge the parties to ensure it can be relaunched and proceed in the right conditions," said Robert Mardini, regional director of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) which is overseeing the evacuations. Russia then declared the evacuation complete and that "all women and children" had left the ravaged city. But aid agencies on the ground denied the claims, saying thousands of civilians were still waiting for buses out. The phone and internet connection went down in east Aleppo shortly after Moscow's announcement, sparking fears for the safety of those remaining. Read more: The delicate operation to evacuate remaining civilians and fighters from east Aleppo began on Thursday afternoon after several setbacks. So far it has been reported that around 8,500 people have left the city on green government buses, going to rebel-held territory in the west of the province, according to Britain-based monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. However, the United Nations estimated 50,000 remained trapped. The situation has become increasingly desperate for those trying to leave. Pawel Krzysiek of the ICRC, who was on the ground in east Aleppo, said yesterday that thousands of civilians had been waiting out in near-freezing conditions for hours for buses which had not come. "People are burning whatever they can to stay warm. It really is so cold. Not all of them have enough clothes and there is not much food or water for them," he said. Photos sent by an activist waiting to leave the rebel-held enclave showed crowds of people in thick coats in a street lined with flattened buildings in the cold winter air. Children were "hungry and crying" and people were "exhausted", not knowing if buses would arrive to take them out. "These people have been living in truly unthinkable conditions the last few weeks. It is difficult to describe in words, it's like a film. The worst kind of film," he said. The Red Cross had managed to reach some 50 children trapped in an orphanage. The army began an operation to recapture all of Aleppo in mid-November, and had overrun more than 90pc of the former rebel bastion in the east of the city before the evacuation began. The truce, brokered by Russia and Turkey, was intended to end years of fighting in the city, giving the Syrian leader his biggest victory yet after more than five years of war. Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022] Rebel fighters sit on the rubble of damaged buildings as they wait to be evacuated from a rebel-held sector of eastern Aleppo, Syria. Photo: Reuters Members of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent carrying a girl on stretcher, while arriving in western rural Aleppo. Photo: AP Boys react as they sit on belongings and wait to be evacuated from a rebel-held sector of eastern Aleppo. Photo: Reuters They fled Aleppo from different districts and at different stages of Syria's civil war, seeking refuge abroad. Now, for refugees who supported the opposition, President Bashar al-Assad's victory has dashed hopes of ever going home. Even as the uprising in Aleppo and cities across Syria descended into conflict, several former residents interviewed by Reuters said they had hoped there could still be change, a negotiated settlement and a chance to return. But as Mr Assad reasserts control after the army and its allies routed rebels in Aleppo, these Syrians living in exile fear a new crackdown that will include arrests and executions, and be worse than anything witnessed pre-war. "If I go back, I'll be executed," Abdulhamid Zughbi said. The 30-year-old fled besieged eastern rebel-held Aleppo earlier this year for Turkey, seeking medical treatment for his wife and infant son. "I can't even think about returning as long as the Assad regime is still in power. It's impossible for anyone from the opposition," he said. Nearly five million Syrians have fled the country in a conflict that has killed more than 300,000 people and pitted multiple warring sides against each other, including jihadists who have come to dominate the insurgency in many areas. The permanent displacement of millions of Syrians is one way in which its war and others in the region are causing irreversible changes. Most refugees are in neighbouring countries including Turkey and Lebanon, and hundreds of thousands have gone to Europe. Some will see Mr Assad's win in Aleppo and other gains made with Russian and Iranian support as a chance to return and rebuild their lives - but not those involved in dissent when protests began in 2011. Mr Zughbi took part, then worked for years in medical aid and rescue in rebel-held eastern Aleppo. "My wife was lightly wounded in shelling and my son was ill. I thought I'd take them to Turkey and come back. "That day, they closed the road, and I couldn't return," he said, referring to when government forces sealed off the rebel-held part of the city in August. They besieged it for months and then made a lightning advance to drive insurgents out of most of their areas they held in a matter of weeks. As residents poured out of rebel districts, including into areas under government control, the army had begun making arrests, Mr Zughbi said. "The arrests have just begun. They detain the more prominent people (activists) on the spot ... but for others - now they (the government) have the time, they'll investigate and then arrest them at a later stage. "A friend of mine went to a government-held area and three days later they detained him." The United Nations voiced deep concern about reports of Syrian soldiers and allied Iraqi fighters summarily shooting dead 82 people in east Aleppo districts this week - accusations denied by the army and the Iraqi militia in question. Mr Assad's opponents accused the government of mass arrests and forced conscription. A Syrian military source denied arrests but said identities of people leaving rebel-held areas were being checked and anyone unknown was being put into "specific places" in areas where civilians were gathered. The army said Syrians eligible for military service must serve. For Abu Rakan, a 51-year-old refugee living in Lebanon, the death of his brother-in-law, a rebel fighter, and disappearance just days ago of his sister had underscored the danger for anyone linked to the opposition. "If we go back, it'll be more dangerous than before. Anyone with the opposition is in danger," he said. "We've lived with this regime for 40 years. We know how it behaves, what it does," he said, referring also to Mr Assad's father and former president Hafez al-Assad, who crushed leftist and Islamist challenges to his rule. VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Dec 14, 2016) - Lundin Gold Inc. ("Lundin Gold" or the "Company") (LUG.TO)(LUG.ST) is pleased to announce that it has signed the Exploitation Agreement ("EA") for Fruta del Norte ("FDN" or "Project"), its flagship gold project in Ecuador. "I'm very happy to be in Ecuador for the execution of this important agreement. In just under two years, working cooperatively with the Government of Ecuador, we have negotiated this key agreement and completed the Feasibility Study for FDN, paving the way for the development of this world-class asset," stated Lukas Lundin, Chairman of Lundin Gold. "The signing of the EA is a significant milestone for the Company and for the country of Ecuador. For Lundin Gold, this event signals the Company's commitment to growing the Company in Ecuador by moving towards the development of and achieving commercial production at FDN. For Ecuador, the signing of the EA brings opportunity for jobs and economic development at both the local and national levels and shows the country's commitment to mining," remarked Lundin Gold President and Chief Executive Officer, Ron Hochstein. The execution of the EA follows the approval of the Environmental Impact Study for FDN on October 13, 2016 and the issuance of the related Environmental License at the end of October. Exploitation Agreement The EA, combined with existing laws and regulations, establishes the fiscal, operational and commercial terms and conditions for the development of FDN. The key features of the EA are: The right to develop and produce gold from FDN for 25 years, which may be renewed. Advance royalty payments totaling US$65 million to the Government of Ecuador, of which US$25 million will be paid within the next few days. The balance of the payments will be due in two equal disbursements of US$20 million on the first and second anniversary of signing. A royalty equal to 5% of net smelter revenues from production. The advance royalty payment is deductible against future royalties payable. Story continues Lundin Gold and the Government of Ecuador completed negotiating the key terms and conditions of the EA in January 2016. Since the Company's announcement of those terms, the Government has analyzed the manner in which extraordinary revenue tax (the "Windfall Tax") is to be calculated. Legislation is currently proceeding through the Ecuadorian National Assembly, which includes language seeking to modify how the Windfall Tax will be applied. Under the proposed legislation, the Windfall Tax will not be applied until a company has recouped the cumulative investment in a mining project from its inception until the start of production, plus four years. The four-year grace period replaces the application of a present value adjustment to the actual cumulative investment incurred from signing of the EA, as originally disclosed by the Company in January. "We believe this change simplifies the application of the Windfall Tax with no material impact on the Project," stated Ron Hochstein. With the signature of the EA, Lundin Gold reaffirms its commitment to the responsible development of FDN for the benefit of local communities, the people of Ecuador and its shareholders. The Company - together with local and national government, NGOs and other partner organizations - will continue to promote sustainable development in the Project area through local employment and procurement opportunities, environmental stewardship, broad-based economic development and local infrastructure improvements, amongst other initiatives. The English translation of the EA will be filed shortly on the Company's profile on the SEDAR website maintained by the Canadian Securities Administrators at www.sedar.com. Investment Protection Agreement A government resolution dated July 4, 2016 authorized the execution of the Investment Protection Agreement ("IPA") once the EA was signed. Following the required legalization of the executed EA, the Company will be signing the IPA with the Government of Ecuador. The terms and conditions of the IPA are unchanged from those announced in August. About the Company Lundin Gold Inc. owns the Fruta del Norte gold project located in southeast Ecuador. FDN is one of the largest and highest grade undeveloped gold projects in the world. The Company is advancing FDN in order to realize the significant potential of this asset. The Company believes that the value created will not only greatly benefit shareholders, but also the Government and people of Ecuador who are the Company's most important stakeholders in this project. Lundin Gold views its commitment to corporate social responsibility as a strategic advantage that enables it both to access and effectively manage business opportunities in increasingly complex environments. Lundin Gold is committed to addressing the challenge of sustainability - delivering value to its shareholders, while simultaneously providing economic and social benefits to impacted communities and minimizing its environmental footprint. Additional Information The information in this release is subject to the disclosure requirements of the Company under the EU Market Abuse Regulation and the Swedish Securities Market Act. This information was publicly communicated on December 14, 2016 at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains or refers to forward-looking information under Canadian securities legislation, including statements regarding the timing of the execution of the Investment Protection Agreement, benefits to be obtained pursuant to or as a results of the execution of the Exploitation Agreement or the Investment Protection Agreement for the Company and its stakeholders or for the country of Ecuador, the development of the Fruta del Norte Project and the Company's ability to finance the Fruta del Norte Project, all of which information is based on current expectations that involve a number of business risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expected results. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as Lundin Gold's actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in this forward-looking information as a result of the factors discussed in the "Risk Factors" section in Lundin Gold's Short Form Prospectus dated July 12, 2016 available at www.sedar.com. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from any forward-looking statement include, but are not limited to, the ability to arrange financing, the timely receipt of regulatory approvals, permits and licenses, risks related to carrying on business in an emerging market such as possible government instability and civil turmoil and economic instability, measures required to protect endangered species, deficient or vulnerable title to mining concessions and surface rights; the potential for litigation; volatility in the market price of the Company's shares; the risk to shareholders of dilution from future equity financings; the cost of compliance or failure to comply with applicable laws; difficulty complying with changing government regulations and policies, including without limitation, compliance with environment, health and safety regulations; illegal mining; uncertainty as to reclamation and decommissioning liabilities, unreliable infrastructure and local opposition to mining; the accuracy of the Mineral Resource estimates for the Fruta del Norte Project and the Company's reliance on one project; volatility in the price of gold; shortages of resources, such as labour, and the dependence on key personnel; the Company's lack of operating history in Ecuador and negative cash flow; the inadequacy of insurance; potential conflicts of interest for the Company's directors who are engaged in similar businesses; limitations of disclosure and internal controls; and the potential influence of the Company's largest shareholders. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update them or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances other than as required by law. The US vice president and a retired marine corps general were among the dignitaries, family members and other mourners who choked up during a memorial tribute to the late space hero John Glenn. Around 2,500 people gathered at Mershon Auditorium on the Ohio State University campus for "a celebration of life" for the former fighter pilot, history-making astronaut and long-time Democratic US senator from small-town Ohio. He was remembered not only for his bravery but for his thoughtful consideration for others, his integrity and his optimism. "I think John defined what it meant to be an American," vice president Joe Biden said. "The thing I liked most about John was that he knew from his upbringing that ordinary Americans could do extraordinary things." Retired USMC General John Dailey said Glenn will be missed, and never forgotten. "We had John for 95 great years and it still wasn't enough," Gen Dailey said. Glenn died on December 8 aged 95. He was the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962, and then in 1998 became the oldest person in space at 77. Ethel Kennedy, widow of close Glenn ally Robert F Kennedy, and their son Robert F Kennedy Jr were among the mourners present, along with Ohio political leaders including governor John Kasich and former governors Ted Strickland and Richard Celeste. Nasa administrator Charles Bolden Jr said the US space programme is "standing on John Glenn's shoulders" with its current mission to Mars. "It was courage, grace and humility John displayed throughout his life that lifted him above the stars," Mr Bolden said. He said Glenn "always represented the best of our American ideals". Bagpipes played as Glenn's flag-draped coffin was brought into the auditorium after a procession from the Ohio Statehouse. The service was preceded by a musical medley that included hymns, arias and popular songs. Some - including Nat King Cole's Smile and Susan Boyle's version of Impossible Dream - nodded to Glenn's optimism. Others, including You Are My Sunshine, Moon River and Shirley Jones singing Goodnight, My Someone, recalled Glenn's long love affair with wife Annie, who survives him and attended the services with their children. Thousands of visitors, including Democratic US secretary of state John Kerry, visited the Ohio Statehouse on Friday to pay their respects as Glenn lay in honour. He will be buried in a private ceremony this spring at Arlington Cemetery near Washington, DC. AP A new study says it is possible Anne Frank and her family were not betrayed to the Nazis, but caught by chance (AP) Teenager Anne Frank may not have been betrayed to Nazi occupiers, but captured by chance, a new study has said. The study by the Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam says despite decades of research there is no conclusive evidence that the young Jewish diarist and her family were betrayed to the Netherlands' German occupiers during the Second World War, leading to their arrest and deportation. Ronald Leopold, executive director of the Anne Frank House museum, said new research by the museum "illustrates that other scenarios should also be considered". One possible theory is that the August 4 1944, raid that led to Anne's arrest could have been part of an investigation into illegal labour or falsified ration coupons at the canal-side house where she and other Jews hid for just over two years. Anne kept a diary during her time in hiding that was published after the war and turned her into a globally recognised symbol of Holocaust victims. She died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp at 15, shortly before it was liberated by Allied forces. The new research points to two men who worked in the building on Amsterdam's Prinsengracht canal and dealt in illegal ration cards. They were arrested earlier in 1944 and subsequently released, Dutch records show. The arrests also are mentioned in Anne's diary. Such arrests were reported to an investigation division based in The Hague and the report says: "During their day-to-day activities, investigators from this department often came across Jews in hiding by chance." Another possibility raised by the report is that the raid was part of an investigation into people being allowed to work to prevent them being called up as forced labour and sent to Germany. "A company where people were working illegally and two sales representatives were arrested for dealing in ration coupons obviously ran the risk of attracting the attention of the authorities," the report says. It says "the possibility of betrayal has of course not been entirely ruled out by this, nor has any relationship between the ration coupon fraud and the arrest been proven" and says further research is necessary. "Clearly, the last word about that fateful summer day in 1944 has not yet been said," it adds. AP Sheriff Arpaio stumped for Donald Trump during the campaign "I hope we enlighten you of what the real story and evidence is all about regarding this fake, fake birth certificate." In Phoenix, Maricopa country sheriff Joe Arpaio gathered around 40 journalists and members of the public to make his big announcement. President Barack Obamas birth certificate was a forged document, he said, and his five years investigation would be turned over to congress and federal government so they could take action. On a Powerpoint, accompanied by Mike Zullo, a member of the nonprofit arm of the sheriff office full of volunteers, he spent 50 minutes outlining nine points of forgery that the document was a fake. Mr Zullo added the evidence was "clear and convincing proof" that the certification was a "fraudulently manufactured document". The repeat performance was relived twice in 2012 at similar press conference events. It was posted by Mr Obama on whitehouse.gov on 27 April 2011 in a bid to quell the conspiracy theory that the president was not a natural-born US citizen. His critics insisted he was an Arab-American and not African-American, a rumour started online in 2008, and that he was only using his status as an African-American to call his critics "racist". According to Mr Arpaio and Mr Zullo, sections of a womans birth certificate in Hawaii were copied and pasted onto the presidents. A fake news reporter located a 95-year-old woman during a 10-day trip to Hawaii, who might have written coding on the copy of the presidents birth certificate, they said. She allegedly told the "reporter" that the numbers on the birth certificate were inconsistent with the time and place of Mr Obama's birth, as reported by USA Today. The shifting but consistently racist debate around the first black presidents birth has evolved from disputing the fact that he was born in Hawaii to disputing the authenticity of his birth certificate. Mr Zullo said he just wanted to "clear" the president. "It didnt work out that way," he said. The results of the investigation come three months after Mr Trump first formally denounced the birther theory, telling a rally: "President Obama was born in the United States. Period." Mr Trump himself had previously pushed the conspiracy theory, but then blamed the theory on Hillary Clinton two months before he was elected president. Mr Obama told the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation: "I dont know about you guys, but I am so relieved that the whole birther thing is over. I mean, ISIL, North Korea, poverty, climate change none of those things weighed on my mind like the validity of my birth certificate." Although Mr Arpaio and his team may be among the last public servants to espouse the birther theory, there are others coming into Mr Trumps cabinet who believed in it and may do so still. One example is Monica Crowley, a Fox News host and Mr Trumps national security security pick, serving under retired general Michael Flynn, who told a 2008 radio show that Mr Obama lied about his race and it was "the biggest con [she] had ever seen." US president Barack Obama has vowed America will take action on Russian hacking (AP) Barack Obama has strongly suggested Russia president Vladimir Putin knew about the email hacking that rocked the US presidential race and urged Donald Trump to back a bipartisan investigation. "Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin," Mr Obama said in his year-ending news conference. The US president said he had warned Mr Putin there would be serious consequences if he did not "cut it out," though Mr Obama did not specify the extent or timing of any US retaliation for the hacking, which many Democrats believe contributed to Mr Trump's victory over Hillary Clinton. Mr Obama also expressed bewilderment over Republican lawmakers and voters alike who now say they approve of Mr Putin, declaring that "Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave". Mr Trump has dismissed recent talk about hacking and the election as "ridiculous". Mrs Clinton has even more directly cited Russian interference with the US election, saying: "Vladimir Putin himself directed the covert cyber attacks against our electoral system, against our democracy, apparently because he has a personal beef against me." Mr Obama did not publicly support that theory on Friday but he criticised the media for what he called an "obsession" with the flood of hacked Democratic emails that were made public during the election's final stretch. US intelligence assessments that Russia interfered in the election to benefit Mr Trump have heightened the already tense relationship between Washington and Moscow. Separately, Mr Obama has blamed Russia for standing in the way of international efforts to stop the civil war in Syria, where government forces have beaten back rebels in their stronghold of Aleppo. Mr Obama said he feels "responsible" for some of the suffering in Syria but he defended his decision to avoid significant military action there. He said that while military options short of invasion were tempting, it was "impossible to do this on the cheap". He pinned the bulk of the blame on Russia, as well as Iran, for propping up Syrian president Bashar Assad. "This blood and these atrocities are on their hands," he said as he addressed reporters from the White House briefing room shortly before leaving on his annual Christmas vacation to Hawaii. The news conference lasted about an hour and a half, longer than usual. The president is ending his eighth year in office with his own popularity on the rise, though Mr Trump's election is expected to unwind many of his policies. He is leaving his successor a stronger economy than he inherited but also the intractable conflict in Syria and troubling issue of whether Russia was meddling in the US election to back Mr Trump. US intelligence agencies have concluded with "high confidence" that Russia interfered in the election on Mr Trump's behalf. The president-elect has disputed that conclusion, setting up a potential confrontation with lawmakers in both parties. The president rejected any notion that the dispute over the origin of the hacking was disrupting efforts to smoothly transfer power to Mr Trump. Despite fiercely criticising each other during the election, the pair have spoken multiple times since the campaign ended. "He has listened," Mr Obama said of Mr Trump. "I can't say he will end up implementing. But the conversations themselves have been cordial." AP A cameraman films a house where arrests of Basque activists took place in Louhossoa, southern France (AP/Bob Edme) Spanish and French police have made five arrests after discovering a suspected weapons trove for the Basque militant group Eta in southern France, the French interior minister said. Human rights groups criticised the arrests, saying they involved well-known peace activists. French interior minister Bruno Le Roux said the arrests were made late on Friday night when police found explosives and guns in a house in the French town of Louhossoa. "They are the result of excellent co-operation" with Spanish authorities, Mr Le Roux said. Spain's interior ministry had previously announced three arrests in Louhossoa. Local media reported those arrested included the founder of an ecologist group, Jean-Noel Etcheverry; the former president of the Basque chamber of agriculture, Michel Berhocoirigoin; wine grower Michel Bergougnan; and two journalists, Beatrice Haran-Molle and Stephane Etchegaray. French lawyer Michel Tubiana, honorary president of the League of Human Rights, said those arrested wanted to destroy Eta weapons. "They are members of civil society who have only one concern, that Eta implements its commitment to disarm," Mr Tubiana told BFM television. Anaiz Funosas, president of the peace movement Bake Bidea, said "the five arrested people are well-known supporters of the peace process. They were implementing a first step in the disarmament process". The green party Europe Ecology called for their "immediate release". In 2011, Eta announced it was renouncing violence in its campaign for independence for the Basque regions of northern Spain and south-west France. It has yet to disarm or disband. It is blamed for more than 800 deaths from 1968 to 2010. AP Boys react as they sit on belongings and wait to be evacuated from a rebel-held sector of eastern Aleppo. Photo: Reuters Rebel fighters sit on the rubble of damaged buildings as they wait to be evacuated from a rebel-held sector of eastern Aleppo, Syria. Photo: Reuters Conflicts in the world, like the one in Syria, show we have a lot to be thankful for. Photo: Getty People wait to be evacuated from a rebel-held sector of eastern Aleppo, Syria. Photo: Reuters Members of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent carrying a girl on stretcher, while arriving in western rural Aleppo. Photo: AP The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) asked Syria's warring parties to quickly agree on a plan to evacuate people from east Aleppo and provide "solid" safety guarantees of on Saturday, a day after the evacuation stalled on Friday. "We're ready to resume facilitating the evacuation according to our humanitarian mandate. But we now expect all the parties on the ground to provide us with solid guarantees in order to keep the operation going. They're the ones who have to protect the people and provide safe passage," said ICRC head in Syria Marianne Gasser in a statement from Aleppo. The ICRC said thousands of cold and scared people including women, children, the sick and injured, remain in eastern Aleppo waiting for the evacuation operation to continue. "People are expecting us to continue the evacuation. It's important that the parties on the ground do their utmost to end this limbo," Gasser said. "People have suffered a lot. Please come to an agreement and help save thousands of lives." Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Children walk together as they flee deeper into the remaining rebel-held areas of Aleppo, Syria December 13, 2016. REUTERS/Abdalrhman Ismail TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY A Syrian army soldier places a Syrian national flag during a battle with rebel fighters at the Ramouseh front line, east of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Dec. 5, 2016. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File) This photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian troops and pro-government gunmen marching walk inside the destroyed Grand Umayyad mosque in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016. (SANA via AP) This photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian troops and pro-government gunmen marching walk inside the destroyed Grand Umayyad mosque in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016. (SANA via AP) A Syrian man carries his sister who was wounded after a government airstrike hit the neighborhood of Ansari, in Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Feb. 3, 2013. (AP Photo/Abdullah al-Yassin, File) This photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian troops and pro-government gunmen marching walk inside the destroyed Grand Umayyad mosque in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016. (SANA via AP) Smoke rises following a Syrian government air strike on rebel positions, in eastern Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Dec. 5, 2016. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File) In this image from video, people march toward the Russian consulate in Istanbul Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016 to protest against Russia's involvement in the Syrian government's push to retake rebel-held areas of the city of Aleppo. (DHA via AP) A general view shows the damage inside the Umayyad mosque, in the government-controlled area of Aleppo, during a media tour, Syria December 13, 2016. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki Boys stand amid the damage in the government-held al-Shaar neighborhood of Aleppo, during a media tour, Syria December 13, 2016. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad walk inside Aleppo's historic citadel, during a media tour, Syria December 13, 2016. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki This photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian troops and pro-government gunmen marching walk inside the destroyed Grand Umayyad mosque in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016. (SANA via AP) Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad stand inside the Umayyad mosque, in the government-controlled area of Aleppo, during a media tour, Syria December 13, 2016. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki This photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian troops and pro-government gunmen marching walk inside the destroyed Grand Umayyad mosque in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016. (SANA via AP) This photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian troops and pro-government gunmen marching walk inside the destroyed Grand Umayyad mosque in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016. (SANA via AP) This photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian troops and pro-government gunmen marching walk inside the destroyed Grand Umayyad mosque in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016. (SANA via AP) This photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian troops and pro-government gunmen marching walk inside the destroyed Grand Umayyad mosque in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016. (SANA via AP) This photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian troops and pro-government gunmen marching walk inside the destroyed Grand Umayyad mosque in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016. (SANA via AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Children walk together as they flee deeper into the remaining rebel-held areas of Aleppo, Syria December 13, 2016. REUTERS/Abdalrhman Ismail TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY The ICRC said it had already managed to evacuate around 10,000 people, many of whom were in a critical medical condition. The World Health Organization (WHO) representative in Syria Elizabeth Hoff, speaking from west Aleppo, told Reuters she was not sure there was time for the evacuations to begin today. "It is a quarter past one in the afternoon already. The Russians (who are overseeing the operation) are not keen on working through the night," Hoff said. The WHO and other aid workers are not yet present at the transit point in east Aleppo, Hoff said. Chinese rights lawyer Jiang Tianyong (C) speaking to foreign media in May 2012 outside the Chaoyang hospital in Beijing, where blind activist Chen Guangcheng was believed to be getting a check up (AFP Photo/MARK RALSTON) (AFP/File) A prominent Chinese human rights lawyer who had been missing for almost a month was held in police custody and "confessed" to handing over state secrets, official media said. Jiang Tianyong took on numerous high-profile cases, including those of Falun Gong practitioners, Tibetan protesters and victims of the 2008 contaminated milk powder scandal before being disbarred for his activism in 2009, according to campaign group Amnesty International. He disappeared on November 21 en route to Beijing from Changsha, the capital of the central province of Hunan, where he had gone to inquire about the situation of a detained human rights lawyer. On Friday a Communist Party newspaper reported that he had been arrested after using another person's documents to board the train and was held in administrative detention for nine days. "Investigations showed... that he was in possession of documents containing state secrets and was in contact with foreign structures, organisations and persons, and illegally handed over state secrets abroad," the website of Fazhi Ribao (Legal Daily) said, citing police sources. The newspaper reported that since December 1, Jiang had been subject to a "criminal coercive measure" -- a vague term which indicates a restriction on freedom of movement. "Jiang Tianyong confessed the relevant crimes," the daily added. Forced confessions are common in China, where courts are overseen by the ruling Communist Party. UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights Philip Alston met Jiang on a visit to China in August and said last week he feared the disappearance was in part a retaliation against the lawyer's assistance to UN experts. President Xi Jinping has overseen a tightening of controls on civil society since assuming power in 2012, closing avenues for legal activism that had opened up in recent years. While the government initially targeted political activists and human rights campaigners, it has increasingly turned its attention to the lawyers who represent them. In the most striking example, authorities detained more than 200 people last year during the so-called "709 crackdown" -- named after the July 9th date of the roundup -- including lawyers who took on civil rights cases considered sensitive by the ruling party. Not gold: Most investors are missing this year's best commodities bet Investors interested in metals usually stick to the precious ones gold and, if dabbling beyond that, maybe silver. But President-elect Trump's plans to shore up infrastructure and bring back manufacturing means that good times are rolling for industrial metals. Even before Trump, obscure metals like tin were prospering this year as demand rose and supplies shrank. Trump's ambitious plans could give industrial metals additional momentum as base metals including copper, aluminum and lead are essential ingredients in construction and manufacturing. The base metals boom comes during a big gold slump after a record rally in the first half of the year, gold is down 15 percent in the past three months and now sits at a 10-month low, a swift change of fortune for the popular SPDR Gold Trust (GLD (NYSE Arca: GLD)). "Rising commodity prices are upon us," said Todd Rosenbluth, director of ETF and Mutual Fund Research at CFRA. "And there are also diversification benefits to having commodity exposure." Raw materials drive cyclical industries such as machinery and aerospace, which are expected to be strong in 2017, Rosenbluth said. There is one big ETF in this space, with assets of nearly $300 million, the PowerShares DB Base Metals Fund (DBB (NYSE Arca: DBB)). It focuses on the three most-traded metals: aluminum, copper and zinc. DBB has logged a hefty 32 percent return so far this year. (Source: XTF.com) But more niche metals markets like tin and lead are also hitting their stride. Except for one large ETF, base metals plays are mainly found in an unlikely investment vehicle: exchange-traded notes (ETNs), which are similar to ETFs with one big difference: They are debt-backed securities, trade on very low volume compared to ETFs and also have very small asset bases compared to ETFs. As such, most investors haven't heard of ETNs, and if they did, it was probably during the financial crisis, when ETNs made it into the headlines because financially troubled banks were among those providing the debt structure, placing the ETNs in an existential crisis. Story continues More from ETF Strategist Investors rushing into equity ETFs at pace not seen since (uh-oh) Sept. 2008 There is only one inflation hedge that investors think will work this time Buffett's 'best single measure' of valuation is flashing danger for stocks ETNs are finally having their day, and there aren't many other diversified base metals trading out there. They're mainly found in a series of iPATH industrial-metal ETNs offered byBarclays (London Stock Exchange: BARC-GB), which reflect returns on a specific commodity index along with the ETN value. The iPath Bloomberg Subindex Industrial Metals Total Return ETN (JJM (NYSE Arca: JJM)) is up 31 percent this year. And other iPath ETNs structured around bets on tin (JJT (NYSE Arca: JJT)), nickel (JJN (NYSE Arca: JJN)) and copper (JJC (NYSE Arca: JJC)) have done very well this year, though the trades hit at least a short-term wall in the past month. (Source: XTF.com) "Once you get past copper and aluminum, these are obscure movers, though," says Dave Nadig, CEO of ETF.com. Tin, for example, has unbelievable price swings, he said, since the market is limited and can collapse just as easily. "All industrial metals are boom-and-bust, however," he said. "So stick with the leaders in the space." Neena Mishra, director of ETF Research at Zacks Investment Research, is not a fan of making a big bet on a base metals trade. "It's hard to predict industrial metals' movements," she said. "They've been going up after many years of a bearish trend." She noted that some of the smaller iPath ETNs have low volume and aren't cheap, with expense ratios at 75 basis points. But that is also the case for the PowerShares DB Base Metals ETF, which charges 75 basis points. "There's a wide range of metals out there," said Jason Bloom, Invesco PowerShares director of commodities and alternatives product strategy. "But these three primary ones [aluminum, copper and zinc] are very liquid and trade globally. They perform well late in business cycles when equities flatten out, since they're tied to manufacturing." Industrial-metal demand is mainly driven by China. "The country consumes about half the metals. And the Chinese have been making huge investments in their utility grid and transportation. That's huge for aluminum and copper," he said. Zinc is another growth story. It's used to make steel. "And zinc supply has come way down," Bloom said. Prices are supported, he said, because global mines went bankrupt. Experts warn that ETNs haven't proved to be the most long-lived investments. Banks tend to be the ones to launch ETNs. They get popular, and then issuers sometimes shut them down, Nadig said. Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse have already closed ETNs this year. "So it's an appropriate time to be cautious about them," Nadig said. This is one reason ETNs tend to be created not for mass marketing to investors but for an institutional client or clients of the bank looking to execute a specific trade. "Anyone can trade and buy them, but a lot are tailored to a particular client," said Igor Zilberman, head of research at XTF.com. Rosenbluth reminds investors that ETFs still have a big advantage over ETNs; they trade easily on an exchange in much higher volume and with greater liquidity. And Barclays warns investors about the debt structure, advising investors that "ETNs are riskier than ordinary, unsecured debt securities and have no principal production." Zilberman said the credit structure "is not that big a deal," at least not when placed side by side with the big risk: This is trading in a very volatile space of the market. "It's the commodity business. There is no assurance," Zilberman said. By Constance Gustke, special to CNBC.com BOGOTA, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Brazilian construction conglomerate Odebrecht will keep its majority stake in a project to make Colombia's Magdalena River navigable after receiving $250 million in financing help from a Japanese bank, the Colombian government said on Friday. Odebrecht said earlier this year it would give up most of its 87 percent stake in the Navelena consortium, tasked with the $833 million effort to increase cargo capacity on the river, sending the government on a months-long search for a replacement. But the company will stay on the project now it has received $250 million in financing from Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui bank , Cormagdalena, the government agency supervising the project, said in a statement on Friday. Construction work, which will last an estimated 5 years, will begin in January, the statement added. Companies including Mexico's IDEAL and FCC Americas, part of billionaire Carlos Slim's Carso Group, had expressed interest in the project. A source at the national infrastructure agency said it was unclear whether Odebrecht would provide the remainder of the project's financing itself or look for other investors. The project, valued at 2.5 trillion Colombian pesos, is set to increase cargo transport on a 256 km (159 mile) section of the river to some 10 million tonnes by 2029, in an effort to reduce freight costs and aid exports by commodities producers and agricultural companies. The Navelena consortium, which also includes Colombia's Valorcon, aims to profit from its investment in the project through toll charges for seven years after its upgrade of the waterway is complete. Odebrecht's Colombia office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. ($1 = 3,000.47 Colombian pesos) (Reporting by Julia Symmes Cobb and Luis Jaime Acosta; Editing by Andrew Hay) Single-digit reduction in NBS rates The revised NBS rates for ensuing Rabi season have been announced by the Government of India. New rates have not seen much steeper cuts as was widely anticipated; therefore, positive for complex (NPKs) fertilizer companies. This brings much comfort to the domestic complex fertilizer companies as a steeper cut would have entailed higher inventory losses. 03 Nov 2022 11:10 AM October 2022 auto sales: PV and CV segments continue to impress Underlying demand trend has stayed strong for PV and CV segments. Analysts at IIFL Securities estimate October 2022 wholesale dispatches in PV, MHCV and LCV segments to have grown 30%, 24% and 14% YoY, respectively. They expect the above segments to clock 25-35% volume growth in FY23. 02 Nov 2022 11:43 AM Initial signs of moderation in API cost pressures: IIFL Securities High raw-material inflation, elevated freight expenses, and normalization in marketing spends have impacted margins of Indian pharma players over the past 12 months. However, some of these API/RM cost pressures have started abating in Q3CY22. Cipla, Sun, JB Pharma and Torrent remain IIFL Securities top-picks in the pharma sector owing to lowest risk to IIFL Securities margin and earnings estimates for these companies. 01 Nov 2022 10:53 AM MOSCOW (Reuters) - Gazprom exported 170 billion cubic metres of natural gas to Europe and Turkey between Jan. 1 and Dec. 15, 11.9 percent more than in the same period a year earlier, the Russian company said on Saturday. (Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; writing by Alexander Winning; editing by Jason Neely) * China to return seized U.S. drone in "appropriate manner" * Pentagon: secured deal after "direct engagement" * U.S. "hyping up" issue not helping smooth resolution-Beijing (Adds Trump spokesman tweet) By Ben Blanchard and Steve Holland BEIJING/WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Dec 17 (Reuters) - China will return an underwater U.S. drone seized by a naval vessel this week in the South China Sea, both countries said on Saturday, but Beijing complained that Washington had been "hyping up" the incident. The drone, known as an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), was taken on Thursday, the first seizure of its kind in recent memory. The Pentagon went public with its complaint after the action and said on Saturday it had secured a deal to get the drone back. "Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States," Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said in a statement. The incident drew criticism from U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to take a more aggressive approach in dealing with Beijing. The drone, which the Pentagon said was operating lawfully and was clearly marked as U.S. property, was collecting data about the salinity, temperature and clarity of the water about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, off the Philippines. It was seized on Thursday just as the USNS Bowditch was about to retrieve it, U.S. officials said. The Defense Ministry said a Chinese naval vessel discovered a piece of "unidentified equipment," and checked it to prevent any navigational safety issues before discovering it was a U.S. drone. "China decided to return it to the U.S. side in an appropriate manner, and China and the U.S. have all along been in communication about it," the ministry said on its website. "During this process, the U.S. side's unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate, and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue. We express regret at this," it added. Story continues Trump, a Republican who takes office on Jan. 20, waded into the dispute on Twitter on Saturday. "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act," Trump said in a tweet early on Saturday from his seaside resort club Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, where he plans to spend the holidays. HEIGHTENED CONCERNS The drone incident has raised fresh concerns about China's increased military presence and aggressive posture in the disputed South China Sea, including its militarization of maritime outposts. New satellite imagery shows China has installed weapons, including anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, on all seven artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea, a U.S. research group said this week. Without directly saying whether the drone was operating in waters Beijing considers its own, China's Defense Ministry said U.S. ships and aircraft have for a long period been carrying out surveillance and surveys in "the presence" of Chinese waters. "China is resolutely opposed to this, and demands the U.S. stops this kind of activity," it said. China will remain on alert for these sorts of activities and take necessary steps to deal with them, the ministry said without elaborating. The Global Times, published by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily, earlier cited an unidentified Chinese source as saying they believed the issue would be resolved smoothly. Trump has previously complained about the South China Sea build-up. He has threatened to declare China a currency manipulator and force changes in U.S.-Chinese trade policy, which he says has led to the greatest theft of American jobs in history. Trump has also raised questions about whether Washington would stick to its nearly four-decades-old policy of recognizing that Taiwan is part of "one China." He irked Beijing by taking a congratulatory phone call from President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan after his Nov. 8 election victory. China lodged a diplomatic protest. The 10-minute telephone call was the first of its kind since U.S. President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of "one China." President Barack Obama said on Friday it was fine for Trump to review Washington's policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the U.S. relationship with Beijing. After China said it would return the drone, Jason Miller, a spokesman for Trump, tweeted a link to a news story, saying: "@realdonaldtrump gets it done." There was, however, no evidence that Trump had played any role. U.S. officials said the negotiations took place in Beijing during the overnight hours in the United States. Miller did not respond to requests for comment. (Additional reporting by Roberta Rampton and Jonathan Landay in Washington, Josephine Mason and Meng Meng in Beijing; editing by Ian Geoghegan, G Crosse) The 500 Festival, a nonprofit organization providing life-enriching events for Indiana and celebrating the legacy of the Indianapolis 500, sends a reminder that applications for the 2017 500 Festival Princess Program will close Sunday, Jan. 8, 2017. The online application is available on the 500 Festivals website. Participating in the 500 Festival Princess Program was a life-changing experience, said Caitlyn Foye, the 2016 500 Festival Queen and a junior at Butler University majoring in Biology. From the networking opportunities, to the leadership development program and the scholarship, the Princess Program has given me the tools necessary to make an impact within my community upon graduation. Since 1958, the 500 Festival Princess Program has celebrated Indianas up-and-coming, college-aged leaders. Each year, 33 of Indianas most civic-minded, academically driven young women are selected to serve as 500 Festival Princesses. Serving as a 500 Festival Princess provides young women with countless opportunities for leadership and professional development. 500 Festival Princesses participate in personal and professional development initiatives that empower them to make a profound impact within their community and Indiana. Key components of the program include: Discussions and learning opportunities, led by business and community leaders, on topics such as: goal setting, office etiquette, networking, personal branding, resume building, the art of negotiating, civic engagement, financial literacy and interview best practices Professional evaluations and personality assessments Networking and professional development events with 500 Festival Princess alumnae, members of the 500 Festival board of directors, community and business leaders Participation in the BKD 500 Festival Leadership Development Program Each 500 Festival Princess will receive a $1,000 scholarship, made possible in part by the 500 Festival Foundation and Marlyne Sexton, an Indianapolis philanthropist and president of The Sexton Companies. 500 Festival Princesses are also provided with once-in-a-life-time experiences, including involvement with the 500 Festivals statewide community outreach programs, volunteering at 500 Festival events and participating in various Indianapolis Motor Speedway functions, including the pre-race ceremonies and Victory Circle celebration for the Indianapolis 500. The top 264 applicants will be interviewed by an independent panel of judges on Saturday, Jan. 21. The top 66 applicants will participate in a second round of interviews on Saturday, Feb. 4. The top 33 applicants will be selected to serve as 500 Festival Princesses. The 500 Festival Princess selection is based upon the following criteria: communication skills, commitment to service, leadership, scholarship, professionalism. To be eligible to serve as a 500 Festival Princess, applicants must: Claim legal residence in Indiana Currently be enrolled as a full-time student at an accredited college or university located in Indiana; taking a minimum of 12 academic hours for undergraduate studies or a minimum of nine academic hours for graduate studies Maintain a cumulative college GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale Be actively involved in at least one extra-curricular activity Be the age of 18 by January 1, 2017, but no older than 23 by May 31, 2017 Be single, never married and with no children The online application is available HERE. To learn more about the 500 Festival Princess Program and its rules and regulations, please visit: http://www.500festival.com/princessprogram. Support of the 500 Festival Princess Program is provided by: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Reis Nichols, Vera Bradley, RaeLynns Boutique, The Sanctuary on Penn, the 500 Festival Foundation, and the BKD 500 Festival Leadership Development Program. To learn more about 500 Festivals events and programs, please visit www.500festival.com. The Indiana Humanities board of directors has appointed two new members: Doran Moreland, executive director of statewide diversity and community outreach at Ivy Tech Community College of Indianapolis, and Adam D. Thies, assistant vice president of capital planning and facilities at Indiana University in Bloomington. The board also elected its slate of officers for 2016-17. Indiana Humanities is a statewide nonprofit that encourages Hoosiers to think, read and talk by participating in humanities programs and activities. Indiana Humanities is currently promoting a number of programs that celebrate Indianas Bicentennial. Called Next Indiana, the initiative inspires Hoosiers to think, read and talk about the people, places and ideas that will shape the next 200 years. The new officers include: Chair: The Honorable Jerry Torr State Representative House District 39; Vice President, Hamilton Title Carmel Vice Chair: Ms. Elizabeth Bechdol Director of Agribusiness Strategies, Ice Miller LLP President and CEO, AgriNovus Indiana Auburn Treasurer: Ms. Susanne Wasson U.S. Commercial LeaderCrop Protection, Dow AgroSciences LLC Carmel Secretary: Ms. Carol Ann Bowman Corporate Secretary and General Counsel, Whiteco Industries, Inc. Merrillville The board of directors also includes: Ms. Keira Amstutz President and CEO, Indiana Humanities Indianapolis Ms. Myra Borshoff Owner/CEO MB Communications LLC Martinsville Ms. Rosemary Dorsa Vice President, Indiana Philanthropy Alliance and Director, GIFT Technical Assistance Program Indianapolis Dr. Edward O. Frantz Director of the Institute of Civic Leadership and Mayoral Archives and Professor of History, University of Indianapolis Indianapolis The Honorable Maria D. Granger Superior Court Judge, Floyd County New Albany The Honorable Christina Hale State Representative House District 87 Indianapolis Ms. Malina Jeffers Founder, Mosaic City Indianapolis Mr. James M. Macdonald III Executive Director & Market Manager, J.P. Morgan Private Bank Indianapolis Mr. Doran Moreland Executive Director of Statewide Diversity and Community Outreach, Ivy Tech Community College Indianapolis Dr. Beverley J. Pitts President Emeritus, University of Indianapolis Greenwood Mr. Timothy P. Robinson Grants Management Director, Lumina Foundation Indianapolis Mr. Larry Rowland President, Parkview Foundation Fort Wayne Rabbi Sandy Eisenberg Sasso Director of The Religion, the Arts and Spirituality Initiative of Butler University in partnership with Christian Theological Seminary Indianapolis Dr. Sarah Skwire Fellow, Liberty Fund, Inc. Indianapolis Mr. Adam D. Thies Assistant Vice President of Capital Planning and Facilities, Indiana University Bloomington Dr. Joseph F. Trimmer Emeritus Professor of English & Director Emeritus, Virginia Ball Center for Creative Inquiry, Ball State University Muncie The Honorable Jonathan Weinzapfel Chancellor, Ivy Tech Community College Southwest/Wabash Valley regions; former Mayor of Evansville Evansville Indiana Humanities connects people, opens minds and enriches lives by creating and facilitating programs that encourage people to think, read and talk. Learn more at www.indianahumanities.org An alarming 43 per cent of women and 31 per cent of men suffer because of sexual dysfunction, according to the Journal of American Association. Although Viagra has been the go-to pill to rev up your low libido in bed, herbs, vitamins, minerals, and amino acids have been helping you revel under the sheets since long before. However, due to the lack of regulations over dosages, formulations, and overall standards for supplementation in the market, knowing which additive to pick up can be tricky. We took the liberty to put together a list of ingredients, for both men and women that have been tried and tested over time to work for you, so you do not have to. thedailybeast.com The magic ingredients for men We understand that talking about your penis complications is a sensitive subject and you are probably far less inclined to go to a doctor to disclose this as an issue. Fortunately, there is always a little blue pill that can help amend your failure to launch and avoid a prescription of your sexual flaws. pinterest.com DHEA As a hormone that your body uses to produce sex hormones and boost testosterone levels, this one tops the list. Theres plenty of scientific evidence to prove DHEAs ability to bolster your sex life. Mayo Clinic recommends DHEA to help people with decreased libido, erectile dysfunction, and an improvement in sexual function. Since there is no real standardised dosing, anywhere between 25 to 200 milligrammes per day is a possibility. Ask your doctor for advice on how much is safe to consume. analisidelsangue.net L-Arginine This amino acid serves as a building block for forming nitric oxide in your body; the neurotransmitter that you need a healthy supply of to maintain an erection. Erectile dysfunction is mainly caused by poor circulation of blood in your penis, and nitric oxide is ideal to dilate the blood vessels in the area to allow for freer blood flow. A study in the BJU International exhibited that five grammes of L-arginine for six weeks was able to improve sexual function in men suffering from erectile dysfunction. L-citrulline Sometimes L-arginine can metabolise too quickly in your body for you to reap its benefits. Look towards L-citrulline, which your body naturally converts into L-arginine, if that is the case. A study in Urology has proven L-citrulline to be a safe alternative to treat erectile dysfunction. Anywhere between 500 milligrammes to 1.5 grammes is considered tolerable. doyoumeasureup.blogspot.in Ginseng As a herb that has been lauded as an aphrodisiac and in successfully treating erectile dysfunction in Chinese medical practice, long before even the thought supplementation, ginseng has been recognised to improve sperm quality and count, thereby enhancing your fertility. A study published in the British Pharmacological Society seconded this fact. In other research, a study in the Journal of Urology discovered that 1,000 milligrammes of Korean red ginseng taken three times a day for 12 days helped with greater rigidity, penetration, and sustained erections. dailyplateofcrazy.com The magic ingredients for women While most supplements in the market focus on deficiencies experienced by men, there are some pills available women who suffer from a low libido. However, what works for a man, may not necessarily work on a woman the same way. khoobsurati.com Iron Iron deficiency in women can cause fatigue, which is a potent precursor to a dim libido. Recent studies have noticed an improvement in a woman's desire, arousal, and general ability to have an orgasm after they took iron supplements to correct this deficiency. Stick to dosages below 20 milligrammes of iron to avoid constipation. Be warned, beyond 60 milligrammes in one go can even be life threatening. Maca root As a superfood, this Peruvian herb was revered in ancient Incan culture for treating a diverse range of conditions. One of the qualities women used it for was to balance out their hormones and up their zinc levels, an essential mineral for driving up their sex hormones. A 2008 study in CNS Neuroscience & Therapeutics found Maca to be useful in rectifying sexual dysfunction in women. They found taking around three grammes a day to be the most efficient dosage. naturally365.com Tribulus Terrestris The fruit, leaf and the root of this plant have been used for several medical purposes for years now. More recently, according to a 2014 study in Daru, women who used this herb reported higher levels of arousal, lubrication, and more intense orgasms. 7.5 milligrammes a week for four days was the magic number according to the study. rockswallpaperhd.com Dark chocolate Good news. You can now justify your indulgence in this sinful nibble as the flavonoids in dark chocolate reduce your stress levels, relax your blood vessels, and allow for a free flow of blood to your nether regions. Look for chocolate that contains 70 per cent or more cocoa if you want a substantial increase in your dopamine levels the pleasure chemical that relaxes you and improves your body's response to stimulation. Studies in the Journal of Sexual Medicine are a testimony to the fact that chocolate can have either a positive psychological or biological impact on a women's sexuality. indiatimes.com Disclaimer The supplements mentioned above are all natural, vitamins, and amino acids that are used by your body, naturally. They can, however, possibly interact with ingredients in any medications you are on. Consult your doctor if you have any lingering health issues before adding any of these pills to your arsenal. You may pick up the newspaper or flip the pages of a magazine that suggests feminism in some way or the other. Or probably a mention of it was made when you were chatting casually with your friends, or it was discussed over a chai break at work. It couldve also been a scene of great impact from a film that made a lasting impression on you and altered your perspective. huffingtonpost While feminism affects all, men and women alike, there are times wed form a random opinion about it rather than actually understanding it. Out in the open to be judged and prodded, feminism stands as the most misinterpreted term of the century. Simply put, feminism stands for equality of the sexes in social, economic and political spheres. This fundamental definition has become convoluted in recent times; a term designed to denote harmony has become a moot point in a world grappling with gender issues and stereotypes. A random click transported me to an Anti-feminism page on Facebook, and I was more than a little taken aback. The supporters on this page (if youre wondering, it attracts quite a few followers) link feminism to hypocrisy and female superiority. This is not the only instance where there is antagonism linked with feminism. Everyday interactions with people reveal how less they know about feminist ideologies and their significance. I invite both men and women to read this article with an open mind. Embracing feminism is a way forward for everyone who believes in the ideals of equality and respect. Here are 12 facts that will help you understand that feminism deserves your attention and concern. 1. Feminism is about equality and freedom iknowpolitics At the very core of it, feminism reflects the need to establish a system that grants equal status to both men and women, so that they can stand shoulder-to-shoulder on the same pedestal. Being paid identically for the same jobs and not being subjected to age-old stereotypes are things worth standing up for. 2. Feminism does not encourage or promote male slamming parthasadhukhan Feminism is not an excuse for women to have an upper hand over men. It must not be seen as a handle to become high-handed with anyone; whether it's a man or a woman. Misbehaving in the name of feminism is the worst disrespect to the very term. Its not unusual to come across some women wholl slam men on social media to garner attention and support for their tantrums. A I hate all men stance is only going to make your cause weaker. Lets face it - not every man is a chauvinist, and not every man is out there to get you. 3. Feminism preaches the values of humanity. ScoopWhoop Being humane, kind and respecting to each other is not too much to ask for. A feminist also lends a helping hand to those needy of support. Feminists arent consumed with themselves and their interests alone; they care about whats happening around them. 4. Feminism goes way beyond nude protests and slut walks. the better india Nude protests and slut walks are often staged to champion feminism. Although these protests aim towards achieving recognition for women, they sometimes have a counter-effect. While protests may impact the perceptions of society in a vociferous manner, there are feminists out there who do not necessarily feel the need to participate in them to be heard. 5. Feminism does not believe in female domination. truth be told When we call each other equal, there is no question of female domination. Feminism does not give one sex the right to lord over the other. Being domineering is a personality trait, and it has got nothing to do with feminism. 6. Feminism can have male supporters too. theodysseyonline Some men call themselves feminists, and its just as well! Women dont reserve the sole prerogative to believe in the ideology. Its worth a mention that some men have gone out of their way to voice their staunch support for feminism. 7. Feminism has to be embraced by men changingtomorrow This is an absolute necessity! Emma Watsons speech at the UN for the He for She campaign in 2014, is the best ever take on the subject. It is an eye-opener for everyone who thought that equality between the sexes could be achieved without the direct participation of men. Why is it important to have men on board? Youd be alienating more than half of the population of the world if youd be ousting men from the feminist movement. To be respected, you must earn that respect and give it back in good measure. 8. Feminism can and must oppose gender stereotypes girltalkhq Men shouldnt cry, only girls cry.. A man cant be weak.. A woman has to be meek and docile. These are outdated stereotypes that affect gender roles in society. Why must a man assume dominance over a woman, and why is it degrading for him to give into the most natural urge of weeping? Why should a woman stop wearing short skirts for fear of rape or eve-teasing? Gender stereotypes are hard to ignore because theyve been passed on from generation to generation. Our belief systems need a serious rethink. Lets teach children to respect and love unconditionally, so that they dont grow up believing in regressive stereotypes. Lets not limit their growth as individuals. 9. We need feminism to make the world a better place to live in bollywoodlife In Africa, some children are married off even before they hit their teenage years. In India, the girl child is still seen as a liability, and is not granted her basic fundamental rights. Several women in the world have experienced domestic violence or sexual harassment. Rape incidents are on the rise, and a woman thinks twice before stepping out of the house at night. Anyone who says that we dont need feminism either lacks in empathy or is apathetic to the pain of others. We need to understand that feminism is important and it our only hope! Without feminism, a life of equality and dignity for everyone would be a faraway dream. A sudden barrage of reports are suggesting that one of beloved torrent sites, Kickass Torrents has been brought back to life by a team of original staffers. The new website, with a cleaner user database, was launched less than 24 hours back. Earlier this year, the site was taken down by the US Justice Department, and its alleged owner, Artem Valuin, an Ukranian national, was arrested in Poland. But all hope wasn't lost it seems. Now a dedicated team of the site's original staffers and uploaders are working hard to restore its former glory. KickAssTorrents, One Of The World's Largest Piracy Site's Domain Seized, Alleged Owner Arrested "The majority of our original Staff, Admins and Moderation team joined us after Kat.cr went down which is something were very proud of. This shows the loyalty, dedication and real love for KAT that we all share," the team told TorrentFreak. "We have all our major uploaders on board and they continued to share tirelessly even before the torrent engines returned. The torrent community can continue to expect to see uploads from all the names they know and trust," the KATcr team told thenextweb.com in an interview. Despite The Government Crackdown On Torrents, These 6 Websites Are Still Working Does this mean that US authorities are going to take action against the new website now? The crew doesn't seem to be breaking sweat at the moment. Instead they spoke on why they chose to rebuild the website: "In order to keep our members safe we chose to rebuild and keep only safe elements. Despite the fact that a rebuild took longer, the safety of our community comes first." Note: Due to a massive surge in traffic, the site can be sluggish at times. Just like at the time of writing this article. But after a few minutes this is what you'll see: After Making It Illegal To Watch Porn, Now You Might To Jail For Looking At A Torrent Site! katcr.co/show/community/ But what does it mean for India where you could possibly be committing a 'crime' for even visiting a torrent website? By doing so you could reportedly incur a fine of three lakh or land in jail for three years. More on this as more updates are received. Lead image/right: Patrick Lux/Getty Images A 12-year-old boy with dual German and Iraqi nationality twice attempted to launch a terrorist attack in the western German city of Ludwigshafen this and last month, a local prosecutor confirmed on Sunday. The boy tried to target a local Christmas market on November 26 and the areas near the city hall on December 5 with explosives, but failed both times to ignite them, Xinhua news agency reported. AP The backpack with explosives was noticed by passengers near the city hall and reported to the police, prompting the next investigation. The 12-year-old born in Ludwigshafen was allegedly strongly radicalised and could have been instigated by the Islamic State, local media reported. He is currently staying at the local youth office. He will not be charged because of his age, according to the prosecutor. Rodrigo Duterte, the president of Philippines has become a subject of global talk after his repeated claims that he killed suspected criminals as he vowed no let-up in his war on drugs that has already claimed thousands of lives. Duterte has garnered a lot of support in Filipinos after his death squad waged a war on drugs and killed thousands on suspected involvement in drugs trade. On Friday, in an hour long speech in Singapore, Duterte referred to international news coverage of his claims this week that in his previous role as mayor of a major southern city he killed suspects to set an example for police. AFP To spare you embarrassment about the crawlers on television that have been running on CNN and even the BBC since yesterday that says Duterte admits killing or shooting the criminals: they were not mistaken, Duterte was quoted by Guardian. If estimates are to be believed, over 6500 people have already been killed by Dutertes famous Death Squad. Duterte addressed a 6,500-strong crowd while using trade mark sons of whores slang while repeating his commitment to erase drug from his country. Sons of whores, I will really kill these idiots, he said. AFP My campaign on drugs will not end, until the end of my term six years from now when every drug pusher is [killed], he said, making a throat-cutting gesture. Duterte also told the Filipino journalists that the killings, he claims to have committed were part of a legitimate crusade against drugs. Duterte said he had killed three men during a hostage-taking incident in Davao City where he was mayor for more than 20 years. It was not because I was walking around that I killed, he said. It was actually an event that was covered by the TV I said I killed about three of them. I didnt really know how many bullets from my gun went through inside their bodies. Duterte easily won presidential elections in May largely on a promise to eradicate illegal drugs in Filipino society by killing tens of thousands of people. AFP Duterte, however, has been heavily criticised world over for the iron fist approach towards drug pushers in his country. His acknowledgement about personally killing people when he was mayor triggered fresh expressions of concern from rights groups and the US government. Know President Rodrigo Duterte Birth date: March 28, 1945 Birth place: Maasin, Southern Leyte, Philippines Education: Lyceum of the Philippines University, B.A.,1968; San Beda College, J.D.,1972 Religion: Roman Catholic Other major Facts 1. Duterte was mayor of Davao City for seven terms and 22 years, although not consecutively. 2. Duterte's daughter, Sara Duterte, is the mayor of Davao City. AFP 3. He was once compared with Hitler saying he would kill millions of drug addicts. 4. For decades, he has allegedly been tied to "death squads" in Davao City. 5. Has declared that he will urge Congress to restore the death penalty by hanging in the Philippines. 6. 1977-1986 - Special counsel, and then city prosecutor of Davao City. 7. 1986-1988 - Vice-Mayor of Davao City. 8. 1988-1998 - Mayor of Davao City. 9. In 1995, after Flor Contemplacion, a Filipino domestic worker, is hanged in Singapore for murdering her co-worker in 1991, Duterte leads protestors in burning the Singapore flag. 10. 2001-2010 - Mayor of Davao City. Reuters 11. In April 6, 2009, The Human Rights Watch publishes the findings of its "Davao Death Squad" investigation, scrutinising more than two dozen killings that occurred in 2007 and 2008. The findings, however, showed no direct link to the killings and Duterte 12. Duterte vowed to execute 100,000 criminals on May 24, 2015 13. On May 30, 2016 Became President. 14. August 5, 2016 - In a speech, Duterte tells US Secretary of State John Kerry that US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg is a "gay son of a bitch." 15. On September 7, 2016 - Duterte reportedly called US President Barack Obama son of a whore. An eight-month-old Pakistani child named Rayan has donated his healthy bone marrow stem cells to save the life of his two-and-a-half-year-old sister, Zeenia. The transplant was conducted successfully at a hospital in Bengaluru. The siblings are from Sahiwal in Pakistan. Zeenia had been suffering from a rare disease called Hemaphagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH), in which bone marrow produces some abnormal cells which eat away the normal cells, resulting in high fever, low blood counts, liver and spleen enlargement, doctors said. Calling it a potentially life threatening disorder, doctors said the only cure for this condition was bone marrow transplant. Siasat Daily After we diagnosed the girl was suffering from HLH, we discovered that her brother was Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) match for her, said Dr Sunil Bhat, Senior Consultant and Head of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant at Narayana Health City hospital. As the donor is just eight months old to collect the adequate dosage, he was required to undergo the donation process twice at a gap of only few weeks, Dr Bhat said. By using small marrow extraction needles and with the assistance of a team of anaesthetists and other members, we have successfully extracted enough marrow which helped cure Zeenia. Rayan has not only saved his sister, he also has the unique distinction of being the youngest marrow donor in India, he added. Dawn Doctors said the procedure was conducted in October, and Zeenia is cured of her deadly disease and ready to leave for Pakistan to lead a normal life. They have advised her parents about certain follow-ups that Zeenia needs to undergo after going back home. The doctors also said Rayan was doing exceptionally well and fine. Zeenia had earlier undergone treatment at an armed forces hospital in Rawalpindi. A team of archaeologists excavating the mysterious megalithic structures at Vangchhia in Champhai district of Mizoram was of the opinion that a city belonging to a greater lost civilisation might have once existed there. The excavations concluded on Wednesday. Ancient Civilizations/representational image Vangchhia is Mizoram's only ASI-protected site. Sujeet Nayan, assistant superintending archaeologist at ASI Delhi and director of the excavation at Vangchhia, said this was one of the most important archaeological finds of the present time. He said the site held the key to hitherto-unknown facts about Mizoram and the northeast. The team documented more than 50 structures at Vangchhia and will return soon for further research and study. It collected fragments of charcoal that will be sent to specialised laboratories for carbon dating and other scientific analysis. Mizo Megaliths/representational image "We were exploring what lay beneath the bushes and thick foliage. The entire site could hold traces of a lost city or a greater lost civilization. It is amazing to stumble upon so many things. We need more time and research to reach a final conclusion," said Nayan. The team came across burial sites that seemed like water pavilion and terraces that were reminiscent of palatial buildings. The retaining walls or terraces were made of big stones and the average height of each terrace ranged from 10 to 25 feet. Mizo Megaliths/representational image "The terraces might have served as burial sites, but this can't be ascertained as of now," Nayan said. "There are nine terraces. We explored around eight. We also found evidence of what seems to be a water pavilion. We presume people here liked their environment and the water pavilion is comparable to those found in Mughal structures," he added. Vangchhia is close to the Myanmar border and comprises rolling hills and thick forests. The excavation was conducted after the director general of ASI visited the site in November last year and the objective was to study the structures that have floral, animal and human depictions on them. topyaps/representational image stephen colbert putin clinton election hack late show cbs Stephen Colbert mocked Russian President Vladimir Putin's reported personal involvement in the hacking of the US presidential campaign to help Donald Trump. US intelligence agencies have said that Putin personally directed how hacked material from Democrats was leaked. "It's kind of flattering that he wanted to do it himself, don't you think?" the host joked on Thursday's episode of CBS's "Late Show." "It's handcrafted. It's an artisanal hack." Furthermore, Colbert got a chuckle out of the supposed reason Putin ordered and then took a personal role in the hack. Hillary Clinton told campaign donors during a speech in New York City on Thursday that the hack was a result of a grudge the Russian president held against her for suggesting Russia's 2011 parliamentary elections weren't "free and fair" when she was secretary of state. Putin then blamed her for protest riots after the election. "So Putin hacked the election because of a grudge against Hillary? That is so lame," Colbert said. "There are so many better reasons to get revenge on America: economic sanctions, NATO expansion, Sean Connery's accent in 'The Hunt for Red October.'" Watch Colbert mock Putin's alleged motivation for the US election hacking below: NOW WATCH: Obama on Russia hacking the US election: 'We need to take action and we will' More From Business Insider BCCL/representational image In what seems like a giant middle finger to all the Indians who are shedding tears over the hardships following demonetisation, the government has raised the price of petrol by Rs 2.21 a litre, and the price of diesel by Rs 1.79 per litre, excluding local levies from today. It's almost like they are singing happy holidays to the great Indian middle class while wearing the Heath Ledger Joker mask! The price revision was to come into effect yesterday but was deferred - possibly to save the demonetisation-battered government from any blushes in Parliament. The revised rates will be effective from midnight tonight. Read more here. Here are 5 more stories for you: 1. Ravi Shankar Prasad Compares Demonetisation To Labour Pains, Claims It W,ol8jytill Result In Joy! BCCL These are dark times, funny but dark. While our government is targeting people over comments made on social media, minister can get away with just about anything. Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad today likened demonetisation woes to "labour pain", saying its end result would be as "joyful" as the birth of a baby. Prasad made the remarks at an event organised by the Delhi BJP's IT cell that lay emphasis on how demonetisation was an opportunity for the country's transition towards a cashless economy. However, Prasad said the government's motive behind demonetisation was "less cash", not cashless. He criticised the Opposition parties for "not allowing" the Parliament to function. Read more here 2. Papua New Guinea Hits By A 8.0 Magnitude Earthquake, Large Tsunamis Feared Across Indonesia Too Twitter/Breaking911 Nature A magnitude 8.0 earthquake struck 157 km (98 miles) east of Rabaul, Papua New Guinea on Saturday, the US Geological Survey reported prompting a warning about tsunami waves in the region. "Widespread hazardous tsunami waves are possible," the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) said in a message following the quake, which struck the New Ireland region of Papua New Guinea at a depth of 73 km. Read more here 3. Chandigarh Tailor Caught With Black Money Worth 30 Lakhs In Cash And 2.5 Kilos Of Gold PTI A well-known tailor in Chandigarh was caught with 30 lakh in cash and two-and-a-half kilogram of gold by the Enforcement Directorate as part of its operation to unearth illegal cash. Out of the seized cash Rs. 18 lakh were in new Rs. 2,000 notes, the rest were in 100- and 50-rupee notes. Acting on a tip-off, the Enforcement Directorate investigators swooped down on the premises of Maharaja Tailor in Punjab's Mohali and at sector 22 in Chandigarh. After examining the bill books of the shop, the officials found that the owners of the tailoring shop had bought 2.5 kg gold at a rate of Rs. 44,000 per 10 gram after demonetisation. The probe agency's investigators said that they were verifying how the notes were exchanged and who the owners of the shop bought the gold from. Read more here 4. Yet Another Death Due To Demonetisation! Farmer Collapses Inside Bank, Dies In Front Of His Son Wikimapia When Rajesh Kumar accompanied his 80-year-old father - Baladeen - from their village Saragpura to the Allahabad Bank branch, seven kilometres away, he did not know that it was the last journey his father would ever make. My father wasnt keeping well, we needed the money badly for his heart treatment, Rajesh told HT. I filled the withdrawal slip for Rs 14,000 but the clerk gave us Rs 6,000. I told him about my fathers condition and my father pleaded with him but he was unrelenting. During the heated argument that followed, his father suddenly complained of chest pain and then slumped to the floor and died. Read more here 5. Allegedly Radicalised 12-Year-Old Boy Attempts Two Failed Terror Attacks AP A 12-year-old boy with dual German and Iraqi nationality twice attempted to launch a terrorist attack in the western German city of Ludwigshafen this and last month, a local prosecutor confirmed on Sunday. The boy tried to target a local Christmas market on November 26 and the areas near the city hall on December 5 with explosives, but failed both times to ignite them, Xinhua news agency reported. Read more here The row over demonetisation washed out the month-long Parliament's Winter Session which concluded on Friday with negligible business being transacted, making it one of the "least productive" sessions in the last 15 years. A disappointed Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi, who could not generate an "earthquake" in the Lok Sabha, will now try to bring at least a 'tremor' in Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home turf, on December 21. AP Amid the claims that he wasn't allowed to expose Modi's "personal corruption" in the Lower House, Rahul Gandhi led a Congress delegation to meet the prime minister today, seeking farm loan waivers thus, creating a divide among opposition parties. No doubt the the farmers' loan issue is mostly focused at Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, both of which are scheduled to go to polls before Gujarat in 2017. Interestingly, PM Narendra Modi today also invited Rahul Gandhi to meet him (the PM) more frequently. AFP However, the Congress Vice-President is expected to visit the famous Umiya Mata Temple in the adjoining Unjha town near Mehsana in Gujarat, known for its spices and as the epicenter of the Patidar agitation. In the last session of the year, the Lok Sabha lost 107 hours while Rajya Sabha lost about 101 hours due to the repeated disruptions. Also Read: After Trading Allegations, PM Modi And Rahul Gandhi Meet Face To Face On Farmers' Loan Issue Negligible business was transacted during the 21 scheduled sittings of the session that began on November 16, and several important legislations like the one on GST were left pending. AP The only significant legislative action was the passage of the Rights of Persons with Disability Bill by both the Houses. Significantly, this bill was cleared on the last day after a brief debate and with rare bonhomie, similar to that witnessed in the Rajya Sabha on it two days back. During the session, the Lok Sabha also passed the Income Tax Amendment Bill without any debate despite an uproar over the issue, but the bill couldn't be taken up for consideration in the Rajya Sabha. The only other legislative action was the approval of the Supplementary Demands for Grants. These are dark times, funny but dark. While our government is targeting people over comments made on social media, minister can get away with just about anything. Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad today likened demonetisation woes to "labour pain", saying its end result would be as "joyful" as the birth of a baby. BCCL Prasad made the remarks at an event organised by the Delhi BJP's IT cell that lay emphasis on how demonetisation was an opportunity for the country's transition towards a cashless economy. However, Prasad said the government's motive behind demonetisation was "less cash", not cashless. He criticised the Opposition parties for "not allowing" the Parliament to function. "People will face a little problem. But the pain is the one that a woman in labour undergoes. Eventually one will experience the joy like one does hearing the first cry of a baby," Prasad said. AP/representational image He asserted that the defunct notes deposited in the banks will be scrutinised and not all of it will be considered "white". At the gathering, largely consisting of lawyers, Prasad also took jibes at former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, saying, he was "happy" when Singh spoke. "I eagerly wait for the speeches of two people. Manmohan Singh and Rahul Gandhi," he said, and went on to hail Prime Minister Narendra Modi for having "raised" India's stature in the global community through his foreign trips. AP/representational image He said the amount deposited in the banks will help in investing in strengthening the Indian Army, assisting farmers, small traders, building roads, adding that "Naxals and terrorists" are a troubled lot due to the decision. Speaking at the event, Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari said politicians like Arvind Kejriwal and Akhilesh Yadav, who are opposing the measure, are actually "aware of its benefits". BCCL Tiwari also referred to Modi's statement that former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had "rejected" Wanchoo Committee's recommendations in 1971 to bring demonetisation. When Rajesh Kumar accompanied his 80-year-old father - Baladeen - from their village Saragpura to the Allahabad Bank branch, seven kilometres away, he did not know that it was the last journey his father would ever make. My father wasnt keeping well, we needed the money badly for his heart treatment, Rajesh told HT. I filled the withdrawal slip for Rs 14,000 but the clerk gave us Rs 6,000. I told him about my fathers condition and my father pleaded with him but he was unrelenting. During the heated argument that followed, his father suddenly complained of chest pain and then slumped to the floor and died. Wikimapia The incident took place near Kanpur and the people queuing up in the bank were enraged by the flow of events. They demanded the arrest of the bank employees for their insensitive approach which led t the death of Baladeen. Police was called in to help disperse the angry mob and the body was sent for post-mortem. Officials claim that the complaint in being looked into. While Indians are facing their share of problems outside banks and ATMs post the demonetization, people in Venezuela have resorted to violent protest in various parts of the country since socialist government suddenly pulled the nation's largest banknote of 100 bolivar from circulation in the midst of a brutal economic crisis. According to reports, three people have died in the southern mining town of Callao, but the government didnt confirm the deaths. Protestors blocked the roads while waving the now-worthless 100-bolivar bills and demanded that stores accept the cash which the stores now are refusing. Heavy resentment is seen among the people against President Nicolas Maduro in a string of towns and cities around Venezuela, witnesses told Reuters. Reuters According to various reports, dozens of shops were looted in various places post the demonetisation of 100 bolivars bills. Last weekend, Maduro gave Venezuelans three days to ditch the 100-bolivar bills, arguing that the measure was needed to combat mafias on the Colombia border despite warnings from some economists that it risked sparking chaos. Much like India, opposition in Venezuela too lambasted the president for the move and deemed it an evidence of him destroying countries economy. Reuters But much like here, there too, the authorities have thwarted a referendum sought by the opposition against the leftist leader. That might enable him to complete a six-year term ending in early 2019, but increases the prospect of social unrest. New bills aka notes were supposed to reach to people by Thursday, but till now people havent got them while their old bills have become obsolete and nobody, not even petrol pumps are taking them. The crisis has erupted when Christmas is around and people buy a lot on Christmas to gift to friends and relatives. But adding to the chaos, many cash machines were broken or empty. And large lines formed outside the central bank offices in Caracas and Maracaibo where the 100-bolivar bills could still be handed over and deposited for a few days more. Reuters "This is a mockery," told bus driver Richard Montilva to Reuters as he and several hundred others blocked a street outside a bank in the town of El Pinal in Tachira state near Colombia. First Justice lawmaker Angel Medina said large numbers of shops had been ransacked, destroyed and burned in El Callao, with three people killed and many injured. But the news couldnt be confirmed. Reuters President Maduro, however, has condemned the violence and said new bills would come into circulation soon, appealed for the population's "comprehension", and urged Venezuelans to use electronic transactions where possible. About 40 percent of Venezuelans do not have bank accounts. AMMAN, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Syrian rebels accused Iran and its Shi'ite-backed militias on Saturday of holding up a deal to evacuate civilians trapped in the remaining rebel bastion in Aleppo. Munir al Sayal, the head of the political wing of the Ahrar al Sham rebel group involved in negotiations over the deal, said Iran was insisting people be allowed to leave two besieged Shi'ite villages before letting the Aleppo evacuation happen. He said Russia was failing to restrain its ally. "Iran and its sectarian proxies are using the humanitarian situation of our people in besieged Aleppo and preventing civilians from leaving until the evacuation of their groups in Foua and Kefyra," Sayal told Reuters. (Reporting by Suleiman Al-Khalidi; Editing by Robin Pomeroy) The Wife of the President, Hajia Aisha Buhari, has launched the scholarship scheme awarded to 300 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) college children. A statement by Mr Ben Onwudinjo, Proprietor, The Praxis Catholic e-School, on Friday in Abuja, said that the award was given to the children by the school. Aisha Buhari, who was represented by Mrs Paulen Tallen, former Deputy Governor of Plateau State, promised to partner with the school to ensure that infrastructure, feeding and logistics were guarantee. Onwudinjo showed appreciation by thanking the first lady and called on well meaning Nigerians to also support for a successful scholarship scheme. We thank Her Excellency for supporting the needy and displaced children in the society. We urge other philanthropists and good spirited Nigerians to emulate the first lady and support the education of the displaced children provided by the school, he said. He informed that the beneficiaries would resume to their hostel at 126 Citec Villa, Gwarinpa, Abuja, on Jan. 9, 2017. Representatives of the Governor of Osun State, Wife of Kwara State Governor, Director General of NEMA, FEMA and other dignitaries were in attendance. Six hundred education hungry IDPs children selected from fourteen camps in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and Nasarawa State were also present. 52-year-old actor Beninese-American Actor, Djimon Hounsou who arrived Nigeria on December 4, 2016. The actor known for his role in the movie Blood Diamond expressed his displeasure concerning lots of women have lost their husbands to Boko Haram and the military He shared the below via Facebook; While I was in #Maiduguri, in North East #Nigeria, I went to a nearby village called Jakana. Here I was reminded that Boko Haram isnt the only side in this conflict. I met a woman there whose husband was arrested by the military two years ago. She hasnt heard from him since. And now her and the children do not have enough to eat. Yagana isnt alone. Thousands of women have lost their husbands to Boko Haram and the military. It saddened me to see so many women that are left to care for their children. Source: BreakingTimes The Lagos State Government on Friday condemned the murder of an official of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) , Surajudeen Bakare on Thursday in Apapa area of the state. The Acting Commissioner for Transportation, Mr Adebayo Anofiu Eleguishi, said at a news conference that Bakare was a victim of jungle justice. The late Bakare was killed by some people who have forcefully taken over the roads to flout rules and regulations and take laws into their own hands, he said. Bakare, who was the Zonal Head of LASTMA in Apapa, was beaten to death by suspected commercial motorcycle riders and touts while trying to control traffic. According to Eleguishi, contrary to reports, eyewitness accounts revealed that no LASTMA vehicle killed anyone before the incident; rather it was the driver of a tanker that killed his motor boy who was asleep under the vehicle. Elegushi, who reiterated that Lagos was a law and order society, urged the Police to do a thorough investigation and bring the perpetrators to book. It is authoritative that the mob action is by tanker drivers, okada riders and other persons who live around them. We must emphasise that LASTMA remains a routine activity designed to ensure free flow of traffic. Our officers must be accorded respect they very much deserve and in case of an infraction by any of them, there are due processes and mechanisms that redress those infractions, Eleguishi said. Also speaking, the Chief Executive officer of LASTMA, Mr Chris Olakpe, urged members of the public to support officials in ensuring free flow of traffic. He said that that the authority had embarked on training and retraining of officers, and if there was any complaint, they could call the LASTMA Complaint Response Unit on 08129928646. Source: Guardian President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday marked his 74th birthday anniversary with a special birthday parade and inspection of the Guard of Honour mounted by the Nigerian Army. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the event, which took place at the fore-court of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, witnessed the Inspection of Guard by the president. The Guard Brigade, headed by the Commander, Brigade of Guards, Musa Yusuf, also performed a Special Birthday Silent Drills, accompanied with special military birthday song in honour of the president. President Buhari also cut a birthday cake and released 74 pigeons from a cage as part of the activities marking the anniversary. NAN reported that President Buhari also signed birthday anniversary register where he wrote: I am impressed with the special drills presented by the Guard Brigade. NAN further reported that service chiefs, Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris; some ministers, including Lai Mohammed and Muhammad Bello of the FCT; Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari; Presidential spokesmen, Femi Adesina and Garba Shehu attended the event. The Chief of Defence Staff, Gabriel Olonishakin, who briefly spoke with State House correspondents, congratulated the president on his 74th anniversary. He said: We are celebrating the birthday of the president and we wish him well and good health. We wish him all the goodness of God as he pilots the affairs of our nation to greater heights. The Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai, who also spoke to the correspondents, described President Buhari as a great man and we are very pleased with his accomplishments over the years. He is a good leader. Source: NAN The Ugandan Police has issued arrest warrants for Nigerian musician, Wizkid as well as his manager Sunday Are. The warrants were issued after the legal representatives of Face TV demanded a refund of the booking fees they paid to Wizkids manager for a show the musician later canceled. A copy of their letter to the police reveals they paid the sum of $60,000 as the performance fee as well as another $8,000 for brokerage fee and per diem for Wizkids stay in the country. Wizkid allegedly canceled the appearance at the last minute despite assurances earlier that he would perform at the show, costing the promoters over $300,000. In their criminal complaint against Wizkid and Sunday Are, they accuse the duo of obtaining money by false pretenses, cheating, and conspiracy to defraud. United Parcel Service (UPS), the worlds largest package delivery company, made a blunder when a military rifle was delivered to an address instead of a Christmas present meant for a little girl. Newsday reports that 66-year-old Joel Berman opened the keyboard-sized case containing the gun in front of his wife and 6-year-old granddaughter Wednesday night at his home in New York, USA. Inside the foam-lined case was a semi-automatic rifle along with a scope, a stand, an ammo clip and copies of an Arizona mans drivers license and concealed-weapons permit. Berman says his granddaughters mouth popped open when she saw the gun instead of the toy plane she was anticipating. According to News 12, the 50-calibre rifle package was addressed to someone in Upstate New York, near Monticello. Why it was delivered to Berman wasnt clear. UPS was working to deliver the rifle to the correct address, the station reported. The last few days have indeed been some of the most interesting times in the life of Mr. Lawrence-White Udoka. Since photographs of the 44-year-old man hawking doughnuts while neatly dressed went viral, the Akwa Ibom-born father of two has suddenly transcended from a little known Nigerian to a celebrity of sort. From east to west, north to south, images of Udoka are almost now a common sight anywhere you turn to. It is an unprecedented period for him. I have received a lot of calls from people telling me that they have been seeing and reading different interesting things about me on the social media. Whenever I go out to hawk these days, people treat me differently, as if I am a superstar. Though I am excited about this I give all glory to God, he said during a telephone conversation with our correspondent earlier in the week. But beyond the fame the 44-year-old man now enjoys, Udoka has been through the rough patches of life, contending with deprivation and crushing hardship for the most part of his early life. Raised under the roof of a polygamist father with three wives and 10 children, life for him as a little boy growing up in the countryside in Akwa Ibom where he hails from was tough. Apart from the difficulties in accessing quality education as a result of his fathers lean purse, living out his dream of becoming a successful engineer in the future was quite Herculean. The situation remained troubling until he finally made the long journey to Lagos, Nigerias commercial headquarters, in search of a new life. It was tough when I first arrived Lagos, Udoka said, as he shared his inspiring story with our correspondent. I was rejected in almost all the factories I went to search for job not because I wasnt fit but because the people there always felt factory work was not for a person like me. At one of such places, a staff of the factory where I had gone to look for work told me that I should go and get proper education, that he saw me becoming something big in the future and not limiting myself to a factory. That was the last time I ever went out to look for job again, he revealed. Driven by the quest to survive, Udoka soon ventured into frying and selling bean cake popularly known as akara in local parlance around his Ojota neighbourhood. It turned out a big hit. Within weeks after he started, everyone was looking for his brand of akara. It was a period of boom for him. People would come from very far places just to buy my akara. It was as if they had been waiting for the type that I did for a long time. I was never short of patronage, he said. But just when the 44-year-old was enjoying the fruits of his labour and thinking on how to expand his business to meet the growing demand, everything came crashing. A malicious rumour turned the tables against him. I was surprised when all of a sudden people stopped patronising my akara, he recalled. There was a rumour in town that a man somewhere in Mushin was caught using human blood to prepare his akara and that had a negative impact on the patronage of the snack. It affected many of us in the business tremendously. I had to gather the small money I had managed to save to buy a motorcycle for commercial transportation, he said. Few months into commercial transportation, the father of two switched vocation again this time going into baking and hawking doughnuts, egg and fish rolls after a woman introduced him to the business. He abandoned transportation following constant harassment by law enforcement agents in Lagos. I didnt ride okada for too long because law enforcement officers were always harassing us and demanding for money. I had to diversify into the making of doughnuts and other items after a woman introduced me to the business. I look back today and I am happy I ever made that decision, he said. Like akara, Udokas new products also gave him popularity in the entire Ojota/Ogudu area of the metropolis where a lot of people fondly nicknamed him chop better for the richness of his snack. Though he didnt make as much as when he was marketing bean cake, the new items also brought in a decent income. But more than the sweetness of his products, it was his mode of dressing that attracted customers to him the most the Akwa Ibom native was always looking smart and neat while hawking his wares. A lot of women always told me whenever they came across me that if they were mine they would never allow a neatly dressed man like me to hawk. But unknown to them I was married already. I had to always dress well because the Bible says that whatever our hands findeth to do, we should do it well, so I had to apply wisdom into my business. Dressing well was one of the strategies I have used to grow my business. It is a way of appealing to customers who ordinarily wouldnt even think of buying doughnut at the time, he said. But beyond the regular profit he was making from the business and all the attention that followed, the 44-year-old had bigger dreams. He wanted something that would open doors for him a more guaranteed route to escape poverty and all the sufferings that he had experienced in his life. To make that dream a reality, he enrolled for the 2015 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination to study Political Science Education at the University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom. The idea came not only as a joke to many who knew him including his 41-year-old wife, Dorothy, but also as a feat impossible to achieve. My wife felt I was playing an expensive joke when I told her of my desire to go to the university by sitting for UTME, he said. She felt because of my age I should rather invest in our children instead of going to school myself. But that didnt deter me, I insisted and God has been faithful. Even though I was always busy hawking my items, I enrolled for tutorials at a centre in Ojota to prepare me for the exam. Many times I went there with my snacks and while receiving lectures some students would patronise me. I never missed tutorials for once. I have faced a lot of hardship in my life, so I didnt want to go the rest of my life like that. I realised education was the gateway in life. I knew if I could get education, many of my problems in life would be solved. All the while I was selling akara and riding okada, I had always nursed that desire to go to school. I had hope that one day I would be enlisted into one Nigerian university and by the grace of God that dream has come true, he said with a tinge of fulfillment. Attaining that feat didnt come easy challenges in different forms came his way. While some made subtle jests at him, others told it to his face that he was only wasting his time. But the more they tried to discourage him, the more his resolve grew stronger. A lot of people sometimes wondered what an elderly person like me was coming to do at the UTME tutorial centre. In fact it took a long time for even the security men at the place to accept that I was also a student coming for tutorials. But by the grace of God when the result came out, I was vindicated. I scored 333 in the exam even though I was 43 at the time and was combining hawking and studying. I and my daughter, Favour, sat the exam at the same time and we both did well. I am studying Political Science Education at the University of Uyo, I was admitted as a full time student but I asked to switch to part time so that I can continue to do my business. My daughter is studying Public Administration at the same university and we are both in 200 level. Many of my lecturers today use me as a reference point in some of their teachings. They salute my courage and determination to succeed at all cost. I must let you know that I dont miss lectures because I dont like to copy other peoples notes. A lot of useful things are said during lectures, so I dont like to miss them. I have never failed any course since gaining admission. Many people see me as a role model, he said. Apart from attributing his success so far to the mercies of God, Udoka also fingers his unique mode of appearance as playing a key role in his wide acceptance even in Uyo where he had stayed less than two years since gaining admission into the citys university. He receives favour in torrents. People favour me a lot, he cuts in. Many times customers tell me to keep the change and use it to take good care of myself when they patronise me. In fact in 2012, the commissioner for environment in Lagos at the time during a chance encounter told me that he liked the way I dressed and conducted my business and that he would love to assist me with some money. He gave me N100, 000 and it was out of that money that I registered for UTME. Here in Uyo, people patronise me a lot. They look at my dressing and ask why I returned from America. They think I had lived abroad before and only came back as a result of certain circumstances. After arriving here, I had to go to a catering school to acquire more skills for my business. I am a qualified caterer now; a lot of people have been coming to learn from me, he said. The future is looking brighter than it was a few years back, the 44-year-old is already looking forward to better things to come. But while making those lofty pursuits, he has not forgotten the woman that has stood by him all these years. Her place in his heart is special. It is my heart desire for my wife to also go to the university after I graduate, Udoka, sounding a bit emotional at this point, said. She has been very supportive; she has been a strong pillar behind me. Since I and Favour moved to Uyo for studies, she has been taking care of the home, herself and our 17-year-old son, Donald. I cannot thank her enough for all the love, support and understanding. In life, when you record success people will begin to see you differently. My wife sees me differently and appreciates me the more now. Recently she was in Uyo to spend one week with me. I really appreciate this. My wish for her now is to see her attain the level of education I have now. It will make me happy. Dorothy, who runs a thriving food stuff business at the New Garage area of Ojota, told Saturday PUNCH earlier in the week that she was proud of her husband even though she initially feared he was too old to study. According to her, a lot of persons who have been following her husbands rising profile have called to commend her as well. I am very proud of him, me and the children; he is making us very happy. Though I had some reservations when he was pursuing admission, today I give glory to God because he has given us a new song. I know that by the time he and Favour graduate, our lives would change for the better. I feel joy all over my soul, she said. Source: Punch By Melanie Wichelman Avoiding incidents of personal injury at your self-storage facility takes planning and some plain old common sense. Facility owners and managers open themselves to the risk of onsite injuries every day due to the sheer volume of people coming and going on their property. First, there are tenants and guests of tenants, who are often there to help move items. Sometimes this includes children. There are also employees. Without proper preparation, unnecessary injuries can occur. By taking preventive action, you can limit the risks. Reduce Exposure Its imperative to stay ahead of risks by keeping on top of your property maintenance. Perhaps one of these thoughts keeps you awake at night: I need to change out the lights near Building A; I really need to seal the cracked concrete by the entrance gate; the exposed piping needs to be fixed. Make these tasks a priority. Falling behind on property upkeep will increase the chances of an injury occurring. Poor maintenance could also make you more liable in the event of an accident. Yes, some injuries are unavoidable; but by fixing the hazards of which youre aware, you can greatly reduce risks. You can also transfer the burden of unavoidable accidents by relying on proper insurance (more on this later). Another way to lower risk is by educating and informing your customers. Make sure tenants are aware of basic safety and risk-prevention measures. Do your unit doors have handles or a safe pull rope? Instruct new tenants on the proper way to open doors using these features. Remember, what some people consider common sense may not even register in someone elses mind. For example, if a person needs to reach a high area, he should use a sturdy ladder or step stool, not stand on boxes or furniture. If possible, hang posters with moving tips and reminders. Dont forget its just as important to educate and inform employees on these tips as well. A well-educated staff can be your first line of defense for accident prevention. Reacting to an Incident Even the best-run facilities may have a mishap from time to time. When accidents do occur, theres no need to panic. There are a few steps that will help keep the situation calm and protect your business. First, evaluate the situation and determine the type of medical attention needed. If necessary, call 911 right away to let professionals handle medical needs and care. Once everyone is safe, immediately file a claim with your insurance company. Make sure to document as much as possibleas soon as possible. Include all the incident details, such as names and dates, and describe what occurred. Before-and-after pictures of the area or scene of an accident can come in very handy if things escalate. Finally, do not take responsibility or blame. Its OK (and recommended) to be sympathetic and supportive with the injured party. Its human nature to want to help and be kind. However, while doing so, dont take the blame or admit responsibility for the accident. Be efficient and effective in keeping the situation calm and under control. Proper Coverage The best tool to protect your self-storage business in the event of injury is the appropriate liability insurance. General liability coverage is crucial in protecting your facility, especially against great financial harm. If you have a package policy, make sure it includes medical payments. This is a form of no-fault insurance that can help cover onsite injuries that wont escalate to a legal battle. Its the carriers job to determine if medical payments are appropriate. Anything beyond this would fall under your general liability coverage, which can help pay larger injury claims and any associated legal expenses. When reviewing your insurance needs, remember your employees. Your staff spends more time onsite than anyone. Even when theyre properly trained on safety procedures, accidents can and will happen. Having a workers compensation policy will protect your facility when there are work-related accidents. This type of coverage provides care and compensation for any lost income for the employee. In fact, its mandated in most states. To learn what liability limits are recommended for your facility, talk to a specialized insurance agent. Self-storage isnt your average business, and facilities have needs specific to the industry. A specialized agent can help you review and determine what limits work best for your operation. By keeping these tips in mind, youll help keep customers and staff safe and happy. Most important, youll be protecting one of your biggest assetsyour business! Carelessness will have harmful and financial consequences that are tough to move past. Stay one step ahead by preparing against accidents and knowing what to do when they occur. Melanie Wichelman is an account executive with Universal Insurance Programs, which has created and provided specialized insurance coverages to the self-storage industry for more than 20 years. For more information, call 800.844.2101; visit www.universalinsuranceltd.com. Un ottobre da sogno per Antonio Conte: lex ct della Nazionale italiana, attualmente alla guida del Chelsea, nelle ultime quattro gare di Premier League ha collezionato solo successi, conditi da 11 reti segnate e addirittura nessuna incassata. Numeri da record che non sono certo passati inosservati alla Federazione inglese, la quale ha conferito al tecnico leccese lambito premio di Manager del mese. Unavventura oltremanica iniziata in sordina, quella di Conte, pur a fronte di tre vittorie nelle prime tre gare di campionato. A far vacillare, anche se solo per un momento, le certezze del patron del club londinese, Roman Abramovich, i risultati conseguiti tra la 4a e la 6a giornata, coincisi con un pareggio sul campo dello Swansea City e, soprattutto, con le due pesanti sconfitte subite dal Liverpool, sul terreno casalingo di Stamford Bridge, e dallArsenal. In particolare, la debacle interna coi Reds, aveva irritato non poco il numero uno russo, poiche occorsa proprio nel giorno della sua 250esima partita da presidente della societa. Come detto, solo un momento. Dopo lincontro dellEmirates, il tecnico salentino cambia modulo, adottando un piu equilibrato 3-4-3 e inserendo elementi di corsa come lo spagnolo Pedro. Una svolta totale perche, di li in poi, il Chelsea inanellera solo e soltanto vittorie: 2 gol allHull City e al Southampton in trasferta, 3 ai campioni dInghilterra del Leicester e 4 allo United in casa, con un meraviglioso numero zero nella casella delle reti subite. Un fantastico poker, ottenuto tra l1 e il 29 ottobre. Un cambio di marcia sbalorditivo, confermato dal 5 a 0 rifilato ai toffees dellEverton nel primo match di novembre, e una scalata che, man mano, ha portato i blues al secondo posto in classifica, a soli 2 punti dal Liverpool capolista. E allora, non poteva mancare il riconoscimento di migliore allenatore del mese, ottenuto surclassando tecnici del calibro di Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool), Arsene Wenger (Arsenal) e Mark Hughes (Southampton). Tanta, ovviamente, la soddisfazione: E un grande onore e voglio condividerlo con i giocatori e con la societa ha dichiarato Conte sul sito ufficiale della Premier League -. E la prima volta che lavoro in un altro Paese, con una cultura diversa, e portare la propria filosofia non e facile, ma ora sono contento di questa scelta. A completare la festa, la premiazione del fantasista belga, Eden Hazard, come miglior giocatore di ottobre. Due risultati importanti per il club, ottimo incentivo per la rincorsa al trono dei campioni, occupato dal Leicester di Ranieri. Il prossimo appuntamento per l11 di Conte sara al Riverside Stadium, tana del Middlesborough neopromosso. Il tempo di festeggiare e gia finito. Donald Trump President-elect Donald Trump tapped bankruptcy lawyer David Friedman to serve as the US ambassador to Israel on Thursday, raising questions about how Friedman's far-right views will upend Washington's longstanding approach to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Friedman, who has no diplomatic experience, is a fierce opponent of a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine that would create two independent states west of the Jordan river. He has compared members of J-Street a left-leaning advocacy group that supports a peaceful resolution to the Israel-Palestine conflict primarily via a two-state solution to "kapos," Jews who cooperated with the Nazis during the Holocaust. The kapos faced extraordinary cruelty, Friedman wrote in June for Israeli media organization Arutz Sheva. But J Street? They are just smug advocates of Israels destruction delivered from the comfort of their secure American sofas its hard to imagine anyone worse. Friedman has also not opposed Israel's expansion of settlements in the West Bank a practice that has been the source of significant tension between President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. And he wants the US to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's "eternal capital" instead of Tel Aviv, where the US embassy is currently located. The diplomatic status of Jerusalem a site of religious importance to Jews, Muslims, and Christians is one of the most controversial subjects in the Middle East. The Israeli annexation of East Jerusalem after the 1967 Six Day War has been widely rejected by the international community, and most foreign embassies are based in Tel Aviv. trump netanyahu Trump told Netanyahu during their meeting in September that he would recognize Jerusalem as the "undivided" capital of Israel. Friedman's positions have alarmed more left-wing Israelis and Israeli-Americans, who perceive them as an potential obstacle to peace between Israel and Palestine. Story continues "It's difficult to see how Friedman's appointment is going to advance either peace or stability," Michael Koplow, policy director of the Israel Policy Forum, told Business Insider on Friday. "His views advocating for Israeli annexation of the West Bank, unfettered settlement expansion, and a wholesale rejection of the two-state solution place him on the extreme right of the spectrum not only in the U.S. but in Israel as well," Koplow said. "Assuming that his appointment is a signal that the Trump administration will support the policies that he advocates," he added, "it is going to cause major problems with regional allies and provide cover for extremists on all sides." Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting at his office in Jerusalem May 10, 2015. REUTERS/Sebastian Scheiner/Pool/File Photo Still, others are not convinced that Friedman's appointment provides a signal that Trump will lead US-Israel policy down a far-right path. "The Ambassador doesn't set policy he or she conveys policy," said Jonathan Schanzer, vice-president of research for the Washington, DC-based think tank Foundation for Defense of Democracies. "So the idea that you have a right-wing representative doesnt change much it probably just means he'll appeal more to the Israeli right, and maybe the center." Schanzer noted that while Friedman's appointment is "possibly foretelling of policy" and understandably "troubling to proponents of a two-state solution," it doesn't necessary reflect Trump's own views on the conflict or the region. However, the Trump administration should actively avoid any abrupt policy shifts that could create tension or lead to violence and disruptions in diplomacy, Schanzer said. For that reason, any big changes the Trump administration wants to implement should be done very slowly and tactfully. "Sequencing moves, messaging in advance, and working with allies and partners before making any major moves is what I would advise," Schanzer said. "Otherwise, these moves have the potential to disrupt relations between more fragile partnerships like Jordan and Israel, or Israel and Saudi Arabia. It could also lead to the eruption of a third intifada." Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas smiles during his arrival for an official visit at Khartoum Airport in Sudan July 19, 2016. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah Still, some experts and advocates believe Friedman's policy positions represent the kind of abrupt reversal on American policy toward Israel that could lead to the kind of unrest cited by Schanzer. Daniel Levy, a left-leaning former Israeli peace negotiator, told The New York Times that Friedman's commitment to relocating the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem is "ill-advised." He said Friedman's policies could "further embolden an already triumphalist settler elite," which "is likely to cause headaches for American national security interests across the region and even for Israels own security establishment." Koplow, meanwhile, said Friedman's positions are strikingly out of sync with policies "embraced by every president going back decades." "I think his appointment is a concerning development," Koplow said, "and given what he has said and written in the past, I hope that his views which contradict Trump's own statements about wanting to resolve the conflict rather than exacerbate it do not constitute the final word on what we can expect from the next White House." NOW WATCH: The last time a losing candidate had a wider popular vote margin than Clinton was in 1876 here's the bizarre story More From Business Insider The utilities sector is an essential aspect of any healthy economy. The equities included in this industry range from gas and electric companies to transmission providers. Essentially, it comes down to the companies that support the very infrastructure of any modern civilization. Leaders of utilities are some of the highest paid, and many of these executives have been working for decades for their respective companies. Here are some of the highest-paid executives in the utilities sector as of 2019. Key Takeaways Executives in this industry earn a base pay of $1~2 million. They can earn additional annual incentive pay and long-term incentive pay that adds another $10 million or so to their pay package. NextEra Energy CEO James Robo is one of the highest-paid in the industry, pulling in $21.87 million in compensation. Thomas F. Farrell II Thomas F. Farrell II is the president, chair and CEO of Dominion Energy (D), positions which he has held since April 2007. He joined Dominion as a company director in 2005. Farrell is one of the highest-paid executives in the utilities sector. In 2019, he earned $2.56 million in pay, which includes $1.55 million in base salary plus annual incentive pay. He also received another $11.48 million in long-term incentive pay, bringing his total compensation for the year to about $14.05 million. In addition, Farrell holds 996,316 common shares of Dominion Energy and 224,226 restricted shares. Dominion Energy is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, and supplies energy to more than seven million customers in 20 states. In July 2020, it sold its gas transmission and storage business to Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B) in a deal valued at $9.7 billion. Christopher Crane Christopher Crane is the president and CEO of Exelon (EXC). He has been a director at the company since 2012 and was president chief operating officer of Exelon and Exelon Generation from 2008 through 2012. In 2019, Crane received $15.44 million in compensation. This consisted of $1.34 million in base salary, $11 million in stock awards and the remainder coming other forms of compensation. He owns 1.04 million shares of the company. His retirement package was worth $34 million at the end of 2019. Exelon is headquartered in Chicago. It has operations in 48 states, the District of Columbia and Canada. Crane joined the company in 1998, when it was ComEd, and became chief nuclear officer in 2004. James Robo James Robo is the president, chief executive and chair of NextEra Energy (NEE). He has been president and CEO since July 2012, and was appointed chair in December 2013. In 2019, Robo received $21.87 million in compensation. This included a base salary of $1.45 million, stock awards of $11.74 million, option awards of $2.83 million, non-equity incentive pay of $4.6 million, and other forms of compensation. He owns approximately 1 million shares of the company. NextEra Energy is headquartered in Juno Beach, Fla. The company owns two electric companies in Florida, wind and solar businesses, and eight nuclear power plants in Florida, New Hampshire, Iowa and Wisconsin. Nicholas Akins Nicholas Akins is president, chief executive and chair of American Electric Power (AEP). Akins was an executive vice president from 2006 to 2011, when he became CEO. He was named chair in 2014. In 2019, Akins earned $14.5 million in total compensation. Of this, $1.48 million was base salary, $8.8 million was stock awards, $3.6 million was non-equity incentive pay and the remainder came from other forms of compensation. American Electric Power serves more than five million retail customers in Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. China has said its military seized a US navy unmanned underwater glider in the South China Sea to ensure the "safe navigation of passing ships", but would give back the drone after determining it was an American device. The United States later confirmed it had "secured an understanding" for the return, seeming to settle one of the most serious incidents between the two militaries in years. The Chinese navy on Thursday seized the drone, which the Pentagon said was being operated by civilian contractors to conduct oceanic research. The US lodged a formal diplomatic complaint and demanded the drone back. Chinese defence ministry spokesman Yang Yujun issued a statement late today saying that a Chinese navy lifeboat discovered an unknown device in the South China Sea on Thursday. "In order to prevent this device from posing a danger to the safe navigation of passing ships and personnel, the Chinese lifeboat adopted a professional and responsible attitude in investigating and verifying the device," Mr Yang said. The statement said that after verifying that the device was an American unmanned submerged device, "China decided to transfer it to the US through appropriate means". The US said that "through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return" the unmanned underwater vehicle, according to a statement from Peter Cook, spokesman for US defence secretary Ash Carter. The US said China's "unlawful seizure" came in international waters. Yet China pointedly accused the US of long sending ships "in China's presence" to conduct "military surveying". "China is resolutely opposed to this and requests the US stop such activities," it said. "China will continue to maintain vigilance against the relevant US activities and will take necessary measures to deal with them." Earlier on Saturday, China's foreign ministry said the country's military was in contact with its American counterparts on "appropriately handling" the incident, though it offered no details on what discussions were under way. The drone was seized while collecting unclassified scientific data about 92 kilometres (57 miles) north west of Subic Bay near the Philippines in the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety, navy captain Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said on Friday. "It is ours. It's clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again," Capt Davis told reporters. He said the drone costs about 150,000 dollars (120,000) and is largely commercial, off-the-shelf technology. The USNS Bowditch, which is not a combat ship, was stopped in international waters on Thursday afternoon and was recovering two of the gliders when the Chinese ship approached, Capt Davis said. The two vessels were within about 450 metres (500 yards) of each other. He said that the USNS Bowditch carries some small arms, but that no shots were fired. According to the Pentagon, as the Chinese ship left with the drone, which is about three metres (10ft) long, its only radio response to the US vessel was: "We are returning to normal operations." President-elect Donald Trump blasted the seizure. Apparently misspelling "unprecedented", he tweeted: "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented act." He later reissued the tweet, correcting the spelling to "unprecedented". Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said the seizure of the glider occurred inside the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, not China, and appeared to be a violation of international law. China delineates its South China Sea claims with a roughly drawn sea border known as the "nine-dash line" that runs along the west coast of the Philippines. However, it has not explicitly said whether it considers those waters as sovereign territory, and says it does not disrupt the passage of other nations' shipping through the area. The US does not take a position on sovereignty claims, but insists on freedom of navigation, including the right of its naval vessels to conduct training and other operations in the sea. Capt Davis said that the incident could be the first time in recent history that China has taken a US naval vessel. Some observers have called it the most significant dispute between the sides' militaries since the April 2001 mid-air collision between a US navy surveillance aircraft and a Chinese fighter jet about 110kms from China's Hainan island that led to the death of a Chinese pilot. The drone seizure seemed likely to fray the already tense relations between the US and China. Beijing was angered by Mr Trump's decision to talk by phone with Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen on December 2, and by his later comments that he did not feel "bound by a one-China policy" regarding the status of Taiwan, unless the US could gain trade or other benefits from China. China considers the self-governing island its own territory to be recovered by force if it deems necessary. There have also been increased tensions over Beijing's ongoing military build-up in the South China Sea, mainly the development and militarisation of man-made shoals and islands aimed at extending China's reach in the strategically vital area, through which about five trillion dollars in global trade passes annually. - AP The UK's National Lottery operator Camelot has been fined 3m (3.5m) by the British gambling watchdog after paying out a 2.5m (3m) jackpot to a convicted rapist who probably submitted a fake ticket. The penalty - to be donated to good causes - was handed down by the UK's Gambling Commission after the man claimed the prize with a "deliberately damaged ticket" in a suspected fraud that was not discovered for six years. Hertfordshire Police arrested a 50-year-old in October last year, named in reports as Edward Putman, on suspicion of fraud by false representation but he was later released without charge. The arrest followed information from Camelot following the death of a corrupt security official at the company who was said to have been part of the plot, The Times reported. Putman was jailed in 1993 for rape. Details of his 2009 lottery win emerged when he was jailed three years later for fraudulently claiming housing benefit and income support after telling the authorities that he needed handouts from his family to survive. The 3 million penalty imposed on Camelot included 2.5 million "to represent the amount that would have been received by good causes had the prize claim not been paid", the commission said. Camelot chief executive Andy Duncan apologised for the firm's failures, calling it "unique" and "not repeatable today". He told reporters: "Effectively, a claim was made with a deliberately damaged ticket, we believe. The prize that was paid out for that claim was 2.5 million. "That person submitted a claim, it went through the normal prize payout process and at the time, based on the evidence available, from what we can see after the event albeit a long time ago, that seemed to be a reasonable decision to have made based on the evidence at that time. "It was only when subsequent evidence came to light in autumn of 2015 that it cast doubt on the original decision. So it couldn't have been known at the time." Mr Duncan declined to answer questions about whether the alleged fraud was an inside job, or whether the firm still possessed the dodgy ticket. But he said no-one else came forward to claim the money, and it would not have been included in a subsequent rollover. The commission said while its investigation "could not be certain a fraud had taken place, it was more likely than not that a fraudulent prize claim had been made and paid out". It ruled that Camelot breached the terms of its operating licence over control of its databases, the way it investigated prize claims and its processes "around the decision to pay a prize". But it added that the firm had already taken steps to ensure that a similar problem would not happen again. A Hertfordshire Police spokeswoman said: "An allegation of fraud connected to a lottery win from 2009 was investigated by (our) specialist cyber and financial investigation unit working with the Gambling Commission. "As part of the investigation a man was arrested on suspicion of fraud by false representation. Following a thorough investigation the man was released with no further action to be taken against him." It said the man was a 50-year-old from Kings Langley. Nobody was at home at Mr Putman's home in Kings Langley on Friday when visited by the Press Association. A 2,525,485 jackpot from a draw on March 11 2009, went unclaimed until shortly before the September 7 deadline the same year for it to be given to good causes, according to news reports at the time. The winning ticket was reported to have been bought in the Worcester or Malvern areas of Worcestershire. LUSAKA (Reuters) - Zambia is set to tackle its housing shortage with the start of a project early next year to build 15,000 houses at an estimated cost of 1 billion euros ($1.04 billion), Housing and Infrastructure Development Minister Ronald Chitotela said on Thursday. Zambia's state-run National Housing Authority (NHA) has signed a deal for the project with Magcor International Inc., the minister said. "The Magcor project is one of the many infrastructure projects due to start next year and we expect that it will ease our housing deficit," Chitotela told Reuters. Magcor signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and had already signed a Joint Venture Agreement with the NHA, Magcor CEO Michael Glynn said. Glynn said his firm had guaranteed financing to build the houses in partnership with the NHA and U.S. project management and construction company Volkert Global. He said the partnership would build the 15,000 houses over five years. "Magcor will design, build and deliver these projects to the leasing company NHA and related public and private sectors with both equity and debt financing," he said. Zambia has a housing deficit affecting 1.5 million people, a third of whom are in capital cities, he said. ($1 = 0.9591 euros) (Reporting by Chris Mfula; editing by Jason Neely) Speaking on the back of fresh Central Bank data showing that lending to SMEs declined for the 20th consecutive quarter in the three months to the end of September, Isme chief executive Neil McDonnell said were still seeing that the pillar banks, despite a lot of talk, are not really aggressively back in the [SME lending] market. While the Central Banks latest figures show that gross new lending to SMEs was 359m higher in the last quarter than at the same period last year they also show bank credit to all Irish SMEs declined for the 20th consecutive quarter. Musgrave has struck a deal with the Alibaba Group to sell 40 SuperValu own branded goods such as breakfast cereals, coffee, jam, biscuits in China. It will use Alibabas own Tmall Global e-commerce platform to sell directly to Chinese consumers. The deal comes at an opportune time for Musgrave as Alibaba is currently preparing for a consumer war with American giant Amazon over the vast south east Asian market. Alibaba purchased online Singaporean grocer RedMart last month as well as e-commerce platform Lazada for $1bn (960m), showing its determination to combat the impending arrival of Amazon. Alibaba actually outbid Amazon in its purchase of RedMart. Alibaba intends to combat Amazons entrance into Asian territory by pushing its grocery division through RedMart and Tmall Global, which is an open business-to-consumer platform enabling businesses worldwide to reach Chinas growing consumer market. Musgrave, founded in 1876 in Cork by brothers Thomas and Stuart Musgrave, will open a flagship SuperValu e-commerce storefront on Tmall Global, making it the first Irish retailer with a presence on the platform. The SuperValu storefront will be offered over time as a potential route to market for Irish food producers seeking to access the Chinese market, which Musgrave said was honouring a commitment to Irish suppliers. Alibabas logistics affiliate, Cainiao Network, will manage the distribution of Musgrave products. As a storefront on Tmall Global, Musgrave will have access to key online promotional events in the Chinese calendar including the 8.8 and the 11.11 Global shopping festivals. Musgrave CEO Chris Martin said: "In the past five years Chinese consumers are increasingly purchasing overseas through online shopping. "We expect that the heritage of SuperValu and the provenance of our products will be attractive to Chinese consumers. They are seeking out western foods from trusted sources and as we develop in China we will be working closely with Bord Bia and our Irish suppliers who have a reputation for authenticity and quality." A spokesperson for Musgrave added that China was a great opportunity for not just Musgrave but for indigenous Irish food producers. She said: "China is enormous so we have to do it right. We see it as a potentially huge opportunity for Irish suppliers. It is a route to a massive international market that local people in Ireland could never had have thought about tackling on their own. "Were going to take that first step. The medium-term opportunities are enormous." Cork Chamber chief executive Conor Healy said that Musgrave -- which owns 1,400-store across seven brands -- had struck a lucrative deal with a major player in Chinese distribution. He said: "Alibaba is a massive presence and is a leader in the online marketplace. To have a Cork-headquartered company as part of its offering is very significant indeed. "It is a great opportunity to showcase the best of Irish food and hopefully it will lead to more initiatives in the future." However, many of the sailors will forever remember the horrors they witnessed off the coast of Libya, as merciless people-smugglers knowingly send migrants to a certain death if theyre not rescued. Ships captain Lieutenant Commander Darragh Kirwan said he had no doubt the migrants crammed into inflatable rubber dinghies would never have made it to Italy. On their first day of operations, six migrants drowned as the ship went to the rescue of a group packed into a dinghy. Around 25% of all inflatables we came across had punctured chambers. There isnt enough food on board them and they are only given enough petrol for 50 miles. They [people smugglers] know they are sending people to their deaths, the senior officer said. To add to their woes, jackals, as the navy term them, often prey on the migrants at sea, stealing their outboard motors and personal valuables. Family members and friends waiting for the return of the LE Samuel Beckett to the Naval Base in Haulbowline, Co Cork, after its humanitarian mission in the Mediterranean. Pic: David Keane. Lt Comdr Kirwan said migrants had told them they had paid up to 1,000 to get on a dinghy. Lieutenant Diarmuid ODonovan led the the boarding parties, who rescued as many migrants as they could. He said there were some very harrowing scenes witnessed by the crew when they couldnt prevent people from drowning. Liam Kirwan from Kinsale, Co. Cork, waiting for his dad Lt Cdr Darragh Kirwan, commander of the ship. Pic: David Keane. I call those dinghies nine metres of human misery. There are 120 men, women, and children crammed into them. The highlight of my day would be sticking a knife into them to make sure they were never used again, he said. The ship rescued 772 migrants from a wooden barge; a record for one operation. The LE Samuel Beckett about to dock at the Naval Base in Haulbowline, Co Cork, after its humanitarian mission in the Mediterranean. Pic: David Keane. That was a very good day for us, but it was a stressful [rescue] operation. I found a quarter dinar coin aboard it and made a necklace out of it for my daughter, Siobhan. The guys I worked with [during the rescues] were amazing. It was real Band of Brothers stuff, he said. Leading Comm. Op. Daniel Murphy from Cloyne, Co. Cork, is welcomed home by his fiancee Shauna Morgan from Blackrock. Pic: David Keane. The crew saved 3,090 migrants and recovered the bodies of 12 drowning victims during their tour of duty. It brought to 15,623 the number of migrants rescued by the Naval Service since it started operations in the Mediterranean on May 16, 2015. Kathleen Murray from Togher in Cork city hugs her grandson Able Mechanic Alan Murray from Churchfield. Pic: David Keane. The navy is ready to join the rescue operations again next spring, if the Government sanctions it. The six-judge court yesterday unanimously rejected the TDs core argument that the minister had no power, under the 2008 law authorising him to issue the notes, to allocate unlimited sums of public money without those first being quantified and considered by the Oireachtas. The Credit Institutions (Financial Support) Act 2008 was enacted with the aim of averting a banking collapse. The notes were essentially IOUs from the State to ensure continuation of Central Bank funding for Anglo, Irish Nationwide Building Society, and the Educational Building Society after the controversial bank guarantee of September 2008. Anglo and INBS were later nationalised and, after their successor in title, Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, was wound up in 2013, the Anglo note, on which 25bn was then outstanding, was converted into long-term Irish Government bonds. The EBS note no longer exists after a reorganisation of the finances of Allied Irish Banks, owner of EBS. Giving the courts judgment, to which all six judges contributed, the Chief Justice, Ms Justice Susan Denham, said the 2008 act was undoubtedly exceptional but was a permissible constitutional response to an exceptional situation. While the act did not include a cap on the financial support, the Constitution did not require such a limit, she held. In the extraordinary circumstances that were the backdrop to the 2008 act, it was permissible to confer such power on the minister and there was no constitutionally impermissible transfer of power of expenditure from the Oireachtas, particularly the Dail, to the Government. However, the act cannot be considered to be a template for broader ministerial power on other occasions. Speaking to the Irish Examiner, Ms Collins said she and her team are examining the option of appealing the decision in the European Court, and said numerous avenues will be considered in the coming days. She confirmed that the subject of costs relating to her failed cased will be dealt with next month. She said she was disappointed but not particularly surprised with the judgment. Unfortunately, I believe the political and financial concerns which were repeatedly emphasised by the State during the proceedings weighed strongly on the judges verdict. The strategy in this case was to paint a doomsday scenario to justify the Governments decision to waste huge amounts of public money, particularly on Anglo-Irish Bank, without even bringing the issue to the Dail for a vote. By allowing this provision of the Constitution to be bypassed using excuses about extraordinary circumstances and temporary measures the court has weakened our political system, placing fewer checks on the actions of the minister for finance and the government of the day, she added. The Shackleton Christmas Dinner, which will be held in Cobh, Co Cork on December 22, will be attended by descendants of the ships crew. Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton, who was born in Co Kildare, abandoned his ship three days before Christmas as it was obvious the vessel would be crushed by ice at the South Pole. However, before the crew disembarked they celebrated their Christmas dinner, washed down with plenty of grog. Each of the crew was given a small gift in the wardroom decorated with flags and bunting. Shackleton wrote: Later there was a really splendid dinner, consisting of turtle soup, whitebait, jugged hare, Christmas pudding, mince pies, dates, figs, and crystallised fruits, with rum and stout as drinks. To finish the evening, the men had a singsong and light entertainments. The crew then set up camp on the floating ice. After the ship sank, Shackleton and his men crowded into three small boats and made their way to Elephant Island, off the southern tip of Cape Horn. He soon realised there was little hope of them being rescued there because it was far from normal shipping lanes. Shackleton decided to lead a team of five men on a 7m lifeboat to the inhabited South Georgia, close to the Falkland Islands. Following 16 days at sea, they made it to South Georgia, where Shackleton trekked to a whaling station to organise a rescue effort. On August 25, 1916, he returned to Elephant Island to rescue the remaining crew members. In 1921, he set off on a fourth mission to the South Pole. His goal was to circumnavigate the Antarctic, but on January 5, 1922, he had a heart attack and died. He is buried in South Georgia. The dinner at the Sirius Arts Centre in Cobh will be attended by descendants of the Endurances crew, Brendan Crean OBrien, a grandson of Tom Crean, and John Blackborow, grandson of Pierce Blackborow. Tickets for the event are 100 per person and include food and drinks and a special performance by the sea shanty group the Molgoggers Cobh. All the food will be provided by local chef Michael Cleary. The event is the initiative of John OReilly, managing director of the Shackleton Endurance Exhibition, which is currently on display in Detroit. Contact John OReilly at 086 852 3498 or joreilly@shackletonexhibition.com Taking to Facebook to thank friends and family for their support, he wrote last night: Today it became real when I had the first opportunity to hold Oisin and see his little face. My best buddy has been taken from this world and taken from all his little friends. He has always been an angel. He signed off: Sleep well my little man. Love Dada. The couple had split but Mr ODriscoll, a barrister also based in the UK, had previously posted holiday photos of himself and Oisin in Bray during the summer and it is understood he raised the alarm after learning Oisin had not been to school this week and failing to make contact with Ms Higgins. A post-mortem examination took place at Fulham Mortuary in London yesterday afternoon and a result is expected shortly but police have said they are not looking for anyone else in connection with the deaths. Ms Higgins, a registered nurse and medico-legal advisor, from Aughagower, Co Mayo, had tweeted a week ago the future looks very followed by a tornado emoji. Acquaintances reported she had been suffering from depression in recent times. It is believed that Ms Higgins and her son may have been lying dead since the weekend when they were last seen in public. The tragedy was discovered by police who forced their way into their home in The Fairway, Ruislip, on Wednesday morning. There were reports in the UK media that Ms Higgins had debt judgements against her and was worried about a rent increase. A neighbour, who lived nearby, believed Ms Higgins became depressed after breaking up with her boyfriend and father of her child, barrister, Shane ODriscoll. Shocked friends of Mr ODriscoll expressed their devastation, describing Mr ODriscoll as a wonderful father. There is not a heart in Bray that you beautiful baby boy hasnt touched this week, wrote one friend. Originally from Bray, Co Wicklow, he worked for a software company and, lived a short distance away from Ms Higgins and their son in London. Mr ODriscoll doted on his little boy. He had posted numerous photographs of his son in happier times on his Facebook page. Details of the funeral arrangements had not yet been finalised yesterday. Ms Higginss father, Thomas, a farmer and fencing contractor, died two years ago. The family is well known to the Taoiseach, Enda Kenny. The Samaritans can be contacted by phone 116123 or by email jo@samaritans.org. Joe McCann, 24, was shot dead in disputed circumstances in Belfast on April 15, 1972. Soldier A, now aged 67, and Soldier C, 65, are surviving members of the Parachute Regiment patrol which fired on Mr McCann, prosecutors said. The UK government said it would support any military personnel affected by the case. The accused are likely to appear in court next year. A Public Prosecution Service spokesman said: Following a careful consideration of all the available evidence it has been decided to prosecute two men for the offence of murder. The decision was reached following an objective and impartial application of the test for prosecution that was conducted in accordance with the code for prosecutors and with the benefit of advice from senior counsel. Mr McCann had been one of the Official IRAs most prominent activists in the early days of the Troubles. He believed in creating a socialist Ireland and supported an Army of the People involved in social struggle, his family have said. The veteran of Catholic civil rights protests was shot by an Army patrol in Joy Street in the Markets area of Belfast city centre. A third member of the unit who fired at Mr McCann died in the intervening years, the PPS said. The original RUC investigation was conducted in 1972 and a decision, based on the evidence available then, was taken not to prosecute any individual. The Historical Enquiries Team was established to probe unresolved killings in Northern Ireland and carried out an investigation into Mr McCanns death in 2012. That was on October 11 2015. Yesterday, at Cork District Court , Cian Walsh of 17 Mercier Park, Turners Cross, Cork, was jailed for nine months. Judge Marie Keane imposed a six-month prison sentence on him for having the Diamorphine (heroin) for sale or supply and a three-month consecutive sentence for carrying a knife. Insp Vincent OSullivan said in court yesterday that Det Garda Maurice OConnor encountered Walsh at Millerd St, Cork, on the date in October last year. The defendant appeared to be nervous and trying to conceal something, so Det Garda OConnor decided to carry out a search under the Misuse of Drugs Act. When searched, the tick-list, three phones, drugs, and money were found. Walsh pleaded guilty to having the knife and drugs and admitted dealing the heroin. He had 165 previous convictions including seven for possession of drugs for sale or supply. Frank Buttimer, defence solicitor, said the defendant was known to have a serious addiction problem. He said the defendant went into custody three months ago at a time when his addiction was chronic. He said that in the intervening period the accused had been using his time in jail to good effect by attending counselling and rehabilitation and also using the educational opportunities available to him. Judge Keane said, This man has an appalling record with a significant number for the sale or supply of drugs. He said a prison sentence had to be imposed. Kieran Keane, aged 26, a father of two from Claughaun Avenue, Garryowen, was a front seat passenger of the car involved in the accident which occurred near St Johns Cathedral. Along with the driver, Keane fled the scene. He told gardai that the car, owned by him, had been stolen. However, Garda Aled Harkin who investigated the accident had trawled CCTV material from locations near the accident which showed Keane had been in the car at the time. Keane later admitted he gave false statements to gardai. Injuries he received in the impact required surgery and he initially claimed he had had a fall leaving a pub. Jailing Keane for nine months, Judge Tom ODonnell said the accused, who had previous convictions, lied to gardai which he compounded with a further signed statement. However, Garda Harkins work in securing CCTV material had exposed the lies, the judge said. The driver of the car has been charged separately. Judge ODonnell ordered Keanes jail sentence should not commence until January 2 next. The accuseds father, also Kieran Keane had been abducted and murdered in January 2003. He rejected claims a deal struck with Fianna Fail to potentially extend the plan to other cities early next year is a watering down of the original move. Under plans debated by the Dail, rent pressure zones are to be introduced in Irelands two largest cities from next month, capping price rises for existing renters to a maximum of 4% a year for the next three years. The move was put before cabinet by Housing Minister Simon Coveney this week, before facing severe criticism from Fianna Fail and other parties over claims the 4% annual cap was too high and that people in other parts of the country were being left without help. As part of a deal between Fine Gael and Fianna Fail which has been seen as a victory for Mr Coveney, the 4% rate will remain in place with the possibility of extending the move to other cities and commuter belts to be reviewed early next year. However, while the decision has led to some concern that landlords in areas outside of Cork and Dublin may now increase rents before any future potential changes are introduced and ongoing concerns the cap will still allow a 12% rise over the next three years, Mr Kenny insisted the policy has been carefully thought out. Speaking in Brussels after the European Council leaders summit, the Taoiseach said many thousands of tenants will be protected by the new rules who would otherwise be fearful of the next rent increase coming. No, not at all, he said when asked if the deal with Fianna Fail to potential expand the plan to other parts of the country early next year shows it is being watered down. What was put in place, and what was decided on during the week, was a very carefully thought out process. One [aspect] was taxation to be reflected on by a commission to be set up by Finance Minister Michael Noonan in January. One was the process and conditions when a rent zone would be authorised. And the third was a very carefully thought-out level of a 4% cap which would apply. Thats designed to protect many thousands of tenants who would be fearful of the next rent increase coming, he said. Landlords will now be prevented from raising rents by more then 4% each year in the rent pressure zones of Dublin and Cork.Other areas will also be examined and the zones could be extended in the coming months. Housing Minister Simon Coveney said getting the controversial bill passed took genuine co-operation from all sides. But Fianna Fail almost put a halt to the proposals before they even made it to the chamber and late-night discussions were held earlier this week. But as the measures were passing through the Dail, landlords threatened to impose a number of levies in response. The Irish Property Owners Association (IPOA), which represents 5,000 landlords, said they would withdraw from state rental schemes and would introduce car parking fees, service charges, registration fees, documentation costs, and property tax charge. IPOA chairman Stephen Faughnan said the measures are so severe that rents will not cover costs. After almost six hours of debate on Thursday and a further four hours of discussion yesterday the first of over 100 amendments was passed. The slow pace of debate meant that bringing back the Dail today was considered. However, it is understood that Dail staff had major issues around working over the weekend and it was also deemed easier to sit on Monday if necessary and have the Seanad sit later next week. At 6pm, chief whip Regina Doherty announced that the Dail would sit for a further two hours and pleaded with TDs to speed up proceedings as much as possible. Following this a raft of amendments were dealt with in a matter of minutes. The bill was finally passed by 52 to 43 votes with 25 abstentions. Earlier, Fianna Fails Barry Cowen questioned whether an error in the way the law was written was in fact a mistake. It had been found that the wording of the bill actually allowed for an 8% increase in rents in the first year and not the intended 4%. I would like to believe the minister, and I have to believe him, but he must understand that genuinely one could be forgiven in finding it hard to accept that this was just a drafting error, Mr Cowen said. Mr Coveney told the Dail that the new wording drafted after the error was pointed out was both constitutional and legally sound. Independent Catherine Connolly claimed the minister had reduced the housing crisis to an equation. He forgets the meaning of the word equation. Raising rents equates to homelessness. This is the equation we should examine. News: 4 Fianna Fail justice spokesman Jim OCallaghan called for the action yesterday as he warned that if dissident paramilitary groups are not monitored closely events could spiral out of control in the same way as gangland criminality in Dublin in recent times. Speaking during a Dail debate with Ms Fitzgerald, Mr OCallaghan said he was deeply concerned at the killing earlier this month of Aidan ODriscoll, who was shot three times on the Commons Road in Blackpool on December 7. The 37-year-old, who was nicknamed The Beast, was believed to have been heavily linked to the Real IRA and had survived a punishment shooting in 2013. Mr OCallaghan said that he is deeply concerned the situation could result in a domino effect of shootings in the city, and urged Ms Fitzgerald to take action now to address the potential problem. We have unfortunately seen in recent times an upsurge in paramilitary activity from dissident groups, said Mr OCallaghan. It is very important that the Government, the minister and our security service keeps a very close eye on this. We do not want to a situation to develop where paramilitary activity among dissident groups gets out of control in the same way as gangland criminality has got out of control in Dublin in recent times. The reason I raised this question is because of the unfortunate man who was murdered in Cork last week. It appears to me that there is some form of a split in the dissident republican movement in southern Ireland. We need Garda presence stepped up, particularly in Cork where this problem seems to have culminated in recent times. We have to be careful we do not allow a situation to develop where tit-for-tat killings take place in respect of the dissident community. Ms Fitzgerald said she can only agree with the need to prevent further attacks and said actions are being taken to address the issue. While not going into the specific shooting of Mr ODriscoll, she said gardai have recently been given fresh powers to covertly intercept communications from individuals who are serious threats to the States security, while a new special criminal court has also been established. In October, armed gardai accompanied by members of the Garda Dog Unit as well as officials from Revenue and Customs and officials from the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) raided 41 trawlers in Castletownbere in Co Cork, Howth in Dublin and offshore. The manner of the morning raids in the initiative codenamed Operation Eggshell on 22 fishing vessels in Castletownbere, 16 in Howth and three offshore was criticised by the Irish Fish Producers Organisation (IFPO) which made a formal complaint to GSOC. At the time, chief executive of the IFPO Francis ODonnell said the use of firearms was degrading for the fishing industry and bewildering. However, in a written Dail reply to Cork TD Mick Barry, the minister confirmed no evidence of human trafficking or labour exploitation was found in any location. She said: A number of suspected breaches of the atypical work permit scheme for non-EEA crew, were detected, as well as other suspected breaches of employment law, immigration law and tax offences. The minister also said the operation was carried out as part of a global alliance, including police chiefs, to eradicate human trafficking and modern day slavery. Yesterday, Mr ODonnell said he welcomed confirmation that no evidence of human trafficking or labour exploitation had been found. He said the complaint to GSOC remains live. I felt from a reputational perspective, the raids were damaging for us. Some of our people woke up in their beds on boats to find people standing over them with firearms. The process of the whole thing was really incredible with the use of armed gardai and alsatian dogs. Fishermen are very, very, hard-working people. Psychologically, they found the raids very, very, difficult. Talking to some of them, within their own communities, they felt criminalised and that they were made to look and feel like criminals as a result of the raids. When you use that level of force, you normally would be expecting to come into contact with people who are armed and very dangerous or dealing with heavy levels of criminality. You could not say that of the Irish fishing industry, it was a step beyond what any decent person could conjure up in their own mind, he said. Europes vineyards are steadily declining with more than half a million hectares of vines grubbed up since 2000. The slack is being taken up by the New World and Asia, specifically China which has huge plantings of cabernet sauvignon (currently the worlds most planted grape followed by merlot). Spain still has the largest area under vine followed by France and Italy but number four is now China. Chile is looking to diversify. Watch for old vine carignan and cinsault and more syrah but you can still expect to see lots and lots of cabernet, merlot and sauvignon blanc on the shelves. Portugal thankfully, is still growing more than 90% native varieties especially in regions such as the Douro. Here pride of place is given to Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz (tempranillo), Souzao and around 100 others. Field blends still exist but plots are being replanted with suitable specific varieties making them easier to harvest. I visited the region last September for Port Wine Day and tasted some extraordinary wines including 20-, 50- and 100-year-old tawny ports at Quinta do Mourao (not here yet), aged colheita (single year) tawny (white and red) and a huge range of ports for early drinking. I also had a charming tour of Quinta do Noval which has long been an innovator and was the first to release a site-specific port the extraordinary Nacional. Nacional is one of the most exclusive of all wines given that it comes from a tiny two hectare plot just beside the Quinta where ungrafted pre-phylloxera vines have burrowed into the schist and low-nutrient soil over the past dozen and a half decades. I was lucky enough to taste the 1996 nacional which, though 20 years old, still had a rich purple centre and was a little shy. I found expressive fleshy blackberry and creme de mur fruit tinged with clove and pepper and huge length. The mix of power and delicacy it showed is a rare thing. Below I recommend more Noval wines plus some fine tasty wines from three good independent shops Cinnamon Cottage Rochestown, Cork Whelehans Wines Loughlinstown and Terroirs Donnybrook (both Dublin). Best value under 15 Grenache le Paradou, Chateau Pesquie, Rhone, France 14.95 Stockists: Cinnamon Cottage Rochestown, Ardkeen, Bradleys This is found in a few good shops but for other Christmas gifts try Cinnamon Cottage in Rochestown, Cork, which sells wines as well as cakes and deli food. Its boutique wine comes from good importers such as Tindal, Karwigs and Bubble Brothers. This has lots of pleasing spicy red and black fruits and watch for its Ventoux big brother Les Terrasses. Coteaux du Giennois Champ Gibault 2015, Loire, France 15.50 Stockist: Terroirs Donnybrook www.terroirs.ie Terroirs is one of the prettiest wine shops in the country (and a great source of gifts from gorgeous decanters to fine food products). This sauvignon blanc is exclusive to it and is a bit of a crowdpleaser. The C Giennois produces wines with less power than its neighbours (Sancerre) but compensates admirably (as here) with lovely floral aromas. La Grange Muscadet Vielle Vignes, Loire, France 14.95 Stockist: Whelehans Wines Loughlinstown or whelehanswines.ie Whelehans Wines and Cafe is on the N11 and if you are going to Powerscourt Gardens in Co Wicklow, or the excellent Christmas market in Kilruddery this is a great place to stop for lunch as well as to get lost in its massive wine selection (deliverys nationwide). I loved this floral zingy Muscadet Vielle Vignes which just brims over with zesty freshness. Best value over 15 Quinta do Noval Labrador Syrah 2013, Douro, Portugal 19.99 Stockists: Celtic Whiskey Shop and Bar Killarney (Irish Whiskey Experience) www.celticwhiskeyshop.com Named after winemaker Antonio Agrelloss dog this is I think the only wine Noval makes from non-Portuguese varieties and is available in limited quantities. Bursting with peppery ripe fruits this also has an underlying earthy tone and finishes with chewy blackcurrant and plum flavours. Quinta do Noval Black, Douro, Portugal 22.99 Stockists: Celtic Whiskey Shop Killarney (New St) & Dublin www.celticwhiskeyshop.com Hardigans Sligo, Vintry Rathgar A modern fruit driven port that works great chilled (and in cocktails!) or with chocolate. Ripe blackberry and cacao-tinged fruits, full fruity and ripe with a refreshing tang. Try mixing two parts with one part each of lemon, simple syrup and cognac then top off with soda water. Quinta do Noval Late Bottled Vintage, Douro, Portugal 28.99 Stockists: Celtic Whiskey Shop Killarney (New St) and Dublin www.celticwhiskeyshop.com Hardigans Sligo, Vintry Rathgar Novals LBV is made much like its fine vintage ports using foot-trodden grapes and made in an expressive but traditional style. This spends longer in oak so is ready to drink early and is best decanted (for the last glass or two at least). Raspberry, cassis and ripe berry fruits. Delicious. Business The Irrawaddy Business Roundup (December 17) People stand on the Shwesandaw Pagoda as they wait to see the sunset in the ancient city of Bagan, Feb. 13, 2015. / Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters BASF Plans Construction Chemicals Plant The German chemical company BASF has announced plans to build a manufacturing plant in Burma to produce chemicals for the construction industry. The project, which is subject to regulatory approval, is expected to commence in Rangoon in 2017. BASF is said to be the worlds largest chemical producer. Its operations around the globe include a significant presence in Asia. As Myanmars construction industry grows more sophisticated in its scope, which includes high-rise buildings, roadways, and bridges, the requirement for high-quality technical and construction chemical solutions will increase, Christian Mombaur, head of the Asia division of BASF Construction Chemicals said in a statement. BASF has a successful track record in supporting major building and infrastructure projects in Myanmar such as Thilawa Special Economic Zone, Yeywa hydropower dam, Myingyan steel mill, and others. We can draw on our decades of experience in the region and around the world to support Myanmars development in this important sector, he said. BASF opened an office in Rangoon in 2015 and has supplied concrete admixtures, construction systems and mining chemical solutions in the country for a decade, it said. Eden Group to Invest in Affordable Housing Projects Local conglomerate the Eden Group plans to expand its construction operations to include affordable housing, chairman U Chit Khine told Nikkei Asia on a visit to Japan recently. Eden Groups current business portfolio ranges from construction to finance and agriculture. U Chit Khine told the Nikkei that affordable housing outside main cities was now in the companys sights. Our country needs to develop so much infrastructure and real estate, U Chit Khine said. We need to expand our business for the future. Eden Groups construction record has included universities, hospitals, industrial complexes and the presidential palace in Naypyidaw. In future it will also focus on residences, hotels and serviced apartments, U Chit Khine said. The market for middle and lower-middle income homes would increase as family earnings rise in Burma, he said. Customs Takings on the Rise at Airport The customs department at Yangon International Airport levied tariffs worth more than 100 million kyat from mainly passengers during November, according to the Global New Light of Myanmar. Imported items subject to customs tariffs at the airport consisted of consolidated cargo, documents, newspapers and personal goods, according to the department. A total of around 90 million kyat was collected in September and around 100 million kyat was collected in October. Thailands Dusit Group Plans Rangoon Hotel Hospitality company Dusit International has signed a management agreement with local firm the Myanmar V-Pile Group to operate the Dusit Thani Yangon, a five-star hotel which will operate within a mixed-use development in Rangoon. The 388-room hotel aimed at the corporate and MICE market will include a convention center, offices and retail and residential units and will be located in the area slated to become Rangoons second central business district. Mrs Suphajee Suthumpun, group CEO of Dusit International, said the move to Rangoon would set the group up well for further expansion to destinations such as Bagan, Mandalay and Inle Lake. Dr Sone Han of Myanmar V-Pile said the group was very excited to commence our first phase of the secondary central business district (Mindhama) project. Dusit International operates 29 properties around the globe and another 40 are due to open within the next three years, the company said in a statement. Corn Production Expected to Jump Total corn production in Burma is expected to increase by 6 percent during 2016-17, the foreign agricultural service (FAS) of the US Department of Agriculture said in a release this week. Expansion of rain-fed corn growing areas and increased demand from neighboring countries accounted for the projected rise, according to World Grain News. The bulk of Burmas corn production is exported to China Corn farmers need large amounts of seed annually and most farmers have to buy from commercial companies or the government. Thailand-owned Myanmar CP Livestock holds around 65 percent of the local corn seed market, World Grain News said. CP produces hybrid seeds through contract farming with growers in mainly southern Shan State. The Myanmar Department of Agriculture has also developed corn seed varieties and the government holds an estimated 8 percent share of the corn market. Government seeds are known as Yazin varieties, and are cheaper than the seeds sold by private companies. The area planted with corn in Burma has steadily increased in recent years, the report said, due mainly to lower production cost and better profitability for corn compared to competing crops such as potato and garlic. The corn market is expected to grow in line with a growth in animal feed and other markets for corn. China Tin Imports Jump, Mainly from Wa State Chinas imports of tin ores and concentrates more than doubled in October over the previous month, with most of the imports coming from Burma, according to Chinese customs data. The imports totaled 36,515 tonnes, more than double that of the previous month, according to SMM news. Chinas tin imports for the first ten months of 2016 were also up significantly, by around 35 percent over the same period the previous year. Of Chinas total tin imports of 383,690 tonnes in the first ten months of the year, only around 1000 tonnes was not from Burma. The International Tin Research Institute has estimated that as much as 95 percent of Burmas tin output comes from the Man Naw area in Wa State, but output there is expected to decrease. Exports to China this year may have been from stocks accumulated over the last few years, the ITRI said in September. Unless new resources are found, tin mining in Wa State could peak by 2017, the ITRI said. A Reuters story last month said that tin sourced in the Man Naw area was going to Chinese firms supplying a range of international companies including Apple, Starbucks, Huawei, General Electric and Nokia. The companies could be in violation of sanctions placed by the United States placed on the United Wa States Army for suspected narcotics trafficking in 2003, the report said. Great Hor Kham Preparing for YSE The Burma-based Great Hor Kham Public Company plans to issue shares on the Yangon Stock Exchange in four tranches over the next four years, DealStreet Asia reported. The listing is aimed at funding the companys Nam Paw Hydropower project in Muse in Shan State, a company official said. The first of the four issues is expected to be in March 2017 when the company lists on the exchange, managing director Sai Ohn Myint said. Great Hor Kham is among six companies that were scheduled to be listed on the stock exchange since it was inaugurated in December 2015. To date three firms are listed, while First Private Bank, Myanmar Agricultural Business Public Corporation and Great Hor Kham are still making preparations. Great Hor Kham expected to submit its prospectus to the Myanmar Securities Exchange Commission this month, Sai Ohn Myint told Dealstreet. It intends to raise half of the estimated cost of US$40.6 million for the hydropower project via the listing, Dealstreet reported. Great Hor is also in early talks to secure loans from local banks and some other foreign players, Sai Ohn Myint added. From the Archive The Last Queen of Burma King Thibaw and Queen Supayalat, the last monarchs of Burma. On Friday, Burmas vice president, military chief, and the living relatives of King Thibaw, the countrys last royal ruler, attended a ceremony to mark the the centennial of the late kings death in Ratnagiri, India. Here is an account of the last queen of Burma, Supayalat, that we published in 2003. Burmas Queen Supayalat was a ruler to be feared and revered. I have a confession to make. I am infatuated with a dead queen, who among other appalling acts of cruelty ordered that between 80 and 100 of her husbands relatives be murdered in ways said to include the dashing of children against walls. I revere her for that, because the massacreor clearing, as it was calledwas intended to destroy all potential rivals to the throne. But my infatuation derives from a portrait of her found in Terence R Blackburns The British Humiliation of Burma. In it she is prostrate; she seems to be staring right at me. One of her hands is under her chin, the other dangles lazily. Her enigmatic and enticing smile is nearly a smirk, and it originates less from her mouth than from her eyes. Her jet black hair is pulled up into a topknot. She is wearing earrings. She is petite. And she is beautiful. Her name was Supayalat. She was the last queen of Burma. Supayalat was born in 1859. Or 1860: both dates are used. She was the middle daughter of Sinpyumashin, widow to Mindon, whose son Thibaw was Burmas last king, her husband, and therefore also her half-brother. At the time of the massacre, which took place over a few days in February 1879, Supayalat was only around 20 years old. She died in 1925, and was buried in Rangoon. She would ultimately bear six children to Thibaw. The first was the only son, and he died after about six months. All the rest were daughters, as if not only the British Empire wanted the dynasty to end. Two of her daughters resided with her in Rangoon, where she lived in a modestsome say run-downbungalow from 1919 until her death. She called herself an ex-Queen but despite this diminished title, she continued to demand that all visitors shiko her in the manner prescribed by royal custom. She demanded this even of foreigners, and she got her way. Supayalat looms large in the novels The Lacquer Lady and The Glass Palace. And in his famous poem Mandalay, a paean to the East, Rudyard Kipling has this to say about her namesake: Er petticoat was yaller an er little cap was green An er name was Supi-yaw-latjes the same as Theebaws Queen An I seed her first a-smokin of a whackin white cheroot This is interesting, because like many Burmese women Supayalat was a smoker of cheroots, and there is a story that when she had been hustled out of the palace by the conquering British army in 1885, she asked a soldier for a light. At the time, according to Blackburn, she was heavily pregnant. The adjectives applied to the young Supayalat are fairly consistent across histories: vain, domineering, vindictive, unforgiving, imperious, beautiful, ignorant, passionate, determined, childish. When she became old and contrite, the adjectives change to calm, affable, pitiable. She pleaded with one visitor to give her a loan, evidently to support her donations to religious organizations. Her teeth had fallen out. She fed dogs. Only a smattering of Burmese nationalists saw her as a legitimate representative of her country. And though her funeral was appropriately extravagant, her tomb was neglected following the independence of Burma in 1948. It was she, and not Thibaw, who reigned. In 1882, says Blackburn, she assumed full control over the government of Upper Burma, and her rule was described as sharp as a razor. Thibaw was young, inexperienced, effete. According to one of Supayalats maids of honor, No one could stand against her when she was angry It were better to face a tigress. Every one bent and shivered before her, and whatever orders she gave were carried out. The King was but a foolish school-boy before her. In the portrait of Supayalat, the King is sitting beside her. He is plump. His left eye betrays fear, his right eye vacuity, and he almost seems to be leaning on Supayalat for support. Historians tend to portray him as a drunkard, with a particular fondness for derivatives of the grape. Supposedly he was intoxicated when his relatives were dragged out of inhumane prison cells, strangled, clubbed to death, and trod into the groundsometimes while still aliveby reluctant elephants. According to Lord Dufferin, Viceroy, when Supayalat lifted up her finger the whole city trembled. Supayalats ferocity and impertinence were apparent from the very beginning of her reign, if not her life. One historian claimed, for example, that as a child Supayalat enjoyed dismembering birds. This may be nothing more than the hyperbole and distortion often used by the English to discredit their enemies. But maybe not. Later, Supayalat would displace Thibaws Chief Queen Supayagyi by assorted intrigues. After their wedding, Supayalat defied her mother and stayed in Thibaws quarters, and thereafter she did everything in her power to prevent him from taking on new wives and concubines, de rigueur for a Burmese monarch. When a certain Myoza of Yanaung urged Thibaw to take the 17-year-old Mi Hkin-gyi as his minor wife, Supayalat had both the Pandarus and the would-be Cressida executed, and she treated similarly any maid of honor that happened to catch Thibaws eye. She also believed that her sons nurse had poisoned him; the nurses fate was thereby sealed. If she liked you, said a Mandalay abbot, she loved you; if she hated you, she killed you. Murder was not her only weapon. On one occasion she told the famously moderate and competent minister Kin Wun Mingyi that he was acting like a woman, and she even sent him a set of womans clothes. Apparently this is the gravest of insults to Burmese manhood. In The Lacquer Lady, F Tennyson Jesse dramatizes the queens cruelty by showing Supayalats maids of honor pummeling Ma Khingyi (presumably the same as Mi Hkin-gyi) under the pretext of playfully dousing her with water. The queens Schadenfreude jumps off the page. She was vicious but she was also frivolous. She liked to have a good time. She was very protective of her red velvet swing with golden tassels, says Jesse. She had a weakness for jewelry, and one of her last acts as queen included the intended purchase of 70,000 rupees worth of fashionable clothing and, in her vague words, interesting and unusual things. Blackburn gives us this account of her attire: Suphayarlat wore a huge diamond necklace some three or four rows deep, while a sort of coronet, set with rubies, emeralds, and diamonds was fixed in the folds of her hair just above her forehead. She was observed to be wearing English shoes, unusual for someone who supposedly detested anything Western. And especially anything English. According to Jesse, Supayalat hated the English unless they amused her. This is hardly surprising given what they did to her. The British stole much of her property and all of her authority; exiled her to the coast of western India, the culture and soggy climate of which she shunned; and gave her what she considered to be an insufficient pension. Our lot is already too hard, she protested to the Governor of Bombay. The tale of our domestic woes is too long to narrate here We are torn from our natural home and are interned in a land which is utterly foreign to us. One local official reported that in India Supayalat seemed to be moping to death. Meanwhile Thibaw, who had never really wanted to be king anyway, was relatively content. Of course in some measure Supayalat was only getting her comeuppance. Historians blame her for the swift capitulation of Upper Burma to the British, not to mention the countless atrocities against her own people. And she blamed herself too. Little could she have known that some Burmese would later use her as proof that the governing of Burma could not be entrusted to a woman. If Supayalat proved anything, it was that the stereotype of the pliant, subordinate Asian female is specious. Whatever else one may think of herthat she was wicked or simply stupidshe held, for a moment, a country in the palm of her hand. Burma This Week in Parliament (December 12-16) The Irrawaddy keeps you up to date on the week that was in the national legislature. / The Irrawaddy Monday (Dec. 12) In the Lower House, U Min Thein of Taungdwingyi Township asked about the renovation of pagodas that were damaged by a 6.8 magnitude earthquake in Bagan in August. Union Minister for Religious Affairs and Culture U Aung Ko said they would be renovated according to a priority list based on cultural, historical, and architectural value. He added that 36 significant pagodas would be given top priority and their renovation would take three to five years. Lower House lawmakers donated their days allowances, totaling 8,502,000 kyats (about US$6,000), to locals in Shan State displaced by recent clashes between four ethnic armed groups and the Burma Army. In the Upper House, U Khin Maung Latt of Sagaing Division (9) asked if the Burmese government would talk to the Indian government about demolishing parts of a border fence that the Indian government constructed against the provisions of a bilateral border agreement. The deputy minister of foreign affairs replied that his ministry has asked the Indian government to remove illegal border fences through diplomatic means and that his ministry had proposed erecting additional border posts to avoid similar cases in the future. Daw Khin Swe Lwin of Chin State Constituency (9) asked the government about its plan to provide women with access to maternal health information regarding reproduction, family planning and pregnancy. Union Minister for Health Dr. Myint Htwe said his ministry would soon take action to equip and deploy midwives on a national scale and put greater efforts into educating would-be mothers and mothers in ethnic languages. Tuesday (Dec. 13) The Union Parliament approved additional budgets for the 2016-17 fiscal year. The extra funds requested by all of the ministries amounted to almost US$1 billion but Parliament cut about $52 million before final approval. The Union Parliament also approved the presidents proposal to obtain 94 billion (US$800 million) in loans from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for implementation of projects. The loans will be used by the ministries of construction, agriculture, livestock and irrigation, electric power and energy, and the Rangoon municipality. Wednesday (Dec. 14) In the Lower House, Daw Mar Mar Khaing of Thaton Township urged the Union government to take a tough stance on illegal gambling. Ten lawmakers debated her proposal and it was recorded by Parliament. Daw Khin San Hlaing of Pale Township asked the government if it would prescribe suitable penalties for child molesters, and if it would organize widespread educational programs to attract public participation in fighting against child rape cases. Deputy Minister for Home Affairs Maj-Gen Aung Soe said his ministry was working to ensure punishments fit related crimes, while concerned ministries were reviewing the child law and designing a new law for the prevention of sexual violence against women. Lawmaker U Myint Lwin of Twante Township asked if the government had a plan to abolish labor camps across Burma. Deputy Minister for Home Affairs Maj-Gen Aung Soe said his ministry had no plan to abolish them, arguing that such camps were no longer labor camps, but in 2013 were turned into agricultural and vocational training camps for inmates. In the Upper House, Dr. Arkar Moe of Karen State (7) accused the leadership of the Myanmar International Cooperation Agency (MICA), which the previous government formed in 2012 with the intention of promoting the meat and fish industry as well as food sufficiency, of promoting self-interest instead of serving the interests of the country. He called for abolishing the MICA and asked the government what it would do with farmlands, factories and businesses confiscated by MICA. Parliament accepted his debate proposal. Thursday (Dec. 15) In the Union Parliament, 18 lawmakers debated the Presidents proposal to join the Asean Convention Against Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children. Parliament approved the proposal. Friday (Dec. 16) In Union Parliament, 10 lawmakers debated the Presidents proposal to obtain a loan of 50 million from Polands government for the Fire Services Department under the Ministry of Home Affairs. Parliament will decide at a later date. Nine lawmakers debated the presidents proposal to obtain a loan of US$56.8 million from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) for the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation for agricultural development projects in the eastern states. Parliament will decide at a later date. "Days of Our Lives" spoilers reveal that Gabi will challenge JJ about the truth that she overhears from his conversation with Jennifer, while Abby will be seen holding back upon knowing that Chad is ready to move on without her. In the meantime, Ciara catches Theo and Ciara sharing a steamy kiss. Abby Holds Back For many times over, Abigail (Marci Miller) has thought of revealing herself to Chad (Billy Flynn), but to no avail. Abby's still overwhelmed with fears that her husband will reject her, most especially that she's been growing closer to Gabi (Camila Banus). Just in time when she has mustered up enough courage to finally show herself to Chad, she'll hear him from behind that he's ready to move on with his life and take off his wedding ring. Latest spoilers reveal that Abby will go back full circle tormented about what she'll witness. Dario (Jordi Vilasuso) and Andre (Thaao Penghlis) have been pushing Abigail to do what she needs to do. They'll both insist that Chad needs Abby and that she has to come out already. Gabi Tests JJ After overhearing JJ (Casey Moss) and Jennifer (Melissa Reeves) talking about unveiling the truth, Gabi will indirectly challenge JJ to tell her about it from under. Gabi overhears JJ saying he could no longer hide his secret from her. This sparks Gabi's interest. JJ once lost Gabi after telling her that he cheated on her and he cannot afford to lose her again for keeping a secret. Ciara Dumps Theo Elsewhere, Theo (Kyler Pettis) has been running after Ciara (Vivian Jovanni) in hopes to win her. Later, he realizes that he's chasing after the wind with Ciara, just in time to come to him the thought of noticing Claire (Olivia Rose Keegan). "Days of Our Lives" spoilers reveal Theo and Claire will share a torrid kiss in the park as Ciara catches them. Ciara begins to feel that she's jealous with what she sees. Spoilers hint at Ciara dumping Theo over what happened. In the meantime, Abe (James Reynolds) and Valerie (Vanessa Williams) continue to rekindle their romance. However, Theo is hell-bent on kicking Valerie out of his dad's life. Theo has been spying on Valerie's activities and Abe doesn't quite like his son snooping around. Theo has yet to know that the guy Valerie had exchange of messages with is her son Eli (Lamon Archey). Is JJ just being selfish about telling Gabi the truth? Should Theo and Ciara be together? What do you think? Comment down below you thoughts! "Days of Our Lives" airs Mondays thru Fridays at 2:00 p.m. ET on NBC. Liquid lithium-ion batteries are most commonly used as rechargeable batteries in electronic devices like cellphones and laptops. This battery type has a lot of benefits, like high energy density and stable energy capacity for a lower cost, but they are also extremely flammable. This is the same reason attributed to explosion reports of Samsung Galaxy Note 7. There May Be A Safer Alternative To Liquid Lithium-Ion Batteries But scientists may have found a way to replace liquid lithium-ion batteries. In a study published in the journal Energy & Environmental Science, researchers from Stanford University, who have been working on finding a less volatile alternative to the flammable liquid electrolytes in these batteries for a long time, have discovered a safe alternative. Austin Sendek, lead author of the study, said: "Electrolytes shuttle lithium ions back and forth between the battery's positive and negative electrodes. Liquid electrolytes are cheap and conduct ions really well, but they can catch fire if the battery overheats or is short-circuited by puncturing." Researchers Used AI To Identify Experimental Data Researchers used artificial intelligence to identify over twenty solid electrolytes. The computer algorithm learned to identify good and bad compounds, which screened promising materials, including stability, cost, abundance and the ability to conduct lithium ions and re-route electrons through the battery's circuit, Business Standard reported. "We screened more than 12,000 lithium-containing compounds and ended up with 21 promising solid electrolytes," Sendek said. The researchers will eventually test the 21 materials to determine which are best suited for use in the real world. "Our approach has the potential to address many kinds of materials problems and increase the effectiveness of research investments in these areas," senior author, Evan Reed, said. "As the amount of data in the world increases and as computers improve, our ability to innovate is going to increase exponentially. Whether it's batteries, fuel cells or anything else, it's a really exciting time to be in this field," he concluded. The legendary Lamborghini Murcielago is one of the most hyped and most liked supercars in the world. The Murcielago, which translates to "bat" in Spanish, was named after a legendary fighting bull that survived after 90 blows from swords. Sadly, this specific Lambo did not survive the beating it got from heavy machinery, and only the owner is to blame for the innocent supercar's fate. Taiwanese Law Mandates Destruction Of Illegally Imported Cars Taiwanese officials shred the limited edition Lamborghini Murcielago because it had a fake license plate. Apparently, the owner of the supercar illegally imported the car to Taiwan several years ago. The decision to crash the vehicle followed after a three-year squabble and a series of failed appeals against the destruction of the car. Unfortunately, Taiwanese laws did not allow the vehicle to be re-sold and that it has to be destroyed. Posters of the Lamborghini Murcielago can be found in almost all rooms of teenage boys from the early to late 2000s. It has been a legend that most can only dream of buying, driving, or even seeing in person. This supercar is one that can truly rival the likes of Ferrari or Bugatti. The Murcielago was the successor to the ever-famous Diablo and was senior to the newer Aventador. The Murcielago is capable of hitting the zero to 100-kilometer mark in a mere 3.8 seconds with its 630 horsepower 6.5liter engine. Obey The Law If You Really Love Your Car It's a shame that a limited edition vehicle, that its creators spent months or even years perfecting, can be destroyed in just a few minutes. The Lamborghini Murcielago cost around $350,000 dollars in the United States and only 4,099 units were built between 2001 and 2010. This is a lesson for all car enthusiasts to stick to the law to avoid regrets. Money cannot always buy the government, and this incident is a good example of diligent officials that refuse to be sell-outs. Nina Dobrev recently greeted her ex-boyfriend Ian Somerhalder during his recent birthday. Despite what all the rumors have claimed about the former couple, they have remained good friends. The only question left now is when Dobrev will make her guest appearance in "The Vampire Diaries." Nina Dobrev Greets Ian Somerhalder During His Birthday Despite Bad Blood Rumors There have been numerous rumors circling around the status of former couple, Nina Dobrev and Ian Somerhalder. It has been previously reported that Somerhalder is allegedly cheating on his wife Nikki Reed with ex-girlfriend, Nina Dobrev. Thus, this has led to the speculations that one of the reasons Dobrev is unsure to return to "The Vampire Diaries" is Reed's disapproval of the actress working again with her husband. Reed has reportedly been jealous of Dobrev ever since they started going out. However, none of these rumors seem to be true as they have been proved otherwise by all the parties involved. For one, it doesn't seem to be true that Reed and Somerhalder are headed to a divorce, especially since they have always been seen together ad not even a hint of discomfort between the two is shared. For another thing, Dobrev openly greeted Somerhalder for his birthday during the AMA night when the actress was shortly interviewed after the ceremony. Thus, this only proves that amidst what all the reports have claimed, there is no bad blood between the Dobrev and Somerhalder. Dobrev Still Busy With Other Commitments To Film For Her Return On "The Vampire Diaries" Season 8 In line with this, Dobrev guesting in "The Vampire Diaries" season eight for the series finale is definitely possible. As assured previously by executive producer, Julie Plec, Dobrev has always been open to coming back to the show, especially for the finale. However, the actress has been extremely busy these days, and scheduling her to get to Atlanta to film her scene in the series might be too hard to attain. Nevertheless, reports have claimed that if Somerhalder were to decide how the show would end, she would want Elena to wake up and have the Salvatore brothers gone from her life. This would definitely be a great way for the character to start over with her life as peacefully as possible. Tech giant Apple might be finally building a Dual-SIM iPhone, as it was revealed through recent patents that were filed in different countries. Of course, this could mean that Apple might be betting everything in order to grow its sales in China since the iPhones have been facing troubles in Asia which is considered to be the largest market there is. A Dual-SIM iPhone 8 Would Be Real Popular In India And China According to Forbes, customers in places like India and China usually have two phone numbers associated with one mobile device. Naturally, a Dual-SIM iPhone would offer this ability to these users, and would even be available on the highly-anticipated iPhone 8, which is expected to be a huge a success in those nations. This information was known thanks to recent documents filed with the Intellectual Property Office of China, which described a Dual-SIM card feature for the phone, that would allow it to store two numbers. As it was showed in the filings, the application was submitted in March 2016 and published three months ago. In fact, the inventor that was listed on the filings is Li Su, which is one of the principal architects for cellular software at Apple, as it was reported in his LinkedIn profile. A Dual-SIM iPhone Would Mean Some Troubles For Apple According to University Herald, a Dual-SIM iPhone would mean a whole different game by Apple, given the fact that this is something that has never done before. In fact, its known that the tech giant would never allow microSD storage on this mobile device since it would have an impact on iPhone ASPs. Also, a Dua-SIM iPhone might represent a huge inconvenience, considering that it would add some bulk to the hardware, and it would gain some troubles in the U.S., South Korean, Japan, Australia and Western Europe because Apple ties up closely with carriers of these nations to sell the phones. In any case, if this end up happening, the iPhone 8 will have a feature that could decrease its greatness, but increase its popularity in China. Yahoos stolen accounts in August 2013, including details as usernames, hashed passwords, and many security questions, have already been sold around three times on the dark web for roughly $373,000 each, as it was reported by the security expert and chief intelligence officer at the cybersecurity firm InfoArmor, Andrew Komarov. The Three Buyers On The Dark Web According to the International Business Times, he explained that it was a set of Eastern European hackers the one who sold the one billion accounts on the dark web. Apparently, these hackers could have been the same that attacked major websites as Dropbox Myspace and LinkedIn in the last years. Also, he revealed that two of the buyers on the Dark web were spammers, and the third could have been a foreign intelligence agency since they asked specifically a list of 10 American and foreign government officials in order to prove the authenticity before making any kind of business. In fact, the security expert said he managed to intercept a copy of the database during a purchase, and eventually shared with the U.S. government since it contained sensitive data on many accounts that belong to FBI agents, military officials, National Security Agency operatives and White House staffers. Verizon Could Get A Cheaper Deal Apparently, Komarov got to the point of alerting the law enforcements in the U.S. and the U.K. over the possibility of a second breach. A couple of days before, Yahoo admitted that it has suffered another of these attack, but with this one as considered to be the largest data breach to hit a major company. According to The Sun, this situation might represent a huge benefit to Verizons interest in the acquisition of Yahoo, since the company will now have an opportunity to pay less to acquire Yahoo. In fact, many analysts believe that Yahoo could even lose almost $5 million that would gain obtained if this situation never occurred. Netflix has finally released the official trailer for the anticipated animated series, Trollhunters. They have teased about the said Dreamworks show earlier. And now, it has revealed that the series will be coming out soon. It has been a while indeed since the last time fans have seen a work from the renowned Guillermo del Toro. The latest production he worked on was Crimson Peak, a gothic romance film, which was released in October 2015. Though the said movie did not click that much with viewers, fans are actually anticipating the upcoming animated series, Trollhunter from the said filmmaker. The story of the upcoming animated series revolves around the life of an ordinary teenager named Jim Lake Jr. who happened to stumble upon a mystical amulet that led him to discover the existence of an extraordinary civilization of trolls well hidden beneath his hometown. Unfortunately, possessing the said amulet has forced him to take on the responsibilities of a Trollhunter and set off on an adventure along with his friends fighting formidable vengeful enemies to protect the secret world of good trolls. The trailer for "Trollhunter" revealed a vivid animation full of vibrant characters that both kids and young adults will enjoy. Del Toro and the cast has said that though the animated series is set to attract young viewers, parents and those kids at heart will also find the series delightful especially since it is set in a fantasy genre full of monsters and magic. Aside from that, the trailer as well as the featurette Netflix unveiled a couple of days ago, disclosed some characters that viewers will surely grow fond of. Trollhunters is one of the upcoming new series that will be streamed on Netflix. It is an animated series created by del Toro and produced by Cha Cha Cha Films and DreamWorks Animation. With a talented writer behind the script and backed with producers responsible for releasing successful productions like Mother and Child and Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Scrolls, fans are setting high expectations for the said show. Though it will finally air on Netflix, the said animated series already premiered its first two episodes at New York Comic Con back in October 2016. The entire series will officially debut on Netlix on Dec. 23 this year. It can be recalled that series creators of "Rick and Morty," Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland previously assure the fans that the show will return before the end of the year. However, the year is already about to end and there have been no news on when the release date yet is, leading to speculations that it may not happen at all. "Rick And Morty" Season 3 To Skip Rick's Escape From Prison And Go Straight To The Events Thereafter? Since there have been no updates on the developments of "Rick and Morty" season three, many of the fans are speculating that it will no longer come into light. However, it is highly unlikely since they creators of the series have already confirmed its' upcoming season. Therefore, many have now speculated that the upcoming storyline will involve a time-jump from where things have been left off during the second season finale. Since the creators have remained mum on the developments, any spoilers should be taken lightly. There are theories that the creators may be skipping on Ricks escape from the Intergalactic Federation Prison and just go straight to him returning to his family. If the writers decide to skip on that part, the fans will definitely be disappointed since many are waiting for the events to transpire in his attempt to escape prison. With the help of Morty and Summer, there will definitely be many adventures that they will encounter as they help Rick in getting out of jail. Dan Harmon Responds To Fans Complaining About Slow Progress In Creating "Rick And Morty" Season 3 Aside from the fans expressing their theories on social media, they have also managed to piss of one of the creators of "Rick and Morty," Dan Harmon. The fans have been slamming them on social media on the updates of the series' upcoming season. Dan finally responded to the bashers and explained how exhausting it is to create an animated series as such. It will definitely not be easy and will acquire more time for it to be finished. He was definitely fed up with people's expectations on believing that creating "Rick and Morty' is as easy as it looks, because it definitely is not. After investigating into the Facebook's drone crash, a U.S. government report concluded that the cause of the incident was the fact that a wing on the internet-beaming aircraft broke when its autopilot tried to maintain its angle of descent. Facebook's Drone Crash According to CNET, Aquila, Facebook's internet-beaming drone prototype, was involved in a crash because of an inability to handle the wind, as concluded by a federal investigation. Now, the social media company is working on changing the aircraft design accordingly. Facebook's Aquila drone, unmanned and operated by autopilot technology, was involved in a crash during its first test flight in Yuma, Arizona, on June 28. At the moment of the crash, the drone was preparing to land at the very end of its flight. The unmanned aircraft was damaged pretty badly but, fortunately, no one was injured, according to a report released Friday, Dec. 16, by the National Transportation Safety Board report. The drone had difficulties in maintaining its proper angle of descent due to a stronger-than-expected wind. Its autopilot tried to compensate for the wind by pointing the nose of the aircraft down, according to the NTSB report. In order to do so, the drone lifted up flaps on the trailing edge of its wing (elevons). This maneuver led to too much pressure and twisting for the unmanned aircraft. Another problem uncovered by the crash is that the Aquila drone could not slow itself down enough through aerodynamic drag. Facebook's blog post explained that the autopilot technology was not able to track both the glide path and airspeed at the same time, giving too much priority to airspeed. The company concluded that future designs will need to incorporate a mechanism to increase drag so the Aquila drone can descend at a moderate speed. Lessons Learned Facebook announced that it's already designing and building second-generation aircraft. As result of the testing and learning, new features are being added. The company is eager to fly its drones again. According to Tech Crunch, Facebook is not a hardware company and the drone technology is a new field of exploration for the social media company. Despite its vast resources, before it can expect everything to work perfectly, the tech company will have to go through trials and errors. With each successive test flight, Facebook is facing both expected and unexpected technical challenges. However, the testing will teach Facebook engineers more about how to fly their experimental aircraft. Despite the crash, Facebook still called the flight an overall success. The company is keen to find new ways to facilitate access to the internet for people in remote areas. Designed to circle overhead for 60 to 90 days at a time and powered by solar energy, the Aquila drone is part of Facebook's effort to increase broadband coverage to remote areas without using the traditional internet infrastructure. The Aquila crash was not the only setback to Facebook's plans. A satellite designed to bring internet access to parts of Africa was destroyed in September when the SpaceX Falcon 9 carrier rocket exploded at Cape Canaveral, Florida. This year saw a surge in popularity for hybrid devices, particularly for laptop and tablet 2-in-1s. One particular model that has been generally well received is the Lenovo Yoga Book, which has a touchscreen display and hinged design. The same unit, however, is scheduled for a facelift and will make its debut in 2017. Jeff Meredith, the company's vice president and general manager of its Android and Chrome Computing Business Group, confirmed that the Yoga Book will come in an option to run on Google's Chrome operating system. This will be an addition to the models that run on Windows 10 and Android that are already in the market. Meredith, as Digital Trend notes, confirmed in an interview exactly why Lenovo decided on this. According to Meredith, the company took an interest in Chromebooks when these types of laptops were making their way into schools via the educational system. He then stated that Lenovo "had a lot of interest" in providing this same OS in a more flexible platform. This is where the Yoga Book running on Chrome OS will fit in. The Lenovo Yoga Book is a 2-in-1 PC that has a 10.1-inch screen and a touch-based Halo keyboard, as well as support for a real ink stylus. The design itself has sat well with most artists, according to Android Police, but has had some trouble getting picked up by mechanical keyboard fans. Nevertheless, the new Chromebook option is surely to get the attention of the public - particularly in the US. Meredith admitted that sales of the Yoga Book have been great in locations such as Japan, China, and Germany, but have only been average in the United States. Offering three options for the hybrid device - Windows, Android, and Chrome - is expected to pull the numbers up. As mentioned earlier, educational systems are expected to be the biggest driver in this growth once the model comes out in 2017. While the South Korean giant Samsung is working on two new VR headsets, the tech company sees more of an opportunity in the AR niche. Samsung's VR Plans Samsung is already involved in the virtual reality (VR) space with its Samsung Gear VR headset, and the company is pretty successful with it so far. According to The Street, Samsung VP Sung-Hoon Hong said on Thursday, Dec. 15, at the Virtual Reality Summit in San Diego, that his company has two new virtual reality headsets under the development. The first one is called the Samsung Gear VR 2. Hong said that the VR gadget will be unveiled in a short time. On the other side, Samsung will base its another headset upon existing augmented reality technology from start-up VR company Magic Leap and Microsoft's HoloLens. The South Korean company's VR business has already become quite popular. According to market analytics firm IHS Markit, since the product's launched in November 2015, the tech company will end the year 2016 with 5.4 million Gear VR headsets sold in total. This achievement will give Samsung the largest virtual reality installed base out of all major VR headsets coming from the top brands. Samsung's AR Plans Hong also said that going forward, in the near future Samsung could focus more heavily on augmented reality (AR) instead of VR. According to Wearable Zone, Hong considers that AR has much better business development for Samsung. At the at the Virtual Reality Summit in San Diego, Samsung VP Hong said that augmented reality is what the company is aiming for. According to Slash Gear, Samsung may launch its AR glasses not long after the Galaxy S8 and the newest Gear VR headset is unveiled in February 2017. The company might launch then a new edition of the Gear VR, as well as a new pair of smart glasses never revealed before. Hong actually prompted Samsung's fans to come with ideas for the upcoming AR glasses. Google Home will have more to talk about thanks to 34 new services. Google Home got support for Netflix just a day ago while Google Photos was included recently. In the near future, Google Assistant will be in cars, particularly in Mercedes-Benz vehicles. This will be previewed in the upcoming CES 2017, according to VentureBeat. Today, it is introducing more than 30 new 'conversation actions' tackling different fields including medicine (WebMD), recipes (Food Network), travel (Lonely Planet), tech (Product Hunt), games (Blackjack, Akinator), news (CNBC, HuffPost), movies (And Chill), books (Itcher), meditation (Headspace), cocktails (Tender), and pizzas (Domino's). Here is a complete list of all the new actions of Google Home: 21 Blackjack Akinator the Genie Anchor And Chill Argus Ask Jelly Busuu CNBC Domino's Pizza Eliza ELLE Horoscopes by The Astro Twins FitStar Personal Trainer Food Network Genius Headspace The Huffington Post Itcher Lonely Planet NBC News NPR One Number Genie Product Hunt Quora Quotery SongPop Sub War Tender The Bartender The Wall Street Journal Todoist Trivia Blast VentureBeat News WebMD Wonder The voice-activated smart speaker first arrived in October and was poised to rival Amazon's own smart speaker, the Echo, and other smart speakers and digital assistants. When going up against the Amazon Echo and Alexa, Google Home falls a bit short. But that is mainly because Alexa already has thousands of skills or capabilities. Google recently announced that third-party developers may create 'conversation actions' through the 'Actions on Google" platform. PC World believes this move y the company means "Google Home will quickly become the intelligent home aid we want it to be". Google Assistant product lead, Jason Douglas relayed that, "Conversation Actions from early access partners will begin rolling out over the coming weeks - starting today." Douglas added that the company is "excited to see what developers build". Apple Inc has committed to invest around $44 million in a research and development center in Indonesia over the next three years, a senior government official said. This enables Apple it to start selling its latest iPhone 7 in the Southeast Asian nation, especially in Indonesia. Apple Inc. To Expand In Indonesia And Unlock Local iPhone Sales Apple Inc. is now set to expand into Indonesia, after committing to a $44 million investment to open a new research and development (R&D) center in the region over the next few years, according to Reuters. Indonesia will implement a rule that requires all smartphones to have at least 30 percent of local its content. The government's requirement will star next year and can be in different ways. It can be in hardware, software, or investments. With Apple's supply chain deeply entrenched in other regions, the iPhone maker went with the latter route and recently earned a "local content certification," according to the report. According to Apple Insider, same rule also applies in India. Apple received a "local content certification" in November, according to a director-general from the country's industry ministry, Gusti Putu Suryawirawan. The $44 million will be spent over three years, Suryawirawan said, letting the company sell iPhones priced at $448 and above, which includes every current model. "Apple has committed around $44 million to invest in R&D over three years," said Gusti Putu Suryawirawan, director-general from the country's industry ministry. "Therefore, they can distribute devices priced 6 million rupiah ($448) and above. That means all iPhones can be distributed," Suryawirawan added. Smartphone Companys Stay Firm There were roughly 55 million smartphone users in Indonesia in 2015, and quarterly unit sales are typically in the single-digit millions, according to The Motley Fool. However, the smartphone user base to jump to approximately 92 million by 2019, so there's definitely some growth potential for the Indonesian smartphone market, which is already the third-largest in the Asia-Pacific region behind China and India. Samsung as the market leader with 32% market share. China-based OPPO came in No. 2 with 17% share, followed by ASUS with 8%. The market researcher notes that most of the growth is coming from the $250-to-$300 price segment of the market, although entry-level handsets in the $100-to-$200 range are still the core part of the market. Note that Apple doesn't directly participate in either of those market segments. Mars has been in the news recently. Great interest on it has been given in part because of the number of organizations that are looking forward to having manned missions there. As a new US administration comes in, people now look at Trump over the Mars project. NASA has so many plans for Mars. Currently, it has the Curiosity mission ongoing. The agency is looking forward to having manned missions to Mars by 2030. Other organizations as well are looking to have manned missions to Mars. With Donald Trump willing the US elections recently, one of the concerns of many people is about the manned Mars mission. For now many are still waiting on what his plans would be about it, and about any space missions in general. However, there are signs that he might want to continue it. During the campaign Trump has said in Florida that NASA should be free from being a logistics agency for low-Earth activities. Trump did not discuss the details as to what he meant by it, though it could mean that he wants to see NASA have a bigger program than just low-Earth activities. That could be inferred on what he said in other places. In Stanford, he has that NASA will have a greater role in space exploration, according to Phys Org. While there he has also said that America will lead the way into reaching the stars, which is a clear indication that there might be bigger things in store for NASA. That is what people hope for as NASA prepares to have manned Mars missions. The Obama Administration has already laid the groundwork for NASA's Mars missions. The goal would be to have a settlement there. This is the same goal by some private organizations such as SpaceX and the Mars One project. Among them though NASA has the most experience in space travel as well as much resources for it. Continued support from the Trump administration would ensure that a trip to Mars would become more feasible as 2030 nears. For years after the Cold War, there is much international cooperation in space exploration. Trips to the International Space Station have been done both by NASA and Russia. Russia has been active in sending people to the ISS. Many see that Trump is more open to cooperation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as the Daily Mail reports. This might also extend to having international cooperation in space. As a new administration takes over, many are waiting on what will happen to the US space program. People now look at Trump over the Mars project. While people await Trump's decision, the Mars One project has been delayed in Europe. Since its release last November, the NES Classic Edition has sold more units than any other retro consoles. However, there are not enough mini NES consoles going around to satisfy everyone who wants one. Nintendo reportedly has sold 196,000 NES Classic Edition units so far. That may seem a lot but it is certainly not enough. The Japanese gaming company has been criticized for not making enough mini NES consoles to keep everyone happy this holiday. Tips on How to Find One The best possible way for fans to finally get their hands on a mini-NES is to utilize websites dedicated to finding stocks of different products in different stores around the country. Such tracker websites include NowInStock, BrickSeek, and ZooLert. Retail stores like Wal-Mart and target have their own online inventory trackers that customers can visit and use to check if the mini NES has been restocked. One particular successful mini NES hunter shared his experience over at the comment section of BrickSeek. The customer said that one needs to refresh the BS tracker for stores such as target starting at 8 or 9 p.m. until midnight. According to the commenter, the On-hand Quantity is always one short of the Saleable Quantity. The customer also said that there is no need to rush to the store once the inventory light turns yellow or green signifying that stock has arrived. That stock will be available the next day so the best thing to do is to go to the store early - around 3:30 a.m., the earliest. Of course, the earlier one gets to the store, the better his or her chances to get the mini NES. Aside from tracking websites, one can also use Twitter. Keep updated on possible restocks by getting notifications from the Twitter accounts of retail stores to your phone. Amazon recently announced the availability of the console in key cities in the country. Many got wind of the announcement through Twitter. Like notifications, Google Group Alerts may also come in handy in the search for the elusive mini NES. Sign up to stores' Group Alerts to get email alerts. Crytek, the studio behind hit games like FarCry and Crysis, is in serious trouble. According to an employee, the studio has not paid their staff for six months without any clarification on what the issue is. If Crytek's issues with salary continues, the company is expected to shut down unless another company would buy the studio. According to reports, Microsoft could possibly the one that could potentially buy the company. Issue brewing in Crytek The anonymous employee recently posted on Reddit about his complaints with Crytek and is seeking for some legal advice regarding the matter. According to the employee, this is the longest period that the staff from Crytek have not been paid. The frustrated employee is not sure whether the management is being paid or informed about the situation while the rest of them have been left without anything. Can Microsoft answer Crytek's problem? They were informed that their salaries will be paid soon, but it will always be delayed. The post also mentioned that the salary is affecting all of Crytek's offices. Currently, Microsoft is in need of a first party developer and Crytek could possibly fit that void. Crytek's history of issues This isn't the first time Crytek had issues with regards to their employees. Back in 2014, Crytek also had delays on their salary payment. This was made in order to keep the company alive as it was also experiencing some financial issues at that time. The company was later on saved when an unnamed benefactor gave them some funds. But afterward, Crytek had to cut down the company from 900 to 700 employees, along with having to close down the US and UK offices. This closure also caused the cancellation of Ryse 2, the sequel to Xbox One's launch game Ryse: Son of Rome. So we can assume that the said unnamed benefactor has stopped funding the studio, which would also explain the recent salary problems that the company is experiencing now. Microsoft could possibly be the next benefactor if they are willing to do so. Crytek's amazing quality of games Although Crytek hasn't released a hit game since Crysis 3, the CryEngine is also an asset that still makes them a valuable studio. Using the CryEngine, Crytek has developed the most technically demanding games that are universally praised for its amazing graphics. Games that have been released years ago are still being used on testing benchmarks for recent graphic cards. Will Microsoft buy Crytek for Scorpio? Microsoft is currently developing its latest Console, the Xbox Scorpio, which has been said to be the most powerful console yet to hit the market. If Microsoft does buy Crytek and gain access towards their CryEngine, then the collaboration between the two companies would definitely help both causes. Win-win for both companies If the rumor proves true, Microsoft will gain a new first party developer that possesses a powerful engine that Microsoft can develop games with. With that, Crytek will be afloat yet again. It's a win-win situation for both Microsoft and Crytek U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies such as CIA and FBI agree that Russia hacked Democratic National Committee emails with the intention of influencing the election in favor of President-elect Donald Trump. Russia Interfering With US Presidential Election The Huffington Post reports that the FBI was previously skeptical about CIA's allegations. However, after first telling lawmakers it could not be sure of the motive behind the Russian cyberattack, the federal agency has changed its standing and now agrees with the CIA assessment that Moscow intended to boost Trump's chance of winning, according to a report published by The Washington Post. Russia was first accused by the intelligence community of orchestrating the attack in October, according of a press release by DNI. However, the intelligence community did not provide a motive at the time. Democrats, frustrated by clear and negative effects the leaked emails were having on former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's campaign, started to press the Obama administration for a stronger response as the November election neared. On Friday, Dec. 16, President Barack Obama declined to confirm the Post's report, while defending his administration's handling of the Russian cyberattack. President Obama's Response Obama explained that his primary concern during the elections has been to ensure that the integrity of the election process was not damaged in any way in a hyper-partisan atmosphere. According to CNN, Obama also said that at the G20-Summit in September he personally confronted Putin about the election interference. Back at the time, he warned the Russian President about serious consequences of such interference. Intelligence Community's Reactions According to The Atlantic, the former acting director of the CIA, Michel Morell, was asked this weekend, about the intelligence community's findings that Russia interfered in the presidential election. His answer stated was unequivocal. According to him, America is not yet grasping the magnitude of the story. Bur for him, "this is the political equivalent of 9/11." Morell considers that that the Russian-directed cyberattacks can be considered as an unprecedented attack on American democracy. His comments are going even further than the claims of some members of Congress. The data breaches that affected Democrats are just a modern example of routine cold war narrative of country-on-country spying, in spite of the distinctive flavor of the digital intrusions. However, one aspect sets them apart. Their target is unprecedented high profile, the American presidential election process itself. The hackers' willingness to leak stolen information in order to influence voters' opinions is unprecedented. This is, perhaps, one of the most successful espionage operation in history. Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr announced earlier on Friday that his panel will review the report of U.S. intelligence officials on the October accusation against Russia, according to a press release published on his official internet website. The committee under his leadership will interview government officials from both the incoming Trump administration and the outgoing Obama administration, according to Burr. Burr's announcement comes just a week after the White House ordered the intelligence community to perform a full review into "malicious cyber activity" tied to U.S. elections. According to a report published by Politico, Republicans downplayed the need for additional investigations, following the lead of their president-elect, while Congressional Democrats pushed for separate probes into Russia's role. WGN America announced "Outsiders" season 2 will premiere on Jan. 24, 2017. The sequel promises more bloodshed as the conflict between the Farrells and the locals of Blacksburg, Kentucky gets more intense. The production team also hinted that each episode will be action-packed and will involve more fighting as the wild Farrells wander around the streets of the town. "Outsiders" Season 1 Review "Outsiders" follows the interactions of an off-grid clan, the Farrells who isolated themselves from the society and lived a Spartan life in the mountains -- paranoid of outsiders. Asa Farrell (Joe Anderson) is a cousin of the ruling family who decided to leave the mountain to experience normal life in the society. Upon his return, he was imprisoned by "Big Foster" Farrell IV (David Morse), the next in line as clan leader, considering him as a traitor in the family. A mining company took interest in the mountain the Farrells are ruling and sent an eviction notice to the clan. Being the only person who can read among the group, Asa was released and pardoned by the family matriarch Lady Ray Farrell (Phyllis Somerville) and Big Foster's ascension to power was compromised. To secure his position, he led a raid to the town which resulted in bloodshed. The last episode of "Outsiders" season 1 ended on a cliffhanger as the local police got on top of Shay Mountain and the three clans -- Shays, McGintucks and Farrells -- surrounded them while chanting for storm clouds. Meanwhile, Asa was imprisoned by Gwyn who became the Bren'in. The first seven episodes of "Outsiders" season 1 attracted average ratings of 2.8 million viewers which led to the series' renewal by WGN America. Previously, the network cancelled its supernatural drama series, "Salem." "Outsiders" Season 2 Spoilers It looks like they will be able to drive away the police after what looked like a war battlefield. A video teaser of "Outsiders" season 2 narrates: "This is our mountain, our home ... we want you to leave us alone, but you didn't listen, now you'll pay the price." However, it won't be the end of the problem. In the said video, executive producer Peter Mattei hinted that the conflict between the town and the Farrells will just keep getting worse. The townspeople will try to trap the Farrells by trying to make a massive fence. Meanwhile, Big Foster who supposedly died in the first season is having a comeback. The clan will look for Big Foster's body but it will not be where it was last seen in season 1. Gwyn (Gillian Alexy) will order Lil Foster (Ryan Hurst) to find his father's body but it was revealed that Lil Foster will get into some sort of trouble. "Outsiders" season 2 teaser shows Lil Foster getting in a confrontation with the local police, and in the next scene, he is smashing bodies in the police car. As for Hasil (Kyle Gallner) and Saly-Ann (Christina Jackson), their Romeo-and-Juliet-like relationship will have some problems. Hasil will come to look for Sally-Ann after the town's war with the Farrells. Sally-Ann said she doesn't want to see Hasil again but Hasil will continue, telling her "...and I don't wanna let you go." Sally-Ann will get into a confrontation with his brother for seeing Hasil but those make-out clips hint they are going to resolve their differences soon. Watch "Outsiders" season 2 teaser below: General Motors announced it will be the first company to begin testing fully autonomous cars on Michigan's roads after the state passed legislation that allowed self-driving vehicles on all public roadways. GM said it will test versions of all-electric Chevrolet Bolts equipped with self-driving technology that it said will begin rolling out of a Michigan plant in January. "Revolutionizing transportation for our customers while improving safety on roads is the goal of our autonomous vehicle technology, and today's announcement gets us one step closer to making this vision a reality," GM CEO Mary Barra said in a statement. "Our autonomous technology will be reliable and safe, as customers have come to expect from any of our vehicles." Nissan Nissan Motor Co. General Manager Tetsuya Iijima removes his hands from the steering wheel of an autonomous Nissan Leaf as it pilots itself through Sunnyvale, Calif. in January 2016. Some self-driving vehicles are already being tested by GM at its Technical Center campus in Warren, Mich., but after the state legislature passed a series of bills allowing autonomous vehicles on its roadways, the carmaker said they will now expand to public roads on the facility's outskirts. Within the next few months, testing will expand to metro Detroit, which will become GM's main location for development of autonomous technology in winter climates. Workers at GM's Orion Township assembly plant will build test fleet Bolt EVs equipped with fully autonomous technology that will include LIDAR, cameras, and sensors. The test fleet vehicles will be used by GM engineers for continued testing and validation of GM's autonomous technology already underway on public roads in Scottsdale, Ariz. and San Francisco, as well as part of the Michigan testing fleet, GM said. Last week, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder signed four bills that were backed by automakers and were aimed at accelerating Michigan into the lead past California and especially Silicon Valley, where autonomous technology has taken the forefront with developers such as Google. "As far as I know, Michigan is the first state to make it official that these types of vehicles can be used on public roads," said Brandon Schoettle, a project manager with the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute. Michigan's new laws not only allow vehicles with fully autonomous capabilities but also those without drivers or steering wheels. Conversely, California prohibits those that don't have a steering wheel or a brake pedal. Michigan, however, has cleared for both carmakers and technology companies to test and sell their self-driving vehicles in the state, and allows for ride-sharing services, such as Uber, to use those vehicles as well once they've cleared testing. GM was joined by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Ford, Toyota, Google, Uber, and Lyft in helping to define Michigan's final autonomous vehicle legislation, according to Michigan state officials. In January, GM announced the formation of a dedicated autonomous vehicle engineering team and a $500 million investment in Lyft to develop an integrated network of on-demand autonomous vehicles in the U.S. In March, the company announced the acquisition of Cruise Automation to provide deep software talent to help speed development. In June, GM began testing autonomous Chevrolet Bolt EVs on the public roads in San Francisco and Scottsdale. The company has more than 40 autonomous vehicles testing in the two cities. Earlier this year, Pittsburgh began allowing real-world tests of a self-driving, Uber-owned Ford Fusion. Uber An Uber autonomous car prototype in Pittsburgh. Several states and Washington D.C. have passed autonomous vehicle legislation that allows for limited testing of cars and trucks on public roadways. Since 2012, at least 34 states and D.C. have considered legislation related to autonomous vehicles. U.S. President Barack Obama pledged to punish Russia for hacking of Democratic groups and figures during the election season with actions thatll occur in secret and others thatll be made public. Our goal continues to be to send a clear message to Russia or others not to do this to us because we can do stuff to you, Obama said in a press conference. The President stopped short of explicitly blaming Russian president Vladimir Putin for directing the alleged hacks, but said that, not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin. Obama met Putin during a summit in China in September and told him to "cut it out" and or else "there would be some serious consequences if he didn't," he said. After that meeting, the hacking attempts stopped but Wikileaks had already been given copies of stolen documents. Obama is vowing action against Russia when incoming president Donald Trump likely wont. Trump has instead dismissed claims that the Russian government interfered with the U.S. election to help him win. Nevertheless, the Obama administration has ordered U.S. intelligence agencies to provide a report reviewing Russias alleged role in the election interference. The President intends to make as much of that report public as possible. On Friday, reports said the FBI is siding with the CIA and has concluded Russia attempted to influence the U.S. election to help Trump win. Obama said he want to avoid avoid politicizing the findings and hopes that Trump will share concern over the Kremlins effort to influence the election. What we've simply said is the facts, Obama said. However, the Russian government has continually denied any involvement. They should either stop talking about that or produce some proof at last. Otherwise it all begins to look unseemly, said the governments presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Friday, according to a Russian state news agency. On Thursday, Trumps former rival in the presidential race, Hillary Clinton, blamed her defeat partly on Putins efforts to undermine her candidacy with the cyber meddling. During presidential race, the Democratic National Committee and a Clinton campaign chairman, were hacked, resulting in sensitive emails being leaked to the public. Two years ago, Obama faced another major hacking incident, this one involving a massive breach at Sony that was blamed on North Korea. To retaliate, the U.S. authorized additional economic sanctions against the country that targeted 10 North Koreans and its arms industry. The U.S. may have also been responsible for an internet outage that occurred in the country. Sanctions, legal indictments and cyberattacks are possible options, but they may not be strong enough to punish Russia, cybersecurity experts say. We never had good responses to begin with, said John Bambenek, a malware researcher with Fidelis Cybersecurity. Are we going to go to war with Russia over this? Theoretically, it is an option, he said. But thats not a winning scenario. On Friday, Obama said the U.S. will take a thoughtful, methodical approach, but he acknowledged that his government already has issued tough economic sanctions against Russia over the conflict involving the Crimean Peninsula. He also only has about a month left before he leaves office. Get unlimited access to all content and features at ivpressonline.com with our Full Online Access Subscription. Read our E-Edition, the digital replica of the print newspaper online, access content in exclusive sections including Family, Teen, Business, Databases, Farm and more. This option does not include daily home delivery of the Imperial Valley Press newspaper. For home delivery service, please select Premium or Premium Plus. NBC News reported Wednesday that U.S. intelligence officials say they have reason to believe Russian President Vladimir Putin had a first-hand involvement in efforts to muddle the 2016 U.S. presidential elections. Previous to this NBC story, the Washington Post had reported earlier that the Central Intelligence Agency believes Russia desired to affect the outcome of the election and aid in a Donald Trump win. Those efforts reportedly comprised of hacking the emails of Hillary Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta and the emails of the Democratic National Committee, then providing them to WikiLeaks. The New York Times pitched in with an extensive report on the hacks, showing details on how the attacks were made and, revealed that Democratic House candidates were also targeted. According to NBC reports, officials have reason to believe the interference went all the way to the very top of Russia's government hierarchy and to Putin himself. Putin has always considered Hillary Clinton an enemy. He claimed the former secretary of state encouraged protests during Russia's 2011 elections. Putin believed she sided with the protesters when Clinton made comments implying that the elections might not be that transparent. Conversely, Putin has praised Trump as "bright and talented," and the U.S. president-elect likewise praised the Russian president and his leadership. Trump cast aside the earlier report on Russia's alleged involvement in the election, saying on Fox News on Sunday that it's "ridiculous" to believe the Russian government and Putin wanted to grab the election for him. However, there are Republicans who have taken the report seriously. A group of senators, including Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) this week called for further investigation into possible election interference and voiced out to fellow senators to not treat it as a partisan issue. "The stakes are too high for our country. We are committed to working in this bipartisan manner, and we will seek to unify our colleagues around the goal of investigating and stopping the grave threats that cyber attacks conducted by foreign governments pose to our national security," the senators wrote in a statement. According to a YouGov/Economist poll released, the Russian president Putin has climbed 56 points since July 2014, his popularity having risen among Republicans. See here. The city of Allepo in Syria has fallen to the Syrian government forces and its key allies Russia and Iran. Allepo is a city in Syria, serving as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. According to Samer N Abboud, nobody can claim victory yet. Samer is an Assistant Professor of International Studies at Arcadia University, Pennsylvania. His current focus is on Syrian capital flight. The Syrian government under President Bashar al-Assad, and Syria's key allied forces are Russia and Iran. The opposing forces are anti-government rebels who are said to be backed by other western countries including the US. Many regime defenders have declared the re-capture of Aleppo as the signal of the end of the Syrian war. Others have said it is not the end, but rather the beginning of the end. "We should avoid such absolutisms today, which are driven more by political will than they are by any serious consideration of what destruction and suffering the conflict has engendered." says Samer in this Al Jazeera report. Samer also says in the same report that saying this is the end of the war suggests not only that the fighting will cease, but that the regime has the total control already of Syria, that it can assert itself through the countryside and cities, control all of the militias, and begin engaging in reconstruction. Fighting continues to run rampant throughout the country, not only in Aleppo and even in areas supposedly under regime control, insecurity and violence is still part of the daily lives of Syrians. International involvement and multilateralism in Syria's future are extremely unlikely now because of recent events. Instead, the regime and its allies have relied on local agreements and truces as mechanisms for reconciliation and dialogue, even though they are just facade. The continuing aerial bombardment and the existence of armed groups simply mean that the violence will still exist in Syria and not just in Aleppo, and persist in different forms. The Syrian regime and its supporters will be made bolder by what happened to Aleppo and will use this to assert their military and political will throughout Syria. The existence of so many militias and various regional interests may be the breeding grounds for more conflict, rather than cooperation. Samer says: "We are thus faced with the proverbial victory of the battle at the expense of the larger war. The Syrian regime may indeed rid large parts of the country of rebels, as they did in Aleppo, but at what expense? "This was achieved through excessive reliance on regional supporters, the destruction of the country, the tearing of its social fabric, and a long-term generational crisis of unparalleled trauma. Nobody can claim victory after all of this." See Al Jazeera report. It's been a week since President Elect Donald Trump has started his 'thank you tour'. Six weeks right after his campaign, he returned to Pennsylvania to express his utmost gratitude to the community. Tracking back from during the electoral tallies of votes Pennsylvania was one of the states who pulled up Trump's votes resulting to his victory in the 'finish line'. According to USA today, Vice-President-elect Mike Pence introduced Trump in front of the public. During his speech he reiterated his reforms to repeal 'Obamacare' that covers the health insurance of the citizens of America. He also added that he will continue to fight for the welfare of Americans and the crowd responded with a loud cheer. Furthermore, Trump was actually the only Republican President who won in Pennsylvania for almost thirty years. The crowds continue to cheer louder as Trump brought up his plan to conquer 'radical Islamic terrorism', he stated that immigrants who wish to enter America's boundaries at any cost will not be easily permitted and will be heavily guarded. In a closer aspect more specific in Pennsylvania, Trump started talking about jobs most especially opening again company such as Marcellus Shale and other manufacturing companies. Marcellus Shale is a company that drills natural gas and clean coal, calling the workers, Trump said that they should be ready to pick up and prepare their tool for they are about to work again. A report from New York Times that during his visit in Pennsylvania, he also mentioned about Syria saying that he will develop a safe place for Syrians in order to protect them from hostage done by rebels. Trump added that he will ask the Persian Gulf Leaders to make money for the project in order to build safe zones and help more people in Syria. Trump wishes to give Syrians the hope and chances in life. Lastly, with strong words and firm stand he declared that starting from his reign America will be the FIRST with no global anthem, currency, and flag. He also added that together with the state, Americans should salute only one flag and that is the America FLAG. On the other hand, Trump nominated Tillerson as state secretary. Knowing that Tillerson has a close business relationship with the Russian President what is the purpose for his nomination? Get to know the details and click here. Email Links to our top local news stories of the day, Monday through Saturday. Miss WSSU competing for spot in Ebony magazine Miss Winston-Salem State University, Kiana Rushdan, is one of 62 women competing in Ebony magazines 2016-17 HBCU Campus Queens Contest, WSSU said in a news release. The top 10 queens, based on online votes, will be featured in the magazines Campus Queens Contest. People can vote online at Ebony.com. The contest continues through Jan. 17. Rushdan is a senior biology major from High Point. WSSU exceeds goals during SECC campaign Winston-Salem State University exceeded its goals for the monthlong 2016 State Employees Combined Campaign, according to results released this week by the WSSU SECC Committee. Faculty and staff donated more than $25,000 to charities, more than double the amount donated in 2015, WSSU said in a statement. Nearly 18 percent of employees participated in the campaign, more than double the 2015 percentage. The goal for the campaign was $15,000 and 17 percent participation. Thank you to all faculty and staff who gave to this years SECC campaign, helping us surpass our fundraising goals, Chancellor Elwood L. Robinson said. Faculty and staff have once again demonstrated that WSSUs legacy of giving back to the community we serve is alive and well. The campaign ran Oct. 31-Nov. 30. The campaign provides state employees with the opportunity to donate to 997 charities, including the WSSU Foundation. WSSU recognized as a top 10 school for military friendliness Winston-Salem State University has been recognized as a Top 10 Gold Level Military Friendly School by Victory Media for 2017. WSSU is one of only five universities in North Carolina to receive the ranking and the only Triad university, WSSU said in a news release. The designation places WSSU in the best of the best category among small public colleges and universities (less than 10,000 students). Our military students are of all ages and come from all walks of life, said Joel Lee, assistant vice chancellor of Enrollment Services. Through our Military Student Veterans Organization, Military Appreciation Day, ROTC, Yellow Ribbon Program participation, etc., WSSU supports this population and wants to see them succeed. They take care of our country, and its our duty to take care of them. The designation process includes extensive research and a data-driven survey of leading companies and colleges nationwide. WSSU scored high in all six categories of the survey, including a perfect 100 percent for culture and commitment. Nearly 200 student veterans and active-duty military attend WSSU. The university will be featured in the December issue of G.I. Jobs magazine. You can view the full list of schools at militaryfriendly.com. Food Lion supports WSSU food pantry Food Lion Feeds is supporting Winston-Salem State University students through donations to the Rams Helping Hands Food Pantry. Food Lion associates recently restocked the pantry, providing nutritious healthy items such as cereal, mandarin oranges and granola bars, WSSU said in a statement. In February, Food Lion Feeds donated food and associates volunteered to stock the newly created pantry. Since the food pantry opened in February, more than 100 students have been served. WFU among top 25 best values for private universities Kiplingers Personal Finance magazine has ranked Wake Forest University 25th on its 2017 list of the 100 best values in private universities. Kiplingers annually ranks best values in private colleges and universities that combine outstanding economic value with high-quality education, WFU said in a news release. The rankings are divided into three categories: public schools, private universities and private liberal arts colleges. Kiplingers quality measures, which are weighted more heavily than cost, include the admission rate, the percentage of students who return for sophomore year, the student-faculty ratio and the four-year graduation rate, WFU said. Cost criteria include sticker price, financial aid and average debt at graduation. The rankings are now available online at Kiplinger.com/links/college and will appear in print in the February 2017 issue of Kiplingers Personal Finance, on newsstands Jan. 3. Forsyth Tech students earn design awards in Carolinas competition Three students in Forsyth Technical Community Colleges Interior Design Program took the top three awards in the Eastern Carolinas Chapter of the National Kitchen & Bath Association student design competition that took place last month. The students and the scholarship awards they earned in the state competition are first place: Daniel Morales $750; second place: Hailey Boyd $500 and third place: Amber Payne $250. The 2016-17 competition focused on an actual client bath renovation project that is intended to help a senior couple who recently downsized to Live in Place as they age over the next 10 to 15 years. 417 WSSU students earn degrees during fall semester A total of 417 Winston-Salem State University students have earned degrees this fall, according to the universitys enrollment services. Degrees earned include 374 baccalaureate degrees, 35 masters degrees and 26 doctorates, WSSU said in a statement. Fall classes ended Friday. Students who graduate in the fall term are encouraged to participate in the universitys annual commencement on May 17. Lets say you ask somebody a question. They give you an answer you dont like, so you pretend you didnt hear it. Probably all of us would cop to something like this at some time in our imperfect pasts. For most of us though, that pretending hasnt included trying to hide $125 billion. The Pentagon has a little image problem: Google Pentagon waste and you get more than 500,000 hits, including stories about $600 toilet seats and $7,600 coffee makers. The finances of the largest agency in the federal government are so screwed up, its the only one that still cant pass an audit. So a couple of years ago the Pentagon paid some consultants to find ways to cut down on this waste. If some good ideas came out of this, Pentagon officials figured, they could show how concerned with efficiency they were and apply the savings to their wish lists of pet military projects. It didnt turn out quite that way. In three months the Pentagon brass had on their desks a report outlining $125 billion in proposed cuts nearly a quarter of the total budget mostly to the workforce that manages things like accounting, human resources and property management for this enormous operation. This workforce has ballooned in the last decade, even as the ranks of soldiers, sailors and airmen and women have shrunk. The report didnt even get to the real waste in the Pentagon budget, like the $1 trillion its planning to spend to replace our entire nuclear arsenal, or the $1.4 trillion its shelling out on the F-35, a plane that after 19 years in development still cant reliably beat the models we already have. But it still made the Pentagon leadership nervous. Theyre in the midst of pleading poverty. They go around talking about a gutted military, even as that military sits on more money than the Reagan administration ever gave it. OMG, they thought: What if this blueprint for cutting waste resulted in actual cuts to their budget? What if, instead of being plowed back into other military projects, that $125 billion were freed up for roads or schools or green energy, or applied to the deficit? They couldnt let that happen. So they pretended not to hear this news and buried the report. It blew up on them when a recent Washington Post story exposed this act of suppression. Now its generating exactly the sort of media attention they were trying to avoid. Members of Congress have vowed to get to the bottom of this cover-up of billions in wasted taxpayer money. If this is true, the Pentagon played Congress and the American public for fools, Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill said. In a way, this $125 billion is funding a big federal jobs program more than a million people doing jobs that a fraction of them could handle just fine. But this is the kind of make-work program conservatives have been complaining about for years. Why not use the savings outlined in the report and billions more, by saying no to budget-busting weapon systems we dont need and put people to work doing things our country actually needs? Like educating our children, making the transition to clean energy and building the transit systems we need to boost the economy and avoid the worst effects of climate change. The country is in a no-more-business-as-usual mood right now. Lets make sure that applies to the Pentagon. On Fox News on Sunday, President-elect Trump lamented that those seeking government permits sometimes are waiting in line for 15 years, sometimes only to get rejected in the end, and vowed to speed up the process. To succeed, hell need a new approach to governing. Every president since Jimmy Carter has vowed to cut unnecessary regulations, but the red-tape machine has defied all attempts at control. Trumps idea is to institute a one-in, two-out rule that for every new regulation, two must be removed. Britain instituted a similar protocol in 2010 to cull unnecessary regulation and recently expanded it to one in, three out. This is part of a broader British effort to control regulatory creep, and it has achieved modest success. Imposing similar discipline on new U.S. regulations is long overdue. For the past 50 years, Washingtons approach has been like the Roach Motel regulations check in, but they never check out. But incremental reform is not enough. Red-tape reformers have failed because they assume the problem is a matter of degree that there are just too many rules. Liberals stride into the red-tape jungle with pruning shears, and find themselves entangled in the internal logic of the rules. Conservatives get cheers for demanding deregulation, but when push comes to shove, voters dont want to drink polluted water, eat spoiled food or entrust loved ones to the unsupervised care of strangers in day-care centers and nursing homes. Thats why the regulatory state grew, not shrank, in the 20 years of Reagan and two Bush presidencies. What reformers have missed is that regulatory failure is not merely a matter of too much regulation but is caused by a flawed philosophy on how to regulate. Both sides assume that human responsibility should be replaced by what is called clear law. By striving to prescribe every possible good choice, and proscribe every possible evil, U.S. regulation became an obsessive exercise in micromanagement. Thats why rulebooks are often 1,000 pages, while the Constitution is 15. The evil to be exorcised by all these legal dictates is human authority. Only by lashing each other tightly with detailed law can liberal and conservative politicians be sure that the other side wont do something bad. But ordinary citizens in our free society are also lashed to these mindless dictates complying with rules that often make no difference, filling out forms no one reads and stymied by bureaucrats whose response to every idiocy is always The rule made me do it. In the name of better freedom, detailed regulations have made everyone powerless. The solution the only solution is to retool regulation to focus on results, not inputs. Find any good school, any good agency, and you will find people who take responsibility for getting the job done. Experts at the Federal Aviation Administration certify planes as airworthy based on their expert judgment, not compliance with detailed specs on, say, how many rivets per square foot. Teachers at good schools typically say that the principal encourages them to do what they think is best and not worry about complying with many forms and metrics. The activating mechanism for every public choice must be human responsibility. Whats good is what works. Yes, its a good idea to review environmental impacts, but its idiotic to spend a decade creating 5,000-page tomes that double the cost of projects and cause environmental harm by prolonging polluting bottlenecks. The opportunity here is to move from paralysis to practicality. Focusing on results, with clear lines of authority and accountability, is a win-win strategy: Regulation is more effective, and less costly, when regulators and citizens are not preoccupied with compliance. Australia replaced dense nursing home regulation with 31 general principles for example, to provide a home-like setting. Within a short period, nursing homes across Australia markedly improved because, studies showed, the caregivers felt free to focus on what residents needed instead of trudging through the day with their noses in a rulebook. Regulation by results would radically simplify law in some areas, more like one-in, 20-out. Hundreds of federal safety specifications for factory equipment could be encompassed within one general principle: Tools and equipment shall be reasonably suited for the use intended, in accordance with industry standards. Is there room for disagreement? Yes, but only at the margins. Instead of wasting regulatory resources on foot faults that dont matter, the safety agency could redeploy its resources to finding workplaces that are actually unsafe. Specificity would still be needed for, say, pollution discharge limits, but the litmus test should be whatever achieves the desired results. Rebuilding the federal behemoth is an ambitious goal, fraught with perceived peril as well as opportunity. But do we have a choice? No one serious defends the inefficiencies in the current system. Americans are tired of being pushed around by headless bureaucracy. Half-measures by the past six presidents have all failed. The upside here is transformational. Virtually every federal program is broken, with the only open question how much. Should Dodd-Frank compliance costs drive small banks into the arms of larger banks? Should safety laws prohibit children from normal play activities? All these stupidities can be cured, but only if people with responsibility are given the freedom to use common sense. Giving permits for infrastructure in two years, not 10, would add 1.5 million jobs and create a greener footprint. The downside is low. Rigid bureaucracy prevents officials and citizens alike from adapting to rapid changes in global forces. Regulation by results doesnt guarantee success, but it gives us the freedom to try. Reddit Email 0 Shares TeleSur | Over one-third of the incidents made mention of President-elect Donald Trump. Over 1,000 hate crimes have been reported since Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential election, the rate dropping since the days after election day but over a third of them still making reference to Trump. Most of the incidents were against immigrants, followed by African-Americans, Muslims and LGBT people, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which released the data on Friday but cut off the count on Monday, Dec. 12. The SPLC counted a total of 1,094 from news reports, social media and direct submission. Like previous counts, most incidents occurred in K-12 schools, followed by highly-frequented businesses and campuses of higher education. Most recruitment drives, especially those including fliers, were reported on college campuses, the majority of them by white nationalists and some from the Ku Klux Klan. Attacks that referenced Trump overwhelmingly attacked women, reported the SPLC, which also counted anti-Trump and anti-white incidents. The former came to a total of 26, with six anti-white incidents. Via TeleSur Related video added by Juan Cole: REPORT: HATE CRIMES INCREASE AFTER ELECTION ON CNN Breaking News Reddit Email 2K Shares By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | Syria was in a better position to attain peace last spring, when a ceasefire had unexpected success. It would have been better if the rebels had been able to keep East Aleppo and the rest of their territory, and the regime had been forced to dicker with them in order to put the country back together again. Someday it might even have been possible for East Aleppo to elect representatives to the Syrian parliament who represented their point of view. The fall of the East Aleppo pocket dooms such a negotiated outcome of the civil war. The regime of Bashar al-Assad will be emboldened, as it has pledged, to try to take back over all the territory militarily, and to re-institute its seedy one-party state replete with intensive domestic spying, arbitrary arrest and torture. That said, the rebel forces in East Aleppo do bear some of the blame for their defeat. It seems a harsh thing to say at a time of heart-wrenching scenes of noncombatants waiting in the cold for an evacuation that only seems to come in fits and starts. But it is necessary for us to understand what is happening and not only to feel it. Because al-Assad is understandably hated in democratic societies, there is a tendency to see the reassertion of the regime there as purely an act of brutal force. It is at least that, of course. Russian and Syrian aerial bombing of a dense urban area has killed noncombatants in ways that are likely war crimes. But this brutality cannot explain what happened. Revolutions and civil wars dont work that way, however. You can think of lots of movements that couldnt be quelled by massive brute force, including that of the Viet Cong in the 1960s and 1970s. If we want to understand why Russian aerial bombardment was so effective, we have to take politics into account. Syria is a very diverse society. Here are some guesstimates for its ethnic and sectarian make-up. Alawite Shiites: 14% Christians: 7% Druze: 3% Ismailis: 1% Twelver Shiites: 0.5% Kurds: 10% Secular Sunni Arabs: 30% Religious Sunni Arabs: 34.5% The Syrian youth revolution of 2011 appealed to virtually all these groups except maybe the Alawite Shiites, who depend on the al-Assad regime for their prominent position and prosperity in Syrian society. The early Syrian revolutionaries talked about a democratic society in which all these groups would have representation. I met with Syrian revolutionaries in Istanbul in 2012 and they were praising all of these religious and ethnic groups for having members standing up to the regime, even Alawite villagers and movie stars. But when the regime used heavy weaponry on the revolutionaries, the latter militarized their struggle. They werent able to get funding from democratic countries for their militias or for the purchase of weapons. Many turned to Turkey and the Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia, and these patrons wanted them to adopt a clear Muslim fundamentalist identity. Most Syrians are not Muslim fundamentalists. But that is the mindset of the Saudi elite. Many of the fighters in the rebel opposition were Muslim Brotherhood, a relatively moderate fundamentalist group in Syria which nevertheless does want to impose a medieval version of Islamic law on the whole country. But the best fighters and the best-funded fighters were Salafi Jihadis like Jaysh al-Islam, the Freemen of Syria, the Nusra Front, and Daesh (ISIS, ISIL). It was the al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front that in 2013 nearly succeeded in using Homs and Qusayr to cut off the southern capital of Damascus from re-supply via the northwestern Mediterranean port of Latakia. This plan by Salafi Jihadis was forestalled by the intervention of the Twelver Shiite Lebanese party-militia, Hizbullah on behalf of the regime. It was a Nusra Front-led coalition that in spring of 2015 managed to take the city of Idlib and all of that province, and to begin an advance on Latakia to the west, with the same strategic goal in mind. Latakia is a heavily Alawite Shiite region, so for hard line Sunni fundamentalists to take it would have entailed massive massacres and ethnic cleansing. This plan by the Salafi Jihadis was forestalled by Russian intervention. It is true that Russia has subjected the Sunni Arab rebels, many of them just Muslim Brotherhood, to intense aerial bombardment. But it has especially gone after al-Qaeda (the Nusra Front, now styling itself the Levantine Conquest Front). Under the conditions of 2011, the other rebels would have rushed to the aid of a besieged anti-al-Assad group. That did not happen during the past 3 years, for a simple reason. Most people in Syria dont trust the Muslim Brotherhood and they really, really dislike the Salafi Jihadis. The ten percent of Syrians who are Kurds are largely post-Communist leftist feminists. They arent going to rush to the aid of fundamentalist Sunnis led by a group with al-Qaeda ties. And the fact is that the fundamentalist rebels have repeatedly denounced and threatened the leftist Kurds. (It is these fundamentalists that Western politicians often call moderates.) The supposedly moderate Freemen of Syria put al-Qaeda in charge of the Druze villages of Idlib in 2015. Druze are an offshoot of Ismaili Shiism and are deeply hated by al-Qaeda. They were forcibly converted to Sunni Islam and nevertheless some of them were killed or their property confiscated by the Nusra Front. So as the Syrian opposition ratcheted farther and farther to the Sunni religious right, and as the most effective fighters came to be drawn from that sector, they lost the good will and support of most Syrians. The secular-minded Sunni Arab majority didnt want to be ruled by people imitating the Saudi Wahhabis. The Christians didnt want that. The Druze didnt want it. The Kurds didnt want it. The Alawites certainly didnt want it. So you get 70% of the people in the country who, having been given the unpalatable choice between the Baath regime of al-Assad and being ruled by Salafi Jihadis, reluctantly chose al-Assad. That is why the Aleppo pocket fell. There had been 250,000 Sunni Arabs of a more religious mindset and from a working class background living there under rebel control since 2012. But next door in West Aleppo, which our television stations wont talk about, were 800,000 to a million people who much preferred to be under the rule of the regime. This numerous and relatively well off population took occasional mortar fire from the slums of East Aleppo. They werent in the least interested in saving the rebels from the Russians or the Iraqi Shiite militias or from the regime itself. The Kurdish forces likewise didnt rush to the defense of the Sunni Arab fighters in the East Aleppo pocket. By militarizing the revolution and by moving ideologically to the religious far right, the rebel fighters deprived themselves of support among most Syrians. When the Russians offered to let the rebels leave East Aleppo if they would cut themselves off from al-Qaeda (which was 1/4 of the fighters there), the response of the rebels was to form a united front with al-Qaeda so as to ensure that the Russians couldnt divide the opposition. Bzzt. Wrong answer. The Western politicians and television reporters never mention the al-Qaeda dimension of the rebel forces. They never mention Idlib or what happened to its minorities. Most rebels in Syria are not terrorists or al-Qaeda. They were protesters against a brutal authoritarian regime. Some of them are Muslim Brotherhood, but the Brotherhood in that period was hoping for a parliamentary democracy in Syria. Some are actually Sufi mystics. Others are just conventionally religious Sunnis. But they sometimes formed battlefield alliances of convenience with al-Qaeda or with Salafi jihadis, and as time went on they showed less and less no interest in human and civil rights for women and minorities. Syria is much more diverse a country than it might seem from cold social statistics. Hard line Salafis never had any chance of attracting enough support to take over the whole country, and even just very conservative Sunnis did not, either. The strategic thinkers in Ankara and Riyadh completely misread the situation. That is why the East Aleppo pocket is falling to the regime. Not because aerial bombardment or brute force work magic in and of themselves. But because the Salafis and Muslim Brotherhood were unable to cumulate resources from other groups and attract broad support. - Related video added by Juan Cole: Switzerland: De Mistura requests al-Nusra to leave east Aleppo through safe passage Reddit Email 92 Shares By Ronald Stockton | (Informed Comment) | Former CIA head and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta recently said that if President Elect Trump refuses intelligence briefings and something bad happens, he would be responsible. These are ominous words. I just finished Panettas memoir, Worthy Fights. Two things stood out. First, that much of good government consists of being on top of situations, managing issues very carefully to make sure they do not go wrong, and making sure your subordinates know you expect them to be on top of their jobs. For a couple of chapters I thought the memoir was going to be boring but Panetta was considered one of the best administrators in Washington and I realized that boring is what successful governance is all about. The second thing that leapt out was Panettas discussion of the Benghazi attack, when the U.S. Ambassador and three other Americans were killed. Congressional Republicans spent years investigating Hillary Clinton for this, even asking her whether she slept alone the night of the attack. It was shameless. Panetta does not even mention Clinton in his discussion. As far as he was concerned, he was Secretary of Defense and the responsibility was his. He addressed the accusations that somehow the military had been held back from a rescue. He described how several teams were scrambled for rescue operations and then he said, The people who make these accusations do not understand how the whole military responds when American lives are at risk. His comments dripped with contempt. Back to these briefings. Every morning someone from the CIA appears outside of the Presidents office. The public never knows this persons name. The person has a folder with briefing documents. This is called the PDB, the Presidents Daily Briefing. The intelligence community has been up all night preparing these materials. The PDB contains everything the intelligence community has found out in the last 24 hours that the President needs to know. I once had lunch with someone who did the PDB for a former president. He said there are three copies of these materials. One goes to the President, one stays in the CIA files, and one goes to the National Archives. The person doing the briefing has the same security clearance as the President. These briefing documents are in short, precise sentences. Someone on a Facebook discussion joked that President Elect Trump would want them in Cliff Notes format, i.e., simplified. Another person, who had been involved in intelligence, said that is exactly what they are, short and precise, in the spirit of Cliff Notes. Presidents treat these differently. Bill Clinton kept his briefers hostage, asking more and more questions so that he could get the full impact of the material. President Bush 41, the former head of the CIA, who knew more about the issues than most briefers, took the papers (there may be several) and stuck them in his pocket for later reading. George W was perhaps the most inexplicable (and irresponsible). Bush, who sleep-walked through much of his early Presidency, seemed to treat them as an intrusion into his time. Only one PDB has ever been released to the public. It is dated August 5, 2001. It reported that Osama bin Laden had agents inside the country and was planning an attack. It speculated that his goal might be to hijack airplanes to exchange for the Blind Sheikh Abdul Rahman who had conducted the first attack on the World Trade Center and was rotting away in an American prison. The tone of the PDB was serious, even alarming: American lives are at imminent risk. Typically a President who received such information would reach for the phone and say, Clear my calendar. I want a meeting of All Principals in two hours. All Principals means everyone relevant to this issue. That would include the head of the CIA, DIA, FBI, Attorney General, Secretary of Defense, National Security Advisor and anyone one else involved in protecting the country from all enemies, foreign and domestic. The President would chair the meeting and would ask each person what they knew about Osama bin Laden and what information they had on this plot. Having the President cancel his schedule means this would move it to top priority for everyone in that room. Who knows? Maybe the head of the FBI would have said, We have been following some people who are taking flight training. This happens all the time but these people are strange. Let me get we have and get back to you. At the end of the meeting, the President would say, Let us reconvene tomorrow morning at 9:00. I want everything you have. It looks as if someone is planning to harm our country and our people. Our job is to make sure they fail. Unfortunately, what George W did was go on vacation. Richard Clark, head of the CIAs OBL unit, said his hair was on fire. He was running around telling people a strike was imminent. No one would listen. The fact is, we dont know if George W even read that PDB. But what happened next was interesting. After September 11 when members of Congress starting asking why the intelligence agencies had not been on top of this threat, suddenly references to a PDB began to appear in the newspapers. Clearly, the intelligence community was not going to take the fall for a President who bragged that he never stayed up after 10:00. National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice released the PDB to the public. You can find it on the internet. Back to Donald Trump. When he was asked why he was skipping his daily briefings he expressed contempt for the intelligence community: These are the people who told us there were WMDs in Iraq. I am not going to sit in on briefings for eight years (sic) in which I get the same report day after day. If something new comes up, they can tell me about it. And finally, the whole issue of Russian hacking and disruption of the election is sour grapes. There are some things the President Elect needs to know about this very dangerous minefield to which he has exposed himself. First, the intelligence community is a branch of the defense apparatus, just as the Air Force is a part of that apparatus. Second, we spend untold billions of dollars a year to gather the intelligence that he gets in those PDBs. Third, they know things about him that he does not even know about himself. They know things that could do him exceptional harm and even drive him from office. When the Nixon presidency began to unravel, people so powerful that we do not even know who they are decided that the idea of President Agnew was unacceptable. They leaked information about the Vice Presidents time as governor, the bribes he took, the gangsters with whom he worked, and the fact that even in the Vice Presidency they continued to give him payoffs. He was forced to step down. Fun Factoid: The Democrats controlled the House and Senate at the time. With Nixon on his way out, it was necessary to appoint a new Vice President, fast. The Republican leaders met with the legendary Tip ONeil, Democratic Speaker of the House. They asked who he thought would be a good person for the slot. He told them that if they wanted a name that would produce unanimous support during confirmation hearings, they should go with Gerald Ford. Ford was nominated and went on to become President. Think of what you just read. The Democrats decided who would be the next Republican President. I sincerely hope that President Trump is successful in his presidency. He even has some policies that I think might do some good for the country. Sad to say, I am not convinced that he can overcome his weaknesses: His intemperate tongue, his contempt for categories of Americans, his serious problem with impulse control, his bizarre ideological thinking, his tendency to read extremist blogs in the middle of the night, his thin skin, his resistance to serious information. If he begins to malfunction, and cause harm to the country, there may well come a time when people so powerful that we do not even know who they are decide to pull the plug. If we reach that point, political bombs will begin to explode left and right and the President will not know what hit him. God forbid, if we reach that point, he will have a choice: Become Nixon or Become Agnew. Supplementary comment: Nothing will happen before the 2018 elections. The Republicans do not want to demolish their party. And for such an event not to be a coup, it would take a large number of Republicans to back his removal (as was true with Nixon). For the time being, they see advantage in having him in office. He also has the legitimacy of the election behind him. The public knew before they voted for him everything we know now. Also, please note that I am describing and analyzing, not advocating. Ronald Stockton is professor of Political Science, University of Michigan-Dearborn - Related video added by Juan Cole: Why Government Failure Occurs: Richard Clarke on National Security Disasters (2008) Attorneys general from 20 states filed an antitrust suit [complaint, PDF] on Thursday alleging price fixing conspiracy against drug giant Mylan NV [corporate website] and five other drugmakers. The complaint alleges that the anti-competitive practices of Mylan and the other companies led to artificially high prices for two generic drugsdoxycycline hyclate delayed release and glyburide. The former is an antibiotic used to treat severe acne while the latter is an oral diabetes medication. According to Pennsylvania Attorney General Bruce Beemer [official website] the states investigations have uncovered evidence of a broad, well-coordinated and long running series of conspiracies to fix prices. The complaint further alleges that the misconduct was carried out by senior drug company executives, and that the drug companies directly interacted with competitors [press release] at industry trade shows and customer conferences through e-mail, phone conversations and text messaging fully aware that their conduct was illegal. On the whole, the states allege that the companies violated the Sherman Act [text] and request that the court enjoin the companies from engaging in illegal, anticompetitive behavior and for equitable relief, including substantial financial relief, to address the violations of law and restore competition. This complaint came a day after the US Department of Justice (DOJ) [official website] unsealed documents charging two former executives of Heritage Pharmaceuticals [corporate website] on similar grounds and in connection with the same two drugs. The DOJ investigation involves more than a dozen companies and additional charges are expected. Mylan has already admitted receiving a subpoena from the DOJ concerning doxycycline hyclate. There are a number of antitrust cases that are either ongoing currently or that have been adjudicated in recent months. Last month the US Supreme Court [official website] published an order [JURIST report] stating that it would no longer hear the appeal in two antitrust suits against Visa, Mastercard [official websites] and several banks concerning ATM fees. The suit alleged that the defendants, credit card companies and banks, conspired to keep the ATM charges high, hurting consumer and ensuring that independent ATM operators can not set lower ATM fees. Earlier the same month Googles Senior Vice President and General Counsel Kent Walker rejected EU allegations that the company has been engaging in anti-competitive practices contrary to EU law. At about the same time Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) [official websites] raised concerns in a letter [JURIST report] to the Federal Trade Commission [official website] about Mylan NVs potential violation of antitrust laws. The two senators then claimed that Mylan NV may have engaged in exclusionary conduct and exclusive contracting when they entered into contracts with schools that barred the schools from purchasing EpiPen from any of their competitors. In October Advocate General Nils Wahl of the European Court of Justice [official website] issued an opinion [JURIST report] in favor of Intel in the dispute over a 1.06 billion EU antitrust fine imposed for anti-competitive behavior. In September the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit [official website] ruled [JURIST report] Monday that American Express (Amex) [corporate website] can enforce rules that ban merchants accepting its credit cards from directing customers to its competitors cards. The court reversed a lower courts determination that Amexs agreements with merchants impermissibly restrained trade in violation of antitrust laws. The Turkish government has been silencing the media [press release] on a massive scale to prevent it from reporting on or criticizing the governments ruthless crackdown on its enemies, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a 69-page report [HRW report] on Thursday. The report was prepared based on interviews with journalists, editors, lawyers, and press freedom activists, and a review of court documents relating to the prosecution and imprisonment of journalists. According to HRW, since the failed coup in July, the attack on critical journalism has accelerated denying Turkeys population access to a regular flow of independent information from domestic newspapers, radio, and television stations about developments in the country. Among other things, the report stated that Turkey was abusing the criminal justice system to prosecute and imprison journalists on false charges of terrorism, insulting of public officials and crimes against the state. HRW also documented physical attacks on journalists, interference with journalistic independence, government takeover or shutdown of private media companies, fines, and shutdown of critical television stations. HRWs Europe and Central Asia Director, Hugh Williamson stated that: Free and independent media help promote the free flow of ideas, opinions, and information necessary for political processes to function, and serve as a critical check on executive authorities and powerful actors linked to them. The Turkish government and presidents systematic effort to silence media in the country is all about preventing public scrutiny. Keeping 148 journalists and media workers in jail and closing down 169 media and publishing outlets under the state of emergency shows how Turkey is deliberately flouting basic principles of human rights and rule of law central to democracy. Williamson urged the UN Human Rights Council, US and EU to step up the pressure on the Turkish Government to respect journalists and the freedom of the press. The aftermath of the failed coup attempt continues as Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan [BBC profile] vowed [JURIST report] that those involved in the coup would pay a heavy price. Last month the European Parliament [official website] voted [JURIST report] to halt EU accession negotiations with Turkey due to the governments disproportionate repressive measures after a failed coup in July. This vote is non-binding, but represents a strong message to the EU Ministers before their December meeting to discuss Turkeys 11-year bid for membership. Also last month Turkey significantly halted the activities of 370 non-governmental organizations [JURIST report] including human rights and childrens groups to investigate the groups alleged terror connections. Early in November the Turkish Government arrested [JURIST report] eight pro-Kurdish political party members, including the partys two leaders Selahattin Demirtas and Figen Yuksekdag, and an additional nine party members. In September Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said that approximately 32,000 people have been arrested [JURIST report] and 70,000 have been questioned. In late October Turkeys government dismissed 10,000 additional civil servants [JURIST report] and closed 15 more media outlets for their supposed connection with US-based religious leader Fethullah Gulen, whom Turkey has accused of orchestrating the attempted coup in July. We value your privacy. Focus Taiwan (CNA) uses tracking technologies to provide better reading experiences, but it also respects readers' privacy. Click here to find out more about Focus Taiwan's privacy policy. When you close this window, it means you agree with this policy. Raegan Junge has been helping those in need since she was six years old. This is the fifth year that she raised money by selling bracelets to help veterans at the Cedar Rapids Veterans Affairs Community Resource and Referral Center. Junge explains, I've seen like the homeless veterans on TV, and I felt really bad so I thought I could make a change." Social Worker Scott Riesenberg from the center says that many of the people who came out for the event are homeless, and dont have much contact with their families. He says, "For people that are struggling, you know trying to get by in life, trying to find a place to live, maybe dealing with a shelter or on the streets, this is very uplifting. Junge handed out gloves, blankets, and hats, and served people turkey and potatoes to eat. Helping out veterans during the holidays is a better gift for her than anything Santa Claus would give her. "I get a lot for Christmas, and sometimes I take that for granted, she says. I feel bad for those who don't have stuff to take for granted, and I want to give them that." Unidentified men check pipes where Corpus Christi's city-owned water main connects with an asphalt plant where a suspected chemical leak led to a city-wide ban on tapwater use, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016, in Corpus Christi, Texas. The ban was been gradually eased and city officials expect the results of EPA tests on Sunday to determine it can be fully lifted. (AP Photo/Frank Bajak) We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form Lawrence-White Udoka The last few days have indeed been some of the most interesting times in the life of Mr. Lawrence-White Udoka. Since photographs of the 44-year-old man hawking doughnuts while neatly dressed went viral, the Akwa Ibom-born father of two has suddenly transcended from a little known Nigerian to a celebrity of sort. From east to west, north to south, images of Udoka are almost now a common sight anywhere you turn to. It is an unprecedented period for him. I have received a lot of calls from people telling me that they have been seeing and reading different interesting things about me on the social media. Whenever I go out to hawk these days, people treat me differently, as if I am a superstar. Though I am excited about this I give all glory to God, he said during a telephone conversation with our correspondent earlier in the week. But beyond the fame the 44-year-old man now enjoys, Udoka has been through the rough patches of life, contending with deprivation and crushing hardship for the most part of his early life. Raised under the roof of a polygamist father with three wives and 10 children, life for him as a little boy growing up in the countryside in Akwa Ibom where he hails from was tough. Apart from the difficulties in accessing quality education as a result of his fathers lean purse, living out his dream of becoming a successful engineer in the future was quite Herculean. The situation remained troubling until he finally made the long journey to Lagos, Nigerias commercial headquarters, in search of a new life. It was tough when I first arrived Lagos, Udoka said, as he shared his inspiring story with our correspondent. I was rejected in almost all the factories I went to search for job not because I wasnt fit but because the people there always felt factory work was not for a person like me. At one of such places, a staff of the factory where I had gone to look for work told me that I should go and get proper education, that he saw me becoming something big in the future and not limiting myself to a factory. That was the last time I ever went out to look for job again, he revealed. Driven by the quest to survive, Udoka soon ventured into frying and selling bean cake popularly known as akara in local parlance around his Ojota neighbourhood. It turned out a big hit. Within weeks after he started, everyone was looking for his brand of akara. It was a period of boom for him. People would come from very far places just to buy my akara. It was as if they had been waiting for the type that I did for a long time. I was never short of patronage, he said. But just when the 44-year-old was enjoying the fruits of his labour and thinking on how to expand his business to meet the growing demand, everything came crashing. A malicious rumour turned the tables against him. I was surprised when all of a sudden people stopped patronising my akara, he recalled. There was a rumour in town that a man somewhere in Mushin was caught using human blood to prepare his akara and that had a negative impact on the patronage of the snack. It affected many of us in the business tremendously. I had to gather the small money I had managed to save to buy a motorcycle for commercial transportation, he said. Few months into commercial transportation, the father of two switched vocation again this time going into baking and hawking doughnuts, egg and fish rolls after a woman introduced him to the business. He abandoned transportation following constant harassment by law enforcement agents in Lagos. I didnt ride okada for too long because law enforcement officers were always harassing us and demanding for money. I had to diversify into the making of doughnuts and other items after a woman introduced me to the business. I look back today and I am happy I ever made that decision, he said. Like akara, Udokas new products also gave him popularity in the entire Ojota/Ogudu area of the metropolis where a lot of people fondly nicknamed him chop better for the richness of his snack. Though he didnt make as much as when he was marketing bean cake, the new items also brought in a decent income. But more than the sweetness of his products, it was his mode of dressing that attracted customers to him the most the Akwa Ibom native was always looking smart and neat while hawking his wares. A lot of women always told me whenever they came across me that if they were mine they would never allow a neatly dressed man like me to hawk. But unknown to them I was married already. I had to always dress well because the Bible says that whatever our hands findeth to do, we should do it well, so I had to apply wisdom into my business. Dressing well was one of the strategies I have used to grow my business. It is a way of appealing to customers who ordinarily wouldnt even think of buying doughnut at the time, he said. But beyond the regular profit he was making from the business and all the attention that followed, the 44-year-old had bigger dreams. He wanted something that would open doors for him a more guaranteed route to escape poverty and all the sufferings that he had experienced in his life. To make that dream a reality, he enrolled for the 2015 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination to study Political Science Education at the University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom. The idea came not only as a joke to many who knew him including his 41-year-old wife, Dorothy, but also as a feat impossible to achieve. My wife felt I was playing an expensive joke when I told her of my desire to go to the university by sitting for UTME, he said. She felt because of my age I should rather invest in our children instead of going to school myself. But that didnt deter me, I insisted and God has been faithful. Even though I was always busy hawking my items, I enrolled for tutorials at a centre in Ojota to prepare me for the exam. Many times I went there with my snacks and while receiving lectures some students would patronise me. I never missed tutorials for once. I have faced a lot of hardship in my life, so I didnt want to go the rest of my life like that. I realised education was the gateway in life. I knew if I could get education, many of my problems in life would be solved. All the while I was selling akara and riding okada, I had always nursed that desire to go to school. I had hope that one day I would be enlisted into one Nigerian university and by the grace of God that dream has come true, he said with a tinge of fulfillment. Attaining that feat didnt come easy challenges in different forms came his way. While some made subtle jests at him, others told it to his face that he was only wasting his time. But the more they tried to discourage him, the more his resolve grew stronger. A lot of people sometimes wondered what an elderly person like me was coming to do at the UTME tutorial centre. In fact it took a long time for even the security men at the place to accept that I was also a student coming for tutorials. But by the grace of God when the result came out, I was vindicated. I scored 333 in the exam even though I was 43 at the time and was combining hawking and studying. I and my daughter, Favour, sat the exam at the same time and we both did well. I am studying Political Science Education at the University of Uyo, I was admitted as a full time student but I asked to switch to part time so that I can continue to do my business. My daughter is studying Public Administration at the same university and we are both in 200 level. Many of my lecturers today use me as a reference point in some of their teachings. They salute my courage and determination to succeed at all cost. I must let you know that I dont miss lectures because I dont like to copy other peoples notes. A lot of useful things are said during lectures, so I dont like to miss them. I have never failed any course since gaining admission. Many people see me as a role model, he said. Apart from attributing his success so far to the mercies of God, Udoka also fingers his unique mode of appearance as playing a key role in his wide acceptance even in Uyo where he had stayed less than two years since gaining admission into the citys university. He receives favour in torrents. People favour me a lot, he cuts in. Many times customers tell me to keep the change and use it to take good care of myself when they patronise me. In fact in 2012, the commissioner for environment in Lagos at the time during a chance encounter told me that he liked the way I dressed and conducted my business and that he would love to assist me with some money. He gave me N100, 000 and it was out of that money that I registered for UTME. Here in Uyo, people patronise me a lot. They look at my dressing and ask why I returned from America. They think I had lived abroad before and only came back as a result of certain circumstances. After arriving here, I had to go to a catering school to acquire more skills for my business. I am a qualified caterer now; a lot of people have been coming to learn from me, he said. The future is looking brighter than it was a few years back, the 44-year-old is already looking forward to better things to come. But while making those lofty pursuits, he has not forgotten the woman that has stood by him all these years. Her place in his heart is special. It is my heart desire for my wife to also go to the university after I graduate, Udoka, sounding a bit emotional at this point, said. She has been very supportive; she has been a strong pillar behind me. Since I and Favour moved to Uyo for studies, she has been taking care of the home, herself and our 17-year-old son, Donald. I cannot thank her enough for all the love, support and understanding. In life, when you record success people will begin to see you differently. My wife sees me differently and appreciates me the more now. Recently she was in Uyo to spend one week with me. I really appreciate this. My wish for her now is to see her attain the level of education I have now. It will make me happy. Dorothy, who runs a thriving food stuff business at the New Garage area of Ojota, told Saturday PUNCH earlier in the week that she was proud of her husband even though she initially feared he was too old to study. According to her, a lot of persons who have been following her husbands rising profile have called to commend her as well. I am very proud of him, me and the children; he is making us very happy. Though I had some reservations when he was pursuing admission, today I give glory to God because he has given us a new song. I know that by the time he and Favour graduate, our lives would change for the better. I feel joy all over my soul, she said. ATLANTIC SKIES: Stellar asterisms eye-catching pretenders to the constellation throne and just part of the bigger picture Most everyone, or at least most amateur astronomers, are familiar with the constellations in the night sky to some degree. Many, however, may not be familiar with the numerous asterisms in the night sky. What is the difference between a constellation ... Russia's Gazprom says exports to Europe, Turkey up 11.9 pct MOSCOW, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Gazprom exported 170 billion cubic metres of natural gas to Europe and Turkey between Jan. 1 and Dec. 15, 11.9 percent more than in the same period a year earlier, the Russian company said on Saturday. (Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; writing by Alexander Winning; editing by Jason Neely) Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in precious metal products, commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication. kitco news of Bernie Sanders, the Francois Hollandes pro-business stance, is now running in the Socialists open primary race to choose a candidate for the French presidential election next spring. the Le Touquet accords the Europe Plans are being made for the $437 million Louisiana is receiving for flood relief. The Louisiana Office of Community Development - the state agency working with the Restore Louisiana Task Force - held a meeting in Ouachita Parish at the West Monroe Convention Center, and the public was invited to see how they are planning to spend the state's flood relief money. "The governor put together this task force to make recommendations to him about what the best investments are for whatever funds we get for recovery," says Pat Forbes with the Office of Community Development. So far, most of the $437 million will be set aside for rebuilding homes. Notably, the budget holds no room for improvements on infrastructure, like roads and bridges. Task Force members like West Monroe Mayor Dave Norris, though, are hopeful the state will get more funding. "I know that the governor intends to ask for additional funds other than the amount that's been appropriated so far," says Norris. The public comment period on the task force's plans ends January 3rd, 2017. The plans are then sent in for final federal approval. To view the plans and make your own comments, visit our "related links" section. By Park Si-soo The 8th mass anti-President rally is under way in downtown Seoul on Saturday. Nearly 770,000 people joined the protest, demanding the Constitutional Court speed up its review of the endorsed impeachment motion against President Park Geun-hye and make a ruling removing Park from the Presidency permanently. The protest came one day after the President's attorneys dismissed all impeachment charges. They urged the court to reject the impeachment motion that was endorsed on Dec. 9 with overwhelming support of opposition lawmakers and defiant members of Park's ruling Saenuri Party. During the rally, the protesters marched within 100 meters from the Constitutional Court, which has up to six months to decide whether to approve the parliament's motion or to reinstate Park. The march also headed to the residence of Acting President Hwang Kyo-ahn in Samcheong-dong and to the Constitutional Court of Korea in Jae-dong. Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong answers a question during a parliamentary probe into a scandal engulfing President Park Geun-hye at the National Assembly in Seoul on Dec. 6. / Yonhap By Park Si-soo Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong has been banned from overseas travel in connection with the corruption scandal involving President Park Geun-hye and her close friend Choi Soon-sil, said prosecutors Saturday. The ban has also been imposed on SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin, the prosecutors said. The business executives are suspected to have "donated" billions of won to two foundations under Choi's control. In return, Choi influenced the government to give their companies business favors. The three tycoons have admitted they made cash donations to the foundations -- Mir and K-Sports Foundation -- which allegedly served as Choi's "personal ATMs." But they claim it was made for a "good cause," not a bribe. Samsung made the biggest donation of some 20 billion won to the foundations. The biggest conglomerate in South Korea allegedly spent billions of won to buy a horse for Choi's daughter, Chung Yu-ra, an equestrian representing the nation in many international sporting events, and sponsored her training in Germany. THE WALL OF SHAME "The only thing [Trump's] mouth is good for is being Vladimir Putin's c--k holster." --STEPHEN COLBERT "[Ivanka Trump] Your father is a racist birther. Steve Bannon an anti-Semitic opportunist. You and your husband are enabling hatred. F--- your shoes." --BRADLEY WHITFORD "Melania [Trump] is a hooker." --JACOB BERNSTEIN "And my job is to shut other white people down when they want to interrupt." "We have to, at the DNC, provide training. We have to teach them how to communicate, how to be sensitive, and how to shut their mouths if they're white." --SALLY BOYNTON BROWN "And to our detractors that insist that this march will never add up to anything: F--- you! F---you! "Yes, I have thought an awful lot about blowing up the White House." --MADONNA "Barron Trump looks like a very handsome date-rapist-to-be." --STEPHEN SPINOLA "Barron [Trump] will be this country's first homeschool shooter." --KATIE RICH "Hollywood is crawling with outsiders and foreigners, and if we kick 'em all out, you'll have nothing to watch but football and mixed martial arts, which are not the arts." --MERYL STREEP "There's a billion to one chance we're living in base reality." [That means we're almost positively living in a simulation, like a video game.] --ELON MUSK "When I would deny that there was a significant racist component in some of the politics on our side, it was because the people I hung out with were certainly not. When suddenly, this rock is turned over, there is this'Oh shit, did I not see that?'" ---------------------------- "In any other scenario, Hillary Clinton's lying about her emails, and her pay-for-play relationship with the Clinton Foundation would be disqualifying issues. The only reason they're not disqualifying is because Donald Trump is a fundamentally more repellent, dishonest figure." --CHARLIE SYKES "I made a mistake in recalling the events of twelve years ago... I said I was traveling in an aircraft that was hit by RPG fire. I was instead in a following aircraft." --BRIAN WILLIAMS "I'm here to tell you if you elect me governor of this state, I will end the civil war." --TOM BARRETT "I would not look to the U.S. Constitution, if I were drafting a constitution in the year 2012. I might look at the constitution of South Africa. That was a deliberate attempt to have a fundamental instrument of government that embraced basic human rights, had an independent judiciary. It really is, I think, a great piece of work that was done." --RUTH BADER GINSBURG "Callista Gingrich. Karen Santorum. Ann Romney. Now, do you really think our country is ready for a white first lady?" --ROBERT DE NIRO "The death of Andrew Breitbart disproves the adage that only the good die young." --JULIAN BOND "The National Institute of Health has said that it is a danger to women's health and safety of their families that for 30 years to be exposed to the prospects of pregnancy." --GWEN MOORE "[Tea Party Republicans] have acted like terrorists." --JOE BIDEN "Why did- Couldn't the President have said at that moment, way back in December of last year, 'no game playing. No hostage-taking. No terrorizing this country with the debt ceiling. I'm not going to negotiate with you guys. You can't play it that way.' Could he have done that?" --CHRIS MATTHEWS "[T]he tea-party Hobbits could return to Middle Earth having defeated Mordor." --WALL STREET JOURNAL EDITORIAL "I remember distinctly an image of--we were sitting on his couches, and I was looking at [Obama's] pant leg and his perfectly creased pant, and I'm thinking, a) he's going to be president and b) he'll be a very good president." --DAVID BROOKS "I feel like calling her back and smackin' her around." --FRED CLARK, DEMOCRAT "The picture was of me, and I sent it." --ANTHONY WEINER "[I]f you go back to the year 2000, when we had an obvious disaster and - and saw that our voting process needed refinement, and we did that in the America Votes Act and made sure that we could iron out those kinks, now you have the Republicans, who want to literally drag us all the way back to Jim Crow laws and literally - and very transparently - block access to the polls to voters who are more likely to vote Democratic candidates than Republican candidates. And it's nothing short of that blatant." --DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ "This is probably one of the worst times we've seen because the numbers of people elected to Congress. I went through this as co-chair of the arts caucus. In '94 people were elected simply to come here to kill the National Endowment for the Arts. Now theyre here to kill women." --LOUISE SLAUGHTER "The protesters have proven today that theyre not going away. It was a pretty rough night last night. You can imagine if people said, well, we just cant fight the power. Instead, this morning, they came by tens, by hundreds, by thousands. By midday today, it was easily more than 10,000, perhaps as many as 15,000 people on the square here in Madison. Not organized by anyone, just grassroots citizens who came out just like the Minutemen in 1776." --JOHN NICHOLS "They're sitting on the money, they're using it for their own -- they're putting it someplace else with no interest in helping you with your life, with that money. We've allowed them to take that. That's not theirs, that's a national resource, that's ours. We all have this -- we all benefit from this or we all suffer as a result of not having it. I think we need to go back to taxing these people at the proper rates." --MICHAEL MOORE "Why don't we just raise the taxes and let these folks have their collective bargaining, have their union representation and go back to their jobs? Raise the taxes on the wealthy." --DAVID LETTERMAN "In 1933, [Hitler] abolished unions and that's what our Governor [Scott Walker] is doing today." --LENA TAYLOR, Democrat State Senator "So I would urge my Republican colleagues, no matter how strongly they feel -- you know, we have three branches of government. We have a House. We have a Senate. We have a president. And all three of us are going to have to come together and give some, but it is playing with fire to risk the shutting down of the government." --CHUCK SCHUMER "Well, when you start off with the Preamble of the Constitution, you talk about the pursuit of happiness." --JOHN LEWIS "I'm Rebecca Kleefisch. I performed fellatio on all the talk show hosts in Milwaukee. And they endorsed me and that's how I became lieutenant governor." --SLY SYLVESTER "Do you think this Constitution-loving is getting out of hand? I mean, is it a nod to the Tea Party?" --JOY BEHAR "We cant just leave it up to the parents." "[Military leaders] tell us that childhood obesity isnt just a public health issue; they tell us that it is not just an economic threat -- it is a national security threat as well." --MICHELLE OBAMA "Actually, I did not take part in [the assassination of Sarah Palin]. I led it." --KATHLEEN PARKER "[The repeal of ObamaCare is] a kind of creeping genocide." --JESSE JACKSON "[Obama] has to realize that Mitch McConnell has virtually said so that politically he wants to cut out his heart and throw his liver to the dogs." --DAN RATHER "And the instructions are not to improvise a comedy sketch, but to elect a group of unqualified, unstable individuals who will do what they are told, in exchange for money and power, and march this nation as far backward as they can get, backward to Jim Crow, or backward to the breadlines of the '30s, or backward to hanging union organizers, or backward to the trusts and the robber barons. "Result: the Tea Party. Vote backward, vote Tea Party. And if you are somehow indifferent to what is planned for next Tuesday, it is nothing short of an attempted use of democracy to end this democracy." --KEITH "Reagan's dead and he was a lousy President" OLBERMANN "I gotta wonder when people are gonna start wearing uniforms. I mean they've got an army out there in Alaska of militia people. You've got these guys going around acting like street thugs. I mean it isn't far from what we saw in the thirties, where all of a sudden, political parties started showing up in uniform." --CHRIS MATTHEWS "[Sharron Angle] is a moron on top of being evil... I'd like to see her do this ad in the South Bronx. Come here, bitch. Come to New York and do it. I'm not praying for her. She's going to hell. She's going to hell, this bitch." --JOY BEHAR "So people have been hurting and I understand that. And it doesn't give them comfort or solace for me to tell them, you know, but for me, we'd be in a worldwide depression." --HARRY REID "And to play Dick Cheney, all I had to do was find my Dick Cheney. And you can find all the villainy in the world in your own heart, and that's what an actor's job is. I always say to kids, inside you is Hitler and Jesus. And you got to find the appropriate person and bring them out." --RICHARD DREYFUSS "Because I live in the District of Columbia which is so predominantly Democratic, I am a registered Democrat. But I am an avowed neutral. And to put that into practice, I take my young daughter into the voting booth and she votes for me. She's now 14. We've been doing this since she was about age 4. She's now quite informed." --BOB WOODWARD "Sarah Palin's an idiot. Come on. This is a remarkably, stunningly, jaw-droppingly incompetent and mean woman." "The Democrats may have moved into the center, but the Republicans have moved into a mental institution." --AARON SORKIN "Perhaps the greatest threat of all is the undermining of our Constitution and the systematic attack against the inalienable rights of the citizens of this nation, rights that are guaranteed by our Constitution. At the vanguard of this insidious attack is the Tea Party. This band of misguided citizens is moving perilously close to achieving villainous ends." --HARRY BELAFONTE "[Christine O'Donnell is] a witch who doesn't masturbate." --JOY BEHAR "Ah, the Tea Party, the nativist bed-wetters who somehow control our national dialogue. Yes, I call them the Pee Party, Jay, because they're always peeing in their pants about something. They're just, they're afraid of a mosque being built in New York. They're afraid of guns. You know, they think Obama, who like every other pussy Democrat has never said a single word about gun control, but they are very sure that he and his Negro army are coming after their guns. You know what? If you think that he's coming after your guns, you need to get out of your chat room and have your house tested for lead. He's not coming after your guns or your Bible or your fishing pole or your chewing tobacco." --BILL MAHER "That's a trade-off society is making because of very, very high medical costs, and a lack of willingness to say, you know, is spending a million dollars on that last three months of life for that patient, would it be better not to lay off those ten teachers and to make that trade-off in medical costs. But that;s called the 'Death Panel' and you're not supposed to have that discussion." --BILL GATES "NOT the 'whiteman's bitch'" --IESHUH GRIFFIN "[If Rush Limbaugh suffered a heart attack in my presence, I would] laugh loudly like a maniac and watch his eyes bug out. I never knew I had this much hate in me. But he deserves it." --SARAH SPITZ "You want freedom, you going to have to kill some crackers. You going to have to kill some of their babies." --KING SAMIR SHABAZZ "If this was Texas, which is the state that, that is directly on the border with Mexico, and they were calling for a measure like this, saying that they had a major issue with, you know, with undocumented people flooding their borders, I would say I would have to look twice at this. "But this is a state that is a ways removed from the border. And, um, it just, it doesn't make sense to me that when you google this subject, if you put in 'Arizona S.B. 1070,' that you see a picture of the governor of Arizona meeting with President Obama in May of 2010. If you have direct linkage to the president, there are already National Guard troops on the border in Arizona." --PEGGY WEST "Tell [the Jews] to get the hell out of Palestine. Remember, these people are occupied and it's their land. It's not German. It's not Poland. [The Jews] can go home. Poland. Germany." --HELEN THOMAS "After the last eight years, it's good to have a president that knows what a library is." --PAUL McCARTNEY "By the way, I just want to point out I'm wearing my splash shield because I was told I was going to be in the splash zone (during Harry Smith's colonoscopy on live TV)." --KATIE COURIC "And that Word is, we have to give voice to what that means in terms of public policy that would be in keeping with the values of the Word." ---------------------------- "Think of an economy where people could be an artist or a photographer or a writer without worrying about keeping their day job in order to have health insurance or that people could start a business and be entrepreneurial and take risk, but not job loss because of a child with asthma or someone in the family is bipolaryou name it, any condition is job-locking." --NANCY PELOSI "Back in World War II, we viewed the Japanese as 'yellow, slant-eyed dogs' that believed in different gods. They were out to kill us because our way of living was different. We, in turn, wanted to annihilate them because they were different. Does that sound familiar, by any chance, to what's going on today?" --TOM HANKS "The 'White Right' is trying to set Barack up to be assassinated.... Here are Christians praying for God to kill Barack Obama." --LOUIS FARRAKHAN "I refuse to accept the notion that the United States of America is not going to lead the world economically throughout the 20th Century." --JOE BIDEN "Obama's critics keep blasting him for Chicago-style politics. So, fine. Channel your inner Al Capone and go gangsta against your foes. Let 'em know that if they aren't with you, they are against you, and will pay the price." --ROLAND MARTIN "Martha Coakley is running to fill the rest of Ted Kennedy's term, and her opponent is a far-right tea-bagger Republican." --CHUCK SCHUMER "I tell you what, if I lived in Massachusetts, I'd try to vote ten times. I don't know if they'd let me or not, but I'd try to. Yeah, that's right, I'd cheat to keep these bastards out. I would. 'Cause that's exactly what they are." --ED SCHULTZ "We also see how revved up the tea baggers are at the thought of hijacking health care reform and every chance we have at making progress in Washington." --JOHN KERRY "A few years ago, this guy (Obama) would have been getting us coffee." --BILL CLINTON "I didn't realize I had written a column defending Roman Polanski and minimized his crime - are you sure it was me? I mean, I? There is, apparently, more to this crime than it would seem, and it may sound like a hollow defense, but in Hollywood I am not sure a 13-year-old is really a 13-year-old." --TOM SHALES "Joe Wilson yelled 'You lie!' at a president who didn't. But, fair or not, what I heard was an unspoken word in the air: You lie, boy!" --MAUREEN DOWD "One awkward moment for Sarah Palin at the Yankee game... During the 7th inning, her daughter was knocked up by Alex Rodriguez." --DAVID LETTERMAN "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasnt lived that life." --SONIA SOTOMAYOR "We all considered sexual abuse of minors as a moral evil, but had no understanding of its criminal nature." --REMBERT WEAKLAND, Archbishop of Milwaukee 1977- 2002 "You know, you might want to look into this, [President Obama], because I think maybe Rush Limbaugh was the 20th hijacker, but he was so strung out on Oxycontin he missed his flight." "Rush Limbaugh -- 'I hope the country fails.' I hope his kidneys fail." ---------------------------- "[Obama] told me I did a great job. The first lady said the same thing. I got a 'well done' from the president, I'm on cloud nine." --WANDA SYKES "Americans are looking for more government in their life, not less." --COLIN POWELL "[Tea Party goers are] just a bunch of wimpy, whiny, weasels who don't love their country." --PAUL BEGALA "I wouldn't want [gay marriage] to go to the United States Supreme Court now because that homophobe Antonin Scalia has too many votes on this current court." --BARNEY FRANK "Going forward, my mind will be open to every solution -- except one. We should not -- we must not -- and I will not -- raise taxes." --JIM DOYLE, Liar "He's a terrorist. Rush Limbaugh is a terrorist." --JOY BEHAR "You know, I just want to say to her (Sarah Palin), just very quickly...F--- you." --JON STEWART "Should I be worried about being a slave and being returned to slavery?" --WHOOPI GOLDBERG "I also believe that America is the greatest sin against God." --FR. MICHAEL PFLEGER "Those who think they can revive the stinking corpse of the usurping and fake Israeli regime by throwing a birthday party are seriously mistaken. Today the reason for the Zionist regime's existence is questioned, and this regime is on its way to annihilation." --MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD "We'll be eight degrees hotter in ten, not ten but 30 or 40 years and basically none of the crops will grow. Most of the people will have died and the rest of us will be cannibals." --TED TURNER "Look, [Mitt] Romney comes from a religion founded by a criminal who was anti-American, pro-slavery, and a rapist. And he comes from that lineage and says, 'I respect this religion fully.'" --LAWRENCE O'DONNELL "Mexico does not end at its borders... Where there is a Mexican, there is Mexico." --FELIPE CALDERON "The planet has a fever. If your baby has a fever, you go to the doctor. If the doctor says you need to intervene here, you don't say, 'Well, I read a science fiction novel that told me it's not a problem.' If the crib's on fire, you don't speculate that the baby is flame retardant." --AL GORE "Don't fear the terrorists. They're mothers and fathers." --ROSIE O'DONNELL "Is America ready for a black president? Well, I say we just had a retarded one. When did being black become a bigger deterrent than being retarded?" --CHRIS ROCK "Shut the f--- up! Shut up if you can't take a joke [about President Bush]!" --BARBRA STREISAND "Right, oh, yeah, Happy 9/11! Celebrate the day, right?" --JAMES BROLIN, Mr. Barbra Streisand "I think President Bush very well may have signed an authorization for the 9/11 attacks." --KEVIN BARRETT, UW-MADISON Lecturer "I said what I said. I am not guilty." --SADDAM HUSSEIN "Terri will not be starved to death. Her nutrition and hydration will be taken away." --MICHAEL SCHIAVO "On the eve of the election last month my wife Judith and I were driving home late in the afternoon and turned on the radio for the traffic and weather. What we instantly got was a freak show of political pornography: lies, distortions, and half-truths -- half-truths being perhaps the blackest of all lies. " --BILL MOYERS "I hate the Republicans and everything they stand for." --HOWARD DEAN "The Iraqis who have risen up against the occupation are not 'insurgents' or 'terrorists' or 'The Enemy.' They are the REVOLUTION, the Minutemen, and their numbers will grow -- and they will win." --MICHAEL MOORE "And there is no reason, Bob, that young American soldiers need to be going into the homes of Iraqis in the dead of night, terrorizing kids and children, you know, women, breaking sort of the customs of the--of--the historical customs, religious customs." --JOHN KERRY "F---ing retarded." "[Republicans] can go f--- themselves!" --RAHM EMANUEL "I'm not going to have some reporters pawing through our papers. We are the president." --HILLARY CLINTON "It depends on what the meaning of the word 'is' is." --BILL CLINTON "And let me tell you something -- for the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my country. And not just because Barack has done well, but because I think people are hungry for change. And I have been desperate to see our country moving in that direction and just not feeling so alone in my frustration and disappointment." --MICHELLE OBAMA "If asking a billionaire to pay the same tax rate as a Jew, uh, as a janitor, makes me a warrior for the working class, I wear that with a badge of honor." ---------------------------- "If you love me, you got to help me pass this bill." ---------------------------- "[F]or most of my lifetime, the United States was such a dominant economic power, we were such a large market, our industry, our technology, our manufacturing was so significant that we always met the rest of the world economically on our terms. And now, because of the incredible rise of India and China and Brazil and other countries, the United States remains the largest economic and the largest market but theres real competition out there. And that's potentially healthy. It makes -- Michelle was saying earlier I like tough questions because it keeps me on my toes. Well, this will keep America on its toes." ---------------------------- "If Latinos sit out the election instead of saying, 'We're gonna PUNISH OUR ENEMIES and we're gonna reward our friends who stand with us on issues that are important to us,' if they don't see that kind of upsurge in voting in this election, then I think it's gonna be harder and that's why I think it's so important that people focus on voting on November 2." ---------------------------- "We don't mind the Republicans joining us. They can come for the ride, but THEY GOTTA SIT IN BACK." ---------------------------- "We can absorb a terrorist attack. We'll do everything we can to prevent it, but even a 9/11, even the biggest attack ever... we absorbed it and we are stronger." ---------------------------- "We're buying shrimp, guys." ---------------------------- "We are the ones we've been waiting for." ---------------------------- "We talk to these folks because they potentially have the best answers so I know whose ass to kick." ---------------------------- "We're not trying to push financial reform because we begrudge success that's fairly earned. I mean, I do think at a certain point you've made enough money. But, you know, part of the American way is, you know, you can just keep on making it if youre providing a good product or you're providing good service. We don't want people to stop fulfilling the core responsibilities of the financial system to help grow the economy." ---------------------------- "If you've got a business, you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen." ---------------------------- "It is a vital national security interest of the United States to reduce these conflicts because whether we like it or not, we remain a dominant military superpower, and when conflicts break out, one way or another we get pulled into them. And that ends up costing us significantly in terms of both blood and treasure." ---------------------------- "But I -- I think that the most important thing for the public to understand is, we're not handling any of these cases any different than the Bush administration handled them all through 9/11." ---------------------------- "One such translator was an American of Haitian descent, representative of the extraordinary work that our men and women in uniform do all around the world -- Navy CORPSE-MAN Christian [sic] Brossard. And lying on a gurney aboard the USNS Comfort, a woman asked Christopher: 'Where do you come from? What country? After my operation,' she said, 'I will pray for that country.' And in Creole, CORPSE-MAN Brossard responded, 'Etazini.' The United States of America." ---------------------------- "I hear that Dr. Joe Medicine Crow was around, and so I want to give a shout-out to that Congressional Medal of Honor winner. It's good to see you." ---------------------------- "We are God's partners in matters of life and death." ---------------------------- "[T]he Cambridge police acted stupidly." ---------------------------- "I am going to teach [my daughters] first about values and morals, but if they make a mistake, I don't want them punished with a baby." ---------------------------- "The reforms we seek would bring greater competition, choice, savings, and INEFFICIENCIES to our health care system." ---------------------------- "Over the last 15 months, weve traveled to every corner of the United States. Ive now been in 57 states? I think one left to go. Alaska and Hawaii, I was not allowed to go to even though I really wanted to visit, but my staff would not justify it." --BARACK OBAMA Its enough to make you cry out loud. And its enough to make you think. Recently, I was reading the October issue of the Voice of the Martyrs magazine.* The cover story is about the Werner and Hannelie Groenewald family from South Africa. It begins with Hannelie Groenewald. Hannelie, a doctor, and her family lived in Afghanistan for years. On Nov. 29, 2014, she and other physicians from her clinic had been put on standby in case of an attack by the Taliban on Kabul. Hannelie was headed home that day when her driver got a phone call. There had been an attack. And it was on the building where her family lived and worked. Police and armored vehicles blocked the way so she had to walk to the building. No one would let her inside. An eerie silence later was shattered by gunfire and an explosion. Afghan police then fired a rocket-propelled grenade into the apartment where the Groenewalds lived. In the darkness, Hannelie stared at the light of her cell phone, reading Gods word. Before moving to Afghanistan in 2003, the Groenewalds talked about possibly dying in a war-ravaged country. They took account of the very real dangers of raising their children, Jean-Pierre, then 5, and Rode, then 3, in that far-away nation, dominated by the Taliban. Yet the call on their lives by God was so real. Saying yes to that call wasnt easy, but they left their comfortable home and moved. God provided for them in amazing ways, yet life was still challenging. Throughout the years, Werner Groenewald, whod been a senior pastor at a Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa, served with humanitarian organizations in Afghanistan. He provided leadership training, community development education and English courses. Hannelie had left behind a successful career in trauma medicine. She served in medical clinics in Afghanistan and the CURE International Hospital of Kabul. Life in Afghanistan is tough for Christians. By law, those who leave Islam can be put to death. Those who come to know Christ as their Savior often keep it a secret. More mature believers share their faith, but its dangerous. They have counted the cost, Hannelie said in the article. We had to count the cost before going to Afghanistan with our small children. We knew anything could happen, and Afghan believers there also know that anything can happen. You have to come to terms with that before you go to a country like that. For Werner, fearless service to Christ became a theme and something of which he spoke often. In October 2014, Werner spoke at a conference on Counting the Cost for Christ. He finished by saying: We die only once. It might as well be for Christ. The day of the attack, the Groenewalds son, Jean-Pierre, listened to music and chatted with friends on the Internet. His sister, Rode, crocheted and worked on the computer. Werner was teaching a class when Taliban fighters stormed the building. Hearing gunshots, Werner ordered his students to go to Hannelies consulting room next door. Werner was headed upstairs, when attackers shot him. He bled to death within minutes. In the upstairs apartment, Jean-Pierre, 17, and Rode, 15, were found shot to death with an AK-47. One of the attackers detonated a bomb, killing himself, and the house caught fire and burned. Two of Hannelies co-workers tearfully broke the news to her about her family. Two years later, Hannelie is in South Africa, where she uses her medical skills to care for the less privileged. She regrets not being with her children when they died, but knows Christ was with them. And while finding peace hasnt been easy, she knows Christ has been with her, too. Hannelie believes she and her family made an impact on people in Afghanistan. Shes proud of their obedience and notes that in the midst of their struggles on the mission field the Lord gave us the reward of his presence. He revealed himself to us, who He is. When asked, Hannelie said shes never been angry with God about the deaths of her family. They had a clear calling from God. Now, she believes her family wants her to finish her race for the Lord. I cried when I read this story and did some thinking. Werners quote about counting the cost reminds me of another man Jim Elliot. Jim was an evangelical Christian and one of five missionaries killed in 1956, trying to bring the Gospel message to the Huaorani people of Ecuador. Jim was just 28 years old. Like the Groenewalds, Jim also counted the cost, too. Just a few years before his death, Jim even wrote in his journal: He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose. I think about Jims widow, Elisabeth, who with other missionaries returned to Ecuador to reach the people there for Christ. Elisabeth became an author and remarried. Elisabeth was 88 when she died in 2015. Last week, I came across another Jim Elliot quote, which provides an additional view of his thoughts. I seek not a long life, but a full one, like you Lord Jesus, Jim wrote. That quote caught me. It reminded me of something my late husband, Chuck, told me when I informed him that hed better live a long time. I cant promise you Ill live a long life, but Ill live a full one, he said. And I think Chuck did. He enjoyed cooking, working on his Bucket-T car, spending time with family and friends and playing on the worship team at church. Chuck liked the Bucket List movie. And he had a Bucket List that included driving his Bucket-T across the country. Chuck didnt get to finish that list, which was lost on a computer. But I believe hes in heaven wanting me and the rest of our family to finish our races and to live full lives. Those of us who are left still have things to do for the Lord. And while its not always easy to carry on, I believe its the Lords will and our familys wishes that we do so. My buddy, Carol Swanda, once told me that she thought Chuck and I finished well as a married couple. We fulfilled our marriage vows. Now, I want to finish well the race that God has for me. And as I think about people like the Groenewalds and the Elliots, Im reminded of an ancient-day missionary and writer, the Apostle Paul. As the end of his life grew close, Paul wrote some incredibly poignant words. We find them in New Testament book of 2 Timothy 4:7-8: I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. If we love and trust Jesus as our Savior, I dont think we have to fear death. And I dont think we have to fear the thought of stepping out in faith during our lifetimes. For reasons only known to God, each one of us was placed on this earth at this period of time for his purposes. I believe God loves us deeply and hurts when we do. He has our best interests at heart and has a plan for each of us even though we cant see the whole picture. Why do people we love most in the world die? I dont know and I hate it, but I find comfort in Revelation 21:4, which talks about God wiping every tear from our eyes and about a time when there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain. And I believe deep in my heart that day will come. * From the Voice of the Martyrs newsletter, which is available for free at persecution.com. A man from Springfield received a 10-year federal prison sentence on Friday for robbing a bank more than two years ago and kidnapping the bank manager by forcing him to leave the bank with him. Timothy Polodna, 54, won't be eligible for parole. Polodna pleaded guilty last July to bank robbery and kidnapping. Polodna admitted he stole $26,536 from Bank of America, 633 W. Kearney St., Springfield, on July 9, 2014. Polodna entered the bank at approximately 10:30 a.m., wearing a ball cap, sunglasses and a large piece of white gauze over his chin. Polodna told a bank employee he needed to talk to someone about getting a loan and was directed to the bank managers office. The bank manager, who was already on alert due to Polodnas apparent disguise, asked him to remove his hat and sunglasses. Polodna then told the bank manager, You know why Im here. He then said that he had an explosive device with a remote. Polodna ordered the bank manager to stand up, turn around and lift his pant legs to check him for weapons. Polodna then ordered the bank manager to take him to the vault. The bank manager, who had already activated the alarm, attempted to stall Polodna and suggested Polodna wait in the office while he went to the vault alone. Polodna refused and demanded that he be taken to the vault. The manager took Polodna behind the teller counter to the drive up window where he told a teller to give Polodna cash from her teller drawer. She placed the money in a bag that Polodna was carrying and he told her in a low voice, Dont push the alarm. I have an explosive device. Ill set it off. After receiving the money, Polodna ordered the bank manager to open the doors for his exit from the bank. The bank manager opened the doors as instructed, exiting each of the two doors while holding them open for Polodna, who was behind him, to walk through the doors. Once outside, the bank manager then walked in front of Polodna, across the bank parking lot, toward the Rice House restaurant. Polodnas gestures, actions and instruction to open the doors, coupled with the representation that he had a bomb, reasonably caused the bank manager to believe he was being ordered to leave the bank with Polodna. After crossing the street, Polodna told the bank manager to continue to walk three blocks north before calling the police. The bank manager initially complied and began to walk away, but after seeing Polodna had gone around the corner of the Rice House, the bank manager returned to the bank. On July 14, 2014, the FBI received an anonymous tip that the vehicle in surveillance photos looked similar to a vehicle owned by Polodnas father. FBI agents were told the rear window of the vehicle had been broken out a few days earlier, shortly after police reports highlighting distinctive stickers were noted in a news report about the bank robbery. The anonymous source also said the Polodna closely resembled the individual in the surveillance photos. Agents contacted Polodnas father, who confirmed the rear window of his truck had been broken. Polodnas father told agents that he believed his truck window was damaged because his son had used his truck when he committed the bank robbery and wanted to remove the incriminating stickers observed in pictures and by witnesses noted in press reports. Agents searched the basement of Polodnas parents home, where he was living, on July 16, 2014. They found a portion of the money taken during the bank robbery hidden in the area above the drop ceiling of the basement. The arrested Polodna. The Springfield Police Department and the FBI investigated the robbery. The Missouri State Highway Patrol says a deadly two-vehicle crash blocked traffic on Missouri 5 a couple of miles north of Lebanon. The crash was about 4:15 p.m. Friday near a curve next to a rural water tower. A witness says the driver of one car was speeding and driving recklessly by making bad passes when he hit an oncoming car head-on. The witness says two people were in each car. Traffic in both directions was blocked and travelers were diverted to county and city roads. A traveler called the newsroom shortly before 6 p.m. and said southbound traffic was backed up all the way to Camdenton, about 20 miles away. A man arrested after a two-hour standoff with police on Thursday was charged on Friday. Jack Sampson, 51, is charged with burglary, two counts of domestic assault, assaulting police officers, felonious restraint and unlawful use of a weapon. Police went to 3407 E. Covington St., near Glendale High School, after a woman called during the noon hour and said Sampson was in the house illegally -- it is his home but the woman has an order of protection against him -- and was assaulting her and holding her against her will. A 9-1-1 emergency call-taker could hear the woman say, "Don't do this," and "Put down the gun," according to the probable cause statement against Sampson. After officers arrived, the woman got out safely. Sampson came out the door, spotted officers, and went back inside and refused to come out. During a telephone call with an officer, he said he was prepared to die and wouldn't come out alive. After that, a shot came through a front wall of the house towards officers. Police negotiators tried to get Sampson to leave. They called the department's Special Response Team, who surrounded the home before Sampson left shortly before 4 p.m. After his arrest, a detective interviewed the woman, who said Sampson pointed the handgun at her forehead and said both of them were going to die that day. At the jail, Sampson told a detective that he was upset the woman got an order of protection against him and would not let him in the home. He said he parked behind the home and went in the back door with his revolver in a holster on his side. He said he and the woman struggled with each other and he pulled out the gun, according to the probable cause statement. Sampson said he put the gun to the side of his head because he wanted the woman to see him kill himself. He denied pointing the gun at her but admitted he understood she would feel he was possibly going to kill her. During the standoff, Sampson told the officer, he sat on a bed and fired the gun towards the front door. He said he wasnt shooting at officers but admitted he fired the round to let officers know he was serious about ending his life that day. The standoff caused Glendale to go into lockdown mode inside the school, meaning they didn't change classrooms. Administrators then sent some students home early because part of Ingram Mill was blocked. Students left in waves to lessen traffic congestion. City police say they've been to the home on Covington several times for domestic fights. The woman said Sampson choked her and hit her head with a .367 revolver, and then prevented her from leaving the home before police arrived. A judge set Sampson's bond at $150,.000. If he's convicted of the new charges, he could face up to 20 years in prison for the burglary and sentences up to four or seven years for each of the other crimes. I came across this on twitter and I was touched. I am sure you will too. God bless us all! My mum had an accident in 2010 when she was traveling to PH to see my brother and also attend my family friends wedding. But unfortunately she didnt reach where she was going as they were involved in an accident. The accident was so severe that she was bedridden for months. The doctors in the hospital she was put in PH didnt even know she had a spinal cord injury. They were just treating her internal bleeding,stitching and cleaning the injuries they could see because they didnt have an MRI machine. Continue The X-ray she did only showed that she had broken ribs so my mum kept saying she wanted to leave there and be taken close to her family members. We spent over 3million naira in PH but they didnt do anything. So we were referred to FMC OWO but those ones didnt have the equipment,FMC referred us to Teaching hospital in Benin,same thing. Benin referred us to Ile-ife,they also didnt have the equipment. We were then referred to MECURE to do the scan,we did the scan for 80k only for the neurosurgeon in ife to tell us that we didnt do the right scan. All this while we had sold everything we had that could bring money so there was no money to do the 2 MRI scans that was required which was about 160k. My mum just told us to forget about it that she will go to the church. Then we went to healing school. After the healing session mumc said she wasnt going to any hospital that she would keep her faith alive and pray to God. This accident really changed my life,I left school for about 3months by the time I got back,I cudnt catch up with my academics that I failed some courses for that semester. Even after I resumed school,I travel every single weekend to go see my mum bcos there was no one to stay with her. I failed in my academics,I lost concentration bcos the person paying my school fees was no longer going to be able to so I started fending for myself. I finished school in 2012,I was released for NYSC in 2015 bcos I mistakenly forgot to register a course due to too many distractions. I just kept hope alive and kept struggling to cater for my mum. I had to work my NYSC to Abuja with hopes that I will find help here but nothing good comes easy dear. Now 2016,the year is almost over and my mum is getting worse. She cant even walk,she cant go to pee or use the toilet without struggling. I cant keep Seeing the woman that raised me continue to suffer,thats y I had to come out for people to help me. I have entered different Instagram competitions with hopes that I might win cash prizes and use the money for her surgery. On Monday our neurosurgeon said if she is not operated on soon, she might not be able to walk again. Estimated cost for the surgery is 2million naira($7000). Pls If you are reading this, and God touches you to help us, please help. Im desperately in need of your help. God bless you. Help spread the word! Adejumo Oluwakemi,GTB,0125720273 (Daughters account) Babayomi Florence Mopelola ECO 5282030612 (Mothers account). Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates Today American Red Cross blood drive, 7:30 a.m. to noon, Arlington City Auditorium. Download the American Red Cross Blood Donor App, visit www.redcrossblood.org or call 800-733-2767 to make an appointment or for more information. American Red Cross blood drive, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., St. Patricks Catholic Church, Fremont. Download the American Red Cross Blood Donor App, visit www.redcrossblood.org or call 800-733-2767 to make an appointment or for more information. HomeStore, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., 701 E. Dodge St., Fremont. The HomeStore sells donated items at discounted prices. Proceeds support the mission of Fremont Area Habitat for Humanity. Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, 10 a.m., Chapter 5 Club, 136 N. Main St., Fremont. Storytime, 11-11:30 a.m., Keene Memorial Library auditorium, 1030 N. Broad St., Fremont. 2016 Wreaths Across America, 11 a.m., Memorial Cemetery, Fremont. The Fremont City Air Patrol is working with local businesses to remember every one of the 2,000 veterans at Memorial Cemetery. Sponsorship for one wreath is $15 and can be by any individual, business, financial institution or service club. Alcoholics Anonymous womens heart to heart group, noon, Chapter 5 Club, Fremont. Pathfinder Chorus Christmas concert, 2 p.m., St. Patricks Catholic Church, 16th Street and Johnson Road, Fremont. The concert will benefit The Salvation Army. The concert is free and open to the public. There will be an intermission with an audience participation sing led by Pathfinder Chorus music director Jacob Ritter. During the intermission, collection plates will be passed. Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, 5:15 p.m., Chapter 5 Club, Fremont. Journey to Bethlehem, 7-9 p.m., Calvary Baptist Church, 904 N. Bell St., Fremont. Admission is free. There will be a small gift for all who attend. Refreshments will be provided. The alternate dates are Dec. 19 and 20 if snow interferes. Narcotics Anonymous open meeting, 7:30 p.m., United Faith Church, 218 W. Gardiner St., Valley. Narcotics Anonymous Lie Is Dead Group, 8 p.m., Care Corps, 723 N. Broad St., Fremont. Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, 10:30 p.m., Chapter 5 Club, Fremont. Sunday Knights of Columbus pancake breakfast, 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Delaney Hall at St. Patricks Catholic Church, Fremont. Pancakes, eggs, ham or sausage, toast, coffee and orange juice will be served. The cost is $5 for adults and $2 for children 12 and under. Celebrate the Child, 8 a.m., 9:15 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., First Lutheran Church, 3200 E. Military Ave., Fremont. Celebrate the Child is a one-man play featuring Christian actor and speaker Jonathan Swenson. The combination of characters and carols explores the birth of Jesus through the eyes of six different people whose lives were somehow intertwined with the birth of Christ. Alcoholics Anonymous Happy Sober Sunday Group, 9 a.m., Chapter 5 Club, Fremont. Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, 10 a.m., Chapter 5 Club, Fremont. Narcotics Anonymous Seekers of Serenity Group, 10:30 a.m., Care Corps, 723 N. Broad St., Fremont. The Star of Bethlehem, 7 p.m., Midland Universitys Lueninghoener Planetarium, Fremont. Seating is limited to 70 per show and will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis. There is no admission charge. Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, 5:15 p.m., Chapter 5 Club, Fremont. Liberty Baptist Church Christmas program, 6 p.m., 11th and Main streets, Fremont. There will be songs by the adult choir, special music, readings and presentations by all of the Sunday school children. There will be light refreshments after the service. There is no admission charge. Narcotics Anonymous Point of Freedom Group, 7 p.m., Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Education Building, west of the church, 1440 E. Military Ave., Fremont. Enter through the rear door. Alcoholics Anonymous Sunday speaker, 7:30 p.m., Chapter 5 Club, Fremont. Monday TOPS Club (Take Off Pounds Sensibly), 9 a.m., First United Methodist Church, 850 N. Broad St., Fremont. Weigh-ins begin at 8 a.m. Visitors (preteens, teens and adults male and female) are welcome. The first meeting is free. For more information, call Janet Bloemker at 402-721-8952. Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, 10 a.m., Chapter 5 Club, Fremont. Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, noon, Chapter 5 Club, Fremont. Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, 5:15 p.m., Chapter 5 Club, Fremont. Fremont Night MOPS group, 6:30-8 p.m., Fremont Alliance Church, 1615 N. Lincoln Ave. For more information, contact Fremont Alliance Church at 402-721-5180 or Cindy Slykhuis at 402-708-1561. Narcotics Anonymous basic text study, 6:30 p.m., Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Education Building, west of the church, 1440 E. Military Ave., Fremont. Enter through the rear door. Celebrate Recovery, 7-9 p.m., Sanctuary Church, 1640 W. Military Ave., Fremont. Childcare is available. Celebrate Recovery, 7 p.m., Fremont Church of the Nazarene, 960 Johnson Road. Journey to Bethlehem, 7-9 p.m., Calvary Baptist Church, 904 N. Bell St., Fremont. Admission is free. There will be a small gift for all who attend. Refreshments will be provided. The alternate dates are Dec. 19 and 20 if snow interferes. Alcoholics Anonymous 12x12 meeting, 8 p.m., Chapter 5 Club, Fremont. This transcript appears in the December 16, 2016 issue of Executive Intelligence Review. HELGA ZEPP-LAROUCHE World Land-Bridge: Mankinds Next Great Task [PDF version of this trancript] Below is an edited transcript of an address by Helga Zepp-LaRouche to a Dec. 10, 2016 Schiller Institute Conference in New York City. It is preceded by a transcript of the introduction of Zepp-LaRouche by moderator Dennis Speed. Dennis Speed: One thing struck me about what Dr. Ho just said, at the end of his slide show, The Inexhaustible Road to Self-improvement and Development. Id like to say something about the next speaker, the founder of the Schiller Institute, Helga Zepp-LaRouche. At a very young age, she went to China, on an unauthorized visit at a time that you werent supposed to be able to go there. She became involved in the economics and politics of Lyndon LaRouche. She is married to Lyndon LaRouche. But the thing that characterizes her is that she believes in the idea of living with genius and paying the price of living with genius. Now, the price of living with genius is that you have to give up being stupid, and thats a very seductive thing. What she did, in 1983, when Lyndon LaRouche successfully convinced the Reagan Administration to adopt the Strategic Defense Initiative, which was a new strategic platform which could have ended the age of nuclear madness, Helga proposed to elements of the United States government that they have a corresponding cultural initiative, and that this cultural initiative would seek to look for the best in all nations and advance, together with the Russians and others, the cause of a community of principle. They rejected that; the United States State Department and others rejected that because they didnt have the vision to see what she already saw. And so, she founded the Schiller Institute during the summer of 1984, to carry out that initiative herself. This was a civilizing influence on the United States. It was a civilizing influence throughout the world as a whole. But she used poet Friedrich Schiller, the Poet of Freedom, and introduced Americans to him, his work, and not only that, very soon after that 1984 founding of the Schiller Institute, she pioneered work with the scientist Krafft Ehricke, one of the most important physicists and visionaries of the 20th Century. EIRNS/Dean Andromidas She did many other things. But at the point that the Berlin Wall came down in November 1989, and her husband Lyndon LaRouche was in jail, the two of them cooked something up, which at that time was known as the European Productive Triangle, which subsequently became known as the Eurasian Land-Bridge. It was a campaign and initiative that she was qualified to do, and advance, as no one else was. We talked earlier about how in 1996, Helga spoke in Beijing at a conference on the New Silk Road, and then became known as the Silk Road Lady all over the world. She was here many times in New York City, in 1997 and 98 in particular advancing that cause. By living with genius, in the form both of the people she has known personally, and the people she has advocated who are her friends that she never met, like Schiller, and Nicholas of Cusa and others, theres been a new cultural platform implicitly established in the world. Now, were in a new era, where the power of ideas, that people like Xi Jinping have not only represented, not only embodied, not only advanced, not only improved, but have made available to everyone else on the planet, which shows a kind of love for humanity, which is indispensable in real leadership. Its always my honor to introduce the founder and head of the Schiller Institute, Helga Zepp-LaRouche. [applause] Helga Zepp-LaRouche: I will try to be brief because much time has been lost already [with technical problems], and when Dr. Ho said that in order to understand Chinese-ness you have to be Chinese, I was actually considering, you know, maybe given the fact that I was in China the first time in 1971, 45 years ago, maybe we as a whole movement are already Chinese, or maybe it is also the other way around, that what China is proposing now, with the New Silk Road/One Belt, One Road Initiative is actually more human, and it is the problem that the trans-Atlantic world has lost the correct way. I came back from this trip to Chinawhich also took me to Africa and some other Asian countriesI spent several months in China during the Cultural Revolution, and I came back from this trip, having seen the underdevelopment of China and many other countrieswith the idea that the world could not stay like that. And when I came back and found the theories of Lyndon LaRouche, it was very clear that that was the road to go. And then, we spent the next several decades to make very concrete development plans for Africa; we worked with Lopez Portillo on a Latin American integration program. We worked with Indira Gandhi on a 40-year development plan for India. Already in 1975, Mr. LaRouche proposed an International Development Bank. If you compare all of these projects which we promoted in hundreds of conferences internationally over these decades, this is exactly what China is doing now. So, is it an affinity that we are Chinese, or is it that the Chinese are really part of the Schiller Institute? Or is it the case that it is the natural development of mankind to take that road, and its only the relics of the oligarchical system of the trans-Atlantic sector, which has prevented this natural development from occurring? Dennis, since, you mentioned Krafft Ehrickehe actually had this idea of an evolution of mankind which started with the idea that life developed from the oceans through photosynthesis, to land, and then higher species developed with a higher energy-flux density in their metabolisms. Eventually man appeared and man started to settle first near oceans and rivers. And then through the development of higher levels of infrastructureroads, canals, eventually trainsthe landlocked areas of the planet would all be opened up. The whole idea of the World Land-Bridgethe New Silk Road becoming the World Land-Bridgeis the completion of that phase of natural development. And naturally, the next phase of this development is the infrastructure development of nearby space: First the Moon, then other heavenly bodies, and this will be the natural development of civilization. So what China is doing, based on its 5,000-year tradition is really what is inherent in the human species. And as I said, it is the trans-Atlantic sector which has left the correct path. And I just want to pose this as a real challenge, because anybody who has been in China or is now involved in the New Silk Road dynamicthis amounts to now 100 nations and large institutions which have undertaken the most unprecedented development perspective since Xi Jinping put the New Silk Road on the agenda in 2013. Now all the countries which are a part of it, are completely optimistic, looking to the future with a bright perspective. But it is the old geopolitical interests in Europe, and also in the United States, that are definitely resisting this perspective, because it goes against everything they have been trying to impose in the last decades. Now this trans-Atlantic world order, as we all are acutely aware, is very rapidly collapsing. The Brexit was the first drumbeat of a world revolution opposing the globalization. You had the election of Mr. Trump, which was primarily a rejection of what Obama and Hillary Clinton stand for. The Italian no in the referendum again represents all the people who were left behind by globalizationwhich has just made the rich more rich and the poor, poorer. And this process will continue until the injustice associated with this present trans-Atlantic system is overcome. Right now there is an unbelievable situation in the United States, where the official office for health statistics just released a report indicating that from 2014-2015, the life expectancy of Americans has dropped for the first time! This has never happened in the civilized world, anywhere. As the result of a drop from 76.5 to 76.3, for the ages of men, they are now not living as long. The drop is a little bit less for women. All the major diseases in the United States have increasing death rates: 8 out of 10 major diseases now result in more deaths than before, and this is in the formerly most advanced country. In Europe, its not much better because in Greece, as a result of the Troika policy on debt repayment, 45% of the people have reached the poverty level, and in Italy, 50% of the youth are unemployed. In Calabria, youth unemployment is 65%, and what the European Central Bank (ECB) is doing right now in response to the no vote of the Italians in the referendum, is to open the monetary flood gates in a way which is absolutely unprecedented: quantitative easing, state printing of money, which is exactly what the Reichsbank did in 1923 in Weimar Germany. So, I dont want to go through more of these symptoms of collapse, because with the new paradigm on the table, I think the only way mankind will get out of this crisis is by convincing the Americans and the Europeans that it is in their best interests to join with China and go back to those policies which were original American policiesthe Alexander Hamilton American System of economy, which was repeated by John Quincy Adams, by Lincoln, by Franklin D. Roosevelt, and which my husband, Mr. LaRouche again formulated in 2014 in the package of the famous Four Laws: First Glass-Steagall, then go to a credit system, and then have an international credit system to finance long-term development projects; and fourthly to institute a science-driver for a crash fusion program and joint space cooperation. These are the tasks in front of us and I think everything will really depend on our ability to quickly promote this policy. The world is not in as much of a danger of World War III as it was the day before the U.S. election, because Trump has promised a lot of things: He has promised to normalize the relationship between the United States, Russia, and China; he has promised to implement Glass-Steagall; he has announced that he wants to have an infrastructure program which will give America the most modern infrastructurenow that is quite a task given the abysmal condition of the infrastructure in the United States. The United States will have to do a lot of development to catch up with China. which has already built 20,000 kilometers of high speed rail, and will have 50,000 km by the year 2020. But as Mme. Fu Ying said recently in New York, this idea of having an infrastructure program for the United States, can be the bridge with the One Belt, One Road of China. However, there are many obstacles. For example, in Europe you still have a Green paradigm in many countries, especially Germany, which is not exactly the green vision of China. China wants to have a clean environment, which is absolutely correct to do, but in other countries it is a different conception: It is the idea of what they call sustainable development which really is a code word for no development. And there are many, many obstacles to overcome. However, I think the perspective is there, because of what China has done in terms of the crash program for fusion. China is the only country which is investing more funds into fusion energy. The EAST project in Hefei at the plasma research institute reached 100 seconds of plasma stable condition a couple of months ago, so China is on the right track. China has the most advanced space program. The Change-5 mission next year will bring materials from the Moon back to Earth. One year later, the Change-4 mission in 2018 will go to the far side of the Moon, with the perspective of eventually mining helium-3 from the Moon for a fusion economy on the Earth. And it is really this kind of future orientationthat the next phase of evolution is the colonization of space and this must be a project of international cooperationwhich is really the way how we will get mankind out of this present danger. I dont want to make a longer speech than that. There are many things to be said, but I would like to open it for the discussion. This transcript appears in the December 16, 2016 issue of Executive Intelligence Review. LaRouches Fourth Law : Hamilton and Einstein by Philip Rubinstein [PDF version of this transcript] The following is an edited transcript of a class given on Nov. 23, 2016, by Manhattan Project leader Philip Rubinstein. What I want to do is to, in part, talk about this question of Lyndon LaRouches Four Lawsreally Hamilton, but also not just Hamilton, but rather Hamilton in the context of the Fourth of LaRouches Laws. Im going to read just a little bit of the Fourth Law, which is Lyndon LaRouches expansion of Hamilton. We should be fairly clear on some things. Hamilton has a whole lot on the productivity of labor. In this sense, we will also discuss what LaRouche adds to the productivity of labor. Because what LaRouche cites as the fourth principle, the Fourth Law, is not simply in Hamilton. It goes further. First: From Hamilton Hamilton talks about the increase of the productivity of labor; of course his Report On Manufactures is a lengthy discourse on the importance of manufacturing from the standpoint of the improvement of the productivity of labor. Essentially, the reason he gives for manufacturing and the importance of manufacturing, the underlying principal, you could say, is the increase of the productivity of labor. creative commons Hamilton cites, through machinery for instance, It is now proper to proceed a step further, and enumerate the principal circumstances from which it may be inferred that manufacturing establishments not only occasion a positive augmentation of the produce and revenue of society, but that they contribute to rendering them greater than they could possibly be without such establishments. These circumstances are: (heres a shocker for you) the division of labor! I think a lot of people have a problem with that, that indeed the division of labor is an advantage in productivity, particularly if its done properly. Secondly, the extension of the use of machineryobviously the ability to expand labor, and as he goes on later, to expand the productivity of labor; the addition of a class of the community not normally engaged in productivity; the promotion of immigration from foreign countries; furnishing a greater scope for talents which discriminate men from each other; the affording of more ample and various fields for enterprise, and so on. The main point I want to make is that he started out with the division of labor and the extension of machinery. Its very clear otherwise that the point he makes about manufacturing, the foregoing suggestions are not designed to inculcate an opinion that manufacturing industry is more productive than that of agriculture. They are intended rather to show that the reverse of the proposition is not ascertained. He says that people are saying that agriculture is productive and manufacturing is not. His argument is that manufacturing of course is indeed productive, and that, ultimately, it increases productivity, and from these causes united the mere separation of that of the cultivator from that of the artificer has the effect of augmenting the productive powers of labor. The point is it augments the productive powers of labor. In a sense, that is the whole point of the longest of Hamiltons reports. The Report on Manufactures is far and away the longest one. The one point I want to make, a rather large point, before I cite one particular point from LaRouche, is, if you look at the Report on Public Credit, if you look at the Constitutionality of the National Bank, then, of course, theres the Report on the National Bank, they all have a certain principle which you find in the Federalist from the very beginning. This is why Hamilton is often accused of being an authoritarian, a monarchist, a totalitarian, because, in every one of these, he starts from the standpoint that the Union, as its called later, during the Civil War, the nation as a whole, comes first. That comes before the states, in particular. This is very clear in the argument on the Constitutionality of the National Bank. Because what is it that Thomas Jefferson and Attorney General Edmund Randolph argue in particular? Their main argument is that the Federal Government does not have the enumerated powers to create a corporation, not just a bank, any corporation; that it has no right to create a corporation that has a legal identity. Thats their big argument. Then who has that right? The states! The states have a right to create corporations, and indeed, the Federal Government creating corporations interferes with the laws of the state. Almost the entirety of Hamiltons argument for the constitutionality of the National Bank is that the states do not have any right that conflicts with the right of the Federal Government. Of course the Federal Government has the right to override the laws of states. What is the reason he gives for this? Sovereignty in part, yes, but it is basically the General Welfare clause. What is the object of the Federal Government? The Federal Government has the power to enact everything that it deems necessary to achieve its appropriate object. In fact, it is interesting to see how much these were the arguments that occurred. I dont think the average candidate today could engage in the discussion. Their vocabulary is too limited. Hamilton asked: What is the object of the Federal Government? The welfare, the general welfare of the population; the general welfare of the country as a whole. Therefore, the National Bank, the right to incorporate the National Bank is not only Constitutional, it is necessary. One of the arguments that goes on, and youll see it if you read it, which is part of the value of reading it, is that Jefferson and Randolphand you can see that this already is a southern splitJefferson and Randolph want to say that the word necessary, which is in the Constitution, means only such things as are absolutely necessary. Hamilton says: Wait a minute; necessary doesnt mean only those things which are absolutely necessary. In fact, it means quite the opposite: whatever you need to achieve the object of the Federal Government. So these are very important, but also very serious documents. The Federalist Papers of course opens up with the assertion that the Union has to come above the states. Einstein and the Human Identity Today, what we have is an opportunity. To look at LaRouches recent Sunday discussion, was he recommending that we apply Einsteins principle to our discussion with somebody in the Trump cabinet? Maybe, but I think he was getting at something a little bit different, which is, how do we approach the entire situation? Are we out to simply win somebody to our side, to count up the score on the cabinet or in the Congress or whatever? creative commons No, he is saying you have to have the same view that somebody like Einstein had; that, for Einstein, it was not a matter of the mathematics, per se. There is a lot of confusion on this. Its not that Einstein didnt use mathematics, but the mathematics was not the reality. That is something we can discuss at another time, because Einsteins view, in his debate with people like Niels Bohr and Werner Heisenberg, the explicit debate was, essentially, do we know reality? It wasnt things like, is it waves or is it particlesthat is part of the debate; it is not unimportant, not something to overlook, but, the real debate between them was that you had (what we at a certain point called a positivist orientation), a very sharp denial that we do know reality, by people like Heisenberg, Max Born, Bohr in particular, because they were the ones who carried out the debate with Einstein to a large extent. Einsteins point was: No, its not just that God doesnt play dice. That was the clever phrase, you could say that was a soundbite, but that wasnt all that Einstein meant. He meant: No, there is a reality. Were not talking about the fact that things come into existence when we observe them and go out of existence when we dont observe them. There is something real called the universe, and Einsteins work was about the nature of that universe. I think what one has to reflect on is our whole conception, and LaRouche does allude to this in the discussion with the Basement (LaRouche PAC Science Team)our whole conception of a universe, a universe that is developing, a universe that is changing, that this essentially rests on Einsteins work in special and general relativity. Up to the 1920s there was no such thing as really a theory of the cosmos. It was just there. In fact there wasnt that much there. It wasnt nearly as big. We found it was a lot bigger than we thought it was, a lot more was in it than we thought. I find these things fascinatingthere was an estimate at one point that there were about 200 billion galaxies. This was based on scanning, because we can only look at so much of the universe; telescopes have certain angles of observation and so forth. Now given the fact that we have an increased data base, which is actually going to be expanding a great deal more over the next 4 or 5 years, the estimate now is that we have 2 trillion galaxies. Two trillion galaxies! Now if you think that it is believed that the average galaxy has between 100 and 200 billion stars.you realize that there is something like 10, possibly, stars. Thats a big number. Cognition, Productivity and the Universe Now, think of the following, because part of what LaRouche is getting at, and thiswe only have one access to thisis that the universe actually develops. It is not just a general idea. There is a real development somehow in the universe. As Vernadsky puts it, and LaRouche has referred to Vernadsky, there is a multiply-connected reality between the abiotic, the biotic and the cognitive. Now, for the most part, how do we think about it? We think the abiotic, somehow develops into the biotic, and the biotic develops into the cognitive. Now in one sense, in terms of time, at least in terms of the human species, something like that seems to have gone on. If you look at the human body, it carries the human mind. The human mind is somehow located where the body is, at one level. But the truth of the matter is, that the governing principle of the development of the universe is a cognitive, or at least analogous to a cognitive, processthat the way we discover things, and I think the way we act when we are actually discovering being creative, is the way the universe itself develops. Then its also the other way around. There is a cognitive principle, or a principle of development like human cognition, and that human cognition develops the universe. creative commons In other words, the universe produced us so it could develop further. The universe produces a capability for creativity, so that the universe can change, develop, expand, but expand in some direction toward further existence of cognition, toward discoveries. You have to realize that when we discover a physical principle and utilize it, we are not taking nature and using nature, so to speak. We are changing nature. Because what we do does not occur naturally, except for the intervention of human beings. You take nuclear fission, you take electricity in the form that we use itthese things dont grow on trees! You dont walk out and pick an electric wire off your tree, plug it into your house and light up your wife or husband as the case may be. These things are actual changes. We basically have the possibility, as we work on the subatomic scale, of using such things as the differences in spin, that is angular momentum of the object itself, other sorts of issues, (even though a lot of the science that is involved in this right now is strange epistemologically and methodologically), there are certain things weve learned to deal with. With the improvement in the methodological outlook, we could begin to use these things in an entirely different way. One point LaRouche made today is: You take Einsteins work on relativity theorywe dont really know how all this works. And, by the way, Einstein himself did not consider general relativity to be complete. He considered it, not that it was an unfinished projecthis project, you might say was finishedbut the theory was not a complete theory about the organization of the universe, even from the standpoint of gravitational force. We dont know the distribution of matter, we dont know some of the other aspects of the gravitational field, and so on and so forth. We have to recognize that what Einstein did discover, so to speak, is the fact that the universe that we live in is dominated by, and I mean this literally, we are talking about what amounts to a gravitational field or an electromagnetic field. These things govern the way we exist in the solar system, it gives us clues as to the way we have to look at galactic process, and we have to take this whole thing a great deal further, but these are the kinds of changes that we need to make. What we need is an entire change in our outlook on the process of discovering what is in the universe and that this is the nature of mankind. Im sure LaRouche may have more to say about these things, but at least on one basic level, the question is: Do we understand what it means to say that the nature of mankind is creative discoveryby that I mean that for each individual human being, that is his or her identity. Now, what is human identity? The fact is there is a universal human identity. This I think is a great deal of the point LaRouche is getting across. Our identity is that human beings are capable of adding to, communicating and making actual discoveries of principle and being part of a process. For example, if you were part of the space program, it wasnt just, Okay, were going to the Moon. It was part of a unified conception, that the United Statesyes it was a race with the Soviet Unionbut fundamentally we were out to discover the nature of the solar system. We even had a President who said that in his speech. There is the famous point, if you listen to the whole speech, that goes beyond that we are going to the Moon, where President Kennedy talks about going throughout the solar system, other planets, and so on and so forth. The idea was then we had a mission as a nation, but also as part of the planet as a whole, to make a voyage of discovery. Indeed you had this strange kind of event, because you had the all the Apollo projects, and that stopped. Then there was sort of no space program, and one day you wake up and find that Voyager has gone another couple of zillion miles, and suddenly there was a spurt of something of a space program, and then it would die out again, and then you would find that Voyager went a little further five years later, and so on and so forth. But the idea, that for every human individual (that is in fact how were supposed to be treated; thats what were valued for), you have to be willing to accept the fact that if you are not at least making the cooperative effort, if you are not working on creative projects, creative purposes, then you are not truly human. Thats the difference between us and the animal. Yes, you can say we have the potential and we should be treated that way, but the reciprocal side of it is that youre supposed to think of yourself and act in that way. Otherwise, if you strip us of that, there isnt that much that distinguishes us biologically, from animals. Every way we are distinguished comes from the fact that we are creative beings. Every thing about our physiology that distinguishes us is tied to the fact that we are cognitive. For example, speech, language, the ability to do what we do with language, is a cognition driven process. It is driven by the development of human capabilities. And in a sense, this is the concept of productivity. Were talking about an increase in the creative, productive powers of labor, which means the ability to discover; it also means the ability to assimilate new knowledge, to act upon it, and without that you dont have a policy. That is why, for example, infrastructure on its own is not itself a solution to the problem. Infrastructure, like a lot of things, can be used a lot of ways. It can be used for good. Conversely, if youre just running military logistics on a highly sophisticated infrastructure, thats not whats needed. Thats not going to advance human society. It doesnt increase the productivity of labor. Were talking about creating a labor force which is like an intellectual labor force. A labor force that organizes itself to assimilate and produce new ideas, not just suggestion box ideas. A labor force which thinks of itself as part of the process of investigating nature, of exploring space. Some object that, Well, not everybodys involved in the space program, but if you put this together with a real nuclear program and all the infrastructure you need to back up a space program, and all the engineers, and all the schools and all the scientists and all the research facilities, then you realize the entire society is lifted, in terms of its productive capabilities and mission orientation, and indeed the going into space is not just to do an adventure. It is to find out more about the nature of the solar system: How was it created? How do we control the chemical processes? What kind of life is there? What does it mean if we find other forms of life, even if theyre primitive forms of life? What is that going to mean in terms of our ability to develop? The Fourth LawHaving a Certain Vision Now if you look at LaRouches Fourth Law, let me read that section, Vernadsky on Man and Creation: V.I. Vernadskys systemic principle of human nature, is a universal principle, which is uniquely specific to the crucial factor of the existence of the human species. For example: time and space do not actually exist as a set of metrical principles of the Solar system; their only admissible employment for purposes of communication is essentially nominal presumption. Since competent science for today can be expressed only in terms of the unique characteristic of the human species role within the known aspects of the universe, the human principle is the only true principle known to us for practice: the notions of space and time are merely useful imageries. Now maybe at some point we can get a discussion, it requires some work, to get at what this means. Because, he doesnt necessarily mean, as for example with space travel, Okay, we have so much space to traverse; we have so many ways to do it, that maybe there is even a time dilation and so on and so forth, Rather, what he is talking about is that there is a quality of space and time that is determined by the human mindthats determined by the creative nature of the universe itself, that created the solar system. In a certain sense we are traveling in time when we make discoveries; we are discovering where things came from, we are making the past part of the present. All of a sudden, if we know what the past of something is, so to speak, its development, we know a great deal more about what it is now, including why its chemical properties are what they are, how they may have been created, what they may tell us about the processes going on thats a useful part of the solar system. We know there are many, many anomalies in the solar system: the tilt of planets, the nature of the planets, the number of moons, the fact that some of these moons have hot interiors that they are not supposed to have. Where did all this come from? So the question of space and time are questions of understanding the unique processes of the human mind. And, thereby, thats our access to whatever the creative process in the universe is, whatever people want to call it. In that sense, what we have to bring into the situation is very different, and also means a whole different approach to the development of this planet. We now see for example, in South America, in Africa, nations are saying, We are going to have nuclear energy. This doesnt just mean they will have nuclear energy plants. It means there are more people who begin to understand what a nuclear process is, how to control radiation, how to use it. It means more potential discoveries, because we are going to have more people working in these areas. Thats what the BRICS [Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa] really means. You have to have a certain vision. If we could bring the United States into the world landbridge now, even given as dilapidated as we may be, if you look at this from a somewhat different standpoint, look at it from outside the United States. First of all, look at the lack of conflict. Look at what this may mean to the Russians, the Chinese. Imagine a Big Three with China replacing Great Britain. Now, if thats organized around a real economic development plan, then we have something of tremendous value. And in a sense, thats how we have to look at the Four Laws. Step number one is to get Glass-Steagall, but we have to think of these as four laws. Thats up to us. You dont have to always say, Yes, Glass-Steagall, but thats not enough. The real point is to say Glass-Steagall, and This is why were doing Glass-Steagall. Were doing Glass-Steagall so we can reinvigorate the space program, increase the productivity of labor. Were going to set up a national bank and credit institutions and so on and so forth for these same purposes. EIR I think, in some ways, thats why LaRouche invokes Einstein on these matters. But thats the level of thinking that you want. What was Einstein interested in? He was interested in whats the real nature, whats the reality of the universe? What are the actual principles that are operating? How do we get the idea of a single universe? By the way, this is a problem that we still have, and, frankly, after a period where people pooh-poohed this, now at least it is recognized that the ability to incorporate the subatomic world, so-called quantum phenomena, with the questions of gravitational reality, general relativity, special relativity, to bring this together in some concept (not necessarily one mathematical equation): its a concept of a unified theory of the universe, a unified field. We begin to understand how these things work together. Every time we discover something, we discover more. For example, one of the differences between Einstein and some of his critics istheir view was the Uncertainty Principle, and I wont go into the details of that now. One version of that is that you cant measure something smaller than the wavelength of the light you use to measure it. The problem is that you are going to hit it with this light that is a lot bigger than it is, and youre going to change its position, change its momentum. Now some of this gets generalized that were always interfering. And theres some truth to that. We are in the universe, thats the real trick. Were not looking from outside the universe, over the edge of the box, trying to see whats going on. If you look at it that way, yes, were not really looking at what we think we are looking at. But if you realize we are inside the universe, and you realize that the universe reacts to what you do, and you understand what you are doing, then you have the ability to look over your shoulder and self consciously reflect on the nature of the investigation you are carrying out. And you can find a way to get to that reality. Whats the reality of what you have done? And thats Einstein; thats the question Einstein raises. Striving for Completion Now LaRouche said, when I was talking to him yesterday, that we are trying, in a certain sense its our purpose, to get completion. We want to have a completed conception of our institutions, of what theyre doing, and we are oriented toward completing our view of the universe, even though it may never be complete. The point is we strive to make it ever more complete. In doing that, thats how the human species survives. We cant exist any other way. The virtue, in one sense, of the classical arts, is that we dont have to wait. You can do classical composition now. You are not going to be able to do the whole solar system now. Frankly, that requires a massive conjoined effort, a common effort of the human species. The only way youre going to get that is the kind of processes that bring about a new paradigm based on a multiple bringing of other cultures and their classical forms together with ours; thats going to be the basis for the kind of conjoined development that the planet needs. Weve seen that somewhat in the organizing here. We know there was something of a metaphysical impact of the concerts [the 9/11 memorial Requiem concerts held in New York City in September 2016]. You cant always point to it and say this person was made better, that person was made better. . . maybe you can in some cases, but the entire situation was made better, not just internally, but in terms of peoples relationship to us, and the impact that that had. You have to think in termspart of the point LaRouche is making, with the Fourth Law, with his reference to Vernadskyof what is the actual nature of space and time, and its not a matter of science fiction, its not a matter of can we put a guy in some little thing and send him back in time. Thats not the question. We can, in fact, use the fact that cognitive time is different than the time that unfolds in experience. We can take the time and experience and, from a cognitive standpoint, it can change our understanding of what happens. It can give us powers over the universe that didnt exist up until the point we made those discoveries. Again its kind of hard to imagine, in part because there have been so many differences; what was the world like before there was electricity? How much work did you have to do? You lived in the dark. For example, if you lived in this part of the northern hemisphere, you lived in the dark a good deal of the time. Or, think of the following: that the average person, a hundred years ago, even leaving aside the fact that people died at childbirth and so forth, if you were sixty years old, what was your life expectancy? Maybe three or four years. What is your life expectancy today at age sixty? Admittedly its shrinking, but what is it today, maybe fifteen or twenty years? And obviously with reasonable health care, we can create a potential, where at sixty, your life expectancy is twenty to thirty years. What was it like growing up when you actually realized that you were not likely to make it past forty-five? Take someone like Schiller; yes there were some that made it further, but if you go through the history of great people, an awful lot of them just in the normal course of events didnt make it past fifty-five or sixtyShakespeare, Beethoven, even FDR. Most of the people in his cabinet were gone between sixty and seventy. Thats a whole change in the situation. That changes time; sometimes not in the best ways. People think they have forever to do something, but thats not the case. You have a certain amount of time to do something, and I think what we have to realize is that the question of the productivity of labor is a cognitive question. It is a question of creativity, and thats the nature of human identity, period. There arent too many of us that are geniuses, admittedly, but at least we are working to make that the way in which the human species acts and gives that opportunity to people in general. Thats the identity. It doesnt mean everybody is going to be a whiz kid, but it means thats what you respect, thats what you fight for. Thats what you see in other people. And you recognize that this is only done as a joint effort, as cooperation amongst nations. Remember, LaRouche has been talking about this whole question of finding some basis for a whole different relationship, where sovereignty is important, but is not the final word. This, by the way, was very strong coming out of World War II. MacArthur and many other people thought that because of nuclear weapons, in particularand FDR having seen World War IIthey said we need a different relation among nations. Thats why FDR pushed the United Nations, as not a place that overrode national identity, but brought people together to develop the planet as a whole from the standpoint of all of these nations. And if anything, thats needed more now than it ever was. But LaRouches point is that if you are going to do that you have to base it on an appropriate understanding of the nature of mankind. Thats in effect whats involved in the fight for these Four Laws. This article appears in the December 16, 2016 issue of Executive Intelligence Review. FOR A NATIONAL SPACE DAY A Tribute to Astronaut John Glenn, 1921-2016 by Kesha Rogers [PDF version of this article] Dec. 13I am Kesha Rogers, a former Candidate for U.S. Senate and former Democratic Nominee for the U.S. House of Representatives. I wish to honor and pay tribute to a great American Hero and Inspiration to the people of this nation, and to many around the world, former Senator and astronaut John Glenn. He died last week, on December 8, 2016. NASA John Glenns passing had a profound impact on me, as he died just one day before my 40th birthday. He had been 40 years old when he led the nation to new heights in the conquest of space, being the first American to orbit the Earth, orbiting three times in a nearly five-hour mission. I reflected on his great contributions and his commitment to human progress in the exploration of space. He brought great inspiration to young people around the world and set the nation on a course for the Moon and the opening into space beyond it. He has gone on to eternally fulfill mankinds extraterrestrial imperative out there somewhere in the Galaxy, or perhaps in some other galaxy. His life was an inspiration to all mankind. Glenn was one of the chosen seven in the original class of astronauts announced to the world on April 9, 1959; the first to orbit Earth; and the last survivor of the seven. He orbited the Earth three times on February 20, 1962 aboard the Friendship 7 spacecraft. He was the fifth human in space and the third American. Glenns mission was truly instrumental in paving the way to achieving the vision of President John F. Kennedy when Kennedy spoke before a joint session of Congress on May 25, 1961 and declared, I believe this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before the decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to Earth. It was John Glenns mission aboard the Friendship 7 just nine months later that set the nation on course to achieving that goal. Eight years later, on July 20, 1969, Americans set foot on the surface of the Moon, dedicating their mission to the world with the words, we came in peace for all mankind. Although Glenn left his career as an astronaut to serve in the United States Senate for 25 years representing the state of Ohio, beginning in 1974, he never lost his passion for mankinds advance into space. He returned to space in 1998 when he flew in Space Shuttle Discovery, the year before he retired from the United States Senate at the age of 77. Space Launches Development As we recommit ourselves today to human creative progress, we must restore our national mission for the exploration of space through international cooperation. We must acknowledge mankinds extraterrestrial imperative and recommit ourselves to acting on that principle, to discover and develop the universe. We have a common destiny: All nations must come together to fulfill the mission of developing all mankind. In an address he gave just a few years ago, astronaut John Glenn prayed that wisdom and guidance be granted by God as mankinds knowledge of the universe increases. He asked, As our knowledge of the universe in which we live increases, may God grant us the wisdom and guidance to use it wisely. In his three philosophical laws of astronautics, space pioneer Krafft Ehrickewho would have reached his one hundredth birthday next Marchexpressed the thought that we are following Gods guidance in acting on our extraterrestrial imperative, a necessary expression of mankinds unlimited creative potential in the universe. Ehricke wrote, By expanding through the universe, man fulfills his destiny as an element of life endowed with the power of reason and the wisdom of the moral law within himself. Join me in committing this nation to a new system of international relations, a system dedicated to advancing the creative potential of every human being on the planet in order to fulfill mankinds imperative in the exploration of space. We must join with Russia and China in the exploration of space for the peace of all mankind. As the chief engineer of Chinas manned space program recently declared, Cooperation between major players will be conducive to the development of all mankind. In a recent white paper issued by Chinas government that is titled, The Right to Development: Chinas Philosophy, Practice and Contribution, the intention to foster human creative progress and increase the productivity of all mankind is clear. The paper begins, Development is a universal human theme, providing for peoples basic needs and giving them hope for a better life. The right to development is an inalienable human right, symbolizing dignity and honor . . . Implementing that inalienable human right to develop is truly an imperative of all mankind and starts with a new mission of cooperation in the exploration and development of space. This must be our dedication to the future of humanity, as a spacefaring species. As we remember and honor astronaut and Senator John Glenn, I call on the United States to declare an annual National Space Day in his memory and the memory of all of the great visionaries of space exploration who have passed the torch and paved the way for a new generation of explorers and discoverers. I call on the United States to establish a new commitment to human development in the exploration of space in cooperation with all nations. Lunar villages and settlements on the Moon will express a shared visionin a new era of space exploration and international cooperation with Russia and Chinaof the inalienable right to development of all mankind. PRESS RELEASE Putin and Abe Sign Impressive Array of Agreements, Auguring New Era of Cooperation Dec. 16, 2016 (EIRNS)The two-day landmark visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Japan and his talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, resulted in the signing of many economic cooperation agreements. Particularly important were Putins remarks at the plenary session of the Russia-Japan Business dialogue, in which he proposed that talks begin on Japan forming a free trade zone with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), which includes Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan. According to Jiji Press today, Japanese economic cooperation with Russia under the eight-point program presented last May by Prime Minister Abe, totals some 300 billion yen (about $2.5 billion), covering more than 60 projects. Cooperation agreements signed, span such areas as infrastructure, including ports and rail; agriculture; nuclear energy; pharmaceuticals; education, and culture. Russian-Japanese investment fund created The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) have agreed to set up a $1 billion joint investment fund. RDIF CEO Kirill Dmietriev explained that the fund will play a key role in financing joint Russian-Japanese investment projects, with a target goal of financing as many as 20 projects in the first six months of 2017. RDIF will hold a 49% stake in the fund and JBIC 51%, and the volume of investment will be proportionate to stakes. Ports and Rail Of great interest is the project linking Russia and Japan by railroad, RZD Vice President Vyachesalv Pavlovsky said, adding that the estimated cost of building a railroad between the continent and Sakhalin will be around 400 billion rubles (about $644 million). He said that the second stage will link Sakhalin and Hokkaido, and that "complicated and difficult work will have to be carried out to update the feasibility study. Japan is also interested in investing in several Russian ports, he said, mentioning the port of Novorossyisk as one possibility. Energy Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation has signed an agreement for the peaceful use of nuclear energy with Japans Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, and Japans Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, in the presence of President Putin and Prime Minister Abe. There is a civilian nuclear agreement as well, by which both sides agree to "further develop" their cooperation on the supply of russias enriched uranium to Japan. Russias natural gas producer Novatek signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Mitsubishi and Mitsui for cooperating in liquefied natural gas. PRESS RELEASE Syrias Dr. Shaaban: Liberation of Aleppo a Turning PointLook to Russia, China for Leadership Dec. 16, 2016 (EIRNS)Dr. Bouthaina Shaaban, Political and Media Advisor to the Syrian Presidency, who spoke at a Schiller Institute conference, "Creating a Common Future for Mankind and a Renaissance of Classical Culture," held in Berlin, June 25-26 this year, said in an interview with Lebanons Al-Manar TV today, that the liberation of Aleppo from terrorism is a turning point that will change the face of the battle in Syria "and the balance of power regionally and internationally," according to the Syrian news agency SANA. Dr. Shaaban affirmed that the victory in Aleppo is not only an indicator of a defeat of terrorism in Syria, but also reflects taking a global position against it, "in the interests of peoples who are struggling for sovereignty and the future of their countries and their independent decisions." She added that Syria, Iran, the resistance, and all who believe in the Arab rights "will lead the future of the region," emphasizing that the future is for peoples, states, and governments "which stand in words and deeds against terrorism." She pointed out that the balance of power has changed, and today, "Russia, China and allied forces are leading the international scene," not the United States and the West. She asserted that the West aims at supporting terrorism, "as no terrorism can stand on its own without the support of external forces." PRESS RELEASE Former Intelligence Professional Mike Gravel Tells EIR: Charges Against Russia Are Far-Fetched Ridiculous Dec. 17, 2016 (EIRNS)In an interview with EIR on Dec. 14, former U.S. Senator and intelligence professional Mike Gravel (D-Alaska) ripped apart the Obama Administration/media charges that the Russian government hacked the U.S. Presidential election and influenced, if not determined, the outcome. "First off, it's ridiculous! It's far-fetched ridiculous!" "We knowand here we can be grateful to Edward Snowdenthat the United States' capability, along with their partners in Britain, have the capability of vacuuming up every single communication in the world. That means that the NSA has all of Hillary's emails; hasall of the communications between the U.S. and Russia." Yet, the U.S. intelligence community has repeatedly declared that its evidence against Russia is a "belief" with "high confidence," and declined to proffer any specific proof it has. Asked why the intelligence community would be carrying out this fraud, Senator Gravel said, "The intent is to sabotage the potential new relationship [with Russia]." "What we see right now, is the last regurgitation of a failed policy, one that was very dangerous. In demonizing Putin the way we've done in the American media, Western media, and then turning around the leveling the charge at them that they are trying to destabilize Western and Eastern Europe, is ridiculous." Sen. Gravel is a former adjutant top-secret control officer for the Communications intelligence Service and a special agent of the Counterintelligence Corps, as well as being a former Senator. He is on the Executive Board of the Veteran Intelligence Professional for Sanity, which released a full statement on the hoax of the CIA charges earlier this week. California raisins reached their peak as cultural icons in the late 1980s, with a series of Claymation TV commercials showing them crooning and dancing through I Heard It Through the Grapevine and other R&B standards. TV specials followed, along with a Saturday morning cartoon, a line of collectible toys, even an Emmy. By 1990 the vogue had passed. But these days the raisins have been displaying their star power in court. As recently as the last week of November, a group of raisin growers won a skirmish in federal court allowing them to expand a compensation claim against the government for hundreds of thousands of dollars in raisins held off the market by agricultural officials in an effort to support prices. That ruling followed a 2015 Supreme Court decision labeling the price-support scheme unconstitutional. It was highway robbery...How can I give up half my crop when I cant cut my expenses by 50%? Raisin grower Marvin Horne, victor in a Supreme Court case involving government raisin seizures Advertisement Meanwhile, several raisin growers are suing in Sacramento state court to overturn a state-sponsored raisin marketing program that succeeded the dancing raisins campaign, on grounds that it violates their free speech rights. Its not that California raisin growers, who are largely located around the Fresno County community of Kerman, are particularly obstreperous or litigious. Its more that marketing and price-support programs that in some cases hark to the Great Depression have become outdated. The transformation of American agriculture from a mass of small holdings into large businesses that are more capable of responding to the volatility of supply and demand means that government intervention in the markets isnt needed economically as much as it used to. Nor is it as politically palatable as it was in the past. Some people would rather have government out of the business entirely, says Daniel Sumner, an agricultural economist at UC Davis. The target of three lawsuits in federal court and the subject of the 2015 Supreme Court case is a price and marketing program for raisins that began in 1949. Domestic prices had plummeted by more than 60%, to $130 per ton from a peak of $309 in 1946. The reason was growers accustomed to World War II demand hadnt cut back production fast enough to respond to both a reduction in raisin consumption and the recovery of European farms that had stopped producing during the war. The governments preferred remedy was a reserve pool a certain percentage of the crop from all growers was turned over to the government and held off the market. The hope was that the artificial scarcity would force prices higher, more than making up for the loss of any income on the reserve. To a certain extent, this seemed to work: prices recovered to $311 per ton in the 1958-59 growing season. But the idea of sidelining already harvested crops didnt sit well with many farmers. This was unsurprising. The same thing had happened in 1933, when Franklin Roosevelts agriculture secretary, Henry Wallace, had ordered the plowing under of 3.5 million bales of surplus cotton and the slaughter of 6 million piglets. His goal was to combat a disastrous overproduction of cotton and pork that had contributed to a farm belt depression then in its second decade. The mass destruction caused a public uproar and grieved Wallace, himself the child of a farm family. But he saw it as a necessary short-term emergency response, and it was not to be repeated. The raisin program lived on, however. Raisins in the reserve pool were sold by the government for export or to public programs or donated to charity, with the meager proceeds returned to the growers. In 2002-03 the mandated reserve pool was an enormous 47% of the entire crop. Growers ultimately received $205 a ton for the reserve, and $745 on the open market for their remaining free tonnage. The following season the reserve was 30% and growers got nothing back, though they got $810 per ton for what they were allowed to sell. The Supreme Court case was born in 2002, when grower Marvin Horne refused to turn over any raisins to the reserve pool. It was highway robbery, he told me. I thought, How can I give up half my crop when I cant cut my expenses by 50%? Horne, 71, had other objections to the system. He blamed it for a long-term decline in the raisin industry, both in acreage and participants, and complained that the very concept of giving up half his raisins for the common good smacked of life in a communist state. In any case, when the government fined Horne $480,000, the market value of the withheld raisins, plus a $200,000 penalty, he sued. The court ruled in what was effectively an 8-1 decision only Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented in full, though three other liberal judges dissented in part that the reserve pool amounted to a government taking of property without just compensation, in violation of the 5th Amendment. The decision mystified some economists, who observed that the court had approved other production-limiting regulations with the same effect. Theres no particular rhyme or reason to it, says Sumner. Raisin agencies could have done the same thing through price orders, and here the government just took physical delivery. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., the opinions author, however, ruled that there is a difference between appropriation and regulation, and that the Constitution governs means as well as ends. As it happens, by the time the Supreme Court weighed in, the reserve pool system was on its way out. No reserves have been taken since 2009 at first because market conditions allowed all cultivated raisins to be sold, according to Barry Kriebel, president of the big cooperative Sun-Maid Growers of California, and then because of the Supreme Court decision. Nor does there seem to be any great urgency to replace it with a system that would survive Supreme Court scrutiny. The industry doesnt have the same need for a reserve as it did in 1949, Kriebel says. Sun-Maid is owned by 650 farmers raising about 30% of the states crop. Other forces are helping to keep supply and demand in sync. California acreage devoted to raisins has shrunk to about 175,000 now from 280,000 in 2000; more than 6,000 acres a year have been converted to higher-value crops such as almonds and pistachios or for citrus orchards. Yields per vine have increased and farming has become more efficient, with a shift from drying grapes on the ground to drying-on-the-vine allowing more harvesting by machine. But while many in the industry say it will never again need a backstop like the reserve pool, raisin prices are under pressure again. Field prices reached $1,600 a ton in 2015, comfortably ahead of the $1,350 per ton that the states Raisin Bargaining Assn. says is the cost per ton of production. The association, which represents about 1,000 farmers accounting for another 30% of the states crop and negotiates a price with raisin packers that is used as an industry benchmark, told members last month that packers are pressing to cut the field price by as much as $500 per ton for the 2016 crop. As we write, a price for the 2016 harvest, which was completed in October, still hasnt been set. Giving up on the reserve pool means removing a tool you need at certain times, says Henry Kaiser, an agricultural economist at Cornell University who has studied California raisin marketing. If the reserve pool had not taken more than a third of the crop during surplus years in 2001 through 2004, he says, prices would have collapsed. But he adds that to be effective, production controls must include all growers: You have to mandate that everyones in, but the Supreme Court said thats unconstitutional. Facing rising production from Turkey, China and South America and the siren call of high-value tree nuts, the very survival of Californias raisin farms may be in question. Marvin Horne is among the pessimists. He says three years worth of his own harvests is still in storage, part of an industry-wide surplus estimated at more than a six-month supply another dead weight on prices. The California raisin industry, Horne says, is going bye-bye. Keep up to date with Michael Hiltzik. Follow @hiltzikm on Twitter, see his Facebook page, or email michael.hiltzik@latimes.com. Return to Michael Hiltziks blog. Uber said it will continue to operate its self-driving cars in San Francisco despite demands from the California Department of Motor Vehicles to cease its program or face legal action. In a call with reporters Friday, Anthony Levandowski, Ubers vice president for self-driving technology, argued that the ride-hailing giants newest cars shouldnt be regulated like autonomous vehicles because they still require human drivers in case of emergency. In essence, Ubers new fleet of taxis should be treated the same as Tesla, Levandowski said. Advertisement Its hard to understand why the DMV would seek to require self-driving Ubers to get permits when it accepts that Teslas Autopilot technology does not need them, he said. The DMV did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But in a tersely worded letter addressed to Levandowski on Friday, the attorney from the California Department of Justice ordered Uber to remove its self-driving cars from the states roadways until it complies with state rules. If Uber cannot advise the undersigned that it will immediately remove its self-driving vehicles from California public roadways until it obtains the appropriate permit, as 20 other companies have done, the Attorney General will seek injunctive and other appropriate relief, the letter said. It is not unusual for Uber to launch a new program without consulting regulators. A self-driving truck rolled out in Nevada also caught the ire of the DMV there after a promotional video surfaced showing one of the vehicles rolling down a highway without a driver behind the wheel. Real-world testing on public roads is essential both to gain public trust and improve the technology over time, Levandowski said. John M Simpson, privacy project director with Consumer Watchdog, was angered by Ubers decision to flout the DMVs demand. Its an outrageously irresponsible position, Simpson said. The DMV should immediately seek an injunction and Ubers executives should be prosecuted to the fullest extent possible under the law. david.pierson@latimes.com Follow me @dhpierson on Twitter ALSO Googles self-driving-car project becomes a separate company: Waymo How Ubers big settlement may make things worse for its drivers Long Beach Airport isnt ready to give Uber and Lyft a green light UPDATES: 5:15 p.m.: This article was updated to include a response from the California Department of Justice. Twenty years old and counting, the Troubadour Theater Company has been celebrated for its blend of rock music, commedia-based clowning and improvisational flair, building an audience composed of not so much fans as followers and eager participants in the Troubies sold-out Christmas shows. This years offering, Little Drummer Bowie at the Falcon Theatre, is loosely based on a 1968 Rankin-Bass animated special and liberally infused with the driving music of David Bowie. However, despite some rousing musical numbers and a great title pun, the effort falls short of the groups typically antic heights. A large problem is that the original source material is hardly as familiar or beloved as, say, Rudolph the Red-Nosed ReinDoors or Its a Stevie Wonderful Life, two of the groups previous offerings. Also unsettling is the fact that, except for a couple of taped voiceovers, company founder Matt Walker has recused himself from the onstage action an absence thats keenly felt. Advertisement Or perhaps the recent loss of the beloved Bowie, not to mention Hollywood heavyweight and longtime Troubie booster Garry Marshall, founder of the Falcon, contributed to the slightly subdued atmosphere. Any Troubie show, even when less than stellar, is entertaining. Bowie is no exception, thanks to company stalwarts such as Rick Batalla, Beth Kennedy and Lisa Valenzuela, who deliver reliable laughs throughout. Longtime musical director Eric Heinly and his onstage band can always be trusted to raise the roof. Broadway-seasoned Joseph Leo Bwarie, who plays the title role and shares a co-director credit with Walker, is a standout. Glitzily attired in Sharon McGunigles witty costumes, Bwarie has a casually offhand manner that nicely balances his fellow Troubie pranksters, a reliably madcap crew. ------------ Little Drummer Bowie Where: Falcon Theatre, 4252 Riverside Drive, Burbank When: 8 p.m. Wednesday-Fridays, 4 and 8 p.m. Saturdays, 4 and 7 p.m. Sundays, plus select Tuesdays; ends Jan. 15 (check for exceptions) Tickets: $30-$45 Information: (818) 955-8101, www.falcontheatre.com Running time: 1 hour, 35 minutes SIGN UP for the free Essential Arts & Culture newsletter Follow The Times arts team @culturemonster. ALSO Pasadena Playhouse locks in Al Pacino for new production about Tennessee Williams The best theater of 2016 The best classical music performances of 2016 One of next years most exciting places to eat in Los Angeles may actually be a mall. Westfield Century City plans to open more than 10 restaurants, bars and coffee shops as part of its $950-million makeover, along with the West Coasts first Eataly Italian marketplace. Heres an alphabetical look at what youll be waiting in line to eat at the Century City mall next year: Compartes Chocolatier: The Los Angeles chocolate brand has been making chocolate in L.A. since 1950. Known for owner Jonathan Grahms playful flavors and packaging, each of the companys two existing stores (on Melrose Avenue and in Brentwood) has a colorful chocolate bar wall. No word yet on whether the Century City location will have one, but were expecting great, big, Instagram-worthy things. Compartes is scheduled to open in April. compartes.com. Din Tai Fung: This is the Taiwanese restaurant known for its xiao long bao (soup dumplings), and the hordes of people willing to wait hours to eat them. The restaurant is scheduled to open in late 2017. Other SoCal locations of Din Tai Fung can be found in Arcadia, Glendale, Torrance, Costa Mesa and Santa Clara. dintaifungusa.com. Eataly: The massive Italian marketplace, developed by Mario Batali and Joe and Lidia Bastianich, will house restaurants, markets, fresh food counters, classes and events. The Los Angeles Eataly (there are versions in New York City, Chicago and Boston), will have an open-air, three-level layout that includes a rooftop bar along Santa Monica Boulevard. Eataly is scheduled to open in the summer. www.eataly.com. Javiers: The Mexican restaurant has locations in Newport Beach, Las Vegas and Los Cabos, Mexico. Javiers is known for its seafood dishes, rare tequilas and margaritas. Expect bone marrow tacos with veal mole verde and tequila martinis with fresh prickly pear. Javiers is scheduled to open in April. www.javiers-cantina.com. La Colombe Coffee Roasters: You can look forward to plenty of good coffee (and coffee and chocolate, if you go for one of their famous mocha draft lattes) while you shop. The coffee shop is scheduled to open in April. www.lacolombe.com. MidiCi: This Neapolitan pizza chain bakes its pizzas in 90 seconds. In addition to pizzas, there will be salads, wood-fire roasted coffee (yes, this is a thing) and Nutella calzones. The restaurant is scheduled to open in the summer. www.mymidici.com. Petros: Owner Petros Benekos is opening a location of his lauded Greek restaurant (locations in Manhattan Beach, Santa Barbara, Los Olivos and El Segundo) at the shopping center. The restaurant is known for classic Greek dishes, including moussaka and avgolemono soup. Benekos also will open two other concepts at the mall, including the Kafe and Kafe Bugatsa. The Kafe will be open all day and serve grilled calamari, spanakopita, saganaki and beer and wine. Kafe Bugatsa will serve classic Greek desserts, coffee and wine. All three restaurants are scheduled to open in April. petrosrestaurant.com. Shake Shack: The lines at Shake Shack may actually rival the crowds at Din Tai Fung. The New York burger restaurant will serve its signature burgers, hot dogs, frozen custard, shakes, beer and wine. Shake Shack is scheduled to open in January. www.shakeshack.com. Im an expert at eating soup dumplings. Follow me on Twitter & Instagram @Jenn_Harris_ ALSO: Advertisement Jonathan Gold goes on a holiday tamale crawl across L.A. A farm-to-holiday-table dinner at Windrose Farm in Paso Robles Nics Beverly Hills is closing, so say goodbye to vodka tastings in that giant freezer UC Riverside Provost Paul J. DAnieri announced Friday that he would step down from his administrative post, just days after the faculty said it would meet to consider a vote of no confidence in his leadership. Some faculty members believed that DAnieri who has served as the universitys chief academic officer and executive vice chancellor since 2014 had mismanaged a major campus growth plan, failed to adequately consult faculty in hiring decisions, brought too many outsiders into key positions and created a climate of mistrust and fear. Many of those concerns were aired publicly at a packed Academic Senate meeting two weeks ago. More than 100 faculty members subsequently called for a special meeting to consider a vote of no confidence, which was to have taken place early next year. Advertisement In a message to the faculty and staff Friday, DAnieri said he recognized wide dissatisfaction with his leadership and significant divides on several issues. These differences have made it difficult to achieve the level of unity that I believe we need to move forward on our ambitious agenda, he wrote. Chancellor Kim A. Wilcox said he accepted DAnieris resignation with regret and praised him for putting the interests of the university over his own in stepping down. If theres a hero in this, its Paul DAnieri, Wilcox said in an interview. Hes willing to sacrifice his own leadership role on behalf of the institution so this protracted discussion doesnt dominate. Wilcox credited DAnieri with advancing the campus expansion by overseeing the hiring of 180 new faculty members, helping increase diversity and improving student performance. He also played a key role in launching UC Riversides $300-million fundraising campaign and developing a new budget process, Wilcox said. Paul brought courageous leadership, deep commitment and innovative thinking to his role as chief academic officer, Wilcox said. Its hard to imagine having achieved so much so quickly without his steady hand. DAnieri will resign as provost next June and return to his faculty appointment in the Department of Political Science and the School of Public Policy. He has focused his research on the relationship between Russia and Ukraine. I am intensely proud of the progress weve made on our goals of excellence, access, diversity and engagement, DAnieri said in his statement. But DAnieri has alienated a growing number of faculty members since arriving in Riverside from the University of Florida, where he served as dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Wilcox, who took over as chancellor in 2013 after serving for eight years as provost at Michigan State University, also has drawn some criticism. The two men worked together at the University of Kansas in the early 2000s. They heard plenty of criticism of their leadership at the Academic Senates recent Campus Town Hall meeting. A chief complaint was that administrators had mismanaged a campus expansion plan, hiring too many faculty members too quickly without first securing their office and lab spaces. Faculty members said that some of their new colleagues have left, while others are still waiting for the work spaces they were promised, which is holding up their research work. Two years ago, a faculty committee warned Wilcox that the expansion plans goal of 300 new faculty members by 2020 was unrealistic because of the space crunch. But the hiring proceeded anyway. People arrive here and theyre dead in the water, said Michael Adams, a professor of entomology and neuroscience at UC Riverside for more than 30 years. Its irresponsible to bring people here, assure them these things will be taken care of and not follow through. He and others said that a new approach to hiring faculty in clusters to build up areas of campus strength, such as new technologies and human health, was theoretically positive. But some faculty members said they were largely excluded from decisions on which clusters to select because of the top-down leadership style. Biology professor Kimberly Hammond said in a letter read at the Town Hall meeting that senior administrators were willing to publicly dismiss and ridicule faculty concerns and lacked respect for long-standing campus policies and processes. Even some supporters of Wilcox and DAnieri said the two men had brought in too many outsiders for key positions such as vice chancellors and deans. Theres a bunch of positives to outside hires, but it would have been good to find some people from inside as well to keep the institutional memory, said Aaron Seitz, a psychology professor. Wilcox acknowledged many of the faculty concerns. I agree we have moved very far, very fast, he said in the interview. That magnitude and speed of change is hard for anyone to adjust to. In a letter to faculty last week following the Town Hall meeting, Wilcox said all senior administrators would intensify their communication efforts by holding more meetings. He also said he would place an immediate moratorium on major new initiatives and reorganize oversight of campus renovations and facilities maintenance. Some faculty members complained about the campus general filth, including mildew in shower rooms, torn cushions, trash on the floor and rat feces. The significant growth that we have seen in the past few years has outpaced our physical infrastructure and our ability to properly maintain it, Wilcox said in his Dec. 5 letter. Clearly, we have significant work ahead of us to rectify this situation. Wilcox pushed back against other criticisms, however. He said DAnieri should not be blamed for decisions, such as the cluster hiring, that were made collectively by senior administrators and faculty. He also defended the new faces in his leadership team. Yes, we have a lot of new leadership its the best leadership team Ive ever seen and one of the best in the nation, he said. The faculty, he said, were not a unified voice of discontent. I have people stop me every day and thank me for what we have done, he said. UC Riverside is one of the most diverse public research universities in the nation, with more than 70% of its 23,000 students Asian, Latino or African American. teresa.watanabe@latimes.com Twitter: @teresawatanabe ALSO DeVry University agrees to pay $100 million to settle FTC claims it misled students Silicon Valley high school students used a Dropbox account to share sexually explicit photos, police say Report on L.A. school shutdown shows confusion over who was in charge, technology shortcomings UPDATES: 5:10 p.m.: This article was updated to include a statement by DAnieri. This article was originally published at 4:20 p.m. Robert Durst, the eccentric heir to a real estate fortune, told Los Angeles prosecutors last year that he was high on methamphetamines during interviews he gave for the 2015 HBO miniseries The Jinx, according to court papers released Friday. The series covered Dursts links to three tragedies involving his wife, who disappeared in 1982 and is presumed dead, his best friend who was shot execution-style in her Beverly Hills home in 2000, and a former neighbor in Texas who Durst admitted shooting, chopping up and dumping in a bay in 2001 in self-defense. A jury acquitted Durst in the Texas case and he was a free man until the night before the final episode of the miniseries aired. In it, Durst is caught muttering into a microphone during a bathroom break: What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course. Advertisement Worried that Durst may leave the country, authorities arrested him in New Orleans, where he had been staying in a hotel under a fake name. He had marijuana, a .38-caliber revolver, more than $40,000 in cash and a mask, according to court papers. Days later, while sitting in a New Orleans jail, Durst gave a nearly three-hour interview to prosecutors from Los Angeles who were investigating his links to the slaying of Susan Berman, the friend of Dursts who was discovered with a single bullet wound to the back of the head in Beverly Hills. Durst has since been charged with that murder. He has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial. On Friday, a transcript of the March 15, 2015, jailhouse interview was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court. In it, Durst claims he was intoxicated during the filming of the HBO series. I was on meth, I was on meth the whole time it should have been obvious, Durst said. I think the reason I did it had to be because I was swooped, speeding, he added. Attorneys for Durst filed papers Thursday challenging some of the evidence against him in the Berman case, including the New Orleans jailhouse interview, during which he had no attorney representing him. L.A. County Deputy Dist. Atty. John Lewin had previously told the court that Durst voluntarily participated in the questioning, The transcript includes a portion in which LAPD Det. Mike Whelan read Durst his Miranda rights. Anything you say may be used against you in court. Do you understand? Whelan asked. I understand, Durst replied. Durst, 73, is currently serving a seven-year federal prison term for illegal possession of the .38-caliber revolver at the time of his New Orleans arrest. He was transferred from an Indiana penitentiary to Southern California in November. In his first court appearance last month, Durst sat in a wheelchair and pleaded not guilty, telling the judge, I did not kill Susan Berman. In the wide-ranging jailhouse transcript, Durst touched on his bitterness toward his wealthy family, who granted control of the business to a brother. At one point, he explained his lack of personal ambition and success as a kind of pacifism: I dont like to fight. He also described turning down an interview request from TV journalist Connie Chung because shed previously done a long piece on boxer Mike Tyson that made him out to be a good guy, despite his many run-ins with the law. I never felt like that, Durst said. I never felt that I was really a good guy. At another point during the interrogation, Durst described himself as the worst fugitive the world has ever met, referring to his six weeks on the lam in 2001 when facing murder charges in Texas. When Lewin said it was mind-boggling to him that Durst hadnt tried to flee the country before the HBO series aired, Durst said hed been suffering from inertia. I just didnt really, really, really think that I was gonna end up arrested, he added. When Durst said he was surprised that his lawyers allowed him to take part in the documentary, Lewin reminded him that his legal team had repeatedly discouraged him from participating. But as the interview drifted in and out of episodes in Dursts complicated life, Lewin kept prompting him to talk about the slaying of Berman, the daughter of a Las Vegas mobster whom Durst met while both were studying at UCLA. His efforts to elicit a confession included complimenting Durst, repeatedly, on his unusual honesty and brutally frank self-assessments. But when that failed, Lewin confronted Durst more directly, asking,"If you had killed Susan, would you tell me? No, Durst replied. I was on meth the whole time. Robert Durst Times staff writer Richard Winton contributed to this report. matt.hamilton@latimes.com jack.dolan@latimes.com ALSO 2 Navy contractors charged in San Diego bomb hoax cases Man fatally shot by L.A. County sheriffs deputy in Hacienda Heights KTLA news anchor Lu Parker will not be charged with theft if she completes diversion program, officials say UPDATES: 6:25 p.m.: This article was updated with additional details from a court filing. This article was originally published at 5:55 p.m. Good morning. Im Paul Thornton, The Times letters editor, and it is Saturday, Dec. 17. For readers in Los Angeles, its been wet outside these past few days but not wet enough over the last five years. Heres a look back at the week in Opinion. Since his election day victory more than a month ago, Donald Trump has provided no assurance that his impending presidency will not be the disaster that his belligerence during the campaign suggested it would be. He has continued to air his petty grievances on Twitter, recklessly showed no interest in determining the extent of Russian involvement in his victory and collected a Cabinet of billionaires and ideologues whose primary interest seems to be undermining the agencies they will lead. Trumps behavior has prompted his most worried critics to look to the electoral college for national salvation. Their hope is misplaced, as the electors on Monday will almost certainly ratify the Nov. 8 results as they should, says the Trump-averse Times editorial board: Trump is profoundly problematic as a potential president unfit, inexperienced, irresponsible, just for starters which is why this editorial page strenuously opposed his election. He trails Hillary Clinton by almost 3 million votes nationwide, which makes a mockery of his claim of a popular mandate and underscores the need for a constitutional amendment to abolish the electoral college and provide for the election of the president by a national popular vote. Highly disturbing evidence that Russian intelligence agencies intervened to help Trump and hurt Clinton casts a serious shadow over Trumps victory, even if it was only one of many factors in the outcome. But none of these considerations justifies upending the expectations of voters, Democratic as well as Republican, who chose these electors expecting them to support the nominee of their respective parties. This page believes that the electoral college is anachronistic and that the system should be changed so that the winner of the popular vote becomes president. Thats why we have supported both a constitutional amendment to abolish the electoral college and the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, an arrangement in which states pledge to award all their electoral votes to the candidate who wins the national popular vote. (California has joined the compact, but it wont go into effect until its joined by enough states to comprise a majority of the electoral vote.) But for better or worse we think for worse the 2016 election wasnt conducted on the principle that the winner of the popular vote would become president. Both Clinton and Trump competed (and tailored their campaign strategies) to win electoral votes in what amounted to 51 separate statewide contests. They knew the rules from the start and it is too late now to change those rules without creating a free-for-all that would wreak havoc on the existing system. Any effort to claw back the election from Trump now would create a serious constitutional crisis. Had Clinton won more electoral votes even if she finished second in the popular vote her supporters would have proclaimed victory and vociferously condemned any attempt to incite the electoral college to keep her out of the White House. Trump wasnt our choice, and the prospect of him as president is deeply worrisome. But those who are trying to foment a revolt in the electoral college should focus their energies instead on preparing to oppose Trumps policies after he takes office. Click here to read more. The electoral college may be in the Constitution, but that doesnt make it constitutional. Law professor Kenneth Jost says the undemocratic institution born out of Americas slaveholding past almost certainly violates the principal of one person, one vote and ought to be struck down in court. As for the small matter of the electoral college actually appearing in the Constitution: That doesnt necessarily make it constitutional. The framers knew times can blind us to certain truths and later generations can see that laws once thought necessary and proper in fact serve only to oppress, Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote in nullifying anti-sodomy laws in Lawrence vs. Texas. As the Constitution endures, persons in every generation can invoke its principles in their own search for greater freedom. L.A. Times Mend it, because we cant end it. Passing and ratifying a constitutional amendment to abolish the electoral college will not happen, so the next best option is a fix that works within the system, say Arnold Barnett and Edward Kaplan: Apportion electors proportionally according to each states popular vote, not by the current winner-take-all system present almost everywhere in the U.S. If electoral votes were determined this way, the authors write, Hillary Clinton would be our next president. L.A. Times Vladimir Putin must be thrilled his investment in cyberspying is paying off. Doyle McManus ticks off a wish list for the Russian president now that his preferred candidate will assume office on Jan. 20. Team Trump is still willfully, defiantly in denial about Russian meddling in the election, and thats unacceptable, says The Times editorial board. Rex Tillerson could be a good secretary of State, but not in a Putin-friendly Trump administration, writes Max Boot. Readers call Trump the Russian presidents most useful idiot. The siege of Aleppo, Syria, is a global disgrace for which no one will be punished. Theres plenty of blame to go around, primarily to the brutal Syrian President Bashar Assad and his forces, but also Russia (which intervened militarily on behalf of Assad), the immovable United Nations Security Council and the terrorist organization Islamic State. The only solution now is a political one, says The Times editorial board. L.A. Times Theres too much parking in Los Angeles. Yes, you read that right, and if we plan to make progress on Southern Californias notorious traffic problem, planners must make driving less appealing by reducing the regions abundance of parking. And abundance is the right word: Decades of car-centric development in Los Angeles have resulted in more than three and a half parking spaces for every car in the county nearly 19 million in total. These spaces in residential garages and driveways, commercial parking structures and surface lots, and along streets account for 200 square miles of real estate, much of it concentrated in dense, transit-friendly areas. L.A. Times Park your feedback here: paul.thornton@latimes.com Nearly four years ago, an Orange County trial judge presiding over a mass-shooter case gave an order that seemed straightforward enough. He told the Sheriffs Department to turn over information regarding its use of a jailhouse informant who had implicated the defendant. As a consequence of that order and the botched, contradictory responses to it the case of murderer Scott Dekraai has mushroomed into a far-reaching controversy regarding the use of cell-block informants, and how far authorities might go to conceal it. The stakes mounted Thursday, with the U.S. Justice Department launching an investigation into whether the Orange County district attorneys office has violated defendants rights with the use of such informants. Advertisement And on Friday the stakes seemed to climb higher still, with the jurist it all started with Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals so vexed by the Sheriffs Departments behavior that he threatened to drag the sheriff into a contempt hearing. Ive been waiting 200 weeks, 1,400 days, Goethals said of the Sheriffs Departments failure to turn over relevant documents. This case should have been resolved long ago. At a hearing in the Dekraai case, Goethals said he had reviewed about 1,000 pages of some 5,600 pages of documents that the Sheriffs Department had recently given him in response to his discovery orders. Goethals was displeased that some of the pages had been almost entirely redacted. Redaction falls within this courts job description and nobody elses, frankly, Goethals said. That strikes me as inappropriate at best. He was also displeased with what he called a pro forma claim by county lawyers representing the Sheriffs Department that the documents were privileged and therefore shouldnt be released to the defense or the public. Goethals wondered aloud if the county lawyers had bothered to read the documents themselves, since some were clearly not privileged. He told the lawyers to make specific privilege claims by mid-January, or they would be waived. This volume of material walks and talks and looks and smells like a classic discovery document dump, Goethals said, referring to the legal practice of swamping litigants with time-consuming avalanches of material. This smells like it, folks. Goethals said that Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens had taken inconsistent positions on why certain documents shouldnt be released. The judge noted that a sergeant with the Orange County Sheriffs Department made a sworn declaration in the summer of 2014 that there is no jail informant program, a claim contradicted by troves of documents that later emerged. Goethals seemed to grow angriest, however, when he referred to a recent declaration by William Baker, a sheriffs commander who has participated in the search for information in the so-called Special Handling log regarding jailhouse informants. In the declaration, Baker said that a lieutenant and a sergeant in the Special Handling unit had refused to clarify what they called inaccurate accounts of their interviews about the log, and that two other deputies William Grover and Ben Garcia declined to answer any questions about the Log. Goethals looked up from the document and noted that the sheriff was still allowing Grover and Garcia to carry badges. What is going on over there? the judge shouted in the direction of two county lawyers who sat quietly in the jury box. The last thing a judge wants to do is to hold a contempt hearing involving an elected official, Goethals continued. But we are getting closer and closer to such a hearing, he said. D. Kevin Dunn, one of the county attorneys, said the Sheriffs Department was diligently seeking information but had run into the roadblock that some deputies were facing criminal or departmental investigations. The effort continues, Dunn said, adding that for as long as hed been on the case, the sheriff had shown absolute diligence in responding to discovery requests. The judge wanted to know how long Dunn had been on the case. The answer was about a month. The case of Dekraai who has pleaded guilty to the murder of his ex-wife and seven others at a Seal Beach salon in 2011 has no end in sight. He is awaiting the penalty phase of his trial, which will determine whether he receives life in prison or goes to death row. Seeking to spare him from the death penalty, his lawyer, Asst. Public Defender Scott Sanders, has argued repeatedly that Orange County authorities have systematically flouted inmates rights for years. Goethals threw the office of Orange County Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas off the case last year, and an appeals court recently denied the California attorney generals appeal of that ruling. The long wait for a resolution has been excruciating for the victims families, some of whom have called for authorities to drop the call for the death penalty. Prosecutors have recently expressed frustration with the sheriffs laggard response to discovery orders, but critics say the district attorneys office should have done so years ago, and more forcefully. Defense attorney Brian Gurwitz, a former prosecutor who has followed the jailhouse informant case, said that Rackauckas had made the fatal error of failing to express outrage when jailhouse informant records called TREDs came to light more than two years ago. If Rackauckas had expressed even a fraction of the indignation that Scott Sanders expressed when the TRED records came out, his office never would have been recused, Gurwitz said. It would have been the smart thing to do ethically, politically and legally. The Sheriffs Department says it has reformed record-keeping protocols and improved training on turning over relevant courtroom evidence. christopher.goffard@latimes.com Twitter: @LATchrisgoffard ALSO Police killing of unarmed, 73-year-old grandfather sparks anger, anguish KTLA news anchor Lu Parker will not be charged with theft if she completes diversion program, officials say Robert Dursts lawyers challenge evidence and accuse prosecutor of deceptive jailhouse interview Orange County health officials have ordered the closure of a childrens dental office in Anaheim after lab tests found bacteria in its new internal water system, which had replaced a system blamed for an earlier outbreak of bacterial infections. The county Health Care Agency conducted initial testing of the water system at Childrens Dental Group of Anaheim in September when the agency received multiple reports of children who had developed oral infections after undergoing baby root canals at the facility, according to the agency. The dental office is located in the 2100 block of East Lincoln Avenue. Despite the clinics replacement of its on-site water system, county health officials confirmed on Thursday that multiple samples taken from the new system tested positive for Mycobacterium, which can lead to serious infections. This action was necessary in order to determine the actual source of the Mycobacterium since it has reappeared, said Dr. Eric Handler, the countys public health officer. We are working with the Centers for Disease Control and the Dental Board of California to determine what conditions are necessary to lift the order. Advertisement Mycobacterium abscessus infections can be treated, but that treatment can be complex and involve surgery or intravenous antibiotics. All infected children should be hospitalized for initial assessment and care, health officials said. As of Dec. 13, the county had recorded 58 reports of infections at the Anaheim dental office, with 20 of those cases confirmed. Parents with concerns about care their children received at the facility can file a report online with the Dental Board of California. A list of frequently asked questions is available on the HCAs website in both English and Spanish. Parents can also contact county health officials at (714) 834-8180. The county health agency received multiple reports in September of children who had developed infections after undergoing treatment at the Anaheim office. Several children showed signs of slowly progressive oral cellulitis with dental abscesses or respiratory infections and some were hospitalized, officials said. M. abscessus is found in dust, water and soil and is known to contaminate medical devices. The commonly occurring bacteria can cause abscesses and other skin and soft-tissue infections. It can also infect bones, and is treated with prolonged antibiotic use. Many of the children began showing symptoms 15 to 85 days after the initial procedure, officials said. Health officials are most concerned about hundreds of children who received pulpotomy procedures at the Anaheim facility between March and September. The facility stopped performing the procedures Sept. 6. The California Department of Public Health, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Dental Board of California are working with the healthcare agency to investigate the infections. The Childrens Dental Group said it followed industry standards for care and used modern equipment and instruments. To protect the health and safety of our patients, upon seeing this we began a review and testing of our systems, equipment, water and other elements in the office, the dental group said in a statement in September. carlos.lozano@latimes.com ALSO Ghost Ship fire mystery: What did fire officials know and when did they know it? Robert Durst said he was high on meth during some interviews for HBO series The Jinx Ex-L.A. Sheriff Lee Bacas defense comes down to a question of character As testimony in his federal corruption case neared an end on Friday, former Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Bacas defense centered on something no prosecution witnesses, recordings or documents have addressed: his character. One by one, retired local and federal officials told jurors that Baca wasnt the type of man who would break the law. The ex-sheriff was credited with trying to reduce force in jails. One former federal prosecutor recounted steps Baca took to improve oversight of discipline for deputy misconduct. And the father of a slain deputy recalled the help the empathetic lawman gave to console him. Advertisement The defense witnesses made hardly any mention of the six-week period in the summer of 2011, during which prosecutors allege Baca colluded with subordinates to foil a federal investigation into beatings and corruption by his deputies in the countys jails. Meanwhile on Friday, defense attorneys announced that Baca would not be taking the witness stand to defend himself against allegations that he conspired to thwart the civil rights inquiry by helping hide an inmate who was acting as an FBI informant, intimidate a case agent and tamper with witnesses. Had the retired sheriff testified in his own defense, he would have opened himself up to aggressive cross-examination by prosecutors who could have used his public statements and witness testimony as proof of his complicity, said Miriam Krinsky, a former federal prosecutor who led a commission on jail violence and who has closely followed the trial. Theres powerful evidence he would be confronted with that he knew what was going on, set things into motion and entrusted the wrong people, she said. I imagine its not easy for someone with the presence and personality that hes brought to everything to sit silently and be a spectator. Baca, who ran the nations largest sheriffs department for more than 15 years, is accused of conspiracy and obstruction of justice, charges that could send him to prison for years if he is convicted. Former L.A. County district attorneys Ira Reiner and Steve Cooley each said in brief testimonies that Baca had a reputation for being law-abiding. Those opinions were echoed by Carl Covitz, a former deputy secretary of housing and urban development in the Reagan administration, and by Rose Ochi, who worked on drug policy in the Clinton White House. Very solid, Ochi said when asked by Bacas attorney about the sheriffs reputation regarding the law. Hes someone that I hold in high regard. Jurors also heard from a father who said he first met Baca after his son, a sheriffs deputy, was killed in the line of duty in 2002. John March recalled how Baca consoled his grieving family and gave them his home and cellphone numbers, making himself available to them. March said he later worked with Baca when the sheriff asked him to help on his youth foundation. Lee doesnt compromise, March told the jury. In 14 years, Ive never seen him compromise in following the law. Krinsky said rather than take the governments witnesses head-on and contradict the prosecutions evidence, Bacas defense was attempting to paint a different picture of the former sheriff as someone who would not have committed the alleged criminal acts. These witnesses were not put on to try to get at the conspiracy but rather to create an alternative way to think about Lee Baca, she said. His witnesses were almost trying to create a pair of glasses for the jury to wear. Defense attorneys also called to the stand witnesses who discussed Bacas attempts to address long-running complaints from inmates about excessive force and retaliation in his jails. Michael Gennaco, a former civil rights prosecutor and longtime police use-of-force consultant, said it was at Bacas initiative that the county created the Office of Independent Review, a civilian watchdog group that provided oversight of misconduct in the Sheriffs Department. He said Baca was supportive of his work with the group. Paul Pietrantoni, a retired Sheriffs Department commander, told jurors that at Bacas request, he taught force reduction classes to new deputies before they were assigned to the jails. Bacas defense called back Cecil Rhambo, who had previously testified in the governments case. Rhambo, an assistant sheriff at the time of the alleged obstruction, testified Friday about the layers of command between Baca and his line deputies. Under cross-examination by a prosecutor, he said he was kept in the dark about the decisions regarding the handling of the federal informant. You believed you were not informed because Mr. Baca took ownership of the issue, correct? Assistant U.S. Atty. Brandon Fox asked. Yes, Rhambo responded. It was Mr. Bacas philosophy that the Sheriffs Department should police itself, correct? Fox asked. Yes, the witness said. Bacas attorneys were expected to rest their case early Monday, after which jurors will hear closing arguments. The jury could begin deliberating as early as Monday afternoon. victoria.kim@latimes.com For more news on the federal obstruction trial of former L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca, follow @vicjkim on Twitter ALSO Stakes rise in jailhouse informant case as judge blasts O.C. sheriff Man who was shot by LAPD during exchange of gunfire is charged with attempted murder Robert Dursts lawyers challenge evidence and accuse prosecutor of deceptive jailhouse interview Confidential health data or personal information of more than 750,000 people may have been accessed in a cyberattack on Los Angeles County employees in May that led to charges this week against a Nigerian national, officials have disclosed. The May 13 attack targeted 1,000 county employees from several departments with a phishing email. The message tricked 108 employees into providing usernames and passwords to their accounts, some of which contained confidential patient or client information, officials said. Most of the 756,000 people whose information may have been accessed had contact with the Department of Health Services, according to the county. A smaller amount of confidential information from more than a dozen other county departments also was compromised. Advertisement Among the data potentially accessed were names, addresses, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, financial information and medical records including diagnoses and treatment history of clients, patients or others who received services from county departments. Officials said there is no evidence that confidential information has been circulated, sold or released. The county learned of the attack the day after it happened, and officials said they responded with security measures and a criminal investigation. But the county waited more than seven months to inform the public, citing an exemption under state law that allows delayed notification to protect ongoing investigations. Cyber investigators with the L.A. County district attorneys office traced the attack to Nigeria. Prosecutors issued an arrest warrant Thursday, accusing Austin Kelvin Onaghinor, 37, of launching the attack and charged him with nine felony counts, including unauthorized computer access and identity theft. Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey said in a statement, My office will work aggressively to bring this criminal hacker and others to Los Angeles County where they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. These kinds of phishing attacks are on the rise throughout society and the County has not been immune from that trend. Joel Sappell, L.A. County spokesman Once charges were filed, county officials began mailing notices Thursday to people whose information may have been accessed. The countys Chief Executive Office said it delayed public notification of the attack at the request of the district attorneys office to protect the confidentiality of the sensitive, ongoing investigation and prevent broader public harm. Notifying the public of the attack earlier may have hindered the investigation, the county said in a notice about the data breach Friday. In response to the attack, officials said they have strengthened security measures on county email accounts and enhanced employee training to guard against a growing number of cyber intrusions. These kinds of phishing attacks are on the rise throughout society and the county has not been immune from that trend, county spokesman Joel Sappell said in a statement. In February, officials disclosed that the Department of Health Services had been targeted in a smaller-scale ransomware attack, a type of malware that cuts off users access to files or threatens to destroy them unless a ransom is paid. The district attorneys office said in a news release Friday that its cyber investigation team has protected the county from prior attacks, has investigated 85 cases, involving hundreds of thousands of potential victims and has resulted in several successful prosecutions and restitution totaling nearly $4 million. The county is offering a year of free credit and identity-theft monitoring for people affected by the May phishing attack and has set up a website and call center for those seeking information: (855) 330-6368. tony.barboza@latimes.com Twitter: @tonybarboza ALSO Hollywood hospital pays $17,000 in bitcoin to hackers; FBI investigating New era begins in L.A. County government as supermajority of Democrats takes the helm Head of L.A. Countys child protective services agency to retire in early 2017 Prosecutors have charged a 23-year-old man with attempted murder after he allegedly shot at police in South L.A., prompting one officer to fire back and wound him. Quentin Durity also faces charges of assault on a peace officer and being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to Greg Risling, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County district attorneys office. He is scheduled to be arraigned in January. The events leading up to the shooting began about 10:30 p.m. Sunday, when police say uniformed gang officers saw a large group of people gathering at a home on 99th Street in South L.A.s Vermont Vista neighborhood. Advertisement The officers knew the residence on 99th near Figueroa Street was a congregation point for gang members and recognized multiple people in the crowd as gang members, said LAPD Chief Charlie Beck, who offered new details about the shooting at a news conference this week. The officers stopped their car and approached the group, which started to scatter, Beck said. As people ran, he said, several tossed guns on the ground and over fences. One person fired a shot at the officers, Beck said. An officer fired a single shot back, he said. Police set up a perimeter and began to the search the area. During the search, Beck said, one man tried to walk out of the area. Police noticed he had a gunshot wound and took him into custody, believing he could be the man who fired at police. That man was later identified as Durity. Beck said he was treated for the gunshot wound, then booked on suspicion of attempted murder. No officers were injured. Several people who were inside the home were also detained and interviewed, Beck said. Three other men Bryan Jean-Pierre, 28; Artis Perez, 21; and Kamal Key, 19 were arrested and later charged with various gun or ammunition violations. Jean-Pierre and Key pleaded not guilty to the charges Wednesday. It was unclear if Perez has entered a plea. Detectives found nine guns during their investigation, Beck said. Some were recovered from the front and back yards surrounding the home on 99th Street; others were discovered when police served a search warrant. kate.mather@latimes.com Follow me on Twitter: @katemather ALSO 2 Navy contractors charged in San Diego bomb hoax cases Man fatally shot by L.A. County sheriffs deputy in Hacienda Heights KTLA news anchor Lu Parker will not be charged with theft if she completes diversion program, officials say Mitch Cho left Korea in part to gain a measure of freedom from the yoke of tradition. A graphics designer living in East Los Angeles, he loved the liberty of the American lifestyle, the not being pressed, among other things, about getting married already. And like many of his Mexican immigrant neighbors, Cho, 31, settled in the United States illegally. Although some of them, particularly the younger ones, occasionally joined street protests calling for immigrant rights, Cho kept his status secret. Advertisement The price you pay for speaking in the open can taint your family name or their reputation. Who wants that? he said. Cho is part of an often-overlooked demographic: one of an estimated 1.5 million Asian immigrants in the U.S. illegally, the second largest group after immigrants from Mexico and Central America. There are about 416,000 Asians without legal status in California. Yet in part because illegal immigration has been cast largely as a Latino issue, Asians tend to be overlooked in the national discourse. Many are glad for the relative inattention, even if their future especially after the presidential election of Donald Trump, who has vowed to be tough on illegal immigration is just as hazy as that of other undocumented immigrants. Because Latinos get the brunt of the anti-immigrant backlash, Asians may feel they can stay on the sidelines. Apolonio Morales, political director for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles Because Latinos get the brunt of the anti-immigrant backlash, Asians may feel they can stay on the sidelines, said Apolonio Morales, political director for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles. But if the target suddenly shifts toward Asians, they would be compelled to act. Lan Quoc Nguyen, an attorney in Westminster who has handled immigration cases, says that for many Asian immigrants, being open about their legal status is an uncomfortable proposition. Culture teaches us not to bring attention to ourselves, he said. Being illegally in our community can be a level of shame higher than divorce. The option is to keep out of the way, work as babysitters or in cash jobs, and if lucky, one might find a way to legalize. By contrast, illegal immigration has been such a part of the Mexican and Central American experience over the generations that for many families, the phenomenon has become a source of dark humor and shirts with jokey slogans a kind of coping mechanism that has inspired Mexican corrido songs and movies. Almost 30 years ago, a film set in Chos adopted home, Born in East L.A. played the topic for laughs, with its Mexican American protagonist, portrayed by Cheech Marin, mistakenly deported to Mexico even though he did not speak Spanish. There is no cultural analog in the Asian community. For Cho, the best course of action is to keep his head down. If I stay underground, I dont get questions like, Why did your family let you leave? How can you do this or that without having legal status? he said. That doesnt mean everyone decides to adopt that tack, though. Some Asians march and hold signs at immigrant rights rallies, despite being a decided minority among the ranks. At a recent meeting of the California Dream Network at UC Irvine, young men and women with roots mostly in countries such as El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico dished on the threat of deportations under a Trump White House. Martha Ancajas, a 20-year-old born in the Philippines and in the U.S. illegally, was the lone Asian. Its always this way. In public, this struggle mainly attracts the voices of Latinos. Among Asians, theres more shame and more quiet when you are in America without the right papers. What I think is you must speak up or be left out, said the sophomore majoring in ethnic studies at Cal State Sacramento. Her father, an addict in and out of drug rehab, died in a motorcycle accident. In 2012, at the age of 14, she left the Philippines, accompanied by her grandmother. She overstayed her U.S. tourist visa, finished high school, enrolled in college and cleaned houses as she worked toward her degree. Ancajas said the stereotype of Asians as a model minority obscured the fact that many are vulnerable to deportation, even if they work hard and study. She arrived in the U.S. too late to apply for DACA, President Obamas Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which offered temporary work permits and protection from deportation for immigrants who came to America before 2007 as children under the age of 17. For the longest time, I was really shy and didnt want to say anything about it. Im here to represent my culture. We can and do contribute to society. Martha Ancajas, 20 For the longest time, I was really shy and didnt want to say anything about it, she said. But then Ancajas had a change of heart. Im here to represent my culture. We can and do contribute to society. Still, Tom Wong, an assistant professor of political science at UC San Diego, said it makes sense for many Asians in the country illegally to stay away from the white-hot spotlight of the immigration issue. Many have immigration petitions in the pipeline including requests for work visas and they dont want to take risks, he added. We know from studies that a disproportionate number of Asians are affected by visa backlogs. It wouldnt be good for them to jeopardize their paperwork by marching on the streets or protesting, Wong said. Generally, Asians and Pacific Islanders have more avenues to enter the country, Wong said, whether through family or work connections. Many overstay visas and were not poor in their homeland. There are very few ways for low-skilled workers to come into the U.S. [legally], he said. But you see and hear of plenty of stories about the Asian engineer who earned a doctorate or the tech worker who has advanced knowledge who are valuable to companies. Seth Hernandez, 24, was brought by his parents to the U.S. from the Philippines in 2004. He was 12 then, and as he grew up, he realized that being undocumented means not being able to plan your life. We dont have that luxury. He said he wants a career in film, but I dont even know where Ill be in two years, three years especially now that were changing presidents. Hernandez, of Culver City, said he wishes more millennial Asians supported people like him. But overall, Asians dont see people like them at these rallies, so they dont show up, he said. When they dont show up, the situation doesnt improve because their concerns are hidden. Hong Nguyen said she wouldnt dream of standing on a street corner with a political sign. When she first arrived in the U.S. from Vietnam in 2005, she rented a $400 room in Arcadia and took buses to and from her job as a waitress at a pho restaurant. She earned $1,400 a month, working six days a week, using tips for pocket expenses. In her homeland, Nguyen worked as a high school literature teacher, making less than $50 monthly. When she and her husband split up, Nguyen said she knew she could not provide for their daughter if she stayed in Vietnam. So she left the girl, then 4, in the care of her grandparents and traveled to Los Angeles intending to overstay her tourist visa. Ive been happy with what I could earn in America and not be a burden to friends or family in California, said Nguyen, 41. I see other people without papers and if theyre women theyre pushed to find a man to marry so you could stay in the U.S. That was never my goal. I dont want to use someone that way. She also recognized that there was a greater tendency to assume that many Latino immigrants were in the country illegally. If a police officer or some other authority figure came into the restaurant, the Vietnamese owner would order all the Mexican workers to take a break, come back later. For me, she would just say, This is my sister whos visiting. Anthony Ng, a policy advocate for immigrant rights at Asian Americans Advancing Justice in Los Angeles, said his parents brought him to the U.S. from Manila, Philippines, in 2001. He was 11 and too young to know he didnt have legal papers. After high school, he enrolled at UC Irvine, where he connected with mentors who were student activists. One day, he went to a meeting and for the first time, heard about Filipino American veterans who had been denied benefits, even though they fought for the U.S. in World War II. Bingo! I wanted to get more politically involved, Ng, 27, recalled. He said the Asian communitys diversity offered challenges, including the fact that many people came from countries where speaking out and fighting for your beliefs were things that got you punished. Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, a think tank in Washington that advocates lower immigration levels, said that diversity of cultures and languages make it harder for Asians to organize in the same way as Latinos, who at least share a common language. Mexicans are different from Colombians, who are different from Argentinians but they have an overarching commonality in language, he said. By contrast, what on earth does a Korean have in common with a Bangladeshi? East Asians and South Asians are totally unrelated. So the opportunity to organize or mobilize is kind of limited. Asian immigration today is very comparable to European immigration a century ago, with its lack of a common language and culture, Krikorian added. Ng says theres more social acceptance in the Latino community for people who are in the country illegally. In Latino communities, you definitely see more support for the undocumented, and people dont treat them in such a hostile way, Ng said, adding that he and others at Advancing Justice are reaching out to the Asian community, advising them to seek reputable immigration attorneys for help or inviting them to come in to review paperwork. Ancajas, the Sacramento student, said she is determined to be more vocal. This political season, were out in the open, she said. We must protect ourselves. anh.do@latimes.com Twitter: @newsterrier ALSO Trump once welcomed a visit from immigrant Dreamers. Now, they anxiously await his next move California considers prohibiting immigration enforcement at public schools and hospitals Kamala Harris says California will provide national leadership on immigration under a Trump administration When he was a 21-year-old camp counselor, Henry Heimlich saved a life and had his first brush with fame. On the way back to New York City from Massachusetts at summers end, his quick thinking in a train wreck helped save a critically wounded crew member. It also landed the handsome medical student on the front page of the New York Times. A month later, the Greater New York Safety Council gave him a gold watch. Never one to shy away from the limelight, Heimlich would go on to a level of fame and controversy that astonished even him. Advertisement Heimlich, a thoracic surgeon who developed the lifesaving Heimlich maneuver after experimenting on anesthetized beagles, died Saturday in Cincinnati, his family said. He was 96. His son Phil said he suffered a heart attack earlier in the week. When Heimlich came up with his anti-choking technique in 1974, it was quickly celebrated. Accidental choking was a leading cause of death, and Heimlichs sharp abdominal jabs from behind could expel chunks of food or foreign objects from the throats of choking victims. So simple it could be performed by children, the eponymous maneuver made Heimlich a household name. Less than a decade after he started to publicize it, the Heimlich maneuver was listed in dictionaries and its inventors last name was sometimes used as a verb as in, to Heimlich. Catapulted to national fame, Heimlich traded jokes with Johnny Carson as The Tonight Show host demonstrated the up-close-and-personal technique on a laughing Angie Dickinson. Norman Vincent Peale, the minister famous for The Power of Positive Thinking, declared that Heimlich had likely saved more people than anyone else alive. In 1980, his TV series for children, H.E.L.P!: Dr. Henrys Emergency Lessons for People, won a daytime Emmy Award. I know that my celebrity status has helped others giving them a power they might not have known they possessed, the doctor wrote in his 2014 memoir, Heimlichs Maneuvers. He estimated that the procedure had saved more than 100,000 lives. But he also championed other measures that his critics called reckless and unethical. In 2007, the New Republic magazine described him as the P.T. Barnum of American medicine his career serving as testament to the fact that even the supposedly fact-based medical realm is susceptible to the phantom powers of personality and salesmanship. For years, Heimlich promoted the treatment of cancer, Lyme disease and HIV/AIDS with injections of malaria to jump-start patients strained immune systems. When Heimlich sponsored research in China on AIDS patients, UCLA determined that a faculty member violated federal rules by taking part. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the concept was risky, and AIDS expert Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, called it scientifically unsound and ethically questionable. Heimlich drew what he called malariotherapy from the work of an Austrian scientist who received a 1927 Nobel Prize for using it to treat the kind of dementia associated with late-stage syphilis. But Fauci said it was a bad call even in 1927: There are some Nobels they would like to take back, and I believe thats one of them, Fauci told ABC News in 2007. One of Heimlichs most vocal critics was his son Peter. In the early 2000s, objections to Heimlichs work surfaced in anonymous letters to medical journals and newspapers, sometimes signed with the names of film noir characters. Peter Heimlich later revealed himself as their author and went public with denunciations of his father, detailing them on a website he started with his wife, Karen Shulman. In interviews, Peter Heimlich said he broke with his father in 2001 after the doctor ignored medical problems within the Heimlich family. The son did not disclose the problems. In his autobiography, the doctor thanked his children Elisabeth, Philip and Janet for their love and dedication. Peter Heimlich, who had referred to his father as a spectacular con man and serial liar, was not mentioned. But Heimlich did acknowledge making enemies with his unorthodox medical theories. In his book, he likened his critics to the neighborhood kids who sank a raft he built from boards and oil cans when he was 10. Sadly, people with new ideas are often attacked, sometimes for no reason other than the critics do not like someone else getting credit, he wrote. Just as the boys tried to destroy my invention by throwing stones, my future naysayers would also try to sink my ideas. Born Feb. 3, 1920, in Wilmington, Del., Henry Judah Heimlich grew up in suburban New Rochelle, N.Y. His father, Philip Heimlich, was a social worker. After graduating from Cornell University and Cornell Medical College, Heimlich joined the Navy, and in 1945, he was sent to China. When a mortally wounded Chinese soldier lay on his operating table, blood was surging into the mans torn chest and Heimlich had no effective way to drain it. It tore me up, Heimlich recalled, vowing to one day make amends. About 20 years later, he came up with the Heimlich Chest Drain Valve a simple device that sprang, Heimlich wrote, from a Japanese noisemaker that made a sound we used to call a raspberry or a Bronx cheer. Battlefield medics used the valve to help wounded soldiers in Vietnam, and it was adopted for use in hospitals as well. Returning from China, Heimlich settled in New York City. In 1951, he married Jane Murray, daughter of dance studio owners Arthur and Kathryn Murray. Jane Murray Heimlich, who became a writer advocating homeopathic remedies, died in 2012. In the 1950s, Heimlich spoke widely about his procedure to bypass patients damaged esophagi by rebuilding a portion of their stomachs. The operation allowed people who had been unable to swallow to eat steak and French fried potatoes ten days after the surgery, the New York Times reported. Heimlich later was taken to task for failing to reveal that a Romanian surgeon had performed the groundbreaking procedure several years before he did. He said he had not known of Dr. Dan Gavrilius work at the time. Dr. Heimlich is a legend, someone whos responsible for saving thousands of lives. B. Chris Brewster, the head of San Diegos lifeguard service When Heimlich was head of surgery at Jewish Hospital in Cincinnati, he developed the maneuver that made him famous. Convinced that lives would be lost if he conducted time-consuming studies, he wrote an article for the journal Emergency Medicine and had it sent to syndicated medical columnist Arthur J. Snider of the Chicago Daily News. Soon, word of the technique spread. Stories appeared about diners, both ordinary people and celebrities, saving others or being saved. On a campaign plane in 1976, Ronald Reagan was choking on a peanut when his aide Michael Deaver wrapped his arms around the future president, thrusting his fists inward and upward to dislodge the potentially lethal nut. At NBCs New York headquarters, newsman Tom Brokaw did the same in 1979, when his colleague John Chancellor was choking on a piece of Gouda cheese. Heimlich was hailed for his maneuver but ran into resistance from the American Red Cross. He contended that people were dying needlessly because the organization taught rescuers to treat choking by sharply slapping victims between the shoulder blades. Heimlich was among the physicians who believed that back slaps which he called death blows could drive objects even deeper into the throat. As of 2014, the Red Cross recommended using cycles of five back blows followed by five abdominal thrusts for choking victims. Heimlich also took criticism for insisting that his maneuver be the first choice for first-aid providers in near-drowning cases. The American Heart Assn. called the idea potentially dangerous. Ellis & Associates, a company that trains lifeguards across the U.S., tried it for five years and in 2000 withdrew its endorsement of the technique. Lifeguard organizations condemned the maneuver. Dr. Heimlich is a legend, someone whos responsible for saving thousands of lives, B. Chris Brewster, the head of San Diegos lifeguard service and president of the Americas region of the International Lifesaving Federation, told the Los Angeles Times in 2000. I just wish that were enough for him. But for Heimlich, heroism wasnt the issue. If I have something that I think is good, he told the Los Angeles Times in 1994, how can I let people die? The Associated Press contributed to this report. ALSO Lawrence Colburn dies at 67; helped end Vietnams My Lai massacre Basketball broadcaster Craig Sager dies at 65 after long battle with cancer Alan Thicke, actor and dad on 80s sitcom Growing Pains, dies at 69 Lawrence Manley Colburn, a helicopter gunner in the Vietnam War who helped end the slaughter of hundreds of unarmed Vietnamese villagers by U.S. troops at My Lai, has died. He was 67. Lisa Colburn told the Associated Press on Thursday evening that her husband of 31 years was diagnosed with cancer in late September and died Tuesday. It was very quick, she said by phone from her home in Canton, Ga., near Atlanta. He was a very peaceful man who had a great desire for there to be a peaceful world. Advertisement She also called him a compassionate person who was a hero in many peoples eyes. Colburn was the last surviving member of a U.S. Army crew that ended the My Lai massacre of March 16, 1968. According to accounts, pilot Hugh Thompson landed the helicopter between unarmed villagers and American troops and ordered Colburn and crew chief Glenn Andreotta to cover him. Thompson then persuaded members of Charlie Company to stop shooting. The companys soldiers had begun shooting villagers that day even though they hadnt come under attack, authorities later said. The shooting quickly escalated into an orgy of killing that claimed the lives of as many as 504 civilians mostly women, children and the elderly. In an initial Facebook post, Lisa Colburn confirmed her husbands death and wrote: As most of you know, Larry has been very ill for a while but his suffering ended today, 12/13/16/. She added: Your friendship meant a lot to him. Trent Angers, who wrote a biography of Thompson, The Forgotten Hero of My Lai: The Hugh Thompson Story, said Colburn played an indispensable role in stopping the massacre at My Lai. He stood up, shoulder to shoulder with Hugh and Glenn, to oppose and stand down against those who were committing crimes against humanity. Without his assistance, Hugh might not have done what he did, Angers said. Colburn and Thompson were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2001 for their actions and received the Soldiers Medal, the highest U.S. military award for bravery not involving conflict with the enemy. Thompson, who lived in Lafayette, La., died in 2006. Andreotta was killed in combat in Vietnam three weeks after My Lai. A memorial service for Colburn is planned Jan. 7. In addition to his wife and son, he is survived by three sisters. ALSO Basketball broadcaster Craig Sager dies at 65 after long battle with cancer Bob Krasnow, executive who revived Elektra Records and guided Natalie Cole to a Grammy, dies at 82 Alan Thicke, actor and dad on 80s sitcom Growing Pains, dies at 69 The U.S. Energy Department said Friday that its long-troubled attempt to build a plant to process highly radioactive sludge at a former nuclear weapons site in central Washington state will cost an additional $4.5 billion, raising the projects price tag to $16.8 billion. The Hanford treatment plant, a small industrial city with some two dozen facilities on a desert plateau along the Columbia River, is more than a decade behind schedule and will cost nearly four times the original estimate made in 2000. The government aims to transform 56 million gallons of deadly sludge stored in leaky underground tanks into solid glass, which theoretically could then be stored safely for thousands of years. Advertisement But the effort has involved an extended history of errors, miscalculations and wrongdoing. The result has been a massive, partially built concrete facility that has been under a stop-work order for three years because of serious technical doubts. The biggest technical problems involve two giant facilities, a melter building for high-level radioactive waste and a pretreatment building to prepare the sludge for chemical processing. After an exhaustive technical review, the Energy Department at the beginning of this year ordered fixes for more than 500 problems, some of them fundamental design deficiencies at the melter. Construction of the building and equipment was 78% complete at the time of the review. And in November, the Justice Department settled a False Claims Act suit against two major contractors at the plant, San Francisco-based Bechtel Corp. and AECOM, an engineering, design and construction management company based in Los Angeles. The allegations originally were brought by three engineers at the plant, who had long raised concerns that the fundamental design of the plant was flawed. The two companies agreed to pay $125 million in damages, a portion of which will be awarded to the three whistle-blowers. The Justice Department in its suit alleged that the companies improperly billed the government for materials and services from vendors that did not meet quality control requirements, for piping and waste vessels that did not meet quality standards and for testing from vendors that did not have compliant quality programs. The giant cost increase that was disclosed Friday came under a contract modification that the Department of Energy said would deliver the best value for the government and taxpayers. DOE is committed to addressing the environmental legacy of decades of nuclear weapons production activities at the Hanford Site in a safe and cost-effective manner, said Kevin Smith, manager of the office that oversees the waste treatment plant construction. We are confident that the modified contract and baseline represents the most effective and expeditious path towards beginning tank waste treatment at Hanford as soon as practicable. But outside watchdogs say the giant cost increase could jeopardize the cleanup at a time when the incoming president, Donald Trump, has already sharply criticized high-cost government projects and contracts. Tom Carpenter, executive director of the Hanford Challenge, which has helped whistle-blowers disclose problems at the site, said the new cost estimate puts a target on the plant that could lead the Energy Department to begin searching for lower-cost and less safe solutions to the waste problem. One potential lower-cost remedy at Hanford, which has been used at other former nuclear waste sites, would be to pour concrete into the tanks to solidify the waste and then simply leave it in place. The risk is that the concrete might eventually break down, leak radioactivity into the groundwater and contaminate the Columbia River about seven miles away, Carpenter said. There are a lot of question marks about the fate of this facility, Carpenter said. The revised plan disclosed Friday is part of an effort to get the waste treatment plant started up sooner, though the estimated delay for full operational status seems to be growing. In 2013, then-Energy Secretary Steven Chu stopped most construction on the project after a whistle-blower warned about a potential for explosion from accumulated hydrogen gas in the melter tanks. In an effort to get the cleanup moving again, Chus successor, Ernest J. Moniz, ordered that some of the lower-level waste be solidified without any pretreatment a so-called direct feed system and on a faster schedule at the low-level melter. The early processing could begin in 10 years or less, but the full capability for the most highly radioactive sludge that requires the high-level melter is now scheduled for a 2036 start-up, some 20 years past the original schedule, Carpenter said. It is an astounding date, he said. ralph.vartabedian@latimes.com Follow me on Twitter @rvartabedian Starting with John F. Kennedys victory over Richard Nixon in 1960, Delia Anderson had voted in 14 straight presidential elections. She had cast her ballot at the same polling place for years, never with a glitch. This year, however, a volunteer driving her to the polls mentioned that she would be asked to show a state-approved photo ID. For the record: An earlier version of this story said nearly 3 million people voted in Milwaukee. That was the number who voted in the entire state. In Milwaukee, nearly 248,000 people voted. Dont these poll people already know who I am? replied Anderson, who is 77, black and uses a wheelchair, as she frantically sifted through her purse for anything to prove her identity. Advertisement It was a lost cause. She had planned to vote for Hillary Clinton. Instead, for the first time in 56 years, she did not cast a ballot. Lord, have mercy, she said. What happened to voting? Such stories abound in Milwaukee, a Democratic stronghold in a state where Donald Trump won by 22,748 votes, a key victory in his path to the presidency. Now, voting rights advocates, elections officials and political experts have zeroed in on the city as a case study of whether controversial new rules requiring ID for voting the kind used in several states in November for the first time in a presidential election blocked vast numbers of largely young and racial minority Democrats from casting ballots and contributed to Clintons defeat. In a state that saw its lowest turnout in 20 years, nearly 248,000 people voted in Milwaukee, roughly 41,000 fewer than in the last presidential election. I believe it was voter suppression laws from the state government that crushed turnout, said Milwaukee County Clerk Joe Czarnezki, one of two officials who oversees local elections. They tend to hit hardest on people who are poor, who dont drive and dont have a license, who are minorities. Other experts said the picture is more complicated, pointing out that many factors affect voting behavior. That makes it difficult to say whether new voting policies this year from a voter ID requirement in Virginia to cutbacks in early voting in Ohio and the closure of hundreds of polling sites across Southern states formerly regulated by the Voting Rights Act decisively swayed election results, said Michael McDonald, a University of Florida professor who studies voter turnout. African American turnout was down across the board from 2012, and that likely had something to do with Obama not being on the ballot, he said. Voter turnout also decreased in some traditionally Democratic areas with large black populations, such as Detroit, where strict voter ID laws were not in place. Lord, have mercy. What happened to voting? Delia Anderson, 77, who didnt vote for the first time since 1960. Still, activists say the election results and reports of voter disenfranchisement are spurring a renewed battle against voting restrictions. At a conference in early December in Washington, dozens of voter rights advocates from around the country discussed how to push against an possible onslaught of voting restrictions over the coming years. Were preparing for the long haul, said Kristen Clarke, president of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, which hosted the gathering. This year, her groups national hotline for voter issues logged 117,000 calls, including thousands complaining about voter ID laws. In Wisconsin, hundreds of thousands of people were registered to vote but didnt have ID cards, according to Ken Mayer, a political scientist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. To study the impact of the law, he is using public records to survey thousands of state residents who were registered to vote but did not cast ballots. In addition to the university, two heavily Democratic counties, Dane and Milwaukee, are funding the study. Many different things that could have been going on, Mayer said. The goal is to find out what, exactly, happened. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has vigorously defended the voter ID law. Voter turnout in this years Wisconsin presidential primary was the highest since 1972 with voter ID in place, so to now suggest turnout was down in the general election because of it is wrong, said Tom Evenson, a spokesman for the governor. We have made voting easy while ensuring it is hard to cheat. But for Anderson, who lives on the the poorer north side of Milwaukee where the citys black population is clustered, voting was anything but easy. On election day, she considered going to the DMV to apply for an ID card and using the receipt to vote, which the law allows. But she would have needed her long-lost birth certificate to apply as well as somebody to drive her to the DMV, wait in line with her and take her to the polls. Ive always been telling everyone they should vote, Anderson said. Now it was me who was not voting. Andrea Anthony, 36, lost her drivers license before the election. She cast a provisional ballot and was supposed to submit proof that she had applied for a replacement card in order for get her vote counted but never followed up. (Jeffrey Phelps / For The Times ) It was also Andrea Anthony, who lives near by and had voted since 2000. Anthony had seen news reports that she needed an ID this year and used her drivers license in order to vote in the Democratic primary. But the week before the general election, she lost her license. She cast a provisional ballot and was told it would be counted if within three days she submitted an ID or proof that she applied for one. But taking care of five kids and two grandchildren, I just didnt have the time to go get one, she said. I just felt for the first time my vote didnt matter, said Anthony, who is 36 and African American. But I have to take responsibility for not voting. Two of her children also sat out because they lacked IDs and didnt know they could apply for temporary papers at the DMV. Not everyone affected by ID laws supported Clinton, and not all were racial minorities. Anthony Roark, a white 29-year-old Milwaukee resident who moved recently from South Dakota, had considered applying for a state license before voting day. But Roark, a butcher at Whole Foods, said fees and paperwork required to transfer his license to Wisconsin were off-putting. I just felt the principle of paying to vote was wrong, said Roark, who supported Green Party candidate Jill Stein. Roark could have also applied for a free ID card only for voting, but he didnt realize that was an option. Molly McGrath, who worked in Wisconsin for VoteRiders and Project Vote, two nonpartisan voting advocacy groups, said her team assisted 18,000 Wisconsin voters over the last year, many who were longtime voters but had questions this year about the process. The confusion over ID laws was widespread, she said. More laws could be on the way as Republican-led state legislatures push for new restrictions, despite overwhelming evidence that voter fraud is not a significant problem. In Michigan, where Trump won by 10,704 votes, lawmakers said this week they will renew efforts to pass an ID law. In Texas, state officials have vowed to do the same despite a federal court ruling this summer that shot down an ID law on the grounds that it discriminated against Hispanics and African Americans. Voting rights advocates said they have been encouraged by several court decisions ahead of election, including a federal ruling over the summer that invalidated North Carolinas voter ID requirement for targeting African Americans. The legal battle is likely not over, McDonald said. I would not be surprised to see this go to the Supreme Court. jaweed.kaleem@latimes.com Jaweed Kaleem is The Times national race and justice correspondent. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. ALSO Fears of Russia and Trump drive EU leaders to boost defense budgets Trump administration could upend decades of U.S. policy on Israel and Palestinians Obama says election cyberattack came from the highest levels of the Russian government and vows retaliation This morning when I walked over to work it was pretty darn cold. So said Raymond Foss, town manager in the small town of Patten, Maine. Apparently, Foss is given to understatement. With the wind chill, the temperature in Patten on Friday plummeted to 37 degrees below zero. The polar vortex, as its known, has come back and sent temperatures falling across the country. And even colder temperatures are expected in days to come. This weekend frigid temperatures are expected in a vast area from Idaho to Maine and as far south as central Oklahoma. Advertisement But in Patten, population 1,017 with one main road and one general store, folks soldiered on. The town office was still open, as were the general store and schools in nearby Stacyville, where Patten residents send their children. The public works director, who normally has Fridays off, came in to check the heat in all the town buildings, but otherwise business was proceeding pretty much as usual. This is part of winter in northern Maine, so people are enjoying it and theyre out in it, Foss said. The town planned to go forward with its weekend activities, including a Santa run by the Fire Department and a winter formal. In Maine the daytime high was 1 degree. And other states have been chilled this week. In Wisconsin, Milwaukee hit 2 degrees below zero. Cleveland reached 12 degrees. The plunging temperatures were the result of a southward shift in the polar vortex, a large area of low pressure and cold air that swirls around the north and south poles year-round, according to the National Weather Service. The vortex regularly expands during wintertime, pushing streams of cold air south. The vortex is nothing new, but it became a household word, uttered through chattering teeth, in January 2014 when it famously sent much of the U.S. into a deep freeze. The latest Arctic blast began hitting the Northern Plains and Midwest earlier this week. The temperature in Great Falls, Mont., hit 15 degrees below zero Wednesday. The cold air then moved south and east, hitting the mid-Atlantic and Northeast with unusually low temperatures for this time of year on Thursday and Friday. On Thursday night, the temperature in New York City hit 19 degrees, with the wind chill near zero. On Friday the weather was a bit warmer, but freezing rain was expected in the evening, creating icy conditions. Our biggest concern with cold weather is the health effect from prolonged exposure to cold weather, said Ben Krakauer, director of watch command for the Office of Emergency Management in New York City. In subfreezing temperatures frostbite can occur after just 30 minutes of exposure. Krakauers office was urging residents to stay indoors, to bundle up if they absolutely had to go outside and to check on their neighbors. Were also concerned about our homeless population, Krakauer said. The Department of Homeless Services had issued a code blue, allowing any homeless person seeking shelter to be granted it. Krakauer said the department staff members were also checking on the known homeless population and encouraging the public to call the public services hotline or 911 if they found a homeless person in distress. In state after state, residents were stocking up on groceries, shovels and other snow supplies as they braced for a second round of cold, as well as snow. Its been a constant flow of customers, said Jimmy Zadrzynski, who works at the Bliffert Lumber & Hardware store in Milwaukee. Zadrzynski normally bikes to work, but I wasnt even going to try to bring my bike here today, he said, noting that the snow drifts caused by high winds were constantly blowing snow in peoples faces. Instead, Zadrzynski put on a scarf around his face, a hat, several layers of clothes and an extra jacket and walked. He kept a hat and sweatshirt on all day as he went in and out. By early afternoon, Zadrzynski said the store had easily gone through a pallet of salt thats about 50 bags at 50 pounds each and was selling snow blowers like crazy. The stores mechanic had also been working nonstop, tuning up customers existing blowers, and Zadrzynski hadnt yet been able to get away from customers to put in a delivery order for food. Nearly a foot of snow was predicted for southern Wisconsin by early Saturday, and Zadrzynski said he expects to sell two or three more pallets of salt. The cold, windy conditions are expected to creep back up above freezing just in time for Christmas. nina.agrawal@latimes.com Twitter: @AgrawalNina ALSO Heres what the governor of Colorado has to tell other states about legalizing marijuana Stroke of luck and gun laws kept Washington state mall shooting from being much worse, police say In Arizona, Border Patrol doesnt include dozens of death in tally of migrants who perish Winter storms have arrived just in time for what is expected to be a busier holiday travel season than last December. On Saturday, snow blanketed a swath of the Rockies, grounding hundreds of flights, while freezing rain created havoc on roads in the mid-Atlantic. Icy conditions contributed to hundreds of auto accidents across the country, and at least nine deaths were reported. In Denver, airlines canceled more 300 flights after nearly 8 inches of snow hit the metro area. Advertisement Were in mop-up mode and trying to get caught up, but its been bad, said Heath Montgomery, a spokesman for Denver International Airport. Initially weather reports suggested that Denver would receive 1 to 3 inches of snow overnight, but that total was quickly surpassed by early Saturday morning. Mother Nature really threw us a curveball, Montgomery said. Warmer temperatures were expected Sunday and into the early part of the week. Winter storm warnings stretched from the central Rockies to parts of the upper Midwest, according to the National Weather Service. On the East Coast, a mix of snow, freezing rain and sleet fell from Boston to Washington. At Washington Dulles International Airport, all runways were closed for nearly four hours early Saturday morning because of the icy conditions. This holiday season, nearly 93.6 million people will take a road trip, an increase of 1.5% over last year, according to the American Automobile Assn. Air travel, meanwhile, is expected to increase by 2.5%, with more than 6 million people flying to their holiday destinations over the next two weeks. The dip in temperatures was the result of a southward shift in the polar vortex, a large area of low pressure and cold air that swirls around the north and south poles year-round, according to the National Weather Service. Back in Denver, Montgomery said the airport had dispatched nearly 500 workers to clear runways and de-ice planes as airlines resumed service. This is a busy time for us, so we need to keep the airport clear, he said. kurtis.lee@latimes.com Twitter: @kurtisalee ALSO 37 degrees below zero? Blame it on the return of the polar vortex In Arizona, Border Patrol doesnt include dozens of deaths in tally of migrants who perish The most important elevator in New York: Whos riding to the top of Trump Tower? Uber is at it again. The company, famous (or notorious, depending on your point of view) for flouting regulations as it built its disruptive, multi-billion-dollar business, rolled out a fleet of autonomous cars in San Francisco this week despite an explicit warning from the Department of Motor Vehicles that testing on public roads was illegal without a permit. Never mind that 20 of Ubers competitors in the race to develop autonomous cars have followed the California DMVs rules and gotten testing permits. Never mind that new federal guidelines for the safe operation of autonomous vehicles anticipate that car companies will get a states permission before testing driverless technology on its public roads. Never mind that Ubers executives were told by DMV officials before the launch that the company would need a permit to operate its autonomous vehicles. Instead, Uber in typical Uber fashion found an apparent loophole in Californias rules and chose to drive its driverless vehicles right through it. The regulations say a permit is required if the vehicle can drive itself without the active physical control or monitoring of a natural person. Defending the decision to forgo a permit, an Uber executive wrote in a blog post that its still early days and the companys cars are not yet ready to drive without a person monitoring them. Advertisement Uber is setting up a false choice for cities and states. They can and should be pro-technology and pro-safety. Of course they arent, but thats not the point. No autonomous vehicle, including those covered by testing permits, can be driven in the state without a human monitor. The state requires that an operator sit behind the wheel during testing, ready to take control at any time. Why? Because the technology is unproven, and state regulators dont believe its ready for uncontrolled operation on public streets which is why California created, with industry input, a permitting process. DMV officials didnt buy Ubers argument, nor should they have. Less than a day into Ubers new venture, the DMV threatened legal action if the company didnt halt testing. But Uber has refused to back down, insisting again on Friday that the driverless Ubers it has touted do not need permits because they are not really driverless, but rather vehicles equipped with advanced driver-assist technologies. Uber built its business by challenging regulators and entrenched assumptions about how best to assure public safety. It successfully evaded the strict local rules that the taxi industry faces on fares, licenses and driver background checks by arguing that smartphone-summoned rides were different from taxis and should be regulated under new state standards. It has also avoided a variety of mandates on employers by classifying its drivers as independent contractors, not employees. But cmon, Uber play by the rules this time. The DMVs regulations are designed to prevent companies from using public streets as laboratories for risky experiments. The permit requirement for self-driving cars is no loophole to be exploited. This is about ensuring that an important, potentially transformative technology is rolled out in a safe and transparent fashion. Whats especially frustrating is that Uber is blatantly ignoring one of the easiest, least controversial regulations facing autonomous vehicles. To get a testing permit, companies have to pay a $150 application fee, show proof of insurance and commit to submitting public reports detailing any crashes the vehicles have or instances when the human operator has to take control from the autonomous system. This is exactly the kind of information that regulators, the public and carmakers need in order to make informed decisions about the evolution and advancement of this technology. Within Ubers rebellion is a threat to California: The company has suggested it can easily take its innovation (and the jobs associated with it) elsewhere. Uber began testing its driverless service in Pittsburgh this fall with essentially no regulation and little oversight from city or state officials. The company said there are other pro-technology cities and states that are willing to open their roads for testing and deployment without the rules and requirements that could slow the development of driverless cars. But Uber is setting up a false choice for cities and states. They can and should be pro-technology and pro-safety. If Uber doesnt like the California DMVs rules which, admittedly, are a work in progress it doesnt have to test its cars here. But it cant have it both ways. If it wants to gather data about its experimental cars on Californias streets, it should get a permit. Then it can address any objections it may have with the DMV while it works out the kinks in its technology. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook To the editor: In 1983, President Reagan proposed the Strategic Defense Initiative, which became known as Star Wars. The plan was to build a space- and Earth-based anti-missile system to destroy incoming weapons from the Soviet Union. (The nations missile-defense system has serious flaws. So why is the Pentagon moving to expand it? Dec. 13) Surely such a program would have employed thousands of people, but it was never implemented due to the enormous cost and unreliability of the system. The idea of building additional missile defense bases in economically devastated Rust Belt states for the sole purpose of job creation is a bad one. Spending taxpayer dollars with no return on investment for an unreliable and expensive anti-missile system is unsustainable. Advertisement It would be far better for the relevant Rust Belt states to sell bonds for construction and implementation of revenue-producing infrastructure such as water projects and high-speed rail. Craig Simmons, Northridge .. To the editor: Does anybody remember the term economic conversion? When the Berlin Wall came down in 1981, the idea was to shift funds away from combating the Soviet Union and put them into long-neglected domestic projects. The idea lingered until the Democratic primary in 1992; there was even a candidate, Larry Agran, who had a plan to start implementing it. Sadly, he never got into the debates, and the nation never got to hear his plan. But the idea still makes a lot of sense. It has been maintained for years that you get far more job creation bang for your tax buck investing in education, healthcare and infrastructure projects than in defense. Lets fight joblessness, not an imaginary foe with an inefficient weapon system. This would appeal to people everywhere, not just in the Rust Belt. Steve Varalyay, Torrance Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook For many of our letter writers, the news about President-elect Donald Trumps transition has done little to lighten their mood even the slightest bit until Rick Perry was picked earlier this week as the next U.S. Energy secretary. The announcement Tuesday that former Texas Gov. Perry who famously blanked during a 2011 Republican presidential debate when he tried to identify the Department of Energy as one of three federal agencies he would eliminate would take charge of the body that builds and maintains nuclear weapons prompted readers to take a break from their doom-and-gloom pronouncements over Trumps cabinet picks. Here are some nuggets of biting humor from our letter writers. Advertisement George Paulikas of Palos Verdes Estates detects the hand of the Kremlin at play in Perrys appointment: Is there any chance of adding an IQ test to the Trump cabinet screening process? Ron Levin, Pacific Palisades What a clever ploy by that sly Russian President Vladimir Putin, getting Trump to appoint Perry to head the Department of Energy. Perry had promised to abolish the Department of Energy and, presumably along with it, the nuclear weapons laboratories of Los Alamos, Livermore and Sandia, thus weakening the U.S. nuclear deterrent. This is unilateral nuclear disarmament at its best. Manhattan Beach resident Gary Hartzell believes Perrys forgetfulness can serve the nation well: Political dementia may not be all bad. Perry forgot he wanted to abolish the Department of Energy in 2011. Now maybe hell forget to show up to the Senate for his confirmation hearings. Or maybe the senators will forget to hold the hearings. Or if he is confirmed, maybe Perry will forget to show up for work. Any of those is preferable to restoration of his memory. Bob Teigan of Santa Susana predicts some quiet meetings at the Trump White House: Does it occur to anyone that Trump is nominating individuals to cabinet positions who have ambitions to handcuff the very departments they will be heading? In the case of Perry, he is on record (even if he forgot during the infamous GOP debate in 2011) as desiring to eliminate the department he now desires to lead. Is this an ingenious method for the incoming president to cut government spending by abolishing all of these departments? That would make for very boring Trump cabinet meetings in the future. Irvine resident Carl Mariz draws a historical parallel to Rome: Trumps choice of Perry to head the Energy Department reminds me of the story of Roman Emperor Caligula appointing his favorite horse as a consul. Unfortunately, Perry can do far more damage to America than Caligulas horse could do to Rome. Ron Levin of Pacific Palisades suggests some additional vetting for cabinet secretaries: Is there any chance of adding an IQ test to the Trump cabinet screening process? Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook To the editor: The refusal of the Spanish government to return a painting in the Thyssen-Bornemisza collection is part of a sad chapter in the history of restitution of artworks in the post-World War II era. Millions of pieces were either taken or destroyed during the Nazi era. Art could be used to save a life, as it was in the case of Lilly Cassirer, who traded her painting for a visa to flee the Nazi terror. (A Spanish museum may have the legal right to keep art stolen by the Nazis. That doesnt mean it should, editorial, Dec. 14) It is not surprising that Cassirers painting could not be located in 1958 when the family settled for $13,000 in compensation. Particularly in the post-war period, it was not in the interest of institutions to launch comprehensive provenance research. When Cassirer accepted her settlement, the resources we have today for researching stolen works were simply unavailable. The Spanish government should consider the case of the Utah Museum of Fine Art. In 2004, the museum was notified that an important work in their collection was once owned by the renowned Paris art dealer Andre Seligmann, whose collection was looted by the Nazis. The museum voluntarily returned the painting to Seligmanns daughter, recognizing that this one small act provided dignity and respect not only to one particular family, but also to the countless anonymous individuals who never had the opportunity to reclaim what was lost. The prominence of the Thyssen-Bornemisza collection will not be compromised with the return of this painting to its rightful owners. Advertisement The return of looted art is not just about objects; it is about the restoration of dignity and respect to those whose basic humanity was denied. Deborah Solon, Irvine The writer is an art historian. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook Gov. Jerry Brown had to pick an attorney general faster than he expected (Susan Walsh / Associated Press) The phone call that Gov. Jerry Brown made on Wednesday night was unusual. A governor who marches to his own methodical timetable for decisions was having his hand forced by the politics of Capitol Hill, and the job of California attorney general hung in the balance. In the end, Brown got the man he wanted: Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Los Angeles). But it was Becerras effort to make a big career move that complicated things. In interviews with advisers to the governor and those close to Becerra, a portrait emerged of two veteran politicians who have mutual admiration but dont really know each other very well. In fact, the 12-term congressman plans to spend part of this weekend meeting with Brown in Sacramento. It was Becerras angling for an unexpectedly open high-profile post leading Democrats on the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee that sparked the circumspect governor into action. Nancy McFadden, the governors top staffer, decided she did not want to be attorney general. (Robert Durell / For The Times) In Sacramento, those close to the governor said that the list of potential replacements for Kamala Harris was short, much shorter than the ones circulated by political watchers. Advisers confirmed that either First Lady Anne Gust Brown or the governors top aide, Nancy McFadden, could have had the job if they had wanted it. Neither did, perhaps knowing the importance being placed on picking someone who would be willing to run for a full term in the job in 2018 (though Becerra declined to talk about future plans when asked on Thursday). Becerra, on the other hand, intrigued the governor. Not only did he have the right credentials -- a former deputy attorney general, former state legislator, veteran member of Congress -- but advisers said the governor also valued diversity. And the chance to select the states first Latino attorney general was important. While few jobs are as important to Brown, himself a former attorney general, the leading contender never came in for an in-person interview. Becerra, who grew up in Sacramento, had been in town just before election day to stump for the reelection of Rep. Ami Bera (D-Elk Grove). He met with McFadden on that visit, but not the governor. And so the two men, who had no deep personal relationship, made the big decision long distance. When they talked, McFadden said in an interview, the man matched the resume. Becerra had been looking for somewhere to land. Out of places to move in House leadership and nearing the limit on how much longer he could lead the House Democratic Caucus, the vocal advocate for Hillary Clinton had spent the last year campaigning for her across the country with hopes it might lead to a new position. Clintons loss Nov. 8 put an end to that speculation, and for a while Becerras next move didnt seem clear. Surprise news Tuesday afternoon that the ranking Democrat on Ways and Means, Rep. Sandy Levin (D-Mich.) would not seek the position again led Beccera to quickly announce his plans to seek the position and lobby colleagues to back him. Levin quickly endorsed Becerra over Massachusetts Democratic Rep. Richie Neal, who had sought the job before. Word of Becerras effort quickly reached the state Capitol and the governors inner circle sprang into action. Perhaps fewer than a half dozen people knew of Browns decision until news began to spread early Thursday morning. Becerra called the offer sudden and said with Congress in session he hadnt even had a chance to talk with Brown about the job in person. It went very quickly when it started to move, he said. I was as stunned as you probably were and others were. President Obama publicly accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of involvement in cyberattacks aimed at the U.S. election and leveled a threat on Friday that the U.S. would retaliate, perhaps in ways no one but the Russians would see. Obama said that he had great confidence in the assessment by U.S. intelligence agencies that the Russians had carried out computer hacks aimed at the Democratic National Committee and senior aides to presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, and that the operation had been approved at the highest levels in Moscow. Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin, he added, saying that the Russians needed to understand that we can do stuff to you. Advertisement U.S. counter-strikes would come in a thoughtful, methodical way and would be felt by the Russians, Obama said. Some of it, we will do in a way that they know, but not everybody will. Obamas statement came as CIA and FBI officials sought to rebut claims that the agencies were at odds in their assessment of Russias role in the attacks. In a message to CIA employees, the agencys director, John Brennan, said that a strong consensus existed among U.S. intelligence services that Russia orchestrated hacks and that the online leaks were designed at least in part to help Donald Trump win the White House. FBI Director James B. Comey and Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper Jr. agreed with that assessment, Brennan wrote. He had met separately with both of them, Brennan added, and there is strong consensus among us on the scope, nature, and intent of Russian interference in our presidential election. The message was confirmed by a U.S. official after it was first reported by the Washington Post. A second U.S. official said the FBI concurred with intelligence agencies that the Russian government had orchestrated the cyberattacks, which disclosed emails from the files of the Democratic National Committee as well as Clinton campaign Chairman John Podesta and other top Democrats. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was continuing and portions of it are classified. Although FBI agents have not determined Russias motive with certainty, they can tell the hacks targeted Democrats and benefited Trump. Whether the Russians were trying to help elect Trump, sow confusion in the electoral process, undermine an eventual Clinton presidency or achieve a combination of those outcomes remains unclear to agents, the second official said. Russian officials have denied involvement in the hacking and have said the U.S. should show more proof or let the subject drop. Trump has repeatedly denied that anyone knows whether Russia was behind the leaked emails and has mocked the CIAs assessment that top Russian officials intervened to help him get elected. In the face of those denials, Obama, who has directed U.S. intelligence agencies to complete a thorough review of the Russian actions before he leaves office, said his administration would disclose at least some of the evidence to the public. But, he warned, much of it would have to remain secret. We will provide evidence that we can safely provide, that does not compromise sources and methods, he said. He added: When you are talking about cybersecurity, a lot of it is classified, and were not going to provide it because the way we catch folks is by knowing certain things about them that they may not want us to know. Obamas final scheduled news conference of the year an unusually long 90-minute affair that was interrupted briefly while the White House doctor attended to a reporter who had fainted revealed a deepening preoccupation with Putin and Russia in the waning days of his presidency. Asked about Trumps dealings with China and Taiwan since the election, Obama cautioned the president-elect not to wade too deeply into foreign policy too soon. Obama said he had told Trump that before he starts having a lot of interactions with foreign governments other than the usual courtesy calls, that he should want to have his full team in place and fully briefed so they know what theyre talking about. And he repeated that the blame for the carnage in Aleppo, Syria, where thousands more civilians were killed or displaced in the last week, should fall on the Syrian government and its Russian allies. But it was the Russian interference in the campaign and the partisan debate surrounding it that clearly was on the presidents mind. In an interview with National Public Radio that aired earlier in the day, Obama said that the leaks from Democratic emails had contributed to an atmosphere in which the only focus for weeks at a time, months at a time, were Hillarys emails, the Clinton Foundation, political gossip surrounding the DNC. He returned to that theme repeatedly during the news conference. His intense focus on the topic suggested widespread worry among Western allies about a rising threat from Russia, as well as his own concern that Trump and the Republican Party lack the proper skepticism of the Russian leader. Displaying a partisan tone that he had avoided in other remarks since the election, Obama sharply criticized Republicans who have spoken admiringly of Putin and who have tried to deny or minimize Russias interference in the election. He cited a recent YouGov poll that showed 37% of Republicans now approve of Putin. Over a third of Republican voters approve of Vladimir Putin, the former head of the KGB. Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave, Obama said. And how did that happen? It happened in part because for too long, everything that happens in this town, everything thats said, is seen through the lens of does this help or hurt us relative to Democrats or relative to President Obama. Russia, he said, cant significantly weaken us. They are a smaller country; they are a weaker country. Their economy doesnt produce anything that anybody wants to buy except oil and gas and arms. They dont innovate. But, he said, the U.S. could weaken itself through excessive partisanship and mutual mistrust. What I worry about more than anything, he added, is how you start to see certain folks in the Republican Party and Republican voters suddenly finding a government and individuals who stand contrary to everything that we stand for as being OK, because thats how much we dislike Democrats. Obama denied that there had been much squabbling between the White House and Trumps aides on the topic, brushing off Trumps recent criticism of the White House press secretary as evidence that the president-elect, you know, is still in transition mode. And as Marine helicopters circled the airspace above the White House in preparation for his departure for two weeks of vacation in Hawaii, the president derided the idea that a systematic attack on Democratic computer systems could have happened without Putins knowledge. This is a pretty hierarchical operation, he said of the Russian government. Last I checked, theres not a lot of debate and democratic deliberation, particularly when it comes to policies directed at the United States. I will confirm that this happened at the highest levels of the Russian government, Obama went on. And I will let you make that determination as to whether there are high-level Russian officials who go off rogue and decide to tamper with the U.S. election process without Vladimir Putin knowing about it. Times staff writer Del Quentin Wilber contributed to this report. christi.parsons@latimes.com brian.bennett@latimes.com Follow @cparsons for news about the White House. ALSO Trump administration could upend decades of U.S. policy on Israel and Palestinians Trump once welcomed a visit from immigrant Dreamers. Now, they anxiously await his next move Trump is delivering on his promise to be unpredictable on foreign affairs. Not everyones convinced thats a good idea Lyone Kwok and Steve Trinh often longed for the dumplings, breads, sweets and other small-portion food offered at dim sum restaurants, but long waits would often dim their gastronomic desires. We got really frustrated when we went to [Chinese] dim sum restaurants and we had to wait like an hour and a half to get a table, said Trinh, 34. Then Kwok, 33, who had business experience as the owner of a dessert shop in Los Angeles, saw opportunity in the form of a vacant fast-food space within the My Thuan Supermarket in Westminster. In July 2015, Kwok purchased the space, which formerly served Vietnamese to-go-style dishes, and turned it into Mint Leaf. Trinh, who had a finance background, joined his college friend earlier this year to assist with marketing. Mint Leaf is perhaps Orange Countys only fast-casual dim sum restaurant. The fast-casual concept is somewhere in between to-go and sit-down establishments, with counter service and ample seating, for those who dont want to order and run, but no drive-through. Trinh said it is a popular concept among millennials. The Mint Leaf space, in the corner of the grocery store, offers several tables for customers as they eat an array of dim sum choices ranging in price from $1.95 to $3.75, the latter applying to shareable orders of two to four pieces of an item. Selections include shrimp dumplings, pork dumplings, barbecue pork buns, egg tarts and pork spare ribs. Like traditional dim sum restaurants, the food is served in circular aluminum containers. But unlike the standard process, the food at Mint Leaf is not pushed around on carts by servers. The importance to customers of being able to see the food isnt lost on Trinh, though. At Mint Leaf, the offerings are visible behind the counter, where diners select what they want and proceed to pay for it. I think what people enjoy about dim sum is the experience of seeing the food on display and being able to pick and choose, Trinh said. You dont have to overcommit. Theyre served in small, shareable portions, so if you dont like it theres not a whole bunch of it. The restaurant also offers traditional Vietnamese rice dishes, drinks, desserts and Cantonese barbecue, like roasted duck and pork. Primarily, were dim sum, but because of the demographics in this area, and with the skills of our chefs, we decided we could try to do more to try to cater to the local community, Trinh said, adding their customers mainly consist of younger people. But despite the other dishes, the dim sum is what Mint Leaf has become known for on websites like Yelp and Instagram. Earlier this year, Trinh and Kwok, who both live in Los Angeles County, teamed up with a graphic designer friend to create cartoon-like pictures of dim sum with cute faces. The owners also aim for adorable with some of their actual food too. Steamed sweet buns filled with egg custard are colored green and have candy eyeballs, almost making them look like the little green aliens from Disney Pixars Toy Story film. The food is offered until 6:30 p.m. every day, when the grocery store closes. Other sit-down dim sum restaurants tend to serve the dishes only through the early afternoon. Kwok and Trinh said want to eventually move Mint Leaf to their own independent location, but their biggest goal is getting older Asian people to understand the fast-casual concept. The people here know a quick-serve concept and a restaurant concept, Trinh said. They dont know theres something in-between. If we can kind of get them to understand what were doing, that would be ideal. * IF YOU GO Mint Leaf is located inside the My Thuan Supermarket, at 8900 Westminster Blvd. in Westminster. Hours are 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. More information: mintleafoc.com Whoosh! Watch out for that skateboarder! OK, that was more of a 1990s hazard for people trying to use the sidewalks for walking. As the sport grew in popularity, cities began looking to make public lands more available, and things like skateparks were born. But safety continued to be a prime concern for those riding the boards, not so much for pedestrians anymore. High-speed movements on smooth, hard surfaces can involve collisions and falls that have led to fractures, sprains, concussion and other head injuries. Well-fitting helmets are crucially important, and for Pro-Tec, the original skateboard protective gear brand founded in 1973 and headquartered in San Clemente the Full-Cut helmet has been one of the best attempts at protecting skaters, company officials say. The original 1970s skate helmet, which features stainless steel hardware, soft webbing and ear protection, quickly became one of the most recognizable helmets of all time, and over the companys 43-year-old existence, Pro-Tec attracted a number of professional skaters wearing the brands safety products. Add Mark Gonzales to the team. Gonzales, nicknamed The Gonz, was named the most influential skateboarder of all time in Transworld Skateboarding magazine, followed by Tony Hawk and Rodney Mullen. Gonzales, known as a top pioneer of modern street skateboarding, began adding his creativity to a Pro-Tec signature helmet for a special release in 2017 and noted that a Full-Tec has always been his choice in helmet. Again, this is according to the company. Gonzales was unavailable for comment. Its this iconic brand from the 1970s most skaters and most parents know about, but we asked ourselves, How do we make the safety component more appealing? Its a necessity, but how do we make that look cool for the younger crowd? said R.P. Bess, Pro-Tecs global brand director. Gonzales is compensated for his association with the brand, as are other athletes and artists with similar corporate ties, but, according to Bess, he was wearing the product before the arrangement. This made the collaboration more appealing to Pro-Tec, Bess added. The professional skateboarders stamp of approval on the helmet not only helps the company, Bess said, but it helps the younger generation of skaters who look up to the professional athletes understand the importance of wearing protective gear. The latest youth helmet draws its lines from the Pro-Tec classic and is equipped with the latest CPSC/CE-certified technology, meaning the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission deemed the helmet in keeping with federal childrens safety requirements. Other professional skateboarders who wear the brand include Bucky Lasek, Christian Hosoi, Jimmy Wilkins and Steve Caballero. Caballero, considered the godfather of modern skateboarding, set the world record for highest air achieved on a half pipe in 1987 and held the record for 10 years. He continues to wear Pro-Tec, his original choice in the late 1970, according to the companys marketing materials. But Pro-Tec is not just about helmets for skateboarding, Bess stressed. Todays company has expanded to delivering modern protective equipment for a variety of action sports, including snow sports, mountain biking and BMX riding. Pro-Tec, which already provides water helmets for lifeguards and search-and-rescue water groups, would like to branch out to the military, creating helmets for jumping demonstration teams, for instance. Bess said the company continues to look into more technologies, collaborate with more celebrated athletes and expand into different action sports. Skate has matured and now were passing it down to our kids, and were putting kids in the product we relied on, Bess said. There are guys in their 50s still wearing a Pro-Tec helmet. Its almost like its become tradition and thats cool to see. kathleen.luppi@latimes.com Twitter: @KathleenLuppi Vanguard University celebrated the 20th anniversary of Christmas Fantasia this month as nearly 200 students from the universitys choirs and instrumental ensembles performed classic music at the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall in Costa Mesa. The annual festival Dec. 6 featured works from Handels Messiah and Tchaikovskys The Nutcracker Suite, along with traditional carols including Joy to the World, O Come All Ye Faithful and Silent Night. Vanguard worship-studies majors Monet Shelton and Yokabet Paulos were presented with $1,000 Ralph Carmichael Scholarships for tuition. Carmichael is a Vanguard alumnus who was an arranger for the late Nat King Cole. Saturday is snow day at holiday event in Costa Mesa Snowland 2016, a holiday event featuring a play area with 40 tons of real snow, will be presented by Torelli Realty from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Balearic Community Center in Costa Mesa. Festivities also will include cookie decorating, hay wagon rides, a bounce house, and appearances by Santa Claus and Anna and Elsa from Frozen, according to a news release. Donations will be accepted for the Spark of Love Toy Drive. The community center is at 1975 Balearic Drive. For more information, call (714) 540-7355. International Celebration of Christmas set at Old World Village Old World Village in Huntington Beach will host the 16th annual International Celebration of Christmas from 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday, featuring live music, cultural dancing and a nativity play. Admission is free. Donations will benefit World Vision, an organization that provides needy families with agricultural assistance, clean water and farm animals to help them support and feed themselves. Old World Village is at 7561 Center Ave. For more information, visit oldworld.ws/nativity. Home Depot in Costa Mesa will host menorah-making workshop Sunday The Chabad Center for Jewish Life in Newport Beach will partner with The Home Depot for a pre-Hanukkah menorah workshop from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Home Depot store, 2300 Harbor Blvd., Costa Mesa. The free public event will give guests a chance to craft their own menorah from wood and other supplies provided. For more information, visit JewishNewport.com or call (949) 721-9800. Free sandbags available in Laguna Beach The city of Laguna Beach is offering prefilled sandbags at no cost to residents and business owners at two locations. People can pick up as many as 10 sandbags at a time 24 hours a day, seven days a week at the Act V parking lot at 1900 Laguna Canyon Road, and at a parking lot at 31118 S. Coast Hwy., across from Aliso Beach Park. Sandbags are not intended for private contractors, according to the city. Additionally, the city offers free unfilled sandbags at its four fire stations. The bags cannot be filled with sand from Lagunas beaches or playgrounds. Lunch with the homeless planned in Laguna The public is invited to have lunch with homeless people at the White House restaurant in Laguna Beach on Monday. Don Sciortino, pastor of Laguna Beach Net-Works, a church and nonprofit, is organizing the lunch, which will begin at 2 p.m. at the restaurant at 340 S. Coast Hwy. Diners can sing Christmas carols, after which the homeless guests will receive a knapsack filled with toiletries. The publics cost for the lunch is $15 per person, with an optional $15 donation to buy one meal for the homeless. Guests also can donate $40 toward one knapsack. White House staff will cook and serve the buffet lunch, said Sciortino, who has organized the event for five years. For more information, call (714) 231-1230. KOCI presents lunch and toys at Kids Christmas party Costa Mesa-based radio station KOCI/101.5 FM, in coordination with the Newport-Mesa Unified School District, held its fourth annual KOCI Kids Christmas at the Costa Mesa Country Club on Dec. 10, treating more than 225 children and parents to holiday music, lunch provided by area restaurants, toys donated by local businesses and station listeners and a visit from Santa Claus. I can assure you, this will never get old, Troy Davis, event coordinator and president of KOCIs advisory board, said in a statement. We had an exceptional turnout this year, and our restaurant partners and toy donors really stepped up to help our nonprofit radio station make this a memorable Christmas for so many in-need families. Costa Mesa fire chief receives state distinction Costa Mesa Fire Chief Dan Stefano was recognized as a certified fire chief this month a top distinction for fire officials in the state. Those who receive the honor must demonstrate leadership skills, experience and technical and operational expertise, among other qualifications, according to a news release from the city. Stefano is the 32nd certified fire chief in California. This recognition is just a small example of much greater things that the men and women of the Costa Mesa Fire & Rescue Department are accomplishing and demonstrating every day in professionally serving the community through our core values of respect, integrity and compassion, Stefano said in a statement. Acting State Fire Marshal Mike Richwine presented Stefano with the honor during the Costa Mesa City Council meeting Dec. 6. Princess Party in Huntington Beach on Tuesday The Surf City Nights street fair in Huntington Beach will present a holiday Princess Party from 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday at Main Street and Olive Avenue downtown. Visitors can dress in their favorite princess costume for the free party. Santa Claus will visit from 5 to 8 p.m., and singing and dancing performances will be held at 5, 6 and 7 p.m. H.B. Central Library to host holiday magic show A free holiday magic show is set for Tuesday at the Huntington Beach Central Library. The show will be held at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. in the Tabby Theater at the library, 7111 Talbert Ave. The performance will feature Hayden Allcorn, an Orange County-based magician. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. The doors will open 30 minutes before each performance. For more information, call (714) 375-5107. Recent vehicle accidents in Laguna Beach involving pedestrians have prompted the City Council to put pressure on the California Department of Transportation to fast-track a plan to add warning lights at three crosswalks on South Coast Highway. A representative from the state agency, which owns the highway, told council members during their meeting Tuesday that it would be about 18 months before crews could place blinking lights into the crosswalks at Brooks, Calliope and Anita streets. The agency also plans to erect two overhead arms with warning lights at Calliope and Anita, and add lights to an existing arm over the crosswalk at Brooks. This work is in addition to short-term steps such as restriping pavement markings to make the crosswalk areas more visible and adding brighter lights on streetlight poles that illuminate the ground. Caltrans has started some of this work. But the plan to install blinking lights at the intersections in 18 months was too long for Councilman Bob Whalen, who had requested a report from Caltrans on pedestrian improvements along South Coast Highway. When I first got the email from the city manager about someone else being hit in the crosswalk on Thanksgiving ... it tore me up, Whalen said. I did not feel good about it at all. To see that the summer of 2018 would be the ultimate solution, three years after first accident in the Brooks crosswalk, I just dont think that is good enough. Residents attending the meeting Tuesday echoed Whalens comments. Its frustrating to me to have children that cannot feel confident to walk out our doors on [Brooks] Street as my brother did that night, said Erica Jones, whose 45-year-old brother was struck by a car while walking in an intersection on Thanksgiving night and hospitalized. You guys need to speed this process up a little bit quicker. Nobody can wait for this. Jones said her brother suffered serious injuries from the incident. On Dec. 8, a car hit a pedestrian walking in the crosswalk at Calliope Street and South Coast Highway. The person was also hospitalized. Laguna Beach has seen six pedestrians killed since 2007. In 2014, Laguna College of Art and Design student Nina Fitzpatrick was struck and killed by a motorist as she walked in a crosswalk near the colleges main campus, at 2222 Laguna Canyon Road. Fitzpatricks death led Caltrans to install a traffic signal at that crosswalk. The crosswalk had warning lights embedded in the ground, but residents and LCAD President Jonathan Burke said at the time that the lights did not do enough to ensure that drivers come to a complete stop for pedestrians. Were very concerned about pedestrian accidents that have occurred, James Pinheiro, Caltrans deputy director of operations and maintenance, told the council. Pinheiro said Caltrans will consider adding rumble strips to roads, though he didnt specify possible locations. Rumble strips, which send vibrations through a car as it passes over them, alerting drivers to be especially attentive, come in a variety of styles, according to the U.S. Federal Highway Administration website. Pinheiro also said he will discuss with Caltrans staff whether the in-ground lights and overhead arms with warning lights could be installed sooner. Four intersections along South Coast Highway at Mountain Road, Oak Street, Pearl Street and Table Rock Drive and another along North Coast Highway at Jasmine Street currently have blinking lights in the pavement and the overhead mast arms with warning lights, city Public Works Director Shohreh Dupuis wrote in an email. Laguna Mayor Pro Tem Kelly Boyd said Tuesday that part of the problem is distracted drivers. I cant believe how many people I see talking on their cellphone or texting, Boyd said. Our [Police Department] needs to start emphasizing the fact that, I mean, I could write 30 tickets in an hour just for people talking on their phones. This has to stop, and we have to start enforcing things like that. bryce.alderton@latimes.com Twitter: @AldertonBryce Timothy Wozniak older brother of Daniel Wozniak, a Costa Mesa man convicted of murdering two people in 2010 was sentenced Thursday to three years of informal probation after he pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact in his brothers crimes. Timothy Wozniak, 42, of Long Beach had previously pleaded not guilty to the felony charge in connection with the shooting deaths of Samuel Herr, 26, of Costa Mesa and Herrs friend Juri Julie Kibuishi, 23, of Irvine. On Thursday, Timothy Wozniak also was sentenced to 10 days in jail time already served and mandatory enrollment in an anger management program, according to Orange County Superior Court records. His decision to change his plea was part of a deal offered by prosecutors, Senior Deputy District Attorney Matt Murphy said Friday. He could have faced up to 18 months in prison if convicted at trial, Murphy said. He cooperated with police, he had excellent representation and he did the right thing and apologized to the families during Thursdays hearing, Murphy said. Daniel Wozniak, 32, was convicted this year and sentenced to death for the two killings and a gruesome cover-up that included beheading Herrs body and staging Kibuishis body to look like Herr had sexually assaulted her. In interviews with police after his arrest, Daniel Wozniak confessed to the slayings on video after calling his then-fiancee, Rachel Buffett, from a jailhouse phone. During the recorded phone conversation, Buffett told Daniel Wozniak that she planned to tell police about evidence that Timothy Wozniak had mentioned in passing. Prosecutors said the evidence included the murder weapon Daniel Wozniak had given to his brother to hide or burn. Daniel Wozniak, a community theater actor seeking money to cover his rent and fund his upcoming wedding and honeymoon, hatched a plot to kill Herr, his neighbor in the Camden Martinique apartment complex off Pinecreek Drive. He sought to steal $62,000 that Herr had saved from his military service in Afghanistan. On May 21, 2010, Daniel Wozniak lured Herr, an Orange Coast College student, to an attic at a Los Alamitos theater under the guise of needing help moving furniture, prosecutors said. In a recorded interview with police presented during his trial, he said he shot Herr in the back of the head. Later, Daniel Wozniak who at the time of the murders was performing as the lead in the musical Nine at the Hunger Artists Theatre Company in Fullerton used an ax and a saw to remove Herrs head, hands and a tattooed forearm from his body before dumping the parts in a Long Beach park, authorities said. As part of an attempt to deceive detectives, he used Herrs cellphone to send messages to Kibuishi, who was tutoring Herr, shortly after midnight May 22 to lure Kibuishi to Herrs apartment, where he shot her twice in the head. He then partially removed Kibuishis clothes and staged her body to look like Herr had sexually assaulted her and fled, according to prosecutors. Police arrested Daniel Wozniak on May 26, 2010 two days before his scheduled wedding while he was at his bachelor party in Huntington Beach. ATM withdrawals from Herrs account had led police to him. He was able to acquire only $2,000 of Herrs money before his arrest, authorities said. hannah.fry@latimes.com Twitter: @HannahFryTCN The incredible and luxurious Museum House project, complete with dog spa, according to Related California, is going to be just about the best thing thats happened in Newport Beach since the invention of the frozen banana! Were all going to love it, they insist. But if its going to be that wonderful, why is the company so desperately trying to prevent the people of our town from peaceably gathering signatures on a petition and bringing it to a vote? Andrea Lingle Newport Beach Let people sign the petition Be wary of several petitioners around town who are trying to stop you from signing a local petition. I have lived in Newport Beach for more 18 years, and I have never experienced anything like what I experience on Tuesday night. While walking into the Ralphs at East Bluff shopping center, I stopped by a table to review a local petition. While trying to engage in a conversation with the two people at the table about the petition, three young men in the background intervened, talking over my conversation, insulting me, making assertive remarks and overtures. This was a very uncomfortable situation, so I confronted them on their tactics. Immediately afterward I called the Newport Beach Police Department to report the incident, but the police said they cannot do anything, as these tactics are not illegal. Make no mistake, while these tactics may not be illegal, they are tantamount to obstructing my right to exercise my democratic right to vote and that is wrong. I urge the citizens of Newport Beach to be on guard for these people, but most importantly: do not let them intimidate you if you chose to sign the petition. Robert Mortensen Newport Beach Council ignores residents wishes I am indebted to Councilman Scott Peotter for answering a question that has long bothered me (Commentary: Why I voted in favor of the Museum House proposal, Dec. 1). Given the slow-growth wishes of Newport Beach residents according to surveys, letters to the Daily Pilot, Greenlight and Measure Y why is the City Council at war with them? Now we know: He doesnt consider himself a representative of those who voted for him at all. These non-representatives are following the same path to political oblivion. Tom Moulson Corona del Mar Document overkill slows process The political action committee, Line in the Sand (LITS), let it be known it would circulate a referendum to put the measure to a citywide vote. In an obvious effort to intimidate LITS, the City Council forced the inclusion of 3,781 pages of environmental documents and other materials in the referendum petition. This unnecessary documentation was denounced by Councilman Keith Curry, who said: That is nothing more than an effort to subvert the peoples right to petition the government. In spite of the City Councils efforts to prevent the referendum, it is now being circulated and anyone who wishes to bring the Museum House to a citywide vote can go to LineInTheSandPAC.com for dates, locations and times to sign the petition. Accomplishing this goal will not only allow the people to decide whether they want another high-rise building, but will also demonstrate to the council that the people still hold the power in our government, despite their unfair efforts to prevent the people from voting on this issue. Bill Cool Corona del Mar Petition tactics confuse signers While Newport Beach residents are donating their time and money to work toward allowing a vote on a condominium tower to be built at Fashion Island, the developer has hired men from outside our community with the goal of confusing residents to not sign a petition allowing them to vote on the issue. These actions are not only unjust but show a lack of respect for Newport Beach residents. Terry Becker Newport Beach Few ready solutions to sober-living issues In response to the recent newspaper commentary declaring that sober-living houses are really boarding houses that dont rightfully belong in residential communities, I believe that many Costa Mesa residents agree with that point of view (Commentary: Residential areas were not built for sober-living facilities, Dec. 10). But unfortunately, the experts who advise that addicts can be expected to have better rates of recovery in residential settings (as opposed to institutional settings) had their way in the crafting of the American Disabilities Act on federal and state levels. And this appears to have been done without foreseeing that there might be growing concentrations of those homes in a small number of targeted unprotected cities. Sadly, Costa Mesa has become one of those cities. And there is not much that local politicos and officials can do other than to impose and enforce local ordinances that will hopefully survive frightfully expensive legal challenges. In the long run, those sober-living home operators must be persuaded to spread out to other cities where their profit margins may not be negatively impacted by ongoing legal fees and administrative problems. And if this does not work, and if there is no relief from the courts or legislators in the next few years, Costa Mesa appears well on its way to becoming branded as the group homes capital of America. Al Melone Costa Mesa Lets not dance around the reason for Christmas I get it. Those who send cards at this time of year have a difficult choice. Do I buy the Seasons Greetings card or the Happy Holidays card? What a choice. I dont remember the genesis of this most important date in history Dec. 25 being connected to the joy of getting a few days off holiday or that we are overwhelmed by the coming of a new season, albeit winter. Those who send these generic cards must have acute paranoia that by using a card with Christmas in it they will offend their non-Christian friends. I hope the holiday crowd doesnt think by using a Christmas card they are subconsciously joining a religious cult. I can promise you the buying of Christmas cards is not a conversion scheme by Christians just ask Hallmark. It would be good to note that Christmas is an official national holiday, so the Feds seem to think the word is OK. Its kind of like the judge in the movie Miracle on 34th Street, when William Frawley asks him if he really wants to tell all those folks that Santa doesnt exist. Its simply a remembrance of the most-discussed and known person, Jesus, to have ever walked the face of earth. Bill Dunlap Newport Beach The Glendale Fire Department promoted six of its own during a special badge-pinning ceremony Thursday morning. Held at Fire Station 21, Fire Chief Greg Fish commended each of the firefighters for their years of service and swore them into their new roles. These people have worked very hard to get these badges, he said. When they get sworn in and represent that badge, they are now all about serving the will of the public. If theres no public value in this, we wouldnt do this and itd be a waste of time. Join the conversation on Facebook >> Brian Julian was one of those who received a new badge, going from captain to the rank of battalion chief. He first joined the department in 1995 and has taken on many roles within the fire department, including teaching at the fire academy and acting as a paramedic instructor. As a battalion chief, Julian will move into a managerial position and oversee the fire stations within the department. He said his success and promotion wouldnt be possible if he wasnt a team player. Its all about working together as a group and as a team. All of our success as individuals is a group success because nobody can do it without the whole, Julian said. Its all about working together as a group and as a team. All of our success as individuals is a group success because nobody can do it without the whole. Battalion Chief Brian Julian Another firefighter who received a promotion was Bill Lynch, moving up from battalion chief to deputy chief. He was hired onto the fire department in 1995 and has previously served as the public information officer for GFD as well as a paramedic coordinator. With the department having only one deputy chief, Fish said the role is unique in that they have to both manage firefighters and figure out how to deploy them during major incidents. This is truly humbling and overwhelming, Lynch said. I dont take this lightly, I take it very seriously; I hope to continue to make this organization an amazing one. The department also promoted Brendan Edwards, Sean Haug and Lance Menier to fire engineers and Chris Malaspino and Derek Tamburro to captains. -- Andy Nguyen, andy.nguyen@latimes.com Twitter: @Andy_Truc As I watched the 1952 film OHenrys Full House on TCM, which ends with a tracking shot on the star of Bethlehem, I thought about how this type of religious symbol would never be shown in a movie today. In fact, when is the last time you saw a major motion picture or TV program that treated religion in a non-sarcastic way? In the past, having characters pray to God or attending religious services was considered normal, a reflection of the audiences lives back then. A Gallup Poll asking Americans about their religious beliefs in June showed that 89% of Americans still do believe in God. Such a number has held steady over the years from a high of 98% in the early 1960s. What has declined is people attending religious services. Reporter Emma Green points out in an article Its Hard to Go to Church in the Atlantic that 50 or 60 years ago, churches, in particular, were a center of social and cultural life in America [but now] many people may be creating their social lives outside of a religious context or perhaps forgoing that kind of social connection altogether. A litigious segment of the population that wishes to permanently abolish any religious shadings from Americas culture has resulted in what some perceive as an anti-Christian sentiment. The word God in the Pledge of Allegiance has been challenged several times. Some cringe when they hear that word in public (though the initialism OMG is somehow OK). Yet imagine how less powerful Frank Capras 1946 Its a Wonderful Life would have been if in the most gut-wrenching moment of the film, when Jimmy Stewarts George Bailey begs for his life back Please, God, let me live again he omitted God. It is the prayer to God that charges that scene with emotion; without it, the scene would not have resonated so deeply. Even 1990s Home Alone, known for its slapstick comedy, has a scene in a church. As O Holy Night plays in the background, Kevin, played by Macaulay Culkin, meets his neighbor, Old Man Marley. Neither character is shown praying, but the idea that two people who dont know one another one a child, the other an elderly man can share a contemplative moment in a place of worship is a scene that would never make the final cut nowadays. Just this week a legal battle ensued concerning 1965s A Charlie Brown Christmas, the animated classic which depicts a school nativity program and Linus quoting from the Bible, For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. Thats what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown. Dedra Shannon, a nurses aide at a middle school in Killeen, Texas, took that quote and, along with a likeness of Linus, taped it to the door of the nurses office. The school board ordered it removed. But on Thursday, a judge ordered it back on the door with the words Ms. Shannons holiday message added. Frankly, it is amazing the show is still played on TV without being edited or a disclaimer tacked onto the opening. We are living in a time where religion and gender are being rubbed off of human identity. Then what is left? Zooey Deschanel, who recorded a Christmas album along with M. Ward as She & Him, told the Los Angeles Times that we tried to do Here Comes Santa Claus, but then we realized how religious that song is. What specifically bothered her? It goes, Santa knows that were Gods children / And that makes everything right / Hang your stockings and say your prayers'" Deschanel then began to laugh. It was kind of scary. Pretty sad the times we live in when using the words God and prayers frightens people or makes them laugh. -- BRIAN CROSBY is a teacher in the Glendale Unified School District and the author of Smart Kids, Bad Schools and The $100,000 Teacher. He can be reached at briancrosby.org. China agreed Saturday to return an American sea drone it had captured after the Pentagon demanded it back, defusing tensions at the end of a week of confrontations over Beijings territorial ambitions in the South China Sea. Chinas Defense Ministry said it would return in an appropriate manner the U.S. sea vessel seized this week by the Chinese navy. But the ministry also accused the U.S. of public hyping that was not conducive to solving the problem smoothly. Chinese officials did not specify what happened or when Beijing would hand back the device. Advertisement The ministry, in a statement, said that the device was unidentified when found and that officials later concluded it was an American drone. The Pentagon on Friday demanded the return of the equipment, which officials said was gathering scientific data near the Philippines when it was taken. The U.S. issued a formal protest, and the open hostility threatened to further strain relations as China expands its claims in the South China Sea and prepares for a new U.S. president whose policy on the region remains unclear. Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook on Saturday affirmed Chinas actions, saying the U.S. came to an understanding that Beijing would return the drone through direct engagement. Just before both sides made their announcements, President-elect Donald Trump condemned the seizure in a tweet. China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act, he wrote, deleting an initial tweet that said unpresidented. Chinas statement followed a pledge this week by Adm. Harry Harris, head of U.S. Pacific Command, to confront Chinese aggression in the contested waters, and a Washington think tanks publication of satellite photos that show Chinese militarization of artificial islands in the South China Sea. The standoff began Thursday when a Chinese ship snatched the unmanned vehicle off the Philippine coast, in the midst of an effort by the U.S. survey ship Bowditch to retrieve it. It is ours, Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis told reporters on Friday. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again. Times staff writer W.J. Hennigan in Washington contributed to this report. Meyers is a special correspondent. Twitter: @jessicameyers ALSO Chinese who first glimpsed American culture through Alan Thicke mourn his death China condemns Trump over one China policy; state news agency calls him as ignorant as a child Beijing lost its crown as the bicycle king, but two well-funded start-ups are trying to bring it back Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte affirmed on Friday that he shot dead three people as mayor, dismissing any uncertainty and displaying no remorse. I dont really know how many bullets from my gun went inside their bodies, he said. It happened. I cannot lie about it. His confirmation, reported by the Philippine Star, followed boasts to business leaders on Monday that he killed criminal suspects as the Davao City mayor to set a precedent for his police officers. Advertisement I used to do it personally, just to show to the guys that if I can do it, why cant you? he said, according to a video posted by the Star. Id go around in Davao with a motorcycle, with a big bike around, and I would just patrol the streets looking for trouble, he said. I was really looking for a confrontation, so I could kill. The president elaborated on the shootings Friday, calling them incidents with hostage-takers that saved peoples lives. But his comments already had prompted a warning from U.S. officials and handed critics ammunition to demand his ouster. The United States on Thursday announced it had deferred a decision to send the Philippines a major economic aid package. White House spokesman Josh Earnest called his remarks deeply troubling and certainly at odds with the Philippine governments stated commitment to due process and rule of law. Sen. Leila de Lima, the presidents most high-profile opponent, told CNN that his admissions amount to mass murder and grounds for impeachment. Duterte, instigator of a bloody drug war during his presidency that has led to the death of more than 3,000 people, is known for his outlandish statements. He has compared himself to Hitler, declared he was not a killer and then threatened to kill officers who disobeyed him, and hinted at his own overuse of a powerful painkiller. He has mentioned killing criminal suspects before, but his repeated remarks this week are the strongest declarations since he took office in June. Dutertes popularity has only increased since then, and its unclear what effect his comments will have throughout the island nation. Philippine officials who support the president have tried to play them down. The president always resorts to hyperbole, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said on Wednesday, according to the Star. He always exaggerates just to put his message across. Dutertes confirmation that he had killed challenged such claims. I would not have any second thoughts about cutting your head off, he told the paper on Friday, speaking about drug dealers. Should I allow it to continue? And be like the Latin American states? Meyers is a special correspondent. Twitter: @jessicameyers ALSO Americans adjust to a changed role in Iraq Chinese who first glimpsed American culture through Alan Thicke mourn his death A top Danish chef plans to open a $600-per-diner pop-up in Mexico, and its already fully booked Thirteen Turkish troops were killed and 48 others wounded in a car bomb attack in the central Anatolian province of Kayseri on Saturday morning, the Turkish military reported. In a statement, the Turkish armed forces said the car bomb went off at 8:45 a.m. and targeted on-leave military personnel from the Kayseri Commando Brigade. The wounded were rushed to hospitals in the region. The army said civilians also may have been casualties of the treacherous attack. Advertisement State-run Anadolu Agency said the car bomb went off at an entrance gate of Erciyes University, hitting a public transportation bus that included on-leave soldiers among its passengers. Speaking about the Kayseri explosion, Vice Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak said in remarks broadcast on NTV that treacherous factions had taken aim at commandos from the Kayseri Airforce Brigade, who had been training exclusively for the safety of our people. Turkeys prime ministry office imposed a temporary blackout on coverage of the explosion and urged media to refrain from publishing anything that may cause fear in the public, panic and disorder and which may serve the aims of terrorist organizations. Turkey is facing renewed conflict with Kurdish rebels in the southeast and has suffered a string of suicide and car bombing attacks this year. The blast comes a week after a car bomb struck riot police posted outside a soccer stadium in Istanbul following a match. That attack killed 44 people, mostly police officers, and wounded scores. Kurdish militants claimed responsibility for the Istanbul attack. Turkey is a member of NATO and a partner in the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group, which has been blamed for multiple attacks in Turkey. ALSO Americans adjust to a changed role in Iraq Chinese who first glimpsed American culture through Alan Thicke mourn his death A top Danish chef plans to open a $600-per-diner pop-up in Mexico, and its already fully booked UPDATES: 1:25 a.m.: This article was updated with 48 wounded. 12:50 a.m. Dec. 17: This article was updated with a death toll of 13. This article was originally published at 11:55 p.m. Dec.16. The self-proclaimed good guys, masked men bearing shotguns and ancient hunting rifles, kept guard last week outside what used to be the town police station, back when the town still had a police force. Emblazoned in large blue letters against a white facade were the words Movement for Peace. The people couldnt take it anymore, said one of the men, who hid his face behind a yellow handkerchief and identified himself only as Jose, a 42-year-old father of three. The government does nothing to help, and we want peace for the future generations. Maybe in the end, they will kill us all, including our families, he said, drawing nods from the other vigilantes hunched in white plastic chairs in a sliver of shade. But we are in this till the final reckoning. Advertisement Maybe in the end, they will kill us all, including our families Jose, a 42-year-old father of three Inside the building, fellow townsfolk were holding at least 17 hostages they say were members or allies of the local drug gang. After years of violence and intimidation, the fed-up citizens of San Miguel Totolapan, population 4,000, had taken the perilous step of striking back against Los Tequileros (the Tequila drinkers), the syndicate that dominates drug trafficking and other illicit activity in this steamy stretch of Guerrero state in southwestern Mexico. Their tactics included kidnapping the mother of a gang kingpin. The violence-ridden region is a major production zone of the opium poppy, the raw material used to produce heroin smuggled north to the United States. The zone is also an abyss of lawlessness. Armed bands, including Los Tequileros, battle for control of the lucrative smuggling trade in the so-called tierra caliente, or hot land. The phrase refers to the areas stifling heat and humidity but has taken on additional meaning as organized crime has soared. Guerrero state authorities reported a record 2,068 homicides between January and November 2016. November topped the list with 231 killings. The fragmented drug gangs also traffic in extortion, kidnapping, robbery and murder. Los Tequileros boasts its own special forces of professional killers with colorful nicknames. Last year, police arrested an alleged tequilero enforcer, Juan Vargas Macedo, a.k.a. El Garfield. The thuggish turmoil has left some towns, including San Miguel Totolapan, as virtual no-go zones, where residents say police and the army are seldom seen. Taxi drivers in the nearby market town of Altamirano politely demur when asked for a lift here. Demasiado peligroso, they say. Too dangerous. The town cops were in cahoots with the criminals, according to state authorities, who solved that problem two years ago by disbanding the police force. No one filled the law enforcement void. Some nearby hamlets are abandoned because residents decamped in fear. Gouges from high-caliber rounds mark a few buildings along winding roads through stands of corn, bean fields and dense brush where cows and goats graze. In June 2014, the bullet-riddled body of Maria Felix Jaimes, a former councilwoman in San Miguel Totolapan, was found with a placard, presumably from Los Tequileros. This is going to happen to anyone who passes information to the fish, said the sign, referring to the head of a rival gang known as the Michoacan Family. You are next. Last week, things reached a boiling point here. It started with the kidnapping last Sunday of 37-year-old Isauro de Paz Duque, a widely respected engineer whose firm is one of the areas few regular sources of employment. In retaliation the next day, townsfolk launched a dicey gambit. Calling themselves a self-defense force, they took up arms and abducted the mother of Raybel Jacobo de Almonte, known as El Tequilero (the Tequila Drinker), notorious capo of the gang that bears his handle. The vigilantes abducted at least 17 others who they said were were linked to his mob. The drama played out on videos posted on YouTube. Yadira Guillermo, wife of the kidnapped engineer, appeared in a clip urging the Guerrero governor to intervene to secure the release of her husband. We have here the mother of the man called Tequilero, the wife declared. I ask for an exchange: I will deliver his mother if they deliver my husband. But I want him safe and sound. The gaunt-looking mother, Maria Felix de Almonte, was videotaped in captivity pleading with her infamous offspring to do the right thing. Look, son, if you have the engineer, turn him over, please, she said in a chastising tone as she looked into the camera. If you have him, Im confident that you will release him. Do it, please. Her son is a figure of dark legend here. Authorities say he is wanted on suspicion of murder, kidnapping and extortion, among other crimes. Last month, he eluded a massive manhunt. All indications are that he is hiding out in caves, the states top prosecutor, Xavier Olea, told local radio at the time. Hes not someone who can be walking in the mountains for two or three hours, added the prosecutor, noting that de Almonte suffers from a bullet wound to a leg and sometimes must be carried by his confederates. By late Wednesday, the vigilantes and Los Tequileros struck a deal. News footage showed the engineer being reunited with his wife and children. A separate clip documented El Tequileros frail mother stepping into a pickup, surrounded by heavily armed state police. Even with the other hostages still captive, some measure of calm returned to San Miguel Totolapan by the next day. State and federal police pickups rumbled up and down largely abandoned streets. In the central plaza, the doors to city hall were opened, but no one was inside. A plastic Christmas tree towered above the mostly vacant plaza. Local vigilantes who call themselves a self-defense force walk past police officers in San Miguel Totolapan. (Cecilia Sanchez / For The Times ) Women with scarves concealing their faces waved white flags and occasionally chanted, We want peace! Really, we are all just tired of the lawlessness and violence, said one of them, who identified herself only as Maria out of fear, she said, that the gangs would retaliate against her for taking part in the vigilante uprising. A mother of three, she said she was familiar with kidnapping, having been a victim two years ago when she was held for a week until her family paid a ransom. I am only fortunate to be here alive today, she said. The armed self-defense militiamen lingered outside the former police headquarters, their hostages inside. They conceded that in confronting the thugs, they had resorted to their tactics. But the vigilantes said they had no choice: It was the only way anybody would listen to them. On Friday, the state police and army met the demands of the townsfolk and agreed to establish a strong local presence and hunt down the fugitive El Tequilero. In return, the citizens released the hostages. The crisis appeared to have passed, for now. De Paz, the engineer whose kidnapping sparked the confrontation, has been welcomed back as a hero since his release. Outside his home, ecstatic neighbors embraced him and celebrated his survival. The people of this pueblo never raised arms till now, he said. The people took to the streets, and that is their right, added a smiling de Paz. They have had enough with what is going on in this country. Its like when a person has a fever. That means something is wrong, no? Or when a car overheats. Eventually it explodes. That is what happened here in San Miguel. Cecilia Sanchez of The Times Mexico City bureau contributed to this article. ALSO Philippine President Duterte confirms he killed people as mayor, with no remorse Aleppos sorrow: Scenes from Syrias ruined city Chinese who first glimpsed American culture through Alan Thicke mourn his death A YPF official says the oil company does not have immediate plans to issue debt, but could "if an opportunity arises in the coming months" Northampton County is sending three residents to Harrisburg on Monday, for Pennsylvania's 58th Electoral College. All three say they've been inundated with Hillary Clinton supporters urging them not to back Donald Trump, who won 20 electoral votes Nov. 8 in taking Pennsylvania. "I've had more mail than Santa," said Gloria "Lee" Snover, a Bethlehem Township resident and chairwoman of the Northampton County Republican Party. "I have mail all over the place. Trays of mail, packs of mail." Like fellow electors Margaret "Peg" Ferraro, a Northampton County Councilwoman, and Mary Barket, of Nazareth, Snover has not been swayed. She was an early Trump supporter, and went to the Republican National Convention in Cleveland to help nominate the real estate investor. But it's more than that, Snover said. "I was an early Trumper and I was a delegate, but I'm carrying out my duty in my opinion for the integrity of the Electoral College and how Pennsylvania voted," she said. That's Ferraro's sentiment, as well, shared via Facebook posts about all the mail she's received. Mail I receive each day asking me not to cast my Electoral vote for Donald Trump. Today's delivery is over the top. Posted by Peg Ferraro on Thursday, December 15, 2016 Barket told The Associated Press she was contacted by Pennsylvania State Police to see if she felt threatened. "I feel like I've been made uncomfortable in my environment," Barket said. "I don't feel harassed, I don't." She's voting Trump when the state's Electoral College gets underway at noon Monday with Gov. Tom Wolf. The 2.97 million votes for Trump and running mate Mike Pence were the most for the presidential tickets on the ballot last month, trailed closely by Clinton and Tim Kaine's nearly 2.93 million. Trump "worked hard for it," said Barket, a political consultant who supported Florida Sen. Marco Rubio in the primary before casting her general election vote for the GOP nominee. "The folks have spoken, the voters have spoken," Barket told the AP. "I take that responsibility seriously." Pennsylvania is not among states that require electors to vote according to their state's popular vote. "A number of states have mandated responsibilities for the electors to follow the state," said Muhlenberg College political science Professor Christopher Borick. "Some others have fines in place if they don't, if the electors break from what the popular vote was." Borick said he'd be "shocked" if Monday's Electoral College vote across the nation bucks the electoral vote tally won by Trump. "There's a little bit more uncertainty this year given the rhetoric and campaigns to switch some electors' votes, but ultimately I expect it to end up just where most Electoral College votes end up, with the voters following the lead of their states' votes," he said. Northampton County Republican Party Chairwoman Lee Snover speaks Thursday, Oct .13, 2016, at the Hotel Bethlehem prior to an address by Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, the Republican nominee for vice president. She was a delegate for Donald Trump at the Republican National Convention in July in Cleveland, and is one of 20 members of Pennsylvania's 58th Electoral College on Monday, Dec. 19, 2016, in Harrisburg. (Kurt Bresswein | For lehighvalleylive.com) Snover, who said she has gotten more than 10,000 emails and calls to her and her husband's workplaces in addition to the reams of mail, said the anti-Trump effort is clearly orchestrated. "Out of the mail tray I got yesterday -- I don't have time to read all that mail -- I did pull out three and I opened them," she said. "They were all the same exact letter." Is she annoyed? No. "It's their right, it's their freedom to contact me," Snover said. "However, I will tell you most of the contact is not from Pennsylvania. Most of my contact is from California, the State of Washington, Oregon, New York, New Jersey. "So the contact is coming from blue states, highly populated states that supported Hillary Clinton. Obviously states that supported Donald Trump don't need to contact me. It's not a real fair assessment of people trying to get me to switch to Hillary Clinton." Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. A mother admitted in court that she threw her baby off an Allentown bridge and into the Lehigh River in a horrifying incident that ultimately led to the baby's death. Johnesha Monae Perry, an Allentown resident who was 19 at the time of the May 2015 incident at the Hamilton Street bridge, pleaded guilty Friday in Lehigh County Court to third-degree murder, the Lehigh County District Attorney's Office confirmed. A judge sentenced Perry, now 21, to 20 to 40 years in state prison immediately the plea was entered. Perry, of the 200 block of North Hall Street in Allentown, had been charged with homicide and child endangerment for the death of her 20-month-old son, Zymeir Perry. Chief Deputy District Attorney Matthew Falk said in a statement that Perry "has real mental health issues, and while they certainly do not absolve her of the responsibility of this monstrous act, we believe that they, along with her low IQ, require us, in fairness, to offer this plea." Perry's biological mother drank heavily while pregnant with her, defense mitigation specialist Louise Luck testified, according to the news release. Luck described Perry's childhood as including ongoing sexual abuse both by her biological brother and a series of men her biological mother allowed to molest her, the news release states. Police say Perry had been pushing the baby in a stroller across the bridge. When she got to the middle of the bridge, she allegedly put the boy on the railing, gave him a kiss and pushed him over the edge before jumping in herself. Both were initially rescued after a 52-foot fall into the Lehigh River. Perry survived. The boy died six days later from complications from blunt-force trauma and drowning. Lehigh County Judge Kelly Banach praised the prosecution for showing courage and "good sense" by offering a plea in the case rather than taking it to trial, according to a news release from the prosecutor's office. Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @sarasatullo and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. If you get a call from the FBI demanding payment for anything, hang up. You won't get in trouble. The agency says the phone number to its Allentown field office is one of several statewide that is being spoofed in a scam aimed at scaring residents into opening their wallets and providing personal information over the phone. The FBI this week put out an alert warning residents of the scam. It's a convincing ruse, the alert says, because the FBI's name and actual telephone number to its field offices shows up on the recipient's caller ID. In addition to Allentown, phone numbers to Pennsylvania field offices in Harrisburg, Fort Washington, Newtown Square, Scranton, State College and Williamsport have been spoofed, according to the alert. The callers in some cases tell the target there's a federal warrant for their arrest that will be thrown out in exchange for immediate payment. There are several other scenarios presented by the caller including exerting payments for school loans, back taxes and unpaid parking tickets. The caller often knows the name, background and personal cell phone number of the intended victim, according to the FBI's alert. "International students attending U.S. colleges and universities have also been targeted," the alert says. "The caller insists there are problems with the victim's financial aid/or student visa, and threatens deportation if payment is not made." The alert stresses that the FBI does not call or email people to demand money or threaten arrest. It advises residents to always be suspicious of unsolicited phone call and to never give money or personal information to someone with whom residents don't know or did not initiate contact with. "Trust your instincts," the alert says. "If an unknown caller makes you uncomfortable or says things that don't sound right, hang up." Victims or phone or online scams are encouraged to file a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.IC3.gov. Nick Falsone may be reached at nfalsone@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @nickfalsone. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. A 28-year-old employee of a Warren County Target faces charges after allegedly leaving a threatening note in the store's bathroom. "I have a gun come find me," said the paper found Wednesday afternoon, according to Greenwich Township police. (AP File Photo) The store was evacuated about 1 p.m. with the assistance of officers from Pohatcong and Lopatcong townships, Greenwich police said in a news release on Facebook. Authorities arrested Travis Cheatum, of the 100 block of Lewis Street in Phillipsburg, and charged him with making a false public alarm, a third-degree crime that can carry a three-to-five-year sentence if convicted. Cheatum was released pending a court date Thursday, police said. A phone listing for him could not be found. The Target is less than half a mile from a Wal-Mart where 18-year-old Joseph Otto, of White Township, is accused of falsely reporting a gunman four times in less than a week. Pohatcong police allege Otto made the phony calls out of boredom. Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. Inmate charged in Easton child pornography probe Larry A. Reed Jr. is seen in an inmate photo from the New Jersey Department of Corrections. (Courtesy photo | For lehighvalleylive.com) A New Jersey state prison inmate was charged Friday with 10 felony counts of child pornography in Easton. Larry A. Reed Jr., 29, was sentenced to up to five years in prison Aug. 25 in New Jersey State Superior Court in Warren County, for endangering the welfare of children charges related to an offense dated Jan. 1, 2013. He is serving the sentenced in South Woods State Prison in Bridgeton, New Jersey. Easton police took Reed into custody at the prison, and he was arraigned Friday afternoon before District Judge Daniel Corpora. The offense date for the child porn charges is April 20, 2014. Reed was sent to Northampton County Prison in lieu of $75,000 bail, according to Easton police. A preliminary hearing is tentatively scheduled Dec. 30 before District Judge Richard Yetter III. Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. The recently formed support group Down Syndrome Midlands has the backing of Laois councillors in its search for a premises. Cllr Willie Aird has proposed that the council investigate options for a premises, suggesting that the soon to be vacated Laois Enterprise Office in Clonminam be temporarily leased to the group, while they work to get a permanent home. The committee have already made a presentation on their aspirations, if we can we should assist them in their search, he said. He was seconded by Cllr Jerry Lodge. I would stress the urgency. Their aim is to provide essential services and supports. People with special needs should be treated a little bit specially, I would ask the local authority to redouble their efforts, he said. Cllr John Joe Fennelly is from Abbeyleix, where the long established charity Laois Down Syndrome already has a centre. He queried why the new group is planning to offer services to other counties. We already have Laois Down Syndrome at our Respond centre in Abbeyleix and we have fundraisers to support it, whats Kildare about? I have no problem with the concept, he said. It would be mostly county Laois, said the Cathaoirleach Cllr Tom Mulhall. My understanding is there would be a range of services not available in other counties, for them to travel to the centre, said council director of services Donal Brennan. Also supporting Down Syndrome Midlands were Cllrs Padraig Fleming, Noel Tuohy and Paschal McEvoy. The new branch would be an outreach of Dublin Down Syndrome Centre, based in Sandyford Industrial Estate. Cathaoirleach Cllr Mulhall said at national government level there is very little support for Down Syndrome. Sinn Fein TD for Sligo, Leitrim, West Cavan and South Donegal Martin Kenny asked the Tanaiste in the Dail last week if the government had a plan for those homeless families living in hotels which will close over Christmas. Deputy Kenny said, I am concerned that many homeless people, including hundreds of families, are in hotels up and down the length and breadth of the country. In Dublin city and every provincial town in the country, there are families in hotel rooms. Many of these hotels will close for Christmas in the next week. Has the Government or Department done any assessment on what will happen, how many people are in this situation or how they can be dealt with? In effect, the State is providing this housing for them and it will be taken away. Is there any plan in place to ensure these people will be housed over Christmas? Afterwards, Deputy Kenny said, It was frightening to hear the Tanaiste today. Clearly, there is no plan for people who might find themselves out of hotels which close for Christmas. Once again, the government will be relying on the voluntary sector to pick up the slack where it has failed to provide for its citizens. Since the last general election and even more so since the EU Referendum and the election of Donald Trump in the United States there has been talk of a need for a Progressive Alliance between Labour, Lib Dems and Greens, in an effort to beat the Tories. Much of this talk has come from Green Party members, with Caroline Lucas being a prominent voice in favour, but there are those in Labour and the Lib Dems for whom this would seem to be a beguiling idea. Indeed, former leader Lord Ashdown has long hankered for a realignment of the left. Personally Im a sceptic; for all sorts of reasons. First, just how do you define progressive? To me its one of those political phrases that gets thrown around a lot, but means so many things to so many different people it has lost any real meaning. There are, for example, many in Labour who are perfectly happy with its authoritarian tendencies (evident in its internal organisation as well as in many of the policies it pursued in office) who would describe themselves as progressive, whereas I would not. Many of these same people would be vehemently against any form of alliance with the Liberal Democrats: either because we are their natural political enemy in their locality or because we committed the sin of entering a coalition with the Tories in 2010. There are those in the Green Party who feel this way too, despite such a pluralist approach to politics being a natural result of the PR electoral systems both our parties support. Tribalism exists across all political parties and is fostered in the First Past the Post environment. For me, though, true progressive politics has to be pluralist in its approach: something that many on the left, with its many factions, find difficult. So much for pragmatism, what about the pragmatics of any alliance? What, say, do we concede to the Green Party for their help in Richmond Park? Do we stand down in the successor seat to Brighton Pavilion? What about Bristol West, which is often mentioned in these terms despite the fact it has not been Tory since 1997 (having been held by Labour from then until 2005, then Lib Dem and, since last year, by Labour again.) Given the scarcity of seats that the Green Party has a realistic chance of winning, and that their top two targets (Bristol West and Norwich South) are both held by Labour, after a spell as Lib Dem seats, you rapidly move away from the idea of a Progressive Alliance and towards pre-election pacts with seats, and presumed results, being horse-traded in the backrooms of Westminster. Once such an alliance or pact has been made between parties, there is no guarantee that the voters will follow. Indeed, many voters may be turned off by the alliance candidate, or they may turn away and vote in precisely the opposite way from that intended. They may well resent the removal of choice, whatever the intention of the parties involved. So, where does this leave us? Well, Im not completely shut off to the idea of some form of an alliance, but for me it would have to have a very specific aim. Seeking a mandate to stop Brexit could have been one, but that ship appears to have sailed as far as Labour are concerned. The next big prize for an alliance would, to my mind, be electoral reform. A unified ticket of a short, time-limited parliament specifically to remove FPTP (and the Lords) and replace with PR (and an elected second chamber). Sadly, I cant see this happening either which leaves two remaining possibilities (other than the status quo). One is a more informal arrangement of parties running soft campaigns so as not to cannibalise the progressive vote. The other is the approach of More United, where a member-led third party effectively endorses a candidate who subscribes to its values and seeks to rally support for them. I understand there are moves to launch a progressive alliance body in the new year, but I fear that they are on a hiding to nothing. In the meantime, we Liberal Democrats have a distinctive message to tell on the key issue facing our nation today. In the absence of a broader movement for a more open, tolerant and united Britain, and for a continued role for the EU and its institutions, then we must keep flying the flag for what we regard as progressive politics. * Andrew Brown is a Deputy Leader of the Lib Dem Group on Bristol City Council, and was parliamentary candidate for Bristol South in 2019. A KIND-hearted teacher has come up with a novel way of keeping tiny babies at University Maternity Hospital Limerick cosy this Christmas - she has made little outfits based on unique patterns from the US. Ellen Condon, nee Madigan, who teaches in Colaiste Nano Nagle in the city is the first person in Ireland to be part of a volunteer sewing group which makes clothes for tiny infants. We usually try to have something Christmassy ready for December 12 because thats the day the neo staff celebrate the Santa visit. We make something for the babies who sometimes have no clothes because they are so small, said Ellen who is originally from Askeaton and now living in Castleconnell. The website from which Ellen gets her templates, Twenty-Five and Four, have volunteers all over the world who give their time to make diaper shirts for small babies. I kind of have a soft spot for neonatal because two of my boys were there for a very short period of time at Christmas time three years ago and six years ago so I always try and do something. They do great work out there - they are the most amazing staff, they really are, said Ellen. Myself and our home economics teacher Barbara Fogarty and Sarah Nestor, the art teacher worked on the diaper T-shirt at home. You cut out a template of material. You sew it, turn it inside out, sew it again and then you put on a little bit of velcro. They are plain. They have to be 100% cotton and they have to be pre-washed and all this kind of thing. They wrap-around. The smallest one would be the size of a mobile phone, the bigger one would be for a five and a half pound baby which is still tiny. Three years ago, they knitted little Santa capes to put on top of the babies for the Christmas picture. The students in Colaiste Nano Nagle also play their part by contributing money from their mini company to pay Tara Robinson to design festive decorations for the tiny babies. Last year the 30 decorations said Babys First Christmas 2015 and this year they will say 2016 instead. MORE than 30,000 premises in Limerick are without decent high speed broadband, according to new figures released by the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment. This means that around a third of the total premises in the county, including commercial and residential properties, are still struggling with slow and often unreliable internet, if they have any connection at all. These are still in line to be targeted in the Governments National Broadband Plan, which is aiming to deliver high speed broadband to every premises in Ireland. The issue of poor and non-existent broadband connectivity is a widespread across County Limerick, said county Limerick TD Niall Collins. Of the total 97,661 premises in Limerick, internet providers are either currently delivering, or have previously indicated plans to deliver high speed broadband to 63,698. Mr Collins, who has been vocal on the issue of poor broadband in the past, was critical of the Governments failure to deal with the predominantly rural issue. During the General Election earlier this year it was raised with me in every community daily, he said. The Fianna Fail Spokesperson for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation added that the poor connectivity of rural areas affects the most basic necessities such as bill paying, shopping and communications. Farming and business across Limerick is negatively impacted by this failure also, which is damaging to competitiveness, added Mr Collins. The figures emerged after Communications Minister Denis Naughten was asked in the Dail about the progress of the fibre broadband roll-out. On the subject of broadband, Mr Collins confirmed the availability of a Connectivity Fund, which was formed with the proceeds from the sale of the States shareholding in Aer Lingus. The fund, which was put in place as part of the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund to improve transport and digital infrastructure in the country, received no applications for funding for any projects in Limerick, according to the TD. This fund of over 300m is available for broadband connectivity projects, yet no agency in Limerick saw fit to apply. There is a huge opportunity here for Limerick City and County Council to avail of funding from this source to roll out a proper broadband infrastructure across Limerick, he said. Having been left down by central government and its failed broadband policy, we shouldn't now be let down by our local government too, added Mr Collins. STRICT visiting restrictions remain in place at University Hospital Limerick following an outbreak of influenza. As of Friday afternoon, there were nine confirmed cases of seasonal influenza in the hospital. In addition there is one confirmed cases of norovirus in the hospital. The Health Protection and Surveillance Centre has this week urged people in high-risk groups to get vaccinated against as the number of reported cases of influenza-like illness (ILI) in Ireland has increased in the past week. UL Hospitals Group has asked that members of the public respect the current restrictions on visiting at UHL. Only those visiting critically unwell patients and parents visiting sick children are unaffected by the restrictions. All other visitors are asked to stay away from the hospital at this time, and in particular the under-16s, those with flu symptoms and those feeling unwell in general. We regret any inconvenience caused by the restrictions, which are being implemented in the interests of patient care, they said. All infection control measures are in place and every effort is being made to manage and contain the spread of the virus. Patients are being isolated and cohorted as appropriate and a number of beds have been closed to admissions in accordance with IP&C protocols. HE may not have topped the poll in Limerick in the last general election, but the tide always turns for Michael Noonan. In council chambers in Merchants Quay, the Finance for Minister could only move like treacle, such were the number of well wishers and supporters of all political persuasions as he received a mayoral reception in honour of his career. They were all there. Minister for Employment and Small Business, Pat Breen, from Clare, the head of the Limerick garda division, Chief Superintendent Dave Sheahan, University of Limerick president Don Barry, representatives of the arts community, and a coterie of councillors. To top it all, it was a Fianna Fail Mayor - Cllr Kieran O'Hanlon - who presided over the ceremony. His work might be in the cold world of finance, but here in City Hall there was a lot of warmth, affection and respect for the man who began his career in 1974. "I loved my time in the council moreso than I ever enjoyed my time in the Dail," said Minister Noonan, after many accolades were paid to him. He said it was a "unique kind of day for me", and in particular wished to remember his late wife Florence, and the late Richard Butler, father of councillor Daniel Butler. He said his personal highlight of the year as 2016 draws to a close was forming a Government, which he said looked like Mission Impossible at one stage, followed by getting the Budget through. Limerick is in the middle of a rebirth," said Mayor O'Hanlon, "following a number of significant developments in recent years, including the National City of Culture, continued funding of the regeneration programme, jobs announcements, Limerick Twenty Thirty, investments in the University of Limerick, LIT and UL Hospitals Group. "Its true to say and few would argue that Michaels guiding hand has been pushing these projects over the line for the people of Limerick and the mid west region. Newcastle West councillor John Sheahan paid tribute to him as "the glue that held this country together in its sorrowful time of need". "It's great we're not here talking about international crises or bankruptcies," he said. Having the Dooradoyle man at the helm of the nation's purse-strings, has also helped Limerick become "the envy of all other local authorities." On a personal note, he said his wit is second to none, and he's the best company on a night out. Leas Cathaoirleach of the Adare/Rathkeale area, Stephen Keary, said that the 954 jobs created in Limerick city and county this year has to be attributed to Michael's presence as the Minister for Finance. "Limerick is on the way up," he added. "You've never got an easy day since you went in there, and we still owe 8bn," said councillor Eddie Ryan. Chief executive of Limerick City and County Council Conn Murray said that there has been "an aligning of stars" in Limerick in recent times, but said "these things don't happen by accident", noting the creation of 9,000 jobs in the region in the past three years. He was presented with a piece of art by the well-known local artist Tom Greaney, fittingly entitled In the Spring. Asked by this reporter if he was sick of being asked when he is going to retire, he laughed and said while he wasnt sick of the question, his answer will remain the same not yet. Looking back at John Glenns U.S. stamp legacy Dec 17, 2016, 4 AM The 33 Return to Space commemorative stamp from the Celebrate the Century series honors John Glenns second and final space mission, as a payload specialist aboard space shuttle Discovery in 1998. The 1988 15 Settling of Ohio postal card was issued during John Glenns service as the states U.S. senator. This example postmarked on the July 15, 1988, date of issue was autographed by Glenn. The 4 Project Mercury commemorative honored John Glenns successful space flight when it was issued Feb. 20, 1962, the same day that Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth. By Michael Baadke Former astronaut and United States Sen. John Herschel Glenn Jr. died Dec. 8 at age 95 in Columbus, Ohio. The first American to orbit the Earth was also one of the few living Americans to see his accomplishments commemorated on a United States stamp and it happened twice during his lifetime. Glenn was born July 18, 1921, in Cambridge, Ohio, and studied engineering at Muskingum College in New Concord, Ohio. Connect with Linns Stamp News: Sign up for our newsletter Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Entering the Naval Aviation Cadet Program in 1942 and the Marine Corps in 1943, he trained as a pilot and flew 59 combat missions during World War II. He later flew 90 missions during the Korean War. He set a speed record in 1957, flying an F8U-1 Crusader from Los Angeles to New York in 3 hours and 23 minutes. In 1959, Glenn was chosen for the Project Mercury spaceflight program, and he became the first American to orbit Earth on Feb. 20, 1962. On that day, the U.S. Post Office Department issued a 4 Project Mercury commemorative stamp showing Glenns Friendship 7 space capsule, with the inscribed caption U.S. Man in Space (Scott 1193). After resigning from NASA in 1964, Glenn worked in business for 10 years before successfully running for a Senate seat from Ohio. He served four consecutive six-year terms, retiring in 1998. While still a U.S. senator, Glenn trained as a payload specialist for a mission on the space shuttle Discovery, which went into space on Oct. 29, 1998. It was his second spaceflight, and at age 77, he became the oldest person to travel into space. A 33 stamp issued May 2, 2000, in the Celebrate the Century series (Scott 3191h) honored this feat, with the theme Return to Space. The front of the stamp pictures Discovery in orbit, with an image of the orbiting Friendship 7 capsule in the background. The inscription on the back of the stamp reads: In 1962, aboard the Mercury Friendship 7, John Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth. His 1998 return to space at age 77, on the shuttle Discovery, heightened interest in the space program. Love Skywriting forever stamp: When and where it will debut Dec 16, 2016, 12 PM The United States Love Skywriting forever stamp will be issued Jan. 7 in Chino, Calif., with a first-day ceremony that will be followed by a skywriting demonstration, weather permitting. By Michael Baadke A small white airplane spells out Love in skywriting on a fanciful new forever stamp from the United States Postal Service. The latest entry in the U.S. Love stamp series is being issued Jan. 7 in panes of 20. If the weather cooperates, the 10 a.m. first-day ceremony in Chino, Calif., will be followed by a skywriting demonstration to replicate the stamp image, scheduled for noon. Connect with Linns Stamp News: Sign up for our newsletter Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter These events are taking place at the Planes of Fame Air Museum, 7000 Merrill Ave., No. 17, in Chino. The program will begin with a discussion about a World War II Curtiss P-40 Warhawk and how the plane was used for mail delivery during the war, according to the Postal Service. The scheduled ceremony participants are USPS Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President David Williams, Vice President and Chief Development Officer of Operation Gratitude Chris Clark, Skytypers President Stephen Stinis, Skytypers CEO and Squadron Commander Greg Stinis (the skywriter pilot), and Planes of Fame Aviation Historian and Air Museum Moderator Kevin Thompson. Online voting open for 2016 U.S. stamp popularity poll: In 2016, the United States Postal Service issued 154 varieties of stamps and postal stationery. The ceremony announcement stipulates that admission to the ceremony is free to the first 300 attendees. If the weather presents a problem, the skywriting demonstration will be rescheduled for the following day. The Love Skywriting stamp will add a sweet, romantic touch to letters and cards, not only on Valentines Day, but all year round, the Postal Service said in its stamp announcement. The stamp art depicts the word Love written in white cursive script against a blue sky studded with wispy clouds. Underlining the word is a decorative swirl of smoke. A small, stylized plane, dwarfed by the giant letters, completes the end of the swirl, with smoke trailing from its tail. Louise Fili designed the stamp and its typography. It was illustrated by Jessica Hische, with Derry Noyes serving as art director. This is the fourth U.S. Love stamp design for Hische, a freelance illustrator and letterer based in San Francisco, Calif. The 2012 Love Ribbons forever stamp shows her illustration of the word Love spelled out with curling ribbon (Scott 4626). Hische also illustrated the 2013 Sealed with Love forever stamp; her design conveys an envelope flap closed with a red wax seal containing a heart set within a circle of delicate curling ornamentation (4741). The two Forever Hearts Love stamps issued Jan. 22, 2015 (Scott 4955-4956), were designed and illustrated by Hische with art direction by Antonio Alcala. The first U.S. Love stamp, with a graphic design based on Robert Indianas Love sculpture, was issued with an 8 denomination in 1973 (Scott 1475). The Postal Service began issuing Love stamps more frequently in 1982, and in all has issued some 50 stamps with the Love theme, including major varieties showing similar designs. Love has also been the subject of several stamped envelope issued by the USPS. Since 2006, the Postal Service has also routinely offered pairs of stamps designed for use with wedding announcements and reply envelopes, denominated with 1-ounce and 2-ounce rates. The art of skywriting is documented as early as 1915, just a dozen years after the Wright Brothers history-making flights at Kitty Hawk, N.C. In an online series on the history of flight, NBC News reported that stunt pilot Art Smith used flares to accomplish a form of skywriting on the closing night of the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco. Smith later went on to work for the U.S. Post Office as one of the first air mail pilots, according to NBC. Over the years, skywriting pilots have used oil products heated with airplane engine exhaust to create the smoke for letters and symbols that convey messages in the sky. Skywriting was featured on a British nondenominated first-class stamp in 2002 to express the message hello (Scott 2025). The same British design was later adapted on smaller stamps in 2005 (2315), and 2008 (2537). Technical details and first-day cancel ordering information for the U.S. Love Skywriting forever stamp can be found in the box on this page TK. Nondenominated (47) Love Skywriting forever stamp FIRST DAY Jan. 7, 2017; city Chino, Calif., and nationwide. DESIGN: illustrator Jessica Hische, San Francisco, Calif.; designer and typographer Louise Fili, New York, N.Y.; art director Derry Noyes, Washington, D.C.; modelers Sandra Lane and Michelle Finn; series Love. PRINTING: process offset with microprinting; printer and processor Banknote Corporation of America, Browns Summit, N.C.; press Alprinta 74; inks spot blue; paper phosphor tagged, overall tagging; gum self-adhesive; issue quantity 250 million stamps; format pane of 20, from 320-subject cylinders; size 1.05 inches by 0.77 inches (image); 1.19 inches by 0.91 inches (overall); 5.635 inches by 5.425 inches (full pane); 22.54 inches by 10.85 inches (press sheet); plate numbers B followed by one single digit; marginal markings plate numbers in four corners (stamp side); 2016 USPS, USPS logo, bar code 561600 in upper right and lower left corners, promotional text (back side); USPS item No. 561604. First-day cancel ordering information Standard ordering instructions apply. Collectors requesting first-day cancels are encouraged to purchase their own stamps and affix them to envelopes. The first-day cover envelopes should be addressed for return (a removable label may be used), and mailed in a larger envelope addressed to Love Skywriting, Stamp Fulfillment Services, Cancellation Services, 8300 NE Underground Drive, Pillar 210, Kansas City, MO 64144-9998. Requests for first-day cancels must be postmarked by March 7. The Postal Services uncacheted first-day cover for the Love Skywriting stamp is item 561616 at 91. USPS order numbers for stamps and FDCs also appear in Linns 2017 U.S. Stamp Program on page 35 of the Jan. 2, 2016, print issue. A set of large security gates intended to protect the Afghan capital, Kabul, from bomb attacks and drug smuggling are languishing in a warehouse almost six months after they arrived as local authorities disagree over who should install them. Financed by China, the gates are meant for the four main entry points into the city. The delay, however, has been due to infighting between departments and a dispute over land -- all of which highlight just how difficult it can be to get things done in a country rife with conflict and corruption. Each of the hangar-style gates weighs around 30 metric tons and is meant to reinforce the so-called Ring Of Steel that surrounds Kabul, where blast walls, armed checkpoints, and eye-in-the-sky surveillance cameras also add protection for the city's 5 million residents. While there are many entrances to Kabul, security officials say channeling larger vehicles through the gates would reduce the risk of truck and car bombs. The gates would also be equipped with control rooms and surveillance scanners to better inspect incoming traffic. The number of civilian deaths is rising in Afghanistan as Taliban militants try to topple the Western-backed government and drive out foreign troops. An offshoot of the Islamic State militant group has also claimed responsibility for several of the past years attacks. Not all attacked are car or truck bombs, but in September a car bomb killed dozens of people after it went off outside a central Kabul security office during rush hour, killing dozens of people. "It shows that the ministry's different departments are sadly incapable of setting them (the new gates) up, and Kabul police are delaying them for no reason," said a senior Interior Ministry official who requested anonymity because he is not authorized to talk to the media. "These gates are made with the latest technology, and delaying their installation is a big injustice to the residents of Kabul." He said the Interior Ministry's Support and Procurement Office, which agreed to pay for and organize the installation of the gates, had attempted to subcontract the work, but the bids were too high. Now a similar body run by Kabul police has taken responsibility, but it also rejects accusations of dragging its feet. "We understand it is our department that is responsible for the gates, but the government has to purchase the land first, and then we need a budget for it from donors," said Salem Almas, deputy chief of Kabul police. Figuring out who is responsible for what in Kabul can be quite a challenge. The chief of police comes under the authority of the Interior Ministry, but officials there have said he prefers to report to the National Security Council, a body answering directly to President Ashraf Ghani. The fact that Afghan power is shared between Ghani and a chief executive and former political rival, Abdullah Abdullah, adds to the murkiness of reporting lines and decision-making. Sediq Sediqqi, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry, said the feasibility study of the planned sites and training of personnel is complete. "The Interior Ministry is on track to install the new security gates for Kabul, as it is one of its (most) important projects," he said, saying the gates will be installed in three to four months. The security gates were part of a $13 million deal signed between China and Afghanistan in September 2012 called an Agreement of Economic and Technical Cooperation. Fearing an Islamist insurgency may by stoked by fighters from Pakistan and Afghanistan, China has taken a keen interest in the Afghan conflict, but the countrys deteriorating security situation has hindered major investment plans in the mining sector. "We are not familiar with the situation," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told reporters at a regular briefing last week. --Reporting by Hamid Shalizi for Reuters This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate GALVESTON More than 40 searchers continued looking Friday for Anne-Christine Johnson, a 30-year-old mother of two boys who has been missing for more than a week. The waitress was last seen Dec. 8 leaving an ex-husband's home in a subdivision on the western edge of League City. Searchers are combing through thick brush in that area. "We always start out at the last place a person was seen," said Tim Miller, director of Texas EquuSearch. Miller said that normally his organization is flooded with calls about a missing person after media reports, but so far only a few calls have been received purporting to have information about Johnson's whereabouts and none have panned out. "More leads usually come in and we are very disappointed that they didn't," Miller said. Miller said that a drone used yesterday to assist searchers on ATVs and probing the brush with long walking sticks would not be used Friday because of overcast skies. "We need more sunlight to be as effective as we want to be," he said. League City Police spokesman Kelly Williamson said investigators had tried unsuccessfully to find Johnson's cell phone by sending electronic signals to it. "It was either out of batteries or shut off," Williamson said. Anne-Christine Johnson is described as 5-foot-2 and 100 pounds, with blonde and red hair and hazel-green eyes. She has two sons, ages 8 and 5. She lives with the 5-year-old, who has autism. Williamson said that upon leaving her ex-husband's home on Dec. 8, Johnson reportedly got into a white car of unknown make with an unidentified man. Looking to stay up to date about all of the news stories and local headlines that are important to Long Islanders? We've rounded up the top coverage for all of the important topics from multiple sources around Long Island, so you can be sure you've got the most recent update on the top stories for Long Island. Have an idea for a news story? Email us at news@longisland.com Columnists Press Releases GARNER Officials from Hancock and Winnebago counties on Thursday tabled the idea of combining emergency dispatch and jail operations. Public forum discussion included moving Hancock County E-911 dispatch services and jail operations from the building adjoining the county courthouse in Garner to the Winnebago County Public Safety Center under construction in Forest City, and moving some inmates from the Garner facility to Forest Citys. The public safety center is expected to be completed in February. While Hancock County has two full-time jailers, inmates are watched at night only by dispatchers, Winnebago County Supervisor Terry Durby said. Meanwhile, Winnebago County has two full-time and three part-time jailers, and is considering constant coverage to free up the dispatchers. Because thats a very important job, he said. You never know when theres an accident, or an accident and a fire going on at the same time. So were trying to find a way for them to cover those emergency calls, by possibly hiring a couple more jailers so we have round-the-clock coverage and it wouldnt be the dispatchers responsibility anymore. Andy Buffington, emergency management coordinator for both counties, said in October that combining the emergency dispatch and jail operations could save up to $108,000 annually. The counties spend a combined $774,000 to operate separately. It was estimated that a combined operation could cost $666,000. Durby said funds once available to help build a joint dispatch center got swallowed up fast." But the counties may seek help from the Iowa legislature. Also, you never know, the technology might change to where we could do it more efficiently or in a different manner, he said. We might have both offices there physically, but acting as one dispatch center. It might come to us, but for right now I think well work with what we have. Hancock County Sheriff Scott Dodd said many questions were raised Thursday, thus tabling the issue, and he's unsure of the supervisors' plans. But he will begin moving most of his inmates to Forest City and hold the rest on a short-term basis once the Winnebago County facility is complete. And since Hancock County charges $50 per day to hold an inmate, and the daily jail population has averaged about five inmates over the past seven years, moving them could provide Winnebago County with an additional $100,000 per year or more, helping employ two or three more jailers. "They'll have a better staff up there," Dodd said. "It'll be better for the staff and the inmates, the jail would be better staffed, and if theres a problem in the jail, it could be addressed quickly, especially in the overnight hours. It's a 'win-win' for both counties." Hancock County Supervisor Jerry Tlach agreed. I think we need to take them to a better jail, and I think the Winnebago jail will be a good jail," he said. "Were just not going to move forward right now. There are some things that we didnt know the answer for. Were just not going to move forward right now with something that we didnt know the exact answer for. The establishment of Iraqs Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) is an extension of Irans plan to export the revolution, which keeps war against Sunni extremists from reaching the countrys borders, argued Brigadier General Iraj Masjedi, senior adviser to the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Qods Force. Masjedi was speaking to an Iranian audience at a ceremony commemorating an IRGC commander killed in combat in Syria last year, which was held in Irans northern province of Mazandaran on Dec. 14, according to Fars News. He spoke at length about the sacrifices of Iranian military personnel in Iraq and Syria. The martyrs extend Irans strategic depth, uphold revolutionary values, defend holy Shiite shrines, and keep the homeland safe, proclaimed the Qods Force commander. Senior Iranian officials and commanders have repeatedly made this line of argument, especially about peace at home, as the IRGCs involvements have become increasingly open since the Islamic States incursion into Iraq in 2014 and the IRGCs military escalation in Syria in 2015. Masjedi warned that war would continue in Syria following Aleppo and Mosul, even as takfiri and Salafi groups are in decline. He argued that the only way all of the Islamic community would be at peace is to destroy the takfir front. They will show mercy to none, and this is not exclusive to Shiites, Masjedi warned. The Qods Force commander tied the mission of fighting Salafi jihadist groups on their turf and away from Irans border to the the export of the revolution. That has been the IRGCs mission since 1979. When Iraqi and Syrian forces saw your children among themselves, their morals heightened, he said. Masjedi then subtly made the shift from the sacrifices of Iranians to exporting the revolution. The next step of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has been the formation of the massive basij [mobilization] force that is faithful and a friend of Islamic Iran, such as the Iraqi Hashd al Shabi [PMF], which has been established as a powerful army with our organizing and our experience in the Sacred Defense [Iran-Iraq War], Masjedi said. FDDs Long War Journal has argued that Iran helped nurture the PMF in Iraq as part of its efforts to extend its influence in the country and create an Iraqi version of the IRGC. [See FDDs Long War Journal reports, Iraqs prime minister establishes Popular Mobilization Forces as a permanent independent military formation and Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces in Irans game plan.] Meanwhile, the expansionism, abuses, and destruction wrought by IRGC and its supported militias on the ground on display in Aleppo feed into sectarianism and Sunni anger. That perpetuates radical environments fertile for Salafi jihadism and lethal anti-Shiism, feeding into a vicious cycle of sectarian violence. The war against the Islamic State and al Qaeda is inextricably linked with the IRGC. Masjedis statement about Iraqs PMF comes less than three weeks after Iraqs parliament passed a law that established the PMF as an independent security force supposedly answerable only to Iraqs prime minister, according to the The Washington Post. Earlier this year, Prime Minister Hayder al Abadi issued an order that established the PMF as a permanent independent military formation. The law passed by Iraqs parliament was greeted warmly in Iran. Earlier this week, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei received Ammar Hakim, head of the Shiite National Alliance party that helped passed the PMF law. The PMF is a great wealth, a major resource for today and the future of Iraq, Khamenei said, they should be supported and consolidated. Khameneis office publicized the meeting. The top political office in the Islamic Republic also advised Hakim: Do not trust the Americans at all. Hakim called the Iraqi parliaments passing of the PMF law one of the partys important achievements, in which the National Alliance was able to secure the votes of other movements and groups. The PMF was established in June 2014 after the Iraqi military and police forces were overwhelmed by the Islamic State in northern, central, and western Iraq. Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani issued a fatwa for Iraq to support the collapsing security forces and drive the Islamic State from the country. Militias that are supported by Iran which openly fought US and British troops during the occupation answered the call. These militias are responsible for killing hundreds of US, British, and other allied troops during the occupation of Iraq. IRGC-backed militias that dominate the PMF have been infiltrating the Iraqi government for year, occupying important government posts. The recent law enshrines their militia formations as permanent fabric of the Iraqi state. These actors are open about their ideology, promotion of the IRGCs brand of Islamic identity, and links with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Without serious overhaul and dissolution of these formations as currently constituted, it would be difficult to imagine the Iraqi Prime Minister wrestling these groups under his command and control in practice. Many of the militias that are part of the PMF remain hostile to the United States, and some have threatened to attack US interests in the region. One of the more influential militias within the PMF, Hezbollah Brigades, is listed as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. Several influential PMF leaders, including the operational leader of the PMF, are listed by the US as global terrorists. Are you a dedicated reader of FDD's Long War Journal? Has our research benefitted you or your team over the years? Support our independent reporting and analysis today by considering a one-time or monthly donation. Thanks for reading! You can make a tax-deductible donation here. Trumping the Environment Whether Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump was elected, the environment is going to suffer. Both have supported horizontal fracking, the destruction of the earth to extract oil and gas. The use of fracking is so harmful to the environment and public health that numerous banks refuse to lend funds to individuals who wish to build or sell their houses near drilling operations. Numerous lenders have also refused to loan money to corporations that wish to drill. Hillary Clinton, while secretary of state, promoted the use of natural gas within foreign countries. In 2010, she told a meeting of foreign ministers, Natural gas is the cleanest fossil fuel available for power generation today. One reason for the Obama/Clinton push for natural gas exploration and distribution in overseas countries is because geopolitics plays a significant role in whether a number of gas projects are realized and come online and where pipelines are built. . . . Individual country decisions about natural gas resources can have dramatic impacts on responses in international discourse, according to a research analysis published by the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Amy Myers Jaffe and Dr. Meghan L. OSullivan, co-editors of the study, also pointed out, The relative fortunes of the United States, Russia and Chinaand their ability to exert influence in the worldare tied in no small measure to global gas developments and vice versa.In Romania, the SocialDemocrats came to power in 2012 on a promise to ban shale gas drilling. However, following extensive lobbying by Clinton, the Romanian parliament voted against a proposed fracking moratorium. Thousands of Romanians, many of them farmers, later protested Chevrons 30-year lease with the government to resume drilling. The protests in Summer 2013 led the government to send in the national police to suppress the citizens rights of assembly and freedom of expression.Clinton does support stronger environmental laws and an increase in the budget for drinking and wastewater systems, and several other environmental measures, and now believes in a moratorium on fracking on federal land in the U.S. She still believes natural gas is a bridge fuel to cleaner energy.Trump wants to make desalination of ocean water more affordable and has presented some environmentally-friendly proposals, but his overall environmental policy diminishes in comparison to that of Clinton and most environmentalists. The incoming presidents environment record is one of the most stridently anti-environment platforms of any recent major party nominee, according to the 2.4 million member Natural Resources Development Council.The incoming president says he would approve the last segments of the 1,959 mile Keystone XL pipeline. TransCanada is an Alberta-based corporation that is building the controversial pipeline that will carry bitumenthicker, more corrosive and toxic than crude oilthrough 36-inch diameter pipes from Alberta tar sands to refineries on the Gulf Coast, almost all of it to be exported. The northern leg of the $7 billion pipeline was held up until President Obama either succumbed to corporate and business pressures or blocked the construction because of environmental and health issues. There will be only a couple of dozen permanent jobs for U.S. citizens if the pipeline is completed, and the President vetoed legislation from the Republican Congress to accelerate construction.The pipeline would add about 240 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year, according to Environment America. To complete the pipeline, the Canadian corporation used the right of eminent domain, which allows government to seize private property and pay a fair market share to the owner if it is in the public good, including building highways and bridges. The pipeline primarily benefits a foreign nation and a private corporation, does not benefit American workers, and has already caused significant disruption of the environment and animal biodiversity. Trump claims eminent domain is necessary but erroneously says that its because the government is paying as much as ten times the value of the property. He supports private industry being able to dictate the seizure of land.Trump announced he would rescind the Clean Power Plan and end a moratorium on leasing federal coal reserves to private enterprise. Thousands of signsTrump Digs Coalbegan appearing during the final two months of Trumps march to the presidency. He claims that digging for coal will preserve jobs and is a source of energy. However, jobs in the renewable energy industry now exceed those in the fossil fuel industry, and coal miners can become renewable energy technicians. Numerous scientists have determined that mining and burning coal has been a contributing factor in the expansive hole in the earths ozone layers that protect the planet from deadly ultraviolet radiation from the sun.Trump claims wind farms and solar energy are unproven, although dozens of large scale operations have been developed over the past decade, with Iowa producing 20 percent of its energy needs solely from renewable energy, and other states escalating their renewable programs. He claims renewable energy is very expensive, but neglects facts that reveal renewable energy costs are now matching those of fossil fuel costs, and are continuing to plunge.Trump opposes increased environmental regulation and fracking, and believes the Dakota Pipeline, which is currently being protested by Native Americans, is necessary. Unlike 97 percent of climate scientists who believe climate change is the result of humans using fossil fuels, Trump believes climate change is a hoax created by and for the Chinese, and that the numbers fluctuate. Anthony Scaramucci, one of his senior advisors, in June declared climate change to be irrefutable [and] tragic that some people think its a hoax, but during this past week after being appointed to the transition team said he didnt know if climate change is occurring.He wants to significantly cut back the Environmental Protection Agency. His choice to be EPA director, Scott Pruitt, opposes the EPA, has sued the EPA numerous times, believes global warming is a hoax, disregards the finding of environmentalists and other scientists of a connection between fracking and water pollution, fracking and air pollution, and fracking and earthquakes.Trumps choice of secretary of state is Rex Tillerson, multi-millionaire CEO of ExxonMobil, who believes in risk management practices that allow fracking and other dangerous oil/gas extraction to proceed if they are economical and dont exceed projected pay-out costs for damage to the environment and for health care as a result of drilling. This is the same Rex Tillerson who protested a proposed 160-foot water tower that would be used for fracking operations. The reason why Tillerson opposed the tower was because it was near his home and, he says, would have obstructed his view. He has no problems with ten-story rigs, and noise and light pollution affecting residents by ExxonMobil carving up the environment, often using eminent domain as a way to bisect private property and public forests to open up drilling.Sen. Bernie Sanders, who lost the Democratic nomination to Clinton, and Dr. Jill Stein, the Green Partys nominee, want a moratorium placed on fracking and stricter enforcement of current regulation to preserve federal lands and to protect private property and owner rights. They and former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson were the most environmentally-aware candidates for the presidency.Johnson, the Libertarian Partys nominee, campaigned to assure strict accountability, not government agency and arbitrary standards, should regulate pollution. He opposes governments, which he calls the biggest polluters of the environment and corporations, which embed government fines within increased costs to the consumer. Companies, said Johnson, dont have the incentives to be stewards of the environment [and] instead are able to stagnate as long as profits are protected by limited liability laws.Nevertheless, the protection that Sanders, Stein, and Johnson would have given to protect the environment will be subverted by policies preached by President Trump. [Dr. Braschs current book is Fracking Pennsylvania, which looks at the impact of fracking upon public health, worker safety, the environment, and agriculture. The book--available at local bookstores and amazon. com--also looks at the financial collusion between politicians and Big Energy.] By Walter M Brasch PhD http://www.walterbrasch.com Copyright 2016 Walter M Brasch Walter Brasch is a university journalism professor, syndicated columnist, and author of 17 books. His current books are America's Unpatriotic Acts , The Federal Response to Hurricane Katrina , and Sex and the Single Beer Can: Probing the Media and American Culture . All are available through amazon.com, bn.com, or other bookstores. You may contact Dr. Brasch at walterbrasch@gmail.com Walter Brasch Archive 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication. COLLINSVILLE-A judge has dismissed a felony charge against a Martinsville man accused of embezzling $45,000 from a Maryland man in a property matter. In Henry County Circuit Court, Judge Jonathan Apgar ruled that what Howard Todd Huff was accused of doing is not embezzlement under the law. Huff was accused of embezzling $45,000 belonging to Scott Lentz of Edgewater, Maryland. A criminal complaint by Investigator B.T. Whitlock of the Henry County Sheriffs Office alleged the following: Whitlock spoke with Lentz on Nov. 30, 2015, at the sheriffs office. Lentz said that on Sept. 25, 2015, he sent to HTH Family Trust, which Howard Todd Huff owns, a wire transfer in the amount of $45,000. The transfer was sent in an agreement made between Mr. Lentz and Mr. Howard to purchase property located at 406 Forest Street in Martinsville, the criminal complaint said. In the promissory note, it lists Mr. Huff as the borrower and Mr. Lentz as the lender. The promissory note listed the amount of the loan as $45,000. The term of the loan was four months or 120 days, with payoff to be made on or before Jan. 22. The return on investment on this loan was $5,000. This loan will be secured by the 1st deed of trust on the property located at 406 Forest Street, Martinsville . Scott Lentz will be listed as loss payee on the home owners policy. This loan may be prepared at any time with the full $5,000 due at payoff. Title (to) this property will be held in the name of HTH Family Trust, Howard T. Huff, trustee, the criminal complaint said. Huff and Lentz signed and dated the agreement on Sept. 24, 2015. This wire transfer was sent from PNC Bank from Mr. Lentzs debit account to Carter Bank and Trust at 128 Paul Street, Collinsville under HTH Family Trust. This is in Henry County, the criminal complaint said. According to Lentz, he lent the money to Huff to purchase the property under the understanding the property still was for sale. A few days passed and Lentz called Huff to check on the transaction. Several text messages also were exchanged over this, because of Lentz living in Maryland. Mr. Huff was unable to obtain the residence. In one text, Mr. Lentz told Mr. Huff he just wanted his money back or whatever money he had left over back, the complaint said. According to Lentz, he tried calling Huff several times, but Huff would not talk with him. On Nov. 29, 2015, Lentz came down from Maryland and went to Huffs house. Lentz alleged Hunt would not come to the door, but when Lent went to the back of the house, he could see Huff in the house, the complaint alleged. Lentz alleged that once Huff saw him, Huff ran out of the house, called police and had him removed from the property. Mr. Lentz advised he has worked with Mr. Huff in the past and had no problems, the criminal complaint said. Whitlock stated in the criminal complaint that on Jan. 27 he obtained and served a search warrant to Carter Bank and Trust in regards to HTH Family Trust, which Howard Huffs name is on. According to the records obtained from that search warrant, it shows the $45,000 was wire transferred from Scott Lentz to Howard Huff and that Howard Huff has taken out all of the $45,000 except $194.21. The property located at 406 Forest Street was never obtained, the criminal complaint said. A court document dated April 9, 2016, listed Huff as employed as a mortgage banker at CMS Mortgage Solutions. Huff waived his preliminary hearing in Henry County General District Court in August. Eversource. Friendly's. Cartamundi USA. Job Corps. Cigna. Berkshire Bank. XTeam. Veterans Inc. Each day this week, the faces changed, the mission was the same. As families received toys and gifts for their children from the 94th annual Toy for Joy campaign, they were greeted at the Salvation Army by smiling faces of volunteers from a variety of businesses and nonprofit agencies who stepped up to help brighten the holidays. Toy for Joy is a collaborative initiative by the Salvation Army with The Republican and MassLive to provide holiday gifts for children in need throughout Franklin, Hampshire, and Hampden counties. This year's goal is to raise $150,000 in donations by Christmas eve to cover the cost of the toys distributed this week. To date, Toy for Joy has raised $40,685.38, leaving a little under $109,000 left to raise in the next week. Today's list of generous donations include a $1,000 gift from the Butler Corp., of Ludlow. The Springfield Salvation Army Citadel at 170 Pearl St. hosted volunteers hailing from organizations and companies throughout Western Massachusetts, who helped bag and distribute toys to parents. "We're always willing to lend a helping hand," said Monique Screen-Berry, a corporate communications representative at Eversource. "We're always happy to be in the communities that we serve. That's our number-one priority: to give back in the areas that we provide service." Along with sending 15 volunteers to help with toy distribution, Screen-Berry and other employees aided the Salvation Army in registering families earlier in the month. About 10 employees of Friendly's helped with toy distribution this year. Said Connie Lennick, "One of the values that Friendly's has is we dish up support for families in our communities, and the Salvation Army is a great partner to be able to do that, particularly with this program." To learn more about Toy for Joy, call the Salvation Army's Springfield citadel at 413-733-1518. Online donations can be made by clicking here Here is a list of the latest contributions to this year's campaign: In loving memory of Ann Marie Martin 12/17/66 - 8/22/79, love Mom, Dad, Terry, Eileen and John Jr., $25 In loving memory of William E Meaney, love Lil and Kathy, $25 In memory of Georgie Marshall, love Kathy, $25 Missing you this Christmas Carol A Meaney, love Lil and Kathy, $25 Merry Christmas from George, Charlie and Henry, $25 Merry Christmas Gabby, Beckett and baby girl, $25 In memory of parents Don and Jackie and husband Terry, $20 In loving memory of Richard Nelson Clarke from Lynn, $20 In honor of our precious grandson Noah, $25 Alistair wishes all a very Merry Christmas, $25 In memory of Jackie (Mr O) Grace and Tom O'Connor, $50 In loving memory of Helen and Benjamin Lopes, your family misses you, $190 In memory of my mom "Chickie" and my cat "Rocky", love Sharon, $25 In memory of Bill and Joan Vidal, longtime contributors, GB, $25 Memory of Grammy and Granpy Maurer, love Jeff, Mike and Chris, $15 In honor of Kevin, Katie, Nikki, Alli and Erin from grandparents, $50 Merry Christmas from Missy, Frederick and Comet, $75 Anonymous, $500 The Butler Corporation, $1,000 RECEIVED: $2,170.00 TOTAL TO DATE: $40,685.38 STILL NEEDED: $109,314.62 BOSTON Three Boston men have been apprehended in connection with the Tuesday shooting death of a Boston man in Dorchester, police said. In a written statement, Boston Police Commissioner Willams Evans said Tyshawn Sanders, 18, Tyshawn Cummings, 21, and Jamari Manning, 21, were all arrested by the Boston Police Fugitive Apprehension Unit and the Youth Violence Strike Force Friday afternoon. All three will be charged with murder when they are arraigned in Dorchester District Court Monday. Police said 41-year-old Shawn Borden was found shot once outside a residence at 1631 Dorchester Ave. shortly before 6 p.m. Tuesday afternoon. He was transported to a local hospital where he was treated and several days later died of his injuries. police lights.jpg Two people were killed and at least 15 were injured in a 55-vehicle crash and tanker explosion on Interstate 95 northbound in Baltimore early Saturday, fire officials have reported. Baltimore City Fire Chief Roman Clark told the Associated Press that it's too early to determine whether the chain-reaction crash involving a tanker, which skidded off a highway and exploded, was caused by inclement weather conditions. "The roads were very icy," Clark reportedly told the news outlet. "We have nothing but sheets of ice throughout the city, sidewalks." According to the Baltimore Sun, cellphone videos showed the tanker heaving down the highway before striking a jersey wall, rolling off the road and erupting into flames. Just before noon, 40 of the vehicles involved in the crash had yet to be cleared from the roadway, Maryland Transportation officials announced. NEW details RE: NB I-95 crash at Caton Ave. 55 vehicles confirmed to be involved. 40 of those still to be cleared from roadway. #mdotnews MDTA (@TheMDTA) December 17, 2016 Baltimore fire officials have yet to release the names of those killed in the crash, which also reportedly involved other tractor-trailers, according to the newspaper. Nine people were transported to University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center as a result of the pileup. Freezing rain began to fall across Maryland early Saturday and is expected to continue into the early afternoon, the National Weather Service reported. mark.photo.JPG U.S. District Court Judge Mark Mastroianni, shown in file photo, has denied a class action suit against the Springfield School Department, that sought to end the Springfield Public Day School program for students with mental health issues. (File Photo / The Republican) SPRINGFIELD -- U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni issued a ruling Friday that rejects a class action suit against the city and School Department that sought to end a public day school program for students with mental health issues. The ruling was praised by school officials who called it a "vindication" of the public day school program. City and school officials denied the students were being improperly segregated from the regular classrooms and defended the programs and services being provided in the day school program. "It's a significant win not just for the district but for all public schools in Massachusetts and their special education students," said Melinda Phelps, a lawyer representing the School Department. "It's a vindication for the hard work day in and day out of the Springfield Public School Program." School Committee Vice-Chairman Christopher Collins agreed, saying it upholds the Springfield approach and the people providing services from the principals down to the counselors and teachers. The civil suit was initially filed by a parent of a teen with mental health issues, with the student identified in the suit as S.S. It was filed on his behalf and "other similarly situated students" and by the Parent/Professional Advocacy League and the Disability Law Center. The motion for "Class Certification" was denied by Mastroianni in Friday's ruling. City lawyers including City Solicitor Edward Pikula "vigorously disputed" claims by the plaintiffs that students attending the public day schools "are not only segregated from nondisabled students, but also receive educational services that are demonstrably inferior to those offered at neighborhood schools, are unable to access extracurricular activities available in neighborhood schools, and are subjected to dangerously punitive discipline." Pikula, in arguments before Mastroianni, said the plaintiffs had essentially repurposed a claim after it was rejected by a state board of special education appeals. In addition, Pikula said a judge in that forum ruled the city had accommodated "S.S" and developed an individual education plan that was "the least restrictive" according to 2015 hearing. Mastroianni, in summarizing the case, said that approximately 1 percent of the students in the Springfield public schools are placed in the public day schools at the elementary, middle and high school levels. A total of 246 students were in the program as of May 1, 2016. The American With Disabilities Act bars public entities from discriminating against a "qualified individual with a disability," or excluding them from participation or denying them from the benefits and services of a public entity, the summary stated. Protections are also provided in the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA), he said. In the class certification sought, however, not all members of the suit had exhausted the process for administrative remedies provided under IDEA guidelines, Mastroianni said. "The exhaustion requirement provides one basis for denying Plaintiffs' Motion for Class Certification," Mastronianni said. "Some of the same concerns that lead the court to that decision also demonstrate that Plaintiffs have not met their burden to establish the elements required for class certification." Mastroianni also cited a statute that a class action suit is an "exception to the usual rule" of individual litigation. The exception is justified "only when there is a class representative who is part of the class and shares the same interest and injury as other class members," he said. The plaintiffs were not able to meet that burden, he said. The lawsuit had sought to restructure special education for children with mental illnesses to school-based behavioral services. The court ruling said there was "insufficient evidence" that such school-based behavioral services "could provide a single remedy applicable to the whole class." "Even if these services could, in theory, provide a universally positive outcome, the diversity of the circumstances affecting members of the proposed class will create a myriad of unique challenges that will have to be overcome on a study by student basis in order to implement each of these entwined services," Mastroianni said. Judge Mastroianni's ruling in lawsuit against Springfield Schools by The Republican/MassLive.com on Scribd SPRINGFIELD -- Anne Kaczmarek, a former assistant state attorney general, testified Friday she didn't realize papers found in former state lab chemist Sonja Farak's car showed she had been using drugs more than a year before her arrest. "I totally misjudged the dates," Kaczmarek, now an assistant clerk magistrate in Suffolk Superior Court, said at the fifth day of a hearing before Hampden Superior Court Judge Richard J. Carey dealing with fallout from Farak's criminal wrongdoing at the Amherst state drug lab, where she worked. The mental health worksheets and Servicenet diary cards found in Farak's car after her January 2013 arrest had notations Farak had used drugs in "late December." Farak wrote down her drug use, including one time where she used drugs at work at the state laboratory in Amherst. Kaczmarek said she assumed Farak's notations were for December 2012. She said she never realized that although Farak noted that Christmas fell on Sunday, that Christmas fell on a Sunday in 2011, not 2012. She said "if I realized what it meant" she would have gone before a judge and gotten an order that she could turn over the records despite any concerns about privilege. Lawyers for 10 drug defendants have said the state's failure to disclose Farak's mental health and drug treatment records is prosecutorial misconduct. They say the records would have thrown light on Farak's drug use, and that information would have affected their clients' drug cases. The 10 defendants are looking for new trials or to withdraw their guilty pleas because Farak tested drug evidence in their cases. In January 2014, Farak, then 35, of Northampton, was given an 18-month jail sentence after pleading guilty to four counts of theft of a controlled substance from an authorized dispensary (the drug lab), four counts of tampering with evidence and two counts of possession of cocaine. Farak began using drugs from the lab as early as 2004, according to court documents released in May. The Amherst lab was closed due to her actions. Carey has said he wants facts that would show whether state officials were busy with so much going on and there was an oversight about the records or whether state officials intentionally buried evidence that could have been exculpatory for the defendants. Those records in question came to light in the fall of 2014 after Luke Ryan, lawyer for some of the drug defendants, was allowed to inspect evidence in the case. State police and the attorney general's office had had the records since searching Farak's car shortly after her arrest. State officials repeatedly fought Ryan's request to look at the evidence. Ryan asked Kaczmarek a number of questions to which she replied, "I don't remember." He then showed her emails she had written to refresh her memory. A great deal of testimony has been about the circumstances surrounding multi-day hearings held in September 2013 by then-Hampden Superior Court Judge C. Jeffrey Kinder, who is now a state Appeals Court justice. Kinder held the hearings to try to determine when Farak's misconduct at the lab began in order to see how far back drug cases might have been affected. Farak's role in the cases was to identify the drug and determine its weight. Kinder was told at the 2013 hearings by then-Assistant Attorney General Kris Foster all material relating to Farak had been turned over to district attorneys. Foster, now general counsel at the state Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission, testified Tuesday she had been doing what her superiors ordered in her handling of the 2013 effort to quash subpoenas of a state police supervisor and all the records in the prosecution of Farak. Kinder had ordered those records be turned over. She said she had no reason to doubt her superiors, who told her that everything from the investigation of Farak had been turned over to local prosecutors. She said she never looked at the Farak case file herself. Under questioning from the judge Kaczmarek testified she never told Foster the entire file had been turned over to district attorneys. Foster had testified Kaczmarek did tell her that. Kaczmarek said she didn't know how Foster could have represented to Kinder the whole file had been turned over without even looking at it. The mental health and substance abuse treatment papers found in Farak's car were not turned over even though Kinder ordered all records be submitted to him. Jared Olanoff, lawyer for some of the defendants, asked Kaczmarek if she thought she had any obligation to turn over the mental health records to the district attorneys. "Yes, I suppose I had a certain obligation in terms of public interest," she said. Asked why she didn't turn them over, Kaczmarek said, "I don't know. It was a mistake." She said she didn't think it was her specific obligation within the office to see that the records were given to district attorneys. The hearing ended Friday. The defense lawyers will submit briefs and the state will submit a brief by Feb. 17. Carey said he will hold hearings for each of the defendants to see how Farak's actions affected them. He said by the end of February he will "hopefully" be in a position to "begin putting something together" in terms of his decisions. Motorists hitting the roads Saturday morning met slippery conditions and slowed speeds as plows across Massachusetts attempted to keep up with fast-accumulating snow and freezing rain. Nearly 3,000 snow crews had been deployed to clear state roads as of 10:30 a.m., according to the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. The agency urged drivers to use caution and delay travel when possible. Weather officials expect between 4 and 6 inches of snow to fall across much of Western Massachusetts -- with heavier totals expected in the Berkshires -- along with a trace of ice Saturday. As of 9:30 a.m., 4 inches of snow had already fallen in Springfield, according to National Weather Service totals. Cities across Hampden County, meanwhile, had also received substantial snowfall as of 10 a.m., including 4.8 inches in Ludlow and 4 inches in Westfield, according to NWS totals. South Hadley and Chesterfield, in Hampshire County, meanwhile reported snow totals of 3 inches around 9:30 a.m., according to NWS. Three inches of snow had fallen in Pittsfield as of 8 a.m. Saturday. The Berkshires are expected to see an estimated 8 inches, according to weather officials. Despite the number of snow crews out clearing state roads, Interstate 90 remained unplowed in spots for eastbound traffic as of 9 a.m. Due to the slippery conditions, speed limits on I-90, the Massachusetts Turnpike, were reduced to 40 mph between Exit 11 in Worcester and the New York border. Massachusetts State Police, meanwhile, responded to morning crashes on Interstate 495 northbound. A vehicle that went off the road just before Exit 21 in Hopkinton at 8:30 a.m. closed the left lane of traffic and resulted in no injuries, state police reported. A tractor trailer truck also went off the northbound side of the highway in Southborough just before 9 a.m., according to Massachusetts state police. The crash closed the left two lanes of traffic and resulted in minor injuries. #MAtraffic Crash, I-495 NB, 1-mile prior to x.23 in #Southborough at the 60.8 mm. Left two lanes closed. Minor injury. Only TT-unit involved pic.twitter.com/zmunrCrpjU Mass State Police (@MassStatePolice) December 17, 2016 In Springfield, traffic remained slow or stopped throughout the city due to snowy conditions, city police reported. Just minor crashes had been reported as of 11 a.m., Springfield Police said. Adventure Life is seeking an innovative web developer to join our Missoula, MT team. The web developer will join a fast-paced office atmosphere where s/he will provide ongoing development of web-based tools for managing travel services, website updates, CRM management and analytics tool development. http://www.adventure-life.com/employment.php Wed appreciate it if youd mention that you found this opportunity on MATR.net Thank you Montana Senate Republicans want to cut Gov. Steve Bullocks funding for early childhood education and divert the money to the Department of Transportation to help the department leverage federal dollars for road construction projects. Lee Newspapers reported last week that the department is looking at delaying $144.5 million in road projects across the state. About $130 million of the money that would have paid for those projects comes from federal sources that would have matched $14.5 million in state funding. Bullocks budget director on Friday pushed back, saying the fix wont work, and even if it did, its a temporary solution to a long-term problem. Holly Michels [email protected] ({Please be sure to read the comments made to this article as an example of why education is so important to our future) Full Story: http://missoulian.com/news/government-and-politics/senate-republicans-finance-roads-with-pre-school-education-dollars/article_f35ccdf1-104a-5b79-8d17-aabda8c11b49.html *** Do the effects of early education programs last past the third grade? http://www.matr.net/article-74679.html More about early education and Montanas Early Edge: http://www.matr.net/news.phtml?showall=1&catlabel=Early+Edge+Montana&cat_id=174 *** How Investing In Preschool Beats The Stock Market, Hands Down Theres a growing body of research on the value and importance of high-quality early education programs especially for disadvantaged kids. http://www.matr.net/article-74751.html The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Mr. Motegi Toshimitsu, has announced an official visit to the Republic of Mauritius, among other African countries, for the consolidation of the diplomatic relationships. His arrival is scheduled in the evening of the 12th December 2020. On the 13th of December 2020, he will be meeting with the Honorable Nandcoomar BODHA, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade of the Republic of Mauritius, as well as the Honorable Pravind Kumar JUGNAUTH, Prime Minister of the Republic of Mauritius. Through the visits to these four countries, the Minister MOTEGI plans to strongly promote diplomacy that combines inclusiveness and strength in Africa. Specifically, (1) through cooperation for the realization of a Free and Open Indo-Pacific, (2), promotion of Japanese companies investment in Africa, and, (3), to exchange opinions on cooperation for the 8th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 8), scheduled to be held in Tunisia in 2022. Partager et informez vous aussi...... 0 shares Share Tweet LinkedIn Articles similaires LAS VEGAS, Dec. 16, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Flex Spending Account (FSA) funds can be used for needed LASIK and other vision correction services. Patients with remaining funds at the end of the year can use them to partially or fully cover LASIK and other vision-related treatments. By scheduling an appointment soon, all patients can use their 2016 FSA funds towards end-of-year vision treatments. Depending on the FSA provider, some or all remaining FSA funds from 2016 may be applied to a procedure in 2017. Eye doctors can assist patients in taking full advantage of remaining FSA dollars and receiving necessary eye care services. Patients should be aware that LASIK surgery is an eligible medical expense that is covered using FSA funds. An FSA offers tax advantages to the employee in cases of medical expenses, dependent care, and other approved medical expenses. Any money forwarded into an FSA account is not subject to payroll taxes and deductions. Consequently, use of FSA can decrease taxable income and make LASIK surgery more affordable for vision patients. Some people may forfeit money placed in their FSA account during 2016 at the beginning of 2017. Regarding monies unused during a current year, an FSA provider may provide one of two options (but not both): (1) a grace period of up to 2 extra months to use all money from their FSA from the previous year or (2) to carry over up to $500 from the previous year. Consumers should know that FSA providers are not obligated to provide either one, so Trusted LASIK Surgeons recommends patients considering LASIK or another vision correction procedure review their FSA plan with their provider in detail so they understand what will happen to their FSA funds as the end of the year approaches and can make plans to use any dedicated pre-tax dollars accrued in their FSA on any needed and elective vision treatments. FSA funds can be used for many vision services, including LASIK surgery and annual eye exams, said James J. Salz, M.D., CEO of Trusted LASIK Surgeons. Patients seeking LASIK or another vision correction procedure can find an expert surgeon at our Trusted LASIK Surgeons directory and we encourage them to do so. Trusted LASIK Surgeons serves residents throughout the United States with a directory of expert eye surgeons who have exceptional experience and meet certain qualification standards to ensure patients receive expert vision correction care. Services include LASIK, cataract surgery, laser cataract surgery, KAMRA Inlay surgery, premium lens implants and other refractive surgery procedures. Review the profiles of surgeons featured at Trusted LASIK Surgeons and choose with confidence. To learn more about the costs of LASIK, including FSA and HSA accounts, please visit our True Cost of LASIK Discussion For a consumer resource to assist patients in determining the cost of LASIK, please download the Trusted LASIK Surgeons LASIK Consumer Checklist. NEW YORK, Dec. 16, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. (New Oriental or the Company) (NYSE:EDU) and certain of its officers. The class action, filed in United States District Court, District of New Jersey, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired New Oriental American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) between September 27, 2016 and December 1, 2016, both dates inclusive (the Class Period), seeking to recover compensable damages caused by defendants violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. If you are a shareholder who purchased New Oriental ADRs during the Class Period, you have until February 13, 2017 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com. To discuss this action, contact Robert S. Willoughby at rswilloughby@pomlaw.com or 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll free, ext. 9980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and number of shares purchased. [Click here to join this class action] New Oriental is a Cayman Islands corporation headquartered in Beijing, Peoples Republic of China (PRC). New Oriental provides private educational services under the New Oriental brand in the PRC. The Complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Companys business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) New Oriental engaged in college application fraud; and (2) as a result, defendants' statements about New Oriental's business, operations and prospects were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. On December 2, 2016, Reuters published a report detailing allegations of academic fraud at the company. Specifically, Reuters reported that eight former and current New Oriental employees informed Reuters that New Oriental engaged in college application fraud, including writing application essays and teacher recommendations, and falsifying high school transcripts. On that same day, Reuters reported that the American International Recruitment Council, which certifies agencies that recruit foreign students on behalf of U.S. colleges, will investigate the company in response to the Reuters report. On this news, shares of the Company fell $6.99 per share or over 14% from its previous closing price to close at $42.00 per share on December 2, 2016, damaging investors. The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Florida, and Los Angeles, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com A head-on collision near Harmony Grove Road sent two people to the hospital Friday evening. At approximately 3:41 on Friday evening, emergency units responded to a motor vehicle collision on N.C. 226 South towards Harmony Grove Road. Nebo Fire Department, Dysartsville Fire Department, McDowell EMS, McDowell Rescue Squad and the N.C. Highway Patrol responded to the call. According to Trooper D.R. Alexander of the N.C. Highway Patrol, a gray Saturn, driven by Clinton Paul Boylen, 42, of Nebo, was traveling southbound on N.C. 226 with the intent to turn onto Harmony Grove Road, where he collided with a silver Hyundai, driven by Elizabeth Alezxandra Radner, 37, of San Francisco, California. From what we can say right now, the Saturn failed to yield and struck the Hyundai head-on as it was coming in the opposite direction, said Alexander. Both Boylen and Radner were taken to Mission Hospital for their injuries. According to Alexander, there may be charges for Boylen for driving while license revoked and failure to yield, pending on meeting with the driver upon release from the hospital. A Marion resident was found dead inside his burning home Friday morning, according to authorities. The remains of 70-year-old Michael Roy Lamb, were pulled from his residence at 125 N. Phillips Drive in Marion. He was pronounced dead at 10:50 a.m. Fire Investigator Craig Walker of McDowell County Emergency Management said it is unclear at this time if Lamb died as a result of the fire. His body is scheduled for autopsy in Winston-Salem Saturday. Witnesses saw smoke and called 911 at 10:25 a.m. Friday. The single-wide mobile home was destroyed. Boyd Phillips, who owns the home, said he was at the house earlier that morning and didnt see anything suspicious. I stopped by around 8 oclock this morning to feed the goats, and it didnt seem like anything was abnormal, said Phillips. Walker also stated the cause of the fire is undetermined. It appears to be noncriminal in nature, but its going to require further investigation, Walker stated. The blaze reportedly started in the bathroom. Dear Santa, Its me again with my 51 st annual letter, a little older, no more wiser and still looking for that go-cart that never made it under the tree. I hope this correspondence finds you well. As I have previously explained, my first few letters in the mid- to late 1960s were more or less press releases from my family because I had not yet developed the skills to express myself in writing, aside from scrawling my dog good on a hallway wall in purple crayon. That resulted in punishment and a realization that words are powerful, which in turn led to a life in journalism and continued punishment in the form of low wages, job instability and public disdain. But enough about me; lets talk about you as you prepare to travel around the globe, breaking into peoples houses, devouring their cookies and hopefully leaving a little swag behind. Heres some advice: You may want to review Floridas stand-your-ground law before visiting homes in the Sunshine State. It was a tough year, as most are, but you made it through once again. The toys, long ago outsourced to China, are packaged and ready for the good little girls and boys, and the sleigh, recalled this summer due to the reindeer emissions scandal, is back and packed and ready to go. You survived yet another hard-fought election for Worlds Most Popular Mythical Being, with the Easter Bunny and his supporters running a particularly brutal campaign, especially on social media. There were the tweets: Crooked Claus! Little Mary asked for a dolly last year and got a teddy bear. Crooked Claus is no good. #bunny #makethenorthpolegreatagain. Saw Crooked Claus on Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer last night. Unwatchable. I think his beard is fake. Mrs. Claus may be his real beard. #coloredeggs #yellowsnow. Why is Crooked Claus getting emails on his private server instead of his .xmas account? Something is fishy and its not a penguins breath. #greatbunny #FrostyendorsedME. There were fake news stories shared millions of times on Facebook: You wont BELIEVE what Santa does down the chimney Mrs. Claus to Santa: Get out you cheating bozo! Blitzen spills the beans on Santas eggnog problem! None of it true, but nowadays people believe what they want to be believe and the facts be damned, even when the fake posts are debunked by the South Poles fact-checking website, Snowpes. Luckily, though, when the votes were counted you were elected to yet another term as Worlds Most Popular Mythical Being. The Easter Bunny did well in the North Poles frost belt thanks to his populist message and in the South Pole, you both managed to hold off third party candidate Bigfoot and his running mate Lizard Man. In the end, with the help of the Elftorial College and a Russian hacker named Triglav, you were triumphant. Well done, sir. So enough about you; lets get back to me. After 52 years of booties, crayons, Gnip Gnop, an Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle or two and later a lot of well just get him some beer cause we know he likes that, I cant think of anything material I need. The truck runs. The house only leaks when it rains. Theres soup in the cabinet. The old dog is a little whiter around the snout but shes still here. I might ask that people be a little nicer to each other, lighten up on the name-calling and realize, most times, we have more common than we let on. Oh, yeah, and I still want that go-cart. Love, Scott. Scott Hollifield is editor/GM of The McDowell News in Marion, N.C. and a humor columnist. Contact him at rhollifiel@mcdowellnews.com. NEW YORK, Dec. 16, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gainey McKenna & Egleston announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. (New Oriental Education or the Company) (NYSE:EDU) in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey on behalf of purchasers of common stock of New Oriental Education between September 27, 2016 and December 1, 2016 (the Class Period), seeking to recover damages caused by Defendants violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. According to the Complaint, the Company made false and/or misleading statements about: (1) New Orientals college application activities; and (2) as a result, Defendants statements about New Oriental Educations business, operations and prospects were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. Reuters published an article December 2, 2016 revealing that New Oriental has been accused of engaging in college application fraud. The article states [e]ight former and current new Oriental employees . . . told Reuters the firms have engaged in college application fraud, including writing application essays and teacher recommendations, and falsifying high school transcripts. The same day, Reuters released and update claiming that, due to its earlier report detailing academic fraud allegations at New Oriental, the American International Recruitment Council (AIRC) will investigate the company in response to the report and the AIRCs president-elect called the allegations highly concerning. On this news, shares of New Oriental fell $6.99 per share from its previous closing price to close at $42.00 per share on December 2, 2016, damaging investors. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than February 13, 2017. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. If you wish to join the litigation, or to discuss your rights or interests regarding this class action, please contact Thomas J. McKenna, Esq. or Gregory M. Egleston, Esq. of Gainey McKenna & Egleston at (212) 983-1300, or via e-mail at tjmckenna@gme-law.com or gegleston@gme-law.com. Please visit our website at http://www.gme-law.com for more information about the firm. The New York Post, Friday, December 16, 2016 7:14 AM Hillary Clinton's aide Huma Abedin said that neither she nor her estranged husband Anthony Weiner were given a search warrant from the FBI before it searched emails found on Weiner's computer. In a court filing in a Manhattan court, Abedin raised the issue of whether or not the FBI had the right to search her emails in the first place. In the letter, Abedin's attorney said she cannot comment on a Los Angeles lawyer's request for FBI warrants tied to her emails since she has never seen these. Read the whole story at The New York Post by Sara Guaglione , December 16, 2016 For the first time in its 128-year history, National Geographicis featuring a transgender person on the cover of its magazine. The subscriber cover of the January 2017 issue will feature 9-year-old transgender girl Avery Jackson, who lives in the Midwest. The newsstand cover highlights individuals representing "a broad spectrum of gender identities and expressions," a spokesperson told Publishers Daily. The Gender Revolution issue, which hits newsstands on December 27, examines the cultural, social, biological and personal aspects of gender identity, per the magazine. Stories examine American standards of beauty, the modern path to becoming a man and the science behind gender identity. The powerful caption on Jacksons cover reads: The best thing about being a girl is, now I dont have to pretend to be a boy." Avery's father told TheNew York Times that raising a transgender child is the same as raising any child. A parent's role does not change, he said. In a 2014 speech that went viral, her mother, who described herself as a conservative, Southern Baptist, Republican from Alabama, said: My God taught us to love one another. My daughter is a girl in her heart. She knows it. God knows it. And thats good enough for me. Other stories in the magazine, I am Nine Years Old, asks kids in 80 homes on four continents how gender affects their lives. National Geographic also plans to air a two-hour documentary called Gender Revolution: A Journey with Katie Couric on February 6. advertisement advertisement Other features include Rethinking Gender, which examines how science can help navigate the shifting landscape of gender identity, and American Girl, which contrasts the growing accepting of differences among American girls with the potential harm social media can wreak on young women. Conversely, Making A Man looks at the traditional ceremonies once considered a rite of passage for a boy to become a man and how they have changed as societies modernize, leaving boys to find their own ways to become a man. "Youths are articulate and smart and key observers, and they don't have a social veil. They'll tell you what they think, and that is a true reflection of how societies really are," Susan Goldberg, editorial director of National Geographic Partners and editor in chief of National Geographic magazine, told NBC Out. by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, December 16, 2016 Interpublic Group's IPG Mediabrands announced Friday that its search and digital experience arm Reprise Media has a new global president. The agency appointed Tim Ringel to lead continuous growth and expansion. The group, which provides paid-search advertising, search engine optimization and social media services across IPG employees about 500 in 40 offices worldwide. Ringel, in the newly created position, will work closely with Craig Ellis, EVP and global head of operations at Reprise, to drive the innovation and development of core product capabilities. Based in New York, Ringel will report to Henry Tajer, global CEO, and Chris Loll, COO, NA, IPG Mediabrands. Taje said in a statement that driving the past year the network has "invested heavily in building best-in-class products, recruiting top talent and expanding the global footprint of our specialty business units." Tajer believes Ringel will continue the trend of building a network of stronger and innovative businesses to support and partner with brands. advertisement advertisement After selling metapeople Group to Netbooster Group in 2011, Tim took on the role of CEO at Netbooster Group, overseeing more than 500 employees worldwide. His LinkedIn profile describes his experience as board of directors' member since selling the company. As CEO of metapeople GmbH in 1999, Ringel predicted the impact that digital media and services would have on our industry, according to IPG. "Reprise is widely considered one of the premier search agencies in the business," said Ringel in a statement. "To lead IPG Mediabrands search and digital evolution as well as Reprises global expansion is an opportunity I couldnt pass up." In October 2016, Reprise won OMMAs Search Marketing award for an SEM Campaign. by Sara Guaglione , December 16, 2016 Facebook admitted in a Friday update to a December 9 blog post that it miscalculated publisher metrics for the fourth time since September, undercounting mobile traffic of content posted on its Instant Articles platform. ComScore, which has a partnership with Facebook, alerted the social-media company that iPhone traffic was being under-counted from September 20 to November 30, caused by a recent update of Facebooks software. Traffic from Android devices and iPads was not affected. Instant Articles is a platform where media companies can publish content directly to Facebook and have it load faster than a regular Web page without linking back to their own sites. Publishers can post their own ads on Instant Articles or have Facebook sell ads for them, relinquishing a cut to the company. advertisement advertisement According to The Wall Street Journal report, the data error impacted less than 1% of most affected publishers traffic. But others felt the blow. A source told WSJ that for some publishers, comScore estimated that some publishers traffic was under-counted by 10% to 20%. We have fixed the issue and are working with comScore to produce updated estimates for the relevant time periods for the small group of partners affected, Facebook said in the post. We have reached out to affected publishers. The Washington Post, BuzzFeed, Mic, Entrepreneur, Foreign Policy, Inverse, PopSugar and Variety, were some of the publishers affected. The miscalculated metrics have marketers, ad buyers and publishers worried. While Facebook says the discrepancy hasnt impacted billing, there is some concern that incorrect statistics affected how ad buyers allocated budgets. In November, Facebook launched a new Metrics FYI blog series that provides updates when errors and bugs are discovered to be more transparent with publishers. In all of the reported discrepancies, none had any effect on the amount advertisers were charged for Facebook advertising. Yesterday, Facebook announced it was rolling out new tools to tackle the spread of fake news on News Feeds. by Josh Engroff , Op-Ed Contributor, December 16, 2016 If you dont know me by now, you will never never never know me. Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes Two things we heard a lot about in 2016 were autonomous cars and bots, but rarely in the same sentence. True, they both share the common thread of AI, which powers the self in self-driving cars (computer vision, decisioning) and the chatty personalization of bots. But thats where the similarity ends, because most bots dont employ real AI or machine learning, but are just collections of if-then statements in a new package. Indeed, two of the things we might most associate with 2016 are bot hype and bot fatigue, which is due, no doubt, to the utter triviality of most bots. However, a number of things happened this year that carry true significance for 2017 and beyond: -- Amazon saw real success with Echo and Alexa -- Google launched Google Home, the family-room friendly container for Assistant -- Google launched the Actions on Google platform, allowing developers to create actions for Google Home (similar to what Amazon did with the Alexa Skills Kit) -- Microsofts Bot Framework is now used by more than 45,000 developers -- Google acquired API.ai, a bot-building platform -- Facebook Messenger bots now accept payments from customers without making them leave Messenger advertisement advertisement The developments above, combined with the growing demand for automation and personalization in all areas of life, will impact media and advertising significantly in the years to come. To understand why this is so and how it might play out, you have to understand where the friction points are: What does advertising not do well? What makes consumers happy or unhappy? What common interests, if any, unite brands and consumers? What does automation at scale in a retail context even look like? The inefficiency of indirect advertising The point of advertising is to get people to buy something. That shouldnt be so hard, since people, especially U.S. people, love to buy things. For better or for worse, the U.S. is a consumption-driven culture, with $4.7 trillion in annual retail sales and more than a fifth of the worlds total. But every year, millions of dollars in advertising are wasted, for various reasons: It reaches the wrong people, or it reaches the right people but with the wrong message, or it reaches the right people with the right message, but the path to purchase is either friction-packed or unmeasurable. Empowering consumer self-quantification At the same time, there is no great way for a consumer to raise a hand and say Here are the exact products I buy in your category. Want to do a deal? Im listening. To date, all the targeting innovation has been on the brand side, through pixels, tags, cookies, CRM and DMP IDs, etc. Whether they want it or not, consumers are being quantified. The huge rise in things like ad blocking, OTT streaming and time-shifting suggests that ads arent necessarily the best way to do this. What if consumers had the means to fully capture the value of their own purchasing power and could do in a way that was not only frictionless, but saved them time, spared them the barrage of irrelevant advertising, and put them on a data parity with brands? Consumer bots as autonomous agents Enter the semi-autonomous agent. This would be a consumer bot that works on any platform Facebook Messenger, Kik, Google Home where brands are present. The purpose of this bot is to negotiate and transact with brand bots on your behalf. To ensure that your MeBot is fully equipped to be a great negotiatorand in an inversion of the do not track paradigmyou tell it everything about yourself. You authorize it to access your credit card and checking accounts, as well as your summary sources of personal financial data, like Mint and Personal Capital. From this data your MeBot learns your product preferences the things you actually buy, not what you claim to like on Facebook and is able to estimate the timing of future transactions, based on your personal replacement cycle (e.g., you tend to upgrade your iPhone every 12 months, 50% faster than the category average) as well as external factors (e.g., the end of a car lease). Armed with this information, and knowing your in-market status for hundreds of items from air travel to electronics to food to spin classes your MeBot solicits offers directly from relevant brand bots, filters the best, and serves them up to you. This works in all kinds of scenarios, from loyalty to conquesting to discovery: -- You love Beats headphones, but the last pair you last bought was the wired version a year ago? Your MeBot brings you an offer for 10% off the new Powerbeats. -- Your Mercedes lease is up in three months? Your MeBot brings you an offer for $3,000 off the new BMW X5. -- You love German beer but werent aware that New Belgium just launched an Oktoberfest series? Next time youre checking out at Whole Foods, the clerk hands you a free six-pack (and some pretzels). Negotiated in advance, of course, by your MeBot. Done without bots, none of the above is precise, scalable, or obviously better than media-based solutions. In fact, it looks a lot like couponing. Done with bots, however, the advantages are huge. By automating the most tedious and time-consuming parts of these transactions, everyone benefits. Consumers get huge amounts of time back, because they no longer have to think about (or even encounter) thousands of offers bombarding them every day in every channel. Brands stop wasting money shouting at users through unattributable media channels and get to know their audiences directly. Agencies benefit too, because advertising doesnt actually end, it just gets to that place its already heading anyway: content. Great creative agencies are expert storytellers, and consumer demand for compelling content is only going up. At the same time, the most technology-friendly people in the industry work at great media agencies, a role that becomes only more important as media and technology become increasingly synonymous. For any of this to work, two things are required: scale and privacy. No consumer is going to trust her valuable financial data without absolute certainty that its encrypted, protected, and secure. Such a company would have to have bulletproof technical and financial reliability. And similarly, no consumer is going to adopt an autonomous agent unless it delivers both huge utility and zero friction. Utility here depends on network effects: If all brands are using this, I will use it. And zero friction depends on seamless data integrations with every possible partner at every point in the process. The list of companies that could accomplish both of the above is very short. Four of them go by the initials GAFA. by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, December 16, 2016 Capitol Records is seeking to take its seven-year copyright battle with Vimeo over user-uploaded clips to the U.S. Supreme Court. The dispute centers on uploads that incorporate music recorded before 1972. Capitol argues that different legal standards apply to those tracks -- including records by the Beach Boys, The Beatles, and Nat King Cole -- than to music recorded in 1972 or later. Specifically, Capitol contends that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act's "safe harbor" protections for Web platforms don't apply to music recorded before 1972. The DMCA's safe harbors broadly protect Web sites from infringement based on user uploads, provided the sites remove the material at the copyright owner's request. Capitol's argument turns on language in the Copyright Act stating that the DMCA doesn't annul or limit copyright protections that existed in individual states for music recorded before 1972. advertisement advertisement "Rights in pre-1972 sound recordings, and remedies for violations of those rights, are matters for the States to regulate and control," Capitol argues this week in a petition asking the Supreme Court to hear the case. Earlier this year, the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against Capitol on that point. The appellate judges said that Capitol's interpretation of the law "would defeat the very purpose Congress sought to achieve." "Service providers would be compelled either to incur heavy costs of monitoring every posting to be sure it did not contain infringing pre-1972 recordings, or incurring potentially crushing liabilities under state copyright laws," the appellate judges wrote. Vimeo and digital rights advocates had urged the appellate court to reach that conclusion. They said Congress passed the safe harbor provisions to enable companies to allow users to post material dynamically. If the safe harbors don't apply across the board, companies would have to vet all clips in advance, to make sure that they don't include pre-1972 recordings, Vimeo and its supporters said. Capitol, which first sued Vimeo for copyright infringement in 2009, argues in its petition that other courts, including an appellate court in New York, arrived at the opposite result. In 2013, the First Department of New York's Appellate Division ruled that Web sites aren't protected from copyright liability when users upload music recorded prior to 1972. The state judges in that case wrote: It is not unreasonable, based on the statutory language and the context in which the DMCA was enacted, to [conclude] ...that Congress intended for the DMCA only to apply to post-1972 works." Capitol says the Supreme Court should hear the appeal in order to resolve the conflict between the courts. "Diametrically opposing legal rules now apply in state and federal courts within New York State," the company writes. "This split makes it impossible for holders of rights in pre-1972 sound recordings and internet service providers alike to know what legal rules govern their conduct." by Wendy Davis , Staff Writer @wendyndavis, December 16, 2016 Earlier this month, the Federal Communications Commission said AT&T appears to violate net neutrality principles with its "Data Free TV" offering, which exempts DirecTV video streams from wireless customers' data caps. AT&T's response, issued Thursday, suggests it's not inclined to change its approach. "Data Free TV is precisely the kind of pro-consumer initiative this Commission should be encouraging," the company says in a letter to the FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau. "It delivers real value to consumers and provides another video streaming alternative to cable." Net neutrality advocates have long argued that data-cap exemptions can ultimately harm consumers as well as over-the-top online video providers. Advocates argue that broadband providers shouldn't deploy zero-rating initiatives in ways that give customers an incentive to watch video from affiliated companies, like DirecTV, at the expense of competing services like Netflix or Amazon Prime. advertisement advertisement But AT&T contends that consumers like being able to stream "data-free" video. "The Bureaus approach ... would deny consumers a service they value, raise prices, lower consumption, and curb the disruptive potential of Data Free TV," the company writes. The telecom points out that rival carrier T-Mobile said Thursday that it will give defecting AT&T customers one year's worth of DirecTV Now -- which would otherwise cost $35 a month. That move, according to AT&T, proves that its new offering is "driving innovation, lowering prices, and increasing consumer value." AT&T also notes in its letter that Ajit Pai and Michael O'Rielly, the two Republicans on the FCC, disagree with the Wireless Bureau's stance. "Two FCC Commissioners, both of whom will remain in office after the imminent change of administration, criticized this investigation and warned the Bureau against unlawfully usurping core policymaking powers that only the Commission may exercise," AT&T writes. "Their remarks confirm that the Bureau lacks delegated authority to pull the plug on Data Free TV and disrupt service to the millions of customers who now enjoy that feature." by Steve McClellan @mp_mcclellan, December 16, 2016 IPG Mediabrands has appointed Tim Ringel global president, Reprise. In this new role at the agency, Ringel is tasked with leading the shop and expanding its search and digital services. According to the agency, Ringel will work with Craig Ellis, EVP, global head of operations, Reprise, to drive innovation and development of core product capabilities, and grow the client roster. Based in New York, Ringel will report into Henry Tajer, global CEO, and Chris Loll, chief operating officer, NA, IPG Mediabrands. Over the last year, our network has invested heavily in building best-in-class products, recruiting top talent and expanding the global footprint of our specialty business units, Tajer stated. In hiring Tim, we are continuing this trend of building stronger, more innovative and dynamic business units to support and partner with our clients and our network. advertisement advertisement Ringels 20-year career has spanned Europe, North America and the Pacific. In 1999, he established analytics firm metapeople Group, which he sold to French digital agency Netbooster in 2011. At the time of the sale he became CEO at Netbooster Group, overseeing more than 500 employees around the world. In October 2016, Reprise won OMMAs Search Marketing award for an SEM Campaign. Rather than kill Vine, Twitter has decided to offer Vine Camera -- a pared-down version of the video app. With this camera app, youll still be able to make six-second looping videos and either post them directly to Twitter or save them to your phone, Twitter -- Vines parent company -- notes in a new blog post. Vine Camera is expected to launch in January. Till then, the company plans to help Vine publishers encourage their fans to follow them on Twitter. A Follow on Twitter notification should be available shortly. Twitter is also inviting Vine users to download their videos through the app or the Web site. All of your Vines will continue to live on the vine.co site, so you can browse all of the amazing videos you created over the years, Twitter promises. advertisement advertisement In October, Twitter shocked loyal Vine users and advertisers alike with its decision to discontinue the pioneering app. Since its debut in 2013, Vine has changed the way millions of users experienced media. Short, snappy and mobile-friendly, many of the video clips shared on Vine have proved irresistible. More recently, Vine has become something of an afterthought for many Snapchat-obsessed users. In turn, top Viners have taken their talents elsewhere -- but not before demanding Twitter compensate them for the work. This year, Madison Avenue sort of forget about the app, as Tina Yip, a strategist at Big Spaceship, recently noted in MediaPost. Yet, news of Vines demise was still startling, given the enormous popularity of video apps in general, and Vines still-respectable market share. Recently, in fact, research conducted by the National Cyber Security Alliance and Microsoft found that 31% of U.S. teens still use Vine -- far less than the 91% who use YouTube, but not far behind the 40% who use Twitter, and more than the 24% who use Tumblr. As Yip at Big Spaceship tell it, there are (were?) still loads of great opportunities for brands on Vine. Estimados amigos, Les doy cordialmente la bienvenida a este Blog informativo con articulos, analisis y comentarios de publicaciones especializadas y especialmente seleccionadas, principalmente sobre temas economicos, financieros y politicos de actualidad, que esperamos y deseamos, sean de su maximo interes, utilidad y conveniencia. Pensamos que solo comprendiendo cabalmente el presente, es que podemos proyectarnos acertadamente hacia el futuro. Las convicciones son mas peligrosos enemigos de la verdad que las mentiras. There are decades when nothing happens and there are weeks when decades happen. You only find out who is swimming naked when the tide goes out. No soy alguien que sabe, sino alguien que busca. Only Gold is money. Everything else is debt. Las grandes almas tienen voluntades; las debiles tan solo deseos. Quien no lo ha dado todo no ha dado nada. History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce. If you know the other and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. We are travelers on a cosmic journey, stardust, swirling and dancing in the eddies and whirlpools of infinity. Life is eternal. We have stopped for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share.This is a precious moment. It is a little parenthesis in eternity. Advertisement "For older Americans living with painful and debilitating diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, spondyloarthritis, and psoriatic arthritis, safe access to biologic therapies is not an option but a necessity - which is why the ACR has been vocal in expressing our concerns about the unintended consequences of this proposal and its flawed cost-savings premise. This positive outcome will help ensure Medicare beneficiaries living with rheumatic diseases are able to continue receiving the therapies they need to manage their chronic conditions and avoid pain and disability."From the time it was proposed in March 2016, the ACR has voiced strong opposition to the proposed rule. In detailed comments submitted to CMS earlier this year, the ACR expressed concerns about the lack of less expensive yet clinically equivalent biologic therapy options in the marketplace for Medicare patients living with rheumatic diseases, as well as the safety and health dangers posed by switching from a biologic therapy that works well for the patient.The ACR has also noted that many rheumatologists - particularly small or rural practices that lack the ability to negotiate bulk discounts with pharmaceutical companies - have already been forced to stop administering biologic therapies to Medicare patients because the current Part B payment structure does not cover the costs of obtaining and providing these complex therapies in the outpatient setting. If the additional payment cuts proposed by CMS in the Part B Demonstration Project were to go through, the ACR warned that many rheumatology patients would be forced into less safe or more expensive settings to receive needed therapies, if these patients were able to receive them at all.More than 52.5 million people - one in five Americans - live with rheumatic diseases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Rheumatic diseases are the nation's leading cause of disability, contributing more than $128 billion in costs to the U.S. healthcare system each year.Source: Eurekalert Advertisement Both studies retrospectively included patients attending eight sites in six countries during 1990 to 2016. The first study outlines the epidemiology, real world treatment and clinical outcomes of angiosarcoma in Asia. The median age of the 423 patients was 67 years, about 60% had cutaneous angiosarcoma (they were more likely to be older, male, and have localised disease), while 40% had visceral angiosarcoma.In the localised setting, only about 60% of patients underwent surgery, but this was significantly lower in the cutaneous (55%) than visceral (75%) cohort. In those who underwent surgery, negative margins were only achieved in approximately 70% of cases. Close to half of patients who underwent surgery relapsed. Median relapse free survival was just 12.3 months with no statistical difference between the cutaneous (12.9 months) versus visceral (9.5 months) groups. Patients were more likely to relapse if they were more than 65 years old or had positive surgical margins.In the advanced setting, only about half of patients received chemotherapy. Median overall survival was 9.5 months with no significant difference between cutaneous (11.5 months) and visceral (8.3 months) groups. ECOG (Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group) performance status was an independent predictor of survival. However, after adjusting for ECOG performance status, overall survival was significantly better in patients who received chemotherapy than those who did not."This is one of the largest studies in angiosarcoma and we found that overall prognosis was poor," said lead author Professor Richard Quek, deputy head and senior consultant, National Cancer Centre Singapore. "In patients with localised disease, negative surgical margin was prognostic for relapse free survival yet it was only achieved in 70% of patients. Neoadjuvant (pre-operative) treatment, be it chemotherapy or radiation, might enhance resectability of these tumours and thereby improve survival outcomes."Quek continued: "In patients with advanced disease we demonstrated that after adjusting for ECOG performance status, chemotherapy was associated with improved overall survival. But only half of our patients actually received chemotherapy, hence it would be important to understand the reasons behind this low treatment rate. Could these be physician-related factors? And if so, is more sarcoma-related continuing medical education needed to enhance care for our patients?"The second angiosarcoma study outlined the clinical characteristics and treatment of 277 patients with advanced metastatic or unresectable disease. The median age was 64 years. The predictors of better prognosis were younger age, female sex, and cutaneous (rather than visceral) disease. Use of chemotherapy gradually increased over the 20-year period, with a preference for paclitaxel and liposomal doxorubicin over other treatments. Progression-free survival in patients receiving at least one line of chemotherapy was 3.8 months. Overall survival was 8.3 months but was significantly higher in patients who received at least one line of palliative chemotherapy (11.5 months) than those who did not (4.4 months)."It's the first time we have data on expected survival for Asian patients with advanced metastatic or unresectable angiosarcoma," said lead author Dr Tom Chen, attending physician, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan. "This data will help us to develop clinical trials and new treatments for Asian angiosarcoma patients."The third study focused on Ewing sarcoma-like small round cell sarcomas.3 Ewing sarcoma is molecularly characterised by a EWSR1 gene alteration or FUS rearrangement. Small round cell sarcomas without these molecular characteristics are designated "Ewing sarcoma-like" disease. Recent molecular genetic studies have identified CIC-rearranged sarcoma (CIC-DUX4, CIC-DUX4L, CIC-FOXO4) and BCOR-rearranged sarcoma (BCOR-CCNB3, BCOR-MAML3, ZC3H7B-BCOR) among these Ewing sarcoma-like small round cell sarcomas. The study presented today describes the clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes of these two sarcomas.The study included 17 patients with CIC sarcoma, of whom 12 were male. Median age was 22 years, all cases were soft tissue tumours, and 59% of patients had local pain. The seven BCOR sarcoma patients were all male. Median age was 14 years and cases included bone and soft tissue tumours.The five-year overall survival rate was 28.2% for CIC sarcoma and 100% for BCOR sarcoma. Metastases were present in 71% of CIC patients at the initial visit and none of the BCOR patients. Only 29% of CIC patients responded to chemotherapy compared to 75% of BCOR patients."CIC-rearranged sarcomas have a much worse prognosis than BCOR-rearranged sarcomas," said lead author Dr Makoto Endo, attending physician, National Cancer Centre, Tokyo, Japan. "CIC and BCOR sarcomas were previously classified as the same tumour. Our research will help us to make a precise diagnosis and should improve the management of these patients."Commenting on the studies, Professor Thomas Brodowicz, programme director, Bone and Soft Tissue-Sarcoma Unit, Medical University Vienna, Austria, said: "The two studies on angiosarcoma show that immediate progression-free survival and overall survival are low, which reflects the aggressiveness of this disease. It would be useful to have a more detailed breakdown of the patients - for example, the treatment and outcomes of primary angiosarcoma versus secondary, which forms at the site of radiation treatment for a previous cancer. It would also be helpful to know whether paclitaxel is more effective when taken every three weeks or weekly, which has an antiangiogenic effect that could be beneficial in angiosarcoma."He continued: "The study by Dr Endo provides practice-changing information. It shows that Ewing sarcoma-like small round cell sarcomas can be further categorised by their specific mutations, which have a strong prognostic impact. This should help us to tailor treatment."Source: Eurekalert Advertisement Jose M. Ayuso, Maria Virumbrales-Munoz, Alodia Lacueva, Pilar M. Lanuza, Elisa Checa-Chavarria, Pablo Botella, Eduardo Fernandez, Manuel Doblare, Simon J. Allison, Roger M. Phillips, Julian Pardo, Luis J. Fernandez & Ignacio Ochoa. 'Development and characterization of a microfluidic model of the tumour microenvironment'Scientific Reports 6, (2016) doi:10.1038/srep36086 The microfluidic device was developed by Professor Roger Phillips and Dr Simon Allison at the University of Huddersfield formed a collaboration with researchers in Spain - based at institutions that include the Aragon Institute of Biomedical Research.The device is made of glass which enables researchers to visualize the microenvironment and monitor the response of tumor cells to the anti-cancer drug.The test cells grown in the lab can be spheroid. The 3D nature cells inside the microfluidic device allow the researchers to visualize what is happening to them internally while interacting with the drug, explained Professor Phillips, specialist in the evaluation of new anti-cancer drugs."We can see the drugs moving in, and see hypoxia developing in the center," said Professor Phillips. The microfluidic device could also be used for a wide range of other applications.In the recent years, there have been major improvements in knowledge of cancer cell biology, but clinical approval of new drugs has not kept pace. Development of in vitro preclinical models that are better predictors of success in advanced preclinical and clinical testing could speed up the drug adoption process.The researchers hope that the microfluidic device could help address the urgent need for new in vitro model to mimic the key aspects of the tumor microenvironment and therefore allow early assessment of the anti-cancer drugs, speeding up the adoption of those that are shown to be therapeutically effective.Researchers have described the microfluidic device in, from the publishers of leading journal Nature, titled "Development and characterization of a microfluidic model of the tumor microenvironment."Cancer is defined as the abnormal growth of cells with loss of differentiation and metastasis. Anti-cancer drugs are used to control the growth of tumor cells. Anti-cancer drugs are also known as Antineoplastic that prevents or inhibit the maturation and proliferation of neoplasms. There is a whole range of different anti-cancer drug treatment options. The latest anti-cancer drugs are called Biologics.Source: Medindia Advertisement As executive director of the Simon A. Levin Mathematical and Computational Modeling Sciences Center, Castillo-Chavez isn't satisfied with the traditional mathematical epidemiological approach to tracking these diseases, which relies heavily on the amount of per capita points of "collisions" between those with a disease and others not yet infected. These models often fall short because they fail to take into account the unique complicating factors of what is referred to in the study as a "patch" (or a zone of shared socioeconomic, geographic or other traits) where those interactions occurred.Instead, Castillo-Chavez is now looking at and prompting others in his field to consider the intersection of two evolving approaches that could be used to better address the problem.The first is economic epidemiological modeling (EEM), which includes examining information flow in affected areas and the financial risk/reward perceptions that may drive movement of individuals to, from, and within affected "patches." An example might be someone having to choose between self-quarantine as a protection strategy versus leaving home during an outbreak to go to work and receive income - which can also be a matter of life and death.The second is the Lagrangian approach, which also assists with projecting human crowd movement and behavior, but broadens the scope of patches considered related to a disease and allows them be assigned their own associated risk of infection per residency time. This information can then be layered over EEM-driven population mobility calculations for more accurate transmission projections."The Lagrangian perspective has helped increase our understanding of the consequences of the deliberate release of biological agents in 2003 and most recently in the study of Ebola in West Africa and Zika in the Americas," Castillo-Chavez notes.Both the development and the application of these types of new, complex mathematical and social theories would be no easy feat. But it might be a first step towards the goal of identifying consistent patterns - such as those starting to emerge in the study of host-parasite systems - that can account for not just known and recurrent variables, but also emergent natural and social shifts in a world where people can move anywhere, at nearly any time."These efforts emerged as the result of multi-institutional collaborators that met regularly at NIMBioS in Tennessee with the support of NSF for more than two years," Castillo-Chavez says. "The research has been carried out with my former students and postdoctoral associates Benjamin Morin, now at Vassar and Derdei Bichara, now at Cal State Fullerton."Source: Eurekalert The problem is that there really is no good word in the English language to describe who and what the Kurds are today. They are not quite a nation, and yet they are more than an ethnicity. Historian David McDowall has noted that before the Kurds began to define themselves ethnically around the 17th and 18th centuries, the term Kurd referred more to a socioeconomic class of nomadic tribes who moved from the mountains that define the borders between Turkey, Syria and Iraq, to the various plateaus around them. This definition remains part of Kurdish culture today even as it becomes more settled and less nomadic. One thing the Kurds do all share in common is the mountains, a geographic feature that gives Kurds a common perspective as well as a reason so many different pockets of Kurds have developed. The Kurds have no friend but the mountains is a common Kurdish expression that seems to exist everywhere Kurds live. When things get difficult on the plateaus and the plains, the Kurds retreat into the mountains defenses. One Kurdish myth about the beginnings of the Kurdish people describes the Kurds as descendent from children who fled into the mountains to hide from Zahhak, who is either a terrifying dragon, a child-eating giant or an evil king bent on oppression. Zahhak is also a fairly common character in ancient Persian mythology, which perhaps says something about Kurdish origins as well. The myths of Kurdish origins may seem a silly place to end, but in some ways it is the most revealing, because for all of the Kurds differences, there is a common perspective, as well as a growing awareness of what it means to be Kurdish in a Middle East where old borders are crumbling left and right. The Balkan Peninsula is another place where the mountains have always imparted a deep, almost mystical fascination, but no one would confuse Serbs, Croats, Bosniaks and Montenegrins whose languages are more similar to each other than Kurdish languages are today as members of the same nation. Despite the Kurds internal differences, there is undeniably a group of people today who all identify as Kurds one way or another, even if those ways mean vastly different things to different groups. Independence is not something that can be given to the Kurds. Self-determination is won, not bestowed. If some kind of unified Kurdish national identity were to emerge, it could become a powerful force. But there is no guarantee that this vision of a united, independent Kurdistan will ever come to pass, and if it does, it will happen slowly over decades and perhaps even centuries. New nations can and do emerge over time, but they are not forged overnight, and in the meantime the U.S. requires partners of sufficient reliability and power to manage the Middle Easts instability without the constant presence of U.S. troops. Right now, that means the U.S. must rely on Turkey and Iran, neither of which are interested in a meaningful Kurdish independence movement (or movements for that matter). Another comment Trump made about the Kurds during his campaign was that the U.S. should be using and utilizing those people. The U.S. will continue to do just that, and little more. The Kurds have no friends but the mountains. Photo by via Facebook We rely on your support to make local news available to all Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2022. Donate today Yes, you can transfer your domain to any registrar or hosting company once you have purchased it. Since domain transfers are a manual process, it can take up to 5 days to transfer the domain. Domains purchased with payment plans are not eligible to transfer until all payments have been made. Please remember that our 30-day money back guarantee is void once a domain has been transferred. For transfer instructions to GoDaddy, please click here. The Foreign Ministry expresses its deep grief at the passing of Ambassador emeritus Alexios G. Christopoulos. Alexios G. Christopoulos served his country with responsibility and was distinguished for his ethos, dedication and conscientiousness in the execution of his duties. Ambassador Alexios G. Christopoulos entered the Diplomatic Service in 1977, was posted to Belgrade, Washington and the Consulate General in Hamburg, and served as Ambassador to Indonesia and Australia. Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias, the political and civil leadership of the Ministry and Alexios G. Christopoulos's colleagues express sincere condolences to his family and loved ones. Michael Stewart, a former Bronx resident who was suspected of murdering his girlfriend 23 years ago, was arrested last night according to police. Stewart's alleged crime dated back to September 20th, 1993, when police and EMS found 22-year-old Sofia Blair dead in a Bronx apartment with a gunshot wound to the head. According to police, Stewart and Blair were in a relationship, and the then-33-year-old drug dealer wanted Blair to flee the country with him. When she refused, Stewart allegedly shot her and left Blair, and their still-living infant son, in their Bronx apartment on Creston Avenue. Stewart then fled the country, on a flight to Jamaica. The investigation into Blair's murder was re-opened in 2014, when police learned that Stewart may have re-entered the country under a false name. According to the Daily News, the State Department also helped track Stewart down to Connecticut, where he had recently been arrested for identity theft. Stewart was extradited to New York following a police interview, and faces a charge of murder in the second degree. An 18-month old child died last night after her parents found her unconscious and unresponsive in the back of a tractor trailer cab in Harlem, police say. A NYPD spokesperson said that the baby girl, her 10-year-old older brother and her mother were in the sleeper cab of their father's tractor trailer while he was making a delivery to a 99 cent store near West 150th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue. The girl's mother noticed that she wasn't breathing and called the police. Police who responded to the call at about 8:45 p.m. last night rushed the baby to Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital, where she was pronounced dead. The baby was identified as Michaela Henry of Hartford, Connecticut. A cause of death has not been determined yet. A multi-agency investigation between federal and local law enforcement officials resulted in the seizure of 250 pounds of psychedelic mushrooms from a grow house in Sheepshead Bay yesterday, acting Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced in a press release. Detectives who raided a house on East 13th Street in Sheesphead Bay found over 200 pounds of psylocybin mushrooms, over $30,000 in cash, more than 300 gift cards and an ounce of pot. In a second house, on East 11th Street, police seized over 50 pounds of mushrooms and $400 in cash. The NYPD worked with the Drug Enforcement Agency, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the New York State police on the investigation, which resulted in the arrest of three men. Vitali Yaromin, 50, of East 13th Street in Sheepshead Bay; Nikita Medvedev, 26, of Staten Island; and Maksym Lyushnenko, 47, of East 11th Street in Sheepshead Bay have all been charged with second- and third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and second-degree criminally using drug paraphernalia. "These individuals grew mind-altering mushrooms right in our own backyard of Brooklyn. At a few hundred dollars an ounce, this was no small business. But they were hallucinating on their own product if they had thought they could hide from the law," ICE Special Agent Angel Melendez said in a statement. Police put the street value of the seizure at almost $2 million, but did not say whether the mushrooms would work better at a laser light show or at a Phish show. Dozens of protesters gathered in the bitter cold in Washington Square Park on Friday evening to show their support for the people of Aleppo, Syria, many of whom are currently trapped in the bombarded city pending evacuation. A few members of the crowd of about 60 protesters waved large black, white, and green flags with "FREEDOM" written on themthe flags of the Free Syrian Army. Other protesters carried homemade signs denouncing the situation in Aleppo and expressing support for the city's people. One of the protest's organizers, 16-year-old Hebh Jamal, told Gothamist she planned the event with a fellow student at Beacon High School near Times Square. "I just made a Facebook event," Jamal said. The protesters were drawn to the vigil for different reasonssome supported the Free Syrian Army, others opposed Assad's government, and others just wanted to see an end to the ongoing conflict and called for the U.S government to take in more refugees. They stood huddled together in the cold, chanting "Assad is a terrorist criminal!" and "ISIS out of Syria now! Putin out of Syria now! Assad out of Syria now!" and lit candles in memory of the civilians who are trapped in the middle of a fight between Assad's government and rebel forces. The International Committee of the Red Cross told the Huffington Post on Saturday that thousands of cold, injured, and scared civilians are still waiting to be evacuated from East Aleppo. Officials from both the rebel army and Assad's government reportedly said this morning that the evacuation of Aleppo would resume, and civilians from neighboring Shi'ite villages, two towns near the Lebanese border, and East Aleppo would also be evacuated. "We're calling for the end of genocide, which isn't much to ask," she Jamal told Gothamist as the crowd behind her chanted "Free, free Syria!" "We should be having protests every single day," she added. "We need to stand together in solidarity, reject hate, reject fascism. I'm actually kind of disappointed1,000 people said they would show up, but about 100 came. We need to organize, and we need more people." A Syrian woman who gave her name as Salma said that she would like to see the U.S. government take more action. "They could have done a no-fly zone, for example. Putin is supporting Assad's government, Obama could have been supporting the anti-Assad government. But sometimes when you intervene, things can get worse." During his final presidential press conference Friday afternoon, President Obama said that the U.S. would have had to be "all in and willing to take over Syria" for him to intervene more forcefully in the ongoing war. Last week, the Pentagon announced that an additional 200 troops would be deployed to Syria to help Kurdish and Arab fighters fight ISIS. "Life in Syria is very difficult. There are a lot of barricades, their Secret Service is constantly watching you," Salma said. "There's no electricity sometimes, or water. I want peace. I want a change of governmentfreedom, basic liberties, basic human rights." TUSCOLA COUNTY - Although a break in the alleged ethnic intimidation case in southern Tuscola County was announced Monday, the wheels of justice turn slowly. "There are several aspects to this case being reviewed. It will take some time to go over it," said Tuscola County Prosecutor Mark Reene. According to Reene, he expects issue an arrest warrant and to file charges next week. The allegations of ethnic intimidation began when Tuscola Sheriff County Deputy Steve Roland responded to a complaint Nov. 12 at a residence on Smith Road in Koylton Township where a family of Mexican descent lives. There were several boxes with graffiti taped together blocking the driveway like a wall. The wording on the boxes was about Donald Trump taking back America and Mexicans suck. Also, a doll made of balloons was hanging nearby and vulgar graffiti spray painted on their driveway. After Roland completed his initial investigation, he was assisted by sheriff Detectives Scott Jones and Robert Baxter. From the evidence collected, the detectives were able to identify suspects, said Sheriff Elect Glen Skrent. "The detectives conducted many interviews and were able to obtain good information to complete the investigation," according to Skrent. Their report has been turned over to Reene for review. "More information will be provided after I review the investigation," Reene said. The sheriff's department was assisted by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) special agents because ethnic intimidation is a federal offense. Koylton Township boarders Sanilac and Lapeer counties. UPPER THUMB With legislation likely to be signed by the governor that increases the mandate for renewable energy in Michigan, a local official says it's someone else's turn to host wind turbines. "We've done our part," said John Bodis, chairman of the Huron County Board of Commissioners. "Let them find some other place to build them." He added there isn't much buildable land left among county-zoned townships for turbines. "My preference would be that there be no mandate," Bodis said. He spoke recently with State Rep. Edward Canfield, R-Sebewaing, about the legislation. "We spoke about it and that seemed to be a contentious issue with him," Bodis said. In the Michigan House of Representatives' final voting session of the year, Canfield voted against Senate Bill 437 yesterday, which calls for requiring electric providers to produce 15 percent of their power from wind or other renewable sources by the end of 2021, up from 10 percent now. The bill also set a non-binding goal of meeting 35 percent of Michigan's power needs by 2025 through a combination of renewable energy and energy conservation. "I really felt I had to vote my district on this," Canfield said. "I don't like to go against what the governor wants." "I took a lump for good policy by voting as the voters wanted me to vote." Senate Bills 437 and 438, which passed 79-28 and 76-31 with bipartisan votes in the House, then cleared the Senate 33-4 at night. Republican Gov. Rick Snyder will sign the legislation, which has been one of his top priorities at a time when many coal-fired power plants are closing. Canfield said that many people of Huron and Tuscola counties are against mandated renewable energy requirements. "We've done our share in Huron and Tuscola counties," Canfield said. "I'm not against wind energy. I want to protect our counties from being mandated to provide more." Renewable requirements should be spread around the state, he said. "I believe in renewable energy. I want us to improve our renewable energy, but I don't believe in mandates ... Huron County has 400-plus windmills already." Michigan now uses between 12.5 and 14.7 percent renewable energy, Canfield said. "The thought is that this is not going to affect our district, even though a mandate has occurred," he added. "The governor says our area is not going to be unfairly put upon by this legislation." John J. Austerberry, manager of corporate communications for DTE Energy, said the proposed Filion wind park is the only thing on DTE's development schedule for Huron County. "There is nothing in the legislation that specifically requires a particular generating technology, and it doesn't prescribe a specific location. We are looking at options across the state for additional development." Canfield voted for Senate Bill 438, which revises utility regulations. He said it protects energy choice. Canfield was against the original requirements of the bill, which he said would end energy choice. "I think that we need to have some choice," he said, noting that the legislation protects local school districts. The 84th district would save $2 million on energy with the legislation, mostly in schools, Canfield said "The legislation sustains the 10-percent electric choice market in Michigan while protecting energy reliability for all Michiganders," Austerberry said. "It also supports the transition of the state's energy infrastructure to modern, cleaner generating technologies with provisions to maintain affordability. It addresses these issues in a fair and constructive way and provides a framework for the state to plan for its own energy future." The legislation renames the 2008 Clean, Renewable, and Efficient Energy Act as the Clean and Renewable and Energy Waste Reduction Act. Other than the renewable energy requirements, the bill would: Keep intact, at least through 2021, a requirement that utilities save a minimum amount of power each year with efficiency programs but also boost incentives for utilities that hit higher targets. "That is going to save a significant amount of money for businesses and homeowners across the state as they use less and less energy because their homes and their businesses are retrofitted to be able to manage their energy costs much better," said Rep. Sam Singh, an East Lansing Democrat who also touted the higher green power requirement. Detail how state regulators would set capacity charges that customers of alternative suppliers, which supply the power through the utilities' distribution systems, could have to pay to help meet peak reserve margins. A coalition of major companies and school districts that now buy in the choice market said it secured "guardrails" if a Public Service Commission process is used instead of one through a regional transmission entity. Specify that if customers return to their home utility, they could not go back to a competitor for six years. Because the 10 percent limit has been reached, more than 11,000 Consumers and DTE customers are in a queue waiting to buy from competitors. The legislation specifies that if market conditions change, competitors lose customers in mass to the utilities with no new customers to take their place and choice falls below 10 percent, that new ratio would become the cap for six years. "This is a big win for our friends and neighbors and hometown residential ratepayers across the state and it's a win for in-state Michigan energy," said House Energy Policy Committee Chairman Aric Nesbitt, a Lawton Republican. "Everybody gave a little to produce what I think is a good long-term energy package." Not apply for now a "grid" charge to new customers participating in a net metering program, instead requiring a study to determine an appropriate fee. These are residents and businesses with their own wind turbines, solar panels or other types of renewable sources that reduce their electric bills. The Associated Press contributed to this report. The following companies are subsidiares of Accenture: 2nd Road, ?What If!, ?What If! China Holdings Limited, ?What If! Holdings Limited, ?What If! 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Ltd., FutureMove Automotive, FutureMove Automotive Co. Ltd., GRA Supply Chain Pty Ltd, Gagel Group S de R.L. de C.V., Gapso Servicos de Informatica Ltda, Gapso Servicos de Informatica Ltda., Genfour, George Group Consulting L.P., Gestalt LLC, Gevity, Gren utvikling AS, H.B. Maynard and Co. Inc., HRC Retail Advisory, Hagberg Consulting Group, Hahntel Ltda, Halo Partners LLC, Hamilton Holding Company S.A, Hangzhou Aiyunzhe Technology Co. Ltd., Happen, Happen GP Limited, Happen Limited, Headspring, Hjaltelin Stahl, Hjaltelin Stahl A/S, Hjaltelin Stahl K/S, Hytracc Consulting AS, Hytracc Consulting AS, Hytracc Consulting Malaysia Sdn Bhd, IBB Consulting, ICM.S S.r.l., IMJ Corp, IMJ Corporation, INSITUM, IQSP Consulting LLC, IT One Company Limited, ITBS Servicios Bancarios de Tecnologia de la Informacion SL, Icon Integration, Icon Integration (NZ) Limited, Icon Integration Pty Ltd, Imagine Broadband (USA) Limited, Imagine Broadband USA LLC, Imaginea Inc, Imaginea Technologies LLC, Industrie IT (Hong Kong) Ltd, Industrie IT (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Industrie IT Group Pty Ltd, Industrie IT Pty Ltd, Industrie&Co, Infinity Works Consulting Limited, Infinity Works Holdings Limited, Infinity Works Management Limited, Infinity Works Midco Limited, Informatica de Euskadi S.L., Innotec International EAD, Innotec International S.p. z.o.o., Innotec Marketing GmbH, Innotec Marketing International Ireland Limited, Innotec- Marketing Spain S.L, Insitum Consultoria Argentina SRL, Insitum Consultoria S.A. de C.V., International Biometric Group LLC, International Biometric Group UK Limited, Intrepid, Intrepid Futureworks Sdn Bhd, Intrigo Systems Inc, Intrigo Systems India Pvt. Limited, Intrigo Systems LLC, Inventor Technology Ltd, InvestTech, Investtech Systems Consulting LLC, ItSafer Continuity Services S.L., JKD Consulting LLC, Javelin Group, K Comms Group Limited, KSC Studio LLC, Kaper Communications Limited, Karma Communications Debtco Limited, Karma Communications Group Limited, Karma Communications Holdings Limited, Karmarama, Karmarama Comms Limited, Karmarama Limited, King James Group, Knowledge Rules Inc., Knowledgent, Knowledgent Group LLC, Kogentix, Kogentix LLC, Kogentix Limited, Kogentix Singapore Pte Ltd, Kogentix Technologies Private Limited, Kolle Rebbe, Kolle Rebbe GmbH, Kream Comms Limited, Kunstmaan, Kurt Salmon, Kurt Salmon Canada LTD, Kurt Salmon US LLC, LEXTA, LINKBYNET, LINKBYNET Indian Ocean (L.I.O) Ltd, LabAnswer, Lexta GmbH, Lexta UK Limited, Lien par le reseau Inc, Lien par le reseau infrastructures Inc, Lin Bo (Shanghai) Network Technology Co. Ltd., Link By Net SAS, Link By Net SRL, Link By Net Vietnam Company Limited, Linkbynet East Asia Ltd, Linkbynet Singapore Pte Ltd., Loud & Clear Creative Pty Ltd, Lumenup S.A., MAXIM Systems Inc., MCG US Holdings LLC, Mackevision CG Technology and Service (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Mackevision Japan Co. Ltd., Mackevision Korea Ltd, Mackevision LLC, Mackevision Medien Design, Mackevision Medien Design GmbH, Mackevision Singapore Pte Ltd, Mackevision UK Limited, Maglan, Maglan Information Defense Technologies Research Ltd, Maihiro, Matter, Maud Corp Pty Ltd, Maxamine International, Measuretek LLC, Media Audits Ltd., Media Hive, Mediasenz Pty Ltd., Meredith Specialty LLC, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing LLC, Meridian Informed Purchasing Ltd., Mindtribe, Mistral Wind Operations Servicos Empresariais Unipessoal Lda., MobGen, Mortgage Cadence LLC, Mortgage Cadence an Accenture Company, Most Champion Ltd, Mudano, Mudano Limited, Myrtle Consulting Group LLC, N3, N3 (Dalian) Business Consulting Co. Ltd., N3 Brazil Consultoria em Marketing Ltda, N3 Germany GmbH, N3 LLC, N3 North America LLC, N3 Results Australia Pty Ltd, N3 Results Ireland Limited, N3 Results Japan G.K., N3 Results Limited, N3 Results Malaysia Sdn Bhd, N3 Results Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., N3 Results S.A.S., N3 Results Singapore Pte Ltd, N3 Results Unipessoal Lda, NYTEC, Nanjing Demeng Advertising Co. Ltd., Nashco Consulting, NaviSys Inc., Nell'Armonia Israel Ltd, Nell'Armonia SAS, Nell'Participation SAS, NellArmonia, Neo Metrics Analytics S.L., Neo Metrics Chile S.A., New Content, New Content Editora e Produtora Ltda, New Energy Group, News Imaging LLC, NewsPage, NewsPage (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, NewsPage Pte Ltd, Northstream, Novetta Holdings LLC, Novetta LLC, Novetta Solutions LLC, Novetta Topco LLC, OCTO Technology, OPS Rules Management Consultants, Octagon Research Solutions Inc., Octo Technology Pty Ltd, Octo Technology SA, Odgaard ApS, Olikka, Olikka Pty Ltd, Olympus Systems Corporation, Openmind, Openmind S.r..l., Openminded, Openminded SAS, Operaciones Accenture S.A. de C.V., OpusLine, Orbium, Orbium AG, Orbium Consulting Limited, Orbium Inc., Orbium Ltd, Orbium Pte Ltd, Orbium Pty Ltd, Origin Digital, PCO Innovation, PLM Systems S.r.l, PRION GmbH, PT Accenture, PT Asta Catur Indra, PT Kogentix Teknologi Indonesia, PacificLink Group, Paja Finanssipalvelut Oy, Parker Fitzgerald Inc, Parker Fitzgerald International Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Limited, Parker Fitzgerald PTY Ltd, Parker Fitzgerald Services Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Solutions Limited, Pecaso Ltd., Pegasus Production A/S, Pegasus Production K/S, Phase One Consulting Group, Pillar Technology, Pollux, Pollux Automation Mexico S.A. de C.V., Pollux Canada Inc, Pollux S.A.S., Pollux USA LLC, Pragsis Bidoop, Pragsis Bidoop UK Limited, Pramati Technologies Europe Limited, Pramati Technologies Private Limited, Presence of IT Workforce Management North America LLC, PrimeQ, PrimeQ Australia Pty Ltd, PrimeQ Ltd, PrimeQ NZ Pty Limited, Procurian Inc., Prof. Homburg GmbH, Proquire LLC, PureApps Ltd., Qi Jie Beijing Information Technologies Co. Ltd., RBCP Fund 1-A Vapor Blocker LLC, RBCP Platform Vapor Blocker I LLC, REPL Consulting LLC, REPL Consulting Limited, REPL Digital Limited, REPL Group K.K., REPL Group Pty Ltd, REPL Group Worldwide Limited, REPL Pte Ltd, REPL Software Limited, REPL Technology Limited, Radiant Services LLC, Random Walk Computing Inc., Reactive Media Pty Ltd., Real Protect, Realworld OO Systems Ltd., Redcore, Redcore (New Zealand) Limited, Redcore Group Holdings Pty Ltd, Redcore Pty Ltd, Revolutionary Security, RiskControl, Root LLC, Rothco, Rothco Limited, S3 TV Technology Ltd., SALT Solutions GmbH, SEC Servizi, SOPIA Corp., Sagacious Consultants, Salt Solutions, Sandbox Studio LLC, Sapling Bidco Limited, Sapling Midco Limited, Sapling Topco Limited, Schlumberger Business Consulting, Seabury Aviation & Aerospace (UK) Limited, Seabury Consulting, Seabury Corporate Advisors LLC, Seabury Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Search Technologies BPO Inc, Search Technologies International LLC, Search Technologies LLC, Search Technologies Limited, Securiview SAS, Sentelis, Sentor Managed Secuirty Services AB, Servicios Tecnicos de Programacion Accenture S.C., Seven Seas Business Ventures LLC, Shackleton, Shackleton Chile S.A., Shackleton S.L.U., Shanghai Baiyue Advertising Co. Ltd., Shun Zhe Technology Development Co. Ltd., SigInt Technologies LLC, Silveo, Silveo Consulting India Private Limited, Simian Pty Ltd, SinnerSchrader, SinnerSchrader AG, SinnerSchrader Content GmbH, SinnerSchrader Deutschland GmbH, SinnerSchrader Praha s.r.o., Sirvart S.A., Sistemes Consulting S.L., Skylink SAS, Soltians Limited, Solutions IQ LLC, SolutionsIQ, SolutionsIQ India Consulting Services Private Limited, Somers Ventures Ireland Limited, Somers Ventures LLC, Spacelink SAS, Storm Digital, Structure Consulting Group LLC, Sutter Mills, Synership LLC, Systor AG, T.A. Cook, TXF LLC, Tambourine, TargetST8, Tech - Avanade Portugal Unipessoal Lda, Tecnilogica Ecosistemas S.A., Tecnilogica, The Brand Learning Partners Limited, The Callisto Integration Corporation, The Monkeys, The Monkeys Pty Ltd, The Myrtle Group, Total Logistics, Tquila, Trivadis, Trivadis AG, Trivadis Austria GmbH, Trivadis Denmark AS, Trivadis Germany GmbH, Trivadis Holding AG, Trivadis Partner AG, Trivadis Services AG, Trivadis Services SRL, Troop Studios Pty Ltd, VanBerlo, Vector Acquisition Company LLC, Vector Topco LLC, Verax Solutions, Vertical Retail Consulting (Shanghai) Ltd, Vertical Retail Consulting Ltd, Vivere Brasil Servicos e Solucoes SA, Vivere Brasil Solucoes De Credito Ltda., Wabion GmbH, WaveStrike LLC, White Cliffs Consulting LLC, Wire Stone, Wire Stone LLC, Wise Partners SAS, Wolox, Wolox Colombia S.A.S, Wolox LLC, Wolox Mexico S.R.L de C.V., Wolox S.A., Wolox SpA, Workforce Insight, Workforce Insight LLC, Yesler, Yesler LLC, Yesler Limited, Yesler Singapore Pte Ltd, Zag, Zag Australia Pty Ltd, Zag Limited, Zag USA LLC, Zebra Worldwide Australia Pty Ltd, Zebra Worldwide Group Limited, Zebra Worldwide Media Pty Ltd, Zenta, Zenta Global Philippines Inc, Zenta Mortgage Services LLC, Zenta Recoveries Inc, Zenta US Holdings Inc, Zestgroup, Zielpuls, Zielpuls (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Zielpuls GmbH, avVenta, designaffairs, designaffairs Business Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., designaffairs GmbH, designaffairs group China Co. Ltd., dgroup, i4C Analytics, iDefense, solid-serVision.com GmbH, and umlaut. Read More ALLETE, Inc. operates as an energy company. The company operates through Regulated Operations, ALLETE Clean Energy, and Corporate and Other segments. It generates electricity from coal-fired, biomass co-fired / natural gas, hydroelectric, wind, and solar. The company provides regulated utility electric services in northwestern Wisconsin to approximately 15,000 electric customers, 13,000 natural gas customers, and 10,000 water customers, as well as regulated utility electric services in northeastern Minnesota to approximately 145,000 retail customers and 15 non-affiliated municipal customers. It also owns and maintains electric transmission assets in Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, and Illinois. In addition, the company focuses on developing, acquiring, and operating clean and renewable energy projects; and owns and operates approximately 1,000 megawatts of wind energy generation facility. Further, it is involved in the coal mining operations in North Dakota; and real estate investment activities in Florida. The company owns and operates 158 substations with a total capacity of 10,066 megavolt amperes. It serves taconite mining, paper, pulp and secondary wood products, pipeline, and other industries. The company was formerly known as Minnesota Power, Inc. and changed its name to ALLETE, Inc. in May 2001. ALLETE, Inc. was incorporated in 1906 and is headquartered in Duluth, Minnesota. China Mobile Limited provides mobile telecommunications and related services in Mainland China and Hong Kong. The company offers local calls; domestic and international long distance calls and roaming services; and value-added services, such as caller identity display, call waiting, conference calls, and others. It also provides wireless Internet service, as well as digital applications comprising music, video, reading, gaming, and animation; wireline broadband services; and wireline voice services. In addition, it offers dedicated line and IDC services to corporate customers in a range of industry sectors; and basic corporate communication products comprising corporate VPMN and SMS, and tailor made solutions. Further, the company provides international telecommunications services, which includes IDD, roaming, Internet, MNC, and value added business services. Additionally, it offers telecommunications network planning, design, and consulting services; roaming clearance, IT system operation, and technology support services; value-added platform development and maintenance services; mobile data, and system integration and development services; network construction and maintenance, network planning and optimizing, and training services; electronic communication products design and sale of related products; and non-banking financial services. It also provides mobile cloud research and development services; call center services; e-payment, e-commerce, and Internet finance services; and mobile Internet digital content services, as well as operates a network and business coordination center. The company serves 950 million mobile customers and 187 million wireline broadband customers. The company was formerly known as China Mobile (Hong Kong) Limited and changed its name to China Mobile Limited in May 2006. The company was incorporated in 1997 and is based in Central, Hong Kong. China Mobile Limited is a subsidiary of China Mobile Hong Kong (BVI) Limited. The following companies are subsidiares of Laboratory Co. of America: 1957285 Ontario Inc. dba Quality Underwriting Services, 2089729 Ontario Inc., 2248848 Ontario Inc., 3065619 Nova Scotia Company, 3257959 Nova Scotia Company, 8165335 Canada Inc., 8348596 Canada Inc., 896988 Ontario Limited, 9279-3280 Quebec Inc., Accupath Diagnostic Laboratories Inc., Assets of Pathology Inc, Beacon LBS IPA Inc., Beacon Laboratory Benefit Solutions Inc., CannAmm GP Inc., CannAmm Limited Partnership, Center for Disease Detection International, Center for Disease Detection LLC, Centrex Clinical Laboratories Inc., Chiltern, Clearstone Central Laboratories (U.S.) Inc., Clearstone Holdings (International) Ltd., Clinical Outreach Laboratory Services, Clipper Holdings Inc., Colorado Coagulation Consultants Inc., Colorado Laboratory Services LLC, Correlagen Diagnostics Inc., Covance Inc., Curalab Inc., Cytometry Associates Inc., Czura Thornton (Hong Kong) Limited, DCL Acquisition Inc., DCL Medical Laboratories LLC, DCL Sub LLC, DIANON Systems Inc., DL Holdings Limited Partnership, Decision Diagnostics L.L.C. (aka DaVinici/Medicorp LLC), Diagnostic Services Inc., DynaLifeDX, Dynacare - Gamma Laboratory Partnership, Dynacare Company, Dynacare G.P. Inc., Dynacare Holdco LLC, Dynacare Laboratories Inc., Dynacare Laboratories Limited Partnership, Dynacare Northwest Inc., Dynacare Realty Inc., DynalifeDX Infrastructure Inc., Envigo's nonclinical contract research services business, Esoterix Genetic Counseling LLC, Esoterix Genetic Laboratories LLC, Esoterix Inc., Execmed Health Services Inc., FirstSource Laboratory Solutions Inc., GDML Medical Laboratories Inc, Gamma Dynacare Central Medical Laboratories GP Inc., Gamma Dynacare Central Medical Laboratory Limited Partnership, HHLA Lab-In-An-Envelope LLC, Health Testing Centers Inc., Health Trans Services Inc., Home Healthcare Laboratory of America LLC, IDX Pathology Inc., Impact Genetics Corporation, Impact Genetics Inc., Kaleida LabCorp LLC, Lab Delivery Service of New York City Inc., LabCorp BVBA, LabCorp Belgium Holdings Inc., LabCorp Central Laboratories (Canada) Inc., LabCorp Central Laboratories (China) Inc., LabCorp Colorado Inc., LabCorp Development Company, LabCorp Employer Services Inc., LabCorp Health System Diagnostics LLC, LabCorp Indiana Inc., LabCorp Japan G.K., LabCorp Limited, LabCorp Michigan Inc., LabCorp Nebraska Inc., LabCorp Neon Ltd., LabCorp Neon Switzerland S.a.r.l., LabCorp Specialty Testing Billing Service Inc., LabCorp Specialty Testing Group Inc., LabCorp Staffing Solutions Inc., LabCorp Tennessee LLC, LabCorp UK Holdings Ltd., LabWest Inc., Laboratoire Bio-Medic Inc., Laboratory Corporation of America, Lifecodes Corporation, LipoScience Inc., Litholink Corporation, MEDTOX Scientific Inc., MNG Laboratories, MedAxio Insurance Medical Services GP Inc., MedAxio Insurance Medical Services LP, Medical Neurogenitics LLC, Medtox Diagnostics Inc., Medtox Laboratories Inc., Monogram Biosciences Inc., Monogram Biosciences UK Limited, Myriad Autoimmunes Vectra Testing Business, NWT Inc., National Genetics Institute, New Brighton Business Center LLC, New Imaging Diagnostics LLC, New Molecular Diagnostics Ventures LLC, Orchid Cellmark ULC, Ovia Health, PA Labs Inc., Paclab LLC, Path Lab Incorporated, Pathology Associates Medical Lab LLC, Pee Dee Pathology Associates Inc., Personal Genome Diagnostics Inc., Persys Technology Inc., Pixel by LabCorp, Princeton Diagnostic Laboratories of America Inc., Protedyne Corporation, SW/DL LLC, Saint Josephs-PAML LLC, Sequenom Biosciences (India) Pvt. Ltd., Sequenom Inc, Sequenom Inc., Tandem Labs Inc., Toxikon Corporation, Tri-Cities Laboratory LLC, Viro-Med Laboratories Inc., Visiun, and Yakima Medical Arts Inc.. Read More Freeport-McMoRan Inc. engages in the mining of mineral properties in North America, South America, and Indonesia. The company primarily explores for copper, gold, molybdenum, silver, and other metals, as well as oil and gas. Its assets include the Grasberg minerals district in Indonesia; Morenci, Bagdad, Safford, Sierrita, and Miami in Arizona; Tyrone and Chino in New Mexico; and Henderson and Climax in Colorado, North America, as well as Cerro Verde in Peru and El Abra in Chile. The company also operates a portfolio of oil and gas properties primarily located in offshore California and the Gulf of Mexico. As of December 31, 2021, it operated approximately 135 wells. The company was formerly known as Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. and changed its name to Freeport-McMoRan Inc. in July 2014. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the electric utility, banking, and renewable/sustainable infrastructure investment businesses in the state of Hawaii. It operates in three segments: Electric Utility, Bank, and Other. The Electric Utility segment engages in the production, purchase, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the islands of Oahu, Hawaii, Maui, Lanai, and Molokai. Its renewable energy sources and potential sources include wind, solar, photovoltaic, geothermal, wave, hydroelectric, municipal waste, and other biofuels. This segment serves suburban communities, resorts, the United States armed forces installations, and agricultural operations. The Bank segment operates a community bank that offers banking and other financial services to consumers and businesses, including savings and checking accounts; and loans comprising residential and commercial real estate, residential mortgage, construction and development, multifamily residential and commercial real estate, consumer, and commercial loans. This segment operates 42 branches, including 29 branches in Oahu, 6 branches in Maui, 4 branches in Hawaii, 2 branches in Kauai, and 1 branch in Molokai. The Other segment invests in non-regulated renewable energy and sustainable infrastructure in the State of Hawaii. Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc. was incorporated in 1891 and is headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii. 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 PepsiCo: Alimentos Quaker Oats y Compania Limitada, Alimentos del Istmo S.A., Amavale Agricola Ltda., Anderson Hill Insurance Limited, Asia Bottlers Limited, BAESA Capital Corporation Ltd., BFY Brands, BFY Brands LLC, BFY Brands Limited, BUG de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Balmoral Industries LLC, Bare Foods Co., Barrhead LLC, Be & Cheery, Beaman Bottling Company, Bebidas Sudamerica S.A., Beech Limited, Bell Taco Funding Syndicate, Bendler Investments II Ltd, Bendler Investments S.a r.l, Beverage Services Limited, Beverages Foods & Service Industries Inc., Bishkeksut OJSC, Blaue NC S. de R.L. de C.V., Blue Cloud Distribution Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Arizona Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Arkansas Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Colorado Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Florida Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Georgia Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Illinois Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Indiana Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Iowa Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Kentucky Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Louisiana Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Minnesota Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Mississippi Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Missouri Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Nebraska Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Nevada Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of North Carolina Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Ohio Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Oklahoma Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Pennsylvania Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of South Carolina Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Tennessee Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Texas Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Virginia Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Wisconsin Inc., Blue Ridge Sales LLC, Bluebird Foods Limited, Bluecan Holdings Unlimited Company, Bokomo Zambia Limited, Bolsherechensky Molkombinat JSC, Boquitas Fiestas LLC, Boquitas Fiestas S.R.L., Bottling Group Financing LLC, Bottling Group Holdings LLC, Bottling Group LLC, Bronte Industries Ltd, C & I Leasing Inc., CB Manufacturing Company Inc., CEME Holdings LLC, CMC Investment Company, Caroni Investments LLC, Centro-Mediterranea de Bebidas Carbonicas PepsiCo S.L., Ceres Fruit Juices Pty Ltd, ChampBev Inc., China Concentrate Holdings Hong Kong Limited, Chipsy International for Food Industries S.A.E., Chipsy for Food Industries S.A.E., Chitos Internacional y Cia Ltda, Cipa Industrial de Produtos Alimentares Ltda., Cipa Nordeste Industrial de Produtos Alimentares Ltda., Cocina Autentica Inc., Comercializadora CMC Investment y Compania Limitada, Comercializadora Nacional SAS Ltda., Comercializadora PepsiCo Mexico S de R.L. de C.V., Compania de Bebidas PepsiCo S.L., Concentrate Holding Uruguay Pte. Ltd., Concentrate Manufacturing Singapore Pte. Ltd., Confiteria Alegro S. de R.L. de C.V., Copella Fruit Juices Limited, Copper Beech International LLC, Corina Snacks Limited, Corporativo Internacional Mexicano S. de R.L. de C.V., CytoSport Holdings Inc., CytoSport Inc., Davlyn Realty Corporation, Defosto Holdings Limited, Desarrollo Inmobiliario Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Dilexis S.A., Donon Holdings Limited, Drinkfinity USA Inc., Drinkstation Inc., Drinkstation Innovation Co. Ltd., Drinkstation Limited, Dutch Snacks Holding S.A. de C.V., Duyvis Production B.V., EPIC Enterprises Inc., Echo Bay Holdings Inc., Elaboradora Argentina de Cereales S.R.L., Enter Logistica LLC, Environ at Inverrary Partnership, Environ of Inverrary Inc., Eridanus Investments S.a r.l, Evercrisp Snack Productos de Chile S.A., FL Transportation Inc., FLI Andean LLC, FLI Colombia LLC, FLI Snacks Andean GP LLC, Fabrica PepsiCo Mexicali S. de R.L. de C.V., Fabrica de Productos Alimenticios Rene y Cia S.C.A., Fairlight International SRL, Far East Bottlers Hong Kong Limited, Food Concepts Pioneer Ltd., Forest Akers Nederland B.V., Forty-Six Peaks Holding Inc., Fovarosi Asvanyviz es Uditoipari Zartkoruen Mukodo Reszvenytarsasag, Freshwater International B.V., Frito Lay Gida Sanayi Ve Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Frito Lay Poland Sp. z o.o., Frito Lay Sp. z o.o., Frito Lay de Guatemala y Compania Limitada, Frito-Lay Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Frito-Lay Dip Company Inc., Frito-Lay Dominicana S.A., Frito-Lay Global Investments B.V., Frito-Lay Inc., Frito-Lay Investments B.V., Frito-Lay Manufacturing LLC, Frito-Lay Netherlands Holding B.V., Frito-Lay North America Inc., Frito-Lay Sales Inc., Frito-Lay Trading Company Europe GmbH, Frito-Lay Trading Company GmbH, Frito-Lay Trading Company Poland GmbH, Frito-Lay Trinidad Unlimited, Fruko Mesrubat Sanayi Limited Sirketi, GB Czech LLC, GB International Inc., GB Russia LLC, GB Slovak LLC, GMP Manufacturing Inc., Gambrinus Investments Limited, Gamesa LLC, Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Gas Natural de Merida S. A. de C. V., Gatorade Puerto Rico Company, General Bottlers of Hungary Inc., Golden Grain Company, Goveh S.R.L., Grayhawk Leasing LLC, Green Hemlock International LLC, Grupo Frito Lay y Compania Limitada, Grupo Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Grupo Mabel, Grupo Sabritas S. de R.L. de C.V., Gulkevichskiy Maslozavod JSC, Hangzhou Baicaowei Corporate Management Consulting Co. Ltd., Hangzhou Haomusi Food Co, Hangzhou Haomusi Food Co. Ltd., Hangzhou Tao Dao Technology Co. Ltd., Health Warrior, Health Warrior Inc., Heathland LP, Helioscope Limited, Hillbrook Inc., Hillgrove Inc., Hillwood Bottling LLC, Hogganfield Limited Partnership, Holding Company "Opolie" JSC, Homefinding Company of Texas, Hudson Valley Insurance Company, IC Equities Inc., IZZE Beverage Co., Inmobiliaria Interamericana S.A. De C.V., Integrated Beverage Services Bangladesh Limited, Integrated Foods & Beverages Pvt. Ltd., International Bottlers Management Co. LLC, International KAS Aktiengesellschaft, Inversiones Borneo S.R.L., Inversiones PFI Chile Limitada, Inviting Foods Holdings Inc., Inviting Foods LLC, KAS Anorthosis S.a r.l, KAS S.L., KFC, Kevita Inc., Kinvara LLC, Kungursky Molkombinat JSC, Larragana S.L., Latin American Holdings Ltd., Latin American Snack Foods ApS, Latin Foods International LLC, Lebedyansky, Lebedyansky Holdings LLC, Lebedyansky LLC, Limited Liability Company "Sandora", Linkbay Limited, Lithuanian Snacks UAB, Mabel, Marbo Product d.o.o. Beograd, Marbo d.o.o. Laktasi, Matudis - Comercio de Produtos Alimentares Limitada, Matutano - Sociedade de Produtos Alimentares Lda., Mid-America Improvement Corporation, Mountainview Insurance Company Inc., Muscle Milk, NCJV LLC, New Bern Transport Corporation, New Century Beverage Company LLC, Noble Leasing LLC, Northeast Hot-Fill Co-op Inc., Office at Solyanka LLC, Onbiso Inversiones S.L., One World Enterprises LLC, One World Investors Inc., P-A Barbados Bottling Company LLC, P-A Bottlers Barbados SRL, P-Americas LLC, PAS Luxembourg S.a r.l, PAS Netherlands B.V., PBG Canada Holdings II LLC, PBG Canada Holdings Inc., PBG Cyprus Holdings Limited, PBG Investment Partnership, PBG Midwest Holdings S.a r.l, PBG Soda Can Holdings S.a r.l, PCBL LLC, PCNA Manufacturing Inc., PR Beverages Cyprus Holding Limited, PR Beverages Cyprus Russia Holding Limited, PRB Luxembourg S.a r.l, PRS Inc., PSAS Inversiones LLC, PSE Logistica S.R.L., PT Quaker Indonesia, Papas Chips S.A., Pei N.V., Pep Trade LLC, Pepsi B.V., Pepsi Beverages Holdings Inc., Pepsi Bottling Group Global Finance LLC, Pepsi Bottling Group GmbH, Pepsi Bottling Group Hoosiers B.V., Pepsi Bottling Holdings Inc., Pepsi Bugshan Investments S.A.E., Pepsi Cola Colombia Ltda, Pepsi Cola Egypt S.A.E., Pepsi Cola Panamericana S.R.L., Pepsi Cola Servis Ve Dagitim Limited Sirketi, Pepsi Cola Trading Ireland, Pepsi Logistics Company Inc., Pepsi Northwest Beverages LLC, Pepsi Overseas Investments Partnership, Pepsi Promotions Inc., Pepsi-Cola Advertising and Marketing Inc., Pepsi-Cola Bermuda Limited, Pepsi-Cola Bottlers Holding C.V., Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company Of St. Louis Inc., Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company of Ft. Lauderdale-Palm Beach LLC, Pepsi-Cola Company, Pepsi-Cola Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Pepsi-Cola Far East Trade Development Co. Inc., Pepsi-Cola Finance LLC, Pepsi-Cola General Bottlers Poland Sp. z o.o., Pepsi-Cola Industrial da Amazonia Ltda., Pepsi-Cola International Cork, Pepsi-Cola International LLC, Pepsi-Cola International Limited, Pepsi-Cola International Limited U.S.A., Pepsi-Cola International Private Limited, Pepsi-Cola Korea Co. Ltd., Pepsi-Cola Management and Administrative Services Inc., Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing Company Of Uruguay S.R.L., Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing International Limited, Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing Mediterranean Limited, Pepsi-Cola Marketing Corp. Of P.R. Inc., Pepsi-Cola Mediterranean Ltd., Pepsi-Cola Metropolitan Bottling Company Inc., Pepsi-Cola Mexicana Holdings LLC, Pepsi-Cola Mexicana S. de R.L. de C.V., Pepsi-Cola National Marketing LLC, Pepsi-Cola Operating Company Of Chesapeake And Indianapolis, Pepsi-Cola Sales and Distribution Inc., Pepsi-Cola Technical Operations Inc., Pepsi-Cola Thai Trading Co. Ltd., Pepsi-Cola de Honduras S.R.L., Pepsi-Cola of Corvallis Inc., PepsiAmericas Nemzetkozi Szolgaltato Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, PepsiCo ANZ Holdings Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Alimentos Antioquia Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Colombia Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Ecuador Cia. Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Z.F. Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos de Bolivia S.R.L., PepsiCo Amacoco Bebidas Do Brasil Ltda., PepsiCo Asia Research & Development Center Company Limited, PepsiCo Australia Financing Cyprus Limited, PepsiCo Australia Financing Limited Partnership, PepsiCo Australia Financing Partner 1 LLC, PepsiCo Australia Financing Partner 2 LLC, PepsiCo Australia Financing Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Australia Holdings Pty Limited, PepsiCo Australia International, PepsiCo Austria Services GmbH, PepsiCo Azerbaijan Limited Liability Company, PepsiCo BeLux BV, PepsiCo Beverage Sales LLC, PepsiCo Beverage Singapore Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Beverages Bermuda Limited, PepsiCo Beverages Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo Beverages International Limited, PepsiCo Beverages Italia Societa' A Responsabilita' Limitata, PepsiCo Canada Finance LLC, PepsiCo Canada Holdings ULC, PepsiCo Canada Investment ULC, PepsiCo Canada ULC, PepsiCo Captive Holdings Inc., PepsiCo Caribbean Inc., PepsiCo China Limited, PepsiCo Consulting Polska Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo De Bolivia S.R.L., PepsiCo Del Paraguay S.R.L., PepsiCo Deutschland GmbH, PepsiCo Eesti AS, PepsiCo Euro Bermuda Limited, PepsiCo Euro Finance Antilles B.V., PepsiCo Europe Support Center S.L., PepsiCo Finance Americas Company, PepsiCo Finance Antilles A N.V., PepsiCo Finance Antilles B N.V., PepsiCo Finance South Africa Proprietary Limited, PepsiCo Financial Shared Services Inc., PepsiCo Food & Beverage Holdings Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo Foods A.I.E., PepsiCo Foods China Company Limited, PepsiCo Foods Group Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Foods Guangdong Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Nigeria Limited, PepsiCo Foods Private Limited, PepsiCo Foods Sichuan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Taiwan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Vietnam Company, PepsiCo France SAS, PepsiCo Global Business Services India LLP, PepsiCo Global Business Services Poland Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo Global Holdings Limited, PepsiCo Global Investments B.V., PepsiCo Global Investments S.a r.l, PepsiCo Global Mobility LLC, PepsiCo Global Real Estate Inc., PepsiCo Global Trading Solutions Unlimited Company, PepsiCo Golden Holdings Inc., PepsiCo Group Finance International B.V., PepsiCo Group Holdings International B.V., PepsiCo Group Spotswood Holdings S.a r.l, PepsiCo Gulf International FZE, PepsiCo Hellas Single Member Industrial and Commercial Societe Anonyme, PepsiCo Holding de Espana S.L., PepsiCo Holdings, PepsiCo Holdings LLC, PepsiCo Holdings Toshkent LLC, PepsiCo Hong Kong LLC, PepsiCo Iberia Servicios Centrales S.L., PepsiCo India Holdings Private Limited, PepsiCo India Sales Private Limited, PepsiCo Internacional Mexico S. de R. L. de C. V., PepsiCo International Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo International Limited, PepsiCo International Pte Ltd., PepsiCo Investments Europe I B.V., PepsiCo Investments Ltd., PepsiCo Ireland Food & Beverages Unlimited Company, PepsiCo Japan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Light B.V., PepsiCo Logistyka Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., PepsiCo Management Services SAS, PepsiCo Manufacturing A.I.E., PepsiCo Max B.V., PepsiCo Mexico Holdings S. de R.L. de C.V., PepsiCo Nederland B.V., PepsiCo Nordic Denmark ApS, PepsiCo Nordic Finland Oy, PepsiCo Nordic Norway AS, PepsiCo Nutrition Trading DMCC, PepsiCo One B.V., PepsiCo Overseas Corporation, PepsiCo Overseas Financing Partnership, PepsiCo Panimex Inc, PepsiCo Products B.V., PepsiCo Products FLLC, PepsiCo Puerto Rico Inc., PepsiCo Sales Inc., PepsiCo Sales LLC, PepsiCo Services Asia Ltd., PepsiCo Services CZ s.r.o., PepsiCo Services LLC, PepsiCo Twist B.V., PepsiCo UK Pension Plan Trustee Limited, PepsiCo Ventures B.V., PepsiCo Wave Holdings LLC, PepsiCo World Trading Company Inc., PepsiCo Y LLC, PepsiCo de Argentina S.R.L., PepsiCo de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., PepsiCo do Brasil Industria e Comercio de Alimentos Ltda., PepsiCo do Brasil Ltda., PepsiCola Interamericana de Guatemala S.A., Pet Iberia S.L., Pete & Johnny Limited, Pine International LLC, Pine International Limited, Pinstripe Leasing LLC, Pioneer Food Group Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Groceries Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Group Ltd., Pioneer Foods Holdings Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods UK Ltd, Pioneer Foods Wellingtons Pty Ltd, Pipers Crisps Limited, PlayCo Inc., Pop corners, PopCorners Holdings Inc., Portfolio Concentrate Solutions Unlimited Company, Premier Nutrition Trading L.L.C., Prestwick LLC, Prev PepsiCo Sociedade Previdenciaria, Productos Alimenticios Rene LLC, Productos S.A.S. C.V., Productos SAS Management B.V., Punch N.V., Punica Getranke GmbH, Q O Puerto Rico Inc., QFL OHQ Sdn. Bhd., QTG Development Inc., QTG Services Inc., Quadrant - Amroq Beverages S.R.L., Quaker Development B.V., Quaker European Beverages LLC, Quaker European Investments B.V., Quaker Foods, Quaker Global Investments B.V., Quaker Holdings UK Limited, Quaker Manufacturing LLC, Quaker Oats Asia Inc., Quaker Oats Australia Pty Ltd, Quaker Oats B.V., Quaker Oats Capital Corporation, Quaker Oats Europe Inc., Quaker Oats Europe LLC, Quaker Oats Limited, Quaker Sales & Distribution Inc, Raptas Finance S.a r.l., Rare Fare Foods LLC, Rare Fare Holdings Inc., Reading Industries Ltd, Real Estate Holdings LLC, Rockstar Energy Drink, Rolling Frito-Lay Sales LP, S & T of Mississippi Inc., SIH International LLC, SVC Logistics Inc., SVC Manufacturing Inc., SVE Russia Holdings GmbH, Sabritas LLC, Sabritas S. de R.L. de C.V., Sabritas Snacks America Latina de Nicaragua y Cia Ltda, Sabritas de Costa Rica S. de R.L., Sabritas y Cia. S en C de C.V., Sakata Rice Snacks Australia Pty Ltd, Sandora Holdings B.V., Saudi Snack Foods Company Limited, Sea Eagle International SRL, Seepoint Holdings Ltd., Senselet Food Processing PLC, Senselet Holding B.V., Servicios GBF Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada, Servicios GFLG y Compania Limitada, Servicios Gamesa Puerto Rico L.L.C., Servicios SYC S. de R.L. de C.V., Seven-Up Asia Inc., Seven-Up Light B.V., Seven-Up Nederland B.V., Shanghai PepsiCo Snack Company Limited, Shanghai YuHo Agricultural Development Co. Ltd, Shoebill LLC, Simba (Proprietary) Limited, Simba Proprietary Limited, Sitka Spruce, Smartfoods Inc., Smiles and Bites Holdings S.de R.L. de C.V., Smiths Crisps Limited, Snack Food Investments GmbH, Snack Food Investments II GmbH, Snack Food Investments Limited, Snack Food-Beverage Asia Products Limited, Snacks America Latina S.R.L., Snacks Guatemala Ltd., So Spark Ltd., Soda-Club CO2 Atlantic GmbH, Soda-Club CO2 GmbH, Soda-Club CO2 Ltd., Soda-Club Switzerland GmbH, Soda-Club Worldwide B.V., SodaStream, SodaStream Australia Pty Ltd, SodaStream CO2 SA, SodaStream Canada Ltd., SodaStream Enterprises N.V., SodaStream France SAS, SodaStream GmbH, SodaStream Iberia S.L., SodaStream Industries Ltd., SodaStream International B.V., SodaStream International Ltd., SodaStream Israel Ltd., SodaStream K.K., SodaStream New Zealand Ltd., SodaStream Nordics AB, SodaStream Poland Sp. z o.o., SodaStream SA Pty Ltd., SodaStream Switzerland GmbH, SodaStream USA Inc., SodaStream Osterreich GmbH, South Beach Beverage Company Inc., South Properties Inc., Spitz International Inc., Sportmex Internacional S.A. de C.V., Springboig Industries Ltd, Spruce Limited, Stacy's Pita Chip Company Incorporated, Star Foods E.M. S.R.L., Stokely-Van Camp Inc., Stratosphere Communications Pty Ltd, Stratosphere Holdings 2018 Limited, Streamfoods Ltd, TFL Holdings LLC, Tasman Finance S.a r.l, The Gatorade Company, The Good Carb Food Company Ltd., The Pepsi Bottling Group Canada ULC, The Quaker Oats Company, The Smith's Snackfood Company Pty Limited, Thomond Group Holdings Limited, Tobago Snack Holdings LLC, Tropicana Alvalle S.L., Tropicana Beverages Limited, Tropicana Europe N.V., Tropicana United Kingdom Limited, Troya-Ultra LLC, United Foods Companies Restaurantes S.A., V-Water, VentureCo Israel Ltd, Veurne Snack Foods BV, Vitamin Brands Ltd., Walkers Crisps Limited, Walkers Group Limited, Walkers Snack Foods Limited, Walkers Snacks Distribution Limited, Walkers Snacks Limited, Whitman Corporation, Whitman Insurance Co. Ltd., Wimm-Bill-Dann Beverages JSC, Wimm-Bill-Dann Brands Co. Ltd., Wimm-Bill-Dann Central Asia-Almaty LLP, Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods LLC, Wimm-Bill-Dann Georgia Ltd., Wimm-Bill-Dann JSC, and Wimm-Bill-Dann Ukraine PJSC. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of PPG Industries: AIPCF V Texstars Blocker Inc., AkzoNobel, Alpha Coating Technologies LLC, Alpha Coatings Inc., Broad Range Development Limited, CG Holdings Manufacturing Co., Centro de Investigacion en Polimeros S.A. de C.V., Chemfil Canada Limited, Chorlton Trade Paints Limited, Comercial Mexicana de Pinturas S.A. de C.V., Comex, Comex Industrial Coatings S.A. de C.V., Consorcio Comex S.A. de C.V., Cristacol S.A., Cuming Microwave Corporation, Deutek SA, Dexmet Corporation, Dexmet Holding Corporation, Distribuidora Kroma S.A. de C.V., EPIC Insurance Co. Ltd., Eberle Design Inc., Empresa Aga S.A. de C.V., Ennis Canadian Holding Company, Ennis Paint Canada ULC, Ennis Paint Netherlands Holdings LLC, Ennis Paint U.K. Holding Company Limited, Ennis Traffic Safety Solutions Pty Ltd, Ennis-Flint, Ennis-Flint Inc., Foshan Bairun Chemicals Co. Ltd., Fpu Industrial S.A. de C.V., Grupo Comex S.A. de C.V., Hemmelrath Automotive Coatings (Jilin) Co. Ltd., Hemmelrath International Trade (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Hodij Coatings B.V., Homax Products, Industria Chimica Reggiana I.C.R. SPA, Johnstones Paints Limited, Kalon Investment Company Limited, Kalon South Africa Proprietary Limited, Karl Woerwag Lack-und Farbenfabrik GmbH & Co. KG, Masterwork Paint, MetoKote Corporation, MetoKote Mexico Holdings Inc., MetoKote UK Limited, MetoKote de Mexico S. de RL de CV, Milamar Coatings LLC, OOO Tikkurila, PPG A P Resinas S.A. de C.V., PPG AC - France SA, PPG ALESCO Automotive Finishes Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., PPG Aerospace Materials (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., PPG Architectural Coatings (Puerto Rico) Inc., PPG Architectural Coatings Canada Inc./PPG Revetements Architecturaux Canada Inc., PPG Architectural Coatings Ireland Limited, PPG Architectural Coatings Italy S.r.l, PPG Architectural Coatings UK Limited, PPG Architectural Finishes Inc., PPG Asian Paints Private Ltd., PPG Business Services S.A. de C.V., PPG COATINGS SINGAPORE PTE. LTD., PPG Canada Inc., PPG Cetelon Lackfabrik GmbH, PPG Cieszyn S.A., PPG Coatings (Hong Kong) Co. Limited, PPG Coatings (Kunshan) Co. Ltd., PPG Coatings (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., PPG Coatings (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PPG Coatings (Thailand) Co. Ltd., PPG Coatings (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., PPG Coatings (Wuhu) Company Ltd., PPG Coatings (Zhangjiagang) Co. Ltd., PPG Coatings B.V., PPG Coatings Belgium BV, PPG Coatings Danmark A/S, PPG Coatings Deutschland GmbH, PPG Coatings Europe B.V., PPG Coatings Nederland BV, PPG Coatings S.A., PPG Coatings South Africa (Pty) Ltd., PPG DYRUP S.A., PPG Deco Czech a.s., PPG Deco Polska sp. z.o.o., PPG Deco Slovakia s.r.o., PPG Deutschland Business Support GmbH, PPG Deutschland Sales & Services GmbH, PPG Distribution S.A.S., PPG Europe B.V., PPG Finance B.V., PPG Finland Oy, PPG France Business Support S.A.S., PPG France Manufacturing S.A.S., PPG Guadeloupe SAS, PPG Hemmelrath Lackfabrik GmbH, PPG Holdco SAS, PPG Holdings (U.K.) Limited, PPG Holdings Argentina USA LLC, PPG Holdings Latin America USA LLC, PPG Iberica S.A., PPG Iberica Sales & Services S.L., PPG Industrial Coatings B.V., PPG Industrial do Brasil - Tintas E. Vernizes - Ltda., PPG Industries (Korea) Ltd., PPG Industries (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., PPG Industries (UK) Ltd, PPG Industries Argentina S.R.L., PPG Industries Australia PTY Limited A.C.N. 055 500 939, PPG Industries Colombia Ltda., PPG Industries Delfzijl B.V., PPG Industries Europe Sarl, PPG Industries France S.A.S., PPG Industries International Inc., PPG Industries Italia S.r.l., PPG Industries Kimya a Sanayi VE Ticaret AS, PPG Industries LLC, PPG Industries Lackfabrik GmbH, PPG Industries Lipetsk LLC, PPG Industries Middle East FZE, PPG Industries Netherlands B.V., PPG Industries New Zealand Limited, PPG Industries Ohio Inc., PPG Industries Poland Sp. Z.o.o., PPG Industries Securities LLC, PPG Industries de Mexico S.A. de C.V., PPG Investment (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., PPG Italia Business Support S.r.l., PPG Italia Sales & Services S.r.l., PPG Japan Ltd., PPG Kansai Automotive Finishes Canada LP, PPG Kansai Automotive Finishes U.K. LLP, PPG Kansai Automotive Finishes U.S. LLC, PPG Luxembourg Finance S.aR.L., PPG Luxembourg Holdings S.aR.L., PPG Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PPG Packaging Coatings (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., PPG Paints Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PPG Performance Coatings (Hong Kong) Limited, PPG Powder Coatings (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PPG Refinish Distribution Limited, PPG Romania S.A., PPG Reunion SAS, PPG SSC Co. Ltd., PPG Switzerland GmbH, PPG Trilak Korlatolt FelelosseguTarasasag (PPG Trilak Kft.), PPG Vietnam Co. Ltd., PRC-DeSoto Australia Pty Ltd., PRC-DeSoto International Inc., PT. PPG Coatings Indonesia, Painter's Supply, Paintzen, Peintures de Paris SAS, Plasticos Envolventes S.A. de C.V., Polymeric Systems Inc., ProCoatings B.V., ProCoatings BV, Protec Pty Ltd, Reno A&E LLC, Revocoat France SAS, Revocoat Holding SAS, Revocoat Iberica SLU, Revocoat S.A.S, Road Infrastructure Investment Holdings Inc., SEM Products Inc., Sealants Europe SAS, Sierracin Corporation, Sierracin/Sylmar Corporation, Sigma Marine & Protective Coatings Holding B.V., SigmaKalon (BC) UK Limited, SigmaKalon Group, Sikar (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., Spraylat International Ltd, Texstars LLC, The Crown Group Co., The Crown Group Inc, The Homax Group, Tikkurila Group, Tikkurila Oyj, Tikkurila Sverige AB, Traffic Safety Intermediate LLC, Traffic Safety Parent LLC, VF Specialty Products LLC, Vanex Inc., Vernisol S.p.A., VersaFlex Acquisition Corp., VersaFlex Inc., VersaFlex Intermediate Holdings LLC, Versaflex, Viasa S.A. de C.V., Whitford, Whitford B.V., Whitford Corporation, Whitford Jiangmen Ltd., Whitford Ltd. (HK), Whitford Ltd. (UK), Whitford Pte. Ltd., Whitford S.r.l., Whitford Worldwide Company LLC, and Worwag Coatings. Read More 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 Camp Lejeune Town Halls Aim to Help Those Exposed to Toxic Water. Heres How You Can Go. Retired Marine Master Sgt. Jerry Ensminger made it his mission to tell the world that if they lived or served on Camp Lejeune... Deepfield acquired by Nokia Ann Arbor-based company Deepfield's acquisition by Finnish company Nokia was announced yesterday, said founder and chief executive officer Dr. Craig Labovitz, and was celebrated by staff with a champagne toast at the office. (Courtesy photo ) ANN ARBOR, MI - Communications giant Nokia's planned acquisition of Deepfield is prompting the Ann Arbor-based technology company to expand and bring in more employees, according to its chief executive officer. Craig Labovitz is a founder and chief executive officer of Deepfield, a technology startup created in 2011 that provides integrated cloud, application and IP network insight in real time, according to its website. The acquisition of Deepfield by Finnish company Nokia was announced Thursday, Dec. 15, he said, and was celebrated by the Deepfield staff with a champagne toast at the office. "The Nokia acquisition gives us a global reach, with all the benefits of a global company with all that comes with that," Labovitz said. "This was a fantastic outcome for the technology and the team. We're even more excited about all we can do now." According to a statement released by Nokia and Deepfield, the acquisition will "extend Nokia's leadership in real-time, analytics-driven network and service automation, providing customers including communications service providers, cable operators and cloud, webscale and large technology companies with greater network and application insight, control and DDoS protection." The statement cited Deepfield's Genome technology as a problem solver for identifying popular cloud applications and services, tracking traffic, and providing multi-dimensional views of networks and applications. "We are impressed with Deepfield's unique approach to network analytics and their deployments with major providers around the globe, delivering critical visibility into how leading cloud applications and services flow through their networks," said Basil Alwan, president of Nokia's IP/Optical Networks business group, in the statement. The acquisition has been in the works for the better part of a year, and now means a push to hire additional engineers and expand Deepfield's presence in the technology world. "We'll be hiring another 40 to 60 engineers over the next 12 to 18 months," Labovitz said. That will almost double Deepfield's current employee base of 65 people, and also mean a search of expanded office space and a rewrite of the company's growth plan. The plan is to keep the main engineering office in Ann Arbor, and possibly expand with more office space at its current location at 111 N. Ashley St. "We're really excited to keep the culture of the Ann Arbor office. We will continue to be an Ann Arbor-based company but now with a global company," Labovitz said. Being able to leverage Deepfield's technology through global reach offers a significant advantage, Labovitz said. "Today, Deepfield sells all over the world with customers in Europe, Latin America and throughout the United States," he said. "It takes a lot of sales, a lot of support, and a lot of other functions to support companies across the world." He and co-founder Joe Eggleston, Deepfield's chief technology officer, started the business after leaving Arbor Networks in spring 2011. Growth has always been a goal for Deepfield, which Labovitz said has doubled each year since 2012. "This is a path that certainly allows us to continue that growth," Labovitz said. He does not foresee any hurdles to the acquisition, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2017 pending regulatory approvals. "I think this is a great success story for Ann Arbor," Labovitz said. Deepfield is starting the search for employees who want to join in on the success story. Its online Job Board already features a few postings for software engineers and tech engineers, and Labovitz said more will be added through the end of the year. "We typically like folks with expertise in big data, cloud computing. Our primary need is for software engineers," Labovitz said. Jeanice Swift.jpg Superintendent, Jeanice Swift, hosts "Continuing the Conversation" meeting at Clague Middle School, Tuesday, January 20, 2015. The board of education increased Swift's compensation in an amendment to her contract approved Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2016. (The Ann Arbor News file) ANN ARBOR, MI - The Ann Arbor Public Schools board of education is offering Superintendent Jeanice Swift an extra $90,000 over the next three school years if she stays with the school district through 2020. The school board continued its practice of rewarding a long-term commitment from the superintendent in an amendment to Swift's contract, approved 6-0 at a meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 14. At a special meeting on Friday, the board changed some of the dates in the contract and added other clarifying language. "She has done a phenomenal job in her time with us so far," said board vice president Christine Stead. "We felt like it was appropriate to just make sure she knows how much we appreciate that. ... But most importantly the results show what she's been able to do for this school district." Swift was hired at AAPS in 2013 under a five-year contract with a base salary of $200,000. Because there had been so much superintendent turnover prior to Swift's hire, Stead said the board wanted to include a longevity clause in her initial contract. The clause says Swift will receive a $50,000 bonus in 2018 after five years with the school district. In December 2015, the board made Swift's contract a rolling contract, which means there's no set cancellation date. AAPS attorney William Blaha said a rolling contract is common for school superintendents. After Swift received a "highly effective" rating in 2016, the board thought it was appropriate to provide her with some additional compensation. Changes to her contract, as summarized by Blaha, include: Another longevity bonus of $20,000 in 2020; A $10,000 annuity starting in 2017, which Blaha said is common for a superintendent contract; and $10,000 increases to Swift's base salary in 2018 and 2020. "I think this contract is fair," said board secretary Andy Thomas. "I think it recognizes her contributions. I think it recognizes our anticipation that she will continue with our school district, and I think it reflects the values of our community - that we want the best schools here in Ann Arbor." He and Stead pointed to the school district's increased enrollment, implementation of new academic programs with input from the community and increased financial stability during Swift's tenure as signs of her success as the district's superintendent. "We are extremely fortunate to have Dr. Swift as our superintendent. I cannot imagine anyone who - facing the challenges that we have faced over the last three-and-a-half years - could possibly have done a better job than Dr. Swift has done," Thomas said. "Ann Arbor is a tough place to be a superintendent. We have a large number of students. We have a large number of schools and programs. And we have a very demanding community that expects the best. Dr. Swift has really risen to those expectations." Stead noted that all other school employees received a 1 percent raise in 2015-16 and a 2 percent raise in 2016-17, while Swift has not had an increase in her compensation since she was hired. The board benchmarked Swift's total compensation against other Michigan school districts, Stead said, noting that AAPS is the fourth largest traditional public school district in the state. Swift is the 17th highest paid superintendent in the state, according to 2016 information collected by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. The average total compensation package for Michigan superintendents is $171,311. "It's good to have some context. ... We feel like this (contract amendment) is warranted and also good stewardship as well," Stead said. This post was updated on Dec. 17 to reflect additional changes to the contract the board made at a meeting on Friday, including the year the annuity would begin which affected the total extra incentive the superintendent will receive over the next three school years. 800 Jefferson Ypsilanti.png YPSILANTI, MI - A woman was at a friend's house in Ypsilanti when a male resident pulled a knife and threatened to kill her, police say. At 10:51 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 14, Ypsilanti Police responded to a home in the 800 block of Jefferson St. A woman said a group of her friends were drinking when the man threatened to cut her throat, according to police. An officer arrested him at the scene. YPSILANTI, MI - Mikael Dunn sees his upcoming graduation from Eastern Michigan University as a first step, rather than the end of a journey. Dunn is one of 1,768 students eligible to participate in EMU's Saturday, Dec. 17, commencement ceremony, which takes place at 10 a.m. in the EMU Convocation Center. He'll be receiving bachelor's degree in biology, with a double major in math and a minor in chemistry. Concluding a college career at EMU with a history of research article on fragile sites in DNA and the origins of cancer, Dunn said he now plans to take what he has learned in pursuing a doctorate while being a mentor to fellow students. "It's a first step to doing more, is how I see it," Dunn said of graduation. "As an undergrad, I received a lot of good knowledge from experts in my field. Now that I'm graduating, it's my responsibility to share it." EMU has a 26 doctoral candidates for December 2016 graduation, a record and a group that includes eight students in educational leadership, eight in educational studies, nine in technology and one in clinical psychology. The highest previous total was December 2015, with 17 graduates. Among EMU's graduates are 426 graduate degree candidates, 1,242 undergraduate degree candidates and 100 students who graduated last August but are walking in Saturday's ceremony. Saturday's commencement speaker is Bridget Mary McCormack, who has served as a Michigan Supreme Court Justice since 2012. McCormack joined the Michigan Supreme Court in January 2013. Before her election to the Court in November 2012, she was a law professor and dean at the University of Michigan Law School, where she continues to teach. McCormack is a graduate of the New York University Law School. She spent the first five years of her legal career in New York, first with the Legal Aid Society and then at the Office of the Appellate Defender, representing over 1,000 clients in New York's trial and appellate courts. In 1996, she became a faculty fellow at the Yale Law School. In 1998, she joined the University of Michigan Law School faculty. At Michigan Law, she taught criminal law, legal ethics, and various clinical courses. Her scholarship focused on the professional benefits of clinical legal education. She also created new clinics at the law school, including a Domestic Violence Clinic and a Pediatric Health Advocacy Clinic. In 2008, then-Associate Dean McCormack cofounded the Michigan Innocence Clinic, in which students represent wrongfully convicted Michiganders. The clinic has shined a light on the important justice issues underlying wrongful convictions. Sen. Jon Tester met with senior health care representatives across the state on Thursday to hear concerns on Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act. In a town hall meeting in Helena, Tester addressed President-elect Donald Trumps promise to repeal the Affordable Care Act, and suggestions from House Speaker Paul Ryan and other Republicans to convert Medicare to premium support, which would allow the government to make a fixed contribution for each beneficiary. Democrats, including Sen. Tester, have called the proposal a voucher system and worry that healthier seniors would choose privatized insurance, and sick people with the most expensive medical costs would be left with Medicare, creating impossibly high premiums. Medicare is a bedrock program for seniors and to do away with that would be criminal. To voucher it would be very very bad, Tester said. Representatives from AARP Montana, The Montana Health Coop and Montanas Area Agencies on Aging echoed Testers concerns, and called on him to protect Montanans with Medicare and Medicaid. They also came with suggestions for improvements to existing services and areas where Montanans need additional benefits. Several organizations said they had new enrollees or patients who turned 65 and were unable to find a local physician who accepted Medicare, forcing them to to travel out of town or go without care. We are bleeding doctors who wont take Medicare, Kimme Everman, from Montanas Area Agencies on Aging, said. Everman pointed out numerous issues with Medicare, and other parts of the plan she especially thought needed protection. Most Medicare plans that come with prescription drug coverage have a gap, called a donut hole, which means the plan will only pay a specific amount of money for prescriptions each year. Patients are left to pay all remaining prescription costs out of pocket. Its completely wrong, Everman said. Medicare is lacking respite care coverage, meaning caregivers are often without temporary relief if they need a break, or get sick themselves. She also called on Sen. Tester to fix issues connecting the veterans she works with to VA services. I dont have any contacts at the Fort, she said. We hear from vets every single day that are unable to get through the system. Tim Summers, state director of AARP Montana, said 16 percent of Montana members are veterans, who also struggle to navigate VA services with Medicare coverage. Sen. Tester said he knew there was a veterans advocate, but he was unfamiliar with the details of that persons role and workload. Tester said he will bring in additional people if necessary to better serve veterans. He also said he will look at the possibility of waiving the Medicare Part B enrollment penalty for veterans. I think there were some good suggestions from a policy standpoint that we can take back to Washington, D.C., Tester said. Multiple organizations asked Tester to protect Medicaid expansion, which gave 63,000 Montanans access to health coverage House Republicans have proposed block grants for Medicaid before, and released a plan in June to give states a choice between a block grant, or a fixed allotment for each Medicaid beneficiary. Both options would leave states with less money than they have now Organizations in Montana said they would struggle to make up the difference in funding and might have to put a cap on enrollment. Tester said hell be going to Washington with a goal to fix health care, and said the town hall meeting helped him better understand the link between Medicaid and Medicare. He predicted consequences for all Montanans if Congress gets its way and repeals the Affordable Care Act. A summary of whats at risk for health care in Montana says people could pay more for their health care with an end to annual out-of-pocket limits, taxpayers would lose millions in savings from Medicaid expansion and Montanans might lose access to covered preventive services. People with pre-existing conditions could be disqualified, deductibles and co-pay costs could rise, and Montanans under the age of 26 would not be able to stay on their parents health plan. Insurance could charge women higher premiums than men and women could be charged out-of-pocket for contraception, annual exams and mammograms. Its a time of uncertainty, Tester said. Were going to do our best to ensure that folks have access to health care. Close Around 80% of the buildings in rural areas in the United Kingdom do not have 4G data coverage. Roads are often dead spots for 4G coverage, where only less than 10% of A and B roads are covered. According to The Guardian, the UK scores worse than 53 countries in terms of measuring how much time a person's mobile is connected to 4G data. Globally, the country ranks 29th for both average speed and 4G data coverage. Commission Chairman Andrew Adonis stated, "Britain is 54th in the world for 4G coverage, and the typical user can only access 4G barely half the time". Adonis also said that the country's 4G network is worse than Romania, Albania, Panama, and Peru. Unfortunately, shifting frequency bands will not suffice to totally improve the connection. There are problems plaguing the construction of additional masts in the country, which includes locations where landowners sometimes opt to deny construction or charge high fees. Having 5G connections may also seem like to be the only way to improve the speed dramatically, but it is not the solution either; there are still limited frequency bands and location of masts around the country. So, how will UK improve its 4G connectivity? A more low-frequency spectrum is being proposed, which is deemed excellent in providing wider coverage. Europe freeing up the 700MHz band utilized for digital TV may also contribute to its improvement. Grant Shapps, who leads the British Infrastructure Group of MPs, stated that this report should call the attention of the government, reasoning that the latter spent too much time listening to excuses from mobile phone operators about lackluster signals. Aside from that, it pretty much confirmed what others have been saying for a long time. "Over the years, ministers have been far too easy on the glib promises given by the telecoms providers and I think that has been combined with ineffective and weak regulation from Ofcom," he added. Copyright 2020 Mobile & Apps, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. you are here: Calling the current system unfair, U.S. Sen. Steve Daines is proposing legislation reforming retirement and workers compensation payments for federal wildland firefighters and law enforcement injured on the job. The current retirement system allows firefighters working in hazardous conditions retirement after 20 years. However, if they are injured on the job and reassigned to a nonhazardous role, they are subject to a 30-year retirement track. Overtime and bonuses are not factored into workers compensation payments, meaning an injured firefighter receives only a percentage of base pay. The base is typically only a fraction of firefighters annual earnings as overtime pay quickly accrues during long days in the field. Its a system that is unfair and a fundamental issue of justice and fairness for these firefighters, Daines said in Helena on Thursday. The Wildland Firefighter Retirement and Disability Compensation Benefits Act of 2016 offers two main reforms. First, the legislation allows injured firefighters and law enforcement reassigned to non-hazardous jobs to continue on their original retirement track. Second, workers compensation payments would be based off of total earnings rather than base pay. You get hurt when youre that close to retirement and when they get repurposed to a different assignment outside of the hazardous side of a firefighter, now theyre put into a different retirement track of 30 years, Daines said. Its not right. Inspiration for the bill came from the wildland firefighters themselves, he added. Shane Ralston and Brendan Mullen approached Daines office as they recovered from firefighting injuries and found themselves and others fighting for the benefits they earned. While they applaud the legislation, both see it as a first step in bringing attention and reform to a system they feel is broken. Denial of medical travel payments, misinformation and reimbursement roadblocks became as normal as attending doctor appointments. As a Smokejumper, Ralston was injured on a jump three years ago. He expected the difficulties of physical rehabilitation, but he never anticipated any issues with paying for his care. I work for the Department of Agriculture and I pay my insurance bi-monthly to the Department of Labor, so it would be the same team I would think, he said. Its not. Its government employees looking to make it as difficult for other injured government employees until they go away. Mullen, the lone survivor of a helicopter crash during a prescribed burn, faced similar frustration as he ran into continual roadblocks in paying for his recovery. I accepted a level of risk in this job for sure and things happen, I had some things lined up, but to have dealt with and to be still going down this road I never couldve comprehended or appreciated, I never wouldve said this could happen, he said. Ralston and Mullen praised the Forest Service and their supervisors following their injuries. Both were offered jobs within the fire section and were able to maintain their retirement track. But others have not been as lucky. An entry-level seasonal firefighter injured and awaiting a disability designation, which can take years, may receive about $1,000 per month from workers compensation as he or she may be recovering fulltime and unable to work. As Ralston and Mullen spoke to fellow injured firefighters, they found many walked away in frustration from benefits or did not know the benefits available to them. Their experiences and the stories of others brought them to their senator. The response from Daines and his office has been a major help, they say. But how many people are out there that need help? Ralston asked. Now that its on the table, lets find solutions. Ralston and Mullen hope that the legislation may one day lead to systematic reforms. This is really the tip of the spear and something we can fix now for the greater good, Mullen said. Then down the road we need to fix the processes to make it better for everybody. Introducing the bill ahead of the next Congress brings visibility to the issue, Daines said, but he is also looking at the viability of an administrative fix. As he reintroduces it next year, finding cosponsors and pushing for hearings are part of Daines agenda. Hearings would provide firefighters struggling with the system the chance to testify to lawmakers. So often these bills that show up, its the stories behind the people that will bring them attention, Daines said. Watch out criminals! The Aussie government is coming for you. Your criminal cash economy is over, kaput, finite. The jig is up. Just when you thought you could deal drugs, launder money and do whatever else it is you do, think again. Its time to start looking for a new career. And Im not going to blag on about how robots are taking over your criminal career. No, the Aussie government has figured out how to end you once and for all. The government is set to end the circulation of $100 notes. HA! Take that criminals. Thats right, by removing $100 notes from the economy you can no longer hand over wads of the Green Soldier in your criminal dealings. Clearly you will no longer be able to run a criminal enterprise. Hang on a second. Whats that I hear? Oh, its the sound of every criminal in Australia falling off their (probably stolen) chair laughing. To be honest with you, Im in agreement with them. The government thinks by removing the $100 note theyll put the kibosh on criminal activity? I dont think so. When all the $100, $50, $20, $10 and $5 notes disappear Even the RBA says removing the $100 note will do little. In a research paper they argue the $50 is the preferred note of the black market. The RBA paper says, Liaison with AUSTRAC (Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre) and the Australian Crime Commission suggests that it is the $50 denomination rather than the $100 that tends to be preferred by criminal elements because of its ubiquitous use in legitimate transactions. The truth is the possible elimination of the hundy is nothing to do with criminals. Its a tax grab. The government just wants to makes sure that they collect every cent of tax off everyone they can. Sure, people should rightly pay tax on cash payments. As a taxpayer, cash jobs that go unreported do annoy me. But its not just criminals this could potentially impact. Its also every single tradesperson that works in Australia. Hair salons, carpenters, plumbers, builders, brickies, its a long list, but many of these jobs also take cash payments. And many dont report them all. I guess the government probably classifies these people as criminals too tax criminals. But theres one glaring problem with the governments idea to get rid of the $100 note. Its just going to make the criminals move on to the next one. If the $100 is the note of choice, crims will move to the $50 as the note of choice. And if the $50 becomes the note of choice, you can bet on whats coming next Low and behold, the government will outlaw the $50 note. See if you can figure out what comes next? Thats right the crims will move to the $20 note. And the government will outlaw those. So theyll move to the $10. And so on and so on. This begs the question, what happens when there are no notes in circulation? When the last remaining $5 note is gone, what comes next? What on earth will criminals and tradies use in their cash economy? According to the government, theyll simply have to use digital payments like the rest of us. And most of them will. This will mean that every transaction can be verified, and the appropriate tax paid on it. But then there will be the alternative financial system. A system that crooks and tradies can use. In fact, its a system anyone can use when they dont want government interference with their money. The currency of choice Im talking about isnt gold. Its not silver. Its none of the precious metals. Its the cryptoconomy. Get paid in bitcoinone day The cryptoconomy is a relatively new phenomenon. Its a digital economy made up of hundreds of different kinds of currency. These are all digital currencies, which means they all exist online. There is no physical note or coin that they are based on. In fact most of them dont have any physical backing. Their creation is digital, from scratch. Which, when you look at it that way, isnt so different form the normal money you use day to day. Some argue this makes them worthless but theyre worth what society deems them to be worth. Just like paper money, just like gold. These cryptoconomy currencies are technically rooted in mathematics. Theyre created by complex algorithms which will often limit the number of coins that will ever be in circulation. You might already know a few of these cryptoconomy coins by name. The most famous and popular is bitcoin. This was effectively the first digital currency in existence. The benefits were that its free from central bank control, borderless and carries a high degree of (although not complete) anonymity. Another is ethereum. Ethereum is a new kid on the block. Its become hugely popular in a short space of time because of the platform its based on. The ethereum platform allows anyone to create their own digital payments system. That could be your own cryptocoin. Or even your own blockchain for contracts or trade. Bitcoin and ethereum are the two most valuable, highly traded cryptocoins there are. Bitcoins total market cap is the equivalent of US$12.5 billion. Ethereums market cap is US$680 million. Now I say market cap because the common thing is to convert these cryptocoins back to a fiat currency. But in my view these cryptocoins will be of far greater value than any fiat currency. Buy a TV today, a car tomorrow In my view something like bitcoin should never covert back to a fiat currency. Once you get it, you should hold it or use it to buy goods and services. One day youll possibly even get your pay in bitcoin. The future will be a world where bitcoin is as useable and exchangeable as a USD or AUD. Its no pie in the sky idea either. In the US recently a new hedge fund paid data scientists to build an artificial brain. The fund paid the scientists in bitcoin. Open-marketplace Openbazaar just got $3 million in funding from venture capitalists. Coindesk, a cryptocurrency focussed publisher, describers Openbazaar like a decentralised eBay. Except the central premise of Openbazaar is bitcoin, not fiat currency. Of course a future solely based on cryptocoins might be a way off. But bitcoin in particular I think will increase in value and potential in the short term. Again the idea is that in a few years time what could buy with bitcoin is far more than you could buy today. Perhaps while you could by a TV with one bitcoin today. In the coming years I think you might be able to buy a car. Seeing the government move to a cashless society reinforces my view of whats coming for bitcoin. When the government sticks their nose in and society turns on them, well move to alternative options. And by far the biggest opportunity outside the existing financial system is bitcoin. To me that spells opportunity. Regards, Sam Volkering, For Money Morning The chronicle of a life split between urban Manhattan and rural Montana. Education Montgomery County Community College will present the spring installment of the interview/talk show program Issues and Insights April 20 from 12:30 to 2 p.m. in Science Center room 214, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The programs will be simulcast to the Colleges West Campus in South Hall room 216, 101 College Drive, Pottstown. Dr. Kolsky will offer a humorous presentation, Carrots, Sticks and Politics: A State of the Nation and the World Message. In this speech, he will provide his interpretation of domestic and international politics and then welcome questions from the audience for discussion. Issues and Insights, is free and open to the public. For information, contact Dr. Thomas Kolsky, professor of political science, at 215-641-6380 or tkolsky@mc3.edu. Montgomery County Community Colleges STEM Scholars Program will host a STEM Jam! open house April 25 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the Advanced Technology Center at the Colleges Central Campus, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The drop-in event is designed for students interested in learning more about careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Activities will include STEM program information and career advising, STEM speakers throughout the day from industry and academia, micro-helicopter and robotics competitive obstacle courses and demonstrations and static models of STEM student and faculty work. For more information about STEM Jam! or STEM programs at MCCC, contact William Brownlowe at wbrownlowe@mc3.edu or 215-641-6644, or Robin Zuhlke at 215-619-7440 or rzuhlke@mc3.edu. Temple Ambler, located at 580 Meetinghouse Road, presents the following events: International Club Global Bazaar April 15 from 5 to 8 p.m. The Ambler Campus International Club invites all students, faculty, staff and the community to celebrate a multitude of diverse cultures, which will be showcased at the organizations Global Bazaar. This family friendly event will highlight cultural traditions and celebrations in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, South American, North America and Africa through music, entertainment, food and informative displays developed and presented by students at the Ambler Campus. Young visitors will be provided with passports, which they may get stamped at each country they visit. Prizes will be awarded to world travelers who talk to cultural representatives, answer questions about the countries theyve visited and take part in fun-filled activities designed to help them learn about the rich diversity of cultures found throughout the world. Refreshments will be served. The event is free. For more information, call 267-468-8108 or e-mail tuc36466@temple.edu. EarthFest 2011 April 29 from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. More than 75 exhibitors, including the Philadelphia Zoo, The Franklin Institute, the Academy of Natural Sciences, the Elmwood Park Zoo and the Insectarium, will take part in EarthFest 2011. School students of all ages are invited to attend and develop displays of their own. EarthFest partner the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society also offers its Kids Grow Expo, featuring the Junior Flower Show, as part of the event. For more information, call 267-468-8108 or e-mail duffyj@temple.edu. Annual Spring Plant Sale May 7 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The plant sale an Ambler Campus tradition dating back to the early 1900s will feature woody plants and perennials in portable sizes, hardy trees, shrubs, and vines, native plants that are attractive to wildlife, herbs, and hanging baskets. There will also be numerous special plants for sale to highlight Amblers special anniversary year. Garden books and garden tools will also be available for sale. Students, staff, and volunteers from the Department of Landscape Architecture and Horticulture and the Ambler Arboretum Advisory Committee will be available to answer questions. All proceeds from the Spring Plant Sale will support the Ambler Arboretum Fund and the Pi Alpha Xi National Honor Society. Information: 267-468-8001 or judy.shatz@temple.edu. Learn more at www.ambler.temple.edu/anniversary. June Homecoming/Louise Bush-Brown Garden Dedication June 5 from 12:30 to 2 p.m. (June Homecoming), Bright Hall Lounge; 2 p.m. (Garden Dedication), Ambler Campus Formal Perennial Gardens. Tickets June Homecoming: Participant $18 per person; Sustainer $25 per person; Benefactor $40 per person. The 2011 June Homecoming, sponsored by the School of Environmental Design Alumni Association, will include the Alumni Association annual meeting and luncheon. June Homecoming will be followed by the formal dedication of Temple University Amblers Formal Perennial Gardens as the Louise Bush-Brown Formal Gardens. During this 100th anniversary of the campus, Temple University Ambler and the Ambler Arboretum of the Temple University is honoring Louise Bush-Browns many contributions to the history of the campus by formally dedicating the gardens in her honor. During the program, campus Executive William Parshall will welcome guests, Ambler Arboretum Director Jenny Rose Carey will speak about the Bush-Browns and the history of the garden, and an official ribbon cutting will be held for the Louise Bush-Brown Formal Garden. Following the ribbon cutting, guests are invited to take a tour of the gardens, which will wend their way to the Campus Greenhouse for the School of Environmental Designs annual Plant Auction. Information (Garden Dedication): 267-468-8001 or judy.shatz@temple.edu. Information (June Homecoming): 215-482-0722. Learn more at www.ambler.temple.edu/anniversary. Northview Garden Tour and Fundraiser for the Ambler Arboretum June 12 from noon to 5 p.m. Call for reservations. Tickets: $15 per person or $20 at the door. In addition to the gardens of the Ambler Arboretum of Temple University, Arboretum Director Jenny Rose Carey has a garden oasis all her own right in Ambler Northview. Visitors will have the opportunity to take self-guided tours throughout the many gardens, where garden experts will be available to answer questions about the various designs. The Ambler Keystone Chapter of the Womans National Farm and Garden Association will also provide tea and refreshments. All proceeds from the tours will support the Ambler Arboretum of Temple University. Information or to register: 267-468-8001 or judy.shatz@temple.edu. Learn more at www.ambler.temple.edu/anniversary. The Senior Adult Activities Center of Montgomery County, 536 George Street, Norristown, will hold the following events: SAAC Adult Day Care, an alternative to Nursing Home Care is available for information call 610-275-1960 Volunteers are needed for Meals on Wheels Program (call the number above) SAACs Fifth Avenue Boutique opens Monday through Friday from 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Exercise with Theresa will be held every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 1 p.m. Dance class is held every Monday at 10 a.m. Tai Chi is held every Monday at 10 a.m. Yoga is held every Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. Line Dancing is held every Thursday at 10:30 a.m. Dancing with Joan is held every Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. Sculpture Class is held Wednesdays from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Why Should I Learn Spanish? will be held Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m. Generations On-Line computer classes for seniors will be held Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. 4 p.m. computers are available during those hours. Health Living will be held every Tuesday at 1 p.m. Boomer U will hold the following events. Boomer U is located at 45 Forest Avenue, Ambler. Registration & payment is required for all events: 215-619-8863. Pilates Class is held Wednesdays and Fridays at 9:30 a.m. First class is free; please bring a mat. For information call 610-291-5376. Blue Bell School of Dance, 921 Penllyn Blue Bell Pike, Blue Bell, hosts Argentine Tango Classes and a Milonga dance party every Friday evening. Lessons start at 8:30 p.m. followed by dancing at 9:30 p.m. Andrew Conway, master Argentine Tango dancer, instructor and performer and his partner Linda Chase will instruct. All levels welcome and no partner is needed. Refreshments will be served. Fee is $12 per person and includes lesson and dancing. Information: 215-634-1101 or www.amoretango.com. The Montgomery Hospital Medical Center will offer the following classes: Childbirth Education Class- all parents are invited to participate, including those who are delivering at other hospitals. For more information on maternity services or classes, call 610-270-2020. CPR and First Aid Courses are offered for beginners to experiences health care providers. Call 610-270-2313. The Ambler SAAC (Senior Adult Activities Center), located at 45 Forest Ave in Ambler will hold the following events: Tai Chi every Monday and Thursday at 11 a.m. Yoga is every Tuesday at 1 p.m. and Friday at 10:30 a.m. Strength and balance training every Wednesday at 10 a.m. Armchair Aerobics is held every Monday at 10 a.m. Gourmet Weight Wise every Thursday at 12:30. Fitness Center and Pool Room open daily 8 a.m.-4 p.m. The Diabetes Education Center will offer day and evening classes each month. Health insurance pays for diabetes education classes. Preregistration is required. Call 610-270-2301. For Kids & Families The Ambler Kiwanis Club will host its annual Easter Egg Hunt April 26 at 10 a.m. in Ambler Borough Park, located just off of the intersection of Hendricks Street and Valley Brook Road. Members of the Wissahickon Key Club will assist Kiwanians in hiding thousands of wrapped chocolate eggs in a designated area of the park. Also hidden will be plastic colored eggs, which are redeemed for prizes. Elementary school children are separated by age. Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation will hold its 21st annual Storybook Egg-Stravaganza April 15 fom 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Upper Dublin Township Building. Toddlers and preschoolers love this annual event where photo opportunities with favorite friends abound! Treasures are collected from UDP&Rs assortment of lifesize cutouts of favorite cartoon characters from Disney, Sesame Street, Nickelodeon and other well-known animation. Children can have their picture taken with Bugsy OHare; bring your own camera. And dont forget a basket for goodies! $7 for UD residents; $12 for non-residents. Pre-register at 215-643-1600 ext. 3443. Splash Week is a free week-long program that teaches children and families basic swimming skills and water safety practices. All YMCA branches will host multiple classes each day from April 11 to 15. For more information, contact the Ambler Area YMCA at 215-628-9950. Healthy Kids Day is April 16 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The day is filled with fun, engaging and artistic activities that cultivate healthy living as part of the YMCAs larger efforts to help more kids and families become physically active. All activities are free and open to the community. For more information, contact the Ambler YMCA at 215-628-9950. No reservation is required. The Ambler Area YMCA has added several new programs for area youngsters. Classes are held late afternoons or evenings on various weekdays. For more information, visit philaymca.org or call 215-628-9950. Basic Beading: Ages: 10+. Wednesdays 7 to 7:45 p.m. This class will teach you the fundamentals of wiring and stringing along with how color can be used to create unique and vibrant beadwork design. You will create various jewelry including earrings, bracelets, charm pendants and much more! Supplies will be provided. Bringing your own jewelry pliers or tools would be a plus. Messin with the Masters: Ages: 8-12. Thursdays 7 to 7:45 p.m. Learn about some of the worlds greatest artists. You will be inspired to create your own Starry Night with oil pastels and tempera paints, a tissue paper painted Monet garden, a Picasso head using scraps of paper, a Georgia OKeeffe clay flower bowl and a Rousseau jungle collage. Super Scientist: Ages: 5-7. Mondays 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Well be concocting chemistry experiments such as making slime, mixing potions and having fun with magnet magic. Your budding little scientist will enhance his/her creative thinking and motor skills and to top it off will learn that science can be serious fun. Wacky Junk Art: Ages: 8-12. Thursdays 6 to 6:45 p.m. Why throw it away! Instead join us to make household junk into aliens from outer space, wacky specs, crazy hats, body masks or a recycled train. Globe Trotters: Ages: 4-6. Tuesdays 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Youre never too young to start thinking globally. Each week, we explore a new country through crafts, games, music, stories and even some taste-testing. A perfect introduction to our great big world! Crazy about Crafts: Ages: 5-7, Thursdays 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Let your childs creative juices flow with our fun arts and crafts projects each week. Fine motor skills and creative thinking skills will be enhanced with this crafty class. Come out and join the Ambler Area YMCAs Teen and Junior Leaders Club. Participants are given the freedom to plan community service projects year round and truly make a difference in the lives of people in need. Those in Teen and Junior Leaders also attend leadership retreats all along the East Coast three times a year and meet other leaders who are doing the same great work in their respective areas. Dont miss out on this inspiring opportunity. Teen Leaders, ages 13-17, meet every Wednesday from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Junior Leaders, ages 10-12, will begin in the spring and will meet every Monday. For more information, contact Mike Miles, Teen Director, 215- 628-9950 x 1540 or mmiles@philaymca.org. Did you know that the new Ambler Area YMCA holds childrens birthday parties at its site for members and non members as well. The Ambler Y does all the work from start to finish and birthday parties include a personalized cake, ice cream, beverage and paper products. Parties are held on Saturday and Sunday afternoons and include two party hosts to lead activities, set-up, clean-up and assist with serving. You can have a Splash Party for children ages six to 12 in the new zero depth entry pool with water slide and spray fountains. Up to 25 children have exclusive use of the pool area with 30 minutes in the party room. Sports Parties are offered for kids ages four to 12 with age appropriate activities and games, and sports such as floor hockey, soccer, basketball or dodge ball. Children ages three to five years of age will enjoy parties in the Family Active Center with use of the Moon Bounce and organized activities, such as parachute play and songs. For information, 215-628-9950 ext. 1583. Community Events at the Ambler Y: -YAchievers YMCA Achievers is a developmentally based, extracurricular, educational and team mentoring program designed to help students in grades five through 12 prepare for fulfilled livelihoods in college and beyond. Participation is free and all students in this program receive a free YMCA membership. Registration for the 2009 program begins now. You do not need to be a YMCA member to utilize these special services. Call 215-628-9950 to register. Greater Norristown Art Leagues Childrens Weeklong Summer Art Camps will be held at 800 West Germantown Pike in East Norriton, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday throughout the summer. The cost per session is $125 per student for ages 6 and up. Jo Ann Cooksey Bono teaches an introduction to basic drawing skills and techniques from 10 a.m. until the lunch break each day. In the afternoon sessions, Mary Vogel Lozinak involves the students in hands on projects such as collage, papermaking, T-shirt printing, 3D design and sculpy clay. Fridays Graduation Day includes an art show, awards ceremony and reception for parents, siblings, grandparents and friends. All supplies are included. Students provide their own lunch. A refrigerator is available and the building is air-conditioned. This is the 15th year to run this successful program. Both instructors are professional artists with State Police and Child Abuse Clearances. To register, call Jo Ann at 610-279-1008, or register on-line at www.gnal.org. Health Dresher Physical Therapy is hosting an interactive seminar discussing its Golf Assessment Progam April 30 from 10 a.m. to noon at Dresher Physical Therapy, 1075 Virginia Drive, Suite 200, Fort Washington. Physical therapist Chris Miller, certified through the Titleist Performance Institute, will discuss why your body may be the most important piece of golf equipment you invest in and how this can drastically improve your game. $10 in advance; $15 at the door. Call 215-619-4545 to reserve your spot. The Chestnut Hill Center for Enrichment, Center on the Hill and Chestnut Hill Hospital will host a Senior Health and Resource Fair April 14 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Chestnut Hill Presbyterian Church, 8855 Germantown Ave. The event is free. For more information, call 215-248-0180 or e-mail chseniors@cavtel.net. The Ambler Senior Adult Activities Center is hosting Help Yourself to Health, a new six-week workshop for older adults with ongoing health conditions such as arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, anxiety, heart disease and others. The free workshop will take place at the Ambler Senior Adult Activities Center, 45 Forest Ave. on six Thursdays, May 12 through June 16 from 9:30 a.m. to noon. Although there is no charge to participate, registration is required. To register, call 215-619-8863. The Ambler Senior Adult Activities Center is sponsoring an eight-week program called A Matter of Balance: Managing Concerns About Falls. Presented by the Montgomery County Health Department, this workshop will be held on Tuesdays, May 3 to June 21 from 10 a.m. to noon at the Ambler Center, 45 Forest Ave. If you pre-register by April 27, the fee is only $5! Registration at the first class is $10. (Checks should be payable to SAAC and will benefit our Meals on Wheels program that serves homebound seniors.) A workbook will be provided and refreshments will be served. Call 215-619-8863 to register or for more information. Fort Washington Wellness Center classes are ongoing. There are several offered during lunch or right after work, for your convenience: Boot Camp from noon to 1 p.m. on Monday; Zumba is MWF from 11 a.m. to noon and Friday at 4 p.m.; there are 25 cycling classes; Ashtanga and Vinyasana Yoga and Pilates; and a group Womens Strength Training class M-F from 10 to 11 a.m. Questions, call Cathy DeMarco at 215-641-1245. Following the success of other local area programs, Impact Sports and Upper Dublin Parks and Recreation are delighted to team up again to offer a spring program for the 2011 season! Upper Dublin area children ages 3-5 years old can attend a Sports Program featuring their favorite sports games; soccer, rugby, hockey, track and field, basketball, and more. The program will start on April 27 and run through June 1. Cost for the program is $85 for the six weeks. The classes will be running 12- 1 p.m.; 1- 2 p.m.; 2- 3 p.m. For more info or to register, call Upper Dublin Township on 215 643 1600 or visit their website a http://www.upperdublin.net. Spring Aquatic Programs UDHS Pool: -Summer is just around the corner Community Aquatic Programs at the UDHS Pool can help get you into shape! Programs begin in March; preregistration is required. Shallow Water Aerobics Two 5-week programs, Wednesday nights, 8-8:45 p.m., $40R/$50NR. Adult Swim Instructions Two 5-week programs, Wednesday nights, 7-8 p.m., $50R/$60NR -Open Rec Swims are fun for the whole family! Come out on Fridays from 7-9 p.m. or Saturdays from 1-4 p.m. and enjoy use of the pool and diving area. Fridays are offered through June 17; Saturdays are offered March 12-May 21. -Join a growing group of adult lap swimmers and water walkers. Lanes are set aside evenings and weekends for use; lanes are shared. Monday Thursday from 7:30-9:30 p.m.; Fridays from 7-9 p.m. and Saturdays (March 12-May 21) from 1-4 p.m. -Private Swimming & Diving Lessons for ages 3-adult are offered at the UDHS Pool through a partnership with the Upper Dublin Aquatic Club (UDAC). Visit the UDAC website for more information, www.udac.us, and click the link to UDHS Private Lessons. -Looking for local programs for US Masters Swimming (adults) or Water Polo (all ages)? UDAC and UDSD are working together to develop programs that will be offered at the UDHS Pool. Add your name to Interest Lists by emailing slohoefer@upperdublin.net. emails will be sent about clinics and program start dates. Questions about Community Aquatic Programs at the UDHS Pool, group use of the pool or pool rental? Contact Susan Lohoefer, Facility & Community Affairs Manager at slohoefer@upperdublin.net or call 215-643-8800 x8994. SilverSneakers Fitness Program. The Healthyways SilverSneakers Fitness Program is a result-oriented program that enables older adults to take charge of their health. The program is an innovative blend of physical activity, healthy lifestyle and socially oriented programing. Members of the program are eligible for a free YMCA membership, with use of the pool and exercise equipment, along with customized classes designed for older adults who want to improve their strength, flexibility, balance and endurance. If you are a subscriber to Independence Blue Cross (Personal Choice 65 PPO) or Keystone 65 HMO, Bravo Health, or Health Options Programs (HOP), call the Ambler Area YMCA, 215-628-9950 or Hatboro Area YMCA, 215-674-4545. You can also visit www.silversneakers.com. Zumba Fitness offers Zumba dance/fitness classes at Academy of Dance and Music/BBAD Studio located at 1524 DeKalb Pike in Blue Bell (behind Sherwin Williams). Classes are offered three times a week: Tuesdays at 6 p.m., Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. and Saturdays at 8 a.m. For a free trial pass for your first class, email us at info@danceandmusic.biz or call 610-277-2557. For more info, visit our site at www.academyofdanceandmusic.org. Chestnut Hill Health Systems presents the following Health Education Programs: FITNESS CLASSES Golden Yoga: A Breathing, Stretching and Relaxation Class. Fridays, 2:30-3:30 p.m. Lea Auditorium, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave. Registration for four classes at a time required. Golden Yoga is Classical Yoga, adapted by the SKY Foundation, to accommodate those who have difficulty getting up and down from the floor. The program includes postures, breathing, relaxation and meditation techniques, all performed while sitting in a chair and standing. Registration required. Call 215-247-3029. Cost: $20 for 4 classes per month. Tai Chi: Tuesdays & Thursdays, 8:30 9:30 a.m. Springfield Residence, 8601 Stenton Ave. Classes, for the novice or beginner/intermediate student, are designed to improve balance, power, posture, coordination, flexibility and mental focus. Slow, gentle movements are modified to most everyones abilities. For more information or to sign up for a free introductory class, call 215-882-2804. Cost: $8 per class/paid monthly. SUPPORT GROUPS Weight Loss Surgery Support Group: Fourth Wednesday of the month, 7-8 p.m. Williams Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia. Join us for a monthly get-together where well share information for those interested in weight loss surgery, learn from guest speakers discussing current news on issues including lifestyle modification, nutrition and exercise and provide ongoing support for those who have completed surgery. Registration required. Call 215-753-2000. Breast Cancer Networking Group: Fourth Tuesday of the month 5:30 7 p.m. Williams Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia. A free, confidential support group for women living with a diagnosis of breast cancer designed to provide a forum for sharing information, feelings and concerns associated with breast cancer. Facilitated by Tish Wakefield, LCSW, Oncology Social Worker. Registration required. To register or for more information, call 215-248-8047. New Moms Support Groups Tuesdays 10:30 a.m. 12 p.m.; contact Jeanine ORourke, MSW or 2:30 4 p.m.; contact Susan Schack, Ph.D Volunteer Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave. The Center for Postpartum Depression at Chestnut Hill Hospital is pleased to offer two new support groups to support new moms. Both groups will be run by experienced mental health professionals who really get it when it comes to new motherhood and juggling relationships, extended family, work/family balance and self-care. If you are experiencing new mom challenges that often heighten anxiety and involve hormonally driven depression, join us for an informative and supportive forum to connect with other moms. Infants are welcome. $30 per session (flexible based on need). Registration is required. Call Dr. Schack, 646-265-2484, or Ms. ORourke, 215-206-2931. Man to Man Prostate Cancer Support Group Third Thursday of the month 8-9 a.m. Williams Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave. A networking group for men diagnosed with prostate cancer designed to provide education, support and encouragement. Spouses and partners welcome. Harry M. Baer, MD, Chief, Urology Division, will host Ask the Doctor. Registration required. Call 215-248-8325. Contact the Senior Center by phone 215-248-0180 or email (chseniors@cavtel.net) with your questions about these programs or any of our on-going activities and classes. Holy Redeemer HomeCare and Hospice seeks compassionate and emotionally mature volunteers to provide support to local hospice patients and their families in Bucks, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties. Volunteers may also assist with pet therapy and administrative work within the hospice department and are requested to have daytime availability. Hospice patient care volunteers visit with patients in their homes or nursing facilities once a week for two to three hours. They provide emotional support and companionship to patients and family members, assist with errands or provide respite for caregivers. Bereavement volunteers support the families of hospice patients following the loss of a loved one, while administrative volunteers assist with typing, mailings and/or filing. Hospice care workers provide a great service to families and loved ones of hospice patients. Many volunteers also report a great deal of personal satisfaction as a result of their services. Patient care and bereavement volunteers complete an application and attend an 18-hour volunteer training program that covers the medical, psychological and spiritual aspects of hospice volunteering. Day and evening training programs are offered. To sign up for volunteer opportunities in Pennsylvania, contact Holy Redeemer Volunteer Coordinator Jean Francis at 215-698-3737 or email jfrancis@holyredeemer.com. Librarytalk Upper Dublin Public Library, 805 Loch Alsh Avenue, Ft. Washington, 215-628-8744 www.upperdublinlibrary.org APRIL CHILDRENS PROGRAMS: Storytimes: Please register in the library. o Wee Ones: 0 to 23 months Thursdays and Fridays 10:30 to 10:50 a.m. o Tiny Tots: age 2. Wednesdays 10:30 to 10:50 a.m. and Fridays 11 to 11:20 a.m. o Jr. Book Lovers: ages 3 to 6. Tuesdays 10:30 to 11 a.m. o Bedtime Storytimes: 7 to 7:30 p.m. April 20 and 27. Wear your jammies, bring your teddy & hear Miss Barbara read bedtime stories! For ages 3 to 6. APRIL TEEN PROGRAMS: North Hills Library Teens April 28 from 4 to 6 p.m. Movie Matinee APRIL UDPL ADULT PROGRAMS: NEW! ESL Conversation Group. Tuesdays from 7 to 8 p.m. Interested in practicing your English in a safe and caring environment? Come to our conversation group and improve your skills! Please register with Kay Klocko at 215-628-8744 or kklocko@mclinc.org. One-on-One Computer Mentoring. Get personalized assistance from experienced computer volunteers! Sign-up for a one-hour session. Limit one session per month. Please register contact info above. Book Groups Please register with Kay Klocko 215-628-8744. o Daytimers: April 21 at 1:30 p.m. Tired of book groups where you all read the same book? Read any fiction or non-fiction book on this months theme: Explorers. Please register. Meetings: Annual Meeting of the Friends of UDPL: April 14 at 1 p.m. Board of Directors: April 20 at 7 p.m. Blue Bell Library www.wvpl.org Upcoming Events: The Wissahickon Valley Public Library, 650 Skippack Pike (Route 73) in Blue Bell, is diagonally across from the Blue Bell Inn. Call 215-643-1320 or visit their website at www.wvpl.org. For children and teens at Blue Bell: * Story times with guitar music by Miss Michelle, the singing librarian. * Mondays at 10:30 a.m. for all ages. * Wednesdays at 4:30 p.m. for all ages. * Fridays at 10:30 a.m. for all ages. * Family Movies, new releases, second Saturdays of the month at 1:30 p.m. * May 14 Despicable Me * June 11 Alpha and Omega * Special Events * April watch for date of spring/Easter events * April 14 at 4:30 p.m. Junior Lego Club for children ages 3 through 5. Parents and caregivers need to stay with children. * April 14 at 7 p.m. Jeopardy for ages 11 to 18. Test your book and library knowledge for prizes. Sign up to be a contestant. No sign up to be in the audience. Snacks provided. * April 16 at 1 p.m. Adult Mystery Book Group discussing The Beekeepers Apprentice by Laurie King. * April 16 at 1:30 p.m. Childrens event for One Book, Every Young Child celebration. Story and craft for book Whose Shoes? * April 19 at 7 p.m. and April 26 at 1:30 p.m.- Adult book group discusses The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester. Group led by Adam Button. * April 30 through May 3 Friends book sale with about 10,000 items for sale for children, teens and adults. * May sign up for Science in the Summer * June sign up for Enrichment Programs for Elementary-Age children * June sign up for Summer Reading, all ages For adults at Blue Bell: * Daytime Book Discussion Group fourth Tuesday, Jan April at 1:30 p.m. * April 26 The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester * Night-time Book Discussion Group third Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. o April 19 The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester * Art Series with Dr. Sheldon Weintraub, docent at The Barnes and speaker at local colleges o April 27 at 2 p.m. The Art of Looking at Art-Is She Nude or Is She Naked? *Mystery Book Discussion Group, third Saturday of the month at 1 p.m.; new mystery theme each month; www.wvpl.org/programs * Yoga on Mondays at 1:30 p.m. $20 for eight classes; $5 per drop-in class. * Tai Chi on Mondays at 3 p.m. with Dr. Kurt Findeisen. $20 for eight classes; $5 per drop in class. * Philadelphia Museum of Art presents class on their Marc Chagall exhibit, April 13 at 2 p.m. * Giant Book Sale, April 29 May 3 o Starts with almost 10,000 items for children and adults! o Held during library hours. o Preview for members of the Friends of the Library, April 28 at 7 p.m. o Join the Friends and attend the preview sale. Modest fee to join. * Blooms at Blue Bell Gardening Series o May 11 at 1 p.m. Summer Bulbs by PA Horticultural Society * Knitting group Mondays and Wednesdays at 10 a.m. Work on your project or observe and learn. The groups continue year-round in the community room. * Socrates Cafe discussion group every Monday at 7 p.m. You pick the topic to discuss each week. No sign-up, nothing to read. * Bridge every Friday at 12:30 p.m. New players welcome. * Mah Jong every Wednesday at 1 p.m. New players welcome. *Chess every Wednesday at 7p.m. for adults and teens 14 and older. * Movie Matinee showing recent releases every Thursday at 2 p.m. April 14: Maos Last Dancer; April 21: Welcome to the Rileys; April 28: Conviction; May 5: Inception; May 12: Inside Job; May 19 The Kings Speech; May 26 The Fighter; June 2 Rabbit Hole; June 9 Black Swan; June 16 127 Hours * Ongoing like-new, year-round book sale for adults & children during library hours * Library opening at 10 a.m. Monday through Saturday! Ambler Library, a branch of the Wissahickon Valley Public Library, 209 Race St., 215-646-1072. www.wvpl.org. All the following events occur at the Ambler Library. * Story times with guitar music by Miss Michelle, the singing librarian. * Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m. for all ages. * Thursdays at 4:30 p.m. for all ages. * For adults: * Beading Group meets the first and third Monday of every month at 1 p.m. Work on your own projects or come to watch and learn. * Free Family History Lookup with Connie Briggs. Email Connie for an appointment at the Ambler Library. conniebriggs@comcast.net * Special Events: * April 14 at 1:30 p.m. Book Group discusses Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian. * April 19 at 7 p.m. Travel to Paris with world traveler Harry Balin. Tea and scones at 6:30 p.m. * April 21 at 7 p.m. Art with Sara for children in fourth through seventh grades. *May 2 at 6:30 p.m. Discuss the movie Lone Star with Temple Professor Lisa Hawkins. Watch the movie ahead of time. *May 10 Robert Capucci discusses Art into Fashion. Tea and scones served at 6:30 p.m. Program at 7 p.m. *May 12 at 1:30p.m. Book Group discusses The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman. *May 17 Tour the gardens of Devon and Southwest England with Lois McMullen. Tea and Scones at 6:30 p.m. Program at 7 p.m. *June 13 at 6:30 p.m. Discuss the movie Blade Runner with Temple Professor Lisa Hawkins. Watch the movie ahead of time. Meetings and Lectures The Unisys Blue Bell Retiree Group will meet in the Church on the Mall in the Plymouth Meeting Mall April 14 at 1:30 p.m. Kathy Sacket Young, director/trainer with the North Penn YMCA, will speak on Keeping Fit in Retirement. For more information, contact Membership Committee Chairperson Jerry Feldscher at 610-275-3538 or President Al Rollin at 215-368-4833. The next FWBA meeting will be April 28 at the Hilton Garden Inn Fort Washington. Networking begins at 11:30 a.m.; meeting from noon to 1 p.m. Leon Singletary, Principal, First Contact HR and FWBA Executive Board, will present: Social Media: How to Use It To Get More Business. Lunch is provided courtesy of the Hilton Garden Inn Fort Washington. Members are welcome to bring a guest. An RSVP is requested by return email or 215-628-0313. Big Brothers Big Sisters Southeastern PA is hosting a information sessions over the next few weeks on how to become a Big Brother. The information sessions will take place: April 16 at noon, April 19 at 8 a.m. and April 28 at 6 p.m. All sessions will be held at the groups Norristown Office,t 530 DeKalb St., Norristown. For more information, call 610-277-2200. The North Penn Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) normally meets on the third Tuesday of each month from now until May. Meetings are held at the William Penn Inn on Route 202 and Sumneytown Pike, Upper Gwynedd, PA. Social hour starts at 5:30 p.m., dinner is served at 6:30 p.m., and the technical program begins at 7 p.m. Cost with reservation is $28 for members. Members without reservations and guests pay $30. Students with reservations pay $15. Reservations may be made by noon on the Monday preceding the meeting by phoning 215-371-1854 or emailing the reservation to northpennima@yahoo.com northpennima@yahoo.com. Information about the North Penn Chapter is available at http://northpenn.imanet.org/. LeTip, a professional organization of men and women who are dedicated to the highest standards of competence and service meets every Tuesday at Cedar Brook Country Club, 180 Penllyn Pike, Blue Bell at 7 a.m. -meeting officially starts at 7:16 a.m. and ends at 8:31 a.m. Our purpose is the exchange of business tips, leads, and referrals. Each business category is represented by one member and conflicts of interest are disallowed. Guests are welcome to visit any of our breakfast meetings. Every third Thursday of month, Sunrise Assisted Living of Blue Bell (795 Penllyn Pike, Blue Bell, PA 19422, 215-619-2777) serves as a satellite site to 148th Legislative district PA congressman Mike Gerber from 10 a.m. to noon. Stop by for help needed with things such as disability placards and license plates, vehicle registration, utilities issues, birth/death certificates,property tax/rent rebates, etc. Notary services arranged by appointment. The Eastern Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce is an action-oriented organization dedicated to promoting its members and the economic health of eastern Montgomery county. The Chamber is committed to serving as a catalyst by uniting business, community agencies, government and education to make our county a great place to live and work. For information, call 215-887-5122 or visit www.emccc.org. Do you have a fear of public speaking? Blue Bell Toastmasters Club can help. We meet from 7 to 9 p.m., on the second and fourth Tuesday at the Marriott Courtyard, located on Route 202, directly across from the Montgomeryville Mall. Learn how to improve communication and leadership skills in a friendly and supportive environment. Guests are welcome. Admission fee: $5. For more info, visit www.bbtoast.org. The PennSuburban Chamber of Commerce will hold the following meetings (for reservations to any of the following, email info@PennSuburban.org) -Breakfast News Network, 7:30-8:45 a.m. at Normandy Farm Hotel (1401 Morris Road, Blue Bell, PA 19422) $15 members, includes full buffet breakfast. Join us for a networking program at Normandy Farm Hotel every Thursday morning for breakfast, business news, informative speakers, and plenty of networking. The cost includes a full breakfast buffet. Copies of the business cards will be made available to those who would like them. The BNI, Fort Washington Chapter meets every Monday at The Hilton Garden Inn, 520 Pennsylvania Ave., Fort Washington for a networking meeting. Meetings are from 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. Visitors are welcome. The only cost to attend is the cost of your meal. For information or a reservation to attend, please call Luanne Cram at 215-947-7784, or visit our Internet site at: http://www.BNIDVR.Com and click on the menu item Find a Chapter. For the past seven years, people have enjoyed participating in WVWAs Adopt-a-Tree program. Individuals can support the Association in its reforestation efforts by purchasing native trees to be planted. Supporters can plant their adopted tree or have WVWA volunteers will plant it. Trees cost $30 each. If you would like to volunteer or purchase a tree(s), please contact: Bob Adams at Bob@wvwa.org or call: 215-646-8866 for more information. Check www.WVWA.org for directions and maps. Sustainable Upper Dublin, http://sustainableupperdublin.org, meets the first Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m., at the Upper Dublin Township Building, 801 Loch Alsh Avenue, Fort Washington, PA 19034. Please send any questions to suec@sustainableupperdublin.org or call 610-996-6316. To learn more about Sustainable Upper Dublin, view or join the discussion at http://googlegroups.com/group/sustainableupperdublin. Special Events The Mattie N. Dixon Community Cupboard will hold its first nutrition class April 19 at 10 a.m. at the Community Cupboard, 150 N. Main St., Ambler. Lynne Sinclair, a nutritionist from Abington Memorial Hospital specializing in diabetic nutrition, will conduct the class. Topics will include healthy eating, beneficial foods, recipes, making meals with every day foods, and how to use unfamiliar produce. A healthy snack will be provided.The class is is open to all residents in Montgomery County. The Historical Society of Fort Washington presents The History of Conshohocken April 19 at 8 p.m. at the Clifton House, 473 Bethlehem Pike, Fort Washington. Jack Coll will present an illustrated program on the history of the Borough of Conshohocken. Coll is a longtime resident of Conshohocken and a member of the Conshohocken Historical Society. He is co-author with his son, Brian, of the Arcadia Then and Now Series book Conshohocken. He has also done books Conshohocken and West Conshohocken Sports and Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Italian Feast. He has taken many photos for the Conshohocken Record and the Norristown Times Herald. This program is free. Refreshments will be served. For additional information, call 215-646-6065. Taste of the White House Soiree featuring former White House Chef Walter Scheib will take place April 29 at 6 p.m. at Manufacturers Golf & Country Club in Fort Washington to celebrate HealthLinks 10th anniversary and honor its founders, the Eugene Jackson Family. The evening will heat up with a Chef Meet & Greet, followed by a specially selected presidential menu. Gala tickets are $150 per person. Proceeds benefit HealthLink, a free clinic providing compassionate, quality medical and dental care to uninsured, working adults in Bucks and Montgomery counties who fall in between the health care cracks. Go to http://tasteofthewhitehouse.charityhappenings.org to make reservations online or lend support through sponsorship. For event information, call 267-699-0124 or email jmarushak@healthlinkmedical.org. The Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association will hold an open house at the Evans-Mumbower Mill April 17 from 1 to 4 p.m. The Mill is at the corner of Swedesford and Township Line Roads in Upper Gwynedd. The open house is free but donations are welcome. For more information, call 215-646-8866 o email info@wvwa.org. The Eastern Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce will host Breakfast With Your County Commissioners and State Representatives April 21 from 8 to 9:30 a.m. at the Holiday Inn Fort Washington, 432 W. Pennasylvania Ave. Commissioners: James R. Matthews (Chairman), Joseph M. Hoeffel (Vice Chair), State Representatives: Todd Stephens (District 151) and Josh Shapiro (District 153). Register onlineat www.emccc.org. $10 for EMCCC member; $20 for non-members. Upper Dublins Districtwide Allied Art Show will be held April 27 from 5:30 to 9 p.m. in the Upper Dublin High School Athletic Complex. The Rev. Alfred Muli, chaplain at Fort Washington Estates, will be the featured speaker at the Kiwanis sponsored breakfast observing the National Day of Prayer May 5 at 7 a.m. at the William Penn Inn. The breakfast is open to the public ($15). Reservations can be made by calling 215-646-4356 or by emailing georgesaurman@Juno.com. The Upper Dublin Shade Tree Commission invites people to participate in its spring bare root planting events, sponsored in part by Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation and Friends of Robbins Park. On April 9, zix trees will be planted at the Evelyn B. Wright Park & Community Pool, 401 Logan Ave., North Hills, at 9 a.m., followed by the planting of 10 trees at Sheeleigh Park, Loch Alsh Avenue and Douglas Street, Ambler, at 10:15 a.m. On April 29, students from Upper Dublin High School will join the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society to plant 16 trees in Robbins Park, Butler Pike and Meetinghouse Road, Ambler, to help launch the societys Million Trees campaign. This event will occur in conjunction with Temple Amblers EarthFest. Experienced tree-tenders are sought to assist the students. For more information,contact Ron Ayres at 215-653-0421 or 215-483-4348. The Friends of the Wissahickon and the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association are teaming up once again to clean the Wissahickon Creek from top to bottom April 30 from 9 a.m. to noon. This spring marks the 41st anniversary of Wissahickon Valley Watershed Associations annual Creek Clean Up, and the second year that FOW has teamed up with WVWA. Volunteers of all ages will clean the creek, the surrounding trails and the many tributaries of the Wissahickon Creek. Armed with bags, volunteers will be assigned to sections of the creek. Following the clean up, all volunteers are invited to WVWAs Talkin Trash picnic in Fort Washington State Park, with food provided by Whole Foods Market of North Wales. The pavilion is located on Mill Road in Flourtown. To help out in Montgomery County, all volunteers must be pre-assigned a section of the Wissahickon Creek to clean. Please contact Bob Adams, WVWA director of stewardship, at 215-646-8866 ext. 14 or bob@wvwa.org. To work with the Friends of the Wissahickon in Philadelphia, meet at the pavilion along Forbidden Drive, a short distance south of the intersection of Forbidden Drive and Northwestern Avenue. Limited parking is available along Northwestern Avenue and other nearby streets. Volunteers are encouraged to bike or carpool to the event. To participate, register at www.fow.org. Contact Kevin Groves with questions at 215-247-0417 ext. 105 or groves@fow.org. Montgomery County Community Colleges International Club invites the community to the second annual International Festival April 20 from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Central Campus, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The rain date is April 26. The International Club will transform the outside quad area into multicultural celebration with various performances by dancers, singers and musicians. Artists will share their artwork at various display tables. Activities include games, raffles, Easter egg decorating and henna tattoos. Students will have samples of international cuisine at tables representing different countries and will serve food from various local ethnic restaurants. Throughout the evening, volunteers will accept donations and will raffle gift baskets and prizes to raise funds for Habitat for Humanity. Donations of food, international clothes and prizes are needed. Volunteers, including artists and performers, are welcome. For more information or to sponsor an activity, contact Gillian Nel, International Club president, at gnel9277@students.mc3.edu or 267-974-0163. The Arts and Humanities Division at Montgomery County Community College is partnering with the Philadelphia Writers Conference to host Memoirs Matter: How Life Stories (Including Yours) Can Transform Your Relationship to Literature April 23 from 1 to 3 p.m. in Advanced Technology Center room 101, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The event is free and open to the public. In the first part of this two-hour seminar, professor and author Robert Waxler will explain how writing his two memoirs affected his life as well as his relationship to literature. In the second part, blogger and workshop leader Jerry Waxler will present a sequence of steps to help writers find their own story. For information, contact Dana Resente at dresente@mc3.edu. The Maple Glen Garden Club will hold its fourth annual Plant Sale on May 7 from 8 to 11 a.m. Perennials, shrubs, vegetables and native plants grown by the club members will be sold. The club uses the plant sale proceeds to fund community projects, a college scholarship and community plantings. The sale will be held in the 500 block of Coach Road, Horsham, as part of a neighborhood garage sale. Plants will be sold at bargain prices. For more information, email MapleGlenGardenClub@gmail.com. The Relay for Life Craft Show is looking for local crafters to participate in show, which will be May 21 from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the Wissahickon High School track, 521 Houston Road, Ambler. There is a $10 entry fee, and 20 percent of sales are donated to the American Cancer Society. Participants will receive a 6-foot table under a tent. For information, contact Joanne at joannescoles@comcast.net or Mindy at mcamsilver@comcast.net. Spring House Estates is hosting its annual book fair on April 18 from 4 to 7 p.m. and April 9 from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Included will be hardback and paperback used books. Spring House Estates is located at 728 Norristown Road, Lower Gwynedd. The PennSuburban Chamber of Commerce will present the Penn Suburban/Hatfield Joint Business Card Exchange April 20 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Univest Bank Lansdale Area Financial Service Center, 120 Forty Foot Road, Hatfield. The event is free. To make reservations, visit PennSuburban.org/Events. Join Univest National Bank and Trust Co. for a spring-inspired Business Card Exchange at its newest office in the Hatfield Pointe Shopping Center. Come out and meet members of Univests executive management team while enjoying fine food and beverages. 13th Annual Community Reading Day Kick-off Breakfast Get Together April 26 from 8 to 9:30 a.m. at the North Wales Area Library, 233 Swartley St., North Wales. The event is free. To make reservations, visit PennSuburban.org/Events. For more information, contact the chamber office at 215-362-9200 or info@pennsuburban.org. Join presenting sponsor Verizon, chamber staff and fellow members for the Community Reading Day volunteer get together. The Community Reading Day program allows volunteers to read a designated book to second-grade students throughout 38 area public and private schools and present the book as a gift to each class. Even if you are not a volunteer, you are cordially invited to stop by to network, enjoy coffee and pastries. Ambler Mennonite Church is hosting a Spring Craft Show and Flea Market May 21 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Rain date will be May 28. The community is invited to shop the great craft booths, find some gifts and deals, as well as enjoy home baked goods and tasty lunch specials. Childrens activities are planned. All vendors are encouraged to contact the church at 215-643-4876 or AmblerMennonite@verizon.net. Advertising, signage, customer parking and a shuttle to auxiliary parking at nearby lots for vendors will be provided. 10 foot by 10 foot spaces can be rented for $5 each and tables for an additional $5 each. All proceeds from space and table rentals go toward school kits for children around the world. The church is located at the corner of East Mt. Pleasant Avenue and North Spring Garden Street, Ambler. The Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association presents The Life & Times of Aquatic Insects in the Wissahickon Creek April 16 from 1 to 3 p.m. Join WVWA for a hands-on program. RSVP required: www.wvwa.org or 215-646-8866. WVWA member fee: $5 per person / $15 per family. Non-WVWA member fee: $10 per person / $20 per family. The photography exhibition Natures Palette by photo-artist Judy Miller will run March 18 to May 19 at the Art in the Storefront gallery, 41 E. Butler Pike, Ambler. JPRN Networking For People in Transition & People Who Can Help Them Unemployment remains high. JPRN, the Jarrettown Professional Relationship Network can help. Are you trying to network your way to a new job? Do you have expertise or contacts that can help people in transition? Is your company or organization looking for people in the area? This is a free outreach program to support those seeking work, involve people with contacts and networking know how, and involve local companies. Meetings held monthly at Jarrettown United Methodist Church, Limekiln Pike. Pennsylvanias Low-Income Home Energy Assistance (LIHEAP) grant program is now open for the 2010-11 heating season. Grants are based on income, family size, type of heating fuel and region. Additional information, such as specific income limits, and applications for LIHEAP grants are available online via the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Access to Social Services (COMPASS) website at www.compass.state.pa.us. Applications are available at most public officals district offices, county assistance offices, local utility companies and community service agencies, such as Area Agencies on Aging or community action agencies. Begin your holiday shopping at Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation! Entertainment books for 2011, Philadelphia North, are now on sale at $30 each. Regal/United Artists movie tickets are on sale for just $7.50 each, and tickets to the Adventure Aquarium, Baltimore Aquarium, and the Philadelphia Zoo are also available. Discounted ski vouchers to area mountains will be arriving in December; call 215-643-1600 x3443 for more information. Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation office hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. RSVP of Montgomery County and the Wissahickon Valley Public Library have partnered again to offer the public their popular free mock interview sessions. The mock interviews are conducted by RSVP volunteers who are retired professionals, some of whom were in hiring positions themselves. Packets of information which include a sample employment application and interviewing tips with mock interview questions are available at the library to pick up prior to a scheduled mock interview or will be sent via email once the interview is scheduled. To schedule your interview, please contact Janis Glusman at RSVP 610-834-1040, ext. 16. The library is also offering a free resume review service. Bring in your current resume and the professional reference staff will assist you with hints and tips on capturing your work history accurately. Registration for Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation summer playgrounds, Camp B.I.G. and Small Folks, X-Zone, and sports camps has began. Register online at www.upperdublin.net/store, or at the UDP&R office, 801 Loch Alsh Avenue, Fort Washington. Call 215-643-1600 x3443 for more information. Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation and Danielles Espresso Cafe presents Mornings at Mondaug Bark Park April 16 and May 21 from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Meet fellow dog lovers. These events include complimentary coffee, treats for people and pups and raffles/giveaways. Upper Dublins Annual Spring Flea Market will be held June 4 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Reserve a table, or come and shop. Tables are $15 for UD residents, $20 for non-residents. This successful event occurs rain or shine. Refreshments available. Call 215-643-1600 ext. 3443 to register for a table. Regal movie tickets available for purchase at Upper Dublin Township Parks & Recreation. Reduced rate: $7.50 per ticket. Some restrictions apply. Call 215-643-1600 x3443. Whitpain Township Parks & Recreation movie tickets $7.50 Regal Cinemas, United Artist & Edwards Cinemas on sale throughout the year Monday Friday from 9 a.m. 4 p.m. Whitpain Township Parks & Recreation Camp Sign-ups for Stony Creek Day Camp Stony Creek Tracers and Park n Tots. Register on-line at www.whitpaintownship.org OrCome to Township Building with check or Visa MasterCard Monday Friday from 9 a.m. 4 p.m. For additional information call 610.277-2400 ext. 374 Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation offers exciting new programs for the fall: -Returning favorites include UK Elite Petite Soccer, Tiny Dancers, Kiddie Tennis, Fun-nastics, Messy Playtime, Little Chefs, and more. Babysitters Training will be offered in November and December. Continuing Adult Fitness Classes include Cardio Circuit, Core & More, Yoga, Boxing, and Adult G.Y.M. For more information call 215-643-1600 x3443. Register for programs online at www.upperdublin.net/store. Music and Theater The community is invited to a Cantors Concert April 16 at 8 p.m. Congregation Beth Or, 239 Welsh Road, Maple Glen. Listen and hum-along to the Yiddish, pop tunes and classical music performed by Congregation Beth Ors own Cantor David Green and his special guest, Cantor Irvin Bell, from Temple Beth Israel in Deerfield Beach, Fla. The cantors will be accompanied by Mark Sobol and his Klezmer musicians. Tickets are $18 in advance and $25 at the door. RSVP with payment to Barb Murtha, 239 Welsh Road, Maple Glen, PA 19002, or call 215-646-5806 ext. 220. Gwynedd Friends Coffeehouse will host the Jameson Sisters May 14. Doors open at 7:30 pm, performance at 8:00 pm. Gwynedd Friends Coffeehouse is located at the corner of Rte. 202 & Sumneytown Pike, Gwynedd. $5 suggested donation. Light refreshment available at a modest cost. For further information, call 215-393-9576 or visit gwyneddmeeting.org/coffeehouse.html. Celebrate patriotism through song with Gwynedd-Mercy Colleges choir, the Voices of Gwynedd, as it presents Hear America Singing April 15 at 8 p.m. The choir will perform song selections from all over the country, including Georgia on My Mind, New York State of Mind, and a medley including Philadelphia Freedom and Allentown. The performance will end with When the Saints Go Marching In to acknowledge the choirs upcoming tour in New Orleans. Hear America Singing will take place in the Julia Ball Auditorium, located in St. Bernard Hall. Parking is available in lots A, C and D. Admission is free. The Choristers will present Anton Dvoraks Stabat Mater April 16 at 7:30 p.m. at Upper Dublin Lutheran Church in Ambler. The choir will be accompanied by a 41-piece orchestra. Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for senior citizens, $10 for students and children are free. Tickets will be sold in advance or at the door. For more information, call 215-542-7871 or visit TheChoristers.org Religious News The Staircase Gallery at Or Hadash: A Reconstructionist Congregation in Fort Washington will feature the work of Emily Ennuat-Lustine. The artist will be showing paintings and graphics inspired by her own personal spiritual journey and quest for meaning. Some of the works to be shown have been inspired by Biblical Psalms and writings. Her work has been shown at Abington Art Center, Cheltenham Arts Center and Old City Gallery of Jewish Art among others. The exhibition is open Friday evenings starting Feb. 18 after Shabbat services. Gallery hours are: Mondays through Thursdays 10-4:30, Fridays 10-3 and following Shabbat Services and Sundays 10-1. The synagogue is located at 190 Camp Hill Road in Fort Washington. For additional information contact the synagogue office at 215-283-0276. Reunions St. Matthews High School Conshohocken Class of 1961 is looking for classmates. For details, contact Greg Marincola at 215-646-2239, 215-740-1296 or gregcola@comcast.net. Olney High School Class of 1971 is Lloking for classmates for a 40th reunion Oct. 28. For details, contact Judy at ohsclassof71@yahoo.com or 215-870-7572. Abington High School Class of 1961 is seeking classmates for a 50-year reunion to be held Oct. 14-15, 2011.Visit the website, www.abington61.com, for details or call 215-947-1779. Overbrook High School class of January 1956 is having a 55 year reunion on May 22, 2011 at the Bala Golf Club in Philadelphia. For information please contact overbrookreunion56@comcast.net Germantown High School Class Of January 1961 is looking for classmates for 50th year reunion to take place in May of 2011. Please contact: 215-362-9148, 856-577-0659 or samdelcomo@comcast.net The June 1961 class of Germantown High School is holding their 50th reunion on May 15, which will be a brunch. For further details please contact Linda Dorfman Alten at lindaalten@yahoo.com or call 215-441-8411. Support New Life Presbyterian Church in Dresher, will host GriefShare, a special seminar and support group which will run on Monday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m., from March 7 through June 6. At each meeting there will be a DVD about the grief process, discussion and reference to a grief workbook. Preregistration is required to secure a place in the group and to purchase a GriefShare notebook (for a one-time fee of $15). The notebook goes along with the 13-week schedule covering such topics as: living with grief, the effects of grief, and stuck in grief. For more information or to register, call: Sandy Elder at 215-884-5149. PUPS (People Understanding Parkinsons) A self-help group for those adjusting to a new diagnosis or dealing with the early stages of Parkinsons Disease. Meets fourth Tuesday of the month from 1 to 2:30 p.m., at Abington Health Center, Schilling Campus, Willowood Building, 2510 Maryland Road, Suite 251, Willow Grove. For more information or to RSVP, contact Lorna at 215-542-2931. The North Penn Visiting Nurse Associations Meals on Wheels program is looking for volunteers to pack or deliver meals to the elderly and infirmed. Meals are packed and delivered mornings, Monday through Friday. You can volunteer for as many days per week or month as you would like. Packaging meals requires approximately 2-1/2 hours of your time each day and involves making sandwiches, packaging food into individual serving containers and packing coolers with the meals. Delivering meals requires approximately 1-1/2 hours of your time each day and involves loading coolers into your car and delivering a route of approximately 10 to 15 stops. The Meals on Wheels program is also in need of emergency, winter-weather volunteers to pack and deliver meals in bad weather. North Penn VNA is located at 51 Medical Campus Drive in Lansdale and delivers meals in the Lansdale, North Wales and Blue Bell areas. For more information or to volunteer, please call Bridget, North Penn VNA Meals on Wheels coordinator at 215-855-8296. Elkins Park Area CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) meets the first Tuesday of every month, 7- 8:30 p.m., at Einstein at Elkins Park Hospital in Elkins Park. For information on CHADD or ADHD, please see our website www.chadd.net/249 or call Claire Noyes at: 215-779-6656. Center for Loss and Bereavement, 3847 Skippack Pike, Skippack (610-222-4110) www.bereavementcenter.org Offers professional counseling for individuals, couples, children and families dealing with issues of loss and bereavement. Six-week adult support groups: Newly forming young adult grief support group every other Wednesday, 7 8:15 p.m. (free of charge); Monthly loss of child support second Mondays, 7-8:15 p.m.; Six-week young loss of spouse/partner Thursdays, 10-11:15 a.m.; Other groups scheduled as interest is shown for suicide loss support, adult loss of parent, motherless daughters, adult loss of sibling, coping with chronic illness and disability and mens loss of spouse. Nellos Corner Family Bereavement program offers peer grief support groups for ages 4 through teen and their caregivers Every other Tuesday or Wednesday (free of charge) Local chapter of Parents of Murdered Children also meets at the Center. Registration required. Call for further information. CHADD is a national organization for children & adults with Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder, providing education, advocacy and support for individuals and their families with AD/HD. Einstein at Elkins Park Hospital, 60 Township Line Road, Elkins Park, PA 19027, will host children & adults with Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder on the First Tuesday of each month 7 8:30 p.m. Free, no childcare provided. The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphias Kehillah of Old York Road is sponsoring a free Caregiver Support Group for individuals who care for an elderly person with cognitive and/or physical impairments. The group meets at SarahCare Adult Day Care Center, 101 Washington Lane, Suite G-6, Jenkintown, Pa., on the first Wednesday of each month. Patty Rich, December 17, 2016 Open Thread 2016-42 News & views ... Posted by b on December 17, 2016 at 9:48 UTC | Permalink Comments next page The tan business envelope is postmarked Jan. 31, 1957. It is addressed to "MISS JANEY BEBOUT," arriving via airmail from Annapolis, Maryland. Not to her home but to the house of a sympathetic aunt who could keep a secret, one town away in Ashtabula, Ohio. The sole content of the envelope is one sheet of paper, crackly with age and separating at the folds. It is a form letter from the Maryland secretary of state's office detailing requirements for marriage. The letter reads, in part: "IT SHALL BE UNLAWFUL WITHIN THIS STATE FOR ANY FEMALE BELOW THE AGE OF SIXTEEN YEARS OR FOR ANY MALE BELOW THE AGE OF EIGHTEEN YEARS TO MARRY. ... EXCEPT ON THE CERTIFICATE OF A LICENSED PHYSICIAN, WHICH SHALL BE PRESENTED FOR THE APPLICATION FOR THE MARRIAGE LICENSE, TO THE EFFECT THAT THE GIRL IS PREGNANT." Note how the law insulated boys from adulthood a little longer, the better to preserve their options. Maryland required no blood tests. The application fee for a marriage license was $1; if granted, the license cost an additional $2. On the day this envelope was mailed, Janey was an unmarried 19-year-old, four months pregnant with me. She and my 20-year-old father would marry 11 days later in Cumberland, Maryland, after fleeing "(SET ITAL)eloping(END ITAL)," she insisted to her children, "because we were so in love" their family farms in the middle of the night. I recognize my mother's loopy handwriting in dark blue ink on the back of the envelope. She noted the mileage on my father's car before they started driving and the total upon their return after a short honeymoon in Washington, D.C. She chronicled their gas stops, too, most in $1 increments. They were two farm kids with virtually no money and no plan beyond saving my mother from a lifetime of public humiliation as an unwed mother. In 1957, marriage was her only option. I just, this week, discovered this envelope. In a curious twist of timing, I found it one day after Ohio Gov. John Kasich vetoed the so-called heartbeat bill but signed into law his 18th restriction on a woman's constitutional right to abortion. This latest one prevents a woman from getting an abortion after 20 weeks, which is when many medical abnormalities are first detected. No exceptions for rape or incest and a limited one to protect a mother's life. Kasich is not fooling anyone who's paying attention, including Dawn Laguens of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund: "(Kasich) may hope that by vetoing a six-week ban -- which would have virtually banned abortion with almost no exceptions -- he comes off as moderate," Laguens said in a statement. "The 20-week ban will force women to travel long distances and cross state lines in order to access safe, legal abortion." Right-wing extremists who support laws such as this are driven by an insatiable desire to shame women. They want us to feel dirty and immoral and unworthy in the eyes of God as they define him. Most of these legislators are men whose maleness exempts them from ever knowing what it feels like to have no control over their bodies or their daily lives. If they are impotent, they can take a drug to give them erections. If they want to have unprotected sex, they can do so without worrying about what an unplanned pregnancy would do to their bodies and their health, their families and their future. These men will never know the desperation of scraping up enough money for a plane ticket, a train ticket, bus fare or gas for the tank of a car to get them to a state that still protects a woman's constitutional right. They do not worry about bringing into the world children they and we as communities cannot afford. My mother had no option but to give birth to me. Some readers who oppose abortion rights love to remind me that my mother didn't abort me. Far too many of them wish aloud that she had, and isn't that an interesting approach for people claiming to cherish life? The discovery of that envelope reminds me, yet again, of what it was like not so very long ago for women like my mother. From the moment she found out she was pregnant until she and my father made that middle-of-the-night journey to a state that would marry them, she lived in fear of being exposed as an unmarried woman who dared to have sex. A devout Christian, she was pro-choice when abortion rights became the law of the land, in 1973. A devoted mother, she encouraged all of her daughters to visit Planned Parenthood before having sex. "Stay in control of your life," she once told me. My mother never fully shed the shame of her unplanned pregnancy all those years ago. "I still would have had you," she told me when I was 36 and a newly single mother. "It just would have been so different here" she pointed to her heart "if the choice had been all mine." Connie Schultz is a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and professional in residence at Kent State University's school of journalism. To find out more about Connie Schultz (con.schultz@yahoo.com), www.creators.com. The cost of a comprehensive plan to silence the horns of freight trains passing through Helena may derail the project. While the commission isnt slated to vote on the future of a quiet zone until early January, the commission was evenly divided with Commissioner Ed Noonan uncertain of his position. Although he inquired whether voicing concern with implementation of it would end plans for a quiet zone, he didnt indicate how he would vote. The Federal Railroad Administration allows local governments to install curbing and horns that satisfy federal safety requirements and allow a city to put into place a quiet zone. On Wednesday, the commission was told the construction cost for a quiet zone involving all six Montana Rail Link crossings in Helena would be $916,217.61, which includes 10 percent for contingencies and testing. In March 2015, the city commission was advised the projected cost for all six railroad crossings would be $579,000. This is the second time the city has bid the project as the sole bid it initially received was determined this fall to be too costly. KLJ, the consulting firm that designed the quiet zone for the city, noted that both bids in this round of bidding far exceeded the engineering estimate. However, the project has now been bid two times, and it is not likely that rebidding the project will result in significantly lower prices, Brad Koon, an engineer with KLJ, wrote to the city on Nov. 21 and concluded by recommending the city accept the low bid. The commission is slated to consider the bids when it meets in early January. The commission was also offered a less expensive option at that time that called for eliminating horns at the National Avenue and Roberts Street railroad crossings. Unlike train horns, these wayside horns direct their sound toward traffic and pedestrians and are less intrusive for a neighborhood. Elimination of horns at these two crossings was estimated in 2015 to decrease the projects cost to $279,000. A final cost would reflect contingencies, the commission was advised at that meeting, and could increase the expenditure. On Wednesday, the cost for this option was $632,417.61, which also reflected the inclusion of 10 percent for contingencies and testing. City Manager Ron Alles told the commission that after discussions with city staff and Montana Rail Link, he recommended the city make improvements at all six crossings or not implement the quiet zone. The letter from Koon with KLJ also stated support for the installation of wayside horns and noted support for them from Montana Rail Link and the Montana Department of Transportation. A June 9, 2015, letter from Thomas Walsh, the railroads president, warned the actual risk for users of the railroad crossings on National Avenue and Roberts Street may increase with the elimination of the regular sounding of train horns. Train horns in rail yards, such as the Montana Rail Link facility in Helena, are also not silenced by quiet zones. The frequency of safety reviews based on the installation of improvements to eliminate the need for train horns may be affected if the city chooses not to install improvements at all six crossings. If we make improvements to all six crossings, do supplemental safety measures at all six crossings, they wait longer before they come in and review it, Alles advised the commission in November 2015, and added that there could be possibly 10 years between reviews. If we dont do improvements at two of those crossings, then they might be back every year or within every two years double-checking the traffic counts and different things like that and whats happening in the area, Alles cautioned the commission more than a year ago. Helena residents living near the railroad tracks and railroad yards have long complained about the noise from train operations and how it disrupts sleep. In response to those concerns, the commission agreed to budget $500,000 toward the creation of a quiet zone from the roughly $1.93 million the city received as its share of a statewide telecom protested taxes settlement. If the commission approves either the comprehensive quiet zone improvements or omits horns for National Avenue and Roberts Street, it will have to allocate additional funds to cover budget shortfalls. The city has the $500,000 available from the tax settlement and faces a $207,217.61 shortfall if it improves only four of the six railroad crossings. The deficit rises to $491,017.61 if all six crossings are included. Commissioners Andres Haladay and Robert Farris-Olsen expressed support for the less expensive option that would eliminate directional horns at National Avenue and Roberts Street. The more expensive option, Haladay said, would sink plans for a quiet zone. Commissioner Dan Ellison, who has supported implementation of a quiet zone, restated his objection to using the tax settlement to fund it. Had the taxes not been protested, he said, they would have gone to the citys general fund and helped pay for the police, fire and parks department expenses. I dont think police, fire and parks ought to pay for that, he said and suggested that those who live in the neighborhood should form a district and tax themselves to pay for it. We would be favoring the few at the expense of the many, Ellison said and urged the commission to not move forward with plans for a quiet zone. Mayor Jim Smith said he didnt want to add the Federal Railroad Administration to the list of federal agencies involved in Helenas management. Im sorry. Im ready to abort the mission of establishing a quiet zone, he said. Im out. Noonan said the cost was significant and said to him, he has viewed it as a secondary issue. You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close MISSOULA White nationalist and part-time Whitefish resident Richard Spencer said Friday hes considering running for the congressional seat that would be vacated if Republican U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinkes nomination for Interior Secretary is confirmed. Im definitely thinking about it, said Spencer, speaking with the Missoulian by telephone from Union Station in Washington, D.C., where he was waiting to catch a train. To be honest, I recognize it would be a difficult process. I recognize all the difficulties of it. But I think it might be a great prospect. I believe it would create an important conversation around Montana and the country. Spencer said that while it would be more pragmatic to run as a Republican, the fact is, Im an independent person. I disagree with Republicans on a number of issues. The GOP candidate in a special election would be chosen by the party. Likewise, the Democratic Party would select its candidate. Jeff Essmann, said that, as chairman of the Montana Republican Party, he couldnt comment on the merits of any candidate or share my personal views on any of them. However, he added, in most corners of Montana, a Spencer candidacy would be viewed skeptically. A Montana Democratic Party response sent Friday included a statement from party chair Nancy Keenan: To be clear, Richard Spencers views are not Montanans views. Weve called on the Montana GOP to denounce this kind of racism in their party this year and we will continue to hold Republicans accountable for this fear-mongering behavior as we move toward a special election to fill this U.S. House seat. Spencer heads an organization called the National Policy Institute, which describes itself as "dedicated to the heritage, identity, and future of people of European descent in the United States, and around the world." Two weeks after the election of Donald Trump to the presidency, the group held a meeting in Washington that ended with Spencer calling out Hail Trump! Hail our people! Hail victory! as some in the audience of about 200 gave Nazi salutes. Trump announced this week that Zinke, who won his second term to the U.S. House last month, was his choice for Interior Secretary. An election to fill his seat must be held between 85 and 100 days of Zinke's official resignation from his House seat, according to the Montana Secretary of States Office. In order to run as an independent, Spencer would have to submit a petition with 15,000 verified signatures 75 days before the election, according to that office. I have some time, Spencer said Friday. Its not just something you just jump into. Spencer, who lives part of the year in the Washington area, said he would figure out the how later. I think creating the conversation would be important,'' he said. "But I would never do something eccentric or quixotic. I dont think the conversation would be confined to Montana. It would reach millions of people outside the state, too. It would not be a fringe conversation. The Transportation Security Administration began posting signs at the nations airports this week notifying travelers that beginning in January 2018 it will start enforcing REAL ID requirements at airport security checkpoints. According to a notice on the City of Billings website, that means that Montana travelers seeking to use their state-issued drivers license or identification card to board commercial flights must use, unless some agreement can be reached, another form of identification, such as a passport, military ID or permanent resident card. Montana is one of nine states with security standards that dont reach the minimum level required by the REAL ID Act, passed by Congress in 2005. The others are Kentucky, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Washington. The law prohibits federal agencies, including the TSA, from accepting licenses and identification cards for certain purposes, including boarding federally regulated commercial aircraft, from states that do not meet the REAL ID standards. According to the news release, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security continues to work with states to encourage compliance with the law and may grant extensions or determine compliance for additional states as warranted. New members inducted into Institute of ... San Andreas power outage along Gold Hunter Road View Photos Update at 6:40 a.m.: A solo vehicle crash into a power pole may be to blame for a PG&E outage in the San Andreas are. The company reports eleven customers along Gold Hunter Road off Mountain Ranch Road have been without power since about 1:30 a.m. That is the same time the CHP reports a sedan smashed into a pole in the 1400 block of Gold Hunter Road. However, PG&E has not yet released a cause for the outage but confirmed that a crew is on scene assessing the situation. The CHP reports that the vehicle is holding up the pole and it needs to be stabilized before tow crews can remove it. That may be why company officials have given an estimated repair time of about 3:19 p.m. There were no injuries reported in the crash. Original post at 5:39 a.m.: San Andreas, CA A power outage early this morning has left a handful of PG&E customers without electricity, and in turn, no heat on this freezing cold morning. PG&E reports eleven customers along Gold Hunter Road off Mountain Ranch Road in the San Andreas area have been without power since about 1:30 a.m. The company says a crew is on scene assessing the situation. It is not known if the chilly weather is to blame as no cause has yet been determined. The estimated repair time is about 3:19 p.m. Montana Senate Republicans want to cut Gov. Steve Bullocks funding for early childhood education and divert the money to the Department of Transportation to help the department leverage federal dollars for road construction projects. Lee Newspapers reported last week that the department is looking at delaying $144.5 million in road projects across the state. About $130 million of the money that would have paid for those projects comes from federal sources that would have matched $14.5 million in state funding. The governors office on Friday pushed back, saying the fix wont work, and even if it did, its a temporary solution to a long-term problem. The shortage comes as the Highway Special Revenue fund was projected to run out of money by next July if cuts weren't made. The fund, which comes from the state's gas tax, has been struggling for years, department Director Mike Tooley said this week, but DOT employees worked to find ways to make things work with the money they had. Part of the revenue fund, which comes from gas tax receipts, also goes to the Department of Justice, which said it will have to cut 27 Montana Highway Patrol officers. Bullocks budget director, Dan Villa, said Friday that increasingly fuel-efficient vehicles and a decrease in diesel sales as Bakken oilfield work slowed caused gas tax reciepts to come in lower than expected and appropriations exceeded revenue. The gas tax in Montana is 27 cents a gallon. Bullock's budget requests $6 million a year or $12 million over the biennium for early childhood education, which has long been one of Bullock's top initiatives; in 2015 he brought a $37 million proposal before the Legislature but it was killed by the Republican majority. Tooley said this week the projects are delayed, not canceled, and added that the last time the state left federal match money on the table was about 80 years ago. State Sen. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, chair of the finance committee, said hes hard-pressed to support any new spending when revenues are down, especially early in the biennium. Early childhood education was targeted because it's the biggest item on the list of new expenditures. He also said some of the new programs, like emergency funding to address invasive aquatic species, can't be cut. I cant see giving up an 8-1 match, he said. And we have a real road, bridge, infrastructure safety problem. Were going to solve that on the short-term, but in the long term were going to have to find a way to shore it up. Villa said the Republicans plan doesnt have enough money or present a long-term solution. Theyve literally fixed nothing with their proposal, he said. Its literally just a shift to paying for our roads with income and property taxes instead of road taxes. Villa said the money in the budget would be spent in fiscal years 2018 and 2019 and wouldnt be accessible to fix the shortfall now. What theyre really saying is raid the rainy day fund, because this money doesnt come in until people pay their taxes in fiscal 18 and fiscal 19. Jones didnt deny the solution is a short-term fix, but he believes its necessary to not lose any federal matching dollars. Villa argued its not fair to say the state is leaving federal money on the table because the state doesnt have the funds available to put up for a match. When people say you are leaving federal money on the table, we are matching every cent we possibly can. We cant get more federal money when we dont have the match. Its just politics. Theyve proposed a partial solution for six months of two and a half years. Whats the plan after that? Jones said he expects a discussion on the gas tax, which hasnt increased since 1993, and he wants to find savings in the transportation department. He said money from the gas tax program should be spent on roads and not bike or walking paths. Most folks recognize that they drive down the roads and its a user fee, he said. Villa said the governor's office is open to discussions. Jones believes the bill to move the early education money to the transportation department could make it through the Legislature and get to the governor in a few weeks. He said moving quickly sends a message to contractors to not leave the state for other projects. Everyones trying to make it about the fact that its Early Edge, he said. To me its $14 million. We can debate the limits of any new program, but if it spends money in year one and its a new program, I cant see how we can have it unless its invasive species and its an emergency. Governor Rick Scott on Friday called for Visit Floridas CEO to resign following revelations the agency paid Miami rapper Pitbull $1 million to promote tourism. Visit Florida President and CEO Will Seccombe later agreed to resign. Visit Florida CEO Will Seccombe agreed to resign The tourism marketing agency faced backlash over its $1 million contract with Pitbull PREVIOUS: Visit Florida paid Pitbull $1 million to promote tourism In a letter to Visit Florida Chairman William Talbert, Scott wrote, I believe it would be best for the future efforts of Visit Florida for Will to step down and allow new leadership to come in at this critical time. Two executives with Visit Florida, chief financial officer Vangie Fields and chief marketing officer Paul Phipps were fired, according to an agency spokesperson. The tourism marketing agency faced growing backlash over its contract with Pitbull. The rapper posted the 2015 contract on Twitter on Thursday, revealing he was paid $1 million of taxpayer money to promote the state on social media and in a music video titled Sexy Beaches. Earlier in the week, House Speaker Richard Corcoran filed a lawsuit in Leon Circuit Court against PDR Productions to disclose details of the contract. Scotts letter also outlined several measures to increase transparency. However, the governor remained supportive of Visit Florida. Visit Florida and its work to advertise our state supports our tourism industry, which is made up of hundreds of thousands of direct and indirect jobs all across our state, Scott wrote. Anyone who disputes that fact or argues for no longer using Visit Floridas advertising to promote tourism here simply does not understand the business world or the nature of our economy. Seccombe joined Visit Florida in 2008, according to the Florida Chamber of Commerce website. He became CEO in 2012. Visit Floridas next board meeting will be held Jan. 9. The local effort to bring new life to the Skaggs Building received a major boost this week with a $10,000 grant from the Community Foundation of West Texas. Those funds are earmarked for upgrading the mechanical systems serving the four-story office building. Overseeing the restoration is Plainview Downtown Restoration Inc. The Community Foundation of West Texas understands that restoring the beautiful buildings from our past and putting them to good use again is a smart investment, said Blair Willson, spokesman for Plainview Downtown Restoration. Were grateful for their vision, and their support. The Skaggs Building was constructed by Henry E. and Nora Skaggs and opened in August 1928 with the Plainview National Bank as a primary tenant and occupant of the ground floor. Later it housed City National Bank, then Hale County Savings and Loan and finally a law firm on the ground floor with medical and professional offices in its upper stories. It was vacant for a relatively short time before the current restoration efforts started. The initial focus is on the ground floor and exterior with work on the upper levels coming later. Plainview Downtown Restoration is a nonprofit with a mission to support the restoration and re-use of historic buildings in Plainview and to foster new business and creative talent in the central business district. The group was gifted the Skaggs Building on the northwest corner of Seventh and Broadway in October 2015, and intends to use the ground floor space as an event venue for the community, along with commercial space for startups and other small businesses. The most recent grant will be used to restore mechanical systems on the ground floor, where dollars from previous gifts have enabled the group to replace broken windows. Established in 1981, the Community Foundation of West Texas is a regional philanthropic entity created by and for the people of the Texas South Plains region. The Community Foundation exists to improve quality of life in this region by helping donors to give in ways that make an enduring impact on their community. In 2015, the Community Foundation and its affiliates awarded more than $1.7 million in grants and scholarships, funding projects of hundreds of nonprofit organizations, schools and government agencies. Visit www.communityfoundationofwesttexas.org. for more information. Plainview Downtown Restoration is accepting donations for the Skaggs and other downtown projects. For more information on how to help, go to: http://www.plainviewdowntownrestoration.com. Lone Star Family Health Center recently partnered with Darrel's Catering to provide special barbecue lunches for LSFHC employees for #GivingTuesday. LSFHC's #GivingTuesday campaign, Project Next Step, focused on raising funds to provide educational resources to new moms and babies in Montgomery County. Darrel's Catering of Conroe generously donated the lunches, as well as a monetary donation, to LSFHC as their contribution to Project Next Step. "We were happy to help out an amazing local organization and be a factor in helping new moms and babies in our community," stated Vicki McShan of Darrel's Catering. "LSFHC helps so many in the surrounding areas find quality healthcare, and Darrel's is pleased to give our time to help them reach more people." "We are so thankful to Darrel's Catering for providing the delicious barbecue and for donating their time and experience to our project," says Flora Davis, LSFHC's Director of Development and Communication. "Our employees loved the barbecue, and we look forward to working with Darrel's again." Visit lonestarfamily.org/give for more information about Project Next Step and how you can help during the giving season. Longtime restaurateur Darrel Childers and his wife Carolyn established Darrel's Catering in 1988. Darrel's was founded on the simple principles of excellent food and complete customer satisfaction. Darrel's has catered all over Texas and throughout Louisiana. Darrel's Catering continues to be family owned and operated by Darrel's son, Mickey Childers. For more information, visit darrelscatering.com or call 936-760-2449. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 3 1 of 3 Michael Short/Special To The Chronicle Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Associated Press Show More Show Less 3 of 3 Renowned San Francisco attorney Tony Serra and two other lawyers who work in his office have been retained to represent Derick Ion Almena, leader of the art collective at the Ghost Ship warehouse that burned Dec. 2, killing 36 people. All I can say is that I confirm we are presenting him in a pre-charge capacity, said one of the attorneys, Jeffrey Krasnoff. If and when we have anything to release, we will let you know. The Paisley Sisters Christmas Special, the holiday offering at the Roxie Theatre Company, follows the singing siblings as they shoot a holiday variety show their first outing in living color, thanks to their corporate sponsor, Plasticon. The gals maternal Connie (Beth Erwin), the uncharacteristically erratic Bonnie (Gianna Rodriguez), snarky Lonnie (Krystal Newcomer) and their 16-year-old niece Abigail (Cali Hall), filling in for her ailing mom Ronnie sing snippets of traditional carols here and there, but most of the material in the show is original. And much of it leads into promotions for such Plasticon products as Citronella gum, which wards off mosquitoes; Slenderella, a sort-of space age girdle that actually stretches out those bulky internal organs; and a dish-washing soap laced with fiberglass. The show, directed by Jonathan Pennington with music direction by Tom Masinter, moves back and forth between the live television special and the goings-on backstage. Behind the scenes, Lonnie plans a clandestine tryst and where theres some squabbling as well as some sleuthing to figure out whats causing Bonnies dizziness and weird behavior. There are a lot of laughs throughout, many of them prompted by Newcomers stellar comic chops. The songs are funny, too, though theyre also well-crafted and sound like songs that might have popped up in a variety show in the 60s. All four women sing beautifully. Highlights include Two Holidays, which Connie sings to her half-Jewish son to point out how lucky he is to celebrate both Hanukkah and Christmas; and Christmas on the Moon, a different kind of travel tune sung by Abigail, who says she dreams of being an astronaut, even though shes a girl. When the sisters go backstage, there are some sounds from time to time from their guests onstage, a nice touch. Joseph Urick does a solid job as the Plasticon rep who never appears on stage, but is a clear presence in the show through his demands via the backstage intercom. The two-piece band is strong, and its great that the theater is using live music for the show. There are a few small details that need some attention. When Lonnie sings her torch song Just for Christmas Lets Pretend, she ends it backstage, which doesnt really make sense, since it isnt played as if she is leaving the soundstage. And it would be fun if the sisters had props or hats for every song in the international medley. As it stands, they wear sombreros for Christmas Rancheros and toss around small beach balls for Bikini Christmas; the other songs need that element, too. Those are tiny issues, though. On the whole, the shows a lot of fun. "The Paisley Sisters Christmas Special can be seen at 8 p.m. Fridays, 7:30 p.m. Saturdays (except for Dec. 24 and 3:30 p.m. Sundays and Dec. 24 with an additional show at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Jan. 1 at the Roxie Theatre Company, 7460 Callaghan. Tickets range from $25-$30 at roxietheatrecompany.com or by calling 210-360-9180. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Carmen Rodriguez was feeling festive after enjoying a holiday meal with her family at H-E-B's 24th annual Feast of Sharing celebration Saturday. "I wanted to come and enjoy the people. Just be jolly," Rodriguez said. She said she appreciated the applause and cheers that H-E-B employees and community volunteers gave to each guest walking into the event. "I felt welcomed," Rodriguez said. H-E-B has hosted its Feast of Sharing celebration in San Antonio since 1993, spokeswoman Lacey Kotzur said. It is one of 33 Feast of Sharing events the grocery giant holds in cities across Texas and Mexico. Those who attend the event at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center downtown are treated to free holiday meals of glazed ham, mashed potatoes with gravy, green beans, a dinner roll and dessert. Guests are able to go back for additional servings if they choose. Guests also get to enjoy live music and visits with Santa Claus. H-E-B provides free flu shots at the event through its pharmacy, and local nonprofits offer free services such as eye screenings. Verizon has a booth at the event where people can make free phone calls. Rodriguez said she appreciates that H-E-B hosts the massive event for the community. "I think it's wonderful," she said. "There's a lot of people out there that don't really get this." Mabus Charles Weatherly III, 62, also expressed his satisfaction with the free dinner as he finished off a piece of apple pie. "I'm good," he said. Free meals will continue being served until 4 p.m. pohare@express-news.net On this date in ... 1916: Famed conductor, composer and bandleader John Philip Sousa was set to perform two shows at Albany's Harmanus Bleecker Hall, but not before he cleared up rumors about the origins of his name. At least three variations of the story existed the German one claimed his name was Sigismund Ochs, the English one said Sam Ogden, and the Greek one, Philipso but they all ended with the protagonist emigrating to the United States aboard a ship with a trunk labeled "S.O., U.S.A." The Washington D.C.-born musician confirmed that Sousa was his given name, but that all the speculation amounted to "one of the best bits of advertising" he had in his long career. 1966: State Attorney General Louis Lefkowitz favored a limited legalization of wiretapping on a national scale, even if it took an amendment to the constitution. In a radio interview, he said he believed national action was necessary to standardize the service among the various states and said his own office had resorted to wiretapping only two or three times in the past 10 years for regular duties and perhaps a half dozen times in special investigations when he was asked to supersede a district attorney. 1991: The Albany branch of the NAACP blasted the county public defender's office, charging that the agency failed to provide effective legal representation for all indigent clients. Public Defender Douglas Rutnik rejected the criticisms. He contended that his staff was the "finest legal defense team from New York to Syracuse, bar none." Anne Pope, president of the local branch of the NAACP, said the organization received numerous calls over the years concerning problems within the public defender's office. Want to read more about the Capital Region's past? Have any memories or thoughts about how our history relates to today's events? See http://blog.timesunion.com/history/ This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Refugees have been a focal point of political discussion. While campaigning, President-elect Donald Trump has promised to bar Syrian refugees from coming to the United States. One woman is using a Facebook Christmas post about Jesus Christ to draw even more attention to the issue, and her message has gone viral. WHAT NOW?: Election throws U.S. plans for Syrian refugees into question "This Christmas season we would like to remind everyone that Jesus was a Middle Eastern refugee," psychotherapist Whitney Roberts Logan wrote on her Facebook page. The post has attracted 370 shares and 266 reactions since Logan posted it online Sunday. She told Your Daily Dish that she wanted to remind Christians that refugees are part of the Christmas story. IN DANGER: Bloodied and demoralized Syrians evacuate Aleppo The post got nearly 180,000 responses when it was posted to a "secret" Hillary Clinton Facebook group, according to the Kansas City Star. The post comes at a time when Aleppo in Syria is being bombarded with war, causing people to leave for safer areas of the world. Debate has followed on who and how many refugees should be allowed in America. HELP ON THE WAY? Emergency meeting called on Syria In September, President Obama's administration announced a new goal of resettling 110,000 refugees into the United States during 2017. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott acknowledged Texas has taken in numerous refugees but had concerns that the federal government was not vetting Syrians enough. He's threatened to withdraw Texas from the federal refugee program due to terrorist concerns. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate BRIDGEPORT - Bridgeport has pulled the plug on its police officers appearing on the A&E series Live PD. On Saturday, Av Harris, Bridgeport spokesman, confirmed that Bridgeport police will not be participating in future segments of Live PD, a weekly show that films in near real time and is largely unedited. In a statement, Harris said: Mayor Joe Ganim felt that the show certainly had its merits and showed the true heroism and professionalism of the men and women of the Bridgeport Police Department carrying out a very challenging job in the true interest of public service. And it also showed that Bridgeport Police are an example to the nation for doing their duties with dignity and respect for the community they are sworn to protect. And the mayor was proud to have the Bridgeport police be nationally featured and let the viewers into their lives for a few hours every week. However, Mayor Ganim had serious concerns that were echoed by several important voices in our community that despite its merits, the program was giving Bridgeport an inaccurate national reputation; inflating the prevalence of crime in the Park City in a way that can deter potential investors and people from living or doing business here. We don't want the first impression of Bridgeport from a national audience to be unfairly associated with crime and miss the whole picture of beauty, industriousness and vitality that we represent. A community should be defined and judged by the best it has to offer, and not by its worst moments Posts on social media questioned whether the decision was made because of a Dec. 2 show that included the death of an infant child. In that episode, Bridgeport police Sgt. Chris Robinson responded to the call while on duty with embedded video journalists, and his reaction to the tragedy was broadcast nationally. Unfortunately it doesnt look like the baby survived, Robinson told a Live PD producer after the incident, in a cold, official tone. It was kind of lifeless upon arrival at the hospital. Its um ... Neither the hosts nor the viewers are likely to have anticipated that Robinson would show his softer side. Its a heartbreaking scene, Robinson said, wiping his eyes as his voice cracked. These are the calls that just... they get to you. Earlier in the show, Robinson told producers about another child fatality that had occurred on his first day as a sargent. Trying to hold back tears, he spoke generally about the tragedies he and his fellow officers witness. Its horrible... its right around Christmas, and these kids lose their sibling and the parents they lose their baby. And you know, the medics are trying to do everything they can. Harris said that incident did not weigh in the decision to pull the plug on the show. It was not because of Sgt. Robinson's reaction to the death of the one year old baby. On the contrary, Sgt. Robinson's reaction is a very strong example of the character and humanity of the true public servants who are the men and women of the Bridgeport police department. That very sad and poignant moment touched people nationally and made us all proud. Bridgeport was one of six law enforcement agencies from coast-to-coast Walton County Sheriff in Floridas Panhandle; the Richland County Sheriff, South Carolina; the Tulsa Police Department; the Arizona Department of Public Safety; and the Utah Highway Patrol will be seen on live cameras. In-studio host, ABC's Dan Abrams, alongside Dallas Police Department detectives Rich Emberlin and Kevin Jackson, will guide viewers through the night, giving insight to what audiences are seeing in real time, bouncing minute-by-minute between the featured police departments and offering an inside look at each live incident. The show premiered on Oct. 28 on A&E, which is owned by Hearst and Disney. Hearst also owns Hearst Connecticut Media, including the Connecticut Post. The first season of the show ran for eight weeks. While its unclear if there will be another season of Live PD, one is certain: Bridgeports police officers - and its residents - wont be in front of the camera. Despite initial hesitation, the Conroe City Council gave the OK for a patio home project to proceed with the stipulation of more restrictions on the maximum size of the home be included before it is presented to the city's planning commission. Parkwest will feature 37 lots just south of Texas 105 West off Camelot Street. The council first questioned developer Scott Burrer during its workshop Dec. 7 about how the project would look. However, Burrer was unable to provide that information. "I want to see what the product looks like before I vote yes or no," Councilman Duane Ham said. Mayor Toby Powell agreed with Ham. "I'd like to see some specifications," said Powell, adding specific restrictions to home size need to be included. During the council rmeeting Dec. 8, Burrer, along with Michael Glezman with Glezman Surveying, returned with more information to satisfy the council's concerns, including home size, floor plans and elevations. According to Glezman, the target market for the 5-acre new development will be young family, first-time home buyers and those wanting to downsize. The zero lot line homes will range from 1,500 to 2,500 square feet with a price of about $180,000 to $210,000. The site, Glezman said, is two commercial reserves being re-platted into a residential development. "This helps a lot," Mayor Pro Tem Duke Coon said. "This is what I needed to see." However, City Attorney Marc Winberry noted that plans for the development include a minimum home size but not a maximum. "I want to be clear we understand this, there is no limit given on the maximum-size home," he said. "You have an example of a two-story, 2,000-square-foot structure, but I don't see anything in here that prohibits a three-story, 3,500-square-foot structure." Ham said he agrees with Winberry and wants the maximum-size home included in the deed restrictions once the project goes to the planning commission for approval. "I want to make sure everything is OK," he said. Powell said he is receptive to the project and thanked Burrer for answering the council's concerns raised during the council's workshop. "On the surface I can support this today," Coon said. "This is unique for us in Conroe so it is important we get it right the very first time." The project will go back to the city's planning commission for review. It's been 50 years since a Vietnam Veteran roamed the Conroe High School halls. But Thursday night he returned as the final graduate to walk across the stage and receive his high school diploma. Retired Chief Petty Officer Michael Earl Sharpe, 67, left high school at 17 and went to work in Arlington until he joined the U.S. Navy during the draft at the age of 19. While his former high school classmates received their diploma in Conroe, he earned his GED while serving 22 years in the military. A Louisiana man accused of attempting to use a machete to attack someone, then fleeing from police in a stolen car, was indicted on three felony charges Tuesday. Quinton Papillion, 24 of Lake Charles, is facing a second-degree felony aggravated assault charge, third-degree felony evading arrested charge and a state-jail felony unauthorized use of a motor vehicle charge for the Sept. 19 alleged incidents. Conroe Police Department officers had responded to an assault call at the Speedy Stop in the 2900 block of Interstate 45 North that night. According to a previous Courier article, a victim claimed Papillion approached him with a machete, demanding that the man give him his car. The trapped man ran into the store. Moments later, Willis Police Department officers got a call about a man driving erratically who had allegedly pointed a gun at the caller. Willis police caught up to Papillion inside the city. Papillion allegedly fled from police in a short chase before he crashed into a tree on East Rodgers Road. He was found to be allegedly driving a car that had been stolen out of New Orleans. Days before his indictment, Papillion filed a pro-se motion for a psychiatric evaluation, contending that he has some sort of mental illness. He is facing up to life in prison if convicted. Montgomery County grand jury indictments for Dec. 13: Artemio Abeja, DWI third or more Joseph Jebbia Jr., assault family strangulation and assault causing bodily injury family enhanced twice within 12 months Milton George, possession of controlled substance Ritchie Adelan, evading arrest detention with vehicle Cassity Williams, possession of controlled substance Tammie Dunn, possession with intent to deliver/manufacture controlled substance Wesley Ned, possession of controlled substance Nicole Riojas, possession of controlled substance Yefry Torres, forgery Christopher Craig, unlawful possession of firearm by felon Craig Byrd, assault family strangulation Phuong Nguyen, DWI third or more Rajin Blake, possession of marijuana Christian Neal, assault family strangulation Kenneth Lewis III, aggravated assault with deadly weapon, assault family strangulation and retaliation New Braunfels, TX (78130) Today Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. Slight chance of a rain shower. High 84F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy with late night showers or thunderstorms. Low 71F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 40%. A 36-year-old Spring man was arrested Dec. 5 for possessing drugs and fake money. A deputy stopped a vehicle on a traffic violation in the 17100 block of Interstate 45 North. During the investigation, the driver was found to be in possession of three controlled substances and five $100 counterfeit bills. District 2 South County A 17-year-old Spring man was arrested for possessing marijuana. A deputy was sent to the 2900 block of Rayford Road in reference to a welfare concern involving a man driving near a fast food restaurant. During the investigation, the man was found to be in possession of marijuana. A 24-year-old Montgomery man was arrested Dec. 9 for causing a disturbance at a bar. A deputy was sent to the 24700 block of Interstate 45 North in reference to a welfare concern involving an intoxicated man inside a bar causing a disturbance. District 6 The Woodlands A 20-year-old woman was arrested Dec. 6 for possessing drugs. A deputy conducted a traffic stop on North Blackjack Oak Circle. The deputy observed the distinct odor of marijuana coming from inside the vehicle. The driver was detained and found to have marijuana and Klonopin in her possession. A 21-year-old man was arrested Dec. 7 for possessing drugs. A deputy was conducting a check of the Park and Church parking lots located on Falconwing Drive, due to both locations being closed at the time. The deputy observed a vehicle parked with its lights on, but were turned off as he approached. The deputy made contact with the driver, at which time he noticed a strong distinct odor of marijuana emitting from the open window. The suspect was found to have two baggies containing marijuana and also a firearm located under the driver seat. The suspect was taken into custody for possession of marijuana and for felon in possession of a firearm. A 21-year-old man was arrested Dec. 8 for possessing marijuana. A deputy was conducting building checks on various businesses in the 6700 block of Woodlands Parkway. The deputy observed a vehicle parked behind the building and observed a strong distinct odor of marijuana emitting from the vehicle. The driver was found to have marijuana within the vehicle and was subsequently taken into custody for possession of marijuana. A 27-year-old man was arrested Dec. 10 for theft. Deputies responded to a theft call at 10001 Woodlands Parkway. The suspect attempted to take $135 worth of merchandise from Walmart. Bill Hutchinson/ A young man was fatally shot as he sat inside a car near an Oakland intersection Friday evening, police said. The victim who police did not immediately identify was in the 8800 block of Hillside Street near 88th Avenue in Oaklands Castlemont neighborhood when he was shot around 5:30 p.m., according to the Oakland Police Department, citing a ShotSpotter activation and phone calls. DALLAS (AP) A chemical leak from an asphalt plant that led Corpus Christi officials to warn residents this week not to drink the water was apparently reported a week earlier, according to an email from a state environmental official that was obtained Friday. The internal email sent Wednesday by Susan Clewis, a regional director for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, contained an incident report that described the leak as a "backflow incident from a chemical tank impacting the public water system." It was reported Dec. 7 at Ergon Asphalt and Emulsions. The email doesn't indicate who filed the report or who received it, but it indicates that the state agency only learned of the leak on Wednesday, when city officials warned the public. RELATED: Corpus Christi water system gradually recovering "Obviously we are concerned about that initial report, that this may have been known for seven days and it may have been going on for that long. And why did it take so long for TCEQ to get notified?" asked Luis Moreno, chief of staff for state Sen. Juan Hinojosa, whose district includes Corpus Christi. "Those are all things that I think are starting to be figured out right now." Dan McQueen, the mayor of the Gulf Coast city of about 300,000 people, has said local officials also only learned of the leak on Wednesday. Neither Clewis nor city officials responded to Friday requests for comment. The TCEQ report indicates that Indulin AA-86 or hydrochloric acid, or perhaps a combination of both, may have leaked into the water supply. RELATED: Corpus Christi residents use memes to find humor in water crisis Indulin is an asphalt emulsifying agent that's corrosive and can cause burning if a person comes into contact with concentrated amounts. It is considered a hazardous material by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and could cause damage to internal organs. "You don't expect to see it in water," said Terry Clawson, a spokesman with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Up to 24 gallons of it may have seeped into a pipeline carrying water, allowing it to move to other areas of the city, Kim Womack, a spokeswoman for the city, said Thursday. Ergon has said in a statement that it has been in contact with the TCEQ and was "working cooperatively to provide all information to ensure state officials can remedy the situation as quickly as possible." Bill Miller, a company spokesman, declined to explain Friday how a hazardous chemical may have entered the water supply. State and city officials have referred to a "backflow problem" at the plant, and Womack said inspectors didn't find a device in place that prevents contaminated water from flowing backward into a potable water supply. Ergon, though, has argued that the plant does have a prevention device, Womack said. Miller said Ergon Inc. is leasing the property for its manufacturing purposes. The Flowood, Mississippi-based company specializes in the development of engineered paving and pavement preservation products. Meanwhile, city officials on Friday continued to ease restrictions on the use of tap water while workers flushed water pipes to make sure any remnants of the chemical are removed. Limited use of water is allowed in some neighborhoods. Water can be used for showering and washing clothes, but not yet for drinking. They warn that young children and those with weakened immune systems should avoid bathing so as not to accidentally swallow the water. Officials said Thursday that residents in some parts of the city can consume water however they wish, but there were still sections Friday where authorities urged no use at all. Many schools remained closed for a second day Friday due to the leak, which also continued to disrupt commerce. Officials said plenty of bottled water has been donated to help residents. City officials have said that no one has turned up at area hospitals with symptoms that might indicate they were sickened or burned by the chemical. A city councilman, Michael Hunter, told the Corpus Christi Caller-Times that it was unlikely the leaked chemical was concentrated enough to do harm, but that every precaution must be taken. The incident is the latest in a string of water scares for Corpus Christi. In May, the city issued its third boil-water advisory in a year as a precaution after nitrogen-rich runoff from rain flowed into the water system, resulting in low chlorine disinfectant levels in the water supply. Boil-water notices were issued last year because of elevated levels of E. coli and another for low chlorine levels, the Caller-Times previously reported. The notices mirrored two others that were issued in 2007. City crews have worked to reconfigure some water mains to ensure that water keeps circulating and to prevent bacteria growth. But an overarching concern is an old water system where more than half of 225 miles of cast-iron pipe needs to be upgraded. ___ Frank Bajak in Houston contributed to this report. The long-speculated emergence of William "Cruz" Shaw in District 2 became official Saturday. Shaw threw his name in the ring at a gathering today at Tony G's Soul Food. Shaw, a local attorney, had a public squabble with District 2 incumbent Alan Warrick over the summer, when Warrick pushed Shaw to step down from the Zoning Commission. Warrick argued that Shaw was violating the City Charter by campaigning for the council while serving on the commission. Shaw told me Friday there was "nothing personal" in his motivation to challenge Warrick. He said a "small committee" of East Side activists approached him to run, and the push became stronger after the Zoning Commission conflict went public. "I'm from the community. I've been living in it, working in it, investing in it," Shaw said. "And I got so much support, I can't turn my back on them." In a win for childrens rights, on Dec. 2, state District Judge Karin Crump ruled that the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services does not have the authority to issue child care licenses to federal immigration detention centers run by the private, for-profit prison companies GEO Group and CoreCivic. An appeal has been announced. The Obama administration has been trying to slap the label of child care facility on the countrys two largest family detention centers ever since July 24, 2015, when immigrant advocates won a ruling by U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee that the Flores Settlement Agreement applies to accompanied children. This means, among other things, that the government cannot detain children longer than necessary, and should not detain children in secure facilities or facilities not licensed for the care of children. In an attempt to convince the courts that the family detention centers are appropriate for children, the Obama administration asked DFPS to license the Karnes County Family Residential Center and the South Texas Family Residential Center as child care facilities. That the government would consider either detention center to be a child care facility is laughable. Although there is day care, the Obama administration requested that DFPS license not only the day care facilities but the whole detention center. There is no child care staff in other parts of the detention center. The GEO Group has provided nominal training to its employees, but the nonprofit RAICES where I work still sees staff getting angry at young children for playing outside the 5-by-7-foot designated carpet play space and unwilling to deal with the childrens needs. In detention, a mothers ability to provide for the needs of her children is significantly restricted. Giving GEO Group control over food, bedtime, lodging arrangements and medical care erodes a mothers ability to educate, guide, discipline and care for her children as they develop, and damages the mother-child relationship. In the latest example of the government not understanding the developmental needs of children, on Nov. 7, Immigration and Customs Enforcement advised the RAICES Pro Bono Project it could no longer bring crayons or other coloring items into the Karnes detention center because a child had drawn on a table and caused property damage to the contractor. Compare these conditions to those of unaccompanied children held in Office of Refugee Resettlement, or ORR, shelters. Although they are detention centers, in general, the shelters offer a more welcoming environment with recreation space, sometimes including swimming pools. Children are taken on field trips, and each one is provided a free legal consultation to help them understand their rights and responsibilities under U.S. law. The ORR does not treat children as criminals. DFPS approved the Karnes detention center as a child care facility on April 29, despite immigrant rights advocates vociferous objections. DFPS conducted several visits when considering whether to issue a license to Karnes. During one of the visits, it found noncompliance with several state child care standards, including cleaning chemicals left within the reach of young children. Nevertheless, DFPS granted the license, believing that its oversight was better than no oversight. While oversight of family detention is definitely needed, it should come through independent federal monitoring, not through a state child care license of a detention center. Grassroots Leadership Inc. then sued to enjoin the issuance of a license at the South Texas detention center, where the licensing process was still ongoing. Grassroots Leadership argued that DFPS, a state agency, does not have the power to grant a license to a federal detention center. And on Dec. 2, the district court agreed. This is an important step in preventing the government from falsely rebranding the jailing of children as normal day care. Nevertheless, much more needs to be done to align U.S. policy with humanitarian and legal norms. There are reasonable, cheaper and more humane alternatives to holding children in detention centers. One alternative is to hold accompanied children in ORR shelters similar to those for unaccompanied children. Another is to place more families in supervised release programs when they arrive. As established in international law, the decision to detain should be made on a case-by-case basis and only when necessary, and to the extent necessary, to prevent flight or danger to the community. The Obama administration has continued to see detention as necessary, without looking at the individuals circumstances and without evidence that the individual is a flight risk or danger to the community, until an asylum officer has determined that the individual has a credible fear of return to their home country; almost all individuals are then released. In 16 months of working at the Karnes detention center, I have not seen one family detained due to an individual determination of danger to the community or flight risk. Currently, some 76 percent of released families are in compliance with their court hearings. Evidence suggests that access to counsel, case management programs, legal information programs and community support all increase compliance. According to Human Rights First, 98 percent of families attend their immigration court hearings when represented by counsel. Despite repetitive calls from advocates to end the detention of families, the fight continues. There may be some behind-the-scenes discussions of opening up a family shelter, possibly in San Antonio. Any such process must be abundantly transparent to the public and stakeholders. As the incoming Trump administration reviews the governments immigration policy, it should look at how best to uphold American values of respect and care for children. It should move away from the private, for-profit detention of children, as recommended on Dec. 1 by 17 members or two-thirds of the Homeland Security Advisory Council. Earlier this year, the Department of Justice stated that it will be ending private, for-profit management of adult prisons because of health and safety concerns. It is only logical that ICE do likewise, especially where children are concerned. While immigration detention is a $2.3 billion industry, President-elect Donald Trump should uphold his promise to clear the swamp of special interests and put children first. Sara Ramey is an immigration attorney at RAICES. She helps women and children detained at the Karnes County Family Residential Center who are fleeing from violence in Central America. The views here are hers alone. A version of this commentary appeared first in The Hill in Washington, D.C. With so many recent news stories that portray police officers in a negative light, I wanted to tell of a positive incident that happened to me recently, in which a policeman was kind, helpful and accommodating. I was sitting in my car in front of the post office. I had dropped my ignition key between the front seats. I tried to reach it, but I could not find it. I had visions of calling a taxi just to get home and retrieve another key. At that moment, a policeman rode up on his motorcycle next to me. I told him my problem, and he not only found my key but added a very nice fob so I wouldnt lose it again. It was just a minor incident, but it made me realize that most police officers are good. They are there to help us, and we should honor and respect them for putting their lives on the line every day for our safety and protection. Thank you, Mr. Police Officer, wherever you are! Marian Scott Act on change For all the Donald Trump haters piling on regarding the conflict of interest issue as a potential opportunity to impeach him, let me ask you a question. If you had accomplished what Trump has in private life and business, which would be left to your family, would you put it in a blind trust and jeopardize your lifes work because a bunch of small-minded politicians say, That is what we have always done? We voted for change, lets do things different! Phil Ferro A whine party The election is over, and Donald Trump hasnt even taken the oath of office, but the left is crying foul. All of you Hillary lemmings have been name-calling, not only with Trump but also those who voted for him. Some are even writing in to this newspaper. You have had it your way for eight years, thumping your chests and thumbing your noses at the right. Those on the right have been upset, angry, even miserable. Now its your turn to be angry. Hopefully, for at least four years, if not longer. I feel certain Trump will do his best for America. So, when you people get together for gripe sessions, make sure you have plenty of cheese and crackers on hand. Also, please invite Gregg Popovich. Im sure he will bring plenty of whine! Gerald Lopez A reckoning All you people who voted for Donald Trump and all his promises, you are beginning to realize, Youve been duped. Roland Acevedo Stealing votes I find it strange that Christopher Suprun, the second person to break ranks with the Electoral College in Texas, says he is doing his duty under the Constitution by not voting for the Republican winner. Suprun is obliged to represent the will of voters under our constitution. He has said he will not do so. Voters stood in line to do their civic duty. They went before work or during work or after work, standing in long lines. Acting like an elitist that those voters voted against, Suprun will disenfranchise them, negating their will. He is no better than the self-radicalized lone wolf terrorist attacking our country, our way of life. I call on him to withdraw from being an elector and allow a replacement if his conscience will not let him express the will of the people he is sworn to represent. If he carries through, I call on the voters from his district to file civil suit against him for disengagement. He is attacking our representative government and stealing the votes he is entrusted with. Jeff Dreier Political baggage Re: Dont blame Trump, Your Turn, Dec. 2: I could not in good conscience vote for Donald Trump because of all his baggage. He is a fraud, taking on the dishonest media but settling a fraud case for $25 million. He is a sexual predator, with no respect for women. He insulted Sen. John McCain, a former POW, mocked a disabled reporter, and refused to pay workers who built his hotels, forcing them to file for bankruptcy and lose their business. Trump used the Trump Foundation to enrich himself. He manipulated his tax return and paid no income taxes. He also claims Hillary Clinton endangered national security with her use of a private email server, yet he considered appointing Gen. David Petraeus as secretary of state, even though he provided classified information to his mistress. Seems that the list of baggage carried by Trump is very extensive. Carlota Sierra Happy experience I recently attended a national teacher conference in San Antonio, the National Council of Urban Educators, which I have attended for three years. I must say your city is one of my favorites. I stayed at the Marriott Rivercenter and was treated and greeted very well. My stay was comfortable, relaxing and just as if I were at home. I thank the Marriott and their employees. I also want to thank the employees in Rivercenter mall, as well as the various restaurants I ate at on the River Walk. When I ran into a phone problem, a gentleman at the Verizon store went above and beyond in his customer service. Throughout my five days in your city, I ran into nothing but kind and courteous people. I normally dont write letters to the editor to newspapers where I have traveled, but the kindness and generosity I received in San Antonio could not be ignored. Thank you to all the wonderful people, and I hope everyone has a great holiday season! April Miller, Richland, Washington If anything will shut down plans to build a wall across the entire U.S.-Mexican border, it will be when influential officials like Gov. Greg Abbott speak up against it. Fortunately, the governor did that this week. Abbott stated the obvious that so many supporters of this bad idea refuse to recognize: "There are serpentine regions of the Rio Grande where it would be extremely challenging to build a wall. There are parts like the Big Bend region - we don't want see a wall in the beautiful Big Bend National Park." 1 Internet control: Thailands military-appointed legislature approved a bill Friday tightening the countrys already harsh Computer Crime Act, defying critics who said it infringes on the right to free expression. The National Legislative Assembly in Bangkok voted 168 to 0 with four abstentions to approve amending the 2007 law. Internet activists had campaigned against the amendment, which will allow authorities to intercept private communications, block websites deemed harmful to national security or public morals without a court order, add specific criminal penalties for undermining national security and entering false information into computer systems, and increase the length of time for which service providers must retain data from 90 days to as long as two years. 2 Papal mediator: Pope Francis brought Colombias president and his main political opponent together to discuss the countrys rebel peace deal Friday, making a remarkable personal intervention to try to seal an accord ending Latin Americas longest-running conflict. But after the 25-minute meeting, neither President Juan Manuel Santos nor his right-wing predecessor, Alvaro Uribe, showed any sign of putting aside their differences, which have divided Colombians. Uribe has led the campaign against Santos deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia that resulted in in the accords shock rejection in an October referendum. Francis, historys first Latin American pope, has also helped facilitate talks between the U.S. and Cuba that ended a half-century of conflict. It took 4,000 years to build Aleppo; one generation managed to tear it down. Jan Egeland, U.N. humanitarian adviser for Syria, estimating that 50,000 people had fled eastern Aleppo Weve got a lot of firepower. ... Weve got the scientists, weve got the universities, weve got the national labs, and we have the political clout for the battle. And we will persevere, have no doubt about that. Gov. Jerry Brown to climate scientists in San Francisco, reiterating Californias commitment to combat global warming in the Trump era If Russia, or some other entity, was hacking, why did the White House wait so long to act? Why did they only complain after Hillary lost? Ever since Jurgen Klopp was appointed as manager, Liverpool have been tentatively linked to about 90% of the players plying their trade in the Bundesliga. No doubt he arrived at Anfield with a list of players he wanted the recruitment team to cast an eye over. So far the Reds have signed Joel Matip, Loris Karius and Ragnar Klavan from teams in Germany. If reports are to be believed that number will be rising in January with the likes of Niklas Sule, Jonathan Tah and Julian Brandt all being linked. However, the Twitter account Scouts in Attendance claim Liverpool have had scouts at a number of Mainz 05 games keeping tabs on Yunus Malli. The Turkish international has been linked to Spurs, Bournemouth, Leicester, Dortmund and Liverpool in the past and looked set to leave Mainz in the summer but a move never materialised. Hes carried over last seasons fine form and to date has 6 goals and 5 assists in 1210 minutes of play as well as a goal and an assist in the Europa League. Hes showing that hes no one season wonder. The 24-year-old has just the 18 months remaining on his deal and could be available for as little as 10 million. In todays market thats nothing and in the long-run could turn out to be a bargain. Mainz may not want to sell but the alternative sees them potentially miss out on receiving anything for the player if he decides to run down his contract. Why Yunus Malli? While Malli isnt good enough to displace any of the current attacking trio he could be a good supplement to the attack. He could stand in for both Firmino and Coutinho if possible as well as being able to play a deeper role, in theory at least, linking the midfield to the attack. The Mainz number 10 is a bit of an all-rounder. He can take set pieces; free-kicks, corners and penalties. He can play a variety of positions; as a number 10, left of the attack, right of the attack, false 9 and centre-midfield. Hes intelligent and diligently undertakes his responsibilities off of the ball as well as on it. Hes creative and hes a goal threat, although it has to be said a lot of his goals come from the penalty spot. The most important aspect though is the fact theres room for improvement. Theres enough meat on the bone for Klopp to work his magic and make him an even better player, and its something that bodes well for the Reds. Malli has primarily played as a number 10 for Mainz so far this season. However in the first picture above we see him in a position Liverpool fans would associate with Philippe Coutinho. He effortlessly drifts inside before playing an early pass to the Mainz man in space before the Freiburg defenders have time to react or set themselves properly. Its nothing amazing but it does show how quick thinking Malli is as well as the fact he has the ability to execute a well weighted pass. The Mainz movement created the passing opportunity, can you imagine the opportunities he would get with the movement of Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino? This time its Mallis quick feet, composure and press resistance which is on show. The Mainz playmaker picks the ball up on the left, rolls it onto his left and plays a pass between the Ingolstadt players which gets his team running at the oppositions defence. Again, its nothing spectacular but it shows how hes looking to get the ball forward and despite the fact three Ingolstadt players are closing him down he calmly plays a pass forward instead of taking a safer option. Hes a progressive player. Mallis awareness is what also stands out when watching him play. In this picture hes receieved the ball and instead of taking a touch and potentially letting Darmstadt get players back he plays a first time pass into the path of the Mainz attacker. Its simple but its effective. But not many would play that pass first time, especially not on their weaker foot. Defensively he looks to intercept passes and he does harass the opposition. Hes not in the same league as Firmino, Coutinho, Sadio Mane or Adam Lallana but hes got enough about him defensively to be able to play in a Jurgen Klopp pressing system. Even more so when its not the erratic 2015/16 version but instead the refined 2016/17 one. He completes just the 69.7% of the 26.7 passes he attempts but with a creative player you expect them to be playing risky passes and therefore there hit rate will be below the norm. What would be interesting though is to see how Malli adapts to seeing more of the ball. The Liverpool attackers all attempt 40+ passes per 90. All in all Malli would be a good signing for the reported fees. Weve already seen in the absence of Philippe Coutinho how the dynamic changes because theres nobody in the squad stylistically like the little Brazilian. Im by no means saying Malli is, or will ever be, as good as Coutinho but hed be a good squad option. A Macedonian court on Friday rejected a wiretapped conversation as evidence in the trial of 14 people, including former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, OCCRP partner Nova TV reported. The trial is one result of a massive investigation into allegations of high-level wrongdoing launched by the countrys Special Prosecutor after the revelation last year of tens of thousands of wiretaps allegedly ordered by Gruevski. Security service officials and senior members Gruevskis former VMRO-DPMNE-controlled government are among those implicated. Fridays hearing concerned allegations that Gruevski and others were behind a violent 2013 protest against Skopje Center Municipality Mayor Andrej Zernovski. Gruevski allegedly ordered the protest to disrupt a meeting critical of controversial plans to redevelop Skopjes downtown. Judge Tatyana Mikhailova told the court the wiretaps could not be used as evidence as they were obtained illegally. The Special Prosecutor had previously asked for Mikhailova to be dismissed from the case, as her name was mentioned among the wiretaps released last year by politician Zoran Zaev. The release of the recordings, popularly referred to as Zaev's "bombs," were the catalyst for mass anti-government protests that led to a European Union-brokered deal that saw Gruevskis January resignation, snap elections, and the formation of the Special Prosecutor. Gruevski and his allies maintain the recordings are fabrications created by foreign intelligence bent on destablizing the country. Former Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevksi (Photo: European People's Party CC BY 2.0) occrp.org A SOMALI PRESIDENT FOR A DAY by Abdirizak S. Hassan Ph.D Saturday, December 17, 2016 1. So you want to become the president of Somalia and you feel ready to tackle the different challenges facing this post-conflict nation. Here is what to expect: 2. Welcome to Somalia, poor, corrupted, fractured, insecure with weak and under-developed institutions. The government apparatuses are ineffective and inefficient to carry the smallest imaginable task. Its people are tired, frustrated, humiliated, and deceived by unscrupulous businessmen and opportunistic tribal minded politicians. This has allowed them to mortgage their future and accept every promise from these pseudo-politician and witty clansmen. 3. Let's assume that you are a leader with impeccable integrity with good intentions. That you want to realize the dreams of millions of Somalis? The Somalis are generally forgiving and grossly gullible initially, but are quick to gauge the inner soul of their leaders. Simply, their blind trust can eviscerate in no time. 4. Somalia lags behind in all average conditions and statistics of all African and non-African countries. The coronation period is over, and you made a wonderful speech promising to tackle corruption and insecurity. That you would work tirelessly to improve the living conditions for millions of Somalis that live in destitute conditions, primarily the internally displaced, migrants, refugees, unemployed, widows, pensioners, wounded, and marginalized ones. Similar pledges were made by your predecessors but unequivocally failed their promises. However, you are determined to prove them wrong. You consider yourself a man of the people. advertisements BACKGROUND 6. Somalia has 12,300,000 citizens on a landmass of 637,657 sq km. Average life expectancy is around 52 years, and population growth is estimated around 1.9% a year. The unemployment level is estimated around 80%, which means a limited regular income for the majority of your citizens. Still, the majority of your citizens live in a rural setting; largely a combination of nomadic pastoralists and small plots farming. Large numbers of your citizens are either refugees or internally displaced which would increase the pressure on the land. 7. Gross national product in Somalia is estimated around US $6.6 billion a year. This means a per capita income of roughly US $537 .00 per person in 2015(data from Somalia is unreliable). Despite prolonged social strive, the economy grew modestly and will continue to grow given an improvement of the underlying security and general citizen sentiment and expectation. The most important source of income for the majority of the Somalis is the USD $1.3 billion remittances per year. This crucial source of income is seriously threatened by the new de-risking of banks in fund originating countries. Also, the remittances fund the ever-expanding trade deficit. The productive sector(s) - livestock, fishery, and agriculture is decimated by a multiplicity of factors and would take years to recover and require substantial targeted investment. Construction and telecommunication have been the new engines of the economic growth. 8. So far, you are not an expert in these macroeconomic facts. You need to inquire what these numbers mean for the people of Somalia and how this impacts the day-to-day life of the average Somali. Your Finance Minister explicates these are extreme poverty measures by all internationally accepted standards. The majority of your citizens die young, lack basic necessities and infrastructure (clean water, food, shelter, medicine, and school). These are not privileged necessities rather basic human rights that every citizen must have. The above conditions indicate a part of the improved security and return of resemblance of normalcy, Somalia faces daunting socio-economical and political challenges. BASICS 9. Still, you arent intimidated and sincerely believe you can make a difference, you can succeed where others have miserably failed. You believe for the right purposes, you can clearly do more today than yesterday, and the people of Somalia have done so well while operating at a fraction of their potential during last several decades. Now is the time to ask the nations well-being. Civil-wars or general social strives are sometimes called development in reverse. Somalia continues to be mired in a latent conflict that a part from the obvious direct impacts such as death, disability, rape, violence, famine, and spread of diseases, has taken indirect psychological and social impacts. 10. A new study has found 2/3 of all adult Somalis suffer a sometime type of mental disorder as a direct result of the conflict. Your social advisor advises you that Somalia lags behind the majority if not all of Human Development Index (health, education, and income). Somalia ranks 123 out of 130 countries, even though the country suffers from a lack of credible data. Low health and education standards along with general insecurity have considerably contributed to high rates of infant mortality, low life expectancy, the spread of preventable disease, acute food shortage hence chronic malnutrition. The education sector doesnt fare better than the healthcare. Gross education enrolment is less than 20%; with less than 1% in nomadic communities. Most of the health and education services are provided by community-based organizations. The general literacy rate is approximated around 40%, and its lower for women. Your advisor denoted that one of the major constraints is the lack of government finance and focus in these sectors. You took a note. 11. I am assuming you are well-versed on the general insecurity and vulnerability of the average Somali. You are elected on a platform to restore peace and defeat the anti-peace elements in the country, so I wouldnt bother you with its grim statistics. On related aspect close to 1.5 million Somalis are internally displaced, and more than 3 million are dependent on humanitarian aid. Conflict and insecurity are the major reasons of the general displacement. 12. On the productive sector - agriculture, which contributes more than 60% of the Gross Domestic Product, half of employment and exports, is severely stressed. Somalias general infrastructure is debilitated and requires immediate rehabilitation. Investment is immediately required but due to the risks and uncertainty in the country, no direct foreign investment is coming to the country, and the domestic savings can't support the required investment amount to undertake critical investments in electricity, telecommunication, ports, and innovation. 13. The briefings continued until all the budget line items are addressed and their importance successfully defended. Finally, it's time to hear from the budget guy. On one important note, if you thinking to reduce the public service to safe costs, Somalia is in the midst of insurgency and defense cut is off-limits and civil service employees number less than five-thousand (5,000) not including regional employees which are another problem I am not going to stress you about. 14. As any Somali politician, you should be concerned about your ultimate political survival in a byzantine politics for its decadence and for intricate intrigues and power-plays. Most importantly, there is a great public incredulity about your sincerity to deliver key promises. You cant impute them in our current tribal politics characterized by one of Bedouins infamous saying Me against my brother, my brothers and me against my cousins, then my cousins and me against strangers. 15. You may be thinking to appoint impartial technocrat ministers who are not based on clan, region, and other intrinsic factors but you must thread cautiously. Somalia is politically, socially, and even religiously fractured country. This means there wouldnt be one-size-fits all solution or radical departure from the status-quo must be carefully recalibrated. Simply put you need to appease all sides of your constituencies and will take additional resources that Somalia currently doesnt have. FINALE 16. With Gross National Income (GNI) of approximately US$6.6 billion and the average tax-to-GNI ratio of approximately 2.8 percent, the Federal Government of Somalia has a budget ceiling of US$ 185.00 million, excluding any international assistance for direct budget support and federal member states. This means around merely US$15 per person to meet the needs of education, health, infrastructure, defense, reconciliation, water, sanitation, productive sector, administration, diplomacy, civil service, and policing. The international aid flow (developmental, humanitarian, and peace-keeping support) to Somalia has been increasing for the last several years; however, most of the support is off-budget. The external debt is around US$5.3 billion (93 percent of the GDP). Somalia lacks the ability to service this debt and has been building significant arrears. 17. If you are genuine president, you should be petrified by the magnitude of the challenges that would unfold in your presidency. How would you solve your countrys problems with less than $15 per person, not factoring in debt, development projects, or any social programs? Most important, Somali hasnt seen any meaningful progress for the last several decades that would support the reduction of poverty or attract much required foreign/private direct investment. Most acutely the absence of sound management and unrestrained rampant corruption across all social stratum discourages any brave souls that would attempt to invest in your country. I believe these underlying challenges should make you think with the best intentions; there is no possible way to fulfill your objectives. 18. It's time to reflect on the hard choices that you face as a new president against the promises that you made for the people of Somalia and the resource limitation you face. What do you need to give up? Healthcare, education, military spending, development projects, sanitation, clean water, or everything since you dont have any meaningful resources to implement any meaningful agenda. 19. I hope by now you come to the conclusion that there is no way you can meet the basic needs of your citizens with available resources, irrespective of your vision and leadership quality and you are doomed to fail. Also, I wish you believe that bad governments are the center of this vicious cycle and adding new resources wouldnt have that much material impact other than line the pockets of those that are already well to do. 20. Let's hypothesize that you are a good leader and you effectively and efficiently managed available meager resources, and you need extra resources Aid and possibly trade. Similar to any post-conflict country, Somalia confronts a wide range of developmental choices and challenges. Your decisions would have tremendous impact ranging from on how to i) articulate or define national priorities, 2) bring national alignment and accountability, 3) provide incentive or disincentive, 4) empower or disempower national institutions, 5) support or obstruct capacity development, 6) drive or inhibit coordination of national priorities. 21. The donor community has chosen multi-donor trust funds (MDTFs) as the premier transition financing modalities for post-conflict countries to hedge their perception of risk in recipient entities while at the same time satisfying domestic and international political pressures. Someone would assume since, the first MDTF was set up in Bosnia-Herzegovina and West Bank/Gaza the donor community, donor agencies, and their donors learned and adopted the best modalities for respective recipient states, however, still weak and fragile states continuous to face supply-driven modalities with no significant relevance on the ground. Colossal impediments remain to establish on-budget transition financing that utilizes in-country systems. Most importantly, MDTFs are perceived as dependable long-term funding sources, which facilitates quick donor coordination and disbursement of funds. MDTFs are designed to provide recipient states with a dominant role in reconstruction and development programs. However, current modalities have contributed little to its conceptual benefits in areas of strengthening institutional capabilities, promoting legitimacy, and prioritizing recipient state needs. Donor domination, short-termism, dominant oversight bodies, and unattainable standard and procedures have reverted donor funds to their traditional modalities. 22. Since you are a new-comer to the Somali scene, Somalia wouldnt be an exception to the modalities described above. You would face determined donor community that would continue to pursue or implement narrowly defined pet projects that are not in-line with your campaign promises. On-going government work-plans and flagship programs would face predetermined agendas by donor agencies priorities. This conundrum hinders effective management and planning of government priorities and interpolates generic improvement of institutional capacities. Moreover, lack of centralized decision-making process coupled with excessive external influence would hamper your most good intentions and would create parallel and overlapping projects that would have no strategic links with your overall desirable goals that you told to the people of Somalia. 23. I hope I have illuminated the challenges that you would face on your first day at the office, and I wish you the best luck! Abdirizak S. Hassan Ph.D. [email protected] PHH Corp. plans to close a Buffalo, N.Y.-area office next year, which will result in the layoff of 80 employees, extending the staff reductions already taken in 2016. The 80 employees who will be laid off were notified verbally in October and received formal warning this week, PHH spokesman Dico Akseraylian said. The round of layoffs is scheduled to begin within 14 days of March 31, 2017, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed Thursday. Akseraylian declined to comment on the impact the layoffs and closure would have on future earnings. The layoffs come as PHH sets to end operations at its Williamsville, N.Y., facility, which handled both servicing and originations for the company, in the second half of 2017. The closure stems largely from the August announcement that the company would lose nearly a third of its subservicing portfolio after HSBC Bank agreed to sell the mortgage servicing rights on 139,000 loans, Akseraylian said. The company warned in the announcement that some of the facility's employees would be affected. At the time, the facility had around 300 employees. Another factor influencing the closure was the relocation of the company's originations operations to a facility in Jacksonville, Fla., following the end of its relationship with Merrill Lynch that precipitated its exit from the private-label mortgage origination business. This round of layoffs follows another that was announced in September affecting 91 employees. Those layoffs are set to finalize Dec. 31. PHH expects that further staff reductions will follow in the first half of 2017 affecting the facility's remaining employees, though Akseraylian said some will likely remain on with the company as telecommuters after the office closes. Affected employees will receive severance and career transition assistance. "We have worked with local companies in Williamsville that are in need of employees to set up job fairs," Akseraylian said. "We did that for the 91 announced in September, and we'll continue to do that. We are very focused on trying to get impacted employees as much help as we can." He also noted that the company gave the latest group of affected employees beyond the 90 days' advance notice that's required. "We decided to give them as much notice as we could," Akseraylian said. (Natural News) Recently, the Seattle police enlisted the help of car manufacturer BMW to both track and remotely lock a criminal inside of the vehicle he had stolen. This has sparked some spirited debates regarding the remote-lock aspects of vehicles and the ways they can be used. BMW confirmed that they have the power to remotely lock and unlock their vehicles if they wish to do so. A police report obtained from the incident shows that the responding Seattle officer noted that BMW assistance was called upon to locate the vehicle and remotely lock its doors. The suspect found sleeping inside the BMW and briefly tried to get away when awoken by police. The suspect failed to flee because he couldnt get the vehicle in gear quickly enough, he was arrested without incident. Sources do not report weather the remote lock aspects prevented the vehicle from shifting into gear or not. The police report doesnt suggest that the sleeping criminal was permanently trapped inside the vehicle, or that he even made any attempts to unlock the doors. If the suspect was able to drive away prior to being apprehended, it might have been a pointless endeavor if he was still locked inside. A stolen vehicle might not be the best place to sleep, but this is a rude awakening to the capabilities of the government to entrap us in our own vehicles. While remote lock is currently a nice crime prevention feature for the tech savvy BMW, it can also serve as an impromptu prison. It is much riskier to steal a vehicle today than in years past, but non-criminals have other things to worry about. Authorities now have the technology and resources to abuse their power and trap whomever they wish inside their vehicles. The technology can also be prone to hackers. The incident in Seattle, however, wont become a common occurrence because the thief was able to use the key fob he found inside the vehicle to start the car. The BMW isnt as easy to steal when you dont have the keys. For those worried that the new technology and its capabilities will be used against them, fear not. There is a manual override to this type of situation if you are properly prepared. Everyone should have a center punch or spark plug inside their vehicle which can be used to break the window should be vehicle become submerged in water or remotely locked by hackers or authorities. Sources: CNet.com Engadget.com (Natural News) The federal government just cannot stay out of the business of American citizens. Their constant need to overstep their boundaries and enforce ridiculous regulations has made it extremely difficult to make a living as a business owner in the United States. That sadly hasnt prevented them from continuing this trend, which is worrisome to everyone who cares about liberty in our nation. One of the most frustrating aspects of this that very few seem to acknowledge as being a huge problem is government licensing. Forcing business owners to take tests, undergo training and pay the government annually prevents them from being able to reach their full potential and engage in the free market the way it was intended. Justin Gardner of The Free Thought Project reports, The notion of being licensed may sound nice to people looking for a service, and the basic idea of demonstrating knowledge about a trade is good. But mandatory government licensing can be described simply as extortion rackets with no real purpose in making things safer or better. Even in a profession that can be dangerous to others the constant money shakedown from government has no bearing on the safety of such professions. This behavior costs Americans billions of dollars every year. The initial costs are staggering on their own, but where government licensing really costs our country is through the fact that it prevents countless jobs from being created every year. Because businesses are forced to pay for all of this nonsense, they cannot afford to hire employees that they otherwise would be able to employ. It is frustrating to no end, but there unfortunately doesnt seem to be an end in sight. Hopefully, President-elect Donald Trump will acknowledge all of these issues and change the regulations that the federal government currently demands. He ran on a platform of helping the working class in our country, and few things would help them as much as the powers that be backing off and letting them run their lives and their businesses without government interference. Should he keep his promises and support the people that help make our country great, then Trump will be on the right path to change the system that he claims to hate as much as the rest of us. Until that day comes, all we can do is hope and pray that the government loosens its grip on all of our throats. Sources: TheFreeThoughtProject.com Reason.com SonoranNews.com (Natural News) Currently, fake news is the buzz word of the Regressive Left, and its something that we cannot seem to avoid hearing about. Ever since Hillary Clinton lost the presidential election, those on the Left have done everything in their power to explain why. Instead of accepting the fact that Clinton was an unlikable candidate that ran an uninspiring campaign, they have blamed everyone from third-party voters to the Russians for the loss. Recently, though, fake news began to receive the brunt of the blame, which is hilarious when you consider that Hillary Clinton utilized actual fake news during her entire campaign. During a speech at Senate Minority Leader Harry Reids portrait unveiling last week, Hillary Clinton stated, Its now clear that so-called fake news can have real world consequences. This isnt about politics or partisanship. Lives are at risk. Lives of ordinary people just trying to go about their days to do their jobs, contribute to their communities. Its a danger that must be addressed and addressed quickly. Because, of course, she did. It has become common for people on the Left to blame everyone but themselves for their gross shortcomings, and fake news is the flavor of the week in that regard. Unfortunately for them, they will eventually have to acknowledge that the ones spreading fake news are those in the mainstream media. History will prove that the alternative media is spreading actual facts, while the likes of CNN and MSNBC are giving fluffy, watered-down versions of the truth if they even tell the truth at all. The real danger comes from the people who are considered reputable spreading complete and utter lies in order to protect the reputations of the Leftists who are funding their operations. Since the average American once believed reporters on CNN, there is still a history of them being honest and trustworthy. Thats incredibly unfortunate, but there is a way to prevent this from happening in the future. We have to embrace alternative media outlets and fight alongside them during their battle for truth. Instead of allowing the Leftists to get away with calling such truth seekers liars and thieves, we have to stand up for them as they reveal the facts about those holding positions of power. The establishment has been in control for far too long. We now have the opportunity to change that and we cannot let it go to waste. Sources: DailyCaller.com TheIntercept.com Breitbart.com Friday, December 16, 2016 by: Don Wrightman Tags: contro , Hitler , media coverage This article may contain statements that reflect the opinion of the author (Natural News) In the 1920s and 1930s Americans thought of Hitler as a joke. His shrill voice and jerky hand movements made it difficult to take him seriously. But some of the first people to meet him didnt feel the same way. Junior military attache Truman Smith said, This is a marvelous demagogue who can really inspire loyalty. Karl von Wiegand was the first American journalist to interview Hitler in 1922. He felt the same way as Smith. They were both struck by Hitlers oratorical skills and his ability to drive people into a frenzy. The Nazi Party finally emerged as a major contender for power after the great depression hit, but Americans still considered Hitler to be a clown. Most people believed that if Hitler gained power, German politicians would take control of him. Reassessments unfortunately came soon thereafter. Chicago Daily News correspondent Edgar Mowrer frantically tried to warn readers worldwide, saying, What hes saying about the Jews is serious. Dont underestimate him. American correspondents in Berlin were living in relative luxury. The good correspondents and diplomats worked hard to gather information, although it was becoming progressively more difficult and dangerous to obtain. Edgar Mowrer took huge risks to get information by meeting with a German-Jewish doctor. During regular doctor visits, the doctor would slip him notes when his assistant left the room. The notes contained information about who had been arrested, presumably journalists. The meetings became too risky, and the two moved their meetings to a public restroom where the doctor would drop the note and Mowrer would retrieve it undetected. Not all correspondents and diplomats were so brave as to obtain dangerous information. Most felt constrained and didnt wish to put themselves in jeopardy. The mainstream media was used against the people, and those brave enough to report the truth were subject to the ultimate consequence. Reporters were slow to write about things they had witnessed firsthand. After Hitler took power, there were attacks on Americans who refused to give the Hitler salute. Radio broadcaster Hans Kaltenborn believed that the reports were an exaggeration until his teenage son was beaten up for the refusal to salute. The Nazis apologized and told Kaltenborn, I hope you wont write about this. Kaltenborn was reluctant to do so, most likely because the apology was really a warning. Charles Lindberg was among the Americans that believed Hitler was helping to get Germany back on its feet. Amazed at how orderly Germany had become, Lindberg was also providing real-time intelligence for the U.S. He became part of the America First movement, and tried to keep America out of the war by giving information to American diplomats that he thought would urge Washington to stay away. American journalists were often the first to warn German Jews what danger they were in. Mowrer was run out of Germany after he kept advising Jews to get out quickly. But German-Jews were also urged by non-Jewish industrialists to give money to the Nazi Party. They were told that it would be a way for them to protect themselves. Like most Americans, German-Jews didnt believe what was happening. Thats the power of state-controlled media working hard against the people. Sources: TheAtlantic.com Science.NaturalNews.com (Natural News) Pedophilia is a difficult topic, fraught with horrific physical, mental and emotional scars for the children and their families, who have been victim to an adults destructive predilections. Sexual acts perpetrated upon smaller, innocent children can remain hidden for years, which only adds fuel to the fire. The fear, trauma, threats, shame and blame laid on the victim contribute to the veil of secrecy. The perpetrator may work for years to make him or herself a solid, upstanding citizen, so accusations are difficult. When we consider the Roman Catholic Church, Penn States Jerry Sandusky and the BBCs beloved Jimmy Savile, an institutional silence abounded for years, while pedophiles continued to harm their victims with impunity. What did Anthony Weiners laptop really show? Is Pizzagate just another one of those fake news conspiracy theory reports? According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), pedophilia is an intense and recurrent sexual interest in prepubescent children. The DSM calls this a disorder if it causes marked distress or interpersonal difficulty, or if the person acts on these desires. The New York Times says that society should understand that not all pedophiles act on their feelings. (Theres even a group calling themselves Virtuous Pedophiles.) Pedophilia, says The Times, is a mental illness. Recent research points to a neurological basis, which means being a pedophile is not a choice. They suggest that more people understand that the disorder called pedophilia is not the same as child molestation. And our society should be more understanding about treatment before, not after, an assault occurs. There are a number of other suggestions made by Margo Kaplan, the author of the article, who is an assistant law professor at Rutgers University, and as such, concentrates on how she feels the law is skewed against pedophiles, especially in the area of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. This Act prohibits discrimination against qualified individuals with mental disabilities, but pedophiles are excluded from protections. Its difficult to gauge how Ms. Kaplan and The Times are positioning themselves on this issue. If pedophilia is generally accepted as a mental disorder, does that mean the act committed against a child is not a crime? One thing we do know: The act of pedophilia goes on around the globe. And it has harmed millions of innocent children, as this report from North West Liberty attests. Sources: NyTimes.com Science.NaturalNews.com Virped.org NorthWestLibertyNews.com YouTube.com Friday, December 16, 2016 by: Daniel Barker Tags: abuses , breast cancer , Denise Albert , TSA This article may contain statements that reflect the opinion of the author (Natural News) The American public continues to be harassed, groped and humiliated by the TSA on a daily basis at airport security screening checkpoints across the country, and although most incidents are never reported, every few months or so a new story hits the headlines reminding us just how invasive and insensitive their tactics can be. The latest such case involved Denise Albert, breast cancer patient and co-host of The Moms radio show on SiriusXM. Denise was traveling through Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on December 4 as she has done many times in the past without incident when she was subjected to harassment and an attempted body cavity search in public by TSA officers, an experience that left her in tears, feeling violated and humiliated. As usual, she had dutifully notified TSA about her condition Denise has a metal port in her chest and must also carry medical cream but this time, the officers decided to detain and harass her, even though she had removed the medical cream from her bag before going through the checkpoint. From Denises Facebook post describing the incident: I had already told them about my metal port and my medical cream which I removed from my bag for them to see and test as I have done on prior flights. I dont know what was different this time but TSA agents aggressively attempted to do a body cavity search in public. The TSA agents took Denise to the side and asked her to remove her shoes, then told her that she would have to submit to a complete body pat-down with pressure: I should also point out that according to the TSA website, what these agents did was improper procedure they are not allowed to touch skin and should be gentle over clothing (contradiction to what you hear on video). I should NOT have been required to remove shoes because of my medical condition and they were supposed to ask if I have a tender area and didnt and didnt listen when I told them I did. I have never been so humiliated or felt more violated in my life The ordeal lasted at least 20 minutes, with Denise forced to sit with her bare feet on a cold floor and endure an invasive body search in which one TSA agent forceab[ly] and aggressively put her hands down my jeans in the back and attempted to do a body cavity search in public. Part of the incident was recorded on video and posted on Denises Facebook page. After the incident, Denise filed a formal complaint with the TSA and made her story public. The TSA responded with an apology along with a promise to launch an investigation and refresh training for 3,000 LAX employees. One cant help but wonder if Denise Albert would have received any response from the TSA at all if her story had not gone viral on Facebook and in the media. Denises experience was just the latest of several incidents this year in which the TSA violated the rights of travelers in an unacceptable and even violent manner. TSA year in review 2016: Agents grope 10-year-old girl, beat up disabled 19-year-old In January, for example, a 10-year-old girls experience of being aggressively patted down at Raleigh-Durham International Airport was caught on video by her father and made public. In this case, the girl, who was wearing a long skirt, was patted down for a period of more than two minutes in a fashion that was to say the least inappropriate. And in June, a disabled 19-year-old girl on her way to be treated for a brain tumor was beaten bloody by TSA agents at Memphis International Airport after she became frightened and confused at the security checkpoint. There have been many such extreme incidents, and an untold number of comparatively less serious but still humiliating violations of basic human rights carried out by TSA agents on a regular basis. And considering the fact that the TSA is incapable of intercepting more than a tiny percentage of the faux-explosives and banned weapons sent through airport checkpoints by undercover agents from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) not to mention the yearly cost of funding the agency one might easily wonder if its all worth it to begin with. Sources: TheDailySheeple.com DailyMail.co.uk CounterCurrentNews.com WREG.com NYPost.com Friday, December 16, 2016 by: Don Wrightman Tags: ISIS , Saudi Arabia , United States government This article may contain statements that reflect the opinion of the author (Natural News) There are some new WikiLeaks emails revealing that Mujahideen fighters helped develop ISIS with funding from Saudi Arabia and the United States. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says that definitive proof exists that the United States CIA is essentially responsible for creating ISIS. Assange pinpoints year 1979, where a series of events began that are ultimately responsible for the evolution of the terrorist organization. The CIA and Saudi Arabian government funneled billions of dollars into creating the Mujahideen militant group, which went on to fight against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. It was a continuation of the constant proxy wars of the US and Soviet Union. The Mujahideen militant group later became known as ISIS. In the Middle East, the Iranian revolution, the Saudi Islamic uprising and the Egypt-Israel Camp David Accords led not only to the present regional power dynamic, but decisively changed the relationship between oil, militant Islam, and the world. The uprising at Mecca permanently shifted Saudi Arabia towards Wahhabism, leading to the transnational spread of Islamic fundamentalism and the US-Saudi destabilization of Afghanistan, said Assange. Saudi Arabia and the CIA funneled billions of dollars to the organization for the USSRs invasion of Afghanistan. The funding was part of Operation Cyclone, which fomented the rise of Al-Qaeda and the collapse of the Soviet Union. Islamification spread to Pakistan as a result of the 1979 events. This led to the US Embassy located in Pakistan being burnt to the ground, and the execution of Pakistans Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. The Iranian hostage crisis ended up fatally undermining the presidency of Jimmy Carter which lead to Ronald Reagans election. The rise of Al-Qaeda eventually bore the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States, enabling the US invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq and over a decade of war, leaving, at its end, the ideological, financial and geographic basis for ISIS, said Assange. Did Saudi Arabia help fund Hillary Clintons campaign? Assange has mentioned Hillarys involvement during interviews with Dartmouth Films and RT. It has been noted that Saudi Arabian and Qatari funds are coming from everywhere. This includes media institutions and even the US government has mentioned or agreed with that some Saudi figures have been supporting ISIS said Assange. He believes that the WikiLeaks show the same governments that funded Hillary Clintons campaign are simultaneously propping up radical groups in the area including ISIS. Leaked emails between Clinton and her campaign manager John Podesta show that Clintons military strategy to defeat ISIS was to utilize local allies. Podesta confirmed that Saudi Arabia and Qatar provide clandestine financial and logistic support to ISIL according to the email. Sources: TrueActivist.com AnonHq.com Saturday, December 17, 2016 by: Natural News Editors Tags: Clinton , FakeNews , PolitiFact , Trump This article may contain statements that reflect the opinion of the author (Natural News) Left-leaning PolitiFact is on the newly revealed list of fact checking organizations Facebook will reportedly use to label fake news stories as they appear on the social media platform. (Article by Jerome Hudson, republished from BreitBart.com) Well use the reports from our community, along with other signals, to send stories to these organizations, Facebook VP Adam Mosseri wrote in the Facebook news blog. If the fact checking organizations identify a story as fake, it will get flagged as disputed and there will be a link to the corresponding article explaining why. Facebooks decision to tout PolitiFact as a credible and independent fact checker is awfully disturbing, given the organizations repeated smear campaign against Donald Trump throughout the 2016 election. Facebooks fake news flaggers, Politifact, et al., have a history of showing sympathy for left-wing narratives. Time and again PolitiFact published stories that favored Hillary Clintons candidacy, while promoting fact checks meant to rebut or embarrass Republicans. Below is a list of the many instances proving why Politifact is completely unqualified to be an objective judge of whats real and fake news. 1. Last March, PolitiFact delivered a mostly false rating for a joke made by Republican Senator Ted Cruz. [1] 2. Last April, PolitiFact made phone calls and sent a reporter to investigate whether Governor Scott Walker actually paid one dollar for a sweater he bought at Kohls. PolitiFact later ruled Walkers claim true. [2] 3. When Trump said Clinton wants open borders, PolitiFact deemed his statement mostly false despite the fact that Clinton admitted as much in a private, paid speech to a Brazilian bank on May 16, 2013. My dream is a hemispheric common market, with open trade and open borders, she said at the time. [3] 4. PolitiFact cast doubts on comments Pat Smith made during her emotional speech at the Republican National Convention, where she said Hillary Clinton said a video was responsible for her sons death during the terror attacks in Benghazi. [4, 5] Smith was referring to when she saw Hillary Clinton at Seans coffin ceremony, and then-Secretary of State Clinton looked me squarely in the eye and told me a video was responsible. But PolitiFact, taking an oddly defensive stance, said Smiths memory couldve been fuzzy and referred its readers, instead, to a brief meeting behind closed doors where Clinton addressed the families of the victims of the attack. 5. Despite video evidence to the contrary, PolitiFact claimed Hillary Clinton didnt laugh about Kathy Sheltons rape as a child. Trump invited Shelton to the second presidential debate and called out Clintons embarrassing behavior. Again, moving to dismiss and downplay Clintons actions, PolitiFact wrote: Trump is referring to an audio tape in which she does respond with amusement at her recollections of the oddities of the case, which involve the prosecution and the judge. At no point does she laugh at the victim. 6. In an attempt to explain Hillary Clintons role in the sale of 25 percent of the United States uranium stockpile, Politifact ignored numerous key facts, downplayed other key facts, and ultimately made 13 errors in its analysis. 7. A few months later, PolitiFact was, again, attempting to whitewash Clintons role in the Russian uranium deal. Like PolitiFacts first foray into the subject, the second report commits many factual errors and is full of glaring inaccuracies and omissions. 8. During a televised campaign event, Clinton said Australias compulsory gun buyback program would be worth considering in the U.S. When the National Rifle Association included Clintons comments on one of its flyers, PolitiFact ruled the organizations claim mostly false. 9. While Politifact admitted that Trumps claim that Russias arsenal of nuclear warheads has expanded and the U.S.s has not, the left-wing outfit deemed Trumps statement half true. Read more at: BreitBart.com Sources: [1] PolitiFact.com [2] BreitBart.com [3] BreitBart.com [4] BreitBart.com [5] BreitBart.com Critics of the California Public Utilities Commission are pushing for an outsider to run the safety advocacy arm of the agency in light of the brief tenure of the insider who resigned after holding the role for just three months. Since the 2010 pipeline explosion in San Bruno, the commission that regulates gas utilities in the state has faced constant criticism that it is too lax in its regulation of utility safety. State Sen. Jerry Hill, (D-San Mateo), says that despite strong criticism by an independent review panel and the National Transportation Safety Board, the agency has been unable to reform how it views safety. "Its very frustrating, its very sad, Hill said. "The culture at the PUC hasnt changed related to safety. Its still not sexy, its not something that they value or they prioritize. And they dont understand it, at the highest level, and thats really the problem." Hill had been encouraged by the appointment of a 20-year veteran regulator, Dorothy Duda, to run the PUCs Office of Safety Advocates. The office was mandated this year under legislation Hill wrote to assure that safety was being considered during regulatory hearings and rate setting cases. But in December, after just three months, Duda announced that she will soon assume another role within the agency. Hill says her rapid departure is a sign that safety is still not properly valued at the agency. "Shes kind of the canary in the coal mine," Hill says, "because she is showing the culture of safety is noxious at the PUC and hasnt been changed yet." Hill says an outsider with a safety background may be what the commission needs to change its culture. "I dont believe they have anyone inside the organization that can do that," he said. Meanwhile, San Bruno Mayor Jim Ruane is worried that the window to reforming the safety culture at the agency may be closing. It has been six years since the PG&E pipeline explosion killed eight people and destroyed an entire neighborhood. In that time, he says, many reform efforts have been blocked, including a package of six bills vetoed last year by Gov. Jerry Brown. "My fear, and I hope its just a fear that goes away, is that were going to be saddled with business as usual going forward," Ruane said. Calling it a "very scary proposition," Ruane explained that "its scary because nothing really has been done of substance." Ruane and other critics are counting on a federal court judge to revive lagging safety efforts. U.S. District Judge Thelton Henderon is expected to impose an independent monitor on Pacific Gas and Electric Co., following its conviction on pipeline safety and obstruction charges. But Ruane says the commission needs to get involved to assure the monitor will succeed. "If he independently monitors PG&E and the regulatory agency that oversees PG&E comes down with watered down rules and regulations wait a minute the CPUC has to be part of this also in some way, shape or form," Ruane said. "This independent monitor has to take that into consideration. " In response to NBC Bay Area's questions about the Office of Safety Advocates, the commission issued a statement that cited strides made by the agency in boosting its safety culture. "We are working diligently to fully implement (the new safety advocate legislation), and have made tremendous progress in the three months since we created the office, so it is disappointing to hear our efforts baselessly criticized," the statement said. But Hill remains skeptical. He doubts that the commissions favored approach of simply adding layers of management to oversee safety will make a difference. "If they just move people around and it becomes part of the bureaucracy," he said, "thats not going to work, because no one has that expertise." Rena Salomon, known as "The Angel in a Hummer" for her volunteer work after Katrina in New Orleans, returned to the South Bay from Haiti Tuesday night, her heart aching. She'd gone to Haiti last week, looking to rescue the children of Simon's Help Center for Destitute Children. Salomon had learned that only 12 of the 35 children at the center survived last month's earthquake. She found the survivors living on a hilltop. "They were under tents that were made of sheets and dehydrated, starving, lying on the ground with no energy," said Salomon from her Saratoga Avenue restaurant, Maxim's. Salomon immediately hired a lawyer, and signed a six-month lease on a huge home in Port-Au-Prince, the badly damaged Haitian capital. This was to become the new home of Simon's Center. "We provided water, food, a generator with power so we could power up the facility," said Salomon. Salomon fed the children mac-n-cheese, and hot dogs, and in no time, she said the children had turned into kids again. 'After a day of getting water and food, they started livening up, and [by] Day 2, they're singing," said Salomon. Salomon took a team of seven people with her, mostly family and friends. The trip cost her $20,000, and she paid for it mostly by using proceeds from her restaurant. Her heart still aches from what she'd witnessed, and the kids she left behind. "I can't imagine how the children feel every day," said Salomon, as she tearfully looked at photos of her trip. "I can't even look at them, it's just too hard, just knowing I left them there starving". Salomon said she's now officially a cofounder of Simon's Center, since her name is on the lease. She worries about providing for her 39 children in the long term. Salomon established a nonprofit called Humanitarian Emergency Aid Response Team (HEART) to help pay the Haiti bills. "I just know this is bigger than me," said Salomon. "They need more help." It's snow joke: The Vancouver Winter Games are here! Check out NBC Bay Area's full coverage, complete with amazing photo galleries, and more! Fan us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter An Electoral College voter from Monterey County on Friday asked a judge to allow him to vote his conscience for president. The Electoral College vote is on Monday, and Vinz Koller is poised to make history. If Koller doesnt vote for Hillary Clinton, he faces felony charges and three years in prison. He stood outside a San Jose federal courthouse with his lawyer Friday, having asked for an injunction and to keep from being put behind bars. If Im not allowed to vote for anyone other than Hillary Clinton, in effect Im enabling the election of Donald Trump for president, and in good conscience, I cannot do that," Koller said. The democrat instead wants to cross party lines and vote for a Republican like John Kasich since he knows Clinton cant win. But state law prevents that. So Koller came to court, his lawyer Melody Kramer said, asking he be protected from criminal prosecution if he places his presidential electoral vote for someone other than Hillary Clinton. Kollers request for a restraining order on any possible arrest was denied, so he filed for an emergency hearing with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The Electoral College was created for this purpose, Koller said. To prevent the election of someone who not only has questionable competence, but more importantly, has shown himself to be corrupt. Legal experts are watching this case closely because it would set a precedent. Mr. Koller, in the process, can have a constitutional showdown of historic proportions, said legal analyst Steven Clark. Koller says he is putting country over party with his vote. However, he did not say what he will do if the Ninth Circuit denies his appeal. Courts dont like handing down preemptive rulings, Clark said, so Koller may have to take his chances and see what happens. Firefighters put out a two-alarm fire at a high-rise residential building in San Francisco on Friday evening, a department spokesman said. The blaze was reported shortly after 7 p.m. at a Parkmerced apartment building in the 100 block of Cambon Drive, about a half-mile south of San Francisco State University. Crews found the fire at a residential room on the seventh floor of a 12-story building and extinguished the fire about 15 minutes later, fire spokesman Jonathan Baxter said. A second-alarm response was called for due to the size and occupancy of the building, Baxter said. Crews remained at the scene this evening to make sure the fire didn't extend past the room, according to Baxter. No injuries were reported, he said. Red Cross officials are en route to the scene to help the two people who were displaced by the flames, fire officials tweeted. The cause of the fire is under investigation. When it comes to the holidays, Wayne Standerwick does not shy away from a little chaos. This notable attribute is likely what enables him each year to haul a Christmas tree to San Franciscos Civic Center, where he unleashes hordes of homemade ornament-toting children on the conifer. Amid the mayhem of shrieking children frenetically hanging colored styrofoam ornaments, Standerwick stands watching with a gleeful expression. Very good, Standerwick encouraged with his Brooklyn-tinged accent, you guys are doing great. This is the 20th year Standerwick has enlisted kids to decorate a holiday tree an effort he describes as a holiday lesson in sharing and giving. He even calls it the Childrens Community Tree. Joe Rosato Jr./NBC Bay Area To that end, Standerwick puts up a Christmas tree in Civic Center and invites local school kids to come decorate it as a gift to the community. In a plaza often filled with the homeless, its become a small token of the holidays. This is where the majority of the homeless congregate and they deserve to see a tree too, said Thomas Kincaid, who has lived in the streets for a decade. On the streets its hard, and even if you have a memory that makes you happy for five minutes, that makes someones day. Standerwicks tree tradition began one December in the yard of his Mission District apartment. There was a tree in front of my house, Standerwick recalled, and I was like, 'I want kids to decorate the tree.' So Standerwick made some ornaments and called a local Head Start program, which sent out some kids. The ritual took hold and happened again and again, year after year. Joe Rosato Jr./NBC Bay Area But like many ideas which eventually outgrow their roots, Standerwick outgrew his front yard. So he hatched the idea to install a small annual holiday tree in the plaza across from San Francisco City Hall. He got a permit and invited schools to send children to decorate the tree. As part of the tradition, each kid gets a donated book and a kiwi. I always have been giving them books to promote reading and kiwis to promote healthier eating habits, Standerwick said. The first year he set up the tree in Civic Center, Standerwick got a lesson in the ways of the Grinch. Someone stole the tree and all the ornaments, which had been crafted by local schoolgoers. That taught me that no matter what happens you still have to stay positive, Standerwick said, pointing out a large chain that now secures the tree to a playground fence. Joe Rosato Jr./NBC Bay Area These days, Standerwicks holiday tradition has taken on more twists and turns than Santa Claus making his down a crooked stove pipe. He hauls out a solar panel connected to a bicycle, which the kids pedal to power the lights as a lesson in sustainable energy. And the ornaments now have an international flair. Standerwick travels the world during the year doing volunteer work. He said often during his travels hell pop into schools to get kids to make ornaments and cards which in addition to decorating his tree, are also delivered to hospitals and senior homes. The ornaments now boast a pedigree from places like Nepal, Japan and Germany. Its a giving tree, Standerwick said. Its about giving. One day this week, several groups of kids from San Franciscos gritty Tenderloin turned up to decorate the tree making the trek through darkened skies that threatened rain. As a teacher offered to stagger the pint-size decorators to installments of three to ease the mayhem, Standerwick instead encouraged her to turn the kids loose to decorate at will. Joe Rosato Jr./NBC Bay Area I like mayhem, he said with a grin. For some kids, it was a first encounter with the decorating end of a holiday tree. Some of the kids dont get to experience having Christmas tree at home, said teacher Latreesha Tidwell. So this gives them a chance to actually decorate a tree. The children screeched, tugged at ornaments and let out a collective Oooooh when a fellow student energized the trees lights by pedaling frantically. In the middle of the holiday scrum, Standerwick stood with his face lit with a wide grin as if there were no place in the world hed rather be. Southwest Airlines on Friday said a bomb threat made on Twitter for a flight from San Francisco to Los Angeles did not turn out to be credible. The flight landed safely without any incident at Los Angeles International airport, an airline spokesperson said. A tweet sent Friday afternoon to Southwest threatened to blow up Flight 2757 while it was en route from SFO to LAX unless the person received $40,000 in their PayPal account. Someone with the account handle @dhcjenxhhehdjs tweeted at Southwest saying he had a bomb on the flight:. Yo @SouthwestAir, I have a bomb on Flight 2757 from SFO to LAX if I dont receive $40,000 in my PayPal in the next 20 minutes the plane goes boom." We have a thorough process for reviewing threats made on social media, Southwest spokesperson Emily Samuels said. This particular threat was deemed not credible and the flight has landed safely on the ground at LAX. It appears Twitter suspended the account almost immediately after the alert popped up on Dataminr at 12:18 p.m. The account tweeted back at a number of people who called him out for the tweet before being suspended. A family was left homeless Friday night after a fire on Chicagos South Side left them with nothing but the clothes on their backs. Firefighters battled the blaze in the early morning hours under freezing conditions as flames shot through roof of Marie Rattlers home. She and her six children lived at the home in the 5600 block of South Peoria Street. Rattler watched from a neighbors porch. We went down to a neighbors house and stuff just started exploding everywhere as soon as we got out of the houseand the roof caved in, she said. Blue, the family dog, also escaped the blaze. We lost everything but we didnt even have to see doctors, Dizelle Rattler said. Nobody hat to go to the hospital. The familys belongings and Christmas gifts were destroyed, but Marie Rattler still expressed gratitude. Im blessed because it couldve been worse, she said. It couldve been a real tragedy, somebody could have gotten hurt. Dizelle echoed that sentiment. "Just thank God for live, that's the best present for Christmas," he said. For the time being the family will stay with relatives. An Indiana police officer purportedly sent Snapchat videos of himself talking about the execution of federal search warrants and showed evidence reportedly seized in the raids. The videos shows the East Chicago police officer, lists of seized items, evidence and a home, the Times of Northwest Indiana reports. The federal government does not usually release photos of evidence seized in raids. Officials had previously confirmed to the newspaper that several federal search warrants had in fact been recently executed in East Chicago. East Chicago City Attorney Carla Morgan told the Times on Wednesday the department became aware of the videos, "almost immediately after they were posted." She said action has been taken against the officer, but did not release details because of the ongoing federal investigation. U.S. Attorney David Capp told the paper Thursday he has been working with East Chicago Police Chief Frank Smith, who is handling the matter within department policy. Hundreds of flights were canceled at O'Hare and Midway airports throughout the weekend, as snow and freezing rain moved through the Chicago area. O'Hare International Airport reported that 262 flights were canceled Sunday, while another 28 flights were canceled at Midway Airport, according to the Chicago Department of Aviation. Delays at both airports were listed at an average of 32 and 25 minutes, respectively. [[407361326, C]] A plane also slid off the runway at O'Hare early Sunday, according to police and United Airlines. Flight 441 from Orlando turned to taxi upon landing around 1:10 a.m., and one of the tires went off the pavement, a spokesperson from United said. No injuries were reported and passengers were bused to the terminal. These problems for travelers came as a Winter Weather Advisory was in effect across the Chicago area through 6 a.m. Sunday, as a second storm system in as many days brought more snow. Following the snow, a Wind Chill Advisory was issued from 6 a.m. Sunday through 10 a.m. Monday as arctic air moved in, with up to 25 mph winds and highs in the single digits once again. Wind chill values could be as low as -15 to -25 degrees by Sunday afternoon and into the evening. Highs are set to gradually warm throughout next week, with temperatures returning to the 30s by Wednesday. The Chicago White Sox have agreed to a one-year, $10.825-million contract with first baseman Jose Abreu, avoiding arbitration, the team announced in a release Saturday. Abreu batted .293 last season, racking up 25 home runs and 100 RBIs. With 32 doubles, Abreu became the first player in White Sox history to record his third consecutive season of 30-plus doubles, 25-plus home runs and 100-plus RBI to start his career. Abreu is also just the seventh player in major league history to record at least 100 RBIs in each of his first three seasons, and his 91 home runs during that time are tied for 10th most by a player in his first three years. Following the 2016 season, the 29-year-old opted out of the final three years of his contract to become arbitration eligible, after signing with the Sox as a free agent out of Cuba in October 2013. A 34-year-old Florida man is accused of holding his girlfriend captive in a shed, stabbing her in the leg and sexually assaulting her over the course of a month. Bertin Ocampo was arrested on Dec. 3 after Polk County Sheriff's deputies discovered the woman in his Haines City home. The victim told deputies she and Ocampo had been in an intimate relationship for about three months when he locked her in the shed behind a home he shared with his nephew and the nephew's wife. According to a police report, Ocampo kept her locked in the room, which contained only a bed and television, for up to 18 hours a day. She told deputies Ocampo hit her, stabbed her in the leg with a knife and threatened to harm her daughter if she tried to escape. Ocampo also allegedly forced her to have sex with him three or four times in the course of the month, the woman said. The victim said during her captivity, she and Ocampo went to public places together and visited her mother's home to see her daughter. She said she never alerted anyone or tried to get away because she was scared of what he might do to her or her daughter. A search warrant was issued for the home after police received a tip to investigate the property. When Polk County deputies found the victim, she had bruises around her eyes, legs and arms, and two small scabs which she said were the stab wounds. Ocampo was charged with false imprisonment, sexual battery, aggravated assault, battery and aggravated battery. Heavy snow caused slick conditions on roads and highways across Connecticut on Saturday morning and caused a temporary closure of Interstate 84 in Hartford. The highway was closed on the westbound side near exit 48 a little after 10 a.m. while police waited for the Department of Transportation to come out and treat the roads. It has since reopened. State police responded to nearly 100 accidents before 10 a.m. on Saturday, according to Trooper Kelly Grant. Troopers also assisted another 70 drivers who were stuck, she said. Police urged drivers to stay off the highways to allow plows to clear the roads. Conditions were expected to improve Saturday afternoon. A Federal Railroad Administration plan to improve and expand high speed rail through Southeast Connecticut became more clear Friday, but it also was blocked as soon as it arrived. It will never happen," vowed Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who was joined by leaders from Old Saybrook, Old Lyme, East Lyme, and New London, as well as a pair of state lawmakers and Rep. Joe Courtney. "This route, the bypass, the realignment will never happen. The plan, which was discussed last summer and formally revealed in an environmental impact study, included expanding the track to two east of Old Saybrook, going through Old Lyme, and through New London. The loudest criticism of the proposal came in Old Lyme back in August when a FRA officials were greeted by a polite but vocal crowd of residents who didn't like the idea of high-speed rail going through their historic town. It would shake all of the paintings in the museums if it went through where the museums are, like a subway," said Phyllis Shepherd-Tambini. She attended that meeting, and spoke with NBC Connecticut on Friday. State officials including Transportation Commissioner James Redeker that Governor Dannel Malloy's administration never endorsed the FRA plan. The FRA has publicly marketed the plan as the best way to connect Boston and Washingont D.C. through high-speed rail. Local officials always said they felt like the plan ignored their priorities and what was best for them along the shoreline. We have residents who have invested in preservation of the environment, open space, historic preservation. Theyve given their time, their effort, their money to do whats best for our community," said Bonnie Reemsnyder, the First Selectwoman of Old Lyme. She said with the support of just about every policymaker in Connecticut at the state and federal level, this was an example where protesting and speaking out won out. Yes we have been very vocal but its because we have something very precious to protect. Stamford police have arrested a driver who struck and killed an 18-year-old pedestrian in Stamford last month. Police said Wilson Villa-Cabrera, 37, of Ecuador, hit Karina-Tinajero-Arreguin as she was crossing the street in from of Stamford High School on Nov. 5. Police said at the time that Villa-Cabrera did stop on scene and Tinajero-Arreguin was not in a crosswalk at the time of the crash. On Dec. 17 Villa-Cabrera was arrested and charged with misconduct with a motor vehicle. He was held on a $50,000 bond and his passport was seized. He is currently scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 20. Police said Villa-Cabrera was charged because he should have had adequate line of sight and road width to prevent him from hitting Tinajero-Arreguin. It does not appear that speed, distracted driving or drugs or alcohol were involved in the accident. A truck driver on Friday helped capture three undocumented immigrants who were hiding on the roof of his cab. Bob Hollin of Grand Prairie hauls vegetables from Edinberg, Texas, to Grand Rapids, Michigan. Usually its just him, the highway, and his 3 pugs, who travel by his side. But when he stopped at a truck stop in Edinburg, he couldn't believe his eyes. He thought he saw somebody on his roof, hidden under the air dam. "Stuck the mirror up here, and that's when I noticed something wasn't right and there was a body up here, Hollin said. He called police. An officer responded and sure enough, a man crawled down. "I thought it was just one person, but you don't know, Hollin said. Then, a little girl came down. "I was really shocked and surprised, he said. And then another. "It's like, 'How many more's coming out?' It was like a clown box, he said. They were undocumented immigrants with nothing more than the clothes on their backs. "I'd like to know where they came from, what their story is, he said. The three were apparently a father and his two daughters and told police they had hoped to get to Houston. Hollin was hauling his vegetables through North Texas, all the way to Michigan. "Somebody's going to get sick or die, especially young kids, he said. The Edinberg police officer who responded to the truck stop turned the three over to the Border Patrol, Hollin said. An Edinberg police spokesman told NBC DFW so many people are crossing the border, it's an "everyday thing." People, even families, are frequently caught while trying to catch a free ride on a semi, heading north, however they can. "This definitely tops everything, Hollin said. The U.S. Border Patrol says theres a recent surge of undocumented immigrants crossing the southern border. Just last month, agents arrested more than 47,000. Its so busy in the Rio Grande Valley, where Edinburg is located, that 150 agents have been moved there temporarily. Highland Park police arrested a man they say stole tens of thousands of dollars worth of packages off front porches. Officers tracked down Kyle Cassidy after he tried to return a pair of stolen shoes to a shop in Highland Park Village. Employees didn't believe his story and called police, who say they then found even more stolen packages inside his Ford Fusion. "We're not talking about a couple of packages, we're talking about a sedan, a mid-size sedan, that was filled full of packages. Different addresses, different names, they were in the trunk, they were in the back seat, they were in the front seat and so when all the inventory was pulled out of the vehicle, we had probably, estimated, about $50,000 worth of merchandise just inside the car." Investigators believe Cassidy stole from porches of homes in Highland Park and Dallas. A woman testified at a preliminary hearing for a Texas man accused of killing her husband and one other person on an Oklahoma interstate that she recalled maneuvering the vehicle her spouse was driving after he was shot. Jeremy Doss Hardy is charged with first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Jeffery Kent Powell, 45, of Arapaho. Powell's wife, Tamara Powell, gave her testimony Thursday, according to The Oklahoman. Hardy also is charged in the shooting death of Billie Jean West, 63, of Lone Wolf. A judge will determine if there's sufficient evidence for a trial to be held. Tamara Powell described having to reach over and put the pickup truck in park as her husband slumped over the seat Dec. 16, 2015. She said they were returning from the airport when a pickup speeding behind them suddenly passed their car and started shooting at them. "I kept going, `Don't leave me. Don't leave me,"' she said of her wounded husband. Police found West fatally shot in her car that was still in drive, but in a concrete drainage ditch. Prosecutors said Hardy, 37, of Pasadena, Texas, sped through three counties while randomly firing from his vehicle along Interstate 40 in western Oklahoma, and hit at least four vehicles. Hardy admitted after his arrest early the next day that he had been drinking alcohol earlier. Hardy's boss, Todd William Dugas, said Hardy was not acting unusual when they left a restaurant that night, but Hardy had been complaining about severe headaches. "He said, `I lose my mind and want to stab myself ... but I'm not having one right now,"' Trooper Darrell Splawn said Hardy told him when describing his migraines that had been going on for a month and a half. In addition to Tamara Powell, five other people testified that a pickup driver shot at them. Testimony during the hearing provided no new insight into a potential motive for the shootings. Dallas School officials explained the details on Friday behind relocating Sarah Zumwalt Middle School in January to escape mold. Around 430 students and three dozen teachers will resume classes after the holiday break at nearby Maceo Smith High School to allow for major renovation and remediation at the middle school, built in 1958, on East Ledbetter Drive and Veterans Drive. Parent Wateria Newman was waiting outside Zumwalt Friday to take her son to a doctor appointment. She blames mold for his illness. My son would come home from school for months telling me that his chest was hurting," Newman said. "He would even call me from school complaining of chest pain." Alliance AFT Teachers Union leader George Rangel said teachers have health worries, too. Theres been some symptoms with illnesses and allergies and stuff like that," Rangel said. "So, we have heard some concerns." Next week, students and teachers will return for several more days of class at Zumwalt before the holiday break. Its what we would term an unhealthy building, but we dont believe it poses any high levels of danger to any of the students or staff that occupy the building, said Dallas ISD Chief Operating Officer Scott Layne. Special ventilation equipment was running on Friday to remove moisture. Some portions of the Middle School were also sealed off. Back in February, the principals office and three classrooms were closed because of another bout with mold. We remediated those areas, said Dallas ISD Environmental Health and Safety Director Christopher Gray. So those concerns were addressed Mid-March. What were dealing with now is new data, different areas than there were in the spring. Groundwater runoff entering the building crawl space and an old steam heating system make the building too moist, ideal for the growth of mold, Layne said. It changes from day to day in the building and rather than continue to deal with that situation, we feel like from a cautionary measure, its better to move the kids out and lets get this problem addressed once and for all, Layne said. Our overall plan is to go ahead and move forward with the renovation that was planned in the 2015 bond program. The $5.8 million Zumwalt project includes new ventilation and land contours to keep groundwater out of the crawl space, new hot water heating instead of steam, a new roof, new windows and other improvements. Maceo Smith was designed for 1300 students but has only around 300 now, so theres plenty of room for the middle school to move in, Layne said. I dont feel comfortable with that, said parent Wateria Newman. She said mixing middle school kids into a high school could be trouble. Teachers Union Leader Rangel said the relocation could be a challenge, but he is satisfied with the move. They have really paid attention to what the teachers are saying, so I think that the district has taken steps in the right direction to make it happen, Rangel said. A meeting for parents is scheduled at Sarah Zumwalt Middle School on Monday from 4:45 to 6pm. More Parents Speak Out As news of Zumwalt's closure spread across southern Dallas, parents at two more Dallas ISD schools told NBC 5 their campuses are also "unhealthy buildings", reiterating the language Layne used earler in the day. Parents at W.H. Atwell Middle School and D.W. Carter High School said the aging facilities are making it difficult for their children to learn. "He's always complaining that he has to have three or four jackets with him becaue the heating doesn't work," said the mother of a Carter High School studetn. The woman wanted to remain anonymous out of an abundance of caution for her child. "DISD being a larger school district they should have a better handle on it, not only that they should have the funding," she said. LAst year voters approved a $1.6 billion bond package. The district plans to build nearly a dozen new schools and renovate many of its older campuses. The earliest construction can start is June of next year. As he crossed the stage inside the University of North Texas Coliseum Friday morning, shook President Neal Smatresks hand, and moved his tassel to the other side of his cap, Jonathan Igou accomplished a goal thats at least ten years in the making. "If you would have asked me 10 years ago if I thought I was going to be a graduate with a bachelors degree, I would have told you probably not, said Igou. Thats because back then he was focused on a different goal: being the fourth generation of his family to serve their country. Igou joined the U.S. Air Force after high school and served in Afghanistan working logistics in the combat zone. "Convoy operations over in the desert, he said. "A little dangerous, a little stressful, but made the best out of it." He did until an injury during his service forced him into early, disability retirement. Igou did earn college credit during his service and, when he came home, started pursuing some community college classes, but then life happened; in a good way. Johnathan met his wife who hed marry and father a son and daughter with. His new responsibilities, along with discovering many four-year universities couldnt transfer all of his credits, made finishing that degree seem further away than ever. His wife encouraged him to press on though. So while finishing classes at Tarrant County College his advisor pointed him to a program offered at the University of North Texas called the Bachelors of Applied Arts and Sciences degree. The degree is offered at several four year universities, but UNT Assistant Director of Student Services Trey Anderson said its not one enough people in Johnathans position ever learn about. Its not one they advertise on the billboards, said Anderson. "It's the program you find out about at your transfer orientation when someone won't take half of your stuff or the other universities you've talked to say 'we can't work with that.'" This program, instead, goes out of the way to work with what veterans and non-traditional students bring in. Andersons team takes the credits the students already have and find ways to apply them into UNTs program, and then they help the students, who often have families and busy lives, find ways to complete their studies on the time table that works for them. The record is six years, said Anderson. In Igous case though it only took about a year and a half of work on the Denton campus before his studies in the logistics field were complete, and on Friday the 31-year-old graduated with the class of 2016; the first in his family to pull it off. "It's been a long journey, but it's good, said Igou holding his young son and daughter. The fourth generation veteran, proud husband, and dad can finally call himself a grad. A Southwest High School employee is on leave after police say she threw a house party and provided alcohol to students. Some students reported the October party to school administrators, who called San Diego Police Department. The police found evidence that Rosa Sanchez, the principals administrative assistant threw the party, SDPD confirmed. Sanchez eventually admitted to hosting the party. Sanchez was placed on administrative leave for six months until June 2017. Students told NBC 7 the party was large and many students knew about it. I heard about the party and that it was really fun, but the fact that a teacher was giving alcohol to students, I dont think thats right, said student Isaac Ramos. Parents told NBC 7 they were concerned. I heard there have been some parties going on, said Victor Viera, a Southwest High parent, who added he had not heard alcohol was being served at the parties. Its not right, he said. The Sweetwater Union High School District refused to confirm whether Sanchez will continue collecting her pay during her 6-month leave of absence. She will be allowed to return to work at the district following her leave, according to district documents. San Diego police say they forwarded a case to the District Attorney's Office seeking charges. A District Attorney's Office spokeswoman said the case is under review. After a man armed with a shotgun was fatally struck by deputy gunfire in East Los Angeles Saturday, detectives are investigating what led up to the shooting, sheriff's officials said. The shooting occurred at around 1:22 a.m. in the 900 block of South La Verne Avenue, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. "When deputies arrived at the residence they entered to investigate and encountered a man armed with a shotgun," sheriff's officials said in a statement. A male suspect was struck by deputy gunfire and was taken to a hospital where he later died. His identity was not immediately released. No deputies were injured. It is unknown what led up to the shooting. Deputies initially responded to a call for a gunshot victim. Detectives are working to determine if someone was shot before deputies arrived. Anyone with information about this incident was asked to call the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. The pope has endorsed Donald Trump for president. A Washington, DC, pizzeria is a front for a child sex abuse ring. George Soros will "bring down" the U.S. by funding "black hate groups." These are just some examples of viral stories circulated on social media recently that are completely untrue. Facebook on Thursday announced some steps it's taking to stop the spread of such "fake news" on its huge social network. This includes working with outside fact-checking organizations and drying up financial incentives to what it calls the "worst of the worst" spammers that traffic in made-up stories. But there are basic things news readers can do themselves to spot fake news. And if you want, you can report them to Facebook, which can flag stories for fact-checkers to evaluate. CHECK THE SOURCE Some hoax sites, designed to draw you in for advertising revenue, feature designs that resemble legitimate, well-known websites. Such "spoofing" can be quite effective but there are often telltale signs to indicate their true nature. For example, you should be vary of articles on sites whose addresses, or URLs, that end in "com.co," writes Melissa Zimdars, a communications professor at Merrimack College whose own list of "fake news" sites went viral. (She has since taken it down and published a more general guide .) You can also check the website's "about" page, its list of contacts, and other stories and photos on it. Poke around a little; if things look less-than-official, you're probably on a spoof site. GRAMMAR AND EMOTIONS Random use of ALL CAPS? Lots of exclamation points? Does it make sense when you read it out loud? Can you imagine a TV newscaster reading it out loud? Is there something just off about it? Does it sound very angry, inflammatory, emotional? None of these are good signs. POKE AROUND FOR OTHER COVERAGE If a story is real and really big, you will likely (though not always) see some version of it from multiple sources. Is it on sites like ABC News, The Associated Press, the New York Times, or other places you have heard of? Is it featured in your local newspaper, the one printed on actual paper? Let's put it this way: If the pope actually endorsed Trump, you'd see it everywhere. SOURCES, SOURCES, SOURCES Anonymous sources can appear in legit as well as made-up news stories. But Googling the people who are named in a story is a good way to check whether the story itself is real. They might have a LinkedIn profile, or appear in other news stories, for example. Someone says they are a university professor? Google the name of the university. Is it a health study on a new cure for cancer? Look it up. ON FACEBOOK Facebook users often share articles without reading them. Don't be that person. Instead, click on the link and read the story before hitting the "share" button. If you believe a story someone shared is fake, you can post a comment, or report it to Facebook for outside fact-checking by clicking on the gray arrow on the upper right corner and selecting "report this post." You'll get an option for "It's a fake news story." An American human rights lawyer was arrested Friday in Cuba while trying to defend a jailed artist, the Human Rights Foundation said. Kimberley Motley traveled to Havana to fight for the release of political prisoner Danilo "El Sexto" Maldonado. The attorney was preparing to hold a news conference outside the National Capitol Building when plainclothes security agents took her away, the organization said. Motley was arrested alongside dissident punk rock artist Gorki Aguila and activist Luis Alberto Marino. It's unclear what charges they face and their whereabouts are unknown. Florida congressman Mario Diaz-Balart condemned the arrest. He tweeted, "Arbitrary arrests in #Cuba must end." President of HRF Thor Halvorssen called Motley's arrest an "outrageous abuse" which he said "is a sad reality of Cuba's ongoing totalitarianism." Maldonado, better known as "El Sexto", is a popular Cuban artist who has been detained since the death of Fidel Castro. The Miami Herald reports "El Sexto" was jailed after posting a video on Facebook mocking the death of the former Cuban leader. Motley is an international litigator who currently works in Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates, Ghana, Uganda and the United States. Police are asking for the public's help in finding a missing 69-year-old Miami woman. Ives Quintanilla was last seen Friday morning driving a red 2010 four-Door Nissan Xterra with the Florida tag AKJV56, along the 28000 block of SW 143 Court in Miami. She was last seen wearing grey and red short-sleeved shirt and grey pants Miami-Dade Police Department officers say Quintanilla may be in need of services. Anyone with information about this missing person should contact Miami-Dade Police Department at (305) 418-7200 or Crime Stoppers at (305) 471-TIPS (8477). Police are on the hunt for the man who tied up a woman while he burglarized a Miami pawn shop. Police say a white Hispanic man entered the Quick Cash Pawnshop located at 7318 NW 7th Ave., on the morning of December 6. He approached a female cashier and asked about pawning a Ford Explorer and jewelry, before demanding money and other items while the she was held at gunpoint. According to investigators, the robber saw another employee enter the pawnshop. He waited until the employee entered through a back door near the register, before pushing the employee to the ground and pointing a hand gun at him. The thief then directed the cashier towards the stores safe, and demanded her to open it. She immediately complied by opening the safe. After looting the safe, the man forced the cashier to the bathroom and tied her hands together. He then locked her inside the bathroom. The second employee was transported to Northshore Medical Centers Emergency room by City of Miami Fire Rescue, where he was treated for minor injuries. Authorities say he fled on foot while carrying a black bag. The robber is described as a possibly heavyset man between 25 to 30 years old with a full beard. He was last seen wearing an Orange shirt and jean shorts. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Miami Police Department at (305) 603-6370. Those with information that wish to remain anonymous can contact Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at (305) 471- TIPS (8477). The nation's vice president and a retired Marine Corps general were among the dignitaries, family members and other mourners who choked up Saturday during a memorial tribute to the late space hero John Glenn. Roughly 2,500 people gathered at Mershon Auditorium on the Ohio State University campus for "a celebration of life" for the former fighter pilot, history-making astronaut and longtime Democratic U.S. senator from small-town Ohio. He was remembered not only for bravery, but for his thoughtful consideration for others, his integrity and his patriotic optimism. "I think John defined what it meant to be an American, what we were about, just by how we acted," said Vice President Joe Biden, a former colleague of Glenn's in the U.S. Senate. "It was always about the promise. We were a country of possibility, opportunity, always a belief in tomorrow." Retired USMC Gen. John Dailey said Glenn was "never in it for himself," but always acted for the nation's greater good. Like many others, he recalled Glenn's humility and basic kindness. "We had John for 95 great years and it still wasn't enough," Dailey said. Glenn died Dec. 8 at age 95. He was the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962, and then in 1998 became the oldest person in space at 77. Thousands of people, including Democratic U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, visited the Ohio Statehouse on Friday as Glenn lay in honor. A solemn funeral procession through the center of the capital city carried his casket past more mourners willing to withstand cold and ice. Ethel Kennedy, widow of close Glenn ally Robert F. Kennedy, and their son Robert F. Kennedy Jr., were among the mourners present, along with Ohio political leaders including Gov. John Kasich and former Govs. Ted Strickland and Richard Celeste. The service was preceded by recordings of hymns, arias and popular songs. Some including Nat King Cole's "Smile" and Susan Boyle's version of "Impossible Dream" nodded to Glenn's trademark optimism. Others, including "You Are My Sunshine," ''Moon River" and Shirley Jones singing "Goodnight, My Someone" recalled Glenn's long love affair with wife, Annie, who survives him. Their marriage was cited frequently as a source of Glenn's strength and an inspiration to those who have known and watched the couple for 73 years. U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, a fellow Democrat who first met Glenn when he was a teenage Eagle Scout, called Glenn "an FDR Democrat" who believed in the power of government and the importance of public service through his military and space career and his tenure in the Senate. "He was a work horse, never a show horse," Brown said. "He labored over the details of non-proliferation and environmental cleanup of nuclear disposal sites, grunt work to some, but John was content to spend his time not on collecting instant headlines but achieving lasting results that would leave the world better than he had found it." Brown's wife, journalist Connie Schultz, recalled his tenderness when their grandson was curious about how astronauts urinate in space. She saw it as example for the nation. "If American icon John Glenn could take the time to treat a child with such respect, surely we can find the time to listen to one another," she said. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden Jr. said the U.S. space program remains indebted to Glenn. "It was courage, grace and humility John displayed throughout his life that lifted him above the stars," Bolden said. "As the current head of NASA, I can say unequivocally that we are standing on John Glenn's shoulders as we pursue a human journey to Mars, a journey that would not be possible without his bravery and selfless dedication." Glenn's son, David, said his father let him find himself and make his own mistakes even when he came home with long hair and wearing bell bottom pants. "He might have blinked twice, or his face twitched or something like that. But that was it," he said. Daughter Lyn said she wanted an "atta girl" for some good grades she brought home at age 8, to which Glenn replied, "Yes, but what have you done for your country today?" She said Glenn refused a deal worth as much as $5 million to have his photo placed on a Wheaties box because he saw it as making money from government service. She ended a touching recollection with a simple farewell, "Godspeed, Dad." Taps was played as Glenn was carried from the auditorium. He'll be buried at Arlington Cemetery near Washington, D.C., in a private ceremony this spring. A baby girl from Hartford, Connecticut was found dead in the cab of a tractor trailer Friday night in Sugar Hill, police said. Officers discovered Michaela Henry, 18 months, near West 150th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue at around 8:46 p.m., with no apparent trauma, police said. The mother noticed that the unconscious and unresponsive child was not breathing and called police. The infant was sleeping in the cab of a tractor trailer with her older brother and mother while her father was making a delivery to a Harlem store. She was rushed to Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital, where she was pronounced dead, authorities said. The medical examiner will determine the cause of death. The investigation is ongoing. The good old days of pulling a handle to open a big blue mailbox are long gone in a Bronx neighborhood, and residents aren't happy about the sudden disapperance of the boxes in the middle of the busy mail season. Chronic mail theft from the box at West 236th Street and Henry Hudson Parkway led the United States Postal Service to yank it and others in the borough. A Riverdale resident who only gave his name as William said he walked out of his apartment to see a slab of concrete where the mailbox normally is. "Then I noticed, I went to another mailbox in the neighborhood, and that was gone as well," he said. "Something must be going on." The USPS says it's replacing the old mailboxes across the Bronx with updated ones that have just a single slit for envelopes. Harlem will also soon get those new mailboxes. The change comes amid a rash of thefts in which people apparently stuck devices into the boxes to grab mail. Three teens were arrested in Harlem Wednesday for the mail theft, police said. One updated mailbox on Johnson Avenue sits just a few feet from Rep. Eliot Engel's Riverdale office. He praises the fix but says the timing was poor. In a letter to the Bronx postmaster, he wrote, "Our offices have been flooded with calls from constituents expressing their anger and frustration... Starting a project of this magnitude now was ill-conceived." The USPS could not say when all the new mailboxes will be installed. Riverdale resident William hopes it's soon. "I used to send all my mail through that mailbox, including checks I had to pay," he said. A 16-year-old boy shot in the head near the Hofstra University campus on Long Island has died, police say. Alexon Moya of Uniondale was pronounced dead at Nassau University Medical Center Friday evening, days after he was shot on Fenimore Avenue, blocks away from the Hofstra campus. Officers found the teen lying on the ground with a gunshot wound to his head before 11:30 p.m. Tuesday. He was taken to the hospital in critical condition. Nassau police are still searching for two suspects in the shooting, described as teenagers who fled on bicycles. Witnesses told police that the victim had gotten into a fight with the teens before he was shot. Hofstra students received texts and social media messages to warn them about the shooting. Police said that the teen was not a Hofstra student and that the shooting was in no way related to the college. BREAKING: Nassau police has notified Hofstra of shots fired near campus on Fennimore Ave. Uniondale. Subjects have fled the area. The Hofstra Chronicle (@HUChronicle) December 14, 2016 Nassau Police Lt. Richard LeBrun called the shooting tragic. He said that police had looked all over campus for the suspects but could not find them. Theyve intensified their patrols and increased their patrols. They have no evidence that these individuals are on campus right now, LeBrun said Wednesday morning. Investigators from the Nassau County gang unit are looking into whether or not the shooting was gang related. Authorities said two people were killed and more than a dozen were injured when a gas tanker skidded off a highway in Baltimore and exploded. Police said a third person died in a separate incident. Baltimore City Fire Chief Roman Clark said the tanker fell over the jersey wall on Interstate 95 and burst into flames early Saturday. WBAL-TV in Baltimore received a graphic video from a viewer who captured the crash on his cell phone. At least 15 people were injured in a 55-vehicle pile up. Clark said it's unclear whether the pileup started before the tanker crash or was a result of the debris from the explosion. Scores of traffic accidents were reported across the region due to slick roads. Maryland State Police said troopers responded to 330 crashes across the state in a 24-hour period. Clark said the roads were very icy, but it was too early to say what caused the tanker to careen off the highway. The Maryland Transportation Authority said southbound I-95 reopened around 1:30 p.m. Traffic was detoured off northbound I-95 onto I-695. Crash investigation and cleanup continued on the northbound lanes. It was not clear when those lanes would be reopened. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan issued a statement after the crash. I strongly urge all Marylanders to use common sense and put their safety first by heeding all travel warnings from state and local authorities. Road conditions in many areas of the state are still extremely dangerous, and all those who can avoid travel should stay off the roads until conditions have improved. The First Lady and I send our deepest condolences and prayers to the families and loved ones of the individuals who lost their lives early this morning as a result of fatal accidents. Our states entire emergency management, transportation, and law enforcement resources are fully engaged in managing this situation and are working closely with local jurisdictions to provide needed support. I offer my sincerest gratitude to the state and local first responders who are working diligently at the scene of these incidents and who will continue to do so until the roadways are clear. MdTA police Lt. Kevin Ayd said the other incident occurred around 5 a.m. near Exit 59 along I-95. A driver, who was involved in a fender bender, stepped out to assess the damage and was accidentally struck and killed by an oncoming vehicle. Baltimore County emergency officials said dozens of vehicles collided on the Beltway in the Rosedale area, and six people were taken to a hospital, according to WBAL-TV. A U.S. Border Patrol agent appeared in court Thursday on charges that he picked up backpacks filled with drugs while on duty at the U.S.-Mexico border fence in exchange for cash, FBI officials said. Noe Lopez, an agent working out of the Imperial Beach station, was arrested Wednesday and charged with attempted distribution of six pounds of methamphetamine, attempted distribution of seven kilograms of cocaine and bribery, according to a federal court complaint. Lopez, who appeared in court for the first time Thursday, twice picked up and delivered backpacks dropped off for him at the San Diego County border fence, according to the complaint. In both instances, the transactions were part of an undercover law enforcement sting, the complaint said. Lopez allegedly described his ability to smuggle narcotics into the U.S. to a confidential informant, providing the informant with specific details of his operation. Lopez agreed to pick up backpacks filled with narcotics and transport them to safe locations north of the international border, for a fee, according to the complaint. A woman who identified herself as Lopez's ex-wife told NBC 7 that the allegations surprised her. Everyone has money issues. We live in San Diego, but I mean nothing to this extreme for someone to risk their career," she said. The court docket does not list an attorney for Lopez, The Associated Press reported. Lopez, 36, has 10 years of service with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and has since been placed on non-duty/non-pay status pending the outcome of the investigation, CBP officials said in a statement. "The U.S. Border Patrol stresses honor and integrity in every aspect of its mission. We do not tolerate misconduct on or off duty and will fully cooperate with all investigations of alleged unlawful conduct by our personnel," the statement read. On December 6, Lopez allegedly picked up a backpack filled with what he believed to be six pounds of meth, then a backpack with cocaine on December 8. The agent delivered the backpacks to a pre-determined location in San Diego in both instances, according to the complaint, and received $10,000 in cash in exchange. Lopez additionally accepted bribes in exchange for helping with drug trafficking events, and ignored his official duty to enforce narcotics laws, according to the complaint. The U.S. Border Patrol is cooperating with all agencies involved in this investigation. Border Patrol agents are held to the highest standards, and we remain committed to performing our duties for the American people in the most professional way," Chief Patrol Agent Richard A. Barlow said in a statement. Lopez will next appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jill L. Burkhardt on December 20 for a detention hearing. An excavator armed with a massive claw on Friday ripped apart the western wall of a parking garage next to the site of one of the darkest moments in recent Philadelphia history. The parking garage at 2126-30 Market Street is directly east of a vacant, grassy parcel once the location of a Salvation Army store where seven people died June 5, 2013. They were among 19 people crushed by a four-story wall of a building being demolished for owner Richard Basciano. The new demolition project is underway as the months-long civil trial against Basciano and others connected to the catastrophe is on holiday recess. Already 11 weeks in, the trial is expected to last until at least early February. It is unclear how long it will take to demolish the structure at 2126-30 Market Street. The contractor handling the job is well-known Geppert Brothers, of Colmar, Montgomery County. The 90-year-old demolition company has handled immense projects in the region, including current work on the Sharswood neighborhood revitalization in Brewerytown. A message left for company officials was not immediately returned Friday afternoon. Basciano sold the garage to Brandywine Realty Trust for $16.6 million in June 2015, according to city property records. The real estate company, with assets of more than $5 billion, owns the property through a limited partnership called 2100 Market LP. Company President Gerard Sweeney did not return a message left for comment. Brandywine plans to build a ground-level valet parking lot at the site, which sits in the middle of Market Street between 21st and 22nd streets. Speculation about the company's longterm goal for the property includes a plan for a high-rise building -- not unlike the project Basciano envisioned when he owned a considerable amount of the southside of Market Street on that block. As demolition tore apart the parking garage Friday, a chain-link fence surrounded the entire property, including the collapse site. The front facade of the building remained, with three large, familiar signs that read "Stop and Go Parking" and "Stop and Go One-Stop Parking." The location has become a focal point at times during the collapse civil trial, as attorneys for the plaintiffs questioned Basciano about his location at the exact moment of collapse: Was the elderly developer talking with his demolition contractor Griffin Campbell at the site, or was he using the bathroom at the parking garage? Basciano's exchange about his use of the bathroom at the garage led to one of two angry outbursts by the 91-year-old. Attorneys also grilled Basciano about phone records that allegedly showed Basciano and his wife calling the manager of the parking garage at the same time minutes after the collapse. The defendants are Basciano and his company STB, his project representative Plato Marinakos, Campbell, Campbells excavator operator Sean Benschop, and the Salvation Army. Plaintiffs attorneys have claimed that officials with the Salvation Army ignored signs that the demolition was imminently dangerous and posed obvious risks to the companys employees and customers. Campbell and Benschop were the only two people criminally charged and are each serving lengthy prison terms for involuntary manslaughter and reckless endangerment. A New Jersey legislator wants to rename U.S. Route 1 Barack H. Obama Highway. Democratic Assemblywoman Annette Quijano says she will formally introduce the legislation on Monday. Under the resolution, Route 1 from Mercer County to Essex County would be ceremonially renamed after the president. She says Obama was a "transformational" president who deserves to be honored with the renaming a busy state roadway. The road would still be designated Route 1, but would have ceremonial signs posted along the highway. The lawmaker says the signs would be paid for with private funds. A statement doesn't make clear who would pay for the signs. Low temperatures and high winds have put the Northeastern U.S. in a deep freeze. About 200 million Americans are under wind chill advisories as frigid air 20 to 30 degrees below in parts of the region made for some crippling conditions Friday. "You are talking about 30 degrees below normal highs. That is pretty darn cold," said National Weather Service meteorologist James Brown in Maine. "This is pretty much a piece of Arctic air that came off the North Pole and came into New England." Forecasters said a storm will follow the frigid weather, bringing chances for snow, sleet and freezing rain across much of the country. Some schools closed early Thursday and many others delayed opening Friday to avoid a bone-chilling wait at the bus stop. "We're not strangers to these sorts of bitter temperatures on Mount Washington's summit," senior weather observer Mike Carmon said in the weather observatory's blog at the highest peak in the Northeast. "However, over the last few winters, it's generally late January or February before we experience this sort of polar air outbreak." The wind chill was down to 85-below at the summit early Friday. Utility workers were prepared for power outages due to fallen trees. David Flener, field safety manager at Eversource, New Hampshire's largest utility, said workers are well-educated on how to stay warm in the coldest weather, starting before they even arrive on a job site. They are urged to make sure they carry an emergency kit with clothing and food in case they get stranded, and once they arrive, there is a discussion about on-the-job safety. "We're oftentimes up in buckets, so you're sometimes above the trees and there's a little more wind up there," he said. "You'd be surprised how much heat you lose from the top of your head." Sara Sankowich, who oversees tree crews for Unitil, said workers are encouraged to watch out for one another to see if they show signs of hypothermia or frostbite. "We'll take every step to make sure they are staying safe out there and that they're not overexposing themselves to the elements," she said. In upstate New York, along the Lake Ontario shore, wind gusts approached 70 mph and the National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning effective through early Friday morning. Lake-effect snow was accompanied by winds of up to 50 mph, causing whiteout conditions in some places. In suburban Syracuse, a woman's body and vehicle were found in a creek, apparently after a crash during whiteout conditions from the lake-effect story. Authorities say the body of 50-year-old Daphne Washburn, of Liverpool, was found under ice in 4 feet of water Onondaga Lake Park, along with her partially submerged SUV on Thursday night. Elsewhere in New York, parts of the Adirondack Northway, north of Albany, were closed for more than four hours after a crash involving a tractor-trailer and a snowplow. No injuries were reported. In western Pennsylvania, lake-effect snow bands were blamed for slick roads and poor visibility. Fifty-nine vehicles crashed in a snowy pileup and three people were hurt. The crash was one of three that shut down different stretches of Interstate 80. Park officials in one Massachusetts town decided it was too cold to open an outdoor ice rink. The Worcester Common Oval was to open Friday night for public skating. The Telegram & Gazette reports Worcester city officials decided that with wind chills expected to be below zero, a decision was made to keep the rink closed for the health and safety of those who use it. The rink is expected to open Saturday. Below-normal temperatures are expected this weekend and into Monday across the entire northern half of the country, from the Pacific Northwest to Maine and as far south as Oklahoma, Arkansas and Virginia, according to the Climate Prediction Center. In Oklahoma, authorities said three people died in separate wrecks and more than 100 traffic crashes were reported after freezing drizzle slickened roads in the Oklahoma City area. The Oklahoma Highway Patrol reported the fatal crashes on three interstates in the metro area Thursday night. The Oklahoma City Fire Department says its crews responded to multiple wrecks, including an eight-vehicle pileup that shut down traffic. Up to half a foot of snow could fall from the Upper Mississippi Valley to the Northeast on Friday and Saturday, and areas east of the Appalachian Mountains could see freezing rain and sleet on Saturday. The Pacific Northwest was digging out Friday from the icy chaos that killed one person in Orgeon, NBC News reported. A man in his 50s who was found covered in ice and snow in his driveway Wednesday night in Albany, the Linn County Sheriff's Office said. COLUMBUS Eugene Kegler didnt have to calculate his corn yields to know that he had a bin-buster. Over a chicken and ham luncheon at Club 60 near Columbus, after Wednesdays Columbia County Corn Growers winter meeting, Kegler who farms near Waterloo said he measured his bounty mainly by the grain trucks frequent trips to and from his fields this fall, to haul away more and more harvested corn and soybeans. If he had to guess, he said, his corn yield was easily 250 average as in 250 bushels per acre. Thats a lot. Its well above the nationwide average of 175 bushels per acre this record-breaking harvest season. But it wouldnt have been enough for Kegler to win a prize in this years Columbia County corn yield contest. Those honors went to three Columbia County farmers, two of whom topped the national average by more than 100 bushels per acre. The first-place winner was Jim Casey, who farms in the Friesland area, and who got just short of 287 bushels per acre. Second place went to a Cambria area farmer, Cory Stiemsma, who achieved 279.68 bushels per acre. In third place was Jerry Franz, who got 259.53 bushels per acre on his farm near Rio. None of the winners was present to receive his cash prize $500 for first place, $300 for second place and $200 for third place. But more than 80 others, mostly farmers, spent the morning learning from University of Wisconsin-Extension experts, and sizing up the harvest. Its a mixed blessing, noted George Koepp, agriculture agent for the University of Wisconsin-Extension Columbia County. Could you ask for a better growing year? Koepp asked rhetorically. Yes, we had some amazing yields, he said, but yes, we also have some pretty low prices. According to Garry Gard, grain merchandising manager for Didion Milling in Cambria, corn prices are running in the range of $3.61 per bushel for March futures and $3.89 per bushel for fall futures. Nationwide, the record corn harvest yielded 15.2 billion bushels, which is 1 billion more than another recent big harvest year, 2014. In Wisconsin, 558 million bushels were harvested this year, Gard said an all-time high. But with big harvests all over the nation (record yields also were reported in Iowa, Illinois and Minnesota), and surpluses from previous seasons, supply is greater than demand. The U.S. Department of Agriculture expects the United States to export 2.2 billion bushels of corn, but Gard said fewer foreign nations are buying, partly because many of them have harvested bumper crops of their own. Exports are not the answer to get the supply down to where the market is higher, Gard said. And, if the ethanol industry werent buying corn, the prices would be even lower, he added. Yet, Didion has had to reject some of the corn thats come in from this harvest, because wet weather in September, while the corn was still in the field, resulted in fungal infection that can produce toxins that are poisonous to livestock that eat the corn. Morrie Bryant, senior marketing manager for specialty markets for Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc., said the most common fungal infection showing up in corn in this area is Gibbrella, which starts as a red or pink mold, almost always at the tip of the corns ear. Not all fungal infections produce toxins, but even those that dont can result in corn that is not palatable to livestock. Bryant recommended that farmers plant corn hybrids that are resistant to fungal diseases. But if fungus is detected in corn thats still in the field, he said, it should be harvested as soon as possible and dried to lessen the likelihood of the toxins spread to healthy corn. This has been a big crop, Bryant said, but its not a crop without sin. What to Know Bitseat Getaneh, 17, had arrived to the United States from Ethiopia on Aug. 10, the day before the blast. Getaneh's school tuition money, $2,000 in cash, went up in flames along with all of her other belongings. "I'm happy because I'm alive," she said. Four months after a devastating explosion killed seven and injured dozens at a Maryland apartment building, one teenage survivor who lost two family friends and all of her belongings says she is hopeful for the future. Bitseat Getaneh, 17, had arrived to the United States from Ethiopia Aug. 10, the day before the blast. She was set to stay with family friends at the Flower Branch Apartments in Silver Spring for a few weeks before moving to Oklahoma to attend a boarding school. "It was my dream for two years to come to the United States," Getaneh told News4. But Getaneh's American dream was quickly shattered. She woke up to the explosion and fire during her first night at the Flower Branch Apartments. Getaneh managed to make it out, but her family friends, 40-year-old Saeda Ibrahim and 34-year-old Aseged Mekonen, died. "They were so nice to me. I met them, like, only that day. But they were so nice to me," Getaneh said. Getaneh also sustained injuries during the blast. Scars cover her arms, hands and face. "I'm happy because I'm alive," she said. The deadly natural gas explosion destroyed several apartments and displaced more than 50 families. Getaneh's boarding school tuition money, $2,000 in cash, went up in flames along with all of her other belongings. Despite her injuries and losing her tuition money, Getaneh remains determined and plans to continue to pursue her education. Her friends have launched a GoFundMe page to help her raise the money. "I want to continue my life, like it used to be," she said. Getaneh's mother flew from Ethiopia to comfort her, and they now live in a new neighborhood. Getaneh's lawyer, who was provided by the immigrant rights organization CASA, said he filed a lawsuit on her behalf against Washington Gas and K Management to pay for her medical bills and lost property. Jazz is always best experienced live, in the moment, but the art form continues to yield substantial treasure in the form of recorded documents, and this year is no exception. Every disc on this list swells with unbridled excellence and most of them stayed in my personal rotation for months at a time. If there is a recurring theme in 2016s selections, it might be the year of the drum. Eight of my top 10 feature drummers operating at the top of their game, from Pheeroan ak Laff, to Jack DeJohnette, Andrew Cyrille, Jim Black, Gerry Hemingway, Joe LaBarbera, Whit Dickey and Nathan Hubbard. Wadada Leo Smith, Americas National Parks (Cuneiform 2016) Smith has been undergoing an artistic renaissance in the last few years, and this album is a masterpiece, from start to finish. Special kudos to the ensemble, featuring Anthony Daviss luminous piano, the rock solid rhythm team of John Lindberg and Pheeroan ak Laff and the newest member of the ensemble, cellist Ashley Walters. Absolutely superb. Mark Dresser Seven, Sedimental You (Clean Feed 2016) Somehow, Dresser manages to create his most accessible work without compromising any of its inherent ferocity. Stellar performances abound, from the hair-raising work of 21-year-old violinist David Boroff and piano monster Joshua White, to the jewel-like contributions of Nicole Mitchell, Michael Dessen, Marty Ehrlich and Jim Black. Beautiful, powerful, and joyful to the core. Jack DeJohnette, In Movement (ECM 2016) DeJohnette is still the finest drummer working in the idiom, and his opening cymbal wash on John Coltranes Alabama, proves it. Ravi Coltrane and Matthew Garrison complete the contemplative circle with solid features, and the leader sparkles throughout. The duet with Coltrane on Rashied, bristles with kinetic energy. BassDrumBone, The Long Road (Auricle 2016) The long-running trio of trombonist Ray Anderson, bassist Mark Helias and drummer Gerry Hemingway have been active for nearly 40 years, and this double CD is a terrific introduction to their music, which manages to flow from the avant-garde to raucous blues by constantly swinging its tail off. Appearances by pianist Jason Moran and tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano dont hurt, either. John Lindberg Raptor Trio, Western Edges (Clean Feed 2016): Lindberg is one of the musics great bassists, and this trio with baritone saxophonist Pablo Calogero and drummer Joe LaBarbera ripples with muscular brutality. They swing like crazy and I must confess I had no clue that LaBarbera was such a bad hombre. Satoko Fujii & Joe Fonda, Duet (Long Song Records 2016) Its hard to believe that these two havent been collaborating forever. The degree of intimate listening and deep exchange between Fujiis piano and the woody, natural-sounding bass of Fonda is breathtaking. Unbelievably, this live album was only the second time they played. Andrew Cyrille Quartet, The Declaration of Musical Independence (ECM 2016) Cyrilles mastery has always been criminally underrated, and this disc might go a long way toward mitigating that injustice. Guitarist Bill Frisell turns in a superlative performance, as does bassist Ben Street. But where has Richard Teitelbaum been hiding? Hes a big part of the magic of this session. Whit Dickey & Kirk Knuffke, Fierce Silence (Clean Feed 2016) Dickey is another drummer who should be much more widely known, and this duo session with avant-trumpet whiz Knuffke defies all expectations one might assume from such a pairing. It is burning, glorious free jazz at its finest. Peter Kuhn Trio, The Other Shore (No Business 2016) Underground free-jazz legend Kuhn emerges from a 30-year absence from the scene with a blistering trio featuring young bass virtuoso Kyle Motl (who you will be hearing more of) and the uber-creative drums of Nathan Hubbard (who you should have been hearing more of.) Volcanic, post-Ayler brilliance. Sara Serpa & Andre Matos, All the Dreams (Sunnyside 2016) This duo knocked me out with their 2014 collaboration, Primavera, and they are back with a vengeance this year. Sparse and haunting, Serpas voice is a wonderful instrument, rich in detail and clarity. Robert Bush is a freelance jazz writer who has been exploring the San Diego improvised music scene for more than 30 years. Follow him on Twitter @robertbushjazz. Visit The World According to Rob. Father Joes Villages opened its doors Friday night to house dozens of people who are part of San Diego's homeless community. They offered a meal and an overnight stay for people in the community to have a warm, dry space to rest. NBC 7 spoke to Sgt. Joshua Butler, a former Marine who served from 1998 to 2002. Butler says he cannot give up in life, regardless of his situation. As a marine, the reason why I love you guys is because Id rather put my life on the line out there instead of you, he said. Why give up? Why give up now, when you're already here? Butler said he was in El Cajon and walked about twenty miles to get to Father Joes Village in downtown San Diego because they offer more resources and food. Father Joes Villages works with more than 1,800 people a day. They open their services whenever there is at least a 40 percent chance of rain and temperatures are below 50 degrees. A registered sex offender with a violent criminal history was sentenced on Friday for killing a woman in a Downtown San Diego hostel in December, 2015. Jason Bradwell Lewis, 41, was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison, according to officials. On Dec. 12, 2015, 26-year old Jhordann Rust made a two-hour phone call to her mother Ann Nielson on the night she was killed. According to San Diego County Deputy District Attorney Melissa Vasel, Nielson heard her daughter say "That hurts!" before the phone disconnected. Rust had been staying at the 500 West Hotel and Hostel with her boyfriend, Cory Nowell who was later arrested on suspicion of domestic violence According to a witness, Rust and Lewis had been in an argument in front of the hostel prior to her killing. Rust's body was found on Dec. 15 in a communal shower area at the hostel. Lewis was later arrested in Rust's killing. According to investigators, Lewis, a registered sex offender, has a history of sexual battery, burglary, grand theft and felony domestic violence. A man from San Diegos North County was arrested Friday after hurting several people in five separate hit-and-runs all in one night and leading deputies on a pursuit. The San Diego County Sheriffs Department (SDSO) said Michael Dorman, 26, was taken into custody on Driftwood Way in Oceanside on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol after a bizarre series of hit-and-runs that happened within less than two hours. According to the SDSO, it all began around 5 p.m. when Dorman struck a pedestrian in the parking lot of an Albertsons grocery store at 1301 E. Vista Way in Vista. Dorman fled after the collision; the victim in that first incident suffered shoulder and hip pain and was taken to a local hospital. As deputies investigated the hit-and-run at the Albertsons parking lot, they received two additional calls of hit-and-run within five minutes in that same area, on Arcadia Avenue. The SDSO said those calls included another pedestrian hit by a car. That victim suffered head and leg injuries and was airlifted to Palomar Medical Center. The third hit-and-run involved the suspect colliding with another driver. In all three hit-and-runs, the suspect was driving a white Ford Explorer, officials said. Moments later, deputies were called to yet another hit-and-run at 500 Hacienda Dr. This time, two pedestrians were hit again by a driver in a white Ford Explorer. Those victims suffered minor injuries and were taken to local hospitals. NBC 7 San Diego There, deputies learned that the suspect in all of the incidents was Dorman. Witnesses told deputies that Dorman appeared to be intentionally swerving to hit those two pedestrians in the Hacienda Drive incident. Dorman had also allegedly sideswiped another car on purpose on Vista Village Drive and was speeding, witnesses told investigators. Soon, a fifth hit-and-run collision was reported in the 700 block of East Bobier, just blocks away. Again, Dorman was the suspect. At this point, deputies tracked down Dorman and tried to pull him over on Anza Drive and Ishihara Road on Vista. He fled, and a pursuit ensued, lasting for about 15 minutes as Dorman sped through Vista and Oceanside. Deputies said Dorman hit at least two other cars and a tree as he tried to escape. Finally, just before 6:40 p.m., deputies were able to stop and arrest Dorman in Oceanside. He was booked into the Vista Detention Facility on nearly a dozen charges, including DUI, driving while on probation and attempted murder. Jail booking records indicate he was driving with a blood-alcohol content of nearly twice the legal limit. Dorman is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday. The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information on this case can call Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477. A family is calling for change in the way school districts handle allegations of sexual abuse. Maria Leon and Del Fino Vallee say their son's high school teacher texted sexually explicit pictures and videos of herself to him but little was done about the issue. The family's lawyer, Fernando Tafoya showed NBC 7 pictures he says the teacher texted a then 17-year old student at Southwest High School. The pictures include the teacher posing on the bed and in front of the mirror, wearing only her undergarments. There was a sexually explicit text sent to the student as well. The parents say their son was up late texting. When they looked into it in May, 2016, they realized what was happening. Sad, disillusioned and very angry that the students like my son are under these kinds of people, said Leon, the students mother. Even though their son was scared of possible repercussions at school, they reported the incident to the San Diego Police Department. Tafoya said the parents were told no criminal charges would be filed under the theory that because a male was involved, there would not be a jury that would convict the offending teacher. Lieutenant Scott Wahl from the San Diego Police Department issued the following statement: The San Diego Police Department takes allegations of sexual abuse very seriously. We thoroughly investigate every reported case and consult with our District Attorneys Office for potential prosecution. The evidence we have at this time, while highly inappropriate, doesnt contain the necessary criminal elements for issuance. If at any time new information becomes available, we will re-evaluate this case. A claim is the first step before a lawsuit can be filed against a school district. But a claim by the family against the Sweetwater Union High School District was rejected. All this was done without even a conversation with the family about what had happened to their son and the impact [this] had on their own family. The family has no choice but to file suit in court in order to bring justice and attention to parents about what is going on in their high schools, and what is happening with administrators who choose to bury their heads when their teachers are engaging in this kind of misconduct," Tafoya said. The school district did not make a comment because the case is in litigation. But the students parents told us the teacher is no longer at Southwest High School. They told NBC 7, the district had promised them the teacher would lose her credential, but when they checked, she still had one. The parents said the district did report the incident as required to the Commission for teacher credentialing. The parents want the police and the District attorney to take another look at the case. Tafoya said the students parents want changes to be made to the policy regarding the issue. "[They are] asking the legislature to examine this issue and to make a determination whether or not there needs to be different policy, whereby school districts are required to engage in mediation, or some kind of alternative dispute resolution, when these claims are raised," he said. A local man was arrested for attempting to coerce two children into sending him naked and sexually explicit pictures and then threatening to share the photos if they stopped, the U.S. Attorneys Office announced Friday. Joseph Daniel Saucedo, of Vista, allegedly posed as a teenage girl through the messaging app KIK using the name Amy and sent the 11-year old boy naked pictures of young girls. The 25-year old also asked the victim to contact an adult male friend of Amy and threatened to expose the boy online if he did not comply. The victim was then contacted by the male friend of the suspect multiple times using FaceTime. He also received sexually explicit images of that man in messages. In January, 2016, Saucedo contacted the victim again as Amy and threatened to release an inappropriate video online. After an investigation into Saucedos online accounts that police had linked to child pornography, they also found evidence linking him to a similar case in Florida. Saucedo had posed as a modeling agent with a 16-year old girl online and made similar demands, according the indictment. "Getting new photographs of child pornography is a real cache thing. It is something that these individuals pride themselves in, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandra Foster. According to the federal court complaint, 130 images and 66 videos were found on Saucedo's KIK account. Most of them contained child pornography. "Unfortunately in this day and age, when we can mask ourselves in social media there are predators out there that do exactly that, Foster said. As parents we need to be aggressively monitor what our children are doing online, and as prosecutors, we will aggressively go after predators who are coercing, extorting and harming our kids, said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. Saucedo was charged with production, attempted production and receipt of photographs of minors. If convicted on all charges, he could face up to 25 years in prison. Potential victims are asked to call Polly Montano, Victim-Witness Coordinator at (619)546-8921, Duffy stated. President Barack Obama put Russia's Vladimir Putin on notice Friday that the U.S. could use offensive cyber muscle to retaliate for interference in the U.S. presidential election, his strongest suggestion to date that Putin had been well aware of campaign email hacking. "Whatever they do to us, we can potentially do to them," Obama declared. Caught in the middle of a post-election controversy over Russian hacking, Obama strongly defended his administration's response, including his refusal before the voting to ascribe motive to the meddling or to discuss now what effect it might have had. U.S. intelligence assessments say it was aimed at least in part on helping Donald Trump defeat Hillary Clinton, and some Democrats say it may well have tipped the results in his favor. Though Obama avoided criticizing President-elect Trump by name, he called out Republicans who he said fail even now to acknowledge the seriousness of Russia's involvement in U.S. elections. Obama expressed bewilderment about GOP lawmakers and voters who now say they approve of Putin, and he said unless that changes the U.S. will be vulnerable to foreign influence. "Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave," Obama said as he closed out the year at a White House news conference. Afterward he left for the family's annual vacation in Hawaii. Obama declined to state explicitly that Putin knew about the email hacking that roiled the presidential race, but he left no doubt who he felt was responsible. He said that "not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin" and repeated a U.S. intelligence assessment "that this happened at the highest levels of the Russian government." Obama said he confronted Putin in September, telling the former KGB chief to "cut it out." That was one month before the U.S. publicly pointed the finger at Russia. Suggesting his directive to Putin had been effective, Obama said the U.S. "did not see further tampering" after that date. The president has promised a "proportional" yet unspecified response to the hacking of the Democratic Party and Clinton's campaign chairman. Emails stolen during the campaign were released in the final weeks by WikiLeaks. On Friday, CIA Director John Brennan said in a message to employees that the FBI agrees with the CIA's conclusion that Russia's goal was to help Trump win. Trump has dismissed the CIA's assessment and talk about Russian hacking as "ridiculous," while arguing both Democrats and the CIA are trying to undermine the legitimacy of his victory. Clinton has even more directly cited Russian interference. She said Thursday night, "Vladimir Putin himself directed the covert cyberattacks against our electoral system, against our democracy, apparently because he has a personal beef against me." The Senate intelligence committee said Friday that it will conduct a bipartisan investigation and hold hearings about what led the intelligence agencies' finding. "The committee will follow the intelligence wherever it leads," said chairman Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C. At the same time, Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., chairman of the House intelligence committee, complained that his committee's oversight into the hacking has been stymied because the intelligence agencies have not provided information to the committee. Obama said he'd leave it to political pundits to debate the question of whether the hacking swayed the election outcome. He did, however, chide the media for that he called an "obsession" with the emails that were made public during the election's final stretch. He said his reticence to detail publicly the U.S. response to Russia reflected a need to retaliate "in a thoughtful, methodical way." "The idea that somehow public shaming is gonna be effective, I think doesn't read the thought process in Russia very well," Obama said. Accusations of Russian election interference have heightened the already tense relationship between Washington and Moscow. Separately, Obama has blamed Russia for standing in the way of international efforts to stop the civil war in Syria, where government forces have beaten back rebels in Aleppo. Obama said he feels "responsible" for some of the suffering in Syria, but he defended his decision to avoid significant military action there. He said that while military options short of invasion were tempting, it was "impossible to do this on the cheap." Still, he pinned the bulk of the blame on Russia, as well as Iran, for propping up Syrian President Bashar Assad. "This blood and these atrocities are on their hands," he said. Meanwhile, the president rejected any notion that the dispute over hacking was disrupting efforts to smoothly transfer power to Trump. Despite fiercely criticizing each other during the election, Obama and Trump have spoken multiple times since the campaign ended. "He has listened," Obama said of Trump. "I can't say he will end up implementing. But the conversations themselves have been cordial." The president did weigh in on Trump's decision to speak with the leader of Taiwan, a recent phone call that broke decades of U.S. diplomatic protocol. Obama advised Trump to "think it through" before making changes in the One-China policy, in which the U.S. recognizes Taiwan as part of China. In a moment of self-reflection, Obama acknowledged he had not been able to transfer his own popularity and electoral success to other Democrats. His party is now reeling from the White House loss and failure to win back either the House or Senate. "It is not something that I've been able to transfer to candidates in midterms or build a sustaining organization around," Obama said. "That's something I would have liked to have done more of, but it's kind of hard to do when you're dealing with a whole bunch of issues here in the White House." Virginia would force Amazon and some other out-of-state internet retailers to collect sales taxes, and cut state funding for public universities and colleges by 5 percent to help balance the budget under a proposal outlined Friday by Gov. Terry McAuliffe. Recent improvements in Virginia's economy have brought the budget gap down from an estimated $1.5 billion this summer to about $1.26 billion, the Democrat told a joint session of the General Assembly's money committees. But lawmakers will have to find additional revenue and approve more spending cuts when they return to Richmond in January. "The spending plan I am submitting for your consideration is balanced, fiscally conservative and in-keeping with our Commonwealth's long tradition of financial prudence,'' McAuliffe said. "It closes our revenue shortfall while investing in strategic priorities that will contribute to our ongoing economic growth.'' Here's a look at the governor's plan and what's next: GENERATING REVENUE: McAuliffe wants to require out-of-state retailers with facilities in the state, such as Amazon, to collect taxes from Virginia residents _ a move he says will put $12.56 million into the state's general fund beginning in fiscal year 2018. McAuliffe also is proposing to slow the rollback of a budget-balancing gimmick that requires some merchants to pay early estimated sales taxes and recommending a "tax amnesty program'' during fiscal year 2018 that would waive penalties and some interest for individuals and businesses that owe back taxes. McAuliffe says those two proposals will bring in more than $107 million. FUNDING CUTS: Virginia's public colleges and universities would see a 5 percent cut in state funding, which is lower than the 7.5 percent reduction McAuliffe's administration had warned they might get. McAuliffe's administration says money for financial aid won't be included in the cuts. Several state agencies would have to slash spending by 7.5 percent, but K-12 schools, Virginia State Police, the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services would be exempt, McAuliffe said. NEW SPENDING: McAuliffe is proposing $31.7 million in new funds to bolster mental health care and substance abuse treatment. The money will go toward providing more people with same-day mental health assessments and expanding a pilot project aimed at improving mental health treatment in jails, among other things. McAuliffe's budget proposal also includes a 1.5 percent one-time bonus for state workers and teachers next year. State employees were supposed to get a 3 percent raise and teachers and certain local workers were supposed to get a 2 percent pay boost under the budget passed by lawmakers last session, but those plans were scrapped due to the state's budget woes. MEDICAID EXPANSION: McAuliffe's budget plan doesn't take into account any potential savings from a proposed expansion of Medicaid to more low-income Virginians, as it has in the past. McAuliffe's repeated attempts to expand Medicaid have been met with fierce resistance by Republicans. He said he left out estimated savings this time because the program's future is uncertain, but wants the final budget to include language giving the governor authority to expand Medicaid if President-Elect Donald Trump and other Republican leaders don't do away with the federal funding. REPUBLICAN REACTION: Republican leaders said in a statement that they will "continue to hold the line against any form of Medicaid expansion.'' House Appropriations Committee Chairman Chris Jones and Senate Majority Leader Thomas Norment told reporters they like the internet sales tax idea, but don't know if one-time bonuses for state employees are the right approach to boosting their paychecks. Jones said that while some of McAuliffe's proposals "may sound great,'' lawmakers won't decide whether to keep or scrap them until they see how they fit in the overall budget. "All the pieces of the puzzle have to fit,'' Jones said. The leader of a Northern Virginia gang has been sentenced to life in prison for the murder of a fellow gang member who a total of seven men stabbed to death and then decapitated. Douglas Cerritos was just 18 years old when he ordered the slaying of Gerson Adoni Martinez Aguiar in 2014 in Fairfax County. Cerritos and other MS-13 gang members told Martinez Aguiar that he would receive a beating for breaking gang rules. They stabbed and beheaded him. Then, they buried him a shallow grave. Cerritos was the leader, prosecutors said. Federal law requires a mandatory life sentence, though defense lawyers argued Friday that Cerritos should be considered a juvenile because he turned 18 only a month before the murder. Cerritos is the last of several gang members to be given a life sentence for the slaying in federal court in Alexandria. A total of 13 defendants were charged for a series of three murders and one attempted murder in Northern Virginia in 2013 and 2014. Aguilar was in trouble with fellow gang members because he owed them $600 from drug sales and was accused of having sex with another member's girlfriend, The Washington Post reported. A man who was involved in a multi-vehicle crash along Interstate 495 in Virginia was found dead about a mile from the scene, according to Virginia State Police. Police said 23 vehicles, including two tractor-trailers, were involved in the early Saturday morning crash in the northbound lanes. Investigators said four people were transported from the scene with minor injuries. About a mile north of the crash site, police found the body of a man, who they determined was involved in the crash and walked away from his disabled vehicle. His body was taken to the Office of the Medical Examiner, and police are in the process of notifying next of kin. Virginia State Police investigated 41 reported traffic crashes across the Northern Virginia region. The majority involves damage only to vehicles and no injuries. Several of the crashes involve two to four vehicles that slid into one another due to the slick road conditions. Icy roadways made for difficult driving throughout the area early Saturday morning. "It's not worth coming out here. People are losing their lives out here the roads are bad," said Tosh Matsumoto, a driver for Al's Towing and Storage in Virginia. Emergency crews got to as many incidents as possible, but the weather proved to be challenging for one fire truck. A Fairfax County, Virginia, fire engine, Engine 421, slid off an icy Route 50 on the way to an accident on Interstate 66. There were no injuries, but many roads in the area were closed due to conditions or accidents. "A lot of bad accidents out here, fire trucks running off the road and I'm getting stuck," Matsumoto said. CHECK TRAFFIC CONDITIONS WITH FIRST4TRAFFIC INTERACTIVE MAP Emergency officials said drivers should continue to treat all wet roads as potentially icy for the next few hours. Some presidential electors in Maryland support changes to the Electoral College after seeing two Democratic presidential candidates in the last 16 years win the U.S. popular vote but lose the election. Salome Peters is one of Maryland's 10 Democratic electors. She believes the Electoral College system should be changed, saying, "We should go with the popular vote, period." Under the current system, voters support slates of electors who meet to choose the president. Maryland's electors will gather Monday afternoon in Annapolis. In 2007, Maryland became the first state to approve legislation that would give Maryland's electoral votes to the winner of the nation's popular vote. Since then, 10 other states have passed similar legislation. Virginia's Democratic members of the Electoral College are all strong supporters of Hillary Clinton. What they're less sure of is the process they will be a part of next week. On Monday, the electors will meet at the Virginia Capitol to cast their votes for the next president of the United States. Usually a ceremonial step in the road to the presidency, this year's meeting of the Electoral College has drawn intense scrutiny. In interviews with The Associated Press before the meeting, the majority of Virginia's electors expressed support for changing the Electoral College, an original feature of the Constitution, though they were divided on how to go about doing so. All but one said with certainty they plan to vote for Hillary Clinton as they are bound to do. Virginia's Democratic members of the Electoral College are all strong supporters of Hillary Clinton. What they're less sure of is the process they will be a part of next week. On Monday, the electors will meet at the Virginia Capitol to cast their votes for the next president of the United States. Usually a ceremonial step in the road to the presidency, this year's meeting of the Electoral College has drawn intense scrutiny. In interviews with The Associated Press before the meeting, the majority of Virginia's electors expressed support for changing the Electoral College, an original feature of the Constitution, though they were divided on how to go about doing so. All but one said with certainty they plan to vote for Hillary Clinton as they are bound to do. First-grade student Jackson Rescottt sat in the front row of his class at Widewater Elementary School in Stafford County on Friday mesmerized by the special visitor that was reading to him and his classmates. Santa visited Jackson's classroom to read, appropriately, "Santa Is Coming to Virginia." With each page turn, Jackson was so focused on the story. He never noticed that the man in red reading to him was actually someone entirely different -- his father who had come home early from deployment in Kuwait. When the story ended, Jackson's teacher called on the students to tell Santa what they want for Christmas. "Let's start with Jackson," she said. "I want an Xbox One for Christmas," Jackson said. And after she asked if there was anything else, "I also want my dad." On that cue, Santa granted Jackson's wish. "I think I have a bit of Christmas magic for you," he said. Layer by layer, Santa transformed into Staff Sgt. David Rescott. Jackson's jaw dropped and his eyes welled at the surprise. All he had wanted for Christmas was for his dad to come home early from deployment -- and that Xbox. The Xbox would have to wait, but his dad was right there. I love you," Sgt. Rescott told his son. "I love you, Jackson said in reply. Three suspects have been arrested months after a shooting that left a man dead in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood. Tyshawn Sanders, 18, Tyshawn Cummings, 21, and Jamari Manning, 21, all of Boston, were arrested Friday, Boston Police confirmed. All three are charged with the murder of 41-year-old Shawn Borden. The victim was rushed to Boston Medical Center after being shot while working on his car on Dorchester Avenue on Oct. 18. The street was busy as families were returning home during the evening commute. Several days later, he was pronounced dead. "Today's arrests should send a strong message to anyone who knowingly chooses to hurt or harm any member of our community," Boston Police Commissioner William Evans said in a statement. "If you carry a gun and use it to take the life of another human being, we will find you and bring you to justice." Police say the department's Fugitive Apprehension Unit and Youth Violence Strike Force chased down and apprehended the suspects. All three will face a judge Monday in Dorchester District Court. "Disgusting" that's how some residents who live near Kimball Farm in Haverhill, Massachusetts, describe the smell. Neighbors say a strong, rancid odor is emanating from the farm's composting site. "It's overpowering and disgusting," said one neighbor, who wished to remain anonymous. "It's rotting something or other." Haverhill city council members heard several complaints from residents who live on Bradsfield Drive. "We've heard their side of the story and we are very concerned," said Michael McGonagle, a Haverhill city council member. He said residents told the council they've tried speaking with Tyler Kimball, the owner of the farm, but haven't come to a solution. "If you came out between the hours of 9 p.m. and 6 a.m., you would just about throw up," said Brad Brooks, a resident of Bradsfield Drive and the developer of the subdivision. Brooks said the horrid smells may have chased some customers away. "All they've done is, they've had a smell and they turn around and say, 'OK, I'll speak to you later,'" said Brooks. Not everyone who lives nearby agrees. Steve Cleary visits the farm often with his daughter and has never noticed a smell out of the ordinary. "We come by every couple weeks either to visit the horses or to grab eggs," said Cleary. "Honestly, I've never noticed anything offensive, for sure." City officials are now looking into the farm's licenses. "We do believe he is licensed to do this composting," said McGonagle. Multiple city departments and the Citizen Outreach Committee are working to determine what's being dumped on Kimball Farm and if it's being handled properly. "We expect a smell but not every single night," said Brooks. The owner of Kimball Farm declined to comment to necn. The driver authorities believe struck and killed a 62-year-old woman Thursday in Massachusetts has been apprehended after fleeing, police said Friday. Irina Hyde was leaving her job at a Braintree nursing home around 5 p.m. Thursday when she was hit at the intersection of Shaw and Commercial streets. The beloved mother and grandmother was rushed to the hospital, where she died early Friday morning. Police confirmed the driver's arrest around 7 p.m. Later Friday night, the Norfolk County District Attorney's Office identified him as 34-year-old Ryan Brady of Braintree. The city's police chief tells necn officers scoured the city and found the car parked in an apartment complex Friday afternoon. The owner said her boyfriend had been driving it. Brady was questioned and arrested. "I am crushed," the victim's husband, Tony Hyde, said. "She was the most wonderful person I knew." Brady is charged with leaving the scene of a crash that resulted in death. He will face a judge Monday morning in Quincy District Court. Morning briefing: Obama: 'Reagan Would Roll Over In His Grave' Over GOP Support For Russia Dorothy Armomando Art Fund established in memory of artist's death THE work of a West Berkshire artist is being sold in her memory to raise funds and awareness about the disease that she died from. Dorothy Aromando was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a type of cancer that can develop in tissue covering the lungs or abdomen and is often linked to asbestos dust exposure, in October 2014 and died in February 2015. In many cases, the cancer is caused by exposure to asbestos and it can take 30 to 50 years before it is diagnosed. Mrs Aromando, who ran Hamstead Marshalls White Hart Inn with her husband Nicky during the 1980s and 90s, was a keen artist and left her daughter Susanna hundreds of works upon her death. One of the paintings was made into a printed T-shirt and received such a positive response that people suggested that a charity be set up in her mothers memory, said Miss Aromando. The Dorothy Aromando Art Fund sells Mrs Aromandos limited edition works, ranging from landscapes animals and people, and donates the proceeds to Mesothelioma UK. Miss Aromando said that the charity had been well-received and had made a good start, raising 155 at a recent fair in Hamstead Marshall. She said: The response is really good. The art is selling itself and its getting the message out there and raising awareness. Miss Aromando said that 5,000 people die in the UK each year from mesothelioma, around 300 of whom are teachers, adding that she was looking to work with schools to raise awareness of the disease. When asked what the charitys goal was, Miss Aromando said: I would love to have a specialist nurse in Berkshire because my mother had to go up to Leicester. The fund is working towards becoming a registered charity and has the charity number 1169871. It plans to host an exhibition of work in spring next year. For more information about the Dorothy Aromando Art Fund visit www.dorothyaromandoartfund.com and for more on Mesothelioma UK visit www.mesothelioma.uk.com By IANS NEW DELHI: It was the year of the big bang in telecom. Reliance Jio's disruptive entry into the sector threw an unorthodox gauntlet at its rivals, triggering a bruising war of words -- and tariffs -- among players. But it was also the year which ended in a whimper for the telecom spectrum auction. The much-touted "biggest spectrum auction" proved to be a stupendous failure, marring the spirit of the industry. Reliance Jio launched its fourth generation (4G) services in September -- offering free voice, forever. To sweeten the deal, it threw in free data till the end of the year, later extending it to March of 2017. Voice is what telecom operators make their money on. Without that, how does one survive in a market as price sensitive as India? "I assure you, we will not lose money," Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani told his shareholders while announcing the Jio offer. This was taking competition to a whole new level. "The free voice call offer by Reliance for the 4G roll-out was a major event -- it was disruptive," Rishi Tejpal, Principal Research Analyst for Telecom Business Strategy at Gartner, told IANS. Jio's disruptive offer led to long queues at its outlets across the country. But then in mobile telephony, each network is dependent on the others for succesful completion of pan-Indian calls. Reliance Jio found a new turf war in the making. It accused incumbent players of not providing enough number of Points of Interconnection (PoIs). As expected, the matter was dragged to the ministry level and the watchdog -- the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The regulator proposed a heavy penalty of Rs 3,050 crore, in all, on Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular for "violating licence norms" by denying enough PoIs to Reliance Jio. "The issue of limited interconnection points, as highlighted by Reliance Jio, impacted the customer experience it wanted to give its customers," Tejpal said. The gauntlet thrown by Reliance Jio was, of course, picked up -- there was no way out. The three big telecom players in the country -- Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular -- brought in their own offers on free calls for pre-paid customers. "The incumbents seem not to have lost comparable market share or seen a large movement of their customers to Jio," Mahesh Uppal, Director of consultancy firm Com First, told IANS Losing market share is one thing; losing revenue is another and a more serious matter. "There is sufficient evidence that attempts by incumbent mobile operators to match Jio's aggressive pricing has dented their revenues significantly," Uppal adds. The situation, therefore, would be a matter of concern for both sides, he suggests. The new year would decide who gets a bloody nose and who remains unscathed in this bruising fight. By the end of September, the number of wireless telephone subscribers in India had already crossed the one billion mark, standing at 1,049 million, according to TRAI data. Amidst the unhappiness over call drops and poor service -- often attributed to lack of enough telecom towers or adequate spectrum, the government was very hopeful that its "biggest spectrum auction" would bring in substantial revenue and ease the problems. The big hope was to raise Rs 566,000 crore. It got commitments of only Rs 65,789 crore or 11.6 per cent of the desired figure, with the auction ending within five days. The government was warned by experts and the industry that the high reserve price the regulator chose -- and approved by the Central government -- would not excite telecom operators. But the government's sight was set on garnering revenue. A total 2,354 MHz of spectrum was put on the block for e-auctioning, but only 965 MHz was sold -- or just 41 per cent of what was on offer. The auction went through 31 rounds for seven bands -- 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1,800 MHz, 2,100 MHz, 2,300 MHz and 2,500 MHz. There were no takers for 700 MHz and 900 MHz -- as cautioned. "The spectrum auctions have successfully removed the long-felt shortage for spectrum but failed to deliver the revenues that the exchequer had hoped to receive. They reflect that companies do not find the powerful 700 MHz sufficiently attractive at the price the government expected. The government will now need to review its plans for future auctions," said Uppal. Industry experts, though, say the service quality would improve with whatever was sold, replenishing or adding to the kitty of the telecom players. The operators also moved to tackle the call-drop issue by planning to set up 60,000 telecom towers at a cost of Rs 12,000 crore. "The industry has made consistent and significant efforts to optimise networks which have largely been completed, with more than 200,000 sites being installed in the last 15 months for 2G and 3G services across the country since Jan 1, 2015," Rajan S. Mathews, Director General, Cellular Operators' Association of India (COAI), told IANS. Highlights of telecom industry in 2016: * Launch of Reliance Jio Infocomm in September * Spectrum auction: Ended within five days with a total commitment of only Rs 65,789 crore * Reliance Communications and Aircel merger that resulted in asset base of Rs 65,000 crore * Reliance Jio, Reliance Communications got government's nod for spectrum sharing NEW DELHI: It was the year of the big bang in telecom. Reliance Jio's disruptive entry into the sector threw an unorthodox gauntlet at its rivals, triggering a bruising war of words -- and tariffs -- among players. But it was also the year which ended in a whimper for the telecom spectrum auction. The much-touted "biggest spectrum auction" proved to be a stupendous failure, marring the spirit of the industry. Reliance Jio launched its fourth generation (4G) services in September -- offering free voice, forever. To sweeten the deal, it threw in free data till the end of the year, later extending it to March of 2017. Voice is what telecom operators make their money on. Without that, how does one survive in a market as price sensitive as India? "I assure you, we will not lose money," Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani told his shareholders while announcing the Jio offer. This was taking competition to a whole new level. "The free voice call offer by Reliance for the 4G roll-out was a major event -- it was disruptive," Rishi Tejpal, Principal Research Analyst for Telecom Business Strategy at Gartner, told IANS. Jio's disruptive offer led to long queues at its outlets across the country. But then in mobile telephony, each network is dependent on the others for succesful completion of pan-Indian calls. Reliance Jio found a new turf war in the making. It accused incumbent players of not providing enough number of Points of Interconnection (PoIs). As expected, the matter was dragged to the ministry level and the watchdog -- the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The regulator proposed a heavy penalty of Rs 3,050 crore, in all, on Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular for "violating licence norms" by denying enough PoIs to Reliance Jio. "The issue of limited interconnection points, as highlighted by Reliance Jio, impacted the customer experience it wanted to give its customers," Tejpal said. The gauntlet thrown by Reliance Jio was, of course, picked up -- there was no way out. The three big telecom players in the country -- Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular -- brought in their own offers on free calls for pre-paid customers. "The incumbents seem not to have lost comparable market share or seen a large movement of their customers to Jio," Mahesh Uppal, Director of consultancy firm Com First, told IANS Losing market share is one thing; losing revenue is another and a more serious matter. "There is sufficient evidence that attempts by incumbent mobile operators to match Jio's aggressive pricing has dented their revenues significantly," Uppal adds. The situation, therefore, would be a matter of concern for both sides, he suggests. The new year would decide who gets a bloody nose and who remains unscathed in this bruising fight. By the end of September, the number of wireless telephone subscribers in India had already crossed the one billion mark, standing at 1,049 million, according to TRAI data. Amidst the unhappiness over call drops and poor service -- often attributed to lack of enough telecom towers or adequate spectrum, the government was very hopeful that its "biggest spectrum auction" would bring in substantial revenue and ease the problems. The big hope was to raise Rs 566,000 crore. It got commitments of only Rs 65,789 crore or 11.6 per cent of the desired figure, with the auction ending within five days. The government was warned by experts and the industry that the high reserve price the regulator chose -- and approved by the Central government -- would not excite telecom operators. But the government's sight was set on garnering revenue. A total 2,354 MHz of spectrum was put on the block for e-auctioning, but only 965 MHz was sold -- or just 41 per cent of what was on offer. The auction went through 31 rounds for seven bands -- 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1,800 MHz, 2,100 MHz, 2,300 MHz and 2,500 MHz. There were no takers for 700 MHz and 900 MHz -- as cautioned. "The spectrum auctions have successfully removed the long-felt shortage for spectrum but failed to deliver the revenues that the exchequer had hoped to receive. They reflect that companies do not find the powerful 700 MHz sufficiently attractive at the price the government expected. The government will now need to review its plans for future auctions," said Uppal. Industry experts, though, say the service quality would improve with whatever was sold, replenishing or adding to the kitty of the telecom players. The operators also moved to tackle the call-drop issue by planning to set up 60,000 telecom towers at a cost of Rs 12,000 crore. "The industry has made consistent and significant efforts to optimise networks which have largely been completed, with more than 200,000 sites being installed in the last 15 months for 2G and 3G services across the country since Jan 1, 2015," Rajan S. Mathews, Director General, Cellular Operators' Association of India (COAI), told IANS. Highlights of telecom industry in 2016: * Launch of Reliance Jio Infocomm in September * Spectrum auction: Ended within five days with a total commitment of only Rs 65,789 crore * Reliance Communications and Aircel merger that resulted in asset base of Rs 65,000 crore * Reliance Jio, Reliance Communications got government's nod for spectrum sharing By PTI MANDSAUR: A 45-year-old farmer tried to commit suicide by consuming pesticide at a bank in Narayanpur near here today after failing to withdraw money, as a cheque deposited by him had not been credited to his account. A bank official said the number of cheques being received for clearance has increased four-fold of late. "Radhashyam Prajapat, who tried to commit suicide, has been admitted to the district hospital. He is out of danger," district Superintendent of Police O P Tripathi told PTI. Prajapat had deposited a cheque of Rs 24,000 with the bank's Narayanpur branch on November 24. He became extremely upset on finding out that the cheque had not been credited. He opened a bottle of pesticide which he was carrying and drank it, the police officer said. Other customers in the bank quickly snatched the bottle from his hand. We rushed him to the district hospital. He is out of danger, Tripathi said, adding investigation into the incident is on. Informing that Prajapat's cheque had been sent for clearance. But in the last few days number of cheques received by the branch had increased four-fold, branch manager Sunil Dohre claimed the moment the branch gets a cheque it is sent for clearance. "Earlier, around 25 cheques would be received by our branch every day. Now the number has swelled to 100-odd. Right now we have around 50 cheques worth Rs 2-3 lakh pending with us for want of clearance," Dohre said, adding sometimes clearance of cheque is delayed. In the wake of demonetisation, banks across the country are witnessing increase in workload. MANDSAUR: A 45-year-old farmer tried to commit suicide by consuming pesticide at a bank in Narayanpur near here today after failing to withdraw money, as a cheque deposited by him had not been credited to his account. A bank official said the number of cheques being received for clearance has increased four-fold of late. "Radhashyam Prajapat, who tried to commit suicide, has been admitted to the district hospital. He is out of danger," district Superintendent of Police O P Tripathi told PTI. Prajapat had deposited a cheque of Rs 24,000 with the bank's Narayanpur branch on November 24. He became extremely upset on finding out that the cheque had not been credited. He opened a bottle of pesticide which he was carrying and drank it, the police officer said. Other customers in the bank quickly snatched the bottle from his hand. We rushed him to the district hospital. He is out of danger, Tripathi said, adding investigation into the incident is on. Informing that Prajapat's cheque had been sent for clearance. But in the last few days number of cheques received by the branch had increased four-fold, branch manager Sunil Dohre claimed the moment the branch gets a cheque it is sent for clearance. "Earlier, around 25 cheques would be received by our branch every day. Now the number has swelled to 100-odd. Right now we have around 50 cheques worth Rs 2-3 lakh pending with us for want of clearance," Dohre said, adding sometimes clearance of cheque is delayed. In the wake of demonetisation, banks across the country are witnessing increase in workload. Regina Gurung By Express News Service BENGALURU: When the 14th Dalai Lama was on his ten day visit to Karnataka, one institute waited longingly for him. Set up in 2008 as a teachers training centre, the Dalai Lama Institute for Higher Education is the only Tibetan institute in the world for higher education. Here, those in exile and regular students can enrol for regular and specialised undergraduate programmes. Although having been established years ago, the institution awaited His Holiness to inaugurate the establishment and address its first batch of undergraduates. It was the Dalai Lamas third visit to the institution, the first being in 2009 when the institute had not received a university recognition, but the foundation stone was being laid. This visit was the first official inaguration of the 45 acre institution that currently hosts 316 Tibetan students, primarily from Tibetan Childrens Village, Himachal Pradesh. About 2000 Tibetans and donors attended the inaguration. The institution is located in Sheshagirihally in Bengaluru but the university was recognized by the University of Mysore in April 2013. The first batch of students graduated this June. When I first took charge of the institution in 2012, my first attempt was to get the college recognised by the University. I approached the Bangalore University, but since they were facing internal problems with the absence of Vice-Chancellor, the proceedings could not take place. I was then introduced to Mysore University and it came to my knowledge that they offer recognition for the specialised course and since we have two specialised courses: namely Chinese language and literature and Tibetan language and literarture, we decided to opt for University of Mysore, says Dr B Tsering, principal of the Dalai Lama Institute for Higher Education. The 14th Dalai Lama received honorary doctorate from the Mysore varsity along with Pramoda Devi Wadiyar, wife of late Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar. His Holiness has a very tight schedule. Whenever we find opportunity, we invite him. This time His Holiness arrived before 9:30 am for the inaguration and he left after 1:30 pm, added Tsering. There were no cultural programme as such, but a traditional Tibetan song was sung for the opening ceremony. Dr Tsering adds that Dalai Lamas address to the institute revolved around drawing parallels between science and Buddhist philosophy. His Holiness said that the scientists search for the truth is the same as Buddhist philosophys search for the truth, she said. She also adds that he did not forget to thank the former Chief Minister of the state, S Nijalingappa and described him to be the most generous of the Chief Ministers who responded to Prime Minister Nehrus plea for land to settle Tibetan refugees. Dr B Tsering herself grew up in Bylakuppe, the first ever Tibetan exile settlement located roughly 80 km from Mysore. The students had only a day to prepare for the event. The weather was really bad because of the cyclone, but everything was neatly done that day and we were able to host the event outdoors, added Tsering. He was accompanied by Karnataka Home Minister, Dr G Parmeshwar and University of Mysore Vice-Chancellor KS Rangappa for the official inaguration of the institute. The inaguration could finally take place since the construction was complete. The timing was perfect, says NorzinDickyi, faculty member of the institute. BENGALURU: When the 14th Dalai Lama was on his ten day visit to Karnataka, one institute waited longingly for him. Set up in 2008 as a teachers training centre, the Dalai Lama Institute for Higher Education is the only Tibetan institute in the world for higher education. Here, those in exile and regular students can enrol for regular and specialised undergraduate programmes. Although having been established years ago, the institution awaited His Holiness to inaugurate the establishment and address its first batch of undergraduates. It was the Dalai Lamas third visit to the institution, the first being in 2009 when the institute had not received a university recognition, but the foundation stone was being laid. This visit was the first official inaguration of the 45 acre institution that currently hosts 316 Tibetan students, primarily from Tibetan Childrens Village, Himachal Pradesh. About 2000 Tibetans and donors attended the inaguration. The institution is located in Sheshagirihally in Bengaluru but the university was recognized by the University of Mysore in April 2013. The first batch of students graduated this June. When I first took charge of the institution in 2012, my first attempt was to get the college recognised by the University. I approached the Bangalore University, but since they were facing internal problems with the absence of Vice-Chancellor, the proceedings could not take place. I was then introduced to Mysore University and it came to my knowledge that they offer recognition for the specialised course and since we have two specialised courses: namely Chinese language and literature and Tibetan language and literarture, we decided to opt for University of Mysore, says Dr B Tsering, principal of the Dalai Lama Institute for Higher Education. The 14th Dalai Lama received honorary doctorate from the Mysore varsity along with Pramoda Devi Wadiyar, wife of late Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar. His Holiness has a very tight schedule. Whenever we find opportunity, we invite him. This time His Holiness arrived before 9:30 am for the inaguration and he left after 1:30 pm, added Tsering. There were no cultural programme as such, but a traditional Tibetan song was sung for the opening ceremony. Dr Tsering adds that Dalai Lamas address to the institute revolved around drawing parallels between science and Buddhist philosophy. His Holiness said that the scientists search for the truth is the same as Buddhist philosophys search for the truth, she said. She also adds that he did not forget to thank the former Chief Minister of the state, S Nijalingappa and described him to be the most generous of the Chief Ministers who responded to Prime Minister Nehrus plea for land to settle Tibetan refugees. Dr B Tsering herself grew up in Bylakuppe, the first ever Tibetan exile settlement located roughly 80 km from Mysore. The students had only a day to prepare for the event. The weather was really bad because of the cyclone, but everything was neatly done that day and we were able to host the event outdoors, added Tsering. He was accompanied by Karnataka Home Minister, Dr G Parmeshwar and University of Mysore Vice-Chancellor KS Rangappa for the official inaguration of the institute. The inaguration could finally take place since the construction was complete. The timing was perfect, says NorzinDickyi, faculty member of the institute. Saima Afreen By Express News Service HYDERABAD: Travelling around the world is enjoyable enough and getting stunning photographs is equally rewarding. This is what Hyderabad-based travel writer and photographer Aruna Chandaraju has done. She organised a photography exhibition at Alliance De Francaise recently. Titled Voyage with the Lens, 21 photographs on display showcased snippets from countries such as Ireland, Spain, Belgium and other European countries. She has visited 30 countries and has used basic Canon Axus camera on auto mode. Pointing to a blue Irish sky in one of the photographs, she says, I have not edited any of the photographs. The contrast and tone are as they are. What appealed to us the most was the photograph of two tribal children in Seychelles who are looking away from the camera. One young boy in his colourful attire looks at the camera with two beads of perspiration resting just above his lips. In another photograph, Aruna captures the interesting mix of seven coloured earth also known as Chamerel Coloured Earth in Mauritius. The reds, browns, yellows and purples of the sand look kaleidoscopic. Theres a phenomenon attached to it that whoever takes a handful of the sand and mixes the same, it separated in different colours on its own. She has also covered the pulse of The Grand Place in Brussels, Belgium. The market place looks vibrant with flowers stalls under a winter sky and with people walking. The photographer has managed to utilise her trips abroad for the photography exhibition. HYDERABAD: Travelling around the world is enjoyable enough and getting stunning photographs is equally rewarding. This is what Hyderabad-based travel writer and photographer Aruna Chandaraju has done. She organised a photography exhibition at Alliance De Francaise recently. Titled Voyage with the Lens, 21 photographs on display showcased snippets from countries such as Ireland, Spain, Belgium and other European countries. She has visited 30 countries and has used basic Canon Axus camera on auto mode. Pointing to a blue Irish sky in one of the photographs, she says, I have not edited any of the photographs. The contrast and tone are as they are. What appealed to us the most was the photograph of two tribal children in Seychelles who are looking away from the camera. One young boy in his colourful attire looks at the camera with two beads of perspiration resting just above his lips. In another photograph, Aruna captures the interesting mix of seven coloured earth also known as Chamerel Coloured Earth in Mauritius. The reds, browns, yellows and purples of the sand look kaleidoscopic. Theres a phenomenon attached to it that whoever takes a handful of the sand and mixes the same, it separated in different colours on its own. She has also covered the pulse of The Grand Place in Brussels, Belgium. The market place looks vibrant with flowers stalls under a winter sky and with people walking. The photographer has managed to utilise her trips abroad for the photography exhibition. By Express News Service HYDERABAD: Two youths from the state, who were caught by the Turkey police, just before they joined the Islamic State militant group and were deported to India in August this year, were radicalised when they were working in Saudi Arabia, said sources. The youths have been identified as Habeeb Ur Rahman, a native of Warangal and Gufran Mohiuddin, who belongs to Hyderabad. The duo first met when they joined an engineering college at Banjara Hills in 2008. Both Mohiuddin and Habeeb went to Saudi Arabia for work. After working for several companies there, they decided to join IS in February this year. During their stay in Saudi Arabia, they got radicalised and planned to join IS. They took the route from Turkey. One of them flew to Turkey from US and the other flew from Saudi. Before they crossed Turkey borders, the duo was nabbed, said sources. They were then deported to India, after the intelligence agencies received a tip-off from one of the close associates of the duo. HYDERABAD: Two youths from the state, who were caught by the Turkey police, just before they joined the Islamic State militant group and were deported to India in August this year, were radicalised when they were working in Saudi Arabia, said sources. The youths have been identified as Habeeb Ur Rahman, a native of Warangal and Gufran Mohiuddin, who belongs to Hyderabad. The duo first met when they joined an engineering college at Banjara Hills in 2008. Both Mohiuddin and Habeeb went to Saudi Arabia for work. After working for several companies there, they decided to join IS in February this year. During their stay in Saudi Arabia, they got radicalised and planned to join IS. They took the route from Turkey. One of them flew to Turkey from US and the other flew from Saudi. Before they crossed Turkey borders, the duo was nabbed, said sources. They were then deported to India, after the intelligence agencies received a tip-off from one of the close associates of the duo. As'ad's Bio As'ad AbuKhalil, born March 16, 1960. From Tyre, Lebanon, grew up in Beirut. Received his BA and MA from American University of Beirut in pol sc. Came to US in 1983 and received his PhD in comparative government from Georgetown University. Taught at Tufts University, Georgetown University, George Washington University, Colorado College, and Randolph-Macon Woman's College. Served as a Scholar-in-Residence at Middle East Institute in Washington DC. He served as free-lance Middle East consultant for NBC News and ABC News, an experience that only served to increase his disdain for maintream US media. He is now professor of political science at California State University, Stanislaus. His favorite food is fried eggplants. By Express News Service KOCHI: Syro-Malabar Church head Cardinal Mar George Alencherry said Christmas celebrations would be less extravagant this year, as a result of demonetisation. Speaking to mediapersons here on Friday, on the eve of the 80th birthday of Pope Francis, he said, Though it is not easy to curb extravaganza through such laws, it would create awareness among the people on squandering money, said the prelate. The Cardinal, however, pointed out that the demonetisation should have been implemented after adequate preparations. It may be noted that most economists who have commented on the matter criticised the lack of preparedness, he said, and urged the government to consider the views of those who support and oppose the recent changes to the financial sector. The Cardinal also welcomed the Supreme Courts decision to close liquor outlets functioning along the national highways. Liquor outlets operating on roadsides could be a temptation for travellers. Everyone should welcome the court order in the larger interest of society, he added. The Pope has indicated his wish to visit India, which was ratified by the Union Ministry of External Affairs. I hope the Pope would include Kerala in his itinerary, said the Cardinal. KOCHI: Syro-Malabar Church head Cardinal Mar George Alencherry said Christmas celebrations would be less extravagant this year, as a result of demonetisation. Speaking to mediapersons here on Friday, on the eve of the 80th birthday of Pope Francis, he said, Though it is not easy to curb extravaganza through such laws, it would create awareness among the people on squandering money, said the prelate. The Cardinal, however, pointed out that the demonetisation should have been implemented after adequate preparations. It may be noted that most economists who have commented on the matter criticised the lack of preparedness, he said, and urged the government to consider the views of those who support and oppose the recent changes to the financial sector. The Cardinal also welcomed the Supreme Courts decision to close liquor outlets functioning along the national highways. Liquor outlets operating on roadsides could be a temptation for travellers. Everyone should welcome the court order in the larger interest of society, he added. The Pope has indicated his wish to visit India, which was ratified by the Union Ministry of External Affairs. I hope the Pope would include Kerala in his itinerary, said the Cardinal. By Express News Service KOCHI: Coming down heavily on the practice of triple talaq, the Kerala High Court on Friday said it was up to the Centre to consider formulating a codified law to govern Muslim divorce. It requires the states intervention through legislation to regulate triple talaq in the country. Therefore, formulation of a law with regard to talaq is necessary, held the court, and asked, why the state is so reluctant to reform the Muslim Divorce Law? The need of a Uniform Civil Code, though it is debated at different levels, still remains a mirage for want of agreement among different groups. This essentially arises out of misconceptions as to the secular law, stated the court, and pointed out that the resistance from a small section of Ulemas (scholars within the society) on the ground that sheria was immutable would amount to negation of freedom of religion guaranteed under the Constitution. The court finds that the dilemma of Ulemas is the result of a conjuncture of repugnancy of the divine and secular law. The state also appears to be reluctant, on the assumption that reforms to religious practices would offend religious freedom, stated the court, and issued the order while disposing of a batch of petitions filed in connection with triple talaq. The court observed that the law of marriage in Islam was more than a contract, though it is performed through contract. In Islam, justice is not a lopsided virtue that could be used by men to oppress women on their capricious whims and fancies. It is to be noted that the Quran does not approve triple talaq in one utterance, but on the other hand promotes conciliation as the best method to resolve marital discord, held the court. The cases related to triple talaq only symptomizes the harsh realities encountered by women belonging to the Muslim community, especially of the lower strata. It is a reminder to the court that unless the plight of sufferers is alleviated through legislation by the state, justice would be a distant dream for them. The state cannot shirk its responsibility by remaining a mute spectator to the malady suffered by Muslim women in the name of religion. Their inexorable quest for justice has broken all the covenants of the divine law, professed to denigrate the believer and faith. KOCHI: Coming down heavily on the practice of triple talaq, the Kerala High Court on Friday said it was up to the Centre to consider formulating a codified law to govern Muslim divorce. It requires the states intervention through legislation to regulate triple talaq in the country. Therefore, formulation of a law with regard to talaq is necessary, held the court, and asked, why the state is so reluctant to reform the Muslim Divorce Law? The need of a Uniform Civil Code, though it is debated at different levels, still remains a mirage for want of agreement among different groups. This essentially arises out of misconceptions as to the secular law, stated the court, and pointed out that the resistance from a small section of Ulemas (scholars within the society) on the ground that sheria was immutable would amount to negation of freedom of religion guaranteed under the Constitution. The court finds that the dilemma of Ulemas is the result of a conjuncture of repugnancy of the divine and secular law. The state also appears to be reluctant, on the assumption that reforms to religious practices would offend religious freedom, stated the court, and issued the order while disposing of a batch of petitions filed in connection with triple talaq. The court observed that the law of marriage in Islam was more than a contract, though it is performed through contract. In Islam, justice is not a lopsided virtue that could be used by men to oppress women on their capricious whims and fancies. It is to be noted that the Quran does not approve triple talaq in one utterance, but on the other hand promotes conciliation as the best method to resolve marital discord, held the court. The cases related to triple talaq only symptomizes the harsh realities encountered by women belonging to the Muslim community, especially of the lower strata. It is a reminder to the court that unless the plight of sufferers is alleviated through legislation by the state, justice would be a distant dream for them. The state cannot shirk its responsibility by remaining a mute spectator to the malady suffered by Muslim women in the name of religion. Their inexorable quest for justice has broken all the covenants of the divine law, professed to denigrate the believer and faith. Aishik Chanda By Express News Service KOLKATA: Coming out strongly against BJP President Amit Shah's comments on increase of Mamata Banerjee and Mayawati's age by 10 years in a single night due to demonetisation, Bengal's women have dubbed the statement as 'disgraceful' and in bad taste. The BJP president, while addressing a rally at Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh, said:"People who have money to hoard are most worried by demonetisation. Have you looked at Mamata Banerjee and Behen Mayawati? Unke chehre se noor utar gaya hai (their faces have lost the charm). In a single night, their age has increased by ten years." His statement has drawn the flak of Bengals women. "The sexist comments on a state's Chief Minister is most unfortunate. There were other points ways to attack an opponent," said Sunanda Mukherjee, West Bengal Women Commission chairman. Others pointed out the sexism inherent in Shah's attempt at painting a picture of these strong women leaders as just being skin deep. "He tried to mock the two strong woman leaders of our country by alluding to the stereotyping that women try to hide their age. Well, that is sexist," said a professor of Jadavpur University. "We feel ashamed to even react to such comments. I don't think an apology will be made due to the political arrogance and absolute majority in the Lok Sabha. But, nevertheless we women should not stop protesting against such sexist comments," said academician Sutapa Ray. Others felt that Amit Shah was tactfully using words to his advantage to lure a targeted audience. "In the western part of Uttar Pradesh, where he was addressing the rally, patriarchy and sexism is deep-rooted and punishing. He attempted to hit two targets of upcoming Uttar Pradesh elections, in which Mayawati is one of the major challengers, and the anti-demonetisation camp, in which Mamata is a major force, with his sexist comment. The UP elections will be a test of how demonetisation has been received by the public," said political observer Sharmishtha Banerjee. KOLKATA: Coming out strongly against BJP President Amit Shah's comments on increase of Mamata Banerjee and Mayawati's age by 10 years in a single night due to demonetisation, Bengal's women have dubbed the statement as 'disgraceful' and in bad taste. The BJP president, while addressing a rally at Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh, said:"People who have money to hoard are most worried by demonetisation. Have you looked at Mamata Banerjee and Behen Mayawati? Unke chehre se noor utar gaya hai (their faces have lost the charm). In a single night, their age has increased by ten years." His statement has drawn the flak of Bengals women. "The sexist comments on a state's Chief Minister is most unfortunate. There were other points ways to attack an opponent," said Sunanda Mukherjee, West Bengal Women Commission chairman. Others pointed out the sexism inherent in Shah's attempt at painting a picture of these strong women leaders as just being skin deep. "He tried to mock the two strong woman leaders of our country by alluding to the stereotyping that women try to hide their age. Well, that is sexist," said a professor of Jadavpur University. "We feel ashamed to even react to such comments. I don't think an apology will be made due to the political arrogance and absolute majority in the Lok Sabha. But, nevertheless we women should not stop protesting against such sexist comments," said academician Sutapa Ray. Others felt that Amit Shah was tactfully using words to his advantage to lure a targeted audience. "In the western part of Uttar Pradesh, where he was addressing the rally, patriarchy and sexism is deep-rooted and punishing. He attempted to hit two targets of upcoming Uttar Pradesh elections, in which Mayawati is one of the major challengers, and the anti-demonetisation camp, in which Mamata is a major force, with his sexist comment. The UP elections will be a test of how demonetisation has been received by the public," said political observer Sharmishtha Banerjee. By PTI KOLKATA: Two persons died and 29 shanties gutted when a major fire broke out at a slum on the northern fringes of Kolkata early today. Sixteen fire tenders were pressed into service to control the blaze near Patipukur Railway tracks near Belgachhia. Barrackpore Fire Brigade officials said the fire was now "under control". Charred bodies of Priya Adikary, 16, and Nimai Adhikary, 16, were recovered from the spot. The cause of the fire, which was first noticed at around 3 am, was yet to be ascertained, the officials said. In a second incident of fire in north Kolkata, a garment manufacturing unit was badly damaged, fire brigade officials said. Eleven fire tenders extinguished the blaze near Minerva theatre at the 3,000 sq feet plot where garments were manufactured. Officials said there was no report of any injury or casualty in the second incident. KOLKATA: Two persons died and 29 shanties gutted when a major fire broke out at a slum on the northern fringes of Kolkata early today. Sixteen fire tenders were pressed into service to control the blaze near Patipukur Railway tracks near Belgachhia. Barrackpore Fire Brigade officials said the fire was now "under control". Charred bodies of Priya Adikary, 16, and Nimai Adhikary, 16, were recovered from the spot. The cause of the fire, which was first noticed at around 3 am, was yet to be ascertained, the officials said. In a second incident of fire in north Kolkata, a garment manufacturing unit was badly damaged, fire brigade officials said. Eleven fire tenders extinguished the blaze near Minerva theatre at the 3,000 sq feet plot where garments were manufactured. Officials said there was no report of any injury or casualty in the second incident. Daniel Thimmayya By Express News Service Express Views Film: Hacksaw Ridge Director: Mel Gibson Cast: Andrew Garfield, Vince Vaughn, Sam Worthington Hacksaw Ridge is an exercise in extremes. Youll either love it or hate it. Theres very little middle ground here. Personally, Im going with the former option, but thats because Im a sucker for underdog hero stories. And thats exactly what Hacksaw Ridge is. The way the movie is structured, with a lengthy backstory that details how he grew up, his dads abusive drinking, their firm faith, his resilience, his first kiss is a complete contrast to the second half which is when the fighting begins. Chalk and cheese. Mel Gibson has transformed the astonishing tale of Desmond Doss into a soulful drama, albeit with a good deal of his religious indulgences and political propaganda. Doss, who died in 2006, was a vet who carried over 75 injured men off the battlefield at Hacksaw Ridge, Okinawa and lowered them down the cliff face long after the troops had beaten a retreat. What makes it even more compelling is that Doss was derided and pushed around, on the verge of being court martialled, because he wouldnt touch a gun or kill people, because his religious beliefs wouldnt permit it. Andrew Garfield, who played the last but one Spiderman, plays Doss with restrained ease - and is particularly emphatic during that long night when he rummaged around looking for survivors. His lines, Doss by way of origin, Please God, give me the strength to save one more, can really make you tear up. Backed by strong performances, Vince Vaughn as Doss tough-as-nails Sargent in particular, Hacksaw Ridge is one of those rare movies that can move you and make you sick all at once. Sick how? Well, were talking Mel Gibson and war scenes. Think gore, blood spatter thats borderline pulp and unrelenting violence, all to ensure youre left in no doubt just how violent the skirmish was. The action is pretty high quality, though, and for people who grew up reading Commando comics, its a nice little throwback to WWII stories. Could it have been a wee bit shorter? Yes. Could there have been a little less grandstanding on how the army mistreated Conscientious Objectors (thats what people who enlisted but refused to kill were called)? Absolutely. Does that make it any less worthwhile a watch? Not in my book. Express Views Film: Hacksaw Ridge Director: Mel Gibson Cast: Andrew Garfield, Vince Vaughn, Sam Worthington Hacksaw Ridge is an exercise in extremes. Youll either love it or hate it. Theres very little middle ground here. Personally, Im going with the former option, but thats because Im a sucker for underdog hero stories. And thats exactly what Hacksaw Ridge is. The way the movie is structured, with a lengthy backstory that details how he grew up, his dads abusive drinking, their firm faith, his resilience, his first kiss is a complete contrast to the second half which is when the fighting begins. Chalk and cheese. Mel Gibson has transformed the astonishing tale of Desmond Doss into a soulful drama, albeit with a good deal of his religious indulgences and political propaganda. Doss, who died in 2006, was a vet who carried over 75 injured men off the battlefield at Hacksaw Ridge, Okinawa and lowered them down the cliff face long after the troops had beaten a retreat. What makes it even more compelling is that Doss was derided and pushed around, on the verge of being court martialled, because he wouldnt touch a gun or kill people, because his religious beliefs wouldnt permit it. Andrew Garfield, who played the last but one Spiderman, plays Doss with restrained ease - and is particularly emphatic during that long night when he rummaged around looking for survivors. His lines, Doss by way of origin, Please God, give me the strength to save one more, can really make you tear up. Backed by strong performances, Vince Vaughn as Doss tough-as-nails Sargent in particular, Hacksaw Ridge is one of those rare movies that can move you and make you sick all at once. Sick how? Well, were talking Mel Gibson and war scenes. Think gore, blood spatter thats borderline pulp and unrelenting violence, all to ensure youre left in no doubt just how violent the skirmish was. The action is pretty high quality, though, and for people who grew up reading Commando comics, its a nice little throwback to WWII stories. Could it have been a wee bit shorter? Yes. Could there have been a little less grandstanding on how the army mistreated Conscientious Objectors (thats what people who enlisted but refused to kill were called)? Absolutely. Does that make it any less worthwhile a watch? Not in my book. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: A 20-year-old girl, who was on a job search, was allegedly raped in a car in South Delhis Moti Bagh area. The victim was raped after she was lured into the car by the driver on the pretext of dropping her at her destination, in the vehicle, which apparently had a free run for hours in Lutyens and South Delhi. Police later arrested the accused identified as Avneesh (28) and registered a case under IPC Section 376 (rape). According to police, the victim, a resident of Noida who had come to Delhi looking for a job, was waiting for a bus near AIIMS on Wednesday evening when Avneesh, driving a car which had a sticker of the Home Ministry, offered to drop her. Police said the accused person is the driver of a man whose father works in the Central Industrial Security Force. The sticker was reportedly arranged by the car owner for Avneesh. Avneesh raped the girl inside the car in a secluded area but she managed to flee around midnight and was found by a police patrol team which brought her to the South Campus police station in the wee hours of Thursday. The incident came to light on Friday, the fourth anniversary of the horrific Nirbhaya gang-rape. According to sources, the victim claimed that Avneesh roamed the streets of Delhi for almost two hours. In the intervening night of Wednesday-Thursday, at 1.30 am, a motorcycle patrol party of police station South Campus was flagged down by a lady in distress, said joint commissioner R P Upadhyay. The accused was later located in a jhuggi at Moti Bagh (South) area where he was about to begin drinking with a friend, added Upadhayay. Avneesh belongs to Etah in Uttar Pradesh, but has been staying in Delhi for the last three-four years. He is married and has two children. Earlier, he was working as a school cab driver. The car is a private vehicle. The owners father works in the Central Industrial Security Force and is posted in Delhi. We will be questioning them about the sticker. If it has been procured illegally, action will be taken, said Ishwar Singh, DCP (South) . The incident has punctured the claims of the government and Delhi Police after the Nirbhaya incident in 2012. The mother of Nirbhaya said nothing has changed in the last four years as far as womens safety in the national capital is concerned. We feel nothing has changed. The governments have changed. It has been four years, but the situation remains the same. For the last four years, we have been running from pillar-to-post to get justice. But no action has been taken against the accused, said a distraught Asha Devi. NEW DELHI: A 20-year-old girl, who was on a job search, was allegedly raped in a car in South Delhis Moti Bagh area. The victim was raped after she was lured into the car by the driver on the pretext of dropping her at her destination, in the vehicle, which apparently had a free run for hours in Lutyens and South Delhi. Police later arrested the accused identified as Avneesh (28) and registered a case under IPC Section 376 (rape). According to police, the victim, a resident of Noida who had come to Delhi looking for a job, was waiting for a bus near AIIMS on Wednesday evening when Avneesh, driving a car which had a sticker of the Home Ministry, offered to drop her. Police said the accused person is the driver of a man whose father works in the Central Industrial Security Force. The sticker was reportedly arranged by the car owner for Avneesh. Avneesh raped the girl inside the car in a secluded area but she managed to flee around midnight and was found by a police patrol team which brought her to the South Campus police station in the wee hours of Thursday. The incident came to light on Friday, the fourth anniversary of the horrific Nirbhaya gang-rape. According to sources, the victim claimed that Avneesh roamed the streets of Delhi for almost two hours. In the intervening night of Wednesday-Thursday, at 1.30 am, a motorcycle patrol party of police station South Campus was flagged down by a lady in distress, said joint commissioner R P Upadhyay. The accused was later located in a jhuggi at Moti Bagh (South) area where he was about to begin drinking with a friend, added Upadhayay. Avneesh belongs to Etah in Uttar Pradesh, but has been staying in Delhi for the last three-four years. He is married and has two children. Earlier, he was working as a school cab driver. The car is a private vehicle. The owners father works in the Central Industrial Security Force and is posted in Delhi. We will be questioning them about the sticker. If it has been procured illegally, action will be taken, said Ishwar Singh, DCP (South) . The incident has punctured the claims of the government and Delhi Police after the Nirbhaya incident in 2012. The mother of Nirbhaya said nothing has changed in the last four years as far as womens safety in the national capital is concerned. We feel nothing has changed. The governments have changed. It has been four years, but the situation remains the same. For the last four years, we have been running from pillar-to-post to get justice. But no action has been taken against the accused, said a distraught Asha Devi. By Express News Service GUWAHATI: The BJP on Friday appointed journalist-turned-Assam Assembly Speaker Ranjit Kumar Das, as the partys State unit president. BJP national president Amit Shah has appointed Assam BJP legislator Ranjit Das as the State party chief, BJP said in a statement issued in Delhi. Das, 50, is a veteran in the state BJP, having joined the party in 1992. He will replace CM Sarbananda Sonowal, who guided the party to power for the first time in the State. It was also under Sonowals leadership that the BJP won seven of the 14 seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Reports that Das will head the party were doing the rounds for a while. He had the backing of Sonowal and finance minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. Das, a two-time MLA, had won the 2016 polls from western Assams Sorbhog constituency and subsequently, he was elected as the Assembly speaker unanimously. An IIS (Indian Information Service), he had also worked for several English and Assamese dailies. Meanwhile, according to BJP insiders, names that were being discussed for the post of Speaker include that of MLAs Siddhartha Bhattacharya and Ranjit Dutta (both BJP) and Hitendra Nath Goswami (AGP). GUWAHATI: The BJP on Friday appointed journalist-turned-Assam Assembly Speaker Ranjit Kumar Das, as the partys State unit president. BJP national president Amit Shah has appointed Assam BJP legislator Ranjit Das as the State party chief, BJP said in a statement issued in Delhi. Das, 50, is a veteran in the state BJP, having joined the party in 1992. He will replace CM Sarbananda Sonowal, who guided the party to power for the first time in the State. It was also under Sonowals leadership that the BJP won seven of the 14 seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Reports that Das will head the party were doing the rounds for a while. He had the backing of Sonowal and finance minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. Das, a two-time MLA, had won the 2016 polls from western Assams Sorbhog constituency and subsequently, he was elected as the Assembly speaker unanimously. An IIS (Indian Information Service), he had also worked for several English and Assamese dailies. Meanwhile, according to BJP insiders, names that were being discussed for the post of Speaker include that of MLAs Siddhartha Bhattacharya and Ranjit Dutta (both BJP) and Hitendra Nath Goswami (AGP). By Express News Service NEW DELHI: In a bid to ensure peace and stability in Afghanistan by forging closer links with Central Asia, India on Saturday emphasised the enhancement of surface connectivity through the Chahbahar Port in Iran. The two countries also inked a pact to share financial intelligence to counter money laundering and squeeze the finances of terror organisation during Tajik President Emomali Rahmons 6th visit to India. The Tajik President and Prime Minister Narendra Modi held an extensive discussion on the threats posed by radicalisation and extremism. The two countries acknowledged in their joint statement that the peace, stability and prosperity in Afghanistan are imperative for the region and expressed support to Kabul in its endeavours for peace. India supports initiatives to develop the existing port and transport infrastructure and connecting it through road and rail network to Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Central Asia, Prime Minister Modi said. "In this respect, we will work to build trade and transit links through Chahbahar port in Iran. India is also engaged in facilitating the International North South Transport Corridor with other members, including Tajikistan. Our planned accession to the Ashgabat Agreement will further help in linking us to Tajikistan and Central Asia," Modi added. Chahbahar Transport and Transit Corridors are expected to not only connect Tajikistan to warm waters but also to large market of India. Chahbahar is being seen as Indias gateway to Central Asia and will also help Afghanistan in overcoming its dependency on Pakistan to get access to other countries market. But located just at a distance of 72 kilometres from Pakistans Gwadar port, Chahbahar will face economic, commercial and strategic competition. The Indian investment in the port has been $ 2 billion, a paltry sum in comparison to $46 billion galvanised by China for the development of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) of which Gwadar port is a part. New Delhi is therefore keen to bring more stakeholders on board the project to make it a success. The two leaders agreed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be eliminated without any distinction between good and bad terrorists and called for an end to sponsorship, support and provision of safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists, the joint statement issued by the two countries said. The countries will also be working for the early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UN General Assembly. NEW DELHI: In a bid to ensure peace and stability in Afghanistan by forging closer links with Central Asia, India on Saturday emphasised the enhancement of surface connectivity through the Chahbahar Port in Iran. The two countries also inked a pact to share financial intelligence to counter money laundering and squeeze the finances of terror organisation during Tajik President Emomali Rahmons 6th visit to India. The Tajik President and Prime Minister Narendra Modi held an extensive discussion on the threats posed by radicalisation and extremism. The two countries acknowledged in their joint statement that the peace, stability and prosperity in Afghanistan are imperative for the region and expressed support to Kabul in its endeavours for peace. India supports initiatives to develop the existing port and transport infrastructure and connecting it through road and rail network to Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Central Asia, Prime Minister Modi said. "In this respect, we will work to build trade and transit links through Chahbahar port in Iran. India is also engaged in facilitating the International North South Transport Corridor with other members, including Tajikistan. Our planned accession to the Ashgabat Agreement will further help in linking us to Tajikistan and Central Asia," Modi added. Chahbahar Transport and Transit Corridors are expected to not only connect Tajikistan to warm waters but also to large market of India. Chahbahar is being seen as Indias gateway to Central Asia and will also help Afghanistan in overcoming its dependency on Pakistan to get access to other countries market. But located just at a distance of 72 kilometres from Pakistans Gwadar port, Chahbahar will face economic, commercial and strategic competition. The Indian investment in the port has been $ 2 billion, a paltry sum in comparison to $46 billion galvanised by China for the development of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) of which Gwadar port is a part. New Delhi is therefore keen to bring more stakeholders on board the project to make it a success. The two leaders agreed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be eliminated without any distinction between good and bad terrorists and called for an end to sponsorship, support and provision of safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists, the joint statement issued by the two countries said. The countries will also be working for the early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UN General Assembly. Ejaz Kaiser By RAIPUR: The Union ministry of electronics and information technology and the director general, National Information Centre selected the 'Citizen Cop', an app devised by Chhattisgarh police, as the best user friendly mobile application. The smart policing and comprehensive app covering the five districts of Raipur zone was launched by the Chhattisgarh chief minister Dr Raman Singh in September 2015. It meets all the security needs of the citizens who can conveniently access the police services through it and read the status reports of their complaints. With this app the citizen is relieved from unnecessary hassles of visiting the police station and it enables them to report the incident or crime instantly. The inspector general of police G P Singh who pioneered the concept, will be receiving the award from the union minister for electronic and information technology Ravi Shankar Prasad at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi on December 19. The app has enabled the police to establish a relationship of trust and gained confidence of the citizens, Singh claimed. The multipurpose features of the mobile app, which has received FICCIs special jury award in May this year, have added distinct functions when compared to similar apps operating in other metro cities of the country. For instance, a family or a group of four can create a geo-fencing through flagging the geographical limits (points) on the Google Map as safe zone. It enables the device to send SMS alerts to contacts already configured (group of four) if the fenced boundary is traversed by any of the four. For example, the parents will get an alert on their mobile through Citizen Cop the moment their child crosses the fenced limits flagged by them. One can easily access the detail of any vehicle (suspected or otherwise) through the registration number search. Fare calculation (auto/taxi) on the given route by entering the source and destination points. Residents can search their vehicle in case it has been towed by traffic police. The mobile phone numbers of the police officers from inspector general to the station house officer of the corresponding police station are also made available for any emergency services. The numbers of administrative officials of concerned districts also provided there. The App features options to create one's own close group in the app, where one can keep track of group members' location, besides latest news update at hand about police department/traffic. Additionally, it has features to report an incident or to report about a lost article. On December 2, nearly a dozen people who lost their mobile phones received the phones back after they lodged their complaint on Citizen Cop. Previous month, four teenage girls were timely rescued along with the three others from getting lured by swindlers into becoming actresses and models in Mumbai. RAIPUR: The Union ministry of electronics and information technology and the director general, National Information Centre selected the 'Citizen Cop', an app devised by Chhattisgarh police, as the best user friendly mobile application. The smart policing and comprehensive app covering the five districts of Raipur zone was launched by the Chhattisgarh chief minister Dr Raman Singh in September 2015. It meets all the security needs of the citizens who can conveniently access the police services through it and read the status reports of their complaints. With this app the citizen is relieved from unnecessary hassles of visiting the police station and it enables them to report the incident or crime instantly. The inspector general of police G P Singh who pioneered the concept, will be receiving the award from the union minister for electronic and information technology Ravi Shankar Prasad at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi on December 19. The app has enabled the police to establish a relationship of trust and gained confidence of the citizens, Singh claimed. The multipurpose features of the mobile app, which has received FICCIs special jury award in May this year, have added distinct functions when compared to similar apps operating in other metro cities of the country. For instance, a family or a group of four can create a geo-fencing through flagging the geographical limits (points) on the Google Map as safe zone. It enables the device to send SMS alerts to contacts already configured (group of four) if the fenced boundary is traversed by any of the four. For example, the parents will get an alert on their mobile through Citizen Cop the moment their child crosses the fenced limits flagged by them. One can easily access the detail of any vehicle (suspected or otherwise) through the registration number search. Fare calculation (auto/taxi) on the given route by entering the source and destination points. Residents can search their vehicle in case it has been towed by traffic police. The mobile phone numbers of the police officers from inspector general to the station house officer of the corresponding police station are also made available for any emergency services. The numbers of administrative officials of concerned districts also provided there. The App features options to create one's own close group in the app, where one can keep track of group members' location, besides latest news update at hand about police department/traffic. Additionally, it has features to report an incident or to report about a lost article. On December 2, nearly a dozen people who lost their mobile phones received the phones back after they lodged their complaint on Citizen Cop. Previous month, four teenage girls were timely rescued along with the three others from getting lured by swindlers into becoming actresses and models in Mumbai. These solar panels were installed in 2011 at Olbrich Botanical Gardens by Madison Gas & Electric. By PTI SHAHJAHANPUR: An Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) constable on Saturday shot a 30-year-old man dead and injured his sister in Choti Koilara village here following a dispute over a trivial issue. Krishna Kumar Jaiswal who was at the village on leave, had a heated debate with his neighbor, Collector Yadav, over parking of the latter's motorcycle on Saturday night, said Superintendent of Police (SP) D P N Pandey. Jaiswal beat up Yadav over the same issue on Sunday afternoon, and when his sister rushed to help him, opened several rounds from his licensed .315 bore rifle, said the SP. Both Yadav and his sister were rushed to Varanasi hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. Four of those named in the FIR, including Jaiswal, have been arrested while the hunt is on for two others, said the SP, adding that additional force has been deployed in the area and the situation is under control. SHAHJAHANPUR: An Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) constable on Saturday shot a 30-year-old man dead and injured his sister in Choti Koilara village here following a dispute over a trivial issue. Krishna Kumar Jaiswal who was at the village on leave, had a heated debate with his neighbor, Collector Yadav, over parking of the latter's motorcycle on Saturday night, said Superintendent of Police (SP) D P N Pandey. Jaiswal beat up Yadav over the same issue on Sunday afternoon, and when his sister rushed to help him, opened several rounds from his licensed .315 bore rifle, said the SP. Both Yadav and his sister were rushed to Varanasi hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. Four of those named in the FIR, including Jaiswal, have been arrested while the hunt is on for two others, said the SP, adding that additional force has been deployed in the area and the situation is under control. By ANI AIZWAL (Mizoram): Expressing concern over the early repatriation of the Brus Refugees, which was more likely to start by November, is still on hold in the northern Tripura District. MHA officials have been frequently visiting the camps to take stock of the situation, especially pertaining to demands made by the Brus for early repatriation to their home state of Mizoram. Recently, a high-level team led by the Special Secretary to the Ministry of Home Affairs (Internal Security), M. K. Singla, visited the camps in North Tripura district to discuss their early repatriation. We have been putting our efforts and the Centre is trying hard in every possible way to help them. I feel great to meet the Bru refugees, who have been staying in the camps for 19 years, and we have taken note of the issues they are facing. We will take every possible measure to fulfill their demands and the centre is in full support of us, said M. K. Singla, Secretary to the Ministry of Home Affairs. Singla also visited two evacuee camps at Ashapara and Naisingpara. He, along with other officials of North Tripura and security officials, also held a meeting with the leaders of Mizoram Bru Displaced Peoples Forum (MBDPF). He further interacted with the inmates of the camps, discussed their issues and explained to them about the facilities they will get after repatriation. Meanwhile, the inmates were seen holding placards demanding birth certificates to the new-born babies, caste certificate and Adhar card, written agreements, allotment of land to each family, updating inmates list as well as deployment of central security forces in villages of Mizoram where they shall be repatriated. There have been lots of demands put by the inmates but it depends on how these are handled, whether they can be worked out or not. An auction takes place every year and whoever gets it have the right to cultivate. So it is nothing new and it has been an old tradition in Mizoram on how agriculture land is used. Apart from that, there are several other demands like establishing schools and we are soon going to sort it out, Singla said. Earlier in November, the process of identification of displaced Brus was started. It is to be noted that about 35,000 Bru/Reang from neighbouring Mizoram took shelter in six evacuee camps in Kanchanpur subdivision of North Tripura district in a phased manner since 1997 following ethnic clashes with Mizos over land dispute. Such an effort on part of the Centre is expected to solve their issues and fulfill their legitimate demands. AIZWAL (Mizoram): Expressing concern over the early repatriation of the Brus Refugees, which was more likely to start by November, is still on hold in the northern Tripura District. MHA officials have been frequently visiting the camps to take stock of the situation, especially pertaining to demands made by the Brus for early repatriation to their home state of Mizoram. Recently, a high-level team led by the Special Secretary to the Ministry of Home Affairs (Internal Security), M. K. Singla, visited the camps in North Tripura district to discuss their early repatriation. We have been putting our efforts and the Centre is trying hard in every possible way to help them. I feel great to meet the Bru refugees, who have been staying in the camps for 19 years, and we have taken note of the issues they are facing. We will take every possible measure to fulfill their demands and the centre is in full support of us, said M. K. Singla, Secretary to the Ministry of Home Affairs. Singla also visited two evacuee camps at Ashapara and Naisingpara. He, along with other officials of North Tripura and security officials, also held a meeting with the leaders of Mizoram Bru Displaced Peoples Forum (MBDPF). He further interacted with the inmates of the camps, discussed their issues and explained to them about the facilities they will get after repatriation. Meanwhile, the inmates were seen holding placards demanding birth certificates to the new-born babies, caste certificate and Adhar card, written agreements, allotment of land to each family, updating inmates list as well as deployment of central security forces in villages of Mizoram where they shall be repatriated. There have been lots of demands put by the inmates but it depends on how these are handled, whether they can be worked out or not. An auction takes place every year and whoever gets it have the right to cultivate. So it is nothing new and it has been an old tradition in Mizoram on how agriculture land is used. Apart from that, there are several other demands like establishing schools and we are soon going to sort it out, Singla said. Earlier in November, the process of identification of displaced Brus was started. It is to be noted that about 35,000 Bru/Reang from neighbouring Mizoram took shelter in six evacuee camps in Kanchanpur subdivision of North Tripura district in a phased manner since 1997 following ethnic clashes with Mizos over land dispute. Such an effort on part of the Centre is expected to solve their issues and fulfill their legitimate demands. By PTI With 13 days to go for the demonetisation deadline, reports of seizures of unaccounted money are coming out thick and fash from all around the coutnry. Here are today's hauls. Mumbai: Railway official in CBI net The CBI has booked an assistant commercial manager of the Indian Railways posted at Mumbai's Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus for exchanging old currency notes into new Rs 2,000 notes. He had thus laundered Rs 8.22 lakh. CBI sources said K L Bhoyar laundered old notes worth Rs 8.22 lakh at a booking counter at CST Mumbai and Kalyan in Thane district. Railways posted at CST Mumbai under sections related to criminal conspiracy and provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act. The agency is following up with inspections of his office and residence. Erode: Rs 37 lakh in new currency seized from car, 5 arrested Five persons have been arrested and about Rs 37 lakh in 2,000 rupee notes were seized from their car in Erode last night during a vehicle check on the Gobichettipalayam-Modachur main road. The notes worth Rs 36.9 lakh, were found in a cloth bag in the car. The arrested men have been identified as Sakthivel, Manoj, Suresh Senthilkumar and Sabari. They told the police they were carrying the money to exchange with demonetised notes to some "affluent" persons for a margin in Gobichettipalayam. Chandigarh: Rs 30 lakh recovered from tailor The Enforcement Directorate [ED] recovered about Rs 30 lakh cash and 2.5 kg of gold from a prominent tailor, Maharaja Tailor in Mohali, Sector 22. The seizure comes three days after the recovery of Rs 2.19 crore in cash from a cloth merchant in Chandigarh. Todays seizure included Rs 18 lakh in Rs 2,000 notes and while the rest was in Rs 100 and 50 denominations. The tailor had allegedly bought 2.5 kg gold at a rate of Rs 44,000 per 10 gm after demonetisation. Chandigarh: Senior bank employee in the net Following up on their raid on a cloth merchant in Chandigarh, police have arrested a senior bank employee of a private bank in Mohali for allegedly providing new currency to cloth merchant Inderpal Mahajan for a commission. ED had seized Rs 2.19 crore including Rs 17.74 lakh in Rs 2,000 denomination, Rs 12,500 in Rs 500 denomination from the house of Mahajan on December 14. Bahraich: 4 more note mules arrested Four persons were arrested with illegally exchanged new high-value currency notes worth over Rs 4 lakh and a significant amount of Nepalese currency near the Indo-Nepal border in Bahraich district. The arrests were made at Rupaidiha township on Friday. Police had information that the four had illegally exchanged old Indian and Nepalese currency notes with new Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 notes. The Income Tax Department has been informed of the seizure. Machilipatnam: More hot new money discovered in AP Unaccounted cash worth Rs 4.4 lakh in new Rs 2,000 notes was seized today from Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh. The seizure was made in the early hours at Gosaveedu village in Gampalagudem mandal from four persons after they were unable to explain the source of the cash. Police suspect the cash was to be handed over to some persons who wanted to exchange old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes. The four persons are suspected to be commission agents. With 13 days to go for the demonetisation deadline, reports of seizures of unaccounted money are coming out thick and fash from all around the coutnry. Here are today's hauls. Mumbai: Railway official in CBI net The CBI has booked an assistant commercial manager of the Indian Railways posted at Mumbai's Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus for exchanging old currency notes into new Rs 2,000 notes. He had thus laundered Rs 8.22 lakh. CBI sources said K L Bhoyar laundered old notes worth Rs 8.22 lakh at a booking counter at CST Mumbai and Kalyan in Thane district. Railways posted at CST Mumbai under sections related to criminal conspiracy and provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act. The agency is following up with inspections of his office and residence. Erode: Rs 37 lakh in new currency seized from car, 5 arrested Five persons have been arrested and about Rs 37 lakh in 2,000 rupee notes were seized from their car in Erode last night during a vehicle check on the Gobichettipalayam-Modachur main road. The notes worth Rs 36.9 lakh, were found in a cloth bag in the car. The arrested men have been identified as Sakthivel, Manoj, Suresh Senthilkumar and Sabari. They told the police they were carrying the money to exchange with demonetised notes to some "affluent" persons for a margin in Gobichettipalayam. Chandigarh: Rs 30 lakh recovered from tailor The Enforcement Directorate [ED] recovered about Rs 30 lakh cash and 2.5 kg of gold from a prominent tailor, Maharaja Tailor in Mohali, Sector 22. The seizure comes three days after the recovery of Rs 2.19 crore in cash from a cloth merchant in Chandigarh. Todays seizure included Rs 18 lakh in Rs 2,000 notes and while the rest was in Rs 100 and 50 denominations. The tailor had allegedly bought 2.5 kg gold at a rate of Rs 44,000 per 10 gm after demonetisation. Chandigarh: Senior bank employee in the net Following up on their raid on a cloth merchant in Chandigarh, police have arrested a senior bank employee of a private bank in Mohali for allegedly providing new currency to cloth merchant Inderpal Mahajan for a commission. ED had seized Rs 2.19 crore including Rs 17.74 lakh in Rs 2,000 denomination, Rs 12,500 in Rs 500 denomination from the house of Mahajan on December 14. Bahraich: 4 more note mules arrested Four persons were arrested with illegally exchanged new high-value currency notes worth over Rs 4 lakh and a significant amount of Nepalese currency near the Indo-Nepal border in Bahraich district. The arrests were made at Rupaidiha township on Friday. Police had information that the four had illegally exchanged old Indian and Nepalese currency notes with new Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 notes. The Income Tax Department has been informed of the seizure. Machilipatnam: More hot new money discovered in AP Unaccounted cash worth Rs 4.4 lakh in new Rs 2,000 notes was seized today from Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh. The seizure was made in the early hours at Gosaveedu village in Gampalagudem mandal from four persons after they were unable to explain the source of the cash. Police suspect the cash was to be handed over to some persons who wanted to exchange old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes. The four persons are suspected to be commission agents. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: On a day when the Finance Minister, in a written reply, informed the Lok Sabha that the government has no official estimation of the unaccounted wealth in the country, the Prime Minister briefed his parliamentary party leaders on the need to push digitisation among the public. There is no official estimation of the amount of black money either before or after the governments decision of November 8, he said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. Critics slammed Jaitleys response, asking how the government could have embarked on the demonetisation drive, which inconvenienced millions of people, without even having an estimate of the amount of black money in the country. The decision to declare Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes as invalid is an important step in the governments fight against black money but is not the final destination, he said, telling his party leaders that it was their primary responsibility to push digital transactions. We do not think in parts. There is a full scale design. It is only that we show our cards gradually, he said, reiterating that peoples woes will gradually begin to ease out after 50 days since demonetisation was announced. With the 50-day period that he had sought to end the pain of cash crunch inching towards the end, Modi evidently seems to be under pressure to deliver. Meanwhile, his senior officials have been constantly pushing the deadline before the situation could ease. While the Economic Affairs Secretary said on Thursday that the situation would ease by first week of January, the NITI Aayog CEO said on Friday that the pain could continue till mid January. Interestingly, while Doordarshan was supposed to cover the Prime Ministers address to the BJP parliamentary party, inviting strong comments from the opposition, it did not do so. Modi warned that the focus would now shift to benami transactions in his fight against black money. The Prime Minister also slammed the Congress, saying both Manmohan Singh and Indira Gandhi had failed to take steps to weed out black money. The government also announced on Friday that the new window to disclose black money, which was launched earlier this month, would open on Saturday and would continue till March 31. Under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana scheme, people can legalise their unaccounted money by paying a 50 per cent tax. Announcing the launch, Revenue Secretary Hasmuk Adhia warned the government would join all the dots to track down defaulters. NEW DELHI: On a day when the Finance Minister, in a written reply, informed the Lok Sabha that the government has no official estimation of the unaccounted wealth in the country, the Prime Minister briefed his parliamentary party leaders on the need to push digitisation among the public. There is no official estimation of the amount of black money either before or after the governments decision of November 8, he said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. Critics slammed Jaitleys response, asking how the government could have embarked on the demonetisation drive, which inconvenienced millions of people, without even having an estimate of the amount of black money in the country. The decision to declare Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes as invalid is an important step in the governments fight against black money but is not the final destination, he said, telling his party leaders that it was their primary responsibility to push digital transactions. We do not think in parts. There is a full scale design. It is only that we show our cards gradually, he said, reiterating that peoples woes will gradually begin to ease out after 50 days since demonetisation was announced. With the 50-day period that he had sought to end the pain of cash crunch inching towards the end, Modi evidently seems to be under pressure to deliver. Meanwhile, his senior officials have been constantly pushing the deadline before the situation could ease. While the Economic Affairs Secretary said on Thursday that the situation would ease by first week of January, the NITI Aayog CEO said on Friday that the pain could continue till mid January. Interestingly, while Doordarshan was supposed to cover the Prime Ministers address to the BJP parliamentary party, inviting strong comments from the opposition, it did not do so. Modi warned that the focus would now shift to benami transactions in his fight against black money. The Prime Minister also slammed the Congress, saying both Manmohan Singh and Indira Gandhi had failed to take steps to weed out black money. The government also announced on Friday that the new window to disclose black money, which was launched earlier this month, would open on Saturday and would continue till March 31. Under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana scheme, people can legalise their unaccounted money by paying a 50 per cent tax. Announcing the launch, Revenue Secretary Hasmuk Adhia warned the government would join all the dots to track down defaulters. Santwana Bhattacharya By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The 16-party opposition unity went for a toss after Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi met Prime Minister Narendra Modi with a group of senior Congress leaders in the age-old style of prayer and petition , to urge him to consider giving loan-waiver to distressed farmers. At least, in the poll-bound states of Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. Angry BSP, SP, Left, NCP and DMK pulled out of Sonia Gandhi led protest march to Rashtrapati Bhawan on the governments controversial demonetisation drive and its impact on the people. Also, to blame the treasury for the winter session wash out. She led a down-sized opposition march with TMC, JD-U, RJD and RSP. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who had come down from Kolkata to lead the first opposition protest to Rashtrapati Bhawan in the early part of the session, in which the Congress and the Left did not join, quickly moved in to work on the divided lines. Congress leaders and other Opposition politicians address mediapersons after meeting President Pranab Mukherjee in New Delhi on Friday | Shekhar Yadav The TMC reached out to BSP and SP leaders post-march. We told them, we understand their problem and appreciate the reason for which they pulled out-they have to fight elections in theirs State, TMC MP Derek OBrien said, adding that their party leader would have done it differently. TMC leader Mamata, OBrien, said, would have displayed more political sense. Not diluted the attack on the PM, got distracted from the core issue. Opposition unity should have taken precedence, he said. This slight misstep, two days after Rahul vowed to explode the PMs balloon and cause an earthquake with revelations on the demonetisation issue, not only made the Congress vice-president look inconsistent but also helped Mamata upstage him. The TMC quickly reached out to the two disgruntled members of the opposition the SP and the BSP and re-emerged as the unifying force. Asked what happened, BSP MP Ashok Siddharth shot back: Why, dont we care for the farmers? Didnt we raise slogan for the farmers? That the Congress took a unilateral delegation to the PM on farmers plight in the backdrop of the UP/Punjab polls amidst lowering of wheat import duties and the currency crisis disrupting the winter sowing season, was not appreciated. The Left too was no less upset. CPIs D Raja, however, said that his party has signed the memorandum submitted to the President. But how could we walk off to meet the President when the house (Lok Sabha) was still in session, he asked. CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury was almost dismissive of the protest march. From the beginning, we were telling them (other opposition parties) whats the point in going to the President. What can he do? Weve to fight it out inside and outside Parliament, on the streetswe had agreed for opposition unity. The NCPs Praful Patel justified his partys withdrawal from the march citing reasons similar to the BSPs: Dont we care for the farmers? In short, the divide in the opposition rank helped Prime Minister Narendra Modi assume the moral high-ground nation above the partyOpposition backing corruption to indirectly paint the Congress-led protest as desperation of electoral politics dating back to Indira era. He never even bothered to mention about the meeting ground found between the main opposition party and the government. At the meeting, the PM made no commitment for a loan waiver as Rahul Gandhi later told the media. But the PM did tell the Congress delegation: We should be meeting like this. Upon which Mallikarjun Kharge quipped, Even if our hearts dont meet, we can at least cooperate and shake hands. If the appointment given by the PM was intended to divide the opposition ranks, he had succeeded in it. Even though, it could not save the winter session. Mulayam rules out tie-up with Cong in UP That the meeting with PM could cost the Congress more than just a rapture in the opposition rank was evident from Samajwadi Party supremos rebuttal to a media group later. Theres no talk of any alliance with the Congress, Mulayam Singh Yadav declared, with an assertion that the SP will go it alone in UP. He totally ruled out a seat-sharing or power-sharing pact with the grand old party. NEW DELHI: The 16-party opposition unity went for a toss after Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi met Prime Minister Narendra Modi with a group of senior Congress leaders in the age-old style of prayer and petition , to urge him to consider giving loan-waiver to distressed farmers. At least, in the poll-bound states of Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. Angry BSP, SP, Left, NCP and DMK pulled out of Sonia Gandhi led protest march to Rashtrapati Bhawan on the governments controversial demonetisation drive and its impact on the people. Also, to blame the treasury for the winter session wash out. She led a down-sized opposition march with TMC, JD-U, RJD and RSP. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who had come down from Kolkata to lead the first opposition protest to Rashtrapati Bhawan in the early part of the session, in which the Congress and the Left did not join, quickly moved in to work on the divided lines. Congress leaders and other Opposition politicians address mediapersons after meeting President Pranab Mukherjee in New Delhi on Friday | Shekhar YadavThe TMC reached out to BSP and SP leaders post-march. We told them, we understand their problem and appreciate the reason for which they pulled out-they have to fight elections in theirs State, TMC MP Derek OBrien said, adding that their party leader would have done it differently. TMC leader Mamata, OBrien, said, would have displayed more political sense. Not diluted the attack on the PM, got distracted from the core issue. Opposition unity should have taken precedence, he said. This slight misstep, two days after Rahul vowed to explode the PMs balloon and cause an earthquake with revelations on the demonetisation issue, not only made the Congress vice-president look inconsistent but also helped Mamata upstage him. The TMC quickly reached out to the two disgruntled members of the opposition the SP and the BSP and re-emerged as the unifying force. Asked what happened, BSP MP Ashok Siddharth shot back: Why, dont we care for the farmers? Didnt we raise slogan for the farmers? That the Congress took a unilateral delegation to the PM on farmers plight in the backdrop of the UP/Punjab polls amidst lowering of wheat import duties and the currency crisis disrupting the winter sowing season, was not appreciated. The Left too was no less upset. CPIs D Raja, however, said that his party has signed the memorandum submitted to the President. But how could we walk off to meet the President when the house (Lok Sabha) was still in session, he asked. CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury was almost dismissive of the protest march. From the beginning, we were telling them (other opposition parties) whats the point in going to the President. What can he do? Weve to fight it out inside and outside Parliament, on the streetswe had agreed for opposition unity. The NCPs Praful Patel justified his partys withdrawal from the march citing reasons similar to the BSPs: Dont we care for the farmers? In short, the divide in the opposition rank helped Prime Minister Narendra Modi assume the moral high-ground nation above the partyOpposition backing corruption to indirectly paint the Congress-led protest as desperation of electoral politics dating back to Indira era. He never even bothered to mention about the meeting ground found between the main opposition party and the government. At the meeting, the PM made no commitment for a loan waiver as Rahul Gandhi later told the media. But the PM did tell the Congress delegation: We should be meeting like this. Upon which Mallikarjun Kharge quipped, Even if our hearts dont meet, we can at least cooperate and shake hands. If the appointment given by the PM was intended to divide the opposition ranks, he had succeeded in it. Even though, it could not save the winter session. Mulayam rules out tie-up with Cong in UP That the meeting with PM could cost the Congress more than just a rapture in the opposition rank was evident from Samajwadi Party supremos rebuttal to a media group later. Theres no talk of any alliance with the Congress, Mulayam Singh Yadav declared, with an assertion that the SP will go it alone in UP. He totally ruled out a seat-sharing or power-sharing pact with the grand old party. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The CBI has registered an FIR against some customers of digital wallet PayTm on the companys complaint that it has allegedly been cheated to the tune of Rs 6.15 lakh by customers based in New Delhi. It is rare for the agency to take up such cases unless they have been referred by the central government or there are directions by the Supreme Court or a High Court. The CBI, however, said that it can register cases under the IT Act in the territory of Delhi even against private individuals and has been doing so since the year 2000. FIR has been registered against 15 customers based in New Delhi besides unknown officials of One97 Communicationsparent company of Paytm. In the complaint the company claimed that it has a policy of refunding customers who receive defective products and also arranges for a reverse pickup of the product. However, the company found that in 48 cases, customers had received refunds even though the delivery of orders was made successfully to them. It alleged that customers illegally appropriated money refunded in their bank accounts and wallets and claimed that the acts reflects serious fraud. NEW DELHI: The CBI has registered an FIR against some customers of digital wallet PayTm on the companys complaint that it has allegedly been cheated to the tune of Rs 6.15 lakh by customers based in New Delhi. It is rare for the agency to take up such cases unless they have been referred by the central government or there are directions by the Supreme Court or a High Court. The CBI, however, said that it can register cases under the IT Act in the territory of Delhi even against private individuals and has been doing so since the year 2000. FIR has been registered against 15 customers based in New Delhi besides unknown officials of One97 Communicationsparent company of Paytm. In the complaint the company claimed that it has a policy of refunding customers who receive defective products and also arranges for a reverse pickup of the product. However, the company found that in 48 cases, customers had received refunds even though the delivery of orders was made successfully to them. It alleged that customers illegally appropriated money refunded in their bank accounts and wallets and claimed that the acts reflects serious fraud. By PTI NEW DELHI: India has made a fresh request to Denmark seeking extradition of Niels Holck aka Kim Davy, an accused in the 21-year-old Purulia arms drop case. The fresh efforts come after previous attempts to bring him to India for facing prosecution failed as the courts in Denmark rejected the extradition plea. CBI sources said a fresh request has been sent to Denmark but refused to divulge the new grounds under which it has been sent, citing confidentiality. Meanwhile, the Danish Justice Minister Soren Paulson was quoted by Copenhagen-based newspaper 'Berlingske' as saying that they have received the request from India. "Public Prosecutions will now consider the request under the provisions of the Extradition Act," the web site of the daily quoted a press release from the minister's office. "He stresses that it is important that the matter be treated as soon as possible, and with the thoroughness that such matters require," it said. The Danish government had accepted India's request for extraditing Davy, who was wanted in the infamous Purulia arms drop case, but he challenged the proceedings in a city court in Copenhagen which rejected the extradition. The Danish authorities challenged the decision in the High Court which also rejected their plea citing poor prison conditions, including overcrowding, torture and human rights record of India. The Danish legal authorities then decided not to pursue the matter further and refused to file an appeal in the Supreme Court there against the High Court decision. CBI sources said Indian authorities were not a party to the case and cannot directly intervene. They said the courts were not considering the merits of the alleged crime but on the prison conditions and human rights issues in India. The case relates to the incident on the night of December 17, 1995, when an AN-26 aircraft dropped arms and ammunition in West Bengal's Purulia district. The consignment had hundreds of AK-47 rifles, pistols, anti-tank grenades, rocket launchers and thousands of rounds of ammunition. The crew consisted of five Latvian citizens and British national Peter Bleach all of whom were arrested. Davy, a Danish citizen and the prime accused in the case, had escaped. The crew were released from a prison in Kolkata in 2000 after requests from the Russian authorities, while Bleach was given a presidential pardon in 2004 following requests by the UK government. NEW DELHI: India has made a fresh request to Denmark seeking extradition of Niels Holck aka Kim Davy, an accused in the 21-year-old Purulia arms drop case. The fresh efforts come after previous attempts to bring him to India for facing prosecution failed as the courts in Denmark rejected the extradition plea. CBI sources said a fresh request has been sent to Denmark but refused to divulge the new grounds under which it has been sent, citing confidentiality. Meanwhile, the Danish Justice Minister Soren Paulson was quoted by Copenhagen-based newspaper 'Berlingske' as saying that they have received the request from India. "Public Prosecutions will now consider the request under the provisions of the Extradition Act," the web site of the daily quoted a press release from the minister's office. "He stresses that it is important that the matter be treated as soon as possible, and with the thoroughness that such matters require," it said. The Danish government had accepted India's request for extraditing Davy, who was wanted in the infamous Purulia arms drop case, but he challenged the proceedings in a city court in Copenhagen which rejected the extradition. The Danish authorities challenged the decision in the High Court which also rejected their plea citing poor prison conditions, including overcrowding, torture and human rights record of India. The Danish legal authorities then decided not to pursue the matter further and refused to file an appeal in the Supreme Court there against the High Court decision. CBI sources said Indian authorities were not a party to the case and cannot directly intervene. They said the courts were not considering the merits of the alleged crime but on the prison conditions and human rights issues in India. The case relates to the incident on the night of December 17, 1995, when an AN-26 aircraft dropped arms and ammunition in West Bengal's Purulia district. The consignment had hundreds of AK-47 rifles, pistols, anti-tank grenades, rocket launchers and thousands of rounds of ammunition. The crew consisted of five Latvian citizens and British national Peter Bleach all of whom were arrested. Davy, a Danish citizen and the prime accused in the case, had escaped. The crew were released from a prison in Kolkata in 2000 after requests from the Russian authorities, while Bleach was given a presidential pardon in 2004 following requests by the UK government. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The Centre on Saturday appointed Balochistan expert and 1981-batch Madhya Pradesh cadre IPS officer Anil Dhasmana as Secretary of Research and Analysis Wing and 1980-batch Jharkhand cadre IPS officer Rajiv Jain as the Director of Intelligence Bureau. As reported earlier by The Sunday Standard, Dhasmana will take over the reins of the Research and Analysis Wing from the outgoing chief Rajinder Khanna whose tenure comes to an end on December 31. RAW is the external Intelligence of the country and its chief is designated as Secretary, Research, Cabinet Secretariat. Dhasmana was scheduled to retire on December 31 but with this appointment, he will have a fixed tenure of two more years in the key agency. Dhasmana, originally an IPS officer merged his cadre with the Research and Analysis Service. He has served with the RAW for the last 23 years and was presently Special Secretary in the agency. He has served with the RAW in major desks including London, Frankfurt and Pakistan. Both the top posts carry a fixed tenure of two years from the date of joining. Both the appointees will take over the charge of their respective top posts on January 1. Jain, who is at present serving as the Special Director in the IB, will take over on January 1 after the incumbent Dineshwar Sharma completes his two-year term this month end. Jain is a recipient of President's Police Medal and has served in various capacities in the agency including the sensitive Kashmir desk. Jain was advisor to the previous NDA government's interlocutor on Kashmir K C Pant when talks were held with Kashmiri separatist leaders. NEW DELHI: The Centre on Saturday appointed Balochistan expert and 1981-batch Madhya Pradesh cadre IPS officer Anil Dhasmana as Secretary of Research and Analysis Wing and 1980-batch Jharkhand cadre IPS officer Rajiv Jain as the Director of Intelligence Bureau. As reported earlier by The Sunday Standard, Dhasmana will take over the reins of the Research and Analysis Wing from the outgoing chief Rajinder Khanna whose tenure comes to an end on December 31. RAW is the external Intelligence of the country and its chief is designated as Secretary, Research, Cabinet Secretariat. Dhasmana was scheduled to retire on December 31 but with this appointment, he will have a fixed tenure of two more years in the key agency. Dhasmana, originally an IPS officer merged his cadre with the Research and Analysis Service. He has served with the RAW for the last 23 years and was presently Special Secretary in the agency. He has served with the RAW in major desks including London, Frankfurt and Pakistan. Both the top posts carry a fixed tenure of two years from the date of joining. Both the appointees will take over the charge of their respective top posts on January 1. Jain, who is at present serving as the Special Director in the IB, will take over on January 1 after the incumbent Dineshwar Sharma completes his two-year term this month end. Jain is a recipient of President's Police Medal and has served in various capacities in the agency including the sensitive Kashmir desk. Jain was advisor to the previous NDA government's interlocutor on Kashmir K C Pant when talks were held with Kashmiri separatist leaders. By ANI SHIMLA: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on Saturday said the rejection of his plea by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) is a part of a political vendetta and now he would appeal in a higher court against this verdict. This is all based on a political vendetta. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has already sent two special judges to hear my case. Jaitley and Anurag Thakur are trying to target me, claimed Singh. Singh said he would appeal against the ruling as per requirement. The ITAT dismissed Singhs appeal filed against the I-T department's move to reopen assessment of tax returns submitted by him for fiscal 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12. In September, the Enforcement Directorate filed a charge sheet against LIC agent Anand Chauhan in a money laundering case involving Virbhadra Singh and others. A Delhi court had earlier on August 20 dismissed Chauhan's bail petition. Chauhan was arrested on July 9 in Chandigarh by the Enforcement Directorate after he failed to cooperate. Chauhan was arrested under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), as he was instrumental in investing Rs. five crores in LIC policies in the name of the Chief Minister's family, including his wife and children. SHIMLA: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on Saturday said the rejection of his plea by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) is a part of a political vendetta and now he would appeal in a higher court against this verdict. This is all based on a political vendetta. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has already sent two special judges to hear my case. Jaitley and Anurag Thakur are trying to target me, claimed Singh. Singh said he would appeal against the ruling as per requirement. The ITAT dismissed Singhs appeal filed against the I-T department's move to reopen assessment of tax returns submitted by him for fiscal 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12. In September, the Enforcement Directorate filed a charge sheet against LIC agent Anand Chauhan in a money laundering case involving Virbhadra Singh and others. A Delhi court had earlier on August 20 dismissed Chauhan's bail petition. Chauhan was arrested on July 9 in Chandigarh by the Enforcement Directorate after he failed to cooperate. Chauhan was arrested under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), as he was instrumental in investing Rs. five crores in LIC policies in the name of the Chief Minister's family, including his wife and children. Sanjib Kumar Roy By Express News Service The Income Tax (I-T) unit of Andaman and Nicobar Islands today began investigation on the seizure of cash worth Rs 16 lakh from a priest, at Port Blair airport. The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) team deputed at Veer Savarkar International Airport, Port Blair on Friday seized huge amount of cash from the priest, a Chennai bound passenger. As per reports the person, identified as G Gopal Krishnan was heading towards Chennai via Indigo Airlines with cash of Rs 16,00,000. During the X-Ray baggage checking, upon noticing something suspicious in his bag, the CISF personnel immediately opened and checked the bag. Sources said that while checking, the CISF unit found around seven and a half bundles of new Rs 2000 notes and some notes of new Rs 500 kept in two different bags. Sources also said that the man was also carrying Rs 1,00,000 in old currencies. The CISF unit immediately informed the matter to the I-T department unit of A & N Islands, after which a team of officials reached the spot and took the man for interrogation. The officials also took the cash in their custody. After the interrogation, on Saturday, the I-T officials found that out of the seized amount, 15 lakh rupees were of some jewellery shop owner based out of Andaman. Subsequently, a team of I-T officials along with a police team interrogated the businessman. Our men went with I-T team to the jewellery shop, from where the person is said to have received such huge cash. I cant give more details about this matter at this moment, a senior police officer told TNIE. The entire episode has raised many questions as to how the man managed to collect the new Rs 2000 denomination notes in such large numbers and which bank has issued the amount. This seizure can also be a massive crackdown against black money in Andaman since demonetisation, further details are awaited. The Income Tax (I-T) unit of Andaman and Nicobar Islands today began investigation on the seizure of cash worth Rs 16 lakh from a priest, at Port Blair airport. The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) team deputed at Veer Savarkar International Airport, Port Blair on Friday seized huge amount of cash from the priest, a Chennai bound passenger. As per reports the person, identified as G Gopal Krishnan was heading towards Chennai via Indigo Airlines with cash of Rs 16,00,000. During the X-Ray baggage checking, upon noticing something suspicious in his bag, the CISF personnel immediately opened and checked the bag. Sources said that while checking, the CISF unit found around seven and a half bundles of new Rs 2000 notes and some notes of new Rs 500 kept in two different bags. Sources also said that the man was also carrying Rs 1,00,000 in old currencies. The CISF unit immediately informed the matter to the I-T department unit of A & N Islands, after which a team of officials reached the spot and took the man for interrogation. The officials also took the cash in their custody. After the interrogation, on Saturday, the I-T officials found that out of the seized amount, 15 lakh rupees were of some jewellery shop owner based out of Andaman. Subsequently, a team of I-T officials along with a police team interrogated the businessman. Our men went with I-T team to the jewellery shop, from where the person is said to have received such huge cash. I cant give more details about this matter at this moment, a senior police officer told TNIE. The entire episode has raised many questions as to how the man managed to collect the new Rs 2000 denomination notes in such large numbers and which bank has issued the amount. This seizure can also be a massive crackdown against black money in Andaman since demonetisation, further details are awaited. MOUNT PLEASANT A man and woman were charged Thursday after they were found using heroin in a Piggly Wiggly bathroom while shoplifting, authorities reported. Jamie N. Brooks, 32, and Stephanie A. Creech, 29, both of the 1700 block of 17th Street, were seen shoplifting around 12:38 p.m. Wednesday by a loss prevention officer at Piggly Wiggly, 5201 Washington Ave., according to the criminal complaint. An officer reportedly found the two inside the handicapped stall in the women's bathroom. When the officer opened the stall door, he saw Creech trying to conceal a needle, the complaint said. Police allegedly found four needles and discovered heroin was in one of them. Creech and Brooks were taken into custody. Creech reportedly told police she was six months pregnant and was trying to break her addiction to heroin, according to the complaint. Both face a felony charge for possession of narcotic drugs and two misdemeanor charges for possession of drug paraphernalia and retail theft. They are scheduled for preliminary hearings at 9 a.m. Dec. 22 at the Racine County Law Enforcement Center, 717 Wisconsin Ave. Both remained in custody as of Thursday afternoon at the Racine County Jail, online records showed. By Express News Service KOCHI: Establishing the rumors that the tickets for the final match of Indian Super League (ISL) on Sunday are being sold in the black market, the Palarivattom police on Saturday morning booked two youths for selling the tickets. The police arrested two college students, natives of Ernakulam and Malappuram. The police took them in custody and the investigation is underway. According to police, they were selling the tickets of Rs 300 for Rs 1300 and were nabbed from the premises of the stadium. Despite reports suggesting that the authorities had released 30,000 tickets, the fans are finding it difficult to obtain tickets for the finals. Police said that a detailed investigation will be held in this regard. The police have also tightened the security at the stadium from Saturday. KOCHI: Establishing the rumors that the tickets for the final match of Indian Super League (ISL) on Sunday are being sold in the black market, the Palarivattom police on Saturday morning booked two youths for selling the tickets. The police arrested two college students, natives of Ernakulam and Malappuram. The police took them in custody and the investigation is underway. According to police, they were selling the tickets of Rs 300 for Rs 1300 and were nabbed from the premises of the stadium. Despite reports suggesting that the authorities had released 30,000 tickets, the fans are finding it difficult to obtain tickets for the finals. Police said that a detailed investigation will be held in this regard. The police have also tightened the security at the stadium from Saturday. Fayaz Wani By Express News Service SRI NAGAR: Three soldiers were killed after heavily armed militants attacked their convoy in Pampore area on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway on the outskirts of Srinagar on Saturday. An army official in Srinagar said militants armed with AK-rifles fired indiscriminately on a vehicle, which was part of an army convoy, in Kadlabal area of Pampore on Srinagar-Jammu national highway, some 14 km south of Srinagar, summer capital of the State at around 2.55 pm. He said five soldiers were injured in the militant attack. The injured soldiers were evacuated to military hospital at Badamibagh Srinagar, where three jawans succumbed to injuries. Two others are undergoing treatment, the official said. He said the attack on convoy was carried out by motorbike-borne militants. The convoy was on its way to Srinagar from Jammu. After the militant attack, police, paramilitary and army men launched a joint combing and search operation in the area to track down the militants responsible for the attack. No militant group has claimed responsibility of the attack. However, a senior police official said it could either be handiwork of the Lashkar-e-Toiba or Hizbul Mujahideen militants. Both Lashkar and Hizb militants are active in South Kashmir and militants of any of the two groups would have been involved in the attack, he said adding they have launched investigation to identify the attackers and track them. J&K Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti has condemned the killing of three army personnel in the militant attack. Violence has never helped in the resolution of issues but only compounded the human miseries, she said and expressed her sympathies to the families of the slain army men. SRI NAGAR: Three soldiers were killed after heavily armed militants attacked their convoy in Pampore area on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway on the outskirts of Srinagar on Saturday. An army official in Srinagar said militants armed with AK-rifles fired indiscriminately on a vehicle, which was part of an army convoy, in Kadlabal area of Pampore on Srinagar-Jammu national highway, some 14 km south of Srinagar, summer capital of the State at around 2.55 pm. He said five soldiers were injured in the militant attack. The injured soldiers were evacuated to military hospital at Badamibagh Srinagar, where three jawans succumbed to injuries. Two others are undergoing treatment, the official said. He said the attack on convoy was carried out by motorbike-borne militants. The convoy was on its way to Srinagar from Jammu. After the militant attack, police, paramilitary and army men launched a joint combing and search operation in the area to track down the militants responsible for the attack. No militant group has claimed responsibility of the attack. However, a senior police official said it could either be handiwork of the Lashkar-e-Toiba or Hizbul Mujahideen militants. Both Lashkar and Hizb militants are active in South Kashmir and militants of any of the two groups would have been involved in the attack, he said adding they have launched investigation to identify the attackers and track them. J&K Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti has condemned the killing of three army personnel in the militant attack. Violence has never helped in the resolution of issues but only compounded the human miseries, she said and expressed her sympathies to the families of the slain army men. G Parthasarathy By For over four decades now, India has looked on helplessly as all its efforts to promote peace, economic cooperation and regional economic integration in South Asia through SAARC, were thwarted by Pakistan. South Asia remained the least economically integrated region in our immediate neighbourhood, thanks to Pakistani obstructionism. Backed strongly by Afghanistan and Bangladesh, India decided earlier this year to boycott the SAARC Summit, scheduled to be held in Islamabad. This occurred after the Uri terrorist attack. It reinforced moves by India to build communications and energy links sub-regionally with Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan. All our eastern neighbours (including Myanmar and Thailand) across the Bay of Bengal, who are members of Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), were invited for the prestigious BRICS Summit in Goa, signalling to the world that India regarded BIMSTEC, where Pakistan is not a member, and not SAARC, as the prime institution for regional cooperation, in our neighbourhood. The surgical strike across the Line of Control has, meanwhile, created uncertainties in Pakistan, about how we will react in future, to cross-border terrorism. Continuing Indian inaction on cross-border terrorism can no longer be taken for granted by Pakistan, or by the international community. These moves this year have accompanied steps for closer ties with Japan and ASEAN countries to our east and Afghanistan, Iran, the Gulf Arab States and Israel to our west. While differences with China over its growing military profile in Pakistan and the Indian Ocean Region have continued, both India and China ensured that tensions across the Sino-Indian border dont rise. In 2017, the primary focus of attentionnot only in India but across the worldis going to be on the policies of the new US Administration, headed by the mercurial Mr Donald Trump. His strident anti-Muslim rhetoric has the over 1.6-billion Muslims worldwide concerned and bewildered. There are also uncertainties on American policies across Asia. US allies like Japan and South Korea have been left astonished by Trumps assertions that the US would not bear the costs of having to defend them. Moreover, he appears to have totally confused the Chinese by threatening to impose restrictions on Chinas exports and on Chinese companies investing in the US. He has been seen as having reached out to the President of Taiwan (which runs contrary to US policies since 1979), while lashing out at Chinas policies in the South China Sea. At the same time he has, with great fanfare, appointed one of his Republican Party colleagues, known to be friendly to China and personally known to President Xi Jinping, as his Envoy to China. The US, being a global power, fashions its ties with India, on the basis of its worldview. The US has, from the days of the Bush Administration, built a growing strategic partnership with India, because India provides a viable balance of power to a growingly assertive, powerful and militaristic China. It is on this basis that the US has expanded military ties with India, supported our Permanent Membership of the UN Security Council and shown increasing support for our efforts to deal with terrorism. Washington and New Delhi are virtually on the same page in backing the government in Afghanistan to deal with Pakistan-backed Taliban terrorism. While Mr Trump has spoken to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, his comments while talking to Mr Nawaz Sharif have left Indians, Pakistanis and Americans alike, dumbfounded. Moreover, his aides designated for high office in the Pentagon and White House hold differing views on crucial issues like relations with Russia. Deciphering what Mr Donald Trump intends to do will, in itself, be a complex exercise in 2017! dadpartha@gmail.com For over four decades now, India has looked on helplessly as all its efforts to promote peace, economic cooperation and regional economic integration in South Asia through SAARC, were thwarted by Pakistan. South Asia remained the least economically integrated region in our immediate neighbourhood, thanks to Pakistani obstructionism. Backed strongly by Afghanistan and Bangladesh, India decided earlier this year to boycott the SAARC Summit, scheduled to be held in Islamabad. This occurred after the Uri terrorist attack. It reinforced moves by India to build communications and energy links sub-regionally with Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan. All our eastern neighbours (including Myanmar and Thailand) across the Bay of Bengal, who are members of Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), were invited for the prestigious BRICS Summit in Goa, signalling to the world that India regarded BIMSTEC, where Pakistan is not a member, and not SAARC, as the prime institution for regional cooperation, in our neighbourhood. The surgical strike across the Line of Control has, meanwhile, created uncertainties in Pakistan, about how we will react in future, to cross-border terrorism. Continuing Indian inaction on cross-border terrorism can no longer be taken for granted by Pakistan, or by the international community. These moves this year have accompanied steps for closer ties with Japan and ASEAN countries to our east and Afghanistan, Iran, the Gulf Arab States and Israel to our west. While differences with China over its growing military profile in Pakistan and the Indian Ocean Region have continued, both India and China ensured that tensions across the Sino-Indian border dont rise. In 2017, the primary focus of attentionnot only in India but across the worldis going to be on the policies of the new US Administration, headed by the mercurial Mr Donald Trump. His strident anti-Muslim rhetoric has the over 1.6-billion Muslims worldwide concerned and bewildered. There are also uncertainties on American policies across Asia. US allies like Japan and South Korea have been left astonished by Trumps assertions that the US would not bear the costs of having to defend them. Moreover, he appears to have totally confused the Chinese by threatening to impose restrictions on Chinas exports and on Chinese companies investing in the US. He has been seen as having reached out to the President of Taiwan (which runs contrary to US policies since 1979), while lashing out at Chinas policies in the South China Sea. At the same time he has, with great fanfare, appointed one of his Republican Party colleagues, known to be friendly to China and personally known to President Xi Jinping, as his Envoy to China. The US, being a global power, fashions its ties with India, on the basis of its worldview. The US has, from the days of the Bush Administration, built a growing strategic partnership with India, because India provides a viable balance of power to a growingly assertive, powerful and militaristic China. It is on this basis that the US has expanded military ties with India, supported our Permanent Membership of the UN Security Council and shown increasing support for our efforts to deal with terrorism. Washington and New Delhi are virtually on the same page in backing the government in Afghanistan to deal with Pakistan-backed Taliban terrorism. While Mr Trump has spoken to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, his comments while talking to Mr Nawaz Sharif have left Indians, Pakistanis and Americans alike, dumbfounded. Moreover, his aides designated for high office in the Pentagon and White House hold differing views on crucial issues like relations with Russia. Deciphering what Mr Donald Trump intends to do will, in itself, be a complex exercise in 2017! dadpartha@gmail.com Prabhu Chawla By Money makes the mare go, but the nightmare of black money doesnt go away from politics. Perceptively, there is nothing white in raj neeti. Nobody in India believes our leaders fight elections with white money. Unaccounted pelf mostly finances their ostentatious lifestyles and plush offices in gigantic modern buildings and restored Lutyens edifices. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made the eradication of black money his mission. He has played the biggest gamble of his political life by demonetising over 85 percent of Indian currency. If it succeeds, history will hail him as an invincible reformer. Its failure will erode his hard earned political capital. On the very first day of the last Parliament session, he invited all political parties to discuss the mode of collecting money. But his passionate plea for fund reform fell on the deaf ears of all political parties, including his own. For the past seven weeks, many government agencies have been hounding black money operators, raiding and arresting them. Their ill gotten assets are being frozen. Modis decisive coup against black money got him the endorsement of 70 per cent Indians. Both his admirers and adversaries were under the belief that his actions were meant to prevent parties from using dubious dosh in the coming Assembly polls. In the midst of his tirade against tainted lucre came a dampener from the Finance Ministry. In a routine press conference, Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia clarified that all the registered political parties can deposit old currency in their accounts, without inviting taxes or punitive action. He was legally right. Section 13A of the Income Tax Act, 1961, grants tax exemption to political parties in respect of income from house property, capital gains and other legitimate sources. Currently, no party is expected by law to disclose the names of donors who made contributions less than Rs 20,000. This provision is misused by all of them without exception. They dont keep records of such donations. Only amounts above Rs 20,000 are reported to the Election Commission. According to analysis of political funding done by various non-governmental organisations, over 75 per cent of the total donations to all parties fell into the below Rs 20,000 mark. According to a Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) report, 79.68 per cent of the income of the five national political parties came from unknown sources in 2012-13. It was also revealed that 57 per cent of their total income in 2013-14 was from the sale of coupons which did not bear the names of the purchasers. All political parties have been printing an unknown quantity of such coupons of various denominations for the past few decades and showing them as a major source of income in their returns filed with the Election Commission. The poll body has been raising the spectre of black money in elections for the past few years. But parties have always ignored the call for electoral reform, because it would destroy the source of income of many important political heavy hitters. Political parties are the most profitable parking lots for illicit money. During the past few years, the growth of new political outfits in the country has outpaced the growth of middle and medium manufacturing units and even the GDP. According to a study, parties have grown by 20 per cent since 2004 as against the GDP growth of less than 5 per cent at constant prices. While the number of national parties is almost stagnant at 6, the count of registered but unrecognised parties has risen from 1,094 in 2005 to 1,866 in 2015. Interestingly, 239 new political organisations were registered within a span of 16 months from March 2014 to July 2015. For wannabe netas, it makes more business sense to float a party than running a genuine business enterprise because it insulates them from scrutiny or punishment under income tax laws, which are applicable to the rest of the country. The elephant in the room is the black money spent by a spectrum of candidates and political parties in Panchayat polls to Lok Sabha elections. While the Election Commission has fixed a limit on expenses for each election, almost all the candidates end up spending much more. According to conservative estimates, both collectively spend over Rs 80,000 crore every five years. For example, on an average, there are at least four serious candidates who contest each of the 542 Lok Sabha seats. Though some even splurge over Rs 10 crore as against the limit of Rs 70 lakh per seat, the average expenditure comes to about Rs 5 crore per constituency. This amounts to over Rs 11,000 crore spent just standing for the Lok Sabha; a sum which includes the money spent by their respective parties. There are 4,125 Assembly seats in India, each of which are contested by four serious candidates. Each party and candidate spends about Rs 1 crore per seat taking the total expenditure up to Rs 16,500 crore. Hold on. The Indian political superstructure comprises over half-a-million local bodies like Panchayat Samitis, Zila Parsihads, Municipal Councils and Municipal Corporations. Even one Panchayat election costs over Rs 1 lakh. To contest a corporation seat in big cities like Delhi and Mumbai, a candidate spends almost Rs 25-Rs 50 lakh. Over Rs 50,000 crore is spent on local body elections all over the country. Political parties dish out an additional Rs 100 crore plus annually on chartered planes, helicopters and administrative expenses. But the Election Commission has never received accounts for more than Rs 2,000 crore from all the parties put together. Since black money is generated from unknown sources, the battle should be extended to strike at the cynical substratum of political party funding, which is resisting even RTI purview. The war against black money cannot be won completely unless money minting political entrepreneurs are targeted with equal vengeance and verve. Prabhu Chawla prabhuchawla@ newindianexpress.com Follow him on Twitter @PrabhuChawla Money makes the mare go, but the nightmare of black money doesnt go away from politics. Perceptively, there is nothing white in raj neeti. Nobody in India believes our leaders fight elections with white money. Unaccounted pelf mostly finances their ostentatious lifestyles and plush offices in gigantic modern buildings and restored Lutyens edifices. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made the eradication of black money his mission. He has played the biggest gamble of his political life by demonetising over 85 percent of Indian currency. If it succeeds, history will hail him as an invincible reformer. Its failure will erode his hard earned political capital. On the very first day of the last Parliament session, he invited all political parties to discuss the mode of collecting money. But his passionate plea for fund reform fell on the deaf ears of all political parties, including his own. For the past seven weeks, many government agencies have been hounding black money operators, raiding and arresting them. Their ill gotten assets are being frozen. Modis decisive coup against black money got him the endorsement of 70 per cent Indians. Both his admirers and adversaries were under the belief that his actions were meant to prevent parties from using dubious dosh in the coming Assembly polls. In the midst of his tirade against tainted lucre came a dampener from the Finance Ministry. In a routine press conference, Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia clarified that all the registered political parties can deposit old currency in their accounts, without inviting taxes or punitive action. He was legally right. Section 13A of the Income Tax Act, 1961, grants tax exemption to political parties in respect of income from house property, capital gains and other legitimate sources. Currently, no party is expected by law to disclose the names of donors who made contributions less than Rs 20,000. This provision is misused by all of them without exception. They dont keep records of such donations. Only amounts above Rs 20,000 are reported to the Election Commission. According to analysis of political funding done by various non-governmental organisations, over 75 per cent of the total donations to all parties fell into the below Rs 20,000 mark. According to a Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) report, 79.68 per cent of the income of the five national political parties came from unknown sources in 2012-13. It was also revealed that 57 per cent of their total income in 2013-14 was from the sale of coupons which did not bear the names of the purchasers. All political parties have been printing an unknown quantity of such coupons of various denominations for the past few decades and showing them as a major source of income in their returns filed with the Election Commission. The poll body has been raising the spectre of black money in elections for the past few years. But parties have always ignored the call for electoral reform, because it would destroy the source of income of many important political heavy hitters. Political parties are the most profitable parking lots for illicit money. During the past few years, the growth of new political outfits in the country has outpaced the growth of middle and medium manufacturing units and even the GDP. According to a study, parties have grown by 20 per cent since 2004 as against the GDP growth of less than 5 per cent at constant prices. While the number of national parties is almost stagnant at 6, the count of registered but unrecognised parties has risen from 1,094 in 2005 to 1,866 in 2015. Interestingly, 239 new political organisations were registered within a span of 16 months from March 2014 to July 2015. For wannabe netas, it makes more business sense to float a party than running a genuine business enterprise because it insulates them from scrutiny or punishment under income tax laws, which are applicable to the rest of the country. The elephant in the room is the black money spent by a spectrum of candidates and political parties in Panchayat polls to Lok Sabha elections. While the Election Commission has fixed a limit on expenses for each election, almost all the candidates end up spending much more. According to conservative estimates, both collectively spend over Rs 80,000 crore every five years. For example, on an average, there are at least four serious candidates who contest each of the 542 Lok Sabha seats. Though some even splurge over Rs 10 crore as against the limit of Rs 70 lakh per seat, the average expenditure comes to about Rs 5 crore per constituency. This amounts to over Rs 11,000 crore spent just standing for the Lok Sabha; a sum which includes the money spent by their respective parties. There are 4,125 Assembly seats in India, each of which are contested by four serious candidates. Each party and candidate spends about Rs 1 crore per seat taking the total expenditure up to Rs 16,500 crore. Hold on. The Indian political superstructure comprises over half-a-million local bodies like Panchayat Samitis, Zila Parsihads, Municipal Councils and Municipal Corporations. Even one Panchayat election costs over Rs 1 lakh. To contest a corporation seat in big cities like Delhi and Mumbai, a candidate spends almost Rs 25-Rs 50 lakh. Over Rs 50,000 crore is spent on local body elections all over the country. Political parties dish out an additional Rs 100 crore plus annually on chartered planes, helicopters and administrative expenses. But the Election Commission has never received accounts for more than Rs 2,000 crore from all the parties put together. Since black money is generated from unknown sources, the battle should be extended to strike at the cynical substratum of political party funding, which is resisting even RTI purview. The war against black money cannot be won completely unless money minting political entrepreneurs are targeted with equal vengeance and verve. Prabhu Chawla prabhuchawla@ newindianexpress.com Follow him on Twitter @PrabhuChawla By Express News Service VIJAYAWADA: The State government is of the view that the directions given by the Supreme Court to remove all the wine shops located within 500 meters of the national highways, will not have an adverse impact on the revenues being generated through liquor sales. Though there are as many as 799 liquor shops situated even less than 100 meters from the national highways in the State at present and all of them should be shifted by more than half km in the coming days to implement the orders of the Supreme Court, the prohibition and excise department officials are confident of meeting their yearly targets. Though we have expected that liquor business will be hit post demonetisation, we have not witnessed any such scenario. Even in this particular case, we are certain that the revenues will not dip, an official of the prohibition and excise department said. He was also quick to add that as the State government could not do anything with regard to implementing the Supreme Court directions until June, 2017 as the existing wine shops have been issued licences to operate business until the end of May, there is no need to worry over the development as business will continue to be as usual for another half year. When the tipplers are procuring liquor in advance prior to dry days, how can we assume that shifting wine shops to some distance from national highways can reduce road accidents, he questioned. The State earns Rs 2,500 crore through licence fee per annum through wine shops and bars and restaurants. Minister for Prohibition and Excise Kollu Ravindra, though, asserted that the government is not considering liquor business as a source of revenue. He maintained that the directions of the Supreme Court may or may not have an impact on liquor revenues. Earlier, based on the recommendations of a committee appointed by the Supreme Court, we directed wine shop owners to relocate their shops 100 meters away from national highways. But, with the shop owners knocking on the doors of the court and getting a stay order, the government could not implement the decision. We will strictly enforce the Supreme Court directions and permit the wine shops 500 meters away from highways, the Minister added. He also said as the new policy for bar and restaurants is under preparation and will be completed by the end of December, they will implement the guidelines of the Supreme Court as usual by framing the terms in the new policy, which will come into force from January, 2017. VIJAYAWADA: The State government is of the view that the directions given by the Supreme Court to remove all the wine shops located within 500 meters of the national highways, will not have an adverse impact on the revenues being generated through liquor sales. Though there are as many as 799 liquor shops situated even less than 100 meters from the national highways in the State at present and all of them should be shifted by more than half km in the coming days to implement the orders of the Supreme Court, the prohibition and excise department officials are confident of meeting their yearly targets. Though we have expected that liquor business will be hit post demonetisation, we have not witnessed any such scenario. Even in this particular case, we are certain that the revenues will not dip, an official of the prohibition and excise department said. He was also quick to add that as the State government could not do anything with regard to implementing the Supreme Court directions until June, 2017 as the existing wine shops have been issued licences to operate business until the end of May, there is no need to worry over the development as business will continue to be as usual for another half year. When the tipplers are procuring liquor in advance prior to dry days, how can we assume that shifting wine shops to some distance from national highways can reduce road accidents, he questioned. The State earns Rs 2,500 crore through licence fee per annum through wine shops and bars and restaurants. Minister for Prohibition and Excise Kollu Ravindra, though, asserted that the government is not considering liquor business as a source of revenue. He maintained that the directions of the Supreme Court may or may not have an impact on liquor revenues. Earlier, based on the recommendations of a committee appointed by the Supreme Court, we directed wine shop owners to relocate their shops 100 meters away from national highways. But, with the shop owners knocking on the doors of the court and getting a stay order, the government could not implement the decision. We will strictly enforce the Supreme Court directions and permit the wine shops 500 meters away from highways, the Minister added. He also said as the new policy for bar and restaurants is under preparation and will be completed by the end of December, they will implement the guidelines of the Supreme Court as usual by framing the terms in the new policy, which will come into force from January, 2017. By Express News Service SIVAGANGA:Brand new `2,000 notes to the tune of `30 lakh were robbed during a fight between two currency exchange broker gangs near Ilayangudi in the district on Wednesday. Police have arrested four members of the gang who were allegedly involved in the robbery. They are, however, yet to trace the source of the new currency notes. According to police, Musrath Rahman of Madurai lodged a complaint with the Ilayangudi police claiming that a 15-member gang attacked him and two other men before grabbing the money. Though the complainant concealed the fact that his gang acted as middlemen for exchanging the currency notes, police investigation revealed that his group of men tried getting a commission of 15 per cent by helping the other gang led by one Subburaj. Police said since Subburaj wanted to exchange the banned notes to the tune of `30 lakh, Rahman struck a deal and accepted to hand over `2000 notes in exchange. As they had planned to execute the deal near Mattuthavani-Sivaganga-Melur bypass road near Ilayangudi, Rahman along with two others waited for Subburaj and gang in a car with `30 lakh in the denomination of `2000. It was then the latter arrived in an SUV, attacked the trio, snatched away the cash and fled the spot, police said. Police said four persons have been taken into custody in this connection. The whole picture about the source of the new currency notes and the robbery will come to light only when the key accused Subburaj and Rajendran are arrested, an official said. The Ilayangudi police have registered a case under sections 395 and 397 of the IPC and are yet to recover the robbed cash. SIVAGANGA:Brand new `2,000 notes to the tune of `30 lakh were robbed during a fight between two currency exchange broker gangs near Ilayangudi in the district on Wednesday. Police have arrested four members of the gang who were allegedly involved in the robbery. They are, however, yet to trace the source of the new currency notes. According to police, Musrath Rahman of Madurai lodged a complaint with the Ilayangudi police claiming that a 15-member gang attacked him and two other men before grabbing the money. Though the complainant concealed the fact that his gang acted as middlemen for exchanging the currency notes, police investigation revealed that his group of men tried getting a commission of 15 per cent by helping the other gang led by one Subburaj. Police said since Subburaj wanted to exchange the banned notes to the tune of `30 lakh, Rahman struck a deal and accepted to hand over `2000 notes in exchange. As they had planned to execute the deal near Mattuthavani-Sivaganga-Melur bypass road near Ilayangudi, Rahman along with two others waited for Subburaj and gang in a car with `30 lakh in the denomination of `2000. It was then the latter arrived in an SUV, attacked the trio, snatched away the cash and fled the spot, police said. Police said four persons have been taken into custody in this connection. The whole picture about the source of the new currency notes and the robbery will come to light only when the key accused Subburaj and Rajendran are arrested, an official said. The Ilayangudi police have registered a case under sections 395 and 397 of the IPC and are yet to recover the robbed cash. By Online Desk DMK President M. Karunanidhi will have to be in hospital for some more days for treatment and party members, friends and others are requested not to visit the facility, the party has said. Here are updates on DMK patriarch M Karunanidhis health and party matters in the DMK. Kalaignar to remain in hospital a few days more A DMK HQ release today said Karunanidhi will be in the hospital for "some more days" to undergo treatment. The party asked its cadres to avoid visiting him in hospital and "cooperate". It had made a similar appeal when Karunanidhi was admitted to the hospital for drug-induced allergy in October. The party quoted the health bulletin released by Kauvery Hospital yesterday which said Karunanidhi was stable having undergone the tracheostomy. The ninety-two-year-old Karunanidhi was admitted to Kauvery Hospital here on the night of Dec. 15 with difficulty in breathing due to throat and lung infection. Yesterday, he underwent tracheostomy to optimise breathing. The hospital said the DMK chief's condition was stable. Last night, after the tracheostomy procedure, his condition improved and he watched a Rajinikanth film Batcha on his laptop. DMK defers General Council meeting The DMK today deferred its December 20 General Council meeting of the party where treasurer M K Stalin was expected to be elevated as working president. Stalin's elevation is on the cards as both party chief M Karunanidhi and veteran leader K Anbazhagan, the general secretary, have not been keeping well. The General Council meeting was postponed in view of the hospitalisation of Karunanidhi, Anbazhagan said. In a press release, he said a new date for the General Council meeting would be announced. In the runup to the Assembly polls this year, the nonagenarian leader had said he would be the chief minister if his party won and his son M K Stalin would have to wait "till nature does something to me". Rahul Gandhi calls on Karunanidhi at last Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi called on DMK patriarch Karunanidhi on Saturday. Emerging from the visit, he said, the nonagenarian DMK leader was doing well. "I just met him, I wanted to personally wish him a speedy recovery. I was very happy to see that he is doing well and the doctors told me he is going to go home pretty soon and that is good news." Flanked by senior party leaders including Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president Su Thirunavukkarasar and DMK treasurer M K Stalin, Rahul Gandhi hailed Karuananidhi as a "leader of the Tamil people, leader of Tamil Nadu." This is the first visit that Rahul Gandhi is paying a visit to Karunanidhi in many years. Even during his several previous visits to Tamil Nadu Gandhi he did not call on the nonagenarian leader though Congress and DMK are allies. Weeks ago, when he visited Apollo Hospitals here to enquire about the health of former chief minister Jayalalithaa, there were expectations in the DMK camp that he would pay a visit to party patriarch Karunanidhi as well. However, he did not visit the DMK chief then. DMK President M. Karunanidhi will have to be in hospital for some more days for treatment and party members, friends and others are requested not to visit the facility, the party has said. Here are updates on DMK patriarch M Karunanidhis health and party matters in the DMK. Kalaignar to remain in hospital a few days more A DMK HQ release today said Karunanidhi will be in the hospital for "some more days" to undergo treatment. The party asked its cadres to avoid visiting him in hospital and "cooperate". It had made a similar appeal when Karunanidhi was admitted to the hospital for drug-induced allergy in October. The party quoted the health bulletin released by Kauvery Hospital yesterday which said Karunanidhi was stable having undergone the tracheostomy. The ninety-two-year-old Karunanidhi was admitted to Kauvery Hospital here on the night of Dec. 15 with difficulty in breathing due to throat and lung infection. Yesterday, he underwent tracheostomy to optimise breathing. The hospital said the DMK chief's condition was stable. Last night, after the tracheostomy procedure, his condition improved and he watched a Rajinikanth film Batcha on his laptop. DMK defers General Council meeting The DMK today deferred its December 20 General Council meeting of the party where treasurer M K Stalin was expected to be elevated as working president. Stalin's elevation is on the cards as both party chief M Karunanidhi and veteran leader K Anbazhagan, the general secretary, have not been keeping well. The General Council meeting was postponed in view of the hospitalisation of Karunanidhi, Anbazhagan said. In a press release, he said a new date for the General Council meeting would be announced. In the runup to the Assembly polls this year, the nonagenarian leader had said he would be the chief minister if his party won and his son M K Stalin would have to wait "till nature does something to me". Rahul Gandhi calls on Karunanidhi at last Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi called on DMK patriarch Karunanidhi on Saturday. Emerging from the visit, he said, the nonagenarian DMK leader was doing well. "I just met him, I wanted to personally wish him a speedy recovery. I was very happy to see that he is doing well and the doctors told me he is going to go home pretty soon and that is good news." Flanked by senior party leaders including Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president Su Thirunavukkarasar and DMK treasurer M K Stalin, Rahul Gandhi hailed Karuananidhi as a "leader of the Tamil people, leader of Tamil Nadu." This is the first visit that Rahul Gandhi is paying a visit to Karunanidhi in many years. Even during his several previous visits to Tamil Nadu Gandhi he did not call on the nonagenarian leader though Congress and DMK are allies. Weeks ago, when he visited Apollo Hospitals here to enquire about the health of former chief minister Jayalalithaa, there were expectations in the DMK camp that he would pay a visit to party patriarch Karunanidhi as well. However, he did not visit the DMK chief then. Jonathan Ananda By Express News Service CHENNAI: Even as a battle for control rages on at the highest echelons of the Tata Group, an urea plant owned by Tata Chemicals is set to be sold to corruption-tainted Norwegian group Yara International ASA, subject to regulatory approvals. The deal stands in stark contrast to the publicly declared reasons for the ongoing tussle -- a fight for the soul of Tata Group and its espoused values, especially since the urea business is subsidised by taxpayer money. In August, when Cyrus Mistry was still in charge as chairman of both Tata Sons and Tata Chemicals, the latter announced that it would sell its only urea plant in Barbala, Uttar Pradesh, to Yara Fertilizers India Ltd., a 100 per cent subsidiary of Yara International ASA for `2,670 crore. The sale, it added, would be completed within 9 to 12 months. Yara International was already infamous for being the epicentre of Norways biggest corporate corruption scandal. Four of Yaras former officials, including former CEO Thorleif Enger, were slapped with charges in 2011 for giving bribes (cumulatively amounting to $8 million) to officials in India, Russia and Libya. In January 2014, Yara accepted guilt and was fined 270 million Norwegian Kroner (`225 crore). While three of the four convicted were acquitted on December 2 this year, the conviction against the fourth, a legal counsel, stands. The company has also not withdrawn its admission of guilt. Yara has not been involved in any court cases, but accepted guilt and paid a fine in January 2014. The corporate penalty was reduced due to the transparency and co-operation demonstrated by Yara, said Esben Tuman, vice president, Head of Communications, Yara International ASA, responding to a query raised with Tata Chemicals on the ethicalimplications of the deal. Tuman also stated that corruption is not tolerated and that Yara had voluntarily notified and fully cooperated with the authorities.... The Group, he added, operates its current business in a compliant way and was confident it would be able to continue to do so after the acquisition of the plant. Tata Chemicals, the original addressee of the query, only responded with a statement through Keya Muriya in its Corporate Communications team. Tata Chemicals follows the highest standard of ethical conduct and carries out due diligence for all its business and operations, it said. The firm has now taken centrestage in the feud between Mistry, and group holding company Tata Sons. Independent director Nusli Wadia, Wadia Group chairman and one of the most vocal supporters of Mistry, raised governance issues in the company a few days ago, stating that Tata Sons directors and certain Trustees of Tata Trusts allegedly influenced the management against the Board of Directors and independent directors. Both Wadia and Mistry stand to be removed from the board if shareholders vote against them during the extraordinary general meeting on December 23. Tata Chemicals wanted to exit urea business for good The Barbala urea plant is one of two fertilizer plants owned by Tata Chemicals in India. The plant produces only urea with an annual capacity of about 1.2 million tonnes. The sale will result in the transfer of TCLs urea business along with the assets, liabilities, contracts, deeds etc to Yara India CHENNAI: Even as a battle for control rages on at the highest echelons of the Tata Group, an urea plant owned by Tata Chemicals is set to be sold to corruption-tainted Norwegian group Yara International ASA, subject to regulatory approvals. The deal stands in stark contrast to the publicly declared reasons for the ongoing tussle -- a fight for the soul of Tata Group and its espoused values, especially since the urea business is subsidised by taxpayer money. In August, when Cyrus Mistry was still in charge as chairman of both Tata Sons and Tata Chemicals, the latter announced that it would sell its only urea plant in Barbala, Uttar Pradesh, to Yara Fertilizers India Ltd., a 100 per cent subsidiary of Yara International ASA for `2,670 crore. The sale, it added, would be completed within 9 to 12 months. Yara International was already infamous for being the epicentre of Norways biggest corporate corruption scandal. Four of Yaras former officials, including former CEO Thorleif Enger, were slapped with charges in 2011 for giving bribes (cumulatively amounting to $8 million) to officials in India, Russia and Libya. In January 2014, Yara accepted guilt and was fined 270 million Norwegian Kroner (`225 crore). While three of the four convicted were acquitted on December 2 this year, the conviction against the fourth, a legal counsel, stands. The company has also not withdrawn its admission of guilt. Yara has not been involved in any court cases, but accepted guilt and paid a fine in January 2014. The corporate penalty was reduced due to the transparency and co-operation demonstrated by Yara, said Esben Tuman, vice president, Head of Communications, Yara International ASA, responding to a query raised with Tata Chemicals on the ethicalimplications of the deal. Tuman also stated that corruption is not tolerated and that Yara had voluntarily notified and fully cooperated with the authorities.... The Group, he added, operates its current business in a compliant way and was confident it would be able to continue to do so after the acquisition of the plant. Tata Chemicals, the original addressee of the query, only responded with a statement through Keya Muriya in its Corporate Communications team. Tata Chemicals follows the highest standard of ethical conduct and carries out due diligence for all its business and operations, it said. The firm has now taken centrestage in the feud between Mistry, and group holding company Tata Sons. Independent director Nusli Wadia, Wadia Group chairman and one of the most vocal supporters of Mistry, raised governance issues in the company a few days ago, stating that Tata Sons directors and certain Trustees of Tata Trusts allegedly influenced the management against the Board of Directors and independent directors. Both Wadia and Mistry stand to be removed from the board if shareholders vote against them during the extraordinary general meeting on December 23. Tata Chemicals wanted to exit urea business for good The Barbala urea plant is one of two fertilizer plants owned by Tata Chemicals in India. The plant produces only urea with an annual capacity of about 1.2 million tonnes. The sale will result in the transfer of TCLs urea business along with the assets, liabilities, contracts, deeds etc to Yara India By Express News Service HYDERABAD: Extending full support to Prime Minister Narendra Modis on demonetisation, chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has appealed to the PM to move towards total clean up of the system to eliminate black money. If the process stops, it is a distress to the country, Rao said while speaking on a short discussion on the impact of demonetisation on the state economy. Rao, who made a statement marking the beginning of the debate on demonetisation in the state Assembly here on Friday, said his government wholeheartedly supports the demonetisation move in the interest of the nation. The Central government and the Prime Minister of this country matters to me. BJP does not matter to me. I have no personal interest in supporting demonetisation. The state government will support Modi if he continues the measures for complete clean-up of the system, the chief minister said. The TS government also suggests that besides currency notes, black money held in the form of diamonds, gold biscuits or bars, shares and foreign currency and the black money generation through crony capitalism and flow of black money into the country through money laundering from British Virgin Islands, Mauritius, Singapore should be regulated effectively, Rao suggested to Modi. I support disclosure of assets and seizure of gold bars, biscuits and diamonds. Black money should not exist in any form. The demonetisation is the first step towards elimination of black money and the Centre should continue till it achieves 100 pc clean-up, Rao said. HYDERABAD: Extending full support to Prime Minister Narendra Modis on demonetisation, chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has appealed to the PM to move towards total clean up of the system to eliminate black money. If the process stops, it is a distress to the country, Rao said while speaking on a short discussion on the impact of demonetisation on the state economy. Rao, who made a statement marking the beginning of the debate on demonetisation in the state Assembly here on Friday, said his government wholeheartedly supports the demonetisation move in the interest of the nation. The Central government and the Prime Minister of this country matters to me. BJP does not matter to me. I have no personal interest in supporting demonetisation. The state government will support Modi if he continues the measures for complete clean-up of the system, the chief minister said. The TS government also suggests that besides currency notes, black money held in the form of diamonds, gold biscuits or bars, shares and foreign currency and the black money generation through crony capitalism and flow of black money into the country through money laundering from British Virgin Islands, Mauritius, Singapore should be regulated effectively, Rao suggested to Modi. I support disclosure of assets and seizure of gold bars, biscuits and diamonds. Black money should not exist in any form. The demonetisation is the first step towards elimination of black money and the Centre should continue till it achieves 100 pc clean-up, Rao said. By Associated Press TENOSIQUE: Carlos Mejia sleeps on a bare mattress in an otherwise unfurnished room with his girlfriend and spreads a sheet on the cool tile for their two young children, a small respite from the sweltering heat. Their neighbours on both sides are Hondurans like them. He earns $8 a day working 12 hours slicing plastic bottles to put into a compactor, enough to pay the electricity and water and buy some food. But the U.N. refugee agency picks up the rent and that of a growing number of immigrant families in this Mexican city of 32,000 people near the Guatemalan border. Mejia is among more than 8,000 immigrants expected to seek asylum this year from Mexico, the majority fleeing gang violence in Honduras and El Salvador and to a lesser extent Guatemala. The exodus is turning southern Mexico towns like Tenosique as well as Palenque and Tapachula in neighbouring Chiapas state into informal refugee camps. The decision to settle in Mexico and not continue to the United States is tied to increased recognition of the risks of crossing Mexico and more recently the hostile rhetoric of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, the immigrants and their advocates say. The number of those seeking asylum in Mexico this year is more than double the 3,423 applicants last year itself a 65 percent increase from 2014. Applications have risen by about 9 percent each month this year, says the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, or UNHCR. According to the Mexican Commission for Refugee Aid, or COMAR, about 4,000 of the 6,898 applications it received through October this year made it to the end of the process and of those, 2,162 applicants got refugee status. Another 414 applicants who did not qualify as refugees received other kinds of government protection and escaped deportation. More migrants are seeking asylum as information about the possibility spreads, said Rafael Zavala, director of the UNHCR office that opened here a year ago as the number of Central Americans seeking protection rose. "We expect this year's trend of people seeking protection here in Mexico to continue," he said. Mejia, 27, and his girlfriend Saimi Julio, 19, surrendered in October to Mexican immigration authorities at the El Ceibo border crossing, along with their 2-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son. They spent 26 days separated in immigration detention before being released to the migrant shelter here. The couple had applied for asylum as well as a permit letting them seek work, so they only spent a week at the shelter before getting their room with the U.N. agency's help. It took Mejia another month to find a job. A response to their asylum requests could take up to three months. Applicants cannot leave the area in the meantime, each week signing in at the local immigration office. If amnesty is denied, they can appeal and continue waiting. Mejia said he never considered going to the United States. "It's hard to go to the U.S.," he said sitting on the stoop outside his room. "You risk a lot of violence, so much crime along the way." The number of asylum applicants remains a fraction of the overall flow. More than 400,000 immigrants mostly Central Americans were apprehended along the U.S. southwestern border during the fiscal year that ended in September. But everything signals migrants are increasingly seeking asylum. There is a precedent. In the 1980s and 1990s, Mexico took in more than 40,000 Guatemalans fleeing their country's civil war. There is no sign Central America's current violence is letting up. El Salvador's homicide rate last year was 103 killings for every 100,000 residents, making it the most deadly country not at open war. Honduras had 64 killings per 100,000 people in 2015. Two of Mejia's brothers were killed last year in a robbery and he received threats in their homeland. Tenosique neighbourhoods now team with Hondurans. Narrow passageways lead to rows of rooms housing families. Wendy Jimenez and her family met Mejia and Julio in Tenosique. They fled Honduras after her husband, Angel Castellon, refused to sell drugs for gang members who retaliated by setting fire to their home. A large, twisting scar covers Castellon's upper arm and their 2-year-old daughter has burn scars on her legs and chest. Jimenez earlier lost an uncle and a brother in the country's violence. Jimenez and her family made it to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, across the border from Texas on a previous trip. But they were eventually deported back to Honduras. The day after they arrived, they left again. "Our idea was the United States, but with the situation as it is, I don't think we can go to the United States," Jimenez said, referring to Trump's vows to deport millions of immigrants in the U.S. illegally. They heard about the possibility of asylum in Mexico, and on this journey they applied. In a written response to questions, COMAR said that in September it signed a cooperation agreement with UNHCR, under which the Mexican entity is hiring more staff to keep up with increasing applications. Tomas Gonzalez Castillo, a friar who founded the migrant shelter in Tenosique, said he has seen changes since it opened a few years ago. There are more Central American families in Tenosique and they stay longer, unlike earlier waves that rested briefly and continued north. The number of visitors through the shelter is up by about a third this year. "It is an obligatory migration, forced by the generalised violence," Gonzalez said. "It is a terrible decomposition of the social fabric." The U.N. is laying groundwork for more asylum seekers to stay in Tenosique and "avoid in the future any type of feeling of rejection toward the people who are arriving," said Zavala, head of the refugee agency's local office. The agency has worked with city officials to open a gym and otherwise bring together local youth and their migrant peers, "so the foreigner won't become a threat, but rather an acquaintance." TENOSIQUE: Carlos Mejia sleeps on a bare mattress in an otherwise unfurnished room with his girlfriend and spreads a sheet on the cool tile for their two young children, a small respite from the sweltering heat. Their neighbours on both sides are Hondurans like them. He earns $8 a day working 12 hours slicing plastic bottles to put into a compactor, enough to pay the electricity and water and buy some food. But the U.N. refugee agency picks up the rent and that of a growing number of immigrant families in this Mexican city of 32,000 people near the Guatemalan border. Mejia is among more than 8,000 immigrants expected to seek asylum this year from Mexico, the majority fleeing gang violence in Honduras and El Salvador and to a lesser extent Guatemala. The exodus is turning southern Mexico towns like Tenosique as well as Palenque and Tapachula in neighbouring Chiapas state into informal refugee camps. The decision to settle in Mexico and not continue to the United States is tied to increased recognition of the risks of crossing Mexico and more recently the hostile rhetoric of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, the immigrants and their advocates say. The number of those seeking asylum in Mexico this year is more than double the 3,423 applicants last year itself a 65 percent increase from 2014. Applications have risen by about 9 percent each month this year, says the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, or UNHCR. According to the Mexican Commission for Refugee Aid, or COMAR, about 4,000 of the 6,898 applications it received through October this year made it to the end of the process and of those, 2,162 applicants got refugee status. Another 414 applicants who did not qualify as refugees received other kinds of government protection and escaped deportation. More migrants are seeking asylum as information about the possibility spreads, said Rafael Zavala, director of the UNHCR office that opened here a year ago as the number of Central Americans seeking protection rose. "We expect this year's trend of people seeking protection here in Mexico to continue," he said. Mejia, 27, and his girlfriend Saimi Julio, 19, surrendered in October to Mexican immigration authorities at the El Ceibo border crossing, along with their 2-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son. They spent 26 days separated in immigration detention before being released to the migrant shelter here. The couple had applied for asylum as well as a permit letting them seek work, so they only spent a week at the shelter before getting their room with the U.N. agency's help. It took Mejia another month to find a job. A response to their asylum requests could take up to three months. Applicants cannot leave the area in the meantime, each week signing in at the local immigration office. If amnesty is denied, they can appeal and continue waiting. Mejia said he never considered going to the United States. "It's hard to go to the U.S.," he said sitting on the stoop outside his room. "You risk a lot of violence, so much crime along the way." The number of asylum applicants remains a fraction of the overall flow. More than 400,000 immigrants mostly Central Americans were apprehended along the U.S. southwestern border during the fiscal year that ended in September. But everything signals migrants are increasingly seeking asylum. There is a precedent. In the 1980s and 1990s, Mexico took in more than 40,000 Guatemalans fleeing their country's civil war. There is no sign Central America's current violence is letting up. El Salvador's homicide rate last year was 103 killings for every 100,000 residents, making it the most deadly country not at open war. Honduras had 64 killings per 100,000 people in 2015. Two of Mejia's brothers were killed last year in a robbery and he received threats in their homeland. Tenosique neighbourhoods now team with Hondurans. Narrow passageways lead to rows of rooms housing families. Wendy Jimenez and her family met Mejia and Julio in Tenosique. They fled Honduras after her husband, Angel Castellon, refused to sell drugs for gang members who retaliated by setting fire to their home. A large, twisting scar covers Castellon's upper arm and their 2-year-old daughter has burn scars on her legs and chest. Jimenez earlier lost an uncle and a brother in the country's violence. Jimenez and her family made it to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, across the border from Texas on a previous trip. But they were eventually deported back to Honduras. The day after they arrived, they left again. "Our idea was the United States, but with the situation as it is, I don't think we can go to the United States," Jimenez said, referring to Trump's vows to deport millions of immigrants in the U.S. illegally. They heard about the possibility of asylum in Mexico, and on this journey they applied. In a written response to questions, COMAR said that in September it signed a cooperation agreement with UNHCR, under which the Mexican entity is hiring more staff to keep up with increasing applications. Tomas Gonzalez Castillo, a friar who founded the migrant shelter in Tenosique, said he has seen changes since it opened a few years ago. There are more Central American families in Tenosique and they stay longer, unlike earlier waves that rested briefly and continued north. The number of visitors through the shelter is up by about a third this year. "It is an obligatory migration, forced by the generalised violence," Gonzalez said. "It is a terrible decomposition of the social fabric." The U.N. is laying groundwork for more asylum seekers to stay in Tenosique and "avoid in the future any type of feeling of rejection toward the people who are arriving," said Zavala, head of the refugee agency's local office. The agency has worked with city officials to open a gym and otherwise bring together local youth and their migrant peers, "so the foreigner won't become a threat, but rather an acquaintance." UNION GROVE The 53-year-old woman who died after being hit by a car Thursday evening has been identified. Elsie Weatherspoon, of the 800 block of 53rd Drive near the scene of the incident, was hit by a car around 5:49 p.m. near the intersection of Washington Avenue and 53rd Drive, according to Racine County Medical Examiner Michael Payne. By Associated Press CAIRO: Security officials at Cairo International Airport say Omar bin Laden, son of the former leader of al-Qaida Osama bin Laden, has been denied entry to the country and was deported to Turkey. Omar bin Laden and his wife arrived Saturday from Qatar but after checking details of his Saudi passport, security officials found his name on a list of those banned from entering the country. The officials, speaking anonymously according to regulations, said Omar bin laden and his wife were allowed to leave for Turkey according to their choice. CAIRO: Security officials at Cairo International Airport say Omar bin Laden, son of the former leader of al-Qaida Osama bin Laden, has been denied entry to the country and was deported to Turkey. Omar bin Laden and his wife arrived Saturday from Qatar but after checking details of his Saudi passport, security officials found his name on a list of those banned from entering the country. The officials, speaking anonymously according to regulations, said Omar bin laden and his wife were allowed to leave for Turkey according to their choice. By AFP BERLIN: Protestors rallied in Berlin on Saturday against the war in Syria denouncing the international community for failing to help civilians, especially children, in the besieged city of Aleppo. Holding banners saying "The children of Aleppo are calling you!", or "Aleppo is bleeding and the world is watching", around 900 people braved plunging temperatures to gather in front to the Reichstag, the German parliament building, according to police estimates. At the same time, another 1,800 people joined a second demonstration elsewhere in the German capital, police said. "What is happening there amounts to what is the worst in the world," said Mahmoud Almizeh, a 19-year-old Syrian refugee who comes from Raqa, now the bastion of the Islamic State jihadist group. Germany has opened its doors to some 600,000 Syrian refugees since the conflict began in 2011. Having arrived in Germany a year ago, Almizeh lamented that European leaders were "unfortunately doing nothing". In Aleppo on Saturday trapped Syrian civilians and rebels waited desperately for evacuations to resume from an opposition-held enclave of the city which has fallen to the brutal onslaught by Syrian government forces. Aleppo has been ravaged by some of the worst violence of the nearly six-year war that has killed more than 310,000 people. "We feel so powerless" about the tragedy facing the Syrians, said Anna Bone, a Berlin resident at the demonstration where another banner declared: "Stop murdering! Peace talks NOW." "This powerlessness... this grief, it's what brought me here today," she added. Hundreds of protestors also joined demonstrations in France on Saturday in the cities of Paris, Lille, Strasbourg and Marseille. "It's crazy that the world powers cannot intervene," commented two protestors of Turkish origin, Hilal, 25, and Gulsan, 26, in Paris. Thousands of trapped civilians and the last remaining opposition fighters in Aleppo were waiting for evacuations to resume on Saturday, a day after the operation was suspended by the Syrian government. Meanwhile in New York, the UN Security Council could vote as early as this weekend on a French-drafted proposal to allow international observers into Aleppo and ensure urgent aid deliveries. BERLIN: Protestors rallied in Berlin on Saturday against the war in Syria denouncing the international community for failing to help civilians, especially children, in the besieged city of Aleppo. Holding banners saying "The children of Aleppo are calling you!", or "Aleppo is bleeding and the world is watching", around 900 people braved plunging temperatures to gather in front to the Reichstag, the German parliament building, according to police estimates. At the same time, another 1,800 people joined a second demonstration elsewhere in the German capital, police said. "What is happening there amounts to what is the worst in the world," said Mahmoud Almizeh, a 19-year-old Syrian refugee who comes from Raqa, now the bastion of the Islamic State jihadist group. Germany has opened its doors to some 600,000 Syrian refugees since the conflict began in 2011. Having arrived in Germany a year ago, Almizeh lamented that European leaders were "unfortunately doing nothing". In Aleppo on Saturday trapped Syrian civilians and rebels waited desperately for evacuations to resume from an opposition-held enclave of the city which has fallen to the brutal onslaught by Syrian government forces. Aleppo has been ravaged by some of the worst violence of the nearly six-year war that has killed more than 310,000 people. "We feel so powerless" about the tragedy facing the Syrians, said Anna Bone, a Berlin resident at the demonstration where another banner declared: "Stop murdering! Peace talks NOW." "This powerlessness... this grief, it's what brought me here today," she added. Hundreds of protestors also joined demonstrations in France on Saturday in the cities of Paris, Lille, Strasbourg and Marseille. "It's crazy that the world powers cannot intervene," commented two protestors of Turkish origin, Hilal, 25, and Gulsan, 26, in Paris. Thousands of trapped civilians and the last remaining opposition fighters in Aleppo were waiting for evacuations to resume on Saturday, a day after the operation was suspended by the Syrian government. Meanwhile in New York, the UN Security Council could vote as early as this weekend on a French-drafted proposal to allow international observers into Aleppo and ensure urgent aid deliveries. By AFP ALEPPO: Responsibility for atrocities committed in Aleppo lies with Syria and its Russian and Iranian backers, US President Barack Obama said Friday as Damascus suspended the evacuation of civilians and fighters from the city's last rebel-held areas. Denouncing the "horror" in Aleppo, Obama called for impartial observers and warned President Bashar al-Assad that he would not be able to "slaughter his way to legitimacy". "The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian regime on the city of Aleppo," he told an end-of-year news conference. "This blood and these atrocities are on their hands." UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon earlier warned that Aleppo had become "a synonym for hell" and said the United Nations urged "all necessary measures" for a safe resumption of the evacuation. The Security Council could vote as early as this weekend on a French-drafted proposal to allow international observers in Aleppo and ensure urgent aid deliveries. US Ambassador Samantha Power said after a closed-door council meeting that UN officials were ready to be sent quickly to Aleppo. "The presence of independent observers can deter some of the worst horrors," she said. French Ambassador Francois Delattre said: "The immediate priority is to save lives, to stop the massacres and to avoid a new Srebrenica," referring to the massacre of Bosnian Muslims during the Balkan wars. Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, however, argued that it would take weeks to send monitors to Aleppo. Besieged villages Turkey and a Syrian military source said the evacuation from the city had been suspended but was not yet over, while Moscow insisted the operation was "complete", with all women and children moved from the city. Amid the confusion, a convoy of evacuees that had already left the east when the operation was suspended was forced to turn back, an AFP correspondent said. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), supervising the evacuations, said it was looking into reports of shooting before the convoy was turned back. The delicate operation to bring the last civilians and rebels out of east Aleppo began on Thursday and continued overnight, with thousands leaving in buses and ambulances. But on Friday morning it was abruptly suspended, with the government accusing rebels of violating the terms of the deal. State television said rebels had tried to smuggle out heavy weapons and hostages. The opposition accused the government of suspending the operation in a bid to secure the evacuation of residents from Fuaa and Kafraya, two villages under rebel siege in northwest Syria. The government and Iran have reportedly sought to add an evacuation of civilians from the villages to the terms of the Aleppo deal. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said pro-government fighters had blocked the road the convoy had been using and rebels were refusing the evacuation of residents of Fuaa and Kafraya. Evacuating the last rebel pocket in Aleppo had been scheduled to start on Wednesday, but was delayed by a day because of government objections, including over Fuaa and Kafraya. Clashes resumed for several hours before the deal was revived, and buses and ambulances began transporting evacuees to rebel territory in western Aleppo province. Video message The Observatory estimated some 8,500 people had left before the operation was suspended, including around 3,000 rebels. Syrian state media reported a figure of around 8,000. Ahmad al-Dbis, a doctor helping coordinate the evacuation of the wounded, said at least 500 evacuees had wounds or illnesses requiring treatment. From a staging area near the town of Khan al-Aasal people were travelling further west, heading either to camps for the displaced or to stay with relatives or friends. The departures began a month to the day after government forces launched a major offensive to retake all of Aleppo and secure the regime's biggest victory in more than five years of conflict. In a video message Thursday, Assad said the "liberation" of Aleppo was "history in the making". But US Secretary of State John Kerry said what had already happened there was "unconscionable", raising concerns for the "tens of thousands of lives that are now concentrated into a very small area of Aleppo". It is unclear how many people remain in east Aleppo, with tens of thousands fleeing to territory held by the government or Kurds in recent days, but perhaps tens of thousands are still inside. 'Heart-breaking' The evacuations have been emotional for departing residents desperate for relief after months of bombardment and siege, but also tearful at the prospect of potentially permanent exile. In the dust of one bus window, someone traced: "One day we will return". "The scene was heart-breaking," said Marianne Gasser from the ICRC Syria. "People are faced with impossible choices. You see their eyes filled with sadness." A blast at a Damascus police station, meanwhile, was caused by a seven-year-old girl being sent in carrying "a bomb" that was detonated remotely, state news agency SANA said. It was believed to be the first time such a young child has been used to detonate an explosive device in the war. A police source told the Al-Watan daily that she asked to use the bathroom and the explosives detonated. More than 310,000 people have been killed since the conflict began with anti-government protests in 2011, and over half the population has been displaced, with millions becoming refugees. Diplomatic efforts -- including several rounds of peace talks in Geneva -- failed to make progress in resolving the conflict, which reached a turning point last year when Russia launched an air war in support of Assad. ALEPPO: Responsibility for atrocities committed in Aleppo lies with Syria and its Russian and Iranian backers, US President Barack Obama said Friday as Damascus suspended the evacuation of civilians and fighters from the city's last rebel-held areas. Denouncing the "horror" in Aleppo, Obama called for impartial observers and warned President Bashar al-Assad that he would not be able to "slaughter his way to legitimacy". "The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian regime on the city of Aleppo," he told an end-of-year news conference. "This blood and these atrocities are on their hands." UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon earlier warned that Aleppo had become "a synonym for hell" and said the United Nations urged "all necessary measures" for a safe resumption of the evacuation. The Security Council could vote as early as this weekend on a French-drafted proposal to allow international observers in Aleppo and ensure urgent aid deliveries. US Ambassador Samantha Power said after a closed-door council meeting that UN officials were ready to be sent quickly to Aleppo. "The presence of independent observers can deter some of the worst horrors," she said. French Ambassador Francois Delattre said: "The immediate priority is to save lives, to stop the massacres and to avoid a new Srebrenica," referring to the massacre of Bosnian Muslims during the Balkan wars. Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, however, argued that it would take weeks to send monitors to Aleppo. Besieged villages Turkey and a Syrian military source said the evacuation from the city had been suspended but was not yet over, while Moscow insisted the operation was "complete", with all women and children moved from the city. Amid the confusion, a convoy of evacuees that had already left the east when the operation was suspended was forced to turn back, an AFP correspondent said. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), supervising the evacuations, said it was looking into reports of shooting before the convoy was turned back. The delicate operation to bring the last civilians and rebels out of east Aleppo began on Thursday and continued overnight, with thousands leaving in buses and ambulances. But on Friday morning it was abruptly suspended, with the government accusing rebels of violating the terms of the deal. State television said rebels had tried to smuggle out heavy weapons and hostages. The opposition accused the government of suspending the operation in a bid to secure the evacuation of residents from Fuaa and Kafraya, two villages under rebel siege in northwest Syria. The government and Iran have reportedly sought to add an evacuation of civilians from the villages to the terms of the Aleppo deal. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said pro-government fighters had blocked the road the convoy had been using and rebels were refusing the evacuation of residents of Fuaa and Kafraya. Evacuating the last rebel pocket in Aleppo had been scheduled to start on Wednesday, but was delayed by a day because of government objections, including over Fuaa and Kafraya. Clashes resumed for several hours before the deal was revived, and buses and ambulances began transporting evacuees to rebel territory in western Aleppo province. Video message The Observatory estimated some 8,500 people had left before the operation was suspended, including around 3,000 rebels. Syrian state media reported a figure of around 8,000. Ahmad al-Dbis, a doctor helping coordinate the evacuation of the wounded, said at least 500 evacuees had wounds or illnesses requiring treatment. From a staging area near the town of Khan al-Aasal people were travelling further west, heading either to camps for the displaced or to stay with relatives or friends. The departures began a month to the day after government forces launched a major offensive to retake all of Aleppo and secure the regime's biggest victory in more than five years of conflict. In a video message Thursday, Assad said the "liberation" of Aleppo was "history in the making". But US Secretary of State John Kerry said what had already happened there was "unconscionable", raising concerns for the "tens of thousands of lives that are now concentrated into a very small area of Aleppo". It is unclear how many people remain in east Aleppo, with tens of thousands fleeing to territory held by the government or Kurds in recent days, but perhaps tens of thousands are still inside. 'Heart-breaking' The evacuations have been emotional for departing residents desperate for relief after months of bombardment and siege, but also tearful at the prospect of potentially permanent exile. In the dust of one bus window, someone traced: "One day we will return". "The scene was heart-breaking," said Marianne Gasser from the ICRC Syria. "People are faced with impossible choices. You see their eyes filled with sadness." A blast at a Damascus police station, meanwhile, was caused by a seven-year-old girl being sent in carrying "a bomb" that was detonated remotely, state news agency SANA said. It was believed to be the first time such a young child has been used to detonate an explosive device in the war. A police source told the Al-Watan daily that she asked to use the bathroom and the explosives detonated. More than 310,000 people have been killed since the conflict began with anti-government protests in 2011, and over half the population has been displaced, with millions becoming refugees. Diplomatic efforts -- including several rounds of peace talks in Geneva -- failed to make progress in resolving the conflict, which reached a turning point last year when Russia launched an air war in support of Assad. By IANS ISLAMABAD: Fearing that India is buying time to complete two disputed water projects, Pakistan made it clear that it would not accept any modifications or changes to the Indus Waters Treaty after New Delhi said on Friday it was ready to bilaterally resolve its differences with Islamabad over the pact's implementation. The treaty, signed in 1960, gives India control over the three eastern rivers of the Indus basin - the Beas, the Ravi and the Sutlej - while Pakistan has the three western rivers- the Indus, the Chenab and the Jhelum. The IWT also sets up a mechanism, the Permanent Indus Commission, which includes a commissioner from each country. Talking to Dawn here on Friday, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi said: "Pakistan will not accept any modifications or changes to the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty. Our position is based on the principles enshrined in the treaty. And the treaty must be honoured in...letter and spirit". Earlier, a spokesman for the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Vikas Swarup, told reporters in New Delhi that the resolution process required more time. "India has always believed that the implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty, which includes the redressal of the technical questions and differences, should be done bilaterally between India and Pakistan," he said. "We believe that these consultations should be given adequate time." India's request for more time, however, alarmed Pakistan. Islamabad argued that India used the same strategy on previous occasions, completing a project during the dispute and then insisting that since the project was already complete, it could not be modified. The current dispute revolves around the Kishanganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric plants. India is building the plants on the Kishanganga and Chenab Rivers, which Pakistan says violate the IWT. Tensions over the water dispute increased late last month when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi threatened to block the flow of water into Pakistan. International experts fear that the threat, if implemented, could lead to armed clashes between the two sides. New Delhi sought the appointment of a "neutral expert" while Islamabad asked the World Bank to appoint the chairman of the Court of Arbitration. The IWT recognises the World Bank as an arbitrator. Pakistanis argue that the designs of the two Indian projects violate both legal and technical provisions of the treaty. India, however, opposes Pakistan's effort for setting up a court of arbitration. The disagreement persuaded the World Bank to announce earlier this week that it was temporarily "pausing" its arbitration and it was doing so to protect the treaty. ISLAMABAD: Fearing that India is buying time to complete two disputed water projects, Pakistan made it clear that it would not accept any modifications or changes to the Indus Waters Treaty after New Delhi said on Friday it was ready to bilaterally resolve its differences with Islamabad over the pact's implementation. The treaty, signed in 1960, gives India control over the three eastern rivers of the Indus basin - the Beas, the Ravi and the Sutlej - while Pakistan has the three western rivers- the Indus, the Chenab and the Jhelum. The IWT also sets up a mechanism, the Permanent Indus Commission, which includes a commissioner from each country. Talking to Dawn here on Friday, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi said: "Pakistan will not accept any modifications or changes to the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty. Our position is based on the principles enshrined in the treaty. And the treaty must be honoured in...letter and spirit". Earlier, a spokesman for the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Vikas Swarup, told reporters in New Delhi that the resolution process required more time. "India has always believed that the implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty, which includes the redressal of the technical questions and differences, should be done bilaterally between India and Pakistan," he said. "We believe that these consultations should be given adequate time." India's request for more time, however, alarmed Pakistan. Islamabad argued that India used the same strategy on previous occasions, completing a project during the dispute and then insisting that since the project was already complete, it could not be modified. The current dispute revolves around the Kishanganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric plants. India is building the plants on the Kishanganga and Chenab Rivers, which Pakistan says violate the IWT. Tensions over the water dispute increased late last month when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi threatened to block the flow of water into Pakistan. International experts fear that the threat, if implemented, could lead to armed clashes between the two sides. New Delhi sought the appointment of a "neutral expert" while Islamabad asked the World Bank to appoint the chairman of the Court of Arbitration. The IWT recognises the World Bank as an arbitrator. Pakistanis argue that the designs of the two Indian projects violate both legal and technical provisions of the treaty. India, however, opposes Pakistan's effort for setting up a court of arbitration. The disagreement persuaded the World Bank to announce earlier this week that it was temporarily "pausing" its arbitration and it was doing so to protect the treaty. By AFP ROME, ITALY: Pope Francis voiced hope for a "fruitful and joyous" old age at a mass for his 80th birthday on Saturday, as he received messages of congratulations from around the world. "Old age sounds ugly, and causes fear. But old age yearns for wisdom," he told dozens of cardinals at the mass in a papal chapel in Rome. "Old age is quiet and religious, but also fruitful. Pray that mine will be that way, quiet and religious, fruitful and also joyous." The Argentine pope received messages of congratulations from around the world for his 80th birthday, including at email addresses in eight languages specially set up by the Vatican. "Italy is grateful to you for your constant closeness," said one from Italian President Sergio Mattarella. "The pope's office is covered in drawings by children from the whole world celebrating his birthday," tweeted Antonio Spadaro, a Jesuit theologian close to the pontiff. Spadaro released photographs of drawings showing a smiling pope with the world on his head or surrounded by children and party balloons. But like almost every other day of his papacy, Saturday will be a working day for the holiday-phobic Francis. Apart from the morning mass with the cardinals, he has meetings with Maltese President Marie-Louise Coleiro, several prelates and members of the Nomadelfia, a secular community that tries to live as the early Christians. In recent years, the pope has marked his birthday by distributing hundreds of sleeping bags to homeless people in Rome or by sending food to a migrant shelter. Born into a family of Italian heritage on December 16, 1936, Jorge Bergoglio became the 266th pope when he was elected on March 13, 2013. This will be the fourth birthday the former bishop of Buenos Aires has celebrated in the modest St Martha's boarding house he has made his home inside the Vatican's walls. He has shown no sign of slowing down in his drive to reshape the Catholic church to reflect his own vision of compassion and humility. The first pope from the Americas continues to set a relentless pace as he reaches a milestone at which cardinals are ushered into semi-retirement. There are signs of fatigue, natural for a man of his age who lost part of a lung in his youth, and the occasional grimace bears witness to the sciatic pain that is a near constant companion. He has not ruled out following the historic example of his predecessor Benedict XVI, who retired, exhausted, in 2013, although there is no suggestion that could happen soon. ROME, ITALY: Pope Francis voiced hope for a "fruitful and joyous" old age at a mass for his 80th birthday on Saturday, as he received messages of congratulations from around the world. "Old age sounds ugly, and causes fear. But old age yearns for wisdom," he told dozens of cardinals at the mass in a papal chapel in Rome. "Old age is quiet and religious, but also fruitful. Pray that mine will be that way, quiet and religious, fruitful and also joyous." The Argentine pope received messages of congratulations from around the world for his 80th birthday, including at email addresses in eight languages specially set up by the Vatican. "Italy is grateful to you for your constant closeness," said one from Italian President Sergio Mattarella. "The pope's office is covered in drawings by children from the whole world celebrating his birthday," tweeted Antonio Spadaro, a Jesuit theologian close to the pontiff. Spadaro released photographs of drawings showing a smiling pope with the world on his head or surrounded by children and party balloons. But like almost every other day of his papacy, Saturday will be a working day for the holiday-phobic Francis. Apart from the morning mass with the cardinals, he has meetings with Maltese President Marie-Louise Coleiro, several prelates and members of the Nomadelfia, a secular community that tries to live as the early Christians. In recent years, the pope has marked his birthday by distributing hundreds of sleeping bags to homeless people in Rome or by sending food to a migrant shelter. Born into a family of Italian heritage on December 16, 1936, Jorge Bergoglio became the 266th pope when he was elected on March 13, 2013. This will be the fourth birthday the former bishop of Buenos Aires has celebrated in the modest St Martha's boarding house he has made his home inside the Vatican's walls. He has shown no sign of slowing down in his drive to reshape the Catholic church to reflect his own vision of compassion and humility. The first pope from the Americas continues to set a relentless pace as he reaches a milestone at which cardinals are ushered into semi-retirement. There are signs of fatigue, natural for a man of his age who lost part of a lung in his youth, and the occasional grimace bears witness to the sciatic pain that is a near constant companion. He has not ruled out following the historic example of his predecessor Benedict XVI, who retired, exhausted, in 2013, although there is no suggestion that could happen soon. By Associated Press WASHINGTON: Michelle Obama says the White House needs a "grown-up" and the nation will come to appreciate President Barack Obama. In an interview with Oprah Winfrey set to air Monday night on CBS, the first lady says the election has reinforced her view that her husband's administration was able to inspire hope "because we feel the difference now." "Now we're feeling what not having hope feels like," she says. "You know? Hope is necessary. It's a necessary concept. And Barack didn't just talk about hope because he thought it was just a nice slogan to get votes. I mean, he and I and so many believe that if you ... what else do you have if you don't have hope?" "What do you give your kids if you can't give them hope?" she added. Mrs. Obama sat for the interview five weeks after the election of Donald Trump to the White House. The Obamas campaigned aggressively against Trump and argued that the New York businessman is unfit to be president. CBS released an excerpt of the interview on Friday. In it, Mrs. Obama does not mention the incoming president by name. While Obama has refused since the Nov. 8 election to repeat his criticisms of Trump, Mrs. Obama comes off as less accepting of the outcome. In the interview, which was taped Wednesday in the White House residence, she said the public will eventually appreciate what a reassuring presence her husband was during the past eight years. She compared him to the person who doesn't freak out when a toddler bumps his head, causing the child to start crying. "I feel that Barack has been that for the nation in ways that people will come to appreciate," she said. "Having a grown-up in the White House who can say to you in times of crisis and turmoil, 'Hey, it's gonna be OK. Let's remember the good things that we have. Let's look at the future. Let's look at all the things that we're building.'" "All of this is important for our kids to stay focused and to feel like their work isn't in vain. That their lives aren't in vain," Mrs. Obama added. "What do we do if we don't have hope, Oprah?" WASHINGTON: Michelle Obama says the White House needs a "grown-up" and the nation will come to appreciate President Barack Obama. In an interview with Oprah Winfrey set to air Monday night on CBS, the first lady says the election has reinforced her view that her husband's administration was able to inspire hope "because we feel the difference now." "Now we're feeling what not having hope feels like," she says. "You know? Hope is necessary. It's a necessary concept. And Barack didn't just talk about hope because he thought it was just a nice slogan to get votes. I mean, he and I and so many believe that if you ... what else do you have if you don't have hope?" "What do you give your kids if you can't give them hope?" she added. Mrs. Obama sat for the interview five weeks after the election of Donald Trump to the White House. The Obamas campaigned aggressively against Trump and argued that the New York businessman is unfit to be president. CBS released an excerpt of the interview on Friday. In it, Mrs. Obama does not mention the incoming president by name. While Obama has refused since the Nov. 8 election to repeat his criticisms of Trump, Mrs. Obama comes off as less accepting of the outcome. In the interview, which was taped Wednesday in the White House residence, she said the public will eventually appreciate what a reassuring presence her husband was during the past eight years. She compared him to the person who doesn't freak out when a toddler bumps his head, causing the child to start crying. "I feel that Barack has been that for the nation in ways that people will come to appreciate," she said. "Having a grown-up in the White House who can say to you in times of crisis and turmoil, 'Hey, it's gonna be OK. Let's remember the good things that we have. Let's look at the future. Let's look at all the things that we're building.'" "All of this is important for our kids to stay focused and to feel like their work isn't in vain. That their lives aren't in vain," Mrs. Obama added. "What do we do if we don't have hope, Oprah?" OneEvent Technologies, a Mount Horeb company that wants to change the nature of home and business alarm systems, is the Madison areas Most Innovative Company. At least, thats according to the 110 people who attended the nex7 pitch contest held by the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday night at the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art. OneEvent drew the audiences top votes for its technology that monitors a building for a range of measures, from potential fires to intruders to energy use, and sends the data to a cellphone app. The oneEvent team is thrilled, co-founder and CEO Kurt Wedig said in an email. OneEvent vice president Jim Zirbel made the presentation, saying the idea of the company is to prevent emergencies, not to wait until they happen and then respond. OneEvent has the equivalent of 13 full-time employees. Earlier this month, oneEvent collaborated with the Fire Safety Center of the Chippewa Valley Technical College in Eau Claire, building a one-bedroom apartment and then starting fires in it. The goal: to generate data about fires for use in developing oneEvents software. Wedig and co-founder Daniel Parent say the companys data will give critical information to firefighters and will help the insurance industry better assess claims, and reduce the severity of future claims. Seven companies were finalists for the Most Innovative Company (MIC) award the first time the Greater Madison Chamber has offered the prize or held the nex7 event. Other finalists were: AkitaBox, with facilities maintenance software; Bendyworks, which builds online and mobile apps; Forward Health Group, with software for population health management; GigBlender, whose software matches employers with job seekers; Operation Fresh Start, which helps place youths in education and work training programs; and Solomo Technology, with marketing analytics for companies. The finalists were chosen as part of the Greater Madison Chambers neXXpo event at the Forward Festival in August. The goal of the MIC award competition is to highlight and support some of the innovative companies in the Madison area, said Chamber president Zach Brandon. The 35 companies of all sectors and sizes who first entered the competition at neXXpo are solving big problems, engaging in the community as well as their business and have chosen Greater Madison as the ideal place to grow and to make a difference, Brandon said in an email. Investors eye more funding for RevolutionEHR RevolutionEHR and its parent company, Rev360, are banking more funds from an investor group. Just a couple of weeks after wrapping up $45 million in funding most of which came through in 2014 the group of as many as two dozen investors came through with another $13.3 million for the Madison company, according to documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. RevolutionEHR makes software for use by eye doctors, and Rev360 offers back-office services to RevolutionEHRs clients. The company is based in Madison, but its 175 employees are scattered around the country. SHINE lands more federal funds SHINE Medical Technologies says it has received another $10 million from the U.S. Department of Energys National Nuclear Security Administration. SHINE, which started in Monona, is building a plant in Janesville that will make molybdenum-99, a radioisotope that decays into technetium-99m, a widely used diagnostic imaging agent. The latest funding brings the total value of the agreement to $50 million, with $25 million from the federal agency. It will be used to advance the design and construction of the Janesville plant, SHINE said. A man was arrested Friday in Janesville for OWI after the man's vehicle nearly hit an officer's squad car, police said. Verlan Shirley, 60, of Janesville, appeared intoxicated when pulled over, Janesville police said. He has five prior OWI convictions. A field sobriety test could not be given because Shirley could not walk without assistance, police said. Shirley was pulled over around 11:45 a.m. when his Chevrolet Blazer veered from the left lane into the right lane nearly striking Officer Todd Schumann's squad car, police said. Shirley's Blazer then veered left, police said, nearly crossing the center lane twice. MILWAUKEE The prosecutor who charged a former Milwaukee police officer with killing a black man in a shooting that sparked riots in Wisconsins largest city said Friday that hes not trying to send a message about police use-of-force. District Attorney John Chisholm said hes confident the facts support the felony reckless homicide charge against Dominique Heaggan-Brown. Heaggan-Brown shot Sylville Smith, 23, during a traffic stop in August. According to court documents, body cameras Heaggan-Brown and his partner wore showed Smith had a gun but was unarmed when Heaggan-Brown, who is also black, fired the fatal shot. The shooting ignited two nights of riots. The violence followed similar unrest in cities from Ferguson, Missouri, to Baltimore in response to the deaths of black men at the hands of police. The killings sparked the nationwide Black Lives Matter movement calling for major changes in how police deal with minority communities. Heaggan-Brown was fired in October over unrelated charges in a sexual assault case but the city had been waiting for months to see whether prosecutors would charge him in the shooting. Chisholm did just that Thursday morning. Police Chief Ed Flynn has questioned Chisholms decision, saying Heaggan-Brown faced a combat situation. Flynn said he hoped Chisholm had more evidence than hes released so far. Chisholm addressed reporters for the first time in the matter after Heaggan-Brown made his initial court appearance Friday. Chisholm said he understands Flynns perspective but stressed he made the charging decision based on the facts. He said he wasnt trying to signal to minorities the criminal justice system can treat them fairly. A criminal prosecution isnt the forum in which to send a message, Chisholm said. Is there a legitimate issue in terms of police-community relations? No question about it. And nothing exacerbates it more than police-related shootings. But in an individual case I have an ethical obligation to just look at those facts and ... not to consider extraneous things like public sentiment, he added. I believe strongly weve done a thorough job examining all the facts. According to the criminal complaint, Heaggan-Brown stopped Smiths vehicle on Aug. 13. Smith fled on foot between nearby houses with a gun in his hand. Heaggan-Brown and his partners body cameras showed Smith fall to the ground, get up and raise his gun while facing Heaggan-Brown, the complaint said. Heaggan-Brown fired and hit Smith in the arm. The video shows Smith then threw his gun over a fence, although Heaggan-Brown told state agents he thought the gun flew out of Smiths hand, the complaint said. Heaggan-Brown then fired a second shot into Smiths chest. Both shots were fired in less than 2 seconds. Chisholm has refused to release the video, saying the footage is evidence. Heaggan-Brown sat silently during his brief court appearance Friday. Wearing shackles and a yellow anti-suicide smock, he spoke only to say yes when court Commissioner Grace Flynn asked if he understood he would have to give a DNA sample. The commissioner granted Chisholms request for $100,000 cash bail, calling the reckless homicide charge serious. This post pulls together everything Ive had to say on the subject of how ride-sourcing companies like Uber could impact cities. I hope to leave this topic for a while! Henry Grabar at Slate has a good piece on an issue that I have been raising the alarm about for a while. The rise of ride-hailing companies is increasingly viewed not as a fix for bad service but as its justification. It is invoked, as you might expect, in bad faith by [people] who have advocated against public investment for decades. But even pro-transit politicians and officials have begun to see ride-hailing services as an acceptable substitute for public transit. As a result, cities across the country are making important decisions about transportation that treat 10-year-old companies as fixed variables for the decades to come. Regardless of their corporate intentions, Uber and its ilk are doing harm to transit and thus to transit-reliant dense cities in two ways: one in the politics, the other in the reality of competition on the ground. Politically , as a working consultant, I can confirm Grabars observation that Uber is becoming as a generic reason to let transit fall apart. I am constantly told that Uber will make transit obsolete. As Grabar notes, some of this is just easy rhetoric for people who dislike transit for cultural reasons, or who oppose public investment of any kind. But much of the confusion arises because people sincerely dont understand how narrow the range of opportunities is for ride-sourcing to improve on fixed route transits efficiency. Even an empty-looking suburban fixed route bus is usually doing over 10 boardings/hour, way more than you could ever do in any taxi-like mode thats taking people to their door. , as a working consultant, I can confirm Grabars observation that Uber is becoming as a generic reason to let transit fall apart. I am constantly told that Uber will make transit obsolete. As Grabar notes, some of this is just easy rhetoric for people who dislike transit for cultural reasons, or who oppose public investment of any kind. But much of the confusion arises because people sincerely dont understand how narrow the range of opportunities is for ride-sourcing to improve on fixed route transits efficiency. Even an empty-looking suburban fixed route bus is usually doing over 10 boardings/hour, way more than you could ever do in any taxi-like mode thats taking people to their door. Competitively. We know Uber is unprofitable, which means its prices are unsustainable. As always, unsustainable means: It would be folly to plan your city around the assumption that this will continue. We are not sure exactly how unsustainable Uber is. Grabar cites an analysis by Hubert Horan that suggests Uber may be covering as little as 41% of its costs with fares, but Bloombergs Eric Newcomer thinks that reflects one-time losses from their failure in China. More journalists need to be digging into this. People making urban policy need to know whether the Uber that people experience is a permanent thing in the landscape, because a belief in permanence is essential to planning and development. These two strands converge in the geometry problem that is at the core of urbanist alarm: If travelers shift from larger vehicles (like buses) into smaller ones (like Ubers) you increase Vehicle Miles Travelled, which increases congestion, emissions, and the demand for road space. This is tolerable in low-density areas but an existential threat to dense cities. None of these would be problems if the higher cost of smaller-vehicle services reflected the true cost of their inefficient use of space. But as we know, cars inefficient use of urban space is rarely reflected in the cost of urban driving, and Uber skates through on the same invisible subsidy that all urban motorists enjoy. Transit, which doesnt enjoy any such subsidy, is unable to properly reflect its efficient use of space in its pricing. Im sure that someones going to say that Uber isnt trying to damage transit. Thats not a response to any of these issues, because the issue is not intent but outcomes. Ubers behavior often looks like an intentional effort to undermine competitors and thus reduce customer choice in which case youd call it predatory pricing but it doesnt matter what the intention is. Underpricing is a blunt weapon with zero targeting ability. It mows down everything in its path. Obviously, Uber is doing what all companies do, including trying to limit competition. Theres no point in criticizing them in particular for that. Such a critique would have to be leveled at all the underlying assumptions of American capitalism. And theres no doubting the value of these companies in the lives of fortunate people who can afford to use their services routinely, or that they have positive roles to play in parts of the urban transportation picture, such as low-demand areas. But its time to quit discussing Uber and similar companies as though they were improving the world in a permanent way, and as though they will necessarily make cities better for everyone. We already know thats not true. Governments need to regulate to expand the opportunities these companies, but must also respond to threats that they pose. All this can be done very politely, by the way. Many people who work inside of big companies understand perfectly well how the profit motive conflicts with what youd do if you were just trying to foster a better city, and many welcome regulation precisely to plug that gap. It's win-or-go-home time for Newport County football teams This season marks the first time in three years all three Aquidneck Island high school football teams have qualified for postseason play. Reporter Mary Schenk is a reporter covering police, courts and breaking news at The News-Gazette. Her email is mschenk@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@schenk). Champaign, IL (61820) Today Sunshine to start, then a few afternoon clouds. High 72F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. Low 58F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph. Johns Hopkins researchers have developed a computer simulation that helps predict under which circumstances a new short-course treatment regimen for drug-resistant tuberculosis could substantially reduce the global incidence and spread of the disease. The computer model was developed to help understand the impact of a recommendation issued in May by the World Health Organization for wider use of a new nine- to 12-month treatment regimen for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). The conventional treatment regimen takes 18 months to two years. Tuberculosis, which is spread through the air from one person to another, is the No. 1 cause of infectious disease deaths in the world, with an incidence of approximately 10 million new cases and 1.7 million deaths each year. MDR-TB is strains of TB bacteria that cannot be killed by the strongest-available TB drugs, rifampin and isoniazid. These strains alone are estimated to cause almost 500,000 new TB cases and over 100,000 deaths each year. In the study, described in the Dec. 15 edition of The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, the researchers found that the new regimen could lower the incidence of MDR-TB in Southeast Asia by 23 percent more than conventional treatment over eight years. Importantly, they describe the types of situations where this number might be an over- or underestimate. If the new regimen could achieve this same impact on a global scale, over 100,000 new cases of MDR-TB could be averted every year. Conventional treatments for MDR-TB are costly and uncomfortable. The drugs used include a daily injection that must be taken for the first eight months of the regimen, followed my many more months of pills. These drugs frequently cause severe side effects, such as nausea, headache, chest pain and rash. MDR-TB costs five to 10 times more to treat than other TB cases, and the costs of drugs and time are a burden to health systems and patients worldwide. In the U.S., treating MDR-TB can cost anywhere between $17,000 to $482,000 per person. As a result, compliance with the regimen and its availability in poorer countries is limited, leading to further spread of the disease. "About 15 to 20 percent of patients who start conventional treatment for drug-resistant TB don't finish, mostly because of the length, expense and discomfort associated with it," says Emily Kendall, M.D., an instructor in the Department of Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. "The short-course regimen could cut both treatment time and cost of treatment in half." Promising outcomes of preliminary studies in patients in Southeast Asia and parts of Western and Central Africa led the World Health Organization to make the recommendation, but safety and efficacy have not yet been proven in large-scale clinical trials. Kendall says uncertainty about the new regimen's role prompted her group's interest in creating a computer model to assist health care groups and governments in deciding whether or not to switch to the new regimen, which uses a combination of seven drugs. Kendall says the model her team created allows researchers to "virtually" explore the new regimen's impact in a simulated population. By tuning the model to replicate population data, such as the number of people at risk for developing TB and the fraction of TB patients who have drug resistance, the model can predict changes in the TB disease burden -- or number of cases -- over many years. For the test study, Kendall's team based the model on experience in Southeast Asia, where the short-course regimen was originally developed by a group of researchers in Bangladesh. They found that, compared to using the conventional treatment in this population, which only reduced current MDR-TB incidence by 14 percent, using the new short-course treatment decreased the incidence of MDR-TB by 23 percent in eight years in the model. The Johns Hopkins investigators caution, however, that the short-term treatment's impact is dependent on several assumptions, including that no more than 10 percent of possible patients are excluded from treatment by additional drug resistance and that using the new regimen actually increases the number of MDR-TB patients treated. If these assumptions do not play out in actual practice, using the new regimen could have substantially less impact -- and even lead to more cases -- than using the conventional regimen, in some cases. The model is helpful in describing the situations where the new regimen is likely to have large impact, small impact or no impact at all. "Several important factors are still uncertain, but if we can keep the number of excluded patients down to around 10 percent, if treatment of the other 90 percent of patients is as successful as preliminary studies suggest and if cost savings from the shorter regimen allow more patients to be treated, then this regimen is likely to have a really big impact," says Kendall. Kendall also cautioned that there are some populations in which the short-course regimen may not work well. For example, the regimen is not yet recommended for children or for TB infections outside of the lungs. "Our computer tool can help guide certain decisions about the short regimen," Kendall says, "but scientists and health care workers still need to be really vigilant about gathering more data on how it's working and for whom it is working best as we begin to use it more widely." Antiretroviral drugs have been life-changing therapies for HIV patients, but they can have significant side effects. Mounting evidence has implicated these drugs in contributing to HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders, or HAND, which can be manifested as forgetfulness, confusion and behavioral and motor changes. Yet an explanation for how the drugs take a toll on the brain has been lacking. Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have now pinpointed some of the key players in causing neuronal damage. Their work suggests that certain protease inhibitors, among the most effective HIV drugs, lead to the production of the peptide beta amyloid, often associated with Alzheimer's disease. The drugs prompt an increase in levels of the enzyme that cleaves the amyloid precursor protein, APP, to produce beta amyloid, which is responsible for the damage to neurons. Notably, inhibiting that enzyme, called BACE1, protected human and rodent brain cells from harm, suggesting that targeting this pathway with a new drug could minimize damage to neurons in patients on antiretroviral therapies. "Protease inhibitors are very effective antiviral therapies, but they do have inherent toxicities," said Kelly Jordan-Sciutto, chair and professor in the Penn School of Dental Medicine's Department of Pathology and senior author on the study. "Our findings may cause us to rethink how we're using these drugs and even consider developing an adjunctive therapy to reduce some of these negative effects." The study appears in the American Journal of Pathology. Protease inhibitors such as ritonavir and saquinavir are a key part of the drug cocktail that has reduced mortality in HIV-infected people by 50 percent. Though newer compounds form the frontline treatments for patients in the United States, these protease inhibitors remain widely used in Africa and other developing areas hit hard by HIV/AIDS. They work by blocking viral enzymes necessary for creating infectious particles that allow the virus to spread through the body. Previous investigations by Jordan-Sciutto's team have suggested, however, that protease inhibitors can have toxic effects on the central nervous system. One study, for example, demonstrated that they triggered the activation of stress-response pathways, including oxidative stress and a process called the unfolded-protein response, or UPR. UPR results when the cell senses misfolded or modified proteins, causing a halt in protein translation. It's meant to protect a cell from aberrant proteins, but, when chronically activated, it can lead to cellular damage or death. Even after these studies, it wasn't clear whether UPR seen in HIV patients was induced primarily as a result of the virus or of the treatment, and what molecules mediated it. In addition, the researchers were intrigued by the findings of colleague and coauthor Robert Vassar of Northwestern University, who showed that stress-induced UPR led to activation of beta-site APP cleaving enzyme 1, or BACE1, an enzyme that snips apart APP to produce beta amyloid. "The study emerged from these three lines of converging evidence," Jordan-Sciutto said. "We knew UPR was activated in HIV patients both on and off antiretroviral therapy; we knew that, despite antiretroviral therapy, cognitive impairment persisted in these patients; and we knew that activation of UPR lead to an increase in BACE1." To determine whether and how neuronal damage arises from drug treatment and to ascertain BACE1's role, the team investigated the effects of protease inhibitors in two animal models, then probed the mechanism of action in cells in culture. First, to confirm that the drugs themselves, and not the underlying HIV infection, were responsible for neuronal damage, they examined a population of macaques, some of which had SIV, a retrovirus very similar to HIV that affects non-human primates. The researchers found that SIV-positive animals that had been treated had increased expression of APP in their neurons, a sign of damage, as well as increased BACE1 compared to the untreated animals. They further confirmed that the drugs were the culprit in causing these changes by administering ritonavir and saquinavir to healthy adult mice. Again, they observed singificant increases in BACE1. Turning to cells in culture, they found that administering ritonavir or saquinavir at doses equivalent to those seen in the blood of treated humans led to dramatic increases in molecular markers associated with UPR as well as increases in BACE1 expression. Furthermore, they demonstrated that the increase in BACE1 led directly to an increase in processing of APP. Applying an inhibitor of BACE1 to rat brain cells in culture prevented the damage that ritonavir treatment otherwise induced. "Putting this together with our earlier findings on oxidative stress, it appears that the drugs are triggering oxidative stress that is damaging proteins and inducing the unfolded protein response," said Cagla Akay Espinoza, a research scientist in Jordan-Sciutto's lab and a coauthor. "The virus itself provides a stress, but the drugs are causing additional stress and damage to neurons, in part by BACE1 leading to downstream processing of amyloid precursor protein." A final set of experiments showed that an enzyme called PERK, a major player in UPR, helped mediate the increase in BACE1 expression in neurons triggered by protease inhibitors. "We're very interested in the role of PERK in this process," said Jordan-Sciutto. "Targeting PERK and/or BACE1 could help contribute to a therapeutic approach to treat drug-associated cognitive disorders." The new findings open up a number of avenues for future research. The team would like to explore whether this pathway of neuronal damage applies to other HIV drugs and how the UPR differs depending on whether the virus or the drugs are inducing it. Also, given the connection between beta amyloid, APP and Alzheimer's disease, the team is curious to learn more about how these peptides contribute to the disorders seen both in that disease and in HAND. Source: University of Pennsylvania People who leave school without a school certificate are more than twice as likely to have a heart attack as those with a university degree, according to groundbreaking new Australian research from the largest ongoing study of healthy ageing in the Southern Hemisphere, the Sax Institute's 45 and Up Study. Researchers investigated the links between education and cardiovascular disease events (such as a heart attack or stroke) by following 267,153 men and women in the state of New South Wales aged over 45, who are part of the Sax Institute's 45 and Up Study, for over five years. The results were published in the International Journal for Equity in Health and were the subject of discussion today at the Cardiovascular Disease Inequalities Partnership Project meeting in the nation's capital, Canberra. "The lower your education, the more likely you are to have a heart attack or a stroke - that's the disturbing but clear finding from our research," said lead researcher Dr Rosemary Korda, a Fellow at the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health at The Australian National University (ANU). "Our study found that in adults aged 45-64 years, heart attack rates among those with no educational qualifications were more than double (around 150% higher) those of people with a university degree. The risk was around two-thirds (70%) higher among those with intermediate levels of education (non-university qualifications). "Mid-age adults who hadn't completed high school were 50% more likely to have a first stroke than those with a university degree; those with intermediate levels of education (non-university qualifications) were 20% more likely." Dr Korda said a similar pattern of inequality existed between household income and cardiovascular disease events. "What these differences in cardiovascular disease rates between more and less disadvantaged groups show us is just how much cardiovascular disease in the population can be prevented. The Cardiovascular Disease Inequalities Partnership Project is continuing research in this area to better understand what is driving these socioeconomic differences." Professor Emily Banks, Scientific Director of the 45 and Up Study and Head of Epidemiology for Policy and Practice at ANU, said these findings demonstrated the value of the 45 and Up Study as an unparalleled Australian research resource making it possible for researchers to investigate big questions in large numbers of people and to get faster answers that are useful for policy makers. "This research demonstrates, now that we have more robust data, how much worse the inequalities in cardiovascular disease are than we previously thought," said Professor Banks. "This research also provides important clues about how much cardiovascular disease can be prevented." CEO of the Heart Foundation New South Wales Kerry Doyle said that heart disease was the single leading cause of death in Australia, with an average of one Australian dying every 27 minutes. "We know that a good education impacts long term health by influencing what type of job you have, where you live and what food choices you make," said Ms Doyle. "This research provides an opportunity to further unpack the specific relationship between educational achievement and cardiovascular disease risk, and what can be done to reduce this risk," she added. Source: Sax Institute Personal health wearable devices used to monitor heart rates, sleep patterns, calories, and even stress levels raise new privacy and security risks, according to a report released today by researchers at American University and the Center for Digital Democracy. Watches, fitness bands, and so-called "smart" clothing, linked to apps and mobile devices, are part of a growing "connected-health" system in the U.S., promising to provide people with more efficient ways to manage their own health. The report, Health Wearable Devices in the Big Data Era: Ensuring Privacy, Security, and Consumer Protection, found that the weak and fragmented health-privacy regulatory system fails to provide adequate federal laws to safeguard personal health information collected by wearables. The report provides an overview and analysis of the major features, key players, and trends that are shaping the new consumer-wearable and connected-health marketplace. "Many of these devices are already being integrated into a growing Big Data digital health and marketing ecosystem, which is focused on gathering and monetizing personal and health data in order to influence consumer behavior," the report explains. As the use of these devices becomes more widespread, and as their functionalities become increasingly sophisticated, "the extent and nature of data collection will be unprecedented." The report documents a number of current digital health marketing practices that threaten the privacy of consumer health information, including "condition targeting," "look-alike modeling," predictive analytics, "scoring," and the real-time buying and selling of individual consumers. The technology of wearable devices makes them particularly powerful tools for data collection and digital marketing. The report also explains how an emerging set of techniques and Big-Data practices are being developed to harness the unique capabilities of wearables--such as biosensors that track bodily functions, and "haptic technology" that enables users to "feel" actual body sensations. Pharmaceutical companies are poised to be among the major beneficiaries of wearable marketing. The report offers suggestions for how government, industry, philanthropy, nonprofit organizations, and academic institutions can work together to develop a comprehensive approach to health privacy and consumer protection in the era of Big Data and the Internet of Things. These include: Clear, enforceable standards for both the collection and use of information; Formal processes for assessing the benefits and risks of data use; and Stronger regulation of direct-to-consumer marketing by pharmaceutical companies. "The connected-health system is still in an early, fluid stage of development," explained Kathryn C. Montgomery, Professor of Communication with American University, and a co-author of the report. "There is an urgent need to build meaningful, effective, and enforceable safeguards into its foundation." Such efforts "will require moving beyond the traditional focus on protecting individual privacy, and extending safeguards to cover a range of broader societal goals, such as ensuring fairness, preventing discrimination, and promoting equity," the report says. "In the wake of the recent election, the United States is on the eve of a major public debate over the future of its health-care system," the report notes. "The potential of personal digital devices to reduce health-care spending will likely play an important role," as lawmakers deliberate the fate of the Affordable Care Act. However, unless there are adequate regulatory safeguards in place, "consumers and patients could face serious risks to their privacy and security, and also be subjected to discrimination and other harms." "Americans now face a growing loss of their most sensitive information, as their health data are collected and analyzed on a continuous basis, combined with information about their finances, ethnicity, location, and online and off-line behaviors," said Jeff Chester, Executive Director of the Center for Digital Democracy, also a co-author of the report. "Policy makers must act decisively to protect consumers in today's Big Data era." BMJ, one of the world's leading healthcare knowledge providers, has partnered with Guangdong Family Doctor Association to make their fully translated Chinese edition of BMJ Best Practice available to over two million primary healthcare professionals across China. Last week, the UK's Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, attended the signing ceremony at the UK-China Healthcare summit in Shanghai. The partnership builds on existing links between BMJ and China. It also forms part of the Chinese government's framework for 'Healthy China 2030' that aims to use innovation to drive health system reform across the country. BMJ Best Practice is a clinical decision support tool that gives doctors fast and easy access to the latest information when making diagnosis and treatment decisions. Updated daily, it draws on the latest evidence-based research, guidelines and expert opinion on over 10,000 different diagnoses to offer step-by-step guidance on diagnosis, prognosis, treatment and prevention. The Chinese edition is the result of a collaboration between BMJ and the Chinese Medical Association (CMA). In addition to the full translation of all BMJ Best Practice content, it also contains the latest clinical guidelines and expert opinion from the CMA, providing access to both international standards and local clinical practice recommendations. It is available both online and offline, and as a mobile app, giving busy clinical staff an immediate head-start on making diagnosis and treatment decisions. BMJ Best Practice is already in regular use by clinicians in more than 60 countries and is accredited by the Health and Family Planning Commission of Guangzhou Municipality in China. Yuyan Kong, Managing Director at BMJ China said: "We are delighted to be partnering with Guangdong Family Doctor Association to help doctors in China practice evidence-based medicine and improve outcomes for their patients. Making BMJ Best Practice accessible in this way is also an important step for us towards our vision of helping to create a healthier world." Yuxiong Wu, Executive Vice President of Guangdong Family Doctor Association said: "Developing primary healthcare is the fundamental way to achieve the 'Healthy China 2030' goal. The Association will use BMJ's advanced evidence-based resources and tools to establish a comprehensive and effective information system for the general practitioners, to better contribute the primary healthcare institutions in China." Over one million children are born with congenital heart disease (CHD) each year. When children with CHD receive timely treatment, 85% can survive into adulthood to live healthy, productive lives. Sadly, 90% of the children with CHD live in poor regions with little or no access to care. Congenital heart disease and other serious birth defects are among the top five causes of death of children worldwide. In its new report, A Voice for the Invisible Child, and echoed in this week's The Lancet, Children's HeartLink calls for the needs of children with heart disease to be included in efforts to strengthen health systems around the word. Specifically, priorities must be made to build a pediatric cardiac workforce, collect data on CHD in national health surveys and cause of child death statistics, and finance health coverage in a way that protects families from impoverishment when they seek care. Brian Atwood, former Administrator of USAID, urges leaders in global health and development: "Increasing access to pediatric cardiac care is a lofty but not insurmountable goal. It is an achievable goal, grounded in health system sustainability and equity. It will save children's lives." Since the turn of the millennium, child deaths have been cut in half thanks to improved public health and poverty reduction efforts. It is predicted that the number will halve again by 2030. That is the year that the UN Sustainable Development Goals call for the world to end preventable child deaths. This target will not be met without addressing congenital heart disease. As the overall rate of child deaths decreases, the burden of children born with heart disease will become more apparent. Source: Children's HeartLink Sphere Medical, an innovative company in critical care monitoring and diagnostics equipment, has launched its next generation CE-marked Proxima system. This unique bedside blood gas analyser (BGA) incorporates a new design and an extended analyte panel. Parameters now added to the new system include glucose and calculated parameters, such as P/F ratio and temperature corrected gases. The ability to monitor blood gases and measure blood glucose frequently and easily, directly by the patient, can enable earlier interventions and closer patient management, which is vital in fast changing critical situations. The next generation Proxima patient dedicated in-line blood gas monitoring system As a patient dedicated system, Proxima is always connected to the patient via their arterial line and ready to go instantly. Since results are also delivered without the caregiver leaving the patients bedside, this significantly reduces time to result compared to conventional benchtop analysers. Its novel design means the system can travel with the patient on their pathway through the hospital. This is possible since the Proxima sensor contains an array of proven biosensor technology on a silicon chip, each a miniaturised version of the electrochemical sensors used in a traditional blood gas analyser. In addition to the sensor, the next generation Proxima system includes a medical grade tablet monitor with an intuitive touchscreen user interface. All results are reported to the monitor and seamlessly transferred directly into laboratory information systems and electronic patient records. This is a key requirement for the successful implementation of point-of-care (POC) testing. As an ex-vivo analyser operating as a closed system, blood is drawn directly from the patient and over the Proxima sensor. Following analysis, all blood is returned to the patient, meaning that there is no blood loss and risk of iatrogenic anaemia is reduced. Furthermore, infection risk to staff and patients is minimised as the arterial line remains closed throughout sampling. The design of Proxima also reduces pre-analytical errors due to the delivery of a high integrity blood sample direct to the sensor for immediate analysis with no mixing or anti-coagulant required. The addition of glucose to the new Proximas analyte panel is significant as glucose measurements play a key part in the care of critically ill patients. Both hyperglycaemia and hypoglycaemia are associated with increased morbidity and mortality in intensive care unit (ICU) patients. Keeping patients in normal glycaemic range is difficult with current systems. The ability to regularly monitor arterial blood glucose using Proxima will support closer clinical management for improved glycaemic control. Proxima is already redefining how arterial blood gas testing is carried out in critically ill patients through its use for the close monitoring of patients in the UK, Germany and Belgium, said Dr Wolfgang Rencken, Chief Executive Officer, Sphere Medical. Based on clinical feedback, we have launched our next generation Proxima which is now even better placed to support rapid and frequent measurements of blood gases, electrolytes and metabolites without blood loss. The addition of glucose to the analyte panel is the most significant new parameter, enabling better glycaemic control in the critically ill. Professor of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine, Mike Grocott, University of Southampton, also commented: Dendritic cells represent an important component of the immune system: they recognize and engulf invaders, which subsequently triggers a pathogen-specific immune response. Scientists of the University Hospital Erlangen of the Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nurnberg (FAU) and the LIMES (Life and Medical Sciences) Institute of the University of Bonn gained substantial knowledge of human dendritic cells, which might contribute to the development of immune therapies in the future. The results were recently published in the Journal "Science Immunology". Dendritic cells - their name is derived from the large amount of dendrites on their cell surface - populate most parts of the human body. There they act as guards by recognizing, engulfing, and processing foreign pathogens. Finally, those dendritic cells migrate to nearby lymph nodes, where they interact with other immune cells to trigger a pathogen-specific immune response. Consequently, dendritic cells play an important role within the complex immune system. In recent years, it became evident that in the mouse dendritic cells are composed of different subtypes, which differ in function and distribution across the body. In contrast, less was known about the corresponding situation in humans. Genetics & Genomics eBook Compilation of the top interviews, articles, and news in the last year. Download a copy today Recently, Dr. Gordon Heidkamp and Prof. Dr. Diana Dudziak from the University Hospital Erlangen performed a global study, which, for the first time, systematically characterized dendritic cells in different human organs such as blood, spleen, thymus, tonsils, bone marrow, cord blood. Using 16-color flow cytometry, they detected different dendritic cell subtypes, determined their distribution across the various organs and identified important cell surface proteins. As a result, the scientists revealed that the surface profiles of dendritic cells of the same subtype are constant throughout the different tissues. Additionally, the scientists from Erlangen isolated dendritic cells from human blood, spleen, and thymus and analyzed their genetic information in the form of ribonucleic acid (RNA). The complex data analysis was performed in close collaboration with Jil Sander and Prof. Dr. Joachim L. Schultze from the LIMES Institute of the University of Bonn. Using innovative methods, for example Cibersort analysis, they were able to imposingly demonstrate that the different subtypes share a constant profile, regardless of their initial location. Prof. Dr. Schultze: "In contrast, our data further demonstrate that within non-lymphatic organs such as lungs and skin, tissue-specific signals have a higher impact on the transcriptional output of dendritic cells." According to these recently published findings and due to the special characteristics of dendritic cells, the scientists expect substantial impacts on the therapy of immune diseases as well as on the development of new approaches to treat tumors. Prof. Dudziak summarizes: "There is evidence that dendritic cells might play a crucial role for the development of innovative therapies targeting the immune system. Our results help to understand the fundamental characteristics of dendritic cells." Hitachi Aloka Medical America, Inc. announced the SOFIA 3D Breast Ultrasound system has received an Innovative Technology designation from Vizient, Inc. the largest member-driven health care performance improvement company in the country. The designation was based on reviews of SOFIA by hospital experts who attended Vizients Innovative Technology Exchange in September 2016. The event provided medical technology suppliers the opportunity to demonstrate their product and gain direct feedback from 1300 onsite clinical experts and health care providers on the impact their products may have on improving clinical care, safety, or benefits to an organizations care and business model. Designed for women whose breast density may result in an inconclusive mammogram, SOFIA uses ultrasound to create a 3D volume of the whole breast. Patients are imaged in the prone position, placing their breast onto SOFIAs unique radial scanning array. With the breast compressed simply by laying prone, the patient rests comfortably during the systems rapid automated 30-second scan. The acquired high-resolution ultrasound images are then sent to the SOFIA workstation and reconstructed into a 3D volume of the entire breast that can be quickly interpreted by the radiologist. While the medical community has recognized for some time that ultrasound should be a more integral part of the imaging continuum for women with dense breasts, the medical device industry has been slow to introduce products that help to provide efficiencies in bilateral whole-breast ultrasound exams, said David Famiglietti, President and General Manager of Hitachi Aloka. We are excited that Vizient has recognized SOFIAs ability to inject the speed and efficiency needed for the rapid and wide scale adoption of this life-saving exam to its membership. Due to the number of products and services being released and marketed as innovative, member hospitals truly value the peer-review system in place at Vizient to help them identify products worth further evaluation at their own facilities, Debbie Archer, director of procurement and leader of Vizients Innovative Technology program for suppliers. After a review of SOFIA 3D Breast Ultrasound system, Vizients members agreed this solution offers unique and incremental benefit over other products available on the market today, and recommended it for an Innovative Technology designation. Vizient, Inc. represents the combined strengths of the organizations formerly known as VHA Inc., University HealthSystem Consortium, Novation and MedAssets Spend and Clinical Resource Management. Since 2003, nearly 2200 new and innovative products and technologies have been submitted through the Vizient Innovative Technology program. Vizient works with member-led councils and task forces to identify and review potentially innovative products. If it is determined that a product is innovative, a contract may be awarded outside of Vizients competitive bid cycle. Source: http://www.hitachi-aloka.com/ Imphal: Around 70 heavily armed men suspected to be from the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM) attacked seven posts of the Indian Reserve Battalion and snatched 20 weapons from the security personnel in Noney district of Imphal on Saturday. The incident took place around 11am following which reinforcements were sent to the post and a search operation launched to track the militants. At least 70 heavily armed cadre suspected to be from th NSCN-IM raided the posts and fled with weapons, a police source said. Kandahar: Gunmen shot dead five female airport workers and their driver in southern Afghanistan on Saturday, underlining the threat to employed women in the country. The women were in a van driving to the airport in the southern Kandahar province when at least three gunmen on motorcycles opened fire at them, provincial spokesman Samim Kheplwak told AFP. "All the women and their driver aboard the van were killed. The attackers fled the area and we have launched an investigation," he said. Kandahar International Airport Director Ahmadullah Faizi said the women were employees of a private company who would provide luggage and body search services for female passengers. He said the women were concerned about their security after receiving death threats from people who disapproved of their career. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but Kandahar females who work outside their homes have long been at high risk of attack from Taliban militants and other insurgent groups. Afghan women have made giant strides since the Taliban regime was ousted in 2001, but they are still absent from public life and continue to suffer high levels of violence, oppression and abuse. The Afghan attorney general's office recorded more than 3,700 cases of violence against women in the first eight months of 2016, with 5,000 cases recorded in the whole of the previous year. Police of Hyderabad arrested four people including an Anti Corruption Bureau home guard for looting cash from two businessmen after promising commission for exchanging demonetised currency with new notes.Police have also seized Rs 12 lakh cash in new currency notes and four mobile phones from the accused.On December 14, Venkanna and Mahesh, from Nalgonda district of Telangana, came to Hyderabad with Rs 12 lakh new currency notes.One of the accused collected the new notes from them and asked them to wait till he returns with demonetised currency. But then businessmen received a phone call from a person impersonating as a police official and said that ACB has seized the cash. The victims then approached ACB office and filed a complaint.In a separate case, police also arrested 6 people in dacoity case and seized Rs 5.70 lakh. The complainant informed police that he had gone to exchange currency at a commission but was threatened and looted.In another incident, five people including a police officer were arrested in Medak district of Telangana for allegedly robbing a businessman of Rs 91 lakh on December 12th, in the name of exchanging old currency. The businessman was attacked by people claiming to be police and then robbed him. Police has seized over Rs 34 lakh in new notes.Earlier also on December 5, Banjara hills police also arrested 10 people including additional inspector of police for robbing Rs 78 lakh in new Rs 2000 notes in four incidents in Hyderabad.The Hyderabad police is continuously cautioning public not to fall in trap of gangs operating in exchange old demonetized or new currency for commission. Police is also appealing public to inform police or the Income Tax department. Air Marshal B S Dhanoa is new #IAFChief (File pic) pic.twitter.com/2kBK5x5ypt Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 17, 2016 The government appointed two new service chiefs on Saturday, tapping in Lt Gen Bipin Rawat as the next Army chief and Air Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa as the new Air Force chief.Lt Gen Rawat, the vice chief of the Indian Army, will succeed General Dalbir Singh Suhag, while Air Marshal Dhanoa will take over from Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha who relinquishes the office on December 31.Lt Gen Rawat, whose appointment brought to an end the guessing game borne out of the governments delay in announcing the new Army chief, was commissioned in the Fifth Battalion of the Eleven Gorkha Rifles in December 1978, from IMA Dehradun, where he was awarded the Sword of Honour.He has vast experience in high-altitude warfare and counter-insurgency operations. He commanded an Infantry battalion along the Line of Actual Control in the Eastern sector, a Rashtriya Rifles sector and an Infantry Division in the Kashmir Valley.Lt Gen Rawat has held important staff appointments at Directorate General of Military Operations (DGMO) and Military Secretarys Branch at Army HQ.He has also been Major General General Staff at HQ Eastern Command. The officer commanded a Multinational Brigade in a Chapter VII mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC).An alumni of Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, the Higher Command and National Defence College Courses, Lt Gen Rawat, during the span of over 35 years service in uniform, has been awarded for gallantry and distinguished service.It has been a convention that the new Army chief is announced 60 days before the incumbent retires. This allows the chief-in-waiting the time to familiarise himself with the office of the Army chief and daily chorus attached to it. However, with just 13 days to go before Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag retires, Lt Gen Rawat is left with much less time to get acquainted functional procedures within Army Chiefs office at the South Block.Lt Gen Rawat superseded senior most army commander Lt Gen Praveen Bakshi, who headed the Eastern Command and was next in line to be the army chief, besides Southern Command Chief PM Hariz. Supersesion in the army is not new though there has not been any such instances in the recent past. In 1983, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had appointed Lt Gen AS Vaidya as army chief superseding Lt Gen SK Sinha, who resigned in protest.Air Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa is a Kargil war veteran and first-rate fighter pilot.Commissioned in the IAF in June 1978 as a fighter pilot, Dhanoa is an alumnus of Rashtriya Indian Military College, the National Defence Academy and the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington.Dhanoa, 59, is expected to have tenure of about three years as the Chief of Air Staff.Born in Punjabs SAS Nagar, Mohali district, Air Marshal Dhanoa comes from a family of war veterans. His grandfather Capt Sant Singh was with the British Indian Army and fought in the World War II against the Japanese. His father, Sarayan Singh, served as the Chief Secretary to the Government of Punjab during the 1980s and later served as advisor to the state governor.Prior to moving in as Vice-Chief, he was Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, South Western Command.During the Operation Vijay in 1999 (Kargil Operations), he famously commanded a fighter squadron and himself flew numerous night strike missions in the mountainous terrain.He has distinguishably served various important operation appointments including Chief Instructor (Air) at the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (Intelligence) at Air Headquarters and Senior Air Staff Officer of two operational Commands.He was awarded Yudh Seva Medal (YSM), Vayusena Medal (VM) in 1999, and Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) in 2015. New Delhi: Three soldiers were killed and one seriously injured when militants opened fire at an army convoy in Pampore town along the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway on Saturday. The militant action once again exposes the laxity in security in the two km stretch of Pampore where they have carried four major attacks in recent past, including the deadly attack on CRPF convoy. The Pampore strike comes two weeks after two top commanders of Lashkar-e-Toiba were killed in encounters prompting the outfit to replace them with locals to head operations in South and North Kashmir. The army convoy was on its way to Srinagar from Jammu when it was ambushed this afternoon. "Militants came in a matador and after striking at the convoy went back in the same vehicle. This is a Lashkar attack," S P Vaid, JK special director general of police told News 18. "They fired indiscriminately before escaping," said the official. The security forces immediately retaliated and tried to chase the militants but their attempt wasn't successful. However they recovered a magazine of a gun from a nearby lane. The entire area has been cordoned off and massive search operations have been launched to track down the militants responsible for the attack. Army and security forces retaliated and terrorists were forced to run away. There was huge public presence in the area so we could not fire openly. We always remain alert on the national highway," said Zulfikar Hassan, inspector general of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), operations. This is the second major attack after November 29 Nagrota terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir. On November 29, a group of heavily armed fidayeens, donning police uniforms, stormed into in the highly fortified camp of 166 field regiment and killed seven soldiers, including two Majors, at Nagrota on the strategic Jammu-Srinagar highway. Three militants were later neutralised in the day-long gunfight. Sixteen hostages including 12 soldiers, two women, and two children, were safely rescued by army troops. The attack comes at a time when security forces have renewed counter militancy offensive in which several top leaders of militants particularly Lashkar-e-Toiba have been eliminated. On December 8, security forces killed two top commanders including one of the main conspirators of Udhampur terror attack in two day long gunfight at Hassanpora village of Arwani in south Kashmirs Anantnag district. One of the militants was identified Majid Zargar who was the south Kashmir chief of Lashkar. On December 14, Lashkar-e-Toiba suffered another blow when security forces gunned down one its north Kashmir chief in Sopore. Abu Bakar, a 27-year-old Pakistani divisional commander who was operating in north Kashmir since 2009, was killed in an encounter with security forces in Bomai village of Sopore. Experts told News18 that the Finance Ministry's statement that political parties depositing old notes in the bank will not face scrutiny from tax authorities can now allow them into 'authorised' conduit for people who want to launder their black money.Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia on Friday said that if the money is a deposit in the account of a political party, they are exempt from paying tax and neither will they face scrutiny from tax officials.This can only happen in India where political parties think they are above the law, Jay Prakash Narayan, the founder of the Lok Satta Party, told News18. Real estate and corruption are the biggest generators of black money, what is the government doing to address these? he added.Observers said this will not only allow political parties to deposit their unaccounted money, but theoretically speaking, others with black money can approach them and get their money whitewashed.It's not a loophole, its a huge gaping hole, Jagdeep Chhokar, former director in-charge of the Indian Institute of Management and founding member of the Association of Democratic Reforms told News18.It is an open signal that political parties have become authorised conduits for the conversion of black money to white, he added.A person could approach a political party and give his black money in old currency to be deposited in the bank account of the party. The person can then create invoices for services rendered and gets a cheque payment, after the party deducts a certain amount as commission. Thus, the black money in old currency notes is laundered into white.There are laws in place that regulate donations to political parties. All cheque payments to parties are tax exempt. For cash payments below Rs 20,000, the donors name doesnt have to be declared, though the amount has to be entered in the books of account. New Delhi: The Indian security establishment saw two high-level appointments being made on Saturday with Rajiv Jain tapped in as the Intelligence Bureau (IB) chief and Anil Dhasmana elevated to head the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW). Jain, 1980-batch Jharkhand-cadre officer, had been the No.2 in IB, Indias internal intelligence agency. He was earlier the state intelligence bureau head for Delhi and Ahmedabad. Jain takes over from Dineshwar Sharma who retires at the end of this month. Dhasmana, a 1980-batch Madhya Pradesh-cadre officer, will head the R&AW, where he has been the second-in-command. He has handled many important assignments at Indias premier external intelligence agency and takes over from Rajinder Khanna at the end of this month. New Delhi: In twin jolts to Congress, the Rajasthan High Court has directed an associate of Congress President Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra to appear before the Enforcement Directorate for questioning in a land case in Bikaner while the Haryana government has transferred another land case in Panchkula to the CBI for further investigations. The Congress, which has been on the offensive against Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the demonetisation issue, has accused the BJP of diversionary tactics. Rajasthan High Court on Friday directed an official of Skylight Hospitality Pvt Ltd, a company linked to Vadra, to appear before the ED in a money laundering case related to land deals in Bikaner. The court rejected a plea filed by Skylight official Mahesh Nagar, who has been asked by ED to record his statement and make himself available for interrogation between January 4 and 6. "Whenever the BJP has been attacked, they try to divert the attention of people by saying such things. Why hasn't the investigation managed to find anything on the case so far?," Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said. BJP leader Subramniam Swamy however showered praise on the move and accused Vadra of being involved in business of Benami property. "There is no escape for Vadra now. He does every business by benami property. This is a good step by the CM and I am happy for this," Swamy said. Justice P K Lohra has asked Nagar to honour the summons, but also directed the ED to interrogate him in the presence of his counsel. National Herald Row In the second instance, the Haryana government on Friday said it has handed over to the CBI the probe into the reallotment of a plot to Associated Journals Limited (AJL) in Panchkula in 2005. "This case (AJL) has been given to CBI for probe a few days back and soon the CBI will start investigation," Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar told reporters on Friday. Haryana State Vigilance Bureau had registered a case of cheating and corruption against Former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and four HUDA officials for allegedly realloting the plot to AJL in 2005 instead of going for an open auction. Reacting to the news, Hooda termed it as a modus operandi, witch hunt and political vendetta. "We have done nothing wrong during our tenure," Hood said. The plot had been initially allotted to AJL, the owner of National Herald newspaper, in 1982.After the expiry of the lease period in 1996, the then Haryana Vikas Party goverment led by Bansi Lal resumed its possession. It was reallotted to AJL after the Congress came to power in 2005. The vigilance bureau had alleged that the act by the then HUDA chairman and officials had caused a huge financial loss to the public sector undertaking as the plot should have been sold in an open auction. Why has Seniority not been respected in Aptt.of Army Chief?Why have Lt Gen PRAVIN Bakshi & Lt Gen Mohamed Ali Hariz been superseded Mr PM? Manish Tewari (@ManishTewari) December 17, 2016 2/2 Why has third senior most officerLt Gen Bipin Rawat with due respects to his professionalism superseded other two in a herarichal force? Manish Tewari (@ManishTewari) December 17, 2016 3/3 correctionGen Rawat is not third but fourth senior most. Even Lt Gen BS Negi Army commander Central Command is senior to him ? Why Mr PM Manish Tewari (@ManishTewari) December 17, 2016 4/4 and I only hope& pray it is untrue that this supersession in the Army is not a precursor to suppressions in other institutions Like SC?? Manish Tewari (@ManishTewari) December 17, 2016 The appointment of Lt Gen Bipin Rawat as the next Army chief took political overtones on Saturday with Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari saying the government had not respected seniority while making the decision.In a series of tweets, Tewari said Lt Gen Rawat, who succeeds General Dalbir Singh Suhag, was fourth as per seniority and questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi why those senior to him were ignored.Lt Gen Rawat, an infantry soldier, superseded senior most army commander Lt Gen Praveen Bakshi, who headed the Eastern Command and was next in line to be the army chief, besides Southern Command Chief PM Hariz.Supersesion in the army is not new though there has not been any such instances in the recent past. In 1983, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had appointed Lt Gen AS Vaidya as army chief superseding Lt Gen SK Sinha, who resigned in protest.Lt Gen Rawats appointment on Saturday brought to an end the guessing game borne out of the delay in announcing the new Army chief.It has been a convention that the new Army chief is announced 60 days before the incumbent retires. This allows the chief-in-waiting the time to familiarise himself with the office of the Army chief and daily chorus attached to it. However, with just 13 days to go before Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag retires, Lt Gen Rawat is left with much less time to get acquainted functional procedures within Army Chiefs office at the South Block. Mumbai: Newly-appointed Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) chief Poonam Mahajan on Saturday said the immediate task before her is to build a new team with a special focus on the upcoming Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. Mahajan (36), daughter of late party leader Pramod Mahajan and currently the Lok Sabha member from Mumbai North-Central, was appointed the president of BJYM, the youth wing of BJP, on December 15. The first-time MP replaced Anurag Thakur, who was at the helm for over six years. "I need to build a new team as I will be heading the organisation for the next three years. The immediate focus is upcoming elections in Uttar Pradesh, for which BJYM would start holding meetings after three months," Mahajan told PTI in an interview here. "As the news (about the appointment) broke, many people from UP, who were close to my father contacted me. It was a pleasant surprise for me, as he is not forgotten. His work in those days is helping me, too, to get in touch with people. I will see how it benefits BJP in the (UP) Assembly elections," she said. Uttar Pradesh is the largest state in the country in terms of Assembly and Lok Sabha seats. BJP won 71 out of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in 2014 general elections. Our approach is going to be on a new PPP model, she said adding, "it is Politician-Public Participation, where our cadres will work as an agent of the change our elected government is bringing in. You can call it a facilitator or amplifier of government's decisions and policies. A party needs to have such cadre that will take government's decisions to the people". Talking about the Narendra Modi-led Centre, she said it might face some opposition from people, but the ruling dispensation does not face any political challenge. "With such a strong political mandate and the speed of achieving development, the Modi government does not face political opposition. If there is any likelihood of opposition, it would come from people," she said. Mahajan said protests by some communities, like Jats in Haryana, New Delhi and UP, and Patel community in Gujarat and Marathas in Maharashtra were "politicised" to some extent. "There was an effort of dividing the youth of the country through such rallies, who are otherwise highly ambitious. But on a larger scale, these rallies signify their hope and aspiration. Most of the protests did follow the law and it was a peaceful demonstration," she said. Mumbai: NCP president Sharad Pawar on Saturday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for dragging Indira Gandhi into the demonetisation debate, asking why other prime ministers after her, including Atal Bihari Vajpayee, did not take the note ban decision. The NCP veteran said Modi was trying to project himself as a bigger leader than Gandhi by making such a statement. "According to him (Modi), Indira Gandhi did not go in for demonetisation as suggested by her Finance Minister Y B Chavan. So even PMs after her, including Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and even Finance Minister in the BJP regime Yashwant Sinha or the then Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani did not take such a decision," Pawar told a press meet here. Modi had on Friday trained guns at the former PM Indira Gandhi, claiming that she overlooked a suggestion in 1971 for demonetisation by the then Finance Minister Y B Chavan. Pawar said, "It is not right to say nothing has happened in the country in past 70 years. In the 70 years, Congress has not been in power all the time. Modi himself was chief minister of a state for 13 years." "All leaders including Pandit (Jawaharlal) Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi, Vajpayee, Morarji Desai and Charan Singh have contributed to the country's development. How can one say nothing has happened in 70 years and development is taking place only since last two years," he said. Pawar said he had supported the decision of demonetisation as it was good for eradication of black money. But, its implementation has been flawed and the central government is responsible for the hardships faced by the common man. "The central government is guilty of not putting in place an alternative system like pumping in enough lower denomination notes after the scrapping of high denomination currency notes," he said. He said when people are standing in queues for their own money, several people have been caught with bundles of new currency notes in searches across the country. "From where have people got this amount of cash ... it is from the banks which are under the control of central government," he claimed. The NCP supremo said agriculture sector has been badly affected as farm produce is not getting a good price and small scale industries and labourers were also hit. Claiming that in Uttar Pradesh, potato prices have crashed to Rs 6-7 per kg from Rs 18-20 per kg in last one month, he said, "No steps have been taken to ease the hardships faced by the people." Asked if the Opposition plans an agitation against the government over demonetisation, Pawar said, "If necessary, agitation can be launched, but people will suffer because of such protests." He warned that the long-term impact of the decision would be lay-off of employees by corporates. The former Union Agriculture Minister was also critical of the curbs imposed on the district cooperative in the wake of demonetisation. "They were not given new currency and not allowed to accept old notes. I am being told that just because district cooperative banks are held by politicians such a negative approach was adopted. It shows the central government's attitude towards the district banks and credit societies which are the backbone of rural economy," said Pawar. He also referred to the negative reaction of District Central Cooperative Bank Association (DCCB) head Dilip Sanghi, who served as a minister in Modi government in Gujarat. "Even Sanghi who was minister when Narendra Modi was Chief Minister has criticised the decision of the central government to impose restrictions on DCCBs post-demonetisation," said Pawar. He rejected the BJP's contention that its success in the local body polls in Maharashtra was an endorsement of demonetisation. "We know more than them how to win local body polls. Only now we don't have that power," Pawar said. The NCP leader said he had supported demonetisation as an action against black money. "It is like saying that the operation was done but the patient died because of lack of post-operative care," he said. On being criticised for sharing dais with Modi, Pawar shot back saying, "Is Modi PM of Pakistan?". "In a democratic set up, one has to interact with leaders cutting across party lines. Didn't the Congress delegation meet the PM yesterday?" he asked. New Delhi: In a bid to clear the air on tax exemption to political parties, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday said they cannot accept donations in old 500 and 1,000 rupee notes since these bills were junked last month and clarified that there is no new exemption granted. The conditional tax exemptions historically given to income of registered political parties continue and no new concession or exemption has been granted either post November 8 demonetisation announcement or in the last two-and-a-half years, he said. "Post demonetisation, no political party can accept donations in 500 and 1,000 rupee notes since they were rendered illegal tenders. Any party doing so would be in violation of law," he said in a statement. He said just like anyone else, political parties can also deposit their cash held in the old currency in banks till December 30 "provided they can satisfactorily explain the source of income and their books of accounts reflect the entries prior to November 8". "If there is any discrepancy in the books or records of political parties, they are as liable to be questioned by the Income Tax authorities as is anyone else. They enjoy no immunity whatsoever," he said. "There is no question of sparing anyone, and the political class is no exception." Political parties have not been granted any exemption post demonetisation and introduction of Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Act, 2016 which came into force on December 15, 2016," he said. Under the Income Tax Act, income of political parties is exempt from tax subject to condition that all donations above Rs 20,000 are taken through cheque and lower ones are properly documented with full detail of donors. These accounts also have to be audited. "Under Section 13A of IT Act 1961, political parties have to submit audited accounts, income & expenditure details and balance sheets," Jaitley said. In Mumbai, he told reporters that "the legal and taxation regimes for all registered political parties remain as they were 20-25 years ago. Our government has not made any changes to these rules, nor we are planning to make any". He warned the political parties not to misuse the system. "There is no relaxation in the tax scrutiny of political parties. This is a complete media creation. We will take strong action against those parties which misuse the system." Stating that no changes have been made in the law regarding political funding, he said, "Not a single change has been made in the last two months or so, or in the last two-and-a-half years with regard to taxation of political parties. "Nothing has been done, whatever was the existing system which has existed for the last 15 years is continuing and if somebody creates a political party for the purpose of channelising funds... obviously law will step in," Jaitley said. "Income and donations of political parties fall in the purview of Section 13A of the Income Tax Act 1961 & there is no change in its provisions. In this era of instant outrage, a 35-year-old law is presented as a new law being passed by the NDA government," Jaitley said in the statement. "I implore all journalist friends to be fully outraged against any step of the government, if it is not against corruption. But in equal measure, I would also implore them to do adequate research before jumping the gun," he added. The case was registered under various charges dealing with criminal conspiracy, forgery and under provisions of the Information Technology (IT) Act, the officer said. The CBI said it has registered a case against 15 Paytm customers for allegedly cheating the digital wallet to the tune of Rs 6.15 lakh after receiving a complaint from its parent company."The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered a case on a complaint received from One97 Communications Ltd. with brand name Paytm on Thursday," agency spokesperson Devpreet Singh told IANS.One97 is the parent company of Paytm which is backed by China's Alibaba Group.Read more: Also read: Top 5 Smartphones Under Rs 30,000: Is OnePlus 3 Still the King? According to her, the case has been registered against 15 private persons who are said to be Paytm customers."In its complaint, Paytm said that in some cases from March 2014 to April 2016, where refunds were made to the customers, delivery of orders were also successfully made on the same customers." Also read: Netflix Strikes Deal With Shah Rukh Khan's Red Chillies Entertainment "Since delivery of orders was successful, refund should not happen. The generation of refunds has led to loss to Paytm to the tune of Rs 6.15 lakhs," the official added.Singh declined to say if any case was registered against any official of Paytm or its parent company One97, only stating that the "investigation is under progress".Asked if it was usual for the CBI to take up cases of private companies until they have been referred by the central government or on the directions of the Supreme Court or a high court, Singh said: "The CBI can register cases under IT Act in the territory of Delhi even against private individuals.""The cyber cell of the CBI has been doing it since 2000," she said, adding, "And we have done cases for Snapdeal, Google, Microsoft and lot of other companies on their complaints and it is the job of the cyber cell."Paytm, which has a user base of 150 million as on November 21, said that over five million users were added after the recent demonetisation of high-value currencies. It processes over seven million transactions a day, worth Rs 120 crore. China has shut down or "dealt with" thousands of websites for sharing "harmful" erotic or obscene content since April, the state's office for combating pornography and illegal publications announced on Thursday.The office said 2,500 websites were prosecuted or shut down and more than 3 million "harmful" posts were deleted in eight months up to December during a drive to "purify" the internet in China and protect youth, the official Xinhua news agency reported.The government has tightening its grip on Chinese cyberspace in recent months, in particular placing new restrictions on the fast-growing live-streaming industry.The state has a zero-tolerance approach to what it considers lewd, smutty or illegal content and has in past crackdowns removed tens of thousands of websites in a single year.Two popular news websites were also punished for spreading "illegal" content, Xinhua reported. It did not elaborate.Aside from live-streaming, the office worked alongside the Ministry of Public Security, the ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Cyberspace Administration of China to target cloud storage, chat apps and "vulgar" videos.Social media platforms have become a key tool for spreading illegal content and mobile pay platforms including Alipay and WeChat pay have allowed individuals to make big profits, the office said. Washington: US President Barack Obama has warned Donald Trump that any tinkering with the decades-old One-China policy could invite a "very significant" reaction from Beijing, days after the President-elect questioned the policy's relevance. "The idea of One China is at the heart of their conception as a nation and so if you are going to upend this understanding, you have to have thought through what the consequences because the Chinese will not treat that the way they will treat some other issues. "They will not even treat it the way they issues around the South China Sea, where we have had a lot of tensions. This goes to the core of how they see themselves," Obama told reporters at a White House news conference on Friday. "Their reaction on this issue could end up being very significant. That does not mean that you have to adhere to everything that has been done in the past, but you have to think it through and have planned for potential reactions that they may engage in," Obama said. He was responding to a question on recent phone conversation between Trump and the Taiwanese President and the President-elect questioning the relevance of One China Policy. At the same time, he indicated that Trump could bring in some freshness in foreign policy. "I think all of our foreign policy should be subject to fresh eyes. I am very proud of the work I have done. I think I am a better president now than when I started. But you know, if you are here for eight years in the bubble, you start seeing things a certain way and you benefit from, the democracy benefits, America benefits from some new perspectives," he said. Obama said it should be not just the prerogative, but the obligation of a new president to examine everything that has been done and see what makes sense and what does not. Given the importance of the relationship between the US and China and how much is at stake in terms of the world economy, national security, the US presence in the Asia- Pacific, China's increasing role in global affairs, there is probably no bilateral ties that carries more significance. And where there is also the potential if that relationship breaks down or goes into full conflict mode that everybody is worse off, he said. "I think it is fine for him to take a look at it. What I have advised the President-elect is that across the board on foreign policy, you want to make sure that you are doing it in a systematic, deliberate, intentional way," Obama said. "Since there is only one president at a time, my advice to him has been that before he starts having a lot of interactions with foreign governments other than the usual courtesy calls, that he should want to have his full team in place, that he should want his team to be fully briefed on what is gone on in the past," he said. "And where the potential pitfalls may be, where the opportunities are, what we have learned from eight years of experience so that as he is then maybe taking foreign policy in a new direction, he has got all the information to make good decisions, and by the way, that all of government is moving at the same time and singing from the same hymnal," Obama said. With respect to China and let's just take the example of Taiwan, there has been a longstanding agreement essentially between China and the US, and to some agree the Taiwanese, which is to not change the status quo, he said. Taiwan operates differently than mainland China does. China views Taiwan as part of China, but recognises that it has to approach Taiwan as an entity that has its own ways of doing things, Obama said. "The Taiwanese have agreed that as long as they are able to continue to function with some agree of autonomy, that they won't charge forward and declare independence. And that status quo, although not completely satisfactory to any of the parties involved, has kept the peace and allowed the Taiwanese to be a pretty successful economy and - of people who have a high agree of self-determination. What I understand for China, the issue of Taiwan is as important as anything on their docket," Obama added. Washington: Afghan-oriented militant groups like the Taliban and the Haqqani Network retain freedom of action from inside Pakistani territory, the Pentagon has said, while asserting that the US has been clear in urging Islamabad to deny safe havens to terror outfits. "Afghan-oriented militant groups, including Taliban and Haqqani Network senior leadership, retain freedom of action from safe havens inside Pakistani territory," the Pentagon said in its six-monthly report to the Congress. "The United States continues to be clear with Pakistan about steps it should take to improve the security environment and deny safe havens to terrorist and extremist groups," the report said. Militant groups, including the Taliban and Haqqani senior leadership, retained safe havens inside Pakistani territory and sustained Pakistani efforts to disrupt active Haqqani Network threats were not observed during the reporting period, the Pentagon said in its report ending November 2016. The Pentagon, in its report running into nearly 100 pages, said the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region remains a sanctuary for various groups. These include the Taliban, al-Qaeda, AQIS, Haqqani Network, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), ISIL-K, and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. "This sanctuary and these groups remain a security challenge for both countries and pose a threat to regional stability and security," it said. Collectively, terrorist and insurgent groups continue to present a formidable challenge to Afghan, the US and coalition forces, the report said. There is a high concentration of terrorist and extremist organisations operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan, with several known designated organisations operating in the two countries, creating a complex threat environment, the Pentagon said. Of the groups involved in the Taliban-led insurgency, the Haqqani Network remains the greatest threat to US, coalition and Afghan forces and continues to be a critical enabler of al-Qaeda, it said. Haqqani Network leader Sirajuddin Haqqani's role as Taliban deputy has solidified Haqqani influence within the Taliban, the Pentagon said. Sirajuddin Haqqani's position has likely allowed the Haqqani Network to increase its area of operations within Afghanistan and provided the Taliban with additional operational and planning capabilities, it said. The Pentagon said although al Qaeda's core leadership in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region has been degraded, elements continue to seek safe haven on both sides of the border to regenerate and conduct attack planning. "The continued development of an al-Qaeda affiliate in the region, al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), highlights the dynamic nature of the region's terrorist and militant landscape, posing risks to the mission and to US interests," it said. Two months after reopening to the public, the downtown YMCA pool is closed again. A notice posted online said the Downtown YMCA Family Pool will be closed temporarily due to the recent discovery of a leak in the main drain. Reached Friday for comment, YMCA Chief Operations OfficerJay Parker said the YMCA found some water in the pools pump room, and as a result, decided to close the pool to find the leak. He does not know how long the pool will be closed. In the meantime, the YMCA is encouraging guests to visit the family pool located at the Jamerson Family YMCA on Wyndhurst Drive. Previously the pool was closed for six weeks in the fall to conduct preventive maintenance, including removing the old paint from beams in the pool area and repainting them and cleaning the pool and surrounding areas. Two area law enforcement agencies will receive state funding for community policing initiatives in 2017. Governor Terry McAuliffe announced Tuesday that a total of $756,327 will be distributed to agencies statewide through 36 Policing in the 21st Century grants. The funding is meant to boost community policing efforts. The Lynchburg Police Department will be working with the Boys & Girls Club and allocate its $20,000 grant toward putting city youth in the clubs Street Smart Program. Maj. Todd Swisher said the program will include around 100 participants over the course of a year, with four seasonal sessions involving groups of around 25 kids each. Each group will meet regularly over the course of around 14 weeks, and he said the first group would start around the beginning of February. Were kind of crafting and talking about what this is going to look like from a curriculum perspective, he said. Mark Sheehan, executive director of the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Lynchburg, said curriculum will be drawing from the Boys & Girls Clubs Street Smart program and Lynchburgs Gang Prevention Through Targeted Outreach handbook. The first component of Street Smart is police interaction sessions, he said. Participants from around 12 years to 18 years old will also learn more about drug laws and the dangers of joining a gang, Sheehan said. For the first few months of the program, participating kids will be members of Boys & Girls Club of Greater Lynchburg and those participating in Lynchburg Public Schools Empowerment Academy. Later, the program will aim to include other Lynchburg children. Having worked with the Lynchburg Police Department for around 10 years, Sheehan said this will be a new pilot program for the club. With national unrest and discussion surrounding police and youth interaction, community policing programs like Street Smart have been something of a trend, according to Sheehan. When were talking about urban problems, we are always ahead of the curve on those things, he said The funding will pay for one years worth of supplies and salaries for Boys & Girls Club personnel, and a police sergeant will contribute time to the program as an in-kind match to the grant. To continue the program years into the future, Sheehan said Boys & Girls Club could look into federal funding, local funding and connecting with Centra Health. The Bedford County Sheriffs Office will get a $5,495 grant from the state, which Administrative Assistant to the Sheriff Robin Sundquist said will go toward three county-wide shredding events in March, April and May. At the events, citizens will be able to shred personal documents and dispose of unwanted medication safely. Parents will be able to get their child safety seats checked or register their childs photo and fingerprints into a child identification system. Each event will be at a different location in the county and Sundquist said the exact dates have yet to be determined. The number of patients treated by a Lynchburg health center serving uninsured and underinsured people continues to rise, according to its chief executive officer. The Johnson Health Center gained the most new patients of any other federally qualified health center in Virginia from 2014 to 2015, CEO Gary Campbell said Thursday after learning about the statistic through the Virginia Community Healthcare Association. With locations serving all comers, including people with full insurance in Lynchburg, Bedford and Amherst, the center added more than 1,500 new patients in 2015 over 2014, an increase Campbell expects to see repeated once this years numbers are compiled. The health care center will receive $1.29 million in federal money for 2017, according to an announcement Virginias U.S. senators made in a news release last week. We never had our doubts, but you still want to see it come across the screen, Campbell said. The allocation made under the Public Health Service Act is part of a regular grant that makes up 15 percent to 20 percent of the health centers budget, Campbell said. The grant is for $3 million over three years and is dedicated to services for people who are uninsured and underinsured or receiving Medicaid, he said. Those patients make up about 70 percent of the centers visitors, Campbell said. By October 2016, the center had seen 17,300 patients, Campbell said. Campbell said a high number of people without insurance or covered by Medicaid in the Lynchburg area is one reason the centers numbers are growing. But he said the need always has been there. The center, he said, has focused on outreach. Were seeing our uninsured numbers grow because our dental [program] has picked up so much, Campbell said. Once people learn they can get dental and health care in the same location, Campbell said, they are more likely to return. Campbell believes high retention of employees and a focus on patients helps maintain relationships. They are certainly one of our most active health centers, said Rick Shinn, Virginia Community Healthcare Association director of government affairs. We certainly appreciate what they do. Lynchburg College President Kenneth R. Garren was elected to the Board of Directors of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities this week, according to a news release from the college. As a member of the board, Garren will represent colleges in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida and Georgia in setting NAICU policies and priorities. His election will be ratified at the NAICU board meeting Jan. 31 in Washington, D.C. Since 2014, Garren has served on NAICUs Committee on Policy Analysis and Public Relations, during which time he has advocated for government policies that protect students and educational institutions. NAICUs Board of Directors includes 47 members, including 24 college presidents elected to three-year terms by member institutions in each region. AFTON Little children in little hats and adults with scarves wrapped tightly around them, clamored against a wood fence to catch a glimpse of a wise man proclaiming the good news that a savior was born in Bethlehem Village behind Hebron Baptist Church on Friday evening. More than 100 people had been hard at work since August, creating the village that offers tours today until Tuesday. Volunteers come from the local community, Hebron Baptist and several other area churches to build all the village shops. Event organizer Ken Bryant said this is the villages 15th year running, with the first year being in 1999. In its first year, almost 250 people walked through the village, with handmade shops and actors showing off artisans trades from 2,000 years ago. Last year, almost 8,000 people attended. Bryant said attendees are a mix of locals and people who come from Charlottesville, Lynchburg or Culpeper. It steals people away from the commercial aspects of Christmas, Bryant said, adding the tour and show appeals to both Christians and those who want something that is not commercialized. Upon starting in a heated tent, attendees are given a gold coin in order to pay their taxes to the Roman soldiers and register in the Census, just as Mary and Joseph were said to have done. Attendees then are free to look around at various shops including blacksmiths, olive oil makers and a music shop. Eventually, after a group has milled around the village area, a chorus of angels start singing hymns and guide attendees to the barn area where the story of Jesus birth is told. Charlotte Faris, of Afton, has played the music shopkeeper in the village since the first Bethlehem Village show. She said she likes seeing the looks on the little childrens faces as they look around. What inspires me most is the little kids and adults that come by and say what it means to them. This is what God gives them, she said. Neil and Brook Robinson have been driving from Fluvanna County to see the Bethlehem Village since their oldest daughter, Ann Charlotte Robinson, was a baby. Ann Charlotte now is 12 years old, and as she nibbled on a piece of bread, she said her favorite part of the show is the bakery. This is what Christmas is all about to be able to show my kids what its about, Brook Robinson said. She added she likes when the angels in white robes and frosty, floral crowns walk around the village while singing hymns. When Robinsons daughters Ann Charlotte, 10-year-old Sarah Beth and 7-year-old Lila Kate were younger, they were terrified of the Roman soldier characters. This years village featured an elevated barn and manger area, where Mary and Joseph are seated with the baby Jesus. Bryant said in years past, attendees would try to get close to see the couple, and those in the back of the crowd couldnt see. With the elevated seating, everyone can see the shepherds find the baby in a manger and the three wise men. A stones throw from the manger is a small, fenced area where camels from the Natural Bridge Zoo roam, along with a few other animals that would have been around during Jesus birth. The show is free and open to the public. It is funded through donations from attendees and the churches that participate. We want this to be for people who try to get away from getting that perfect gift because, at Christmas, we have the perfect gift, he said referring to the birth of Jesus. legendary wire-bender Senor laid to rest There was no eulogy during the funeral service officiated by Deacon Lennox Toussaint and Monsignor Christian Pereira at the Cathedral, but the cultural send-off at the Savannah, hosted by the National Carnival Commission (NCC) was equal to it as Se?or was remembered in dance and song, with performances by 3 Canal and Trinidad All Stars, as well as verbal contributions from friends and family. Se?or was one of the leading wire benders (sculptors) in Trinidad and Tobago. For more than 60 years he had been bending wire and making costumes. But he also had a passion for playing sailor Mas. Se?or played Fancy Sailor for decades with the Blue Diamonds steelband, as well as with Mt Hope Connection, Belmont Exotic Stylish Sailors (BESS) and Trinidad All Stars. His contribution to wire-bending and sailor mas was such that he was likened to the late great wire-bender Cito Velasquez and sailor mas man Jason Griffith. Via a Ministry of Culture initiative, Gomez gave classes in Mas making at the Belmont Community Centre. His long time friend Francis Delzin told Newsday about his friendship with Gomez. He said, We played plenty Mas, made plenty Mas, bend wire and he made plenty costumes for children for free. Delzin also spoke of Se?or being a trustee in Blue Diamonds Steelband. He said he was heavily involved in the band playing sailor Mas but apart from his wire-bending, making and playing Mas, Se?or and his wife Linda did a lot of work with children in their schools, teaching them to make Mas and how to do the sailor dance. Bertram Thomas, a founder of Blue Diamonds said Se?or bent wire for most of the popular bands in Port-of-Spain. He was the most popular wire-bender and he did it for over 60 years. At the church a couple of fancy sailors came out in costume as did a midnight robber bearing a wreath for Se?or. Gomez, who also gave service to the National Carnival Bands Association (NCBA) and the NCC, leaves to mourn his wife Linda, 11 children, 22 grand children and 24 great grand children 'I Seem to Have Gotten Under a Certain Billionaire's Skin': AOC (Newser) When he was 12, Ed "Kip" Malone was on his way to the store to buy some butter when he happened upon a house on fire and heard a woman calling for someone to help her children. He ran inside and found two little girls, ages 3 and 5, and helped them out of the house. That was in 1951, and the Canadian man always wondered what happened to them. Then, this November, Malone moved into the house next door to Margaret Fowlerand while trading stories about their lives one day, they realized Fowler was one of the two little girls Malone had saved 65 years ago. He has since also been reunited with the other little girl, Fowler's sister Barbara Earle, and the trio told their story to the CBC's St. John's Morning Show this week. "She just looked at me and nearly fainted," Malone says of the moment Fowler told the story of the little girls he'd saved. He found Fowler first, but she refused to leave because her little sister was still somewhere in the house. Malone searched until he finally found Earle under a bed, then led both girls to safety, the Telegram reports. The fire killed the girls' grandmother, and left the girls, their six siblings, and their parents homeless. In the years since, their parents as well as Malone's parents have died. "It's a miracle as far as I'm concerned," Fowler says of the sisters' reunion with Malone. "I think it was meant to be. Both of our parents are dead ... something happened up in heaven that our parents got us together." Adds Earle, "How do you thank him, only to say thank you? I mean, there will always be this connection with us. And that I love you. I don't know what else to say." (Read more uplifting news stories.) We use cookies. By Clicking "OK" or any content on this site, you agree to allow cookies to be placed. Read more in our privacy policy (Newser) The answer to the question "Who betrayed Anne Frank" may be "Nobody," according to new research. A study released by the Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam says that the hiding place of the Jewish teenager and her family may instead have been found by chance when Nazi security forces raided the building to investigate fraudulent food-ration cards or illegal employment, the BBC reports. The study, which counts police documents and Anne's famous diary among its sources, found that the German "Sicherheitsdienst" police that discovered the family usually investigated cases involving cash and securities, not hidden Jews, and they spent much longer at the Amsterdam building during the Aug. 4, 1944, raid than usually happened in cases like the arrest of the Frank family. "During their day-to-day activities, investigators from this department often came across Jews in hiding by chance," according to the study, which notes that there is no evidence that an anonymous phone call long thought to have betrayed the family actually happened. The study notes that two men who worked in the building were arrested earlier in 1944 for dealing in illegal ration cards, and Anne wrote about the arrest in her diary, the AP reports. There is also evidence that the German occupiers had been investigating people working at the address when they should have been sent for forced labor elsewhere. It is still possible that Anne, who died in the Bergen-Belsen camp in 1945, was betrayed, but the study "illustrates that other scenarios should also be considered," says Ronald Leopold, the museum's director. (The winning bid for this Anne Frank poem stunned auctioneers.) (Newser) The US doesn't want Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi to be another one that got away. The State Department has more than doubled its reward for information leading to the arrest of the ISIS leader, who is rumored to be in Mosul or in ISIS-held territory west of the Iraqi city, Reuters reports. The reward has gone from $10 million to $25 million for al-Baghdadi, who was labeled a "Specially Designated Global Terrorist" in 2011, the State Department said in a press release. After the offensive to retake Mosul from the militant group began, al-Baghdadi released his first message in almost a year, telling followers that "holding your ground in honor is a thousand times better than retreating in disgrace." (Read more Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi stories.) (Newser) Uber's self-driving cars will keep ferrying passengers around San Francisco, the ride-hailing company said Fridaya few hours before state prosecutors threatened to haul Uber before a judge if the service is not suspended immediately. In a sharply worded letter, attorneys with the California's Department of Justice demanded that Uber get a special state permit if it wants to continue. If not, "the attorney general will seek injunctive and other appropriate relief," according to the letter. Though there was no deadline in the letter, a spokeswoman for California transportation regulator tells the AP that the state will take action "early next week" if Uber doesn't comply. Uber began the pilot project Wednesday with a few self-driving Volvo SUVs. A person sits behind the wheel, just in case. State lawyers insist that Uber's cars are "autonomous vehicles" which need the permit to ply public roads. Anthony Levandowski, leader of the company's self-driving program, disagrees, arguing Uber does not require the permit because the Volvos have backup drivers behind the wheel monitoring the cars. That means the Volvos are not "autonomous vehicles" under the state's definition, he says. San Francisco's mayor has sided with the state. And a consumer advocacy group suggested that the state should do more than force Uber to stop. "We believe their activity is a criminal offense under the motor vehicle code, punishable with up to six months in jail," says John Simpson of the group Consumer Watchdog. (Uber blamed the human for an incident on the day it launched the self-driving program in San Francisco.) (Newser) Security officers have restored order at a prison in the central English city of Birmingham one day after an estimated 600 inmates seized control and launched a destructive rampage. Authorities called Friday's 13-hour takeover of HMP Birmingham the worst prison uprising since the 1990 riot in Strangeways in Manchester, which lasted 25 days and left one prisoner dead. No staff members were injured during the Birmingham unrest but one prisoner remained hospitalized Saturday with a suspected broken jaw and eye socket, the AP reports. Justice Minister Liz Truss says the reasons for the riot will be fully investigated, while those convicted of rioting will face longer sentences. "Violence in our prisons will not be tolerated and those responsible will face the full force of the law," she said. The BBC reports that during the riot, inmates took over four wings of the prison, started fires, and raided medical supplies. Sources say that private security firm G4S, which runs the prison, will be required to cover most of the repair costs. (Read more United Kingdom stories.) (Newser) "In many ways, Florida is my second home. In many ways, its my first home," Donald Trump told a rally in Orlando Friday night, thanking state officials as well as voters for his victory and boasting about his support from groups including Hispanic voters, African Americans, and Hindus, the Orlando Sentinel reports. "The patriots in this audience tonight stood up to the global special interests and delivered a historic win for the American worker," said Trump, who won the state with 49% of the vote to 48% for Hillary Clinton, USA Today reports. Trump, who recapped his election victory at length and repeated promises including "safe zones" in Syria, told his supporters they had mellowed out since the campaign, CNN reports. "You people were vicious, violent, screaming, 'Where's the wall? We want the wall!' Screaming, 'Prison! Prison! Lock her up!'" he said. "But now, you're mellow and you're cool and you're not nearly as vicious or violent, right? Because we won, right?" The Chicago Tribune reports that when Clinton's name was mentioned by introductory speakers at the rally, there were chants of "Lock her up!" and at least one person shouted"Waterboard her!" Trump, who also appeared at GOP fundraisers in Florida Friday, will bring his "Thank You" tour to Alabama Saturday. (Read more Donald Trump stories.) (Newser) In what appears to have been a spelling error and not a play on words, Donald Trump slammed China's "unpresidented" seizure of a US underwater drone in a tweet Saturday morning. "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented act," he tweeted. He eventually corrected the spelling to "unprecedented." The AP, which describes the Thursday incident in the South China Sea as one of the most serious encounters between the US and Chinese militaries in years, reports that China announced earlier on Saturday that it is in talks with the US about "appropriately handling" the issue. Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis told reporters Friday that the drone was seized while collecting scientific data near the Philippines. "It is ours. It's clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again," Davis said. The Guardian reports that in his Friday press conference, Obama warned Trump against letting relations with China enter "full conflict" mode with a belligerent stance on Taiwan and other issues. "The idea of 'One China is at the heart of their conception as a nation," Obama said, "and so if you are going to upend this understanding, you have to have thought through what are the consequences." (Read more China stories.) (Newser) "I was not raised in America, but I was raised in the American century," Lisa Pryor writes in the New York Times. "I am not yet ready to say goodbye." In a piece titled "Dear America, Why Did You Let Us Down?" the Australian doctor and author talks about how people around the world see the election of Donald Trump as a massive acceleration in the decline of the USa decline they mourn. "I have embarrassment of grief for a government that is not mine and for a country that does not belong to me," writes Pryor, who says she's cried multiple times since the election. "It feels as if we're mourning the death of an idea called America." That idea is one the rest of the world learned to appreciate from afar through pop culture, Pryor says. They learned about the West Wing from The West Wing, Air Force One from Air Force One, and the Pledge of Allegiance from Kindergarten Cop. "America gave us a poetry of democracy that was grand and uplifting, which we were too reserved and sarcastic to speak for ourselves," she writes. But that's been changing for a while now, and Trumpwith his incitement of China, disregard for climate change, and friendship with Vladimir Putinonly cements that change. Now it might be time for places like Australia to take the lead. "Perhaps we could even offer you a different model of democracy, the way you once offered one to us," Pryor writes. Read the full piece here. (Read more Donald Trump stories.) (Newser) China will be returning that American underwater drone it snatched out of international waters Thursday, the Pentagon announced Saturday. "Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States," CNN quotes a Pentagon spokesperson as saying. "Upon confirming that the device was a US underwater drone, the Chinese side decided to transfer it to the US side in an appropriate manner," the Chinese Defense Ministry said in its own statement. The New York Times reports the two sides are still working on a how and when for the drone's return, though a source says the Pentagon expects to have it back in a few days. China blames the US for having "hyped up" the whole thing. (Donald Trump weighed in on the drone's seizure, calling it "unpresidented.") (Newser) A blast of cold air caused rain and wet roads to freeze across the Eastern US, triggering major traffic pileups in Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina, the AP reports. Baltimore City Fire Chief Roman Clark said two people were killed and at least 15 were injured in a 55-vehicle accident and tanker explosion. Clark said the tanker careened off the highway, fell over a jersey wall, and burst into flames. "The roads were very icy," Clark said. "We have nothing but sheets of ice throughout the city." Another crash involving 15 to 20 vehicles in Baltimore County resulted in the hospitalization of six people. In Virginia, meanwhile, State Police say 41 traffic crashes were reported in the northern part of the state. It was unclear how many were due to slick roads. One fatality was reported. Authorities in Ohio say a Columbus woman was killed Saturday after her car skidded off a slick road. In central North Carolina, light freezing rain has caused scores of traffic accidents. Police and emergency workers reported more than 100 crashes overnight Saturday in Raleigh and Charlotte as the drizzle combined with temperatures below freezing. Charlotte police reported two people dead in separate fatal crashes early Saturday, although investigators are still trying to figure out if ice caused the wrecks. (Read more traffic accident stories.) Omnity is the little-known seacrh engine that makes a clear distinction with Google. It specializes in finding scientific, research, and technical papers. It spots rare words in these documents to match similar ones in others found in fields that may be unrelated. Now, it is branching out into more than 100 languages. The one thing that makes it similar to Google is that it is free. Google makes our search for topics, data, and other kinds of information easy by looking for those words that we type on its tab. Its algorithms focus on documents and web pages that contain those words, and then put them up on its results page. Omnity's strategy is quite different. It looks for rare words. As described by End Gadget, first it looks for the 'rare words' or the least similar phrases or texts in the document you are looking for, and then does a massive quest for matching abstracts and papers in its database. Only then does it proceed to the second and more familiar method of focusing on the more familiar phrases. Omnity creates its own unique search by emphasizing relevance instead of familiarty. For example, your query is about the possibility of cellphones inducing cancer on children whose minds are still too malleable to handle the radiation from the device. Omnity will offer you alternatives. Instead of just cranking up the usual results of studies that support or debunk this theory, it will come up with documents on the other effects of cellphone on children, the other reasons why cancer develops in them, and how to measure the malleabilty of a very young mind. In a way, Omnity helps you to think in a non-linear, multi-dimensional approach.It specializes in finance, engineering, mathematics, and law. Its database encompasses public institutions including the Library of Congress, filings from the Securities and Exchange Commission, and U.S. patents, among others. Now, it is giving geniuses, researchers, and scientists an extra thrill by programming multi-lingualism into its functions. That means that a search query will scan other documents and research papers that are written by academicians and industry experts in Japanese, Arabic, Chinese, etc. TechCrunch says that the system will be expanded to include more than 100 foreign languages. A search query will trigger a cross-lingual approach and come up with the results in the same way, but this time including findings from Russian labs or Swedish academia. The geeks in Google will not lose sleep over Omnity any time soon. But it can no longer claim that it has one unquestionable standard that determines how searches on the web are made. Sorry! This content is not available in your region New Delhi: Twitter is buzzing with News alerts from India and rest of the world. Here are the latest updates from the micro-blogging site in one scroll. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday said that media reports on alleged privilege to political parties are false and misleading. Jaitley further cleared the air saying that, "I reiterate that government has not made any change regarding the regime and has not contemplated on the same". #11:10 P.M. Andhra Pradesh Anti Corruption Department conducts raid at premises related to K Lakshman Bhaskar, Additional Excise Commissioner #10:08 P.M. A 3 elephants killed as train engine hits them in Nagaon district in Assam #9:55 P.M. MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan meets Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad in New Delhi (ANI) #9: 15 P.M. India's PV Sindhu bows out in the semi-final of the BWF Super Series Championship in Dubai (ANI) #9:05 P.M. Lt General Bipin Rawat appointed as new Army Chief (PTI) #8:55 P.M. Lt Gen. Bipin Rawat to be New chief of Army Staff. Air Marshal B. S. Dhanoa to be New chief of Air Staff (ANI) #8: 10 P.M Media reports on the alleged privilege to political parties are false & misleading: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley (ANI) #7: 44 P.M. India sends fresh request to Denmark seeking extradition of Kim Davy in 1995 A Purulia Arms Drop case (PTI) #7:30 P.M. Rs 1 cr credited in dormant Bank Of India a/c of labourer in MP's Hoshangabad after demonetisation; bank says it's a clerical mistake (PTI) #7:17 P.M. Prime Minister of Tibetan govt in-exile Lobsang Sangay slams China for objecting to Dalai Lama's meeting with President Pranab Mukherjee (PTI) # 7:04 P.M. #NIA & local police arrest a 23-year-old Bengaluru resident with alleged #ISIS links from #Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh. (PTI) #7:00 P.M. Rajiv Jain to be the next #IB Chief. Anil Dhasmana to be the new #RAW chief (PTI) #6:58 P.M. ED seized Rs 30 lakh, Rs 18 lakh in new notes, with 2.5 kg gold from premises of tailor in Mohali and Chandigarh (ANI) #6:40 P.M. Enough provisions in Income Tax Act to scrutinise accounts of political parties even though their income is tax exempt: CBDT (PTI) #6:22 P.M. Govt forms inter-ministerial task force to look into all strategic aspects of Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan (PTI) #6:00 P.M. We will organize a big rally against note ban, will also talk to other parties in Delhi about it, Lalu Prasad Yadav (ANI) #5:52 P.M. Veteran politician Sharad Pawar steps down from president's post of Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) #5:35 P.M. AllahabadHC asks ECI to provide info about the dates of upcoming Assembly elections in UP by Dec 22 after a PIL was filed earlier. (ANI) #5:30 P.M. Public broadcaster Prasar Bharati enters into pact with Tajikistan's Committee on TV & Radio for cooperation in field of broadcasting (PTI) #5: 25 P.M. Financer Kishore Bhajiawala 's premises raided by I-T dpt Assets worth Rs400crore (appx) in cash, bullion,jewellery & property papers found #5:10 P.M. FinanceMinistry clarifies exemption frm Incometax given to only registered pol parties subject to conditions mentioned in Sec13A of IT Act (ANI) #4:55 P.M. CBI arrests Senior Special Assistant & Special Assistant of Cash Dept, RBI, Bangalore in a matter relating to unauthorised exchange of demonetised notes #4:54 P.M. Tsunami alert issued after 8.0-magnitude in Papua New Guinea quake: PTWC (AFP) #4:50 PM 3 soldiers lost their lives in the terrorist attack in Pampore (J&K), search operation underway (ANI) # 4:35 P.M. IndvsEng 5th test: At stumps India at 60/0, trail by 417 runs (ANI) #4:03 P.M. As we say man-made disaster in English, similarly #DeMonetisation is Modi made disaster: #RahulGandhi in Belgaum (ANI) # 3: 20 P.M. Jammu and Kashmir: Terrorists attack security forces at Pampore in Pulwama district; More details awaited. (ANI) # 3: 15 P.M. Kerala : IT Department seizes Rs 70 lakh from the trust office of Karuna Medical College in Palakkad: ANI # 2:55 P.M. India and Tajikistan hold delegation level talks in Delhi: ANI # 2: 53 P.M. Agusta Westland: PatialaHouseCourt to hear bail matter on December 21:ANI # 2:43 P.M. Under smog alert, #Beijing orders factories to shut or cut output: Reuters India # 2:39 P.M. Manipur: NSCN-IM attacked 7 IRB post in Nungkao Village of Imphal & took away 4 arms. Gunfight underway. More details awaited: ANI # 2:38 P.M. We appreciate Tajikistan's role in central-Asian region as a mainstay against the forces of extremism, radicalism & terrorism: PM Modi: ANI # 2:37 P.M. We (India and Tajikistan) will work on trade and transit linkages through Chabahar Port in Iran: PM Modi: ANI # 2:37 P.M. India and Tajikistan enjoy a rewarding partnership in capacity and institution-building: PM Modi: ANI # 2:34 P.M. President and I agreed that peace in #Afghanistan is very important for the region: PM NarendraModi: ANI # 2:32 P.M.A President and I agreed on need to increase scope and scale of our economic engagement especially trade and investment traffic: PM Modi: ANI # 2:30 P.M. President Rahmon and I had fruitful discussions earlier today: PM Narendra Modi: ANI # 2:29 P.M. Police seize Rs 37 lakh in 2,000 rupee notes while checking car in Tamil Nadu's Erode, 5 arrested: ANI # 2:27 P.M. Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon & PM Narendra Modi issue joint statement in Delhi: ANI # 2:24 P.M. Rahul Baba you shouldn't ask us questions. You keep on making mistakes and it's you who's the ultimate loser: AmitShah in Shahjahanpur: : ANI # 2:18 P.M. You ruled for 5 years with majority, now you have to answer people of UP. Don't try to distract them through demonetisation: Amit Shah # 2:12 P.M. Opposition wasted complete winter session by shouting, they did not want to hold any kind of discussion: Amit Shah in Shahjahanpur: ANI #1:59 P.M. Gunmen shoot dead five female airport workers and their driver in southern Afghanistan's Kandahar province: AFP #1:58 P.M. US President-elect Donald Trump thanks Indian Americans for their contribution in his electoral triumph: PTI # 1:56 P.M. BJP President Amit Shah addressing Parivartan rally in Shahjahanpur: ANI # 1:52 P.M. Madhya Pradesh: #CBI raids residence of BSNL GM, CL Yadav in Bhopal after getting information about hoarding of disproportionate assets: ANI # 1:50 P.M. Trivandrum additional sessions court postponed announcement of quantum of punishment in DYFI leader Vishnu murder case of 2008 to 19 Dec: ANI # 1:45 P.M. Turkish army says 13 soldiers killed, 48 wounded in #Kayseri bombing: AFP # 1:30 P.M. We didn't have propagandist PM who packaged & marketed himself. Its our failure we couldn't tell India what we had done- Anand Sharma, Cong: ANI # 1: 20 P.M. SashastraSeemaBal has caught fake Indian currency notes worth Rs 6.45 lakh since demonitisation: DG SSB Archana Ramasundaram: ANI # 1:05 P.M. If a common man buys huge property action is inevitable, he must present himself before ED: Arjun Meghwal, MoS Finance on Robert Vadra: ANI # 12:55 P.M. College has 2 faculty members in Perumbavoor assisting families to handle procedures & do whatever is possible: Principal John Varghese: ANI # 12:54 P.M.3 students & parent of 1 of our students passed away in accident in river Periyar: Principal John Varghese, St Stephen's College Kerala: ANI # 12:53 P.M. Andhra Pradesh: Police constable David Raju, posted at Gannavaram police station, allegedly commits suicide with his service gun: ANI # 12:52 P.M. Police has recovered Rs 34 lakhs (Rs 13 lakh in new Rs 2000 denomination notes rest Rs 100 notes) from SI & others, further probe on: ANI # 12:50 P.M. Medak: Telangana police arrest five persons including a sub inspector for allegedly looting Rs 91 lakh from a businessman: ANI # 12:48 P.M. Hyderabad police arrest four persons with Rs 12 lakhs in new Rs 2000 denomination, four mobile phones also seized: ANI # 12:45 P.M. Nothing wrong done during my tenure, this is just political vendetta and witch hunting: BS Hooda on AJL case CBI probe: ANI # 12:42 P.M. This is their modus operandi, in other cases also they have adopted the same method: BS Hooda, Former Haryana CM on AJL case CBI probe: ANI # 12:38 P.M. Syria's Assad, Russia and Iran have blood on hands, says Obama; calls for an observer force in Aleppo to coordinate evacuation: PTI # 12:35 P.M. ED seizes Rs 30 lakh, including 18 lakh in new notes, along with 2.5 kg gold from premises of tailor in Mohali and Chandigarh: PTI # 12: 32 P.M. Delhi: Tajikistan President EmomaliRahmon meets PM NarendraModi at Hyderabad House: ANI # 12: 28 P.M. Demonetisation will undergo the same fate as Congress's sterilization drive: Lalu Prasad Yadav, RJD chief: ANI # 12:25 P.M. (continued) with new notes of Rs 2000 & legal tender of Rs 100 notes at booking Counter at CST Mumbai & Kalyan, Thane. Searches being done: ANI #12: 22 P.M. It's alleged that Bhoyar, while working as Asst Comm Mgr (Coaching), Central Rail, CST exchanged demonetised Notes of Rs 8.22 lakhs (approx):ANI # 12: 18 P.M. Several wounded in blast in central Turkish city of Kayseri: AFP # 12: 13 P.M. Congress came to conclusion that there was something wrong with Agusta & ordered CBI enquiry. BJP is just fooling the country- GN Azad: ANI # 12:10 P.M. CBI registers case against K L Bhoyar, Asstt Commercial Mgr, Central Railway, CST Mumbai for offences punishable U/S 13(2)r/w 13(1)(d) of PC Act : ANI 12:05 P.M. Whenever there is an attack on BJP they divert attention and say things. Enquiry is on nothing has been found: Ghulam Nabi Azad on Robert Vadra: ANI #11:59 A.M. Pakistan says won't accept any modifications in Indus Waters Treaty after India strongly pitched for bilateral redressal of differences: PTI # 11:59 A.M. ED decided to freeze bank accounts containing Rs 120 Cr belonging to these 4 bullion traders: ANI #11:58 A.M. I wanted to personally wish him a speedy recovery, happy to see that he is doing well: Rahul Gandhi after meeting ailing Karunanidhi: ANI # 11:55 A.M. Russia behind cyberattacks during polls, says Barack Obama; urges Donald Trump to ensure election not under foreign influence: PTI #11:42 A.M. Mumbai: ED raided 4 bullion traders yesterday due to suspicious transactions, they deposited Rs 69 Cr in old notes after Demonetisation: ANI # 11:41 A.M. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal seeks setting up of commission to investigate source of funding of political parties: PTI # 11:40 A.M. China seizes U.S. underwater drone in South China Sea: Reuters# 11:34 A.M.Madhya Pradesh: 15 member team of Income Tax department from Jabalpur raids Shere Punjab Jewellers in Satna: ANI # 11:32 A.M. Congress Vice president Rahul Gandhi reaches Chennai to meet ailing DMK Chief Karunanidhi admitted in Kauvery hospital: ANI #11: 31 A.M. Nine Congress and two TDP MLAs suspended for the day from Telangana assembly for creating ruckus: ANI # 11: 20 A.M. He (PM Modi) is so much in love with himself, he doesn't look at the advice coming from the economists: Manoj Jha, RJD #Demonetisation: ANI # 11: 16 A.M. Delhi: Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon with PM Narendra Modi and President Pranab Mukherjee at the President House: ANI # 11:13 A.M. DMK's general body meeting scheduled to take place on December 20 indefinitely postponed due to party chief Karunanidhias health: ANI #11:05 A.M. ED registers case against fake accounts holders in Axis Bank(Noida Sec 51) under PMLA. ED will question bank officials regarding it: ANI # 11:00 A.M. Ideally, GST should start from Apr 1, 2017; constitutional necessity for it to come into force between Apr 1 & Sep 16: FM Jaitley: ANI # 10:59 A.M. As far as the decision with regard to currency is concerned, I think it marks a very important beginning: FM Demonetization:ANI # 10: 59 A.M. On 16 Sept 2017, as far as current mode of taxation is concerned, the curtains will be down: FM Arun Jaitley: ANI # 10: 59 A.M. The process of Remonetisation is not going to take a lot of time: FM Arun Jaitley at FICCI's 89th Annual General Meeting: ANI # 10:58 A.M. I don't see any major difficulty in those legislations being finally approved: FM ArunJaitley GST: ANI # 10:57 A.M. Legislations which have to be passed by Parliament under constitutional amendment & state legislatures are currently in process of being drafted: FM: ANI # 10: 53 A.M. There are about 10 important decisions which have already been taken with consensus: FM Arun Jaitley GST: ANI # 10:52 A.M. Special cell of Delhi Police has arrested 2 persons and recovered 43 pistols from them: ANI # 10: 51 A.M. Having passed the constitutional amendment, there are several decisions which the GST Council has to take: FM Arun Jaitley: ANI # 10: 50 A.M. Brexit-vote surprised a lot of ppl, many felt that one of the world's most matured democracy will not vote the way it did: FM Jaitley: ANI #10:48 A.M.A Amongst emerging economies, if we look at India, I think its a refreshing change from whats happening in rest of the world: FM Jaitley: ANI # 10: 30 A.M. Delhi: FM ArunJaitley speaking at FICCI's 89th Annual General Meeting: ANI# 10: 20 A.M.Man charged with murder in October death of US Olympic sprinter Tyson Gay's daughter Trinity: AFP # 10: 15 A.M. Big case of corruption, and there is absolutely no way for escape. CBI probe will tell what is ahead: Haryana Minister Anil Vij on Associated Journals Limited: ANI # 10: 10 A.M. Cold wave severely hits locals including the school children in Jammu and Kashmiras Rajouri district. Water bodies freeze in higher reaches: ANI # 10:00 A.M. Cold wave, dense fog conditions continue to prevail in Jammu. Locals light fire to battle cold wave: ANI # 9: 32 A.M. INS Sutlej, a survey ship, rescued a fishing vessel Judan whose 7 crew members were in distress. The vessel was towed back to Kanyakumari safely: ANI # 9:27 A.M. All PCS officers of Lucknow go on indefinite strike: News Nation # 9:22 A.M. There was no separate queue for the elderly, all were in the same line: 80-year-old retired army man, Nand Lal who missed his spot in the queue: ANI # 9: 15 A.M. I had gone to fill a form, people stopped me when I came back: 80-year-old retired army man Nand Lal at a Gurgaon bank: ANI # 9:10 A.M. Fire broke out at a godown on Saturday morning in Vishwakarma Industrial Area, Jaipur, which was doused by 12 fire tenders: ANI # 9:05 A.M. Macedoniaas election commission orders re-run in one polling station: Reuters India # 9:00 A.M. Italy's top court orders retrial of ex-Finmeccanica executives in India bribery case: Reuters India # 8: 56 A.M. Foggy weather disrupts train operations in Allahabad. Various trains get delayed and cancelled due to the weather: ANI # 8:54 A.M. US President-elect Donald Trump picks South Carolina GOP Rep. Mick Mulvaney to head White House budget office: Reuters India # 8:52 A.M. Rahul Gandhi is set to visit Chennai on Saturday to meet ailing DMK chief M Karunanidhi who was readmitted with breathing difficulty due to throat and lung infection: ANI # 8:50 A.M. Policemen who fired at a wedding in Muzaffarpur, Bihar were later on suspended for the act: ANI # 8:48 A.M. Demonetization was not an easy decision. Could any ordinary PM take such a decision? PM Modi thinks for the country's prosperity: MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan: ANI # 8:44 A.M.A Often leaders have apprehensions about effect on the votes while making big decisions: MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan: ANI #8:42 A.M. Madhya Pradesh has taken strong steps for women empowerment. Further, one of the campaigns under Narmada Seva Yatra is 'Beti Bachao': MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan: ANI # 8:40 A.M. Narmada is the lifeline of Madhya Pradesh and its biggest source of water: Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan:ANI # 8:35 A.M. Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar said that probe in the issue of allotment of Panchkula plot to AJL has been handed over to CBI: ANI # 8:30 A.M. Fog and cold wave conditions prevail in Lucknow: ANI # 8:25 A.M. Fog and cold wave conditions prevail in Moradabad: ANI # 8:20 A.M. Two dead, more than 12 shanties gutted in fire that broke out in early morning hours in Kolkata after a cylinder blast: ANI # 8:15 A.M. A tempo with milk packets overturned near Matunga Z Bridge, Mumbai on Friday night injuring one person: ANI # 7:45 A.M. 4 people detained by police in Mumbai with new Rs 2000 notes worth Rs 1 crore 40 lakhs near Andheri on Friday night, I-T department informed.: ANI #7:40 A.M. Gujarat: Surat diamond workers, traders rue #demonetization, say the move has adversely hit their market: ANI #7:30 A.M. President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon is set to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and will hold delegation level talks on Saturday: ANI #7:24 A.M.A Augusta Westland case: Former Air Force Chief SP Tyagi and other accused people will be produced before Patiala House court today as their CBI custody ends: ANI #7:15 A.M. 52 trains delayed (Arriving late in Delhi area), 12 rescheduled due to prevailing fog conditions: ANI A For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Underworld don Dawood Ibrahim's 19-year-old "fan" and a supplier of illegal weapons have been arrested from south-west Delhi, and three locally-made guns shave been seized from them, police said on Friday. Jatin, who had created a Facebook profile in the name of 'Bhai Jatin Baniya' with personal descriptions reading 'Dawood at Crime City' and 'Only Boss Secret', was arrested from Kapashera area after a trap was laid to nab them, they said. Jatin had uploaded photos of Dawood and pistols on his social media profile. He had an altercation with some boys about eight months ago, and had procured the 'desi Katta' from 22-year-old Rahul, said DCP (Southwest) Surender Kumar. Three 'desi kattas' and live rounds have been seized from them, he said. To ensure his hegemony, Jatin used to flaunt the gun among his peers and his actions were reported to authorities by a 'Police Mitra', the officer added. During interrogation, he confessed to procuring the weapon illegally with Rahul's help. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Government has issued instructions to tax authorities so that there is no 'tax terrorism' for businesses going formal post demonetisation, Power Minister Piyush Goyal said. The demonetisation process is a fundamental shift in how the economy works and is aimed at cleaning up the economy and expanding the formal sector. As such, the government has issued instructions to tax authorities that there will be no tax terrorism by Income Tax Department for businesses going formal, Goyal said in an interactive session organised by CII in Delhi. Explaining that demonetisation of high denomination notes had become necessary due to doubling of such notes in circulation over 2004-2010, the minister said that it has been estimated that Rs 6 lakh crore worth of the total cash issued of approximately Rs 17 lakh crore was not circulating in the system. The government is in the process of studying the level of currency notes required for the economy and this would not go back to previous levels, he stated. The minister noted that honest citizens would benefit from formalisation of the economy. This would increase the tax base, provide an avenue to lower tax rates, and create fair competition and a level playing field for all, he added. The minister stated that if all income earners pay tax honestly, there is the possibility of reduction in tax rates. Goyal reiterated that costs of transactions through electronic means will be reduced and the government is in the process of studying applicable charges on debit and credit cards. After December 31, customers would not be charged on transactions through electronic means. He observed that while there are over 70 crore debit and credit cards, most of these are not being used for transactions. Replying to questions, Goyal said that the real estate sector needs special attention, and the government is considering lowering of stamp duty. He welcomed the idea that public infrastructure projects should be expedited to boost demand. The minister also called upon industry to participate in communication outreach to popularise digital transactions. CII Vice President Rakesh Bharti Mittal called for lowering of corporate taxes to 18 per cent and a commensurate reduction in personal income taxes. He also suggested that micro financial products can help meet the needs of households who preferred to maintain cash balances. CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee said that the government should increase the number of POS machines to ensure smooth transition. Also, the use of mobile phones without internet connectivity for money transactions can be encouraged. For all the Latest Business News, Economy News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. I was a commuter to the small residential college I attended, a visitor, essentially, to a village where everyone already knew one another. The commute was long, so I often spent long hours on campus between classes. Occasionally, as a treat, Id go to a nearby restaurant, where Id order a spinach salad and French onion soup. I would sit alone, waiting quietly for my food, unsure of where to look or how to fold my hands, pretending it was absolutely natural for me to be there alone. I would eat slowly, carefully, willing the slippery onions not to slide off my spoon onto my lap, or the long strings of gooey cheese to dangle out the corner of my mouth. I could only hope no flecks of spinach became wedged between my teeth. Still, I loved the beefy broth, the toasted croutons, the pungent cheese, the metallic taste of the spinach. To me, they epitomized delicious and stylishly sophisticated dining. I even once persuaded my dad to meet me at the restaurant for lunchonly to have him rather scornfully declare that neither soup nor salad was very good. He wasparticularly thena rather simple foods kind of guy. When I started cooking seriously, I made Julia Childs French onion soup, starting with the slow browning of meaty bones for broth, fortifying it with generous splashes of booze, and ending up with a warm, satisfying bowl that tasted exactly like the restaurants. I havent eaten it much since. But when friends learned I was reviewing Mikette, Adam Barus French-style bistro in the Courtyard Shops on Plymouth Rd., they told me its version of my old favorite was delicious. Mikette is Barus latest venture, after Mani Osteria and Isalita. (The waitress chuckled, without reply, when I jokingly asked her what country we might all be visiting next if Baru opens a fourth restaurant.) One night this fall my husband and I, sitting at Mikettes marble bar, ordered the French onion soup. The bowl delivered pure nostalgia, exactly what I remembered from my youth. Yet it didnt thrill me. The fault, I think, was not in the execution but in my own changing tastesI simply dont love French onion soup anymore. Those that do, though, will be quite happy slurping a bowl at Mikette, particularly during this winter season. What did I love about Mikette? To begin with, the design. Baru has done a splendid job renovating strip mall blandness into a stylized suggestion of a French bistro, not cleaving so tightly to the stereotype as to be cutesy or kitschy but close enough to be cozy and warm. Rather than hanging from the walls, vintage posters act as a partial ceiling below the exposed steel joists. Framed photos include iconic Gallic scenes alongside shots of coiffed and bedazzled French poodles. Rough-sawn wood floors, brick walls, red banquettes, and mismatched light fixtures add to the inviting set. The heated red canopy Baru added to the front of the building is reminiscent of those lining the boulevards of Paris, adding space and seats to small bistros. Mikettes does the same, as does the patio wedged next to the restaurants west side; hidden from Plymouth Rd., it was a surprisingly pleasant place to eat dinner in early fall. Service was experienced and well trained. Baru has brought over seasoned servers from his older restaurants, but even newer ones were well informed, knowledgeable, efficient, and friendly. As to be expected, the alcohol menu highlights French options but doesnt neglect to offer a few other choices; the wine list, particularly, though not extensive, has many interesting gems. Which leads us, finally, back to Mikettes food. Its not all perfect but often quite good, with dishes we could happily eat any night of the week. Late one evening, sitting at a secluded high-top near the edge of the bar, we started with gougeres, warm popovers, often served as an hors doeuvre and usually flavored with Gruyere but here with Parmesan and black pepper. Expecting a plate of five or six miniature puffs, I was surprised to receive two decadent, baseball-sized orbs veiled in a gossamer dusting of cheese. The outside lightly crispy, the inside soft, silky, and luxurious, they were wonderful, especially with the bottle of rose we were drinking. Next came haricots verts, thin green beans too crunchy from too little cooking but nicely accented with hazelnuts and red onion slices. Better were charred whole beets, one gold, one purple, roasted in their skins and then lightly smashed, dressed with a sharp, herby salsa verde and a slick of insipid boursin creme. Although beets and goat cheese have become a cliche, here I think the more pungent cheese would have been a better counterpoint to the vegetables earthiness. Finally, the waitress delivered the Nemo Plateau. French bistros often feature plattersplateauxof raw and cooked seafood, usually on a bed of ice and adorned with various sauces for dipping and pouring. Mikette follows suit with two sizes. The Nemo is the smaller and, augmented with a couple of salads or sides, is sufficient as dinner for two. We had six lovely, briny East Coast oysters (oddly, Mikette doesnt name them), chilled jumbo shrimp, and Jonah crab claws (both disappointingly dry and tasteless), an incredibly delicious if tiny bit of scallop ceviche, and an equally impressive few inches of king crab leg, slathered with a zesty ginger remoulade. Dessert finished us off, literally and figurativelya silky creme brulee, two dry lemon madeleines, and an overly sweet if massive serving of raspberry-chocolate sorbet. We left the restaurant after closing, comfortable and happy. A week or so later, during another dinner, we tried that fondly remembered French onion soup, along with a ramekin of escargots, done in a modern fashion. We both found the little guys luscious, drowning, along with some mushrooms, in juices heavily flavored with hazelnut butter and Chartreuse liqueur. We reordered dishes we had eaten with friends earlier in the seasonbeef bourguignonne made with short ribs and roast chicken Provencal on a bed of shoestring fries. The succulent stew was still richly satisfying, though it needs to be served with many more egg noodles in a wide, shallow bowlnot a deep ramekinfor the sauce to be properly savored and appreciated. (The hunk of bread that is served isnt what either of us wanted.) The chicken, which earlier had been without peer, was this time just okay, under-seasoned and under-sauced. The first time we ate that chicken, four of us shared the plate. It came out, a half bird, mostly boned, juicy, herby, buttery, surrounded by fries that had soaked up the copious juices. We devoured that chicken, even after already having finished scallop ceviche and escargot, snappy Moroccan meatballs, an eggplant tagine that wasnt really a braise but was nicely done nonetheless, and a ridiculously enormous foie parfaita satiny, buttery spread of liver pate served in an ice cream sundae glass. And we still had more to comea garlicky shrimp, beef bourguignonne, and a disappointing Lyonnaise salad, overly dressed with vinaigrette and with a paltry sprinkling of roasted potatoes. What did I not love about Mikette? That Baru persists with the concept of small, shared plates, with dishes coming out when the kitchen finishes them, not necessarily when you want them. When the menu is mostly street food (Isalita) or light fare (Mani Osteria), this makes sense, but Mikettes menu is fairly traditional, with dishes that suggest appetizers and entrees, no matter what the headings say. Although it requires greater discipline for the line cooks to time dishes to come out in unison and in courses, restaurant kitchens have done so for decades; Im not sure why they still cant. Nor does everyone want to share her dinnerespecially when its a burger or a roast chicken or steak frites. After our first visit I did insist that dishes come out in a certain order, but Im not sure that will always work, especially for larger tables. But really, Im quite pleased to finally have a neighborhood restaurant on our side of town, one with good food and drink, a welcoming haven for lone diners and families, for weeknights and nights of celebration. We have both in Mikette. Mikette Bistro and Bar 1759 Plymouth Rd. 436-4363 mikettea2.com Raw bar $2-$60; appetizers, soups, salads $5-$15; large plates $10-$22 Tues.-Sat. 4:30-10 p.m., Sun 4:30-9 p.m. Closed Mon. Wheelchair accessible New Delhi: A retired 80-year old armyman Nand Lal was suddenly in news when a picture of him crying at the queue in front of bank went viral. The 80-year-old lost his spot in the queue while he went to fill a form. In despair, the old man broke into tears. His moving picture depicted the struggles of people while withdrawing money from banks. I had gone to fill a form, people stopped me when I came back. There was no separate queue for the elderly at bank, all were in the same line, said 80-year-old retired armyman Nand Lal. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced decision to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes on November 8. Since then, people all across the country are facing problems in withdrawing money from banks and ATMs. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Pakistan has said that it will not accept any changes or modifications in the Indus Waters Treaty with India. Pakistans remarks come a day after India said it was ready to resolve issues with Islamabad over the Kishenganga and Ralte projects under the Indus Water Treaty through bilateral talks. Pakistan will not accept any modifications or changes to the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty. Our position is based on the principles enshrined in the treaty. And the treaty must be honoured in...letter and spirit, the Dawn quoted Special Assistant to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Tariq Fatemi, as saying. Pakistan has raised its objection to the building of Kishanganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric plants by India saying it violates the provisions of the treaty. The tensions between India and Pakistan were escalated after Prime Minister Narendra Modi reportedly threatened to block the flow of water to Pakistan, saying blood and water cant flow together. ALSO READ | Pakistan shouldn't impede exercising of Indus Waters Treaty rights by India: Govt The World Bank has asked both India and Pakistan to resolve their disagreements over the Indus Water Treaty Dispute 1960 through alternative ways. ALSO READ | India hails World Bank's decision to paus Indus Waters Treaty processes For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon on Saturday issued a joint statement in Delhi. Here is what all PM Modi said: $We appreciate Tajikistan's role in the central-asian region as a mainstay against the forces of extremism, radicalism & terrorism #We (India and Tajikistan) will work on trade and transit linkages through Chabahar Port in Iran #India and Tajikistan enjoy a rewarding partnership in capacity and institution-building #President and I agreed that peace in Afghanistan is very important for the region #President and I agreed on the need to increase the scope & scale of our economic engagement especially trade and investment traffic #President Rahmon and I had fruitful discussions earlier today For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Mumbai: Bruce Allen, managing director of Albert Einstein Institute Hannover and one of the scientists who discovered the gravitational waves last year, attended the IIT-Bombays three-day annual TechFest, which kicked off on Friday. Allen described the breakthrough of detecting the gravitational waves as "the most important scientific discovery of last year". Scientists who are tracking the development of a gravitational wave detecting observatory in India said that it will be the most sensitive station. This observatory is the fifth such one in the world. Hingoli districts Aundh is among the preferred sites for this project. Albert Einstein had predicted the gravitational waves a century ago and they were detected in Germany last year. The gravitational waves along with electromagnetic waves responsible for wireless communication, and mechanical waves, which carry sound hold the cue to the universe. Allen said that the Laser Inferometer Gravitational-waves Observatory (LIGO) India, observatories in Germany, the United States and Italy, will help detect cosmic gravitational waves. This will further help in discovering the aspects of the space which remains a big mystery. "The need for an Indian LIGO is well justified. Each observatory is different and uses a different technology. We will put to rest the mistakes of US detectors while designing LIGO India. The country's unique location will help detect the sources of gravitational sources more accurately," said Rana Adhikari, a professor from California Institute of Technology, who is involved in the development of LIGO India. Earlier, Jeff Demain, CEO Hantheon, talk about the architecture being designed to colonise Mars. Compared to last year, first day of the IIT-Bombay TechFest witnessed a lower turnout compared to last year. Organisers said around 35,000 people visited the campus on Friday against the 45,000 on day one last year. For all the Latest Science News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Belagavi (Karna): Escalating his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi on Saturday trashed demonetisation of high value currency notes as a Modi-made disaster and charged that he had attacked the economic system of the country to benefit the one per cent super rich. For the first time in the history of India, Prime Minister has attacked the poor people of this country. Usually the Prime Minister works for the country. They work for the economy, but Narendra Modi has attacked our economic system, Gandhi alleged at a Congress rally here in north Karnataka. As it is said a man-made disaster, in the same way demonetization is Modi-made disaster, the Congress Vice-President said as he targeted the Prime Minister squarely blaming him for the hardships post-demonetisation. More than 100 people had died, he claimed, adding, Fidel Castro (Cuban revolutionary) was remembered in the Parliament and we stood in silence for two minutes as a mark of respect to him, but BJP leaders did not have two minutes time for these hundred people. Who is responsible for their deaths? Narendra Modi is responsible....In the last two and half years Narendra Modi government has been attacking the poor, he said. Accusing the Modi government of trying to divide India, he said on the one side, there were one per cent super rich who have private aircraft, flashy vehicles and big businesses and on the other, there were 99 per cent of people who are honest like farmers, labourers, small traders and middle class who toil every day for the sake of the country and their lives. In the last two and half years, one per cent super rich in this country have amassed 70 per cent of Indias wealth and if you look deep into this one per cent, only 50 families have major portion of Indias wealth. You know their names; these are the people who travel with Narendra Modi to America, Japan, and Australia, Gandhi said. Congress wants to get rid of corruption from India and whatever step the BJP government takes whether it is big or small if it is against corruption we will give it full support, he said. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Cairo: Former al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden's son has been denied entry by the Egyptian authoroties after he arrived at Cairo International Airport with his wife. Security officials at the said Omar bin Laden was denied entry to the country and was deported to Turkey. Omar and his wife arrived in Cairo on Saturday from Qatar but after checking details of his Saudi passport, security officials found his name on a list of those banned from entering the country. The officials, speaking anonymously according to regulations, said Omar bin laden and his wife were allowed to leave for Turkey according to their choice. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Jammu and Kashmir has "no vestige" of sovereignty outside the Indian Constitution and its own, while the citizens of the state are "first and foremost" citizens of India, the Supreme Court has observed. The apex court observed this while terming as "wholly incorrect" the conclusion arrived at by Jammu and Kashmir high court which had held that the state has "absolute sovereign power" to legislate laws touching the rights of its permanent residents regarding their immovable properties. "The State of Jammu and Kashmir has no vestige of sovereignty outside the Constitution of India and its own Constitution, which is subordinate to the Constitution of India," a bench of Justice Kurian Joseph and Justice RF Nariman said. "It is therefore wholly incorrect to describe it as being sovereign in the sense of its residents constituting a separate and distinct class in themselves. The residents of Jammu and Kashmir, we need to remind the high court, are first and foremost citizens of India," it said. The apex court said this while holding that provisions of the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002 (SARFAESI Act) are within the legislative competence of Parliament and can be enforced in Jammu and Kashmir. The bench set aside the verdict of Jammu and Kashmir high court that had held that any law made by Parliament, which affects the laws made by state legislature, cannot be extended to Jammu and Kashmir. "The high court judgment begins from the wrong end and therefore reaches the wrong conclusion. It states that in terms of Section 5 of the Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir, the state has absolute sovereign power to legislate in respect of laws touching the rights of its permanent residents qua their immovable properties," the apex court said. It further said, "We may also add that permanent residents of Jammu and Kashmir are citizens of India, and there is no dual citizenship as is contemplated by some other federal Constitutions in other parts of the world". The apex court judgement came on the appeal by State Bank of India (SBI) against the high court verdict which had held that the SARFAESI Act would collide with the Transfer of Property Act of Jammu & Kashmir, 1920. SARFAESI is an enactment which entitles banks to enforce their security interest outside the court process to take possession of secured assets of the borrower and sell them outside the court process. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Stating that they live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges, India and Tajikistan on Saturday decided to strengthen defence cooperation and inked a pact to share financial intelligence to counter money laundering and financing of terrorism. The pact was among three signed by the two countries after comprehensive talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on strategic issues including threats posed by radicalisation and extremism, trade and investments. We assessed the broad progress achieved under different pillars of our bilateral engagement, including our partnership in defence and security. India and Tajikistan live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges and threats. The threat from terrorism endangers not just our two countries. It casts a long shadow of violence and instability over the entire region, Modi said at a joint press meet with Rahmon. Also read | India and Tajikistan will work on trade and transit linkages through Chabahar Port in Iran, says PM Modi Combating terrorism has, therefore, been an important area of cooperative engagement between the two countries, the PM said. We appreciate Tajikistans role in the Central Asian region as a mainstay against forces of extremism, radicalism and terrorism. President Rahmon and I agreed today to strengthen action on this front based on mutually agreed priorities, he said. On his part, Rahmon said terrorism and extremism undermine all developmental efforts worldwide. A joint statement issued after the talks said the two leaders discussed situation in the region and stressed that terrorism and extremism seriously threaten peace, stability and progress of all countries. The two leaders agreed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be eliminated without any distinction between good and bad terrorists and called for an end to sponsorship, support and provision of safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists, the statement said. Modi and Rahmon reaffirmed their resolve to work for early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UN General Assembly. Apart from MoU concerning Cooperation in the Exchange of Financial Intelligence related to money laundering, related crimes and financing of terrorism, the two sides also inked pacts on broadcasting of audio visual programmes and protocol amending the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion and announced initialling of document on Bilateral Investment Treaty. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: CBI has arrested two RBI employees in Bengaluru in connection with alleged conversion of Rs 1.99 crore of demonetised currency with specified bank notes of Rs 2,000 and Rs 100. CBI sources said senior special assistant Sadananda Naika and special assistant AK Kavin were arrested for unauthorised exchange of the currency and have been booked under charges of criminal conspiracy and cheating besides provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act. Both the accused have been sent to four days of CBI custody by a special court in Bengaluru, they said. "It is alleged that both the accused and other unknown officials of RBI, Bengaluru entered in criminal conspiracy with unknown others," CBI spokesperson Devpreet Singh said. Read | Bengaluru: CBI arrests RBI official, JDS leader in cases related to illegal currency conversion She said in furtherance with the criminal conspiracy, the accused, along with other unknown officials, who were entrusted with the responsibility of new currency notes, "fraudulently" gave away new notes to the tune of Rs 1.99 crore to RBI officials and others. It is alleged that the exchange was done in violation of exchange limits imposed by the Bankers' Bank. CBI had earlier arrested another employee of RBI in a separate case in which currency worth over Rs six lakh was converted by him using his influence over officials of State Bank of Mysore. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh on Saturday said the government action on the killing of Hizbul commander Burhan Wanis brother will proceed as per the outcome of the probe into his death and an FIR has been registered in this connection. His comments came amid protests by several organisations over the PDP-BJP coalition governments decision to compensate the family of Khalid Wani, who was killed in an encounter with the Army in Pulwama district on April 13 last year. Singh said an FIR has been lodged and whatever be the outcome of the probe, government will act accordingly. There is a law of the land applicable to it. Whatever be the outcome of the investigation, action would be taken as per that, Singh told reporters at a function in Jammu. If it is proved that he was a terrorist as the FIR has been lodged, action would be taken as per that, he said replying to a question on giving compensation to Khalids family. Khalids brother Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani was killed by security forces on July 8, and his death had led to months-long protest in the Valley in which 86 people died. Asked about the impact of Union governments move to demonetise old high-value currency notes on unrest in Kashmir, Singh said the exercise has badly-hit terrorism and hawala transactions, which is believed to support the militancy. That is why the terrorists are engineering cases of looting of money from the banks because they are facing dearth of money, he said, adding that the government was making full security arrangement to ensure such incidents do not recur. There is a dip in smuggling of weapons from Pakistan. They are frustrated by the demonetisation, he said. He asked Hurriyat leaders and other separatists to think positively so that normalcy returns and added that shutdown by separatists is causing loss to everyone, he said. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. NEW DELHI: Tamil Nadu police arrested five persons in connection with seizure of Rs 37 lakh in 2,000 rupee notes from their car on Friday night. The seizure was made during regular vehicle check at Gobichettipalayam-Modachur main road. Notes worth Rs 36.9 lakh, were found in a cloth bag in car and all the five persons in the vehicle were arrested, police said. Arrested persons have been identified as Sakthivel, Manoj, Suresh Senthilkumar and Sabari, told police that they were carrying the money to exchange with demonetised notes to some "affluent" persons for a good margin in Gobichettipalayam. All the five persons, including their car and seized currency have been handed over to Income Tax Department officials for questioning. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has registered a money laundering case in the alleged forging of a customers identity to conduct huge illegal transactions in an Axis Bank branch in Noida for conversion of black funds into white post demonetisation. The individual, identified as N Paswan, in his complaint filed with the police has claimed that his identity has been forged and a current and a savings account were opened in his name in the said branch which were allegedly used to launder crores of rupees post demonetisation. Officials said the ED registered a criminal complaint under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) taking cognisance of the police FIR on a complaint filed by Paswan, a resident of Delhis Pitampura area. ALSO READ | Income Tax dept raids Axis Bank Noida branch, unearths 20 fake accounts with over Rs 60 cr They said while the bank branch, in sector 51 of Noida, is already under scanner by the Income Tax department owing to alleged dubious transactions using shell companies, the ED has come into picture to probe proceeds of crime which were generated through use of various fake accounts which also have fake or weak KYC (Know your customer) details. They said the amount under scanner of the central probe agency is over Rs 60 crore. Officials added that the agency is probing more than two dozen accounts in the bank here which could have been used to perpetrate the crime of money laundering, in the wake of the scrapping of Rs 1000/500 notes. ALSO READ | Govt asks Axis Bank to 'set its house in order' as series of irregularities detected Meanwhile, the ED also conducted searches on the premises of four bullion traders in Mumbai yesterday in a similar probe. The agency has also sought freezing of few bank accounts of these traders as part of its probe, they said. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: The Centre announced on Saturday new chiefs for security and intelligence agencies R&AW and CBI. Both the officers will have a tenure of two years. Anil Dhasmana, a 1981-batch IPS officer of MP Cadre has been named the new RAW chief while Rajiv Jain, a 1980-batch IPS officer of Jharkhand cadre has been given charge to head the Intelligence Bureau. The high-level appointments are crucial considering the urgent need for high-grade intelligence. Anil Dhasmana succeeds Rajinder Khanna who completes his tenure this year end. Dhasmana has been with RAW for the last 23 years during which he has served on important desks including Pakistan. Also read | Lt Gen Bipin Rawat appointed as new Army Chief, BS Dhanoa to be new chief of Air Staff Rajiv Jain, who is at present serving as the Special Director in the IB, will take over on January 1 after the incumbent Dineshwar Sharma completes his two-year tenure on December 31. A recipient of President's Police Medal, the 1980-batch officer has served in various departments of the IB including the sensitive Kashmir desk. He was advisor to the previous NDA government's interlocutor on Kashmir KC Pant when talks were held with separatist leaders like Shabbir Shah. Given the security situation in India after recent attacks by suspected Pakistani terrorists on army installations in Jammu and Kashmir and the subsequent retaliatory strike across the LoC, the position of director intelligence bureau (DIB) and secretary R&AW assume that much more importance. (With inputs from agencies) For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: NASA, which recently launched its hurricane tracking mission, has confirmed that all the 8 spacecraft belonging to its Earth science mission are doing well. On Thursday, December 15, a constellation of 8 micro-satellites called the Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) was blasted off for Earths orbit at 8:37 am EST. An Orbital ATK air-launched Pegasus XL rocket carried the hurricane tracking mission CYGNSS. NASA has launched the CYGNSS mission to measure the wind speeds over Earths oceans. The mission will help in increasing the ability of scientists to understand and predict hurricanes. Both direct and reflected signals from existing GPS satellites will be used by the CYGNSS in order to fetch estimates of surface wind speed over the ocean. CYGNSS will provide us with detailed measurements of hurricane wind speeds, an important indicator of a storms intensity, said Christopher Ruf, CYGNSS principal investigator at the University of Michigans Department of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering in Ann Arbor. Ultimately, the measurements from this mission will help improve hurricane track and intensity forecasts. CYGNSS launch is a first for NASA and for the scientific community , said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for the agencys Science Mission Directorate in Washington. He said that the hurricane tracking mission CYGNSS will make unprecedented measurements in the most violent, dynamic, and important portions of tropical storms and hurricanes. NASAs Earth Venture programme competitively selected the CYGNSS, which is the first orbital mission managed by the Earth System Science Pathfinder (ESSP) Program Office at NASAs Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia. For all the Latest Science News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. NEW DELHI: Prime Minister of the Tibetan government in-exile Lobsang Sangay on Saturday criticised China for objecting to Dalai Lamas meeting with President Pranab Mukherjee asserting India did the right thing which Beijing should not oppose. Sangay made the remarks on the sidelines of an event where a report on the Middle Way Approach to the Tibet issue was released by the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) here. His Holiness the Dalai Lama attending Nobel laureate event at Rashtrapati Bhavan and him meeting the President is Indias business and I think the Indian government did the right thing. He is Indias honourable guest and the Chinese should not comment on or criticise what he or India does, Sangay told PTI. India has dismissed Chinese objection to the Dalai Lamas meeting with Mukherjee at the Rashtrapati Bhavan during a childrens summit few days back. Sangay, who was re-elected in April, said that China looks anxious and sometimes paranoid reacting to the CTAs activities, adding that Chinas hardline policies towards Tibet have failed. China considers the Dharamsala-based Tibetan government-in exile illegal. Asked about the future of CTAs dialogue with China, which virtually collapsed in 2010, Sangay said the Xi Jinping-led Chinese administration needs to treat the Dalai Lama as the solution and not as an obstacle. I hope the Chinese leadership realise that their policy on Taiwan failed. They did the waiting game and it failed. And I hope they see the Dalai Lama as the solution and not the problem. I hope in Xi Jinpings second term (as President) he will relook and review the Tibet policy and realise that the hardline policies have failed, he said. The middle way approach, conceived by the Dalai Lama and described by him as a win-win solution, is a moderate policy propounded by the CTA that seeks genuine autonomy for the Tibetan People without challenging the unity and stability of China. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. NEW DELHI: Demonetisation came up with its own pros and cons for the citizens of the country. In one of the incidents, a whopping sum of Rs 1,00,10,000 (one crore ten thousand) were deposited in a dormant account of a labourer at Khidiya branch of Bank of India in Hoshangabad district of Madhya Pradesh after demonetisation. Bank officials quoted it as a clerical mistake. Asaram Vishwakarma, the labourer, got to know about the mistakenly poured fortune in his account when he got an Income Tax notice dated November 30, seeking explanation. Vishwakarma at first couldnt understand the notice as it was written in English. A school teacher had translated it for him. The notice sought information on financial transactions of Rs 1,00,10,000 between November 9, 2016 and November 17 without quoting his Permanent Account Number (PAN). It was later made clear that Vishwakarma had deposited Rs 10,000, but by mistake a clerk made a wrong entry of Rs 1,00,10,000 in his account. The bank officials have informed the IT officials about the error. With Inputs from PTI For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: It seems US president-elect Donald Trump is in dire need of a proof reader for his posts on social media platforms, especially on Twitter where his frequent rants often end up with spelling errors.A According to reports, Trump made another spelling mistake in his tweet on China seizing a Navy drone in international waters. aChina steals United States Navy research drone in international waters a rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented act,a Trump said, misspelling aunprecedenteda. The tweet was later removed and re-issued with the correct spelling of the word. China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act. a Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 17, 2016 However, even this couldn't stop Twitter users from mocking him.A Twitteratti started mocking the president-elect with choicest of words. Earlier in the run up for the presidency, Trump was left red-faced after making three spelling mistakes in one tweet against his rival Hillary Clinton with the twitterati mocking him for his gaffe. Here is a look at some of the tweets: Beyond bad spelling, worth noting the underlying source in this tweet is US intelligence, which @realDonaldTrump has told us not to believe. pic.twitter.com/6T0pNvp6BU a ????Joel???? (@JoelNihlean) December 17, 2016 For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Saturday said nearly 10 lakh people have received training in digital payment system in the last 4 days. We have a web portal which was set up around 4 days ago on digital payment training. As per latest data, 10 lakh people have registered for it out of 9.5 lakh have been trained, 31,000 shopkeepers have been trained across 476 districts, Prasad said at FICCIs 89 th Annual General Meeting. He further said the government is paying Rs 10 per individual, Rs 100 for a training camp and Rs 200 for training each shopkeeper. The government has chalked out a plan to train 1.2 crore people under awareness and training programme on digital payments. He said that demonetisation is a part of a transformative programme which is aimed for stronger and more movable digital economy. Speaking at another event, DigiDhan Mela, Prasad said the government will organise fair across the country to help people enroll for Aadhaar, open bank account and make digital payments. Our MPs, MLAs will go in their areas to help people. I have asked Venkaiah (Naidu) Ji to work with Urban Development Ministry to take this type (DigiDhan Mela) of programme deep down for people, Prasad said. Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan said that he has already started awareness programme in his constituency, conducted road shows, meeting with the merchants. The two-day event DigiDhan Mela, organised at National Stadium here, saw participation of 29 banks, 18 wallet companies, UIDAI for Aadhaar enrolment, Jio Money etc to help people make digital payments. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. NEW DELHI: A new study has found that frequent sauna bathing can significantly reduce risk of dementia, especially in elderly men. The study was carried out at the University of Eastern Finland, which suggested that men taking sauna 4-7 times a week were 66 per cent less likely to be diagnosed with dementia than those taking a sauna once a week. According to researchers, association between sauna bathing and dementia risk has not been previously investigated. Effects of sauna-bathing on the risk of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia were studied in the Kuopio Ischaemic Heart Disease Risk Factor Study (KIHD), involving more than 2,000 middle-aged men living in the eastern part of Finland. Researchers divided the participants into three groups, based on their sauna-bathing habits: those taking a sauna once a week, those taking a sauna 23 times a week, and those taking a sauna 4?7 times a week. It was found that the more frequently saunas were taken, the lower was the risk of dementia. Among those taking a sauna 47 times a week, the risk of any form of dementia was 66 per cent lower and the risk of Alzheimer's disease 65 per cent lower than among those taking a sauna just once a week. Previously conducted studies have shown that frequent sauna bathing also significantly reduces the risk of sudden cardiac death, the risk of death due to coronary artery disease and other cardiac events, as well as overall mortality. With inputs rom PTI Beirut: Rebel and government forces agreed on Saturday to allow humanitarian cases to leave two besieged government-held Shiite villages in northwestern Syria, a step that would allow the resumption of civilian and rebel evacuations from eastern Aleppo which were suspended a day earlier, Hezbollahs media arm and a monitoring group said. The oppositions Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the evacuation of some 4,000 people, including wounded, from the villages of Foua and Kfarya was expected to start today. It later reported that 29 buses were heading toward the two villages to start the evacuation process, adding that insurgents in the area rejected allowing 4,000 people to leave and saying they will only allow 400 people to be evacuated. The Syrian army said another 25 buses left later today heading to the two villages. It was not immediately clear whether the alleged evacuation limits set by the insurgents in the two villages would undermine evacuation efforts in Aleppo. Hezbollah fighters have joined the Syrian war fighting along with President Bashar Assads forces. Opposition activists blamed the Lebanese group for blocking the main road south of Aleppo and blocking evacuations from rebel-held eastern neighbourhoods of the city. The Aleppo evacuation was suspended yesterday after a report of shooting at a crossing point into the enclave by both sides of the conflict. Thousands were evacuated before the process was suspended. An amateur video posted online by opposition activists yesterday showed scores of men, women and children running away from a crossing point for fear of being shot at. The video appeared genuine and corresponded to other reporting of the events by The Associated Press. The Syrian government has said that the village evacuations and the one in eastern Aleppo must be done simultaneously, but the rebels say theres no connection. Hezbollahs Military Media said the new deal also includes the rebel-held towns of Madaya and Zabadani near the border with Lebanon where tens of thousands of people are trapped under siege by government forces and the Lebanese group. A Syrian state TV correspondent, speaking from Aleppo, said Saturday that the main condition for the Aleppo evacuation to resume is for residents of Foua and Kfarya to be allowed to leave. In Moscow, The Russian foreign ministry said Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov today called his counterparts in Turkey and Iran to discuss the Syria crisis. The ministrys read-out said all three discussed the Aleppo evacuation and humanitarian efforts and stressed the importance of continuing to coordinate efforts of the international community to provide humanitarian aid to those in need. They agreed to meet soon. Separately, Russias Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu spoke by telephone today with his Iranian and Syrian counterparts, as well as the chief of the Turkish intelligence service, to discuss the crisis in Aleppo, including concrete steps to create conditions for a lasting cease-fire in Syria. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: The Bigg Boss 10 Weekend Ka Vaar episode started off on a lighter note when Colors' family entered the house to meet participants and cheer them up. However, the housemates had another plans for the weekend show when they made Gaurav Chopraa sit on the 'Khalnayak khursi'.A Show host Salman Khan asked Gaurav about his game plan to which he said he had no such plans. Salman said Gaurav manage to escape nominations very safely and smartly. Meanwhile, Salman asked Lopamudra about his arguments with Om Swami. Salman asked Swami to change his attitude. .@lopa9999 orders #OmSwami to not take any thing from the kitchen and hide it anywhere else! #BB10WeekendKaVaar a Bigg Boss (@BiggBoss) December 17, 2016 Salman also hailed Manveer Gurjar for his performance in the task and announced him safe from elimination. Bani too escaped elimination. Lopamudra too received praises from Salman for her performance the captaincy task. Earlier in the day, housemates caught Om Swami red-handed after finding a lot of things hidden in the jail bathroom. The house captain Lopamudra then banned Swami to take items from the kitchen. CBC shutting down its China news bureau CBC News is shutting down its Beijing news bureau after a more-than-40-year presence in China, saying it was forced to take the step after officials have ignored... Bank of England announces biggest rate hike in 30 years The Bank of England has announced its biggest interest rate increase in three decades as it tries to beat back stubbornly high inflation fuelled by Russia's... Sir Alex Ferguson's 'phenomenal' verdict on Arsenal star frozen out by Mikel Arteta this season Arsenal full-back Kieran Tierney has been a key player in recent years, but this season has seen him rarely involved for Mikel Arteta's side, despite huge... North Korea keeps up its missile barrage with launch of ICBM North Korea have fired at least six missiles into the sea, including an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) which triggered evacuation warnings and halted... Power play: How Russia missed its window to crash Ukraine's electrical grid by stealth On February 24, Ukraine's electricity grid was at its most vulnerable point operating independently as it switched from Russian to European suppliers.... Ye reaches settlement with former employee who says rapper praised Hitler, Nazis: Report Ye paid an undisclosed sum to the former employee, who claimed they witnessed multiple incidents of antisemitic remarks by the rapper, report show. Chelsea and Tottenham face nightmare Champions League scenario after crazy qualification rule The Champions League round of 16 draw will take place on Monday and both Chelsea and Tottenham will be in it looking to avoid some big teams despite topping... ITV Tipping Point contestant dies after filming as Ben Shephard pays tribute Ben Shephard who hosts the popular show paid tribute to Rav as his death was announced while the how aired at 4pm on Wednesday afternoon. Miss Puerto Rico and Miss Argentina announce they secretly got married Two beauty queens have announced they secretly married each other on Friday. E-cigarettes are more dangerous than you can imagine. Here's why Many smokers know that the vapor-liquid in electronic cigarettes has nicotine and flavoring agents, but many don't know about the toxic ingredients. Germany hopes to use Israel's air defense systems as part of NATO's Sky Shield Benny Gantz spoke with Lloyd Austin about the developments in the proposal that would see Jerusalem sell the air defense system to Berlin. Katie Price announces life-changing medical diagnosis at age 44 Katie has confirmed the life changing diagnosis this week, in a message to fans. Many cooks, one mortgage. Multigenerational homes are taking off in Calgary Builders in Calgary are now offering homes that are purpose-built to make space for grandparents. Its cultural and also saves on rent and daycare fees. Powerball prize up to $1.5 billion, 3rd-largest ever in US DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) The bad news is that no one won Wednesday nights huge $1.2 billion Powerball jackpot. The good news is that means the prize has... How Irving's Bermuda insurance company piled up millions in offshore tax-free profits New Brunswicks billionaire Irving family created an offshore insurance company that allowed them to move millions of dollars in profits out of Canada and into... Why these M5 signs have been out of date for nearly three decades The signs on the M5 have perplexed motorists for years Tamworth pub named one of the best in UK It got the accolade in CAMRAs Pub of the Year awards Freeland to release mini-budget today as economists warn a recession is coming Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will table her fall economic statement today a roadmap of what's to come from the federal government as the economy... Local hockey still thriving in spite of national scandal, say former NHL players now coaching kids Former NHL players and brothers Dwight King and DJ King coach minor hockey in northern Saskatchewan, where they say grassroots hockey is thriving despite ongoing... Why this shipping container home is making waves in Ontario cottage country A type of floating home made from container ships is drawing the ire of some local residents in Muskoka, Ont. Because its designated a vessel by... Director got death threats over film poster featuring Hindu goddess. Now she's getting a protest screening After Leena Manimekalai received death threats and backlash for her tweet promoting her film Kaali, the Toronto Metropolitan University faculty associations... Triple the usual number of kids are coming to Ontario ERs with respiratory illnesses. Here's why Respiratory illnesses are running rampant among children, resulting in hospital visits and admissions at far higher rates than normal for this time of year,... Little girl throws heartbreaking note over fence at migrant centre The girl was among a group of children who broke past security guards to hurl notes over the fence yesterday. Most Connecticut veterans are eligible under state law for property tax exemptions that can save them hundreds of dollars a year on their tax bills. But many vets who qualify for the exemption dont take advantage of it. In New Milford, for example, less than half the towns nearly 2,000 veterans do so, and the same is true in Danbury, where just 1,540 of nearly 3,300 veterans have applied. I dont know why so many dont sign up, but they should, said Jeff McBreairty, American Legion commander in New Milford. It can save you a lot of money. To get the benefit under the state statute, a veteran must have served 90 days in the U.S. armed forces during wartime or served 30 years in total. The definition of war is a broad one under it the Persian Gulf War has been fought without interruption since 1990 but it also includes shorter conflicts like the invasion of Panama, which took just one month in 1989. The state requires that local governments exempt $1,000 of the value of a home or car in assessing taxes, but many municipalities award additional exemptions based on income or disability. The exemptions are also available to the surviving spouses of deceased veterans who qualify. McBrearitys exemptions added up quickly, he said: The $1,000 exemption mandated by the state, plus $2,000 offered by New Milford plus another break because of a disability saves him about $1,400 a year in taxes. Im truly grateful for it, he said. McBrearity is one of 976 town veterans who signed up for the exemptions. Mary Zullo, a statistician in the assessors office, says the minimal savings are $80 a year and potentially much more with disability or income-based exemptions. Town tax assessors and other officials say theyre not sure why more vets dont take part in the program. The wartime service limitation on eligibility excludes some veterans, but exactly how many is uncertain. According to U.S. Census figures, about a fourth of all Connecticut veterans served in peacetime, though it it not clear whether the census defintion coincides exactly with the definition in state statute. Jim Lewis, commander of the Newtown VFW, said many vets simply dont know about the program. The point was echoed by Jim Delancy, commander of the New Milford VFW, who said there is a disconnect between some veterans and groups like the VFW that exist to help them. Unless they belong to an organization like the VFW or the Legion, they dont know about it, Delancy said. But other factors are likely at work, said Danny Hayes, a Gulf War veteran who is director of Veterans Affairs for Danbury. A lot of young guys dont want help, said Hayes, especially those who served in more recent conflicts in Iraq or Afghanistan. They get out and they just get on with their lives. Disinterest in veterans benefits goes beyond tax exemptions. Only about 25 percent of veterans choose to sign up for the state Veterans Affairs Healthcare System, officials said. I think a lot of people just dont know about it, said Pamela Redmond, a spokesperson for the healthcare organization. Or they think they dont need it. Primarily, its that blytton@hearstmediact.com; 203-731-3411; @bglytton A new agreement was approved this week by the New Milford Board of Education and the group representing the districts paraeducators. United Public Service Employees Union represented the New Milford Board of Education Paraeducators in negotiations for the successor collective bargaining agreement, which governs the paraeducators terms and conditions for employment. 5 female workers, driver killed in Afghanistan Israel,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Kabul, Dec 17 (IANS) Five female airport workers along with a driver were killed after gunmen fired bullets on their vehicle in Kandahar city, capital of Afghanistan's Kandahar province, on Saturday, media reported. "The firing occurred at around 5.30 a.m. in Deh Khoja locality of the city. The victims were travelling to office before their minibus came under attack in the city," Samim Khpalwak, provincial government spokesman, told Xinhua. The attackers fled the scene shortly after the firing and an investigation has been launched into the incident. He said a pursuit operation has been launched against the fleeing rebels. No group or individual have claimed of responsibility so far. However, the official blamed "the enemies of peace and stability", a term referring to Taliban militants, for the attack. The Taliban outfit had banned education for girls and confined women in house during its six-year reign collapsed in late 2001. Violence has been on the rise since the drawdown of foreign military forces over the past two years as the Afghan security forces struggle against a surge in attacks by anti-government fighters. --IAN ahm/vm Trump transition: From Russia with Love! (Washington Diary) United States,Politics,Opinion/Commentary, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Washington, Dec 17 (IANS) Hillary Clinton did not lose the White House race to Donald Trump. She was done in by (FBI director James) Comey, the Constitution, and now the Russians! That's "just another excuse," said the Republican President-elect, proffered by the Democrats still in denial more than a month after his stunning victory defying pollsters, pundits and prophets. Scoffing at a CIA assessment that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally ordered his spooks to hack into Democratic Party emails to help him win as "ridiculous," Trump dissed it as an attempt to "delegitimise" his election. "If Russia, or some other entity, was hacking, why did the White House wait so long to act? Why did they only complain after Hillary lost," he asked as President Barack Obama ordered a review of the alleged hack. "Can you imagine if the election results were the opposite and WE tried to play the Russia/CIA card," he tweeted. "It would be called conspiracy theory!" "Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin," countered Obama buying his spies' assertion "with a high degree of confidence" that "This happened at the highest levels of the Russian government." "We need to take action. And we will - at a time and place of our own choosing," he thundered in an interview. Obama also claimed that Moscow had stopped "further tampering of the election process" after he bluntly told Putin to "cut it out" when they met in China" in September. "But the leaks through WikiLeaks had already occurred." Though he was careful to not endorse CIA's belief that Russia's goal was to elect Trump, he suggested the Russian hack had created "more problems for the Clinton campaign than it had for the Trump campaign." His spokesman, Josh Earnest, went a step further. "The fact that Russian entities hacked both Democrats and Republicans and only leaked the Democratic information" clearly indicated that it was designed to help Trump, he suggested echoing the spooks. The FBI did not agree. Nor did America's spymaster, who oversees 17 US intelligence agencies, saying it was "a thin reed upon which to base an analytical judgment." Clinton, who before the election was "horrified" that Trump may not readily accept the result, too jumped on the Russian bandwagon calling it an "attack against our democracy" prompted by Putin's "personal beef" against her. She also doubled down on her previous assertion that Comey's reopening of a probe into her use of a private email server as America's top diplomat 11 days before election led to her defeat. Clinton conveniently overlooked the fact that it was what her desi aide Neera Tanden called her "f***ing insane" for using a private server that had prompted the FBI probe in the first place. And it was the discovery of thousands of her emails on the laptop of another desi aide Huma Abedin's husband that led to the reopening of the case. Her campaign chief John Podesta, whose private email too was hacked, also renewed his attack on the agency saying "something is deeply broken at the FBI". He too ignored the fact that a Democratic Party IT official had reportedly dismissed a warning from a special agent about a possible hack as a prank. After its efforts for a recount in three battleground states came a cropper, the Clinton campaign came out in open support of a call by some members of the Electoral College for an intelligence briefing on foreign intervention in the presidential election. The move came ahead of the Monday's Electoral College meeting when 538 presidential electors pledged to either Trump or Clinton gather in the 50 state capitols and Washington, DC to formally endorse the outcome in their states. "Electors have a solemn responsibility under the Constitution and we support their efforts to have their questions addressed," Podesta wrote in effect urging them not to vote as their state did as it has been done since the first election in 1790. Many of the electors said they have been besieged by phone calls and e-mails to instead vote for Clinton who collected 2.8 million more votes, but lost the electoral vote 306-232 to Trump who emerged victorious in 30 states. Yet as the Electoral College heads for its crucial Monday vote, one can say with the "highest degree of confidence" that it would stamp its approval of Trump's election. But let the Democrats dream for another day! (Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in) --IANS ak/vm Duterte unfazed by US aid cut to Philippines Philippines,Politics,Diplomacy, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Manila, Dec 17 (IANS) Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has said he is unfazed by the decision of the United States aid agency to cut a multimillion aid to the Philippines over concerns on "rule of law and civil liberties". "We'll be glad to lose it," Xinhua news agency quoted Duterte as saying on Friday in Singapore before taking the flight back to the Philippines, adding that he is not bothered at all by the decision of the Millennium Challenge Corporation not to renew its grant amounting to $430 million. Duterte urged the US poverty reduction aid agency to pack and leave the country. "I also suggest that they start packing. Pack your things and leave maybe in six months or so," Duterte said. Duterte said Filipinos will not go hungry without the US aid. In a statement issued on Thursday, the aid agency said it had "deferred" a vote on the resection of the Philippines for compact development, "subject to a further review of concerns around rule of law and civil liberties". Earlier, Philippine Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay slammed the US for imposing conditions. "If they would really like to help us on the basis of our need, they should give it to us without any conditions," Yasay told reporters in Singapore. Yasay, who accompanied Duterte on a state visit to Singapore, appealed to the aid agency "to try to reconsider" its decision. "This has always been our appeal to America. Treat us with mutual respect, and treat us as a sovereign equal," he said. The MCC is an independent aid agency created by the US Congress in 2004. It supports developing countries address human rights, poverty and corruption through good governance. --IANS lok/ Six persons killed in Afghan shooting Israel,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS Kabul, Dec 17 (IANS) At least six persons, including five females, were killed when gunmen attacked their vehicle in Kandahar province of Afghanistan on Saturday, sources said. Five female airport workers and a driver were killed when gunmen sprayed their vehicle with bullets in Kandhar city, Xinhua news agency reported. --IANS py/ Washington Post adds fact-check plug-in for Trump tweets United States,Media,Politics,Technology, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS New York, Dec 17 (IANS) To fact-check the posts from US President-elect Donald Trump's Twitter account, the Washington Post has released a Chrome plug-in -- first for any American news outlet. According to a report in ArsTechnica on Saturday, the new "RealDonaldContext" plug-in for the Google Chrome browser, released by the Washington Post reporter Philip Bump, adds fact-check summaries to selected posts by Trump. "Users will need to click a post in the Trump's Twitter feed to see any fact-check information from the Washington Post, which appears as a gray text box beneath the tweet," the report said. Any statement on Trump's account that the editors of the Washington Post consider misleading, fact check notes appear below that post that include a simple headline, a few explanatory remarks and a link to an article on the Washington Post that offers the complete context. For the posts that are accurate, the explanatory notes do not appear beneath them. Earlier this year, during his election campaign, Trump's presidential campaign had revoked the Washington Post's press credentials and accused them of "incredibly inaccurate coverage and reporting". The move comes two days after Trump's meeting with the owner of the Washington Post, along with other tech-industry CEOs. However, Trump's Twitter account is yet to acknowledge the Washington Post's Chrome plug-in. --IANS qd/sm/vm 'Apollo 11 lunar sample belongs to buyer, not NASA' United States,Immigration/Law/Rights,Science/Tech, Sat, 17 Dec 2016 IANS New York, Dec 17 (IANS) A mistakenly sold bag containing samples from the first manned mission to the moon belongs to the woman who bought it in a sale "conducted according to law", a US District Court judge has ruled. Nancy Carlson of Inverness, Illinois, obtained the title to the historic artifact as "a good faith purchaser, in a sale conducted according to law," according to the ruling by judge J. Thomas Marten in the US District Court for Kansas, Space.com reported on Friday. The artifact was purchased by Carlson for $995 in February 2015 at a Texas auction held on behalf of the US Marshals Service. Refusing to reverse the sale and return the lunar sample bag to NASA, as petitioned by the US government, Marten said that "she (Carlson) is entitled to possession of the bag". Labeled in bold black letters "Lunar Sample Return," the zippered cloth pouch was lwas used on July 20, 1969, as an "outer decontamination bag" to protect the first moon rocks retrieved from the surface of the moon as they were delivered to Earth by Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins, the report said. The bag had been forfeited along with other artifacts found in the home of Max Ary, a former curator convicted in 2006 of stealing and selling space artifacts that belonged to the Cosmosphere space museum in Hutchinson, Kansas, it added. --IANS gb/vm GUELPH, Ontario, Dec. 16, 2016 /CNW/ -- DENSO Manufacturing Canada took its commitment to quality into the community today in a move that will definitely land them on Santa's Nice List. A recent quality initiative at DENSO Manufacturing Canada in Guelph, ON will benefit more than customers and employees. It will put something very special under the tree for 37 local children. During the past few months, employee teams participated in quality and safety initiatives to earn four parts of a child's bicycle. Then, teams assembled the bikes under the supervision of a qualified mechanic so they can be donated to the Guelph Neighbourhood Support Coalition. "The DENSO spirit is all about collaboration, challenge and teamwork so it was natural and fun to rethink the quality challenge to benefit the community at this time of year," said Rich vanOorschot, President DENSO Manufacturing Canada. "We're growing in Guelph and so is our community engagement." Brendan Johnson, Executive Director of the Guelph Neighbourhood Support Coalition, received the bikes yesterday and will lead the distribution to selected families across the city. He said "Bicycles mean freedom, adventure and fun but not everyone in our community has a bike especially a new one. This is such a wonderful, welcome and powerful surprise!" A former bike shop employee himself, Guelph Mayor Cam Guthrie was also on hand for the DENSO event. These are just the types of partnerships he likes to see. "Hats off to DENSO employees for using their skills to build brand-new bikes, then donating them to children just in time for the holiday season," he said. "This is a terrific example of giving back to our community. Thank you DENSO!" About DENSO DENSO Corp., headquartered in Kariya, Aichi prefecture, Japan, is a leading global automotive supplier of advanced technology, systems and components in the areas of thermal, powertrain control, electronics and information and safety. Its customers include all the world's major carmakers. Worldwide, the company has more than 200 subsidiaries and affiliates in 38 countries and regions (including Japan) and employs more than 150,000 people. Consolidated global sales for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2016, totaled US$40.2 billion. Last fiscal year, DENSO spent 8.8 percent of its global consolidated sales on research and development. DENSO common stock is traded on the Tokyo and Nagoya stock exchanges. In North America, DENSO employs more than 23,000 people at 30 consolidated companies and affiliates. Of these, 28 are manufacturing facilities located in the United States, Canada and Mexico. In the United States alone, DENSO employs more than 15,000 people in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Iowa, Georgia, Kentucky Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas. DENSO's North American headquarters is located in Southfield, Michigan. DENSO's North American consolidated sales totaled US$9.9 billion for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2016. In Canada, DENSO employs more than 700 people at its manufacturing plant in Guelph, ON, and Sales office in Mississauga, ON. In Guelph, DENSO manufactures automotive heating, ventilation and air conditioning units, radiators, condensers, engine fans and engine cooling modules for its North American customers. For more information, visit www.densocorp-na.com. Connect with DENSO on Facebook at www.facebook.com/DENSOinNorthAmerica. About the Guelph Neighbourhood Support Coalition The Guelph Neighbourhood Support Coalition is a charitable organization that supports Neighbourhood Groups all across the City of Guelph. The coalition also has the super support of 10 amazing partner organizations. The vision of the GNSC is to create a healthy, safe community where everyone feels at home. This happens through programs and services offered at the neighbourhood level. This year over 260 programs will be delivered to over 35,000 people. This happens through the over 1500 volunteers who gift 40,000 hours of their time and expertise. SOURCE DENSO Corporation For further information: Scott McKee, DENSO Manufacturing Canada, Inc., Phone: (519) 837-6510, [email protected], http://www.densocorp-na.com Related Links http://www.densocorp-na.com DID TRUMP REALLY WIN THE ELECTION? By Carolyn Alder December 17, 2016 NewsWithViews.com Hillary won the popular voteTrump won the Electoral Voteor did he? Dec 19th the Presidential Electors cast their votesJan 6th well know who captured the White Houseor will the House of Representatives decide? It seems pretty cut and dried that Trump captured the White House. Usually the Presidential Electors are a meaningless rubber-stamp weeks after the popular vote winner in each State is declared. However, this year the complaining, protesting, rabble-rousing, turmoil and battle continueto defeat Trump. The Presidential Electors have been bombarded with continual email, snail mail, petitions, and phone calls to persuade them to vote for anyone but Trump. The goal is to reduce the Electoral votes below 270, and let the House of Representatives make the choice. How did our presidential election process deteriorate to become so loathsome and degenerate? Three main reasons: political parties, campaigning and popular vote. Why do we assume the loudest Huckster makes the best President? The Framers intelligently created a constitutional federationnot a democracy. We describe the structure as a complex constitutional representative republic. The Framers of the Constitution very carefully outlined in Article II, the procedure for electing a President for the United States. Nowhere in the Constitution does it authorize: political parties at all (let alone taking over the election process), office seekers campaigning across the nation, or popular vote by the peoplemass democracy. Nothing seems to be more misunderstood than the reasons why the Framers outlined in the Constitution, the use of Presidential Electors in the process of electing a President for the United States. It is known as the Electoral College. There have been many recent articles defending the Electoral College and many articles demanding we eliminate the Electoral College by going to a national popular vote. Tragically, the genius of the purpose and benefits of the system, outlined in the original Constitution is totally unknown today. Even the articles coming to the defense of the Electoral College, are missing the most important points. The Presidential Electors were not designed as an after-thought to be merely a rubber-stamp after years of campaigningself-aggrandizing office seekers, boasting their qualifications, while trying to cover-up their criminal actives and minimizing their own misdeeds; while tearing their opponents to shreds. The constitutional election process was designed to avoid political campaigning across the nation, party primaries, state and national conventions, office seekers running on promises which are usually legislative issues, not their prerogative at all, as an Executive. Candidates promise people so called entitlements, buy votes with bribes, and take millions from special interests on their way to capture the White House. The best salesman wins the war. Or as I asked earlier, Is the loudest Huckster the best President? The Framers designed an ingenious system which was the opposite of all of this. As I mentioned, it was designed to avoid all campaigning, rabble rousing, tumult and disorder because the Office of the President was not elected by the people! He was not the King of the people. The Framers had discussed many options for selecting a President, and they rejected the idea of a popular vote for President. The one and only national office to be elected by the people was member of the House of Representatives. Here is one of the critical missing facts in every discussion: Every national level office was outlined to be elected using a different method, by a different group of people, representing different (and sometimes conflicting) interests. Each position was to serve a different term in office and was given different enumerated responsibilities. Each office was to represent a different interest and check other offices from usurping delegated prerogatives. (Party politics only represents the party interests at every level.) Each position outlined by the Constitution was designed for thinkers and statesmen at every level. The method for electing the President was described in detail in Article II of the Constitution. The ingenious system designated the Electors as the first step in the process. The Electors were the forethought not the rubber-stamp afterthought. The Presidential Electors in every State had a very important assignment. This group of carefully selected intelligent individuals, chosen in whatever manner their State Legislature decided, would meet in their individual states on the same day across the nation. Each independent Elector was to recommend two outstanding individuals who could be presidential possibilities. Nominate two (not campaign for one) who they thought would best represent the interest of the Nation and carry out the will of Congress as the Chief Executive. Their recommendations would be based on past performance and service to their state or to the nationnot campaign promises. The Presidents responsibility was not to appeal to the will of the peoplehe was not the King of the People. The President was the chief Executive of the Union of the States. The list of names recommended by the independent Electors in each State with the number for votes for each, were then signed, sealed, certified and submitted to the Seat of Government. The lists would be opened in joint secession of Congress. The process of opening and tallying the Electors nominations determined who the candidates would be. The 5 most recommended individuals by the Electors were the candidates submitted to the House of Representatives for election by the States. The Representatives from each State formed a delegation which had one vote. The Vice-president was to come from this same pool of outstanding statesmen. This system for electing a President is so ingenious, because one group outside of government control and influencethe Electors, representing the people of the various States, would make the recommendations, and another group which was part of government, the peoples House of Representatives, would make the final election, as equal states. The Framers outlined and established a Constitutional Federation, not a democracy. This was a truly ingenious structure of government. They created a more perfect union, established justice, safeguarded freedom, individual liberty and prosperity. We claim that constitutional government was destroyed by party government. The first branch to fall was the Executive Branch. The hastily written and ratified 12th Amendment was a result of party machinations usurping the assignment of the independent Electors to recommend outstanding presidential possibilities. Parties encouraged political campaigning, running for office and led the country from a constitutional federation to mass democracy. We invite examination of our research and analysis in our book, The Evolution and Destruction of the Original Electoral College. From NewsWithViews Previous articles for more details: 1 - Sore-Losers 2 - The Framers Designed a Far Superior Process Carolyn Alder carolyn@freedomformula.us The original Constitution was truly the Formula for Freedom. Please, click on "Mass E-mailing" below and send this article to all your friends . 2016 Carolyn Alder - All Rights Reserved E-Mail: carolyn@freedomformula.us Website: Freedomformula.us The number of political parties in the country is expected to increase from the current figure of 40, it was learnt on Saturday. 60 ... The number of political parties in the country is expected to increase from the current figure of 40, it was learnt on Saturday.60 associations have applied to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to be considered for registration as political parties.Also, another eight groups have asked from the electoral body the necessary information on the modalities for registering political party.The information was gathered at the two-day Capacity Development Workshop for INEC Press Corps held in Abuja.Despite listing 40 political parties on ballot papers, less than ten political parties have elected political office holders either at the state or federal level.These include the two main political parties, the All progressive Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Accord, Social Democratic Party (SDP), Labour Party, All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) amongst others.The Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, Mr. Rotimi Oyekanmi noted that the commission is already considering the applications and if they meet the required guidelines.While agreeing that list of the political parties listed are active only when an election is at hand, Oyekanmi however said that the Commission was constrained to delist them as the law does not give it that power.He noted that since the law did not also put a restriction on the number of political parties than can be registered, INEC therefore does not have the power to stop the registration of any new political party.He also stressed that at a time the commission attempted to delist non functioning political parties, the court restrained it and hence in accordance to the court ruling, the commission has no power to turn down any group.He said, presently we have 40 political parties in the country. I can tell you that as at Thursday, December 15, sixty associations have approached the commission to be registered.Their application is presently attended to and they are in different level of processing.Speaking current on the introduction of ICT in the conduct of elections in the country, Oyekanmi said the commission has already did a pilot test with the Kogi governorship election.He , also noted that by the time ICT is fully introduced, issues of result discrepancies will be reduced drastically as result will be transmitted right from Polling Units (PUs)He further posited that with ICT, it will also be possible to have a provisional results of any elections, especially general elections within 24 hours. President Muhammadu Buhari has stressed the need to review the ECOWAS Treaty in order to make the regional organisation more responsive to... President Muhammadu Buhari has stressed the need to review the ECOWAS Treaty in order to make the regional organisation more responsive to new national, regional and global challenges.The president made the call at the opening of the 50th Ordinary Session of the Authority and Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS, held in Abuja on Saturday.He also called for the speedy conclusion of the reforms of all ECOWAS institutions to put ECOWAS on a much stronger footing and to prepare member nations for the challenges of such Institutional reforms.President Buhari also stressed the need to make conscious efforts to improve on governance and accountability at all levels.We also need to make conscious efforts to improve on Governance and accountability at all levels.This calls for the speedy conclusion of the reforms of all ECOWAS institutions to put ECOWAS on a much stronger footing and prepare us for the challenges of such Institutional reforms.To this end, we should ensure that priority is given to the implementation of development programmes, while the ECOWAS Parliament should be entrusted with more functions.In addition, the cost of governance must be reduced across all ECOWAS Institutions while resources should be devoted to programmes and projects that will have direct bearing on the lives of ordinary citizenry and create jobs fast enough to absorb our teeming youth population.In this regard, it is necessary that measures be taken to review the ECOWAS Treaty in order to make ECOWAS responsive to new national, regional and global challenges.On economic integration, Buhari observed that the modest achievements in regional integration were being challenged by globalisation.According to him, most member countries continue to record low volume of trade, occasioned by declining level of economic activities, caused by the sharp fall in commodity prices.He said: While oil prices fell by an astounding 57 percent between June 2014 and January 2015, other commodity prices have also weakened sharply thereby putting pressure on the current account and fiscal balances of our countries.This ugly situation demands that we diversify our respective economies from commodities into other sectors such as banking, construction and telecommunications and most importantly agroprocessing, manufacturing and services.As we adjust to a more challenging globalised environment, stronger efforts are required to increase domestic revenue mobilisation in our countries and Community Institutions.He said that Member States must diversify their economies away from trade in commodities towards developing robust infrastructure that would support manufacturing and industrialisation.Buhari, therefore, urged the Community to invest more in infrastructure and human resources so as to unleash the potentials that exist in our respective economies and in our peoples.The 15 member states of the ECOWAS are currently attending the summit with The Gambia, Sierra Leone and Burkina Faso being represented by their foreign ministers, while Cape Verde is being represented by Ambassador of Senegal to Nigeria. The Director of Adoration Ministry Enugu, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka, has stated that his transfer from Christ the King Parish, GRA, for an obsc... The Director of Adoration Ministry Enugu, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka, has stated that his transfer from Christ the King Parish, GRA, for an obscure Our Lady Rosary Parish, Emene, was a blessing in disguise.This was as he declared that the number of worshippers trooping to his new place of posting has multiplied by 20 times within few months of his transfer, adding that a new Adoration parsonage has since commenced and nearing completion.The Secretary-General of the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, Reverend Father Ralph Madu had explained that the transfer of the fiery priest who prophesied the defeat of former President, Goodluck Jonathan in 2015, was not politically motivated as claimed by some persons.He explained that the controversial priest was only relocated to where he would be more useful to the ministry.But speaking with the Sun newspapers at the permanent site of the adoration ground in Emene, Mbaka thanked the Church for moving him out of his former station, where he was just like a fish that was growing inside a bottle and now has been put inside the ocean.His words, God is wonderful. You can see that I am smiling, filled with cheers and the joy of the Lord. I have the feeling that Gods hand is in my going out of GRA.I am seeing everything as the will of God. When I remember that my providing God is with me and for me, I am filled with joy and Im comforted. The ways of God are divine and mysterious and at times when he wants to do a thing, we humans may not understand it. We may be seeing the external but God who sees the future planned and packaged everything for us.The Journey to the adoration permanent site is a blessing in disguise and I welcomed it with joy even though I was misunderstood. Some people who thought I would disobey the church and the Bishop by saying I would not go out; but how can I disobey the bishop?Now we have packed in here and within few months, the number of people coming there has doubled more than 20 times and we have started a new parsonage, Adoration parsonage, and its nearing completion. God is 100 per cent on our side and the congregation is happy and I am exceedingly happy.I am grateful to the Bishop and the Church that moved me out of the GRA; I am just like a fish that was growing inside a bottle and now has been put inside the ocean. I thank the church for that move from the GRA for the Ministry is serving a larger role to the global universe; it is not just a parish per se, it is serving the whole Nigeria. It is inter cultural, it is inter denominational, it is also inter tribal.The adoration Ministry, Enugu, Nigeria is the grand parent to all the new adoration ministries that are growing and God has given us a home and made Umuchigbo, Nike land where we are, a glorious empire of the Holy Spirit.The priest, who had accommodation issues when he was transferred, noted that apart from the parsonage that is almost completed, other projects are in the works, expressing happiness with the worshippers, and the government of the day.The government of Enugu led by Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi is adoration friendly and we are enjoying the highest peace we have never enjoyed in the annals of the history of the ministry. So things are moving very well; and since we came in here God has been shocking us with goose-pimple-arousing miracles; we have never experienced such miracles as we are experiencing now, he stated. I love this country with every fibre of my being. I love this country with every fibre of my being.For three generations before me my forefathers, including my great-grandfather, my grandfather and my father, have made solid and notable contributions to the development of this country in both the private and public sectors.My great grandfather, Rev. Emmanuel Adebiyi Kayode, studied theology at the great Fourah Bay College in Freetown, Sierra Leone and Durham University in the United Kingdom after which he returned to Nigeria.He was ordained as an Anglican priest, was the first Nigerian to take Christianity to our hometown Ile-Ife and was the first to build and pastor the first Anglican Church in that ancient town.Throughout his life and ministry he fought for the rights of the poor and oppressed in Ile-Ife, including the people of Modakeke who, at that time, were treated as slaves and serfs. He did the same in Ondo province and Ijebu where he was later posted by the Church.My grandfather, Chief Victor Adedapo Kayode, studied law at Cambridge University and was called to the English bar after which he returned to Nigeria.He played a key role in the development of education in the country, was deeply involved in the fight against the excesses of our British colonial masters, fought for the rights of the so-called African natives and indigenous population in the old Lagos Colony and was the third Nigerian to be appointed to the Judiciary after a brilliant and rewarding career as a criminal lawyer.My father, Chief Remi Fani-Kayode Q.C. SAN, CON was born in the United Kingdom, studied law at Cambridge University and was called to the English bar after which he returned to Nigeria.Like his father, he also excelled as a lawyer and he set up the first and most successful indigenous Nigerian law firm of that time with Chief Rotimi Williams Q.C. SAN, CON and Chief Bode Thomas.He went into politics, was deeply involved in the struggle for our independence from colonial rule and he successfully moved the motion for Nigerias independence in Parliament and went on to become a Minister and Deputy Premier of the old Western region of Nigeria.I have fought military rule, been involved in the struggle for democracy and I have participated heavily in partisan politics, political commentary and political discourse in our country for the last 26 years.I have had the rare honor and distinct privilege of serving her at the highest level of governance first as a presidential spokesman and then as a Federal Minister in two separate Ministries as far back as 10 years ago.I have suffered persecution, self-imposed exile, illegal and unlawful incarceration and the most vicious forms of insults and misrepresentation for Nigeria over the years and I have also invested my time, resources and energy heavily into the political terrain and development in our country.Yet despite all these wonderful opportunities, the monumental sacrifices that my illustrious forefathers and I have made and our love for and commitment to Nigeria it is time to ask some hard questions. Those questions are as follows.Is Nigeria really one nation or is she many nations forced to remain within an artificial, unworkable and unsustainable entity?Are our people really bound in freedom, peace and unity as our national anthem proudly proclaims or is that just a deceitful mirage and never-ending illusion?Is our marriage and amalgamation borne out of consensus and a genuine desire to remain together or borne out of compulsion?Can a nation prosper, excel or achieve its full potentials when its people are perpetually squabbling and struggling over the distribution of its meagre resources and when they have two distinct and irreconcilable worldviews?Can it thrive when one group wishes to live and compete in the new, enlightened and modern free world whilst the other wishes to go back to the bondage of the dark ages?It appears that more people are asking these questions today than ever before. Is it not time for us to answer them?Must we wait for an ethnic or religious conflagration to occur or another civil war to take place before we accept the fact that there is something very wrong somewhere and that we may well be a nation of ethnic incompatibles?Why is it a crime for anyone to take as much pride in their ethnic nationality and cultural heritage as they do in being a Nigerian?Why is it wrong for anyone to say that I am as proud of being an Igbo or a Yoruba or an Ijaw or a Fulani or any other ethnic nationality as I am of being a Nigerian?What is the ethos, essence, utility, sustainability and legitimacy of a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-religious plural super-state in which the various ethnic nationalities are expected to subsume their primary identities, de-emphasise the very source and root of their being and literally sacrifice their ancient bloodlines, noble history and rich heritage on the alter of a hybrid and artificial man-made entity called Nigeria?Is it really wrong for any of the numerous ethnic nationalities that make up our country to insist on their freedom and demand to be allowed to develop separately and at their own pace?This is especially so where and when they feel as if they have been turned into slaves and second class citizens by others in their own country?Is Nigeria a nation or is she a mere geographical expression? Is it true to say that there is as much of a difference between a Fulani and an Igbo as there is between a Turk and a German?Is Nigeria anything more than a British fraud set up to serve the economic interests of our former colonial masters? Given the circumstances is it unreasonable of us to ask for our very own Brexit?Some of these fundamental questions were first raised by the first Premier of the old Western Region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo SAN, in 1947 in his book titled Paths To Nigerian Freedom but sadly few listened.Consequently twenty years later Awolowos greatest fears and concerns were confirmed and our three year civil war in which over three million people perished, including women and children, took place.This was the only war in world history in which the premeditated starvation of young children and babies, in what was essentially mass murder and genocide, was described as a legitimate weapon of war by those who perpetrated such horrendous crimes against humanity.Since the end of the civil war neither Nigeria nor any of its ageing leaders, many of whom were military veterans and commanders in that civil war, has expressed any regrets, shown any remorse or brought anyone to justice for what was undoubtedly the greatest mass murder of infants and butchery of the innocents in African history.Yet nothing seems to have changed except for the fact that the ethnic identity and religious persuasion of the latest set of victims have become far more widespread and varied.In todays Nigeria, unlike in 1966 and unlike during the civil war, it is not just the proud Igbos and ever-defiant Biafrans that are being slaughtered like flies on a regular basis but also the northern Christians, the Shiite Muslims, the people of the Middle Belt and the Niger Delta and the ever-compromising Yoruba.Consequently the same questions are being asked today about the continued feasibility of our national unity and cohesion but this time with far more urgency and anger and by far many more people.Yet those that believe that they own Nigeria still refuse to listen and view those that ask such questions with suspicion, derision, contempt and even rage.They label them as being unpatriotic and ignorant and they threaten and attempt to intimidate and bully them into silence simply because they do not share their views.In Nigeria it is indeed a dangerous thing to be a freedom-yearning and independence-craving dissident or non-conformist and, like in the old Soviet Union before its eventual disintegration, you could end up paying for such views with your liberty or your life.Yet one wonders how much longer this can go on before the oppressed and the voiceless get fed up with merely asking questions and instead choose to actually insist on their rights, take their destiny into their own hands, rise up to the occasion and fight for their liberty?The quest for self-determination, freedom and liberation is a noble and legitimate cause which has never been successfully resisted or defeated anywhere in the history of the world.Every well-educated and widely-read individual can attest to the veracity of that undeniable and incontrovertible fact.The truth is that you cannot compel people to remain together in one nation by the force of arms forever.It may work for some time but it cannot last in perpetuity because sooner or later the chickens will come home to roost.The best you can do is to reach out to the disillusioned and marginalised in love and give them a reason to want to stay.Yet few in our nation can appreciate the wisdom in adopting such a course or treading such a path. The only language that is clearly understood here is the logic of compulsion and the language of force.Consequently Nigeria is unravelling at the very seams. I can literally smell blood on the mountain and I perceive and sense the secret massing of the bloodthirsty demon Magog, the god of war.The quest for the peaceful division of our nation is stronger today than ever before and as each day passes it gets stronger and stronger.It is far more compelling and stronger than it was before our civil war broke out in 1967 simply because far many more people are angry and fed up with what they are being subjected to by the powers that be and our forced union.Millions from all over the country are quietly murmuring but soon that murmur will become a massive roar and an irresistible and irrepressible demand. It will soon become a tidal wave.And when it gets to that point no matter how many people you lock up and kill it will not stop and neither will they be intimidated, silenced or deterred.In fact the more people you murder, subject to bloody pogroms, persecute, marginalise, jail and destroy, all in the name of keeping Nigeria one, the louder, the greater and the more deafening the roar, the agitation and the struggle will get.And at that point only God will be able to hold Nigeria together and He will only do so if it is His perfect will.May God grant us the wisdom, presence of mind and courage not to dismiss these vital and fundamental questions with the usual arrogance and contempt but rather to do some real soul-searching, indulge in a little introspection and humbly answer them as best as we can. The Buhari Youth Organisation (BYO), Lagos State Chapter has called on the Senate to rescind its decision on Mr Ibrahim Magu, acting Chair... The Buhari Youth Organisation (BYO), Lagos State Chapter has called on the Senate to rescind its decision on Mr Ibrahim Magu, acting Chairman of Economic and Financial Crime Commission.The organisation said that Magu had not been charged and found guilty as charged in any reputable court of law.Mr AbdulWaheed Odunuga, State Coordinator of BYO said in Lagos on Saturday that it was unimaginable that the Senate found it difficult to confirm Magus appointment.It is disappointing to see the Nigeria Senate finding it difficult to confirm the appointment of Magu, who has been acting in the same capacity for the past 13 months.It is not right that the Senate is only acting on a clandestine security report that has yet to be filed for necessary litigation.We are calling on the Senate to rescind its decision until Magu is found guilty as charged in the reputable court of law.Otherwise, they should act in line with the same motion that kept the Senate President, Sen. Bukola Saraki as the leader of the Senate, despite being tried in the Code of Conduct Tribunal, he said.Odunuga said that the agency under the leadership of the nominated chairman had been adding value to the 2017 Budget through the recovery of funds.According to him, this act alone should have earned him a national recognition rather than rejection fueled by tutelage.He said that the youth organisation would not fold its arms and let fears for good governance and corruption cripple the country any further.We are also using this medium to call the attention of National Assembly to the proposed bill for Special Court for Corruption for prompt passage.The court will aid quick recovery of more disputable looted funds to resuscitate the nations economy, he said. The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to prevail on the police to ensure the release of... The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to prevail on the police to ensure the release of an abducted female lecturer, Christie Angbuku.Bemgba Anjembe, the Chairman of ASUU, University of Agriculture, Makurdi, made the appeal on Friday in Lokoja at a news conference.Mr. Anjembe, who spoke through Ishaq Eneji, Secretary of the Universitys Chapter of ASUU, said that he was dissatisfied that the police had not been able to rescue Ms. Agbulu, who was kidnapped on November 16 while on a visit to Kogi.He said that the victim was kidnapped as soon as she arrived in the state, adding that the abductors later used her phone to call to demand a ransom of N150, 000.One hundred thousand Naira was paid into her account and her abductors quickly withdrew the money using her ATM card.The balance of N50,000 could not be paid just as the matter was reported to the police, he said.He said that the leadership of the ASUU met with the officials of the state police command on December 1, during which the police assured them that they would do their best to save her.Today is 17 days after we first came to Lokoja in search of our colleague, and there is no information about her whereabouts, the official said.According to him, the development forced the union to write a petition to the Inspector-General of Police on December 5.He said that the union had yet to get a response.The unionist appealed to the president to intervene to rescue Agbulu a Lecturer 1 in the Department of Biological Sciences of the university.The ASUU chairman also appealed to Nigerians to volunteer useful information that could lead to the rescue of the lecturer.He also appealed to the lecturers abductors to leave her unhurt in the interest of the unity of the country.The official said that the lecturer was a dedicated and committed Nigerian. Many people have the mind-set that since it is the job of a comedian to constantly put smiles on the faces of their fans, then they are immune to unpleasant emotions like sadness.However, during a chat with popular comedienne, Helen Paul, she explained that humour merchants are also humans who get sad and depressed once in a while.she said.The funny lady during the chat talked about her job as a comedienne, and how her husband goes out of his way to ensure that she is the best at her craft.She said, Earlier in the week, Paul decided to surprise random Nigerians she met on the street by gifting them products she represents as brand ambassador. According to her, she did that to put a smile on peoples faces this Christmas season.Paul said. Super Falcons players have said they will be short changed their win bonuses for retaining the womens AFCON because they expect nine million Naira each, but will now be paid N4.9 million Naira-a-player.The players are being owed match bonuses and allowances for winning the AWCON 2016 in Cameroon, and have been protesting the non-payment of their entitlements.They staged a protest to the National Assembly on Wednesday, which prompted the federal government to promise to offset the bills.It has now been confirmed that the money has been paid to the NFF, who are now set to pay into the accounts of the players.However, the players have insisted they should be collecting nine million Naira each, and not the 4.9million Naira they are about to receive.Our monies should be around nine million Naira and not what they want to give us now, one of the players said.The NFF are to pay each player N5m, but they will deduct the N100, 000 they paid each player earlier as transport fare, making it N4.9m each player will receive. ATLANTIC CITY -- A Virginia man is behind bars for allegedly robbing a bank here on Friday, city police said, adding that he is believed to have pulled off a similar heist in Ocean City a day earlier. Atlantic City police say that a TD Bank location in Ocean City was robbed Thursday by a man later identified as Bruce Higgins Jr., a 42-year-old resident of Herndon, Virginia. After surveillance photos of Higgins were disseminated, two Atlantic City police officers reportedly recognized him. As the FBI and Atlantic City officers searched for their suspect on Friday, personnel at a TD Bank location in Atlantic City activated an emergency alarm when Higgins entered the site shortly after noon. Authorities said he left the bank without speaking to anyone and hopped in a cab, adding that a witness helped police track down the cab. Higgins was later located and taken into custody and charged with robbery. Police said he allegedly gave the bank teller a note indicating that he had a gun and made of with $1,000, which was later recovered. No firearm was found, police added. According to previous reports, Higgins was sentenced in 2009 to four years in state prison or two prior bank robberies. He held an IT job and earned a salary of more than $100,000 annually, according to a Washington Post article, but became addicted to drugs. Higgins was sent to the Atlantic County Justice Facility. Readers with information regarding the incidents in Atlantic City and Ocean City are asked to contact the Atlantic City Police Department's criminal investigations section at 609-347-5766, the Cape May County Prosecutor's Office at 609-465-1135 or the FBI Atlantic City Resident Agency at 609-677-6400. Greg Adomaitis may be reached at gadomaitis@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @GregAdomaitis. Find NJ.com on Facebook. 1 top.jpg The Freetown Cafe, a vegan-friendy restaurant at 41 Halsey Street in Newark, NJ. 08/26/2016 (Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media) (Steve Hockstein/Harvard Studio.c) NEWARK -- 2016 has been a banner year for lunch in downtown Newark. The city has seen a flurry of openings and announcements about casual dining options coming soon to the Brick City. Newark economic leaders say the new businesses are not only a way to give residents and visitors more dining options during the day, but are also signs of the revitalization of the downtown area. "Newark is just taking off...there are so many good things happening in the city," Scott Blow, the president and acting chief executive officer at the Newark Community Economic Development Corporation, told NJ Advance Media in a phone interview Thursday. Referencing new residential, open space, mixed use, and commercial developments in the works in the state's largest city, Blow said various developments and market forces are combining to make Newark a more attractive city to business investors. "Historically, Newark has been a commuter city," he said. "The goal is to create a 24-hour city." With other developments coming online, and real estate prices on the rise in New York City and Hudson County, "the opportunities (for new businesses) are here," he said. Casual dining restaurateurs have been capitalizing on all of the buzz. Amid a sweep of new downtown eatery openings this year was also a slew of announcements about ones that are on the way. Some of the new spots include: The Halal Guys You know it's official when our #ComingSoon windows are up! Don't be shy, like it says, follow us on IG and FB to stay connected. #thehalalguysnewark Posted by The Halal Guys on Tuesday, December 13, 2016 The franchise, which started as a food cart in Manhattan in 1990, is gearing up for the launch of its latest location, on Halsey Street. The Newark spot, which is reportedly opening next week, comes on the heels of the first N.J. Halal Guys, which opened in East Brunswick in May. The company says it plans many more New Jersey locations as part of a global brand expansion. Grabbagreen Today we welcomed our newest restaurant and business partner Grabbagreen Newark to #Newark. Located in the Prudential Shoppes on Broad as part of the revitalization downtown. Founded in 2013 by two moms who found it increasingly difficult to feed their familys healthy food on the go, Grabbagreens Eat Clean menu is preservative-free, naturally gluten-free and GMO free. The whole food menu is based on super food ingredients and offers a full selection of grain and green-based bowls with fresh hormone-free and antibiotic-free proteins provided by LOCAL farms, fresh-pressed juice, handcrafted smoothies and acai bowls, breakfast and healthy kid-friendly items. We are proud of #GrabbaGreen for hiring most of its staff with Newark residents and also paying them above the minimum wage. These are the type of business partnerships we are proud of and encourage in our city. Thank you again for inviting me to participate in your grand opening. The food was amazing and as promised, I will be back for more. #WeAreNewark #NewarkOnTheRise Grabbagreen Posted by Ras J. Baraka on Monday, December 12, 2016 City officials gathered at Prudential's 'Shoppes on Broad' Monday to officially welcome Grabbagreen's first location in the Northeast. Founded by two moms in 2013, the company aims to make fast food healthy by offering a clean eating menu featuring foods from local farms. "It's right up my ally. I need a place like this, I'm a vegetarian," Mayor Ras Baraka said in a video he posted on Facebook welcoming the new eatery. "It's exactly what we're trying to do...(bring) a variety of different businesses to our city." Barcade Barcade. (Jersey Journal file photo) The trendy chain that features craft beers and vintage arcade games is set to appear before the Planning Board early next year about a new location on Broad Street. "We are really excited about the opportunities in downtown Newark," Barcade's CEO and co-founder Paul Kermizian told NJ Advance Media. "There's a lot of opportunity to have more nightlife because people are coming into downtown or they are working there." Redd's Biergarten Redd's in Newark. (Courtesy Redd's) Redd's - the company behind the restaurant and bar outside MetLife Stadium - opened a new concept outside the Prudential Center in May. Part of the "restaurant row" developing between Broad and Mulberry Streets, Redd's owners said they hoped to capitalize on visitors who go to Newark to visit the Rock, NJPAC, and other attractions in the area, and are looking for a fun place to eat. Freetown Cafe Nataki, Kwane and Kanika Williams, owners of the Freetown Cafe, a vegan-friendy restaurant at 41 Halsey Street in Newark, NJ. 08/26/2016 (Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media) For a Caribbean flair, downtown Newark eaters can try Freetown, which Jamaican-American siblings Kwame, Kanika and Nataki Williams opened on Halsey Street this summer. The family opened up shop in Newark after success with Vital Dining in Montclair. Porto Station Grill This eatery on Market Street celebrated its grand opening in October. Adding to the famed Portuguese cuisine offerings available in the city's Ironbound district, Porto Station does Portuguese with an Italian twist. The upscale grill and bar serves breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks and coffee. TBD Marcus Samuelsson Project Marcus Samuelsson. The celebrity TV chef announced last month that he is planning a new concept to open inside the redeveloped former Hahne's department store, a complex that will also be home to the city's first Whole Foods. Though details on the restaurant have yet to be worked out, it could open as early as next year. It will likely be the first of several eateries to open inside that development, and several others starting to take shape downtown. The influx of restaurants in the area, Blow said, shows that Newark "is becoming a destination." People may come for the Devils game or concert performance, but now, they can stay for the eats. Jessica Mazzola may be reached at . Follow her on Twitter . Find . ORANGE -- A three-alarm fire in an abandoned city house damaged the neighboring homes early Saturday morning and displaced 16 Orange residents, officials said. The fire broke out at around 2:45 a.m. and was put out shortly after firefighters arrived at the Chapman Street house, city spokesman Keith Royster said. One firefighter was injured, who slipped on ice and fell while battling the blaze, according to Royster. The fire caused structural damage to the two houses on either side of the abandoned home, Royster said. The cause of the fire is still under investigation. Craig McCarthy may be reached at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig and on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook. NEWARK -- Essex County's chief law enforcement agency is set to host a violence-prevention conference for nearly 500 middle school students in a daylong gathering that will feature a motivational speaker who was left partially paralyzed by a shooting. The invitation-only conference, dubbed "What's It All About?," will also include workshops on topics ranging from cyberbullying, teen dating violence, gang awareness, making positive choices, the effects of violence and nutrition, according to Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray, whose office is holding the event. "It is our vision that students will be inspired to become positive role models and peer leaders in their schools and communities," Murray said in an announcement. "Many of the students who will attend this event have been negatively affected by violence in their communities." The conference is designed to encourage young people to make the positive choices in an effort to prevent violent crime, the prosecutor added. Seventh through ninth graders from schools in Belleville, Bloomfield, East Orange, Orange and Newark are scheduled to attend Tuesday at the Caldwell University Student Center. Speakers will include Hashim Garrett, who at 15 was shot six times on a Brooklyn, New York, street. Garrett was paralyzed by the waist-down by the attack and underwent years of rehabilitation to regain use of his legs. New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman is also expected to address the students. More than 30 organizations from institutions of higher education, law enforcement agencies, medicine, social services and recreation will also be on-hand to offer information about youth programs and careers. For more information, contact Nicole Graves-Watson, Essex County Prosecutor's Office community justice coordinator, at 973-621-4317 or nicole.graves@njecpo.org. Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc and on Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook. PL_Hickey.JPG AAEP Executive Director David Foley and 2016 AAEP President Dr. Kathleen Anderson present Jay Hickey with the George Stubbs Award. (Photo courtesy AAEP) Two local equestrians were honored at the Dec. 6 President's Luncheon at the AAEP's 62nd Annual Convention in Orlando, Fla. James J. (Jay) Hickey Jr., who retired as president of the American Horse Council (AHC) June 30 after 23 years in the position, received the American Association of Equine Practitioners' 2016 George Stubbs Award for his contributions to the equine industry and outstanding support of equine health and welfare. Named for the late artist and educator George Stubbs, the award recognizes a non-veterinarian who has contributed substantially to equine veterinary medicine through leadership, product development, public service, public policy development, volunteerism, advocacy, research or education. Hickey's tenure with the American Horse Council spanned 27 years and included involvement with almost every major federal law and regulation concerning the equine industry. Hickey grew up in Washington, D.C., and is a longtime resident of Chevy Chase, Md. He received his undergraduate degree in business administration from the University of Notre Dame and his J.D. from Georgetown University. 2016 AAEP President Dr. Kathleen Anderson presents JDr. Nat White with the President's Award. (Photo courtesy AAEP) Nathaniel A. White II, DVM, MS, DACVS, whose tireless efforts saw his concept of the Equine Disease Communication Center (EDCC) become reality in 2016, received the President's Award. The President's Award, selected by the sitting AAEP president, honors an AAEP member who has demonstrated a dedication to the association during the past year by contributing a significant portion of time and expertise to benefit the health and welfare of the horse. Dr. White is professor emeritus of equine surgery at Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine's Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center. He serves as director and administrative consultant with the EDCC, the industry-funded hub for efficient communication of information about equine infectious diseases and disease outbreaks. Dr. White, who received his veterinary degree from Cornell University in 1971, is a past president of the AAEP and former chair of the AAEP Foundation, the charitable arm of the AAEP that has distributed more than $3.7 million since 1994 to improve the welfare of the horse. Convention highlights The American Association of Equine Practitioners' (AAEP) 62nd Annual Convention, held Dec. 3-7 in Orlando, Fla., dispensed the essential knowledge, emerging diagnostics and newest treatments across the medical spectrum to help practitioners provide optimal care to their equine patients. Convention attendance comprised 5,471 veterinary professionals, students, guests and exhibitors from across the United States, Canada and 46 other countries. The meeting offered more than 130 hours of continuing education in core areas of equine medicine, including imaging, infectious disease management, internal medicine, lameness and reproduction. In addition, renowned airway surgeon Norm Ducharme, DVM, MSc, DACVS, presented the prestigious Frank J. Milne State-of-the-Art Lecture while acclaimed ethics speaker Chuck Gallagher delivered the keynote presentation. "Program Chair Dr. Reynolds Cowles and the Educational Programs Committee created an excellent educational program that delivered relevant and desired content that will help our members perform their jobs to the best of their ability, no matter if they are in the field, the hospital or the classroom," said AAEP Executive Director David Foley. "New interactive technology within selected sessions brought additional value and a fresh dimension to the program by enabling audience-speaker engagement through their smartphone, tablet or laptop." In addition to the educational program, the convention offered a variety of social and networking opportunities at which practitioners and students could expand their professional footprint; and a trade show featuring 347 exhibiting companies showcasing the newest products and services for equine practice. Installation of new officers and board members included Kathleen Anderson, DVM, Fair Hill, Md., who is immediate past president. For more equestrian news see Horse News Horse News covers everything equestrian in the mid-Atlantic area and can be reached at horsenews@hcdemocrat.com Find Horse News on Facebook For more racing and steeplechasing news see http://connect.nj.com/user/aorrjr/posts.html WASHINGTON (AP) The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has issued a subpoena to Donald Trump. The nine-member panel sent a letter to the former president's lawyers on Friday, demanding his testimony under oath by mid-November and outlining a series of corresponding documents. The decision by lawmakers to exercise their subpoena power comes a week after the committee made its final case against the former president, who they say is the "central cause" of the multi-part effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election. It remains unclear how Trump and his legal team will respond to the subpoena, if at all. YEREVAN, DECEMBER 17, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan sent a congratulatory message to His Holiness Pope Francis on December 17 on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of his birthday, wishing him health, all the best and success in his confident steps aimed at strengthening global peace, Armenpress was informed from the press service of the Armenian Presidents Office. You enjoy deep respect, great sympathy and high reputation by the Armenian people which you were able to feel in June, 2016 during your visit to Armenia. Your warm visit is the vivid evidence of traditional friendly interstate and religious relations between Armenia and the Holly See and an important call for solidarity to todays conflicting world, reads the congratulatory message of President Sargsyan. Guns must be out of reach, even when vehicle is stopped LINCOLN The Nebraska Supreme Court zeroed in on what defines a concealed weapon Friday, delivering a ruling that one attorney says could make it harder for people to legally transport firearms. The law simply says its a violation for someone without a state-issued permit to carry a hidden handgun on or about his or her person. But how the law applies to weapons in vehicles frequently ignites debates among lawful gun owners. The Supreme Court has ruled in the past that a concealed handgun in a vehicle must be within reach to violate the law. In Fridays case, the court decided its not enough for the gun to be beyond reach while driving; it must also be inaccessible when the vehicle comes to a stop. The case involves Joseph D. Senn Jr. of Craig, Missouri, who was convicted and fined $200 in 2015 for carrying a concealed handgun in Richardson County. Officers pulled Senn over north of Falls City on suspicion of a shooting and discovered a loaded 9 mm handgun inside a case and behind the passenger seat of a rental truck he was driving. Senn appealed, and in a split decision, the Nebraska Court of Appeals reversed the misdemeanor gun conviction. The appeals court cited testimony from a sheriffs deputy who said the handgun was hidden on the opposite side of the truck cab. The majority concluded the gun was out of Senns reach while he was driving the truck. In a prior ruling on the issue, the Supreme Court had said the weapon must be within immediate physical reach to result in a concealed weapons charge. Yet another previous ruling by the court said immediate reach would include storing the gun in a locked glove box. In Senns case, the state appealed the appeals courts decision. Assistant Attorney General George Love argued the presence of the gun in the trucks cab satisfied the laws requirement that the gun be on or about Senns person. The Supreme Court ruled that the appeals court improperly focused on the gun being out of reach while Senn was driving. The high court stated that Senn could have reached the gun while the truck was stopped. We conclude that the jury, as a rational trier of fact, could have found that the handgun was on or about Senns person, even though it was not within his reach while driving, Supreme Court Judge Max Kelch wrote for the unanimous court. Auburn attorney Keith Kollasch, who represented Senn, said the ruling appears to leave little area inside a vehicle where it would be legal to store a gun. How do you transport a firearm in Nebraska then? he asked. Youre pheasant hunting, youve got a firearm in a case, outside your reach. Under this ruling, they could probably charge you with a concealed weapons charge. Suzanne Gage, spokeswoman for the Attorney Generals Office, declined to comment on the ruling. Rod Moeller of Omaha, president of the Nebraska Firearms Owners Association, said he had not yet read the opinion, so he wasnt sure how far-reaching it might be. Gun owners have three choices when it comes to transporting guns, Moeller said. They could obtain a state permit to carry a concealed handgun, which allows them to keep the gun out of sight while driving. Otherwise, they can keep the gun in plain sight on the dash for example so that an officer can clearly see the weapon during a stop. But Moeller advises unloading the gun and placing it in a case fully out of reach from the vehicles seating compartment. Moeller said hes heard of cases in which the open carry approach has resulted in a concealed weapons charge. There can be a risk, he said. The holiday season is a time for merriment, gift giving, and joyful celebration. For many, it is also a time of reflection that frequently results in humility and gratitude. On special occasions, the two come together, and we find the true meaning of the holidays in the celebration of joyful giving to those in need. Many of our local businesses dig deep, not only during the six weeks of holidays, but year-round. Adopting a Family in Need Operating 14 hospitals and numerous medical practices and clinics, Franciscan Health is a health care system serving large portions of Indiana and Illinois. For 140 years, Franciscan has stayed true to the ethical values set forth by St. Francis of Assisi and founder Mother Maria Theresia Bonzel. Every year at holiday time, Franciscan Health Hammond/Dyer coordinates an Adopt-A-Family program. It is one of the most heartwarming and emotional annual charity drives they conduct. Every department within the hospital adopts one or more families, explains Sister Aloysius. The department employees purchase gifts for the families, they collect food and cash donations, and they do it all. Ten days before Christmas, the employees gather in the hospital cafeteria, bringing together everything they have collected. The gifts and gift givers are blessed in a touching ceremony filled with songs of charity. Then they fan out across the Region, spreading holiday cheer. Its hard to put into words the love one sees that day, Sister Aloysius says. If there was ever a tangible way to see the love of our Lord, that would be it. Feed the Hungry, Clothe the Poor St. Clare Health Clinic, part of the Franciscan Health network located in Crown Point, is a primary care provider of non-emergency services. The clinic also helps those who endure hardship to access quality health care. Every year, they do their version of the Franciscan Adopt-A-Family. Our employees adopt families for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, explains Julie Mallers, St. Clare manager and nurse practitioner. The families are nominated by the community and/or by the employees themselves. The goal is to provide them with traditional holiday dinners. Employees donate and collect bags of groceries, non-perishable items, and gift cards to purchase perishables. The Merrillville Rotary Club purchases turkeys to contribute. Not all of the families in need are patients here, Mallers says. We help those in need, regardless. We have families in Crown Point, Lowell, Cedar Lake and many rural areas. In addition to holiday meals, St. Clare staff collects clothing and blankets for those in need. Many families need boots and gloves for the cold months ahead. We do what we can to share warmth in many ways, Mallers says. A Smile as Dazzling as Diamonds Alberts Diamond Jewelers has grown from their humble beginning in East Chicago to become one of the most prestigious and popular jewelry retailers in Northwest Indiana. But they never got too big to give thanks, or reach out with a helping hand. Every year, they conduct numerous fundraisers and auctions for regional charities. For the last four years, they have collected toys for the St. Jude House in Crown Point. We collect toys from employees as well as customers, says Christine Martinez, marketing coordinator. Plus we host a Ladies Night, and all of our ladies receive extra raffle tickets in exchange for toys. Last year Alberts collected the largest amount of toys to date, and they intend to top that number this year. (Owners) Josh and Fred really believe in the spirit of giving, Martinez says. The holidays can be a sad time for those in need, and we do what we can to put a smile on a childs face. When we see the kids light up, well, thats what its all about. Powwow for Charity The Lather Lounge, located in Munster, begins every month with a salon powwow about how to give back. We choose something different every month, says Katie Riordan. In November, we gave out free haircuts and styles to veterans. Giving back is something we strongly believe in. In December, the employees work together to provide for families in need. We discover families who are in distress, and we talk to them about how we can help, Riordan explains. It can be gifts, food, gift cards or services. Then we get to work out how to collect what they need. The employees also include customers in the joy of giving. Were like a small family, and everyone wants to help, Riordan says. Its very heartwarming when our customers come up to us and ask how they can help. Meals on Wheels, The Haven House, and various addiction recovery units have all benefited from the Lather Lounge powwows. We love to help others, Riordan says. Gifts that Bring Healing and Hope For those in search of a meaningful gift, one that honors or remembers a special someone, one that brings healing and hope to others, look to the Community Healthcare System. Through Community Hospital, St. Catherine Hospital, and St. Mary Medical Center, gifts will support various causes such as research in breast cancer and cardiology. These gifts provide meaningful ways to show support and appreciation for lost loved ones while helping others at the same time. Outside Community Hospital, brilliant pink and lavender lights shine on the Lights of Life trees. Lights of Life is a program of the Community Cancer Research Foundation, with donations supporting cancer research. Each light on the trees shines in honor or in memory of the special people who light up our lives. A donation reserves a light on the tree, and an acknowledgment card is sent to the designated honoree. A larger donation will also send a cancer awareness pin of the donors choice. Throughout the holiday season, honorees names are placed in a display case near the illuminated trees. Another way to make a difference is to become an "Angel of Hope," and honor or remember family and friends through St. Catherine Hospitals Wings of Healing program. Each angel on the Wings of Healing tree represents a donation made to St. Catherine Hospitals scholarship program. The program provides educational assistance to area students who are pursuing health care careers. A donation will result in an angel hanging on the tree in the lobby to celebrate the life of a loved one. A personalized greeting card also is sent to the family as an acknowledgment of the gift. A larger donation will also send the family a beautiful keepsake angel ornament. Crimson lights will twinkle on the Hearts of Hope tree inside St. Mary Medical Center during the month of Februarynational heart health month. Each red light on the Hearts of Hope tree represents a donation made to cardiovascular research, funding vitally needed heart disease clinical studies. A light will shine in honor or memory of those who fill our hearts with love and joy, and a striking Hearts of Hope lapel pin can be purchased as well. Gettingand StayingInvolved At Strack and Van Til, its not just the donation that matters. Its the community involvement, explains vice president Chris Bengtson. Each store gets involved in that particular community, and organizes many fundraising efforts throughout the year. To that end, Strack and Van Til donates over $1 million annually to more than 600 local organizations. The list includes local humane societies, Meals on Wheels, Tradewinds, St. Jude, and Habitat for Humanity. We strive to be more than your hometown grocer, Bengtson says. We strive to be part of the solution to your hometown issues with hunger, clothing and shelter. Customers get a chance to get involved during the Round Up and the Checkout Challenge. Rounding up your purchase to the next dollar provides a contribution to the charity being helped at that moment. The Challenge provides cashiers an opportunity for friendly competition in collecting customer donations. When the neighborhood has a reason to request help, we want them to think of us as a family member willing to get involved, Bengtson says. Reaching out a Helping Hand Compassion is a word not always associated with lawyers. But very few law firms are as compassionate and giving as Alvarez Law Office in Crown Point. Every year, Steven Alvarez organizes a Toys for Tots drive, purchasing thousands of toys out of his own pocket. The firm donated to the ARC Foundation, which helps local people with developmental disabilities, and they contribute to Camp Bluebird for cancer patients. We try not to advertise our charity work, Alvarez says. We do it for the right reason, because these people need a helping hand. Their helping hand is also extended to those who deserve, but cannot afford, justice. We have clients who simply cannot afford a lawyer, he explains. In many instances, we take the case and simply dont charge them, even if they get an award. The Alvarez Law Office prides itself on being a compassionate member of the community, and it shows in so many behind-the-scenes actions. The Beauty of Giving Ra Isa, president of Kali Beauty Supply in Hammond and Lansing, believes deeply in the beauty of giving. We donate to many local charities, Isa says. We work with the American Cancer Society, and donate wigs to those who have lost their hair due to chemo treatments. Kali Beauty Supply also donates to the American Heart Association and the local Social Services. We donate hair extensions, beauty supplies, shoes and clothing, he says. We also donate tools that can help with hair care. Isa says its a privilege to be able to give back to the local community. Our shops in Hammond and Lansing have both done very well, Isa explains. Our business is growing because of our local customer base. Its a privilege to be able to say thank you by donating cash and/or supplies back into the same community that supports us. Whether its compassion, duty, a privilege, or a fundamental philosophy, local businesses in Northwest Indiana are there when needed. They reach out to help the less fortunate, at holiday time, and in many cases year round. Their actions to show gratitude are heartwarming and joyful. What does Bobby Ellerbee see when he looks at his antique TV cameras? He sees a bit of what they've seen since the birth of television. His cameras are now dormant, decommissioned from performing any on-air service. But those 15 cameras arranged in, fittingly, his family room in Winder, Georgia, have been cosmetically restored to mint condition and they teem with history. Here's his RCA model TK-10, his oldest, which hails from 1946. It is trimmed with a jaunty red stripe and name plates designating its long-ago owner: Chicago station WGN-TV. "It's one of the original eight cameras they bought when they put the station on the air," Ellerbee says. Nearby is his Mark VII, a color camera built by the Marconi company whose no-nonsense design belies its fanciful role in the early 1970s: It is one of six then owned by New York's Tele-Tape Productions, where "Sesame Street" first came to life. Ellerbee's pride-and-joy is his half-century-old RCA TK-41C, a slightly modified version of the industry's first widely used color camera, which was introduced in 1953. It's a silver beast, weighing in at more than 300 pounds but with a swept-back, streamlined profile. "No other camera looks like that," says Ellerbee. One of only a couple hundred ever built, this behemoth saw duty at NBC's Burbank, California, studios, home to "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson," ''Laugh-In" and dozens of other shows aired, per the network's famous peacock, "in living color." In the current era of pocket-sized minicams available to anyone, this camera, which new cost more than $400,000 in today's money, stands as a monument to TV's early challenges and promise. That promise enthralled Ellerbee, now 66, from a tender age. As a child in the studio audience of "The Popeye Club," a wildly popular 1950s kids' show hosted by "Officer Don" Kennedy on Atlanta's WSB-TV, young Bobby was as much captivated by the cameras (RCA black-and-white TK-30s, a model he owns one of today) as by encountering Officer Don in the flesh. In high school he took a detour radio announcing from his planned path of becoming a TV director. "I had to train myself," he recalls in his seasoned baritone. "At first, I sounded pretty much like, 'Hiiii, how y'allll?' and I had a high voice. But I got it down. Smoking cigarettes and drinking liquor helped a lot." When he entered the University of Georgia, his career as a deejay was flowering on local Athens radio, and after college he landed jobs in Atlanta, Dallas, San Francisco and Miami, among other major markets, before forging a lucrative career as a commercial announcer. More recently, he landed a dream gig voicing the Sheriff on the Adult Swim cartoon show "Squidbillies," now in its 10th season. "But I always had a thing about TV cameras," he says, and from childhood he made it his mission to learn all about them, even sending off requests for product manuals from manufacturers like RCA, General Electric and Norelco. "I always thought to myself, one of these days I'm gonna have a camera of my own," he says. That took a while. "Being in radio, you have to move every few years and you can't drag along a lot of stuff. But when I left Miami and came back to Georgia a dozen years ago, I thought, 'It's time to get a bigger place and get one television camera at least.'" Getting started was easier than he expected. He called an Atlanta TV station, asked for the chief engineer and left a message: "I'm looking for TV cameras. If you got any, call me." In a flash he was the owner of nine scrapped TK-44s and 45s (RCA color cameras from the late 1960s) that once were based at NBC Burbank before landing in a Peachtree Street junk bin. His collection now totals more than two dozen, each a glorious totem of TV's past. It's a past Ellerbee has curated with stories, photo archives and technical lore for his website, whose name eyesofageneration.com seems to him a no-brainer: "What's another name for television cameras, in the broader sense? They were the eyes of a generation us baby boomers, the first generation to grow up with TV." Though, strictly speaking, his cameras don't work, they operate for Ellerbee exactly as he wants them to. They evoke warm memories of past eras they served and programs they beheld. His burly TK-41 speaks of countless nights when Johnny Carson laughed it up with Ed and Doc. His sleek Norelco PC-60, emblazoned with "CBS COLOR," sparks recollections of CBS' variety shows of the 1960s and '70s like those of Carol Burnett and the Smothers Brothers. "The cameras are where it all starts," says Ellerbee. "They're kind of like a vortex, because they bring that whole outside world" he makes a broad, gathering sweep with his arms "to MY house. "They have seen a lot of people up close and personal that I watched on TV," he observes. That, finally, is what his cameras mean to him. "They're like old friends, in a way," he says. "We have something in common." CROWN POINT Isiah Barker was sentenced Friday to 83 years in prison in the murder of his 26-year-old pregnant girlfriend, whose stabbed and beaten body was discovered in June 2011 stuffed into a storage bin within a south Chicago residence. Barker, 32, of Chicago, proclaimed his innocence in a lengthy statement to Judge Samuel Cappas, wherein he harangued the detectives, prosecutors and press for the alleged failings that led to his Nov. 8 conviction at trial for murder and infanticide. I'm not the man, Barker claimed. I know things may seem certain ways, but it wasn't me. However, Barker was silent when asked under oath by prosecutor Reginald Marcus whether he went to the funeral for Cynthia Funches, or whether he felt remorse for his unborn son's death. Marcus said Barker did not attend Funches' funeral, because he was by then in Georgia, where prosecutors allege he fled after Funches' murder. Prosecutors argued at trial Barker killed Funches during an altercation at the woman's Highland apartment. Barker and a second man, Octavius Barlow, then allegedly stuffed the body into a storage bin and hid it in a house being rehabbed in the 10000 block of South Normal Avenue in Chicago, where it was discovered June 22, 2011. Barker was was charged Nov. 1, 2012, in Funches' death and eventually arrested Oct. 7, 2013, after he was stopped by Georgia law enforcement in a town south of Atlanta. Georgia police claim Barker fought them and attempted to steal a police car before he was subdued with stun guns, pepper spray and a baton. Prosecutor Infinity Baulos said at the sentencing hearing Barker physically abused girlfriends in Illinois and Georgia before his arrest. The state also presented evidence at the hearing of a Dec. 1 telephone conversation Barker had at the jail with his current fiancee, where he screamed at the woman and cursed at her several times. Baulos said Barker was a misogynist, who treated all the women in his life in the same manner. Barker said in response he was frustrated during the conversation with his fiancee, because he is innocent. Funches' mother and sister told the judge in victim statements that their family has been deeply hurt by Barker's actions. Cappas noted before he sentenced Barker that Funches was struck 95 times before the fatal blow that caused her brain to hemorrhage. He said she must have fled to the bathroom, where blood was splattered on the ceiling and walls. Barlow remains charged with two counts of assisting a criminal in Funches' death. He is scheduled to go to trial on those charges July 10. Barker said he planned to appeal his conviction. CROWN POINT A 34-year-old Gary man was sentenced Friday to 85 years in prison in the murder of Martin Joshua III, 39, in December 2014. Evan J. Hodge declined to provide a statement to Pro Tem Judge Michael Lambert before sentencing, but defense attorney Matthew D. LaTulip said Hodge was a father of four children and cared for his 67-year-old mother. LaTulip said Hodge continues to maintain his innocence, despite being found guilty of murder in an Oct. 14 trial. Hodge pleaded guilty that same date to carrying a handgun without a license, a level 5 felony. Martin Joshua's father told the judge in tears that he could not eat or sleep since his son's death. I'm dreaming every day about my son, he said. Ain't nothing you can do to ease my pain. On Dec. 19, 2014, Gary police found Joshua dying of a gunshot wound to the stomach at a residence in the 5600 block of East 4th Street, according to a probable cause affidavit. Writhing on the floor, with his intestines exposed, Joshua twice told police he was shot by Evan Hodge before he fell unconscious, the affidavit states. Joshua was declared dead the next day at Methodist Hospitals Northlake Campus, the affidavit states. Joshua's girlfriend told police she spoke with Joshua on the phone the night he died, and he told her he was with his friends, including Tay-Tay. The homeowner of the residence on East 4th Street told police Joshua told her he was shot by Tay-Tay. The homeowner said she had known "Tay-Tay" her entire life, and she identified Hodge as that person in a photo lineup. Hodge was previously charged with murder in April 2014 on allegations he fatally shot a 39-year-old man during a gunfight at a Gary gas station. Prosecutor Michael Toth said at Friday's sentencing hearing Hodge was allowed to plead guilty to carrying a handgun without a license in that case after surveillance footage from the gas station showed he acted in self-defense during the shootout. Hodge was sentenced to five years in prison for that offense, according to court records. Hodge was previously convicted of two drug-related offenses in 2002 and 2003. He was convicted of a firearm offense and resisting law enforcement in 2009. Hodge's sentence Friday was enhanced due to his prior convictions, and because a gun was used in the commission of the offense. A Lake County Superior Court judge on Wednesday dismissed the defamation suit filed against Eve Gomez, a radio personality and community activist. Joan Gorcos, a St. John Police Department secretary and part-time county dispatcher, sued Gomez in April on allegations the activist said in a speech Gorcos engaged in racial profiling. Gomez delivered the speech April 8 in response to leaked copies of internal police communications where former police Officer Daniel Kolodziej told Gorcos he was conducting a Mexican hunt. Kolodziej is Gorcos' son, according to court filings. Gomez requested Judge Bruce Parent dismiss the lawsuit through a summary judgment motion filed Aug. 3, citing her right to free speech in connection to a public issue. Defense attorney Trent McCain argued at a Dec. 1 hearing on the motion that Gorcos misconstrued the statements Gomez made in the speech. He said Gomez also never specifically identified the mother or son in her speech. Parent dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice, which means it cannot be refiled in court. McCain said Friday Gomez's victory meant that other activists' speech will not be chilled in the future. If Eve had lost, maybe another activist would not want to say something about racial profiling, because they could be sued and made to pay money, he said. Gorcos' attorney, Christopher Cooper, said Friday he has filed an appeal of the judge's decision. Police allege a 43-year-old man on probation for drunken driving had a blood-alcohol content more than three times the legal limit during a Nov. 30 crash in Hammond that injured a woman. Juan J. Ponce is charged in Lake Criminal Court with two counts of operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury, one felony count of OWI, and three misdemeanor counts of OWI. Hammond police were dispatched about 5:11 a.m. to Michigan Street after receiving reports of the crash, according to a probable cause affidavit. A witness told police a Chevrolet Trailblazer was headed west when it crossed the center line and struck a Honda Civic in the eastbound lane. Ponce, the driver of the Trailblazer, was transported first to St. Catherine's Hospital and then Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Illinois, to be treated for head injuries sustained in the crash, the affidavit states. Police obtained a blood draw warrant for Ponce, who registered a 0.27 blood-alcohol content, more than three times the legal limit to operate a motor vehicle, according to the affidavit. Keilani Jackson, the driver of the Civic, also was transported to Advocate Christ Medical Center to be treated for broken bones in her ankles, legs, knees and right arm, according to the affidavit. Ponce was previously convicted Aug. 9 of operating while intoxicated, a felony offense, and sentenced to 12 months probation, the affidavit states. Ponce is not afforded bail in the case. A 19-year-old man was charged Friday in connection to three shootings in Gary earlier this month that left one man dead and a second injured. Garrett D. Smith was charged in Lake Criminal Court with murder, three counts of felony battery and criminal recklessness. Smith is alleged to have fatally shot 19-year-old James Clark the afternoon of Dec. 2 in the 4200 block of Kentucky Street, according to a probable cause affidavit. Police learned through Facebook messages Clark expected to purchase a firearm when he met with Smith, the affidavit states. Shell casings recovered from the scene of the shooting were tested and matched to two shootings that occurred Dec. 1 in west Gary, the affidavit states. Police allege Smith shot a second man that day during an altercation at the man's residence near West 11th Avenue and Jennings Street, according to the affidavit. The victim was treated for gunshot wounds to the right leg and right hand, the affidavit states. No one was injured in the third shooting, which occurred in the area of West 15th Avenue and Hayes Street, according to the affidavit. Smith is not afforded bail in the case, according to court records. EAST CHICAGO The School City of East Chicago and the city have worked out an agreement to return the shuttered Field Elementary School back to the school district. In return, the school district will give the city Abraham Lincoln Elementary School, which will be demolished. Four years ago, the East Chicago School Board approved the transfer of Field School for $1 to the city of East Chicago. The city said it wanted to convert the former Field Elementary into a university campus. Despite investing more than $1 million in the Field school building several years ago, it was closed in June 2007 due to declining enrollment and decreased tax collections. Most of those students were transferred to Franklin Elementary School. East Chicago Superintendent Paige McNulty said the board approved a resolution Thursday night in connection with this new agreement. "The mayor and I have been working collaboratively to make the school and city stronger," she said Friday morning. "He will give Field back effective immediately. We agreed to give the city Lincoln school. It is open and running but at the end of the school year, Lincoln will close. We will vacate that building. "We are very excited about getting Field back. It is a much newer and nicer building than Lincoln. It has an auditorium and newer facilities. Lincoln needed more than $1 million worth of renovation. At Field, the kids will have a much nicer space to learn and grow. Lincoln and Field are within blocks of each other. The 325 students at Lincoln will be transferred to Field in the fall," McNulty said. The superintendent said the city has maintained the building. She said it needs only minor upkeep and upgrades to the Information Technology system and the kitchen before it reopens in the fall. She said the school district also intends to bring in extra crossing guards for students and add new lighting and signage. East Chicago Mayor Anthony Copeland said the city had not done anything with the building over the four-year period, except to use it for training, a fire department graduation ceremony and a recent job fair where UPS hired more than 100 city residents. Copeland said he had planned to work with Ivy Tech Community College Northwest to expand the college's role in East Chicago. That deal fell through. Thomas Coley, chancellor for Ivy Tech's Northwest and North Central regions, said, "We couldn't find a way to make it work for both parties. We tried a number of options. It didn't work out as planned. We still want to be partners where we can, but that opportunity didn't work out the way we had hoped." Copeland said once the city has control of Lincoln Elementary, it will demolish the building. "We intend to repurpose it for future land use," he said. "The city has proactively been moving into single-family housing in that area. We've put up some townhouses over there. We're set to do a community center in the North Harbor area but not exactly where Lincoln is sitting." GARY The Gary Community School Corp.'s Board of Trustees will vote Friday on whether to extend the school superintendent's contract for two years. As required by state law, the School Board held a public hearing on Superintendent Cheryl Pruitt's contract Monday. Five members of the public spoke. Pruitt was not present at the meeting. The school board is scheduled to vote on the contract at 3 p.m. Friday. The Gary Community School Corp. continues to wrestle with nearly $100 million in debt, and at times has not been able to make payroll. The district is working with the state's Distressed Unit Appeals Board, and the state hired a financial consultant to assist with reducing the deficit and putting the district on the right path. Over the last five years, the district also has closed several schools and reduced the number of staff to reduce the deficit. Carlos Tolliver, a retired teacher who has been elected to the 1st district seat on the board and will take office next month, said he believes the School Board should not make the decision, because four of the current seven-member board will be replaced. "This is a critical issue," he said. "The superintendent's contract expires June 30, 2017. This board will no longer be accountable to the voters after Dec. 31. Members of the current board should avoid taking up any substantive legislation or decisions involving any long-term commitments that are non-emergency related. "As a member of the incoming board, I am requesting the Board of Trustees delay action on renewal of the superintendent's contract and any other legacy decisions presently being considered. "Also, I want a joint working session to be convened between the present board and incoming board members to discuss this contract and other major issues. The children and taxpayers of Gary deserve no less than this responsible form of behavior," Tolliver said. Judy Ledbetter, who has a grandson at Banneker Achievement Center in Gary, said she does not want to see the superintendent's contract extended. "I think the public has spoken. We want more accountability. We were against the referendum. The schools are failing. Banneker is a Blue Ribbon school, and they didn't have a fourth-grade math teacher for five months," she said. Robert Buggs, who also will become a new Gary School Board in January, said the current board should approve the contact. "I am for the contract being approved, and that board needs to make the decision," he said. "Some people don't realize the improvements she has made to this district. They don't understand the law. Some of the people coming on the board don't know how to stay in their lane. They don't seem to understand what the superintendent is supposed to do. We are not there to micromanage." Lake County Councilman Jamal Washington spoke in favor of the superintendent being retained. He said in his former position with Illinois Central Bus Co., they always had a good relationship and the superintendent worked hard to improve Gary schools. Gary School Board President Antuwan Clemons said the current board has a legal responsibility and obligation until Dec. 31 at 11:59 p.m. to renew or not renew the superintendent's contract under state law. "I invited Carlos Tolliver to the board retreat and I mentioned to him that they must understand that we are still board members until the end of the year," Clemons said. "We have to act on the recommendations that are presented to us. It is our responsibility under Indiana law. "Despite all of the problems before she came here, she has done a great job though there is still much more work to do. I'm in favor of the two-year extension. That will give her time to work with the new board. The new board will have to make the decision in the next couple of years if they want to continue to work with her based on her work over the next two years," Clemons said. School Board member Nellie Moore said she believes there is some validity to the request to defer the vote until the four new board members have been sworn in. Moore, Rosie Washington and Darling Pleasant are the three board members who were not up for re-election. The seven-member board serves staggered four-year terms. "The contract will go beyond our tenure," Moore said. "I would be okay with waiting until the four new board members came on. I think the superintendent has taken us as far as she can." VALPARAISO The Valparaiso School Board is another step closer to naming its newest school, and on Thursday approved a redistricting plan prompted by the school's construction. Associate superintendent Julie Lauck presented the board with three choices for the school's new name: Heavilin, Vale or Southview. Lauck led a committee of parents, school employees, business leaders and residents to narrow a list of about 50 ideas submitted by the public. The top choice was Heavilin Elementary, named for the road where it's located. The board will vote at its January meeting on the name for the school. The $16.3 million school building will serve families who live south of U.S. 30 in Center Township. Its part of a $148 million district-wide building project paid for by an increase in property taxes being collected from local home and businesses owners. The new school and building projects also prompted the need to redistrict the elementary schools. The board voted 5-0 to adopt the redistricting plan after several public meetings, which drew hundreds of parents and scores of comments. The new school, which opens in the fall of 2017, will serve students currently at Hayes Leonard, Parkview and Central elementary schools who live south of U.S. 30. About 480 students are expected to attend the school. Also in 2017, about 31 students currently at Central will be redistricted into Parkview Elementary. The plan also will deal with an area directly southwest of Cooks Corners Elementary with about 60 kids. Currently about half of them go to Northview Elementary and half go to Cooks Corners as transfers from Northview. The proposed plan calls for all of them to go to Cooks Corners, putting the Cooks enrollment at 300 students. Northview enrollment will remain at 300. Also in 2017, Frataccia said the 88 Hayes Leonard students who live north of U.S. 30 and all students from Central will attend Hayes Leonard as construction to upgrade Central takes place. In 2018, the plan calls for moving about 100 students who live in northwest Valparaiso from Memorial to Cooks Corners, which will keep them in their neighborhood. Former Hayes Leonard students who live north of U.S. 30 will go to Memorial Elementary. Other changes will include minor shifts in boundaries between Flint Lake and Thomas Jefferson Elementary, and TJE and Parkview. The board also decided Thursday to make no changes to the current middle school boundaries. Board member James Jorgensen said although the board is not currently changing the middle school boundaries it is possible they could change in the next few years as new areas of the city and Center Township develop. Superintendent E. Ric Frataccia said the district's northwest and southwest sides are ripe for growth, and if new residential areas develop it may necessitate the need to shift those boundaries. For more information about the redistricting plan, go to valpo.k12.in.us. The Region remains under a winter weather advisory through the weekend, with freezing rain mixed with snow in the forecast for Saturday. Snow that fell Friday afternoon eventually turned into a freezing drizzle, coating much of Interstate 80/94 and I-65 and local roadways with a thin sheet of ice during the evening commute. Poor road conditions and limited visibility kept Indiana State Police busy assisting motorists who slid off the roadways and into ditches. Friday's blast of wintry weather is expected to be followed by another round of dangerously cold temperatures, wind chills as low as 30 below zero and more snow from Saturday night into Sunday, according to the NWS. Arctic air is expected to return to the area Saturday night, bringing high winds, more snow and a possibility of flash-freeze conditions. Sunday's forecast will be mostly sunny with a high near 4 degrees and wind chill values as low as 23 below. Patchy blowing snow is expected before noon with an 80-percent chance of precipitation throughout the day and snow accumulation of up to 3 inches. The winter weather advisory ends 6 a.m. Sunday. A wind chill advisory will be in effect from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. Monday The South Shore Line was again busing commuter rail passengers between South Bend and Carroll Avenue in Michigan City Friday morning because of the cold. Several region communities have opened warming shelters, including Cedar Lake, Lake Station, East Chicago, Hammond, Hobart and Gary. Check back at nwi.com for updates. HAMMOND Police officers will deliver food baskets to needy families Saturday morning, but the police force could use more volunteers, said Marie Gootee, event coordinator. Those wishing to volunteer with food distribution can meet at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at the Jean Shepherd Community Center, 3031 J.F. Mahoney Dr. in Hammond, she said. About 75 baskets will be delivered beginning at 9:30 a.m. to 55 families in need this holiday season. Volunteers will break out into teams of three or four people distribute the food, she said. The families in need have already been selected. Each basket contains about a weeks worth of groceries and includes everything a family needs to create a Christmas dinner, said Gootee, whose husband, Sgt. Christopher Gootee, is an 11-year veteran of the Hammond Police Department. Volunteers packed the canned and other dry goods Friday, and perishable items like milk, eggs, ground beef and ham, will be packed Saturday. The food is donated by Strack and Van Til. This year marks the Hammond Fraternal Order of Police's 16th annual Christmas Food Basket distribution event. It's a great way for the community to meet face to face with the Hammond police officers, Gootee said. Its also a chance for police to give back to the community, she said. Its a really humbling experience. Many families are grateful to be getting the help. Its a great chance for people to see police man as the good guys. Anyone with questions can email or call Sgt. Christopher Gootee at cgootee@hammondpolice.com or (219) 712-0103. For the first time, women make up a majority of law students, holding just over 50 percent of the seats at accredited law schools in the United States. The number of men and women enrolled in juris doctorate programs has been nearly equal for a number of years, but this is the first time women have moved past the 50 percent mark, according to data released Thursday by the American Bar Association. Currently, 55,766 women nationwide are studying for a juris doctor degree, compared with 55,059 men, according to the bar association. First-year students are more than 51 percent women, or 19,032, and 48.6 percent men, or 18,058. The A.B.A. requires accredited law schools to annually disclose data in a number of areas, including admissions, financial aid and employment outcomes, but law schools do not require students to identify their gender, so there may be some students who are not listed as women or men. As federal and state grand juries hear evidence about his political fund-raising, Mayor Bill de Blasio on Friday said he was confident that his administration would be found to have done nothing wrong. We have cooperated from Moment 1, Mr. de Blasio said during his regular weekly radio interview on the Brian Lehrer Show on WNYC, referring to the investigations that have now passed into a new phase with the grand juries. We have offered any and all information they needed and all the cooperation in the world. The only thing we care about is getting to a resolution. Mr. de Blasio was responding to a question about a report in The New York Times that prosecutors were presenting evidence to two separate grand juries in Manhattan. According to several people familiar with the inquiries, a state grand jury is looking into whether the law was broken during efforts by Mr. de Blasio and some of his aides and associates to funnel large donations to several small Democratic county committees in an attempt to win State Senate seats. A federal grand jury is scrutinizing whether Mr. de Blasio or his aides took actions to benefit donors in exchange for contributions to his campaign or to a nonprofit group created to support his agenda. Prosecutors said on Friday that they had dropped their long-running criminal investigation into whether Charles J. Hynes, the former Brooklyn district attorney, misused public money in his unsuccessful 2013 re-election campaign. More than two years ago, not long after the end of his 23-year tenure, Mr. Hynes came under the scrutiny of the United States attorneys office in Brooklyn over accusations that he had illegally spent $219,000 seized from drug dealers and other defendants on a political consultant in his hard-fought campaign against Ken Thompson, who beat Mr. Hynes in a primary and the general election to become the boroughs first black district attorney. The complaints about the consultant, Mortimer Matz, surfaced in June 2014 in a city report that also claimed Mr. Hynes had used his official email account to conduct campaign business and had asked members of his staff to stump on his behalf. But in a letter sent to Mr. Hyness lawyer, Sean Haran, on Friday, Robert L. Capers, the United States attorney in Brooklyn, said there was insufficient evidence to support the filing of charges in the matter. The thousands of sticky notes lining a subway station wall in Manhattan bearing messages about the 2016 presidential race came down on Friday, marking the end of one of the most significant public expressions of emotion in response to the election results. But the notes will not be forgotten. A trove of them will be preserved by the New-York Historical Society, officials said. The notes were part of a spontaneous public art forum that began after an election that jolted the country, especially in areas like New York that generally sided against President-elect Donald J. Trump. The first notes went up in the tunnel linking the 1/2/3 and F train platforms at 14th Street in Manhattan, and soon spread to Union Square and other subway stations in the city and beyond, including Boston, San Francisco and Toronto. Townsend Harris High School is one of New York Citys most prestigious public schools, where 100 percent of students graduate on time and all of them are prepared for college, according to city metrics. But in recent weeks, the academic powerhouse in Queens has felt a ripple of protest, as students, alumni and teachers have battled with the interim acting principal, agitating for her ouster. On Thursday, parents piled on. The schools Parent Teacher Association passed a resolution enumerating a long list of grievances against Rosemarie Jahoda, who took over temporary leadership of the school in September when the previous principal, Anthony Barbetta, left to run Robert F. Kennedy Community High School, also in Queens. Parents denounced her management style and some of her dealings with students, and they demanded that she be removed. In appointing David Friedman as the next ambassador to Israel, Donald Trump voiced a desire to strive for peace in the Middle East. Unfortunately, his chosen representative would be far more likely to provoke conflict in Israel and the occupied territories, heighten regional tensions and undermine American leadership. Mr. Friedman, a bankruptcy lawyer who has represented the president-elect in matters involving Atlantic City casinos, has no diplomatic experience, unlike nearly every American ambassador who has served in this most sensitive of posts. That might not be quite so alarming if he didnt also hold extremist views that are radically at odds with American policy and with the views of most Americans. Mr. Friedman has doubted the need for a two-state solution, under which Israelis and Palestinians could live side by side in peace. Ignoring international law and decades of policy under Republican and Democratic administrations, he has endorsed continued Israeli settlement of occupied territory in the West Bank, which Israel captured from Jordan during the 1967 war. Mr. Friedman has gone so far as to endorse even the annexation of some of that land, where Palestinians hope to build a state of their own. Image David Friedman, left, with Donald Trump and his daughter Ivanka after an appearance in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in 2010. Credit... Bradley C. Bower/Bloomberg There are other reasons to question Mr. Friedmans fitness for the post. He has accused President Obama of anti-Semitism, absurdly, and called supporters of J Street a liberal American Jewish organization that has lobbied for a two-state solution and the Iran nuclear deal far worse than kapos Jews who turned in their fellow Jews in the Nazi death camps. American ambassadors to Israel traditionally maintain close contacts with American Jews, as well as Israeli officials, but Mr. Friedman reportedly told a closed-door forum in Washington earlier this month that he would refuse to meet with J Street, effectively ostracizing a significant part of the community. During her final days as attorney general, Loretta Lynch is not uttering President-elect Donald Trumps name at formal events. But the fear his election has sparked among marginalized communities was clearly on her mind this week as she delivered parting thoughts on civil rights. There is nothing foreordained about our march toward a more just and peaceful future, Ms. Lynch said Monday, speaking to an interfaith group at the All Dulles Area Muslim Society Center in northern Virginia. Our centuries-long project of creating a more perfect union was not the product of fate or destiny. It was the result of countless individuals making the choice to stand up, to demand recognition, to refuse to rest until they knew that their children were inheriting a nation that was more tolerant, more inclusive and more equal. She delivered a gentler version of that message on Tuesday as she sat with students at New York Citys Harvey Milk High School, which serves mainly gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender teenagers. She beamed as students described how they had blossomed at the school, which offers a refuge from bullying, scorn and self-doubt. You all are the ones who have the courage to walk with us, Ms. Lynch told the students at the school in Manhattan. Without people who are willing to stand up and say that they have an issue or a problem or something that has happened to them, we would not be able to move these issues forward. FRONT PAGE A Critics Notebook article on Thursday about the failure, with few exceptions, of pictures and videos of suffering in the Syrian war to provoke much action overstated the death toll in Aleppo, the commercial capital of Syria, which fell to the government this week. While precise numbers are unavailable, tens of thousands have been killed in Aleppo not half a million, which is the estimated death toll for all of Syria since the war began. A picture caption on Nov. 24 with the continuation of an article about the rising civilian death toll in Mosul, Iraq, six weeks after the Iraqi Army began a campaign to take the city back from the Islamic State referred incorrectly in some editions to the child whom Mustafa Muhammad was mourning in a field hospital. The child, Amira Omar, was his niece, not his nephew. INTERNATIONAL Because of an editing error, an article on Nov. 17 about an announcement by Mexicos Ministry of Foreign Affairs, following Donald J. Trumps election, that it would provide more protection for Mexican immigrants in the United States quoted incorrectly in some editions from comments by Claudia Ruiz Massieu, the foreign minister. She said, We want to inform you about possible migratory actions; she did not say that the actions could take effect starting in February. NATIONAL An article on Wednesday about the signing of an abortion law in Ohio, using information from the governors office, referred incorrectly to the states current abortion law. Ohio currently bars abortion after 20 weeks unless doctors can prove the baby is not viable outside the womb not after 24 weeks. WASHINGTON An auction offering a 45-minute private meeting with Ivanka Trump in exchange for a charitable donation was abruptly canceled Friday after questions were raised about the process by ethics experts, who said it appeared to offer bidders special access to the next first family. The auction had been running for 10 days, drawing 28 bids, the highest of which reached $72,888. The bidders included at least three businessmen who said in interviews that they saw their donation as an opportunity to have coffee with Ms. Trump to press her for information about her fathers plans as president or to try to urge Mr. Trump to take up an issue important to them. All information on the amounts and names of the bidders disappeared from the internet with no notice on Friday afternoon. The winning bidder would have been an organization called Go Hydrogen, although no information could be found about this entity. These kids are already so anxious, and the whole process has become so crazy, so this is really a horrible, horrible thing to put them through, said Phillip Trout, a college counselor at Minnetonka High School in Minnetonka, Minn., and past president of the National Association for College Admission Counseling. But I also feel really bad for the admissions offices when this happens. Its got to be just turning them upside down. Heres whats supposed to be a big moment for them, and it turns into a disaster. The mistake has eclipsed any happier admissions announcements Tulane might have issued. Dartmouth, for instance, said it had admitted 555 students early decision to the class of 2021, out of 1,999 applicants, the biggest early decision pool in its history. They came from California to Vietnam and had farmed blueberries, managed bluebird conservation areas and designed shoes for Nike, the announcement boasted. Duke also trumpeted its record-setting number of early decision applicants, and Harvard said it had the lowest acceptance rate for early applicants since reinstating the program in 2011. The University of Pennsylvania, meanwhile, declared that its early decision pool was the largest in its history, reflecting a greater breadth of interest in Penn from applicants far and near, rich and poor, male and female. At Tulane, meanwhile, Jeff Schiffman, the admission director, weighed in on his blog: Yesterday, we made a mistake, he said, adding: Weve created an anxiety so deep for this group that there really arent words to describe it. Ill own up to it right now. The ultimate Tulane class of just over 1,700 students will not be decided until later. Bob Dannenhold, a private admissions counselor in Seattle, suggested that if Tulane really wanted to show remorse, They can put these kids in a special pile and give them every possible consideration in the process. Mr. Schiffman acknowledged in his blog that in a perfect world, that would be true. But admitting all of them, he said, greatly throws off the size of the class. It simply cant be done. Mike Strecker, a spokesman for Tulane, said Friday that the misfired emails were the result of a technical error and that although it is quite understandable that some students receiving this message would infer that it was an offer of admission to Tulane, no such decision had been made in the case of these students. Larry Colburn, who became an 18-year-old American hero when he intervened with two comrades to halt the massacre of unarmed Vietnamese civilians by United States soldiers in 1968, elevating an innocuous hamlet named My Lai into a watchword for the horrors of war, died on Tuesday at his home in Canton, Ga. He was 67. The cause was liver cancer, his wife, Lisa, said. Mr. Colburn was the last surviving member of a three-man helicopter crew that was assigned to hover over My Lai on Saturday morning, March 16, 1968, to identify enemy positions by drawing Vietcong fire. Instead, the men encountered an eerie quiet and a macabre landscape of dead, wounded and weaponless women and children as a platoon of American soldiers, ostensibly hunting elusive Vietcong guerrillas, marauded among defenseless noncombatants. The crew dropped smoke flares to mark the wounded, thinking the men on the ground would come assist them, Mr. Colburn told Vietnam Magazine in 2011. Mrs. Evansky took quiet pride in getting women out from under the sizzling heat of the dome, and in the durability of her invention. I always look at the prices of hairdressers now, and I say, my God, its still there: blow-dry, she told an interviewer for the beauty brand Space NK in 2013. How wonderful, 50 years later. She was born Rosel Lerner on May 30, 1922, in Worms, south of Frankfurt. Her parents were immigrants from Poland. In 1938, when the family was living in Ludwigshafen, her father was arrested and imprisoned in the Dachau concentration camp. Speaking only German and Yiddish, she was sent to Britain on one of the last Kindertransport trains that carried Jewish children out of Germany. She lived briefly with a family in Dudley, in the West Midlands, before moving to London, just in time for the Blitz. There, she apprenticed for a barber in Whitechapel, and distinguished herself with her zeal. I worked and practiced till late at night on anyone whod let me get at their hair, she wrote in her memoir. As World War II raged, she embarked on her career, finding work at a salon near Regent Street. In 1943, she married Albert Evansky. When their marriage ended in divorce, her husband bought her share of the business. He sold it in the early 1980s. What Florence was to painting and sculpture during the Renaissance, Mayfair was to the art of hairstyling in the 1950s and 60s. Mrs. Evansky sat atop the heap, the lone woman in a field monopolized by men. In Vidal: The Autobiography, Vidal Sassoon called her without question the top female stylist in the country and the equal of any man. Russias unprecedented intervention in the United States election came amid more than United States-Russia tension and Donald J. Trumps praise of Vladimir V. Putin, the Russian president. It also coincided with a growing belief, in Moscow, that Russia faced an imminent threat in Hillary Clintons candidacy. Mrs. Clinton is viewed in Moscow as innately hostile to Russia. Widely held conspiracy theories portray her as seeking to foment unrest that will return Russia to the chaos and depression of the 1990s. Even many government technocrats view her with suspicion that at times verges on paranoia. She referred to these views at an event on Thursday, telling donors that Mr. Putins personal beef with her had driven Russias intervention in the American election. Mark Galeotti, a Russia expert at the Institute of International Relations, based in Prague, said the Kremlin was consumed by something more urgent than petty revenge: self-preservation. WASHINGTON American-led airstrikes have destroyed 14 Syrian Army tanks at a military base in central Syria that, just days earlier, had been captured by Islamic State fighters, the United States military said Friday. The strikes against the group of Russian-made T-72 battle tanks on Thursday near Palmyra came one day after senior American officers in the region warned their Syrian and Russian counterparts that United States warplanes would destroy the tanks and other heavy weaponry at the base rather than take the risk that the Islamic State would use them against American allies in the area. An American air attack planned for Wednesday had been called off because of bad weather. When the skies cleared on Thursday, allied planes destroyed the tanks, three artillery systems and a number of buildings and vehicles that Islamic State militants were using, the American military command in Baghdad said in a statement. Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, the top American commander in Iraq, had warned on Wednesday that the heavy weaponry would be destroyed after the Islamic State, also called ISIS or ISIL, seized the base last weekend from Syrian troops and their Russian advisers. BEIRUT, Lebanon For months, the bodies have been piling up in eastern Aleppo as the buildings have come down, pulverized by Syrian and Russian jets, burying residents who could not flee in avalanches of bricks and mortar. And now it is almost over, not because diplomats reached a deal in Geneva, but because President Bashar al-Assad of Syria and his foreign allies have won the city. Cold, hungry and scarred by the deaths of loved ones, tens of thousands of civilians and fighters are awaiting buses to take them from their homes to uncertain futures. It is not the first victory that Mr. Assad has secured with overwhelming force in the Syrian conflict. But his subjugation of eastern Aleppo has echoed across the Middle East and beyond, rattling alliances, proving the effectiveness of violence and highlighting the reluctance of many countries, perhaps most notably the United States, to get involved. President Obama, on Friday at his final news conference of the year, acknowledged that the nearly six-year-old war in Syria had been among the hardest issues he has faced, and that the world was united in horror at the butchery in Aleppo. But Mr. Obama who came into office committed to reducing Americas military entanglements in the Middle East also defended his decision not to intervene more forcefully. The company today has its hand in almost every business imaginable, from consulting to automobiles. Ratan Tata, the cousin of his predecessor, took over the company in 1991 at the age of 53. He became the groups fifth chairman. He widened the groups international presence, acquiring Corus Group, the Anglo-Dutch steel company, in 2007 and the Jaguar and Land Rover brands in 2008. Mr. Mistry the first non-Tata family member to lead the nearly 150-year-old company was elevated in 2012 after a two-year search. However, in Indias tight-knit Parsi community, the ties can be close. Mr. Mistrys family, which owns a major construction business, was the biggest shareholder in Tata Sons, with 18 percent, and Mr. Mistry had been on the board since 2006. His sister is married to Mr. Tatas half brother. According to several people close to Mr. Mistry, the relationship between him and Mr. Tata soured in part because Mr. Mistry had begun reining in some favors that the company had previously extended to Mr. Tatas personal friends. In one instance, after Mr. Mistry raised the issue, the Tata board explored starting legal proceedings against C. Sivasankaran, a longtime friend and close business associate of Mr. Tatas, to try to recover $100 million the company said it was owed from a telecom deal. Mr. Sivasankaran also had been renting a 5,300-square-foot penthouse for $11,000, less than half the market rent, from the company, according to correspondence reviewed by The Times. Mr. Mistry raised his rent to the market rate. Mr. Sivasankaran, in an interview, said he was indeed a friend of Mr. Tatas. He said, though, that he had suffered financially from the investment and had no intention of paying back the $100 million he owed. I dont want to pay it because Tata has not managed the company properly, he said. Siva is alleging the Tata Group does not have management skills, Mr. Sivasankaran said, referring to himself in the third person. He also confirmed that he was ousted from the luxury apartment. Mr. Sivasankaran said he had a long-term contract to stay there, so he could have fought to stay, but decided to go quietly. An electrician by trade, Mr. Viljala is accustomed to braving Arctic blasts of wind in minus-35-degree temperatures while threading wires into the spines of new housing complexes. He has left his wife and two daughters behind for as long as eight months at a time to venture north for construction projects. His gaze intense, his arms covered in tattoos, he takes pride in his reputation as the guy who will do anything. The dirtiest, trickiest job that no one else wanted to do, he says, I have always volunteered. But since the summer, Mr. Viljala has been out of work. His 3,300 euros in monthly wages (about $3,450) have given way to 650 euros (about $680) in monthly unemployment benefits. He needs money for new brakes on his 11-year-old Ford sedan, which failed inspection. Without a car, he cannot get to what work he may secure. He also needs money to get current on the rent, having fallen more than two months behind. At 36, he is wiry and strong. He could earn additional cash on the side. But the unemployment rules say otherwise. So he stays home and does what he can making dinner for his girls, doing the laundry. He rides the bus through the gray dawn to the unemployment office. He waits and he worries. He wonders how it makes any sense that an able-bodied man with every compulsion to work must stay idle to ensure that he can support his family. Megyn Kelly breakout star of the 2016 presidential campaign, anchor of the The Kelly File on Fox News, current object of employment desire for multiple networks, best-selling author, mother, wife, daughter and friend (the last four being how she describes herself) has something she wants everyone to know. Really. A lot. Listen up. Not just that it is dangerous when President-elect Donald J. Trump calls out a single citizen on social media, seemingly giving permission to his followers to turn into rabid attack dogs, although she knows firsthand what that is like, having been the original target of his wrath for almost a year, starting in August 2015. Not just that hard work and an unsparing sense of your own strengths and weaknesses (and those of other people) can put you in a good place, though she writes about that a lot in her book, which is called, naturally, Settle for More, a catchphrase she also drops strategically into conversation. But also (and this may seem off-topic, but it is not) that she in no way apologizes for wearing that spaghetti-strap dress to the Republican National Convention in July. You know, the one that sent the internet into what she called a meltdown because it revealed a whole lot of shoulder! And thus, was unlike any dress that had been seen on a serious anchor ever, except maybe at the White House Correspondents Dinner. Definitely never behind a desk. Lara Beth Rubinstein, the daughter of Barbara Kluger and Bruce Rubinstein of Old Bridge, N.J., was married Dec. 17 to Jeremy Andrew Clyman, a son of Judy Clyman and Robert Clyman of North Caldwell, N.J. Rabbi Lawrence Malinger, a friend of the brides family, officiated at the Cranwell Resort in Lenox, Mass. Dr. Rubinstein, 29, is keeping her name. She is a clinical psychologist with the Justice Resource Institutes Juvenile Court clinic program in Brockton, Mass. She is also an outpatient psychotherapist for South Shore Mental Health, a mental health therapy practice in Quincy, Mass. She graduated from Boston University, and received a Doctor of Psychology degree from William James College in Newton, Mass. Her father is a grant manager at the City University of New York. Her mother is the principal attorney for the New York State Department of Financial Services in New York. Ms. Emers spent the next few months at Rikers. In a court hearing, she requested treatment for her drug addiction. She sought help from the Dreitzer House for Women and Children in East Harlem, which offers drug treatment and affordable housing. Ms. Emers moved into a shelter, where she was pregnant with Jabari and lived for the next year and a half, she said. But she struggled to disconnect from the toxic yet accepting community that had taken her in after an unhappy childhood. After kicking her drug habit, Ms. Emers said, she spent years in limbo. Not doing what Id been doing before, she said, but not doing anything else instead. She cloistered herself in her Bronx apartment to avoid the temptations outside, but was depressed that her criminal record limited her job prospects. And when Jabari started school, his homework became another stressor for her, prompting verbal abuse. He bore the brunt of that, she said. Ms. Emers said she realized she needed to end the abuse, so she turned to Community School 61, an elementary school in the Bronx that partners with the Childrens Aid Society, one of eight organizations supported by The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund. There she volunteered and joined the parent-teacher association. She also signed up for parenting classes at the Childrens Aid Societys East Harlem Center and became more engaged at home. School administrators suggested she enroll in college, but Ms. Emers dismissed the idea until shortly after Jabaris fifth grade graduation, when the mother and son were discussing his future. Jabari asked her, When are you graduating? 1. Any impact on the outcome is, of course, purely speculative. I tend to believe that voters had such vast amounts of information about both candidates by Election Day that almost no additional information, actual or purported, would have meaningfully influenced anyones vote. Setting aside whether or not there was an impact on the election (because ultimately that is where everyone is lining up on this in their respective camps), the critical issue is figuring out the extent of what was done, by whom, and for what purpose only then can we begin to figure out how to deter any possible intervention by outside actors in the future. Since the news broke, we have learned a fair amount about the facts on which the intelligence agency may have based its conclusion, while the C.I.A. findings themselves remain classified. This newspaper published a detailed story that synthesized new and previously known information. Readers learned that the bulk of the Democratic National Committees emails had been obtained by means of fairly low-tech phishing. Reuters published a story pointing out that the known evidence falls short of proving that Russian hackers intended to benefit Mr. Trump rather than simply cause havoc and that the office of the director of national intelligence has not endorsed the C.I.A. interpretation. But this report got lost in a barrage of stories striving to prove that the C.I.A. is right and Mr. Trump is wrong. The overwhelming amount of detail some of these stories supplied, and the sheer volume of reports on the Russian election-hack scandal over the past week have created the illusion of rich public discussion. But this discussion has focused on something that should not be a matter of argument at all: The question of whether Mr. Trump is right to disregard C.I.A. conclusions, which are based on information unavailable to the journalists. Editorial and opinion writers have repeatedly condemned Mr. Trumps denial and called for a full investigation into the hacking. This should go without saying. But when journalists are busy proving the obvious, they ignore the important questions. Arguing about facts is, in fact, the ultimate distraction. If there is one trait that Mr. Trump and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia share over all others, it is their understanding of the power of separating facts from truth. By denying known and provable facts as when Mr. Trump denies making statements he has made or by rejecting facts that are not publicly known, as with the C.I.A.s information on Russian hacking, Mr. Trump exercises his ever-growing power over the public sphere. The resulting frenzy of trying to prove either the obvious known facts or the classified and therefore unknowable facts two fruitless pursuits creates so much static that we forget what we are really talking about. Let us imagine the conversation we would be having if we were not preoccupied with Mr. Trumps denial of the C.I.A.s conclusions. We would now be discussing the appropriate response to the hacking. We would be talking about consequences for the American electoral process in general and for the results of this election in particular. We would be asking why it matters if Russias hacking efforts were intended to benefit Mr. Trump. But in the heat of arguing about facts, journalists and pundits have acted as though the answers to these questions are obvious. They are not. The discussion so far and the calls for invalidating the election results have largely ignored the question of the role that the Russian attempt to help actually played in Mr. Trumps victory. This effect would be very difficult to measure, but consider the consequences of ignoring this question: Imagine that you are taking an important test and someone has sent you the answers in the mail. The testing authority does not consider whether you asked for these answers, whether you looked at them, and whether they were correct: It invalidates your test results simply because the answers were sent to you. This would, of course, be grossly unfair. Whats worse, it would give anyone the power to prevent you from ever passing a test all one would have to do is throw an envelope in the mailbox. Similarly, if the American media and a large part of the American public believe that the election was invalid simply because Russians wanted Mr. Trump to win, we are giving Russia outsize influence over American elections, now and in the future. After the election: What happens when conservative students want safe spaces, too. To the Editor: Re Trump Divide Remains Wide on Campus (news article, Dec. 9): Donald Trump is widely perceived by many as a racist and a sexist. His campaign was hurtful and divisive to those who both dislike him and did not vote for him. Given these circumstances, it is no big mystery that people who support him are now regarded as people who share his views. This is not rocket science. If these pro-Trump college students havent figured out that a lot of people are in fear for their futures and the futures of their families under a Trump-led country, then I fear for Americas future if these clueless young folks are our future leaders. VERNON S. BURTON San Leandro, Calif. To the Editor: I disagree with Amanda Delekta, a Trump supporter in your article, but she was justified in feeling marginalized when her professor canceled a class after the presidential election because students would be too upset to focus. As professors, we have considerable power over our students, besides merely grading them. With power comes responsibility, in this case to both support students right to dissent and hone their critical thinking skills. In 1972, President Richard Nixons White House dispatched burglars to bug Democratic Party offices. That Watergate burglary and related dirty tricks, such as releasing mice at a Democratic press conference and paying a woman to strip naked and shout her love for a Democratic candidate, nauseated Americans and impelled some of us kids at the time to pursue journalism. Now in 2016 we have a political scandal that in some respects is even more staggering. Russian agents apparently broke into the Democrats digital offices and tried to change the election outcome. President Obama on Friday suggested that this was probably directed by Russias president, saying, Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin. In Watergate, the break-in didnt affect the outcome of the election. In 2016, we dont know for sure. There were other factors, but its possible that Russias theft and release of the emails provided the margin for Donald Trumps victory. The C.I.A. says it has high confidence that Russia was trying to get Trump elected, and, according to The Washington Post, the directors of the F.B.I. and national intelligence agree with that conclusion. THE Trump era will be unpredictable in many ways. But theres one thing that we can reasonably count on. Moderation, an ancient virtue, will be viewed with contempt. After all, the most temperamentally immoderate major party nominee in American history ran for president and won because of it. Victory spawns imitation, and the Trump template is likely to influence our politics for some time to come. Moderation, then, is out of step with the times, which are characterized by populist anger and widespread anxiety, by cross-partisan animosity and dogmatic certainty. Those with whom we have political disagreements are not only wrong; they are often judged to be evil and irredeemable. In such a poisonous political culture, when moderation is precisely the treatment we need to cleanse Americas civic toxins, it invariably becomes synonymous with weakness, lack of conviction and timidity. For many, moderation is what the French existentialist Jean-Paul Sartre called a tender souls philosophy. This is quite a serious problem, as Aurelian Craiutu argues in his superb and timely new book, Faces of Moderation: The Art of Balance in an Age of Extremes, in which he profiles several prominent 20th-century thinkers, including Raymond Aron, Isaiah Berlin and Michael Oakeshott. Mr. Craiutu, a professor of political science at Indiana University, argues that the success of representative government and its institutions depends on moderation because these cannot properly function without compromise, which is the governing manifestation of moderation. PORTLAND, Ore. Soon after Stephen K. Bannon was appointed chief strategist for President-elect Donald J. Trump, profiles noted that he was a co-author of a rap musical based on Shakespeares Roman tragedy Coriolanus. The revelation played as a punch line, another loopy swerve in a career that took Mr. Bannon from a working-class Democratic family to the Trump White House. Coming just after Mr. Trump denounced the hip-hop hit Hamilton as overrated, the news that his right-hand man had scripted a hip-hop statesman himself felt almost comical. But Mr. Bannons Coriolanus, set in Los Angeles during the 1992 riots, is deadly serious. And at a moment when the question What does Bannon want? has taken on a new urgency, his adaptation of Shakespeare offers an unexpected clue. Mr. Bannons revision of Shakespeares tragedy draws its title from one of Coriolanuss lines, The Thing I Am. It suggests the chilling conflict that Mr. Bannon would like to play out on a national stage. Decades of research have shown that the criminal courts sentence black defendants more harshly than whites. But a striking new investigation of sentencing disparities in Florida by The Sarasota Herald-Tribune expands our understanding of this problem in two important ways. It exposes the fact that African-American defendants get more time behind bars sometimes twice the prison terms of whites with identical criminal histories when they commit the same crimes under identical circumstances. It also shows how bias on the part of individual judges and prosecutors drives sentencing inequity. The Florida Legislature has been wrestling with this issue for decades. In the 1980s, for example, it tried to change sentencing policies that varied widely from place to place by creating sentencing guidelines. Today, prosecutors assign defendants points based on the seriousness of their crime, the circumstances of their arrest and whether or not they have prior convictions to determine the minimum sentence required by law. There is a cost to ignorance and the hate that can grow from it. In his eulogy for the Rev. Clementa Pinckney, who was killed in 2015 by Dylann S. Roof, President Obama spoke of the proud history of Reverend Pinckneys church and community. He noted that we couldnt know what the killer understood of the community or the lives he was taking, but he did know hate. Mr. Roof was found guilty of that Charleston massacre on Thursday, his violent acts a reminder not one we needed of the price ignorance and hate can exact. I would be a president for all of the people, African-Americans, the inner cities, President-elect Trump declared during the second presidential debate. Devastating whats happening to our inner cities, he lamented. You go into the inner cities and you see its 45 percent poverty. African-Americans now 45 percent poverty in the inner cities. Mr. Trumps views on black people, poverty and cities were quickly challenged as myopic and ill informed. But the administration he is building is emblematic of his ignorance. The only African-American member of his designated cabinet is Ben Carson, who was tapped for Housing and Urban Development. Mr. Carson was a beloved American icon, a man who endured a hardscrabble childhood in Detroit to become a famous physician. But his turn to right-wing petulance, with a bow to kooky comparisons of Obamacare to slavery, considerably soiled his reputation. If his story was once emblematic of beating the odds to become a success, he is now a different kind of symbol of how little Mr. Trump knows, or cares, about African-Americans. Similarly, his pick of Senator Jeff Sessions as his attorney general a man who according to testimony before Congress once joked that the only problem with the K.K.K. was the groups drug use, deemed a white lawyer with black clients a race traitor and dismissed civil rights groups as un-American proves Mr. Trump cares little for the interests of the African-American citizens he will serve in the Oval Office. Seven years ago, I joined the night shift at a Walmart in rural Michigan. For $8.10 an hour, I spent four or five nights a week filling shelves with the flour and sugar and marshmallow fluff that residents of the local county, which in 2008 voted for Barack Obama, needed to get through the holidays. Four years ago, the county went with President Obama a second time, though by a thinner margin. But this past November, the county, like the state, turned red. A few shifts into my time on Walmarts sales floor, I spent a smoke break outside in the damp November air with a co-worker, a white single mother of four. We squatted on a concrete curb in the gray cast of parking-lot lights and surveyed what lay before us. Walmarts expanse of asphalt, dotted with worn-out pickups and domestic sedans, gave way to a road lined with strip malls and dollar stores. Beyond it, a sign for Meijer, a regional competitor to Walmart, glowed red against a black sky. I know people talk about working over there and they say its better because its got a union, I remember my co-worker telling me as she gestured at Meijer. But Id rather have those dues in my paycheck. Besides, she told me, Walmart wasnt as bad as everyone said. The night shift came with a 50-cents-per-hour premium, she got raises and after seven years, she said, she was up to $11 an hour. If she made it to 15 years at Walmart, which was common among workers on our shift, she said shed even get to keep her employee discount card which offered 10 percent off produce and other items for life. As I talked to other co-workers, nearly all of whom were white, I got the impression that Walmart wasnt necessarily considered a good job, but it was one of the best jobs in town. At least it wasnt going to up and move to Mexico, the way factories had. Q. I am on the board of a small co-op in Midtown Manhattan. For the past year, a shareholder has had frequent and noisy sexual encounters in his apartment, making it difficult for the superintendent, who lives in the apartment below, to sleep. After the super complained to the shareholder and to the board, the shareholder began harassing her. He would ring her bell as he entered the building, sometimes at 3 or 4 in the morning, awakening her before his noisy assignations began. Because the shareholder is a lawyer, the board members are afraid that if we confront him he will retaliate against the board and individual members. How can we stop his uncivil behavior? A. I understand your fear of retribution from a person who has shown a tendency to bully others, but the board has a responsibility to protect its employees. Your neighbors loud trysts might violate your buildings noise rules, but more important, his behavior toward the super could violate the law. The shareholders actions could potentially be considered harassment, which is a crime. The board is the supers employer. So, if the board knows that its employee is being harassed in the workplace and does nothing to address a hostile work environment, it could be held liable. It is called the Heimlich maneuver saving a choking victim with a bear hug and abdominal thrusts to eject a throat obstruction and since its inception in 1974 it has become a national safety icon, taught in schools, portrayed in movies, displayed on restaurant posters and endorsed by medical authorities. It is also the stuff of breathless, brink-of-death tales, told over the years by Ronald Reagan, Edward I. Koch, Elizabeth Taylor, Goldie Hawn, Cher, Walter Matthau, Carrie Fisher, Jack Lemmon, the sportscaster Dick Vitale, the television newsman John Chancellor and many others. Dr. Henry J. Heimlich, the thoracic surgeon and medical maverick who developed and crusaded for the antichoking technique that has been credited with saving an estimated 100,000 lives, died on Saturday at a hospital in Cincinnati after suffering a heart attack at his home there last Monday, his family said. He was 96. More than four decades after inventing his maneuver, Dr. Heimlich used it himself on May 23 to save the life of an 87-year-old woman choking on a morsel of meat at Deupree House, their senior residence in Cincinnati. He said it was the first time he had ever used the maneuver in an emergency, although he had made a similar claim in 2003. WASHINGTON Over the past four months, American intelligence agencies and aides to President Obama assembled a menu of options to respond to Russias hacking during the election, ranging from the obvious exposing President Vladimir V. Putins financial ties to oligarchs to the innovative, including manipulating the computer code that Russia uses in designing its cyberweapons. But while Mr. Obama vowed on Friday to send a clear message to Russia as both a punishment and a deterrent, some of the options were rejected as ineffective, others as too risky. If the choices had been better, one of the aides involved in the debate noted recently, the president would have acted by now. In his last weeks in office, that Situation Room debate has confronted a naturally cautious president with a complex calculus that President-elect Donald J. Trump will soon inherit: how to use the worlds most powerful cyberarsenal at a moment when the United States, as the election showed, remains highly vulnerable. Is there something we can do to them, that they would see, they would realize 98 percent that we did it, but that wouldnt be so obvious that they would then have to respond for their own honor? David H. Petraeus, the former director of the Central Intelligence Agency under Mr. Obama, asked on Friday, at a conference here sponsored by Harvards Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. The question is how subtle do you want it, how damaging do you want it, how do you try to end it here rather than just ratchet it up? KANDAHAR, Afghanistan Gunmen in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar opened fire on a van carrying female airport employees on Saturday morning, killing five women and their male driver, officials said. The Afghan government has been struggling to expand opportunities for women in the work force, but that effort has been hampered by strict conservative customs about the role of women in society and security threats posed by the conflict with the Taliban. Samim Khapalwak, a spokesman for the governor of Kandahar, said two men on motorcycles stopped the van and fired on its occupants around 6:30 a.m. The women, who worked as contractors for a security company, helped screen passengers and luggage, Mr. Khapalwak said. Abdul Ali Shamsi, the deputy governor of the province, said: These five women served the women of Kandahar and the female passengers at Kandahar airport, and they were martyred today by the cowardly enemy. This is not the first time the cowardly enemy has targeted defenseless and innocent women. BEIJING The Pentagon on Saturday said that Beijing had agreed to return an underwater drone seized by China in international waters, an indication that the two countries were moving to resolve an unusual incident that risked sharpening tensions in the run-up to the inauguration of President-elect Donald J. Trump. Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the U.U.V. to the United States, said Peter Cook, the Pentagon press secretary, using initials to refer to the Navys unmanned underwater vehicle. Mr. Cook said the deal had been reached after the United States registered our objection to Chinas unlawful seizure of a U.S. unmanned underwater vehicle operating in international waters in the South China Sea. The Chinese authorities told American officials that they planned to return the drone, but the two sides were still working out where, when and precisely how the device would be handed back, said two Defense Department officials, both of whom would talk about the negotiations with China only on the condition of anonymity. One of the officials said the Pentagon expected the matter to be resolved in the coming days without further acrimony. LE LUC, France When the French put a draft Constitution for a newly enlarged European Union to a referendum in 2005, Pascal Verrelle voted passionately against it hoping it would stop the European Union in its tracks. He rejoiced when the effort failed, yet was dismayed when the bloc kept gathering more members and powers, anyway. At the time, Mr. Verrelle, a former soldier, was a prison director, but he eventually felt compelled to enter politics and joined the far-right National Front. When he was elected mayor of this small town in Provence eight months ago, the first thing he did was to take down the European Union flag from City Hall. In 2005, a majority voted against Europe, and we still find ourselves in Europe, by magic, he said, and I find it inadmissible. Today the European Union is wobbling under the weight of problems encouraged in part by that unchecked expansion stagnant economies, the euro crisis, new pressures from Russia and deep strains over migration, especially from newer members in Central and Eastern Europe. The Patriot News Agency website popped up in July, soon after it became clear that Donald J. Trump would win the Republican presidential nomination, bearing a logo of a red, white and blue eagle and the motto Built by patriots, for patriots. Tucked away on a corner of the site, next to links for Twitter and YouTube, is a link to another social media platform that most Americans have never heard of: VKontakte, the Russian equivalent of Facebook. It is a clue that Patriot News, like many sites that appeared out of nowhere and pumped out pro-Trump hoaxes tying his opponent Hillary Clinton to Satanism, pedophilia and other conspiracies, is actually run by foreigners based overseas. But while most of those others seem be the work of young, apolitical opportunists cashing in on a conservative appetite for viral nonsense, operators of Patriot News had an explicitly partisan motivation: getting Mr. Trump elected. Patriot News whose postings were viewed and shared tens of thousands of times in the United States is among a constellation of websites run out of the United Kingdom that are linked to James Dowson, a far-right political activist who advocated Britains exit from the European Union and is a fan of President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia. A vocal proponent of Christian nationalist, anti-immigrant movements in Europe, Mr. Dowson, 52, has spoken at a conference of far-right leaders in Russia and makes no secret of his hope that Mr. Trump will usher in an era of rapprochement with Mr. Putin. GABCIKOVO, Slovakia Since Slovakia joined the European Union in 2004, Emil Hirjaks fortunes have risen along with his countrys. Now 46, Mr. Hirjak has a wood products company and just bought a small sawmill in Gabcikovo. He has benefited from the blocs free movement of travel, goods and labor. Young people who are clever can travel and work abroad, and come back or not, and as for the economy, we can export, he said. We wouldnt survive otherwise. He ought to be a cheerleader for the European Union, but he is ambivalent at best. And his ambivalence speaks to a fundamental and growing problem for the union. Even in countries that have prospered, public sentiment is steadily shifting against Brussels. A car bombing in central Turkey killed 13 soldiers and wounded more than 50 other members of the military on Saturday, the latest in a series of attacks in the country. The attack, in the city of Kayseri, targeted a bus carrying soldiers on weekend leave, the Turkish Army said in a statement. Health Minister Recep Akdag said 56 people had been wounded in the attack, including four who were in critical condition, according to The Associated Press. The Turkish military said 48 members of the armed forces were among the wounded. Video footage showed a bus in flames near a university campus as people tried to extinguish the fire. A wrecked car was nearby. I saw the explosion, the Ihlas News Agency quoted a witness as saying. The engine of the bus was flung. The bodies of people who died in the bus were flung, too. The Volcani Center, the Ministry of Agricultures research organization, is building a national institute for medical marijuana research. The chief scientists office of the Ministry of Economy has infused millions of shekels into innovative marijuana companies, much as government investment helped fuel the Israeli tech boom in the 1990s. The government is also setting standards for the cultivation, storage and use of medical marijuana. It is almost unprecedented, said Tamir Gedo, the chief executive of Breath of Life Pharma, an Israeli company permitted to grow medical cannabis and make and distribute products. It seems the government is working faster than the private industry. The reforms spearheaded by the Health Ministry, which is led by Yaakov Litzman of the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism Party, open up licensing for an unlimited number of growers, up from eight farms. The list of doctors trained and authorized to prescribe marijuana is to be expanded and research encouraged. The reforms, which were approved by the government in the summer, were formulated in cooperation with the Ministries of Agriculture, Justice, Internal Security and Finance. I cannot say that I am in favor of cannabis, Mr. Litzman said at a business conference last month, reflecting concerns that medical marijuana could trickle into the recreational market. But Mr. Litzman said he would even support the idea of export so long as revenues went to the Health Ministry, adding, There is a lot of pressure on me. Some of Israels more traditional medical institutions and associations are still averse to joining the party, a wariness that marijuana advocates put down to a lack of knowledge. The police worry about leakage into the recreational black market, and some Israelis are concerned that export, if allowed, would stigmatize the country as one that dealt primarily in arms and drugs. DEMRE, Turkey The jagged Taurus Mountains rise on one side of the church, while the Mediterranean Sea gleams in the distance on the other. The bougainvillea is in bloom, the orange trees bursting with ripe fruit. It is, in other words, a long way from here to the North Pole. And yet there, in the center of town, is a familiar face, white-bearded and dressed in red. He is Demres most famous son: Santa Claus. Yes, Virginia, you heard that right, Santa Claus is from Turkey. But this year, Christmastime in Demre is far from cheery. The man who would capture the imaginations of children the world over got his start as a fourth-century bishop in what is now Turkey, centuries before the Ottomans invaded these lands and established a towering Islamic empire. His name was St. Nicholas, and his church is now a museum. Born a rich mans son, he took his inheritance and gave to the poor, in anonymous gifts that some here say were dropped down the chimneys of homes. Dec. 17, 2016 We Were There: Reports From Our Far-Flung Correspondents in 2016 The New York Times put journalists on the ground in more than 150 countries over the last year, covering nearly every corner of the world. Here are some of the most gripping tales from our foreign correspondents, photographers and editors in 2016. A Remote Pacific Nation, Threatened by Rising Seas Mike Ives and Josh Haner took us to Tarawa, Kiribati, where climate change is affecting the lives of the people there and even the tiny island nations existence. BEIJING The Pentagon on Saturday said Beijing had agreed to return a U.S. underwater drone seized by China in international waters in an unusual incident that risked sharpening tensions between the nations. Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States, said Peter Cook, the Pentagon press secretary, using initials to refer to the Navys unmanned underwater vehicle. The deal was reached, Cook said, after the United States registered our objection to Chinas unlawful seizure of a U.S. unmanned underwater vehicle operating in international waters in the South China Sea. China earlier Saturday warned that the highly-charged episode would not be resolved easily. In a statement late Saturday, the Chinese Defense Ministry said it was in talks with the United States but criticized Washington for what it called an inappropriate exaggeration of the dispute. The American reaction, it said, is not conducive to solving the problem smoothly. We hereby express regrets for that, it said. Although the ministry said the drone would be returned to the United States in a proper way, the statement stopped short of saying when or how the device, which Chinese and U.S. analysts say was most likely used to gather intelligence about Chinese submarine activity in contested waters, would be returned, or if it would be handed back intact. President-elect Donald Trump entered the fray Saturday morning, accusing China on Twitter of acting improperly. China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act, he said. The overseas edition of The Peoples Daily, the Communist Partys flagship newspaper, said on its social media account Saturday night that the Chinese capture of the drone was legal because rules about drone activities had not been clearly written. This is the gray area, the newspaper said. If the U.S. military can send the drone, surely China can seize it. In its statement, the Defense Ministry scolded the United States over what it called its long-standing practice of conducting close-in reconnaissance and military surveys in waters claimed by China. The Chinese government has often complained to senior U.S. officials, including President Barack Obama, that the United States repeatedly intrudes by air and ship into waters close to China. The ministrys statement reiterated the complaint, saying China firmly opposes it and urges the U.S. side to stop such operations. A Chinese naval vessel seized the drone, which had been launched Thursday from a U.S. ship, the Bowditch, in waters off the Philippines. The U.S. crew was in the process of retrieving the device when a small boat dispatched from the Chinese vessel took it as the U.S. sailors looked on. The action came two weeks after Trump angered Beijing by speaking by phone to the leader of Taiwan, and almost a week after he criticized China for building military bastions in the South China Sea. U.S. officials were trying to determine whether the seizure was a response to Trump or whether it was one more escalatory step in Chinas long-term plan to try to push the U.S. Navy out of the South China Sea, one of the worlds busiest commercial and military waterways. The Pentagon formally protested the capture of the drone, saying it was stolen U.S. military property. The Pentagon said the drone had been carrying out scientific research, and asked China to return it. U.S. experts, however, said the drone might have been designed to help follow Chinas submarine buildup, a critical part of the countrys growing naval strength as it seeks unfettered control of the South China Sea and unimpeded access to the Pacific and Indian oceans. A retired Chinese rear admiral, Yang Yi, speaking earlier at a conference sponsored by a state-run newspaper, The Global Times, said the Americans had invited the Chinese sailors to take the drone by sailing in the waters close to the Scarborough Shoal, fishing grounds that are claimed by China and the Philippines. The Americans deliver these things to our home, and it would be more than natural for Chinese sailors to seize the drone and examine it, Yang said. If Trump and the American government dare to take actions to challenge the bottom line of Chinas policy and core interests, he said, we must drop any expectations about him and give him a bloody nose. Reached by telephone, the president of a state-affiliated think tank, Wu Shicun, said the United States had most likely been conducting intelligence reconnaissance to detect Chinese submarine routes in the South China Sea. Wu, who heads the National Institute for South China Sea Studies and advises the government on maritime matters, described the drone as a new way for the United States to conduct intelligence gathering. Previously the United States conducted surveillance with warships in the nearby waters of China, or by aircraft, he said. Now the unmanned underwater vehicle is a new approach. The Chinese were justified in taking the unmanned underwater vehicle, he said. The episode occurred in seas about 50 miles northwest of Subic Bay, a major port of the Philippines and a former U.S. Navy base, the Pentagon said. That means the Bowditch was within 200 miles of Scarborough Shoal, U.S. analysts said. The U.S. vessel appeared to be outside the perimeter of the nine-dash line, said Mira Rapp-Hooper, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. China drew the line in the late 1940s as it laid claim to about 90 percent of the South China Sea. China has no legal basis to take actions like these on the high seas, but doing so outside Beijings ambiguous claim line is particularly egregious and will make the incident especially hard to justify, Rapp-Hooper said. Rodrigo Duterte, president of the Philippines, who is nurturing warm ties with China and has warned he may break long-standing military relations with the United States, took a conciliatory approach over the Chinese action. I will not impose anything on China, he said at a news conference in Manila on Saturday. Why? Because politics in Southeast Asia is changing. This was a reference to his tilt away from the United States, a treaty ally, since taking office in June. He referred to China as the kindest soul of all. The Philippines also took a forgiving attitude after the release of satellite images Wednesday by the Center for Strategic and International Studies that appeared to show that China has installed weapons on the seven artificial islands it has built in the Spratly archipelago, not far from the Philippines in the South China Sea. There is nothing that we can do about that now, whether or not it is being done for purposes of further militarizing these facilities that they have put up, the foreign secretary, Perfecto Yasay Jr., said, reflecting the weak state of the Philippines military. We cannot stop China at this point in time and say, Do not put that up. By seizing the drone so close to the Philippines, China may have been trying to further weaken the frayed U.S. alliance with Manila, U.S. experts said. The conciliatory reaction by the Philippines, even as the United States was making stern demands on Beijing, would complicate Washingtons efforts to convince China that its actions were unacceptable, a senior U.S. military official said Saturday. In an important ruling in July, an international tribunal in The Hague decided against China, saying that the Scarborough Shoal was entitled only to a 12-mile territorial zone, not 200 miles as the Chinese assert. China has refused to recognize the ruling. Duterte on Saturday said he was ignoring the Hague ruling even though the case had been brought by the previous Philippines government. In the play of politics now, I will set aside the arbitral ruling, he said. The drone incident, according to a Pentagon account, began when a Chinese navy vessel that was shadowing the Bowditch a common practice in the South China Sea pulled up not far from the ship. It then dispatched a small boat to seize the drone as the U.S. crew was recovering it from the water. The Pentagon described the vehicle as an unclassified ocean glider system used to gather military oceanographic data such as salinity, water temperature and sound speed. A U.S. naval expert did not disagree with Wus notion of what the Americans were probably doing. Warfare and surveillance in the age of drones has not yet developed an agreed-upon set of rules, said Lyle J. Goldstein, associate professor at the China Maritime Studies Institute at the U.S. Naval War College in Rhode Island. This is increasingly a major problem as both China and the U.S. are deploying ever more air and naval drones into the contested waters and airspace of the Western Pacific, he said. The seizure may have been just another way for Beijing to provoke the United States in a gray zone, just under the threshold of actual hostilities, Goldstein said. He said it was a time for cooler heads to prevail, to halt a cycle of escalation that cannot end well for either side. In some respects, the seizure was not a surprise but just another step in Chinas increased harassment of the U.S. Navy in the South China Sea, several U.S. naval experts said. In March 2009, soon after Obama took office, five Chinese ships swarmed a U.S. surveillance vessel, the Impeccable, 75 miles off Hainan island, the southernmost province of China. The Impeccable was towing sonar equipment designed for anti-submarine warfare, and the Chinese ships got as close as 25 feet from the ship in what the Pentagon called illegal and dangerous maneuvers. CYPRESS He will be the enormous favorite, likely the heaviest one mathematically possible. It is the race itself that Saturday will be the longest of shots, a staggeringly improbable opportunity to witness locally a phenomenon gone global. People think Im crazy, says Art Sherman, the trainer of California Chrome. They ask, Is he really going to run? Is he going to scratch? I see and hear a lot of negative things. But were going to run. Cant blame folks for being skeptical, particularly in a sport that famously offers no sure bets. But, barring the unforeseen, the richest race horse ever in North America and one of the most popular all-time world-wide, will compete at Los Alamitos Race Course, where, traditionally, the biggest day of the year features racing wiener dogs. Long before the call to post, California Chrome will have lapped the field in the Winter Challenge, his $14.4 million in career earnings and waves of enraptured fans enough to leave his foes hacking on a plume of equine exhaust. Six weeks ago, Chrome competed against some of the fastest horses on Earth in the Breeders Cup Classic. Six weeks from now, hell conclude his glorious racing career in Florida, in an event that requires $1 million just to enter. Saturday, however, its the Winter Challenge scheduled post time: 4:28 p.m. with its $180,000 purse and nine spirited, gifted and thoroughly outclassed rivals. The unlikely gathering matching greatness with great uncertainty is designed as a prep for Chrome, an important step in readying the stallion for his emotional finale. But it also will double as something else equally significant: a tribute to his local supporters, especially those who regularly congregate here, in the chilled darkness, at 5:30 a.m., just to watch him gallop by during workouts. For Chrome, this will be a home game, the horse having stabled at Los Alamitos since January of 2014. He has not, however, raced here. So, an animal that literally has been jetted around the planet to run, this time can walk to the starting gate. We have such a big following in Orange County, Sherman says. Im really happy for those folks. People cant travel all over the country to watch a horse race. Its pretty nice when its in your own backyard. As fitting and perfect as this race now sounds, the idea wasnt exactly embraced at the start. In fact, when Los Alamitos owner Dr. Ed Allred first mentioned the possibility to the tracks general manager, Brad McKinzie had a very different reaction. I told him he was nuts, McKinzie says. I didnt think we could get horses to run against Chrome for $100,000. I didnt think we had a chance. So they added $80,000 to the pot and a guarantee that anyone who made the field would receive $10,000 no matter where their horse finished. Of course, theres also the enticement of possibly scoring an upset the size of which would demand that a movie be made, not that anyone would believe such a ridiculous plot. We thought we would be lucky to get five horses, McKinzie says. And weve got 10. It fell together very well. Trust me, no ones more surprised than I am. But there will be no shock Saturday when California Chrome is made a favorite in the absurd range of 1/9, odds that would represent a payoff in mere pennies. For those unfamiliar with wagering, this means, compared to Chrome losing the Winter Challenge, theres a better chance of the next Kentucky Derby being won by a gorilla. He will be that popular of a pick, this horse whose popularity currently is being discussed as the subject of at least two books. He makes everyone around him shine, Sherman says. When he appears, people start screaming his name. He just looks up at them and says, Here I am. He knows hes a star. Chrome likely will attract several $2 win tickets that never will be even in victory cashed. To his adoring public, those tickets instead will have more value as souvenirs. The real unknowns right now are what horses will emerge as popular selections after Chrome and how many people will attend this race. The biggest turnouts at Los Alamitos typically come on Kentucky Derby day and when the track hosts the Wienerschnitzel Wiener Nationals each July. Estimates so far have varied from 6,000 to 16,000, McKinzie admitting track officials are mostly guessing. And you know its an intriguing race when handicapping the crowd is even difficult. Were just hoping he comes out healthy and in good shape, Sherman says. Were obviously not doing this for the money. Its the idea of getting him a race and giving all the people around here a chance to see him. One last chance, Orange Countys formal farewell to California Chrome, the favorite by every conceivable definition in a race that already has beaten the odds. Contact the writer: jmiller@scng.com For the last two years, I had the honor to serve as facilitator for meetings toward settlement of the south Orange County toll road issues among members of the Transportation Corridor Agencies and executive leadership of the Save San Onofre Coalition. SSOC is comprised of 12 of the nations leading environmental advocates, including Surfrider Foundation, California State Parks Foundation, Audubon, Natural Resources Defense Council and Endangered Habitats League. Native American Heritage Commission, as well as the office of the California Attorney General, representing several state agencies, were also engaged. The battle was at least 15 years old, even older perhaps, dating back to the besieged 1996 completion of SR-73 toll road in the San Joaquin Hills. The subsequent construction of its sisters, SR-241 and 261, to the east, are part of a long-planned 67-mile network, making Orange County the toll road capital of California. They are also one of this states few successful public-private partnerships where private investors fund construction through the sale of bonds instead of taxes while a public agency comprised of locally elected officials manages the system in alignment with Caltrans. Efforts to connect the last 16 miles of SR-241 to I-5 in San Clemente were contentious, to say the least. A so-called green alignment through the Donna ONeill Conservancy, a state park, sensitive habitat and cultural areas infuriated advocates and was soundly rejected by the California Coastal Commission in 2008 due to the effective advocacy of SSOC. Save Trestles a renowned surfing site was the battle cry. Yet eight years later, mobility in south Orange County, and particularly on I-5, remains a mess. And, to the credit of SSOC members, they agreed a solution was needed. In this spirit, our meetings commenced. We began with the end in mind what would success look like to each side? It was hard work but the result saved more than Trestles. Five lawsuits were settled, saving everyones time and treasure. San Onofre State Beach, the ONeill Conservancy, San Mateo Creek and adjacent watersheds, with a $28 million conservation fund for that watersheds protection and restoration, were also saved. A cooperative framework was established to move forward with a new look at SR-241 but in alignment with Coastal Commission and other agency recommendations. SSOC will remain in the process, saved by them, to advance the common settlement goals. And, on a personal note, it was remarkable to behold the good faith efforts of those around the table to this innovative settlement saving the fine art of listening, of learning from each side, of balance and compromise, of discernment, staying focused and creative even in disagreement, staying true to core values while finding solutions that benefited both sides. In a day and age where all too often we see communication as demands to be heard and success as who can shout loudest over the other, the process and hard work done by the parties to this deal is a model worth saving for generations. Lucy Dunn is president and CEO, Orange County Business Council. When Irvine High School dance students started preparing for their annual winter dance concert, they were asked to remember a familiar childhood toy the kaleidoscope. The dance concert, named after this optical instrument, challenged students to perform pieces relating to the ever-changing, multicolored viewpoint that is offered when one looks through the rotating tube of beads and mirrors. The concert, which took place last week, featured 25 dances of various styles, each with a different theme or story. When I think of a kaleidoscope, I think about how you look in and see all these different pictures, said senior Candice Sarangay. This dance concert is kind of like that because you have an upbeat jazz dance and then it moves into something like a 9/11 memorial piece. It gives the audience a sampling of different dances. The theme for Kaleidoscope was interpreted by students and their dance director Sheryl Sloate both literally, such as in a modern piece that represented the colors and shapes made by a kaleidoscope, and figuratively, as in a jazz ballet piece that challenged expected conventions of a typical ballet dance. I hope that having a theme helps push the artistic side of dance, said Sloate. It helps (the dancers) broaden their thought process and think outside the box. This intention was something Sloate kept in mind when she choreographed a piece that combined the styles of ballet and jazz. She said the students found it challenging to adapt to the mix in genres because they were used to ballet being a certain way. The world is constantly categorizing things, but I want the students to see it doesnt have to be just one way, said Sloate. Basically they have the power to say, Im not going to conform, I am going to be whoever Im going to be. Her piece, Upside Down had the students performing jazz choreography while wearing tutus and pointe shoes. We had to learn how to move our hips while on pointe which was weird at first because you think of ballet as being so uniform, said sophomore Jasmyne Koh. I think it just proved how it can be interesting to mix in other styles. Taking a different approach to the theme of Kaleidoscope, guest choreographer Cyndi Hermann worked with the students on a modern dance piece, Colors in Motion. In this dance, the students said they represented the colors and shapes of a kaleidoscope. The piece even began in a circle that gradually unwound as if to mimic the motion of a real kaleidoscope. Sophomore Emme Silva appreciated this piece because she said it allowed each dancer some freedom to interpret the moves. Each person could stand out with how they performed the choreography, said Silva. Kind of like how each dance (in the concert) stands out in its own way because some put a smile on your face and some dances make you want to cry. Kaleidoscope featured 95 students from dance levels 2-4 as well as students in the Irvine High School Dance Ensemble. Junior Sarah Zhong, a co-captain of the dance ensemble, said working within a theme like Kaleidoscope pushed her and the other dancers to think more about the concepts surrounding their dances. If you see the same thing all the time, it gets boring, but when you change things up, you get to the art of dance. I think you can reach limits youve never reached before and then you can have like a dancer awakening. Contact the writer: 714-796-6026 or kwright@ocregister.com Many of Donald Trumps Cabinet choices have come with their fair share of controversy or freshness, depending on whom youre asking. But a special focus has come to center around Rex Tillerson, the CEO of Exxon and Trumps pick for secretary of State after a closely-watched process that almost put Mitt Romney in Tillersons stead. That near-miss with the dreams of the Republican partys establishment has fueled concern around Tillersons close working relationship with Russias governing elite. If the Trump administration lifts sanctions blocking an Exxon deal worth billions, for instance, Tillerson, owner of more than $200 million in company stock, could cash in. Meanwhile, Trump has tweeted that his favorite one of Tillersons attributes is his vast experience at dealing successfully with all types of foreign governments. The dismay over the thrust of Trumps remarks comes at a time when certain influential Republicans are itching to challenge whats broadly perceived as his historically friendly attitude toward Moscow. Whether canny or credulous, that attitude has not wavered in the face of charges that Russian intelligence worked in an unprecedented way to meddle in American domestic affairs this election season. And the confluence of events and emotions has put Tillerson in the hot seat. Seven Republican senators have now demanded support for Ukraine against Russian aggression and for an investigation into Russian interference with the presidential campaign, as FiveThirtyEights Nate Silver has observed including three members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, where Republicans one-seat advantage means Tillerson is sunk without at least a party-line vote in his favor. Moreover, Silver added, theres a longer list of Republican senators, including several on the Foreign Relations Committee, who either signed the Ukraine letter or called for an investigation into Russian hacking but not both, suggesting that opposition to Trump on Russia could grow depending on how he manages the politics of the issue. Politics being personal and State being the crown jewel of the Cabinet, Senators frustrated about Trump on Russia will be taking it out on Tillerson. Nevertheless, the CEO has strong, unambiguous support from outside Congress. His backers include the Bush-era trifecta of Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld and Condoleezza Rice three individuals whose judgments on foreign affairs did not always line up as neatly as Democrats assumed, or indeed often continue to believe. If these endorsements do not make Tillerson a mainstream Republican choice for secretary of State, it is hard to imagine whose favor would do the trick. But there is a deeper dynamic at play in Tillersons potential value on the job than traditional GOP support might suggest. Here, rather than the likes of Cheney, voices such as Elon Muskss and Peter Thiels raise more penetrating questions about what a top oil executive could do to regain purpose and control over todays drifting foreign policy. Assume a new president believes American power and policy will be decisively strengthened by beginning a decade-long transition away from a fossil fuel-based economy but only if that shift is pulled off without being drawn into a costly major war. The sort of person such a president would probably benefit from by putting in charge of diplomacy would enjoy an intimate knowledge of pipeline geopolitics. This elite oil expert would understand that making a decisive energy transition would be fraught with challenges. The oil-dependent economies of Russia and the Mideast would have to be propped up or cushioned from collapse, for example. But wavering in the face of the difficult task of energy transition would leave the United States in its current untenable position. Setting a goal of freeing Americans from the strategic and economic costs of oil dependency will require hard work and the willingness to risk making types of choices were unused to. But if it is to be done, oil smarts and credibility will have to be part of the mix, starting at the top. These matters appear not to be at the forefront of the minds preoccupied with Russias potential change of status in the coming Trump era. For the Republicans and Democrats worried that Trump is hellbent on trying to forge a deal-driven friendship with Putin (bad news, theyre certain, whether he succeeds or fails), none of Tillersons credibility, in particular, matters as much as it used to. Rolling over now will give Trump an early blast of momentum, and when Trump gets momentum, look out. Still, as far outside the comfort zones of some as this conflict may be, its pretty standard political hardball. The key is for the importance of foreign policy as a function of energy policy not to be lost in the scrum. If the reality of what George W. Bush called our addiction to oil has mired the United States in the past, today, its diplomats with the greatest expertise in oil geopolitics who will have to help lead us away from the morass toward a more empowering and innovative future. James Poulos is a columnist for the Southern California News Group. SANTA ANA A 44-year-old pimp from Irvine pleaded guilty Friday and was immediately sentenced to four years in state prison. Mingshu Jin pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit pimping, according to court records. Felony counts of pimping and pandering were dismissed. Jin ran a high-end brothel and pimped a woman out of an apartment in Irvine, according to the Orange County District Attorneys Office. She was arrested in the summer of 2013 by an undercover Irvine police officer. Fullerton and Irvine police announced Friday the arrests of men and women suspected of stealing mail and packages. A man and woman were behind bars in Irvine on suspicion of stealing packages and mail, Irvine police said. Officers responded to a call that a truck was driving slowly down every street in a gated community on Arborwood and Winthrop. When they arrived they found a truck fitting the description given by the resident and stopped it, police said in a statement. Inside the car they found mail with addresses from Irvine, La Habra and Huntington Park. The driver and passenger of the truck, 38-year-old Danny Castillo and 32-year-old Rosemary Rubio, were arrested on suspicion of the thefts. Anyone with information about these suspects or thefts is asked to call Detective Keith Herter at 949-724-7183 or email him at kherter@cityofirvine.org. In Fullerton, officers also arrested a man and woman allegedly working as a team on Friday. On Dec. 8 multiple locked mailboxes were found burglarized, said Fullerton police Sgt. Jon Radus said. Detectives were able to get vehicle and suspect descriptions of the possible culprits. Officers conducted surveillance on the pair they suspected responsible and on Friday morning witnessed them burglarizing more mailboxes in Brea and Placentia. Investigators stopped the suspects Ford Expedition and arrested 26-year-old Noel Varela and 24-year-old Beatriz Marin. After they were arrested, detectives searched the pairs shared home in Santa Ana. Extensive evidence was collected which indicates the suspects have been prolific in their crimes, Radus said. Detecives believe the duo are responsible for thefts in Fullerton, Brea, Placentia, Irvine and some cities in South Orange County and they believe there may be more crimes. Anyone with information about the pair or who believes they were a victim of their crimes is asked to call Detective Josh Earnest at 714-738-6765. Those who want to stay anonymous can call Orange County Crime Stoppers at 855-TIP-OCCS. Contact the writer: 714-796-7865 or afausto@scng.com SAN JOSE A federal judge is rejecting a challenge to Californias requirement that Electoral College members vote for the statewide winner of the presidential election. An attorney for elector Vinz Koller says the judge issued his decision following a hearing on Friday. The attorney, Melody Kramer, says U.S. District Court Judge Edward Davila did not find that Koller faced irreparable harm. Kramer says she plans to file an appeal. Koller is the head of the Democratic Party in Monterey County, but he says he wants to cast his ballot for a compromise Republican such as Mitt Romney or John Kasich. Koller is one of a handful of electors around the country pursuing a last-ditch effort to deny Donald Trump a majority when the Electoral College formally elects the president on Monday. ANAHEIM For children who attend the Westerly School of Long Beach, giving starts in the classroom. On Friday morning, 65 kids and their teachers made their way to the Honda Center to donate toys worth $10 to $15 for the annual Stuff-a-Bus. We tell them there are so many people and kids out there that need our help, said Irma Hamayan, a third-grade teacher at Westerly. This is one of our ways they could give back to the community, and our kids love it. Charlotte Brahy, 8, donated a coral-growing kit. There are a lot of kids that dont get anything for Christmas, said the Westerly third-grader. I hope this helps. Toys, bikes and other donations stuffed one bus after another at the annual event put on by the Orange County Transportation Authority, KABC/7-TV and Southern California firefighters. The toy drive started at 4:30 a.m. Friday and ended at 6:30 p.m. The goodies will be handed out to needy children this holiday season. In all, 28 public buses were stuffed. Contact the writer: 714-796-2443 or jpimentel@scng.com or follow on Twitter @OCDisney UC Irvine Law School Dean Erwin Chemerinsky has joined 41 other constitutional scholars in a letter to Donald Trump, expressing great concern about the president elects commitment to our constitutional system. The letter, criticized by some conservatives as hypocritical partisanship, calls on Trump to back away from policy statements hes made and abandon three administration picks. Although we sincerely hope that you will take your constitutional oath seriously, so far you have offered little indication that you will, the letter says. We feel a responsibility to challenge you in the court of public opinion, and we hope that those directly aggrieved by your administration will challenge you in the courts of law. The scholars call on Trump to withdraw his nomination of Sen. Jeff Sessions for attorney general, citing his record on voting rights and civil rights while a U.S. attorney and Georgia attorney general. They ask him to revoke the appointment of Michael Flynn as national security adviser, pointing to his derogatory comments about Islam. And they ask him to abandon Stephen Bannon as chief strategist because of his self-proclaimed association with the alt-right, which the letter describes as a euphemism for individuals and groups that spout hatred and bigotry. The letter also takes Trump to task for barring some reporters from campaign events, for a proposed ban on Muslims entering the country and talk of a Muslim registry; for his unsupported claim of voter fraud, and for inflammatory rhetoric that makes neo-Nazi and white supremacist groups feel legitimated and empowered. Among those dismissing the letter is Chapman University constitutional law Prof. John Eastman, a conservative who frequently faces off with Chemerinsky in point-counterpoint settings. After 8 years of these same constitutional law professors complaining not one iota about President Obamas egregious violations of his constitutional authority, the expression of concern seems a bit contrived, Eastman wrote via email, citing Obamas executive actions addressing undocumented immigrants among other things. He specifically defends Trump against a number of the attacks in the letter, saying the incoming president has been within constitutional bounds. Eastman goes on to criticize Hillary Clinton on many of the same issues, arguing that she limited press access more than Trump during the campaign and pointing to anti-religious bigotry in leaked emails from campaign staff. Clean-air politics Back-channels maneuvering by Republican leaders in late 2015 gave the GOP a one-vote edge on the South Coast Air Quality Management District board. That led to the firing of 19-year Executive Officer Barry Wallerstein in a 7-6 vote amid complaints that the agency was too aggressive and too staff-driven in enforcement. But Democrats have regained control. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors this month appointed new Supervisor Sheila Kuehl to replace Republican Michael Antonovich, who stepped down from the county board because of term limits. Kuehl is a Democrat well liked by environmental groups while in the state Legislature. The air quality board, which oversees the regulation and compliance of everything from power plants to gas stations, is comprised of 13 elected officials from throughout the region. Last November, the Orange County City Selection Committee narrowly selected Republican Lake Forest Councilman Dwight Robinson over the Democratic incumbent, Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido, as Orange County cities representative on the air quality board. The selection committee is made up of the mayor or mayors representative from each of the countys cities. County GOP Chairman Fred Whitaker wrote and called mayors throughout the county to lobby on Robinsons behalf. Whitaker told me at the time that gas stations had been over-regulated, and expressed concern about future regulations governing trucks carrying goods from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Whitaker is an attorney whose clients include SC Fuels, a petroleum distribution company. Robinson is general manager of the Los Angeles Harbor Grain Terminal, a business at the Los Angeles port. Contact the writer: mwisckol@ocregister.com President-elect Donald Trump has named Rep. Mick Mulvaney, R-S.C., as his director of the Office of Management and Budget, signaling his intent to slash spending and address the deficit as president. Mulvaney, 49, was elected to Congress in 2010 in the wave that brought in a cohort of younger, staunchly conservative members into the House. He has been an advocate for spending cuts, often taking on his own party to push for more aggressive curbs to government spending. We are going to do great things for the American people with Mick Mulvaney leading the Office of Management and Budget, Trump said in a statement. Right now we are nearly $20 trillion in debt, but Mick is a very high-energy leader with deep convictions for how to responsibly manage our nations finances and save our country from drowning in red ink. With Mick at the head of OMB, my administration is going to make smart choices about Americas budget, bring new accountability to our federal government, and renew the American taxpayers trust in how their money is spent, he added. Trump has announced plans for increased defense spending in a massive infrastructure bill. Adding Mulvaney to his administration could help ease concerns from fiscal conservatives about the cost of such plans and their effect on the deficit. A founding member of the House Freedom Caucus, which pushed House Speaker John A. Boehner out of power in 2015, Mulvaney is an advocate of a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Among Mulvaneys chief duties will be overseeing the most dramatic overhaul of the nations tax code since President Ronald Reagan. Trump has pledged to streamline the process for individual households and slash the rate for corporations from 35 percent to 15 percent. The reforms are a central component of the administrations promise to boost economic growth to 4 percent or higher a message that resonated with voters still bruised by the Great Recession but that many economists believe is unsustainable. In addition, Trump has argued stronger growth would mean his tax proposal would not contribute to the national debt, and he has vowed not to cut expensive but popular entitlement programs such as Medicare and Social Security. But experts have been skeptical of those claims, and Mulvaney would be responsible for reconciling the numbers. One analysis by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimated Trumps tax plan would cost more than $5.3 trillion over the next decade. Even after factoring in faster economic growth, Trumps proposals are expected to add at least $2.6 trillion to the debt over the next decade, according to the nonpartisan Tax Foundation. While Mulvaney hails from South Carolina, hes spent the last few years learning Spanish and has been one of just a handful of GOP lawmakers able to appear on Spanish-language television programs to explain and defend Republican policies. WASHINGTON President Barack Obama said for the first time Friday that he had held back before Election Day from retaliating against Russia for meddling in the presidential race for fear of inciting further hacking that could hamper vote counting. But he said he was weighing a mix of public and covert actions against the Russians in his last 34 days in office, actions that would increase the costs for them. Obama said he was committed to sending the Kremlin a message that we can do stuff to you, but without setting off an escalating cyberconflict. There have been folks out there who suggest somehow if we went out there and made big announcements and thumped our chests about a bunch of stuff, that somehow it would potentially spook the Russians, he said. I think it doesnt read the thought process in Russia very well. The president did not reveal what steps he was considering if he decided to retaliate against the Russians and suggested that some of the options, if they were carried out, could remain secret. Some of it we will do in a way that they will know, but not everybody will, he said. Obama made his comments at an annual end-of-year news conference, one tinged with melancholy at the impending end of his presidency, foreboding about the changes that could follow President-elect Donald Trump into office next month, and uneasiness about the role Russia played in the political earthquake that has resulted from his election. The president spoke hours after Hillary Clinton, addressing campaign donors in New York, bluntly accused President Vladimir Putin of Russia of orchestrating the hacks against her campaign and the Democratic National Committee to undermine our democracy, as part of a personal beef against me. Obama declined to place the blame for the hacking so squarely on Putin, though he noted, Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin. Obama also sought to diminish the specter of Russian influence over the U.S. political process, saying Russia was a smaller, weaker country that doesnt produce anything that anybody wants to buy, except oil and gas and arms. Still, the president was clearly wrestling with what he said the hacking affair and the reaction to it revealed about the state of U.S. politics. Citing a recent poll that showed more than a third of Trump voters saying they approved of Putin Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave, Obama said the president appealed to Americans not to allow partisan hatred and feuds to blind them to manipulation by foreign powers. Unless that changes, Obama said, were going to continue to be vulnerable to foreign influence because weve lost track of what it is that were about and what we stand for. Obama offered a long list of accomplishments that he said marked his eight years in office. But his victory lap has been attenuated by the messy aftermath of Trumps defeat of Clinton, which has raised questions about Obamas pre-election response to the hacking, ignited a nasty squabble between Trump and the nations intelligence agencies, and left a residue of suspicion over the vote itself. The president continued to defend his cautious approach to reports of hacking an approach that has come under criticism from Democrats after it emerged last week that the intelligence agencies had concluded Russia was trying to help Trump win the election. We were playing this thing straight we werent trying to advantage one side or the other, Obama said. Imagine if we had done the opposite. It would have become one more political scrum. The president, however, is likely to face further questions after his CIA director, John O. Brennan, issued a statement Friday disputing reports of a rift between the intelligence agencies and the CIA over Russias motives in hacking the DNC and handing over emails to WikiLeaks, which released them in the weeks leading up to the vote. In his statement, first reported by The Washington Post, Brennan said he had met with the director of the FBI, James B. Comey, and the director of national intelligence, James R. Clapper, and there is strong consensus among us on the scope, nature and intent of Russian interference in our presidential election. That statement will also challenge Trump, who has seized on reports of an interagency squabble to undermine the credibility of the hacking findings. He has criticized the CIA analysis, saying it was supplied by the same agency that provided erroneous intelligence about Saddam Husseins weapons of mass destruction before the Iraq War. Obama held out hope that when Trump takes office, he would take a more sober approach. He said he had had cordial conversations with his successor, and that Trump had listened to his suggestions about maintaining the effectiveness, integrity, cohesion of our office, our various democratic institutions, though he was not specific. The president also defended the FBI, which has come under fierce criticism from Clinton and her aides because of Comeys 11th-hour announcement that the bureau was considering reopening its investigation of Clintons email, which she has said cost her the election. Clintons remarks Thursday underscored longstanding differences she has had with her former boss in how the United States should view Putin. This is not just an attack on me and my campaign, she told donors. This is an attack against our country. Obama also made a startling admission as he described how his administration had reacted to the Russian hack: He said it was not until the beginning of the summer that the White House was alerted to the possibility that the DNC has been hacked. That was nine months after an FBI agent had first contacted the Democratic National Committee with evidence that a major, government-linked hacking group was inside the committees networks, raising the question of why it took so long for that news to reach the president. Obama made it clear that he went out of his way to play down the news, because in this hyperpartisan atmosphere he did not think he or anyone else at the White House could talk about it without risking to appear to be acting on behalf of Clinton. But the unintended result, as some of Obama aides concede, was that the Russians faced very little resistance. Not until September, when Obama pulled Putin aside at a Group of 20 meeting in Hanghzhou, China, was the Russian leader given a warning directly from the United States. Obama said he told him to cut it out, there were going to be serious consequences if he did not. The president made it sound like that worked, saying we did not see further tampering of the election process. But the leaks of DNC emails, and those of John Podesta, the Clinton campaign manager, continued, because they were already in the hands of WikiLeaks, which doled them out to an eager news media until the last days of the campaign. The Russian governments motives were hardly a mystery, Obama said, because you guys wrote about it every day, every single leak about every little juicy piece of political gossip, including John Podestas risotto recipe. The FBI quietly acquired sweeping surveillance powers, beginning Dec. 1, it had sought for years, and the change came without a single congressional hearing or vote. Under a change to Rule 41 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, the FBI will now be able to obtain a single warrant from a magistrate that allows it to hack thousands or perhaps millions of computers across the country, or even outside it, in certain circumstances. It would apply when technology like Tor or VPNs (virtual private networks) are used to hide the location of users, or when a computer is swept up in a botnet, a network of private computers infected by malware and controlled without the users knowledge, such as by an email spammer. In these circumstances, law enforcement could remotely access, search, seize or copy data on computers, no matter where the computers were located and without providing notice to the users being searched, the Electronic Frontier Foundation cautioned. Previously, magistrates could only issue warrants for searches within their districts. Thus, the rule change raises fears about forum shopping, under which the FBI could seek warrants from magistrates known to hand out warrants with little scrutiny, even if no devices to be searched reside in their districts. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who led a bipartisan group of senators attempting to block the rule change the day before it went into effect, but was rebuffed by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, called it one of the biggest mistakes in surveillance policy in years and years. Wyden contended that government hacking attempts could inadvertently damage personal computers and cellphones, hospital systems or even the power grid. [I]nnocent Americans could be victimized twice once by their hackers and a second time by their government, he said on the floor of the Senate. This rule change will give the government unprecedented authority to hack into Americans personal phones, computers and other devices. Wyden was joined on the floor by Republican Sen. Steve Daines of Montana. This proposed solution essentially gives the government a blank check to infringe upon our civil liberties, Daines asserted. Our civil liberties and our Fourth Amendment can be chipped away little by little until we barely recognize them anymore. We simply cant give unlimited power for unlimited hacking which puts Americans civil liberties at risk. The rule change also illustrates an astonishing lack of oversight. It was made by the Rules Advisory Committee, which typically addresses modest changes to mundane procedural rules, and approved by the U.S. Supreme Court in a private vote. And it offers no privacy protections or transparency over how the FBI is implementing its hacking activities. In effect, the policy is trust us, Wyden maintained. There is a lot more debate in this body over the tax treatment of race horses than massive expansion of surveillance authority, Wyden said. [W]e should at least have a hearing on a topic with enormous potential consequences for millions of Americans. When lawmakers from all sides of the political spectrum in both the House and the Senate are raising alarms about a new questionable surveillance policy that could run afoul of the Fourth Amendment and infringe upon the privacy of millions of Americans, the very least congressional leaders can do is hold public hearings and try to incorporate some basic privacy protections. Their unwillingness to do so should enrage a liberty-loving populace, and spur demands for their representatives to correct this wrong. Sadly, too many people seem to be either blissfully ignorant of the scope of the governments spying activities or simply resigned to the loss of their civil liberties in the digital age. In the wake of being passed over for secretary of state, Costa Mesa Rep. Dana Rohrabacher said Friday that he will continue in his congressional post and probably seek re-election in 2018 rather than accept a deputy position in the State Department. Before Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson emerged as President-elect Donald Trumps choice to be the nations top diplomat, Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway confirmed that Rohrabacher was among those being looked at for the post. Rohrabacher said Trumps transition team subsequently inquired whether the congressman would be interested in a a secondary post in the department. I have no desire to have somebody between me and the president, said Rohrabacher, noting that he had a similarly intermediate post as a speechwriter for President Ronald Reagan. Ive already done that for 71/2 years. He also said he didnt want to move his wife and 12-year-old triplets. In April, while Rohrabacher was supporting Sen. Ted Cruzs presidential bid, he said he would consider taking a top-level post in the next administration. Rohrabacher eventually changed his allegiance to Trump and has proved one of the president-elects most vocal supporters in Congress. After Trumps lewd open mic comments became public shortly before the November election, Rohrabacher downplayed their significance and attacked Republicans critical of the incident. More recently, he defended Trumps controversial call with Taiwans president and Trumps willingness to work with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the fight against ISIS. Rohrabacher has also joined Trump in being dismissive of U.S. intelligence reports that Russia was responsible for leaking Democratic campaign emails during the campaign possibly with the goal of helping Trump get elected. Rohrabacher told CNN on Thursday that its terrific that voters got the information of the inner workings of the Democrats and Hillary Clintons campaign. The hackers, whether or not theyre Russian hackers, I dont know, he said. But whether theyre Russian hackers or any other hackers, the only information that we were getting from hackers was accurate information, was truthful. And thats not gonna turn the tide. If the American people have been given more truthful information, thats terrific. Regarding Trumps nominee for secretary of state, Rohrabacher said Friday that he and Tillerson probably agree on Russia. There are other issues we probably disagree on, he said. Rohrabacher, 69, said his decision to remain in Congress probably means Ill run for re-election in 2018. If he does, he could face a Republican challenge in the heavily GOP district. Former county GOP Chairman Scott Baugh has raised more than $500,000 toward a 2018 congressional bid for Rohrabachers seat, saying that the incumbent told him he would not run again after this year. But Rohrabacher denied making that statement and Baugh has declined to say whether he would run against Rohrabacher. Contact the writer: mwisckol@ocregister.com YEREVAN, DECEMBER 17, ARMENPRESS. 7 people have been arrested in Turkeys Kayseri city on the charges of terrorism. Another 5 are wanted, Armenpress reports, citing Turkish Hurriyet, Turkish Minister of Interior Suleyman Soylu announced. He informed that the terrorist has been identified. The Minister also informed the number of wounded has increased by 1, reaching 56. 4 of them are in critical condition. A blast occurred in front of Erciyes University in the city of Kayseri in the morning of December 17. A car was exploded near the bus transporting servicemen. According to official information, 13 servicemen have died, 56 have been wounded. The authorities blame the Kurdistan Workers' Party for the attack. A man was critically wounded by gunshots Saturday morning while riding his bike in Santa Ana, police said. At about 11:20 a.m. the man was riding along the eastbound sidewalk along South Raitt Street when another man stopped his car and shot at the victim, said Santa Ana Police Commander Jeffrey Smith. The cyclist was struck in his upper body and was taken to an area hospital in critical condition, Smith said. Little is known about the assailant, and he was described only as an adult man. The shooting is believed to be gang related. Police halted traffic on Raitt Street between Warner and Edinger avenues while investigating the crime and drivers were advised to find alternate routes to their destinations. Contact the writer: lawilliams@scng.com A judge said Friday that he might find Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens in contempt of court because of her departments reaction to an order to produce documents in the trial of admitted killer Scott Dekraai. In a hearing held one day after the Justice Department launched an investigation into the Sheriffs Department and the Orange County District Attorneys Office following years of complaints that both agencies routinely cheat and break the law to gain convictions Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals grew visibly frustrated by the pace of the Sheriffs Departments response to a discovery order he made nearly four years ago. Goethals said 200 weeks, or 1,400 days after he ordered disclosure of sheriffs deputy documents, newly discovered notes and other material continue to trickle in. Last week, his court was presented with an estimated 5,600 new pages, all of which the Sheriffs Department wants to be kept sealed from the public. Goethals described the volume of data as a document dump and said he has been reading through the material himself. He ordered lawyers for the sheriff and the county to read each page and make an argument why that page should be kept secret. He gave them until Jan. 13 to respond. Goethals noted that the latest batch of paperwork includes full-page redactions that havent been approved by the court, and that many of the pages dont appear to be privileged or protected. This is the type of discovery response that the court has come to expect from the sheriff, Goethals said. Hutchens, through a spokesman, declined to comment. Dekraai is fighting a death sentence for killing eight people and wounding another at a Seal Beach hair salon in 2011. He pleaded guilty two years ago, but the penalty phase of his trial has been marred by prosecutors and deputies misuse of jailhouse informants and failure to turn over evidence to the defense. Earlier this year, the Sheriffs Department uncovered 1,157 pages of secret logs that were kept by deputies in the day-to-day management of informants in the Orange County Jail, including at least one informant who was used by prosecutors to get a jailhouse confession from Dekraai. Some of those documents also indicated that deputies are maintaining new secret records, and Goethals ordered the Sheriffs Department to produce those pages. The 5,600-page trove delivered last week doesnt include that material, but it does include material that the Sheriffs Department wants Goethals to keep under seal. Goethals said Hutchens, as head of the department, is responsible for the missing documents and the volume of the new material. The last thing any judge I know wants to conduct is a direct contempt of court hearing for any elected official, Goethals said. But we are coming closer and closer to such a hearing. Deputy County Counsel Kevin Dunn, who represents the Sheriffs Department in the case, said deputies are working diligently to comply with all orders and shine a light into every corner of their operations. Dunn noted that officials have run into some roadblocks in trying to retrieve evidence because some deputies have invoked their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. Goethals sealed the documents, for now, and said he would later determine what to release to Dekraais lawyer, Assistant Public Defender Scott Sanders, as part of the discovery process. Sheriffs spokesman Lt. Mark Stichter said the department has been 100 percent committed to responding to any and all discovery requests and subpoenas. Its an exhaustive search with a lot of documents, and weve taken that very seriously, he said. Among the efforts, Stichter said, the department enlisted 19 sergeants to review a total of 581,342 files from all of the shared computer drives in the custody division. Contact the writer: kpuente@ocregister.com Maria Tome, an Apache woman, lived in Costa Mesa almost a century ago. On Friday, about 40 of her descendants came to see her at the Bowers Museum, which has in its collection a 1929 portrait Tome posed for, painted by a local artist. Family members had been telling Julie Hernandez about the portrait of her great-grandmother for years. A serious illness last year made her refocus on getting the family together to see the painting, something that was on her bucket list. Some of the family had viewed the painting decades ago, and some had fuzzy photographs of it, Hernandez said. But seeing it in person was something special. Who has a grandma in a museum? Hernandez, who lives in Moreno Valley, contacted the Bowers Museum, and they eventually arranged a day to take the painting out of storage for an hour for the family to see it. When Tome posed for the painting, Orange County was officially only 40 years old, with a population of less than 120,000. Tome died in 1937 at the age of 68, according to a copy of her death certificate granddaughter Frances Franco, 79, of Corona, brought to the museum. Another granddaughter, Sophie Espino of Wilmington, was the oldest, at 82, of the four generations of Tomes descendents at the museum Friday. When she stood next to Tomes portrait, Espino resembled her grandmother, with the same high cheekbones and arched eyebrows. var _ndnq = _ndnq || []; _ndnq.push([embed]); Espino remembered her grandmother babysitting her and her seven siblings. Tome and her husband Feliz Tome had a small ranch in what is now Costa Mesa, Espino said, with horses, chickens and goats. Tome was a midwife at the home births of Espinos brothers and sisters. She was good to us. At the appointed time, two Bowers staff members wheeled the painting in on a cart and put it on an easel behind a rope barrier. The barrier didnt last long, and soon family was crowding around the portrait to get photos with Tome. The artist, Fanny Bixby Spencer, had quite a history of her own. Besides being an artist, she was an outspoken activist, poet, social worker and suffragette. She came from one of Californias wealthiest families, owners of a giant piece of land that included present-day Seal Beach, Long Beach, Los Alamitos and Downey. She was the first policewoman in Long Beach and a supporter of immigrants, according to information dug up by Bowers Museum staff. Her outspoken opinions forced her and her family to move from Long Beach to Costa Mesa in 1919. At first, Tome didnt want to pose for Bixby Spencer, Tomes daughter told the museum during a 1963 visit to see the painting. Tome reconsidered after Bixby Spencer offered her $200, or about $3,500 in todays dollars, Katy Hess, an associate registrar at the Bowers, told the family gathered Friday. Bixby Spencer died in 1930, and five years later, her husband donated this painting to Bowers. Barbara Perez came from Artesia to see the painting of her great-grandmother. Its exciting. Im really happy to see it, to show my grandkids. Contact the writer: aboessenkool@ocregister.com MONTREAL The idea was to celebrate Montreals coming 375th anniversary with a Christmas tree bigger and grander than the famous one at Rockefeller Center in New York. Instead, downtown Montreal wound up with something only Charlie Brown could love. Its a bit of an eyesore, said Noor Malick, who has a view of the tree from her office window. Its horrible, its completely awful, said Georges Malouin, who was passing through the open-air Christmas market where the tree is displayed. Im so surprised. I saw it on the internet but now, live, it looks very cheap. Its quite sad, really, said Michaela van den Berg, a visitor from England whose husband, Jos, compared the tree to a matchstick. Maybe its a joke. People certainly are laughing, both in the streets and online. The tree has two mock Twitter accounts, one mainly in French and one in English. Melanie Joly, the federal minister of Canadian heritage who, among other things, oversees the national holiday decorations in Ottawa, tweeted that she loved the Montreal tree, but she added a winking emoji. A classic specimen, the tree is not. Its trunk is crooked, for one thing. And its other shortcomings are painfully obvious to passers-by. It doesnt have a top. It looks like its missing branches; its kind of skinny-looking, Pierre Bourcier said after snapping a photo with his phone. And then there are the ornaments: The tree is covered with red plastic inverted triangles topped by green maple leafs, the logo of the Canadian Tire retail chain, which supplied its white lights. A small child standing at the base of the tree this week stumped her father by asking why it looked like a store. How did a holiday celebration became a municipal punch line? Chalk it up to (perhaps too much) ambition, inadequate financing and Murphys law. We have good intentions, said Jean-David Pelletier, one of the principals of Sapin MTL, the company that came up with the idea of rivaling New Yorks tree. But the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and we had problems. Sapin MTL is in the business of home-delivering normal-size Christmas trees, and it proposed the big one as a promotional gimmick. Pelletier said the company had a more majestic, shapely tree in mind. It researched the typical height for recent Rockefeller Center trees 74 to 76 feet and found a 78-footer in Ontario that Pelletier described as amazing. But its narrow height advantage vanished in early November when Rockefeller Center announced that its 2016 tree would be a 94-foot Norway spruce. Pelletier and his partners then had less than a month to come up with a new, taller rival, and they appealed to the public, which suggested about 100 candidates. The balsam fir they chose came from the Eastern Townships of Quebec, near the border with the United States. Its not perfect, but its authentic and its a real tree that you find in the forests of Quebec, Pelletier said. Were not pretending this is the most amazing, beautiful tree in the world. Facing a Nov. 30 deadline for unveiling the tree, the Sapin crew had to hurry. The tree was harvested, placed on a special flatbed truck and brought to Montreal under police escort within 72 hours. But a tight schedule and a tight budget meant that some corners were cut and so was the tree. Somehow, the tree that reached the closed-off section of St. Catherine Street where the market is held measured just 88 feet tall, 6 feet short of the one in Rockefeller Center. Pelletiers brother Philippe, another principal in the company, said a bit sheepishly Friday that they had simply settled for the tallest tree they could find in time. And there was no time or money to give it the extensive arboreal spa treatment that the New York tree gets; all the workers could do was reattach, sometimes rather obviously, a few of the larger branches that had broken off in shipping. As for the decorations, Jean-David Pelletier said his companys responsibility ended once the tree was in its bare steel stand on St. Catherine Street. Jane Shaw, a spokeswoman for Canadian Tire, said the company had not required the logo ornaments in exchange for donating the lights. She called them a gesture from the organizers of the Christmas market. The skinny, misshapen and widely unloved tree does attract some expressions of appreciation. Many seem to be of the ironic variety often reserved for no-budget horror movies. But some seem sincere. As a reporter was interviewing Pelletier in the market, a woman interrupted to say the tree was beautiful, before swiftly walking away. This years debacle hasnt deterred Pelletier. He said his company was determined to make sure that Montreal truly outdoes New York next year, now that his fellow citizens have had their fun at this years trees expense. I think we can celebrate the Christmas magic and stop saying its ugly, ugly, ugly, he said, as a family posed for a photo in front of the tree. Now in Quebec, theres Cirque du Soleil, Celine Dion and the naughty fir we prefer that to ugly. Naughty is better. Gesturing up at the tree, he said: Look at him. Youll find something sympatique in him. So would Charlie Brown. SANTA ANA An 81-year-old former pastor and missionary was sentenced Thursday to 18 years in prison for sexually assaulting three girls. Douglas Dale Whinery pleaded guilty to seven felony counts of lewd acts on a child under the age of 14. Prosecutors allege that Whinery was in a position of trust when he met the 8-, 9- and 10-year-old girls. At the time, he was involved with the Olive Crest Church in Santa Ana, the Foothill Family Church in Foothill Ranch and the Grace Church in Yorba Linda. Whinery was accused of molesting the 9-year-old girl sometime between January 2005 and June 2006. Prosecutors said he was caring for the girl and her sister while they were in California to go to a theme park. According to prosecutors, Whinery met the 10-year-old and 8-year-old girls at a park in Tustin. He was accused of grooming the pair, giving them money, taking them to school and church and letting them spend the night at his home. Whinery sexually assaulted the two girls on multiple occasions between Nov. 7, 2011, and March 28, 2016, prosecutors said. One of the girls told a family member in late March. Tustin police investigated the allegations, taking Whinery into custody on March 30. Prosecutors said there were other alleged victims who were not included in the charges, but were willing to testify to sexual assaults by Whinery dating back as far as 40 years. A longtime pilot, Whinery founded the Tustin-based Wings of Faith Ministries, a nonprofit that flies supplies to missionaries working on remote Native American Indian reservations. Contact the writer: semery@ocregister.com So youve caught the Overlanding bug--youre not alone. Its hard to resist such an alluring form of off-roading, where adventure and self-reliance is at the core of the experience. The places youll explore and travel through are also pretty amazing. Not to mention all the cool expedition gear and products designed to support this type of travel. But where to start? To get into Overlanding, you need to have a sense of adventure. The hunger to explore and get out there to experience new places, people and things. If you dont have the slightest clue what the heck Overlanding is, heres a coffee cups worth. Releated story: What is Overlanding? Although each person must forge their own path, it doesnt mean we cant help each other along the way. Were going to share a few ideas that have helped us over the years. Its not the only way, but it should help get you moving in the right direction. OVERLAND VEHICLE Overland vehicles come in all sizes and platforms: trucks, SUVs, and even motor bikes. Although not 100% necessary, it helps to own a 4x4 vehicle to get into overlanding. If you dont own or have access to a 4-wheel drive vehicle, make friends with someone that does. Pitch in for gas and be a good navigator/spotter. It may turn out to be one of the best adventures youll have. At minimum, it should give you a taste of what the buzz is all about. For many, all it takes is one good outing to get into off-roading. Well go into further depth on what to look for in an overland vehicle in the future, but first we need to establish if overlanding is your cup of tea. CAMPING Camping is a big part of overlanding, since many of the remote places youll visit dont have a Holiday Inn. Ive heard overlanding referred to as backpacking with an automobile. The difference is you can carry more gear, cover more ground in a day, and on most occasions--youll even have a warm, dry place to rest your head at the end of the day. If you already enjoy pitching a tent and cooking in the fieldoverlanding can be a welcomed addition to your outdoor lifestyle. If youve never been camping, dont sweat it. Its never too late to go wild. Start with a car camping trip to your local forest or desert. These mini adventures can help you become more attuned to the lodging arrangement and help you make any necessary adjustments to make your outdoor experience more enjoyable. Youll need some basic camping supplies to survive your weekend adventure. Heres a good starter kit. Related story: Top 10 Off-Road Camping Essentials As you become more comfortable with camping, leave the developed campground for a more remote areapreferably with a second vehicle in your group. MEET OTHER OVERLANDERS If youre serious about overlanding, then one of the best things to do is meet and talk to other overlanders. From the weekend warrior to the lifetime vagabondmeeting other explorers will help give you insight into this exciting world. Weve met many good spirited overlanders over the years that have provided invaluable information on places to travel to, vehicle modifications necessary to globetrot, survival tactics, and even colorful stories. If you dont know any off-roaders that are into overlanding, a good place to meet is through a club. 4x4 clubs have been around for many years, but were starting to see more specialized groups that focus on overlanding itself. They can be vehicle specific, regional, or global. A good place to meet other overlanders and clubs is on Expedition Portal. Many overlanders plan trips, share info, and give updates of progress theyve made on their adventures. Overland Expo is also a great place to meet in person with fellow overlanders, see their overland vehicles and set-ups, as well as training for the overland lifestyle. Subscribe to Overland Journal, its the best overland off-road magazine--period. Scott Brady, Chris Collard and many high caliber explorers contribute from the field, bringing the world of overland travel and adventure to your fingertips in this high quality print publication. Its truly inspirational and insightful. LEARN, PLAN, EXPLORE Overlanding requires learning navigation skills, working communication devices, GPS, reading maps and searching for adventures. Find and read books of the regions you want to explore. From well documented journeys to stitching together your very own tripits important to know where youre going, what you plan to do, and ways to keep things moving forward for a successful overland trip. Off-road trail guide books, Topo maps, and shared notes from other overlanders trips make good resources in your planning. Yes, overlanding requires planning-- with the degree of planning going up in relation to the length and complexity of the adventure at hand. Start with mini adventures, reach for the stars and find your own groove. Its a big world. TIP: Dont just drive all day, stop and explore. You never know what you may find just around the corner. Build in some downtime, it will make your overland experience that much greater. For some, solitude is sacred. For others, its not much fun. We suggest you try and find an in between. DONT travel by yourself, especially if youre hitting remote trails or areas. Its always a good plan to travel in groups, with a minimum of two vehicles. Bring repair parts, First Aid Kit and such. Related Story: Tools Every Off-Road Explorer Should Have In our opinion, overlanding shouldnt break the bank, vehicle or heartinstead it should make you feel alive, yield some amazing adventures with good people. Being outdoors is good for the soul. Get out there and start exploring! The Mountains Are Calling and I Must Go -John Muir Here are some of our favorite off-road overland Adventures: Bradshaw Trail - Overland Route Colorado's Scenic Alpine Loop Mojave National Preserve Death Valley Where have you been, where are you going? We want to know. Please comment below. Lisas Radial Cafe lost its Lisa. Lisa Schembri, the big-hearted, big-dreaming owner of the beloved midtown diner, died Wednesday in her Omaha home. She was 55. There will be a funeral Mass at 2 p.m. Tuesday at St. Cecilia Cathedral, a short walk from the diner on North 40th Street. Later that day the Radial will open its doors to honor Lisa with food, music and, if daughter Meghan McLarney can snag one, a disco ball. Her mother, known for her pizazz, did not want a mopey wake. She wanted laughter. She wanted fun. She wanted a party, and her family hopes to deliver. Well have all her favorite foods, all her favorite music, and well dress in something sparkly and wild to honor her fashion sense, Meghan said. Born in San Francisco, Lisa Savin graduated from high school at age 16, moved out of her familys home and began her big life. It was not without struggle. Lisa went to culinary school. She had a baby. She was constantly scrimping, figuring out ways to stretch a buck. And she was in a rock band, which is how she met a man who wooed her with his black-and-blue hamburgers. Substitute-guitarist Cliff Schembri could cook, and when the widowed father of two proposed over those burgers, Lisa said yes. Meghan was an 8-year-old at the time and remembers Lisas rock n roll wardrobe: tattered jacket, black boots with grommets, white leather. She told her dad that Lisa looked like a lot of fun. And Lisa didnt prove her wrong. She dressed with flair. She laughed a lot. She had a ton of energy. She loved Lucille Ball. She saw her role as cafe owner as mother hen. She hired people who needed jobs, and she opened her restaurant for fundraisers and for college students stuck on campus at Thanksgiving. We loved her to death, man, said Joe Hyland, the kitchen manager. She was one of those people whats the word Im looking for? Eccentric. Shed always say something youd never expect or do something youd never expect. And Joe would watch, cringing, thinking, This could go horribly. But it never did. Lisa folded in Cliffs two daughters from his first marriage and a grandson. She found family wherever she went, and the feeling was mutual. Lisa Harrison self-described as the other Lisa described her boss as crazy and fun-loving. And open to suggestions. When the other Lisa walked through the Radials green-painted door a dozen years ago in need of a job, Lisa Schembri told her sorry. Maybe next time. The other Lisa left, but then Lisa Schembri chased her down the sidewalk. A customer had said: You should hire her. So she did. Lisa Schembris life ethos was part seize the day and part save for that day. She and Cliff ran a restaurant for a spell outside San Francisco. The hours were long. The kids would sleep in the car. The two-bedroom apartment was cramped. The Bay Area, in the early 1990s, wasnt getting any cheaper. Lisa had an aunt in Omaha. The aunt said Come here. So the family did. They rented a home, sight unseen, until they could afford to buy one on Cliffs mechanics wages and Lisas earnings from a waitressing job at the Radial. She even got Meghan a job there. They worked side by side as the restaurant changed hands until one day, the new owner dismissed nearly all the staff. Lisa didnt stay down. She got herself and Meghan jobs at Leos Diner in Benson. When the Radial came up for sale again, she pounced. She and Cliff took out a home loan. Meghan threw in some of her tip money. Together, the family bought the restaurant in 2000. Lisa changed the sign, laughing off a mistake the sign company had made making her name the biggest part of Lisas Radial Cafe. Now the neighbors, shed told her daughters, would know were back. One day in 2003, Lisas heart nearly gave out. She told Cliff her neck hurt, and he rushed her to Creighton University Medical Center, where a surgeon told her family that there was an 80 percent chance she would not make it through the surgery. Her aorta had ruptured. Meghan said they were told then that Lisa had five years, at best. Lisa, unwillingly, was forced to scale back. She just didnt know how to be still and not work, Meghan said. We would have to guard her because shed come in the cafe and want to bus tables, move furniture. Wed have to wrangle her down, into a chair, and make her sit. She didnt know how to go at half-speed. When the family could get Lisa to sit still, she liked to watch I Love Lucy reruns, and began papering the cafe with Lucille Ball paraphernalia. She was a living Lucille Ball, Meghan said. She had the red hair. Was always getting herself into trouble, putting her foot into her mouth. Shes a character, you know? My dad would be like Ricky, just rolling his eyes. She was constantly adding knickknacks and her three daughters, who all work at the restaurant, were constantly trying to declutter. Wed get rid of something, and shed say Hey, where is the Lucy cookie jar? Lisas Radial Cafe is also a gallery for artists trying to sell their paintings and prints. And its a second home to the Cathedralites, Creighton students, Roberts (now Hiland) Dairy workers and others who take comfort in both the grub and in a place as warm, cozy and throwback as your grandmas kitchen. The mugs are super-thick. The pancakes are super-big. The bacon is super-crispy. The wait staff is super-attentive. And just like your grandma, if youre old enough to have a grandma who remembers the Depression, Lisa ran her shop as cash-only. She hated credit card fees and ditched plastic as a way to save. It was yet another way she could stretch a dollar. Growing up, Meghan said, the family seemed broke, but her mother would save for terrific vacations. She told her children that in life it was important to have something to look forward to. In recent years Lisas health declined, her daughter said. On Wednesday she told her husband she didnt feel well, and took a nap. When he checked on her around 10:30 a.m., she had died. Family members believe her heart gave out. The rest of us are just not ready for her to be gone, Meghan said. She was ready, I believe. Shed written us some letters and things to tell us that we should be laughing and having fun and celebrating. And not be sad. And dont cry. Lisas Radial Cafe will go on without Lisa. Her husband, Cliff, and daughters, Meghan, Jennifer Maguire and Marie Schembri, will keep it open. And the other Lisa said her bosss presence will remain. Lisa, the waitress said, is the cafe. Metropolitan Community College appears committed next fall to joining a long list of colleges and universities that have made cigarettes and chewing tobacco taboo. Metro President Randy Schmailzl informed his board this week that the change was coming to its campuses. Schmailzl said in a brief interview this week that it will take some time to inform the college community and rewrite policies, plus give people time to try to stop smoking. Colleges here and across the nation are forbidding students and employees from using tobacco products on campus. The University of Nebraska at Omaha banned tobacco use on campus in August. Creighton University became tobacco-free in 2008, the University of Nebraska Medical Center in 2009. The University of Nebraska at Kearney enacted a new tobacco-free policy in August, expanding tobacco-free areas to all campus grounds except 15 locations in parking lots. Use of tobacco is allowed at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln as long as its 10 feet away from buildings, although some buildings have a 25-foot limit. Iowa State became smoke-free at least four years ago. The American Nonsmokers Rights Foundation reported in early October that more than 1,710 campuses in the country are smoke-free. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calls smoking the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United States. The CDC attributes more than 480,000 deaths every year to smoking, or one in five deaths. Last year about 15 percent of American adults smoked cigarettes, down from 21 percent in 2005, the CDC said. More than 16 million Americans suffer smoking-related illnesses, the agency reported. Julie Langholdt, dean of Metro student advocacy and accountability, said the college is considering how best to prepare for smoke-free status. She said nobody will lose their jobs because they smoke. The college is being very deliberative in our approach to doing this, Langholdt said. We know that were going to have some challenges from certain groups, but we feel that with hard work, we can make this happen at Metro. As part of a survey of faculty and staff this year, Metro found about 75 percent favored becoming a smoke-free college, she said. In early 2017, Metro will survey students, staffers and faculty members, she said, for their opinions strictly on the college going smoke-free. Advent lessons and carols: St. Paul United Methodist Church, 5410 Corby St., will celebrate a service of Advent lessons and carols at 5 p.m. Saturday in Roth Chapel and again at 10:30 a.m. Sunday in the sanctuary. The St. Paul vocal and bell choirs will be joined by the Solid Brass Quartet and organist David Schack. Motorists in Lincoln and Omaha reported icy conditions on roads Friday evening as a winter storm dropped snow and freezing rain on the area. Road conditions deteriorated quickly in the late afternoon and evening. Local police reported slick conditions on Interstate 80 between Lincoln and Omaha, though the State Patrol said the Interstate is still drivable. Interstate 29 was completely covered with ice from the Missouri line to Council Bluffs, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation. A number of accidents were reported in western Douglas County as streets turned slick, many of them as the storm moved in around 3:30 and continuing into the evening commute. The state's Department of Roads' website showed icy roads through all except the southwestern part of the state. Local authorities were urging drivers to slow down, leave extra room between cars and expect the evening commute to take longer than usual. The Nebraska State Patrol reported that freezing rain started about 3:30 in the Fremont area. "We have multiple vehicles in the ditch and multiple accidents at this time between Omaha and Lincoln," said Lt. Craig Loveless of the Nebraska State Patrol. Motorists "need to slow down. They need to give room to the folks in front of them ... and not make erratic lane changes. Loveless said he did not know of any serious injuries, but every trooper in the area was working a crash of some kind. If you can go home and stay home, do," Loveless said. Omaha Public Schools, Ralston Public Schools and Bellevue Public Schools canceled all school activities for Saturday as conditions worsened. Millard Public Schools canceled all activities through 2 p.m. Saturday and said a decision on later activities had not yet been made. Ryan McPike, a KMTV meteorologist, said earlier Friday that hes expecting 1 to 3 inches of powdery snow in the Omaha area. Not a very pleasant weekend, thats for sure, he said. * * * * * More developments The Sarpy County Sheriff's Office reported four separate rollover accidents on westbound I-80 between mile markers 432 and 426, all occurring just after 3:30. Highway 92 from St. Paul to Wahoo was covered with black ice and drivers are traveling at much slower than the posted speed limits. Tom Casady, Lincoln's director of public safety, said the city had seen 85 crashes by just after 7 p.m. A usual day sees 24, he said. The weather service issued a winter weather advisory through 6 p.m. Saturday for most of eastern Nebraska and western Iowa, including the Omaha area, Lincoln, Beatrice, Columbus, Grand Island and Hastings. The advisory is due to the expected wintry mix of freezing drizzle and then snow that should begin early this afternoon, change to snow tonight into Saturday and then turn colder and very windy. A wind-chill advisory also was issued through Saturday night for the region because of expected high north-northwest winds that are likely to drop values to 20 below and 30 below zero. * * * * * Paul Walker, a meteorologist at private weather consultant AccuWeather, also predicted 1 to 3 inches of snow for the Omaha area. It doesnt look like a big snowmaker for Omaha, he said. The big thing is its going to be bitterly cold. Northern Nebraska and central Iowa could receive 3 to 6 inches of snow, Walker said, and parts of South Dakota and northern Iowa could get 6 to 12 inches. The combination of ice, snow, winds and cold will create especially slippery roads and surfaces, with a coating of ice beneath the snow that will be difficult to melt even if treated by street crews, forecasters said. Motorists should be prepared for hazardous travel conditions, including blowing snow in some locations. Authorities said the evening commute could be treacherous for Omaha-area motorists. McPike said he expected areas that havent been pre-treated, such as sidewalks and parking lots, to be especially slick in the Omaha area by this afternoon. Conditions take a turn for the better Monday in the Omaha area, with high temperatures through Thursday in the 30s to around 40 degrees. Thats probably the only bright spot in the forecast, McPike said about next week. Walker said: I dont see any big storms right now for the Omaha area into the middle of next week. However, he said, a long-range forecast is calling for the possibility of snow in the Omaha area on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. World-Herald staff writer Jay Withrow contributed to this report. Namma Deepika Padukone woos future business leaders in Bengaluru Bengaluru oi-Maitreyee By Maitreyee Bengaluru, Dec 17: Bollywood superstar Deepika Padukone is Bengaluru's darling and whenever she comes to her city she always receives a grand welcome. At the IIMB Leadership Summit 2016, organised by the IIMB Alumni Association, on Saturday, the Bajirao Mastani actress got a warm reception from her fans. The audience mostly consisted of future business leaders and current students of the premier business school--Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB)-who eagerly waited for her session, which was scheduled at the end of the evening. Some of the previous speakers at the event were Union Minister Piyush Goyal and Chairperson of Manipal Global Education and former member of the board of directors of Infosys Mohandas Pai, to name a few. However, no one was celebrated by the audience as much as Deepika, even when the event was dedicated to business and technology. In fact, Kiran Majumdar Shaw, chairperson of IIMB Board and chairperson and managing director of Biocon Limited, while welcoming the actor on the stage called her 'Namma' (Our in Kannada) Deepika Padukone. In a question and answer session moderated by senior editor Shekhar Gupta, Deepika spoke about her fight against mental health issues, including depression. Deepika said she spoke about her personal experience with depression in public as she felt there was hope. "There is hope and there is a road to recovery." When asked about why actors don't express their opinions about pressing political issues, Deepika said, "I speak only when I think my talking about the issue will help it in anyway, like I speak on depression." The top star of Bollywood rued the fact that Bollywood has been made a scapegoat on various occasions. OneIndia News Karunanidhi to return home soon: Rahul Gandhi Chennai oi-Anusha Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi called on ailing Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) Chief M Karunanidhi in Chennai. Rahul Gandhi arrived in Chennai on Saturday morning and made his way to Kauvery Hospital where the DMK patriarch is being treated for lung infection and breathing issues. Dr Karunanidhi was re-admitted to the hospital on Thursday after being discharged just eight days ago. "I wanted to personally wish him a speedy recovery. Happy to see that he is doing well. I said hello to him. Congress President also sends her regards", said Rahul Gandhi after meeting DR M Karunanidhi. He told the press quoting the doctors that 'M Karunanidhi will go home pretty soon'. Doctors say that he (Karunanidhi) will go home pretty soon. I said hello to him, Congress president has also sent her regards: Rahul Gandhi pic.twitter.com/q9JhiqwWsQ ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016 This is the second time in over a month that Rahul Gandhi has visited Chennai. He had previously flown down to call on late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa when she was being treated at Apollo Hospital. After his meet with the DMK chief Rahul Gandhi is expected to make his way to Belagavi in Karnataka. The Congress vice president will take part in birth centenary year celebrations of Indira Gandhi organised by the party's Karnataka unit. [Also Read: Karunanidhi undergoes Tracheostomy to help in breathing Rahul Gandhi had made a courtesy call on late Jayalalithaa when she was being treated at Apollo hospital in Chennai as well. He was, however, not allowed entry into her ward. He had to return after being appraised of the leader's health by doctors at Apollo Hospital. The doctors had maintained that Rahul Gandhi or any other visitors were not allowed to meet late Jayalalithaa in person to avoid risk of infection. OneIndia News Demonetisation: Rs 12 lakh in new notes seized in Hyderabad Hyderabad oi-Anusha Hyderabad police on Saturday arrested four youths and seized unaccounted cash in their possession. Police found the men carrying Rs 12 lakh, all in new Rs 2,000 currency denominations without proper documentation. Police arrested the men from Panjagutta police station limits. Hyderabad police arrest four persons with Rs 12 lakhs in new Rs 2000 denomination, four mobile phones also seized. pic.twitter.com/JGbJjrlj6s ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016 The four men, whose names the police have withheld, are being questioned on the source of the cash and purpose of its possession. Along with the cash, the police have also seized mobile phones of all accused. A case has been registered in this regard and investigations are underway. [Also Read: Demonetisation: Karnataka politician's son caught with unaccounted money] Hyderabad has come under severe scrutiny after officials from the Income Tax department and the Central Investigation Bureau bust many money laundering and exchange rackets post demonetisation. Many government staff including postal department officials have been arrested in connection with laundering by various agencies. Following the raids conducted by central agencies unearthing illegal and unaccounted assets worth crores of rupees, the Hyderabad police have also kept vigil. OneIndia News For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Saturday, December 17, 2016, 14:51 [IST] Army convoy attacked in Pampore, 3 jawans martyred India oi-Oneindia By Oneindia Staff Writer Three soldiers of the Indian Army were killed when militants opened fire on a convoy along Pampore highway in Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday. Search operations are underway to hunt down the militants. Sources said that it looks like a signature Lashkar-e-Tayiba attack. Last week, intelligence input was recieved about terrorists preparing for a highway attack such as this, the source added. The army said that militants opened fire on an army convoy in Pampore in Pulwana district on Srinagar-Jammu National Highway. The militants are said to have fled the spot after firing indiscriminately. The attack killed three jawans. forces are conducting search operations. An encounter between militants and security forces had taken place in October in Pampore earlier this year. The operation lasted for three days. Two militants were killed in this operation. Incidents of attack on the Indian Army have been on the rise since the September 29 surgical strike. Crime against women in Jharkhand: Four burnt to death in a week India oi-IANS By Ians English Ranchi, Dec 17: Police in Ranchi said on Saturday that four suspects were detained after a 19-year-old engineering student was found dead, stripped bare and her body charred -- the fourth incident of a woman being burnt alive in Jharkhand. The BTech student of an IT institute here was living at a rented house in Buty Basti with her sister who had gone to visit their parents in Hazaribagh district when her burnt body was found on Friday. As the autopsy report to determine the cause of the Ranchi student's death was awaited, police said they have formed a special investigating team (SIT) to probe the shocking incident. The incident came to light on the day when the entire country was remembering the December 16, 2012 brutal rape and murder of a 23-year-old para-medical student, dubbed Nirbhaya, in a moving bus in Delhi. Police said it was the fourth shocking incident of women being burnt alive after being raped or termed witch in Jharkhand in a week. On December 14, an elderly woman and her husband in Simdega district were burnt to death on charges of practicing black magic. Lohar Singh, 70 and his wife Chotrai Devi, 62, were dragged out from their house by three men. They were thrashed first and later thrown over a heap of dry grass and set on fire. Another woman was burnt alive on December 12 in Khuti district on charges of practicing black magic. Four days earlier, a minor girl was burnt and thrown in a well after she protested alleged gang rape attempt in Seraikela-Kharsawa district. According to police the Class 4 student was taken in a forested area by four men after offering her a chocolate. When they tried to rape her, she started shouting. The perpetrators then allegedly poured kerosene oil on her and set her ablaze. She was later thrown in a well from where she was recovered still breathing. She died while being treated in a hospital. This year till October, more than 1,000 rape cases have been reported in the state. Almost same number of cases was reported in to 2015. The Congress blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government for failing to curb violence against women in the state. "The BJP government led by (Chief Minister) Raghubar Das only believes in tall claims of safety of citizens, particular women," Kishore Sahdeo, Jharkhand Congress general secretary, told IANS. "The reality has come to the fore as unfortunate incidents (of violence) against women have taken place in the state. Das has failed to provide security to people. Women are being killed in heinous ways." IANS Demonetisation: Difficult decisions have to be taken for long-term interests, says Jaitley India oi-Prathmesh New Delhi: Applauding the government's potential to take a bold step like demonetisation, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley while speaking at FICCI's 89th annual general meeting in the backdrop of the Centre's demonetisation move, said that the government is working overtime to ensure things return to normal within the 50 day deadline that the government has set. "The government took a somewhat courageous step in the direction of the high- denomination currency ceasing to be a legally valid tender and went in for a large currency swap or exchange. Now, the fact, that India today has the capacity to take these decisions and the capacity to enforce these decisions, to experiment boldly even at the time when the world is looking more inwards, I think marks an exception as far as India is concerned," said Jaitley. Describing India as one of the fastest growing major economies in the world, Jaitley termed the decision to demonetise an important beginning of development. "As far as the decision with respect to currency is concerned, it marks an important beginning. This decision decides several other implications," he said. "Among the emerging economies, if you look at India, I think it's a refreshing change from what's happening in the rest of the world. Three years ago, the economy which was regarded as a part of the fragile five, today, unquestionably is regarded as one of the fastest growing major economies in the world," he added. Jaitley also assured that the process of remonetisation would not take long. Hinting at the government's courageous step, Jaitley said with the world economy slowing down, a country has to determine its own course. "The world economy is definitely slowing down. So, it is necessary for countries to determine their own course themselves because global trends are not particularly helpful," he said. The finance minister also referred to United Kingdom's departure from the Eurpoean Union. "Brexit-vote surprised many. Most people thought that eventually one of the world's most mature democratic countries will not vote the way it actually did," Jaitley said. "As far as decision with respect to currency is concerned, it marks an important beginning. This decision decides several other implications," Jaitley added. Referring to the GST bill, Jaitley stated, "Having passed the constitutional amendment, there are several decisions which the GST Council has to take. I don't see any major difficulty in those legislations being finally approved. Legislations which have to be passed by Parliament under Constitutional amendment and state legislatures are currently in process of being drafted." OneIndia News Demonetisation: ED raids Mumbai-based bullion traders, recover Rs 69 crore India oi-Oneindia By Oneindia Mumbai, Dec 17: The Enforcement Directorate recovered Rs 69 crore during raids conducted on six Mumbai-based companies on Saturday. The monies were being transferred into the accounts of four bullion traders. According to sleuths, the enterprise, which came up right after the Centre's demonetisation move, was intended at money laundering with the traders buying voluminous amounts of gold and silver. The ED had been keeping a close watch on these money transfers. The ED froze the traders' bank accounts, which have an estimated Rs 120 crore in store. Earlier in the day, the ED filed a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act against unknown persons for forging accounts in the Noida Sector 51 branch of Axis Bank. The ED has already arrested two Axis Bank managers in connection with the case. Twenty bank accounts of fake companies had been found and deposits of Rs 60 crores had been made to them. A team from Lucknow has reached the Bank where bank officials and bullion traders are being questioned by the ED as the 80 to 100 crores of money that had been deposited in 40 bank accounts had been sent to bullion traders only. OneIndia News For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Saturday, December 17, 2016, 13:37 [IST] Demonetisation is 'Modi-made disaster', says Rahul Gandhi India oi-Anusha By Anusha Ravi Rahul Gandhi torn into the Modi government over demonetisation during a rally in Belagavi of Karnataka. The Congress vice president called demonetisation a 'Modi-made disaster' and mocked the BJP government as 'super rich sarkar that misled the country on demonetisation'. Rahul pulled up the prime minister for mocking MNREGA and accused Modi of laughing at the miseries of the poor of the country. 99 per cent of India is of the poor, middle class and farmers. Demonetisation has pushed the nation's economy back, Rahul said. The prime minister first said demonetisation was to stop terrorism, then said it was to uproot black money. But nothing has changed, he added. Invoking allegations of sudden spurt in deposits to accounts held by BJP leader and investments just before the demonetisation announcement, Rahul said that the move had only benefited the BJP. Rahul accused the prime minister of waiving off Mallya's loans while making life miserable for the common man. PM se poochna chahta hun Mallya Hindustan ka chor hai, aapne use Rs 1200 cr ki toffee kyun khilayi? Aapne uska loan maaf kyun kiya?: RGandhi pic.twitter.com/Wx6Qhcla27 ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016 The massive crowd of Congress workers at Belagavi cheered as Rahul invoked instance of former BJP minister Janardhana Reddy spending Rs 500 crore for his daughter's wedding post demonetisation. Rahul Gandhi held the prime minister responsible for the unemployment concern post demonetisation move. [Also Read: Demonetisation is 'Modi-made disaster', says Rahul Gandhi] "People of India tell me that Prime Minister Modi is a liar; he promised to fight black money but he didn't". Nothing is going to change in 50 days. All your money will just be lying with the bank, he said. Rahul said that over hundred people have died due to demonetisation so far. OneIndia News Five years of demonetisation: Notes in circulation on rise; so are digital payments Gain from demonetisation to be shared with all: Piyush Goyal India oi-Maitreyee Speaking at an event hosted by Indian Institute of Management, Bengaluru on Saturday, while dismissing all the criticism faced by the government over notes ban, Union Minister Piyush Goyal said the gain from demonetisation will be shared with all. Speaking at the IIMB Leadership Summit, 2016, the power, coal, mines, new and renewable energy minister added, "We are going to gain a good deal from demonetisation. The gain will be shared with all - for the welfare of the people - especially the poor." At a time when the opposition parties have come together to attack the Prime Minister Narendra Modi government over the issue of demonesation, the senior minister reiterated that except for a few, most of the people of the country had welcomed the move. "We are happy to get the support," he said. Power for all However, the BJP leader did not explain the immediate benefits from the 'controversial' issue of notes ban announced by the prime minister on November 8. Goyal in his session titled Energise and Transform: The leadership mantra for a mature institute, said the government was confident of providing 24X7 power access to all across the country by 2022. "Energy is a big developmental goal. We want to provide affordable energy to all by 2022, by the time India turns 75. Our goal is to provide continuous access to green energy to all. By doing so, every Indian household will have continuous power supply and no child's education should suffer because of lack of electricity," he added. The power, coal, mines, new and renewable energy minister, who was speaking at an event organised by the IIM Bengaluru, added that except for a few, most of the people of the country have welcomed the move. OneIndia News HC queries EC on Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls schedule India oi-PTI Lucknow, Dec 17: Allahabad High Court today sought information from the Election Commission about the forthcoming Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh after a PIL urged that directions be given for conducting the polls in April-May. The Lucknow bench headed by Justice Amreshwar Pratap Sahi, which was hearing the PIL filed by activist Pratibha Pandey, fixed December 22 as the next date of hearing. According to petitioner's lawyer Ashok Pandey, the tenure of the present assembly is up to May 27, hence, any proposal for conducting the elections earlier will not be proper. He said that the tenure of present assembly of the state should be completed and in this regard the UP assembly poll may be conducted in the April-May. He also cited convenience of the voters. The counsel for respondents -- central government and the EC -- were present at the time of hearing the PIL, Pandey said. He said that the division bench has asked the EC counsel about any schedule for the elections. The EC had last week asked the Uttar Pradesh Madhyamik Shiksha Parishad (UPMSP) to put on hold next year's board examination schedule so as to ensure there is no clash with the Assembly polls, which are due early next year. This gave rise to speculation that the UP Assembly polls could be held in February. PTI Demonetisation has turned the Lashkar into a bunch of thieves India oi-Vicky By Vicky Srinagar, Dec 17: Hit by demonetisation, the Lashkar-e-Tayiba formed a module which focused on bank robberies in Jammu and Kashmir. Three militants of the dreaded outfit had robbed Rs 10 lakh from a bank at Ratnipora area in Pulwama on Thursday. A similar incident had taken place on November 21 when militants robbed a bank in the Chrar-e-Sharief areaof Budgam district. The militants escaped after robbing Rs 14 lakh. The Jammu and Kashmir police say that the module was headed by Arif Dar, Abu Ismail and Abu Ali. Militants have been facing a cash crunch since the decision on demonetisation was made on November 8. The militants would rely heavily on the fake currency business to raise funds. However with the government declaring that the Rs 500 and 1,000 notes are no longer legal tender, the fake currency industry took a beating. Funding militancy by robbing banks: There has been a rise in the number of bank robberies in Jammu and Kashmir since the decision on demonetisation was made. The module headed by three operatives of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba have been plotting and executing a spate of bank robberies. Since November 8 there have been three major robberies that have been reported. Abu Ali and Abu Ismail are Pakistan nationals while Arif Dar is a local. Ali and Dar would enter the banks and carry out the robbery while Ismail would wait outside to provide cover. Police officials in J&K say that an analysis of the CCTV footage showed that it was the same module comprising three persons which carried out these robberies. According to Rayees Mohammad, the Superintendent of Police, Pulwama, it is the module of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba which has carried out these bank robberies. Three such incidents have been reported since November 8. The first robbery was on November 21, 13 days after the decision on demonetisation was made. The second was reported on December 8 and third on Thursday. - On December 8, militants robbed the Jammu and Kashmir bank at Arihal in Pulwama district. They fled with Rs 14 lakh after firing several rounds. - On November 21 militants struck at a ban in the Chrar-e-Sharif area of Budgam before escaping with Rs 14 lakh. - On Thursday, militants robbed the Jammu and Kashmir Bank at Ratnipora in Pulwama before fleeing with Rs 10 lakh. OneIndia News How Rahul Gandhi broke a united opposition in one day India oi-Vicky By Vicky New Delhi, Dec 17: For the opposition parties it was an anti climax. The opposition which stood united while protesting the decision on demonetisation also ensured that all official business during the winter session of Parliament was disrupted. The coordination opposition which stood united all these days broke after Rahul Gandhi met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday. The opposition is miffed with Rahul Gandhi for meeting the PM by himself and also fixing an appointment with President of India, Pranab Mukherjee in his name. The coordinated opposition had decided that there would be no leader and all would protest under one umbrella. However this last minute move by Rahul Gandhi has changed all that. How Rahul Gandhi broke the opposition? It was decided by all opposition leaders that they would meet with the PM over the farmers's issue. The BSP and the SP were meant to be part of that meeting, but were taken aback when Rahul Gandhi decided to go by himself. The actual reason behind this sudden change of decision by Rahul Gandhi and other leaders of the Congress is still unknown. Most of the Congress leaders that OneIndia spoke with did not give out any clarity as to why such a call was taken. One leader said that the famers's issue was an important one and hence they decided to meet with the PM. This leader however could not explain why they went ahead with the meeting without the rest of the opposition leaders. During the meeting with the Prime Minister, Mallikarjuna Kharge, senior Congress leader said, " we can cooperate and shake hands on issues even if our hearts do not meet." The Prime Minister is reported to have said, " we should meet like this." The Congress handed out a memorandum in which the plight of the farmers due to drought had been highlighted. Rahul Gandhi even delayed his Goa flight in order to facilitate this meeting. What the rest of the opposition cannot understand is why Rahul Gandhi fixed this meeting by himself without even informing the others. The opposition had backed Rahul Gandhi when he said that he would like to highlight in Parliament charges of personal corruption by Modi. None are able to understand what changed so suddenly. Some within the opposition are questioning whether the meeting was just about the farmers' issue or was there something more to it. OneIndia News For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Saturday, December 17, 2016, 10:03 [IST] From being a victim of terrorism to exploring global solutions: India praised at UN's Counter Terrorism meet Cabinet approves MoU between India, Denmark in field of Water Resources Development and Management Dr. Rinky Kapoor- One of the best celebrity cosmetic dermatologists No one has guts...: Junior defence minister's reply to China question India, Tajikistan to work on trade links through Chabahar Port: Modi India oi-IANS By Ians English New Delhi, Dec 17: India and Tajikistan will work closely on developing trade and transport links through the Chabahar Port in Iran, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday after the signing of agreements with the Central Asian nation on enhancing economic ties and curbing double taxation, money laundering and terrorism. "We will work on trade and transit linkages through Chabahar Port in Iran," Modi said after his talks with visiting Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon here. Modi emphasised that he and Rahmon had agreed to increase the "scope and scale of our economic engagement especially trade and investment traffic" between the two nations. He described Tajikistan "a valued friend and strategic partner" of India and said the two countries face multiple-security challenges in their extended neighbourhood, including in Afghanistan. The Prime Minister said India and Tajikistan have decided to strengthen cooperation in fighting terrorism and radicalism in the region by way of exchange of information between the security agencies of the two countries. Chabahar Port Agreement brings Cheers to India "We agreed that peace in Afghanistan is very important for the region," Modi said. Modi appreciated Tajikistan's role in the Central Asian region "as a mainstay against the forces of extremism, radicalism and terrorism". Rahmon, who is visiting India from December 14-18, was earlier accorded a ceremonial welcome at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here. Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said it was "a special Saturday for Indian diplomacy" after President Rahmon received the welcome. IANS Why is BJP not bringing Uniform Civil Code across the country: Kejriwal in Gujarat BJP's tact to divert attention from Morbi, says a stung Kejriwal after Sukesh's claims Kejriwal slams Modi government for exempting political parties from tax India oi-IANS By Ians English New Delhi, Dec 17: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday criticised the government move to exempt political parties from income tax while depositing demonetised currency notes and accused them of holding most of the black money. Kejriwal's criticism came after the government on Friday exempted political parties from income tax while depositing old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 rupee notes. "Most of the black money are in the hand of political parties," Kejriwal said referring that the recent move will help the political parties in changing black money to white. The Delhi Chief Minister also targeted Congress vice President Rahul Gandhi over his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, termed it "a deal to hid unaccounted money". He said the decision to demonetise the higher currency notes was "unconstitutional" as it bared people from withdrawing their own money. IANS WB planning to opt out of Centre's 'One Nation, One Ration Card' scheme PM Kisan Yojana June 2021 Installment: Last date to apply and how to register online New scheme to declare unaccounted money starts from today India oi-Oneindia By Oneindia Staff Writer New Delhi, Dec 16: Finance Secretary Hansmukh Adhia on Friday urged people with unaccounted cash to make use of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana and declare their wealth. He said the declarations made under this new scheme would be kept confidential. Addressing the media personnel in New Delhi, Adhia said channels have been created for people to give government the information on conversion of black money to white. Unaccounted cash can be disclosed under PMGKY that comes with 50 per cent tax and penalty starting from tomorrow till 31st March, '17: Adhia pic.twitter.com/USxGpU5gWa ANI (@ANI_news) December 16, 2016 He said that the financial intelligence unit is monitoring and analysing deposit information, and would act accordingly. "Don't want inspector-raj to affect people, the people should understand that all information about their deposits is with the department," ANI quoted Adhia. PMGKY is a scheme similar to IDS except that the tax rate is higher at 50 per cent and a quarter of the declared income will be locked in for four years. The Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Bill, 2016 was passed by the Lok Sabha as a Money Bill on November 29 and the PMGKY scheme forms part of the Bill. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had earlier said that IDS was the last chance for people with undisclosed income. But with the deposits of old currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes rising sharply across the bank accounts since demonetasion, the government has decided to give another chance to those with unaccounted cash. A government website states that people with accounted money are supposed to show the reason for having such amount. In a major assault on black money, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on November 8 announced demonetisation of 500 and 1,000 rupee notes and asked holders to deposit such notes in banks. OneIndia News Five years of demonetisation: Notes in circulation on rise; so are digital payments PM Modi should admit that demonetistion a failure: Owaisi on cash seizure in UP Modi's notebandi will meet same fate as Congress' Nasbandi: Lalu India oi-IANS By Ians English Patna, Dec 17: RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav on Saturday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision of demonetisation saying it has failed and will meet the same fate as Congress's forced sterilisation in the mid-70s during the Emergency. Lalu also threatened to launch a protest against the anti-people decision of demonetisation along with like minded parties including ally JD-U in Bihar after the 50-day deadline fixed by Modi. "Notebandi Ka Wahi Haal Hoga Jo Congress Ka Nasbandi Ka Hua (Notebandi will meet the same fate as forced sterilisation)," Lalu said while addressing his Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) party leaders including legislators and workers here. Lalu also termed 'Notebandi' as 'Farzibandi' over the people. "It is not notebandi, it is farzibandi that has put common people in deep trouble," Lalu said, adding that Modi has cheated the people. Lalu reminded Modi of his promise made during the Lok Sabha polls of bringing back black money stashed abroad. "Black money has not come back and Rs 15 lakh, which Narendra Modi promised, has not been deposited in anyone's bank account," he said. Lalu has been opposing demonetisation since November, unlike his ally Janata Dal-United President and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who is supporting it. IANS Tuesday is now No Meeting Day in Haryana and officers to be with people on Friday Rs 30 lakh recovered from tailor in Chandigarh India oi-PTI Chandigarh, Dec 17: The Enforcement Directorate has recovered about Rs 30 lakh cash and 2.5 kg gold from the premises of a prominent tailor here as part of its operation to unearth illegal cash. The seizure comes three days after ED officials recovered Rs 2.19 crore cash from a cloth merchant here. Acting on tip off, the sleuths of ED swooped down on the premises of Maharaja Tailor in Mohali (Punjab) and at sector 22 in Chandigarh here. The seizure included Rs 18 lakh in Rs 2,000 denomination and while the rest was in Rs 100 and 50 denominations, ED official said here today. The ED sleuths said that they were verifying how the notes were exchanged and from whom, the owners of the shop bought the gold. Officials were examining the bill books of the shop. The owners of the tailoring shop had allegedly bought 2.5 kg gold at a rate of Rs 44,000 per 10 gram after demonetisation, they said. Investigations were underway, ED officials said. Rs 136 cr in cash, 209 kg gold seized from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka Meanwhile, the Chandigarh Police had arrested a senior bank employee of a private bank in Mohali for allegedly providing new currency to cloth merchant Inderpal Mahajan on commission basis. ED had seized Rs 2.19 crore including Rs 17.74 lakh in Rs 2,000 denomination, Rs 12,500 in Rs 500 denomination from the house of Mahajan on December 14. PTI Telangana youth attempting to join ISIS deported from Turkey India oi-Vicky By Vicky Hyderabad, Dec 17: Two persons were deported to India after Turkish officials found that they were attempting to join the ISIS. The duo who are residents of Telangana had travelled from the United States of America and Saudi Arabia to Turkey and were attempting to cross over into ISIS territory. Gufran and Hamid hailing from Warrangal and Hyderabad respectively are said to have been radicalised over the web. The duo who are friends had decided to join the ISIS. They are said to have been radicalised through an online forum of the ISIS. Hamid was working in the US while Gufran was at Saudi Arabia. After it was decided that they would be joining the ISIS, Hamid flew down to Jizan in Saudi Arabia from where he called his parents. He informed them that he along with Gufran would join the ISIS as they believed in its ideology. The parents immediately informed the police. The matter was then intimated to the Intelligence Bureau following which the issue was escalated to the Turkish authorities. Both the IB and the authorities in Turkey kept a close watch on their movements. The duo then landed in Turkey during the earlier part of this year. They were attempting to cross over into Syria with the help of a tout of the ISIS. However they were apprehended in Turkey. They were kept in jail for four months. Once the documentation process was completed from the Indian side, they were deported in the month of October. Upon their arrival in India, they were questioned by both officials of the Intelligence Bureau and the police. Officials of both agencies found that the duo were only attempting to join the ISIS. No offence per se had been committed and hence it was decided to counsel them. The process of counselling is still on said an Intelligence Bureau official. We are keeping a close watch on both of them as we want to ensure that they do not turn into repeat offenders. It is clear from what they have been saying that they were radicalised online. While one of them was surfing the net, they came in contact with an online handler of the ISIS who led them on to joining the outfit. Both began discussing the issue and then decided to join the outfit, the Intelligence Bureau official also said. OneIndia News Two killed in Kolkata slum fire India oi-IANS By Ians English Kolkata, Dec 17: Two charred bodies were recovered in a blaze in a north Kolkata slum on Saturday, an official from the fire department said. The fire gutted at least 20 shanties in Patipukur. According to reports, the blaze was first seen at around 3 am at Subhash Colony beside Patipukur railway tracks and it spread quickly. As many as 20 fire tender engines rushed to the spot. Later, police and fire services personnel recovered the burned bodies, who have been identified as school student Priya Adhikary and her uncle Nimai Adhikary, from a gutted shanty and rushed to a nearby hospital, where they were declared brought dead. However, the exact reason behind the fire is not known. "We have handed over the bodies to police. The fire could have been due to a cylinder blast. It is now under control," the official said. At least three locals were seriously injured in the incident and are being treated at R. G. Kar Hospital. IANS FIR against nine people over forced religious conversions in UP BJP leader booked for threatening doc at gun point in UP Pastor Vijay Masih arrested in UP for illegally converting Hindus to Christianity Demonetisation: UP receives Rs 5000 crore from RBI to meet cash crunch India oi-IANS By Ians English Lucknow, Dec 17: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Saturday flew in Rs 5,000 crore in a heavily guarded cargo plane to cash parched Uttar Pradesh, an official said. The state was reeling under a grave cash crunch since the November 8 demonetisition of higher currency notes, leading to chaos, anger and law and order situation at many places. The money soon after landing at the Chaudhary Charan Singh international airport was wheeled into the regional RBI office. The currency was sent to Lucknow for further distribution across the ATMs and banks includes Rs 500 and Rs 2000 notes. The cash will be distributed evenly between the RBI offices in Kanpur and Lucknow. IANS What purpose has demonetisation served: Uddhav Thackeray India oi-PTI Mumbai, Dec 17: Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday said the basic purpose of the Centre's demonetisation had been "defeated" as people were dying in bank queues and terrorist attacks were still taking place. Also read: Uddhav mocks BJP-Cong for Parl logjam over demonetisation "There are jawans who faced the enemy bullets and served the country....But after retirement they are unable to get their own money and it is extremely unfortunate that they are dying with their own bullets now," he said at a function here. "While announcing demonetisation, they (BJP) said it will eliminate the chances of terrorist attacks. But has it happened? Our jawans are dying as before," he said. Lashing out at the Union government over the hardship caused to common man, Shiv Sena chief also questioned the objective behind the decision. BJP MP Subramanian Swamy, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut and other Sena MPs were present on this occasion. Without naming Modi, Uddhav said, "Even if your intention is good, why are you causing agony to people? The Sena chief also took a swipe at Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad over his reported remark that pain caused by demonetisation was like "labour pain" and people will reap joy after it is over. "I want to ask Prasad whether he actually knows what labour pain is. Go and ask that pregnant lady who lost her life while standing in queue," Uddhav, whose party is an ally of BJP, said. Uddhav also challenged the Union ministers to announce their plans to construct the Ram Mandir (at Ayodhya). All Sena legislators and the entire Shiv Sena would stand "like a rock" behind the government in that case, he said. Meanwhile, Subramnaian Swamy, earlier today termed late Sena founder Bal Thackeray as the true face of Hindutva, adding that Uddhav was carrying forward his father's legacy very well. PTI 12 Burkina Faso troops killed in jihadist attack International oi-PTI Ouagadougou, Dec 17: At least 12 Burkina Faso soldiers were killed in what local authorities said was the biggest ever jihadist attack on the army, at a base near the restive border with Mali. "A detachment of our army's anti-terrorist force suffered a murderous attack which claimed the lives of 12 of our valiant soldiers and left some wounded," said President Rock Marc Christian Kabore yesterday, in an address to the nation. "I strongly condemn this horrible attack which shows the cruelty of these perpetrators," added Kabore, who did not specify the number of injured. Two more men were missing after around 40 jihadists riding pick-up trucks and motorbikes attacked the army's Nassoumbou base some 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the Burkina-Mali border, the high commissioner of Soum province, Mohamed Dah, earlier told AFP by phone. "They were heavily armed with Kalashnikovs and rocket-launchers. They opened fire at the depots, the tents and set fire to some of the vehicles," he said, adding that it was "the biggest jihadist attack ever perpetrated" against the army. Dah added that at least five attackers were killed although their bodies were removed from the scene by other assailants on motorcycles. A security source who asked not to be named said the assailants were wearing turbans and waving black jihadist flags. Troops at the Nassoumbou base are part of a 600-strong anti-terrorist battalion that was deployed in January 2013 when France sent in troops to counter a jihadist insurgency in northern Mali. This was the second direct attack against the Burkina army since jihadist assailants surfaced in the country in early 2015, mostly staging attacks in the north near the borders of Mali and Niger. But in January this year, three jihadists left dozens of people dead and 71 injured in an attack in the heart of the capital. Thirty people were killed when gunmen stormed the four-star Splendid Hotel and a nearby cafe in Ouagadougou. The Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) group behind a string of attacks in west Africa in recent years claimed responsibility for the strikes on the venues which were popular with Westerners. The army has, since 2012, had an anti-terrorist battalion deployed along the country's long border with Mali, an area which is frequently subjected to attacks and kidnappings. In October, Kabore had called on his countrymen to help fight back against the mounting jihadist threat. PTI 12-year-old planned 2 terrorist attacks in Germany International oi-IANS By Ians English Berlin, Dec 17: A 12-year-old boy attempted twice to launch terrorist attacks in the western German city of Ludwigshafen this and last month, a local prosecutor confirmed on Friday. The boy tried to target a local Christmas market on November 26 and the areas near the city hall on December 5 with explosives, but failed both times to ignite them, Xinhua news agency reported. The backpack with explosives was noticed by passengers near the city hall and reported to the police, prompting the next investigation. The boy, born in Ludwigshafen with dual German and Iraqi nationality, was allegedly strongly radicalised and could have been instigated by the Islamic State, local media reported. He is currently staying at the local youth office. He will not be charged because of his age, according to the prosecutor. IANS Obama: Syria's Assad, Russia and Iran have blood on hands International oi-PTI Washington, Dec 17: President Barack Obama has declared that Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime, Iran and Russia are responsible for the carnage in Aleppo and argued there was nothing Washington could have done to stop the war, short of a military takeover of Syria. And he warned Assad, who has been engaged in a brutal civil war against opposition forces since 2011, that he will not be able to "slaughter his way to legitimacy." "The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo," he told an end-of-year news conference yesterday. "This blood and these atrocities are on their hands," he said. Obama also admitted to reporters that he had asked himself whether the United States did enough to halt the conflict. "There are places around the world where horrible things are happening and - because of my office, because I'm president of the United States - I feel responsible," he said. "Is there something I could do that would save lives and make a difference and spare some child who doesn't deserve to suffer?" But the president said there had been no public appetite for the kind of large-scale US military intervention earlier in the war that he believes would have been the only way to halt it. "Unless we were all in and going to take over Syria we were going to have problems," he said. "It sounded like the right thing to do but it was going to be impossible to do this on the cheap." The US leader, who leaves office on January 20 to make way for President-elect Donald Trump, called for impartial observers to deploy to monitor efforts to evacuate civilians from the city. Obama's White House has been engaged in a diplomatic effort to convince Russia to bring Assad to the table to negotiate a peace deal with the Syrian opposition. But all attempts to secure a ceasefire have rapidly broken down, and now Russia is working with Turkey to oversee an evacuation of the last rebel-held pocket of Aleppo. Yesterday, the Syrian government suspended that operation, trapping thousands of civilians and rebel fighters in the city and increasing fears of a bloodbath to come. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that Aleppo had become "a synonym for hell" and urged "the parties to take all necessary measures to allow safe resumption of this evacuation process." Senior US officials, including Secretary of State John Kerry and Washington's ambassador to the UN Samantha Power, have warned Assad against carrying out a Srebrenica-style massacre. They have also warned the defeat of Aleppo will not end the civil war but instead foment extremism among Assad's opponents and have called for war crimes investigations. PTI Thousands in desperate wait for evacuation from Aleppo International oi-PTI Aleppo, Dec 17: Thousands of trapped civilians and rebels waited desperately on Saturday for evacuations to resume from the last opposition-held areas of Aleppo after the operation was suspended by the Syrian regime. A rebel representative told AFP that an agreement had been reached to allow more evacuations from the city, which has been ravaged by some of the worst violence of the nearly six-year war that has killed more than 310,000 people. But there was no confirmation from President Bashar al-Assad's regime or its staunch allies Russia and Iran, which are under mounting international pressure to end what US President Barack Obama denounced as the "horror" in Aleppo. Obama called yesterday for impartial observers to monitor efforts to evacuate civilians from the devastated city and warned Assad that he would not be able to "slaughter his way to legitimacy". Families spent the night in freezing temperatures in bombed out apartment blocks in Al-Amiriyah district, which was the departure point for evacuations before they were halted on Friday, an AFP correspondent reported. Many had not had a proper meal in days and were surviving on just a few dates. A lot of people had burned all possessions they could not carry with them, determined not to allow them to be looted by government troops and militia who have recaptured almost the entire city. Also read: Evacuation of people from east Aleppo still suspended The government blamed rebels for the suspension of the evacuation operation which had begun on Thursday, saying they had tried to smuggle out heavy weapons and hostages. The opposition accused the government of halting the operation in a bid to secure the evacuation of residents from Fuaa and Kafraya, two villages under rebel siege in northwestern Syria. In return the rebels want the evacuation of the towns of Madaya and Zabadani in Damascus province which are besieged by the regime. "We are working on a resumption of the operations today (Saturday)," said Al-Farook Abu Bakr, a representative of the hardline Islamist rebel group Ahrar al-Sham. "There will be evacuations from Fuaa and Kafraya, as well as Madaya and Zabadani, and all the residents of Aleppo and the fighters will leave." The precise number of people still trapped in the last rebel-held pocket southwest of central Aleppo is unclear. UN envoy Staffan de Mistura estimated that as of Thursday there were around 40,000 civilians and perhaps as many as 5,000 opposition fighters in the rebel enclave but the world body has since acknowledged there is uncertainty about the figures. PTI France: Three more charged over Nice truck attack International oi-PTI Paris, Dec 17: A French anti-terrorist judge has charged three more men suspected of helping to arm the Islamist radical who crushed 86 people to death with a truck in Nice, a judicial source said today. The three, who were among 11 arrested on Monday in Nice and the western city of Nantes, were remanded into custody yesterday, said the source. The other eight have been released. The three, aged 24, 31 and 36, were charged in relation to a terrorist plot. The arrests come five months after Tunisian extremist Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel ploughed a 19-tonne truck into a crowd on the Nice seafront, further traumatising a country reeling from a series of jihadist attacks. The victims from 19 different countries were watching a fireworks display on July 14, the Bastille Day public holiday. Over 400 people were injured. Six people have already been charged so far over alleged links to the 31-year-old killer but investigators have yet to prove that any of them knew what he was planning. They include an Albanian couple, Artan Henaj and Enkeledja Zace, and a French-Tunisian national, 21-year-old Ramzi Arefa, suspected of providing a pistol to the killer while not necessarily knowing what he was planning. Ohio University: Terrorism suspected in car-and-knife attack The three men charged Friday are linked to varying degrees to these suspects. The 31-year-old, born in Tunisia, is suspected of being an intermediary between the Albanian couple and Arefa, said a source close to the investigation. The 24-year-old, born in Albania and a cousin of Henaj, is suspected of being implicated in a transaction over a Kalashnikov. The Islamic State group moved quickly after the attack to claim Bouhlel as one of its followers. Nearly six months after the Nice attack, investigators are still trying to understand the killer's real motives. "There is a combination of (Islamist) radicalisation, a fascination for extreme violence and a background of psychological problems," said a source close to the case. Separately, an anti-terrorist judge charged a woman as part of a probe into a gang of female jihadists arrested after the discovery of gas cylinders packed in a car in Paris in September, said a judicial source Saturday. The 23-year-old, arrested Tuesday in Mantes-la-Jolie west of Paris, was charged yesterday in connection with the alleged plot, foiled after the potentially deadly car was left near Paris's Notre Dame Cathedral on September 4. AFP NMMSS Scholarship 2022: Here is the last date to submit application New IB, R&AW chiefs appointed by government New Delhi oi-Vicky New Delhi, Dec 17: Rajiv Jain will be the new chief of the Intelligence Bureau while Anil Dhasmana will head the Research and Analysis Wing. The new appointments were made by the government on Saturday. Jain takes over from Dineshwar Sharma as the IB chief. Dhasmana succeeds Rajinder Khanna. Rajiv Jain (1980 batch Jharkhand cadre), was the No.2 in IB, and was a frontrunner for the post. Jain was earlier state Intelligence Bureau, head for Delhi and Ahmedabad. In R&AW, the top choice was always the head of the Aviation Research Centre Anil Dhasmana (1980 batch, Madhya Pradesh). Dhasmana has held many important assignments of India's premier external intelligence agency. OneIndia News 2008-2022 One News Page Ltd. All rights reserved. One News is a registered trademark of One News Page Ltd. By PTI: Ahmedabad, Dec 17 (PTI) Stage is set for the 8th edition of the four-day Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, which begins on January 10, 2017 in Gandhinagar, state chief secretary J N Singh said today. As many as 12 countries and seven global organisations have joined as partner countries and organisations, he said. The Summit, being held on the theme, "Connecting India to the World," will also have representatives from various states attending the events, with Arunachal Pradesh and some other North-Eastern states having shown interest, while efforts are on to take neighbouring states on board, Singh added. advertisement The 2017 Summit will also see for the first time a five-week long Nobel Laureate Exhibition and panel discussions with 8-10 Nobel laureates in attendance, Singh said. Twelve countries which have partnered the Summit are Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Japan, Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, Sweden, UAE, UK, and the USA. Seven partner organisations - Australia India Business Council, Indo-Canada Chambers of Commerce, Japan External Trade Organisation, UAE India Business Council, UK India Business Council, US India Business Council, and British Council - will also support the Summit, Singh said. "The 2017 Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, to be held between January 10-13, will be the most exciting global event at least in India. It will by far exceed any such event being done by other states. It is also an example of cooperative federalism with several states setting up their platforms, and discussing their ideas," Singh told reporters here. He said Gujarat has received active support from Centres Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Department of Biotechnology, and Ministry of External Affairs for its organisation, which have guided the state in its organisation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, apart from inaugurating the Summit on January 10, will on January 9 inaugurate redeveloped Gandhinagar railway station which will have a multi-storey hotel at railway station, among other facilities as part of a pilot project plan to develop railway stations into socio-economic activities hub, he said. Modi will also inaugurate an international stock exchange of BSE at GIFT City and a Nobel laureate exhibition, a Global Trade Show on January 9. He will chair a Global CEO round table, which will be a closed-door event with select global and Indian CEOs on January 10, Singh said. (More) PTI KA PD NRB --- ENDS --- Earlier, Aamir Khan had requested Rajinikanth to dub for his Dangal character in the film's Tamil version. On Friday, Aamir revealed why Rajini said no to him. By India Today Web Desk: Earlier, it had been reported that Aamir Khan showed the Tamil-dubbed version of Dangal to Rajinikanth and that he requested Thalaivar to dub for his character Mahavir Singh Phogat in Tamil. But Rajinikanth politely refused. On Friday, at an event, Aamir Khan revealed why Rajini disagreed to dub for him in Tamil for Dangal. "The film is being dubbed in Tamil and Telugu, and yes, I did approach Rajini sir. Rajini sir also loved the film and after discussing it with him, both he and I decided that his voice is too recognisable," Aamir said. advertisement ALSO READ | Demonetisation has not affected me, I use credit card, says Aamir Khan ALSO READ | Aamir used steroids to get Dangal body? His coach won't confirm or deny On that note, Aamir added that he would love to work with Rajinikanth and that he would like to see Rajinikanth act in a Hindi film some day. "Whether he does a Hindi film or a Tamil film, we watch his films in any case. So, I would love for him to do a Hindi film. 2.0 is coming and I am looking forward to that. I would love to work with him again and I am a big fan of Rajini sir," said Aamir. Though Rajinikanth has earlier been seen acting in Hindi films, he has never dubbed for one. On the other hand, Aamir Khan has never done any Tamil film though contemporary Shah Rukh Khan did act in the bilingual film Hey Ram directed by and starring Kamal Haasan. Dangal is Aamir Khan's second attempt at a biopic in his two-and-a-half decade long career. Directed by Nitesh Tiwari, Dangal is the story of real life Haryanvi wrestler Mahavir Singh Phogat who trained his daughters Babita Kumari and Geeta Phogat to become world-class wrestlers. The film is released in theatres on December 23. WATCH | Aamir is electrifying and intense in Dangal's Dhaakad --- ENDS --- BJP president Amit Shah has slammed the BSP and the SP for trying to deflect attention of people in Uttar Pradesh by referring to demonetisation in order to hide their own failures. By India Today Web Desk: BJP president Amit Shah mounted a scathing attack against Bahujan Samaj Party president and a strong contender in UP assembly polls, Mayawati on Saturday while addressing a Parivartan Yatra rally at Shahjahanpur. Amit Shah accused Mayawati of indulging corruption. He said, "Mayawati is the most corrupt of them all". The BJP president also hit out at the ruling Samajwadi Party for opposing demonetisation. advertisement "You (SP) have ruled for five years with full majority. Show your report card to the people of Uttar Pradesh. Don't try to mislead the public by criticising demonetisation," Amit Shah said. READ| Demonetisation biggest step in 70 years; remonetisation will not take long 5 saal tak aapne(SP) purn-bahumat ke sath sashan kiya.UP ki janta ko hisab dijiye,Notebandi se gumrah karne ka prayas matt kariye: Amit Shah pic.twitter.com/5CQrvRaL93 ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) December 17, 2016 Amit Shah held both the SP and BSP responsible for the backwardness of Uttar Pradesh. "Uncle-nephew (Shivpal Yadav-Akhilesh Yadav fight) and Aunt-Nephew (Mayawati-Akhilesh) fights have prevented development in Uttar Pradesh," Amit Shah said. WATCH: 'OPPOSITION WASHED OUT WINTER SESSION' The BJP president lashed out the Opposition for the washout of winter session of Parliament over demonetisation. Amit Shah said, "Opposition wasted entire winter session by shouting. They did not have the will to hold any kind of discussion over demonetisation in Parliament." Opposition wasted complete #wintersession by shouting, they did not have the will to hold any kind of discussion: Amit Shah in Shahjahanpur pic.twitter.com/dWkiOxtBW8 ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) December 17, 2016 He also hit out at Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, who claimed that he had information about personal corruption of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "Rahul Baba, you don't ask any question from us. You always make a mess out it and cause damage for yourself," Amit Shah said. Rahul baba aap humse sawaal matt puchiye. Humesha gadbad ho jaati hai, aapka nuksaan ho jata hai: Amit Shah in Shahjahanpur pic.twitter.com/FHP7xGAtV0 ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) December 17, 2016 He appealed to the people to support PM Modi "in his fight against corruption". "Give PM Modi 50 days' time that he asked for after announcing demonetisation. It is pain for 50 days that will yield benefits for 50 years," Amit Shah claimed. READ| Note ban: 59 per cent people hoarding Rs 2,000 note --- ENDS --- TMZ.com 22 Oct 2022 It's time to GO BIG OR GOURD HOME with your pumpkin carvings, because Halloween is only days away! If you're feeling frightened.. Eurasia Review 02 Nov 2020 In the 1990s, within the scope of cost reduction in the textile textile industry, the search for a domestic coal-priority auto.. euronews (in English) 06 Sep 2022 On the Belgian naval base of Zeebrugge, a team of demining experts are testing the sonar capabilities of Remus, a yellow.. Bitcoin & Blockchain Conference Comes to Tallinn in March Published December 17, 2016 by Florin P On March 9, Tallinn becomes the world capital of Blockchain and cryptocurrencies, thanks to the event hosted by Smile-Expo. With the popularity of Bitcoin on the rise, the number of events dedicated to the crypto currency is also increasing. In early 2017, Tallinn will be hosting the Bitcoin & Blockchain Conference. This is the first large block chain conference in Estonia, organized by Smile Expo and will take place on March 9. It is a part of a wider network of Blockchain events, with Moscow, Kyiv, Prague and St. Petersburg hosting the other conferences. Prominent Speakers and Companies Get Together in Tallinn We will be following closely the Bitcoin & Blockchain Conference, one that focuses on both Estonian and foreign Bitcoin projects. The event will be well attended and among the participants, the hosts expect IT developers, investors, equipment and software manufacturers as well as entrepreneurs. The presence of prominent speakers is also supposed to attract more people interested in learning about the latest trends. These experts will talk about how Blockchain is implemented by governments, banks, healthcare and media. Since this is the first major conference devoted to crypto currency in Estonia, many important local players are expected to participate. The last time so many experts got together to discuss Blockchain and cryptocurrencies was on November 10 in Moscow. Major Topics of the Conference Smile-Expo Company is the one organizing the conference and it promises to gather notable experts under the same roof. The topics will revolve closely around Blockchain solutions and their usefulness in all spheres of government as well as private organizations. Innovative ideas, such as the import of medical charts into Blockchain for protection and superior access will be discussed. Participants will get to learn more about the latest IT projects that are expected to be implemented over the next couple of years. Innovators and developers will get to meet and interact on many levels with investors and businessmen capable of pushing their projects into overdrive. From Our Future Remember how the "news" media was going on and on about the Clinton Foundation -- at least when they weren't going on and on about Hillary Clinton's emails, or airing entire Trump rallies for free? Media "coverage" of the 2016 campaign was almost entirely devoid of discussion of the important issues. Climate change? Housing policy? Instead it consisted of media coverage of anything Donald Trump said -- including repeatedly giving free time to air entire Trump rallies -- insinuations about the activities of the Clinton Foundation and insinuations that Clinton did something illegal with her emails. (Even FBI Director Comey got in on that game.) What were voters to think? The "corruption" accusation was that Clinton was "selling access" by having meetings with people who had donated money to the Clinton Foundation charity. That was called a "criminal enterprise." Trump: Clinton Foundation 'a criminal enterprise' etc. etc. etc. etc. That Was Then This is now. Now is different from then. Ivanka Trump, who sits in on official meetings with foreign leaders, sits at the table while tech CEO oligarchs meet with the president-presumed-elect, etc., sells meetings for tens of thousands of dollars. This is not an insinuation; she actually and openly does this. NYT: Available to the Highest Bidder: Coffee With Ivanka Trump, "Ozan M. Ozkural, a London-based investment manager, found a creative way to gain one-on-one access to the new first family: He bid nearly $60,000 to have a cup of coffee with Ivanka Trump for a charity event she was hosting." This isn't an insinuation, not an inflated campaign accusation, the guy said he was doing it to buy access and information that others can't get. "Mr. Ozkural wanted to meet with Ms. Trump -- who is considering playing an informal role in her father's administration -- to gain insight into topics like President-elect Donald J. Trump's possible future dealings with Turkey and other nations where Mr. Ozkural invests, he said." What Trump called a "criminal enterprise" is now only "problematic": "The charitable fund-raising by Mr. Trump's children is problematic, ethics lawyers said, because of the unusual role they are playing in the transition process, with Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, attending meetings the president-elect had with executives from major technology companies and with the prime minister of Japan, and Mr. Trump's oldest son, Donald Jr., helping to select the nominee for interior secretary." That was then, this is now. Things change. The guy who won then with blue-collar votes is now staffing a cabinet of billionaires. Quartz: Trump's 17 cabinet-level picks have more money than a third of American households combined, "Affluence of this magnitude in a US presidential cabinet is unprecedented." Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). Jharkhand cadre IPS officer Rajiv Jain was today appointed as the new chief of Intelligence Bureau (IB) while Anil Dhasmana will head external intelligence agency RAW. By Manjeet Negi: Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) Special Director AK Dhasmana has been appointed as the next chief of the country's external intelligence agency. Considered to be an expert in Balochistan affairs, Dhasmana will take charge as the new chief on January 30, 2017. The 1981-batch Madhya Pradesh cadre IPS officer's domain of expertise is considered to be Balochistan, counter-terrorism and Islamic affairs. He also has a vast experience on Pakistan and Afghanistan. He has served in key capitals, including London and Frankfurt and has also handled SAARC and Europe desks. advertisement He succeeds Rajinder Khanna who completes his tenure this year end. Jharkhand cadre IPS officer Rajiv Jain was today appointed as the new chief of Intelligence Bureau (IB). Jain, who is at present serving as the Special Director in the IB, will take over on January 1 after the incumbent Dineshwar Sharma completes his two-year tenure on December 31. He was earlier state intelligence bureau head for Delhi and Ahmedabad. A recipient of President's Police Medal, the 1980-batch officer has served in various departments of the IB including the sensitive Kashmir desk. Both the officers will have a tenure of two years. --- ENDS --- My friend was on her second latte by the time I arrived at the coffee shop. "Rough morning?" I joked, as she put down her New York Times. "Actually, yes. Flashing back to my teens. Not a pleasant experience for anyone," she admitted. "It's this article. Wonder and Worry, As a Syrian Child transforms." She tapped the paper. "She has a beautiful smile," I noted. "Ah, the enthusiasm of youth. Before life blows out the flame." "I wish I shared your cynicism," she jibed. "My feelings aren't quite as civilized." I ordered my cappuccino, and skimmed through the article. "What do you mean? It just looks like the family is having some hard times adjusting to American, I mean Canadian, life. That's certainly understandable." Thanking the server, I took a whipped cream sip. "And kind of a typical immigrant story, no?" She shook her head. "No. I mean yes, but no. Look, my family came from Greece to the US in the 1950's. We were sponsored, too. But, we were expected to assimilate. Not only to learn English, go to American schools, but learn and practice American customs. My father was asked to change his name. My mother used to walk to the local grocer in Greece every day to buy one tomato, one cucumber, 2 eggs, and one cup of rice to make dinner. Our sponsor's wife led her to the grocery carts, and taught her how to shop weekly for the family instead." I couldn't help but smile. "Wish we still had Mom and Pop grocery stores." "When I was 11, my Girl Scout leader told my mother about deodorant. For me. I started using it. At 12, I had to beg my mother to shave my legs, so I wouldn't be teased by the other girls. I worked so hard, we all did, to fit in. To 'pass'." I winced. "Sounds tough. But that was the era of conformity, Mad Men and all." Another sip. "You know, you've always been you, an individualist, a leader, a free spirit." "Thanks to the sixties," she said. "A little. But my parents never really changed, or adapted. They brought Greece of the early fifties with them, and stayed in that country, even as modern Greece was mimicking Carnaby Street, Twiggy, and, soon, Sex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll." "I've read that. That adult immigrants, especially, cling to their native land, a land which no longer exists except in their memories." She nodded. "Greece, even during the junta, became very 'European', like Paris sophisticated. But my parents stayed in the past at a time when I wanted to live as an American teen and young adult. My mother had been born in the teens in a Greek enclave in the Ottoman Empire and spent her childhood in Western Turkey. She grew up rebelling against archaic standards, but still under the thumb of her father and oldest brother as refugees when the 1922 Catastrophe relocated them to Greece. She spent my childhood railing against the discrimination she felt as a woman by her family, and the envy of her brothers' lives and freedom. At the same time, she would tell me frightening stories of how young women who got pregnant out of wedlock back in Turkey were 'slaughtered'--her word--by their family in honor killings." "Oh, my, that's awful." I frowned. "I would have said that's ancient history, but, sadly, our Machiavellian imperialist-globalist strategy has led to the resurgence of abusive fundamentalism in many countries, and even in the Western world." Another nod. "She told me that women from these strict families would try to escape the restrictions by opting for anal intercourse in their secret relationships, or by having their hymens 'repaired' so they could be 'virgins' on their wedding night. We should be grateful that female circumcision never became a custom among the Christian refugees." I shook my head, speechless. Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). Progressive Content Not Found Sometimes, authors delete their progressive content after publishing. To see if the progressive content was renamed or re-published, please click here. Radiopharmaceutical Market Analysis, by Radioisotope, 2016 to 2024 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=B&rep_id=213 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/radiopharmaceuticals-market.html http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com https://tmrresearch.blogspot.com/ The global radiopharmaceutical market was valued at US$4.7 bn in 2015 and is estimated to reach US$7.4 bn by 2024, expanding at a CAGR of 5.3% from 2016 to 2024.Download Exclusive Global Strategic Business Report:Radiopharmaceutical Market: Scope and TrendsThis report on the radiopharmaceutical market analyzes the current and future scenario of the global market. Increase in incidence of various diseases, development of new sources for radioisotope production, and rise in demand for nuclear medicine are boosting the radiopharmaceutical market. Increase in incidence of cancer and cardiovascular diseases, growth in awareness about effective use of radiopharmaceuticals, and rise in preference for SPECT and PET scans are some of the factors expected to drive the growth of the global radiopharmaceutical market during the forecast period.The radiopharmaceutical market report comprises an elaborate executive summary, which includes market snapshot that provides information about various segments. It also provides information and data analysis of the global market with respect to the segments based on radioisotopes, source, end-user, and geography. A detailed qualitative analysis of drivers and restraints, and opportunities has been provided in the market overview section. Additionally, the section comprises Porters Five Forces Analysis to help understand the competitive landscape in the market. This section also provides market attractiveness analysis in terms of geography and market share analysis by key players, thus presenting a thorough analysis of the overall competitive scenario in the global radiopharmaceutical market.Radiopharmaceutical Market: SegmentationBased on radioisotope, the market has been segmented into Technetium-99, Lutetium-177, Rubidium-87, Iodine-123, Yttrium-90, and Gallium-62. Technetium-99 is the most widely used radioisotope across the globe; around 70% of radiopharmaceutical companies depend on Mo-99 to produce Technetium-99, as per the World Nuclear Association. The market segments have been analyzed based on available approved products, cost-effectiveness, and preference for technological systems by physicians and patients. The market size and forecast for each of these segments have been provided for the period from 2014 to 2024, along with their respective CAGRs for the forecast period from 2016 to 2024, considering 2015 as the base year.Based on source, the radiopharmaceutical market has been segmented into two major categories: nuclear reactors and cyclotrons. The market segments have been extensively analyzed based on increase in demand for radioisotopes for nuclear medicines, availability of radioisotopes and raw materials, radioisotopes short half-life and number of production units used for production of radioisotopes. Different types of end-user utilize radiopharmaceutical products to treat diseases either through imaging techniques or the therapeutics method.Under the end-user segment, hospitals plays a major role followed by ambulatory surgical centers, diagnostic centers, and others (such as universities, research laboratories, and pathology labs). The market size and forecast in terms of US$ Mn for each segment have been provided for the period from 2014 to 2024. The report also provides the compound annual growth rate (CAGR %) for each market segment for the forecast period from 2016 to 2024, considering 2015 as the base year. Application segment signifies the usage of radiopharmaceutical products through different disease indication such as oncology, cardiology, neurology, nephrology, gastroenterology, immunology and others. Oncology segment is the dominant sector which emphasizes the use of different radioisotopes for treating various cancers and overcome the side effects of therapeutics. Brachytherapy is a sub segment of oncology application which signifies the methods of treating cancer through implants, surgery or radiation technology. The segment is expected to have a significant growth during the forecast period.Geographically, the global radiopharmaceutical market has been categorized into five major regions and the key countries in the respective region: North America (the U.S. and Canada), Europe (the U.K., Germany, France, Spain, Italy, and Rest of Europe), Asia Pacific (India, Japan, China, Australia, and Rest of Asia Pacific), Latin America (Brazil, Mexico, and Rest of Latin America) and Middle East & Africa (South Africa, Saudi Arabia, and Rest of Middle East & Africa). The market size and forecast for each of these regions and the mentioned countries have been provided for the period from 2014 to 2024, along with their respective CAGRs for the forecast period from 2016 to 2024, considering 2015 as the base year.Radiopharmaceutical Market: Competitive LandscapeThe report also profiles major players in the global radiopharmaceutical market based on various attributes such as company overview, financial overview, product portfolio, business strategies, SWOT analysis, and recent developments. Major players profiled in this report include Advanced Accelerator Applications (AAA), Eckert & Ziegler, GE Healthcare, IBA Radiopharma Solutions, Lantheus Holdings, Inc., Mallinckrodt plc., Nordion, Inc., Siemens Healthineers, and Positron Corporation.Browse Full Research Report on Radiopharmaceutical Market:About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who us e proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:Browse market research blog: Global Opportunity in The U.S. and China Asthma and COPD Drugs Market http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=15857 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/us-china-asthma-copd-drugs-market.html http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com https://tmrresearch.blogspot.com/ U.S. and China Asthma and COPD Drugs Market: SnapshotThe market for asthma and COPD drugs in the U.S. and China is poised to present a steady incremental opportunity in the years to come. A rise in the affected patient pool, an improved diagnosis rate for respiratory diseases, and heightened patient awareness regarding treatment options are identified as the key factors driving this market.The U.S. and China asthma and COPD drugs market is expected to witness moderate growth in the first half of the forecast period, primarily due to the patent expiry of leading drug brands and price erosion in the market. However, by 2020, novel drugs are expected to enter the asthma and COPD drugs market, which is likely to push the market toward a positive future.The market is slated to expand at a modest CAGR of 4.1% over the course of the forecast period, rising from a valuation of US$13.0 bn in 2015 to US$18.7 bn by 2024.Request a PDF Brochure with Report Analysis:Recommendations from Global Bodies Drive Preference for Combination DrugsBased on drug class, in 2015, combination drugs held a prominent share of over 54% in the U.S. and China asthma and COPD drugs market. The segment is slated to witness high growth during the forecast period, which is attributed to the popularity of and preference for combination drugs. The launch of triple combination therapies currently in pipeline by companies such as Chiesi Pharmaceuticals, GSK, and Circassia is also responsible for the growth of this segment.Both in the U.S. and China, prescription is more inclined toward combination drugs as guidelines by Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) and Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) recommend them as a safer option for the management of asthma and COPD.An emerging drug class with the potential to create a prominent position in the U.S. and China asthma and COPD drugs market in the coming years is monoclonal antibodies. The launch of new products in this segment is anticipated to bolster its growth during the forecast period.U.S. Leading Market for Asthma and COPD Drugs; China Most LucrativeAccounting for a massive 81.4% share in the asthma and COPD drugs market by 2016, the U.S. is the clear leader and will continue its dominance through 2024. This can be primarily attributed to greater awareness among patients and higher prices of asthma and COPD drugs. New product launches, such as FDA-approved Nucala, and a rise in awareness initiatives through apps and educational programs have helped build a strong foundation for treatment in the U.S., making it a profitable country to invest in. Pipeline studies by major players for biologics as well as combination therapies is also a key trend observed over the years. Most prominent companies view the U.S. as a value market, and thus consider it an important part of their new product launch strategy.In terms of market size, however, the asthma and COPD drugs market in the U.S. is expected to initially decline owing to lower sales triggered by a decrease in revenue from off-patent blockbuster drugs. Nevertheless, new product launches are likely to drive the market from 2021 onward.Although China accounts for a much smaller share in the U.S. and China asthma and COPD drugs market, it has been identified to be an extremely attractive market, expanding at an impressive CAGR of 10.0% from 2016 to 2024. This is mainly driven by higher unmet medical needs in the country and a rise in the number of asthma patients. The growing incidence of COPD can be attributed to an increase in the number of smokers. A high growth rate, coupled with a low degree of competition in the market compared to the U.S., makes China an attractive investment option for makers of asthma and COPD drugs.Key companies in the U.S. and China asthma and COPD drugs market include GlaxoSmithKline plc, F. Hoffmann-La Roche, AstraZeneca plc, Novartis AG, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Merck and Co., Inc.Browse Full Research Report on Asthma and COPD Drugs Market:About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who us e proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:Browse market research blog: Global Allergy Diagnostics Market: Opportunity Map and Size 2024 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=5147 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/allergy-diagnostics-market.html http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com https://tmrresearch.blogspot.com/ The market is characterized by extensive research efforts and technological advancements and manufacturers have been focused on conducting R&D activities to develop more effective diagnostic techniques, optimized allergens, and automated systems.Request Sample pages of premium Research Report:Allergy Diagnostics Market: SnapshotThe global allergy diagnostics market is poised to witness healthy growth during the next few years, driven primarily by the rising instances of allergies around the world and significant growth in diagnostic and treatment options for the same. The opportunity presented by the global market was pegged at US$1.3 bn in 2015 and is projected to be worth US$3.8 bn by 2024, expanding at a strong CAGR of 12.8% therein.Allergy Diagnostic Consumables Hold Dominant Share in 2015By product, the consumables segment held the dominant share in the global allergy diagnostics market in 2015 and is likely to continue its lead throughout the forecast period. The low cost and high volume of consumables such as reagents and pipettes is the main factor responsible for the growth of the consumables segment.Based on allergen type, inhaled allergens led the global allergy diagnostics market. Factors such as increased hygiene, especially in western countries, the lack of exposure to allergens at an early age, changing climatic conditions leading to strong and longer pollen seasons, the rise in tobacco smoking, and increased air pollution around the world are expected to drive the inhaled allergens segment during the forecast period. However, changing food habits and the increased consumption of packed and processed foods will lead to phenomenal growth in the food allergens segment by 2024.Alarming Levels of Asthma and Inhaled Allergies Driving North America and Europe MarketNorth America led the global allergy diagnostics market with a share of more than 40% in 2015. According to the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI), approximately 26 million people in the U.S. suffered from allergic rhinitis in 2015, while around 15 million suffered from food allergies the same year. The lack of exposure to allergens in the early ages owing to increased hygiene levels in developed countries has led to the rising prevalence of inhaled allergies in the country. In addition to this, longer and stronger pollen seasons, technological advances in the field of allergy diagnostics, high per capita healthcare expenditure, and the increasing demand for better healthcare facilities are expected to drive the allergy diagnostics market in North America.Europe is also a prominent market for allergy diagnostics in terms of revenue. According to the Allergy Organization of U.K., an estimated 150 million people in Europe suffered from allergies in 2015, of which, around 17 mn were diagnosed with food allergies. In the U.K. alone, approximately 5.4 million people were suffering from asthma in 2015. This growing prevalence of various types of allergies is expected to boost the demand for allergy diagnostics in the region.The market in Asia Pacific is likely to expand at a phenomenal CAGR during the course of the forecast period. According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (IMCR), in 2014, around 17 million people in India suffered from asthma. Food allergies are the most prevalent form of allergies in Asia Pacific. According to the World Bank, around 84 million people in Asia Pacific suffered from food allergies in 2011. This will provide the allergy diagnostics market significant impetus during the forecast period.Key players in the allergy diagnostics market include Thermo Fischer Scientific, Inc., Quest Diagnostics, Inc., BioMerieux SA, Stallergenes Greer, Omega Diagnostics Group Plc, Siemens Healthineers, and HAL Allergy Group.Browse Full Research Report on Allergy Diagnostics Market:About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who us e proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:Browse market research blog: U.S. Bacterial Conjunctivitis Market: Drivers and Restraints 2024 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=12323 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/us-bacterial-conjunctivitis-drugs-market.html http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com https://tmrresearch.blogspot.com/ The U.S. market for bacterial conjunctivitis drugs has been declining sharply over the last few years. Analysts project the trend to continue in the coming years. In 2013, the markets opportunity was valued at US$473.3 mn, which is likely to reduce to US$439.8 mn by 2024. In the coming years, the market will have to experience a patent cliff as the top U.S. brands of bacterial conjunctivitis drugs, such as AzaSite, Zymaxid, Moxeza, and Vigamox, are set to lose their marketing exclusivity very soon.The growing genericization of antibacterial drugs has impacted the demand for branded drugs significantly. The generic versions of patented formulations, with almost same efficiency as the latter, are easily available at much lower rates in the market. This has increased the sales volume, albeit at the cost of revenues. Many branded ophthalmic drug manufacturers have incurred huge losses due to the generic cannibalization in this market.Rising Prevalence of MDROs Creates Serious Challenge for Markets GrowthApart from this, the rising prevalence of multi-drug resistant organisms (MDROs), triggered by wide usage of antibiotics, incorrect drug dosage, and inappropriate medications, has created serious challenges for the treatment of infections such as bacterial conjunctivitis. Researchers across the world are working on discovering efficient drugs for these MDROs. However, the non-availability of effective medications in near future is likely to hamper the markets growth over the coming years.Download exclusive Sample of this report:Although the market is facing a number of restraints at present, it may experience a little relief in future if the product development partnerships (PDPs) models for business are implemented by participants. As various research and development procedures incur a high amount, exerting substantial pressure on pharma companies, strategic alliances with small biotech research organizations will prove to be beneficial for both the parties.Market Encroachment by Generic Variations to Limit Demand for Topical FluoroquinolonesFluoroquinolones, macrolides, and aminoglycosides are the major classes of drugs used for the treatment of bacterial conjunctivitis. The demand for topical fluoroquinolones is the highest among all classes of bacterial conjunctivitis drugs in the U.S. However, the segment is projected to be hindered severely in the coming years, owing to the forthcoming patent expirations of bestselling drugs of this class, such as Vigamox, Moxeza, and Zymaxid by the end of 2016.The markets opportunity will also be hurt significantly over the next few years due to the encroachment by generic variations of these drugs and decline from US$361.9 mn in 2013 to US$286.4 mn by 2024.Imminent Patent Expiries to Hurt Leading Players SeverelyValeant Pharmaceuticals Int. Inc., Santen Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Pfizer Inc., Perrigo Com. Plc., Novartis AG, Merck & Co. Inc., F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., Bayer AG, Akorn Inc., and Actavis Plc. are leading the market for bacterial conjunctivitis drugs in the U.S. The imminent patent expiries is likely to hurt the business of these players significantly in the near future. However, the rising prevalence of bacterial infection in eyes and the increasing susceptibility to infection among individuals of various age groups may provide rewarding opportunities to participants over the next few years.Players are recommended to focus on developing herbal medicines for the treatment of bacterial conjunctivitis, as the consumer preference is shifting from pharmacological medicines to herbal treatment regimens.Browse Full Research Report on Bacterial Conjunctivitis Drugs Market:About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who us e proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:Browse market research blog: The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Ministry of Foreign Affairs Information and Public Relations Department issued a comment to Armenian NEWS.am, with respect to blogger Alexander Lapshin being detained in Belarus. December 17, 2016, 11:28 NKR MFA: Azerbaijan authorities again resorted to policy of intimidation STEPANAKERT, DECEMBER 17, ARTSAKHPRESS: The launching of a criminal case against and detention of famous blogger Alexander Lapshin causes serious concern. Azerbaijan, where pressures and political persecution being carried out on concocted pretenses against political and civil activists and journalists have long since become a tradition, is attempting to spread its standards of human rights beyond the borders of the country. Such demeanor is not solely an apparent violation of fundamental human rights, especially of freedom of movement and rights to freedom of expression, but is also a policy of intimidation, to which an adequate assessment should be given by the international community, the NKR MFA comment reads. Famous blogger Alexander Lapshin was detained in Belarus. The Azerbaijani authorities had issued a search for Lapshin, and for visiting Artsakh. Lt Gen Bipin Rawat has been appointed as the new chief of Army Staff and Air Marshal BS Dhanoa will take over as the new chief of Air Staff. By Manjeet Negi: Lt Gen Bipin Rawat has been appointed as the new chief of Army Staff and Air Marshal BS Dhanoa will take over as the new chief of Air Staff. Lt Gen Bipin Rawat is presently serving as VCOAS of the Indian Army from 01 September 2016. He was commissioned in the Fifth Battalion of the Eleven Gorkha Rifles in December 1978, from IMA, Dehradun, where he was awarded the 'Sword of Honour'. advertisement He has vast experience in high altitude warfare and counter insurgency operations. He commanded an Infantry battalion, along the Line of Actual Control in the Eastern Sector; a Rashtriya Rifles Sector and an Infantry Division in the Kashmir Valley. He has tenanted instructional appointments at Indian Military Academy, Dehradun and at Army War College, Mhow. Lt Gen Bipin Rawat has held important staff appointments at Directorate General of Military Operations and Military Secretary's Branch at Army HQ. WATCH VIDEO He has also been Major General General Staff at HQ Eastern Command. He commanded a Multinational Brigade, in a Chapter VII mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC). An alumni of Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, the Higher Command & National Defence College Courses, the General Officer, during the span of over 35 years service in uniform, has been awarded for gallantry and distinguished service with the UYSM, AVSM, YSM, SM, VSM, COAS Commendation on two occasions and the Army Commander's Commendation. Whilst serving with the United Nations, he was twice awarded the Force Commander's Commendation. Prior to taking over as the VCOAS, Lt Gen Bipin Rawat tenanted the appointment of the GOC-in-C, Southern Command. NEW AIR CHIEF Air Marshal BS Dhanoa will succeed Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha who will retire on December 31, 2016. Air Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa AVSM YSM VM took over as the Vice Chief of the Air Staff (VCAS) on 01 June 2015. He was commissioned in the IAF in June 1978 as a fighter pilot. He is an alumnus of Rashtriya Indian Military College, the National Defence Academy and the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington. Air Marshal Dhanoa is a Qualified Flying Instructor and has flown various types of fighter aircraft in his distinguished career. During the Kargil Operations, he commanded a fighter squadron and himself flew numerous night strike missions in the mountainous terrain. He has the distinction of having held a number of the important operational appointments including Station Commander of a fighter base and leader of an Indian Military Training Team abroad He has also served as Chief Instructor (Air) at the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (Intelligence) at Air Headquarters and Senior Air Staff Officer of two operational Commands. Prior to being appointed as Vice Chief of the Air Staff, the Air Marshal was the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the South Western Air Command. advertisement In recognition for his meritorious services, he was awarded Yudh Seva Medal (YSM), Vayusena Medal (VM) in 1999, and Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) in 2015 by the President of India. He is married to Mrs. Kamalpreet and they have a son Jasman who is pursuing law. Air Marshal Dhanoa has taken over as Vice Chief of the Air Staff from Air Marshal Ravi Kant Sharma PVSM AVSM VM ADC, who relinquished the office on 31 May 2015 after 40 years of glorious service in the IAF. --- ENDS --- Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has demanded setting up of a commission to investigate sources of funding of political parties after finance ministry said discontinued notes can be deposited in political parties' bank accounts. By India Today Web Desk: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has sought setting up of a commission to investigate source of funding of political parties alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi implemented demonetisation to benefit BJP. "Prime Minister Narendra Modi is busy in converting black money of political parties into white. It is a big fraud against the nation," Kejriwal said at a press conference in New Delhi on Saturday. advertisement Delhi Chief Minister's remarks have a day after it was clarified by the Income Tax department that donations made to political parties in discontinued currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 would not be under the scanner irrespective of the amount donated. READ| Tax exemptions to political parties subject to conditions BJP HOARDED BLACK MONEY Kejriwal said, "The entire nation is in doubt that the BJP managed its own thousands of crores of rupees black money before demonetisation was announced and after it was implemented it has hoarded black money, which it is in the process of converting into white." Kejriwal demanded that the BJP must make public all the purchases of land and other assets by its leaders just before demonetisation and after demonetisation. READ| Demonetisation biggest step in 70 years; remonetisation will not take long "We were saying it from the outset that Prime Minister's intent is doubtful (behind demonetisation)," said Kejriwal, adding, "We said it that the scheme is bad, intent is bad and implementation is also bad." WATCH: POLITICAL FUNDING VALID In a statement, the finance ministry said on Friday that discontinued notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 could be deposited by political parties till December 30 in their bank accounts without paying any tax. Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia said, "If it is a deposit in the account of a political party, they are exempt. But if it is deposited in individual's account then that information will come into our radar." The clarification came as a surprise to many political observers as the Election Commission of India has repeatedly said that black money often found way to political parties' fund, which unduly impacts polls. WATCH VIDEO: --- ENDS --- Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols Sunday Trinity Episcopal Church in Bay City will present its annual Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 18. Rev. Susan Rich is the officiant. The service will feature Exultate Deo Chamber Choir, Robert Sabourin, director, Nicholas Schmelter, organist, and Jett Whitehead, acolyte. The service, made famous by the Choir of Kings College Chapel in Cambridge, England, is composed of prayers and readings from the Bible highlighted by Christmas carols sung by the choir and congregation. Readers for this year are the Rev. David Aukerman, Monica Borrello, Madden Brady, Janet Hool, Mickie Leibrand, Pat Maxim, Nancy Mayhew, Jett Whitehead and the Rev. Susan Rich. The service is open to the public and free of charge. Trinity Episcopal Church is located at 815 N. Grant St. Friends of Music will host a reception in the guild room following the service. For more information, call (989) 892-5813. First Baptist Church plans Christmas activities First Baptist Church, 915 East Sugnet, has planned several special Christmas activities. A Christmas Eve Candlelight Service takes place at 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 24. Youth will re-enact the Christmas story. There will also be carol singing and candle lighting. Christmas morning service in the chapel takes place at 9:30 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 25. This is a casual service and children are invited to come in their pajamas and to bring one present to unwrap during this special service. There will also be a casual service at 9:30 a.m. Sunday, New Years Day. Memorial Presbyterian hosting Christmas services Memorial Presbyterian Church will host special services for Christmas. The festivities begin at 5 p.m. on Christmas Eve as the church celebrates the birth of baby Jesus at its annual unrehearsed Christmas pageant. Children are encouraged to come dressed as shepherds, angels, wise people and stable animals, or they can borrow a costume when they arrive. While youth retell the story of that night, the children are invited up to be a living part of the Christmas nativity. Following the service, there will be Christmas cookies and fellowship in Mayton Hall. At 9 p.m. there will be a traditional Christmas candlelight celebration filled with songs of praise, the Chancel Choir and handbells. Come early for Christmas cookies and a handbell recital. The traditional worship service takes place at 10 a.m. Sunday. Candidates for state-wide office recently reported the amounts they spent on this years election. The Post-General Campaign Finance Report is the final report required by the state for each candidate that spends or has received over $1,000. During the two-year election cycle, Rep. Gary Glenn, R-Midland, outspent his Democratic challenger, Geoff Malicoat, $157,769 to $15,286. In his re-election to represent the 98th District, Glenn also took in a two-year total of $205,845 in contributions and other receipts, including $11,320 during the Post-General filing period. During the filing period, Glenn received $1,000 from Axcess Financial Services PAC. LKQ Corp. Employee Good Govt Fund, a distributor of vehicle parts and accessories, and Engie North America Inc. PAC, a non-residential retail electricity supplier, each donated $750 to his campaign. Frankenmuth PAC and Comerica Inc. PAC each gave $500. During the reporting period, Glenn had $78,884.85 in expenses. Of that amount, $65,674.27 went to repay personal loans and $1,184.35 went toward interest on those loans. The Post-General report saw Malicoat list $3,045 in total contributions, along with $3,270 of total expenditures. The competitive race for the 99th seat saw significant expenditures by the candidates, PACs and outside interests. Even though Democrat Bryan Mielke raised more and spent more, Republican Roger Hauck won by a 54.55 to 45.44 percent margin. Hauck raised $20,125 in total contributions and other receipts during the Post-General period. The Midland County GOP and 4th District GOP each donated $5,000; $1,400 came from the Jim Tedder Vision Fund; and $1,000 each from Greater Rochester Leadership Fund, Joe Graves Leadership Fund, Frankenmuth PAC, and Dow Chemical Co. Employees PAC; the Garcia Majority Fund spent $750. The election cycle saw Hauck receive a total of $175,227. Mielke raised $193,553 in total contributions and other receipts. The Post-General saw him list $15,250 in contributions, including: $3,000 each from the UAW and Teamsters 332 PAC; $2,000 from the Teamsters Drive PAC; and $1,000 each from Equality Michigan Pride, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Mich., and the Michigan League of Conservation Vote. The Midland County Democratic Party, Command Officers Association of Michigan, and Making our State Stronger each donated $500. Both candidates received huge chunks of money from their respective House campaign committees for the election that was determined to be one of five key races in the state. Hauck received in-kind contributions totaling $187,317 from the Michigan House Republican Campaign Committee during the Post-General period and $264,240 for the two year cycle. During the Post-General period, Mielke received $138,379 of in-kind contributions, all from the Michigan House Democratic Fund. Overall, he received $330,531. The two year cycle saw Mielke outspend Hauck, $200,909 to $165,657. By India Today Web Desk: Tamannaah Bhatia, who will be remaking the Hindi blockbuster film Queen in Tamil, says the most unexpected thing so far has been being part of SS Rajamouli's epic fantasy drama Baahubali: The Beginning. WATCH: Baasha Trailer ALSO READ: Kamal Haasan to revive Marudhanayagam "It came to me when I was going through the lowest lows of my career. After a series of failures, to be part of a project like Baahubali: The Beginning is dream-like, and it's easily the most unexpected thing of my career," Tamannaah told IANS. advertisement Unlike the first part, where she played a rebellious warrior Avantika, Tamannaah says she has a better role in the sequel. "It's a really good role. We still have some minor portion to shoot which will be wrapped up in December," she said. "I would die and even kill if required to be part of Baahubali," she quipped. Baahubali: The Conclusion is nearing the last leg of shooting. Directed by SS Rajamouli, the film is scheduled for a worldwide release on April 28, 2017. The film starring Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Anushka Shetty and Tamannaah Bhatia grossed Rs 600 crore. --- ENDS --- During this last full weekend before Christmas, the Michigan State Police will joining agencies across the United States in an effort to make travel safer by participating in the annual Operation C.A.R.E. Lifesaver Weekend. The purpose of this initiative is to reduce traffic injuries and fatalities resulting from crashes caused by dangerous driving behaviors. This weekend is typically a very busy travel period due to celebrations, shopping and other functions, stated Col. Kriste Kibbey Etue, director of the MSP, in a media release. Troopers will be taking a zero-tolerance approach to impaired drivers and motorists who are exhibiting any unsafe driving practice, including not wearing their safety belt, running red lights and drowsy and distracted driving. MACKINAW Julie Conn and Julie Troup delivered more than a poinsettia to Diane Hahn and children Eric Hahn and Carly Mitzelfelt on Friday afternoon at Mackinaw Valley Vineyard. They delivered a message that a friend is remembered during the Christmas season. The friend is Paul Hahn, who died of colorectal cancer on Nov. 18 at age 62 at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, Peoria. The message was delivered to his wife and two of their six children by Conn and Troup Saint Francis oncology nurses who helped to care for Hahn during his long hospitalizations at Saint Francis. "When you're at Saint Francis, you get to know the staff," Diane Hahn said after accepting the poinsettia. "It's nice to know that (relationship) continues after your family member is gone." The Hahn family is not alone. Sixty-seven poinsettias are being delivered by five Saint Francis oncology nurses and patient care technicians during the next week. The 67 flowering plants are going to family members of Saint Francis oncology patients who died this year. The five oncology unit employees plan to personally deliver each plant to a family member at their home. While most are in the Peoria area, deliveries are being made as far away as Bloomington-Normal, Galesburg, Monmouth, East Moline, Oglesby, Macomb and Kewanee. The oncology nurses and techs are coordinating with families, figuring out directions and making deliveries on their own time and using their own vehicles. They are presenting poinsettias that have been purchased with money from bake sales and donations. The poinsettia program started 20 years ago with two nurses making six or seven deliveries. "It started because several patients were lost who the nurses had gotten quite close to," Conn said. "They wanted the families to know they were thinking about them during the holiday season. What better way than with the Christmas flower, the poinsettia? "It continued on and became a tradition," Conn said. "We develop close relationships with many of our (cancer) patients and their families because some of them are with us for weeks at a time," Conn explained. "When we lose a patient, it's like losing one of our own." "Our patients have impacted my life more than they will ever know," Conn continued. "The patients show us every single day what it takes to fight to live. Even though they are gone, the living plant is a symbol that they are alive inside of all of us." Conn and Troup were glad that this year's poinsettia deliveries began at Mackinaw Valley Vineyard, which was owned by Paul Hahn. "It makes me smile just to think of Paul," Conn said. "I loved taking care of him. He had a tenacious spirit. He stayed positive in every situation." Hahn was diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer in 2012 after having a colonoscopy at age 58. "He was screened eight years too late," Diane Hahn said. Chemotherapy, radiation and surgery followed. But the cancer spread and Hahn was on chemotherapy and in and out of Saint Francis during his final two years of life, Diane Hahn said. He became an advocate for colorectal cancer screening and urged anyone who would listen to get a colonoscopy beginning at age 50, Diane Hahn recalled. The timing of Friday's delivery shortly before Christmas was good, Diane Hahn said. "Paul would have liked this," she said. "If people would accept the message of Christmas, it would be a better world." SPRINGFIELD As Illinois enters a new period of heightened budget uncertainty, colleges and universities must again decide whether to front grant money for low-income students who are supposed to be receiving state aid. A new survey from the Illinois Student Assistance Commission, which administers the grants through the Monetary Award Program, suggests some schools that covered the grants in the fall arent making guarantees for the spring. Of the 96 colleges and universities that responded to the survey, 53 percent said they would guarantee the funding for the spring semester, down from 60 percent in the fall. Because the commission didnt receive responses from 36 schools whose students are eligible to receive MAP grants, it cautioned against drawing overarching conclusions from the responses. It is important to note that institutions that are crediting student accounts for MAP or listing the award as pending are doing so with the expectation that they will receive payment for MAP from the state, the commission added. When lawmakers and Gov. Bruce Rauner approved a stopgap spending plan thats funding higher education and most other state operations through Dec. 31, they included money to finish paying off last years MAP grants. No money was included for the current year, however, leaving public and private universities and community colleges to decide whether to credit students accounts for the grants as many had the previous year. While nearly all public universities covered the grants this fall, only two-thirds are committed to covering them in the spring, according to the survey. Among those that have made the guarantee are Illinois State, Southern Illinois, Eastern Illinois and Western Illinois universities, school officials said. Among private colleges and universities that responded to the survey, 70 percent said they covered the grants in the fall, but only 65 percent have made a guarantee for the spring. Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington is one of the schools that is changing its policy for the upcoming term. While it covered the grants for all eligible students this fall, it will only do so on a case-by-case basis in the spring, spokeswoman Ann Aubry said. We are hopeful the state budget will be resolved, and will lobby on our students behalf with our local legislators, Aubry wrote in an emailed statement. Were committed to working with our students to identify alternative funding sources to replace the fall and spring MAP Grant funds in full or in part not provided to them by the state. This will not be a one-size-fits-all approach, but will be personalized and take into consideration the individual needs of those impacted by this state budget crisis. The percentage of community colleges that plan to cover the grants in the spring actually went up to 39 percent from 27 percent in the fall, according to the survey. A majority of schools that are covering the grants said they would require students to repay them if the state doesnt come through with the money or reduces the funding level for the program. That could ultimately mean problems with enrolling for classes, transferring to other schools or graduating for low-income students who cant afford to repay their schools. More than half of those who said they would require students to pay the shortfall or were undecided about whether to do so indicated that a students failure to pay the shortfall will prevent the student from enrolling or transferring with a transcript, the commission said. BLOOMINGTON Central Illinois residents are advised to watch out for icy roads and to bundle up this weekend as freezing drizzle gives way to snow and then arctic cold. The National Weather Service in Lincoln issued a winter weather advisory Friday afternoon that will remain in effect until 6 a.m. Sunday for much of the region. The agency also has issued a wind chill advisory to take effect at midnight and extending until noon Sunday; wind chills of 15 to 20 below zero are expected. A winter weather advisory means that periods of snow, sleet or freezing rain will make travel difficult and motorists should be prepared for slippery roads. A winder chill advisory alerts residents that being outdoors can lead to frostbite and hypothermia if precautions are not taken. If you go outside, wear a hat and gloves and dress in layers. Freezing drizzle that began Friday afternoon and is expected to continue Saturday morning caused several accidents in Central Illinois, but local and state police say all were minor and only one had minor injuries. Interstate 74 between Bloomington and Downs and around Carlock and Interstate 55 throughout Central Illinois were slick for much of the evening and saw several cars go into ditches. At Central Illinois Regional Airport in Bloomington, American Eagle canceled a flight from Dallas expected to land at 10:22 p.m. Friday. Because the plane did not reach CIRA, the corresponding return flight departing at 7:22 a.m. Saturday also was canceled. Delta reported a flight from Atlanta expected at 10:36 p.m. Friday also was delayed. The Pantagraph will publish an updated list of cancellations on pantagraph.com as they are submitted to our newsroom. You can submit a cancellation or delay by emailing our newsroom at newsroom@pantagraph.com. Cancellations are subject to verification and will only be accepted online. Precipitation between Friday and Sunday will vary between snow, rain and freezing rain, said Matt Barnes, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Lincoln. The freezing rain will switch to just rainfall in Bloomington by Saturday morning and the high temperature will be around 35 degrees Saturday, he said. The rain will continue Saturday morning and Barnes said as the system leaves the area, the temperatures will start dropping again by Saturday afternoon. The rain will change back to freezing rain and end with another period of light snow Saturday afternoon and evening, said Barnes. The latest NWS forecast calls up to 1 inch of snow by Saturday night. Bitterly cold air is expected to blow in after the snow, and wind chill readings likely will plunge to below zero by Sunday morning. The bitter cold likely will remain in the area through Monday morning with wind chill factors of 15 to 20 below zero. As far as any travel, Sunday would be the better day since there is no precipitation. It will be dry, but very cold with below zero wind chills, said Barnes. Travel on Saturday might be a little tricky later in the day because of the freezing rain and snow. This service applies to you if your subscription has not yet expired on our old site. You will have continued access until your subscription expires; then you will need to purchase an ongoing subscription through our new system. Please contact the Parsons Sun office at (620) 421-2000 if you have any questions In March 2015 an insane Chinese Android OEM by the name of LeEco likened Apple to Hitler in a smartphone ad using images that you can see in our story's cover graphic. Their reckless, irresponsible ego maniac CEO struck out at Apple by saying that "Apple's approach to the smartphone industry is stifling innovation and harming the interests of users." Considering that iPhone 6 mania had had swept the globe and crushed Samsung and every smartphone OEM in China, the backlash against Apple was the reaction of a nationalist gone crazy. Even though the backlash against LeEco instantly forced LeEco's CEO Jia Yueting to apologize, he was back a month later on CNBC saying in an interview that Apple is outdated. Flash forward to now and outdated Apple just came off of six straight quarters of taking a whopping 91% of smartphone industry profits with the highest Android OEM Huawei taking a measly 2%. Where was LeEco and their great innovative Android smartphone? Ha! who knows because they don't register anywhere on the planet that matters. But we'll touch on that a little later in the report. Yet one thing is for sure, big mouth Yueting's company is in deep financial trouble. The Wall Street Journal reported a week ago that "The listed unit of LeEco Holdings called 'Leshi Internet Information & Technology Corp.,' founded by Chinese billionaire Jia Yueting, said it is planning changes to its business following a slide in share price that forced the fast-growing tech company to halt trade on the stock market. "To protect the interests of the company and of many investors, the company needs to halt trade and investigate these matters," Leshi said in their financial filing." Mr. Jia wrote in the letter to employees that said: 'As we sped ahead blindfolded, and expanded our business by burning cash, we got overstretched in our global strategy.' Leshi, which is LeEco's only profitable business unit, said in the filing that it will resume trade after investigating the stock-price decline and making some strategic decisions." In a newly published report today from Beijing, Jia Yuemin, vice president of the group's holding company Le Holdings, and an older brother of the company's founder and CEO Jia Yueting, revealed the company's restructuring blueprint. Yuemin noted that "LeEco has entered its second phase of growth from the previous expansion phase.' Instead of aggressive expansion, further noted that the company's goal in the second phase is to rein the business in and be more profit-oriented. "We were hoping to tap into broader markets, but considering the current situation, it is better off focusing on structural adjustment," he said. Delaying an earlier plan, "LeEco will not tap into a new sector for the next five to 10 years -- at least not for five years." That sounds like the bankers put the big squeeze and handcuff's on their run amuck CEO. LeEco will now focus on cost-cutting. "We will lay off about 10% of our workers," said Jia. Currently there are 13,000 to 14,000 across the world working for LeEco. Their VP then drifting into a delusional side step saying that they will surpass Samsung electronics in TVs within a couple of years. While I'm not a fan of Samsung, their takeover of Visio isn't likely to beat Samsung, especially in profits or on the high end of TVs. Now, back to LeEco's oh-so-great smartphone that was to overtake the iPhone in China. Today's Beijing report notes that buoyed by the success of their YouTube like video service, the company quickly expanded into smartphones. However, this business has been disappointing. Filings by the holding company in May revealed its net loss last year widened to 174.49 million yuan ($25.3 million), from 17.53 million yuan from a year ago. Jia blamed the company's smartphone losing venture to a cash crunch. "The pace of expansion was too fast, so our supply chain capability couldn't catch up with the speed." To cut costs, the company will sell its smartphones via its 10,000 TV sales outlets in China. Apple crushed LeEco and every Android smartphone maker on the planet when it came to profits this year. LeEco's brash and insulting CEO couldn't persuade the smart Chinese youth to leave Apple's hot iPhone for a losing brand. And the so-called 'outdated Apple' is still one of the most valuable technology companies on the planet run by executives who understand how to make killer profits year in and year out and still hold sway to have loyal customers stand around the block to get their hands on the next new iPhone. That's sure better than having bankers lining up at the company's door wanting to be paid, wouldn't you say? LeEco: What a loser. About Making Comments on our Site: Patently Apple reserves the right to post, dismiss or edit any comments. Those using abusive language or behavior will result in being blacklisted on Disqus. Trump to face Putin reckoning if Iran nuclear deal annulled: EU's Mogherini 12/11/16 Source: Press TV EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini says the US will have to face Russia if President-elect Donald Trump decides to back away from the Iran nuclear deal. Mogherini made the remarks in a Wednesday interview with The Wall Street Journal, adding that it was impossible for Trump to demand fresh concessions from Iran in relation to its nuclear program. EU Foreign Policy chief Federica Mogherini during a visit to Tehran in April 2016 (photo by Islamic Republic News Agency) "It is an international agreement in the framework of the United Nations," she said. "There is no way the agreement can be reopened bilaterally," she added. During his presidential campaign, Republican Trump, who defeated his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton in the November 8 election, had promised to annul the deal, which he referred to as a "disaster" and "the worst deal ever negotiated." "I think it is in the interest of the United States that the deal continues to be implemented," noted Mogherini. She went on to warn that one of the first fallouts of a US decision to back down from the deal would be a clash with Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose country is a signatory to the nuclear agreement. The US Senate on December 1 voted to extend the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) for another 10 years. The sanctions law, which would authorize the US president to re-impose sanctions on Iran, was first adopted in 1996 to punish investments in the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program and its support for anti-Israeli resistance groups. The ISA now needs President Barack Obama's signature to turn into law. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Tuesday that Iran had warned that the approval of the ISA would amount to a breach of the nuclear deal. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was signed between Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council - the United States, France, Britain, Russia and China - plus Germany in July 2015. Under the JCPOA, Iran undertook to put limitations on its nuclear program in exchange for the removal of nuclear-related sanctions imposed against Tehran. "The President-elect seems inclined to define his choices...on the basis of American interests," she said. "The fact that the deal is fully implemented by both sides has delivered on the impossibility for Iran to have a nuclear weapon," she added. Brodie sat against a trash can on the floor of the Terminal 5 screening area at Los Angeles International Airport, his towering frame hunched over in morose contemplation. He was supposed to board a Delta Airlines flight to New York City with his friend, but there he was, alone and abandoned after failing to make it past security. It wasnt like his pal didnt vouch for him it just turns out you cant bring a 9-foot-tall plush teddy bear on board as a carry-on. On Wednesday, the Transportation Security Administration shared a heartbreaking/hilarious image of the aftermath of Brodies ordeal on its Instagram account, reminding travelers to check with airlines ahead of time about their oversized carry-ons. Why does this gigantic teddy bear look so sad? He was abandoned by his owners at LAX after the airline and TSA determined that he was just too big to be screened as a carry-on and taken on the plane, the agency explained in a caption. Its a good idea to check with your airline prior to traveling with overly large items as carry-ons. If you see this wayward bear strolling the streets of LA, please feel free to feed him. The TSA often shares images on Instagram of items passengers try to get through security or tweet them questions about sometimes strange ones. By Thursday, the teddy bear post had 12,500 likes and carried an update: it turns out the whole thing was a stunt by a popular YouTuber. Jake Paul had documented last weeks failed attempt to get the massive bear on board with him in a 13-minute-long video shared with his nearly 923,000 subscribers, complete with a memorial montage. As for the whereabouts of so-named Brodie Da Bear? TSA spokeswoman Lorie Dankers said he is in the custody of Airport police, exact whereabouts unknown. But the TSA has received multiple calls from people interested in adopting him, she said. A Delta spokeswoman who didnt find the incident very funny said only that it was a publicity stunt and we offered the passenger a solution to check the item. She deferred further questions to the TSA. TSA social media analyst Bob Burns detailed the series of events on the agencys blog, saying Delta offered Paul a refund for Brodies plane ticket. Agents tried to get the bear through a screener a struggle captured in Pauls video but he was simply too massive to fit. Paul then declined to check Brodie as baggage, which would have enabled him to be scanned in a more accommodating screener, the TSA said. If something cant be taken into the cabin of the aircraft, travelers are always given the option to check items, mail them to themselves, or take them out their car or a friend or family member who might be waiting, Burns wrote. Our officers dont enjoy having to tell you that something cant fly. Contact the writer: mbarnes@scng.com@meg_barnes on Twitter Things are going to take a romantic turn in the Bigg Boss house tonight. By India Today Web Desk: Things are going to take an interesting turn in the Bigg Boss house tonight. Both Gaurav Chopra and Bani Judge will play the role of a madly-in-love couple as a part of a task. Also read: Bigg Boss 10 Day 60: Om Swami on a hunger strike; Gaurav apologises to Bani advertisement Lopamudra Raut will be seen in a vamp-like avatar, as she will try to part 'lovers' Gaurav and Bani. The sketch will be a part of tonight's task as soap stars Karanvir Bohra and Adaa Khan will make their appearance on the reality show as special guests. In the sketch, Lopa will try to poison Gaurav, declaring that she would not let Bani have anything. Wow! Looks like the celebs will try to re-create some entertaining moments of daily shows in their own style. The video posted by the official handle of the show on Twitter sure promises a lot of masala and laughter, and we just can't wait for the episode to air! What about you? Bigg Boss Season 10 airs every Mon-Fri at 10:30 pm, and every weekend at 9 pm. --- ENDS --- UC Riversides embattled second-in-command, Paul DAnieri, announced his pending resignation Friday afternoon. DAnieri, the campus provost and executive vice chancellor said he will step down at the end of the school year in June. In recent days, the schools faculty senate had launched the preliminary process for a no-confidence vote in DAnieris leadership. At a recent town hall meeting, organized by the faculty senate, professors complained about DAnieris management style. They characterized it as top-down, in sharp contrast to the shared governance where faculty collaborates with the administration on decisions that has long been part of the UCs stated philosophy UCR Chancellor Kim Wilcox said DAnieri came to him and proposed stepping down. I give him great credit for putting the institution first and wanting to move ahead, Wilcox said. Under DAnieri, the campus had made important strides in student success, research stature, and faculty diversity, Wilcox said in a written statement. DAnieri came to UCR in June 2014 from the University of Florida, where he was dean of the liberal arts college. According to the UCs wage database, DAnieri was paid $379,958 in gross wages in 2015. In a letter emailed campuswide, DAnieri said he realized his vision of his role was in conflict with that of the faculty. These differences have made it difficult to achieve the level of unity that I believe we need to move forward, DAnieri wrote. Those same differences were highlighted at the recent town hall meeting and subsequent interviews with faculty. Much of the friction centered on the ambitious growth programs that Wilcox announced shortly after arriving at UCR in August 2013. He planned to add an additional 300 faculty a nearly 50 percent increase by 2018. He wanted to construct additional buildings and increase the student population. Much of the responsibility for making that happen fell on DAnieri. Physics professor Ward Beyermann said it would have been a daunting task for anyone. It was a tough job, Beyermann said. On the other hand, when youre confronted with this type of challenge, you want to consult. One of the reasons is, the faculty understand the history of the institution and have some pretty good ideas of how to meet those challenges. That consultation didnt happen, he said. A new style of hiring was implemented that drew the ire of many professors. A faculty survey last spring condemned the way the hiring was carried out. In addition, faculty was hired at a pace where classroom and office space were not always available. Researchers have been stuck without laboratory space to conduct experiments. Some faculty blamed Wilcox for hiring too many outside administrators. DAnieri was the most prominent among them. John Cioffi is a professor of political science and vice chairman of the academic senate. He said faculty members are not averse to people from outside the campus taking leadership roles. There were people brought in who had no experience of the University of Californias rather distinctive shared-governance practices and institutions, he said. That is what the faculty was concerned about. Cioffi and other faculty members said they were guardedly optimistic that DAnieris resignation would begin a better chapter for UCR. I and my colleagues are confident we can move forward, he said. I think the prevailing emotion is one of relief, kind of a resolve to get to work on it. There is a lot of work to be done. Wilcox said he is expecting a resolution on many of the issues recently raised. A week after the town hall meeting, he responded with a number of proposals he plans to implement to address the problems. He was hoping, at the time, that action would be sufficient. He even asked the academic senate to target him with its no-confidence vote, rather than DAnieri. He said not all faculty members wanted to see the provost go. Almost every day I get stopped on the sidewalk by people who tell me that the commotion is unjustified, that its a rush to judgment and its a travesty, he said. But, I get the frustration. I hear the frustration. Lets get at it and fix it. He said DAnieris resignation was a chance to reboot the administrations relationship with the faculty. DAnieri wont be leaving UCR when he steps down as provost in June. He plans to teach in the political science department and the School of Public Policy. Contact the writer: mmuckenfuss@scng.com or 951-368-9595 Riverside County sheriffs deputies arrested a 49-year-old man who they say is suspected of exposing himself in public when he was seen by a minor in the community of Mecca on Friday. Martin Barajas Bautista of Mecca was arrested on suspicion of indecent exposure, violation of probation and possession of drug paraphernalia, according to online jail records. He remained booked at Indio Larson Justice Center Saturday morning, with bail set at $5,000, according to the records. Officials say deputies were summoned to the 91000 block of 3rd Street about 8:16 a.m. after receiving a report about a man who had been exposing himself. The minor, who had seen the man, was the one to report the incident to authorities, officials say. Bautista was then taken into custody. Contact the writer: 951-368-9693, agroves@scng.com or @AlexDGroves on Twitter. Its been 20 years since Mitzie Perez has last seen her native Guatemala and now shes aiming to make the trek before its too late. Perez is one of a number of young immigrants protected from deportation under President Barack Obamas Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program who are seeking to travel outside the country before president-elect Donald Trump takes office in a few weeks. Trump has vowed to do away with the program, also known as DACA. A loophole in U.S. immigration law gives DACA recipients the opportunity to travel abroad and legally return to the United States through a process known as advance parole. When those using it come back, they have legally entered the country, allowing some to be sponsored for permanent residency by an immediate relative who is a U.S. citizen. DACA recipients usually need to apply for this travel document three months in advance, but Perez is asking for this permission as an emergency. This could be her last chance to see her ailing and remaining grandparents, not just for her sake, but for her parents, who are undocumented. Her dad already missed out on seeing his mother before she passed. And, her mom, did not get a chance to see her father before he died. It might be my only and last chance to go. And Im doing it for them, said Perez, 25. Perez is also aware that re-entering the country legally can pave the way for legal residency. The loophole has been criticized by anti-illegal immigration advocates. Ira Mehlman, a spokesman with the Federation for American Immigration Reform, a Washington, D.C.-based group that advocates better border security and stopping illegal immigration, said the Obama administration is abusing advance parole by allowing undocumented immigrants to circumvent provisions in the law that would normally bar their admission back into the U.S. Here you have people trying to use this as a permanent back-door entry, Mehlman said. Mehlman said the DACA program is unconstitutional and should be disbanded, and said Trump will be held accountable to enforce immigration laws. But for Perez, this could be her way of protecting her parents under potentially stringent immigration laws that would make it tough for her parents to work. With legal status, Perez sees better job opportunities, allowing her to help her family financially. She purchased a last-minute $650 one-way flight to Guatemala city, and hoped for the best going into the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office in San Bernardino on Friday, Dec. 16. She was denied advance parole, but said shes not giving up. Shell be back to try again this week. AN EMERGENCY DACA recipients can travel for educational, work, and humanitarian purposes. Perez, of San Dimas, is aiming to qualify for humanitarian reasons because her 80-year-old grandmother is sick. Her proof on Friday included a note from a hospital where her grandmother has been treated, showing she suffers from diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension. That wasnt enough for the U.S. official who reviewed her case. Perez said she was denied because the letter did not call her grandmothers condition a medical emergency. Others are also seeing advance parole as an opportunity they must seize. Immigration attorney Hadley Bajramovic said she has seen an increase in the number of DACA recipients asking about the advance parole process following Trumps election. A surge doesnt quite describe it, she said. Its been very busy. Bajramovic said DACA recipients understand that this may be their last chance to get legal entry for a potential adjustment (of status). However, Bajramovic said U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is very particular as to what qualifies as an emergency. For example, she recently accompanied six students who were denied permission to study abroad through advance parole. Studying abroad did not fit as an emergency reason and the students were not able to go on their trip. Perez thought she had a strong enough case to qualify. So did Billy Munoz, the Guatemalan consul for San Bernardino, who accompanied her on Friday. Munoz said its too late to seek advance parole for non-emergency reasons. And, hes advising those who have already been approved for travel to complete those trips before Jan. 20, the day Trump takes office. FOR THEM For Perez, its unfair that her parents cannot reap the traveling benefits that the presidents executive action on immigration makes available through DACA, which is available only for those who immigrated to the U.S. before the age of 16. Economic instability and violence led her parents to leave Guatemala. Her father came here at the age of 23 in 1993. Perez and her mother crossed the Mexican border four years later. Coming here was challenging. There were cramped car rides, hikes in cold weather, and sexual assault risks. Perez and her mother also separated at one point of their journey. This time Perezs trip, if approved, will be different. The main reason I want her to go is to see our family members, our parents who we havent been able to see, said her father, Percy Perez. His father also is older and in poor health, he added. If his daughter makes it, he said, It will be as if Im over there, giving my dad a hug. Something I would have liked to do, but I cant, he added. TRYING AGAIN Perez couldnt help but cry and raise her voice when her application was denied Friday. She tried desperately to convince the official to change his mind. Im treating it as an urgent matter, she said. I feel like its an open door, and its closing. We want to say goodbye to our family members, that our parents cant even say goodbye to, she added. Perez said she has reached out to Rep. Norma Torres, D-Pomona, and Rep. Judy Chu, D-Monterey Park, to make them aware of her situation. She is also requesting another letter from the hospital showing that her grandmother is suffering from a medical emergency. Perez said she talked with her father after the presidential election, assuring him that shed do everything possible to help her family in case theyre not allowed to work under strict immigration laws. For her, this was one way. It has been a rough time since the election, but I have everyone and everything to lose, and I am not giving up, she said. Contact the writer: 941-368-9462, amolina@scng.com, or on Twitter @alemolina Freida Rocha was half her sister Erikas age. But the two had much in common. Though Erika was 35, and Freida, 18, both were 5 feet 2 inches tall. Their smiles were nearly identical. They loved to catch lizards. And the half-sisters planned to attend concerts and share a room in stepmother Linda Rezas La Verne home after Erika Rochas release from the California Institution for Women in Chino which they hoped would come sometime in 2016. Then the unthinkable happened. On April 14, a prison official called Reza to say her stepdaughter was found hanging, another apparent suicide victim at a prison shaken by a spike in self-inflicted inmate deaths. The next day, a coroners official told her Rocha stepped onto a toilet, tied a bedsheet to a heating vent and stepped off. Im so angry, Reza said recently. Why werent they watching her? After Rochas death came two possible suicides that stirred concern this year at the prison. Another is the June 1 death of Shaylene Graves, 27, who grew up in Fontana and was six weeks from her release. Prison officials told the family Graves was found hanging. The third is the Nov. 10 death of Bong Sook Chavez, a 56-year-old San Pedro woman, who, was found in her cell with a sheet around her neck, said Randy Emon, supervising deputy coroner for San Bernardino County. Emon said Wednesday, Dec. 14, that investigations into the deaths of Chavez and Graves continue and its not known why they died.. As for Rocha, he said investigators concluded Rocha died of asphyxia from hanging and deemed her death a suicide. During the last four years, the Chino institution logged the third-most suicides of Californias 35 state prisons. From 2013 through April of this year, San Quentin and Salinas Valley state prisons each reported eight suicides and the California Institution for Women had six, said Krissi Khokhobashvili, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Six self-inflicted deaths each also were reported at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego and the California State Prison, Sacramento, she said. Experts blame the suicides in part on widely prevalent mental illness and inadequate suicide prevention measures. State officials say they are working to correct problems by expanding mental health treatment for inmates and training for correctional officers. ABSOLUTELY A CRISIS For several years in a row, the California Institution for Women the smaller of two state female prisons with 1,883 inmates did not have a single suicide, Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation statistics show. But every year since 2012 there has been at least one. During an 18-month period spanning 2014 and 2015, the suicide rate was eight times the national average for women prisoners and five times the rate for the entire California corrections system, state Sen. Connie M. Leyva, D-Chino, said in a news release last summer. Many more female Chino inmates tried to take their lives and failed. Khokhobashvili said there have been 86 suicide attempts there in recent years: 15 in 2013, 18 in 2014, 32 in 2015 and 21 in 2016. Its completely heartbreaking, Leyva said by phone. I know how hard it would be for me, as a mother, to see one of my daughters in prison in the first place and then to have her die in prison. In August, at Leyvas urging, lawmakers ordered a state audit examining causes of the spike, the quality of medical and mental health services there and housing options for suicidal inmates. The report is expected by June, she said. And Leyva is prepared to introduce legislation to address whatever root problems are uncovered. It is absolutely a crisis, Leyva said. I am very anxious to see what the audit finds so that we can get to the bottom of this and stop this. CONFRONTING THE PROBLEM State officials acknowledge the trend. Were working very hard to make things better, Khokhobashvili said. In August, she said, the department brought in former prison Warden Dawn Davison to serve as acting warden and make changes. At CIW, we have implemented several nationally recognized suicide prevention methods including expanded treatment hours and increased mental health staffing, she said in an email. In addition, all medical and custody staff have received specific training and education on suicide prevention. Inmates exhibiting signs they may harm themselves are watched closely, Khokhobashvili said. All patients on suicide watch are placed on continuous one-on-one observation by qualified nursing staff, and suicide watch status is continually evaluated by psychologists and psychiatrists, she said. The prison also stepped up efforts to take out of circulation illicit drugs, which can heighten the risk of suicide, Khokhobashvili said. POOR PRACTICES The changes followed two exhaustive reports highly critical of the states efforts to prevent inmates at Chino and other prisons from trying to harm themselves. In a 2013 court order, Lindsay M. Hayes, a nationally recognized expert on suicide prevention in prisons and jails who is based in Mansfield, Mass., was appointed to audit all California prisons. Hayes produced a 226-page report in January 2014 and follow-up 146-page analysis in January. Hayes most recent report found that CIW continued to be a problematic institution that exhibited numerous poor practices in the area of suicide prevention. Families of suicide victims and prisoner advocates have been vocal as well. Some said Davison is genuinely concerned about the issue. In October, Davison ventured outside to listen to concerns family members and others outlined during a protest in front of the prison, said Geraldine Rocha, 26, who is also a half-sister of Erika Rocha. And in November, Davison met with the families of Rocha and Graves, as well as Colby Lenz of the California Coalition for Women Prisoners, an advocacy group, Lenz said. The warden said the prison would cover slotted openings in cell vents in a 90-bed housing unit that serves the mentally ill so inmates cant thread bedsheets through the vents, said Lenz, who is based in Los Angeles. On a follow-up visit two weeks ago, she said she was told by inmates the vents had yet to be covered. Corrections Press Secretary Vicky Waters said she didnt know about the pledge but we are looking at various tactics and options as we continue to take aggressive steps to work on suicide prevention at CIW. NOBODY WANTS YOU In any event, Reza contends things should have been handled differently with her stepdaughters case. Serving a 19-years-to-life sentence for the 1994 attempted murder of a Compton foster mom, Rocha went to juvenile hall at 14, then to prison in Chowchilla at 16, Reza said. Later she transferred to Chino. The young woman with long flowing hair suffered from depression, family members said. It was because my sister, when she was little, was told, Nobody wants you, Geraldine Rocha said. Reza said Erika Rocha sought treatment for depression and was denied. Officials declined to address specific allegations concerning her treatment in prison. On April 15, Rocha was up for a parole hearing, Reza said. In a conversation with Reza two weeks earlier, she seemed nervous about it. The day before the hearing, Reza received a chilling voice message, urging her to call the prison and hinting at the fatal hanging. Playing a recording of the call recently, Reza choked up at the point when a prison employee said, We have some information relative to your stepdaughters demise. Khokhobashvili said she could not address that specific situation, but corrections officials aim to be sensitive to families. WORSE IN JAIL Suicide has long been a threat in places that punish people for crimes, though the threat is greater in jail than prison. In California, the general suicide rate was 9.4 per 100,000 residents between 1999 and 2009, a little below the national average of 11.1 deaths per 100,000 people, according to a RAND Corp. study. The rate in state prisons, based on statistics collected 2001 to 2013 by the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics, was about 16 suicides per 100,000 nationally and 21 per 100,000 in California. In the nations jails, the rate is 41 suicides per 100,000. Surprisingly, the suicide rate in prison isnt that high compared to the general population, said Joel Dvoskin, a clinical and forensic psychologist based in Tucson, Ariz. Its higher in jail because of the jolt of having ones freedom abruptly taken away and not knowing what the future holds, Dvoskin said. Many suicides, he added, occur within days of a prisoner being locked up. Its typically before theyve even talked to a lawyer, so they dont know what theyre looking at, Dvoskin said. By the time someone reaches prison, expectations are more clear. When suicides occur there, he said, it could be for many reasons. It may be that authorities missed signs of depression, that an inmate missed a significant family milestone such as a wedding, or that a mother felt guilty about a child being raised without her. And, often, he said, mental illness is a factor. According to a Bureau of Justice Statistics report, mental illness afflicts a significantly higher proportion of female inmates than male inmates. PLANS TO COME HOME Not everyone believes all three deaths at Chino were self inflicted. Sheri Graves, a Jurupa Valley woman who works as a nurse, said she believes her daughter, Shaylene, died in a confrontation with a cell mate. But the morning of June 1, as she backed out her driveway to go to work, Graves took a call from the prison saying her daughter had hanged herself. No other details were provided, she said. It didnt make sense to her. Imprisoned in 2008 for her role as driver in a 24-hour crime spree that included three Inland convenience-store robberies, her daughter was scheduled to be released in six weeks. The 27-year-old woman and her mom talked about the clothes in which she wanted to walk out an Adidas-brand sweatsuit, about traveling to Texas to see her 9-year-old son, and about starting a nonprofit group for inmates transitioning back into society. Like the family of Rocha, Graves was looking forward to the future. We were making plans for her to come home, she said. Contact the writer: 951-368-9699 orddowney@scng.comTwitter: PE_DavidDowney It may be a bit of a mystery as to why, but California college graduates do better at paying their student loans than do those in most other states. Based on recent data issued by the U.S. Department of Education, California students who were part of the cohort of students beginning in fall 2013 have a default rate of 10.4 percent, compared with the national average of 11.3 percent. Inland Southern California community colleges by and large had lower rates than many of their sister schools across the state. But inland universities had slightly higher default rates. Department of Education officials said no one in their offices was able to directly address the numbers. The (department) cannot speculate on why some states might have lower default rates than other states, a spokesperson said in an email. Nor do we comment on the range of (default) rates, as multiple factors could be at play. When graduates default on federal student loans, taxpayers are left holding the bag. The lower the default rates, the better off people, and the program, are. One might assume that students from institutions with lower rates are able to find jobs that pay enough for them to make loan payments. Cal State San Bernardino had a default rate of 5.8 percent for its fall 2013 cohort, higher than any other Cal State campus except for Humboldt State, at 6.7. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo was lowest, with a rate of 1.8 percent. Cal Poly Pomona was also low, with a 2.8 percent default rate. Only UC Santa Cruz had a higher rate of default than UC Riverside. The two schools were at 3.1 and 2.8 percent, respectively. Among UC schools, San Francisco, a medical school, had the lowest default rate, at 0.5 percent. Los Angeles, Berkeley, San Diego and Irvine were at 2 percent. Robert Kleinhenz is UCRs director of research at the Center for Economic Forecasting and Development. He said there are several factors that could be involved in the higher rate for the campus. Given the schools high rate of students who are first in their families to attend college, he said, comparing it with other UC campuses might not be fair. I would also look at UCR as to how it compares with other Cal States, Kleinhenz said. Im inclined to think there are more college students at UCR who are coming from lower income backgrounds. The region has a lower household income. Being able to afford college might be difficult in (the region). Overall, community colleges had significantly higher default rates than four-year public universities. But Inland community colleges did better. Norco College, in fact, had one of the lowest rates in the state, at 2 percent. Highest was Mendocino Community College, where one-third of the students who took out loans in 2013 defaulted. Elizabeth Hilton is director of student financial services at Riverside City College, which has a 9.8 percent default rate. Because of the financial aid and fee waivers that are available to students who qualify based on income, she said few students at the school take out loans. Generally its students who need the extra for living expenses, Hilton said. Such students may have trouble getting federal aid for instance, if they are newly independent of their families or may have a course load that is too demanding to allow them to work part-time, such as those in the schools nursing program. Hilton said she and her staff counsel students before they take out loans. The department also has management programs that help keep students on track and current with payments. The system sends out automatic alerts when payments are due and also offers students payment options. Operators of the FPSO Kwame Nkrumah which supplies gas to the Atuabo gas plant are expected to shut it down for repairs. The repair work is expected to take place in the first half of 2017 will take 8 to 12 weeks to complete. Speaking to Onua Business News the executive director of the Integrated Social Development Centre -ISODEC, Dr. Steve Manteaw says the only contingency plan to ensure regular supply of gas after the shutdown is to get gas from the TEN (Tweneboa Enyera Ntomme) field to Atuabo. However, this will not materialize since the needed infrastructure has not been put in place to make this happen. Gas from the TEN field is currently being flared. Commenting on his expectations of the new government, he urged the president-elect to merge the ministries of energy and power. The two ministries, he explained, have symbiotic relationship therefore putting them together will ensure the smooth running of both ministries and also bring down the cost of running governments business. Dr, Manteaw says the situation where the current government uses the petroleum revenue to execute hundreds of projects is not the best as it is difficult to track. He therefore asked the incoming administration to select particular projects that would be financed with petroleum revenue as it promised. He applauded the initiative of the new government to make renewable energy a major player in Ghanas power mix. However, he says the proposed introduction of solar parks as spelt out in the NPPs manifesto should be given a second look. Instead of establishing solar parks that will demand lots of land resource commitments, he proposed a policy to integrate solar panels into buildings. This will bring dual benefits: using the land for building to address housing challenges and also generate solar power. Source: 3news Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Two weeks back, YouTubes highest-paid star, the perennially puckish PewDiePie, made waves when he threatened to delete his channel over concerns that the platform was trying to kill his content, only to come good on the promise by deleting his other, much-less popular channel. Overnight, he released another video, explaining in more depth why he threatened to pull the plug when he reached a milestone of 50 million subscribers, and how it got out of hand. If your channel is dying, just pull a PR stunt, he said with a smirk, before getting a little more serious and going into the reasons behind his decision. The vlogger, real name Felix Kjellberg, has built up tens of millions of subscribers over years of hard work, and says that he takes his channel seriously, in spite of his misgivings with YouTube, and the image he consciously cultivates thanks to this weird silly Swedish guy persona where Im just an idiot. Ever the altruist, he went on to say that he pulled his stunt in part to stand up for lesser-known YouTubers who were also getting screwed over by YouTubes mysterious algorithm, and didnt have the same platform to say something about it. (For what its worth, he says that YouTube still hasnt given him a satisfactory answer on that score). He also complained that, in the midst of all the PewDiePie is deleting his channel drama, very few outlets reported on the fact that he and his mates raised more than $1.3 million for the AIDS non-profit Red in a live-streaming effort, something for which they definitely deserve congratulations. You can watch the whole thing below: Source: YouTube. Photo: YouTube. Tilda Swinton has released the contents of a frank email correspondence with Margaret Cho, focusing on the issue of whitewashing in the Hollywood film industry and Swintons controversial turn as The Ancient One in Doctor Strange. After comic Cho mentioned the conversation and Swintons desire to keep it private earlier this week on Bobby Lees TigerBelly podcast, Swinton shared the emails for the opportunity to clarify the issue. Sent in May, months before Doctor Stranges October release, the messages open with Swinton reaching out to Cho. She asked Cho if they could discuss public perception that the role of The Ancient One, represented in Marvel comics as a Tibetan man, had been whitewashed to accommodate Swinton. In response, Cho said theres a frustrated population of Asian Americans who feel the role should have gone to a person of Asian descent. The largerpart (sic) of the debate has to do with the whitewashing of Asian and Asian Americans in film. Our stories are told by white actors over and over again and we feel at a loss to know how to cope with it. Swinton replied that The Ancient One may have been written as a Tibetan man in the comics, but Marvel, in a conscious effort to shake up stereotypes, wanted to avoid tired cliche. They cast Chiwetel Ejiofor as the second lead a white Transylvanian in the books. And wrote a significant Asian character to be played by Benedict Wong. Going further, she clarified that she never intended to take the role of the comic book Ancient One rather, the reworked cinematic Ancient One, who is canonically of Celtic descent. I am as sick as anybody at the lack of a properly diverse cinematic universe Ducking the issue is not what I am about. I want to meet it, but, if possible, move things forward by how I meet it. Cho replied that the crux of the issue is that its just a timing thing Asian Americans are fed up with not being given roles even if the part called for someone of Asian descent, before clarifying her take on Swinton. I believe very much that you as an artist are about diversity and your body of work shows that but this particular case of the Ancient One is just another in a long list of whitewashed Asian characters and so youre likely to feel the heat of history. She also suggested Swinton could actually move into film production to promote Asian and Asian American inclusion in Hollywood films. Swinton replied shes already doing just that, with an upcoming flick named Okja, starring none other than ol m8 Steven Yeun. While Cho mentioned the privacy aspect of Swintons opening message made her feel uncomfortable during the podcast, she has also released another statement, telling Vulture I believe my emails stand on their own and should be taken for the spirit in which they were intended. I am grateful that the debate has now entered the national discussion and remain a huge fan of Tildas. You can read the respectful but informative discussion in full, right here. Source: Vulture. Photo: Matthias Nareyek / Getty. A blast of cold air caused rain and wet roads to freeze across the Eastern U.S., triggering airport delays in the nation's capital and major traffic pileups in Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina. Authorities say two people were killed in a chain-reaction accident in Baltimore involving a tanker carrying gasoline that skidded off a highway and exploded. Baltimore City Fire Chief Roman Clark said two people were killed and at least 15 were injured in the 55-vehicle accident and tanker explosion on Interstate-95. Clark said the tanker careened off the highway, fell over a jersey wall and burst into flames. Here's another capture from slightly further back on the neighboring overpass adjacent to #I95N in #Baltimore taken ~30min ago. Feel so . pic.twitter.com/MXtRzIIYFo Sage Hiller (@sagethoughtsnow) December 17, 2016 Update on early morning I-95 crash. The Maryland Transportation Authority Police are investigating. We are assisting with traffic control. https://t.co/sIrg0Z7U1J Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice) December 17, 2016 Two people died and 15 were hospitalized in a 55-vehicle pileup this morning on I-95 North btw Caton Ave and Washington Blvd, fire dept says pic.twitter.com/jJs6T97qLd Colin Campbell (@cmcampbell6) December 17, 2016 Clark said it's too early to say whether the crash was caused by slick roads, although scores of traffic accidents were being reported across the region due to icy roads. "The roads were very icy," Clark said. "We have nothing but sheets of ice throughout the city, sidewalks," he said. Officials have not released the names of the two people killed in the crash. Clark said it's unclear whether the pileup started before the tanker crash or was caused by the incident. Earlier Saturday, Bob Maloney of the Baltimore City Office of Emergency Management was quoted by WBAL-TV as saying that at least 30 cars were involved in an accident on northbound I-95. Baltimore County said on Twitter that between 15 and 20 vehicles were involved in a crash on I-695 near Rosedale. Six people were taken to the hospital. In Virginia, meanwhile, State Police say 41 traffic crashes were reported in the northern part of the state. It was unclear how many were due to slick roads. One fatality was reported. Authorities in Ohio say a Columbus woman was killed Saturday after her car skidded off a slick road. In central North Carolina, light freezing rain has caused scores of traffic accidents, adding to the road mayhem scattered throughout the Eastern U.S. Police and emergency workers reported more than 100 crashes overnight Saturday in Raleigh and Charlotte as the drizzle combined with temperatures below freezing for approaching 40 hours combined to create dangerous icy patches. Charlotte police reported two people dead in separate fatal crashes early Saturday, although investigators are still trying to figure out if ice caused the wrecks. Salman Khan is mighty upset with Gaurav Chopra and Om Swami. Here's what will happen on the show tonight A still from the show By India Today Web Desk: Controversial reality show Bigg Boss Season 10 has been making its fans restless with excitement with every passing episode, and tonight's show is not going to be any different. Also read: Bigg Boss 10: Season 6 contestant Imam Siddique to enter the house? From Om Swami's naagin dance to Gaurav's khalnayak avatar; you will get to see a lot of masala tonight, Bigg Boss loyalists. advertisement Om Swami shakes it out with Naagin actress Adaa Khan Om Swami has always been super-enthusiastic around famous and good-looking women, and tonight he will display his energy and love for the naagin dance with Naagin actress Adaa Khan. Swamiji will show off his crazy moves and will even match steps with actor Karanvir Bohra. Salman Khan lashes out at Om Swami and Gaurav Chopra .@BeingSalmanKhan questions @gauravchopraa about his game plan after housemates make him sit on the Khalnayak Kursi! #BB10WeekendKaVaar pic.twitter.com/phFd5JFIeU Bigg Boss (@BiggBoss) December 17, 2016 Host Salman Khan will question Gaurav's motives and will call out on his apparently manipulative behavior around Bani Judge. Other housemates will also support the host's statement and declare Gaurav as the new khalnayak of the show. So how will Gaurav defend himself? Salman will also warn Swamiji and will ask him to behave himself. He will raise questions on the contestant's "stereotypical soch." Soap stars will make an appearance on the show Popular TV stars like Adaa Khan, Karanvir Bohra, Rubina Dilaik, Meera Deosthale will enter the house and interact with the contestants. As a part of a task, Manu, Manveer, and Rohan will try and win Rubina, Meera, and Ada's attention. Rohan will win the aforementioned task and spend some time with Shakti actress Rubina Dilaik. So, with so much drama in store, who do you think will make his/her exit from the show tomorrow? Bigg Boss Season 10 airs every Mon-Fri at 10:30 pm, and every Sat-Sun at 9 pm. --- ENDS --- Susan Kegerise Susan Kegerise, former superintendent of Susquehanna Township School District (File photo) (File photo) The Susquehanna School Board is asking the state Supreme Court to overturn the rulings of two lower courts that ordered it to reinstate Susan Kegerise as district superintendent. There is no guarantee the state's highest court will take on the case. The Supreme Court agrees to hear only a fraction of the appeals placed before it. Regardless of its outcome, the board's appeal helps keep alive a long-running legal battle between Kegerise and district leaders that has no shortage of acrimony. Kegerise sued the board in Dauphin County court and in federal court over her removal in 2014. The series of events that led the board to appeal to the Supreme Court began in November 2014 when county Judge William T. Tully ruled that the district had to reinstate Kegerise. Tully found that Kegerise had not resigned even when she filed her federal suit seeking millions of dollars in damages from the school board in April 2014. A split Commonwealth Court panel upheld Tully's ruling this past September and in November the state judges refused a plea by the school board for reconsideration. Meanwhile, Kegerise's federal suit is plodding slowly toward trial. Her current superintendent contract is set to expire in mid-2017. Members of the Electoral College from Pennsylvania say they are receiving thousands of phone calls and emails from around the world ahead of Monday's vote in Harrisburg, according to a report from Philly.com. One elector told the website that each elector has been assigned a plain clothes state police trooper for protection. "Such has been the life of Pennsylvania's 20 electors for President-elect Donald Trump since the Nov. 8 election," according to the report. The state's electors will convene inside the state House chamber at the Capitol at 12 p.m. to cast their votes. That vote was generally a formality, even in years like 2000 when the winner of the nationwide popular vote lost the Electoral College. This year, however, electors in states that went for Trump have been inundated with messages imploring them to vote for someone else. In Harrisburg, a loose coalition of political groups from around the state will gather on the Capitol steps overnight Sunday and through the day on Monday to "sound the alarm" every hour. That event is part of a larger effort to station protesters at state capitols around the country. prison cell art Rodger Atwood Sr. and Rodger Atwood II have only themselves to blame for their long federal prison terms, an appeals court found. A midstate father and son who dealt drugs throughout much of central Pennsylvania didn't get a raw deal when they were sentenced to long terms in federal prison, a U.S. appeals court has ruled. The recent decision by a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit reinforces the 12 1/2-year prison term imposed on Robert Atwood Sr. and the 16 1/2-year jail sentence for his son, Rodger Atwood II. The appeals judges rejected claims by the Atwoods that federal prosecutors reneged on the terms of their plea deals when U.S. Middle District Chief Judge Christopher C. Conner imposed those punishments. Third Circuit Judge Patty Shwartz found the Atwoods have only themselves to blame for the time they're spending behind bars. The fact that the father and son started up a cocaine dealing scheme after they were federal indicted in 2012 for peddling marijuana negated a section of their plea agreements that would have given them credit for accepting responsibility for their crimes, Shwartz concluded in the appeals court's recent opinion. Investigators said the drug operation run by the Atwoods extended into Adams, York, Perry and Montgomery counties and Maryland. Federal agents seized drugs, guns and money during raids at their homes. Speed limit restrictions on major roadways and interstates in central Pennsylvania have been lifted, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Speed limits were reduced to 45 mph at 6:30 a.m. Saturday as the region was hit with snow, freezing and and sleet. The speed limits were restored at noon along etc following roads and interstate, according to PennDOT: Interstate 81 in Franklin, Cumberland, Dauphin and Lebanon counties Interstate 78 in Lebanon County Interstate 83 in York, Cumberland and Dauphin counties Interstate 283 in Dauphin County Route 283 in Dauphin and Lancaster counties Route 22/322 in Dauphin County and Perry counties Route 581 in Cumberland County Route 11 in Franklin and Cumberland counties Route 15 in Adams, York and Cumberland counties Route 11/15 in Cumberland and Perry County counties Route 30 in York and Lancaster Counties Route 222 in Lancaster County, from Route 30 to Berks County line PennDOT said it is continuing to treat roadways in the region and will do so until they are are clear. Get a look at conditions on local roads -- -- anytime here on PennLive. For Pennsylvania Turnpike updates and possible travel delays visit the . Tweet us at @pennlive with any incidents you see on your commute or send a submission to submissions@pennlive.com. 90-15.png (AccuWeather) Relief from the sleet and freezing rain is in sight for central Pennsylvania, according to the National Weather Service at State College. Temperatures are expected to start rising above the freezing mark from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Saturday, cueing the switch over from ice to rain showers, according to Aaron Tyburski, a meteorologist with the weather service. "The ice is almost over," Tyburski said. "We should start seeing the change to all rain by noon." Saturday's high will eventually reach 40, with a low at night of about 39. Conditions will warm up even more on Sunday with a high of about 48. Another cold front will move through the area on Sunday night, knocking the nighttime low into the 20s, Tyburski said. A winter weather advisory remains in effect for all of central Pennsylvania until 4 p.m. Saturday. For the latest forecast, visit PennLive's weather page. You can see live weather updates via the National Weather Service and other Twitter sources below. Tweet us at @pennlive with photos of inclement weather at your place, incidents you see on your commute or send a submission to submissions@pennlive.com. Mideast Syria In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, civilians gather near the Red Cross vehicles for evacuation from eastern Aleppo, Syria, Friday, Dec. 16, 2016. The Syrian government suspended evacuations from eastern Aleppo just hours after they resumed on Friday, saying that rebels had opened fire on a convoy of evacuees at a crossing point with the enclave, state TV reported. (SANA via AP) (Uncredited) By Christine Flowers A Muslim student at NYU says some Trump supporters pulled off her hijab and yelled epithets at her on a bus, then admits it was all a big fat lie. It's disgusting and unacceptable. Christine Flowers (PennLive file) But Muslim women in Aleppo are being raped. Feminists are freaking out because Texas passed a law requiring clinics and hospitals to respectfully bury the remains of babies who have been aborted. It's disgusting and unsurprising from abortion-rights militants. But babies are being massacred in Aleppo. Donald Trump attacks the CIA for suggesting that Russians hacked into the DNC emails, thereby influencing our domestic political processes even though he himself invited them to hack into Hillary's "30,000" emails during the campaign. It's disgusting and typical of a man who said Vladimir Putin was "doing a great job." But the Russians are helping the Syrian government murder innocent civilians. The world is ending in Aleppo. The flames are engulfing its streets, the bullets are tearing through the bodies of its remaining inhabitants, the earth is groaning under the weight of its new corpses, the air is filled with the screams of its dying. And we look away, until we are forced to face the reality, a reality show that doesn't have tidy, self-contained episodes and beautiful, botoxed faces and faux-tragedies like broken engagements. We look, for the few moments or days that we care to devote to the tragedy unfolding on our watch, and then move on to the next sound bite. Is Alec Baldwin on SNL this week? Will Kanye be fitted for a straitjacket? Did Angelina get full custody of the rest of the kids she forgot to adopt from Ethiopia? I'm disgusted. Aleppo, the place that Gary Johnson was too stoned to locate on a map, is dying. And history is repeating itself. When the Armenians were exterminated by Turkey at the turn of the last century, the world pretended it wasn't happening. The cowardly Turks still deny it to this day. Syria will do the same with Aleppo. Then, when the Jews were being eliminated, nationality by nationality, from Western Europe, Felix Frankfurter urged Franklin Roosevelt to act. The American government didn't want to jump into the conflict, and until Pearl Harbor, essentially closed its eyes to the genocidal wave across the Atlantic. Neville Chamberlain extolled "peace in our time." And the smell of burning flesh and ash rose from Auschwitz, Dachau, Bergen Belsen and Treblinka. Never again, we said. But again the horror came, in Cambodia, in Srebrenica, in Rwanda. Now Aleppo is disintegrating before our eyes. The beautiful ancient minarets, the bustling market squares, the neighborhoods where people raised their children, lived their lives, are gone. The streets are filled with blood and smoke, and screams and people running to unknown destinations, but certain danger. There was a brief ceasefire between the Syrian government and the rebels, and it collapsed as quickly as it was brokered. Innocent civilians were killed in their homes and during evacuations. Another was brokered in the middle of last week, and that also will collapse if the past is prologue. I deal with immigrants from that part of the world in my legal practice, but I meet the lucky ones who escaped before the massacres began. The others are still there in Aleppo, which is dying. Please, America, stop worrying about becoming "great again." Stop trying to recount an election that is completed, sealed, served up and over. Stop pointing fingers across the aisle, stop caring about idiots who lie about hate crimes, stop listening to the pundits on cable news screeching about who met with Trump and what they had for lunch. The average American cannot make a difference, cannot become a medic and treat the injured, cannot provide housing for the homeless, cannot bring sanity and stability to a city on the edge of the abyss, cannot force our government to finally, do the right thing. But we can have the grace to pay attention to the dismantling of civilization this time around, and let our Syrian brothers and sisters know that they are seen, felt, heard. We owe this, in the name of one million Armenians, six million Jews, two million Cambodians, 7,000 Bosnian Muslims, and 800,000 Rwandans. Christine Flowers is an attorney and a columnist for the Philadelphia Daily News. Her work appears weekly on PennLive. Readers may email her at cflowers1961@gmail.com. Mideast Syria In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, smoke rises in an east Aleppo neighborhood in Syria, Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016. Syrian activists said residents in eastern Aleppo are starting to board buses and ambulances, the first step in an evacuation that is part of the rebel enclave's effective surrender. (SANA via AP) (Uncredited) By Ishaan Tharoor Just 300 miles separate Mosul, Iraq, and Aleppo, Syria, two cities very much in the news in recent months. They are in the grips of separate government-led offensives to reclaim the cities from insurgent factions. Ishaan Tharoor (Washington Post photo) In an operation that started in mid-October, a coalition of Iraqi forces and Kurdish militia backed by the United States seized towns in the outskirts of Mosul, which has been occupied and terrorized by the jihadist Islamic State group since the summer of 2014. Now they are engaged in a steady, attritional war over the city's neighborhoods. In Aleppo, the Syrian regime, aided by Russian airstrikes and Iranian-sponsored militias, encircled rebel enclaves, bombed civilian areas indiscriminately and finally appears to be on the cusp of reclaiming the city in its entirety. The story lines are different. The Iraqi government has taken steps to minimize civilian casualties in its assault on the Islamic State. The same is not true of forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad, whose government presided over the merciless hollowing out of his nation's cities in a bloody civil war that's now entering its sixth year. But there is much that also binds the fates of Mosul and Aleppo. As the smoke of battle clears, we're seeing images of the devastation of two of the Middle East's most historic cities. The ancient pre-Islamic remains of Nimrud, on the banks of the Tigris near Mosul, were systematically dismantled and vandalized by the Islamist militants. Biblical sites within Mosul were detonated. Aleppo's Old City, once one of the Middle East's pre-eminent tourist sites, famed for its souks and the medieval citadel, is a ghost town of rubble and ruin. The scale of the destruction is chilling, considering how much history has come before it. These cities withstood centuries of warfare and invasion, sieges and surrenders. "How many battles has it provoked, and how many white blades have been drawn against it?" the 12th-century Andalusian traveler Ibn Jubayr wrote of Aleppo. But even then, in a walled city on the front lines of the Crusades, he saw in Aleppo a remarkable quality of resilience: "The town is old as eternity yet new although it has never ceased to be . . . Oh city of wonder! It stays, but its kings depart; they perish, but its ruin is not yet decreed." Mosul and Aleppo can trace their origins thousands of years back in a region long known as the cradle of civilizations. Unlike other cities that emerged as religious centers, like Jerusalem, or bastions of political power, like Damascus and Baghdad, Mosul and Aleppo were first and foremost great emporiums of trade. That didn't mean they were immune to conflict. The cities were for a time united under the rule of a Turkic dynasty that led the Muslim fight against the First Crusade. They would later endure the merciless pillaging and wars of Mongol marauders. A 13th-century rebellion in Mosul against Mongol occupiers provoked a chilling response from the infamous warlord Hulagu Khan: After he had subdued the revolt, he trussed its leader up in a sheepskin and left the man to literally rot to death in the sun, vermin eating him alive. In 1400, the Mongol conqueror Timur, also known as Tamerlane, sacked Aleppo. One chronicler described the brutality of the raid "like a razor over hair" and "locusts over a green crop." Others detailed mass slaughter of the civilian population and the wanton rape of women who had been hiding in the city's mosques. The streets "stank with corpses." Timur, according to accounts, stacked a pile of thousands of skulls outside Aleppo's gates. Still, the cities, including some of their great historic sites, survived and flourished. They reached their peak as key endpoints of the Silk Road under the Ottoman Empire. In the West, Mosul was so synonymous with the goods of the East that the fine silk made by weavers in what is now Bangladesh became known as muslin, a name derived from Mosul. Aleppo was so famous that when one of the witches in Shakespeare's "Macbeth" spoke of a sailor's wife - "Her husband's to Aleppo gone, master o' th' Tiger" - the audience would have known of this exotic city's wealth and delights. In "Othello," Aleppo is invoked as a raucous meeting point of the world's cultures and peoples. Both cities had majority Sunni populations but also considerable Christian and Jewish communities, as well as a dizzying ethnic mix of Arabs, Turkmen, Kurds, Armenians and others. Their diversity were defining parts of their character. Coexistence - not sectarian strife - was the norm for most of their histories. "It was really the Ottoman city, the last mixed city, where relations were very good," said Philip Mansel, a historian and author of "Aleppo: The Rise and Fall of Syria's Great Merchant City." He said sectarian violence was uncommon in Aleppo in the age of Ottoman rule: "Over the course of my research, I have only found one inter-communal conflict in 1850 and one in 1919, but that was a smaller riot." When the European powers carved up the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I, France sought possession of both Mosul and Aleppo - two cities with linked histories and cultures - as part of its protectorate. But oil concerns and regional power politics would eventually see Britain wrest control of Mosul and stitch it together with the old Ottoman provinces of Basra and Baghdad to create the nation now known as Iraq. Aleppo would be yoked to Damascus by the French and remained the other metropolis of Syria, a commercial capital always somewhat removed from the political center. The disintegration of these societies in both Iraq and Syria is the consequence of modern politics. Destabilizing wars and hopeless governance created security vacuums and extremist insurgencies that now haunt the region. Narrow-minded rule from Damascus and Baghdad laid the foundations for the current unraveling, which has seen the bulk of both cities' populations displaced by conflict. When the fighting ends in Mosul and Aleppo, rebuilding what has been lost may be the greater struggle. Ishaan Tharoor writes about foreign affairs for The Washington Post. He previously was a senior editor at TIME, based first in Hong Kong and later in New York. The Washington Post's Louisa Loveluck in Beirut contributed to this report. By India Today Web Desk: Former Bigg Boss contestant Mandana Karimi is all set to tie the knot in sometime. The model-actress is quite excited about the whole thing, naturally. Also read: BB10: Mandana Karimi, Gautam Gulati to give contestants a piece of their mind on Weekend Ka Vaar Mandana got engaged to businessman Gaurav Gupta in July this year. advertisement "I am getting work offers, but my priority is marriage and family . It will be a close-knit affair. Many people have warned me against it, but marriage is what matters most to me. I don't want to have an amazing career and not have a family to celebrate my success with. When Gaurav proposed, I thought of how he has been with me through my ups and downs. People find me hot and sexy , but he looks beyond that. I came to India to find a career and found the man of my dreams," Pinkvilla quoted the actress as saying. Now that is adorable, isn't it? Congratulations, Mandana! --- ENDS --- Boyne City Splash Pad construction continues, to open next year The project is being funded by the sale of the Boyne City Community Building. By Siddhartha Rai: The Bharatiya Janata Party's latest poll strategy for the upcoming state assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh in 2017 is to rally farmers of the state behind its cause by appropriating the legacy of the tallest farmer icon and former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh. FARMERS BEING EYED Singh belonged to the affluent Jat community that makes roping him to the saffron cause significant in the overall caste equation of the polls, especially in Western UP. The BJP is getting ready to celebrate Singh's birth anniversary on December 23 all across western UP, especially in his native village, Noorpur in Hapur district in the neighbourhood of Ghaziabad. The party has also instituted a 'Kisan Samman Samaroh' or a festival to felicitate farmers. advertisement The party's UP spokesperson, Chandra Mohan, said, "The Modi government has shown that we are the only ones capable of and willing to give the farmers their due and fulfill the dreams of Charan Singh and the peasant economy that he envisioned in his times." "We are very excited to embark on this celebration. Apart from felicitating the peasants, we are also going to garland all the statues of the former PM in the state, and party workers and leaders will also voluntarily commit themselves to physical labour in fraternity with the hard working peasants and farmers," he said. MOVE AIMED AT BACKWARD CLASSES Political observers say that the move is clearly aimed to garner the support of backward classes. According to many reports, Jats make up nearly 16-17% of the population of the western part of the poll-bound state. Singh's legacy, the BJP believes, is also up for grabs as the natural heir to it, his son Ajit Singh, who heads the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), has lost most of his sway with the community. Party insiders also told Mail today that the BJP had thrown a spanner in the works of BSP supremo Mayawati by making a strong pitch to appropriate Dalit icon Babasaheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar. There was also a corresponding bid to rally non-Yadav castes among the OBC group to the party's fold as the Yadavs are seen to be traditional voters of the Yadav-dominated Samajwadi Party leadership. What has added to the Jat orientation of BJP is the recent communal clashes in this part of the state, a vicious reality since the Muzaffarnagar riots of 2013, one that has frayed the social fabric of the region which many argue was built and sustained by Singh when he was at the helm of affairs and which took a hit since his death. The ruling party at the Centre that is eyeing to use the recent family feud among the satraps of Samajwadi Party (SP) and the sagging fortunes of BSP leader Mayawati to come to power in a state poll that is billed as the semi final to the 2019 general elections. The saffron party, while it was catapulted to power at the state and emerged as a power in the wake of the Ayodhya Ram Temple Movement in UP in 1991, has failed to taste power for a long time after the rise of the regional caste-based political behemoths such as SP and BSP. advertisement ALSO READ: UP Elections: BJP looks for supporters as demonetisation spells a make-or-break situation --- ENDS --- A source told India Today, "Every day railway gets Rs 100 and Rs 50 notes in huge numbers at all cash counters like PRS, booking counter, parcel counter and etc. The top level railway officials exchange this money by giving it to people having black currency." By Saurabh Vaktania: After Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision to demonetise Rs 1000 and Rs 500 currency notes, several miscreants have came up with various ideas to convert black money into white. In one such big revelation, the railways are suspected to have been engaged in the same exercise and the racket is potentially huge, according to some railway officials. It is suspected that top railway officials may have been involved in converting black money to white all along. advertisement CASH COUNTERS UNDER THE SCANNER India Today has been able to get exclusive access to a copy of vigilance branch at Mumbai CST which states that black money is being exchanged at the cash counters of Indian railways for a certain price. Ashutosh Gangal, the SDGM wrote a letter to Mumbai, Pune, Bhusawal, Solapur and Nagpur Divisions. The letter says, 'Some reports have been received that counter staff at PRS (passenger reservation centre), Booking Office, Parcel office and cash office are not maintaining a proper account of old currency received by them which constitutes serious misconduct on their part. It is also understood that some instances of unauthorised exchange has also taken place by staff and officers.' The letter further reads ,'It may be again reiterated to all the staff who are dealing with cash that these are prohibited activities. This requires departmental action by concerned enforcement departments. The matter is our most urgent.' CORRUPTION AT THE TOP LEVELS The sources told us that huge cash come in the cash counters every day in railways. The top railway officials then exchange this currency with the old currency at the request of some people. A source said, "Every day railway gets Rs 100 and Rs 50 notes in huge numbers at all cash counters like PRS, booking counter, parcel counter and etc. The top level railway officials exchange this money by giving it to people having black currency as the Railways was still accepting the old currency earlier. This is a clear case of corruption at the top levels in the in Indian railway where by old black money was converted into white." This is the new way of converting old currency into the new ones. Other sources in the department also confirmed that the railway officials were converting money coming at cash counter for a select few.ALSO READ: Centre wants your help in tracking black money, shares e-mail address to report corruption Income tax raids are surgical strikes against black money: Government --- ENDS --- The foreign ministry, in its one-sentence comment said, 'According to (our) understanding, the US and Chinese sides are working on appropriately handling this matter through channels between the two militaries.' The one-sentence comment by the foreign ministry offered no details on what discussions were underway or why China seized the drone. (Photo: Reuters) By AP: China today said that its military was in contact with its American counterparts on "appropriately handling" the Chinese navy's seizure of a US Navy unmanned underwater glider, one of the most serious incidents between their militaries in years. The one-sentence comment by the foreign ministry offered no details on what discussions were underway or why China on Thursday seized the drone, which, according to the Pentagon, was being operated by civilian contractors to conduct oceanic research. The US said it issued a formal diplomatic complaint over the seizure and demanded the drone's return. advertisement "According to (our) understanding, the US and Chinese sides are working on appropriately handling this matter through channels between the two militaries," the foreign ministry said in its statement, which was faxed to The Associated Press. China's defense ministry did not immediately respond to questions on the issue. The drone was seized while collecting unclassified scientific data about 92 kilometers (57 miles) northwest of Subic Bay near the Philippines in the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety, Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said Friday . Davis said that the incident could be the first time in recent history that China has taken a US naval vessel. Some observers have called it the most significant dispute between the sides' militaries since the April 2001 mid-air collision between a US Navy surveillance aircraft and a Chinese fighter jet about 110 kilometers (70 miles) from China's Hainan island that led to the death of a Chinese pilot. "It is ours. It's clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again," Davis told reporters. He said the drone costs about $150,000 and is largely commercial, off-the-shelf technology. Whatever the outcome, the incident is likely to fray the already tense relations between US and China. Beijing was angered by President-elect Donald Trump's decision to talk by phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen on Dec. 2, and by his later comments that he did not feel "bound by a one-China policy" regarding the status of Taiwan, unless the US could gain trade or other benefits from China. China considers the self-governing island its own territory to be recovered by force if it deems necessary. There also have been increased tensions over Beijing's ongoing military buildup in the South China Sea, mainly the development and militarization of man-made shoals and islands aimed at extending China's reach in the strategically vital area through which about $5 trillion in global trade passes annually. In one of the few reports in state media about the drone's seizure, a newspaper published by China's ruling Communist Party cited an unidentified military official as saying that a "smooth resolution" to the matter is expected. advertisement READ: China's Navy seizes American underwater drone in South China Sea A Chinese navy ship discovered an "unidentified device" Thursday and was checking on it for the sake of maritime safety, the Global Times quoted the official as saying. "China has received the US request to return the device, communication is open between the relevant departments of the two sides and I believe this matter will obtain a smooth resolution," the officer was quoted as saying. In a separate report, the paper quoted retired Chinese admiral Yang Yi as saying China considered itself well within its rights to seize the drone. "If China needs to take it, we'll take it. (America) can't block us," Yang was quoted as saying. Yang said he was unsure of the purpose of seizing the drone, but didn't think the matter qualified as a "military conflict." However, he added that the chances of a confrontation had risen following Trump's recent comments, which were seen as testing China's bottom line on Taiwan and other sensitive issues. "It's natural for us to take possession of and research for a bit these types of things that America sends to our doorstep," Yang said. "The louder they shout, the more their protests ring hollow." --- ENDS --- advertisement Novartis receives positive CHMP recommendation for Ilaris to treat rare diseases in adults and children called Periodic Fever Syndromes Details Category: Antibodies Published on Saturday, 17 December 2016 14:04 Hits: 2193 Periodic Fever Syndromes are rare diseases mostly affecting children[1] and cause recurrent and disabling fevers with potentially life-threatening complications[2] Ilaris (canakinumab) is recommended for approval in Europe for the treatment of three Periodic Fever Syndromes: TRAPS, HIDS/MKD and FMF disease If approved, Ilaris will be the first and only biologic treatment in Europe for these rare diseases, providing rapid and sustained disease control for patients[3] BASEL, Switzerland I December 16, 2016 I Novartis announced today that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has recommended approval of Ilaris (canakinumab) in Europe to treat three rare and distinct Periodic Fever Syndromes. If approved, Ilaris will be the first and only approved biologic treatment in Europe for Tumor Necrosis Factor-Receptor Associated Periodic Syndrome (TRAPS), Hyperimmunoglobulin D Syndrome (HIDS)/Mevalonate Kinase Deficiency (MKD) and Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF). "Few treatments exist for people with these potentially life-threatening conditions. Today's positive recommendation is a great stride forward for patients who urgently need new treatment options," said Paul Hudson, CEO, Novartis Pharmaceuticals. "Novartis is committed to paving the way forward for rare diseases especially through treatments like Ilaris which has the potential to raise the standard of care." The CHMP positive opinion, which also recommends the use of a new formulation which is a 150 mg/ml solution for injection, is based on results from the pivotal Phase III CLUSTER study. Results showed rapid (at Day 15) and sustained disease control with Ilaris compared to placebo through 16 weeks, in patients with either TRAPS, HIDS/MKD or FMF[3]. Data show Ilaris to be a well-tolerated and effective treatment for these three rare conditions. All three conditions are part of a group of rare autoinflammatory diseases called Periodic Fever Syndromes, which are also referred to as Hereditary Periodic Fevers (HPF). These can cause disabling and persistent fevers which may be accompanied by joint pain, swelling, muscle pain and skin rashes with complications that can be life-threatening[2]. The most common syndrome is FMF, which mainly affects people of Eastern Mediterranean ancestry. It affects 1 in 250 to 1 in 1,000 individuals in these populations, many of whom are children[1]. In August 2016, the European Commission approved Ilaris for a license extension to treat patients with Adult-Onset Still's Disease (AOSD), a rare type of inflammatory arthritis. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) previously granted three simultaneous approvals of Ilaris for the treatment of TRAPS, HIDS/MKD and FMF in September 2016. About Periodic Fever Syndromes Periodic Fever Syndromes are a group of diseases that cause serious recurrent fever and pathogenic inflammation through non-infectious activation of the immune system. Most patients present with symptoms in infancy or childhood, but in some patients the condition only becomes apparent or diagnosed in adulthood[1]. Previous treatments for these rare conditions consisted of oral anti-inflammatory drugs, such as corticosteroids, which were used only to help manage the symptoms. While other medicines, such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, have also been used to help reduce symptoms, they do not prevent or change the overall course of a flare[2]. About Ilaris Ilaris is a selective, high-affinity, human monoclonal antibody that inhibits Interleukin-1 (IL-1) beta, which is an important part of the body's immune system defences[4]. Excessive production of IL-1 beta plays a prominent role in certain inflammatory diseases[5],[6]. Ilaris works by blocking the action of IL-1 beta for a sustained period of time, therefore inhibiting inflammation that is caused by its over-production[4]. Novartis has reformulated Ilaris from a powder that needed to be reconstituted into a solution prior to use to a solution for injection (ready to use) which will ease administration of the product. Ilaris is currently approved and marketed for the treatment of Systemic Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (SJIA) in the US and EU and for the treatment of AOSD and the symptomatic treatment of refractory acute gouty arthritis in the EU. Ilaris is also approved in more than 70 countries, including in the EU, Switzerland, US, Canada, and Japan for the treatment of Cryopyrin-Associated Periodic Syndromes (CAPS): rare, lifelong, genetic disorders with debilitating symptoms. In the EU, Ilaris is approved for following subtypes of CAPS: Muckle-Wells syndrome (MWS), neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disease (NOMID)/chronic infantile neurological, cutaneous, articular syndrome (CINCA), severe forms of familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome (FCAS)/familial cold urticaria (FCU) presenting with signs and symptoms beyond cold-induced urticarial skin rash. The approved indications may vary depending upon the individual country. About Novartis Novartis provides innovative healthcare solutions that address the evolving needs of patients and societies. Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Novartis offers a diversified portfolio to best meet these needs: innovative medicines, eye care and cost-saving generic pharmaceuticals. Novartis is the only global company with leading positions in these areas. In 2015, the Group achieved net sales of USD 49.4 billion, while R&D throughout the Group amounted to approximately USD 8.9 billion (USD 8.7 billion excluding impairment and amortization charges). Novartis Group companies employ approximately 118,000 full-time-equivalent associates. Novartis products are available in more than 180 countries around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.novartis.com. References [1] National Amyloidosis Centre. Amyloidosis Patient Information Site: The inherited periodic fever syndromes - general information. Available at: www.amyloidosis.org.uk/fever-syndromes/inherited-fever-syndromes/. Accessed December 2016. [2] Cleveland Clinic. Periodic Fever Syndrome. Available at: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/services/orthopaedics-rheumatology/diseases-conditions/periodic-fever-syndrome. Accessed December 2016. [3] Novartis Data on File. [4] Dhimolea E. Canakinumab, MAbs. 2010 Jan-Feb;2(1):3-13. [5] Jesus AA, Goldbach-Mansky R. IL-1 blockade in autoinflammatory syndromes. Annu Rev Med. 2014;65:223-244. [6] Toker O, Hashkes PJ. Critical appraisal of canakinumab in the treatment of adults and children with cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome (CAPS). Biologics. 2010;4:131-138. SOURCE: Novartis By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 16 (PTI) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today hit out at the Prime Ministers Office and the L-G for "playing politics" over womens safety in Delhi, after a 20-year-old was allegedly raped in a car in South Delhi. "LG/PMO doing politics with women safety in Delhi. LG stopped salaries of all employees in DCW. Police become corrupt and ineffective under them," he tweeted. advertisement The rape survivor, a resident of Noida, was waiting for a bus near AIIMS on Wednesday evening when the accused Avneesh (28), driving a car with a Home Ministry sticker, offered to drop her and then sexually assaulted her. The accused has been arrested and the chargesheet will be filed soon. "We will quickly file the chargesheet in the case. We will request that the trial take place in a fast-track court," DCP(South) Ishwar Singh said. Chairperson, National Commission for Women, Lalitha Kumaramangalam said it is time to stop finding faults and to hold authorities who make promises accountable. "What is really necessary is to hold accountable those people who have given commitments. We can go on making promises but we have to start working on prevention. We need to stop finding fault with each other." She also said that different government agencies need to work together, adding that NCW will work along with DCW to develop a joint approach. "NCW has taken cognisance of the case and has decided that it will intervene and try to get all the different players together including the MP, the MLA, LGs office, police and DCW to see if a joint approach can be worked out." Delhi Commission for Women too appealed for the Centre to co-operate with Delhi government. "The Delhi govt has been screaming for the past one and a half years. Delhi is suffering from bad politics and we want that the Center and the state work together in Delhi on the issue of womens safety." Maliwal had also written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealing to him to listen to the "mann ki baat" of the women of Delhi and ensure that a high-level committee on womens safety is set up. She also stated that the women and girls of Delhi are paying the price of the tussle of governance between the Centre and the Delhi government. The LG had not yet convened a single meeting on women safety in the past year despite express instructions from the MHA, she claimed. PTI JC PR BSA --- ENDS --- advertisement Photo: Jefferson Parish Facebook page Officers fired at a teenager who's accused of shooting at patrol cars during a chase and hitting a sheriff's deputy with a stolen car, a suburban New Orleans sheriff's spokesman said, reports the Associated Press. Two Gretna police officers and about 10 Jefferson Parish sheriff's deputies fired at Ray John Brown, 17, of New Orleans, Thursday night, Col. John Fortunato of the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office said Friday. Fortunato said Brown was wanted in New Orleans on a charge of aggravated assault with a weapon. Gretna Police Chief Arthur Lawson said Brown's car hit his officer as it plowed through a barricade. Authorities told news outlets the officer is being treated for an injured leg and Brown for a bullet wound in the stomach. Their conditions Friday were not immediately available, but officials have said neither injury is life-threatening. Photo: Facebook A 61-year-old police officer is in critical condition after being shot in the back of the head in Mount Vernon, WA, on Thursday night, KIRO-TV reported. The officer was initially taken to Skagit Valley Hospital and then airlifted to Harborview Medical Center, authorities said. The suspect was taken into custody early Friday morning after he shot at police during an hours-long standoff, reports KIRO. SWAT team officers stormed the building using tear gas and detained the 44-year-old local man along with two others, Washington State Patrol Sgt. Keith Leary told reporters, reports NBC News. Prosecutors are looking to charge the suspect, named Ernesto Rivas, with attempted murder in the shooting of the Mount Vernon police officer, reports KIRO. Rivas reportedly has a violent past and is well known to police. A Skagit County prosecutor said that this could be Rivas' third strike, which means he is looking at life in prison. His bail is set at $1 million. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print *The following is an opinion column by R Muse* Republicans have long claimed that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) exists to destroy America and retard the unrelenting flow of money into the fossil fuel industrys coffers; despite it was Republicans who created the agency. By now some Americans are aware that the Koch brothers dream of dismantling the agency is closer than they could have dreamed because a Russian operative in the White House pledged to dismantle the EPA; a pledge he appears rushing to fulfill with an anti-EPA oil man as the agency chief. Republicans attempted to destroy the EPA barely five years ago under authority of the Koch brothers, but with a happy fascist in the White House, their dream is reaching fruition. So, it was only temporary good news that the EPA finally released a report confirming that the oil industry practice of fracking is not only responsible for earthquakes, infertility, miscarriages and birth defects, it poses a very significant threat to Americans drinking water. The EPA had held back from verifying what most people were already aware of because they were limited in having access to the facts on frackings adverse impact on drinking water. Now, in what will most certainly be the EPAs last report on a serious health risk due to the oil industrys practices, the agency reported that fracking does adversely affect Americans drinking water. Of course this is no revelation; particularly when tap water near some fracking wells has become flammable, two Pennsylvania families won a court case over fracking poisoning their water, and scientists found arsenic in water sources near fracking operations. According to the director of Environment Americas Stop Drilling Program, Rachel Richardson: [The] EPAs report confirms what experts and the science show: that fracking operations put our drinking water at risk. That families from Colorado to Pennsylvania have had their water contaminated from fracking should be evidence enough, but todays report confirms: fracking puts our water at risk. According to the EPA report, there are six different ways fracking produces more frequent or severe impacts on Americans sources of drinking water: Using large volumes of water in arid or water-stressed regions; spilling the chemical-laced water; faulty injections that fail to contain the water; injections that go directly into water supplies; failure to treat the wastewater before it is released; and disposing of the wastewater inadequately. The EPA reported that it took so long to document the obvious because there were, Data gaps and uncertainties limited EPAs ability to fully assess the potential impacts on drinking water resources both locally and nationally. The understanding of the potential impacts from hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources will continue to improve over time as new information becomes available. That is either an inordinately hopeful, or incredibly ignorant, assessment of the EPA being involved in gathering or receiving any new information on the fracking, or any other, threat to drinking water going forward. Heres a newsflash to whomever wrote that pathetic statement; Trumps EPA, the agency Trump and the Koch Congress want abolished in its entirety will not be investigating the oil industry or find any additional information about the many health hazards of fracking to drinking water or the air. The fine folks at the EPA certainly understand that their incoming leader is not only a fierce advocate for more oil and gas development, his only claim to fame is being the greatest opponent of the EPAs agenda; identifying and reducing environmental health risks to American citizens. There will be no new investigations and only a fool would believe otherwise. And, the idea of any government scientific data being allowed to exist is a fantasy that Trump and the Kochs guarantee will never happen. There are various reports that Russian hand puppet Trump, like oil-man George W. Bush before him, will mobilize his oil industry cabal disguised as an administration cabinet to immediately begin redacting all manner of scientific data from NASA, NOASS, EPA, and NIH showing the dangers of fossil fuel operations on Americans health and its impact driving climate change. Americans can forget any concept of an agency devoted to protecting their health from environmental hazards whether those hazards are from oil, gas, coal, fracking operations or toxic waste dumping. This incoming government is made up predominately of fossil fuel and anti-environmental protection advocates and industry campaign cash beneficiaries. And with the Koch brothers co-owning the government, it is safe to say that nearly every decision going forward will hinge on its monetary value to big oil; the rest of the administrations agenda will be driven by the monetary worth to dirty Donny Trump. It is likely true that this report by the EPA on the dangers of fracking, or anything for that matter, to Americans water supply or air, is the last one Americans will ever see or hear about; at least for the foreseeable future. It is also likely true that whoever was responsible for deciding to release the warning or results of the data will not be employed with the agency for very much longer; not with an oil industry devotee running the EPA. Apparently, this dangerous state of affairs is precisely what the voters wanted because Trump made no secret throughout the campaign that dismantling the EPA was high on his list of achievements early in his administration. Sadly, with a Republican Congress heavily indebted to the oil magnate Koch brothers, and a cabinet flush with oil industry employees, the only reporting Americans can expect to see about the EPA will be how an agency tasked with protecting Americans health was rapidly and unceremoniously eliminated because voters want the country to go in a different direction according to the will of the Kochs and their fossil fuel industry cohort. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print *The following is an opinion column by R Muse* Now that the world comprehends that Russia had an overpowering hand in giving the White House to a Russian sympathizer claiming to be a good American, there isnt much anyone will, or possibly can, do to stop what is a bloodless coup. Oh, there will be gnashing of teeth, wringing of hands, and threats of non-acceptance, but the takeover of Americas government is over and all that remains is just how much Trump will do to help his adopted nation and blood brother Vladimir Putin. Americans got a fairly good inclination that Trump is going to do whatever Putting wants as evidenced by his choice of old Vlads other BFF and two-decades-long confidante as the next secretary of state. No-one in their right mind questions the motivation behind Putins crusade to install his puppet in the White House; he wants to rule America from Moscow and Trump will allow Putin to shape, if not ultimately control, American foreign policy going forward. Although there is some concern among decent Americans at Russian intervention in Americas government, most Republicans are doing their best to pretend nothing happened and it is just business as usual. Besides, according to some Republicans, Russia will only wield control over the Executive Branch and sore loser Democrats have to get on board the Trump train and let him do Putins bidding; it is about all minority Democrats can do because they control absolutely no part of the federal government. Some Americans may wonder whether or not the Ruskies used any of the stolen data that helped Trump to victory to affect unglamorous House races when they already had control of the presidential outcome. As it turns out, the Russians also targeted about a dozen Democratic candidates in competitive House races and House Speaker Paul Ryan was complicit in helping the Russians hijack Americas government at the legislative level and effectively inflicting fatal wounds on, as Senator John McCain noted; the pillar of our democracy. The New York Times ran a fairly involved article on Wednesday that detailed how the Russians used the data they stole from the Democratic National Committee (DNC) to attack Democrats seeking House seats. It is definitely worth a read if for no other reason than to cement the idea firmly into Americans consciousness that their democracy is likely finished. Something Republicans, the Koch brothers and their legislative arm ALEC have been working toward for the past eight years. According to the NYTs report, the National Republican Campaign Committee (NRCC) and a second Republican group intricately tied to the House speaker Paul Ryan made good use of the Russian-hacked documents to attack Democrats running for House seats. This is, although stunning, another blatant example of Republican hypocrisy by another blatantly hypocritical Republican. It is noteworthy to mention that Paul Ryan has said for months that foreign intervention in our elections is unacceptable. And yet, by early October, a super PAC close to Paul Ryan used the stolen material in a campaign ad to attack at least one Democratic House candidate during the election in Florida. It is remarkable that at least one Republican House candidate from Pennsylvania, Rep. Ryan Costello, was aware that unflattering material about his opponent had been stolen by the Russians and did the American thing; refused to use the Russian espionage materials. A campaign consultant for Mr. Costello, Vincent Galko, spoke on behalf of the Republican candidate and said, We believed it was neither necessary nor appropriate to use information from a possible foreign source to influence the election. A Democrat from New Mexico, Representative Ben Ray Lujan, said the Russians wanted to hurt Democrats at all levels of the party, from lesser known races in Florida to the leadership. Mr. Lujan wrote a letter to his Republican counterpart in the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) after the first political advertisement materialized using the stolen material urging him to not use this stolen material in the 2016 campaign. Mr. Lujans letter in late August said, The N.R.C.C.s use of documents stolen by the Russians plays right into the hands of one of the United States most dangerous adversaries. Put simply, if this action continues, the N.R.C.C. will be complicit in aiding the Russian government in its effort to influence American elections. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi wrote a similar letter in early September: As you are aware, the D.C.C.C. and other Democratic Party entities have been the target of cybersecurity intrusions an electronic Watergate break-in. It has been widely reported that this cybersecurity incident is part of a Russian cyberattack which appears to be an attempt to interfere with our elections. We take this troubling situation very seriously and have notified the appropriate authorities, including the F.B.I. and Sergeant-at-Arms. Like Mr. Lujan, Minority Leader Pelosi received no Republican response whatsoever and the stolen data was still being used by the super PAC tied to Paul Ryan in October. As a flimsy excuse for helping Russia hijack Americas democracy, Ryans spokeswoman, AshLee Strong, said the House Speaker didnt really control how his super PAC used the stolen data. In fact, in a god-damning indictment, Ms. Strong never disputed that the material used against Democratic candidates was stolen as an act of Russian espionage. Instead, she reiterated that Speaker Ryan has said for months that foreign intervention in our elections is unacceptable except, apparently, if it helps Republicans complete their coup detat of Americas government. There is a seemingly faulty belief that besides owning the puppet in the White House, Putin really wants to show his citizens, and the neighboring countries he wants to control, that democracy like Americas democracy was unattractive and wrought with and by corruption. By interfering with House races in states including Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Ohio, Illinois, New Mexico and North Carolina, Putin was highly successful in ensnaring Democratic candidates in races distracted with accusations of leaks and subterfuge. It is true that American democracy has been damaged over the past eight years because Republicans at all levels of government cannot countenance the idea that all Americans have a right to vote in fair elections. But the latest election was as unrelated to fair as Republicans were prone to reject campaign assistance from Vladimir Putin. One thing is becoming increasing clear: this Republican treason against the United States of America is much more widespread than just Trump and if Paul Ryan is involved, it is likely rampant. Tragically, Americans will never know just how much of their government is shaped by a foreign adversarys espionage because complicit Republicans are as unlikely to conduct fair investigations as they are to ever support fair elections or democracy. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Buried in a Colorado appeals court decision was a slim but possible path for Electoral College electors to reject Donald Trump. Politico reported on a footnote appended to an appeals court decision that left the door open a crack for the electors to reject Donald Trump: In their order, the judges said any attempt by Colorado Secretary of State Wayne Williams to remove electors after voting has begun would be unlikely in light of the text of the Twelfth Amendment. That interpretation could significantly undercut state laws across the country that demand immediate removal of electors who vote against the popular vote winner in their state. Its a silver lining for a handful of Democratic electors urging their colleagues to cast votes against Donald Trump when the Electoral College meets on Monday. Footnotes such as the one attached to the Colorado lawsuit ruling are why Republicans are conducting whip counts of electors. No one knows what would happen if a group of electors broke away and defied the state laws binding them to the winner of the popular vote because these laws have never been challenged. Lets be realistic. The odds of the electors turning on Trump and electing Hillary Clinton or someone else is the longest of long shots. However, the door is open. A last minute bombshell about Russias election interference, or Trumps role in or knowledge about Russian election meddling, could change everything. The point is that if the electors would choose to do so, they could reject Trump and challenge the constitutionality of the state laws. It is a slim chance, but the electors may be free to vote against Trump and pick another candidate. 2016 has been such a crazy year that one final twist in the Electoral College feels like a perfect way to close the book on one of the most unusual presidential elections in U.S. history. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print By Ben Blanchard and Steve Holland BEIJING/WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (Reuters) China will return an underwater U.S. drone seized by a naval vessel this week in the South China Sea, both countries said on Saturday, but Beijing complained that Washington had been hyping up the incident. The drone, known as an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), was taken on Thursday, the first seizure of its kind in recent memory. The Pentagon went public with its complaint after the action and said on Saturday it had secured a deal to get the drone back. Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said in a statement. The incident drew criticism from U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to take a more aggressive approach in dealing with Beijing. The drone, which the Pentagon said was operating lawfully and was clearly marked as U.S. property, was collecting data about the salinity, temperature and clarity of the water about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, off the Philippines. It was seized on Thursday just as the USNS Bowditch was about to retrieve it, U.S. officials said. The Defense Ministry said a Chinese naval vessel discovered a piece of unidentified equipment, and checked it to prevent any navigational safety issues before discovering it was a U.S. drone. China decided to return it to the U.S. side in an appropriate manner, and China and the U.S. have all along been in communication about it, the ministry said on its website. During this process, the U.S. sides unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate, and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue. We express regret at this, it added. Trump, a Republican who takes office on Jan. 20, waded into the dispute on Twitter on Saturday. China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act, Trump said in a tweet early on Saturday from his seaside resort club Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, where he plans to spend the holidays. HEIGHTENED CONCERNS The drone incident has raised fresh concerns about Chinas increased military presence and aggressive posture in the disputed South China Sea, including its militarization of maritime outposts. New satellite imagery shows China has installed weapons, including anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, on all seven artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea, a U.S. research group said this week. Without directly saying whether the drone was operating in waters Beijing considers its own, Chinas Defense Ministry said U.S. ships and aircraft have for a long period been carrying out surveillance and surveys in the presence of Chinese waters. China is resolutely opposed to this, and demands the U.S. stops this kind of activity, it said. China will remain on alert for these sorts of activities and take necessary steps to deal with them, the ministry said without elaborating. The Global Times, published by the ruling Communist Partys official Peoples Daily, earlier cited an unidentified Chinese source as saying they believed the issue would be resolved smoothly. Trump has previously complained about the South China Sea build-up. He has threatened to declare China a currency manipulator and force changes in U.S.-Chinese trade policy, which he says has led to the greatest theft of American jobs in history. Trump has also raised questions about whether Washington would stick to its nearly four-decades-old policy of recognizing that Taiwan is part of one China. He irked Beijing by taking a congratulatory phone call from President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan after his Nov. 8 election victory. China lodged a diplomatic protest. The 10-minute telephone call was the first of its kind since U.S. President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of one China. President Barack Obama said on Friday it was fine for Trump to review Washingtons policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the U.S. relationship with Beijing. After China said it would return the drone, Jason Miller, a spokesman for Trump, tweeted a link to a news story, saying: @realdonaldtrump gets it done. There was, however, no evidence that Trump had played any role. U.S. officials said the negotiations took place in Beijing during the overnight hours in the United States. Miller did not respond to requests for comment. (Additional reporting by Roberta Rampton and Jonathan Landay in Washington, Josephine Mason and Meng Meng in Beijing; editing by Ian Geoghegan, G Crosse) Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Kyle Griffin, producer for MSNBCs The Last Word, pointed out, It took Trump and his team 87 minutes to fix the word unpresidented.' It took Trump and his team 87 minutes to fix the word "unpresidented." pic.twitter.com/Bz7NxSqwlo Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) December 17, 2016 We are deep in the Trumpian weeds of chaos and distraction with just one tweet, so much so that its easy to miss all of the reasons people are horrified. Its really not just elite liberals upset about having a president who cant spell, although that is bad enough and certainly we shouldnt apologize for having standards for the highest office in the land. This glaring spelling error is problematic in and of itself, as Hrafnkell Haraldsson wrote this morning, George W. Bush appears, in comparison to Trump, to have been merely a warning shot across the bow of presidential dignity. Jason Easley pointed out earlier on these pages that Trumps ongoing spelling challenges are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to reasons why hes unfit to be president. He is also unfit because he makes up his own facts while being obsessed with his media coverage. But there is also the response time problem. Why did it take 87 minutes for an entire team of people to react to this glaring embarrassment? It seems Secretary Hillary Clinton was right again. This time, her 3 AM phone call ad is a sad reminder to a nation that was easily distracted by our medias obsession with her emails: 87 minutes to react to a misspelled tweet. I mean, the decision about what to do about a misspelled tweet isnt that hard. You either write over it with the corrected version (my choice unless caught immediately, because transparency), or you delete it and rewrite it. This is hardly a decision requiring great thought, like taking a call with Taiwan should have been and wasnt for the Trump team. When President-elect Trump triggered Beijings wrath by taking a telephone call from Taiwans pro-independence leader in early Decemberthreatening four decades of diplomatic stabilitythe two countries inched closer to the type of incident that could lead to a dangerous string of tit-for-tat reprisals, Jeff Stein explained in Newsweek Friday morning. At what point do we call what Donald Trump is doing trolling the electors? Because the fact that he spelled unprecedented in a way that suggested his unprecedented election should be unpresidented (as in, Conscious Uncoupling perhaps?) seems like a cry for help. And this isnt the first time Donald Trump has tried to alert the world that he is not up to this job and doesnt intend to do it for long. 87 minutes to decide how to handle a misspelled tweet. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Donald Trump has claimed he is going to bring peace to the Middle East. He somehow thinks he is going to do this by moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem as a big slap in the face to Palestinians, and send as ambassador his bankruptcy lawyer, David Friedman, who pulled the Donalds golden nuts out of the fire in Atlantic City. The statement issued by Trumps transition team was at least probably right as a comparison of how right wingers in both Israel and the US view freedom and democracy (not favorably): The two nations have enjoyed a special relationship based on mutual respect and a dedication to freedom and democracy. With Mr. Friedmans nomination, President-elect Trump expressed his commitment to further enhancing the U.S.-Israel relationship and ensuring there will be extraordinary strategic, technological, military and intelligence cooperation between the two countries. However, the talent to screw people while saving his client Trump from the disaster of his Atlantic City casinos is not a talent that is transferrable to the most volatile region on the planet. Worse, like moving the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, the appointment of Friedman represents a shocking reversal of decades of US policy in the Middle East. Friedman publicly opposes the longstanding cornerstone of US policy in the Middle East, the two-state solution, and supports Israels settlements on the occupied West Bank, a constant source of friction with Palestinians. Judy Maltz writes at Haaretz that, Based on statements he has issued and columns he has penned, Friedman, an Orthodox bankruptcy lawyer, is positioned on the far right of the Israeli political map more hardline in his views than Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Thats pretty far to the right. Trump could possibly have found somebody with more extremist views than Friedman he has called Obama anti-Semitic but Meir Kahane is dead. However, Friedman is bad enough: he says liberal Jewish organization J Street is far worse than kapos Jews who turned in their fellow Jews in the Nazi death camps. The New York Times Editorial Board condemned the pick in the strongest possible terms: Like any president-elect, Mr. Trump is within his rights to nominate whomever he pleases. But with his choice of Mr. Friedman, he has displayed a dangerous ignorance of or indifference to the land mines across the Middle East. The Senate has the responsibility to protect Mr. Trump and the country from taking this reckless step. The Israel Policy Forum (IPF), which promotes a two-state solution, expressed concern over the choice as well, saying in a press release, Mr. Friedmans stated views on the two-state solution, Israeli settlement activity in the West Bank, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict represent a radical departure from decades of U.S. policy. Furthermore, they represent a break with the stated policies of the current Israeli government and place Mr. Friedman far outside the mainstream in the U.S. and in Israel. In addition, we are troubled by the disparaging comments Mr. Friedman has made about certain segments of the American Jewish community. The IPF called on Trump to clearly and unequivocally state his support for achieving the goal of two states for two peoples and to set out a plan to advance that objective in a manner that would ensure Israels future as a secure, Jewish, and democratic state. It would be nice if we could get an unequivocal statement of support for a democratic American state as well but if wishes were horsesRegardless, Trumps selection of Friedman is reckless and reveals his complete lack of concern for the fallout of his uninformed decision-making processes, which are based entirely on the faulty assumption that he is a smart guy. There is some irony to be found in the idea that Friedman, who once condemned Obama for surrounding himself with sycophantic minions while now be serving an administration chock-full of sycophantic minions run by a guy with time to watch SNL just so he can spend hours attacking it but unable to find the time for an intelligence briefing. Which sorta explains the choice of David Friedman. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Malcolm Nance, a retired United States Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer and an expert on U.S. intelligence, described on MSNBCs AM Joy the kind of person the KGB sought out to manipulate, This is who the KGB targeted for recruitment. Egocentric people, who lack moral principles, who are either too greedy or who suffer from exaggerated self importance. These are the people KGB wants and finds easiest to recruit. The official MSNBC twitter account for AM Joy asked, .@MALCOLMNANCE on the type of people KGB sought to manipulate. Does this sound like Donald Trump to you? Watch here: .@MALCOLMNANCE on the type of people KGB sought to manipulate. Does this sound like Donald Trump to you? #AMJoy https://t.co/cho3nR1UHi AM Joy w/Joy Reid (@amjoyshow) December 17, 2016 When did all of this happen to Donald Trump, right? At some point, he was co-opted by Vladimir Putin. And that means he bought into and embraced the dictatorial ideology that was done by a spymaster of the KGB, Nance told AM Joy host Joy Reid. Ten years ago, twenty years ago, thered be treason trials at this point, Nance said, looking slightly alarmed. Nance then quoted Yuri Bezmenov, an ex-KGB officer and Soviet defector, regarding who the KGB targets, This is who the KGB targeted for recruitment. Egocentric people, who lack moral principles, who are either too greedy or who suffer from exaggerated self importance. These are the people KGB wants and finds easiest to recruit. Vladimir Putin went to the Yuri Andropov school of intelligence, Nance said, He learned how to manipulate people. At some point we need to find out when did Donald Trumps ideology shift from western capitalism to Russian authoritarianism. Bezmenov has explained the process of Russian subversion activities against the U.S.; part one of the process of Russian subversion against the U.S. is demoralization. A person who has been demoralized is unable to accept true information; the facts tell nothing to him, Bezmenov said in the 1984 interview (watch in full here). I bring you this tidbit in the midst of the Macedonian fake news sites that spread complete falsehoods about Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election. The person Yuri Bezmenov described as the ideal target for KGB recruitment sounds exactly like President-elect Donald Trump. To even suggest this seems conspiracy nutty, and yet we have 17 intelligence agencies agreeing that Russia interfered in the U.S. election and the FBI agreeing with the CIA that Russia helped Trump win. Of course, no one has proven that Trump knowingly sold out to the Kremlin and this is an important distinction, even with the smoke billowing around his head. But Nance makes the point that if we were functioning as we should, there would have already been treason trials. We are instead fighting to get people focused on the reality that there is a huge problem heading to the White House, and thus part of the demoralization plan seems to already be working. What seems to be fairly established at this point is Trump favors pro-Russia policy, has stocked his cabinet with those who favor pro-Russian policies, had or has people in his inner circle who have dealings with Russia and Russian propaganda, the Russians and probably Putin himself directed or knew about interfered in the 2016 election, sharing hacks of Hillary Clinton and the DNC that sought to harm her in the election and thus favor Trump, and Trump is ignoring Aleppo and instead talking about Russia as if they are our friend. Meanwhile, Russia is actually very dangerous and a man as ignorant and easily used as Donald Trump could be the kindling to that fire. These facts not only warrant but demand an independent investigation, not just a Congressional intel committee probe. Image: MSNBC, AM Joy Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print *The following is an opinion column by R Muse* Assessing election data is a time intensive task during the normal course of events, and if America wasnt in the midst of a coup detat conducted by a hostile foreign power and the nations top law enforcement agency, it would be acceptable to postpone assessing why a Russian collaborator is heading to the White House. However, acceptable or not, a Russian puppet is heading to the White House and there is overwhelming evidence that his trip to Washington was made possible by both Russian intervention and rogue alt-right agents within the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Over the past two days there has been no small number of reports on exactly why Trump won an election he had no right being a part of, much less winning. The consensus is clear that the Putin-ordered espionage on behalf of Trump, and the FBI-created October surprise courtesy of Director James Comey eroded just enough electoral support for Hillary Clinton to give Russia and FBI rogues what they wanted, Donald Trump in the White House. Clinton explained why Trumps friend and ally Putin worked so hard to prevent her from winning the election. Ironically, it was because in 2011 she accused Putin of rigging Russian parliamentary elections to keep himself in power. She said: At the same time, citizens of Russia were pouring into the streets to protest. . . . People who were outraged because they thought they were on a trajectory of greater freedom, greater opportunity, and they watched that, and they were appalled. Putin publicly blamed me for the outpouring of outrage by his own people. And that is the direct line between what he said back then and what he did in this election. Now, what Putin did in directing the espionage against the United States was well known over at the Federal Bureau of Investigation. For dogs sake the pro-Trump alt-right rogue contingency at the Bureau appears to have given information about the Russian hacking to Rudy Giuliani. Back in July Giuliani boasted, exactly one day after Trump appealed to the Kremlin for campaign aid, that he was certain the Russians were on the job and had already acquired the stolen data. According to an in depth investigative article on Huffington Post, one touted as an Outline of What Increasingly Exhibits the Hallmarks of a Criminal Conspiracy, it reports that traitor Giuliani Confessed on the Lars Larson radio program that current FBI agents working on the Clinton investigation had illegally leaked information to him about the Abedin emails before it became public and before Director Comey had been told of the emails, and, moreover, were intending to leak this information as a (in Giulianis words) pro-Trump October Surprise, thereby establishing a political motive among a faction of the FBI. (Author bold) To make matters worse, Comey decided to leak the unknown information himself to beat those same rogue New York FBI agents who were planning to leak the new evidence; irrelevant evidence in the Anthony Weiner sexting case. Comey likely sought to protect the rogue agents by preventing them from committing an act that would be violating numerous federal criminal statutes, and which plan to leak would already be regarded as a criminal conspiracy by law. As Hillary Clinton noted, and as the Huffington Post stated categorically; Comeys October surprise was more than enough to put Trump in the White House. This is the conclusion of Nate Silver and many others. It is all the more damning of an indictment against Comey and the anti-Clinton rogues in the FBI that they knew full well that Russia was working against Clinton on behalf of Trump, and then they joined Putins efforts to thwart her campaign and put Putins man in the Oval Office. As President Obama said, everyone knew the Russians were working for Trump, and in fact it was blatantly apparent because Trump openly called on his Russian spy friends to help him by committing espionage to portray Clinton as untrustworthy; something they did willingly to sate Putins thirst for vengeance against Hillary Clinton. As an aside, it is noteworthy that Putins puppet, Trump is renowned for being an extremely vindictive piece of work, so Americans have an idea of what kind of leader they just allowed Vladimir Putin and rogue FBI agents to install to govern them. In any other universe, this kind of installation is what Keith Olbermann and many, many other regard as a bloodless coup. As Mr. Drum remarked, and any half-wit should comprehend by now, there were two egregious interventions in the Clinton campaign; first by Russian spies aiding Trumps campaign, and then by the director of the FBI. Drum gives Comey unwarranted slack by claiming he was motivated at least partly by his fear of a rogue group of agents who were dedicated to Clintons defeat; rogue agents that should have been summarily fired and likely would have been if they werent aligned with Comeys politics. Mr. Comey knew his actions were wrong and indeed, the Justice Department had fairly warned him about an unprecedented act of interference in an election. Comey cannot claim interfering was not his intent, or that he didnt know it was interfering in an election or appearing political. Remember, he claimed he didnt comment on Trumps Russia connection because it was too close to the election, in July, and he didnt want to interfere or appear politically motivated. No matter what Mr. Comeys excuse or justification for aiding the Russians install Putins puppet in the White House, he knew exactly what he was doing and went ahead in a manner perfectly calculated to do the maximum damage. If for no other reason than for the sake of national security, the Federal Bureau of Investigation needs to be hastily purged of rogue agents and if applicable they must be prosecuted for criminal conspiracy; this includes their partisan director James Comey. If it is discovered they were complicit in the Trump-Russia conspiracy, and knowingly aided a hostile foreign powers leader, they must join their Republican cohorts and be charged with treason. They have committed a grave assault on, as Senator John McCain said the pillar of our democracy; something the American people likely once believed the FBI existed to defend. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley was speaking at the launch of Mobicash, a mobile wallet application launched by State Bank of India in partnership with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited, in Mumbai. By Vidya : Finance Minister Arun Jaitely today clarified that political parties have not been granted any exemption post demonetisation, and introduction of Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Act, 2016 which came into force on December 15. Jaitley was speaking at the launch of Mobicash, a mobile wallet application launched by State Bank of India in partnership with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited, in Mumbai. advertisement "Post demonetisation, no political party can accept donations in Rs 500 and Rs 1000 rupee notes since they have been rendered illegal tenders. Any party doing so would be in violation of law. Just like anyone else, political parties can also deposit their cash held in the old currency in banks till the December 30, provided they can satisfactorily explain the source of income and their books of accounts reflect the entries prior to November 8. If there is any discrepancy in the books or records of political parties, they are as liable to be questioned by the income tax authorities as is anyone else. They enjoy no immunity whatsoever." The Finance Minister had earlier also stated that government is trying to encourage digitisation as much as possible because an excessive cash economy has its own social and economic costs and consequences. "There was a time when people debated if colour television should be brought into the country. People said we will lose jobs if robots came in. We created jobs when we lost jobs at other places. India has always showed a tendency to accept technology." Jaitely signed off by saying, "15 days have past since petrol pumps stopped taking old notes. Since then petrol pumps are doing 53 per cent higher digital transactions. That's when truckers are the ones who visit petrol pumps most. Phones will become the new batua." Also Read: Demonetisation biggest step in 70 years; remonetisation will not take long: Jaitley at FICCI event --- ENDS --- Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Donald Trump was up early and tweeting this morning, and making a glaring Palinesque, spelling error in the process or perhaps it was a hat tip to George W. Bushs own penchant for invented words (who can forget misunderestimate?: China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented act. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 17, 2016 China unlawfully seized a U.S. Navy drone, an unmanned underwater vehicle or UUV, from the water in the South China Sea on December 15, and a protest has been lodged over Chinese claims it is appropriately handling the drone (read: taking it apart). This is certainly an embarrassment to the United States, but Trump appears to think reacting with either a tragically mispelled word or coining a new one entirely will not make things worse for Americas image abroad. George Takei first asked for a president who can spell (Barack Obama comes to mind): Is it too much to ask for a president who can spell? #Unprecedented https://t.co/CzcXtG7PxH George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) December 17, 2016 Upon further reflection, he added a wish for all lovers of sane, responsible government: Well, this is a Freudian slip if ever there was one. And yes, we all hope one day soon Trump also will be unpresidented. https://t.co/CzcXtG7PxH George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) December 17, 2016 Frequent Trump critic, author J.K. Rowling was quick to remark on the error as well: Former Guantanamo chief prosecutor, Air Force Colonel David Morris, had a few things to say as well, mocking Trump with, .@realDonaldTrump: "I use all of the best words, like 'unpresidented' that's not really a word, but it will be in a Trump administration." pic.twitter.com/UiRKTyW7nm Col. Morris Davis (@ColMorrisDavis) December 17, 2016 Before helpfully offering a definition for the newly coined word: unpresidented adjective / un-prez-uh-dented the removal of a president who is unfit. After his indictment, Trump was unpresidented. pic.twitter.com/yi6jrkmzex Col. Morris Davis (@ColMorrisDavis) December 17, 2016 This is all certainly unpresidented and in the worst way possible. George W. Bush appears, in comparison to Trump, to have been merely a warning shot across the bow of presidential dignity. There is absolutely no doubt, after four years of Trump, the United States will again go desperately in search of another president as erudite (not to say, sane) as Barack H. Obama. Though the clock is falling back, fun is still springing up all around the Lowcountry. Immerse yourself in Scottish heritage at the Charleston Scottish Games and Highland Gathering, head to Summerville for the Timrod Library's 125th birthday, or spend a night with friends celebrating Charleston Beer Week. Read moreMy Charleston Weekend: Beer, Bagpipes, and a Birthday Bash While some longtime locals have moved away frustrated by traffic, cut-down trees, more parking a surprising number of residents say Bluffton is managing to preserve the funky, laid-back vibe that drew so many people to it in the first place. Read moreDespite enormous growth, Bluffton is trying to hang on to its small town charm Syndicated and guest columns represent the personal views of the writers, not necessarily those of the editorial staff. The editorial department operates entirely independently of the news department and is not involved in newsroom operations. By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 17 (PTI) Actress Kangana Ranaut has once again spoken about her spat with Hrithik Roshan, saying she "felt naked" when her personal letters were made public and she would often cry herself to sleep. Hrithik, 42, and Kangana had slapped each other with legal notices earlier this year. The actor claimed he never had an affair with 29-year-old Kangana and she should apologise while the actress maintained otherwise. advertisement Speaking about her experience in third person at Reeboks FitToFight awards, Kangana said she is proud of her ability to stay in love even though "my world or environment" does not allow or respond in the same way. "I know the things Im going to say, will get me into trouble, but I wouldnt be doing justice to the evening if I hold back," said Kangana, adding that being a storyteller, she would like to talk in third person. "There was this young girl in the mountains. She had a lot of fire in her and was very unusual, extremely dreamy, impractical, naive and stubborn. She was 14, when she saw a picture of a man and she fell in love with him. That picture led her to cross oceans, deserts, mountains and landscapes. "She is standing under stars with the man and this man kisses her and he says I love you. What happens is that this man says that she is not a normal girl, she has a lot of fire in her belly. And she isnt even a human, she is a lion... So, the man gets scared of this woman and thats when the whole love story becomes a tragedy." Kanagana said what she was not prepared for was the "extreme brutality". "I am talking because people have seen how I have put up a strong front to fight but nobody has seen what I feel as a woman, when I am subjected to that kind of brutality. The letters that I might have written, which were brutally exposed to the world. "... every letter that youve written to your lover holds a lot of vulnerability? You are exposing part of your soul or yourself, not to the world, to an individual. I felt extremely naked in front of the world. I cried for nights in my room and the worst was most of it was not even genuine or authentic," she claimed. The actress said she chose not to answered to that brutality in the same spirit but she was scared when the letters were made public. She asked her sister Rangoli about the nature of those letters and was told that most of them express a desire for a man. advertisement "I said I would not go and defend myself for that. What is wrong in that? This is the very mindset that I did not want to encourage... It was a very traumatic time for me." Kangana said she is an ambitious career woman who does not see anything wrong in having everything and the scandal attacked this aspect of her personality. "You may become this successful woman but it does not change men and their expectations from you... They think you cant have everything... I dont want to be a little keep or mistress... Today it still hurts when they write it as the ugliest scandal and fight. For me, it is not." PTI BK ZMN --- ENDS --- One of my best historical sources, Lee Hilgendorf, who writes the Lens on History column for the Post Bulletin, tipped me to some outrageously interesting details regarding the Mayo family's ownership of KLER , the second-ever radio station in Rochester. The station was on the air from 1948 to 1952, as loyal readers know, since I've composed a few masterpieces on the topic this week. It turns out, the PB played a role in the Mayo family getting out of the radio business. The station, which had its tower just west of what's now West Circle Drive along Salem Road, was nominally launched by Alice Mayo, wife of Dr. Charles W. Mayo. "Dr. Chuck," as he was known, was Dr. Charles H. Mayo'sson and the master of Mayowood in those days. Dr. Chuck published a candid memoir in 1968, called "Mayo: The Story of My Family and Career," in which he describes the radio venture. After returning from his wartime service in November 1945, "my problems over money seemed to be worsening," he wrote. "Higher costs in every area were making it impossible to run Mayowood and keep up the Mayo tradition of hospitality there, but I could not abandon either." He sold off pieces of the Mayowood estate, "which never failed to grieve me." Those real estate sales also were contrary to Mayo Clinic policy at that time: "It was forbidden that clinic doctors should have an outside income, but I was growing desperate," he wrote. ADVERTISEMENT Then, a financial lifesaver appeared, a patient named John Edward Noble , who had years earlier "bought a company that made litle round candies and had the idea to put a hole in them and called them Life Savers . With the fortune that ensued, he purchased a radio network then known as the Blue Network and renamed it ABC." (To help you chart this: The Life Savers Corp. was founded in 1913, and he founded the American Broadcasting Company in 1943 after buying the Blue Line from RCA in 1943.) "On this occasion when I was visiting him in his hospital room," Dr. Chuck wrote, "Ed was grousing because he couldn't listen to his network while in Rochester." Dr. Chuck asked why he didn't start an ABC station in Rochester. Noble liked the idea, but it was Mayo who borrowed the money and put the plan in action. "We put up four 350-foot towers in a field near Mayowood and called the new station KLER." That was in 1948. To avoid clinic rules about outside income, Alice was named president -- "fearing the wrath of the clinic's Board of Governors, I kept in the background as much as possible" -- and they rented offices downtown, on the current site of Dooley's Pub. They had 18 employees and all was well. Then, however, "the local newspaper reported at some length about Rochester's new radio station and made prominent mention of the Mayo name: mine, to be specific. I waited, knowing that a terrible row with the (Board of Governors) was in the offing. Associates urged me to head off the storm by selling the station at once, but I wouldn't back down. My position wasn't too vulnerable, since the board couldn't fire me." But the board could make life difficult, even for the grandson of Dr. W.W. Mayoand son of one of the Mayo brothers. A special meeting was called to discuss the KLER matter. "I remember telling the board in some heat that no one there knew how much money my father had left me, or about the condition in his will which was financially disastrous for me, or about the poor trusteeship of that will, or what I held to be poor trusteeship," he wrote, "The plain fact was, I continued, that I was heavily in debt and obliged to sell my land to keep from sinking." ADVERTISEMENT Board members expressed surprise that he was in financial trouble. They gave him a pay raise and some expense relief for the "high cost of hospitality" at Mayowood. But they nonetheless advised him to get out of the radio business. "I replied that I would not, and took that opportunity to point out that Harry Harwick , a board member and the clinic's financial administrator, was also on the board of directors of radio station KROC, my chief rival in Rochester." The board responded that Harwick wasn't a doctor and was only a board member. So Dr. Chuck quit the board of KLER but declined to part ways with the station. "The meeting finally ended and we went our ways, all of us feeling mangled by the encounter." Alice Mayo continued to run the company for three years until it was sold to the Gentlingfamily and KROC. According to Dr. Chuck, "we made no profit on the deal, my luck being consistent in that regard, but for a wonder, we didn't lose either." As a legendary radio personality used to say, "NOW you know...the rrrrrest of the story." The national drugstore chain Walgreens has selected Rochester Mayor Ardell Brede to receive a Happy and Healthy Communities Champion Award for his role in promoting health and wellness in the city. Brede had been scheduled to accept the award at a northwest Rochester Walgreens location Friday but the event was canceled due to weather and road conditions. The event will be rescheduled, a Walgreens spokesman told the Post Bulletin. The Happy and Healthy Communities Champion Award is in its inaugural year, according to a Walgreen's press release. The award "recognizes civic leaders who cultivate health and wellness lifestyles in their communities as well as their effort to promote good local business and community partners," the release said. Brede was recognized with the award for his support of businesses in the community, his leadership in promoting the Destination Medical Center initiative and for his role in making Rochester a global destination for health and wellness. "As Walgreens works to champion everyone's right to be happy and healthy, we recognize leaders such as Mayor Brede who encourage health and wellness efforts as well as champion businesses within the village. We are pleased to name him as a 2016 happy and healthy community champion," Donovan Pepper, Walgreens national director of local government relations, said in the release. ADVERTISEMENT Walgreens has two drugstores in Rochester. Does requiring a cop to have a college education improve the quality of law enforcement? Minnesota says yes. Minnesota is one of only two states in the nation to require a two-year degree to become a licensed police officer. However, policymakers and others still debate whether college courses directly affect the quality of law enforcement. Most of the country's law enforcement agencies require only a high school diploma to become an officer. As of 2003, 9 percent of police agencies required a two-year degree, and 1 percent required a four-year degree. Minnesota's law enforcement application has some of the strictest requirements in the country. A minimum two-year degree is required from an approved Peace Officer Standards and Training program. After earning a two-year degree in any discipline, candidates must also earn a licensing certificate from an accredited school, according to Nate Grove, POST executive director. Once that's finished, candidates must take the licensing exam. Once licensed, every active and inactive police officer including part-time officers must complete a minimum 48 hours of continuing education every three years in order to keep their license. ADVERTISEMENT Active officers are also required to train every year on use of force, and every five years in emergency vehicle operations and pursuit driving. In 1977, Minnesota legislators established the nation's first licensing system for police officers, according to the FBI. This created the Minnesota Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training. The board authorizes licenses and determines minimum education requirements for all new officers. Some education experts and organizations have argued for even stricter education requirements. They argue that community-focused policing requires particular skill sets, such as critical thinking and reasoning, an understanding of the causes of socioeconomic crime, and race relations. Others are skeptical that higher education makes a difference in an officer's ability to perform. James Densley, associate professor of criminal justice at Metropolitan State University in St. Paul, co-authored a study that looked into law enforcement hiring practices and the role of higher education in policing. Simply having a college degree might not be a good indicator of how well someone performs in the actual profession, Densley said. "Quality, not the quantity of the degree, matters most. "There is a risk that the current system, with its shallow curriculum and emphasis on technical skills, is merely credentialing candidates, not educating them," he said. "What would the benefit of pursuing a two-year degree be, and would a four-year degree necessarily be any more beneficial for those to become an officer?" Rich Watkins, a Riverland Community College instructor, said a hands-on approach in a two-year program is preferred. That would give students an opportunity to learn whether the profession is right for them. ADVERTISEMENT "This is an evolving profession. We can't just stay the same as we are and expect to go on for another 20 years like this," Watkins said. "Law enforcement needs to strive to recognize the human factors involved. Training needs to be kept up to date, and should be put on the forefront of every agency. Not every agency does." Others say the four-year degree can offer officers a place to mature and be exposed to diversity in thought and culture. "We need to challenge ourselves," said Mark Norman, Winona State University professor of criminal justice. "You'll run into people who don't like you because you're officers, and rightfully so. As law enforcement, we played into the role of discourse within our communities. That's why community policing is so important to repair some of the harm that exists in our societies. How to relate to them on those things are important to get instructed in our classrooms." No simple solution Evidence from Densley's research suggests that higher education "carries no influence over the probability of an arrest or search during a police-civilian encounter." However, a college education does significantly decrease the likelihood of force. "The question is why," he said. "Is it that college education genuinely improves skills, habits, and social and personality attributes conducive to policing, or that a college degree is simply a reliable indicator of underlying prosocial attributes that were always there? If high-ability people are inherently better cops than low-ability people, then perhaps a college degree is merely a mechanism to signal such ability to employers?" Perhaps the biggest obstacles faced by a potential police officer are time and money. Minnesota candidates have to invest in two to four years of training and education that can cost $15,000 to $100,000, with no guarantee of a job at the end of it all. Metro-area law enforcement agencies are increasingly hiring only candidates with four-year degrees. The trend is led mostly by community demand, which led to a "geographical bias," according to Densley's research. ADVERTISEMENT "Some large agencies get so many applicants, for example, that the four-year degree becomes a necessary screening tool. Rural agencies, on the other hand, pay less and attract fewer applicants. Therefore, they often go with two-year-degree candidates." The costs associated with a professional peace officer education, Densley argues, "dissuade low-income or second-career opportunity. Not to mention the historical and cultural barriers to entry for women or black and minority ethnic candidates." "Now you could say that about most professions, but the difference here is that candidates are studying for a degree in law enforcement. Period," he said. "A degree that is tailored to law enforcement in Minnesota. Not Wisconsin, or California. Just Minnesota. That is a pretty narrow workforce preparation compared, to say, a degree in psychology or economics." Is college right? The college environment might not necessarily be well positioned to deliver police training. "There are things that colleges and universities can do," Densley said. "Promote partnership between researchers and law enforcement agencies, champion program evaluation and evidence-based practices, provide a safe space to explore empathy, implicit bias, procedural justice, deescalation. For example, I would much rather students learn about structural inequality in America from a sociology professor than a retired beat cop." Norman believes that it's time for law enforcement to take a look at itself and changing times. "My hope is that we continue to always look out into the world and see what's happening," he said. "Be able to make adjustments to better ourselves." Dylan Arndt, 19, of Brownsdale has always wanted to be a cop. Soon, he'll be graduating from Riverland with an associate's degree, the first big step in becoming a licensed officer in the state. Despite the complexities, the scrutiny, the dangers, and the amount of work left ahead of him, he feels that this job was meant for him. "I think if I just do my job the right way, I'll be just fine," Arndt said. "It makes it easier when you're doing something you love, and it doesn't feel like work at all." AUSTIN It was night time. A woman was pulled over onto the side of the road. Brady McDermott, a Riverland Community College student, approached the car. A police officer in training, he asked for her driver's license, then saw the gun by her side. "Gun, gun, gun," McDermott yelled. "Put your hands where I can see them." But the woman ignored his commands, saying her license plates are in the glove compartment. Then, in an instant, she pulled the gun on him. McDermott shoots repeatedly. Bang. Bang. Bang. Virtual bullet holes riddle the projection screen and a red sign appears that reads: "You used lethal force. Debrief with your instructor." It was all a simulation for what students such as McDermott may encounter while out in the field as a future police officer. Training future officers ADVERTISEMENT Students in the Riverland Community College Police Tactics and Procedures program in Austin use the exercises to help better understand their roles as police officers and what the career might require of them. They go through scenarios at a nearby park in handling despondent individuals. They practice verbalization and self-defense techniques. It all is just a taste of what they will learn once they complete their college education and what they will be experiencing in the skills portion of their training, said Rich Watkins, an instructor and a retired Faribault police sergeant. The training is designed to help weed out those who aren't right for the job. "We don't keep people here to keep students in the seats," Watkins said. "This is not a job that is designed for everyone." Bridging a divide Law enforcement has come under increasing public scrutiny. Social media allows the average citizen to instantly share officers' interactions with the public. High-profile cases such as the Philando Castile shooting in St. Paul and the Alton Sterling case in Louisiana have streamed to the computers and smartphones of millions. Such cases have raised questions regarding how officers handle specific situations with different segments of the community. The cases are discussed in the classrooms of future police officers and have become part of the education goals for agencies, said Nate Grove, executive director of the Minnesota Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training. Racial bias, community policing and critical reasoning and thinking now are part of the coursework. "Our curriculum is being expanded," Grove said. "There are so many topics that have been added on as well as learning objectives. It certainly adds to the professionalism of the industry beyond a high school diploma and a two-week academy. That was really the mission of the P.O.S.T. board." Studies done by the Pew Research Center revealed most people hold positive views of police officers. But gaps of confidence among races, especially in the wake of deadly encounters with officers, remain an issue. ADVERTISEMENT According to the study: 75 percent of whites surveyed said police in their communities do an excellent or good job when it comes to using the right amount of force in a given situation. Only 33 percent of blacks share that view. 75 percent of whites stated police treated racial and ethnic groups equally. Only 35 percent of blacks agreed. 70 percent of whites stated police hold officers accountable when misconduct occurs. Only 31 percent of blacks said their agencies do a good job of doing so. There also has been an increase in the number of police deaths across the country. Sixty-four officers have been shot and killed across the country so far in 2016, the most in five years, according to the National Law Enforcement Memorial Fund. The deaths of officers in Louisiana and Texas have left many confused, angry and seeking answers. Current events are discussed in today's classrooms. Mark Norman, a Winona State University professor in criminal justice for nearly two decades, said the subject is nothing new. He emphasized that in order to make change happen for police and for the public, it is important to find common ground in education, and it was a subject his students are learning. "I think we want to talk about how we can come together as a whole to work on the issues that confront us," Norman said. "To get to know each other. We need to have an understanding of our communities, and those people need to have an understanding. It's a two-way street." ADVERTISEMENT Do college grads make better cops? Byron resident Dean Smith has watched helplessly in recent years as his health insurance premiums have skyrocketed. Before the Affordable Care Act took effect, Smith said he had plenty of health plans to choose from and settled on an insurance plan that cost $350 per month. Fast forward to today, and Smith said there are few options from which to choose. He is faced with paying nearly $1,200 per month in premiums with a $6,500 deductible. "Right now, it's going to be cheaper for me to pay a penalty than it is for me to pay for my insurance," he said. Smith shared his frustrations during a health care town hall sponsored by the Olmsted County Republicans on Thursday night. It was one of two events focused on Obamacare and what will happen next year when Republican Donald Trump moves into the White House. Trump campaigned on repealing the federal health care law but has offered few specifics as to what should replace it. On Tuesday afternoon, 1st District DFL Rep. Tim Walz hosted a health care roundtable at People's Food Co-op in Rochester. A bipartisan group of lawmakers joined local health care experts to talk about problems with the individual health insurance market. Approximately 5 percent of Minnesotans purchase health insurance via the individual market. About half of those qualify for federal tax subsidies that help with the cost of premiums. But that leaves 121,000 Minnesotans who are stuck trying to cover the cost of soaring premiums on their own. ADVERTISEMENT After years of partisan bickering over the Affordable Care Act, Trump's election and Republican control of Congress means major changes can move ahead, Walz said. That provides an opportunity to make needed changes to improve the nation's health care system. "This is a new opportunity to tackle health care reform that was unsustainable before, it's unsustainable for many people now, which tells me we've got more work to do," Walz said. During the round table discussion, several ideas were floated on how to improve the system. They included trying to move from an employer-based health insurance system to a portable one. Other suggestions include getting rid of regulations on the types of plans people have to purchase and figuring out ways to broaden the individual insurance market pool. Options could include creating a federal or state-based high-risk insurance pool or allowing individuals to enroll in the state employees' health insurance system. Sen. Carla Nelson, R-Rochester, said that Minnesota's health insurance system was working well before the Affordable Care Act took effect. The state had a high-risk insurance pool that guaranteed people with pre-existing coverage could still get coverage. She said she would like to see the federal government grant Minnesota a waiver to allow the state to go back to having a high-risk pool. "At least grant Minnesota a waiver or other states a waiver and go back and do what was working pre-ACA," Nelson said. On Thursday evening, more than 60 people gathered at Wood Lake Meeting Center for a health care town hall meeting organized by former Rochester Republican Rep. Fran Bradley. During the meeting, several people shared their personal frustrations with the health care law. Olmsted Medical Center provider Penny Flavin said that more and more of her patients are telling her they can no longer come to her for care because OMC is no longer an in-network provider for their insurance company. "I've been taking care of these patients for 15 years and then all of a sudden, they have to go somewhere else or they don't have health care at all and they even have to go to a different county to get health care," Flavin said. ADVERTISEMENT Rep. Matt Dean, R-Dellwood, told the crowd that instead of waiting for the federal government to take action on the health care law, he wants Minnesota to step forward and start making significant changes. Dean is chairman of the House Health and Human Services Committee. "I really don't think that MInnesota should get in line again to see where they take us. We should do things the Minnesota way, which leads the nation, leads the world in quality and in health care," Dean said. He said the Legislature's first priority needs to be to provide premium relief to people struggling to buy health insurance on the individual market. The next big challenge is to figure out how to improve access to health care across the state. He also supports scrapping the state-run health insurance exchange, MNsure. Rochester DFL Rep. Tina Liebling told the mostly conservative audience that she fears efforts to fix the health care system that rely on private insurance won't work. Nonetheless, she said there are opportunities for Republicans and Democrats to work together. One issue that brings local lawmakers together is the high cost of insurance premium in southeast Minnesota. The region has the highest insurance rates in the state. She said she supports efforts to get a waiver from the federal government to get rid of the state's nine insurance rating areas and move to one rating area for the entire state. She added, "The fact is everybody in our state benefits from Mayo and all should share in that cost. I know our local legislators all agree. I hope that we want to have one rate for the whole state because we think that would be fair." Mayo Clinic officials are wasting no time weighing in on potential changes to the Affordable Care Act. In a recent interview with the Washington Post, Mayo Clinic President and CEO John Noseworthy said the federal health care law was put together without enough input from patients and doctors. "We've been talking much more about premiums and websites than we have about what patients need. The voice of the patient and, I would argue, the voice of the medical professional, hasn't been at the table for a long, long time. I think we could help," Noseworthy said. The seismic shift in the political landscape of Washington, D.C. means big changes are in store for Obamacare. But University of Minnesota health policy professor Jean Abraham said it is unclear what incoming President Donald Trump and the Republican-led Congress plan to do with the ACA. "(Trump) gave very broad-based statements of 'We're going to repeal it and we're going to replace it and we're going to get something better.' But what better is is really in the eye of the beholder," Abraham said. ADVERTISEMENT One likely possibility is that Republicans partially repeal Obamacare. Because Republicans don't have at least 60 members in the Senate, they cannot block Democrats' delaying tactics on a full repeal of the law. That means they will probably look to repeal portions of the bill tied to the budget using a process known as "reconciliation," Abraham said. That would allow Republicans to scrap funding for expanded Medicaid coverage and tax credits for people who buy insurance via online marketplaces. The GOP could also get rid of mandates for employers and individuals. While passing the repeal could happen relatively quickly, figuring out what to replace it with could end up taking a lot longer. Abraham said the danger is that the partial repeal would lead to more uninsured Americans and could potentially destabilize the individual health insurance market. Under Obamacare, an estimated 20 million Americans have gained health coverage. "Health care represents 20 percent of the entire U.S. economy. So to be kind of creating tremendous uncertainty for individuals and for employers and for hospitals I think they are going to start to feel the heat pretty soon about whether this strategy will work," she said. Lots of questions All the uncertainty is leading to questions from people enrolling in health plans via MNsure this year, according to Denise Robertson, southern Minnesota regional coordinator for Health Access MN. "Almost every single person who sees us asks us that question what's going to happen next year? And of course, we don't know what's going to happen," Robertson said. But so far, she said she has seen no evidence that people are delaying enrolling in health plans because of the federal uncertainty. She also tells consumers that if they purchase health care and keep up with their premiums, they do not have to worry about losing insurance in 2017. As the Dec. 15 enrollment deadline for health insurance coverage that begins Jan. 1 approaches, she said her organization has been overwhelmed by people seeking assistance. ADVERTISEMENT "We are truly beyond capacity at this point," Robertson said. Mayo pushing for changes Mayo Clinic leaders are already taking steps to reach out to the incoming Trump administration and offer their input. Kathleen Harrington, the clinic's government relations chair, said a major concern for Mayo is shrinking insurance networks. More and more patients are struggling to find insurance in the individual market that allows them to go to academic health centers like Mayo Clinic. For instance, of the nine rating areas in Minnesota, only two offer health plans that have Mayo Clinic in network. That means Twin Cities residents buying health insurance via MNsure can't buy plans with Mayo in-network. That is especially difficult for patients who are in the midst of treatment for life-threatening conditions at Mayo. "Our concern really is the patient access. People who need to get the care should be able to get the care here care that can be uniquely provided by Mayo Clinic Rochester," she said. Also worrisome to Mayo Clinic is soaring health insurance premiums and deductibles. Harrington said if people have such high deductibles that they cannot afford to use their health insurance, that also creates an access problem. She said it is important changes to the ACA work to address this problem by fixing how risks are measured. While Mayo sees an opportunity to push for needed changes to the law, the clinic also wants some aspects of the ACA to stay. That includes provisions that guarantee patients with pre-existing conditions can get insurance, eliminate lifetime insurance caps and enable people up to age 26 to stay on their parents' health insurance. "We can't turn back the clock on coverage, but we have to make sure it's affordable and sustainable and actually usable by patients. Right now it is none of those," Harrington said. ADVERTISEMENT Also high on Mayo Clinic's priority list is convincing federal leaders of changing how health care providers are paid so that it is focused on value and quality not just quantity. Harrington said the ACA took small steps in that direction and another recently passed bill builds on that work. Still, more needs to be done. The clinic also wants there to be continued support for efforts to improve how care is delivered so that it is not only more efficient but also more effective. One more important piece of the federal health care puzzle is making sure federal funding for research remains robust. "The message we've delivered to the Trump administration is that research, innovation and discovery in health care is a critical element of American competitiveness, international competitiveness," Harrington said. "We believe that. We are hopeful that we will have a listening ear to that message, and we'll make certain that we give it repeatedly and loudly." With the help of celebrities and professional activists, protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline in North Dakota have attracted international attention. The shouting and violence have drawn sympathy from people who are hearing only one side of the story the one told by activists. Were the full story to be heard, much, if not all, of that sympathy would vanish. The activists tell an emotionally charged tale of greed, racism, and misbehavior by corporate and government officials. But the real story of the Dakota Access Pipeline was revealed in court documents in September, and it is nothing like the activists' tale. In fact, it is the complete opposite. The record shows that Energy Transfer Partners, the company building the pipeline, spent years working diligently with federal, state, and local officials to route the pipeline safely and with the fewest possible disruptions. The contrast between the protesters' claims and the facts on record is stunning. Protesters claim that the pipeline was "fast-tracked," denying tribal leaders the opportunity to participate in the process. In fact, project leaders participated in 559 meetings with community leaders, local officials, and organizations to listen to concerns and fine-tune the route. The company asked for, and received, a tougher federal permitting process at sites along the Missouri River. This more difficult procedure included a mandated review of each water crossing's potential impact on historical artifacts and locations. Protesters claim that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers failed to consult tribal leaders as required by federal law. The record shows that the corps held 389 meetings with 55 tribes. Corps officials met numerous times with leaders of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, which initiated the lawsuit and the protests. ADVERTISEMENT Protesters claim that the Standing Rock Sioux pursued meetings with an unresponsive Army Corps of Engineers. Court records show that the roles in that story were in fact reversed. The corps alerted the tribe to the pipeline permit application in the fall of 2014 and repeatedly requested comments from and meetings with tribal leaders only to be rebuffed over and over again. Tribal leaders ignored requests for comment and canceled meetings multiple times. In September of 2014 alone, the corps made five unsuccessful attempts to meet with Standing Rock Sioux leaders. The next month, a meeting was arranged, but "when the Corps timely arrived for the meeting, Tribal Chairman David Archambault told them that the conclave had started earlier than planned and had already ended," according to a federal judge. At a planned meeting the next month, the tribe took the pipeline off the agenda and refused to discuss it. This stonewalling by tribal leaders continued for a year and a half. Typical of the misinformation spread during the protests is a comment made by Jesse Jackson, who recently joined the activists in North Dakota. He said the decision to reroute the pipeline so that it crossed close to the Standing Rock Sioux tribe's water intake was "racism." The pipeline route was adjusted based on concerns expressed by locals including other tribal leaders who met with company and Army Corps of Engineers officials. The court record reveals that the Standing Rock Sioux refused to meet with corps officials to discuss the route until after site work had begun. That work is now 77 percent completed at a cost of $3 billion. In response to a lawsuit filed by the Standing Rock Sioux, the court documented "dozens of attempts" by the corps to consult with the tribe. It documented the legal and proper approval process the corps used to permit all of the contested construction sites the tribe claimed were improperly permitted. It even documented evidence that the corps had exceeded the minimum legal requirements during its earnest and lengthy efforts to receive the input of tribal leaders on the pipeline. Pipeline protesters may have a tight grip on media coverage of the pipeline, but they have a demonstrably loose grip on the facts. The truth as documented not by the company but by the federal court system is that pipeline approvals were not rushed, permits were not granted illegally, and tribal leaders were not excluded. These are proven facts upheld by two federal courts. If only this side of the story were getting the same attention as the other side. Perhaps judges should start announcing their rulings by megaphone while standing beside a few media-attracting celebrities. Shawn McCoy is the publisher of InsideSources . Previously, he served as Iowa communications director for the Romney Campaign and has advised other campaigns nationwide. "I guess this is just another lost cause, Mr. Paine. All you people don't know about lost causes. Mr. Paine does. He said once they were the only causes worth fighting for and he fought for them once. For the only reason any man ever fights for them. Because of just one plain simple rule: Love thy neighbor." Jefferson Smith (played by Jimmy Stewart), "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," 1939 If ever there was a "lost cause" in modern American society, it had to be the fight against the Dakota Access pipeline, a $3.8 billion project to ship fracked oil from North Dakota across the U.S. heartland to lucrative markets. The battle pitted some of the world's richest oil companies and its powerful political allies against what started as a small band of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe in North Dakota, soon to be joined by other indigenous tribes, environmental activists from all over the country, even military veterans. The Native Americans and their allies had some powerful moral arguments: First Nation peoples had been given little or no input, the pipeline cut through land that tribal citizens believe is sacred, and local residents could not abide the risk of a potential leak as the oil crossed the Missouri River, their sole source of clean drinking water. ADVERTISEMENT In the hardened world of political punditry, the odds of stopping the project looked highly unlikely. The opponents had entered the battle late; much of the pipeline across four states has already been built, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had granted at least tentative approval to finish the rest. Despite this, the Standing Rock Sioux were willing to put their bodies on the line for the things that mattered: respect for indigenous people and their rights, as well as the right to clean water. The foes called themselves "water protectors," a name that resonated with all who learned of their struggle. The protest followed a classic pattern. First the politicians and the national news media ignored it. They seemed to view North Dakota as if it were Outer Mongolia, an exotic and inaccessible land. Then, when the protest was dramatized by one intrepid journalist, Amy Goodman of Democracy Now, people switched to ridiculing it, these Native protesters and their naive belief they could defeat Big Oil and the political establishment. Then officials fought it, with vicious security dogs that nipped at and injured demonstrators, by arresting or charging journalists like Goodman or anyone else who tried the document the protests, by attempting to blockade the protest encampment, and firing water canons at the group in sub-freezing temperatures. And when all seemed lost, when a bitter cold winter was descending on Standing Rock, when authorities seemed ready to clear the camp and the rabidly pro-oil administration of Donald Trump was just weeks away from moving into the White House, they won. How'd they do it? For one thing, the protesters were unbelievably determined to fight, even as the brutal prairie temperatures dropped below freezing and snow fell on their encampment. They were well organized, and patient. Their persistence forced the authorities into blunder after blunder. In early September, that use of attack dogs against the Native protesters conjured images of similar attacks against civil rights protesters in Alabama in the 1960s and that swayed public opinion to the side of the Standing Rock Sioux. Again and again, local officials, sheriff's deputies, and pipeline operators overplayed their hand the ridiculous "riot" charges lodged against the journalist Goodman, or the overly militarized response to peaceful protesters. Although the protesters had solid facts to support their case, including the hundreds of damaging pipeline spills across America in recent years, they won the battle, in my opinion, with an emotional appeal to the nation's heart. For centuries, the American government has broken its promises to Native Americans, often with brutal violence, while expropriating their lands. The Dakota Access pipeline felt like more of the same, and it just felt wrong to many people. Victory was not easy. It meant weeks of persistence, not just marching on a Sunday afternoon here or there. It meant taking enormous risks, of arrest or even physical injury. It meant groups that came to the protests with very different agendas and backgrounds tribal councils and environmentalists had to overcome their differences and work together. Ultimately, despite ridiculously long odds, they convinced millions of people and finally the current government of the justness of their cause. ADVERTISEMENT Although this was not their intention or their goal, the people of Standing Rock have already taught many valuable lessons to those of us determined to resist Trump as he prepares to take office. And they have already given this burgeoning political movement the most priceless gift of all. Hope. Will Bunch is a columnist for the Philadelphia Daily News. Parliament on Friday passed the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2014 with the approval of Lok Sabha. By Indo-Asian News Service: Parliament on Friday passed the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2014, with the Lok Sabha giving its nod to the legislation. It was the first bill in the winter session to be passed amid comparative bonhomie between the government and the opposition in both houses. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present in the Lok Sabha as the bill was passed on the last day of the session. advertisement The bill, which replaces the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995, has been brought in to comply with the UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which India signed in 2007. The legislation was pending in the Rajya Sabha since February 2014 as the term of the erstwhile UPA government ended soon after the bill was introduced. It was passed by the upper house earlier this week. Piloting the bill in the lower house, Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Thawar Chand Gehlot said the bill will increase reservations for the disabled persons to 4 per cent. 21 CATEGORIES INSTEAD OF SEVEN "There will be 21 categories instead of seven earlier to cover all disabilities. Medical and education facilities are also given. No Divyangs (disabled) will be left out," he said. Most Congress members, including the party leader in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, were missing from the house as the bill was tabled as they went for a meeting with President Pranab Mukherjee on the demonetisation issue. Also read: Tharoor: Rahul must have earth-shaking evidence which govt didn't want revealed in Parliament Congress member K.C. Venugopal, who was present in the house and participated in the debate, also used it as an opportunity to speak on demonetisation. "Since 16th (November) we are trying to discuss the issue of demonetisation, but government is not interested," he said. He then welcomed the bill but highlighted the the draft legislation did not compel private firms to give reservation to disabled persons, and it only said this should be done if it is economically viable. As the bill was taken up for passage, amendments brought by opposition members were defeated one after the other. OPPOSITION INSIST ON DIVISION However, in one of the amendments, Congress members insisted for a division. When the electronic voting was done, 121 members voted against the amendment in comparison to 43 members who favoured it. Also read: Parliament's winter session headed for washout However, the giant screens in the Lok Sabha which were supposed to display the members' votes according to the seating plan faced a malfunction, and could not display the result. advertisement This was used by the opposition as an opportunity to take a dig at the ruling party. DIGITAL INDIA FAILED As the Prime Minister was sitting in the house, members from the Congress said that "Digital India has failed", and "it failed in front of Mr. Digital". Another member from the opposition benches said: "It's condition has become like an ATM." The bill was finally passed by voice vote, soon after which the house was adjourned sine die. Also read: Parliament adjourned for the day; logjam continues over India Today sting, note ban, Rijiju --- ENDS --- The outgoing 2016 has been quite an interesting one for music lovers. The industry witnessed very interesting events that made headlines from January till date. Some of our favourite artistes were embroiled in controversies, others released groundbreaking singles and some went a step further to release albums. But how much did fans go looking for the songs online? And whose songs was/were the most searched for on Google? G-World Wide artiste, Kiss Daniel and YBNL boss, Olamide emerged top on the list, claiming 2 spots each. Here are the top 10 most searched Naija songs on Google 2016. 1 Kiss Daniel Mama Nigerian music sensation and G-World Wide music act, Anidugbe Oluwatobiloba Daniel, better known by his music name, Kiss Daniel, has claimed the top spot on Google trends 2016. His groundbreaking single MAMA which was produced by YBNL in-house producer, Young John, has clinched the number 1 spot as most searched Nigerian song on Google 2016. Excited about the stride, Kiss Daniel took to his Instagram to share. Mama is the most searched Nigerian song on Google for the year 2016 and JOMBO came 3rd All thanks to the fans around the world #vadocitizens #No1song #MAMA #MOSTDOWNLOADEDSONGNJO, he wrote. 2 Tekno Pana Award-winning act and Triple MG front-liner, Tekno, has had quite an amazing career 2016. His single Pana paved the way for his successful strides which has earned him the number 2 spot. Tekno has also been nominated for the highly coveted Next Rated artiste at the Headies awards. 3 Kiss Daniel Jombo Kiss Daniels love single Jombo claims the number three spot. The song is off his New Era album. The single was followed up by a befitting video. 4 Olamide Who You Epp YBNL boss and prolific Nigerian rapper, Olamides hit single Who You Epp was one of most talked about singles for 2016. Not only did it get covers (remixes) by other artistes (both big and small), the title Who You Epp became a cliche among Nigerians. It clinches the number four spot. 5 Lil Kesh Ishe YAGI boss and YBNL affiliate artiste, Lil Kesh takes the number 5 spot as the fifth most searched song on google. The song was produced by YBNL in-house producer Pheelz. 6 Falz Soft Work Folarin Falana, better known by his stage name, Falz the bahd guy, has become a house-hold name and has subtly won our hearts with his comic lyrics, sense of appeal and versatility. His Sess produced hit single Soft Work, claims a spot as the 6th most searched song on Google in 2016. The song is off his Stories That Touch Album. 7 Adekunle Gold Ready YBNL afro-pop serial hit-maker, Adekunle Gold, takes the number 7 spot on Google. This doesnt come as a surprise for those in the know as his album Gold Standard was a stellar piece of work. 8 Drake One Dance ft Wizkid & Kyla American rapper Drake takes the number 8 spot with his single One Dance which features Nigerian music export, Wizkid and Kyla. The song is what served as a pedestal for Wizkids Grammy nomination. 9 Psquare Bank Alert After the back and forth controversy that trailed their path in 2016, the Okoye brothers, Psquare, reignited their passion for music with a welcome back song titled Bank Alert which quickly became a fan favourite. Though it came later this year, it still managed to make its place as the 9th most searched Nigerian song on Google. 10 Olamide Abule Sowo Olamides hit single Abule Sowo seals the list claiming the number ten spot. The song was produced by the usual suspect, Pheelz. Arik Air on Friday alerted passengers of worsening aviation fuel supply leading to flight delays and some cancellations at airports across the country. The airline made the announcement in a statement signed by its Communications Manager, Ola Adebanji, which was obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos. The statement said the fuel scarcity which has been on for several days was becoming more intense. It said this was due to the inability of approved major fuel marketers to meet the demands of the airline, especially at this time when the maximum number of passengers were travelling for the yuletide. Arik Air, the largest airline operator, has been operating over 100 daily flights and therefore experiences a larger impact of this scarcity, compared to other airlines. The airline requires a daily supply of approximately 500,000 litres for its operations but it has been getting between 180,000 and 200,000 over the past 10 days, which has severely impacted the scheduled flight operations. Despite the abrupt and random fuel price increase by some marketers, which the airline may be forced to pass on to its customers, the product supply still remains epileptic, the statement said. It, therefore, appealed for the understanding of the airlines passengers, who had been booked to travel on its flights. According to the statement, passengers are also advised to always visit the airlines website, www.arikair.com or contact the Call Centre on 01 2799999, for information about their flights. (NAN) Air Peace has announced that it would commence flight operations on the Lagos-Uyo route from December 18. The airline also assured its customers that it had made adequate preparation with vendors for the supply of aviation fuel throughout the festive period and beyond, to ensure hitch-free operations. Air Peace made the announcement in a statement issued by its Corporate Communications Manager, Chris Iwarah on Saturday. The statement said the the airline was expanding its flight operations to Uyo in response to the yearnings of Akwa Ibom people and other air travellers. It said the timing of the airlines maiden flight to the state was to give air travellers on the Uyo route a dependable alternative and cater to the huge traffic to the state during the yuletide. On Sept. 9, we inaugurated our Lagos-Benin-Lagos and Abuja-Benin-Abuja flight operations to give air travellers a reliable option. The inauguration has not only been a huge success, but has also drastically reduced the difficulties faced by air travellers on the Benin route. However, since the inauguration of Air Peace Benin operations, our numerous loyal customers and other air travellers have increased their calls on us to take our spectacular flight experience to Uyo, Akwa Ibom State. We are pleased to announce the commencement of our flight operations out of Lagos into Uyo on Dec. 18 and out of Uyo into Lagos on Dec. 19, the statement said. According to the statement, Akwa Ibom is a burgeoning economic and tourist centre in the South-South region of Nigeria. It added that this status had led to a huge leap in the demand for air travel to and out of the state, which had so far been met with mostly disappointment. The statement said: Air Peace, therefore, felt it was time to respond to the yearnings of our numerous loyal customers and other air travellers to expand to the state. And there is no better time to do that than this yuletide, when a lot of Nigerians and foreigners will be accessing Akwa Ibom for one activity or the other. It said the good news was coming at a time the airline had also made arrangements with aviation fuel vendors to ensure availability of the product to enable it seamlessly take air travellers to its different destinations in the country. We have been able to secure the commitment of different aviation fuel vendors, besides our regular suppliers. They are ready to make the product available to us because they trust us. We dont only promptly pay our vendors, we also provide them with funds well in advance, to ensure there is no excuse for non-availability of the product. The operating environment may be challenging, but Air Peace irrevocably believes that air travellers deserve on-time, safe, comfortable and affordable flight experience, it added. (NAN) All Heads of State and Government of the ECOWAS member countries have resolved to attend the inauguration of the Gambian President-Elect, Adama Barrow, on January 18, 2017, in conformity with the Gambian constitution. According to a communique presented at the end of the 50th Ordinary Session of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government held in Abuja on Saturday, the out-going President Yahya Jammeh must uphold the result of the December 1 presidential election in the country and must guarantee the safety and protection of the President-elect. The Authority calls on President Yahya Jammeh to accept the result of the polls and refrain from any action likely to compromise the transition and peaceful transfer of power to the President-Elect, the communique added. The Authority also appointed President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria and his Ghanaian counterpart as Chief Mediator and Co-Mediator respectively in the Gambian political impasse. (NAN) By India Today Web Desk: Art of disguising has become inevitable for even the most accomplished robbers, however this man from Florida has taken this art to another level. Funny as it may sound, a person who drew beard using a pen to rob a petrol pump, has taken many by surprise who are reeling under the comedy of errors and are unable to overcome the mirth of his dearth of imagination. The man who painstakingly drew a 'Gabbar-esque' beard finished his supposedly 'terrifying' look with a cool pair of spectacles and a red bandana. The infantile imagination has led to ripples of laughter. While for many this may come across as a sloppy attempt by a novice, surprisingly the man's stunt left the cops in a disarray who for hours were unsure about the gender of the individual in question. advertisement This incident occurred in Pasco, Florida on Thursday. The sheriff's department was unsure whether the suspect was male or female According to a Daily Dot report, it's also unclear if the suspect got away with any cash from the attempted robbery. This person is a suspect in a Robbery at the Holiday Gas Station on US 19-if you have info call @crimestopperstb 1-800-873-TIPS (8477). pic.twitter.com/hiK3m1FuKl Pasco Sheriff (@PascoSheriff) December 15, 2016 Apparently little details have surfaced about the success of this misadventure, only assumptions can be made about the man's extraordinary efforts with the pen or permanent marker to execute this plan. --- ENDS --- The suggestion that the next U.S. Ambassador to Israel might relocate the embassy to Jerusalem has roiled the region on Friday, a report has said. Israelis and Palestinians tried to assess the impact of such a specific, but weighty, change in U.S. policy. Israel has long considered Jerusalem to be its capital. However, since the Palestinian Authority would like to make East Jerusalem the capital of an eventual state, picking Jerusalem as the site of its embassy would be a clear signal of favouring one side over the other. To avoid this, most countries have set up their embassies in Tel Aviv. However, in countries like America, with a vocal Jewish population, there are frequent calls for a move to Jerusalem, which are usually backed by the executive and the legislature. However, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said several times during his campaign that he would prefer a site in Jerusalem. Those comments received extra weight after his pick for ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, said this week that he expected to be based in Jerusalem. The possibility was met with outrage by the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO). Such a step, should it happen, is a serious violation of international rights and resolutions, PLO executive committee member, Wasel Abu Yousef, said about the relocation. This could have serious consequences, not just for the Palestine issue, but for the region as a whole. The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not comment on the report. However, Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely did release a statement praising the Thursday choice of Friedman. His positions reflect the desire to strengthen the standing of Israels capital Jerusalem at this time and to underscore that the settlements have never been the true problem in the area, she said. But representatives from liberal Jewish organisations expressed concern. The position he advocates is more extreme than any government of Israel has stated, said Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the union for Reform Judaism, in comments carried by Haaretz. Jacobs also pointed to comments by Friedman where the new ambassador said he would prefer for the West Bank to be annexed by Israel more than he would prefer a two-state solution. The question of territorial control is never far from the surface between Israel and the Palestinians. The state of Israel was carved from the territory in the years after World War II. More and more Palestinians have been displaced in subsequent wars by the two peoples, leading to regular outbreaks of violence. Israel claims Jerusalem as the undivided, eternal capital of the Jewish people. The claim extends to the Arabic east of the city, which was seized by Israel during the six-day war in 1967. Palestinians, by contrast, see East Jerusalem as the future capital of an independent Palestinian state. Trump has already said he intends to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem and recognise the city as Israels capital. The international community does not recognise Jerusalem as the capital, which is why most embassies are based in Tel Aviv. (dpa/NAN) The anguish of the parents of a four-year-old victim of ritual killing has been compounded by the death in police custody of one of his suspected murderers. The police claimed that the suspect, Fidelis Bossman, a Togolese, was taken ill and died during interrogation. But the father of the victim, Johnson Habila Magaji, said he suspected the claim was a sinister attempt to pervert the course of justice. The minor, Psalm Johnson, was reported missing on October 15 from his parents Kuruduma 2, Ugwan Hausawa residence in a rural suburb of the Asokoro Extension in Abuja. A petty trader running a kiosk in the neighbourhood, however, provided a crucial clue when he recalled seeing little Psalm in the company of Boniface Sani, a young man who lived with his parents in the same compound as the Johnsons. Boniface acknowledged that little Psalm had been with him. He claimed however that when he wanted to visit his friend in another part of the village, and because it was about to rain at the time, he instructed the boy to go inside our compound, Mr. Johnson narrated to PREMIUM TIMES. But the trader, Mahmud Magaji, insisted he had seen Boniface walking away from the compound with the little boy. Under interrogation the following day at the A.Y.A Police Station, Boniface later confessed he had sold off little Psalm to Mr. Bossman for N100,000. Eight days after little Psalm had gone missing, the Police were able to apprehend Mr. Bossman, who confirmed the transaction. He however revealed that both of them had immediately strangled the little boy to death, in a money-making ritual. The two suspects later led detectives to a riverside behind Asokoro village where the decomposed body of the boy was recovered. But two days later on October 25, the case took a strange twist. According to Mr. Johnson, when he went to the Police Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, to which the case had been transferred, an officer informed him that Mr. Bossman had died. At first, an officer told me that the Togolese had died under interrogation, Mr. Johnson told PREMIUM TIMES. Shortly after, another policeman said he had fallen sick and died in a hospital. He said he was later shown a picture said to be of the body of the suspect. But I could not be sure whether the person in the picture was actually dead or posing dead to the camera, Mr. Johnson said. When PREMIUM TIMES visited the A.Y.A police Station where the case was first reported, the Divisional Police Officer, Aisha Yusuf, said she knew nothing about the Togolese. She said her officers only arrested Boniface before I had to hand over the case to the CID, because we dont handle cases like murder and abduction. At the FCT Police Command headquarters, an officer identified as Hassan Abdullahi also said he was not aware of the death of the Togolese. He claimed that the two suspects were still under custody and that investigation was still ongoing. PREMIUM TIMES later spoke with the Abuja police command spokesman, AnjuGuri Mamza, on the conflicting claims about Mr. Bossman. Mr. Mamza confirmed the suspects death. When we brought in the suspects, one of them, quite unfortunately the principal suspect, was complaining that he was sick. Our men, after discovering he was not feeling too fine, rushed him to the Police Hospital, Mr Mamza said. We normally take suspects who fall ill to the Police Hospital. So, after proper examination by our medical doctor at the hospital, he gave recommendation that the suspect be taken to Gwagwalada Specialist Hospital. We however lost him on the way. Autopsy has been taken on the suspect. Mr. Mamza said the body was in the morgue of the Gwagwalada Specialist Hospital, as nobody had yet come forward to claim it. Investigation is still ongoing. The remaining suspect will be charged to court at the completion of investigation, he said. The Police spokesman also explained reasons why the suspect was yet to be arraigned despite his alleged confessional statement while being interrogated by SARS. There is nitty-gritty in confessions; you have to understand the rationale behind what was done before taking the accused to court, he said. You have to be sure of your facts, figures and the evidence that will be used to prosecute so you dont go and present what is shabby and fail to get the appropriate punishment for the offender, Mr. Mamza stressed. There are procedures to follow when such investigations are ongoing. At the Gwagwalada hospital, a mortuary attendant who refused to give out his identity confirmed that the police deposited a body at the mortuary on October 26. But the deceased was registered as Fidelis Sirboss, not Fidelis Bossman. The attendant however would not allow the reporter to inspect the mortuarys record or the body deposited by the police. For the Johnsons, they continue to grieve over the murder of their son. They said they hope the surviving suspect has his day in court and that their suspicion of an attempt to obstruct justice is unfounded. Two years after Boko Haram attacks forced them to flee their homes in the north-east Nigeria, a fresh grief has crept in on some internally displaced persons camped in Wasa, a rural community in the suburb of Apo in Abuja. Diarrhoea outbreak, the second in just over a year, claimed the lives of 10 children in the camp in November. Rilwanu Mohammed, the Executive Secretary of the Federal Capital Territory Primary Health Care Development Board, PHCDB, told PREMIUM TIMES that the disease broke out on November 1. Elizabeth Ibrahim lost her 7-year old boy, Musa, to the outbreak. She said the boy died as a result of frequent stooling and vomiting. We moved with my husband and four children into this camp a year ago from Gwoza, Borno State when Boko Haram seized our hamlet, she told PREMIUM TIMES in Hausa. Mrs. Ibrahim narrated her ordeal as she sat on a mat in front of their two-bedroom flat at the camp, surrounded by her three surviving children. An aged woman and some neighbourhood children sat close by, condoling the bereaved family. Musa was not the only one passing stool, we all had been passing stool for a few days, Mrs. Ibrahim said. On the day he died, he went out to play in the afternoon after eating. He later came back, complaining of stomach ache. I gave him Flagyl and he went to sleep. Later in the evening, when I tried waking him up, I discovered that he was dead, she recalled as others around her grunted. It was not the first time that the camp was hit by the epidemic. Earlier in 2015, a diarrhoea outbreak had claimed six lives in the camp. LACK OF WATER Displaces persons, IDPs, narrated how absence of potable water has been a major problem for the over 5000 residents. We drink water from the borehole, which we buy for N10 per jerry can, Mrs. Ibrahim said. But that was only after an NGO constructed a borehole and installed two plastic tanks in the camp. Before then, our only source of water was the stream a few kilometres across the camp, she added. Mrs. Ibrahim, like other members of the camp, feels neglected by the Nigerian government. She does not know what the future holds for her family, who like tens of thousands of IDPs displaced by the Boko Haram are scattered across Abuja without any government assistance. The government has repeatedly asked the IDPs to return to their homes in Borno. But despite government efforts, attacks by Boko Haram on civilians and soldiers are still rampant in Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa, discouraging the displaced persons from returning. The Boko Haram insurgency has caused the death of over 20,000 people while millions of others like those in Wasa have been displaced from their homes. Unfortunately for IDPs who moved outside of the north-east to Abuja and other places, the attention of the government and local and international organisations is fixed mainly on displaced persons who remained in the troubled region. ABANDONED HEALTH CENTRE At the Wasa camp, although two or three families are cramped into each of the two-bedroom flats, there is no facility for health care service in the camp. A primary health care centre donated by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, was completed in March, but it has not been opened to serve the residents. Mr. Mohammed, the Abuja primary healthcare official, said the centre was not handed over to his board, so it cannot operate the facility. Asked what government was doing to prevent future diarrhoea deaths at the camp, Mr. Mohammed said the housing conditions and economic vulnerabilities of the residents would always put them at the risk of the killer disease. He, however, said the victims of the latest outbreak had been treated by the board, and that the situation was under control. The secretary said all the children in the community had also been vaccinated, and the two boreholes in the Wasa community decontaminated with chlorine gas. The IDPs coordinator for Abuja Municipal Area Council, Abdulkareem Mustapha, also said the council had posted a health worker to provide health services at the camp. The lack of water supply however means that residents of the camp will remain exposed to sanitation problems. Mr. Mohammed said the primary healthcare board had advised residents against open defecation, practised by residents of the camp. But Geoffrey Bitrus, one of the residents, said open defecation became the norm in the camp because the pit latrines, donated by Caritas Nigeria, had long been abandoned due to the lack of water, poor construction and poor management. Evaritus Bassey, a reverend father and Chief Executive Officer of Caritas Nigeria, said the ventilated toilets were short term emergency interventions. He said a Water, Sanitation and Hygiene committee comprising of leaders of the IDPs were taught on management of the pit toilets. That maintenance never occurred, making the latrines abandoned and a source of diseases of residents of the area. Reacting to the absence of water and sanitation facilities at the camp, the Communications and Campaigns Manager of WaterAid Nigeria, Oluwaseyi Abdulmalik, appealed to authorities and residents on the need to promote personal hygiene. She described it is one of the most cost-effective ways of reducing child diarrhoea deaths. While authorities and organisations hassle over who to provide and maintain hygiene facilities at the Wasa camp, residents like Mrs. Ibrahim continue to lament their situation. she said she never expected to lose her child to diarrhoea and feels strongly that the Nigerian government should pay a closer attention to the welfare of IDPs in Abuja. On Thursday, the Nigerian Senate declined to confirm the appointment of Ibrahim Magu as substantive chair of the countrys premier anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The upper legislative chamber claimed it could not approve the presidencys request to confirm Mr. Magu based on a security report forwarded to it by the State Security Service. The Senate wishes to inform the public that based on available security report, the Senate cannot proceed with the confirmation of Ibrahim Magu as Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the spokesperson for the Senate, Aliyu Abdullahi, said in a statement read to journalists. The nomination of Ibrahim Magu is hereby rejected and has been returned to the President for further action, Mr. Abdullahi said. The Senate did not provide the EFCC chairman an opportunity to respond to the allegations against him. PREMIUM TIMES has obtained details of the security report on which the lawmakers based their decision and has investigated the claims against Mr. Magu. We fact-checked some of the claims made by the SSS, and below are our findings: ALLEGATION ONE: That during the tenure of Farida Waziri as EFCC chairperson, sensitive documents were found in Mr. Magus home. The facts do not support that claim. A reporter for this newspaper extensively reported that event in 2008 when it happened, and is familiar with what transpired at the time. Based on pressure from political gladiators of the period (among which were former Governors James Ibori and Bukola Saraki), then President Musa YarAdua unceremoniously removed Nuhu Ribadu as chairman of the EFCC. After Mr. Ribadus departure, his successor, Mrs. Waziri, frustrated some of his closest and most resourceful aides in the commission, and harassed them for prolonged period. Mr. Magu, who was a chief superintendent of police at the time, was sent away from the EFCC and his Lagos and Abuja homes were raided by operatives even before he had the opportunity to hand over to Umar Sanda as head of the Economic Governance Unit of the commission. He was later detained for three weeks. Following complaints by Mrs. Waziri, the then Inspector General of Police, Mike Okiro, queried Mr. Magu, accusing him of serious misconduct. One of the allegations against him was that he removed and withheld EFCC files. On August 25, 2008, Mr. Magu replied the query, explaining to the IGP that no unauthorized EFCC official documents were found in his home. I wish to state that the nature of my assignment at the EFCC is such that I worked round the clock and it was impossible for me to do my work effectively without working on some documents at home, he wrote to Mr. Okiro at the time. This is the reason I maintain an office bag where documents relating to investigations were kept. The documents listed were found in my office bag which I was in the process of handing over and were not found hidden anywhere in my house. It is therefore not the correct position to say that I bluntly refused to hand over EFCCs property and documents. I had just concluded handing over the Abuja office and I was in Lagos to conclude handing over the Lagos office when the search was conducted. At the time of the search, I had not reported to my new command. It could therefore not be my intention to keep government documents in my house. I have suffered untold humiliation within the past one month. My home was ransacked, vandalized and my properties destroyed by men of the EFCC. I was detained in a cell meant for hardened criminals most of whom are armed robbers for three weeks. My health condition deteriorated as a result of his inhuman treatment meted out to me for doing my job diligently and with the pride required of a senior police officer of my rank in the Nigerian Police Force. I humbly implore the Inspector General of Police to totally exonerate me from blame and the said acts of serious misconduct because I was not involved and I am not involved. I will never be discouraged in my unrelenting war against crime and its associated manifestations as enshrined in the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. After investigation, the police IG exonerated Mr. Magu, posted him to the polices Special Fraud Unit and promoted him to the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police shortly afterwards. ALLEGATION TWO: That Mr. Magu currently occupies a residence rented for N40 million at N20 million per annum. This accommodation was not paid [for] from the commissions (EFCC) finances, but by one Umar Mohammed, air commodore retired. This claim is also untrue. PREMIUM TIMES has obtained evidence showing the property in question was paid for by the Federal Capital Development Administration, and not Mr. Umar. The E-Payment schedule, dated March 31, was issued by to the branch controller of Central Bank, Abuja, in favour of M/S Valcour SA Nigeria Limited. The company was paid N39.628 million as payment for two-year rent and furnishing of the property, located in upscale Maitama district of Abuja. The payment schedule was signed by Isiyaku Ismaila and confirmed by Zanna A. Hamza. Mr. Magu lived in Karu, a suburb of Abuja, before his appointment as acting EFCC chair. With his new position, Mr. Magu moved into an official residence provided by the FCDA. ALLEGATION 3: That the acting EFCC chairman regularly embarked on official and private trips through a private jet owned by embattled Air Commodore Mohammed Umar (Rtd). PREMIUM TIMES checks show that this is not entirely correct. Our investigations indicate that Mr. Magu first met Mr. Umar when both of them worked as members of the Presidential Committee on the investigation of arms procurement. At the time, Mr. Umar was very close to President Muhammadu Buhari and had unlimited access to the presidential villa. Both men became close during the assignment. Our investigations indicate that once this year, Mr. Magu travelled to Kano in company of EFCCs director of finance and that in charge of organizational support. Those familiar with the trip said on their way back to Abuja, Mr. Umar, who at the time remained Mr. Magus colleague at the presidential committee, and who was at the time not in any trouble with the SSS, gave the two officials a lift. We are unable to find any evidence that Mr. Magu flew in Mr. Umars private jet at any other time. Neither were we able to establish that the EFCC chairman flew to Maiduguri alongside Mr. Umar and a bank MD being investigated by the EFCC over complicity in funds allegedly stolen by former Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke. While some insiders at the commission denied the allegation, we could not independently verify the claims. ALLEGATION 4: On 24 June, 2016, he (Magu) flew Emirate airlines first-class to Saudi Arabia to perform lesser hajj at the cost of N2.9m. This is in spite of Mr Presidents directive to all public servants to fly economy class. Insiders say while it was true that Mr. Magu indeed flew first class to Saudi Arabia for lesser hajj, he did not pay for the ticket with public funds. We could not however confirm this claim independently. The Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, has constituted a panel of detectives to investigate crisis associated with the recent Rivers rerun elections. A key aspect of the investigation would be a forensic examination of an audio clip containing threats allegedly made by Governor Nyesom Wike to kill electoral officials who failed to do his bidding after receiving bribes. In the audio, first published by news website Sahara Reporters, Mr. Wike could be heard threatening to kill the officials if they did not do his bidding or return his money. They should return what they gave them or I will kill them, the governor was heard telling a supposed aide whom he asked to warn the unnamed INEC officials from deployed from Plateau. PREMIUM TIMES could not verify the authenticity of the clip or when the discussions held. The governors office said the audio was manipulated. A statement Saturday by police spokesperson, Don Awunah, said the police IG was responding to a statement credited to the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Yakubu Mahmud, to the effect that there were 70 incidents that tended to derail the election. He said the IG has set up a team of detectives and experts to conduct a thorough investigation into the incidents mentioned by the INEC chairman with a view to unravelling those who directly or indirectly are responsible for such incidences and bring them to justice. The investigative team is also mandated to conduct forensic analysis on the audio report released by Sahara Reporters purportedly to be the voice of the Executive Governor of Rivers State, His Excellency Chief (Barr.) Nyesom Wike (CON) pertaining to the concluded elections. The statement enjoined the government of Rivers State and INEC to avail the investigative team with facts at their disposal and grant them the desired cooperation and assistance to achieve a comprehensive and conclusive investigation. The election observers, civil society groups, Human Rights watchers and other stakeholders are equally called upon to assist the team with valuable information they may have, the statement said. The investigative team is headed by a Deputy Commissioner of Police who has vast experience in investigation, and the team has 30 days to complete the investigation and submit report that would be made public, Mr. Awunah said. Victor Ezegwu, the General Officer Commanding of the Nigerian Army 7 Division in Maimalari, escaped being lynched by rampaging Nigerian soldiers on Friday morning, PREMIUM TIMES can report. Details of the attempted assault on Mr. Ezegwu, a major general, by troops attached to Operation Rescue Finale in Sambisa Forest, came a day after he denied our report about a mutiny on the battlefront. The troops were enraged over poor welfare arrangement and alleged deceit by their commanders, our sources recounted. Specifically, they accused the commander of leaving them to fight for two days without food. The incident occurred in Sambisa Forest on Friday morning, as this newspaper reported. Most of the soldiers involved in the mutiny were deployed to Sambisa from 21 Brigade in Bama, Borno State. PREMIUM TIMES obtained new details of the incident on Saturday, that show that the soldiers went from 9:00 a.m. on December 14 till 6:00 p.m. on December 15 more than 24 hours without food. When Mr. Ezegwu eventually arrived in a helicopter bearing foods and other supplies on Friday morning, the troops swooped on him and scavenged the snacks, food and water he brought. They removed all the supplies, including parts for operational vehicles and other equipment, before moving towards the GOC in an attempt to attack him, our sources said. The GOC escaped being lynched because he was immediately shoved into an aircraft and whisked away from the area, a source said. With their target having escaped, the troops began sporadic firing, sources said. They also rained curses on their commander. Army spokesman, Sani Usman, did not immediately respond to PREMIUM TIMES request for comments Saturday afternoon. Shortly after our report about the incident on Friday, Mr. Ezegwu issued a statement to deny our facts. Mr. Ezegwu said he was at Bama on Friday morning but he did not witness any outbreak of violence amongst the troops, much less against his person. I want to assure that nothing like mutiny happened in Bama. Nothing happened, he told reporters in Maiduguri on Friday. I just came back from Bama and nothing like that happened. Military sources told PREMIUM TIMES that the Army has commenced efforts to evacuate some troops from the area in order to forestall complete breakdown of order. The Army leadership will also increase supply of essential materials to the troops. The latest tumult over lack of adequate food and water for the troops came eight months after a similar situation played out in Alagarno. At the time, troops fighting to take control of the town attempted to kill their GOC after they were left for five days without water. There have been repeated cases of mutiny by Nigerian soldiers since the war against Boko Haram began, and the Army has tried over 100 soldiers for the offence. The worst case occurred in May 2014 when troops of 7 Division, angered by the death of 12 of their colleagues in a Boko Haram ambush, opened fire on the vehicle of their General Officer Commanding (GOC), Ahmadu Mohammed, a major general. The soldiers were later arrested, tried and jailed. The Army launched Operation Rescue Final earlier this month to dislodge Boko Haram insurgents from Sambisa Forest a massive reserve which has long been occupied by the terrorists and rescue civilians trapped there. The commanders have claimed success in the operation, with thousands of women and children having been announced rescued. But the momentum is being threatened by frequent complaints of poor equipment and welfare for the troops. In October soldiers told PREMIUM TIMES of how they were forced to go without salaries for months. Similarly, the troops also complained about their allowances being arbitrarily reduced by their commanders as well as how they made do with low-nutrient meals in undignified environments. Although the Army denied any poor treatment of the personnel, it immediately started paying the soldiers a few days after the report. Since then, soldiers have regularly reported being timely and appropriately remunerated and expressed their comfort until yesterdays fallout. The president of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, said the Senate would look into the disbursement of N213 billion power sector intervention fund by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Mr. Saraki said this in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Sanni Onogu, on Saturday in Abuja. Mr. Saraki, according to the statement, spoke during a meeting to proffer solutions to the worsening electricity generation in the country. He said the upper chamber would verify claims and counter claims of non-remittance of revenues between the Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading Company (NBET), Electricity Distribution Companies (Discos) and Generation Companies (Gencos). Mr. Saraki urged the Senate Committee on Power, Steel Development and Metallurgy to conduct a public hearing on the funds as well as on the declining electricity generation which currently stands at 3,000 megawatts. He said the public hearing should take a look at reasons behind the inability of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) to effectively supervise and audit the electricity generation and distribution companies. The president of the senate lamented the poor electricity supply in Nigeria and the consequences of the negative development in the efforts to move Nigeria out of the present economic recession. He called on operators in the sector to work towards proffering solutions to the imminent collapse of the electricity system in the country. (NAN) Gov. Muhammadu Bindow of Adamawa has expressed satisfaction over Fridays judgement of the Supreme Court that turned down former governor Murtala Nyakos plea for reinstatement. Mr. Nyako was impeached by the Adamawa House of Assembly in 2014. Mr. Bindow, who spoke with journalists in Yola on his arrival from Abuja on Saturday, said he was happy with the judgement, but that he still held Mr. Nyako in high esteem as a father. I am grateful to God for the development and will continue to appreciate God and the people of Adamawa for their solidarity; I assure them that by the grace of God I will not disappoint them. Nyako is my father and will continue to be, Mr. Bindow said. Mr. Nyako, who lost the bid to return to office to complete his remaining 10 months, also said that he accepted the judgment in good faith. The former governor said his major reason for going to court was to seek redress over what he described as his illegal removal. I am relaxed and will remain so; I always believe that the future is better, Mr. Nyako said. The former governor thanked his supporters and well-wishers for their show of support and solidarity. Thank you my people of Adamawa for the show of love, Mr. Nyako said. He said as a farmer, he would continue his farming business and contribute his quota to humanity. (NAN) Police have arrested a woman in Kaduna for allegedly torturing her four-year-old stepson. The woman, Amina Yakubu, is accused of frequently beating the boy, pouring cold water on him and abusing him with a hot pressing iron. The boy, Al-amin Yakubu, lives with her at Kura Street Layin Aminu Kano Mando in Kaduna, after his father divorced his mother 10 months ago. The case was reported to the police by a Kaduna-based civil society organizations, Arrida Relief Foundation of Nigerian. The suspect, in an interview at Mando police outpost, Kawo Division, said the boy was attacked by a dog. But her neighbours told PREMIUM TIMES that the torture of the victim had been going on for 10 months. She beats the little boy to pulp every day and pours cold water on him, said one neighbour who refused to give his name. We even thought she had some kind of mental problem because pupils in the nursery where she teaches also suffer from her frequent beatings. Yakubu Yusuf, a plumber and father of the boy, confirmed the torture, and said he was prepared to divorce the woman. He expressed shock when contacted, and claimed he did not know about the torture. I never noticed that she always subjected Al-Amin to this inhuman act until now because I only return home in the night after I left for work in the morning, he said. Rabi Salisu, founder of Arrida Relief Foundation, called on the state government to take drastic measures against rampant cases of torture and rape of minor in the state. If she says a dog attacked Al-Amin, then how come, the dog did not attack her biological daughter who is about the age of Al-Amin? Rabi asked. Police spokeperson, Aliyu Usman, said a full report was still expected from the division and assured that, the police would make public their findings as soon as investigation are concluded. There was tension in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, on Friday as inmates of the Abakaliki prison protested the ban of Indian hemp by the prison authorities. The protest led to prison officials sealing off the FMC Road leading to the prisons. Although no casualties were recorded, PREMIUM TIMES learnt the inmates calmed down after the state Comptroller of Prisons, Adaobi Oputa, held a meeting with their leaders. A protest at the same prison in August led to death of six persons. Speaking to reporters in her office, Mrs. Oputa described the incident as an agitation. According to her, the inmates were agitating the stoppage of Indian hemp and other contraband goods in the prison. I call it agitation. I was in the office when I was called that the inmates are agitating, asking for this, asking for that; and I rushed there and asked them to select two representatives from each cell let me hear from them because we have a way we operate, Mrs. Oputa said. After listening, I discovered some of the things they are agitating for. They are agitating for Indian hemp to be allowed inside their cells and we have stopped that. Secondly, they are asking to be opened out to the prison yard the way they want, even for churches. But you know they are many; 950 inmates and we have rules and regulations which I have told them. We cannot open them the way they want. They want to choose their provost the way they want. I told them I will come and conduct election for a provost. They are complaining of irrelevant things; they said they dont want to see some staff. They even said they dont want to see the Deputy Comptroller of Prison (DCP) and I told them I cannot appoint a DCP. The agitation is normal because the congestion is much. She said the officers of the prison command were in charge throughout the period and only cordoned off the area as a mere precaution. It is natural to cordon when there is problem, you segregate, you aggregate. But I have asked them to open the roads to the prisons which were cordoned off. Sometimes, the prison starts agitations when they know something (Indian hemp) is coming for them from outsiders who usually throw in Indian hemp into the fence. So, in this case you have to cordon of everywhere. Most of these agitators are awaiting trials, she added. People, who used to get full value of Rs 100 in cash, now have to pay 5 to 6 per cent as a commission when they use card for making payment, the Congress vice-president said. By PTI: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has said that his party is not against moving towards a cashless economy, but maintained that the concept should not be forced on the poor. "We are not against a cashless economy but we don't want it to be forced on the poor by the government," the 46-year- old Congress MP said. People, who used to get full value of Rs 100 in cash, now have to pay 5 to 6 per cent as a commission when they use card for making payment, he said, addressing an election rally in Fatorda village near Panaji. advertisement Also read | Rahul: 1 per cent super rich usurped Rs 8 lakh crore, Modi waived off their loans "This 5 to 6 per cent goes in the pockets of the 1 per cent super rich people, who are friends of Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he alleged. "The poor should not be hurt in the name of cashless economy," he said. CONGRESS WILL WIN GOA POLLS Referring to the upcoming Goa elections, Rahul said that his party will emerge victorious and form the next government, which will address the woes of the poor in the coastal state. Goa is slated to go to polls early next year. "We will eradicate unemployment, protect land and take action against casinos. Whatever Congress will do, it would be for the development of Goa. If we find even a minor case of corruption, we will take strict action." Also read | Modi has already made society cashless, no one has money: Rahul Rahul said that it would take him only two minutes to crack down against Goa party leaders accused of corruption, once the party comes to power in the coastal state. The Congress vice-president also said that land conversions and casino-related issues were rampant in the state and that Goa was as much in trouble under the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government at the Centre and the BJP-led coalition government in the state. "The manner in which the whole of India is in trouble, so is Goa. I talked about unemployment. I spoke about land, casino issues. I want to assure you that when Congress comes to power in Goa, it will work for the poor and common people. We will work towards building Goa," he said. --- ENDS --- ( Read 4508 Times) Source : Udaipur. The students and teachers from Australia visited department of English of Janardan Rai Nagar Rajasthan Vidyapeeth University, Udaipur and interacted with the students and faculty in an International Cultural Interface on Wednesday. The scholars discussed with each other issues of culture, literature, cinema, music, education and traditional health practices. Thirteen students from Endeavour College, Gold Coast and one from Melbourne along with their teachers Dr. Jenine Castle and Dr. Rene visited the department of English on Wednesday. They visited the department, department library, college library and the language and career laboratory.The Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities Prof. Suman Pamecha welcomed the visiting group to the campus and extended her greetings and wishes for their successful visit. Prof. Mukta Sharma introduced them to various programmes offered and the research areas undertaken in the department. Prof. H.S.Chandalia introduced the concept of intercultural interface and stated that most of the conflicts in the world are due to the absence of proper understanding between the countries and various peoples. The rat race of economic development has led to the exploitation of natural resources and human beings of the developing nations by the so called developed nations. He said that a better understanding between nations through people to people dialogue can only stop conflicts in the world. Dr. Jenine Castle introduced the programmes Australian students were pursuing. She said that life style, nutrition and health care go hand in hand. An expert in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, she stated the reasons of excessive fatigue and anxiety and suggested Naturopathy as a means to eradicate such life-style maladies.The programme was convened by Dr. Mehzbeen Sadriwala. Mr. Ganesh Purohit and Dr. Pankaj Paliwal of Jagaran Jan Vikas Samiti were also present during the deliberations. Narendra Pal Singh Panwar offered a vote of thanks. When the movie Hidden Figures, starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae, comes to theaters Dec. 25, audiences of all races and ages will see an adaptation of the true story about a group of African-American women who were the mathematical minds behind NASAs launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit. The movie, set in the early 1960s, serves as an example of what it was like for black females gifted with mathematical and scientific minds to break through barriers of a white male-dominated field. Due to multiple factors, there are still far fewer females than males in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, fields today. Even fewer African-American females can be found in the same careers. Marie Kee, 32, an aerospace engineer at the William J. Hughes Technical Center in Egg Harbor City, said she knew when she was about 10 years old that she would be an engineer. Not many African-American women can say that, she said. I am probably less than 5 percent of my field definitely less than 10. I came to my parents in fifth grade. I said I want to be an aerospace engineer. They looked at me as if I grew three heads. It all began with Star Wars, of which both parents were fans. Kee wanted to build the Millennium Falcon, the famed ship that made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs. Kee still wants to build that ship. She went through phases of wanting to be a pilot and astronaut, so it was in the stars for her make a career in aerospace. Mae Jemison, the first African-American female to travel in space, and Bessie Coleman, the first female pilot of African and Native American descent, were her major role models. Now she works for the Nextgen Modeling and Simulation branch of the tech center, and much of her work centers around commercial space. She uses data analytics to assess fuel burn, flight distance and flight duration. She uses fast-time models to simulate flights. She takes a pile of numbers and works to make sense of them, much like the characters based on real-life mathematicians in Hidden Figures. She compares her work as building a video game she calls herself a big gamer and a kid at heart in that she builds programs to help answer research questions. Outside of work, spending time with family, playing actual video games for fun or hitting up a wine tasting are often on the agenda for Kee. According to Lori Vermeulen, Stockton Universitys provost and vice president for academic affairs and professor of chemistry, trying to interest young girls in scientific and technological careers when their fascination piques is key to them pursuing careers in such fields. Weve been trying to look at this issue for quite a long time, she said. More women tend to be interested in the sciences in middle school, and then there comes a point when all of a sudden its not a good idea for them. Its not cool or something. In some STEM fields taught at Stockton, female students outnumber the male students. For example, the biochemistry undergraduate program in the fall semester is 63 percent female. In other fields, however, women are wholly outnumbered: Only 40 of the total 336 students in computer science and information studies program this fall were women. Vermeulen said the more females there are in STEM careers, the more role models potential female engineers will have. Without that, many end up going in different directions with their careers, even in 2016. Having a work-life balance they can relate to, I really think thats one of the major factors of young women and these careers, Vermeulen said. If they only see professors that are working 24/7 and thats the only way you can do it, they may not choose to do it. She said in her own career, she was told by professors and people in the field that she wouldnt be able to have a successful career without working seven days a week and dedicating her whole life to it. She was fortunate, she said, to pursue her career in a balanced way. Lakaisha Ajaegbulemh, 40, a systems engineer also at the tech center in Egg Harbor City, has spent most of her life thinking about science and technology. In 2016, she was selected as the Outstanding Engineer of the Year by the South Jersey Professional Society. For Ajaegbulemh, it began with a computer she used in the fourth grade. I was so fascinated by it, Ajaegbulemh said. It always stuck with me. But Ajaegbulemhs impressive career didnt come easily. Ajaegbulemh said she grew up poor. Her family had all the basic needs; no frills. She was taught to be humble and watched her mother juggle two or three jobs and was supported fully by her grandparents who noticed she was exceptionally intelligent for her age. Ajaegbulemh worked through college before and after class on little sleep, and her commitment to her work and high grades helped her get scholarships and graduate without debt and with a job stemming from an internship. She said she didnt have a difficult time finding a job in her field. Hard work pays off, she said. These days Ajaegbulemh works at the tech center interacting with the National Airspace System division, discussing and providing feedback, as well as analyzing systems across the country that allow airplanes to fly and communicate safely. The tech center sets some of the standards for international flight safety as well with the overall goal of keeping the flying public safe. Dr. Elizabeth Pollock, associate professor of chemistry at Stockton, for the last 11 years also said having female STEM teachers and professors to look up to is key. Gone are the overt, Youre a woman, you cant possibly do this, statements. Male students are called on more often and are generally looked on to have the right answer. Especially in the more quantitative fields. But some of my best students are females, she said. She said directing young girls interested in math and science around age 9 or 10 is crucial to them actually getting into these careers later. I feel like if we havent already captured them, we can subtly shift the numbers, but not terribly dramatically. We can reassure the ones who are on the fence who say, Am I really good enough at this? And when they see that were 50 percent women in the faculty, they might say, Oh, yeah. This is a reasonable aspiration for me, Pollock said. But it had to have been on their radar as something they were interested in. When Ajaegbulemh goes home, she shares her love of science with her kids. On her long list of accomplishments is the role of mom to a 5-year-old daughter, and 10- and 11-year-old sons. She finds time to volunteer with the American Engineering and Science Robotics Academy to make sure other kids their age are exposed to STEM careers. She also is the vice president for the National Society of Black Engineers. Ajaegbulemh said she made a point to surround herself with the voices that would push her to reach her potential and positively influence her. Kee and Ajaegbulemh work together with the American Science Robotics Academy to help expose young students to the FAA Tech Center. Kee said Ajaegbulemh has been a role model to her. Engineers are put here to solve problems, Kee said. You need that diversity, other peoples backgrounds and perspectives to build an awesome solution and to think about a problem a different way. Its one day at a time. One project at a time. ATLANTIC CITY For the past three decades, the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority has been at the center of development funding in the resort. From hotel expansions at casinos to the Atlantic City Expressway Connector, funds from the authority have helped pave the way for the resorts growth. But in two weeks, the agency will no longer receive casino investment alternative taxes, all but eliminating its role in funding future development. The change has left the state agency reassessing its mission. That money, derived from a 1.25 percent tax on gross gaming revenue and a 2.5 percent tax on internet gaming revenue, will now go to the city to help pay off its more than $500 million in debt as part of a state rescue plan. I think theyre going to take about $18 million or $20 million a year. It hasnt affected the budget as much as it will affect in the future our ability to do things, CRDA board Chairman Bob Mulchay said Dec. 6. We have to figure out how were going to be creative and overcome those issues. And frankly, some of it is going to depend on how they restructure the city of Atlantic City and how much they need help to do that. Brown calls on Christie to overturn $225,000 CRDA severance package ATLANTIC CITY Assemblyman Chris Brown called on Gov. Chris Christie Wednesday to overturn As the mission of the authority has changed, so has its leadership. The authority and Executive Director John Palmieri recently agreed to part ways. Palmieri will be replaced at the start of the new year by Chris Howard, deputy director of the authority. While Palmieri has a background in development projects, Howard is an attorney who has previously worked for the states Authority Unit. The unit oversees New Jerseys independent state and bi-state authorities and commissions such as the CRDA. When Palmieri was hired in 2011 from Boston, the authority performed a nationwide search to identify him as the person to lead the agency. Howard will not speak about his new position while Palmieri is still the executive director, according to a statement from the agency. The appointment makes it clear that the governor is behind the new mission, said Marc Pfeiffer, assistant director of the Bloustein Local Government Center at Rutgers University. By appointing one of his aides, he is ensuring that happens. Since its inception in 1984, the authority has funded more than $2.1 billion in projects throughout the state, authority records show. Mulcahy said the authority is still in the process of redefining its mission. Boraie's Atlantic City apartment project to break ground this week ATLANTIC CITY Fifty years after the land was cleared in the name of redevelopment, someone The question is how we deal with it in the future, Mulcahy said about how the authority will manage without the IAT funding. Howard, who is a graduate of Rutgers-Camden law school, has political connections to both Republican Gov. Chris Christie and lobbyist Philip Norcross, brother of Democratic powerbroker George Norcross. Howard was hired by the firm Parker McCay, home to Philip Norcross, as an associate in the Foreclosure and Bankruptcy Department in 2013. The appointment, the way it was handled and the $225,000 severance package given to Palmieri have come under fire from Assemblyman Chris Brown and Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno. On its face, it doesnt make sense to buy out the contract of a nationally recognized economic development expert, pay him $225,000 not to work and then pay an additional $175,000 for a political insider who has no qualifications to fill the job, said Brown, R-Atlantic, adding the authority should do a nationwide search for a replacement. Last weekend, Guadagno compared the payout to a recent attempt by members of the citys Municipal Utilities Authority to give outgoing board members $3,000 gifts, an action that was overturned by Jeff Chiesa, who is in charge of the states takeover of the city. Certainly, questions need to be answered, and a thorough search for a replacement should be conducted, especially given the amount of money a quarter of a million dollars and the recent actions by Sen. Chiesa, rejecting as small a sum as $3,000 Guadagno said. Staff Writer Christian Hetrick contributed to this report. On a bitter December day, Navy veteran Mike Kelly walked in front of the Wildwood Vietnam Memorial wall and pointed out the name of a childhood friend. The friends Kelly lost in Vietnam are memorialized on the wall. But 40 years later, his friends are still dying. And like other veterans, Kelly is sure he knows the cause: Agent Orange. In all reality, Vietnam killed them and its still killing them, he said. They knew what this stuff was doing then. They knew it. There has to be accountability. Fourteen years ago, long after his service in Vietnam, Kelly, 68, of North Cape May in Lower Township, was diagnosed with Stage 4 esophageal cancer. Hes convinced his cancer came from exposure to the powerful herbicide the U.S. military used to destroy lush jungles where enemy fighters could hide. Agent Orange was sprayed over wide areas from planes. But the white dust blew around, clinging to boots and everything else. With children at home, Kelly had only one thought when he heard he had cancer. I wasnt ready to die, he said. I said, Ive got a lot to do. ... I wouldnt give in. The VA presumes anyone who served in Vietnam between 1962 and 1975 has been exposed to herbicides. Nearly 1.5 million American served during the heaviest use of Agent Orange, from 1967 to 1969. The science on Agent Orange isnt conclusive, and it can be difficult to prove any ailment comes from one direct cause. So veterans continue to fight for recognition that Agent Orange is responsible for their cancers and other diseases and for better health care. A few days earlier, Kelly was chatting with fellow veterans Bill Davenport, president of Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 955, Harry Weimar, commander of Wildwood American Legion Post 184, and John Vollrath. They joked easily, but the conversation turned serious when Agent Orange was mentioned. Atlantic County Veterans Museum coming to life In one room, there is a line of mannequins from the Revolutionary War with a wall-length rep Kelly struggled to receive benefits for his cancer from the Department of Veterans Affairs. The VA has a presumptive list of diseases it recognizes as being connected to Agent Orange. But if a disease isnt on the list, veterans face an uphill fight to prove their ailments are related to their service and to get VA benefits. Vollrath lost a kidney to cancer. Weimar has Parkinsons disease, peripheral neuropathy and diabetes. Both believe their exposure to Agent Orange is to blame. Weimar said the pain in his legs from peripheral neuropathy, or nerve damage, drove him to call a suicide hotline a year ago. Davenport said a quarter of his chapters membership has died from Agent Orange-related diseases in the past 10 years. Youre talking about a membership of 70 men, and 60 of them have significant cancers (or) illnesses in their 50s and 60s. Thats a big percentage, he said. And getting treatment at VA hospitals in Wilmington or Philadelphia can be an excruciating, all-day affair. Even getting an appointment can take weeks. Weimar, Davenport, Kelly and Vollrath said there should be quicker, and closer, care. The biggest problem with the VA is the bureaucracy. Its run by the government. Theyre budgeted. I get theres only so much budget in that pie they can spend, Vollrath said. But its not enough. Its never going to be enough. The men also worry about the effects Agent Orange could be having on their children and grandchildren. Weimar said his three daughters were born with a bruiselike birth defect. Doctors told him they had seen similar things with other Vietnam veterans children. Vollrath had his own scare when his son was diagnosed with leukemia. Hes alive, but I almost lost him, he said. If thats my legacy I left behind after I served my country in Vietnam, thats a hell of a (legacy) to have to live with. Press readers share their Veterans Day stories This is a selection of stories submitted by Press readers. They recount service from World W Slow death Its a slow death that you know eventually is going to get you, said Mike Eckstein, chairman of the Agent Orange/dioxin committee at the New Jersey State Vietnam Veterans of America. If youve been in Vietnam, youve been exposed, period. Bill Mitchell was one of Davenports closest friends. The pair signed up for the military together and were even in each others weddings 45 years ago. Mitchells wife, Peggy, of Middle Township, said her husband received 100 percent disability from the VA when he was diagnosed with lung cancer. It was the second battle with cancer for Bill Mitchell. He had skin cancer years earlier. Once he was on medication, Peggy watched her husband drop nearly 50 pounds. Mitchell, who had received a Purple Heart, died in January after battling lung cancer for three years. His wife said that for decades before that, he struggled with his memories of the war. Peggy said he wouldnt talk about Vietnam, and he spent 30 years of their marriage self-medicating. His war stories were his nightmare, she said. U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo, R-2nd, said its a total disgrace that the VA has treated these veterans the way they have and making it almost impossible for them to get the care they need. Last year, LoBiondo co-sponsored the bipartisan Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act, which would have given those who served offshore in the Navy presumptive coverage for Agent Orange exposure. But that provision was stripped out of the bill, and LoBiondo said he will reintroduce it in the next Congress. South Jersey answers: What are you thankful for this year? Those of us who are lucky enough to be able to take a seat at a table surrounded by friends Analyzing effects The National Academy of Sciences has been analyzing the effects of Agent Orange for 25 years in tandem with the VA. A recent report found more evidence to suggest a connection with bladder cancer and hyperthyroidism, but less for the birth defect spina bifida. But the science behind Agent Oranges impact is rarely absolute. Dr. Otis Brawley, a chief medical officer at the American Cancer Society, said until the 1990s, veterans had higher smoking rates than the general population. So you might expect to see a higher rate in the 16 types of cancer linked to cigarettes. The problem with Agent Orange is that Agent Orange in the laboratory has never been shown to conclusively cause cancer in laboratory animals, he said. I can cite studies where Agent Orange causes birth defects and other diseases, but not cancer. But that doesnt mean (Agent Orange) doesnt cause cancer. Brawley noted that from 1955 until the late 1970s, the evidence for cigarette smoking causing cancer wasnt strong either. Thats one of the reasons why I refuse to say that these people who say Agent Orange causes cancer, that they dont know what theyre talking about, he said. Peggy Mitchell said Bill kept in touch with the VA and up to date on Agent Orange findings, but she said if he had his first X-ray sooner, they may have caught it in time. In the wake of scandals about the state of veterans health care, some VA hospitals are looking for different ways to make care more accessible. Outside the American Legion in Wildwood on a recent Saturday, veterans drifted in and out of a large bus parked out front. Vincent Kane, interim associate director with the VA hospital in Wilmington, Delaware, said the idea behind the mobile medical center was to put care closer to veterans. The real change for the VA has to be how do we get the medical center out of the building and into the communities? said Kane. Its a change, he said, veterans in South Jersey have been asking for. A Middle Township man serving 18 years for fatally striking two teenage girls with his vehicle will see his request to suppress blood-alcohol test results sent back to a lower court, a state appellate panel ruled Thursday. The outcome of that hearing could drastically change his sentencing, the Cape May County Prosecutors Office said. If (the judge) suppresses the evidence it could potentially change everything, said Cape May County First Assistant Prosecutor Robert Johnson. We could be set back to square one, and we could be going to trial on the matter. In 2014, Joshua Malmgren, now 35, pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree aggravated manslaughter, admitting he killed two teenage girls in 2012 when he swerved into the shoulder of a Middle Township road while driving under the influence of alcohol and prescription drugs. The crash killed Ashley Dauber, 13, of Philadelphia, and her cousin Nioami Lazicki-Gaston, 15, of Middle Township. They were walking on Bayshore Road to get ice cream. Before his plea, Malgrams defense moved to suppress the results of his blood-alcohol test, but that request was denied. A state appellate panel said a 2015 state Supreme Court decision, New Jersey v. Adkins, requires sufficient urgency to be proved before a blood-alcohol test can be conducted without a warrant, which required Malmgrens request be remanded. Malmgrens attorneys were not available for comment Thursday. Johnson said the county is disappointed but prepared to handle the upcoming hearing. He said if the judge decides to uphold the earlier decision not to suppress the blood results, it will likely not change anything. Malmgren is serving 18 years with no parole. According to the court opinion, Officer Brian Murphy, who arrived at the scene of the accident, transported Malmgren to Cape Regional Medical Center for his injuries and a legal blood kit. The opinion states that at the hospital, Malmgren signed a form that did not inform him he had the right to refuse to consent to the blood draw. The blood test revealed a blood-alcohol level of .183, more than twice the legal limit of .08, and the presence of prescription drugs Clonazepam anxiety medication and Tramadol pain medication. Launching an attack at PM Modi's demonetisation move Swamy said, "I am not taking any names, but elections are not won on the development front". By Mustafa Shaikh: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's demonetisation move has witnessed criticism from the Opposition and many others. Taking a dig at Modi's stance on note ban, Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy today praised Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, who had attacked Modi over demonetisation and said that the decision is causing pain to the common man. Swamy was speaking at the book launch of Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut in Mumbai. advertisement The Shiv Sena president too praised Swamy and criticised Modi government's demonetisation move once again. Launching an attack at PM Modi's demonetisation Swamy said, "I am not taking any names, but elections are not won on the development front. There is one person who can be attributed for the maximum economic development- former Prime Minister Narasimha Rao. Also, ex-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, who is criticised time and again, is someone who did the most for industrial development. Those who contested on the development agenda lost. BJP veteran Atal Bihari Vajpayee contested riding on the India Shining campaign and witnessed a bad defeat." "We won in 2014 not only because of the Gujarat development agenda but also because of the Hindu wave. We received extra 10 per cent vote because of the wave," he added. Also read: Agenda Aaj Tak 2016: Subramanian Swamy recalls Jayalalithaa's reign, calls demonetisation unplanned Taking cue from Swamy's speech Uddhav said, "Though the development front is not enough, elections cannot be won through false promises. Forget about the last 60 years, we have seen so many lies in the last two-and-half years itself." Criticising BJP for trying to sideline Shiv Sena during the Maharashtra elections he said, "It is unfortunate how we felt that we have a Hindutva-wadi government. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, who does not appreciate Hindutva-wadi parties like Shiv Sena, has been extended unconditional support by Modi. What kind of Hindutva government is it?" Uddhav attacked Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad's 'labour pain' comment on demonetisation saying, "You perhaps do not know what labour pain means. Today, a lady standing in a queue outside a bank had a miscarriage and her condition is now critical. Ask her what labour pain is." The Shiv Sena chief compared demonetisation to mirage and said, "Are we being lured by a mirage? Wait for 50 days, 80 days, 100 days...No one knows when it will finally end." Also read: Demonetisation: Uddhav Thackeray questions government's intentions of levying I-T on farmers --- ENDS --- advertisement For the New World Order, a world government is just the beginning. Once in place they can engage their plan to exterminate 80% of the world's population, while enabling the "elites" to live forever with the aid of advanced technology. For the first time, crusading filmmaker ALEX JONES reveals their secret plan for humanity's extermination: Operation ENDGAME. Jones chronicles the history of the global elite's bloody rise to power and reveals how they have funded dictators and financed the bloodiest warscreating order out of chaos to pave the way for the first true world empire. Watch as Jones and his team track the elusive Bilderberg Group to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III. to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III. Learn about the formation of the North America transportation control grid, which will end U.S. sovereignty forever. Discover how the practitioners of the pseudo-science eugenics have taken control of governments worldwide as a means to carry out depopulation. View the progress of the coming collapse of the United States and the formation of the North American Union. Never before has a documentary assembled all the pieces of the globalists' dark agenda. Endgame's compelling look at past atrocities committed by those attempting to steer the future delivers information that the controlling media has meticulously censored for over 60 years. It fully reveals the elite's program to dominate the earth and carry out the wicked plan in all of human history. Endgame is not conspiracy theory, it is documented fact in the elite's own words. DUBLIN, Dec 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Accelerometer and Gyroscope Market by Accelerometer Type, Gyroscope Typ, Dimension, Application, and Geography - Global Forecast to 2022" report to their offering. The accelerometer and gyroscope market is expected to reach USD 3.50 billion by 2022. The high-end accelerometer and gyroscope market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 3.8% between 2016 and 2022, to reach USD 2.07 billion by 2022 from USD 1.59 billion in 2015. This growth can be attributed to the increasing defense expenditure globally owing to the growing demand for equipment optimized with several intelligent sensors for navigation, satellite antenna positioning, and other applications. The MEMS accelerometer and gyroscope market for the high-end applications is expected to grow at the highest rate between 2016 and 2022. This is mainly owing to the growing deployment of these sensors in remotely operated vehicles, aerospace, and industrial and defense sectors. Because of their benefits of low cost, small size, and high power efficiency, MEMS accelerometers are increasingly replacing traditional accelerometers in these applications. The overall accelerometer and gyroscope market in the APAC region accounted for the largest share of around 36.0% of the global market in 2015. Given the emergence of APAC as the manufacturing hub for low-end application industries such as automotive and consumer electronics, which are the major contributors to the accelerometer and gyroscope market, the APAC region is in the leading position in this market. Companies Mentioned: Analog Devices, Inc. Colibrys Ltd. Fizoptika Corp. Honeywell International, Inc. Innalabs Holding Inc. Invensense, Inc. KVH Industries, Inc. Kionix, Inc. Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. NXP Semiconductors N.V. Northrop Grumman Litef Gmbh Robert Bosch Gmbh Sensonor AS Stmicroelectronics N.V. Systron Donner Inertial Key Topics Covered: 1 Introduction 2 Research Methodology 3 Executive Summary 4 Premium Insights 5 Market Overview 6 Industry Trends 7 Accelerometer and Gyroscope Market, by Type 8 Accelerometer and Gyroscope Market, by Dimension 9 Accelerometer and Gyroscope Market, by Application 10 Geographic Analysis 11 Competitive Landscape 12 Company Profiles 13 Appendix For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/3jdg3h/accelerometer_and Media Contact: Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com SOURCE Research and Markets DUBLIN, Dec 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Global Liquid Biopsy Market Analysis 2016 - Forecast to 2022" report to their offering. This analysis is one of the most accurate studies performed using the combinational analytical tools. The report contains up to date financial data derived from varied research sources to present unique and reliable analysis. Assessment of major trends with potential impact on the market during the next five years, including a deep dive analysis of market segmentation which comprises of sub markets, regional and country level analysis. The report provides a comprehensive outlook about the market share along with strategic recommendations based on the emerging segments. Annual estimations and forecasts are provided from the year 2013 to 2022 for each given segment and sub segments. Market data derived from the authenticated and reliable sources is subjected to validation from the industry experts. The report also analyzes the market by discussing market dynamics such as drivers, constraints, opportunities, threats, challenges and other market trends. Companies Mentioned: Internap Corporation CDN Networks Tata Communications Level 3 Communications Google Inc. Limelight Networks, Inc. Highwinds Network Group, Inc. Akamai Technologies, Inc. Verizon Communications, Inc. Amazon Web Services, Inc. CloudFlare, Inc. Orange S.A. MaxCDN Enterprise Ericssion AT&T Inc. This report provides: Market Sizing estimations and forecasts for 6 years across the given market segments Identifying market dynamics Strategic recommendations in key business segments based on the market estimations Regional and country level market analysis Competitive landscaping of major market players Company profiling covering the financials, recent activities and the future strategies Key Topics Covered: 1 Introduction 2 Executive Summary 3 Market Analysis 4 Porters Five Force Analysis 5 Liquid Biopsy Market by Disease Indication 6 Liquid Biopsy Market by Biomarker 7 Liquid Biopsy Market by Sample Type 8 Liquid Biopsy Market by Application 9 Geographical Segmentation 10 Vendor Landscaping 11 Company Profiles For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/dkbzh7/global_liquid Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com SOURCE Research and Markets By PTI: Kolkata, Dec 16 (PTI) Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) today said it expects foreign re-insurers which will get final clearance from the regulator to be operational in the country over the next six to nine months. "We are hopeful that global reinsurance companies which will get final clearance from the regulator to open their branches in India and will be operational in the next six to nine months, IRDA whole time member(finance & investments) V R Iyer said here today on the sidelines of CII organised InsureInd. advertisement "We have received seven applications from major foreign reinsurance companies including Llyods which have shown interest to open their branch offices in India. Applications from seven companies are in the different stages of consideration of the insurance regulator," she said. A foreign reinsurer has to clear three stages of licences from the insurance regulator to begin operations, Iyer added. Presently, state owned GIC Re is the only reinsurer operational in the country and foreign reinsurers have liaison office in India. Liberalising the sector to foreign re-insurers will break the monopoly of GIC Re. But government has now allowed minimum 10 per cent of the reinsurance business that an insurance company will buy has to go to the public sector. IRDA believes with the clearance to opening of branches of foreign reinsurance companies, domestic insurers will be able to undertake more risks and manage their capital more efficiently, she said. "In India, catastrophic and disaster risks products are not available. With foreign reinsurance companies coming to the country, insurers can become creators," Iyer added. Citing a consultant report, she said by 2025 the life insurance business is expected to touch USD 185 billion and non-life insurance to touch around USD 75 billion. PTI BSM KK ADI MR --- ENDS --- DUBLIN, Dec 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Sample Preparation in Genomics, Proteomics, and Epigenomics: Global Markets" report to their offering. The global market for sample preparation in genomics, proteomics and epigenomics reached $5.2 billion in 2015. The market should reach $5.6 billion in 2016 and $7.7 billion by 2021, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.5% from 2016 to 2021. This report provides an overview of the global market for sample preparation reagents and products used in life science research. It includes analyses of global market trends, with data from 2015, estimates for 2016, and projections of compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) through 2021. This research report categorizes the market for sample preparation in genomics, proteomics and epigenomics by product segment. The major product segments are instruments, consumables, accessories and sample preparation kits. The instruments segment is subdivided into workstations, liquid handling systems, extraction systems and other instruments. Consumables are divided into columns, filters, tubes, plates and other consumables. Sample preparation kits are segmented into purification kits, isolation kits, extraction kits and others. The global market for sample preparation is segmented by end user into research centers, academic institutes, and government institutes, hospitals and clinics, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and others. The markets in North America, Europe, Asia and rest of the world are covered. The market is also segmented by application into genomics, proteomics and epigenomics. Companies Mentioned: Agilent Technologies Inc. Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc. Danaher Corp. Hamilton Co. Illumina Inc. Merck Millipore Norgenbiotek Corp. Nugen Technologies Inc. Perkinelmer Inc. Pressure Biosciences Inc. Qiagen GMBH Roche Sigma-Aldrich Corp. Tecan Group Ltd. Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. Waters Corp. Key Topics Covered: 1: Introduction 2: Summary - Complimentary 3: Market Overview 4: Global Market By Product Segment 5: Global Market By Application Segment 6: Global Market By End User Type 7: Global Market By Geographic Region 8: Company Profiles 9: Competitive Landscape For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/g7x9tn/sample Media Contact: Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com SOURCE Research and Markets FREETOWN, Sierra Leone, Dec. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a recent position paper by James Monroe, an international security analyst, ensuring strategic border security is a high priority for European, Middle Eastern and African nations alike in this globally connected world. No longer do borders alone block terrorism and extreme ideologies, and the imperative for improved border security is paramount. When it comes to implementing strong immigration control measures, however, many African nations face significant challenges. As criminals and terrorists, and some who infiltrate the ranks of legitimate asylum-seeking refugees, intend to move across sovereign borders undetected, intelligent immigration control has become a critical weapon in the fight against international crime and terrorism. Sierra Leone Country Flag Nowhere is there more at stake for border security than at the airport. So far, in 2016 alone, Interpol estimates that its Stolen and Lost Travel Documents database has flagged 115,000 people attempting to use fraudulent passports and travel documents. Sophisticated airport security can catch individuals attempting to travel illegally, but it requires specially trained personnel, comprehensive biometric and passport screening technology in an integrated system, and most importantly, real-time access to Interpol and similar international security-related databases. To meet this need, some innovative and modernized African nations are establishing public-private sector collaboration agreements to provide state-of-the-art airport security and stem the flow of criminals and terrorists across their borders by lowering the cost of ownership, and maximizing the usage of the most sophisticated predictive analytics tools and big data to keep airport passengers safe. One such company is Washington, DC-based Securiport, which provides proprietary security solutions globally, including numerous countries in Africa such as Senegal, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone and Equatorial Guinea. Securiport's integrated immigration control system gives governments access to the airport security technology they need to verify passenger identities and check travel document authenticity. Then, using a real-time connection to Interpol, they have instant access to terrorist watch-lists, no-fly lists, fraudulent document lists and other critical information. The approach is working. According to recent media reports in Senegal, two suspected jihadists, radicalized overseas, were detained and arrested by Senegal's Criminal Investigation Division (DIC) after one of them was identified by Securiport's watch-list of wanted persons while transiting Senegal's Dakar Airport. According to the media report, Senegal's intelligence services requested that the name of a suspected terrorist be entered into the Securiport watch-list, which successfully identified him upon his arrival in the country. The authorities were alerted, and they were able to apprehend the individual along with an accomplice. The two are being charged with criminal involvement in a terrorist enterprise and promoting and financing terrorist activities. Moreover, Securiport's integrated immigration control system has enabled the capture of several alleged criminals wanted by Interpol. African media reported that, in Senegal, a French national wanted for the abduction of two children was detained at Dakar International Airport after Securiport's system picked up an active Interpol arrest warrant through its real-time link with Interpol watch-lists. This comes on the heels of another recent security victory in Senegal's international airport, where two individuals with ties to radical extremist groups were detained after their names came up on an Interpol watch-list. Similar successes have been reported in Ivory Coast, where authorities using Securiport's border control systems intercepted a traveler carrying illegal weapons and recovered a stolen passport that was being used fraudulently. Government leaders in Sierra Leone have commended Securiport's integrated immigration control systems, crediting the system with the capture of several individuals wanted by Interpol as they tried to enter the country. To achieve these results, countries are using an innovative economic model, a public-private partnership. Securiport is responsible for all equipment, technology and maintenance costs, providing access to advanced, integrated immigration control systems without necessitating expensive infrastructure (large capital expenditures up front) purchases by the partner nation. International passengers, who are screened through Interpol-grade security and who benefit directly from secure travel pay a fee to the government for the service, a common practice around the world. This innovative model has been tried and tested in the United States, where the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) charges business travelers a fee for expediting security checks. More broadly, increased immigration control contributes to stronger borders and a more secure nation for every citizen and resident.As results continue to pile up and more wanted criminals and global terrorists are apprehended at the airportmore developing nations will benefit from Securiport's integrated immigration control system. For more information, contact Mr. Gal Borenstein, Borenstein Group, Representative on behalf of Mr. James Monroe, independent security analyst, at [email protected], or 703-385-8178. This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com/. SOURCE James Monroe, Independent Analyst NEW YORK, Dec. 17, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Increase in Universal Health Support for Private Healthcare will Boost Test Volumes in Both Public And Private Sectors This research service focuses on the clinical laboratories market in Vietnam, with forecasts until 2020. The report reviews recent industry transformation, changes in business models, growth opportunities, and key predictions for the clinical lab diagnostics testing market. It also provides the major growth drivers and restraints, key company profiles, and competitive analysis. Given the ever-increasing cost of care, healthcare delivery is moving towards decentralisation. Service delivery from healthcare settings such as mobile clinics, rapid retail clinics, and home settings demand the use of new-age clinical laboratory diagnostics. Effective delivery of healthcare services has created a business and technology convergence between public and private healthcare providers. There has been a growing focus amongst market participants on acquiring effective and fast clinical testing capabilities. Overcrowding of hospitals is a major issue in Vietnam, as the public sector accounts for approximately 95% of hospital bed occupancy. The Ministry of Health has proposed to invest in building 50 satellite hospitals connected to 14 hub hospitals to cater to patient demand. The public hospital labs segment is the largest in terms of volume and revenue, followed by private hospital labs and this trend is expected to continue. The independent clinical labs segment is slowly growing to compete in this market by providing testing outsourcing services for both public and private hospitals. Clinical testing outsourcing is an option for public hospitals to overcome budget restraints and excess demand. Independent labs with international accreditation and trained lab personnel are well positioned to be reference labs and grow within this segment. POLs are highly fragmented and is the smallest segment. It is expected to have low growth, mainly due to the lack of investment in lab equipment and low reimbursements from insurance coverage. Growing pressure from the government for clinical labs accreditation will be the main trend with regard to lab regulations. Vietnam's Universal Healthcare Coverage aims to provide health insurance for 80% of its population by 2020. It has covered more than 70% of the population by the end of 2015. The plan targets minority groups and the poor and near-poor population, providing the highest possible coverage. Besides basic hospital fees, the plan covers medicine, testing, and a large portion of hospital fees for cancer patients. There are approximately 1,090 public hospital labs and 170 private hospital labs, with a majority concentrated in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. This indicates an imbalance in the spread of hospitals in Vietnam, as these 2 cities account for only 16% of the population. There are opportunities for private independent labs to grow, as the government is keen on public-private partnerships to ease the burden on its healthcare infrastructure by providing healthcare coverage that can make private healthcare more accessible. Despite these efforts, patients are skeptical of private healthcare quality, as many labs are not accredited. Opportunities also exist to meet healthcare demands outside Vietnam's major cities, where hospitals and lab services are not saturated. Key questions this study will answer: - How has Vietnam's clinical labs market changed over the years? - What impact will new regulations have on labs? What are the new procedures that need to be adopted to gain approvals? How would this affect manufacturers? - Which is the type of testing that is experiencing maximum growth and why? - What are the new business models that can change care delivery? - Which are the segments that are opportunistic for manufacturer sales? - What were the acquisition trends witnessed in the last few years? How will this change? Read the full report: http://www.reportlinker.com/p04466087-summary/view-report.html About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. http://www.reportlinker.com __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links http://www.reportlinker.com NEW YORK, Dec. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2016 edition of the report provides a Comprehensive & Insightful Comparative SWOT Framework Analysis and analyzes the Near to Medium Term Strategy Focus for the Global Top 5 Business Jet Manufacturers amid a challenging & difficult market scenario dominated by a host of complex economic challenges & pressures across key emerging markets, namely, Brazil, China & Russia which has impacted the demand for new business jets originating from these markets significantly as of late. The Global Business Jet market continues to make slow progress on the recovery path spearheaded by continued strong economic growth momentum in the U.S., the introduction & certification of new business jet programs, especially, in the super midsize segment by the industry OEMs and strong fleet utilization & upgrade activity in a favorable oil price environment that has bolstered operator profitability. The latest aircraft programs; incorporating cutting edge technologies & innovations; have brought in enhanced performance, safety & optimized operating economics while a sustained low oil price environment continues to boost fleet utilization & profitability across operators driving aftermarket sales & services revenues for the industry OEMs. The global macroeconomic environment, however, remains difficult marked by financial markets volatility, continued weakness in commodity prices, plummeting of crude oil prices and continued geo-political conflict. The U.S. Economy continues to prove itself as the stable cornerstone of the global economy with steady economic growth momentum followed by EU which, too, continues to make slow economic recovery. The economic growth in China has slowed down to the lowest rate in over 25 years accompanied by continued financial markets volatility as the country strives to transition to a more consumption driven economy with limited reliance on manufacturing & heavy industries which has impacted the growth significantly. Brazil & Russian economies, on the contrary, have been impacted severely by the energy sector downturn and are in recession, in addition, to the ongoing political crisis in Brazil with pressures likely to prevail across these economies over near term. The OECD & IMF have already issued stress signals and have cut their global economic growth forecasts for the global economy for 2016 and the IMF has described the global economy as being highly vulnerable to adverse shocks. The demand growth projections for the Global Business Jet market for 2016, thus, are not too bright with a weaker global macroeconomic outlook and complex as well as challenging global geo-political environment. However, services, especially, systems upgrade, MRO & aircraft customization are likely to drive slight to moderate growth over near term. The market demand for business jets is likely to improve slightly in 2017 and significantly from 2018 onwards. The market fundamentals & long term demand drivers for business jets remain robust & firmly in place indicating towards sustained, steady demand growth for business jets over medium to long term. Additionally, the market dynamics for business jets are likely to witness major transformation with the era of supersonic business jets likely to become a reality towards the early 2020s with a number of industry OEMs, led by Gulfstream & Aerion, actively pursuing R&D towards development of a range of supersonic flight technologies capable of enabling feasible supersonic flights while meeting regulatory requirements simultaneously. Against this backdrop, the report provides a comprehensive Comparative SWOT framework analysis on the Global Top 5 Business Jet manufacturers besides analyzing the overall, near term strategy focus across these OEMs. The framework analyzes the Strengths & Weaknesses of the OEMs from a standalone as well as relative perspective based on a comprehensive analysis of their Key, Strategic Business Aspects, which include: -- Product Portfolio Analysis & its Strategic Positioning across Key Markets & Segments -- Breadth & Depth of Presence across Key Geographic Markets & Regions -- Analysis of overall Cost Base, Structure & its Management -- Analysis of Revenue streams, Resource Base & Key Competencies -- Profitability, Key Profit Sources, Growth & Trend Analysis -- Capital & Ownership Structure and Financial Strength -- Key Competitor Analysis across Market Segments & Degree of Competitive Intensity -- Competitive Market Positioning across Key Global Markets & Market Share -- Overall Strategy Orientation & Focus, R&D Strategy, Technological Strength & Capabilities The framework subsequently analyzes & identifies potentially significant, niche growth opportunities & avenues and imminent as well as emerging threats for each key industry OEM based on their strategic product portfolio & market positioning, core strengths & weaknesses and overall strategy focus & orientation against the backdrop of emerging market dynamics & trends. The report analyzes the overall degree of strategic responsiveness of OEMs to external environmental factors, which include, prevailing industry dynamics & emerging industry & market trends, issues, challenges & potential risk factors to assess their ability to be able to derive further business growth by capitalizing on potential growth opportunities effectively while negating threats simultaneously over near to medium term. Relevance & Usefulness: The report will be useful for -- Inputs for Strategic Planning, Competitive Assessment & Decision-Making Processes -- Analysis of Core Strengths & Weaknesses for each of the 5 Key Industry Players -- Analysis of Near-term Strategy Focus and Key Strategies & Plans for the industry players -- Identification of & Insights into Potential Growth Opportunities & Avenues -- Analysis of Key & Emerging Market & Technology Trends -- Analysis of Key Issues, Challenges & Potential Risk Factors -- Identifying & highlighting areas for making potential Strategic Changes, Adjustments & Realignment -- Contingency planning for current Strategies & Programs -- Analysis of Forces Driving as well as restraining the Industry & their Overall Dynamics -- Strategic Perspective on likely Evolution of Global Business Jet Market over Medium Term -- Near to Medium Term Market Outlook, Inputs on Market Evolution & Demand Growth Projections For Whom: Key Decision-Makers across Industry Value Chain The report will be essential for those having strategic interest in the Global Business Aircraft Market. The report will be especially useful for Key Decision-Makers, Program Managers, Procurement Managers, Top Management of Industry Players & Other Companies, Industry OEMs, Suppliers, Vendors, Sales & Distribution Channels, MRO Services Providers, Business Jet Operators, Technology & Other Services Solutions Providers, Flight Simulator Manufacturers and other Key Players in the Industry Value Chain. The report will also be useful for existing & potential Investors, Industry & Company Analysts, M&A Advisory Firms, Strategy & Management Consulting Firms, PE Firms, Venture Capitalists, Financing & Leasing Companies, Researchers and all those associated with the industry or any of these companies. Features, Benefits & Reasons to Procure:- --Provides Macro View and Big Picture Quickly --Blend of Quantitative & Qualitative Analysis --Significant Time Savings --Visual Representation enables Easy Comprehension --Meetings & Presentation Ready Format --Superior & Enriched User Experience with Incorporation of Relevant Images Read the full report: http://www.reportlinker.com/p03765491-summary/view-report.html About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. http://www.reportlinker.com __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links http://www.reportlinker.com NEW YORK, Dec. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The aim of this study is to obtain a detailed snapshot of superfast connectivity with a download rate superior or equal to 100 Mbps in big cities around the world and to draw out the top 10 selection. This comparison between cities is based on qualitative criteria such as quality of service, affordability compared to local standard of living and on quantitative criteria such as coverage or market competition. Asia's major metropolises top the ranks thanks to their very high capacity (VHC) networks, many of which are FTTH. Newcomers to the ranks, notably the Middle East, score very high on certain criteria. Cities in the United States have climbed several spots thanks to telcos' rollouts in response to cable's longstanding stronghold on the broadband access market, and more recent rollouts from newcomers such as Google. Europe is also in good shape, thanks to the Digital Agenda for Europe (DAE) and a desire to build VHC networks in densely populated areas, where infrastructure-based competition is strong. The only cities absent from the top of the ranks are in Latin American, where progress is clearly being made, but still not enough to close the gap with other countries. Countries Asia-Pacific,Africa-Middle East,Europe,Latin America,North America Indicators specific to the availability of superfast connectivity - When considering a city's "intelligence" a lot of studies include Internet access services, while also incorporating applications, services and the sustainability of public actions. We wanted to extract ourselves from this Smart City side of the equation, and focus instead on the criteria that characterise good connectivity. - Connectivity has become a major ingredient in a city's attractiveness: land costs can vary significantly depending on how fast the Internet connection is in a given area. All other things being equal, individuals and small businesses alike will chose the location where optical fibre has been deployed, over the one that only has ADSL. So it seemed like a good time to see how the world's major cities measure up, and what qualities they have managed to develop to improve their connectivity score. Read the full report: http://www.reportlinker.com/p04451686-summary/view-report.html About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. http://www.reportlinker.com __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links http://www.reportlinker.com CINCINNATI, Dec. 17, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Dr. Henry Heimlich, 96, passed away last night at Christ Hospital in Cincinnati, after complications from a massive heart attack suffered on Monday in his home at Deupree House in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. Deupree House is owned and managed by Episcopal Retirement Services. His family has issued the following statement: We are saddened by the loss of our father, Dr. Henry J. Heimlich, who passed away earlier today at the age of 96. Dad was a hero to many people around the world for a simple reason: He helped save untold numbers of lives through the innovation of common-sense procedures and devices. But he was not only a physician and medical inventor, he was also a humanitarian and a loving and devoted son, husband, father, and grandfather. From the time Dad began his medical career in New York City, to the time he practiced as a thoracic surgeon in Cincinnati, he was committed to coming up with simple, effective ideas that helped save lives and significantly improved people's quality of life. He grew up the son of a social worker in New York State, which deeply influenced his drive to help other people. He loved the ocean and served in the US Navy during World War II, volunteering for extra-hazardous duty, which led to him to working as a doctor behind enemy lines in the Gobi Desert of China. Later, he named his small sailboat, The Repose, after the hospital ship he spent time on after serving in China. Most know of Dad's name for the Heimlich Maneuver, the method he devised to save people who are choking. The "maneuver," as he called it, not only has saved countless lives, it allows anyone, even children, to save the life of a choking victim. But as his memoir, Heimlich's Maneuvers explains, Dad accomplished much more. As a young surgeon, Dad was the first American to devise and perform a total organ replacement. Later, he came up with a device that saved thousands of soldiers' lives during the Vietnam War. The Heimlich Chest Drain Valve is still used worldwide for patients undergoing chest surgery. Dad was firm in his convictions and passionate for his causes. He didn't play politics well. Instead, he was single-minded in his quest to find better ways to save lives. Dad dreamed that anything was possible in the field of medicine, even when critics said otherwise. The family requests that those who wish to honor our father's legacy make a contribution to Heimlich Heroes, a nonprofit organization that teaches children around the world how to save a life with the Heimlich Maneuver. For more information on the life of Dr. Heimlich or to make a donation to Heimlich Heroes, please visit: http://henryheimlich.com. Contact: Bryan Reynolds, Integrated Marketing Director Episcopal Retirement Services 513-979-2243, [email protected] SOURCE Episcopal Retirement Services NEW YORK, Dec. 17, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Global SVOD homes to reach 428 million by 2021 The number of SVOD [subscription video on demand] homes is forecast to reach 428 million across 200 countries by 2021, up from 177 million in 2015 and an expected 248 million by end-2016. The total will grow by 70 million in 2016 alone, according to the Global SVOD Forecasts report. Simon Murray, Principal Analyst at Digital TV Research, said: "North America supplies most of these subscribers at present, but Asia Pacific will become the top region by 2019. This comes despite Netflix being unlikely to secure direct access in China and only making a limited impact in other major population centers such as India and Indonesia. There are some large SVOD platforms in Asia Pacific that have been active for some time, especially via mobile phones." The US (127 million subscribers by 2021) will remain the SVOD market leader by some distance, although China (74 million in 2021 up by 34 million on 2016) will record strong growth to close the gap. The report forecasts that Netflix will have almost 118 million paying subs by 2021 or 27.5% of the global total. Although the number of international subscribers will overtake its US ones in 2018, the US will still contribute 44% of its subs by 2021. Subscription revenues for Netflix will double from $6.37 billion in 2015 to $13.14 billion in 2021. Despite growth elsewhere, North America will still contribute 52% of its total in 2021. Murray continued: "We estimate that Netflix has distribution partnerships with 79 pay TV, telco or mobile operators across 44 countries. These partnerships include multinational deals with Liberty Global, Millicom/Tigo and Telia." Global SVOD revenues will reach $32.18 billion in 2021; 18 times the $1.74 billion recorded in 2010 and up by $20 billion on the $12.20 billion recorded in 2015. Revenues will grow by $5 billion in 2016 alone to take the total to $17.46 billion. * Amazon does not directly charge Prime subscribers to receive video content. However, Digital TV Research believes that Amazon is too big to ignore in the SVOD environment. Therefore, Digital TV Research has assumed that 60% of Prime subscribers watch video, so half the Prime subscription fee for these subs has been allocated to video. We have conducted forecasts for Amazon in 22 countries, although it could well launch in more countries. Published in December 2016, this 200-page PDF and excel report contains comprehensive coverage of the SVOD sector (TV episodes and movies) for 100 countries. The report comprises: - Executive Summary. - Major SVOD players, including subscriber estimates by country (2010 to 2021) for the major platforms. - Country-by-country forecasts from 2010 to 2021 Read the full report: http://www.reportlinker.com/p03401546-summary/view-report.html About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. http://www.reportlinker.com __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links http://www.reportlinker.com DALLAS, Dec. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Devoted to promoting eco-friendly lifestyle, Marcus Hiles, the Founder and CEO of Western Rim Property Services, has announced his plans to continue to plant 2,500 trees every year to help the environment. The property development expert creates affordable subdivisions where renters enjoy a luxurious lifestyle surrounded by parklands, trails, and green spaces. Planting trees initiative is part of Western Rim's goal to develop sustainable communities throughout the region. Marcus Hiles considers his company's carbon footprint with every project they take on. He believes plantings can make a significant environmental impact, "Trees and vegetation play a key role in every Western Rim development," Hiles says. "We give our renters the lowest housing density with the greatest amount of green spaces. This strategy extends beyond improving air quality and lowering greenhouse gas emissions. These plants can also minimize pollutants in storm water and reduce overall neighborhood noise." Western Rim's eco-friendly initiatives offer natural resources to both residents and indigenous wildlife, with lasting results. The annual plantings may remove roughly 75 tons of carbon dioxide per year, while generating enough oxygen to sustain over 6,000 people. After a decade, these same trees may deliver an annual reduction of 600 tons of carbon dioxide and create oxygen for 50,000 inhabitants. Having successfully planted a total of 30,000 trees in the last 10 years, Marcus Hiles notes that the annual planting goal of 2,500 trees is part of Western Rim's long-term objectives. "We have seen firsthand the impact our efforts have had, both aesthetically and environmentally," he says. "These initiatives are just the beginning. We purposely plant and donate parklands beyond any government development regulation because we know that our labor today will benefit the ecosystem for future decades. My goal is to continue increasing the tree canopy in all of our neighborhoods as well as create municipal parks, jogging trails, and reserves. Our commitment to proven ecological solutions grants our renters the optimal quality of life in a thriving community." Marcus Hiles - Chairman & CEO of Western Rim Property Services: http://www.MarcusHiles-News.com Western Rim Property Services- Marcus Hiles - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Western-Rim-Property-Services-Marcus-Hiles-1013270532051763/ Marcus Hiles (@marcus_hiles) - Twitter: https://twitter.com/marcus_hiles Marcus Hiles - The Mansions on the Park - YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ce1ez9C8XsA SOURCE Marcus Hiles ARLINGTON, Va., Dec. 17, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, American Trucking Associations and ATA's Share the Road Highway Safety Program celebrated the arrival of the Wreaths Across America convoy at Arlington National Cemetery. American Trucking Associations is the largest national trade association for the trucking industry. Through a federation of 50 affiliated state trucking associations and industry-related conferences and councils, ATA is the voice of the industry America depends on most to move our nation's freight.Trucking Moves America Forward. (PRNewsFoto/American Trucking Associations) (PRNewsFoto/American Trucking Associations) "The trucking industry believes wholeheartedly in remembering those who have served our country and protected our freedoms," said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. "Truck drivers throughout the country, many of whom are veterans themselves, are some of the most patriotic individuals you can find, so we're honored that our industry and the Share the Road program can salute America's fallen heroes as part of Wreaths Across America." Share the Road professional truck drivers Ralph Garcia and Nate McCarty drove the program's truck from the wreath loading dock in Maine to Arlington, Virginia. Along the way, the drivers participated in engaging education sessions for local students and communities to learn about the trucking industry's importance to the economy and the need to honor the nation's heroes. "I set out this week to honor my father, a Green Beret, and carried his hat with us to every ceremony," said Share the Road professional truck driver Ralph Garcia, of ABF Freight. "We've been amazed, though, to meet so many people and hear countless stories of bravery and sacrifice, just like my father's. This will be a very memorable trip for me." This year, Wreaths Across America delivered more than one million wreaths to veterans' graves throughout the globe. Spear, alongside his family and dozens of ATA employees, distributed a portion of the 3,500 wreaths delivered by the Share the Road tractor-trailer. The Share the Road drivers chronicled their trip with videos and photos on Share the Road's official Facebook and Twitter pages. Chris Kinnard, a Gold Star Wife, was one of several guests hosted by the drivers during the trip to Arlington. She shared her husband's story of sacrifice during the Vietnam War in this short video. Social media followers were encouraged to interact with the drivers throughout the week and all volunteers at Arlington National Cemetery are invited to meet the drivers during the wreath laying proceedings. Last week, Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Angus King (I-Maine) sponsored a resolution that was unanimously passed which designates December 17, 2016 as "Wreaths Across America Day." "Being a part of this trip is very special to me as a veteran and as a truck driver," said Share the Road professional truck driver Nate McCarty, of ABF Freight. "We've seen the trucking industry unite and honor America's heroes in a way that leaves a lasting impression on anyone who takes part in it." Share the Road is a highway safety outreach program of the American Trucking Associations that educates all drivers about sharing the roads safely with large trucks. An elite team of professional truck drivers with millions of accident-free miles deliver life-saving messages to millions of motorists annually. The safety program is sponsored by Mack Trucks Inc., and supported by TA-Petro, Pre-Pass, Hyundai Translead, OmniTracs, SmartDrive, Mack Leasing, and Bendix. www.atastr.org. Follow Share the Road on Twitter and Facebook. American Trucking Associations is the largest national trade association for the trucking industry. Through a federation of 50 affiliated state trucking associations and industry-related conferences and councils, ATA is the voice of the industry America depends on most to move our nation's freight. Follow ATA on Twitter or on Facebook. Trucking Moves America Forward. SOURCE American Trucking Associations Related Links http://www.trucking.org NEW YORK, Dec. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Rio Tinto plc ("Rio Tinto" or the "Company") (NYSE: RIO) and certain of its officers. The class action, filed in United States District Court, Southern District of New York, and docketed under 16-cv-09572, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired Rio Tinto American Depositary Receipts ("ADRs") between March 16, 2012 and November 14, 2016, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"), seeking to recover compensable damages caused by defendants' violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. If you are a shareholder who purchased Rio Tinto ADRs during the Class Period, you have until February 10, 2017 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com. To discuss this action, contact Robert S. Willoughby at [email protected] or 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll free, ext. 9980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and number of shares purchased. [Click here to join this class action] Rio Tinto, a mining and metals company, finds, mines, and processes mineral resources. The Company mines and produces aluminum products, including bauxite, alumina, and aluminum; copper, gold, silver, and molybdenum, as well as nickel; diamonds, titanium dioxide feedstocks, borates, and salt, as well as high purity iron, metal powders, zircon, and rutile; uranium; iron ore; and thermal coal, and coking or metallurgical coal. Rio Tinto has operations in Australia, North America, Asia, Europe, Africa, and South America. At all relevant times, Rio Tinto has held a significant stake in the Simandou iron mine, located in southern Guinea. The Complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company's business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) Rio Tinto violated anti-corruption laws in connection with its operations with respect to the Simandou project; (ii) the foregoing violations would expose the Company to significant scrutiny and large fines; and (iii) as a result of the foregoing, Rio Tinto's public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant time On November 9, 2016, Rio Tinto announced that on August 29, 2016, "Rio Tinto became aware of email correspondence from 2011 relating to contractual payments totalling US$10.5 million made to a consultant providing advisory services on the Simandou project in Guinea," that the Company had suspended Energy & Minerals chief executive Alan Davies, and that the Company's Legal & Regulatory Affairs group executive Debra Valentine had resigned from her role. On November 14, 2016, post-market, Bloomberg News published an article entitled "Rio CEO Says Staff 'Shocked' by Probe That May Take Years." On this news, as the market processed the significance and scope of the investigation that the Company faced, Rio Tinto's ADR price fell $1.52, or 3.83%, to close at $38.13 on November 15, 2016, the following trading day. On November 15, 2016, post-market, Rio Tinto announced the termination of Mr. Davies and Ms. Valentine. On this news, Rio Tinto's ADR price fell $0.77, or 2.02%, to close at $37.36 on November 16, 2016. On November 18, 2016, pre-market, Bloomberg News reported that Guinea's Mines and Geology Minister, Abdoulaye Magassouba, had written a letter to Rio Tinto's Chief Executive Officer, Jean-Sebastian Jacques, asking him to provide details of the internal inquiry. On November 18, 2016, pre-market, Bloomberg News also published an article entitled "Rio Tinto Offered Bribe for Mine, Ex-Guinea Minister Says," reporting that the head of Rio Tinto's Guinea operation had offered the country's former mining minister a bribe in connection with the Simandou project. On these disclosures, Rio Tinto's ADR price fell $1.01, or 2.69%, to close at $36.55 on November 18, 2016. The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Florida, and Los Angeles, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com CONTACT: Robert S. Willoughby Pomerantz LLP [email protected] SOURCE Pomerantz LLP Related Links http://www.pomerantzlaw.com By Mail Today Bureau: The Delhi government initiated online enrolment for the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on Friday. Deputy CM Manish Sisodia launched the enrolment for various service providers in Delhi on the GST portal at Delhi Secretariat. At the initial stage, the government invited 30 dealers from different wards of Delhi. EXPECTED TO BENEFIT CONSUMERS Addressing the traders, Sisodia said, "GST should be seen as a partnership between the government and the business fraternity as it is expected to benefit consumers apart from the two." "From December 16-31, 2016, officials of the VAT department shall organise meetings with representatives of dealers' associations in Delhi to spread the message and awareness among them so that they can enrol themselves within the prescribed time slot to avoid any inconvenience in future," Sisodia added. advertisement "The state government is committed to make the process of transition to GST smooth and convenient for dealers, for which a series of workshops and training programmes are being organised for officials of the departments of trade and taxes, central excise and service tax, as well as VAT dealers," he said. With GST likely to be implemented from April 1, all service providers are required to enrol themselves on the GST portal.ALSO READ: GST Bill: Government proposes, Opposition disposes --- ENDS --- LONDON, Dec. 17, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The television broadcasting market comprises of organizations operating television broadcasting studios or engaged in on-air satellite delivery of television programs. Establishments in the market are both producers as well as service providers, as studio houses produce or purchase content from third party and distribute it through different channels to be viewed by the ultimate consumers. Revenues for the industry mainly come from sale of airing time of television programs and advertisements. The industry does not include internet television broadcasting, production of taped television programs, and cable television carriers. The Americas was the x largest geographic region in the television broadcasting stations market in 2016, accounting for $x billion or x% of the global market. Asia was the x largest geographic market, accounting for $x billion or x% of the global market. Europe was the x largest geographic market, accounting for $x billion or x% of the global market. The Middle East and Africa accounted for x% and $x billion, while Oceania accounted for x% of the global television broadcasting market. Usage Of Multiple Viewing Devices Companies are introducing new services to broadcast content at different platforms such as mobiles, website portals and digital boxes to facilitate instant transfer of large content. Access to various platforms and devices has increased over demand for Television broadcasting services. For instance, mobile OTT (over-the-top) service Go90 introduced by Verizon and BingeOn by Comcast Watchable and T Mobile are new services aimed mainly at a youth audience. Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/4442245/ About Reportbuyer Reportbuyer is a leading industry intelligence solution that provides all market research reports from top publishers http://www.reportbuyer.com For more information: Sarah Smith Research Advisor at Reportbuyer.com Email: [email protected] Tel: +44 208 816 85 48 Website: www.reportbuyer.com SOURCE ReportBuyer Related Links http://www.reportbuyer.com NEW YORK, Dec. 17, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- In July 2016, the upward trend of TiO2 prices in China has begun to slow. Price rises have only come from a few manufacturers in Sichuan Province, mainly supported by the prosperous export market early this month. According to CCM, the price of TiO2 may stop rising in Aug., and may even decline given that overcapacity may worsen due to the gradually increasing operating rate of the industry. Market dynamics of titanium products in July 2016: Ilmenite: Stimulated by consecutive TiO2 price rises, prices of ilmenite, mainly produced in Sichuan Province, keep increasing. However, ilmenite manufacturers' profitability has not improved essentially due to bigger price growth margins of raw materials and also because of the increasing production costs brought by the rainy season. As a result, the operating rate of the industry is only up slightly, not enough to alleviate tight supply. Titanium slag: The market price of acid dissolved titanium slag continues to grow, as does the operating rate. However, the high titanium slag market remains stagnant, with the market price and the operating rate being low. Imports &exports of TiO2 in May 2016: China recorded MoM increases in the volume of both imports & exports of TiO2. The export volume in particular was the highest it had been for the last five years, signifying that the export market had played an important role in the de-stocking of Chinese TiO2 enterprises. CCM believes that this can be attributed to the continuous depreciation of the Yuan recently and domestic enterprises' initiative in enlarging their export volumes. Company dynamics: On 8 July, 2016, Henan Billions announced its plan to shutter TiO2 production capacity equivalent to 20% of its annual output this year in response to the Energy Consumption Limitation for Titanium Dioxide Product, a regulation which is to be implemented soon. CCM believes that the elimination of this capacity will optimise Henan Billions' product structure and improve its profitability. On 15 July, 2016, Pangang Vanadium Titanium issued an announcement, estimating that it had lost USD120.31 million-150.38 million during H1 2016. In order to prevent being delisted due to sustained losses, seven days after issuing the announcement, the company declared that it will sell most of its assets, including its iron ore and titanium sponge businesses.In May 2016, China recorded MoM increases in the volume of both imports & exports of TiO2. The export volume in particular was the highest it had been for the last five years, signifying that the export market had played an important role in the de-stocking of Chinese TiO2 enterprises. This month the gap between import volume and export volume widened from 47,518 tonnes in April to 59,861 tonnes, and the difference between import price and export price increased from USD831/t to USD878/t. In May 2016, China's import volume of ilmenite continued to fall, with volumes from India and Russia recording the most significant drops. The domestic market continued recovering from the last month, and the price of ilmenite rose slightly in Sichuan Province. In July 2016, the upward trend of TiO2 prices in China has begun to slow. Price rises have only come from a few manufacturers in Sichuan Province, who raised quotations early in the month. The operating rate of the TiO2 industry continues to recover. In the meantime, the domestic acid dissolved titanium slag and ilmenite markets are showing upward trends, while the high titanium market remains stagnant. On 29 June, 2016, Anhui Annada announced a further investment of USD3.16 million (RMB21 million) in its subsidiary, Nayuan Material, to expand its iron phosphate production capacity. According to CCM, China's new energy industry has skyrocketed since 2015 and the industry's phenomenal growth is the main driving factor behind Anhui Annada's further investment. However, on the basis that frequent investments have been made in the market recently, and will continue to be made, overcapacity in the future seems probable, and profits are liable to be lower than expected following several years of development. On 6 July, 2016, Huntsman announced that it will be closing its 25,000 t/a TiO2 manufacturing facility based in Umbogintwini, South Africa in Q4 2016. CCM believes that this will not only improve the company's profitability, but also help to boost the global TiO2 price. In addition, CCM is of the opinion that production capacity reductions from successive international TiO2 manufacturers are conducive to China's export market. On 8 July, 2016, Henan Billions announced its plan to shutter TiO2 production capacity equivalent to 20% of its annual output this year in response to the Energy Consumption Limitation for Titanium Dioxide Product, a regulation which is to be implemented soon. CCM believes that the elimination of this capacity will optimise Henan Billions' product structure and improve its profitability. On 15 July, 2016, Pangang Vanadium Titanium issued an announcement, estimating that it had lost USD120.31 million-150.38 million during H1 2016. In order to prevent being delisted due to sustained losses, seven days after issuing the announcement, the company declared that it will sell most of its assets, including its iron ore and titanium sponge businesses. However, the to-be-sold assets are all businesses which have been generating long-term losses. Therefore, CCM expects that it will be hard for Pangang Vanadium Titanium to achieve the desired result by selling these assets alone. On 17 July, 2016, Henan Billions announced that it had reached an agreement with graphene manufacturer Allightec on long-term cooperation in the new materials field. CCM believes that to enter the new materials industry will not only be conducive to Henan Billions' R&D in diversified and high-end TiO2 products, but also bring potential profit growth to the company despite the current immaturity of graphene industry development in China. In July 2016, China called for a thorough overhaul of mined-out areas in subsurface metal and nonmetal mines around the country, and requested that complete records of said areas be kept. This new regulation also pertains to titanium ore, the most upstream product of TiO2. The regulation will not only restrict the disorganized mining activities of small- and mid-sized ore manufacturers, but also help to promote an environmentally friendly mining technology - block caving. On 4 July, 2016, the China National Coating Industry Association disclosed that China's total coating output had increased to 6.70 million tonnes between Jan. and May this year, supporting the domestic TiO2 market. Meanwhile, according to CCM's research, product diversification within the Chinese coating industry is quickening pace under the influence of increasing production costs and policy reform. Read the full report: http://www.reportlinker.com/p04037703-summary/view-report.html About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. http://www.reportlinker.com __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links http://www.reportlinker.com If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here New Delhi, Dec 12 : Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who is on a two-day state visit to India from Monday, was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the forecourt of the Rashtrapati Bhawan here. "Beginning the week with Indonesia. President Joko Widodo receives ceremonial honours at Rashtrapati Bhavan," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted with photographs. The Indonesian President was welcomed by his Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with whom he would hold bilateral talks later in the day. Widodo is on his first visit to India after assuming power in October 2014. Lucknow, Dec 13 : The Uttar Pradesh cabinet on Tuesday approved the recommendations of the Seventh Pay Commission, which is likely to benefit more than 21 lakh state government employees, teachers and pensioners, an official said. At a cabinet meeting presided over by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav here, it was decided that in the forthcoming winter session of the state assembly from December 21, a bill will be brought on "Vote on Account", the official told IANS. This was being done to take care of the state's expenses in the first four months of the coming year. According to a government spokesperson, a committee was set up under the chairmanship of retired IAS officer G.B. Patnaik to study the Seventh Pay Commission recommendations and a report was subsequently submitted to Yadav last week. The committee recommended the state government employees be given a salary structure at par with the central government employees. It said the salary would be increased 2.57 times, including salary band and grade pay, and implemented from January 1 next year. The starting minimum salary (fourth class employees) is recommended at Rs 18,000 while the maximum for Chief Secretary is recommended at Rs 2.25 lakh. The decision would lead to phase wise distribution of arrears in instalments, the official said. The move is being seen by many here as an attempt to offer sops to the government employees ahead of the crucial state assembly polls in 2017. New Delhi, Dec 15 : Rashtrapati Bhavan on Thursday said the timing of the 'Change of Guard' ceremony to be held on Saturday has been changed. "The Change of Guard Ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan will be held at 11.30 a.m. instead of its regular timing 10.00 a.m. this Saturday (December 17, 2016) due to the ceremonial reception being accorded to the President of Tajikistan," the President House said in a release here. President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon is on a state visit to India from December 14-18. President Rahmon will arrive in New Delhi on December 16 after visiting Kerala. Change of Guard is a military tradition where guards and sentries at palaces, forts and defence establishments change periodically to enable a fresh body of troops take charge. The ceremony is held every Saturday and is open to the general public for viewing. New Delhi, Dec 16 : Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari on Friday said the government has come up with a multi-modal transport hub plan, which will be an integrated system for major modes of transport. Major transportation modes such as road, railway, port and air, would be aimed at in this plan. "We have come across new concept, which has emerged as modern concept at global level. We had constituted a consultant to study if multi-modal system can be built in Nagpur and Varanasi. The consultant has submitted its report, which we are studying now," Gadkari said during annual general meeting of Ficci here. He also said that his ministry's efforts of port-led industrialisation will be a "game-changer". "We have decided to turn 111 rivers into inland waterways. We are building river port, which will be like bus stand, railway station," he said. "We are building 40 water ports including three multi-modal hubs on 1,620 km stretch of Ganga river between Varanasi and Haldia. We have to think how we can shift to waterways from the roadways in order to reduce logistic cost," Gadkari said. "These ports will be engine for growth. We are building Rs 800 crore passenger terminal in Mumbai. We have signed agreement for 60 cruise," the minister said. "We have plans to build 12 major ports and 200 ports on 111 rivers, which makes the total length of waterways to 20,000 km. So it (cruise plan) will be an advantage for the water transport," he added. Gadkari also said the government has proposed construction of 12 express highways across the country for the first time. He added the government was building two Rs 15,000-crore by-passes, which would relieve Delhi of traffic congestion and pollution. Gadkari said that he would be using debris at the Ghazipur dumping ground for the construction of highway between Delhi and Meerut. Gadkari invited Indian investors to be part of infrastructure building across the country. He said that his ministry has enough funds to support the transport infrastructure projects. Gadkari said that his ministry targeted to implement Rs 25 lakh crore worth of projects in five years Of these, Rs 15 lakh crore will be in road sector and Rs 10 lakh crore in shipping sector. Kabul, Dec 17 : At least six persons, including five females, were killed when gunmen attacked their vehicle in Kandahar province of Afghanistan on Saturday, sources said. Five female airport workers and a driver were killed when gunmen sprayed their vehicle with bullets in Kandhar city, Xinhua news agency reported. By PTI: Jodhpur, Dec 17 (PTI) Rejecting his plea for relief, the Rajasthan High Court has directed a representative of Skylight Hospitality, a firm linked to Congress Chief Sonia Gandhis son-in-law Robert Vadra, to appear before Enforcement Directorate (ED) which had summoned him in connection with a controversial land deal in Bikaner. The representative had move the high court challenging the summons issued by the ED to him earlier this year. advertisement Dismissing his plea, Justice P K Lohra said last evening that the representative of Skylight Hospitality will have to appear before ED but allowed the presence of his lawyer "at a reasonable distance" during questioning. Opposing the plea,EDs counsel Rajeev Awasthiargued that the summons was issued to a specific person and he is supposed to appear before the agency instead of challenging the same in the court. The (ED) had issued the notice to the firm under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The probe is related to the purchase of 275 bigha land allegedly by the company in the Kolayat area of the border town of Bikaner in Rajasthan. The central probe agency had registered a criminal case of money laundering in this case last year on the basis of FIRs filed by the state police after the local tehsildar had made a complaint. The ED has not mentioned the name of Vadra or any company linked to him in the FIR but it named some state government officials and some e "land mafia". While filing the case, it had also taken cognisance of reports that had referred to a firm allegedly linked to Vadra which had purchased some of these Bikaner located lands. Vadra has denied any wrongdoing even as Congress has maintained that the action is "sheer political vendetta". Rajasthan government had in January last year cancelled the mutation (transfer of land) of 374.44 hectares of land, after the land department claimed to have found that the allotments were made in the names of "illegal private persons". The tehsildar had said in the complaint that the government land in 34 villages of Bikaner, to be used for expanding the army?s firing range in the area, was "grabbed" by the land mafia by preparing "forged and fabricated documents" in connivance with government officials. ED suspects that huge amounts of money was laundered in this case by people buying land at cheap rates through forged documents. The state government had, while cancelling the mutations, said these were not issued by the Commissioner, Colonisation, Bikaner. advertisement The state police had also filed charge sheets in 18 cases in a court in Kolayat last year. PTI CORR RT --- ENDS --- Kolkata, Dec 17 : Two charred bodies were recovered in a blaze in a north Kolkata slum on Saturday, an official from the fire department said. The fire gutted at least 10 shanties in Patipukur. "We have handed over the bodies to police. The fire could have been due to a cylinder blast. It is now under control," the official said. New Delhi, Dec 17 : Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon, who is visiting India from December 14-18, was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here Saturday. "A special Saturday for Indian diplomacy as President Emomali Rahmon of Tajikistan receives a ceremonial welcome at the Rashtrapati Bhavan," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted. Washington, Dec 17 : Hillary Clinton did not lose the White House race to Donald Trump. She was done in by (FBI director James) Comey, the Constitution, and now the Russians! That's "just another excuse," said the Republican President-elect, proffered by the Democrats still in denial more than a month after his stunning victory defying pollsters, pundits and prophets. Scoffing at a CIA assessment that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally ordered his spooks to hack into Democratic Party emails to help him win as "ridiculous," Trump dissed it as an attempt to "delegitimise" his election. "If Russia, or some other entity, was hacking, why did the White House wait so long to act? Why did they only complain after Hillary lost," he asked as President Barack Obama ordered a review of the alleged hack. "Can you imagine if the election results were the opposite and WE tried to play the Russia/CIA card," he tweeted. "It would be called conspiracy theory!" "Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin," countered Obama buying his spies' assertion "with a high degree of confidence" that "This happened at the highest levels of the Russian government." "We need to take action. And we will - at a time and place of our own choosing," he thundered in an interview. Obama also claimed that Moscow had stopped "further tampering of the election process" after he bluntly told Putin to "cut it out" when they met in China" in September. "But the leaks through WikiLeaks had already occurred." Though he was careful to not endorse CIA's belief that Russia's goal was to elect Trump, he suggested the Russian hack had created "more problems for the Clinton campaign than it had for the Trump campaign." His spokesman, Josh Earnest, went a step further. "The fact that Russian entities hacked both Democrats and Republicans and only leaked the Democratic information" clearly indicated that it was designed to help Trump, he suggested echoing the spooks. The FBI did not agree. Nor did America's spymaster, who oversees 17 US intelligence agencies, saying it was "a thin reed upon which to base an analytical judgment." Clinton, who before the election was "horrified" that Trump may not readily accept the result, too jumped on the Russian bandwagon calling it an "attack against our democracy" prompted by Putin's "personal beef" against her. She also doubled down on her previous assertion that Comey's reopening of a probe into her use of a private email server as America's top diplomat 11 days before election led to her defeat. Clinton conveniently overlooked the fact that it was what her desi aide Neera Tanden called her "f***ing insane" for using a private server that had prompted the FBI probe in the first place. And it was the discovery of thousands of her emails on the laptop of another desi aide Huma Abedin's husband that led to the reopening of the case. Her campaign chief John Podesta, whose private email too was hacked, also renewed his attack on the agency saying "something is deeply broken at the FBI". He too ignored the fact that a Democratic Party IT official had reportedly dismissed a warning from a special agent about a possible hack as a prank. After its efforts for a recount in three battleground states came a cropper, the Clinton campaign came out in open support of a call by some members of the Electoral College for an intelligence briefing on foreign intervention in the presidential election. The move came ahead of the Monday's Electoral College meeting when 538 presidential electors pledged to either Trump or Clinton gather in the 50 state capitols and Washington, DC to formally endorse the outcome in their states. "Electors have a solemn responsibility under the Constitution and we support their efforts to have their questions addressed," Podesta wrote in effect urging them not to vote as their state did as it has been done since the first election in 1790. Many of the electors said they have been besieged by phone calls and e-mails to instead vote for Clinton who collected 2.8 million more votes, but lost the electoral vote 306-232 to Trump who emerged victorious in 30 states. Yet as the Electoral College heads for its crucial Monday vote, one can say with the "highest degree of confidence" that it would stamp its approval of Trump's election. But let the Democrats dream for another day! (Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in) Patna, Dec 17 : RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav on Saturday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision of demonetisation saying it has failed and will meet the same fate as Congress's forced sterilisation in the mid-70s during the Emergency. Lalu also threatened to launch a protest against the anti-people decision of demonetisation along with like minded parties including ally JD-U in Bihar after the 50-day deadline fixed by Modi. "Notebandi Ka Wahi Haal Hoga Jo Congress Ka Nasbandi Ka Hua (Notebandi will meet the same fate as forced sterilisation)," Lalu said while addressing his Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) party leaders including legislators and workers here. Lalu also termed 'Notebandi' as 'Farzibandi' over the people. "It is not notebandi, it is farzibandi that has put common people in deep trouble," Lalu said, adding that Modi has cheated the people. Lalu reminded Modi of his promise made during the Lok Sabha polls of bringing back black money stashed abroad. "Black money has not come back and Rs 15 lakh, which Narendra Modi promised, has not been deposited in anyone's bank account," he said. Lalu has been opposing demonetisation since November, unlike his ally Janata Dal-United President and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who is supporting it. New Delhi, Dec 17 : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday criticised the central government's move to exempt political parties from income tax while depositing demonetised currency notes and accused them of holding most of the black money. Kejriwal's criticism came after the government on Friday exempted political parties from income tax while depositing old Rs 500 and 1,000 rupee notes. "Most of the black money is in the hands of political parties," Kejriwal said, alleging that the recent move will help the political parties in changing black money into white. Kejriwal also sought an "independent commission" to probe the accounts and source of funding of all political parties. "You (Narendra Modi) talk of investigating the source of money if a common man deposits Rs 2.5 lakh individually but you exempt political parties from income tax on depositing crores of demonetised currency. This is not fair." "We demand that an independent commission should be set up and the account details of all the political parties over the last five years should be probed to investigate their source of funding," Kejriwal said at a press conference here. The Delhi Chief Minister also targeted Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi over his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, terming it "a deal to hide unaccounted money". He said the decision to demonetise the higher currency notes was "unconstitutional" as it barred people from withdrawing their own money. "Modiji is busy in converting black money of the political parties into white. It is a big fraud against the nation," Kejriwal said. The AAP convenor maintained that his party was presenting each and every receipt to the income tax department and was maintaining transparency. "The income tax returns of AAP since its formation until now are being investigated. We are not scared of any probe. What other parties including BJP are scared of?" Kejriwal asked. New Delhi, Dec 17 : Calling for the elimination of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, India and Tajikistan on Saturday resolved to strengthen bilateral counter terrorism cooperation and expand security and defence ties. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon affirmed their shared interest in fostering peace, stability and development in Afghanistan for regional security and stability and called for an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process. "The two leaders agreed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be eliminated without any distinction between good and bad terrorists and called for an end to sponsorship, support and provision of safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists," said a joint statement issued after the meeting of the two leaders. Both leaders reaffirmed their resolve to strengthen bilateral counter terrorism cooperation, expand security and defence ties and work for early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UN General Assembly. Stressing on the importance of an "Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process and national reconciliation", both countries, as neighbours of Afghanistan, resolved work together to contribute to Afghan peace and prosperity. While both leaders called for comprehensive reforms of the UN structures, President Rahmon reiterated Tajikistan's support to India's candidature for permanent membership of an expanded UN Security Council. The leaders stressed on the need for joint measures to expand and diversify the "below potential" bilateral trade, and reflected on improving regional connectivity. They also underlined the importance of International North South Transport Corridor in this context. President Rahmon hailed the signing of the trilateral Chahbahar Transport and Transit Corridors agreement between India, Iran and Afghanistan and said it provides connectivity to large market of India. The two countries on the day inked four pacts including one concerning exchange of financial intelligence related to money laundering, related crimes and financing of terrorism. Informing about its plans to build a number of small and medium hydroelectric power projects, the Tajik side invited Indian investment in their country. The two leaders also decided to further extend and expand existing cooperation and welcomed the successful conclusion of the Foreign Office Consultations and the meeting of the Joint Working Group on Defence Cooperation. The two countries also decided to collaborate for capacity building in Tajikistan in the area of application of space technology for human development and in the farming sector. Calling for increasing flight operations between the two countries, the leaders asked respective officials for bilateral consular consultations to explore ways for easier business, medical and tourist and other visas to promote people to people exchanges. Ahmedabad, Dec 17 : The eighth edition of the high-profile biennial Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, a conclave of industrial investors, will be held in state capital Gandhinagar between January 10 and January 13 with 12 countries partnering the event. The event, which was initiated by Narendra Modi as Chief Minister in 2003, invited investment commitments of Rs 51,000 crore, of which 66 per cent projects have either been commissioned or are under advanced stages of implementation. Giving this information, state Chief Secretary J.N. Singh told reporters here on Saturday that the 8th edition of Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit "will be bigger and grander". He added the scale of the event will be bigger than earlier editions held under Modi, though Singh did not name him. The Summit will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister, who will throw open a Global Trade Show as well as chair a Global CEOs Roundtable. Modi will also declare open a five-week long Nobel Laureate Exhibition. Singh said the exhibition would be accompanied by panel discussions "where participants will have a unique opportunity to interact with these global minds on science and learn about the scientific developments across the world". "We will also have dedicated seminars on 'Make In Gujarat', as an extension of 'Make in India'. For the first time we are organizing 'Action Seminars' to enable 'Make your own policy environment'. The idea is to make Vibrant Gujarat a truly global platform to ideate, engage and collaborate," he said. Additional Chief Secretary (Industries and Mines) P.K. Taneja said 12 countries would partner the event as against eight in the previous edition, "which reflects the growing interest in Gujarat worldwide". "Through the 8th edition, we are also extending our commitment to encourage startups and MSMEs in the state. Additionally, we are also reaching out to other state governments to be a part of Vibrant Gujarat to truly represent our theme of 'Connecting India to the World'. I am confident of the attendees finding the summit interactive, knowledge driven and engaging," he added. The 12 partner countries are Australia, Britain, Canada, Denmark, France, Japan, Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, Sweden, UAE, and US. The event will be supported by seven partner organisations - Australia India Business Council, Indo-Canada Chambers of Commerce, Japan External Trade Organization, UAE India Business Council, UK India Business Council, US India Business Council and British Council. New Delhi, Dec 17 : Union Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Saturday said that no inquiry or opening on their transactions pre-November 8 will be done if small shopkeepers and enterprises adopt digital payment mode. Prasad said that this observation was made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi duing the MPs meet on Friday. "If any enterprise or a shopkeeper comes on digital payment mode, then for small shopkeepers, middle shopkeepers no opening shall be done about transactions before November 8," said Prasad at the Ficci Annual General Meet. "Second, in terms of labour employment, if by digital payment, the number of employees rises, then no inquiry should be made pre-November 8 in case of small shopkeepers or other concerns. So that past is past. What is important is to bring into digital mode in a bigger way. "If your transaction is digital, your consumer base is known and if consumer base is known the lending banks would have enough material available about your commercial vialbility to expedite the loan system. Money coming in the system becomes avaialbale for banks to invest," he added. Prasad further said that digital governance is equal to good governance, transparent governance, and honest governance. "Another mode of digital payment we are pushing in a big way is Aadhar-based payment. About 30 crore Indians do not have a mobile phone, but they have access to mobile phones at home. How will they have the benefits? That's why we are encouraging Aadhar-based payment. We are planning it with the Finance Ministry," he said. Prasad also gave a demo on Aadhar-based payments using biometrics and smartphone. He also said Goods and Services Tax (GST) is going to technology-enabled. "We have 6.3 crore enterprise in India. Through the digital move of the government, every informal firms will move into formal economy." Berlin, Dec 17 : The manager of race driver Michael Schumacher said on Saturday that the health of the former German F1 ace was and will remain a strictly private matter, almost three years after his ski accident in France. Manager Sabine Kehm explained in a statement that there will be no future information about the private situation of the 47-year-old Schumacher, reports Efe. The manager admitted that it is difficult for some to understand this matter, "but we act in full agreement with the opinion of Michael and we appreciate your understanding." In recent weeks, Schumacher's official website was reactivated, as well as his accounts on Facebook and Twitter. Schumacher suffered a serious ski accident on December 29, 2013 in the French Alps, after which he spent several months in a coma in a hospital. The German driver came out of the coma in June 2014 and was transferred to a rehabilitation clinic in Lausanne, Switzerland, and then moved to live with his family in a house in Gland in the Canton of Vaud, where a team of specialists and therapists take care of him. Shahjahanpur, Dec 17 : Taking a dig at the opposition, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah on Saturday asked why they are crying hoarse over demonetisation but silent on the issue of triple talaq. "Congress, SP, BSP, Kejriwal are crying hoarse over demonetisation. I cannot understand why they are so worried, what harm has demonetisation done to them?" Shah said while addressing a Parivartan Rally here. "After demonetisation, the faces of Mayawati, Akhilesh Yadav, Netaji (Mulayam Singh Yadav), Rahul Gandhi, Arvind Kejriwal and Mamata Banerjee look drawn. They are looking 10 years older than their age," he added. Defending the government's decision, Shah said that though it is causing some inconvenience to the people right now, but these "50 days of pain would weed out black money from the country for 50 years". Raking up the issue of triple talaq, Shah said the practice should end, as it denies equal rights to women. "The Supreme Court hearing a petition over triple talaq recently asked the central government's stand on the issue. Our government instantly replied that whatever the religion, women's rights must be protected, the practice of triple talaq should end," Shah said. "The Muslim women must get their rights," he added. He said that parties like the Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and Congress are silent over the issue as they "can neither support it, not oppose it". "I request the women in Uttar Pradesh to ask of those who come seeking their votes as to what they are doing for upholding women's rights," Shah said. Targeting Uttar Pradesh's Samajwadi Party government, Shah said that the law and order situation in the state was so bad that no development could be expected. He said that during the BJP's Kalyan Singh government in the early 1990s, criminals were either in jail or out of the state. "We want to give that kind of governance to Uttar Pradesh, we want to end the terror of land mafias, provide security to women and employment to the youth," the BJP President said. Shah also mentioned surgical strikes, saying under this government "our army retaliates forcefully to every provocation from Pakistan's side". "During the UPA regime, the enemy would humiliate our soldiers by chopping off their heads. But today, our army takes its revenge by conducting surgical strikes deep inside Pakistani territory," he said. Shah also remembered great freedom fighters Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqullah Khan and Roshan Singh, who all hailed from Shahjahanpur, and were convicted and sent to the gallows by the British in the Kakori conspiracy case. Income Tax department of Hyderabad conducted numerous raids in the city in the past day. They seized Rs 66 lakh in two raids. In another incident, they also seized undisclosed income of Rs 7.5 crore deposited in a bank. By Ashish Pandey: Continuing its crackdown on Black money hoarders, the sleuth of Income tax (I-T) department in Hyderabad seized Rs 66 Lakh, all in Rs 2,000 denomination in between Friday and Saturday. While I-T sleuth seized Rs 36 lakh cash in Rs 2,000 denomination on December 16th Night from Himayat nagar locality, In another instance I-T officials intercepted vehicle and cash of Rs 30 Lakh again in Rs 2,000 denomination, which was found with two persons from tank band on December 17th morning. advertisement Both the seizure made were based on specific inputs and department believes that, the accused were trying to exchange the newly introduced Rs 2,000 currency with demonetised note on a commission. Also read: Exclusive: Top Railways officials involved in racket converting black money to white I-T department is now probing sources of the cash which they believe was for exchange with demonetised currency. According to the sources, the I-T department has also seized undisclosed income of Rs 7.5 crore deposited into a bank after the assessee was unable to explain the sources. IMPACT OF DEMONETISATION After the demonetisation announcement made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi the I-T directorate in Hyderabad has seized over Rs 250 crore in undisclosed income. Also read: The money launderers The I-T department have also seized over Rs 4 crore including Rs 1.6 crore of new Rs 2,000 currency till last week. I-T department received around 50 cases of undisclosed income has also forwarded 12 cases to Enforcement directorate (ED) while 12 cases to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for further probe. Also read: Income tax raids are surgical strikes against black money: Government --- ENDS --- New Delhi, Dec 17 : India's Vijender Singh outpunched Tanzania's Francis Cheka to defend his WBO Asia Pacific Super Middleweight title at the Thyagaraj Stadium here on Saturday. Undefeated in seven professional bouts so far, the 31-year-old Indian took just three rounds to retain his unbeaten streak since turning professional. Vijender started dominating from the first round after defending the early punches from his opponent to lead 3-1 before landing seven punches to Cheka's three in the second round. The third round witnessed the Haryana boxer completely dominating the contest as the referees ruled the bout in Vijender's favour by a technical knockout. Jaipur, Dec 17 : To allay the fears of the general public on mobile tower radiation, the Department of Telecom (DoT) will unveil a portal soon to check radiation compliance status of towers, Union Minister Manoj Sinha said on Saturday. Speaking at an awareness programme organised here on Electromagnetic Field Emissions and Mobile Towers, the Union Minister of State for Communications told media persons: "The portal -- Tarang Sanchar -- is expected to be operational by next month." With its help, people will be able to check the current status of a mobile tower located anywhere in the country as well as its electromagnetic field (EMF) emissions signal compliance status. However, it does not come free as a fee would be charged for the test of a particular tower. "The tests are usually conducted on random basis by us, but if someone wants a particular tower tested, then it can be carried out for a fee," Telecom Secretary J.S. Deepak said at the event, organised under the aegis of the Ministry of Communications. According to Deepak, a fee of Rs 5,000 would be charged for conducting an on-demand test of a specific tower. The awareness programme was part of a nationwide programme to facilitate the Digital India initiative. Belagavi (Karnataka), Dec 17 : Terming note ban a (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi-made disaster for the country, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday accused the NDA government of aiding the rich at the cost of the poor through demonetisation. "Demonetisation, which was meant to curb black money and root out corruption, is a Modi-made disaster, as over 100 people died standing in queues at banks for a few notes across the country," said Gandhi at a public meeting in this Karnataka town, about 500 km from Bengaluru. Addressing a huge rally to mark the birth centenary of former Prime Minister and his grandmother Indira Gandhi, Gandhi said only the rich had benefitted from the note ban at the cost of the poor, farmers and labourers in millions across the country. "The Modi government came to power in the name of the poor but is sounding death knell to the hapless population to help about 50 super rich families. Who are these families holding most of the wealth in the country? You can see them touring foreign countries with Modi at the government cost. This is your Prime Minister whom you had reposed hopes of bettering your lives," he alleged. Noting that Modi failed to realise that black money hoarders invest their ill-gotten wealth in real estate, gold and in foreign banks, Gandhi said a mere six per cent of unaccounted wealth was in cash while 94 per cent was either deposited in Swiss banks or in real estate. "Unfortunately, in the name of the poor, honest and tax-paying people, Modi is going after them and ignoring the remaining 94 per cent," he said. Remembering his grandmother on the occasion, Gandhi also said he was sad over the plight of the ordinary people facing hardship due to cash crunch for over a month. "I want to ask Modiji why his government had not disclosed names of those who had stashed their black money in Swiss banks even after its government gave the list. Why he is not acting against crooks like Lalit Modi and liquor baron Vijay Mallya, who are staying in London?" asked Gandhi in his speech in Hindi. Guwahati, Dec 17 : Two wild elephants died and another was injured on Saturday when they dashed against a train engine in Assam's Nagaon district, a railway official said. "The light engine of a train was going to Jamunamukh station from Kampur station early on Saturday. A herd of wild elephants was passing in the area and two elephants died on the spot and another wounded after dashing with the engine," said Northeast Frontier Railways; (NFR) chief public relations officer Pranav Jyoti Sharma. He said that the engine was also damaged and had to be moved by bringing another relief engine. Senior NFR and forest officials have immediately rushed to the spot. The track was cleared after getting permission. Sharma said that on noticing a herd of elephant in nearby area, railway authorities imposed a speed restriction of 30 kmph in that area. He however noted that the incident occurred at a place which was not a elephant corridor notified by the Assam Forest Department, and was, in fact, 13 km away from the area where caution had been advised. Sharma said that the issue is being monitored at the highest level by the Forest Department and the railways. "Coordination mechanisms have been put in place where the location of the elephant herds is provided by the Forest Department to the railways. Railways in turn runs its trains at a lower speed in those areas," he added. The railway authorities and Forest Department have also sought help from the NGOs like the WWF and other organisations to provide details of movements of the elephant herds straying out large distances from the forest reserves. Panaji, Dec 18 : In-flight Wi-Fi might be a reality soon in Indian flight carriers, Union Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju has said. Speaking to reporters on Saturday at the Dabolim International Airport, the minister also said that the current aviation laws need to be amended by the Parliament to enable Wi-Fi access during flights Raju also said his ministry was weighing in the pros and cons of enabling Wi-Fi in aeroplanes. He said there was a demand for the in-flight Wi-Fi service, but refused to give an assurance as to when the service would be enabled. "There is no need to fix a timeline," he said "We are working on amending the particular legislation," he also said, adding that one of the key reasons why Wi-Fi had not been enabled in-flight in India was because of security concerns. Los Angeles, Dec 18 : Actor Daniel Radcliffe likes to shock people by asking them for cigarette lighters because most people don't expect the "Harry Potter" star to smoke. "I do smoke and I like roll-ups. I get a kick out of asking people for a light - I'm always losing lighters. They fumble in their pockets, look up and realise they've committed the crime of giving Harry Potter cancer," Radcliffe told the Sun Newspaper, reports femalefirst.co.uk. He is currently dating a New-York based actress Erin Darke, and says the pair have a romantic trans-Atlantic love. "I live in both London and New York. My girlfriend and I hop back and forth, so we're constantly saying goodbye but looking forward to seeing each other. It's quite a romantic state to be in," he said. And although the actor loved working on the "Harry Potter" movies, he is happy to have moved on from the role of the young wizard. He said: "I'm not Harry Potter any more, but I don't regret a day of it. I had the time of my life. People look at me with pity sometimes. I know it's because they think I didn't have a childhood, that I was like a slave to the 'Potter' set. "But it was fun hanging out with Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, and the most fascinating grown-ups like Alan Rickman, Julie Walters and Maggie Smith. You don't meet those characters every day and they were like family to me." Batzner Pest Control is proud to announce that it has entered its 70th year in business. The growth and positive change weve experienced over the years are products of the legendary service our team members provide every day, said Jerry Batzner, President and CEO. If team members feel valued, and were connected to whats important to them, theyll be engaged with the company and our customers. Now in its third generation of family ownership, Batzner Pest Control has been protecting homes and businesses since 1946, when the company was founded by Ed Batzner. Though much has changed in the last 70 years, a few things remain the same. The Batzner family is still putting customers first with its Legendary Service promise and exclusive Balanced as Nature System, both unique in the pest control industry. Batzner prides itself on being a pest control partner in every sense of the word, with expertise in both residential and commercial accounts. Experiencing double digit growth for the past twenty years, Batzner has expanded its service area to include Green Bay, Madison, and south through Chicago. The company offers expert advice to homeowners that is specific to their situation, and provides sanitation consulting, educational sessions, and in-house training programs for business and industry clients. The company has also worked hard to retain an employee-friendly environment and attract top employees to its team. As a seven-time winner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Top Workplace Awards, most recently in 2016, its clear employees appreciate this dedication. Dave Kusnierek, District Service Manager, explains, Its a very caring organization, very people oriented. We treat people with respect. For protection of your home or brand, there is only one company that provides the best results and service in the industry - Batzner. The name to know for pest control since 1946. Ivy Mobility Inc., a leading provider of Software-as-a-Service Apps for the consumer goods industry, is expanding its global advisory board of renowned members. The Board members contribute their insights to the company on global trends and outlook, strategic development, go to market channels, and information technology and their relevance to the consumer goods industry. The Board meets several times a year and will also attend industry forums and trade events. Together, the Board members contribute their market and industry expertise and insights to Ivys R&D and Innovation process. The Global Advisory Board is an unrivaled team of consumer goods thinkers and information technology leaders, whose insights into the intersection of retail execution, direct store delivery, and enterprise mobility will be a valuable input to our innovation process, said Rajiv Prabhakar, Founder and Director, Ivy Mobility. I am honored to join the Advisory board and excited by the opportunity to provide Ivys strong team of consumer goods professionals with our collective view on, sales channels, route to market, merchandising, and mobility, and strategic developments, that affect markets and can impact Ivys clients., said Andy Walter. Biography: Andy Walter is a business results-driven professional with extensive experience in strategy, development, execution, and operations across Shared Services and IT. He led the Commercial Services & Delivery Organization (over 1500 IT and multifunctional professionals) for P&Gs Global Business Services (GBS). He was responsible for IT & Shared Services for all Global Business Units and Markets around the world. His team was accountable for developing cutting-edge capabilities for P&G to win where it matters most, with Consumers, Shoppers, and Retailers. This included all eBusiness, Consumer Services, BI/Analytics, Sales Force Solutions, Project Delivery, Business Process Services, and A&D / Company restructuring efforts. He has over 15 years working on Boards and in Board level advisory roles. As a member of he is advising on company strategy and execution into the Consumer Goods & Retail environments. Across numerous non-profit board (GS1, Ovarian Cancer Alliance, Multiple Sclerosis Society) and Private & Public Company Board & CEO strategic level advisory roles with Digimarc, Fractal Analytics, and Virtualitics LLC, he brings leadership, industry & functional expertise, operations, an incredible personal network, and strategic thinking to the critical business challenges facing companies and organizations. With over 25 years of experience, Andys career has spanned a variety of assignments including Global R&D, Product Supply & Manufacturing, Marketing, and International Sales & Operations. Andy also designed and led the industry-leading Business Intelligence / Analytics journey across P&G. Under his leadership, P&G received the first-ever Excellence in Analytics Award by The International Institute of Analytics. His teams have also been recognized with CIO 100 Awards in 2010, 2011, and 2012. In 2013, Harvard Business School added a P&G-based case study to their analytics curriculum. Andy credits such recognition to clear Play to Win strategy choices, relentless talent development, and breakthrough strategic partnerships. His team delivered the largest M&A portfolio in the history of P&Gover $12B in transformation of the largest CPG company in the world. Andy is driven by the belief that people and relationships make the differencethat The day we claim success is the day we fail. An inspirational and in-touch leader in diversity, organization design / capability, strategic partner management, and industry influence, hes clear that value comes from execution where it matters most with consumers! He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from the University of Cincinnati. Contact Email : AJWalter7(at)gmail(dot)com About IVY Mobility, Inc. Ivy, is a leader in cloud-based software for the consumer goods industry. Ivy Mobility has been in the business of providing applications that allow our customers to improve route to market and win more at the shelf for over 14 years. We are proud to provide our customers with the broadest portfolio in the industry today and market leading vertical software applications pre-defined to meet the needs of consumer goods companies. The single fully configurable platform supports Direct Store Delivery, Retail Execution, Merchandising, Distributor Management System, Counter Sales, and Insights. We serve customers in over 20 countries, support over 105,000 end user customers, and over 5.5 million outlets. Ivy is headquartered in the Singapore, with offices in North America, Europe, Asia, Middle East, and Latin America. For more information about the company and its portfolio of products, visit http://www.ivymobility.com and follow Ivy on social media channels. Andrea Shepard, Cornerstone Research Cornerstone Research Senior Vice President Andrea Shepard has been named to Global Competition Reviews Women in Antitrust 2016. Cohead of the firms global antitrust and competition practice, Shepard is among what GCR calls elite women making their mark on the global competition community, including expert economists, attorneys, regulators and academics. Ive been drawn to competition work because the issues are complex and challenging, Shepard said. The intellectual content of each case is different, the industry, the technology, and the products vary. There is always a unique and interesting facet to the economic arguments. Shepard directs competitive analyses for large, complex competition disputes and merger reviews. She works on a variety of matters including price-fixing cases involving financial instruments, such as LIBOR, FX and Treasuries. Her recent merger work includes the Sysco-US Foods and Aetna-Humana deals. An emeritus professor at Stanford Universitys Graduate School of Business, Shepard is experienced in all phases of litigation and has assisted counsel at arbitration, mediation and trial and is involved in preparing expert testimony for class certification, liability, damages, and settlement. The full Global Competition Review article can be found at Women in Antitrust 2016: Economists. About Cornerstone Research Cornerstone Research provides economic and financial consulting and expert testimony in all phases of complex litigation and regulatory proceedings. The firm works with an extensive network of prominent faculty and industry practitioners to identify the best-qualified expert for each assignment. Cornerstone Research has earned a reputation for consistent high quality and effectiveness by delivering rigorous, state-of-the-art analysis for over 25 years. The firm has 600 staff and offices in Boston, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Silicon Valley and Washington. On Thursday, December 15, 2016, at 12:30 p.m., Joyce Farms celebrated the completion of a 10,400 sq. ft. expansion to their USDA-inspected poultry processing plant with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Mayor Nick Nelson of Clemmons attended the event, along with many Joyce Farms employees and friends. The expansion adds 10,400 square feet of space to the companys previously 32,350-square-foot facility, located on Kinnamon Road off of 1-40. It includes a new warehouse of dry storage space for labels, packaging, and other materials, and a brand new, state-of-the-art hatchery that will greatly improve the companys capacity to incubate and hatch birds in their Heritage Poultry line. The hatchery will house three types of birds that are a part of the company's heritage line the Poulet RougeTM chicken, which is an authentic Label Rouge chicken, the Pintade Fermiere, which is a French Guinea hen, and the Heritage White Pheasant. Expanding the facility was necessary to accommodate growing demand among chefs for their specialty poultry, beef and game products. Consumer demand for home delivery of these products has also increased since the launch of a new e-commerce website in May, 2016. President and CEO of Joyce Farms, Ron Joyce stated, Over the last three years, we have seen increased demand for our pasture-raised heritage poultry, beef and game products. Were thrilled by the response and look forward to making Joyce Farms available to even more chefs, restaurant goers, and home cooks. With the addition, Joyce Farms will retain the artisanal processes and strict quality control measures for which it is known. Birds will continue to be individually processed by hand from start to finish, allowing for precise inspection. The plant has consistently earned a 100% score in animal welfare by a third party auditing company. The design and construction team for the expansion includes Landmark Builders, West & Stem Architects and Landwehrmann Engineering PLLC. About Joyce Farms: Established in 1962, Joyce Farms is a third-generation, family owned business providing poultry, game and beef of the highest quality and flavor to chefs, butchers and consumers nationwide. Joyce Farms is best known for introducing old-world heritage poultry breeds to the U.S. In addition to their renowned Poulet Rouge Fermier chicken (GAP Step 4), Joyce Farms offers grass-fed Aberdeen Angus beef (GAP Step 4) and a naked line of chicken, duck, and rabbit all produced without the use of hormones, antibiotics, or animal by-products. For more information, visit http://www.joyce-farms.com. The school resource officer program was created as a proactive way for law enforcement and the school community to address a wide variety of issues within our schools. School resource officers are police officers who engage in school-based community-oriented policing that work to keep our schools safe and develop and improve relationships between law enforcement and the school community, while creating positive connections with students in and around our campuses. During the 2015-16 school year, school resource officers responded to 1,603 incidents within the seven schools in the district that required their intervention. These incidents included criminal cases, fighting, bullying and other disruptive behaviors. The officers made 26 arrests during the school year for offenses including weapons possession, drug possession and other violations of the law. However, our role is not to discipline. We are trained to identify children who have problems at school, at home and with interpersonal relationships, and to mentor them. We strive to be positive role models who promote a safe school environment. The most rewarding part of our program is the opportunity to interact with our students. It allows us to break down the misconceptions of police work and provide students with a more positive view of what law enforcement is while providing teachable moments that they can apply to their own lives. When we are not in the halls or cafeteria, or mediating disputes, you will often find us in the classroom. Students are asked to speak freely about questions and concerns regarding our police work. We are often asked, How come you are not like the other police on the streets? We are not different than the other officers. However, we explain that our role as a school resource officer allows us more time to work through issues in a neutral setting without the pressure of answering other calls for service like our patrol officers. Students question our procedures for example, why is there more than one police car at a stop? Why do you always ask to see our hands? Why do we have a greater presence in certain areas? And why do you always go to Dunkin' Donuts? As for Dunkin Donuts the students' favorite question we go for the coffee, just like many others, and not the doughnuts, despite popular belief! We explain what a normal day on the job is like, and students come away with a better understanding that our job is to work with the community and to serve and protect, but that officer safety is paramount. We all want to go home safe. This is a time when we like to keep the conversation going with the students. We ask the questions, How is school going? What do you like to do in your free time? This is our opportunity to build positive relationships with the students by showing our interest in how they are doing in school, and their interests outside of school. The relationships we develop with the students and the opportunity to mentor them is the foundation the program is built upon. We aim to provide teachable moments that support the childs own self-awareness to respond appropriately to a variety of situations. For example, there are times a student may be upset for being asked by a teacher to leave the classroom for disruptive behavior, and often the student refuses. This is when we step in. Not to discipline, but to remind the student to stop and think before responding. We explain the possible consequences and the repercussions of disruptive behavior. What could happen? Suspension, arrest or being handcuffed in front of others are all things we try to avoid. We mediate with the students and encourage them to comply with the request and seek out possible solutions to the ongoing issue. Our role as a school resource officer is more about prevention than it is arrests. Our first priority is the safety and security of the students, but if we are making a lot of arrests then we are not being as effective as we should be. We are also parents and we understand that raising children can be difficult, so we try to incorporate how we deal with our own kids into our daily routine. Our primary goal is to be a resource for the students when confronted with difficult situations. All the time we hear from parents and school officials that a problem was avoided or de-escalated because of the trust that is formed between the officers and the students. Helping students make smart choices that will benefit them in the future is the most valuable part of the SRO program, and is vital to its continued success. The Auburn Police Department's school resource officers are: Sgt. Greg Dann, Officer Paul Martin, Officer Chris Major, Officer Sean DeRosa and Officer Vincent Carnicelli. By Ashish Pandey: The Punjagutta police in Hyderabad on Saturday arrested a constable working with the Anti-Corruption Bureau of Telangana for cheating and extorting Rs 12 lakh from two businessmen. The police also arrested three others and recovered Rs 12 lakh in the newly-introduced 2000 rupee denominations. As per the police, the accused hatched a plan to extort money from J. Mahesh and Venkanna, who run a small business in Suryapet district of Telangana, after they lured the duo saying that they knew some people who had demonetised currency of Rs 500 and 1000 and were ready to exchange it with new currency for a commission of 5 per cent. advertisement Also read | Telangana police arrests 4, including sub-inspector, for looting over Rs 91 lakh in Medak district As per the plan, when Mahesh and Venkanna reached Hyderabad, the accused after collecting the money informed them that the money was seized by the ACB and that the agency was now investigating the case. The accused told the two small-time traders they needed to come to the ACB Headquarters located in Banjarahills for further investigation. BUSINESSMEN FILE COMPLAINT Based on the complaint filed by 2 businessmen, the Punjagutta police arrested the 4 accused including the constable and informed the Income Tax department for investigation. "We caution people to not exchange demonetised currency or new Rs 2000 note for commission and if anybody gets information about the money exchange, they should immediately inform the police or Income Tax department about this", said ACP M. Venkateswarlu. All the accused are booked under Sections 420, 384 RW 120(B) and 34 of the IPC. Further investigation into the case is on. WATCH VIDEO --- ENDS --- iSign International iSign International is proud to announce that Doctor Ziming Zhao has been accepted to become a member of its Advisory Committee. Doctor Ziming Zhao is an assistant research professor in the School of Computing, Informatics, and Decision Systems Engineering, Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering, Arizona State University. His focus is on security and privacy related problems in computer and communications systems. His research includes utilizing hardware primitives to design and implement secure systems for attack mitigations; cybercrime and threat intelligence analysis, e.g., understanding the structure of underground communities and the economy and ecosystem of cybercrime; usable and user-centric security, e.g., finding vulnerabilities in authentication and payment systems; and network and web security, e.g., designing novel firewall and intrusion response systems for the emerging software-defined network. Zhao is the author of more than 30 papers in refereed conferences and journals. He has received two best paper awards from computer security conferences and two US patents. He is a member of IEEE and ACM. Commenting on the news, Gerard E. Munera , the Chairman of iSign, said, We are delighted that Dr Zhao has been kind enough to accept our offer to join the company Advisory Committee, which already includes Doctor Gail-Joon Ahn, an outstanding leader in cyberspace security and Doctor Keith Fuller, a renowned Canadian expert in computer sciences. Dr Zhao's background, experience and intellectual capacities represent, without any doubt, a huge asset for our company." Doctor Zhao commented, The invitation to join iSign's Advisory Board is an honor and tremendously exciting. The Company is a security technology innovative leader, having put many novel and exciting security solutions into practice, including biometric signature recognition, and their electronic document management services brings a real benefit to corporations by securely managing their daily operations. I also feel well-aligned with iSign leaderships ambitious cybersecurity vision and mission, among which securing mobile apps, systems, and transactions are in urgent need worldwide. iSign International Inc. is a private Texas corporation which has developed an original cyber security technology combining biometric signature recognition and projection, innovative devices pairing, PKI encryption, GPS localization and univocal computer generated transactional password. ISign believes that its technology, which is covered by several patent pending claims, constitutes a game changing approach as it renders hacking practically impossible. "We have great employees that make all of this possible, our culture is built on the foundation of community service and helping others" said Ladner, Ron Ladner, founder and Rimmer Covington, co-owners of Shaggys Restaurants, have a special Christmas gift for the officers of the Pass Christian Police Department this year. They are gifting each of the 20 officers in the department with a $1,000 in Shaggys gift cards. "We have great employees that make all of this possible, our culture is built on the foundation of community service and helping others," said Ladner, "This is one of many Shaggy's efforts to connect with and support our community...this is really important to us." When the department called soliciting a single gift card donation in hopes of collecting enough gift cards for all of the officers to receive one from different businesses in Pass Christian, Ladner and Covington decided they could do more for the department. Community service is a big part of the Shaggys culture not only Pass Christian but at all of our locations across the coast and Pensacola. The men and women of the police department work so hard every day to make sure we are safe, and now more than ever we need to get behind them to show our support. said Covington. This is not the first time this year Shaggys has shown support for police officers. In July, Shaggys offered a free meal to officers in uniform in connection with the Wear Blue campaign to show solidarity and support across the country for police following the attack on the officers in Dallas, Texas. Shaggys served over a hundred meals across its four locations to local law enforcement. In addition to the gift cards, Shaggys is showing support to its community this year with a stuffed animal drive. Each of the four locations is collecting new stuffed animals that will be donated to the local police departments. The animals will be given to children in a time of crisis. The need for stuffed animals is one that is year-round. If you do not have the time to run out and get a stuffed animal, Shaggys is also accepting monetary donations and will do the shopping for you. With donations of $5 or more, guests will receive 10% off of their food purchase. Shaggys will be accepting donations through December 22 at Shaggys Pass Harbor, Shaggys Biloxi Beach, Shaggys Gulfport Beach, and Shaggys Pensacola Beach. About Shaggys Restaurants Shaggys concept is open-air, family-friendly, waterfront restaurants, serving fresh gulf seafood dishes, burgers, sandwiches, cocktails, cold beer, wine and lots of fun since 2007. With over 300 employees, Shaggys has four locations: Shaggys Pass Harbor, Shaggys Biloxi Beach, Shaggys Pensacola Beach, and Shaggys Gulfport Beach. Shaggys also strives to make a positive impact in the community. The Shaggys Kids Foundation focuses on introducing children to fishing and marine life. Shaggy's was awarded the Governors Cup for Community Service and Leadership; was recognized as the Top Company Giver by Beach Boulevard magazine; and most recently won the GIVE award for the top company in Mississippi displaying community excellence and volunteer work. Shaggys has partnered with University of Southern Mississippi to sponsor Shaggys Angler camp where kids spend a week with marine educators and learned about fishing techniques, fish behavior and how weather, wind, moon and tides affect fishing. In addition to the sponsorship, Ron Ladner and Rimmer Covington, Shaggys Co-owners, made it possible to take the kids deep sea fishing in a component that was not previously part of the camp. Demonetisation has affected almost every field in some way or the other, however, IIT-Kharagpur has managed to set a record by placing 1043 students in just over two weeks in the first phase of placement. By Manogya Loiwal : Demonetisation has affected almost every field in some way or the other, however, IIT-Kharagpur has managed to set a record by placing 1043 students in just over two weeks. This was just in the first phase of placement. While half a dozen Public Sector Undertakings (PSU) were supposed to hold interviews in November, the hiring process is still pending. However, IIT-Kharagpur has already given away offer letters to 1000 students. There are around 2500 students who will be wearing the feather of being an IIT Kharagpur pass out this academic session. advertisement Interestingly, 16 per cent of the total students are girls. This year, the process of placement was confirmed by October and the interviews began in November, just around the demonetisation move of the Central Government. Of the 15 Public Sector Undertakings which had committed for the campus placement, only 7 turned up. The remaining postponed the process for next year. This is an achievement since there was a decline in hiring by Public Sector Undertakings in the last two years. There has been a rise in the number of Public Sector Undertakings visiting the campus this year. ALSO READ: More jobs for students MoU between LinkedIn and HRD inked Around seven Public Sector Undertakings have recruited 44 students during the placement process with Coal India hiring the highest number of students. International placements however have been better than those in the country with Microsoft being the front runner as one of the highest and best paymasters. Mechanical and Civil engineering continues to be the USP of IIT-Kharagpur with around 175 companies visiting the campus to pick the best. It is a testament to the fact that IIT-Kharagpur students are currently regarded as the most employable across the country as per the recently released QS Graduate employability Ranking. Till date, IIT-Kharagpur has received 24 international offers from companies including Microsoft, Oracle, Sprinklr and Delta Electronics. "Core engineering sector has seen an increase in the number of offers this year," chairman of Career Development Centre, Professor Debasis Deb said.IITs including IIT Kharagpur have seen massive student protest for fee hike from time to time in past few years, perhaps here is a reason for the students to laugh their way to the banks. ALSO READ: Placements at top engineering colleges pick up steam Appearing for campus placement? 7 things one should focus on --- ENDS --- By PTI: vendetta Chandigarh/Shimla, Dec 17 (PTI) In a setback to Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) has dismissed the appeal filed by him against the order of the Income Tax department, which had sought fresh assessment of his tax returns related to the financial year of 2009-10 to 2011-12. The veteran Congress leader termed the development as "politically motivated" and said that he would contest the orders and file an appeal in the High Court or in the Supreme court, if the need arose. advertisement "The Income tax Tribunal had been set up by Union Finance minister Arun Jaitley and in spite of four judges in the tribunal, two special judges were sent from Delhi to hear my case, thus the matter is politically motivated," Singh alleged. The order was passed by the Chandigarh bench of ITAT chaired by Judicial Member I C Sudhir and Accountant Member R S Syal on December 8. "We fail to comprehend as to how the assessment order accepting the genuineness of carrying out the agricultural operations and earning a huge income in such circumstances can be considered as an order made after proper inquiry, as has been canvassed by the assessee. "It is a case of a patent non-application of mind by the assessing officer (AO) to the facts, which were loudly calling for in-depth investigation. In our considered opinion, the Commissioner of Income Tax (CIT) was fully justified in setting aside the assessment order and directing the AO to frame a fresh assessment," said the order. "We have elaborately dealt with such issues in our order of Virbhadra Singh (HUF), which mutatis mutandis apply to the assessee also. In the result, all the appeals are dismissed," it said. The Himachal Chief Minister and his LIC agent Anand Chauhan had filed appeal against the order of the Income Tax department for reopening his tax returns. As per the brief facts of the case, the assessee had filed original return of income on July 29, 2010 declaring total income of Rs 44,67,584 plus agricultural income of Rs 15 lakhs. The assessee filed revised return on March 2, 2012 declaring total income of Rs 44,67,584 plus agricultural income of Rs 2,80,92,500. Assessment in this case was completed on March 28, 2013. The CIT, on perusal of records, observed that the assessment was completed in a routine and casual manner without making any effective inquiry. After entertaining objections and replies from the assessee, the CIT came to hold that the assessing officer passed an erroneous order prejudicial to the interests of the revenue, inter alia, on the ground that the revision of return was wrongly accepted, accounting principles were wrongly considered and accepted in as much as the agricultural income was not declared on the basis of mercantile system of accounting. advertisement The income tax department had contended that assessee had invested Rs 3,84,92,500 in LIC policies, whereas additional income declared in the revised return was only Rs 2,65,92,500. So, AO had further failed to enquire from the assessee about the source of Rs 1.19 crores invested in LIC policies over and above the additional income declared in the revised return, the department had said. The CIT had then directed the assessing officer to frame a fresh assessment in accordance with the law and after making due inquiries. PTI PCL CHS AKA SRY --- ENDS --- Michael Brown. Eric Garner. Freddie Gray. Sandra Bland. The list goes on. Why are so many African-Americans dying at the hands of law enforcement? And why are so few cases ever made against the officers responsible? In A Colony in a Nation, due out from Norton in March of next year, Chris Hayes argues that our country has fractured in two: the nation, where the rule of law is venerated; and the colony, largely communities of color, where aggressive police tactics resemble those of an occupying power and where minor infractions too often end in tragedy. Drawing on his work as an anchor at MSNBC, where he has reported from places of unrest, including Ferguson, Mo., and Baltimore, Md., as well as on his own experiences growing up in New York City during the crack years, Hayes offers a framework for understanding how a potent mix of racial oppression and white fear has created a powder keg in Americaconditions that actually mirror those that sparked the American Revolutionwhere the law is a tool of control for those in the colony, Hayes writes, rather than a foundation for prosperity. Ahead of the 2017 American Library Association Midwinter Meeting, PW caught up with Hayes to talk about his new book, and to get a few of his thoughts on the incoming administration. One of the key observations you make in the book is that the American criminal justice system is not one system beset with massive racial disparity, but actually two distinct systems. Explain the significance of that? Yeah, so, if you live in the nation, your interactions with police are pretty spare, and theyre generally affable and positive. The police are people that you generally feel trusting toward, the people you call in a pinch. I say in the book that the criminal justice system in the nation functions like the operating system on your laptopits the thing that enables you to do what you can do, with the idea that you dont want to be noticing your operating system all the time. But in the colony, the criminal justice system functions like a computer virus. Its this constant intrusion, an invasion into your life. And I just think that theres such a distance between the experiences of those in the nation and those in the colony, that it makes a national conversation about our justice system difficult. Recent headlines seem to validate your point: in South Carolina, a lone white juror refused to convict police officer Michael Slager, despite video showing that Slager shot an African-American man in the back as the man fled. And in Louisiana, a white man, Ronald Gasser, was not held in custody after he gunned down Joe McKnight, an unarmed African-American man, in a road rage case. Gasser was eventually charged, but only after the police undertook an extensive investigation to first determine if the shooting might be justified. Yeah, I think those are pretty good illustrations. The Slager case, which I covered, was striking to me, because there werent a lot of protests or unrest. And thats because prosecutors moved very quickly to indict himthe video evidence clearly showed that he shot someone who was running away. Thats criminal murder. But the idea that you cant get that [verdict] from a jury is a pretty profound statement. In the book, I use the case of Cleveland police officer Timothy Loehmann, who pulled up on Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old African-American boy, shooting and killing him in two secondsand Loehmann isnt even prosecuted. And the reason hes not prosecuted is because the prosecutor concluded that Loehmann feared for his life. Whats striking about that is the transcendent ability of fear to exculpate. Sure, I bet you Loehmann probably was scared, as probably was Michael Slager. But that fear is structured by a broader phenomenon of white fear and racialized oppression. And we cant just say that the presence of fear means anything a cop does is okay. Thats crazy. With the election of Barack Obama, arent we supposed to be living in a postracial America? At least, some argue thatmost notably, some on the Supreme Court. Yet as you observe in the book, being black in America is as dangerous as ever, especially when it comes to dealing with the police. How do you explain those two divergent views? "We cant just say that the presence of fear means anything a cop does is okay. Thats crazy." Well, I was never one who believed that Obama ushered in a postracial America, and I think it has been demonstrably shown that thats not the world we live in. We still have intense racial inequality, racial oppression, and structural racism in America. And we also have racialized fearparticularly white fear. If there is a through line from the Obama era to what happened in the 2016 election, its the powerful force of white fear. In the book I call it the political equivalent of enriched uranium. Its the most explosive force in American politics. Speaking of the election, in some ways Donald Trumps campaign seemed fueled by white fear. But now that hes president-elect, his approval rating is climbing and has hit 50% for the first time. Is there a kind of normalization happening there, and, if so, what do you think that means in terms of racial inequity in America? Obviously theres a lot of anxiety over racial justice in this country. And I think this is a very scary moment in American history and a very tenuous one. But in terms of Trump and the normalization of white fearlook, people use the word normalization, and I understand the point. But hes going to be the president of the United States. On a certain level, normalization happened when he won the nomination and when he won the election. Those things make him, quote, normalhes going to be the head of the state. And the fact of the matter is that white fear has been normalized in this country from the moment the first ship landed at Jamestown. I wanted to ask you about a few other things that are weighing on librarians minds as they contemplate a Trump future, one of which is the rise of fake news and its effect on our politics. Can you talk a little about how you see that problem and how we might combat it? In terms of how social media networks function, I think there are algorithmic things we can do, particularly on Facebook, to reduce the virality of these fake news stories, things that dont clash with the First Amendment. But theres a deeper issue at work here too, which is the degree to which we all have confirmation bias. Before the era of social media, an outlet like the New York Times had incentives, financial and reputational, not to print completely made-up stuff. And Im not talking about getting a story wrong. Im talking about intentionally fabricated stuff, like Denzel Washington endorsing Donald Trump. The people who created that story knew that it was not true and also knew that it would get a lot of clicks. And stories like that are designed to ape the formal attributes of real news in such a way that if it catches your eye in your news feed, youre like, oh, look at that. Why would you think its wrong? So the fundamental problem is that Facebook has disintermediated that market relationship, right? Such that the consumer of information today often no longer has any real idea of the sourceall they know is that its on Facebook. The incentive for the Times not to do made-up stuff is that people will stop buying it if they think they cant trust it. But Facebook has not felt the same reputational push to validate, at least not yet. This is also a pretty key moment in the history of the Internet. And so far, it looks like Trump wants to gut the FCC and roll back Net neutrality. Hes talked about closing up the Internet to fight terror and he savages the mainstream press. How should we see thisas bluster, or should we take Trump at his word? I think you should take him at his word. This has been one of the conundrums throughout his campaign: when to take Trump at his word. And yes, weve seen a demonstrated obsession with and hostility toward the press. But yes, I think we should take it all seriously, and we should take him at his word. As a profession, librarians are committed to immigrant communities, equality, and issues of social justice, and many librarians have been pretty outspoken about their fears of a Trump presidency. At the same time, they rely on the government for funding. Should librarians be careful, or worried about their institutions being attacked in a 3 a.m. Trump Twitter rant? I think you have to do your job, without fear or favor. If he wants to come after you, then he comes after you. But you do your job. Booksellers, publishers, librarians, and agents are encouraged to look at the 74 self-published titles below, with descriptions provided by their authors. Some of these writers are waiting to be discovered; others have a track record and a following and are doing it on their own. If you are a self-published author interested in listing titles in this section, please visit publishersweekly.com/pw-select for more information. Fiction Darker the Night Lisa London. Deep River Press. $16.95 paper (280p), ISBN 978-0-9911635-5-7 Amazon, Ingram A German woman dodges bombs and battles hunger. Her father reminds her, The darker the night, the brighter the stars. Is her star a charming American? Inspired by actual experiences. Faraway Green Jack Young. Lulu. $11.95 paper (220p), ISBN 978-1-312-78030-9; $3.03 e-book, ISBN 978-1-312-78687-5 Amazon, BN.com, Lulu Youngs comic debut novel follows the inauspicious Slim the Grassman as he signs on with a wealthy eccentric in an improbable attempt to develop instant putting greens. The Kurdish Bike Alesa Lightbourne. Alesa Lightbourne. $11.95 paper (324p), ISBN 978-0-692-75810-6; $9.95 e-book, ASIN B01IOPBT3Y Amazon When an American goes to teach in Kurdish Iraq in 2010, she is engulfed in the passions, brutality, and social dilemmas experienced by village women in this semiautobiography. The Moons of Mars: Short Stories of Adventure & Romance Charles E. Jones. Outskirts Press. $26.95 hardcover (394p), ISBN 978-1-4787-8042-7 Outskirtspress.com, Amazon, BN.com These stories range from military adventures to everyday life. Characters endeavor to excel and succeed with inviting romance and action backgrounds. Out of Time Patrick Miskella. BookFuel. $18.99 paper (491p), ISBN 978-1-5356-0236-5 Amazon, BN.com Sean McGowen searches for the father he has never met. Several powerful, life-altering events induce him to reconsider his perceptions of free will, love, time, and self. Poplar Place Ellen Butler. Power to the Pen. $3.89 e-book, ASIN B01ATQJZRI Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com A Pittsburgh lawyer moves to a small town to escape her past. But calls from the FBI threaten her newfound serenity. Will she ever find the peace and happiness she craves? Postmodern Deconstruction Madhouse Peter Quinones. iUniverse. $13.99 paper (136p), ISBN 978-1-4917-9183-7 Amazon Among other stories, the title work contains 98 examples of the one-sentence short story. Unexplored Lives: A Collection of Short Stories John K. Briscoe. Outskirts Press. $17.95 paper (264p), ISBN 978-1-4787-7740-3 Outskirtspress.com, Amazon, BN.com Life can be complicated. Readers should be prepared to cringe, smile, and frown as a world of individuals whose uncommon experiences are uncovered. Valedictorian: A Story of the Hidden Glory of a Troubled Life Constance W. Hall. AuthorHouse. $16.95 paper (192p), ISBN 978-1-5049-7851-4; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-5049-7850-7 Amazon In this final salute to the life and legacy of an unbreakable Marine, Constance Hall writes a poignant tale of courage and determination in the midst of lifes vicissitudes. The Velvet Thorn Olivia Villa-Real. iUniverse. $18.95 paper (300p), ISBN 978-1-4502-6798-4; $9.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4502-6799-1 Amazon This novel uncovers the subtle shades of emotion that forge their way to escape and express themselves in the most wonderful prism of colors that only love can see and understand. Poetry What the River Knows: Conversations with the Natural World Andrea Freeman. Halcyon Wind Press. $14.95 paper (110p), ISBN 978-0-9890897-1-5 Amazon, BN.com, Ingram A book of poetic reflections that honors the beauty and wisdom of nature, and invites the reader to open into wonder and gratitude as a way to help heal the Earth and ourselves. Mystery/Thriller The Actor? A Thriller and Love Story at the Height of the Cold War Lee Welling. Bookstand Publishing. $24.95 hardcover (269p), ISBN 978-1-63498-364-8 Amazon In the 1950s Cold War, the biggest star on Broadway is recruited by the CIA to lead a cultural tour to Russia. But behind the Iron Curtain, the job gets more complicated, and lives, secrets, and countries are put on the line. Anamnesis: Ages of Claya, Book 1 Whitney H. Murphy. CreateSpace. $9.99 paper (239p), ISBN 978-0-9976951-1-3; $2.99 e-book, ASIN B01GGNIKJC Amazon Survivors in a ruined city fight to recall their own namesand the name of their city, their land, and their people. The answers lie buried in the ruins that crumble all around them. Becoming The Wolf: A White Wolf Justice Thriller R.H. Neil. LEO-Trainer. $14.95 paper (386p), ISBN 978-0-9979529-0-2; $2.99 e-book, ASIN B01LYOA1BD Amazon Who is J.D. Ward? Rookie city cop. Former Army combat tracker. And the reluctant vigilante known as the White Wolf. Now whos the prey? A Conundrum Pamela Peacock. Xlibris. $36 hardcover (254p), ISBN 978-1-5245-1754-0; $24.19 paper (254p), ISBN 978-1-5245-1753-3 Pjpeacock.com, Amazon, Bookdepository.com, Booktopia.com An unsanctioned murder in Australia has caused chaos in the Family. A vicious, unprincipled family dating from the 17th century, they have homogenized their holdings. It cannot be allowed. The Election of 2028: Murder Most Foul in the Race for the White House David Stout. David Stout. $2.99 e-book, ASIN B01LWNUWT4 Amazon, BN.com One presidential candidate is ahead in the popular vote. But some members of the Electoral College are dying in freak accidents. Is there a plot to steal the White House? In the Midst of Death...: A Post-Revolutionary War Mystery Bev Kaufman. Xlibris. $23.99 paper (692p), ISBN 978-1-5144-5332-2; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-5144-5331-5 Amazon Set during the summer of 1787, Kaufmans fictional story frequently dives back into the past, where we learn of the old sins that led to the events now taking place. Legal Thriller: Carlos the Ant (Michael Gresham Series, Book 4) John Ellsworth. John Ellsworth. $3.99 e-book, ASIN B01LQOXY4W Amazon Carlos the Ant is a bank robber. His case is defended by Michael Gresham. Its going to be the meanest case of Michaels career. The Root Cellar C.A. Thomas. Rosedog Books. $14 paper (152p), ISBN 978-1-4809-7246-9 RoseDogBookstore.com After a brutal attack, Candace discovers no one will act against her rich, white assailant. Alone, she realizes there is no justice. There is only revenge. Sabrina/Sabine: Time Out of Place Samantha Wood Wright. iUniverse. $13.99 paper (216p), ISBN 978-1-4917-9690-0; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4917-9700-6 Amazon Sabrina has a dream about a strange house to which fate leads her years later. Sabrina/Sabine reveals a haunting journey as she unravels the story behind her new house and its century-old mystery. A Touch of Homicide Peter S. Fischer. CreateSpace. $12.95 paper (266p), ISBN 978-1-5233-5072-8 Amazon Book 12 in the Hollywood Murder Mysteries series, by the creator of Murder, She Wrote. SF/Fantasy/Horror Beyond Every Mirror Christine Church. Grey Horse Press. $12.99 paper (370p), ISBN 978-0-692-78270-5; $2.99 e-book, ASIN B01MG56AW1 Christinechurch.net, Amazon Dragged into a world of dreams and nightmares, his sacrifice means the difference between life and death for the woman he loves. The Carnival Keepers Amber Gulley. World Castle Publishing. $3.99 e-book, ASIN B01KSLQ55Y Amazon, Indigo, Kobo, Smashwords The carnival is in town for the All Hallows Eve celebrations, and the London fog has plans of its own. Dark Horizon, Book 1: Horizons Genesis Eric J. Kumik. iUniverse. $20.95 paper (216p), ISBN 978-1-4917-9960-4; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4917-9961-1 Amazon When a team of scientists goes missing after finding a mysterious ancient relic on an uncharted planet, a reckless and unpredictable military team is called in to find answers. Jai S.A. Stitz. Archway Publishing. $24.99 paper (400p), ISBN 978-1-4808-3258-9; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4808-3260-2 Amazon In this paranormal action-adventure novel, a young woman with special abilities becomes embroiled in a battle of good versus evil as she attempts to rescue a world in desperate need of salvation. Welcome to the ApocalypsePandora D.L. Richardson. CreateSpace. $4.99 e-book, ASIN B01N01QFTQ Amazon, BN.com, Smashwords When players get trapped in a virtual game of apocalypse, the fight for survival becomes real, but what they do to survive may haunt them forever. The Wolf of Dorian Gray: A Werewolf Spawned by the Evil of Man Brian S. Ference. Brian S. Ference. $9.99 paper (214p), ISBN 978-0-9983252-0-0; $2.99 e-book, ISBN 978-0-9983252-1-7 Thewolfofdoriangray.com, Amazon, BN.com In 19th century England, Dorian Gray experiences love and harrowing escapes from the werewolf spawned by the evil of man. Romance/Erotica Dear Heart: The Courting Letters Judith Pinkerton Josephson, illus. by Kirsten Elise Josephson. eFrog Press. $11.99 paper (258p), ISBN 978-0-9967199-3-3; $4.99 e-book, ISBN 978-0-9967199-7-1 Amazon, BN.com, Ingram Lisa finds a box of love letters penned by writers separated by an ocean. Distance also conspires against Lisa in her own romance. This is a tale of two love stories a century apart. The Titty Dancer, Her Bitch DJ, and Their Love of 80s Madonna Mike James. MJ Publishing. $9.99 paper (92p), ISBN 978-1-365-30158-2 Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com, Lulu.com A Houston man becomes a deejay at a strip club, where he falls head over stilettos for a Madonna-loving stripper named Karma. Nonfiction America Abandoned: The Secret Velvet Coup That Cost Us Our Democracy Jill Cody. Writing Endeavors Press. $17.95 paper (266p), ISBN 978-0-9977962-0-9 Amazon The American people have been abandoned. Corporations and the rich have withdrawn their support from We, the People in spite of their duty, allegiance, or responsibility to America. Ancient Map for Modern Birth: Preparation, Passage, and Personal Growth During Your Childbearing Year Pam England with Virginia Bobro. Seven Gates Media. $28 e-book, ISBN 978-0-9981202-0-1 Seven Gates Media, Amazon England presents research, stories, and questions to prepare the savvy health consumer and awaken the Birth Warrior. Ancient Wisdoms: Exploring the Mysteries and Connections Gayle Redfern. AuthorHouse. $17.50 paper (250p), ISBN 978-1-4490-5760-2; $9.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4520-1663-4 AuthorHouse, Amazon Ponder the mysterious link of Africa, Mesoamerica, and Europe. Hear the recent messages from the Elders of Kogi, Hopi, and Maya nations. Basic Counseling Techniques: A Beginning Therapists Toolkit (Third Edition) Wayne Perry. AuthorHouse. $18.99 paper (362p), ISBN 978-1-4343-5524-9; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4634-6431-8 Amazon Geared for counselors and therapists early in their careers, this book provides practical suggestions for setting up the therapy room, conducting interviews, and more. Break Ground Without Breaking Up: 7 Keys to Securing a Strong Relationship While Building or Remodeling Your Home Sandy Berendes and Laura Longville. Mill City Press. $14.99 paper (210p), ISBN 978-1-63413-104-9 Amazon This book was written by a seasoned interior designer and a couples therapist. Chicago Is Not Broke. Funding the City We Deserve Edited by Tom Tresser. The CivicLab. $12 paper (95p), ISBN 978-1-365-10977-5 Wearenotbroke.org Local civic experts lay out progressive, sustainable sources of major revenues for Chicago. Death by Rental Car: How the Houck Case Changed the Law Ben Kelley. Vox Justitia Books. $18 paper (312p), ISBN 978-0-692-55913-0 Amazon The anatomy of a six-year court battle against giant corporate defendants for causing the fiery deaths of two sisters in a defective rental car. Foreword by Ralph Nader. Dowsing and Ley Lines: How to Create Ley Lines Gerald Chatfield. AuthorHouse. $56.45 paper (228p), ISBN 978-1-5246-3164-2; $4.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-5246-3165-9 Amazon This book contains information on dowsing for beginners and advanced alike. It also explains how to find and follow more than 500 ley marks across the south of the British Isles. Female Erasure: What You Need to Know About Gender Politics War on Women, the Female Sex and Human Rights Ruth Barrett. Tidal Time Publishing. $24.99 paper (624p), ISBN 978-0-9971467-0-7 Amazon This anthology exposes the current trend of gender identity politics as a continuation of female erasure and silencing. In the Belly of the Dragon: An Account of Working as a Foreign Expert Inside a State Enterprise of the Peoples Republic of China John-James Farquharson. Xlibris. $23.28 paper (184p), ISBN 978-1-5144-6477-9; $4.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-5144-6476-2 Amazon Farquharson delves into a state-owned enterprise powering the economy of the Peoples Republic of China, letting readers discover what happens inside and how these companies function. Inspirational Explosion from Deep Within: Gods Annointed Touch Leroy Hubbert. Xlibris. $19.99 paper (184p), ISBN 978-1-4990-4910-7; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4990-4908-4 Amazon This book shows readers that inspiration comes within oneself and that inside there is a plan ready to be executed that would bring one peace in the midst of troubled storms. Learning to Fish in the Twenty-First Century: Navigating the Career Waters to Find and Land a Choice Position Donna Chlopak. iUniverse. $13.95 paper (132p), ISBN 978-1-4917-9443-2; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4917-9444-9 Amazon Landing that desired job, building a career, and creating a personal brand are becoming more complicated in todays global marketplace. Chlopak provides the necessary tools, strategies, and steps to succeed. Leslies Party Diaries: Secrets and Recipes for Entertaining with Style Leslie Byars Register. Leslie Byars Register. $39 hardcover (290p), ISBN 978-0-692-76937-9 Lesliespartydiaries.com, Amazon Register reveals her secrets from over 30 years of foolproof entertaining, 85 of her most-loved recipes, and over 30 inventive party ideas for all ages. Making Your Memories with Rock & Roll and Doo-Wop J.C. De Ladurantey. iUniverse. $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4917-8401-3 Amazon This book features stories of the solo artists, duos, and groups whose music filled the airwaves in the 1950s and early 1960s. A Manual on Exposure in Photography: Reflex and Compact Camera Ceriel van Arneman. AuthorHouse. $32 paper (113p), ISBN 978-1-4634-0934-0 Amazon Prolific photographer van Arneman explains his craft in a fun, practical, and rewarding way. This book is for anyone who wants to get the most out their camera. N of 1: One Mans Harvard-Documented Remission of Incurable Cancer Using Only Natural Methods Glenn Sabin, with Dawn Lemanne. Fon Press. $26.99 hardcover (214p), ISBN 978-0-9975482-2-8; $16.99 paper (214p), ISBN 978-0-9975482-0-4 Glennsabin.com, Amazon, BN.com, Ingram, Twenty-five years ago, my doctors had no cure for my cancer. So I went on a quest to find my own treatment. This is my story. No More Magic Wands: Transformative Cybersecurity Change for Everyone George Finney. CreateSpace. $8.99 paper (130p), ISBN 978-1-5355-3892-3; $2.99 e-book, ASIN B01L4CIMHK Amazon Security is everyones job, so everyone needs to understand how a business needs to protect itself. You cant use magic to fix a data breach. Note to Self: A Seven-Step Path to Gratitude and Growth Laurie Buchanan. She Writes Press. $16.95 paper (270p), ISBN 978-1-63152-113-3 Amazon Baggage: we all carry it with us through life. This book is designed to help you offload emotional baggage and discover a lighter, joy-filled you. Not Off the Hook at 491: When Unforgiveness Feels as Natural as Breathing Lora Renee Hubbard. Xlibris. $19.99 paper, ISBN 978-1-5245-1269-9; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-5245-1268-2 Amazon Experience the twists and turns of this emotionally charged story, where deep-rooted bitterness and unforgiveness fester behind the curtain of this affluent New York family. An Ordinary Tragedy: A Memoir of Crimes and Shattered Lives Lori Hart Beninger. OnTrack Publishing. $9.99 paper (196p), ISBN 978-0-9856897-6-6 Amazon, BN.com, Indiebound The story of the authors quest to unlock the mystery of her brothers life of escalating crime and depravity, exploring the dynamics of her perfect family and the secrets they kept. Residential Solar Energy: Your Guide to Whether Solar Will Save You Money Vince Hough. Sunshine Book Publishers. $4.95 e-book, ISBN 978-1-5395-3670-3 Amazon, BN.com This guide on how you should go solar will give you the confidence to make the most informed decision about when to go solar with your home. The Success Process Handbook: A Thinking Persons Guide to Interpersonal Relationships Tony Fielek. Xlibris. $12.99 paper (54p), ISBN 978-1-4931-2551-7; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4931-2553-1 Amazon Fielek teaches readers how they can influence the key people who are highly important to their success. Suddenly Alone: A Practical Guide to Prepare Yourself and Your Loved Ones for When You Are Suddenly Alone Ken and Donna Wright. AuthorHouse. $16.95 paper (140p), ISBN 978-1-5246-0533-9; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-5246-0532-2 Amazon This book presents valuable information and templates to be completed by you to get your finances, estate planning, health care directives, household procedures, and personal affairs in order before death. The Three-Decker Francis Archdeacon. Francis Archdeacon. $9.99 e-book, ASIN B01MAZDQAS Amazon The memoir of an Irish-Catholic striver growing up under the spell of Kennedys Camelot. It contains depictions of his battle against polio and of Boston in the sixties. The Tragedy of Moses Elliott Kanbar. Elbar Associates. $12 paper (117p), ISBN 978-1-5394-4168-7 Amazon This book (mostly in verse) examines the questions that have perplexed biblical scholars for generations about Moses, the only human permitted to know God face-to-face. The Ultimate Retirement and Estate Plan for Your Million-Dollar IRA James Lange. Retire Secure Press. $12.95 paper (88p), ISBN 978-0-9903588-4-8 Jameslange.com, Amazon, BN.com Lange details strategies that help individuals grow their IRAs and retirement plans and massively reduce their tax burdens. Vagabonding with Kids: Australia A.K. Turner. Brown Books Publishing Group. $16.95 paper (224p), ISBN 978-1-61254-919-4 Amazon, BN.com In the sequel to Vagabonding with Kids, the nomadic family of four continues their journey with a two-month trip down under. Will My Beagle Go with Me in the Rapture? Hope of Heaven for Dog Lovers and Their Pets Don Diehl. iUniverse. $12.95 paper (116p), ISBN 978-1-4917-9094-6; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4917-9093-9 Amazon Diehl presents the case for an ongoing human-animal relationship beyond this life and looks at real-life issues from the viewpoint of a dog with humanlike perception. Childrens/YA Buzzy and the Little Critters: A Curious Tale of a Cicada Invasion Kenton R. Hill. Luminare Press. $10.95 paper (39p), ISBN 978-1-944733-10-0 Amazon, BN.com A grandpa (an entomologist) helps a boy and a girl satisfy their curiosity about their own nature and the nature of the amazing cicada bugs. Cat Facts: Things That Cats Like Ali FitzGerald. Alexandra FitzGerald. $10.99 paper (30p), ISBN 978-1-5397-3183-2 Amazon Love and friendship conquer all trumpery in this story about embracing differences, playing with others, and cats. The Elephants of Art: An Educational Art Story Jo OMara. Archway Publishing. $19.95 hardcover (42p), ISBN 978-1-4808-2835-3; $14.95 paper (42p), ISBN 978-1-4808-2834-6 Amazon, BN.com When his art teacher encourages him to get to know the elements of art, a confused mouse searches for elephants instead. A new series that introduces art basics to kids. Elsewhere/Where Else: Turnabout, Vol. 1 Russ Wood. Russ Wood Media. $14.95 paper (242p), ISBN 978-0-9971992-0-8 Amazon During an interstellar voyage, Joshua discovers a genocidal plot and must find a way to survive alone. Marai visits a lost tribe and must discover how to use her spiritual powers. Emma Has a Dilemma! Dana Wall and Amber Wall, illus. by Phillip Orozco. AuthorHouse. $14.95 paper (26p), ISBN 978-1-5246-4621-9 Amazon Emma has a dilemma: she gets an F on her Easy Grammar test about nouns and pronouns. Wizard Jake appears and will help. A genius in grammar, he teaches Emma the ins and outs. Finding Moana: Book One James Halemanu, illus. by Ana Frederick. Blue Coral Press. $4.99 e-book, ASIN B01M74B476 Amazon On a haunted island, 13-year-old Moana fights the cannibals who hunt him and the sinister power growing within him. I Love Me and the Skin Im In Jessica N. Crutcher. Outskirts Press. $8.95 paper (25p), ISBN 978-1-4787-7060-2 Follow Jessica on her journey to understanding what it means to love yourself despite how others may view you. My Pet Shop Kathleen Long Bostrom, illus. by Christopher R. Bostrom. CreateSpace. $9.99 paper (24p), ISBN 978-1-4782-4755-5 Amazon, BN.com When a little girl goes to the pet shop to buy her first pet, her imagination runs wild. A pig that paints? What other pets will she have? Our Dog Girl Pamela Battle, illus. by Gil Balbuena Jr. Xlibris. $21.99 paper (26p), ISBN 978-1-5144-5678-1; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-5144-5677-4 Amazon In this whimsical story, Battle shares a tale based on her family pet. Journey with Our Dog Girl as she goes on the adventure of a lifetime. Pablos Pelican Vincent Marotta, illus. by Aronna. Trafford Publishing. $12.68 paper (12p), ISBN 978-1-4907-3189-6 Trafford.com A Hispanic boy must support his family while his father is away. Helped by a friendly pelican, he can overcome any obstacle. Pauli: The Musical Pumpkin Pamela O. Guidry. AuthorHouse. $21.99 paper (50p), ISBN 978-1-4969-6535-6; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-4969-6536-3 Amazon This is a story about familial relationships that empowers individualism and exalts the value of interdependence and togetherness in a family. Piper G. Gene Black. CreateSpace. $18.99 paper (308p), ISBN 978-1-5302-3253-6; $14.95 e-book, ISBN 978-0-692-77549-3 Amazon In the storybook village of Thymes, ca. 1712, orphan siblings grow up in the wild and battle a witch turned pirate who hatches a scheme where there can be no more stories. Prince Pounce-a-Lot Fay Lorraine Sueltz. AuthorHouse. $20.99 paper (50p), ISBN 978-1-5049-5549-2; $3.99 e-book, ISBN 978-1-5049-5857-8 Amazon Prince, a loving but selfish puppy, writes about his true-life adventures as he grows into a gorgeous standard poodle. He discovers teamwork, and his occasional leadership makes everyone happy. Shine Your Light: Book Three, Paige Maddison Series Lee Bice-Matheson and J.R. Matheson, illus. by Nancy Batra and Cindy Slipacoff. FriesenPress. $15.49 paper (201p), ISBN 978-1-4602-9996-8 FriesenPress, Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com Paige fights for good versus evil with powerful upperworld allies and friends. She faces the biggest threat to humankind, Beelzebub. Will Paige prevail? Snowman Paul at the Winter Olympics Yossi Lapid, illus. by Joanna Pasek. Yosef Lapid. $9.99 paper (46p), ISBN 978-0-9973899-2-0; $2.99 e-book, ASIN B01M0OA880 Amazon Snowman Paul dreams of becoming a winter Olympics champion. But is he competing fairly? Or is he perhaps enjoying some unfair advantage? If so, what should his friend Dan do about it? Starkrimson and the Egg-Keepers, Book 3 Marc-Antonio Deogracias. Marc-Antonio Deogracias. $3.99 e-book (23p), ASIN B01M3N59VC Amazon, Apple iBooks, BN.com, Kobo Starkrimson the little demigod keeps the peace across the universe. How does he do it? With lots of smarts, a bit of magic, and a little help from his other magical friends. Tripi Takes Flight: The Amazing Adventures of Tripi the Fly Lori London, illus. by Heather Bonnstetter. Lori London. $12.99 paper (36p), ISBN 978-0-9975368-1-2; $3.99 e-book ASIN B01LVXUK4Y Lorilondonentertainment.com, Amazon, BN.com This is a story about a fly who cant fly. He has to take mass transportation to get around the globe on all his adventures. At the library, the Great Book inspired him, and how. From 750 prize entries, the judges of the BookLife Prize in Fictionan annual writing contest for unpublished or self-published novels launched earlier this yearhave selected five finalists. As the judges work to determine the winner, PW chats with the finalists about their writing, their books, and self-publishing. Kipp Wessel: The Wilderness of Heartbreak Wessel, a finalist in the general fiction category for his novel, First, You Swallow the Moon, has been writing for as long as he can remember. He earned a fiction fellowship and an M.F.A. from the University of Montana, and has taught fiction writing there, as well as at the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis. First, You Swallow the Moon is the 51-year-old Minnesotans first novel, and one that he hopes will attract the attention of a traditional publishing house. What are some themes and types of characters and situations that you tackle in First, You Swallow the Moon? First, You Swallow the Moon is about a young man who loses a brother and experiences the unraveling of his first real love. In response to these compounded losses, he becomes obsessed with wild bears when he believes their ability to regulate their winter hearts may offer him a safe passage through the intense grief immobilizing him. If he can turn himself into a bear, maybe he can survive. Its a modern novel about the wilderness of heartbreak. Its a somewhat eccentric ideaa human wishing to become a bearyet its quite relatable to anyone who has been overcome by grief. Did any personal loss inspire you? The novel evolved, as all my writing does, from my own life experience. When I was in my early 20s, I lost my oldest brother. And that loss, along with the spiral of a love relationship on its heels, turned my life upside down and pummeled my heart through an intense period of clinical depression. Through the worst of it, I was living in Montana, completing my M.F.A. The novel is set within that wilderness, literally and figuratively. Its not autobiographical, but drawn from the emotions of my experience surviving intense grief. I know the unrelenting and extreme bouts of pain and mania my main character attempts to navigate past. Writing the novel was my attempt to unearth the tragic, comic, and transforming experience of significant loss. Its a novel about the counterpart to attachment: the sometimes impossible act of letting go. My goal was to transform a deeply personal, intensely painful life experience into a work of art that may resonate for others who have survived or are surviving similar relational losses. Its pretty much a guarantee of human experiencewe all leave or are left by the ones we love at some point. My goal was to try to focus a lens on the survivors reaction to that dynamic. Your short fiction has appeared in a number of magazines, but this is your first novel. What inspired you to self-publish it? The decision to self-publish the novel was not an easy one. Doing so gave me full creative control of the end product, and I enjoyed the hands-on process. But the choice also limits the audience the novel may reach. So, it was a difficult decision to weigh. But I had spent nearly a decade writing and revising this novel. Toward the end of the process, I became inspired with an idea for my next novel. I wanted to dive into thatnew work. So I published the novel in order to focus on the novel Im in the throes of drafting. It was like sending the first child off to school so I could take care of the newborn. Other than knocking the judges socks off, what was your greatest goal when entering the BookLife contest? With the contest, my main goal was to obtain an unbiased read by a giant voice in the publishing industry and to find out how the work would fare against the work of other indie writers. An added bonus was discovering other great titles for my reading list. The timing was good: the novel had just been released about the time the contest opened. Speaking of reading lists, who are some of the authors who most inspire you? In no particular order: J.D. Salinger, Ernest Hemingway, Tom McGuane, Rick Bass, Karen Russell, Jim Harrison, Antoine de Saint-Exupery, Lorrie Moore, Nicole Krauss, Leonard Cohen, Paulette Alden, and Kent Nelson. Are you shopping your novel around? Id welcome contact by any publisher who might want to give this novel a new home within their house. Get in touch! Id love to see the novel find a wider audience than it has. And, to date, its only been released in a hardcover edition. Jane Alvey Harris: Finding Courage in Her Fiction Harris started writing her debut novel, Rivena BookLife finalist in the YA categorya few years ago, when she was in her most vulnerable state. A newly single mother of three, with zero marketable skills, as she puts it, Harris turned to writing fiction as a way to cope with reality. Now 44 years old, the Coppell, Tex., resident is a full-time writer and marketer of her own work. Shes presently working on Secret Keeper, the second book in her My Myth trilogy, which begins with Riven. In January, Harris will kick off her publicity tour for the book. It sounds like Riven began as a deeply personal project for you. How did it evolve into a novel that you decided to self-publish on Amazon? When I was done with the first draft, I shared it with my therapist and a couple of close friends who encouraged me to publish it. Thats when the real journey began. After googling how to publish, I quickly realized I had zero idea what I was doing. I immediately joined the Society of Childrens Book Writers and Illustrators, a brilliant move on my part. At my first meeting, which happened to be a peer critique, I realized how much my writing sucked. I hired a copy editor to help with commas, but that wasnt nearly enough. Theres so much more to writing a book than being able to put together a pretty sentence. So I hired a consultant. Together with my critique partner and most patient friends, I worked my way through eight more drafts. It took me four years to learn to write well enough to tell this story. Both the process behind the novel and the novel itself are intense. How would you describe Riven? Riven is a hard-hitting, issue-driven, contemporary account of a 17-year-old girl whose reality and mental health fracture when her childhood abuser re-enters her life after 10 years. Its a documentation of a survivors journey to make peace with her wounded ego and achieve self-acceptance. Its also a high-def psychological fantasy thriller with laugh-out-loud wit, loads of kick-ass adventure, and yummy romance. The ultimate purpose of Riven is to spread a message of self-acceptance and empowerment. Victims of any kind of trauma can do more than survive: they can thrive. Did you channel any of your own life experiences when writing this book? Absolutely! There are several autobiographical components to Riven. Emily, the protagonist, and I share a maiden name: Alvey. It means Elf Warrior. Ive always been more than a little obsessed with it. Also, Emilys siblings in the book are my children in real life: Jacob, Aidan, and Claire. A few scenes in the book are taken directly from some of my therapy sessions, including hypnosis and EMDR [eye movement desensitization and reprocessing]. About the time I started working with a therapist, I began receiving stories from other people who were struggling. In fact, over the past few years Ive had the distinct honor of being an outcry witness for over a dozen adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse. More than 12 adult men and women entrusted their stories of abuse with me after decades of keeping them secret and suffering through the trauma of buried guilt and shame. Their stories, and the courage it took to share them, inspired me. You self-published Riven after years of reworking it. Was self-publishing your first choice? Or did you query traditional publishers first? I queried traditional houses, and I absolutely loathed it. Honestly, I think I suck at queries. My consultant/editor, Emma Dryden, is the bomb, and she encouraged me to dig deep and tell the real story. I asked the universe to send the perfect agent to champion my story, but the responses I received were from agents who wanted either straight fantasy or straight contemporary, and I wasnt willing to ditch either. Its difficult to educate strangers about something so personal and complex in a one-page cover letter. Ultimately, I did get an offer from a small publishing house, but it didnt feel right, so I decided to do it myself. What are some of the rewards and challenges of self-publishing? One obstacle is not having access to the exposure I might have with a traditional publishing house. Its also very true that a prejudice exists in the publishing community that if a manuscript were any good it would get picked up. Obviously, I dont agree with that. Though its been challenging, Im grateful for the experience. Ive become stronger from having to pick myself up after falling so often. I love that Ive been able to have control over the formatting and cover design. Self-promotion stinks, but I dont have any qualms about promoting Riven. It feels like the story was a gift that was given to me. Im just the lucky girl who got to write it down. Krys Batts: Writing the Complicated, Independent, and Relatable Romantic Heroine Batts, a BookLife finalist in the romance category with her third novel, Not Flowers, but Love, has been writing creatively for over 30 years, beginning with poetry when she was a teenager, and then short stories. In her early 30s, she wrote and self-published her first novel, Walls Fall Down, on Amazon. The 46-year-old Dallas author (also a full-time senior technical business analyst) was driven to write novels for one pointed reason: to fill a perceived void in the romance genre by crafting female protagonists who dont need a man to be completebut who can surely benefit from true love. How would you describe Not Flowers, but Love? The central plot of the story is the main characters internal struggle to overcome past relationship disappointments that hamper her from opening up her heart again. What inspired you to write it? Not Flowers, but Love is a result of my feeling inspired to tell a story about how strong, successful women can inadvertently trip themselves up and miss opportunities to share their lives with wonderful men. Its an angle that Ive come across in other writings, but I havent before come upon a book or movie that treated the female characters deep-seated inner turmoil in the manner that Ive done. And, the more I thought about the book plot, I felt that the book could be special, compelling, relatable. Jamie, the main character, couldnt be further from the damsel-in-distress stereotype. Why is this type of heroine important to you? I specifically began writing novels because, after reading what seemed like one million books over the course of my life, I felt that the female protagonists were too often left wanting for such admirable qualities as acute intellect, fierce independence, and a clear recognition of their personal self-worth. This pattern among female characters seemed particularly characteristic in romance novels. So I eventually decided to create the strong, nuanced women characters that I yearned to encounter. Not Flowers, but Love was self-published via Amazon in 2015. What prompted you to enter it in this years BookLife contest? One of the greatest challenges before self-published authors is gaining a readership that trusts you to deliver an enjoyable journey when they pick up your books. With this in mind, I entered the BookLife Prize in Fiction contest because I hoped to obtain positive, critical reviews that new potential readers could reference when deciding whether to purchase my novels. As an avid reader myself, I am sometimes persuaded to try out new authors when an objective reader, whether or not I know the person, endorses the writers work. Whats your approach to the business side of self-publishing? What kind of promotional tools do you use? I have found that advertising directly on Amazon produces the best results. I have experimented with advertising in a variety of ways over the past few years, including using Facebook, Twitter, and popular websites such as Goodreads. As you noted, another readers endorsement of a book can go a long way. Who are some writers that inspire or influence you? My list of favorite authors is quite extensive, and I honestly love them all equally. Just a few of the writers who Im sure have influenced my own style in some way: Tess Gerritsen, John Grisham, Janet Evanovich, Michael Crichton, Robert Ludlum. What are you reading right now? Dying to Be Me by Anita Moorjani. T.J. Slee: Espionage, Psychopaths, and Bad Karma Slee, a finalist in not one but two of the BookLife contest categories (in the mystery/thriller category with the novel Cloister, and the sci-fi/fantasy/horror sector with The Vanirim), declines to give his real name. He also declines to name his city of origin, share his age, or show his face. Slee is a man of mystery, but theres a good reason for that, he says: he was formerly a security intelligence officer working in counterterrorism. You mentioned off the bat that we cant discuss many personal details, but can you tell us where youre writing from and whether you have a job outside of writing? Im currently based in Copenhagen. Yes, I have a day job, which pays the bills so that I can donate all the money I earn from my writing to Doctors without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres. Yep, every cent. Why would I do that? Lets just say I have a lot of bad karma from my time as an intelligence officer that I am trying to compensate for. A lot of very bad karma. Tell us about Cloister and The Vanirim. Cloister is an espionage thriller laced with dark humor, featuring a very unorthodox heroine. Sister Charlie Jones is not your typical Mercy Sister nun, but shes doing her best. Thirty years old, shaved head, pierced and tattooed, shes a year into her novitiate after quitting the Australian security service to find some inner peace. Then she gets a call from the archbishop: theres been a terrorist threat against the papal visit, police have overrun his office, the Vatican protocol team is threatening to call the whole tour off, and hes just been told Jones is a decorated former counterterrorist officer who maybe can step in and help him regain control. In no time, Charlie Jones finds herself drawn into a web of Vatican intrigue. Vanirim is a crime noir story set in a postapocalyptic universe. Five years after the Pacification, the war in which the old Norse demigods, the Vanir, returned to reclaim the Earth, 19-year-old Tully McIntyre stumbles upon the impossible: a dead Vanir. Nuclear weapons couldnt kill them, but he finds one lying gutted inside a human house. For investigator Stella Valiente, McIntyre is the only suspectexcept it cant be him. McIntyre has been sanctioned, a process by which the Vanir punish criminals by stripping them of all emotion. He cant love, feel passion or sorrow, he cant hate, and most of all, he cant kill. Can he? Are any of these characters inspired by real people? Charlie [from Cloister] is loosely based on a real character I worked with in the security service. She was lazy, annoyingly self-absorbed, hopelessly disorganized, and unreliable; everyone loved her. Being who she was, she could move in circles no one else in the agency could. Tragically, she was fired when they found drugs in her desk at workbut, if you ask me, the jury is still out as to whether they were hers or not. The character at the center of Vanirim is not based on any real person, but I have to admit that McIntyre is a metaphor for the sort of person that intelligence work turns some people into if they arent careful. McIntyre is the person I might have become if I didnt leave when I did. You self-published five books this year, including The Vanirim and Cloister. What prompted you to go indie? Last year the refugee crisis in Europe provoked me to look for ways I could raise some money to help, and I realized I had all these novels lying around, so I published them this year. I had no idea if anyone would buy/read my work, so in January I set a modest fund-raising target, and I hit it by June, which was fantastic! Now Ive doubled it. Its not much in the big picture, but every little bit helps these days. Being able to reap all the royalties of your books must be particularly rewarding, given your charitable efforts. Would you ever sign with a traditional publisher? Id be more than happy to pull the books from Amazon, rebrand, and relaunch, bringing current and future titles under new management. I would continue to send my royalties to charity, but thats just a personal choice. The help of a publisher to reach a wider audience would be a win-win, and I hope my results in the BookLife competition so far might give an agent or publisher the confidence to take a chance! Jennifer Kaplan: Exploring History Kaplan, a finalist in BookLifes middle grade category for the novel Crushing the Red Flowers, has a specific goal for her unpublished work: having perceived a need for more educational and diverse fiction about the Holocaust, she wants to see it placed in school libraries. The 43-year-old New Jersey author, mother, and founder of the Public Arts Council is compelled not only to explore the events of the Holocaust and their effects, but also the factors that led up to them. Crushing the Red Flowers is set in prewar Germany. Why did you choose that period? Few childrens books cover prewar 1938, even fewer have German main characters, and none use alternating points of view to explore Kristallnacht from divergent perspectives. Nineteen thirty-eight is a curious year because it was the turning point. It offers a unique vantage point to explore the past, present and glimpse the future, but, unfortunately, Ive often found this critical year overlooked by educators. Most books focus on the 40s. Mine starts in summer and stops in December 1938. We all know what happens after that, but the characters dont. Your novel has two protagonistsone Jewish, one notwhom you alternate between every other chapter. Why did you choose this style? I wanted to show how each boy experienced the same events from his own perspective. The German Jewish boys life starts out with piano lessons and other normal activities, but by end of book his life is far from normalized. The German boy has his own problems, including an uncle who is in jail for his anti-Hitler stance, and being forced to join Jungvolk, and struggle with an awful leader. Did any of your familys history help inspire you to write this book? Yes, Ive done a lot of research for this book, but my first stop was conducting interviews with family members: two German Jews and two German Christians. Theyve been very supportive. I also get so many questions. From the Jewish perspective, I hear, Why didnt your family just leave? Ive also felt vilified for being German. If you look at some of the older Hollywood movies, all the bad guys are German. The real question is, how could this happen to the beautiful, civilized country of Germany? My book tries to show the suffering and poverty and decline of politics that made it ripe for an extremist like Hitler to rise to power, though I wonder how many people saw it coming. There is little discussion as to why it unfolded, and my book looks to show how complicated this was. I also have three young children. The two that are in fifth and seventh grade are old enough to read it and have had exposure to the Holocaust as we are raising them Jewish and they attend Hebrew school. Who are some of your greatest inspirations in terms of childrens and middle grade literature? For childrens literature, Im influenced by and try to learn from Lynne Rae Perkinss descriptive prose, Christopher Paul Curtiss likable and complex characters, and Rebecca Steads beautifully subtle way she weaves a story together. And, of course, I remain inspired by three writers who helped to first spark my interest in literature: Kurt Vonnegut, Ray Bradbury, and Margaret Atwood. This is your first novel, and you have not published it yet. Not to be rude, but what are you waiting for? I have published a few short stories, and, with Crushing the Red Flowers, I am open to all options. At this point I am looking at traditional publishers and independent and small publishers that have a strong focus on historical Holocaust fiction. That said, Im very open to self-publishing. I dont know what it will be. Given that my main goal is to get the book into libraries, a great way to do that is to rack up awards so as to give the book more credibility. Nicole Audrey Spector is a Los Angeles writer whose work has appeared in the Atlantic, the New Yorker, and Vice. If theres such a thing as a straightforward path to becoming a writer, Audrey Coulthurst didnt take it. I actually never meant to be a writer, she admits. While she wrote as a child, her focus in high school was on music and art, and when she entered college, she quit writing altogether. I started telling myself this story that I wasnt good enough, she reflects. I wish I hadnt done that. After graduating with a degree in music history, Coulthurst moved to Austin, Tex., wherelargely out of boredomshe took part in National Novel Writing Month. A year later, she returned home to Oregon and enrolled at Portland State University with the goal of becoming a book designer. Unfortunately, it proved a difficult field to break into, and she ultimately used her masters degree to get a job in financea career she has continued. She never stopped participating in NaNoWriMo, though, and in November 2010, she completed the first draft of what would become her debut novel, Of Fire and Stars (HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray, Nov.). I wrote it and I threw it in a drawer, she recalls. But it just kept nagging at me. Of Fire and Stars is the tale of Princess Dennaleia of Havemont; Dennaleia is betrothed to Prince Thandilimon of Mynaria as part of an alliance between the two kingdoms, but when she moves to Mynaria to fulfill her duty, she unexpectedly falls for the princes sister, Amaranthine. Coulthurst came to realize that shed written a book she wished shed read as a teenagera fantasy in which the protagonist loves another girl, but thats not the source of the novels conflict. For me, this book has always been about being pulled in two different directions by duty and by your heart, Coulthurst says. That kind of story is universal, she adds. Everyone has fallen in love with the wrong person at least once. Coulthursts lifelong love of horses also helped shape the novel. A lot of writers will throw horses into their fantasy books without knowing anything about them, she says. You can tell when people have learned about horses from watching horse movies. She has ridden horses for more than 20 years; she wanted to write a book in which horses not only were depicted accurately but also were important to the kingdom and were part of the world building. Its for all my horse girls out there, she says. In 2012 Coulthurst began revising the book in earnest, and in 2013 she earned a spot at the Lambda Literary Foundations retreat for emerging writers, where she had the chance to study with YA author Malinda Lo. Later that year, Coulthurst participated in Pitch Warsan experience that she calls instrumental in getting her manuscript ready to query and in securing the representation of agent Alexandra Machinist at ICM Partners. Coulthurst did some additional revisions with the help of Machinist, who then sold the book to editor Kristin Daly Rens. Coulthurst credits Patricia Wredes Dealing with Dragons for her love of improper princesses. That book really changed me as a reader and inspired me a lot as a writer, Coulthurst says. And it was Malinda Los Ash that taught her that real-world prejudices dont have to carry over into fantasy novels. HarperCollins will release the follow-up to Of Fire and Stars in 2018. Tentatively titled Ink Mistress, the story is set in the same universe as her first book but takes place hundreds of years earlier and in a different kingdom. Its about a girl whos a demigod, and she can change the future by writing in her blood, but only at the cost of her youth, Coulthurst says. She has also cowritten a contemporary YA novel with friend and critique partner Paula Garner, which will be published by Candlewick Press. Coulthurst hopes to continue working in YAa category that she enjoys both reading and writing. Maybe Ill genre jump someday, she concedes, but Ill probably stick with YA for a while. I really am drawn to coming-of-age stories. Berkley Buys Two Fixer-Upper Mysteries Christine Hogrebe of the Jane Rotrosen Agency sold world English rights for two books in Kate Carlisles Fixer-Upper Mystery series to Michelle Vega, a senior editor at Berkley. The series, which began in 2014 with A High-End Finish, centers on Shannon Hammer, a contractor specializing in the restoration of Victorian homes, who gets wrapped up in various criminal cases in the coastal California town where she lives. The publisher plans to publish the books as mass market originals in fall 2017 and fall 2018. Tor Takes Debut Fantasy Trilogy by Doore Diana Pho, an editor at Tor, acquired world rights for K.A. Doores debut fantasy trilogy, Assassins of Ghadid, in a deal brokered by Kurestin Armada of P.S. Literary. According to Armada, the trilogy centers on a desert city where control over water means control over both life and magic itself. Pho added that Doores work draws on the cultures of sub-Saharan Africa and ancient Egypt as well as queer romance. The publisher expects to begin publishing the books in winter 2019. Pushcart Prize Winners Novel to Soho Mark Doten of Soho Press acquired world English rights to The Long Life, a novel by Pushcart Prizewinner Brandon Hobson, in a deal negotiated by Caroline Eisenmann of ICM. According to the publisher, the novel tells the story of a sensitive but troubled 15-year-old Native American boy placed in foster care, dealing both with his own traumatic upbringing and his growing interest in his elusive, rebellious foster-sister Rosemary. The book will be published in spring 2018. Running Press Wins Portable-Recipe Cookbook Sharon Bowers of Miller Bowers Griffin sold world rights to Ali Rosens cookbook Bring It to Kristen Wiewora of Running Press. According to Rosen, who is the founder of the Web cooking series Potluck Video and a food correspondent for Fox News, the book offers recipes for portable, crowd-pleasing dishes for potlucks, picnics, and casual meals with friends. Its set to be published in spring 2018. Imagine Takes Leonard BernsteinFocused Memoir Eric Myers of Dystel, Goderich & Bourret sold world rights to Going Crazy Working for Leonard Bernstein, a memoir by Charlie Harmon, to Don Weise of Imagine, an imprint of Charlesbridge. According to Myers, the book gives an up-close view of what it was like to spend four years as personal assistant to one of the most brilliant, charismatic, and maddening cultural titans of the 20th century. Its set to be published in spring 2018. Atlantis-Inspired Series Goes to Pyr Rene Sears of Pyr acquired world English rights to debut author K.D. Edwardss The Tarot Accounts, the first book in an Atlantis-inspired fantasy series, as part of a two-book deal brokered by Sara Megibow of KT Literary. According to Megibow, the series centers on the remaining heir to an Atlantean throne and his best friend who, in this first adventure, are tricked into hunting for a missing scion. She added that the series was originally pitched as a gay Green Arrow set in a Westworld-esque world. The first book is set to be published sometime in 2017. Gregorys Defining Moments to Amistad Regina Brooks of Serendipity Literary Agency sold North American rights to Dick Gregorys The Most Defining Moments in Black History According to Dick Gregory to Tracy Sherrod of Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins. According to Brooks, the book highlights 100 key events from the complicated history of black America, as told through the acerbic wit, humor, and paranoia of one of the foremost black comedians. The book is slated to be published in fall 2017. Movie Watch A new batch of tie-in editions hit our lists this week, for films due out in the next few months. Opening in a handful of theaters December 25, and in wide release January 6, Hidden Figures is based on Margot Lee Shatterlees history of the African-American women who worked as NASA mathematicians and engineers in the segregated South, a book our starred review called crucial to understanding subsequent movements for civil rights. A tie-in edition debuts at #15 on our trade paperback list, just three months after the books debut on our hardcover nonfiction list at #10. The hardcover edition has sold 23K print copies, and the tie-in sold 9,281 print copies its first week. The film adaptation of W. Bruce Camerons 2010 debut novel, A Dogs Purposea tail-wagging three-hanky boo-hooer, as our favorable review of the canine-reincarnation story put itopens January 27. Tie-in editions debut this week at #10 in trade paper and #4 in mass market, for a total of 22.7K print copies sold. The Shack, based on William P. Youngs megaselling inspirational novel and starring Octavia Spencer (who also plays a main role in Hidden Figures), opens March 3. The mass market tie-in edition pubbed a couple of weeks ago and got a 220% boost last week, debuting this week at #18 on our list. A 2008 trade paper edition, which has sold 5.7 million copies, is up 115%. And the trade paper movie tie-in edition, which just missed hitting our list, is up 70%. (See all of this week's bestselling books.) Movers & Shakers The Shack saw some of the greatest gains in print unit sales of any book this week, and its not the only title catching the attention of shoppers in the run-up to the holidays. HBO recently released the trailer for its forthcoming miniseries based on Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty (which will begin airing Feb. 19, 2017), punching up sales of the 2015 trade paperback. Another 2015 release, The Nerdy Nummies Cookbook, also had a strong week on top of already healthy sales; Forbes just ranked author Rosanna Pansino the 5th highest paid YouTube Star for 2016. Adult Fiction Increase The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead 88% End of Watch by Stephen King 55% Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty 50% Shoe Dog by Phil Knight 164% The Nerdy Nummies Cookbook 118%. The Gene by Siddhartha Mukherjee 108% New & Notable Tools of Titans Tim Ferris #2 Hardcover Nonfiction, #6 overall Arnold Schwartzenegger contributed the foreword to the latest motivational business title by the author of The 4-Hour Work Week. The Undoing Project Michael Lewis #4 Hardcover Nonfiction, #9 overall The journalist behind Moneyball and other bestsellers deftly explores a timeless and fascinating subjecthuman decision-makingthrough the intellectually intimate collaboration of two influential psychologists, Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky, our review said. The Whole 30 Cookbook Melissa Hartwig #16 Hardcover Nonfiction Hartwigs first solo effort since her professional and personal split from Whole 30 cofounder Dallas Hartwig offers 150 recipes for followers of their weight-loss program. Top 10 Overall Rank Title Author Imprint Units 1 Double Down (Wimpy Kid #11) Jeff Kinney Amulet 117,964 2 Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (screenplay) J.K. Rowling Scholastic/Levine 91,645 3 Killing the Rising Sun OReilly/Dugard Holt 85,724 4 Island of Glass Nora Roberts Berkley 65,324 5 Harry Potter and the Cursed Child J.K. Rowling et al. Scholastic/Levine 63,289 6 Tools of Titans Timothy Ferriss HMH 62,938 7 The Magnolia Story Gaines/Gaines W 61,844 8 The Whistler John Grisham Doubleday 58,097 9 The Undoing Project Michael Lewis Norton 54,669 10 Take Heart, My Child Earhardt/Kim Aladdin 51,764 All unit sales per Nielsen BookScan except where noted. By some measures, such as the lack of a breakout hit and no major controversy, 2016 was a quiet year in publishing. Yet there were a number of developments that took place that will continue to impact the industry into 2017 and beyond. Ron Boire, a former head of Sears Canada who took over as Barnes & Noble CEO in September 2015, led a two-hour presentation of Barnes & Nobles future plans for investors on June 23. Two months later, the company announced that it had dismissed Boire, noting only that he was not a good fit for the organization. To replace Boire, B&N founder Len Riggio, who had announced plans to retire in the fall, said that he was postponing his retirement and would serve as interim CEO until a permanent replacement for Boire could be found. Meanwhile, B&Ns financial results continued to be mixed. The company made progress on reducing its losses in its Nook division in the year, but struggled to grow revenue from its physical stores as well as to improve comparable-store sales. Store sales fell 6.1% in the quarter ended July 30, 2016, compared to the same period a year ago. In reporting those results, B&N gave a hint regarding what led to Boires ouster. Although weak store traffic and a lack of big hits were factors in declining store sales, Riggio said that B&N [shot itself] in the foot somewhat by making unprecedented inventory reductions as well as by cutting expenses in the worst areas, mainly retail-floor personnel. Those mistakes, Riggio added, were being corrected. This March, 18 months after the collapse of a similar deal with the same principals, Perseus Books Group signed agreements to sell its publishing business to Hachette Book Group and its distribution arm to Ingram Content Group. When the deals were completed in the spring, HBG took ownership of all nine Perseus imprints, which the company placed under Susan Weinberg, a longtime Perseus executive who had served as senior v-p and group publisher. The Perseus imprints published about 500 new titles annually and had revenue of approximately $100 million. Ingrams purchase of Perseuss distribution arm involved the acquisition of the PGW, Consortium, Perseus Distribution Services, and Legato Publishers Group units, which had client sales of about $300 million. The purchase included Perseuss Jackson, Tenn., warehouse and its Constellation digital asset management and distribution service. Ingram moved the Perseus groups to Ingrams distribution network, which already supports the clients of the Ingram Publisher Services group. The combination of IPS and the Perseus distribution group will handle distribution for more than 600 clients. In a deal that consolidated the publishing industrys wholesaling segment, Follett Corp. acquired Baker & Taylor in April for an undisclosed price. The combined company has sales of $3.6 billion and distributes physical and digital content to public and school libraries. B&T continues to be based in Charlotte, N.C., under the direction of George Coe, B&T CEO and president, reporting to Ray Griffith, president and CEO of Follett. Although some industry members expressed concern about further consolidation in the wholesale business, others were hopeful that as part of Follett, B&T will have the resources it needs to improve its operationsand to pay its bills on time. The company, which had been owned by the private equity firm Castle Harlan for about 10 years, had been dogged by complaints from independent publishers about slow payment. In a prepared statement at the time of the acquisition, Coe said, With Folletts commitment to education and strong financial ability to invest in Baker & Taylor, we expect to build on our long-term vision for content distribution and expand the flow of innovative products, programs, and services for all of our customers worldwide. Indeed, there are indications that its payment process to publishers has improved. There was little question that e-book sales fell in 2015 compared to 2014 and that the decline continued into 2016. According to the AAP, e-book sales of trade books dropped about 11% in 2015 and were off 20% in the first six months of 2016. Moreover, most all major trade houses reported that e-book sales were down in the first half of the year. What has been less clear is the reason for the decline. In June, a survey by the research firm Codex Group offered an explanation that seemed to resonate with many industry members: digital fatigue. According to Codex president Peter Hildick-Smith, a spring survey found that though book buyers stated that they spent almost five hours of daily personal time on screens, 25% of book buyers, including 37% of those 1824 years old, want to spend less time on their digital devices. Given this digital fatigue, consumers are taking advantage of the option to return to reading books in physical formats. That return to print is spurred in part by changes in device ownership. Consumers who own dedicated e-reading devices historically have been the biggest e-book buyers, but the number of people using dedicated e-book readers has been slipping and owners of tablets and smartphones have not picked up the slack in terms of using their devices for reading e-books. Unless the e-reader-device market is recharged with lower-price, higher-quality options, Hildick-Smith predicts that consumers tiring of their digital-device experience will have further digital fatigue, leading to continued e-book sales erosion. Bookstores sales rose 2.5% in 2015, marking the first time since 2007 that sales in the sector were up. According to figures released by the U.S. Census Bureau, total bookstore sales in 2015 hit $11.17 billion, up from $10.89 billion in 2014. The improvement in bookstore sales was largely due to a steady increase in the number of independent bookstores, sales at which helped to offset some softness at the chains. According to the American Booksellers Association, sales in 2015 rose by more than 10% over 2014. The rebound in bookstore sales continued well into 2016. The Census Bureau reported that through October, bookstore sales were up 3.5% over the same period in 2015, hitting $9.77 billion. ABA CEO Oren Teicher said that through the first part of December, sales at independent bookstores were up about 5% over the same period a year ago. The positive numbers of 2016 are particularly gratifying given the intense focus on the recent election, which resulted in a far softer fall season, Teicher said, adding that holiday trends have been encouraging since Thanksgiving weekend. Despite the pending January departures of two top executives from Grand Central Publishing, Hachette Book Group CEO Michael Pietsch said that it remains an important HBG division. He reiterated that GCP will continue to be a separate, vital imprint that will still publish a range of commercial fiction and nonfiction books. Last week, HBG announced that Jamie Raab, GCP president and publisher, will leave at the end of January after 30 years with GCP and its predecessor company, Warner Books. In addition, Deb Futter, v-p and editor-in-chief of Hardcovers for GCP and publisher of Twelve, will leave at the end of next month. We had two executives choose to leave at the same time for their own reasons, but there is nothing going on behind the curtain, Pietsch said. This doesnt reflect any change of strategy or direction. GCP will continue to do the type of books it always has and I will be looking for a leader who can carry on its tradition. Sources said that Raab and Futters contracts were both up at the end of December. Pietsch said that he hopes to have a successor in place before Raab departs. The new person will hire a replacement for Futter. Raab was named publisher of GCP in 1998 and president in 2013, after joining Warner Books as an editor in 1986. When Warner Communications merged with Time Inc., Raab made the transition to Time Warner Books and then made the move to Hachette when the French publisher bought the Time Warner Book Group. Shortly after that acquisition, Raab oversaw the rebranding of Warner Books as Grand Central Publishing in 2007 (Hachette does not own the Warner name). Under Raab, GCP launched the Grand Central Life & Style and Twelve imprints and expanded its romance program under the Forever imprint. In his letter to HBG employees, Pietsch cited the long list of bestselling authors for whom Raab was both editor and publisher, among them Sandra Brown, Stephen Colbert, Nelson DeMille, and Jon Stewart. In the letter, Pietsch said that Raab has led GCP with dedication and passion and had a long record of success. Ive had a terrific career here, and after a three-decade tenure, the time seems right to step down, Raab said in a statement. Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated the date that Raab and Futter's contracts expired. By Jitendra Bahadur Singh: Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) dogs, which are being used in counter-terrorism and anti-Maoist operations, would show their mettle again on Republic Day parade 2017. ITBP Crack K-9 units will ensure that the viewers and participants are safe during the parade. Cyber surveillance has got specific intelligence that the demonetisation scheme has dried up all terror cash reserves of Pakistan based outfits and their financial position is in dire straits. The terror outfits are holding the Indian government responsible for this. Incidentally, the situation has left LeT unable to pay stone pelters in the valley. advertisement It is in this backdrop that the Delhi Police (PM Security) and SPG are organising an impenetrable security blanket over the PM and citizens who would witness the Republic Day Parade on 26 Jan 2017. According to sources, in addition to commandos of various security forces, a specific request has been sent to MHA during a meeting on December 14 at the Delhi Police ( Security) Camp attended by officials from several security agencies, for mobilisation of the world renowned ITBP Crack K-9 units to ensure that safety of the citizens during the Republic Day parade. Also read: Visually-disabled women to hoist tricolour on R-Day in Haryana Sources in security forces assess that this time the inputs are so strong that terrorist may target Republic Day parade. The highly trained ITBP dogs would be deployed in the 'core zone'. It has been learnt from Delhi Police sources that this time ITBP will deploy ferocious, accurate, highly agile and swift Doberman breed dogs along with Malinois, Labradors and German Shepherds in republic day parade to ensure security. The prime reason that ITBP dogs are being requisitioned by Delhi Police is due to the fact that ITBP Crack K9s are the only ones in the country to have been used for anti sabotage check at Kabul Afghanistan and the K-9 units are well aware of Taliban IED tactics that would be used by LeT cells which have been activated to create mayhem at Delhi during Republic Day celebrations. Also read: This Arab leader will be the chief guest at India's Republic Day next year --- ENDS --- GURNEE Positive vibes filled Warren Township High School's Almond Road junior-senior building in Gurnee when students returned to class this week, just days after racist graffiti was found on bathroom stalls at the district's two campuses. About 10 students participated in an effort to write kind messages on sticky notes during the weekend and post them on all 2,500 lockers before school started Monday morning Nov. 14, in an effort to counter the racism. Most of the notes remained on the Almond campus lockers Nov. 15. Student Kathryn Haynes said she was spurred by sticky note initiatives to create a positive environment elsewhere in the country. She said she became aware of how the notes were being used on social media when she decided to do the same at Warren. "I felt like there was very negative air around the school," Haynes said. Principal Patrick Keeley said he quickly approved the idea after his assistant, Rob Parrott, forwarded an email that Haynes had sent with her proposal last Saturday. Gurnee police said an investigation continues into at least four instances of racist graffiti scrawled on bathroom stalls at the Almond building and the O'Plaine Road campus for freshmen and sophomores in Gurnee. "White's Only" graffiti was found on a women's bathroom stall at the Almond campus Nov. 9. Officials at Gurnee-based Warren District 121 said three additional "copycat" messages were discovered Nov. 10 at the O'Plaine campus. In response, some minority students at Almond organized what became a large indoor group meeting and a protest outside a day after the graffiti discovery. About 150 to 200 students jammed a hallway near the Almond building's library to discuss diversity and respect with Keeley. But the start to the new school week took on a positive tone with the sticky notes on the lockers, with messages such as "You Are a Treasure," ''Shine Your Light," ''Believe in Yourself" and "You Can Change the World!" Almond campus students Amanda Middleton, Jaylen Davis and four other students went to Haynes' house and spent upward of three hours to hand-write the 2,500 brief, inspirational messages. Haynes said she came up with some of the messages and found others online for a list she compiled. Middleton said she enjoyed seeing the students' reactions. The teenagers did not publicize that they were the ones to place the positive messages on the lockers, although Davis said some friends recognized his handwriting because he's known for writing notes. "There were a lot of people who were really surprised by it and just really impressed," Middleton said. "A lot of teachers came up to us when we were putting them up and complimented us and said how inspired they were, how much they appreciated it and thanked us. And a lot of students were appreciative and seemed like they were moved by it." Keeley said the notes were much appreciated after a difficult week. He added it was an example of how high school is about more than classwork. "When last week happened, many teachers were upset, the kids were feeling upset," Keeley said. "So to walk in Monday morning after the weekend wondering how the week was going to be, and that's the first thing you see, that is exactly why we got into the field of education -- for kids to make a decision and do something like that." Some of the student protesters blamed the election of Donald Trump as president for the racially charged graffiti. Superintendent John Ahlgrim alluded to the presidential election in an email to parents. Of Warren's 4,267 students, about 46 percent are white, 29 percent Hispanic, 10 percent Asian and 10 percent black, according to the most recent 2015-16 Illinois State Board of Education report card. DAVENPORT -- A Davenport man on Wednesday received a five-year federal prison sentence for setting a vehicle on fire with a Molotov cocktail. Theodore Cooke, 48, Davenport, was charged with being a felon in possession of an unregistered firearm for the Nov. 2, 2015, incident, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Iowa. Mr. Cooke was sentenced this week by Chief U.S. District Court Judge John A. Jarvey. He also must serve three years of supervised release once he is out of prison. In August, Mr. Cooke pleaded guilty to trying to get his girlfriend out of a Davenport residence in 2015, according to the news release. When she did not come out, Mr.Cooke lit a Molotov cocktail -- a bottle containing flammable liquid with a wick -- and threw it at a parked vehicle, causing it to start on fire. No one was injured during the incident. Federal law classifies Molotov cocktails as destructive devices and requires their registry as a firearm. Two people have received 10-year prison sentences in relation to the heroin-related death of a man. Courtney Davis, 38, of Aledo, and Bradley DeVriese, 24, address unknown, were accused of distributing the heroin that killed Remy Moseley, 25, who was found dead July 3, 2014, in Aledo, according to federal court documents. On Thursday, Judge Sara Darrow also sentenced the two to three years of supervised release after their term in prison is completed, court documents state. The two pleaded guilty to the charges earlier this year as part of plea agreements. Ms. Davis pleaded guilty to the charge as listed in the indictment. Mr. DeVriese pleaded guilty to a lesser included offense, according to court documents. Further details of the plea agreements were not available. DAVENPORT -- Making the Mississippi River better doesn't need to be a distant dream, according to a River Action report released on Friday. The 10-page report lists steps the group believes could start now to improve the river's future, based on input at the Upper Mississippi River Conference in October. This year's meeting sought to raise the assessment of the river's watershed by the America's Watershed Initiative. That report barely gave a passing grade to the overall watershed and a C to the region that includes the Quad-Cities. Scientists and environmentalists joined business and government representatives to create seven long-term objectives for the river, each with goals that River Action says can be attempted in the next few years. "Find the things that we can do soon so that we can show some success," said Kathy Wine, executive director of River Action. "Get some momentum and realize some larger goals that way." Those objectives and goals include: -- Restoring and strengthening ecosystems. The largest single piece of freshwater habitat in the nation's midsection, the watershed is a major migratory path for waterfowl. But it is threatened by sedimentation, decreasing water quality and invasive species. The study advocates continuing and fully funding the Upper Mississippi River Restoration program and Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability program, both overseen by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. -- Assessing and reducing nutrient pollution. Larger than normal amounts of nitrogen, phosphorous and other substances in the waterway can damage its ecosystems, reduce diversity, limit recreational activities and create health risks. The study urges nutrient pollution reduction programs that cite specific goals, funding mechanisms, time lines and other elements to improve performance. It also advocates funding for standardized monitoring of nutrient levels and water quality in the upper region. -- Strengthen transportation infrastructure. The current system of locks and dams connects the region to the world economy while relieving pressure on rail and road networks. But the study says the system is aging and at risk of catastrophic failure because of a lack of investment. It suggests stakeholders collaborate to secure funding for essential capital improvement projects within the watershed. -- Improve recreational opportunities. The study advocates coordinated support of agencies and groups that provide recreational opportunities in the watershed. It suggests creating a web-based inventory of recreational opportunities and the entities that provide them. -- Increase hydropower potential awareness. The study advocates discussing that possibility with the public and identifying responsible opportunities to develop the power source in the basin. It also suggests creating a workshop where the public and stakeholders can discuss the potential, learn more about it and identify opportunities. -- Improve the ability to monitor watershed conditions. The study advocates a more in-depth and cohesive monitoring network, a deeper assessment of current watershed conditions and establishing baselines. The study also advocates more support for existing monitoring programs. -- Comprehensive management planning. The study recommends combining watershed management planning with flood control plans to help reduce flood risk and improve flood response. It also advocates creating a basin-wide planning process and "flood and flow model" planners to improve flood response. The group plans to provide annual updates on its objectives and goals at Upper Mississippi River Conferences, starting next year. The full report is online at riveraction.org/umrc/sites/default/files/2016-umrc-action-agenda.pdf. The America's Watershed Initiative report card also is online at americaswater.wpengine.com. BHC closed Dec. 23 to Jan. 2; students can register online All Black Hawk College locations and facilities will be closed Friday through Jan. 2. However, minimester classes will be conducted Dec. 27-30 at the Quad-Cities Campus. Students can register for Spring 2017 classes while the college is closed. Registration is available online only Frida through Jan. 2, with online payment by credit card or electronic check only. Look up Spring 2017 classes at www.bhc.edu/schedules. Registration information is available at bhc.edu/register. Spring 2017 classes begin Jan. 17. For more information, call 309-796-5300. Train to be animal-care assistant beginning Jan. 19 Train for an entry-level position as an animal care assistant beginning Jan. 19 at Black Hawk College. The Animal Care Assistant Program covers topics such as vaccinations, lab procedures, surgery preparation, routine examinations, euthanasia and front-office procedures for a veterinary clinic/hospital. The class will meet from 5:45 to 9:15 p.m. Thursdays, Jan. 19 to May 18, at the colleges Quad-Cities Campus in Moline, with clinicals at the Quad City Animal Welfare Center in Milan. Students also must complete a 15-hour job shadow/internship. Cost is $725. Registration begins Jan. 3. To register, call 309-796-8223. Register now for January health-care provider CPR class Are you a health-care provider and need to take CPR? You can register now for the January training at Black Hawk College. American Heart Association Health Care Provider CPR will be from noon to 4 p.m. Jan. 27 at the colleges Outreach Center in East Moline. Cost is $55, which includes the manual and BLS-CPR card. The course includes adult, child and infant skills in both the out-of-hospital and in-hospital settings. Massage therapists can earn four continuing education credits. To register, call 309-796-8223. Explore BHCs professional, continuing ed programs Jan. 24 Are you interested in taking a computer class but not sure where to start? Want to learn a foreign language? Make jewelry, stained glass or floral arrangements? Become a better photographer? Learn more about the variety of programs and classes offered by Black Hawk College Professional and Continuing Education (PaCE) at the PaCE Information Night on Jan. 24, from 4:30 to 6 p.m., at the colleges Adult Learning Center, 4610 Blackhawk Commons Drive, Rock Island. For more information, call PaCE at 309-796-8223, or visit bhc.edu/pace. GENESEO Hammond-Henry Hospital said Thursday it is ending obstetric services as of April 30, 2017. Jeff Lingerfelt, hospital chief executive officer, said Thursday, After careful review of the services our community is utilizing, the leadership of Hammond-Henry Hospital has reached the difficult decision to close the hospitals obstetric services in order to focus our efforts on continuing to deliver the broader care our community needs. He said the rapidly changing health-care industry means "hospitals across our state and the country are being forced to do more with less, and were all having to become more creative in order to continue serving our communities for years to come. The pressures are particularly difficult for smaller, rural hospitals, Mr. Lingerfelt said. Across the state, most hospitals like ours have stopped offering obstetric services in order to focus on more pressing community healthcare needs. Of the 55 Critical Access Hospitals in Illinois, only five offer these services. About 230 births have taken place at Hammond-Henry this year, down slightly from 240-247 in 2015. Mr. Lingerfelt said, in some months, there are up to 30 births and some months seven or nine. The OB unit has seven employees, four full-time. He said, "We are grateful to them and will make every effort to work with them to find the best next step in their careers. We will seek opportunities to keep them in the Hammond-Henry family. The closure will leave Henry County without a hospital with an OB department. The hospital CEO said Hammond-Henry Hospitals finances are healthy, but our responsibility is to preserve a vital community asset and make decisions that will ensure Geneseo has a community hospital and access to local healthcare providers for years to come. Efforts and resources are focusing on expanding access to services that will best serve the demographics of the community, including increasing services for the senior population and strengthening the hospitals surgical and orthopedic services, Mr. Lingerfelt said, adding, We will also continue to provide excellent, local pediatric and well-child care. Appropriate state regulatory bodies have been notified of the closing of the labor and delivery services at Hammond-Henry. For over a century, Hammond-Henry Hospital has remained focused on the same mission -- to improve the quality of life in our communities through excellent health care, Mr. Lingerfelt said. We are proud of our impressive history of service, while at the same time increasingly aware of our need to evolve to meet the realities of today and tomorrow. The independent hospital was established 115 years ago. Today is Saturday, Dec. 17, the 352nd day of 2016. There are 14 days left in the year. 1866 -- 150 years ago: Many Rock Island residents were up at late hours watching the meteor shower. 1891 -- 125 years ago: Christopher Lee, 71, a resident of Rock Island since 1854, died in his home. 1916 -- 100 years ago: Devore Simonson was elected chairman, as the Rock Island Red Cross chapter was organized. 1941 -- 75 years ago: The price of milk was raised two cents a quart, bringing the price to 14 cents a quart because of the war effort. 1966 -- 50 years ago: Col. H.A. Enyder, Rock Island Arsenal commanding officer, officially opened the yuletide season on Arsenal Island last night when he pulled a switch illuminating a 35 foot Christmas tree on the bank of the Mississippi River. 1991 -- 25 years ago: A company that will make prefabricated garages and employ as many as 30 workers plans to build its headquarters in Milan. The Milan village board on Monday approved a plan by Taylor Garages Inc. to build its plant and main sales office on two acres of land at the corner of Airport Road and Old Airport Road. Last Saturday, I discussed what "Stop and Frisk" is, and that the U.S. Supreme Court approved its use as a police law enforcement street tool in Terry v. Ohio (1968). The primary intent was to allow the police to get guns off the street before they could be used in the commission of a crime, rather than to gather evidence after the crime for prosecution. The Supreme Court saw a "stop" on the street as a less intrusive form of a seizure, and the "frisk" ("pat down") on the street as a less intrusive search, which nevertheless had to be objectively "REASONABLE," based on all the facts known to the officer at the time. The stop and frisk would be over in a few seconds, and an innocent person stopped would be quickly on his way. Stop and Frisk has understandably provoked adverse reaction in minority communities. It seems un-American to be stopped on the street, required to answer question and patted down -- even if the stop lasts 30 seconds or less, and you're allowed to go your way. In Chicago, there was a reaction. The ACLU and some leaders of the black community lobbied for additional restrictions on the use of Stop and Frisk. They got them. According to a Feb. 1 report by ABC 7 Chicago, "For decades when Chicago police stopped and frisked someone on the street, they only had to fill out a small card called a "Contact Card." It required simple, basic information about who was stopped and why." Beginning Jan. 1, a new Illinois law regulates when cops can stop and pat down people in public, and additionally requires officers to fill out a two-page "Investigatory Stop Report" - essentially a full-blown police report. IL SB1304 provides: The officer will record the following data on the stop card: the officer's subjective determination of the gender and race of the person stopped; the reason for the stop; date, time and location of the stop; whether a protective pat down or frisk was conducted of the person; and, if so, the reason for the protective pat down or frisk, and whether it was with consent or by other means; whether or not contraband was found during the protective pat down or frisk; and, if so, the type and amount of contraband seized; whether or not a search beyond a protective pat down or frisk was conducted of the person or his or her effects; and, if so, the reason for the search, and whether it was with consent or by other means; whether or not contraband was found during the search beyond a protective pat down or frisk; and, if so, the type and amount of contraband seized; the disposition of the stop, such as a warning, a ticket, a summons, or an arrest; if a summons or ticket was issued, or an arrest made, a record of the violations, offenses, or crimes alleged or charged; and the name and badge number of the officer who conducted the detention. Information obtained via a FOIA request, covering from Jan. 1-Oct. 24 shows, "Stops over that same period have plunged to 91,438 -- down 82 percent from 513,161 a year earlier." Opponents of SB1304 contend that the time-consuming form that officers now must fill out for each stop has played a significant part in the drop. They further argue that if a cop makes no stops, he will never be charged with making unlawful stops. Proponents argue there are fewer stops because the new reports prevent unlawful stops. Dec. 2, 2016 Dispatch report states, "Chicago experienced more than twice as many homicides (77) in November" 2016, than it did in November 2015, and over 700 for the year. Chicago Fraternal Order of Police president Dean Angelo says less-aggressive policing no doubt coincides with the spike in Chicago murders and shootings. So it seems that in Chicago, citizens are more secure against searches, and less secure against being shot to death. A cause/effect relationship is unprovable, but the numbers are suggestive. "The letters I wrote as a lover, were exposed to the world. Every letter written to your lover is a part of yourself, your soul...I cried for nights after that and most of it wasn't even authentic." By Mini Dixit: To make heads turn in a room full of inspirational, beautiful women is no mean task. But not for a certain Kangana Ranaut. In the Capital for Reebok's #FitToFight Awards, the reigning Queen of Bollywood was her usual, candid and brutally honest self as she spoke on her tryst with stardom, ambition and love. While addressing a gathering replete with awe-inducing stories of courage and determination, a visibly overwhelmed Kangana thought it only fair to let the world in on things she hadn't explicitly spoken about earlier, but those that constitute an important part of her entirety, nevertheless. "I know the things I'm going to say, will get me into trouble, but I wouldn't be doing justice to the evening if I hold back," the Tanu weds Manu actress said as she went on to elucidate on her journey from a stubborn little girl in the mountains to finding herself in the middle of an ugly controversy. Kangana Ranaut at the #FitToFight Awards. Photo: Yogen Shah advertisement Earlier this year, Kangana hit headlines after her rumoured ex, actor Hrithik Roshan accused her of mentally harassing him over emails, and of "trying to propagate a false idea and thereby gain publicity with ulterior motives and malafide intentions." Also read: Hrithik vs Kangana legal battle NOT OVER: Investigation still going on With a back-and-forth exchange of legal notices, an alleged romantic affair turned into an issue of national importance. There was name-calling. There was slut- shaming and some even referred to her as a "witch" but that didn't deter the actress from sharing her story with the world. "The world knows me as this achiever--there is a lot of importance given to the worldly achievements, but as a woman, the aspect of my personality I'm a fan of, is how I am as a lover," she said. Also read: Hrithik-Kangana: Timeline of the battle Addressing herself in third person, Kangana said, "There was this young girl in the mountains, who had a lot of fire in a belly, very impractical, very naive, very stubborn. She saw a picture of a man and she fell in love with him. That picture led her to cross oceans, landscapes and deserts to come to a place where she is standing with that man under the stars. This man kisses her and says 'I love you', worlds meet." Not one to mince words, Kangana continued, "Now, this man says this girl is not a normal girl, she has a lot of fire in her belly, in fact, she's not a human, she's a lion woman...that's when the love story becomes a tragedy." Kangana Ranaut. Photo: Yogen Shah In a series of interviews and statements that had followed the leaked emails, Kangana had maintained a firm stand against things she was being accused of--an explainer to which she provided last evening. Also read: Kangana Ranaut: A feminist force in a sexist industry "People have seen how I put up a very strong front, but no one saw what I felt as a woman when I was subjected to that kind of brutality." advertisement "The letters I wrote as a lover, were exposed to the world. Every letter written to your lover is a part of yourself, your soul...I cried for nights after that and most of it wasn't even authentic. Everyone made fun of me," she said. "I can understand if I am not good enough for an individual, but it is not okay to make fun of a woman's vulnerabilities," said Kangana, as she also mentioned how she could've easily gone ahead and shared her side of the story, but she didn't because there is "nothing wrong in a woman expressing her desire for a man." But it wasn't just the email controversy she spoke about, Kangana elaborated on her desperation to be best version of herself, and how nothing, absolutely nothing changes the fact that she wants to be more successful than her father and earn more than her husband. For those who have a problem with that, Kangana has two words, "Fu*k you." --- ENDS --- HBO is advancing towards a full OTT deployment in Latin America, as it prepares Chile to be the next market for its standalone video-on-demand (VOD) service. As it has recently done in Central America and earlier in other LATAM territories, HBO has launched the final update of the HBO Go TV everywhere service prior to the launch of an independent streaming service.For now, Chiles HBO Go will remain bundled to the HBO/MAX pay-TV package as a complementary VOD and live streaming feature. The service will work as a mirror of the linear channel, delivering simultaneous premieres of HBOs original such as Game of Thrones.76% of Chileans are looking for VOD alternatives to consume video content that covers their needs. This new HBO Go version enables users to enjoy HBO exclusive content in a flexible and convenient way, said Javier Figueras, VP, affiliates, HBO Latin America.With over 2,500 VOD titles, the HBO Go platform has gone through the same update before in other territories prior to the launch of a subscription-based streaming platform . So far, HBO has released the service in Colombia, Mexico, Argentina and Brazil, and will launch it in Bolivia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru and Venezuela by the beginning of 2017. Cisneros Media Distribution has reached an international representation agreement with Mexicos Comarex. Comarex will market Cisneros Media Distributions programming catalogue in all world markets, except Spain (where Distribuciones Audiovisuales Vision Europa remains as commercial representative) and the US (where Cisneros distributes its own portfolio).Through this move, Cisneros Media Distribution (CMD) has enlisted Comarex to boost the international sales of its catalogue. Thiw will enable CMD to focus on its creative content unit Mobius.Lab Productions in addition to its pay-TV properties, Vemevision Plus and VePlusTV; its dubbing studios, and its programming management services for channels.Cisneros Media Distribution will continue under the leadership of its executive VP Marcelo Coltro, who also heads the commercialisation of CMDs products in the US.Marcello Coltro will define the portfolios commercial strategy and work side by side with Marcel Vinay and his sales team to ensure the continuity of operations with our international clients and associated production companies, said Jonathan Blum, president, Cisneros Media.All of us at Comarex are excited to be able to offer our clients around the world the great programming contained in Cisneros Media Distributions vast catalogue. We are also honoured to have the opportunity to work in conjunction with Jonathan Blum and his team, added Marcel Vinay Jr, president, Comarex The first task of Comarex as global distributor of Cisneros will be presenting CMDs catalogue at the upcoming international market, NAPTE 2017, to be held in January in Miami. Industry stalwart and author of one or two notable and contentious decisions, Federal Communications Commission chairman Tom Wheeler will be leaving the US regulator on 20 January 2017. At the FCC's 15 December public meeting, Wheeler reiterated the commitment he made in March that he would hold with precedent that the chairman resigns with a new presidential administration, to ensure a smooth transition.Serving as FCC chairman during this period of historic technological change has been the greatest honour of my professional life," said Wheeler. "I am deeply grateful to the president for giving me this opportunity. I am especially thankful to the talented commission staff for their service and sacrifice during my tenure. Their achievements have contributed to a thriving communications sector, where robust investment and world-leading innovation continue to drive our economy and meaningful improvements in the lives of the American people. It has been a privilege to work with my fellow Commissioners to help protect consumers, strengthen public safety and cybersecurity, and ensure fast, fair and open networks for all Americans.Democratic commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel will be leaving at the end of the year, leaving Mignon Clyburn as the only Democrat on the commission. Commissioner Ajit Pai will likely be named interim chair after Wheeler's departure."Like his beloved Ohio State Buckeyes, Chairman Wheeler brought passion and tenacity to the playing field each and every day," said Pai. "Despite our differences in many areas of communications policy, I commend him for his years of public service. It has been a privilege to serve alongside him, and I wish him well in his future endeavours."Wheeler joined the commission in 2013, after a long history as a lobbyist for the cable and wireless industries. Yet his legacy will be fighting tirelessly for Net neutrality.In March 2015, the FCC voted in a 3-2 vote along party lines to reclassify broadband as a public utility the result of a rocky year at the USs top regulator. In January 2014, Verizon won its challenge of the Open Internet Order in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Verizon argued that the FCC lacked the authority to enforce Net neutrality because, it claimed, Congress did not grant the agency the ability to do so. And that's because broadband is not classified as a public utility, the way telecoms are.After a series of legal challenges, the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit in June of this year broadly upheld the FCCs reclassification of broadband as a Title II service. Justices Tatel and Srinivasan, writing for the majority, affirmed the FCCs broad discretion to reclassify wired broadband service as a telecommunications service, and found that none of the challenges raised to FCC authority had merit."When FCC chairman Tom Wheeler departs the FCC on 20 January 2017, he leaves a rich legacy of Internet safeguards designed to empower and protect average Americans," said Jeff Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy, in a statement. "From network neutrality that helps ensure there are no online gatekeepers, to rules on privacy that protect the information of consumers and families, the Internet in the US is a fairer and safer place due to Tom Wheeler. A crucial test for the Trump White House will be whether it preserves these important decisions designed to help everyday Americans. Or will the new Administration trade away American digital rights to help the super-rich and powerful phone, cable and Internet companies? Tom Wheeler has placed his mark on the countrys broadband future, and we believe its worth fighting to preserve." Unidentified militants attacked an Army convoy on the Srinagar-Jammu highway killing three jawans. A massive search operation is underway. By Shuja-ul-Haq , Ashraf Wani: Three jawans were martyred when an Army convoy was attacked by militants today afternoon in Pampore on the Srinagar-Jammu highway. According to security officials, militants fired incessantly at the vehicles carrying army men near the Kadlabal area of Pampore in the Pulwama district. The CRPF said the Army was unable to fire in return as it was a civilian area and there were people around. advertisement The militants, meanwhile, fled from the spot. A massive search operation is underway. Terrorists attacked,security forces retaliated; Public was present so couldn't fire openly bt terrorists were forced to run away:IG(Ops)CRPF pic.twitter.com/F2SylDv95j; ANI (@ANI_news) 17 December 2016 The area was cordoned off immediately after the attack and the security forces have recovered one AK magazine with 20 bullets in it until now. WATCH THE VIDEO HERE: The eye witnesses said that the militants were riding motorcycles. The police is investigating the case. This is the second major attack in Pampore this year. In fact, the Army convoy has been attacked several times along this highway as it is the only road the security forces use to travel from Kashmir to anywhere. MEHBOOBA MUFTI CONDEMNS ATTACK Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti condemned the killing of the three jawans in Pampore. The Chief Minister said violence has never helped in the resolution of issues but has only compounded the human miseries. She also expressed sympathies with the families of slain soldiers. ALSO READ: Spike in terror incidents in 2016, but more terrorists killed in J-K: MHA Pampore encounter enters third day; 2 terrorists killed, combing operations on Srinagar: Army prepared to play waiting game as terrorists still holed up in EDI building --- ENDS --- Property details: TOK, ALASKAFor sale is 10 pristine acres just 3.5 miles SW from the city of Tok, Alaska. Tok is located about 70 miles outside the Canadian Border. The pictures below are actual pictures of the property taken in the summer of 2016. I have videos of the property too, just ask for them. There is a dirt road leading to the property. With this property, you have the best of both worlds. You are out in the wilderness with no neighbors, and still close to town to enjoy the comforts of a town including... Price: $ 3,050 Seller State of Residence: MISSISSIPPI State/Province: Alaska City: TOK Type: Homesite, Lot Zoning: Mixed Zip/Postal Code: 99780 Location: 997**, Tok, Alaska You will be redirected to eBay Nearby 99780 Property details: Have 2 properties in same in same subdivision, only $4000 for both properties! PM me for more detailed information, currently have both under contract to be closed soon. Check Out This Video Of The Property! Have you ever been interested in buying land, whether for a vacation home or for an investment? Well, here is a beautiful 1.23 acre parcel located off a dirt road, giving you easy year round access. This land has been reduced and is being sold below market value during this holiday season. T... Price: $ 4,000 Seller State of Residence: Colorado Property Address: Mountain View Place State/Province: Colorado City: Alamosa Type: Homesite, Lot Zoning: Residential Zip/Postal Code: 81101 Location: 811**, Alamosa, Colorado You will be redirected to eBay Nearby 81101 Property details: You Are Bidding On the Full Purchase Price for 40 Acres in Northern California! Mountain Property. Secluded. Creek. Trees. Grass and Wildflowers. This auction is for legal description: T36N, R13E, Section 1: NE1/4SW1/4. This is a 40 ACRE +/- parcel of land in Lassen County, California. This land is about 5 miles southeast of Madeline, California about 3.5 miles east of Highway 395. The property is located in the mountains. The land is very quiet and peaceful. The land is remote and secluded. It ... Price: $ 9,100 State/Province: California Seller State of Residence: Arizona Zoning: Mixed Type: Recreational, Acreage Zip/Postal Code: 96119 Location: 852**, Tempe, Arizona You will be redirected to eBay Nearby 96119 Property details: Welcome to the of Twentynine Palms FIVE ACRES Short Drive to Palm Springs No Minimum / No Reserve High Bid Owns all 5 Acres THE AREA: The lot for sale is located a short drive east of downtown Twentynine Palms. Located in San Bernardino County in Southen California, Twentynine Palms just a short one hour drive from Los Angeles and minutes from Palm Springs and the resort area of Lake Arrowhead and Big Bear Lake. Palm Springs, located just 30 miles southwest is a preferred destination of traveler... Price: $ 2,025 Seller State of Residence: Florida Property Address: Shannon Road State/Province: California City: Twentynine Palms Type: Homesite, Lot Zoning: Residential Location: , Twentynine Palms, California You will be redirected to eBay Nearby Residential Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale Buy real estate. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale in US and Canada. Search Real Estate By PTI: Nagpur, Dec 17 (PTI) Maharashtra MoS for Home Ranjit Patil today suspended an Assistant Police Inspector for dereliction of duty in an assault case in which a 10-month-old girl was brutally beaten up by the caretaker of a play school-cum-day care centre, after the issue was raised in the state assembly. Cutting across party lines, members also demanded stringent laws to deal with such cases relating to creches, where working parents leave their children for their upkeep throughout the day. advertisement Raising the issue through a Calling Attention motion, members Sunil Prabhu, Prashant Thakur, Ashish Shelar and others drew the attention of the House, demanding action against the API of Kharghar Police Station for trying to delay the registration of a case in connection with the incident. Jayant Patil (NCP), Manisha Choudhary (BJP) and Virendra Jagtap (Congress) questioned the laxity in investigating the case. They said the API was expected to register a case under relevant sections forthwith, but he instead told the complainant to wait until the Senior Police Inspector comes on duty. The members said that the API indulged in delaying tactics and allowed the owner to tamper with the CCTV footage. Patil told the House that the incident came to notice in the morning but a case was registered late in the evening. Shelar criticised the police over the bail granted to one of the accused booked under section 307 of the IPC. The members demanded that there should be stringent laws including compulsory registration of creches, training to maid servants and caretakers, besides installation of CCTV cameras. They suggested the state government run creches, along with with old-age homes, to ensure the safety of children. The House unanimously demanded suspension of the officer, following which Patil announced it on the floor of the House. Yesterday, Navi Mumbai Police arrested Priyanka Nikam, the owner of the creche at Kharghar after Bombay High Court rejected her application for pre-arrest bail. (MORE) PTI JOE DK ABH --- ENDS --- There is not much bank employees can do, but some words of encouragement from the management would have helped. Stretched working hours and the tense atmosphere is taking a toll on their health. Anup Roy and Abhijit Lele report. IMAGE: A bank employee hands out request slips for the exchange of old high denomination bank notes at a bank in Old Delhi. Photograph: Cathal McNaughton/Reuters Bank managements are doing little to boost the morale of employees at branches who are meeting the hectic demands of demonetisation, handling angry customers in queues, making do with limited cash from currency chests, and forgoing year-end leave. The old notes they are accepting and the entries in their books and accounts are subject to multi-layer monitoring. First, the bank's internal auditors are checking these and then supervisors from the Reserve Bank of India are working on them. Sometimes, investigative agencies are sweeping in, demanding to check books and the cash stock. There is not much bank employees can do, but some words of encouragement from the management would have helped. What they get in reality is stern warnings from the management about the consequences should anything wrong be detected. As Axis Bank's name pops up almost every day, employees of other private sector banks are also stressed. In most cases, branches are manned by young employees, just a few years into their profession. Mostly management graduates, they were hired to push various products of banks. Experienced hands in cash and counters, for whom procedure and regulations were more important than business growth, have been fired as banks chased growth. Now those young and semi-experienced employees are finding themselves sitting behind counters and spending their evening sorting the paperwork. Most of the other activities in banks have gone for a toss, says a bank employee in his late twenties. The situation in public sector banks is even worse. Most of their branches in non-metro areas are manned by not more than five or six employees. According to the branch manager of a public sector bank in Uttarpara, West Bengal, there has been no word of encouragement from the management, but there is a threat that if any mistake is found, even unintentional, the employee and the branch manager will be taken to task. "Work is given to you, if you can't do it, you are inefficient. That's the veiled message, says the branch manager who does not wish to be named. The branch is run by six employees as most clerks have retired. In the initial days of demonetisation, the bank had taken the help of some retired staff, but the employees are on their own now. Banks are still not receiving enough cash from currency chests and branches have to ration whatever is available to customers waiting in queues. Most cash vending machines are dispensing only Rs 2,000 notes as the Rs 100 note is not returning to banks. Initially, there were some monetary incentives for overtime. Now that is gone. However, the work pressure has lessened considerably. Senior bankers plead helplessness. "About 80% to 85% of a bank's staff are employed in retail. They all are doing this job. How can we incentivise all?" says an executive director with a Mumbai-based public sector bank. The banker, however, adds the management regularly engages with employees. Bankers say the stress levels have gone up due to customer resentment and uncertainty about the cash supply. However, the public resentment will ease as the government prints more notes, they add. Besides remaining in continuous communication with employees, banks have also been in touch with union leaders, says the managing director and CEO of a public sector bank. "We are encouraging employees to blow the whistle where they suspect foul play. This is one way to provide encouragement at work," he adds. C H Venkatachalam, general secretary, All India Bank Employees Federation, says bank managements empathise with the long hours and stress, but they point out demonetisation is government work. There has been rise in medical complaints in the last few days among bank staff. Stretched working hours and the tense atmosphere is taking a toll on their health, says a mid-level executive at a public sector bank. If the customer-facing employees are stressed, so are the back-office staff. The government has asked the RBI to check if there is double counting of deposits and the central bank has asked banks to verify their numbers. Some amount of double counting is to be expected as many cooperative banks maintain accounts with large banks. Besides, smaller banks keep their excess cash with large banks. For example, the State Bank of India may have 20 cooperative banks directly depositing their money. At the end of the day, the SBI sends the figure of its total deposits and the treasury numbers to the RBI. Cooperative banks and other banks also send the same set of data to the central bank. According to a source, the RBI now has asked banks to segregate the data under various heads so that double counting is avoided. This is keeping back-office staff busy because even if the data is stored electronically, a fresh data sheet is being prepared for a recounting exercise, the source adds. The narrative in America after Donald Trump's victory sounds like the questions and debates that took place in India after May 2014. Were both electoral results all about jobs and economic anxiety? Mihir S Sharma doubts it. IMAGE: Donald Trump's supporters on election night in New York. How often in history has left-wing populism has been more successful than right-wing populism when the two are in open conflict? Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images In the aftermath of Hillary Clinton's defeat, an ugly and unpleasant impulse has taken hold of many American liberals. We are now being told that Donald Trump's victory -- and his unexpected surge among the 'white working class' in previously Democratic states -- is because the Clinton campaign, and liberals more generally, focused too much on questions of identity and empowerment. The white working class in the Rust Belt of America cares only about jobs, we're told, and a party that works for gay marriage and protecting African-Americans from police brutality will merely alienate them. Right off the block this argument makes little sense. If you're a member of the working class, white or otherwise, you couldn't possibly have looked at the two platforms on offer and decided rationally that Trump's would be better for your pocketbook. This argument also has to deal with the fact that Trump's vote did not depend on income -- the crucial predictors of being a Trump voter were race and education. And the survey questions that most closely correlate with the probability of voting Trump are not about economics, but about questions of identity and majoritarianism. But that's not the point that these liberals want to hammer home. How can people still be racist in America? Many of them voted for Barack Obama, after all. Yet that's not how racism works at all. Racists might easily vote for an African American if they think he's 'one of the good ones,' or that it would 'stop people talking about racism all the time.' They might easily vote for anyone -- a woman, an ethnic minority -- with 'better' economics, if the other candidate on the ballot was, like Mitt Romney or John McCain, steering clear of appeals to white identity. And then when you suddenly have, for the first time in your lifetime, the white nationalist's ideal candidate on the ballot, your previous voting history, your economic interests, and so on, become irrelevant. You will frame it, perhaps, as a desire for restoration, as an aspiration towards greatness -- but you're voting for majoritarianism. When a majority votes like a minority, victories happen. Liberals and left-wingers in the US are even more divided today, I suspect, than they were during the closely contested primary between Clinton and Bernie Sanders. And, as with all intellectual currents in the US, this divide will spread worldwide. Should liberals in Europe seek to compromise with the nationalism that is rearing its ugly head across the continent? Should they blame themselves, and see it as a natural consequence of their willingness to welcome immigrants, their willingness to dissolve sovereignty into the European Union? Should they, therefore, reverse course on their achievements of the past years and decades, and compete with the right to create a Fortress Europe, with newly vibrant nationalist-ethnic politics and sharper borders within and without? The worst part of this process, whether in America or in Europe, is that it effectively shifts the blame for racism away from racists to 'market forces' or 'neo-liberalism' or some such McGuffin. What becomes wrong is not the hate or the discrimination; it's the systems that have been created to protect the victims of hate or discrimination -- and the victims themselves, who have foolishly come to assume that the left will protect them. I just wonder how often, in history, left-wing populism has been more successful than right-wing populism when the two are in open conflict. In fact, attempts to co-opt right-wing rhetoric and to seek allies among those who prioritise identity and hate are generally doomed to fail. They will dissolve and compromise the left far more than they will succeed in eviscerating the right. And worst of all, it will allow many right-of-centre leaders space to capture the middle ground, as Theresa May seeks to do in Britain. Once that ground has been ceded to the right, it takes a generation to win it back. I am deeply amused, in fact, by those on the left whining that such majoritarian compromising is necessary to 'win' -- when their greatest, indeed, sole attack on the previous generation of compromisers, like Clinton, was that they were so soulless that they compromised to win. IMAGE: Bharatiya Janata Party supporters in Mumbai on May 26, 2014 -- the day Narendra Modi was sworn in as prime minister of India. Photograph: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters In any case, this is all very familiar. It sounds like the questions and debates that took place in this country after May 2014, when centrists and liberals were faced with the scale of Narendra Modi's victory in India's north and west. It was clear then that some groups counted on as part of a broad liberal social coalition had instead voted for Modi. Was this all about jobs and economic anxiety, as many argue in the case of Trump, and many argued in the case of Modi? I doubt it. As much of it -- more -- was about pride. About majoritarian pride, in particular, and anger at a liberal State that prioritised its duty to the least privileged. Again: When a majority votes like a minority, victories happen. And if liberals are resigned to treating a majority like they are a minority, they will continue to lose. They will lose elections, and they will lose themselves. Former Air Chief Marshal S P Tyagi was on Friday sent to judicial custody till December 30 after the Central Bureau of Investigation said he was not required for further custodial interrogation in AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam. Special CBI judge Arvind Kumar also sent Tyagis cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan, co-accused in the case related to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from United Kingdom-based firm during the United Progressive Alliance-2 regime, to jail after the probe agency did not seek their further custody. After the agencys submission, all the three accused moved their bail applications, which will be heard on December 21 as the CBI sought time to reply to the applications. During the proceedings, the counsel appearing for Tyagi submitted before the court that the Italian top court had ordered retrial of ex-Finmeccanica executives in VVIP chopper scam case, which makes CBIs stand weak in the current case. The court, however, said it will take up the matter on next date of hearing on December 21. The court had on December 14 extended the CBI remand of Tyagi and the two others by three days after CBI had said it was a very serious case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as interest of the nation was compromised. The agency had earlier submitted in the court: It is a very high-profile case and we need proper material. One part of the crime was committed in India while various other angles are in foreign land. Tyagis counsel had told the court that he was a decorated war hero of the nation and CBI, which was termed as a caged parrot by the Supreme Court, is trying to tarnish his image. Earlier, Tyagis counsel had claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a collective one and Prime Ministers Office was also a part of it. CBI had alleged that Tyagi had abused his official position and when he was the Air Chief Marshal, he had made huge investments in land and other properties and had not disclosed the source his income. It was also alleged that Khaitan was the brain behind how the bribe money reached India and several firms through which the money travelled came into existence and Sanjeev was known to alleged European middleman Carlo Gerosa. Tyagi, 71, who had retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by the agency in connection with the case. The CBI had also claimed that alleged European middleman Guido Haschkes statement, which was received through Letter Rogatory, proved that he was assured by Sanjeev Tyagi that the latters brother was going to be Air Chief Marshal. The accused persons, however, had alleged that the CBI was trying to extract the confession using force. The government also named Air Marshal B S Dhanoa as the new chief of the Indian Air Force. The government on Saturday appointed vice chief of army staff Lt Gen Bipin Rawat as the new army chief superseding his two senior officers, while vice chief of air staff Air Marshal B S Dhanoa has been made the new chief of the Indian Air Force. The government has decided to appoint Lt Gen Bipin Rawat, vice chief of army staff, as the next chief of army staff with effect from afternoon of December 31, the defence ministry said in a tweet. It also tweeted that Air Marshal B S Dhanoa will take over as IAF chief with effect from afternoon of December 31. Rawat will replace General Dalbir Singh, while Dhanoa will take over from IAF chief Arup Raha. Lt Gen Rawat, an infantry soldier, superseded senior most army commander Lt Gen Praveen Bakshi, who headed the Eastern Command and was next in line to be the army chief, besides Southern Command Chief P M Hariz. Government sources said Lt Gen Rawat was found best suited among the Lt Generals to deal with emerging challenges, including a reorganised and restructured military force in the north, continuing terrorism and proxy war from the west, and the situation in the north-east. They said Lt Gen Rawat has tremendous hands-on experience of serving in combat areas and at various functional levels in the Indian Army over the last three decades. He has handled various operational responsibilities in many areas, including along the LoC with Pakistan, the Line of Actual Control with China and in the North-East. He is known for his balanced approach towards soldiering, compassion, and connect with civil society. His experience as GOC-in-C Southern Army Command in Mechanised Warfare has been focused towards the western borders, in coordination with the other two services, the sources said. Supersesion in the army is not new though there has not been any such instances in the recent past. In 1983, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had appointed Lt Gen A S Vaidya as army chief superseding Lt Gen S K Sinha, who resigned in protest. Earlier in 1972, the Gandhi government side-stepped the very popular Lt General P S Bhagat, one of the handful of Indian Victoria Cross awardees from World War II, who was in line to succeed General (later Field Marshal) Sam Manekshaw. This was done by giving his junior, General G G Bewoor a years extension, during which time Bhagat retired. Bewoor, thus, succeeded Manekshaw. Image: Lt Gen Bipin Rawat is currently the vice chief of army staff United States President-elect Donald Trump has acknowledged the contribution of Indian-Americans in his electoral triumph, saying his victorious campaign did great with the Hindus. IMAGE: US President-elect Donald Trump attends a stop on his 'USA Thank You Tour 2016' at the Orlando Amphitheater at the Central Florida Fairgrounds. Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images We have a lot of people here tonight from the Indian community, Hindus. We did great with the Hindus, Trump said while addressing thousands of his supporters during a Thank You rally in Orlando, Florida, the key battle ground state where he emerged victorious. The event in Florida, which has a sizeable Indian-American population, was attended by a large number of community members. This is for the first time that Trump has acknowledged the contribution of Indian-Americans and Hindus in his historic electoral victory. Where are they? We have a big group. There they are. I want to thank you. You folks were amazing. They were amazing and voted and they were fantastic, Trump said, pointing his fingers to the Indian-American community present at the rally. Fortnight before the elections, Trump attended a charity event organised by Republican Hindu Coalition to raise funds for Hindu victims of terror in Kashmir and Bangladesh. This was for the first time a presidential candidate attended an Indian-American event. In his address, Trump pledged to work for betterment of India-US relationship and said he would be the best friend of India in the White House. He praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his economic reforms and steps that he has taken to remove bureaucratic red tape. After Trumps address, his family members visited temples in both Florida and Virginia; a first time for a presidential campaign. The Trump Campaign also released an advertisement in which he was seen saying Aab Ki Baar Trump Sarkar, copying Modis historic 2014 election punchline. Republican Hindu Coalition chairman Shalabh Salli Kumar said all this had an impact on voting pattern of Indian-Americans, who traditionally have been a strong Democratic supporters. Based on a survey, Kumar said more than 60 per cent of the community members voted for Trump this time. IMAGE: In his address, Trump pledged to work for betterment of India-US relationship and said he would be the best friend of India in the White House. He praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his economic reforms and steps that he has taken to remove bureaucratic red tape. Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images In his address, Trump asked people to dream big. Dream big and bold and daring. I am asking you to believe in yourself and asking you to believe in America. Together we will make America great again, he said. Trump reiterated his plan of extreme vetting of refugee, asylum and visa applicants seeking to enter the US from regions where terrorists have strongholds. He said his administration will suspend immigration from some regions where applicants cannot be safely processed or vetted due to a lack of government records. Pledging to keep Islamic terrorists the hell out of our country, Trump said the attack on Pulse Nightclub in Orlando was the worst mass shooting in American history and the deadliest assault on the LGBTQ community in American history. We have seen Islamic terror attacks from Paris to Belgium to San Bernardino. One after other, again and again. We are going to stop it. Let me state this as clearly as I can: I am going to keep radical Islamic terrorists the hell out of our country, Trump said. Trump also thanked the large Cuban community in Florida. America will also stand with the Cuban people in their long struggle for freedom. And I want to appreciate -- I tell you what, their support has been unbelievable, he said. The Cuban people -- we know what we have to do and we will do it so do not worry about it. The numbers -- the numbers have been incredible. In fact, they gave me just prior to the election, the Bay of Pigs award and, that was a great honour for me, Trump said, referring to the endorsement he received from Miami- based veterans who fought in the Bay of Pigs invasion in October, the first such endorsement from the group in its more than 50-year history. Escalating his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi on Saturday trashed demonetisation of high value currency notes as a Modi-made disaster and charged that he had attacked the economic system of the country to benefit the one per cent super rich. For the first time in the history of India, the prime minister has attacked the poor people of this country. Usually the PM works for the country. They work for the economy, but Narendra Modi has attacked our economic system, Gandhi alleged at a Congress rally in north Karnataka. As it is said a man-made disaster, in the same way demonetisation is Modi-made disaster, the Congress vice-president said as he targeted the prime minister squarely blaming him for the hardships post-demonetisation. More than 100 people had died, he claimed, adding, Fidel Castro (Cuban revolutionary) was remembered in the Parliament and we stood in silence for two minutes as a mark of respect to him, but Bharatiya Janata Party leaders did not have two minutes time for these hundred people. Who is responsible for their deaths? Narendra Modi is responsible... In the last two- and-a-half year Narendra Modi government has been attacking the poor, he said. Accusing the Modi government of trying to divide India, he said on the one side, there were one per cent super rich who have private aircraft, flashy vehicles and big businesses and on the other, there were 99 per cent of people who are honest like farmers, labourers, small traders and middle class who toil every day for the sake of the country and their lives. In the last two-and-a- half year, one per cent super rich in this country have amassed 70 per cent of Indias wealth and if you look deep into this one per cent, only 50 families have major portion of Indias wealth. You know their names; these are the people who travel with Narendra Modi to America, Japan, and Australia, Gandhi said. Congress wants to get rid of corruption from India and whatever step the BJP government takes whether it is big or small if it is against corruption we will give it full support, he said. Asserting that demonetisation was not against the rich but against the poor, middle class, farmers, labourers and small traders, Gandhi said all black money is not cash, and all cash is not black money. Who has black money, it is with those 50 families, and it is with one per cent super rich in this country, he said. All the black money is not in cash, Indias thieves are clever, and as soon as they get money they invest it in land, real estate, gold or in foreign bank accounts like Swiss bank. According to government figures, he said six per cent of black money is in cash, 94 per cent in real estate, big buildings and in foreign bank accounts. Claiming that the Swiss government had given a list of Swiss bank account holders names to Indian government, he said the Congress had been asking the government to table the names of these thieves in the Parliament for the last two and half years. Why is it not being tabled? Why is Modi protecting them? Why are Lalit Modi and Vijay Mallya sitting in London? Why are they not in India? Why didnt you get them back? Vijay Mallya is Indias thief. After demonetisation, why did you waive Rs 1200 crore loan of this man? Answer me why did you feed him a toffee of Rs 1200 crore? Gandhi said Modi knows that most part of black money is in Swiss bank, real estate and in huge buildings, but I dont know for what reason instead of going after 94 per cent black money, he is after the six per cent. Instead of going after one per cent super rich he is behind 99 per cent. He is not after thieves, but behind poor farmers, labourers, Gandhi said. Narendra Modi lies, he has lied to us. He had assured of fighting against black money, but he did not. The whole country is questioning him, Gandhi said. When we asked him when he will act against corruption, he scripted a new drama. The super event manager scripted a new drama -- surgical strike on black money and corruption. Modiji this was not a surgical strike on corruption, but fire bombing on Indias poor and farmers, Gandhi said. Claiming that 50 families and one per cent super rich in the country had taken Rs eight lakh crore from the banks, he said it is these people who have made Modi, they have made him PM and sit on that that seat. It is from their money Modi fought elections and did his marketing. Modi cant get back eight lakh crore rupees money from them and banks are on the verge of closure and not in a position to give loan. So Modi thought of an option of running banks with the help of poor peoples money, thats the reason he has made you to put your money in banks. Gandhi said Modi had assured that the situation will get to normal in 50 days, but listen to me and take down in writing from that nothing will happen in 50 days. Your money will get stuck in banks for another four to five months and you will see Indias economy stumbling. You will also see that in two to three months using these poor peoples money eight lakh crore loan of these 50 super rich family will be waived. Attacking Modi on cashless economy, Gandhi said it is a step to ensure that money in the form of commission goes to those 50 super rich families. Narendra Modi you cannot shy away, you will have to answer the country and Congress will ensure that you answer. Alleging that BJP had either deposited old notes into banks or invested in land ahead of demonetisation, he said in September Rs six lakh crore was deposited into banks, this quantum of deposit had never happened in the past. It was the money of Narendra Modi and BJPs friends. We will tell this truth to people of the country. We will ensure that this suit boot government for one per cent super rich is removed from Delhi, Gandhi said. Speaking about him along with Mallikarjun Kharge and other Congress leaders meeting Prime Minister on the farm loan waiver issue, Gandhi said Kharge while explaining the plight of Karnatakas farmers and drought situation told Modi that the states chief minister wanted to meet him. Narendra Modi did not utter a word in response, he just saw and smiled and did not respond to Kharge. This is the truth. Siddaramaiah is your elected chief minister, Modi didnt have time for him, he didnt have time for Karnatakas voice, its farmers, Gandhi said. Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday called on Dravida Munnetra Kazagham patriarch Karunanidhi, who is undergoing treatment for lung and throat infection at a private hospital in Chennai, and said the leader was doing well. I just met him, I wanted to personally wish him a speedy recovery. I was very happy to see that he is doing well and the doctors told me that he is going to go home pretty soon and that is good news, he told reporters. Flanked by senior party leaders including Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president Su Thirunavukkarasar and DMK treasurer M K Stalin, he hailed Karuananidhi as a leader of the Tamil people, leader of Tamil Nadu, so I thought I would come and wish him personally. To a query, he said, Yes I met him (Karunanidhi), I said hello to him and he is doing well hopefully he will be out (of the hospital) soon and Congress president (Sonia Gandhi) has also sent her regards to him. Karunanidhi, 92, was admitted to Kauvery Hospital on the night of December 15 following complaints of difficulty in breathing due to throat and lung infection. On Friday, he underwent tracheostomy at the hospital to optimise breathing and later the hospital said the DMK chiefs condition was stable. On Friday night, after the tracheostomy procedure, his condition improved and even he watched a Rajinikanth starrer Batcha on his laptop. This is the first visit that Rahul Gandhi is paying a visit to Karunanidhi in last many years. Even during his several previous visits to Tamil Nadu, Gandhi did not call on the nonagenarian leader though Congress and DMK are allies. Weeks ago, when he had visited Apollo Hospitals to enquire about the health of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, there were expectations in the DMK camp that he could pay a visit to party patriarch Karunanidhi as well. However, he did not visit the DMK chief then. Photograph: ANI/Twitter The fire is learnt to have broken out at 3 am. The cylinder blast is supposed to have taken place in one of the shanties. Shanties in Kolkata that were gutted in the fire. By Manogya Loiwal : Two people from the same family were killed and at least 20 shanties gutted in a fire that broke out in early hours today in Patipukur Rail Colony after a gas cylinder blast in Kolkata. The blast took place in one of the shanties. The shanties have been completely gutted in the fire at the railway colony in east Kolkata. The fire is learnt to have broken out at 3 am. As many as 16 fire tenders were rushed to douse the blaze. Kolkata: Two dead, more than 12 shanties gutted in fire that broke out in early morning hours in Patipukur after a cylinder blast. pic.twitter.com/gKWwRbDFmF ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016 advertisement Those injured have been rushed to a nearby hospital. The fire has now been put out. --- ENDS --- A planned auction offering a 45-minute coffee meeting with United States president-elect Donald Trumps daughter Ivanka in exchange for a donation was cancelled after it raised ethical questions as it appeared to offer bidders special access to the incoming first family. The auction, offering coffee with the next first daughter during a 45-minute private meeting, had been running for 10 days and had drawn 28 bids, the highest of which had reached $72,888 (Rs 49 lakh). The bidders included at least three businessmen who said in interviews that they saw their donation as an opportunity to have coffee with Trump to press her for information about her fathers plans as president or to try to urge (him) Trump to take up an issue important to them, a report in the New York Times said. However, the auction was cancelled and all information on the amounts and names of the bidders disappeared from the internet. The Trump Organisation said in a statement that the Trump family had waited to decide what to do about the auction until our team was aligned on steps moving forward. We wanted to handle this with proper discretion once this was brought to our attention, said the statement. Richard Painter, who served as an ethics lawyer for former president George Bush, said that Ivanka should not have been soliciting charitable donations from the public in exchange for special access, given the prominent role she has played in the transition effort and the prospect that she may serve as an informal adviser to her fathers administration with an office in the White House. The NYT report added that the money raised was set to go to the Eric Trump Foundation, run by Ivankas younger brother, to benefit St Jude Childrens Research Hospital in Tennessee. Eric Trump issued a statement, expressing regret that the charity effort had to be called off. Today, the only people that lost are the children of St Jude, his statement said. Painter said if Ivanka is going to be in the government and a power behind the throne she should observe the same ethics restrictions that other White House employees face. She had planned to have her coffee with the winning bidder either at Trump Tower in New York or the Trump International Hotel in Washington. But still this would have been inappropriate given the role that she is playing in setting up the new administration, Painter added. He said the first family should cease all such fund-raising, no matter how noble the cause, or they could find themselves facing the same allegations that Hillary Clinton did over the Clinton Foundation. Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images The United States has asked China to "immediately" return its unmanned naval probe in international waters in the South China Sea which it alleged has been "unlawfully" seized by them. "Using appropriate government-to-government channels, the Department of Defense has called upon China to immediately return an unmanned underwater vehicle that China unlawfully seized on December 15 in the South China Sea while it was being recovered by a US Navy oceanographic survey ship," Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook said. The USNS Bowditch (T-AGS 62) and the UUV -- an unclassified "ocean glider" system used around the world to gather military oceanographic data such as salinity, water temperature, and sound speed -- were conducting routine operations in accordance with international law about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, Philippines, when a Chinese Navy PRC DALANG III-Class ship (ASR-510) launched a small boat and retrieved the UUV, he said. "Bowditch made contact with the PRC Navy ship via bridge-to-bridge radio to request the return of the UUV. The radio contact was acknowledged by the PRC Navy ship, but the request was ignored," he said. "The UUV is a sovereign immune vessel of the US. We call upon China to return our UUV immediately, and to comply with all of its obligations under international law," Cook demanded. Senator Ben Cardin, Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said that China's seizure of an US Navy unmanned scientific research submersible in international waters off the South China Sea is a remarkably brazen violation of international law. "No matter its motivation, China needs to explain its actions and immediately return the undersea drone, untampered with, to the United States," he said. "China's increasingly aggressive behaviour in the South China Sea -- including the militarisation of the artificial features that it has built in the region, in direct contradiction of a pledge made by President Xi Jinping not to do so -- is deeply disturbing, and not consistent with the actions of a nation seeking to build a constructive and cooperative relationship with the United States," Cardin said. "The United States has a deep and abiding interest in freedom of navigation and the free-flow of commerce in the Asia-Pacific region, and a stead-fast commitment to our regional allies and partners in maintaining stability, security and the rule of law, including safe passage in international waters," Cardin said. The incident comes amid rising tensions in the South China Sea due to Beijing's military presence in the disputed area. The underwater probe was taken around 50 nautical miles (90 kilometers) northwest off Subic Bay in the Philippines on Thursday afternoon in a non-violent incident, Pentagon spokesman Navy Captain Jeff Davis said. The event unfolded as the civilian-crewed USNS Bowditch was retrieving a pair of "naval gliders" that routinely collect information on water temperatures, salinity and sea clarity. A Chinese submarine rescue ship then stopped within 500 yards (meters) of the Bowditch and snatched one of the probes. The Americans safely hoisted the other one back onto their ship. Davis said he could not recall another time when something like this has happened. The US personnel "were asking over bridge-to-bridge radio to please leave it there," Davis said. Other than a brief acknowledgment that it had received the message, the Chinese ship did not respond. "The only thing they said after they were sailing off into the distance was: 'We are returning to normal operations,'" Davis said. "It is ours. It is clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again," Davis said. A US Navy bouancy glider similar to one seized by Chinese forces. US Navy Photo The United States is stronger and more prosperous than it was eight years ago, US President Barack Obama has said, attributing it to a series of steps taken by him during his two four-year terms. IMAGE: US President Barack Obama waves as he leaves the podium after speaking to journalists during his last news conference of the year at the White House in Washington, US. Photograph: Carlos Barria/Reuters "Almost every country on Earth sees America as stronger and more respected today than they did eight years ago. In other words, by so many measures our country is stronger and more prosperous than it was when we started. It is a situation that I'm proud to leave for my successor," Obama told White House reporters during his last yearender press conference. On foreign policy, Obama said when he came into office when the US was in the midst of two wars. "Now nearly 180,000 troops are down to 15,000. Bin Laden, rather than being at large, has been taken off the battlefield, along with thousands of other terrorists," he said. "Over the past eight years no foreign terrorist organisation has successfully executed an attack on our homeland that was directed from overseas. Through diplomacy, we have ensured Iran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon without going to war with Iran," Obama said. "We opened up a new chapter with the people of Cuba. And we have brought nearly 200 nations together around a climate agreement that could very well save this planet for our kids," he added. Recollecting January 2009 when he became the 44th President of the United States, Obama said unemployment rate was on its way to 10 per cent. Today it is at 4.6 percent, the lowest in nearly a decade, Obama stated. "We've seen the longest streak of job growth on record, and wages have grown faster over the past few years than at any time in the past 40," he said. "When I came into office, 44 million people were uninsured. Today we have covered more than 20 million of them. For the first time in our history, more than 90 per cent of Americans are insured. In fact, yesterday was the biggest day ever for healthcare, more than 670,000 Americans signed up to get covered, and more are signing up by the day," Obama said. "We've cut our dependence on foreign oil by more than half, doubled production of renewable energy, enacted the most sweeping reforms since FDR to protect consumers and prevent a crisis on Wall Street from punishing main street ever again. None of these actions stifled growth as critics are predicted. Instead, the stock market has nearly tripled," he said. Obama highlighted that since he signed Obamacare into law, US businesses have added more than 15 million new jobs, and the economy has undoubtedly become more durable than it was in the days when the US relied on oil from "unstable nations" and banks took risky bets with American people's money. Last year the poverty rate fell at the fastest rate in almost 50 years, while the median household income grew at the fastest rate on record, he said. "In fact, income gains were actually larger for households at the bottom and the middle than for those at the top. And we have done all this while cutting our deficits by nearly two-thirds, and protecting vital investments that grow the middle class," said the US President. Obama said after he leaves office he intends to continue to work with organisations and citizens doing good across the country on these and other pressing issues to build on the progress that the country has made. IMAGE: People watch Obama on a large screen inside the Newseum as he participates in his last news conference of the year in Washington, US. Photograph: Kevin Coombs/Reuters 'Russia behind cyberattacks during polls' President Obama alleged that Russia possibly under President Vladimir Putin's directions carried out cyberattacks during the US polls, as he urged his successor Donald Trump to ensure that the American election process is not under potential "foreign influence". "What I can tell you is that the intelligence that I've seen gives me great confidence in their assessment that the Russians carried out this hack. Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin," Obama told media persons, indicating Putin's involvement. "They hacked into some Democratic Party e-mails that contained pretty routine stuff, some of it embarrassing or uncomfortable because I suspect that if any of us got our emails hacked into there might be some things that we would not want suddenly appearing on the front page of a newspaper or a telecast, even if there was not anything particularly illegal or controversial about it," he said. A worried Obama also lashed out at Russia for its alleged effort to influence the US election, saying the country does not produce anything and lacks innovation. "We've got to think what is happening to our political culture here. The Russians can't change us or significantly weaken us. They are a smaller country, they are a weaker country, their economy doesn't produce anything that anybody wants to buy except oil and gas and arms. They don't innovate," Obama said. Obama assured Americans that the ballot itself was not rigged and promised to "send a clear message to Russia or others not to do this to us, because we can do stuff to you." "But they can impact us if we lose track of who we are. They can impact us if we abandon our values. Putin can weaken us just like he's trying to weaken Europe if we start buying into notions that it's OK to intimidate the press, or lock up dissidents, or discriminate against people because of their faith or what they look like," he said. Terming it a "pretty hierarchical operation", Obama said there was not a lot of debate and democratic deliberation, particularly when it comes to policies directed at the US. "We have said and I will confirm that this happened at the highest levels of the Russian government and I will let you make that determination as to whether there are high-level Russian officials who go off rogue and decide to tamper with the US election process without Vladimir Putin knowing about it," he said. Obama said he had raised the issue when he met Putin recently in China. Obama also hoped his successor Donald Trump will show equal concern to ensure that the American election process is not under a potential "foreign influence". "My hope is that the president-elect is going to similarly be concerned with making sure that we don't have a potential foreign influence in our election process. I don't think any American wants that. And that shouldn't be a source of an argument," Obama said. The US President also called for bipartisan unity on the issue. Many in the BJP believe that postponing the UP elections even by a month will allow the negative perception against demonetisation to dissipate. Archis Mohan reports. The Election Commission of India is set to announce the schedule for assembly polls in five states, including Uttar Pradesh, by the first week of January. The elections are likely to be in February-March. But the disquiet within the Bharatiya Janata Party that the 'note ban' is likely to negatively impact its chances in Uttar Pradesh has awakened the Narendra Modi government to the possibility that elections to the key state could be staggered to later in the year. Apart from UP, the other four states slated to go to polls are Goa, Manipur, Punjab and Uttarakhand. UP aside, the terms of the current assemblies of the rest of the four states expire from mid to end March. The term of the UP assembly ends in May-end. This offers the possibility that elections to the UP assembly, the largest in terms of the number of seats in the country, could be postponed. Elections to the UP assembly are usually held in seven phases. Determining the poll schedule is the purview of ECI, a Constitutional authority, and it cannot be dictated to in this by the government. Apart from the date of expiry of the terms of assemblies, other factors that the ECI takes into account while determining poll dates are weather conditions, school board exam schedules and the law and order situation in poll-bound states. Crucially, the ECI needs to rely on the Union government for the availability of central paramilitary forces to be deployed in poll-bound states. In 2012, elections to the UP assembly were held in February-March. The government was constituted on March 8, but the first sitting of the assembly took place on May 28. This was also the case in 2002 and 2007 when the governments were constituted in mid-March, but the first sitting of the assembly was held in mid-May. According to sources, many in the BJP are of the view that it could suit the party if the elections to UP assembly could be postponed, even by a month, to allow the negative perception against demonetisation to dissipate, and give the Modi government more time to change the discourse by announcing schemes for the poor and farmers. The ECI, however, has already written to five states to schedule the dates of the school board examinations, usually held in February-March, in consultation with the poll panel. The Union government cannot declare any new schemes for poll-bound states after the ECI announces poll dates and coming in force of the model code of conduct. The only exception to this is the Union Budget as it is a Constitutional exercise. The Budget is slated to be presented on February 1. Pakistan has said it would not accept any modifications or changes in the Indus Waters Treaty after India strongly pitched for bilateral redressal of differences with it while implementing the 56-year-old accord. Pakistan will not accept any modifications or changes to the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty. Our position is based on the principles enshrined in the treaty. And the treaty must be honoured in... letter and spirit, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi told Dawn News. His remarks came after India strongly pitched for bilateral redressal of differences with Pakistan while implementing the Indus Waters Treaty. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup had said on Thursday that given the will, there is no reason why the technical design parameters on which Pakistan has raised objections cannot be sorted out by experts from both sides on projects like Kishenganga. India believes that these consultations should be given adequate time, Swarup had said. However, Dawn reported that Indias request for more time alarmed Pakistan. Islamabad argued that India used the same strategy on previous occasions, completing a project during the dispute and then insisting that since the project was already complete, it could not be modified, the report said. The treaty, signed in 1960, gives India control over the three eastern rivers of the Indus basin -- the Beas, Ravi and Sutlej -- while Pakistan has the three western rivers -- the Indus, Chenab and Jhelum. The IWT also sets up a mechanism, the Permanent Indus Commission, which includes a commissioner from each country. The current dispute revolves around the Kishenganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric plants. India is building the plants on the Kishanganga and Chenab rivers, which Pakistan claims violates the IWT. Tensions over the water dispute increased late last month when Prime Minister Narendra Modi threatened to block the flow of waters into Pakistan, the daily said. Both sides had already completed the process proposed in the IWT and approached the World Bank only after the commission declared it a dispute as required, experts were quoted as saying. Dragging it through an already exhausted process will not help, an expert said. Pakistan was seeking a court of arbitration because only the proposed court had the authority to consider both legal and technical aspects of the dispute. A neutral expert could only consider the technical aspects, the daily said. Pakistan argues that the designs of the two Indian projects violate both legal and technical provisions of the treaty. India, however, has opposed Pakistans efforts for setting up a court of arbitration. Earlier this week, the World Bank announced pausing of the two separate processes initiated under the IWT to allow the two countries to consider alternative ways to resolve their disagreements. RJD president Lalu Prasad Yadav has likened demonetisation with forced vasectomy drive during emergency imposed in 1970s under former prime minister Indira Gandhi. By Rohit Kumar Singh: Addressing his party leaders for the first time since demonetisation was announced, RJD president Lalu Prasad Yadav has likened Notebandi with Nasbandi during national emergency in 1970s. Lalu Prasad said, "Notebandi Ka Wahi Haal Hoga Jo Congress Ka Nasbandi Ka Hua (Note ban will meet the same fate as forced vasectomy drive)." Calling demonetisation a failure, Lalu Prasad warned of a big protest against the unpopular move of the Narendra Modi government. advertisement READ| Lalu Prasad slams Modi over note ban, says PM is treating country as a football LALU CLAIMS JDU'S SUPPORT "It is a failure. 50 days are getting over after which JDU and RJD will launch a massive protest against demonetisation," Lalu Prasad said. The RJD president's claim of launching a joint protest against demonetisation is in sharp contrast with the stand taken by JDU president and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Nitish Kumar has publicly come out in support of demonetisation, hailing it as a right step in rooting out black money from the country. The two coalition partners have also collided on a couple of occasions on the matter with leaders from respective parties criticising one another over demonetisation. QUESTIONS PM MODI ON BLACK MONEY Lalu Prasad also hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his promise made during Lok Sabha polls of bringing back black money stashed abroad. "Black money has not come back and Rs 15 lakh, which Narendra Modi promised, has not been deposited in anyone's bank account," Lalu Prasad said. WATCH VIDEO MEET TO DECIDE COUNTER-STRATEGY Speaking about the strategy to counter demonetisation, the RJD supremo said, "I have called an economist to discuss the implications of demonetisation. After the meeting, we will chalk out future action plan of the RJD on demonetisation." Lalu Prasad had been lying low ever since demonetisation was announced on November 8. He convened a meeting of RJD MPs, MLAs and MLCs to deliberate on the issue of demonetisation. Lalu Prasad has been opposing the Centre's push for a cashless economy after demonetisation. --- ENDS --- By Rohit Kumar Singh: Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, who has been lying low ever since demonetization that was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 8, finally has decided to come out in the open now and oppose the Centre's move. Lalu has convened a meeting of his party MPs, MLAs and MLCs on the issue of demonetisation today and likely to announce his next course of action on the issue. advertisement The RJD chief, who for over month has been keeping away from media glare, has been active on social media to launch scathing attack on PM Modi's demonetisation. Lalu has been strongly opposing the demonetisation exercise as well as the Centre's push for a cashless economy. What has been very startling has been the difference of opinion between the JDU and RJD on the demonetisation. While Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has openly supported demonetisation, Lalu has been vehemently opposing it. RJD BACKED BHARAT BANDH In fact, the JDU did not participate in the Bharat bandh call given by the opposition on November 28 against demonetisation while RJD and Congress supported it. The RJD supremo will announce his party's plans to intensify agitation across the state to oppose the Modi government's on move during the meeting. The former Bihar Chief Minister will also be taking feedback from his party parliamentarians and legislators on how people have been reacting to demonetisation on the ground. Also read: Lalu Prasad Yadav extends support to Indian Army but not Rahul Gandhi Deputy CM Tejaswi Yadav, Health Minister Tej Pratap Yadav and former Bihar CM Rabri Devi will also participate in the meeting. --- ENDS --- Dan Conway, Don Lipps discuss challenges at MSD of Martinsville For the Metropolitan School District of Martinsville, there are two open seats for the school board in Tuesday's election. ELBRIDGE Throughout 2017, anyone who purchase gas at the new Fastrac Cafe location in Elbridge will make a donation to the Jordan-Elbridge Central School District. Through an initiative that Jim Allen, vice president of marketing, said is beginning with the company's newest store which opened to the public Friday after a three-month construction process Fastrac will donate a penny from every gallon of gas sold on Wednesdays to the school district. Before the gas station and convenience store located at 110-112 W. Main St., Elbridge, even sold its first gallon of gas, Allen and other Fastrac officials gathered to present a $5,000 to Jordan-Elbridge Superintendent James Froio through its charity, Fastrac Cares. Allen said the check was a way for the company to pay it forward to the school district and the community before it begins giving a portion of its gas sales to the district. "We'll tally it all up at the end of 2017 for every gallon we sell on Wednesday, and if we end up having to write another check, that'd be great," he said. "What a better way to come to Elbridge." Along with the check presentation, Fastrac hosted a reception at the store Friday morning for company officials and vendor representatives. According to a sign on the front door, the store officially to the public at 5 p.m. that evening. "We're extremely happy to be here in Elbridge," Allen said. "We put a lot of time and planning into this. To get it open before the holidays is great. We're excited to be here, and we really look forward to it." With Fastrac stores in Camillus and Auburn, the Elbridge location marks the company's third along a stretch of Route 5 between Auburn and Syracuse. Allen said the company looks at different metrics when deciding where to place its stores. Along with a Byrne Dairy on the west end of the town of Elbridge and the Corner Quick Stop across the street, the new Fastrac also makes the third gas station in the Elbridge community. "We just felt like it's a nice, small community, good traffic, and we just felt like we could fill a need," he said. "It met our criteria, so here we are." From village Planning Board approval in midsummer to construction that broke ground in September, Allen said the process to build the new Fastrac went smoothly. Dennis Pelmear, the village planning board chairman, expressed support for the project when talking to the village board about its approval in July, and Mayor Hank Doerr also gave his thumbs-up following the board's September meeting. Allen said that kind of positivity from community leaders means a lot to the company. "That's what makes it nice when you come to a community like Elbridge to have people on your side and working with you versus working against you," he said. "We didn't have a lot of red tape. It just makes the process go a lot smoother." Allen said Fastrac felt like it could help build the tax base in the community and at the same time put up a nice facility in place of what had been an eyesore left over from a previous gas station and car dealership on the property. During the reception, a few people stopped in the store thinking it was already open. Allen called it "the fun days" when the company gets to see that kind of anticipation for one of its stores. "There's a lot of time and effort from a lot of people to build one of these stores and get it open, but it's when you actually get a chance to see the public come in," he said. "They drive by it for months and say, 'When's it going to come?' Then it finally comes." Froio said the donation will go toward installing an indoor playground in Jordan-Elbridge Middle School for the district's pre-kindergarten program for which it received state funding to expand to 3 year olds starting next year. "They're going to do well in this location," Froio said. "For them to reach out and support the school this way I think is terrific, and it really shows their dedication to being a community partner, more than just establishing a business but partnering with the community and the school district in a way to help kids." Lalu Prasad Yadav, in an exclusive interview to India Today, slammed Prime Minister Modi over demonetisation and called it 'an organised scam'. He said that people from whom black money is being recovered now are associated with the BJP. alu Prasad said "notebandi" will prove the same for PM Modi which "nasbandi" proved to be for the Congress. By Rohit Kumar Singh: RJD chief Lalu Prasad today slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's demonetisation move terming it an organized scam and a failure. Speaking exclusively to India Today, Lalu Prasad said "notebandi" will prove the same for PM Modi which "nasbandi" proved to be for the Congress in the 70's when the Congress government fell over the issue. Lalu alleged that the money which was being recovered from across the country had links with the BJP. Lalu said after the end of the 50 days, PM Modi will have to give account to the people of the country on the issue. advertisement "The money that is now being recovered from various places is black money. The persons from whom these huge cash is being recovered are associated with the BJP. So many businessman have run out of the country after pocketing several crores from banks, what has PM Modi done to bring that money back? Demonetisation has completely flopped", said Lalu Prasad. ALSO READ | Lalu Prasad on demonetisation: Modi's Notebandi will meet same fate as Congress' Nasbandi 'MODI RUNNING THE GOVERNMENT IN AN AUTOCRATIC MANNER' Drawing similarities between "notebandi" and "nasbandi", the RJD chief said that the manner in which "nasbandi" resulted in falling to the Congress government in the 70s, similarly "notebandi" will result in the defeat of PM Modi in elections. "What happened to Congress during 70s with nasbandi, similar is going to happen with Modi with notebandi. The impact of demonetisation will be long and things are not going to get better from here on. Demonetisation is an organized scam, big fishes are involved in this", said the RJD chief. Lalu Prasad said PM Modi was running the government in an autocratic manner and was proving to be a threat to the country. READ| Lalu Prasad slams Modi over note ban, says PM is treating country as a football LALU WILL START STATE-WIDE PROTEST FROM DEC 28 Lalu also announced he would be starting a state-wide protest against demonetisation from December 28. "PM Modi is a threat to democracy and he has moved towards dictatorship. Demonetisation has failed. We are going to start a protest with sit-in dharna on December 28. I will contact all national and regional leaders of the country to come on a common platform over demonetisation", Lalu said. WATCH THE VIDEO HERE: NO THREAT TO MAHAGATHBANDHAN, NITISH NOT MOVING TOWARDS BJP: LALU advertisement Lalu also dispelled a threat to the Mahagathbandhan government in Bihar following Bihar CM Nitish Kumar extending support to PM Modi over demonetisation. He dismissed rumours that Nitish extending support to PM Modi meant that he was inclining towards the BJP. "There is no problem with Mahagathbandhan despite Nitish supporting PM Modi on demonetisation. Nitish Kumar is with the woes of the common man. There is no threat to the Bihar government," he said. "Will I cut the branch of the tree on which I am sitting? It is incorrect to say that Nitish is moving towards BJP. Do people think that Nitish is a fool that he will go to BJP?", Lalu Prasad said. ALSO READ | Nitish can go back to NDA post-demonetisation, says RJD leader; JD(U) demands his expulsion --- ENDS --- Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army soldiers patrol a road in eastern Myanmar's Shan State in an undated photo. The Myanmar military and the Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army engaged in a sudden and unexpected skirmish on Friday near the state capital Taunggyi, the Shan state government said. The fighting occurred at around seven oclock in the morning along the border of Taunggyi and Hopone, said Shan state government spokesman Soe Nyunt Lwin, adding that there were no casualties or injuries. It is over now, he said. It was not a planned fight. The skirmish comes as a coalition of four other armed ethnic groups is engaged in hostilities with Myanmars armed forces in the war-torn state. The Northern Alliance, which includes the Arakan Army (AA), Kachin Independence Army (KIA), Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), and Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA), launched coordinated attacks on 10 government and military targets in the Muse township villages of Mong Ko and Pang Zai, the 105-mile border trade zone between Myanmar and China, and areas of Namhkam and Kutkai townships, on Nov. 20. The attacks triggered a new round of intensified fighting with government troops, which has displaced thousands of residents. Another clash between Myanmars army and a Northern Alliance member occurred Friday when government forces attacked KIA battalion 252s post by air and some KIA areas near Battalion 4, said Colonel Nawli from the KIA. The government army opened fire last night around midnight, and it struck by air this morning, he said. Some civilians were killed during the fighting, but the KIA did not have a figure. Rumors that government troops had seized the KIAs main outpost have not been confirmed, according to the conflict resolution team of the Kachin independence Organization (KIO), the KIAs political wing. Forced recruitment Meanwhile, hundreds of civilians in Kyaukme township have fled their homes as TNLA troops have stepped up its forced recruitment in the area, the Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN) reported on Friday. Villagers from Pang Kwan had been abandoning their homes since Dec. 11, a day after 24 men from the village were arrested and detained by TNLA soldiers, the report said, citing Sai Tun Ngan, a Kyaukme lawmaker from the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD) party. Myanmars Peace Commission has offered to hold another round of peace talks with the Northern Alliance on Dec. 18-19 in neighboring China, and has called on the United Wa State Army (UWSA) to participate as a witness. Colonel Ta Phone Kyaw from the TNLA said both groups are still discussing the meeting date, time, and place. We are talking about meeting informally first and discussing how to meet, he said. We have requested to meet the four groups together, and we want the UWSA with us as witness. The Peace Commission arranged to meet with each group separately in November, but the effort fell apart because the Northern Alliance wanted all four armed militias to be present. Commission secretary Khin Zaw Oo said at a press conference in the commercial capital Yangon earlier this month that the government body wanted to meet with each group separately because the militias all have different interests. As of Dec. 1, more than 10 civilians had been killed, 40 had been injured, and more than 3,000 people had sought refuge across the border in China, according to SHAN. Reported by Htet Arkar and Kyaw Myo Min for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khet Mar. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin. The Pentagon says it has "secured an understanding" with Beijing that it will return a U.S. Navy underwater drone seized in the South China Sea. The seizure of the submersible on December 16 sparked a row between Washington and Beijing that drew in U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who said China stole the craft and can keep it. The United States said the unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) was being used to carry out scientific research in international waters near the Philippines when it was seized. Washington said it issued a formal diplomatic complaint, demanded its immediate return, and warned China not to repeat such a move in the future. But Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said later on December 17 that China agreed to return the drone. "Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States," Cook said. The Chinese Defense Ministry said the craft, which it said was retrieved and examined to maintain the safety of passing vessels, would be returned in an "appropriate manner," without saying when this might happen. The ministry also accused the United States of "hyping up" the incident, calling its response "inappropriate and unhelpful." The United States has "frequently" sent its vessels and aircrafts into the region, it added, urging such activities to stop. Meanwhile, Trump slammed the Chinese Navy's capture of the drone. "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters -- rips it out of water and takes it to China in [unprecedented] act," Trump said in a message on Twitter on December 17. "We should tell China that we don't want the drone they stole back -- let them keep it!" the president-elect said in a follow-up message. Senator Ben Cardin, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called the seizure "a remarkably brazen violation of international law." Senior Republican Senator John McCain said the United States should not tolerate "such outrageous conduct," which he said will "continue until it is met with a strong and determined U.S. response." The dispute has frayed already tense relations between Washington and Beijing at a time when China has been building up its military maritime outposts in the South China Sea. China claims that most of the South China Sea is its own territorial waters -- a position that has led to maritime territorial disputes with Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Indonesia. Trump had already angered China by speaking on the phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen on December 2, breaking a long-standing U.S. practice on the China-Taiwan dispute. Trump also has said he does not feel "bound by a one-China policy" regarding the status of Taiwan, unless the United States gains trade or other benefits from Beijing. With reporting by Reuters, AP, AFP, Bloomberg and the BBC Ukrainian forces are facing Russian attacks in multiple locations, where heavy shelling and air strikes damaged infrastructure as Moscow stepped up its offensive, the Ukrainian military said on November 3. Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here. The Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine was again disconnected from the power grid after shelling damaged the remaining high voltage lines, leaving it with just diesel generators, Ukraine's nuclear firm Enerhoatom said. Enerhoatom said it believes Russia will soon try to repair and connect Europe's largest nuclear station toward the Russia-occupied Crimea and Donbas regions. The General Staff of the Ukrainian armed forces said in its November 3 briefing that heavy fighting was under way in the east, with Russian troops conducting offensive operations in the Bakhmut, Avdiyivka, and Novopavlivka areas of the Donetsk region. Russia launched attacks on 12 settlements in Donetsk and the neighboring Luhansk region. Ukrainian forces repelled the attacks, the military said. In Luhansk, the Ukrainian military accused Russian forces are using civilians as human shields. The claim could not be independently confirmed. Russian strikes were also reported in the central area of Kryviy Rih and in the northeast in Sumy and Kharkiv. "The enemy is trying to keep the temporarily captured territories, concentrating its efforts on restraining the actions of the defense forces in certain areas," Ukraine's military said. Russia has targeted Ukrainian civilian and energy infrastructure in recent weeks, prompting power and water outages and causing casualties among civilians. Russia keeps denying targeting civilians, though the conflict has killed thousands, displaced millions, and razed some Ukrainian cities to the ground. In the south, Ukraine's counteroffensive has left Russian forces fighting to hold their ground around the city of Kherson, on the right bank of the Dnieper River. Moscow-installed authorities are urging residents to evacuate, the Ukrainian military said. Residents of the town of Nova Zburiyvka had been given three days to leave and were told that evacuation would be obligatory from November 5, it said. Russian authorities have repeatedly said Ukraine could be preparing to attack the massive Kakhovka dam on the Dnieper and flood the region. Kyiv denies that. Russia and Ukraine will each hand over 107 captured fighters on November 3 in the latest prisoner exchange between the two sides, Denis Pushilin, the Moscow-installed administrator of Russian-controlled parts of Ukraine's Donetsk region, said in a post on his Telegram channel. He said 65 of those released by Ukraine will be separatist fighters from Donetsk and Luhansk. Seven ships carrying agricultural products left Ukrainian Black Sea ports on November 3, a day after the resumption of a grain deal aimed at delivering Ukrainian food to foreign markets, the Infrastructure Ministry said. The vessels were loaded with 290,000 tons of food products and were headed toward European and Asian countries, the ministry said in a statement without elaborating. The British ambassador arrived at the Russian Foreign Ministry in Moscow on November 3, Reuters reported, after she was summoned to discuss Moscow's claims that Britain was involved in a Ukrainian drone strike on Russia's Black Sea Fleet in Crimea. WATCH: RFE/RL asked people in Moscow how they thought the war in Ukraine -- which Russian President Vladimir Putin maintains is a "special military operation" -- is going. Russia's Defense Ministry has said the attack was carried out under the guidance and leadership of British Navy specialists, an assertion Britain has dismissed as false. Meanwhile, two U.S. officials told CBS News on November 2 that senior Russian military leaders discussed last month how and when they might use nuclear weapons on the battlefield in Ukraine. President Vladimir Putin was not involved in the talks, they told CBS News. The White House said it has grown "increasingly concerned" about the potential use of nuclear weapons in the past few months. But it stressed Washington saw no signs of Russia preparing for such use. In September, Putin escalated his nuclear and anti-Western rhetoric, mentioning that Russia could use all means at its disposal to protect itself and the occupied Ukrainian territories. With reporting by Reuters and BBC Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu says 15 people have been taken into custody in connection with a car-bomb attack in the central city of Kayseri that killed 14 Turkish soldiers and wounded 55 other people. Soylu told reporters that the 15 suspects were taken into custody after the identity was confirmed of the suicide bomber who carried out the December 17 attack. Soylu said police were continuing to search for five other suspects. Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said the suicide bomber targeted a bus that was transporting members of a commando brigade that was on weekend leave in Kayseri. The Turkish Army said another 48 soldiers were among the wounded. Soylu said 12 of the wounded were in intensive care and five were in critical condition. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has blamed the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) for the suicide attack, saying in a statement on December 17 that a "separatist terrorist organization" was responsible. Turkish authorities frequently use the term "separatist terrorist organization" to refer to the PKK, which is considered a terrorist group by the United States, Turkey, and the European Union. There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the blast. The state-run Anadolu Agency reported that the explosion took place at the gates of Erciyes University at about 8:45 a.m. local time. Video footage showed the bus was reduced to a smoldering wreck by the blast. Authorities imposed a temporary blackout on coverage of the Kayseri explosion and urged media to refrain from publishing anything that may cause "fear in the public, panic and disorder...which may serve the aims of terrorist organizations." The explosion in Kayseri comes a week after 44 people were killed in a car-bomb attack that struck riot police posted outside a soccer stadium in Istanbul following a match. A hard-line Kurdish militant group, the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK), claimed responsibility for that attack. Deputy Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak said in televised comments that the blast in Kayseri was "unfortunately similar" to the Istanbul attack. Peace talks and a cease-fire between the Turkish government and the PKK collapsed last year, setting off a new round of violence and a crackdown on Kurdish groups. Turkey has seen a spate of deadly bombings in 2016 that have killed dozens. The attacks have been blamed on both Kurdish militants and the Islamic State extremist group. With reporting by AFP, AP, dpa, and Reuters By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 16 (PTI) India, Japan and the US are set to focus on "anti-submarine warfare" by deploying "different machines" during the next round of their marine wargames named the Malabar Exercise, amidst increasing presence of Chinese underwater vessels in the strategic Indian Ocean region. The three countries will come together in the Indian Ocean for the 21st edition of the Malabar exercise - Malabar 2017, aiming for a "bigger" and "more complex" exercise than before. advertisement "We want to (use) different machines especially now that India flies the P8I (Poseidon). We fly the P8A," Commander of the US Seventh Fleet, Vice Admiral Joseph P Aucoin said. "I would like those two aircraft working together and to hunt submarines. So anti-submarine warfare is one area which I think would be very beneficial. So I am looking forward to that in Malabar," he told reporters here. Vice Admiral Aucoin met Indian Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lamba and other senior officers to chalk out the dates and strategy of the exercise, likely to be held after the monsoon. The exercise has assumed significance as it is being held at a time when China has become more assertive, and their submarines forays in the Indian Ocean region have increased. The Chinese are set to monitor the exercise like they did last year when India, US and Japan participated in the exercise together in the Japanese waters off the Pacific. Vice Admiral Aucoin, who spoke on a number of issues, said he was looking forward to the implementation of the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement between India and the US. He said the implementation of LEMOA may take some more time, but hoped that within a couple of years, it would be clear what possibilities are there. The US has shared its "points of contact" - the details of designated officials to whom the US military would have to send its request for logistics support under LEMOA - but India is yet to share the list. Another problem is that common accounting system for the three services also needed to be worked out. The US commander also spoke out against militarisation of the strategic South China Sea region, through which an annual trade of USD 5 billion flows. He termed the situation in the region "dynamic" and asked countries to desist from aggressive land reclamation. He said Indias settling of maritime disputes with Bangladesh should be a "terrific path forward" for other countries. PTI SAP ABH --- ENDS --- advertisement The U.S. Justice Department has cut ties with a fugitive Ukrainian member of parliament who said he had turned over damning evidence proving the corruption of Ukraines president, a spokesman told RFE/RL on December 16. The disclosure confirms for the first time that the department had held talks with the lawmaker. Oleksandr Onyshchenko, the runaway lawmaker, said on December 1 that he had handed FBI agents audio recordings he made of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and members of his inner circle discussing schemes to steal money from state and private companies and buy votes in parliament -- charges the presidents administration vehemently denies. Since then, Onyshchenko has gone on a media blitz, discussing the allegations -- which included a complex scheme to drive down the approval ratings of the former prime minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, to make way for a Poroshenko ally -- contacting Ukrainian and international media as well as RFE/RL. The scandal has caused an uproar in Ukraine, where the public is becoming increasingly frustrated by the slow progress of anticorruption reforms. But despite having met with Onyshchenko, the Justice Department said it would not be contacting him again and gave no indication that it would pursue the allegations. While the Department of Justice does not usually comment on such meetings, in light of Mr. Onyshchenkos decision to speak publicly in this regard, we can state that the U.S. Department of Justice has no plans to have further meetings or communications with Mr. Onyshchenko, Justice Department spokesman Peter Carr told RFE/RL by e-mail without saying when, where, or how many times the department met with him. Carr declined to say what specifically -- if anything -- Onyshchenko had handed over to U.S. law enforcement. As a general matter, Carr explained, the Department of Justice and U.S. law enforcement agents will meet with individuals who claim to have evidence regarding violations of U.S. law. But the mere fact of such a meeting is not an indication that such violations have occurred or that the individuals information is considered to be accurate. Onyshchenko, who fled Ukraine before being stripped of his parliamentary immunity from prosecution last summer, is being investigated by Ukrainian authorities for allegedly stealing $64 million from a state gas producer. Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) has accused Onyshchenko of spying for Russia. Onyshchenko's current whereabouts are unknown, although he has spent much of his time in London since leaving Ukraine. Poroshenkos office, which dismissed Onyshchenkos accusations as the expedient fiction of the suspect in a statement to RFE/RL on December 7, has gone on the offensive and even threatened to sue some journalists who report on the lawmakers claims. By RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan Afghan officials say unknown gunmen shot dead five female airport employees and their driver in the southern city of Kandahar in the morning on December 17. Samim Khpolwak, the spokesman for the provincial governor, told RFE/RL that the women -- civilian employees at the airport -- were on their way to work when at least three gunmen on motorcycles opened fire on them. The attackers fled the area and we have launched an investigation," he said. No one has claimed responsibly for the attack and no arrests have been made, Khpolwak added. Kandahar International Airport Director Ahmadullah Faizi told AFP that the women were employees of a private company that provided luggage and body-search services for female passengers. The women were concerned about their security after receiving death threats from people who disapproved of their careers, Faizi said. The Taliban have claimed responsibility for similar attacks in the past. With reporting by AFP Protesters clashed again with security forces on October 28 in Zahedan, a city in southeastern Iran that has seen weeks of unrest since a wave of demonstrations broke out following the death of a 22-year-old woman detained by the country's morality police. Dozens of people were killed in clashes in Zahedan four weeks ago during anti-government protests, and the Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights said people in Zahedan once again gathered after Friday Prayers on October 28 and chanted against the government. Activists posted videos on social media showing protesters in the city calling for the death of "dictator" Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the Basij militia, which has played a major role in a crackdown on the demonstrations. Iran Human Rights said security forces opened fire and that deaths were reported, including a 12-year-old boy. The U.S.-based Human Rights Activist News Agency (HRANA) said earlier on Twitter that security forces had fired on protesters. The state-run IRNA news agency said "unknown people opened fire," killing one person and wounding 14 others, including security forces. It was not possible to verify the claims or the authenticity of the videos. Amnesty International said the crackdown on the protests by security forces in the city on September 30 killed at least 66 people. At the same time as the protest rally in Zahedan, reports and videos indicate that other protest rallies were held in some other cities of Sistan-Baluchistan Province at noon on October 28 and after Friday Prayers. Reports also indicate that a large gathering was held on October 27 in Makki Mosque in Zahedan in support of influential Sunni cleric Molavi Abdolhamid Ismaeelzah. Last week during his Friday Prayers sermon, the cleric, who is known across the country as Molavi Abdolhamid, said senior officials, including Khamenei, were "responsible" for the killings on September 30. Molavi Abdolhamid published excerpts of his speech on Instagram on October 27 in which he again asks the authorities to condemn the September 30 massacre and punish the perpetrators. Videos posted on social media on October 27 showed people in the Chitgar neighborhood chanting, "No to hijab. No to oppression. Freedom and equality," and also, "Death to the dictator," a reference to Khamenei. Protesters have continued to take to the streets of Tehran despite the threat of a further crackdown on the unrest -- one of the deepest challenges to the Islamic regime since the revolution in 1979. Rights groups say at least 215 people have been killed during protests since Mahsa Amini, 22, died on September 16 while in police custody for allegedly wearing a hijab, or head scarf, improperly. The UN human rights office on October 28 voiced concern at Iran's treatment of detained protesters and said authorities refused to release some of the bodies of those killed. "We've seen a lot of ill treatment...but also harassment of the families of protesters," Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, told a press briefing in Geneva. "Of particular concern is information that authorities have been moving injured protesters from hospitals to detention facilities and refusing to release the bodies of those killed to their families," she said. The body of the late RFE/RL journalist Reza Haghighatnejad was reportedly seized by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) upon being repatriated, drawing a sharp response from the U.S. State Department, which said it was disgusted by the treatment of Haghighatnejads body. Haghighatnejad died on October 17 of cancer in Berlin. In the city of Arak, RFE/RLs Radio Farda reported that a 19-year-old man was killed by security forces on October 26. Mehrshad Shahidinejad was assaulted by security forces in Arak and was killed due to multiple baton blows to his head, according to his relatives and friends on social media. Shahidinejad was a talented chef and was popular in his home city of Arak. With reporting by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda, as well as AFP, Reuters, and dpa U.S. President Barack Obama charged that Russia, Iran, and Syria have "blood on their hands" from their brutal takeover of Aleppo even as he lamented being unable to stop the bloodshed in Syria despite years of effort. "The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo," Obama told a yearend news conference on December 16. "This blood and these atrocities are on their hands." "We have seen a deliberate strategy of surrounding, besieging, and starving innocent civilians. We've seen relentless targeting of humanitarian workers and medical personnel, entire neighborhoods reduced to rubble and dust. There are continuing reports of civilians being executed." Obama in particular warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whose civil war against armed opponents since 2011 has killed more than 250,000 people, that he will not be able to "slaughter his way to legitimacy." But at the same time, Obama acknowledged the United States and its allies have had little success in their attempts to prevent the bloodshed or alleviate it, mostly as a result of his decision early in the war not to get in involved militarily. "For years, we've worked to stop the civil war in Syria and alleviate human suffering.... It has been one of the hardest issues that I've faced as president," he said. Obama said he concluded early on there was no way for the United States to intervene militarily "on the cheap." "Unless we were all in and willing to take over Syria, we were going to have problems," he said, adding that a military takeover would have required "putting large numbers of U.S. troops on the ground, uninvited, without any international law mandate." Obama also acknowledged that his administration's efforts to establish a peace process through the United Nations as well as directly in negotiations with Russia have borne little fruit. "I cannot claim that we've been successful, and so that's something that, as is true with a lot of issues and problems around the world, I have to go to bed with every night," Obama said. "But I continue to believe it was the right approach given what realistically we could get done." Many analysts say western inaction led to Russia's decision last year to intervene. Moscow is now helping Assad's regime make significant gains retaking rebel-held territory. As the president spoke, Russia and Syria had halted their evacuation of thousands of civilians and fighters as they moved to take control of the last areas of Aleppo once held by rebels. Obama threw his weight behind a French initiative at the United Nations to authorize UN observers to monitor the evacuation -- but Russia has blocked such moves and UN officials seem as confounded as Obama on how to proceed. Outgoing UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said at his final news conference on December 16 that the Syrian war has been "heartbreaking" for him, especially since efforts to evacuate hundreds of wounded civilians stopped on December 16. "The carnage in Syria remains a gaping hole in the global conscience," he said. "Aleppo is now a synonym for hell." Ban urged "the parties to take all necessary measures to allow safe resumption of this evacuation process." Syrian forces said they stopped evacuations because rebel groups had not made good on promises to similarly evacuate wounded government troops and civilians from two Shi'ite villages the rebels are besieging in Idlib Province. Iran demanded that the villages be included in a cease-fire deal which has enabled people to leave Aleppo, UN officials have said. Turkey, a main backer of the rebels, said Ankara is talking to counterparts in Tehran to try to resume the evacuations. Obama dismissed claims by Russia and Syrian officials that all innocent civilians who were trapped in Aleppo had been able to leave already. "Humanitarian organizations who know better and who are on the ground have said unequivocally that there are still tens of thousands that are trapped and are prepared to leave," Obama said. "So right now our biggest priority is to get them out." U.S. Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power sought to address Russian resistance to installing UN observers to monitor the evacuations. "Russia has helped deliver Aleppo to the Syrian government. Surely Russia can secure actual safe corridors for civilians," she said. With reporting by AP, AFP, dpa, and Reuters Pakistan's army said it has given death sentences to 13 "hard-core terrorists" who it said were involved in attacks that killed hundreds of innocent civilians. The announcement came on the second anniversary of a Pakistani Taliban attack on a Peshawar school that killed 154 people, mostly schoolchildren, and prompted an intensified nationwide campaign against militants by the army. Army and law enforcement officials said on December 16 that those condemned to death include militants who planned and executed attacks on Bacha Khan University in Charsada, Parade Lane Mosque in Rawalpindi, the Marriot Hotel in Islamabad, the World Vision office in Mansehra, and an educational institution in Nawagai Buner. The army said the militants were involved in attacks that killed 325 people in all and injured 366 others. It said the militants were tried by military courts before receiving death sentences. With reporting by Radio Maashal Often misunderstood and frequently maligned, the U.S. Electoral College is typically an institution that goes about its work every four years with little fanfare and even less scrutiny. Not this year. The college, a group of 538 people from all 50 states and Washington, D.C., will formally elect the 45th president of the United States "on the first Monday after the second Wednesday in December," as laid out by U.S. law. That meeting this year will be December 19, and the expectation is the man they will choose will be Republican Donald Trump. But in a reflection of the unconventional election campaign that Trump waged against against Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, the Electoral Colleges meeting this year is turning into something less than conventional, facing scrutiny not seen in generations -- if ever. That's due in large part because Clinton won the overall popular vote in the November 8 election. Most recent tallies show Clinton ahead of Trump by close to 3 million votes, one of the largest vote leads in many years. The wrinkle in this, however, is that under the U.S. Constitution, the Electoral College is the institution that chooses the president, not the popular vote. And because Trump won more votes than Clinton in specific states -- Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania in particular -- Trump has garnered more Electoral College votes than Clinton, 306 to 232. Adding to the anxiety is the conclusion by U.S. intelligence agencies that Russian government-backed hackers accessed political party computer servers during the campaign. Reports in The Washington Post and The New York Times last week deepened concern, quoting unidentified CIA officials as saying that Russian hackers may have specifically sought to bolster Trump's campaign -- allegations Trump himself has derided. Claire Ayer, a Democratic state senator in Vermont who served as an Electoral College elector in 2012, says she remembers similar anxiety in 2000, when Democratic candidate Al Gore won the popular vote but Republican George W. Bush ended up with more Electoral College votes. But this year, she says, it seems much worse. "It's gotten the kind of attention it has because people are very worried about Donald Trump. We didn't have that same sort of anxiety about Bush and Gore," she says. The actual event of casting the Electoral College votes in 2012, when Barack Obama won the popular vote and the Electoral College, lacked much ceremony, she says. She and the state's other two electors showed up in the Vermont capital, Montpelier, "got a pep talk from the [Vermont] secretary of state and signed a few papers." Similar ceremonies will be held in other state capitals on December 19. Electoral College electors are allocated according to state populations, and selected by political parties in each state. Neither the constitution nor federal law contain provision requiring them to follow the results of the popular vote in their states. In a handful of states, state law requires them to cast their votes according to popular vote. In other places they are bound by pledges to the political parties that selected them. Those who defy their states' rules, or the popular vote, are often called "faithless electors." This year, another title has emerged -- "Hamilton electors." Thats a reference to Alexander Hamilton, the first treasury secretary and co-author of an influential set of papers published in 1787-88 arguing for the ratification of the constitution. One of the papers argues that the Electoral College's main goal is to thwart any "desire in foreign powers to gain an improper ascendant in our councils." One such group has taken that very name, arguing that electors should vote not for Trump, but for another Republican. If Trump's opponents gather enough support to persuade at least 37 electors to not back him, that would block his election and send the final decision to the House of Representatives, under rules that are explicitly laid out in the constitution. "The Founding Fathers intended the Electoral College to stop an unfit man from becoming president. The constitution they crafted gives us this tool. Conscience demands that we use it," the group has said. The group did not immediately respond to e-mails seeking further information about the effort. These efforts have not gone unnoticed by Trump. His campaign intervened in a legal bid by two electors in Colorado -- where Trump lost the popular vote -- to unbind them from the state requirement to choose the states popular vote winner. A federal judge there on December 12 rejected the attempt, calling it a "political stunt." "Your vote should count when you vote for president," Chris Murray, an attorney representing Trump and the campaign, was quoted by The Denver Post as saying. Other electors, meanwhile, have requested an intelligence briefing to get more information about the Russian hacking reports, out of concerns over potential undue foreign influence in Trump's election. "The electors require to know from the intelligence community whether there are ongoing investigations into ties between Donald Trump, his campaign or associates, and Russian government interference in the election, the scope of those investigations, how far those investigations may have reached, and who was involved in those investigations," said one group of 10 members in an open letter published on December 12. It wasn't immediately clear if that had ever happened before, or if there had even been such a request. But Ayer, the state senator from Vermont, says she doesnt think much of that idea. "It seems sort of silly," she says. "One little briefing from one sort of people doesn't give you the authority to overturn the constitution." The United States on December 16 more than doubled its previous reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The U.S. State Department's Rewards for Justice program offered $25 million for information that would help locate Baghdadi, up from $10 million it offered in October 2011. Baghdadi, an Iraqi whose real name is Ibrahim al-Samarrai, declared himself the caliph of a huge swath of Iraq and Syria two years ago. Followers call him "Caliph Ibrahim." His exact location is not clear. Reports have said he may be in Mosul, Iraq, or in IS-held territory to the west of the city near the border with Syria. Iraqi officials believe that growing pressure resulting from a coalition military assault on Mosul is causing Baghdadi and his top lieutenants to move around and try to hide themselves. "Under al-Baghdadi, ISIL has been responsible for the deaths of thousands of civilians in the Middle East, including the brutal murder of numerous civilian hostages from Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States," the State Department said in announcing the higher bounty on Baghdadi's head. Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters Mamata Banerjee reacted to the decision of keeping deposits made by political parties out from the purview of income tax just a day after it was announced and political pundits believe that she wants to use this opportunity to dilute PM Modi's claim of fight against corruption. By Indrajit Kundu: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has termed the Centre's decision to keep deposits made by political parties out from the purview of income tax as an attempt to create a rift between the parties and the public. Raising question on the timing of the announcement, Mamata today tweeted, "It is unfortunate how there are confusing and misleading statements coming from senior government officials, even the timing of these statements show that there may be an ulterior motive." advertisement "Is there a motive? Are they trying to give a hidden message to cadre of one political party? Why these confusing and misleading statements now?" she asked. The Trinamool Congress chief reacted to the decision just a day after the Central Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia announced that deposits made by political parties in old currency notes to their party accounts will be exempted from income tax. ALSO READ: Note ban: Mamata Banerjee pens poem against Modi in protest Twitter Handle of Mamata Banerjee Political pundits believe that Mamata wants to use this opportunity to dilute PM Modi's claim of fight against corruption. The decision to exempt political parties from paying tax is not welcomed by public. "If Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes are illegal tender, then how are they trying to show that there is a division between common people and political parties?" Mamata tweeted. It is worth noting that the Modi government has only continued with the existing rule by not modifying the tax exemption already available for political parties. According to the existing rule, parties are free to deposit old notes on the condition that cash donations by individuals did not exceed Rs 20,000 and proper documents were furnished disclosing the identity of the donor. ALSO READ: Modi did notebandi, now it's your turn to reply with votebandi: Mamata in Lucknow Modi acted like God on demonetisation, no place for 'dictators' like him: Mamata --- ENDS --- Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. Lawyers for condemned Virginia inmate Ricky Gray filed an emergency motion Friday for a restraining order to stay the execution, which is set for Jan. 18. Court papers show Grays attorneys filed motions for a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction. They are asking the U.S. District Court in Richmond to stay the execution due to the risk that he will suffer a painful death. Gray, 39, was sentenced to die for the New Years Day 2006 slayings of sisters Ruby Harvey, 4, and Stella Harvey, 9. He also killed their parents, Bryan Harvey, 49, and Kathryn Harvey, 39, in their South Richmond home. His accomplice, Ray Dandridge, 39, was sentenced to life. The two also killed Ashley Baskerville, 21, who was a lookout when Gray killed the Harveys; her mother, Mary Tucker, 47; and stepfather Percyell Tucker, 55. West Bengal Chief minister Mamata Banerjee kicked off the fortnight-long Kolkata Christmas Festival 2016, the annual year end extravaganza organized by the state tourism department on Friday evening. By Indrajit Kundu: Christmas may be a few days away but Kolkata can't wait for the party to begin. Cyclone Vardah may have delayed the onset of winter a little but soon as the city felt the first chills this week, Christmas lights at Kolkata's iconic park street have been turned on. On Friday evening chief minister Mamata Banerjee kicked off the fortnight-long Kolkata Christmas Festival 2016, the annual year end extravaganza organized by the state tourism department. advertisement From Decemer 16 till January 2, revelers in Kolkata can sway to musical performances by renowned bands, listen to Christmas carols and gorge on lips smacking cuisine at Park street. Also read: Mamata's advice to RBI Governor: Stand up against the onslaught, don't remain silent Accompanied by Kolkata Archbishop Thomas D'Souza and Mayor Sovan Chatterjee, chief minister Mamata Banerjee welcomed everyone to join the celebrations. "Till the 2nd of January, it will be a celebration of carols, bands, live music, foods and fun. Park Street is now full of sparkling lights and colours to ring in the festivities," she said. The Bengal tourism department is also making special arrangements for tourists keen to attend the midnight mass at some of Kolkata's iconic churches. Also read: Mamata Banerjee slams PM Modi over hacking of social media accounts --- ENDS --- Virginia once belonged to the Solid (Democratic) South. It first broke with regional hegemony in 1928 when it voted for Republican presidential nominee Herbert Hoover over Democrat Alfred Smith. The birthplace of Jeffersons Statute for Religious Freedom a cause championed by James Madison broke with its partisan preferences because Democrats nominated a Catholic. Burning crosses greeted Smith on his Southern campaign trips. The New Yorker remained a happy warrior. Virginias decisive split came in 1952 when the state sided with Republican Dwight Eisenhower. The vote that year lacked the intolerance seen in 1928. With the exception of Lyndon Johnsons 1964 landslide, Virginia voted for the GOP presidential ticket in elections from 1952 until 2008. Republicans often carried the state in landslides. Hillary Clintons November win marked the third straight election in which the Democratic ticket claimed the Old Dominion. In 1976, Virginia was the only former Confederate state to vote for Republican Gerald Ford over Democrat Jimmy Carter, the regions favorite son. In 2016, it was the only Southern state to prefer Clinton, a Democrat who rose to prominence as first lady of Arkansas, over Republican Donald Trump. Regarding partisan voting habits, Virginia moves with all deliberate slowness. Virginias internal shifts have affected its statewide results. The Byrd Organization was rooted in the courthouses. The organization relied on poll taxes, apportionment and other devises to restrict the electorate. Critics referred to the Byrd Cage. During the 1950s and 1960s, Virginias rural clout went into steady decline. The suburbs boomed. Republican strength, which had been located in the Valley, grew in the suburbs. Northern Virginia was considered hospitable to the GOP. Republicans rode the suburban wave to statewide dominance. Today the GOP runs up comfortable margins in rural counties and, in some instances, the exurbs. It gets clobbered in Fairfax and other populous jurisdictions. Post-election analysis in The Times-Dispatch explained that Henrico has become Democratic in statewide elections, while Republican margins in Chesterfield have slipped. Last month Clinton won Henrico by about 20 points; Trump won Chesterfield by fewer than three. Both counties have grown more diverse; the Republican approach to immigration inflicts significant damage. The GOP stand on social issues hurts, too. And conservative indifference to climate change does not help the GOP. Virginia Democrats deserve credit as well. The party runs mainstream candidates with the considerable charms of the bourgeoisie. Democratic tickets appear pragmatic; Republican tickets appear ideological. Central Virginia does not lack political talent. We expect great things of Henrico Del. Peter Farrell. Carrie Coyner of the Chesterfield School Board is one of the most thoughful elected officials in the area. Finally giving in to pressure from Amnesty International to abide by the humanitarian standards codified in the Geneva Conventions, the Byrd Theater has announced it will replace its seats. Todays troubling stat comes from the 2016 State of the Commonwealth Report. While Virginias population is growing, its labor force participation rate which counts all those who are working or looking for work is falling. Could that be caused by boomers aging out of the workforce? Perhaps not: The report also notes that the labor force participation rates of more mature individuals have been rising in recent years. Mikhail Gorbachev recently said the time has come for the U.S. and Russia to cooperate, which came as a great shock to all those who had no idea the old Soviet leader was still alive. Gorbachev also said the Soviet Union collapsed because of treachery, and that while the USSR cannot be reconstituted, a new Russian union can rise again. Virginias Confederate holdouts all nine of them no doubt agree. The U.N. has ditched Wonder Woman. The comic heroine was named an honorary ambassador for female empowerment, but she ran into a feminist buzz-saw. Although the original creators may have intended Wonder Woman to represent a strong and independent warrior woman with a feminist message, read an anti-Wonder Woman petition, the reality is that the characters current iteration is that of a large breasted, white woman of impossible proportions. One New York University professor called Wonder Woman an insult because, as one news story put it, Like most female comic action figures, she has big breasts bursting out of a skimpy outfit and an impossibly tiny waist. A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind. Life has been badly affected due to a 24-hour bandh called by women vendors in the state of Manipur. By Manogya Loiwal : Life has been badly affected with a 24-hour bandh called by women vendors in the state of Manipur. The bandh called by the women vendors of Khwairambandh Keithel, an only women market, has badly affected normal life in the state. Women vendors have been demanding action against NSCN (IM) militants, who had killed three policemen and left several injured on Imphal Morey Road in Noney on Thursday. advertisement This is for the first time that women vendors have resorted to a bandh against militant activities in the state. Imphal enjoys the privilege of having the only women market in the country known as Khwairambandh Keithel market. ALSO READ: IED blast in Manipur, no casualty reported The roads have been closed by the bandh supporters by burning used tyres and keeping big wood logs on the cross roads. Schools and colleges have announced a holiday suspecting violence at various places. Besides this no vehicles including inter village and interstate services are allowed to pass by the bandh supporters. All the markets and other business establishments have been shut down. The bandh supporters are not even allowing vehicles of para military forces to ply on the streets of the city or suburban areas. The 24 hours Manipur bandh has started from 7pm last night and it will end at 7pm on Saturday night. However, people going for religious ceremonies, medical emergencies and all the essential services have been exempted.Manipur bandh is the protest against the triple explosions that rocked Manipur on Thursday night. ALSO READ: Manipur: Triple blast in Imphal, no injuries reported --- ENDS --- About 70 insurgents today attacked the Indian Reserve Battalion post in Noney district of Manipur. By Manogya Loiwal : As many as 70 insurgents today attacked the Nungkao post of 7 Indian Reserve Battalion (IRB) in Noney district of Manipur. The insurgents who overpowered the security forces also snatched their weapons. The incident happened around 11 am today. About 70 full armed cadres of NSCN - IM came and over powered the post. advertisement Also read: Manipur: Triple blast in Imphal, no injuries reported Following the incident, reinforced team of Manipur police has been rushed to the spot. Incidentally, this shocking incident took place while there is a 24-hours bandh in the state against militant activities. There has been a surge in incidents of looting of cash vans and weapons in past few months. Also read: Manipur bandh: Life goes out of gear as women take to streets Manipur is scheduled for elections around February next year and this is expected to play a crucial role in the issues of campaigning. It is Combined post of 6th Manipur Rifles and 7th Indian Reserve Battalion. Also read: Manipur: Police convoy ambushed in terror attack; 5 cops killed --- ENDS --- At a joint press conference, Turkish Chief of Staff Hulusi Akar vowed to continue the fight against terrorists inside and outside the country until every last terrorist is neutralized. Speaking about the Kayseri explosion, Vice Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak said in media broadcast that treacherous factions had taken aim at commandos from the Kayseri Airforce Brigade, who had been training exclusively for the safety of our people. Turkeys prime ministry office imposed media to refrain from publishing anything that may cause fear in the public, panic and disorder and which may serve the aims of terrorist organizations. Deputy PM, UN Representative discuss Saudi economic blockade on Yemen SANA'A, Dec. 17 (Saba) - Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Hussein al-Maqboli met here on Saturday with United Nations Resident Representative Jamie McGoldrick to discuss the suffering of the Yemeni people from the ongoing Saudi aggression and its all-out economic blockade on Yemen. During the meeting, al-Maqboli demanded the United Nations to do its role to end the aggression war, lift the unjust blockade imposed by Saudi regime and to protect civilian facilities and infrastructures from Saudi indiscriminate aerial bombardment. The deputy premier also called on the United Nations to do its part to protect civilians and facilitate legal measures of providing liquidity for paying salaries to the state employees in accordance with the Geneva Convention. For his part, UN Resident Representative McGoldrick expressed deep regret for being more than a million of Yemeni employees have not received their salaries for the past months. "We are working directly to contact with the World Bank and some countries to provide liquidity, but there were difficulties and pressures imposed by the other side in Riyadh, McGoldrick said. He also stressed on the UN ongoing efforts to end the aggression war on Yemen and lift blockade on Sanaa international airport. MS/ZaK Saba Facebook Facebook Twitter Twitter Whatsapp Whatsapp Telegram Telegram Email Email Print Print [18/December/2016] By PTI: Hyderabad, Dec 16 (PTI) Telangana Government is closely monitoring the situation arising out of the demonetisation move and has put in place appropriate measures to ensure that the economy of the state does not get derailed, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao today said. "Immediate steps have been taken to encourage cashless transactions. The assessments made by the Central Government institutions indicate that Telangana State stands first in the country in the number of cashless transactions," he said in the Legislative Assembly on the opening day of the winter session during a debate on demonetisation. advertisement On a pilot basis, the State Government is making all out efforts to make Siddipet Assembly Constituency cashless, he said, adding that Ibrahimpur village of this segment has already been converted into a cashless village. In the recently-held Collectors Conference, the steps required to be taken towards promoting cashless transactions have been discussed in detail, the Chief Minister said. The Collectors have indicated that efforts are being made to make a few villages in each district cashless within a short period of time. The State Government has constituted a Cabinet Sub-Committee to recommend policy measures with regard to cashless transactions. To speed up implementation, a Task Force has been specially formed. "The State Government will shortly launch TS Wallet in a manner, which will provide confidence to people in cashless transactions. The Government is taking all necessary measures for promoting cashless transactions in the State," the Chief Minister said. Keeping in view the difficulties and inconvenience faced by the people following the demonetisation, the State Government is constantly holding discussions with the Central Government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The State Government is also suggesting remedial measures from time-to-time. "As the Chief Minister of the State, I have personally met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 19th November in Delhi and explained to him the difficulties being faced by the people of the State. I also suggested remedial measures to be taken to minimise the hardships to people," he said. "As per the information furnished by the RBI, an amount of Rs 19,109 crore cash has been supplied to the State. All over the State, the amount (scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes) deposited by people in banks is Rs 57,479 crore," the Chief Minister added. MORE PTI SJR RS NP RYS --- ENDS --- By India Today Web Desk: Neil Nitin Mukesh got engaged to Rukmini Sahay on October 11 on the auspicious occasion of Dussehra. Now, if reports are to believed, Neil and Rukmini will marry at a destination wedding. According to a report in Mumbai Mirror, Neil Nitin Mukesh will tie the knot with Rukmini on February 9. Pre-wedding ceremonies will begin on February 7. advertisement ALSO READ | 10 things you need to know about Rukmini Sahay, Neil Nitin's fiancee WATCH | Yuvraj-Hazel to Bipasha-Karan, the biggest celebrity weddings of 2016 'My parents wanted a big fat Indian wedding for us, but I wanted it to be an intimate family affair so we chose Udaipur where all of us could get together for the big day. It will also be a great way for Rukmini to meet my extended family over three days," Neil told the tabloid and added that his designer friends are helping him regarding his wedding outfit. Neil's father, singer Nitin and brother Naman will be busy in Udaipur from end of January to prepare for the wedding. "The mehendi ceremony on February 8 has the mela theme featuring several games, and Rajasthani folk performances. This will be followed by sangeet night where my father will sing few of his popular tracks. I have planned something for Rukmini too but want to keep it a surprise," Neil said, who apparently is planning to go down on one knee and propose to the love of his life Rukmini Sahay. Wedding details include the 34-year-old actor arriving in a chariot on wedding day while Rukmini will arrive in a doli. South Indian priests are being flown in for the wedding. A big dinner will follow the wedding and the food will be prepared by chefs from Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai. However, Neil won't go for an honeymoon after the wedding as he will be shooting Sujeeth Reddy's trilingual film starring Prabhas at that time. "Hopefully I'll take Rukmini along so that we could spend time together," Neil added. WATCH | I was the happiest when Johnny Gaddaar got stuck for a year, says Neil Nitin Mukesh --- ENDS --- A first-of-its-kind journey along India and Pakistan border What binds the two most talked about nations - India and Pakistan together? What makes the SNc Channels: Search About Salem-News.com Dec-16-2016 22:50 TweetFollow @OregonNews TRUMP INC. GOES TO WASHINGTON While President of the United States, Trump's extensive business interests will be in the hands of his three oldest children. Cartoon by Dave Simonds (SAN FRANCISCO) - Donald J. Trump and his family have business interests in at least 20 countries in addition to extensive hotel and real estate holdings in the United States. The full extent of his holdings is unclear as Trump has refused to release his tax returns or provide a list of his lenders. Could Trump administration actions around the world be shaded even slightly by his ties to foreign players? Would his overseas holdings be targets for terrorism? President-elect Donald Trump has also cultivated a personal brand -- Trump vodka, Trump wine, Trump chocolate. His name costs millions of dollars to license, and much of his fortune has been generated from agreements to use the Trump name for products and real-estate developments that he doesnt actually own. According to Bloomberg, a large portion -- anywhere from $32 million to $55 million -- of his estimated $2.9 billion net worth likely comes from licensing agreements. Of course, a brand name is successful or not depending on whether the name projects a positive or negative image. For his followers it is probably positive but to many others it is negative. Ordinarily, U.S. conflict-of-interest laws would eliminate or at least curtail any actual or appearance of conflict between Trump's business interests and his duties as a president. However, the U.S. conflict-of-interest laws do not apply to a president or vice president. The law doesnt say the president cant have a conflict of interest. But Congress, under Title 18 Section 208 of the U.S. Code, does exempt the president and vice president from conflict-of-interest laws on the theory that the presidency has so much power that any possible executive action might pose a potential conflict. The Congressional Research Service in an October Report states, As a general rule, public officials in the executive branch are subject to criminal penalties if they personally and substantially participate in matters in which they (or their immediate families, business partners or associated organizations) hold financial interests. "However, because of concerns regarding interference with the exercise of constitutional duties, Congress has not applied these restrictions to the President. "Consequently, there is no current legal requirement that would compel the President to relinquish financial interests because of a conflict of interest. Yet, while they did not have a legal obligation to, Lyndon Johnson, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton placed their personal assets in a blind trust, even though they did not have a legal obligation to do so. President Obama did not, but his assets were only in mutual funds and Treasury bonds. A blind trust is a financial arrangement in which the president gives the administrator of private business interests to an independent trust in order to prevent conflict of interest. Under the trust, the president does not know how the assets are managed. Trump, on the other hand, will place his extensive business interests in the hands of his three oldest children -- Donald Jr., Ivanka, and Eric Trump, hardly a blind trust, especially since the arrangement is not independent. These children are on the transition team and we don't know what role, if any, they will play in the Trump administration. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) is planning legislation to require Trump to divest all his business holdings and put them into a blind trust. This proposed legislation is based on the writings of Richard W. Painter, who argues that failure to do so will put Trump in violation of the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution. Article I, Section 9, Clause 8 of the constitution states that no American officeholder shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state. It is unclear whether a Republican-controlled Congress would pass such legislation and if if did, President Trump would probably veto it. Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) is planning to ask his colleagues to pass a resolution -- citing the Emoluments Clause -- that would require Trump to hand over the control of his businesses to someone who doesn't have a relationship to him while he is a president. It remains to be seen how may republicans in Congress will sign such a resolution. Whether Senator Feinstein's proposed legislation or Senator Cardin's resolution have legs remains to be seen. However, the issue will not go away. The democrats will make sure of that. Or a private litigant may bring a lawsuit. _________________________________________ Politics | United-states | Business | Most Commented on Articles for December 16, 2016 | Articles for December 17, 2016 Here's what social emotional learning looks like in Salina By PTI: Washington, Dec 17 (PTI) Microsoft has released a set of 100,000 questions and answers which will allow scientists to create artificial intelligence (AI) systems that can answer queries as well as a human. The dataset, called Microsoft MAchine Reading COmprehension (MS MARCO), is based on anonymised real-world data. By making it broadly available to researchers, the team is hoping to spur the kind of breakthroughs in machine reading that are already happening in image and speech recognition. advertisement They also hope to facilitate the kind of advances that may lead to the long-term goal of artificial general intelligence, or machines that can think like humans. "In order to move towards artificial general intelligence, we need to take a step towards being able to read a document and understand it as well as a person," said Rangan Majumder, a partner group programme manager with Microsofts Bing search engine division who is leading the effort. Right now, systems to answer sophisticated questions are still in their infancy. Some can answer basic questions, like What day does Hanukkah start? or Whats 2,000 times 43?, said Majumder. However, in many cases, search engines and virtual assistants will instead point the user to a set of search engine results. Users can still get the information they need, but it requires culling through the results and finding the answer on the web page. In order to make automated question-and-answer systems better, researchers need a strong source of what is called training data. These datasets can be used to teach AI systems to recognise questions and formulate answers and eventually create systems that can come up with their own answers based on unique questions they have not seen before. PTI MHN SAR MHN --- ENDS --- Teachers and students of Savaia and Tafagamanu Primary School have reason to look forward to the start of the new school year. With a new school building costing $691,000, they will have some of the best learning facilities in the country. Built by Sang Construction over a six month period and funded by the Australian government under the Australian Recovery Programme, Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi opened the project yesterday. There are a lot of programmes that have been initiated by the government and the Ministry of Education for the betterment of the children, he said. The government is also prioritising schools and health projects to benefit not only the children in Apia but also here in the rural areas. With the facility ready, Tuilaepa urged parents to do their part. We notice that a lot of the parents are careless. Even in their own villages they are not doing their part by taking the children to school which is a must, he said. We are urging the village councils to help in this matter. Keep in mind that these children will be the ones that will become trouble makers within the village in the future if you dont lend a hand to help them. So this is everyones duty its our children because they are the future leaders of our country. Australian High Commissioner, Sue Langford, said education is so important to the development of Samoa. Savaia is the sixth of seven schools damaged during Cyclone Evan and to be rebuilt under this recovery programme but this is the fourth school that I have opened since becoming High Commissioner in 2014. Australia has also been providing funding to around 36 schools for minor repairs from the cyclone. She went on to say that its a huge satisfaction to be able to witness the new school building. Im told that the new two storey building of four classrooms, one library, one administration block room and toilet block have been built to be strong and to withstand potential cyclones, she said. I am very pleased to see ramps in place to provide easy access for children and communities with mobility disabilities. She also congratulated the government of Samoa for its leadership in prioritizing education. She said this is something Australia and Samoa share. Its a priority investment for Australia and for the Australian Aid programme because we know it helps individuals, families, communities, and nations achieve their full potential, their aspirations, and a quality education in a comfortable and world design building such as this one where teachers are eager to teach and students are eager to learn, she said. It increases the childs ability to participate productively and meaningfully in their homes, villages and communities. WASHINGTON (AP) President Barack Obama is promising that the U.S. will retaliate against Russia for its suspected meddling in America's election process, an accusation the Kremlin has vehemently denied. As the White House grew more bullish about suggesting President Vladimir Putin was personally involved, Obama said he'd spoken directly to Putin about his concerns about Russian meddling. He said whenever a foreign government tries to interfere in U.S. elections, the nation must take action "and we will at a time and place of our own choosing." "We have been working hard to make sure that what we do is proportional, that what we do is meaningful," Obama said in an NPR News interview airing Friday. Obama's remarks were the clearest indication that whatever response the U.S. is planning, it hasn't happened yet. The White House has insisted for months that when the U.S. did retaliate, it might not be made public, a position that has created uncertainty about the strength and timing of any response. Obama was expected to face questions about the hacking and his response during a news conference at the White House on Friday afternoon. White House officials said it was "fact" that Russian hacking helped Donald Trump's campaign against Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. White House press secretary Josh Earnest on Thursday also assailed Trump himself over his refusal to acknowledge the hacking and his attacks on the U.S. intelligence community. The tough talk from the White House fell flat in Moscow, where Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the accusations baseless and inappropriate. "They should either stop talking about that, or produce some proof at last," Peskov told reporters Friday. "Otherwise it all begins to look unseemly." There has been no specific, persuasive evidence shared publicly about the extent of Putin's role or knowledge of the hackings. That lack of proof undercuts Democrats' strategy to portray Putin's involvement as irrefutable evidence of a directed Russian government plot to undermine America's democratic system. But the White House pointed to a U.S. intelligence assessment released publicly in October that asserted "only Russia's senior-most officials could have authorized these activities." And Obama's deputy national security adviser, Ben Rhodes, connected the dots further, saying Thursday Putin was responsible for the Russian government's actions. "I don't think things happen in the Russian government of this consequence without Vladimir Putin knowing about it," he told MSNBC. Trump has been under increasing pressure from both parties to acknowledge Russia's actions, despite his insistence that he doesn't believe Moscow was meddling. Trump has rejected the CIA's assessment that Russia's aim was to help him win and argued on Twitter that "these are the same people that said Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction." The head of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Republican Sen. Richard Burr, defended the U.S. intelligence community in a statement Friday pushing back on the notion that the CIA was trying to undermine Trump for political reasons. Burr said intelligence officials "come from all walks of life and hold views across the political spectrum." "We would all do well to remember the sacrifices they make on our behalf and keep in mind that what we do with the intelligence they provide is up to us," Burr said. Yet Trump appeared undeterred, mockingly asking in a Twitter post "are we talking about the same cyberattack" in which embarrassing information about the Democratic National Committee was also revealed. His tweet invoked emails stolen from Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman and later released publicly in hacking that has been linked to Russia. In the NPR interview, Obama sought to contrast the current incident with "a traditional understanding that everybody's trying to gather intelligence on everybody else." "One of the things we're going to have to do over the next decade," he said, is find an international understanding on rules involving what has become "a new game." Obama said that U.S. officials should not let "the inter-family argument between Americans" obscure the need for people to "stand together" on this issue. "My view is that this is not a partisan issue," the president said, exhorting people to "take it out of election season and move it into governing season." The explosive accusation suggests Putin, the leader of perhaps America's greatest geopolitical foe, directly undermined U.S. democracy. U.S. officials have not contended, however, that Trump would have been defeated by Clinton on Nov. 8 if not for Russia's assistance. Nor has there has been any indication of tampering with the vote-counting. The dispute over Russia's role has also fueled an increasingly public spat between Obama's White House and Trump's team that is threatening to spoil the delicate truce that Obama and Trump have forged since Election Day to smooth the billionaire businessman's move to the White House in little over a month. Earnest said it was "obvious" Trump knew what Russia was doing during the campaign, pointing out that Trump had encouraged Moscow during a news conference to find Clinton's missing emails, repeating the assertion Obama made in "The Daily Show" appearance. Trump has said he was joking. "I don't think anybody at the White House thinks it's funny that an adversary of the United States engaged in malicious cyber activity to destabilize our democracy," Earnest said. "That's not a joke." Many people complain about the rising number of Chinese shops opening up in Samoa but for Peti Lima, from the village of Faleula, he says theres no point in complaining. Aged 59, Peti says that theres nothing much we can do about the situation; but rather than complain about the Chinese, we should start helping out our fellow Samoans to see that same success in their lives. He stressed that instead of always spending money on the Chinese stores and purchasing on credit at the Samoan ones, we should be doing things the other way around. The one thing I want to talk about right now is the many Chinese businesses popping up around everywhere in Samoa, Peti told the Village Voice. Dont get me wrong, I dont see it as a negative thing but there are many people who complain about it. The way I see it, theres nothing much that we can do when its the plan of our government. Rather than try tear down the Chinese, we must work hard to bring up other Samoans. Its not like the Chinese came over to Samoa and brought their own land. To be honest, we cant compete with the Chinese when it comes to businesses, but it doesnt mean we cant work hard to succeed. Peti continued on to explain how annoyed he is by the way Samoans tear one another down. He says that when one begins to climb the ladder of success, others get jealous and try to drag him back down. The problem Samoans have is that we cant stand to see others succeed, he said. We try and bring them down rather than pull them up. Thats a very sad truth that we cant avoid. Like for example, when we have money then we go straight to the Chinese shops to buy goods. But when were broke, we run to the Samoan-owned shops and ask to purchase on credit and then continue to rant at them if they refuse. According to Peti, the only way for Samoans to truly move forward is to find unity in everything they do. Once our people learn to work together and find unity, we can overcome anything, he said. My family works hard together to plant different crops so we can take care of everything we need. We take them all to the roadside stall in front of our house so we can earn a bit of money. Thats because we know the value of unity and anything we can make is what we use. So if we stop caring about what others are doing and focus on working our own land to earn a bit of money then everything will be all right. Sempra Energy, a Fortune 500 company based in San Diego, now owns the biggest wind farm in Mexico. The corporations Mexican subsidiary, IEnova, officially wrapped up the acquisition of the Ventika I and Ventika II wind generation facilities, about 35 miles from the Texas border in the state of Nuevo Leon. Comprised of 84 wind turbines with an installed generation capacity of 252 megawatts, the Ventika project cost about $900 million, which includes the assumption of outstanding debt. Advertisement The acquisition of Ventika will enhance our renewables portfolio in Mexico and is consistent with IEnovas strategic growth plan, J.C. Thomas, director of external affairs for Sempra International, said in a statement to the Union-Tribune. We are proud of the ongoing expansion of our Mexican business and the important role we are playing in Mexicos drive to increase clean energy. Ventika started commercial operations in April. The project will be managed by Cemex, a Mexican multinational building materials company that jointly developed the wind farm with two other companies. The acquisition has been in the works for months, with Mexicos antitrust commission approving the deal Wednesday. The move is the latest in an overarching corporate strategy by Sempra to expand IEnovas presence in Mexico, a country that is growing its energy and renewable infrastructure. In addition to the Ventika, IEnova owns a 50 percent stake in the 155-megwatt Energia Sierra Juarez wind-generation facility in Baja California and was recently awarded two 141-megawatt solar energy projects elsewhere in Mexico, totaling 548 megawatts of production. The Mexican government has established a clean energy mandate that calls for 35 percent of its power generation to come from renewable sources by 2024. Breaking up the monopoly status of Pemex, Mexicos state-run oil company, has offered international firms plenty of investment opportunities. Part of the (Sempra and IEnova) strategy moving forward is to build out their presence with various energy infrastructure projects in Mexico and South America, said Andy Smith, senior utilities analyst at Edward Jones. They dont have nearly the infrastructure that we have here (in the U.S.) ... and Sempra wants to be one of the primary companies involved in those efforts. In September, IEnova purchased a 50 percent stake in a Mexican infrastructure company for $1.1 billion. The deal includes three natural gas pipelines, an ethane pipeline, a liquid petroleum gas pipeline and an associated gas storage terminal. In June, IEnova partnered with TransCanada to construct and operate a $2.1 billion underwater natural gas pipeline that will run from South Texas to Tuxpan, Mexico. The first energy infrastructure company listed on the Mexican Stock Exchange, IEnova at the end of last year listed more than $4 billion in operating assets and projects under construction in Mexico. IEnova already operates a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility called Energia Costa Azul, just outside of Ensenada. The processing center imports LNG and Sempra officials are considering adding an export component to Costa Azul that could go online by 2022 or 2023. rob.nikolewski@sduniontribune.com (619) 293-1251 Twitter: @robnikolewski The Del Mar City Council will vote Monday on a resolution opposing some of the views expressed by President-elect Donald Trump, including any policies that would target Muslims and unauthorized immigrants. During his bid for the White House, Trump said he would deport millions of unauthorized immigrants and expressed support for a registry of immigrants from Muslim countries. His Chief of Staff Reince Priebus said recently that, while no Muslim registry has been proposed, it also hasnt been ruled out. Del Mars resolution, proposed by Councilman Dwight Worden, says the city should reaffirm (its) commitment to basic constitutional and human rights. Advertisement Worden said the resolution is intended to reassure residents and visitors where the city stands on those matters. The resolution will make clear that Del Mar will not participate in any religious registry or round up and deportation of undocumented persons, Worden wrote in a letter accompanying the proposal. Moreover, he said, the city should continue to adopt policies that address climate change grounded in the best available science not partisanship or ideology, according to the letter. Trump has described climate change as a hoax and said he plans to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement, a document signed by nearly 200 countries expressing their commitment to address climate change. Del Mar Councilman David Druker said he believes the proposed resolution should be adopted. This is reaffirming what a lot of people in the city feel, Druker said. In recent months, many cities and police departments have taken similar positions. Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck said last month his department will not help deport immigrants. The department prohibits its officers from initiating contact with individuals solely to determine their immigration status and does not turn over to immigration authorities people arrested for low-level crimes. We are not going to engage in law enforcement activities solely based on somebodys immigration status, Beck said. We are not going to do work in conjunction with Homeland Security on deportation efforts. That is not our job, nor will I make it our job. Mayors in other cities, including New York, Oakland, San Francisco and Seattle, have made similar statements. Earlier this month, the Orange County city of Santa Ana joined dozens of other cities declaring itself a sanctuary city, a largely symbolic move that expresses solidarity with immigrants who are in the country illegally. edward.sifuentes@sduniontribune.com @EdwardSifuentes Illuminating San Diego violinist Jamie Shadowlight is an expert when it comes to creating and performing diverse musical tributes. Her resume includes salutes to Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin, as well as jazz-inspired homages to the music of West Side Story and Star Wars (the latter of which teamed her with top area trumpeter Gilbert Castellanos). On Sunday, Dec. 18, shell present Music from The Nutcracker A Jazzy Exploration of a Holiday Classic at Cafe Bar Europa / The Turquoise in Pacific Beach. Its an intimate venue well-suited to hearing a re-invention of Tchaikovskys famed ballet score. Advertisement Shadowlight will be joined on stage by flutist Lori Bell, pianist Mikan Zlatkovich, bassist Will Lyle and drummer Kevin Higuchi. Its the industrious violinists last local show of the year before she jets off to North Drakensberg in South Africa, where she and veteran San Diego band Todo Mundo are set to perform on New Years Eve at the Smoking Dragon Festival. Jamie Shadowlight performs Music from The Nutcracker A Jazzy Exploration of a Holiday Classic: 7 p.m. Sunday. Cafe Bar Europa / The Turquoise, 837 Turquoise St., Pacific Beach. $15 at the door. (858) 488-4200 or theturquoise.com RELATED Neishas Dance & Music Academy gets ready for their participation in Moscow Ballets Great Russian Nutcracker Twitter @georgevarga george.varga@sduniontribune.com By PTI: From Lalit K Jha Washington, Dec 17 (PTI) US President Barack Obama has warned Donald Trump that any tinkering with the decades-old One-China policy could invite a "very significant" reaction from Beijing, days after the President-elect questioned the policys relevance. "The idea of One China is at the heart of their conception as a nation and so if you are going to upend this understanding, you have to have thought through what the consequences because the Chinese will not treat that the way they will treat some other issues. advertisement "They will not even treat it the way they issues around the South China Sea, where we have had a lot of tensions. This goes to the core of how they see themselves," Obama told reporters at a White House news conference yesterday. "Their reaction on this issue could end up being very significant. That does not mean that you have to adhere to everything that has been done in the past, but you have to think it through and have planned for potential reactions that they may engage in," Obama said. He was responding to a question on recent phone conversation between Trump and the Taiwanese President and the President-elect questioning the relevance of One China Policy. At the same time, he indicated that Trump could bring in some freshness in foreign policy. "I think all of our foreign policy should be subject to fresh eyes. I am very proud of the work I have done. I think I am a better president now than when I started. But you know, if you are here for eight years in the bubble, you start seeing things a certain way and you benefit from, the democracy benefits, America benefits from some new perspectives," he said. Obama said it should be not just the prerogative, but the obligation of a new president to examine everything that has been done and see what makes sense and what does not. Given the importance of the relationship between the US and China and how much is at stake in terms of the world economy, national security, the US presence in the Asia- Pacific, Chinas increasing role in global affairs, there is probably no bilateral ties that carries more significance. And where there is also the potential if that relationship breaks down or goes into full conflict mode that everybody is worse off, he said. "I think it is fine for him to take a look at it. What I have advised the President-elect is that across the board on foreign policy, you want to make sure that you are doing it in a systematic, deliberate, intentional way," Obama said. PTI LKJ CPS ASK CPS --- ENDS --- advertisement When Laurie Coskey was completing her doctorate in leadership studies from the University of San Diego in 2000, she wrote her dissertation on an initiative from the 1990s led by the United Way of San Diego County. Fast forward to earlier this year when she was interviewing for a position with the organization: She brought her dissertation with her to show the search committee she understood their commitment to, and background in, helping children. Today, Coskey is the new president and chief executive officer of the countys United Way. I have always been interested in what it takes for people and organizations to work together toward common goals. How do we get out of our separate silos in a way that really helps us to be effective and transformational? she says. Coskey, 59, lives in North Park and has two adult sons in graduate school. She has a history of social justice and non-profit work, most recently spending 15 years as executive director of the Interfaith Center for Worker Justice. She also serves as rabbi-in-residence at St. Pauls Episcopal Cathedral. She took some time to talk about her new role with the United Way, why shes drawn to social justice work and her continued love of folk dancing. Advertisement Q: Why did you want to work for United Way of San Diego County? A: For 15 years, I focused on improving the lives of San Diegos working families through measures supporting self-sufficiency in the public and private arena and now, at United Way, I am dedicated to improving the lives of the children of those working families. In joining United Way, my journey has come full circle. Q: As the new CEO, what are your goals for the United Way? A: I came to United Way because the board and staff made a pivot to changing the odds for children, bringing the right people and organizations together to track and achieve outcomes that set students up for success in college and career. As a trusted community organizer and leader, I knew that I could be helpful in achieving this mission. My big, bold, audacious goal is to actually take that work to scale and move the dial. Q: Part of your organizations work includes ensuring that kids are reading proficiently by the third grade. How do you do this? A: Two key components of reading proficiency are attendance and combating the summer slide. For every day a student misses school, it takes them a day and a half to catch up. Through our Every Student, Every Day program, United Way interns work with the families of chronically absent students to dig into why children arent in class. Our interns work with families on customized solutions, whether its getting reliable transportation or finding a better apartment or where to get food. We want children to spend their time studying for a math test instead of worrying about challenges at home. Among the students weve worked most closely with, weve seen an average improvement of an additional two weeks in their attendance. Summer slide is when over the summer, students lose the reading progress theyve made during the school year. During this school break, many of these students arent being stimulated by intentional learning or reading, and they may not have books in their home to practice. Since 2011, weve distributed over 120,000 books into the community so as many kids as possible have books to read over the summer. This past summer, Readers in the Heights our pilot reading program provided more than 400 hours of reading for 50 children, along with tutoring and field trips. What I love about North Park ... Well, its super cool to live in the 13th hippest neighborhood in the country, according to Forbes magazine. I love North Park. Its so vibrant, energetic and diverse all ages, all ethnicities, LGBTQ-friendly, lots to do and a foodies delight. Q: Why the third grade, as opposed to second or fourth grades? A: Third grade is the figurative fork in the road. Third grade is when you go from learning to read, to reading to learn. If a students reading skills arent up to par, they wont be able to keep up and will quickly find themselves falling behind in many subjects. The foundation to hit this milestone actually begins well before third grade. Research tells us third grade reading is an indicator of a childs future. If you arent reading at grade level by the end of third grade, you are four times less likely like to graduate high school on time. Q: Another element of your work involves making sure children have stable families. What is your definition of a stable family? A: For us, stable families mean kids have enough healthy food, a reliable place to call home that keeps them from the disruptions of constant moving or homelessness, stimulating environments to grow and play, emotional support by loving adults, positive relationships with neighbors and the community, and a feeling of safety. Nearly 50 percent of families with children in San Diego struggle to make ends meet and arent able to check all of those boxes of stability for their kids. That number needs to change. Q: How do you help a family gain this stability? A: One way we help families gain stability is through California and Federal Earned Income Tax Credits (EITC). These credits for working families are some of the most powerful anti-poverty measures we have. Every year, the EITC Coalition, led by United Way, prepares taxes for free for 25,000-plus households, making sure they get all of the credits they deserve. Families can receive up to $6,000 in those credits, which they can use to pay bills, catch up on rent, fix their car or even start a college savings account for their children. Q: Tell us about your previous work as executive director of the Interfaith Center for Worker Justice. A: I spent 15 years there working for working families who needed a voice to advocate for them. As executive director, my work focused on high-level strategic collaborations on issues that deeply impacted San Diegos working families and adults, including: poverty and sustainability, education, immigration, human trafficking, race relations, labor/management relations, affordable housing, and much more. Q: What work during your time there are you most proud of? A: I remember a mother telling me that her son had heard her speak about the sacrifices she was making in the workplace and how she was organizing to form a union so that she and her colleagues might have a voice on the job. She reported to me that her son said to her, Mom, when I heard you talking, I knew that I could be a leader too. Q: What led you to pursue a life of social justice work? A: My life is defined through the Jewish precept that we are indeed all responsible for one another, and we are mandated to be justice seekers. In recent years I have come to understand that work through a lens of equity. Privilege of any kind must be recognized and owned, and in order to pursue a truly just society, our greatest and hardest task today is the commitment to equity for all for me, it starts with children. Q: How long have you been a rabbi? A: I was ordained in 1985 in Cincinnati, Ohio, which was the mother-ship seminary for the Reform Jewish Movement in the United States. I was among the pioneering women in clergy at the time. I always wanted to be a rabbi and my fantastic parents didnt tell me that I couldnt be because I was a girl. Q: How does your faith inform your social justice work? A: It is the frame for my how I live up to my highest aspirations. I am called to a life of service to the community. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. would have called it the beloved community and that resonates with me because I have a profound love for humanity and people. Today, I have learned patience and I remind myself that the arc of history is long but it bends toward justice. We are bending it. Q: What is the best advice youve ever received? A: My grandfather was a florist to the stars in Hollywood. I vividly remember being in the big florists refrigerator watching him sweep the floor and he said to me: Laurie, no matter what you do, do it 100 percent even if its sweeping the floor. Do your very best. My dad said it differently. Whenever we took on a challenge he said to his daughters, then his grandchildren, Hit the ball hard, kid. Q: What is one thing people would be surprised to find out about you? A: I love to folk dance. I still have the opanci, Eastern European folk dance shoes that I wore in high school. For several years, once my sons went to college, I went back to folk dancing, both international and Israeli, a couple of times a week. Q: Describe your ideal San Diego weekend. A: Together with my girlfriend, most weekends we start at my house and take a long walk or hike in Balboa Park through Morley Field and up to Spanish Village or the museums. I almost always visit the farmers market in either Little Italy or Hillcrest because Im addicted to the garlic spreads and colorful carrots. Email: lisa.deaderick@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @lisadeaderick A Chinese naval ship snatched an undersea vessel away from a U.S. Navy research ship Thursday in the South China Sea, a move almost certain to ratchet up tensions in the already-fraught region. The Pentagon put out a statement Friday calling it an unlawful seizure. U.S. officials have asked for the unmanned underwater vessel an unclassified ocean glider that looks like a short torpedo with wings to be returned. Welcome to The Intel, a blog examining the hot military news of the day The U.S. Navy research ship Bowditch, assigned to the South China Sea, was there to retrieve the glider when a Chinese ship launched a small boat and scooped up the underwater vessel, according to the Pentagon statement. It also said: Bowditch made contact with the PRC Navy ship via bridge-to-bridge radio to request the return of the UUV. The radio contact was acknowledged by the PRC Navy ship, but the request was ignored. As the Chinese ship sailed away, it apparently radioed, We are returning to normal operations, a Pentagon spokesman said. We need to find out what the Chinese have to say about it, Capt. Jeff Davis said. Its certainly not something we consider to be commensurate with their level as a professional military. The Bowditch is a civilian-operated U.S. Navy support ship measuring 328 feet with a crew of 28 civilians and 27 scientists. The Pentagon described the Chinese ship as a Chinese Navy PRC DALANG III-Class ship (ASR-510). Thats a 365-foot submarine support ship, according to an official familiar with the circumstances. Its unclear to what degree that kind of Chinese ship is armed. The incident happened about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, Philippines, where Bowditch was acting in accordance with international law, the Pentagon said. The ocean glider is commonly used to gather military oceanographic data such as salinity, water temperature and sound speed. On social media, some saw the seizure as a sign of weakness by the United States. And some saw it as a challenge to President-elect Donald Trump, who recently defied diplomatic custom by engaging Taiwans leader in a phone call. The United States usual stance is acknowledging no official relationship with Taiwan, as a tactic to further relations with China. It almost certainly raises the bar on tension in the area, following several years of dispute over China building manmade islands to strengthen its claim on national resources there. On Thursday, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a U.S. think tank, reported that satellite imagery shows that China has installed anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems on all seven artificial islands it has built. The incident also, notably, happened off the coast of the Philippines, a nation whose relations with the United States have recently cooled. Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte said he wants to cut some ties with the United States in favor of China. However, questions have been raised about how much of that is bluster by the unconventional new leader of the Philippines. On Friday, Foreign Policy magazine described this moment in China-U.S. relations as a watery showdown. News of the incident also shook the financial markets, on what was otherwise a placid day. jen.steele@sduniontribune.com Facebook: U-T Military Twitter: @jensteeley The Navy temporarily grounded its fleet of F/A-18 E/F/ Super Hornets and E/A-18G Growlers following what officials call an on-deck emergency Friday morning in western Washington. A Navy Growler assigned to Electronic Attack Squadron 132 was damaged and both of its aircrew suffered unspecified injuries during a ground accident that involved the jets canopy shortly before an 11 a.m. takeoff Friday at the Whidbey Island air station on Puget Sound, according to Navy spokeswoman Cmdr. Jeanette D. Groeneveld. A Whidbey Island search and rescue helicopter raced the Scorpions crew to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for evaluation. Advertisement Because the advanced Boeing Super Hornets and Growlers rely on similar aircraft systems, Vice Adm. Mike Shoemaker commander of Naval Air Forces on North Island temporarily suspended flight operations for both types of jets. Exceptions, however, will be made on a case-by-case basis dependent upon operational requirements, according to a Navy statement released at dawn on Saturday. Boeing engineers and Naval Air Systems Command are probing the cause of the incident and North Island officials said that they should know more by Monday. A two-seat version of the Super Hornet multirole fighter, the carrier-based Growler is an electronic warfare aircraft that began replacing Northrop Grummans EA-6B Prowlers in 2009. Growlers can jam enemy signals, fool radar systems and detect incoming missiles. The temporary pause on Growler and Super Hornet flights will not affect squadrons in the San Diego area. cprine@sduniontribune.com With the prospect of reduced Colorado River deliveries as early as 2018, U.S. and Mexican negotiators have been in a race against the clock to forge an agreementthat involves sharing any future shortages and are hoping for a signing before President-elect Donald Trump takes office on January 20th. Water managers on both sides of the border say the accord will be crucial in spelling out how the United States and Mexico would take cuts when a shortage is declared on the river, a lifeline for some 40 million people in both countries. Advertisement The draft also contains provisions for continuing the restoration of wetlands in the Colorado River delta and extending agricultural water conservation programs in the Mexicali Valley, as well as allowing Mexico to continue storing water in Lake Mead. The proposed agreement, known as a minute is an extension of the 1944 U.S.-Mexico water treaty on the Colorado River that allots Mexico 1.5 million acre-feet annually enough for up to 3 million households. The agreement would succeed an existing bilateral agreement, Minute 319, that is set to expire at the end of 2017. Were trying to build on the trust that we had in Minute 319, said Edward Drusina, who as head of the U.S. International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC) is the chief U.S. negotiator. The proposed minute is good for the United States and good for Mexico, and we will do what we can to move it forward, Drusina said in remarks delivered in Las Vegas on Friday at a conference organized by the Colorado River Water Users Association. Because many of the key players at the federal level are expected to leave office next month, there is rising uncertainty over how much support for such an agreement can be expected under future Trump appointees. Beyond that, some are fearful that the collaboration between the United States and Mexico on the issue could be tainted by the politically heated rhetoric that the new administration has brought to other bilateral issues with Mexico such as trade and immigration. This great example of binational cooperation should not be derailed by unrelated political issues, said Anne Castle, a former assistant secretary in the U.S. Department of Interior, and now a senior scholar at the Getches-Wilkinson Center for Natural Resources, Energy and the Environment at the University of Colorado. The collaboration between the U.S. and Mexico on binational management of this river that we share is extraordinary, and that is something to be celebrated and continued and supported, Castle said. Members of Trumps transition team did not respond to requests for comment. While a shortage has never been declared on the river, water managers say that this could happen as early as 2018 if the levels in Lake Mead continue to drop. Earlier this year, the reservoir fell to its lowest level since the construction of the Hoover Dam in the 1930s. These are two countries that badly need each other at a time of water shortage on the Colorado, said Stephen Mumme, a political science professor at Colorado State University and an expert on water and environmental issues on the U.S.-Mexico border. With treaty rights to its water, Mexico has a pretty good hand to play, but it wants to cooperate with the United States, and it needs the storage upstream, Mumme said. The talks between the United States and Mexico, which have been taking place since 2015, are being led by the IBWC and its Mexican counterpart, Comision Internacional de Limites y Aguas (CILA). The minute will have the same basic sections as Minute 319 but will be updated appropriately, said Sally Spener, foreign affairs officer for the IBWC. Signed in 2012 in Coronado, Minute 319 involved unprecedented binational cooperation on the Colorado River and for the first time in the treatys history recognition of the environment as a water user. Its provisions included a pulse flow of a large volume of Colorado River water during an eight-week period in 2014 delivered to wetlands in Mexico that have been getting little water due to diversion upstream for urban and agricultural users. Another component of Minute 319 involved a collaboration among three U.S. water agencies the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the Central Arizona Project and the Southern Nevada Water Authority and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to pay $18 million for water conservation projects in Mexico. In exchange, they were to receive 124,000 acre-feet of Mexican water being stored at Lake Mead. The value of working with Mexico is key, said Bill Hasencamp, Colorado River Resources manager for the Metropolitan Water District. If were not done by January, that doesnt mean we still dont have an agreement with Mexico. We want to make sure its done right rather than done fast. Approving the agreement before the end of January is going to be a challenge, because were running up against the clock, said Tina Shields, the water department manager of of the Imperial Irrigation District. Obviously people are moving very quickly now. The outcome of the talks is being followed with equally intense interest by the San Diego County Water Authority, which imports two-thirds of the regions supply from the Colorado River. The lower Colorado basin states of California, Arizona and Nevada are working on their own drought contingency plan which must be approved before the water scarcity provisions in the binational agreement can be made effective. The states agreement would parallel the binational water scarcity provision with Mexico under the new accord, so that if the lower basin states take cuts under their contingency plan, so would Mexico, said Tanya Trujillo, who is representing California in the bilateral talks. Trujillo, who is executive director of the Colorado River Board of California, was doubtful Friday that all the different provisions would be worked out before January. Theres still a lot of us working on a lot different components. The IBWCs Spener said we think there is a path forward that would not require the drought contingency plan among the lower basin states to be adopted before the binational agreement can be signed. Spener could not say whether the work on the agreement will be concluded by the time Trump takes office. We dont have a specific timeline, but we continue to work, Spener said. Commissioner Drusina has instructed his staff to continue to work, and thats what were continuing to do. sandra.dibble@sduniontribune.com @sandradibble A convicted sex offender has been arrested after authorities say he sent child pornography to an 11-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl he met online and encouraged them to send him similar photos of themselves. Joseph Daniel Saucedo, 25, of Vista, who works at a coffee shop, is accused of reaching out to the victims using various social media platforms, including Instagram and Kik, and posing as a teenage girl to lure them in, according to the complaint filed in San Diego federal court. Saucedo was convicted in San Diego Superior Court in 2012 for unlawful sex with a minor. He was 20 and the girl was 14 at the time, authorities said. Advertisement A federal task force in San Diego, which includes U.S. Homeland Security Investigations and the Secret Service, began investigating Saucedo during the summer after receiving reports from the Calgary Police Service in Alberta, Canada. An 11-year-old boy there told authorities he began communicating with a teenage girl named Amy Jennings via Kik, an instant messaging app. The normal conversations became explicit when Amy started to send him nude pictures of underage girls, telling him the photos were of her and her friends, according to the complaint. Amy asked the boy to contact her adult male friend and send naked photos of himself. When the boy refused, Amy began to harass him, threatening to say bad things online about the boy if he didnt comply, the complaint says. The boy finally agreed to text the man, also believed to be Saucedo. Saucedo then began contacting the boy on iMessage and FaceTime, at least once while naked, according to the complaint. The boy would hang up and told him to stop calling. Around Christmas 2015, Amy sent the boy a photo of the front of the boys house possibly obtained from Google maps and threatened to give out his address if he didnt continue talking with the man. Calgary police were contacted after that. Their investigation led them to Saucedo, who was living at his girlfriends parents house in Vista, authorities said. The investigation revealed Amy exchanged 130 images and 66 videos many of them child pornography with Kik users. Investigators served a search warrant on Saucedo on Nov. 21 and seized his iPhone. They discovered another alleged victim, a 16-year-old girl in Florida who he contacted through Instagram. He held himself out as a modeling agent and asked for nude photos from her. She eventually gave in and sent numerous photos over the course of several weeks. She also received threats that the photos would be released if she didnt keep them coming, the complaint states. As parents we need to be aggressively monitoring what our children are doing online, and as prosecutors, we will aggressively go after predators who are coercing, extorting and harming our kids, U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy said in a statement. Potential victims are urged to contact Polly Montano, the victim witness coordinator at the U.S. Attorneys Office, at (619) 546-8921. kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @kristinadavis Paul Thomas of Julian Hard Cider wanted some help researching how to expand his already-successful Julian Hard Cider overseas. John Grindle was ready to take his new business to the next level by pitching Game Night San Diego to corporations as a perfect team-building exercise. Both could have spent thousands of dollars on professional consultants. Instead, they turned to San Diego State University and helped some undergraduates get real-world experience as they got some real-world advice. Advertisement Theyre fantastic, Thomas said about the four students who made recommendations about Julian Hard Cider.. Grindle, who previously worked in computer science, said he appreciated working with students who had more knowledge than he does about marketing and finance. Part of the drill for me was to get focused, he said. Ive had a lot of ideas. Its a matter of picking the right ones. For decades, SDSUs Small Business Consulting Center had given about 250 graduate students opportunities to work directly with local business owners. Last year, business professor John Francis re-branded the program as Aztec Consulting and opened it up to the roughly 4,800 undergraduate students in the Fowler College of Business Administration. Of course our stakeholders are students first, and students really need real-life experiences, he said. About 100 students a year participate in Aztec Consulting, with half of those from classes associated with the program and half from a consulting club for students who cant get into the classes. Francis said Aztec Consulting differs from the Small Business Consulting Center by aiming to have long-term impacts on its clients. Over the past few months, business students also have been checking in on the roughly 250 companies that consultants have worked with over the past decade. So far theyve learned that a third of the businesses no longer exists and a third didnt respond to inquiries. Among the other third that did respond, 75 percent said they had a good experience in the program. Our task is to try to do a better job, Francis said. When we deliver our ideas, we want to follow up with them. In the past, students in the program gave clients a list of recommendation, then basically walked away. Under Aztec Consulting, students give a list of what to do over three months and over three years, with cost projections and follow-up. Francis said businesses usually get 100 to 150 hours of work from the student teams. If a company were using professionals, it would pay between $100 to $200 an hour, he said. It was rewarding, said Brandon Oscarson, who graduated last May and participated in the team that consulted Julian Hard Cider. It made you think critically. I enjoyed getting to work with a real business rather than reading out of a book. Our recommendations could be enacted and help a real person. Thomas said the students recommendations for a greater social media presence, which won the team first-place in a competition at Aztec Consultants, has had a positive effect on his business. The students suggested integrating all of our social media platforms into one singular management tool, which would ensure we were reaching as many Julian Hard Cider enthusiasts as possible within our existing network, Thomas said. This year, Aztec Consultings clients were OB Surf and Skate, Steven Lombardi Architect, Vavi Sport and Social Club, Curematch and Game Night San Diego. Grindle said he opened Game Night San Diego two years ago with his sister, inspired by the fun they had playing games growing up. My big thing is, number one, to have really fun, silly, high-energy games, he said. The other big part for me is interaction between people so its fun for everybody. Grindle said his plan was always to take the concept to corporations rather than parties, but as a small start-up he didnt have the resources to hire professional consultants for advice. He called SDSU after hearing that the business school had a student consulting program. While he didnt find any surprises in the students recommendations, Grindle said they did confirm that he was on the right track with some of his ideas. Michael Glas was one of the four students who created a 110-page list of recommendations for Grindle. We divided up our work into our specialties, said Glas, a finance major. I worked on his pricing strategy and price point. Basically were going to be recommending he change to a two-part pricing strategy. Charge a fixed price and a variable price. The team also recommended Grindle update his website and expand the types of activities he offers. I feel like Im going to make a difference in this persons life by providing him with these recommendations that are well-researched, not thing we came up with out of the blue, Glas said. I think if he really takes this and runs with it, it will impact his business. gary.warth@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @GaryWarthUT 760-529-4939 Music students can be passionate, inventive, disciplined and determined, but once they graduate there often is one thing they lack. Business sense. Most students, when they look back at their music programs on what they did not get, its practical business experience, said Donna Conaty, associate dean at San Diego State Universitys College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts. Advertisement For the past three years, however, a handful of students have had business classes woven into courses required for a music degree, giving them entrepreneurial skills and internship opportunities that already had led to jobs for graduates. Since 2012, all students at the university have been eligible to earn a five-course minor in entrepreneurship through the Fowler College of Business Administration, but the option wasnt a good fit for music students who must earn 132 units for their degree and rarely have time to take electives.. Conaty saw the benefits of the program and began talking with Bernhard Schroeder, director of Lavin Entrepreneurship Center programs at SDSU, about how to help music students better prepare for careers. The solution was to create a separate entrepreneurship track that allows music students to apply business units toward their music degree. The entrepreneurial track requires students to take a class in the fundamentals of entrepreneurism and a final class on business model/business plan development. In between, they can choose three more classes from 45 electives, including 10 specifically on entrepreneurship. Conaty said she believes the business track for music students is rare. Shes aware of a private Philadelphia school with a narrow entrepreneurship program for songwriters and a private religious school in the Midwest that has entrepreneurial classes in its worship track. Schroeder and Conaty said the entrepreneurial track is intended to encourage music students who otherwise would be planning performance careers to consider other possibilities that still are related to music. That encouragement is needed, she said, because SDSU graduates tend to stay in the area and likely will face disappointment as they strike out to find a job singing opera or attempt to earn a living performing jazz. They end up leaving the field all together, she said about some graduates. Theyve invested all this time and their hopes and their dreams, and then they feel like theyve somehow failed. Conaty said her goal is to have music graduates become cultural leaders as well as performing musicians. Schroeder said he has seen the effect the track has had on students who took his entrepreneurship classes. We have seen several different students come through the program and have a curiosity about life beyond just being a musician, he said. Whether it would be creating a music festival, whether it would be managing the House of Blues. Graduates also could be agents to performers or start their own online businesses teaching music, he said. When you start defining the ecosystem of music, all of a sudden they (students) step back and go, The music industrys pretty big, he said. The first student to earn a music degree on the entrepreneurial track graduated last year, and three more graduated last spring. Another two or three should graduate this spring, and 12 others are entering the program, Conaty said. Paige Kobdish, 21, an oboe player in her last year at SDSU, is taking classes in the entrepreneurship track while earning a music degree. I knew I didnt want to be a performing musician the rest of my life, she said. I knew I didnt have the drive. Its such a competitive field. Kobdish said that while she isnt passionate about performing, she remains passionate about music. Taking entrepreneurship classes from Schroeder, she said she learned that people can be taught to be creative in any field. Accountants can be creative with a spreadsheet, she said, adding that the classes gave her a new perspective. Kobdish is interning in the marketing and education departments at the San Diego Opera, and she plans to one day work as an administrator for an arts nonprofit, preferably a symphony orchestra. I just throught it was a better, safer option as far as making a career, she said. Theres so many possibilities for employment in the arts. You dont have to just be a performer. I really see my skill set aligning with the business. Yo Oh, 25, graduated last December after completing the entrepreneurial track and now works at the San Diego Opera as an administrator. When I first went to SDSU, my focus was vocal performance, he said. When I heard about the entrepreneurism track, it got me thinking. I was always interested in starting my own business one day, and at the same time, music was my passion. Oh said the skills he learned from business classes and his internship helped him get his job, and he hopes to open his own opera company some day. The track also helped him learn how to market himself, and Oh said he thinks the classes would be helpful for all musicians, not just music majors. gary.warth@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @GaryWarthUT 760-529-4939 Members of the Teamsters are warning people to stay away from UC San Diego medical facilities during a one-day strike planned for next month. Teresa Conrow, a spokeswoman for Teamsters Local 2010 said administrative workers represented by the union will strike Jan.10 at UC San Diego, possibly disrupting some facilities.. The strike is in part a show of solidarity with workers who voted Dec.15 to strike at UCLA Jan. 6 to 10, she said. Advertisement Three separate bargaining units are involved in contract disputes with the University of California. One unit represents about 200 skilled trade workers at UC San Diego, another represents skilled trade workers at UCLA, and a third represents about 12,000 administrative workers at University of California medical centers throughout the state. Of that 12,000, about 1,550 administrative workers are at UC San Diego. Skilled trade workers at UC San Diego have not voted to strike, but are in mediation with the school. Administrative workers include clerical and support personnel who work directly with faculty or in billing, public safety, child care and other areas. Skilled trade workers include electricians, elevator mechanics, plumbers, facilities managers and workers in heating and cooling systems. Conrow said anyone planning to go to UC San Diego medical facilities on Jan. 10 should reschedule unless they have a necessary medical appointment. Union members will picket at UC San Diegos locations in Hillcrest, La Jolla and at the schools campus, she said. The Teamsters issued a similar warning last month before a one-day strike Nov. 17 Issues raised by skilled trade workers include accusations of unfair labor practices, bad-faith bargaining, retaliation against workers for participating in strike activities, unilaterally changing work rules and interfering with workers right to engage in union activities, Conrow said. The workers earn $10 an hour less than other workers for the same jobs in the surrounding community, she added. The administrative workers are striking for more money. Conrow said the workers wages have declined by 24 percent over the last 18 years, and the UC is offering a 12 percent to 18 percent pay increase over five years. Dianne Klein, press secretary at the office of the president of the University of California, said in an e-mail that the planned strike is premature and unlawful. UC has offered these clerical employees a guaranteed 18 percent pay raise over the next six years as well as affordable, quality health care benefits and retirement options, including a traditional pension plan that very few other employers offer, she wrote. UC clerical employees earn an annual average salary of $47,300 more than the state average of roughly $39,200. These UC employees typically pay only $28.40 a month for complete health care coverage for themselves and their children. UCs proposed wage increases ensure salaries for clericals stay market-competitive, and are consistent with increases given to other represented and non-represented employees, she continued. We believe our proposals fairly recognize the skills and contributions of our clerical staff. We urge Teamsters leadership to finalize a new contract without further delay. gary.warth@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @GaryWarthUT 760-529-4939 ELBRIDGE Throughout 2017, anyone who purchases gas at the new Fastrac Cafe location in Elbridge will make a donation to the Jordan-Elbridge Central School District. Through an initiative that Jim Allen, vice president of marketing, said is beginning with the company's newest store which opened to the public Friday after a three-month construction process Fastrac will donate a penny from every gallon of gas sold on Wednesdays to the school district. Before the gas station and convenience store located at 110-112 W. Main St., Elbridge, even sold its first gallon of gas, Allen and other Fastrac officials gathered to present a $5,000 check to Jordan-Elbridge Superintendent James Froio through its charity, Fastrac Cares. Allen said the check was a way for the company to pay it forward to the school district and the community before it begins giving a portion of its gas sales to the district. "We'll tally it all up at the end of 2017 for every gallon we sell on Wednesday, and if we end up having to write another check, that'd be great," he said. "What better way to come to Elbridge?" Along with the check presentation, Fastrac hosted a reception at the store Friday morning for company officials and vendor representatives. According to a sign on the front door, the store officially opened to the public at 5 p.m. that evening. "We're extremely happy to be here in Elbridge," Allen said. "We put a lot of time and planning into this. To get it open before the holidays is great. We're excited to be here, and we really look forward to it." With Fastrac stores in Camillus and Auburn, the Elbridge location marks the company's third along a stretch of Route 5 between Auburn and Syracuse. Allen said the company looks at different metrics when deciding where to place its stores. Along with a Byrne Dairy on the west end of the town of Elbridge and the Corner Quick Stop across the street, the new Fastrac also makes the third gas station in the Elbridge community. "We just felt like it's a nice, small community, good traffic, and we just felt like we could fill a need," he said. "It met our criteria, so here we are." From village Planning Board approval in midsummer to construction that broke ground in September, Allen said the process to build the new Fastrac went smoothly. "It went well from the moment that we got started on it," he said. "The whole process through the site plan approval was really pretty seamless, and the construction really went well." Dennis Pelmear, the village planning board chairman, expressed support for the project when talking to the village board about its approval in July, and Mayor Hank Doerr also gave his thumbs-up following the board's September meeting. Allen said that kind of positivity from community leaders means a lot to the company. "That's what makes it nice when you come to a community like Elbridge to have people on your side and working with you versus working against you," he said. "We didn't have a lot of red tape. It just makes the process go a lot smoother." Allen said Fastrac felt like it could help build the tax base in the community and at the same time put up a nice facility in place of what had been an eyesore left over from a previous gas station and car dealership on the property. During the reception, a few people stopped in the store thinking it was already open. Allen called it "the fun days" when the company gets to see that kind of anticipation for one of its stores. "There's a lot of time and effort from a lot of people to build one of these stores and get it open, but it's nice when you actually get a chance to see the public come in," he said. "They drive by it for months and say, 'When's it going to come?' Then it finally comes." As the eighth cafe location in the past year and half, Allen said the Elbridge Fastrac can fill customers' needs from gas and groceries to a meal or a snack. "It's really just a nice addition to the community," he said. "We're excited to be here and look forward to serving the community." Froio said the donation will go toward installing an indoor playground in Jordan-Elbridge Middle School for the district's pre-kindergarten program for which it received state funding to expand to 3-year-olds starting next year. "It's so nice. It really shows their dedication to the community and the school district, and I'm so glad that they're supporting our new 3-year-old program," Froio said, noting the district is setting up a private wing of the middle school for the expanded program, getting classrooms ready and turning the former board room into the playground. "We are so excited about it." Froio said Tim Ball, Fastrac's category manager, approached him to say the company was interested in partnering with the district, and that conversation led to the donation to support the 3-year-old program as well as the penny-per-gallon donation to support other ventures. "They're going to do well in this location," Froio said. "For them to reach out and support the school this way I think is terrific, and it really shows their dedication to being a community partner, more than just establishing a business but partnering with the community and the school district in a way to help kids." By PTI: Islamabad, Dec 17 (PTI) Pakistans Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar today said that he offered to resign after he faced severe criticism following a damning report about his failure to combat militancy in the country. The one-man commission report by Justice Qazi Faez Isa about the attack in Quetta on August 8 in which about 70 people, mostly lawyers, were killed, was released by the Supreme Court on Thursday. advertisement It highlighted the "monumental failure" of the interior ministry to combat terrorism and targeted Nisar for failure to respond to questions by the inquiry. He was also taken to task for holding a meeting with leaders of banned outfit in Islamabad. Nisar addressed a press conference and said he was ready to resign and defend his role in combating terrorism. "I went to the Prime Minister (Nawaz Sharif) to tell him that I wanted to resign from my position but was told by him that the decision was unacceptable," he said. The Interior Minister termed the report as one sided which he alleged was released without including the interior ministrys point of view. He also said that the report was used by opposition for "personal attacks" on him. "I had decided to respond to the allegations much earlier as media resorted to personality bashing for the last two days," he said. He said he resisted to respond to allegations as it could lead to harming the national institutions and war against terrorism. He said if a judge had the privilege of integrity, everyone else reserved the same right and said he would hold the current job only with integrity. "I will challenge this report at every forum including the Supreme Court and Parliament and elaborate on the performance of the incumbent and previous regimes," he said. He said there had been only 774 incidents of terrorism in the country during the current year as opposed to nearly 10,000 such incidents from 2007 until 2013. Already opposition Pakistan Peoples Party demanded resignation of interior minister after the report was released. The party also submitted a motion against him in the parliament doe discussion that the interior minister was incapable of playing a role in combating terrorism. PTI SH UZM --- ENDS --- Fueled by two decades of pioneering scientific discoveries, precedent-setting legislation and aggressive regulations that courts have upheld, California is the nations undisputed leader on efforts to fight climate change and a leading voice on the international stage for curbing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Now the states top officials are bracing for a major clash with Donald Trump and his incoming presidential administration in the battle over global warming. Trump who has repeatedly described climate change as a hoax could make the crusade to curtail emissions in California much more difficult. Experts said he could, among other actions, slash funding for scientific research and technology, end tax credits for electric cars and solar roofs, and mount a comprehensive legal fight against the states ability to regulate greenhouse gases from polluting industries. Advertisement The showdown could ripple to other states that have or plan to follow Californias policies, such as reducing vehicle emissions, forcing power utilities to increasingly use renewable sources of energy and requiring industry to pay money for the right to pollute. Gov. Jerry Brown has said he and other state lawmakers are ready to stand up to Trumps team. Were going to mobilize in the face of what is obviously a rather adverse atmosphere, politically speaking, for what were trying to do, Brown said during a news conference Tuesday in San Diego, where he announced that California is asking the Obama administration to create a permanent ban on oil and gas drilling off the West Coast. I think we really need to be geared up for the long term, and I think well maybe really strengthen our capacity in the controversies and challenges that come up in the next couple years, he said. Top Republicans in Congress as well as automakers, oil companies and other businesses subject to Californias greenhouse-gas rules welcome Trumps views on global warming and his nominations to key agency posts that control environmental decisions. While it makes everybody feel good to drive businesses out of California in the name of environmental purity, were really not accomplishing much of anything with respect to the climate, said Jim Burling, director of litigation for the Pacific Legal Foundation, a Sacramento-based nonprofit that litigates and lobbies on behalf of companies around the country. The groups stated goals are limited government and a balanced approach to environmental protection. Through a series of financial penalties and incentives linked to several landmark laws, California has ushered in widespread installation of rooftop solar panels, more energy-efficient buildings, the nations first cap-and-trade program and, perhaps most notably, rigorous benchmarks for cutting pollution from factories to diesel trucks. Under the current trajectory, the states climate-change campaign will account for as much as 5 percent of the United States annual greenhouse-gas reductions during the next decade. Since first approving its emissions-lowering goals in 2006, California has slashed its yearly climate-warming emissions by about 35 million metric tons. The states current annual emissions are 441.5 million metric tons, a number that must drop to 431 million metric tons by 2020 to meet a designated threshold. Officials are in the middle of updating the states blueprint for shrinking such emissions the California Air Resources Boards 2030 Target Scoping Plan. The Legislature has committed to reaching an eye-popping 259 million metric tons of emissions by 2030, a decline of roughly 182 million metric tons from todays level. That difference is more than what the states entire transportation sector spews into the atmosphere in a year. FOR THE RECORD: An earlier version of this story gave an incorrect figure for Californias targeted drop in greenhouse-gas emissions between now and 2030. The Union-Tribune regrets the error. Possible hurdles Satisfying the states targets wont be easy. To make significant progress, California will likely need to ratchet up or overhaul its cap-and-trade program and pass new legislation to further regulate industries that have for years opposed such oversight. Those businesses and other critics of the states climate-change policies could gain a powerful ally if Trumps administration does prove hostile toward the California benchmarks. Experts said the next president and his deputies could eliminate climate-related categories of federal funding for universities and national laboratories in California, as well as discourage private-sector grants for development of emerging technologies such as grid-scale battery storage and low-carbon fuels. They also could try to bind state lawmakers hands on key regulatory issues, according to legal scholars. Executives from a host of industries ranging from farming interests to petroleum and natural gas companies have repeatedly argued that on climate change, California violates the federal pre-emption doctrine that prohibits certain state policies from exceeding federal laws. They will likely lobby the Trump administration to back lawsuits claiming that California has overstepped its legal authority under whats known as the supremacy clause. Trump might work with the GOP-led Congress to bolster the companies legal leverage, said Richard Frank, director of the California Environmental Law & Policy Center at UC Davis law school. (They) could cast new federal laws declaring specifically that what California is trying to do is contrary to the national interest and is pre-empted, Frank said. That would be the most dramatic and, I would say, radical step. Mary Nichols, chair of the states air board, has expressed skepticism that the Trump administration would attempt such a legislative move. She has publicly vowed to move forward with the agencys growing role in regulating climate pollution in California. Also on the legislative front, analysts said Trump and his team could try to strip references to climate pollution out of the Clean Air Act, which would then complicate or even hobble efforts by California and other states to rely on that cornerstone law in fashioning their greenhouse-emissions rules. And the incoming administration might gut the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency the predominant federal enforcer of climate-change rules. Trumps potential deputies Several moves by Trump in recent weeks seem to signal a desire to follow through on his campaign statements about climate change, which included a pledge to walk away from the international climate accord forged last year in Paris. That treaty, which 195 nations have joined, commits each government to lowering emissions and calls for wealthier countries to assist developing ones with money and technology. Trumps highest-profile decision so far about the environment has been his nomination of Scott Pruitt to head the EPA. Pruitt, currently the Oklahoma attorney general, has led a cadre of state attorneys general in coordinated lawsuits against federal policies on greenhouse emissions, including those set by the EPA. He has somewhat acknowledged the existence of climate change but questioned whether human activity is playing any role. He also has disputed the severity of climate changes effects as predicted by most of the scientific community. During an October episode of the Exploring Energy radio show in Oklahoma, Pruitt said: Is it truly man-made or is this just simply another period of time where the Earth is cooling, increasing in heat? Is it just typical, natural type of occurrences as opposed what the (Obama) administration says? What people dont realize is that what the scientists have done is input data into a computer and produced modeling as far as the trajectory of whats going to occur. Its predictive in nature. Its speculative in nature. Its not objectively measured, as far as us knowing for sure whats going to occur. Shortly after news broke of Pruitts nomination, governor Browns executive secretary, Nancy McFadden, made this post on Twitter: Next commander-in-chief picks climate change denier-in-chief to lead @EPA. Well stand our ground. CAs ready. #ActOnClimate Tom Scott, executive director in California for the National Federation of Independent Business, had a decidedly different response last week about the Trump administrations potential impact on climate-change issues in the Golden State. Small businesses in this state are hurting. The election of Trump has created some optimism, said Scott, whose organization represents 22,000 small business owners in California and 325,000 nationally. Trump then nominated Ryan Zinke, a former Navy SEAL and currently a Republican congressman representing Montanas at-large district, to become secretary of the U.S. Interior Department, a position that directs oil and gas drilling on federal lands and waters. While Zinke has for years insisted the federal government should retain control of the nations public lands, he has disagreed with the Obama administrations climate agenda by backing industry efforts to resume or expand logging and coal mining in those areas. He also has repeatedly voted in favor of preserving the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which relies on royalties from fossil-fuel exploration on public lands. As for his perspective on climate change, Zinke said this in 2014 to the Billings Gazette newspaper in Montana: Its not a hoax, but its not proven science either. Beyond the Pruitt and Zinke picks, Trump and his transition team recently stoked concerns by issuing a controversial memo to the U.S. Energy Department. Among other things, that document asked for the names of all employees and contractors who have attended United Nations meetings on climate change, as well as the names of people who have analyzed the impact of various federal rules intended to curb greenhouse emissions. Democratic leaders response Californias Democratic leadership has repeatedly said its ready for legal and political warfare with Trumps administration. Brown recently named Rep. Xavier Becerra, D-Los Angeles, to serve as the states next attorney general. Analysts said it was something of a surprise nomination that underscored an anticipated battle with the next president on hot-button topics such as immigration and global warming. Gov. Jerry Brown, left, and Xavier Becerra, his nominee for California attorney general, answer questions at a news conference in Sacramento on Dec. 5. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press ) California is well over 10 percent of the U.S. economy, and were not turning back on building the clean-energy economy of tomorrow, state Senate Leader Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, said in a recent statement. We will continue to use our policies, our purchasing power and our private-sector innovation to help us reach our emissions targets and transform the American energy sector. Trump wouldnt be the first president to push back against Californias climate-change agenda. During George W. Bushs presidency, the EPA blocked the states initial bid to regulate greenhouse emissions from automakers vehicle fleets. Until then, California had for decades received waivers for regulating traditional emissions from cars and light-duty trucks beyond whats allowed under federal rules a unique privilege granted in the 1970 Clean Air Act that grandfathered in the states regulatory authority but required ongoing approval from the EPA. After taking office, President Barack Obama and his team not only granted Californias waiver application but extended states vehicle emission standards to the whole country. Those regulations, which took effect in 2012, in part require automakers to reduce greenhouse emissions by raising the average fuel efficiency of their vehicle fleets to 35.5 miles per gallon by 2016. Two days after Trump won the election last month, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers appealed to Trump to revisit the rules. The trade group represents General Motors, Ford Motor Co., Toyota Motor Corp. and other car makers. Also last month, the Obama administration fast-tracked a review of the vehicle-fuel-efficiency program in an effort to more firmly lock in its targeted standards for future years. For example, it wants to mandate that automakers offer vehicle fleets with an average of more than 50 miles per gallon by 2025. Such rules are a central part of strategies by both the federal and California governments to slash climate pollution. Transportation accounts for 26 percent of all greenhouse emissions nationally and 37 percent in California. If the Trump administration rolls back the national auto-emissions standards, Californias own vehicle-emissions regulations could take on a heightened significance. As allowed by the Clean Air Act, more than a dozen other states have adopted those rules as well. They include New York, Texas, Pennsylvania and Georgia. I would say its all hands on deck. We have too much at stake, said the recently retired California Senator Fran Pavley, who spearheaded the states most prominent legislation on climate change during her 35-year political career. Pruitt, the EPA nominee, has long urged the federal government and courts to give states more autonomy. He started a so-called federalist unit within the Oklahoma Attorney Generals Office to oppose what he saw as federal encroachment. But Pruitts state-powers position could easily flip, said Paul Nolette, a political science professor at Marquette University in Wisconsin and author of the 2015 book Federalism on Trial: State Attorneys General and National Policy Making in Contemporary America. There has indeed been a lot of talk already about returning power to the states under a Trump-Pruitt EPA, but I dont buy that thats the way things will turn out, he said. The EPA would be unlikely to allow California and other piggy-backing states to raise (vehicle emissions) standards and will defend against claims from Becerra and other blue-state (attorneys general) that the federal government is violating states rights, he added. In-state pressures All of this political uncertainty comes as California policy makers try to weigh which climate strategies have worked and which they might consider abandoning. Many of the states climate-change programs arent proven yet, in large part because the economic crisis of the past decade has created the side effect of dampening activities that generate a lot of greenhouse emissions from car commutes to factory production. Connecting greenhouse gas-reductions to a specific policy is difficult. Since we dont yet have a good handle on the effectiveness of the policies California has implemented thus far, its hard to plan for the future, said Andrew Campbell, executive director of UC Berkeleys Energy Institute at Haas. Californias done very well in terms of greenhouse-gas emissions, but thats mostly because of some of the slowdown we had during the mortgage crisis, he added. Another major question mark for California is its cap-and-trade system, which is being challenged in state courts by the California Chamber of Commerce. Critics of the program contend that it amounts to a tax and as such would have needed approval by two-thirds of the Legislature. California has been receiving support for the program under Obamas Clean Power Plan, which encourages states to set up similar cap-and-trade systems for power plants. The plan, which Obama created through executive action, followed the congressional defeat of a proposed national program to sell carbon allowances. Trump and his team could very well strive to minimize the Clean Power Plan or kill it outright, although such efforts would likely involve years of administrative and legal wrangling. In the meantime, California seems determined to continue its efforts to persuade other states especially its close trading partners to join its cap-and-trade system. In 2013, the states regulators finalized an agreement with Quebec, Canada to integrate the two governments cap-and-trade programs. The Canadian government has called on all other provinces to roll out such programs, with Ontario scheduled to adopt one next year that would also be linked to Californias. Washington state plans to implement its own cap-and-trade system in January. Oregon has been studying an emissions trading program, but has not reached a decision on whether to move forward with it. Twitter: @jemersmith Phone: (619) 293-2234 Email: joshua.smith@sduniontribune.com The Betty Ford Center, a household name in addiction treatment, opened its first facility in San Diego County this week, putting a spotlight on the transition that many such facilities are making from abstinence-based therapy to drug-based methods of treating opioid addiction. The center, which occupies the top floor of an office building in Carmel Valley, uses a recently developed program that blends a traditional 12-step recovery process with the latest science on using medications such as Soboxone and Naltrexone to suppress withdrawal symptoms and keep cravings at bay. Its a huge change for the Betty Ford team, which made its name by helping often-famous clients beat alcohol and drug habits using tailored counseling programs, group therapy, meditation and other psycho-social methods. Advertisement Those methods, practiced widely throughout the addiction-recovery industry, failed to prevent the nations opioid epidemic which has seen prescription painkiller and heroin overdose deaths skyrocket by 200 percent since 2000, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The crisis is also putting pressure on hospitals. A recent federal research brief found that nationwide, opioid-related inpatient stays increased by 64 percent between 2005 and 2014. Researchers have determined that many of the overdose deaths came after month-long treatment sessions at traditional abstinence-based facilities. The finding is forcing those programs to rethink a longstanding reluctance to using certain of these so called maintenance drugs, which are themselves opioids, to help deliver more effective results for addiction patients. Medical science seems to show that maintenance medications do a good job of fully or partially blocking receptors in the brain that opioids stimulate. But ever since the federal government started setting up methadone clinics in the 1970s, many leaders in the addiction-recovery field have resisted the notion of substituting one addictive drug for another, especially when long-term daily treatment is necessary to prevent a relapse. Dr. Marvin Seppala, chief medical officer for the nonprofit Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation, said the evidence for medication-assisted addiction treatment is very strong. But he also said the organization did not want to abandon its 12-step approach, which it believes can help addicts make a smooth transition back into society and maintain long-term sobriety. We wanted to provide people with much more than just medication management, Seppala said. The centers current hybrid strategy, which was introduced to Betty Ford after it merged with the Minnesota-based Hazelden Foundation in 2014, allows patients to choose whether they want to rehabilitate with or without medication. If they choose the medication option, they are kept on specified drugs for one to two years, self-administering their doses at home and coming in regularly for group therapy meetings and check-ups with the centers staff. When both the patients and their treatment team believe a true recovery has occurred, the program gradually decreases dosing of the maintenance drugs until full cessation. Gradual drug tapering for people with opioid addictions is a controversial topic in the recovery world. Dr. Gavin Bart, director of addiction medicine at the Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis and a professor at the University of Minnesota, pointed to several peer-reviewed studies in medical journals that indicate tapering of these medications is ineffective. For example, a 2011 piece in the Archives of General Psychiatry found that when patients were tapered off of opioids even after 12 weeks of treatment, the likelihood of an unsuccessful outcome is high. Bart said: In every study that has looked at using this medication (approach) on a short-term basis, the majority of patients return to drug use. And its important that we remember that returning to drug use is not a trivial consequence. It comes with very high potential of harm, including a nine-fold increase in the chances of dying. The chances of suffering an overdose are higher after treatment because during the recovery phase, the body loses its previously developed drug tolerance. So, patients can encounter a fatal high if they return to using the same-sized hit as before they underwent a detox program. Seppala, the Betty Ford medical director, said he is well aware of the studies Bart cites and that his organization consulted with some of those reports authors to help it craft its current blended program, which it calls COR-12. He said duration is the key difference between what Hazelden Betty Ford is offering and other attempts to wean patients off of opioid-maintenance medications. Most of the programs reviewed in the journals, he said, attempted to stop use of the replacement drugs after a few weeks or months. He said brain science indicates that patients probably need to stay on these medications much longer at least a year and maybe two before they can successfully quit them. Hazelden Betty Ford is conducting its own observational trial of its new program. It provided some early results from the study, which involves monitoring 159 patients who participated in COR-12 and comparing them to 159 patients who chose residential treatment using more traditional methods. According to the organization, only 5 percent of patients using COR-12 left treatment early compared with 13 percent for people in the traditional program. Six months after treatment, 71 percent of the COR-12 patients were continuously abstinent from alcohol and other illicit drugs, compared to 52 percent for the other group. Because the plan is to wean COR-12 patients away from medication maintenance after a year or more of treatment, those early results do not necessarily prove that the hybrid approach is ultimately successful. Seppala said Hazelden Betty Ford knows some patients will have to stay on maintenance medication indefinitely, but that groups like Narcotics Anonymous, which does not use medications, prove that many people will be able to make the complete transition. There are bound to be some who dont need to take this medication lifelong. There is a spectrum of addiction here. We believe that some of our patients should be on these medications lifelong, but we dont yet know how to identify them, Seppala said. Bart, the Minneapolis addiction expert, applauded Betty Fords decision to at least move from abstinence-based treatment into the blended approach. He still emphasized that early test results tend to be viewed with skepticism by researchers and clinicians. They need to publish in a peer-reviewed journal so that the rest of us can learn from their success. Until it gets to that point, its too good to believe. I hope that theyre right, but theyve never shared what their magical formula is, Bart said. Seppala said the organization does intend to publish its findings after the patients its tracking complete a full year of treatment. Such publication is likely in 2017, he added. In San Diego County, there is no official census of how many addiction-recovery facilities are offering traditional, blended or other types of treatments. But Scott Silverman, founder and CEO of Confidential Recovery in San Diego, said the number of maintenance-medication programs in this region has risen dramatically in recent years. His group is one of them. There are doctors out there that love medication-assisted treatment, and there are programs out there that dont even think its an option, he said. Overall, I would say its being introduced at a pace that didnt exist five years ago. This plague of opioid addiction is so out of control right now that the need for supplemental treatments is critical. paul.sisson@sduniountribune.com (619) 293-1850 Twitter: @paulsisson In a bid to increase its reach throughout Southern California, the San Diego-based Scripps Health system on Monday finalized a partnership with the internationally known MD Anderson Cancer Network. The deal makes Scripps the only direct collaborator with Houston-based MD Anderson in an eight-county region stretching from the U.S.-Mexico border north through Santa Barbara County and east to the Arizona border. Executives from both organizations gathered for a contract-signing ceremony in La Jolla, making official a relationship that has been building since MD Anderson approached Scripps in May 2015. Advertisement Now that the alliance is finalized, the new partners said they will immediately begin recruiting physicians, including a new program director. Scripps said it will adopt MD Andersons treatment protocols and overall standards of cancer care. The two organizations plan to share tumor boards groups of oncology specialists who collectively discuss patients cases and Scripps will have access to Andersons profile of more than 1,100 clinical trials, which is billed as the largest in the nation. Chris Van Gorder, Scripps chief executive, said he believes the relationship will elevate the level of cancer care his system provides. Our goal is to build our program up so it is as good as any other cancer program in the country, Van Gorder said. MD Anderson has several levels of affiliation, and all but one of them involves it working with medical providers in an advisory capacity. In that arrangement, affiliates pledge to follow MD Anderson guidelines but do not fully integrate their operations with the main enterprise in Texas. That will not be the case for the privately run Scripps, which paid a participation fee that it has declined to disclose. It is one of five health providers in the nation to join the top tier of the network full partner. The other full partners are in Arizona, Florida and New Jersey. Dr. Ronald DePinho, MD Andersons president, said his research team researched Scripps thoroughly and found evidence of the kind of team-based approach that is considered critical for partnership. For us, it was an easy decision to make because we knew that the culture was going to be compatible, DePinho said. MD Anderson has gone far with its team-based approach to fighting cancer. Currently listed as the No. 1 cancer hospital by U.S. News & World Report and perennially able to obtain large research grants, about 70 percent of patients treated at the hospitals main facility come from outside of Houston. DePinho said he considers the multidisciplinary approach which includes surgeons, radiologists, pathologists, nurses and nutrition experts to be the biggest way that Anderson can help Scripps. Since most patients cannot come to MD Anderson, we need to bring that quality of diagnostic acumen, staging and standard of multidisciplinary treatment to every institution that is willing to make a commitment to elevating their standard of care, DePinho said. Van Gorder said adopting MD Andersons protocols will require some changes, such as conducting tumor-board discussions for every tumor, but that overall, the changes will not be large departures from Scrips current how Scripps already treats its patients. One key principle is fully embracing the changing nature of cancer care, Van Gorder said. Due to MD Andersons sheer size and number of researchers, he said, it has the opportunity to constantly change its standard of care as new scientific concepts, drugs and other therapies are validated. We have a good program, but the body of knowledge in medicine is growing so fast that its almost impossible for any one physician to keep up with. What we feel is, since the body of knowledge is changing so fast, the best way our doctors can do that is to be part of MD Anderson, Van Gorder said. News of a potential tie-up between MD Anderson and Scripps became public in mid-July, about a month after Scripps explained its plans to a group of local donors and other supporters. The alliance drew immediate concerns from top leadership at UC San Diego, which runs the Moores Cancer Center in La Jolla. Moores is the regions only comprehensive cancer center as designated by the National Cancer Institute, or NCI. Anderson also is an NCI designee, one of 47 across the country. NCI centers are expected to conduct innovative research and provide integrated care for their patients that goes beyond what would be found at most hospitals. While Andersons main facility in Houston has this designation, the new Scripps center will not be directly certified. In July, UC San Diego executives expressed concern that patients might think they were going to an NCI-level facility the moment MD Andersons name appears beside Scripps. They also said it would likely take many years for the services offered by the new partnership to truly reach the level expected of an NCI designee. And they worried about patients being transferred to clinical trials in Houston even if similar studies are available at Moores. Patty Maysent, chief executive of UC San Diego Health, said Monday that she is still surprised about Scripps not forging a deal with the Moores center. Highest respect for Scripps, highest respect for MD Anderson, but Im just disappointed that we missed an opportunity here to take care of patients locally, Maysent said. Van Gorder said the county has room for both UC San Diego and Scripps. There is nothing wrong with having two really strong cancer programs in San Diego, he said. As to Scripps participation in clinical trials, DePinho said Anderson intends to offer many of its trials in the Southern California market through Scripps facilities. But not every study will be replicated in the local market through Scripps. Its dependent upon having patients in that market who would benefit from that trial and having a physician or researcher in that market who wants to be involved in that trial, DePinho said. If we dont have a clinical trial available in San Diego, we will concierge that patient to institutions that will be in a position to deliver what they need. It might be UCSD, it might be UCLA, it might be Houston. It depends on the patient. Exactly what the difference is between a well-regarded cancer program like Moores and the one Anderson operates is difficult to quantify with data, said Stephanie Teleki, senior program officer for the High-Value Care team at the California Health Care Foundation. Because cancer registries are private, the public has not truly been able to see the big picture as it has with other major threats like heart disease. The bottom line is, given the current state and public availability of cancer care measurement in this country, we just dont know, Teleki said. Here in the desert hills of the West Bank, near the Palestinians principal city of Ramallah, a group of Orthodox Jews has built the town of Beit El, a place that most of the world considers an illegal settlement constructed on occupied Palestinian land. For decades, U.S. policy has opposed such settlements as harmful to the peace process. But the Israeli settlers now have some well-placed American supporters. Funds to help construct Beit El came partly from a U.S.-based foundation run by President-elect Donald Trumps son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and the Kushner family. Advertisement And David Friedman, Trumps long-time real estate lawyer who was named Thursday as the next U.S. ambassador to Israel, served as the president of the American Friends of Beit El foundation. His name is on a girls school in the settlement in tribute to his support. The amounts given by the Kushners were small; $5,000 here, $10,000 there, according to Internal Revenue Service filings. But they constitute another piece in the puzzle of how the Trump administration will approach one of the Middle Easts most intractable conflicts. There are growing signs that Trump is poised to upend decades of U.S. foreign policy on dealing with Israelis and Palestinians, giving Israel a freer hand to build settlements and relocating the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem. Several of Trumps advisers have said they do not regard settlements as illegitimate or obstacles to peace. Unlike President Obama, who pushed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to temporarily freeze some settlement construction on land seized by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war, Trump appears less likely to pressure Israel to constrain its building. I think it is safe to say that we will see diminished American efforts to promote traditional diplomacy, traditional critique of Israeli settlement activity or the need to resume some peace process with the Palestinians, said Robert Satloff, executive director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, a nonpartisan think tank. At the same time, Trump said in an interview with the New York Times that he would love to be the president who finally made peace between Israel and the Palestinians; he has said it would be the ultimate deal. Trump even went so far as to say Kushner, an Orthodox Jew, might serve as a special envoy to the Middle East to work on Israeli-Palestinian issues a prospect many consider preposterous given the younger Kushners lack of diplomatic experience and because he would be seen as biased in favor of Israel. Trump has also said he would move the U.S. embassy in Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, something almost no country in the world has done because Jerusalem is disputed. Both the Israelis and the Palestinians claim it, or part of it, as their capital, and the U.S. position for decades has been that its status must be resolved through negotiations. Past U.S. presidents made similar pledges about relocating the U.S. embassy. But upon taking office, all concluded such a step would not only provoke Palestinians, but also unsettle Arab allies throughout the region. After his appointment was announced, Friedman stated he looked forward to forging the U.S. bond with Israel from the U.S. embassy in Israels eternal capital, Jerusalem. Friedman also has voiced opposition to the so-called two-state solution, the existence of an Israeli and a Palestinian state living side by side in peace, which has been the basis of U.S. policy since the 1950s and the framework for peace negotiations in that part of the world. At a Jerusalem election rally shortly before the U.S. election, he vowed that a Trump administration would never pressure Israel to accept a Palestinian state. Such assertions explain why several U.S. Jewish groups reacted negatively to Friedmans selection. Friedmans positions on the two-state solution foreclose on the possibility of advancing, Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, said in an interview. By abandoning the two-state solution, theyre saying they are not bound by the last 25 years of history, said Michael Koplow, policy director of the Israel Policy Forum, a liberal think tank that focuses on Israel. Dennis Ross, veteran diplomat who served as Middle East envoy in Republican and Democratic administrations, cautioned that Trump will not be able to write off the Palestinians altogether if a real resolution is to come about. The first thing is you have to restore a sense of possibility, Ross said. There is no sense of possibility on either side now. Violence between Israelis and Palestinians has diminished since the end of the last major uprising more than a decade ago. But both sides worry that any major shifts in the status quo, such as the relocation of the U.S. embassy, a marked increase in settlement construction or a move by Israel to annex West Bank territory, could trigger renewed Palestinian protests or terror attacks. Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat warned Trump against upsetting the fragile status quo, which was achieved through previous rounds of negotiations. These are issues agreed to in an American-sponsored, international-sponsored peace process and no one should take any decisions which may preempt or prejudge, because this will be the destruction of the peace process as a whole. Successive Israeli governments, and especially that of the hawkish Netanyahu, have allowed a vast network of settlements to develop throughout the West Bank and in traditionally Arab East Jerusalem. More than half a million Jewish Israelis now live in settlements, according to Israeli government figures. Few issues anger Palestinians more than settlements, which they see as crisscrossing the land they claim as their state and making territorial continuity of their future state impossible. Past U.S. presidents both Republican and Democratic have criticized settlement expansion, with especially pointed words coming recently from Obama, who famously does not get along with Netanyahu, in part because of the landmark deal to curtail Irans pursuit of nuclear armament. Netanyahu argues that Iran cannot be trusted and poses a major threat to Israel. Despite the criticism, the United States in September agreed to a $38-billion, 10-year package of military assistance to Israel, the largest single pledge of security aid in U.S. history. Israeli settlers are hoping to make inroads during the Trump administration. At Beit El, Baruch Gordon, a fundraiser for the settlement, described Charles Kushner, Jareds father, as a very good friend of the settlement and one of its top supporters. Charlie and his wife are wonderful people,' he said. He said he had not met Jared. On a recent Friday before Shabbat, yeshiva students poured over religious texts inside a brand new study hall, a beit midrash. It and its small campus were erected with contributions from the U.S. foundation, American Friends of Beit El Yeshiva Center, which lists the Charles Kushner as a founding trustee of its annual fundraising gala. Through its own U.S. charity, Beit El is one of several Jewish settlements that has received money from the Kushner Foundation in recent years, according to IRS filings. Another is the hard-line Yitzhar settlement, deep in the West Bank near the city of Nablus. Students at the Od Yosef Hai yeshiva in Yitzhar have been accused of vigilante attacks on nearby Palestinian villages as well as against Israeli troops. Another recipient is the more well-established, suburban-style Efrat settlement, south of Jerusalem, which is popular with American Jewish emigres. Netanyahu told CBS-TVs 60 Minutes earlier this month that he was confident Trump would be a good friend of Israel. I know Donald Trump, Netanyahu said. I know him very well. And I think his attitude, his support for Israel is clear. He feels very warmly about the Jewish state, about the Jewish people and about Jewish people. Oded Revivi, the chief foreign envoy of the Yesha Council, an organization of settler leaders, said he held a round of meetings in the U.S. after the election with members of the Trump transition team and supporters such as former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. The reactions that I got from people were very promising and show a shift in the direction of which way the wind is blowing, he said. Revivi, a resident of the settlement of Efrat, said hes certain there will be a different approach. Wilkinson reported from Washington, Mitnick from Beit El, West Bank. tracy.wilkinson@latimes.com For more on international affairs, follow @TracyKWilkinson on Twitter MORE WORLD NEWS Americans adjust to a changed role in Iraq 12-year-old suspected of nail bombing attempt at Christmas market in Germany Syrian government and rebels blame each other for Aleppo evacuation chaos The El Cajon Police Department has equipped its officers with body-worn cameras in an effort to increase public trust. The program marks an important moment for the department amid continued calls for justice and reform since the fatal police shooting of Alfred Olango in late September. Its very important for the department that we maintain a level of trust with the community, and if wearing body-worn cameras and documenting what we say and what we do increases trust, then its something that we definitely want to partake in, El Cajon police spokesman Lt. Rob Ransweiler said. Advertisement Other police departments in the county that have already adopted the technology include San Diego, Chula Vista, Escondido, Carlsbad and Coronado. The Sheriffs Department plans to undergo a second pilot program starting in January or February. El Cajon police began to roll out the 87 chest-mounted cameras last month. Officers underwent a two-hour, department-wide training class and a 30-minute training session in smaller groups. Three non-sworn police services officers are also assigned body-worn cameras. Ransweiler said one of the biggest challenges for officers, particularly veterans, will be remembering to activate the cameras, a step he expects will take time to become muscle memory. The departments policy requires officers to turn on the cameras by double-tapping them before interactions with citizens in which enforcement is anticipated, Ransweiler said. The cameras technology stores 30 seconds of pre-recorded footage without audio the moment the camera is activated. Sound is recorded once the camera is turned on. The footage captured by officers cameras can become evidence during investigations into citizen complaints and officer-involved shootings. Ransweiler acknowledged that people now expect to see video of controversial police encounters. In August, law enforcement agencies in the county agreed on a policy about the release of video evidence in officer-involved shootings. Officials established that footage generally shouldnt be released until District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis reviews the shooting. If criminal charges were to be filed against the officer in question, the video would be withheld until the trial or some time after, the policy states. Hours after Olango was fatally shot by El Cajon police Officer Richard Gonsalves on Sept. 29, police released a still frame from video that a witness recorded on a cellphone. The photo showed Olango, 28, in a shooting stance, pointing an object that turned out to be a vape-smoking device. Outcry over the photo by those who said it showed the police in favorable light led to the release of the cellphone video three days later, along with surveillance footage from a nearby taco shop. While the unrest that transpired in the weeks after the police shooting has waned, social activists are still clamoring for a federal investigation into Olangos killing. They also want charges to be filed against Gonsalves, and they want to see the formation of a citizenss review board, among other demands. The ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties overall supports the use of body-worn cameras. Christie Hill, senior policy director for the organization, said the cameras, however, cant solve every concern we have about how our communities are policed. They can help to build public trust, but they are not a panacea for systems in critical need of reform, she said in a statement. The El Cajon Police Department began looking into body-worn cameras in 2014 and started testing different models in 2015. Ransweiler said the technology boomed following the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., in August 2014. Since then, newer and more technologically advanced cameras keep rolling out. It was a matter of finding a right fit, Ransweiler said. This is the soonest we could efficiently get the body-worn cameras to the streets without rushing any sort of decision. The purchase of 88 Axon cameras by Taser International which cost nearly $160,000 was approved by the El Cajon City Council in May. Twitter: @D4VIDHernandez Border Patrol agents arrested 25 people Thursday night after stopping three vehicles loaded with unauthorized immigrants in the community of Boulevard, federal authorities said. The vehicles were traveling north into the United States about 9 p.m. when agents activated spikes on the front vehicle, a Toyota Sequoia, Customs and Border Protection officials said. The other two vehicles turned around and headed back toward Mexico but were stopped. Advertisement Agents arrested 25 people and seized the vehicles. Five people escaped into Mexico, officials said. If the unauthorized immigrants had not been caught, smugglers would have cashed in about $150,000 in payments, officials said. Mexican criminal organizations have orchestrated similar schemes in the past, officials said. Breaking News Twitter: @D4VIDHernandez President Barack Obama on Friday indicated that the United States will retaliate against Russia for hacking emails and other material from the Democratic National Committee and the Clinton campaign in an effort to help Donald Trump defeat Hillary Clinton in the presidential election. Obama said during a news conference he said little about the hacking during the campaign because in this hyperpartisan atmosphere, at a time when my primary concern was making sure that the integrity of the election process was not in any way damaged. The president disclosed Friday that he quietly told Russian President Vladimir Putin to cut it out when the matter surfaced during a meeting in September. Advertisement Obamas criticism of the Russians, and his demand that the hacking be investigated by Congress, is drawing criticism and praise from security experts and political figures. Here is an excerpt of remarks made to the Union-Tribune: James Carder, CISO for the security intelligence company LogRhythm and VP of LogRhythm Labs Nations have been attempting to manipulate or influence the politics of other countries, in order to achieve their own objectives for a very long time. Most recently, we witnessed the use of psychological operations (PSYOPs) and fake news to directly influence the outcome of the U.S. election. Although Russia never came out and confirmed it, U.S. intelligence indicates they were directly involved. President Obama is sending Russia a very clear message that we know it was them, and if they continue to operate in this matter, the U.S. will retaliate. Obama sent a similar message to China a few years ago, and the number of confirmed cyberattacks from China significantly decrease. I hope Russia sees it the same way. If not, this could lead to further attacks and potentially the early stages of cyber war. As it relates to the election, I believe that President Obama had no other choice but to send that message now, after the results of the election have been made final. Otherwise, he would risk the perception of tampering with the election and further eroding the trust people have in our government. Ambassador James Woolsey Jr., former director of the CIA: If were going to retaliate one of the least useful things that can be done is talk about it because it gives Russia more of a reason to attack again. If he was going to retaliate, he should have just done it Were saying to Russia, You better not be bad or we will put a lump of coal in your sock. That does not put us in a strong position. Philip Lieberman, president of Los Angeles-based Lieberman Software Corporation: The statements of President Obama are complete and accurate. His statements reflect a reality that has been in effect for a very long time within the world and Americas place therein. Cross-border cyber nation state reconnaissance operations are a normal part of our world today. Offensive operations by a nation state are a serious claim, and if there is in fact evidence of offensive operations, the aggrieved party should make the evidence public as requested by Russia. The operation itself may be the result of a criminal enterprise that may very need to be prosecuted by both the USA and Russia. A very bright light should help bring out the entities involved in the operation raised by the President. As is said so many times, be careful what you ask for. For those that believe they are aggrieved, may find the delivery of the whole truth an undesired outcome. Justice may bring ironic outcomes. Darin Andersen, chairman and founder, CyberTECH, San Diego: Obama to Putin: I told him to cut it out says it all to me. This Administration has not taken the cybersecurity threat serious enough. On President Obamas watch, the identity of nearly every Government employee was compromised. The election hack quite likely (and unfortunately) represents the tip of the iceberg of damage inflicted by Russian State sponsored Hackers to our political and economic institutions. Willy Leichter, vice president of marketing, CipherCloud, San Jose: Aside from the political, legal and diplomatic implications, these incidents should be viewed as a security wakeup call. Many organizations still rely on outdated and insecure communications technologies, and woefully inadequate overall data security. Politicians, government officials, business people and individuals all have legitimate needs (and often legal requirements) to maintain privacy and communicate confidentially. Encryption technology, if properly deployed can prevent many of these painful breaches, but much greater emphasis needs to be placed data security best practices, training and funding. Stephen Cobb, senior research, San Diego office of the digital security company ESET: What struck me about the press conference was our current presidents clear grasp of cybersecurity in general as well as the details and implications of these particular attacks. This is not surprising when you look at Obamas numerous presidential directives on these issues, from a cybersecurity framework that companies can use to improve their security, to the National Initiative on Cybersecurity Education which is working to close a very worrying skills gap in this country. gary.robbins@sduniontribune.com California voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 54 last month, commanding the Legislature to be less sneaky by requiring 72 hours of public exposure for measures before their final votes. Those in and around the Capitol wondered whether Democratic legislative leaders would fully comply or try an end run. The issue erupted within minutes of the 2017-18 legislative sessions opening on Dec. 5. Without prior notice, Assembly leaders unveiled new operational rules for the session and Republicans objected that springing them suddenly violated the spirit of Proposition 54, although technically, rules changes are exempt from its provisions. Advertisement More pertinently, the rules themselves, adopted on a party-line 55-25 vote, contain one potentially large loophole, to wit: A bill is introduced in one house and in some form often very rough form is passed to the other house, where amendments are usually added before passage. If amended, the bill is returned to the house of origin for a third vote that sends it to the governor for signature or veto. According to Assembly Chief Clerk E. Dotson Wilson, the new Assembly rules require a 72-hour hold when the final bill is passed in the second house, and again when it returns to the original house for approval of amendments. The rules potential loophole is that they dont require a 72-hour wait before a bills first floor vote in its first house by defining a bills final form the words of Proposition 54 as the version presented for a floor vote in the second house. Assembly leaders say applying the 72-hour requirement to initial first house votes is not necessary since at that point a bill is not in final form and could be amended in the second house. However, not all bills are amended. So under the procedural rules, it would be possible for leaders to write a bill in secret, zip it through the first house without 72 hours of exposure and then have it sent to the governor by the second house without being returned to the house of origin for a third vote. Not to seem jaded, but history has proved that Capitol politicians will use any convenient device to operate stealthily. Once, phony conference committees were used to write bills secretly and then pass them quickly, before the public knew what was being done. More recently, gut and amend has been used to sprout mushroom bills in the dark, most cynically budget trailer bills that have little or nothing to do with the budget. Proposition 54s 72-hour rule was aimed at blocking the latter tactic, and its chief sponsor, Stanford University physicist Charles Munger Jr., has hinted that hell sue if legislators enact laws without 72-hour notice in both houses. Its uncertain how courts would interpret Proposition 54, but one wonders whether legislators and interest groups that sponsor bills really want to risk having them invalidated. They and the public would be better served were the Legislature to acknowledge that voters are tired of parliamentary tricks and provide 72-hour notice for all floor votes, even if its inconvenient. Walters is a columnist with the Sacramento Bee. The California Public Employees Retirement System has a gigantic problem. As of the end of the last fiscal year in June, CalPERS had an unfunded liability of $139 billion, with funds available for only 68 percent of benefits promised to state and local government retirees and thats based on predictions for annual returns on investment that many warn are unreasonably optimistic. Unless this picture dramatically improves, CalPERS will have to start requiring much bigger payments from government agencies as pension bills come due, which will mean less money for public services. Thankfully, the CalPERS board finally realizes this is a big problem, and on Monday will consider moving away from using investments for social engineering purposes to focus on garnering good returns specifically, by once again allowing direct investments in previously taboo tobacco companies. It should. A report this spring said a 2001 ban had cost CalPERS more than $3 billion. Alas, that loss means little to Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and state Treasurer John Chiang, who issued statements chiding CalPERS for wanting to make legal investments in profitable firms such as Philip Morris. Such posturing may feel good and play well with certain groups but it doesnt pay the bills. Advertisement Twitter: @sdutIdeas Facebook: UTOpinion By PTI: Mumbai, Dec 16 (PTI) Police today claimed to have cracked the murder of a senior citizen in suburban Kandivali by arresting one person while the main accused is still at large. According to police, robbery was the motive behind the brutal murder of stock broker Devendra Doshi (65) who was found dead with his throat slit in his flat in Pratik Apartment on Mathuradas Road on December 11. advertisement The accused, identified as Nikunj Pulara (24), was arrested in wee hours today from Borivli. According to the police, the main accused was known to Doshi. Initially, police did not suspect robbery as the motive, but during investigation it came to fore that cash and gold ornaments were looted from Doshis flat. Pulara hailed from Rajkot district in Gujrat, where Doshi also belonged to. During interrogation, he confessed to killing Doshi with the motive of robbery, police said. According to police, Doshi must have let the accused enter the flat on the day of murder as he was known to him. Pulara was remanded in police custody for 10 days. PTI DC NSK JMF --- ENDS --- SAN DIEGO FEDERAL COURT A dramatic arrest in Lemon Grove on Tuesday by an FBI SWAT team may have thwarted a drug-related kidnapping in Los Angeles, according to a federal complaint unsealed Thursday. Advertisement According to the complaint, the would-be kidnappers had targeted a man who allegedly had helped steal about 2,500 pounds of marijuana from them. When they couldnt find him, they opted to kidnap his father instead. They were on their way to Los Angeles to abduct the father when the SWAT team stopped them, the complaint said. Six men and one woman named in the complaint were arraigned Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ruben Brooks. The seven were identified as Armando Gonzalez Heredia, Gerardo Martinez Velasco, Ricardo Perez, Gabriel Perez, Nuria Martinez Alvarado, Hector Peraza and Humberto Rosas Alvarez. There was no immediate information on their hometowns or nationalities. According to the complaint, the case began when the FBIs Major Mexican Traffickers Strike Force began to focus last year on a drug-smuggling ring allegedly headed by Gonzalez. Over time, however, the focus shifted from drug smuggling to kidnapping as the strike force learned that Gonzalezs group was stalking people who purportedly had stolen a 2,500-pound load of marijuana from them. The strike force agents later learned that the Gonzalez ring was targeting a man identified only as Edgar Alvarez, and monitored the groups efforts to get vehicles and weapons to use in abducting him. A van was brought across the border from Mexico to use in the abduction, according to the complaint. Things came to a head this week when agents learned that the drug ring had failed to track down the man they sought, but had obtained a video of his father. Investigators feared the ring planned to go to Los Angeles to grab the father instead of the son, the complaint said. When the van and a car began heading north from San Diego on Tuesday, agents were following them. But the surveillance team was spotted, according to the complaint. At that point, the SWAT team moved in on both vehicles, taking three into custody from the van and two from the car. By the following morning, seven people were in custody. Irmela Mensah-Schramm stopped abruptly at the crudely sprayed swastika on the wall of a pedestrian underpass. Whipping out a can of spray paint from her cotton tote bag, she quickly made short work of it, turning the neo-Nazi symbol into a nondescript black splotch. For the 65-year-old retiree, its all in a days work. I scratched off the first sticker in 1986, at a bus stop in front of my house, Mensah-Schramm said as she ambled through the streets armed with her spray paint and metal scraper. It demanded Freedom for Rudolf Hess - Adolf Hitlers deputy, who at the time was still alive and in prison in Berlin. Advertisement The sticker was there all day and I couldnt understand why nobody else took it off - people can be so ignorant, she said. For 25 years, Mensah-Schramm has taken it on herself to clean Berlin of neo-Nazi propaganda scrawled by skinheads and other right-wing groups. She calls herself the political cleaning lady of the nation and during one of her recent tours of the city she said that in the last four years alone, she has scratched away more than 36,000 right-wing stickers. She said seeing racist slurs sprayed on walls across the German capital with its atrocious Nazi past made her angry and she felt a personal responsibility to do something about them. Freedom of speech ends where hatred and racism begin, Mensah-Schramm said. Since her retirement in 2006, Mensah-Schramm, who worked helping students with special needs, tromps the city six days a week, trying to track down all possible Nazi propaganda in the German capital. Before she makes the racist slogans disappear, she documents everything, taking pictures of all the evil stuff she has found. She keeps several folders with hundreds of stickers demanding foreigners get out, Jews into the oven or Sieg Heil - the infamous salute used by the Nazis. The number of far-right extremists in Germany are small - some 26,000 according to the most recent estimate from countrys domestic intelligence agency - and when neo-Nazis hold demonstrations they are invariably dwarfed by counter-protesters. Still, the far-right National Democratic Party has garnered enough votes to make it into two states parliaments and in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt earlier this month more than 12 percent of voters under the age of 30 cast their ballot for the party. Some passers-by applaud Mensah-Schramm spontaneously when they see her grass-roots response to neo-Nazi graffiti, but others get upset. While it is illegal in Germany to express Nazi ideology in words or images, police say it is not always legal to remove the graffiti either, because the process may deface or destroy other peoples property. If she sees Nazi slogans anywhere, she should call us to take care of it, not spray over it herself - thats willful damage of property, police spokesman Michael Merkle told The Associated Press. Skinhead groups have posted taunts about her online and several times property owners have reported her to the police. So far, nobody ever pressed charges against her successfully, she said. Neo-nazis and private security personnel have harassed and bumped me more than once, Mensah-Schramm said, adding that she has given up calling the police for support because they rarely ever help me anyway and dont remove racists slogans even if I tell them to do so. Mensah-Schramm, who is not Jewish, said that even though new stickers or graffiti often appear again soon after shes removed it, she will never give up her work. On a recent spring day, she walked through the streets of Berlins Rudow neighborhood, her trademark white tote bag, which has written Against Nazi across it, in hand. She found several stickers on street signs demanding immigrants get out of the country and depicting the German parliament Reichstag as a mosque. Mensah-Schramm resolutely wiped her white hair out of her face, cursed out the neo-Nazis, and went to work. I may be the craziest woman in all of Germany, she said. But the only way to get rid of those Nazis is to consistently work against them. AAP's Dwarka MLA Adarsh Shastri said business in markets like Sarojini Nagar and Karol Bagh among others had witnessed a decline of 70-80 per cent. By PTI: The Aam Aadmi Party has claimed that over 40 crore workers in organised and unorganised sector of the country have been affected by demonetisation. AAP's Dwarka MLA Adarsh Shastri said business in markets like Sarojini Nagar and Karol Bagh among others had witnessed a decline of 70-80 per cent. He claimed that even big companies had started laying off people. ECONOMIC SLOWDOWN AAP's Delhi unit convenor Dilip Pandey said the Centre's demonetisation decision had driven the nation to an "economic slowdown." "Developed nations have stayed away from the decision of demonetisation, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi has driven the world's largest economy into a mess," he said. Also read | Modi says demonetisation should have been done in 1971, blames Indira Gandhi for selling out India In a surprise move, the Modi government had on November 8 decided to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. Many political parties, including Congress, AAP, Left, TMC, SP, BSP etc have come out against the move. --- ENDS --- advertisement Scientists discovered the world's oldest known water in an ancient pool in Canada that is at least 2 billion years old. Could this discovery shed light on extraterrestrial life on Mars? Oldest Water Even Got Older In 2013, the scientists found water dating back to about 1.5 billion years at the Kidd Mine in Ontario. However, on the same site, a team of scientists from the University of Toronto found a deeper source of water that is even older. "When people think about this water they assume it must be some tiny amount of water trapped within the rock," Professor Barbara Sherwood Lollar, study co-author, told BBC News. "But in fact, it's very much bubbling right up out at you. These things are flowing at rates of liters per minute -- the volume of the water is much larger than anyone anticipated," she added. The first ancient water pool was found at about 2.4 kilometers down in a silver, zinc and copper mine. The scientists said that this provides further knowledge that flowing water can actually be present in the Earth's crust. In fact, the new discovery of flowing water was at 3 kilometers deep. What is more interesting is that the researchers have found traces of chemicals left by tiny single-celled organisms that once lived in the water. Alien Life On Mars Presented at the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco, the work could help show that life can survive below the surface and away from the Sun. The study could shed light on the possibility of alien life beneath Mars' surface. The water could provide clues as to what might be discoverable elsewhere on other planets as well. "It's also highly significant when we're exploring our solar system for other places that there might be life, such as Mars or some of the moons around Saturn or Jupiter," Professor Simon George, a geochemist in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Macquarie University, said as reported by ABC News. "So, for example, the surface of Mars is extremely inhospitable for life. But many scientists speculate that going below the surface might be where we might find life sheltering from the harsh conditions," he added. Pakistan today said that it will not accept any modifications or changes to the Indus Waters Treaty. By Indo-Asian News Service: Fearing that India is buying time to complete two disputed water projects, Pakistan made it clear that it would not accept any modifications or changes to the Indus Waters Treaty after New Delhi said on Friday it was ready to bilaterally resolve its differences with Islamabad over the pact's implementation. The treaty, signed in 1960, gives India control over the three eastern rivers of the Indus basin - the Beas, the Ravi and the Sutlej - while Pakistan has the three western rivers- the Indus, the Chenab and the Jhelum. advertisement The IWT also sets up a mechanism, the Permanent Indus Commission, which includes a commissioner from each country. Talking to Dawn here on Friday, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi said: "Pakistan will not accept any modifications or changes to the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty. Our position is based on the principles enshrined in the treaty. And the treaty must be honoured in...letter and spirit". Earlier, a spokesman for the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Vikas Swarup, told reporters in New Delhi that the resolution process required more time. CONSULTATIONS SHOULD BE GIVEN TIME "India has always believed that the implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty, which includes the redressal of the technical questions and differences, should be done bilaterally between India and Pakistan," he said. "We believe that these consultations should be given adequate time." India's request for more time, however, alarmed Pakistan. Islamabad argued that India used the same strategy on previous occasions, completing a project during the dispute and then insisting that since the project was already complete, it could not be modified. Also read: Pakistan 'reminds' India of obligations under water treaty The current dispute revolves around the Kishanganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric plants. India is building the plants on the Kishanganga and Chenab Rivers, which Pakistan says violate the IWT. Tensions over the water dispute increased late last month when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi threatened to block the flow of water into Pakistan. International experts fear that the threat, if implemented, could lead to armed clashes between the two sides. WORLD BANK AS AN ARBITRATOR New Delhi sought the appointment of a "neutral expert" while Islamabad asked the World Bank to appoint the chairman of the Court of Arbitration. The IWT recognises the World Bank as an arbitrator. Pakistanis argue that the designs of the two Indian projects violate both legal and technical provisions of the treaty. India, however, opposes Pakistan's effort for setting up a court of arbitration. The disagreement persuaded the World Bank to announce earlier this week that it was temporarily "pausing" its arbitration and it was doing so to protect the treaty. --- ENDS --- advertisement The marine biologists have seen the killer whales, known as orcas, hunting and killing the rare beaked whales for the first time off the coast of Australia. This behavior has never been observed before in the predatory species. Orcas usually prey on dolphins, seals and calves of large whales, according to experts. They have not seen before orcas killing beaked whales. So, this new hunting behavior has changed their perception about the predatory nature of orcas. Unprecedented images show orcas hunting and killing rare beaked whales https://t.co/idLOihAIIE pic.twitter.com/7yOhNuoIOK Gizmodo (@Gizmodo) December 16, 2016 The research team led by Rebecca Wellard at Curtin University in Perth had been conducting commercial whale-watching boats to study killer whales off Australia's south coast since 2014. The team has seen and captured in photos the groups of up to 20 killer whales that attacked and killed lone beaked whales. The findings of the discovery were printed in the journal PLOS One. The team observed that the hunts lasted an hour or two. The killer whales hunted the beaked whales and killed them by biting them and forcing them under the water to drown. They also saw the killer whales stripping the carcasses of the beaked whales on two occasions. It is clear then that these are predatory attacks, according to New Scientist. Beaked whales, also known as toothed whales, belong to the family of Ziphiidae that consists of 22 species. They are one of the least known groups of mammals. This is because of their mysterious habits, deep-sea habitat and low abundance. There are about only three to four of the 22 species that are well-known. Beaked whales have elongated beaks and about 13 to 43 feet (4 to 13 meters) in length. They are one of the most extreme divers. They dive for an hour at a depth of more than 1,000 meters. NASA's 8-Satellite Constellation was launched successfully on Thursday (Dec. 15) morning aboard the Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket over the Atlantic Ocean off Florida's east coast. The rocket fired from a jet plane ignited its first-stage engine and rocketed toward space. Tim Dunn, NASA's launch director, described the successful flight as beautiful. He further said that the rocket and satellites fared just as expected. Meanwhile, Chris Ruf, the mission's lead scientist at the University of Michigan, was elated. He said that when the last two came off, it felt fantastic. He further said that they were right there where they were expecting, so it is good news. The microsatellites of the Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) mission was launched to enhance the forecasting of hurricane's intensity by gauging the ocean surface wind speeds in the center of storms. It will utilize radio signals from the GPS satellites between 35 degrees north and 35 degrees south where most hurricanes occur, according to Space.com. The launch was delayed since Dec. 12, 2016 due to hardware and weather issues. NASA officials said that the need for a spacecraft flight software patch also delayed plans for a Wednesday launch try. On the other hand, it was worth the wait as the CYGNSS was launched smoothly and ended up exactly where as the team hoped for. Meanwhile, Christine Bonnuksen, CYGNSS program executive at NASA, said that NASA used the plane that was once an airliner to launch the microsatellite from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. This is because it was inexpensive than the conventional, vertical launch. Bryan Baldwin, The Pegasus launch vehicle program manager with Orbital ATK, also said that Pegasus rockets have been used successfully many times. He further said that another plus was the L-1011's twin hull, which is shaped in such a way that rockets are easier to fit into the plane. The CYGNSS mission is funded for two years and might be extended, according to USA Today. Three adults were diagnosed with measles in Sydney, Australia. Following this, NSW Health issued a measles alert, keeping in view the possibility of spread of the highly contagious disease. The infected adults visited many places in the metropolitan area of the city including emergency departments of the inner city hospital, GP Clinics and Medical Centers in Darlinghurst, Leichardt, Camperdown, Bondi and George St, during the period of Nov. 26, 2016 and Dec. 15, 2016. Dr. Vicky Sheppeard, NSW Health's Director Communicable Diseases, specifically insisted that the three adults also visited restaurants and shops in various regions including CBD, Ultimo, Bondi, Leichhardt, Double Bay, Chatswood and Marrickville. Therefore, people who use the public transport system in the CBD, north and east of the city are at high risk, News.com.au reported. Dr. Vicky Sheppeard said that people who have not received their two doses of the measles vaccine should be specifically alert toward the occurrence of symptoms of measles in the coming days and weeks. This is considering that the three known measles infected persons have traveled extensively, covering various parts of Sydney, according to The Sydney Morning Herald. "A highly effective measles vaccine has been freely available for many years and it is vital for everyone, including adults and children, to have two doses of the measles vaccine during their lifetime," Dr. Vicky Sheppeard said. NSW Health also issued public statements, which specify the various symptoms and modes of transmission of the disease. "The measles virus is highly contagious and is spread through the air through coughing or sneezing by someone who is unwell with the disease," Dr. Vicky Sheppeard further said. Dr. Vicky Sheppeard also informed the people of Sydney that, "Children or adults born during or since 1966 who do not have documented evidence of receiving two doses of measles vaccine, or evidence of previous measles infection, are likely to be susceptible to measles and should be vaccinated as soon as possible." BENNETTSVILLE, S.C. -- Police are investigating the death of a two-week-old boy who died Saturday morning at a Cheraw hospital. Marlboro County Coroner Tim Brown said that the body of the child, born Dec. 4, will be sent to the Medical University of South Carolina for an autopsy. FLORENCE, S.C. -- Francis Marion University awarded 350 degrees at its fall commencement ceremony on Saturday at the Smith Center on the FMU campus. The graduates included 282 baccalaureate degrees and 68 graduate students in Business, Education, Nursing and Psychology. Among the undergraduates students who marched were 27 majors from FMUs new Healthcare Administration program. They marked the first grads from that program, though certainly not the last. The two-year-old program is growing quickly along with FMUs other initiatives in the field of health and medical education. Honorary doctorates of Humanities were conferred on South Carolina State Senator Vincent A. Sheheen of Camden and Florence City Councilwoman Teresa M. Ervin. Sheheen delivering the commencement address. Sheheen told graduates that their exits from college come at a great time with incredible opportunities, which can only be obfuscated by unnecessary fear. We live in the most glorious time in the history of humanity, Sheheen said. Right now, right here, the words of Franklin Roosevelt ring out to me today. We have nothing to fear, but fear itself. Nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror. Sheheen, who has spent the past 12 years as a member of the S.C. senate, represents District 27 (Chesterfield, Kershaw and Lancaster counties). Prior to his service in the senate, Sheheen served as a member of the S.C. House of Representatives from 2001-2004. In 2010 and 2014, Sheheen was the South Carolina Democratic Partys nominee for Governor. Ervin has served as a member of the Florence City Council since 2010 and has served the city and region for more than three decades in a number of additional roles. She is a registered nurse, and organizer and provider of health education seminars, as well as a long-time community advocate. Twenty-seven students graduated with university honors based on their cumulative grade point averages. Leading that list were two students who graduated Summa Cum Laude (with highest honors) after completing degree requirements with a cumulative grade point average of 3.9 or higher. They were Ashley Harris of Loris, S.C and Tanner Sarvis of Nichols, S.C. Five students graduated with students graduated magna cum laude (with high honor) in recognition of a cumulative grade point average between 3.75 and 3.89. They were Kasey Ethridge of Lake City, S.C.; Eloise Hicks of Timmonsville S.C.; Tlisha Morgan-Alston of Dalzell, S.C.; Ellen Payne of Florence, S.C. and Caitlin Tidwell of Cassatt, S.C. Sixteen students graduated cum laude (with honor) after completing degree requirements with a grade point average between 3.5 and 3.74. They were Nazum Ashraf of Warren, MI; Virginia Bazen of Pamplico, S.C.; Brittany Bradley of Rock Hill, S.C.; Katlyn Brown of Hartsville, S.C.; Thomas Brown of Mullins, S.C.; Jerome Deas Jr. of Johns Island, S.C.; Kathleen Kennebeck of Effingham, S.C.; Tabitha Moorehead of Kingstree, S.C.; Zachary Newton of Florence, S.C.; Emily Rowe of Florence, S.C.; Dustin Schauer-Watford of Bennettsville, S.C.; Lindsay Smith of Florence, S.C.; Andrew Ward of Florence, S.C.; Ashley Watford of Kingstree, S.C.; Sarah Watford of Timmonsville, S.C. and Lauren Woods of Raleigh, N.C. Honor cords were presented to four students who compiled a grade point average of 3.25 or better and completed a minimum of 21 hours in Honors courses, through FMUs fast-growing Honors Program. They were Katlyn Brown, Ashley Harris, Kathleen Kennebeck and Ellen Payne. Graduates receiving both Honor cords and University Honors were all greeted with applause, but none was any warmer or enthusiastic than the ovation for Carrie Radke, whose trip across the stage took a little longer than most. Radke, a Psychology major from Myrtle Beach, has struggled with Spina Bifida, a crippling birth defect, all her life. Wielding a pair of crutches, Radke marched across the stage with her classmates. Radke, who will being graduate school in February, says she never considered not making that walk. It didnt cross my mind, she said. We practiced a little (at commencement rehearsal on Friday) but I knew I could do it. I walk all the time. The key to making it today was just taking my time. Thumbs up to unity. It prevailed Monday at a Florence City Council meeting when two civil rights activist groups in Florence pledged to work together in future planning of MLK Day marches. The previous week there was tension when it appeared each of the two groups wanted to hold their own walk on MLK Day. Organizers of the Annual MLK March for Freedom and Justice an event led by late Councilman Ed Robinson for 17 years werent happy about the formation of a separate march. Tim Waters, a local activist and confidant of Robinson, initially applied for accommodations tax dollars and requested a permit to hold additional MLK Day marches that would meet with the other group in downtown Florence. Ultimately he withdrew his requests for funding and canceled plans for another march. Social change is never easy," he said. "I came up with an idea thats different, and that wasnt received well. That group is a great group of people and a great group of friends. We may not always see eye-to-eye, but we all want the same thing. We can heal from this and make Florence what it needs to be. Former City Councilman Billy D. Williams, an organizer of the original march, said there is always room for suggestions. We are one Florence, he said. Theres no winner or loser here. There was simply a misunderstanding that I think weve brought some closure to. Well move on, and more importantly, well come together and iron out any differences. We all live together, we worship together, we work together and we can all march together. Wow. If only disagreements could be resolved regularly like this. This years march will be called the Annual MLK March in Remembrance of Councilman Ed Robinson. It will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Jan. 16. The march will begin at Shekinah Glory Seventh Day Adventist Church on Oakland Avenue. It will continue toward Lucas Street, cross over the MLK Bridge, make a right onto Cheves Street, a left onto Dargan Street and conclude with a program at the Poynor Adult Education facility. Thumbs up to the Salvation Army. We appreciate the good work it does all year to help those in our community who need assistance. The organization does great work this time of year, running the Empty Stocking Fund and the Red Kettle program. Donations of money and toys to the Empty Stocking Fund go toward children in the Angel Tree program who are not adopted and ensure they will still be able to receive toys and gifts for the holidays. Salvation Army officials hoped the Empty Stocking Fund will help more than 600 children in need this year. But we reported some disappointing news early this week. Donations being made to the Empty Stocking Fund this year are lagging in comparison to last year. But heres the good news: You can still help. Monetary donations and toys for the Empty Stocking Fund can be brought now until Christmas Day to the Salvation Army at 2210 Hoffmeyer Road or to the Salvation Armys Christmas Center at 1611 S. Irby St. Toys should be unwrapped so the type and age appropriateness can be verified. Checks should be made payable to the Salvation Army with Empty Stocking Fund written on the memo line. The hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Salvation Army office and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday or 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Christmas Center. Thumbs up to the DuPont Retirees of Florence. The group once again made a nice contribution to local charities during the Christmas season. The group raised $3,834 which was awarded Wednesday to four different deserving groups: Lighthouse Ministries, House of Hope of the Pee Dee, Harvest Hope Food Bank and Mercy Medicine Free Clinic. Thumbs up to the local folks who organize the Wreaths Across America program in Florence. The annual ceremony is scheduled to begin at noon Saturday at the Florence National Cemetery. This year, re-enactors the Sons of Union Veterans and the Sons of Confederate Veterans will participate to give the ceremony a living history component. They will be in period costumes from the Civil War through the Vietnam War and they'll be walking around after the ceremony in Sections 9 and 10, by the committal shelter in the new section. If you go, get there early. The Blue Star Mothers will be escorted in at approximately 11:50 a.m. Following the program, more than 4,000 wreaths will be deployed at markers in both the old and new sections of the cemetery. Wreaths for sponsored graves will be placed along with extras that will be placed on the graves of approximately 3,000 unknown soldiers. Thumbs up, thumbs down is a regular feature of the Morning News and appears each Saturday on our Opinion page. We seek nominations for both good and bad deeds from our readers. Send nominations to us by email at letters@florencenews.com. Be sure use the word thumb in the subject and include a contact number. Thumbs can also be mailed to us c/o The Morning News, 310 S. Dargan St., Florence, S.C., 29506. "The new Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa has just taken over and there is still a lot to be done before we are convinced," a senior Indian official said. By Ajit Kumar Dubey: Pakistan is attempting to put on a brave face against terrorism in its backyard but India is still not sure whether its neighbour is serious or is just posturing for the international audience. Top government sources said that Indian government is keeping a close watch on the proceedings as Pakistani army and government has made a lot of noise about terrorism that is close to India's stand. advertisement YET TO BE CONVINCED "The new Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa has just taken over and there is still a lot to be done before we are convinced," a senior official said. Soon after taking over as the Army Chief, Bajwa removed the chief of notorious intelligence agency ISI Lt Gen Rizwan Akhtar and shunted him out as the head of the National Defence University. Akhtar was seen as a hardliner against India and was believed to have been working towards strengthening anti-India terrorist groups. INDIAN SPY Meanwhile, Pakistan Prime Minister's Advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz last week admitted that their government was presented with only "insufficient evidence" on alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav, who is under detention in Pakistani captivity. However, the Pakistan Army establishment later played down the comments by former Aziz. India has been strongly denying the allegation that Jadhav was an Indian spy and has asked Pakistan to release the ex-Indian Navy officer. The government sources dealing with the issue of talks between India and Pakistan said India would continue to adopt an aggressive stance on terrorism. ALSO READ: Bajwa quickly moving to stamp his identity on Pak Army: report --- ENDS --- ECSA secretary general Patrick Verhoeven brands the proposal as both disappointing in that it ignores and undermines the IMO roadmap agreed as recently as end October, and very counterproductive in its threatening with regional measures under unrealistic deadlines. We agree that the shipping sector must further reduce its CO2 emissions with a comparable level of ambition as the rest of the world economy to contribute its fair and proportionate share in meeting the Paris climate target, admitted Verhoeven, conceding the point made by Port of Rotterdam and other that the roadmap does not go far enough. But this can only happen effectively in a global context, he adds. Verhoeven explained that the IMO roadmap has a two-staged approach, with an initial strategy to be decided in 2018, and a final plan to be adopted in 2023, taking into account real emission data that will start to be collected as of 2019. The IMO plan is entirely consistent with the Paris Climate Agreement of 2015, he argued. It is a logical follow-up to technical and operational measures taken earlier such as the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) and Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) adopted in 2011 to ensure that ships will be more CO2 efficient in the future. Including shipping in the EU ETS scheme, either directly or indirectly through a European Climate Fund, would negatively impact trade and jobs, he argues. Also, the setting up of a proposed Maritime Climate Fund raises a host of legal and competition issues that will likely take several years to resolve, in which time the IMO would be perfectly able to set its own strategy, he feels. Paradoxically however, the threat of a European fund or any unilateral EU measure will prevent this, Verhoeven concluded. By PTI: Amritsar, Dec 18 (PTI) Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi today arrived at the Radha Soami headquarters in Beas, nearly 45 kilometres away from here to seek the sect chief Baba Gurinder Singh Dhillons support ahead of the Punjab Assembly polls due next year. His chartered flight arrived directly from Bangalore in the evening, Congress sources said. Rahul will spend night at the at the Beas and tomorrow attend the satsang of Sect chief Baba Gurinder Singh Dhillon. He would then meet Dhillon on breakfast at his residence inside the Dera. advertisement Rahul would discuss the ongoing political scenario with Dhillon while urging him to support the Congress party to form the government in the state, sources said. State Congress chief Amarinder Singh reached earlier today Beas ahead of Rahuls visit. In past Rahuls mother Sonia Gandhi had also visited the Dera Beas to meet the Sect head. The meeting comes in the wake of Dhillons brother-in-law Parminder Singh Sekhon being appointed as the adviser to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal in October. The Radha Soami sect holds a strong enough to influence among the people and its support to a political party can play an important in the upcoming Assembly polls. PTI COR VJ ASV --- ENDS --- Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has said that PM Modi is working in collusion with super rich people ignoring the pains of the farmers and aam aadmi. By India Today Web Desk: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi continued his tirade against Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation. Addressing a public rally at Belgaum in Karantaka on Saturday, Rahul Gandhi said termed demonetisation a 'disaster' deliberately unleashed by PM Modi. "There is a phrase in English, man-made disaster. Similarly, this demonetisation is Modi-made disaster," Rahul Gandhi said. READ| Demonetisation biggest step in 70 years; remonetisation will not take long advertisement The Congress vice-president further accused PM Modi of making fun of the farmers. "PM Modi made fun of farmers in Parliament. He said that they dug ditches. He ridiculed MNREGA, which is the backbone of farmers," Rahul Gandhi said. Jaise angrezi mein kehte hain man-made disaster isi prakaar se #DeMonetisation Modi made disaster hai: Rahul Gandhi in Belgaum pic.twitter.com/oQWFIDCI88 ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016 The Congress leader rejected the government's claim that demonetisation was done to unearth black money held by unscrupulous rich people. Demonetisation has created maximum problems to the farmers, Rahul said. "Who has the black money? Black money is with 1 per cent super rich population of the country. Indian farmers don't have black money, said Rahul Gandhi, adding, "Citizens of India have told me PM Modi is a liar. They said he promised to fight against black money but he didn't." Rahul once again alleged that PM Modi helped fugitive industrialist Vijay Mallya by waiving off his loans. "Vijay Mallya is thief of India. I want to ask the Prime Minister as to why did he gave him a toffee of Rs 1,200 crore? Why did you (PM Modi) waive off his loans," Rahul Gandhi asked. PM se poochna chahta hun Mallya Hindustan ka chor hai, aapne use Rs 1200 cr ki toffee kyun khilayi? Aapne uska loan maaf kyun kiya?: RGandhi pic.twitter.com/Wx6Qhcla27 ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016 --- ENDS --- Fifteen years ago, Galen Gisler had a gut feeling that something wasn't right about the Hollywood portrayal of asteroid impacts in the world's oceans. "Movies like 'Deep Impact' and 'Armageddon' suggested that an ocean impact would produce a devastating tsunami that would affect everything along the shorelines surrounding an ocean basin ... but I was skeptical," Gisler, a scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, told Seeker. Generally speaking, getting hit by an asteroid is a bad day for life on Earth, even if it is a part of the natural cycle of living in the dynamic and evolving solar system. Marauding space rocks fly around interplanetary space with no regard for Earth's precious biosphere. If they have our planet in their sights, they're going to hit us. And depending on their mass and speed, they could hit us hard. But depending on where an asteroid hits, the fallout will vary greatly. If an asteroid was predicted to hit land near a major city, we might be able to evacuate in time (and disaster response agencies have carried out drills that focus on this possibility), but the damage to society, infrastructure and economy would be terrible, obviously. But if an asteroid hits one of our oceans - water makes up for 70 percent of our planet's surface and is therefore a more likely scenario - the scope of the impact is poorly understood. RELATED: What Happens If an Asteroid Takes Aim at Los Angeles? Gisler is determined to better understand the realities of a massive impact in the ocean and presented his team's findings at the American Geophysical Union's Fall Meeting in San Francisco last week, showcasing the dramatic 3-D modeling results of an ocean-impacting asteroid. Never before has an impact scenario like this been studied in such detail and the simulation revealed that Gisler's original instincts had merit: devastating post-impact tsunamis we see in the movies are as fictional as the science fiction plot lines they are a part of. "An asteroid impact is a point source and it only affects the immediate region around the impact point and moreover, to create a tsunami, you need something that disturbs the entire water column," said Gisler. He likens an asteroid ocean impact to throwing a rock into a pond. Sure, the energy of the rock hitting the water will produce waves, but the ripples are very dispersive. In other words, they lose their energy very quickly. These dispersive waves in an ocean will be very localized and won't have the energy that a tsunami does. "It's very different physics," he added. RELATED: Large-ish Meteor Hits Earth... But No One Notices Tsunamis occur when there's large scale shifts of mass in the seabed, such during a submarine earthquake or landslide. These shifts cause a huge movement in a massive column of water, from the seabed to the surface, that can create wavelengths of a hundred kilometers or more, said Gisler, which is many times longer than the depth of the ocean (of a few kilometers). Tsunamis aren't very dispersive and therefore don't lose energy as they travel through the ocean basin, hitting coastlines hundreds or maybe thousands of kilometers away, often with devastating results. But that's not to say an asteroid impact in the middle of an ocean wouldn't be dramatic. "They're spectacular to be sure; they would produce splashes that go up tens of kilometers," he added. According to the model, a jet of water would also protrude from the ocean's surface by a few kilometers, producing rim waves surrounding the transient water crater reaching 400 meters in height. "That's awfully high! But unless it's very close to a shore, it's not going to be very dangerous." In addition, a significant fraction of the kinetic energy of the impacting asteroid will go into vaporizing huge quantities of water, according to the team's award-winning video explaining the research findings. Water vapor is a potent greenhouse gas, so the injection of vapor into the stratosphere could linger for months or years, altering global climates. Intense shock waves and violent winds will also wreak havoc on the surface, so the further the impact is from any populated coastal regions, the better. RELATED: Huge Tsunamis May Have Ravaged Ancient Mars Gisler's research adds another layer of understanding of how an asteroid impact would affect Earth and, for asteroids of 300 meters wide or less, we could use an ocean impact as a strategy to limit global damage. "I think it gives us more options. If you find an asteroid in this size range is on a collision course with Earth, and you can't deflect it from hitting the Earth's surface, you might be able to deflect it into the middle of the ocean," he said. Although NASA and other agencies are working to identify and track asteroids that pose a significant threat to Earth, we could be blind-sided and have little time to prepare a mission to knock the asteroid off course. But now we have more of an understanding about how an ocean impact may go down, we might be able to slightly nudge it toward a new target that will produce less collateral damage, like the middle of the ocean. WATCH VIDEO: Huge Asteroid Nearly Hits Earth Press Release December 17, 2016 Recto: CHED row won't affect, easy to implement 8B tuition fund The senator who sponsored the free public college tuition clause in the 2017 national budget today assuaged fears of "unenlightened bureaucrats" that it will may be hard to spend the P8 billion allocation to cover basic matriculation of close to 1 million students of state colleges. Senate Minority Leader Ralph Recto said that the current disarray in the Commission on Higher Education's organization will not affect the disbursement of the money and the implementation of the policy. "Kahit walang chairman, may chaiman, o nag-aaway sila, hindi maapektuhan ang programang ito." Recto said that the CHED, to which the P8 billion will be lodged, "will not have to go through the individual records of every iskolar ng bayan." "This will not be retail spending on their part. All it has to do is to disburse to the 114 state universities and colleges (SUCs) the amount that their students would have paid for tuition," Recto said. "So wholesale ang reimbursement, so to speak, to 114 entities only. Hindi yung i-sa-stamp nila ng 'approved' ang [and] bawat enrollment form," Recto said. Recto said apprehensions from some quarters in CHED may have been prodded by its experience of failing to spend billions of pesos in scholarship fund several years ago. Recto also downplayed fears that his sponsored provision in the 2017 general appropriations bill will be vetoed by Malacanang. "All presidential candidates in the last election issued the promise that tuition in state colleges will be free, kasama si Pangulong Digong," he said. He said the free tuition in public colleges provision "was a fact-based advocacy." "We ran numbers at nakita namin na at this level of public spending, in this era of trillion-pesos budgets, na kaya naman talaga," Recto said. The proposed P8 billion "Higher Education Support Fund" has been added to the budget of the Commission on Higher Education. If approved, it will be CHED that will administer the fund. The fund will be distributed among 114 SUCs based on the amount of tuition each school is projected to collect next year as reported in the Budget of Expenditures and Sources of Financing (BESF) document. For 2017, forecast SUCs' earnings from tuition is P7.78 billion out of total expected internally-generated income of P 17.62 billion. "So ito ang basis ng P8 billion na alokasyon." Recto explained the P8 billion will fund "free tuition" and will not cover other school fees like dormitory use and laboratory fees. Recto said the "free tuition fund" will guarantee that students from poor farming and fishing families, and from the urban poor will not shell out money for basic matriculation. Covered by this endowment, he explained, are "students coming from 4P families, thus guaranteeing that the 'last mile' in their search for education is partially financed." While Congress has the option to "simply write a provision in the national budget that state college tuition is free," Recto said SUCs will be at the losing end if the expected foregone income will not be "reimbursed" by Congress. "Kasi doon din kinuha ng lahat ng SUCs ang ilang gastusin tulad ng sweldo, allowances, pambili ng supplies, pagpagawa ng mga gusali," Recto said. "Kaya kailangang punuan ng national government 'yung income na mawawala," he explained. He thanked Senate Finance Committee Chair Loren Legarda for fighting for this provision. "She did a great job. This is a unanimous, bipartisan product. Every senator is an author of this provision." A sidewalk in San Franciscos Chinatown was teeming with people heading to lunch or on errands Friday when a gray sedan came careening up Stockton Street, hitting a parked car and slamming into a Muni shelter and eight people waiting for a bus. Suddenly, the sunny street became a scene of chaos, as injured pedestrians, some with broken legs, others with critical head trauma, lay strewn on the sidewalk covered with shattered glass and blood. A total of 10 people were injured in the midday wreck, two of them critically, police said. There were a lot of individuals on the ground, said San Francisco Supervisor Aaron Peskin, who represents Chinatown and was nearby when the crash occurred. Many were bleeding. Pretty horrific scene. The wreck was reported at 12:37 p.m. in the 800 block of Stockton Street at a bus shelter with an overhang, said Officer Robert Rueca, a spokesman for the San Francisco Police Department. What caused the driver to lose control was under investigation. He said the 2011 Toyota Camry was heading north on Stockton Street toward Clay Street, when it veered into a parked car before jumping the sidewalk and plowing into people waiting for the 30-Stockton and 45-Union Muni buses. The car slammed the bus shelter, shattering its glass walls before coming to a stop just outside the restaurant that Jason Wagner, 39, of Palo Alto, was standing in front of. The hood of the car was crumpled like a tin can and metal support beams of the bus shelter were bent into V shapes. Wagner said at least two people struck by the Camry were propelled into the air and that one of them, a woman, collided with him. It was like watching a movie, said Wagner, staring at the broken glass littering the sidewalk. I didnt want to run because there were too many people flying. Rueca said the unoccupied parked car that was struck by the Camry ended up being hit by a passing car, injuring the driver. Bystanders immediately went to help the injured who were either unconscious or writhing in pain on the sidewalk. A cacophony of sirens filled the air as ambulances, fire trucks and police cars swarmed the area from all directions. Peskin said he was three blocks north of the crash when he saw emergency lights and headed toward the scene. He said he helped emergency responders load a victim who was bleeding profusely into a waiting ambulance, adding that many of the victims and witnesses he spoke to were obviously in shock. Three vehicles were involved in the accident, said San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White. The driver of the sedan, the vehicle that rammed into the bus stop, remained on the scene and was cooperating with investigators, she said. The driver was later taken to a hospital and treated for minor injuries. The injured were taken to San Francisco General Hospital, UCSF Medical Center, Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Medical Center and St. Francis Memorial Hospital. Among the 10 people hurt, five suffered moderate injuries, two were in critical condition, and two had minor injuries, Hayes-White said. One victims status was unknown. Police and the San Francisco Fire Department closed off the area around Stockton and Sacramento streets and shut down the Stockton Tunnel in both directions as they investigated the crash. By Akshaya Nath: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi today met former Chief Minister and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) chief M Karunanidhi who has been hospitalised since December 15 due to breathing issue that was caused by throat and lung infection. After meeting the 92 year-old in the hospital Rahul Gandhi said, "I said hello to him. I have been informed that he is stable." Rahul Gandhi arrived at 11:40 am and the meeting lasted for close to 20 minutes. advertisement He met the ailing senior leader at Kauvery Hospital on Saturday morning. Also read: DMK chief Karunanidhi undergoes tracheostomy; doctors say he is now stable "I wanted to personally wish him a speedy recovery, happy to see that he is doing well," said Rahul after meeting the DMK chief. Rahul added that he wanted to personally wish the leader a speedy recovery. He said that he was happy to see that Karunanidhi is doing well. He said that the doctors have said that Karunanidhi will go home soon. On December 16, it was informed that a tracheostomy was conducted and that the DMK supremo is stable and is under antibiotics. In the last three days a lot of high profile politicians have been paying their visit to the Hospital. Also read: DMK chief Karunanidhi admitted in Chennai's Kauvery Hospital with lung infection, breathing difficulty This is the second time that Karunanidhi has been admitted in the hospital in a fortnight. Initially, though the party workers and cadres were a bit worried positive inputs about his health from senior leaders have given the grass root workers some hope. Meanwhile, DMK's general body meeting scheduled to take place on December 20 has been indefinitely postponed due to party chief's health and the date on which the meeting is to be conducted is yet to be fixed. Also read: DMK president Karunanidhi admitted to Kauvery Hospital in Chennai --- ENDS --- This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Harold Gilliam, one of the first environmental journalists in the country, author of newspaper columns and 11 books on the natural world of the Bay Area, died Wednesday in San Francisco after a long illness. He was 98. Mr. Gilliam began his writing career at The Chronicle in 1948 and covered a host of environmental issues, from the famed San Francisco citizens revolt against more freeways to articles about the tides and the need for more open space. He pioneered and perfected the craft of environmental reporting, the Bay Nature magazine wrote in 2011. His work had widespread influence. His 1962 book Island in Time, for example, was presented to every member of Congress and had an important role in the creation of the Point Reyes National Seashore. He also wrote about the efforts to save San Francisco Bay and to prevent construction of a nuclear power plant at Bodega Bay. Mr. Gilliam also served as a consultant to Stewart Udall, who was U.S. secretary of the interior under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, and helped influence federal conservation policy. Mr. Gilliam received awards including recognition by the American Institute of Architects, the San Francisco Art Commission, and the San Francisco Museum and Historical Society, among others. The Bay Institutes award for excellence in environmental writing is named in his honor. Jonah Raskin, an author and emeritus professor at Sonoma State University, put it more simply. Mr. Gilliam, he said is legendary. Harold Gilliam was born in Los Angeles in 1918 and grew up near the Hollywood Hills. As a boy he developed an appreciation for nature and a wariness of uncontrolled development. He graduated from UCLA, got a masters degree at UC Berkeley in 1942 and served in the U.S. Army in the 11th Armored Division in Europe during World War II. After the war, he studied writing at Stanford under novelist Wallace Stegner, then got a job at The Chronicle. Mr. Gilliam began as a copy boy and was soon promoted to reporter. He left The Chronicle in 1954 to work as a freelance writer and in 1960 began writing an environmental column in the San Francisco Examiner. He returned to The Chronicle after only a year there. I was a journalist who happened to have the luck to be the first environmental columnist, or the first I knew about, he said later. With the column I had a pulpit where I could state my opinion as well as others opinions and go into more depth than a daily reporter could do. His column in The Chronicle ran until he retired in 1995, though Mr. Gilliam continued to write occasional articles. He was more than a newspaper journalist. His first book, San Francisco Bay, which he described as an attempt to get the feeling of the landscape ... to help people enjoy the natural beauty of the area, was a big hit. It spent 19 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. He also wrote Island in Time: The Point Reyes Peninsula, Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Bay: The Struggle to Save San Francisco Bay, Weather of the San Francisco Bay Region, and For Better or for Worse: The Ecology of an Urban Area. His wife, Ann, was his co-author on Creating Carmel: The Enduring Vision. Though Mr. Gilliam fought and sometimes lost many battles over development, he remained optimistic. When he received an award in 2011, he spoke of what he called the San Francisco psyche ... this frame of mind that says innovate, take risks, improvise. You wont win every battle, but youll win the important ones. When asked for his advice to young people starting out as natural advocates, he said, Dont surrender. Never give up. Toward the end of his life, he was working on a piece about religion and spirituality, his sister, Barbara Borowiak, said. He was a very reflective person, she said. He is also survived by another sister, Gloria Magee of Lafayette; and his son, David Gilliam, of San Francisco. His wife, Ann, died in 2001. Carl Nolte is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: cnolte@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @carlnoltesf The Hearst Foundations awarded $1.2 million in grants to nine organizations in the Bay Area this month for their work in job training, education and the arts. The biggest awards, $200,000 apiece, went to the San Francisco Ballet, for education outreach; to San Francisco State University, for scholarships; and to Santa Clara University, for its community initiatives for the visual arts program. A fire at a Richmond junkyard sent a harrowing column of black smoke across the East Bay on Friday morning as dozens of old cars went up in flames. But the spectacle ended quickly and painlessly with firefighters containing the blaze within hours. People living and working near the Deal Auto Wrecking yard, including students at two schools, were given shelter-in-place orders as smoke poured from the fenced-in lot on Gertrude Avenue, along the Richmond Parkway, starting shortly after 7 a.m. The directive to stay put, with windows closed, was lifted before noon, and the local air district said the fire did not pose a serious health risk. No injuries were reported. The smoke from the fire is going very high aloft, said Lisa Fasano, spokeswoman for the Bay Area Quality Management District, shortly after the plume rose over the East Bay. Its not really affecting the surrounding neighborhoods. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, though officials say it was likely accidental. An employee of the junkyard speculated that the fire could have been caused by wiring in one of the scores of vehicles on the property. Nearby resident Jewell Morse was among those shaken when the large cloud of smoke emerged. Its scary, said Morse, 44, covering her face with her jacket to protect her from any toxic emissions. The neighborhoods near the junkyard, mostly on the opposite side of the Richmond Parkway, were among the northern parts of the city engulfed by the smell of burning. The area is largely industrial and not far from the bayfront refineries, though many homes and businesses are located there too. As a precaution, the Richmond Fire Department issued a shelter-in-place order for people within 1 mile east of the fire. Contra Costa County health officials advised those with respiratory sensitivities to remain on high alert and rinse irritated areas, such as eyes, nose or skin, with water. The main concern was particulate matter, the tiny particles that make up soot and smoke and can find their way into the lungs and bloodstream, potentially causing health problems. The Richmond Parkway was initially shut down due to the fire, but traffic resumed by late morning. That didnt help Zabrianna Harrell, a 27-year-old Pinole resident who got caught in the early morning congestion as she drove home from her job as a nanny in San Rafael. It just smelled like burning rubber and burning tires, Harrell said. It looked like it was raining, but it was just debris falling from the sky. There were big ash flakes all over my car. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. Just over two dozen firefighters battled the blaze, most from the Richmond Fire Department, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District and a private force from Chevron Corp. Before noon, most of the smoke had cleared, and crews had transitioned from pouring firefighting foam on the blaze to mopping up hot spots. Air-quality officials and hazardous-material teams remained on hand to monitor for health hazards. Christopher Gilmore, 24, who works at Deal Auto Wrecking, said he saw the fire on TV and called his boss to tell him about it before making his way to the site. He said a possible cause was that a wire shorted in one of the wrecked cars, sparking up a fire that quickly spread to other cars, many stacked on top of each other. It was an accident, he said. Its crazy. Sarah Ravani, Jenna Lyons and Kurtis Alexander are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com, jlyons@sfchronicle.com, kalexander@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SarRavani, @JennaJourno, @kurtisalexander Alaska Airlines has just completed its $4 billion purchase of Burlingames Virgin America. But the Seattle company left at least one rather important piece of business on the table: whether or not to keep the Virgin brand. Alaska, which announced its intention to buy Virgin in April, said it wont make a decision until next year. We are conducting extensive customer research to understand what customers value most, the company said. In the coming months, well begin to share our ideas about the future and expect to have a decision about the Virgin America brand in early 2017. If Alaska seems somewhat tentative toward completely swallowing its rival, theres good reason. Though Alaska has gone to great lengths to emphasize the similarities between the two airlines, they really arent very similar. They both treat their customers well, but the way they do it is unique to the company, said Michael Boyd, president of BoydGroup International, a consulting firm in Colorado. The product is different. It would be a huge change to put one airline inside the other. Alaska operates Boeing planes while Virgin signed a major deal with Airbus last year. Alaska emphasizes its customer service and on-time record. Virgin has crafted a quirky, tech-friendly image that focuses on its in-air experience. Both companies have built a lot of equity into their brands, said Jonah Berger, a professor of marketing at the University of Pennsylvanias Wharton School. Consumers have strong ties to each airline. The Virgin brand is also tied to high-profile billionaire Richard Branson, an early investor in the airline, who operates extensive businesses around the world under the name. Virgin America essentially rents the brand from Branson. We believe its driving a big revenue premium for Virgin, Alaska Airlines CEO Brad Tilden told analysts on Monday. We just want to learn more about it. So there is a chance that we could use the Virgin America brand in some form down the road. Since the turn of the century, the airline industry has undergone an extensive wave of consolidation. The four main U.S. carriers American, Delta, United and Southwest control more than 80 percent of the market. But most of the airlines those companies absorbed Northwest, Continental, TWA, US Airways were clunky legacy fliers that didnt really command customer loyalty, so it was easy to get rid of those brands, Berger said. None of those brands had popular perceptions, he said. Shutting them down was not a big deal. Keeping two brands is not unheard of. Southwest Airlines tried to preserve AirTran after it acquired the company in 2010, but ultimately absorbed the airline. Alaska knows how to make it work: It operated Horizon Air, which it bought in 1986, as a separate brand until 2011, when it absorbed it. But Horizon was mostly a regional carrier, while Virgin flies to cities across the country, including New York, Boston, Chicago and Honolulu. Keeping both Alaska and Virgin might cause confusion among passengers and complicate Alaskas marketing plans, Berger said. Plus, it reduces the money Alaska can save by completely combining operations because it would need to operate and maintain planes from both Boeing and Airbus. It would also have to pay Bransons company something to use the brand. Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes The synergies arent going to be there, Boyd said. There is always the chance that Alaska could just drop its name and adopt Virgin America instead, Berger said. After all, people not familiar with Alaska Airlines might just assume that the company flies only to the state, whereas Virgin America already implies its national network. Doug Yakel, a spokesman for San Francisco International Airport, said the airport has held talks with Alaska about the merger. So far, the company does not plan any major changes, he said. Yakel said Alaska intends to have two operating certificates at the airport for the foreseeable future. Combining the certificates, which requires Federal Aviation Administration approval, is time-consuming. So Alaska is stuck running two airlines for a while, no matter what. With the complexities of melding two popular brands, embracing that separation might make the most sense, even if it costs Alaska some money, Berger said. And given the value of Virgin America and its loyal customer base, in this case, two names might actually be better than one. Thomas Lee is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. Email: tlee@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ByTomLee Pacific Gas and Electric Co. passed a renewable energy milestone Thursday when for the first time, rooftop solar panels on homes and businesses could produce 5 percent of the enormous utilitys electricity. And at that moment, the rules governing new rooftop solar installations in PG&Es vast territory changed. Any PG&E customer hooking up a new home solar array must now pay a one-time $145 interconnection fee not faced by prior generations of solar homeowners. Theyll also pay a new monthly charge estimated to add 5 percent to their electricity bills that will help PG&E cover such costs as subsidizing utility bills for low-income families. And theyll have to switch to time of use electricity rates, which charge different prices for electricity at different times of day. The changes were approved by California regulators in January after a hard-fought battle that pitted utility companies against the states growing solar industry. Similar fights have erupted in other states, as utilities and their government regulators grapple with the implications of customers who can now generate much of their own electricity. In California, the changes tweak a system called net energy metering, or NEM, that compensates solar customers for excess electricity that they export to the grid. The new monthly charge and interconnection fee kick in whenever the growing amount of rooftop solar power in a utilitys territory reaches a specific threshold, equal to 5 percent of the utilitys peak electricity demand. San Diego Gas and Electric Co. was the first utility to hit that mark, reaching it in June. PG&E customers whose solar arrays were installed and connected to the grid before Thursday wont face those new rates and monthly charges at least not yet. They can continue operating under the original rules for 20 years after their systems were installed. One key element of the system wont change: PG&E will continue paying solar homeowners the same rates for their excess electricity, regardless of when their systems were installed. PG&E, which serves most of Northern and Central California, now has more than 275,000 customers with their own solar arrays. Another 6,000 hook up every month. Thats more than any other utility in the United States, according to the company. Together, all of those rooftop arrays in PG&Es territory can generate more than 2.4 gigawatts of electricity, representing almost more than half of the 4.5 gigawatts of rooftop solar installed across California. A gigawatt is roughly the output of a nuclear reactor, though solar panels, unlike reactors, do not produce power around the clock. The uptake of solar, the acceleration, has really been remarkable, said Adam Browning, executive director of the Vote Solar advocacy group. California, from the Internet to renewable power, has always been ahead of the curve. The new charges that solar homeowners will face were designed to offset what PG&E and other utilities consider an unfair subsidy. As solar customers generate more of their own electricity, they buy less from the utilities. As a result, the utilities non-solar customers must shoulder more of the costs associated with maintaining the grid, like fixing substations and power lines. PG&E has argued that the new system, which the utilities call NEM 2.0, doesnt solve that problem. But the changes represent a start, according to the company. The California Public Utilities Commission plans to revisit the issue in 2019. While NEM 2.0 begins to address those subsidies, we think in California, solar is moving toward a more mature industry, said PG&E spokeswoman Ari Vanrenen. At PG&E, were committed to finding that right balance. Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes Solar companies say the impending switch to NEM 2.0 doesnt appear to have had much effect on potential customers, though growth has slowed over the course of the year, according to data from Greentech Media. We have been selling under the NEM 2.0 rates since early summer, so we have not really seen an uptick in people trying to get in under the old rates, said Lauren Randall, senior manager of public policy at Sunrun, a San Francisco solar leasing company. An analysis that Sunrun commissioned found that PG&E customers would still save money by going solar under the new system. Barry Cinnamon, CEO of Cinnamon Solar, said his Campbell company used the looming change to NEM 2.0 as part of its sales pitch for much of the year, urging potential customers to go solar before the rules changed. We were very transparent with customers, and if there was any delay like they needed to re-roof, or it was a complicated system we said we couldnt guarantee theyd get interconnected in time, he said. Rich Zbriger was among the last of Cinnamons customers to beat the deadline. The 6.1-kilowatt system on the roof of his San Jose home got interconnected this week. If we didnt make it, that would have been OK I didnt think it would be that big a deal, said Zbriger, 70. But I was pushing Barry to get it done before they hit that magic number. David R. Baker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: dbaker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @DavidBakerSF Two Alameda County sheriffs deputies who were captured on video aggressively beating a man with batons in San Franciscos Mission District were fired Friday, officials said. Deputies Paul Wieber and Luis Santamaria were no longer with the Alameda County sheriffs office as of 5 p.m., said Sgt. Ray Kelly, a spokesman for the sheriff. Though Kelly could not provide details of the circumstances surrounding their departure, Michael Rains, an attorney for Santamaria, said the deputies had been fired for their role in the Nov. 12, 2015, beating. Wieber and Santamaria tackled Stanislav Petrov, 30, at the corner of Clinton Park and Stevenson Street after Petrov led the deputies on a 38-minute chase from Castro Valley and rammed two patrol cruisers in a rental car he hadnt returned on time. Surveillance video released by San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi shows Wieber and Santamaria knocking Petrov down and punching him and clubbing him with their batons, even after he appeared to surrender with his hands on his head. According to Adachi, an enhanced version of the video also showed former Deputy Shawn Osborne with a gold chain that had been taken from Petrov as he lay bleeding on the ground. A homeless couple who witnessed the beating later came forward to say Osborne gave them the chain and some money as hush goodies. The San Francisco district attorneys office charged Wieber and Santamaria in May with assault with a deadly weapon, assault under the color of authority and battery, charges to which they pleaded not guilty. The criminal investigation is ongoing into the allegations against Osborne, who was fired in July. Petrov suffered lacerations to his head and broken bones in his hands and arms. His attorneys said he also endured mental anguish and fear. He filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the deputies in August. Wieber and Santamaria had been on paid leave before they were fired. Rains, Santamarias attorney, said he argued strenuously against the termination, but to no avail. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. I dont think it was fair at all, but the sheriffs in a difficult position and I understand that, Rains said. Deputy Santamaria is charged with three serious felonies in this case, and were looking at a trial that will take place in about a year. The sheriffs options are limited at this point. Hes almost relegated to keeping him on paid leave, and Im sure the sheriff just didnt want to do that. Wieber had been with the sheriffs office for three years and Santamaria for 15 years. Rains pointed out that no matter what the video shows, the presumption of innocence applies to the deputies as well. This was a use of force that was admittedly very strong, but were dealing with a guy who had assaulted other law enforcement officers in the East Bay and who was believed to be armed, Rains said. I think use of force under the law is appropriate, and were second-guessing the instantaneous decision-making of a deputy who had no time to reflect on the limited options available to him. Vivian Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: vho@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @VivianHo This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 2 1 of 2 Michael Short/Special To The Chronicle Show More Show Less 2 of 2 Associated Press Show More Show Less Renowned San Francisco attorney Tony Serra and two other lawyers who work in his office have been retained to represent Derick Ion Almena, leader of the art collective at the Ghost Ship warehouse that burned Dec. 2, killing 36 people. All I can say is that I confirm we are presenting him in a pre-charge capacity, said one of the attorneys, Jeffrey Krasnoff. If and when we have anything to release, we will let you know. Evan Sernoffsky / Evan Sernoffsky The Hercules teenager who police say killed her her ex-boyfriend by running him over, then dragging him in circles around the parking lot of an apartment complex, was charged Friday with vehicular manslaughter with an enhancement for fleeing the scene. Desire Borela, 19, was arrested Wednesday after she turned herself in following the incident that broke out in the parking lot of the Glenwood condominium complex where she and the victim both lived, according to the Hercules Police Department. Theater lovers can anticipate a high-five hoo-ha in late January, when Carole Shorenstein Hays Curran Theatre, thoroughly restored and dolled up (as Sam Whiting describes), reopens for theatrical performances with a run of Fun Home. Meanwhile, the showing Thursday night, Dec. 15, of the new movie Fences, hosted by Paramount Pictures, the Curran and the San Francisco Film Society, was not only a first glimpse at the theaters structural and design improvements Welcome to the home that Carole built, said Willie Brown from the stage. Isnt this magnificent? but also a fitting, emotion-filled tribute to its history as a major San Francisco stage. And, because, after all, its showbiz, it was also a camera-clicking, red-carpet-movie-star photo and look-see fan opportunity, with an onstage conversation featuring actor-director Denzel Washington, Jovan Adepo, Mykelti Williamson, Stephen McKinley Henderson, all of whom are in the movie, and Constanza Romero, widow of playwright August Wilson. On Feb. 6, 1987, the Wilson play on which the movie is based opened at the Curran. How did it come about that the movie, which will open on Christmas Day, would be shown here, where the play, a milestone for then-fledgling producer Shorenstein Hays, made its San Francisco debut? My agent: God, said Shorenstein Hays, surrounded by well-wishers as she made her way to the lobby after the screening and conversation. It just happened. If this sounds, well, otherworldly, there was nothing spiritual about the producers real-life challenges in bringing the work to Broadway 30 years ago, and, although shes reverent about performance, there was nothing spiritual about the roll-up-your-sleeves project of remaking the theater. The play, written in 1984, came to San Francisco from the Yale Repertory Theater, Chicagos Goodman Theatre and the Seattle Repertory Theatre. Reviews here were mixed, and skeptics thought it would be impossible to sell Broadway tickets to a play about an African American family. Shorenstein Hays, the daughter of a powerful father, was moved by the story of a powerful father from a very different kind of family, realized its literary worth and also was determined to use her hometown for works on their way to Broadway. She stuck with it, and in league with its star, James Earl Jones, persuaded Wilson to edit and rewrite in preparation for the Broadway opening in March. A few months later, after rave reviews in New York, after a Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize for best play, Shorenstein Hays basked in its success as a personal validation. There was personal validation, too, for Washington, who won a Tony for playing Troy Maxson, the central figure (along with Rose, played by Viola Davis) in the 2010 Broadway revival of the play. Before the formal conversation began, Washington turned to the audience and said he had to tell a story: Thirty-nine years ago, he said, I came to San Francisco with $800 in my pocket, to study at ACT. From his $35-a-night room at the Palace Hotel, he moved to a $151-a-month apartment on Bush Street, with a Murphy bed and bathtub in the closet. I worked at Salmagundi, across the street from the Curran, and I think The Wiz was playing here. I would take care of all the actors and do their food, and I said, One day I will be in that theater. It took me 39 years, but I am here. The movie rights were bought in 1986, said Romero, describing the works path to the screen as stop and go. Wilson insisted that he wanted a black director. Williamson described Washington visiting Pittsburgh in preparation for the movie, going into the streets, introducing himself and telling people about the project. By the time shooting began, said Henderson, the people of Pittsburgh welcomed us. ... We were walking through the same streets that inspired August to write. Putting Wilson in a pantheon of American playwrights including Tennessee Williams, Eugene ONeill, Arthur Miller and Edward Albee, Washington said he was here for August. ... Im very proud and very happy with this film. He added that he talked to August every day. I told Constanza, This is what I came here to do. And the estate came to me two or three years ago and asked me to do all the plays. Next will be Ma Raineys Black Bottom. Washington said he has an eight- or nine-picture deal with HBO. The movie was greeted with applause and cheers. And at the end of the conversation, when most people in the audience were standing, Washington paused before leaving the stage. I never had a chance to do this, but Ill do it now, he said, and took a deep bow. Leah Garchik is open for business in San Francisco, (415) 777-8426. Email: lgarchik@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @leahgarchik Public Eavesdropping When our turn came, I thought, Why would I? The band is tight; why would we put anyone else in? Denzel Washington, on casting Fences with people whod appeared The Sycamore Park area of Mill Valley would make anyone who grew up in New York and spent their summers in Nantucket, Mass., feel right at home: tree-lined streets in falls apricot hues, walkable sidewalks (its commonly known as the flats) and charming Cape Cod cottages. Nadine Curtis, an East Coast transplant, and her fiance Ben Wells, a native of Tiburon, moved into their 1925 cottage less than two years ago to start a new life together, each with a child in tow. It didnt take long before they became part of the close-knit community. Were sort of postage-stamped in here, says Curtis of their cozy lot. Ben and I are extreme extroverts. Noise doesnt bother us. We love being surrounded by friends. Inside, the home feels more spacious than you might expect, with an open kitchen and large sunroom, both high-traffic areas often filled with neighborhood kids and impromptu guests. The sunroom has become a catchall a dance hall, an eating area for the kids, Curtis adds. The dining room, also part of this open space, displays her collection of crafted furniture and art from South Africa, where she lived and worked for two years. A barn-wood table and cream leather chairs hail from Cape Town as do works of art like a tribal mask of Kentucky Fried Chickens Colonel Sanders (one of her favorites). My style and the things Im drawn to you can say are African modern. Theres a lot of travel and storytelling in my design. Curtis clothing, jewelry and furnishings boutique, 7 on Locust, sits just a few blocks away and feels like an extension of her home. Many of her decor pieces come from the shop and her eclectic style, which leans toward boho chic, has made fans of many Mill Valley locals. Curtis grew up with a creative family her mother was an interior designer, and her father, an architect who designed recording studios, including Jimi Hendrixs famed Electric Lady Studios in Greenwich Village in New York. Rock n roll posters are sprinkled throughout the home along with her grandmothers needlepoint pillows a perfect example of Curtis craft-meets-edge style. Im interested in artist and craft development with a contemporary twist, she says. She and Wells, whose surf and sailing gear add a seaside ethos to the home, plan to open a mens shop next year adjacent to 7 on Locust to be called the Recording Studio. Vivian Johnson/Special to The Chronicle Benjamin Moore Moby Dick blue walls in the living room are a subtle nod to the cottages preppy origins. There, a Cassina sofa pairs with two Alameda Point Antiques Faire finds upholstered in hand-printed textiles from South Africa that feature the national animal, a springbok. The series of photographs on the mantel were originally spotted during an overnight stay at private club the Battery in San Francisco. I was instantly drawn to them so I took a photo, which is not what I usually do, Curtis says. Three weeks later she was introduced to artist Danielle Mourning. Says Curtis: I visit her website and see that exact piece that I love! Its the only edition of this size. Chance meetings seem to be a common thread in Curtis life: In Cape Town theres a huge design community that I was blessed to be introduced to, she says of the inspiration for the import business that led to 7 on Locust. And then there was the birthday party where she met Wells. I emailed him after the party, but he never emailed me back and I thought, Who doesnt email a woman back? (It happened that his assistant inadvertently deleted the email.) Meanwhile, Wells was regretting not asking for her number. I asked my friend who had the birthday party, Whos that girl?, he says of pointing to a photo from the party. His friend responded, I dont know, shes a crasher! Fate prevailed and Curtis followed her email up with a phone call. The couple have been preparing for a life together ever since. Theresa Gonzalez is a freelance writer. Email: home@sfchronicle.com Tips for merging a blended family Vivian Johnson/Special to The Chronicle Make private spaces for kids: One challenge to moving into the home, Curtis notes, with her son Pixley, 12, and Wells youngest daughter Cecilia, 13, was making sure everyone was happy. Luckily, the home has enough full baths that each child scored his and her own, making the transition much easier. Embrace togetherness: Weve never had a TV in our living space, but then, as a family, when you want to watch the World Series or the debate in a really weird way it brings people together, Curtis says. Plans for a new credenza and TV are in the works for the living room. Start fresh where you can: Curtis helped Cecilia pick out a new dresser and desk to replace the hand-me-downs in her bedroom. A Mexican wall-hanging a gift from Wells and Curtis is also new to the home and is a small tribute to Cecilias older sisters who dont live at the home. Create a gallery wall of new family photos: Photos of the blended family are a focal point between the master bedroom and Pixleys room. The collection is just one of the many in Curtis home that tells a story. I am a collector, she says. Everything we own has meaning. By PTI: Mumbai, Dec 16 (PTI) To encourage digital transactions, the Reserve Bank today decided to slash MDR charges on payments made through debit cards and do away with levies on small transactions through mobile phones and Internet from January 1 to March 31. The Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) for debit card payments, including for payments made to government, will be capped at 0.25 per cent for transactions up to Rs 1,000 and 0.5 per cent between Rs 1,000-2,000, RBI said in a notification. The existing MDR cap is 0.75 per cent for transactions up to Rs 2,000 and 1 per cent for over Rs 2,000. However, there is no RBI cap on MDR on credit card payments. RBI said reduced charges will "come into effect from January 1, 2017 and shall be applicable till March 31, 2017. advertisement In the intervening period, Reserve Bank will review the framework for charges for electronic payment transactions, in consultation with the stakeholders. Similarly, it has asked banks and prepaid payment instrument issuers not to levy any charges for transactions up to Rs 1,000 from January 1 to March 31. This would cover transactions through Immediate Payment Service (IMPS), USSD-based *99# and Unified Payment Interface (UPI) systems. The relaxations, RBI said are in tandem with initiatives taken by the government to "incentivise greater adoption of digital payments by large sections of the society." Post demonetisation of old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 banknotes, several banks including SBI, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and Yes Bank have waived MDR charges on debit card transactions till December 31. Merchant discount rate is the rate charged to a merchant by a bank for providing debit and credit card services. The rate is determined based on factors such as volume, average ticket price, risk and industry. As of October 2015, there were 61.5 crore debit card users and 2.3 crore credit card holders in the country. Government has announced a slew of measures, both for customers and merchants, to encourage digital payments in the country ever since it sucked out a large portion of cash circulating in the economy. Steps have been taken to make petrol, railway tickets and insurance policies of PSU companies cheaper if bought through debit/credit cards or other digital modes. Besides, a lucky draw cashback reward scheme for consumers and merchants will start from the Christmas till mid of April for Rs 50-3,000 transactions through digital means. PTI KPM MR --- ENDS --- This proved a man could make it off the Rock and into San Francisco albeit within a few breaths of death. The Chronicles front page from Dec. 17, 1962, covers the futile final attempt to escape from Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary. Two tough long-term convicts broke out of crumbling Alcatraz Prison at dusk last night but were stopped short in their bid for freedom by the stronger prison of San Francisco Bay, the story read. The two, Darl Lee Parker and John Paul Scott, were first missed at 5:47 p.m. as a routine cell check was being made. This attempt came six months after the most famous Alcatraz escape: the brazen break on June 11, 1962, by Frank Morris and brothers John and Clarence Anglin, when they chiseled their way into history and Hollywood with bent utensils and fooled guards with papier-mache heads. While it remains a mystery if those three men drowned in the bay or lived their final years liberated, the wintertime escape ended in capture, but forever proved that a man with enough motive could swim his way from the island prison to free land. Parker was recaptured by prison guards ... as he clung, half-drowned and trembling from exposure, to a cluster of rocks known as Little Alcatraz, a scant 100 yards west of the prison. Scott persisted longer but was near death when he washed ashore at Fort Point, just inside the Golden Gate Bridge and nearly three miles from the prison. See more front pages: Go to SFChronicle.com/covers to search a database of hundreds of Chronicle Covers articles that showcase the newspapers history. Chronicle Covers highlighting one classic Chronicle newspaper page from our archive every day for 366 days. Library director Bill Van Niekerken and producers Kimberly Chua, Alexandra Irving and Jillian Sullivan contributed to the project. Tim ORourke is the executive producer and editor of SFChronicle.com. Email: torourke@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TimothyORourke (Click to enlarge) The California Coastal Act, which turned 40 this year, is a remarkable law. Passed during the heyday of environmental laws in the 1970s, during Jerry Browns first stint as governor, it ambitiously states that maximum access to the California coast shall be provided for all the people. Forty years later, that promise is proving difficult to keep. Californias coast remains central to our identity, but too many Californians are not able to enjoy the coast as much as they would like. Our state is now facing a new generation of coastal access challenges that cannot be solved by the California Coastal Commission alone with its authority under the coastal act. A statewide survey we conducted this fall with the Field Poll found that Californians care as deeply as ever about the states coast and ocean and regularly go to the beach. But access is a growing challenge, from direct obstacles put in the path of coastal access points by private landowners such as at Martins Beach near Half Moon Bay, to the cost of visiting and staying overnight in coastal communities, traffic congestion, and limited public transportation options for getting to the coast. Solving these challenges and providing access to the coast for all the people will require communities and leaders from the coast and inland communities, the private sector, government agencies, nonprofits and philanthropy as well as the Coastal Commission to work together to fulfill the promise of the coastal act over the next 40 years. There is overwhelming concern among Californians about access to the coast and support for keeping the coastal acts promise of access for all. A vast majority of voters in the state 90 percent told our Field Poll that the condition of the ocean and beaches in California is important to them personally, with 57 percent saying it is very important. There is broad agreement across voter subgroups about the importance of the coast, with majorities of voters of all ages, ethnicities and income groups, as well as voters in coastal counties and inland counties, confirming that the condition of Californias oceans and beaches is important to them. Three out of four California voters 77 percent visit the coast at least once a year, and many visit more often. One in four say that they visit the coast once a month or more, while another 38 percent visit several times a year. Voters under age 40, parents of children under age 18, and those residing in coastal counties are more likely than others to make frequent visits. But despite the Coastal Acts guarantee of access for all Californians, our poll found that significant barriers remain. Access to the coast was cited as a problem by 62 percent of voters. Limited affordable options for parking are seen as a problem by 78 percent of voters. And 75 percent cited limited options for affordable overnight accommodations, which was rated a big problem at a higher rate by Latino voters and families with children. Limited public transit options were cited as important by 68 percent of voters. Central Valley voters are less likely to visit the coast, with 39 percent visiting less than once a year or never, compared to the 23 percent of all Californians who visit the coast infrequently, if at all. African Americans are also less likely to visit the coast, with 33 percent visiting less than once a year or never, and 30 percent of those indicating that not knowing how to swim is one reason they dont go to the beach more often. Income is also a factor. Voters with annual household incomes of $60,000 or more are more likely than those earning less than $40,000 to visit the coast frequently. We also conducted a survey of more than 1,000 beachgoers this summer and found that the overall cost of visiting the coast is more of a limiting factor for people between 30 and 39 years old and families with children, and lack of affordable options for overnight stays is more of a factor for people 18 to 39 years old and families with children. Despite the different challenges people face visiting the coast, we found that the primary reasons that people come to the coast are widely shared across all demographic groups. They come to relax and enjoy the scenery, and so their children can play. They walk and wade or swim in the surf. When they get to the beach, they want clean sand and water, and a few basic amenities such as trash cans, restrooms and parking. There are many organizations around the state, in coastal and inland communities, advocating for solutions to the complicated challenges of providing coastal access for all today. Brown Girl Surf, based in Oakland, is one of these inspiring efforts. In just two years, it has connected 131 girls from Oakland, San Francisco, and the South Bay to the coast and ocean through surfing. Many of them had never visited the coast, despite living nearby. The groups co-founder and executive director, Mira Manickam-Shirley, says that to meet todays coastal access challenges, we have to go beyond technical solutions to thinking about community and everyday culture. She adds that her program helps girls see that the ocean is not someone elses place. Its theirs. And they have a way to access it, to see themselves reflected there, and enjoy it. Californias coast and beaches are among our most important democratic spaces. Despite our differences, we all share a love of the coast and many of the same desires and reasons for coming to the beach. Under the California Coastal Act, our beaches are open to all of us. We need to make sure they are accessible to everyone. Jon Christensen is an environmental historian in UCLAs Institute of the Environment and Sustainability. Philip King is an economist at San Francisco State University. To comment, submit your letter to the editor at http://bit.ly/SFChronicleletters. Survey online For more information about the Field Poll poll and survey: www.ioes.ucla.edu/project/coastal-access-california No president-elect in modern times has assembled a Cabinet of more members whose backgrounds suggest they are openly hostile to the core missions of the federal agencies they are being tapped to lead. President-elect Donald Trumps cast of contrarians includes the choice of a secretary of energy who once pledged to abolish the department and an administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency whose portfolio includes a series of lawsuits against the EPA over its rules on clean air and water. How hostile are they? As a 2012 GOP presidential candidate, ex-Texas Gov. Rick Perry promised to abolish three departments: Commerce, Education and Energy. His campaign took a major blow when he could only remember two in a CNBC debate. The one he forgot? Energy. The departments 93,000 employees can only hope his amnesia continues into the Trump administration. Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, recruited to run the EPA, has been a lawsuit machine against the agency and what he has called the anti-fossil-fuel mentality of the Obama White House. Those two selections were reminiscent of President Ronald Reagans choice of two extraction-industry-friendly Westerners, James Watt and Anne Gorsuch, to lead the Department of Interior and the EPA. Interiors Watt quickly became Public Enemy No. 1 among environmentalists for aggressively opening public lands to coal mining and vast swaths of the outer continental shelf to offshore oil drilling. EPAs Gorsuch instantly slashed its budget by 22 percent, tried to weaken pollution standards and dramatically reduced enforcement actions. But there were some important distinctions between the Trump and Reagan transitions. Reagan had a more clearly defined conservative ideology and a legitimate claim to a mandate, having carried 44 states and winning 489 of 538 electoral votes; Trump lost the popular vote and was elected because of relatively narrow victories in the key states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Also, while Trump has picked an unusually high number of Cabinet members without any government experience most disturbingly, oil executive Rex Tillerson as secretary of state Reagans first Cabinet drew upon many seasoned hands in critical posts. It remains to be seen how much members of this Trump team can impose their will on federal agencies they have deplored. As Reagan famously said, a government bureaucracy is the nearest thing to eternal life well ever see on this Earth. It also can be notoriously change-resistant, especially when Americans widely embrace a government role in areas such as preserving natural resources, assuring fair wages, improving public education, protecting civil rights and slowing climate change. Trump campaigned against the establishment. Now he appears ready to govern against it. John Diaz is The San Francisco Chronicles editorial page editor. Email: jdiaz@sfchronicle.com Twitter:@JohnDiazChron At odds with their agencies missions President-elect Donald Trumps Cabinet picks include several whose past actions cast doubt on their commitment to government programs they will oversee: Department of Energy Trumps choice: Rick Perry, former Texas governor His history: Perrys bid for the 2012 GOP nomination took a big hit when he pledged to eliminate three federal agencies, but could name only two. The one that slipped his mind? The Department of Energy. Department of Labor Trumps choice: Andrew Puzder, CEO of the parent company of Hardees and Carls Jr. His history: He has been an outspoken critic of worker protections installed by the Obama administration and has opposed raising the minimum wage or expanding overtime rules. Environmental Protection Agency Trumps choice: Scott Pruitt, Oklahoma attorney general. His history: The oil-industry-friendly attorney general brought lawsuits against the EPA during the Obama years, including over clean air rules. He has called himself a leading advocate against its activist agenda. Department of Education Trumps choice: Betsy DeVos, businesswoman, philanthropist and education-reform activist. Her history: She has long been a crusader for making public funds available to private schools via vouchers. She told a group of Christian conservatives that education reform was a way to advance Gods kingdom. Secretary of State Trumps choice: Rex Tillerson, CEO of Exxon Mobil His history: As an oil industry executive, he opposed U.S. sanctions against Russia. Also, his companys track record on working with repressive regimes and allegedly deceiving shareholders about climate change raise questions about how he would approach two key issues in States portfolio: human rights and global warming. Department of Justice Trumps choice: Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala. His history: The Senate rejected his 1986 bid for a federal judgeship over accusations of racism. He has been a harsh critic of the landmark 1965 Voting Rights Act (intrusive legislation) and has resisted attempts to ease draconian drug laws. The attorney general will play a key role in deciding whether to continue the Obama administrations noninterference with states legalization. Good people dont smoke marijuana, he said last year. Health and Human Services Trumps choice: Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga. His history: The chair of the House Budget Committee has been a leading force in the effort to dismantle the Affordable Care Act. He also wants to convert Medicare from a fee-for-service system to one in which seniors would get a fixed amount of money to buy their own insurance. Housing and Urban Development Trumps choice: Ben Carson, neurosurgeon By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 16 (PTI) The Reading Campaign, an ambitious initiative of Delhi government, has shown "encouraging results" with about one lakh students of classes 6th, 7th and 8th now being able to read their textbooks easily. The department today made public results of the campaign according to which reading data of students of Class VI, VI and VIII has increased up to - 46 per cent, 64 per cent and 68 per cent - from the earlier 25 per cent, 52 per cent and 55 per cent respectively. advertisement Under the campaign, out of the total 6,32,370 children enrolled in classes 6 to 8 of government schools, the Reading Campaign focused on 3,59,152 i.e. 57 per cent of the total enrolled children. These children were between beginners to story level and needed some kind of support and focus to read an advanced story. The classes were held on every Sunday under Reading Campaign run from September 4 to November 14. Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said that the campaign has shown encouraging results, adding that in 30 working days, a number of children were able to read their textbooks, an increase by 20 per cent. "When we started 32% children of Class 6, could not read even a simple paragraph of Std 1 level, it is now reduced to only 14 per cent. In September, 8% children could not identify even letters in Hindi; this is now reduced to only 2%. "If so much change can take place in 30 teaching days, Im sure we can transform quality of education in govt schools within one year (sic)," Sisodia, who also holds education portfolio, said in a series of tweets. Sisodia said the Delhi government has initiated talks with MCDs to take this reading campaign to primary classes in MCD schools. He has written to all three MCD commissioners in this regard. A senior government official said that the campaign focused on all children of classes 6 to 8 of the Directorate of Education, who could not read their textbooks. The target group for the Campaign was determined on the basis of Reading Assessment conducted of all enrolled children of class 6 and those children of classes 7 and 8 who have scored less than 33 per cent marks in the combined Summative Assessment of previous classes. Among the children who were targeted in the campaign, 30 per cent of class 6, 28 per cent of class 7 and 32 per cent of class 8 have learnt to read advance stories. PTI BUN IKA --- ENDS --- This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate When Benjamin Millepied choreographed the dance scenes for the 2010 thriller film Black Swan, he could not have foreseen the transformations it would unleash in the ballet world, or in his personal life. It created a wave of interest, he says. Thats an understatement. The film helped reinvigorate ballet as a popular art form and made the French-born Millepied, 39, a former principal dancer with New York City Ballet, into an A-list artist with a reach far beyond the rarefied realm of ballet. (The film also introduced him to his wife, the actress Natalie Portman, who won a best actress Academy Award for her role and is expecting their second child.) A year after Black Swans release, Millepied founded the avant-garde, multi-genre collective L.A. Dance Project in Los Angeles, to high acclaim. Forays into fashion, film and even education ensued. Millepieds open-minded approach, however, was less suited to Paris Opera Ballet, where he was artistic director for two intervening years; he resigned in February to refocus on L.A. Dance Project. His tumultuous tenure there is also the subject of Reset, a feature-length documentary scheduled to be released in theaters and on video on-demand Jan. 13. Paul Kolnik San Francisco Ballet Artistic Director Helgi Tomasson, who has known Millepied since he starred in Tomassons work Prism at City Ballet in 2000, took immediate advantage of the choreographers proximity. Millepieds first commission for the Ballet, set to John Adams 13-minute The Chairman Dances (Foxtrot for Orchestra), will premiere at the opening-night gala, on Jan. 19. By phone from Los Angeles, Millepied discussed the new work, the Paris Opera and his next ambitions. Q: How did you enjoy working with S.F. Ballet dancers, like Carlo Di Lanno and Maria Kochetkova? A: Ive seen them perform a lot and love them. My colleague Justin Peck (who choreographed 2016s In the Countenance of Kings) loved the company. They are as good as they get. Q. Theres a jazzy syncopation to your choreography and its so fast. A: This work in particular requires a lot of virtuosity. While the movement is very fluid, you have to kind of create pictures, one picture after the other. Its what the music drew out of me. There are all these wonderful rhythms and ballroom-like elements; I played with that. Q: How do you like running the L.A. Dance Project full time? A: I love being back here. Thats what I decided to come back for. There are challenges ahead, but they are challenges that interest me: funding, courting a new audience, how to create an organization. Im interested in having this blank slate where I can confront issues of our times for the performing arts and dance, and offer my solutions. Paris Opera just wasnt where I was going to achieve things I wanted to achieve. Amy Osborne/Special To The Chronicle Q: In what way? A. At European companies, you are much more an administrator. I came in with a much more entrepreneurial mind, an American with a certain amount of transparency and a clear-cut way of knowing how things could be done. Q: What did you learn from being at Paris Opera? A: I learned a lot from dealing with artists of various kinds, and what I think the place of arts in society should be. If you want to grow and change the audience, the ballet company has to reflect that audience in terms of diversity, even a diversity of artists that participate in the projects. San Francisco Ballet has already done that. (The company) feels truly modern because of the work that Helgis done. If you look at any ballet company in America, it is the most diverse in terms of nationalities, in terms of ethnicity. And Helgi has commissioned more new ballets its probably close or more than what (New York City Ballet) has done, and larger in the types of work he has commissioned. Its remarkable that way. I want to build something like that. Q: But you did make several updates at Paris Opera. A: We achieved a lot in two years, from opening the doors to collaborations with other organizations, and more collaborations with artists, and a digital stage, and all the things I believe are important for an arts institution today. But ultimately in Paris, its all out there for it to be criticized. Q: Between L.A. Dance Projects collaborations, touring and unusual venues like museums, youre creating a new model for a performing arts organization. A: The times are changing so fast, in terms of how people experience anything, their relationships to digital content, to technology. Organizations are really struggling to adapt themselves to this moment and to the audience. Thats why I would rather have an organization that I can truly change or build, not one that is set in stone. Q: And with such a nimble organization, you can respond almost immediately to changes in the culture. A: Its a great platform for me to experiment with my ideas. I cant say too much right now, but Im in the process of developing ideas that will launch in 2017. And being in the most progressive state in the country means that there is a lot at our fingertips that is exciting to reach out to for collaborations. Q: The West Coast is very fertile ground for dance. A: I really admire the work that Helgi has done. I think its important to say to San Francisco and its community that they have something very, very special. I want to reach out to the whole tech community, who is not necessarily connected to dance, (and say) that its important to treasure these organizations in their communities, that they already have something that is truly unique and truly rare. Claudia Bauer is a Bay Area freelance writer. SF Ballet Opening Night Gala: 8 p.m. Jan. 19. $25-$498. War Memorial Opera House, 301 Van Ness Ave., S.F. (415) 865-2000. www.sfballet.org To see S.F. Ballets trailer for the 2016 gala: https://youtu.be/VqTIhP2hyGA To see Benjamin Millepieds dance-on-camera work Reflections: https://youtu.be/IP9pUNmL_PE To see highlights from S.F. Ballets segment on World Ballet Day 2014: https://youtu.be/tST3-ivV_Ro This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Sandra Quirozs new apartment, in the Casa de Vilarrasa affordable senior housing complex in Benicia, is modest: Its walls are bone-white and beige, its shelves are strewn with family photographs, and its windows look out to a sun-dappled courtyard. But compared with the mobile home where Quiroz has lived for the past 15 years, its grand. There are so many cupboards there are cupboards that I dont even use, she exclaimed, eyes twinkling as she bent over the arm of her wheelchair and pointed at her small kitchenette. Just a few months ago, the 62-year-old retired X-ray technician was making do in a 30-foot trailer that she parked in a nearby lot. Quiroz, who suffers from debilitating kidney failure and gets dialysis treatments three times a week, was unable to keep up with repairs. Brittle winters, she speculated, had caused the locks on her trailer doors to contract and break. Worse yet, the shower had a ledge that blocked her wheelchair, so for two years Quiroz was forced to sponge-bathe in the sink. I felt vulnerable in the trailer, and I kept getting sicker and sicker, she said. Two years ago, the owner of the trailer park announced plans to develop the lot and bring in an Ace Hardware store. He gave his 27 tenants until June of next year to move out. Quiroz suddenly found herself facing homelessness. Strained by complex health problems and a fixed Social Security income of $1,100 a month, she had limited housing options. And sleepy Benicia was starting to feel the squeeze of a hot Bay Area real estate market: In April, median rents for a one-bedroom apartment rose to $1,465 a month a steep climb from $987 a month in April 2011, according to the real estate website Zillow. Its been very hard to locate any affordable housing here in Benicia, said Roberta Cooper, Quirozs case worker at the Benicia Community Action Council, a nonprofit group that provides food, housing, and job services for the poor. It seems like these big rent increases have occurred in just the past two years, Cooper said, and all the cheaper options have been soaked up. Quiroz sought help from the Community Action Council in April, and the group was able to find her an apartment in Casa de Vilarrasa, a large, Spanish-style building on a quiet, tree-lined street. The Chronicles Season of Sharing fund helped cover the security deposit and one month of rent. Within days of filing her paperwork, Quiroz opened the door of her new apartment and rolled her wheelchair along the kitchens smooth linoleum floors. She hung a cat calendar on one wall and tacked pictures of her two daughters and five grandchildren on the refrigerator. She bought a new bed with money she earned selling the old mobile home. She hung cups over the counters and began cooking on the electric stove, which was a huge improvement over the tiny propane oven she used in the trailer. And she began meeting her neighbors, some of whom had emerged from similarly precarious situations. We get together and celebrate birthdays and have potlucks, Quiroz said. Theres a large community room where you can put tables end to end. She said she has no intention of ever leaving. I lived in that trailer for 15 years, and to come into this ... She paused mid-sentence and shook her head, giggling. This to me was like, Whoah. A couple days after moving in, Quiroz got a special chair for her shower and sat under the hot water for what must have been 20 minutes. It was her first shower in two years. Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com Twitter:@rachel swan ABOUT THE FUND For the past 30 years, the Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund has helped more than 100,000 Bay Area individuals and families facing an unexpected life crisis. The idea of neighbors helping neighbors was introduced to The Chronicle by the late Walter A. Haas Jr. and Ira Hirschfield, president of the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund, in 1986. Since then, the Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund has distributed $113 million to help those living in the Bay Area. Each year, the fund provides temporary assistance to approximately 4,500 families, allocating most of its grants for housing needs, as well as paying for other critical necessities such as essential furniture for families recovering from a fire in their home or helping to purchase a wheelchair. Grants are paid directly to the supplier of services, such as a landlord. Individuals do not receive direct grants from the Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund. The fund, which also distributes more than $1 million each year to local food banks, relies on donations from readers. The money is distributed year-round. Every penny of your donation goes to help those who need it most. All expenses are covered by the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund and The San Francisco Chronicle. We are proud to say that since its inception, 100 percent of the money raised for the Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund has gone directly to help the families and communities we serve. For more information, visit www.seasonofsharing.org. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Last year we told the story how in 1891 an old miner discovered a vein of coal within the city limits of San Francisco at Land's End, inspiring magnate Adolph Sutro to tunnel into a cliff overlooking Baker Beach. The now nearly forgotten mine, on a cliffside 200 feet below what was once the Ferries Railway track, was never fully developed. Years of high tides, harsh weather and subsidences have eroded its passages. This week, Jon Ehman, a professional services manager for a local tech startup, took advantage of the extremely low-tide water level that occurs during the king tides in order to explore the mine. Over the years the water level has gradually risen, making accessing the mine difficult and dangerous. "There is a limited window on how long you can stay out there due to the rising tide," Ehman said in an email. "Basically, the tide needs to be less than minus one foot. Any higher you risk getting stuck in the coves." To safely enter the mine, Ehman recommends rope or other climbing gear. One of the three openings, on the face of the cliff, can be reached without technical gear, but it requires free-climbing skills. Ehman watched an experienced rock climber scale the precipice to the entrance in about 10 minutes. Ehman found a number of objects some evidently old mining machinery parts exposed by the tide. Normally they remain hidden under several feet of water. "The most interesting thing I found was what I believe is a ship propeller," Ehman said. "There were also some interesting ornate brass metals and an old Ford engine." A selection of Ehman's photos, used with his permission, can be found in the above slideshow. We also included photos of the mine's interior, courtesy of photo-journalist Sierra Hartman and Atlas Obscura. More of Ehman's pictures can be found on his Imgur page. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Richmond fire and building inspectors shut down a makeshift punk rock venue and living space Friday that Mayor Tom Butt had labeled the citys own potential Ghost Ship because it was operating without proper permits. Burnt Ramen was red-tagged after fire and building code-enforcement inspectors found numerous safety violations that require immediate attention, during a scheduled morning visit, Butt wrote in an email newsletter on Friday afternoon. The venues six residents have been told by the city to find other accommodations until the problems are fixed, Butt said. Because of the safety concerns, it was determined the building is not trustworthy for habitation, said Butt, who called attention to the site following the deadly Oakland fire on Dec. 2 that left 36 partygoers dead. As of Friday afternoon, the Richmond venue was already being eulogized on Twitter. Damn RIP Burnt Ramen, tweeted rapper Kool A.D., formerly of the well-loved Brooklyn hip-hop group Das Racist. The Richmond Fire Department did not respond to a request for comment, nor did the Code Enforcement Unit. Reached by phone, Butt said he didnt have specifics beyond the information in his email. I think that just sort of verifies the original thoughts that I had about trying to get places like this into the system, he said. The inspection was not unexpected. It was scheduled for Friday, and on Dec. 9, Oakland punk label Tankcrimes tweeted a request for help cleaning and such, urging people to head on over there and pitch in. One of the buildings residents posted on Facebook that the city offered no explanation for the red tagging, no compliance plan or time frame for residents to fix violations, and no emergency housing for the displaced residents. A GoFundMe page titled Save Burnt Ramen was created this week to raise money for any repairs needed to bring the building up to code. As of Friday afternoon, it had received 95 donations totaling $3,408 as well as many messages of appreciation, fond reminiscence and support. In Oakland, meanwhile, some 30 warehouse tenants huddled together Friday in Fruitvales senior center to press city officials for emergency solutions against threats of eviction. Many artists and musicians living in the converted spaces say their landlords have told them to leave or sent them eviction notices. Anne Omura, executive director of the Eviction Defense Center, estimates that since Dec. 2 she has heard from roughly 40 people living in about seven of the citys warehouses who have received eviction notices or threats to clear out in 30 or 60 days. We need to stop the displacement now, she said, floating the idea of amnesty for landlords who have these funky places. She and other tenants rights lawyers said most regulatory burdens and liability in Oakland rest on property owners. For instance, if tenants can prove their landlord knew, or should have known, that they were living in the warehouse, then they have a strong case to stay or sue, even if they signed only a commercial lease, the lawyers said. Artists and others living in the warehouses, though, recognizing that safety upgrades have to be done and that city policies will probably change after the Ghost Ship fire, said they wanted a pathway to legalization for residential use of their buildings. At this point we all know it was a dance that had to end, Matt Hummel, who ran for City Council, said at the meeting. We all hide in our beds were doing all these things so that no one gets in trouble. We cant do that anymore. Filipa A. Ioannou is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: fioannou@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @obioannoukenobi This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Nathan Cottam stood in a cold commercial warehouse in the shadow of Highway 101, peered over a ledge that dropped 11 feet to a concrete floor, and thought to himself, This is where I want to live. That was in 2014. And over the next two years, the ballet dancer and choreographer did just that in a cozy room he built out of that empty space in San Franciscos Bernal Heights neighborhood. It was a place, he thought, that would let him pursue his dance career on a tight budget. Now Cottam, 42, is facing another perilous drop-off: He and his fellow tenants have received an eviction notice that gives them 30 days to leave. When he moved in, he did what he could to make the space homey. He covered the walls and painted them with various shades of blue and gray. He laid cork on the dusty floors, and added a bed, some couches and a rug. To top it all off, he built a mini ballet floor out of reclaimed poplar wood, where he could practice his art, whenever he wanted, free of charge. It was the only thing I could afford, Cottam said inside the warehouse that he now shares with seven people. After two years of tinkering with the space adding a funky painting here, a pool table there Cottam and his fellow tenants are now part of a long list of artist groups around the country whose habitats are being closely scrutinized in the wake of the Dec. 2 Oakland warehouse fire. If I have to leave, I wont look in the city for a place to live. Theres no way I can afford it, Cottam said. The eviction notice contends that the warehouse was being used only for business most commercial leases in California can be terminated with 30 days notice and not a living space, as its dwellers say has been the case for years. Under California law, residences, even illegal ones, are given protections against evictions that business tenants are not. The warehouse is also the site of a planned 49-unit apartment complex valued at $7 million. Its developer applied for a permit in July, leading the people who live there to claim their landlord is trying to get them out to make room for the new building. It looks like the landlords motive here is to get the tenants out, so he has an easier time to demolish and build the 49 units he wants to build, said Tommi Avicolli Mecca, a member of the Housing Rights Committee, a San Francisco tenants-rights group that has worked with the renters. The eviction notice was signed by Joanna Kozubal, an attorney for the owner of the property. Kozubal and the owner of the building could not be reached for comment. Adding to the tenants suspicions: The eviction notice arrived on Dec. 12, the same day as a letter from the city attorneys office. The city letter said that the office was aware that the property continues to be used as an unlawful dwelling space, adding that officials from multiple city agencies will inspect the space Wednesday. City officials have been quick to refute the idea that they are cracking down on artists collectives throughout San Francisco. Instead, they say, the intent is just to avoid another disaster like the fire at the Ghost Ship warehouse in Oakland, where 36 people died. That space, occupied by artists and musicians, lacked lifesaving features like sprinklers and adequate exits. People attending an electronic music party there were trapped on a floor reached by a makeshift staircase. Jeremy Pollock, an aide to Supervisor John Avalos, said he has been working as a liaison between the occupants of the property and the city attorneys office, trying to find a commonsense solution. (The building is outside Avalos district, but the supervisor has supported other measures to protect tenants.) Since the Oakland fire, the scrutiny there and on other similar spots has grown more intense, making the issue increasingly urgent to address, Pollock said. Overall, it seems like people are trying to do the right thing and avoid evicting people, where at the same time theyve got legal liability and the city has to make sure things are safe, he said. The neatly kept warehouse space, tucked away in a corner of Bernal Heights, has been on the citys radar for quite some time. A spokesman for the San Francisco city attorneys office, John Cote, said it wasnt clear what specifically prompted the upcoming inspection, though he noted the complex has a history of complaints including ones involving San Franciscos police and fire departments that date back to at least 2009. There were also two more recent complaints, city records show: one on Monday and another on Tuesday, alleging that multiple people were illegally living there. Eight people live in the brightly painted building, which is a menagerie of bedrooms, a sound studio and a dance studio. Some of the tenants built a massive shower with mosaic tiles and a kitchen, which always has a pot full of coffee in the morning. Guitars and pieces of pyrography hang on the walls of the multiple common areas with couches where the residents frequently hang out together. Mark Alverson, 36, uses the space as not only a home, but also as a music, art and photography studio. You name it, and I can do it here, Alverson said. Its the perfect space, and having a low rent helps me do the stuff that I actually want to do. In the wake of the Ghost Ship disaster, San Franciscos Department of Building Inspection and several other agencies have identified about a dozen suspected illegal properties in the city, many believed to be warehouses converted to residences like the Ghost Ship, a city spokesman said. The Peralta Avenue building was not on that initial list. Cities in the Bay Area and nationwide have put a close lens to warehouses and other buildings adapted for use by artists, fearing that more might be in dangerous condition. In Baltimore, the residents of the Bell Foundry arts building were evicted last week after city officials condemned the building. And the Cyclecide Swearhouse, a building housing an artists collective in Bayview-Hunters Point, less than 2 miles from the Bernal Heights warehouse, received a city inspection Thursday amid an ongoing dispute between its tenants and their landlord. The Board of Supervisors unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday urging a plan to address safety concerns in such spaces while minimizing displacement of their occupants. It raises the question of, Is the city attorneys office going to follow the resolution that was passed by the board this week? Avicolli Mecca said. Regardless of the answer, Cottam and his fellow tenants are hanging off a ledge, waiting for answers. Trisha Thadani and Michael Bodley are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: tthadani@sfchronicle.com and mbodley@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @TrishaThadani and @michael_bodley Two Alameda County sheriffs deputies who were captured on video aggressively beating a man with batons in San Franciscos Mission District were fired Friday, officials said. Deputies Paul Wieber and Luis Santamaria were no longer with the Alameda County sheriffs office as of 5 p.m., said Sgt. Ray Kelly, a spokesman for the sheriff. Though Kelly could not provide details of the circumstances surrounding their departure, Michael Rains, an attorney for Santamaria, said the deputies had been fired for their role in the Nov. 12, 2015, beating. Wieber and Santamaria tackled Stanislav Petrov, 30, at the corner of Clinton Park and Stevenson Street after Petrov led the deputies on a 38-minute chase from Castro Valley and rammed two patrol cruisers in a rental car he hadnt returned on time. Surveillance video released by San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi shows Wieber and Santamaria knocking Petrov down and punching him and clubbing him with their batons, even after he appeared to surrender with his hands on his head. According to Adachi, an enhanced version of the video also showed former Deputy Shawn Osborne with a gold chain that had been taken from Petrov as he lay bleeding on the ground. A homeless couple who witnessed the beating later came forward to say Osborne gave them the chain and some money as hush goodies. The San Francisco district attorneys office charged Wieber and Santamaria in May with assault with a deadly weapon, assault under the color of authority and battery, charges to which they pleaded not guilty. The criminal investigation is ongoing into the allegations against Osborne, who was fired in July. Petrov suffered lacerations to his head and broken bones in his hands and arms. His attorneys said he also endured mental anguish and fear. He filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the deputies in August. Wieber and Santamaria had been on paid leave before they were fired. Rains, Santamarias attorney, said he argued strenuously against the termination, but to no avail. I dont think it was fair at all, but the sheriffs in a difficult position and I understand that, Rains said. Deputy Santamaria is charged with three serious felonies in this case, and were looking at a trial that will take place in about a year. The sheriffs options are limited at this point. Hes almost relegated to keeping him on paid leave, and Im sure the sheriff just didnt want to do that. Wieber had been with the sheriffs office for three years and Santamaria for 15 years. Rains pointed out that no matter what the video shows, the presumption of innocence applies to the deputies as well. This was a use of force that was admittedly very strong, but were dealing with a guy who had assaulted other law enforcement officers in the East Bay and who was believed to be armed, Rains said. I think use of force under the law is appropriate, and were second-guessing the instantaneous decision-making of a deputy who had no time to reflect on the limited options available to him. Vivian Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: vho@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @VivianHo By PTI: The joint statement said Prime Minister Modi and President Rahmon agreed to celebrate the 25th year of establishment of diplomatic relations next year in a befitting manner through festivals, cultural events, conferences and other means of mutual interaction. They also called for greater exchanges of films, TV programmes and other cultural creations between the peoples of the two countries. advertisement Modi and Rahmon expressed satisfaction at the excellent cooperation between the two countries on multilateral and international forums including at the UN with the visiting dignitary reiterating support of Tajikistan to Indias candidature for permanent membership of an expanded UN Security Council. President Rahmon thanked India for co-sponsoring resolution strongly moved by Tajikistan for declaration of years 2018-28 as International Decade of Action: Water for Sustainable Development. PTI PYK RT --- ENDS --- It may have seemed like the culinary scene in San Francisco had something for everyone, but to 22-year-old Joey Tran, there was a big something missing: a bubble tea bar with EDM flare. With Gosu, as it will be called, Tran will plan on selling bubble tea and Asian-inspired snacks and desserts, as Richmond District Blog first reported. The restaurant and cafe, calling itself an "EDM-themed tea bar," will be located at 1014 Clement (at 11th Ave) in the former digs of Wu's Healing Center. 1 Pizza shop shooting: A man who police said was inspired by false Internet rumors to fire an assault weapon inside a Washington, D.C., pizzeria pleaded not guilty to charges including assault with a dangerous weapon. A public defender for 28-year-old Edgar Maddison Welch waived her right to argue for his release at a hearing Friday, which means he will remain held without bail. Authorities say Welch fired multiple shots inside the Comet Ping Pong restaurant on Dec. 4 after driving from his North Carolina home to self-investigate a conspiracy theory that Democrats used the restaurant to harbor child sex slaves. Police say he surrendered after panicked customers and staff fled and he found no such thing. 2 Tainted water: Officials told residents in outlying parts of Corpus Christi, Texas, that they could resume using tap water, and an asphalt company blamed for contaminating the supply pledged to help environmental workers quickly restore safe drinking water for the rest of the Gulf Coast city. The city released a map Thursday showing the parts of the city where it was now safe to drink the water, nearly 24 hours after warning all residents to stop using it because of harmful chemical from an industrial plant that leaked into the water supply. WASHINGTON President Obama blamed Russia for standing in the way of international efforts to stop the civil war in Syria, where government forces have beaten back rebels in their stronghold of Aleppo. At his year-end news conference, Obama said he feels responsible for some of the suffering in Syria, but he defended his decision to avoid significant military action there. He said that while military options short of invasion were tempting, it was impossible to do this on the cheap. Still, he pinned the bulk of the blame on Russia, as well as Iran, for propping up Syrian President Bashar Assad. This blood and these atrocities are on their hands, he said as he addressed reporters from the White House briefing room shortly before leaving on his annual Christmas vacation to Hawaii. The news conference lasted about an hour and a half, longer than usual. The president is ending his eighth year in office with his own popularity on the rise, though Trumps election is expected to unwind many of Obamas policies. Hes leaving his successor a stronger economy than he inherited, but also the intractable conflict in Syria and troubling issue of whether Russia was meddling in the U.S. election to back Trump. U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded with high confidence that Russia interfered in the election on Trumps behalf. The president-elect has disputed that conclusion, setting up a potential confrontation with lawmakers in both parties. The president rejected any notion that the dispute over the origin of the hacking was disrupting efforts to smoothly transfer power to Trump. Despite fiercely criticizing each other during the election, Obama and Trump have spoken multiple times since the campaign ended. He has listened, Obama said of Trump. I cant say he will end up implementing. But the conversations themselves have been cordial. The president did weigh in on Trumps decision to speak with the leader of Taiwan, a phone call that broke decades of U.S. diplomatic protocol. Obama advised Trump to think it through before making changes the one-China policy, in which the U.S. recognizes Taiwan as part of China. Trump has openly questioned why the U.S. upholds that policy, particularly given that Washington has other contacts with Taiwan. Offering his own take, Obama noted that Taiwan is of utmost importance to the Chinese and Beijing could have a significant response to any change in U.S. policy. In a moment of self-reflection, Obama acknowledged that he had not been able to transfer his own popularity and electoral success to other sin his party. It is not something that Ive been able to transfer to candidates in midterms or build a sustaining organization around, Obama said. SAN DIEGO For years, legal and public relations battles have waged over access to Childrens Pool Beach during seal pupping season. Seal defenders say humans harass the pups and their mothers; the other side laments policies that they say place seals welfare above human enjoyment. After announcing early this week that the site would remain open during seal pupping season to comply with a judges order, an appellate court on Thursday granted city officials discretion on whether to close the area while an ongoing legal battle plays out. On Friday, the city announced that Childrens Pool in the La Jolla section of the San Diego will be closed until further notice. Park rangers and lifeguards will be monitoring the area during the closure. If its temporarily going to be closed for this winter, its sad, but in the long run, we will prevail on the merits of our case, Ken Hunrichs, president of Friends of the Childrens Pool, said before the citys announcement. The San Diego City Council voted in 2014 to restrict public access to the beach between Dec. 15 and May 15 in response to concerns that people were harassing the colony of seals. Residents protested the decision, and a group called Friends of the Childrens Pool filed a lawsuit. In May, an Orange County Superior Court judge ruled that closing the beach during much of winter and spring violates state and federal laws. San Diego had appealed the latest ruling, asking an appellate court to allow the closure while the larger legal battle plays out. City officials are supported by animal-rights activists and the California Coastal Commission. The city is taking the proper steps to carry out the will of the City Council to close the beach, said San Diego-based attorney Bryan Pease, whose seal-protection efforts have included the filing of a lawsuit in U.S. District Court to limit peoples access to the beach. Seals started arriving at the beach en masse in the 1990s, making the waters there unsanitary for swimming and angering many residents who believe the city has unfairly prioritized wildlife protection over the sites long history as a popular swimming spot. The controversy has led to several lawsuits and skirmishes between opposing parties at the beach. The Coastal Commission documented several dozen instances of humans harassing seals in 2015. The agency was most concerned with people who scared the seals during pupping season, prompting a flushing stampede of these animals toward the water. This can cause mothers to abandon pups that are too young to swim, or the pups can be trampled. Childrens Pool was deeded to the city in 1931 and includes a 330-foot, crescent-shaped concrete sea wall that its donor meant as a way to create a protected beach and swim area for children. Music, gifts, festive decor and a sumptuous feast, find all this and more at the Gurgaon apartment of Michel Koopman, GM Leela Ambience and wife, Yvonne. Maximum impact, minimal fuss-these four words not only define the Dutch design aesthetic but also Michel Koopman's Christmas festivities. As the GM of Leela Ambience, the bar of expectations, especially about the decor of apartment was already very high. Walk into his art and craft filled space that features a little something from his travels across Asia and Australia, neatly arranged furniture and generous doses of colour; and you know you have a winner. There's music, smell of delicious food, festive sparkle (Christmas trees, gifts, X'mas themed decorations)- it's a feast for all your senses. "The best present you can find under your Christmas tree is your family," says Michel, adding, "My daughters are based out of London, they visit my wife, Yvonne and me during the holidays. We talk, feast and play games together." advertisement GETTING READY The festivities begin much before 25th of December. Yvonne begins polishing all the silverware (a yuletide tradition); frantic emails are exchanged between the family members to decide the menu, drinks, shopping and games. They dress up the foyer, living room, balcony and even paint the walls of the dining red. "In Delhi, there are a few good shops in Hauz Khas and Khan Market to purchase Christmas decor. But I miss the typical Christmas markets back home that open two weeks before Christmas," says Yvonne. Red furnishings, gold decor, a gingerbread house and a big turkey define this Yuletide meal A MERRY MAKEOVER On Christmas Eve they go to church attend midnight mass, enjoy a Christmas breakfast the next day, catch up and play games. "We invite people who don't have families here, lots of expats come, last year we also invited our Indian neighbours. They loved the Christmas crackers on the table. Before eating it, you sit down, cross your arms and pull it, a tiny little present with a wish reveals," says a jovial Michel as he wears one of his many wacky Christmas hats that he owns. As for Yvonne, she adorns the tree with ornaments her children made when they were young, places poinsettias in the balcony and carefully selected decor pieces around the house. Special care is taken that the festive feast looks and tastes great. The table is dressed using red and gold decorations with tall white candles breaking the monotony. This corner in the living room is dressed for the festivities This corner in the living room is dressed for the festivities THE RIGHT SPIRIT For Michel, Christmas is as much about giving as it is about family time. "At the hotel we have a large Gingerbread House with an extended area of Roca bath products. By making a donation (for underprivileged children of the Sunshine project), you stand a chance to win a Roca bathroom makeover, worth 8 lakh," he says. Every Year the Koopmans play pool after the Christmas dinner --- ENDS --- Something stinks in Huntington Beach. Going back decades, residents along the southern California coastline between Long Beach and Newport Beach (Orange County) have reported a powerful stench that wafts into the region every so often and lingers for an hour or longer. Depending on who is asked, it happens as frequently as multiple times a month or a handful of times a year. But it is unmistakable, residents say bad enough to make heads throb and stomachs queasy. Officials said there have been no known serious illnesses linked to the odor. Its more than a smell, said Ellery Deaton, a city councilwoman in Seal Beach (Orange County). Its noxious. When it happens I need to run around and close my windows. The odor is commonly described as gas-like, but its origin remains a mystery. Over the years, local politicians and fire department and air-quality officials have tried to get to the bottom of it. As a result, a number of theories have flourished. Gina Clayton-Tarvin, a schools official who lives in Huntington Beach (Orange County), said she believes its natural gas. Thats despite assurances from the Southern California Gas Company, which has investigated complaints and ruled out the possibility of a leak. Clayton-Tarvin talked about the areas layout of gas lines, the trajectory of the smells spread and her sense in the odor of a hint of mercaptan a natural gas additive. The smell that I smell, she said, is the natural gas smell. Other residents wonder about offshore oil platforms, or perhaps the shipping vessels arriving into the nearby ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles. My theory, which is based mainly on the process of elimination, is that it is oil tankers off the coast releasing pressure, Deaton said. Arley Baker, a spokesman for the Port of Los Angeles, was skeptical of that idea. The ships abide by fairly strict clean air rules. Whats more, Baker said, I cant think of a function on a ship that would discharge a foul smell. Sam Atwood, a spokesman for the South Coast Air Quality Management District, said the agency had investigated complaints multiple times, but has been unable to establish a cause. Odors can be very difficult to track down, he said. For the moment, the mystery seems bound to linger. Capt. Chris Coates of the Costa Mesa (Orange County) Fire Department said emergency dispatch has been getting calls about the smell for more than a decade. He is as perplexed as anyone, he said. Thats the mystique to the whole thing, he said. Nobody knows. By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 17 (PTI) Sashastra Seema Bal will soon raise a full-fledged combat intelligence wing comprising around 1,000 personnel in order to better secure the "sensitive" and porous borders of Nepal and Bhutan. SSB, which mans the 1,751-km-long Nepal border and 699-km-long Bhutan border, has also seized fake currency with face value of Rs 6.45 lakh from areas on Nepal frontier post demonetisation. advertisement SSB Director General Archana Ramasundaram, interacting with media persons here before the 53rd Raising Day of the force on December 19, said the paramilitary force has sent a proposal to the government to raise close to 1,000 personnel as part of its maiden combatised intelligence network that it wants to deploy on these borders. The force, till now, used to rely on its non-combatised officials and regular troops for this task at these two borders. "The border (Nepal) is very sensitive and the influence of elements of various types in these areas have mushroomed ...we have proposed to have our full-fledged intelligence wing in the force. The proposal has been sent to the Home Ministry," the DG said when asked a question on increasing Chinese activities in Nepal. While she said she would refrain from commenting on specific operational and classified aspects along this border, she said the force is keeping a "watch" on every activity along this frontier on Indias east. She added the intelligence wing, once raised, will be deployed on both the borders that the force guards with a special impetus on activities along Nepal as heavy cross- border movement takes places across this frontier. "There is no fencing on this (Nepal) border and there are different challenges here. We also have to keep the sensitivity of people in mind as the local population on both sides have relations and interactions across the border we guard," she said. The DG added the force, raised in 1963 in the aftermath of the 1962 Chinese aggression, will have a new structure for intelligence gathering, analysis and dissemination. A senior official said the new intelligence wing will be raised on the lines of the famed G wing (General wing) of the Border Security Force which has some of the major kills and operations to its credit in the Kashmir Valley and the Naxal-hit states. Talking about other challenges on the borders, Ramasundaram said the Nepal frontier was sensitive when it comes to tackling the menace of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) and the force has seized a total of 6.45 lakh such forged currencies after the government demonetised Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 on November 8. (More) PTI NES TIR --- ENDS --- advertisement By PTI: London, Dec 17 (PTI) Structure talk therapy alone can help treat people with social anxiety disorders, rather than taking medications like the famous "happy pill", a new study has found. Researchers from Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)and the University of Manchester in the UK examined the effects of structured talk therapy and medication on patients with social anxiety disorders. advertisement Until now, a combination of cognitive therapy and medication was thought to be the most effective treatment for these patients. The findings show that cognitive therapy on its own has a much better effect over the long term than just drugs or a combination of the two. "Weve set a new world record in effectively treating social anxiety disorders," said Hans M Nordahl, professor at NTNU. Nearly 85 per cent of the study participants significantly improved or became completely healthy using only cognitive therapy. Social anxiety is not a diagnosis, but a symptom that a lot of people struggle with, researchers said. For example, talking or being funny on command in front of a large audience can trigger this symptom. On the other hand, social anxiety disorder - or social phobia - is a diagnosis for individuals who find it hard to function socially and anyone with this diagnosis has high social anxiety. Medications, talk therapy or a combination of these are the most common ways to treat patients with this diagnosis. NTNU researchers set out to examine which of these approaches is most effective. "A lot of doctors and hospitals combine medications - like the famous "happy pill" - with talk therapy when they treat this patient group," said Nordahl. "It works well in patients with depressive disorders, but it actually has the opposite effect in individuals with social anxiety disorders," he said. "Happy pills," like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), may have strong physical side effects. When patients have been on medications for some time and want to reduce them, the bodily feelings associated with social phobia, like shivering, flushing and dizziness in social situations tend to return. Patients often end up in a state of acute social anxiety again. "Patients often rely more on the medication and dont place as much importance on therapy," said Nordahl. "They think its the drugs that will make them healthier, and they become dependent on something external rather than learning to regulate themselves," he said. "So the medication camouflages a very important patient discovery: that by learning effective techniques, they have the ability to handle their anxiety themselves," he added. PTI MHN SAR MHN --- ENDS --- advertisement The suspension came, after nine Congress and two Telugu Desam party (TDP) MLA entered into the well shouting slogans against the government as soon as the house started. By Ashish Pandey: The second day of the winter session of Telangana assembly witnessed uproar by the opposition party leading to the day long suspension of 11 opposition legislators today. The suspension came, after nine Congress and two Telugu Desam party (TDP) MLA entered into the well shouting slogans against the government as soon as the house started opposition leaders were protesting against the large scale defection of Congress and TDP MLAs into the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS). advertisement They were demanding the disqualification of all those MLAs who joined the ruling party and even working as minister in the government. Also read: Boost to Modi: Telangana becomes 3rd state after Bihar, Odisha to support demonetisation The Legislative affair minister T. Harish Rao then moved the resolution of suspension of the protesting opposition leaders. The Minister alleged that after disrupting Parliament for a month, now congress making moves to disrupt state Assembly. After that speaker Madhusudhana Chary suspended Congress and TDP MLAs from the house for the day. While the Congress legislators were suspended within five minutes of the beginning of the house preceding the TDP MLAs were suspended after 15 minutes of ruckus. Also read: Demonetisation effect: Telangana govt fears not being able to pay salaries to its employees The Congress leader of Opposition K. Jana Reddy strongly objected the suspension of their party members. He said that the government move is not appropriate and never in the history suspension happened without any warning. He said that the opposition is only demanding that instead of coming into the assembly, all those defected MLAS should again go to the public and seek new mandate. Suspended Congress MLAs include former Industry ministers J Geetha Reddy, D K Aruna, G Chinna Reddy, Jeevan Reddy and state Congress working president Bhatti Vikramarka while TDP working president A Revanth Reddy and N. Venkata Veeraiah were also suspended for the day. Also read: Demonetisation woes: Telangana government to pay Rs 10,000 from November salary in cash --- ENDS --- The robbery took place on December 12 when Hyderabad-based businessman Basavakoti Lingam and two others were robbed of currency worth Rs 91.78 lakh in Medak district. By Ashish Pandey: Toopran police of Medak district has arrested 4 people, including a sub-inspector, for allegedly looting Rs 91 lakh from 3 businessmen. The robbery took place on the 12th of this month when Hyderabad-based businessman Basavakoti Lingam and two others arrived at a farm house located in Kallakal village under Manoharabad mandal of Medak district to exchange new currency notes worth Rs 91.78 lakh. advertisement As per the complainant, the trio was attacked by some policemen, who robbed the money. After the robbery, the 3 businessmen tried to lodge the complaint with the local police refused to, raising doubts over the involvement of police sub inspector Anand Goud posted at Manoharabad police station. FIR LODGED AFTER HYDERABAD DIG INTERVENED The trio, after returning to Hyderabad, approached higher police officials and got an FIR filed following the intervention of Hyderabad zone DIG Akun Sabarwal and SP Medak Chandana Deepti. The investigation soon revealed the role of the sub inspector and later the Ramayampet police arrested him. The police team also arrested 3 others, identified as K. Raja Goud, Paryad Singh and Bhikshapathi Goud, for looting the businessman. Police recovered Rs 34.26 lakh (13 lakh in Rs 2000 denomination and the rest in Rs 100 notes) from the SI and others. Further investigation is on. --- ENDS --- Hollywood stunt choreographer Jorian Ponomareff took to Facebook and heaped praise on Ajith Kumar. By India Today Web Desk: Ajith Kumar, who was last seen in the blockbuster film Vedalam, is currently working on his upcoming yet-untitled film with director Siruthai Siva. ALSO READ: Kamal Haasan's Marudhanayagam WATCH: Baasha Trailer ALSO READ: Tamannaah on Baahubali While the team is currently shooting in Bulgaria, an interesting news about Thala has surfaced online. advertisement According to a Facebook post, French stunt rider Jorian Ponomareff, who has previously worked in the Hollywood film Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation, has been roped in to choreograph action sequences in Thala 57. Impressed by Ajith Kumar's simplicity and hard work, Jorian Ponomareff took to Instagram and heaped praise on the Yennai Arindhaal star. It must be noted that Ajith Kumar has left no stone unturned when it comes to stunts, be it car or bike. Tipped to be a spy thriller, the film will see Ajith Kumar as an Interpol officer, who is in charge of a crime investigation that happens in Chennai. The subsequent investigation leads him to the European nations where 70 per cent of the film will be shot. The makers have roped in Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi to play the antagonist in the film. Directed by Siruthai Siva, the film stars Ajith, Kajal Aggarwal and Akshara Haasan in pivotal roles. With Anirudh Ravichander composing the music, Thala 57 is expected to release next year. --- ENDS --- The latest revelation has come through a letter written by Bihar Excise Minister and Congress leader Abdul Zalil Mastan to the DM of Purnia that highlights how transfer-posting of government officials has become a sort of industry in the state. By Rohit Kumar Singh: Despite Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar maintaining that there has been good governance and transparency in his administration, his own ministerial colleagues from Congress and RJD are repeatedly puncturing his claims. The latest revelation has come through a letter written by Bihar Excise Minister and Congress leader Abdul Zalil Mastan to the DM of Purnia that highlights how transfer-posting of government officials has become a sort of industry in the state. Bihar Excise Minister Abdul Zalil Mastan letter to Purnia DM advertisement India Today is in possession of a letter which Minister Mastan wrote on his official letterhead to Purnia DM on November 23, directing him to transfer 20 government officials in the Amour and Baisi block without giving any reason for the same. Interestingly, there is not a single complaint against any of the 20 government servants, which can justify their transfer. SUSHIL MODI SLAMS TRANSFER-POSTINGS Sushil Modi, former deputy chief minister of Bihar, has now raised the issue and attacked Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, alleging that his cabinet colleagues were misusing their position and writing unwarranted letters for transfer and posting of government officials. "With the letter of Abdul Zalil Mastan, it has become clear how transfer and posting of government officers have now become a sort of business in Bihar. The 20 government servants, for whose transfer the Minister has written the letter, have no complaints against them", Sushil Modi said. Also read | Nitish can go back to NDA post-demonetisation, says RJD leader; JD(U) demands his expulsion Upping the ante on Nitish Kumar, Sushil Modi demanded that he take stern action against the erring minister and sack him from the cabinet. "Is a minister authorised to write such letters to the DM or is it not the DM's prerogative to take such a decision. I challenge Nitish Kumar to show courage to sack Abdul Zalil Mastan from the cabinet", demanded the former Bihar deputy CM. It may be noted that another minister from RJD quota in Nitish cabinet Abdul Gafoor has embarrassed the Bihar Chief Minister when he met don-turned politician Md. Shahbuddin in Siwan jail this March. --- ENDS --- By PTI: From Lalit K Jha Washington, Dec 16 (PTI) US President-elect Donald Trump has said he will build safe zones in Syria and will make the Gulf states to pay for it. "We will build safe zones in Syria," Trump said at a post-election victory rally in Pennsylvania last night. "When I look at whats going on in Syria its so sad, its so sad. And weve got to help people. And we have the Gulf states. They have nothing but money," he said. advertisement "We dont have money. We owe USD 20 trillion. I will get the Gulf states to give us lots of money and well build and help build safe zones in Syria so people can have a chance," Trump said, giving an inkling into his plan in the Middle East. To protect the US from terrorism and extremism, Trump said he will suspend immigration and refugee admissions from regions where they cannot be safely processed or vetted. "We will keep radical Islamic terrorists the hell out of our country. Well keep them out. Weve got enough problems. Weve got enough problems, right? Weve got to bring our jobs back. We dont want problems," he said. PTI LKJ UZM --- ENDS --- By PTI: Imphal, Dec 17 (PTI) In an attack on security forces in Manipur, militants today attacked a small post of India Reserve Battalion (IRB) at Nungkao in Tamenglong district and took away nine sophisticated arms and ammunition, police said. In the attack that took place at around 12 PM, the suspected hill based militants looted four SLRs, three INSAS rifle, one AK rifle and another automatic firearm and ammunition. advertisement This is the fourth attack on security forces suspected to be carried out by the militants in the last three days. Three policemen were killed and 14 others injured in different incidents after the militants ambushed state forces at Lokchao and Bongyang in Chandel district, and Noney town in Noney district on Thursday. Of these attacks, todays is the first incident in which weapons has been carried away. However, unconfirmed reports said altogether 20 weapons were taken by the militants. PTI COR NN DIP --- ENDS --- How are Californians going to save Spanish? Yes, I know that a call to preserve the Spanish language might seem ludicrous in a state whose very name comes from a Spanish romance novel. Nearly half of us are either from the Spanish-speaking world, or trace our heritage there; an estimated 38 percent of Californians speak Spanish. And yes, my question about saving Spanish may seem daft now, as Americas deranged politics pit Trumpian xenophobia, with its fear of being overrun by foreigners and their languages, against liberal triumphalism about growing diversity. But the realities of immigration, education and language acquisition put the lie to the notion that Spanish has nowhere to go but up. To the contrary, there are clear signs that the Spanish language has already begun to decline which is why Californians should act now to preserve it. Spanish is confronting the Three Generation Death law of non-English languages here. German, Italian and Polish all but disappeared after three generations a first, immigrant generation that learned some English, a second, U.S.-born bilingual generation that lost its proficiency in the non-English language over time, and a third generation that grew up speaking English only. Its possible that Spanish in 21st-century California may prove to be a little more durable, given the geographic (and now digital) proximity of the Spanish-speaking world. But its far more likely that Spanish will simply become the latest tombstone in the language graveyard that is America. Census statistics and Pew Research Center analysis tell the tale. While nearly 80 percent of all people who identify as Hispanic (and are age 5 and older) spoke Spanish in the previous decade, that number is expected to fall to about two-thirds by 2020. While 25 percent of Hispanics spoke only English at home in 2010, that figure is estimated to reach 34 percent in 2020. This reflects the law of the three generations. While 53 percent of first-generation Latino arrivals to this country are Spanish-dominant and 40 percent are bilingual, some 80 percent of third-generation Latinos are English-dominant, and 15 percent are bilingual. Other trends also will hurt Spanish. Even before the U.S. elected a bigot threatening a border wall, immigration to the U.S. from Mexico was at net zero, and immigration from Latin America was in deep decline. Thats unlikely to change, given growing middle-class prosperity, lower birth rates and higher education levels south of the border. Another part of this story is the unrivaled and growing power of English as our planets dominant tongue. Its become the language of global commerce, culture and technology. Its also wonderfully democratic, without the divisive gender distinctions of Romance languages, the tricky tones of Asian languages, or the complex grammatical constructions of German and Russian. Californians should welcome the trend. Our more homegrown, more English-speaking population should be more cohesive. But Englishs rise also poses important questions for California, because of our states special interest in Spanish. The reasons for preserving Spanish here go beyond the desire to honor the heritage of Californians of Spanish-speaking ancestry. Spanish is at the heart of the history of California. First, we were a Spanish colony. Then in 1849, our state was founded in Spanish (an official language of our first constitutional convention that year), with a constitution that required laws to be printed in both languages. Preserving Spanish would serve the present and the future as well. Theres money to be made if we can increase trade with the Spanish-speaking world. And it would be a huge step up for our education system to make Spanish a core requirement. Right now, you can graduate from a California high school without taking even one course in a foreign language. And the UC and Cal State systems require only two years of foreign language for admission. That borders on the criminally negligent, given all we know about the good that learning another language does for our brains. In November, California voters approved Prop 58, but that modest measure merely removed bureaucratic barriers to teaching California students in languages other than English. Spanish needs more, including state requirements and investment so that instruction is available to all. If we preserve Spanish, well have a comparative advantage over the rest of the country, where the language doesnt have the same history and is more likely to die out. Spanish could become a special force in California, distinguishing us and binding us together. With that happy thought, I wish you Feliz Navidad y Prospero Ano Nuevo. Joe Mathews writes the Connecting California column for Zocalo Public Square. To comment, submit your letter to the editor at http://bit.ly/SFChronicleletters. BEIRUT Diplomats sought to salvage the evacuation of eastern Aleppo after it stalled Friday amid recriminations by both sides in Syrias civil war, raising fears the cease-fire could collapse with thousands still desperate to escape the rebel enclave. The Aleppo evacuation was suspended after a report of shooting at a crossing point into the enclave. The Syrian government pulled out its buses that since Thursday had been ferrying out people from the ancient city that has suffered under intense bombardment, fierce battles and a prolonged siege. The carnage in Syria remains a gaping hole in the global conscience, said U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Aleppo is now a synonym for hell. The halt also appeared to be linked to a separate deal to remove thousands of people from the government-held Shiite villages of Foua and Kfarya that are under siege by the rebels. The Syrian government says those evacuations and the one in eastern Aleppo must be done simultaneously, but the rebels say theres no connection. The foreign minister of Turkey, a main backer of the rebels, said he was talking to his counterpart in Iran, a top ally of the Syrian government, to try to resume the evacuation. A closed emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council was held on the crisis in Aleppo, discussing a French proposal to have independent monitors oversee the evacuation of civilians and fighters. The council meeting ended with diplomats saying they would convene again this weekend. The cease-fire and evacuation marked the end of the rebels most important stronghold in the 5-year-old civil war. The suspension demonstrated the fragility of the cease-fire deal, in which civilians and fighters in the few remaining blocks of the rebel enclave were to be taken to opposition-held territory nearby. In announcing the suspension, Syrian state TV said rebels were trying to smuggle out captives who had been seized in the enclave after ferocious battles with troops supporting President Bashar Assad. Several opposition activists said Syrian troops shot and killed four people in one bus, but the incident could not be independently confirmed. There also were contradictory reports on the number of evacuees. Syrian state TV put it at more than 9,000; the Syrian state news agency said 8,079 opposition fighters and their families have left; and Russia, a key Assad ally, said over 9,500 people, including more than 4,500, were taken out. PHOENIX A judge on Friday refused a request by business interests to immediately block the voter-approved hike in the minimum wage from taking effect as scheduled next year. But he did agree to consider the legal arguments in depth this coming Tuesday. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Daniel Kiley rejected claims by challengers that leaving the law in place before the full-blown hearing on its legality will cause hardship for employers. Attorney Brett Johnson told him that while the law doesn't take effect until Jan. 1, its effects already are being felt as employers start making staffing decisions based on having to pay their workers at least $10 an hour on that date. "They're making business decisions right now as to whether to lay off people on Monday,'' said Johnson who represents the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and other business groups. He said a ruling now putting the law on hold would mean that "over the weekend there's not rash decisions made based off of Proposition 206.'' And Johnson said he presumes that, after a full-blown hearing, Kiley will agree the measure is unconstitutional, a presumption that supporters of the ballot measure do not concede. Kiley, however, said there's no basis for him to even consider whether to delay enforcement on the law, much less decide its constitutionality. If nothing else, the judge noted that the challenge was filed only a day earlier. He said that means those defending the law including both the attorney general's office and Proposition 206 supporters have not had a "fair opportunity'' to respond to the allegations. Nothing in Friday's action gives any hint on whether the judge believes the charges by the business interests who sued that what voters approved is unconstitutional. But what is clear is that whoever loses in Kiley's courtroom is virtually certain to ask the Arizona Supreme Court to overturn. That raises an interesting side issue. On Monday, the two new justices named by Gov. Doug Ducey, a foe of Proposition 206, are set to be sworn in. And expanding the court to seven could change the balance of political philosophies on the bench. The initiative is simple enough: It requires employers to pay workers at least $10 an hour beginning Jan. 1 $7 for workers who earn at least $3 an hour in tips and mandates at least three days of paid time off a year. The current state minimum is $8.05 an hour. Business interest, led by the state chamber, made a half-hearted effort to convince voters to reject the measure after chamber President Glenn Hamer conceded the popular measure was likely to pass. Proposition 206 was approved on a 58-42 margin. Now the organization, joined by local chambers and other business interests, hopes to quash the measure in court. Johnson says the Arizona Constitution says any ballot measure which requires the state to spend more money must also include a dedicated funding source, such as a new or increased tax. This measure has no such levy. The initiative has no direct costs as it specifically exempts the state from having to raise the pay of its own workers. But the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, the state's Medicaid program, said this week it plans to increase what it pays private contractors who provide services for those with special needs, contractors who are now paying their employees less than $10. Johnson contends that is a mandated cost which requires Kiley to void the measure. But attorney Jim Barton said nothing in the measure requires the state to backfill the higher costs to the providers. And even if there were, he said the constitutional provision does not allow for the entire measure to be voided but only for the state to refuse to boost its reimbursement to the providers. Don Shooter, the Yuma Republican who will chair the House Appropriations Committee, conceded Friday he does not know whether there is a legal obligation on the state to finance the additional costs incurred by the providers, a figure estimated by AHCCCS at $11 million for the next six months. But he believes there is a "moral responsibility'' to come up with the cash. Shooter also said he hopes the judge does enjoin the law from taking effect, but not because of the questions of the statute's legality. He said the legislature needs a few months to figure out how to either come up with the extra dollars or, possibly, ask voters at a special election if they are now having second thoughts given the additional costs to the state. Retired Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court Girish Chandra Gupta will be the new chairman of West Bengal Human Rights Commission. The decision was taken by a special committee headed by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. By Indrajit Kundu: Former Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court Girish Chandra Gupta is all set to be the new chairman of the West Bengal Human Rights Commission (WBHRC). Gupta's name has been finalized after a consensus was reached between the government and the opposition over the matter. According to State Parliamentary Affairs Minister Partha Chatterjee, the decision was taken by a special committee headed by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during a meeting at assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee's office on Friday. advertisement Decks have been cleared for the retired Chief Justice's appointment after Leader of Opposition and Congress legislator Abdul Mannan accepted the government's proposal to make Gupta the WBHRC chairman. IPS officer and former Director General of Police Naparajit Mukherjee had been given charge of the rights panel as "acting chairperson" following the unceremonious exit of its former chairman retired Supreme Court judge Ashok Ganguly known for his 2G scam verdict. Also read: RBI Governor Urjit Patel manhandled by Congress workers at Kolkata airport Ganguly, known for his critical observations against the Mamata Banerjee government over multiple cases of human rights violations had resigned from the post in January 2014 following massive protests against him by the Trinamool Congress after his name got embroiled in a sexual harassment case while he was still a judge at the Supreme Court. The Mamata Banerjee government had then appointed former top cop Naparajit Mukherjee, known for his proximity to the chief minister as WBHRC acting chairperson. Right activists and the opposition had since opposed the appointment of an IPS officer as head of a rights panel in the state. Also read: West Bengal: Frustrated customers pelt stones at SBI branch in Malda, smash ATM machine --- ENDS --- Zimmermann Telegram Introduction Everybody knows about Archduke Franz Ferdinand. He has catchy alliteration, there's a band named after him, and he's the answer to a question in every single trivia game created in the last 100 years. He got shot, he died, and it kicked off this little thing we call World War I. Except it wasn't a world war yet. Ol' Ferdi's assassination started the war in Europe. But, Shmoop helpfully points out, one continent does not a world war make. So, no Alex Trebek, "Who is Franz Ferdinand?" did not start World War I. His assassination only started a chain of events that would eventually become a world war after a lot of other nations joined in. When Franz was assassinated, the U.S. couldn't have cared less. Europe was a hot mess that Americans wanted nothing to do with. Some rich Archduke in a silly hat got shot while driving around in a city far, far away, and for some reason that started all the Kings, Queens, and miscellaneous European leaders trying to kill each other. It was Game of Thrones with machine guns. Entertaining? Yes, if you're into gore. But not something you'd want to be in the middle of. Americans were happy to watch from the safety of another continent as Europe tore itself to pieces for two-and-a-half years. Until the U.S. got sucked in, too. Arthur Zimmermann was the German Foreign Secretary who had a really bad day at work in January of 1917, and who, with one telegram, did exactly the opposite of what he was supposed to do: got the U.S. to declare war on Germany. The telegram was a top-secret, coded message urging Mexico to attack the United States. Thanks to the crack cryptographers in the British Navy's intelligence service, it was intercepted, deciphered, and published where the American public would read it and be so shocked and appalled that they were willing to support a war they once wanted nothing to do with. As far as workplace screw-ups go, this one was top notch. So next time you get asked, "Who started World War I?" impress your friends and say, "Arthur Zimmermann." It doesn't have quite the ring of a certain Archduke, but it's just as accurate. Zimmermann is the guy who got the U.S. involved and actually made it a world war as opposed to just another war between European monarchs who were all cousins by marriage anyway. What is Zimmermann Telegram About and Why Should I Care? Have you ever had a teacher who hated it when students passed notes in class? Like, they would get all upset and offended, and make a big production about taking the note away and reading it in front of everyone. Come on. Who cares? It's just a note. It's not like a note could start a war or anything. Notes don't kill people. Notes don't make armies cross oceans to slaughter other armies. Notes can't redraw world boundaries creating new nations and erasing others. No one ever became a world superpower because of a little note. Oh, wait. The Zimmermann Telegram was a note that did kinda do all that. World War I, "the war to end all wars" (wishful thinking, we guess), reshaped Europe and marked the emergence of the U.S. as a major world power. We take that for granted today, but before WWI, Europe was large and in charge. As a result of the war, the large, multinational Austria-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires were dismantled as their national minorities demanded self-determination; boundaries of newly created, smaller countries like Finland, the Baltic states, Iraq, Syria, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia, redrew the map of Europe. The former Ottoman Empire in the Middle East was arbitrarily carved up by the Sykes-Picot Agreement into areas of French (Lebanon and Syria) and British (Iraq, Palestine, and Jordan) control. Did those countries have any say about it? Hint: No. We're still paying the price for that today in the Middle East. Germany was stripped of territory, disarmed, humiliated, and economically devastateda situation that set the stage for a guy named Adolf Hitler to whip up nationalist anger and provoke World War II. Russia replaced their czarist autocracy with a communist government and China soon followed suit. A modern world emerged, where universal suffrage, freedom, and national self-determination replaced 19th-century imperial domination. President Woodrow Wilson established a League of Nations (that eventually morphed into the United Nations) that he hoped would secure a lasting peace. Good luck with that. In short, everything changed. As one writer wrote in 2014 on the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the war, We should not see [the war] merely as something of historical interest, a series of sepia photographs showing people who are quite alien to us. We are still living with the results of that war, and we face similar concerns. How, for example, does the world deal with powers whose leaders feel they must have their place in the sun? For Germany then, read Russia now. Or how can we rebuild societies after deeply damaging conflictsin Europe then, but in Central Africa, the Middle East or Afghanistan today? (Source) All that because of one note. The takeaway? Sometimes in history, it's the little things that count. By PTI: Mumbai, Dec 17 (PTI) Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray today said the basic purpose of the Centres demonetisation had been "defeated" as people were dying in bank queues and terrorist attacks were still taking place. "There are jawans who faced the enemy bullets and served the country....But after retirement they are unable to get their own money and it is extremely unfortunate that they are dying with their own bullets now," he said at a function here. "While announcing demonetisation, they (BJP) said it will eliminate the chances of terrorist attacks. But has it happened? Our jawans are dying as before," he said. Lashing out at the Union government over the hardship caused to common man, Shiv Sena chief also questioned the objective behind the decision. BJP MP Subramanian Swamy, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut and other Sena MPs were present on this occasion. Without naming Modi, Uddhav said, "Even if your intention is good, why are you causing agony to people? The Sena chief also took a swipe at Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad over his reported remark that pain caused by demonetisation was like "labour pain" and people will reap joy after it is over. "I want to ask Prasad whether he actually knows what labour pain is. Go and ask that pregnant lady who lost her life while standing in queue," Uddhav, whose party is an ally of BJP, said. Uddhav also challenged the Union ministers to announce their plans to construct the Ram Mandir (at Ayodhya). advertisement All Sena legislators and the entire Shiv Sena would stand "like a rock" behind the government in that case, he said. Meanwhile, Subramnaian Swamy, earlier today termed late Sena founder Bal Thackeray as the true face of Hindutva, adding that Uddhav was carrying forward his fathers legacy very well. PTI APM KRK SRY --- ENDS --- By PTI: from tax on old notes New Delhi, Dec 17 (PTI) Former JNU Students Union president Kanhaiya Kumar has criticised the Central governments decision to exempt political parties from income tax on old notes deposited by them in banks, saying that a PIL will be filed in this regard in Supreme Court. An online petition has been circulated for signatures of people opposing the government decision and soon a PIL will be filed at Supreme Court after due consultation with lawyers, Kanhaiya said. advertisement "We are contacting lawyers and we are going to file a PIL for revoking the exemption from IT scrutiny to political parties for deposits in old notes in the face of demonetization. We have already started taking signatures on an online petition regarding this," he said. The Central government yesterday said political parties depositing old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in their accounts will be exempt from income tax. Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia said that deposits in bank accounts of political parties are not to be taxed. "If it is a deposit in the account of a political party, they are exempt. But if it is deposited in an individuals account then that information will come into our radar. If the individual is putting money in his own account, then we will get information," he said. The online petition addressed to the Chief Justice of India opposed this move as "patently unfair" to the citizenry of the country. "Given the extraordinary nature of this measure (demonetisation) which has affected every citizen and businesss financial autonomy and brought their records under scrutiny; the exemption granted to political parties from any scrutiny from income tax authorities whatsoever in this regard, seems patently unfair to the citizenry," the petition read. PTI VIT IKA --- ENDS --- CTY Sandy Aerial End of Yetman Ave. in Tottenville. (Staten Island Advance/ Bill Lyons) CITY HALL -- Staten Island councilmen are calling on Mayor Bill de Blasio to convene a property tax reform commission to address systematic inequalities. The push comes after Councilman Joseph Borelli (R-South Shore) and Minority Leader Steven Matteo (R-Mid-Island) threatened to sue the city when an independent review confirmed such inequalities with the other boroughs. "The mayor, himself, has admitted the need for real property tax reform in the past and we hope he will join us as a partner in delivering real tax equality across the five boroughs," Borelli said in a statement. The city's Independent Budget Office released a report earlier this year that concluded there's no evidence of bias in the assessment process that would disproportionately favor the other three outerboroughs over Staten Island. But the report also found Staten Island homeowners still face a higher tax burden relative to actual property value this year compared with the other boroughs. Borelli and Matteo asked de Blasio to create a bipartisan task force of stakeholders to recommend changes to the property tax system to fix inequalities. The idea is issue recommendations in January 2018, the first year of the new mayoral term. So any state legislation necessary for the changes to be made could be drafted in time for the 2018 legislative session. "We're looking into it," de Blasio spokeswoman Freddi Goldstein said Friday. THREE AREAS OF CONCERN In a letter to de Blasio on Thursday, Borelli and Matteo outlined three "major areas of concern" in how the city assesses real estate taxes. "Before seeking redress of these issues from the courts, we are writing to you as our mayor to see if the matters can be addressed through the political process rather than being bogged down in a legal process that will most probably lead to acrimonious litigation and appeals, all of which will delay any relief for the affected taxpayers," Borelli and Matteo wrote. First, they argue that the city is violating state law by levying more taxes than state law allows by using the value of properties than aren't actually taxed. The city will collect $24 billion from property taxes this fiscal year, according to the November financial plan. That levy is expected to increase every year to $28.2 billion by fiscal year 2020, which begins in July 2019. Borelli and Matteo also said that assessments are not made uniformly. They believe the city should use an "actual assessment by qualified assessors" instead of a calculation based on a statistical model for one-, two- and three-family homes -- known as class one. The third issue they pointed to involves a state law capping assessment increases. A 1975 decision by the state's highest court forced Albany lawmakers into addressing past inequitable assessment of properties in New York City and across the state. At the time, owners of commercial and apartment buildings were paying taxes based on a larger share of market value than homeowners. The city dealt with this by creating a system based on four classes of property, making each taxed at a different share of market value and setting certain caps. This is intended to protect New Yorkers from being taxed out of their homes amid rising property values. The assessed value of properties within class one can't go up more than 6 percent every year or 20 percent over five years. So homeowners in less popular neighborhoods where home values slowly increase will generally have higher property taxes than those with homes in more desirable areas. 'TOO MANY INCONSISTENCIES' De Blasio owns two row houses in Brooklyn's trendy Park Slope and benefits from the current system by paying relatively low property taxes. "Common sense dictates that homes with the same market value, in the same property class, should have the same property tax bill -- but instead those bills vary widely, based on assessments that seem to have no rhyme or reason," Matteo said in a statement. De Blasio has previously said the property tax system has "too many inconsistencies." Last month, de Blasio wouldn't say when he'd start working to address them. "It's going to be a very, very big undertaking," he said when asked about property tax reform on Nov. 18. "I have to figure out how and when we begin that process. I suspect it will be a multi-year process because it's so big and so complex and will involve so many stakeholders." De Blasio has also said there's no current plans to increase the property tax rate. That overall rate hasn't changed from 12.283 percent since January 2014, when de Blasio took office. But that rate is the blended average of the multi-class system -- law requires the City Council to determine rates within classes every year so they're proportional by class. This means many homeowners consistently have higher property tax bills. De Blasio won't commit to maintaining the current overall rate next year or later on if he's re-elected. But then-candidate de Blasio pledged to an Advance editorial board in October 2013 that he wouldn't raise the rate. "I'm not going to raise property taxes, period," de Blasio said back then. Shearjashub Batista.jpg Shearjashab Batista (on the left) and Fatima Shama a Fresh Air Volunteer (on the right) before his departure to Friendlytown. (Photo Courtesy Jerry Speier) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Parents can give their child the opportunity to enjoy the outdoors this summer, free of charge. Registration is now open for the Fresh Air Fund's 2017 summer experience. The Fresh Air Fund is not-for-profit agency that has been providing free summer experiences to more than 1.8 million New York City children from low-income communities since 1877. Through the Friendly Towns Program, children ages 7 through 12 years old on first-time visits enjoy a one-week experience with volunteer host families. Children re-invited to the same host families may visit through age 18. At sleep-away camps in Fishkill, N.Y., girls ages 8 through 12 and boys ages 8 through 15 explore outdoor adventures. Shearjashub Batista, a 16-year-old Staten Islander, has been visiting his host family since he was 10. "I really enjoyed building a treehouse with my host dad, Barry," he said. "Every year, we go back and work on it together. I like spending time with Barry on our project." "My host family even came to my middle school graduation on Staten Island, which meant so much to me," he added. "I would like to tell other children who are thinking about going that you should stop watching TV and playing games inside all the time," Shearjashub said. "With Fresh Air Fund families, there is always a lot to do." For more information about registering your child, visit the Fresh Air fund website or call 800-367-0003. Sindhu gave it her all in the match but still ended up on the losing side as her Korean opponent proved to be too good on the night. By Indo-Asian News Service: Indian star shuttler P.V. Sindhu went down to Sung Ji Hyun of South Korea in the semi-finals of the BWF Superseries Finals at the Hamdan Sports Complex here on Saturday. Olympic 2016 silver medallist Sindhu lost 15-21, 21-18, 15-21 as she was topped by 2014 Asian champion Sung, who looked clearly the better shuttler on the day. advertisement Following the win, the South Korean improved her head-to-head record against Sindhu to 4-6. World No.5 Sung will meet world No.1 Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei in the final. Tai moved past Sun Yu of China 21-19, 21-19 in the other semi-final in 50 minutes. The final presents an opportunity for Sung to avenge the 2014 Superseries Finals' summit clash loss to Tai, who then had prevailed in straight games at this same venue. Sindhu, who was playing in her maiden Superseries Finals, the season-ending meet, looked off-colour on the day. Even though she refused to give up and fought hard for each point, she committed a lot of unforced errors. Her strokes had the power but not accuracy and due to this she largely suffered at critical junctures. Early in the first game, Sindhu was trailing 2-4 but she equalised only to let a couple of shots go wide, resulting in a three-point lead for Sung at 7-4. Afterwards, Sung kept the 22-year-old Indian off balance, never allowing her to equalise. But the Indian remained in contention till it was 14-15 in favour of the South Korean. Sung then produced a barrage of delectable cross-court half smashes to rattle four consecutive points to walk away with the first game 21-15. In the second game, Sindhu fought back and held a 9-6 lead at a point of time. But Sung managed to claw her way back into the game. And afterwards, it was a close contest until the 18-point mark when Sindhu managed to hold her own to clinch the second game 21-18. In the deciding game, Sung, a fast mover within the court compared to Sindhu, played her best game. The 25-year-old South Korean raced away to a 4-0 lead that quickly became 8-3. And till the mid-game break and change of ends, it was 11-6 in favour of Sung. Sindhu, who looked a bit tired, failed to put up a fight like she did in the second game, which really took its toll on her. Sung snatched points one after another and a 16-10 lead meant the writing was on the wall for Sindhu, who then surrendered the game 15-21. advertisement Meanwhile, the men's singles final will be fought between China's Tian Houwei and Denmark's Viktor Axelsen. While Houwei got the better of Denmark's Jan 'O' Jorgensen 21-17, 19-21, 21-13 in an hour and two minutes, Axelsen topped Wan Ho Son of South Korea 21-17, 21-19 in 55 minutes. China's Chen Qing and Jia Yifan and Olympic gold medal winners Misaki Matsutomo and Ayaka Takahashi from Japan won the women's doubles semi-finals, reports Xinhua. In the tournament's first semi-final taking place Saturday, Danish duo Christinna Pedersen and Kamilla Rytter Juhl, who were last year's runners up, lost 12-21, 11-21 against an almost perfectly harmonising duo of Matsutomo and Takahashi. "It was a tough match," said Juhl. Pedersen paid tribute to their opponents, saying, "Misaki and Ayaka played really well, not only today, but throughout the tournament so far." China's Chen and Jia defeated South Koreans Chang and Lee 23-21, 22-20 after a fifty eight minute contest. Chang, 27, of South Korea said she suffered from some pain in her right thigh which weighed on her performance. --- ENDS --- STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A Staten Islander was among three people arrested as police seized more than 250 pounds of psychedelic mushrooms in Brooklyn, authorities said. Nikita Medvedev, 26, of Staten Island, and Brooklyn residents Vitali Yaromin, 50, and Maksym Lyushnenko, 47, were arrested Friday and charged with second- and third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and second-degree criminally using drug paraphernalia, authorities said. Detective investigators from the Brooklyn district attorney's office and members of the New York Police Department raided two houses in the Sheepshead Bay section of Brooklyn on Friday following a joint investigation with the Drug Enforcement Administration's Strike Force, authorities said. Detectives seized more than 200 pounds of psychedelic mushrooms, more than $30,000 in cash, more than 300 gift cards, one ounce of marijuana and bank records at the first location on East 13th Street, authorities said. At the second house, located on East 11th Street, detectives seized more than 50 pounds of mushrooms, $400 and a 2007 Lexus 350 SUV, authorities said. The 250 pounds of mushrooms have a street value of almost $2 million, the Brooklyn district attorney's office said. "This investigation exposed and dismantled a massive psychedelic mushroom grow house, keeping hundreds of pounds of this illegal and dangerous drug off the streets," Acting Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said. "I would like to thank all of the partners of the DEA Strike Force for their commitment to keeping our communities safe." "Manmade drugs are our worst enemy these days," said DEA Special Agent James Hunt. "Those using synthetic cannabinoids, Carfentanil, U-47700 or psychedelic mushrooms are playing Russian roulette." Medvedev, Yaromin and Lyushnenko's arraignments were pending Friday night in Brooklyn Criminal Court. If convicted, they face up to 10 years in prison on the top count. A first-class ride for Cowboy Kel Bridle Path residents show love for mail carrier For the past six years, Kelvin Hoang has been delivering mail and smiles to people living in Simi Valleys Bridle Path neighborhood. We love Kelvin. Hes the best. Hes like... SV Womans Club to meet Detectives Kelly King and Jessica Getchius of the Simi Valley Police Department will discuss the problems faced by victims and perpetrators of domestic violence at the monthly luncheon meeting of... Womans flight aboard B-25 bomber honors grandfathers WWII bravery As Kerri Braemer-Castro looked down at the mountains and valleys of Camarillo from the cockpit of a World War II B-25 bomber earlier this month, she finally felt connected to... Shred your documents The Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce will hold a drive-thru document shredding event from 1 to 4 p.m. Fri., Nov. 11 in the parking lot behind the Chamber office, 40... 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Hire a regular consultant. Want truth? Hire an asshole. Historical Evidence Concerning Climate Change Social Conservativism In an age of Revolution Weather Shop Click to inquire about rates. Dow Jones What They Say About SDA "Smalldeadanimals doesn't speak for the people of Saskatchewan" Former Sask Premier Lorne Calvert "I got so much traffic after your post my web host asked me to buy a larger traffic allowance." Dr.Ross McKitrick Holy hell, woman. When you send someone traffic, you send someone TRAFFIC. My hosting provider thought I was being DDoSed. - Sean McCormick "The New York Times link to me yesterday [...] generated one-fifth of the traffic I normally get from a link from Small Dead Animals." Kathy Shaidle "Thank you for your link. A wave of your Canadian readers came to my blog! Really impressive." Juan Giner - INNOVATION International Media Consulting Group I got links from the Weekly Standard, Hot Air and Instapundit yesterday - but SDA was running at least equal to those in visitors clicking through to my blog. Jeff Dobbs "You may be a nasty right winger, but you're not nasty all the time!" Warren Kinsella "Go back to collecting your welfare livelihood."Michael E. Zilkowsky Intelliweather Seismic Map Comments Policy Read this Best Of SDA Hide The Decline The Bottle Genie (ClimateGate links) You Might Be A Liberal Uncrossing The Line Bob Fife: Knuckledragger A Modest Proposal (NP) Settled Science Series Y2Kyoto Series SDA: Reader Occupation Survey Brett Lamb Sheltered Workshop Flakes On A Plane All Your Weather Are Belong To Us Song Of The Sled The Raise A Flag Debacle (Now on Youtube!) (.mwv Video) Abuse Ruins Life Of Girl Trudeaupiate Kleptocrat Jeans Child Labour I Concede Small Dead Feminist Protein Hoser: THK Interview The Werewolf Extinction Dear Laura (VRWC) We Wait Blogging The Oscars Jackson Converts To Islam Just Shut The HELL Up Manipulating Condi Gay Equality Rights System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28: 29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948 /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f086efb8)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f085bb98)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f086efb8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f085bb98)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f0865fb8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f085bb98)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f085bb98)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612eff46dd8)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f0864a78)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f0864a78)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28:
29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948 /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612efe8c2a8)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612efe71698)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612efe8c2a8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612efe71698)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612efe8cc50)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612efe71698)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612efe71698)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612e6d4b918)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612ea918e10)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612ea918e10)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 It's not just Santa Claus who could be tiptoeing into your house on Christmas Eve. Figures from the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research show Christmas Eve is a peak time for property offences, including home burglaries and break-ins. The bureau analysed NSW Police records of property crimes committed from December 24 to January 2 over a five-year period, from 2011-12 to 2015-16. On average there were 763 property offences recorded on Christmas Eve, compared to the daily average of 629. Most of the crimes on Christmas Eve were committed between 9am and 6pm. Christmas may be a week away, but hundreds of disadvantaged children got to open their presents early on Saturday. More than 400 children from across the ACT received books and toys as part of charity The Smith Family's annual Christmas drive. Abby and Indi Fitzgerald receiving presents as part of The Smith Family's annual gift drive. Credit:Rohan Thomson Donations from across the territory were accepted during the past few weeks and 1158 toys and 772 books were collected. The Smith Family ACT general manager Annette Young said this year's donation drive had been one of the charity's largest. NSW is the fastest-growing state for online shopping, but there is one suburb heading to the online checkout the most: Liverpool. Thirty-two kilometres south-west of the CBD and home to more than 140 languages, Liverpool and its population of more than 24,000 makes the most online shopping purchases in NSW. In their latest national snapshot of Australia's online shopping habits, Australia Post revealed Gosford and Baulkham Hills followed Liverpool in terms of online purchasing growth. "There are three reasons people buy online," said Ben Franzi, Australia Post general manager for e-commerce and international. Eddie Obeid to get a zebra sun-tan? Put in prison for up to five years, for the corruption charges so far proven, with yet more to come? Wonderful! Take a bow, Kate McClymont, the Herald investigative journalist who did more than anyone to bring to light that corruption overcoming enormous pressure bordering on harassment, to do so. Take a bow, the NSW Police who investigated and charged him, and take a bow the NSW Justice system, which weighed all the evidence, and concluded him guilty beyond reasonable doubt. But you, Graham Richardson? Hang your head. You championed this bloke from the beginning. It was your shoulder to the wheel that propelled him through the ranks, your support that saw him rise to the point where his corruption could do such damage, your connections that were placed at his service. And if there has been a mea culpa from you since, I, and most people I think, are not aware of it. Now would be a good time, Richo. Tell us, what on earth were you thinking? And just how badly did you get it wrong? Joke of the week Men are just happier people. What do you expect from such simple creatures? Your last name stays put. The garage is all yours. Wedding plans take care of themselves. Chocolate is just another snack. Car mechanics tell you the truth. The world is your urinal. You never have to drive to another service station to find a loo that isn't too icky. Same work, more pay. Wrinkles add character. Wedding dress: five thousand dollars. Tux rental: a hundred dollars. People never stare at your chest when you're talking to them. New shoes don't cut, blister or mangle your feet. Phone conversations are over in 30 seconds flat. A five-day vacation requires only one suitcase. You can open all your own jars. You get extra credit for the slightest act of thoughtfulness. If someone forgets to invite you, he or she can still be your friend. Your underwear is $8.95 for a three-pack. Three pairs of shoes are more than enough. The same hairstyle lasts for years, maybe decades. You have to shave only your face and neck. One wallet and one pair of shoes one colour for all seasons. You can wear shorts no matter how your legs look. You can "do" your nails with a pocket knife. You have freedom of choice concerning growing a moustache. You can do Christmas shopping for 25 relatives on December 24 in 24 minutes. No wonder men are happier. And that's all folks On that subject, may your Christmas stocking have either or both of my books in it: Victory at Villers Bretonneux or The Great Aussie Bloke Slimdown. Thank you and good night! See yers, late January. Twitter: @Peter_Fitz "A renewed push for an Australian republic gives hope not only to having someone who is Australian and not subject to any foreign power as our head of state, but hope that we can reform government to make it more representative and responsive to the needs and desires of the Australian people." George Christensen, MP "Given the nature of the offending and notwithstanding Mr Obeid's personal circumstances, I am satisfied that, having considered all possible alternatives, no penalty other than imprisonment is appropriate. Mr Obeid, will you please stand up ..." Supreme Court Justice Robert Beech-Jones, on Thursday Morning. Mr Obeid was sentenced to five years' prison but has appealed. And the people cheered. "Eddie Obeid is the most odious politician most Australians have ever seen." Former Labor premier Nathan Rees sums it up for us all. "How any informed member of the community could possibly think a sentence of 15 years for someone who stabs to death a policeman who turns up to help other people is what the community expects is absolutely beyond belief." Warwick Anderson, brother of Inspector Bryson Anderson, who was stabbed to death on duty in 2012, after the inspector's killer, Mitchell Barbieri, had his sentence reduced from at least 26 years to 15 years. "I am very sad that I have been accused of insulting Muslims. It is the same to me as insulting my godparents, my family." Chinese Christian governor of Jakarta, Ahok, after being accused of blasphemy. Although he is Christian, Ahok had Muslim godparents. "You have been kissing the hand of someone who is uncircumcised. You would be better off kissing a goat." An Indonesian Muslim preacher speaking against Ahok. My head hurts. "We just got photos, and the dogs and cats, and we're out that's it." Resident of Cessnock about fleeing from an approaching bushfire. "Democracy sausage." Australian word of the year, for the sausage you buy at a polling station on election day, declared by the Australian National Dictionary Centre at the ANU. It beat out census fail, smashed avo, shoey, deplorables and RAH! my favourite, Ausexit. Can it be Australia is pitching to be a contestant on the next episode of The Apprentice? Imagine. A kind of global TV reality show, with Donald Trump to select his favourite, most loyal, MOST BEAUTIFUL diplomatic ally. Because that seems to be the aim. We already insist on a capital letter for the Alliance. Forget deputy sheriff. The chain of command is clear. It was a US admiral, rather than the Australian government, who announced in Sydney last week that sophisticated and deadly US fighter jets, the F-22 Raptors, would fly out of bases in the Northern Territory from next year. What happens to Australia when Donald Trump makes the calls? Credit:James D. Morgan Remember the importance of sovereign border protection and all that? At the same time Defence Minister-in-Wanting Christopher Pyne was in France, inspecting shipyards and gleefully quoting the wisdom of Trump, telling Australians not to be "strategic bludgers" and to spend more money on the military. If you want a glimpse of where the Victorian Coalition stands these days when it comes to issues such as social justice or the environment, the final week of state parliament is fairly instructive. On the Tuesday before Spring Street adjourned for the year, Matthew Guy's opposition helped defeat two bills designed to improve LGBTI rights: the first making it harder for faith-based agencies to discriminate on the grounds of sexuality; the second giving transgender people the power to change their birth certificates without needing gender reassignment surgery. Matthew Guy: could learn something from Malcolm Turnbull. Credit: On the Wednesday of that week, Team Guy joined forces with the Shooters and Fishers Party in a failed bid to thwart the creation of a new national park in the Central Highlands, and later voted against legislation designed to get Victoria's greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. And finally, on Thursday, when Daniel Andrews announced his government would draft assisted dying laws giving terminally ill people the possibility of a less painful death, Guy branded the issue as a "political distraction", frustrated that it would steal oxygen from his pet portfolio: law and order. A mystery object that washed up on a New Zealand beach continues to baffle officials. Environment Southland is trying to identify a 100-metre long object that washed up with an incoming tide on Te Waewae beach, west of Invercargill, this week. Deputy harbourmaster Ian Coard has appealed to the public for help with figuring out where the object came from and to who it belongs. The object is man-made - long, black, made of some kind of plastic and with metal loops on either end. Illustration: Matt Golding This could be done, Mr Turnbull suggested by having an " advisory plebiscite" to ask voters which of the two models should proceed to a referendum. The split between the two camps was a key factor in sinking the referendum on a republic in 1999. Mr Turnbull, then leader of the ARM, said at the time that then prime minister John Howard had "broken the nation's heart" by not supporting the referendum. However, at Saturday night's dinner, Mr Turnbull struck a conciliatory note, saying, "We do not diminish or disrespect the patriotism of those who take a different view. We have no other motive than love of country." He said that, a quarter of a century ago, when he founded the republican movement, "we did not imagine we would be celebrating 25 years without a republic achieved". "The cause of the Australian Republican Movement is a cause for Australia," he said. "I am an Australian and proud to say so. Our head of state should be someone who can say the same." Mr Turnbull called on other parties not to make the republican debate about partisan politics, criticising Labor for trying to fuel division on the Coalition side. "I'm speaking to you as one of the founders of this movement, a passionate Australian republican and one who wants you to succeed," he said. But he added that, speaking as Prime Minister, there had to be a recognition that the constitution did not belong to the government or Parliament but to the people. "So those of us who propose a change must approach our task with humility and respect for the people to whom the constitution belongs," he said. "The vast majority of Australians have known no other head of the state than the Queen," Mr Turnbull said. "I do not believe Australians would welcome, let alone support, another republic referendum during her reign." He finished the speech with a rousing call to "keep the faith, advance Australia, up the republic". The chairman of the ARM, Peter FitzSimons, told Fairfax Media: "It was wonderful to hear that the PM's passion for a republic is enduring. "He says there is lot of hard work that remains and we are doing that work. And tonight we are re-energised as never before." On Friday, the ARM said it had new figures showing that a republic now attracted majority support in both houses of Federal Parliament. Several senior ministers - including Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne and Defence Minister Marise Payne - were in support, as well as a clutch of names from the Coalition's conservative backbench. Among them were Queensland maverick MP George Christensen, who said that a renewed push for an Australian republic would mean not having someone who was "subject to a foreign power" as head of state. However his support was heavily qualified by his accompanying proviso of a separation of powers between executive and legislature, including the possible abolition of the prime ministership. The new number of supportive MPs, revealed a day before Mr Turnbull's speech to the dinner, showed a minimum of 81 MPs in the House of Representatives, and 40 in the Senate, who favour a republic. According to the ARM, 58 MPs in the lower house remain undeclared or undecided and 11 are monarchists. In the Senate, 21 remain tight-lipped and 15 favour the status quo. Peter FitzSimons, national chairman of the ARM, declared the Prime Minister had a "unique chance to put the republican cause firmly back at the centre of the national agenda". A new power station for south western Victoria will be among the offers to multinational Alcoa when federal and Victorian industry ministers Greg Hunt and Wade Noonan fly to New York on Monday in an emergency bid to secure the future of Portland's damaged aluminium smelter. The ministers will meet with Alcoa's global chief executive Roy Harvey as concern mounts about the dire economic impacts should the region's biggest employer crippled recently by a massive power outage close for good. Alcoa's Portland was crippled recently by a massive power outage. Credit:Joe Armao Mr Hunt confirmed that while immediate assistance measures to restart the plant would be a priority, longer term options for power to the electricity-guzzling smelter would also be tabled. "We will be working with all involved to find a sustainable power solution and have worked in deep co-operation with the Victorian government and the company to that effect," Mr Hunt told The Sunday Age. Like most kids in Australia in the 1980s, Chris loved dressing up as Star Wars villain Darth Vader. It was a makeshift outfit: a Vader helmet with drilled eyeholes together with a breastplate and laser gun that never actually appeared in the film. But unlike his friends' store-bought costumes, Chris' Vader helmet was special. It was an original mould one of only six crafted for the 1977 film. That childhood treasure for many years stored and forgotten in a cupboard in Chris' parents' home was recently valued in excess of $100,000. And there is a bidding war over it. In a world where governments and large organisations often hold all the power, more and more people are turning to the internet to raise public support for issues that are important to them. Change.org does just that it's a website that allows everyday people to start petitions for free, enabling them to lobby politicians, influence laws and draw attention to important issues that may otherwise go unnoticed. Jordan's father John and the brother he saved, Blake, at the teenager's funeral. Credit:Jacky Ghossein Nathan Elvery, head of Change.org Australia, says the website allows for everyday Australians to pop the "political-elite" bubble. "It's an easy way to be heard online about issues that matter to them," he said. "Technology is a powerful tool that can gain the attention of politicians and make real change." Double degrees typically take four or more years to complete, with some unis offering the possibility of fast-tracking studies. Here's some of what's on offer. The University of Sydney's new architecture "vertical double degree" combines undergraduate and masters study. Credit:Stefanie Zingsheim Double, combined, dual and "vertical" degrees stand out in the recruitment market. An extraordinary 750 possibilities are available when students enrol in ANU's '"flexible double degree" programs. Students can combine any two areas across faculties, resulting in some less obvious combinations such as accounting-criminology or biotechnology-visual arts. Students can also combine an engineering or advanced computing degree with subjects as varied as arts, finance or Pacific studies. SYDNEY UNI If you've an ATAR of 97, the University of Sydney offers a new "vertical double degree" of three-year undergraduate bachelor of design in architecture with two-year master of architecture. "We wanted to provide a small group of highly capable students with a tailored degree that will empower them to become leaders in the architecture profession," says senior lecturer Dr Ross Anderson. Birds migrating from the Arctic to Botany Bay for the summer months are dwindling in number due to increasing coastal development and climate change, according to experts. Philip Straw, an environmental consultant on waterbirds and wetlands, said migration has decreased in the Botany Bay area by more than 40 per cent. "Some species, like the eastern curlew and curlew sandpiper, have declined by up to 80 per cent," he said. "We need to protect this site because it is so important to the migratory shorebirds." The construction of a third runway for Sydney Airport and the expansion of Port Botany in 2014 has meant less coastal areas for these endangered birds to roost, he said. Three of the men facing life sentences over a $1.5 billion drug bust have worked for Savas Guven, the armed robber turned millionaire chief executive. At least two of them were working for his construction services company at the time of the 2014 record haul. Another, on bail, resigned just a week ago. Fairfax Media revealed two weeks ago Guven was jailed for committing an armed robbery in 2000 under the name Savas Yucel, having threatened to stab staff in an electronics store. The 37-year-old, who has drawn attention with his ambitious Mosman renovation and illegal land clearing, faces intimidation and assault charges over a confrontation in July. Akuila Bisasa, Jason Drollet and Josh Hamlin were among seven men arrested in 2014 after allegedly trying to pick up two tonnes of ecstasy and nearly a tonne of ice from a shipping container in Smithfield, Sydney. Four people including a child have been winched to safety in a dramatic aerial rescue after a helicopter they were travelling in was forced to make an emergency landing in national parkland near a southern Sydney beach. Four people were on board the helicopter when it made an emergency landing shortly after 10am about one kilometre from the shoreline at Bundeena, 30 kilometres south of Sydney, a spokeswoman for the NSW police said. The helicopter became stuck in thick bushland. Credit:Channel Nine. @9NewsSyd They began to be winched to safety an hour later when the Westpac Rescue Helicopter arrived. A young boy was among the passengers on board. The passengers were unharmed, the spokeswoman said. A man in his 20s has died after his car rolled on the Mitchell Highway in the NSW Central Tablelands. The car came off the road into a paddock about 10km west of Bathurst just after midnight on Saturday. The driver died at the scene. A male passenger, also aged in his 20s, was treated for minor injuries before being taken to hospital. The Mitchell Highway was reopened on Saturday morning. The driver is the 374th person to die on NSW roads this year. The 2016 road death toll has already surpassed the toll of this time last year by more than 40 deaths. Alex McCauley, CEO at StartUp Aus, a not-for-profit organisation hoping to transform Australia's future through technology entrepreneurship, has praised the efforts of those trying to implement entrepreneurial education. "I started out on eBay and the business just grew and grew," he says. "The idea is similar to Ikea, where the wine storage is sold in a flat pack and shipped directly to the seller." Childs' interest in both wine and business stemmed from his grandfather, who owned a liquor store. "He was the one who taught me what was involved in running a business. Because of him I've always had a business mindset and now I have almost a monopoly on Australia, I offer around 162 products and sell to 50 stores all around Australia." Catherine Raffaele, lead educational designer at The Hatchery, says the program helps students adapt to a changing job market. "Jobs that we thought five years ago were immune to automation are now becoming prime candidates for digital disruption," she says. "Jobs of the future will require people to create their own work, be flexible and solve problems." Raffaele, who is also completing her PhD on entrepreneurial learning and co-working practices, says the program is very experimental and is constantly adapting to suit student needs. And UTS isn't the only university to pick up on this trend; Sydney's UNSW as well as Melbourne's Swinburne University of Technology and Monash University are also putting entrepreneurial skills at the forefront of their teachings. The trend is also filtering through to primary schools, with a number of schools around Australia making use of programs like Club Kidpreneur, a not-for-profit social enterprise that teaches children aged 8-12 how to think like entrepreneurs. The company launched in late 2010, and the idea has grown ever since, with the company now catering for over 8400 kids and 489 schools all over the country. "We're planting seeds and sparking interest so children can have access to this kind of thinking from a young age," says Gemma Alker, general manager of Club Kidpreneur. "We teach kids about problem solving, budgeting, how to use financial maths in a practical way and that businesses can be used for social good skills that are useful no matter what industry they end up working in." Alex McCauley, CEO at StartUp Aus, a not-for-profit organisation hoping to transform Australia's future through technology entrepreneurship, has praised the efforts of those trying to implement entrepreneurial education. "It's great that this content is being taught right throughout the schooling process," he says. "There's definitely room for this kind of teaching in the formal curriculum too; as the workforce changes, skills like problem solving and creative thinking will have the most value." A Deloitte study found 65 per cent of the Australian economy is based on industries that are likely to be altered by the improvement of digital technologies. Industries like finance, retail, media, information and communications technology are already heavily affected but miners, construction groups and manufacturers are likely to also face incremental disruption. Guy Abelsohn, another Hatchery graduate, has just returned from a Landing Pad program in Tel Aviv, where he was developing his own business, MyInterview, and is hoping to change the way companies recruit employees. "MyInterview is a site that enables employers to interview candidates over video," says Abelsohn, who started the site in 2014 with his co-founder, Benjy Gillman. "After the candidate has been shortlisted, an employer will send them a list of questions and the candidate has 30 seconds to view the questions and two minutes to reply." The site allows employers to speed up the recruiting process and interview potential employees from all around the world. "Recruitment is changing dramatically and it's becoming increasingly important that an employee's personality is compatible with the business," Abelsohn says. "Often you can't gauge that with just a piece of paper." Australia is currently ranked first in the Asia-Pacific and seventh globally in the 2017 Global Entrepreneurship Index, and the government says it is committed to helping foster the growth of entrepreneurs and business owners. "We are focused on creating an environment where start-ups and established businesses can innovate, grow and deliver more jobs right across Australia," says Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science Greg Hunt. Found dead: The body of Michael Gavanas was discovered in the Parramatta River. Credit:NSW Police "He wasn't a bad person, he was good," his sister Maria Gavanas told Fairfax Media. "He looked after his family, it's just that things went wrong somewhere down the track and we don't know when." For Ms Gavanas, the hardest part is not knowing. "When the coroner says methamphetamine overdose, that's all well and good saying that but who tied his legs together?" she said. "Mick didn't throw himself in the river." At the time of his death, his brother, Stephen Gavanas, was serving a lengthy jail term in Victoria for drug trafficking after being charged with Mohammad Khodr and Horty Mokbel, the brother of notorious drug boss, Tony Mokbel. A family friend who knew Mr Gavanas and his brother since meeting them on the betting scene in the 1980s alleged the siblings "were involved in underbelly stuff in Melbourne". "... and involved with them down there, like Tony Mokbel," the friend told police, according to a statement tendered in the NSW Coroner's Court. After Stephen Gavanas got out of jail and moved back to Sydney, where he cares for his elderly mother, he had a routine visit from detectives about his brother's death. He did not want to give a statement but, according to police, he believed his brother drank from a glass of clear liquid thinking it was water when it was actually liquid methamphetamine. According to other statements tendered in court, two of Mr Gavanas' closest friends before his death were Ray Younan and Andrew Tonini. They too refused to provide statements. Such was the friendship that Mr Gavanas' widow Jodie told police that the $10,000 cash they found stashed in her son's bedroom was given to her by the two men for "Micky's" funeral costs. Mr Gavanas left the Westmead unit he shared with his wife on July, 1, 2015, after telling her he was going away for a few days. "He didn't say what for and I didn't ask," Mrs Gavanas said in her statement to police. "Mick had gone away for period in the past." He packed a bag with clothes and toiletries, before telling Mrs Gavanas he loved her. A day earlier, he and Mr Tonini paid in cash to hire a car from a rental business in Windsor. On July 7, 2015, the car was returned to the rental company with an overwhelming vinegar smell, mud and grass throughout it and an extra 680 kilometres on the odometer. After Mr Gavanas' body was found, two homicide squad detectives visited Mr Tonini, who also goes by the nickname "Pig", at his Sydney home. Mr Tonini said he would speak to police off the record, after the detectives assured him he wasn't approached as a suspect, but "no statements". "I'm not trying to be a c--t but I am no dog," he said, according to a tendered statement from one of the detectives. "I want to deal with it my way. "You find out who did it, tell me and I'll sort it out." He went on to complain of being targeted about alleged bikie associations. "The Parramatta gangs squad, they're all over me," he told detectives. "They're visiting my mates and intimidating them. They're saying 'Pig's neck is in a noose and it is tightening'." Police have released CCTV images of a man they want to speak to after a woman was assaulted in Carina Heights on Brisbane's southside on Saturday morning. About 3.25am, a 24-year-old woman was walking along Anzac Road when she was allegedly pushed to the ground. Police want to speak with a man who was seen on CCTV in the area near the time of the assault. Credit:Queensland Police Service (Supplied) The attacker then groped the woman before she screamed out and the man ran off. Police would like to speak with a man who was captured on CCTV walking towards Anzac Road just before the assault took place, as he may be able to assist with their inquiries. The emergency declaration for Russell Island was revoked by the Queensland Police Service on Friday afternoon, but fire crews remain on guard and believe Sunday will be crucial in the battle against the bushfires. More than 30 Queensland Fire and Emergency Service units remained on the island on Saturday, with crews back burning throughout the day to strengthen containment lines. Smoke covered large areas of Russell Island on Friday as fire crews brought the blaze under control. Credit:Nine Network Seven people were also sheltering in the evacuation centre at the recreation hall, which will remain open. A community information session was held at the recreation hall at 11am on Saturday where residents were given the latest information. Queensland fisheries officers could follow the lead of the state's police in introducing body-worn cameras to collect evidence against unlawful anglers. Fisheries Queensland has shown it was in the market for body-worn cameras in a formal request for information released on the government's tenders site on November 29. Queensland police officers are equipped with body-worn cameras. Credit:Queensland Police Service The RFI sought body worn devices that would have a 120-degree view and have a battery life that would enable them to record six hours in high definition and store at least 12 hours of footage. "Obstruction of officers is a serious offence and capturing sufficient evidence to prosecute these matters is paramount," the RFI states. Christmas promises to be hectic but happy for Myra Krafft. There will be laughter, presents, and a Christmas Day feast with partner Edi Murat and children Nicholas, 9, and Ameli, 8. There's just one shadow her failure to trace her biological mother. She says Christmas can can make adoptees and relinquishing parents feel "part of their family is missing". Myra Krafft with her children Ameli Krafft-Murat, eight, Nicholas Krafft-Murat, nine, and husband Edi Murat. Credit:Joe Armao Telling her story in The Sunday Age in 1996 didn't result in her mother coming forward, but attitudes can change, and so with fragile hope, Ms Krafft, now 44, of Traralgon, is making another request. From her birth certificate and adoption records, Ms Krafft knows she was born at 3.35am on July 22, 1972, at Royal Women's Hospital in Carlton. A Maribyrnong councillor is calling for Australian laws to keep up with online apps after receiving a text message on her mobile phone threatening her with rape. Deputy mayor Sarah Carter received an anonymous text message on her phone on Saturday afternoon, which stated, "I see you on Victoria Street. I am going to rape you tonight." Maribyrnong councillor Sarah Carter. Credit:Nico Keenan In a private Facebook post, which Cr Carter gave Fairfax Media permission to report on, she posted that "only the weakest most cowardly men resort to this level of intimidation". "Receiving an anonymous rape threat on my councillor phone on a Saturday arvo wasn't quite what I had imagined for my day," she posted. Mr Kip said there was a big problem with lightweight polystyrene cladding being installed on medium-sized apartment buildings because water would leak through the joints of the cladding. He said mould drove people out of their units, then the timber frame of a building slowly decayed to the point that the building would have to be demolished unless expensive repair work was undertaken. "I have personally seen dozens of buildings like this and I believe the problem relates to thousands of buildings built in the last decade," Mr Kip said. While many agree there are pervasive flaws with the standard of new buildings in Victoria, there is not yet consensus about how to reform the industry, amid fears any changes might increase the cost of building homes. Water leaking from the ceiling of a new apartment complex. Credit:Wayne Taylor A future of mass building demolition New laws may have to be introduced to manage mass demolitions of buildings with multiple owners. Leading building law specialist Tim Graham said in some cases the problems in apartment complexes were likely to be so bad it would be quicker and cheaper to terminate the owners' corporation and collectively sell the land to a developer. He said current laws required 100 per cent of owners to agree to a demolition, but it's likely these requirements will be changed in the future, perhaps to 75 per cent. Do you know more about this issue? Email reporter Aisha Dow Meanwhile, there are reports standalone houses built in the past 10 to 15 years have already been demolished because of substandard builds in suburbs including Drysdale, Reservoir, Caulfield and Balwyn North. Sahil Bhasin, the national general manager of Roscon, a company that specialises in identifying building defects, said more than 20 houses with polystyrene or "foam" cladding had been bulldozed after water leaked through broken cladding and rotted structural timbers. While others argue lightweight construction material poses no inherent problem if used correctly, Mr Bhasin said in his experience defects would always emerge, especially in cement sheet or polystyrene cladding. "Foam is meant to be used for eskies, not building houses," he said. "These developments are being constructed out of inferior products and sold off the plans to investors. These are the ones that are being quickly slapped up and they'll be falling apart within 20 years." Defect expert Sahil Bhasin investigates a water leak in a new apartment building. Credit:Wayne Taylor Mr Bhasin is calling for the quality of building materials to be assessed by authorities as part of the planning permit process. "We go to some of these places that are breaking down in front of us and it's really sad," he said. "What do you tell someone when you remove a little bit of plasterboard and find a whole rotted wall? "Especially if the lady sold her $1 million home in Kew home to buy this $600,000 unit, thinking they have $400,000 for retirement, then all of a sudden they having nothing." Melbourne's leaky building syndrome When it comes to declining building standards in Victoria, the canary in the coal mine has been the drip drip of leaking homes. Ray Neary lives in an award-winning apartment in Coburg, built just five years ago. But for the past four months, he has been sleeping on a mattress on the floor of his living room, since water start leaking into his unit and dripping through his bedroom wall. "It got that damp I put my hand on it to see how soggy it was and my hand went through the wall," Mr Neary said. Ray Neary said he has been forced out of his bedroom due to water leaks. Credit:Wayne Taylor His neighbours are also having problems. In the unit directly underneath, Mary Stella has set up a big plastic storage container to catch the litres of dirty tea-coloured water that have been dripping from a hole in the ceiling meant to hold an evacuation speaker. The Nicholson apartment complex was one of the first modular apartment buildings constructed in Melbourne, a project by Places Victoria (the government's property development agency). Each unit was constructed in a factory and before Mary moved in she appeared in a newspaper article which heralded the project as the possible "future of housing for many in Melbourne". Now the retiree is thinking twice about her decision to trade in her three-bedroom family home in Brunswick for the $450,000 unit, after problems getting the persistent leaks fixed. Mary Stella in her Coburg apartment. Credit:Wayne Taylor Worryingly for residents, water damage can also be seen on the ceilings and walls of the building's common areas and a number of balconies. "I thought I would do this and I wouldn't have any problems with maintenance, but now I find myself in an even worse situation," Ms Stella said. They don't build them like they used to There are buildings in Melbourne that have survived more than 150 years. But, if the experts are right, there may not be too many "Millennial" homes that stand the test of time alongside the city's proud legacy of Victorian and Edwardian properties. Phil Dwyer said his building company had knocked back offers to build 17 apartment projects this year because it was impossible to build a safe building that would last at the price demanded by the developer. "You can't cut corners like that and get away with it," he said. A growing chorus of industry experts say authorities have not grasped the scale of the problem, and have criticised the building regulators for their long-term failure to ensure builders and developers adhere to existing codes and standards. Stephen Kip said a lack of government oversight of the building permit system was key. "Most building practitioners have never had their work effectively audited," he said. When one big audit did occur as a result of a 2014 fire that damaged the Lacrosse tower in Docklands (later found to have combustible cladding), the Victorian Building Authority found 51 per cent of Melbourne's newest high rises also had cladding installed improperly. The Lacrosse fire prompted reforms by the Victorian government, including new injunction powers to inspect construction sites and rules compelling builders to repair bad work. The History of Marks from Antiquity to the Middle Ages written by Salvatore Di Palma, an international expert who had been working at WIPO for 35 years. If you are looking for a riveting read over the holiday period, or simply seeking a pretty present for a loved one, this book might be just what you need. Further details of the book and purchase information can be found on the publisher's website A new book is introduced:written by Salvatore Di Palma, an international expert who had been working at WIPO for 35 years. If you are looking for a riveting read over the holiday period, or simply seeking a pretty present for a loved one, this book might be just what you need. Further details of the book and purchase information can be found on the publisher's website here Former guest Kat Laetitia Lagarde brings a report on joined cases T-359 and T-358/15 issued in September, in which the EU General Court dismissed the appeals in the opposition -- "Romeo has a gun, by Romano Ricci" loses against Nina Ricci. and Ever-productive Laetitia Lagarde discusses two other cases ( T578/15 and T614/15 ) in which the marks that merely representing solar panels got struck out by court. After the first application of the CJEUs GS Media decision in a Swedish court (see IPKat's report here ), Mirko Bru (Rasch) discusses its first application by the German courts. Is the songwriters right to call for a reversion of copyright after 35 years inalienable or not? Can parties contractual agreement override it? David Liao wrote a summary of the Duran Duran copyright battle , in which the two questions had been answered surprisingly. See also IPKat David Brophys relatively lengthy yet quite "vivid" analysis for the battle here with a flavor of fiction dialogue on top of it. Jersey Boys (the creators of hit musical Jersey Boys) have been held by a jury in Nevada to have infringed copyright in an unpublished book. There seems to be eleven similarities identified between the manuscript and the musical, which (may) include the dialogue surrounding songs, the characterisation of individuals, and the description of scenes. By now, a spokesman for the show has claimed that Jersey Boys plans to appeal, stay tuned. Ben discusses the progress of the copyright case Getty Images vs Carol Highsmith (his former post can be found here ): Highsmiths claims (of statutory damages) were recently dismissed in a New York District Court, along with other claims that Getty and LCS had charged licensing fees and collected settlements from purported infringers for images they had no right to represent. Other than cases, an academic symposium organized by The Institute for Information Law (IViR) of the University of Amsterdam is reported: in view of the new EU copyright reform package, the symposium will examine the issues surrounding intermediary liability in copyright in Europe, including the extent of duties and remedies which are appropriate to impose on intermediaries and the conditions to govern these. Moving beyond the current safe harbour regime, it will explore avenues towards the adoption of a substantive European system. What has happened in Latin America? On IP Tango, IPKats friend Patricia Covarrubia blogged on the new-released Latin American Index of Legislative Transparency , which aims to systematise and analyse relevant information about the Legislative Powers. Further, she discussed the question Is the Index relevant to IP and if so how? I heard Christmas Stocking... Keywords alert! Copyright Beyond Law -- Regulating Creativity in the Graffiti Subculture. Apparently Patricia had some quality time reading the book: For the Christmas stockings, Patricia Covarrubia suggests you a quite readable new book written by Marta Iljadica, theApparently Patricia had some quality time reading the book: Copyright law and the subculture of graffiti are so well interwoven in the book that you forget you are reading a book about law. I noticed this because essentially I do not to take work home and suddenly the book was in my night table and I was engaging on it as it were a novel. PS. Blog readers can claim a 20% discount on the book - the discount code is CV7. George thought he'd lost his shopping trolley. Maybe it had rolled away, the 83-year-old thought, or he'd left it elsewhere. But the Camberwell man was wrong. George with members from Oakleigh police station. Credit:Victoria Police He'd left the trolley outside a grocery shop he'd ducked into to pick up some vegetables for his local senior citizens club's Christmas feast. But when he returned, the trolley had disappeared, as well as $200 worth of groceries he'd bought for the lunch that were inside it. Staff from the store helped him search for it, but the trolley was gone, said Senior Constable Melissa Leeds. A woman found herself partially trapped in a drain on the Mornington Peninsula after lunging to rescue her friend's mobile phone. Bystander Anthony Laughton said the 46-year-old woman's arm become wedged in the steel grate of a drain on Beach Street in Frankston about 8.45pm on Friday. "It was pretty much her whole arm, right up to her shoulder," he said. "She was remarkably calm throughout the whole process; she was quite measured," he said. "But it might have been shock." The Hague: Anne Frank may not have been betrayed to Nazi occupiers, but captured by chance. A study published on Friday by the Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam says that despite decades of research there is no conclusive evidence that the Jewish diarist and her family were betrayed to the Netherlands' German occupiers during the Second World War, leading to their arrest and deportation. Research has found there is no clear evidence that Anne Frank and her family were betrayed to the Netherlands' German occupiers. The museum said that new research "illustrates that other scenarios should also be considered". One possible theory is that the August 4, 1944, raid that led to Anne's arrest could have been part of an investigation into illegal labour or falsified ration coupons at the canal-side house where she and other Jews hid for just over two years. HARBOUR VIEW:--- On December 16th, 2016, His Excellency the Governor of Sint Maarten, drs. E.B. Holiday, received the final report, including the Governing Program 2016 2020, Stability For Prosperity from formateur William Marlin. The formateur has accepted the commission to form a new government supported by a majority in Parliament comprised of the NA-fraction, the USP-fraction, and the DP-fraction. The new government consists of Ministers who are committed to the promotion of the wellbeing of Sint Maarten. The new government will among others give priority to realizing sustainable public finances, to realizing waste management solutions, to further improving the access to and quality of healthcare, and to securing the safety and security on Sint Maarten. The vetting of the candidate ministers and minister plenipotentiary, based on the pertinent regulations regulating the appointment of ministers has not produced any data that would impede their appointment. The formateur has nominated the following persons for appointment as Ministers and Minister Plenipotentiary: Mr. William V. Marlin, Prime Minister and Minister of General Affairs; Mr. Rafael A. Boasman, Minister of Justice, Acting Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Traffic and Telecommunications and Acting Prime-Minister; Mr. Richard F. Gibson, Minister of Finance; Ms. Silveria E. Jacobs, Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports; Mr. Christopher Th. Emmanuel, Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure; Mr. Emil Lee, Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labour; and Mrs. Henrietta Doran-York, Minister Plenipotentiary. The Governor has scheduled the appointment and swearing in of the Ministers and Minister Plenipotentiary on Tuesday, December 20th, 10.00 hours, at the Governors Office. After the ceremony, the Governor and the newly appointed Ministers will have the constituting meeting at the Government Administration Building. Falcon drive 3, Harbor view, Sint Maarten Cabinet of the Governor of Sint Maarten Website: www.kabgsxm.com or Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Governor-of-Sint-Maarten/570166756411901 PHILIPSBURG:---- A male suspect with initials T.J.F. (Tico Fortune) from Belvedere was arrested on December 14, 2016, at approximately 16.20 pm in connection with the disappearance of E. ROSARIO and L. DIAZ SARANTE. Following the arrest of T.J.F. a searched was carried out at his home also situated in the area. Additionally, a further investigation was also conducted in a hotel in the Pelican area, where the young men were last seen on December 5, 2016, by detectives and members of the Forensic Team. KPSM continueS to request the assistance of the public in finding the two young men. Persons with any information are asked to contact the Police Station by calling 542-2222 ext 208 or 211. KPSM Press Release Shaw Extends Dividend Reinvestment Plan to Residents of the United States CALGARY, ALBERTA (Marketwired) 12/16/16 Shaw Communications Inc. (TSX: SJR.B)(TSX: SJR.PR.A)(TSX: SJR.PR.B)(NYSE: SJR)(TSX VENTURE: SJR.A) (Shaw) announced today that its eligible shareholders who are residents of the United States can now enroll their Class A Participating Shares (Class A Shares) and Class B Non-Voting Participating Shares (Class B Shares) in its dividend reinvestment plan (Plan). Since its launch in 2008 the Plan was available only to shareholders who were residents of Canada. The Plan provides a convenient way for Plan participants to reinvest cash dividends paid on their Class A Shares and/or Class B Shares to purchase additional Class B Shares without brokerage commissions, fees or transaction costs. On each dividend payment date, cash dividends payable on a participants Class A Shares and/or Class B Shares are paid by Shaw to CST Trust Company, Shaws registrar and transfer agent which serves as agent under the plan (Plan Agent). The Plan Agent uses those funds (less any withholdings under applicable tax laws) to purchase Class B Shares. At Shaws election, the Class B Shares purchased by the Plan Agent are either Class B Shares newly issued by Shaw (Treasury) or outstanding Class B Shares purchased through the facilities of the Toronto Stock Exchange. Shaw currently elects to issue Class B Shares from Treasury at a 2% discount to the market price set in accordance with the terms of the Plan. Dividends to be reinvested under the Plan for participants who are not residents of Canada will be subject to withholdings under applicable tax laws and, accordingly, the amount reinvested under the Plan for those participants will be reduced by the amount of such withholdings. Information on the Plan can be obtained from the Plan Agent by accessing its website at . About Shaw Communications Inc. Shaw Communications Inc. is an enhanced connectivity provider. Our Consumer division serves consumers with broadband Internet, Shaw Go WiFi, video and digital phone. Our Wireless division provides wireless voice and data services through an expanding and improving mobile wireless network infrastructure. The Business Network Services division provides business customers with Internet, data, WiFi, telephony, video and fleet tracking services. The Business Infrastructure Services division, through ViaWest, provides hybrid IT solutions including colocation, cloud computing and security and compliance for North American enterprises. Shaw is traded on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges and is included in the S&P/TSX 60 Index (TSX: SJR.B)(TSX: SJR.PR.A)(TSX: SJR.PR.B)(NYSE: SJR)(TSX VENTURE: SJR.A). For more information, please visit . Contacts: Shaw Communications Inc. Investor Relations All about Actor-domains and Art-Domains The new Actor-Domain is an online space created specifically for professionals and passionate enthusiasts to express their talent, experience and deep love of acting. It?s the place to be seen for anyone serious about the business or art of performance; who want to be recognized by their peers, potential employers and audiences alike. It?s somewhere creativity, craft and talent can be respected, acknowledged and shared. It is also home to brands, organizations and institutions whose services appeal directly to the profession. Like most professions, rapid development in technology over the last couple of decades has profoundly impacted the acting profession. New distribution channels and types of media have brought opportunity and also new challenges. The audience has become exponentially bigger, but also spread out more thinly than ever before. Digital content, downloading, streaming, mobile devices, broadband, TV and movies on demand are all changing how we interact with actors, and they too have had to change how they interact with us, the audience. Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and many more online platforms now exist not as a stage from which actors can perform, but as intimate, in-the-round social spaces where the audience can get closer to the star than ever before. The new age of online media means content is king, and a voracious public are demanding more and more. From back catalog to brand new ways of making content, actors are being seen more frequently on more devices For professionals and amateurs alike, managing their identity online is now as essential a part of the repertoire as a showreel or headshot once was. Given the unrelenting shift towards digital, making the most of a .ACTOR domain is one vital, impactful, low-cost branding step for a professional?s career or an enthusiast?s passion. Why Actor-Domains? The Actor-Domain is associated with: ? Professionalism ? Art, technique and training ? Creativity and performance ? Rich traditions across many cultures ? Community and camaraderie associated with the ensemble Reasons for moving to Actor-Domains: ? Identifying and branding yourself for better promotion and opportunity ? Being associated with a professional community, a recognized industry The relationship between better ranking and the new top-level domains was proved by a study of Searchmetrics for Berlin-domains. Websites with Berlin-Domains frequently place better than websites with .de domains and .com domains in regional searches with Google. The result of the study by Searchmetrics can be summarized as follows: 42% of searches show that .berlin domains rank better locally . The study of Total Websites in Houston shows that the results by Searchmetrics can be generalized to all new top level domains, including the new Art-Domains and Actor-Domains: It was proved that Google uses the domain endings of the New Top Level Domains as a key element for the assessment of domains. Total sites draws as a conclusion: It is clear that the new top-level domains improve the ranking in search engines. If you do not want to build a new website for the new Art-Domain, you should know, it is easy to forward your existing URL or domain to your new Art-Domain. The Sunrise period of the Art-Domains lasts from 7 December 2016 to the 7th February 2017. You can register at the Sunrise Period with a brand. You must register your trade mark at the Trademark Clearinghouse beforehand. As Artnews.com reports, 60 famous institutions have already opted for the Art-Domain. We quote as an example the museums among the early adopters: Art Institute of Chicago Centre Pompidou Guggenheim Museum Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami (ICA Miami) Los Angeles County Museum of Art M+ Museum MALBA: Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires MAXXI: Museo nazionale delle arti del XXI secolo Multimedia Art Museum Museo Tamayo Power Station of Art Stedelijk Museum Tate Van Abbemuseum Walker Art Center WIELS Contemporary Art Center Hans-Peter Oswald http://www.domainregistry.de/art-domain.html http://www.domainregistry.de/actor-domain.html http://www.domainregistry.de/art-domains.html http://www.domainregistry.de/actor-domains.html Yahoo News reports that, Protesters held flags of the Syrian opposition as well as placards saying: Massacre in Aleppo, theatre at the UN. The day before, more than 1,000 people gathered outside the Iranian consulate in Istanbul to demonstrate over what they said was a massacre in Aleppo. Turkey provided support for the Syrian opposition and called for Assads ouster. As the horror in Aleppo has unfolded, protests have been staged in several European cities. Danish police said as many as 7,000 people braved freezing temperatures in Copenhagen on Wednesday night, to protest against the operations in Syria. Im here tonight to show my (solidarity) with the Aleppo people. And this is the only thing I can do, stated Calle Henriques, a retired restaurateur. According to Yahoo, Two banners reading Save Aleppo and Stop the killing were hung on a stage where speakers and performers were standing, as hundreds of demonstrators carried torches handed out by the protests organisers. The lights of the Eiffel Tower were switched off, while several hundred marched in Paris and to show support for the people of Aleppo. There were protests in Sarajevo, which itself suffered being pounded by Bosnian Serb forces for 43 months during the 1992-1995 war. A statement issued on Thursday by 25 NGOs providing humanitarian support to over five million Syrians, condemned the international community over its hollowness, inefficacy, and moral bankruptcy in Aleppo. Organisations including the Syrian American Medical Society urged the international community to insist on independent observers (the UN or other external actors) to be present for civilian evacuations from Aleppo. On Thursday under an evacuation deal brokered by Turkey and Russia hundreds of civilians and rebels were allowed to leave eastern Aleppo. The Daily Sabah reports that two days of protests in Ankara and Istanbul have targeted Iran over the killing of civilians in Syrias Aleppo by militias backed by Tehran. Irans involvement in the conflict aggravates atrocities committed on civilians and the country now faces a public backlash in Turkey. Turkey has historic ties with Syria and hosts about 3 million migrants who fled from assaults by the Assad regime that targeted civilians. According to the Daily Sabah, Hence as the Iranian-backed militia moved to block the evacuation of civilians from Aleppo, a city besieged by the Assad forces that indiscriminately target civilians, the Turkish public lashed out against Iran as an accessory to murder, as some banners in an anti-Iranian protest in Turkey read. The militia is accused of firing at civilians. Hundreds of people from several Turkish-nongovernmental organizations, accompanied by Syrian students living in Turkey, convened outside the Iranian embassy in the capital of Ankara on Wednesday night, to protest the killing of civilians in Aleppo. An angry crowd protested the airstrikes and shelling of some 100,000 civilians who are trapped by the militia and regime forces in the ruined city. Yahoo reports. The protest followed earlier rallies outside the Russian embassy and Irans Istanbul consulate, where demonstrators memorialized civilians killed in the attacks that are targeting residential areas of Aleppo. Killer Iran, Get out of Syria and Aleppo is shameful for the whole world, protesters chanted. The demonstrators issued a joint statement, saying that although mankinds history was stained with massacres and genocides, Aleppo was different. It has been happening before the very eyes of the international community and is being broadcast live, they said. We have witnessed human rights and humanitarian values promoted by the West being trampled, the demonstrators said. The statement acknowledges that merely protesting Iran would not achieve any success, but that they aimed to raise awareness among states and governments. Iran is a killer in this region, and this should be acknowledged by more people. Iran helped the United States during the occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq. Today, it is the architect of massacres in Aleppo, the statement says. Assads ally, Russia, also incurred public outrage in Turkey. Demonstrators staged rallies outside the Russian consulate and embassy for past two days. The escalating conflict in Syria strains the ties between Turkey and Iran, as Ankara is one of the staunchest opponents of the Assad regime. Turkey was also critical of the Iran-backed militia operating in Iraq, where efforts are underway to liberate Mosul from Daesh. Turkey is pursuing diplomatic efforts through talks between Turkish, Russian and Iranian officials to maintain a cease-fire in Aleppo, and the continuing evacuation of civilians. Turkey hopes to expand the cease-fire across Syria in talks scheduled for Dec. 27 in Moscow. A guide to voter rights in Indiana. What you need to know before you cast a ballot More than 2,700 Northern Arizona University graduates were reminded to continue practicing respect and compassion before crossing the stage to receive their degrees Friday morning. Graduate Student Government President Anthony Hessel welcomed the graduates, and he reminded them of their differences and similarities. Before me is a sea of women and men of all different cultures, ethnicities and races, all sitting together after working toward a common goal, Hessel said. He said the NAU campus serves as a place where students can broaden their horizons and engage in civil and respectful discussion. Here, we entered into a mutual agreement to grow individually and as a community of learners, Hessel said. He joked that while the experience at NAU might have brought internship opportunities, job prospects and the occasional heartbreak, what the graduates really gained was the ability to think critically. People will look to you for leadership and direction, Hessel said. Hessel said Friday was a day for celebration, but said the graduates should get ready to apply what they have learned in the days after graduation. Chris Petroff, the former president of the NAU Alumni Association, told the graduates being a Lumberjack is a lifelong experience and told them not to be surprised when they meet fellow NAU graduates across the state, around the country and around the world. Petroff said Fridays graduates join an alumni network of about 160,000 people, and said he hoped this semesters graduates would continue to share their stories and inspire future NAU students. Lyndel Manson of Flagstaff, a newly appointed member of the Arizona Board of Regents, representing northern Arizona, extended her congratulations and words of advice to the new graduates. We are filled with great pride for what youve accomplished, she said. However, we are also here to celebrate the future. A future youve prepared yourself to create. Manson encouraged the graduates to support education for the rest of their lives, and said they should mentor younger people and vote for candidates who make education a priority. We together have the power to create the future, Manson said. Education is the difference-maker. Keynote speaker Jeff Berglund, the Director of Liberal Studies and a professor of English, talked to the graduates about the effects of previous generations on them, and their effects on the world. Berglund quoted author Linda Hogan, and said, You are the result of the love of thousands. Berglund said some of the graduates best memories and experiences came as a result of the connections they made with other students, mentors and professors. He said the graduates have many paths and options ahead of them, but said it is important that they continue to support others and to support education. Berglund said he hoped the graduates would continue to act with compassion, and challenged them to be aware of their impact on the world and the lives of others. When you wake up tomorrow and greet the dawn of possibility, ask yourself, How can I make my world even better than it was yesterday? he said. This quote comes from Heshmat Alavi, political and rights activist and freelance writer focusing on Iran, and blogger at IranCommentary. In his article for the Daily Caller on December 15, he writes about Irans interference in the wars in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and now in Lebanon. The silence of the international community, and its failure to hold Iran accountable has perpetuated Irans involvement in the campaigns in Syria and Iraq, and the targeting of Sunni communities through its support of Shiites. Alavi writes that Iran is behind the Popular Mobilization Forces, or Hashd al-Shaabi in Iraq, currently involved in the Mosul onslaught, and adds, Aleppo is also another example needing no further explanation. U.S. President Barack Obamas toward Iran was one of appeasement, encouraging the international community to follow suit. Iran has even spread the promotion of Shiite Islam into Africa and Asia, aiming to establish communities there. One example can be seen in Nigeria. Welcome to SwanseaOnline - your home for the best news, sports and what's on coverage of the city. Never miss a Swansea story with our daily newsletter Sign up to comment on our stories here Follow us on Facebook and Twitter | Swansea City news | Ospreys news | InYourArea Chinese researchers have completed a 180-day "survival experiment" that simulated a deep space human trek. Since June 17, four Chinese volunteers three men and one woman lived inside a sealed space capsule situated in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province. They emerged from their off-world mock-up mission on December 14, local time. The six-month experiment involved volunteers Tang Yongkang, Luo Jie, Wu Shiyun and Tong Feizhou. An objective of the space simulation was to test technologies that could support China's deep-space exploration projects. The effort is evaluating how food, water, and oxygen can be used and recycled under controlled conditions. More than a dozen Chinese and overseas institutions are involved in the experiment, including the Astronaut Center of China, Harvard University and the German Aerospace Center. Sealed capsule The 1,340-cubic-meter sealed capsule has a floor space of 370 square meters, and is divided into eight compartments, including passenger compartments, resource compartments and greenhouse compartments. According to CCTV-Plus, the volunteers cultivated about 25 different kinds of plants in the capsule, including wheat, potatoes, sweet potatoes, soybeans, peanuts, lettuce, edible amaranth and Chinese cabbage. The plants are part of a large ecological treatment system that helps recycle and regenerate oxygen and water that will reduce the dependency on outside supplies. Researchers engaged in the simulation have been monitoring and observing how a hermetic environment affects physiological changes, biological rhythms, sleep patterns and emotional well-being. Tai Chi In a CCTV-interview, volunteer Tang said that as time sped by, the psychological pressure of being in the confined capsule gradually built up. "I think (the pressure has risen) during the middle and later stages of the experiment, around three quarters of the way through. But maybe everyone differs. During this period, the pressure on emotions and other areas might be comparatively higher," said Tang prior to departing the facility. To deal with stress, Chinese researchers developed a series of Tai Chi moves specifically for use by the volunteers. "According to those of us inside the capsule, it did help in soothing our emotions. But further detailed statistical analysis is needed before we reach a specific conclusion," said volunteer Tong. New homes off-planet Li Yinghui, head of the 180-day survival experiment in the sealed module, explained to CCTV-Plus: "To develop new homes [on other planets], the first problem to be solved is how to survive there, including an environment for living, air for breathing, food, and then health security. So design of this experiment was aimed at such exploration targets." For a video look at the sealed space capsule and the volunteers, go to: http://cd-pv.news.cctvplus.com/2016/1214/8038612_Preview_8010.mp4 http://pv.news.cctvplus.com/2016/1212/8038424_Preview_1481546069993.mp4 http://l3-pv.news.cctvplus.com/2016/0615/8024222_Preview_1465991623125.mp4 Leonard David is author of "Mars: Our Future on the Red Planet." The book is a companion to the National Geographic Channel six-part series airing in November. A longtime writer for Space.com, David has been reporting on the space industry for more than five decades. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Story published on Space.com. Members of the public pay their respects to former astronaut and U.S. Senator John Glenn as he lies in repose, under a United States Marine honor guard, in the Rotunda of the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Friday, Dec. 16, 2016. NASA will celebrate the life and legacy of pioneering astronaut John Glenn with a memorial service at Ohio State University today (Dec. 17), and space agency officials will provide a live webcast of the service for the public. Ohio State University in Columbus will host the memorial service for Glenn, who died on Dec. 8 at age 95. The service, entitiled "John Glenn: Celebrating a Life of Service," will begin at 2 p.m. EST (1900 GMT) and will be streamed live on NASA TV. You can also watch the webcast here, courtesy of NASA TV. "One of NASA's original seven Mercury astronauts, Glenn, who died Dec. 8, also served 24 years in the U.S. Marine Corps and four terms as a U.S. senator from Ohio," NASA officials wrote in a statement. "His flight on Friendship 7 on Feb. 20, 1962, showed the world that America was a serious contender in the space race with the Soviet Union. It also made Glenn an instant hero." [John Glenn: An American Hero's Greatest Moments] NASA Administrator Charles Bolden "will pay tribute to Glenns early contributions to human spaceflight and enduring legacy" during the program, NASA officials added. You can see NASA's full tribute to John Glenn at the agency's dedicated tribute website here: https://www.nasa.gov/content/profile-of-john-glenn. Email Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com or follow him @tariqjmalik and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com. Melbourne (Australia), Dec 17, 2016 (SPS) - Australia Western Sahara Association (AWSA) has denounced the involvement of Incitec Pivot Ltd (IPL) in the plunder of phosphate from Western Sahara against the wishes of the Saharawi people, in a statement Friday. Below is the full text of the statement: Australia Western Sahara Association Incitec Pivot Ltd (IPL) plunders phosphate of Western Sahara against the wishes of the Saharawi people On this very day, 16 December 2016, the day of the Annual General Meeting of fertiliser and explosives company, Incitec Pivot the Tubarao is to come into Geelong delivering phosphate from Bou Craa mine in Western Sahara to the INCITEC PIVOT plant at North Shore, which processes superphosphate fertiliser used in pastoral agriculture and for some crops. Yet it is clear that the Saharawi people do not wish this. The problem is that IPL is buying from a Moroccan state-owned company, OCP, which legal experts say is not entitled to sell the product. One of these legal experts, Hans Corell, told the United Nations in 2002 that the exploration and exploitation of the resources of Western Sahara, could only be done when regard is taken for the interests and wishes of the Saharawi people and to their benefit. www.arso.org/UNlegaladv.htm The Saharawi people say they have not been consulted. Their independence movement, the official representative in the UN peace process, the Polisario Front, say they have not been consulted either. It can be disputed whether there have been benefits flowing to the local community under Moroccan control, but clearly nothing at all has gone to the other half of the Saharawi population who fled to refugee camps in Algeria when Morocco invaded in 1975. They get no benefit whatsoever. In fact it makes it worse as the continuation of business as usual in occupied Western Sahara impairs efforts towards solving the conflict. Corell added later that it follows that Morocco would have to engage in proper consultation with persons authorised to represent the people of Western Sahara. The UN Human Rights Councils Center for Civil and Political Rights on 4 Nov 2016 agreed that Morocco should reinforce the consultative process with the people of Western Sahara with the goal of obtaining their prior, free and informed consent to [resource] extraction operations. They see it as part of the right to self-determination of the Saharawi people, which still waits to be addressed. The business community can make a contribution to the search for a solution of the situation [in Western Sahara] by acting in conformity with the principles of corporate social responsibility, says Corell. We agree. The Australia Western Sahara Association will be asking at the IPL AGM for Incitec Pivot to do the right thing. (SPS) 062/090 Oran (Algeria), Dec 17, 2016 (SPS) Algerian Minister of State, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Ramtane Lamamra urged, Saturday in Oran, the African Union to get "fully involved" in the effort for the resolution of the Western Sahara conflict. In his opening address of the 4th High-Level Seminar on Peace and Security in Africa, Lamamra said that "the AU, whose position and unrelenting action for the respect of the legitimate rights of Sahrawi people is an honour for its Member States, should get fully involved in this effort and in all the resolution process of the conflict." Lamamra considered it "incomprehensible" that the UN, which coordinates with the AU on all peace and security issues in Africa, was not strict about the decolonization of Western Sahara. "The conflict resolution process is once again at a standstill for nearly ten years, while the Sahrawi people are waiting, for decades under the occupation and in tents in exile, to exercise their right to self-determination," he added. The Foreign minister also deplored the fact that "the efforts for the resolution of conflicts are often undermined by some parties that want to impose their point of view and their own interests to the detriment of a balanced approach, based on the respect for international law and the interests of all the stakeholders." (SPS) 062/090/700 NORWALK A Stamford man was accused of drunken driving Saturday morning after allegedly exiting a parking lot recklessly and at high speed in front of a police sergeant. Sgt. Garrett Kruger reported observing a vehicle exit the lot at 75 Main St. at such a high speed it crossed into the opposite lane of traffic and had to swerve out of the way of an oncoming car to avoid a head-on collision. Kruger said that as he followed the vehicle southbound on Main Street, it straddled the center line before coming to an "abrupt stop" at Wall Street. He said when he contacted the driver, he detected the smell of alcohol on his breath. The driver, identified as Daronne Police, reportedly at first denied consuming alcohol before allegedly admitting he had had several drinks. Kruger described Police as having glassy, bloodshot eyes, and said he was unsteady after he exited his vehicle. Officer Michael DiMeglio responded to the scene. DiMeglio is one of several officers in the department specially trained to detect intoxicated drivers. DiMeglio reported that he detected the smell of marijuana on Police's person, as well as alcohol. He said Police had to hold on to his car in order to maintain his balance. DiMeglio reported locating a bag in one of Police's pockets containing a small amount of marijuana. Police allegedly failed a field sobriety test. At Police Headquarters, Police took a breath test to determine his blood-alcohol content. The results of those tests were 0.2058 and 0.1963, police said. In Connecticut, a person is deemed operating a motor vehicle under the influence of liquor with a blood-alcohol content at or above 0.08. Police, 42, was charged with operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs, reckless driving, possession of less than one-half ounce of a cannabis-type substance, failure to drive in the proper lane, and failure to carry a registration or insurance card. He was held on $2,500 bond and given a court date of Dec. 22. Erik Trautmann / Hearst Connecticut Media STAMFORD A New Canaan father accused of providing the heroin that caused his sons fatal overdose in September pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of second-degree manslaughter. On Sept. 25, police responded to Mark Lynchs home on Parade Hill Road in New Canaan after his son, Chris Lynch, was found unresponsive. He was declared dead at the scene and a later medical examiners report confirmed the younger Lynch died from a heroin overdose. Court documents proved the elder Lynch knew his son struggled with a drug addiction and that his son had been sober after moving to Colorado to get treatment for this disease. Beijing authorities have declared a five-day pollution red alert, shutting schools, ordering thousands of vehicles off the roads and telling residents to stay indoors, after the Chinese capital was enveloped by a shroud of toxic smog that is expected to linger until Wednesday, The Guardian reports. The warning the first since Beijings inaugural red alert in December last year was officially implemented at 4.20pm on Friday as a nicotine-tinged haze rolled into the city. Smog invades Beijing, tweeted Xinhua, Chinas official news agency, alongside a timelapse video capturing the arrival of what city officials have controversially decided to classify as a meteorological disaster. #Timelapse: #Smog invades Beijing. 1st red alert this year issued for air pollution. Odd-even car rationing to be imposed pic.twitter.com/bw2fepv7kP China Xinhua News (@XHNews) 16 2016 . Chinas ministry of environmental protection reported that 23 other cities across north and central China had also declared pollution red alerts, including Tianjin, Shijiazhuang, Taiyuan and Zhengzhou. A red alert is the highest level of a four-tier warning system introduced as part of Chinas high-profile war on pollution. Xinhua said nurseries and primary schools across Beijing had been told to close until Wednesday when the smog is expected to lift. Road works were suspended; older and dirty high-emissions vehicles were forbidden from taking to the roads; and heavily polluting industries such as steel plants were ordered to halt or slow their operations. City officials were also reported to have penalised 388 people for igniting outdoor barbecues and fires. But Dong Liansai, a Beijing-based climate and energy campaigner for environmental group Greenpeace, said coal-fired power stations, not barbecues, were to blame for the unusually severe bout of pollution. Coal is the No 1 source, said Dong, warning that the smog contained tiny airborne particulates known as PM2.5 which were linked to numerous adverse health effects including lung cancer, asthma and heart disease. It should be recalled that early December, Paris suffered its worst winter pollution for at least a decade. The smog was caused by emissions from vehicles, domestic wood fires and near windless weather conditions. A n investigation is under way after riot squads had to be sent in to one of the countrys biggest jails when prisoners seized control for 12 hours. Hundreds of inmates were caught up in disorder after disturbances erupted across four wings of HMP Birmingham, described as the worst trouble in a UK jail since Strangeways in 1990. Riot squads were deployed to the category B jail to restore order after reports of prisoners setting fire to stairwells, breaking a security chain and destroying paper records. Specially-trained prison guards, known as "Tornado" squads, from other parts of the country were backed up by around 25 riot police as they moved into the privately-run facility late on Friday. Police had earlier closed the road and established a secure cordon around the main gate. One prisoner is understood to have suffered a broken jaw and eye socket during the disturbances, while no prison staff were injured. Windows were reported to have been broken and walls damaged during the disruption, but sources said it had been "superficial". Mike Rolfe, national chairman of the Prison Officers Association, who last month protested over safety concerns, said more than 30 staff had left the jail in recent weeks and compared the trouble to the notorious Strangeways riot 26 years ago. "This prison is a tough place to work, it serves a very big area, it serves a large, dangerous population of prisoners, but it's not unlike many other prisons up and down the country - ones that have very similar inmates," he told BBC Radio 4's The World Tonight. "And we've been warning for a long time about the crisis in prisons, and what we are seeing at Birmingham is not unique to Birmingham, but it certainly would seem that this is the most recent worst incident since the 1990 Strangeways riot." Prison riot: The scene at HMP Birmingham where a disturbance is under way / PA Mr Rolfe accused the Government of not funding the prison system properly and said such disturbances are becoming more frequent as a result. The situation, in which keys giving access to residential prison areas were taken from an officer and inmates occupied some blocks and exercise facilities, will be investigated thoroughly, Justice Secretary Liz Truss said. "I want to pay tribute to the bravery and dedication of the prison officers who resolved this disturbance," she said. "I also want to give my thanks to West Midlands Police, who supported G4S and the Prison Service throughout the day, ambulance crews and the fire service who also provided assistance. "This was a serious situation and a thorough investigation will now be carried out. Violence in our prisons will not be tolerated and those responsible will face the full force of the law." Riot police arrive to scenes of mayhem and smashed windows at HMP Birmingham One man, believed to be in his 20s, was taken to hospital with a facial injury as well as cuts, bruises and a reduced consciousness, West Midlands Ambulance Service said. The city centre jail, formerly known as Winson Green and run by G4S, can hold up to 1,450 inmates, but it is understood around 260 prisoners were caught up in the incident. Jerry Petherick, managing director for G4S custodial and detention, said the prisoners behind the trouble "showed a callous disregard for the safety of prisoners and staff". Carnage: Smoke rises above the prison / Joe Giddens/PA Wire He added: "This disturbance will rightly be subject to scrutiny and we will work openly and transparently with the Ministry of Justice and other relevant authorities to understand the cause of today's disorder." Former inmates at the jail where serial murderer Fred West hanged himself in 1995 have said they are not surprised at the disturbances, describing it as something that was "bound to happen". The latest disturbance is the third in English prisons in less than two months. On November 6 a riot at category B Bedford Prison saw up to 200 inmates go on the rampage, flooding the jail's gangways in chaotic scenes. Riot: The violence was the worst for more than 25 years / PA Just days earlier, on October 29, a national response unit had to be brought in to control prisoners during an incident at HMP Lewes in East Sussex. A spokesman from the Prison Governors Association said the disturbance at the Birmingham jail "comes at a very difficult time for Noms (National Offender Management Service) on the back of recent riots and at a time when the prison estate is already bursting at the seams". Shadow justice secretary Richard Burgon said the disturbances at the Birmingham jail were "hugely concerning" and claimed the Justice Secretary was "failing to get this crisis under control". Tory chairman of the Commons Justice Committee, Robert Neill, told Channel Four News the Government had been warned by his watchdog group of MPs that a "time bomb was ticking" as prisons were in "crisis". When it was suggested this could be the worst prison riot in years, Mr Neill said: "Certainly looking that way, yeah, and this is a problem which has happened both in privately and publicly-run systems, so it applies across the piece. "I think that does indicate that we have got a situation where if people are locked down 22/23 hours a day, as we have discovered, that breeds tension, that breeds violence, and, as you rightly say, we are not actually keeping prisons secure enough to stop contraband getting in." Shadow home secretary Diane Abbott told Channel Four News "private companies should not be involved in taking away people's liberty. Actually, it's clear that G4S don't have the quality of staff to manage a crisis like this." Additional reporting by the Press Association. A House of Lords peer who battled the IRA reportedly faces a prison sentence and 5,000 costs over an 80p ticket row with Southern Rail. Lord Maginnis of Drumglass, 78, was prosecuted by the rail operator after he refused to buy a new ticket when challenged by an inspector on a train from Gatwick to London. Rather than purchase a seven day return which cost 23.65, the Northern Irish politician bought a one-day return for 22.85 which the inspector told him was invalid on the day he was travelling. He told the Daily Telegraph he offered to pay the 80p difference but refused to buy a new ticket. Southern Rail strike: December 2016 1 /29 Southern Rail strike: December 2016 One passenger breaks through a barrier at East Croydon station Jeremy Selwyn A frustrated commuter waits outside East Croydon Station Jeremy Selwyn Crowds of commuters queue outside East Croydon Station Jeremy Selwyn East Croydon Jeremy Selwyn Commuters queue to alight the platform at Wimbledon Urban Foxen East Croydon Jeremy Selwyn East Croydon Jeremy Selwyn East Croydon Jeremy Selwyn A passenger looks at a board detailing industrial action at Victoria station Neil Hall/Reuters East Croydon Jeremy Selwyn East Croydon Jeremy Selwyn East Croydon Jeremy Selwyn Out of service: a train at Victoria station Jeremy Selwyn A sign greeting commuters at Victoria station Jeremy Selwyn A commuter waits for a train at Victoria Jeremy Selwyn The deserted scene at Victoria Jeremy Selwyn Passengers unable to take trains from Gatwick Airport @westerhampete Commuters queue at King's Cross Station A quiet London Bridge station as a strike by train drivers on Southern Railway Victoria Jones/PA Passengers queue up for an express train to Gatwick Airport at Victoria Station Matt Dunham/AP A commuter walk sdown an empty platform at Victoria Station Olver Will/EPA Screens at London Bridge station as a strike by train drivers on Southern Railway Victoria Jones/PA He said he was met by police when he arrived at Victoria station and was subsequently prosecuted by the under fire operator. The newspaper reported the peer did not attend court and was convicted in his absence with total costs adding up to 1,478.90. The former soldier launched an appeal against the ruling but lost and now reportedly faces a 5,000 legal bill and a 45-day prison sentence. But the defiant politician, who regularly travels between London and Belfast, said he had no intention of giving up his grievance. He told the Daily Telegraph: Ill go to jail before I bend the knee to some bureaucrat. I've spent the past 78 years fighting my own battles, whether as a member of the Ulster Defence Regiment against the Provisional IRA, or in politics. I'm not going to start backing down now. A spokesman for Southern Rail was quoted as saying: "Although this was dealt with through the courts and we have nothing to add at this stage, we will be investigating the matter." The Standard has contacted Southern Rail for a comment. P aramedics received almost 2,400 callouts as drunken Christmas revellers caused havoc around the capital on a night dubbed Black Eye Friday. The London Ambulance Service (LAS) had warned people to avoid drinking too much and overload the capitals A&E departments on December 16, the peak night for Christmas parties. But the emergency service shared tales of collapsed City workers, patients vomiting blood and a person running straight into a lamppost as party-goers lost control. The LAS used its Twitter feed to highlight the drunken carnage around the capital, saying they had received nearly 2,400 calls from 7pm to 4am. Across the entire day they had nearly 6,000 callouts, with one alert every single minute at one point. The hectic night was already well underway by 7.30pm with two people so drunk, concerned bystanders had called reporting a cardiac arrest. Paramedic Dave Jackson said: That job had two ambulance resources out to them and the patients once roused didnt want any further assistance from us and then walked off. That was two ambulance resources off the road for about half an hour dealing with that. The LAS later tweeted: We just took a call for an unconscious person in Brent. A high priority, so we responded in 10 minutes - they were just drunk. The 5,000th call of the day was to a drunken reveller collapsed outside a church in Brixton, with an ambulance crew dispatched in three minutes. Other calls included a vomiting Soho man who couldnt breathe, a person collapsed in a pub and a drunken woman lying on a Battersea pavement. On several occasions, the drunken people declined help or even started verbally abusing the medical teams trying to help them. The LAS tweeted the evening, which they called Mad Friday as part of a festive appeal to Londoners to drink responsibly. Dr Fenella Wrigley, Medical Director at London Ambulance Service said: We launched our latest campaign Getting drunk is not a game in the hope of educating people on the impact that excessive drinking can have on our other patients. Every ambulance crew responding to someone who has simply had too much to drink, is an ambulance crew not responding to an ill or injured person who needs them. We want Londoners to have a great time during this party season but, we also need them to look after themselves and their friends. Too often over the festive season, our crews can spend much of their night caring for people who are vomiting, violent or unconscious after a night out drinking, leaving them unable to respond to other emergencies. T his is the heart-warming moment a whole carriage breaks into applause after a man proposes to his girlfriend on a packed train to Waterloo. Alison Makosz filmed the romantic scene, which took place on the 11.38am train from Weybridge on Saturday. After the man got down on one knee and popped the question and his wife-to-be said yes, the pair were given a rapturous reception from other travellers who cheered and clapped. He slipped the ring on her finger and the pair embraced, to joy from the crowd. Proposal: The romantic move took place on a train to Waterloo / Alison Makosz Everybody thank you ever so much for your time, he told the carriage, to more applause. Youve got to invite us all now, joked one passenger. After getting off at Waterloo, South West Trains even arranged for the station announcer to congratulate the happy couple. Ms Makosz, who had never met the couple before, said: He was so sweet. He is taking her to Winter Wonderland. They were so cute. D iscount supermarket chain Lidl has been given the green light to build a new 70 million London headquarters. The German firm was granted permission by Kingston Council to relocate its head office across south-west London to Tolworth after it bought land off Jubilee Way. The company moved into its current headquarters in Wimbledon back in 1998 but said it had now outgrown the site. It argued the move was crucial to support its 19,000 employees and create more jobs across the UK. Investment: It comes as the company announced plans for 250 more stores in London / Lidl A final decision to rubber stamp the development is expected to be made by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan in the new year, with bosses hopeful the site will be ready before 2020. The approval, which was given on Thursday, comes as the firm announced it wanted to ramp up its investments in London. Bosses revealed plans to build 250 new stores in the capital which will create up to 5,000 new jobs. Ingo Fischer, Lidl UK Board Director for Expansion and Development, said: We have worked very closely with the Royal Borough of Kingstons planning officers since July 2015 and are greatly encouraged by the committees resolution to grant planning consent. Our new headquarters not only signify an investment in our own infrastructure and workforce, but also highlight our wider investment ambitions within London as Lidl UK continues to experience incredible growth. "Once the planning commitments have been agreed with Kingston, the consent will be referred to the Mayors Office to be concluded. We hope to receive the Mayor of Londons feedback and to progress with the plans early in the new year. Leader of Kingston Council, Cllr Kevin Davis, said: "We welcome what is one of the biggest investments in London this year coming to Tolworth. It will act as a foundation stone for the regeneration of the wider area. "This is not only good for the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames but also demonstrates that a forward-thinking council, working with a supportive Mayor, can deliver a post-Brexit London that is 'open for business'." In November, Lidl UK became the first supermarket to announce its staff would receive a pay rise in line with the latest Living Wage Foundation rate. M uslims have donated 10 tonnes of food to feed the homeless across London at Christmas, religious and charity leaders said. Hundreds of Muslims flocked to the East London Mosque on Friday in a drive to feed London's homeless during the festive period. Pictures showed members of the 7,500 strong Muslim congregation donating food as they attended Friday prayers at the mosque in Whitechapel. Members of the congregation stood proudly in front of crates of shopping bags filled with rice, pasta, cereals and other tinned goods, ready to be distributed to people living on the street. Members of the congregation pose with food packages outside the mosque (Muslim Aid/Ben Stevens) / Ben Stevens Organisers estimated that over seven tonnes of food were donated with local businesses, schools, a university and leaders from other faiths chipping in. Homeless Helpline: Centrepoint want a freephone number for young people facing homelessness More than 90 per cent of the food, which will be given to homeless charity Crisis, will go to non-Muslims, with Christian Reverend Gary Bradley describing the drive as all faiths working together for a common humanity. Muslim aid volunteers package the donated food for the homeless (Muslim Aid/Ben Stevens) / Ben Stevens Shaykh Abdul Qayum, Chief Imam of the East London Mosque, who organised the collection along with charity Muslim Aid, said the drive was inspired by their faith. He said: Muslims are inspired by their faith towards helping others in need. It is a religious duty for Muslims to try to help others, irrespective of a person's faith or background. Bernadette Hegarty of St Pauls, Bow Common Church helps Muslim Aid volunteers (Muslim Aid/Ben Stevens) / Ben Stevens This compassion is truly reflective of what Islam stands for. He added: In the cold winter months when we have the luxury of a home and hot food, it's easy to forget about others that are in dire need around us. So it is in that spirit we take part in this big food drive. The number of people sleeping rough in the UK has risen dramatically, with government figures estimating that over 3,500 people slept on the streets each night last year, an increase of 30 per cent compared to 2014. The charity Centrepoint warns that 25,000 young people could be at risk of homelessness this Christmas. Jehangir Malik, Chief Executive of Muslim Aid said: With austerity cuts and the housing crisis, more and more people are ending up on the streets destitute. "We, as a Muslim charity, want to do everything we can to help the most vulnerable people in this country this Christmas, regardless of faith or background." The Evening Standard's Homeless Helpline appeal is raising money for the Centrepoint Helpline, a brand new support service that will save young people from ending up on the streets. To donate please visit our Just Giving page. A young Londoner has said his head is still spinning after he shot to internet fame by recording his trips to fried chicken shops in search of the capitals pengest munch. Elijah Quashie, also known as The Chicken Connoisseur, attracted millions of hits with his series of hilarious YouTube videos documenting his visits to fast-food restaurants around the city. Sampling a standard meal of wings, burger and chips in each eatery, he describes himself as "a food critic for mandem who care to know what the finest chicken restaurants in London are and where to find them." In an interview with the Guardian, Mr Quashie, from Tottenham said: My head is still spinning. Before, I might have had a lie-in, take my time and go and make some jam and peanut butter sandwiches. Chicken fan: The fast food enthusiast has racked up thousands of hits / @4wings_please Now its this interview, or this thing. Its been hectic. But its kind of what I wanted, just not necessarily at this scale. He also told the newspaper that he is now getting recognised in the street and that a paramedic recently shouted at him from an ambulance, insisting that his local Chick-King could not be matched. Until just over a week ago, his videos had about 700 views each and his YouTube channel, which he started in August 2015, had about 150 subscribers. Mr Quashie, who has refused to reveal his age, now has a manager and his videos about a million views each. His channel has about a quarter of a million subscribers. He has just released episode seven of Pengest Munch where he visits a fried chicken shop in Woodside Park. When the Connoisseur, a former shoe-shop worker who claims to have a collection of 40 pairs of rare trainers, is a fan of a particular item, he brands it "peng" - a slang word for great. Mr Quashie said he decided to start the reviews after watching Gregg Wallace, who he described as the bald one on Masterchef, judging a plate of food. He said: I wondered to myself, what makes his opinion more valued than anyone elses? Is it because hes been eating more food, so he has an experienced palate? Im not sure. I thought, no one is doing this for the type of people who eat at chicken shops. He added that he did not know what his life would be like without chicken shops. When I link up with my friends, we go to the chicken shop and eat and chill, he said. P resident-elect Donald Trump has hit out at China, accusing its navy of stealing a US underwater drone. The two nations are currently using military channels to "appropriately handle" the seizure, which took place in the South China Sea. It was taken on Thursday, the first seizure of its kind in recent memory, near Subic Bay off the Philippines, just as the USNS Bowditch was about to retrieve the unmanned underwater vehicle. But the complex negotiations did not stop Mr Trump lashing out at the nation on his Twitter account on Saturday with a misspelt message. He wrote: China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented (sic) act. The Global Times, published by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily, said a Chinese naval vessel had discovered "unidentified equipment" and checked it to prevent any navigational safety issues China's Defence Ministry has yet to comment publicly on the issue. The Pentagon confirmed the incident at a news briefing on Friday, and said the drone used commercially available technology and sold for about $150,000. Drone: The USNS Bowditch / AP "It is ours, and it is clearly marked as ours and we would like it back. And we would like this not to happen again," Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis said. The seizure will add to concerns about China's increased military presence and aggressive posture in the disputed South China Sea, including its militarisation of maritime outposts. A US research group said this week that new satellite imagery indicated China has installed weapons, including anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, on all seven artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea. The drone seizure coincided with sabre-rattling from Chinese state media and some in its military establishment after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump cast doubt on whether Washington would stick to its nearly four-decades-old policy of recognising that Taiwan is part of "one China." President Barack Obama said on Friday it was appropriate for Trump to take a fresh look at US policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the nations relationship with Beijing. M ichelle Obama has said the United States needs a grown-up to run the country as she expressed her disappointment at the current political situation in America. Speaking to Oprah Winfrey as she prepares to leave the White House, the First Lady of the United States said her husband had made the country more hopeful arguing that people could now feel the difference. She said: Now were feeling what not having hope feels like. In the CBS interview set to air on Monday night she said: Hope is necessary. It's a necessary concept. And Barack didn't just talk about hope because he thought it was just a nice slogan to get votes. I mean, he and I and so many believe that if you ... what else do you have if you don't have hope?" "What do you give your kids if you can't give them hope?" she added. Mrs Obama did the interview five weeks after the election of Donald Trump to the White House. The Obamas campaigned aggressively against Mr Trump and argued that the New York businessman is unfit to be president. CBS released an excerpt of the interview on Friday. In it, Mrs Obama does not mention the incoming president by name. While Mr Obama has refused since the November 8 election to repeat his criticisms of Mr Trump, Mrs Obama appears less accepting of the outcome. In the interview, which was filmed on Wednesday, she said the public will eventually appreciate the reassuring presence her husband has been in the White House. She compares him to the person who does not freak out when a toddler bumps his head on a table, causing the child to start crying. "I feel that Barack has been that for the nation in ways that people will come to appreciate," she said. "Having a grown-up in the White House who can say to you in times of crisis and turmoil, 'Hey, it's gonna be OK. Let's remember the good things that we have. Let's look at the future. Let's look at all the things that we're building.' "All of this is important for our kids to stay focused and to feel like their work isn't in vain. That their lives aren't in vain," Mrs Obama added. "What do we do if we don't have hope, Oprah?" 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Christmas arrives a week from Sunday, bookended by Hanukkah and Kwanzaa. This means its time to think hard about gifts still unpurchased. Chances are, the spouse and kids are covered. You and the BFF may be exchanging gift cards. But what about those people you want to remember without either spending too much or resorting to one of those big tubs of seasonal popcorn? So everyone likes TV, right? In a day of nearly 500 original programs on broadcast, cable and streaming networks, theres surely something TV-related that will fill any gift gap. Here are some ideas. Prices are from Amazon, for comparison purposes. And speaking of Amazon, which set the standard for two-day shipping, keep in mind the time it will take to receive a gift ordered online. Many of these items can also be found in stores, but those stores may be picked over at this point, not to mention crowded. Yes, you should have started earlier, but never mind that. Lets get started. Books TV (The Book): Two Experts Pick the Greatest American Shows of All Time, by Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz ($14 paperback) Get ready to rumble. TV critics Sepinwall (HitFix, just absorbed by UpRoxx) and Seitz (rogerebert.com and New York magazine) face off with each other, and readers, to rank the Top 100 shows in the history of television. Just hearing what they ultimately chose as No. 1 (no spoilers here!) caused some TV buffs to fume, but youll also cheer as the two make a case for each choice. Also, dont forget Sepinwalls previous book, The Revolution Was Televised, in which he interviews some of TVs smartest creators to find out how they made their masterpieces. The Platinum Age of Television: From I Love Lucy to The Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific, by David Bianculli ($24 hardcover) Bianculli has been a TV critic for more than three decades, currently via his own website, tvworthwatching.com, and NPRs Fresh Air. And he has put all that history into this massive book, topping out at close to 600 pages. Encyclopedic is the only way to describe this history of television, from the original Golden Age through todays arguably even better age. The Daily Show (The Book): An Oral History as Told by Jon Stewart, the Correspondents, Staff and Guests ($18 hardcover) After 17 years, Stewart retired from The Daily Show before the recent elections, when fans missed him dearly. This exhaustive oral history, poignant in retrospect, covers everything we saw and a lot we didnt see in all that time. The Secret History of Twin Peaks, by Mark Frost ($18 hardcover) Co-creator Frost turned out this expansive novel (I mean, it begins with the journals of Lewis and Clark!) to set the stage for Showtimes new Twin Peaks miniseries next year. Frost, who is producing the new Twin Peaks with David Lynch, takes off from tiny Twin Peaks, Wash., where high schooler Laura Palmer was discovered dead, wrapped in plastic, back in 1990. His goal is to put the weird events of the original series into a broader, deeper context; obsessive fans will decide whether he succeeded. Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood, by Trevor Noah ($17 hardcover) Unlike many TV personalities who write memoirs, Noah actually has a lot to say, with riveting results. The title refers to the fact that his black South African mother and white Swiss-German father were not legally allowed to be together, let alone have a child. Noahs stories are absorbing, heartbreaking and hilarious. You can read them, but another option is listening to Noah narrate his own book on CD or via audible.com. A Life in Parts, by Bryan Cranston ($17 hardcover) The star of Malcolm in the Middle, Breaking Bad, All the Way, and the LBJ play and movie is clearly an actor with many faces. The real Cranston is one of the nicest people in Hollywood, and that is even more impressive given his story, including a harrowing childhood and a long struggle before overnight success. For a real treat, listen to Cranston read the memoir on audio CD or via audible.com. Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls (and Everything in Between), by Lauren Graham ($17 hardcover) Graham doesnt read quite as fast as she talks, especially on Gilmore Girls. Thats fortunate for those who choose to listen to this memoir on audio, but however you take it in, this is an entertaining and short romp through Grahams childhood and her adventures in acting. DVDs A DVD set is a go-to present for someone who seems to have everything, as long as you know the persons taste. Offering Downton Abbey to a Duck Dynasty fan could go wrong. But the complete run of a favorite series on DVD or Blu-ray is a thoughtful gift that keeps giving. Here are some that were new this year, with prices from amazon.com provided for comparison. Perry Mason, the complete series ($108) Enormous barely sums up this collection, which bundles 271 episodes on 72 discs. Watching in order lets a fan see Raymond Burr and company age, put on weight and investigate cases that always conclude in a trial victory. Downton Abbey, the complete collection ($80) This limited-edition set of the ITV-PBS fan favorite is a Blu-ray bargain, with every season on 22 discs. Star Trek, 50th anniversary TV and movie collection ($130, discounted from $209) Lots of merchandise (including a 2017 calendar) also celebrates the half-century mark of the sci-fi series that wont die. But for a fan who has only scattered DVDs in hand, this collection looks like the set to have. Freaks and Geeks, complete series collectors edition ($76) Many viewers probably dont remember this one-season cult favorite, which introduced James Franco, Jason Segel, Seth Rogen and Linda Cardellini as high schoolers. With just 18 episodes on nine discs, this set isnt a bargain, but there are lots of extras. The Twilight Zone, complete series ($47) Rod Serlings masterpiece fills 25 discs, and a fan (or newcomer) is sure to discover favorites. This is where Black Mirror got its inspiration. Vintage TV out this year in complete-series sets, some remastered or elevated to Blu-ray, include The Andy Griffith Show, Miami Vice, Nash Bridges, Charlies Angels, The Untouchables, Hogans Heroes, Sister, Sister, Party of Five and Mad About You. The cable-free will appreciate a chance to see multi-award-winning American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson ($15) and Fargo, Season 2 ($14). Toys and games Funko POP figures ($10 and up) These funny little guys are a collectors dream, and just about everyone on TV has been re-created in big-headed plastic. (Be forewarned: My Tyrion Lannister has such a big head, he wont stand up.) Choices range from The Flash (in costume) and the whole gang from Family Guy and The Simpsons to Negan from The Walking Dead (with killer bat Lucille) and an elaborate Daenerys and Drogon from Game of Thrones. Eleven from Stranger Things is available holding her trademark Eggo waffles. Board games (various prices) Play Family Feud, possibly the best game ever for a day with the relatives, or Wheel of Fortune. Or test everyones brainpower with the Jeopardy card game. (Some earlier Jeopardy games are now pricey collectibles.) Also consider Jeopardy as a computer game. Craig Fergusons Celebrity Name Game is billed as a party game, as is Hollywood Game Night, a home version of the NBC competition. Jennifer Aniston, however, will not show up to play. A 1,000-piece puzzle by White Mountain assembles into the entire history of television ($16). And a Game of Thrones Westeros puzzle assembles into a 4-D cityscape ($42). Technology Roku Express You probably have a streaming device, smart TV or Blu-ray player that streams. But the best Ive used is Roku, and this new mini-version is so inexpensive, at $29, that you can put one on every TV. It even comes with an HDMI cable, although you might need a longer one. TiVo Cord-cutters often complain most about losing their DVR, but the TiVo Bolt works with either antenna or cable (using cable cards) and also integrates streaming functions. This isnt cheap, however. The less-expensive of the two Bolts is currently on sale for $200, plus $15 monthly programming charges. Netflix, etc. What a great gift a subscription to a streaming network (plus a Roku Express?) would be for a newcomer. Netflix ($9 a month) is a must. Amazon Prime is $99 a year, and you get that free two-day shipping, too, among other benefits. Hulu is $8 a month, or $12 for the highly recommended commercial-free version. And the best bargain of all may be Acorn TV, which is just $5 a month or $50 a year and is loaded with shows from the UK, Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere. How about a new TV? Those big, big 4K UltraHD sets that were so expensive a year ago are now well under $1,000, with some drifting down past $400. Couldnt this be a gift for you? Jews are more highly educated than any other religious group, while Hindus and Muslims are the least educated, the first-ever global study of religion and education shows. Jews go to school for 13 years on average, and Muslims and Hindus for six years, according to the report, released Tuesday by the Pew Research Center. The study shows vast gaps among religious groups in educational attainment. But education levels globally are rising, and no faith group is left behind. Even those group that are relatively disadvantaged are making considerable progress across generations, said Conrad Hackett, the studys lead researcher. Thats a story of hope if you consider getting more education to be a good thing. Christians are the second-highest educated religious group in the world, with nine years of education, followed by the religiously unaffiliated, and then Buddhists. These global findings are not perfectly reflected in the U.S., where Muslims and Hindus are often better educated than the Christian majority. In America as in many countries highly educated minorities have been welcomed, and often have the means to migrate. In the U.S., 96 percent of Hindus and 54 percent of Muslims hold a college degree, compared to 36 percent of Christians. Globally, Hindus and Muslims have made the biggest educational gains in recent generations, Pew concludes. While the oldest generation of Muslims studied has 3.5 years of schooling, the youngest has seven. And while the oldest Hindu generation has four years, the youngest has seven. And among the poorly educated, where the gender gap is most stark, it is nevertheless shrinking. Hindu women rank at the very bottom of the study, but while the oldest among these Hindu women have three fewer years of schooling than Hindu men, the gender difference in the youngest generation is two years. While the overall global picture is one of progress, it is also one of educational poverty. Despite recent gains by young adults, formal schooling is neither universal nor equal around the world. The global norm is barely more than a primary education an average of about eight years of formal schooling for men and seven years for women, the report concludes. And education is highly correlated with religion. Four in 10 Hindus and more than one-third of Muslims have no formal schooling, while 1 in 10 Buddhists and 1 in 100 Jews lack any education. The factors driving these disparities vary, experts say, from differing attitudes toward education within religious groups, to their distribution among societies where education is compulsory and valued. Some scholars have argued that the work of Christian missionaries has had a positive effect on education levels in areas in which they have worked. As for the particularly high level of educational attainment among the worlds 13 million Jews, theres a culture of literacy that predates modernity, said Steven Cohen, a professor of Jewish social policy at Hebrew Union College who advised the Pew researchers on the study. Jewish tradition, at least among men, has demanded literacy from its adherents, not just its religious leaders. Jews need to learn Hebrew in order to pray they need to pray from a prayer book, Cohen said. Jewish prayer services are just much more participatory. They require more familiarity with the text, as opposed to reserving the study of sacred text for an elite. And for millennia anti-Semitism often forbade Jews from owning land and farming, and otherwise limited their choices for making a living, so they were forced into more entrepreneurial jobs, such as trading, that required literacy and numeracy, Cohen said. Cohen, asked if the study might unintentionally fuel rising anti-Semitism, which today as in the past traffics in conspiracy theories that paint Jews as clever, conniving forces, said it shouldnt make a difference. Anti-Semites are already convinced, he said. But I know many Jews are still worried about their place in society, and worry about appearing too successful because thats been an anti-Semitic trope. The wide gap between the worlds best- and least-educated groups is also partly a function of where these groups tend to live in the world, the Pew researchers found. The vast majority of Jews live in either the U.S. or Israel, highly developed countries with high levels of education overall. But 98 percent of Hindu adults live in the developing countries of India, Nepal and Bangladesh, where a solid education is available to only a minority. The study relied on the best and most recent data available from 151 countries, representing 95 percent of the worlds population. The numbers indicate the quantity of education, but do not indicate its relative quality. The data returned many surprises, Hackett, the studys lead researcher, said. Gaps between groups in education were often wider than researchers predicted, even within the same nation. We see this huge gap in sub-Saharan Africa between Christians and Muslims, Hackett said. Muslims are more than twice as likely as Christians there to have no formal schooling. He hopes such findings spur government and other leaders to factor in religion as they try to raise education levels overall. Religion along with education are two of the things that have the biggest influence on our life outcomes, along with the kind of family we have and the kind of job we have, he said. Other findings The youngest generations of Christian, Buddhist and religiously unaffiliated women have achieved educational parity with men in average years of schooling. And the average Jewish woman has spent a year more in school then the average Jewish man. Christians, the worlds largest religious group with 2.2 billion adherents, have remained fairly stable at the global level in their overall educational attainment over three generations. But their cumulative years of schooling vary widely by region. Religiously unaffiliated adults have 1.3 more years of schooling, on average, than religiously affiliated adults (8.8 versus 7.5 years). Researchers hypothesize that this is partly because the unaffiliated are disproportionately concentrated in countries with relatively high overall levels of educational attainment. WASHINGTON -- Where will Donald Trump spend Inauguration Eve? Will he embrace tradition and stay at Blair House? Or will he opt for something grander - say, his eponymous luxury hotel just a few blocks away? For the past 40 years, every president-elect has spent the night before his inauguration at the president's guesthouse across the street from the White House. Inauguration Day usually begins with a private breakfast for family and friends at the historic mansion, followed by a church service and a brief meeting at the White House with the outgoing president and first lady before the drive to the Capitol for the swearing-in. Trump's inaugural committee hasn't disclosed his plans for the days leading up to the inauguration. "We don't have (any) announcements to make at this point," spokesman Alex Stroman said. If Trump decides not to stay at Blair House, he'll be breaking with a tradition that Jimmy Carter started in December 1976. Carter was eager to get to work, and the house was his Washington base of operations. Since then, every president-elect has spent the last few days before his swearing in at 1651 Pennsylvania Ave. Nancy Reagan thought the mansion needed some sprucing up, the entire Bush clan took the place over twice, and the Clintons and the Obamas spent their last nights as private citizens there. Most of the time, the house, which is operated by the State Department, serves as a very busy, very fancy hotel for foreign leaders and other VIP guests. But every few years, it plays a small but symbolic role during the inauguration. The president-elect signs an official guest book on the morning he takes office, marking his new role as head of state, as well as the importance of international diplomacy. In the afternoon, the State Department hosts a reception and a parade viewing for ambassadors and other diplomats to celebrate the country's peaceful transition of power. Since Blair House is not open to the public, the White House Historical Association has mounted a small, free exhibit about the inaugurations at its Jackson Place headquarters (just around the corner) to complement its new book on the guesthouse's history. "In many ways, it's more exclusive than the White House," says exhibit curator John Botello. "There are no public tours. This is the president's formal guest residence, where foreign heads of state stay when they visit the president." The house was built in 1824 by Joseph Lovell, the army surgeon general, in what was then an open field across from the White House. Publisher Francis Preston Blair, part of Andrew Jackson's "Kitchen Cabinet," bought it 13 years later, and it stayed in the Blair family for more than 100 years. Presidents eager to slip away from the pressures of the White House crossed the street to socialize with the Blairs and other friends: Abraham Lincoln was especially fond of Montgomery Blair, whom he made postmaster general. Over time, the single house expanded into four connecting townhouses, and it now boasts 70,000 square feet, 14 bedrooms, 35 bathrooms, four dining rooms and a full-time staff. The main suite, where presidents-elect typically stay, has two bedrooms, two baths, a sitting room and two fireplaces. In the 1940s, a Blair descendant lobbied President Franklin D. Roosevelt to buy the property as a guesthouse for visiting dignitaries. Heads of states had traditionally been housed at the White House, giving them all-hours access to the first family. Eleanor Roosevelt finally convinced her husband that Blair House was a good idea after Winston Churchill reportedly headed to the couple's bedroom for a 3 a.m. chat. In 1942, the federal government paid $150,000 for the house, $33,000 for the furnishings and an additional $90,000 to update the property; President Harry Truman lived in Blair House from 1948 to 1952 while the White House was completely renovated and reinforced. Carter first signed one of the guest books on Dec. 9, 1976, and stayed there for 13 days in four separate stays, according to State Department records. On inauguration morning, he started what became a presidential ritual: breakfast with his family, then a church service (the Carters went to First Baptist Church on 16th Street) before going to the White House for morning coffee. Ronald and Nancy Reagan spent six nights there in 1981. "Blair House really needs fixing up," Nancy Reagan wrote in her diary on Jan. 14. (The first lady would later spearhead a $10 million renovation.) On the morning of Jan. 20, Nancy woke early, had breakfast and then welcomed her hairdresser. Adviser Mike Deaver arrived at 8 a.m. to brief the president-elect on the Iran hostages and found him peacefully asleep. After calmly eating breakfast and attending a service at nearby St. John's Church on Lafayette Square, Ronald Reagan headed to the White House, where he found Carter, exhausted from all-night negotiations to release the hostages. The Bushes always filled the house. In 1989, Blair House hosted George H.W. Bush, Barbara Bush, all their children and spouses, plus 10 grandchildren, for two nights. "Blair House was fairly formal," George W. Bush told The Washington Post. "Until we moved in." His father was in a good mood, teasing reporters waiting outside before the family made their way to St. John's - a routine that his son repeated in 2001. The Clintons stayed at Blair House for three days. On the morning of Jan. 20, Bill Clinton walked out the door holding a mug of decaffeinated coffee, then headed to a service at Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church on M Street. There was a minor kerfuffle when the Obamas came to Washington in 2009: The family hoped to move into Blair House by Jan. 5, when their daughters started school at Sidwell Friends. President Bush, however, had already reserved it for a visit by former Australian prime minister John Howard and other diplomatic events. Since most presidents-elect had typically stayed there five days or fewer, it may have been a case of bad timing, but the press had a field day over the perceived snub. The Obamas stayed at the Hay-Adams Hotel and switched to Blair House on Jan. 15. The president-elect and his wife can use the home strictly for rest, or to entertain friends and supporters. A private breakfast for family? Fine. Cocktails for a few hundred? No problem. "They can do whatever they like," Botello says. As for Trump, office pools are taking bets on where he'll choose to stay. We'll find out who wins on Jan. 19. blair-house _____ Keywords: Donald Trump, Blair House, presidents-elect, Inauguration Day, Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, Nancy REagan, Harry Truman, White House Historical Association, Roxanne Roberts The iconic cherry dress sold exclusively by the Womans Exchange in St. Louis has been worn by the children of national leaders, celebrities and well-to-do St. Louisans for more than 50 years. Now, it has federal trademark protection, a move to stave off a recent rise in knockoffs. Thompson Coburn associate Justin Mulligan wrote the 60-page brief that ultimately made the trademark possible. The law firm handled the case pro bono after the exchange approached them to explore possibilities to keep others from profiting on the design. Elizabeth Southern, chairman of the board for the Womans Exchange, said they needed the protection because local women make a living sewing the $120 dress, and it now helps support a refugee and immigrant training program. According to the exchange, 70 percent of the proceeds from the dress are given to the makers, who invest 10 to 12 hours to construct each garment. Although the exchange doesnt share the names of the women who contribute handmade goods to the shop, Elanora Lee Dressel, known as Ellie, was loud and proud about her history making the cherry dress. For 30 years, Dressel, of Hazelwood, was the only maker of the famous frock. In a 2012 New York Times article, she said that she made about 450 a year. The exchange still produces more than 400 of the custom-ordered garments each year. Its been a perennial Easter classic at country clubs since its debut. The boys cherry button one-piece version was photographed on John F. Kennedy Jr., and Gwyneth Paltrow ordered a dress for her daughter, Apple. Two little girls also once wore cherry dresses to present flowers to the queen of England. Dressel died at the age of 73 in June, and the current seamstress for the cherry dress is Kathy ONeal, 48, of Des Peres. ONeal is newly a grandmother and was looking for a means to make extra money. She first started sewing items for the Womans Exchange of St. Louis 20 years ago, but she stopped to raise her three children. She returned just as Dressels health took a turn. ONeal says that she has been making five to eight cherry dresses a week since May. ONeal gets a little help with production from the exchanges Immigrant Training Program. Afghan women are learning to create some of the bright red cherries that decorate each dress. Each set of cherries takes more than an hour to make, Southern said. The cherry dress is a simple box-pleat frock in white cotton, with a red-piped Peter Pan collar, a snap closure and four paired cotton cherries stitched down the front. No one knows the origin of the design or why it became a signature of the St. Louis womens collective. But exchanges, or shops, selling womens work across the country were once staples, and each had signature pieces. The history of these types of shops with connected tea rooms dates to the post-Civil War era when a generation of men were killed or severely wounded and women needed a way to make a living. The exchanges offered women, many of whom wanted to protect their social status and standing, a discreet way of earning money. The tradition of anonymity continues (about 100 women contribute a variety of items to the shop), although Dressel was proud of her work with the exchange and the fact that it allowed her the means to stay at home to watch over her son, who had cognitive disabilities. ONeal, who also chooses to shun anonymity, said, I just think its so cool to be a little part of this really historic thing. And she wasnt intimidated that the last two cherry dressmakers worked into their 70s. In a 2012 book, The St. Louis Womans Exchange: 130 Years of the Gentle Art of Survival by Jeannette Batz Cooperman, Dressel explained that she took over the cherry-dress-making after the previous seamstress, who was in her 70s, fell behind schedule. The womans brother was dying, but she was so committed to making the dress that she refused to give Dressel the pattern. So the exchange gave Dressel one of the dresses the woman had produced instead. She took it apart to learn how to construct others. Now, her design will live on in perpetuity and exclusively in St. Louis. The soon-to-be 11-year-old left the Washington University School of Medicine lab with an instruction manual for her new robotic arm. Dont get it wet. Turn it off when not in use. Change the two 9-volt batteries. But for a girl who has adapted to living a life with a left arm that ends just past her elbow, theres no instruction manual for how to incorporate this new technology into her day. That will be up to her to figure out. And researchers at the biomaterials laboratory will be studying her, trying to figure it out, too. Delanie Gallagher of Spanish Lake is the first of 10 children researchers plan to enroll in a study trying to determine how to develop a prosthetic that is useful for children like her born with an arm missing below the elbow or who lost their forearm in an accident or by disease. Most end up living without a prosthetic because it lacks function and only gets in the way. Of the more than 540,000 Americans living with upper limb amputations, only about 20 percent use a prosthetic. Delanies new arm incorporates myoelectric technology sensors that detect when muscles in the stump contract and signal parts in the prosthetic to move. Prosthetics with this technology typically cost from $25,000 to $50,000, making them unfeasible for fast-growing children. The Washington University lab created a hard plastic arm using a 3-D printer at a cost of just a few hundred dollars. The myoelectric technology was kept simple enough to keep the prosthetic low-cost and lightweight, with one sensor that signals the hand to either open or close, or the wrist to turn. Nick Thompson, a scientist in the lab, hopes the simple route will make arm prostheses more accessible and useful to children. Tons of people are doing this now, but they are reaching for the fruit high in the tree, trying to develop something with the most functionality that is the closest you can get to your biological limb, Thompson said. We are going the opposite. We are looking for something quick that can be made and modified quickly. That is our goal. But the big question is how useful it will be. Delanie is proof of how children overcome. She had difficulty thinking of something that she cant already do. What does she hope her new prosthetic will help her do? I dont know, Delanie said. I dont know what I can do. Rosy Pink Petunia Delanies mother, Janet Gallagher, remembered when Delanie was a baby and got her first prosthetic to help her crawl. She just dragged it along, Gallagher said. It was quickly tossed aside. Delanie has had two other prostheses, used only to help her steady and steer her bike, hold up a fishing pole or brace her bow and arrow. It didnt help her, Gallagher said. She could do better without it. Using her stump, Delanie figured out how to color, use scissors, tie her shoes, braid her hair, put her hair in a ponytail and play the piano. On a recent day at school at Gateway Science Academy in south St. Louis, she needed no help. She carried her books in a shoulder bag rather than a backpack. She held a pencil sharpener in the crook of her elbow as she turned her pencil. She played with a piece of clay, molding it into a flower between her stump and hand. She twirled her hair with her stump, raised it high when the teacher sought answers from the class. At lunch, Delanie ripped open bags with her teeth and braced her Capri Sun against her body so she could stab it with a straw. When the English teacher read a book aloud, no one batted an eye at a quote by a character who lost part of her leg from a land mine: Every day, I wished I had it back. Delanies fifth-grade classmates say they are excited about her new robotic arm, but they are used to how she is. Its going to be cool, but she does so much without it, her best friend, Georgia Collier, said. Its going to be different. Gallagher said Delanie sometimes worried about her future. She wonders how she will drive a car, if she will be able to take care of children. As she enters her preteen years, shes figuring out new things such as how to hold a blow dryer, put on makeup and curl her hair. Delanie definitely likes how the new arm looks. She asked that it be pink, engraved with her initials. She named it Rosy Pink Petunia Gallagher. Dr. Charles Goldfarb, a Washington U. orthopedic surgeon at St. Louis Childrens Hospital who cares for children with amputated limbs, said a prosthetic could have social benefits. Can we help her do more things a little similar to her peers? Goldfarb said. That may become more important as she gets older. A teenager wants to be like any other teenager, he said. Sydney Syndrome The Minimally Invasive Surgery Biomaterials Lab opened on the medical campus just over three years ago. Its focus was using a 3-D printer to create and test bioabsorbable surgical mesh. In 2014, the lab learned of three engineering students whose senior project involved using a 3-D printer to create a prosthetic for 13-year-old Sydney Kendall who had lost her arm six years earlier in a boating accident. That sparked the start of the labs work with prosthetic arms. We asked, Can we take this up and improve what the students have worked on? Thompson said. A wire in the arm the students created for Sydney was connected to a sensor in her shoulder. Shrugging her shoulder caused the hand to open or close. The wire was cumbersome, she told the scientists, and difficult to use. So, the lab printed a prosthetic with a myoelectric sensor inside its socket that could move the hand and wrist and gave it to Sydney. She found it needed a stronger grip and was heavy. They refined it again, printing her another last spring. The process offered promise. It justified to do this type of study on pediatric patients, Thompson said. Thats where we are now. Scientists hope a study of more children will give them feedback on how to overcome what they refer to as Sydney Syndrome the prosthetic sitting in a drawer collecting dust. Participants will complete questionnaires three months, six months and a year after getting their prostheses. Now we feel we have a design that is of high enough utility to try on multiple patients to see if theres any benefit from using them, Thompson said. The patients will tell us what directions we need to go in to make it better. Superhero arms The study is funded by a $10,000 grant from the St. Louis Childrens Hospital Foundation. Low-cost 3-D printing makes it feasible. A 3-D printer works like a regular ink printer, but instead of ink, it prints layers of heated plastic to create models designed with a computer program. The technology dates to the 1980s and was used in manufacturing to make machine parts. In the 2000s, consumers began buying home printers to make jewelry or toys. In the past several years, surgeons have created models of organs and tumors to plan for surgeries. And researchers are experimenting with using materials to print heart valves, stents and skull fragments. The science is advancing rapidly. The concept of 3-D printing has flipped the prosthetic world over, Goldfarb said, not just in terms of the possibilities, but also in its purpose. For forever, our goal with a prosthetic has been to make something unobtrusive and unnoticeable with the same skin tone. But it doesnt do much, Goldfarb said. These prostheses look nothing like your arm. They look like superhero arms. They are bold and distinctive looking. The difference philosophically is were making arms that say, Hey, look at me. Ive got a great, cool arm; and Im not trying to hide it. Its part of who I am. ... Its a different concept, and its helpful for a lot of kids. Learning curve Back in the lab, as technicians tested the myolectric sensor in Delanies new arm, the sensor wasnt consistently picking up the signal to move the wrist. After more than an hour of trying to find the problem, they determined that Delanie would have to figure out how to best position the arm so the sensor picks up the signal from her muscle. Thats the learning curve for her. No one can do it except her, Thompson said. As she wears it more and more, shell figure out how it feels when its in the best spot. Delanies father, Joe Gallagher, joked that she wasnt allowed to hold eggs with it yet. If she gets to move it three times out of 10, thats a good thing, her father said. Its a learning process. Though the family is wondering how the robotic arm might help Delanie with what she can already do, they dont have expectations that the science will be life-changing at least for her. But with Delanies help, scientists could someday develop a useful prosthetic for a child who suddenly loses an arm. Or one that a child with a congenital defect could use as a toddler. Delanie is excited, her parents said, mostly about helping other children. She says, Im helping make an arm for people who lose it or for people who are born like me, her mom said. Shes looking at it as, Im making history, and helping makes lives better. Blythe Bernhard of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report. ST.LOUIS The St. Louis firefighter struck by a driver at Interstate 55 and Loughborough Avenue on Friday is stable, according to reports. The St. Louis Fire Department said via social media the firefighter was in serious, but stable condition following the crash. The firefighter's injuries are unknown. The department reported the incident on Twitter around 6 p.m. Fire captain Gregg Favre cautioned drivers to slow down and be mindful of fire, police and state transportation crews. Several dozen traffic accidents including injuries have been reported in the area because of slick road conditions. The Missouri Department of Transportation has deployed crews to salt icy roads. A spokeswoman for the agency has not said how many crews are out. BELLERIVE ACRES On one side of the University of Missouri-St. Louis campus, college students celebrated graduation. On another, a group of scouts occupied the opposite end of the spectrum in what, for many, was their first exposure to higher ed classrooms and laboratories. Organized by the Greater St. Louis Area Council of Boy Scouts, "STEM University" for five years has invited hundreds of boys from an area spanning southeastern Missouri and southern Illinois to participate in a day of learning about the core "STEM" curriculum - science, technology, engineering and math. The event, which this year drew more than 500 Cub and Boy Scouts, is the first of its kind nationally and has become a template for similar programs nationwide. The Cub and Boy Scouts spent the day absorbing subject matter and participating in a hands-on activity. This marked the fifth year that UMSL has hosted the Boy Scout STEM University. Two others are planned in the coming months at Southeast Missouri State University and the University of Illinois at Carbondale. The experience can earn Scouts merit badges and awards through the Boy Scouts' Nova initiative, which seeks to boost interest in STEM industries. To achieve that objective, the younger scouts excavated toy dinosaurs after learning about the principles of archaeology. Others separated rocks by classification in a geology class. "This has a national impact," said Tom Kroenung, director of STEM programs for the Greater St. Louis Council "Our country needs more young people in STEM industries, and this just builds on their enthusiasm." GUBAIYA, Yemen The women in this village never earned money, never left home without the permission of their husbands. It had been that way for as long as anyone could remember. Then the war arrived. Now before dawn each day, mothers and daughters walk to the mountainous scrub to gather wood, which they turn into charcoal and sell. The men stay home and care for the children, and sometimes do the cooking and the cleaning. I feel the war has changed my personality, said Ayde Ahmed Shabon, 33, her voice soft but clear. I feel equal to the man now. Yemen has consistently ranked among the worst countries for women and girls, and the war has only made life harder. But in pockets of the Middle Easts poorest country, an unexpected social recalibration appears to be underway, aid workers say. As the war destroys jobs and countless men join the fight, a growing number of women are providing income for their families. Often, they are working in areas that had been considered the purview of men or culturally unacceptable for women in Yemens ultraconservative tribal society. Some are now butchers, barbers and chicken sellers, interacting socially in ways their mothers and grandmothers could never have imagined. In a region where women historically have had much less power than men, the changes have given many Yemeni women new influence in their families and community. But they have also had a negative effect. Women are becoming more empowered to make decisions for the household, said Wael Ibrahim, Yemen country director for the aid agency CARE. But many women have also reported that conflicts in their homes have risen. Five years ago, there was great optimism for Yemeni women. Thousands took part in the revolt part of the Arab Spring that upended the nations political order and ended the three-decade rule of autocrat Ali Abdullah Saleh. Women even took leadership roles in organizing protests across the country, the most well known being Tawakkul Karman, who shared the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize. By 2014, women were making headway in seeking greater representation in government and asserting their rights. Child marriages, for example, started to decline. The advances, though, barely reached remote areas such as Gubaiya, where culture and traditions rule and modern laws enshrining womens rights are not enforced. The following year, northern rebels known as Houthis overran the capital, Sanaa, and drove out President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and his government. The rebels now control Yemens northwest, and Hadis forces rule swaths of the south and east. A regional coalition led by Saudi Arabia, and supported by Washington, has intervened on Hadis side. U.N. humanitarian officials say the conflict has killed at least 10,000 Yemenis, including civilians. About 3 million people have fled their homes. Two-thirds of the countrys 27 million people are in need of humanitarian aid. Since September 2015, violence against women and girls, including rapes and domestic assaults, has risen 70 percent, according to aid officials, and child marriages have spiked. The conflict has deprived more girls and women of access to education and health care, and their involvement in civic activities has all but ended. Perhaps the most concerning social consequence of the war has been its impact on the rights and situation of women, said Scott Paul, senior humanitarian policy adviser for the aid agency Oxfam America. The assault on Yemens economy has helped break down barriers to womens participation in the workforce. Unfortunately, women have effectively been shut out of the political process. And yet, the conflict has reshaped their role within the family. With Saudi-led coalition airstrikes and clashes eviscerating the economy, many families are trying to make money any way they can. Thousands of men have been killed or seriously injured in the war, leaving women with greater authority in their households. In Gubaiya, a sedate hamlet in northwestern Yemen, many men worked in neighboring Saudi Arabia on construction sites, at restaurants and in menial jobs. With the border closed, job opportunities vanished. Some men left to fight; others went south to find work in Sanaa and never returned. Those who remained tried to care for their families. First, they used up their savings. Then, they were forced to sell their cattle. Running out of options, Mohammed Kuweit, 41, finally turned to someone he never expected to ask for help: his wife. They made a plan. She would collect wood every day to turn into charcoal to sell, and he would seek work as a day laborer. On days when he found no work, he would help her. Im not happy, but I am forced to do this, Kuweit said. No one can accept seeing his wife go out and suffer. Now, Kuweit is charting new territory again. He helps clean the house and gets water from the well. If his wife arrives home late from work, he helps prepare dinner. Kuweit insists that he is still the one in control but concedes that their relationship has changed. In the past, my wife would have a say in the running of the house, Kuweit said. Now, I consult with her on more matters, especially anything related to income. The workload is more divided now. A recent survey conducted by CARE, Oxfam and others involved in humanitarian work in four of Yemens 22 provinces found that the labor reversals had caused increased conflict between husbands and wives in some areas. But in other areas, the survey said there was greater appreciation of womens and mens roles and an improved sense of how gender roles are mutually reliant. In particular, there was an increased openness to women working in jobs considered shameful including as butchers, barbers or chicken sellers. For most of her life, Shabon wasnt allowed to participate in the community or seek employment. She was forced to drop out of school to marry and have children. I used to just stay at home and take care of my children, said the mother of eight, who, like every woman here, wore a black abaya and veil that covered her body and face save for her eyes. But these days, she heads to the scrub to gather wood after she makes breakfast. Her husband, Hassan Abdo Ibrahim, feeds their children, gathers water and washes the clothes while she is out. At home, we are equal. There is no difference, he said a bit grudgingly. I have no choice. When she returns home, he helps her with the wood to make charcoal, and together they go to the market. Each bag, which takes a week to prepare, sells for $3.50. Shabon said she even attends workshops run by local aid agencies in nearby areas. I just tell my husband I am traveling, and he doesnt mind, she said, adding that he goes with her if a neighbor can look after the children. The question now is: What will happen to their relationship, and her role, after the war ends? Hopefully, Ill be side by side with him for better or for worse, she said, before turning her attention to a half-filled bag of charcoal in front of their mud-brick house, where her husband was waiting to assist. LONDON (AP) Like many foreign scientists in Britain, Joanna Bagniewska was devastated when Britons voted to leave the European Union. The biology lecturer, a Polish migrant who found Britain a welcoming place to build her academic career over a decade, is suddenly seeing her job security and research prospects up in the air. "I'm worried that after my current contract finishes, one of the prerequisites could be a permanent residence card," she said. "I'd like to apply for EU grant money, but how much longer will it be available for?" Britain's top universities have long been among the world's most sought-after destinations for study and research, drawing the brightest minds from all corners of the globe. But since Britons voted in June to leave the 28-nation EU, many in the science community say the U.K. risks losing the money, the international influence and crucially, the talent to sustain that enviable position. More than one-tenth of research funding at British universities has come from the EU in recent years. Some fields such as nanotechnology and cancer research are more dependent on EU funding than others, according to a report by technology firm Digital Science. From 2007 to 2013, Britain received 8.8 billion euros ($9.4 billion) in direct EU investment in research. Bagniewska is not just anxious about herself she's upset for her students' future too, for the opportunities that both Britons and foreigners will likely miss out on when unfettered mobility between Britain and Europe can no longer be taken for granted. "They were just getting excited about doing their masters and Ph.Ds in other countries. And then Brexit happened and they just got trampled," she said. Scientists and researchers argue that being part of the EU has given British science a huge boost because it allows Britain to recruit the best talent across Europe and take part in important research collaborations and student exchanges without being constrained by national boundaries. The bloc's freedom of movement means its 500 million people can live and work visa-free in any member state. No one knows yet what form Britain's exit from the EU commonly known as Brexit is going to take, but immigration was a key issue for "Leave" voters. Many believe some limit should be put on the number of EU citizens moving to Britain. Prime Minister Theresa May has vowed to reassert control over British borders. She has offered no firm guarantees for the rights of Europeans already living in Britain, an uncertainty that weighs heavily over the 32,000 Europeans who make up 16 percent of the academic workforce in British universities. Many universities say the rhetoric over immigration control is also jeopardizing recruitment of researchers and students from further afield. Scientists for EU, an advocacy group, says it has received over 400 letters from researchers describing how Brexit has already impacted their life and work. Some are losing doctoral students who pulled out of studentships and job offers. Academics are putting plans to relocate to Britain on hold. One said their employer, a London university, immediately imposed a temporary hiring freeze, citing uncertainties about student recruitment and research income. Adam Durrant, a British entrepreneur who founded an aerospace startup supplying climate data to airlines and aircraft manufacturers, says he's now considering moving some of his business to a EU country outside of Britain. Part of the reason, he says, is that Brexit will likely make hiring the right people much harder than before. "In the future, it probably means that people would be less interested to come to the U.K. to work," said Durrant. "There's a huge question mark over my company and my own personal future. I will certainly retain a U.K. presence, but my company's focus of gravity may shift elsewhere." Scientists say some U.K.-based researchers are already being excluded from joint bids for EU funding to minimize the risks for their colleagues. Paul Crowther, head of physics and astronomy at the University of Sheffield, said a researcher from his department was dropped from an EU grant proposal as a precaution following the Brexit referendum. The vote "put the U.K.-based researchers in a very awkward position" and their participation in EU-funded programs could "compromise the project," he was told. "The erosion of U.K. involvement in EU networks has already begun, with both the U.K. and EU science worse off," Crowther said. Apart from a loss of grant money, Brexit will likely cause British scientists and research centers to miss out on shared databases and infrastructure. "Large-scale efforts like studies of rare genetic diseases, the building of large facilities, are areas that multinational collaborations do much better," said Venki Ramakrishnan, a Nobel Prize-winning biologist and president of Britain's prestigious Royal Society. The EU is an important source of research funding for Britain, which lags behind many developed countries in state investment in science. In 2014, Britain's government spent under 0.5 percent of its GDP on research below the European average, and half that of South Korea. May's government is clearly aware of the jitters. She has promised to increase annual investment in research by 2 billion pounds ($2.4 billion) by 2020, in hopes her country can remain a world leader in science and innovation. Durrant is doubtful that's enough to make a big difference. "Two billion a year spread across everything isn't going to go very far," he said. Similar anxieties are being felt at the undergraduate level. The 125,000 European students studying at British universities now pay the same fees as locals and have access to the same government loans. Officials have promised this will not change for those applying next year but no one knows what will happen after that. Fewer European students appeared to be applying for some of Britain's most competitive university courses, including medicine and places at Oxford and Cambridge. In September, the admission service UCAS reported a 9 percent drop in EU applications for British undergraduate courses starting in 2017. Some argue that Britain could become like Switzerland, an "associate" EU state that is opting out of free movement of people while still taking part in limited European science projects. "It's not all doom and gloom but it will be harder," Ramakrishnan said. "We could make a go of it outside the EU. But for that to happen, we have to attract talent and fund science. And those two things are critical." ISLAMABAD, Pakistan If any further proof were needed that geopolitical intrigue can stalk the humblest of Pakistans inhabitants, consider the recent cases of two Pakistani birds. The first is a pigeon, a species that people all over the country raise on their rooftops as a simple, inexpensive pleasure and a brief escape from their daily struggles with poverty, corruption and clogged streets below. Some weeks ago, tension was running especially high between Pakistan and its perennial next-door rival India. The source was Kashmir, the disputed border region where Muslim protesters had been blinded with pellet guns and Indian soldiers had been burned to death in a late-night attack by insurgents. Into the fog of belligerent rhetoric between the two nuclear powers wandered a white pigeon, which was caught and caged by Indian security forces in a border district adjoining Kashmir. According to Indian news agencies, the bird was suspected of having Pakistani links and was carrying a warning message for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The arresting officer posed with his feathered prisoner, and the image soon circulated on social media. About the same time, Indian authorities in Kashmir said that they had also discovered 150 dehydrated pigeons stuffed into a car and that they suspected the birds had been smuggled for purposes of espionage. An official was quoted as saying that the pigeons had suspicious multicolored rings attached to their feet. All were turned over to an animal welfare agency while police investigated the case. Irfan Husain, a columnist for Pakistans Dawn newspaper, suggested that the avian seizures were a sign that India remains a deeply insecure country despite its large size, rapidly growing economy and military might. I realize I am sticking my neck out, he wrote, but would the Indian authorities please set the poor captive pigeon free? No such outcry has yet been raised about the potential plight of another Pakistani bird, the houbara bustard (Chlamydotis undulata), a gray-speckled, pheasantlike creature mostly found in North Africa. In Pakistan, this rare variety of bustard is considered an endangered species, and hunting it is banned in some regions. Recently the bustard too ran afoul of international politics, this time at the hands of Pakistans friends. Parties of Middle Eastern royals often bring trained falcons to hunt smaller birds in Pakistans northern mountains and southern deserts. For years, among their favorite targets have been bustards. Last year, wildlife groups petitioned Pakistani courts to ban bustard-hunting, and the Supreme Court granted their request. But the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif appealed, arguing that the ban had adversely affected the countrys diplomatic ties with the Middle Eastern countries and noting that hunts by foreign dignitaries also bring in considerable funds. One of the Sharif governments closest allies is Qatar, and last month, a Qatari prince came to the prime ministers rescue in a corruption case before the Supreme Court, where political opponents have accused him of hiding assets abroad, including a group of luxury apartments in London. Sharif, who has vowed to resign if found guilty, said he had broken no laws but was struggling to explain how his family had acquired certain assets such as the apartments without a money trail or tax bill. Suddenly, the Qatari prince provided a letter stating that his family had given them to the Sharifs as part of an old business settlement. This week, a Qatari prince from the same family was issued a special permit to hunt 100 bustards in northwestern Khyber-Paktunkhwa province. According to Dawn, the provinces wildlife conservator objected, saying it was a protected species. The matter has not been resolved, but the paper reported that another Qatari royal had recently faced some resistance while attempting to hunt bustards in Balochistan province. He immediately called the prime minister on the phone, Dawn reported Sunday, and things were sorted out. WASHINGTON Poised but defiant, Miss Canada will be vying for more than the winners tiara when she competes in the annual Miss World pageant in Washington this weekend. Anastasia Lin wants to tell the world about the evil of orga harvesting. Lin was due to compete at Miss World last year when it was hosted by China but was barred from entering the country due to her activism against persecution of Falun Gong, a meditation practice that she follows and that Chinas government has outlawed. U.K.-based Miss World is allowing her to compete again this year in the U.S.; a winner is to be chosen Sunday. Some U.S. media organizations say Miss World, which has Chinese corporate sponsorship, has prevented them from speaking to Lin. But she was allowed to speak to The Associated Press in an interview Wednesday in which she spoke forthrightly about her cause, although she sidestepped questions about whether she had faced restrictions. Everybody is tied economically with China. Chinas soft power is so huge that no one really dares to speak up, said Lin, 26, at a hotel just outside Washington at the National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Md. Lin, who was born in China and moved to Canada with her mother at age 13, has riled Chinas government with her public advocacy. She has alleged that tens of thousands of Falun Gong practitioners have been killed so their organs could be harvested and sold for transplants. She has spoken out at a U.S. congressional hearing, and since her exclusion from last years pageant in China, she has attracted world media attention and given testimony before the British and European parliaments. She says the Miss World pageant, in which contestants each present a cause or platform, is another opportunity to speak out and give people hope. Im talking about organs being taken from prisoners of conscience, meaning citizens who have not done anything wrong but to speak their mind and believe what they believe in. Its like innocent citizens being killed for their organs and their body parts sold for profits. Its happening and people need to pay attention to it, Lin said. Chinese Embassy spokeswoman Fang Hong said the allegations of the Chinese government harvesting organs are sheer fabrications of the Falun Gong cult. The Chinese government outlawed Falun Gong in 1999, saying the group had attracted 70 million followers and was a threat to social stability. As of 2015, the government claimed it was ending the long-standing practice of involuntarily harvesting the organs of executed prisoners for use in donor transplants, and had replaced it with a voluntary donor system, but international medical professionals and human rights advocates question whether that has happened. Lin said Falun Gong emphasizes truthfulness, compassion and tolerance and is persecuted because it encourages independent thought. Lin is also an actress. She played a Falun Gong prisoner and organ-harvesting victim in a Canadian-made movie, The Bleeding Edge, which was screened late Wednesday at a theater in Washington by the activist group, Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation. In an apparent sign that the Miss World organization was easing constraints on her, Lin attended the screening. She said that even Western governments are leery of criticizing China. Governments are not really speaking out, even for their Chinese citizens outside of China, she said. Last year when I was banned, the Canadian government did not really take a stand, she said. Lin said that her father, who lives in China, has faced severe pressure, including multiple lawsuits hurting his business selling medical equipment and has been prevented from traveling from China to attend the pageant. Those allegations could not be independently confirmed by AP. Beyond the promotional video on her social media feed, Lin said shell have only a fleeting chance to speak out at the Miss World ceremonies, and thats only if she makes the top 10, but shes determined to stay the course. Im going to stick here to the end because I know that this Miss World final is going to be watched by a billion people around the world, and its going to be broadcast to China, she said. I have traveled a long journey to [get] here and I want the people to see me on that show. I want them to see that I have not given up. The USNS Bowditch, an oceanographic survey ship, is seen in this undated U.S. Navy handout photo. U.S. Navy via REUTERS By Ben Blanchard and Steve Holland BEIJING/WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (Reuters) - China will return an underwater U.S. drone seized by a naval vessel this week in the South China Sea, both countries said on Saturday, but Beijing complained that Washington had been "hyping up" the incident. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to take an aggressive approach in dealing with China over its economic and military policies, jumped on the unusual drone seizure with a pair of provocative tweets, accusing Beijing of stealing the equipment. The drone, known as an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), was taken on Thursday, the first seizure of its kind in recent memory. The Pentagon went public with its complaint after the action and said on Saturday it had secured a deal to get the drone back. "Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States," Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said in a statement. The drone, which the Pentagon said was operating lawfully was collecting data about the salinity, temperature and clarity of the water about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, off the Philippines. It was seized just as the USNS Bowditch was about to retrieve it, U.S. officials said. China's Defense Ministry said a Chinese naval vessel discovered a piece of "unidentified equipment" and checked it to prevent any navigational safety issues before discovering it was a U.S. drone. "China decided to return it to the U.S. side in an appropriate manner, and China and the U.S. have all along been in communication about it," the ministry said on its website. "During this process, the U.S. side's unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate, and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue. We express regret at this," it added. 'KEEP IT!' Trump, a Republican who takes office on Jan. 20, waded into the dispute on Twitter early on Saturday from his seaside resort club Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, where he plans to spend the holidays. "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act," he said. After China said it would return the drone, Jason Miller, a spokesman for Trump, tweeted a link to a news story, saying: "@realdonaldtrump gets it done." There was, however, no evidence that Trump had played any role. U.S. officials said the negotiations took place in Beijing during the overnight hours in the United States. Miller did not respond to requests for comment. Hours later, while riding in a motorcade back to his resort, Trump tweeted his second jab. "We should tell China that we don't want the drone they stole back - let them keep it!" he said. Trump has previously threatened to declare China a currency manipulator and force changes in U.S.-Chinese trade policy, which he says has led to the greatest theft of American jobs in history. Trump has also raised questions about the most sensitive part of the U.S.-China relationship: whether Washington would stick to its nearly four-decades-old policy of recognizing that Taiwan is part of "one China." After his Nov. 8 election victory, Trump accepted a congratulatory phone call from President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan, prompting China to lodge a diplomatic protest. President Barack Obama said on Friday it was fine for Trump to review Washington's policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the U.S. relationship with Beijing. "There's probably no bilateral relationship that carries more significance and where there's also the potential, if that relationship breaks down or goes into a full-conflict mode, that everybody is worse off," Obama told reporters. HEIGHTENED TENSIONS The drone incident has raised fresh concerns about China's increased military presence and aggressive posture in the energy-rich South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion in trade is shipped every year. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims to the waterway. New satellite imagery shows China has installed weapons, including anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, on all seven artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea, a U.S. research group said this week. Without directly saying whether the U.S. drone was operating in waters Beijing considers its own, China's Defense Ministry said U.S. ships and aircraft have for a long period been carrying out surveillance and surveys in "the presence" of Chinese waters. "China is resolutely opposed to this, and demands the U.S. stops this kind of activity," it said. China will remain on alert for these sorts of activities and take necessary steps to deal with them, the ministry said without elaborating. The Global Times, published by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily, earlier cited an unidentified Chinese source as saying they believed the issue would be resolved smoothly. (Additional reporting by Roberta Rampton and Jonathan Landay in Washington, Josephine Mason and Meng Meng in Beijing; Editing by G Crosse and Paul Simao) CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas, Dec. 17, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The lawsuit filed by Bob Hilliard against Ergon Asphalt & Emulsions, Inc. and Valero has steadily added more and more Corpus Christi businesses who have had to keep their doors locked over the busy Christmas season. Hilliard states: "Hundreds of Corpus businesses have contacted me and asked to be included, and the calls have not stopped. "We will continue to amend the lawsuit to add more of the businesses who are suffering financially. "The idea that a company would endanger an entire city's future and reputation by poisoning the water supply is remarkable. "We will unwind this ball of conspiracy and follow every thread until the identity of every individual responsible for this catastrophe is exposed and held fully accountable. "This is not shaping up as just a simple mistake by those responsible. The questions are troubling. How long were they poisoning our water without telling the City and its citizens? Did they intentionally cover up the danger? Were people unknowingly exposed to a dangerous chemical and if so, for how long? "I am sure the facts as we uncover them will be reviewed by our new district attorney to determine if crimes were committed. Many of these businesses will feel the full financial hit of this loss well into next year, assuming they even survive." ABOUT HMG http://www.hmglawfirm.com/ Hilliard Munoz Gonzales LLP (HMG) specializes in mass torts, personal injury, product liability, commercial and business litigation, and wrongful death. For over two decades, Bob Hilliard's firm has been appointed by Judge's in Texas and around the country to lead class actions, including the single largest litigation in US history, GM's ignition switch defect litigation. Bob Hilliard obtained the Largest Verdict in the country in 2012 and the #1 verdict in Texas. SCHEDULE AN INTERVIEW WITH BOB HILLIARDContact Lauren Gomez at 361-960-3146 Lawsuit: CAUSE NO. 2016-CCV-62787-1 To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hilliard-says-water-crisis-class-action-continues-to-grow-300380324.html SOURCE Hilliard Munoz Gonzales LLP Democratic Republic of Congo's President Joseph Kabila attends the signing ceremony of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Great Lakes, at the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Febru By Aaron Ross KINSHASA (Reuters) - Democratic Republic of Congo's main opposition bloc said on Saturday it was not planning a march against President Joseph Kabila when his mandate expires on Monday, a decision that could defuse anticipated protests. The opposition accuses Kabila of trying to cling to power, and the decision not to stage a mass protest was announced hours after talks between the opposition and ruling coalition failed to reach a compromise on Kabila's political future. "We are not going to have a march to give these bandits the opportunity to fire on the population," opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi told Reuters. He said he expected people to remain vigilant and protest "each in his own way". However, it is not clear how much influence a largely discredited political opposition holds over an angry and impoverished population and authorities were bracing for unrest. Kabila, who has ruled since 2001, is barred by the constitution from standing in the next election, which was originally scheduled for last month. The government says it cannot organize a presidential vote until 2018 and the constitutional court ruled in May he can stay on until then. Delegates at the political talks said they would resume on Wednesday once the Catholic bishops mediating the negotiations have returned from a trip to Rome to meet Pope Francis. In a statement, the opposition said differences remained over how the country would be governed after Monday and whether Kabila would commit to not changing the constitution to seek a third term. Kabila says he is committed to respecting the constitution but has refused to promise not to change it. The presidents of neighboring Rwanda and Congo Republic changed their constitutions last year to allow themselves to stand for third terms. While Tshisekedi said the talks had "failed", another opposition leader, Joseph Olengankhoy said they had made "significant progress". Government spokesman Lambert Mende told Reuters he was confident the two sides would reach a compromise after the bishops met in recent days with Kabila and the main opposition leader, Etienne Tshisekedi. Mende said authorities had taken measures to prevent violence on Monday. Police in Kinshasa have set up checkpoints to search cars and the government has asked telecoms companies to cut most social media services from Monday. Congo has not seen a peaceful transfer of power since independence in 1960 and world powers fear protests, particularly in the sprawling capital of Kinshasa, could spark violence in the chronically unstable central African giant. (Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg and Helen Popper) Men protest as Rio's governor Sergio Cabral (not pictured) leaves the Federal Police headquarters after being questioned following his arrest in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil November 17, 2016. REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - A former governor of Rio de Janeiro state will face trial on corruption and money laundering charges, a crusading anti-graft judge ruled on Friday. Sergio Cabral, his wife and five other defendants will be tried by Judge Sergio Moro in southern Brazil. Prosecutors last month accused Cabral of leading a criminal organization that took 224 million reais ($66 million) in bribes from construction firms in exchange for infrastructure contracts from 2007 to 2014, when he was serving as governor. The specific charges accepted for trial Friday involve 2.7 million reais ($797,000) allegedly paid by construction firm Andrade Gutierrez to Cabral in exchange for the company winning building contracts for a petrochemical complex in Rio. Cabral was the most powerful figure in Rio politics for the past decade, but he resigned in April 2014 in the face of anti-corruption protests targeting him, despite having nine months left in his second term. He is the latest high-profile politician who will have to stand trial in the nearly three-year corruption probe known as operation "Car Wash," which began by unraveling a massive political kickback scheme at state-run oil company Petrobras. Cabral was a close ally of former presidents Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff, the latter of whom was removed permanently from office in August on charges of illegally using money from state banks to bankroll public spending. (Reporting by Pedro Fonseca; Editing by Lisa Shumaker) Council-mandated Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan Yasmin Sooka addresses the Human Rights Council 26th Special Session on the human rights situation in South Sudan, Geneva, Switzerland, December 14, 2016. REUTERS/Pierre Albouy By Tom Miles GENEVA (Reuters) - World powers can stop a "Rwanda-like" genocide in South Sudan if they immediately deploy a 4,000-strong protection force across the country and set up a court to prosecute atrocities, the head of a U.N. human rights commission said on Wednesday. Africa's newest nation plunged into civil war in December 2013 after a long-running feud between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy, Riek Machar, exploded into violence, often along ethnic lines. "South Sudan stands on the brink of an all-out ethnic civil war, which could destabilize the entire region," commission chief Yasmin Sooka told an emergency session of the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva. Fighting was expected to escalate again now that the dry season had started, she said. Gang rape was happening on an "epic" scale, she added, citing cases of women being raped at a U.N. site in the capital Juba within sight of U.N. peacekeepers. Washington and other powers called the one-day meeting after Sooka's commission reported this month that ethnic cleansing was already taking place in South Sudan, which only seceded from Sudan in 2011. Sooka's comparison with Rwanda referred to the killing of some 800,000 people in three months of ethnic violence there in 1994. Kiir has denied there is any ethnic cleansing and South Sudan's ambassador at the council, Kuol Alor Kuol Arop, said his country saw no need for the special session. International pressure, including the threat of sanctions, has so far failed to halt the fighting in an oil-producing country at the heart of a fragile region that includes Sudan, Ethiopia and Democratic Republic of Congo. The warring sides agreed to set up a court backed by the African Union in 2015, but one has not appeared. South Sudan's government has said it will allow a 4,000-strong regional protection force to bolster the U.N.'s existing peacekeeping mission. But it has also not arrived and Sooka said there were fears it would not operate beyond Juba. "We urge the immediate deployment of the 4,000-strong regional protection force for South Sudan ... People all across the country asked that it not be restricted to the capital if it is to protect civilians across South Sudan," she said. The 47-member forum adopted a resolution without a vote reminding the government of its responsibility for protecting the population against genocide, war crimes and ethnic cleansing and condemning the widespread violence and rape. But it watered down the original wording, which would have extended the mandate of the U.N. human rights commission in South Sudan for a year. The commission will report back to the council in the first quarter of 2017. (Reporting by Tom Miles; Editing by Stephanie Nebehay and Andrew Heavens) Says Pakistan has paid a very heavy price in war against terrorism.Prime Minister's Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs Tariq Fatemi says Pakistan is firmly committed to eliminate terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Briefing media on his current visit to the United States in Washington, he emphasized that Pakistan has paid a very heavy price in war against terrorism. He said being a sovereign state, Pakistan will decide the scale, pace and reach of its counter-terrorism efforts in line with its economic and operational limitations as well as other capacity constraints. Tariq Fatemi said the primary purpose of his current official visit to the United States was to touch base with the outgoing US Administration by reviewing progress in the current bilateral relations and forge links with the new US Administration that will assume office next month. Federal Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan responded to growing criticism against him on Saturday, saying the report on the inquiry into the attack on lawyers in Quetta is "one-sided". "I went to the prime minister yesterday, told him if my expression embarrasses the government then I would resign to set the record straight. He said that is unacceptable to him, which is why I am standing here in front of you today to tell you the other side of the story," Nisar said at a press conference in Islamabad. Read more: Qureshi in NA Session: Confused whether to call you Speaker or Ayaz Sadiq Nisar's remarks come days after an inquiry report into an Aug 8 attack on lawyers in Quetta slammed government inaction against militants. "I read this report in the papers, spiced up, thanks to the media," he said. "I am not a lawyer but I fail to understand how a report was created without the interior ministry's narrative in it, it is one-sided." Read more: PTI returns to parliament: Heated NA session kicks off "It hurt me to see the papers the next day. They accused me of lying to the public," he added. "I am a flawed man but I try and do the right thing, I do not lie to you (media). The security of this country is extremely sensitive. A personal blow to me is one thing but a blow to the national security is another matter." "People were against my speaking about the report but I was adamant to clear the matter and bring you the other side of the story." Know more: Corruption is poison for society: CJP Jamali At least 70 people were killed and over 100 others wounded in a suicide bombing on Aug 8 at the emergency ward of Quettas Civil Hospital, where scores of people had gathered to mourn the death of Balochistan Bar Association (BBA) president Bilal Anwar Kasi in a gun attack earlier in the day. A report of a judicial commission, comprising Justice Qazi Faez Isa of the Supreme Court, on the massacre criticised the interior minister for meeting with the heads of some banned groups to listen to their demands. Nisar added today that he has been "bashed" about his political and personal conduct and that he will tackle that criticism in the coming days. Read more: Panama case will decide if laws apply to rich and powerful: Imran Khan He went on to list the gains made in counter-terrorism operations in Pakistan, adding that after more than 2,000 intelligence-based operations "people who who have not even read the National Action Plan are the ones who have been saying it has not been implemented". He also related that a letter left outside the Punjab House asked him to answer five questions. "I thought it was fake, because I do not live here at Punjab House. Upon investigation, I found out the judge's secretary had left that letter for me here." "The first question was why did you meet ASWJ. I replied saying I have never met them. They asked why were they given the permission to hold a public meeting. I said I did not give any such permission." Italy plans to bring sustainable, eco-friendly tourism to the mountainous region of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB). Italian Ambassador Stefano Pontecorvo, speaking at a seminar on Social Economic Environment Development (SEED) organised by Ev-K2-CNR Pakistan, on Friday said that the Central Karakoram National Park (CKNP), with its scenic beauty invites tourists from all over the world. In this regard, he said the Italian government would work on the sustainable tourism in the region. The G-B government, meanwhile, said it would extend its full support to the Italian government in this regard. G-B Education Minister Ibrahim Sanai said that the Italian governments initiative for park management and livelihood improvement would help improve the living standards of the people of G-B. Ev-K2-CNR Chartered Association is an autonomous, non-profit association, which promotes scientific and technological research in mountain areas. The UN human rights office says it is getting daily reports of rapes and killings of the Rohingya minority in Myanmar, although the government is insultingly dismissing the claims and making the situation worse. Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein said Friday the government, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, has taken a "short-sighted, counterproductive, even callous" approach to the crisis. In a statement, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said the policy could have grave long-term repercussions for the region. At least 86 people have been killed in the latest wave of racial violence against the Rohingya Muslims, even though independent reports put the toll much higher. The United Nations has estimated 27,000 members of the largely stateless Rohingya minority have fled across the border to Bangladesh. The Rakhine state in northern Myanmar has been under a military siege since October over a raid on a police post that the government has blamed on the Rohingya. There have been reports of rape, murder, and arson against the Muslim population in the state. On Tuesday, Human Rights Watch said evidence showed Myanmars military is behind the torching of villages belonging to the Muslims. The New York-based rights body said at least 1,500 buildings have been destroyed since October 2015 in Rakhine, home to a large number of Rohingya Muslims. Since the crackdown began, the government is refusing to allow aid agencies and media into the troubled region. Rakhine has been the scene of communal violence at the hands of Buddhist extremists since 2012. Hundreds of people have been killed and tens of thousands have been forced from homes. The government denies full citizenship to the 1.1 million-strong population, branding them illegal immigrants from Bangladesh despite the fact that most of the Rohingya have an ancient lineage in Myanmar. The fresh spate of violence has triggered international condemnation, with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak denouncing Suu Kyi for allowing genocide under her administration. After a weeklong trial, a Lancaster County jury Friday found a 22-year-old man guilty of three felonies for his part in a daytime shootout in May. Trevor Groves admitted being in the 5400 block of Benton Street at the time, but he took the stand and denied he was one of three shooters. He said he heard gunshots and saw a black man in a black shirt with a gun running and got in his car to get out of there. "Did you have a gun in your hand that day?" defense attorney Korey Reiman asked him. "Did you fire a gun?" Groves answered no to both. Lincoln police didn't find him with a gun or any physical evidence tying him to the crime, but two witnesses placed him at the scene, including one who has known him since junior high. So did one of the men shooting at him. Lebron Benson, 38, testified as part of a deal with prosecutors. In closing arguments Thursday, Deputy Lancaster County Attorney Dan Packard said Groves was upset with Benson. "This is all because Mr. Groves wants to even a score with Mr. Benson," he said. At about 1:45 p.m. May 10, 911 calls started coming in about men shooting at each other. Packard said the shootout happened outside of a cluster of four-plex apartment buildings and that four to six shots, maybe more, were fired. The incident started in the front yard, he said, and when Benson realized he was being shot at he ran to the backyard. A .45-caliber bullet was found lodged in the yard, like one found lodged in a car Groves had borrowed; and two air conditioning units had been hit in the crossfire. No one was hit, but the shooting led to a lockdown two blocks away at Dawes Middle School. Reiman said the trial came down to the testimony of Benson, who came to Lincoln to hide from law enforcement looking for him on a 2006 homicide in Tennessee. Benson, he said, hung out at a drug dealer's house smoking pot all day. "That's the state's star witness," he said in closing arguments. Packard countered with this: "Crimes conceived in hell don't have angels as witnesses." He said Groves lied to police because he didn't think the neighbors would have the courage to come forward. But they did. And he asked the jury to find him guilty of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, attempted first-degree assault and use of a firearm to commit a felony. Following the jury's verdicts, Groves is looking at a minimum of eight years in prison for the crimes. Benson's brother, Demetrius Withers, also is charged in connection with the shootout and is awaiting trial. Ann Hunter-Pirtle says her education at Lincoln East High School put her on a trajectory to do what she wanted in the world. That has, so far, included earning undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, spending two years in France, first to study then to teach, then going to Washington -- and ultimately working in the White House. Now its brought her back to Nebraska to advocate on behalf of that public school education she received. I just believe passionately in the education I got in Nebraska, and Id put it up against any East Coast prep school any day, she said. Hunter-Pirtle is the executive director of a new nonprofit called Stand For Schools created to advance public education in the state. Incorporated in June, the organization will counter a push -- one that includes support of Gov. Pete Ricketts -- to authorize charter schools in Nebraska. Another nonprofit called Educate Nebraska was organized in 2013 to promote charter schools in the state. Its executive director, Kate Linehan, is an Omaha native who has worked in state politics and as a legislative aid. She earned a law degree from the University of Nebraska and has taught at Success Academy Charter School in Harlem, New York, at a school in South Korea and with Girls Inc. in Omaha. Hunter-Pirtle, who graduated from East in 2005 and with an undergraduate degree from UNL in 2009, first went to Washington to intern in then-Sen. Ben Nelsons office. That led to an internship at the White House, then a job there with the Council on Environmental Quality. After returning to Nebraska to finish her masters at UNL, she took a speech-writing job with the Environmental Protection Agency. In February, while Hunter-Pirtle was at the EPA and shortly after hundreds gathered on the steps of the Nebraska state Capitol for a school choice rally, she wrote an opinion piece for the Journal Star. In it, she took aim at charter school supporters including Ricketts, the conservative Platte Institute, Sen. Bob Krist and Educate Nebraska, saying the charter school effort is an attempt to open the door for public dollars to be used toward private tuition and private gain. That letter led to a number of conversations with public education advocates, and ultimately to her decision to leave Washington to run the nonprofit in Nebraska. The groups primary focus will be on community engagement, particularly making sure community groups and policymakers understand the quality of Nebraskas school system and the importance of continuing to invest in public education, she said. It will complement other efforts, such as the grant-funded Nebraska Loves Public Schools, which produces videos about the programs and people. She said Stand For Schools also would advocate for making public schools stronger by expanding early childhood education, career education and before- and after-school programs. Hunter-Pirtle's father, Pat, is a longtime Lincoln Public Schools administrator. During her first months, Hunter-Pirtle said shes traveled the state to talk to community groups about Nebraska's public schools and the need to continue investing in them. Although President-elect Donald Trump has nominated billionaire school choice advocate Betsy Devos for U.S. Education Secretary, Hunter-Pirtle said theres still great support for public schools in Nebraska. I think its really important for states to retain the right to make their own decisions about education, she said. Parents, teachers and policymakers in Nebraska know what Nebraska needs more than bureaucrats in Washington. Colombo to become a smart city with Microsofts digitisation roadmap By Duruthu Edirimuni Chandrasekera View(s): View(s): The worlds cities are ballooned at the seams, public assets are stressed and crime is tougher than ever to monitor. One of the main aims for public agencies has become to protect the countrys citizens, mitigate disasters, reduce crime and build more secure and resilient nations. As it stands, most video surveillance and CCTV equipment are clumsy at battling crime. This is especially true in Sri Lanka with police investigations often hampered by such issues which leave them helpless. Now more than ever, national agencies dealing in Public Safety ((PS) and National Security (NS) are gearing to leave behind archaic processes, disparate systems and paper-based methods, moving towards a digital and a more mobile future. This is so true for Sri Lanka which is struggling with PS and NS environment and is so much more exposed to terrorism, non- traditional threats, national disasters human trafficking, weapons trafficking and drugs. Arthur Thomas Ball, Managing Director for Microsofts PS and NS business in Asia, says that Sri Lanka needs new technology to counter this. In town earlier this month for a conference on PS and NS hosted by Microsoft for the industry, Mr. Ball said that todays landscape provides more opportunities than ever before for state organisations to protect citizens, empower personnel, and optimise operations. He told the Business Times that as an emerging market where PS and NS are not digitally connected, Microsoft wants to play a role in Sri Lanka in this space. As the country gets digital connectivity, the need to get PS and NS systems right cannot be overstated. People will not use technology they dont trust. Key procedures such as financial payments, social services, education, healthcare, public safety and intellectual property of state agencies would all rely on the technology resilience thats being created, he said elaborating that its essential for the government to ensure PS and NS is focused across their ministries and agencies. Noting that right technology gives state sector agencies a precise overview in crisis situations, he said that PS and NS systems are now more a necessity. He added that in this PS and NS realm, state agencies can also gain from improved information flows to react more competently and successfully in serious situations. How this is exactly done is by deploying digital technologies to mine data and use new data to acquire intelligence and drive decision making while alleviating resource constraints and managing security with technology. Mr. Ball said that for example, police and the military can identify and depict data related to national security. He said that Microsofts systems have transformed crisis and disaster management which is also a critical area in the PS space. Srikanth Kandambi, Industry Solutions Consultant for Microsofts Asia Pacific Public Sector Business, joining in the discussion added that how Microsoft does this is by using inter-connected devices, software and cloud storage systems. With Microsoft products, solutions, devices, and services and we have the opportunity to work together with national agencies to optimise their operations, transform missions and services, empower service personnel and engage the citizens they protect. Mr. Ball says that right now Microsoft has met with a few key local ministries to build a digital roadmap to transform them digitally. We had fruitful discussions with certain state agencies and ministries and will be working towards building a roadmap for digitising them. This will make Colombo a smart city, he says, adding that smart cities are, as a concept, safer cities. Mr. Ball noted that their biggest competitor in the PS and NS space is pen and paper. This is the biggest competition. People are reluctant to change. They are a creature of habit. In our increasingly connected world, he said that cooperation is critical to public safety in a bid to rise to the challenges of globalisation and digitisation. Crisis in the house that (Tatas) Jamsetji built By Jagath C. Savanadasa View(s): View(s): The dramatic October 25 announcement by the board of Tata Sons, the flagship of the Tata Group, that it had sacked Cyrus Mistry, its Chairman, was sensational news that shocked the Indian corporate sector not to mention such sectors of many countries. Tatas operate in over 100 countries the world over. Mr. Mistry (52) an Irish passport holder, was appointed four years ago. But he had served on the main Tata board, is a Tata shareholder and also heads several of its listed units. On the other hand his family, the Pallonjis own one-fifth of Tata Sons. Thus he is a powerful figure in this gigantic Indian business combine. One thing that cannot quite be comprehended is that despite all that experience and also the power he wielded, what induced Tatas to launch a worldwide search for a successor to Ratan Tata (who is easily one of Indias most respected business leaders) when he retired as chair of Tata Sons in 2012. The reasons adduced for Mistrys dismissal he failed to deliver and Tatas began to feel the pinch of some of his actions. As we go on let us examine this. The Tatas, Indias largest and most diversified business organisation is also one of the countrys most admired. The groups performance is sort of a barometer of Indias economic health and fortunes and a broad outlook of positivity emanating from Tatas is considered favourable even from a national perspective. Of course it could also be the other way round. Tatas was founded by Jamsetji Tata in 1869 who was the first into textile manufacture and later on to the manufacture of iron and steel. Tata Iron and Steel in Jamshedpur in due course expanded by leaps and bounds and in the process also changed Indias industrial landscape. Steel as Jamsetji is said to have learned in England was like gold for a developing country like India was by the 19th century. Jamsetji was succeeded by his nephew Jehangir Tata who steered the ship of Tatas for long years during which period it went on to reach mammoth proportions in industrial production. It established manufacturing enterprises in all parts of India and its production range reached almost every household. Ratan Tata Ratan Tata (now 78 years old) succeeded J.R.D or Jehangir Tata and not only continued the momentum of growth but added new vigour into the massive organisation. He was indeed, its principal agent of change and diversification. Towards the later years under his helm Tatas entered the modern phase of industry and services. It was thus into the era of globalisation in which technology was to play a vital role in industrial progress. Indian correspondent of the Island newspaper S. Venkat Narayan quoting Mukund Rajan, member Executive Council of Tata Sons, and its brand custodian, notes that it was Ratan Tatas vision that was the key to the groups march and ascendancy. Rajan further comments that at the turn of the present century, the group had a relatively small market cap, which was just under US$6 billion but it added $100 billion plus by 31st March 2015. Market capitalisation of the Tata group had reached $134 billion and it had a presence in 100 countries and direct employment afforded to some 600,000 people by end March last year. Ambitious Plans Rajan had disclosed that Tatas planned to be among the 25 most admired corporate and employee brands in the world by the year 2040. Within its ambitious drive to be a global corporate power-house it envisaged a market capitalisation that could be compared to the 25 most valuable companies in the world, with its worth reaching $250 billion. India into economic liberalisation Looking back briefly into history, since 1992 India gradually embraced economic liberalisation and began integration with the global economy. It was not an impressive change at the start and was painfully slow. But it yet did a world of good and was Indias launch pad into modernism. The dawn of comprehension of the realities of the modern age which was capitalised on by Tatas rested on Ratan Tata, a product of US education at the eminent Stanford University where he studied architecture. It was Ratan Tata who made the difference. Tatas progress could also be a phenomenon largely prevalent in the moderate industrial world mergers and acquisitions. Today such mergers and acquisitions are to a degree common and usually they are vertical mergers or acquisitions. This implies that a firm in a particular industry would prefer to merge or acquire a similar or identical industry than an industry that is outside their domain of activity. The most frequent mergers one comes across in the industrialised world take place between large pharmaceutical manufacturers. Coming back to Tatas and to their acquisitions which have contributed to their rapid progress, they successfully bought over, Tetley, JDL and Corus all of British origin, to go global. And Rajan ventures to state that Tatas will continue with such a policy in their march towards reaching new heights as a multinational. Multinationals: Crisis-prone? Several large international firms are however affected by different forms of industrial illnesses or failures resulting in their being plunged into repeated crisis. Recently, the German car manufacturer, Volkswagen suffered a grave crisis when its new vehicles were found to be flawed by the purchasers and were returned to the manufacturer. The damage caused resulted in the loss of billions of dollars besides the image bashing that it had to counter. Toyota too suffered a similar fate which led to its vehicles in foreign markets being recalled, causing serious financial losses to it and its reputation tarnished. In such instances the brand value conceptually the biggest marketing instrument suffers as the mindset of the buyers and their faith in a brand is seriously affected. In another direction British pharmaceutical manufacturer Glaxo Smith Kline (GSK) was imposed a huge fine for selling an anti-depressant drug for the young that was found to be completely different to what it claimed to be. The $3.05 billion fine that was slapped on the firm was one of the biggest in the history of pharmaceutical industry. Such episodes do cause serious damage to companies reputation and standing in the international market and even effect share transactions in an adverse manner. Tatas and the Corus affair Similarly, though in a different direction, Tatas faced a critical situation when it decided to close its recently acquired UK-based steel operations Corus. That created a furore in the British business and industrial circles. Above any other factor the loss of employment to some 7000 became a grave issue to the British administration. On the other hand it is relevant that the steel industry in Europe continuously faces critical times. Steel consuming construction activity depends to a substantial degree on the overall health of the economics of nations. With the economic downturn of many nations within the EU, steel manufacturers were beset with problems largely based on the demand factor. Lakshmi Mittal and steel It may be recalled at this stage that another Indian business tycoon Lakshmi Mittal is widely known as the Steel King. He is based in London. In a scintillating career in steel in which his family, the Mittals, have gone global, Lakshmi Mittals pet penchant for expansion was the acquisition of steel plants in Europe that were on the sick list and restore their operations. But he came up against a virtual pan-European resistance when he made a bid to acquire Arcelor, the giant European steel manufacturer. Indeed the European Parliament was concerned that a non-European had bid to take over their venerable enterprise. But Lakshmi Mittal won the day ultimately. And now you find that Arcelor-Mittals is one of the biggest steel firms in the world. Tatas crisis in Bangladesh But to return to Tatas, a few years ago it faced another crisis. This time it was in neighbouring Bangladesh. For a long time Tatas was planning to establish a huge electricity plant in Bangladesh but during the final phase of their plans for the $2.5 billion investment it came up against big barriers and this made them give up the project. Tata-Nano motor car plant Another venture of Tatas that failed to take off was the Nano motor car manufacturing project that it had planned to establish in Bhopal. But the project failed on account of environmental factors in which the people in Bhopal were involved. This was yet another big crisis that Tatas confronted a few years ago. All these took place during the time Cyrus Mistry was Chairman. Tata stocks Just a day after the latest crisis the Tatas confronted, following the removal of Cyrus Mistry, Tata stocks stumbled. Shares of Tata Steel one of the groups oldest entities went down by 2.89 per cent, Tata Motors by 1.7 per cent and the giant IT operation, Tata Consultancy Services was down by 0.75 per cent. Contributing towards Mistrys dismissal was also perhaps his failure to bring about a settlement in regard to a long running dispute with NTT DoCoMo, the Japanese Mobile Phone manufacturer which is demanding an arbitration based payment of $1.7 billion awarded to it following an international hearing. All these developments are likely to dent Tatas international reputation, at least temporarily. The latest in this acrimonious affair relates to Mistry hitting back with counter claims relating to the failure of governance by the main Tata Board, which he says has eroded billions of dollars in shareholder value. He also claims interference by Ratan Tata. The row which is very rare at this level of Indias corporate life so much so that it led to the aides of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging Tatas to act with restraint since it could damage the reputation of Tatas, the undisputed leader of Indian business and its oldest. Mistrys blistering communication in this regard which had gone viral has evoked an equally nasty response from Tatas who say that Mistrys correspondence marks unsubstantiated claims and malicious allegations. Also Tatas responding to Mistrys five-page letter says that it will be replied to in an appropriate manner. Mistry states that Ratan Tata and the board of Tata Sons had failed to give him room and that Ratan had acted as an alternate power centre. He cites the case of Ratan driving deals to create two airline businesses. More damaging was Mistrys accusation that Tata Motors extended credit to add to sales, and that when some fraudulent dealings with Air Asia surfaced the response to forestall it was not quick enough. Some workers at Tatas, it has emerged, are deeply upset by the treatment meted out to Cyrus Mistry. It is further reported by Reuters that three senior executives have resigned from the firm following this explosive situation. There is now speculation that the accusations and counter accusations will lead to a legal battle. The crisis, unfortunately for Tatas and Indian business in general continues with shareholders awaiting a return to normalcy. (The writer was one time CEO of a prestigious chamber of commerce and Economic Advisor to another federated institution of chambers. He is a former C Plan, U.N, USIS Scholar who has authored books and also articles on trade and international affairs.) Fonterra partners with NADeP to empower rural smallholder dairy farmer families View(s): Fonterra Brands Sri Lanka (Anchor), has partnered with the National Agribusiness Development Programme (NADeP) to help Sri Lankan smallholder dairy farmer families to improve farm productivity and profitability through a Rs. 28.5 million project. NADeP is implemented by the Development and Special Projects Division under the Presidential Secretariat of Sri Lanka and funded by the International Fund for Agricultural Development. It aims to contribute to poverty eradication and promote sustainable livelihoods for rural Sri Lankan farmers, Fonterra said in a media release. Director of NADeP, Dr. (Ms.) Yasantha Mapatuna said At NADeP, we realised that the most effective method in achieving our purpose of helping Sri Lankan smallholder farmers become profitable and self-reliant, would be to partner with the companies that purchase their produce. Our unique approach involves connecting the industry expertise and competencies of companies such as Fonterra with the dairy farmers at a grass roots level, helping them to improve on farm productivity, resulting in better income and livelihood, she further added. As part of the projects first stage, 200 farmer families in Doluwa, Wilaththawa and Gampaha will receive a 50 per cent grant to invest in grass choppers and milking machines which are critical to building economically sustainable dairy farming families. An impact assessment revealed that the grants could help achieve an increase in milk volumes per farm and subsequent enhanced farmer profitability. Managing Director of Fonterra Brands Sri Lanka, Sunil Sethi said that, through this partnership we will be able to provide our farmer suppliers with the tools they need to reach their maximum potential and encourage them to employ a more entrepreneurial mind-set, which is key to individual and industry development. Fonterras Supplier Relationship Officers (SROs) have already played a key role in the programme by identifying farmer requirements and selecting the farmers that will receive the grant. Through their extensive industry expertise, Fonterras SROs will monitor, guide and support the farmers for the two year project period, and report on the improvements achieved. Hambantota JV deal with China triggers legal issue By Bandula Sirimanna View(s): View(s): The US$1.12 billion Hambantota port joint venture deal with a Chinese firm is set to trigger a legal issue as relevant legislation needs to be amended before handing over the port management to a private company, legal experts claimed. Sri Lanka will enter into a joint venture agreement with China Merchants Port Holdings Company (CMPHC) Ltd to develop and manage the port by early next month. The cabinet approved a plan under which Sri Lanka will lease 80 per cent of the Hambantota port to Hong Kong-based Chinese company for 99 years, a government document showed, with the balance 20 per cent to be held by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA). The main functions as port owner, operator, regulator and navigator as well as other services like berthing, tugging, loading, unloading and transporting ships now being handled by the SLPA are to be handed over to the CHMPC under the JV. However these changes cannot be made without amending the SLPA Act, a senior official at the Attorney Generals Department said adding that before entering into the relevant JV agreement the Act should be amended with parliamentary approval after seeking the legal opinion of the AG. Once a 99 lease agreement is signed and all conditions have been fulfilled or waved it becomes a binding contract between the SLPA and CHMPC which cannot be amended unless both parties approve the changes, he disclosed. It is unclear whether the amendments would include the role of who owns and manages the harbour. While ports are managed by private parties, harbours are generally under the control of a state as it involves national security, one expert said. CHMPC will make a $5 million payment as a security deposit after signing the agreement on January 7, 2017, officials said. The move follows an offer made by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe during a visit to China in April, to swap equity in Sri Lankan infrastructure projects against some of the $8 billion in debt the country owes to China. The PM has made several public statements in several occasions claiming that Hambantota Port deal and other infrastructure project agreements would be signed with Chinese companies to swap equity. He also announced before parliament on October 27 that deals have been secured with China to run the Hambantota deep sea port and Mattala International Airport as public-private-partnerships (PPP) that will be driven by debt-for-equity swaps. Central Bank Governor Dr. Indrajith Coomaraswamy told journalists on November 27 that Sri Lanka is expecting payments from China for the sale of Hambantota port to flow in from January 2017. The first payment of US$ 108 million is expected in January, another $300 million in March and the balance around June, he said adding however that this money would be used for (general) debt servicing in the country. Confirming this statement, Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake told a media conference on Thursday that this money will be put into the consolidated fund and it will use to pay high interest debts amounting to $736 million. He categorically stated that the Hambantota port joint venture deal was not a debt-for-equity swap. Economic experts expressed surprise on the governments 360 degree turn from the PMs earlier stance, adding that the country would have been able to get a better deal if they went for international bids. No doubt the Government would have got much more in the event if they had called worldwide bids. DP World Dubai would have been an ideal partner as they keep investing in the region. Further instead of wasting two years criticising the previous regime, the current administration should have got into business with a proper strategy in marketing and developing the port with the private sector. The strategic location itself has been undervalued, a shipping logistics expert, said. At least three local companies John Keells Holdings, Aitken Spence and Hayleys had earlier applied to operate the bunker and vehicle terminals at Hambantota Port after proposals were called by the Government. But all these have been given to the Chinese (lock, stock and barrel) without even an explanation to these parties, the expert said. The Chinese debt trap over Sri Lankas economy has been tightened with its stranglehold over the countrys strategic assets. According to Treasury data, the total debt of Sri Lanka is about $70 billion, of which over $8 billion is owned to China. Over 95 per cent of total government revenue goes for loan repayments with more than 1/3 used to service Chinese debt. IMF warns of impending challenges against Sri Lankas reforms By Bandula Sirimanna View(s): View(s): Sri Lankan Government continues to face many challenges in implementing its ambitious economic reform agenda despite the International Monetary Funds (IMF) Extended Fund Facility (EFF), IMF officials warned. Releasing the IMF first review under the EFF, they noted that the political challenge of tax reformsVAT and income taxeshas been and will remain a policy risk for Sri Lanka. Despite firm financing assurances from the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and key bilateral donors that are in place for an additional sum of US$650 million during 201618, the balance of payment risks may necessitate further adjustment or additional financing, the IMF review report revealed. Key risks to the governments economic reforms are revenue slippage or failure to implement key revenue-related reforms; weaker than expected capital inflows or a reversal of capital flows lower than expected growth and/or new pressures on the trade account; and larger than expected losses at State owned Enterprises (SOE) and lack of progress in SOE reforms, the IMF report said. The IMF assessment found that the Central Bank (CB) Monetary Law Act (MLA) falls short of international practices, especially in the areas of the banks autonomy and aspects of its governance arrangements (e.g., the governments voting representation in the Monetary Board, absence of recapitalisation provisions, and inadequate limits on credit to government). These issues are to be addressed in the near future with technical assistance from the IMF. Legal reforms would also provide an opportunity to review the CBs mandate in non-core operations (e.g., agent for public debt management and manager of the National Employees Provident Fund) that pose reputation risks to the bank. The assessment also noted a need to clarify the treatment of foreign exchange swaps with domestic banks. Given the large external liabilities and vulnerability to external debt pressure, the authorities should accumulate official international reserves mainly through direct purchases from the FX market, eschewing the reliance on foreign exchange swaps with commercial banks, the IMF has suggested. Addressing the Sri Lankan media in Colombo via video conferencing from Washington last week, IMF Mission Chief, Jaewoo Lee said, the governments reform programme, supported by the IMF, aims to reduce the fiscal deficit, rebuild foreign exchange reserves, and introduce a simpler, more equitable tax system to restore macroeconomic stability and promote inclusive growth. He disclosed that economic growth will be 4.5 per cent and 4.8 per cent for 2016 and 2017 respectively and it is slightly below the over 5.0 per cent growth projected by the CB. The new Inland Revenue Act scheduled for early next year should result in a more efficient, transparent, and broad-based tax system, he said adding that complementary structural reforms in tax administration, public financial management, and the governance. The IMF has completed its first review of the EFF with Sri Lanka and approved $162.6 million disbursement bringing total disbursements under the arrangement so far to around $325.1 million. Sri Lankas three-year extended arrangement was approved on June 3, 2016 in an amount of $1.5 billion. Kaspersky -Avian Technologies presents Kaspersky Internet Security 2017 version View(s): Kaspersky Lab has presented the new version of its flagship security solution Kaspersky Internet Security 2017 with Multi Device protection, which provided users with additional opportunities to manage their Internet protection and to ensure data safety. Kaspersky Internet Security 2017 Multi Device security solution is for the whole family; they protect Windows, Mac, and Android users against malware, dangerous sites, online tracking, fraud and money theft, according to a company media release. This year Kaspersky Lab products for Windows have integrated several new functions including new features wherein, users can patch potential holes in their device security with Software Updater and Software Cleaner. Altaf Halde, Managing Director South Asia, Kaspersky Lab said Sri Lanka is growing at a fast pace in the digital world and so it needs digital security. At Kaspersky Lab we strive to protect everything of value to our users from cybercriminals, hackers and malware writers. People are now more conscious about security and they are careful with their digital assets; we believe that our new product line will ensure that our users enjoy their computing experience. The new product line has become more powerful and has been further enhanced to ensure users privacy and security. Board Directors of Avian Technologies Ranil Francisco and Buddhika Liyanage said Avian Technologies alliance with Kaspersky Lab runs back to almost a decade, a partnership which has ensured latest IT Security solutions to the rapidly growing ICT industry in Sri Lanka. We are proud to be launching the Kaspersky Internet Security 2017 version with Multi Device Security protection. Having established itself over 10 years ago, with the goal to maintain the most robust, reliable services and solutions for the industry, Avian Technologies stands as the leader of the IT Security industries of Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Avian Technologies is the only technology company to have a 24/7 hotline for professional sales and technical support in Sri Lanka, and a wide distribution network with over 300 re-sellers island wide. The two new functions included in the latest version are the Software Updater and Software Cleaner, both developed to ensure protection and speed in the devices. Lankan investment banker faces charges in US court I will comply with the law to the letter, says Rienzi Edwards View(s): View(s): US authorities this week filed indictment in a Washington court against six persons including Sri Lankas Rienzi Edwards on charges of swindling investors to the tune of over US$50 million, but the Colombo-based investment banker has vigorously rejected the accusations. In the first place, no one has informed me from the US or the US embassy (here) of these charges. Furthermore I am (only) an investment banker and advise clients (from many parts of the world). Investment bankers dont invest, he told the Business Times in a telephone response on Thursday. He is the second Sri Lankan to be indicted by US Attorney Preet Bharara in recent times after the high profile 2011 indictment of Raj Rajaratnam. Colombo and the stockmarket were buzzing with the news on Wednesday that Mr. Edwards and five others had been indicted by the Manhattan US Attorney in an international high-yield investment fraud scheme. They are alleged to have impersonated Federal Reserve officials between June 2013 and August 2016 and swindled over $50 million from investors in the US and foreign countries. Mr. Edwards said he didnt know the other accused, four of whom have been arrested. I dont know them, he said. On Friday, asked whether he would respond, if any, to the summons to appear in a US court and whether his lawyers would intervene, he said: Yes, my USA lawyers will definitely intervene and I will do whatever my lawyers advise me to do with regards to going to the USA, etc. I will comply by the law to the letter. The indictment is contained in the US Government Justice department website: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/manhattan-us-attorney-announces-charges-against-six-individuals-international-high The US embassy, asked whether extradition proceedings would be sought against the Sri Lankan investment banker, said the embassy does not comment on ongoing investigations. Mr. Edwards has extensive real estate assets in Sri Lanka, owns a group of boutique hotels here and is connected to several powerful present and former ministers. He is owner of the former Asha Central property down Horton Place and is in negotiations to invite an international chain hotel there, in addition to being a race horse owner. He is listed in his website as a philanthropist. Last year, the passports of Mr. Edwards and his wife were impounded during an FCID Sri Lanka investigation over alleged money laundering charges. Mr. Edwards said on Thursday that the case was subsequently withdrawn in the Magistrates Court in December 2015. He said he was made aware of the US charges only after the Business Times on Thursday sent him a copy of the indictment appearing in the US Justice Department website. People were saying there was something against me but I didnt know about it until now. In the first place this indictment is misplaced because I am only an advisor to overseas clients, not an investor, Mr. Edwards, who has been accused of being the ring-leader in this fraud, said. The announcement said that Mr. Bharara along with other US federal agents had filed an indictment charging six defendants with conspiracy, wire fraud, impersonation of Federal Reserve Bank of New York officials, money laundering, and other crimes in connection with a fraudulent high-yield investment scheme that resulted in the theft of over $50 million from investors in the US and around the world. Edwards and his co-defendants allegedly concocted and carried out an audacious scam, promising investors exponential returns on investments they claimed were overseen by the New York Federal Reserve and backed by the US government. In reality, it was all a lie; there was no government-backed program and no plan to invest, only an alleged plan to steal the investors money, Mr. Bharara, regarded as the Justice Departments most powerful prosecutor, has said. Using forged and counterfeit Federal Reserve documents, these individuals allegedly orchestrated a complex international scheme that cost unwitting investors both here and abroad over $50 million dollars. This indictment shows the great length that criminals will go to steal the money of hard working individuals. HSI is up to the challenge to uncover these schemes and bring the participants to justice, the indictment read. It said from at least June 2013 through August 2016, Rienzi Edwards, Michael Jacobs, Ruby Handler-Jacobs, F.K. Ho, Lawrence Lester, and Rachel Gendreau orchestrated and executed a fraudulent high-yield investment program known as the Cities Upliftment Program, or CUP, which the defendants falsely told investors was operated by the New York Fed. The scheme was principally designed and operated by Edwards, with the assistance of Jacobs and Handler-Jacobs, and was marketed to investors around the world through brokers, including Ho, Lester, and Gendreau. Jacobs, Handler-Jacobs, Lester and Gendreau were arrested separately in the US while Edwards and Ho are currently at large, the notice said. Edwards, 55, of Sri Lanka, Jacobs, 64, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Handler-Jacobs, 64, of Albuquerque, New Mexico are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of wire fraud, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison; one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and two counts of money laundering, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; one count of conducting monetary transactions in unlawful funds, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison; one count of conspiracy to impersonate employees of the US, which carries a maximum sentence of five years; one count of impersonating employees of the US, which carries a maximum sentence of three years; and aggravated identity theft, which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison. Ho, 80, of Singapore, Lester, 71, of Washington, and Gendreau, 46, of Illinois, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of wire fraud, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison; and one count of aggravated identity theft, which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison. In addition, Ho is charged with one count of conspiracy to impersonate employees of the US, which carries a maximum sentence of five years; and one count of impersonating employees of the US, which carries a maximum sentence of three years. In October 2011, Rajaratnam, a Sri Lankan-American former hedge fund manager and billionaire founder of US-based Galleon Group, was found guilty on all 14 counts of conspiracy and securities fraud in US court and sentenced to 11 years in prison and fined a criminal and civil penalty of over $150 million combined. Strengthening the legal framework of Sri Lankas financial markets By Dinesh Ranasinghe FCMA, CFA, LLM View(s): View(s): A robust legal framework is the nucleus of a healthy financial market. The corruption and scandals that have seeped into Sri Lankas financial markets have dealt severe blows to the integrity and reputation of the markets. The country as a whole will have to pay dearly for these, as potential investors will shun the market, creating a shortage of investments and thereby impeding economic growth. When a prominent business personality claims that insider dealing is happening in Sri Lanka and is an acceptable practice, and when there are billion-rupee market scandals, this should ring immediate alarm bells with the authorities. This is not just a matter of an individual making a huge profit, but puts the future of the country at stake. Hence, the authorities will have to take immediate action to strengthen the legal framework surrounding the financial markets, to assure investors that the system is fair and just. Traditional crime vs financial crime Traditional criminal law is different from financial criminal law. The objective of traditional criminal law is to deter obvious crimes such as murder and theft, and to punish those who commit them. Generally, traditional criminal law acts retrospectively. It reacts to a crime that has actually been committed. It is very narrowly defined, and is laid out in black and white so that the public is aware of the exact acts that are deemed to be criminal. Financial criminal law, on the other hand, has the same objectives as traditional criminal law but also has the macroeconomic objectives of maintaining the integrity of the market and achieving wider economic goals. Insider trading, money laundering and market manipulation are some examples of financial crime. The taboos surrounding financial crime or other white collar crimes are not as obvious as those surrounding traditional crimes. For instance, using insider information (price sensitive information that is not made public) to make a quick profit on the stock market is, essentially, stealing from other investors. It is not judged to be as dreadful as murder, but nonetheless society has classified it as a crime because it involves taking advantage of other participants in the market by selling or buying at an inappropriate price. Consequences of financial crime Financial crime has wider negative economic effects that are not generally understood by the law makers and the general public. Those who break financial laws take advantage of the honest hard work of other market participants. If, for example, an investor learns from a company insider about a huge upcoming dividend, he can buy shares before other investors and make a profit. Such actions create an imbalance between market participants, enabling some to cheat and make a profit at the expense of others. If this trend continues, investors will get disheartened and shy away from the market, resulting in fewer investors, less investment and higher funding costs and ultimately to sluggish economic growth. Burden of proof It is very rarely that people are punished for financial crimes, and there are many reasons for this. Sometimes society does not see such crimes as being as immoral as murder or theft. Sometimes financial crime is seen as a victimless crime; for instance, it is hard to point to a victim of insider dealing. Also, traditional police and judicial systems are not equipped to monitor sophisticated financial markets. However, the main struggle for the financial criminal law is proving criminality. This has always been difficult, as there should be overwhelming evidence to prove that the accused is guilty beyond reasonable doubt. Regulatory reinforcement To address this flaw in the financial law, regulators should be present to police the financial markets. Regulators should treat unethical behaviour as illegal and bring civil proceedings, for which the burden of proof is lower than the burden of proving that the culprit is guilty beyond reasonable doubt. Direction or wishful thinking? The authorities can learn a lesson from the longest sentence handed down for insider trading in the US to well-known Sri Lanka-born billionaire Raj Rajaratnam. To curb financial crime, promote ethical behaviour and improve the integrity of the financial markets, it is imperative that the financial criminal law and the financial regulators fulfil their functions. If this does not materialise, in the absence of a setting that is conducive to investment, Sri Lanka will remain a Third World country for a prolonged time. However, unfortunately, given the current political state in which high-powered individuals who commit crimes get away scot free, a strong legal framework might be simply wishful thinking. White elephant project in Hambantota SOLD By Shennal Angunawela View(s): View(s): Politicians called the port and the airport a white elephant project, for political gains without having any knowledge about the strategic location of these projects. It is obvious that the geographical position of the port will play a vital role in determining the volume and types of cargo which can be handled in the port. The reason why a port has been chosen for the handling of certain traffic or for a new investment is because of what the port can offer. The investor knows every aspect of the port in the nautical, technical as well as in commercial fields. The Chinese knew the value from the very beginning that this location of the port could be transformed into profitable ventures. Having criticised the previous regime, the current government or Sri Lanka Ports Authority, Airport Authority of Sri Lanka did not have a strategic marketing and a development plan to make the port and the airport a profitable venture last two years which resulted in selling 80 per cent of the port. The Hambantota port, geographically located in the worlds busiest shipping routes between the East and the West and Mattala airport located just 20 minutes away by bonded trucking route from the port, is an ideal location for a sea/air hub and a Free Trade Zone (FTZ) which is very similar to Jebel Ali port Free zone and Dubai World Centre (DWC) airport in Dubai, UAE. Today Dubais success is thriving on being a significant player in the international trading and transport logistics. The Sri Lankan government should have initiated a strategy with the private sector in developing the port and an industrial zone. Hambantota is an ideal location for a special economic zone, distribution, bunkering, inner anchorage services and a sea-air multi-model transport hub and containerisation with a cost effective transport mode that provides considerable savings in transit time and freight cost than Dubai. With the Chinese investment, Hambantota would be the future port in Sri Lanka as most ships may dock in Hambantota. Mattala Airport, development of the express way to Hambantota, development of railway to Hambantota (government should fast track these express way and railway project) will create a freight corridor which is a powerful proposition for a logistics hub well into the future. Airports are now key nodes in global economy, serving as engines of local economic development. In short these two port and the airport development should go hand in hand for sustainable smart growth in Hambantota. (The writer is a shipping logistics professional based in Dubai. He could be reached at shennal @acrdxb.com) Balance of payments surplus as increased remittances and tourist earnings offset large trade deficit View(s): Despite a large trade deficit in the first eight months of this year, the current account of the balance of payments is in surplus by US$ 1.5 billion. Increased workers remittances together with higher tourist earnings during the first eight months exceeded the trade deficit to achieve this current account surplus. Trade balance Central Bank of Sri Lanka data disclose that the trade deficit increased by 1.6 percent to US$ 5.54 billion in the first eight months of the year (January to August 2016), compared to the same period last year. However, owing to increased remittances from Sri Lankans working abroad and higher earnings from tourism, this large trade deficit has been more than offset to achieve a current account balance of payments surplus of US$ 1.5 billion. Although the trade deficit increased by 1.6 percent from US$ 5.45 billion to US$ 5.54 billion in the first eight months, it was offset by remittances and tourist earnings of US$ 7.05 billion to result in a current account surplus of US$ 1.5 billion. Workers remittances amounted to US$ 4.8 billion, while tourist earnings contributed US$ 2.2 billion. Balance of payments By the end of the year the current account in the balance of payments is likely to be in surplus by over US$ 2 billion owing to the large amount of remittances and increased tourist earnings. In contrast to a massive overall balance of payments deficit of US$ 1,794.5 million in the first eight months of last year, the overall balance of payments is in surplus by US$ 211.5 million. A modest overall balance of payments surplus could be expected this year. Export performance The export performance for the first 8 months was unsatisfactory. Export earnings declined by 4.1 percent from US$ 7.2 billion in the first 8 months of last year to US$ 6.9 billion in the same period this year. Since last years export performance was itself inadequate and led to a massive trade deficit of US$ 8.4 billion, export earnings in the first eight months of this year are considerably inadequate. In contrast, import expenditure decreased by only 1.6 percent to as much as US$ 12.4 billion in the first 8 months of this year. Trade deficit This years trade deficit is likely to reach a new high exceeding US$ 8.5 billion, if the revival of exports in recent months does not continue and imports are not kept in check. An improved export performance from August lends a little hope of containing the increased trade deficit and enabling a significant current account surplus this year. Export recovery There has been a modest export recovery from August this year. Exports increased in August and September compared to those during these months last year. According to statistics of the Export Development Board (EDB), exports increased in August and September. In August export earnings increased by US$ 866 million or 8.4 percent. However this increase was due to a low export figure in August 2015. In September this year export earnings at US$ 898 million were 5.7 percent higher than in the corresponding month of last year. Export earnings increased for the second consecutive month in September 2016 to US $ 898 million. This increase of 5.7 percent from a year ago, was a reversal of the decreasing trend of exports in the previous 17 months from March 2015. Also significant was the fact that all major categories of exports grew. These included transport equipment, food, beverages and tobacco and rubber products. There were increased export earnings in fish, textiles and several manufactures since August this year. Tea and rubber earnings too have increased in these two months. If this trend continues, the trade deficit that has increased in the first eight months may dip a little, provided the decline in imports by 1.2 percent in the first eight months continues and does not increase owing to the higher end year import demand. Despite this improvement, total exports declined by 3.0 percent to US $ 7.76 billion during the nine months to September. Closing comment Once again workers remittances have buttressed the countrys poor trade performance to assist in achieving a current account surplus in the balance of payments. The increase in tourist earnings by 16 percent to US$ 2.25 billion also contributed significantly to turn the large trade deficit into a current account surplus. These favourable developments in the external finances should not mask the weaknesses in our external trade. With exports being only 56 percent of our import expenditure, we are living beyond our means. A lower trade deficit that enables a significant balance of payments surplus is the way forward in decreasing our high foreign debt that is absorbing around one fourth our export earnings. Furthermore, both remittances and tourism are very dependent on global conditions as past experiences have taught us. Tourism could also receive a set back if there arent peaceful conditions in the country. In July 1983 as well as afterwards tourism was drastically setback by communal disturbances, terrorism and the civil war. Other countries too such as Thailand, Indonesia, Egypt and Lebanon have had similar reversals in tourism. We, who are notorious for killing the goose that lays the golden eggs, need to ensure peaceful conditions and law and order to enable the growth of tourism that is of vital importance for the economy. The improvement of external finances must not be too dependent on workers remittances. Increased earnings from other services, most importantly ICT (Information and communications technology), are the other prospect for improving export earnings. The recent uptrend in ICT exports must be fostered as there is much earnings potential. A substantial increase in export earnings is critical for a significant improvement in the countrys external finances and the reduction of the foreign debt. External Finances January August 2015 & 2016 US$ billions 2015 2016 increase/decrease percent Exports 7.2 6.9 -4.1 Imports 12.6 12.4 -1.6 Trade deficit 5.45 5.54 1.6 Workers remittances 4.6 4.8 4.5 Tourist earnings 1.94 2.25 1.6 Source: Central Bank of Sri Lanka Criminal Justice Commission likely to punish big racketeers View(s): Bipartisan group of ministers make proposals to Cabinet to expedite probe on corruption and fraud cases Central Bank bond issue also to be included Ravi proposes legislation for foreign money to be brought back,but no concessions for secret account holders By Our Political Editor A formidable section of the Cabinet of Ministers have favoured the establishment of Criminal Justice Commissions (CJCs) to punish those responsible for frauds, corruption and misuse of funds.A Joint Cabinet Memorandum handed in by them missed the agenda for Tuesdays weekly ministerial meeting but was listed as a supplement together with different other items. It was, however, not taken up for discussion since the meeting on Unduwap Poya day had extended beyond noon. President Sirisena was to assure that it would be discussed at the next meeting. That has enabled the prime mover, Dr Sarath Amunugama, Minister of Special Assignments, to seek endorsements from more ministers. At the time of hand over on December 11 (Sunday), besides Amunugama, 14 ministers had placed their signatures on the Joint Cabinet Memorandum. These ministers, who have been assured support by more colleagues, opine that the CJCs should try those accused after the findings of investigative agencies like the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), the Financial Crimes Investigations Division (FCID) and the Special Crimes Investigation Unit (SCIU) which functions under the Police Chief are completed. One of the SLFP ministers, a signatory, who spoke on grounds of anonymity, said they expected even the bond scam in the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL), to be placed before the CJC. This is on the grounds that there would be inordinate delays if indictments, if any, were made in courts. He said President Maithripala Sirisena has assured them (the SLFP Ministers) that he would institute a judicial mechanism no sooner Parliament debates the report of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) which probed the bond issue. One or two days from January 24 to 27 are to be allotted for the debate where there will be no vote when it concludes. The Joint Opposition is demanding two days. Then Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaikes Government introduced in Parliament the Criminal Justice Commission Act (No: 14 of 1972). Originally, it was the brainchild of the then Attorney General Victor Tennekoon. It was for the purpose of dealing with members of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) for the abortive April 1971 insurgency. The law then empowered the Chief Justice to name a bench of judges to try the accused and provisions were included to override the provisions of the Evidence Ordinance. Then Chief Justice H.N.G. Fernando named a five judge bench which he chaired. Hundreds of JVPers were arraigned before courts in batches. Most were pardoned whilst some were handed down suspended sentences. Only some top rung leaders were imprisoned. University students were thus able to return to their studies and a number of youth to their previous employment. Justice Fernando noted during sessions that though there were provisions to overlook the Evidence Ordinance, the Commission was not going to do so. The functioning of this CJC 1 was to inspire the then CID Director Tyrrel Goonetilleke. He lobbied Premier Bandaranaike, her senior ministers and officials to set up a CJC 2 to try those involved in exchange control offences. By then, the CID had launched investigations into a number of cases where there were violations of exchange control laws. Thus, a CJC 2, despite objections from some senior officials, came into being. Mubarak Thaha, who ran a string of night clubs including Atlanta and Tropicana was convicted. Also convicted was bookie owner A.R.M. Mukthar. They were politically associated with the UNP at the time. Some features of the CJC were arguably controversial. For instance, the burden of proof was placed on the accused. The Act says, Any finding made, or sentence imposed by a Commission under this Act shall be final and conclusive, and shall not be called in question in any court or tribunal, whether by way of action, application in revision, appeal, writ or otherwise. The CJC Act now remains repealed. This was after the enforcement of the law led to heavy pressure being brought on Premier Bandaranaike. She directed that a Criminal Justice Commissions (Repeal) Law be introduced in 1977. Hence, setting up of new CJCs will necessitate the introduction of a new Bill in Parliament, which ministers say, could incorporate more new provisions. Such provisions, they argue, should include deterrent clauses to prevent bribery and corruption from becoming a hobby of some politicians whatever political side they may belong to. Here is the full text of the 19-point Joint Cabinet Memorandum titled Tribunal to Inquire into Corruption signed so far by 15 members, or a third of the Cabinet of Ministers: 1. There is now a widespread public desire that corruption be investigated and sanctions imposed on those found guilty expeditiously and in a transparent manner compliant with the principles of natural justice. Corruption per se could lead to the infraction of the criminal law and also the contravention of commercial and civil law. 2. As such, it is imperative that a Tribunal that can deal with both these aspects be contemplated. Presently none exist within the legal framework. For instance, breaches of the criminal law are tried in a regular Court which is beset with delay. The same delay exists within the framework of the civil and administrative law. 3. The following options arise for consideration: 4. Commissions under the Criminal Justice Commissions Act No. 14 of 1972 (CJC Act) had jurisdiction over offences in relation to inter alia offences in relation to currency or foreign exchange of such nature as to endanger the national economy or interest, (Section 2 (1) ) 5. However, in dealing with the above offences the said Commissions had wide powers ranging from inquiring into the matter to imposing sanctions on those found guilty (Sections 2, 5 and 15). 6. Section 2 (2) (b) / (c) empowered the CJC to inquire and determine whether any person is guilty of such offences and to deal with the persons so found guilty or not guilty in the manner prescribed by this Act. 7. In terms of Section 15 the CJC shall make a finding that he is guilty of such offence and shall sentence him to any punishment, other than death, to which he might have been sentenced if he had been tried and convicted by the Supreme Court. 8. Moreover, these commissions also had the power to cause the arrest of any person whose custody was necessary during the pendency of the inquiry (Section 14). 9. The CJC Act was limited in duration to eight years unless extended by Parliament (vide Section 28). However, this Act was repealed in 1977 by the Criminal Justice Commissions (Repeal) Law (No. 12 of 1977) Act. 10. Thereafter, the Special Presidential Commission of Inquiry Law No. 7 of 1978 as amended by No 4 of 1978 (Special Presidential Commission of Inquiry Act- SPCI -) was enacted. 11. By contrast an SPCI duly established has very limited power in comparison with the CJC having regard to the powers vested in the CJC to impose sanctions after a finding of guilt. 12. Presidential commissions only have the power to inquire into and report upon such administration conduct or matter (Section 2). 13. An SPCI is not empowered to impose sanctions. 14. These commissions can only recommend the imposition of civic disabilities which is imposed by Parliament (Section 9). 15. A striking example is the imposition of civil disabilities on the former Prime Minister Hon. Sirimavo Bandaranaike and her expulsion from Parliament and the imposition of civic disabilities on other politicians not from the Government of the time. 16. As such, an SPCI cannot impose punishment per se which has to be after due trial by a separate Court of law. It is precisely this two tier approach which is the principal shortcoming of the SPCI. 17. Therefore, it is apparent that the model under the CJC Act together with reforms serves the public interest of having a legally established Tribunal to deal with corruption rather than having a Special Presidential Commissions of Inquiry. 18. This is because such a Tribunal could be empowered with a wider range of powers including the power to impose sanctions. Thereby, it saves resources (time and money), for an SPCI only has the power to inquire into, determine and report on matters. This necessitates the subsequent initiation of separate legal proceedings in a court of law to hear and determine if offences have been committed and thereafter impose appropriate sanctions. This will inevitably lead to protracted legal proceedings and inevitable delay which is inimical to the national and public interest. 19. In order to make this model more beneficial, the jurisdiction of the proposed Tribunal and scope of the matters which falls within the jurisdiction of these Tribunals need to be expanded to include inquiry into breaches of civil and commercial law obligations and provision of appropriate relief including imposition of monetary damages, recovery of illegal proceeds and restitution and compensation. Bipartisan support Among ministers who have signed the Joint Cabinet Memorandum besides Sarath Amunugama are: W.D.J. Seneviratne, Patali Champika Ranawaka, Rajitha Senaratne, Mahinda Amaraweera, Susil Premajayantha, Kabir Hashim (who is also General Secretary of the UNP), Ranjith Madduma Bandara, Talatha Athukorale, Faiszer Musthapha, Chandrani Bandara, Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka and Arjuna Ranatunga. In the light of the bi-partisan character the Joint Cabinet Memorandum has assumed since both SLFP and UNP ministers have signed it, and with more due to sign, highly placed Government sources believe, it would receive the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers. These sources said fresh legislation would follow thereafter. Whether provision will then be made to include violators of exchange control laws is not immediately clear. Bring money back to Sri Lanka This, as our front page story today reveals, is in the wake of Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayakes new plans to allow those holding funds in foreign banks, earned through legitimate means, to bring them to Sri Lanka. However, he said, such a concession under proposed liberalised exchange control laws will not apply to those who have stacked moneys in foreign bank accounts and have been made through questionable means. They cover not only those held in Swiss Bank accounts but also in other safe havens by Sri Lankans after they had set up offshore companies in Panama. Details of the local account holders from a wealth of data exclusively made available to the Sunday Times from Americas International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and Germanys Suddeutsche Zeitung on offshore accounts set up with the help of Mossack Fonseka, a Panamanian firm, appear in a box story on this page. The latest proposals by the group of ministers for a judicial mechanism to probe frauds, corruption and misuse of funds come during a twin phase. On the one hand, several cases of frauds, corruption and instances where public funds have been embezzled are still being probed. On the other, questions are being raised on some of the mega deals now being awarded by the Government prompting accusations of corruption within the new administration. The Joint Opposition has raised issue over some of these matters, particularly the Hambantota Port Project and the granting of 15,000 acres of land to a Chinese company for an industrial estate. The company in question plans to install its own power generating system to remain self-sufficient in electricity instead of depending on Sri Lankas national grid. Colombo Port expansion deal The Hambantota Port project has been wrapped up notwithstanding objections raised by Ports and Shipping Minister Arjuna Ranatunga the minister in charge of the subject. The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) refused to sign the agreement (on behalf of the Government) with China Merchants Port Holdings Company Limited, the Chinese firm that has been allowed a 99-year lease of the Hambantota Port. He had earlier raised objections on various grounds including national security concerns. Now, Minister Ranatunga has cried foul again. This time he has raised issue over the Colombo Port Expansion Project, particularly the development of the East Container Terminal. In a three-page note to his colleagues, Minister Ranatunga has charged that additional selection criteria have been introduced for the selection of an investor and complained that this criteria will create negative consequences in the whole bidding process. The matter came up at Tuesdays weekly ministerial meeting where a Minister, largely instrumental for the Hambantota Port Project, stayed away from the ministerial meeting when the subject was discussed saying his brother represented a bidding local firm that had tied up with an Indian company. Here is Minister Ranatungas note: Cabinet of Ministers by considering the memorandum dated 06 February 2016 submitted by the Hon. Minister of Ports and Shipping on Colombo Port Expansion Project Development Options to the East Container Terminal along with the observations of the Minister of Finance, granted approval to appoint ADB (Asian Development Bank) as the SLPAs (Sri Lanka Ports Authority) Transaction Advisor and to invite Expression of Interest (EOI) / Request for Proposal (RFP) / Business Proposals from interested parties for the project. Accordingly, SLPA entered into an agreement with the ADB to obtain the transaction advisory services for the project. Estimated cost of the advisory services is US$ 5.6 million. ADB transaction advisory services are available for this procurement, since its inception until finalisation of a Concession Agreement. Pre-qualification process for the selection of an operator to develop East Container Terminal on BOT (Build, Operate and Transfer) basis was commenced with the Invitation for EOI (Expressions of Interest) on 06 June 2016. As per the Invitation for EOI document, criteria based on terminal operation, shipping and financial capabilities were stipulated. Subsequently, during the EOI process, as per the decision of the CCEM (Cabinet Committee on Economic Matters) dated 20 July 2016, an additional criterion was introduced to give weightage to a consortium, which includes a strategic investor from the region, having no less than a 20% shareholding in the consortium. According to the decision, this is to be considered at the RFP stage. Invitation for EOI was closed on 20 September 2016 and the received EOI applications are being evaluated by the CANC (Cabinet Appointed Negotiating Committee) with the assistance of the ADB. An open and competitive bidding procedure, agreed and advised by the ADB is also, adopted in this procurement. Therefore, evaluation of EOI applications should be done strictly in accordance with the criteria stipulated prior to closure of applications. CCEM at its meeting held on 23 November 2016 has instructed to adopt the following criteria when selecting an investor for the project. g No Government entities should be allowed to compete. g Regional competitors also should not be allowed. The operators who are already engaged in Colombo Port should have experience in Terminal Operations and the other company also should have wide experience in Port Management. Pre-qualification of the project is already completed and new selection criterion cannot be introduced during the evaluation process. Any amendment or introduction of new criteria after the closing of applications is most ill- advised and leaves room for an affected party to seek relief in a court of law and lead to delay in procurement of a BOI concession. It is apparent that a number of applicants who have submitted EOI applications would be disqualified under the new criteria, and may even lead to a situation of disqualifying all applicants. In the event a sole applicant is allowed to remain in the process of bidding, it may damage the image of the government and other applicants may claim that the Governments new criterion is especially designed to target a specific applicant. Moreover legality of the procurement process could be challenged even if one qualified applicant is disqualified consequent to the new criteria introduced. Therefore, it may be required to cancel the existing process and recommence the entire pre-qualification process if new criteria are to be introduced. The delay in the process of selecting an operator for ECT will cause serious impact while the market share of the Port of Colombo may also lose as the regional ports are in the process of expanding facilities. In the circumstances, through this Cabinet Note, I would like to enlighten the Cabinet of Ministers that additional selection criteria would create negative consequences in the whole bidding process of ECT. Minister Ranatungas note to his cabinet colleagues highlights a number of serious shortcomings. The most important is the lack of transparency and the resultant embarrassment to the very minister in charge of the subject. Sadly there is no mechanism to ensure checks and balances on such instances. With barely two weeks to go for the dawn of 2017, the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe Government faces some serious challenges. Concerns expressed by a group of Ministers who are seeking tough action against frauds, corruption and misuse of funds underscore a serious situation. There is little doubt that remedial action would not only contribute to stability but also to greater public confidence. Did the Phantom of the Port scupper the Navy Chiefs Saturday brunch? View(s): Dogged by crisis after crisis, jinxed Hambantota harbour submerged in another unwanted turmoil Lets face it. The Hambantota Port certainly seems to be jinxed. Ever since Mahinda Rajapaksa gave effect to his dream to raise Hambantota to its old glory days as the premier port city of Magampura, some brooding phantom, sleeping on its sea bed, seems not amused to have been awoken from its centuries long restful slumber by the goings on above the water mark. For over a thousand years, the port had remained anchored to neglect, its glorious past, where it was the main eastern port of call for vessels sailing the silk route from China, submerged in its tropical waters. This was mainly due to the decline and fall of the Sinhala kingdom which led to the abandonment of Ruhuna as one of the nations prime economic hubs. Here, it is said, high carbon steel produced by furnaces powered by monsoon winds was exported in the 1st century BC on ships passing through the Magampura port to Rome to manufacture the armour of Roman legions. After over five hundred years of foreign domination, it took a further 54 years after independence from the alien yoke, for a free Lanka to put Hambantota on its map of importance again; and to realise the ocean of potential that buoyed unseen in its old port city. It came in 2002 when the then UNP Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe identified the Hambantota Harbour as one of the key areas for development when he unveiled his blueprint Regaining Sri Lanka. But it took another six years for the project to germinate and sprout when former President Rajapaksa dredged the seabed with Chinese help. At a cost of 360 million US dollars for the first phase with an additional 76 million US dollars for bunkering facilities, work started in earnest in 2008 by the Chinese contractors. The Chinese government would fund 85 per cent while the balance 15 per cent would be borne by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority. And incredibly, it was completed five months before schedule in November 2010, propitiously in time to simultaneously celebrate at the auspicious hour of inauguration, the then President Rajapaksas 65th birthday on 18th November. It had been hailed as one of the largest port in South Asia occupying an area of 4,000 acres and having a capacity to accommodate 33 vessels at a time. When completed, it was hailed to become the second largest port operated by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority in the country. Then the first disaster struck. No ships. Even as it is customary, when at the auspicious opening of any commercial establishment, the first transaction is done with an unrelated party to symbolically invoke further business and prosperity unto its threshold, the then Government faced the embarrassing situation that there were simply no takers to berth their vessels at any price, no matter the discount on the invite. To save face, the then government had to order its own navys ship the Jetliner to wade through the deserted waters from Galle Port, 90 nautical miles away, and drop anchor and thereby ensure smiles all around, even though it did not make the cash tills ring with the joyous sound of money coming in to bolster the national kitty. To make it a crowd, however, two other vessels joined the first. One was a sailing yacht called Pradeepa 2 and the other a cargo ship Seruwila which unloaded a cargo from Myanmar, probably bound for the Colombo Port and diverted for the ceremonial occasion. But then Rome wasnt built in a day. What mattered most was that the resurrection of the old Magampura harbour had begun. But in that darkest seabed tomb, did the phantom breathe to arise from doom? For shortly after the formal inauguration was done and over with and the second stage of the ambitious operation commenced, the Chinese constructors hit upon the rock of Gibraltar, leagues under the sea, embedded at the entrance itself to the Hambantota port. Oddly it had never figured in their geological surveys or marine explorations and it took them by surprise. So was the nation astonished that such a vast rock which acted as a massive barrier to the completion of stage two, which, if not removed, would negate the achievements of stage one and sink the whole port plan, was not foreseen by the experts well in advance. It was inconceivable that it had not been detected before with all the modern technology available, including satellite imagery of ocean beds. But somehow they missed it, in spite of all the geophysical, geochemical, sedimentological and paleontological investigations of the ocean floor they would have conducted before embarking on such a billion dollar project, probably the same way they missed even a thermal image of the angry phantom of the deep. With another delay and another 40 million dollars later to blast the infernal rock to kingdom come from its ocean grave, the second stage costing over 850 million US dollars, proceeded forthwith. But though the basics were in place to conduct the normal course of business of a seaport which is to harbour ships in its safe waters and have it load and unload cargo for some reason or the other the fleet of merchant vessels breezily sailed in the horizon giving the port the thumbs down, even though it was only 10 nautical miles away from the busiest east-west shipping routes. The fall of the Rajapaksas in 2015 was akin to the fall of Ruhuna and the Hambantota hope which had raised its head during the regimes halcyon days, returned to its sleep again. The Sirisena-Ranil opposition, having painted the Hambantota Port, in the run up to last Januarys presidential election, as another white elephant which was draining the national coffers, chose, upon achieving victory, to condemn it further as Mahindas folly; and left the port to bob along orphaned and the workers, who had been recruited by the previous regime and not made permanent, to be left all at sea as to their future fate. The few ships that arrived were let to make their appearances and unload and load their transshipment cargo. No active effort was made to promote the harbour; and as far as the government was concerned, it was worse than a resuscitable white elephant. It was a dead duck. But how so ever grievous the folly, the port was not something that could be easily ignored. Not when it was costing the government millions to service the debt incurred in the project. Already over a billion dollars had been incurred in developing it. The third stage of the expansion plans which is expected to be completed in 2023 will cost billions of rupees more. With port losses already over 18 billion rupees, the government could not allow it to simply drift but had to do something to turn it around. What it chose to do was to sell the port to a Chinese firm and barter equity for debt, thus reducing the massive debt burden the government had inherited from the Rajapaksa regime. With this announcement that the port will receive a new lease of life, hope stirred again that more prosperous times would roll for the region and for the nation. But after a lull 23 months of inertia, with its sleep disturbed, did the phantom arise perturbed? And did it wreak mischief to make all who invade his territorial waters, go wonky and act strange? Last week, on December 7, the normally sober workers at the port, driven by a strange still unidentified force decided to paralyse the movement of two foreign ships berthed in the harbour, namely, the Hyperion Highway and the MV Hoyanger along with the crew and to issue demands to the Government to stop the port from being sold to the Chinese firm. They took control of the Administrative building and also used cranes to block the pathway of the ships to prevent them leaving. What they did not realise, in their profound ignorance, was that by their actions they were effectively involved in an act of piracy. What the Somali pirates do on high seas, they were effectively doing within the port. It was a situation no responsible government could ever tolerate or pussyfoot. The international repercussions were enormous. The Government had to meet its international obligations. Even as the UNP government in the 1980s had to introduce hijacking laws into the penal code with retrospective effect to convict Sepala Ekanayake for hijacking a plane in mid air for love, here was the case where port workers were effectively hijacking a ship in port for jobs. The motive was no mitigating factor. All that mattered was the action. If there was any hope for the resurrection of the Hambantota port it was nearly doomed for insurance premiums for ships daring to venture into Hambantota would rocket sky high and the port would be turned into a ghost harbour. Perhaps the workers still do not realise the gravity of their offence for the Government would be obliged and under a duty under international laws of the seas to bring the hijackers to justice. But the workers remained intransigent and the Government under the International Ship and Port Facility Security had to order the Navy to free the two ships under siege. Perhaps not content in sending the workers on their insane mission to hijack two ships and to hold it as bargaining chips to achieve their demands, the wrathful phantom seems to have then turned its mystic munitions on the naval force that came to save the day. From its watery lair in some subterranean cavern, perhaps it sent encrypted Morse signals to summon the Navy commander himself from some other port of retreat to action stations; and probably made him scupper his peaceful Saturday brunch, unwantedly in doing so. Or how else can you explain the peculiar incident that followed, the moment the naval vessel arrived at the quay but that it was the devilish work of the ports perverse phantom, up to its mischief, up to no good? Perhaps they may say it was a classic example of a gallant naval commander bravely leading his marines from the front. But what transpired last Saturday afternoon, unfortunately, did not come out that way, that day. Thousands of readers may no doubt have seen the video footage on social media which showed the Commander of the Sri Lankan Navy, dressed in a pair of blue shorts and a bright blue T shirt, appears from his cabin on the naval vessel, shouts out a harangue of abuse at the striking workers, and then clambering onto land, storming directly to a media person and shaking him by the scruff of his neck, to persuade him to leave the vicinity. Deputy Mass Media Minister Karunarathna Paranavithana said on Thursday, We cannot approve of the conduct of and the language used by the Sri Lanka Navy Commander. The Navy chief should have thought about the situation in the country and about the mandate given by the people to this government and that all these officials are under the peoples mandate. We regret the harassment the journalist underwent at the hands of the Navy commander. Right from day one since the resurrection of the Hambantota harbour began, the phantom of the port has been at work to make all involved in its restoration come a cropper and leave with a black mark. Take for instance the victims, those who got their hands burnt: MAHINDA RAJAPAKSA: who started the project and who renamed the port as the Magampura Mahinda Rajapaksa Port without any apologies for vanity, not only lost the elections but is accused of committing the massive folly of harbouring a white elephant and causing billions of rupees in losses to the nation as a result. THE PRESENT GOVERNMENT: the innocent inheritors of the Rajapaksa regimes folly, who will no doubt be accused by future generations for palming off the strategic port of Hambantota to the Chinese to escape the countrys debt repayment problems merely because it did not have the ingenuity to find some other means to overcome the crisis THE STRIKING WORKERS: who were led to believe that hijacking a foreign vessel was the same as occupying a building and staging a peaceful protest; who may probably face serious criminal charges for seizing control of foreign vessels in the near future if their illegal actions are interpreted as such under the international law of the seas. THE NAVY COMMANDER: who unnecessarily overstepped his line and went beyond the call of duty to act out of character and in a manner unbecoming of his position as not merely an officer and a gentleman but also as the Commander of the Sri Lankan Navy. But alls well that ends well. Thanks to the Prime Ministers intervention the port workers have been assured that the Chinese company has agreed to absorb the lot into their new work force when the handover is complete. The strike has thus been called off and the workers will be back at work. The almost indelible blot on the Navy commanders record and on the Navys own impeccable record seems to have been partially erased by the Prime Ministers acceptance of the Navys internal report on its commanders conduct last Saturday. The Chinese company now stands assured that the agreement to take over the port, signed on December 8th will now proceed on its chartered course without hitting a rock. Finally the phantom of the port seems to have met its match. But as it retires hurt to lick its wounds of defeat, its best not to sink into complacency that all will be well at the Hambantota Port in the days to come. If the Chinese dont bring their wizard along and cast his spell to flay the ogre of the deep, no doubt the troubled port will be haunted again and again with new spectres of the unknown. The phantom sleeps tonight. But its presence should give rise to restless nights to the rest. Join us in the mission to supply quality food View(s): We all have our duties, obligations, good practices and customs, whatever our religion or culture be. Many who talk about what is due to them have forgotten the benefits we receive in life. People who are trying to reach the pinnacle of development should be shown the way to protect and nourish development. If the way and our vision too is clear, why should we go astray? There are enough movements today suggesting various ways of earning money by helping and aiding others. But the aim of this article is to show that we should help ourselves and self help is the best way. However busy we are, we also have to enjoy life and enjoy our meals. Instead of taking alcoholic beverages and drugs, this is an attempt to show the correct mental attitude with regard to meeting ones daily needs. How many of us add a little pepper powder, lime juice, orange juice, a spoonful of honey or a piece of ginger to our breakfast? Who are so blessed, who can chew a little Suuduru, Maaduru or a piece of cinnamon after a meal? Today the milk powder or instant coffee has taken the place of a good glass of hot water or the rice in the morning. Our own cup of tea has lost its value now. Rice is the best staple food for us. In Thailand many food items are prepared out of rice. Thailand is the ideal example for good food. We have lost several varieties of our rice such as Suvendel, Pachchaperunal, Swangjaata, Kaluheenati and Rathuheenati. The Gangaramaya has on its own started to grow seed paddy in Suriyawewa. People are urged to supply us good local seed paddy. We are ready to pay for this so that we could cultivate and distribute the rice. We need the cooperation of all for this. Bee-keeping is not practised here now. We get bees honey from countries such as Australia. We saw in Australia, a country which produces high quality bees honey, that they keep sugar-based items outside the beehives in the evening. I also saw places where they keep cattle for slaughter. I saw that these animals do not have adequate food or water to drink. Those interested in protecting the environment, and those who talk about the production and sale of items unsuitable for human consumption are silent on this. In the early days, we produced good quality jaggery here. Legend has it that a king when he heard about Jaggery production, wanting to test the veracity of the stories he had heard, secretly went to check. When he saw the workers sweating and wearing soiled clothes he spoke to a person, who answered, Your Majesty, they say one thing and do something different. People are chasing behind an economy which is not bringing in suitable results. The quality of food and other products has gone down. Today even the basic medicinal plants such as Kuppameniya and Binkohomba are hard to find. Our main topic today is about rice and the paddy fields. With the Paddy Lands Act the cultivator became the owner of the land. Rich land owners became poor. Though the poor man became rich, the greed for other peoples land became his downfall. The farmer gave up his loin cloth and his son donned a trouser. Today the fear of rat fever prevents farmers from getting into the field. Though paddy fields have become fields of grass, there are no cattle to graze. Instead of cows, we have the packets of milk. Since we do not have an adequate supply of local meat we have to import meat. We do not have local milk and meat in adequate supply. We have a clean sea around us with a great supply of fresh fish. But the budget has given priority to tinned fish from abroad. The fallow paddy fields do not have even animals to graze in them. Our village folks have gone abroad for jobs. Fallow land has not been used for any other work. We import rice and some varieties, not suitable for human consumption, are sold at Rs. 80 a kilo.There are no specified standards. Poor varieties of rice cannot be kept for more than two weeks and therefore if we have a famine or a natural calamity we will be deep trouble. To get out of this problem and to find an alternate way of cultivating our fields, one solution is the hand tractor. Since the Chinese tractor is big and a single person is not able to handle, it we are suggesting hand tractors so that our fields could be cultivated again. Our aim is to get hand tractors issued under a cooperative scheme with the guidance of religious leaders, so that the fallow paddy fields can be developed with the introduction of our own seed paddy varieties. In this way we could increase the income of our farmers four or five times. We could then give good rice to the people rice that is cultivated without artificial fertiliser and poisonous chemicals. The agriculture of our country went into decay because there was no adequate income from it, and labour had to be hired since voluntary labour was inadequate. Additionally, extra expenditure was incurred on oil and fertiliser. The high cost of tractor equipment also contributed. We are now encouraging the village farmer societies. We seek support from those willing to donate tractors and other equipment. We also need support from Urban and Provincial Council authorities, religious institutions and the clergy. With their help we can raise the living standard of the villager. You could contact Sahana Sevaya, Gangaramaya, 61, Sri Jinarathana Road, Colombo 02 by letter or phone 0112435169, 0112327084 and obtain more details. Today we have largely death donation societies. Cooperative societies seem to be dead! There are no societies to uplift the poor people and develop their lives. I am appealing for help. We seek new or old tractors as aid. We do not need financial help. In every village, societies are being organised to publicize this. A few expatriates living abroad have agreed to donate a few hand tractors. We wish to take the first step to supply good seed paddy and increase its quality, increase the income of the farmer and make the village united and the fields productive. We invite the people to join us in this mission to supply good food to our people. Road tragedies: Govt. must act decisively View(s): For a Government that acted at the speed of greased lightning, and with a heavy hand (pun intended) by the Navy to rescue two foreign ships held hostage by striking workers at the Hambantota Port, its weak-kneed approach to the striking private bus operators and to buckle under their pressure stands in sharp contrast. As irony has it, the Government moved in swiftly in the Hambantota harbour matter with the public not so much with the port workers demands and the questionable exercise of their trade union rights. Yet, they were concerned about the Agreement signed with a Chinese company. On the other hand, the Government seemed to apply the brakes on the private bus operators demanding a halt to the imposition of higher fines for traffic misdemeanours even though in this case, the public seemed overwhelmingly on the Governments side. Nobody still knows for sure what the Governments ultimate decision is on the traffic fines. The fines themselves seemed somewhat unrealistic and hastily introduced. Once, the Supreme Court had to knock down speeding fines because there were no markings to indicate speed limits. The markings are there now, but out-of-date with better road surfaces meant to reduce travel journeys. There is a vicious circle, however, that needs to be broken the nexus between the Police and the errant bus driver is a public secret, and a shame on the Police. Something still has to be done to curb reckless driving. There is a fine for drunken-driving, but no mechanism to detect intoxication by other means, like soft drugs and even chewing betel. Still, the Government, especially the President, is unable to fix this problem having put the heavy fines issue on hold when the public is clamouring for action and understandably so with a shocking eight (8) deaths on the highways every day in 2015 and 2016, leave alone serious injuries. It just shows a lack of ability to take decisive action. Decisive action is what the Government requires if it can ask the Navy to show its colours on World Human Rights Day to boot. The Commander led from the front manhandling a journalist performing his professional duties under the Constitution. That the UN Torture Committee had just passed strictures on Sri Lanka was lost on him. This also distracts from the issue of the PPP (Public-Private Partnership) that the Government has entered into for the Hambantota port the Sri Lanka Public has 20 per cent and the Chinese Private has 80 percent of the PPP. This is a partnership where the private Chinese company is the virtual precedent-partner. The 15,000 acres in and around the area given to the Chinese have raised the sell out cry. The Government is mostly to blame for not convincing the country of the merits, if any, of the Agreement. On the other hand, secrecy maybe what is called for if the US$ 1.4 billion selling price cannot be justified and is just a mess of pottage for a chunk of Sri Lankas limited real estate, as detractors seem to think it is. The migrant workers and the economy If the Government is bending backwards to facilitate a piece of Sri Lankas real estate to a Chinese company for 99 years at a price tag of US$ 1.4 billion, one can only imagine what it must do to Sri Lankas own migrant workers who keep sending as much as US$ 7 billion each year to the country as remittances making the Chinese sale seem a pittance in comparison. In return, next to nothing is done for their benefit. MPs import duty free cars with that hard earned money and sell it overnight making a killing, the country imports its oil and food with that money, but the Ministry of Foreign Affairs just does not bother to send more women officers to Sri Lanka missions in West Asia and the Gulf region where thousands of women work so they can provide them some assistance and comfort when in distress. These migrant workers do not even have a vote, and Governments are probably reluctant to give them the franchise fearing it might boomerang on them for not doing enough. Today marks International Day of the Migrant Worker and it is closely associated not just with the workers toiling overseas, but refugees from conflict zones around the world; those from poverty stricken nations; and those just fleeing their country because their political leaders have given them no hope for a bright future despite all the rhetoric and the hollow promises and platitudes from public platforms. Only a fortnight ago, the Australian Head of Border Protection Operations told the Sunday Times he was at a loss to understand why Sri Lankans were still trying to enter his country illegally. He was obviously being too diplomatic. The answer is just too obvious. Despite all the Pampoori of the politicians from all sides, a local idiom that means idle boasts, the people have lost confidence in all of these politicians leading them to the Promised Land. The Gateway of South Asia that is talked about seems to be the Get Away instead. That has to be a sobering thought to the powers that be. Sri Lanka faces danger even in this export industry of the migrant worker. The lack of skilled and semi-skilled workers now opting to drive tuk-tuks and make a quick buck at home instead, with more restrictions on women workers going abroad for work, and the slump in world oil prices having a direct bearing on West Asian and Gulf economies, Sri Lankas reliance on easy foreign exchange from our migrant workers is limited. It is with this hard earned foreign remittances of our migrant workers that the country is kept afloat, not by so-called foreign investors, aid and loans either by the Chinese or the IMF, nor by PPPs. In return, the 2017 budget has allocated a beggarly sum of less than 0.1 per cent of the budget for their welfare and well-being. That is the gratitude successive Governments have paid to these men and women sweating it out in inhospitable environments. On this Global Migrant Labour Day, spare a thought for those Sri Lankans who are keeping this countrys economy afloat. Api Narakai Thamai Modern German play on Lankan stage View(s): Api Narakai Thamai a theatrical presentation based on Lily Axtors German play Violin, Cello, Double Bass will have its maiden show on December 31 at 4 pm and 7 pm at Namel Malini Punchi Theatre Borella. The play is an effort of a German playwright to show sarcastically and symbolically the consequence of separation of parents on children. Just like in most modern scripts, keeping some of the meanings open is a novel feature in this play too. This play brings out the internal sufferings of the parents and a child. The oppression, the attachments between them and how they are severed are analyzed in deep, leaving a question before the society, or else leaves something to be taken away by the spectators, says playwright Sujeewa Pathinisekara. It can be shown that it looks very simple on the surface but the under lying depth is something that changes depending on the maturity of spectators. Directed by Pathinisekara, the play features Wishaka Jayaweera, Nelum Kurugalaarchchi Sujeewa Pathinisekara, Kavindu Bandara, Asha Perera and Dulan Maduranga. Translated by Jayalath S. Gomes and edited by M. Safeer, music direction of the play is done by Vindaka Weerasinghe, make up by Nelum Kurugalaarachchi and photos by Ajith Kumara. Set, costumes and lighting of the play also handled by Safeer. The writer is trying to bring out the anger and sorrow through the main characters, father, mother and Paula, and the director is trying to show the same by actions, for which he uses colours, music and lighting. Finally the translator and the director are trying to stage a modern German play on a Sri Lankan stage. Making a note on the latest play, director Sujeewa Pathinisekera stated he faced a challenged when M. Safeer of Inter Act Art group encouraged him to direct German contemporary play here in Sri Lanka and abroad. Here I face the challenge of doing a successful performance by understating the similarities and differences of the modern and contemporary stage, Pathinisekera said. It is difficult to find the exact era of this happening. But the oppression the mother, father and specially Paula, the little daughter undergoes in the modern European society is very clear thought the play, the director added. The play is produced by Inter Act Art Black Box Theatre. Raffles : Serving delightful food for 17 Years View(s): Renowned for their excellent food and friendly efficient service, Raffles Catering celebrates yet another anniversary being their 17th on 1st December 2016. Renowned for their excellent food and friendly efficient service, Raffles Catering celebrates yet another anniversary being their 17th on 1st December 2016. Launched on December 1, 1999 as a partnership between two of the best friends namely, Tony Bohoran and Oscar Wanigasekera, Raffles has come a long way to be a true market leader in Catering and Hospitality business in Sri Lanka. Having a humble beginning with two employees, Raffles began with home catering services to a discerning and up-market clientele. In September 2001, they ventured into industrial catering by securing contracts to operate in some of the reputed garment factories in the country. Today, Raffles cater to more than 17,000 employees on a daily basis with breakfast, lunch and dinner in 09 factories in different parts of the country, in the industrial sector. To cap the glory of being in business for 17 years, they launched their brand new Banquet and Catering facility named Raffles Residence on 1st February this year. The premises itself has two beautifully designed function halls which can easily host 100 600 persons for any event be it a corporate or a private function. The beauty of their Grand Ballroom is that it has no pillars and has a height of 22 feet, adorned by large Chrystal chandeliers. Furthermore, Raffles Residence was awarded the all-important ISO 9001:2015 certification being one of the very few such facilities to obtain same. Headed by the Master Chef Tony Bohoran as Managing Director, who counts more than 34 years of experience in the food & beverage trade locally and internationally, it is no wonder that Raffles has been able to keep their culinary flag flying over the years. Explaining his journey into the culinary field, Tony said that it was his Mom who is an excellent cook, inspired him to be what he is today. Tony is also a pioneer in introducing fusion food to Sri Lanka way back in 1991 when he was the Executive Chef at Don Stanleys Restaurant in Colombo. Later, Tony went on to join Paradise Road Gallery Cafe as the Executive Chef and decided to quit in 1999 to start on his own. Ably assisted by his colleagues Oscar, Mohan and Shan who are also directors of the company, Raffles has more than 370 employees directly employed under Raffles Consolidated Pvt. Ltd., which is the mother company. Today the company caters to the elite in Colombo, which includes top corporates, banks, diplomatic missions, NGOs and semi government institutions. In order to succeed in the field of food & beverage services, one has to keep up with the changing palate of the consumer and cater to their particular needs. Speaking about the culinary trends at present, Tony observed, There is a marked transformation of the gourmet cuisine towards new world cuisine. While gourmet cuisine is strict and meticulous in its preparation and presentation, new world cuisine is a fusion of the eastern, western and Mediterranean flavours and arrangements. Recognising this trend, the Raffles specialises and has invented many of its ever-popular fusion dishes. The company is looking at several new ventures, one of which is a Luxury Boutique hotel in the hills of Kitulgala and also extending their operations to the European continent as well. Sam on tour View(s): Sam the Man, internationally acclaimed entertainer, will leave shortly to the USA to entertain the Thomians at their annual Christmas Party, Sing Along and Thomian Dance in California. This will be Sams sixth tour of the States. In a career that spans fifty six years, Sam will embark on his fifty third international tour. Having performed in Salzburg-Austria, Canada, London, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Lusaka-Zambia Bahrain, Dubai, India, Pakistan and Tenerife in the Canary Islands, Nihal Samarasinghe, popularly known as Sam the Man, is one of Sri Lankas true international entertainers. His last performance was at the Y.W.C.A. Sing Along last week, before leaving to U.S.A. He will return to Sri Lanka immediately after his performance in the USA as he is scheduled to perform at New Years Eve Dance at the Harbour Room of the Grand Oriental Hotel in Colombo. This will be his third successive year at the GOH. Sam will be accompanied by Nishantha Fernando on Keyboard and vocals, Channa Vanderbona on Lead guitar and vocals, Prasad Fernando on bass and vocals, Suraj Peiris on Drums and vocals. They are all accomplished musicians of the Group Heart and Soul. Sam is featured every Saturday at the Blue Water Hotel in Wadduwa, at the Harbour Room of the Grand Oriental Hotel in Colombo on Sundays and at the Terrace of the Mount Lavinia Hotel on Mondays. Giving ear to balance, hearing needs View(s): The Anuradhapura ENT Unit is making its mark as the only state hospital with its very own state-of-the-art Vestibular & Balance Testing Laboratory in Sri Lanka. Kumudini Hettiarachchi reports It is a busy day at this Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) Unit, for special services unique only to the Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital, can be accessed by people in addition to the usual tests and treatment provided as at other major state city hospitals. Slowly and silently, without much fanfare, Anuradhapuras ENT Unit is making waves, having taken the treatment of vestibular (balance) disorders to new and different heights, while also dealing with hearing impairment in its varied forms. This has resulted in this unit creating its own niche as the balance and hearing treatment hub of the North Central Province as well as the whole country. This is the only state hospital with its very own state-of-the-art Vestibular & Balance Testing Laboratory in Sri Lanka which had been opened in February this year by the Director-General of Health Services, Dr. Palitha Mahipala, who has been of immense support seeing the potential of this hospital. Already nearly 500 patients have benefited from this laboratory (see box please), in addition to the stream of men, women and children who seek other routine treatment, even though the ENT Unit is woefully short-staffed. As the country welcomes the New Year of 2017, this ENT Unit has a multi-pronged vision to continue to keep the high standards of care, treatment and rehabilitation for all those who access the Vestibular & Balance Testing Laboratory, while strengthening its services through a multidisciplinary team approach, bringing into the fold the expertise of Consultant Neurologists and Psychiatrists. It will also aspire to be a Training and Research Centre for health personnel from across the country. This ENT team has another hope, to embark on cochlear implantation for children with congenital hearing impairment, after setting in place the required facilities as the skills are already available here. Currently, cochlear implantation is performed only at the Lady Ridgeway Hospital for Children in Colombo and the Sirimavo Bandaranaike Childrens Hospital in Peradeniya and more recently the National Hospital of Sri Lanka in Colombo. While at present, the unit is only performing diagnostic tests to check out the hearing of newborns with possible risk factors if the screening tests fail, next year the team hopes to screen all newborns at the Anuradhapura Hospital routinely, followed by necessary action. Referring to their baby, the Vestibular & Balance Testing Laboratory, of which the team is justifiably proud, one of two Consultant ENT Surgeons serving at the Anuradhapura Hospital, Dr. Daminda Dumingoarachchi, pointing out that there are numerous tests to check out heart, liver or kidney failure. However, earlier for ear issues such as vestibular failure (failure of the balance-sensing organ of the inner ear) diagnosis had to be made after taking a case history. Sometimes it could be difficult to make a proper diagnosis. Now, that is the past, MediScene learns, with Dr. Dumingoarachchi adding that they have all the facilities which enable accurate diagnosis, based on the right investigations. This is followed by treatment and rehabilitation, where necessary. Citing the example of vertigo (feeling off-balance) which affects a lot of people, he explains that a detailed case history is taken followed by a neurological examination. If a diagnosis cannot be made a vestibular investigation is performed. Explanations in action, using skills and facilities, MediScene sees at first-hand in the case of M.A. Heenmenike from Srawasthipura who has been assailed by bouts of dizziness. Kalanthayak saha kerakilla thiyenawa. Visikarana wage denenawa. Nidi maranna be. Bellen kekkumak enava, she says, adding that she feels faint and dizzy and as if she is getting thrown about. She cannot break rest and there is a pain emanating from her neck. Diagnosed with long-term vertigo, she is being tested to find out the contributory causes. Seated in a tiny but airy and cozy room on the first-floor of the Anuradhapura Hospitals JICA building, Heenmenike has tubes and wires snaking from her face, while some equipment lies on her lap. This is the test for VEMP. Later she lies on the bed and the tests are continued. Gently, Audiology Technician Duminda Damsen explains what he will be doing and the test begins to check Heenmenikes vestibular function through the caloric stimulation test, under which he will deliver cool and warm air respectively to each ear separately to stimulate the ear canals which are linked to balance. It is Dr. Dumingoarachchi who explains the inner ear-eye connection (vestibular and ocular systems). These two systems are not only connected to each other but also to the muscles in the eyes and neck which help us keep our balance. Our head movements or any stimulation of the inner ear give out signals through the nervous system to control the movements of the eye muscle. This pathway is known as the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) and helps a person to have eye movements to keep a clear vision when the head is in motion. This is why vestibular stimulation tests check out the eye movement, he says adding that when the cool or warm air enters the ear-canal (as MediScene sees in the case of Heenmenike), the inner ear changes temperature and causes rapid side-to-side involuntary eye movements. These are called nystagmus. The eye on the side of the ear which is thus being irrigated should turn towards it and slowly get back to its usual position. Since March this year, this is just one of the balance tests among numerous others the dedicated ENT team has been performing. The team is headed by Consultant ENT Surgeons Dr. Daminda Dumingoarachchi & Dr. Upul Abeysundara and comprises Registrars Dr. Kantha Jayasena & Dr. Balasubramaniyam Abarna; Medical Officers Dr. C.S. Prasad, Dr. Eindrini Muhandiram, Dr. Shakila Wimalasooriya, Dr. Sampath Ranasinghe, Dr. Dilushi Galagedara & Dr. Janaka Herath; Audiology Technician Duminda Damsen; and Nursing Officer Kumudini Ramanayaka. Conditional approval for 10,000 prefab houses in North View(s): By Namini Wijedasa The Cabinet has granted conditional approval to French steel giant ArcelorMittal to build 10,000 prefabricated houses for the war-affected in Mullaitivu and Kilinochchi districts, a senior official said. It was decided that 10,000 houses could be erected in the two districts, provided that the people wanted them, the official explained. Resettlement Minister D.M. Swaminathan confirmed to the Sunday Times that the specified number of 10,000 dwellings had been sanctioned but this newspaper learns the approval is conditional. The Minister has been pushing for the projectinitially numbered at 65,000 steel prefabricated houses from ArcelorMittal at an estimated US$ 1 billionsince mid-2015. However, progress has been slow due to strong resistance from civil society, housing experts and local and national politicians including all Tamil National Alliance parliamentarians. Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran and the Jaffna District Coordinating Committee are also against the project. On Thursday, Minister Swaminathan summoned the three Government Agents of Jaffna, Mullaitivu and Kilinochchi to his office in Colombo. He informed them that President Maithripala Sirisena had said the houses could go ahead if there was a demand for them among the intended beneficiaries. He said he would carry advertisements in newspapers seeking feedback. He has been directed by the President to ask the people their choice, said TNA Parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran, who has spoken out in Parliament and in public against prefabricated steel houses for the North and East. He has said he will advertise. We will check to see how this inquiry is carried out. If the people are asked whether they want a house, they will say yes. Even if they are asked if they want a prefab house, they will say yes. People will have to be given the choice between a masonry house and a prefab house, he said. If that is not done, we will challenge the process. On the ground, Minister Swaminathan continues to champion the controversial project. He argues that the Government is obliged to provide housing for people who lost their houses during the northern insurgency. Last week, he and Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake visited model houses built by ArcelorMittal in Urumpirai. He was later quoted by media as saying the initiative would go ahead despite TNA objections. The Sunday Times met Minister Swaminathan this week in response to his own request for an interview. However, the interview was inconclusively ended. Present during the brief meeting was his Private Secretary Shane Dullewa, close friend and former brother-in-law of Ravi Wethasinghe whose company Kumarca Engineering is the logistics agent for ArcelorMittal. I only want to tell you that the cost of each house is now not Rs. 2.1 million but Rs. 1.6 million, the Minister said, adding that the price had been reduced by removing the furniture, fittings and WiFi from the package. These components alone had been estimated by the company to cost Rs. 600,000. The prefab steel houses have been opposed on many grounds including price. Traditional masonry houses have been built in the North and East for less than Rs. 1 million. An alternate proposal is available for brick-and-mortar dwellings, complete with a financial proposal to raise funds locally (the ArcelorMittal project envisages foreign borrowings). Moratuwa University experts have said the houses have inadequate foundations, insufficient roof support, are at risk of corrosion despite the coatings provided, are poorly ventilated and have no hearth and chimney. They also said the dwellings have poor or non-existent capacity for extension or repair, a much shorter life span than block wall houses, are unlikely to create a sense of ownership, unlikely to foster the local economy and generate employment and are at least double the cost of a block wall house. The Minister claimed the depth of the foundation of each house was one-and-a-half feet. However, a report commissioned by him from the University of Peradeniya says, There is no foundation for the house. Instead, the floor slab is first laid on the ground and the house is installed directly on this floor slab which has a thickness of about 150mm. The Peradeniya University team has said prefab metal housing is a good option for the urgent needs of displaced populations but that there are certain improvements needed. This includes strengthening the floor slab and constructing a rubble masonry foundation, reducing the span of the roof, providing stronger door hinges, providing ventilation openings (the houses do not have any ventilation openings except doors and windows), etc. None of these recommendations has been adopted by ArcelorMittal. In a separate letter to the Sunday Times after the aborted interview, Minister Swaminathan inter-alia, states that the project to build 65,000 houses in the North and East was not an unsolicited project and that 35 companies bid for the tender. He says a Cabinet Appointed Negotiating Committee and the Project Committee evaluated the 35 proposals submitted and decided ArcelorMittal Construction, France was the most suitable. He points out that the promotion of an alternate proposal after the completion of tender process by the Cabinet Appointed Tender Board Committee is to place a party at an undue advantage having not taken part in a fair and transparent tender process. Development (Special Provisions) Bill to expedite FDI sans delays, says Malik View(s): The Development (Special Provisions) Bill, published in the Government gazette recently, will help expedite the approval process of Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) into the country without any administrative delays, said Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama. This is to ensure that foreign investors can confidently invest in Sri Lanka without being worried about any delays on securing permits and reports from the relevant line ministries, the Minister told the Sunday Times. The Bill, published in the gazette on the orders of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is also the Minister for National Policies and Economic Affairs, has come in for criticism from the Opposition for seeking to create an all too powerful ministry, amidst fear it would supersede the powers of the provincial authorities. Mr Samarawickrema, however, said that, the new law ensures that provincial authorities are consulted on all matters but, would enable more coordination between the centre and the regions. Five Regional Development Boards (RDB) will be set up under the provisions of this Bill, including for the Southern Development Board, the area of authority which will be for the administrative districts of Galle, Matara, Hambantota, Moneragala and Ratnapura. The others are the Northern region which will consist of the administrative Districts of Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Mannar, Vavuniya and Mullaitivu. The Wayamba Development Board which will consist of the administrative Districts of Puttalam, Kurunegala and Kegalle. The Central Development Board which will consist of the administrative Districts of Matale, Kandy, Nuwara Eliya and Badulla. The Eastern Development Board which will consist of the administrative districts of Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Ampara. The Chief Secretaries of each Province will be among those who will be members of these Boards. The objective of these Boards is to coordinate at regional level, the implementation of development plans, programmes and projects of the Government and the Provincial administration, and to monitor oversight of such plans, programmes and projects. The RDBs will be required to, in consultation with the Government and the Provincial administration, prepare a report on all plans, programmes and projects in each administrative district of such region for 2017, 2018 and 2019. The Bill also provides for the establishment of a Policy Development Office (PDO) which will be tasked with the planning, formulating and development of draft proposals for a National Policy and National Policy Framework (NPF) on any subject including economic development, for consideration by the Cabinet of Ministers. Where plans and programmes relate to any subject which is a provincial subject, the Chief Ministers of the relevant Provincial Council will need to consult. An Agency for Development will also be set up under the proposed law, which will assist the relevant authority in stimulating, expanding and developing economic growth through the NPF on economic development, strengthening the economic base of Sri Lanka with a view to modernising the economy, enabling Sri Lankan goods to enter the global value chain and compete in the global market, enhancing the competitiveness of Sri Lankan Goods and Services etc. The Bill also provides for the President to annually summon a Conference of the Cabinet of Ministers, Chief Ministers of the Provinces and the Chairpersons of Parliamentary Oversight Committees to discuss the plans, programmes, schemes and projects under this Act. Hindu group requests ferry service to attend TN pooja View(s): A Hindu religious group, Eelam Siva Senai, has forwarded a request through Northern Governor Reginald Cooray seeking permission for a ferry service from Kankesanturai (KKS) to Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu to attend a Hindu pooja in Chidambaram. The organization requested both governments to facilitate a ferry service for Siva devotees who intend to participate in the Thiruvathira festival on a full moon poya day in December at the Thillai Nataraja Temple in Chidambaram. The pilgrimage is set to take place between December 28 and January 13. We came to know from senior officials attached to the foreign ministries of both governments that they have agreed to facilitate this ferry service at policy level. We are still waiting for an official confirmation, the leader of Siva Senai, Maravanpulavu K.Sachithananthan told the Sunday Times. Recommending that Foreign Affairs Minister Mangala Samaraweera take up the matter with Indian authorities, Governor Cooray noted that this initiative could enhance the ongoing reconciliation process and urged that a team be detailed to set up a modus operandi for the trip. The new Hindu religious outfit is committed to serving the interests of Hindus in Sri Lanka and claimed its sole objective is the betterment of Hindu society in the country. This tradition of going to the Chidambaram temple in December has a rich history which dates back 2000 years. It was stopped since independence. We are not asking anything new but requesting the revival of that old tradition the Hindus practised years ago, he said explaining why his movement came up with the idea of a ferry service. Meanwhile at least 100 fisher pilgrims from Tamil Nadu have been allowed to participate in the consecration ceremony at St Anthonys Church, Katchathivu island on December 23, a spokesperson from the Indian High Commission said. Earlier the number of devotees allowed was twenty but later it was increased to a hundred after Indian authorities took up the matter with their Sri Lankan counterparts. Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) Leader Arumugam Thondaman said in a statement that he had secured the nod from President Maithripala Sirisena when he was requested through a letter by Sasikala Natarajan, who was sworn in as General Secretary of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) following the death of Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa. Into the brain through the nostrils By Kumudini Hettiarachchi Pioneering operation at Anuradhapura Hospital View(s): View(s): There is purposeful concentration, while soft and soothing music plays in the background, as different teams of doctors and nurses, scrub up and move around Operating Theatre (OT) C of the Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital. On the operating table is a pretty middle-aged woman, but something seems unusual with her face it seems unduly large, with the nose being pronounced. While Consultant Anaesthetist Dr. Ayesha Abeyratne and her team are preparing the patient for surgery, two Consultants from different specialties are studying the Magnetic Resonance Imaging pictures. They are Consultant Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) Surgeon, Dr. Daminda Dumingoarachchi who is also a Head and Neck Surgeon and Consultant Neurosurgeon, Dr. Stravinsky Perera. Although not present in the OT that day, Consultant ENT Surgeon Dr. Upul Abeysundara is also very much a part of this pioneering work in Sri Lanka. It is a Monday morning and we too are in OT clothes and masks privy to viewing an operation not done anywhere else in the state sector, except the Anuradhapura Hospital. Accessing the patients brain through the nostrils is what the ENT and Neuro Teams will do in one of many trailblazing procedures, while the Anaesthetic Team will ensure that her vitals are stable and the able theatre nursing staff will play their part. Image-guided (navigation-assisted) endoscopic trans-nasal trans-sphenoidal pituitary surgery is what we are about to view being performed in the country only since October this year. For, the 38-year-old patient lying inert on the operating table has a tumour just above her pituitary gland, between the optic nerves and the carotid arteries, making it a difficult operation-site to access. (The pea-size pituitary gland is dubbed the master gland as it produces many hormones for the whole body, while also stimulating other glands to produce other hormones.) Dr. Dumingoarachchi points out that the ENT navigator which the Anuradhapura Hospital was provided with recently, is like the GPS system of the brain which shows this vital organs architecture. Dr. Perera explains that the patient has acromegaly, the abnormal production of growth hormones from the pituitary, causing a large nose and big hands etc. This is while it also causes an abnormal reduction in other hormones, affecting the functioning of the whole body. The enlarged pituitary is also compressing the main artery of the brain. A major issue is that the patients vision is being affected and if the tumour is not decompressed, she would go blind. Matters also seem complicated as the patient had undergone conventional brain surgery to remove an earlier tumour in the same area in 2009 in another hospital, but some parts had been left behind because it was complex surgery and the slightest slip of the scalpel could cause serious harm. We watch in fascination as the surgical teams discuss how the tumour has grown around the right carotid artery making it a challenging procedure and is pressing down (compressing) on the brain. This pituitary macroadenoma with acute intra-tumoural haemorrhage (bleeding) is big 5X3.8X3.5cms, says Dr. Perera, adding that laterally, the lesion extends to the right cavernous sinus encircling almost the full circumference of the cavernous part of the right carotid artery. The left carotid artery is spared. Super-imposing the patients Computed Tomography (CT) scan with images of the real anatomy, the registration takes place for this re-do surgery, as he explains that the anatomy is distorted after her previous surgery done seven years ago. In the freezing OT, we dont feel the time passing as both the Neurosurgeon and the ENT Surgeon attend to their tasks, two pairs of hands working in tandem, not looking down at the patient but up at the two screens, while navigating the pathways through the nostrils to the brain. Usually, such a large tumour above the pituitary gland will entail open-skull surgery, with the brain having to be retracted (drawn away from the site of the operation) to gain access to the tumour, we learn. While the dangers of such surgery are numerous, the patient also has to spend a long time in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in the recovery phase. With the frontiers of medicine pushed back more and more, Dr. Dumingoarachchi says that now skull-base structures can be approached through the nose, ear and throat. Such surgery involves dealing with pathologies located on the under-surface of the brain, with Neurosurgeons and ENT Surgeons together accessing the skull-base more easily through the nose, ear and throat. Pointing out that these trans-nasal and trans-labyrinthine approaches to the skull-base will help bring down the rate of revision neurosurgeries and cut down the time that the patient will have to spend in the ICU post-operatively, he adds that the patients can go back home sooner without complications and be productive more quickly. Currently, some patients even go to other countries to get these services. With the Health Ministry providing a high definition 3-chip endoscopic camera system, an anterior skull-base set, a micro-debrider and an ENT navigator, vast strides have been made at the Anuradhapura Hospital. They include: * Anterior skull-base surgeries Endoscopic anterior skull-base surgeries, starting with pituitary surgeries using the endoscopic trans-sphenoidal approach for the first time in Sri Lanka. The latest addition, in October this year, is image-guidance (navigation). The other procedures include cranio-pharyngioma, olfactory neuroblastoma, cerebrospinal fluid leak repairs, para-nasal sinus cancer resections and odontoid (cervical spine) decompression. The advantages of this approach include a better field of view and ease of doing revision surgery if required, while leaving no external scars. Nasal polyposis is also now being managed by image-guided powered full house functional endoscopic sinus surgeries, resulting in the reduction of the recurrence rate. This also cuts down revision surgeries. * Lateral skull-base surgeries Throughmicroscopic lateral skull-base surgery, trans-labyrinthine acoustic neuromas have been removed. With direct access to these eighth-nerve tumours, no brain retraction has been necessitated, resulting in less post-operative morbidity. The whole tumour can be removed while preserving the seventh cranial nerve, as the hospital has also been given intra-operative cranial nerve monitoring facilities. Paying tribute to Dr. Palitha Mahipala, Director-General of Health Services, for making the navigator available to them, Dr. Dumingoarachchi also expresses appreciation to the Deputy Director-General (DDG) of the Biomedical Division, Muditha Jayathilake, Biomedical Engineers Apsara and Kumuduni and DDG Dr. Lakshmi Somatunga for all their support. Retired SSPs return as coordinators to improve police-people ties in NE By Chrishanthi Christopher View(s): View(s): Three Tamil speaking retired senior police officers are to be appointed as coordinating officers as part of the Governments move to improve relations between the Police and the people in the Northern and Eastern Provinces, the Police Commission said yesterday. Commission Secretary Ariyadasa Cooray said Retd. SSP Traffic K. Arasaratnam, Retd. SSP (Traffic) Ganeshanathan and Retd. SSP Selvarajah had been selected for the posts and they would serve the two provinces and the Police Academy. Their appointments come following several complaints from Tamil-speaking people. They say they face difficulties in police stations when making complaints and often they are asked to sign police reports which they do not understand. Police statistics show most of the 15,000-strong police personnel posted in the north cannot speak Tamil. The Sunday Times learns that Mr. Arasaratnam will be posted to the Eastern Province, Mr. Ganeshanathan to the Northen Province and Mr. Selvarajah to the Police Academy in Negombo. Their contracts are for two years and, thereafter, renewable every six months. Undeclared monies in foreign banks can be brought home View(s): Finance Minister says exchange control laws to be liberalised from next year The Government will allow Sri Lankans holding undeclared funds in foreign banks to transfer them to Colombo, Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake said yesterday. This should not be misconstrued as a blanket amnesty. We will allow those who have earned the funds through legitimate means, he told the Sunday Times. He said even those who held foreign accounts in Swiss banks and in offshore companies named in the Panama Papers, will be eligible. On May 17 last year, the Sunday Times exclusively revealed the names of Sri Lankans holding Swiss Bank accounts. Today, the Sunday Times has been given exclusive access by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in the United States and Suddeutsche Zeitung in Germany to bare names of Sri Lankan companies and individuals in the Panama papers. See Political Commentary on Pages 14 and 15. Minister Karunanayake said the Government was studying the practices adopted in Indonesia and Malaysia, among other countries, with regard to funds their nationals hold in foreign banks. These new measures will come into effect when the liberalised exchange control laws take effect early next year, he said. In Indonesia, early this year, its Finance Minister invited those who have placed their monies abroad to report such activity to the Government and pay tax. This was a prelude to a tax amnesty. In Malaysia, the island of Lebuan, a federal territory, charges international companies registered there only three per cent on any income. The move is an incentive for their nationals overseas to invest their monies in banks in Lebuan, a safe haven. One of the reasons preventing a full tax amnesty on those holding monies abroad is the ongoing investigations into assets held overseas by former Government leaders and their relatives. Though a Presidential Task Force for Assets Recovery was set up, it has so far not been successful in identifying any foreign account. Complex psychological principles simplified using examples of practical application View(s): Mental health and mental illness, to the average individual, are issues that are usually confronting and challenging. Similarly, even to most doctors and medical students, Psychiatry is an abstract discipline, away from the comfort zone of the more mainstream disciplines in their medical curriculum. Associated with this is the fact that especially in the Sri Lankan setting these topics are usually associated with a substantial amount of stigma. There is little wonder then that there is a paucity of books, let alone good books, written on related topics. Colombo Universitys Professor in Psychiatry, Raveen Hanwella attempts to fill this void with two compact volumes. He has authored the Handbook of Psychotherapy for Clinicians with a Consultant Psychiatrist colleague, Chathurie Suraweera, and also penned How to Improve Your Mind. The former is clearly aimed at trainees in Psychiatry. It is indeed a brave psychiatrist that ventures into the realm of psychotherapy, which is mostly the domain of psychologists. It is an even smarter one that is able to write a manual on the discipline that is both instructive and interesting. Hanwella and Suraweera achieve this with their narrative style of writing and their knack for simplifying complex psychological principles using examples of practical application. The authors, both practising psychiatrists are also candid in the assessment of their own profession saying that psychiatrists have become psychopharmacologists because they mostly prescribe medicines for mental illness, noting that the results have been unsatisfactory. What follows is a series of basic instructions and the different forms of psychotherapies for common presentations, replete with examples. It is, as its title states, a handbook, so it is not a comprehensive textbook but for the trainee in Psychiatry who is trying to fathom the depths of psychotherapy, this book would probably be what he was searching for in the library all these years. It is also likely to whet the appetite of those with a serious interest in psychotherapy to dig deeper into the discipline. How to Improve Your Mind has been written for a larger audience and is indeed an enjoyable and thought provoking read. Hanwella examines everyday issues, providing an insightful mental health perspective into them. Topics such as Stress and coping with stress, Managing your emotions, Influence-Obedience to authority and Critical thinking and superstition are those that most would be able to relate to and Hanwella presents his opinions about each of them in a convincing manner, not being shy to introduce the results of scientific tests and experiments in support of them. Its text is laced liberally not only with stories about patients and research findings but also with vignettes from history and quotations from literature where Shakespeare makes a frequent appearance. It is Hanwellas ability to combine all these elements into a cogent argument that makes it a good read while at the same time providing food for thought. Book facts *Handbook of Psychotherapy for Clinicians by Raveen Hanwella and Chathurie Suraweera *How to Improve Your Mind by Raveen Hanwella Published by Kumaran Book House, Chennai The chapter on Critical thinking and superstition is particularly well executed. Hanwella presents the evidence both for and against superstition without any bias and then guides the reader through the evidence with forensic skill that would be edifying to most in a country such as Sri Lanka, besotted as it is with superstitious beliefs and associated practices. If there is to be a criticism it is that, after having taken the effort to produce a volume that examines such socially pertinent issues that would immensely benefit the average individual, more such matters with everyday relevance were not dealt with. Nevertheless, these two volumes fill a much needed void, more so because they have been set in a Sri Lankan context which would make it that much more interesting and enjoyable for the local reader at a time when mental health in Sri Lanka has made significant gains but still has to take giant strides if it is to be on par with the developed world. Hanwella and Suraweera should be commended for embarking on an endeavour such as this which would have taken considerable time and effort. International migrants day and Sri Lanka View(s): By Andrew Samuel As we celebrate international migrants day (IMD) today, it is appropriate to reflect on the 1.8 million migrant workers who have for the longest time contributed to the national coffers by way of wage remittances. The significance of this day is that it originated with some Asian migrants and civil society organisations celebrating the date on which the UN adopted the International Convention on the Protection of the Migrant Workers and their Families. As global markets expanded through trade and countries developed their physical infrastructure, people moved from their countries of origin to countries of destination seeking greener pastures. People continue to move due to economic hardships. They continue to move because they cannot trust their political leaders for economic prosperity. They migrate because of conflicts and wars in their countries. They also migrate because of natural calamities in their home countries. Globally it is estimated that about 250 million people have moved from their home countries and are living in foreign countries for their economic and social progress. Forty nine percent of this enormous population are women. According to the UN International Migration Report 2015, of the 20 countries that host the most number of migrants, Saudi Arabia is in 3rd place and UAE is in 5th place. Of this total about 150 million people are migrant workers. Of this foreign labour population about 11-12 million are migrant domestic workers. In 2014 migrants from the developing countries sent home US$436 billion in remittances. Worker remittances during this same period for Sri Lanka were US$7 billion and in 2015 it was US$6,98 billion. Some economists believe that labour migration is one way that can eradicate poverty in countries. Whilst there is merit to such a theory, there is also widespread belief that migration has caused greater harm to individuals and communities for the sheer lack of policies and rights protection for such persons. The very fact that labour exploitation, modern slavery, labour trafficking and debt bondage are by-products of migration is reason enough to rethink strategies of the discourse at the national, bilateral, regional, and multilateral levels. Also, in more recent times migration has had a new set of identities and meanings not only from the labour migration platform but to recognize asylum seekers and refugees who fall in to the broader category of migrants. It is therefore very likely that some parts of the world will celebrate this day remembering the lives that were lost in attempting to reach safer places from conflict situations. Some features of the Sri Lankan labour migration discourse Since and before the establishment of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) Sri Lanka has been known to export domestic workers to the Gulf region. Since then this extremely lucrative export has had a profound effect on the economy of Sri Lanka. It was only in recent years that the trend shifted in more men migrating for employment. Despite over 30 years of labour export a few things have not changed such as the most lucrative region being the Gulf states, domestic workers are still the highest single category of workers seeking employment overseas and low and semiskilled workers dominate the skills set category distribution and the fact that freewheeling sub agents operate without regulation. What has also not changed is the conciliation work of the SLBFE has not been fully decentralised to the regions yet. Many changes have been introduced in the process, some as regulatory changes and some others through ministry circulars that keep changing from time to time. Some of them are the implementation of a family background report imposed on women migrants, age restrictions and family status on women migrants. These are clear violations of mobility that restricts women in gaining economic wellbeing. It is also a violation of international conventions and rights. Amendments to the SLBFE Act have been done and are awaiting parliament approval for implementation. Civil society does not have much knowledge of these amendments. The SLBFE has withdrawn from being party to signing the domestic worker employment contract leaving room for private agents to interpret the contract that could have other implications. Minimum wage thresholds have also been introduced. The pre-departure training for domestic workers has increased to 40 days from 21 days. Though the government has invested in pre-departure training facilities for prospective migrant domestic workers and conform its training to a NVQ3 level, the results have not shown any significant improvement in alleviating the domestic worker to new professional service standards. The Gulf countries dont want to recognise such specialties. They think these services should be part of the domestic work job profile. Abuses Domestic work is not a recognised form of work in destination countries and is not recognised in their labour laws. Domestic workers are vulnerable to multiple forms of abuse like verbal abuse, mental and psychological abuse, physical and sexual abuse. Domestic workers in the Gulf states are live-in maids. They must work all seven days of the week. They are not given a paid day off. They have no access to the outside world. This makes them vulnerable to this abuse and in most instances, they go unrecorded. Because of this non recognition factor, employers and private recruiting agents take advantage of this worker category. There are many complaints recorded of contract violations such as non payment of wages, delayed wage payments, wage deductions, over work, no proper rest, having to work outside the contract stipulation, having to work in multiple houses, deprivation of sleep and food. There are other severe restrictions being imposed in the destination countries. One of the reasons for this is the fact that the recruitment cost to recruit a domestic worker is high as there are many stakeholders profiting from this cost. This has resulted in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia imposing a penalty of 10,000 Riyals or Rs.400,000 on the domestic worker if she does not fulfill the standard contract period of two years. This is one of the most unfair and unreasonable conditions introduced by a destination country. The other serious concern is the payment made to the domestic worker by the private recruiting agent at the predeparture stage for accepting employment as a salary advance. This shows how much profit is made from a single recruitment by agents. It is a way of committing a worker in to a debt trap even before the worker takes up employment. Concerns in Saudi Arabia As much as 32% of Saudi Arabias population are expat workers most of whom are from South Asia. Saudi Arabia relies on foreign labour to run its economy and build its physical infrastructure. Many developing countries in South Asia, Africa, and Southeast Asia supply labour on contract to the Kingdom. The crash in crude oil prices in the world market is hurting the big supplier countries in the Gulf. The most affected is Saudi Arabia as it relies on as much as 80% of its income on oil revenue. With the global market collapse in oil prices the Kingdom posted a US$98 billion budget deficit in 2015. Saudi Arabia is a very important country for Sri Lanka because of the large number of Sri Lankans working there. In 2014 alone Sri Lanka supplied over 80,000 workers and in 2015, Sri Lanka sent almost 75,000 workers. Large construction and infrastructure projects have been contracted out to both local and foreign companies. As the economy continues to slowdown the big contractors are finding it difficult to pay their workers. Some are claiming that their clients have not settled their bills and that has resulted in them not being able to settle worker salaries. There are thousands of foreign workers from the region stranded in Saudi Arabia awaiting back payments of salary for the work they have carried out. Most of these workers have debt to clear at home. They are unable to remit money home for the welfare of their families and to pay the debt instalments. Back in the workplace the workers are living without proper meals. The crisis has severely affected the workers families who have relied on remittances for their survival. This has had a domino effect to even the sending country economies especially to those economies that rely mostly on foreign remittances such as Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, and the Philippines. Responsibility We must acknowledge the contributions that temporary migration has brought to our countries from contract labour by way of remittances. We must acknowledge that worker remittances have and continue to save the fragile economies of our countries. We must acknowledge the enormous sacrifices these workers make in leaving their families behind to earn a decent wage for a decent living. We must acknowledge that these migrant workers often have very little support for redress from both the countries of origin and destination. We must acknowledge the appalling working and living conditions that some migrant workers have. We must acknowledge the many contractual violations that migrant workers face during their contractual period. We must acknowledge that migrant workers are also tricked and trafficked in to conditions that they never bargained for. We must acknowledge that the Kafala recruitment system continues to prevail in the Gulf states to the disadvantage of migrant workers. We must acknowledge the severe punishments imposed on workers through the sharia law in the Gulf states. Governments of origin and destination countries must recognise and respect the UN legal instrument, the 1990 International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrants and Members of Their Families. It is therefore the responsibility of the origin country governments to put pressure on labour receiving countries to adhere and conform to international labour laws and practices in respecting foreign workers and their lives and treating them with dignity. It is the responsibility of origin country governments to negotiate safe migration from a bilateral and multilateral point of view and not only consider increases to remittances. It is the responsibility of origin country governments to ensure that the workers they send, no matter what category they belong to, are protected and that their governments will respond to their needs when in a crisis. It is the responsibility of the origin country governments to make sure a rights framework is introduced in all negotiations with relevant stakeholders including the private recruitment industry for the protection and wellbeing of migrant workers. Today, there are many important multilateral dialogues on migration. Relevant to the labour migration platform are the (Global Forum for Migration and Development (GFMD), Abu Dhabi Dialogue (ADD), the Colombo Process (CP) and the Global Consultation on Migrant Health (GCMH). Governments should be engaged in these processes and take responsibility for their actions and decisions. (The writer can be contacted at avsamuel@gmail.com) Private medical colleges: Dont make it a business View(s): The controversy-ridden South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM) was the topic of a recent lecture delivered by eminent Senior Surgeon Prof. A.H. Sheriffdeen as the guest-of-honour at the foundation sessions of the Sri Lanka Medical Association (SLMA). Excerpts: One of the objectives of the SLMA is to play an advocacy role in the medical affairs of the country. It was only two weeks ago that I saw some news items in the newspaper and I thought it is time to air my view on private medical colleges with the hope that the SLMA will take on the task of advising the Government on this contentious issue. In an article on Donald Trump, the correspondent had this to say: He emerged amid a constellation of crises, economic hardships and unemployment, an erosion of political centre and a growing resentment against the elites. He had a penchant for long rambling speeches, presenting himself in messianic terms, promising to lead his country to a new era of greatness Donald Trump? Boris Johnson? Rodrigo Duterte? No, it is about Adolf Hitler! Why this fuss over SAITM? asks a reader. The answer is the same because of the hidden dangers. Many years ago, I wrote to this very same newspaper that I have been asked on several occasions whether I was for or against private medical colleges and I had replied that I was neither for nor against these but that I was against unregulated commercial medical colleges which were akin to mere tutories. Of late, I have been approached by a few businessmen who have asked me, Doctor, will you help me set up a private medical college? You name your price and we will pay you. And the conversation on each occasion has gone like this Have you got a teaching hospital? -Answer no. Do you have any idea of medical curriculum, teaching medicine? Answer no. Have you got capital? Answer no. Have you got permission to start a degree-awarding institution/medical school? Answer: No doctor, but when SAITM gets the ok we can advertise, collect five to 10 million rupees from each applicant, start with a lecture hall and later build up the rest just like our international schools! Following the 1920s, the training of doctors in the United States moved from commercial medical schools to medical colleges with research facilities associated with teaching hospitals. Emphasis on the scientific basis of medicine stimulated major breakthroughs in our understanding of human biology and disease and this fostered progress. The triumvirate of medical school, research faculty, and teaching hospital spawned the modern academic medical centres with the following objectives: Educate and train tomorrows doctors and medical scientists Discover new medical knowledge and conduct research to find tomorrows cures (almost a hundred and fifty years later, how many of our medical faculties have this in their mission statements?) Develop innovative ways to prevent, diagnose and treat disease Provide the most up to date medical care We too should move forwards not backwards. The first step in establishing a medical school is to get permission from the Ministry of Higher Education and the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC). There is a document issued from the SLMC titled Guidelines and specifications and criteria for accreditation of medical schools in Sri Lanka and courses of study provided by them dated 2011. These were first published in February 2009 under the provisions of Section 19 of the Medical Ordinance, in conformity with the Committee of Vice Chancellors, Directors of the University Grants Commission (UGC) of Sri Lanka for medical schools and foreign medical schools to be approved as centres of medical education for Sri Lankan citizens. Since then the World Health Organization (WHO) in November 2009 published guideline for accreditation of medical schools in countries of the South East Asia region bearing in mind the country-specific requirements and the prevailing national accreditation practice which are non-binding, flexible and facilitatory in nature and are under the jurisdiction of the medical councils. It is proposed that with the following standards of medical education by every university, medical school or degree awarding institute established under the Universities Act No. 16 of 1978 accreditation shall be periodically undertaken by the SLMC in accordance with Part 111 A of the Medical Ordinance. The process starts in the following sequence: Application for accreditation, scrutiny of documents, self evaluation, site visit, approval of curriculum/substantial changes. This is followed by a set of guidelines on standards, educational programme, instructional methods and assessments. The next section is on clinical teaching facilities. It spells out the minimum number of beds and occupancy, the specialties, professorial units, clinicians, operating theatres, radiology facilities, laboratory facilities and rehabilitation. The next section is finances and resources with a sum of money deposited by private medical schools as a guarantee against eventualities! Physical facilities like lecture rooms, auditorium and examination hall, tutorial rooms, AV Unit, laboratories and museums, library, information technology, clinical skills and English competency laboratories, research environment, medical education unit, accommodation and sports, food service, water supply, sanitation, electricity, gas and central workshop are spelt out. Next is a section on student selection, staffing policy, staff development and PG development. The last section is the accreditation report. It says the report must conclude with recommendations concerning the decision on accreditation to be taken by the SLMC, this decision must be conveyed to the Minister of Health, Minister of Higher Education and UGC and also made public. Now compare this with the guidelines put out by the Medical Council of India. There is an official gazette titled Establishment of Medical Colleges 1999. The first clear statement goes No person shall establish a medical college except after obtaining prior approval from the central Government submitting a scheme: Single plot of land 25 acres in extent, Essentiality certificate: No objection of State/territory of administration, availability of adequate clinical material as per council regulations, university consent, person manages a hospital not less than 300 beds with facilities for expansion, that the person has not admitted students to the proposed medical college, bank guarantees in favour of the Medical Council of India, opening of medical colleges in hired or rented buildings shall not be permitted, market survey and environmental analysis, educational programme with method of recruitment, administration, department wise and year wise curriculum of students, functional programme department wise and service wise, Equipment programme, manpower programme, building programme, planning and layout, Revenue and expenditure assumptions, Application with 3.5 lakhs to the Medical Council of India. This is followed by a review process by the MCI on desirability and feasibility, report by MCI, Grant of permission with a time based programme. (www.mcindia.org/for-colleges/Estl-of-new-Med-Coll-Regulations-1999.pdf) You may now see the process set up of a step wise transparent process starting with a plot of land and resources, to obtaining national/state/territorial permission, teaching hospital/departments, infrastructure facilities, curriculum/criteria for recruitment of staff, admission of students and that at each stage the MCI is involved in assessing adequacy before final permission is given. Compare this with the business entrepreneurs who are waiting to make a quick buck by commencing at the reverse end by recruiting the students, collecting the money, starting preclinical courses in hired halls, stepwise hiring of staff as required, ad hoc appointment of professors and lecturers, then building a teaching hospital and finally applying for permission from the medical council. Maybe some will see now the answer to the question Why this fuss over SAITM? I hope the SLMC will get involved: After reading the Local View columns on Cuba by Dr. Pat Clare (Cuba was and is no utopia, Dec.3) and Owen Goodenkauf (No Cuban utopia, but promise, Dec. 10), I felt a need to respond. I, too, was on a People 2 People trip to Cuba this past October. I agree that both Batista and Castro were ruthless dictators. The people were friendly, the music was super, and the countryside was beautiful. I do feel I saw more of the Cuba that Dr. Clare saw. The average salary is 30 CUCs (Cuban convertible pesos), which is less than $30 per month. Just last week I read an article from the New York Times stating that tourism in Cuba has made it more difficult for the average Cuban to afford food because of the opening of paladars (in-home restaurants) catering to tourists. The price of produce has skyrocketed. A pound of tomatoes/peppers costs 10% of their monthly salary. The only Cubans you see in these restaurants are the owners/workers. And according to the Times article, the government has discontinued licensing for these places. We saw few stores in Cuba. We did see an appliance store in one of the smaller towns. A refrigerator cost 864 CUCs. When we asked how a family could afford a refrigerator, we were told that families dont own refrigerators families go together and have a neighborhood refrigerator. Clothes washers sold for 400-plus CUCs. Families do not own washers; they go to laundromats or wash clothes by hand. When we arrived in Havana, we waited nearly 2 hours for our luggage as cargo was unloaded first. Friends and family from the U.S. were sending bicycles, TVs, microwaves, etc. - things that are not available in Cuba. In Havana you see quite a few cars, mostly from the 50s. Some are spiffed up to carry tourists around the town. Otherwise, citizens care usually carrying 5-6 people. Our guide said the mechanics there were miracle workers in that they can keep the older card running. In rural areas you see few cars. People ride bikes, use horses and carts, or hitchhike. It was not uncommon to see several people at a rural intersection waiting for a ride. Our guide told us the #1 income in Cuba is derived from sending professionals to other countries to offer their services. The government in turn gets a percentage of their income. Tourism is the #2 source of income. One day an architect took us to several city squares in Havana. When asked how they are ever going to restore the deteriorating buildings, he replied, Thats the problem. We can't afford it. Were hoping tourism helps. Our guide was 30 years old. She has 6 years of college and speaks 4 languages. She lives with her parents and sister. Several generations live in one home/apartment because of costs. Parents, generally, have one child; they cant afford more. Abortions are common. And, yes, college is free; but, upon graduation they have to work for government social services for 3 years at less than 30 CUCs a month. For males, one of those years is spent in the military. Many homes/apartment windows have metal grates over them instead of glass. This is not because of crime, but it helps with air flow since there is no air conditioning in homes. Fumigation trucks pass through town on a regular basis to get rid of mosquitoes and other bugs. Although it is extremely difficult and costly to leave Cuba, its population has decreased 15% in the last 10 years. Our guide graduated with 25 others in her college major. She is one of 7 still in Cuba. Yes, employment is at 96%. If you dont work, you dont eat. There is no welfare or unemployment. The Cuban government does take care of its elderly. I never felt unsafe or threatened. We were told not to take pictures of police, military, or one religion sect that wore all white. When we returned to our hotel in Havana, we were assured it was safe to go out. The streets were teeming with people; however, there were no streetlights so we stayed close to our hotel. Since about half our group consisted of teachers, we had asked to visit a school. We were denied. Several wanted to give school supplies, but that was considered propaganda. Some did give supplies to a museum and a rest home. Most of the tour was extremely eye opening and I felt sympathy for the people having to live in such conditions. However, I did find the anti-American billboard offensive. Most had pictures of Castro with his fist raised and something in Spanish. Our guide interpreted one and apologized saying, Our government doesnt like your government, but we love your people. To which one of our people said, We are our government. The most upsetting billboard pictured Uncle Sam with his eyes crossed and a fist in his face and bloodied across the bottom. Our guide ignored that one. I think she hoped we didnt see it! Goodenfauf spoke of the stereotypes Cubans have about America the crime, shootings, guns, etc. Although I realize that is somewhat true, I gladly return to America and the thank God I live here warts and all. A 56-year-old-man was rushed to hospital after suffering multiple injuries following a car crash in Waihi overnight. A TECT Rescue Helicopter spokesperson says the chopper was dispatched to the scene of the crash in the Waihi township at about 11pm. The helicopter landed at a park and was met by a St John ambulance that was transporting the patient. The patient received multiple injuries and was stabilised before being flown to Waikato hospital. The flight was conducted under night vision goggles and the helicopter was tasked due to the distance to the required hospital and the nature of the injuries, the spokesperson says. If you think youve got what it takes to represent the people of the Bay of Plenty then the Labour party wants to hear from you. Nominations are now open for everyone who wishes to stand as the Labour candidate for the Bay of Plenty electorate in the 2017 General Election. Bay of Plenty Labour Electorate Committee chair Russell Langton says planning for next years General Election is well underway and he looks forward to the selection of a strong candidate to represent the electorate. Bay of Plenty is an electorate which, alongside the increase in population, has shown growth in primary industries, retail, housing and hospitality, and seems set to continue on this path. However, many of our people still suffer from homelessness, inadequate housing, poor transport, casualization and exploitation within many job situations, and ongoing health service issues. Labours General Secretary Andrew Kirton says the partys focus is on winning next year and electing capable, energetic and forward-looking candidates to join the Labour team in Parliament. Only a Labour-led government will back the Kiwi Dream and help every New Zealander to get ahead. The Bay of Plenty electorate surrounds Tauranga in a U-shape from Omokoroa in the west across to Papamoa in the east and features a diverse mix of coastal, urban, rural and commercial areas. Nominees must be members of the Labour Party at the time of submitting a nomination form which can be found along with more information at: labour.org.nz/party_resources A modern-day retelling of William Shakespeares classic tale of star-struck lovers Romeo and Juliet is set to screen in Mount Maunganui tonight. As part of its Summer Series, Night Owl Cinema is proud to present Baz Luhrmanns retelling of Romeo and Juliet down at Mount Drury on Maunganui Road, from 6pm. Entry costs a gold coin. Romeo and Juliet follows the Montagues and Capulets - two feuding families whose children meet and fall in love. But the star-crossed lovers have to hide their aroha from the world because they know their parents will never allow them to be together. Were excited, it really feels like summer today and the weathers looking perfect for tonights screening of Romeo and Juliet, saysNight Owl Cinemas Kimberley Cleland. With the movie set to screen at dark, which is roughly 8.30pm, theres plenty of time for people to wander down to fill their puku with some sumptuous kai provided The Street Food Union food trucks while being serenaded by the musical stylings of acoustic duo Izzy & Moe. This summer Night Owl Cinema will hold screening sessions at Mount Drury along with Waihi, Omokoroa, Papamoa and Welcome Bay. Kicking their season off on Labour Weekend, films screened so far include Italian surf film Bella Vita, classic 80s comedy Ghostbusters, and childrens favourite Toy Story Kimberley says the crowds have been really amazing so far and the screenings have been wonderful events with a very nice vibe and lots of people coming down to have a good time. One of my favourite films coming up is the Lion King on January 4, and Im also really looking forward to Born to Dance which well be showing on December 28. Well be working with Urban Dance to run a dance competition as part of the screening, itll be a really great night. Night Owl Cinema presents Romeo and Juliet down at Mount Drury in Mount Maunganui tonight, from 6pm. For more information visit: nightowlcinema.org.nz A change made to tax rules will provide businesses with faster access to GST refunds from February next year, says Revenue Minister Michael Woodhouse. The Tax Administration (Direct Credit of GST Refunds) Order 2016 will make it compulsory for Inland Revenue to provide refunds by direct credit to a taxpayers identified bank account. Under the current process, a cheque from Inland Revenue takes an average of 10 days until the funds become available to the taxpayer. Direct credit means the funds will be available to the taxpayer in just two days. This change is the result of extensive public consultation in November 2015, which sought feedback on how digital technology might be used to provide more streamlined PAYE and GST processes for taxpayers. Michael says its just one of a number of changes that will be introduced next year as part of Inland Revenues modernisation programme to make it easier and faster for Kiwis to manage their tax affairs. From February 7, 2017, GST refunds will only be made by cheque if Inland Revenue does not have a customers bank details or if there are extenuating circumstances, such as hardship. Jane Kleeb assumed the chairmanship of Nebraska's Democratic Party on Saturday and launched new programs to train candidates, register voters and "create service and advocacy projects where people can be in the streets together." Kleeb, founder and leader of Bold Nebraska, is an experienced grassroots organizer skilled in social media outreach and citizen activism. She is best known for leading successful citizen opposition to construction of the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline across Nebraska. In March, Kleeb supported Sen. Bernie Sanders in Nebraska's Democratic presidential caucus, which the Vermont senator won. She subsequently was elected Democratic chair in June, defeating 2014 gubernatorial nominee Chuck Hassebrook. Kleeb formally took the reins of the party on Saturday. She succeeds Vince Powers, who did not seek re-election. "While the national (election) map was a huge step back for our families," Kleeb said, "in Nebraska we are making change happen." She pointed to the election in November of three Democrats who will be new members of the nonpartisan Legislature in January after defeating three Republicans, including two incumbent senators. The election of Carol Blood of Bellevue, Dan Quick of Grand Island and Lynne Walz of Fremont demonstrates that "Democrats can win in urban and rural communities," she said. Kleeb lives in Hastings. "National Democrats would have written those communities and families off because they did not fit a 'vote model' written by political consultants," she said. "We win elections with old-fashioned visiting with people at their homes, where they work and where they hang out," Kleeb said. She said 850 people already have signed up for a new party program called the Blue Bench Project, which will train people of any age who want to run for public office or be part of the county party leadership. Sen. Adam Morfeld and Sen.-elect Anna Wishart, both of Lincoln, will co-chair that project. A new "Dems in the Streets" program will blend traditional voter outreach with nontraditional tactics, Kleeb said, engaging people in advocacy projects. Such projects could include the ongoing battle over the flow of liquor sales to Native Americans in Whiteclay, just across the border from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, Kleeb said, as well as public education, poverty and clean energy. She said the party also will focus on voters who are registered as nonpartisan. Meanwhile, she said, the party will set a goal of registering 10 percent more voters in each county while acquiring additional monthly donors. An elderly man has died after the mobility scooter he was driving went into the Whakatane River. In a statement, a police spokesperson says they were alerted to the incident which occurred near the bridge on Landing Road in Whakatane at 9:50am. Police are now in the process of notifying next of kin and establishing the circumstances around his death. No further details are available. The mans death will be referred to the coroner. For four decades the metric system has played an integral role in the day-to-day lives of Kiwis. This week the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employments Trading Standards team celebrated the 40th anniversary of metres, kilograms and litres becoming the countrys official system of measurement on December 14, 1976. Back in 1976, New Zealand adopted the International System of units known as the Metric System and moved away from imperial measurements, says Trading Standards manager Stephen OBrien. Forty years on, the Metric System has become critical to New Zealands domestic and international trade with most goods measured by length, weight and volume using this system. Measurement and the metric system support the decisions Kiwis make as consumers every day - from the weight of a Christmas pudding, to which box of chocolates represents best value, to knowing the correct quantity of turkey and its corresponding cooking time. The Ministry Trading Standards team oversees the countrys measurement system and ensures the weights, measurement units, and measurement systems used to make such decisions are accurate and can be relied upon. The team recently hosted an event in Wellington to showcase exciting discoveries and advancements in the world of measurement. Advancements in the metric system are being used to craft the future of multiple industries and support trade. For something that has been such an integral part of our society in the past 40 years, it will be exciting to see what the next 40 years will hold. Hundreds of Bay of Plenty children will get up close and personal with two of New Zealands top sporting stars at the Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon in Mount Maunganui today. Young athletes will swim, cycle and run their way to the finish line to receive a medal from Mount locals, NZ National Womens Rugby Sevens player Sarah Goss and Olympic medallist Luuka Jones. This year the iconic annual sporting event has found a new home in the Bay and is set to take place at Arataki Park in the Mount, starting at 9am. The TRYathalon starts with a 50m-200m swim at Baywave Aquatic Centre, followed by a 4km-8km cycle through the streets of Arataki, and finishes with a 1.5km run around Arataki Park. Distances vary depending on age group. The 20169 series marks the 25th anniversary of the Sanitarium Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon, and looks set to be the most successful ever, with entries across New Zealand up 42 per cent on last year. The increase in children aged 7-15 enrolling for the iconic sporting event also continues the trend for the triathlons growing popularity. The very first event held in 1992 saw just 800 entrants. Fast forward to the 2015/16 TRYathlon series and entry umbers grew to 28,000 and the latest figures suggest this years triathlon is set to top every event so far. Online registrations for the Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon is now closed but manual registrations will still be accepted from 7-8am today. The TRYathlon To enter go to try.weetbix.co.nz for more information. Olympic medallist Luuka Jones. File Photo. NZ National Womens Rugby Sevens player Sarah Goss. File Photo. Blog_shutterstock_457270816.JPG Uber is a ride-hailing app that lets users summon a car and pay for it. Uber drivers use their own vehicles. (Shutterstock) Correction appended. Whether it happens in a special session this year or in the regular session next year, the New York state Legislature ought to make it possible for ride-hailing outfits like Uber and Lyft to operate in Upstate New York. Uber launched a million-dollar, holiday-themed ad blitz to pressure lawmakers to act if a special session is called. Gov. Andrew Cuomo is calling for legislation. So is Howard Zemsky, head of Empire State Development, who recently joked that he was almost late to an event in Albany because he needed a ride -- and the nearest Uber car was in New York City. In June, the Senate passed a bill that would have changed insurance rules to allow ride-hailing companies to operate everywhere in the state. (They currently operate in New York City through a special agreement with taxi regulators.) The bill failed because the Assembly wanted more insurance coverage. In cities where Uber and Lyft operate - pretty much every major city in the country -- they've become indispensable to travelers, people without cars or other transportation options, and drivers who've had too much to drink. The Assembly and Senate must come together on ride-hailing. It's the 21st century, and Upstate New Yorkers demand to join it. This post has been corrected. The Assembly bill sought higher insurance coverage than the Senate bill. It did not include background checks or fingerprinting for drivers. The high school graduation rate for the class of 2016 at Lincoln Public Schools saw an increase, thanks to LPS high schools working hard to focus on every individual student and making sure they are successful through creative, proactive programs, according to officials at LPS. Steve Joel, superintendent of LPS, noted: I want to call out the amazing work of our educators and those that support the work in the school district's classrooms for their continued focus on helping students find success. While the work is getting tougher as we deal with unprecedented growth in overall numbers and in populations that require many additional supports, we have maintained high school graduation as a high priority. Thanks go as well to Lincoln Board of Education members who have prioritized funds for programs and interventions designed to lift up students who are struggling. We will not rest until all of our students are successful. LPS uses two sets of data for evaluating and assessing the high school graduation rate in the school district using formulas that are slightly different both released Friday. For more than 20 years, LPS has followed the general rule of calculating graduation rates for students who start as ninth graders in the school district and graduate in four years on time. That means 85.6 percent of the students in the class of 2016 who started at LPS as ninth graders and did not move away graduated on time in four years, compared to 85.2 percent the previous year. (That compares to a graduation rate of 80.1 percent at LPS more than five years ago.) When you look at actual numbers, 47 more students graduated from LPS in 2016 compared to 2015. The official graduation rate in Nebraska and across the country is what is called the on-time rate students who graduate in four years but LPS also closely tracks students who graduate in five years (88.7 percent for the most recent numbers), and six years (91.9 percent). "Those five- and six-year graduation numbers are vital to LPS because we believe those kids are just as important as kids who graduate on time," said Pat Hunter-Pirtle, director of secondary instruction. Jane Stavem, associate superintendent for Instruction at LPS, continued: Increasing our graduation rate continues to be a focus for our school district, because we believe it is an essential milestone. Each of our high schools has made a concerted effort in tracking every student...We know our students as individuals, not numbers." Sarah Salem, director of continuous improvement and professional learning, agreed: I think one of things LPS has been doing really well is making big schools feel smaller...It is a challenge, but I think we are successfully taking huge comprehensive high schools and identifying kids who need the most support. One program might capture these ten kidsone will capture these eightAnd we are teaching all our kids about the value of grit, that its ok to make mistakes, that you have to persevere. That is the mindset throughout the school district. Stavem said there is no one magic program, but instead a mix of proactive and reactive systems: We help kids up front and position them well to be successfulWe also watch them closely and intervene as quickly as possible and in the right ways to help kids get back on track quickly if they start to veer. It is about being alert and aware, and having the right tools. It is not about waiting for a kid to walk into the counseling office, but looking at data every single day and keeping close tabs. I think that has been a game changer. She stressed the graduation rate is not just about high school: Children in grade school know when they are graduating from high school, and that impacts the way they see their future. Our feeder middle schools are working really hard on successful transitions. Jadi Miller, director of curriculum, gave an example: LPS identified that struggling students in high school often have trouble with the Oral Communications course. So eighth graders in targeted middle schools are now offered the opportunity to take that class during summer school with the first half set in their home middle school and the second half in their new high schools. Graduation numbers for school districts across the state released Friday by the Nebraska State Department of Education use a slightly different calculation formula. The state includes students who transfer into high school after ninth grade begins: a formula that gives LPS an 83.2 percent graduation rate, up from 82.2 percent the previous year. The state also released numbers for students who graduated in five years (86.2 percent), six years (89.4 percent) and seven year (90.2 percent). LPS officials note the difference in calculations is understandable: Students who arrive and transfer into LPS later in their school experience tend to have a greater number of challenges and therefore may graduate at a lower rate. Our school district and community must understand that increasing the LPS graduation rate will continue to get harder, Stavem said. We are also increasing our student enrollment, as well as the percentages of students who have identified needs and challenges at the same time our graduation requirements become more and more rigorous. Lenovo's Yoga Book was perhaps the most interesting 2-in-1 that emerged in 2016 thanks largely to its innovative multi-function touchscreen slate and striking design. The curious portable is currently available with your choice of Android or Windows OS but according to Laptop Mag, the system will soon be sold running a third option. Jeff Meredith, general manager and vice president of Lenovo's Android and Chrome Computing Business Group, told the publication that they have had a lot of interest in a Chrome OS-powered Yoga Book, adding that it's an interesting idea for education given its form factor. Although it didn't produce a very high score in our recent review, the Lenovo Yoga Book has been a hot seller in some markets including China, Germany and Japan. Sales in the US, however, have been just average, Meredith said. Part of why sales have been sluggish in the US is the fact that the system has been available at retail through just one partner, Walmart. Lenovo will be expanding to other brick-and-mortar retailers come 2017 which should help boost sales. We ran into some software issues during our time with the system, something Meredith is working on. He shared that he has built a software team of more than 100 people tasked with improving the overall user experience on the Yoga Book as well as other devices. Meredith says we can expect to see a Chrome version of the Yoga Book hit the market by mid-2017. The media association Freedom of the Press Foundation sent an open letter to camera manufacturers this week, asking companies to build encryption features into their still and video cameras. The goal is to protect photojournalists and filmmakers while in the line of duty. The open letter has more than 150 signatures from various filmmakers and photographers around the world. Pros: Camera Encryption Protects Sensitive Photos And Videos Most photojournalists document newsworthy events and are assigned to dangerous parts of the world. These people place their lives at risk whenever they send footage out, all for the sake of photojournalism. But many of these people also face a number of threats from thieves, terrorists, border police, and other forms of heavy-handed law enforcement. Courtney Radsch, director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, believes that the incidence of cameras and footage being seized has become commonplace. "The unfortunate truth is that photojournalists are regularly targeted and threatened as they seek to document and bear witness," Radsch said, "but there is little they can do to protect their equipment and their photos." According to the Foundation, having encryption features built into a camera will protect the journalist using it. Encryption prevents other people from accessing photos or watching video footage that are sensitive in nature. The Foundation also emphasized that camera manufacturers such as Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Olympus are behind the times when it comes to encryption technology. Other devices, such as smartphones and tablets, already have passwords and fingerprint scanners to protect whatever is inside. The open letter is encouraging the camera manufacturers to come up with something similar for their own products. Cons: Unlocking Encryption Could Take Time Encryption, however, comes at a price. Capturing images on-the-fly is an important aspect of photojournalism, and typing a password or waiting for the equipment to recognize a fingerprint may cause delays. The process of unlocking a camera's encryption, all while bullets are flying or bombs are falling, may cause the photographer precious moments that would be left undocumented. And when a photojournalist is attacked, the assailant can simply destroy the camera instead of having to go through the trouble of disabling the encryption code. When asked for a statement, Nikon had this to say: "We are constantly listening to the needs of an evolving market and considering photographer feedback, and we will continue to evaluate product features to best suit the needs of our users." According to the Foundation's executive director Trevor Timm, camera manufacturers need to be more responsible when it comes to protecting consumers, especially those who are using their equipment to risk their lives and cover dangerous events. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Marking yet another milestone, the Juno spacecraft of NASA completed a third close buzz with Jupiter on Sunday, Dec. 11. Juno's next close flyby will be on Feb. 2, 2017. Reaching the perijove the closest point in Jupiter on Sunday for a third time since Juno's arrival in July led to capturing of data of the interiors and planet's magnetic fields. When Juno hit the perijove, it was at 2,580 miles (4,150 kilometers) above the gas giant's cloud tops. "This will be the first time we are planning to operate the full Juno capability to investigate Jupiter's interior structure via its gravity field," said Scott Bolton, principal investigator of Juno from San Antonio's Southwest Research Institute. "We are looking forward to what Jupiter's gravity may reveal about the gas giant's past and its future." Great Images In this last flyby, the spacecraft's key instruments including JunoCam operated well, and data is being sent to Earth. The new flyby was noted for grand images of cool cyclones and weird dark splotches taken by the camera JunoCam. Noting Juno as an ambitious citizen science project of NASA, Candice Hansen of Planetary Science Institute, leading the JunoCam team talked about the significance of images. "Initially, we thought we'd just carry out [Juno's] imaging experiment as if we were in a fishbowl-that we'd just do everything on the web where everyone can see it," Hansen said. Juno arrived at Jupiter on July 4, 2016, after the launch on Aug. 5, 2011, from Cape Canaveral, Florida. String Of Pearls Meanwhile, images taken by the JunoCam imager has shown the magnificent 'string of pearls' of Jupiter. The pearls are actually storms rotating counterclockwise but appearing as white ovals in the gas giant's southern hemisphere. In the past three decades, the number of white ovals has increased from six to nine with eight white ovals visible now. During the December flyby, mission officials decided not to collect data with the Jovian Infrared Auroral Mapper (JIRAM) instrument until an update to the spacecraft software is done. The software patch for JIRAM's operation is expected by February, before the next perijove. However, the Juno team's plans to modify the spacecraft's orbital period may be executed. The effort to slash, Juno's orbital period from the present 53.4 days to 14 days was delayed after a related maneuver was suspended to study the spacecraft's valves in the fuel pressurization system. "We have a healthy spacecraft that is performing its mission admirably, and we are able to obtain great science every time we fly by," said Rick Nybakken, project manager from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. Before Juno approaches each perijove, there will be a popular vote that decides the features the camera needs to target. After the perijove flyby, the target images captured by JunoCam with red, green, blue, and methane filters are uploaded to the NASA website, which is downloadable for the public. Jupiter's Position Study on Jupiter's position in the solar system was an evolutionary process, according to a study. The migration process in the solar system, called as Grand Tack had the gas giant forming an orbit of 3.5 astronomical units, or AU, from the Sun, which is three times the distance between Earth and the Sun. Grand Tack has been touted as a reliable model for defining the early solar system, driven by formation and migration of massive planets. "Much of the structure of our solar system is driven by the formation and migration of the giant planets," said Brandon Johnson, a planetary scientist at Brown University who is into impact dynamics. Jupiter, in his model, munched up the surrounding gas for building a thick atmosphere and changed the solar nebula's distribution of material and drew itself closer to the Sun. However, the present location of Jupiter near the asteroid belt happened when Saturn was formed. The resulting gravitation pushed both planets away and Jupiter moved to its present-day orbit at 5.2 AU. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. It appears as if the Android 7.1.1 Nougat update for the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge is imminent. The software upgrade for the current flagship handsets has moved into carrier testing and should then follow for former flagships Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 Edge, S6 Edge Plus, and Galaxy Note 5. Android 7.1.1 Nougat Update For Galaxy S7, S7 Edge Moves To Testing It's good news for owners of Samsung's latest flagship smartphones, the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, as one international carrier has just moved the handsets into the carrier testing phase of release for the highly anticipated software upgrade. Vodafone Australia's Software Update Weekly Wrap was updated this week to reflect the move, which indicates that the upgrade is ready and unless issues arise during testing which cause the carrier to contact Samsung and request changes, the update will be released to customers imminently. That means other carriers internationally are likely to follow suit. Most carriers in fact do not indicate where their eventual software updates stand as far as the development and testing process on an accessible page for customers, meaning testing could well be underway at multiple international carriers. T-Mobile is the only major carrier to do so in the United States, where the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge are both still currently listed as being in the "manufacturer development" phase of release. While Verizon, announced its customer's devices will receive Nougat in January, Sprint and AT&T offer no official progress notifications, although they sometimes release statements or respond to customer inquiries on their respective blogs, customer support forums and Twitter accounts. As we recently reported, Samsung will be skipping over Android 7.0 Nougat and upgrading the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge to Android 7.1.1 Nougat. That news was relayed to a participant in the Android 7.0 Nougat beta testing program which was launched for owners of the smartphones in mid-November. Galaxy S6, S6 Edge, S6 Edge Plus, And Note 5 Android Nougat 7.1.1 Update That news led to speculation that other Samsung handsets set to receive Android Nougat, such as the Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 Edge, S6 Edge Plus, and Galaxy Note 5 would also be skipping over the Android 7.0 Nougat update, directly to Android 7.1.1 Nougat. It seems likely given that the handsets will follow in the footsteps of the current flagship devices. The news of the imminent Nougat release for the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge leaves the question of exactly when the aforementioned former flagships will in fact receive their Android 7.0 updates. While there is no confirmed timeline for the release of Android Nougat to the Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 Edge, S6 Edge Plus, and Galaxy Note 5, the sooner the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge receive its Android 7.1.1 upgrades, the sooner their predecessors will get their updates. That's because the general protocol for smartphone manufacturers is to first update their latest handsets and then work backwards to release updates for older devices. We'll be sure to keep you posted on any news regarding the Android Nougat upgrades for the Samsung Galaxy S7, S7 Edge, S6, S6 Edge, S6 Edge Plus and Note 5 as it develops. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Fans of the Star Wars universe are already pumped up for the release of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. But a recently released featurette of director Gareth Edwards and the cast revealed why the film may be larger than life. Thanks to IMAX and a bit of history, that is. A Treat For War History Buffs War history buffs may have something to look forward to in the new film since many of its battle scenes were inspired by photos of actual war, in all its grim reality. In the short video, Edwards and the cast talked about how IMAX provides the perfect stage for Rogue One, with Felicity Jones confirming that the clarity of sound is definitely a very important part of the film experience. Edwards, for his part, disclosed that he and Disney wanted to make the war scenes as realistic as possible, and they chose to use photos from the Vietnam, South Pacific, and Middle East Wars as the production's basis for the scenes. Raw And Authentic Edwards revealed that they altered real war photos by photoshopping rebel helmets on the soldiers and changing the military vehicles to X-Wings, as well as changing the background in order to maintain the authenticity and emotions in the still photos and transfer them onto the big screen. And the execution of the scenes did give the film that raw and authentic feel. Even Mads Mikkelsen, who plays Jyn Erso's father, Galen Erso, is excited to see some of the battle scenes in the film. He added that IMAX screens bring the scenes to life in a different way. Of course, Jyn agrees with this and claims that the IMAX enhances the whole experience for the viewer. Riz Ahmed who plays Bodhi Rook also gushes about how Rogue One is a really immersive film, especially with the way it was shot to really situate the viewer in the middle of the action. Watch the short featurette below: Even before the cast of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was complete, producer Kathleen Kennedy already clarified that the film would focus on the ground-war perspective and explore the struggles of the non-Force sensitive participants in the battle against the Empire. Edwards' revelation is only a testament to the production's efforts to show the darker and less "fantastical" side of the intergalactic battle without fully breaking away from the Star Wars universe. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is out on Dec. 16. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. One of my absolute most favorite things is my annual trip to Boston, where oldest daughter Anna is a pediatric nurse. I manage to go near to my birthday 85 is OLD! and Thanksgiving, both of which are perfect for being grateful to afford a trip, and to be on my own for six short days. The trip dates are chosen by Anna when she has time off so we can play and to have such delicious annual fun. We do the same things every year: go to as many movies as we can cram in only two this year eat out a lot, see their current dog family of Lucas and Marcel, and this year visit their art gallery in an old six-story warehouse on the Boston Harbor. People rent rooms where they create their art and participate in several shows throughout the year. The gallery space is a large room with water views on three sides, and a lovely, spacious elegance that enhances whatever art is displayed. Anna and her Bo have been there from the start and end up being partially responsible for this unique art space. I always have lunch with my old friend Martha from Nahant, north of Boston proper, whom I met at a workshop led by author and psychiatrist Jean Shimoda Bolen in Montana years ago; and with Louis Kampf, whose classroom at MIT I visited a long time back with Anna and Maries roommate Sally, initially to see famous linguist and progressive Noam Chomsky, who was team-teaching with Louis that remarkable day. I realized during those healing six days that I arrive in Boston without the daily list of things to do, and only revel in sleeping late, having chai and a glass of yogurt, fruit and granola in the lobby to start each day, and typically going through the day clutching the Boston Globe for occasional glimpses. Anna, Bo and I saw Moonlight, a powerful story of a young man at three phases of his life; and an almost transcendent film, Manchester by the Sea, that seems like an ordinary tale of the lives of ordinary people, but which in its power and hard beauty becomes much more. I dont get to nearly as many movies as I would like, but am grateful for being available to see Manchester, set in a little town up the coast from Boston. Since their house is on a steep slope in Revere and a mile up from the Atlantic Ocean, we decided I could not manage that climb anymore; someday they hope to have a handrail for their oldest visitor. Thus we watched Nebraska play Iowa the day after Thanksgiving in my hotel room. This room was the site of the most beloved event of my trip: Anna and Bo, who have been together for 21 years, decided to become formally married. They were as excited as children and showed their love and affection for one another every minute of that remarkable day. A traveling justice of the peace was secured to perform the ceremony, for which these 50-some-year-olds bought each other plain gold rings, and Bo insisted that Anna have a bouquet of white roses. All of this was properly recorded by family friend Melissa walking around aiming her smart phone at the blessed event. Afterward, we four went to supper at a tiny Italian cafe in east Boston, which we love so much we waited an hour to get a table, at which we were buffeted by the loud voices and clang of dishes providing the party atmosphere. Bos parents, Alena and Bohus, who live about 45 minutes west of Prague by train in the Czech Republic, are surely waiting with baited breath for photographs of the wedding to arrive. They adore Bo and his Anna; his mother and her youngest son talk by telephone every Monday, and trips between continents occur with some regularity. This past week, Bo had an extra day off from his job at the Logan Airports Hilton Hotel, and, in Annas words, We just enjoyed being together. Its a pretty good life after 21 years, or maybe because of the care with which they have cherished their time as partners. Bos connection with this Hilton allows me a special family rate for my annual treat. Hurrah! Or Hallelujah! as Leonard Cohens gift to us sings from his brilliant career, his epic and enigmatic words and music echoing after his death this past November at age 82. In a move seen by many as a last attempt to have the final word regarding Planned Parenthood, the Obama administration issued a rule that bans states from not funding the organization for political reasons. The rule will become effective starting Jan. 18, just two days before Donald Trump begins his term as the President of the United States. A Last Attempt To Save Planned Parenthood? The new rule from Health and Human Services was revealed in a very complex context. Several states have already shown their intention of reducing or even cutting completely the funding Planned Parenthood receives due to the fact that abortions are among the services provided by the organization. Even though the funding received by Planned Parenthood and its affiliates through programs such as Title X cannot be used for abortions (except for particular circumstances), many groups oppose the move and consider it as one last attempt to impose the status quo upon the new president. President-elect Donald Trump has shown interest in cutting the funding of organizations that also provide abortions and it is very likely that both Trump and his choice as HHS secretary, Tom Price, will fight the rule. The process will be lengthy and complicated, so Planned Parenthood's situation remains unclear for the moment. Nevertheless, it is very unlikely for the rule to stay in its current form, as its opponents, such as U.S. Rep. Diane Black, are quite vocal about their opinions and expect Donald Trump to respect his promises. "President Obama knows that hope is rising for the innocent victims of Planned Parenthood's brutality and the big abortion industry's days of taxpayer-funded windfalls are numbered," she noted. On the other hand, there are many supporters of this last effort as well. The $500 million currently received by Planned Parenthood allow it to provide necessary health services, especially to people who would otherwise not be able to access them. Dr. Karen A. Scott, from the Department of Health and Human Services was among those showing support in favor of the rule. "This rule will strengthen access to essential services like cancer screenings and contraception for some of the most vulnerable patients in this country," Scott explained. A Thorny Issue Currently, according to law, federal funds cannot be used to pay for abortions, with the exception of cases such as rape, incest, or pregnancies that jeopardize the mother's life. About 68 percent of all Americans and 51 percent of those who declare themselves to be prochoice do not agree with using federal money for abortion services. However, federal funds are used for providing other services related to reproductive health through programs like Title X. In this case, each individual state receives the money and directs it to organizations like Planned Parenthood, which show their ability to provide the health services mentioned by the Title X guidelines. Planned Parenthood came under intense scrutiny recently due to a series of videos in which staff members discussed the sale of fetal tissues. No one was charged with any crime in relation to the videos. At present, 10 percent of the healthcare providers that get funding through Title X are affiliated with Planned Parenthood. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. LG Display will reportedly start mass producing flexible OLED smartphone displays for Apple, Google, and Microsoft in 2018, which means that future-generation iPhones, Pixels and perhaps Surface Phones could rock foldable screens. Rumors of flexible smartphone displays have intensified as of late, as recent reports indicate that Samsung is planning two foldable screen designs for its Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8 set to launch next year. Looking farther to 2018, it seems that Apple, Google, and Microsoft could join the flexible smartphone screen party and launch their own foldable smartphones with OLED displays from LG. Foldable Display iPhone Some rumors suggested that Apple might launch an iPhone 7s and not iPhone 8 in 2017, which would suggest an incremental upgrade without utterly major changes. Even if that's not true, LG is reportedly supplying flexible OLED displays in 2018, so the 2017 iPhone 7s/8 would not be the one to get it. Then again, the iPhone 7 was also rumored to sport an OLED screen and it didn't happen. So far, iPhones have sported LCD displays, but rumor has it that Apple will finally move to OLED in 2017. Recent reports have indicated that the iPhone 8 would sport a curved OLED display, which would mark a smooth transition toward an iPhone with a flexible OLED screen in 2018. LG has touted a number of curved and foldable display prototypes in recent years, including screens with book-like designs or increased flexibility that allows them to be rolled up like newspapers. The designs are possible due to the flexibility of OLED displays, as opposed to the more rigid LCD screens found in current iPhones. Foldable Google Pixel And Microsoft Surface Phone While rumors of an iPhone with a flexible/ foldable OLED screen may not be too surprising, news that Google and Microsoft have similar smartphone plans are a bit more unexpected. ETNews, which first reported on this news, citing industry sources, said that Google is looking to get flexible OLED displays from LG for its future Google Pixel smartphones, while Microsoft is interested in the technology for its Surface line. Rumors of a Surface Phone have been making rounds for a good while now, but nothing materialized so far. It's also worth pointing out that LG's flexible displays are reportedly designed for foldable devices, with the screen stretching over the outer surface. LG Display will go head to head with Samsung in this area, directly competing on the foldable OLED smartphone display front. Keep in mind, however, that LG Display made no comment or announcement on the matter, so this is all in the rumor state at this point. As always in such cases, treat all leaks and rumors accordingly. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Samsung has reportedly completed internal investigation over Galaxy Note 7 units catching fire, and it has already disclosed the findings to outside laboratories, such as the Korea Testing Laboratory, and UL. Why Galaxy Note 7 Units Exploded Initially, Samsung's then-flagship was vaunted as one of the top-tier Android smartphones consumers could purchase, but this reputation was soon tainted by numerous cases of exploding units. The incidents convinced Samsung to trawl back all the affected units, but its numerous measures didn't straighten out the faux pas. In the end, Samsung canceled production of Galaxy Note 7 handsets altogether. Samsung started investigating the situation right away, but it had trouble mimicking the conditions under which the devices caught fire, according to some reports. The company promised to formally disclose the cause by the end of the year, and a new report suggests that Samsung knows what had caused the combustions, but it's not exactly in sharing spirits as of the moment. The report comes from The Investor, and it suggests that the South Korean electronics company has found out the fault behind exploding units. The results of the investigation have so far remained unshared with the press. Various publications have attempted to explain the Galaxy Note 7 debacle, with several reports getting hold of the company's preliminary findings submitted to the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards, wherein Samsung linked the explosion to a manufacturing error. Samsung's Next Flagship The Galaxy Note 7 fiasco dented the company's profits, and in an attempt to recuperate from the loss while simultaneously gaining back consumer loyalty, Samsung is gearing up for the forthcoming release of its next flagship, the Galaxy S8. According to the same report by The Investor, however, the company is urging its employees to tighten security before it releases the smartphone. "I feel deeply regretful to hear news of the recent attempts at data breach and prototype leak," Koh Dong-jin, Samsung's mobile business chief, said. His call to put on a lid on the Galaxy S8 was prompted by growing and varied speculation about the device. The Galaxy S8 continues to enjoy a trove of rumors, with some suggesting that it'll come equipped with Bluetooth 5.0, rock a rear-mounted fingerprint and iris scanner, and lug built-in Harman stereo speakers, among other things. The Galaxy S8 will be released sometime in 2017, but an official unveiling could be scheduled earlier. It remains to be seen whether the device can patch consumers' warped loyalty for the company given the Galaxy Note 7 blunder. Can Samsung reclaim consumers with the Galaxy S8? Feel free to sound off in the comments section below! 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A designer drug known to be 85 times more potent than marijuana has been identified as the cause for the mysterious, "zombielike" mental state that afflicted several New Yorkers this past summer. In July, emergency workers in Brooklyn responded to reports of several people becoming severely intoxicated and showing a high degree of altered mental status after smoking a synthetic drug. Eighteen of the 33 individuals who showed such symptoms were rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment. While the exact cause of the overdose was not immediately known to investigators, researchers say that they have finally pinpointed the culprit drug after testing the blood and urine samples of the victims. AMB-FUBINACA In a study featured in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers discovered that victims took in a synthetic cannabinoid known as AMB-FUBINACA. This drug was originally developed by Pfizer but was never tested on humans and production was later abandoned. Since it was not known what the victims took at the time, the term "synthetic marijuana" was used to refer to the possible cause. However, researchers say this is dangerously misleading for the public. "There is this false idea out there that these drugs are safe, because no one overdoses on marijuana," study co-author Roy Gerona from the University of California, San Francisco said. According to a report by the New York Times, the synthetic drug that was used in Brooklyn was commonly referred to the users as AK-47 24 Karat Gold. Laboratory tests showed that this drug was 85 times more potent than tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main agent in marijuana. Some illegal drug manufacturers prefer to use synthetic cannabinoids over the plant-based THC because of their different chemical structure. Chemical compounds used to make these forms of drugs are often produced using research conducted by universities and pharma companies. They are also difficult to detect and regulated when they make it to the market. Gerona said people who take these synthetic drugs do not show any signs of usage when they are tested, making them more appealing than other forms of illegal drugs. Gerona and his colleagues traced the history of the drugs to a researcher in Clemson University named John W. Huffman. He was looking to develop a drug that could utilize the medicinal benefit of THC but without subjecting users to its psychotropic effects. Huffman was able to produce more than 300 chemical compounds throughout the course of his work. He published his findings in academic literature. In 2008, a synthetic drug compound known as "K2" in the United States and "Spice" in Europe soon appeared on the market. Its primary chemical agent, JWH-18, was named after Huffman. JWH-18 soon spread across the United States and was later tagged as a Class 1 narcotic by authorities. As for the drug used in the New York outbreak, Pfizer may have already stopped developing AMB-FUBINACA but the researchers believe drug labs in other countries may have gotten hold of the patent and used it to produce new forms of drugs. The team said AB-FUBINACA is considered to be 50 times more potent than earlier forms such as K2. However, something must have gone wrong with the dosing when illegal drug makers tried to create their own mixture. This resulted in a more powerful drug that can cause people to enter a trancelike state. Sufferers often groan and moan, with their eyes becoming lifeless and their movements becoming slow and mechanical. Law enforcement has had a difficult time putting a stop to the manufacture and sale of synthetic drugs. Gerona said this is because whenever drug labs produce a new drug, they wait until it becomes scheduled by authorities and then they move on to developing a new compound. While Gerona doesn't believe that drug dealers would intentionally kill their clients with their drugs, the continued production of synthetic compounds could increase health risks as they become even more potent. "No compound that has been made yet has the potential to kill thousands of people," Gerona said. "But that is a scenario that is becoming more and more close to reality." 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Yahoo data breach exposes details of 150,000 government, military workers On Thursday, Yahoo announced that it suffered a massive security breach as malicious hackers stole approximately one billion user accounts in 2013 were those of at least 150,000 U.S. government and military employees. Hackers not only stole email addresses and passwords, but also users names, birth dates, security questions, backup email addresses, and phone numbers, all of which were encrypted with an outdated MD5 message-digest algorithm. The details of compromised user credentials were discovered being sold on the Dark Web by Andrew Komarov, the chief intelligence officer for InfoArmor, an Arizona-based cybersecurity firm, for $300,000 each to three different parties. (The dark web is an encrypted network only accessible through software like the privacy program Tor.) The announcement of the recently discovered data breach is the second of its kind to be announced by Yahoo since September. We found that the Yahoo dump had a very big number of users who worked for the government or military and used Yahoo for personal purposes, Komarov said in an interview Thursday. He said hackers could easily find the secondary email used for password recovery and that would lead them to the users governmental and perhaps high-security identity. And it wasnt just the US users; we found a big number of government employees in the UK, Australia and Canada, too. Komarov stumbled upon the stolen data while investigating the hackers known as Group E, cybercriminals based in Eastern Europe with a track record of hacking Dropbox, Tumblr and Russia-based social network VK.com. He found that its participants were trying to sell a database containing hundreds of millions of stolen Yahoo accounts for $300,000, Bloomberg News reported Thursday. Komarov intercepted the database in the middle of the sales and found that two of the buyers were huge underground spamming groups. However, before the third transaction was finalized, Komarov said that the buyer reached out to Group E and produced a list of ten names of U.S. and foreign government officials and industry executives, and asked them to confirm that their logins were included in the stolen online loot or else no deal. This signalled to Komarov that the buyer must be an agency involved in foreign intelligence. The third buyer was potentially a foreign intelligence organization because the questions they were asking were very specific, Komarov said. This was very concerning to me because with any state-supported actor these government and military employees would be their first target. And since the incidents was not disclosed by Yahoo for three years, that means people were using the Yahoo database to possibly monitor these individuals, he added. The unusual request piqued Komarovs interest, and prompted him to contact law enforcement officials in the U.S. and U.K. in late October, who in turn notified Yahoo about the database of stolen account information, Bloomberg reported. In a press release, Yahoo said, As we previously disclosed in November, law enforcement provided us with data files that a third party claimed was Yahoo user data. We analyzed this data with the assistance of outside forensic experts and found that it appears to be Yahoo user data. Based on further analysis of this data by the forensic experts, we believe an unauthorized third party, in August 2013, stole data associated with more than one billion user accounts. We have not been able to identify the intrusion associated with this theft. We believe this incident is likely distinct from the incident we disclosed on September 22, 2016. The Yahoo attack is different than other hacks, Komarov said, and poses danger to more than just government employees. The Yahoo hack makes cyber espionage extremely efficient. Personal information and contacts, email messages, objects of interest, calendars and travel plans are key elements for intelligence-gathering in the right hands. The difference of the Yahoo hack between any other hack is in that it may really destroy your privacy, and potentially have already destroyed it several years ago without your knowledge, he added. The roughly 150,000 well-placed victims discovered by Komarov include current and former White House staff, U.S. congressmen and employees of the FBI, NSA and CIA, among others. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Thursday that the FBI is investigating the most recent breach. There was a previously reported breach that the FBI had previously indicated that they were investigating and theyre investigating this situation as well, so Ill let them speak to what they have found over the course of that investigation thus far, he said. It is recommended that Yahoo users reset their passwords as soon as possible and beware of emails asking for personal information. Also, if the same password and security questions have been used elsewhere, request to have them changed urgently. A King is Born musical The Music and Christian Arts Ministries Department of Wayman African Methodist Episcopal Church, 424 N. Memorial Drive, will present A King is Born at 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 18. Christmas songs relevant to the Nativity story will be sung by the United Voices, the Male Chorus, and the Childrens Choir of Wayman, in traditional and contemporary gospel style. Guest artists from the Racine area and Waymans Praise Dancers will perform. Confirmation service and childrens pageant Bishop Paul Erickson of the ELCA Greater Milwaukee Synod will visit Emaus ELCA, 1925 Summit Ave., at 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 17. A number of youth of the Emaus congregation will affirm the vows made at their baptism in the rite of Confirmation. Children from Emaus and the churchs after school program will present the Christmas program, All About That Baby, at 10 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 18, in place of the usual 9 and 11 a.m. Sunday services. The audience is invited to partake of the sacrament of Holy Communion after the performance, and then join a birthday party for Jesus in Fellowship Hall. Fourth Sunday of Advent celebrated The Fourth Sunday of Advent will celebrated during the 5 p.m. vespers service on Saturday, Dec. 17, and the 9:15 a.m. traditional service on Sunday, Dec. 18, at Living Faith Lutheran Church, 2915 Wright Ave. A contemporary worship service begins at 10 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 18, in the Sturtevant Sportsplex, 10116 Stellar Drive, Sturtevant. The Sunday School children will present the Christmas play, Too-oo Busy. German and school services offered An all-German language worship service with English translation will be held at 9:30 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 18, at First Evangelical Lutheran Church, 728 Villa St. The Rev. Emeritus Nathan R. Pope will preach. English services will be held at 8 and 10:45 a.m. At 2:30 and 4 p.m., the students of Wisconsin Lutheran School will present the Christmas service, What Child Is This? Lifelong Learning presentation An intergenerational celebration of the Posada led by youth minister Eloy Contreras begins at 10 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 18, in Vogel Hall at St. Richard of Chichester Catholic Church, 1509 Grand Ave. Christmas cantata A Christmas cantata will be presented during the 10:30 a.m. worship service Sunday, Dec. 18, at Zion Lutheran Church, 3805 Kinzie Ave. Jesus! the Advent of the Messiah is a musical commemorating Christs birth. The familiar Christmas narration and simple music are woven into a choral cantata. The cantata will also help raise funds for three needy local families. Program at services The Sunday School children will present the program The Road to Bethlehem during the 9 a.m. service on Sunday, Dec. 18, of Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, 2417 Drexel Ave. A luncheon will follow the program. Choir presents Christmas cantata The Chancel Choir of Christ Church will present its Christmas cantata, Joseph Martins Morning Star, during the 9 a.m. worship service Sunday, Dec. 18, at Christ Church, 5109 Washington Ave. Soloists are Patty Dobrowski, Colleen Harp and Vaughan Weeks. Alan Biehn directs the choir and Sally Anderson is organist. Fourth Sunday of Advent The Fourth Sunday of Advent will be celebrated during the 9 a.m. service on Sunday, Dec. 18, at Bethania Lutheran Church, 4120 Wright Ave. The childrens Christmas program message is New Star, directed by Elizbeth Brown. Fourth Sunday of Advent Celebrate worship, including the lighting of the Advent candles on the wreath and a special reading during the 10 a.m. service on Sunday, Dec. 18, at Covenant Presbyterian Church, 40 Ohio St. The Rev. Melanie Hammond Clark will preach. The choir will sing Coventry Carol. During Sunday School the children will meet for a special class and be guided in the making of a banner. Sunday School Christmas Program Away From the Manger is the Christmas program to be presented by the Sunday School classes during the 10:15 a.m. service Sunday, Dec. 18, at Yorkville United Methodist Church, 17645 Old Yorkville Road, Union Grove. In addition, the Kids In Christs Kingdom Choir, under the direction of Don Hawes, will sing God With Us Emmanuel. The Troy Anderson family will lead the lighting of the fourth Advent candle. Praise songs will be accompanied by Russ Fanning on guitar during the 8 a.m. service. The Rev. Sue Leihs message is based on the scripture found in Matthew 1: 18-25. Following the service, a Christmas cookie reception will be served in Fellowship Hall. Those interested are invited to join the choir members and their families in Christmas caroling for the veterans living in Gates and Fairchild Halls at the Wisconsin Veterans Home, Union Grove, at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 19. Interfaith gathering, devotional The Bahais of Racine invite people of all faiths to join a gathering that includes live music, prayers in the round, refreshments, and congenial discussion about Generosity at 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 17, in the home of Barry & Loralee Uhlenhake, 3223 Wright Ave. Advent worship service A mid-week Advent worship service begins at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 21, at Grace Lutheran Church, 3700 Washington Ave. The Advent series will focus on Genesis 33:1-11, 1 Peter 3:8-12 and Matthew 1:18-20. Siena Retreat Center programs These programs are being offered at the Siena Retreat Center, 5637 Erie St.: Advent Taize Prayer, 6:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 19. Join an evening of silence, reflection on scripture, simple meditative chants, and a prayerful candle ritual. Taize calls all Christians to come together to pray for peace and understanding. An offering will be accepted. Role of Fear, 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 14. Join this day of reflection where we take a closer look at how fear impacts our lives. Cost to attend is $35 including $10 non-refundable deposit and noon meal. For more information or to register for a program, go to www.SienaRetreatCenter.org or call 262-898-2590. Christmas Eve services These area churches have announced Christmas Eve services: Bethania Lutheran Church, 4120 Wright Ave. 3 p.m. annual Danish Christmas eve service. This service is conducted almost entirely in the Danish language including hymns, scripture, liturgy, and prayers. The sermon is in English and 7 p.m. candlelight service. Christ Church, 5109 Washington Ave., 10:30 a.m. worship with a childrens Nativity; and 4 p.m. sermon and candlelight service. Covenant Presbyterian Church, 40 Ohio St., 5 p.m. family worship, The Christmas Story; and 9 p.m. candlelight worship including scriptures and song, choir and candlelight. Christmas in the Barn, Squire Farm, 26715 Church Road, Burlington (Dover), 5-8:30 p.m. (services every 30 minutes). Members of English Settlement United Methodist Church play angels, shepherds, wise men and innkeepers. Audience members sit on straw bales as scripture is read and carols are sung. Hot cocoa, coffee and Christmas cookies will be served. Emmanuel Gethsemane Lutheran Church, 725 High St., 4 p.m. First Evangelical Lutheran Church, 728 Villa St., 6:30 p.m. Sunday School service. Gregg Chapel Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, 2237 Howe St., 9 a.m. breakfast and fellowship featuring the portrayal of the 12 days of Christmas from a spiritual perspective. Grace Lutheran Church, 3700 Washington Ave., 6:30 and 10 p.m. candlelight services. Holy Communion Lutheran Church, 2000 W. Sixth St., 4 p.m. family worship and 10:30 p.m. candlelight service. Living Faith Lutheran Church, 2915 Wright Ave., 4 p.m. family service and 10 p.m. candlelight service. Olympia Brown Unitarian Universalist Church, 625 College Ave., 4 p.m. church school Christmas pageant with songs by the Multigenerational Choir oriented primarily for young children and their families; 6 p.m. traditional candlelight service with songs by the Olympia Brown Adult Choir oriented towards older children and adults. The Rev. Dr. Tony Larsen will portray a Biblical character who witnessed the birth of Jesus. This service includes the celebration of the Winter Solstice, Hanukkah and Christmas and concludes with singing the The Rainbow Connection song. The 8 p.m. candlelight service includes songs by the churchs Adult Choir, Christmas carol singing and a holiday message by Larsen. St. Edwards Catholic Church, 1425 Grove Ave., 4:30 p.m. Mass with the ACTS Youth Choir; and 11 p.m. Christmas vigil Mass with the St. Edward Adult Choir. Union Grove United Methodist Church, 906 12th St., Union Grove, 6:30 p.m. Yorkville United Methodist Church, 17645 Old Yorkville Road, Union Grove, 4 p.m. service including childrens stories and a safe candle lighting with glow sticks. Piano solos will be Little Drummer Boy by Jack George and It Came Upon A Midnight Clear by Jennifer George. Jodi Klug will offer a vocal solo. Good News of Great Joy, based on the scripture reading found in Luke 2: 1-20, will be held during the worship services. The traditional Christmas Eve service begins at 7 p.m. with lighted candles during the singing of Silent Night. A duet by Mike Vyvyan and Steve Knight is titled Hope Is Born This Night. Christmas Day services These area churches have announced Christmas Day services: Christ Church, 5109 Washington Ave., 10:30 a.m. blended worship. Music will be provided by the Chancel Choir and the Praise Band. Covenant Presbyterian Church, 40 Ohio St., 10 a.m. worship with special service of Communion and carols. Emmanual Gethsemane Lutheran Church, 725 High St., 9 a.m. First Evangelical Lutheran Church, 728 Villa St., 9:30 a.m. festival service. Grace Lutheran Church, 3700 Washington Ave., 7:45 and 10:30 a.m. Gregg Chapel Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, 2237 Howe St., 10 a.m. worship service with the lighting of the Christ Candle of the Advent wreath and musical selections by the Gregg Chapel Choir. Holy Communion Lutheran Church, 2000 W. Sixth St., 9:30 a.m. Living Faith Lutheran Church, 2915 Wright Ave., 10 a.m. New Omega Missionary Baptist Church, 5731 Northwestern Ave., 9:30 a.m. St. Edwards Catholic Church, 1425 Grove Ave., 9:30 a.m. celebration of the Mass for Christmas Day. Yorkville United Methodist Church, 17645 Old Yorkville Road, 9 a.m. combined worship service. The Rev. Sue Leihs message is based on the scripture reading from John 1: 1-14 and traditional carols will be sung. Special music sung by Rhythm & Praise will be What A Glorious Night. Sunday School classes will not be held Dec. 25 and Jan. 1. Macri-controlled judges released the "Federal Revolution" members arguing that "there are no procedural risks" that would allow them to be kept in prison. | Read More WIND LAKE A Wind Lake man is facing drug charges after he was reportedly found pounding on a neighbors door across the street from his home early Thursday morning. According to the criminal complaint: Christian J. Karides, 25, of the 26000 block of Lilac Lane, was found by Racine County sheriffs deputies at about 3:32 a.m. after he had been knocking on a neighbors door for about 30 minutes. Deputies made contact with Karides, who reportedly appeared intoxicated. When asked what his first name was, Karides reportedly told deputies his name was Christian. When the deputies asked for his last name, Karides again said Christian, the complaint said. When deputies asked what Karides birthday was, he reportedly responded 1937 and reportedly gave the same answer when asked how old he was. Then, when asked if he knew where he was, Karides reportedly responded with something about work, according to the complaint. Deputies allegedly found a bag near Karides that contained three grams of marijuana. Initially, Karides denied it was his but then told deputies that it was. When asked how much of the marijuana he had smoked, Karides reportedly responded: Not all of it. Karides later reportedly blew a 0.226 during a Breathalyzer test, the complaint said. Karides faces a felony charge for possession of marijuana and a misdemeanor count for possession of drug paraphernalia. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing at 9 a.m. Dec. 28 at the Racine County Law Enforcement Center, 717 Wisconsin Ave. He remained in custody as of Friday at the Racine County Jail, online records showed. ORLAND, IND. A 37-year-old Racine man was killed Thursday morning in a van-semi crash on the Indiana Toll Road in the far northeast part of the state. According to a release from Indiana State Police, preliminary investigation indicated that at about 9:10 a.m. Thursday, a 1999 Ford van driven by Jason W. Mateer of Racine was traveling west near the community of Orland in Steuben County when, for an unknown reason, it spun and left the roadway. The van entered the median, passenger side first, then vaulted into the cab of an eastbound 1998 Volvo car hauler driven by Joseph P. Holman, 65, of Detroit, Michigan. Although police said both men were seat-belted, Mateer was pronounced dead at the scene by the Steuben County Coroners Office and Holman was flown by air ambulance to Parkview Regional Medical Center in Fort Wayne. He was reported to be in critical condition early Friday, according to a report in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette. This crash remained under investigation as of Thursday, police said. Steuben County is in the far northeast corner of Indiana and borders Michigan and Ohio. Orland is located in the northwest corner of Steuben County. Louisiana's wildlife and fisheries secretary said Friday he's being forced out of his Cabinet position by Gov. John Bel Edwards, months into the secretary's work to correct widespread financial problems identified by auditors. Charlie Melancon resigns from post as secretary of Wildlife and Fisheries Charlie Melancon resigned Wednesday as secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Charlie Melancon said he was asked by Edwards' administration officials, not the governor directly, to leave the office in mid-February and he agreed. He said he wasn't given a reason for his forced exit in conversations with Edwards' chief of staff, Ben Nevers, and the governor's executive counsel, Matthew Block. "You serve at the pleasure of the governor, and if they want you to resign, you don't have to have a reason," Melancon said. "If through the chief of staff and the governor's executive counsel he asks that I resign, I resign." The comments were Melancon's first since news leaked Wednesday that he was leaving the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. At the time, Edwards issued a statement saying he and Melancon "agreed that we should move the agency in a different direction." By Friday, the governor's office provided more information, suggesting a disagreement in management styles between Edwards and his wildlife and fisheries leader. Melancon has clashed with recreational fishermen and Republican U.S. Rep. Garret Graves over fisheries management since taking over as secretary when Edwards' term began in January. He's also drawn criticism from lawmakers and fishing industry organizations for program cuts and agency changes he's pushed after auditors found shoddy management of department finances under his predecessor in former Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration. Former executive assistant to two Wildlife & Fisheries chiefs fights her firing A former executive assistant to the past two Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Edwards spokesman Richard Carbo said Melancon got caught up in public feuds that distracted from efforts to correct a "deeply troubled agency." "From the moment Gov. Edwards took office, investigators have been at the agency conducting reviews of the previous administration's mismanagement. After 11 months, progress to make the necessary reforms took a backseat to unnecessary public battles from the secretary," Carbo said in a statement. "Gov. Edwards chose to move the agency in a different direction where the reforms can continue without interference under a new secretary." Carbo said the governor appreciates Melancon's work and gave him the option to stay in the office for 60 days while Edwards finds a replacement. Melancon accepted, Carbo said. Edwards said the management switch at the agency won't derail efforts to respond to the financial problems identified by the auditors. The review by Legislative Auditor Daryl Purpera's office released in November detailed extensive financial issues across the department under Melancon's predecessor from 2010 through 2015, raising questions about millions in spending and missing state-owned property. For example, auditors say Gulf oil spill recovery money intended for fish testing instead paid for unnecessary iPads, cameras, boats and now-missing fishing equipment. In an audit response released in November, Melancon said he ordered a "complete internal review" of his agency's operations and mismanagement of agency money or property "will not be tolerated." Department of Wildlife and Fisheries dealing with alleged burglary, altered meeting minutes A red flag went up when the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission first delayed approv State Inspector General Stephen Street, whose office probes suspected fraud and corruption in government, also has been looking into the department, and Melancon has said his office is cooperating with that review. Melancon wouldn't say Friday if he thought his ouster was tied to his work responding to the audit or the criticism it's received from the fishing community. But a chief aide who's worked on the internal review and response to the audit, Toby Gascon, also is being pushed out of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, according to Melancon. After unsafe levels of lead and copper were found at a handful of locations in the small northeast Louisiana town of St. Joseph, Gov. John Bel Edwards on Friday evening sent bottled water for the residents to drink for the next month. Residents of the Mississippi River town of about 1,200 residents have complained for months about the yellow and brown tap water coming into their homes and businesses through the 90-year-old system. But until Thursday, state tests have shown that despite the color the water was safe. Bill would ease state involvement in St. Joseph dirty water crisis Saying local officials wont do what needs to be done, a Louisiana House panel Wednesday adv Since we dont know where the lead and copper have come from, were saying dont drink the water until we can figure it out, said Dr. Jimmy Guidry, of the state Office of Public Health. Testing found elevated levels of lead in two samples that came in about twice the compliance amounts. A private residence showed 32 parts per billion lead contamination and the Town Hall had 22 parts per billion, he said. The acceptable levels are about 15 ppb. Also, there were two private residences showed elevated levels of copper. Edwards has ordered testing of every household in the town within four weeks. Edwards issued a Public Health Emergency for St. Joseph and dispatched a months worth of drinking water from the state Governors Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness. Each individual will receive 3 liters of water per day. The bottled water supply will serve as a temporary remedy. The towns aging systems loses about half its water because of leaks. An $8 million project is underway to repair the pipes, a deficient filtration system and rusty tanks. But 18 months is needed to complete the construction. Edwards intends to personally visit next week to meet with residents and officials. An Uber driver was packing more than his cell phone in Mid-City early Monday, New Orleans police said. The people of Racine County own Ridgewood Care Center, our highly acclaimed nursing home. Their tax dollars built it, and have kept it operating in excellent shape for 30 years. Since its opening in 1986, hundreds of loving and competent staff members have served thousands of our citizens, helping them recover from significant health challenges or compassionately caring for them in the twilight of their lives. It is truly proper to ask you, the owners of Ridgewood, if you want to sell this valuable community resource. The proposal to ask the people, via referendum whether to sell Ridgewood has received very positive reactions. For decades, nursing homes across the country have struggled with staffing shortages, inadequate federal and state payments for services, and challenging regulations. Ridgewood staff has met those obstacles with professionalism and compassion that earns it an admirable reputation as a treasured community asset. Thirty-four Wisconsin counties continue to operate nursing homes with reasonable tax costs. With a concern about how to keep this gem of an institution going strong, Racine County officials have been studying ways to keep Ridgewoods mission alive for all of us. One suggestion is to sell Ridgewood to a for-profit corporation. After a years research, with input from organizations and experts, visits to other nursing homes, and discussion with my constituents, I believe selling our nursing home to an out-of-state corporation is a bad policy option. Once sold, we will have no control over Ridgewoods mission, quality or future. In a bad scenario, a for-profit owned Ridgewood could go bankrupt and its nursing home beds moved out of our community. If we want to wash our hands of the mission of Ridgewood and the vital care that goes with it, a sellout is the way to go. If we want to maintain the valuable care to the most vulnerable, especially our elderly, we should continue to locally operate Ridgewood as the important public asset it is. This is a once-in-a-lifetime decision with irreversible, long term implications. As owners of Ridgewood, the people of Racine County deserve to have a vote on this matter. If you agree, contact the County Board soon at countyboard@racinecounty.com. The Board may decide at its Dec. 20 meeting. You can contact me at Robert.Miller@racinecounty.com. There is also a Ridgewood Referendum page on Facebook with a link to an online petition http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/ridgewood-referendum-let-us-vote. Amid 2016s controversies about threats real and perceived to Americas elections system, at least one thing seemed certain: Voters would be a Rogers LaCaze scored a fleeting victory last year when a state judge granted him a new trial over one of New Orleans' most infamous massacres the 1995 triple slaying of a New Orleans police officer and two others inside the Kim Anh Restaurant. But on Friday, the Louisiana Supreme Court delivered what appeared to be a fatal blow to LaCaze's attempts to secure a new trial and to stay off death row, at least through the state court system. In an 18-page ruling, the state's high court unanimously found that the 4th Circuit Court of Appeal got it right in January when it reversed ad hoc Judge Michael Kirby's decision to grant LaCaze a new trial based on one juror's failure to identify himself as a "badge-wearing law enforcement officer." The decision from the Supreme Court, which rejected numerous other claims that LaCaze's attorneys cited in their appeal, also seemed to mean LaCaze will return to death row. While District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro's office had agreed to give up on sending LaCaze back to death row for the triple killing following Kirby's ruling, Friday's Supreme Court order appeared to reinstate LaCaze's death sentence, despite no indication that the 4th Circuit had ever taken that step. LaCaze, 40, was convicted and sentenced to death months after the March 1995 massacre, in which NOPD Officer Ronald "Ronnie" Williams II and siblings Cuong Vu and Ha Vu were slain inside the New Orleans East restaurant. Williams' former partner, rookie officer Antoinette Frank, also was convicted of the triple slaying in a separate trial that year, and she remains on Louisiana's death row the last New Orleans killer to be housed there. Kirby, a former 4th Circuit jurist, found the evidence of LaCazes guilt overwhelming after a prolonged series of hearings, dismissing a litany of claims filed by LaCaze's attorneys. But in his 128-page ruling, Kirby nevertheless found a new trial for LaCaze was warranted because juror David Settle had failed to mention he was a state law enforcement officer. Such commissioned officers were legally barred from serving on juries at the time, though the law has since been reversed. A panel of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeal responded in January with a terse, one-paragraph ruling, dismissing Kirby's blockbuster decision with little explanation. The Supreme Court offered a far more elaborate response on Friday. It noted that the law has since changed and found that, even if it hadn't, there was no evidence that Settle was "the sort of badge-wearing officer" who would be deemed unfit for jury service. Settle, the court said, was working without arrest powers at a desk for the Bureau of Motor Vehicles when he was called to jury service. If he had offered up his job description, the court found, it would not have prompted a valid challenge to his ability to serve on the jury that convicted LaCaze and sentenced him to death. LaCaze "must also show that (Settle) harbored actual bias, or at least point to specific facts from which bias must be presumed," the court found, determining that he had not done so. The court also rejected other claims that the case was botched by prosecutors, police, Criminal District Court Judge Frank Marullo or LaCaze's own, now-deceased trial attorney, Willie Turk. Marullo presided over the trials of both Frank and LaCaze, even though his signature appeared on an order granting Frank possession of the possible murder weapon which then was sitting among surplus police evidence before the killings. Marullo has denied signing the order, but LaCazes attorneys raised that argument again in their appeal to the Supreme Court, arguing he should have recused himself from the trial. "There has been considerable inquiry, to no avail, as to whether (Marullo's) signature is genuine" on the weapon release order, and in any case it didn't weigh on LaCaze's guilt, the Supreme Court found. LaCaze's attorneys also claimed evidence pointed to Frank's brother, Adam Frank, as her likely accomplice, not LaCaze. But that evidence "is insufficient to undermine the verdict in a case in which the state presented substantial evidence of LaCaze's guilt," the high court found. The court deemed LaCaze's state appeals to be "fully litigated" and its denial to be "final." The 1995 slayings marked a low point in image and morale for a New Orleans Police Department that was beset at the time by corruption charges and an explosion of deadly street violence, with the citys murder rate more than twice what it is today. Williams had worked a security detail at the restaurant with Frank, who dined there with LaCaze on the evening of the murders. Prosecutors theorized that the 18-year-old LaCaze and Frank, a 23-year-old rookie cop, were lovers. Frank led Ha and Cuong Vus sister, Chau, to the back of the restaurant when the gunshot that ended Williams life rang out at the front of the business, according to trial testimony. Frank then ran toward the front of the building. As she and LaCaze robbed the restaurant, Ha Vu and Cuong Vu also were killed, according to testimony. Chau, her brother Quoc Vu and a third person hid in a walk-in cooler. Frank, who then joined other officers responding to the 911 call reporting the massacre, was soon arrested based on identifications from survivors. Police said LaCaze used Williams credit card to buy gas on the West Bank following the killings. LaCaze always has said he was at a pool hall during the melee. Williams' father, Ron Williams, said he greeted Friday's news about the Supreme Court ruling with caution. He said countless other decisions have prompted him to believe LaCaze is closer to receiving the punishment to which he was originally sentenced, only to have them followed by more lengthy delays. "I think the whole system is dysfunctional and ... that there's no finality," Williams said by phone. "I can't say I'm relieved. I won't be relieved until it's really over." Nonetheless, Williams said he felt a measure of gladness that the Supreme Court spared him and his family from having to listen again to days of testimony about the slayings of Ronnie and the Vu siblings as well as the investigation that followed. Williams said Ronnie's sons Christopher and Patrick, who was born shortly before his father's death remain in the metro New Orleans area, along with their mother, Mary. In a statement Friday, LaCaze's lead appellate attorney, Blythe Taplin, said Friday's order means "the federal courts will now once again be forced to step in and grapple with another ... wrongful conviction" from an era when New Orleans' district attorney was the controversial Harry Connick Sr. "Rogers LaCaze was only 18 years old when he was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death," Taplin's statement said. "His trial was tainted by misconduct from the judge, the prosecution and even ... jurors who were law enforcement officers. No one could receive a fair trial under these circumstances." Chau Vu did not respond to a message seeking comment, though last year she spoke with The New Orleans Advocate about her desire to forever "close the book" on LaCaze, Frank and the slayings at the Kim Anh restaurant, which now operates in Harahan. In granting LaCaze a new trial, Kirby also threw out his death sentence, finding that his lawyer didn't properly represent him in the penalty phase of the trial. In its successful appeal, Cannizzaros office didn't ask the 4th Circuit to reinstate the death penalty for LaCaze. However, Friday's Supreme Court decision stated that the 4th Circuit "correctly reversed the order for a new trial and reinstated LaCazes convictions and death sentence." Taplin declined to comment on that wording in the ruling. A 13-year-old girl was seriously injured on Saturday after a car hit her and then fled the scene without stopping, police say. Police are calling for the driver of the car to come forward, as well as any witnesses who may have seen the incident. A 13-year-old girl was seriously injured in a hit-and-run on Saturday. The girl was walking along Kreft Street, Florey at around 6pm when the silver Toyota Corolla allegedly knocked her to the ground. Paramedics took the 13-year-old to The Canberra Hospital where she remained in a stable condition on Sunday. On Tuesday, an extraordinary trial will resume that sees the Christian governor of Jakarta, capital the world's largest Muslim-majority nation, charged with blasphemy against Islam. The case carries monumental importance for Indonesia, and sends a worrisome signal about the political and social trajectory of Australia's most significant neighbour. The trial of Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, popularly known as Ahok, has been expedited ahead of local elections set for February. Ethnically Chinese as well as religiously Christian, Ahok stands accused of violating blasphemy laws during a speech to fishermen in September. Prosecutors allege Ahok said voters had been lied to by his opponents, who he said had cited a verse of the Koran warning Muslims against accepting Christians and Jews as allies. Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama during his trial at the North Jakarta District Court in Jakarta on Dececember 13. Credit:AP "That's your right, so if you can't choose me because you are afraid you will go to hell, that's OK," Ahok said in the speech, according to the indictment. But far from intending to insult Islam, Ahok told judges last week in the first day of hearings that his remark was targeted at "unscrupulous politicians who don't want to compete fairly in the election." Like any religious precept, the meaning of the scripture is contested. But the timing of the trial makes it impossible to separate politics from the legal proceedings. Should Ahok be found guilty, he could be imprisoned for up to five years. His campaign to be governor, which he had been expected to win, has already been derailed. Three police officers have been taken to hospital after they were allegedly headbutted by a passenger who failed to present a ticket at Chatswood train station in Sydney's north. Police were called at 5pm on Friday after a rail employee reported being spat on by a commuter. A fare evader allegedly attacked police at Chatswood train station. Credit:Michele Mossop Police say the man, 35, became increasingly aggressive when he was asked to present his train ticket. As police attempted to restrain the man with pepper spray, he allegedly lashed out; kicking, headbutting and spitting at them. Five people have died and three others have been hospitalised with significant injuries as another tragic weekend on Queensland roads unfolds. Three of the fatalities occurred in a single-vehicle crash just outside Bundaberg on Saturday night. Seasoned crash investigator Sergeant Steve Webb said the three men, aged 22 and 25 from Gin Gin and 33 from Bundaberg, were seen at a local pub earlier. The bodies of the men were found inside the mangled wreckage of their car at Bucca after the accident about 7pm on Saturday night. Daniel Andrews' progressive credentials have come under fire from supporters of Safe Schools founder Roz Ward, who have accused the Premier of caving in to "right-wing bigotry" by cutting ties with the controversial academic. But while Ms Ward has vowed to fight on, others have welcomed the government's decision to take over the anti-bullying program, saying it would now be easier for the policy to be strengthened and expanded across the education system. Roz Ward gives a clenched fist salute after returning to work at La Trobe University following controversy earlier this year. Credit:Jason South As The Age revealed on Friday, the government has cancelled its contract with La Trobe University which has delivered Safe Schools since 2010 allowing it to sever links with Ms Ward, who co-founded the initiative but has since become a lightning rod for many of its critics. Instead, the Education Department will take control of the program from the start of term one next year, periodically review and improve resources, and ensure it is rolled out to every state secondary school by 2018. Police have charged a 59-year-old man in relation to an armed robbery on a jewellery store in Melbourne's south-east last month. Detectives from the Glen Eira Bayside crime investigation unit executed a search warrant on Friday at a house in Stephanie Court, Carrum Downs where they arrested the 59-year-old. The man was charged with armed robbery and other associated offences. Credit:Scott Barbour He was charged with robbery and has been remanded to appear in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Wednesday. The robbery occurred at a shop in Katandra Road, Ormond about 1.40pm on November 24. A split has emerged in the highest ranks of the Victorian government over voluntary euthanasia, with Premier Daniel Andrews and his deputy at odds about the state's plans to permit assisted dying. One week after the government announced it would draft legislation giving terminally ill people the right to an assisted death, Deputy Premier James Merlino has confirmed he does not support changing the law and will vote against the bill when it is introduced into state parliament next year. Premier Daniel Andrews and deputy James Merlino have differing views on assisted dying. Credit:Eddie Jim "My view is that the evidence clearly shows that, no matter the safeguards that a parliament puts in place in terms of legislation, the safeguards don't work. The outcome can go beyond the intention of the parliament that's what I'm concerned about," said Mr Merlino, who is aligned to Labor's Catholic-affiliated SDA faction. "People absolutely want control over the care that they receive and the care they don't receive but that can be delivered through the recent changes we've made around advance care directives, and by delivering the very best palliative care that we can." It is being sold as salvation for Japan's lonely hearts. An attractive companion will send you text messages throughout the day to ask how you are, and welcome you home with a kind word in the evenings, the house warmed just as you like it. You can watch television together, and chat. Hologram wife Azuma Hikari. Credit:Gatebox In the mornings, she will wake you, and remind you not to forget your umbrella. The only problem is that Azuma Hikari is a hologram. London: Two former British soldiers are being prosecuted for the murder of an IRA commander in Northern Ireland 44 years ago, in a case that has sparked widespread outrage over the "hounding" of veterans. In the first case of its kind in Britain, the two ex-paratroopers, who are both in their 60s, have been told they will be charged over the killing of Joe McCann, a senior leader in the Official IRA. A British Army armoured vehicle makes its way along a barricade while on patrol in the Lower Falls area of west Belfast. Trouble in the area erupted after the shooting of Joe McCann the previous day. Credit:AP The case raises the prospect of dozens more British troops who served in Northern Ireland being charged, amid claims prosecutions are politically motivated in revenge for the deaths of IRA terrorists as long as five decades ago. It comes amid a growing furore over the "witch hunt" against British troops who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Thousands of troops have been investigated at a cost of tens of millions of pounds over historic allegations of abuse, including murder and torture in Iraq. Hundreds of claims of mistreatment are also being investigated in Afghanistan. Beijing: China's defence ministry said it has engaged in talks with the United States about returning an underwater drone it had seized in the South China Sea, but said Washington had not helped matters by "hyping up" the issue. The statement was issued late on Saturday night, hours after President-elect Donald Trump waded into the diplomatic row by firing a misspelled tweet describing the act as an "unpresidented [sic] act". "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act," he said later in a corrected tweet, deleting the original. The Pentagon had demanded the swift return of the unmanned water vehicle, which it said was operated by the Bowditch, a United States naval vessel carrying out scientific research in the international waters of the South China Sea on Friday. The drone, it said, was part of an unclassified programme collecting data, including salinity in the sea and water clarity, when a Chinese navy ship launched a small boat and snatched the drone out of water, ignoring radioed demands for its return. MONTREAL, Dec. 16, 2016 -- After a memorable event in Chengdu in 2014, the next global event focused on sustainable mobility will be held in Montreal, Canada's largest metropolis, on June 13, 14 and 15, 2017. Since 1992 and the release of the first fuel-efficient tire, Michelin has reaffirmed its vision of effective, sustainable mobility with the goal of helping people and goods to move about more efficiently. At the COP21 conference in November 2015, Michelin pledged to reduce the carbon footprint of its tires 20 percent by 2030. In addition to Company-level initiatives, Michelin also wants to pursue the dialogue with other stakeholders in order to reinvent a form of mobility that is safe, connected and responsible. In 2017, the Company wants to launch a new, even more open dynamic that will permit large and small companies as well as start-ups, scientific institutions and NGOs to offer sustainable mobility solutions, in particular to cities, which will be home to the vast majority of the world's population. Powered by this vision, Montreal was selected as a partner and host city for the next Movin'on, the global sustainable mobility summit, which will thus open up to a new ecosystem of public and private players that want to be part of the adventure. Michelin is leading this new phase, whose success will depend on the collective federated around the project. "Movin'on is more than just a name change; it's a call to action," says Jean-Dominique SENARD, Chief Executive Officer of the Michelin Group. "Joining forces so that together we can invent, improve and project ourselves into tomorrow's world of transportation is the key point. Montreal is a city that has pioneered in sustainable urban mobility and in a few months it will host a unique platform for demonstrating prototypes and innovations that support mobility. Let's transform the transportation industry by soliciting the ingenuity of researchers, the agility of start-up creators and the technological power of large companies. I want this international event to create a roadmap that traces a tangible way to achieve the sustainable mobility of the future and that we can show to public authorities." "Montreal, with its commitment to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions 30 percent by 2020 compared with 1990 and its tangible initiatives to electrify transportation, is positioned as a leader in the area of sustainable, effective mobility," says Denis CODERRE, mayor of Montreal and president of Metropolis. "Hosting the 2017 Michelin Challenge Bibendum, now called Movin'on, the global sustainable mobility summit, recognizes the city's efforts to create the society of the future. This global sustainable mobility summit, which will be held in Montreal, will provide an opportunity to showcase the city's innovations and to discuss them with the world's leaders in the field." In addition, Michelin is joining with C2, the Montreal-based company, as an organizing partner for Movin'on, the global sustainable mobility summit. "C2 is proud to be a partner to this global event," says Richard St-Pierre, president of C2. "This project will enable us, once again, to demonstrate the power of creativity to transform and reinvent industries by encouraging innovation through the collision of ideas. We also want to emphasize the key role that Tourism Montreal played in attracting this event to Montreal." About Michelin Michelin is committed to improving the mobility of its customers over the long term. A leader in the tire industry, Michelin designs, manufactures and distributes tires that are closely adapted to the needs and usage conditions as well as services and other solutions that make mobility more efficient. Michelin also provides offerings that enable its customers to experience unique moments during their trips and travels. In addition, Michelin has developed high-tech materials for manufacturing companies in the mobility sector. Headquartered in Clermont-Ferrand, Michelin is present in 171 countries, has 111,700 employees and operates 68 plants in 17 countries that together produced 184 million tires in 2015 (www.michelin.com). The City of Montreal At the 21st UN Conference on Climate Change (COP21), Michel stood out as an innovative city that is focused on new technologies and on electrifying its transportation systems. The fight against climate change is a societal choice that Montreal fully supports. Cities and metropolitan areas are increasingly asked to play a leading role in this fight. Through a range of initiatives, Montreal has served as a model for other cities around the world. Its transportation electrification strategy for 2016-2020 illustrates the efforts that the city wants to showcase to ensure a healthy environment and a promising future. In addition to tangible actions led by the City, such as the deployment of a network of recharging stations, Montreal intends to play the role of facilitator for "green" companies with the goal of creating an environment that is favorable to innovation as well as to sustainable economic development. Montreal is also setting the example by electrifying its own fleet of service vehicles. In addition to objectives managed by the City's administration, Montreal favors getting public and private partners involved in this transportation electrification effort. We should emphasize the participation of the Montreal Transportation Company, which is pursuing its objective to electrify its mass transportation network as well as the Metropolitan Electrical Network project of the Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec, which will revolutionize mobility in the Montreal metropolitan area. The City is also encouraging providers of self-service vehicles to gradually upgrade their fleet to electric vehicles, a project fully in line with the municipal government's deployment of a network of recharging stations. On December 1, the City of Montreal became a member of the prestigious C40 network, which brings together 90 metropolitan areas that are leaders in the search for concerted, tangible solutions in the area of climate change. About C2 C2 is committed to exploring the "commerce & creativity" dynamic and its potential for reinventing the business world. Thanks to a collaborative environment specially designed to cause collisions and support the emergence of new ideas, C2 brings together leaders, academics, entrepreneurs and artists from a range of industries with the goal of getting them to question their viewpoints and to explore new possibilities. Imagined by Sid Lee in collaboration with the Cirque du Soleil, C2'sw key Montreal event, with its three days of conferences, workshops, brainstorming sessions, meetings, performances and festivities, has been variously described as "the Davos of Creativity (L'Obs) and "a conference that is unique in its genre" (Harvard Business Review). NASA Television to Air Programs Today Celebrating Space Pioneer John Glenn +VIDEO WASHINGTON - December 17, 2016: Dec. 16, 2016: NASA Television will air two programs live today from Ohio celebrating the life of U.S. Marine, NASA astronaut and Ohio senator John Glenn. Visitors were able to pay their respects to Glenn yesterday afternoon at the Ohio Statehouse rotunda, where he lays in repose under the Ohio State seal, guarded for 24 hours by the U.S. Marine Corps Honor Guard. Saturday, Ohio State University in Columbus is hosting John Glenn: Celebrating a Life of Service at 2 p.m., during which NASA Administrator Charles Bolden will pay tribute to Glenn's early contributions to human spaceflight and enduring legacy. Both programs will air live on NASA TV and the agency's website. One of NASA's original seven Mercury astronauts, Glenn, who died Dec. 8, also served 24 years in the U.S. Marine Corps and four terms as a U.S. senator from Ohio. His flight on Friendship 7 on Feb. 20, 1962, showed the world that America was a serious contender in the space race with the Soviet Union. It also made Glenn an instant hero. For more information about Glenn's life and legacy, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/content/profile-of-john-glenn For NASA TV streaming video, schedule and downlink information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv Volkswagen Worldwide November 2016 Sale Up 7.5% Over November 2015 >Wolfsburg, ecember 16, 2016; The Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand recorded a clear improvement in worldwide deliveries in November compared with the previous year. 533,500 vehicles were handed over to customers worldwide, representing an increase of 7.5 percent. A total of 5.4 million vehicles were delivered from January to November, 1.6 percent up on the previous year. Jurgen Stackmann, Volkswagen Brand Board Member for Sales, commented: China continued to drive the positive trend in November. There was also positive momentum on some markets in Western Europe, the USA, and India. Given the current challenging market environment, a 7.5 percent increase is a respectable result. The Volkswagen brand is on the right track and will end 2016 on a high note. Deliveries to customers by markets November 2016 November 2015 Change (%) Jan. - Nov. 2016 Jan. - Nov. 2015 Change (%) Europe 137,100 139,100 -1.4 1,557,900 1,580,200 -1.4 Western Europe 116,100 119,600 -3.0 1,353,900 1,389,500 -2.6 Germany 44,300 52,700 -16.0* 519,100 555,800 -6.6 Central and Eastern Europe 21,100 19,500 +8.2 204,000 190,700 +7.0 Russia 7,000 7,600 -7.7 66,600 70,500 -5.4 North America 51,400 44,600 +15.3 521,700 539,300 -3.3 USA 29,700 23,900 +24.2 285,700 318,500 -10.3 South America 28,900 32,500 -10.9 305,400 431,100 -29.2 Brazil 19,700 23,500 -16.3 196,700 314,800 -37.5 Asia-Pacific 297,600 262,600 +13.3 2,854,400 2,584,300 +10.5 China 285,000 247,000 +15.4 2,696,300 2,394,500 +12.6 Worldwide 533,500 496,100 +7.5 5,419,900 5,335,700 +1.6 *Systemic decline attributable to an extension in the leasing term The main trends in November were as follows: - At 44,300 units, deliveries on the home market of Germany in November were down 16.0 percent, a significant decrease compared with the previous year. This was primarily attributable to a systemic decline due to an extension in the leasing term for employees. In the first eleven months of the year, the German market decreased by 6.6 percent. - Some of the major markets in Western Europe put up a good performance compared with the previous year; France: +13.6 percent, Spain: +13.1 percent, Italy: +12.6 percent. This was mainly due to strong demand for the Tiguan and Touran models. - 29,700 vehicles were delivered in the USA, a substantial increase of 24.2 percent compared with the previous year. Among other things, there has been a statistical effect as a result of the withdrawal of diesel engines in the USA from October 2015. - Deliveries in Brazil ran at 19,700 units, a decrease of 16.3 percent compared with the previous year. The downward trend was slower than the overall downturn for January-November (-37.5 percent). This was attributable to full resumption of production along with successful marketing measures. - China, Volkswagens largest sales market, was once again the key driver of the positive trend in November, with 285,000 vehicles (+15.4 percent) handed over to customers. This represents an increase of 38,000 vehicles compared with 2015. The Middle Kingdom set a new record for deliveries in November as well as for the period from January November. - 3,400 vehicles were handed over to customers in India, a substantial increase of 37.8 percent compared with the previous year. The rise is attributable to the successful launch of the Ameo designed specifically for the Indian market. if the people of Biafra want Republic of Biafra, it will be a reality during my administration. ----Donald Trump Donald Trump I wi... Monday 05 September, 2016 Reliable information reaching Biafra writers desk has it that the life of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indi... 66 Nepali goods now eligible for duty-free entry into US A total of 66 Nepal-made items, including carpets, headgear, shawls, scarves and travel goods, can now enter the US market without being subject to any form of duty, as US President Barack Obama has signed a proclamation to implement the legislation on trade preference programme for Nepal. Crown Princess Victoria wears the Napoleonic Cut-Steel Tiara at the 2016 Nobel Banquet [Photo: SOREN ANDERSSON/AFP/Getty Images ] Some tiaras are made of gold, some of silver, some of platinum. But regardless of the material, they all generally have one thing in common: theyre set with sparkling precious gems. Todays tiara, however, is a horse of a different color: a tiara made of a different metal steel, to be precise that has not a single gem set in its frame. And yet, thanks to its innovative design, it manages to sparkle with the best of them. Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden wears the tiara at the 2010 Nobel Prize Ceremony [Photo: Patrik Osterberg/Getty Images ] The tiara, which belongs to the Swedish royal family, is generally called the Napoleonic Cut-Steel Tiara. As the name suggests, this is a tiara with links to the court of Napoleon Bonaparte. But this sparkler didnt belong to Empress Josephine or Empress Marie Louise; instead, its said to have been made for Josephines daughter, Hortense de Beauharnais. Hortense de Beauharnais, Queen of Holland and original owner of the tiara [Engraving: Wikimedia Commons] Hortense was briefly a queen herself she married her stepfathers younger brother, Louis Bonaparte, who was king of Holland from 1806 to 1810. (Their son, who became Emperor Napoleon III of France, was married to Empress Eugenie, whose tiaras weve seen a time or two.) Crown Princess Victoria wears the tiara at the 2004 Nobel Prize Ceremony [Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images ] Hortense de Beauharnaiss steel tiara is something of a marvel. There are no gemstones used anywhere in its construction no diamonds, no pearls, nada. Instead, it is made of steel that has been strategically cut, polished, and set in gold. But when this piece catches the light, the oak leaf, acorn, floral, and feather elements of the piece glitter almost as if they were inlaid with diamonds. (Even its storage box is unusual!) The piece also has coordinating earrings and a choker necklace. Crown Princess Victoria wears the tiara at the 2016 Nobel Prize Ceremony [Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images ] Hortense had no daughters, and its generally believed that she gave her steel jewelry to her niece, Josephine of Leuchtenberg. (Josephine had a truly, truly impressive tiara collection hands up if youd like a post just on her collection one of these days?) When Josephine married the future King Oscar I of Sweden in 1823, the steel sparkler apparently traveled with her to her new home in Stockholm. And then, the tiara apparently disappeared for more than a century. The story goes like this: in 1976, the Swedes had a new queen, Silvia, who was very interested in the familys historical jewel collection. One day, while poking about in the cabinets at the palace, she found a velvet box; inside was this tiara, forgotten and neglected for years. She had it restored and wore it, along with the earrings and choker, for the first time at a state visit in 1979. Princess Desiree wears the tiara at Princess Madeleines wedding in 2013 [Photo: Wikimedia Commons] Since Silvias rediscovery of this unique sparkler, it has appeared on many of the royal women, including several of the kings sisters and the late Princess Lilian. Today, Crown Princess Victoria is the one who wears this tiara most often, though her aunt, Princess Desiree, also wore the tiara at the weddings of both Prince Carl Philip and Princess Madeleine. Princess Sofia wears the smaller cut-steel tiara at the 2016 Nobel Banquet [Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images ] Victoria is apparently a big fan of steel tiaras; at the wedding of Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg in 2012, Victoria debuted a second, smaller steel tiara. This smaller tiara was apparently also among Queen Hortenses collection of steel jewels. We got an excellent look at this smaller steel tiara when Princess Sofia wore it at the 2016 Nobels. Crown Princess Victoria wears the tiara at the 2016 Nobel Banquet [Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images ] At the 2016 Nobels, Victoria wore the larger Cut-Steel Tiara, pairing it with jewels from another Napoleonic-era set, the Cameo Parure. I just love that the Swedes can introduce their hidden heirlooms to the public. Heres hoping there are even more tiaras languishing in their palaces, just waiting to be discovered and donned by intrepid princesses! Note: This is an updated version of an earlier post, with new text/images. Over one hour and twenty-six minutes, the longest press conference of his eight years, President Obama tried to tamp down some of the harsher rhetoric over Russian involvement in electing his successor. Asked whether he was prepared to call out Russian President Vladimir Putin by name, he responded with a lengthy exposition of how the allegations first arose in early summer, how they were investigated and the findings briefed to members of Congress in October. He defended his role and whether he had done enough to expose the hacking and respond to the Russians. He said he told Putin in September when they met briefly at a global summit in China to cut it out or face serious consequences, but by then the WikiLeaks hack had occurred, and the damage was done, an almost daily drip of embarrassing emails that undermined Hillary Clintons campaign. Asked if he would put your money where your mouth is and de-classify the CIA findings that led to the agencys high confidence of Russian culpability, Obama said he would provide evidence if it could be done safely and protect sources and methods. But he seemed irritated that this would be necessary. Unless the American people genuinely think officials in the CIA, the FBI, the entire intelligence structure are less trustworthy than the Russians, people should pay attention to what our intelligence agencies say. Obamas traditional end-of-the-year press conference took on a peevish tone as he excoriated the media for buying into a narrative shopped by GOP hardliners and the President-elect that Putin and Russia are riding high while Obama and America are in retreat. Russia is a smaller country, a weaker country, its economy doesnt produce anything anybody wants to buy except oil and gas, and maybe weapons. They dont innovate. But they can impact us if we forget who we are, if we abandon our values. Obama is obviously irritated at some Washington pundits who have said that he should have blown the whistle louder and clearer on the Russians when information came to light about their hacking into the Democratic National Committee and Clinton campaign chairman John Podestas emails. The President defended himself on that score, saying that in this hyper-partisan election, his primary concern was the integrity of the election. Thats why congressional leaders were briefed and the White House stayed silent. I wanted everyone to understand we were playing this thing straight, he said. If he had spoken out, it would have been one more political scrum. The apparent acceptance of Russian hacking among elected officials and the media stunned him. Folks who made a career of being anti-Russia didnt say anything, he said. After the election, they wanted to know, Why didnt you tell us? Cmon, he said, noting that in a recent poll over a third of Republican voters, 37 percent, approve of Putin. Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave. Obama must be relieved to be almost free of the burdens of office, interjecting at one point: How many more days before Im not a politician? 323134? Yet, it also must be sinking in how much of what he has done can be undone by his successor. This was likely his last press conference, and he seemed reluctant to give up the microphone. This was Professor Obama at his best or worst, depending on your perspective. Noting that everybody is acting surprised that the leaks disadvantaged Hillary Clinton, he exclaimed. You guys wrote about it every day, including John Podestas risotto recipe. This was an obsession Secretary Clinton was not treated fairly during the election, he said. The coverage of her and the issue was troubling. Obama endorsed the idea of a bipartisan commission to investigate Russian involvement in the election, but what they did was not some elaborate espionage scheme. They hacked into email accounts, and some were embarrassing and uncomfortable. Neera Tanden in a New York Times investigative piece about the hacking is quoted saying she just put her head in her hands, it was so demoralizing. There was nothing really scandalous or disqualifying in the emails, but there were juicy tidbits. And then it just took off, and that concerns me, and it should concern all of you, Obama said to the media packed into the Brady Briefing Room, which was so crowded and hot that one woman fainted, briefly interrupting the press conference until she could be carried out. The other issue putting Obama on the defensive is Syria. With the humanitarian crisis in Aleppo on the front pages, Obama was hard put to defend his policy. He said he had spent countless hours, and if it were tallied up, weeks and months, grappling with what to do in Syria. He described looking at maps, hearing the militarys analysis, hearing from aid agencies. The answer was always the same. Short of putting large numbers of troops on the ground, uninvited and without any international mandate, there was no intervention they could find that was realistic, sustainable, and the right thing to do for America. I understand the impulse to want to do something, he said, and the solution he chased for the last four years sought to engage international partners. I cant say that we have succeeded, and thats something I have to go to bed with every night. Soon it will be President-elect Trumps turn to put his money where his mouth is. In a press conference this afternoon, President Obama all but blamed Vladimir Putin for the hacks of the Democratic National Committee and John Podestaand all but said those hacks were intended to boost Trump. When ABC News correspondent Martha Raddatz asked if Putin himself was behind the hacks and intended them to damage Clinton, Obama was coy. The intelligence community is putting together an assessment, he said, and he would defer to their report, which will come out before he leaves office. Then Obama paused. Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin, he said. The odds that a rogue faction of the Kremlin stole emails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta and from the Democratic National Committee and then disbursed themwell, Obama said, thats far-fetched. This is a pretty hierarchical operation, he said. Last I checked, theres not a lot of debate and democratic deliberation, particularly when it comes to policies directed at the United States. This runs counter to President-elect Donald Trumps line; the mogul insists that theres no consensus in the intelligence community about Russias connection to the hacks, and that media coverage of the story is driven by a desire to delegitimize Trumps win. Obamas answers at the press conference run completely counter to that. He said he knew this past summer that Russians had hacked the Democratic National Committee, he added, and he told them to stop it. According to uniform intelligence assessments, he said, its indisputable that Russia was involved in the hacks. But he didnt discuss their motives during the campaign because he feared any comment would be seen as politically motivated. At a time when anything that was said by me or anybody in the White House would immediately be seen through a partisan lens, I wanted to make sure everybody understood we were playing this thing straight, he said. Obama added that he discussed the hacks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in September. So in early September, when I saw President Putin in China, I felt that the most effective way to ensure that that didnt happen was to talk to him directly and tell him to cut it out and there were going to be serious consequences if he didnt, Obama said. And, he added, it worked. And in fact we did not see further tampering of the election process, he said. But the leaks through WikiLeaks had already occurred. Obama also said it was obvious to him that the hacking hurt Clinton. Im finding it curious that everybody is suddenly acting surprised that this looked like disadvantaging Hillary Clinton, because you guys wrote about it every day, he said. Every single leak, about every little juicy tidbit of political gossip. Including John Podestas risotto recipe. This was an obsession that dominated the news coverage. But Russian propagandists had lots of help here at home, he continued. Without naming any specific outlets, he said partisan media outlets operated as domestic propagandists by doing reporting that comported with Russias preferred messaging. Talk radio had primed the pump for Russia, he suggestedtheir efforts to undermine peoples faith in American democratic institutions fell on open ears, thanks to media figures who say D.C. is rampant with corruption. Still, despite his complaints about American media, he criticized Putins crackdowns on press freedom. Mr. Putin can weaken us just like hes trying to weaken Europe if we start buying into notions that its ok to intimidate the press or lock up dissidents or discriminate against people because of their faith or what they look like, he said. And so after everythingthe relentless lies, the twisted misogyny, the mocking of a disabled man, the racism open enough to have won the enthusiasm of white supremacists, the invitation to a foreign adversary to find and leak information damaging to his opponent, and all the rest of itwere hitting the point of no return. The Electoral College meets Monday, and unless he shoots someone on Fifth Avenue in the meantime, its done . The electors are going to certify him as the next president. As they do so, the electors will not be doing their job. Lots of people by now have written pieces, like this very good one by Peter Beinart, explaining that the Electoral College was created precisely to prevent a demagogue from taking office. This was the design even if such a move went against the will of the people. But in this case it wouldnt even be doing that, as Hillary Clinton won nearly 3 million more votes than Trump. Theyll be joining a long list of people who didnt do their jobs this past year. The list starts with the Republican Party and Reince Priebus. As Trump went from one outrage to the next in 2015, the Republican Party should have and could have found a way to stop him and unify behind one of the other candidates, all of whom, even Ted Cruz, fell within the scope of normal and werent utter demagogues who made their contempt for the Constitution plain. Priebus is now rewarded with a big important job, but for a president whos already not very popular and who will be besieged by scandal from the moment he says so help me God. Indeed, a couple more juicy CIA leaks between now and January 20 might persuade a majority of Americans that the very concept of Trump as president is illegitimate before he even starts the job. Priebus will now be saddled with all this, and if theres a just God up there somewhere hell yet get the deserts hes earned. The Democratic Party didnt do its job. There is no way that an incumbent party with a popular president and a good (not great but certainly good) economy should lose an election. The Clinton campaignIll get to it nextmay have made some jaw-dropping tactical errors in Michigan. But after the auto bailout and what Obama did to save that states economy, losing there should have been a bullet-proof impossibility. Obviously they all took it for granted, but thats really bad messaging that the Democratic Party, starting with Obama, didnt make sureand not just during this campaign, but on an ongoing basis since 2010that Michiganders knew that the Democrats saved GM and Chrysler and the Republican Party was ready to let them die. The Clinton campaign. Yes, Robby Mook has a hell of a lot to answer for. He was the guy in charge of the field operation and the whole vote-getting strategy. It was wrong in just about every meaningful way it could have been wrong. Clinton herself, and all the other higher-ups, made the mistake of not doing enough positive economic messagingno one could associate her with two or three core things she wanted to do. And last but most, the press. Complete failure. I dont even need to say the ways, do I? A free press exists at core to prevent a demagogue from taking power. This year, the press enabled a demagogue to take power. With a few exceptions (the Beast, happily, included), the press was horrible. All of the above failures had to happen to give the demagogue his chance, and improbably enough, they all did. And even then he needed to be pushed over the goal line by James Comey and Vladimir Putin, without whom he never would have won. But here we are. Can we count on anything better from any of the above actors? The Clinton campaign no longer exists, and the Clintons wont have much influence in the party going forward. The Republican Party will do nothing to hold Trump accountable for anything. Therell be some intramural squabbles here and there, but if the Republicans do anything well its to close ranks. So Ivanka is calling GOP legislators trying to sell them on paid family leave? This was socialism pure and simple when Obama or Clinton talked about it, but if Trump really wants it, hell get it. Theyll say its different, and it ishis campaign plan was vague and full of the usual holes. But theyll give it to him. Itll be his No Child Left Behind, his attempt to look like he cares about something nice. And so it will go, unless and until the day comes that Trump is so unpopular and so scandal-pocked that their own polling of their states and districts shows that Trump is dragging them down. Then theyll start to ditch him. But not before. The media? Id advise you not to expect much. As long as Trump means high ratings and plenty of page views, most of it will keep playing along. There will be courageous exceptions and lots of good investigative reporting. But Trump will dismiss it all as lies, and political reporters will feel obliged to report it as he said-she said, and cable news (with a few noble exceptions) will find it all too complicated to explain to viewers at the level cable news has decided it needs to speak to people, which is to say roughly ninth grade or thereabouts. If Trump starts a war on the mediataking away credentials, limiting First Amendment rights, that sort of thingthen maybe the media corporations will get riled up. But even if they do, half the public will be on Trumps side. This leaves the Democratic Party. The Dahlia Lithwick and David Cohen Times op-ed Wednesday that lamented how the party hasnt been taken Trump on at all seemed to catch fire and reflect how most liberals are feeling right now. Everybody has remarked upon, myself very much included, the fact if the situation were reversed, the GOP would be moving heaven and earth to prevent Clinton from even taking office, and why cant the Democrats do that? Well, they dont. Theyre not build that way. Im not excusing it. Just pointing it out to you. Elected Democrats tend to understand and accept that under the rules as they exist, Trump did win. But as long as the question is open as to whether he won fair and square, Democrats need to keep that issue right in front of Americans. No debate, over family leave or the budget or Syria or anything, should be engaged without the matter of Trumps legitimacy being part of the conversation. The Democrats have to push hard on these hearings Mitch McConnell has agreed to. If the Republicans try to structure them in a way thats going to hinder pursuit of the truth, Democrats need to make sure every American knows about it. But the main thing is Trumps legitimacy. If four months from now the Democrats have let that drop and nobodys even thinking about Putin anymore, it will be a massive failure on their part. And it wont be just a partisan failure. They will have failed the Constitution and the republic. Thats what Democrats need to stand for. Every politicians Achilles Heelthe thing that will ultimately prove their downfallis identifiable from the moment they start running. Bill Clintons was women. George W. Bushs was that he was in over his head. Hillarys was that she was too secretive and distrustful. (Obama had the weakness of inexperience but, leaving office near 60 percent, he had no downfall.) Trumps is that he is not a small-d democrat. Itll catch up with him. Maybe soon. But not if the Democrats let the public forget, and he is able to distract them into thinking about something else. TIJUANA, MexicoThis week marks 10 years since the official launch of Mexicos militarized war on drugs. One might say it has a complicated history, but at its core there is a simple principle summed up in Spanish by a short, fundamental question: Plata o plomo? Silver or lead. A bribe or a bullet. Thousands of Mexicans, from poor rural farmers to those holding the highest government offices, have been forced to choose their fateto live as tools of corruption or to die with integrity. MARRAKECH, MorrocoDisappointed by the Obama administration that promised warmer relations with the Arab world, Mideast diplomats say they are looking forward to dealing with a more pragmaticand directPresident Donald Trump, no matter what he might have said about Muslims to get elected. No, no, it doesnt bother me, said Youssef Amrani, adviser to Moroccan King Mohammed VI, when asked about Trumps call for a Muslim ban and National Security Advisor nominee Mike Flynns tweet saying fear of Muslims is rational. The strategic dialogue is between two governments and it will continue, he said, side-stepping any direct comment on Trumps campaign rhetoric. They prefer someone who hates Islam to an administration that loves Iran, said one high ranking Mideast diplomat, in a less-diplomatic comment that was echoed by many at the Atlantic Dialogues (AtlanticDialogues.org) in Marrakech, here to debate the security of African, Mideast and European nations and their ties to the U.S. The Arab world is more sophisticated than perhaps Americans realize. We recognize campaign rhetoric. Theyll flip when in office, the diplomat predicted, insisting on anonymity to discuss her countrys disappointment with the Obama administration. The comments reflected the frustration of many current and former Arab diplomats over the White House deal-making with Iran, and President Obamas failure to make any progress on peace between the Palestinians and Israelis, and failure step in sooner or more aggressively to head off the ongoing conflagration in Syria. The diplomats, as well as scholars and businessmen at the conferencelargely Sunni Muslimsexpressed a near-universal distrust of Irans Shiite Muslim government, and disappointment that the nuclear deal the Obama administration helped broker lifted sanctions and gave Tehran access to new troughs of cash, without requiring it to check its expansionist behavior throughout the regionincluding supporting Bashar Assads regime in Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Houthi rebels fueling an ongoing civil war in Yemen. (Morocco and Iran have had on-and-off diplomatic relations, but share an opposition to the spread of ISIS.) Obamas comments to The Atlantic obliquely referring to European and Mideast allies as free riders who rely on the U.S. for their security still sting, and resulted in a public rebuke by former Saudi ambassador to Washington Prince Turki al-Faisal, entitled Mr. Obama, we are not free riders. In the past eight years, we thought we had good relations with the U.S. but really, it didnt turn out to be positive, said Lebanese businessman-turned-politician Fouad Makhzoumi. In remarks to the conference, he said the Obama administrations agreement with Iran left the rest of us in the dark. Donald Trump will be good for us. Forget the anti-Islamic statements. Hes a transactional president who will be dealing with reality, he said, to nods from many in the audience. That may mean the Arab world swallows the bitter pill of keeping Assad in powerfor now. He is very clear on the issue of Syria. President Obama was not, said Lebanese businessman Makhzoumi. Assad cannot stay, but removing Assad doesnt deal with the ISIS problem. The fundamentalist movement is against us all. So lets solve the bigger problem and then we go back to the dictatorship. The Moroccan government, which cooperates closely with the U.S. on counterterrorism, would still like to see the Trump administration drop its use of terms like radical Islam or Muslim terrorist to describe the so-called Islamic State and other militants. Amrani said that dispute wont dent the relationship, though. Some at the conference also expressed unease with news of Trumps nomination of a U.S. ambassador to Israel who wants to move the U.S. embassy back to Jerusalem before Israel concludes a final peace deal with the Palestinians. (Congress long ago passed legislation to make it happen; all Trump has to do is skip signing a biannual executive waiver.) But the potential anger in the Arab street over the symbolic U.S. Embassy move to Jerusalem pales next to the fear of Iranian encroachment across the Mideasta sentiment the diplomats and businessmen feel the Trump administration shares. At least this guy tells you exactly what he wants, Makhzoumi said. The Lebanese businessman said he met advisers for the incoming Trump administration during the election. My feeling is that his team is open to suggestions. Trump is spelled D-E-A-L, said one audience member who preferred to remain anonymous, speaking of Trumps future trade policies as opportunities for the region. He is interested in making a better deal for the United States but both sides have to agree to the deal. Just as the late Stephen Jay Gould updated Charles Darwin by arguing that humans evolved through fits and startspunctuated equilibriumsocial progress also is less steady than we would like. Even amid a positive trajectory, there are breakthroughs, plateaus, and setbacks. Sometimes, what seems like a step back actually helps propel society forward. The short unhappy life of Ota Bengathe human being exhibited in the Bronx Zoodemonstrates how one big example of racist ugliness may have resulted in at least one small step toward racial progress. Although the true origins of this sad story begins with the specious theories of superiority whites developed centuries ago, Bengas tale begins in the early 1900s, in the Belgian-controlled Congo Free State. His life in his community ended when King Leopolds Force Publique invaded his world, murdering his wife and two children, then selling him as a slave to the Baschilele tribe. This all too familiar outrage took a bizarre turn when an American anthropologist, Samuel Philips Verner, purchased him for five dollars worth of cloth and salt. This woefully misguided missionary then brought Benga along with eight other young Africans to star in the 1904 St. Louis Worlds Fair. Bengas slight build, dark skin, and artificially sharpened teethfrom a ritual called chippingfit many Americans racist stereotype of the African savage. As Pamela Newkirk notes in her award-winning book, Spectacle: The Astonishing Life of Ota Benga, now out in paperback, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch greeted the African Pygmies for the Worlds Fair on June 26, 1904. Benga and his troupe won the gold medal for entertaining the crowds with their dances and other tribal rituals. Amendment bill not to be allowed passage in parliament: Oli CPN-UML chairman KP Sharma Oli has said the constitution amendment bill would not be allowed passage in the parliament. Christians demand X-Mas holiday The Federation of National Christian has demanded restoration of public holiday on Christmas Day. Constitution amendment bill fallout: 16 hurt as protesters clash with police At least 16 people were injured when supporters of the parties protesting against the constitution amendment bill clashed with police in Gulmi on Friday. BNSF bridge in Fort Madison under weight restriction The weight restriction is expected to remain in place for up to two weeks while repairs are made to a non-railroad portion of the highway bridge. Defeat bill in House, stop obstructing it: PM to UML Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has challenged the main opposition CPN-UML to defeat the constitution amendment bill in Parliament rather than obstructing House business. WILTON A holiday is supposed to be a time when one relaxes, participates in fun activities, gets some distance from day-to-day hassles, and spends time with family or loved ones. However, the reality is that even positive events can cause stress. The Wilton Family YMCA will hold a holiday stress management workshop on Monday, Dec. 19, at 11 a.m. in the meeting house at 404 Danbury Road. The program is free of charge as a community service. Down to the river Its September 2015constitution on the verge of materialising, we learn by way of a radio broadcast in the backgroundand death has just claimed another of the elderly residents of the village of Nepaltar in Gorkha. This week on Segue on WSIE-FM 88.7, Greg Budzban, PhD, dean of the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville College of Arts and Sciences, hosts Sarah VanSlette, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Applied Communication Studies, to discuss the budding relationship between SIUE and the St. Louis area through the St. Louis small business incubator scene. A St. Louis native, VanSlette completed her undergraduate studies at Saint Louis University before receiving her masters and PhD from Purdue University. After briefly joining the faculty at John Carroll University, she decided to return home and join the SIUE faculty. I love that SIUE sees itself as having a mission, she says. Part of the core mission is to serve those students who look to university to better themselves. Theres a wonderful calling for students who see themselves as making the world a better place. I love being here and teaching students who truly want to grow and learn. VanSlette has been involved with the St. Louis small business incubator community for some time, citing that she feels great passion for its success, because she is a native St. Louisan. I love St. Louis. I believe in St. Louis it has a strong, bright future, so I have a lot invested in seeing St. Louis thrive, she explains. This particular community of startups, incubators and creators are so important to the health of this city and the region. Ive been tracking them for a while - even when I wasnt living in St. Louis. Im excited to be back where I can spend time working with the wonderful people of that community. Budzban admires how vibrant the St. Louis metropolitan community has become in terms of business incubation, while also mentioning the growing connection between the education and business communities. St. Louis has a strong community of people who come together at critical times to say, Here is where we want to invest our money, and here is where we see potential for growth, VanSlette explains. Incubator communities such as Cortex have come about because of quite influential people in St. Louis seeing potential and saying, Heres some space that could use some invigoration. We have the necessary talent in the area to support it, and we need to infuse this area with the money and capital necessary to build it up. We took a group of faculty down to the Cortex area, and I was quite impressed by the creative collisions that occurred in the districts free space, Budzban responds. People there are not in cubicles - they are taking advantage of the space and the people. They are interacting in these fruitful discussions of ideas. Its an exciting part of the city. VanSlette explains that creative incubation ventures allow people to get excited about working in such districts. As a result, restaurants, apartment complexes, and major stores and retailers are drawn to an area, creating a community that attracts transformation in urban population and landscape. Now, Cortex is a thriving innovation district where creative collisions are allowing people to come together and think critically to discuss things, which is so important, she said. As incubation districts continue to develop a critical mass of innovation, SIUE has created a more active role for itself within the T-Rex incubator community. SIUE has developed this partnership with T-Rex, so our faculty and students can go to network and learn from innovators, VanSlette says. T-Rex now houses more than 180 startups who have exciting events. Now that SIUE is a T-Rex resident, our students and faculty take advantage of Lunch and Learn events and other wonderful development opportunities to discuss topics of interest, as well as ways to build business, advertise, promote, market, write grants and improve the overall startup community. In addition, students are afforded networking opportunities which may lead to internships and potential employment from all of the startups who are there. Both Budzban and VanSlette see these opportunities for faculty and students as complementary extensions to the education offered at SIUE. Its another way for our students to learn, which is excellent, VanSlette shares. The culture at T-Rex of co-working space where people from different companies come together and bounce different ideas off of one another is special. It is people from companies as diverse as financial tech companies coming together with designers or social media professionals to exchange ideas using differing skill sets. Once we get out of our siloes, we see there are a lot of overlapping interests and things to capitalize on to make our businesses and our lives better. Thats what is so exciting about education in the College of Arts and Sciences. Theres a broad-based knowledge of liberal arts alongside specific skill sets that major concentrations can offer. Then, the potential for a student becomes boundless. They have the foundation to do almost anything they want professionally, which is of great value to these startups. With an opportunity unique to students at SIUE, a group of seniors in the Department of Applied Communications Studies is currently collaborating with Venture Cafe in St. Louis to promote and encourage fundraising for the organizations annual gala. Through this experience, SIUE students are afforded the opportunity to gain real world experience, while working with one of the most interconnected and powerful entities in the St. Louis small business incubator scene. Such interactions have inspired VanSlettes upcoming research on why public relations and startups should more actively work with and value one another. This is not limited to public relations, VanSlette explains. Professionals at T-Rex have discussed how many grants they write. How great would SIUEs English, political science, and public administration and policy analysis students be for that? There are so many opportunities for people in startup communities. Budzban and VanSlette further discuss the potential SIUE/T-Rex relationship has for students to build professional networks that are now so vital to career success. The more our students become part of the network in St. Louis, the more people recognize SIUE, says VanSlette. We are right next door, so we must insert ourselves in their circles. Once we get a critical mass of students and faculty who are participating downtown and joining the conversation, people will more often think of SIUE. The discussion concludes with Budzban and VanSlette discussing the potential for SIUE lectures and staff meetings to be held at T-Rexs beautiful facilities, while also discussing the students excitement to participate in Venture Cafes Gala, which will be held in April at Third-Degree Glass Factory. The SIUE student team has targeted fundraising goals at $30,000 for the continued success of Venture Cafe and its outstanding entrepreneurial resources. Tune in to WSIE-FM 88.7 every Sunday at 9 a.m. as weekly guests discuss issues on SIUEs campus. By Logan Cameron, SIUE Marketing & Communications SIUE photo More than 100 Southern Illinois University Edwardsville students raised $23,657 during the St. Jude Up til Dawn event, a fundraising program hosted nationally by colleges and universities to raise money for the kids of St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital. The total raised was a record for the SIUE effort. SIUE students joined their counterparts on campuses across the country Saturday, Dec. 3 and stayed up all night in the Morris University Center to help kids who are battling cancer and other life-threatening illnesses. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Jessicha Valentina (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, December 17, 2016 As Christmas is drawing near, Jakarta hotels have prepared a plethora of packages to celebrate the year-end holiday. Those looking for a place to celebrate may consult the list below: Mandarin Oriental A photo posted by Mandarin Oriental, Jakarta (@mo_jakarta) on Dec 2, 2016 at 8:37pm PST Situated in the heart of Jakarta, Mandarin Oriental is offering Christmas brunch, dinner and buffet packages. The brunch and dinner will take place in a French restaurant called Lyon. For a Christmas brunch that does not include alcohol, the package costs Rp 599,000 (US$45.03) per person. For dinner, the price is Rp 630,000 per person. For the Christmas buffet, guests can head to the Cinnamon restaurant for a meal that costs Rp 395,000 per person. Raffles Jakarta A photo posted by Raffles Jakarta (@raffleshoteljakarta) on Dec 1, 2016 at 11:47pm PST The five-star Raffles Jakarta in Ciputra World 1, South Jakarta, will have a special Christmas buffet. The promotion is slated to run from Dec. 24-25 at the Arts Cafe with starting price of Rp 688,000 per person. Meanwhile, throughout this month, the hotel's bar is serving a festive high tea. Priced at Rp 350,000 for two people, the high tea includes a tea by TWG, mini beef cheek and marmite pie, cinnamon scones, apple and cinnamon strudel with mascarpone cheese and dundee fruit cake. In addition to the food packages, the establishment is also offering Christmas goodies priced from Rp 850,000 to Rp 2,000,000. For every purchase of goodies, the hotel will donate Rp 50,000 to Yayasan Sinar Pelangi. (Read also: An ethereal experience: Christmas markets in Germany) Fairmont Jakarta A photo posted by Fairmont Jakarta (@fairmontjakarta) on Dec 9, 2016 at 12:24am PST Those who want to celebrate Christmas in the Senayan area in Central Jakarta should consider Fairmont Jakarta. This holiday season, the hotel's Spectrum restaurant is offering Christmas dinner and brunch buffets with starting price of Rp 699,000 and Rp 675,000 per person, respectively. Alternatively, guests can make their way to Sapori Deli to enjoy an Italian Christmas dinner and brunch. The promotion is priced at Rp 388,000 per person. Furthermore, the hotel's Peacock Lounge is hosting an afternoon tea featuring Christmas-themed desserts throughout this month. The sweet treat is priced at Rp 499,000 per set for two people. DoubleTree by Hilton Diponegoro A photo posted by DoubleTree by Hilton Jakarta (@doubletreejkt) on Oct 30, 2016 at 9:39pm PDT This festive season, OPEN Restaurant at DoubleTree by Hilton Diponegoro in Central Jakarta is having a special promotion for Christmas dinner and brunch for Rp 458,000 per person. During the Christmas day brunch, guests will be granted access to the hotel's swimming pool and Kids Club. Meanwhile, its Sea Grain Restaurant & Bar, which is located on the third floor, will also be hosting a Christmas eve dinner with starting price of Rp 488,000 per person. (kes) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan Fri, December 16 2016 Local environmental activists have lambasted the results of a government-sanctioned research project, which recommends the utilization of the Leuser National Parks protected zone for commercial purposes. They fear that the recommendations will pave a way for the construction of a planned geothermal power plant in the parks 5,000-hectare Core Zone and inflict irreversible damage on the local ecosystem. The research was driven by the interests of certain corporate sponsors. We have evidence of that, prominent activist Panut Hadisiswoyo told The Jakarta Post on Thursday. 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 Five female Afghan security staff shot Five female security staff at Kandahar airport have been killed by unknown gunmen, local officials say. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Stefani Ribka (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Fri, December 16 2016 A sharp increase in palm oil and coal delivery significantly pushed up exports in November, giving an early sign of recovery for Indonesias dwindling overseas shipments. Exports in November jumped by 21.34 percent, to US$13.5 billion from the same month last year, boosted by a surge in palm oil shipment volume amid a persistent low price and a rise of coal shipments by both volume and value, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) announced Thursday. This is the highest growth rate since 2011. [...] Hopefully, the export surge can continue until next year, said BPS deputy head for distribution and statistics Sasmito Hadi Wibowo. Palm oil exports rose by 20.37 percent to US$16.05 billion, while coal exports climbed by 10.04 percent to $13.06 billion. Other commodities that contributed to the jump in monthly exports included jewelry, ore and clothing. Despite a marked year-on-year increase, exports only rose slightly, by 5.91 percent, on a month-on-month basis. Similarly, overall exports from January to November dropped by 5.63 percent to $130.65 billion, with non-oil and gas exports declining moderately by 1.96 percent to $118.8 billion. After hitting an all-time high of $203.4 billion in 2011, Indonesias exports have steadily fallen, dropping to only $150.2 billion last year. Economic slowdown in its major trading partners, including China and India, have put strong pressure on its exports as demand drops. In addition, the majority of the countrys exports are commodities such as palm oil, coal and rubber, of which prices are vulnerable to movements in the international market and with the global economic crisis, exacerbated by a supply glut for some of the commodities, economists have warned that price increases are unlikely. Maintaining a gloomy outlook for 2016, the World Trade Organization (WTO) lowered in September its forecast for worldwide trade growth from 2.8 percent to 1.7 percent. In a return to a past trend, trade growth has stopped outperformed global economic growth, according to the global trade governing body. Monthly imports also recorded an increase although not as significant as exports climbing 9.88 percent to $12.66 billion from the corresponding month in 2015, while import figures were up by 10 percent compared to October. Total imports for the first eleven months also slipped by 5.94 percent to $122.9 billion. With this result, Indonesia enjoyed a surplus of $7.79 billion so far this year, thanks to a non-oil-and-gas trade surplus of $13.01 billion that balanced the deficit from the oil and gas trade of $5.2 billion. Exports and imports seem to have returned to their normal pattern, which usually sees high growth at year-end. In recent years, it has usually been bad even at year-end, said Sasmito. He referred to exports of palm oil, coal and winter clothes to northern countries as well as the rest of the world that were boosted by year-end holidays. Centre of Reform on Economics (CORE) Indonesia director Mohammad Faisal predicted that despite remaining uncertainties in the global economy next year, Indonesia could possibly expect bigger exports as prices of its commodities have shown an upward trend. The coal price, for example, has been rising in the third quarter of this year and there is reason to hope that the trend will continue next year, he said in an economic outlook publication from the Trade Ministry. The research body estimates that the contribution of trade to the countrys gross domestic product will expand next year. Exports contribution will increase to 1 percent in 2017, up from 0.8 percent this year, while imports contribution will rise to 0.9 percent, from 0.3 percent. Separately, Development Planning Board (Bappenas) director for trade, investment and international cooperation Yahya Rachmana Hidayat projected that exports would climb further next year as, according to his claim, Indonesia has successfully diversified its range of export destination countries to include non-traditional markets like South Africa and Russia. -------------------- 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 Tama Salim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Fri, December 16 2016 Germany aims to raise a number of topics at the 2017 G20 Summit during its presidency of the body, including possible safeguards against a growing trend of protectionism in global trade. Besides building on the results of previous presidencies and ensuring broad continuity in the G20s work, Germanys agenda will revolve around the three main objectives. The main objectives are building resilience, improving sustainability and assuming responsibility, German Ambassador to Indonesia, Michael von Ungern-Sternberg told a media briefing on Wednesday. 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) Jakarta Fri, December 16 2016 Police confiscated several pieces of evidence during a search of the private residence of Rachmawati Soekarnoputri, the daughter of Sukarno, the countrys first president, on Jl. Jatipadang, Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta, on Thursday morning. Rachmawatis lawyer Aldwin Rahardian said a member of the politicians legal team oversaw the search. My lawyer colleague Sopyan is on standby at [Rachmawatis house], he said as quoted by kompas.com on Thursday. The search is reported to have started at 8 a.m. Several items, comprising documents and books belonging to Ibu Rachmawati, have been confiscated, said Aldwin. 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 TheJakartaPost Please Update your browser Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below. Just click on the icons to get to the download page. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, December 17, 2016 Jakarta gubernatorial candidate Anies Baswedan says he will stop the controversial Jakarta Bay reclamation if he is elected next year, saying that the project is harming people who live around the bay and the environment. "Our stance regarding the reclamation is clear. We don't agree with the reclamation and we will surely stop it," the former education and culture minister said during a discussion at the Greenpeace office in South Jakarta on Friday. Previously, Anies said the reclamation project should be stopped as it would affect the livelihoods of those living around the bay. Anies and his running mate, Sandiaga Uno, have included that plan in their working program. (Read also: Anies may challenge Ahok) During the discussion, Hindun Mulaika, climate and energy team leader at Greenpeace Indonesia, said the future leader should stop the reclamation project as it threatened the environment. Hindun added that the next governor should recover the ecological functions of the bay ecosystem that had been damaged by the project. Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja has persisted with the development of 17 man-made islands despite opposition from environmental activists and fishing communities. Ahok says the the project will settle land problems in the city and bring huge profits to the administration. (jun) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Bambang Muryanto and Ahmad Junaidi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta and Yogyakarta Sat, December 17, 2016 More than 300 anthropologists from across the country have asked the government to protect Indonesian values and take stern action against groups that try to destroy diversity. Indonesian values have been continuously destroyed. We consider it important to declare an emergency situation on Indonesian values, senior anthropologist Meutia F. Swasono said in a statement in Jakarta. Calling themselves the Anthropologists Movement for Diverse and Inclusive Indonesia, the scholars called on the government, especially the police, as well as the Indonesian Military, to bring to justice groups that committed violence against minorities. (Read also: Rally erupts in violence) Besides holding a press conference in Jakarta, the anthropologists also conducted similar events in Yogyakarta, Surabaya, Bandung, Pekanbaru and Jayapura. Law enforcement should be upheld without any pressure from mass mobs, said anthropologist PM Laksono of Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta. Many observers earlier viewed that an ongoing trial against Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama had been held due to pressure from conservative Muslim groups. On Dec. 2, hundreds of thousands of people, led by the conservative groups, urged the government to jail Ahok, a Christian and Chinese descent, for alleged blasphemy. Ahoks case is also believed to have triggered violence. Last week, for example, a Christmas service was dispersed by a group of conservative Muslims in Bandung. In Yogyakarta, another Muslim group coerced Duta Wacana Christian University to take down billboards depicting a female student wearing a hijab. (jun) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Kobsak Chutikul and Matthew Smith (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, December 17, 2016 Since its founding in 1967, the ten member nations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have embraced a policy of non-interference in each others internal affairs. The policy has been interpreted as sacrosanct, an unwavering commandment to withhold negative criticism of fellow members. In recent weeks, senior officials in the region have expressed grave concern about the situation in Myanmars Rakhine State, particularly for Rohingya Muslims, who face severe threats in Myanmar, according to subsequent United Nations Special Rapporteurs as well as the U.N. special adviser on genocide prevention. ASEANs vocal criticism of the situation in Myanmar has reached unprecedented levels. On Monday, another first is upon us. Myanmar State Counselor and Foreign Minister Aung San Suu Kyi called ASEAN Foreign Ministers to Myanmar to discuss the situation of Rohingyawhom the government of Myanmar pejoratively calls Bengali. Its customary for ASEAN leaders to meet in the country of the government that chairs the blockat the moment, thats Laos. But, contrary to ASEAN protocol, Foreign Ministers will instead meet in Yangon. It would thus appear ASEAN is shifting in a few ways. Thats a good thing. This meeting chaired by Suu Kyi is potentially a hinge moment. Its an opportunity to discuss a pressing regional issue in which the lives of hundreds of thousands of civilians are at stake. Its an opportunity to hear directly from State Counselor Suu Kyi about whats been happening in Rakhine State, which borders Bangladesh to the west of the country. And its an opportunity to discuss how ASEAN can help. It would be unfortunate, however, if the opportunity were squandered. Foreign Ministers must listen closely to Suu Kyi. But this is not the time for Myanmar to simply deny that human rights abuses may be happening against Rohingya, or deny that the Rohingya belong in Myanmar. Nor is it the time to blame the whole situation on a new Muslim insurgency in Rakhine State, which is not yet as well-funded or organized as it might like the world to believe. This is not to say that Rohingya militants have not been deadly. On October 9, a group of several hundred attacked three police outposts, killing nine. In turn, the Myanmar military appears to have unleashed a disproportionate response. Fortify Rights has been carefully documenting unlawful killings of unarmed Rohingya civilians by army soldiers, rape of women and girls, avoidable deprivations in humanitarian aid, and evidence of widespread arson of Rohingya villages. More than 20,000 Rohingya men, women, and children have poured into neighboring Bangladesh, and more than 30,000 have been displaced within Rakhine State. The actual figures from the state are uncertain as access to the area has been denied for more than two months. The denial of access has likely had deadly results. More than 130,000 people have not received lifesaving aid, according to the U.N., and more than 3,000 children in the blackout zone were suffering from acute severe malnutrition before October 9. Theyve since been denied any access to aid. Going into this meeting on Monday, Myanmar should know that ASEAN criticism comes from a place of grave concern, and grave concern can be productive and consistent with the overall spirit of ASEAN principles. There is the threat of religious extremism and radicalization of ethnic communities that could open up a new international front in South East Asia for a civilizational and religious clash, this time between Muslims and Buddhists, which would split the region down the middle. At this unprecedented meeting, the government of Myanmar should agree to immediately grant U.N. agencies free and unfettered humanitarian access to all populations in need. This doesnt really require much action from Myanmarjust tacit approval. Second, Foreign Ministers should take the opportunity to discuss matters of genocide prevention in Myanmar, with an emphasis on prevention. At this point, such a conversation is warranted. And its not happening. The top U.N. official on genocide prevention Adama Dieng did his part in expressing concern, now Suu Kyis ASEAN counterparts must add their collective voice. Lastly, ASEAN leaders should encourage Myanmar to invite a UN-mandated independent international investigation to take a look at the situation. According to Fortify Rights, a sizable contingent of Myanmars own civil society supports the idea at this point. But regardless, a series of government-appointed commissions in Myanmar have failed to take a close look at the human rights situation throughout the Rakhine State. An independent international commission could work closely with the commission appointed by Suu Kyi in September, led by Kofi Annan, but importantly it could go a step further and help establish the facts based on a forensic deep dive into whats been happening. Members of such an independent commission could be drawn from the Asian Peace and Reconciliation Council, a regional non-governmental body which is comprised of retired, respected statesmen. This would help restore credibility for Suu Kyis government on the one hand, and the other, it would provide her with information and intelligence she could choose to act on. One thing is clear: ASEAN member states can and should work together to unlock the potential in Myanmars westernmost state. The lives of countless thousands, and perhaps the future of the region, depend on it. Dr. Kobsak Chutikul is retired ambassador of Thailand and former deputy chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the elected Thai House of Representatives Matthew Smith is co-founder and CEO of Fortify Rights The article was submitted for Asia News Network members Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Sat, December 17 2016 North Koreas government banned sarcastic comments against them (they actually did, this is not a joke) so I sent them an email: Great idea, you bunch of geniuses. Theyre sure to thank me. The worlds gone mad. A reader sent me a news story about police checking so-called sacks of rice which drivers were delivering across a border and discovering that the bundles were really (creepy music) DEAD BODIES. No, wait. I just read the item again. What it actually says is that the driver told police he was moving dead bodies but shocked officers discovered that the bundles were really bags of rice. This took place recently in Nigeria, where tax is payable on imported foods but not on corpses. Nothing to see here, officer, just dead people. You sure its not grocery items? It reminded me of a time a few years ago when a friend was at the security gate at Phnom Penh airport. He put his bag through the x-ray machine, and the guy next to him put his AK-47 machine gun through the machine. What were the guards looking for inside the machine gun? he pondered. Mens cosmetics? 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 Sat, December 17, 2016 Chinese Ambassador to Indonesia Xie Feng said in a statement on Friday that the Chinese government strongly opposes any attempt to mix up individual behavior with actions of the state or any unfounded accusation that such an isolated case is a conspiracy or a biological weapon to destroy Indonesias economy following a case in which Chinese citizens were found illegally planting chilies in Bogor. Local media reported recently that four Chinese citizens had been detained by the immigration office for permit violations. Later it was discovered that the four had planted chilies with seeds they had brought themselves to a plot of land in Sukadamai village, Sukamakmur district, Bogor regency. Tribunnews.com reported that Indonesias Agriculture Quarantine Body confiscated 5,000 chili plants and found they were tainted with a plant pathogen known as Dickeya dadantii. In response to the news, politician Yusril Ihza Mahendra said last week on his Twitter account that Indonesian intelligence should investigate the matter, accusing the four Chinese citizens of infiltrating Indonesia to weaken the economy. (Read also: Greater Jakarta: Police arrest 31 Chinese migrants in Bogor) On Dec. 15, Ambassador Xie met with Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto and afterwards he said the Chinese government had encouraged all Chinese citizens to abide by local laws and regulations abroad. If an individual Chinese citizen is suspected of involvement in activities against Indonesian laws and regulations, the Chinese side respects the Indonesian government in its impartial handling in accordance with facts and laws while the legitimate rights and interests of the Chinese citizen shall also be effectively guaranteed. Ambassador Xie said that as people-to-people exchanges between China and Indonesia continued to grow, more and more Chinese people are visiting Indonesia to meet friends, experience local culture and promote mutually beneficial cooperation. Their visits have strengthened the cooperation and friendship between the two countries and contributed to the economic growth of Indonesia. Ambassador Xie hopes that the Indonesian side could properly handle this case and work with the Chinese side to safeguard the sound momentum of growth for bilateral relations, the statement said. Ambassador Xie has conveyed to Wiranto the Chinese governments concerns about over interpretation and hyping up in the case. (evi) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, December 17, 2016 Publicly listed company Elang Mahkota Teknologi (Emtek) will focus on restoring Blackberry Messengers (BBM) market share among upper-middle-class phone users next year. Emtek vice president director Sutanto Hartono said that despite BBM still having 60 million active users in Indonesia, 75 percent of whom were active on a daily basis, the application was losing its market share of upper-middle-class phone users. Most of its active users came from rural areas. "Our goal for next year is to make BBM appealing to middle- and upper-class urban citizens once again," Sutanto said at Emtek's press briefing in Jakarta on Friday. (Read also: Kudo raises 8-digit funding led by Emtek Group) He said the company was in the process of making BBM an integrated portal to access e-commerce sites, ticket reservation services and news, among other things. The features are supplied by other companies in the group such as Bukalapak, Vidio.com and Liputan 6. "We're focusing on an improved user experience," he said. Emtek acquired the BBM license in a US$207.5 million deal in June, which Blackberry called a long term partnership agreement. (evi) India demonetisation move: No remedy for Nepalis as deadline nears The deadline issued by the Indian government to exchange bank notes in the denominations of 500 and 1,000 is just 13 days away, but no concrete measures have been announced for exchanging these banned Indian notes in Nepal. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tama Salim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, December 17, 2016 Tama Salim The Foreign Ministry has recognized the outstanding contribution of the Indonesian Ambassador to the Philippines, Johny Lumintang, in protecting Indonesian citizens abroad. He was awarded the 2016 Hassan Wirajuda Citizen Protection Award (HWPA) on Friday evening for his leadership at the helm of the Indonesian Embassy in Manila, which saw a string of difficult challenges this year. The retired army general was at the forefront of the government's efforts to rescue more than two dozen Indonesian nationals abducted by the notorious Abu Sayyaf militant group, which operates in and around southern Philippine waters. Johny was also largely responsible for repatriating 283 Indonesian haj pilgrims and pilgrimage candidates who were caught up in an alleged identity fraud scam in Manila. "I thank you for this award, but let the record show that this was the result of our collective hard work. If this prize could be broken down into many pieces, they would be distributed to every one of us," the envoy said in his acceptance speech at the awards ceremony. (Read also: Indonesian hostage escapees probed by authorities) The government has managed to rescue a total of 25 Indonesians taken hostage in the Philippines this year, with four fishermen still in captivity. Johny is joined by 16 other recipients of the HWPA, including Jahar Gultom, the Indonesian Consul General in Kuching, Malaysia, Elly Kamsir, an Indonesian resident in Mauritius, and Cassiem Augustus, a South African of Indonesian descent working as an inspector with the International Transport Workers' Federation. (jun) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin DARLENE SUPERVILLE (Associated Press) Washington Sat, December 17, 2016 Michelle Obama says the White House needs a "grown-up" and the nation will come to appreciate President Barack Obama. In an interview with Oprah Winfrey set to air Monday night on CBS, the first lady says the election has reinforced her view that her husband's administration was able to inspire hope "because we feel the difference now." "Now we're feeling what not having hope feels like," she says. "You know? Hope is necessary. It's a necessary concept. And Barack didn't just talk about hope because he thought it was just a nice slogan to get votes. I mean, he and I and so many believe that if you ... what else do you have if you don't have hope?" "What do you give your kids if you can't give them hope?" she added. Mrs. Obama sat for the interview five weeks after the election of Donald Trump to the White House. The Obamas campaigned aggressively against Trump and argued that the New York businessman is unfit to be president. CBS released an excerpt of the interview on Friday. In it, Mrs. Obama does not mention the incoming president by name. While Obama has refused since the Nov. 8 election to repeat his criticisms of Trump, Mrs. Obama comes off as less accepting of the outcome. In the interview, which was taped Wednesday in the White House residence, she said the public will eventually appreciate what a reassuring presence her husband was during the past eight years. She compared him to the person who doesn't freak out when a toddler bumps his head, causing the child to start crying. "I feel that Barack has been that for the nation in ways that people will come to appreciate," she said. "Having a grown-up in the White House who can say to you in times of crisis and turmoil, 'Hey, it's gonna be OK. Let's remember the good things that we have. Let's look at the future. Let's look at all the things that we're building.'" "All of this is important for our kids to stay focused and to feel like their work isn't in vain. That their lives aren't in vain," Mrs. Obama added. "What do we do if we don't have hope, Oprah?" Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tama Salim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, December 17, 2016 Tama Salim Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi will embark on a two-day mission to Myanmar and Bangladesh in search of a lasting solution for the dire situation in Rakhine state, especially regarding the plight of the Rohingya Muslim minority. She said she will depart for Myanmar ahead of an informal meeting with her ASEAN counterparts on Monday, before heading out to Dhaka to meet with Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali on Tuesday. "On Dec. 19, at the invitation of the Myanmar State Counsellor [Aung San Suu Kyi], ASEAN foreign ministers will meet in Yangon for a retreat to discuss the situation in Rakhine state," Retno told reporters in Jakarta late on Friday. "It is our hope that the Myanmar government will provide details on the developments in Rakhine. Receiving updates directly from the State Counsellor is a good start." (Read also: Indonesia raises Rohingya concerns with Suu Kyi: Retno) The ASEAN response, a first for the bloc, has been in the works since Retno's tete-a-tete with Suu Kyi in Naypyidaw on Dec. 6, and was further consolidated after a senior officials meeting in Bali. After concluding Monday's retreat, the minister said she would leave for Dhaka where she would be meeting with Minister Mahmood Ali the next day to discuss the Rohingya situation. Nobel laureate Suu Kyi, the country's de facto leader, has been the object of growing international criticism for her perceived lack of action to stop the militarys alleged persecution of the countrys Rohingya Muslim minority. More than 20,000 Rohingya have fled over the border to Bangladesh, reporting that Rohingyas have been the victims of rape, murder and arson. Their claims have been denied by government officials. The militarys crackdown followed attacks on Oct. 9 by Rohingyan militants on police posts along the Myanmar border with Bangladesh, leaving nine officers dead. (jun) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, December 17, 2016 Under pressure from the Bekasi branch of the Islam Defenders Front (FPI), the Honda Mitra outlet on Jl. Raya Jati Asih, Bekasi, issued a statement on Dec.14 asserting that none of its employees were being forced to wear Christmas attributes. The incident was preceded by a rumor spread widely online that Honda Mitra was forcing its Muslim employees, including female staff members who wear the hijab, to wear Santa Claus hats. (Read also: FPI barges into an apartment, forcing police to arrest several men) According to the rumor, management would fine employees Rp 200,000 (US$15) per day should they refuse to wear a Santa Claus hat. In a joint statement by Honda Mitra and the FPI delivered on Wednesday afternoon, company service manager Andri Suherman said that the management would not force its employees to wear Christmas attributes. "If the incident is repeated in the future, I will be ready to face legal consequences," Andri said, as written in the statement. Bekasi precinct police stations head Sr. Comr. Umar Fana said that police, together with some Muslim organizations, had met with office management on Wednesday morning to clear up the issue. The police said that the information spread online was not true. "Both the management and employees stated that no employees were being forced to wear Christmas attributes," Umar told The Jakarta Post on Friday. Umar added that he issued a recommendation on Thursday for companies in Bekasi to also not force their non-Muslim employees to wear Christmas or New Year attributes. (jun) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak (The Jakarta Post) Sat, December 17 2016 The transformation of Abimana Aryasatya from a runaway teenager to a family man fathering four kids and from a small-timer to one of the most-sought after actors is a wide trajectory that he attributes to his film career of 16 years. It changed me in many ways. It gave me financial security, but on top of that, it gave me a new mentality. Otherwise, I wouldve still been hanging out in IKJ parking cars. I would not be here, having this interview. I might have used different diction or speaking manner. 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) Sat, December 17 2016 Words & PhotoS Magnus Hendratmo Unique is the attribute attached by Bugisan villagers to Candi Plaosan, the twin temple in Bugisan village, Prambanan district, Klaten regency, Central Java. An aura of harmony pervading the temples certainly encouraged peaceful living when the shrines were built in the ninth century. This culture of harmony finally inspired the local community to set up Bugisan cultural village. The paddy field east of Candi Plaosan was turned into an arts stage. Bugisan residents enthusiastically worked together to bring to fruition their goal of having a cultural village this millennium. A zinc-based wayang (shadow puppet) was chosen as the mascot of Bugisan arts. With their colorfully decorated bodies, dancers paraded against the background of the temples built by King Rakai Pikatan. Various traditional performances like srandul (folk drama), gejok lesung (rice mortar pounding) and gamelan music were staged. Artists from the Indonesian Arts Institute of Surakarta, Central Java, also collaborated with local players. During November this year, these performers displayed their artistic creativity at Candi Plaosan. It was our hope that Bugisan would be a cultural village starting in 2016, said Agus Satria Nugroho, executive chairman of the event. The Twin Temple Festival is only one of the efforts to establish Candi Plaosan, now still standing magnificently in Bugisan, as a major cultural village destination in the province. 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 Nenette Motus (The Jakarta Post) Bangkok Sat, December 17 2016 We are almost at the end of the year, by the Western business calendar. For many, it is the start of a journey, home to see the family, to be with friends. A journey that ends in reunion, togetherness, sharing. Even if we travel alone, we travel hopefully, knowing that there will be a warm welcome at the end of the tiring journey. It is the time of the year when strangers help one another, when we smile and exchange greetings with people we dont know. Our journeys may be short, but they are long enough for us to reflect on the millions who have set out this year on less happy journeys. Asia may be one of the more peaceful continents on our planet, but it is one with some of the biggest disparities between rich and poor. Millions are on the move, seeking work and comfort for their families. 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) Jakarta Sat, December 17, 2016 Irawan Mulyanto, 42, could not hide his gratitude when he realized that several big companies had committed to employing disabled people, such as him. Losing his eyesight 15 years ago, his opportunities and hope soon diminished, leaving him jobless. In a country where 250 million people live, half of whom are active in the workforce, people with disabilities are more likely to end up as burdens for rather than backbones of their families. There are too few companies that have enough beyond-financial understanding to welcome them to join their teams. Irawan was sitting among good people literally. He witnessed five companies signing a commitment, establishing the Indonesia Disabled and Business Peoples Network to share experiences and assistance in employing disabled people. They are state-owned lender Bank Mandiri, private lender Standard Chartered (Stanchart) Bank, cosmetics company LOreal Indonesia, food packaging and processing firm TetraPak Stainless Equipment and retail giant Trans Retail Indonesia. This gives us hope that not only non-disabled people are welcomed to work in the formal sector, Irawan, who works as a telephone operator at private television station Metro TV on Friday. Trans Retail human resources and corporate affairs director Herni Dian said proper preparations were needed to educate non-disabled workers to be able to cooperate with their disabled fellows and prepare sufficient training. The firm now employs 200 people with disabilities as cashiers, quality control officers, back office staff, administration staff and human resources officers. Stanchart has employed eight disabled people in its sales, help desk and call center divisions since 2008. We recruit them based on their skills, said Afriani Sinaulan, learning and development manager at Stanchart, adding that one of its employees was able to speak six languages, proving that some of them do have exceptional skills compared to non-disabled people. TetraPak has had three disabled employees since 2002 working as engineering, master data and warehouse staff, while LOreal Indonesia has come up with a new plan to train mostly deaf people next year on make-up skills and hairdressing. So far, LOreal employs five disabled people in its factorys packing section. The five companies are indeed doing great jobs, but unfortunately the number of unemployed people with disabilities remains high. According to research conducted by the Institute for Economic and Social Research, School of Economics and Business at the University of Indonesia (LPEM FEB UI), disabled people make up about 12.15 percent of the total workforce in the country, equaling 15.18 million people. Fifty-one percent of them are in the labor market, while the remaining are jobless. The bad news is that 65.54 percent of them are working in the informal sector, which means less wages, benefits and an uncertain future. Therefore, Rosma Handayani, Bank Mandiris senior vice president and head of the human capital services group, called for more companies to join the network. Bank Mandiri has so far employed 41 disabled people working as call center, back office and human capital resources staff. State-owned enterprises and provincial administration-owned companies should make sure that at least 2 percent of their total workforce are disabled people. Private companies are also expected to provide jobs for disabled people, accounting for 1 percent of all their workers. Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) economist Latif Adam called on the government to provide valid data on the current number of disabled people, with their skills, education and regions. It will help the private sector to find prospective talent, he said. (wnd) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tama Salim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, December 17, 2016 Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi conveyed late on Friday Indonesia's grave concerns over the recent developments in the besieged city of Aleppo, Syria, which has seen a negotiated ceasefire abruptly suspended. "Indonesia is deeply concerned about the ongoing developments, particularly the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Aleppo," she told reporters after a citizen protection awards ceremony in Jakarta. Against the backdrop of a continuously growing number of civilian casualties, particularly women and children, Indonesia strongly has urged the Bashar al-Assad administration to provide full and unbridled access for humanitarian aid, the minister said. "We are aware that around 50,000 residents of Aleppo need to be evacuated, [...] and we will continue to push for the resumption of peace talks, which must be inclusive and non-sectarian," Retno added. Both the Syrian government and the rebel forces have accused each other of doubling back on the deal, annulling the ceasefire and throwing thousands of people onto the streets in the dead of winter. Due to such extraordinary circumstances in Syria, the Indonesian government is having difficulties monitoring its citizens. "There are still so many of our citizens in Syria. [...] Now and again there have been a few cases where we had to evacuate our citizens from the conflict area," Minister Retno said without providing an estimate for the number of Indonesians still in the country. The Indonesian Embassy in neighboring Damascus remains open, she explained. (jun) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Agnes Anya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, December 17 2016 The Supreme Court is investigating one of its employees for allegedly assaulting traffic policeman Adj. First Insp. Sutisna in an incident that was taped and widely viewed on social media. We have handed the [attack case] report to the courts internal affairs board. It will examine the case, as well as question her, the courts spokesman Suhadi told The Jakarta Post on Friday. After the investigation we will then decide whether she committed any violations through the attack. If the person is proven to have violated any employee ethics, he said, she would be punished according to the scale of the violation. 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 Nepals Trade deficit doubles in first 4 mths Nepals trade deficit doubled in the first four months of the current fiscal year, as imports surged following a significant jump in consumer demand after the end of the Indian blockade. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Moses Ompusunggu and Fadli (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta/Batam, Riau Islands Sat, December 17, 2016 The National Police have hit back against allegations that their arrest of a number of terror suspects was a ploy to divert the attention of the public from the ongoing blasphemy trial of Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama. National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian said he was ready to step down if it was proven that the counterterrorism operation, which nabbed nine alleged Islamic State (IS) movement supporters in Bekasi and Tasikmalaya, West Java, had such an intention. I will resign if I was responsible for manufacturing [the case]. If they have evidence that this was staged then they should come forward with evidence [...] What we did was purely the result of a months-long investigation, Tito told reporters at the National Police headquarters on Friday. Tito was responding to a statement from National Mandate Party (PAN) lawmaker Eko Hendro Patrio Purnomo, a former television comedian, who alleged that the arrest of terror suspects in Tasikmalaya and Bekasi was a PR stunt to divert public attention from Ahoks ongoing blasphemy trial. Eko has denied making such a claim, accused the media of taking his statement out of context and demanded that some media outlets withdraw their stories about it. A police investigator, identified as Sofyan Armawan, has filed a report against Eko for allegedly violating Article 207 of the Criminal Code on insulting the authorities and the 2008 Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law. The National Polices Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim) summoned Eko for questioning on Thursday, but the lawmaker failed to show up. On Thursday, fellow PAN lawmakers criticized Ekos summonsing by raising the issue during a House of Representatives plenary session, saying the polices decision to launch a probe into Eko was arbitrary. On Friday, Eko showed up to be questioned as a witness in the case. Tito, a former National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) chief, said it was a mistake for a lawmaker or any other state official to disparage the work of the National Polices counterterrorism squad Densus 88, saying it would demoralize those who had made the greatest efforts to combat terrorism. I am serious. [Eko] could face criminal charges or be made to apologize to the public for his comment. [...] If he did not say it, then he should make a public clarification, Tito said, adding that Ekos allegation was outrageous. Even the best Hollywood director could not conceive of a plot like this. If it was manufactured, why would the suspects have the courage to take on the role of suicide bombers, something that carries the risk of the death penalty? Tito said. Since his inauguration in July, Tito has been put under tremendous pressure to deal with three challenges: crime, terrorism and corruption. Additionally, in recent months Tito has had to deal with rising political tension in the lead-up to the Jakarta gubernatorial election. In the past two months, Tito has had to marshal the resources of the National Police to deal with massive street protests involving hundreds of thousands of Muslims calling for the prosecution of Ahok. He has also had to ramp up the forces antiterror efforts, which led to the recent arrest of the nine alleged IS supporters, including a female would-be suicide bomber Dian Yulia Novi in Bekasi, West Java. Police said Dian and her accomplices had prepared a pressure cooker bomb that was ready to be transported to the State Palace where it would be set off, a claim that has been subject to ridicule on social media. Many have questioned the validity of the polices claim that a pressure cooker could be used to house a bomb. In Riau, local police have charged Makruf Maulana, chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industrys (Kadin) Riau Islands chapter, with violating the ITE Law for creating a meme lampooning the arrests over the alleged pressure cooker bomb plot. If a frying pan bomb fails to divert [the publics] attention, try a thermal bottle [thermos] bomb, Makruf wrote in a social media post. Riau Island Police spokesperson Adj. Sr. Comr. Saptono Erlangga said the charges were a lesson for Makruf about the importance of being careful when using social media. Meanwhile, human rights activist Bonar Tigor Naipospos of the Setara Institute said the police were right to launch a probe into Eko. If such a statement was made by a lawmaker, the police have reason to be furious. A lawmaker is obliged to support counterterrorism efforts, he said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Setiono Sugiharto (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, December 17 2016 Culture and Education Minister Muhadjir Effendys proposal for conducting a moratorium on the national exam (known locally as UN) seems to have met a stumbling block, with President Joko Jokowi Widodo seemingly not yet having endorsed the proposal. Probably being skeptical of the educational value of the exam, which measures complex learning outcomes using only a multiple-choice format, the minister has pointed out that the exam fails to encourage students to think critically (The Jakarta Post, Dec. 3). Nevertheless, a recent Cabinet meeting chaired by the President came to the conclusion that the controversial exam was still relevant. 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 Sat, December 17, 2016 Police say domestic terrorist networks have begun to use women in planned attacks as they are less likely to arouse suspicion. Usually, women do not attract suspicion and can blend into large groups more easily. That is why terrorist groups are using them, National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Boy Rafli Amar said on Saturday as reported by tribunnews.com. (Read also: High explosive bomb prepared to attack State Palace: Police) In the last two weeks, the National Polices counterterrorism squad Densus 88 has arrested four women for their alleged involvement in terrorist networks, including a group led by Nur Solihin. The first to be arrested was Dian Yulia Novia in Bekasi, West Java, who is suspected of being the assigned perpetrator of a planned suicide bombing at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta. The second woman is Solihins wife, Arinda Putri Maharani who is alleged to be an accessory to the crime. The third woman, identified only by the initials TS, a resident of Tasikmalaya, West Java, is believed to have recruited Dian to join the terrorist group. The fourth woman, Ika Puspitasari, was arrested on Thursday in Purworejo, Central Java. (jun) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Asila Jalil (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, December 17 2016 Indonesian Youth showed an interest in the ASEAN Community and its importance for the nation during a discussion held on Friday, where topics included Rohingya people in Myanmar and the regional bodys role in disasters. About 30 students attended ASEAN Talks #8 as part of the discussion series held at Prof. Djajusman Auditorium at the London School of Public Relations (LSPR), which has hosted a number of talks on ASEAN this year. 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 Sat, December 17, 2016 Borobudur district in Central Java will host the 2016 Borobudur Cultural Feast this weekend. The festival is reportedly set to run at Borobudur temple and 20 villages in Borobudur district. "There will be five stages. The main stage will be situated in Lumbini Park [at the Borobudur complex]. As for the rest they will be located in Pondok Tingal Park, Tuk Sono Park, Wonotigo Park and Bumiharjo. [Therefore] tourists can choose [to visit one of these areas]." PT Taman Wisata Candi (TWC) director Edi Setijono said during a press conference at the State-Owned Enterprises Ministry on Wednesday. Kompas.com reported that the festival will include an orchestral performance, Javanese music ensemble, dance show, hanging lantern competition and more. For the 2016 Borobudur Cultural Feast schedule, simply consult the list below. (Read also: Govt to develop new tourist destinations around Borobudur) Lumbini Park Stage Situated inside the Borobudur complex, the Lumbini Park Stage is slated to host the orchestra, karawitan (Javanese traditional music ensemble), a dance performance and more. Sounds of Borobudur is one of the most-anticipated shows at the Lumbini Park Stage. Showcasing a D 750 musical composition, the orchestra was initiated by three local musicians: Trie Utami, Dewa Budjana and Redy Eko Prasetyo. The performance is slated to run on Saturday, starting from 10:25 a.m. Following Sounds of Borobudur, there will be Karawitan Jogja Gangsa Nagari and Gita Persada Borobudur Dance performances on Saturday. The former will present a traditional music ensemble performed by students from Gajah Mada University, the Indonesian Institute of the Arts, Yogyakarta State University and Sanata Dharma University. The latter is a dance performance based on Gapura Kalamara, one of the relics of Borobudur temple, which symbolizes protection against evil spirits. On Saturday at 10:50 a.m., there will be Kirab Niti Laku Mahakarya Borobudur, a traditional procession that reflects the king of Mataram Kingdom's journey while inspecting Borobudur temple in AD 770. In addition to the shows, there will be also the launch of Relief Penerus (Successor Relic) during the opening ceremony. Pondok Tingal Park Art Stage This art stage is dedicated to Wanurejo, Candirejo, Kenalan, Sambengan and Bingaran villages. On Saturday, the stage will host theater and other art performances. On Sunday, there will be a drawing competition, kirab (traditional procession) competition, childrens creative dance and more. Tuk Songo Art Stage This stage is designed for Tuk Songo, Majaksingi, Ngargogondo, Tanjung Sari and Karanganyar villages. On Saturday, the art stage will host a village art instrument parade, the five villages ceremonial procession in a Samudra Raksa boat, an angklung performance, dance performance and more. On Sunday, there will be communal exercise for the villagers, Kesenian Kuda Lumping Turonggo Wahyu Budoyo, Karawitan SDN Tuk Sono and Kesenian Brodut Ngablak Magelang. Wonotigo Park Art Stage Lapangan Wonotigo Art Stage belongs to Tegalarum, Karangrejo, Kebonsari, Ngadiharjo and Kembanglimus villages. The festival in this area will start on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. It is slated to begin with a cultural procession from five villages. On Sunday, there will Sholawatan Pitutur (recitals of praise for the Prophet Muhammad), Pengajian Akbar (Koran recital), Panggung Seni Dusun Sodongan and more. Dusun Sodongan, Bumiharjo, Art Stage The stage belongs to Borobudur village, Bumiharjo, Ringin Putih, Giri Tengah and Giri Purno villages. The show is scheduled to run from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. It will start with a village art instrument parade, angklung performance, Tari Topeng Kawedar Songo (mask dance) and Kuda Lumping dance. On Sunday, the stage will host communal exercise, Kesenian Rebana Tanjung Sari and Gojeg Bocah Bandongan, Kesenian Pitutur Ngargogondo and Kesenian Topeng Ireng as well as Kesenian Brodut Ngablak Magelang. (asw) There have been some interesting revelations in the last couple of weeks about the future of the former Bialystoker nursing home. Last month we reported that the city landmark at 228 East Broadway and development parcels on either side of the 1931 Art Deco building had been sold for $47.5 million. The previous owners paid less than $18 million for the property after the home was shuttered a few years ago. In our original story, we noted that developer Rob Kaliner of the Ascend Group was weighing the purchase of air rights from the neighboring Seward Park Co-op. Earlier this week, members of the co-ops board of directors briefed residents of the large housing complex about the offer on the table. The developers, according to the presentation, are potentially planning new residential towers on either side of the Bialystoker building. They plan to create more apartments within the historic building after extensive renovations take place. If the cooperative chooses to sell approximately 155,000 square feet in development rights, the project would span about 230,000 square feet in the two towers. Diagrams show a 31 story building on the east side of the landmark (where a four-story office building now stands) and a 19-story building on the corner of Clinton Street and East Broadway. In this scenario, both towers would have larger footprints. A portion of one building would hang 17 feet over a parking garage driveway on Seward Parks property. If the co-op says no to the air rights transfer, developers are considering a number of options. One version shown to shareholders envisions 17 and 19 story towers. During a recent interview, Kaliner and Wayne Heicklen, his business partner, declined to talk in detail about the possible acquisition of Seward Parks air rights, out of deference to the co-ops board of directors. They did, however, discuss in general terms the plan for the Lower East Side development site. They indicated that SLCE, the architectural firm hired for the project, has not yet designed the buildings. The height and size of the towers could change significantly from the massing diagrams shared with the Seward Park Co-op. They emphasized that their as-of right-plan would likely involve building a single tall tower to the east of the Bialystoker building. Under current zoning and with no additional development rights, a narrow tower could rise above 20 stories, they said. The co-op buildings are 21 stories. Kaliner and Heicklen said theyre not planning to put up glassy towers, but buildings that are contextual to both the Bialystoker building and the blocks immediately surrounding the development site. The towers will look like they belong in that location, said Kaliner. We want to be respectful of the location. The mission for the architect is to evoke the feel of the Bialystoker. The condominium apartments in all three buildings will be luxury units, but the developers say they wont be aimed at the super-luxury market. The apartments, he said, would be tight and efficient. A major selling point will be the spectacular, unobstructed views from the high floors in the new towers. The developers pointed to two previous projects 133 West 22nd St. (a 12-story condo building in Chelsea) and the Georgica on the Upper East Side as emblematic of the type of projects they build. The air rights sale will only take place if two-thirds of the shareholders taking part in the vote agree. The co-ops attorney, Deirdre Carson of Greenberg Traurig LLP, indicated that an offer has been received from the development team. While she did not indicate the proposed purchase price, Carson told residents the offer is, in her opinion, too low. I think you could say with a certainty that the amount that could be realized from this sale would be at least $20 million, Carson said. We dont know how much more than that would be possible. In a conversation Friday with Wei-Li Tjong, the boards vice president, he said the price offered is $125/per square foot. That would work out to $19.3 million. At the meeting, residents expressed a lot of skepticism. There were concerns about the loss of views and light and air in at least one building of the four building Seward Park complex. Others said they were worried about the influx of more residents in a neighborhood besieged with luxury development. Outside the confines of the meeting room, some residents were more enthusiastic about the offer. Given the cooperatives financial strains (maintenance fees were recently increased), theyre at least willing to entertain the prospect of a multi-million dollar payday. As Curbed reported several years ago, Seward Park holds more than one-million square feet in unused development rights on three different properties. At the time, it was estimated that those air rights could be worth $100 million. A vote of the cooperative has not yet been scheduled. That wont happen until the board of directors and its attorneys complete negotiations with the developers. The co-op has commissioned its own appraisal.According to Tjong, early indications from that appraisal show that the offer from the developers significantly undervalues Seward Parks air rights. The board has not taken a position on the potential air rights sale. Our responsibility, Tjong said, is to negotiate the best deal that we can and put it to a vote. He called the transaction, potentially very valuable to the more than 1700 shareholders in the Seward Park Co-op, but also potentially very impactful to the quality of life of residents. The board will be required to detail for all shareholders how the proceeds from the air rights sale would be spent. The developers have said they want to begin construction by the springtime, so theres some pressure on the co-op to act quickly. In a followup interview today, Kaliner said its important to him that residents have all of the facts about the potential transaction. I think everyone should be equipped with the information to make an educated decision, he said. Editors note: The publishers of The Lo-Down are residents of the Seward Park Cooperative. It is our policy to disclose any potential conflicts that arise in our reporting. Get The Morning Lo-Down. Fresh Lower East Side news delivered to your in-box every weekday morning! Do you have an opinion about this story? Join the conversation on our Facebook page. (lead article) SWP in LA: Workers need to build our own party Militant/Deborah Liatos LOS ANGELES Workers face slow-burning depression conditions in the U.S. and much of the world today, Dennis Richter, Socialist Workers Party candidate for mayor here, told Daniel Lopez, a 23-year-old UPS worker in the Highland Park neighborhood Dec. 11. We need to get together and build our own party to fight for the working class and to take political power. Thats what the SWP is all about. After more than two weeks of campaigning, knocking on workers doors and introducing the party, the SWP got word from city officials that Richter was on the ballot for the May election. Party members and campaign supporters had gathered over 1,000 signatures, more than double the requirement. Rents are going up and were getting kicked out of where we live, Lopez, a member of Teamsters Local 396, told Richter. He said that after the elections he hoped something would be done to protect immigrants in Los Angeles. It is in the interests of the entire working class to defend immigrant rights and oppose deportations, Richter said. Attacking immigrants is one of the ways the bosses and their parties both Democrats and Republicans attempt to divide working people. We cant depend on politicians like Mayor Garcetti to give us safe places for workers without papers. The status of undocumented workers is a big question here. Some 1 million immigrants without papers live in Los Angeles County. Democratic Party Mayor Eric Garcetti, running for re-election against Richter, has said he and the L.A. cops will not search workers for their papers or round up and deport those who dont have them. These workers will have safe spaces and safe places in Los Angeles, Garcetti said Nov. 30. You cant depend on the politicians in Los Angeles or anywhere else. We have to do what working people did in 2006, Richter said. I was working in a meatpacking plant in Chicago and we walked off the job and joined the nationwide one-day strike of 2 million people on May Day and killed the anti-immigrant Sensenbrenner bill. This is a key fight for the working class, Richter said. The bosses make billions off exploitation of immigrant workers. We need to organize all workers, those with papers and those without, into our unions, he said, and transform our unions to lead the fight against deportations, E-verify and all moves to scapegoat immigrant workers and divide our class. Thats right, Lopez agreed, everyone has to come together. We need to have a revolution, Richter said. We need to get rid of the dictatorship of capital. Build affordable, safe housing Housing is another big issue, Richter said. For the landlords and the government the only question is how to make it profitable. After the warehouse fire in Oakland, the city government blames those who are forced to live in such dangerous structures, Richter said. But the tenants arent responsible. Its the owners and their agents who cut corners to make money. Like all the bosses in this dog-eat-dog system. We need to demand cheap, plentiful and safe housing be built. It wasnt safe but theyre going to blame the people, Lopez said. Thats the way capitalism is. There is an example for workers here just 90 miles offshore in revolutionary Cuba, Richter said. The press says everything is bad in Cuba but I saw the way the people turned out there, Lopez said, referring to the massive mobilizations to honor Fidel Castro and defend the revolution there. Fidel said it was possible to make a revolution in the interests of workers and farmers and then he led them to do exactly that, Richter said. Theyve been defending it for over 55 years and advancing solidarity to workers all over the world. We have to do the same thing here. To join the Socialist Workers Party campaigning across Los Angeles and around the country, discussing how to build a party that can unify the working class and defend our interests, contact the party at swpla@att.net or (323) 643-4968. Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home (front page) Protests in Washington: Free Leonard Peltier! Victory in Standing Rock boosts Peltier fight AP/Alex Brandon WASHINGTON Hundreds took part in a week of actions here Dec. 4-10 to press President Barack Obama to free Native American political activist Leonard Peltier, who has been held in prison for 40 years. Highlights of the week included daily vigils outside the White House; screening of the film Warrior: The Life of Leonard Peltier; a national press conference; a public meeting on indigenous rights and environmental issues, including the fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline at Standing Rock in North Dakota; and a conference on U.S. Prisons: Conditions of Confinement. The victory won by the Standing Rock Sioux and their supporters, keeping the oil pipeline from crossing sacred land and threatening their water supply, has given a boost to efforts to win clemency for Peltier. The Native Americans who led the struggle at Standing Rock are fighting for the same purpose that Peltier has spent his life fighting for, his son Chauncey Peltier told the press conference Dec. 7. Peltier was framed up on charges growing out of battles for Native American rights on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota in the 1970s. Dozens of organizations and prominent individuals worldwide have joined the campaign for his release, including the American Association of Jurists, the National Congress of American Indians, Amnesty International, the International Federation of Human Rights, the World Council of Churches and the European Parliament. Others at the press conference included Justin Mazzola for Amnesty International; John Dulles, former regional director of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights; former American Indian Movement members Jean Roach and Norman Patrick Brown; and Cynthia Dunne, one of Peltiers lawyers. At a lot of construction sites, you put your name on your hard hat, noted Chauncey Peltier, who is a union construction worker in Oregon. Co-workers and supervisors have asked if hes Leonards son. Some tell me, Ive read both sides and your father got a bad deal, he should be free. Free Leonard Peltier, said Gabrielle Tayac, of the Piscataway Nation, welcoming hundreds of participants to a Standing Rock and Beyond rally and march Dec. 10. Chauncey Peltier was a featured speaker. In his petition for executive clemency and/or commutation of sentence sent to Obama in February, Leonard Peltier noted that the goal of the American Indian Movement at the time of his arrest was to protest the Bureau of Indian Affairs funding cuts for already failing native schools, inadequate health care; the mining and takings of sacred lands; continuing violations of Treaties by the U.S. government; and many other avoidable injustices facing Natives across the country. In 1973, Peltier says, the Oglala Sioux Civil Rights Organization was formed to challenge the corrupt leadership of the then-tribal-chairman Dick Wilson. Wilson banned AIM members from speaking at tribal meetings and planned to give tribal lands to the National Park Service. With the aid of the FBI, Wilson formed a thug group, the Guardians of the Oglala National, known by its acronym GOONS, to harass and beat opponents of his rule in collaboration with Washington. AIM organized a 71-day occupation of Wounded Knee on the reservation in 1973 that ended with 100 participants arrested, AIM members dead, and 12 missing following attacks by federal agents and GOONS. Many AIM activists, including Peltier, set up camp on the reservation to protect residents from Wilson, his GOONS and their FBI allies. Its against this background that a June 26, 1975, shootout took place in Oglala. Peltier was falsely accused of killing two plainclothes FBI agents, Jack Coler and Ronald Williams. AIM activist Joe Stuntz was also killed. Peltier was given two life-sentences, even though the government admitted after the trial there is no physical evidence linking Peltier to the deaths. A federal appeals court ruled he was not entitled to a new trial because new information made it possible but not probable he would have been acquitted. Speakers at the U.S. Prisons: Conditions of Confinement conference at American University law school included Robert King, of the Angola 3, who spent 31 years in jail at Louisiana state prison; Pooja Gehi, executive director of the National Lawyers Guild; Jamelia Morgan, American Civil Liberties Union National Prison Project; Lenny Foster, Navajo Nation Corrections Project; Nick Estes, Red Nation; Jasmine Heiss, International Leonard Peltier Defense Committee; and Daniel McGowan, who spent several years in prison in the notorious Communication Management Units in Terre Haute, Indiana, and Marion, Illinois. Like many in the aging U.S. prison population, Peltier has serious health problems, Heiss said. Authorities have often put obstacles to his getting needed medical treatment. Right now he is suffering from a dangerous aneurism that prison authorities are delaying care for. Despite his age and medical problems, Peltier is being held in a maximum security prison in Coleman, Florida. This makes it difficult for his family in North Dakota to visit. We cant fall victim to pessimism, said Nick Estes of the Red Nation. Lets celebrate the victory at Standing Rock and move forward. To get involved, visit: www.whoisleonardpeltier.info. Write President Barack Obama to demand he grant clemency, at the White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20500. And write to Leonard Peltier, #89637-123, USP Coleman I, P.O. Box 1033, Coleman, FL 33521. Related articles: Support grows for fight to reverse censorship of Militant at Attica Greetings to workers behind bars Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home (front page) First Declaration of Havana: No to exploitation, no to imperialism! Granma/Rogelio Arias [T]he National General Assembly of the Cuban People: Condemns the backward, inhuman landed-estate system of agricultural production, a source of misery and poverty for the rural population. It condemns starvation wages and the grossly unjust exploitation of human labor by illegitimate and privileged interests. It condemns illiteracy, the lack of teachers, schools, doctors, hospitals, and care for the elderly that prevails in Latin America. It condemns the discrimination against Blacks and Indians. It condemns the inequality and exploitation of women. It condemns the military and political oligarchies that keep our peoples in utter misery and hinder the development toward democracy and the full exercise of their sovereignty. It condemns the handing over of our countries natural resources to the foreign monopolies as a policy of concessions that surrenders and betrays the interests of the peoples. It condemns the governments that ignore the sentiments of their people in order to obey Washingtons dictates. It condemns the systematic deception of the people by the news media in the interests of the oligarchies and the imperialist oppressor. It condemns the monopoly of the news media by Yankee agencies, instruments of the U.S. trusts and agents of Washington. It condemns repressive laws that prevent workers, peasants, students, and intellectuals the great majority of each country from organizing to fight for their social demands and patriotic aspirations. It condemns the imperialist monopolies and companies that constantly plunder our wealth, exploit our workers and peasants, bleed our economies and keep them in backwardness, and force Latin America, in matters of policy, to submit to their designs and interests. In short, the National General Assembly of the Cuban People condemns the exploitation of man by man, and the exploitation of the underdeveloped countries by imperialist finance capital. Therefore, the National General Assembly of the Cuban People proclaims before the Americas: The right of peasants to the land; the right of workers to the fruit of their labor; the right of children to education; the right of the sick to medical and hospital care; the right of the young to a job; the right of students to free education that is both practical and scientific; the right of Blacks and Indians to full human dignity; the right of women to civil, social, and political equality; the right of the elderly to a secure old age; the right of intellectuals, artists, and scientists to use their work to fight for a better world; the right of states to nationalize the imperialist monopolies, thereby recovering their national wealth and resources; the right of countries to engage freely in trade with all the peoples of the world; the right of nations to their full sovereignty; the right of the peoples to turn garrisons into schools, and to arm their workers, peasants, students, intellectuals, Blacks, Indians, women, young people, old people, and all the oppressed and exploited, so they themselves may defend their rights and their destiny. Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home (front page) Support grows for fight to reverse censorship of Militant at Attica More than one month after theappealed the impoundment of its Oct. 3 issue by Attica prison authorities, the New York State Department of Corrections has still not responded. Attica officials banned a second issue, the Oct. 31, claiming that allowing an article reporting on the appeal to get into the prison could incite disobedience. The Militant subscriber, Jalil Muntaqim (formerly Anthony Bottom), has faced other arbitrary acts of censorship and violation of his constitutional rights by Attica prison authorities. Last year Attica officials banned four books sent to him, including one of poems that he wrote, and have been interfering with his mail. The Militant article officials banned consists of objectively true statements of fact, wrote David Goldstein, the Militants attorney, of the prominent civil liberties law firm Rabinowitz, Boudin, Standard, Krinsky & Lieberman in appeal of the latest censorship. It is difficult to conclude that the censoring of this brief article is anything other than a blanket ban on any mention of Attica, of the Attica uprising, or of prisoners constitutional rights, unless parroting a viewpoint approved by prison officials, Goldstein wrote. However, prison authorities, including at Attica, have no license either to single out The Militant for censorship or to ban reporting on censorship at Attica. Nothing in the article could rationally be construed to advocate acts of disobedience, Goldstein wrote. Whether prison officials agree with what is in the pages of this or any other publication, the men inside of Attica remain citizens of the United States with rights under our constitution, wrote Dr. Heather Ann Thompson in a statement of support sent to the Militant Dec. 4. These men have a right to read and to think for themselves and there is nothing on the pages of The Militant that poses a direct or immediate threat to the safety of any prison official or employee inside of Attica. Thompson, a history professor at the University of Michigan, is the author of Blood in the Water: The Attica Prison Uprising of 1971 and Its Legacy. The book highlights both the humanity of the prisoners who rebelled against atrocious conditions, and the abuse, torture and violence used by police and guards after they regained control of the prison. Her book was reviewed by dozens of papers leading up to the 45th anniversary of the uprising Sept. 9. The Oct. 3 issue of the Militant featured a front-page article on the rebellion. The American Friends Service Committee has also spoken out against Atticas censorship of the Militant. The need for security should not be exercised in a way that unjustly and unreasonably limits the access to information for those incarcerated, wrote Lewis Webb Jr. Dec. 2. He is director of the AFSC Healing Justice Program. The Militant is great for men and women behind bars to read, wrote Antonia Brooks, a spokesperson for Mothers and Families of prisoners in Alabama, in a statement calling on New York state authorities to lift censorship of the paper. Muntaqim a former member of the Black Panther Party, Black Liberation Army and a founder of the Jericho Movement, which backs the fight for amnesty for political prisoners in the U.S. was put in solitary confinement on Dec. 6. According to a report at www.freejalil.com, officials apparently objected to his mentioning the Black Panther Party as part of the Black history course he teaches to dozens of fellow inmates. He has been in jail since he was 19 years old, accused of killing two police officers in 1971. Muntaqim has repeatedly been denied parole. His supporters are calling on Gov. Andrew Cuomo to commute his sentence. Attica and the Department of Corrections are acting as if they are above the law, said Militant editor John Studer. Those joining the fight against censorship of the Militant are defending freedom of the press and free speech. Statements of support are needed to keep up the pressure until Attica authorities reverse this decision and allow subscribers to read the paper. See box below for list of supporters and how you can help. Victory in Standing Rock boosts Peltier fight Paddy flour price hiked to Rs2,100 per quintal State-owned Nepal Food Corporation (NFC) has raised the flour price for paddy as farmers have shown no interest in selling their harvests at the rate fixed by the government. (feature article, from the pages of The Clintons Anti-Working-Class Record) Washingtons unending wars, from Iraq to Yugoslavia BY JACK BARNES During the days prior to Clintons inauguration in January 1993, the outgoing Republican Bush administration rained down bombs on Iraq, as it had continued doing over the nearly two years since the cease-fire in the 1991 US-led Gulf War. The new Democratic administration followed suit the very next week. In fact, Iraqi civilians have been killed in intermittent US raids month in and month out since the 1991 war, and more have been wounded, many mutilated for life. Washingtons military campaign against the Iraqi people should remind us of something in Cuban General Jose Ramon Fernandezs testimony in July 1999 before the Provincial Peoples Court of the City of Havana. The court was hearing a lawsuit filed by eight Cuban organizations to demand that the US government pay damages for the thousands of deaths and billions of dollars in physical destruction caused by Washingtons decades-long efforts to overthrow the Cuban Revolution by force and violence. The Cuban general reported that during the April 1961 US government-organized mercenary invasion of Cuba at the Bay of Pigs, Washington supplied the mercenaries with napalm, which they used against Cuban working people in the militia, armed forces, and police defending Cubas sovereignty and territorial integrity, its socialist revolution. The one thousand five hundred invaders were defeated in fewer than seventy-two hours of combat during what Cubans call the battle of Playa Giron. The Clinton administration also led the efforts of the US and European imperialist rulers to restore capitalist social relations in Russia and other former republics of the Soviet Union, as well as across Eastern and Central Europe. These were the heydays of Washingtons so-called shock therapy privatization in these countries, with shattering effects on the lives of millions of workers and farmers and the sudden enrichment of a privileged handful (including some Harvard professors and other US economic advisers, investors, and entrepreneurs, who ended up as wealthy as the thieves they are). Washington presided over the systematic destruction of the Yugoslav Revolutions conquest of national unification by breaking up that country along centuries-old national and religious divisions. In 199495 and again in 1999, the US rulers and their NATO partners employed cruise missiles and aerial bombardment from afar against working people in Serbia, Bosnia, Kosova, and elsewhere in the former Yugoslavia. In the process, Washington reinforced US imperialisms postWorld War II position as the dominant European military power. Under Clinton the expansion of NATO extended the reach of US imperialisms armed might closer and closer to the borders of Russia, bringing in three former Warsaw Pact countries: the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland. During the 2000 presidential campaign both Bush and his Democratic opponent Albert Gore advocated further expansion, with the next countries in line the former Soviet Baltic republics, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia (all of them militarily annexed under Stalins direction in 1940) bringing imperialist US military pressure ever nearer Russias main urban centers. The Clinton White House has already initiated plans for an Alaska-based anti-ballistic missile (ABM) system that will serve as the starting point for more extensive ground- and submarine-based missiles by the new Bush administration. The aim, with bipartisan backing in Congress, is to leverage US military might to increase the US rulers political dominance vis-a-vis other powers in Europe that have developed nuclear arsenals: not only Paris and London, but Moscow first and foremost. More immediately, a US anti-ballistic missile system will target China and North Korea, two countries in Asia where the imperialist yoke was thrown off half a century ago. Washington already has hundreds of nuclear-tipped missiles targeted on these two countries. In the process, the US rulers are slowly but surely drawing Tokyo into the world of nuclear weapons and delivery systems. In addition, the US rulers seek to instill terror into the government of any semicolonial country Iraq, Iran, India, Pakistan that has built missile-based defenses that could be used against future imperialist aggression. Related articles: Moscow, Assad brutalize Syria rebels, Ankara targets Kurds NATO expansion, US missiles aimed at Russia Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home The day after the Brexit referendum, British writer Bim Adewunmi wrote a beautiful piece in Buzzfeed about her pain, her frustration, and her fear. It took in the scope of British history Am I being dramatic? This feels like a dramatic moment and her upbringing in East London; the child of Nigerian immigrants, Adewunmi wrote that the result confirmed things she had long suspected about her home country. The line that stuck with me, that day and all the other days of 2016 that followed, was, Can you be unsurprised but still quite shocked at the same time? Shocked but not surprised. This is the 2016 that Ive struggled to reconcile with. In my reading life, it wasnt a year of discovery; it was a long, protracted struggle to find clarity in things I knew or things I thought I knew. As an American recently booted out of England by the Home Office, the consecutive earthquakes of Brexit and Donald Trump are invariably my two pillars of this garbage fire of a year. But even the smaller points in my life needed reorientation. Sometimes books show me new worlds; this year, I needed books to expose parts of the worlds I already knew. It started with Mr. Splitfoot by Samantha Hunt, which I finished in the earliest, bleakest days of the year. I am from a place that gets extra bleak in January, and Hunts novel is set near my hometown, across the broad stretch of New York state from Albany to Buffalo. Mr. Splitfoot, partly about a foster child raised in an abusive, fundamentalist family, is exquisite, both literally and physically haunting, and it tapped into my long-held fascination with the burned-over district, that broad stretch of central and western New York that saw wave after wave of religious fervor in the 19th century. As I read it, I thought about those endless drives to see my family in Buffalo growing up, vast stretches of flat brown land, ripe for true belief. In the spring, I read Hanya Yanagiharas A Little Life, a book that was incredibly meaningful to me, but one I know has been fairly controversial in the past few years, so I wont discuss it at length here. (Im a bit gun-shy after last years YiR, when I dove into a list of books I loved and a man asked why I hadnt read any Thomas Hardy.) If youve read it, youll be unsurprised to know it left me regularly weeping on the R train luckily the best possible train for weeping. I was knocked off my axis, but I found my bearings again not in any published novels, but in fanfiction, my oldest and most well-documented love. I havent read much fic the past few years, despite building a career writing about it, but I fell back in over the final weeks of 2015, and this big, complicated, highly emotional book pushed me deeper into fanfiction, a realm where emotionality affect, scholars call it is king. Ive long held a rule that I wont recommend fic in the context of being a literary critic one could argue it violates the contract between largely amateur writers and the assumed audience but thats a shame, because I read stories this year, many of them novel-length, that were as good as anything I encountered that was traditionally published. (I said something similar in a previous YiR, but Im doubling down, because some of the stuff I found this year was extraordinary.) If youre curious, theres my fanfiction newsletter, co-authored with Gavia Baker-Whitelaw. It was born in January 2016, and it remains one of the small and steady joys of the year. I spent the first few months of the year listening to various David Bowie albums on repeat, a response to his death that was part maudlin, part joyful, part when I start listening to a certain album I just play it over and over again for longer than is probably healthy. If everyone had a celebrity death that hit them hardest this year, this was mine. Even within the legions of Bowie-ites, the stuff people wallowed in served as an interesting Rorschach to see where or how they came to David Bowie, or which of his many personas spoke to them. I lingered with Ziggy, and in the final days of spring, I purchased a pair of books to try to get a little context. The first was the one I intended to buy after a bit of research, The Man Who Sold the World by Peter Doggett. The second was the one I stumbled upon, Ziggyology: A Brief History of Ziggy Stardust by Simon Goddard. The former was grounding, but the latter shot me off into the stars. But in late June, earthquake number one. I havent written much about Brexit, even though as someone who was stymied by Britains increasingly hostile immigration policies and as someone who spent college studying British imperial history I, unsurprisingly, have fairly strong feelings about what went down. (Though its always worth mentioning that while I was a foreigner living in the United Kingdom, I was a white, well-educated American; I didnt face the discrimination most foreigners battle in the country.) To process the results, I found comfort in looking backwards rather than trying to wrap my head around an extraordinarily uncertain future. I spent the summer steadily working my way through When the Lights Went Out: Britain in the Seventies by Andy Beckett, and I watched Britain join the EEC and all the conflict that surrounded the move to try to understand its departure. In August I got a concussion; all reading was put on hold save slogging through Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, which I had somestrong feelings about. But by September, it was impossible to think about anything other than November 8th. I envied friends who could compartmentalize, who werent consumed by the uncertainty hanging over us. I campaigned for Hillary Clinton within my own sphere reaching out to millennials in fannish spaces, trying to push past the apathy and disillusionment. (Yeah, Ive seen the numbers, definitely feels like we failed on this front.) And in the final days before the election, I picked up Chimamanda Ngozi Adichies Americanah, one of a long list of extraordinary books I really should have read by now. I read it on the train on my way to the Javits Center on election day, where I would wait with a few friends for hours, amongst a vast, diverse crowd of nervous but hopeful people. And then. I am still envious of those compartmentalizing friends, of the people who take comfort in fictional worlds during times of strife. Books have never helped to distract me; in the darkest moments of my life, they are absent. The trouble with using reading to help focus on the things were seeing around us is we have to keep looking, eyes wide open, and its a brutal task as every day unveils fresh horrors. In the weeks after the election, multiple people in my feed were posting passages of Hannah Arendt, so I looked back to a little cluster of books on the very top shelf in my apartment, stuff from school I thought I might revisit some day. My freshman year of college, I took a very liberal artsy course called Evil, which straddled philosophy and political science. We spent about a week talking about how the image of the devil changed over the centuries, and I remember I did my final paper on the dearth of female serial killers, but the bulk of the course was about the Second World War not about the Nazis, but about the German people. Up on my top shelf, I realized Id kept most of the syllabus. Friedrich Nietzsche, W.G. Sebald, Arendt. Im desperate to understand, as I have been all year. That desperation is obviously about control, feeling like youve lost something that, in all honesty, you probably never even had. Im trying to keep a hold on a world that feels like its made up of a mass of delicate threads, this close to snapping. So thats me, reading Eichmann in Jerusalem on the subway in the days following the election of Donald Trump. In the dark corners of the R train, Im not weeping anymore. People look up at my book and do a double-take. It feels hyperbolic, but like, maybe not? And also, it helps. More from A Year in Reading 2016 Do you love Year in Reading and the amazing books and arts content that The Millions produces year round? We are asking readers for support to ensure that The Millions can stay vibrant for years to come. Please click here to learn about several simple ways you can support The Millions now. Dont miss: A Year in Reading 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005 Students from under-privileged backgrounds earn almost 10% less than the most advantaged, six months after graduating in the same subject, research shows. A study by Deloitte said the highest gap in pay was 15% for law graduates and over 13% for those who took degrees in computer science and social studies. The business advisory firm said the least advantaged students could earn slightly more in professions such as medicine and dentistry. (David Cheskin/PA) David Sproul, Deloittes chief executive, said: The research shows that the least advantaged graduates face considerable barriers to employment after graduation, even if they perform as well as their most advantaged peers. Improving social mobility is one of the UKs biggest challenges and its urgency has been brought into sharper focus by events this year. It is important that businesses, higher education leaders and the Government work together to get this right. Failing to do so limits the talent pool from which companies can recruit and reinforces a perception that the rewards of economic prosperity are reserved for a privileged few. PM Dahal defends his property details, says owns nothing except disclosed Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal said he doesn't own anything except those submitted in his property details. Though we received a dizzying, Victorian Christmas special last year, fans have still be waiting in agony for the story to properly pick up from where it left off in the series three finale. Thankfully, the wait is nearly over, as the start of 2017 brings with it the first of three 90-minute episodes that make up series four. In anticipation of this new chapter of Holmes and Watsons' adventures, we've compiled everything you need to know about the upcoming series, from the titles to airdates and details about John and Mary's newborn child.As is the Sherlockian tradition, this latest series will consist of three 90-minute episodes, written this year exclusively by Moffat and Gatiss (gulp). The first episode, which will start the New Year right at 9pm on Sunday 1st January, is entitled. Directed by Rachel Talalay and written by Gatiss, the title is loosely based on Conan Doyle's short story, The Six Napoleons. In the original tale, plaster busts of the French military leader are smashed in search of a hidden pearl. Heavily featuring Lestrade, this episode will hopefully open the series with some breezy humour before subsequent episodes take a darker turn.The second episode, which airs on Sunday 8th January, is entitledand is likely to be a take on The Adventures of the Dying Detective.Directed by Sherlock regular Nick Hurran and written by Moffat, this episode will also see the debut of Toby Jones' repulsive new villain, Culverton Smith, who has been described by Moffat as the "darkest villain" the series has ever had - which after the likes of Moriarty and Charles Augustus Magnussen is really saying something. In the original tale, Culverton uses his knowledge of deadly tropical illnesses to try and murder Sherlock. To catch him in the act, Sherlock pretends that he really is infected and slowly dying from disease, refusing to allow Watson to help him. The series finale, which will be broadcast on television and in cinemas on Sunday 15th January, is ominously titled '. Directed by Ben Caron and written by both Moffat and Gatiss, very little has been revealed about this episode. At the end of series three, we were given a cliffhanger regarding the possibility that Moriarty could still be alive. The Doyle story of the same name was already adapted in the Series 2 finale, 'The Reichenbach Fall' in which Sherlock and Moriarty came to blows for (supposedly) the final time. If Moriarty is alive (and let's face it, anything is possible in a show where miraculous theories come and go with ease), then might he appear here? Even if he doesn't, it's very likely this episode will be just as tense and heart-wrenching as previous series finales.In series three, John Watson met and married Mary Morstan, a deceptively shrewd woman with a secret past. In the second episode, His Last Vow, it was revealed the Mary was pregnant. Thanks to a wonderfully British piece of subtle marketing, the name of the Watson's baby girl was recently revealed in The Daily Telegraph's births column.According to to the excerpt, the baby is called Rosamund "Rosie" Mary Watson. The announcement was amusingly signed off by "Mrs Hudson, Molly and Sherlock, although he hasn't helped us with this at all because he's always on his phone." The addition of family ties might not end there though, as it has been widely speculated that the series three finale will also see the appearance of a third Holmes brother. Gatiss and Moffat have only added fuel to the fire with a number of cryptic clues over the year, as well as the off-hand comment that Mycroft made in the last series: "I'm not given to outbursts of brotherly compassion. You know what happened with the other one." At this year's San Diego Comic Con, the three clues regarding the new series were "Thatcher, Smith and Sherrinford." Sherrinford Holmes is the hypothetical brother of Sherlock and Mycroft, who if a very cryptic tweet by Gatiss is to be believed, could be played by Tom Hiddleston. We live in hope.To put it simply: Who knows? The cast and writers have all been rather shrewd about the show's future, stating that they "never say never" but also "to wait and see". Due to the show's mammoth success, all the key players have gone on to be very successful (and therefore also very busy) in other ventures. But whether this season will mark the end of the series is currently anyone's guess. Unfortunately, The Content Is Not Here You have arrived at this page because the page or post you were looking for no longer exists. Please check our main navigation pages for other content: Home Page Polish protesters block parliament over press freedom Protesters have blockaded the Polish parliament in Warsaw in support of opposition MPs unhappy about rules restricting press reporting. Syria Aleppo: Thousands wait as exodus from city halts The evacuation of east Aleppo has been halted, with reports of shooting and rebels accused of failing to respect a deal to lift sieges of their own. Phukets urgent question: Does the island need more public toilets? PHUKET: The state of public toilets in Thailand has gained a reputation around the world as something to take into consideration when visiting the Kingdom, and Phuket is no exception. Public toilets are few and far between, even in popular tourist areas on the island, and the state of the ones that do exist is less then ideal. tourismhealth By The Phuket News Saturday 17 December 2016, 09:00AM Phuket has plenty of beautiful beaches and plenty of tourists to enjoy them, but where are the clean public toilets? Photo: Tanyaluk Sakoot As any parent knows, a toddler uttering the simple words Mummy, I have to go to the toilet can spark a frantic hunt for the nearest hygienic point of disposal, and if none can be found quickly enough urgency may mean the nearest bush to hide behind may be the only polite solution. Even if local residents know where to look, or who to ask, to find the nearest toilet, tourists may not be so savvy especially without the language skills or an understanding that in Thailand it may be as simple as asking the nearest store owner. The incredibly popular Flush Toilet Finder app (on iTunes and Google Play) has 200,000 public toilets in its database and one tap delivers directions via Google Maps, but trying using that in Thailand. Australia even has a National Public Toilet Map online (click here), but visitors to Phuket would be hard stretched to find any equivalent here. To this, The Phuket News asks readers: Does Phuket have enough public toilets? Responses available are: Yes - Phuket already has plenty of public toilets to use Yes - Phuket already has plenty of public toilets to use, but most are not clean No - Most of Phukets so-called public toilets are actually private, in hotels, shopping malls, restaurants or operated privately No - Phuket needs to have more public toilets, especially in tourist areas. Period. The poll will close at midnight on Dec 31, just in time for the New Year. If your preferred response is not available, feel free to express your opinion in the comments section below. To see the results of our previous poll, which asked, Do you support Gov Chockchais plan to clear Phukets beaches of all vendors? click here. If you have a suggestion for a poll, email execeditor@classactmedia.co.th with Poll suggestion in the Subject line. Sergey Nesterenko Jr, A chip off the old block Whenever you read about a new general manager taking over a hotel in Phuket, its common to see a paragraph stating that the newly appointed GM graduated from some hospitality school and later joined this or that company. By Anton Makhrov Saturday 17 December 2016, 12:00PM Sergey Nesterenko Jr has just finished six months of his on-the-job training as a Food & Beverage Management Trainee at the Novotel Phuket Karon Beach Resort and Spa. The further biography can have plenty of information, but the often grueling initial steps of their entry into the industry are usually skimmed over with just a few words. To fill this gap in knowledge, The Phuket News sat down with Sergey Nesterenko Jr, who has just finished six months of his on-the-job training as a Food & Beverage Management Trainee at the Novotel Phuket Karon Beach Resort and Spa. The Nesterenko name might ring a bell with quite a few Phuket expats. Sergeys father, Sergey A. Nesterenko, is the man behind Vista del Mar and several other projects here on the island. Sergey Jr says that was these examples from his father that inspired him to choose his path and go into the service sphere. Hes always been a very hospitality oriented man, very gentle, nice to talk to, a man in a fine suit who helps you to achieve success. An entrepreneur, Sergey Jr recalls. Another point, he singles out, was his own passion for the culinary arts. I loved to cook from an early age but never believed this trade could bring a good income. Only some really talented chefs get to that high level, he says. Yielding to pragmatism, Sergey Jr earned his bachelors degree in economics and management, and only after that, came back to his initial idea and suggested to his father to co-invest in a restaurant. My father said he would think about it, but in time, decided to invest this money in his sons education learning from a school first, rather than from my own inevitable mistakes, he says. The choice fell on Les Roches, one of the worlds highest-ranked international hospitality schools located in the Swiss Alpine village of Bluche. Sergey Jr explains that the school has both postgraduate and undergraduate Hospitality Management programs but that the educational process is more or less the same. The programs comprise theoretical and craft-based classes, live practice at the schools venues and internships at world-leading hotels. When asked about what it takes to make a top student, Sergey Jr puts soft skills on top of the list of priorities. Plus a natural service mind, he adds. Language skills are also essential and open-mindedness is also crucial as well as being ready to work hard, he adds. Learning hospitality skills pre-supposes starting from zero: washing dishes in a restaurant kitchen, serving food, doing the very basic jobs at the front desk. There is also much to learn with cleaning science and stewarding, executive housekeeping and banquet operations these are things that cannot be learned from books only. For undergraduates from well-off families to do something with their own hands can be challenging, Sergey Jr warns, adding that studies also include more pleasant things such as visiting Michelin restaurants or exploring the world of fine wines. But even these things are first and foremost an investment in a long-lasting future career. You have to go through these hard times, Sergey says, adding that it will be even harder later. For this later stage he chose the 224-room Novotel Phuket Karon Beach Resort and Spa which he joined as an F&B Management Trainee earlier this year. Sergey explains that he wanted to join a big hotel which would be different from his experience at Vista del Mar. Still, he picked Phuket, with more personal connections and a chance to work closely with top management. It turned out to be a reasonable assumption for instance Sergey managed to contribute into the creation of the a la carte buffet concept along with other managerial tasks. But it all started with manual work at the hotels breakfast service. So it takes a degree in economics and postgraduate diploma from Les Roches just in order to wash dishes in Phuket? I ask him straight out. Not exactly. To carry plates, he answers with a smile and in a habitual way adjusts the position of cutlery in front of him and moves a glass to where it should be according to hotel standards. Its essential. You wont find a good chef who hasnt been a dishwasher, or a restaurant manager who hasnt carried plates, Sergey explains. To those thinking about a career in hospitality Sergey recommends asking themselves twice whether they really want this (and what specifically) and whether they are ready to work really hard and almost all-around-the-clock. Just to make it clear. A hotel breakfast means 400 guests and six staff, he says citing his Novotel experience. And it looks like hotel guests were happy with Sergeys service and expressed their gratitude on Facebook and in personal letters to the hotel management. Finally, Sergeys passion and involvement brought him a special award from the hotel, for providing an excellent guest experience, and eventually job offers from Bangkok, Moscow and Singapore. Though his immediate plan is to enjoy his well-deserved New Years vacation. Some of Phukets most talented young performers took to the stage at Boat Lagoon The Youth Talent Competition 2016 took place on December 4 at Boat Lagoons Whitehouse Marquee. Forty contestants aged between eight and 18 competed in three categories to see who would take home their share of the fantastic prizes on offer. By The Phuket News Saturday 17 December 2016, 11:00AM Chanon Cserepy gets his first place prizes from Michael McCormick. In each category, contestants that came first won B5,000 in cash, studio recording and video production, and Rockschool UK vouchers. The second placed contestants won B3,000 in cash and studio recording time, whilst the third placed contestants won B2,000 in cash. Exceptional Performance and Most Promising Performance awards were given to an additional five contestants. After three and a half hours of fierce competition, while the scores were tallied and the judges had final debates, the crowd was kept entertained by a host of special performances. These included vocal performances by adult choir Phuket Aloud, the PAPA Senior Vocal Group and individual performances by four of the Phuket Academy of Performing Arts youngest students, who stole the hearts of all in attendance. The independent judging panel for the event was made up of Michael McCormick (Rockschool UK), Colin Hill (Colin Illy Hill Band, and music teacher), Gig Suwannurak (Thailands Got Talent finalist) and George Cordeiro (American touring musician and music teacher). The results for the competition were: Junior Vocals for 8 to 12 years old 1st Place: Sasha Simkalova [Teacher: Ekaterina Tereschenko, Wow Voice School] 2nd Place: Dasha Gorodtsova 3rd Place: Vitalina Oshchepkova With an Exceptional Performance award going to Tamino Lockenberg and Most Promising Performance Awards in this category going to Bonnie Desmond and Olivia Pulaski. Instrumentalists 1st Place: Canon Cserepy 2nd Place: India Wilson Senior Vocals for 13 to 18 years old 1st place: Kusum Basnet 2nd Place: Andrea Hosking 3rd Place: Julianna Mester With an Exceptional Performance award going to Morgane Mahler and a Most Promising Performer award handed to Lilyjane Mauraux Galle. The invited special performers were 5-year-old Morgan Chettou singing I love Rock n Roll, 6-year-old Alia Mackay singing Hideaway, 7-year-old Bella Yongsakul singing Count on Me and 8-year-old Celia de la Baume playing Piano. All of the cash prizes were sponsored by UWC Thailand. Music and video production prizes were sponsored by Legend Music Recording Studio. Rockschool UK sponsored exam vouchers for the winners. Boat Lagoon sponsored the venue and sound. Class Act Media were the events official media partner. Additional prizes were sponsored by the Phuket Academy of Performing Arts and Skylas Surf and SUP Club. Thais revere many mythical beings that were first described in ancient holy texts If youve spent any time in Thailand, or even just visited on holiday, youve certainly come across representations of mythical creatures in Thai temples and other religious sites. By Sirinya Pakditawan Saturday 17 December 2016, 02:00PM These beings are said to reside in the Himaphan Forest on the slopes of the mythical Mount Meru, which is considered to be the centre of the Buddhist and Hindu cosmos. The forest, and the creatures that dwell there, are described in the sacred Thai Buddhist text the Ramakien, which itself is derived from the ancient Hindu text the Ramayana. There are dozens of these mythical creatures that reside in the forest and some of the most commonly depicted in Thai art and architecture include the mythical snake, the mythical lion, crocodiles and swans. Many of these creatures share features from several different real animals and sometimes have human features as well. There are far too many to list here, but lets take a look at some of the more common ones. Naga is a semi-divine serpent who is associated with water and is often enlisted as a guardian for temples. As a being of the water and the underworld, Naga is often used as a decoration on barge boards, eave brackets, windows, doors, gates and arches. Legend says that Naga can also transform into a human being. In addition to this, Naga can control the rain and thus affect the prosperity of a regions crops and livelihood. It also guards the hidden wealth of the earth and is a protector of Buddhism. On balustrades, Naga is often combined with the Makara, which is a crocodile-like being. It is interesting to note that the open mouth of the Makara often disgorges an angry Naga. The head of the Makara frequently resembles an elephant trunk, while the neck is encircled by three ruffs. In addition to Naga and Makara, there is another similar creature called Mom which is a mighty aquatic creature with scales and four legs, whose representations can be occasionally spotted at the entrance of temples in Northern Thailand. Another common guardian is the mythical lion, referred to as Singh or Singha. These lion figures usually comes in pairs and are place at the entrance to a temples, large buildings, or even houses. Representation of Singha owe a lot to its Chinese cousin, in the popular Chinese style, two lions are placed in front of a building to guard its entry the female on the left side with her cub and the male lion on the right with a ball under his paw. The Khochasi is a composite of a lion with an elephants trunk, ears and tusks. It guards sacred places, and in particular, portals in the North of Thailand. Another elephant being is Erawan, known as the elephant of the clouds the three headed elephant Erawan is also the mount of the Hindu God Indra. Hong (or Hamsa) is a celestial swan with a long and graceful neck, an extended beak, wings, and a gorgeous flowing tail. Many Thais believe that when the lotus-leaf clapper of the bell (which is often held on a long string from its beak) is moved by the breeze, prayers are lifted to heaven. The celestial swan often occurs on the roof ridges of temples but can also be seen adorning more mundane things like street lamps. The mythical hybrid creature the Kinnari (female) or Kinnara (male), whose top half is a celestial human-like dancer and bottom half a celestial swan (Hong) is also quite common to see in temples. They occur widely in architectural decoration and mural paintings. The female Kinnari symbolises feminine beauty, grace and cultural accomplishment in singing and dancing. The Thai Yai bird-dance between the Kinnari and Kinnara is also often depicted. Finally, the Garuda a mythical bird-man hybrid who serves as a national symbol of Thailand and is often depicted on government buildings and logos. Garuda is the fearsome king of the birds and the natural enemy of Naga. It has a human body, but the wings, legs and beak of a bird. It is also the vehicle of the Hindu God Vishnu. So to sum up, we can say that Thai mythical creatures show how intricately the strands of Buddhism, Hinduism and animism are intertwined within Thai culture and tradition. There are many more which we have not discussed here, so I suggest you do some research online to discover more and learn about their symbolic meanings. What is more, mythical beings are also a popular subject in classical Thai art and painting. A popularity that continues to the present day. For instance, well-know Thai Artist Chakrabhand Posayakrit has created amazing pictures of the Kinnari and other artists are still regularly inventing more of these hybrid creature to depict in their art. Sirinya Pakditawan is a luk kreung, or half-Thai, born and raised in Hamburg, Germany. She enjoys writing about Thailand, with a focus on culture, art, history, tradition and on the people, as well as a mix of topics concerning Thai popular culture, travelogues and articles about Thai food. Sirinyas aim is not only to entertain you but to provide you with information and facts about Thailand, its culture and history that may not be generally known, in particular to the Western world. She has a PhD in American Studies from the University of Hamburg. To read the original story, and many more, be sure to check out Sirinyas blog: www.sirinyas thailand.de Three Israelis hurt in Chiang Mai zipline fall CHIANG MAI: Three Israeli tourists, including a seven-year-old boy, were injured after they collided and fell from a zipline ride in Mae On district on Friday. By Bangkok Post Saturday 17 December 2016, 04:25PM A tourist rides a zipline at the Flying Squirrels adventure site in Chiang Mai on Sept 22, 2015. Photo: Karnjana Ayuwatanachai Authorities on Saturday ordered the suspension of the ride operated by Flight of the Gibbon Co in Mae Kampong village in tambon Hua Kaew following the incident. The two adults and a boy were gliding along the zipline when they rammed into the back of one another, said Mae On district chief Pattraporn Laijud. The impact caused them to fall to the ground and they were rushed to Chiang Mai Ram Hospital. The injured were identified as Ms Orit Rov, 40, Mr Sahar Meir, 42, and Liam Boborow, 7. All were Israeli nationals visiting the adventure park with their families. The two adults are being treated at the hospital, with Ms Orit in intensive care.The boy was treated for shoulder injuries and discharged. Pol Maj Gen Pitthaya Sirirak, acting deputy chief of Provincial Police Region 5, led an investigation at the scene on Saturday, after which the ride was ordered closed. Founded in 2007, Flight of the Gibbon bills itself as having "the longest, highest and fastest ziplines in the world". It operates facilities in Chiang Mai, Chon Buri, Koh Phangan in Surat Thani, and in Siem Reap, Cambodia. A Chinese tourist fell to her death on Oct 11 last year from a zipline at Flying Squirrels, another tourist venue in Mae Rim district of Chiang Mai. That incident prompted a nationwide investigation of safety procedures at adventure parks. "Soft adventure" activities including rope courses, ziplines and canopy walks have become increasingly popular tourist attractions in recent years, especially in northern Thailand. Adventure parks run by foreign operators charge 3,000 to 4,000 baht a head, while Thai operators charge 1,000 to 2,000 baht. Read original story here. Talk about keeping constitution amendment bill inactive rumours: PM Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has dismissed talk about government plans to keep constitution amendment bill inactive and go for local level elections as rumours. TIA improvement project: Court rejects Spanish firms appeal against dismissal The Kathmandu District Court on Friday rejected the appeal of Spanish firm Constructora Sanjose, the contractor for the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) improvement project, seeking a prohibitory order against the termination of its contract. After 20 years as the Codington County auditor, Cindy Brugman retires Codington County Auditor Cindy Brugman will see through one more election night ballot count before passing her title down to Brenda Hanten. US ambassadors express commitment to regional connectivity enhancement US ambassadors from the Saarc region and the US deputy assistant secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs put spotlight on regional connectivity and US role in helping South Asia improve its connectivity during a two-day conference in Kolkata. LETTER: Instead of dropping 'The Ode,' find another way to honour Labrador Many writers to the Telegram have chimed in, some with vitriol, on the decision by MUN not to sing "The Ode to Newfoundland" at the recent or future graduation convocations. I am astonished, however, at the number who see no problem with changing its ... But the tribe has a long way to go Presence of Nobel laureates, an exhibition on Nobel laureates, BSE starting its international operations from the Gift City and a seminar on GST will be some of the highlights of the 8th edition of Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit that would kick start in Gandhinagar from January 10. Gujarat's chief secretary J.N. Singh said in Ahmedabad on Saturday that they were expecting presence of eight to ten Nobel laureates from the field of science. These persons would have interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is to inaugurate the four-day event. They will also have a panel discussion. On being asked if Amartya Sen was invited, Singh said that the suggestion was welcomed but this time around they had invited Nobel laureates only from the field of science. Singh oozed confidence as he said in reply to a question that demonitization would not have any impact on the investments being pledged at the Summit. He said he was hoping to see investments in newer sectors. People come for a long term, he quipped. Additional chief secretary (industries and mines) P. K. Taneja said that the focus of the summit had not remained confined to investments but had expanded to issues like ideation. The BSE starting its international operations from the Gift City, round table conference of the Global CEOs are the other highlights of the event that began in 2003 on a small scale during the tenure of Modi as Gujarat's chief minister. The organisers are expecting 25-30 CEOs from abroad and as many as from India. They said that this time top shots would attend the meet and not the second or third rung leaders of the companies. Action seminars on start ups, smart cities, biotechnology, food processing, textiles, aerospace and defence, plastics, engineering, heavy engineering and automotive will also be organised. Without getting into the amount, Taneja said that the success rate of the MoUs signed in the previous seven editions was 66.17 per cent. He also refrained from commenting on the amount to be spent on the mega scale event which, according to Singh, would be by far the most exciting and exceeding any such events being organised in the country. High drama unfolded on Saturday as former Indian Air Force chief Marshal S.P. Tyagi walked into jail after a Delhi court remanded him and two other accused to judicial custody till December 30 in the Rs 3,600 crore VVIP chopper scam. The Patiala House Court in the capital was thronged by the media and others as the developments were watched closely. Tyagi's defence faded out in front of the CBI which did not seek further remand claiming it had got sufficient evidence against the accused. The two other accused in the case are Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan. Additional sessions judge Arvind Kumar remanded all the three to judicial custody after the probe agency did not seek further police custody. The CBI has interrogated the former air chief for a week now since his arrest on December 10. The accused persons have, however, moved a bail application which is likely to be heard on December 21. Tyagi's wife, who was present in the courtroom, reportedly broke down when the court pronounced the judgment. The CBI had produced the accused before the court on Saturday after the three day police remand sought by it came to an end. The agency has accused Tyagi of entering into a conspiracy with the other accused to favour Britain-based AugustaWestland to get the chopper contract by tweaking the eligibility criteria. The CBI alleged that Tyagi received kickbacks through his relatives and middlemen. Tyagi, however, maintained that the decision to change the specifications was not taken by him alone. The former air chief, who headed the IAF between 2005-2007, said that the Prime Ministers Office (PMO) was in the loop and that the decision was taken during a meeting in 2005. In fact, it was the PMO which had roped in the air chief in 2003 to get involved in the procurement of the VVIP choppers. The deal first came under the scanner after Italian authorities claimed that the company paid bribes to swing the deal in its favour. The CBI said that it had received incriminating documents from Italy and Mauritius against Tyagi besides other evidence to establish that he had accepted illegal gratification for exercising influence through corrupt and illegal means. This is for the first time a former military chief has been arrested and sent to jail by the central probe agency, etching a black chapter in the Indian history. Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC) is planning to build Indias tallest Buddha statue in Vijayawada. The 40-feet statue is likely to be installed atop Seethamma Hill opposite Indra Keladri in the city. The statue will be a major tourist attraction in Vijayawada which leads the way to the capital city of Amaravati. The move is seen as a step towards Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu's plan to develop archeological sites in the state and build a Buddhism tourist circuit. Naidu plans to invite the Dalai Lama for the Kalachakra puja, the most sacred event of Buddhist religious calendar, which is to be held in Amaravati either in December 2017 or January 2018. The government has reportedly set aside Rs 100 crore for the development of five Buddhist shrines at Thotlakonda, Bavikonda, Sankaram, Salihundam and Bojjannakonda in Vizag and Srikakulam districts. APTDC has hired a London-based consultant, Raj Singh, for cruise tourism in the backwaters of Godavari and from Visakhapatnam to Baruva (Srikakulam). However, it has not yet appointed a consultant for preparing a Detailed Project Report (DPR) on how feasible the whole project will be. A parliamentary standing committee has picked holes in the present method of appointment of judges to higher judiciary, holding the collegium system guilty of non-adherence to the Memorandum of Procedure for appointment of judges. It also stood by the proposal of the government that the judges panel should have a dedicated secretariat that processes proposals at the initial stage. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Law and Justice, in its report on the issue of filling up vacancies in the Supreme Court and the high courts, recorded that while deposing before the committee, the Justice Secretary had stated that governors and chief ministers were sometimes not consulted by the collegium. The high court collegium, when it sends recommendations for appointment to the Chief Justice of India and to the Department of Justice, is also expected to send the names to the governor. The governor, as advised by the chief minister, forwards his or her recommendation to the Centre. The parliamentary committee noted that not consulting the governor and chief minister was not just a violation of the MoP, but it also bypassed the authorities. "Such a process only broad bases the consultation helping the selection of the appropriate candidate," the committee said, emphasising the role of executive authorities in the appointments. At a time when the judiciary is locked in a tussle with the Centre with regard to framing of a new MoP, the committee has backed the government's proposal to have a secretariat for vetting proposals for appointments to the higher judiciary. It based this on the rejection rate by the Supreme Court collegium of names that are forwarded by the high court collegiums. The rejection rate ranges from 30 per cent to 100 per cent. "In such a scenario, a dedicated secretariat may help in processing of proposals at the initial stage itself in order to avoid such large number of rejections at a later stage," the committee said, pointing out that the proposal for a secretariat has also been made in the judgment that struck down the National Judicial Appointments Commission, a law for which was passed by Parliament. The committee also said that many of the proposals of the government to bring greater transparency, objectivity and accountability were not accepted by the collegium. "After more than one year, the revised MoP is yet to be finalised due to lack of consensus on several issues between the government and the judiciary," it noted. Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi visited DMK chief Karunanidhi at Kauvery hospital in Chennai on Saturday. "I wanted to personally wish him a speedy recovery; happy to see that he is doing well. Doctors say that he (Karunanidhi) will go home very soon. Congress president has also sent her regards," Gandhi said after the meeting, ANI reported. Doctors say that he (Karunanidhi) will go home pretty soon. I said hello to him, Congress president has also sent her regards: Rahul Gandhi pic.twitter.com/q9JhiqwWsQ ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016 Congress Vice president Rahul Gandhi reaches Kauvery hospital in Chennai to meet ailing DMK Chief Karunanidhi pic.twitter.com/GHFjNQnfFk ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016 Karunanidhi, who was hospitalised on Thursday, had underwent a tracheostomy to optimise breathing. "He is stable, on antibiotics and is being treated by a team of doctors," the hospital had said in a statement. A 12-year-old boy twice attempted to launch terrorist attacks in the western German city of Ludwigshafen this month and the one before, a local prosecutor confirmed on Friday. The boy tried to target a local Christmas market on November 26 and the areas near the city hall on December 5 with explosives, but failed both times to ignite them, Xinhua news agency reported. The backpack with explosives was noticed by passengers near the city hall and reported to the police, prompting the investigation. The boy, born in Ludwigshafen with dual German and Iraqi nationality, was allegedly radicalised and could have been instigated by the Islamic State, local media reported. He is currently staying at the local youth office. He will not be charged because of his age, according to the prosecutor. Thank you for reading! Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue. Rising commodity prices and the fall of the pound sent the FTSE 100 soaring in 2016, but the gains have little to do with the state of Britains economy as the biggest came from global mining groups. Gold and diamond miner Anglo American, which owns the famous De Beers business, topped the leaderboard with a 278 per cent rise. Companies focused on the UK led the fallers, with one stockbroker saying such firms have had their card marked since the Brexit vote. Sparkling: Gold and diamond miner Anglo American, which owns the famous De Beers business, topped the leaderboard with a 278 per cent rise The blue-chip index is on course to outdo indices for firms with small market capitalisation and is close to hitting an all-time high. A late pre-Christmas rally could see it hit a record before New Years Eve. The FTSE 100 closed on Friday at 7,012, which is 12.3 per cent above its closing position on December 31, 2015. The FTSE 250 is up 2 per cent, while the FTSE SmallCap index is up 9.1 per cent. The FTSEs all-time closing high came in April 2015, when the index finished at 7,103. Some analysts say there is evidence to support the idea that stocks rise around Christmas, in a so-called Santa Rally. Lars Kreckel, global equity strategist at Legal & General Investment Management, said: After years of coming at the bottom of rankings for returns, the Footsie has had a pretty good year as the best performing major index in local currency terms in Europe. The Footsie has benefited from a resurgence in commodity prices, with miners set to take the top five spots in the leaderboard. Laith Khalaf, analyst at financial services firm Hargreaves Lansdown, said: Despite a dreadful start, 2016 has been the year of the mining giants. Anglo Americans share price has almost quadrupled since January, but much of the growth has only partially undone the damage done since 2008 when its shares were three times higher than they are today. Commodity prices have risen in 2016 on the back of improving expectations for global growth, with oil a stand-out performer due to increasing restrictions in supply. Morrisons was the only non-miner in the top six, rising 54 per cent amid signs that the retailers recovery plan under chairman Andy Higginson was starting to turn the supermarket around. Currency effects have also been important for the FTSE, whose constituents earn about 70 per cent of their revenue abroad. Where their share prices are in sterling, they have risen markedly as a result of profit being higher in pounds. Digging deep: Despite the recent downturn in gold prices, shares of companies that mine the precious metal have gone up recently The worst performers in the blue-chip index have been those exposed to the British economy, amid expectations that domestic growth will be hit by the vote to leave the European Union. Shares in outsourcing firm Capita have been the worst-performing of all of the Footsie constituents, and are 59 per cent down on late 2015 after a profit warning in September. The firm said at the time that clients were sitting on their hands rather than committing to contracts following the Brexit vote. EasyJet shares were the second-worst performer, after the airline also released a Brexit profits warning in late June. Khalaf said: Companies plugged into the domestic economy have had their cards marked, while those with international exposure, particularly to rising commodity markets, have seen big share price gains. British investors holding foreign shares have done well in 2016. Khalaf said: UK investors in overseas stock markets find themselves quids in from the demise of the pound this year, even in markets that have gone sideways. For instance the Japanese stock market has risen just 1.5 per cent this year, but UK investors have enjoyed a 23 per cent return thanks to currency movements. UK pension funds will have benefited handsomely from the rise in overseas stocks, with figures from the Pension Protection Fund showing that 69 per cent of funds equity holdings are quoted overseas. In sterling terms, New Yorks Standard & Poors 500 Index is up more than 30 per cent this year, compared with a 12.6 per cent return in dollars. L&Gs Kreckel said Brazil was the stand-out performer, up 35 per cent in local currency and 90 per cent in sterling terms. Political upheaval, the rise in the oil price and economic recovery have all boosted Brazils Bovespa index. Italy, meanwhile, has done badly amid fears for its banking system. Kreckel argues that equity indices could be unpredictable in 2017, following the inauguration of Donald Trump as US President. In 2015 we wondered whether the US economy would grow 2.5 or 2.7 per cent. This time we will get a fiscal stimulus but theres a great amount of uncertainty. We could see a boom or even the start of a recession by the end of 2017, he said. Malta has emerged as a surprise contender to host a European office for the Lloyds of London insurance market to allow it to keep trading on the Continent after Brexit. The 328-year-old market has drawn up a shortlist of five possible EU destinations in which to set up a subsidiary. These will be put to members early next year. It is worried that following the Brexit vote, it will forfeit premiums from continental clients if UK financial services companies lose their passporting rights. Malta has emerged as a surprise contender to host a European office for the Lloyds of London insurance market to allow it to keep trading on the Continent after Brexit Sources close to Lloyds decision-making said Malta was one of the five, alongside Dublin, Frankfurt and Paris. The identity of the fifth location is unknown. Malta is an insurance centre and the island state has been in touch with London insurers to try to entice them to set up there post-Brexit. English remains one of Maltas official languages. Lloyds is likely to spend tens of millions setting up an EU subsidiary, which it will have to capitalise separately. It is the most high-profile City institution to say it will take concrete action to deal with the effects of the vote to leave the European Union. Lloyds is likely to spend tens of millions setting up an EU subsidiary, which it will have to capitalise separately Several investment banks said before the vote that they would have to move jobs abroad, but none have yet made major changes. Lloyds gets 11 per cent of its premium income from the Continent. Its major strength is in the US. It said last week: Lloyds continues to lobby the Government on the benefits of maintaining access to the single market, preferably under current passporting rules, but we have also been working on how we will maintain our ability to trade freely with the European Union should that access be revoked. Roger Saul is hatching international ambitions for his upmarket shopping village The entrepreneur who made his name in fashion building up the Mulberry luxury brand is hatching international ambitions for his upmarket shopping village, Kilver Court. Roger Saul plans to more than double the existing floor space at the shopping haven, which is based in an old textile mill at Shepton Mallet, Somerset. The plan will see the shopping space extend to 80,000 sq ft over the next five years. But he said: I think weve got this one right now its taken five years and weve done it on a shoestring and invested all our own money. 'Now were looking at the next leap up and during that process we will be asking: can we replicate it? People already ask, can we do it in Sweden or India with a concept in an unusual location such as a castle or an old pig farm. It needs to be something meaningful but which has now lost its use. These places are out there. Saul plans to more than double the existing floor space at the shopping haven, which is based in an old textile mill at Shepton Mallet, Somerset The textile mill has been restored and renovated as new brands have been introduced. There are now 55 labels selling at discounts amid restaurants, food and wine. They include Turnbull & Asser, Whistles, Jack Wills, Bamford and organic food from specialists such as Daylesford. He said annual turnover has reached about 11 million and sales in five years will be roughly 60 million or 70 million. He added: Weve had a super five years. ZAAPT, a social media planning tool co-founded by the sister of BBC1s The Apprentice candidate Richard Woods, is raising 500,000 via crowdfunding website Seedrs. Jenny Woods and her partner James Jezusek bonded over a dream of starting a business and launched Zaapt in November 2015 with 75,000. Zaapt, which the couple run from co-working space WeWork in Paddington, West London, helps teams to better plan, collaborate and schedule social media content without using email, Excel and Word. Jenny Woods and her partner James Jezusek, pictured, bonded over a dream of starting a business and launched Zaapt in November 2015 with 75,000 Clients have included Warner Bros, Vue Cinemas and British Rowing. Woods said: Ive worked in social media and marketing for the past few years and I noticed the problems a lot of firms have in the process of planning and collaborating on and scheduling social media content. Clients have included British Rowing Over 90 per cent of social media marketing firms use email, spreadsheets, and other cumbersome software to plan content. What weve done is built a cloud-based collaboration platform. James was also in digital marketing and before we were dating we always chatted about business ideas. Zaapt was the one that stuck. After a lot of research, we knew this was the one that we had to do. When we started I thought 75,000 was so much money, now I just cant believe what we did with it. Were raising 500,000. MATSAPHA The Swaziland Oil Mill Industry (SOMI) is suspecting foul play following a message circulating on social media discrediting the quality of the cooking oil they manufacture. The company is the sole manufacturer of cooking oil in the country and it distributes it through a medium to almost all shops countrywide. The claims that are making rounds on social media touch on SOMIs products. The circulating message comes in the form of a warning. This is first-hand information I discovered when doing inspection in their factory in Matsapha. I reported this to Matsapha Town Board and we made a joint inspection. The employer apologised, reads the partly edited warning. Managing Director Mahomed Daud said they were aware of circulating WhatsApp message, before adding that they make all our raw material purchases in South Africa and in Swaziland. He said all the time these goods are accompanied with certificates reflecting that they were tested and were found to be of good quality standards. Documents Daud backed his responses with documents, which show all the processes that the exported goods undertake before they are actually considered for usage in manufacturing fresh cooking oil. These included standards certificates issued by a reputable regional quality testing company, inspection reports by the Matsapha Municipality and test results from the company laboratory. He said he has never had even one inspection that was conducted as a result of a complaint and insisted all were just routine on-the-spot checks. We do not know the source but we suspect it could be someone who is bitter about us and they want to tarnish our reputation. Why is the person hiding their identity? He/she is not even naming any of the people he allegedly reported the matter to. USDF members parading during the Army Day in this undated file photo. MBABANE Bitter soldiers, who were dismissed from the army in 2007, are demanding a payment of E20.2 million from government. The trio of Mpendulo Sifiso Mngometulu, Nkosikayikhethi Nxumalo and Vusumuzi Hlatshwako served the army with a letter of demand dated December 14, 2016 on Wednesday wherein they made the demand. They each want E6.5 million, E7.9 million and E5.8 million, respectively, which constitutes salary payment from date of dismissal to the retirement age; pension payment from date of dismissal to the date of retirement age; constitutional damages and punitive damages for contempt of court/discrimination and unfair/constructive dismissal. Cited in the letter are Army Commander Sobantu Dlamini, Attorney General Majahenkhaba Dlamini, Umbutfo Swaziland Defence Force (USDF), the Public Service Pension Fund (PSPF), principal secretary in the Ministry of Public Service and Information, Deputy Army Commander Jeffrey Tshabalala and the Government of Swaziland. The three are represented by lawyer Leo Dlamini from Nkosi S.A. Attorneys. In the letter of demand, it is stated that: On 19 October, clients dismissal was set aside by a court order and was reinstated to his employment with full payment of salary arrears thereof. Despite reinstatement court order, on 20 October 2011, 2nd Defendant (Army Commander Sobantu Dlamini) was constructively/unfairly terminated the services of our client with yourself. It further states that as a result of the unfair/constructive dismissal and contempt of court order the three suffered damages in the above stated sums. Unless these amounts are paid at our office within the stipulated period in terms of the Limitation of Legal Proceedings against the Government of Swaziland Act 21 of 1972 after receipt of this demand hereof, a summons will be issued against you, the letter further reads. Army Public Relations Officer Madoda Mkhatshwa said normally, such letters are served through the office of the Attorney General. The AG then forwards the letter to us for instructions and he responds on our behalf, he said. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams By Bill Parry A sprawling modern industrial center will bring work space for 24 businesses and create 80 living wage jobs in Ozone Park. The city Economic Development Corporation announced last week that the 90,000-square-foot Ozone Park Industrial Center is the first project to win a $10 million grant through Mayor Bill de Blasios Industrial Developer Fund. Now more than ever, we must ensure that our economy is diverse, equitable, and provides opportunity for all New Yorkers. Supporting the industrial sector is critical to that effort, EDC President Maria Torres-Springer said. Im proud to announce the first award of the citys Industrial Developer Fund, which will create affordable space for small industrial businesses so that they can create good paying jobs in neighborhoods across the city. Greenpoint Manufacturing and Design Center will redevelop property that is expected to cost $37 million and to open in 2018. GMDC is a great model for how to better assist smaller manufacturing companies and keep those jobs in New York, Borough President Melinda Katz said. GMDCs first-class industrial space in Ozone Park will create dozens of living wage jobs right here in Queens. Since 1992, GMDC has rehabilitated seven industrial buildings in New York City to provide affordable, flexible production space for small and medium-sized manufacturers ranging from custom woodworkers, set builders and metal workers to home goods manufacturers. The new space will support around 80 workers, each making an estimated average of $51, 500 per year, consistent with tenants in other GMDC-developed sites. I am delighted that Ozone Park will have a new industrial space, which will support 24 local businesses and create 80 good-paying jobs, U.S. Rep. Gregory W. Meeks (D-Jamaica) said. Under GMDCs proposal, Minority, Women and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises will be awarded a percentage of the contracts, showing that our city places importance just as I do in investing in local businesses. Queens economy will certainly benefit, as will those who have vocational training and are seeking employment locally. GMDC is a premier citywide non-profit industrial developer that owns and manages five properties that are occupied by more than 110 businesses employing more than 600 people. This is an important step forward for equitable economic development policy in New York City, Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development Executive Director Benjamin Dulchin said. GMDC is mission-driven to create the maximum public benefit for their community, and this new project will create new space to support good paying industrial jobs and long-term investment in the manufacturing sector. Militants attacked an Indian army convoy in Kashmir on Saturday, killing three soldiers, a defense spokesman said, in the latest in an uptick of violence in the disputed region at the heart of tensions with rival Pakistan. The men were ambushed on the outskirts of Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir state where Indian forces have been battling an armed revolt since 1989. This year, after years of decline, militant violence has increased in Kashmir, deepening a chill in ties with Pakistan whom India blames for stoking and keeping the revolt alive by sending fighters and materiel across the de factor border. Pakistan denies the allegation and says New Delhi must agree to talks to resolve the future of Kashmir. Soldiers have launched a search operation to hunt the militants behind Saturday\s attack, the defense spokesman said. Last month, militants stormed an army base near Jammu, killing seven soldiers. "A bad year in terms of security force casualties just got worse," Omar Abdullah, the leader of the main opposition group in Jammu and Kashmir, said in a Twitter post following the latest attack. SOURCE: REUTERS China "unlawfully" seized an unmanned US naval probe in international waters in the South China Sea, the Pentagon said Friday, a move sure to heighten tensions around Beijing\s military presence in the disputed area. The underwater probe was taken around 50 nautical miles (90 kilometers) northwest off Subic Bay in the Philippines on Thursday afternoon in a non-violent incident, Pentagon spokesman Navy Captain Jeff Davis said. The event unfolded as the civilian-crewed USNS Bowditch was retrieving a pair of "naval gliders" that routinely collect information on water temperatures, salinity and sea clarity. A Chinese Dalang-III class submarine rescue ship then stopped within 500 yards (meters) of the Bowditch and snatched one of the probes. The Americans safely hoisted the other one back onto their ship. Davis said he could not recall another time when something like this has happened, and the Pentagon issued a statement calling on Beijing to "immediately" return the probe that it had "unlawfully seized." The US personnel "were asking over bridge-to-bridge radio to please leave it there," Davis said. Other than a brief acknowledgment that it had received the message, the Chinese ship did not respond. "The only thing they said after they were sailing off into the distance was: \We are returning to normal operations,\" Davis said. Washington has issued a formal request through diplomatic channels to ask for the probe back. "It is ours. It is clearly marked as ours. We would like it back, and we would like this not to happen again," Davis said. Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said China had acted unlawfully. "The UUV (unmanned underwater vehicle) is a sovereign immune vessel of the United States. We call upon China to return our UUV immediately, and to comply with all of its obligations under international law," Cook said in a statement. Davis said the seized vessel is off-the-shelf technology that is commercially available for about $150,000. Data it gathers are unclassified and can be used to help submarines navigate and determine sonar ranges in murky waters. The incident comes amid rising tensions in the South China Sea, where China has moved to fortify its claims to the region by building out tiny reefs and islets into much larger artificial islands. The Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam have competing claims in the South China sea, which is laced with the world\s most heavily traveled international trade routes. New satellite imagery made public Wednesday by a US-based think tank showed China apparently has installed what appeared to be large anti-aircraft guns and close-in weapons systems on seven islets in the Spratly chain. While the United States takes no position on sovereignty claims in the South China Sea, it has repeatedly stressed all maritime claims must comply with international law. The US military has conducted several "freedom of navigation" operations in which ships and planes have passed close to the sites Beijing claims. Such missions have drawn howls of fury from China, which accuses Washington of provocation and increasing the risk of a military mishap. The USNS Bowditch is a research and survey vessel, and does not look like a warship. Adding to the tension, Beijing is facing a new US president in Donald Trump, who has questioned longstanding US policy on Taiwan, called Beijing a currency manipulator and threatened Chinese imports with punitive tariffs. The Chinese ship\s hull number was ASR-510, the Pentagon said. SOURCE: AFP The United States on Friday more than doubled its previous reward for information on Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, offering $25 million for information that would help locate, arrest or convict the head of the jihadist group. The U.S. State Department\s Rewards for Justice program previously offered $10 million for information on Baghdadi, announced in October 2011. The increase was announced in a statement on Friday. Baghdadi, an Iraqi whose real name is Ibrahim al-Samarrai, declared himself the caliph of a huge swath of Iraq and Syria two years ago. His exact location is not clear. Reports have said he may be in the Islamic State-held city of Mosul, Iraq, or in Islamic State-held territory to the west of the city, close to the border with Syria. Kurdish officials believe that growing pressure resulting from a coalition military assault on Mosul is causing Baghdadi and his top lieutenants to move around and try to hide themselves. SOURCE: REUTERS Beaver County preparing for robust Election Day turnout As the Nov. 8 midterm election approaches, nearly 114,000 people are registered to vote in Beaver County. Mulago National Referral Hospital has been dragged to the High court by a mother who claims that her baby went missing in the hands of the hospital staff on 26th /December/2015. Fatuma Nakayima has sued the Executive Director of Mulago Hospital together with the Attorney General of Government, seeking orders that the hospital surrenders her baby dead or alive. Nakayima argues that on the fateful date she went to Mulago to deliver, and after a caesarian section, she was told that her baby boy measuring 3.5kg had lived for a short while and died. However to date she has never been shown the body, which prompted her to petition the Civil Society Organisation-CEHURD in April this year, that has tried to engage the Hospital Director for a response but in vain. The case file has been allocated to Justice Patricia Basaza Wasswa for hearing. ALBANY Albany's two-day political forecast calls for protests and a possible presidential appearance. Members of the Electoral College which includes former President Bill Clinton will gather in the New York Senate chamber in Albany to cast votes for the presidency Monday. The Times Union reported Friday that Clinton was expected to attend the meeting, where he and New York's 28 other electors will cast ballots for his wife, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Secret Service agents were seen in and around the chamber Friday morning, though the Times Union was unable to confirm the former president's attendance with Clinton spokespeople. In anticipation of that vote, rallies will be held Sunday and Monday by groups hoping to persuade national electors to vote against Republican President-elect Donald Trump, who won the presumed Electoral College vote count by a significant margin but trails by nearly 3 million in the popular vote. On Sunday, anti-Trump protesters will hold a vigil at the Honest Weight Food Co-op at 100 Watervliet Ave. in Albany to support electors "who may for the good of the nation vote for a candidate other than the one they have pledged to support," according to Elaine DeMasi, one of the event organizers. The vigil will begin at 6 p.m. The next morning, groups from the December 19 Coalition will descend upon the Capitol to voice similar support. The 9 a.m. protest on Monday will be held in concert with similar events in all 50 states. To block Trump's likely win, 37 electors would need to vote in opposition to the popular vote in their respective states. RDownen@timesunion.com - 518-454-5018 - Follow @RobertDownenTU ALBANY A vigil on Sunday night will support members the Electoral College "who may for the good of the nation vote for a candidate other than the one they have pledged to support," according to Elaine DeMasi, an organizer of the 6 p.m. gathering at the Honest Weight Food Coop at 100 Watervliet Ave. "We know their job is to deliberate and choose a fit candidate for the office of the presidency," said DeMasi, a Long Island physicist. She said participants in the vigil honor Alexander Hamilton's vision that the Electoral College should when necessary act as "a constitutional fail-safe." This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Greenwich The community will come together in song Saturday to remember 13-year-old Joshua Demarest, who died tragically after being buried in a snow pile. Demarest was digging a snow fort Tuesday with 12-year-old Tyler Day in a lot used by the village to dump cleared snow when a truck unknowingly dumped a load of snow on top of the boys. Day was rescued, and suffered hypothermia. Demarest was unresponsive and died later that night. The accident dealt a devastating blow to the tight-knit Washington County community, which responded with words and prayers of support and donations to help the family cover funeral costs. A holiday caroling event planned for downtown businesses on Saturday is now scheduled to culminate with a "community sing" for Demarest. The event will also serve as a show of support for Day and his family, organizers said, as well as Greenwich-Cambridge Police, State Police, EMS, rescuers, local fire departments, and the Department of Public Works. The sing begins at noon at the corner of Main and Salem streets near the OneOneOne restaurant and Washington Square Deli. All are invited to sing along to "Silent Night." Meanwhile, the GoFundMe page that was set up to help cover funeral costs has surpassed its goal of $10,000. As of Friday evening, 654 people had raised $28,759 over two days. bbump@timesunion.com 518-454-5387 @bethanybump Hoosick Falls Two companies blamed for contributing to the pollution of the Hoosick Falls' water supplies will pay the village $850,000 under the terms of a proposed settlement agreement released late Friday. Mayor David Borge issued a statement saying the money paid by Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics and Honeywell would offset the costs of water sampling, flushing water lines and repairing fire hydrants, losses the village incurred from reduced water and sewer usage, and also engineering, legal and public relations services. Borge said the agreement "will ensure that village residents are not forced to bear the financial burden of paying for the village's response to the PFOA crisis a situation they did not create." Elevated levels of the toxic chemical, perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, were found in the village water system in 2014 by Michael Hickey, a former village trustee whose father died of cancer. PFOA is a man-made chemical used to make non-stick and other household and commercial products that are heat-resistant and repel grease and water. PFOA exposure has been linked to adverse health effects, including testicular and kidney cancer and thyroid disease. "The village of Hoosick Falls has incurred unbudgeted expenses over the past two years to address elevated PFOA levels in the village's municipal water supply," said Dina Silver Pokedoff, a Saint-Gobain spokeswoman. "Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics, together with Honeywell, has agreed to compensate the village for these costs as outlined in the proposed settlement agreement." The money would include paying for the village's hiring of a Glens Falls public relations firm, Behan Communications, and a Glens Falls law firm, FitzGerald Morris Baker Firth, which were hired by the village to handle dealings with Saint-Gobain. The mayor's statement said the agreement also reserves rights by the village for any "future potential liabilities related to PFOA releases associated with the companies' former manufacturing facilities in the village. PFOA contamination that may have resulted from other locations, such as the village-owned landfill, are not covered by the new agreement." The disclosure of the settlement payment amount came two days after the Times Union reported the village board was poised to vote on the agreement at its monthly meeting Tuesday but backed off when residents complained that there was no advance notice of the settlement and the public did not have a chance to review the proposal. The board members, who declined to reveal any details about the settlement until Friday, subsequently held off voting on the agreement and scheduled a meeting for 6 p.m. on Dec. 28, where the mayor said copies of the draft agreement will be distributed to the public. Borge earlier this week said the agreement is separate from a consent order between the companies and the state Department of Environmental Conservation, which is seeking to recoup the costs associated with additional sampling and filtering of the village's water supplies, including dozens of private wells, and any cleanup of the state Superfund site that encompasses the Saint-Gobain manufacturing facilities in the village. Saint-Gobain previously pledged that it would pay all costs associated with filtering the village's water, which was initially expected to top $2 million. Honeywell was brought into the case because it previously owned a manufacturing plant on McCaffrey Street, near the village's underground well fields, that has been a focus of the contamination. Saint-Gobain has owned the McCaffrey Street plant since 1999. Honeywell's predecessor corporation, Allied Signal, operated the facility from 1986 to 1996, one of five companies that owned and operated the site since 1956. blyons@timesunion.com 518-454-5547 @brendan_lyonstu A Boston-area man was arraigned Friday on assault charges in the shooting and stabbing two Boston-based college students from Rensselaer County last weekend in a marijuana deal gone bad. The victims, whom town officials identified as Columbia High School graduates Logan Marschner and Luke Ceresia, remain hospitalized in critical condition. In a news release, the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office said that just after 4 p.m. Sunday, Jonathan Chavez and at least one other person went to Sunset Street in the Mission Hill neighborhood to ostensibly buy a large quantity of pot but pulled out a weapon when it came time to pay. The victims, ages 21 an 22 years old, were stabbed and shot before their attackers fled. Marschner and Ceresia, students at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, were rushed to separate hospitals and underwent multiple surgeries. An investigation by Boston police detectives led to Chavez's arrest Thursday night. Police say he had cuts on his hand and on knees, possibly the result of a struggle during the robbery. Chavez, 20, was arraigned in Roxbury Municipal Court Friday on two counts each of armed assault with intent to murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon plus one count each of armed home invasion and unlawful possession of a firearm. He is scheduled to return to court Jan. 5. Police are still trying to identify the second assailant and are asking anyone who may have information to call them at (617) 343-4470. The case is being handled by Assistant Suffolk County District Attorney Julie Higgins with homicide unit. The victim's family members have established gofundme.com web pages to raise funds to pay expenses related to the shootings. Ceresia is the nephew of retired Supreme Court Judge George Ceresia and is the cousin of Rensselaer County Judge Andrew Ceresia. Andrew Ceresia declined to comment about the shooting of his cousin. Albany In what is likely to become a recurring theme, a coalition of labor and environmental groups on Friday urged Gov. Andrew Cuomo to stand up to the policies they believe President-elect Donald Trump is approve on a national scale. They specifically want Cuomo to include in his upcoming budget efforts to speed the move toward renewable energy, combined with a broader pro-labor, social justice agenda. The proposed Climate and Community Protection Act would put into law some of the governor's plans for renewables, such as a target of generating half of the state's electricity from sources including wind, solar and hydropower by 2030. "It is clear that President-elect Trump intends to keep his head in the sand on climate change,'' Ivette Alfanso, president of Citizen Action of New York, said during a press conference at the state Capitol. She was joined by a variety of organizations including Environmental Advocates, United University Professions, the state Council of Churches and Labor-Religion Coalition of New York State. Participants said they want to counter what they see as Trump's embrace of fossil fuel expansion, and his denial of the international scientific consensus on climate change. While not yet in the Oval Office, Trump said he wants Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, a noted climate change skeptic, to head the EPA an agency he has sued multiple times for what he views as federal regulatory overreach. Trump has also pegged former Texas Gov. Rick Perry to head the federal Department of Energy, even though Perry several years ago said he wanted to scuttle the agency. As well as codifying renewable goals, the activists want assurances that those energy projects will pay prevailing wages and be favorable to organized labor. And they want to boost efforts at "environmental justice," which entails countering the effects of pollution on poor, often minority neighborhoods. They pointed to Albany's Ezra Prentice Homes, which is near a controversial off-loading point for oil trains transferring crude oil onto Hudson River barges. Other organizations organizing activities to counter what they fear will be rollbacks of progressive laws or precedents include immigrant and women's rights groups as well as the public education lobby. The environmental arena may be the farther along, though, due to early nominations and controversy that have surrounded the choices of Pruitt and Perry. The Climate Community Protection Act, which would set Cuomo's energy goals in state law, was proposed during the last session. It passed in the Democratic-led Assembly but was stalled in the Republican Senate. rkarlin@timesunion.com 518-454-5758 @RickKarlinTU This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate New York It's conventional wisdom on a block in Manhattan's East Village that the Hells Angels bikers at a notorious local headquarters there aren't necessarily horrible neighbors but just don't do anything to disturb the bikes parked outside. A man from Spring Valley, Rockland County, learned that lesson the hard way earlier this week when he tried to move one of the orange traffic cones the bikers used to hold curbside parking spots. The outsider ended up in the hospital with a gunshot wound, setting off the latest dust up between police and the motorcycle club. With the secretive group refusing to help investigators identify the shooter, patrol officers swept onto the mostly residential block this week and ticketed the tenement building it owns for petty offenses that had previously been ignored: installing an unauthorized bench, planters and a motorcycle ramp on the sidewalk outside the front door. All were removed the same day, with the New York Police Department saying it was merely responding to civilian complaints. And the cones? They were taken, too, tossed into the back of a police cruiser. "I don't know how they got away with the parking thing in the first place," Megan McNally, a 26-year-old paralegal from Brooklyn who once lived in the neighborhood, said a couple of days later as she walked by the club. "And then somebody has to get shot over it?" On this day, six motorcycles three on each side were parked in rows in front of the clubhouse, apparently legally. Asked about the shooting, three merchants along the block mostly shrugged it off. They said that the Hells Angels kept to themselves and that their claim on one of New York's rarest commodities parking had been quietly accepted for years. "It's all about staying away from the bikes," one said. Still, all spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity for fear of running afoul of their neighbors at 77 East Third St. A reporter's knocks on the door went unanswered at the apartment building the Hells Angels have occupied since 1969, an era when the East Village's future as a high-rent district was unthinkable. Over the years, the tattooed, Harley-riding members gained a reputation for being the block bullies hosting rowdy parties, harassing passers-by and clashing with authorities. Save our Local Community (Victims of Crime) were delighted to learn that Victim Legislation will be introduced shortly, possibly before the end of December 2016, which will support Victims rights and introduce legislation to help groups who support them. The group learned of the decision at a recent meeting with the Minister for Justice, Frances Fitzgerald when a number of key issues were addressed. Save our Local Community is an Association representing victims of crime, formed because of public meetings attended by thousands of victims, originating in the Anner Hotel, Thurles, on October 8th 2015. This resulted in the then and the current Minister for Justice, Frances Fitzgerald inviting a delegation from this group to meet with her and her officials on December 8th 2015. A follow up meeting was held on December 7th 2016 at which the following was discussed: Policing The need for the continuation of Operation Thor, more Community Policing and an increase of Garda numbers. The Minister advised that there will be substantial investment on IT for frontline policing. An estimated 300 million is being considered. Trespass The Justice Department felt that the current law was sufficient for trespass but has agreed to reexamine it, due to the lack of application in real incidents and has invited our association to collate and submit actual incidents of trespass which did not result in prosecution due to the weakness in legislation. The association welcomes submissions from victims who would allow us to liaise on their behalf. BAIL BILL December 6th 2016) Our association welcomes these proposed changes in legislation as this bill incorporates the points that we raised in our initial meeting. These include driving restrictions, more responsiveness from the judiciary and ultimately stricter bail terms which includes electronic monitoring. Driving Presently, legislation in relation to driving restriction is limited to the driver of the vehicle, because of our submission the department is open to broadening this to include, all passengers involved in criminal activities using a vehicle to travel to and from the scene of a crime Accountability It places greater responsibility on the Director of Public Prosecutions on how cases are handled and thus making them accountable for cases that have not resulted in prosecution. Electronic Monitoring This Bail Bill includes the modification of the law on electronic monitoring which results in it being possible to use it to monitor repeat offenders and ultimately leading to stricter conditions if a suspect breaks bail terms not to mention the financial savings but significantly the security it offers to victims, witnesses and the Gardai. Our association has been invited to liaise with a working group set up to introduce Electronic Monitoring Free Legal Aid Save our local Community, made a proposal for a token payment towards the use of the free legal aid system, to be introduced and stricter means testing for the use of this service. The Minister agreed to look at ways to make this possible and will strengthen legislation to ensure compliance. Collection of Fines During our meeting, our members impressed upon the Minister for Justice and Equality that we felt that the bill on the collection of fines, which was reformed in January 2016 following our previous meeting, is discriminatory to a large section of our society by lacking equality in not being inclusive. Our members pressed the Minister very firmly regarding those not included in legislation toward the collection of fines at source. The Minister for Justice and Equality agreed to look at ways that she can make it more effective and less discriminatory. Victims We were delighted to learn that Victim Legislation will be introduced shortly, possibly before the end of December 2016, which will support Victims rights and introduce legislation to help groups who support them. This means that the Victim will at last have rights! The Minister for Justice and Equality paid tribute to our association for the responsible way we have conducted our campaign and feels that victims recognise and trust us to represent them. Contacted Our association can be contacted through our email address/ website or Facebook page at any time for further information or comments or call us on our 24-hour line with your message. We will contact you with a reply promptly. We welcome your feedback and on the issues above or on any matter that you feel requires representation. Bord Pleanala has granted permission for a private airfield at Erinagh outside Nenagh after it was turned down by the local authority. Tipperary County Council had refused permission to Tim and Padraig Hanly of Erinagh, Capparoe, for use of existing field for agriculture and private grass runway 670m long and provision of wind sock. Expanded use of existing agricultural building granted for both agricultural and private light aircraft hangar usage. Construction of gravel roadway from L90704 Dromin to existing agricultural building at Erinagh. In granting permission, the planning agency went against the recommendations of its own inspector. Planning permission for the development had been sought on July 17, 2015, but the application drew a considerable number of objections from local representatives as well as residents, Irish Rail and the Rail Safety Commission. The application was refused by Tipperary County Council on the grounds that it was considered that it was a material contravention of Policy ENV36 as the planning authority was not satisfied that it would not result in unacceptable levels of noise to nearby residential properties, and the planning authority was not satisfied that the proposed emergency procedures were capable of being implemented and so it would be prejudicial to public safety. That decision was appealed to Bord Pleanala by the Hanlys on a number of grounds, including that the control of aircraft and aerodrome noise was regulated by the Irish Aviation Authority following international guidelines; that the noise from aircraft to be used (Cessna single engine light aircraft) was comparable to other noise sources in the area, such as the railway line and the M7 motorway, but only for short duration periods. The developers also submitted that the site, and the flight paths, were of sufficient distance from dwelling houses (the nearest being 475 metres from the airfield and 400 metres from the flight path) to ensure minimal impacts, and that there were no specifically sensitive receptors, such as hospitals or schools, in the vicinity. They also argued that there was no evidence that cattle were disturbed by aircraft noise. The Hanlys stated that all access for all airfield purposes (including emergency access) will be via the Dromin Lane (L90704) to the north of the site. The level crossing access to the south will only be used for the applicants agricultural uses. It was argued that the layout and orientation of the site makes it ideal for safe airfield use. A report emphasised that the proposal was for private use only, and that four aircraft will be the maximum number on site, with flight usage varying from low in the winter to up to 40 flights per week in the summer. However, the inspector ruled, that notwithstanding the variation to the Development Plan, the general reasons given for refusal by the planning authority should stand. The inspector said that with regard to the location of the site within a rural area with a significant number of dwellings within a kilometre of the proposed runway, they considered that the site unsuitable for aviation use. The proposed development would, therefore, seriously injure the amenities of this rural area and thus be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area, said the inspector in his report. The inspector also refused permission on the basis that submissions made with the application and appeal, and having regard to the restrictions on the level crossing to the south of the proposed runway, he was not satisfied that the proposed airstrip can be accessed satisfactorily by road for operational and safety purposes, and, therefore the development would be prejudicial to public safety. However, while the board ruled against the inspectors recommendations, it placed a number of conditions on granting permission, including use shall be strictly limited to use by private non-commercial single-engine light aircraft; the maximum aircraft movements (arrivals or departures) permitted is 385 per year. A log of aircraft movements shall be maintained and submitted to the planning authority in accordance with arrangements agreed prior to the commencement of development, and at least at six-monthly intervals; noise arising from the proposed development shall be monitored and no aviation fuel shall be kept on site, and no refuelling or access by aviation fuel bowsers shall take place. Five candidates in race for NLCS District 3 board seat Five candidates are seeking election to the district three NLCS board seat: Tony (Rock) Fleetwood, Tye Hooten, Scott King, Rob Payne and Autumn Ray. No Yes, a light case Yes, two or more light cases One serious case Two or more serious bouts Vote View Results After making their mark in the Twin Cities restaurant industry, chef Jay Sparks and La Crosse native Joan Ferris opened Lovechild restaurant and lounge Dec. 9 in the former Hooters restaurant at 300 S. Third St. in downtown La Crosse. Sparks and Ferris, who have been together for 25 years, say their casual fine dining restaurant offers uncomplicated food with intriguing ingredients and big flavors, using locally sourced and seasonally-driven ingredients. Theyve gone to great lengths to create a warm, inviting atmosphere in the building, which has exposed brick walls, high ceilings and large windows. For example, Lovechild has ruby velvet curtains, gold velvet booths, blue velvet bar stools, and lamp lighting. We wanted to be really cozy, with comfortable seats, Ferris said. Lighting was important. We wanted it to be visually beautiful, but with things you touch being soft and nice. People dont have to dress up to go to Lovechild; casual dress is welcome. Its a place where people can come in and relax and have a premium pasta (or other entrees) and a glass of wine and hang out, Sparks said. Lovechilds dining room can seat 100 people and its lounge can seat another 31. Hours are 5 to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday (and closed Sunday), although the lounge is open later than that. Sparks and Ferris moved from Minneapolis to La Crosse in June. They live in an apartment a few blocks from Lovechild. Both had spent two decades with the DAmico & Partners family of restaurants in the Twin Cities and in Naples, Fla. Sparks, who grew up in Tampa, Fla., served for nearly 20 years (until 2014) as executive chef for DAmicos full-service restaurants and has been influential in the Twin Cities restaurant scene. He was profiled in a 2013 Minneapolis Star Tribune story that was part of the newspapers Great chefs of Minnesota series. Ferris joined DAmico in 1991 as general manager of the acclaimed French Mediterranean restaurant Azur in Minneapolis, then went on to hold various corporate management positions with DAmico. Ferris said she and Sparks love the La Crosse area and had visited it frequently over the years. Her mother, Jean Ferris, lives in Onalaska. Joans late father, Roger Ferris, had a shoe repair shop on Main Street for many years. Joan was one of 11 children in the family and said each of them worked in the shoe repair shop at some point. Ferris and Sparks both left DAmico in 2014, planning to open their own restaurant. We were going to (open a restaurant) in Minneapolis, Ferris said. But they were opening so many restaurants there and staffing was an issue. This spot (in La Crosse) came open and its such a beautiful building. Once we saw the space, we had to have it. This is an amazing place for locally produced food, Sparks said. Much of the food at the Minneapolis food co-op he belongs to comes from this area, he said. The epicenter is Viroqua, Sparks added. Theres a huge difference in quality between buying something out of California right now versus buying something from the area, Sparks said. Both Ferris and Sparks describe Lovechilds menu as eclectic. With the center of gravity being the Mediterranean, Sparks continued. Right now it definitely has a little bit of an Italian feel because of the pasta selection. There are a couple things that have influences from Morocco. And we have one dish that is from Mexico pozole verde. The latter is a traditional hominy-based Mexican stew. Some of Lovechilds pasta selections include ravioli with braised beef, soffrito and butter; tortelli with sweet potato, cranberries, sage and ricotta cheese; linguine with clams, garlic and red chiles; and ricotta gnocchi with winter tomato sauce and pecorino. Some of Lovechilds entrees include grilled tuna steak with chermoula and buttered couscous; roasted chicken thighs with fresh thyme, garlic, lemon and toasted croutons; Uphoff Farm kurobuta pork rib chop with porcini sauce; and Niman Ranch prime beef ribeye steak with fried potato and pecorino. Desserts include such things as apple and fresh cranberry tart, Vietnamese coffee verrine, creamy rice pudding with salted caramel and hazelnuts, chocolate cake with creme fraiche, bittersweet chocolate panini and ice cream from the Pearl Ice Cream Parlor. Theres also a childrens menu. Food and drinks are served by some of Lovechilds more than 30 employees. Windows 10 Mobile, formerly known as Windows Phone, is a platform without a true hero device. Sure, there are handsets out there from Acer, HP and Alcatel, but they just seem to be keeping a seat warm until Microsoft releases its own phone. Microsoft has been signaling since 2015 that it is at work on what the company deems to be a revolutionary smartphone. Microsoft executives up to CEO Satya Nadella have been hinting at something that represents a real paradigm shift, with Nadella even referring to the ultimate mobile device. (Image credit: The Surface phone could look like this. Credit: Evan Blass) Update May 8: More recently, Nadella spoke with Molly Wood about its strategy, saying Im sure well make more phones, but they will not look like phones that are there today. While that might be a bit hyperbolic, it is not as far fetched as it would have once seemed. Microsoft has established itself as a legitimate hardware player with the entirety of the Surface line, including some innovative ideas with the new Surface Studio, and it has made impressive strides with its apps on Android and iOS in recent years, with some of the most popular productivity apps in both stores. Lets take a look at everything you need to know about the Surface Phone and what you can expect once the phone makes its long-awaited debut. Surface Phone Highlights: What to Expect Microsoft executives have hinted at a breakthrough smartphone. Microsoft may be working on a radical design for the Surface Phone where the device could fold out from a phone into a tablet or even a laptop. The Surface Phone could include a pen similar to Samsungs Galaxy Note 7. A partnership between Qualcomm and Microsoft to have Windows 10 devices powered by ARM processors paves the way to a Surface Phone. The Surface Phone seems likely to target business users, drawing on Microsofts Continuum feature. Microsoft has announced an event for May 23rd in Shanghai, which corporate VP of devices Panos Panay tagged with #Surface on Twitter. This could be for the rumored Surface Pro 5, but it's also possible a handset could debut. Microsoft has never confirmed the existence of a Surface Phone, so naturally theres no official information on when to expect a device. Back in December 2015, Microsofts executive vice President and chief marketing officer, Chris Capossela, appeared on This Week in Techs Windows Weekly podcast and mentioned a breakthrough smartphone in development, but gave no indication of when it might be coming. MORE: Windows 10 Mobile Isn't Dead Until a Surface Phone Flops Reports have suggested that a phone would be more likely to come out next fall with the Redstone 3 update to Windows 10 that carries with it a new design language codenamed Project NEON. One goal of this new design language is a more fluid UI experience across multiple device sizes, making it a logical moment to unveil new mobile hardware. Could It Fold? A patent filing by Microsoft could mean a fairly innovative design for the Surface Phone or at least for some mobile device that Microsoft develops. Microsoft filed a patent for a device with multiple flexible hinges that would let it double as both a smartphone and tablet. (Image credit: USPTO) The device would work as a traditional phone when folded up. When you need more screen space, you would unfold it into a tablet, with the device also capable of working in a tent mode as well for those time when you want to watch content. (Image credit: A second patent shows a device functioning as a book and as a laptop. Credit: FreePatentsOnline) A second patent filed by Microsoft shows other angles the device could take, such as a book or a laptop. If folded flat, you could also get an essentially dual-sided display. A patent filing does not necessarily ensure that a company will ever come out with device sporting that technology. But it does suggest that Microsoft is looking for ways to make future phones stand out from the crowd. Of course, Microsoft isn't the only company with foldable phones in mind: Samsung is rumored to be working on a folding phone of its own for release in the third quarter of 2017. Taking a Note from Samsung? Microsoft has been pushing pen-based computing for over a decade, and while Windows 10 Mobile has notably steered clear of stylus support to date, it wouldnt be a surprise see Microsoft reverse course for a Surface Phone considering the strong pen focus across the rest of the Surface line. The Surface Pen could find a new home with a Surface Phone. A recent patent filing reported on by Patently Apple was originally thought to illustrate just such a device, but further review found it to be an older Lumia design. Regardless, the move to include a pen with a high-end Surface Phone seems in line with Microsofts goal to differentiate with a new mobile offering, Microsoft has the experience to leapfrog Samsungs efforts in this area and own this high-end niche. Whats Inside: ARMed for the Future The news that ARM support will be coming to Windows 10 in 2017 via a partnership with Qualcomm may point to the eventual future for Surface Phone. While Snapdragon-powered machines running Windows 10 are most likely to be tablets and perhaps thin-and-light laptops initially, the Microsoft-Qualcomm partnerships opens up the possibility of Microsoft bringing a Surface Phone completely into the one Windows fold. This seems like precisely the kind of paradigm shift that Microsoft is looking for in the next iteration of its smartphone hardware and a logical evolution of the Continuum efforts that allow current Windows Phone devices to act as a full PC when plugged into a dock. In an interview with The Australian Financial Times, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said, "We will continue to be in the phone market not as defined by today's market leaders, but by what it is that we can uniquely do in what is the most ultimate mobile device." A device in your pocket that can actually take the place of your full PC with support for the same software that you use on a laptop or desktop would seem to fit the bill. And while this may not be the dream for all smartphone users, it is a dream for a certain audience and one that Microsoft is perhaps better positioned than any other company to execute on. Lineup: A Trio of Surface Phones? Back in April 2016, Windows Central cited sources familiar with early plans for the Surface Phone claiming that there would potentially be three separate devices geared at distinct audiences consumer, business, and prosumer. What differences these three devices would feature to better appeal to each segment is unknown, but upgraded camera modules, the presence of a built-in Surface Pen and larger batteries seem like potential areas to differentiate each phone. It is worth noting that there has been little additional reporting on this rumor, so its entirely possible that Microsoft could ultimately launch a single model. But one thing the Windows Central report id make clear is that lower-end hardware like the Lumia 650 is likely not in the cards for the Surface Phone line. Price: Keep it Competitive As there is very little to go on for the actual Surface Phone hardware its difficult to say what price such a phone would command. If the Surface Phone avoids the low cost market as expected, then look for something in the range of the iPhone (the iPhone 7 starts at $649) and higher-end Android offers. There is the possibility that Microsoft will look to just go after business user and enthusiasts with a Surface Phone, making a device along the lines of the Note 7. The Note cost $850 you know, when you could still buy one. What We Want Solid information on the Surface Phone is scanty at the moment, but the few details that have dripped suggest that Microsofts on the right track with its concept for the Surface Phone. We would love to see a device that truly differentiates itself from the rest of the market rather than simply trying to be a better version of the current smartphone design and putting this job in the hands of the Surface team certainly seems like Microsofts best bet. Microsoft's going to need to think bigger than the Lumia 950 to make the Surface Phone a splash. It seems clear that at least part of that pitch is likely going to be that you can make this the one computing device that you own. That wont resonate with everyone, but its potentially a huge selling point for business users that are already accustomed to docking a laptop when they arrive at work. Continuum sparked interest when Microsoft announced that feature, but the experience ultimately fell short. Surface Phone has the potential to make good on Continuums promise. A pen is the other area where we would really like to see Microsoft put its experience to good use. Given Microsofts experience with the rest of the Surface line and particularly in light of some of the new ideas shown off with the Surface Studio, we would love to see what the company would bring to the table with a pen-based smartphone. Cowtown Teach Teaching Moment Redux JoCo Golden Ghetto Corporate Allegations KCK Morning Ruckus Aftermath Double Creeper Charges In Tragic Police Assault Kansas City Testimony After Tragedy Local Politico Update The Freezing Fanboy Forecast . . . Kansas City Keep The Fire Friday Nighthotness inspires this cold Kansas City Friday night link blast for our blog community of news junkies keeping warm in front of the glow of Internets screens . . .And this is thefor tonight . . . Nick Haines, Eric Wesson, Barbara Shelly, Steve Vockrodt & Dave Helling discuss the potential for area politicians being picked for a place in Donald Trump's cabinet, key issues in KCMO including infrastructure, crime and the convention hotel, the ballot measure to decriminalize marijuana in Kansas City, the efforts to ban Plaza carriage rides, the latest on Verruckt & TSA restrictions on MO IDs. Here's the print media round table rounding up all the issues that we've been discussing and locals have been lamenting via social media for the past two weeks.Description:More in a bit . . . Jackson County Prosecutor's Office: Two KC teens charged in Dec. 8 double homicide in Kansas City Follow-up on local law enforcement agencies struggling to battle KCMO homicide trending upward and a glimpse at deadly youngsters charged with a horrific killing in which they were acquainted with their alleged victims.Checkit:Two Kansas City teenagers, ages 17 and 18, have been charged in the fatal shootings on Dec. 8 on Kansas City's east side that claimed the lives of Jonathan Echols and Freddie Jones, Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker announced today.Kansas City police, responding to the 3900 block of Chestnut, on Dec. 8 found the bodies of Echols and Jones, both shot fatally multiple times. Witnesses said the defendants had gone there to rob the victims, who let them into the residence.Prosecutors requested bonds of $300,000 & $500,000 . . .############Developing . . . A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect until 9:00 p.m. and a Wind Chill Advisory is in effect from 9:00 p.m. tonight until noon Sunday. City crews are currently salting collector and arterial streets as drizzle continues throughout much of the area. Plows are mounted and ready when snow falls. As freezing drizzle has caused icy road conditions, we urge you to STAY HOME if you dont have to be out. Snow Command is monitoring the track of the snow storm which could bring one to four inches of snow to the Kansas City metropolitan area starting late this morning. Breezy northwest winds may cause dry snow to blow and drift. Brutal cold & dry conditions move in Saturday night & Sunday. KANSAS CITY METRO RESIDENTS BLAME MODOT, KDOT AND KCMO INCOMPETENCE FOR THE EXCEPTIONALLY DANGEROUS, CROWDED AND SLICK CONDITIONS LOCAL STREETS!!! - Last night our blog community and a KICK-ASS TKC TIPSTER was FIRST to put the news on blast that I-29 was a parking lot and drivers were stranded for HOURS without any salt trucks in sight all day. - Just sent our way, a powerful perspective from the Kansas side . . . "KDOT doesn't have the funds to be proactive. But that is what Kansas voters wanted when they elected people to financially break the state so suffer fools. You deserve every miserable moment of your troubles." - As usual . . . In Kansas City Proper the real debate is over the UNTREATED AND IGNORED SIDE STREETS that City Hall has neglected for YEARS. This street clearing strategy is exceptionally controversial and has yet to be addressed by any public official. A typical Kansas City December ice storm has paralyzed the greater Kansas City metropolitan are as residents are threatened by a crisis on local streets.#######But here's the real deal . . .Here's the rundown . . .As always, we want readers to. . . But realize this crisis isn't just about weather but relates to serious allegations about the tactics and priorities of our local government . . .Developing and. . . Greece has been extremely burdened; we support the fair allocation of the refugees in EU, said German Chancellor Angela Merkel Greece has been extremely burdened; we support the fair allocation of the refugees in EU, said German Chancellor Angela Merkel in her statements after her meeting with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in Berlin. We cant abandon Greece said Merkel adding that they have close cooperation on the issue of the EU-Turkey agreement."NATOs activation in the Aegean is a good action that can tackle human smuggling she added. 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 Greek PM Alexis Tsipras and German Chancellor Angela Merkel held a joint press conference before their meeting in Berlin, Friday, where they outlined the issues on the agenda of talks. Both leaders agreed on the close relationships between the two nations, with Ms. Merkel stressing that Germany would not abandon Greece on the refugee crisis, saying Germany was trying to support Greece by calling for a just allocation of the refugees across the EU member-states. She expressed her concerns over the fact that the deal between the EU and Turkey was not panning out as expected. We did not always have easy talks, but they were always open, she said on the negotiations with Greece. On his part, Mr. Tsipras said that courageous decisions where imperative to prevent Greece from returning to uncertainty, while Chancellor Merkel reiterated the German position that the responsibility for reaching any decisions on the Greek matter lied exclusively with the institutions involved in negotiations with Greece. Mr. Tsipras said he would brief Chancellor Merkel on the positive course of the Greek economy and the surplus, which was the basis for his issuing half of 13th pension to low income pensioners, adding that the migrant crisis and matters of security would also be discussed. The Greek PM underlined the gravity of the current situation noting the rapid rise of extremism and racism in the EU, adding that they presented a common threat to the EU. On the Cypriot issue, Mr. Tsipras stressed that it was a core issue for Europe and that the EU had a key role to play in its solution. Read more here. RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report The European Union is prepared to participate in the Geneva Conference on Cyprus on January 12, 2017 The European Union is prepared to participate in the Geneva Conference on Cyprus on January 12, 2017, the European leaders announced in the conclusions of the European Council meeting released late on Thursday. Following a presentation by the President of the Republic of Cyprus on the negotiations on a Cyprus settlement, the European Council reiterated its support to the ongoing process for the reunification of Cyprus. The EU, taking into account that Cyprus is and will remain a member of our Union after the Settlement, stands ready to participate at the Geneva Conference on Cyprus on 12 January 2017, the Council conclusions said. 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 Municipal election polls will be open on Sunday, December 18, between the hours of 7am and 6pm as registered voters across the island elect their new town mayors and council leaders. WHO CAN VOTE Registration to vote closed on October 3, so only those who have already registered are eligible to take part in Sunday's vote. All citizens of Cyprus and permanent residents from other EU countries are allowed to vote in the municipal elections. A total of 561,373 registered voters are eligible to vote, the municipal elections website reports. 16,740 of these are from EU countries, with the majority of foreign permanent residents hailing from the UK and Greece. Turkish Cypriot citizens of the Republic of Cyprus also have the right to vote for the municipal and community councils of their place of residence in the state-controlled areas. The total number of Turkish Cypriot voters is 634, the official website reports. MAYORAL ELECTIONS Elections for the mayors of all six districts on the island - Nicosia, Limassol, Larnaca, Famagusta, Paphos, and Kyrenia - will be taking place alongside the elections for council leaders. Famagusta is designated a partly occupied district while Kyrenia falls into territory which is designated completely occupied. In Nicosia, voters will be able to choose between two candidates for mayor: incumbent Constantinos Yiorkadjis and new candidate Panayiotis Stavrinides. Both candidates are standing as independents and have no party affiliations. Voters in Limassol will be deciding between three candidates: Nikos Nicolaides, Haris Aristeidou, and the incumbent candidate Andreas Christou. All three are also running as independent candidates. In Larnaca six independent candidates are running in the mayoral election: Andreas Vyras, Louis Demetriou, Georgios Constantinou, Alexis Michaelides, Andreas Petrou, Petros Christodoulou. Paphos voters will be voting for one of two candidates: Akis Chrysomilos, and incumbent candidate Phedon Phedonos. Both are running as independents. Voters in Famagusta will decide between four candidates: Simeon Ioannou, Andreas Lordos, Georgios Stavri, and incumbent candidate Alexis Galanos. All are running as independent candidates. Kyrenias voters will be selecting their mayor from three independent candidates: Rita Komodiki Elissaiou, Grigoris Neocleous, and Odysseas Patsalides. WHERE TO VOTE AND HOW TO CAST YOUR BALLOT A total of 39 municipalities will be holding elections, and a total of 1,500 polling stations will be open across the island. Polling stations are announced by the returning officer in each municipality, and registered voters can find out where they vote by typing their information into the Ministry of Interior website. Voters can also call 77772212, to find out where their nearest polling station will be located. In order for each voter to be able to obtain a ballot paper they must present their voting book or their ID card and have their names entered on the electoral roll of the Municipality, the municipal elections website states. Three ballot papers are to be given out to each voter. One ballot paper will include the names of the candidates for Mayor; one will include the names of the candidates running for the Municipal Council; one will include the names of the candidates running for the School Board or the municipality. On receipt of his/her ballot paper the voter must withdraw to the special voting booth installed for this purpose at the polling station," the official website explains. "Once inside the booth, he/she will unfold the ballot paper and secretly make with a black or blue ballpoint pen the sign X or in the box situated under the name of the candidate Mayor and under the column of the party list of his choice, for the election of Members of the Municipal Council and for the election of Members of the School Board, according to his/her preference." 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 WASHINGTON (TNS) House conservatives have a message for President-elect Donald Trump: Use your first 100 days to scrap regulations on everything from catfish to ceiling fans to the Export-Import Bank. The House Freedom Caucus wish list, sent by chairman Mark Meadows to Trumps transition team, includes 228 federal regulations to examine or revoke. Its designed to hold Trump to his campaign promise to use his presidential pen to loosen rules on businesses. Its also certain to trigger partisan fights in Congress. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is also on board. The president-elect has made it clear hes going to move on as many regulatory changes as he can make as soon as he takes office, McConnell said at a news conference this week. High on the Freedom Caucuss agenda are ending President Barack Obamas executive actions protecting undocumented immigrants who arrived as children and ending the Export-Import Bank, of which Boeing Co. is the biggest beneficiary. The list also calls for undoing the 1905 law that created the Overseas Private Investment Corp. which helps U.S. businesses gain a foothold in emerging markets. The list also targets first lady Michelle Obamas initiative against childhood obesity, rules requiring for-profit colleges to teach employable skills, regulations intended to make ceiling fans and washing machines more energy efficient. Net neutrality rules that benefit internet content providers over broadband providers also make the list. The caucus also included Southern lawmaker-authored protections for the domestic catfish growers and alcohol transport regulations that hit the kombucha tea industry. It wants the federal rule barring the transport of drinks with more than 0.5 percent alcohol to be raised, in order to support the growing kombucha industry. For Wall Street, the group has targeted the new fiduciary rule for advisers on retirement plans as well as Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission rules for swaps dealers. The caucus wants paid sick leave and minimum wage increases for federal contractors to be reversed, along with Obamas increase in the threshold for overtime pay nationwide. In the area of agriculture, the group would weaken National School Lunch Program standards that require low salt, whole grains and fresh fruits and vegetables, arguing that schools are throwing food away that students are not eating. The change could help processed food companies such as Pepsi Co Inc., Kellogg Co. and Hormel Foods Corp. To the benefit of the tobacco industry, the group would end recent rules requiring new per-market approval for cigars and restricting smoking in public housing. The list included for elimination a spate of regulations from the Environmental Protection Agency, ranging from pollution standards for power plants to ozone reduction requirements estimated to cost billions of dollars a year. In addition the list proposed the elimination of the renewable fuel standard, the EPA program that requires refiners such as Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. to use billions of gallons of ethanol and other biofuels. Revoking the rules would hurt ethanol makers like Green Plains Inc. A slew of Energy Department rules requiring household products use less electricity would be voided, including new standards for ceiling fans that have been opposed by companies such as Lowes Cos. Inc. and Home Depot Inc., which have expressed concerns the requirements could more than double the price of some fans. The once mundane efficiency requirements have come to be seen by the tea party and others as a symbol of government overreach and intrusion. Appliance makers Whirlpool Corp., General Electric Co. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. could see their business plans affected. The caucus also takes aim at an Energy Department program that encourages businesses to use alternative vehicles in their fleets. Billions of dollars have been sunk into this program for years, the document said. The report cites subsidies that Tesla Motors Inc. Chairman Elon Musk received for his electric car. Trumps transition team didnt respond to a request for comment on the list, which is illustrated with a photograph of a Depression-era free-soup line. Meadows, elected this month to succeed Jim Jordan as House Freedom Caucus chairman, assumed his new role last week in part on a platform of going after regulations aggressively. For us it is looking at the whole regulatory reform issue, Meadows, a North Carolina Republican, said in a recent interview. How do we re-balance that regulatory process where we actually allow the legislative branch determine policy. The Freedom Caucus will look to back up Trumps regulatory pen with a bill next year to change the regulatory review process to require stricter analysis of the costs of regulations, he said. The group also wants legislation to limit future administrations from stretching the intent of the law when writing follow-up regulations, something Republicans allege Obama did in regulating greenhouse gases. While some of the executive orders Obama issued can be quickly reversed, others will need to undergo the time consuming federal rule-making process. Congress can reverse the most recent regulations with simple majority votes in the House and Senate using the Congressional Review Act. Democrats are already vowing to fight the Freedom Caucus effort. These efforts to end contraceptive coverage, deport DREAMers, decrease paychecks, and make our air and water dirtier are not new. House Appropriations Committee Democratic spokesman Matt Dennis said in an email. Democrats will fight tooth and nail any efforts to walk back progress that we have made for American families. The Freedom Caucus listed as one of its objectives removing the rule designed to guarantee that doctors and insurers cant cite the conscience clause as a reason to deny patients contraceptives. The Socialists and Democrats Group in the European Parliament seeks a meeting with Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem to "explain the unacceptable decision to suspend the debt relief measures to Greece." The Socialists and Democrats Group in the European Parliament on Thursday announced its decision to seek a meeting with Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem to "explain the unacceptable decision to suspend the debt relief measures to Greece." S&D MEPs proposed a special meeting of the leaders of the political groups in the European Parliament with Dijsselbloem, with the support of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left and the Green groups in the EU Parliament. They also urged the European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker "to step up on the Greek situation," an S&D Group press release said. According to S&D Group Vice-President Udo Bullmann, the decision to stop short-term debt relief to Greece was a measure that was "wrong and unjustified". "We believe that Greece has made a lot of sacrifices and that the economic conditions of the bailout agreement have been more than fulfilled. We would like the Parliament to invite Dijsselbloem to explain this decision in an extraordinary Conference of Presidents as soon as possible. Jean-Claude Juncker as president of the European Commission should also contribute to assessing the empiric situation in Greece, he said. S&D Group spokeswoman on economic and monetary affairs Pervenche Beres pointed out that "nobody in the Eurogroup can decide to reverse a decision without even consulting all the euro area finance ministers." Social policies cannot be taken hostage for the negotiations on debt relief. The European Parliament needs to have its say, she added. GUE/NGL President Gabi Zimmer said it was unacceptable to demand things of Greece that greatly exceed the scope of Community laws, noting that "it is about lives in Greece and the EU." She said the GUE/NGL will submit a written request for a special meeting of the political group leaders, to which Dijsselbloem and Juncker will both be invited. "By how we behave toward Greece, we determine the future of the European Union. Whether you like it or not. It is about lives in Greece and the EU. Whether you like it or not. It is an issue of joint solidarity. And it is not permitted for some individual gentlemen, whether they are called Schaeuble or something else, to behave in this way, wanting to expose the Greek government and denying us the possibility for action that we have to build the European Union together," she said. 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 Refugees and migrants waiting to be registered by authorities inside the camp in Moria, Lesvos, celebrated what they believed to be news that Greeces borders will open Refugees and migrants waiting to be registered by authorities inside the camp in Moria, Lesvos, celebrated what they believed to be news that Greeces borders will open at the end of the year and they will be allowed to continue their trip to northern Europe. According to police, the rumour spread through social media on Wednesday causing wild celebrations in the camp for two days, with hundreds of people abandoning their tents. Police watched from a distance the events which ended about an hour later without any incidents. On Thursday, police arrested inside the camp a 33-year-old Greek who was distributing leaflets to the refugees. He was arrested for disturbing domestic peace, but the prosecutor released him and ordered a preliminary examination on the incident. Read more here. RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report The Saudi government has allocated land for the new economic airport at Qunfudah in the north area of Makkah province, which will built on a build-transfer-operate (BTO) system. A team of airport planning engineers and Geomatics architects and surveyors for the General Directorate of Engineering Services Airport Sector at the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) received the newly allocated site for the airport. Work will soon start on the planning and design of the project, it stated. GACA said the move is in line with its plans to establish a new international airport in Taif region during the next phase, and an economic airport in Qunfudah. The new Taif airport will be considered the new gateway for Haj and Umrah and is consistent with the kingdom vision 2030, where its expected that the number of pilgrims to reach 30 million, it stated. According to GACA, it is working on a project designed to meet the highest international standards, and to be built through the BTO system. Th civil aviation authority felt the need for the development of the new airport to cope with the increasing passenger traffic, especially after the GACA board of directors approved the transformation of Taif airport from a regional airport into an international facility. Also the increase in passenger numbers at Taif airport and the surging demand for international flights, especially haj and umrah flights, added to the pressure. The project, which will be the kingdom's fifth international airport, will be located northeast of Taif province. It is located near Souk Okaz about 120 km from Makkah. The new airport's terminals will able to receive five million passengers annually, which will eventually reach eight million. The airport will start operations with one 4,300-m runway able to accommodate Code (F) aircraft, although two runways will be taken into account during the design phase, said the statement from GACA. A request for proposal (RFP) will be issued to determine the winning investor who will be in charge of building, operating and managing the new Taif International Airport next year. GACA will soon sign a concession contract for the operation of the current airport, in addition to handing over to the winning investor the allocated site for the new airport with full service logistics to start the construction of the airport which is slated to open in 2020. Tareq Al Abduljabbar, the assistant to the president for airports, said both Taif and Qunfudah airport projects will dramatically boost the services for Makkah region. Abduljabbar said several international consortiums are in the race for the Taif project contract which will based on buildoperatetransfer (BOT) system to raise operating efficiency and increase revenues through partnership with the private sector. GACA has been co-ordinating with relevant government agencies to complete the project on schedule, he added.-TradeArabia News Service Dubai celebrated Bahraini national day by lighting up the worlds tallest skyscraper, Burj Khalifa, in colours of the national flag of the kingdom. Leading developer Emaar Properties joined the UAE leadership in expressing and sharing its joy for the achievements of its GCC neighbour with a grand illumination of Burj Khalifa. The illuminated display of Burj Khalifa, at a height of 828.6 metres was held every 30 minutes, highlighting the spirit of solidarity that the UAE shares with the Bahraini leadership and people. Burj Khalifa features At the Top, Burj Khalifa Sky, at 555 m high, which holds the Guinness World Record for the Highest Observation Deck. The tour also includes a stop-over at Level 125 that serves as a tribute to Arab arts and culture. Visitors can also tour At the Top, Burj Khalifa on Level 124.-TradeArabia News Service Etihad Airways, the UAE national carrier, said it has reached a code-share agreement with one of Europe's largest airline groups Lufthansa German Airlines. The arrangement is set to start in January 2017, subject to government approval. The wet-lease agreement between Lufthansa Group and airberlin in which Etihad Aviation Group indirectly holds a 29 per cent stake was also announced today. Lufthansas point-to-point carrier Eurowings and Austrian Airlines, a Lufthansa Group airline, have signed an agreement to wet lease 38 aircraft from airberlin. Of these 33 are to be operated for the Eurowings Group, while an additional five aircraft are to be flown for Austrian Airlines. The agreement has a term of six years and becomes effective from February 2017 subject to any regulatory requirements. The leases have been agreed at competitive rates. Under the codeshare agreement, the German airline will place its LH code on Etihad Airways twice daily non-stop flights between its home base of Abu Dhabi and Frankfurt and its twice daily non-stop services between Abu Dhabi and Munich, the biggest city in southern Germany. The UAEs national airline will, in turn, put its EY code on Lufthansas long-haul, non-stop intercontinental services between its home base of Frankfurt, the business and commercial capital of Germany, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil as well as Bogota, Colombia. James Hogan, the president and chief executive of Etihad Aviation Group, said: "We have long seen Germany as a key strategic market for Etihad Aviation Group and this new relationship with Lufthansa marks the next step in our commitment to the leading European aviation group." "Lufthansa is highly respected globally and Im very pleased that we will work together in the future for the benefit of our customers," remarked Hogan. "Additionally, we are, in our role as a minority shareholder in airberlin, fully supportive of the separate agreement reached today with the Lufthansa Group to wet lease 38 airberlin aircraft. It is very clear to us at Etihad that Lufthansa is a like-minded, forward thinking organisation with which we can do strong, meaningful and mutually beneficial business," he added. Carsten Spohr, the chairman of the board and chief executive of Lufthansa Group, said: "We are looking forward to partnering with the Etihad Aviation Group. The wet-lease contract with airberlin fosters the growth of our Eurowings Group." "The codeshare agreement of Lufthansa and Etihad will offer our customers more benefits and complement both airlines networks. We will consider extending our cooperation in other areas," he added.-TradeArabia News Service If you want an escape from winter early next year, head to a tropical country such as Sri Lanka. It hosts an abundance of diverse activities perfect for the weather you are searching for. The famous stilt fishing in Sri Lanka, locally known as ritipanna, has been a destination experience for foreign tourists. This unique art of catching fish is rich in tradition and believed to have started after the Second World War. This exceptional method of fishing could be witnessed in the south western parts of the country, especially Galle, Kathaluwa and Ahangama. Many may think that it is outdated but fishermen, who do not have modern tools to catch fish, still practice this approach. From across the seas of the said provinces, one can see narrow poles settled in the sea bed. Each pole has a think plank nailed to it. It looks like a cross bar which serves a seat for the fishermen. A stilt is tied to the intersection of the pole and the cross bar. One pole can only accommodate one fisherman. Fishermen also tie a small plastic bag around their waist or around the pole. This is where they keep the fish that they catch. Using one hand, they hold on to the stilt and the other hand is to hold on to their fishing rod. They usually target herring or small mackerel which are easy to sell in the nearby villages. The fisherman, usually, fish either before sunrise or dusk where there is not much disturbance in the water areas. It used to be a good source of livelihood, but, things have changed after the tsunami hit the country in 2004. The seas were not that bountiful with catch. Although it seems outdated, this method of fishing communicates the older generation's values of perseverance and positivity. It takes long hours to stay and catch the fish. Many foreign tourists are allowed to climb up and perch on the stilts for an exchange of a souvenir or cash. See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018 A new concept in the aviation business has been made which would enable everyone to share a private jet with fellow passengers - a concept in land transportation which UberPool is famous for. Although it's not yet clear when this would be launched, business aviation forecaster Rolland Vincent believes that this could be the future of private air travel. This concept is not entirely new, however. Backtracking to the late 80s, fractional ownership of private aircrafts was launched, enabling individuals to share the total cost of owning an aircraft with co-owners. In 2000, jet cards were introduced, a more flexible alternative to fractional ownership. This enables passengers to access a private aircraft any time of need by paying a flat rate. These two concepts are still practiced until present. Now, this UberPool-like concept may be a more elevated yet public version of the jet cards program. The concept of sharing airplane rides without the membership requirement is now being tried in Europe, but can't be seen to be available in the U.S. anytime soon. In 2013, Flytenow, one of the first to offer flight-sharing by flying from Boston to San Francisco, has tried to run the concept of sharing expenses between the pilot and the passengers. But after two years of operations, it was shut down by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in December 2015. Similar online flight-sharing companies have also been affected by the court's decision. The court has put the stop in the concept to prohibit private pilots to advertise for shared flights. Currently, what is being run are private companies that offer memberships, such as Wheels Up and JetSuite. Ultimately, the purpose of publicly shared flights is to offer private aviation as an affordable alternative to commercial flights. According to The Wichita Eagle, companies have clarified that their services are in no way competing with commercial airlines and offer only flights to cities which do not have airline services. This UberPool-like flights might just be the solution of giving passengers a more cost-effective, hassle-free way of flying between remote areas. See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018 Airplanes are considered the safest mode of transportation, but with the recent findings brought about by an anonymous study, these findings might affect the perception of every airline passengers from now. The study that has caught the attention of everyone is about most airline pilots suffering from clinical depression. In a study conducted through an anonymous global survey and published in Biomedcentral, authors Wu, et.al, were able to conclude that most airline pilots are depressed. A total of 3,485 pilots took part in the survey but only 1,848 completed the questions about mental healthy. With the prevalence of mental illnesses in our time right now, it is still alarming to know that there is still a social stigma when it comes to people suffering from such illnesses. Pilots, among many other profession, suffer from such and hides behind secrecy for fear of losing their jobs. Thus, in order for the team to make pilots answer the survey, they formed the questions in a way that will not make the pilot think it really is a survey about their mental health. Finding showed that 233 pilots or 12.6 percent of them showed signs of depression. Meanwhile, 1,430 pilots who reported to have worked within the past seven days, results showed that 193 of them are depressed as well, or 13.5 percent. According to an article released by CNN, the study was released a year and a half after news of a Germanwings co-pilot who locked the pilot out and crashed the plane into the French alps, which killed 150 people, and the cause behind such action was said to be because of thoughts of suicide. With that being said, the World Health Organization mentioned that although there are a number of effective treatments for such illnesses, only few people are seeking treatment because of the said social stigma. See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018 It is expected that the airports are super busy during the holidays, especially in central hubs like New York, London and Paris. Airports in these areas are packed, so one would think that these major cities made to the list of the busiest air routes in the world. Nope, you got it wrong. According to International Air Transport Association (IATA) report, the most in-demand flight in the world is actually the 280-mile hop from Seoul Gimpo International to Jeju International. The location is not popular to many, but yep, it does exist, and it is very scenic. Jeju is the capital of Jejudo, an island holiday destination. It is South Korea's answer to Hawaii with volcanic landscapes, underground caves, hiking trails, and beautiful beaches. Jejudo was named among the "New 7 Wonders of Nature" in 2011. Jejudo may be inarguably amazing, but it also has a dark side. In 1948 and 1949, the South Korean government brutally put down an attempted uprising on the island, killing villagers during the process. Apparently, the island was able to recover from its dark past. The number of passengers who use Jeju International is actually more than any UK airport bar Gatwick and Heathrow. Telegraph reported that more than 11 million journeys were made between the two South Korean airports in 2015, and with a one-way capacity of 6,561,314 for 2016. Aviation experts say that the figures could read to 13 million this year. Next on the list is Sapporo-Tokyo Haneda, with 7.8 million. Major cities like New York-Washington DC and London-Paris did not even make it to the top 10. Completing the list of the busiest air routes are: Fukuoka - Tokyo Haneda; Melbourne - Sydney Kingsford Smith; Taipei Taiwan Taoyuan International - Hong Kong International; Delhi - Mumbai; Ho Chi Minh City - Hanoi; Beijing Capital International - Shanghai Hongqiao International; Surabaya - Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta; and Tokyo Haneda - Okinawa Naha. See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018 As part of her studies at Viterbo University, graduating senior Lindsey Napierala was able to reconnect with the country of her birth. Napierala, 25, from Edgar, Wis., was adopted from Peru when she was a young child and will graduate from Viterbo today with a degree in Spanish. She comes from a large family with two sisters and four brothers and isnt the only adoptee one of her sisters and two of her brothers are also adopted from countries, including South Korea and Paraguay. She said she chose Viterbo for her studies after her sister Jenna attended Viterbo to study music and theater. Napierala visited her sister and the campus often and decided she wanted to study nursing while minoring in Spanish. After the first year in the nursing program, she said she felt like nursing wasnt the right direction for her. She said she really enjoyed her Spanish classes and instructors, and a stint studying abroad in her birth country convinced her change her focus of study. Napierala spent five weeks in the city of Cusco, Peru, in December 2015. While she was there, she took a history class and a grammar class as part of her Spanish coursework and got to learn more about the people and culture of the country. It was really interesting, she said about her visit. Im pretty short and I found out I was average height there. I felt welcome, and they treated me like I was a resident there. She also got to feel like a tourist, visiting historic sites such as Machu Picchu. She said it was amazing seeing just how large the site is, and after learning about its history, being there helped put the world wonder in perspective. And it was eye-opening to experience mass transit in both Cusco and Lima, as the Peruvian culture relies heavily on it to get people to and from home, work and shopping. Everyone uses the bus, she said, which are packed and can be a little fast and chaotic to someone experiencing them for the first time. Napierala said she hopes to go back to Peru after she graduates. She is looking into applying for the Peace Corps, and hopes to get one of the positions open in that country. Ive always wanted to help people, she said. That is why I started out in nursing. The Peace Corps offers me a way to use my degree to do that. As part of her Spanish studies, Napierala also helps give back through her time at Centro Latino, a La Crosse organization that provides services and support to the Hispanic community. The center provides help building English skills, help with computers as well as a place to socialize and get social support in the community. As part of her work at Centro Latino, she has helped teach English as well as providing child care help to a group of Hispanic residents taking ESL classes on the citys south side. She also helps manage the organizations social media accounts. Sister Antona Schedlo of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration has worked with Napierala during her time at Centro Latino. As part of coursework, students are required to do service work, and she said Napierala was a lovely person to work with, who was low-key, humble and always willing to help out with whatever was needed. She was always willing to learn, she said. Along with the Peace Corps, Napierala said she is looking into pursuing careers related to her degree in the Twin Cities, or near her hometown. She said she has a number of options open to her and is looking forward to the future. I am excited to be moving on, she said. Im looking forward to finding a job and exploring and using my degree to help people. What's another good thing in December aside from Christmas? New year's Eve, of course! Every year, people all over the world make the most out of one of the enchanting celebrations ever. Ending a year with a party is a blast, and always make sure to start the next year with a hoot! Different cities around the world have their own touch when it comes to New Year's Eve Parties. But what are the best places that you can check out this 31st? London, UK. It's quite a common fact that the British know how to throw a good party, and New Year's Eve is no exception. If you decide to come and be part of the myriad of the New Year festivities in London, you must make sure to be on top of your game. There are several parties to choose from, like the Dark Circus New Year's Special, the Prohibition Party, and of course, we couldn't forget the world-famous NYE fireworks display over the Thames! Each one is as bolstering as the last, but for the Thames fireworks display you must have a ticket. This is to prevent overcrowding. Las Vegas, Nevada. Feeling a bit wild? Do you think you got the guts to be as free-spirited as a Las Vegas Party? Then head on and be bombarded by an endless night of booze and parties featuring top performers, world-class DJ's and succulent food. If you want to start the night off with class, have dinner at Rivea's New Year's Eve Dinner. Then, dance off with top performers such as The Weekend at the New Year's Eve Weekend at The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas. If you're still hankering for something new after that well, whatever direction you choose there's a party for you. It's Las Vegas, baby. Sydney, Australia. Want to spend New Year's Eve on a boat? In Sydney Harbour, not only will you be on a boat, but you can also get a front row seat on one of the most amazing fireworks display in the world. If you aren't too keen on doing the New Year countdown aboard a boat well you can always book yourselves a table at one of the waterfront restaurants lined up on Sydney Harbour. Join in the countdown with a bottle of bubbly-- and the best part? You'll still have the view of your life. New York, USA. The list wouldn't be complete if I don't include the mother of all New Year's Eve parties. Every year, locals and tourists alike flock to Times Square for a one-of-a-kind New Year's celebration. But why not try a bit different this year? Tons of other places in New York offer impressive New Year parties as well such as Cipriani's at 42nd Street, NYE 2017 at Monarch Rooftop & Indoor Lounge, or if you want, you can celebrate beneath the Times Square Ball, only on St. Cloud at The Knickbocker. We all know that 2016 has been one hell of a roller coaster ride. So what better way than to end it on a whirling, convivial and fun-filled New Year's Eve party? Better plan your New Year's Eve now. See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018 China holds the record for the longest and highest glass bridge, which opened in August of this year. The bridge spans approximately 430 metres (1,400 feet) across two peaks and is suspended 300 metres (984ft) above a sheer drop. As if that is not enough, the country is planning to build yet another bridge, this time, it will be 'invisible', and reports say this bridge will be a hair-raising experience. Architects who made China's glass bridge are now designing a bridge that blends into the surroundings. Thrill seekers will definitely flock this new landmark. The bridge costs over $4 million to build and has been created by Martin Duplantier Architectes (MDA) and Daqian Landscape Architects. The bridge will be built using mirrored stainless steel with a floor of black stone that becomes reflective when wet, according to Daily Mail. To create a temporary cloud and misty effect between the mountains, water will be sprayed onto the path every seven minutes. The goal of the bridge is for the structure to mirror the environment to give the optical illusion of blending into thin air -definitely making it unsuitable for people who are scared of heights. The path of the bridge is surrounded by a layer of water two centimetres thick. The lower level is a floor made of 100 percent glass, so when visitors look down below, it will be like staring into the void. The bridge will also feature three pavilions, where one will be used for sleeping. The pavilions will be stacked on top of each other, with all of them offering incredible views but none so much as the rooftop, with its 360-degree panorama. A cafe will be positioned at the intermediate level, and below it, a VIP suite where guests can spend the night overlooking the landscape, Design Boom said. See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018 The Mark and Anne Hansen Foundation will award up to $25,000 to a Central High School senior of great promise and achievement who cannot otherwise afford to attend college. The funds will cover the cost of tuition, room, board, books, fees and other expenses for one academic year. With continued success, the selected students scholarship may be renewed for up to three years. This scholarship will make a significant difference in a students life, Central Interim Principal Troy McDonald said. The Mark and Anne Hansen Foundation has made it possible for a student to pursue their dreams. The goal is to make a transformative difference in the life of a promising student. Applicants will be selected on the basis of both academic potential and financial need. Applications will be evaluated on a number of criteria, including scholastic ability, commitment to self-improvement, leadership potential, community service and financial need. Applicants must be a state resident and admitted to the UW-Madison or another university of similar stature for the coming academic year. Applications are available in the schools Student Services Office, and must be completed and returned by Jan. 31. The first Hansen Scholarship will be awarded in April. Tribune News Service Amritsar, December 16 Even after 38 days of demonetisation of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes, large queues can still be seen outside banks in the city. It has made people skeptical about government claims that the situation will become normal after 50 days. Residents complained that with only 12 days left between the deadline announced by the government, most ATMs, which were to become functional within the first three days of demonetization, were still lying locked. Queues outside bank branches have not shortened as the people are not able to withdraw cash through ATMs. Residents complained that even bank branches were not allowing salaried people to withdraw cash up to the weekly stipulated limited of Rs 24,000 in one go. Banks are not disbursing more than Rs 5,000. It makes people stand in a queue day after day. It seems that the condition has gone out of hand of the government, said Rattanam Singh, an employee of a private concern. Meanwhile, there is no end to woes of the general public with most ATMs lying dysfunctional. Earlier, people used ATM machines to withdraw cash and seldom visited bank branches. Another private employee Avneet Singh said, I had opened bank account around six years ago. During all this time, I never visited the branch except once to submit documents related with the account. Visiting banks involves lot of paperwork and to avoid this most people use the ATM facility. He said ATMs seldom opened after the initiation of demonetization of higher currency notes. People fear that the affect of cash crunch on business and their personal lives could be felt for a period much longer than the 50 days, announced by the government, as banks had failed to dispense enough money to their customers. Most shops do not have card swipe machines. Even if they have one, first they insist that customer should pay in cash. As marriages are mostly solemnised in winters, people have to buy clothes and other stuff. But, due to shortage of cash it has become very difficult to manage things, said Gurinder Kaur, a homemaker. Legal Correspondent New Delhi, December 17 The Supreme Court has reaffirmed that Jammu and Kashmir was an integral part of India and did not enjoy sovereign status, either under its Constitution or that of India. The states constitution was subordinate to the Indian constitution and its permanent residents were Indian citizens. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) A bench comprising Justices Kurian Joseph and RF Nariman made the clarification while holding that the central law empowering banks to recover their loans from borrowers was applicable to Jammu and Kashmir. The Jammu and Kashmir High Court had ruled on July 16, 2015 that the law, known as Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act-2002, was not valid in respect of the permanent residents of the state. In its judgment, the HC had repeatedly referred to the sovereignty of the state. The State Bank of India and other affected banks had come to SC in appeal. Setting aside the HC verdict, the apex court said: It is rather disturbing to note that various parts of the HC judgment speak of the absolute sovereign power of the State of Jammu and Kashmir. It is necessary to reiterate that Section 3 of the Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir, which was framed by a Constituent Assembly elected on the basis of universal adult franchise, makes a ringing declaration that the State of Jammu and Kashmir is and shall be an integral part of the Union of India. And this provision is beyond the pale of amendment. The apex court clarified that the preamble to the Jammu and Kashmirs constitution did not talk about sovereignty or citizens of the state. It is thus clear that the State of Jammu and Kashmir has no vestige of sovereignty outside the Constitution of India and its own Constitution, which is subordinate to the Constitution of India. It is therefore wholly incorrect to describe it as being sovereign in the sense of its residents constituting a separate and distinct class in themselves. The residents of Jammu & Kashmir, we need to remind the High Court, are first and foremost citizens of India, the SC clarified. The Franciscan Spirituality Center, 920 Market St., invites women of all faith backgrounds to leave behind their responsibilities for a few hours to enjoy the companionship of others during the second annual Womens Christmas: An Epiphany Celebration for Wise Women, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 4. Womens Christmas is rooted in Irish tradition. On the Feast of Epiphany, Irish women left the care of their households to the men for a few hours so they could enjoy each others company away from their domestic responsibilities, especially after the busyness of Christmas preparations. Epiphany also is the day many Christians celebrate the coming of the wise men to the infant Jesus. We love the idea of combining these beautiful traditions into our own special event, organizer Deb Hansen said. We met so many wonderful women last year, and were excited to offer it again. Its such a peaceful, affirming way to start the new year. The evening will include a simple meal, reflection on the Celtic Prayer of Deep Peace and St. Francis Canticle, and a blessing with gifts of remembrance from the four elements: earth (grounding), water (fluidity), air (sacred connection) and fire (compassionate strength). The cost is $25, which include the meal and Wise Women gifts. To register or for more information, call 608-791-5295 or go to www.fscenter.org. Azhar Qadri Tribune News Service Srinagar, December 17 Some militants ambushed an army convoy near Pampore on the Jammu-Srinagar highway, killing three soldiers. The sources said the militants fired at the army convoy near Kadalbal locality of Pampore town, some 3 km from the outskirts of Srinagar city, at around 3:30 pm. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) The three soldiers killed in the attack could not be identified immediately. The army has yet to issue a statement. Security forces cordoned off the area immediately after the attack, but the militants are believed to have escaped. The number of gunmen involved in the attack is yet unknown, but they are believed to have been from the militant Lashkar-e-Toiba. Sources said they had intelligence reports warning of a possible attack on security forces on the highway. Eight troopers of the Central Reserve Police Force were killed in a similar ambush in the same stretch of the highway in June this year. Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Ludhiana, December 16 Several ex-servicemen got together and celebrated the Vijay Diwas today and deliberated over the problems and challenges being faced by them. They lambasted the Union and the state governments for meting out a step-motherly treatment to them. They alleged that despite its historic importance, the government had not been celebrating this day, which marks its military victory over Pakistan in 1971 during the Indo-Pakistan war of 1971. On this day (December 16), the chief of Pakistan forces along with 93,000 troops surrendered to the allied forces of the Indian Army. General SPS Grewal (Retd.), Brig Inder Mohan (Retd.) and Col HS Kahlon (VrC) were prominent among those who addressed the gathering. Grewal said when they were in job, they faced huge challenges as their lives were always at risk just for the sake of the country and when they retired from service, they again faced challenges as neither the state government nor the Central government pay heed to improve their welfare. Grewal said no political party was ready to give due representation to them in the elections. We want that at least one Rajya MP should be from the Army background so that he can raise our issues in the Upper House primarily. Now, all parties are providing a step-motherly treatment to us, he said, adding that they still have some hope from the Congress party. Pledge to make students aware of rich history of armed forces Col HS Kahlon said veterans who participated in the meeting took a pledge to visit their respective areas and educational institutions to make students aware of the rich history of the armed forces. They also proposed the government to develop all battle grounds as tourist spots with museums where awareness trips could be organised on the lines of the UK government. Belagavi (Karnataka), December 17 Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi called the central governments decision to invalidate old banknotes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 a Modi-made disaster, as he charged Prime Minister Narendra Modi with being callous to the countrys suffering because of his economic shake up. ""For the first time in the history of India, Prime Minister has attacked the poor people of this country. Usually the Prime Minister works for the country. They work for the economy, but Narendra Modi has attacked our economic system," Gandhi claimed at a rally his party organised in north Karnatakas Belagavi. "As it is said a man-made disaster, in the same way demonetisation is Modi-made disaster." He also blamed the Prime Minister for having killed 100 people through his decision. "Fidel Castro (Cuban revolutionary) was remembered in the Parliament and we stood in silence for two minutes as a mark of respect to him, but BJP leaders did not have two minutes time for these 100 people. Who is responsible for their deaths? Narendra Modi is responsible. For the past two-and-a-half years, Narendra Modis government has been attacking the poor," he said. He also accused Modi of trying to divide on the basis of the money they had: on the one hand was the one per cent super rich with private aircraft, flashy vehicles and big businesses and on the other, there were 99 per cent of people who are honest like farmers, labourers, small traders and middle class who toil every day for the sake of the country and their lives. "In two-and-a-half years, the one per cent super rich in this country have amassed 70 per cent of India's wealth and if you look deep into this one per cent, only 50 families have major portion of India's wealth. You know their names; these are the people who travel with Narendra Modi to America, Japan, and Australia," Gandhi said. "Congress wants to get rid of corruption from India and whatever step the BJP government takes whether it is big or small if it is against corruption we will give it full support," he said. PTI Washington, December 17 US President-elect Donald Trump has acknowledged the contribution of Indian-Americans in his electoral triumph, saying his victorious campaign did great with the Hindus. We have a lot of people here tonight from the Indian community, Hindus. We did great with the Hindus, Trump said while addressing thousands of his supporters during a Thank You rally in Orlando, Florida, the key battleground state where he emerged victorious. The event in Florida, which has a sizeable Indian-American population, was attended by a large number of community members. This is for the first time that Trump has acknowledged the contribution of Indian-Americans and Hindus in his historic electoral victory. Where are they? We have a big group. There they are. I want to thank you. You folks were amazing. They were amazing and voted and they were fantastic, Trump said, pointing his fingers to the Indian-American community present at the rally. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) A fortnight before the elections, Trump attended a charity event organised by Republican Hindu Coalition to raise funds for Hindu victims of terror in Kashmir and Bangladesh. This was for the first time a presidential candidate attended an Indian-American event. In his address, Trump pledged to work for betterment of India-US relationship and said he would be the best friend of India in the White House. He praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his economic reforms and steps that he had taken to remove bureaucratic red tape. After Trumps address, his family members visited temples in both Florida and Virginia, a first time for a presidential campaign. The Trump Campaign also released an advertisement in which he was seen saying Ab Ki Baar Trump Sarkar, copying Modis historic 2014 election punchline. Republican Hindu Coalition chairman Shalabh Salli Kumar said all this had an impact on voting pattern of Indian-Americans, who traditionally had been strong Democratic supporters. Based on a survey, Kumar said more than 60 per cent of the community members voted for Trump this time. In his address, Trump asked people to dream big. Dream big and bold and daring. I am asking you to believe in yourself and asking you to believe in America. Together we will make America great again, he said. Trump reiterated his plan of extreme vetting of refugee, asylum and visa applicants seeking to enter the US from regions where terrorists had strongholds. He said his administration would suspend immigration from some regions where applicants cannot be safely processed or vetted due to a lack of government records. Pledging to keep Islamic terrorists the hell out of our country, Trump said the attack on Pulse Nightclub in Orlando was the worst mass shooting in American history and the deadliest assault on the LGBTQ community in American history. We have seen Islamic terror attacks from Paris to Belgium to San Bernardino. One after other, again and again. We are going to stop it. Let me state this as clearly as I can: I am going to keep radical Islamic terrorists the hell out of our country, Trump said. Trump also thanked the large Cuban community in Florida. America will also stand with the Cuban people in their long struggle for freedom. And I want to appreciateI tell you what, their support has been unbelievable, he said. The Cuban peoplewe know what we have to do and we will do it so do not worry about it. The numbersthe numbers have been incredible. In fact, they gave me just prior to the election, the Bay of Pigs award and, that was a great honour for me, Trump said, referring to the endorsement he received from Miami-based veterans who fought in the Bay of Pigs invasion in October, the first such endorsement from the group in its more than 50-year history. PTI New Delhi, December 17 Stating that they live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges, India and Tajikistan on Saturday decided to strengthen defence cooperation and inked a pact to share financial intelligence to counter money laundering and financing of terrorism. The pact was among three signed by the two countries after comprehensive talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on strategic issues including threats posed by radicalisation and extremism, trade and investments. "We assessed the broad progress achieved under different pillars of our bilateral engagement, including our partnership in defence and security. "India and Tajikistan live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges and threats. The threat from terrorism endangers not just our two countries. It casts a long shadow of violence and instability over the entire region," Modi said at a joint press meet with Rahmon. Combating terrorism has, therefore, been an important area of cooperative engagement between the two countries, the PM said. "We appreciate Tajikistan's role in the Central Asian region as a mainstay against forces of extremism, radicalism, and terrorism. President Rahmon and I agreed today to strengthen action on this front based on mutually agreed priorities," he said. On his part, Rahmon said terrorism and extremism undermine all developmental efforts worldwide. A joint statement issued after the talks said the two leaders discussed situation in the region and stressed that terrorism and extremism seriously threaten peace, stability and progress of all countries. "The two leaders agreed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be eliminated without any distinction between good and bad terrorists and called for an end to sponsorship, support and provision of safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists," the statement said. Modi and Rahmon reaffirmed their resolve to work for early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UN General Assembly. Apart from MoU concerning Cooperation in the Exchange of Financial Intelligence related to money laundering, related crimes and financing of terrorism, the two sides also inked pacts on broadcasting of audio visual programmes and protocol amending the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion and announced initialling of document on Bilateral Investment Treaty. On further deepening of security cooperation, the Prime Minister said this will be done on multiple levels - through reinforcing overall bilateral security cooperation, through greater training, capacity building and information exchanges and through active coordination in regional and multilateral contexts. India's membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation will also be a valuable platform to work closely on regional security and counter-terrorism efforts with Tajikistan, he said. Agreeing that peace, stability and prosperity in Afghanistan are important for the region, the two countries are joined in steadfast support of the Afghan people and their aspirations for a peaceful and prosperous nation, he added. Asserting that pharmaceuticals and healthcare would be areas of priority action, Modi said they shared the view that enhanced surface connectivity is crucial to realise the promise of our economic partnership for the benefit of our countries. "India supports initiatives to develop the existing port and transport infrastructure and connecting it through road and rail network to Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Central Asia. "In this respect, we will work to build trade and transit links through Chahbahar port in Iran. India is also engaged in facilitating the International North South Transport Corridor with other members, including Tajikistan. Our planned accession to the Ashgabat Agreement will further help in linking us to Tajikistan and Central Asia," the Prime Minister said. The joint statement said Prime Minister Modi and President Rahmon agreed to celebrate the 25th year of establishment of diplomatic relations next year in a befitting manner through festivals, cultural events, conferences and other means of mutual interaction. They also called for greater exchanges of films, TV programmes and other cultural creations between the peoples of the two countries. Modi and Rahmon expressed satisfaction at the excellent cooperation between the two countries on multilateral and international forums including at the UN with the visiting dignitary reiterating support of Tajikistan to India's candidature for permanent membership of an expanded UN Security Council. President Rahmon thanked India for co-sponsoring resolution strongly moved by Tajikistan for declaration of years 2018-28 as 'International Decade of Action: Water for Sustainable Development'. PTI Washington, December 17 A 32-year-old Indian-origin immigration manager for an IT company has pleaded guilty for committing H-1B visa fraud in the US. Hari Karne, who hails from Hyderabad, faces a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a US$ 250,000 fine if convicted. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) According to federal prosecutors, Karne's conspirators recruited foreign workers with purported IT expertise who sought work in the US. The conspirators then sponsored the foreign workers' H-1B visas with the stated purpose of working for SCM Data, a US- based company, and MMC Systems' clients throughout the US. When submitting the visa paperwork to US Citizenship and Immigration Services, the conspirators represented that the foreign workers had full-time positions and were paid an annual salary, as required to secure the H-1B visas. "Contrary to these representations and in violation of the H-1B programme, the conspirators paid the foreign workers only when they were placed at a third-party client who entered into a contract with SCM Data or MMC Systems," the Department of Justice said in a press release. "The conspirators told the foreign workers who were not currently working that if they wanted to maintain their H-1B visa status, they would need to come up with what their gross wages would be in cash and give it to SCM Data and MMC Systems so the companies could issue payroll checks to the foreign workers. "Karne, who was a US immigration manager with SCM Private Limited in India, which had service agreements with SCM Data and MMC Systems, admitted that he advised foreign workers to pay SCM Data and MMC Systems in cash the approximate amount they were supposed to be paid by the companies in order to generate false payroll records," federal prosecutors alleged. Karne further admitted that in February and March 2015, in response to a US Department of Labour audit, he assisted SCM Data and MMC Systems in the preparation of false leave slips for foreign workers that were submitted to the US Department of Labour's to conceal the fact that the foreign workers were not paid during those time periods as required by federal law. PTI MILAN, December 16 Italy's highest court on Friday ordered a re-trial of former top executives at defence group Leonardo Finmeccanica over allegations of bribery in a 2010 contract to provide a dozen helicopters to the Indian government. In April, a Milan appeals court sentenced former Finmeccanica CEO Giuseppe Orsi to four-and-a-half years in prison for corruption and falsifying invoices, overturning a previous lower court ruling. Bruno Spagnolini, former head of the group's helicopter unit AgustaWestland, was sentenced to four years in jail over the 560 million euro ($585 million) contract. The case went to the highest court after the two executives launched an appeal. Both executives will now have to be tried again in front of Milan's appeals court. Last week, India's federal police arrested the former head of the air force SP Tyagi, 71, who was at the centre of allegations of impropriety in the order of 12 helicopters meant to fly senior Indian politicians. The deal was cancelled in 2014 after Orsi was arrested on suspicion of paying bribes to secure the deal. Reuters Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service New Delhi, December 17 The government on Saturday appointed Lt Gen Bipin Rawat as the next Chief of the Indian Army superseding two senior-most Commanders, Eastern Army Commander Lt Gen Parveen Bakshi and Southern-Army Commander Lt Gen PM Hariz. The last time an Army commander was superseded was when General AS Vaidya was appointed Army Chief in July 1983. His senior Lt Gen SK Sinha quit in protest. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) General Vaidya was gunned down in August 1986 in response to Operation Bluestar carried out at the Golden temple in Amritsar in June 1984. Lt Gen Sinha later went on to become Governor and died in Delhi last month. Also, the government today appointed Air Marshal BS Dhanoa, the present Vice-Chief of the IAF, as the next Chief. Air Marshal Dhanoa, who hails from Punjab, is a fighter pilot who was commanding a fighter squadron in the Kargil conflict and himself flew numerous night strike missions in the mountainous terrain. He has served as Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (Intelligence) and Senior Air Staff Officer of two operational Commands and commanded the South Western Air Command. He is son of a former Punjab chief secretary, SS Dhanoa. Both will take over on in the afternoon of December 31. Lt Gen Bipin Rawat, presently the Vice-Chief of the Army, is from the 5/112 Gorkha Rifles and was awarded the sword of honour when he passed out from the Indian Military Academy in Dehradun in December 1978. Hailing from Uttarakhand, he has vast experience in high-altitude warfare and counter-insurgency operations. He commanded an Infantry battalion, at Kibithoo along the Line of Actual Control in the eastern-most corner of Arunachal Pradesh. He has commanded the Dimapur-based 3 Corps. Prior to taking over as the Vice-Chief, Lt Gen Rawat was the Southern Army Commander. Notably, Lt Gen Rawat survived a helicopter crash in February 2015. New Delhi, December 17 The Congress on Saturday asked Narendra Modi to stop insulting former heads of government a day after the Prime Minister cited a book to say Indira Gandhi paid no heed to the Wanchoo Committees recommendation to demonetise high- value currency notes in 1971. Stop insulting former prime ministers. Change the narrative and mindset... From Jawaharlal Nehru to Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Manmohan Singh to Indira Gandhi it is a long list. When you insult them you do not insult Indira and Nehru, you also insult Lal Bahadur Shastri and Morarji Desai who demonetised high-value currency in 1978, Partys Deputy Leader in Rajya Sabha Anand Sharma said at the FICCI conference. Modi had yesterday cited a book to say that when the then Finance Minister Y B Chavan went to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and supported the exercise, she asked, Only one question. Are no elections to be fought by the Congress party? Accusing the Congress of putting its interests before the countrys, he had said what should have been done in 1971 has been done now by his government and that the delay in launching demonetisation caused a lot of damage to the country. In a retort, the Congress leader said, It is sad... 1971 was the year when India gave Indira Gandhi a massive mandate. The same year we were challenged by the then East Pakistan. India had 10 million refugees. Genocide was going on in what is now known as Bangladesh. China, siding with Pakistan, had moved troops to the border. India had the courage and strength to take the decision and the rest is history. The country celebrated Vijay Diwas yesterday to mark the win over Pakistan in the 1971 war. It was a day to salute Indira and not insult her, he said. Taking a dig at Modi for calling himself a fakir, Sharma said, I do not have that kind of a wardrobe but I will not call myself a fakir. We are public servants. We must serve people and understand their pain. We must have humility. Asked as to when Rahul Gandhi will make public the graft charges against Modi he claims to have proof of, Sharma said, It will be done at the right time. He alleged that the BJP purchased land in many states before the Prime Minister announced the decision to scrap high-value notes on November 8 and demanded the Centre bring a white paper on demonetisation. Crores of rupees were deposited in banks and all that information should come through a white paper, he said. Sharma said the government in power needs to maintain balance before issuing any narrative and for good governance. It is important to have a responsible opposition. PTI New Delhi, December 17 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday hinted that not all of the Rs 15.44 lakh crore worth of currency junked would be remonetised through issuance of new notes as he said digital currency would fill the gap. Calling the scrapping of old Rs 500 and 1,000 notes as a courageous step, he said the government could do it as India today had the capacity to take such decisions and experiment boldly. The move will create a new Indian normal as the one that existed for the past seven decades is unacceptable, he said, adding that demonetisation would help rid the economy of high cash circulation that had led to tax evasion, black money and currency being used for crime. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) One of the efforts of this exercise has to be that even though a reduced cash currency could remain, our conscious effort... (is) to supplement the rest with a digital currency, he said while addressing the annual general meeting of industry chamber FICCI here. As many as 17,165 million pieces of Rs 500 denomination and 6,858 million pieces of Rs 1,000 bank notes were in circulation on November 8 when the government made the surprise announcement. Jaitley said, The whole process of remonetisation is not going to take very long time and Im sure very soon the Reserve Bank by injecting currency daily into the banking and postal system will be able to complete that. Also, the push to use the digital mode to make payments has been gaining ground. The manner it has taken place in the last five weeks is indeed commendable. Only a section of Parliament seems unaware of what is happening, he said. Once the remonetisation process is complete, it will mark the creation of a new Indian normal because the normal that existed for 70 years is an unacceptable normal, he added. The 70-year normal had become a way of life for almost every Indian. It was not merely a fact that you had a lot more cash currency, far larger cash currency as part of your GDP...the economic and social consequences of that are extremely adverse. He made a point that dealing in that cash currency had led to a lot of aberrations in terms of tax non-compliance, currency being used for collateral purposes like crime, escaping the tax net and not getting into the banking system. The government took a somewhat courageous step of withdrawing high demonetisation currency and went in for a large currency swap. The fact that India today has the capacity to take these decisions and capacity to enforce them, to experiment boldly even when at a time when the world is looking more inwards, marks an exception as far as India is concerned, the Finance Minister asserted. Jaitley also spoke of the countrys stamina to sustain a decision like demonetisation, which has clear long-term gains even at the cost of short-term inconveniences. Therefore, once we have that stamina notwithstanding fringe positions taken by national parties, one would always be able to implement these extremely successfully. Long-term benefits of these are going to be absolutely clear if we bear the short-term pains, he said. He seemed confident that the existing almost 75 crore debit and credit cards in the market, besides e-wallets, would help increase digital transactions. He also made a pitch that these transformations would have to be carried to their logical conclusion. There are, of course, even as we reform, domestic trends which are being visible on digitisation of payments, Jaitley said, adding that the government had clarity of direction as well as a broad shoulder and stamina to sustain these decisions. PTI WHITE BEAR LAKE, Minn. (AP) As of this fall, the dock at Brian McGoldrick's marina extends 600 feet into White Bear Lake, twice as long as it was several years ago. He can no longer rent out boat slips close to the shoreline, now home to muskrat lodges and cattails. In recent years, low water levels have plagued White Bear Lake, the largest lake in the eastern Twin Cities area. While the lake has seen a slight rebound from its record low point, some areas of its shore still appear drought-stricken. McGoldrick, owner of Admiral D's Marina and Waterfront Tavern, said addressing the problem extends beyond any one entrepreneur's or lakefront dweller's qualms about property values. "This is for the working people," McGoldrick said. "Everyone has access to the lake." Judy Brewer, 73, spent her early summers learning to swim in the lake and can recall summer holidays and weekends when lines of cars stretched down roads leading to the beaches. "Everything has revolved around the lakes in White Bear," Brewer said. That same beach where she spent childhood summers has been closed for the better half of a decade and is now home to cattails and "no swimming" signs. White Bear Lake is set to have a fifth consecutive year of above-average precipitation, according to data from the Minnesota Climatology Working Group. Because of the heavy rainfall, the lake is up 4 feet since hitting its record low in 2013. But it remains 2 feet below its ordinary high-water mark. Residents and advocates say they worry that dry weather could push water levels down again. And while the current levels are an improvement, many worry that the lake hasn't fully recovered and won't without a long-term fix. In March, a 4-year-old lawsuit against the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, brought by local advocates and homeowners over the lake levels, goes to trial. But the question of what exactly is causing the low water remains unanswered. Not all area businesses rely on the lake. "People come downtown to shop," said Tyler Conrad, owner of Goodthings in downtown White Bear Lake. "They don't come downtown because of the lake." The low water levels, Conrad said, are nothing new. His family has done business in downtown White Bear Lake for 43 years, during which time the lake's levels have continually risen and fallen. White Bear Lake resident Janet Richards has owned businesses in downtown White Bear Lake for more than 20 years and runs Olive Branch Oil & Spice Co. in downtown. While the lake levels haven't had a huge impact on small businesses like hers, she said, they have taken a toll on the community. "It's hard to see a beautiful asset have so much trouble," she said. What's draining White Bear Lake isn't clear. Some experts say the natural ebb and flow of lake levels is a healthy part of the lake's ecology. But the residents involved in the lawsuit against the DNR blame the low water levels on overpumping from the nearby Prairie du Chien-Jordan aquifer. Scientists with the United States Geological Survey analyzed 96 lakes in the northeast metropolitan area to determine why water levels recently declined in some, including White Bear Lake, but increased in others. An October report from the USGS found that not all lakes in the area react the same way to weather and groundwater pumping. It also found that White Bear Lake is especially sensitive to lake-level changes because of its unique deep-water outlets. Groundwater enters White Bear Lake from shallow sites near the shore and leaves from deep-water sites at the bottom of the lake, according to the study. When water flows out from those sites, it flows into aquifers beneath White Bear Lake. Those deep-water outflows are uncommon in Minnesota lakes and make White Bear Lake uniquely sensitive to water-level declines. Historically, White Bear Lake has the most significant highs and lows of neighboring lakes, the report found. "Naturally, this is always going to occur," said Perry Jones, a USGS hydrologist who helped compile the report. "So there's always going to be some kind of drop." The rise and fall of the lake levels can actually be good for the lake, as it helps a variety of plant species thrive, said Jason Moeckel, a water-resources section manager for the DNR. And the lake still has good water clarity and adequate fish and plant populations, Moeckel said. "The natural dynamics of a lake going up and down are also important parts of the ecology of that lake," he said. White Bear Lake's shoreline also has a very gradual slope, Moeckel said. So a reduction of a few feet of water can mean dozens of feet of lost shoreline in some spots. The second portion of the USGS report, which will help determine the effects of groundwater withdrawals on lake levels in general, is set to come out in January. Those involved with the issue say that study will be key in understanding what's driving the low levels and in taking steps to address the problem. In 2012, the White Bear Lake Restoration Association sued the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, alleging that low water levels in White Bear Lake were a result of overuse of an aquifer in the northeast metro area. The city of White Bear Lake intervened in the lawsuit on behalf of the DNR. The White Bear Lake Homeowners' Association intervened on behalf of the WBLRA. "We were so frustrated because there (seemed to be a) complete denial of the problem and an unwillingness to do anything about it," said Jim Markoe, president of the White Bear Lake Homeowners Association. Along with the lawsuit, the White Bear Lake Restoration Association is pushing for communities' water supplies to switch from groundwater to surface water, WBLRA president Greg McNeely said. The group also supports augmentation of the lake and conservation efforts, he said. "The lake isn't filling up the way it should," McNeely said. "Every lake around the area is above average." A report released to the Legislature earlier this year estimated that pumping water back into the lake could cost roughly $55 million, although advocates are skeptical of the accuracy of the estimate. From a scientific standpoint, it would take additional research to determine the impacts and feasibility, Moekel said. "It's complicated, and there's no easy answers," he said. "There's just a whole series of trade-offs and unknowns and things to consider." White Bear Lake Mayor Jo Emerson said the water levels have been at the forefront of issues she's addressed in her six years as mayor. Some of her constituents' livelihoods depends on the lake. But for most residents, the low lake levels have no significant impact. "I don't think it's a burning issue for a lot of people," Emerson said. If anything positive has come from the low lake levels, she said residents are more aware of conservation efforts and that the city has increased its focus on the issue. "Just because we live in Minnesota doesn't mean we have unlimited water," she said. The DNR is expected to set a protective elevation number for White Bear Lake in mid-December, said Barb Naramore, the DNR's assistant commissioner. If groundwater withdrawal is hurting the lake, the DNR would need to adjust groundwater permits, potentially leading to restrictions or bans on nonessential water uses such as lawn irrigation, she said. The DNR examines a lake's vegetation, habitat and shape and the impact those elements have on recreational uses when it sets protective elevations, Naramore said. While conservation can help maintain lake levels, Jones said, the amount of any impact can vary. Conservation efforts primarily help maintain groundwater levels but have less of an effect on above-ground lake levels, he said. Others said that the low lake levels have more to do with issues delegating sources of water. "We don't have a water shortage at all," Markoe said. "We just have a water distribution problem." But the lack of a definitive answer about what's draining the lake prevents progress in addressing the problem, Emerson said. "We don't even know what's causing this, so how do you have a solution?" she said. Though she no longer lives in White Bear Lake's city limits, Judy Brewer still regularly walks her dog along the lakeshore path, gauging the water levels as she passes. The record low water levels in 2013 were a blow for the community, Brewer said. And while she's relieved the lake waters have risen, she said she still hopes for a long-term solution. "Everyone wants to help," she said. "Nobody wants to see that beautiful lake disappear." Washington, December 17 Pakistan has firmly stated that it will not accept any alterations or changes to the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) after India said that it is ready to engage in further consultations with Islamabad on the matter of resolving current differences over the Kishenganga and Ralte projects under the Indus Water Treaty. Pakistan will not accept any modifications or changes to the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty. Our position is based on the principles enshrined in the treaty. And the treaty must be honoured in...letter and spirit, the Dawn quoted Special Assistant to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Tariq Fatemi, as saying. Islamabad has argued that India was buying time to complete its two disputed water projects and then insisting that since the project was already complete, it could not be modified. Pakistan is raising its objection to building of the Kishanganga (330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric plants by India saying that it violates the provisions of the treaty. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) Tensions increased over the water dispute when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month threatened to block the flow of water into Pakistan. The World Bank had earlier asked both the countries to consider alternative ways to resolve their disagreements over the Indus Water Treaty Dispute 1960. The World Bank had said that it was temporarily halting the appointment of a neutral expert as requested by India, and the Chairman of the Court of Arbitration, as requested by Pakistan, to resolve issues regarding two hydroelectric power plants under construction by India along the Indus Rivers system. The treaty, which was signed in 1960 by Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Pakistan President Ayub Khan, gives India control over the three eastern rivers of the Indus basin, the Beas, the Ravi and the Sutlej while Pakistan has the three western rivers, the Indus, the Chenab and the Jhelum. As per the provisions in the treaty, India can use only 20 per cent of the total water carried by the Indus River. The Indus Waters Treaty 1960 is seen as one of the most successful international treaties and has withstood frequent tensions between India and Pakistan, including conflict. The treaty sets out a mechanism for cooperation and information exchange between the two countries regarding their use of the rivers, known as the Permanent Indus Commission, which includes a commissioner from each of the two countries. It also sets out a process for resolving so-called "questions", "differences" and "disputes" that may arise between the parties. ANI Ruchika M. Khanna Tribune News Service Chandigarh, December 16 With Governor VP Singh Badnore refusing to sign the ordinances proposed by the Akali-BJP government in the run-up to the Vidhan Sabha election, the Punjab Government today convened a special one-day session of the Vidhan Sabha on December 19 to pass the proposals as Bills in the House. The decision to call a special session was taken after a delegation led by Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal and senior BJP minister Madan Mohan Mittal called on the Governor this morning, requesting him to sign the ordinances. The latter, however, refused to do so, citing some "irregularities", including the one to regularise services of 27,000 contractual employees. Governor Badnore is learnt to have also said that the government should desist from taking the "ordinance route" and instead get the legislative business passed in the House. Sources say the delegation then sought his permission for a special session. A Cabinet meeting was called in the evening and a one-day session recommended to get pending Bills passed in the House. By late evening, the government had also got the approval from the Governor to bring in some money Bills. The Governors appeal is pending for as many as five ordinances, including the one to change the terms and conditions for appointing chairmen in the Punjab School Education Board; creating an additional post of Senior Vice Chairman in the Board; creating a post of Senior Vice Chairman among women; and appointments in Punjab Water Supply and Sewerage Board. While the Akali-BJP hopes to garner support of the huge employee base with the regularisation of posts, it wants to "adjust" political rebels and the faithful" in various posts ahead of the model code of conduct. Official sources say the government could also bring in Bills regarding setting up of a regulatory authority to check the "malpractices" indulged in by private schools, including arbitrary fee hike; regularising services of EGS teachers; allowing the CT Group of Institutes to set up a private university in Ludhiana; and raising the age limit of members in the Punjab State Commission for Minorities. Will he sign the Bills before poll code of conduct? The main issue before the government remains whether the Governor will again keep the Bills (if and when passed on Monday) pending or accord approval for these to become laws in time before the model code of conduct is imposed. Cong says MLAs have quit, no point attending CLP leader Charanjit Singh Channi said they were not aware of the special session, but since all Congress MLAs had submitted their resignation and have been summoned by the Speaker on December 20-22, there was no point in attending it. By Anupam Surollia In the life of our young Republic, the cold month of December brings each year since 1971 the warm memories of the war for the liberation of Bangladesh. The war that month that year was a principled victory on a foreign soil of which any nation can take genuine and enduring pride. In a larger sense, it was not Indias war it was an unprecedented unjust human conflict thrust upon us. And, in a way, it was Indias war. It was our armed forces and our uniformed services war. Among the known men and women who brought us glory are the well-known heroes who were deservingly decorated with medals and commendations. There were able military personnel led by the three eminent service chiefs. All these, combined with the scintillating political leadership of Indira Gandhi, are rightly part of the folk lore of our national life. There is also one not-so-well-known hero of that war. His role became a major factor in the quick and decisive victory. Yet he was neither adequately decorated nor given his due. He was rather made to fade out in humiliation. Im talking of Lieutenant General Sagat Singh, the then General Officer Commanding (GOC) of Tezpur-based 4 Corps. General Sagat was unknown to me until 1991 when I was fortunate to meet his son, Major (later Colonel) Ranvijay Singh in Baroda (now Vadodara). I was a deputy commissioner of police in Baroda when we (Baroda and Bombay police) had a fierce encounter with militants owing allegiance to the Khalistan Commando Force from January 24-26, 1991. To flush out the militants, who were sheltered in a three-storey house in the heart of the Baroda city, the help of the National Security Guard was requisitioned. During the NSG operation, one experienced commando lost an eye in a splinter injury. Maj Ranvijay came after a couple of days as a part of the case study. I took him around the encounter site and briefed him. Then, over lunch, he told me about his father, General Sagat Singh, the hero of the 1971 war and the military genius who never lost against any enemy, including the Chinese. He told me that when Dacca (now Dhaka) fell, the Indian Army found a dossier on his father prepared by the Pakistani Army which mentioned that Sagat Singh is the Indian general who should be feared most as he had never lost any battle against any enemy anywhere. What a tribute from an enemy! Then he narrated how his father, despite getting injured by the machine-gun fire, successfully conducted the very daring, hitherto unknown night-time heli-borne operations over the rivers and the treacherous terrain, which made the fall of Dacca possible so quickly and decisively, leading to the surrender of 93,000 Pakistani Army personnel. After the Instrument of Surrender was signed on December 16, 1971 two days and 45 years ago Indira Gandhi visited Dacca and profusely thanked General Sagat Singh, and saw to it that he stayed in Dacca a la General Douglas MacArthur in the post-World War II Japan to assist the Sheikh Mujibur Rahman government. Ranvijay continued as to how his father always led from the front and, no matter how difficult a mission was, carried the under-command with him, how even as a very senior commander, he exposed himself routinely to danger, how he narrowly escaped death many times at many places, how he went beyond the call of duty and achieved the task plus by capturing Dacca in a very unique way. Ranvijay also told me how his father differed in tactics and strategy with the higher command, and that how courageously he lived his life. The images linger on. So when towards the end of 1991, I happened to go to Jaipur, I called on the great man. General Sagat and his wife, Kamla Kumari, were very kind to receive us at Meghna, their appropriately named bungalow after the river in Bangladesh, and showered much warmth and extended great hospitality. Sagat, a strikingly handsome and supremely confident man, now in the autumn of life, at 6' 3" towering over us all was ramrod straight, and with no bitterness. Among many things that he told me, one thing distinctly stands out in my mind. He said: Bhay kya hota hai, maine aaj tak nahi jana (I know not what fear is). I have not known anyone before or since who can say it with such conviction. General Sagat Singh passed away in the year 2001. A large number of people in Jaipur attended his prayer meeting. One former Army officer told me that there he had heard many stories of bravery of General Sagat. This further evoked my interest in the life of this man. The Sagat-saga begins in the year 1919 in the sands of western Rajasthan where Sagat was born in a village called Kusumdesar in Churu district. After humble beginnings, he was recruited as a Naik (corporal) in the Bikaner Ganga Risala (Bikaner State Force) at a young age of 19. When the Second World War commenced, he got the commission as an officer and was sent to the Middle East, where he served with distinction. After Independence, he was absorbed into the Third Gorkha Rifles, where he had the honor of commanding two battalions. As a Brigadier, he commanded the prestigious 50 Para Brigade at Agra, successfully leading it to liberate Goa in the December of 1961. The year 1961 may well be termed as the beginning of the Great Decade for him, culminating into the high-point of the Liberation of Bangladesh in 1971. In between Goa and Bangladesh, came two other high-water marks: whipping the Chinese in Sikkim and successfully dealing with the Mizo insurgency. In 2013, Major General (retired) Randhir Sinh, who was ADC to General Sagat Singh, wrote a very readable and instructive biography, A Talent For War: The Military Biography of Lt Gen Sagat Singh. The soldier-scholar late Lieutenant General SK Sinha in his foreword has the following to say: This biography ... describes in detail how the most distinguished battlefield commander of the Indian Army conducted operations during the liberation of Goa, handled insurgency in Mizoram, broke the myth of ten feet tall Chinese soldiers by getting the better of them during a big skirmish in Sikkim and provided dynamic leadership to his Corps against all odds, leading his formation from the front in the Indo-Pak War of 1971. His outstanding leadership was a major factor contributing to the unprecedented victory of Indian Army in over a millennium. After the war, when Gen Sagat was superseded and his junior, Lt Gen KK Singh, was made his boss, Gen Sinha said, ... I considered it very unfortunate that the higher-ups should treat a war hero who had done so much for the country in such an unfair and unjust manner. On Sagats death, Lt Gen KK Singh pays him the ultimate tribute: ... a great General who had become a legend in his lifetime. India will not see the likes of Sagat Singh again. It was a joy to hear that in March 2013, the Government of Bangladesh invited and honoured my friend Colonel (retired) Ranvijay Singh and Damyanti, his wife, to Dhaka to pay tribute to his father, General Sagat Singh, the liberator of Bangladesh. A thoughtful gesture from a grateful nation. Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw said: If a man says he is not afraid of dying, he is either lying or he is a Gurkha. I might add: or a Sagat Singh. Aradhika Sharma In a world thats getting increasingly full of choices, and where inclusiveness is the buzzword, why should gender choices be left behind? In the rapidly increasing lexicon of gender, LGBT is passe, and were looking at a whole new spectrum of gender identity. According to the Tinder or Facebook classification of gender, no one needs to adhere to the gender binaries of masculine and feminine of identifying themselves. Tinder, the popular dating app, recently announced an additional 37 gender options to choose from. People dont need to fit into the binary categories of male or female any longer. A person could be a transgender man, a transgender woman, a bigender, a demigirl, an androgine heterosexual andromale, a trans person, a Cis male or a Cis female, neutrois or gender non-conforming. Facebook allows choices from a mind-boggling 71 genders, even allowing users to have custom-made genders. Thirty-year-old Lokesh welcomes the news of the increasing number of gender options. I dont identify as either of the genders allowed by the government, he says. Every time someone like me is forced to mark a Male or a Female box in a form, we feel our existence is being ignored. Lokesh was born with very small testes that hardly produce any testosterone. He is of above-average height and has small breasts. Understanding the difference The western countries are doing a lot of work in pushing for the recognition of gender identities. India is still at a fledgling stage although there are many organisations working for LGBTQAI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, asexual and intersex) recognition and rights and nowhere, the country is nowhere near recognising the 70-odd genders that Facebook has listed out. To briefly explain the difference between a persons sex and gender; sex is biologically determined, whereas gender is culturally determined and thus gender is not intrinsically nor exclusively linked to ones physical make-up. Gender boundaries have blurred and widened as people are increasingly curious and open about their diverse identities and different ways in which they experience their gender. Obviously, gender has much more to it than the genitalia you are born with, says Gunjan Sharma, a sexpert and content adviser on sexuality and gender. In all this proliferation of choice, how do you determine what your gender is? If you are not Cis-gender (A person whose gender identity matches their biological sex), and you want to explore exactly what is your gender, then theres a system to it. Very superficially, based on the physical, personality and preferences that a person displays, gender is divided into three facets. Each of these categories is then further broken down into three options: male, female and androgynous. From these permutations of characteristics, a persons gender can be identified much more specifically than some years before. And you can surprise yourself to find out that you are an androgine heterosexual androfemale or a feminine heterosexual andromale or a masculine bisexual androdite! It is increasingly understood that a gender expansive persons internal identity may not necessarily confirm with the sex he was born with. Says Gunjan: One thing we all need to be thankful about is that finally it seems as if we are talking outside the binary of men and women, male and female. A slow yet select acceptance of other genders has found firm footing in discussions among the urban youth, albeit in smaller niche circles. Talking about her experience with a gender-fluid person, she says I met this young girl who, though she did not have the terminology to explain her gender, said to me: Im not a lesbian; Im a tomboy! I may look like a girl but from within, Im a boy and thats what I feel most comfortable with. Reminiscent of the path-breaking 1999 film, Boys Dont Cry. Politics of language Why have sites like Facebook, Tumblr, and Tinder, etc. realised the need to have a language for gender? People working in the politics of gender agree that if the vocabulary around gender identities is not increased, then inclusiveness gets limited. If we have only two ways of identifying human beings He and She, we create divisive binaries. The shifting and increasing gender identities must give rise to new words. Therefore, you have words like adamasgender (A gender which refuses to be categorised), aptugender (A gender which feels fitted and secured), faunagender (A gender influenced by animals) or gyragirl (Having multiple genders, which you dont understand, but knowing they have feminine qualities) Many of the gender terms are changing and dynamic and some more community and age specific. Last year, oxforddictionaries.com added an entry for the gender-neutral title Mx for those who do not want to reveal their gender or are non-binary. In June this year, an Oregon circuit court has ruled that a resident can change their legal gender to non-binary, a gender identity that is neither male nor female. Talking about gender identity, 23-year-old Laxmi, who was previously Laxman, and who is undergoing surgeries for sex change, says, I was born male, and till a few years back, I thought I was stuck with the gender, even though I know Im a female (although in some ways, Im still male). If the changing language of gender allows me to identify myself as non-binary, at least Ill know my place in the world. Even though 70 genders sound extreme, Im very happy that gender is being brought out of the closet and there are conversations happening around it, says 48-year-old Harish, who secretly identifies as Varsha. In India, typically, if born a male, you are forced to act masculine. I was called sissy in school and my mother would often censure me for acting like a girl Imagine being at constant war with ones own identity and the fear that you may be found out! Theres enough space in the world people should be allowed to be what they are! Cultural diversity Historically, culturally and geographically, gender diversity is a part of human practice. Non-binary gender diversity has been documented all across the world. Two spirits of North America: In many North American tribes, both male and female-bodied two-spirits have been documented. Two-spirits were male, female, and sometimes intersexed persons who shared activities of both men and women with behaviours exclusive to their position as two spirits. They were considered neither men nor women but occupied a distinct, alternative gender status. The Bugis of Indonesia acknowledge three sexes (female, male, hermaphrodite), four genders (women, men, calabai, and calalai), and a fifth meta-gender group, the Bissu. The Bissu are a combination of all genders. To become a bissu, one must be born both female and male, or hermaphroditic. Hawaiian Mahu: The Mahuem bodies, both male and female spirit, were traditionally respected as caretakers, healers, and keepers of ancient traditions Hijras of India: They are supposed to be neither man nor woman; neither male nor female. They are traditionally established as an alternative, mixed sex/gender role. In their dress and mannerisms, they imitate women but though they are like women, they are not women. Apart from these, there are the sworn virgin of the Balkans, the Tombois of Indonesia, the Sadhin of India, the Mohave Hwame and the Thai Kathoey. International Organisations working towards gender inclusiveness Press for Change (UK): The group has been a key lobbying and legal support organisation for trans people in the United Kingdom. a:gender (UK): The support network for staff in government departments/agencies who have changed or need to change permanently their perceived gender, or who identify as intersex. Gendered Intelligence (UK): It is a not-for-profit community interest company, established in 2008. Their vision is of a world where people are no longer constrained by narrow perceptions and expectations of gender, and where diverse gender expressions are visible and valued. National Center for Transgender Equality (USA): It is a non-profit social equality organisation, founded in 2003 by transgender activist Mara Keisling. NCTE is dedicated to advancing the equality of transgender people by providing a voice for advocacy in Washington, DC. Tri-Ess (USA): It is an international educational, social, and support group for heterosexual cross-dressers, their partners, and their families. The Scottish Transgender Alliance: The organisation works to improve gender identity and gender reassignment equality, rights and inclusion in Scotland. Pink Space Sexuality Research Centre (China): Provides opportunities for sexually oppressed people to express their sexual desires and practices, and to form communities in order to fight for sexual rights. Transgender Europe: Works for the empowerment and self -determination of all gender variant (trans) people in Europe. Sahodri (Tamil Nadu): Run by a transgender woman Kalki Subramaniam; working for the social, economic and political empowerment of transgender persons in India. Nazariya (Delhi): It is a queer feminist resource group that affirms the rights of people marginalised on the basis of gender and sexuality. Berlin, December 17 A 12-year-old boy attempted twice to launch terrorist attacks in the western German city of Ludwigshafen this and last month, a local prosecutor confirmed on Friday. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) The boy tried to target a local Christmas market on November 26 and the areas near the city hall on December 5 with explosives, but failed both times to ignite them, Xinhua news agency reported. The backpack with explosives was noticed by passengers near the city hall and reported to the police, prompting the next investigation. The boy, born in Ludwigshafen with dual German and Iraqi nationality, was allegedly strongly radicalised and could have been instigated by the Islamic State, local media reported. He is currently staying at the local youth office. He will not be charged because of his age, according to the prosecutor. IANS United Nations, December 17 UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said the world needs to press ahead in the struggle against climate change. In his final press conference as Secretary-General, Ban on Friday said the UN must maintain the impetus that resulted in the signing of the Paris Agreement on climate change, Xinhua news agency reported. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) "Climate action means jobs, growth, cleaner air and better health. Leaders from across the globe and on every front understand this -- from Fortune 500 CEOs to governors and mayors," he said. "The Paris Agreement on climate change is a precious achievement that we must support and nurture," Ban said. "There is no turning back." The accord, which was signed by 194 nations and came into effect last month, is considered one of the most important achievements of Ban's tenure, which officially ends on December 31, when Antonio Guterres will take over the post. However, the election of Donald Trump as US president has cast a shadow of uncertainty over the pact's implementation. In recent days, Trump said he was considering whether to pull out of the Paris Agreement, which he suggested could make the US economy less competitive with rivals such as China, even though Beijing is also a signatory to the pact. Four years ago, Trump described climate change as a "hoax invented by China" to harm the US. IANS Paris: The Grand Musee de Parfum, Paris first perfume museum, opened its doors on Friday, inviting visitors to discover perfume history through a quite innovative sensory and olfactory exhibition. It intends to create three spaces with one area dedicated to the history of perfumes. France has the world's leading cosmetics-perfumes sector and its turnover totalled $26 billion in 2014. IANS Vanity Fair a hit after Trumps tweet Washington: US magazine Vanity Fair saw a record-breaking subscription after President-elect Donald Trump tweeted that the publication is "dead". The harsh remarks came after it ran an article that described a restaurant in Trump Tower as possibly "the worst in America". Vanity Fair capitalised on Trump's tweet by putting up a banner on its website: "The magazine Trump doesn't want you to read. Subscribe Now!" IANS Fact-check plug-in for Trump tweets New York: To fact-check the posts from US President-elect Donald Trump's Twitter account, the Washington Post has released a Chrome plug-in - first for any American news outlet. Fact-check notes appear below any statement on Trump's account that the editors of the Washington Post consider misleading. IANS Uber to keep self-driving cars in San Francisco Los Angeles: Uber's self-driving cars will keep ferrying passengers around San Francisco, the ride-hailing company said a few hours before state prosecutors threatened to haul Uber before a judge if the service is not suspended immediately. Uber began the pilot project on Wednesday with a few Volvo SUVs that are tricked out with a suite of sensors allowing them to steer, brake and accelerate. A person sits behind the wheel, just in case. AP Washington, December 17 Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian backers have blood on their hands, US President Barack Obama has said while pitching for an impartial international observer force in Aleppo to coordinate an orderly evacuation through safe corridors. "The Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies are trying to obfuscate the truth. The world should not be fooled and the world will not forget," Obama told White House reporters at his final year ender news conference. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) Around the world as well, there are hotspots where disputes have been intractable, conflicts have flared up, and people, innocent people are suffering as result, and nowhere is this more terribly true than in the city of Aleppo, he said. "For years, we've worked to stop the civil war in Syria and alleviate human suffering. It has been one of the hardest issues that I've faced as president," Obama said. The world, he said, is united in horror at the savage assaults by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo. "We have seen a deliberate strategy of surrounding, besieging and starving innocent civilians. We've seen relentless targeting of humanitarian workers and medical personnel, and entire neighbourhoods reduced to rubble and dust. There are continuing reports of civilians being executed. These are all horrific violations of international law," the US President said. "Responsibility for this brutality lies in one place alone, with the Assad regime and its allies, Russia and Iran, and this blood and these atrocities are on their hands," Obama said. "We all know what needs to happen," he said, adding that there needs to be an impartial international observer force in Aleppo that can help coordinate an orderly evacuation through safe corridors. "There has to be full access for humanitarian aid, even as the United States continues to be the world's largest donor of humanitarian aid to the Syrian people. And beyond that, there needs to be a broader ceasefire that can serve as the basis for a political rather than a military solution," Obama said. "That's what the United States is gonna continue to push for, both with our partners and through multilateral institutions like the UN," he said, but regretted Russia repeatedly blocking the Security Council from taking action on these issues. Soon after the news conference Obama left for Hawaii on his final year ender vacation as the President of the United States. PTI Washington, December 17 WASHINGTON: Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian backers have blood on their hands, US President Barack Obama has said while pitching for an impartial international observer force in Aleppo to coordinate an orderly evacuation through safe corridors. "The Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies are trying to obfuscate the truth. The world should not be fooled and the world will not forget," Obama told White House reporters at his final year ender news conference. Around the world as well, there are hotspots where disputes have been intractable, conflicts have flared up, and people, innocent people are suffering as result, and nowhere is this more terribly true than in the city of Aleppo, he said. "For years, we've worked to stop the civil war in Syria and alleviate human suffering. It has been one of the hardest issues that I've faced as president," Obama said. The world, he said, is united in horror at the savage assaults by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo. "We have seen a deliberate strategy of surrounding, besieging and starving innocent civilians. We've seen relentless targeting of humanitarian workers and medical personnel, and entire neighbourhoods reduced to rubble and dust. There are continuing reports of civilians being executed. These are all horrific violations of international law," the US President said. "Responsibility for this brutality lies in one place alone, with the Assad regime and its allies, Russia and Iran, and this blood and these atrocities are on their hands," Obama said. "We all know what needs to happen," he said, adding that there needs to be an impartial international observer force in Aleppo that can help coordinate an orderly evacuation through safe corridors. "There has to be full access for humanitarian aid, even as the United States continues to be the world's largest donor of humanitarian aid to the Syrian people. And beyond that, there needs to be a broader ceasefire that can serve as the basis for a political rather than a military solution," Obama said. "That's what the United States is gonna continue to push for, both with our partners and through multilateral institutions like the UN," he said, but regretted Russia repeatedly blocking the Security Council from taking action on these issues. Soon after the news conference Obama left for Hawaii on his final year ender vacation as the President of the United States. PTI AMMAN, December 17 Syrian rebels blamed Iran and its Shi'ite-backed militias on Saturday of holding up a deal to evacuate civilians trapped in the remaining rebel bastion in Aleppo. Munir al Sayal, the head of the political wing of the Ahrar al Sham rebel group involved in negotiations over the deal, said Iran was insisting people be allowed to leave two besieged Shi'ite villages before letting the Aleppo evacuation happen. He said Russia was failing to restrain its ally. "Iran and its sectarian proxies are using the humanitarian situation of our people in besieged Aleppo and preventing civilians from leaving until the evacuation of their groups in al-Foua and Kefyra," Sayal told Reuters. The operation to evacuate fighters and civilians from the last opposition-held area of Aleppo was suspended on Friday, its second day, after pro-government militias demanded that wounded people also be brought out of al-Foua and Kefraya, and protesters blocked the road out of Aleppo. Sayal said Moscow's assertion that most civilians had already been evacuated from Aleppo showed Russia was trying to renege on its responsibilities under the deal. Thousands of hungry and cold civilians needed to be evacuated as soon as possible, he said. "Russia has failed to restrain the sectarian Shi'ite militias in Aleppo to complete the deal and Moscow should abide by its commitments," Sayal said. "There are still civilians in Aleppo who need to be evacuated in harsh weather conditions and Russian statements that besieged Aleppo is empty is absolving itself from following up on the agreement," he added. My wife, Joan, and I wish to thank the people in the Coulee Region who have been so welcoming and supportive since we moved here in 2006 to serve Viterbo University. When recruited to consider the presidency, we were informed by trustees, the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration and employees that Viterbo was a wonderful place to work and the region a beautiful place to live. All true and more! The natural resources are surpassed only by such generous and friendly folks. We are fortunate to live in a community with outstanding health care and great private and public schools, colleges and universities. Few communities can boast of the collaborations that characterize the relationships and friendships among Viterbo, Western Technical College and the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. Programs such as the La Crosse Tribune Extra Effort Awards, the La Crosse Medical Health Science Consortium, the Boys and Girls Clubs, the Weber Center for the Performing Arts, and the Salvation Army have brought Viterbo together with many community partners for the betterment of our city, the downtown and our neighborhoods. My retirement will be effective Dec. 31 after serving as president for the past 10 years. It has been a blessing to be part of this special community. Thank you. Peace and all good. Electronics have added complexity and driven the reman industry to invest more in technician training and special equipment. Photo: Cummins The increasing complexity of todays heavy-duty diesel engine has added complexity to the remanufacturing process. Stringent tolerances and finishes for components such as high-pressure fuel pumps, exhaust gas recirculation valves, diesel particulate filters, diesel exhaust fluid pumps and after treatment devices require significant investments in state-of-the-art equipment, says Amanda Snyder, vice president, engineering and business development, Detroit Reman. The basic engine remanufacturing process hasnt changed, she notes. It involves disassembling cleaning, testing and recovering components or replacing them with new parts, as needed. What has changed is the testing process, which now requires more sophisticated methods. Clay Conn, production manager at U.S. Diesel Remanufacturing LLC, agrees that the complexity of engines has changed the process in many ways. The company had to adapt its assembly rooms. What was considered a clean room for engine assembly is no longer clean enough to be assembling anything that is Tier 4 emissions, he explains. Very small particles, even as small as 20 microns, can be known to create issues in the newer fuel systems. He adds that assembly rooms have to be cleaned and maintained in a meticulous fashion, which he considers to be on par with most doctors offices. Another way the reman process has changed, according to Conn, is in the machining process. Tolerances are becoming a lot tighter on the newer engines. The honing process for the cylinders requires special plateau finishes that make it so the engines no longer have a break-in period. The second you turn the key on, your new engine is broken in and meeting the required emissions. These different finishes and tighter tolerances have required us to update a lot of our machines, he says. Investment in technicians is needed as well. There is a lot less margin for error when it comes to handling and assembling the components in the newer engines, Conn says. He believes that vocational or technical trade school training is not enough to train technicians properly. We need to hand pick technicians and then further train them in the specific area where expertise is needed, Conn says. Every technician involved in the process needs to be very meticulous, and pay close attention to detail 100% of the time. However, the remanufacturers themselves are not the only ones who need to make changes. Parts suppliers have had to adapt their technologies as well to keep up with the tighter tolerances and changing material compositions that are required for the newer/lower emissions engines, Conn explains. According to Stanford Siy, heavy duty Recon engine product manager for Cummins, the complexity of engines means remanufacturing capability has become less replicable and more specialized, pushing OEM engine remanufacturers to invest in more technology. He says that if non-OE engine rebuilders dont also invest in new technology, the gap between rebuilt and remanufactured products will likely widen. There is a need to keep customers well educated on the differences between [rebuilt and remanufactured] to help them understand the implications of the choices they make and the expectations they have about one type of repair over a genuine remanufactured product. Electronics changing the game The remanufacturing process starts with acquiring good, high quality cores. Photo: Navistar Siy notes that electronics have added another level of complexity. Similar to how engines complexity has contributed to more investments, electronics have driven the industry to invest more in manpower training and upgrading of remanufacturing equipment to keep up with the advancements of electronics and even telematics. He adds, The industry will continue to be pushed this way, as the demand for more connectivity and computer-driven predictive analytics grow at a fast pace. Conn believes electronics have made remanufacturers jobs both harder and easier. He explains that the fuel systems and governors on older engines took a lot of time and knowledge to properly set to make the engine run efficiently. For example, push tube timing on an 855 or N14 Cummins engine can take even an experienced technician a full day to get right, he explains. A governor assembly on a 6V-53 Detroit diesel engine will leave most everyone who hasnt been taught that specific governor scratching their heads. But he says the newer electronically governed and controlled engines usually have a rather easy injector setting, if any injector setting at all. Diagnosing issues with a remanufactured engine that is electronically controlled can be done without even reaching in your toolbox for a wrench, Conn says. However, the equipment required to diagnose the newer engines can be very expensive. And just having the equipment to do the diagnostic work is not enough, Conn says. Electronic diagnostic and repair training is needed for each engine OEMs product. This training is very expensive but it allows the technicians to be able to communicate with the engine in ways we never thought would be possible and easily diagnose an engine malfunction. The days of cracking a fuel line with a wrench to see what injector is missing have quickly gone by the wayside. Stringent tolerances and finishes are needed for components such as diesel particulate filters. Photo: Detroit Reman OE or independent All this complexity has made it tougher for smaller operations to be in the engine remanufacturing business. The fact that engines are getting more complicated is a barrier to entry, says Chintan Sopariwala, general manager of core and remanufacturing operations, Navistar. He adds, Navistar has aggressive plans to expand its reman electronics portfolio to meet market demand. Emphasizing its focus on remanufacturing, the company recently launched its Core Advantage Program, which it calls a creative new approach for core life cycle management. Cores are a key component in the remanufacturing process. As Sopariwala says, He who controls the cores is the king. He believes one of the biggest barriers to entry into the remanufacturing business is the access to cores. Access to good, high-quality cores is of paramount importance more than anything else, Sopariwala says. You cant launch a reman program if you dont have a core; it is that simple. He explains that OEMs are getting creative in trying to do a better job controlling their cores and adds that Navistar wants to reduce core fallout to less than 1%. That means 99% of Navistar cores should come back; that is a pretty aggressive goal. Under the new program, fleets have their own account number and location code, which streamlines their ability to see and run reports on purchases, return history, core eligibility and core fallout rates across multiple locations. Last year, a memorandum of understanding signed by truck and engine makers and commercial aftermarket organizations provided a way for independent repair garages to get access to service information for model year 2010 and later trucks and buses over 10,000 pounds. Its unclear at this point what effect this will have in the remanufacturing arena. As you know, the MOU comes with information flow from the OE to the independent garage, but it is not free, Sopariwala says. Independents will also have to invest in training their technicians and buying specialized tools, which come from the OE. Siy says that from a plant process standpoint, the MOU should not effect remanufacturing. The commitment of remanufacturers remains to provide customers the highest quality and best solutions for their engine needs with products that are brought back to their original state and in most cases, even better. He explains that this improved state is the result of OEMs continuously improving the design and build processes. All these advantages are shared to the remanufacturing group, which then adapts these improvements without the need to pass on any extra costs to the customer, he adds. Sopariwala explains that remanufactured engines incorporate all design changes. As a result, We would like to see reman as the same as brand new, he says. The quality is the same, the warranty is the same, the only difference is it comes at a fraction of the price of new. He adds, What I dont know is if a lot of truck owners are aware that the remanufactured engine that comes from the factory is actually a better version [of the original], as all design enhancements that happen over time are incorporated in the reman engine. Siy says popular Cummins models and specs of engines are generally available as remanufactured ReCon branded products. Our proposition to the customer is minimizing downtime through the quickest plug-and-play solution via a Cummins ReCon engine. Conn suggests that if truck owners are in the market for a reman engine, they need to do their research. The word remanufactured is often tossed around in the market by salesmen who are more or less repairing an engine, Conn says. He advises fleets to make sure they know what protocol the remanufacturer uses, and exactly what parts are going to be replaced in the engine. I would recommend being sure to get the reman protocol, with the warranty, in writing before you make a purchase, he says. Make sure you take the time to research the company you are going to purchase from. An hour of research can save you tens of thousand of dollars, and invaluable time in the future. Looking to the future, Conn sees more changes in store for remanufacturers. Once a new technology product is introduced to the market at the OEM level, there is always a trickle down effect throughout the entire industry. With the continuing EPA regulation changes, there will be a need for us to keep changing our practices and procedures to stay competitive in the market and supply a quality remanufactured product. In broad terms, court filings seeking class-action status over three of Oklahomas five largest earthquakes hold fossil fuel companies those injecting vast volumes of saltwater from oil and natural gas production deep underground accountable for the states rise in seismicity. Broad scientific consensus concurs with that assessment. But does current scientific understanding of Oklahomas man-made quakes unequivocally connect saltwater disposal to each of the three specific quake events called out by the litigation? Not exactly. Specifically, whether theres a definitive human fingerprint on the unprecedented Prague earthquake sequence in 2011 remains murky, according to some of the latest research available. The magnitude-5.7 main quake was sandwiched by a 4.8 foreshock and 4.8 aftershock. A study published Nov. 30 by two Stanford University geophysicists developed a model to show how man-made quakes are expected to respond to the substantial cutbacks in 2016 of wastewater injection. The peer-reviewed article reported that the three largest Prague quakes occurred unexpectedly early in the induced seismicity sequence, the beginnings of which the authors pegged as 2009. Because the Prague sequence does not fit our overall model, it does not allow us to conclude whether it was triggered by injection or not, as our model characterizes the general relationship between an injected volume and seismicity in a crustal volume as a whole, according to the study. A localized pressure increase in a limited area could always trigger seismicity on a given fault. The scientists say its unclear if Prague was a definitive product of human actions because that particularly strong sequence happened on the front end of the states rise of induced seismicity, not conforming to their general model of the situation. The research evaluates the wastewater and seismicity correlation on a broad basis. But the authors note that a local pressure increase via a single well or group of wells significantly upping volumes in a specific area could trigger an outlier quake or quakes, such as the powerful Prague sequence. The Prague class-action petition, filed in 2015, cites a scientific study published in a 2013 edition of Geology, which suggests a man-made tie. That studys scientists wrote that they interpret the first 4.8 quake as induced by increased fluid pressure. The 5.7 and the following 4.8 may also be considered consequences of injection, but the scientists say stress calculations show that the fault geometries are consistent with triggering by stress transfer. That implies the faults that produced the second and third quakes were near failure, they said. In this manner, small- to moderate-sized injection-induced events may result in release of additional tectonic stress, the authors wrote. Class-action litigation recently has been filed in the magnitude-5.8 Pawnee and 5.0 Cushing earthquakes, which rumbled in September and November, respectively. The recent Stanford University study also addresses the man-made correlation topic with regard to the Pawnee quake, the states strongest on record. The authors note the Pawnee temblor from September appears to have a higher magnitude than predicted by our model. The expected maximum quake in 2016 was predicted by that model to be about a magnitude-5.0. However, the study does state that the cumulative probability of exceeding a 5.8 by saltwater injection between 2009 and September was 25 percent. The 5.8 Pawnee quake is only slightly below the maximum magnitude expected (6.0) based on 1,900 years of tectonic background activity, according to the article. The study analyzed data through September, so it does not include discussion of the Cushing quake. Although the Prague sequences individual connection to a man-made cause is considered unclear in the Stanford study, its authors provide strong and compelling evidence for the general trend of induced seismicity in the past several years. The authors point out that almost all recent earthquakes have occurred within a 15,000-square-mile region of interest that is subject to wastewater restrictions. The Pawnee, Prague and Cushing quakes all occurred within that perimeter, as well as 4.5 quakes near Crescent and Edmond, and two 4.7s close to Cherokee. The strain energy release of the past eight years is the equivalent of more than 1,900 years of naturally occurring energy, the scientists wrote. There have been no Ukrainian citizens among those killed or wounded as a result of a car bomb blast in Turkish city of Kayseri, according to the Embassy of Ukraine in Turkey. According to the official data, as a result of the terrorist act in Kayseri, at least 13 people were killed and dozens were wounded. There have been no Ukrainians among those killed/wounded, reads a report. A car bomb hit a bus transporting off-duty military personnel near the campus of Erciyes University in Kayseri on Saturday. iy Militants launched 52 attacks on positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the ATO in Donbas over the past day, the ATO headquarters reports. In Mariupol direction, terrorists used 152mm artillery systems to shell the Ukrainian positions in Talakivka and 122mm artillery systems to fire at Shyrokyne, Krasnohorivka, Lebedynske, and Vodiane. Also, the enemy used mortars, grenade launchers and small arms. In Luhansk direction, the terrorists used 152mm artillery systems to fire at Troitske and Novozvnivka, and grenade launchers and small arms to fire at Stanytsia Luhanska, Popasna, Novooleksandrivka. In Donetsk direction, Ukrainian positions came under grenade launchers, mortars and small arms fire near Avdiivka and Luhanske, and 122mm artillery systems were used to shell Nevelske. iy The Ukrainian army sustained no losses over the past 24 hours in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) area in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, but two Ukrainian soldiers were wounded. Defense Ministrys Spokesman on ATO issues, Andriy Lysenko said at a press briefing on Saturday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. Over the past day, no Ukrainian soldiers were killed, but two were wounded as a result of enemy attacks near the village of Nevelske, Lysenko said. iy Co-chair of the Group of Strategic Advisors for Support of Reforms in Ukraine Ivan Miklos praised Ukraine for macroeconomic stabilization, deregulation and liberalization, but at the same time stressed that reforms in the country should be accelerated. He stated this at a meeting with civil society representatives and experts, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. The reforms take place in right direction, but they need to be accelerated. Some areas: macroeconomic stabilization, deregulation, liberalization, have already shown significant achievements. But in other areas progress is not sufficient and thats why our working group wants to pay more attention to them, Miklos said. iy When they set out to find growing mainline churches, sociologist David Haskell and historian Kevin Flatt did the logical thing: They asked leaders of four key Canadian denominations to list their successful congregations. It didnt take long, however, to spot a major problem as the researchers contacted these Anglican, United Church, Presbyterian and Evangelical Lutheran parishes. Few, if any, of the congregations these denominations leaders named were actually growing, said Haskell, who teaches at Wilfrid Laurier University in Brantford, Ontario. A few had experienced a little bit of growth in one or two years in the past, but for the most part, they were holding steady at best, or actually in steady declines. To find thriving congregations in these historic denominations, Haskell and Flatt, who teaches at Redeemer University College in Hamilton, Ontario, had to hunt on their own. By word of mouth, they followed tips from pastors and lay leaders to other growing mainline churches. The bottom line: The faith proclaimed in growing churches was more orthodox especially on matters of salvation, biblical authority and the supernatural than in typical mainline congregations. These churches were thriving on the doctrinal fringes of shrinking institutions. The people running these old, established denominations didnt actually know much about their own growing churches, said Haskell in an interview. Either that, or they didnt want to admit which churches were growing. The researchers stated their conclusions in the title Theology Matters of a peer-reviewed article in the current Review of Religious Research. In all, they plan five academic papers building on their studies of clergy and laypeople in nine growing and 13 declining congregations in southern Ontario, a region Haskell called church-friendly, in the context of modern Canada. Focusing on 2003 to 2013, the researchers defined decline as an average loss of 2 percent of church attendees a year. Growing churches were gaining people in the pews at a rate of 2 percent or more. Haskell said leaders of doctrinally progressive churches tend to believe that strong convictions are what matter and it really doesnt matter what those convictions are. That is not what we see in the numbers, after our research. What we see is that growing churches hold more firmly to basics of traditional Christianity, including being more diligent about things like prayer, Bible reading and evangelism. Crucial findings in this study showed that, in growing churches, pastors tend to be more conservative than the people in their pews. In declining congregations, pastors are usually more theologically liberal than their people. For example: Clergy in growing churches affirmed, by an overwhelming 93 percent, that Jesus rose from the dead, leaving an empty tomb, while 56 percent of clergy in declining churches agreed. Among laypeople, this divide was 83 percent vs. 67 percent. In growing churches, 46 percent of clergy strongly affirmed, and nearly 31 percent moderately affirmed, this statement: Only those who believe in and follow Jesus Christ will receive eternal life. Zero pastors in declining churches affirmed that statement and 6 percent moderately agreed. In growing congregations, 100 percent of the clergy said its crucial to encourage non-Christians to become Christians, while only 50 percent of pastors in declining churches agreed. In declining churches, 44 percent of pastors agreed that God performs miracles in answer to prayers, compared with 100 percent of clergy in growing congregations. There were other patterns worthy of future study, said Haskell. Growing churches were much younger, with two-thirds of their members under the age of 60, while two-thirds of those attending declining churches were over 60. Families in growing churches also had more children. Finally, growing mainline churches were finding their new members among outsiders people who say going to church is new for them at the same rate as growing evangelical Protestant churches (about 12 percent). Its hard to avoid what we see in the numbers, said Haskell, who described himself as a rather nontraditional believer. If you believe that Jesus is the path to the best life in this life, and eternal life in the next, then youre going to practice your faith differently than someone who believes that all religions are basically the same. ... As it turns out, doctrines really do have consequences. Crucial findings in this study showed that, in growing churches, pastors tend to be more conservative than the people in their pews. In declining congregations, pastors are usually more theologically liberal. The European Union will provide assistance to the government of Ukraine to carry out the comprehensive public administration reform in Ukraine, the governments website reports. Government adopted a resolution enabling to conclude the agreement with the European Commission on financing the program "Support for Comprehensive Public Administration Reform in Ukraine, reads a report. In particular, the implementation of the agreement will allow: - strengthening capacity of government bodies responsible for the implementation, coordination, monitoring and reporting on comprehensive public administration reform; - strengthening the financial stability of public administration reform; - improving the institutional and procedural basis for the government's strategic planning system and public policy formation; - introducing principles of public administration developed by the OECD/SIGMA, in the civil service of Ukraine etc. iy [The money is parked in countries that India has tax avoidance agreements with and cannot do anything much to get money stashed there.] We have been hearing that India has become the worlds favourite destination for foreign investment and that a number of firms have been investing in India over the last two years. The 'Make in India' scheme was announced with much fanfare by the Prime Minister and was declared successful by some who pointed out that a large amount of foreign direct investment (FDI) had come in soon after. If this was true, it should have reflected in some increase in jobs and in production. India received 44 billion dollars in 2015 through the FDI route. The US was on top, with 380 billion dollars invested in its economy by various foreign investors. Hong Kong came second with 175 and China third with 136 billion dollars. Ireland, Netherlands, Switzerland and Singapore come next in that order. All these are very small countries but each of them receives more than twice the investment that comes to India. In the 8th position is Brazil that received 65 billion dollars at a time when its economy is slated to be doing really badly. And immediately above India on the 9th position is Canada that got 49 billion dollars last year. In India, the three top sectors that received foreign direct investment in 2015 were the services sectors (that include finance, banking and insurance), computer hardware and software and the trading segment. These sectors obtained a third of the total FDI last year, a little more than $16 billion. Additionally, three of the large manufacturing sectors where most jobs are traditionally generated - construction, automobiles and pharmaceuticals, have actually seen a decline in FDI inflows during the last year. However, the employment scenario continues to be dismal. This is largely because most of the significant share of the record FDI equity that came in was for the services sector. In 2015-16, a total of $41 billion dollars came to the Indian economy and that resulted in job growth in the IT, computer hardware, finance and banking sectors. However most of the sectors in manufacturing, that was at the heart of the 'Make in India' campaign diminished continuously. Construction has been the second largest FDI earner after services, but fell sharply by 85 per cent in FDI inflows over the previous year. It continues to do badly and does not look like recovering soon. As a result, employment growth is likely to be sluggish next year too. Tourism is another sector that could have benefitted with foreign investment but has been hit badly. With tourist numbers falling, it is unlikely that there would be much by way of foreign investment in this sector too, leading to further shrinking of employment growth. It is also interesting to look at where FDI to India comes from. The top two countries investing in India are Mauritius and Singapore. More than 34 per cent of Indias FDI comes from Mauritius while a little more than 15 per cent comes from Singapore. The other half comes from all other sources like the US, Japan, UK and other major economies. What this basically means is that nearly half the FDI is essentially Indian money parked abroad. This is the infamous black money that rich Indians send to Mauritius, Singapore and Dubai and get it back legitimately as FDI The reason Mauritius has been a favourite destination is because India has a tax avoidance treaty with it. Mauritius is a tax haven that means it has an almost zero tax regime. Just like Monaco, Bahamas, Luxemburg, Dubai, Cayman Islands etc. So anyone who keeps money there and uses it to then invest abroad pays hardly any tax. In addition, the double tax avoidance agreements mean that an investor based in Mauritius only has to pay tax there and not in India. Large investments to India, in the airline sector and in the construction sector have come through this route After the new government announced its intentions to trace and bring back black money kept abroad, quite a few people started moving away from Mauritius to safer places like Singapore and Dubai. The money is parked in countries that India has tax avoidance agreements with and cannot do anything much to get money stashed there. As a result, the government has been unable to make good its promise of bringing back black money stashed abroad. Demonetisation, for all its promises, clearly does nothing to this cash stashed abroad. Neither is it able to prevent this money coming back almost at will. The fact of the matter therefore is that despite such major measures taken as opening up the most critical and most sensitive sectors the government hasnt been able to attract investment. The BJP government opened up the Insurance sector completely, the Pensions sector and even the Defense sector. However, most investment has come only in services where it was bound to come in any case given the market size. Manufacturing that is key to employment growth continues to remain poorly funded, inefficiently run with its high costs of land acquisition, electricity charges and wage labour. [Dr. Amir Ullah Khan is a development economist and Research Director at Aequitas. He is also Visiting professor at the ISB in Hyderabad.] [Partition of the country affected Urdu in very adverse ways. After partition, Urdu got divided into three nation states India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Urdu speakers in Bangladesh became refugees while those migrated to Pakistan remain Muhajirs. (Photo: Munira's Bubble )] Urdu language in India has been caught in the communal politics of the country. It is being called as a language of Muslims and a large section of the non-Muslim speakers have drifted away from Urdu. In fact, Persian and Turkish were the main languages which Muslim ruling class coming from other countries in medieval times brought. Urdu developed as a language due to mixing up different languages and dialects in the country over the centuries and became a language of masses for communication in large part of northern and the Deccan region of the country. Many argue that the government has not given due status to Urdu and as there is hardly any official communication in the language, and it has not got embedded in the capitalist system. The embedding in capitalist system and becoming a language of commercial activities are important to remain relevant and survive in this market dominated society. It is a fact, only the lower and lower middle class Muslims are educating their children in Urdu while the upper middle and the higher classes are shifting to English. Given the socio-economic marginality of Muslims in country, this raises many disturbing questions. Many contend that for their development Muslims need to adopt a language and script which has the dominance in the Market and/or is a recognised state language, while others argue that Urdu is a language in which Muslim religious discourses and the best of Muslim culture or Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb of India (syncretic culture) are embedded and as such this language need to be preserved and adopted by the Muslims and all. Urdu is not a regional language of India but its speakers are spread across the country and more specifically in northern and Deccan regions. The language is being spoken by a sizeable number of people from Kashmir to West Bengal and upto Karnataka. However, only in Kashmir it is a first official state language, and in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Delhi, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh it has got second language status. In fact, in Jammu and Kashmir, Urdu got official language status more due to political reasons, not on the basis of the number of speakers of the Urdu language. Many argue that regional languages are more prevalent among people in the state than Urdu. As Urdu speakers do not form the majority speakers in any state, it has also been a language without state apparatus to support it. The north and Deccan regions of the country which was the birth place of the Urdu language has largely succumbed to the communal politics and states in these regions have abandoned the promotion and use of the language in official communications. Partition of the country affected Urdu in very adverse ways. After partition, Urdu got divided into three nation states India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Urdu speakers in Bangladesh became refugees while those migrated to Pakistan remain Muhajirs. Though, Urdu has become national language of Pakistan it faces the same consequences at the regional level in Pakistan as Hindi in south India. In India, it also suffered a setback. It wrongly got perceived that it is associated with Muslims and is a language of foreigners leading to adverse state and social favour to it. In India, Urdu has been a victim of both the market and the State. It is a language of love, living together and expression of emotion, which have largely lost value in todays fast changing and commoditized lives. The State has not encouraged official communications in Nastaliq (Perso-Arabic) and Urdu is uncared for in educational institutions while the Market has preference for English, Hindi or regional languages. This is unfortunate that the support to Urdu language by the state has often been linked to the support to Muslims. It has only received tokenism or what Jeffery (1997) calls moth-eaten patronage. The supports to the language have often been with a goal of keeping Muslims happy for their votes. But this is not the kind of support which can sustain or embed a language into capitalism. Both English and Urdu are sometimes portrayed as the language of conquerors or traitors. But where English is considered to be the language of wealthy, Urdu is now regarded as primary language of the poor, particularly of poor Muslims. Many claim that Muslims committed mistake in owning the language. This not only compromised their development and adaptation of English and other official languages but help the right wing politics in India, which targeted Muslims and linked Urdu with two nation theory. The campaigns for the promotion of Urdu has often created adverse relationship between Muslim community and political leadership at large in the country. The north India was already communalised during national movement for freedom and the campaigns have also adversely affected the Hindu-Muslim relations in south India. Campaign for Urdu outside north India created two adverse consequences. First, separated Muslims from non-Muslims. Second, governments helping the cause of Urdu were blamed to be favouring Muslims by Hindu communal groups. Thus, while working for the cause of Urdu, Muslims lost on both the fronts. First, they could not help Urdu and gave an impression that Urdu is a language of Muslims. Second, the society got more communalised. Muslims face consequences of it in the form of discrimination, communal violence and alienation. In fact, for the sake of preserving Sanskrit, Urdu was sacrificed under three language formula in northern states. Hindi was brought as mother tongue, English as one modern language and Sanskrit, as language of ancient India. In northern India where Muslims were Urdu speakers, Census staff noted Hindi as their mother tongue without consulting them. Urdu, the language of modern and medieval India, was thus left without any meaningful space in education system. Most of the southern Indian states, such as Tamil Nadu, adopted two-language formula, in which regional language and English were given space but Hindi was left out. The neglect of Hindi as sister language of Urdu also adversely affected the prospect of Urdu in these states. It is important that state and Central governments recognise that Urdu is a language of the country and is a carrier of its glorious culture and history and not a language of Muslims. Muslims should also realise this and should not exert religious identity for the language which is of secular origin. More the Muslim assert for its promotion, the possibility is that more Urdu will be marginalised by the communal politics. There is also a need that Urdu adopts other scripts as well for its growth and spread. A sizeable proportion of Indian masses who speak and love the language cannot read it in Perso-Arabic script. The state support to the language is essential for its survival. To remain relevant and widely used. Many claim that this may be the last generation of Urdu speakers in many parts of the country. In some states, it may go on for one or two generations more before the poor Muslims also realise that it is not economically rewarding to educate their children in Urdu schools. That may be final stage of the end of a glorious culture and history that Urdu created in India. [Dr. Abdul Shaban is Professor and Deputy Director at Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Tuljapur. He can be reached at Shaban@tiss.edu] Located in the southern Italy along the east coast of Salento peninsula, Otranto has had a fair share of tragedy and death. It is also home to some interesting historical events and the Otranto Cathedral famous for holding the skulls and bones of 800 men who were killed by the Ottomans during their invasion of Rome in 15th century. The relics of these martyrs of Otranto remain now in the cathedral, also known as Basilica Cattedrale di Santa Maria Annunziata or Cathedral of Santa Maria Annunziata. In 1480, Otranto was under siege for 15 days by Ottoman Turks who broke through the citys defenses and, according to historical accounts, killed 12,000 people and enslaved 5,000. The siege started on July 28, 1480, when the Ottomans, commanded by Gedik Ahmed Pasha sailed and landed beneath the walls of Otranto. The city held strong defense for a while, but soon the garrison couldnt resist the attacks. The townsfolk started abandoning the city and after them the militia as well started leaving. After 15 days, on August 15, 1480, the Ottomans broke through the defenses and captured the city. Women and older children were sold into Albanian slavery and men over fifteen years, small children and infants were killed. Including victims from the Salentine peninsula, a total of 12,000 were killed and 5,000 were made slaves. Advertisements The Ottoman Turks selected 800 able-bodied men and told them to convert to Islam. When they refused they were taken to the Hill of Minerva (Colle della Minerva) and executed on August 14, 1480. When the 800 men were told to convert to Islam or die, a tailor named Antonio Primaldi was said to have proclaimed Now it is time for us to fight to save our souls for the Lord. And since he died on the cross for us, it is fitting that we should die for him. The rest of the men agreed to it and cheered his proclamation. So, they were led to the Hill of Minerva, renamed Hill of Martyrs, to be executed, starting with the beheading of Primaldi. The city was recaptured by Alfonso of Aragon with the help of King Matthias Corvinus of of Hungary in the spring of 1481 and the remains of the 800 were transferred to the citys cathedral. During the siege, a message was sent to King Ferdinand of Naples for help, who unsuccessfully tried to recapture the city between August and September of 1480. Then Alfonso of Aragaon, who was at that time battling the Florentines, led a campaign to free Otranto from the Ottomans whom he saw as a threat to his home. He was joined by King Matthias Corvinus and Otranto was successfully recaptured in the spring of 1481. The bodies of the 800 martyrs were found on October 13, 1481 and taken to the Cathedral of Otranto. Advertisements All the 800 martyrs killed on Colle della Minerva were beatified on December 14, 1771, by Pope Clement XIV, who also authorized their cult, and canonized on May 12, 2013, by Pope Francis. The process of canonization is a lengthy one, and doesnt start until after at least five years after the persons death to ensure that the person is revered among the faithful still. It is also required that the right church authorities must check, approve, vote and confirm that miracles have happened because of the persons sacrifice for the canonization to proceed. The canonical process for Otrantos 800 martyrs started in 1539, with them being beatified in 1771. On July 6, 2007, Pope Benedict XVI issued a decree recognizing that Antonio Primaldo and the rest were indeed killed out of hatred for their faith. On December 20, 2012, he authorized a decree attributing the healing of a sister named Francesca Levote to the intercession of the martyrs. On May 12, 2013 they were canonized. They are now called the patron saints of Otranto. [sources: wikipedia, Otranto Cathedral] Android Nougat users are getting a good news. The internet has a list of smartphones that will skip Android 7.0 Nougat and bounce directly to Android 7.1.1 Nougat. The new Android 7.0 Nougat, which is an Android operating system, has been pre-loaded on Google Pixel and Pixel XL devices. The Android 7.0 Nougat is currently available to download on Google-built mobile devices such as the Nexus 5X, Nexus 6, Nexus 6P, Nexus 9, Google Pixel C, as well as the Nexus Player, according to Pocket Lint. The Chinese tech company Huawei has officially confirmed that they will be releasing the Android 7.0 Nougat update for the Huawei Mate 8 and Huawei P9 in early 2017. While HTC has confirmed that it will bring the Android 7.0 Nougat update to the One A9, One M9 and HTC 10 before 2016 ends. Nevertheless, Samsung handsets brought the Android 7.0 Nougat to its flagship Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge on Nov. 2016. The said flagship smartphones will reportedly skip the Android 7.0 Nougat update and will go directly to Android 7.1.1 Nougat. Since the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge are going directly to the Android 7.1.1, it's likely that the South Korean tech giant will release the same update for Galaxy S6, S6 Edge, S6 Plus, as well as the Galaxy Note 5. Samsung had been testing Android Nougat 7.0 in a beta program for its flagships S7 and S7 Edge for the past few weeks. Nonetheless, the tech monster has now decided to skip the version of that Android update, Express has learned. Initially, the Android Nougat update was unleashed three months ago, however, only a few numbers of smartphones were able to install the update. Google claims that the responsibility for the rollout of the Android Nougat update on other smartphones is delegated on the manufacturers. Samsung would be the first to offer the latest build update. Meanwhile, Watch The Video Here: The Mobile World Congress 2017 on February in Barcelona will be participated by various mobile manufacturers and vendors, not excluding Microsoft, which will introduce the full version of Windows 10 on mobile running on ARM processors. The inclusion of Microsoft has long been speculated since the company is no longer into the mobile manufacturing business, but it seems that the software expert is bent on bringing Windows 10 on mobile that may soon hint a Surface phone debut. Microsoft has conceded to its dismal performance in the smartphone market by discontinuing its line of Lumia mobile phones, which are now approaching the end of their retail lives. Microsoft has declared that it will focus more on what it does best, which is to continue to tweak and offer a much improved Windows 10. Hence, the mobile industry was caught by surprise when Microsoft indicated that they will be joining the Mobile World Congress 2017. Here is what Microsoft intends to do at the the annual gathering of companies and leaders in the mobile industry. Creator's Update Impact On Mobile Devices The Mobile World Congress 2017 coincides with the release of the Creator's Update, which can bring vital changes to mobile devices. The Redstone 2 will enable mobile devices to have Virtual Reality capabilities that will offer a rich and immersive experience to its users. Windows 10 on Mobile ARM Processors Microsoft has collaborated with AMD particularly in launching Windows 10 ran by ARM processors, which are typically seen in mobile phones. Microsoft will further discuss during the Mobile World Congress 2017 the benefits of the full version of Windows 10 on mobile in terms of productivity using real desktop apps according to Softpedia. Form Partnerships to Launch Windows 10 on Mobile Devices Micorsoft's primary goal in participating in the Mobile World Congress 2017 is to sell the Windows 10 OS to OEMS and ODMs. This is further supported by its initiative in launching a site where partners can arrange meetings with Microsoft regarding future mobile plans and partnerships, according to Neowin. To recap, Microsoft has not fully turned its back on the mobile phones as of yet as indicated by its Windows 10 on mobile. However, the rumor of a Surface phone with full Windows 10 running on ARM processors is still highly possible, but its debuting at the World Mobile Congress 2017 is already an improbability for the device will not be ready by then. Super Saturday happens on Dec. 17, the last Saturday before Christmas, which falls on a Saturday for this year, ushering in the best tech deals on smartphones, video games, computers, and more. Like last year, retailers are saying that the Super Saturday deals may surpass Black Friday deals as more people are motivated to shop now in a rush to complete their Christmas shopping list. What are the best tech deals on Super Saturday 2016. Below are the participating stores that offer huge discounts on various items as compiled by Fortune. Super Saturday Smartphone Deals Verizon is offering a trade-in of any eligible device to a free iPhone 7, LG V20, Google Pixel and the Samsung Galaxy S7, with a two-year installment package. Best Buy is also having two kinds of iPhone deals where the first one offers consumers a $250 dollars gift card when buying an iPhone or trading-in an older iPhone like the iPhone 6. The other deal offers a $300 dollars gift card when consumers buy two iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, or iPhone SE devices. For those buying an LG G5 or the LGV20 mobile phone, they get a free LG TV. Meanwhile, Target also offers a $100 dollars gift card to those purchasing an iphone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus. The store has a better Samsung deal for Super Saturday 2016 with a $200 dollars gift card to those buying the Samsung Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge. Super Saturday 2016 Computer Deals Best Buy is giving a $100 dollars price cut on selected Apple MacBook Pro. There is also a $200 dollars savings in buying the HP Envy x360 15.6-in. monitor with a sale price of only $600 dollars from $800. Walmart is putting the Dell Inspiron 15.6-in. laptop on sale with the current price of $529 dollars from $799. Super Saturday 2016 Video Games Deals Best Buy's new combo set includes the Xbox One S 500GB "Battlefield 1" bundle and the Lenovo 110 Laptop for only $450 dollars, yielding $180 dollars in savings. Target is also offering the Xbox One S along with the PS4 Slim with a $50 dollars off each from its original prices. Meanwhile, Walmart is putting the Xbox One S "Gears of War 4" Limited Edition console from $450 dollars down to $399. This year's Super Saturday 2016 may yet surpass the best tech deals of Black Friday, which market consumer analysts say is due to two vital factors. One is that people are more motivated to shop for the holidays and the other, most stores are eager to dispose of their inventories before the lean months begin on January and February according to Philly.com. China's TCL Communication Technology Holdings Ltd is now the fourth-largest handset maker in North America after BlackBerry Ltd took off its global brand rights. This is the first licensing deal made by BlackBerry since its transition to a software company. The agreement gave rights to TCL to make and sell BlackBerry-branded mobile devices globally while BlackBerry provides the security, apps and customer support. However, reports circulating that while the semi-exclusive deal does open possibilities in a key part of the BlackBerry's market, it does not apply to the company's biggest markets like India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and Indonesia, Techcrunch reported. While it's the first deal of its kind for BlackBerry, sources reported that language surrounding the announcement implies that it won't be the last deal the company will be making and it is seen to deprive other manufacturers to have access to the same sort of direct branding as TLC. According to BlackBerry COO and general manager Ralph Pini, the agreement with TCL Communication represents a key step in the company's strategy to focus on putting the smart in the phone by providing state-of-the-art security and device software on a platform that mobile users prefer and are comfortable with, Digital Trends has learned. He emphasized that TLC Communication is the natural choice to license BlackBerry's software and brand on a global scale. Sources also reported that in September BlackBerry has signed another deal giving Indonesia's BB Mera Putih the rights to make and sell new devices in the country. It is worth noting that months ago, BlackBerry has launched its last mobile device- the Android-based DTEK60 made by the Chinese hardware maker TCL, which is also behind the Alcatel brand and BlackBerry's DTEK50. Ever since BlackBerry has relinquished its smartphone market to rivals like Apple and Samsung, it has tried its luck and shifted to a more profitable business of making software and managing mobile devices. The first Latin American pontiff, Pope Francis turns 80 on December 17, and Catholics worldwide have been early in extending their well-wishes to the Pope. He has gained the attention of people worldwide with his bold pronouncements and bureaucratic reforms. Even ahead of his birthday, the Pope has already blown out a candle after he was given a cake during his weekly general audience. The Pope expressed his gratitude to the audience, but also commented on a native superstition. "Thanks to everyone for the wishes for my upcoming birthday, thank you, but I'll say something that will make you laugh: in my homeland voicing wishes early brings bad luck and those who voice wishes early are a jinx." He also accepted cards and a cake, albeit reluctantly, as he walked through the crowds. Anticipating the volume of people wanting to greet the Pope, the Vatican press office had set up several email addresses in eight languages where people can send their birthday messages. Notes may be sent to the following: PopeFrancis80@vatican.va (English) Papafranciscus80@vatican.va (Latin) PapaFrancesco80@vatican.va (Italian) PapaFrancisco80@vatican.va (Spanish/Portuguese) PapeFrancois80@vatican.va (French) PapstFranziskus80@vatican.va (German) PapiezFranciszek80@vatican.va (Polish) People may also tweet their birthday messages using the hashtag #Pontifex80. As he celebrates his 80th birthday, the Pope reaches the age at which he can no longer vote for the next pope. He may also decide between the options of either retiring or carrying on his duties as the Pope. Pope Paul VI decreed in 1970 that cardinals 80 and up would lose their right to vote for the next head of the church. Likewise, Vatican officials are usually removed from all councils and congregations once they reach that age. Pope Francis has predicted that his papacy will be short, but the Pope has not shown any signs of slowing down. For the past two years since taking over after Pope Benedict XVI stepped down, Pope Francis traveled to different countries including Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Bolivia, Kenya, Ugunda, Cuba, Mexico, the United States, Greece, Armenia, Poland, Georgia and Sweden. His plans for the coming year includes a visit to Portugal, Bangladesh, Brazil, Colombia, India and Indonesia. He also said that he plans to visit Ireland and Panama in 2018 and 2019 respectively. The IAEA's Integrated Regulatory Review Service (IRRS) team announced its conclusions today at the end of an 11-day mission to assess South Africa's regulatory framework for nuclear and radiation safety. The country's regulatory responsibilities are shared by the National Nuclear Regulator (NNR), responsible for regulating the operation of nuclear facilities and fuel cycle facilities, and the Department of Health's (DOH) Directorate of Radiation Control (RadCon), which regulates the use of radiation sources in medicine and industry. A team of 27 experts from 19 countries, as well as IAEA staff members, reviewed documents and held discussions with officials from both regulators as well as the South African Department of Energy. They also visited the Koeberg nuclear power plant, South Africa's Safari-1 research reactor, a hospital, uranium mine, fuel cycle facilities and waste management facilities, as well as NNR's emergency response centre and environmental monitoring laboratory. IRRS team leader Victor McCree said NNR was an effective regulatory authority with competent staff, a strong safety culture and solid infrastructure. RadCon lacked sufficient financial resources and staff to fully maintain its regulatory function, he noted. He called for the acceleration of a government initiative to integrate the regulatory responsibilities of NNR and RadCon into a single authority. Strengths and recommendations Preliminary findings from the mission identified several strengths at NNR. These included clearly assigned roles and responsibilities; an initiative to promote and enhance safety and security culture; and thorough inspections of all nuclear waste transports. The IRRS team also recognised NNR's ongoing efforts to update the regulatory framework. The team identified areas of good practice, including NNR's scholarship and internship program and its requirement of the operator of the country's research reactor to develop a detailed ageing management program for the facility. The team provided recommendations and suggestions for improvements to the South African government as well as to the regulators. These included recommendations to the government to ensure the effective independence of the regulatory authorities by allocating them adequate resources and ensuring that their judgements could be made without undue influence; develop a legal framework addressing safety and security including arrangements for the safety and security of radioactive sources; and the establishment of a policy for decommissioning facilities and a process to develop waste management plans. It said the regulators should work to develop and maintain regulations and guides consistent with international standards; systematically plan and prioritize inspections; and provide clear regulatory guidance for licensees on when to declare an emergency. NNR CEO Bismark Mzubanzi Tyobeka said the mission's findings were similar to those identified by the regulator itself during a self-assessment that preceded the mission. "Nuclear safety and security are global issues, and to open ourselves to such an intensive peer review mission by the IAEA attests to our commitment to transparency and our vision of becoming recognized as an independent world-class regulatory authority," he said. "We welcome the observations and suggestions of the IAEA team and we will in the next three years embark on closing all the gaps and aim to invite an IRRS follow-up mission in 2020." DOH deputy director general Anban Pillay, said the department's ability to comply fully with global best practice had been challenged by budgetary pressures. "We have begun to address this issue through an initiative that would place regulatory responsibilities in a single authority with the ability to secure adequate funding," he said. The IAEA's IRRS missions are designed to strengthen the effectiveness of national radiation safety regulatory infrastructure, while recognizing the responsibility of each member state to ensure nuclear and radiation safety. They are held at the invitation of the host country. Greg Rzentkowski, director of the IAEA's Division of Nuclear Installation Safety, said the South African government's invitation and hosting of its first IRRS mission demonstrated that it takes its responsibility for nuclear safety seriously. "This mission, thus far the most comprehensive in Africa, strengthens nuclear safety not only in the country, but also globally though the sharing of experiences and lessons learned," he said. A final mission report will be provided to the South African government within three months. Nguyen Thi Thu Minh, investment counsellor at Vietnams Embassy to Singapore, confers the trophy and certificate to a BAC A BANK representative The bank was granted the award in Singapore thanks to its significant contributions to Vietnams social security, and its business achievements over the past years. The International Finance Magazine Awards celebrates excellence in its purest form. An event that recognises and honours individuals and organisations in the international finance industry that make a significant difference and add value, the award is one that will herald the highest standards of innovation and performance. Thai Huong, who is general director of BAC A BANK, said that this prominent award has reflected the banks unique development path, which is focussed on providing investment consultancy for hi-tech agricultural projects. BAC A BANK vice general director Chu Nguyen Binh receives the award BAC A is quite different from many other commercial banks. We have selected the agricultural sector for our investment, in addition to providing clients with assorted services such as loans, saving and guaranteeing, Thai Huong said. We also concentrate on providing investment consultancy for sustainable-development and community-oriented projects. We have successfully combined Vietnams strengths, including brainpower and natural resources, with the worlds modern scientific and technological achievements, said Thai Huong, who is also chairwoman of TH Group. After more than 20 years of development, the bank has been expanding its operation into a multi-functional bank model, with a priorities placed on community-oriented and environmental-friendly projects. Since 2008, BAC A BANK has provided investment consultancy for TH Group, which has successfully built a $1.2 billion dairy cow and fresh milk production project in the central province of Nghe Ans Nghia Dan district. In May 2015, the Asian Record Organisation recognised the project as The largest concentrated high-tech applied dairy farm complex in Asia. Since the participation of TH Group in Vietnams milk market in 2009, the countrys ratio of fresh milk to the total supply soared from 5 per cent in 2009 to 30 per cent in 2015. In May 2016, TH Group began the construction of the first stage, worth $500 million, of a $2.7 billion high-tech concentrated dairy and fresh milk production project in Russia, which officially marked Vietnams largest agricultural and foodstuff project in Russia. Also under support from BAC A BANK, many other agricultural projects have been implemented, such as TH Herbals focused on planting and processing precious herbs and supplementary foodstuffs, and a project on producing safe vegetables. Besides, TH Group recently put into operation the first stage, worth $100 million, of its modern wood processing plant in Nghe An. The plant covers programmes on sustainable development of forests in the province. A wounded Syrian, who was evacuated from rebel-held neighbourhoods in the embattled city of Aleppo, is carried by a medic as she arrives in the opposition-controlled Khan al-Aassal region, west of the city, on Dec 15, 2016. (Photo: AFP / Baraa Al-Halabi) President Vladimir Putin's intervention came as Russian drones and troops supervised the hard-won evacuation deal following a Western outcry over the Syrian army's operation to recapture the city. Thousands of traumatised civilians boarded buses and ambulances in freezing temperatures as the operation continued through the night. "The next step (after Aleppo) will be to reach agreement on a complete ceasefire across all of Syria," Putin said on the sidelines of a visit to Japan. "We are actively negotiating with members of the armed opposition, with the mediation of Turkey." Government ally Russia and rebel backer Turkey jointly brokered the deal that has seen thousands of people cram into buses, ambulances and pick-up trucks to flee the last pocket of rebel-held Aleppo since Thursday. The evacuation deal, which will allow Syria's government to claim full control of the city after years of fighting, was expected to continue throughout Friday. "It will continue all through today and for so long as there are people who want to leave," said International Committee of the Red Cross spokeswoman Ingy Sedky. Initially, evacuees were leaving via single convoy of ambulances and green government buses that travelled back and forth between Aleppo and rebel-held territory in the west of the province. But overnight, the vehicles began returning individually to collect more evacuees as soon as they had dropped off their passengers, Sedky said. "That means it is difficult for us to know exactly how many people have left so far, but there will be an assessment by the end of the operation," she said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor of the war, estimated some 8,500 people had left so far, including around 3,000 rebel fighters. Syrian state media reported a figure of around 8,000. Ahmad al-Dbis, a doctor helping coordinate the evacuation of the wounded, said at least 500 evacuees had wounds or illnesses requiring medical attention. He said some people were arriving in private vehicles, including pick-up trucks stacked with household items. From a gathering point near the town of Khan al-Aasal, people were travelling further west, heading either to camps for the displaced or to stay with relatives or friends. FEARS FOR REMAINING CIVILIANS The departures began a month to the day after government forces launched a major offensive to retake all of Aleppo, and will hand the regime its biggest victory in more than five years of civil war. In a video message to Syrians on Thursday, President Bashar al-Assad said the "liberation" of Aleppo was "history in the making". But US Secretary of State John Kerry said what had already happened in the city was "unconscionable", raising concern for the "tens of thousands of lives that are now concentrated into a very small area of Aleppo". "And the last thing anybody wants to see... is that that small area turns into another Srebrenica," he said, referring to a 1995 Bosnia war massacre. The UN Security Council will meet Friday to discuss a French call for international observers to monitor the evacuation and ensure aid deliveries. The UN estimated around 250,000 people were living in rebel east Aleppo when the government assault began in mid-November, although officials have since acknowledged that figure might have been incorrect. As the army advanced, tens of thousands of people crossed to parts of the city held by either the government or Kurdish forces. UN envoy Staffan de Mistura said on Thursday that perhaps 50,000 people remained in the last rebel-held districts, 40,000 of them civilians. The evacuation plan had been due to begin on Wednesday but was put on hold after objections from the government delayed the operation and clashes erupted. 'WE WILL RETURN' On Thursday, thousands gathered to leave, desperate for relief after months of bombardment and siege but tearful at the prospect of potentially permanent exile. An AFP correspondent in the city's southern Al-Amiriyah district saw people piling on to green buses, filling seats and even sitting on the floor, with some worried they would not get another chance to leave. Others were hesitant to board, afraid they would end up in the hands of regime forces, or anguished at the thought of departing. In the dust on the window of one of the buses someone had traced: "One day we will return". "The scene was heart-breaking," said ICRC head Marianne Gasser. "People are faced with impossible choices. You see their eyes filled with sadness." The ICRC said it was unclear how many people were left in the east but the evacuations could continue for several days. Meanwhile, there was no movement on a reported deal to evacuate sick and wounded residents from two government-held villages under rebel siege in Idlib province. The Syrian government and its ally Iran had reportedly delayed the Aleppo evacuation to insist on a similar deal for the villages of Fuaa and Kafraya. On Thursday, state media said 29 buses were heading to the villages to evacuate residents, but the Observatory said on Friday that no one had yet left. More than 310,000 people have been killed since the Syrian conflict began with anti-government protests in 2011, and over half the population has been displaced, with millions becoming refugees. Diplomatic efforts - including several rounds of peace talks in Geneva - failed to make headway in resolving the conflict, which saw a turning point last year when Russia launched an air war in support of Assad. With Aleppo out of rebel hands, the largest remaining rebel bastion is Idlib province, which is controlled by an alliance dominated by former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front. Steel products in the stock of Japan-invested VINA KYOEI Steel Ltd Co at the Phu My I Industrial Zone in the southern province of Ba RiaVung Tau.-VNA/VNS Photo Danh Lam In the draft planning of steel production to 2025, with a vision to 2035, which has been circulated for opinions, the ministry said it would build technical barriers to prevent the import of steel products the origins of which are not regulated in international commitments that Viet Nam has signed. The plannings purpose is to promote the sustainable development of the steel sector, ensure environmental protection and help protect Vietnamese steel makers from unfair competition. According to Nguyen Van Sua, deputy chairman of the Viet Nam Steel Association (VSA), steel imports, especially cheap steel products from China, are still flooding the Vietnamese market, mostly in the forms of scrap steel or semi-finished products. As of October, Viet Nam imported 15.8 million tonnes of steel and iron, worth US$6.62 billion, of which Chinese steel and iron accounted for 60 per cent. Sua said cheap Chinese steel was a threat not only to Vietnamese steel producers but also those in ASEAN countries and the world. To prevent Chinese steel exporters from taking advantages of the loophole in Vietnamese laws to evade taxes, authorities must set clear standards of steel import products. He gave an example that by adding a few other metal elements, Chinese makers can easily turn pure steel into alloy steel to enjoy 0 per cent import tax. Surge in local sales, exports The VSA report shows that steel exports and domestic consumption continued rising in the last months of the year. Specifically, export of locally-made steel products in November reached 256,000 tonnes, up 61.7 per cent from a year earlier and 23.1 per cent from Octobers level. Domestic steel consumption in November amounted to 1.46 million tonnes, representing a year-on-year surge of 36 per cent and a month-on-month rise of 18.5 per cent. The association also reported that from January to November, its member steel makers produced a total 15.5 million tonnes, up 20 per cent compared to the same period last year. Meanwhile, local sales and exports of steel products in the 11 months went up strongly by 27 per cent and 47 per cent, to attain 13.4 million tonnes and 2.46 million tonnes, respectively. Sua attributed the surge to construction projects speeding up their progress by the end of the year. As estimated by the ministry, domestic steel consumption could reach 27 million tonnes by 2020 and 46 million tonnes by 2030. Currently, total capacity of steel production factories nationwide is 24.8 million tonnes per year. The ministry projected the figure would rise to 40 million tonnes per year in the 2016-20 period with the operation of some new projects. US President Barack Obama holds a year-end press conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC. (SAUL LOEB/AFP) And he warned Assad, who has been engaged in a brutal civil war against opposition forces since 2011, that he will not be able to "slaughter his way to legitimacy." "The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo," he told an end-of-year news conference. "This blood and these atrocities are on their hands," he said. Obama also admitted to reporters that he had asked himself whether the United States did enough to halt the conflict. "There are places around the world where horrible things are happening and - because of my office, because I'm president of the United States - I feel responsible," he said. "Is there something I could do that would save lives and make a difference and spare some child who doesn't deserve to suffer?" But the president said there had been no public appetite for the kind of large-scale US military intervention earlier in the war that he believes would have been the only way to halt it. "Unless we were all in and going to take over Syria we were going to have problems," he said. "It sounded like the right thing to do but it was going to be impossible to do this on the cheap." The US leader, who leaves office on Jan 20 to make way for President-elect Donald Trump, called for impartial observers to deploy to monitor efforts to evacuate civilians from the city. 'SYNONYM FOR HELL' Obama's White House has been engaged in a diplomatic effort to convince Russia to bring Assad to the table to negotiate a peace deal with the Syrian opposition. But all attempts to broker a ceasefire have rapidly broken down, and now Russia is working with Turkey to oversee an evacuation of the last rebel-held pocket of Aleppo. On Friday, the Syrian government suspended that operation, trapping thousands of civilians and rebel fighters in the city and increasing fears of a bloodbath to come. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that Aleppo had become "a synonym for hell" and urged "the parties to take all necessary measures to allow safe resumption of this evacuation process." Senior US officials, including Secretary of State John Kerry and Washington's ambassador to the UN Samantha Power, have warned Assad against carrying out a Srebrenica-style massacre. They have also warned the defeat of Aleppo will not end the civil war but instead foment extremism among Assad's opponents and have called for war crimes investigations. 'RIGHT APPROACH' But Washington has not been able to mediate the start of a credible peace process, nor separate so-called "moderate rebels" from Al Qaeda-linked extremists. "I cannot claim that we've been successful and so that's something that, as is true with a lot of issues and problems around the world I have to go to bed with every night," Obama said. "But I continue to believe it was the right approach given what realistically we could get done." More than 310,000 people have been killed since early 2011, when Assad brutally repressed anti-government protests and provoked a civil war. More than half the population has been displaced, with millions becoming refugees, placing a huge burden on neighbouring countries and sparking a political crisis in Europe. Meanwhile, the extremist Islamic State militant group has taken advantage of the chaos to seize part of eastern Syria and set up a "capital" in the city of Raqa. US troops and warplanes are helping locally recruited militias fight the Islamic State in the east, but have not intervened against Assad, who has Russian military backing. Recognising the continuous innovation of information and imaging technology as well as striving to put forward effective solutions for businesses in the age of globalisation, Canon- a global leader in photographic and digital imaging solutions- brought to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City the event series Zen One Stop Solution, showcasing the companys remarkable equipment and technology this December. Gaining warmly support and encouragement from city attendees, Canons Zen - One Stop Solution event now comes to Hanoi with a burning desire to bring out the most cutting-edge technology trends for enterprise applications and operations. In particular, with the participation of seasoned experts from FPT Telecom, Microsoft Vietnam, Canon Marketing Vietnam, and more, Zen - One Stop Solution contributed a range of pioneering ideas and valuable solutions to solve thorny problems in business controlling costs, optimising management system, increasing work productivity and improving competitiveness ability. Accordingly, in the event, Canon Marketing Vietnam had introduced One Stop Solution a brand new application that would help monitor the activities of both multi-functional devices and document management software in businesses. With Canons One Stop Solution, local enterprises, especially small and medium enterprises, can manage work more efficiently thanks to the optimal tool operating business activities. This new comprehensive solution is expected to fully meet demand of the management, minimizing time and operating costs while ensuring security and profitability for businesses. As an exclusive gift to businesses, One Stop Solution partly presents Canon's pledge to ceaselessly create and update new technology that helps improve operating productivity, support every businesses in their journey to transition into a more proactive one at the age of fast-moving environment. A smart and feasible solution is the key to success. To manage effectively, businesses should select relevant partners who have the expertise to analyse and generate a comprehensive monitoring report to determine exact ineffective operations. Once these splits are identified, an appropriate imaging solutions for businesses will be deployed afterwards. With Canon's One Stop Solution, we will help balance all the issues, such as cost, productivity, security, users responsibility and equipment maintenance, said Hiroshi Yokota - CEO of Canon Marketing Vietnam. Talking about Canons orientation in One Stop Solution to Vietnam enterprises in the future, Bill Dam - assistant director of Canon Marketing Vietnam emphasized solid belief in the strong impact of ICT synergy to businesses. The new normal in riding on the globalisation is about embracing synergy. It is doing business with a firm grasp of traditional values, openness towards modern practices and technology, and a continuing vision to Think Big for the future. A complete and easy-to-look-up database would demonstrate your business profession in both technology and actual work. By combining these potential values as well as integrating technology, the management will pave a new way to the development of breakthrough long-term strategies, Dam said. By participating in this remarkable technology event of Canon, photography lovers and technology enthusiasts were definitely satisfied when immersing in an array of interesting interactive activities, such as Dark Room Experience with the appearance of high quality security cameras Canons pride in challenging the darkness, or Special Color Challenge performed in Canons products. In addition, many attractive gifts and incentives were also brought to the event as a present from Canon to loyal customers who have interests in Canons products and activities related to imaging solutions and digital photography. In the event, besides the leading equipment and technology showcased to attendees, Bui Quang Huy, photographer and founder of popular photographic website 50mm.vn, shared his experience on Canons latest mirrorless camera EOS M5. Equipped with the most advanced technology, Canon EOS M5 presents fast processing speed and autofocus, high resolution, 5-axis image stabilisation inside the camera body and use of Bluetooth, Wifi and NFC. All these features are resonated to support users encapsulate their best pictures with the equivalent quality as DSLR cameras. Also, Canon introduced many other cameras in the mirrorless series such as EOS M3 and EOS M10. The two parties will contribute 50 per cent each. Once the joint venture is established, it will produce ceramics, sanitary wares, and tiles to meet the demand for construction materials in Cuba and Latin America . Viglacera and Geicon are now working on completing the feasibility study that has to be submitted to both governments for approval. Geicon will be in charge of building raw material exploitation plans to ensure smooth operations as well as the consumption plan in its domestic market. According to the plan, 70 per cent of the joint ventures output will be consumed on Cuba and the rest will be exported. In October 2014, the two sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to set up the joint venture to produce bathroom fixtures and tiles in San Jose and Santa Cruz . The Cuban market has a high demand for construction materials as the country is encouraging investment in housing and tourism infrastructure. Since early 2014, Viglacera has sent two groups of technology specialists to work with construction material factories in the country. Geicon, under the Cuban Ministry of Construction, is comprised of 24 companies with a combined workforce of 16,000 people and annual sales revenue of more than 220 million pesos ($8.3 million). Regarding Viglacera, established in 1974, the company has developed from a traditional brick and ceramics manufacturer to a state-owned conglomerate with a focus on building material production and the development of infrastructure, industrial parks, as well as residential and business properties. Sweet Mesquite: Quietly Invasive yet Incredibly Useful While many of us are familiar with mesquite as a distinct barbeque flavor, or the charcoal that lends such a flavor, the mesquite tree has much more to offer. Called everything from the tree of life to the devil with roots, mesquite has played an important role in the life Music Time in Africa is VOAs longest running English language program. Since 1965, this award-winning program has featured pan African music that spans all genres and generations. Ethnomusicologist and Host Heather Maxwell keeps you up to date on whats happening in African music with exclusive interviews, cultural information, and of course, great music -- including rare recordings from the Leo Sarkisian Library of African Music. Grateful residents of eastern Afghanistan whose villages were freed from control by Islamic State militants have begun enlisting for service with the Afghan National Security Forces and provincial police, local authorities say. Afghan joint forces drove IS extremists out of the Pachir Agam district in Nangarhar province about two weeks ago, and since then hundreds of men have joined the central government's security forces to help ensure that IS radicals cannot return to the area. The local men previously resisted IS occupation, but they have now been armed by the government, according to Attaullah Khogyani, a spokesman for the Nangarhar provincial administration. "These 500 men will be fighting within the Afghan National Security Forces framework in the next few days," Khogyani told VOA Saturday. The recruits will be assigned to six security checkpoints in vulnerable areas of the district, which borders Pakistan. The spokesman said elements of the Afghan National Security Forces would remain in the area to assist in the transition. A spokesman for the Nangarhar police, Hazrat Hussain Mashriqiwal, told VOA that villagers who deemed battle ready would be phased into the provincial police force. The recruits are asking for heavy weapons, he added, and those are expected to come from the central government's national security department. Dozens still held captive IS militants attacked the Pachir Agam district early last month, destroying many homes and seizing more than 70 local men as captives, authorities said. Residents say IS fighters are thought to still be holding 63 captives. IS's arrival in Pachir Agam is the latest chapter in a quarter-century of conflict. The district was a stronghold of resistance fighters against armed forces of the Soviet Union during the 1980s and came under heavy air attack when the U.S. entered Afghanistan in pursuit of al-Qaida terrorists and the Taliban beginning in late 2001. The district includes the cave complex known as Tora Bora, one of the last areas of Afghanistan that al-Qaida held before a civilian, non-Taliban government was restored in Kabul. An agreement was reached Saturday to resume the evacuation of Syria's eastern Aleppo, though hours later, the evacuation hasn't started and rebels and civilians are still waiting. The evacuation was suspended Friday due to demands from pro-government forces who wanted two villages Foua and Kfarya evacuated. Residents of the villages will be included in Saturday's exodus, which has yet to begin. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it expected 4,000 people to be evacuated from the two villages starting on Saturday and reported that 29 buses were en route to the villages to start the evacuation process. The Syrian government suspended the evacuation Friday after blasts and gunfire were heard in Aleppo. Both rebels and government forces accused the other of breaking the fragile cease-fire agreement. U.N. refugee agency commissioner Filippo Grandi warned Saturday that the violence in Aleppo could spread to other areas if the war in Syria isnt immediately brought to a halt. "There is grave risk now that such displacement and suffering will not stop, but will be repeated elsewhere, in other wars. For the sake of civilian protection everywhere, Syria's conflict must be ended, now, and without delay," he said in a statement. "Civilians should not be hostage to negotiations." Russian news agencies reported Saturday that the Russian Foreign Ministry hopes the evacuation of rebel fighters in eastern Aleppo will lead to new cease-fire possibilities in other areas of Syria. The Syrian government had ordered trucks and buses carrying people out of the rebel-held parts of Aleppo to turn around as the army set up roadblocks along the highway that had been used in the evacuation. Turkey, which has been heavily involved in the Aleppo peace process, said the suspensions were temporary. Syria's government said the rebels broke the agreement by trying to smuggle heavy weapons and hostages out of Aleppo. The rebels, though, accused the government of suspending the evacuation as a way to pressure them into releasing civilians from Foua and Kfarya - two government-held Shi'ite villages currently under siege by the rebels. The government said the evacuations in the villages had to coincide with those in eastern Aleppo, but the rebels had said the two are unrelated. One of the rebel leaders who leads the al Sham group, blamed Iran for holding up the deal for political reasons and said Russia wasn't doing enough to restrain its ally. "Iran and its sectarian proxies are using the humanitarian situation of our people in besieged Aleppo and preventing civilians from leaving until the evacuation of their groups in Foua and Kfarya," Munir al-Sayal told Reuters. Talks planned On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said his country is working with Turkey to start a new round of peace talks on Syria with a goal of a nationwide cease-fire. The U.N. Security Council met in a closed-door emergency session Friday to discuss Aleppo and more talks are planned Saturday. France, which called for the meeting, wants international observers on hand to monitor the evacuation of civilians. Previous cease-fires collapsed almost immediately, putting a halt to evacuation efforts. The conflict in Syria, which began nearly six years ago as a protest against the government, has so far killed more than 310,000 people and forced millions of people to flee their homes. Watch: John Kerry: Key partners do their part in Syria In Washington, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said, "We have witnessed indiscriminate slaughter, not accidents of war, not collateral damage, but frankly purposeful, cynical policy of terrorizing civilians." Kerry said the United States is going to work to save lives and continue pushing all parties in Syria toward a resolution and allow full access by humanitarian groups throughout all of Syria. U.S. President Barack Obama has denounced the "horror" in Aleppo and warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad he cannot "slaughter his way to legitimacy." Suspected Islamic extremists attacked an army barracks Friday in Burkina Faso, killing at least 12 soldiers, officials said. The officials said about 40 unidentified gunmen stormed the army post in Nassoumbou, a town near the border with Mali. The assailants also set fire to military vehicles and tents, they said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. President Roch Marc Christian Kabore called the assailants "forces of evil." He was to travel to Nigeria for a meeting on the crisis in Gambia but canceled his trip. Attacks in Burkina Faso were relatively rare until this year, when al-Qaida-linked fighters attacked a hotel in the capital, Ouagadougou, in January, killing at least 29 people. Afghan officials say gunmen have shot dead six government workers, including five women in southern Kandahar province. The early morning attack occurred when unknown assailants ambushed and sprayed with bullets a minivan transporting the female Kandahar airport security staff to work. The deadly attack also left the male driver dead. There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the violence, the latest in a string of attacks against women in Afghanistan. A spokesman for the Taliban denied its involvement, saying the Islamist insurgency has nothing to do with the attack. The U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, UNAMA, has condemned Saturdays violence and called for accountability for all targeted attacks against Afghan women. Taliban insurgents routinely carry out attacks against Afghan security personnel and have recently expanded their activities to many provinces, particularly in southern Afghanistan. Hillary Clinton is blaming Russian interference for her loss in the U.S. presidential election, saying Russian President Vladimir Putin may have wanted to meddle in the race because of a "personal beef" against her. Clinton, who has kept a low profile since her election defeat in November, made the remarks to campaign donors in New York City on Thursday night. According to audio recordings of the event, first reported by The New York Times, Clinton said, "Putin himself directed the covert cyberattacks against our electoral system, against our democracy, apparently because he has a personal beef against me." The CIA has concluded that Russian hackers broke into Democratic Party computers to leak potentially embarrassing emails about the Clinton presidential campaign, with the apparent aim of helping Republican Donald Trump win last month's election. Moscow called the allegation "laughable nonsense." The Democratic presidential candidate said the reason for Putin's dislike of her was that when she was secretary of state, she said Russia's 2011 parliamentary elections were fraudulent. Comey decision During the remarks to donors, Clinton also discussed FBI Director James Comey, whom she previously blamed for contributing to her defeat in the election. She said Comey's decision to revisit her private email server in the final days before the election cost her close races in several states. However, Clinton focused much of her remarks on Russia and said there should be an independent investigation into Russian interference in the election. "This is part of a long-drawn strategy to cause us to doubt ourselves and to create the circumstances in which Americans either wittingly or unwittingly will begin to cede their freedoms to a much more powerful state," she said. "This is an attack on our country." Her remarks came as President Barack Obama said Friday during a news conference that he spoke with Putin in September about the alleged hacking of the Democratic Party computers. He said the hacking did not continue after that conversation. When asked whether he thought the hacking was responsible for Clinton's election loss, Obama did not answer directly. "I'm going to let all the pundits in this town have a lot of discussions about that," he said. John Glenn's home state and the nation began saying goodbye to the beloved astronaut Friday, starting with a public viewing of his flag-draped casket inside Ohio's Statehouse rotunda. Politicians, including Secretary of State John Kerry, and citizens from across the country paid their respects to the first American to orbit Earth, as a somber Marine honor guard kept watch. The normally festive holiday decor was bedecked with black buntings, and the windows were covered in black. Ryan and Cristin Hanson of Holland, Michigan, brought their 10-month-old baby, Hilary. "He's a hero who's continued to be remembered," said Ryan, 31, who said he and his wife, 29, were awed by Glenn's accomplishments. "When we were young, we learned about John Glenn from our folks, and we hope that's something that gets perpetuated as we move forward." Glenn died last week at 95. He grew up in eastern Ohio before becoming a national hero when he orbited Earth in 1962. Before that, he was a fighter pilot in World War II and Korea. A Democrat, Glenn also spent more than two decades representing Ohio in the U.S. Senate and became the oldest man in space, at age 77, in 1998. Kerry, who served with Glenn in the Senate, walked up with Ohio Governor John Kasich late in the afternoon and put a hand on the casket. Glenn's widow, Annie, gently rubbed the flag covering the casket while seated in a wheelchair, accompanied by the couple's two children. Review of accomplishments The public viewing Friday was scheduled to stretch at least eight hours. Visitors in the line, which grew as the day wore on, proceeded patiently as video screens and placards placed within view recounted his life of accomplishment, including a late-in-life civics education project he launched with former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Most paused for a moment in front of Glenn's closed casket. A few snapped photos. Some bowed their heads or crossed themselves. One man, holding the hand of a small boy, turned and saluted before walking away. President Abraham Lincoln and seven others before Glenn have lain in repose in Ohio since its capitol opened in the 1850s, according to the Ohio History Connection, a statewide history organization. "This guy was one of our great Ohioans. I wasn't going to miss this event," said Holly Rogers, 62, who works nearby. "I wasn't here for Abraham Lincoln, so I can be here for John Glenn." A series of events celebrating Glenn's life is planned, including a processional through the heart of downtown Columbus on Saturday, followed by a public memorial service at Ohio State University, where he helped found a public affairs college. Vice President Joe Biden, a former Senate colleague of Glenn's, was among those expected to attend the service. Glenn will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C., in a private ceremony in the spring. An average of 20 migrants died on migratory routes every day in 2016 - far surpassing numbers from previous years, according to the International Organization for Migration. More than half of the nearly 7,200 deaths counted this year occurred in the Mediterranean Sea on routes to Greece, Italy, Cyprus, and Spain, according to a report released by the IOM Friday. The significant increase in deaths in the Mediterranean is particularly striking because the overall number of migrant arrivals in Europe has declined sharply since last year - from 883,393 in 2015 to 357,249 this year, according to the IOM. But the numbers in Central America, the United States-Mexico border region, and northern and southern Africa have surpassed migrant death tolls from previous years as well. IOM recorded a total of 5,740 migrants as dead or missing in 2015, and 5,267 in 2014. The IOM estimates that as many as 300 more migrants could die by the end of this year if trends continue, but also states that having a precise count is difficult. A correction to the report has already been made for the Mediterranean death toll since Thursday evening, citing information that another 88 people were feared missing after a boat reportedly sank off the coast of Libya. Iran has asked for an emergency meeting with the six-nation commission that agreed in 2015 to end crippling economic sanctions against Tehran so that it can hear complaints about the extension of some U.S. penalties despite the accord. The official Iranian news agency said Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif sent a request for the meeting of the so-called P5+1 nations through the European Union. There was no immediate EU comment Saturday. The request followed a White House statement Thursday that legislation allowing for the extension of some sanctions against Iran for 10 more years would become law without President Barack Obama's signature. The 2015 nuclear deal, negotiated with Iran by the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany, eased wide-ranging economic sanctions against Iran in exchange for curbs on Tehran's nuclear program. Obama suspended those sanctions related to Iran's nuclear program as part of the 2015 nuclear deal, but keeping them on the books would allow an incoming president to use the sanctions if seen fit. Tehran said the U.S. sanctions renewal violated the 2015 accord, and this week it ordered its scientists to begin developing systems for nuclear powered ships. For their part, leading U.S. lawmakers of both parties appeared unconcerned earlier this month about Iran's displeasure with the sanctions renewal authorization, while discounting threats from Iran's President Hassan Rouhani to retaliate. South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsay Graham called Iran's reaction "bluster" and warned that more sanctions could be levied in 2017. Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio, describing Iran as "the world's leading sponsor of terrorism," told VOA he did not care about Tehran's threats. Democratic Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland said U.S. citizens, both civilian and military, had been "victims" of Iranian-sponsored terrorism. He and others cited Iran-backed militia fighting alongside Syrian forces loyal to the Damascus government, and Tehran-backed Houthi rebels battling to oust the internationally recognized government in Yemen. Russia, Pakistan and China will hold the next round of three-way counterterrorism talks in Moscow December 27, primarily focusing on turmoil-hit Afghanistan. Russian Ambassador to Islamabad Alexey Dedov disclosed the details in an interview to state-run Pakistani radio. This will be the third meeting of the trilateral working group on Afghanistan, he said, following meetings in Beijing and Islamabad. What we see in Afghanistan, unfortunately, is worrisome because it does not bring us optimism. There is a lack of three crucial elements; that is a stable self-sufficient economy, good governance and strong army, observed Dedov. A deterioration in security and the emergence of Islamic State affiliates in volatile border regions of Afghanistan have necessitated the trilateral consultations with an aim to form a regional anti-terrorism structure to counter spillover effects of terrorism, insist Pakistani, Russian and Chinese officials. The Taliban insurgency in the outgoing year opened new warfronts against Afghan security forces in several northern provinces, which border former Soviet Central Asian states. Moscow is worried that growing insecurity in northern Afghanistan will encourage IS to export terrorism to Russia and China through the Central Asian region. In partidular we are especially concerned about the growth of Daesh (Arabic acronym for IS), which are proliferating their influence to some northern areas of Afghanistan, which directly border territories of our allies in our brotherly Central Asian republics, he added. Dedov rejected media reports as fantasies that Russia is assisting the Taliban in the fight against U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan. We have never ever provided any kind of assistance to (the) Taliban, the ambassador said. Instead, he said, Russia is assisting the Afghan government and has granted some light weapons to its forces and is running programs to train Afghan police and military personnel in Russian institutions. Dedov added that Moscow strongly supports the Afghan peace and reconciliation process, saying improvement in the situation in security in Afghanistan is in the interest of Russia. But what we can see that the progress there (in Afghan peace efforts) is very difficult to be seen. Thats very pity. So, I think that will be a very good discussion in two weeks in Moscow on Afghan matters. Moscow has recently acknowledged it maintains limited political ties to the Taliban to ensure security of its citizens in the country and encourage the insurgents to engage in an Afghan peace process. The revelation has provoked strong Afghan criticism of Russia's "overt legitimacy" to the Taliban insurgency. Russian officials also play down Kabuls concerns that the trilateral meeting will discuss Afghanistan without its representation. They insist Moscow is engaged in other forums on the Afghan issue and terrorism where Pakistan and China are not invited. Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in IS attacks in recent months, alleging loyalists of the Middle East-based terrorist group across its 2,600-kilometer porous Afghan border are behind the bloodshed. For its part, China is worried that continued turmoil in Afghanistan and an emerging IS threat could undermine security in the restive northwestern Chinese border region of Xinjiang, where Muslim Uighur separatists are waging a low level insurgency. Zimbabwes president, Robert Mugabe, Saturday was declared the ruling partys candidate for the 2018 elections. President Robert Mugabe officially closed Zimbabwes ruling Zanu PF annual conference in Masvingo, about 300 kilometers south of Harare, after the party had unanimously endorsed him as its candidate for the 2018 elections. Some members of Zimbabwe's ruling party have been calling on the 92-year-old leader to step down. That probably explains his plea to party members on Saturday for tolerance. We have agreed that there must be no conflicts and fighting. Discipline, discipline, discipline. Those in leadership must be respected," he said. Now it remains to be seen how a 94-year-old will fare in Zimbabwe in 2018 elections. He is already struggling to walk and makes frequent trips to Malaysia for medical attention. Unconfirmed reports say the Zimbabwean leader who has been in power since it won independence from Great Britain in 1980 - has prostate cancer. U.S. President Barack Obama says he spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin in September about the alleged hacking of the Democratic Party, and that the hacking did not continue after that conversation. Obama made the comment after giving his annual year-end news conference from the White House Friday. What weve simply said is the facts, which are that based on uniform intelligence assessments, the Russians were responsible for hacking the DNC and that, as a consequence, it is important for us to review all elements of that and make sure that we are preventing that kind of interference through cyberattacks in the future, he said. Watch: Obama on Putin and Cyberattacks, Syria Obama said his administration took pains not to draw any conclusions about the effects of the hacking, because of the politically charged atmosphere in the lead-up to the election. Part of the goal here was to make sure that we did not do the work of the leakers for them by raising more and more questions about the integrity of the election right before the election was taking place, Obama said. When asked if he believed the hacking was responsible for the election loss of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, he did not answer directly. Obama said, Im going to let all the pundits in this town have a lot of discussions about that. Confrontation with Putin Obama said he spoke with Putin in September at an event in China, telling him to stop the interference. Watch: Obama on Talking to Putin on Hacking US Election I felt that the most effective way to ensure that it did not happen [again] was to talk to him directly and tell him to cut it out, there were going to be some serious consequences if he did not, Obama said of Putin. He said after he spoke with the Russian leader, U.S. officials stopped seeing evidence of tampering. Obama also blamed the media for focusing on the content of the hacked emails from the Democratic Party, rather than looking at the implications of such a development. I am finding it a little curious that everybody is suddenly acting surprised that this looked like it was disadvantaging Hillary Clinton, because you guys [the media] wrote about it every day, every single leak about every little juicy tidbit of political gossip, including John Podestas risotto recipe, Obama said to the reporters at his news conference. But he defended his administrations handling of the events, saying we handled it the way we should have. Obama also noted that he has addressed similar concerns with China by having a similar conversation with Chinas President Xi Jinping. Options for retaliation Obama did not discuss much of what he thought the U.S. could do to retaliate against Russia or other potential state-driven hacks. But other parties speaking a a forum sponsored by Harvard University's Belfer Center had more to say. There has to be a response, said retired General David Petraeus, former director of the Central Intelligence Agency and former commander of the International Security Assistance Force and U.S. forces in Afghanistan. Petraeus said Friday that the United States has several options. How subtle do you want it? How damaging do you want it? How do you ... end it here rather than start to ratchet up and take it farther and farther? he asked. Weve been through this with other countries in other cases where you try to find, is there something we could do to them that they would see, that they would realize 98 percent that we did it, but it would be so obvious that they then have to respond. Watch: Obama on How US Will Respond to Russian Hacking The Russians have been at the cyber business as long as cyber has existed, said retired Admiral James Winnefeld, former vice chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. They saw this immediately for what it was an opportunity, particularly in the Russian way of doing business, of getting things done in a non-attributable way. Winnefeld added, Whether it was merely designed to undermine our own confidence in our political process, which is bad enough, or whether it was actually intended to influence the election, which is even worse, its still an extension of politics into a different realm and we have to take it seriously. Joseph Nye of Harvard Universitys Kennedy School of Government said that in terms of response, the United States must be firm. We have to make it clear that were not going to tolerate that, not just from the Russians, but from anybody. ... Unless we come down hard on this now, youre going to see a lot more of this and not just by Russians, Nye said. Uncharted territory Matthew Rojansky, director of the Woodrow Wilson Centers Kennan Institute, said the U.S. has a wide range of options, including doing the same kind of hacking to Russia. But this kind of electronic interference is, internationally, a new phenomenon. Unlike, for example, the nuclear realm or the conventional military realm where there is a clear ladder of escalation and a clear rule of deterrence ... we dont actually know what the rules of deterrence are, Rojansky said. Complicating matters is the wild-card factor of the incoming Trump administration. If the new administration strongly disagrees or they feel that this issue has been turned into a political issue by the outgoing administration, then I think the United States overall is in a much weaker position, he said. But the fact that the Obama administration has addressed the issue directly may force the hand of President-elect Donald Trump. The fact that the FBI is now on board I think speaks volumes, said Mietek Boduszynski, a former U.S. Foreign Service officer who is now an assistant professor of politics and international relations at Pomona College in Claremont, California. At the very least, I think in a political sense, the president [Obama] wants to set up a situation and maybe an investigation that will put President-elect Trump in a position where he wont be able to ignore this and will have to deal with it. I think thats probably the goal, at the very least, Boduszynski said. One thing is clear: Obama blames the cutthroat competition between political parties in the United States for providing other nations an opportunity to disrupt the political process. He quoted a political poll though not by name, calling it only a pretty credible source saying 37 percent of Republican voters approve of Putin. Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave, Obama said, of Americans in large numbers giving a thumbs-up to the former head of Russias KGB. And how did that happen? It happened in part because for too long, everything that happens in this town, everything thats said is seen through the lens of does this help or hurt us relative to Democrats or relative to President Obama, he said. And unless that changes, were going to continue to be vulnerable to foreign influence, because weve lost track of what it is that were about and what we stand for. Watch: Obama on US Involvement in Syria Obama also took questions on the war in Syrian, conceding it has been one of the hardest issues Ive faced. The world, he said, is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo. This blood and these atrocities are on their hands, Obama said, making clear he was referring to leaders in Moscow, Damascus and Tehran. He was speaking just hours after the Syrian government suspended the evacuation of civilians and fighters from the last rebel-held portions of Aleppo city, leaving the fate of tens of thousands of people highly uncertain. Russian hacking allegations and Syria dominated questions during the nearly 90-minute news conference. But Obama also discussed highlights from his eight years in office. Domestic Cut the unemployment rate, from nearly 10 percent when he entered office in 2009 to 4.6 percent last month, the lowest in nearly a decade. Added more than 15 million new jobs. Insured nearly 90 percent of Americans through the Affordable Care Act. He said 670,000 people selected a health plan on HealthCare.gov Thursday the deadline for being covered in 2017 marking the busiest day for the website. Cut U.S. dependence on foreign oil by more than half, doubled production of renewable energy. Enacted Wall Street reforms. Nearly tripled of the stock market. Foreign policy Reduced involvement of U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, from 180,000 troops to 15,000. Killed al-Qaida founder Osama Bin Laden in 2011. Diplomacy Obtained Iran nuclear deal. Restarted relations with Cuba. Reached a climate agreement with nearly 200 nations. VOA's National Security Correspondent Jeff Seldin, Jesusemen Oni, and Elizabeth Cherneff contributed to this report. An earlier version of this reported incorrectly identified some comments as coming from a VOA interview. Parents of Pakistani children killed in the 2014 attack on a Peshawar school gathered Friday to mark the second anniversary of the massacre. The attack by Taliban militants on Peshawars Army Public School killed 150 people, mostly children. Pakistans army chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, told parents gathered at the school Friday that the violence against innocent children was an attack "on humanity" and was one of the most painful and unforgettable moments in the countrys history. WATCH: Memorial held for slain schoolchildren In a statement, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif expressed his sympathies to the victims' families, saying the entire country felt and shared the pain of the tragedy. Sharif also said Pakistan has responded to the killings by intensifying action against militants. Pakistans government and army say most of the Pakistani Taliban members linked to the killings have been captured or killed in the last two years. Residents along Papua New Guinea's coastal areas fled to higher ground Saturday after a 7.9 magnitude earthquake with a depth of 103 kilometers struck the New Ireland region of the southwestern pacific nation. There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami warning for parts of the Pacific near the earthquake but the threat had largely passed a couple of hours later. Many residents in northern parts of the region of Bougainville fled to higher ground amid continued government warnings of high coastal tides. Residents in other parts of Papua New Guinea said they did not feel the quake and no evacuation plans were in place. Quakes are common in Papua New Guinea, which is located in a hot spot known as the "Ring of Fire." High levels of seismic activity occur in the area due to friction between tectonic plates. A devastating tsunami hit the neighboring Solomon Islands in 2013, leaving at least 10 people dead, thousands of others homeless and hundreds of homes destroyed. Possibly thinking a major U.S. aid package had been terminated, an enraged Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte said bye, bye to America in retaliation Saturday and threatened to dissolve an agreement that allows U.S. troops to visit the Philippines. The Millennium Challenge Corporation, a U.S. government aid agency, did not actually cancel the aid. Instead, the agency deferred a vote on the renewal of aid for the Philippines subject of a further review of concerns around rule of law and civil liberties. Duterte won the presidential election earlier this year largely based on his promise to aggressively target drug dealers and criminals. Philippine police and vigilantes have killed at least 3,600 people for drug use and drug sales since Duterte took office at the end of June. We can survive without American money, Duterte said, but you know America you might also be put to notice. Prepare to leave the Philippines. Prepare for the eventual repeal for the abrogation of the Visiting Forces Agreement. The controversial leader also said Saturday he would set aside a ruling by an international arbitration tribunal that invalidated Beijings claims to most of the busy South China Sea, because he doesnt want to impose on China, which has apparently installed weapons on the South China Sea territory. Philippines Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay, Jr. said, We want to make sure that there will be no further actions that will heighten the tensions between China and the Philippines. Manila has been one of Washingtons chief Asian allies since the two sides signed a mutual defense treaty in 1951. Since 2002, 50 to 100 American advisers have normally worked in the archipelagos southwest, helping to keep Muslim rebels in check. Since the two sides signed an agreement in 2014, American naval personnel have visited to help the country watch for Chinese ships in contested waters. The United States, a former colonizer of the Philippines, also gives many work visas to Filipinos and was the countrys No. 2 source of foreign direct investment after Japan in 2013. In 2013 the United States invested $1.3 billion in the Philippines. Preparations and security operations are well underway a month before Donald Trump's inauguration as president of the United States, which is expected to draw an unprecedented number of protesters. Though many members of the military and the National Guard have been planning this inauguration since 2012, the local armory building in Washington, D.C., opened its doors to display a large map of the city and explain the plan and movements of the president on Inauguration Day. Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence will start at St. John's Episcopal Church, after which they will head to the White House to meet with outgoing President Barack Obama, who will hand Trump a physical, albeit symbolic, key to the White House. After administrative documents are signed, a motorcade will begin from the White House to the Capitol for the swearing-in ceremony. "Generally speaking, the inauguration is taking shape as it has in the past, though things are subject to change," Brigadier General George Degnon, deputy commanding general for the presidential inauguration, said at a news conference Wednesday at which he addressed questions about how this inauguration would be different than those before it. Contingency plans The Joint Force Committee, which includes members of the military and some District of Columbia National Guard members, cited the most basic, but also the most real, threats to the inauguration parade: getting all their members properly credentialed, and having a contingency plan for hundreds of thousands of people in case of inclement weather. Thousands of National Guard members will be deputized by the D.C. Police Department, giving them the power to make arrests. Though the deputization has been common practice, arrests are rarely made. At Obama's first inauguration in 2009, which saw one of the largest crowds in history, troops made no arrests, said Major General Errol Schwartz, commanding general of the D.C. National Guard. Because the events of Inauguration Day largely take place outdoors and in January, weather also is a pressing concern. Military personnel have three uniforms for inclement weather. Their commander will decide at 4:30 a.m. January 20 which one they will wear. In 1985 at Ronald Reagan's second inauguration, the ceremony outside the Capitol was canceled because of snow, wind, and record low temperatures; it took place inside the building instead. As Trump prepares to take office, though, police, military and security personnel are facing an added challenge. "Clearly, the biggest concern at this point is the number of potential protesters," said Major General Bradley Becker, commanding general of the Joint Force Headquarters-National Capital Region. Women's march According to a Facebook event page, hundreds of thousands of people plan to participate in the Women's March on Washington the day after the inauguration. The march, the largest of more than a dozen planned in Washington over inauguration weekend, was the first to receive its permit Friday. "The Women's March on Washington will send a bold message to our new administration on their first day in office and to the world that women's rights are human rights. We stand together, recognizing that defending the most marginalized among us is defending all of us," the organization's mission statement reads on its website. The Facebook event page has about 150,000 people marked as "attending" and another 240,000 people marked as "interested" in marching on January 21. The ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) coalition is one of many groups seeking permits to protest on Inauguration Day. Nearly 20,000 people have RSVP'd on the group's website. Both organizations cite hateful rhetoric against marginalized groups during Trump's political campaign, saying their mission involves countering this hate and making sure the new government knows that minorities and women are united in "numbers too great to ignore." Many pro-Trump groups also are expected to convene to watch the inauguration in Washington. One of those is Bikers for Trump, made up of motorcyclists who staged rallies throughout the country leading up to the election, and who plan to ride through the city on Inauguration Day. A GoFundMe campaign for Bikers for Trump has raised over $18,000 to pay for lodging and fuel for those riding to and through Washington. Demonstrations set As many as 1 million protesters, on various sides and from various groups, could make it to the inauguration or gather the day after, according to calculations by Stephen Fuller, professor and faculty chair at the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University. Fuller's "low estimate" is that 200,000 people will attend inaugural events. Hotels throughout the capital are almost fully booked just with just those expected attendees, but Fuller said many protesters would either be making day trips or finding alternate lodging. "These are people who are staying with friends. I have some friends who have a bunch of people coming from California to stay at their house and sleep on the floor," Fuller told VOA. "People even called us up and said, 'Are you going to be home? Can we stay with you?' " Though the number of protesters expected in Washington is unprecedented, Fuller said, the general number of attendees, in whatever capacity, is similar to the number for Obama's inauguration in 2009. It's therefore a crowd size that local and federal authorities are equipped to deal with. "I think the Obama inauguration in 2009 is a good model, because security is basically crowd management," Fuller said. One of the biggest security concerns for Inauguration Day is securing the president-elect himself and preparing for "the one oddball with a gun," according to Fuller. "But the next day is simple," he said, referring to the women's march, which will occur long after the parade and ceremony, when Trump presumably will be secure inside the White House. "They don't have to guard him against this; they have to guard protesters from each other," Fuller said. The National Park Service is in charge of clearing permits for protests, because most of them occur on the National Mall and around monuments. The reason many demonstrations still lack permits is that the sheer number of groups protesting presents new challenges to the park service, not to mention security forces that will have a harder time keeping the large influx of people within designated areas, as well as quelling any potential tension between them and supporters of the new administration. Opponents of Poland's ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party remained in front of Poland's parliament building Saturday morning hours after police used force to remove blockades of the building's exits. The protesters, who also are staging a new rally outside Poland's presidential palace, are opposed to a series of government steps they consider anti-democratic. The protests occurred after the government approved a plan to restrict journalists' access to members of the parliament. Opposition lawmakers protested the plan on Friday and blocked a vote on the 2017 budget. Ruling party lawmakers then moved to a nearby hall and approved the budget, a move the opposition said was illegal because it was impossible to confirm that the required number of legislators was present. European Union Council President Donald Tusk called on Poland's authorities to respect the country's constitution and the rights of the protesters. "Following yesterday's events in parliament and on the streets of Warsaw ... I appeal to those who have real power for respect and consideration of the people, constitutional principles and morals," Tusk, the country's former prime minister, said during a news conference in Wroclaw, southwest Poland. The ruling party assumed power less than a year ago and the protests have sparked Poland's biggest parliamentary crisis in years. WASHINGTON (TNS) For eight years, many of President Barack Obamas critics denounced what they saw as excessive caution in dealing with foreign governments. No need to worry about that anymore. President-elect Donald Trump has already begun obliterating the current administrations no drama approach. He sees unpredictability as a valuable tool, which keeps adversaries off guard, softening them up to cut good deals. Many foreign affairs veterans from across party lines see danger ahead. Trumps view is born of his disdain for Washingtons expert class and his career in real estate, where a psychological edge can be worth millions of dollars by weakening an opponent. There is even some precedent in foreign affairs for what President Richard Nixon dubbed the madman theory, one of several tools he used in hopes of negotiating an end to the Vietnam War. But even Nixon who believed that if others thought him volatile, they would be more likely to back down never employed the tactic as a blunt instrument. Among foreign policy experts, there is deep concern that Trumps behavior during his transition highlighted by moves that angered China indicates that he lacks the broader strategy, nuance and careful planning needed to successfully pull off the strategy. Trump looks as if hes got the madman, but not the theory, said one such critic, Charles A. Stevenson, associate director of the American Foreign Policy Program at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and a former Democratic Senate aide. Experts say unpredictability can work in specific circumstances: when the goals are narrowly targeted and known in advance, used against relatively weak opponents; where the threat of radical action is credible and when the president understands what hes risking if the other side calls his bluff. The comments that he has made about foreign policy do not seem to be consistent or coherent, said Richard Lugar, a former Republican senator from Indiana who led the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and continues to be active in efforts aimed at reducing the threat of nuclear weapons. Im not certain whether on some occasions hes given a lot of thought to it and is hoping to get a reaction, or on other occasions, its simply from the top of the head, or anger or simple misunderstanding, he said. Trump argued in his campaign that America has suffered from its predictability, particularly in military endeavors. We must, as a nation, be more unpredictable, Trump declared during a major foreign policy address in April. We are totally predictable. We tell everything. Were sending troops: We tell them. Were sending something else: We have a news conference. We have to be unpredictable. And we have to be unpredictable starting now. As a campaign tool, the sense that Trump would do, say or tweet anything helped him immensely, diverting from controversies and persuading voters that he would set Washington ablaze. It fit in well with the celebrity persona that he honed in reality television, where suspense and drama build an audience. People are tired of the blow-dried, poll-tested position of every single politician, Jason Miller, Trumps communications director, said in an interview. Miller said that Trumps style had served him his entire life and remains crucial to his success in negotiating with foreign leaders. That desire to be unpredictable doesnt contradict making sure that our allies know that we stand with them, and our adversaries know that we stand against them, he said. But many allies have been concerned with just that, given that Trump has courted Russia, a foe, while questioning longtime alliances in Asia and Europe, calling treaties obsolete and demanding more money to offset the United States military budget. Stephen Krasner, director of policy and planning at the State department under President George W. Bush, said the uncertainty could prompt South Korea, a major trading partner and military ally, to move closer to Chinas orbit or trigger discussions in Japan about building nuclear weapons. Its unclear to many observers which of Trumps comments and actions are motivated by deeply held convictions and which are spontaneous. He has participated only intermittently in security briefings and has spoken with many foreign leaders without consulting the State Department. After winning election, Trump conducted calls with several foreign leaders that seemed to shake delicate balances long in the making. He praised Pakistans prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, and told him hed love to visit, a move that rattled archrival India, a U.S. ally. He had a warm conversation with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has spoken profanely about Obama and waged a deadly anti-drug war against his own citizens. Most significantly, Trump antagonized China by holding a phone conversation with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen. The call broke with decades of U.S practice. It came without warning, digging at a core tenet of Chinas definition of its sovereignty, which holds Beijing as the one and only capital of all of China, including Taiwan. Trump did not stop there, casting the call as a deliberate negotiating ploy during an interview with Fox News on Sunday. I fully understand the one China policy, but I dont know why we have to be bound by a one China policy unless we make a deal with China having to do with other things, including trade, Trump said. That prompted further recriminations from the Chinese, as well as from Taiwan, which didnt like being cast as a pawn. Policy experts are doubtful that China would allow their governments legitimacy to be used as a bargaining chip in discussions over their currency and trade barriers. They note that even if the relationship is complicated, its one the U.S. needs to take seriously, given mutual interests in containing North Koreas nuclear capacity, maintaining global economic stability and combating climate change. China may not want a trade war. But if its forced into one, both countries would be likely to suffer. He thinks hes somehow upping the ante to get a better deal, said R. Nicholas Burns, who has served in top diplomatic posts for both parties and advised Hillary Clintons presidential campaign. They will shut down the relationship if they think we are deviating from the one China policy. Much of the U.S. is in the grip of temperatures that are well below 10 degrees celsius. But weather is one thing, and climate another, so scientists in San Francisco are discussing global warming. At the same time NASA has released new imagery showing how carbon dioxide is moving through the earth's atmosphere. VOA's Kevin Enochs reports. Moscow city authorities have refused to allow human rights activists to stage a protest in front of Turkmenistan's embassy Monday in support of jailed Turkmen journalists. The Memorial Human Rights Center said Friday that city officials justified their refusal by saying the protest could affect "heavy public transport flow" in the area close to the embassy. Memorial says the refusal was politically motivated. An application to conduct the protest was filed by Memorial activist Bakhrom Khamroyev, who is originally from Uzbekistan. The idea to stage the demonstration was initiated by the Association of Central Asian Political Immigrants in Russia after authorities in Turkmenistan on December 3 arrested 27-year-old RFE/RL correspondent Khudayberdy Allashov on charges of illegal possession of chewing tobacco. The United States, the European Union, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and RFE/RL have all called on Turkmenistan to immediately release Allashov. Heavily armed al-Shabab fighters in pickup trucks moved into Somalia's Mahaday district in the Middle Shabelle region early Saturday, killing two government soldiers before voluntarily withdrawing, residents and officials said. The militants attacked about 4 a.m. local time, seizing a police station and administrative offices, residents said. The Mahaday district commissioner, Ahmed Husein, said officials had received word that militants were headed to the town, so they made a quick decision. "We got intelligence tips from the local people about their attack, and we made a strategic withdrawal for the safety of the innocent civilians," Husein said. "They briefly held the town and immediately withdrew once they realized that we would counterattack as the day wore on." Fearing reprisals, sources in the town who asked not to be named told VOA the two government soldiers and three militants were killed in a brief clashes at the town's entry checkpoint. Mahaday is a small agricultural town 27 kilometers from Jowhar, the capital of the Middle Shabelle region and the seat of HirShabelle, a newly established federal member state. The attack came as the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and the U.N. Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) jointly embarked on an operation to open up key supply routes in the region. The organizations intend to open roads in the region and help the military access forward operating bases "in the sector that is under the Burundi contingent," an AMISOM statement said. "The rehabilitation and opening up of the roads in the operation will help the local population to move their crops from farms to the markets, while the security agencies will be able to respond to emergencies much faster than is the case now." AMISOM said that during the operation, which is expected to take at least three months, it plans to rehabilitate more than 150 kilometers of roads in the agricultural-rich region of Somalia. Elsewhere in the country, government forces backed by Kenyan Defense Forces have launched an offensive against al-Shabab-controlled villages west of Kismayo to aid local people who have been fighting with militants over the imposition of a tax on their livestock. The United Nations Security Council has unanimously extended its peacekeeping mission in South Sudan for another year. The U.S.-drafted resolution says the council also will consider "appropriate measures" including an arms embargo against South Sudan to address continuing violence in the country. 4,000 troops added to mission The new mission covers a new regional force of 4,000 troops, approved in August but not yet deployed, in addition to the approximately 13,000 peacekeepers already there. The U.N. Mission in South Sudan, known as UNMISS, has come under criticism for failing to do enough to protect civilians during the three-year conflict. Human-rights groups said the mission did not do enough to protect civilians in Juba from a wave of mass rapes and murder that swept the capital five months ago, leaving at least 300 people dead. Tensions between U.N., South Sudan Ahead of the Security Council vote, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon sharply criticized South Sudan's leaders Friday, saying they have betrayed the people's trust and manipulated ethnicity for political gain. Ban warned that violence in South Sudan, including "mass atrocities" and "recurring episodes of ethnic cleansing," could escalate into genocide. Tensions have been growing between South Sudan's government and the U.N. mission. South Sudan initially rejected a U.S. proposal to deploy an additional 4,000 U.N. peacekeepers to the country in the wake of the fighting in July, but has now agreed to allow them, even though the technicalities are still being worked out. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has chosen Republican Congressman Mick Mulvaney to be his White House budget director, a signal that Trump plans to cut federal spending despite promises to boost military spending, protect expensive entitlement programs and rebuild the nation's infrastructure. Mulvaney is a fiscal conservative who has even pushed his own Republican Party colleagues to more aggressively reduce federal spending. In a statement Saturday announcing his decision, Trump said, "Right now we are nearly $20 trillion in debt, but Mick is a very high-energy leader with deep convictions for how to responsibly manage our nation's finances and save our country from drowning red ink." Federal spending Senate confirmation of Mulvaney as Office of Management and Budget director may allay concerns among fiscally conservative lawmakers who question how the Trump administration will manage the federal budget. Trump has promised to cut federal spending while bolstering the military and preserving popular entitlement programs, such as Medicare and Social Security. Trump also has called for as much as $1 trillion in spending to repair the nation's aging infrastructure, an idea that has long been popular among Democrats. Mulvaney was among a group of younger fiscal conservative stalwarts who were elected to Congress in 2010. He quickly earned a reputation as a spending hawk while playing a leading role in a 2011 confrontation between House Republicans and President Barack Obama that culminated in the approval of strict budget limits. Mulvaney is a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus, a group of staunchly conservative House Republicans who are widely considered responsible for the 2015 ouster of then House Speaker John Boehner. Tweeting, touring Although Trump began his holiday vacation Friday at his estate in Palm Beach, Florida, the president-elect is still managing to get unwanted attention. After calling out China in a tweet Saturday morning for seizing an unmanned U.S. military underwater probe, the incoming president was mocked for a typographical error. "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented (sic) act," Trump posted in his initial tweet. The misspelling quickly became a trending topic on Twitter in the U.S., prompting the removal of Trump's tweet about an hour later. The tweet was replaced with one that included the correct spelling of the word "unprecedented." Trump's tweet referred to China's seizure of the military probe Thursday in the international waters of the South China Sea, a provocation that could further heighten tensions between the two superpower nations. Meanwhile, the president-elect will make the final stop on his post-election "thank you" tour with an appearance Saturday afternoon in Mobile, Alabama, the site of the largest rally of his campaign. After the event, Trump is expected to return to his Florida estate, where aides say he will likely spend the week hosting meetings and relaxing with his family. An American man whom U.S. prosecutors have accused of organizing the largest known cyberattack on Wall Street was arrested and appeared in U.S. court this week after being deported from Russia to the United States. Lawyers for Joshua Aaron, 32, confirmed that he arrived in New York around midday Wednesday aboard a commercial flight from Moscow. He made his first U.S. federal court appearance Thursday, where he pleaded not guilty to charges of orchestrating the hack. U.S. prosecutors have accused Aaron and two Israeli men of orchestrating the theft of data from more than 100 million customers from U.S. companies including JPMorgan Chase & Co. The group then used that information to manipulate stocks and similar schemes that brought in hundreds of millions of dollars, U.S. prosecutors say. U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara called the eight-year scheme "securities fraud on cyber-steroids." The office of Aaron's lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, told RFE/RL that its client would appear in court December 15. U.S. authorities issued an arrest warrant for Aaron in July 2015, just two months after he arrived in Russia via Ukraine. His Israeli partners were extradited to the United States a year later. Aaron has been held in a Moscow immigration detention center since being arrested by Moscow police in May 2016 for alleged immigration violations. According to Bloomberg, he had applied for refugee status, but a Russian judge later ordered him deported. Russian hackers The deportation comes amid growing alarm about the extent to which Russian computer hackers have penetrated U.S. government systems, political parties, or other organizations, and whether the election that Republican President-elect Donald Trump won was tainted. The U.S. intelligence community in October publicly accused the Russian government of being behind intrusions into Democratic Party organizations, and the final days of the U.S. election campaign were overshadowed by questions of Russian hacking. Trump has rejected allegations that Russia tried to help him get elected and has said the cyberattacks could have come from other governments or private actors. In an unrelated case, a Russian man wanted for allegedly hacking U.S. websites, including the social-networking site LinkedIn, is the focus of a tug-of-war between U.S. and Russian officials, both of whom want him deported from the Czech Republic. Yevgeny Nikulin has been held in a Czech jail since his arrest in October, with the assistance of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation. Washington wants him extradited to the United States to face charges, something Moscow has fought. Former astronaut and U.S. Senator John Glenn "defined what it meant to be an American," Vice President Joe Biden said Saturday during a memorial service for Glenn in Columbus, Ohio. The service took place in Glenn's home state, on the campus of Ohio State University. Biden was one of several prominent speakers at the funeral, including NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and retired Marine General Jack Dailey. Glenn defined "what it meant to be an American, what we were about, just by how he acted," Biden said. "It was always about promise, it was a country of opportunity. ... Always a belief in tomorrow." During the service, Glenn's children, Carolyn Ann and John David, said their father asked them repeatedly, "What have you done for your country today?" "John came out of the heart of the country, like you kids do, and he stole America's heart," the vice president continued. "He knew by his upbringing that ordinary Americans can do extraordinary things." Dailey said the nation had Glenn for 95 years and "it still wasn't enough." Mourners braved ice and cold weather to line the streets as a procession of U.S. Marines led the hearse carrying Glenn's casket through the streets of Columbus. On Friday, thousands viewed his flag-draped casket inside Ohio's Statehouse rotunda. Glenn flew 149 combat missions as a military fighter pilot in World War II and the Korean War, earning many medals, then became one of the "Mercury 7," the first group of American astronauts, chosen in 1959. He was the last survivor of that group. He gained worldwide fame as a space hero in 1962 when he became the first American to orbit the Earth. Following a two-decade career in the U.S. military, Glenn entered politics and served in the Senate for 25 years. Glenn made history again in 1998 when he returned to space at age 77 for a nine-day orbital flight aboard the U.S. space shuttle Discovery. Apart from the novelty of his status as the oldest astronaut ever, scientists noted that Glenn's physical state in orbit could be compared with data from his records of more than three decades earlier, providing valuable information about how space flight affects the body at different ages. After leaving the Senate in 1999, Glenn helped to found a public service school at Ohio State, which later became the John Glenn College of Public Affairs. He served as an adjunct professor at that school. Glenn won numerous accolades, including honorary university degrees, the Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service, a U.S. Senate public service award and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He died in Columbus on December 8. He had been hospitalized about a week earlier and was surrounded by his family, including his wife, Annie, and their children. He will be buried in April at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, the final resting place of most American military heroes and many statesmen, across the Potomac River from the U.S. national monuments near the Capitol and White House. WATCH: Vice President Joe Biden speaks at funeral for John Glenn A group of students from the Anchor Bay High School Honors Academy recently attended a performance of A Christmas Carol at the Bonstelle Theatre in Detroit. The trip oneo f many organized by honors academy instructors as a way to help students make real-world connections, the district said in a recent press release. More than 100 sophomores and juniors from the honors academy attended the performance, which took place Dec. 9 on the campus of Wayne State University. Overall, a wonderful time was had by all and the experience was both enriching and education, the press release states. Emily Pauling, The Voice Viroqua lost a community visionary and friend of the Main Street community last week. Dorothy Hoffland, longtime owner and operator of Buzzys Home Furnishings in Viroqua, passed away on Dec. 7. Hoffland and her husband opened Buzzys Carpet in 1966, Buzzys Furniture in 1970, Country Gentleman in 1976, Center Stage in 1994, and Simply Country in 1998. Hoffland ran the businesses with sophistication and grace, not only continuing the businesses after her husbands death in 1978, but expanding them. Hoffland was an advocate for small business and was instrumental in many of the early downtown revitalization efforts Viroquas Main Street business community. Buzzys has been a member of the Viroqua Chamber Main Street for more than 25 years. Our deepest sympathy to the family at this difficult time. Shop local! Viroqua is focusing on Shopping Small as a community again this year, aiming to improve the economic health of ourhistoric downtown and north side shops. Shopping small means paying for services, dining and holiday goods in a conscious way. Dollars spent in our community, stay in our community. Pick up Viroqua Bucks at the Viroqua Chamber Main Street Visitor Center for use at a variety of shops in our area and dont forget to shop our Pop-Up Shops, at least two of which are staying after December! How exciting!! Why shop local? 1. Shopping local creates jobs. Shops in your town create local employment and self-employment. These people in turn spend in the local economy. 2. Local independent shops invest more in your communities. Local businesses are proportionally more generous in their support of local charities, schools, and community events. So supporting local shops means a financial contribution to your community. 3. Local shops sell great products at affordable prices. Some people get out of the habit of shopping locally and are then surprised by the range of products available. 4. Shopping locally saves you time and money. You travel less, saving on time and fuel. 5. Shopping locally retains your communities. People dont like losing shops and services in small towns but dont equate this with how they spend their money. 6. Shopping locally retains your distinctiveness. Independent shops create distinctive shopping experiences and stock different products. Local businesses respond more quickly to the needs of local customers, stocking products to meet changing population needs. 7. Shopping locally saves the environment. Local shops often stock a high percentage of locally sourced goods that do not require long-distance transportation, helping to reduce our global footprint. 8. Local shops are for everyone. Most people can get to their local shops easily. This is especially important for the elderly, young people and others who rely on public transportation. 9. Local shops value you more. Evidence from numerous surveys show people receive better customer care and service locally. These businesses survive by their reputation and repeat business, which means you get a higher standard of service. 10. Shopping local saves services. Private and public sector services cluster around shops. As shops disappear so do hairdressers, banks, restaurants and other businesses. Local consumers in Viroqua and beyond can pledge to Think, Shop, Buy, Local and commit to patronizing businesses near where they live and work. Local stores employ your neighbors, pay taxes that support your schools and improve your roads, and contribute to local non-profit groups. Candlelight Dinner, Dec. 21 Join the Driftless Cafe for a Winter Solstice Candlelight Dinner, Dec. 21. The dinner is a pay what you can event; meaning that the cafe is opening its doors to reach out for the greater good of the community. A portion of the proceeds will benefit area families in need. Seating begins at 5 p.m. Reservations available for parties of six or more. The restaurant will be busy so community seating will be necessary for parties of two or four. For more information, visit the Driftless Cafe Facebook page or call 637-7778. Office closes for holidays The Viroqua Chamber Main Street Visitor Center, 201 N. Main St., will be closed Dec. 26-30. Nora Roughen-Schmidt is the executive director of the Viroqua Chamber-Main Street and can be reached at 608-637-2575. Subway furnace blower, decorations set off alarm A front motion alarm alert sent a Clay Township police officer to a Subway on Dec. 10, according to a police report. He was sent to the location the previous night as well due to the same type of alarm. The location was secure upon arrival and after the key holder arrived on the scene, a manager was contacted. The manager told the key holder to turn the blower to the furnace off to stop the alarm. The officer noticed that the motion sensor was going off because decorations hanging from the ceiling were moving around due to the wind from the furnace. The manager told the officer through the key holder to disregard any further motion alarms at the location that night and the police officer told her to have the boss contact the station. The case is now closed. German shepherd escapes, frightens neighbors The Clay Township police were contacted on Dec. 11 as a resident had been having issues with her neighbors German shepherd who did not stay in the yard, according to a police report. The resident expressed that her son was afraid to go out and shovel snow, fearing that the dog will become aggressive towards him. An officer called the neighbor, who stated that the dog was retrieved and secured immediately upon learning the dog broke away again. The officer first spoke with the homeowners aid, who stated that she retrieved the dog and put Jet in the garage. He then spoke to the homeowner, who is in a wheelchair after an accident a few years ago. She was apologetic and indicated that she would be purchasing an invisible fence system in the spring to hopefully prevent this from happening in the future. This was the second complaint for the dog. Front door alarm sounds, no one there A Clay Township police officer was dispatched to a residence regarding a front door alarm on Dec. 12, according to a police report. At the scene there were no footprints in the fresh snow that had fallen. The officer checked the exterior of the residence and found it secure. The case is now closed. The articles on Voltaire Network may be freely reproduced provided the source is cited, their integrity is respected and they are not used for commercial purposes (license CC BY-NC-ND). Source: The Security Council meets in secret after the arrest of NATO officers in Aleppo, Translation Pete Kimberley, Voltaire Network, 17 December 2016, www.voltairenet.org/article194590.html Photo: F. Sadou/AdMedia/Corbis This week, comedian Margaret Cho was a guest on Bobby Lees popular TigerBelly podcast, where she revealed she had numerous private email correspondences with Tilda Swinton in regards to Doctor Stranges whitewashing controversy over Swintons casting as the Ancient One. (Tilda eventually emailed me and she said that she didnt understand why people were so mad about Doctor Strange and she wanted to talk about it, and wanted to get my take on why all the Asian people were mad, Cho said. It was weird because I felt like a house Asian, like Im her servant.) In response to Chos comments, Swintons representatives released the unedited and only conversation between the two women, which consists of five emails dating from May. The tone of the emails offered a different account of how Cho described it on the podcast, with the women thoughtfully discussing Stranges casting choices and whitewashing in the film industry. Vulture reached out to Chos representatives for comment regarding the release of the emails, and received the following response from Cho: Asian actors should play Asian roles. I believe my emails stand on their own and should be taken for the spirit in which they were intended. I am grateful that the debate has now entered the national discussion and remain a huge fan of Tildas. Now Im going to go fall asleep at a museum. The emails, in full, can be read here. Photo: David Livingston/Getty Images Line up a few episodes of Masters of Sex or plan a watch party of Frost/Nixon, because theres a fair chance we wont be seeing Michael Sheen in the Hollywood circuit for quite some time. In a new interview with the The Times of London, the Welsh actor has revealed he will be giving up acting for the time being in favor of pursuing a fight against demagogic, fascistic far-right politics. Sheen will be returning to his hometown of Port Talbot, Wales, to fully dedicate himself to his political-activist role at a grassroots level and stressed that the election of President-elect Donald Trump was the tipping point for choosing to take action although Port Talbot voting in favor of Brexit also greatly contributed. In the same way as the Nazis had to be stopped in Germany in the 30s, this thing that is on the rise has to be stopped, he said. Its not going to look like this in 10 years time. Everything has shifted. The dice are being rolled again. Though Sheen acknowledges moving away from Hollywood might affect his relationships with family and friends, he believes his actions will be worth it in the long run. It will be a big change for how people relate to me, he explains. Once Im in, Im fully in, and this is big. As soon as you start to be effective, then people try to crush you, because its dangerous. Happy trails, sir. Update, December 18: In a post on his official Tumblr page, Sheen has clarified that he wont, in fact, be quitting his full-time acting career to focus on a life of political activism in Wales. Saying that his comments were misquoted and taken out of context by The Times of London, his entire statement can be read below: Tilda Swinton in Doctor Strange. Earlier this week, Margaret Cho revealed that Tilda Swinton contacted her to discuss the anger over her casting as the Ancient One in Doctor Strange in an interview on Bobby Lees podcast TigerBelly. It was weird because I felt like a house Asian, like Im her servant, Cho said of their long discussion, adding that Swinton told her not to tell anybody about their conversation. Cho also mentioned that Swinton said she was producing a film with Steven Yeun (Bong Joon-hos Okja). I had a weird feeling about the entire exchange, Cho said. Especially the part of Dont tell anybody. After reaching out to Swintons rep, Vulture received the following response: Since you asked for a response to a story you published today about the substance and tone of a correspondence between Margaret Cho and Tilda Swinton, Tilda offers you the entire unedited and only conversation she has ever had with Margaret with her gratitude for the opportunity to clarify and with all good wishes to all. The full conversation consists of five emails between Swinton and Cho, all dated to Friday, May 13 in the podcast discussion, it sounds as if Cho and Swinton talked over the phone, but this does not appear to be the case. Also, possibly of note: Cho led a conversation about whitewashing in Hollywood the previous week. Swinton first reaches out: Dear Margaret, Weve never met, but youve been in my head for years - Im a fan. I want to ask you a favour now which is sprung out of a truly important social conversation but may be heading for some crazy-making shit. The diversity debate - ALL STRENGTH to it - has come knocking at the door of Marvels new movie DR STRANGE. I am told that you are aware of this. But since I am that extinct beast that does no social media, I am unaware of what exactly anybody has said about any of it. I believe there are some ironies about this particular film being a target, but Im frankly much more interested in listening than saying anything much. I would really love to hear your thoughts and have a - private - conversation about it. Are you up for this? Can we e-mail? No wrong answer here. Tell me to fuck off if you feel like it. In any and every case, Much love to you, Tilda Cho responds: Sure! Im a big fan of yours - since orlando! Well, what do you know so far? I can tell you from my perspective whats happening! The character you played in Dr Strange was originally written as a Tibetan man and so theres a frustrated population of Asian Americans who feel the role should have gone to a person of Asian descent. The larger part of the debate has to do with the whitewashing of Asian and Asian Americans in film. Our stories are told by white actors over and over again and we feel at a loss to know how to cope with it. Protest seems to be the only solution- we just want more representative images of ourselves in film. TV is getting better in terms of diversity but film is lagging behind. Anyway - hope this helps! We can totally email and we can be private! Best, m Swinton explains her understanding of the decision making behind her casting, and insists that she was offered a character that was Celtic, as Marvel has stated before. Thank you so much for your reply! So grateful to have a chance to chew this cud with you. Super clear. Heres the situation I reckon Marvel was in. The old comic books from way back when are stuffed with stereotypes that we could all find offensive for any number of reasons. The film - like any film adaptation - is a riff on the books. The Ancient One may have been written as a Tibetan man in the comics, but Marvel, in a conscious effort to shake up stereotypes, wanted to avoid tired cliche. They cast Chiwetel Ejiofor as the second lead - a white Transylvanian in the books. And wrote a significant Asian character to be played by Benedict Wong. With The Ancient One (the wise old Eastern geezer Fu Manchu type in the book), wanting to switch up the gender (another diversity department) and not wanting to engage with the old Dragon Lady trope, they chose to write the character as being of (ancient) Celtic origin and offered that role to me. Presumably on Ancient grounds. I accepted happily, impressed that, for once, they aimed to disrupt the wisdom must be male never-ending story - and, by the way, for once, wanting to feature a woman whos a badass, over 26 and not simply bursting out of a bikini. The biggest irony about this righteous protest targeting this particular film is the pains the makers went to to avoid it. A - personal - irony to my being even remotely involved in this controversy is what I stand up for and always have. Whether it is challenging the idea of what women look like, or how any of us live our lives, or how we educate our children, diversity is pretty much my comfort zone. The idea of being caught on the wrong side of this debate is a bit of a nightmare to me. I am as sick as anybody at the lack of a properly diverse cinematic universe. Pretty much sick of the Anglophone world in general, sick of all the mens stories, sick of all the symmetrical features and Mattel-inspired limbs.. Im a Scottish woman of 55 who lives in the Highlands. Theres precious little projected on contemporary cinema screens that means a great deal to my life, if truth be told. So How best might we focus this thing? To offer intelligent and empowered thinking.. And see something constructive coming out of this moment? Ducking the issue is not what I am about. I want to meet it, but, if possible, move things forward by how I meet it. I realise, as far as I am concerned, this possibly means saying nothing: so far I have attempted to correct the notion that I accepted an offer to play an Asian.. (!!) the most significant and damaging misunderstanding out there, it seems. Beyond that, I dont feel it appropriate for me to add anything, certainly at this point. But I would love to know what ideas you - or anyone you know - have of something properly progressive to bring to this table. The debate is so important for all of us. It needs to build itself on strong ground. love Tilda Cho explains why she believes that the film failed in the eyes of many viewers and notes that the outrage around it was also focused on an industry-wide erasure of Asian and Asian-American roles, pointing to Scarlett Johanssons casting in Ghost in the Shell as another similar casting controversy. Im totally unfamiliar with all the comic books so I cant speak on anything about that - and the efforts to make this film more diverse is unfortunately lost in the translation here. Hopefully that comes up more when the film comes out and is finally brought to audiences! I think that its just a timing thing - Asian Americans are fed up with not being given roles even if the part called for someone of Asian descent - and that the Ancient One role was being used as another example of whitewashing. Social media has grown to the point where we can use it effectively to express - well whatever. I believe very much that you as an artist are about diversity and your body of work shows that - but this particular case of the Ancient One is just another in a long list of whitewashed Asian characters and so youre likely to feel the heat of history. I am not sure what to say other than I am glad you want to meet the issue head on - its a tough one I know. I think that talking about the issue frankly - as you have done with me is the right way to go. Its hard I know - people get very angry and its difficult to know what to do to get around that anger. But you should know that its anger built up over many many years of invisibility within film/tv/media thats just exploded now with this film. And its not just you - Its also directed at Scarlett Johanssen for Ghost in the Shell. Maybe whats best is the highlight the diversity that you do see in the film and that being why you felt drawn to the project. Also acknowledge that youre all about diversity and how you want the films you make to be diverse and how film can benefit from that. Id even suggest getting into producing content that would give Asian American voices a platform? Thats really what is being asked for. Asian Americans feel as if we have no place in film and so we want one to be created. Whether that is found in supporting projects that would bring Asians into the foreground or even just discussing what it would take to do such a thing would help. Swinton brings the conversation to the close, and mentions her involvement in Okja: I cant thank you enough for this. It really helps me sort out the lay of the land. To be continued. x By the way, the project I have been developing as a producer over the past two years is with Bong Joon Ho - my colleague from SNOWPIERCER - a film called OKJA shooting this summer in Korea, NYC and Vancouver - to my knowledge the first ever half Korean/half English speaking film, which we are making with Plan B and Netflix, in which the lead is a 14 year old girl from Korea and which stars Steven Yeun, amongst others.. fingers crossed it will be a big deal and help the landscape somewhat.. I hope and believe it will. Cho writes a quick response: You can already tour downtown Waco and the Brazos River corridor by land and water. Soon you can see it all from the air. BlueSky Helicopter Tours is preparing to launch aerial tours in early 2017 from Heritage Square, allowing visitors to see Baylor University, McLane Stadium, the Magnolia Silos, Cameron Park and other sights from about 1,000 feet up. The tours are a side project of Waco-based Night Flight Concepts, whose leaders saw an opportunity in the 20,000 tourists who reportedly visit Magnolia Market each week. Thats a lot of people coming to Waco, Night Flight President Adam Aldous said. This is a chance to expose them to a different view, literally, of where they are. The Waco City Council approved a six-month special permit on Dec. 6, allowing Aldous firm to lease 2.8 acres at 311 Austin Avenue for a helipad. The firm will pay $1,000 per month to use the parking lot next to Heritage Square and will vacate it when the city needs the space for convention center events or festivals. Council members approved the permit unanimously but directed the city staff to work with Aldous to ensure temporary fencing and a storage building the operation will need are appropriate for downtown. Councilman Jim Holmes said he has heard some concerns about noise from the helicopter, but he said the permits short time span will give the operator a chance to prove its not a nuisance. Holmes said he thinks the helicopter tours could encourage visitors to make Waco more than a quick stop. Weve got all these Magnolia people coming to downtown, and we want to give them other things to do, he said. Weve already got the trolley pushing them out to Austin Avenue and the Dr Pepper Museum. This will be one more thing they can do. . . . If a lot of people use it and it gets a good buzz, well try to keep it going. Aldous, an Iraq War veteran, will be among the helicopter pilots leading the tours in a new four-seater Robinson R44. The pilots will be in communication with local airport towers, he said. The first-come, first-served tours are set to start in January and will be available Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The cost is $99 for a 10-minute tour. BlueSky is already offering tours out of its base at the Texas State Technical College airport. Aldous and his partners opened a Night Flight Concepts office in Waco last year, and the company is in the process of moving its headquarters here from Bedford. Night Flight Concepts provides night-vision training to helicopter pilots, including students in Texas State Technical Colleges helicopter training program. Our core business had nothing to do with helicopter tours, Aldous said. To be honest, this isnt where you make money. Youve got to have the numbers and a good location. . . . These things are very expensive to operate. He said this type of helicopter typically sells for about $700,000 and costs about $750 per hour to operate. The firm gave demonstration rides to members of the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce and the Waco City Council in October, launching from Heritage Square. Since then it has been offering rides by appointment at TSTC Waco Airport, including some with night vision goggles. Wacos Keller Williams Realty office recently hired BlueSky for a corporate event, allowing employees to take a tour of the city they sell on a daily basis. Its a unique experience, Keller Williams broker Jeff Bird said. I know a lot of my staff who went up with me rescheduled with Adam to do a short tour. People have paid a lot more for a lot less fun. Bird said the helicopter perspective allowed real estate agents to see Waco in a new way and understand the proximity of certain neighborhoods to the river and downtown. Some of them said we need to buy a helicopter, he said. Aldous said he intends to offer helicopter services to a range of local enterprises, including real estate companies, photography firms, television stations and law enforcement. Having a helicopter business in the city of Waco puts the city on the map from a growth standpoint, he said. The other piece of that is that we hope it enhances opportunities for other businesses downtown. Moving to Waco Aldous, 42, established Night Flight in 2006 after a 14-year career in the military that included flying Chinooks during the invasion of Iraq. His wartime experience made him adept at night flying. We flew in the nighttime and slept during the day, he said. Darkness was our tactical advantage against the enemy. Aldous moved the company from Florida to Bedford in 2011 but found that its growth required a new location. He said TSTCs flight program and Wacos uncrowded airspace were selling points. Its challenging to find the airspace to do the kind of training we do, he said. Aldous said an associated portable helipad business, Heliwagon, is also moving to Waco. Aldous moved here in April with his wife and daughter, now 2. He said Waco has quickly grown on him, and he thinks the city has a bright future. I love Fort Worth, and once we got down here, I was a little hesitant at first, he said. But Ive lived all over the world, and this is one of the best places Ive been, not only because of the people but because of the community leaders here. You dont have a ton of things to do like in Dallas and Fort Worth, but the things there are to do are quality and they fit our lifestyle. When Brooke Morris was a dental assistant years ago, cleaning skeletons and taking DNA samples were not on her mind. But she is graduating from Baylor University on Saturday for doing just that, with a bachelors degree in forensic anthropology and a biology minor. The mother of two was living in Tucson, Arizona, in 2013 when she transferred to Baylor. She and her husband wanted to be closer to family in Central Texas. As a nontraditional transfer student, Morris said the transition was not always smooth. She was once mistaken for a students mother. That transition, because Im not really viewed as a peer, is a little difficult, she said. It was really difficult. It took me a good year to really settle in. After a brief stint as a biology major, she discovered her next path while sitting in chapel, where freshmen gather twice weekly for worship sessions and guest speakers. The speaker that day was Lori Baker, an associate anthropology professor who founded the Reuniting Families Project. The program identifies remains of immigrants who died along United States-Mexico border and returns them to family. Coolest thing ever I kept thinking, This is the coolest thing ever, Morris said. I kept nudging my friend sitting next to me because we were both contemplating other majors and I was like, This looks amazing. And little did I know I would be working so closely with her. Baker said Morris has helped more than 100 families in the past 18 months. She brought order to chaos, Baker said. Morris organized a training schedule for students to assist in the high volume of cases. She spent so much time organizing, getting files together, working with students to train them and setting up schedules for them to work, but also just doing case work: so, cleaning skeletons and analyzing and photographing and putting things into the right national databases, taking DNA samples, Baker said. She has been basically operating as a laboratory manager as an undergraduate student, which is unheard of. This was all while caring for two children, one who has special needs. Her husband also worked overseas for much of her time at Baylor. Morris is a role model for nontraditional transfer students, said Joe Oliver, director of Baylors Transfer Student Success Program. Its an intrinsic motivation the grit that they have that really determines whether or not theyre successful, Oliver said. They have a really large uphill battle coming to a primarily traditional residential campus like Baylor. Next, Morris hopes to attend Baylors graduate program in biology under the guidance Pat Danley, another one of her mentors, who studies genetic evolution. Then, she hopes to go on to a career in research and teaching. She credits Danley and Baker for believing in her under unusual circumstances. Anthropology brings a lot of behavioral concepts that can be studied with genetics, so I really liked what Pat was doing and the questions he was asking in science, Morris said. So I thought this would be a really great fit for me. The fact both of them reached out and said, We see your potential and see what you can do, thats a pretty uplifting feeling as a student whos struggling with class load and family life, and it made a huge difference. Saturday Warming the Community Food and Clothing Giveaway, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Waco Full Gospel Holy Temple, 512 Hillsboro Drive. Free gently-used clothing and pre-packaged holiday meal food items for those in need. Call 799-1006. YPD Youth Presentation of The Birth (original play written by Madame Renee Walker), 6 p.m., Waco Multi-Purpose Center, 1020 Elm Ave.; $10 donation. Visit www.stluke-amechurch.org. Sunday Christmas Celebration, 3-5 p.m. Dec. 18, sponsored by God Healing Word Tabernacle, Hubbard Historic High School, 300 N. Sixth St., Hubbard; free. Speaker: Pastor Leslie Hewitt, Macedonia Baptist Church. Call 855-9361. Heavenly Jubilees and Friends 13th Annual Building Fund Musical, Dec. 18, New Generation Church, 1601 Airbase Road. Speaker: Pastor Carwander Tompkins. Handels Messiah Concert, 6 p.m., Seventh and James Baptist Church, 602 James Ave.; free. Orchestra and soloists (audience is the chorus). Call 753-6425. Tuesday Prayer Hour, 6:30 p.m., Life Cathedral Worship Center, 1301 Webster St. Wednesday Pastorial Night, 7 p.m., Life Cathedral Worship Center, 1301 Webster St. Thursday Boy Scouts of America, 6:30-7:30 p.m., New Deliverance Missionary Baptist Church, 1400 N. Fifth St. Call 867-1109 or 749-2441. Girl Scouts of Central Texas, 6:30-7:30 p.m., New Deliverance Missionary Baptist Church, 1400 N. Fifth St. Call 867-1109 or 749-2441. Upcoming Christmas Eve Service Celebration, hosted by Youth Department, 5 p.m. Dec. 24, Edwards Chapel A.M.E. Church, 3600 N. 21st St. RSVP by. Dec. 21 to 548-5251. The Gathering Place, a program for those in the early to moderate stages of Alzheimers or dementia, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Jan. 3, Austin Avenue United Methodist Church, 1300 Austin Ave. Call Bekcy Villarreal at 713-682-5995. Dress for Success Ministry Store Opening, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Jan. 28, New Jerusalem Baptist Church, 204 S. Lake St., Axtell. Speaker: Brenda Jackson, I Can Still Shine Foundation, Hurst. Kids activities and snacks provided. Items for Church Calendar must be submitted by noon Wednesday. No information is accepted by telephone. Because of the volume of submissions, publication is not guaranteed. Items may be submitted online at www.wacotrib.com/goingson; mailed to Church Calendar, Waco Tribune-Herald, P.O. Box 2588, Waco 76702-2588; emailed to goingson@wacotrib.com; brought to 900 Franklin Ave.; or faxed to 757-0302. Dear reader, we're asking for your help to keep local reporting available for all today during our fall fundraiser. Your financial support keeps stories like this one free to read, instead of hidden behind paywalls. We believe when reliable local reporting is widely available, the entire community benefits. Thank you for investing in your neighborhood. Start your day with LAist Sign up for How To LA, delivered weekday mornings. Subscribe There's always something about a Star Wars movie that makes the fanboys and fangirls get riled up. They get dressed up, wait in line in the cold for days, and hit new romantic milestones in their lives. Last year, two fans got married in front of the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on opening night of The Force Awakens. It was an epic event befitting the film. This year at the Chinese Theatre there was less of a grand celebrationfitting, as this year's Rogue One is considered a one-off side story as opposed to one of the major "episodes" of the saga. But hey, there was at least a marriage proposal inside the IMAX theater! Groom-to-be Shaun Colquhoun proposed to his girlfriend Genevieve Hartney in front of hundreds of fans there before the first screening of Rogue One on Thursday evening. He got an assist from the Dark Lord of the Sith himself, Darth Vader, who presented the ring inside of a Death Star-styled ring box. "I got to propose at the premiere of Rogue One I can't even express how amazing this feels," said Colquhoun. "I'm one of the biggest Star Wars nerds ever and i'm super excited." For the occasion Colquhoun was dressed as Han Solo, while Hartney simply wore a Princess Leia T-shirt that read "I love you." We assume her soon-to-be hubby has the matching "I know" shirt in the closet. Colquhoun and Hartney weren't the only Star Wars geeks who got engaged last night. Josh Roland tricked his girlfriend into thinking the two of them had a private screening of Rogue One, only to play a short film he made to propose to her: And two jawas got engaged at a theater in Vermont: STAR WARS PROPOSAL: A Jawa asked another Jawa to marry them at tonight's premiere at @EssexCinemas10. (They said yes!)@starwars#RogueOne pic.twitter.com/JbLqgTiRMp Jeremy Mathsen (@JeremyMyNBC5) December 15, 2016 May the Force be with all the happily engaged couples! We hope you liked the movie (I thought it was OK). Genevieve Hartney, Shaun Colquhoun and Darth Vader at the opening night premiere of 'Rogue One' at the TCL Chinese Theatre. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images) PROXIMA Extienden contrato a Lisa Donahue hasta febrero La Junta de Gobierno de la Autoridad de Energia Electrica aprobo la extension del contrato a fin de continuar lo ya implantado por la empresa AlixPartners Former prime minister Kevin Rudd has used the platform of receiving an honorary doctorate to criticise the state of Australian public discourse, saying "civility is lost". "We have lost a little of our national bearings, lost a little in a national culture of learned helplessness," he said on Friday at the Australian National University, where he accepted the degree. Mr Rudd, who made a formal apology to Australia's Indigenous people in 2008, spoke of "a shrieking culture of partisan recrimination that now passes for our national politics" and the ugly re-emergence of a politics of race. "In Indigenous Australia, where reconciliation seemed possible not long ago, we now seem to be sliding back into older more familiar patterns of division and despair," he said. Already signed until the end of 2019, Cyril Rioli's contact at Hawthorn has been extended by a year. The Hawks announced on Friday that the livewire small forward had committed for 2020 as well, a year in which Rioli will turn 31. Contract extension: Cyril Rioli has re-committed to the Hawks Credit:Cameron Spencer/Getty Images Rioli, 27, has played 178 games in nine years at the club. A four-time premiership player, he won the Norm Smith medal in the 2015 grand final win over West Coast, and was rewarded for another outstanding season this year by being named All-Australian for the third time. Rioli told the club's website that he was happy to again re-commit. "I'm very happy where I am, and I couldn't see myself being anywhere else," Rioli said. Tommy G Thompson was once one of the greatest treasure hunters of his time: A dark-bearded diver who hauled a trove of gold from the Atlantic Ocean in 1988 - dubbed the richest find in US history. Years later, accused of cheating his investors out of the fortune, Thompson led federal agents on a great manhunt - pursued from a Florida mansion to a mid-rent hotel room booked under a fake name. Tommy G Thompson holds a $US50 pioneer gold coin in 1989. Credit:Columbus Dispatch via AP Now Thompson's beard has greyed, and he lives in an Ohio jail cell, held there until he gives up the location of the gold. But for nearly two years, despite threats and fines and the best exertions of a federal judge, no one has managed to make Thompson reveal what he did with the treasure. MarineMax, Inc. operates as a recreational boat and yacht retailer and superyacht services company in the United States. It operates through two segments, Retail Operations and Product Manufacturing. The company sells new and used recreational boats, including pleasure and fishing boats, mega-yachts, yachts, sport cruisers, motor yachts, pontoon boats, ski boats, jet boats, and other recreational boats. It also offers marine parts and accessories comprising marine electronics; dock and anchoring products that include boat fenders, lines, and anchors; boat covers; trailer parts; water sport accessories, which comprise tubes, lines, wakeboards, and skis; engine parts; oils; lubricants; steering and control systems; corrosion control products and service products; high-performance accessories, including propellers and instruments; and a line of boating accessories, such as life jackets, inflatables, and water sports equipment. In addition, the company provides novelty items, such as shirts, caps, and license plates; marine engines and equipment; maintenance, repair, and slip and storage accommodation services; and boat or yacht brokerage services, as well as charters yachts and power catamarans. Further, it offers new or used boat finance services; arranges insurance coverage, including boat property, disability, undercoating, gel sealant, fabric protection, and casualty insurance coverage; and manufactures and sells sport yachts and yachts. Additionally, the company operates vacations in Tortola, British Virgin Islands. It also markets and sells its products through offsite locations and print catalog. The company has 79 retail locations in Alabama, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin. MarineMax, Inc. was incorporated in 1998 and is based in Clearwater, Florida. by Adrian Gibson Wow! It is amazing what a week makes in local politics. Last night, Long Island MP Loretta Butler-Turner had her nomination rescinded by the Free National Movement (FNM). The revocation of her nomination came in the wake of a coup detat last week where she - along with Fort Charlotte MP Dr Andre Rollins, Central and South Abaco MP Edison Key, North Eleuthera MP Theo Neilly, St Annes MP Hubert Chipman, Montagu MP Richard Lightbourn and Central Grand Bahama MP Neko Grant -deposed party leader Dr Hubert Minnis as Leader of the Opposition in the House of Assembly. Frankly, many FNMs did not approve of that move. Many throughout the length and breadth of the Bahamas railed against what appeared to be Mrs Butler-Turners hostile takeover. After last weeks stunning overthrow of Dr Minnis, Mrs Butler-Turner was sworn in on Sunday as the new Leader of the Opposition in the House and immediately set tongues wagging with her first appointment to the Senate. Firstly, whilst I respect that Mrs Butler-Turner has made history by becoming the first female Leader of the Opposition, one would be foolish to believe that she did not see the handwriting on the wall in her constituency, choosing instead to chase history in the face of much disenchantment from Long Islanders. Over the last four-and-a-half years, there has been considerable controversy in the FNM, much of it due to an ongoing, never-ending spat between Mrs Butler-Turner and Dr Minnis. I have always held the view that Mrs Butler-Turner sought to lead but did not know how to follow. I felt that she never gave the doctor a chance, undermining him at every point and deepening the schism in the party. In the lead-up to the most recent convention, Mrs Butler-Turners comments were caustic and I wondered if the FNM would recover. Notwithstanding that, Mrs Butler-Turner - in the interest of peace and harmony - received the nomination for Long Island. That peace and harmony was short lived. Today, I affirm that the people of Long Island, my hometown, have been calling and I intend to answer their call. Oh what a difference a few months could make! My heart has always been with Long Island and theirs has been with me. I am pleased that Long Islanders have put my name forward as constituency cancdidate and overwhelmingly thrown their support behind me. There is no place like home and I am ready to serve them; I am ready to ensure that our island attains it potential. I am biased. I have always said that Long Island is the best island in The Bahamas. It is the gem of our archipelago. Long Island people are the most hard working and industrious folks in The Bahamas. We have produced top-class students, business persons, educators, lawyers, doctors the list goes on and on. Notwithstanding that, Long Island has seemingly been left behind in terms of development. We are in desperate need of a spanking new, international airport. We need running water to run throughout the island. Our economy is in the doldrums. I know. As a businessman in Long Island, it is a struggle to keep my business afloat. It is time for Long Island to get its fair cut of The Bahamas economic pie. Undoubtedly, I will delve deeper into the issues and solutions for Long Island in the very near future. That said, as it stands, we have people in Long Island who are living in substandard housing. Hurricane Joaquin totally dismantled and/or damaged the homes of people like Edith Cartwright, Lorene Cartwright, Kathleen Cartwright, Steve Burrows, Drexel Turnquest and John Knowles, who have all lost their homes and they have received no assistance with repairs or reconstruction. The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has forgotten these people and pulled out to address the concerns of other islands. It is high time that Long Island is no longer treated as the step-child of our archipelago. It is time that tax paying Long Islanders received the same respect and benefits like other taxpayers in The Bahamas. Whats more, for more than a year, Long Islanders have been unable to have drivers licences printed. They must either travel to Nassau for a printed licence or walk around with a piece of paper (receipt) in their wallets. This is disgraceful. Long Islanders pay road taxes like everyone else ... so why is there not a printing machine at the office in the south and one at the office in the north? This is totally inexcusable! Yesterday, I was advised that south Long Islanders can hardly register to vote. I am advised that the water pump at the administrators office has been out of operation for weeks. According to my sources, this results in the workers having to shut the office down at noon every day. That is objectionable! These are small matters that should be raised and addressed. There is no reason why these issues should not be promptly addressed. And so, a day in politics is really like a century. It has always been my dream and desire to represent my home town. I grew up in Long Island. My grandfather, Edward Gibson, hails from the south. My grandmother, Lenora Gibson, hails from the north. Half of my family lives in the south. The other half lives in the north. I am truly honoured to have an opportunity to serve requests of Long Islanders. There is truly no place like home. I have been in communication with the leadership of the FNM. No doubt, Long Islanders have also been expressing their concerns and desires. I have already indicated that I would accept a nomination to serve the people from whence I came. I have informed the FNM that, if approved by its executive and general council, I would proudly carry the partys banner in Long Island. Our talks have been productive and fruitful. I believe that we can return Long Island to the win column of the FNM. Whats more, this time around, I would encourage all Long Islanders to unite. Lets continue to make Long Island great lets take Long Island to higher heights and make our beautiful hometown the capital of the southern Bahamas. Long Islanders residing in Long Island I look forward to seeing you all tomorrow! _________________________________________________________ First published in the The Tribune under the byline, Young Man's View, here View Adrian Gibson's archive here ____________________________________________________ The views expressed are those of the author, and not necessarily those of WeblogBahamas.com (which has no corporate view) or its Authors. By West Kentucky Star Staff Dec. 16, 2016 | 12:57 PM | PADUCAH, KY Commercial flights at Barkley Regional Airport were affected again by bad weather in Chicago.In a social media post Friday, an airport spokesperson said that another winter storm would keep flights grounded, so United Airlines service to and from Paducah was stopped. This is second time in the last week that snow has canceled flights at O'Hare Airport.As of Friday night (11 pm), only that day's flights were cancelled. Saturday's 6am flight to Chicago was still on schedule. Airport officials said they will update any changes if they get new information.Snow remains in the forecast for Chicago through early Sunday, with temperatures plummeting to near zero for both the Saturday night's low and Sunday's high. Sunday night's low is forecast to be -9 degrees.Travelers can get up-to-the-minute flight status information by visiting the United Airlines website at the link below. On the Net: On a recent Sunday, local musician Lash LaRue choked back tears as he told the story of the little girl who wrote him to say her new teddy bear took her nightmares away.Every year since 2003, Lash real name Larry Dunn has held a benefit toy drive for the children on South Dakota's Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, known as one of the poorest places in the U.S. Last week, he hand delivered about 1,000 toys at three Pine Ridge schools.The problems facing the reservation are many, and Dunn, who practices traditional Lakota spirituality, doesn't have an answer to them all. But he can put a smile on a kid's face, he said, and maybe that's a step in the right direction.The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation (Wazi Ahaha Oyake in Lakota ) is an Oglala Lakota Native American reservation located in the U.S. state of South Dakota. Originally included within the territory of the Great Sioux Reservation, Pine Ridge was established in 1889 in the southwest corner of South Dakota on the Nebraska border.The reservation is governed by the eighteen-member Oglala Sioux Tribal Council, who are elected officials rather than traditional clan life leaders, in accordance with the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934. The Executive Officers of the Council are the President (also called Chairman), Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. Primary elections are held in October and the General election in November.Pine Ridge is the eighth-largest reservation in the United States and it is the poorest. Unemployment on the reservation hovers between 80% and 85%, and 49% of the population live below the federal poverty level. Many of the families have no electricity, telephone, running water, or sewage systems; and many use wood stoves to heat their homes, depleting limited wood resources. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 16/12/2016 (2148 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. An inquest into a police shooting in 2008 closed Friday with an apology for Brian McDougall, the father of the man who died. Just before wrapping up the inquest into the death of 26-year-old Craig Vincent McDougall, provincial court Associate Chief Judge Anne Krahn addressed his father, whose ill health has been an issue through the five-week proceeding. The judge offered an unprecedented apology for Craigs death and the years-long delay of the inquest. Im very sorry that your son died the way he did. I can appreciate that this has been very difficult for you and very difficult for your family. Im glad to see you here today, and Im glad to see you here today looking much clearer than when you were trying to testify earlier in the inquest. It is very important that the family have involvement, Krahn said Friday afternoon. WAYNE GLOWACKI/WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Police shooting victim Craig McDougall's uncle Johnny McDougall, left, and father Brian McDougall attend a press conference in 2008. I want to apologize to you for my responsibility, the courts responsibility and the systems responsibility to not move this inquest forward in a much sooner way. I am sorry that theres been a lack of communication to you and your family. I think its not good enough and it should change in the future. Im sorry that the system has not done its best for you and your family. Inquest lawyer David Gray acknowledged this was not our finest hour, for the justice system in Craigs case, but he made clear that by shooting Craig, police were responding reasonably to a perceived threat. Winnipeg Police Service lawyer Kim Carswell expressed her condolences to the McDougall family but didnt offer an apology on behalf of the police service. Shortly after 5 a.m. on Aug. 2, 2008, police officers responded to a reported stabbing at the McDougall home on Simcoe Street in the West End. The 911 call came from Craigs cellphone, but the report turned out to be false: there was no stabbing. When officers arrived, they knocked on the front door before noticing Craig approaching them. He had a knife in his hand. He was drunk, had a neutral expression on his face and wasnt responding to their demands to drop the knife. In the next minute, they fired at him twice with a Taser and shot him four times. Three of the bullets hit him. He was pronounced dead in hospital around 6:30 a.m. His father and uncle were held on the ground and handcuffed before they, as well as other family members, were taken to the Public Safety Building as witnesses. They were kept in locked rooms for between four to six hours and were never told they were free to leave. That could change as a result of the inquest, which is the first in Manitoba to consider the role of systemic racism. The inquest was given dozens of recommendations, including that the police service change its policies on how witnesses are treated. The judge will complete her report within six months. She may decide to make recommendations on what, if anything, could prevent future deaths, but shes not obligated to do so. Brian McDougall said outside court the judges apology means a lot to him. Im really glad that the inquest is over, and I finally have some answers. I know theres still a lot of healing to go through, and I hope the judge considers the recommendations because I wouldnt want any other family to go through what I went through, he said. Im really touched by what the judge said at the end of the hearing, when she apologized for what happened to me. Brian McDougall, father of the 2008 police shooting victim Craig Vincent McDougall Gray said Friday that shortly after Craigs death there was controversy about whether he had carried a knife. Some witnesses, according to media reports at the time, said he had a cellphone in his hand. The large kitchen knife was found a short distance away from where Craig was shot. These facts were easily explainable, Gray said, but the delay in getting to the inquest fostered and fed speculation. Lawyers, including Gray, asked the judge to consider their recommendations. Gray made several recommendations, including that all mandatory inquests which happen in Manitoba after someone dies at the hands of police or while in government care, such as in jail or in foster care be called for within 60 days of the death. Craig McDougall, the 26-year-old man shot and killed by a Winnipeg police officer Saturday, August 2, 2008. He recommended police in Manitoba wear body cameras, that officers involved in a shooting be required to turn over their notes to the provinces Independent Investigation Unit and that police be given better training on the units role, as well as more frequent bias-free and indigenous cultural awareness training. Gray said officers who have to use lethal force should get the help they need and suggested a process for confidential psychological assessments. Lawyer Corey Shefman, who represented the McDougall family, called for an inquest-monitoring system at the judicial level, a review of the chief medical examiners office, a review of the Fatality Inquiry Act, revamped Taser policies for police and improved training. He asked that a full public apology be made to the McDougall family on behalf of all parties involved in Craigs death and for the eight-year delay for an inquest. I cant state strongly enough how meaningful the judges words were, he said. If the police want to improve their relationship with the indigenous community, the first step is recognizing and acknowledging when theyve done something wrong, Shefman said. Carswell, the police service lawyer, took no issue with recommendations about the treatment of witnesses. She said the police service wasnt likely to object to any new recommendations for police to inform witnesses of their rights before being interviewed by police, and that police should use a form other than a prisoner log sheet to keep track of witness information. Otherwise, Carswell argued the lawyers suggestions were either already being done by WPS as in the case of bias-free training, which began in 2015 or are outside the judges jurisdiction. She agreed with a review of inquest process to ensure inquests are conducted efficiently. The inquest was delayed several times by various agencies. Following Craigs death, it took two years for the WPS homicide unit to submit its initial review of the shooting. The sergeant in charge who completed the report testified he had to prioritize active homicide cases before he could finish it. The WPS review was forwarded to the Ontario Provincial Police, which deemed the shooting justified in its review, which was completed in 2012. The file sat on the chief medical examiners desk for about nine months before the inquest was called. No explanation was given in court. The inquest was called in 2013, but it took years to make it to court. Brian McDougall wasnt informed there would be no charges laid in his sons death until the provinces prosecutions office phoned him four years after the incident. Shefman said Friday explanations for some of the delays were insufficient. katie.may@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @thatkatiemay Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 16/12/2016 (2148 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Sexual harassment concerns surrounding MLA Mohinder Saran have existed for more than a year and a complainant was moved into Greg Selingers office when he was premier, the Free Press has learned. Two independent sources confirmed former NDP cabinet minister Saran was the subject of a previous sexual harassment complaint while the party was still in power. The sources said a female staff member complained Saran had engaged in inappropriate language and behaviour. Staff re-assigned the woman to the office of then-premier Greg Selinger without formal punishment for Saran. JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES MLA Mohinder Saran was involved in a previous sexual harassment complaint while the NDP was still in power, sources tell the Free Press. Selinger was unaware of the allegations when that complainant was moved into his office and was unaware of them while she was there, said NDP press secretary Rachel Morgan. Selinger did not respond Friday to emailed interview requests or a message left with a staffer at his St. Boniface constituency office. Interim NDP leader Flor Marcelino said in an interview Friday afternoon that she is unaware of the previous allegation, and will not look into it unless someone files a formal complaint. Saran is now suspended from attending caucus meetings after an unidentified staff member laid a formal complaint of sexual harassment this fall against Saran. Christopher Adams, a political scientist based at St. Pauls College at the University of Manitoba, said the latest scandal is part of an ongoing calamity of the NDP caucus that started two years ago with the internal rebellion against Selinger, the election defeat, and ongoing problems since. The issue of sexism or sexual harassment is an issue the NDP is particularly careful about, Adams said. That makes it a little more embarrassing for the NDP, because it is a party that takes great pride in standing up on issues of sexual harassment. Marcelino said she first learned of the latest allegation against The Maples MLA in October, and took it to caucus about a week later after an unidentified staff member filed a formal complaint. Marcelino was uncertain Friday about specific dates and the sequence of events, which staff later clarified after checking her email records and calendar. I came to know of a complaint against Mohinder in October. The minute I heard, it disturbed me, said Marcelino. Not a minute was wasted. I looked for a manual that says if there is sexual harassment, what should be done. I could see it was very serious. She said a third party not an MLA brought the situation to her, and provided the name of the alleged victim. That was Oct. 27. Marcelino emailed the staff worker the next day and laid out her options: mediation, seeking legal advice, laying a formal complaint. Marcelino spoke to the woman once, prior to her filing a formal complaint, and she also spoke to Saran, though not immediately. Marcelino would not divulge what Saran told her, though Marcelino said Friday she initially thought mediation was possible. Whatever he tells me is immaterial, because its being investigated, she said. The staffer was moved to a different office on Oct. 31, and Marcelino said she continues to be paid full wages and benefits. Marcelino has not spoken to the complainant since that first conversation: I dont want to be seen as influencing, she explained. That process has to be respected. Marcelino said that as soon as the staffer filed a former complaint Nov. 7, and the legislature human rights office began to investigate, she took it to caucus. That was an emergency meeting held Nov. 8. That was never the plan, to handle it internally, Marcelino insisted Friday. When a complaint was filed, I told caucus. For the duration of the investigation, he was suspended from attending caucus meetings. Saran could attend the house and could vote, she said. Either house leader Jim Maloway or caucus chair Rob Altemeyer phoned Saran to tell him he was suspended, said Marcelino, who has not talked to Saran since. JOHN WOODS / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES Manitoba's interim NDP leader Flor Marcelino. However, sources dispute Marcelinos version. They said she tried to handle the latest incident internally, but caucus members demanded action, which led to Sarans suspension. Rachel Morgan, the NDP press secretary, was uncertain if the complainant is currently in another workplace, working from home, or not currently performing work. We are trying to honour the confidentiality of the complainant, Morgan said. The investigation is over, and now human resources is putting in place a process for Saran to follow, said Morgan. When that process is complete, caucus will reassess the status of Saran, she said. Free Press reporters went to Sarans home both Thursday and Friday, but Saran has not been home. A woman who answered the door Friday said she would pass on a message. Saran has not responded to interview requests. A man who answered the phone at Sarans Mandalay Drive constituency office Friday said the MLA was not in, but took a message. At a political event Friday, NDP MLAs would only indirectly address the situation. Wab Kinew said: The complainants well-being is top of mind for me. MLA Nahanni Fontaine would say only that she agrees with Kinew. Last year, when allegations of sexual harassment were brought to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau by two opposition MPs highly empowered women with no power imbalance involved Trudeau immediately suspended two male Liberal MPs. Marcelino insisted Friday she acted as decisively as Trudeau. Once the formal complaint was filed, I think that is exactly what we did I thought I did what was needed to be done. Paul Therrien, a labour lawyer with the Legacy Bowes Group human resources firm, said solutions for addressing a power imbalance varies and depends on the seriousness of the allegation. It can range from mediation and counselling, to moving the individual, unfortunately in this case the complainant, to a different location. Maybe the individual (complainant) will take a payout that is a solution, said Therrien. nick.martin@freepress.mb.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. A transplanted Central African couple is looking forward to showing Winnipeggers what theyve been missing when it comes to pure, artisan chocolate. Christian and Christelle Mekoh opened Aschenti Cocoa today. The couple ships cocao beans in from their cocao farm in Cameroon, where they are both originally from. The rest of the chocolate-making process is done start to finish in the Aschenti Cocoa store at 782 Corydon Ave. The stores layout concept is open, displaying the kitchen area where the chocolate is made. Christelle Mekoh says the stores design reflects the brands no secrets policy when it comes to the ingredients in their organic chocolate. WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Aschenti Cocoa owners Christelle (left) and Christian Mekoh hand-wrap chocolate bars (above) and show ingredients (top) in their new shop. I think, more than ever, people should be considering what theyre eating and how their food is made, said Mekoh. We take pride in saying, Well, you can come in and actually see for yourself how were making your chocolate. On the wall next to the stores front door, Aschentis 12 steps of chocolate making are painted in black. The process starts with farming, and ends with tasting. The eighth step is tempering, which is heating and cooling the chocolate until it is ready to package. Usually, a chocolate store will get bars that are already made, and theyll start their process at tempering, said Mekoh. They dont go through all those previous steps that we do. We can really control the quality (of the chocolate) when its from scratch. Mekoh says Aschenti Cocoa was born out of the couples lifelong passion for chocolate. Christelles grandfather had a cocao farm behind his home in Cameroon where she learned to love the taste of cocao as a little girl. When he studied in Belgium, Christian worked for Ferrero, one of the largest global chocolate brands. The Mekohs with their backgrounds in chocolate making hope to help Winnipeggers rediscover chocolate. People dont think of chocolate as a food, but it is a whole food, said Mekoh. Its like when youre drinking wine, youre taking time to taste those different flavours. Its the same thing with chocolate. The name Aschenti comes from the Ashanti (Asante) tribe from Ghana, said Mekoh. The Ashanti people were the first in Africa to grow and cultivate cocao beans. Their natural, pioneer method of growing inspired the Aschenti business model. Mekoh says the other thing that differentiates Aschenti from other chocolate brands is the couples fair-trade relationship with the cocao bean farmers in Cameroon. We work with them, and we trade directly with them, said Mekoh. We educate them, we talk about sustainable agriculture and at the end, they are able to benefit from this. We know its really improving their lives. Aschenti chocolate bars come in two sizes; the small bar sells for $5, and the larger sells for $10. Mekoh says the pricing is comparable to other bean-to-bar stores in Canada, taking into consideration the costs of shipping product in from Cameroon and purchasing exclusively local and organic ingredients. WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Aschenti Cocoa owners Christelle (left) and Christian Mekoh. Aschenti Cocoa will carry 10 different flavours of chocolate. The flavoured chocolates are made with organic ingredients sourced from local vendors, says Mekoh.The darkest Aschenti chocolate has only two ingredients: cocao beans from Cameroon and cane sugar. The word, ashanti also means to be thankful. We are thankful, said Mekoh. Because we are in Canada, and we are able to actually enjoy things here that people in other countries arent always able to. rebecca.dahl@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @rebeccadaahl Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 16/12/2016 (2148 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. OTTAWA Manitoba Health Minister Kelvin Goertzen says if Ottawas approach to negotiating a new federal health accord comes down to the take-it-or-leave-it ultimatum issued by the federal finance minister Friday, Manitoba might be inclined to leave it. Ahead of Mondays federal-provincial meeting on health funding, Bill Morneau told The Canadian Press in an interview Ottawa wont agree to keep annual increases in transfers to the provinces referred to in government-speak as the escalator above three per cent or the yearly level of growth in nominal gross domestic product, whichever is higher. Ottawa also wont entertain calls to raise the federal share of spending to 25 per cent of provincial health budgets, he said. RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Manitoba Minister of Health Kelvin Goertzen says if the federal government's approach to health-care negotiations is 'take it or leave it,' the province might leave it. Health-care transfers have been increasing by six per cent each year since 2005. The provinces requests are out of the realm of anything that we would consider, said Morneau, who is hosting ministers for a working dinner Sunday night before Mondays main event. Were not going to be talking about percentages, either in the escalator or in terms of the broader percentages. Instead, he said the government is willing to explore ways to work with the provinces on specific investments in areas Ottawa believes will have a measurable impact, such as home care and mental health. Goertzen, who is travelling to Ottawa Sunday, said Morneau seems not to have left any negotiating room. Im a little disturbed at the fact this is a take-it-or-leave-it offer, he said. If thats the offer, the offer is not worth taking. But he said hed have to know exactly what the federal government is proposing before turning down new money for home care or mental-health programs beyond the annual health transfer. Goertzen said the Conference Board of Canada estimates health-care costs rise about 5.2 per cent a year, which is the minimum Ottawa should be offering for the escalator. Reducing the escalator to three per cent or GDP growth was proposed by Stephen Harpers Conservative government and is being adopted by the Liberals. The difference is about $38 million for Manitoba next year and $2.2 billion over the next decade, Goertzen said. In a letter to his counterparts across the country earlier this week, Premier Brian Pallister pushed his colleagues to stand together on the health-care accord file at Mondays meeting. Each of us has expressed our determination to address these challenges, he said. However, these are also collective interests, and they are best advanced when we are united. In his letter, Pallister invited the other premiers to participate in a conference call, which they accepted. A source said They ended fairly unified in need to push for a longer-term, sustainable deal. The source added Pallister tried to convince the premiers to withhold support for Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus climate change plan until Ottawa agreed to the provinces demands on health care, but he found no backers. Manitoba supports Trudeaus climate change and carbon-price initiative but hasnt officially endorsed it, awaiting a health deal. Morneau said more money beyond the offered escalator will appear only to target specific programs and only if the provinces can provide measurable outcomes. If the provinces are able to get to agree to our approach, which is specific deliverables on home care and mental health, then were willing to invest in those areas and were also willing to invest over the longer term, he said, adding hes cautiously optimistic the premiers will agree to the federal proposal. And if we are able to get to those agreements, at a level of investment that we are comfortable with, then we will have a positive day on Monday. with files from The Canadian Pressmia.rabson@freepress.mb.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. With the hustle and bustle of Christmas only a week away, we know youre busy. Youre busy shopping. Youre busy baking. Youre busy getting ready to be with family. But please take a minute to think: there are Winnipeggers who need you. JASON HALSTEAD / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Christmas Cheer Board executive director Kai Madsen checks out some of the presents wrapped at the charitable groups warehouse near Polo Park on Nov. 25, 2016. These are the Winnipeggers who dont have the money to shop. They might be able to bake, but only if theyre living in a residence with an oven and can afford the ingredients. They might see family, but usually only if they are inside the city. And you dont need wrapping paper if theres nothing to wrap. The Christmas Cheer Board and our Free Press Miracle on Mountain campaign are hoping we can count on you to write a cheque, drop off cash and/or donate a new unwrapped toy so we can help those who need the most assistance. Kai Madsen, the Cheer Boards chief elf, says hes not worried, but only just. Im not losing sleep yet, Madsen said. But were $75,000 to $100,000 short of where we were last year at this time. Im somewhat nervous, but Im not nervous. But that could change by Monday. There are some hopeful signs. The Crown Auto Group donated 1,801 turkeys to the Cheer Board this week. Share Our Strength Winnipeg, an international organization of hospitality and business professionals, put on three local fundraising events the Chefs Dinner, Taste Event and Janes Restaurant at Red River College which during this, their 23rd year, collectively raised more than $141,000. JASON HALSTEAD / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Christmas Cheer Board executive director Kai Madsen checks out some of the presents wrapped at the charitable groups warehouse near Polo Park on Nov. 25, 2016. Share Our Strength has decided to cut a cheque for $2,000 to Miracle on Mountain from those proceeds with the rest going to other local food charities and 15 per cent going to CARE Canada. But Madsen knows more than anyone that with 15,032 hamper applications already up from 14,896 last year at this time and an expected 18,500 in total, the Cheer Board needs more cheques, more cash, more toys more everything. So please take a minute to write a cheque, take a second while youre searching online for Christmas presents to go to the Cheer Boards website and donate on behalf of Miracle on Mountain, or come to the Free Press building itself with a toy, cheque or cash, including and I think theyre still out there any pennies you have. After all, Christmas isnt just about the hustle and bustle, it is about being generous and helping humanity and people in need. And no one could be too busy for that. kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. What a difference one tragic and avoidable death can make. Its been less than a week since the death of a 53-year-old woman on a frigid downtown street prompted the Main Street Project staff to gas up an outreach van that ran out of funding years ago and go into the potentially lethal cold in search of people who are homeless and addicted. The van and the people in it are already making a difference. Even without extra funding. Main Street Project calculates their cold-weather patrol costs $1,108 per night. Last night was very busy, Main Street Project executive director Rick Lees reported in reference to Thursday evening and pre-dawn Friday. The van brought seven people back out of the weather and into shelter. These people might have ended up like the deceased woman who was discovered near Portage Place just before 6 a.m. Sunday. Some of the people were under the influence, Lees noted, and police or their cadet helpers might have taken them back to Main Street Project if the van hadnt been there. So we think maybe were taking some of the pressure off police, he said over the phone Friday, in a tone that sounded as if there was a big smile on his face. The van patrol, which is staffed by a couple of outreach workers volunteering for double shifts plus another worker supplied by the Downtown BIZ, also found some people who wanted to stay in the dangerous cold. They check on them every hour, to make sure they dont freeze, Lees said of the van patrols keeping watch over the homeless who find their own shelter their own way. Maybe they are the kind of homeless people that Siloam Mission CEO Garry Corbett mentioned when we spoke Friday. Those who are sleeping under steps and curled up under blankets and even plastic sheets. Which I havent seen in past years, Corbett noted with obvious concern. The death of the unnamed woman Sunday coupled with the cold weather, of course has made a difference in the surge of warm clothing that Siloam has received since then, too. But its the van patrol that gives me more personal comfort and concern for its continuing presence on the winter streets of our inner city. Which brings me to a heart-warming email that arrived Wednesday, the day after I wrote about the van patrol startup that had happened after the womans body being found. People in Winnipeg can be amazing, Lees note began. He went on to explain what prompted that bulletin. It was a news story, of sorts. I received a message last night from Jordan Farber and his fiance, Heather. They read your column. When I joined (Main Street Project) back in December 2015, Jordan was then with Qualico Developments as director of banking. He and Qualico had recently donated a new stove for our kitchen Lees explained Farber had noticed the old residential-model stove during a tour of Main Street Project that happened as part of the Downtown BIZs annual CEO Sleepout. Quietly, without fanfare, Qualico donated a new commercial gas stove. Then Lees got to the update with the latest news. Yesterday, Jordan and Heather wanted to know what it would cost to run our van patrol per night. I gave him a rough estimate. He then asked how long we could sustain it. I told him we are going one week at a time in hopes of finding funding, and also a break in the extreme cold. The BIZ is only committed to help staff it up to Sunday. He then said, Well, we would like to personally donate to cover the operating costs for two days over this weekend, as I hear its supposed to be very cold. He said hed drop the cheque off on Thursday. Just like that. Downtown BIZ chief executive officer Stefano Grande, meanwhile, sent an email Saturday saying the organizations commitment to help, will go beyond Sunday. We made a commitment to keep our BIZ resources in place during the cold spells, until a long term solution is found, he wrote. The long term vision is for the BIZ and MSP to have a fully functioning downtown outreach program, with transport capabilities, through a long term private/public partnership integrated with long term solutions. Grande also said the Downtown Biz recognizes the importance of the van program which is they are partially funding one of the Main Street Project workers involved and redirecting a BIZ outreach worker to work with the effort. So what does it cost to run the van patrol for one night? Less said they calculated insurance, gas, salaries and whatever else. It came to $1,108 per night. Lees and I didnt talk long on the phone Friday. He had to call in to a meeting organized by End Homelessness Winnipeg involving various agencies, including the police. The topic? Cold-weather emergency response. As I was saying, what a difference one tragic and avoidable death can make. Which reminds me of another email I received, after last Saturdays column that also featured a death, this time a 25-year-old who overdosed on fentanyl at Main Street Project. This one was from Wesley Elwicks family. Hi Gordon: We wish to thank you for the caring and compassionate manner in which you portrayed our son, Wesley. We are still grieving our tragic loss. Changes are needed as to how persons that suffer with addiction are treated and cared for. We hope that your article will be the first step in highlighting this need for change. Life is very precious, and if the needed change saves only one life, Wesleys unnecessary death will not have been in vain. gordon.sinclair@freepress.mb.ca Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Eagles do not answer to us. Eagles keep secrets. So its hard to know why the eagle chose Point Douglas, only that it did. Its been about five years, Sel Burrows thinks, since the eagle settled in his neighbourhood. Give or take a bit. WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The proposed name change from Rover Avenue to Migizi Avenue is a first step toward reconciliation, says Point Douglas activist Sel Burrows. Through that time, the eagle has been watching. In August 2014, days after police lifted Tina Fontaines body out of the Red River near the Alexander Docks, the eagle flew low over the water. It even perched nearby while mourners held their vigil. There are many names for this magnificent creature. In English, it is a bald eagle; in Ojibwa, its name is migizi. An English speaker will want to stress the second syllable, but the Ojibwa word is steady and balanced, the vowels light and clean. It may be time to get to know that word, because by the end of next year, it could be the name of a street. Earlier this month, the Point Douglas residents commitee submitted an application to rename the eagles home street of Rover to Migizi Avenue. The proposed change, Burrows says, is one way of moving forward with reconciliation. Its not the only such idea, Burrows says, just a first step. They have other plans more on those, another time. For the street name change, the group expects their proposal to go to a community committee meeting early next year. If it is approved, it would go on to city council for approval. With that, Point Douglas could get its first indigenous street name. As for the current one, it has no grand history. Unlike the Sutherland or Gomez or Angus streets that criss-cross Point Douglas, Rover was not named for any key historical Manitoban or any accomplished son who grew up in the region. Instead, as Burrows understands it, the street was given its current name after the 1950 flood. Rover, he says, is what they called the dike that snaked along the Red River, trying to hold back the crest that rose up to soak the city to its bones. Its worth noting the movement to bring indigenous-language names to Point Douglas isnt new. In 1959, as the city built a new bridge over the Red River to connect Disraeli Street with downtown, some residents proposed similar ideas, too. One doctor even wrote to city council suggesting an indigenous-language name would match that of the city and the province. (The doctors wife, a local historical magazine reported at the time, preferred the bridge be named Kelvin.) Yet through to 2016, there are no uniquely indigenous-language street names in Point Douglas. The closest they have are the street,school and park named after Manitoba premier John Norquay, who was Anglo-Metis, though his name was Orcadian. So whats in a name? On the surface, a name is nothing more than sounds and syllables, a code by which we convey the features of the world. But underneath that superficial layer, the full story of a word a name runs much deeper. Language, after all, is handed down through generations. It is an inherited wealth in which all people hold an equal share. As languages make their journey through time and place, they pick up pieces here and there, changing as they go. So you can think of a languages words like a breadcrumb trail. If we follow it back, we can connect past to present. Consider the words English adopted from indigenous languages. The categories into which those loan words fall tell the story of what happened here more succinctly than a history book can: names for animals, names for places, names for plants. From the Algonquian language family and its 30-odd tongues alone, English absorbed words such as raccoon and chipmunk and moose. It took muskeg from Cree, and pumpkin from the Massachusett dialects of the Atlantic coast. The story behind these words is one of belonging and of the way languages root in place. Indigenous languages belong to the territories on which they evolved; they are perfectly attuned to name its features and all its plants and creatures. In time, some of these words entered settler languages and kept singing their unique song: Winnipeg, or muddy water. Manitoba, or strait of the Great Spirit. Saskatchewan, a clipped version of a Cree phrase for a swift-flowing river. Still, if you look around most of the streets of Winnipeg, you dont see much evidence of Ojibwa or Michif or Cree. In the names we use to define the geography of our city, the fact of continuous indigenous life here is largely absent or erased. In truth, we are all poorer for it to be this way, all the more disconnected from the twists and tangles of our historical path. There is support for change. Earlier this year, Ryerson University scholar Hayden King and artist and educator Susan Blight put up unofficial street signs on Toronto roads, asserting the Anishinaabe words for well-known features of the Big Smoke. So residents of Toronto woke up to see the citys busy Spadina Avenue was also Ishpadinaa, which means a place on a hill. They learned Davenport Road, once a key route between two rivers, was also Gete-Onigaming, or at the old portage. Blight and King, who had done a similar action in 2013, said the signs were designed to combat indigenous erasure. The message is that indigenous people were here are here now, Blight, a member of the Couchiching First Nation, told the Toronto Star. Oftentimes we see that indigenous people are seen as a blip, a line in a longer colonial history. Which brings us back to Winnipeg in the waning days of what was supposed to be the citys year of reconciliation. Its true reconciliation cannot be limited to symbolic gestures. After all, colonization is not a symbolic act; stripped down to the brass tacks, it is fundamentally a resource grab. So, true reconciliation must include specific ideas for economic justice. Yet symbolic gestures do play a part. Centring Anishinaabe or Cree words in our urban geography will not tackle issues of land rights or poverty, but they do affirm the fact indigenous life has always animated and described these lands. It is, like Burrows says, a first step, one of many happening throughout the city. In time perhaps there will be more; perhaps one legacy that our generation can leave to Winnipeg is one where the most enduring names for its features are restored. melissa.martin@freepress.mb.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 16/12/2016 (2148 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Manitoba needs strong female leaders, especially strong indigenous women, Bernadette Smith declared Friday as she officially announced shell seek the NDP nomination in the soon-to-be-vacant Point Douglas riding. Smith initially announced her plans less than 30 hours after MLA Kevin Chief said Wednesday he will leave office in the next few days. She said she had not received a heads-up from Chief, with whom she went to school. I grew up in poverty. I grew up in this community, Smith told a gathering of supporters at Neechi Commons. PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Bernadette Smith announced she will seek the NDP nomination for Point Douglas. MLA Kevin Chief is resigning. Smith is the assistant director of the WayFinders program in the Seven Oaks School Division, working primarily with indigenous students and newcomers to Canada. She co-founded both the Manitoba Coalition of Missing and Murdered Women in Manitoba and the Drag the Red Initiative. She was recently named to the Order of Canada. Her sister, Claudette Osborne, has been missing since 2008. We need more strong women leaders, Smith said. My sister went missing from this area, 8 years ago. It was the NDP who helped out missing and murdered families they had a special adviser. That former adviser, MLA Nahanni Fontaine, endorsed Smith and called her a soul sister. MLA Wab Kinew also endorsed Smith Friday. Chief has not yet formally resigned, and the NDP has not set a date for a nomination meeting. Who would run against someone like that? Fontaine asked. She said anyone without roots in the community would find Point Douglas residents telling them it would be unacceptable in this period of reconciliation. It would be extremely disrespectful. Kinew said the nomination could be hotly contested, though he would not speculate about other possible candidates. Elections Manitoba said the byelection must be held within 180 days of the vacancy occurring that likely means by late June. Officials estimated the cost of the byelection will be at least $350,000, but additional costs will vary depending on the need for a partial or complete new enumeration. A new enumeration is mandatory if the byelection falls later than a year after the last election, which was April 19. nick.martin@freepress.mb.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 16/12/2016 (2148 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. If dogs could talk, the stories Daisy could tell. But for now her owner Terra McCabe will just have to settle for the safe return of her little white dog more than three years and 1,800 kilometres from where she mysteriously disappeared. I never thought I would see her again, McCabe said, sitting in Richardson International Airport, while Daisy was at her feet begging for pieces of banana bread. It was an amazing Christmas present. PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Tara McCabe reunited with her 13-year-old dog Daisy on Friday afternoon at the Winnipeg Airport. The dog was found wandering the city streets as a stray. To be reunited with her and shes OK, right? Its a wonderful ending. The story began in 2013 when McCabe, who lives in the west end of Vancouver, walked to a neighbourhood store with Daisy, a Havanese sheepdog, on a leash. She tied Daisy up and went inside for a few minutes. When McCabe returned, Daisy, whom she had owned for 10 years from a pup, was gone without a trace. She panicked. She walked around searching. She called out the dogs name. Nothing. To this day, McCabe is convinced Daisy was stolen, since her dog had a collar, dog tags and tattoo. Flash forward to Dec. 7, 2016, in Winnipeg, when a city resident (whom city animal services officials wont name), found a little white dog they believed to be stray. They took the dog immediately to a local veterinarian, who located a tattoo. The vet phoned McCabe, who was just about to leave for a vacation in Mexico. Even after seeing some photos taken of the stray, she wasnt 100 per cent certain if the dog was Daisy. After all, it had been three years, and the dogs hair was much longer. And how did her tiny dog even get to Winnipeg, much less be found on the street? I was very confused, McCabe said. Still, McCabe jumped on a round-trip flight on Friday to Winnipeg to find out for sure. I was worried the whole time, she noted. Is it Daisy? Will she remember me? By the time McCabe got to the bottom of the elevator and spotted the dog, she was already in tears. The unlikely reunion was complete. PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS - Tara McCabe is re-united with her 13 yr old pooch Daisy Friday afternoon at Richardson Field. Found wandering the city streets as a stray Daiseys chip and tattoos helped bring the owner and dog back together after the dog was apparently stolen from her Vancouver owners three years ago. Nobody knows how the dog wound up in Winnipeg. Owner and dog turned right around and flew from Winnipegs frigid temperatures back to Vancouver. See Turners tale. - December 16, 2016 Leland Gordon, chief operating officer for Winnipeg animal services, said pet returns in the city are common. However, pet reunions where the animal has been missing for several years and located in another city are exceedingly rare. This is once in a blue moon, Gordon said, calling the tale a warm and fuzzy story. Gordon said the incident underlined why owners should get their pets licensed, tagged or tattooed. Although Daisys tags had been discarded, the tattoo was not only critical to the reunion, but the process of identification took only a matter of hours. Shortly after landing in Winnipeg Friday afternoon, McCabe was waiting for a return flight to Vancouver this time with a new, furry passenger. McCabes entire family including her husband and four children (ages two, four, 15 and 17) will be waiting, along with Daisys nine-year-old daughter, Lily. Oh, and a cat McCabes four-year-old son got for his last birthday. Oh my god, theyre so excited, she said, of the clan waiting back home. Meanwhile, McCabe is left to wonder what kind of adventure Daisy has been on for the last three years. But then some mysteries are never solved. And with a happy ending and an unexpected Christmas present with a wagging tail, does it really matter? I have to bond with her again, McCabe said. She just seems to be having a good time. Shes still happy. The banana bread seemed to be a good start. randy.turner@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @randyturner15 Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Winnipeg police arrested a Quebec man at a downtown hotel on Friday allegedly for human trafficking. Police arrested Garlin Voyant Candy, 23, after reports a woman was being held against her will and forced to work as an escort. Police say the 23-year-old woman was driven to Winnipeg from Montreal on Dec. 4 and was threatened if she didnt comply. Const. Jason Michalyshen said one agency has provided the victim with a safe location to stay while others have arranged for counselling supports and funding to safely return her back to her family in Montreal. Candy is in custody and charged with trafficking in persons, advertising sexual services and assault with a weapon. Police also identified a 19-year-old woman who claims to be Candys girlfriend. Members of the Winnipeg Police Service counter exploitation unit are still investigating. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. For Winnipegs Yazidis, theres a lot to celebrate. The ethno-religious minority has survived persecution and dozens of genocides, including the most recent by Islamic State terrorists. Theyve been forced to flee place after place in and around the deserts of Iraq. Theyve languished in refugee camps waiting for somewhere safe in the world to welcome them. Now, theyre home and at peace. Theyre able to celebrate their religious holy days in December. And they can rejoice at the news that two more Yazidi refugee families are coming to safety in Winnipeg soon. RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Nafiya Naso (adult) has her photo taken with Yazidi kids during a feast in celebration of Eida Rojia, the end of their three-day December fast at Temple Shalom Friday evening. To be able to live in a country where we can freely celebrate and welcome other communities into our own (celebration) is truly a blessing, said Nafiya Naso on the eve of the Yazidis Eida Rojia feast. On Friday at Temple Shalom, Jews, Christians and others who helped and befriended the Yazidi refugees gathered to celebrate their holy days, Naso said. Theyre part of Operation Ezra a multifaith coalition spearheaded by the Jewish community that is sponsoring eight Yazidi families. In the summer, nine Yazidis from two families arrived in Winnipeg. Operation Ezra has just learned two more families are expected to arrive soon. This adds to the joy of the Yazidis celebration, said Naso, a Yazidi refugee who arrived in Canada nearly two decades ago. This makes it even more exciting knowing that 15 more people will join us for our holidays in the future. For three days every December, Yazidis fast from dawn until dusk with the nights given to feasting and prayer, Naso said. Its a time to connect with the divine, count our blessings, celebrate and above all remember those in less fortunate circumstances and give back, Naso said. Its also a time to connect with neighbours and the global village in which we all live, she said. For me, personally, the fast this year is a very special one because our culture, religion and identity are becoming extinct due to the most recent genocide, she said. So, to be able to share my culture, religion and identity with others gives me hope for a brighter future. She said the Yazidi families that arrived in Winnipeg this past summer are learning about other cultures and faith traditions, too. The families are really enjoying all the Christmas festivities, Naso said. We all went to the Santa Claus parade a few weeks ago, and they loved it. Seeing all the joy across the city is definitely a change from what theyre used to. The Yazidis are an ancient ethno-religious group that originated in Mesopotamia and were based primarily in Iraq, Operation Ezra said in a news release Thursday. They have been subjected to an estimated 73 massacres throughout history and now face a genocide recognized by the United Nations and Canada, it said. Its been widely reported in the media that Yazidi women and girls are being sold into sex slavery by IS terrorists. Yazidis are scattered even more so now across the world these past two years, and our numbers are decreasing by the day, Naso said. She said the incoming Dakheel family will arrive with four people, and the Salih family has 11 members. We hope to see many more Yazidis in the future, Naso said. carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 16/12/2016 (2148 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. The question about who gets to wear the pants was answered long ago; the problem is getting a pair that fits. A few weeks ago, Winnipeg police Det. Sgt. Kathy Antymis was preparing to attend the annual conference of the International Association of Women Police when she realized she needed new pants for her dress uniform. The quartermaster store had no womens sizes in stock. I had to get male dress pants and then go get them altered, says a chuckling Antymis, who has been on the force since 2000. I walked out of there with a large pair of pants; they had a lot of ladies shirts, but no dress pants for ladies. On Thursday, it will be exactly 100 years since the force was directed to hire its first female members. Since then 312 women have served and protected Winnipegs citizens; 228 of them are still on active duty. But Antymiss trouser travails go to show the odd, unexpected challenge pops up now and again. They were to help women, young girls on the verge of total delinquency On Dec. 22, 1916, outgoing Winnipeg mayor Richard Waugh moved a motion at city council that two women be appointed as constables. Just days later, as quoted in the Free Press, Mrs. Mary E. Dunn of 759 Broadway and Miss Jane Andrews of the Salvation Army Home were appointed. Jim Haggarty / Winnipeg Free Press Five policemen who received medals Friday for 20 years of service congratulate policewoman Rita Kozikis on her graduation from the recruit training course. Men are (l-r) Patrol Sgt. Ed Buchko, Sgt. Bob Taylor, Const. Carl Collins, Patrol Sgt. Ken Porter and Const. Don McCaskill on Dec. 15, 1973 Dunn, a mother of 12 children who also looked after her three grandchildren following her daughters death, walked through the doors of the police station on Dec. 27. She was followed by Andrews, on Jan. 4, 1917, after she returned from visiting family in Nova Scotia. They were to be paid $75 per month, $10 less than their male counterparts. It would be several decades until they were on equal footing. A front-page article appeared in the Jan. 3, 1917 edition of the Free Press under the headline, Duties of Winnipegs Two Police Women, followed by a second, slightly smaller declaration: Not to ferret out crime or to make arrests there to lend sympathy and help. The article went on to say the pioneering pair were to offer sympathetic friendship and guidance to women and especially young girls treading too close to the verge of total delinquency. It concluded by noting, The police authorities have instructed the officers and men of the police station to not only give the matrons any assistance necessary, but also to treat them with the respect due to their sex and to avoid all rough talk and uncouth behaviour when the women are around. Dunn resigned from the Winnipeg Police Department on April 15, 1920. She was replaced immediately by policewoman No. 3, Clara Donaldson. Andrews, who didnt retire until 1938, wasnt replaced. After Donaldson retired in 1941 and Helen Hansford took her place, the force didnt hire another female officer until 1957, when provincial liquor laws changed, allowing women into beverage rooms and cocktail lounges and mixed drinking in licensed restaurants. Winnipeg Police Museum historian Randy James says Dunn a widow when she was hired was likely forced to resign because she was getting remarried. They only hired single or widowed people. Jane was single and Mary was a widow, he says. She met a guy in 1920 and wanted to marry, but to do that she had to leave the police. James says that Dunn was again a widow less than two years later when her husband, a railway worker, was killed when the hand car he was operating collided with a train. By the time Helen Woollard was hired in 1960, after serving as the first supervisor of the new 999 emergency telephone number, and being both the first female officer to graduate from a full regular recruit class and the first to wear a police uniform, there had been only seven others hired in the first 44 years. No guns Back in 1975, Brenda Fogg (then Ranson) was 17 and decided she wanted to be a police officer after listening to a female constable speak at her high school. By the end of the year, she was hired as one of the forces first two female police cadets following the citys decision to allow women to apply to the cadet program. A headline at the time said she found the job out of this world. WINNIPEG POLICE MUSEUM Mary Dunn was the first woman to work with the Winnipeg Police. Fogg became one of the first two women to walk the downtown and Main Street beats not long after becoming a constable when she turned 20, the minimum age for members of the regular police ranks. They also had a physical test and you had to be over 5-6 for women, she says. Im 5-10 so I had no problem. Theyve eliminated that requirement now. Fogg said there werent enough male applicants hired to create a recruit class so, for a time, she and others who hadnt been through academy training were given badges and sent out on Winnipegs mean streets. We didnt have a gun, she says. Then two detectives stopped me and were surprised, saying You dont have a gun I guess it had always been the way things were done, but when women went out there they realized maybe it wasnt safe They then put us through gun training so we could have a gun. We walked the beat for five months until there was a recruit class. Luckily we didnt encounter any problems. But by that time, Fogg and other women were allowed to wear the same uniform as men. Fogg, the second woman to reach the rank of patrol sergeant, says she had two-, four- and six-year-old children when she left the force in 1997, adding longer maternity and parental leaves might have changed her decision. I hated to give it up, I really did. Things like that would have made it easier, she says. Sgt. Lisa Mandziak, who began working in 1995, says while women have been on the force since 1916, it wasnt until the mid-1970s that they were allowed patrol duties. More women working the front lines is the biggest change since Ive been here, she says. But Mandziak, who also attended the recent International Association of Women Police conference, says the challenges for women in police work are not unique to Winnipeg. Clothing is still a major challenge, she says. Were 50 per cent of the population but still not 50 per cent of the work population in policing ultimately, 50-50 would be great, but realistically I dont know if it will happen because it is a tough job. Wendy Pongoski joined the department in 1975 and was one of three women who went directly from training into a patrol division. They sent us to the traffic division, she says. That was when sending a rookie there was unheard of. Becoming a traffic officer was aspired to. the public wanted to see this new animal female police officers with two female officers in the front of a cruiser. But there was still a male officer in the back. Now retired and working as a school educational assistant, Pongoski says, I loved the job. I loved the challenges. you move a few inches forward every year To date, Shelley Hart, who retired as deputy police chief in 2014 and is now mayor of East St. Paul, holds the distinction of reaching the highest rank of any woman on the force. Supt. Liz Pilcher is currently the highest ranking officer. WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Brenda Ranson and Susan Ryszowski (standing) search the missing persons' files in the Winnipeg Police Department. The two women were the first female police cadets on the force. Hart, who ascended to the rank in 2008, says she doesnt want to hold that distinction forever. I absolutely hope this record gets broken, she says. As women, you move a few inches forward every year and you hope the changes you made help and enable others to go forward. Hart, who was hired in 1978, says the advancement of women to senior ranks is the biggest change she observed over the years. Most of the people in my recruit class Im sure every man looked at the chief and thought, One day that will be me. I didnt even dream of that. There wasnt a woman above the rank of constable then. I was probably on the job eight or nine years when the first woman was promoted to patrol sergeant Linda Kisil. It was only at that point I thought I could be a patrol sergeant. Hart says her first uniform included different footwear from what was issued to male officers. Luckily, her husband, who also served as a police officer, had an extra pair of surplus boots hed never worn, so he exchanged them for a pair of boots in her size. Hart, who later was promoted to inspector in 1995, was in that position when she had her first child. The senior officers collective agreement didnt have maternity leave in it; I guess they never contemplated that. I certainly ended up changing that. Moving the needle Chief Danny Smyth, who has been in the top job for only a few weeks, says while there have been many victories through the years for women on the force, We still have a ways to go I will strive to do as much as I can. Smyth says he has worked with many women since he was hired in 1986. In fact, his background check was done by Woollard the year before. But even in 1986, there were only two women in my class of 24, he says. We always want to strive for greater percentages; now were in the 15 to 18 per cent range. If we were to go to 20 per cent I would see that as moving the needle. Smyth said theres actually a larger challenge for women on the force, something they can change. Our biggest challenge is getting women to put themselves forward for promotion. It is getting women interested in going to senior-officer rank. Smyth said a lot has changed in 100 years. The Mary Dunns of the world were relegated to work with women and children. Thats not the case anymore. kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca WAYNE GLOWACKI/WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Winnipeg Police Service Deputy Chief Shelley Hart WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Winnipeg Police Sgt. Shelley Hart in 1994. Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Political scientists are typically pretty excited about party leadership races. But the last Conservative leadership debate in Moncton, N.B. which featured no fewer than 14 candidates on the stage was a snoozer, even for me. With so many candidates present, it was impossible for the debate to feature anything other than short statements. Canadians seemed to concur with this sentiment. A Forum Research poll published last Sunday reports that 53 per cent of Canadians prefer someone else to any of the current candidates as party leader. About half of all Conservative Party of Canada supporters felt the same. Forums poll suggests the frenetic attempts of certain candidates to break away from this crowded pack have largely failed. The poll will therefore be a boon to candidates waiting on the sidelines. And with former justice minister Peter MacKay out of the race, businessman and television personality Kevin OLeary is the outsider who stands to benefit the most. ADRIAN WYLD / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES Kevin OLeary speaks about how he would run for the federal Conservative partys leadership, if he chose to, at a conference in February. There are signs that OLeary not only will run, but also be a serious candidate. First, OLeary, despite his status as an outsider, appears to be trying to build relationships within the Conservative party. It was revealed this week that former Conservative senator Marjory LeBreton is a member of an exploratory committee to advise OLeary on whether to run. LeBreton has advised Conservative leaders from John Diefenbaker to Stephen Harper; to say her roots in the party run deep is an understatement. The fact she has allowed her name to be associated with OLearys campaign should hold some significance for Conservatives. In addition, OLeary is actively courting the support of Conservative MPs. This past week, he hosted a reception for MPs to discuss his leadership prospects and shake hands. While OLeary will undoubtedly run as an outsider, building relationships within the party (and especially in caucus) will be beneficial in the long run. OLearys campaign narrative, in keeping with his career and public profile in business, is focused almost entirely on economic themes. His previous well-publicized attacks on Alberta Premier Rachel Notley and Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne suggest he will attempt to tie economic difficulties in these provinces to the prime minister. This view was reinforced in his recent Ottawa speech, in which he criticized the prime ministers principal secretary, Gerald Butts. The reasoning behind this is clear: Butts was involved as a close adviser to Ontarios premier on issues such as Ontarios troubled green energy plan, and is now advising the prime minister on similar issues. In keeping with his experience harshly assessing business proposals on Dragons Den and Shark Tank, OLeary has often been cutting on the campaign trail. Like Donald Trump, to whom he is often compared, OLeary is quick with dismissive insults, referring to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as a surfer dude. OLeary noted Trudeau is someone who has never run a business before, and somebody who has never made payroll before. Staying out of the Conservative leadership race has allowed OLeary to keep his attacks focused on Trudeau rather than on other Conservative leadership contenders. The Conservative party is a large coalition of distinct and often competing groups. Former prime minister Stephen Harper welded these disparate groups together through the discipline of power, but this leadership race has allowed divisions between these groups to re-emerge. Candidates such as Kellie Leitch have been willing to exacerbate these divisions in attempts to get a leg up on the other candidates. Perhaps OLearys biggest strength in this campaign is his ability, as an outsider, to stay above this fray. He has no history in any particular faction in the party. Furthermore, he already has good name recognition among Canadians and Conservative voters, which means there is no need for him to articulate these divisions in order to distinguish himself from the pack and build support on this basis. OLearys economic policies are standard fare in the party. And his sharp attacks on Trudeau (not to mention Notley and Wynne) will delight the Conservative base who will vote in this leadership race. While OLeary brings unique strengths to this race, he also has weaknesses. The most important is his inability to speak French. In addition, there are questions about where he actually resides, with Boston identified as his previous residence. This invites the possibility of a Liberal line of attack similar to the just visiting advertisements that assailed former Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff throughout the 2011 election campaign. Further, OLeary is known for being both blunt and confrontational. The question is whether there is also a measured side to his personality, which will often be necessary in politics. Does OLeary have the patience and discipline required for a gruelling run for public office? These concerns aside, the fact that Trump will soon enter the White House provides a sober reminder that we should not be quick to dismiss brash, unconventional candidates such as OLeary. Royce Koop is an associate professor and head of the department of political studies at the University of Manitoba. Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 17/12/2016 (2147 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Winnipeg Coun. Jeff Browaty was both right and wrong in his stance on training for all city employees as part of its commitment to truth and reconciliation. Mr. Browaty was more than a bit ham-handed in his objections to a report that came before full council that suggested half-day training sessions for all civic employees. This is really part of Mayor Brian Bowmans announcement last January when he declared 2016 the year of reconciliation in Winnipeg. Mr. Browaty (North Kildonan) flipped and flopped on the issue, first announcing he opposed the plan to provide all city employees with diversity training, then reversed his stance, retracting what he said. In essence, Mr. Browaty Donald Trumped the issue while speaking about the plan on the city council floor. He complained about the cost of placing workers in classrooms when they could be cutting grass or filling potholes. Thats a bit of a red herring, and its really where Mr. Browaty erred playing up the personnel costs, including overtime, against the need to educate the civic workforce on the issues facing First Nations people, many of whom are struggling with the residual effects of residential school abuse and colonization. He suggested this could be handled by employees making a trip to the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. But heres where Mr. Browaty made a point: is it really the role of the City of Winnipeg to use training as a way to divest itself of the moniker most racist city? Mr. Bowman was stung with that criticism early in his term as mayor. Almost a year ago, he announced plans for an aboriginal accord, similar to Thompsons, which promises respectful relations, open dialogue and improvements to indigenous participation in the economy and the political life of the city. At that news conference, meant to coincide with the one-year anniversary of the controversial Macleans article highlighting racism in Winnipeg, Mr. Bowman also promised training for city employees on diversity issues. Is educating people about racism during an enforced half-day session going to be successful in making them less racist and better informed, or will it make them resentful and closed-minded? That remains to be seen. Certainly, diversity training for those who work on the front line is important, but more important is the ability for an organization to take action when an individual acts in a racist manner. More important is to take seriously the complaints from those who have experienced racism when they dare to complain. In Winnipeg, particularly with the police service, it would appear no amount of training has cleared the police ranks of those bound and determined to act in a racist manner and it certainly has not made institutional racism go away. Think of the over-representation of indigenous men in the correctional system, party because of their inability to access legal assistance and partly because they are subject to over-surveillance by police, with arrests made for minor offences when, for other populations, officers look the other way. So Mr. Browaty was wrong in putting a dollar value on educating people about racism and playing up the costs of overtime in a city trying to find cash to mow the boulevards. But he wasnt wrong in wondering whether its the role of the city to implement this kind of training when its not clear just how effective it will be. The Winona Area Public Schools board has taken the first step on a long road. The boards Thursday night vote provided the district with a master facilities plan. Putting that plan into action will be a lengthy and complex process. The plan agreed upon by the board with Karen Coleman, Brian Zeller, Steve Schild, and Jeanne Nelson voting in favor, and Tina Lenhertz, Ben Baratto, and Jay Kohner in opposition calls for remodeling and expanding Jefferson and Goodview elementary schools, and closing Madison, Washington-Kosciusko and Rollingstone. The plan is estimated to save the district nearly $1.3 million annually in operating costs. The master plan also included recommendations for renovations to the high school, gym space for students attending the Winona Area Learning Center, and addressing deferred maintenance for the high school, middle school, learning center and Central buildings. The renovation recommendations for the high school include expanding and renovating the girls locker room to make the facility equitable with the boys, as required by Title IX; renovations to modernize the technical education wing and in classroom areas to create flexible learning environments to facilitate cooperative and collaborative teaching and learning. Also in the plan is an additional high-school gym to meet curricular, co-curricular and community needs. The total estimated cost of the plan, including deferred maintenance, is estimated at $89.9 million. With the general outline of the master plan established Thursday night, the next step for the district will be to refine cost estimates and establish a timeline for implementing the plan. The board has several milestone dates for this process already on their calendar. Paul Aplikowski of Wold Architects and Engineers, the consultant who led the process, will bring a refined version of the master plan back to the board on Jan. 19. The board will then use the information to decide on the size and scope of a bond referendum to fund planned renovations and new construction, and create a timeline for building closures. Those decisions need to be made by Feb. 16, Aplikowski said, in order for the district to put a referendum question before district voters in early May. Those necessary tasks include consultations and receipt of recommendations from the districts financial adviser and bond counsel regarding the size and terms of the planned bond issue; time to prepare ballot language. They also include time to submit building and site plans to the Minnesota Department of Education for review and comment a formal process that can take up to 90 days, and which must be completed and approved for the bond referendum to move forward without complications. The board must also consider and abide by required public notice periods, and hold mandated public hearings before school buildings can be closed. The dates for those hearings have not yet been set. As for any specifics as to when projects will be completed, when schools will be consolidated or closed, and how construction will be scheduled and staged, there arent any. At this point, there are just questions to be posed and answered as the planning process progresses, and preliminary decisions are made and implemented. Board member Steve Schild acknowledged the task was big and the price high, but that in the end, what we will be offering the taxpayer is a better education system. ST. PAUL, Minn. Minnesota officials abandoned their plans for a special session to address healthcare costs Friday after a final attempt at negotiating a deal ended in anger, leaving more than 120,000 residents left on their own to cover massive premium increases at the start of the year. Those rate hikes have been the subject of months of private negotiations between Gov. Mark Dayton, Republican House Speaker Kurt Daudt and other legislative leaders. But Fridays meeting was held in the public eye, where Dayton and Daudt traded barbs and blamed each other for the standstill for 15 minutes before declaring the effort dead until the Legislature returns Jan. 3. The blowup also means that $1 billion in public construction projects and hundreds of millions of dollars in tax relief both left unfinished from the 2016 legislative session wont be passed. The two bills had been looped into possible special session talks. Within those bills would have been funding for Winona State Universitys Education Village, as well as for the Lanesboro dam. Its a shared failure, Dayton said of the scuttled special session. Its bad for Minnesota, theres no doubt about it. The premium hikes hit just a small slice of Minnesota just 5 percent buy coverage through the individual market, and many of those shoppers qualify for federal help based on income requirements. But the issue exploded ahead of the November election, when it played prominently in Republicans successful campaign to hold the House and regain Senate control. Registration for individual market plans began Nov. 1 and will continue through January. Dayton proposed a premium rebate nearly two months ago that would tap part of a budget surplus to buy down some of the premium hikes. He and legislative leaders appeared close to a deal earlier this month, penciling in a special session just before Christmas. But that deal dissolved in a final week of fruitless back and forth, with Dayton singling out Daudts trip to the U.S. Virgin Islands for a legislative conference this week while the speaker accused the governor of purposefully scuttling a deal. Fridays public meeting a rarity at the Capitol, where high-level negotiations typically take place in private repeated those talking points before the two politicians gave up and left. Daudt said the governors plan needed to also address questions of health care access given the stringent enrollment caps Minnesota insurers have placed on their plans. He said he and an incoming Senate Republican majority would queue up a fix when the legislative session begins Jan. 3. Were going to put something in place the first week of session ... and the governor is going to sign it, Daudt said This is a little setback for Minnesotans right now. Its not the first would-be special session to fizzle out due to gridlock between Dayton and House Republicans. Other emergency sessions that failed to launch focused on laid-off steelworkers, businesses surrounding Mille Lacs Lake struggling amid a shortened walleye fishing season, passing failed tax relief and public works packages and more. Eyeing a session in which hed square off with Republican majorities in both the House and Senate, Dayton predicted it would be a very difficult one. A non-profit group says a statewide shortage of direct care workers is making it more difficult for the elderly and disabled to remain in their homes. And local advocates say much needs to be done in order to increase the number of home health and therapy aides in the workforce. People told us they are missing work, doctors appointments, meals and medications because they cant find workers, said Beth Swedeen, who co-chairs the Survival Coalition of Wisconsin Disability Organizations. The group recently surveyed 500 Wisconsin residents who rely on direct care services and their family members. According to the survey: 85 percent of respondents said they dont have enough workers to cover all shifts; 95 percent said its very hard or somewhat hard to find workers; 60 percent said they get sick more often when they dont have enough workers; and 43 percent said they cant find a worker seven or more times a month. With unemployment being low, and entry level jobs being fairly plentiful, there are not too many folks choosing the job of direct care, said Sauk County Aging and Disability Resource Center Director Susan Blodgett. She said the state has worked to eliminate the waiting list for long-term care by ditching a waiver program. But people are still left to wait for services because there isnt enough staff available. Potential solutions might include better pay and an increase to Wisconsins Medicaid rates, Blodgett said. One effort to address the shortage in southwest Wisconsin offers high school students paid apprenticeships which come with college credits. The Career Education Cooperative, which started last year, includes about 15 local businesses and schools in Richland, Vernon, Crawford, Grant and Juneau counties. The first year we focused on local industries and this year we added a healthcare track, said Becky Dahl, a regional ADRC director who is part of the grassroots initiative. Our vision is to expand the (program) into more school districts in the coming years. Sauk County government offers a home care program that supplements the private offerings that exist locally. But the program has been eliminated in next years budget due to a growing reliance on property tax levy. Sauk County Health Care Center Administrator Jennifer Vosen, whose department oversees the home care program, did not respond to a request for comment for this article. Sauk County Public Health Director Cindy Bodendein, whose department previously administered the program, said the elimination of home care is a loss, but that there still are providers within the county to serve those patients. Bodendein said all clients of the countys program have been referred to Home Health United, a care agency that is co-owned by hospitals in Sauk County, Madison and Janesville. Shes confident they will be accepted. But theres certain cases, which is what the county always kind of looked out for, the cases that other people wouldnt want to take because they arent as cost effective as the other ones, Bodendein said. Thats part of the reason the county agency struggled so much, because we would (take those cases). Bodendein said a living wage might help address the shortage of workers for such programs. Some home care agencies pay employees for their time spent in a patients home, she said, but not for their travel to and from the home. Not only is remaining in the home more desirable for patients, it may be more cost effective. A 2015 report by the Wisconsin Department of Human Services found that the average daily cost of caring for people went down after they relocated from a nursing home to a community setting. Daily nursing home costs of those surveyed were $151.28, which dropped to $112.55 after they were placed back in the community as part of the states Community Relocation Initiative. The Survival Coalition survey found that one in five respondents had considered moving out of an apartment or community setting due to the workforce crisis. Some respondents even opened up about deeper personal struggles they had encountered. We received heartbreaking stories from individuals across the state that have been left in their wheelchair overnight, suffered falls, spent the entire day in their bed or considered suicide because the workforce crisis is leaving them without the supports they need, said Survival Coalition Co-Chair Kit Kerschensteiner. Family members are also leaving the workforce or retiring early to take care of their loved ones full-time because they are concerned for their safety. Under the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources reorganization plan announced at the end of November, state park rangers will lose their law enforcement credentials, forfeiting arrest powers and the right to carry a firearm. There are four ranger positions at Devils Lake State Park, two of which are vacant. One of the two employed rangers has law enforcement credentials, as do the park superintendent and assistant superintendent. All will lose law enforcement credentials under the reorganization. DNR spokeswoman Jennifer Sereno said Devils Lake State Park rangers make about 11,000 contacts with park guests each year, though a majority of the interactions are to provide information for visitors. So far in 2016, she said rangers have issued 271 citations at Devils Lake, with most occurring during the busy summer months. The changes have drawn criticism, including from a local blogger who regularly writes about issues related to Devils Lake State Park. Skillet Creek Media owner Derrick Mayoleth said Devils Lake is different from many of the other state parks due to the more than 2 million visitors that come through the parks gates each year. He said hes worried the changes will increase the burden on the parks already understaffed law enforcement. Theyre dealing with drug deals, theyre dealing with violence all the stuff a major city has to deal with, he said. Theyre already outgunned, and now theyre taking away the rest of the rangers. Sereno said conservation wardens will be brought in to provide law enforcement throughout the state park system, including Devils Lake. She said the wardens will work scheduled shifts alongside other park staff to ensure guests are safe. Although rangers will no longer have law enforcement credentials in our new structure, the DNR will continue to have credentialed officers working at state parks provided by the departments bureau of law enforcement, she said. Mayoleth said the change also could be beneficial at Devils Lake. By not requiring law enforcement credentials for park rangers and managers, the DNR could provide more opportunities for professionals in environmental education and land management to enter the park system. Thats a big positive, he said. Sereno said park rangers will continue to perform all non-credentialed job functions, including initial response to visitor accidents and complaints, providing basic lifesaving support including CPR and automatic external defibrillation coordination of other emergency services and conflict resolution. Rangers also will continue to provide recreational opportunities and recreation management on state properties, including maintenance and development of facilities, grounds, trails, maintaining equipment and providing information and customer service to the public. Sereno said changes brought on by the reorganization will be implemented in phases and completed by 2018. We want to make these changes with minimal disruption to the parks and their guests, she said. We want to be careful that we get it right. Baraboo leaders want to know who might buy a vacant train depot if the building is stabilized. A committee working with the depots owner to repair and market the building decided Monday to request proposals from prospective buyers. I think thats about the only thing we can do, said Alderman Dennis Thurow. The group also reviewed a report on the depots condition that indicates shoring up the building could cost $265,000. Built in 1902 as the Chicago and North Western Railroads division headquarters, the depot has sat vacant for decades. Until recently, the 11,000 square-foot building was used for storage by its owner, neighboring Servo Instrument Corp. Sally Glorch of Servo has said she and her siblings are willing to give the depot to the city, if the city will pay for repairs and find a buyer. This fall the city commissioned a report on the buildings condition. Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates opined that the building can be restored, but immediate action is required to prevent further deterioration. Initial work to stabilize the structure including replacing the roof, shoring up the floors and repairing wall cracks could cost $265,000. City Administrator Ed Geick said the consultants report lays out whats in store for the city if it takes over temporary ownership of the depot. We needed someplace to start this discussion, he said. Committee members agreed their next step should be to gauge interest from developers who might envision new uses for the building. Because the depot is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places, state and federal programs would offer up to 40 percent tax credits for restoration work. New mechanical equipment will be needed, as will interior remodeling. Well find out what kind of interest there could be, City Engineer Tom Pinion said. We havent really tested the proverbial waters yet. In the meantime, the depots roof will need attention. Theres a hole in it thats letting storm water inside. The city hasnt budgeted money in the coming year for repairs, but Pinion will work with Glorch and Geick to determine the cost of placing a tarp over the hole as a stopgap measure. The roof is the huge issue right now, said committee member Paul Wolter. The city will post a request for proposals on its website, and reach out to development agencies. An announcement also may be placed in trade publications. In addition to state and federal tax credits, a new owner could benefit from the depots location in a city tax increment financing district. This city encourages growth by creating special taxing districts, wherein a portion of property tax increases generated by new development are used to offset the cost of that development work. Well keep everybody informed as it develops, Thurow said. HORICONStanley Temple, professor emeritus in conservation, Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology at UW-Madison, will be the guest speaker at the next meeting of the Horicon Marsh Bird Club at 7 p.m., Dec. 15, in the lower level of the Horicon Marsh Education and Visitor Center, N7725 Highway 28. This year marks the centenary of the Convention between the United States and Great Britain (for Canada) for the Protection of Migratory Birds (the Migratory Bird Treaty, for short). The 1916 treaty became the cornerstone of the national commitment to conserve birds. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 implements the landmark 1916 treaty, and together the treaty and act form one of the oldest and most enduring bird conservation measures in the world. Temple will recount the first century of migratory bird protection and speculate about the future. For 32 years, Temple has held the academic position once occupied by Aldo Leopold. He is currently a senior fellow with the Aldo Leopold Foundation. He has received major conservation awards from the Society for Conservation Biology, the Wildlife Society and the Wisconsin Society for Ornithology. Among other recognition of his achievements, he is a fellow of the American Ornithologists Union, Explorers Club, Wildlife Conservation Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters. He has been president of the Society for Conservation Biology and chairman of the board of the Nature Conservancy in Wisconsin. Bird club programs are free and open to the public. For more information call 387-7893 or visit horiconmarshbirdclub.com. JUNEAU A 23-year-old former Wayland Academy music teacher was sentenced to four years in prison after he was found guilty of five felony counts related to the sexual assault of a male student. Adam Hechimovich, Mayville, pleaded no contest to two counts of child enticement with sexual contact and three counts of sex assault of a student by school staff in August. Ten other counts were dismissed, but were read into the court record. Judge Brian Pfitzinger sentenced Hechimovich to four years in prison and 25 years of extended supervision that must be served concurrently. An additional 10 years of prison time was imposed and stayed. He must pay $8,363 in restitution to his victim. Hechimovich will be required to register as a sex offender. He must maintain absolute sobriety and submit to random urinalysis testing. He may have no contact with anyone under the age of 18 without prior approval and shall not have any unmonitored computer use. Hechmovich must also obtain and maintain full time employment as a condition of his parole. According to the head of Wayland Academy, Joseph Lennertz, Hechimovichs employment with Wayland was terminated in December 2015. On Dec. 5 the juvenile victim, his mother and father and Wayland Academy assistant dean Paul Keller contacted police regarding a teacher who had sexually assaulted a minor at Wayland Academy. The teacher was identified as Hechimovich. According to the criminal complaint, Keller told officers that Hechimovich was employed with Wayland Academy since August 2015 as a music teacher. Keller said he had heard rumors about the student and Hechimovich texting one another. He questioned the student about the situation and Hechimovich was placed on administrative leave. The student later told officers that Hechimovich had sexual contact with him on multiple occasions. The criminal complaint states, the student told officers he liked Hechimovich as a teacher and did not understand why he was doing this. He told officers Hechimovich threatened to get him kicked out of school. The student said the incidents occurred in October and November 2015. Hechimovich was interviewed by officers Jan. 27. He said he had developed a friendship with the student, but denied ever having a sexual relationship with him. The complaint continues saying that he later admitted to sexual contact with the student, but said it was consensual. Items are listed under the day of the event only, running as space permits prior to the event. To submit items, call 745-3511, email jcutsforth@capitalnewspapers.com or visit www.portagedailyregister.com. Include name and phone number. TODAY Community free meal: 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church, 207 W. Pleasant St., Portage. Free TaijiFit class: 11 a.m. to noon, Portage Public Library, 253 W. Edgewater St., Portage. Taiji Fit is a mind/body exercise that combines traditional Tai Chi with modern Western fitness. The class is appropriate for all levels as there are no routines to learn or choreography to remember. It is a healthy calming exercise led by an instructor. Library event: 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Friends of the Portage Library membership drive, Portage Public Library, 253 W. Edgewater St., Portage. Receive one dozen homemade cookies with each new family membership ($20) or one half dozen cookies with each new individual membership ($10). Play: 7:30 p.m. The Christmas Gift, Portage Center for the Arts, 301 E. Cook St., Portage. Written and directed by Dr. Tom McEvilly. Tickets are $15 for adults, $8 for students and family rate eligible at all performances is $35 for two parents/guardians and up to five of their children. For more information, call the PCA at 742-5655. Religion class: 5 p.m. Deliverance ministry classes with Pastor Dale Smalley, Outreach Bible Church, 235 Northridge Drive, Portage. All welcome. SUNDAY, DEC. 18 Bingo: Bingo at the Portage VFW Hall has been cancelled due to the weather. The next Bingo session will be from 3 to 5 p.m. Jan. 15. Play: 2 p.m. The Christmas Gift, Portage Center for the Arts, 301 E. Cook St., Portage. Written and directed by Dr. Tom McEvilly. Tickets are $15 for adults, $8 for students and family rate eligible at all performances is $35 for two parents/guardians and up to five of their children. For more information, call the PCA at 742-5655. Zumba: 5:30 p.m. Rusch Elementary School, Portage. $5 drop in fee. Contact Tami at 608-346-3971 or 4dreamers@frontier.com. MONDAY, DEC. 19 Clinic: 8 a.m. to noon, Columbia County Public Health Walk-In Clinic, Columbia County Division of Health, 2652 Murphy Road, Portage. Use door No. 4. Bring childs immunization record. Visit www.co.columbia.wi.us for more information. Euchre card party: 6:30 p.m. Bethlehem Lutheran Church, W8267 Highway 33 East, Portage. Public welcome. Contact: Cloe, 429-2363. Portage High School Choir Concert: 7 p.m. Portage High School auditorium, 301 E. Collins St., Portage. The concert is free to the public. Portage Historical Society: 5:30 p.m. Portage Public Library, 253 W. Edgewater St., Portage. Portage Sharing Supper: 5 to 6:30 p.m. Bartels Middle School, 2505 New Pinery Road, Portage. Food and conversation. Kids Corner for young people to do a craft and hear a story, as well as informational tables for adults. Visit with Santa and hear the middle school Swing Choir and the Jazz Combo group perform. All welcome. Seniors Bowling Social: 2 p.m. Fireball Lanes, 817 E. Wisconsin St., Portage. Cost is $6 and includes three games of bowling and shoe rental. Zumba/Zumba Toning: 6 p.m. Harrisville. $5 drop in fee. Contact Tami at 608-346-3971 or 4dreamers@frontier.com. TUESDAY, DEC. 20 Library event: 1:30 to 3 p.m. Tech Tuesday, Portage Public Library, 253 W. Edgewater St., Portage. This is a drop in session where patrons bring their tablets, phones, gadgets, Overdrive questions, etc. for help. Portage Family Skate Park public meeting: 5 to 6:30 p.m. Gerstenkorn Administration Building, 305 E. Slifer St., Portage. All interested people are welcome to attend. If the Portage Schools are closed or released early the PFSP meeting will be canceled and announced on our Facebook page with a new meeting location as soon as possible. Zumba Toning: 4:30 p.m. Woodridge Primary School, Portage. $5 drop in fee. Contact Tami at 608-346-3971 or 4dreamers@frontier.com. WEDNESDAY, DEC. 21 Bingo: 5:30 p.m. 131 Restaurant, North Main Street, Pardeeville. Bingo will be played every Wednesday, except the first one of the month. Clinic: 8 a.m. to noon, Columbia County Public Health Walk-In Clinic, Columbia County Division of Health, 2652 Murphy Road, Portage. Use door No. 4. Bring childs immunization record. Visit www.co.columbia.wi.us for more information. Christmas Concert: 4 p.m. Portage Center for the Arts, 301 E. Cook St., Portage. Join area musicians and students for a program of lessons and carols for the Christmas season. Featuring The Dolce Cantabile and Al Fine Childrens Choirs and the Cathedral Window Vocal Quintet. Free will donations accepted in support of PCA, and/or non-perishables for the Bridgepoint Food Pantry. Pardeeville Red Cross blood drive: 1 to 6 p.m. Pardeeville High School, 120 Oak St., Pardeeville. Download the American Red Cross Blood Donor app, visit www.redcrossblood.org or call 800-733-2767 to make an appointment or for more information. All blood types are needed. A blood donor card or drivers license or two other forms of identification are required. St. Vincent de Paul free medical clinic: 9 a.m. to noon. Wilz Drugs lower level, 140 E. Cook St., Portage. No appointments needed. Information needed is name, date of birth and a contact number. A chiropractor is available from 10 a.m. to noon Wednesdays. A foot clinic is available every week. The clinic can do exams and prescribe medications. Physical therapist available. Discounted medications are available at Wilz and Wal-Mart. Call Bonny Oestreich, RN, at 608-234-0159 for information. Texas Hold em card tournament: VFW Hall, 215 W. Collins St., Portage. Register at 6 p.m. Cards begin at 6:30 p.m. Entry fee is $20. One hundred percent payout. Open to the public. For information, call the VFW Hall at 742-5350. Free blood pressure screenings: 1 to 5 p.m. Divine Savior Healthcare, 2817 New Pinery Road, Portage. No appointment necessary. Call 745-6405 for more information. Do not eat, smoke, drink caffeine or exercise for 30 minutes prior. Senior meal: 11:30 a.m. Portage Area Senior Citizens Group, Municipal Building, 115 W. Pleasant St., Portage. The meal will be provided by the Columbia County Nutrition Center. If you wish to have a meal, call Lois Williams at 608-697-5800 by noon Tuesday to register. The cost is a cash donation which will be directly put back into the nutrition program. The meeting will start at noon with cards to follow. Writing workshop: 10:30 a.m. Portage Public Library Adult Services presents Palm of the Hand Memoir Writing Workshop, Heritage House, 2685 Airport Road, Portage. The public is welcome to join. This is a group that is all about memories and less about writing skills. We brainstorm ideas, share stories and spend some time in quiet reflection. This workshop runs on the third Wednesday of each month. More information can be found at: https://spiritblogs.uwc.edu/memoirs/. People of all abilities are welcome, whether you consider yourself a writer or not. Zumba/Zumba Toning: 5 p.m. Montello. $5 drop in fee. Contact Tami at 608-346-3971 or 4dreamers@frontier.com. Zumba: 5:30 p.m. 1208 Northport Road (the former Freedom Carpeting building). This is a $5 drop-in class. For more information, contact Deb at DJMACK00001@yahoo.com or Rena at 697-6713. THURSDAY, DEC. 22 Museum: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Portage World War II Museum, 119 E. Cook St., Portage. Free tours for veterans every Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The tours take 2 1/2 hours. For information, call 608-697-3690. Open Texas Hold em: 7 p.m. Sport Club 22, Pardeeville. For information, call 566-9655. Second Harvest mobile food pantry: 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. St. Marys Catholic Church, 318 S. Main St., Pardeeville. Do not line up before 3 p.m. Bring boxes, bags, wagons, etc., to carry food. Volunteers are needed by calling Cindy at 429-3030. FRIDAY, DEC. 23 Free blood pressure screenings: 1 to 3:30 p.m. Divine Savior Healthcare Pardeeville Clinic, 102 Gillette St., Pardeeville. No appointment necessary. Call 745-6405 for more information. Do not eat, smoke, drink caffeine or exercise for 30 minutes prior. Unique Singles: 5 p.m. Trails Lounge, 125 Wauona Trail, Portage. All single men and women older than age 50 welcome. The group is strictly social with no dues or officers. Holli Jean Judd, 41, of Pardeeville, was called to heaven peacefully at her home, surrounded by her loved ones on Dec. 14, 2016. Holli leaves behind her four children, Hope Read, 19, Nathan Read, 17, Isabelle Read, 13, and Triton Yeager, 8. Holli was born March 15, 1975, in Portage, the youngest daughter of Chuck and Penny Judd. She was a high honors graduate of Poynette High School in 1993, and graduated from UW-Whitewater with a high honors degree in accounting in 1997. She loved family more than anything, and her children were her life. She could often be seen, and heard at her childrens sporting events and other childrens activities. She also enjoyed playing sports, dancing, outdoors and nature. She loved evening sunsets especially near water where she could see and hear the beautiful call of the loons. She had a great love for all animals and sadly leaves behind her two dogs, Murphy and Maggie. She loved watching the talent people had in plays and musicals. She especially loved The Phantom of the Opera and was able to see it on Broadway. She was also able to go to Paris as a teenager. She was a breast cancer patient advocate and often spoke at seminars to educate and inspire others battling the terrible disease. She was a valued employee of the Pardeeville School District until she was no longer able, and was also an active member of Bethlehem Lutheran Church. She is survived by her four children, Hope, Nathan, Isabelle and Triton; her parents, Chuck and Penny Judd; sister, Patti (Kevin) Purtell; nephew, Kole (Katelyn) Purtell; nieces, Amanda (Andrew) Wells, Kirston Purtell and Payton Purtell; great-nephews, Julian and Jax Wells; uncle, Larry (Linda) Krueger; aunts, Mardi OBrien-Parker and Peggy (Jim) Alf; and many close cousins and friends. She was preceded in death by her nephew, Mitchel Blanchard; uncle, John Parker; and grandparents, Florence and Marvin Krueger, and Blanche and Charles Judd. Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Monday, Dec. 19 at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Portage, with the Rev. Julie Krahn officiating. Private inurnment will be held at a later date. Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Sunday at Grasse Funeral Home in Pardeeville, and again from 10 a.m. until the time of services at the church Monday. The family would like to thank everyone who has supported Holli and her family in any way. The love and support from family, friends and the community has been amazing and is greatly appreciated. Thank you to the hospice team from Heartland, especially Renee and Nikki. Grasse Funeral Service of Pardeeville (www.grassefs.com) is serving the family. This is how it has worked for as long as corporations have been downsizing American facilities and offshoring the jobs to other countries: A corporation announces that it is shutting down its U.S. facilities (because of taxes or regulations or unions or fill-in-the-blank) and moving production to another country (Mexico or China or Vietnam or fill-in-the-blank). Local, state and national officials freak out. They announce that they will do whatever it takes to keep the jobs. The corporation announces that it is skeptical but open to offers. Negotiations ensue. A deal is reached. The company collects concessions (tax breaks or regulatory relief or cuts in wages and benefits for workers or favorable consideration from government contractors or fill-in-the-blank) and it is announced that a facility and some jobs will remain in the targeted town for now. Then everyone does their best to celebrate while other facilities are shuttered and most of the jobs are offshored. Wisconsinites have seen this scenario before: in Kenosha and Janesville and Fond du Lac and so many other communities that have been whipsawed by plant-closing threats over the decades. It is, as they say, the oldest story in the book. Yet when President-elect Trump played it out once more Thursday, the front pages of major newspapers gave him all kinds of credit and the television networks went live. But the real story was not one of a striking economic turn of events engineered by a different kind of president. The real story was that the downsizing and the offshoring is continuing pretty much as it always has. The difference was this time it came with a heaping helping of Trump spin. And national media outlets that have never done a particularly good job of covering the story of the deindustrialization and the corporate abandonment of manufacturing towns across this country are eating it up. The problem, of course, was that it was still happening. Again. Facilities were being downsized. Jobs were being offshored by a multinational corporation. The Wall Street Journal reported that the Carrier deal covered roughly 800 jobs in the companys Indianapolis furnace plant and another 300 research and development jobs that had not been slated to go to Mexico. At the same time that we learned the Indianapolis Carrier plant was being downsized, Indiana television station WTHR-TV headlined its Thursday report: While Carrier workers in Indy celebrate, Huntington mourns job loss. The station reported that a total of 700 people are expected to lose their jobs at the United Technologies plant in the northeastern Indiana city of Huntington, where employees said that they will be phased out beginning in April. Yet the corporation was being rewarded as politicians patted themselves on the back. None of this is new. Corporations rarely do all their downsizing and offshoring at once. They play a crude and self-serving game with local, state and national officials, looking to get paid off for not cutting as many jobs as they initially propose to eliminate. And if they play it right, instead of being demonized for shuttering factories and cutting jobs, they are celebrated for working with the politicians to save jobs. Thats what we saw with the Carrier deal. As Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders noted, In essence, United Technologies took Trump hostage and won. And that should send a shock wave of fear through all workers across the country. The downsizing and offshoring threats continue. The concessions to multinational corporations continue. And the job losses continue. The only thing thats different is that Trump is telling us that he is changing things for the better. Hes not. But Trump is getting some more good press. Sauk County will pay a pair of engineering firms $128,000 for a plan to convert an unused railroad bed into a recreational trail if a county commissions recommendation is approved. Spring Green-based Jewell and Associates, an engineering, architecture and surveying firm, and iiw, of Dubuque, Iowa, were the firms chosen Dec. 13 by the Great Sauk Trail Commission to head up the design and engineering services for the trail. Plans for the Great Sauk Trail are divided into four segments: the Sauk Prairie Segment, Devils Lake Segment, Baraboo Segment and Reedsburg Segment. When completed, the Great Sauk Trail would connect the 400 and Elroy-Sparta trails in western Wisconsin to an existing trail along Highway 12 that leads to Middleton. Another trail connecting to the village of Mazomanie also has been proposed that would tie into the Great Sauk Trail. If the recommendation is approved by the Sauk County Highway & Parks Committee, the architectural, engineering and survey firms will focus on the Sauk Prairie Segment. When completed, the 11-mile segment would connect Sauk City to the Sauk Prairie Recreation Area. On Tuesday, the state Natural Resources Board designated the trail as a state trail, opening up additional opportunities for financial and marketing support. Greg Jewell of Jewell and Associates said his firms goal is to take the commissions plan and see it through to a reality. Like I told the committee, we know how much work has gone into the planning of this already; a lot of work has been done to date, Jewell said. Jewell said he brought Julie Neebel from iiw onto the project due to her extensive knowledge of trails. He said she has experience utilizing stewardship funding from trail development in Platteville and was involved in a rails to trails conversion in LaFayette County. Neebel acknowledged the Great Sauk Trail was unique because Sauk County would handle the actual construction, rather than a private contractor. The county already has begun removing brush and trees in the area. Sauk County Board Chair Marty Krueger said the recommendation was up to the commission, but told commissioners that during County discussions, everybody was most comfortable with Jewell. Two other firms sought the bid for engineering services on the project. During his presentation to the committee, Jewell identified several areas of challenges that included a design for the trail crossing at Water Street in Sauk City, permitting for road crossings and coordination with local businesses. Getting people off the trail and into the towns, whether for a snack on the deck or an ice cream, presents opportunities for those people as well as the habitat along the river will make for a great ride, Neebel said. Its how we get people to engage in the outdoors. Bridge out The committee also discussed the deteriorating state of the Sauk City rail bridge. Pier 2 is severely undermined and needs to be removed ASAP, Krueger said. The pier is part of the Sauk City railroad bridge, which has been in disrepair for more than a decade, shifted during flooding in September. An engineering firm utilized divers who found the condition of at least one of the piers was worse than expected. The bridge has been proposed to extend the trail into Dane County, but that could be in jeopardy based on the latest findings. The following companies are subsidiares of UnitedHealth Group: 1070715 B.C. Unlimited Liability Company, 1st Avenue Pharmacy Inc., 310 Canyon Medical LLC, 4C MSO LLC, 4C Medical Group PLC, 5995 Minnetonka LLC, ABCO International Holdings LLC, ACN Group IPA of New York Inc., ACN Group of California Inc., AHN Accountable Care Organization LLC, AHN Central Services LLC, AHN Target Holdings LLC, AMIL International S.a.r.l., APS Assistencia Personalizada a Saude Ltda., ASC Holdings of New Jersey LLC, ASC Network LLC, ASC Operators-East Bay LLC, ASC Operators-San Francisco LLC, ASC Operators-San Luis Obispo LLC, ASC Operators-Santa Rosa LLC, ASC Operators-South Bay LLC, ASV-HOPCo-SCA Cornerstone LLC, ASV-HOPCo-SCA Florida LLC, AbleTo Behavioral Health Services P.C., AbleTo Inc., Accurate Rx Pharmacy Consulting LLC, Administradora Clinica La Colina S.A.S., Administradora Country S.A.S., Administradora Medica Centromed S.A., Advanced Surgery Center of Clifton LLC, Advanced Surgical Center LLC, Advanced Surgical Hospital LLC, Advocate Condell Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Advocate Southwest Ambulatory Surgery Center L.L.C., Advocate-SCA Partners LLC, Aliansalud Entidad Promotora de Salud S.A., All Savers Insurance Company, All Savers Life Insurance Company of California, Alliance Surgical Center LLC, Allina Health Heart and Vascular Surgery Center LLC, Allina Health Surgery Center-Brooklyn Park LLC, Aloha Surgical Center LLC, Ambient Healthcare Inc., Ambient Holdings Inc., AmeriChoice, AmeriChoice Corporation, AmeriChoice of New Jersey Inc., American Health Network of Indiana Care Organization LLC, American Health Network of Indiana II LLC, American Health Network of Indiana LLC, American Health Network of Kentucky LLC, American Health Network of Ohio Care Organization LLC, American Health Network of Ohio II LLC, American Health Network of Ohio LLC, American Physicians Inc., Amico Saude Ltda., Amil, Amil Assistencia Medica Internacional S.A., Angiografia e Hemodinamica Madre Theodora Ltda., Anne Arundel-SCA Holdings LLC, Anne Arundel-SCA Surgicenter LLC, Antelope Valley Surgery Center L.P., Analisis Clinicos ML S.A.C., Apothecary Holdings Inc., AppleCare Medical Management LLC, Aquitania Chilean Holding SpA, Arcadia JV Holdings LLC, Arcadia Outpatient Surgery Center L.P., ArchWell Health LLC, ArchWell Health MSO LLC, ArchWell Health Professional Services Holding Co., ArchWell Health Professional Services of Alabama LLC, ArchWell Health Professional Services of North Carolina P.C., ArchWell Health Professional Services of Oklahoma LLC, Archwell Health Professional Services of Arizona LLC, Archwell Health Professional Services of Nebraska LLC, Arise Physician Group, Arizona Physicians IPA Inc., Arlington Surgery Center LLC, Aspectus Inc., Associacao Lusiadas Knowledge Center Health Education and Research, Audax Health Solutions LLC, Aurora Hospitalist P.C., Austin Center for Outpatient Surgery L.P., Avella Specialty Pharmacy, Aventura Medical Tower Surgery Center LLC, Avery Parent Holdings Inc., Aveta Inc., AxelaCare Intermediate Holdings LLC, AxelaCare LLC, B.R.A.S.S. Partnership in Commendam, BOSC Holdings LLC, BSC Holdings LLC, Ball Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Banmedica Colombia S.A.S., Banmedica Internacional SpA, Banmedica S.A., Barranca Surgery Center LLC, Beach Surgical Holdings II LLC, Beach Surgical Holdings III LLC, Beach Surgical Holdings LLC, Beaver Medical Group P.C., Bedford Physicians Risk Retention Group Inc., Behavioral Healthcare Options Inc., Beltway Surgery Centers L.L.C., Benefit Administration for the Self Employed L.L.C., Benefitter Insurance Solutions Inc., Bergan Mercy Surgery Center LLC, Bergen-Passaic Cataract Laser and Surgery Center LLC, Bessler MD PLLC, Bind Benefits Inc., Bind LH Holdings Inc., Bind Re Inc., Birmingham Outpatient Surgery Center Ltd., Birmingham Outpatient Surgical Center LLC, Bloomfield ASC LLC, Blue Ridge Day Surgery Center L.P., Blue Ridge GP LLC, Blue Ridge Properties LLC, Boca Raton Outpatient Surgery & Laser Center LTD., Bordeaux Barbados Holdings I SRL, Bordeaux Barbados Holdings II SRL, Bordeaux Barbados Holdings III S.r.l., Bordeaux Holding SpA, Bordeaux International Holdings Inc., Bordeaux UK Holdings I Limited, Bordeaux UK Holdings II Limited, Bordeaux UK Holdings III Limited, Bosque Medical Center Ltda., Brandon Ambulatory Surgery Center LC, BriovaRx Infusion Services 102 LLC, BriovaRx of Florida Inc., BriovaRx of Maine Inc., BriovaRx of Massachusetts LLC, CCEC Anesthesia Management LLC, CDC Holdings Colombia S.A.S., CLISA Clinica de Santo Antonio S.A., CMO Centro Medico de Oftalmologia S/S Ltda., CMS Central de Manipulacao e Servicos Farmaceuticos Ltda., COI Clinicas Oncologicas Integradas S.A., Cabin Enterprises LLC, Cabin Holdings LLC, California Medical Group Insurance Company Risk Retention Group, Camp Hill Ambulatory Centers, Camp Hill-SCA Centers LLC, Capital City Medical Group L.L.C., Cardinal Holding Company LLC, Care Improvement Plus Group Management LLC, Care Improvement Plus South Central Insurance Company, Care Improvement Plus Wisconsin Insurance Company, Care Improvement Plus of Texas Insurance Company, Care Logistics LLC, CareMount Dental Member LLC, CareMount Health Solutions ACO LLC, CareMount Health Solutions Employer LLC, CareMount Health Solutions LLC, CareMount Holding LLC, CareMount Medical Foundation Inc., CareMount Value Partners IPA LLC, Carr PLLC, Casa de Saude Santa Therezinha Ltda., Castle Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Castle Rock SurgiCenter LLC, Catalyst360 LLC, Catamaran 2 Unlimited Company, Catamaran Finance Ireland Unlimited Company, Catamaran S.a.r.l., Cedar Park JV Partners LLC, Cedar Park Surgery Center LLC, Cemed Care Empresa de Atendimento Clinico Geral Ltda., Center for Quality Improvement LLC, Center for Restorative Surgery at Maple Grove LLC, Center for Surgery of North Coast L.P., Central Indiana Care Organization LLC, Central Ohio Care Organization LLC, CentriHealth Corporation, CentrifyHealth LLC, Centro Medico Hospitalar Pitangueiras Ltda., Centro Odontologico Americano S.A.C., Centro de 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Vespucio S.A., Clinica del Country S.A.S., Coachella Valley Physicians of PrimeCare Inc., Coalition for Advanced Pharmacy Services Inc., Cobranzas Banmedica SpA, Cogent Healthcare IPA of New York Inc., Cogent Healthcare Inc., Cogent Healthcare Management of New York Inc., Cogent Healthcare of Arizona P.C., Cogent Healthcare of California Prof. Corp., Cogent Healthcare of Georgia P.C., Cogent Healthcare of Illinois LLC, Cogent Healthcare of Iowa P.C., Cogent Healthcare of Jackson MS LLC, Cogent Healthcare of Jacksonville LLC, Cogent Healthcare of Mississippi Inc., Cogent Healthcare of Missouri Inc., Cogent Healthcare of Montana P.C., Cogent Healthcare of New Jersey P.C., Cogent Healthcare of North Carolina P.C., Cogent Healthcare of Oregon P.C., Cogent Healthcare of Pennsylvania Inc., Cogent Healthcare of Pensacola L.L.C., Cogent Healthcare of Tennessee P.C., Cogent Healthcare of Virginia Inc., Cogent Healthcare of Washington P.C., Cogent Medical Care P.C., Cogent Patient Safety Organization Inc., Cogent/Endion Medical Care of New York P.C., Collaborative Care Holdings LLC, Collaborative Care Services Inc., Collaborative Realty LLC, Colmedica Medicina Prepagada S.A., Colonial Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Colorado Innovative Physician Solutions Inc., Colorado Springs Surgery Center Ltd., Comfort Care Transportation LLC, Comprehensive Hospital Physicians of Florida Inc., ConnectYourCare Inc., ConnectYourCare LLC, Connecticut Surgery Center Limited Partnership, Connecticut Surgery Properties LLC, Connecticut Surgical Center LLC, Consorcio Regenero S.A., Constructora Inmobiliaria Magapoq S.A., Consumer Wellness Solutions Inc., Continuum Physicians Group Inc., Continuum Physicians Group of Washington PLLC, Cornell Surgicenter LLC, Cornerstone Surgery Center LLC, Cornerstone Surgicare LLC, Corpus Christi Endoscopy Center L.L.P., Country Scan Ltda., Critical Care Physician of New York P.C., Critical Care Physicians of Illinois LLC, Critical Care Physicians of New 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Lauderdale LLC, Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy of Los Angeles County LLC, Distance Learning Network Inc., Divisadero Holdings LLC, DocASAP Inc., DocASAP India Technologies Private Limited, DocASAP US LLC, Doctor + S.A.C., Dry Creek Surgery Center LLC, Dublin Surgery Center LLC, Duluth Surgical Suites LLC, Durable Medical Equipment Inc., E Street Endoscopy LLC, EM Orange Tree LLC, EP Campus I LLC, EPIC Health Plan, EPIC Management Services LLC, East Bay Endoscopy Center L.P., East Brunswick Surgery Center LLC, Echo Locum Tenens Inc., Electronic Network Systems Inc., Elual Participacoes S.A., Emerald Coast Surgery Center L.P., Emisar Pharma Services LLC, Emmaus Holdings LLC, Emmaus Surgical Center LLC, Empire Physician Management Company LLC, Empremedica S. A., Endion Hospitalist North P.C., Endion Hospitalist of Western New York P.C., Endion Medical Healthcare P.C., Endion Medical Services P.C., Endoscopy Center Affiliates Inc., Enterprise Life Insurance Company, Equian, Equian LLC, Equian Parent Corp., Esho Empresa de Servicos Hospitalares S.A., Everett MSO Inc., Excelsior Insurance Brokerage Inc., Executive Health Resources Inc., Executive Surgery Center L.L.C., Eye Clinic Oftalmologia Clinico Cirurgica e Diagnostico Ltda., Eye Specialists Surgery Centers LLC, FMG Holdings LLC, Family Health Care Services, Family Home Hospice Inc., Ferrell Physician Services P.C., Fideicomiso Clinica Barranquilla Portoazul FA-517, First Coast Orthopedic Center LLC, First Family Insurance LLC, Florence Surgery Center L.P., For Health Inc., For Health of Arizona Inc., Fort Sutter Medical Building a California Limited Partnership, Fort Worth Endoscopy Centers LLC, Fortified Provider Network Inc., Foundation Surgery Affiliate General of Huntingdon Valley LLC, Foundation Surgery Affiliate of Huntingdon Valley L.P., Franklin Surgical Center LLC, Freedom Life Insurance Company of America, Freeway Surgicenter of Houston LLC, Frontier Medex Tanzania Limited, FrontierMEDEX Inc., FrontierMEDEX Kenya Limited, FrontierMEDEX US Inc., Fundacion Banmedica, GLBESC LLC, GRANTS PASS SURGERY CENTER LLC, Gadsden Surgery Center LLC, Gainesville Surgery Center L.P., Gainesville Surgery Properties LLC, Genoa, Genoa Healthcare Inc., Genoa QoL Wholesale LLC, Genoa Technology Canada Inc., Genoa Technology Inc., Genoa Telepsychiatry Inc., Genoa of Arkansas LLC, Gladiolus Surgery Center L.L.C., Glenwood Surgical Center L.P., Glenwood-SC Inc., Global One Ventures LLC, Golden Gate Endoscopy Center LLC, Golden Outlook Inc., Golden Rule Financial Corporation, Golden Rule Insurance Company, Golden Triangle Surgicenter L.P., Grandview Surgery Center LTD., Greater New Haven ASC LLC, Greensboro Specialty Surgery Center LLC, Greenville Surgery Center LLC, Greenway Surgical Suites LLC, Grossmont Surgery Center L.P., Grove Place Surgery Center L.L.C., H&W Indemnity SPC Ltd., H.I. Investments Holding Company LLC, HCP ACO California LLC, HCentive Technology India Private Limited, HFHS-SCA Holdings LLC, HMG Holding Corporation, HMG Holdings LLC, HMP of Baltimore USH P.C., Harken Health Insurance Company, Harrison Endo Surgical Center LLC, Hawthorn Place Outpatient Surgery Center L.P., Hays JV Partners LLC, Hays Surgery Center LLC, Health Care-ONE Insurance Agency Inc., Health Inventures Employment Solutions LLC, Health Inventures LLC, Health Plan of Nevada Inc., HealthCare Partners ASC-LB LLC, HealthCare Partners Affiliates Medical Group, HealthCare Partners Management Services California LLC, HealthCare Partners RE LLC, HealthEast Surgery Center-Maplewood LLC, HealthFirst IPA Inc., HealthMarkets Group Inc., HealthMarkets Inc., HealthMarkets Insurance Agency Inc., HealthMarkets LLC, HealthMarkets Services Inc., HealthSCOPE Holdings Inc., HealthScope Benefits Inc., Healthcare Solutions Inc., Healthplex America LLC, Healthplex Dental Services Inc., Healthplex I.P.A. Inc., Healthplex Inc., Healthplex Insurance Company, Healthplex of CT Inc., Healthplex of DC Inc., Healthplex of MD Inc., Healthplex of ME Inc., Healthplex of NC Inc., Healthplex of NJ Inc., Healthplex of TX Inc., Heartland Heart and Vascular LLC, Help Seguros de Vida S.A., Help Service S.A., Help SpA, Hemonefro Hemodialise e Nefrologia Ltda, Highlands Ranch Healthcare LLC, Home Medical S.A., Honodav SpA, Hospice Inspiris Holdings Inc., Hospitais Associados de Pernambuco Ltda., Hospital Alvorada Taguatinga Ltda., Hospital Ana Costa S.A., Hospital Santa Helena S.A., Hospital de Clinicas de Jacarepagua Ltda., Hospitalist Medicine Physician of Broome County PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physician of New York - Binghamton P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physician of New York - Buffalo P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physician of New York - Newburgh P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physician of New York - Nyack P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physician of New York - Patchogue P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Alabama TCG Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Alabama TCS Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Alaska TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Alaska TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Goodyear Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Nogales Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Phoenix II Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Phoenix Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Sierra Vista Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Tucson II Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Tucson Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona TCG Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona TCS Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arkansas TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arkansas TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Buncombe County PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Apple Valley PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Bakersfield PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Camarillo PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Crescent City PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Fairfield PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Fremont PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Grass Valley PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Jackson PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Oceanside PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Oxnard PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Salinas PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - San Bernardino II PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - San Bernardino PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - San Leandro PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Sonoma PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Stockton II PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Stockton PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Thousand Oaks PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Vacaville PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Colorado - Brighton PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Colorado - Denver PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Colorado TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Colorado TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut - Manchester LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut - Rockville LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut - Wallingford LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of DC PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of DC TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of DC TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Delaware TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Delaware TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida - Ft. Lauderdale LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida - Jacksonville II LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida - Jacksonville LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida - Palm Coast LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Fredericksburg LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia - Atlanta PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia - East Point PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia - Lavonia PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia - Savannah PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Hawaii - Kealakekua Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Hawaii TCG Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Hawaii TCS Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Idaho - Nampa PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Idaho TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Idaho TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois - Downers Grove LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois - Elmhurst LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois - Rockford LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois - Winfield LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana - Clinton LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana - Mishawaka LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana - Terre Haute LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Iowa - Cedar Rapids PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Iowa - Mason City PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Iowa PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Iowa TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Iowa TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Kansas - Topeka LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Kansas - 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Rockville PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maryland P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maryland TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Maryland TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Brockton PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Dorchester PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Framingham PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Holyoke PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Natick PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Norwood PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Springfield PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Stoughton PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Taunton PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts - Worcester PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Massachusetts TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Alpena PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Dowagiac PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Escanaba PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Grand Blanc PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Grayling PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Kalamazoo PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Plainwell PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Port Huron PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Saginaw PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Tawas City PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Minnesota TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Minnesota TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Mississippi LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Mississippi TCG Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Mississippi TCS Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Missouri - Bridgeton Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Missouri - Richmond Heights Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Missouri TCG Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Missouri TCS Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana - Billings PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana - Butte PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana - Miles City PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana - Missoula PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Multiple Practice Sites LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nebraska TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nebraska TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada - Henderson Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada - Henderson II Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada - Las Vegas Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada - Las Vegas II Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada TCG Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada TCS Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Hampshire TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Hampshire TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Jersey - 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Alexandria LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Front Royal II LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Front Royal LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Mechanicsville LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Midlothian LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Richmond II LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Richmond LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia - Winchester LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Virginia TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Arlington PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Auburn PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Bellingham PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Bremerton PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Burien PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - Coupeville PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Washington - 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Casper LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Wyoming TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Wyoming TCS LLC, Hospitalists Management Group LLC, Humedica, Humedica Inc., Hygeia Corporation, Hygeia Corporation Ontario, IEC Holdings LLC, IHD Holdings LLC, INOV8 Surgical at Memorial City LLC, INSPIRIS of Texas Physician Group, Illinois Independent Care Network LLC, Imagen Technologies Inc., Impel Consulting Experts L.L.C., Impel Management Services L.L.C., InTouch Pharmacy LLC, Indiana Care Organization LLC, Indiana Endoscopy Centers LLC, Inland Surgery Center L.P., Inmobiliaria Apoquindo 3001 S.A., Inmobiliaria Apoquindo 3600 Ltda., Inmobiliaria Apoquindo S.A., Inmobiliaria Clinica Santa Maria S.A., Inmobiliaria Vinamed Ltda., Inmobiliaria e Inversiones Alameda S.A., Inpatient Services P.C., Inpatient Specialists of California P.C., Inspiris, Inspiris Inc., Instituto Radium de Cammpinas Ltda, Inter-Hospital Physicians Association Inc., International Healthcare Services Inc., Inversiones Clinicas Santa Maria SpA, Ironman Holdco Inc., Ironman Intermediate Holdco LLC, Isapre Banmedica S.A., JPM Healthcare LLC, Johnston Surgicare L.P., Joliet Surgery Center Limited Partnership, Jordan Ridge Family Medicine LLC, Joyable Inc., Kansal Inc. A Professional Corporation, Knox Diagnostic Imaging Center LLC, Kokomo Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, LDI Holding Company LLC, LDI Management Services LLC, LGH-A/Golf ASTC L.L.C., LHC Group, La Esperanza del Peru S.A., Laboratorio ROE S.A., Laboratorios Medicos Amed Quilpue S.A., Landmark Group Holdings LLC, Landmark Health Holdings LLC, Landmark Health LLC, Landmark Health NY IPA LLC, Landmark Health NY PO LLC, Landmark Health Technologies Private Limited, Landmark Health of California LLC, Landmark Health of Massachusetts LLC, Landmark Health of North Carolina LLC, Landmark Health of Oregon LLC, Landmark Health of Pennsylvania LLC, Landmark Health of Washington LLC, Landmark India LLC, Landmark Intermediate Holdings LLC, Landmark MSO LLC, Landmark Medical of Idaho PC, Landmark Medical of Massachusetts PLLC, Landmark Medical of Tennessee PC, Landmark Primary Care LLC, Laser Acquisition Holdings III LLC, Leehar Distributors LLC, Lemhi Ventures Fund I LP, Lemhi Ventures Fund II LP, Level2 Medical Services P.C. Alaska, Lexington Surgery Center Ltd., Liberty Anesthesia Services LLC, LifePrint Health Inc., LifeWell. Ltd. Co., Lifeprint Accountable Care Organization LLC, Limestone Medical Center LLC, Litomedica S.A., Logan Surgical Suites LLC, Lotten-Eyes Oftalmologia Clinica e Cirurgica Ltda., Louisville S.C. Ltd., Louisville-SC Properties Inc., Loyola Ambulatory Surgery Center at Oakbrook Inc., Loyola Ambulatory Surgery Center at Oakbrook L.P., Lusiadas - Parcerias Cascais S.A., Lusiadas A.C.E., Lusiadas Algarve S.A., Lusiadas S.A., Lusiadas SGPS S.A., Lutheran Campus ASC LLC, MAMSI Life and Health Insurance Company, MCNA Health Care Holdings LLC, MCNA Insurance Company, MCNA Systems Corp., MD Ops Inc., MD-Individual Practice Association Inc., ME AHS UC LLC, MGH/SCA LLC, MHC Real Estate Holdings LLC, MIAMI SURGERY CENTER LLC, MSLA Management LLC, Main Line Spine Surgery Center LLC, Managed Care of North America Inc., Managed Physical Network Inc., Mansfield Endoscopy Center LLC, March Holdings Inc., March Vision Care IPA Inc., March Vision Care Inc., March Vision Care of Texas Inc., Marin Health Ventures LLC, Marin Specialty Surgery Center LLC, Marin Surgery Holdings Inc., Marlin Holding Company LLC, Maryland Ambulatory Centers LLC, Maryland-SCA Centers LLC, Massachusetts Assurance Company Ltd. PIC, Massachusetts Avenue Surgery Center LLC, McKenzie Surgery Center L.P., MedExpress Primary Care West Virginia Inc., MedExpress Urgent Care Alabama LLC, MedExpress Urgent Care Inc. - Ohio, MedExpress Urgent Care Maine Inc., MedExpress Urgent Care New Hampshire Inc., MedExpress Urgent Care of Boynton Beach LLC, MedSynergies, MedSynergies LLC, Medical Clinic of North Texas PLLC, Medical Hilfe S.A., Medical Support Los Angeles Inc., Medical Surgical Centers of America Inc., Medical Transportation Services LLC, Melbourne Surgery Center LLC, Memorial City Holdings LLC, Memorial City Partners LLC, Memorial Houston Surgery Center LLC, MemorialCare Surgical Center at Orange Coast LLC, MemorialCare Surgical Center at Saddleback LLC, Mesquite Liberty LLC, Metro I Stone Management Ltd., Mid Atlantic Medical Services, Mid-West National Life Insurance Company of Tennessee, Midlands Orthopaedics Surgery Center LLC, Midwest Center for Day Surgery LLC, Mile High SurgiCenter LLC, Mississippi Medical Plaza L.C., Mobile Medical Services of New Jersey PC, Mobile-SC LTD., Modality Accountable Care Organisation Limited, Moen M.D. P.C., Mohawk Surgery Center LLC, Monarch Management Services Inc., Montgomery Surgery Center Limited Partnership, Monument Health LLC, Moore Orthopaedic Clinic Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Morris County Surgical Center LLC, Mt. Pleasant Surgery Center L.P., Multiangio Ltda., Murrells Inlet ASC LLC, Muskogee Surgical Investors LLC, Mustang Razorback Holdings Inc., My Wellness Solutions LLC, NAMM Holdings Inc., NPN IPA Washington PLLC, NSC Channel Islands LLC, NSC Greensboro LLC, NSC Greensboro West LLC, NSC Lancaster LLC, NSC Seattle Inc., NSC Upland LLC, Naperville Surgical Centre LLC, National Foundation Life Insurance Company, National Pacific Dental Inc., National Surgery Centers LLC, Navigator Health Inc., Nebraska Spine Hospital LLC, Neighborhood Health Partnership Inc., Netwerkes LLC, Nevada Pacific Dental, New Orleans Regional Physician Hospital Organization L.L.C., New West Physicians Inc., New York Proton Management LLC, Newton Holdings LLC, Niagara Hospitalist P.C., Nomad Buyer Inc., North American Medical Management California Inc., North Coast Surgery Center Ltd. a California Limited Partnership, North Dallas Surgical Center LLC, North Kitsap Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, North Puget Sound Oncology Equipment Leasing Company LLC, Northern Nevada Health Network Inc., Northern Rockies Surgery Center L.P., Northern Rockies Surgicenter Inc., Northern Utah Surgery Center LLC, Northwest Hills JV Partners LLC, Northwest Medical Group Alliance LLC, Northwest Spine and Laser Surgery Center LLC, Northwest Surgicare LLC, Northwest Surgicare Ltd. an Illinois Limited Partnership, OC Cardiology Practice Partners LLC, OCC MSO LLC, OSB Tecnologia e Servicos de Suporte Lda., Omesa SpA, OmniClaim LLC, Oncocare S.A.C., One World Surgery, Ophthalmology Surgery Center of Dallas LLC, Optimum Choice Inc., Optum Bank Inc., Optum Biometrics Inc., Optum Care Inc., Optum Care Networks Inc., Optum Care Services Company, Optum Care of New York Management Inc., Optum Clinics Holdings Inc., Optum Clinics Intermediate Holdings Inc., Optum Compounding Services LLC, Optum Digital Health Holdings LLC, Optum Direct To Consumer Inc., Optum Financial Inc., Optum Frontier Therapies Holdings LLC, Optum Frontier Therapies II LLC, Optum Frontier Therapies LLC, Optum Genomics Inc., Optum Global Solutions Colombia S.A.S., Optum Global Solutions India Private Limited, Optum Global Solutions International B.V., Optum Global Solutions Philippines Inc., Optum Government Solutions Inc., Optum Growth Partners Holdings Inc., Optum Growth Partners LLC, Optum Health & Technology Holdings US Inc., Optum Health & Technology Hong Kong Limited, Optum Health & Technology India Private Limited, Optum Health & Technology Servicos do Brasil Ltda., Optum Health & Technology Singapore Pte. Ltd., Optum Health & Technology US LLC, Optum Health Plan of California, Optum Health Services Canada Ltd., Optum Health Solutions Australia Pty Ltd, Optum Health Solutions UK Limited, Optum Health and Technology FZ-LLC, Optum Healthcare of Illinois Inc., Optum Hospice Pharmacy Services LLC, Optum Inc., Optum Infusion Services 100 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 101 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 103 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 200 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 201 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 202 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 203 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 204 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 205 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 206 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 207 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 208 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 209 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 301 LP, Optum Infusion Services 302 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 305 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 308 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 401 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 402 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 403 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 404 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 500 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 501 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 550 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 551 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 553 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 554 Inc., Optum Insurance of Ohio Inc., Optum Labs Inc., Optum Labs LLC, Optum Life Sciences Canada Inc., Optum Management Consulting Shanghai Co. Ltd., Optum Networks of New Jersey Inc., Optum Operations Ireland Unlimited Company, Optum Oregon MSO LLC, Optum Palliative and Hospice Care of Pennsylvania Inc., Optum Palliative and Hospice Care of Texas Inc., Optum Perks LLC, Optum Pharma Services Holdings Inc., Optum Pharmacy 601 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 700 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 701 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 702 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 704 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 705 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 706 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 707 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 800 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 803 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 805 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 806 Inc., Optum Public Sector Solutions Inc., Optum Rocket LLC, Optum SCA CS JV Holdings LLC, Optum Senior Services LLC, Optum Services Inc., Optum Services Ireland Limited, Optum Services Puerto Rico LLC, Optum Solutions UK Holdings Limited, Optum Technology LLC, Optum UK Solutions Group Limited, Optum Venture Global Partners II LP, Optum Venture Global Partners LP, Optum Venture Partners II LP, Optum Venture Partners III LP, Optum Venture Partners LP, Optum Washington Network LLC, Optum Women's and Children's Health LLC, Optum of New York Inc., Optum360 LLC, Optum360 Services Inc., Optum360 Solutions LLC, OptumCare ACO New Mexico LLC, OptumCare ACO West LLC, OptumCare Clinical Trials LLC, OptumCare Colorado ASC LLC, OptumCare Colorado LLC, OptumCare Colorado Springs LLC, OptumCare Endoscopy Center New Mexico LLC, OptumCare Florida CI LLC, OptumCare Florida LLC, OptumCare Holdings Colorado LLC, OptumCare Holdings LLC, OptumCare Management LLC, OptumCare New Mexico LLC, OptumCare New York IPA Inc., OptumCare Portland LLC, OptumCare South Florida LLC, OptumCare Specialty Practices LLC, OptumHealth Care Solutions LLC, OptumHealth Holdings LLC, OptumHealth International B.V., OptumInsight Holdings LLC, OptumInsight Inc., OptumInsight India Private Limited, OptumInsight Life Sciences Inc., OptumRx Administrative Services LLC, OptumRx Discount Card Services LLC, OptumRx Group Holdings Inc., OptumRx Health Solutions LLC, OptumRx Holdings I LLC, OptumRx Holdings LLC, OptumRx Home Delivery of Ohio LLC, OptumRx IPA III Inc., OptumRx Inc., OptumRx NY IPA Inc., OptumRx PBM of Illinois Inc., OptumRx PBM of Maryland LLC, OptumRx PBM of Pennsylvania LLC, OptumRx PBM of Wisconsin LLC, OptumRx PD of Pennsylvania LLC, OptumRx Pharmacy Inc., OptumRx Pharmacy of Nevada Inc., OptumRx of Pennsylvania LLC, OptumServe Technology Services Inc., Oregon Healthcare Resources LLC, Oregon Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Orlando Center for Outpatient Surgery L.P., OrthoNet Holdings Inc., OrthoNet LLC, OrthoNet New York IPA Inc., OrthoNet West Inc., OrthoNet of the South Inc., OrthoWest MSO LLC, Orthology Inc., Orthopedic Center of Palm Beach County LLC, Orthopedic Surgery Center of Palm Beach County LLC, Orthopro Management LLC, Ovations Inc., Owensboro Ambulatory Surgical Facility Ltd., Oxford Benefit Management Inc., Oxford Health Insurance Inc., Oxford Health Plans CT Inc., Oxford Health Plans LLC, Oxford Health Plans NJ Inc., Oxford Health Plans NY Inc., P2P Link LLC, PCCCV Inc., PHC Subsidiary Holdings LLC, PHYSICIANS DAY SURGERY CENTER LLC, PMI Acquisition LLC, PMSI Holdings LLC, PMSI Settlement Solutions LLC, POMCO Inc., POMCO Network Inc., PPH Holdings LLC, PPH Management Company L.L.C., PPH-Columbia Inc., PPH-Gardendale Inc., PS Center LLC, PacifiCare Health Systems, PacifiCare Life Assurance Company, PacifiCare Life and Health Insurance Company, PacifiCare of Arizona Inc., PacifiCare of Colorado Inc., Pacific Cardiovascular Associates Medical Group Inc., Pacific Casualty Company Inc., Pacifico S.A. Entidad Prestadora de Salud, Panama City Surgery Center LLC, Park Hill Surgery Center LLC, Parkway Surgery Center LLC, Patient Care Associates L.L.C., PatientsLikeMe, Patrimonio Autonomo Nueva Clinica, Payment Resolution Services LLC, Peninsula Eye Surgery Center LLC, Penzo Enterprises LLC, Peoples Health, Peoples Health Inc., Perham Physical Therapy LTD, Perimeter Center for Outpatient Surgery L.P., Pharmaceutical Technologies LLC, Physician Alliance of the Rockies LLC, Physicians Health Choice of Texas LLC, Physicians Health Plan of Maryland Inc., Physicians' Surgery Center of Downey LLC, Pinnacle III LLC, Plano de Saude Ana Costa Ltda., Plus One Health Management Puerto Rico Inc., Plus One Holdings Inc., Pocono Ambulatory Surgery Center Limited, Polar II Fundo de Investimento em Participacoes Multiestrategia, Polo Holdco LLC, Pomerado Outpatient Surgical Center Inc., Pomerado Outpatient Surgical Center L.P., Post-Acute Care Center for Research LLC, Practice Partners in Healthcare LLC, Preferred Care Network Inc., Preferred Care Network of Florida Inc., Preferred Care Partners Holding Corp., Preferred Care Partners Inc., Preferred Care Partners Medical Group Inc., PreferredOne, PreferredOne Administrative Services Inc., PreferredOne Insurance Company, Premier Choice ACO Inc., Premier Surgery Center of Louisville L.P., Premiere Medical Resources LLC, Presidio Surgery Center LLC, Prime Health Inc., PrimeCare Medical Network Inc., PrimeCare of Citrus Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Corona Inc., PrimeCare of Hemet Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Inland Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Moreno Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Redlands Inc., PrimeCare of Riverside Inc., PrimeCare of San Bernardino Inc., PrimeCare of Sun City Inc., PrimeCare of Temecula Inc., PrimeDoc St. Francis P.C., PrimeDoc of Richmond P.C., ProHEALTH Care Associates L.L.P., ProHEALTH Care Associates of New Jersey LLP, ProHEALTH Medical Management LLC, ProHealth Physicians ACO LLC, ProHealth Physicians Inc., ProHealth Proton Center Management LLC, ProHealth/CareMount Dental Management LLC, Procura Management Inc., Professional Coverage Services PLLC, Progressive Enterprises Holdings Inc., Progressive Medical LLC, Promotora Country S.A., Pronounced Health Solutions Inc., Prosemedic S.A.C., Prospero Benefits Management LLC, Prospero Care Management LLC, Prospero Management Services LLC, Providence & SCA Development LLC, Providence & SCA Off-Campus Holdings LLC, Providence & SCA On-Campus Holdings LLC, Providence & SCA Outreach Markets Holdings LLC, Pulse Platform LLC, QoL Acquisition Holdings Corp., R Cubed Inc., RABessler M.D. P.C., ROC Surgery LLC, ROCS Holdings LLC, RX Ricardo Campos Ltda., Rally Health Inc., ReMedics LLC, Real Appeal Inc., Redding Surgery Center LLC, Redlands Ambulatory Surgery Center, Redlands-SCA Surgery Centers Inc., Reliant MSO LLC, Reliant Medical Group Inc., Reliant Medical Group The Endoscopy Center LLC, Research Surgical Center LLC, Resonancia Magnetica de Colombia Ltda., Resonancia Magnetica del Country S.A., RightCare Solutions Inc., River Valley ASC LLC, Riverside Corporate Wellness LLC, Riverside Electronic Healthcare Resources Inc., Riverside Medical Management LLC, Riverside Surgical Center of Meadowlands LLC, Riverside Surgical Center of Newark LLC, Robert A. Bessler MD PLLC, Rockville Eye Surgery Center LLC, Rocky Mountain Health Maintenance Organization Incorporated, Rush Oak Brook Surgery Center LLC, SC Affiliates LLC, SCA AHN JV Holdings LLC, SCA Alaska Surgery Center inc., SCA Athens LLC, SCA Austin Holdings LLC, SCA Austin Medical Center Holdings LLC, SCA Aventura Holdings LLC, SCA BOSC Holdings LLC, SCA Bloomfield Holdings LLC, SCA Cedar Park Holdings LLC, SCA Clifton LLC, SCA Colorado Springs Holdings LLC, SCA Community Service Foundation, SCA Cottonwood Holdings LLC, SCA Danbury Surgical Center LLC, SCA Denver Holdings LLC, SCA Development LLC, SCA Duluth Holdings LLC, SCA Duncanville Holdings LLC, SCA Duncanville MSO LLC, SCA ESSC Holdings LLC, SCA Englewood Holdings LLC, SCA Global One Holdings LLC, SCA Greenway Holdings LLC, SCA Grove Creek Holdings LLC, SCA Guilford Holdings LLC, SCA Hays Holdings LLC, SCA Health Value Enterprise LLC, SCA Heartland Holdings LLC, SCA High Point Holdings LLC, SCA HoldCo Inc., SCA Holding Company Inc., SCA Holdings Inc., SCA IEC Holdings LLC, SCA Indiana Holdings LLC, SCA Lutheran Holdings LLC, SCA Maple Grove Holdings LLC, SCA Mohawk Holdings LLC, SCA Murrells Inlet LLC, SCA Northern Utah Holdings LLC, SCA Northwest Holdings LLC, SCA Outside New Jersey LLC, SCA Pacific Holdings Inc., SCA Pacific Surgery Holdings LLC, SCA Palisades Holdings LLC, SCA Pennsylvania Holdings LLC, SCA Pinnacle Holdings LLC, SCA Premier Surgery Center of Louisville LLC, SCA Providence Holdings LLC, SCA ROCS Holdings LLC, SCA Rockledge JV LLC, SCA Rush Oak Brook Holdings LLC, SCA SSSC Holdings LLC, SCA Sage Medical LLC, SCA Sage Medical MSO LLC, SCA San Diego Holdings LLC, SCA Skyway Holdings LLC, SCA South Ogden Holdings LLC, SCA Southwestern PA LLC, SCA Specialists of Florida LLC, SCA Specialty Holdings of Connecticut LLC, SCA Stonegate Holdings LLC, SCA Surgery Holdings LLC, SCA Surgicare of Laguna Hills LLC, SCA Teammate Support Network, SCA West Health Holdings LLC, SCA Westgreen Holdings LLC, SCA Woodbury Holdings LLC, SCA eCode Solutions Private Limited, SCA of Clarksville Inc., SCA-Albuquerque Surgery Properties Inc., SCA-Alliance LLC, SCA-Anne Arundel LLC, SCA-Applecare Partners LLC, SCA-Bethesda LLC, SCA-Blue Ridge LLC, SCA-Bonita Springs LLC, SCA-Brandon LLC, SCA-Castle Rock LLC, SCA-Central Florida LLC, SCA-Charleston LLC, SCA-Chatham LLC, SCA-Chevy Chase LLC, SCA-Citrus Inc., SCA-Colonial Partners LLC, SCA-Colorado Springs LLC, SCA-Connecticut Partners LLC, SCA-DRY CREEK LLC, SCA-Davenport LLC, SCA-Denver LLC, SCA-Denver Physicians Holdings LLC, SCA-Derry LLC, SCA-Doral LLC, SCA-Downey LLC, SCA-Dublin LLC, SCA-Encinitas Inc., SCA-Eugene Inc., SCA-First Coast LLC, SCA-Florence LLC, SCA-Fort Collins Inc., SCA-Fort Walton Inc., SCA-Franklin LLC, SCA-Frederick LLC, SCA-Freeway Holdings LLC, SCA-Ft. Myers LLC, SCA-GRANTS PASS LLC, SCA-Gainesville LLC, SCA-Gladiolus LLC, SCA-Glenwood Holdings LLC, SCA-Grove Place LLC, SCA-Hagerstown LLC, SCA-Hamden LLC, SCA-Hilton Head LLC, SCA-Honolulu LLC, SCA-Houston Executive LLC, SCA-IT Holdings LLC, SCA-Illinois LLC, SCA-JPM Holdings LLC, SCA-Kissing Camels Holdings LLC, SCA-MC VBP Inc., SCA-Main Street LLC, SCA-Marina del Rey LLC, SCA-Mecklenburg Development Corp., SCA-Memorial City LLC, SCA-Memorial LLC, SCA-Merritt LLC, SCA-Midlands LLC, SCA-Midway Management LLC, SCA-Mobile LLC, SCA-Mokena LLC, SCA-Morris Avenue LLC, SCA-Morris County LLC, SCA-Mt. Pleasant LLC, SCA-Naperville LLC, SCA-Naples LLC, SCA-New Jersey LLC, SCA-Newport Beach LLC, SCA-Northeast Georgia Health LLC, SCA-PORTLAND LLC, SCA-Palm Beach LLC, SCA-Palm Beach MSO Holdings LLC, SCA-Panama City Holdings LLC, SCA-Paoli LLC, SCA-Phoenix LLC, SCA-Pocono LLC, SCA-Practice Partners Holdings LLC, SCA-River Valley LLC, SCA-Riverside LLC, SCA-Riverside Partners LLC, SCA-Rockville LLC, SCA-Sacred Heart Holdings LLC, SCA-San Diego Inc., SCA-San Luis Obispo LLC, SCA-Sand Lake LLC, SCA-Santa Rosa Inc., SCA-Somerset LLC, SCA-South Jersey LLC, SCA-Sparta LLC, SCA-Spartanburg Holdings LLC, SCA-St. Louis Holdings LLC, SCA-St. Louis LLC, SCA-St. Lucie LLC, SCA-SurgiCare LLC, SCA-Swiftpath LLC, SCA-VERTA LLC, SCA-VLR Holdings Company LLC, SCA-Wake Forest LLC, SCA-Western Connecticut LLC, SCA-Westover Hills LLC, SCA-Winchester LLC, SCA-Winter Park Inc., SCA-Woodlands Holdings LLC, SCAI Holdings LLC, SCLHS-SCA Holdings LLC, SCP Specialty Infusion LLC, SHC Atlanta LLC, SHC Austin Inc., SHC Hawthorn Inc., SHC Melbourne Inc., SJ East Campus ASC LLC, SRPS LLC, SSSC Holdings LLC, SVHS-SCA Florida JV LLC, Sacred Heart ASC LLC, Saden S.A., Sage Medical Prof. LLC, Salem JV Holdings LLC, Salem Surgery Center LLC, Salveo Specialty Pharmacy Inc., San Diego Endoscopy Center, San Diego Sports and Minimally Invasive Surgery Center LLC, San Francisco Endoscopy Center LLC, San Luis Obispo Surgery Center a California Limited Partnership, Sand Lake SurgiCenter LLC, Santa Barbara Endoscopy Center LLC, Santa Cruz Endoscopy Center LLC, Santa Helena Assistencia Medica S.A., Santa Rosa Surgery Center L.P., Santos Administracao e Participacoes S.A., Sanvello Health Holdings LLC, Sanvello Health Inc., Sanvello Health Limited, Scanner Centromed S.A., Seashore Surgical Institute L.L.C., Seisa Servicos Integrados de Saude Ltda., Senate Street Surgery Center LLC, Senior Benefits L.L.C., Serquinox Holdings LLC, Servicios Integrados de Salud Ltda., Servicios Medicos Amed Quilpue S.A., Servicios Medicos Bio Bio Ltda., Servicios Medicos Ciudad del Mar Ltda., Servicios Medicos Santa Maria Ltda., Servicios Medicos Vespucio Ltda., Servicios de Entrenamiento en Competencias Clinicas Ltda., Serviclinica Inmobiliaria S.A., Serviclinica S.A. Ex Los Leones La Calera, Servisalud Inmobiliaria S.A., Servisalud S.A. Ex Los Carrera Quilpue, Shark Holdings P.C., Sierra Dental Plan Inc., Sierra Health Services Inc, Sierra Health Services Inc., Sierra Health and Life Insurance Company Inc., Sierra Health-Care Options Inc., Sierra Home Medical Products Inc., Sierra Nevada Administrators Inc., Sistema de Administracion Hospitalaria S.A.C., Small Business Insurance Advisors Inc., Sobam Centro Medico Hospitalar S.A., Sociedad de Inversiones Santa Maria SpA, Solstice Administration Services Inc., Solstice Administrators Inc., Solstice Administrators of Alabama Inc., Solstice Administrators of Arizona Inc., Solstice Administrators of Missouri Inc., Solstice Administrators of North Carolina Inc., Solstice Administrators of Texas Inc., Solstice Benefit Services Inc., Solstice Benefits Inc., Solstice Health Insurance Company, Solstice Healthplans Inc., Solstice Healthplans of Arizona Inc., Solstice Healthplans of Colorado Inc., Solstice Healthplans of New Jersey Inc., Solstice Healthplans of Ohio Inc., Solstice Healthplans of Tennessee Inc., Solstice Healthplans of Texas Inc., Solstice of Illinois Inc., Solstice of Minnesota Inc., Solstice of New York Inc., Solutran LLC, Somerset Outpatient Surgery L.L.C., Sound Inpatient Physicians Inc., Sound Inpatient Physicians Medical Group Inc., Sound Inpatient Physicians of Ohio LLC, Sound Inpatient Physicians of Texas I Inc., Sound Inpatient Physicians Michigan PLLC, Sound Intensivists of Nevada RBessler M.D. PLLC, Sound Kenwood Hospitalists of Cincinnati Inc., Sound Kenwood Hospitalists of Cincinnati LLC, Sound Physicians Advisory Services Inc., Sound Physicians Alaska Hospitalist Group LLC, Sound Physicians Anesthesiology of Texas PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Arizona Inc., Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Georgia P.C., Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Illinois LLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Kansas LLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Kentucky PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Louisiana Inc., Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Michigan PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Nevada Bessler PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of South Carolina LLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Southern California P.C., Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Texas PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Washington PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of West Virginia PLLC, Sound Physicians Holdings LLC, Sound Physicians Intensivists of Arizona Inc., Sound Physicians Intensivists of Georgia PC, Sound Physicians Intensivists of South Carolina LLC, Sound Physicians Intensivists of Virginia LLC, Sound Physicians Intensivists of Washington PLLC, Sound Physicians Palliative Care of Maryland P.C., Sound Physicians Telemedicine Inc., Sound Physicians of Florida IV LLC, Sound Physicians of Georgia III P.C., Sound Physicians of Hawaii Inc., Sound Physicians of Idaho PLLC, Sound Physicians of Illinois LLC, Sound Physicians of Indiana LLC, Sound Physicians of Iowa PLLC, Sound Physicians of Kankakee Illinois LLC, Sound Physicians of Massachusetts II P.C., Sound Physicians of Massachusetts Inc., Sound Physicians of New Jersey LLC, Sound Physicians of New York PLLC, Sound Physicians of North Carolina PLLC, Sound Physicians of South Carolina LLC, Sound Physicians of Wyoming LLC, South Arlington Surgical Providers LLC, South County Surgical Center LLC, South Sound Inpatient Physicians PLLC, Southern California Medical Practice Concepts LLC, Southland Hospitalists P.C., Southwest Medical Associates Inc., Southwest Michigan Health Network Inc., Southwest Surgery Center LLC, Southwest Surgical Center LLC, Space Coast Surgical Center Ltd., Spartanburg Surgery Center LLC, Specialists in Urology Surgery Center LLC, Specialized Pharmaceuticals Inc., Specialty Benefits LLC, Specialty Billing Solutions LLC, Specialty Surgical Center LLC, Spectera Inc., Spectera of New York IPA Inc., Sports and Spinal Physical Therapy Inc., St. Cloud Outpatient Surgery Ltd. a Minnesota Limited Partnership, St. Cloud Surgical Center LLC, St. Louis Cardiovascular Institute LLC, St. Louis Specialty Surgical Center LLC, Stonegate JV Partners LLC, Stonegate Surgery Center L.P., Summer Street ASC LLC, SunSurgery LLC, Surgery Center Holding LLC, Surgery Center at Cherry Creek LLC, Surgery Center at Cottonwood LLC, Surgery Center at Grove Creek LLC, Surgery Center at Kissing Camels LLC, Surgery Center at South Ogden LLC, Surgery Center at St. Vincent LLC, Surgery Center of Boca Raton Inc., Surgery Center of Colorado Springs LLC, Surgery Center of Des Moines LLC, Surgery Center of Easton LLC, Surgery Center of Ellicott City Inc., Surgery Center of Fairfield County LLC, Surgery Center of Fort Collins LLC, Surgery Center of Lexington LLC, Surgery Center of Louisville LLC, Surgery Center of Maui LLC, Surgery Center of Mt. Scott LLC, Surgery Center of Muskogee LLC, Surgery Center of Rockville L.L.C., Surgery Center of Southern Pines LLC, Surgery Center of The Woodlands LLC, Surgery Centers of Des Moines Ltd. an Iowa Limited Partnership, Surgery Centers-West Holdings LLC, Surgical Care Affiliates, Surgical Care Affiliates LLC, Surgical Care Affiliates Political Action Committee, Surgical Care Partners of Melbourne LLC, Surgical Caregivers of Fort Worth LLC, Surgical Center of Greensboro LLC, Surgical Center of San Diego LLC, Surgical Center of South Jersey Limited Partnership, Surgical Center of Tuscaloosa Holdings LLC, Surgical Eye Experts LLC, Surgical Health LLC, Surgical Health of Orlando LLC, Surgical Hospital Holdings of Oklahoma LLC, Surgical Management Solutions LLC, Surgicare LLC, Surgicare of Central Jersey LLC, Surgicare of Jackson LLC, Surgicare of Jackson Ltd. a Mississippi Limited Partnership, Surgicare of Joliet Inc., Surgicare of La Veta Inc., Surgicare of La Veta Ltd. a California Limited Partnership, Surgicare of Minneapolis LLC, Surgicare of Minneapolis Ltd. a Minnesota Limited Partnership, Surgicare of Mobile LLC, Surgicare of Mobile Ltd., Surgicare of Oceanside Inc., Surgicare of Owensboro LLC, Surgicare of Salem LLC, Surgicenters of Southern California Inc., Symphonix Health Holdings LLC, T.M. Carr M.D. P.C., THE SURGICAL CENTER OF THE TREASURE COAST L.L.C., THR-SCA Holdings LLC, TeamMD Holdings Inc., TeamMD Iowa Inc., TeamMD Physicians of Texas Inc., TeamUP Insurance Services Inc., Tecnologia de Informacion en Salud S.A., Texas Health Craig Ranch Surgery Center LLC, Texas Health Flower Mound Orthopedic Surgery Center LLC, Texas Health Orthopedic Surgery Center Alliance LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Alliance LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Bedford LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Chisholm Trail LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Irving LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Las Colinas LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Preston Plaza LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Rockwall LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Southwest Fort Worth LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Waxahachie LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Willow Park LLC, The Advisory Board Company, The Alaska Hospitalist Group LLC, The Chesapeake Life Insurance Company, The Eye Surgery Center of the Carolinas L.P., The Intensivist Group of Langhorne LLC, The Lewin Group Inc., The Outpatient Surgery Center of Hilton Head LLC, The Polyclinic MSO LLC, The Surgery Center of Easton L.P., The Surgical Center of Connecticut LLC, Thomas Johnson Surgery Center LLC, Three Rivers Holdings Inc., Three Rivers Surgical Care L.P., Tmesys LLC, Topimagem Diagnostico por Imagem Ltda., Touchpoint Health Plan, Trails Edge Surgery Center LLC, Trauma Surgery Affiliates LLC, Travel Express Incorporated, Treasure Valley Emerald Properties LLC, Treasure Valley Hospital Limited Partnership, Tri-City Medical Center ASC Operators LLC, Tri-County Surgery Center LLC, Trinity Cardiovascular Care PLLC, Tufts Health Freedom Insurance Company, Tufts Health Freedom Plans Inc., Tuscaloosa Surgical Center L.P., U.S. Behavioral Health Plan California, UCSD Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, UCSD Center for Surgery of Encinitas L.P., UCSD Surgical Center of San Diego LLC, UCSD-SCA Holdings I LLC, UCSD-SCA Holdings II LLC, UHC Finance Ireland Unlimited Company, UHC International Services Inc., UHC of California, UHCG Holdings Ireland Limited, UHCG Services Ireland Limited, UHCG FZE, UHG Brasil Participacoes S.A., UHG Holdings UK IV Limited, UHG Holdings UK V Limited, UHG Holdings UK VI Limited, UHIC Holdings Inc., UMR Inc., UPHT-SCA Holdings LLC, USHEALTH Academy Inc., USHEALTH Administrators LLC, USHEALTH Advisors LLC, USHEALTH Career Agency Inc., USHEALTH Funding Inc., USHEALTH Group Inc., USMD ASC IV1 LLC, USMD ASC IV2 LLC, USMD Administrative Services L.L.C., USMD Affiliated Services, USMD Holdings Inc., USMD Hospital at Arlington L.P., USMD Hospital at Fort Worth L.P., USMD Inc., USMD PPM LLC, Unidad Medica Diagnostico S.A., Unimerica Insurance Company, Unimerica Life Insurance Company of New York, Unison Health Plan of Delaware Inc., United Behavioral Health, United Behavioral Health of New York I.P.A. Inc., United Group Reinsurance Inc., United Health Foundation, United HealthCare Services Inc., United Medical Park ASC LLC, United Resource Networks IPA of New York Inc., United in Advancing Health Equity Foundation, UnitedHealth Advisors LLC, UnitedHealth Group Employee Assistance Fund, UnitedHealth Group Incorporated, UnitedHealth Group International Finance Ireland Unlimited Company, UnitedHealth International Inc., UnitedHealth Military & Veterans Services LLC, UnitedHealthcare Benefits Plan of California, UnitedHealthcare Benefits of Texas Inc., UnitedHealthcare Children's Foundation Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of California Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Georgia Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Ohio Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Texas L.L.C., UnitedHealthcare Consulting & Assistance Service Beijing Co. Ltd., UnitedHealthcare Europe S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare Global Medical UK Limited, UnitedHealthcare Inc., UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company of America, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company of Illinois, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company of New York, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company of the River Valley, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Designated Activity Company, UnitedHealthcare Integrated Services Inc., UnitedHealthcare International Asia LLC, UnitedHealthcare International I B.V., UnitedHealthcare International II S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International III B.V., UnitedHealthcare International III S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International IV S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International VII S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International VIII S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International X S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare Life Insurance Company, UnitedHealthcare Parekh Insurance TPA Private Limited, UnitedHealthcare Plan of the River Valley Inc., UnitedHealthcare Service LLC, UnitedHealthcare Specialty Benefits LLC, UnitedHealthcare of Alabama Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Arizona Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Arkansas Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Colorado Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Florida Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Georgia Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Illinois Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Kentucky Ltd., UnitedHealthcare of Louisiana Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Mississippi Inc., UnitedHealthcare of New England Inc., UnitedHealthcare of New Mexico Inc., UnitedHealthcare of New York Inc., UnitedHealthcare of North Carolina Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Ohio Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Oklahoma Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Oregon Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Pennsylvania Inc., UnitedHealthcare of South Carolina Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Texas Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Utah Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Washington Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Wisconsin Inc., UnitedHealthcare of the Mid-Atlantic Inc., UnitedHealthcare of the Midlands Inc., UnitedHealthcare of the Midwest Inc., UnitedHealthcare of the Rockies Inc., Unity Health Network LLC, Upland Holdings LLC, Upland Outpatient Surgical Center L.P., Urgent Care Holdings Inc., Urgent Care MSO LLC, Urology Associates of North Texas P.L.L.C., VERTA MANAGEMENT SERVICES LLC, VPay Benefits Corporation, VPay Inc., VPay Intermediate Holdings LLC, Valley Hospital L.L.C., Valley Physicians Network Inc., Vascular Labs of the Rockies ASC LLC, Vascular Labs of the Rockies PLLC, Via Vitae MSO LLC, Vida Integra S.p.A., Vida Tres S.A., Virtua-SCA Holdings II LLC, Virtua-SCA Holdings LLC, Vivify Health Canada Inc., Vivify Health Inc., WESTMED Practice Partners LLC, Wake Forest Ambulatory Ventures LLC, Walnut Creek Endoscopy Center LLC, Walnut Hill Surgery Center LLC, Wauwatosa Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Wauwatosa Surgery Center LLC, Wayland Square Surgicare Acquisition L.P., Wayland Square Surgicare GP Inc., Waypoint Minnesota PC, WellMed Medical Management Inc., WellMed Medical Management of Florida Inc., West Coast Endoscopy Holdings LLC, WestHealth JV Holdings LLC, WestHealth Surgery Center LLC, Western Connecticut Orthopedic Surgical Center LLC, Westgreen Surgical Center LLC, Wilson Creek Surgical Center LLC, Winchester Endoscopy LLC, Winter Park LLC, Winter Park Surgery Center L.P., Woodbury Surgery Center LLC, XAS Infusion Suites Inc., XLHealth Corporation, XLHealth Corporation India Private Limited, divvyDOSE, divvyMED LLC, eCode Solutions LLC, gethealthinsurance.com Agency Inc., hCentive Inc., inPharmative Inc., naviHealth Care at Home LLC, naviHealth Coordinated Care LLC, naviHealth Coordinated Care SC P.C., naviHealth Holdings LLC, naviHealth Inc., naviHealth Michigan HBPC P.C., and naviHealth SM Holdings Inc.. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Johnson & Johnson: 3Dintegrated ApS, ALZA Corporation, AMO (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd., AMO (Shanghai) Medical Devices Trading Co. Ltd Beijing Branch, AMO (Shanghai) Medical Devices Trading Co. Ltd Guangzhou Branch, AMO (Shanghai) Medical Devices Trading Co. Ltd., AMO ASIA LIMITED, AMO Asia Limited (Korea Branch), AMO Asia Limited Taiwan Branch (Hong Kong), AMO Australia Pty Limited, AMO Australia Pty Limited (New Zealand Branch), AMO Canada Company, AMO Denmark ApS, AMO Development LLC, AMO France, AMO Germany GmbH, AMO Groningen B.V., AMO International Holdings Unlimited Company, AMO Ireland, AMO Ireland Ireland Branch, AMO Italy SRL, AMO Japan K.K., AMO Manufacturing USA LLC, AMO Netherlands BV, AMO Nominee Holdings LLC, AMO Norway AS, AMO Puerto Rico Manufacturing Inc., AMO Sales and Service Inc., AMO Singapore Pte. Ltd., AMO Spain Holdings LLC, AMO Switzerland GmbH, AMO U.K. Holdings LLC, AMO United Kingdom Ltd., AMO Uppsala AB, AUB Holdings LLC, Abott Medical Optics, Acclarent Inc., Actelion Ltd, Actelion Pharmaceuticals, Actelion Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Actelion Pharmaceuticals Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Actelion Pharmaceuticals US Inc., Actelion Treasury Unlimited Company, Akros Medical Inc., Albany Street LLC, Alios BioPharma, Alza Land Management Inc., Anakuria Therapeutics Inc., Animas Diabetes Care LLC, Animas LLC, Animas Technologies LLC, AorTx Inc., Apsis, Aragon Pharmaceuticals, Aragon Pharmaceuticals Inc., Asia Pacific Holdings LLC, Atrionix Inc., Auris Health, Auris Health Inc., Backsvalan 2 Aktiebolag, Backsvalan 6 Handelsbolag, Beijing Dabao Cosmetics Co. Ltd., BeneVir BioPharm Inc., Berna Rhein B.V., BioMedical Enterprises Inc., Biosense Webster (Israel) Ltd., Biosense Webster Inc., Branch of Johnson & Johnson LLC (RU) in Kazakhstan, C Consumer Products Denmark ApS, CSATS Inc., Calibra Medical LLC, Campus-Foyer Apotheke GmbH, Carlo Erba OTC S.r.l., Centocor Biologics LLC, Centocor Research & Development Inc., Cerenovus Inc., ChromaGenics B.V., Ci:Labo Customer Marketing Co. Ltd., Ci:Labo USA Inc., Ci:z Holdings, Ci:z. Labo Co. Ltd., Cilag AG, Cilag GmbH International, Cilag Holding AG, Cilag Holding Treasury Unlimited Company, Cilag-Biotech S.L., CoTherix Inc., Coherex Medical Inc., ColBar LifeScience Ltd., Company Store.com Inc., Conor MedSystems, Cordis International Corporation, Cordis de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Corimmun GmbH, DePuy Hellas SA, DePuy International Limited, DePuy Ireland Unlimited Company, DePuy Mexico S.A. de C.V., DePuy Mitek LLC, DePuy Orthopaedics Inc., DePuy Products Inc., DePuy Spine LLC, DePuy Synthes Gorgan Limited, DePuy Synthes Inc., DePuy Synthes Institute LLC, DePuy Synthes Leto SARL, DePuy Synthes Products Inc., DePuy Synthes Sales Inc., Debs-Vogue Corporation (Proprietary) Limited, Dutch Holding LLC, ECL7 LLC, EES Holdings de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., EES S.A. de C.V., EIT Emerging Implant Technologies GmbH, Ethicon Endo-Surgery (Europe) GmbH, Ethicon Endo-Surgery Inc., Ethicon Endo-Surgery LLC, Ethicon Inc., Ethicon LLC, Ethicon PR Holdings Unlimited Company, Ethicon Sarl, Ethicon US LLC, Ethicon Women's Health & Urology Sarl, Ethnor (Proprietary) Limited, Ethnor Farmaceutica S.A., Ethnor del Istmo S.A., FMS Future Medical System SA, Finsbury (Development) Limited, Finsbury (Instruments) Limited, Finsbury Medical Limited, Finsbury Orthopaedics International Limited, Finsbury Orthopaedics Limited, GH Biotech Holdings Limited, GMED Healthcare BV, GMED Healthcare BV (Branch), Global Investment Participation B.V., Guangzhou Bioseal Biotech Co. Ltd., Hansen Medical Deutschland GmbH, Hansen Medical Inc., Hansen Medical International Inc., Hansen Medical UK Limited, Healthcare Services (Shanghai) Ltd., Hickory Merger Sub Inc., I.D. Acquisition Corp., Innomedic Gesellschaft fur innovative Medizintechnik und Informatik mbH, Innovative Surgical Solutions LLC, J & J Company West Africa Limited, J&J Pension Trustees Limited, J-C Health Care Ltd., J.C. General Services BV, JJ Surgical Vision Spain S.L., JJC Acquisition Company B.V., JJHC LLC, JJSV Belgium BV, JJSV Manufacturing Malaysia SDN. BHD., JJSV Norden AB, JJSV Produtos Oticos Ltda., JNJ Global Business Services s.r.o., JNJ Holding EMEA B.V., JNJ International Investment LLC, JOM Pharmaceutical Services Inc., Janssen Alzheimer Immunotherapy (Holding) Limited, Janssen BioPharma LLC, Janssen Biologics (Ireland) Limited, Janssen Biologics B.V., Janssen Biotech Inc., Janssen Cilag C.A., Janssen Cilag Farmaceutica S.A., Janssen Cilag S.p.A., Janssen Cilag SPA, Janssen Development Finance Unlimited Company, Janssen Diagnostics LLC, Janssen Egypt LLC, Janssen Farmaceutica Portugal Lda, Janssen Global Services LLC, Janssen Holding GmbH, Janssen Inc., Janssen Irish Finance Unlimited Company, Janssen Korea Ltd., Janssen Oncology Inc., Janssen Ortho LLC, Janssen Pharmaceutica (Proprietary) Limited, Janssen Pharmaceutica NV, Janssen Pharmaceutica S.A., Janssen Pharmaceutical K.K., Janssen Pharmaceutical Sciences Unlimited Company, Janssen Pharmaceutical Unlimited Company, Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. Japan Branch, Janssen Products LP, Janssen R&D Ireland Unlimited Company, Janssen Research & Development LLC, Janssen Sciences Ireland Unlimited Company, Janssen Scientific Affairs LLC, Janssen Supply Group LLC, Janssen Vaccines & Prevention B.V., Janssen Vaccines Branch of Cilag GmbH International, Janssen Vaccines Corp., Janssen-Cilag, Janssen-Cilag (New Zealand) Limited, Janssen-Cilag A/S, Janssen-Cilag AG, Janssen-Cilag AS, Janssen-Cilag Aktiebolag, Janssen-Cilag B.V., Janssen-Cilag Farmaceutica Lda., Janssen-Cilag Farmaceutica Ltda., Janssen-Cilag GmbH, Janssen-Cilag International NV, Janssen-Cilag Kft., Janssen-Cilag Kft. Branch Office, Janssen-Cilag Limited, Janssen-Cilag Manufacturing LLC, Janssen-Cilag NV, Janssen-Cilag OY, Janssen-Cilag Pharma GmbH, Janssen-Cilag Pharmaceutical S.A.C.I., Janssen-Cilag Polska Sp. z o.o., Janssen-Cilag Pty Ltd, Janssen-Cilag Pty Ltd (Branch), Janssen-Cilag S.A., Janssen-Cilag S.A., Janssen-Cilag S.A. de C.V., Janssen-Cilag de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Janssen-Cilag s.r.o., Janssen-Pharma S.L., Jevco Holding Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Johnson & Johnson (Angola) Limitada, Johnson & Johnson (China) Investment Ltd., Johnson & Johnson (China) Investment Ltd. Beijing Branch, Johnson & Johnson (Egypt) S.A.E., Johnson & Johnson (Hong Kong) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (Ireland) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (Jamaica) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (Kenya) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (Middle East) Inc., Johnson & Johnson (Middle East) Inc. (DHCC Branch), Johnson & Johnson (Middle East) Inc. (JAFZA Branch), Johnson & Johnson (Middle East) Inc. Service Center (DAFZA Branch), Johnson & Johnson (Mozambique) Limitada, Johnson & Johnson (Namibia) (Proprietary) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (New Zealand) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (Philippines) Inc., Johnson & Johnson (Private) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (Thailand) Ltd., Johnson & Johnson (Trinidad) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (Vietnam) Co. Ltd, Johnson & Johnson - Societa' Per Azioni, Johnson & Johnson AB, Johnson & Johnson AB Eesti filiaal (Branch), Johnson & Johnson AG, Johnson & Johnson AG (Zuchwil Branch), Johnson & Johnson Belgium Finance Company BV, Johnson & Johnson Bulgaria EOOD, Johnson & Johnson China Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Consumer (Hong Kong) Limited, Johnson & Johnson Consumer (Thailand) Limited, Johnson & Johnson Consumer B.V., Johnson & Johnson Consumer Health Care Switzerland Branch of Janssen-Cilag AG, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Holdings France, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc., Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc. (Dominican Republic Branch), Johnson & Johnson Consumer NV, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Saudi Arabia Limited, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Services EAME Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Del Paraguay S.A., Johnson & Johnson Dominicana S.A.S., Johnson & Johnson Enterprise Innovation Inc., Johnson & Johnson European Treasury Unlimited Company, Johnson & Johnson Finance Corporation, Johnson & Johnson Finance Limited, Johnson & Johnson Financial Services GmbH, Johnson & Johnson Financial Services GmbH (Branch Office), Johnson & Johnson Gateway LLC, Johnson & Johnson Gesellschaft m.b.H., Johnson & Johnson GmbH, Johnson & Johnson Guatemala S.A., Johnson & Johnson Health Care Systems Inc., Johnson & Johnson Health and Wellness Solutions Inc., Johnson & Johnson Hellas Commercial and Industrial S.A., Johnson & Johnson Hellas Consumer Products Commercial Societe Anonyme, Johnson & Johnson Hemisferica S.A., Johnson & Johnson Holding GmbH, Johnson & Johnson Inc., Johnson & Johnson Industrial Ltda., Johnson & Johnson Innovation - JJDC Inc., Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC, Johnson & Johnson Innovation Limited, Johnson & Johnson International, Johnson & Johnson International (Belgian Branch) (European Logistics Center), Johnson & Johnson International (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Johnson & Johnson International (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. (Branch), Johnson & Johnson International Financial Services Unlimited Company, Johnson & Johnson K.K., Johnson & Johnson Kft., Johnson & Johnson Korea Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Korea Selling & Distribution LLC, Johnson & Johnson LLC, Johnson & Johnson Lda, Johnson & Johnson Limited, Johnson & Johnson Limited (Sri Lanka Branch), Johnson & Johnson Luxembourg Finance Company Sarl, Johnson & Johnson Management Limited, Johnson & Johnson Medical (China) Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Medical (Proprietary) Ltd, Johnson & Johnson Medical (Shanghai) Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Medical (Shanghai) Ltd. Beijing Branch, Johnson & Johnson Medical (Suzhou) Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Medical B.V., Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices & Diagnostics Group - Latin America L.L.C., Johnson & Johnson Medical GmbH, Johnson & Johnson Medical Korea Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Medical Limited, Johnson & Johnson Medical Mexico S.A. de C.V., Johnson & Johnson Medical NV, Johnson & Johnson Medical Products GmbH, Johnson & Johnson Medical Pty Ltd, Johnson & Johnson Medical S.A., Johnson & Johnson Medical S.C.S., Johnson & Johnson Medical S.p.A., Johnson & Johnson Medical SAS, Johnson & Johnson Medical Saudi Arabia Limited, Johnson & Johnson Medical Taiwan Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Medikal Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Johnson & Johnson Medikal Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi (Ankara Branch), Johnson & Johnson Medikal Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi (Izmir Branch), Johnson & Johnson Middle East - Scientific Office, Johnson & Johnson Middle East FZ - LLC (Lebanese Branch), Johnson & Johnson Middle East FZ-LLC, Johnson & Johnson Middle East FZ-LLC (Ghana Branch), Johnson & Johnson Middle East FZ-LLC (Kenya Branch), Johnson & Johnson Middle East FZ-LLC Branch (TSO) (Saudi Arabia Branch), Johnson & Johnson Morocco Societe Anonyme, Johnson & Johnson NCB (Belgian Branch), Johnson & Johnson Nordic AB, Johnson & Johnson Pacific Pty Limited, Johnson & Johnson Pakistan (Private) Limited, Johnson & Johnson Panama S.A., Johnson & Johnson Personal Care (Chile) S.A., Johnson & Johnson Poland Sp. z o.o., Johnson & Johnson Poland sp. z o.o. oddzial w Warszawie "Consumer", Johnson & Johnson Private Limited, Johnson & Johnson Pte. Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Pte. Ltd. Korea Branch, Johnson & Johnson Pty. Limited, Johnson & Johnson Romania S.R.L., Johnson & Johnson S.A., Johnson & Johnson S.A. de C.V., Johnson & Johnson S.E. Inc., Johnson & Johnson S.E. d.o.o., Johnson & Johnson SDN. BHD., Johnson & Johnson Sante Beaute France, Johnson & Johnson Services Inc., Johnson & Johnson Surgical Vision Inc., Johnson & Johnson Surgical Vision India Private Limited, Johnson & Johnson Taiwan Ltd., Johnson & Johnson UK Treasury Company Limited, Johnson & Johnson Ukraine LLC, Johnson & Johnson Urban Renewal Associates, Johnson & Johnson Vision Care (Shanghai) Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Vision Care Inc., Johnson & Johnson Vision Care Ireland Unlimited Company, Johnson & Johnson d.o.o., Johnson & Johnson de Argentina S.A.C. e. I., Johnson & Johnson de Chile Limitada, Johnson & Johnson de Chile S.A., Johnson & Johnson de Colombia S.A., Johnson & Johnson de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Johnson & Johnson de Uruguay S.A., Johnson & Johnson de Venezuela S.A., Johnson & Johnson del Ecuador S.A., Johnson & Johnson del Peru S.A., Johnson & Johnson do Brasil Industria E Comercio de Produtos Para Saude Ltda., Johnson & Johnson for Export and Import LLC, Johnson & Johnson s.r.o., Johnson Y Johnson de Costa Rica S.A., Johnson and Johnson (Proprietary) Limited, Johnson and Johnson Sihhi Malzeme Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, LTL Management LLC, La Concha Land Investment Corporation, Latam International Investment Company Unlimited Company, Legal Entity Name, MDS Co. Ltd., McNEIL MMP LLC, McNeil AB, McNeil Consumer Pharmaceuticals Co., McNeil Denmark ApS, McNeil Healthcare (Ireland) Limited, McNeil Healthcare (UK) Limited, McNeil Healthcare LLC, McNeil Iberica S.L.U., McNeil LA LLC, McNeil Nutritionals LLC, McNeil Panama LLC, McNeil Products Limited, McNeil Sweden AB, Medical Device Business Services Inc., Medical Devices & Diagnostics Global Services LLC, Medical Devices International LLC, Medos International Sarl, Medos International Sarl succursale de Neuchatel (Branch), Medos Sarl, MegaDyne Medical Products Inc., Menlo Care De Mexico S.A. de C.V., Mentor B.V., Mentor Deutschland GmbH, Mentor Medical Systems B.V., Mentor Partnership Holding Company I LLC, Mentor Texas GP LLC, Mentor Texas L.P., Mentor Worldwide LLC, Micrus Endovascular LLC, Middlesex Assurance Company Limited, Momenta Ireland Limited, Momenta Pharmaceuticals, Momenta Pharmaceuticals Inc., NeoStrata Company Inc., NeoStrata UG (haftungsbeschrankt), Netherlands Holding Company, NeuWave Medical Inc., Neuravi Limited, Novira Therapeutics, Novira Therapeutics LLC, NuVera Medical Inc., OBTECH Medical Sarl, OGX Beauty Limited, OMJ Holding GmbH, OMJ Ireland Unlimited Company, OMJ Pharmaceuticals Inc., Obtech Medical Mexico S.A. de C.V., Omrix Biopharmaceuticals Inc., Omrix Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., Omrix Biopharmaceuticals NV, Ortho Biologics LLC, Ortho Biotech Holding LLC, Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical LLC, Orthospin Ltd., Orthotaxy, PT Integrated Healthcare Indonesia, PT. Johnson & Johnson Indonesia, Patriot Pharmaceuticals LLC, Peninsula Pharmaceuticals LLC, Pharmadirect Ltd., Pharmedica Laboratories (Proprietary) Limited, Princeton Laboratories Inc., Productos de Cuidado Personal y de La Salud de Bolivia S.R.L., Proleader S.A., Pulsar Vascular Inc., Regency Urban Renewal Associates, RespiVert Ltd., RoC International, Royalty A&M LLC, Rutan Realty LLC, SYNTHES Medical Immobilien GmbH, Scios LLC, Sedona Singapore International Pte. Ltd., Sedona Thai International Co. Ltd., Serhum S.A. de C.V., Shanghai Elsker For Mother & Baby Co. Ltd, Shanghai Elsker Mother & Baby Co. Ltd Minghang Branch, Shanghai Johnson & Johnson Ltd., Shanghai Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Sightbox LLC, Sodiac ESV, Spectrum Vision Limited Liability Company, Spectrum Vision Limited Liability Partnership, SterilMed, SterilMed Inc., Surgical Process Institute Deutschland GmbH, Synthes Costa Rica S.C.R. Limitada, Synthes GmbH, Synthes Holding AG, Synthes Holding Limited, Synthes Inc., Synthes Medical Surgical Equipment & Instruments Trading LLC, Synthes Produktions GmbH, Synthes Proprietary Limited, Synthes S.M.P. S. de R.L. de C.V., Synthes Tuttlingen GmbH, Synthes USA LLC, Synthes USA Products LLC, TARIS Biomedical, TARIS Biomedical LLC, TearScience Inc., The Anspach Effort LLC, The Vision Care Institute LLC, Tibotec LLC, Torax Medical Inc., UAB "Johnson & Johnson", UAB Johnson & Johnson Eesti Filiaal (Estonian Branch), Vania Expansion, Verb Surgical, Verb Surgical Inc., Vision Care Finance Unlimited Company, Vogue International, Vogue International LLC, Vogue International Trading Inc., WH4110 Development Company L.L.C., XO1, XO1 Limited, Xian Janssen Pharmaceutical Ltd., Xian-Janssen Pharmaceutical Ltd. Beijing Branch Office, Xian-Janssen Pharmaceutical Ltd. Shanghai Branch Office, Zarbee's Inc., and Zarbee's Naturals. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of American International Group: AGC Life Insurance Company, AIG APAC HOLDINGS PTE. LTD., AIG Aerospace Insurance Services Inc., AIG Asia Pacific Insurance Pte. Ltd., AIG Asset Management (Europe) Limited, AIG Asset Management (U.S.) LLC, AIG Assurance Company, AIG Australia Limited, AIG Brazil Holding I LLC, AIG CIS Investments LLC, AIG Canada Holdings Inc., AIG Capital Corporation, AIG Capital Services Inc., AIG Claims Inc., AIG Credit Management LLC, AIG Egypt Insurance Company S.A.E., AIG Employee Services Inc., AIG Europe Holdings S.a.r.l, AIG Europe S.A., AIG Federal Savings Bank, AIG Financial Products Corp., AIG General Insurance Co. Ltd., AIG Global Asset Management Holdings Corp., AIG Global Operations Inc., AIG Global Real Estate Investment Corp., AIG Global Reinsurance Operations, AIG Holdings Europe Limited, AIG Insurance (Thailand) Public Company Limited, AIG Insurance Company China Limited, AIG Insurance Company JSC, AIG Insurance Company of Canada, AIG Insurance Company-Puerto Rico, AIG Insurance Hong Kong Limited, AIG Insurance Management Services Inc., AIG Insurance New Zealand Limited, AIG International Holdings GmbH, AIG Investments UK Limited, AIG Israel Insurance Company Ltd, AIG Japan Holdings Kabushiki Kaisha, AIG Kenya Insurance Company Limited, AIG Korea Inc., AIG Latin America I.I., AIG Latin America Investments S.L., AIG Lebanon SAL, AIG Life Holdings Inc., AIG Life Limited, AIG Life South Africa Limited, AIG Life of Bermuda Ltd., AIG MEA Holdings Limited, AIG MEA Limited, AIG Malaysia Insurance Berhad, AIG Markets Inc., AIG Matched Funding Corp., AIG PC Global Services Inc., AIG Philippines Insurance Inc., AIG Property Casualty Company, AIG Property Casualty Inc., AIG Property Casualty International LLC, AIG Property Casualty U.S. Inc., AIG Re-Takaful (L) Berhad, AIG Resseguros Brasil S.A., AIG Seguros Brasil S.A., AIG Seguros Mexico S.A. de C.V., AIG South Africa Limited, AIG Specialty Insurance Company, AIG Technologies Inc., AIG Travel Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., AIG Travel Assist Inc., AIG Travel Assist Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., AIG Travel EMEA Limited, AIG Travel Inc., AIG Uganda Limited, AIG Vietnam Insurance Company Limited, AIG WarrantyGuard Inc., AIG-FP Pinestead Holdings Corp., AIG-Metropolitana Cia. de Seguros y Reaseguros S.A., AIGGRE Europe Real Estate Fund I GP S.a r.l., AIGGRE Europe Real Estate Fund II GP S.a r.l., AIGGRE U.S. Real Estate Fund I GP LLC, AIGGRE U.S. Real Estate Fund II GP LLC, AIGGRE U.S. Real Estate Fund III GP LP, AIGGRE U.S. Real Estate Fund IV GP LLC, AIU Insurance Company, AM Holdings LLC, Ageas Protect, AlphaCat Managers Ltd., American General Corporation, American General Life Insurance Company, American Home Assurance Co. Ltd., American Home Assurance Company, American International Group UK Limited, American International Realty LLC, American International Reinsurance Company Ltd., American International Underwriters del Ecuador-Holding S.A. en Liquidacion S.A., Arthur J. Glatfelter Agency Inc., Blackboard Insurance Company, Blackboard Specialty Insurance Company, Blackboard U.S. Holdings Inc., C.A. de Seguros American International, Commerce and Industry Insurance Company, Crop Risk Services Inc., Eaglestone Reinsurance Company, Ellipse, Franklin Life Insurance Company, Fuji Fire and Marine, Glatfelter Insurance Group, Glatfelter Underwriting Services Inc., Globe and Rutgers Insurance Group, Grand Isle SAC Limited, Granite State Insurance Company, Illinois National Insurance Co., Inversiones Segucasai C.A., Johannesburg Insurance Holdings (Proprietary) Limited, Laya Healthcare Limited, Lexington Insurance Company, Lexington Specialty Insurance Agency Inc., National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh Pa., National Union Fire Insurance Company of Vermont, New Hampshire Insurance Company, PCG 2019 Corporate Member Limited, PT AIG Insurance Indonesia, Pine Street Real Estate Holdings Corp., Risk Specialists Companies Insurance Agency Inc., SAFG Capital LLC, SAFG Retirement Services Inc., Service Net Warranty LLC, Stratford Insurance Company, SunAmerica Asset Management LLC, Talbot Holdings Ltd., Talbot Underwriting Holdings Ltd., Talbot Underwriting Ltd., The Insurance Company of the State of Pennsylvania, The United States Life Insurance Company in the City of New York, The Variable Annuity Life Insurance Company, Travel Guard, Travel Guard Group Canada Inc./Groupe Garde Voyage du Canada Inc., Travel Guard Group Inc., Tudor Insurance Company, VALIC Financial Advisors Inc., Valic Retirement Services Company, Validus Holdings, Validus Holdings (UK) Ltd., Validus Holdings Ltd., Validus Reinsurance (Switzerland) Ltd, Validus Reinsurance Ltd., Validus Ventures Ltd., Volunteer Firemen's Insurance Services Inc., and Western World Insurance Company. Read More AAR Corp. provides products and services to commercial aviation, government, and defense markets worldwide. The Aviation Services segment offers aftermarket support and services; inventory management and distribution services; and maintenance, repair, and overhaul, as well as engineering services. This segment also sells and leases new, overhauled, and repaired engine and airframe parts, and components; and provides inventory and repair programs, warranty claim management, and outsourcing programs for engine and airframe parts and components, as well as performance-based supply chain logistics programs in support of the U.S. department of defense and foreign governments. In addition, it offers airframe inspection, maintenance, repair and overhaul, painting, line maintenance, airframe modification, structural repair, avionic and installation, exterior and interior refurbishment, and engineering and support services; and repairs and overhauls components, landing gears, wheels, and brakes. The Expeditionary Services segment provides products and services supporting the movement of equipment and personnel by the U.S. and foreign governments, and non-governmental organizations. This segment also designs, manufactures, and repairs transportation pallets, and various containers and shelters; and provides engineering, design, and system integration services for command and control systems. The company serves domestic and foreign passenger airlines; domestic and foreign cargo airlines; regional and commuter airlines; business and general aviation operators; original equipment manufacturers; aircraft leasing companies; aftermarket aviation support companies; and domestic and foreign military customers. It primarily markets and sells products and services through its employees and foreign sales representatives. AAR Corp. was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in Wood Dale, Illinois. Morgan Stanley is the 6th largest financial institution in the US. The company is ranked 61st on the Forbes Fortune 500 list and is the 39th largest bank in the world. A financial holding company, Morgan Stanley provides a full range of financial services to clients around the world. Morgan Stanley was formed in 1935 as a result of the Glass-Steagall Act. Glass-Steagall separated commercial and investment banking in a way that forced the then-largest bank J.P. Morgan & Co to split into two groups. J.P. Morgan & Co. chose to retain the commercial side of the business while partners Henry S. Morga, grandson of J.P., and Harold Stanley took the investment end. In its first year, Morgan Stanley did 24% of the IPO business and maintains a lions share of the market to this day. The original company existed and grew through acquisitions until 1987 when it merged with Dean Witter Discover & Co. The new Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Discover & Co existed for 14 years until 2001 when the name was shortened back to Morgan Stanley. The bank is credited in part with both beginning and ending the financial crisis of 2007/2008. The Process Driven Trading unit lost $300 million in one day due to a short-squeeze that popped the bubble in the housing market. After teetering on the brink of failure Morgan Stanley agreed to become a bank holding company regulated by the Federal Reserve, a key factor in the original decision to split from parent J.P. Morgan & Co. Ironically when given the chance, present-day J.P. Morgan refused to buy Morgan Stanley but that was for the better. Today, Morgan Stanley operates through three segments via offices in 41 countries and employs more than 75,000 people. Revenue in 2021 topped $49 billion and total assets topped $1.15 trillion. The operating segments are Institutional Securities, Wealth Management, and Investment Management segments. The Institutional Securities segment is by far the largest and most profitable. It offers a range of services and products for businesses, institutions, and entities that include capital raising, strategic advisory, underwriting, advice on M&A, restructuring, and real estate. The Wealth Management segment provides brokerage and investment advisory services for individuals and employers. The services include brokerage, financial planning, company stock-plan administration, insurance, mortgage loans, lines of credit, and retirement planning. The Investment Management segment provides investment products to a range of institutions, organizations, corporations, and governments. The following companies are subsidiares of ABB: ABB (China) Investment Limited, ABB (China) Ltd., ABB (Hong Kong) Ltd., ABB (Namibia) (Pty) Ltd., ABB (P.J.S.C.), ABB (Private) Ltd., ABB (Pty) Ltd., ABB (Pvt) Ltd., ABB A/S, ABB AB, ABB AG, ABB AS, ABB AUTOMACAO LTDA, ABB AUTOMATION AND ELECTRIFICATION (VIETNAM)COMPANY LIMITED, ABB AUTOMATION HOLDINGS (THAILAND) CO. LTD., ABB Algeria SpA Asea Brown Boveri, ABB Algerie Produits SpA, ABB Asea Brown Boveri Ltd, ABB Asea Brown Boveri SRL, ABB Ausbildungszentrum Berlin gGmbH, ABB Australia Pty Limited, ABB Automation (Thailand) Co. Ltd., ABB B.V., ABB Bailey Beijing Engineering Co. Ltd., ABB Bailey Japan Limited, ABB Beijing Drive Systems Co. Ltd., ABB Beijing Switchgear Limited, ABB Beteiligungs- und Verwaltungsges. mbH, ABB Bulgaria EOOD, ABB Business Services Sp. z o.o., ABB Cable Management Products Ltd, ABB Canada EL Holding GmbH, ABB Capital AG, ABB Capital B.V., ABB Centroamerica y El Caribe S.A., ABB Chargedot Shanghai New Energy Technology Co. Ltd, ABB Colombia Ltda, ABB Construction (ABACON) S.A.E., ABB E-MOBILITY INC., ABB E-MOBILITY PTE. LTD., ABB E-mobility AB, ABB E-mobility AG, ABB E-mobility AS, ABB E-mobility GmbH, ABB E-mobility Holding Ltd, ABB E-mobility QFZ LLC, ABB E-mobility S.p.A., ABB E-mobility SAS, ABB E-mobility SL, ABB E-mobility Technology Shenzhen Co. Ltd, ABB E-mobility UK Limited, ABB ELECTRICAL & AUTOMATION W.L.L, ABB ELECTRIFICATION HOLDINGS (THAILAND) CO. LTD., ABB ELETRIFICACAO LTDA, ABB Ecuador S.A., ABB Electrical Control Systems S. de R.L. de C.V., ABB Electrical Equipment (Xiamen) Co. Ltd., ABB Electrical Equipment Ltd., ABB Electrical Industries Co. Ltd., ABB Electrical Machines Ltd., ABB Electrical Products (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ABB Electrification (Thailand) Co. Ltd., ABB Electrification Canada ULC, ABB Electrification Norway AS, ABB Electrification Sweden AB, ABB Elektrik Sanayi A.S., ABB Engg. Technologies Co. (KSCC), ABB Engineering (Shanghai), ABB Engineering Trading and Service Ltd., ABB Equipo de Control Y Distribucion S. de R.L. de C.V., ABB Equity Limited, ABB FZ-LLC, ABB Finance (USA) Inc., ABB Finance B.V., ABB For Feeding Industries SAE, ABB France, ABB GLOBAL BUSINESS SERVICES AND CONTRACTINGINDIA PRIVATE LIMITED, ABB Global Industries and Services Private Limited, ABB Global Marketing FZ LLC, ABB Group Holdings Pty. Ltd., ABB Group Investment Management Pty. Ltd., ABB Guangdong Sihui Instrument Transformer Co. Ltd., ABB Hangzhou Winmation Automation Company Limited, ABB Holding AS, ABB Holdings (Pty) Ltd., ABB Holdings B.V., ABB Holdings Inc., ABB Holdings Limited, ABB Holdings Sdn. Bhd., ABB INDUSTRIAL SOLUTIONS (LODZ) S.A. W LIKWIDACJI, ABB Inc., ABB Inc., ABB India Limited, ABB Industrial Solutions (Australia) Pty Ltd, ABB Industrial Solutions (Belgium) BV, ABB Industrial Solutions (Bielsko-Biala) Sp. z o.o., ABB Industrial Solutions (Canada) Inc., ABB Industrial Solutions (Klodzko) Sp.z.o.o., ABB Industries (L.L.C.), ABB Industries FZ, ABB Information Systems Ltd., ABB Installation Products Caribe LLC, ABB Installation Products European Centre S.A., ABB Installation Products Inc, ABB Installation Products International LLC., ABB Installation Products Limited, ABB Installation Products Monterrey S. de R.L. de C.V., ABB Installacios Keszulekek Kft., ABB Investment Holding 2 GmbH, ABB Investments (Pty) Ltd, ABB Inzeniring d.o.o., ABB Jiangjin Turbo Systems Company Limited, ABB K.K., ABB Kaufel GmbH, ABB LAFRENZE PROPERTY (PROPERTY) LIMITED, ABB LLC, ABB LLP., ABB LV Installation Materials Co. Ltd. Beijing, ABB Limitada, ABB Limited, ABB Limited/Jordan LLC., ABB Lineage Power Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ABB Logistics Center Europe GmbH, ABB Ltd., ABB Maghreb Services S.A., ABB Malaysia Sdn Bhd., ABB Management Services Ltd., ABB Mexico S.A. de C.V., ABB Motors and Mechanical Inc, ABB N.V., ABB Norden Holding AB, ABB Operations Center Ltd., ABB Orange B.V., ABB Oryx Motors and Generators Service LLC, ABB Oy, ABB Panama Sales S.A., ABB Power & Automation (Private) Limited, ABB Power & Automation Limited, ABB Power Electronics (Germany) GmbH, ABB Power Electronics (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ABB Power Electronics (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., ABB Power Electronics Inc., ABB Pte. Ltd., ABB Reinsurance AG, ABB Robotics (Zhuhai) Ltd, ABB Robotics Machine Tending Limited, ABB Robotics Solutions NV, ABB S.A., ABB S.A. de CV, ABB S.p.A., ABB SARL, ABB SAS, ABB SIA, ABB Schweiz AG, ABB Shanghai Free Trade Zone Industrial Co. Ltd., ABB Shanghai Motors Co. Ltd., ABB South Africa (Pty) Ltd., ABB Sp. z o.o., ABB Stotz-Kontakt Gmb, ABB Striebel & John GmbH, ABB Susa Inc., ABB Technologies Ltd., ABB Technologies S.A., ABB Technology SA, ABB Tianjin Switchgear Co. Ltd., ABB Transmission & Distribution Limited LLC, ABB Treasury Center (USA) Inc., ABB Turbo Systems (Hong Kong) Limited, ABB Turbochargers S.A.E., ABB UAB, ABB Verwaltungs AG, ABB Wirtschaftsbetriebe GmbH, ABB Xiamen Corporation Management Service Co. Ltd., ABB Xiamen Low Voltage Equipment Co. Ltd., ABB Xiamen Smart Technology Co. Ltd., ABB Xiamen Switchgear Co. Ltd., ABB Xinhui Low Voltage Switchgear Co. Ltd., ABB d.o.o., ABB eMobility Digital Venture GmbH, ABB for Electrical Industries (ABB ARAB) S.A.E., ABB for Electrical Solutions and Technologies K.S.C.C., ABB s.r.o., ABB s.r.o., ABBNG Limited, APS Technology Group, ASEA BROWN BOVERI Portugal Unipessoal Lda, ASTI France SAS, ASTI Mobile Robotics, Asea Brown Boveri Electrica SGPS (Angola) Limitada, Asea Brown Boveri Industrial Technical & CommercialCompany of Imports Exports S.A., Asea Brown Boveri Lanka (Private) Limited, Asea Brown Boveri Ltd., Asea Brown Boveri S.A., Asea Brown Boveri S.A. de C.V., Asea Brown Boveri S.A.E., Asti Mobile Robotics GmbH, Asti Mobile Robotics Group SL, Asti Mobile Robotics SAU, B & R Automazione Industriale S.r.l., B & R Industrial Automation Ltd., B + R Industrie-Elektronik GmbH, B&R Automatyka Przemyslowa Sp.z.o.o., B&R Automacao Industrial Ltda., B&R Holding GmbH, B&R Industrial Automation, B&R Industrial Automation (China) Co. Ltd., B&R Industrial Automation A/S, B&R Industrial Automation AB, B&R Industrial Automation Co. Ltd., B&R Industrial Automation Corp., B&R Industrial Automation GmbH, B&R Industrial Automation Iberica S.L.U., B&R Industrial Automation Inc., B&R Industrial Automation Pte. Ltd., B&R Industrial Automation Pvt. Ltd., B&R Industrie-Automation AG, B&R Industriele Automatisering B.V., B&R K.K., B+R Automation Industrielle SARL, B+R Industrial Automation OOO, B+R automatizace spol. s.r.o., BR Endustriyel Otomasyon Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Baldor Electric Company, Busch-Jaeger Elektro GmbH, Chargedot, Cherokee India Pvt. Ltd., Codian Robotics, Codian Robotics B.V., Codian Robotics of the Americas, Combustion Engineering Inc., Cylon Controls, Cylon Controls Limited, Cylon Energy Inc., DynaMotive Ltd., ELBI Elektrik, Edison Holding Corporation, Enervalis NV, Envitech Energy, Epyon, GE Industrial Solutions, Gomtec, Gresin Grupo Estudios Industriales, IMV Invertomatic Victron UK Limited, In-Charge Energy, Industrial C&S Hungary Kft., Industrial C&S of P.R. LLC, Industrial Connections & Solutions LLC, Industrial Connections of SA Pty. Ltd., Intrimmo BVBA, Jinan ABB SRI Rail Transit Equipment Technology Co. Ltd., Jordan Acquisition Group, KEYMILE - Business, Kaufel S.A., Kuhlman Electric Corp., Lineage Overseas LLC, Lineage Power (Argentina) S.R.L., Lineage Power (Luxembourg) S.A.R.L., Lineage Power China Co. Ltd., Lineage Power Holdings Inc., Lineage Power Matamoros S.A. de C.V., Lorentzen & Wettre, Los Gatos Research, Mincom, NUB3D S.L., Newave Energy Holding, Newron System, PT ABB Sakti Industri, Pinghu Zhuangbest Technology Development Co. Ltd., Power-One, Powercorp, Powertel India Pvt. Ltd., RGM - Rail vehicle power business, RMI Automation Co. Ltd., SVIA, SWISS TURBOCHARGERS SA DE CV, Saudi Industrial Solutions Ltd., Shanghai Zhuangbest Technology Development Co. Ltd., Shantou Winride Switchgear Co. Ltd., Sirius Holdings B.V., Smart Power Technology Co. Ltd., Spirit IT, Swissturbo (Shanghai) Investment Limited, SynerLeap powered by ABB AB, TURBO SYSTEMS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, TURBO SYSTEMS ITALY S.P.A., TURBO SYSTEMS RUS LLC, TURBO-SUPERIOR SYSTEMS INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED, TURBOCHARGING GREECE SINGLE MEMBER SA, Thomas & Betts, Thomas & Betts Saudi Arabia Limited Liability Co., Trasfor, Tropos Networks, Turbo Systems Argentina S.A., Turbo Systems Canada Inc, Turbo Systems Colombia SAS, Turbo Systems Dominican Republic SRL, Turbo Systems Finland Oy, Turbo Systems Germany GmbH, Turbo Systems Holding Ltd, Turbo Systems Iberia S.L., Turbo Systems Korea Ltd., Turbo Systems Myanmar Limited, Turbo Systems Pakistan (Private) Limited, Turbo Systems South East Asia Pte. Ltd., Turbo Systems Switzerland Ltd, Turbo Systems The Netherlands B.V., Turbo Systems Turkey Muhendislik Makine Sanayi Ve TicaretAnonim Sirketi, Turbo Systems US Inc., Turbo Systems United Co. Ltd., Turbo Systems Verwaltungs Ltd, Turbocharging Bangladesh Limited, Turbocharging Brasil Ltda., Turbocharging Systems Co. Ltd., Turbocharging Systems France SAS, Turbocharging UK Limited, Turbosystems Nigeria Limited LTD, Validus DC Systems, Vectek Electronics, Ventyx, Verdi Holding Corporation, W.J. Furse & Co. Ltd., Yangzhou SAC Switchgear Co. Ltd, and Zhejiang Chargedot New Energy Technology Co. Ltd.. Read More Consolidated Edison, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the regulated electric, gas, and steam delivery businesses in the United States. It offers electric services to approximately 3.5 million customers in New York City and Westchester County; gas to approximately 1.1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, parts of Queens, and Westchester County; and steam to approximately 1,555 customers in parts of Manhattan. The company also supplies electricity to approximately 0.3 million customers in southeastern New York and northern New Jersey; and gas to approximately 0.1 million customers in southeastern New York. In addition, it operates 533 circuit miles of transmission lines; 15 transmission substations; 64 distribution substations; 87,564 in-service line transformers; 3,924 pole miles of overhead distribution lines; and 2,291 miles of underground distribution lines, as well as 4,350 miles of mains and 377,971 service lines for natural gas distribution. Further, the company owns, operates, and develops renewable and energy infrastructure projects; and provides energy-related products and services to wholesale and retail customers, as well as invests in electric and gas transmission projects. It primarily sells electricity to industrial, commercial, residential, and government customers. The company was founded in 1823 and is based in New York, New York. The following companies are subsidiares of Arrow Electronics: A.E. Petsche Belgium BVBA, A.E. Petsche Canada Inc., A.E. Petsche Company, A.E. Petsche Company Inc., A.E. Petsche Company S De RL, A.E. Petsche SAS, A.E. Petsche UK Limited, ACI Technology, AKS Group Nordic AB, ARROWECS Portugal Sociedade Unipessoal, ARROWECS Sociedade Unipessoal LDA, ARW Electronics Ltd., ARW Enterprise Computing Solutions S.A., ARW Portugal Unipessoal LDA, ASI Dedicated Services LLC, ASI Electrical Services LLC, ASI Managed Services LLC, ATM Electronic, ATM Electronic Corp., ATM Electronic Corporation (HK) Limited, ATM Electronics Hong Kong Limited, ATM Electronics Technology (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd, Addex Distribution AS, Adilam Pty. Ltd, Aiqi Xinxing (Beijing) Information Technology Co. Ltd., Altimate Belgium BVBA, Altimate Group, Altimate ND Belgium BVBA, Altimate Netherlands B.V., Annuity Systems Pty Ltd, Arrow (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., Arrow Altech Distribution (Pty) Ltd., Arrow Altech Holdings (Pty) Ltd., Arrow Argentina S.A., Arrow Asia Distribution Limited, Arrow Asia Pac Ltd., Arrow Brasil S.A., Arrow Capital Solution BVBA, Arrow Capital Solutions Inc., Arrow Capital Solutions Nederlands BV, Arrow Capital Solutions SAS, Arrow Capital Solutions UK Ltd, Arrow Central Europe GmbH, Arrow Central Europe Holding Munich GmbH, Arrow Chip One Stop Holdings GK, Arrow Componentes ACCR S.R.L., Arrow Components (M) Sdn Bhd, Arrow Components (NZ), Arrow Components Mexico S.A. de C.V., Arrow Components Sweden AB, Arrow Denmark ApS, Arrow Denmark ApS, Arrow ECS (Ireland) Limited, Arrow ECS (NI) Limited, Arrow ECS AG, Arrow ECS ANZ Limited, Arrow ECS ANZ Pty Ltd, Arrow ECS Asia PTE. Ltd, Arrow ECS Australia, Arrow ECS B.V., Arrow ECS Baltic OU, Arrow ECS Brasil Distribuidora Ltda., Arrow ECS Canada Ltd., Arrow ECS Central GmbH, Arrow ECS Denmark A/S, Arrow ECS FZCO, Arrow ECS Finland OY, Arrow ECS GmbH, Arrow ECS Internet Security AG, Arrow ECS Internet Security S.L., Arrow ECS Kft., Arrow ECS Ltd., Arrow ECS New Zealand Limited, Arrow ECS Nordic A/S, Arrow ECS Norway AS, Arrow ECS Pty Ltd., Arrow ECS SA/NV, Arrow ECS SAS, Arrow ECS SPA, Arrow ECS Sarl, Arrow ECS Services Sp.z.o.o., Arrow ECS Singapore Pte. Limited, Arrow ECS Sp.z.o.o., Arrow ECS Support Center Ltd., Arrow ECS Support Center Morocco S.A.R.L.A.U, Arrow ECS Sweden AB, Arrow ECS a.s., Arrow ECS d.o.o., Arrow Eastern Europe GmbH, Arrow Electronice S.R.L., Arrow Electronics (CI) Ltd., Arrow Electronics (China) Trading Co. Ltd., Arrow Electronics (Jersey) Limited, Arrow Electronics (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Arrow Electronics (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd., Arrow Electronics (Sweden) KB, Arrow Electronics (Thailand) Limited, Arrow Electronics (U.K.) Inc., Arrow Electronics (UK) Ltd., Arrow Electronics ANZ Holdings Pty Ltd., Arrow Electronics Asia (S) Pte Ltd., Arrow Electronics Asia Limited, Arrow Electronics Australia Pty Ltd., Arrow Electronics B.V., Arrow Electronics Canada Ltd., Arrow Electronics China Ltd., Arrow Electronics Components (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Arrow Electronics Czech Republic s.r.o., Arrow Electronics D.O.O., Arrow Electronics Danish Holdings ApS, Arrow Electronics EMEA Group GmbH, Arrow Electronics EMEASA S.r.l., Arrow Electronics Estonia OU, Arrow Electronics FC B.V., Arrow Electronics Funding Corporation, Arrow Electronics GmbH & Co. KG, Arrow Electronics Hellas S.A., Arrow Electronics Holdings Vagyonkezelo Kft, Arrow Electronics Hungary Kereskedelmi Bt, Arrow Electronics India Ltd., Arrow Electronics India Private Limited, Arrow Electronics International Holdings LLC, Arrow Electronics International Inc., Arrow Electronics Italia S.r.l, Arrow Electronics Japan GK, Arrow Electronics Korea Limited, Arrow Electronics Labuan Pte Ltd., Arrow Electronics Ltd., Arrow Electronics Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Arrow Electronics Norwegian Holdings AS, Arrow Electronics Poland Sp.z.o.o., Arrow Electronics Russ OOO, Arrow Electronics Services S.r.l., Arrow Electronics Slovakia s.r.o., Arrow Electronics South Africa LLP, Arrow Electronics Taiwan Ltd., Arrow Electronics UK Holding Ltd., Arrow Electronics Ukraine LLC, Arrow Elektronik Ticaret A.S., Arrow Enterprise Computing Solutions Inc., Arrow Enterprise Computing Solutions India Private Limited, Arrow Enterprise Computing Solutions Ltd., Arrow Enterprise Computing Solutions S.A., Arrow Finland OY, Arrow France S.A., Arrow Global Asset Disposition Inc., Arrow Global Supply Chain Services Inc., Arrow Holdings (Delaware) LLC, Arrow Iberia Electronica Lda., Arrow Iberia Electronica S.L.U., Arrow International Holdings L.P., Arrow International Holdings Limited, Arrow Nordic Components AB, Arrow Norway A/S, Arrow S-Tech Norway AS, Arrow SEED (Hong Kong) Limited, Arrow Systems Integration Inc., Arrow UEC Japan KK, Arrow United Holdings LLC, Arrow United International Holdings LP, Arrow Value Recovery ApS (fka Greentech Denmark ApS), Arrow Value Recovery Belgium BVBA, Arrow Value Recovery Czech Republic sro, Arrow Value Recovery Denmark ApS, Arrow Value Recovery EMEA BV, Arrow Value Recovery Finland Oy (fka Greentech Finland OY), Arrow Value Recovery France SAS, Arrow Value Recovery Germany GmbH, Arrow Value Recovery Netherlands BV, Arrow Value Recovery Norway AS (fka Greentech AS), Arrow Value Recovery Sweden AB (fka Greentech Sweden AB), Arrow Value Recovery UK LTD, Arrow eCommerce B.V., Arrow/Artlink Technology (Hong Kong) Limited, Arrow/Components (Agent) Ltd., Arrow/Rapac Ltd., Artlink Technology Co. Ltd., Aspen Labs LLC, Aspencore China Investment LLC, Aspencore LLC, Aspencore Media GmbH, Aspencore/IDG China Investment LLC, Asplenium SA, Asset Recovery Corporation, B.V. Arrow Electronics DLC, Beijing AIQI Technology, Beijing Arrow SEED Technology Co. Ltd, Beijing Canon Advertising Co. Ltd., Broomco (4184) Limited, COMPUTERLINKS, COMPUTERLINKS (UK) Ltd., COMPUTERLINKS Belgium BVBA, COMPUTERLINKS Denmark A/S, COMPUTERLINKS Nederland B.V., COMPUTERLINKS S.A., CSS Computer Security Solutions Erwerbs GmbH, CSS Computer Security Solutions Holding GmbH, CSS Computer Security Solutions Ltd., CT3 Europe Limited, Centia Group Ltd, Centia Ltd., Channel Support Pty Ltd, ChiWan Electronics (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd., Chip One Stop, Chip One Stop (Hong Kong) Ltd., Chip One Stop (Shenzhen) Ltd., Chip One Stop Inc., Commtech Solutions (UK) Limited, Components Agent (Cayman) Limited, Components Agent Asia Holdings Ltd., Components Distribution Business - Achieva, Conrac Asia Display Products Pte. Ltd., Conrac MENA FZE, Converge, Converge (Shanghai) International Trading Co. Ltd., Converge Asia Pte Ltd., Converge Electronics Trading (India) Private Ltd., Converge France SAS, Converge Netherlands BV, Converge Scandinavia AB, Cross Telecom, Data Modul, Data Modul AG, Data Modul Electronics Technology (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Data Modul FZE, Data Modul France S.a r.l, Data Modul Hong Kong Ltd., Data Modul Iberia S.L., Data Modul Inc., Data Modul Italia S.r.l., Data Modul Ltd., Data Modul Shanghai Ltd., Data Modul Suisse GmbH, Data Modul Weikersheim GmbH, Diasa Informatica, Dicopel Inc., Distribution Business - Seed International, Distribution Central (MY) Sdn. Bhd., Distribution Central HK Pty Limited, Distribution Central Limited (NZ), Distribution Central Pte Limited (SG), Distribution Central Pty Limited, E-InfoChips KK, EC America, EDN Asia Advertising Pte Ltd., ETEQ Components Pte Ltd., Electronics Products Technology Co. Ltd., Embedded Developer LLC, Erf 211 Hughes (Pty) Limited, Eshel Technology Group Inc., Eurocomponentes S.A., Excel Tech, Excel Tech Inc., Firewall Systems Pty Limited, Fusion Distribution FZCO, Gates - Arrow Distributing, Gates - FA Distributing, Global Link Technology, Greentech Holding AS, Gross Telecom, ICC Global Media GmbH, IP Vista A/S, IPVista A/S, ITM USA Enterprises Inc., Intechra Holdings, Intex-semi Ltd., KeyLink Systems Group, LED Franchise LLC, LED Source Holdco LLC, LED Source LLC, LOGIX S.A., License Central Pty Ltd, Lite-On Korea Ltd., Marubun Arrow (HK) Limited, Marubun Arrow (S) Pte Ltd., Marubun Arrow (Thailand) Co Limited, Marubun Arrow Asia Ltd., Marubun Arrow Europe Kft., Marubun Corporation, Marubun USA Corporation, Marubun-Arrow Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Marubun/Arrow (HK) Limited, Marubun/Arrow (M) Sdn. Bhd (Malaysia), Marubun/Arrow (Philippines) Inc., Marubun/Arrow (S) Pte Ltd., Marubun/Arrow (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Marubun/Arrow (Shenzhen) Electronic Product Consulting Company Limited, Marubun/Arrow (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Marubun/Arrow Asia Ltd., Marubun/Arrow USA II LLC, Marubun/Arrow USA LLC, NIC Components Asia PTE Ltd., NIC Components Corp., NIC Components Europe Limited, NIC Eurotech Limited, NUH Electronics India Private Limted, Networld Systems Pty Ltd, Nextworth Solutions Inc., Nu Horizons Electronics, Nu Horizons Electronics (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Nu Horizons Electronics Asia PTE Ltd., Nu Horizons Electronics Hong Kong Ltd., Nu Horizons Electronics Malaysia SDN BHD, NuHo Singapore Holdings LLC, Observatory Crest, Openway Group SA, Openway SAS, PCG Parent Corp., PCG Trading LLC, PT Marubun Arrow Indonesia, Pansystem S.r.l., Pax8 Inc., Power and Signal Group GmbH, R.D. Trading Limited, RDC, RF Wireless & Power - Richardson Electronics, Rack Systems Pty Ltd, Red Education Pty Ltd, Redemtech, Renewal Systems Pty Ltd, Richardson RFPD (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Richardson RFPD (Thailand) Limited, Richardson RFPD Australia Pty. Ltd., Richardson RFPD Canada Inc., Richardson RFPD Electronics Trading (China) Co. Ltd., Richardson RFPD France SAS, Richardson RFPD Germany GmbH, Richardson RFPD Hong Kong, Richardson RFPD Inc., Richardson RFPD Israel Ltd., Richardson RFPD Italy Srl, Richardson RFPD Japan KK, Richardson RFPD Korea Ltd., Richardson RFPD Netherlands BV, Richardson RFPD Singapore, Richardson RFPD Spain SL, Richardson RFPD Sweden AB, Richardson RFPD Taiwan, Richardson RFPD UK Ltd., Richey Electronics, San Systems Pty Ltd, Schuylkill Metals of Plant City Inc., Seneca Data, Seneca Data Distributors Inc., Shared Technologies, Silicon Frameworks LLC, SiliconEgypt Technologies LLC, SiliconExpert Holdings LLC, SiliconExpert Technologies, SiliconExpert Technologies Inc., Sphinx CST Limited, Sphinx CST Networks Limited, Sphinx Group, Sphinx Group Limited, Sphinx Professional Services Limited, Spoerle Hungary Kereskedelmi Kft, Sun Chain Technology Corp., TLW Electronics Ltd., TechTurn, Titan Supply Chain Services Limited, Titan Supply Chain Services Pte Ltd., Trafomo AB, Trafomo ApS, Transim Technology, Transim Technology Corporation, U.S. Micro Operating Company LLC, UBM Tech Electronics Network, Ultra Source Electronics (SZ) Co LTD, Ultra Source Technology Corp., Ultra Source Trading Hong Kong Limited, United Technical Publishing Division - Hearst Business Media, Universe Electron Corporation, Verical, Verwaltungsgesellschaft Arrow Electronics GmbH, Wireless and Infrastructure Business Unit - Waching Company, Yongming Xincheng (Beijing) Technology Co., e-InfoChips, e-Infochips Private Limited, eInfochips, eMedia Asia Limited, immixGovernment Inc., immixGroup, immixGroup Inc., immixSolutions Inc., and immixTechnology. Read More KAR Auction Services, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides used vehicle auctions and related vehicle remarketing services for the automotive industry in the United States, Europe, Canada, Mexico, and the United Kingdom. The company operates through two segments, ADESA Auctions and AFC. The ADESA Auctions segment offers whole car auctions and related services to the vehicle remarketing industry through online auctions and auction facilities. It also provides value-added services, such as auction related, transportation, reconditioning, inspection, title and repossession administration and remarketing, vehicle research, and analytical services, as well as data as a service. This segment sells its products and services through vehicle manufacturers, fleet companies, rental car companies, finance companies, and others. As of December 31, 2021, this segment had a network of approximately 70 vehicle logistics center locations in North America. The AFC segment offers floorplan financing, a short-term inventory-secured financing to independent used vehicle dealers; and sells vehicle service contracts. The company provides wheel repair and hail catastrophe response services. It serves vehicle manufacturers, vehicle rental companies, financial institutions, commercial fleets and fleet management companies, and dealer customers. The company was formerly known as KAR Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to KAR Auction Services, Inc. in November 2009. KAR Auction Services, Inc. was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in Carmel, Indiana. The following companies are subsidiares of Abbott Laboratories: 3A Nutrition (Vietnam) Company Limited, ABON Biopharm (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd., AGA Medical Belgium, AGA Medical Corporation, AGA Medical Holdings Inc., ALR Holdings, AML Medical LLC, APK Advanced Medical Technologies LLC, ATS Bermuda Holdings Limited, ATS Laboratories Inc., Abbott, Abbott (Jiaxing) Nutrition Co. Ltd., Abbott (UK) Finance Limited, Abbott (UK) Holdings Limited, Abbott AG, Abbott Asia Holdings Limited, Abbott Asia Investments Limited, Abbott Australasia Holdings Limited, Abbott Australasia Pty Ltd, Abbott B.V., Abbott Bahamas Overseas Businesses Corporation, Abbott Belgian Investments, Abbott Bermuda Holding Ltd., Abbott Biologicals B.V., Abbott Biologicals LLC, Abbott Bulgaria Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Capital India Limited, Abbott Cardiovascular Inc., Abbott Cardiovascular Systems Inc., Abbott Delaware LLC, Abbott Diabetes Care Inc., Abbott Diabetes Care Limited, Abbott Diabetes Care Sales Corporation, Abbott Diagnostics GmbH, Abbott Diagnostics International Ltd., Abbott Diagnostics Technologies AS, Abbott Doral Investments S.L., Abbott Equity Holdings Unlimited, Abbott Equity Investments LLC, Abbott Established Products Holdings (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Finance Company SA, Abbott Financial Holdings SRL, Abbott France S.A.S., Abbott Fund Tanzania Limited, Abbott Gesellschaft m.b.H., Abbott GmbH & Co. KG, Abbott Health Products LLC, Abbott Healthcare (Puerto Rico) Ltd., Abbott Healthcare B.V., Abbott Healthcare Costa Rica S.A., Abbott Healthcare LLC, Abbott Healthcare Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Healthcare Private Limited, Abbott Healthcare Products B.V., Abbott Healthcare Products Ltd, Abbott Holding (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Holding GmbH, Abbott Holding Subsidiary (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Holding Subsidiary (Gibraltar) Limited Luxembourg S.C.S., Abbott Holdings B.V., Abbott Holdings LLC, Abbott Holdings Limited, Abbott Holdings Poland Spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Hungary Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Abbott Iberian Investments (2) Limited, Abbott Iberian Investments Limited, Abbott India Limited, Abbott Informatics Asia Pacific Limited, Abbott Informatics Canada Inc, Abbott Informatics Corporation, Abbott Informatics Europe Limited, Abbott Informatics France, Abbott Informatics Germany GmbH, Abbott Informatics Netherlands B.V., Abbott Informatics Singapore Pte. Limited, Abbott Informatics Spain S.A., Abbott Informatics Technologies Ltd, Abbott International Corporation, Abbott International Enterprises Ltd., Abbott International Holdings Limited, Abbott International LLC, Abbott International Luxembourg S.ar.l., Abbott Investments Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Ireland, Abbott Ireland Financing Designated Activity Company, Abbott Ireland Limited, Abbott Japan Co. Ltd., Abbott Kazakhstan Limited Liability Partnership, Abbott Knoll Investments B.V., Abbott Korea Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Bangladesh) Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Chile) Holdco (Dos) SpA, Abbott Laboratories (Chile) Holdco SpA, Abbott Laboratories (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Abbott Laboratories (Mozambique) Limitada, Abbott Laboratories (Pakistan) Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Philippines), Abbott Laboratories (Puerto Rico) Incorporated, Abbott Laboratories (Singapore) Private Limited, Abbott Laboratories A/S, Abbott Laboratories Argentina Sociedad Anonima, Abbott Laboratories B.V., Abbott Laboratories C.A., Abbott Laboratories Finance B.V., Abbott Laboratories GmbH, Abbott Laboratories Inc., Abbott Laboratories International LLC, Abbott Laboratories Ireland Limited, Abbott Laboratories Limited, Abbott Laboratories Limited - Laboratoires Abbott Limitee, Abbott Laboratories NZ Limited, Abbott Laboratories Pacific Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Poland Spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Laboratories Products B.V., Abbott Laboratories Residential Development Fund Inc., Abbott Laboratories S.A., Abbott Laboratories SA, Abbott Laboratories Services Corp., Abbott Laboratories Slovakia s.r.o., Abbott Laboratories South Africa (Pty) Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Trustee Company Limited, Abbott Laboratories Uruguay S.A., Abbott Laboratories Vascular Enterprises, Abbott Laboratories d.o.o., Abbott Laboratories de Chile Limitada, Abbott Laboratories de Colombia S.A., Abbott Laboratories de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Abbott Laboratories druzba za farmacijo in diagnostiko d.o.o., Abbott Laboratories s.r.o., Abbott Laboratories(Hellas) Societe Anonyme, Abbott Laboratorios S.A., Abbott Laboratorios S.A., Abbott Laboratorios del Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Abbott Laboratuarlari Ithalat Ihracat ve Ticaret Ltd.Sti, Abbott Laboratorios Lda, Abbott Laboratorios do Brasil Ltda., Abbott Limited Egypt LLC, Abbott Logistics B.V., Abbott Management GmbH, Abbott Management LLC, Abbott Manufacturing Singapore Private Limited, Abbott Mature Products International Unlimited Company, Abbott Mature Products Management Limited, Abbott Medical (Hong Kong) Limited, Abbott Medical (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Abbott Medical (Portugal) Distribuicao de Produtos Medicos Lda, Abbott Medical (Schweiz) AG, Abbott Medical (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Abbott Medical (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Australia Pty. Ltd., Abbott Medical Austria Ges.m.b.H., Abbott Medical Balkan d.o.o. Beograd (Novi Beograd), Abbott Medical Belgium, Abbott Medical Canada Inc./ Medicale Abbott Canada Inc., Abbott Medical Danmark A/S, Abbott Medical Devices Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Espana S.A., Abbott Medical Estonia OU, Abbott Medical Finland Oy, Abbott Medical France SAS, Abbott Medical GmbH, Abbott Medical Hellas Limited Liability Trading Company, Abbott Medical Ireland Limited, Abbott Medical Italia S.p.A., Abbott Medical Japan Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Korea Limited, Abbott Medical Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Abbott Medical Laboratories LTD, Abbott Medical Nederland B.V., Abbott Medical New Zealand Limited, Abbott Medical Norway AS, Abbott Medical Overseas Cyprus Limited, Abbott Medical Sweden AB, Abbott Medical Taiwan Co., Abbott Medical U.K. Limited, Abbott Medical spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Middle East S.A.R.L., Abbott Molecular Inc., Abbott Morocco SARL, Abbott Nederland C.V., Abbott Nederland Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Netherlands Investments B.V., Abbott Norge AS, Abbott Nutrition Limited, Abbott Nutrition Manufacturing Inc., Abbott Operations Singapore Pte. Ltd., Abbott Operations Uruguay S.R.L., Abbott Overseas Cyprus Limited, Abbott Overseas Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Overseas S.A., Abbott Oy, Abbott Point of Care Canada Limited, Abbott Point of Care Inc., Abbott Poland Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Procurement LLC, Abbott Products (Philippines) Inc., Abbott Products (Spain) S.L., Abbott Products Algerie EURL, Abbott Products B.V., Abbott Products Distribution SAS, Abbott Products Egypt LLC, Abbott Products Limited, Abbott Products Limited Liability Company, Abbott Products Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Products Operations AG, Abbott Products Operations LLC, Abbott Products Romania S.R.L., Abbott Products Tunisie S.A.R.L., Abbott Products Unlimited Company, Abbott Resources Inc., Abbott Resources International Inc., Abbott S.r.l., Abbott Saudi Arabia Trading Company, Abbott Scandinavia Aktiebolag, Abbott Sociedad Anonima de Capital Variable, Abbott South Africa Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Strategic Opportunities Limited, Abbott Trading Company Inc., Abbott Universal LLC, Abbott Vascular Devices (2) Limited, Abbott Vascular Devices Limited, Abbott Vascular Inc., Abbott Vascular Instruments Deutschland GmbH, Abbott Vascular International, Abbott Vascular Japan Co. Ltd, Abbott Vascular Limitada, Abbott Vascular Netherlands B.V., Abbott Vascular Solutions Inc., Abbott Ventures Inc., Abbott West Indies Limited, Abbott drustvo sa ogranicenom odgovornoscu za trgovinu i usluge, Advanced Neuromodulation Systems Inc., Alere, Alere (Shanghai) Diagnostics Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Healthcare Management Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Medical Sales Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Technology Co. Ltd., Alere A/S, Alere AB, Alere AS, Alere AS Holdings Limited, Alere BBI Holdings Limited, Alere Bangladesh Limited, Alere China Co. Ltd., Alere Colombia S.A., Alere Connect LLC, Alere Connected Health Limited, Alere Connected Health Ltd., Alere Diagnostics GmbH, Alere DoA Holding GmbH, Alere GmbH, Alere GmbH (Austria), Alere GmbH (Germany), Alere HK Holdings Ltd., Alere Health B.V., Alere Health BVBA, Alere Health Corp., Alere Health Sdn Bhd, Alere Health Services B.V., Alere Healthcare (Pty) Limited, Alere Healthcare Connections Limited, Alere Healthcare Inc., Alere Healthcare Nigeria Limited, Alere Healthcare S.L., Alere Holdco Inc., Alere Holding GmbH, Alere Holdings Bermuda Limited, Alere Holdings Pty Limited, Alere Home Monitoring Inc., Alere Inc., Alere Informatics Inc., Alere International Holding Corp., Alere International Limited, Alere Lda, Alere Limited, Alere Limited (New Zealand), Alere Medical BVBA, Alere Medical Co. Ltd., Alere Medical Pakistan (Private) Limited, Alere Medical Private Limited, Alere North America LLC, Alere Oy Ab, Alere Philippines Inc., Alere Phoenix ACQ Inc., Alere Pte Ltd, Alere S.A., Alere S.r.l., Alere S/A, Alere SAS, Alere San Diego Inc., Alere Scarborough Inc., Alere Spain S.L., Alere Switzerland GmbH, Alere Technologies GmbH, Alere Technologies Holdings Limited, Alere Technologies Limited, Alere Toxicology AB, Alere Toxicology Inc., Alere Toxicology S.r.l., Alere Toxicology Services Inc., Alere Toxicology plc, Alere UK Holdings Limited, Alere UK Subco Limited, Alere ULC, Alere US Holdings LLC, Alere s.r.o., Alisoc Investment & Co, Amedica Biotech Inc., Ameditech Inc., American Generics S.A.S., American Medical Supplies Inc., American Pharmacist Inc., Antares S.A., Apica Cardiovascular Limited, Aquagestion Capacitacion S.A., Aquagestion S.A., Arriva Medical LLC, Arriva Medical Philippines Inc., Arvis Investments Limited, Atlas Farmaceutica S.A., Avee Laboratories Inc., Axis-Shield AD III AS, Axis-Shield AD IV AS, Axis-Shield AS, Axis-Shield Diagnostics Limited, Axis-Shield Ltd., BBI Animal Health Limited, BBI Diagnostics Group 2 Public Limited Company, Banco de Vida S.A., Bioabsorbable Vascular Solutions Inc., Bioalgae S.A., Biohealth LLC, Biosite Incorporated, Bosque Bonito S.A., Branan Medical Corporation, Brandex Europe C.V., British Colloids Limited, CFR Chile S.A., CFR Interamericas EL Salvador Sociedad Anonima de Capital Variable, CFR Interamericas Nicaragua Sociedad Anonima, CFR Interamericas Panama S.A., CFR Pharmaceuticals, California Property Holdings III LLC, CardioMEMS LLC, Caripharm Inc., Cephea Valve Technologies, Cephea Valve Technologies Inc., Colibri Medical Aktiebolag, Comercializadora y Distribuidora CFR Interamericas Honduras S.A., Concateno South Limited, Concateno UK Limited, Consorcio Tecnologico en Biomedicina Clinico-Molecular S.A., Continuum Services LLC, Cozart Limited, Dextech S.A., Diagnostik Nord GmbH, Distribuciones Uquifa S.A.S., Domesco Medical Import-Export Joint-Stock Corporation, Duphar International Research B.V., Endocardial Solutions, Epocal (US) Inc, Esprit de Vie S.A., European Chemicals & Co, European Drug Testing Service EDTS AB, European Services S.A., Evalve Inc., Evalve International Inc., FARMINDUSTRIA S.A., Fada Pharma Paraguay Sociedad Anonima, Fadapharma del Ecuador S.A., Farmaceutica Mont Blanc S.L., Farmacologia Em Aquicultura Veterinaria Ltda., Farmacologia en Aquacultura Veterinaria FAV Ecuador S.A., Farmacologia en Aquacultura Veterinaria FAV S.A., Fernwood Investment S.A., First Check Diagnostics LLC, Focus Pharmaceutical S.A.S., Forensics Limited, Forestcreek Overseas S.A., Fournier Pharma Corp., Fournier Pharma GmbH, Fournier Pharmaceuticals Limited, Framed B.V., Gabmed GmbH, Garden Hills LLC, Global Analytical Development LLC, Globapharm & CO LP, Glomed Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Golnorth Investments S.A., Gynocare Limited, Gynopharm Sociedad Anonima, Gynopharm de Centroamerica S.A., Gynopharm de Venezuela C.A., Hi-Tronics Designs Inc., IDEV Technologies Inc., IG Innovations Limited, IMTC Finance B.V., IMTC Holdings B.V., IMTC Technologies Inc., Ibis Biosciences LLC, Igloo Zone Chile S.A., Igloo Zone S.L., Inmobiliaria Naknek S.A.C., Innovacon Inc., Instant Tech Subsidiary Acquisition Inc., Instant Technologies Inc., Instituto de Criopreservacion de Chile S.A., Integrated Vascular Systems Inc., Inverness Canadian Acquisition Corporation, Inverness Medical (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Inverness Medical Innovations Australia Pty Ltd., Inverness Medical Innovations Hong Kong Limited, Inverness Medical Innovations SK LLC, Inverness Medical Investments LLC, Inverness Medical LLC, Inverness Medical Shimla Private Limited, Inversiones K2 SpA, Inversiones Komodo S.R.L., Ionian Technologies LLC, Irvine Biomedical Inc., Kalila Medical, Kangshenyunga S.A., Knoll UK Investments Unlimited, LLC VeroInPharm, Laboratoires Fournier S.A.S., Laboratorio Franco Colombiano Lafrancol S.A.S., Laboratorio Franco Colombiano del Ecuador S.A., Laboratorio Internacional Argentino S.A., Laboratorio Synthesis S.A.S., Laboratorios Lafi Limitada, Laboratorios Naturmedik S.A.S., Laboratorios Pauly Pharmaceutical S.A.S., Laboratorios Recalcine S.A., Laboratorios Transpharm S.A., Laboratory Specialists of America Inc., Lafrancol Dominicana S.A.S., Lafrancol Guatemala S.A. 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Bhd., St. Jude Medical Puerto Rico LLC, St. Jude Medical S.C. Inc., St. Jude Medical Systems AB, St. Jude Medical Turkey Medikal Urunler Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Standard Diagnostics Inc., Standing Stone LLC, Swan-Myers Incorporated, TC1 LLC, Tendyne Holdings Inc., Tendyne Medical Inc., Thoratec Delaware LLC, Thoratec Europe Limited, Thoratec LLC, Thoratec Switzerland GmbH, Tobal Products Incorporated, Topera GmbH in Liquidation, Topera Inc., Tremora S.A., Tuenir S.A., TwistDx, UAB Abbott Laboratories, UAB Abbott Medical Lithuania, Union-Madison Realty Company Inc., Unipath Limited (dba Alere International/aka Cranfield), Unipath Management Limited, Unipath Pension Trustee Limited, Veropharm, Veropharm Limited Liability Partnership, Vida Cell Inversiones S.A., Vida Cell S.A., Vivalsol, W&R Pharma Handels GmbH, Western Pharmaceuticals S.A., X Technologies Inc., Yissum Holding Limited, ZonePerfect Nutrition Company, eScreen Canada ULC, eScreen Inc., ( ), and Abbott Laboratories Baltics. Read More Thomson Reuters Corporation provides business information services in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates in five segments: Legal Professionals, Corporates, Tax & Accounting Professionals, Reuters News, and Global Print. The Legal Professionals segment offers research and workflow products focusing on legal research and integrated legal workflow solutions that combine content, tools, and analytics to law firms and governments. The Corporates segment provides a suite of content-enabled technology solutions for legal, tax, regulatory, compliance, and IT professionals. The Tax & Accounting Professionals segment offers research and workflow products focusing on tax offerings and automating tax workflows to tax, accounting, and audit professionals in accounting firms. 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It offers Basaglar, Humalog, Humalog Mix 75/25, Humalog U-100, Humalog U-200, Humalog Mix 50/50, insulin lispro, insulin lispro protamine, insulin lispro mix 75/25, Humulin, Humulin 70/30, Humulin N, Humulin R, and Humulin U-500 for diabetes; and Jardiance, Trajenta, and Trulicity for type 2 diabetes. The company provides Alimta for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and malignant pleural mesothelioma; Cyramza for metastatic gastric cancer, gastro-esophageal junction adenocarcinoma, metastatic NSCLC, metastatic colorectal cancer, and hepatocellular carcinoma; Erbitux for colorectal cancers, and various head and neck cancers; Retevmo for metastatic NSCLC, medullary thyroid cancer, and thyroid cancer; Tyvyt for relapsed or refractory classic Hodgkin's lymph and non-squamous NSCLC; and Verzenio for HR+, HER2- metastatic breast cancer, node positive, and early breast cancer. 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Eli Lilly and Company was founded in 1876 and is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. College professors are no strangers to politics. Political science professors teach at almost every university in the United States. And like all of us, professors of each and every speciality have their own political opinions. Some keep their opinions to themselves. Others express them both in and outside the classroom. But now, a new American website is seeking to identify and list professors it claims support extremist ideas. The website, called Professor Watchlist, was launched in November. It is a project of Turning Point USA, a non-profit group that supports values such as limited government and free market economies. These values are often connected to American conservatives. How does Turning Point decide which professors hold extremist beliefs? Matt Lamb is the director of Constitutional Enforcement and Transparency at the organization. Lamb says he and others search for news stories about professors expressing beliefs he says are outside the American mainstream. By definition, mainstream means a direction of an activity or influence. Most of the professors on the list are reported as having talked, written or taught about subjects related to the progressive movement. This includes support of gun control laws, the idea that human activities are to blame for climate change, and criticism of the free market system. The Higher Education Research Institute operates through the University of California, Los Angeles. The group studies issues related to higher education. In 2014, it found that 60 percent of U.S. college professors identified themselves as liberal or politically left-leaning. Lamb says conservative-thinking students often feel like they have to hide their political opinions from their professors and other students. He says many of the professors on the list try to silence conservative students in their classrooms. The aim of the website is to let students know which professors hold opposing beliefs. Then students can either avoid taking classes with those professors or better prepare their own arguments against them, Lamb says. "For example, if youre a pro-life student, you probably dont want to take a class with the professor at University of California Santa Barbara who punched a pro-life student and got 3 years probation for it. Its probably something youre going to want to know going into a class. But for the most part, too, we also encourage other students, if they feel comfortable doing so, to push back and debate these ideas in classrooms." Some critics have compared the websites list to the activities of former U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy. During the 1950s, McCarthy tried to publicly identify American citizens that supported communist teachings. Many of the people he identified suffered damage to their public reputations and careers. But Lamb rejects this comparison. He says Professor Watchlist does not investigate the private lives of professors. And, the information used to identify people named on the list is all publicly available. The website lists some professors because of opinion pieces they wrote for newspapers or comments left on social media. If they did not want their beliefs made public, they should not speak about them publicly, Lambs says. Also, one-sided political arguments do not belong in the classroom, he adds. Greg Hampikian is one of the over 150 professors on the list. He teaches genetics at Boise State University in Idaho. Hampikian is on the list because of an opinion piece he wrote for the New York Times in 2014. His piece is called When May I Shoot a Student? It used humor to express his criticism of a bill to let students carry guns on the grounds of Idaho colleges. Hampikian says he fails to truly understand why he is on the list. He says he has voted for candidates from each of the two major American political parties in the past. And, he says, he is not very political. "There are plenty of people whove given their lives to causes, who would be honored to be on this list. I think theyre scratching their heads about why Im listed on it. I am as well. But, so be it. My grandfather was sent to the gulag and Im told died there for his political opinions. My other grandfather was tied to the railroad tracks in Egypt for his political editorials. And I thought, Im in America, Im on a watch list? By whom?" Hampikian says he welcomes the opinions of conservative students. Being on the list has not yet brought him any harmful attention, he noted. But no one from Turning Point USA has ever contacted him. And that is a big part of the problem with the list, he says. The majority of the stories Professor Watchlist uses to identify professors come from websites that support conservative beliefs. One of the most commonly named sources is a website called Campus Reform. Many of the stories from Campus Reform fail to show any attempt to communicate with the professors they are describing. Without giving professors a chance to further explain their position, Hampikian says, the website risks taking comments out of context. This can often lead to misunderstanding and wrongful representation. Josh Dunn is a political science professor at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs. Dunn identifies himself as a conservative and wrote a book about being a conservative college professor. Dunn says he has never faced difficulties being part of the political minority on a college campus. He agrees professors should limit their support for one political belief over another during class, especially when teaching a non-political subject. But college is all about considering the value of opinions you disagree with, he says. "If the goal is for students to be able to avoid these professors, Im not certain that thats a valuable goal. One of the best classes I ever took was from Richard Rorty, who I had profound disagreements with. But it was a fabulous class and I learned an immense amount from him ... In my case I would not have wanted to miss the opportunity to study under him because I was just trying to avoid people that disagreed with me." Some conservatives worry that college professors with opposing ideas try to force students to follow their beliefs. But Dunn argues even if this were their goal, professors actually have little effect on changing students opinions. Young people are much more likely to base their political beliefs on those of their friends, he says. The U.S. Constitution protects the free speech rights of professors and the website organizers, says Susan Kruth. She is with the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. Her foundation fights for academic freedom on college campuses. Kruth says the history of lists like the one on Professor Watchlist is dark. But she adds that professors should accept criticism and debate. "One of the most important things that people can do is just make sure that they understand the line between whats part of healthy conversation and what is not part of a healthy conversation, what is really censorship and punishment." The website does not support extreme harassment or try to punish professors for their beliefs, Kruth says. Unless it does so, the website remains a welcome part of political debate. Im Pete Musto. Pete Musto reported this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. What types of political beliefs are the majority and minority at colleges in your country? Are there any similar lists of professors that you know of? Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. ____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story transparency n. the quality that makes something obvious or easy to understand mainstream n. the thoughts, beliefs, and choices that are accepted by the largest number of people progressive adj. favoring new or modern ideas especially in politics and education left-leaning adj. having or supporting ideas and policies that are associated with liberal, progressive or socialist groups pro-life adj. opposed to medical procedures used to end unwanted pregnancies and cause the death of the fetus punch(ed) v. to hit someone or something hard with your hand with its fingers bent down into the palm probation n. a situation or period of time in which a person who has committed a crime is allowed to stay out of prison if that person behaves well and does not commit another crime encourage v. to tell or advise someone to do something communist adj. believing in a way of organizing a society called Communism, in which the government owns the things that are used to make and transport products and there is no privately owned property reputation(s) n. the common opinion that people have about someone or something gulag n. one of many forced labor camps in Soviet Russia during the Stalin era, from the 1930s until the 1950s source(s) n. a person, book, or report that gives information out of context idm. without the surrounding words or circumstances and so not fully understandable profound adj. very strongly felt academic adj. of or relating to schools and education censorship n. the system or practice of examining books, movies and letters in order to remove things that are considered to be offensive, immoral or harmful to society harassment n. to annoy or bother someone in a constant or repeated way 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 Most voters in the United States marked their ballots in the presidential election on November 8. But they did not vote directly for a candidate. Instead, they chose what the Constitution calls electors. On December 19, 538 electors will meet at statehouses across the country. They will mark their own ballots to officially choose the 45th president of the United States. The electors are members of the Electoral College. The meeting of the electors usually receives little attention. But this year, opponents of President-elect Donald Trump have tried to urge the Electoral College to deny him the presidency. Forming the Electoral College In the late 1700s, some founders of the United States wanted members of Congress to be able to choose the president. They did not trust that voters would always make a good choice. Others wanted voters to directly decide. So, as a compromise, the founders created a system they called the Electoral College. Members meet after the election to formally choose the president. Electors normally mark their ballots for the candidate who won the popular vote in their state. But the system does permit electors to vote for someone else. The number of electors for each state is equal to its members of Congress. This means states with bigger populations have more electors and states with lower populations have fewer. The Electoral College system can create a situation in which a candidate wins more popular votes nationwide, but still loses the election. Before the 2016 election, that had happened only four times in American history. Some Voters Hope for Faithless Electors This November, 65.7 million people voted for Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. Donald Trump received 62.9 million. But Trump won the presidency because he won the most electoral votes. If Trump receives all of the electoral votes on Monday from the states where he won the popular vote, he will have 306. The winning candidate must at least 270 electoral votes. That is the majority of the 538 total votes. Although Hillary Clinton won more votes nationally, she only won 232 electoral votes. For the results of the election to change, 37 Republican electors would have to vote against their states voters and choose Clinton instead of Trump. That would make them faithless electors. Experts say that is unlikely to happen. Only one Republican elector has publicly said he will not vote for Trump. That elector is Christopher Suprun. He lives in Dallas, Texas. He told VOA that he believes Trump is not qualified to be president. He is also worried that Trump will be more loyal to his many businesses than to the country. Lawrence Lessig is a professor of constitutional law at Harvard University. Earlier this week, he said, as many as 20 Republican electors were considering not voting for Trump. But that could not be confirmed. There is no federal law that requires the electors to vote for the candidate who received the most votes in their state. But 29 states and the District of Columbia have laws that control how electors vote. However, many constitutional lawyers do not believe those laws can be enforced. Larry Tribe is also a professor at Harvard Law School. He says it is not likely that Trump will lose in the Electoral College. But he says electors, in his words, have a responsibility to the country and the Constitution, in extreme enough situations. And I think this is a pretty extreme situation. A group that calls itself the Hamilton Electors is working to urge electors not to vote for Trump. The group is named for Alexander Hamilton, one of the founders of the United States. He was also one of the main founders of the Electoral College. The group notes that the founders designed the system to keep someone unfit for the presidency from taking office. The group wrote on its website that it honors Alexander Hamiltons vision that the Electoral College should, when necessary, act as a Constitutional fail-safe against those lacking the qualifications from becoming president. Others believe electors should change their votes because of recent intelligence reports. They suggest that the Russian government stole information from computers of some Democratic Party officials. The reports say the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) believes Russia did so to help Trump win the election. On Friday, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said it supported the CIA's findings. Trump has dismissed the CIA report. He says there is no evidence that Russia was involved in the hacking. But a growing number of electors are worried that Russia did try to help Trump win. At least 67 electors have asked for information from the intelligence community about the suspected Russian activities before they vote on Monday. All but one of those electors are Democrats. Experts say this shows that the campaign to convince Republican electors not to vote for Trump has failed. Im Caty Weaver. And I'm Ashley Thompson. VOA National Correspondents Carolyn Presutti and William Gallo reported this story from Washington. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted the story for Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story nationwide adj. including or involving all parts of a nation or country vision n. a clear idea about what should happen or be done in the future fail-safe adj. certain not to fail; capable of compensating automatically and safely for a failure qualification n. a special skill or type of experience or knowledge that makes someone suitable to do a particular job or activity (usually plural) hack v. to secretly get access to the files on a computer or network in order to get information, cause damage, etc. convince v. to cause (someone) to agree to do something On Thursday, the global social media giant Facebook announced new measures it said were designed to limit the spread of fake news from hoax web sites. The measures, however, are part of a broader corporate media campaign to clamp down on independent and alternative news organizations. Facebooks announcement is in response to criticism it received from major corporate news outlets such as the New York Times alleging that fake news articles shared on the social media platform played a major role in altering the outcome of the 2016 elections. Facebooks CEO and founder, Mark Zuckerberg, first called such allegations crazy but has shifted to accommodate the demands. In a news post on Facebook titled News Feed FYI: Addressing Hoaxes and Fake News by Adam Mosseri, vice president of product management, Facebook laid out the four components of its new policy. Under the headline Easier Reporting, Facebook will streamline the way people can report an alleged fake news site by implementing new features. Under Disrupting Financial Incentives for Spammers, Facebook plans to financially hurt fake news sites by limiting their ability to purchase ads by making it more difficult to use fake domain sites when posting ads. This is followed by the measure called Informed Sharing. If an article is read multiple times and it is not shared afterwards, according to Facebook this may be a sign that the article is misleading. If Facebook deems this to be the case, then the article will receive a lower ranking on Facebooks newsfeed, making it less visible and available for reading. In practice, this means that if an article, whether it is telling the truth or not, is not shared, then it may be demoted and become less likely to be read. An analysis by BuzzFeed News found that during the 2016 presidential election campaign, news posts considered fake were in fact more widely shared than those considered real. Most significant, however, is a policy under the headline Flagging Stories as Disputed. Facebook will catalog reports of alleged fake news from users, along with other vague data it only describes as signals, and will send them to a third-party fact checker for arbitration. If a story is deemed fake, then Facebook will mark it as such with an attached explanation as to why. Such stories will then appear lower in Facebooks newsfeed. Facebooks third party reportedly consists of five news organizations acting as fact-checkers. These are: ABC News, Politifact, FactCheck, Snopes and the Associated Press. According to Facebook, these organizations are also signatories of The Poynter Institutes International Fact Checking Code of Principles, which are: 1) a commitment to nonpartisanship and fairness; 2) a commitment to transparency of sources; 3) a commitment to transparency of funding and organization; 4) a commitment to transparency of methodology; and 5) a commitment to open and honest corrections. Poynter, a self described global leader in journalism, receives funding from, amongst others, Google, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and most notably the National Endowment for Democracy, a front for the US Department of State that has intervened in elections all over the world in the interest of US imperialism. The implications of Facebooks moves to limit fake news are ominous. It takes place in the context of an effort by the corporate media to create an amalgam between clearly manufactured content and articles and analysis that it brands Russian propaganda because they are critical of US foreign policy. Last month, the Washington Post published an article, Russian propaganda effort helped spread fake news during election, experts say, which referred to an organization, PropOrNot, that had compiled a list of web sites that are declared to be peddlers of Russian propaganda. The site includes WikiLeaks, Truthout, Naked Capitalism and similar publications. This author also recommends: The fake news furor and the threat of Internet censorship [1 December 2016] Pacific island fisheries officials and the United States government have signed a six-year extension to a 27-year-old fisheries treaty confirming American-flagged fishing vessels have continuing access to lucrative Pacific fishing grounds. The signing took place at a meeting of the Western and Central Pacific Fishery Commission (WCPFC) in Fiji on December 4. The South Pacific Tuna Treaty is the USs most important commercial, aid and trade pact within the region. The treaty governs access to the worlds biggest fishing grounds, within the 200-mile exclusive economic zones of 17 mostly small Pacific Island states dispersed over vast areas of ocean. The US State Department negotiates access on behalf of American fishing companies, which operate the biggest purse seine (large netting) fleets in the Pacific. The agreement was hammered out after 18 negotiation rounds over seven years. It almost broke down early this year when Washington notified Pacific island governments of its intention to withdraw from the treaty unless agreement could be reached on new financial terms and increased access. Washington had agreed to pay $US89 million for its 2016 fishing rights, but reneged on the deal. Unless it was renegotiated, the treaty stood to expire next month, with devastating consequences for jobs and livelihoods, as well as government revenues, in Pacific states. For small countries like Tuvalu, fishing rights generate as much as 50 percent of total revenue. Last month, in the lead-up to the WCPFC meeting, the US fishing companies ramped up their pressure. The San Diego-based American Tunaboat Association (ATA) cynically demanded, among other things, a level playing field for US companies and the protection of US fishing rights on the high seas. ATA executive director Brian Hallman, accompanied by a group of ATA members, attended the WCPFC meeting to push the industrys demands. Tri Marine International, which has a fishing fleet based in the American Samoa capital Pago Pago, supported by the territorys government officials, called for more fishing days for the US fleet, claiming previous restrictions affected fish delivery to the canneries in American Samoa. Under the new six-year Multilateral Treaty on Fisheries, the amounts to be paid to the Pacific states are a pittance compared with the enormous profits due to be reaped by the fishing companies. The western and central Pacific tuna fishery is valued at over $5 billion annually. The deal allows US vessels to choose the number of fishing days to purchase, at a rate of $12,500 per fishing day. Hallman said the ATA was particularly pleased with a guaranteed four-year term for fishing days and their cost. In addition, an industry payment of $45 million per year and US government fisheries aid of $21 million annually will go to members of the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency that signed the agreement. The aid is the total extent of the US governments financial assistance to the poverty-stricken region, which it regards as its own backyard. Washington is meanwhile spending billions of dollars to extensively militarise the Pacific in order to confront China. In a statement, the US State Department claimed the revised treaty would generate higher economic returns for Pacific countries, while supporting the continued viable operation of the US fishing fleet in the region. However, American Samoas Commerce Department Director Keniseli Lafaele told the Samoa News that while the treaty secures continued access to the fishing grounds by the US-flagged purse seine vessels, it gives no special recognition or benefit to the American Samoa tuna industry. According to Lafaele, the deal will not make much difference in saving the local industry. Tri Marine Internationals Samoa Tuna Processors closed its canning operation on December 11, eliminating 800 jobs. StarKist Samoa is also considering more intermittent closures of the countrys only other major cannery, blaming poor fish supplies. The international fishing companies, chasing higher profits and lower costs, are increasingly transferring their processing operations to Asian-based plants. American Samoa, a designated unincorporated US territory with a population of just 55,000, is deeply impoverished. A 2009 study found its poverty rate running at 57.8 percent. A US Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released on December 2 identified $5.67 as the minimum wage needed for a local family of six to afford to live. This exceeds the hourly minimum wage for cannery workers by $0.51, according to the GAO. Under duress from the companies, local authorities have opposed moves to tie the minimum wage to the US federal rate of $7.25 per hour. Though they make millions on their operations, the canneries have previously threatened to relocate if the minimum wage is raised. They pay no tax and Asian fishing companies avoid US import tariffs on processed fish. In 2014, the territory governors office urged against minimum wage rises, calling a scheduled 2015 increase a prescription for total economic ruin. Throughout the Pacific, there is opposition to the rapacious activities of the fishing companies. The environment advocacy group, the Pew Charitable Trusts, called for a two-year ban on fishing for bluefin tuna before the WCPFC meeting. The Pew organisation said independent surveys showed stocks had been critically depleted to just 2.7 percent of the levels that existed before the advent of commercial fishing in the Pacific. The director of Pews tuna conservation campaign, Amanda Nickson, said there had been four years of delays and lack of adequate action by key agencies such as the WCPFC and governments, and a moratorium on commercial fishing was urgently needed to allow stocks to regenerate. In the Cook Islands last month many people turned up at a presentation by the European Union and Spanish fishing industry to oppose a controversial purse seining agreement the government entered into with the EU. Under the agreement the Cook Islands will receive $7 million for allowing four European purse seiners to fish for skipjack tuna. Traditional leaders organised the opposition, declaring they did not want mega-rich Spanish fishing companies plundering the Cook Islands most important resource. Conservation measures for depleted tuna stocks have polarised the WCPFC. According to Radio NZ, WCPFC executive director Feleti Teo said it was proving extremely difficult to reach a consensus on protecting depleted tuna stocks. Management of bluefin tuna is controlled by a sub-group within the WCPFC called the Northern Committee. It is made up of countries located above 20 degrees north latitude, essentially Asian member countries, which have been accused of a complete failure to manage the stock. The WCPFC itself has been accused of not reining in the distant water fishing nations. The author also recommends: Samoan car component plant to shut, eliminating 740 jobs [29 October 2016] Pacific island economies hit by global slump [17 August 2016] In yet another appointment defining the extreme right-wing character of his incoming administration, president-elect Donald Trump has named New York bankruptcy attorney David M. Friedman as his choice for US ambassador to Israel. With no diplomatic or political experience whatsoever, Friedmans apparent qualifications for what has long been considered one of Washingtons most important diplomatic postings appear to be: (1) his having helped Trump reap tens of millions off of the multiple bankruptcies of his Atlantic City casinos; and (2) his raising of tens of millions to support one of the most right-wing religious Zionist settlements in the occupied West Bank. Based on statements he has issued and columns he has penned, Friedman is positioned on the far right of the Israeli political mapmore hard-line in his views than Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli daily Haaretz commented in its article on the appointment. The bond between Israel and the United States runs deep, and I will ensure there is no daylight between us when Im president, Trump said in a statement announcing the appointment. As the United States ambassador to Israel, David Friedman will maintain the special relationship between our two countries. In reality, the naming of Friedman as US ambassador is the equivalent of an open US declaration of war against the Palestinian people and a signal that, under a Trump presidency, Washington will give up even the pretense of opposing the expansion of Israeli settlements and the outright annexation of the occupied West Bank. It signals open and unconditional support to every measure taken by the Israeli government to drive the Palestinians from their land, destroy their homes, deprive them of even minimal democratic rights and brutally suppress every manifestation of resistance. In response to the nomination, Friedman issued a statement saying that he looked forward to doing his job from the US embassy in Israels eternal capital, Jerusalem. For more than six decades, US administrations, Democratic and Republican alike, have kept the US embassy in Tel Aviv, along with those of every other country that maintains diplomatic relations with the Israeli state. Under international law, Israels annexation of occupied East Jerusalem following the 1967 Six-Day War is considered illegal, and the official US position has been that the citys status must be resolved as part of a comprehensive peace agreement. While Zionist settlements in the occupied West Bank are also a violation of international law, Trumps nomination of Friedman is an unmistakable declaration of full support to their unbridled expansion. Friedman is the president of a group called American Friends of Bet El Yeshiva, which funnels tens of millions of dollars to an illegal settlement established by right-wing religious Zionists on stolen Palestinian private land near Ramallah. Among those providing funding for this group are the parents of Jared Kushner, Donald Trumps son-in-law, who reportedly will play a significant role in the incoming administration. Jared Kushner is a member of the board of his parents foundation that has donated to American Friends of Bet El Yeshiva. The Kushner foundation has also provided funding for the Gush Etzion, a complex of 14 Zionist settlements, whose expansion has been formally condemned by the US State Department as threatening to upend any possibility of a peace settlement based on the so-called two-state solution. Friedman, who has written as a columnist for Arutz Sheva, the media outlet of the settler movement, as well as for the right-wing Jerusalem Post, has consistently rejected the illegality of Zionist settlement activity and has called for an end to any restrictions on construction of new settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. In one of his columns, Friedman accused President Obama of appealing to the vilest anti-Semitic biases of the population. He has also denounced in the most vitriolic terms any Jewish groups voicing opposition to the policies of the right-wing Israeli government. In another column for Arutz Sheva, he characterized the liberal Zionist lobby J Street as far worse than kaposJews who turned in their fellow Jews in the Nazi death camps. During the Trump campaign, Friedman served as an emissary to Jewish voters, particularly among Americans living in Israel. Friedman spoke out against those calling attention to the role in the campaign of fascistic elements like Breitbart chief Stephen Bannon, the president-elects chief strategist, and their ties to openly anti-Semitic groups. The danger in the US is on the left, not on the right, Friedman told Israeli television. Im not saying that there arent neo-Nazis floating around in the United States, because Im sure there are. But the movement we ought to be concerned about is on the left. The Israeli right has hailed Friedmans nomination. Likud Party Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely welcomed his appointment on her Facebook page, calling it good news for Israel. His positions encapsulate the desire to strengthen the status of Israels capital, Jerusalem, and the understanding that settlements have never been the real problem in the region, Hotovely said. Similarly, Education Minister Naftali Bennett of the Jewish Home party, a right-wing political rival of Netanyahu, described Friedman as a great friend of Israel. Meanwhile, Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organization, warned that the policies advocated by Friedman will be the destruction of the peace process. I look David Friedman and Trump in the eye and tell themif you were to take these steps of moving the embassy and annexing settlements in the West Bank, you are sending this region down the path of something that I call chaos, lawlessness and extremism, he said. Expressing the deep conservatism and subservience to imperialism of the Palestinian bourgeois leadership, Erekat added that he didnt believe the Trump administration would pursue such policies because, The United States at the end of the day is a country of institutions, and they are guided by their national interests. There were also warnings from former Israeli officials about the dangers involved in appointing Friedman. If an American ambassador stakes out positions that further embolden an already triumphalist settler elite, then that is likely to cause headaches for American national security interests across the region and even for Israels own security establishment, Daniel Levy, a former Israeli peace negotiator told the New York Times. Especially an ambassador committed to the ill-advised relocation of the US embassy to Jerusalem. The concern within these circles is that Washingtons renunciation of the pretense of peace negotiations and a two-state solution and its open embrace of the Israeli occupation will not only further stoke hostility to US imperialism throughout the Middle East, but will also lead to the collapse of the Palestinian Authority, to which the US and Israel have contracted out much of the policing of the Palestinian population in the West Bank. Amid widespread hostility to the PA among the West Bank Palestinians, a recent poll conducted in the area found that two-thirds of the Palestinian population already believes that the two-state solution is no longer viable, and a similar majority wants Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to resign. A new study by USA Today shows that millions of people in the United States are living in smaller communities that do not regularly test for lead contamination in their water supplies. About 100,000 people are served by water systems that were found to have unsafe levels of lead, but where authorities failed to treat the water in order to remove it. Journalists reviewed Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) records and visited communities across the United States. The report further underscores pervasive and widespread lead contamination of water supplies across the United States, despite formal EPA rules mandating testing and lead abatement measures. These latest revelations come in the wake of the lead-in-water crisis in Flint, Michigan where more than 100,000 residents were exposed to lead-tainted water after city officials switched the citys water supply from the Detroit water system to the Flint River in order to cuts costs. According to USA Today, some four million US residents live in communities where authorities failed to conduct mandated lead testing or did the testing improperly. In 2,000 communities lead testing was skipped more than once. Several hundred did not conduct lead tests for five or more years. The report noted that small water systems were likely to escape close monitoring by the EPA. US regulations exempt small, poorly-funded water systems from stringent water testing requirements. Instead of providing federal resources to help these struggling communities, often in rural areas such as Appalachia, residents are left to fend for themselves. The results are many times tragic, with residents, including particularly susceptible children, exposed to dangerous levels of lead that can stunt growth, cause permanent mental impairment and lead to other health issues. There are about 850 local water systems with a documented history of lead contamination where there has been no proper lead testing since 2010. The USA Today report cited the example of the community of Coal Mountain, West Virginia where the water treatment process consists of occasionally pouring bleach into the old wellhead that serves as a water supply for residents. State officials labeled 12 water systems in West Virginia orphans, because it was not clear who was in charge, and warning letters were ignored year after year. In Ranger, Texas the family of a two-year-old boy found that their son had elevated lead levels in his blood. They learned later from USA Today that their tap water had lead levels 28 times the federal limit. This all happened while city officials were aware of the lead-in-water problem in their community, but took no corrective action nor alerted residents. The requirements to run a small water system are often extremely low. For example, the state of Texas requires only a high school diploma or GED and a training course in basic water operation. You might have to get more training to run a hot dog stand than a small water system, Paul Schwarz with the Campaign for Lead Free Water told USA Today. About 350 of the water systems cited by the USA Today report serve schools or day care centers. At an elementary school in Ithaca, New York one sample tested was 5,000 parts per billion (ppb), the EPA threshold for hazardous waste. Investigators found 600 water systems where tests showed tap water containing more than 40 ppb, more than double the EPAs limit, which itself is unrealistically high. At the Orange Center School near Fresno, California local officials let children keep drinking the water for years despite tests that showed excessive levels of lead. The school skipped testing for nine years after a finding of high lead levels in 2003. In 2012 tests showed elevated lead levels, but school officials let children continue drinking the water. Two years later the state ordered the school to stop using the water and began shipping bottled water to students until the district connected to the Fresno water system. The problem is not limited to small cities or rural areas. In April, water testing in the city of Detroit revealed that 19 public schools had elevated levels of lead or copper. One water sample at Brown Academy showed lead levels of 1,500 ppb, 100 times the EPA limit of 15 ppb. Despite the pressing urgency, the amount of money available for water system upgrades is tiny compared to the need. The EPA estimated in 2013 that some $64.5 billion is needed over the next 20 years to maintain small water systems. In 2016 the revolving fund allocation for water systems of all sizes was less than $1 billion. In the wake of the USA Today report federal, state and local officials went into damage control mode, feigning shock and outrage at the disastrous state of US water infrastructure. While calling for tightening lead testing standards and notification, none of the proposed legislation actually provides additional funding for water infrastructure, particularly for small, cash-strapped communities in impoverished areas. In relation to the Flint water crisis, the US Senate approved legislation this week appropriating a token $170 million to address needed infrastructure upgrades in the city. The money is a relative drop in the bucket compared to the estimated cost of replacing lead pipes in the city, which by some calculations will reach up to $1.5 billion. Meanwhile, a federal appeals court on Friday ruled that the State of Michigan must make regular water deliveries to homes in Flint that do not have a working lead filter. The administration of Republican Governor Rick Snyder has ignored two previous court rulings mandating the delivery of bottled water, claiming the cost would be prohibitive and that it is unnecessary since the citys tap water now meets federal standards. Activist Melissa Mays of the group Water You Fighting For? told a press conference Tuesday that she questions the methods state officials are using to determine if Flint water is safe to drink. She said that many residents had results coming in above the federal action level of 15 ppbin at least one case, as high as 1,700 ppb. She wanted every home in Flint tested. We have too many vulnerable people slipping through the cracks right now and there are too many high numbers I dont care if it seems unrealistic because its unrealistic to us to think that everythings OK when theres not the data to back it up, Mays remarked. President Barack Obama says the United States will take action against Russia for carrying out cyberattacks during the U.S. election. Obama said any time it is proven that a foreign government tried to influence the integrity of U.S. elections, officials need to take action and we will. He made the comments during an interview with National Public Radio released Friday. Obama also spoke to reporters about the issue during a press conference Friday at the White House. He said U.S. intelligence agencies have investigated the issue and found that Russia was responsible for leaking emails of U.S. people and political institutions. Thousands of emails were leaked from the Democratic National Committee last July. The emails contained private information about committee activities. Private emails from a top campaign adviser to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton were also leaked. Some of the details were considered embarrassing for Clinton and the Democratic Party. Obama said he even brought up the issue when he saw Russian President Vladimir Putin at a G-20 meeting in China in September. He said he told Putin to "cut it out." Obama said he wanted to speak directly to Putin to let him know there would be serious consequences if the leaks did not stop. We did not see further tampering of the election process, he said. But Obama noted that, at that time, the leaks were already public and could no longer be stopped. Obama said he thinks his administration handled the leaks correctly by making them public. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence released a statement on the leaks in October. The statement accused the Russian government of directing the leaks involving U.S. people and political organizations. It said the stolen information was intended to interfere with the U.S. election process. The statement added that top Russian officials must have authorized the activities. And then we allowed you, and the American public, to make an assessment as to how to weigh that going into the election. Obama said the United States had not yet decided how to answer the Russian actions. Our goal continues to be to send a clear message to Russia, or others, not to do this to us. Because we can do stuff to you. But it is also important for us to do that in a thoughtful, methodical way. He added that the U.S. response might be handled in a private way. Obama noted that U.S. relations with Russia had already declined in recent years over several issues. He said the U.S. currently has many sanctions in place against Moscow. So how we approach an appropriate response that increases costs for them for behavior like this in the future - but does not create problems for us - is something thats worth taking the time to think through and figure out. Russian officials have repeatedly denied any involvement in activities intended to influence the U.S. elections. They have also urged U.S. officials to make public any evidence they have. Both Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. Congress have called for investigations into possible Russian influence in the election. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin have called for full investigations into the election. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has rejected suggestions by intelligence agencies that Russia carried out cyberattacks to help him win the election. On Thursday, Trump again raised questions about the accusations on Twitter. If Russia, or some other entity, was hacking, why did the White House wait so long to act? Why did they only complain after Hillary lost? he wrote. Im Bryan Lynn. Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from VOANews.com, and the Associated Press. Mario Ritter was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story cyberattacks n. malicious attack on a computer system from an outside source embarrass - v. to make (someone) feel confused and foolish in front of other people cut it out - expression. used to ask someone to stop doing or saying something integrity n. the quality of being fair and honest authorize adj. give permission to do something assessment - n. a judgement made about something appropriate adj. suitable or right for a person or situation consequences - n. actions that happen as a result of a set of conditions tamper - v. to change something in a way that harms it Labours Keir Starmer has said the partys support for the right of people to live and work in any European Union (EU) country is no longer sustainable and The rules must change. Starmer is Labours Shadow Brexit Secretary, responsible for detailing the partys standpoint on the UK quitting the EU following Junes referendum. His support for limiting the free movement of people within Europe was made in the same speech in which he vigorously demanded that British capital must have unrestricted access to the continent and its markets. Addressing a meeting of Labour members at Bloombergs headquarters in central London earlier this week, Starmer said the party had to shape the battle of our times. On December 8, parliament voted 461 to 89 in favour of a Labour motion for the Conservative government to publish its plans for leaving the EU before beginning formal negotiations over the UKs exit. This was after Labour accepted a Conservative amendment that Article 50 of the EU treatytriggering the start of withdrawalwould be invoked by the end of March. Labour also overwhelmingly agreed not to challenge the result of the referendum, and that publication of the governments plan for exit would contain nothing likely to undermine its stance in negotiations. Starmers speech was intended to set out Labours stall as the party of the national interest. Unlike the Conservative government, he claimed, Labour would not simply stand up for the 52 percent of those who voted to Leave the EU but also the 48 percent who voted to Remain. This portrayal underscores how the bourgeoisie are utilising the referendum vote to polarise official politics entirely around the issue of for or against Brexit, for the most reactionary ends. According to official discourse, the Leave vote was motivated solely by anti-immigrant sentiment while those voting Remain were defending the neo-liberal model on which the EU is based. On these grounds, Starmer claimed that the national interest dictated that Labour must support immigration controls, while fighting to maintain the right of corporate and financial interests in the UK to access the European Single Market. This would enable Labour to build a national consensus on Brexit, he claimed, with freedom of movement restrictions central to negotiations. Mays government was guilty of setting aside the national interest once again by serving the interests of just one side of the divide, he said, pursuing a hard Brexit in which Britain would lose access to the Single Market. Mays problem, he suggested, it that she was extrapolating the view of a group within the 52%, who were seriously concerned about freedom of movement and immigration and had prioritised this over jobs, the economy and living standards. Labour could not support the Liberal Democrats, however, who have said they will block exit from the EU, because that would mean abandoning those who voted to Leave. But, Starmer went on, it would not give the government a blank cheque over the terms of departure, and would seek to amend any parliamentary bill on triggering Article 50 if it believed it was necessary. Starmer claimed that Labours concern over immigration levels was driven by the need for strong, cohesive communities. It was striking that the referendum results showed that those areas in the country with the highest levels of immigration voted most strongly to Remain, but the areas with the highest pace of change voted most strongly to Leave, he went on. That tells me that the British people are open and tolerant; but that they also expect change to be managed, rather than simply allowing the free market to rip through communities. The highest pace of change is meant to indicate areas with traditionally low or negligible levels of immigration that have seen an increase over the last period. Starmer associates this rise with the free market ripping through communities. He is essentially mimicking the claim that globalism (which is never defined) equals immigration, equals social devastationthe mantra of every nationalist and of the far right. Similarly, Labour Greater Manchester mayoral candidate Andy Burnham asserted, There is nothing socialist about a system of open borders that allows multinationals to treat people as commodities and to move them around Europe to drive down labour costs and create a race to the bottom. Burnham, who stood against Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in the 2015 leadership contest, has never been concerned before about what constitutes socialism. Like Starmer, his aim is to blame migration, rather than capitalism, for creating a race to the bottom. Such statements by leading Labour politicians are intended to scapegoat migrants for the catastrophic decline in services and living standards that are the direct and deliberate result of government-imposed austerity. In this way, the bourgeoisie seeks to divide the only social force capable of mounting a serious challenge to the capitalist profit systemthe real source of poverty, inequality and warthe international working class. Meanwhile, Starmer demands for Labour a soft Brexit model that ensures that any new regulatory frameworks do not add bureaucratic burdens or risk harmful divergence from the EU market and a model that protects the competitiveness of our services and manufacturing sectors. Starmers speech was headlined as a challenge to Jeremy Corbyn and Labours Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott, who have complained about divisive anti-immigrant rhetoric. But according to the Independent, a source close to Abbott stressed that all she has never called for open borders... all Diane has proposed is sensible and progressive immigration policies that benefit Britain and its economy Corbyn was silent on Starmers remarks. However, asked to comment on whether Burnham or Abbott expressed Labours stance on immigration, Corbyns close ally and Labour Chancellor, John McDonnell, said, Theyre both speaking for Labour, because if you listen to them, what theyre saying is if we want to protect our economy, the negotiations around freedom of movement are going to come onto the table. What weve got to do is negotiate the best deal. Starmer too made clear that his primary concern about restricting free movement was that the EU will retaliate by imposing unfavourable trade terms on the UK. Declining to define what he considered as reasonable controls, Starmer said, The direction of travel needs to be downwards, as I have said, but I dont think setting arbitrary targets is the way forwards. This was especially important as the practical problem was evaluating areas of shortage in the UK labour force, he said. While there remain deep divisions within the bourgeoisie over Brexit, Labour is working hard to shape a consensus on the fundamental interests of British capital. Starmers considerations were echoed yesterday by David Davis, the Conservative governments Brexit Secretary, before a parliamentary cross-party Brexit select committee. Davis was a key figure in the hardline Leave camp during the referendum. He told the committee that returning control of immigration policy to British ministers, from the EU, would enable decisions to be made in the national interest. This would affect all levels of skill based on a judgement as what is necessary for universities, business and fruit picking. The nominally liberal and anti-Brexit Guardian is increasingly a mouthpiece for calls for migration controls. Writing earlier this week, supposedly in opposition to Burnham, Zoe Williams suggested the solution would be to make immigration a devolved issue: Leave aside for the time being the practicalities of having internal regional borders, and imagine how this debate would go. How many immigrants do you want in your constituency, or county? In London, unskilled labour could be agreed upon where it was part of a mutually agreed zone for free movement, she wrote. Meanwhile, Lincolnshire could determine its requirements in debate with the requirements of farmers who rely on migrant labour, while in Yorkshire, should people with concerns over immigration discuss the issue and decide they would not accept refugees in the region, then so be it. Thats what devolved democracy is about. On Thursday, the 28 leaders of the European Union gathered in Brussels at their final summit of the year. The EU is in deep crisis. Following the British decision to leave the EU, the election of Donald Trump as US president, and the rise of right-wing nationalist forces in many European countries, it is paralyzed and divided. The member states are hopelessly divided over many issues--the distribution of refugee quotas, the attitude towards Turkey, the austerity policy dictated by Berlin and Brussels, the creation of a European army, the response to incoming President Trump, and, above all, the stance towards Russia. In addition, the leaders of the larger member states, who have thus far set the course in the EU, have been weakened by internal political crises. Britain is on its way out of the EU and its government is arguing over what Brexit means. French President Francois Hollande leaves office in May. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi resigned last week and his successor, Paolo Gentiloni, is at best a transitional figure. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy rests on an uncertain majority. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is seeking her fourth term in office next year, confronts growing resistance both within her own Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and within its coalition partner, the Social Democratic Party (SPD). Shortly before the summit, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker described the situation in the EU with the words: This time we are dealing with a multiple crisis. It is burning all over, not just in Europe. But wherever there is fire outside Europe, the conflagration moves toward Europe. For these reasons, the summit was to be limited to a few hours on Thursday. To avoid intensifying the crisis, the discussion was supposed to avoid controversial issues. Over dinner, the participants planned to discuss preparations for the Brexit negotiations in the absence of British Prime Minister Theresa May. But things turned out differently. Council President Donald Tusk decided spontaneously to invite a Syrian anti-Assad activist--something unprecedented in the history of the EU--and the summit was extended by hours. Brita Hagi Hasan, introduced as the mayor of Aleppo, described the situation in the east of the city in dramatic terms. Speaking to the assembled heads of government, he claimed 50,000 civilians were soon to be massacred. Hasan is one of those Syrian oppositionists who travel round the world promoting imperialist military intervention and are dragged into the limelight for that purpose. He has met several times with the French foreign minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault, most recently at the end of November. During the summer, he attended a meeting in Paris together with Maryam Rajavi of the Iranian Peoples Mujahedin and Michel Kilo, another Syrian regime opponent, who three years ago called for an American military strike against Syria. The Peoples Mujahedin are fighting the regime in Tehran from abroad and have been listed by the EU up to 2009 as a terrorist organization. Tusk, Hollande and Merkel used Hasans appearance to call for the fractious EU members to unite on an anti-Russian line. While in US ruling circles there is fierce struggle over relations with Russia, the EU is siding with that wing which is pushing for a confrontation with Russia. Merkel and Hollande fear that the new president, Donald Trump, is moving closer to Moscow at the expense of the Europe, and that the EU, and possibly NATO as well, could break apart as a result. In an editorial just before the summit, the Financial Times wrote: Europes diplomats are at a loss over how to prepare for his [Trumps] incoming administration.... With any US pivot on Russia policy, the blocs hard-won consensus on how to respond to Moscow could change, tipping the balance between the EUs hawks and doves. The European leaders did not waste any words talking about Mosul or Yemen, where they, the US and Washingtons regional allies are bombing civilians as ruthlessly as the Russians and the Syrian army in Aleppo. But they shed buckets of crocodile tears over the fate of the civilian population of Aleppo--and this on the day when the fighting there had stopped. Chancellor Merkel said the report delivered by Hasan was very depressing. She accused Russia and Iran of responsibility for crimes against the civilian population in Aleppo and demanded that they be punished. She accused the United Nations Security Council of failure. British Prime Minister Theresa May spoke in identical terms. We must ensure that those who are responsible for these atrocities will be held accountable, she said. President Hollande said the EUs raison d'etre was in question if it could not even unite on something as basic as condemning the massacres that are being initiated by the Syrian regime and its supporters. The cynicism of this feigned indignation was underscored by the fact that just hours before, Merkels government had begun the first mass deportations to Afghanistan. This initiates a process that will result in forcibly ejecting up to 12,500 refugees from Germany and sending them back to a country reduced to rubble by war and civil war. Based on the surge of emotions that was staged with Hasans appearance, the summit agreed a number of controversial decisions either directed against Russia, providing for an accelerated military buildup, or serving to repel refugees. The summit decided that despite billions in losses for various European countries, the sanctions against Russia for the Ukraine conflict should be extended until at least July 31 of next year. The day before the summit, the Slovak prime minister and current EU council president, Robert Fico, had described the sanctions as nonsense. At the same time, the summit paved the way for the ratification of the partnership agreement with Ukraine, whose rejection by then-Ukrainian President Yanukovych had led to the 2014 putsch. This past spring, the agreement was blocked by Dutch voters, who rejected it in a referendum. The summit adopted a legally binding supplementary declaration allowing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to submit it again to parliament. All other EU countries have already ratified it. The summit also agreed on closer military cooperation. It ratified the construction of a centre for the planning of civil and military missions. The British government, which previously blocked all moves toward a European army, dropped its resistance. The summit also welcomed the Commissions plans for a multi-billion-euro fund to finance military research. Decisions about it are to be made in the first half of next year. While the summit huffed and puffed about the misery in Aleppo, Merkel, Hollande, Gentiloni and Rajoy met with the president of Niger, Mahamadou Issoufou, and other African leaders to persuade them to halt the flow of refugees and keep them in camps, in return for large sums of money. Officially, this project is called Migration Partnership. For the sum of 100 million euros, half of which will come from Germany, camps are to be built along the escape routes where up to 60,000 people can be detained. Berlin also prevailed at the summit when it came to dealing with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The German government refuses to cool relations with Ankara as a result of Erdogans authoritarian methods of rule because it fears a failure of the refugee deal the EU struck with Ankara to prevent refugees travelling on to Europe. Now the EU has taken a step toward Erdogan by holding out the prospect of a refugee summit in the spring of 2017, with the participation of Commission President Juncker and EU President Tusk. On Tuesday, Volvo Trucks announced its intention to lay off 500 workers, comprising the entire second shift, at its Dublin, Virginia plant. The layoffs will take place in early February. The announcement comes on top of 300 layoffs in September and another 500 in February. Volvo cites decreased demand for its trucks as the reason for the latest round of layoffs at the plant, a claim that is belied by the fact that they are requiring the very workers they will terminate in February to come in to work overtime shifts this Saturday. One Volvo worker, a member of United Autoworkers Union (UAW) Local 2069, told the World Socialist Web Site that workers might call in sick for the Saturday shift, a tactic called a sick out. Asked what the UAW was doing to prevent the job losses, the worker became angry and said quickly, It sets up perfectly for the union. They are holding their local elections in March, right after the layoffs take effect. If you are laid off the union doesnt tell you when you can vote. So they exclude the workers who are most affected by their sellouts policies from being able to vote them out. The worker had been on the second shift at Volvo for several years, and had witnessed the results of previous UAW-brokered contracts. He added, The union said the [March 2016] contract had 80 percent approval or something like that, but nobody voted for it. It was ratified in April 2016, but we didnt even get the full contract in September, as people were being laid off. The union was so unserious about the contract that, back in March right before the old contract expired, they told me to watch the news to see if we would be on strike or not! I was at work the day it was set to expire and only heard a half hour beforehand that there was an agreement and we were to keep working when the shift ended. He added, The UAW trailer sits on site, with 5-15 people sitting in there smoking cigarettes, doing nothing, but getting full pay. It is locked with a punch code. When I went in there to ask about a contract, they all jumped out of their seats and pulled out their printed contracts, pretending to do something. The worker described a recent exchange with a UAW shop steward about the pending layoffs: I asked him, Can you name one person who got money from the union after the [September 2016] layoffs? He replied, How would we do that? We give to organizations that do good things in the community. I said, Why not have a soup kitchen for laid off workers? Have you helped anyone? How much of my dues went to Hillary? None of my dues goes to my fellow workers who are laid off. Will any come to me? At that point the shop steward walked away. UAW Local 2069 has nothing on its Facebook page about either the upcoming layoffs or those in September. The most recent post promotes the thinly coded antidemocratic nostrum of fake news impacting the 2016 US presidential election. Asked what exactly Local 2069 does, the worker replied, They do something about veterans riding motorcycles to Washington and they have a fish fry at the Veterans Affairs hospital. They supported Clinton. The reps went to Florida after the [March 2016] contract was signed for a rally for Clinton. Finally, the worker described the pool of unemployed workers that Volvo maintains: All of the local get a job programs are bogus. They dont want you to get another job. They move paper around. In the New River Valley, it is hard to get another job because employers think you may be hired back at Volvo. You get put in a Volvo stack because you are addicted to this place and you will go back. They know you dont want to lose your hire date and status. This place is a noose around everybodys neck to keep them in there building trucks. Volvo workers should immediately take steps to defend their jobs by building rank-and-file factory committees tasked with unifying workers of all tiers within the plant against job cuts. Ties to auto and other workers across the continent and internationally must be built to coordinate action against giant transnational corporations like Volvo, Freightliner and their parent companies. Most importantly, such a struggle to unite the working class must be set on socialist and internationalist foundations in opposition to the pro-corporate, nationalist orientation of the UAW. The World Socialist Web Site encourages Volvo workers to write in to share experiences and strategies with other workers and sign up for the World Socialist Web Site Autoworker Newsletter. The author also recommends: Freightliner announces nearly 1,000 layoffs at North Carolina plant [6 January 2016] Testimony last week at royal commission hearings in Darwin has shed further light on the systemic abuse of vulnerable children in Australian youth detention centres. Under successive Labor and Country Liberal Party governments in the Northern Territory (NT), children in detention, many of Aboriginal descent, have been subjected to treatment branded as cruel, inhuman and degrading by the United Nations. The royal commission was called as part of a damage control response by the federal Liberal-National government of Malcolm Turnbull to widespread outrage over footage broadcast by an ABC Four Corners program in July of boys being assaulted and tear-gassed by detention guards. The program documented the illegally prolonged detention of children in isolation, repeated instances of guards assaulting inmates, including stripping them naked and pinning them to the ground, and footage of Dylan Voller, then 17, strapped in a mechanical restraint chair with his head covered by a spit hood, reminiscent of images from the US military prison at Abu Ghraib in Iraq. On Monday, Voller, now 19, testified at the commission. The week before his testimony, Vollers mother said he feared retribution from guards at the Darwin adult prison, where he is currently incarcerated. On December 8, the NTs Labor government sought to prevent Voller and 13 other witnesses from giving evidence, warning that the testimony could have potentially damaging consequences for the reputations of individuals or for the NT government. The unsuccessful move underscored the nervousness of the entire political establishment over the revelations of abuse. In his testimony, Voller detailed years of abuse suffered since he was first incarcerated at the age of 11 in the regional centre of Alice Springs. Among the punishments meted out to Voller and other child detainees were deprivation of food and water, the removal of bedding and clothes and prolonged isolation as forms of punishment. Vollers testimony included the following allegations: * From the age of 11 or 12, he was routinely strip-searched by guards at the Alice Springs youth detention centre. Voller was not told why he was being searched, and said he did not understand what was taking place. In later years, at the Don Dale detention centre, south of Darwin, he was strip-searched whenever he went to the toilet or left his cell. * Cells at the Alice Springs facility did not have toilets or water. Voller and other inmates would have to press a button to ask for water, and would sometimes be left waiting for hours. * Children at the Alice Springs facility were sometimes denied access to toilets as punishment. On one occasion, Voller said: I had been asking for at least four or five hours and they just been saying no. And I ended up having to defecate into a pillow case, because they wouldnt let me out to go to the toilet. * Don Dale centre guards charged inmates daily rent, deducting payments from their small allowances. Voller and other inmates were also denied meals and water as punishment for swearing and other minor misbehaviour. * At Don Dale, Voller and other inmates were repeatedly held in isolation, had their mattresses and all their clothes taken, and were left naked in bare concrete cells, sometimes for an entire night. * Voller was subjected to sensory abuse. In one instance, he was left in a cell without any clothes with cold air conditions. On other occasions, guards switched on a bright light and left it on for the entire night, preventing any sleep. Voller also commented on an incident in August 2014, when officers from a nearby adult prison stormed the Behaviour Modification Unit of the Don Dale facility, armed with shields, gas masks, tear gas and batons after a minor disturbance. The officers indiscriminately released capsicum-spray in the small and enclosed area. Voller said: I thought I was going to die. My heart was racing because of the tear gas. My eyes were burning. Voller spoke of being tied up in the mechanical restraint chair on three occasions. The chair had arm and leg straps, completely immobilising him. He also had a spit hooda cloth bagplaced over his head. Voller was left in the chair for hours on end. He commented: I was defenceless at that time. Felt like there was nothing I could do, and I was telling them the whole time that it was hurting. I even ended up getting sick and vomiting in my mouth a couple of times. They didnt care. On Tuesday, Antoinette Carroll, a Central Australian Legal Aid Service youth justice advocacy project coordinator who has worked with Voller since he was 11, gave evidence. She noted that as a young child, he had first been sentenced to 18 months in detention for minor offences. Carroll said Voller had been set up to fail by the youth justice system, noting that his formal education ended at the age of 10. She stated: It just became very evident from the get-go that there would be a punitive approach taken to Dylan as he travelled through the system. Russell Goldflam, a NT Legal Aid Commission lawyer, pointed to the culpability of the political establishment in his testimony on Wednesday. He quoted former NT Attorney-General John Elferink who denounced Don Dale inmates as the worst of the worst and declared that the government would crack down on them. Goldflam said the law and order rhetoric of the government created a political space that made it more likely that children could be assaulted in detention. The Northern Territory has been a testing ground for punitive measures, including mandatory sentencing for minor offences, for the past 30 years. Aboriginal people, who comprise the most oppressed section of the working class, have been severely affected. In the NT, close to 90 percent of adult inmates are indigenous, up from 69 percent in 1991. The rate of imprisonment of Aboriginal women rose by 72 percent from 2002 to 2012. The conditions confronting Aboriginal communities in the NT have been likened to third-world countries by Amnesty International and other charity organisations. Basic necessities such as running water and medical care are often lacking. Unemployment and poverty are endemic. However, the practices revealed in the NT are not isolated, nor are they confined to indigenous prisoners. For years, reports have documented bashings, isolations, lockdowns and deaths in jails and juvenile prisons across the country. The abuses in the NT reveal the increasingly brutal methods being used more broadly against working-class youth, who confront high levels of unemployment and under-employment, insecure work, prohibitive housing costs and crippling tuition fees and debts. Labor Party politicians have adopted a false posture of moral outrage in response to the abuses revealed in the NT. In reality, Labor was in office from 2001 to 2012 when many of the abuses occurred. Labor governments in other states are no less culpable. In Victoria, the Labor government recently moved 40 children accused of rioting in a youth detention facility to an adult jail. In Queensland, media reports have exposed efforts by the Labor government to cover up abuses of boys in both juvenile and adult prisons, including assaults, solitary confinement and use of spit hoods. The author also recommends: Systemic abuses in Australias juvenile prisons: The class issues [4 August 2016] Children systematically abused in Australian juvenile prison [27 July 2016] Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the top 10 causes of death worldwide. It killed about 2,000,000 people last year. TB is an infectious bacterial disease that usually attacks the lungs. If the number of deaths from TB is to be reduced, doctors must be able to accurately diagnose and quickly treat patients. That can be difficult in developing countries, but a health center in Tanzania is now using trained animals to find the bacterium in people. Giant Pouched Rats are able to smell tuberculosis germs in human saliva. When they do, they stop moving. They wait for food from their trainer. Fidelis John is one of the rat trainers. He works for a group called APOPO. He says the rats have a stronger sense of smell than other animals and can easily recognize tuberculosis. Health workers now use a 100-year-old method to diagnose TB. It is not as effective as the rats. Often, health care workers have trouble identifying the disease in patients. This can cause TB to spread. Dr. Richard Banda works in Tanzania. He is the acting country representative for the World Health Organization. Dr. Banda says the WHO estimates that only a third of people with TB are diagnosed as being infected. Thirty thousand people die from the disease every year in Tanzania. That is about 82 people a day. APOPO believes their rats -- which are native to Tanzania -- are an effective way to help solve the problem of TB misdiagnosis. Trainer John agrees. Rat(s) can use the time in between 10 and 20 minutes to finish evaluating 100 samples -- a task that would have taken a lab technician a time of 4 to 5 days to finish that job. After the rats complete their investigation, laboratory workers test samples. ab results are returned to hospitals within 24 hours, so those found to be infected can quickly begin medical treatment. APOPO says since the rats have been used, they have identified thousands of infections that were missed with traditional tests. The group is planning to use the rats in other countries, and train them to find other diseases. Im Caty Weaver. Sophie Tremblay reported this story from Tanzania. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted her story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story diagnose v. to recognize (a disease, illness, etc.) by examining someone germs n. a very small living thing that causes disease saliva n. the liquid produced in your mouth that keeps your mouth moist and makes it easier to swallow food sample n. a small amount of something that gives you information about the thing it was taken from TALLAHASSEE, FL (WTXL) -- Senator Bill Nelson was in Tallahassee Friday afternoon holding a bit of a press conference. Topics discussed ranged from Russia to Beach Restoration in Flagler County to the Future of the space Program. During the entire conference, Senator Nelson answered a number of questions that were burning holes in our heads. The future of space travel, a topic near and dear to his heart, was not asked about, but the senator made sure to mention it at the end. You see, back in 1986, Senator Nelson spent six days orbiting the earth on space shuttle Columbia. After an experience like that, it's no wonder why he feels so passionately about the future of NASA and the space program. The senator did say in the next 18 months or so, we'll be putting Americans on American rockets going to and from the International Space Station. The long term goal Senator Nelson and NASA are looking forward to is traveling to Mars. That's right, the mission to the red planet is becoming less like science fiction and more of an attainable goal. Right now, his eyes are set on the year 2033 when we hope to send humans on a fly-by of Mars. "To build all of the equipment, technologies and techniques to protect humans all the way and come back is going to be one of the greatest adventures that planet earth has ever done," says Senator Bill Nelson Even though that's still many years away, this is something that is well underway. VALDOSTA, Ga. (WTXL) - Valdosta firefighters are giving back to children in the area this holiday season by donating bicycles. The Bicycle Program is a partnership between the Valdosta Fire Department and the Georgia Division of Families and Children services. The bikes are donated to the fire department where they get any necessary parts to fix them up, then they can hand them out. There were 24 bikes given out as part of the program and today they were delivered to the homes of the families. Lebanon Teacher Lisa Richard of Pioneer School is the newest recipient of the national Milken Educator Award. Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is boycotting Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom . In principle, Netanyahu is against boycotts, but also in principle, Netanyahu is also in favor of the two-state solution, or in favor of transparency, or in favor of freedom of speech, or in favor of criticism. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Netanyahu is also in principle against his principles. Principles are slogans that have to be recited, not rules to live by. There are principles, and then there is life itself. Life itself determines that Netanyahu is right, and so any criticism against him is an act against life itself. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom. Diplomatic boycott (Photo: Knesset, Getty Images) What did Margot Wallstrom actually say to justify a boycott against her? Oh, she said extremely bad things. She said that the Palestinians are entitled to a state. Okay. In principle, Netanyahu says that, too. But then, Sweden recognized Palestine. Thats very bad. Principles are not supposed to be implemented. She also called for an investigation into whether Israel was carrying out extrajudicial executions. The response to the stabbings, she said, should not be an extrajudicial execution or a disproportionate response. On the one hand, again, its true that IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot said that soldiers should not open fire on every little girl carrying scissors. On the other hand, Eisenkot is not Swedens foreign minister. The chief of staff is someone whose words should be considered. Sweden isnt. If Eisenkot were Sweden's foreign minister, he would be boycotted at once. I assume that Minister Wallstrom did and said other horrible things, like a call to label settlement products (my friends the talkbackers will soon provide me with the details). There is no doubt that an approach that dares to argue that Israel uses excessive force, or does everything in its power to deprive the Palestinians of their rights is a thorn in the side of the prime minister and communications minister (partial titles list). But its also clear that Sweden is just a friendly country with a proper relationship with Israel. As a matter of fact, nothing that has been said by Wallstrom can match what our old-new friend, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has said numerous times, including in his recent interview to Israeli journalist Ilana Dayan. The thing is that we need him, so we are willing to accept whatever he says (including his unequivocal support of Hamas ). We dont need the Swedes as much as we need him (and more importantly, we are less afraid of them), so we have principles. And principles, as we know, are a flexible thing. Netanyahu, as always, is not afraid of the weak. That the way it is in life itself. This principle should concern us more than the attitude towards the Swedish foreign minister (allow me to assume that she will get over the bitter disappointment of not being able to meet the prime minister and foreign minister in Jerusalem). The thing is that Netanyahu sees not only Sweden as a weak element that should not be treated by the rules, but a significant part of the public, as well. Although he won only one-quarter of the parliament seats, Netanyahu thinks like Louis XIV. He is the state. Netanyahu looks at the United States and is filled with joy. Donald Trump does and says what Netanyahu and life itself would like to do, and will now try to do. One can, it seems, provoke those who support universal right, the media, the old political system, and be elected president. One can make two opposite comments, play with the truth and with facts as if they were a piece of modelling clay, promote ones billionaire friends, disregard the rules in the name of personal interests, and win the support of the masses. One can renege on previous commitment, violate promises and associate with the few leaders one has a joint political language with (showing contempt towards democracy, taking over the media, a firm hand, diligently looking after ones own interests) and joint interests with (Russian President Vladimir Putin, for example) all while being the leader of the free world. Bingo! The speed with which Netanyahu suggested adopting one of the most corruptive systems in the Western worldhanding out the American administration positions to associatesin the name of the governability principles (those principles again; principles are a useful thing if they are used right) points in the direction the wind is blowing. Birds of a feather flock together. Boycotting Wallstrom is just a rain cloud. All those who fail to adapt themselves to Netanyahu will soon be hit by a deluge. I am in favor of Benjamin Netanyahu ruling like Donald Trump . If it gives him the ability to be a better leader, I am all for it. If it helps him implement decisions, he should go right ahead. There is nothing wrong with positions of trust (I used to hold one). There are good people there who have to be approved by a Civil Service Commission committee, but who were selected in advance for one reasonbecause they were wanted. The idea is to set clear professional criteria for every position and prevent a conflict of interest, and from here on out the door is open. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter During the elections, Netanyahu presented a temporary campaign to change the government system. He tossed a slogan in the air and didnt elaborate. If the appointment of people who the ministers know will create a change in the system, then let him be Trump. The main question is whether that is where the problem lies, whether the director chosen for a governmental company can really change something. If ruling like Trump gives Netanyahu the ability to be a better leader and implement decisions, he should go right ahead (Photo: Kobi Gideon, GPO) Anyone who ever touched a pen, a keyboard or a government paper knows that a prime minister in Israel finds it very difficult to set procedures. Some rush to make decisions, like Ehud Olmert and Ariel Sharon, some try to escape decisions, like Netanyahu, but all find it difficult to speed up processes, regardless of whether we are talking about establishing communities, deciding on a policy or dealing with Haredim, Arabs, law and order. Take, for example, an innovative project the prime minister wants to invest in. Lets assume that he has a meeting in his office with five pioneers who invented a new species of sweet red pepper that can be grown in the Arava region and sold for a huge profit. Its an undisputable land and an idea that is beneficial to Zionist interests alone. A symbolic agricultural startup. Its all good. Is the prime minister capable of deciding to help them financially? Of matching the regulation and the required approvals? Of creating a process in reasonable time so that the invention is not lost or stolen? The answer is no. There are legalists and regulation, a budget and Treasury workers, a director-general of the Prime Ministers Office and an agriculture minister, a local council head, the Israel Land Authorityand again, a number of legalists in each of the bodies on the way. The sweet red peppers can grow as a private initiative, but not as a process that began thanks to the prime minister, regardless of who he is. When Sharon wanted to establish communities in Samaria, he used Gush Emunim. Years later, he used movements such as Ayalim to build student villages in the Negev and the Galilee. When there is a desire to build in the Gaza vicinity, the World Zionist Organizations settlement division is relied upon. Anything but relying on the government, its ministries and its workers. The concern that political activists will be appointed is justified: Without rules and criteria, politicians have a tendency to steal horses. So heres a solution: Setting rules and criteria for positions of trust. Moreover, in todays system, bids dont guarantee a thing. Sometimes it seems that a bid is aimed at putting on a show for the public. They decide on the candidate, issue a bid in the media, sort the appeals, and then the person who was designated in advance is miraculously selected. It would be better to directly give professional people positions of trust. But after all this, and after the argument that will develop over the real motives, concerns and problems, we will discover once again that the Israeli governments problems are not there. Bureaucracy does not always depend on the senior government workerit has to do with culture and heritage, with the ability to transfer money and plan. In my opinion, the biggest problem is the legal hurdles, or to be more exactthe Israeli governments legal systemfrom the top of the pyramid to the bottom. The best example is Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit. Here is a person who I regard as a professional, unbiased man, who on the one hand is supposed to advise the government on legal issues (try to find a solution to the Amona affair and other challenges), and restrict the government, on the other hand. The customer he advises is also under a police investigation on his behalf. He has to meet with him every day, and meet with those who are investigating his case in the police. If you dont have supernatural powers, its impossible. This is what happens in every government ministry. The advisers who work under the ministers and are supposed to help them manage processes properly are also the restrictors and supervisors. It can be a red pepper growing project in the Arava or the evacuation of a community in the Binyamin region. The result of all of this is a stalemate, shutdown, stuck processes. The directors are not the problem, the problem is the legal advisers and the impossible mission they are tasked with. By the way, while were talking about Trump, limiting the prime ministers term like in America could also help freshen up the ranks and boost the motivation to create a change. A senior Palestinian official warned on Friday that implementation of Donald Trump's pledge to relocate the US embassy to Jerusalem would destroy any prospects for peace with Israel, even as a spokesperson for the US President-elect said he remained committed to the move. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, issued the grim prediction just a day after Trump announced his decision to nominate as ambassador to Israel David Friedman, a pro-Israel hardliner who supports continued building of Jewish settlements and shifting the embassy from Tel Aviv. PLO Sec. Gen. Saeb Erekat Speaking to foreign journalists, Erekat said Jerusalem was a final-status issue to be negotiated between Israel and the Palestinians, who also want it as the capital of a future independent state. Successive US administrations have avoided formally recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital. If Trump makes good on his campaign promise, it would up-end decades of US policy, enrage the Muslim world and draw international condemnation. "No one should take any decisions which may preempt or prejudge (negotiations) because this will be the destruction of the peace process as a whole," Erekat said, according to a transcript provided by an aide. The last US-backed talks on statehood collapsed in 2014. He further warned of dire consequences if Israel continues to expand settlements in the West Bank. Friedman, a bankruptcy lawyer and close friend of Trump who has no diplomatic experience, has advocated the idea of Israel annexing the West Bank, as it did with Arab East Jerusalem following its capture in the 1967 Middle East war in a move not recognized internationally. Erekat said he would like to look Trump and Friedman in the eye and tell them "If you were to take these steps of moving the embassy and annexing settlements in the West Bank, you are sending this region to more chaos, lawlessness and extremism." Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has had a fractious relationship with outgoing US President Barack Obama, was satisfied with Friedman's appointment, according to the Israeli website Ynet, and several members of his right-wing government welcomed the choice. Liberal Jewish-American groups have raised objections over positions he has stated in writings and press interviews, which they see as a rejection of a two-state solution, a longtime bedrock of US Middle East policy, and alignment with Israel's far right. Trump spokesman Jason Miller said the president-elect "remains firmly committed" to relocating the embassy but that it was "premature" to present a timetable for such a move. US-based analysts said that while Friedman's appointment could signal a break with longstanding US policy as well as Obama's sometimes tough approach to ally Israel, US ambassadors typically do not drive Middle East policy and it was still unclear how far Trump would be prepared to go. Friedman, who must be confirmed by the US Senate, declined to answer questions when contracted by Reuters. "I'll do that at some point, but I'm not providing any comments just yet," he said. In Thursday's announcement, Friedman said he looked forward to doing the job "from the US embassy in Israel's eternal capital, Jerusalem." "Appointing David Friedman ... is a positive declaration of intent," Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked tweeted. "David is a true friend of Israel." Friedman has also called liberal Jewish Americans supporting a two-state solution "worse than kapos," a reference to Jewish prisoners in World War Two concentration camps assigned by Nazi guards to supervise fellow inmates. J Street, a liberal pro-Israel group, told supporters Friedman's appointment was "unacceptable" and it would fight to persuade US senators not to confirm his nomination. Tunisia continued with its investigation Saturday of the assassination of Mohammad al-Zawahri, a flight engineer who specialized in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). According to reports, al-Zawahri had been assisting Hamas terrorism efforts, and that the MossadIsrael's national intelligence agencywas behind the incident. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Tunisia's Internal Affairs Ministry issued a statement on the incident, saying that the country's security forces have nabbed four vehicles reported to have been used for the assassination, two guns, two silencers, cellular phones and other objects related to the case. The ministry also confirmed that security forces have managed to draw a composite of one of the suspects. Al-Zawahri interviewed about UAVs in Tunisia X Al-Zawahri holding a UAV The Internal Affairs Ministry added that it has arrested five suspects for involvement in the case, who reside in several Tunisian cities, including the capital of Tunis and the city of Djerba, which has a large Jewish community. A local radio station also reported that several crew members of a Russian ship who were arrested in relation to the matter have already been released. Tunisian press began pointing the finger at Israel on Friday, as a Tunisian journalist Borhan Bessais posted on his Facebook page that it was the Mossad that is responsible for al-Zawahri's assassination. Bessais continued by saying that al-Zawahri had left Tunisia back in 1991, when he immigrated to Syria. It was there that he contacted Hamas and began helping it militant branch using the knowledge he had accumulated as an engineer. Bessais claimed that al-Zawahri had recently been under Mossad surveillance, until his assassination. Mahammad a-Zawahri flying a UAV Persian Gulf news website Alkhaleej Online reported from "knowledgeable sources" that al-Zawahri had received several threats on his life, due to his activity with UAVs and his supposed support of "the Palestinian matter." The sources added that foreign security bodies were involved in his assassination. Tunisian radio station Mosaique reported that one day before the assassination, al-Zawahri had met with a woman claiming to be a journalist from Hungary, in addition to two men, on the latest advances in aerial engineering. The woman left Tunisia on Wednesday, and is suspected to be linked to the assassination. Al-Zawahri was buried in a simple ceremony in the two days following his assassination. Al-Zawahri's funeral X In a perhaps related event, Tunisian Head of National Security Abd Errahmane Belhaj resigned from his post five hours after al-Zawahri's assassination, without explanation. The Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that his resignation was due to "personal reasons." Hamas Spokesperson Mushir al-Masri said on Friday in an interview with Tunisia Radio that "The Only entity that stands to gain from this assassination is the Zionist enemy." He added that "The Mossad has a history of political assassinations, and it has harmed all Muslims and free people around the world developing technological and military abilities, particularly those involving UAVs. The Mossad is not interested in having an Arab mind with knowledge and expertise in this field." Hamas confirmed Al-Zawahri's membership in the organization, saying, "Al-Zawahri joined the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades a decade ago. He acted against Israel in defense of Palestine and was one of the commanders who supervised our UAV program." Hamas went on to threaten Israel, saying, "They need to understand that this blood was not spilled in vain." Karim Abed a-Salam, who was reportedly close to al-Zawahri, gave an interview to a Tunisian television news channel on Friday. During the interview, he said that al-Zawahri had ties to Hamas and was involved in its military plans. "He was the link between Hamas, the Syrian regime and the Iranian regime prior to the Syrian Revolution, but in 2011 he decided to leave Syria and be neutral, so as not to be forced to choose between the Syrian regime and the Syrian rebels." A-Salam further claimed that al-Zawahri has entered Gaza through underground tunnels three times, "to help the Palestinian resistance against the Zionist enemy." A Syrian government official reported on Saturday the stalled evacuation of the last opposition-held area of Aleppo will resume, alongside some evacuations from four besieged towns and villages. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Syrians fleeing Aleppo (Photo: EPA) "It was agreed to resume evacuations from east Aleppo in parallel with the evacuation of (medical) cases from Kefraya and al-Foua and some cases from Zabadani and Madaya," said the source, who is part of the evacuation's negotiating team. The villages of al-Foua and Kefraya in Idlib province are besieged by insurgents. The towns of Madaya and Zabadani are blockaded by pro-government forces. Photo: EPA The opposition's Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the evacuation of some 4,000 people, including wounded, from the villages of Foua and Kfarya are to start Saturday. Photo: EPA Hezbollah fighters have joined the Syrian war fighting along with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces. Opposition activists blamed the Lebanese group for blocking the main road south of Aleppo and blocking evacuations from rebel-held eastern neighborhoods of the city. The Aleppo evacuation was suspended Friday after a report of shooting at a crossing point into the enclave by both sides of the conflict. Thousands were evacuated before the process was suspended. The Syrian government said the village evacuations and the one in eastern Aleppo must be done simultaneously, but the rebels say there's no connection. Hezbollah's Military Media said the new deal includes the rebel-held towns of Madaya and Zabadani near the border with Lebanon, where tens of thousands of people are trapped under siege by government forces and the Lebanese group. Syrian State TV correspondent, speaking from Aleppo, said Saturday that the main condition for the Aleppo evacuation to resume is for residents of Foua and Kfarya to be allowed to leave. The cease-fire and evacuation from east Aleppo earlier this week marked the end of the rebels' most important stronghold in the 5-year-old civil war. The suspension demonstrated the fragility of the cease-fire deal, in which civilians and fighters in the few remaining blocks of the rebel enclave were to be taken to opposition-held territory nearby. Syrian state TV said Friday that that the evacuation's suspension was due to rebels trying to smuggle out captives who had been seized in the enclave after ferocious battles with troops supporting Assad. Reports differed on how many people remain in the Aleppo enclave, ranging from 15,000 to 40,000 civilians, along with an estimated 6,000 fighters. There also were contradictory reports on the number of evacuees who left on Thursday and early Friday from east Aleppo. Syrian state TV put it at more than 9,000 while Russia, a key Assad ally, said over 9,500 people, including more than 4,500 rebels, were taken out. The Red Cross wants safety guarantees for evacuees The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has also intervened in the evacuation, asking Syria's warring parties to agree quickly on a plan to evacuate people from east Aleppo and provide "solid" safety guarantees. "We're ready to resume facilitating the evacuation according to our humanitarian mandate. But we now expect all the parties on the ground to provide us with solid guarantees in order to keep the operation going. They're the ones who have to protect the people and provide safe passage," said ICRC head in Syria Marianne Gasser in a statement from Aleppo. The ICRC said thousands of cold and scared people including women, children, the sick and injured, remain in eastern Aleppo waiting for the evacuation operation to continue. "People are expecting us to continue the evacuation. It's important that the parties on the ground do their utmost to end this limbo," Gasser said. "People have suffered a lot. Please come to an agreement and help save thousands of lives." The ICRC said it had managed to evacuate around 10,000 people, many of whom were in a critical medical condition. The World Health Organization (WHO) representative in Syria Elizabeth Hoff, speaking from west Aleppo, told Reuters she was not sure there was time for the evacuations to begin on Saturday. "It is a quarter past one in the afternoon already. The Russians (who are overseeing the operation) are not keen on working through the night," Hoff said. The WHO and other aid workers are not yet present at the transit point in east Aleppo, Hoff said Outgoing United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon on Friday urged Israeli lawmakers to reconsider a bill to legalize Israeli settlement homes on private Palestinian land as Arab states mull putting forward a Security Council resolution on settlements. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The Palestinians want an independent state in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem, areas Israel captured in the 1967 Six-Day War. Most countries and the United Nations view Israeli West Bank settlements as illegal and an obstacle to peace. Amona (Photo: AFP) "I strongly urge legislators to reconsider advancing this bill, which will have negative legal consequences for Israel and substantially diminish the chances for Arab-Israeli peace," Ban told a UN Security Council briefing on the Middle East. Israeli officials are concerned the bill could provide grounds for prosecution by the International Criminal Court in The Hague. In the past 50 years Israel has built about 120 formal settlements on the territory. As well as those settlements, which Israel fully supports, settlers have established more than 100 outposts, many on hilltops across the West Bank, often with tacit government support. Under the proposed bill, 55 of the outposts will have official sanction, according to settlements watchdog Peace Now. Compensation would be offered to Palestinian land owners. Photo: Yonatan Zindel/Flash90 Deputy US Ambassador Michele Sison told the Security Council that Washington was "deeply disturbed" by the bill. "We believe the potential legalization of thousands of settlement housing units that are currently illegal under Israeli law would profoundly damage prospects for a two-state solution," she said. Ban also told the Security Council "the absence of Palestinian unity throughout the occupied territory presents an obstacle to the two-state solution." Photo: AFP Diplomats said Arab ministers are due to meet next week to likely approve a draft resolution on the settlements issue that would then be circulated to the 15-member UN Security Council. US President Barack Obama is not expected to make major moves on Israeli-Palestinian peace before leaving office, US officials said earlier this month. But some UN diplomats hope Washington may allow Security Council action by abstaining. The United States has long protected Israel from UN action. New Zealand was also working on a draft UN resolution that would reaffirm the Security Council's commitment to a two-state solution, but Foreign Minister Murray McCully said if there was an Arab initiative then New Zealand would put its move on hold. Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom was warmly received on Friday evening in Ramallah, where she met with the Palestinian leadership, according to the Swedish tabloid Expressen. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The foreign minister, who was snubbed by Israel in her visit to the region due to her previous strong condemnations of the Jewish state, met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Foreign Minister Riyad al-Malik, who both thanked her for her country's support of the Palestinians. Wallstrom is a vocal critic of Israel and has made several controversial statements in the past. Her government also holds one-sided pro-Palestinian positions. Wallstrom and Abbas (Photo: EPA) The Palestinian president decorated Wallstrom with the Grand Star of the Order of Jerusalem. Wallstrom said in a press conference, "Sweden's policy was aimed at creating a future in which Israel and Palestine can live side by side. It is deeply worrying that Palestinians are beginning to lose hope in the future after 50 years of occupation," as quoted by Expressen. Wallstrom and Abbas (Photo: AP) The tabloid reported that the minister did not feel that Israeli officials' refusal to meet with her was "a failure." She commented, "From the beginning, I asked to visit Israel. It is important to have dialogue also with those who do not share the same opinion. Unfortunately it was not possible." Wallstrom and Abbas (Photo: AP) Despite her support for the Palestinians, the minister told her hosts that they must fight against corruption in their ranks and against human rights violations. This message, according to Expressen, came on the background of criticism in Sweden regarding the conduct of the Palestinians, who are the largest recipients of Swedish aid per person. MONTEVIDEO -- Authorities in Uruguay say an unhappy former Guantanamo detainee has failed yet again in his attempt to find a new home in another country. Presidential aide Juan Andres Roballo confirmed Saturday that Syrian native Abu Wa'el Dhiab has returned to the country because another country had refused to take him in. Dhiab had boarded a flight for South Africa on Thursday and apparently was denied entry. He's one of six former Guantanamo prisoners who were accepted by Uruguay two years ago. Dhiab has repeatedly expressed unhappiness about life in Uruguay, but the government hasn't been able to find an alternative. Director of the Mossad, Yossi Cohen, clandestinely visited the United States to meet with President-elect Donald Trump's staff and brief them on pressing security matters including the Iranian nuclear deal, the Syrian civil war, terror threats and the Palestinian issue. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The security delegation was organized by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and was led by National Security Council head Yaakov Nagel. The Israeli ambassador to the United States Ron Dermer was also present during meetings. Yossi Cohen (Photo: Gil Yohanan) The two sides also discussed a regional conference to be hosted by Egypt and other initiatives on the agenda including a UN initiative put forth by the Palestinians and New Zealand. Additionally, Israeli officials have also reached out to the President-elect to ask him to come out against President Obama and veto a Palestinian bid submitted to the Security Council. The proposal is expected to be up for a vote before Obama leaves office on January 20. The proposal seeks to label settlements as illegal and implicitly calls on the international community to boycott Israel. While the country waits for the eventual evacuation of Amona , Friday saw the arrival of hundreds of young people from neighboring settlements who came to protest the decision to dismantle the settlement. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Amona Rabbi Yair Frank, said, "Our goal is to delay the evacuation as much as possible so it won't be a matter of hours, but days, and we'll be remembered for it. However, we cannot resort to violence; it will weaken us and our cause." Shabbat in Amona (Video: Gil Yohanan and Elisha Ben Kimon) (: ) X Shabbat in Amona (Photo: Elisha Ben Kimon) Photo: Gil Yohanan According to estimates, the evacuation is set to occur in the coming days and security forces are already ready. IDF forces will move into position around the settlement to provide security, even though they will not be participating actively in the evacuation. Soldiers serving in the Judea and Samaria Division were ordered by commanders not to discuss their movements in order to make it harder for protestors to barricade the settlement. Photo: Gil Yohanan Photo: Ohad Zweigenberg Photo: Ohad Zweigenberg Despite security forces ready to forcefully evacuate protestors, negotiations are still being conducted to get residents to evacuate peacefully. On Thursday, rabbi Eli Sadan made efforts to reconcile the parties during a meeting with Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Uri Ariel, in Amona. However, in preparation for more troublesome protestors, the Israel Prisons Service (IPS) has cleared several wings in Givon, Nitzan and Ofek prisons to absorb dozens of detainees should the need arise. Additionally, the IPS has also made preparations to receive prisoners such as mothers and young people. According to officials, if there are arrests, women will be taken to Givon, while men will be transferred to Nitzan and young people to Ofek. Jammu and Kashmir: Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday stressed linking knowledge of culture with curriculum so that the younger generation becomes aware of Jammu and Kashmir's rich cultural history and roots. "Cultural activities, more than anything else, have brought societies, regions and people closer," she said while chairing the General Council meeting of the J&K Academy of Art, Culture & Languages here. The last meeting of the Academy's General council was held 35 years ago. She said the J&K Cultural Academy would be made a platform for youth where they can hone their talent. She suggested "linking knowledge of culture with scheduled curriculum so that the younger generation becomes aware of the state's rich cultural history and roots." Mehbooba advised for adopting concept of fusion to preserve the dying old arts and cultural strains of the state by blending them with modern trends and demands. She said the age-old cultural varieties like story telling need to be given a look despite the onslaught of modernity. Sh sought active involvement of members of the General Council in effective preservation of the rich cultural ethos of the state. The Chief Minister, who is also the President of the Academy, said the organisation would be made an effective platform for youth who can display their talent in writing, painting, singing, acting and other such art forms. Mehbooba said the Academy is working on an infrastructure strengthening programme under which cultural centres would be set up at district headquarters besides raising some other related infra. She said the proposal of a school for Sufi & Folk music is also in pipeline for the preservation of rare musical varieties. Mehbooba assured the participants that the suggestions put forth by them would be examined for implementation. In his address, Minister for Culture, Haseeb Drabu said the government is taking many steps for promoting and preserving cultural milieu in every region of the State. He said requisite infrastructure for cultural activities in the state is also being upgraded continually. Minister of State for Culture, Priya Sethi also addressed the meeting. Earlier, Secretary of the Academy, Dr Aziz Hajni welcomed the participants of the meeting. The members passed a resolution to express grief over the passing away of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, former President of the Academy and other prominent litterateurs of the state and acknowledged their contribution in preserving and promoting culture of the State. The meeting decided to institute three annual awards each in performing arts like music, dance and drama and three visual arts like painting, sculpture and miniature painting. It was also decided to award a short film on culture of the state. The decision was taken to institute a biennial lifetime achievement award in cultural activities amounting to Rs 10 lakh. It also confirmed the nomination of Prof Champa Sharma to the Central Committee and also nominated Abhay Rustum Sopori to the Central Committee and K D Meini to Finance Committee of the Academy. Berlin: A 12-year-old boy attempted twice to launch terrorist attacks in the western German city of Ludwigshafen this and last month, a local prosecutor confirmed on Friday. The boy tried to target a local Christmas market on November 26 and the areas near the city hall on December 5 with explosives, but failed both times to ignite them, Xinhua news agency reported. The backpack with explosives was noticed by passengers near the city hall and reported to the police, prompting the next investigation. The boy, born in Ludwigshafen with dual German and Iraqi nationality, was allegedly strongly radicalised and could have been instigated by the Islamic State, local media reported. He is currently staying at the local youth office. He will not be charged because of his age, according to the prosecutor. New Delhi: Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Saturday alleged that it is the BJP-led NDA government`s modus operandi to hand over the inquiry into the alleged re-allotment of a plot to Associated Journals Limited (AJL) in Panchkula in 2005 to the Central Bureau of Investigation. Hooda told ANI that the government is indulging in political vendetta and witch hunting by coming after him in the case. "This is their modus operandi. In other cases also they have adopted the same method because once you register a case and then refer to CBI, the CBI does not go for preliminary enquiry. Nothing is wrong done during my tenure. This is just political vendetta and witch hunting. In other cases also they have adopted the same method," Hooda told ANI. The BJP government in Haryana has handed over the enquiry into the alleged re-allotment of a plot to AJL in Panchkula in 2005 to the CBI. "We handed over the case to CBI a few days back. The agency will soon start its inquiry," Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar told the media yesterday. New Delhi: Hitting out at the Opposition parties for opposing the Narendra Modi-led central government's demonetisation policy, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah on Saturday said that the decision wasn't taken in a hurry but in consulatation with Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Shah said that the 50-day deadline, ending December 30, was fixed after much 'careful planning', and most of the cash crunch woes at ATMs and banks would be over by this deadline. "Neither was anything kept secret from RBI, nor was it not consulted, the decision (to demonetise Rs 500 and 1000) was taken after adequate consultations by Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) at the small forum, and all administrative nitty-gritty was gone through. The decision was not taken in a hurry, nor was there any reason to be in a hurry," Shah said. However, he reasoned the delay in printing new notes behind the ongoing cash crunch the country is facing. "The cash crunch is because of delay in printing currency notes, and its taking time to distribute, that`s why the 50-day deadline was set. I am not saying that after 50-day deadline the queues at banks will be fully over, but most of the woes would be over," he said. The BJP chief also expressed hope that business at factories would be back to normal in two months. "The factories are closed, not because of (lack of) cash but nearly 30 to 40 per cent of transactions that were not taking place earlier in cheques, will now change, and the traders will show these transactions in books," he said. While stating that he emphathises with people standing in queues outside ATMs, the BJP president said people were also losing patience due to lack of infrastructure, indicating that the increased government revenue will solve these issues. Shah added further and said that government understand people's difficulty due to demonetisation of higher currency notes, but these 50 days will provide relief from black money for the coming 50 years. "We know line is there people are facing difficulty. But Modi has sought 50 days. The inconvenience of these 50 days will provide relief from black money for the coming 50 years," Shah said while addressing a rally at Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh. Shah also said that the opposition does not want the nation should get rid of black money and wasted complete winter session by shouting. He also said that if Uttar Pradesh needs to be pushed towards progress, the people have to elect BJP to power with 2/3rd majority. "Modi has sanctioned Rs one lakh crore per year to Uttar Pradesh but still there is no progress in the state," he said. New Delhi: The Rajasthan High Court has directed an official of Skylight Hospitality Pvt Ltd, a firm linked to Robert Vadra, to appear before Enforcement Directorate for questioning in a land case in Bikaner district. Skylight Hospitality employee Mahesh Nagar had filed a plea against summons issued by the ED to appear before it. The court, however, rejected his PIL and asked him to cooperate and appear before the ED. Nagar was summoned by the ED as he is said to be the key link in all the land deals. Summons were issued against Skylight Hospitality LLP, a private limited company allegedly linked to Congress president Sonia Gandhis son-in-law Robert Vadra, in connection with the ongoing money laundering and land-grab cases in Bikaner. Skylight Hospitality had bought 69.55 hectares of land in Bikaner in January 2010. Robert Vadra has categorically denied all allegations and accused BJP of taking political vendetta a charge dismissed by the party. The Rajasthan Police have registered 18 land-grab cases. In October 2014, based on the findings, the Rajasthan government issued orders for cancellation of the original allotments of the land involved. The ED has also launched money laundering investigations and recently conducted searches in the State. The company has, in its statement to the media, said it had instituted civil suits for recovery and damages, adding: Skylight Hospitality Private Limited or Robert Vadra are victims of the original wrongful allotments, fraud and consequent sale of said land to them in Kolayat. CBI to probe Associated Journals plot allotment Manohar Lal Khattar-led Haryana government has handed over the enquiry into the alleged re-allotment of a plot to Associated Journals Limited (AJL) in Panchkula in 2005 to the CBI. Notably, Haryana State Vigilance Bureau had registered a case of cheating and corruption against former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and four HUDA officials for allegedly realloting a plot to AJL in 2005. The case under various IPC sections, including criminal breach of trust by a public servant, cheating, criminal conspiracy and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act was registered against Hooda, the then Haryana Urban Development Authority chairman, a post held by him ex-officio as the CM, and four of its top officials then, on May 5 this year. The plot had been initially allotted to AJL, the owner of National Herald newspaper, in 1982. After the expiry of the lease period in 1996, the then Haryana Vikas Party government led by Bansi Lal resumed its possession. It was reallotted to AJL after the Congress leader came to power in 2005. The vigilance bureau had alleged that the act by the then HUDA chairman and the officials had caused a huge financial loss to the public sector undertaking as the plot should have been sold through open auction instead of being allotted again to AJL. New Delhi: Government has formed an inter- ministerial task force, to be headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Principal Secretary Nripendra Mishra, to look into all the strategic aspects of Indus Water Treaty (IWT) with Pakistan. A formal notification to this effect was issued yesterday, a top government functionary said today, adding other members of the team include NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar and Secretaries in ministries of Finance, Environment, Power and Water Resource. Besides, Chief Secretaries of Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab, the states from where the six Indus system rivers flow, will be "invitees" in the task force. "The task force is mandated with taking all important strategic and policy decisions. It is an all-powerful body which will take decisions regarding the treaty," he added. The committee has been formed nearly three months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a review meeting on the 56- year-old water distribution pact with Pakistan in the aftermath of series of cross-border terror strikes including Uri attack. In that meeting, it was also decided that India would exploit to the maximum water of Pakistan-controlled rivers including Jhelum. Meanwhile, a source said the World Bank, which has paused two separate mechanisms, will send an expert to discuss with both India and Pakistan their versions on designs of Kishenganga and Ratle projects being constructed by India in Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan had in September approached World Bank, flagging concerns that the design of the Kishenganga project was not in line with the criteria laid down under IWT. It had then demanded the international lender to set up a Court of Arbitration to look into the matter. Refuting the claims made by Pakistan, India had asserted that the project design is "well within parameters" of the treaty and urged the World Bank to appoint a neutral expert as the issue is a "technical matter" as suggested in the treaty. Under the Indus Waters Treaty, signed between India and Pakistan in 1960 and to which the World Bank is also a party, the global body has a specified role in the process of resolution of differences and disputes. New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday expressed hope that India would soon build a strong trade relation with Tajikistan and other central Asian nations after the completion of Chabahar Port in Iran to be jointly developed by New Delhi and Tehran. The prime minister said India will work on trade and transit linkages with Tajikistan as well as other central Asian nations through the Chabahar Port. He made the remarks following his meeting with the visiting Tajik President Emomali Rahmon here on Saturday. India and Tajikistan enjoy a rewarding partnership in capacity and institution-building. The president and I agreed on the need to increase the scope and scale of our economic engagement, especially trade and investment traffic, PM Modi said at a joint press conference with President Rahmon. Modi said that he had a fruitful discussion with President Rahmon and the two leaders also agreed that peace in Afghanistan is important for the region. Pointing at the growing menace of terrorism in Asia and other parts of the world, Prime Minister Modi praised Tajikistan for its role in fighting terror. We appreciate Tajikistan's role in the central-Asian region as a mainstay against the forces of extremism, radicalism and terrorism, he said. Both the leaders also called for an end to sponsorship, support and safe havens to terrorists. President Rahmon reaffirmed Tajikistan's resolve to strengthen bilateral counter-terrorism cooperation with India. Reiterating Tajikistan's support to India's candidature for permanent membership of an expanded UN Security Council, the Tajik President also welcomed India's full membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. India and Tajikistan will mark their 25th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations in 2017. The Tajikistan delegation has invited Indian companies to build a number of hydroelectric power projects in their country. The Tajik leader welcomed the agreement among India, Iran and Afghanistan on establishing Chahbahar Transport and Transit Corridors and said that it will enable Tajikistan's connectivity to warm waters and to large Indian market. New Delhi: Visiting President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon who is on a state visit to India will hold delegation level talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi and discus bilateral relations and issues of mutual interests. After the talks, the two sides are expected to sign agreements in various fields. President Rahmon arrived in New Delhi on Friday after visiting Kochi. The visiting dignitary is on a five day visit to India from 14th of this month. President Rahmon will also meet President Pranab Mukherjee. The President of India will host a banquet today for the visiting dignitary. This will be the sixth visit of President Rahmon to India. During his last visit to India in 2012, the two countries elevated their bilateral relations to the level of a long-term strategic partnership. Bilateral relations span cooperation in a wide spectrum of areas - political, economic, health, human resources development, defence, counter-terrorism, science and technology, culture and tourism. Mumbai: Needling BJP over the washed out winter session of Parliament, ally Shiv Sena on Saturday asked the ruling partner to take cognisance of its party patriarch L K Advani's "tears" and called for a special session to discuss the demonetisation issue. Terming Advani as the 'Bhishma Pitamah' of Indian politics, the Sena said he has raised a question mark over parliamentary democracy in the country. "It should be noted that Advani is not a Congress leader. One must bear in mind that he has been at the forefront of the anti-Congress politics," an editorial in Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' said. It recalled that in May 2014, while entering the Parliament building, PM Narendra Modi had knelt and placed his forehead on the green carpeted steps and also shed tears. "But due to the 'tamasha' of parliamentary proceedings in the last two years, the soul of the Parliament (building) has lost and it is shedding tears," it said. "Parliament is meant to debate serious issues of concern to people. But the opposition raises questions and creates chaos, while the government runs away from these issues. This is the picture today," the Sena said. "People are standing in queues for Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,000. However, crores in 'pink' (new Rs 2000) notes are being recovered from the houses of the rich. "If the government is not going to say anything on this, if the PM is not going to respond, then a special session of Parliament should be convened and the RBI Governor should be summoned in Parliament," the editorial said. "Nowadays, the Prime Minister sometimes gets emotional. It will be nice if cognisance is taken of the tears shed by Advani on the state of affairs of Lok Sabha and democracy," it said. The Sena remarks come after Advani, for the second time during the Winter Session of Parliament, expressed anguish and concern over the way the session was a washout with daily adjournments. He reportedly even told a few MPs that he felt like resigning from Lok Sabha owing to his distress at the proceedings, adding that "Atalji (former PM Vajpayee) would have been very upset seeing this". New Delhi: Ex-Indian Air Force chief SP Tyagi along with other accused in the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam will be produced before Patiala House court on Saturday. 71-year old Tyagi, who had retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev alias Julie and advocate Gautam Khaitan were arrested on December 9 by CBI in connection with the VVIP chopper scam case. The court had on December 10 sent the three accused to four days' CBI custody, which expired on December 14, in the case related to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA-2 regime. Later on December 14, Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar extended his custody till December 17 along with Sanjeev and Khaitan, also accused in Rs 450 crore chopper deal bribery case. The CBI had alleged that Tyagi had "abused his official position" and when he was the Air Chief Marshal, he had made huge investments in land and other properties and had not disclosed the source his income. The CBI has also alleged that Khaitan was the "brain" behind how the bribe money reached India and several firms through which the money travelled came into existence and Sanjeev was known to alleged European middleman Carlo Gerosa. New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday once again asked Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi to make public the information about "personal corruption" involving Prime Minister Narendra Modi Kejriwal tweeted: "Rahul ji, when r u exposing Modiji's "personal corruption"?" The chief minister was reacting to Rahul's remarks that he wants to present in the Lok Sabha detailed information about "personal corruption" by Modi but is not being allowed to do so by the PM. After threatening an earth-shattering disclosure on demonetisation earlier, the Congress vice president had said he wanted to expose PM Modi's personal complicity in corruption but "a terrified government" didn't let him speak in Parliament. "Read my lips. The Prime Minister is personally terrified with the information that I have. I have information on the personal corruption of the Prime Minister," Gandhi had said. The Congress leader last week said an "earthquake will come" if he was allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha "about the biggest scam committed by Narendra Modi single handedly". The allegation by the Congress vice president was dismissed by the BJP as "false and baseless" and "very unfortunate" while Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal dared Gandhi to "expose" the prime minister if he has documents at his disposal. Parliamentary Affairs Minister and senior BJP leader Ananth Kumar while rejecting as "baseless" the allegation levelled against the prime minister said they were made out of "desperation" and "frustration" and asked Gandhi to apologise. Nagpur: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday informed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be laying foundation stone for the proposed world class Chhatrapati Shivaji Memorial project in Arabian Sea on December 24. Modi will also be visiting Mumbai and Pune for the stone laying ceremony of Metro Rail Project on the same day, Fadnavis told a post Assembly Session press conference here in Vidhan Bhavan. The Chhatrapati Shivaji memorial project will be taken up in two phases and an approximately Rs 2,300 crores will be spent in the first phase. Expressing his satisfaction on the smooth functioning of Winter Session here, Fadnavis said a record number of 27 bills were taken up for discussion and 23 of them were passed. He said the issues concerning Vidarbha region were given appropriate time. Fadnavis appealed to all the party legislators from Vidarbha to come together and join hands in development of the region. On the issue of Nagpur-Mumbai Super Communication Expressway which is known as 'Samruddhi Marg', he appealed to the legislators from Wardha and Amravati district to come across the table to sort out differences. "We should learn to forget differences and join together like leaders in western Maharashtra and Konkan to make it (Vidarbha region) a prosperous region," Fadnavis said. The State government has drawn a roadmap for development of the region, he said. Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe- Patil criticised the state government for not waiving off loans of farmer and not compensating farmers who have suffered huge losses due to the fall in prices following demonetisation. The prices of agriculture products have sharply dropped after the scrapping of old currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000, he said. Thousands of trapped civilians and rebels waited desperately Saturday for evacuations to resume from the last opposition-held areas of Aleppo after the operation was suspended by the Syrian regime. A rebel representative told AFP that an agreement had been reached to allow more evacuations from the city, which has been ravaged by some of the worst violence of the nearly six-year war that has killed more than 310,000 people. But there was no confirmation from President Bashar al-Assad`s regime or its staunch allies Russia and Iran, which are under mounting international pressure to end what US President Barack Obama denounced as the "horror" in Aleppo. Obama called Friday for impartial observers to monitor efforts to evacuate civilians from the devastated city and warned Assad that he would not be able to "slaughter his way to legitimacy". Families spent the night in freezing temperatures in bombed out apartment blocks in Al-Amiriyah district, which was the departure point for evacuations before they were halted on Friday, an AFP correspondent reported. Many had not had a proper meal in days and were surviving on just a few dates. A lot of people had burned all possessions they could not carry with them, determined not to allow them to be looted by government troops and militia who have recaptured almost the entire city. The government blamed rebels for the suspension of the evacuation operation which had begun on Thursday, saying they had tried to smuggle out heavy weapons and hostages. The opposition accused the government of halting the operation in a bid to secure the evacuation of residents from Fuaa and Kafraya, two villages under rebel siege in northwestern Syria. In return the rebels want the evacuation of the towns of Madaya and Zabadani in Damascus province which are besieged by the regime. "We are working on a resumption of the operations today (Saturday)," said Al-Farook Abu Bakr, a representative of the hardline Islamist rebel group Ahrar al-Sham. "There will be evacuations from Fuaa and Kafraya, as well as Madaya and Zabadani, and all the residents of Aleppo and the fighters will leave." The precise number of people still trapped in the last rebel-held pocket southwest of central Aleppo is unclear. UN envoy Staffan de Mistura estimated that as of Thursday there were around 40,000 civilians and perhaps as many as 5,000 opposition fighters in the rebel enclave but the world body has since acknowledged there is uncertainty about the figures. Before evacuations were suspended around 8,500 people, including some 3,000 fighters, left for rebel-held territory elsewhere in the north, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitoring group. "The evacuations are expected to resume on Saturday in Aleppo, in synchronisation with the evacuation from Fuaa and Kafraya of around 4,000 people -- the wounded and their families, as well as civilians and orphans," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said. Tens of thousands of civilians had already fled opposition-controlled parts of Aleppo after the regime began its latest assault in mid-November. The Russian defence ministry said after evacuations were suspended that only hardline rebel fighters remained. But World Health Organization country representative Elisabeth Hoff said: "There are still high numbers of women and infants -- children under five -- that need to get out." The main regional supporters of the rival sides in Syria`s devastating civil war engaged in a flurry of diplomacy on Friday to try to secure a resumption of evacuations. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, whose government is a key backer of the opposition, said he had spoken more than a dozen times with his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif, during the day. On Friday a convoy of evacuees that had already left east Aleppo when the operation was suspended was forced to turn back, an AFP correspondent said. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), supervising the evacuations, said it was looking into reports of shooting before the convoy was turned around. In New York, the Security Council could vote as early as this weekend on a French-drafted proposal to allow international observers in Aleppo and ensure urgent aid deliveries. Several thousand people protested on the Turkish border on Saturday against the siege of Aleppo, while a demonstration was planned in Berlin. More than half the Syrian population has been displaced, with millions becoming refugees, since the conflict began with anti-government protests in 2011. Diplomatic efforts -- including several rounds of peace talks in Geneva -- have failed to make progress in resolving the conflict, which reached a turning point last year when Russia launched an air war in support of Assad. Istanbul: Thirteen Turkish soldiers were killed and 48 wounded on Saturday after a car bomb exploded near public bus in the central Turkish city of Kayseri, reports said. The soldiers -- all low-ranking privates and non-commissioned officers -- had been given permission for leave from the commando headquarters in the city, the army said in a statement. The wounded were being treated in hospital while there could also be additional civilian casualties, it said. Initial television pictures showed that the bus had been reduced to a smouldering wreck by the impact of the blast. The explosion comes a week after 44 people were killed in an attack in Istanbul claimed by Kurdish militants. Turkey has seen a spate of deadly bombings in 2016 blamed both in jihadists and Kurdish militants that have left dozens dead. One of the main cities of central Turkey, Kayersi is a key industrial hub that is usually seen as a peaceful area. It is well west of the southeast of the country that has been hit by months of deadly fighting between Kurdish militants and the security forces. The Colombian government and the leftist Farc rebels in 2016 signed a historic peace deal to cease hostilities which had plagued the Andean nation for several decades. The move signalled a break from the past when both sides looked at each other with trepidation and attempts to broker peace met with stiff resistance. For the first time, Colombians from both sides of the political divide believed they have a chance and in fact on the cusp of a lasting peace. However, fears over the accord's delayed execution which could scuttle the peace initiative remained. President Juan Manuel Santos expressed this concern when he had said the attacks on civilians are a testimony to the risks of not implementing it. To bring this historic accord to fruition, both sides had announced a ceasefire deal that came into effect on September 29. In 2015, FARC had declared a unilateral ceasefire but this was the first time that both sides had committed to it. Colombian government, Farc rebels sign revised peace deal On November 24, the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia signed a revised peace agreement to end the country's more than five decades long civil war, which left over 200,000 people dead. The deal was signed by President Juan Manuel Santos and Farc leader Rodrigo Londono after nearly four years of negotiations. President Santos, who was honoured with the 2016 Nobel peace prize for his conciliatory efforts, hailed the agreement as the real deal. While Farc leader Londono hoped the deal would enable Colombians to confront the differences in a civilised manner. The modified document was a rework on at least 50 key points. The accord followed a nationwide referendum in October in which the country had rejected an earlier agreement reached in September. Majority of the voters were of the view that it gave more "leniency to FARC fighters accused of war crimes. The signing ceremony of the revised deal was hence deliberately kept a low-key affair compared to the previous one signed on September 26. Voters reject peace deal in October referendum The landmark peace deal reached between the Colombian government and Farc rebels in September was rejected by voters in an October 2 referendum. Opponents of the accord punched several holes in the deal by pointing out many unresolved points. A total of 50.2% of voters said 'NO' to the deal while the remaining said Yes. Besides President Santos, many world leaders, including UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, backed the "yes" campaign. The votes were clearly divided with the outer provinces voting in favour and those in inland voting against it. Provinces that are hardest hit by the conflict, overwhelmingly supported the deal. While those opposing it, said it gave more leeway to rebels accused of murder and other heinous crimes. Others have resented the fact that the agreement warranted 10 seats in the Colombian Congress in 2018 and 2022 elections to the Farc rebels. Colombian government, Farc rebels ink first agreement The Colombian government and the Farc rebels signed the first peace deal in the colonial city of Cartagena on September 26. The accord was inked before an array of world leaders in a televised ceremony, with hundreds of people in attendance. The audience greeted by cheers and applause when Farc leader Timoleon Jimenez apologised to the victims of the conflict. "I would like to ask for forgiveness for all the pain that we have caused during this war." What we sign today is a declaration from the Colombian people before the world that we are tired or war......that we dont accept violence as the means of defending ideas, President Santos said. We will achieve any goal, overcome any hurdle and turn our nation into a country we've always dreamed of - a country in peace," the President said. Colombian Congress approves peace accord The Colombian Congress green-lighted the modified accord despite protests from opposition quarters over the limited time they got to review the deal. President Santoss governing coalition, which controls the Senate and the House of Representatives, voted overwhelmingly for the agreement. The Congress approved the revised peace accord on November 30. By pushing the new deal through Congress, the government bypassed voters this time, who had turned down the accord by a narrow margin on Oct. 2, the New York Times wrote. The Farc and the government representatives had first announced the agreement in August 2016 after years of tense talks in Havana. The Congresss vote ended a bitter contest over the morality of the peace deal decision. The Colombian civil war The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or Farc, has waged a bitter armed struggle against a succession of Colombian governments since 1964. The Colombian civil war, considered Latin America's last major armed stand-off, has claimed the lives of at least 200,000 people and displaced millions. Also, the paramilitary groups raised to counter the Farc rebellion, massacred hundreds of civilians and burned villages at a slightest hint of supporting the rebels. Besides kidnappings and killings for ransom, Farc had also turned to the cocaine trade to finance its insurgency. After the accord was signed, the Colombian government has ordered its armed forces to halt all military operations against the Farc. While Farc leader Timoleon Jimenez announced in Cuba, "I order all our commanders and units and each one of our combatants to definitively cease fire and hostilities against the Colombian state from midnight tonight (Nov 24). Madrid: Spanish and French police have made five arrests after discovering a suspected weapons trove for the Basque militant group ETA in southern France, the French interior minister said on Saturday. Bruno Le Roux said in a statement that the arrests were made late last night when police found explosives and guns in a house in the French town of Louhossoa. "They are the result of excellent cooperation" with Spanish authorities, Le Roux said in a written statement. Spain's Interior Ministry had previously announced three arrests in Louhossoa. French Lawyer Michel Tubiana, honorary president of the League of Human Rights, said the people who have been arrested in fact wanted to destroy ETA weapons. "They are members of civil society who have only one concern, that ETA implements its commitment to disarm," Tubiana told BFM television. In 2011 ETA announced it was renouncing violence in its campaign for independence for the Basque regions of northern Spain and south-west France. It has yet to disarm or disband. It is blamed for over 800 deaths from 1968 to 2010. Dubai: Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei condemned Britain on Saturday as a "source of evil and misery" for the Middle East after British Prime Minister Theresa May called Iran a regional threat. "Shamelessly, the British have recently called ... Iran a threat to the region, but everyone knows that ... it is the British who have always been the source of threats, corruption and misery," the state news agency IRNA quoted Khamenei as telling participants at an Islamic unity conference in Tehran. Khamenei called "policies and the actions of the British in the past two centuries a source of evil and misery for the peoples of the region", IRNA added. May called on Gulf Arab heads of state at a summit last week to work with London "to push back against Iran`s aggressive regional actions, whether in Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, Syria or in the Gulf itself". [nL5N1E21QR] "So I want to assure you that I am clear-eyed about the threat that Iran poses to the Gulf and the wider Middle East," she told the summit in Bahrain on Dec. 7. Khamenei accused the United States and Britain of provoking conflicts among the main Sunni and Shi`ite branches of Islam and said: "The old British policy of `divide and conquer` is seriously on the agenda of Islam`s enemies." Iranian media reported on Saturday that the foreign ministry had summoned a top British diplomat in Tehran to protest against British criticism of its actions in Syria. The move came after British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said on Thursday he had summoned the ambassadors of Russia and Iran to convey his "profound disquiet" over events in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo. Britain and Iran exchanged ambassadors in September more than a year after Britain reopened its Tehran embassy, which was closed for nearly four years after it was stormed by protesters. Iran and most Gulf states are on opposite sides in Middle East conflicts, with Iran an ally of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria`s civil war and of the armed Houthi movement fighting a Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen. London: A British Muslim woman in her 20s was forced to the ground in a busy shopping area in London and dragged along by her hijab by two teenaged men in what authorities said was a hate crime. The woman was walking alone in Chingford, east London, when she was accosted by her attackers. Scotland Yard is now appealing for information on the incident that occurred earlier this week. "The London Ambulance Service attended and treated the victim, aged in her 20s, for her injuries at the scene. It was reported that two unknown males approached the victim from the side, pulled off her headscarf and then pushed her to the floor," a Metropolitan Police statement said. "The suspects are described as two white males, aged 17 to 19. They were wearing all black clothing. No arrests have been made," it said. There has been a rise in hate crime allegations across the UK following the EU referendum. Figures released by the UK National Police Chief's Council showed reported incidents rose to 58 per cent in the week following the vote for Brexit on June 23 and levels have remained high throughout the year. Tell MAMA? (Measuring Anti-Muslim Attacks), the UK's anti- Islamophobia group, called the latest incident "horrific" and said women were being disproportionately targeted in attacks on Muslims. A Met Police spokesperson said: "The service has long since recognised the impact of hate crime on communities and the hidden nature of this crime, which remains largely under- reported. "Positive action is taken to investigate all hate crime allegations, support victims and their families and bring perpetrators to justice." Hudson: Police in New York broke a car window to rescue a woman who turned out to be an extremely realistic mannequin. The unusual incident happened Friday morning in the city of Hudson. The Times Union of Albany reports that a caller told police there was an elderly woman "frozen to death" in a parked car. Officers rushed to the scene and found what appeared to be a woman sitting in a car's front passenger seat wearing an oxygen mask. A sergeant busted a rear window, opened the door and discovered that the woman was a realistic mannequin. The car owner arrived and said he uses the dummy for his job selling medical training aids. The police chief says the owner was "incredulous" that police broke the window to rescue the mannequin. Beijing: China expects a smooth resolution to the seizure by its navy of unidentified equipment found in the South China Sea, a state-run newspaper said on Saturday, after U.S. officials said a Chinese warship had taken a U.S. underwater drone. The drone was taken on Thursday, the first seizure of its kind in recent memory, about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay off the Philippines just as the USNS Bowditch was about to retrieve the unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), U.S. officials said. China's influential state-run tabloid the Global Times, citing an unidentified Chinese source, said a Chinese naval vessel had discovered "unidentified equipment" and checked it to prevent any navigational safety issues. "This person said China has already received a claim request for the equipment from the U.S. side, relevant parties from both sides have maintained smooth communication channels, and believe this issue will be smoothly resolved," the paper said. China's defense and foreign ministries have yet to comment publicly on the issue. "The UUV was lawfully conducting a military survey in the waters of the South China Sea," a U.S. official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. "It`s a sovereign immune vessel, clearly marked in English not to be removed from the water - that it was U.S. property," the official said. The Pentagon confirmed the incident at a news briefing on Friday, and said the drone used commercially available technology and sold for about $150,000. Still, the Pentagon viewed China`s seizure seriously since it had effectively taken U.S. military property. "It is ours, and it is clearly marked as ours and we would like it back. And we would like this not to happen again," Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis said. HEIGHTENED CONCERNS The seizure will add to concerns about China`s increased military presence and aggressive posture in the disputed South China Sea, including its militarization of maritime outposts. It coincided with sabre-rattling from Chinese state media and some in its military establishment after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump cast doubt on whether Washington would stick to its nearly four-decades-old policy of recognizing that Taiwan is part of "one China." President Barack Obama said on Friday it was appropriate for Trump to take a fresh look at U.S. policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the U.S. relationship with Beijing, as the notion that Taiwan is part of "one China" is central to China`s view of itself as a nation. Beirut: A new deal has been reached to complete the evacuation of rebel-held areas of eastern Aleppo which stalled over demands from pro-government forces that two villages besieged by rebels must also be evacuated, a Syrian rebel told news channel al-Arabiya al-Hadath on Saturday. Rebel official Al-Farouk Abu Bakr, speaking from Aleppo, said the deal comprised an evacuation from the two Shi`ite villages besieged by insurgents, the evacuation of wounded people from two towns besieged by pro-government forces near the Lebanese border, and the full evacuation of rebel-held eastern Aleppo. Officials from the Syrian government or the military alliance fighting in support of it could not be reached for immediate comment. Abu Bakr did not say how many people would be evacuated from the two Shi`ite villages, al-Foua and Kefraya. Washington: The US has demanded the return of an underwater drone that was seized by China in the disputed South China Sea as an American crew was moving in to retrieve it, the New York Times said on Friday. Chinese media reported that Beijing had received a "claim request" from the US for an underwater drone. The episode threatens to increase tensions in a region already fraught with great power rivalries. A Chinese warship had been shadowing the Bowditch, a US naval vessel, in the international waters of the South China Sea. The Chinese then launched a small boat and snatched the unmanned underwater vehicle, the Pentagon said. Ignoring radio demands from the Americans to return the drone, the Chinese ship sailed away. The episode led to one of the tensest standoffs between Beijing and Washington in 15 years and occurred a day after the Chinese signalled that they had installed weapons along a string of disputed islands in the South China Sea. The seizure of the drone brought a formal protest from the United States at a time when China is extending claims over the South China Sea and is watching the US - and its incoming president - with wariness. The episode did not have the life-or-death drama of the April 2001 midair collision between a Chinese fighter jet and a Navy surveillance plane that forced the Americans to make an emergency landing on Chinese territory. Acknowledging the odd nature of Chinese sailors seizing the drone close to its American mother ship, an official here likened it to watching a thief steal a wallet in broad daylight. American officials said they were still trying to determine whether the seizure was a low-level action taken by Chinese sailors who spotted the drone - which the Pentagon said was conducting scientific research - or a strategic-level action ordered by more senior Chinese leaders to challenge the American presence in those waters. "We call upon China to return" the underwater vehicle "immediately," New York Times quoted Peter Cook, the Pentagon press secretary, as saying on Friday. The incident complicates already testy relations between China and the United States, ties that have been further frayed by President-elect Donald J. Trump`s phone conversation with the president of Taiwan. Trump angered Chinese officials by holding a phone conversation with President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan, an island that Beijing deems a breakaway province of China. It has been nearly four decades since a US president or President-elect had such direct contact with a Taiwanese leader. Pentagon officials said on Friday that they were trying to determine if the seizure of the underwater drone had anything to do with Trump`s comments. British energy major BP said in a statement that bottom-line net profit rose by nine percent to $1.769 billion (1.521 billion euros) in the three months to September British oil giant BP secured a 10-percent share in an onshore oil concession in Abu Dhabi on Saturday in a deal worth $2.2 billion, the companies said. BP signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) to take a stake in the Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Petroleum Operations (ADCO) which operates the 40-year concession. "This agreement will provide BP with long-term access to significant and competitive resources that we already understand very well," BP chief executive Bob Dudley said in a statement. BP said it would pay Abu Dhabi with new shares worth 1.76 billion ($2.2 billion), leaving the emirate with a two-percent stake in the British company. BP will second up to 50 technical staff to ADCO, whose oilfields produce 1.4 million barrels per day. "This agreement marks a milestone in our efforts to forge new partnership models that bring technology, expertise and financing aimed at maximising the value of our resources and supporting the transfer of knowledge," ADNOC chief executive Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber said. In January, French giant Total clinched a 10-percent participating share in the concession. Inpex Corp. of Japan secured five percent and South Korea's GS Energy three percent. BP had held a 9.5-percent stake in a 75-year concession that expired in late 2014. Other companies with shares in the old concession included Total, Exxon of the United States, Anglo-Dutch firm Shell and Portugal's Partex. LAS VEGAS Rodrigo Carballo has joined affiliate program GunzBlazing as its newest Sales Manager. Carballo takes over for Matthew VonEgidy who held the position since 2012. "We're sad to see Matt go, and wish him all the best in his future endeavors," says GunzBlazing President Robyn Way, "Rodrigo was the first person who came to mind when the position came up, and we're very excited about having him on board." "GunzBlazing has a big roster, and I look forward to getting to know all the affiliates and learning about them, and more about the business, as well," says Carballo, who will be attending InterNext in Las Vegas from January 14 to 17. With over a decade of experience in gay affiliate marketing, GunzBlazing has established a reputation for unique marketing programs, specialized content, and a solid reputation for payouts and attention to its affiliate partners. Reuters Last month, as part of its regular survey of dealers before each of its quarterly refunding announcements, the Treasury asked dealers about the specifics of how buybacks could work. These included questions on how much it would need to buy so-called off-the-run Treasuries, which are older and less liquid issues, to improve liquidity in those securities. On Wednesday, it said it had not yet made any decision but that it would continue to meet with a variety of market participants to assess the costs and benefits of buybacks. Donald Trump President-elect Donald Trump tapped bankruptcy lawyer David Friedman to serve as the US ambassador to Israel on Thursday, raising questions about how Friedman's far-right views will upend Washington's longstanding approach to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Friedman, who has no diplomatic experience, is a fierce opponent of a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine that would create two independent states west of the Jordan river. He has compared members of J-Street a left-leaning advocacy group that supports a peaceful resolution to the Israel-Palestine conflict primarily via a two-state solution to "kapos," Jews who cooperated with the Nazis during the Holocaust. The kapos faced extraordinary cruelty, Friedman wrote in June for Israeli media organization Arutz Sheva. But J Street? They are just smug advocates of Israels destruction delivered from the comfort of their secure American sofas its hard to imagine anyone worse. Friedman has also not opposed Israel's expansion of settlements in the West Bank a practice that has been the source of significant tension between President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. And he wants the US to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's "eternal capital" instead of Tel Aviv, where the US embassy is currently located. The diplomatic status of Jerusalem a site of religious importance to Jews, Muslims, and Christians is one of the most controversial subjects in the Middle East. The Israeli annexation of East Jerusalem after the 1967 Six Day War has been widely rejected by the international community, and most foreign embassies are based in Tel Aviv. trump netanyahu Trump told Netanyahu during their meeting in September that he would recognize Jerusalem as the "undivided" capital of Israel. Friedman's positions have alarmed more left-wing Israelis and Israeli-Americans, who perceive them as an potential obstacle to peace between Israel and Palestine. Weiterlesen "It's difficult to see how Friedman's appointment is going to advance either peace or stability," Michael Koplow, policy director of the Israel Policy Forum, told Business Insider on Friday. "His views advocating for Israeli annexation of the West Bank, unfettered settlement expansion, and a wholesale rejection of the two-state solution place him on the extreme right of the spectrum not only in the U.S. but in Israel as well," Koplow said. "Assuming that his appointment is a signal that the Trump administration will support the policies that he advocates," he added, "it is going to cause major problems with regional allies and provide cover for extremists on all sides." Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting at his office in Jerusalem May 10, 2015. REUTERS/Sebastian Scheiner/Pool/File Photo Still, others are not convinced that Friedman's appointment provides a signal that Trump will lead US-Israel policy down a far-right path. "The Ambassador doesn't set policy he or she conveys policy," said Jonathan Schanzer, vice-president of research for the Washington, DC-based think tank Foundation for Defense of Democracies. "So the idea that you have a right-wing representative doesnt change much it probably just means he'll appeal more to the Israeli right, and maybe the center." Schanzer noted that while Friedman's appointment is "possibly foretelling of policy" and understandably "troubling to proponents of a two-state solution," it doesn't necessary reflect Trump's own views on the conflict or the region. However, the Trump administration should actively avoid any abrupt policy shifts that could create tension or lead to violence and disruptions in diplomacy, Schanzer said. For that reason, any big changes the Trump administration wants to implement should be done very slowly and tactfully. "Sequencing moves, messaging in advance, and working with allies and partners before making any major moves is what I would advise," Schanzer said. "Otherwise, these moves have the potential to disrupt relations between more fragile partnerships like Jordan and Israel, or Israel and Saudi Arabia. It could also lead to the eruption of a third intifada." Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas smiles during his arrival for an official visit at Khartoum Airport in Sudan July 19, 2016. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah Still, some experts and advocates believe Friedman's policy positions represent the kind of abrupt reversal on American policy toward Israel that could lead to the kind of unrest cited by Schanzer. Daniel Levy, a left-leaning former Israeli peace negotiator, told The New York Times that Friedman's commitment to relocating the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem is "ill-advised." He said Friedman's policies could "further embolden an already triumphalist settler elite," which "is likely to cause headaches for American national security interests across the region and even for Israels own security establishment." Koplow, meanwhile, said Friedman's positions are strikingly out of sync with policies "embraced by every president going back decades." "I think his appointment is a concerning development," Koplow said, "and given what he has said and written in the past, I hope that his views which contradict Trump's own statements about wanting to resolve the conflict rather than exacerbate it do not constitute the final word on what we can expect from the next White House." NOW WATCH: The last time a losing candidate had a wider popular vote margin than Clinton was in 1876 here's the bizarre story More From Business Insider 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 Thank you! It's taken awhile, but I'm starting to get in the spirit of peace and calm. If you want to get them something no one else can borrow get them a stick shift :) The manual transmission is now referred to as the millennial anti-theft machine. backing up and parallel parking are the biggest challenges to new drivers so I would get them a car that has a backup camera with sensors all around. I would get them a car that they liked driving enough that they would really miss when you took it away from them because they were being a blackhead and got in a stupid accident. I speak from experience here - my Godson did the other week - He decided he would drive a friend home at night in the rain and drove too fast and it cost him $3,000! Isn't that the perfect time to use Uber? Night time is the one time kids shouldn't be driving. The most accidents among teenagers happen at night. It also happens when more teenagers are in the car because the driver is distracted. So, maybe a 2-seater Lamborghini with backup camera and sensors :) You said an unlimited budget! 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Please note this version contains synth samples only and no sampler instruments. :::::: Specifications :::::: Format: WAVs 100 x Synth Chord Instruments 020 x Bass Instruments 010 x Synth Pad Instruments Instruments Based On 1.612 Samples Key-Labelled 44.1kHz 24-Bit High Quality Compatible With All DAWs PC & Mac Compatible Royalty-Free :::::: DEMO/PREViEW :::::: INFO/DEMO/BUY: https://mage.si/UFuO Detroit Chords WAV-DiSCOVER https://beelink.pro/30345/Detroit-Chords-WAV.html 835 Important stuff you won't get from the liberal media! We do the surfing so you can be informed AND have a life! During the recent Black Friday sale, several online retailers in South Africa had trouble processing payments due to credit card transaction verification systems being offline. One of these systems was Verified by Visa, which the card merchant said is a security protocol that guides its client banks and merchants in confirming that it is the cardholder performing a transaction. Client banks in South Africa use a personal or one-time password to provide this reassurance and security, Visa told MyBroadband. The way in which a bank implements Verified by Visa is at the discretion of the client bank. One of the available options is to host this service at Visa. According to the credit card company, there were no reported outages on its hosted service. The Visa network, VisaNet, facilitates the transfer of payment traffic between our financial institution clients, consumers, and merchants, said Visa. Merchants often make use of payment gateways to process this traffic independently of Visa and as a result Visa is not able to monitor or comment on the traffic loads they experience during peak periods. VisaNet processes an average of 150 million transactions each day, said the company. Based on rigorous testing, we estimate that VisaNet is capable of processing more than 56,000 transaction messages per second, it said. Now read: How Raru stayed online during Black Friday Advertise Here Be seen advertise here. Contact us. Asimkhan Pathan, 37, of India saw his chances of a second marriage shatter after his wife intervened and objected at the office of the marriage registrar. Pathan had wanted to register his marriage with an Armenian woman, Susanna Petrosyan, and had gone to the marriage registrars office in Ahmedabad on November 4 to initiate the procedure, according to The Times of India (TOI). However, on the form, he put a tick mark on the box claiming his status to be unmarried. Petrosyan declared herself a divorcee. They wanted to get their marriage registered under the provisions of the Special Marriage Act, and a person with any subsisting previous marriage is not eligible for marriage registration under this law. The marriage registrars office accepted documents from both the parties and issued a public notice, which was pasted in the office granting one month's time to those who have objection to the marriage. In this case, a woman turned up a week later and filed a lengthy objection to Pathans marriage on the ground that he is a married person and she is his legally wedded wife. This objection required the officials to question the bridegroom about his marital status. When he turned up with the Armenian woman a month later to complete formalities and to obtain the marriage certificate, the officials countered him with his wifes objection. They also asked why he had declared himself to be unmarried. This infuriated the bridegroom, who blamed the officials for wrongly relying on false claims made by a third party who claimed to be his wife, and of not following the procedure. He reminded the officials that they had not questioned anything in this regard earlier. As the argument heated up, the officials threatened Pathan of filing a complaint against him for false declaration and refused to register his marriage. Pathan left the office, but not without making a claim that he would return and get his marriage registered in the same office. However, after this incident, officials in the registrar office also realized their mistake. An official told TOI, Since then, we have made it mandatory for all parties to declare their marital status on affidavit. ENISA: War in Ukraine, geopolitics fuel cyberattacks WP: Man who attacked Pelosi's husband was in the U.S. illegally Bloomberg: Turkey unlikely to sign Sweden's bid for NATO membership before the end of the year IEA calls for urgent action on gas shortages in Europe Papikyan: The final number of dead will be published after the identification is complete Armen Grigoryan presents to Patrushev consequences of Azerbaijani aggression Indonesia reveals its own kamikaze drones UN: Russia resumes participation in inspection of ships in Black Sea Grigoryan: Armenia interested in using communication routes through Azerbaijan FT: Azerbaijan demands EU funding and long-term contracts for gas supplies US becomes 2nd largest gas supplier to EU Russian Defense Ministry reports release of 107 Russian servicemen from Ukrainian captivity How U.S supports Azerbaijan in 20 years by suspending 907th Amendment? Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs will receive less funds in 2023 than in previous two years German government urges its citizens to leave Iran Armenian MFA: Unblocking infrastructures is one of the main directions of talks Armenia MFA: We expect positive results in relations with Turkey in near future Armenia to open diplomatic representations in several countries in 2023: Uruguay among them Former Pakistani Prime Minister injured in shooting of election motorcade Russian MFA: Great Britain transferred underwater drones to Ukraine Armenia FM: International community has sent very clear signal to Azerbaijan Prime Minister receives Arin Karapet, Swedish MP Dollar, euro drop in Armenia Armenia FM: In few days there will be meeting between me, Bayramov, Blinken in Washington IRNA: Iran's IRGC eliminated a group that was planning attacks on government agencies Lawcoster 'Pobeda' to resume flights to Armenia at end of this year Armenia ex-President Kocharyan: One cannot despair, struggle must continue Deputy FM: Armenia can make some progress in simplifying visa regime with EU Turkey says Russia assures not to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine CSTO deputy chief: Armenia-Azerbaijan escalation, confrontation risk remains Armenian MFA: Cautious optimism in restoration of diplomatic relations with Hungary Uzbekistan refuses to resume operation of Mir cards in country Belarus Council: If Poland unleashes aggression, war will spread throughout Eastern Europe Peskov: It is up to the Ministry of Defense to increase the term of military service Valerie Boyer: Corrupt, racist Azerbaijan is attacking Armenia borders, seeking to continue ethnic cleansing, genocide Meeting of CIS Security Councils chiefs kicks off in Moscow Charles III travels with teddy bear and toilet seat EU plans to finance programs in Armenia for AMD 55 billion 747 mln Economy minister: Armenia and Iran are making efforts to jointly sell goods to third countries Azerbaijani Armed Forces practice capturing borders during exercises on border with Iran Storm in Philippines leaves 150 people killed Inflation in Turkey is up to 85.51% in October Armenia economy minister on Central Bank: First they said increase would be 4%t, then 1%, then 6% Borrell thanks UN and Turkey for facilitating Russia's return to the grain deal Foreign direct investments in Armenia last year totals AMD 129.2bln Minister: Examination of Armenian soldiers' bodies continues Jaguar station wagon from Elizabeth II fleet to be sold at auction IMF plans to provide more than $165 million to Armenia Marukyan: Baku says Karabakh Armenians should either stay on Azerbaijan terms or leave for 3rd country Minister of Economy: Armenia's role in Eurasian Economic Union grows Biden says U.S. troops will stay in Europe for a long time Vahan Hunanyan: Yerevan and Tehran have no disagreements on most issues Armenia, Russia to collaborate in information security Artsakh State Minister: There are many principal disagreements with Armenian authorities Public TV Company of Armenia to make purchase worth AMD 2 698.6mln for Junior Eurovision 2022 Armenian-Russian trade turnover up by 71.7%, Economy Minister Secretaries of CIS Security Councils to discuss nuclear security Economy minister: Armenia exports to other EEU countries increased 2 times Outgoing Artsakh Minister Artak Beglaryan to take position in state government system Japan Coast Guard reports 3 North Korean missile launches in a day Pashinyan says Armenian government did a lot for revival of Armenian aviation Oil falls in price Patrushev comments on Zelenskiy's statement about preventive nuclear strike WSJ: Americans favor Republicans over Democrats Turkey announces normalization of grain corridor Gold prices are down Putin calls on CIS countries security councils to use all their security capabilities SPRING PR founders were awarded the 'Global PR Leader of the year' Copper prices are rising State Duma member proposes to extend term of military service in Russia Iranian MPs: Powerful Iran will never tolerate changing of its borders Turkey to complete construction of pipeline in Black Sea in November Newspaper: Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty to be signed in Georgia US delivers more than 200 artillery systems to Ukraine since February Secretary of Armenian Security Council to visit Moscow Switzerland to direct $100 million to repair energy infrastructure in Ukraine Study: Blue whales eat 10 million particles of microplastics a day Microsoft president warns of shortage of staff to fight climate change Latvia extends state of emergency on Belarus border WSJ: UAE tried to convince Saudi Arabia not to cut oil production Cavusoglu: Greece must stop arming the demilitarized islands in the Aegean Sea Moody's downgrades outlook for banks in Germany, Italy, and 4 other countries to negative About 40 international companies to announce their relocation to UAE by end of year Israeli Prime Minister cancels participation in climate summit in Egypt Earthquake strikes in Antalya Polish manufacturing output falls amid economic uncertainty IEF: Oil price to exceed $100 due to EU sanctions against Russia Regnum Agency suspends its work Iranian MFA denies information about country's planned attack on Saudi Arabia Lebanon: U.S. guarantees will protect maritime border agreement with Israel if Netanyahu wins Belarusian MFA responds to Armenia after reaction to statements of Alexander Lukashenko Azerbaijani propaganda machine launches anti-Iranian rumors in social networks National interest: Why China fears the emerging Turkic alliance Lavrov and Abdollahian discuss situation in Persian Gulf zone and South Caucasus Erdogan and Aliyev discuss results of Sochi meeting of Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian leaders Goldman Sachs predicts that natural gas prices in Europe will fall by about 30% White House alleges Iran's plans to supply Russia with surface-to-surface missiles Iran to send delegation to Vienna to strengthen relations with IAEA Iranian Foreign Minister to discuss state of nuclear deal negotiations with Borrell Putin: Russia is ready to supply grain to the poorest countries even without participation in the deal Even though the ski resorts in Armenia and Georgia can appeal to Russian skiers, the respective infrastructure needs to develop. Margarita Turchaninova, the executive director of a Georgian travel agency, told the aforesaid to Armenian News-NEWS.am. I have been to Armenias [ski] resorts, she added. Snow is good, of course. But what will you do in the evening? The same problem is in [the Georgian ski resort of] Gudauri. Russian [ski] resorts, however, have gone ahead in this sense. Of course, this whole industry is not yet developed in Georgia and in Armenia. [But,] now, we plan to create such a thing in Gudauri; and the Armenian tour operators can do the same in Armenia. STEPANAKERT. The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Ministry of Foreign Affairs (NKR/Artsakh MFA) Information and Public Relations Department issued a comment to Armenian News-NEWS.am, with respect to blogger Alexander Lapshin being detained in Belarus. The launching of a criminal case against and detention of famous blogger Alexander Lapshin causes serious concern. Azerbaijan, where pressures and political persecution being carried out on concocted pretenses against political and civil activists and journalists have long since become a tradition, is attempting to spread its standards of human rights beyond the borders of the country. Such demeanor is not solely an apparent violation of fundamental human rights, especially of freedom of movement and rights to freedom of expression, but is also a policy of intimidation, to which an adequate assessment should be given by the international community, the NKR MFA comment reads. Famous blogger Alexander Lapshin was detained in Belarus. The Azerbaijani authorities had issued a search for Lapshin, and for visiting Artsakh. YEREVAN. The root of all of Armenias evil, social conditions, emigration, state of the army, non-existence of justice, and human rights violations is corruption, and the state officials widespread and insatiable looting of national wealth. Opposition Armenian National Congress (ANC) Party Founding Chairman and First President of Armenia, Levon Ter-Petrosyan, noted the above-said in his keynote address at Saturdays 2nd ANC Party convention (PHOTOS). As per the First President, however, this is solely the tip of the iceberg. The invisible [part] is the political philosophy that is put at the foundation of Armenian state-building, ever since 1998, he added. In other words, [it is] the policy of maintaining the Karabakh status quo and developing under the conditions of blockades for one hundred more years. Ter-Petrosyan also criticized the incumbent Armenian authorities ideology of nation-army. The Legal Theory Bookworm recommends The Ethics of Influence: Government in the Age of Behavioral Science on SSRN. Here is the abstract: In recent years, 'Nudge Units' or 'Behavioral Insights Teams' have been created in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and other nations. All over the world, public officials are using the behavioral sciences to protect the environment, promote employment and economic growth, reduce poverty, and increase national security. In this book, Cass R. Sunstein, the eminent legal scholar and best-selling co-author of Nudge (2008), breaks new ground with a deep yet highly readable investigation into the ethical issues surrounding nudges, choice architecture, and mandates, addressing such issues as welfare, autonomy, self-government, dignity, manipulation, and the constraints and responsibilities of an ethical state. Complementing the ethical discussion, The Ethics of Influence: Government in the Age of Behavioral Science contains a wealth of new data on people's attitudes towards a broad range of nudges, choice architecture, and mandates. And from the reviews: "In this era of intransigence and intolerance, The Ethics of Influence is a vitally needed book. It embraces what all of us - left, right, and center - mutually want: a balance between the goals of welfare, autonomy, dignity, and self-government. What's more, it is a hoot to read. Roll over Mill and Marx; tell Hayek and Gramsci the news." George A. Akerlof, Nobel Laureate in Economics, 2001 "As more governments and businesses turn to "nudging", pioneer Sunstein turns his brilliant mind to building an ethical framework for these powerful approaches. New findings on public attitudes to nudges - showing surprisingly high levels of support even among traditionally skeptical Americans - are combined with Sunstein's trademark clarity of thought to offer a timely framework that will be influential across the world." David Halpern, CEO, Behavioural Insights Team, and author, Inside the Nudge Unit "In a book full of convincing detail but free of dogmatism, Sunstein walks us through the case for and against nudges. Nudges are, in some circumstances, the best tool government has at its disposal - cheaper than financial incentives, more freedom-preserving than mandates, and more effective than information. Our government is sometimes ethically required to nudge us. Nonetheless, nudges raise legitimate ethical concerns, foremost among them that they can be manipulative. Sunstein ultimately makes a powerful argument for the widespread use of nudges by government, but without shortchanging the ethical arguments on both sides." Anne Barnhill, University of Pennsylvania "One need not agree with all of Cass R. Sunstein's arguments about nudging to admire him for doing more than anyone to champion the importance of behavioral science for public policymaking. Owing to him, it is an increasingly recognized ethical imperative to measure government actions not only against societal values but also against evidence." Ralph Hertwig, Director, Center for Adaptive Rationality, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Germany "Cass R. Sunstein knows more than anyone about nudging, and in this very insightful book he brings his acute reasoning to understanding the ethics behind choice architecture. Here he considers sources from Mill to Hayak to Ostrom, and argues that choice architecture is unavoidable and in many cases it is the right thing to do. Just as importantly, he talks about when nudging is wrong and when it is manipulative. All in all, it is an essential book for anyone interested in the ethics of behavioral intervention, either by governments or firms." Eric J. Johnson, Norman Eig Professor of Business, Columbia University, New York "Behavioural regulation has spread to governments worldwide. This brilliant book tackles the many myths that have evolved around the use of behavioural economics in politics. Cass R. Sunstein explains in clear words how (and why) the core values of an Ethical State - welfare, autonomy, dignity, and self-government - are indeed best served by governments that carefully base their policies on an empirical foundation and use behavioural insights as additional effective policy tools." Lucia A. Reisch, Copenhagen Business School "We typically consider ourselves rational actors, whose dignity derives from our autonomy. In fact, our behavior is easily shaped by other actors and by external factors, often outside our awareness and control. When government intervenes to influence our behaviors, often to improve our lives, we recoil. But if government remains uninvolved while other interests are free to shape our world, how autonomous are we then? Sunstein confronts our naivete with a penetrating discussion about how to balance government influence against personal dignity, manipulation against autonomy, and behavioral facts against political ideals. This book is an engrossing read." Eldar Shafir, William Stuart Tod Professor of Psychology and Public Affairs, Princeton University, New Jersey, and co-author of Scarcity China said Saturday it would return a US naval probe seized in international waters, as it slammed the "hyping" of the incident as "inappropriate and unhelpful". The unmanned underwater vehicle was taken around 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay in the Philippines late on Thursday, according to the Pentagon, which called the capture unlawful and demanded its immediate return. The incident comes amid escalating tensions between China and the United States, with President-elect Donald Trump repeatedly infuriating Beijing by questioning longstanding US policy on Taiwan, calling Beijing a currency manipulator and threatening Chinese imports with punitive tariffs. China's defence ministry said it would give back the device "in an appropriate manner", without providing details of the handover. "The hyping up from the American side is inappropriate and unhelpful to the swift resolution of the problem," the ministry said. China said it "strongly opposed" US reconnaissance activities and had asked Washington to stop them. "The Chinese side will take the necessary steps in response," the statement added. The Pentagon said it had registered its objection to the probe's seizure. "Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States," spokesman Peter Cook said Saturday. There are broader tensions in the South China Sea, where China has moved to fortify its claims to the region by building out tiny reefs and islets into much larger artificial islands. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam have competing claims in the South China Sea, which is laced with the world's most heavily travelled international trade routes. While the US takes no position on sovereignty claims in the South China Sea, it has repeatedly stressed all maritime claims must comply with international law. Its military has conducted several "freedom of navigation" operations in which ships and planes have passed close to the sites Beijing claims. Egypt's state prosecutor has ordered that the remains of victims from the crash of EgyptAir flight 804 from Paris to Cairo be handed over to relatives, his office said Saturday. The Airbus A320 had been en route on May 19 when it crashed into the Mediterranean, killing all 66 on board, among them 40 Egyptians and 15 French nationals. On Thursday, the aviation ministry in Cairo announced that traces of explosives had been found on the victims' remains. But France's air safety agency said it was not possible to determine what caused the crash, saying it did not have information on how the samples were collected. The prosecutor ordered the return of remains "of Egyptian victims, and there is currently coordination with foreign embassies to turn over the remains of foreigners," Saturday's statement said. A lawyer for relatives of the French victims had said in September that there was nothing to "justify" the delay in handing over the remains. France welcomed the decision on Saturday, and said it hoped it would be implemented as quickly as possible. "This is an important decision which the families have been looking forward to and the urgency of which has been stressed a number of times in recent months by the French authorities," the foreign ministry in Paris said in a statement. "The French authorities want this decision to be implemented as quickly as possible." The plane airliner had also been carrying two Iraqis, two Canadians and one passenger each from Algeria, Belgium, Britain, Chad, Portugal, Saudi Arabia and Sudan. Aviation experts have said there is little chance that a mechanical fault was responsible for the disaster. The plane only entered service in 2003, making it relatively new for an aircraft that tends to have an operational life of 30 to 40 years. It was flying at 37,000 feet (11,000 metres) and disappeared about 130 nautical miles off the Greek island of Karpathos. Investigators had determined that a fire broke out in or near the cockpit before the plane crashed between Crete and the coast of northern Egypt. The disaster came as Cairo was still investigating the October 2015 crash in Egypt's Sinai of a Russian passenger plane filled with tourists flying home. The Islamic State jihadist group claimed responsibility for bombing the Airbus A321 that crashed soon after takeoff from a Sinai resort, killing all 224 passengers and crew. There has been no such claim linked to May's EgyptAir crash. However, Egypt's aviation minister, Sherif Fathy, has said a terrorist attack was the most likely cause of the EgyptAir crash. The chances of an attack were "higher than the possibility of a technical (failure)" for the downing of the plane, Fathy said in May following the crash. The aircraft had plunged 22,000 feet and swerved sharply before disappearing from radar screens, Greece's Defence Minister Panos Kammenos said at the time. Why analysts are not impressed with Singapore's strong November NODX They forecast full year NODX to stil be in the red at -4.1%. There was a surprise boom in Singapore's non-oil domestic exports in November -- after slumping 12% in the previous month, it managed to revert losses and post an 11.5% growth. But analysts were far from impressed. For Citi Research, they remain cautious of the volatile pharmaceutical segment, which saw a 44.8% growth. "We remain cautious of growth, given that the rebound was largely driven by volatile pharma, while Trump presidency-related uncertainties remain, with Singapore relatively more exposed to any protectionist policies compared to the rest of ASEAN," Citi research noted. For UOB, the surprisingly strong NODX will not be enough to change the fate of a fourth full year NODX decline. "The improvement in November NODX was due to gains in both the electronic and non-electronic exports. Electronic exports grew 3.5% y/y, and marked the first expansion in 9 months," UOB said. It added,"We maintain our 2016 NODX growth forecast of -4.1%, marking the 4th year of full year NODX decline. Nevertheless, we forecast 2017 NODX to finally break the contractionary barrier and grow 0.7%, although it is still a very weak growth." More From Singapore Business Review By John Davison BEIRUT (Reuters) - They fled Aleppo from different districts and at different stages of Syria's civil war, seeking refuge abroad. Now, for refugees who supported the opposition, President Bashar al-Assad's victory has dashed hopes of ever going home. Even as the uprising in Aleppo and cities across Syria descended into conflict, several former residents interviewed by Reuters said they had hoped there could still be change, a negotiated settlement and a chance to return. But as Assad reasserts control after the army and its allies routed rebels in Aleppo, these Syrians living in exile fear that a new crackdown that will include arrests and executions, and be worse than anything witnessed pre-war. "If I go back, I'll be executed," said Abdulhamid Zughbi, a 30-year-old who fled besieged eastern rebel-held Aleppo earlier this year for Turkey, seeking medical treatment for his wife and infant son. "I can't even think about returning as long as the Assad regime is still in power. It's impossible for anyone from the opposition," he said. Nearly 5 million Syrians have fled the country in a conflict that has killed more than 300,000 people and pitted multiple warring sides against each other, including jihadists who have come to dominate the insurgency in many areas. The permanent displacement of millions of Syrians is one way in which its war and others in the region are causing irreversible changes. Most refugees are in neighbouring countries including Turkey and Lebanon, and hundreds of thousands have gone to Europe. Some will see Assad's win in Aleppo and other gains he has made with Russian and Iranian support as a chance to return and rebuild their lives - but not those involved in dissent when protests began in 2011. Zughbi took part, then worked for years in medical aid and rescue in rebel-held eastern Aleppo. "My wife was lightly wounded in shelling and my son was ill. I thought I'd take them to Turkey and come back. "That day, they closed the road, and I couldn't return," he said, referring to when government forces sealed off the rebel-held part of the city in August. They besieged it for months and then made a lightning advance to drive insurgents out of most of their areas they held in a matter of weeks. [nL5N1EA14F] 'ARRESTS HAVE JUST BEGUN' As residents have poured out of rebel districts, including into areas under government control, the army has begun making arrests, Zughbi said. "The arrests have just begun. They detain the more prominent people (activists) on the spot ... but for others - now they (the government) have the time, they'll investigate and then arrest them at a later stage. "A friend of mine went to a government-held area and three days later they detained him." The United Nations voiced deep concern about reports of Syrian soldiers and allied Iraqi fighters summarily shooting dead 82 people in east Aleppo districts this week - accusations denied by the army and the Iraqi militia in question. Assad's opponents accused the government of mass arrests and forced conscription. A Syrian military source denied arrests but said identities of people leaving rebel-held areas were being checked and anyone who was unknown was being put into "specific places" in areas where civilians were gathered. The army says Syrians eligible for military service must serve. For Abu Rakan, a 51-year-old refugee living in Lebanon, the death of his brother in law, a rebel fighter, and disappearance just days ago of his sister have underscored the danger for anyone linked to the opposition. "If we go back, it'll be more dangerous than before. Anyone with the opposition is in danger. "We've lived with this regime for 40 years. We know how it behaves, what it does," he said, referring also to Assad's father and former president Hafez al-Assad, who crushed leftist and Islamist challenges to his rule. Abu Rakan said he would only return to Syria under a "full national reconciliation", and if there were a freely elected government in place and a new constitution - all of which look more than distant than ever. Hala, an activist who left government-controlled Aleppo in 2014, said she would not trust any settlement between the government and opposition - Assad had to go. "There's no way I can go back while the Assad regime is there," said the 37-year-old, who now lives in Beirut and works for a Syrian citizenship organisation. MISERABLE EXILE "Even if there was a kind of reconciliation, we wouldn't be able to live there. The oppression that existed before the revolution will multiply. "When the revolution began we were able to express our views and to live more freely. Even if we weren't arrested, we can't go back, knowing it will be just like it was," she said. Hala, Abu Rakan and Zughbi want to go home. Even for them, who are among the better off refugees, life in exile is beginning to become unbearable. "There's no future for me in Lebanon. I work illegally because it's difficult to get residency, and I can't get medical insurance because I'm not U.N.-registered," Hala said. She decided not to travel onto Europe before EU countries tightened their borders because she still hoped to make it back to Syria at that stage. [nL3N17Z2FI] Many Syrian refugees live illegally in Lebanon because they cannot afford the renew their residency. Seventy percent live below the poverty line, the U.N. says. In Turkey, Zughbi is preparing for a lifetime of exile, but says conditions are not much better, as he struggles to make a living still as a medical aid worker. "My ambition now is to get out of Turkey, maybe try to go to Europe, or America. "That's my only choice." (Reporting by John Davison; editing by Giles Elgood) TENOSIQUE, Mexico (AP) Carlos Mejia sleeps on a bare mattress in an otherwise unfurnished room with his girlfriend and spreads a sheet on the cool tile for their two young children, a small respite from the sweltering heat. Their neighbors on both sides are Hondurans like them. He earns $8 a day working 12 hours slicing plastic bottles to put into a compactor, enough to pay the electricity and water and buy some food. But the U.N. refugee agency picks up the rent and that of a growing number of immigrant families in this Mexican city of 32,000 people near the Guatemalan border. Mejia is among more than 8,000 immigrants expected to seek asylum this year from Mexico, the majority fleeing gang violence in Honduras and El Salvador and to a lesser extent Guatemala. The exodus is turning southern Mexico towns like Tenosique as well as Palenque and Tapachula in neighboring Chiapas state into informal refugee camps. The decision to settle in Mexico and not continue to the United States is tied to increased recognition of the risks of crossing Mexico and more recently the hostile rhetoric of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, the immigrants and their advocates say. The number of those seeking asylum in Mexico this year is more than double the 3,423 applicants last year itself a 65 percent increase from 2014. Applications have risen by about 9 percent each month this year, says the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, or UNHCR. According to the Mexican Commission for Refugee Aid, or COMAR, about 4,000 of the 6,898 applications it received through October this year made it to the end of the process and of those, 2,162 applicants got refugee status. Another 414 applicants who did not qualify as refugees received other kinds of government protection and escaped deportation. More migrants are seeking asylum as information about the possibility spreads, said Rafael Zavala, director of the UNHCR office that opened here a year ago as the number of Central Americans seeking protection rose. Story continues "We expect this year's trend of people seeking protection here in Mexico to continue," he said. Mejia, 27, and his girlfriend Saimi Julio, 19, surrendered in October to Mexican immigration authorities at the El Ceibo border crossing, along with their 2-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son. They spent 26 days separated in immigration detention before being released to the migrant shelter here. The couple had applied for asylum as well as a permit letting them seek work, so they only spent a week at the shelter before getting their room with the U.N. agency's help. It took Mejia another month to find a job. A response to their asylum requests could take up to three months. Applicants cannot leave the area in the meantime, each week signing in at the local immigration office. If amnesty is denied, they can appeal and continue waiting. Mejia said he never considered going to the United States. "It's hard to go to the U.S.," he said sitting on the stoop outside his room. "You risk a lot of violence, so much crime along the way." The number of asylum applicants remains a fraction of the overall flow. More than 400,000 immigrants mostly Central Americans were apprehended along the U.S. southwestern border during the fiscal year that ended in September. But everything signals migrants are increasingly seeking asylum. There is a precedent. In the 1980s and 1990s, Mexico took in more than 40,000 Guatemalans fleeing their country's civil war. There is no sign Central America's current violence is letting up. El Salvador's homicide rate last year was 103 killings for every 100,000 residents, making it the most deadly country not at open war. Honduras had 64 killings per 100,000 people in 2015. Two of Mejia's brothers were killed last year in a robbery and he received threats in their homeland. Tenosique neighborhoods now teem with Hondurans. Narrow passageways lead to rows of rooms housing families. Wendy Jimenez and her family met Mejia and Julio in Tenosique. They fled Honduras after her husband, Angel Castellon, refused to sell drugs for gang members who retaliated by setting fire to their home. A large, twisting scar covers Castellon's upper arm and their 2-year-old daughter has burn scars on her legs and chest. Jimenez earlier lost an uncle and a brother in the country's violence. Jimenez and her family made it to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, across the border from Texas on a previous trip. But they were eventually deported back to Honduras. The day after they arrived, they left again. "Our idea was the United States, but with the situation as it is, I don't think we can go to the United States," Jimenez said, referring to Trump's vows to deport millions of immigrants in the U.S. illegally. They heard about the possibility of asylum in Mexico, and on this journey they applied. In a written response to questions, COMAR said that in September it signed a cooperation agreement with UNHCR, under which the Mexican entity is hiring more staff to keep up with increasing applications. Tomas Gonzalez Castillo, a friar who founded the migrant shelter in Tenosique, said he has seen changes since it opened a few years ago. There are more Central American families in Tenosique and they stay longer, unlike earlier waves that rested briefly and continued north. The number of visitors through the shelter is up by about a third this year. "It is an obligatory migration, forced by the generalized violence," Gonzalez said. "It is a terrible decomposition of the social fabric." The U.N. is laying groundwork for more asylum seekers to stay in Tenosique and "avoid in the future any type of feeling of rejection toward the people who are arriving," said Zavala, head of the refugee agency's local office. The agency has worked with city officials to open a gym and otherwise bring together local youth and their migrant peers, "so the foreigner won't become a threat, but rather an acquaintance." Costa Rica this week abruptly changed its migration policy to stop visitors using visas for the EU's Schengen zone or for Japan from entering the country, causing many "problems," according to one official. The decision was not explained. It came into effect on Tuesday, just as the tropical Central American country was gearing up for its end-of-year high tourist season. "There has been a change in the past few days for Schengen visas and we have had problems with many people for this reason," one government official told AFP. European embassies did not seem to be aware of the modification. The European Union's Schengen zone encompasses 26 countries, including some non-EU countries. Persons can cross internal borders without being subjected to border checks. The order from Costa Rica's migration service said its change was made after "two years of studies" and the "necessary changes" were based on international accords. It did not elaborate. The decision does not affect citizens from most European countries or the United States or Japan, who do not need a visa at all to enter Costa Rica. Nationals from some wealthy Latin American and Asian countries are likewise exempt. Also, holders of multiple-entry visas for the US were unaffected. They could still use a valid, multiple-entry US visa to enter Costa Rica. But all other would-be visitors were now required to seek a visa from a Costa Rican embassy or consulate, a process that can take weeks. The head of the International Migration Organization's mission in Costa Rica, Roeland de Wilde, said that countries should "promote easier and regular channels for migration that go to benefit them culturally, financially and in terms of tourism." ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) West African leaders promised Saturday to enforce the results of a Gambian election that was won by a little-known businessman backed by an opposition coalition but rejected by the country's longtime coup leader. A summit of the Economic Community of West African States ended with all leaders stating they will attend the Jan. 19 inauguration of Gambia's new president, Adama Barrow. They also pledged to "guarantee the safety and protection of the president-elect," who has said he fears for his life. Gambian President Yahya Jammeh surprised his fellow citizens by conceding defeat the day after the Dec. 1 vote, and then changed his mind and called for a new election. The United Nations, the United States and the African Union have all condemned the move. The summit in Abuja, Nigeria, attended by 11 presidents with Jammeh absent, agreed "to take all necessary actions to enforce the results" of the Gambian election. It called for Jammeh to accept the results and refrain from compromising a peaceful handover of power. A new deployment of soldiers across the country risks increased intimidation and harassment, the U. N. high commissioner for human rights, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, warned late Saturday. "This is deeply worrying, given the record of human rights violations in Gambia, including excessive use of force against demonstrators, arbitrary detention and deaths in custody, as well as allegations of torture and ill-treatment of detainees," Zeid said. The summit named a mediation committee headed by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari with his deputy Ghana President John Dramani Mahama, who conceded defeat in an election a few days after Gambia's. It was Ghana's first electoral defeat of a sitting president. The president of the West African community, Marcel de Souza, said this week that if diplomacy fails, a military intervention and "draconian measures" must be considered for Gambia. He spoke in an interview with Radio France International. Story continues Jammeh's defiance challenges the first regional community in the world to agree to military interventions in member states accused of abusing human rights and democratic principles. It has spent 25 years nurturing democracy in a region once prone to military coups. Jammeh acted after an opposition coalition official said he should be prosecuted for rights abuses. Jammeh used the excuse of errors in the vote tally, ignoring the country's Independent Electoral Commission, which said the winner remains Barrow with a revised count of 227,708 votes to Jammeh's 208,487. The ruling party filed a court challenge against the results Tuesday, a constitutional move complicated by the fact that Gambia's Supreme Court does not have a quorum. The United States said it doubts it is "a credible court dedicated to ensuring the integrity of Gambia's democratic process." Jammeh on Tuesday sent troops to take over the electoral commission's office in Banjul, the capital, shortly before a delegation of West African leaders arrived on an inconclusive mission. Jammeh seized power in a bloodless coup in 1994 in the country of 1.9 million people known for its beaches. ___ Faul reported from Lagos, Nigeria. MOSUL, Iraq (AP) The bodies of two dead Islamic State fighters have been lying on the sidewalk in front of Muhammad Jassim's house in eastern Mosul for the past week. Both of the corpses were burned, abused and decapitated, one was partially covered by a pastel floral bed sheet. "This isn't something we want our children to see," Jassim said, coming out into the street to approach a group of Iraqi special forces officers touring the recent territorial gains. "I asked them to please take the bodies away, the smell is terrible." As Iraqi forces settle into a routine of slow, steadier progress inside Mosul, more civilians remain trapped living along front lines for longer. Jassim's Mishraq neighborhood was declared liberated from IS nearly a week ago, but remains too dangerous for most aid groups to visit as it lies just a few hundred meters from ongoing clashes. Thursday, a mortar landed across the street from Jassim's home and killed three of his neighbors. As the operation to retake Mosul enters its third month, Iraqi forces control two pockets of territory in Mosul: a cluster of neighborhoods on the city's southeast held by the Iraqi army's 9th division and neighborhoods on the city's east held by the special forces. "We've received nothing," Jassim said. Around the corner from his home a group of men filled plastic buckets with water from a burst pipe in a crater left by an airstrike. Another resident, Younis Ali, ran up to the officers asking for heating fuel or electricity. Families on Ali's street have begun collecting scraps of wood and cardboard to burn for heat as temperatures have repeatedly dropped below zero in Mosul over the past week. As Iraqi special forces Lt. Gen. Abdul-Wahab al-Saadi toured the area Friday, he kissed babies for a cluster of television cameras, posed for mobile phone selfies and promised the residents swift improvements. "We want people to know that this area is safe, that the military is here now," al-Saadi said, but he admitted that he expected progress to continue at a slow pace. Iraqi forces have repeatedly faced punishing IS counterattacks in Mosul's dense residential neighborhoods, after swift advances left the Iraqi forces vulnerable. "We are so thankful for these soldiers," Jassim said of the half dozen black armored Humvees dotting his neighborhood, "but what we really need now is a medical center." The last king of the isolated Himalayan region of Upper Mustang died Friday in Kathmandu, eight years after he lost his royal title when the centuries-old Buddhist monarchy was abolished. Jigme Dorje Palbar Bista, who was 86, reigned over the arid kingdom high on the Tibetan plateau for more than half a century before stepping down in 2008 when Nepal abolished its own monarchy. "He passed away at 1 am at the hospital this morning. He was admitted three days ago. He had not been well on and off since about a year. But was having more difficulty recently because of the cold," the former king's nephew Tsewang Bista told AFP. "We will have rituals until Sunday and the final rites will be performed on Monday in Kathmandu," he said. Nepal annexed the former kingdom of Lo in the 18th century, but allowed the king to retain his title. Bista succeeded his father Angun Tenzing Tandul in 1964, continuing a family line that could trace its lineage back to Ame Pal, the warrior who founded the kingdom in 1380. He supported a CIA-funded guerrilla campaign to oust Chinese forces from Tibet after a failed uprising in 1959, allowing Upper Mustang to be used as a base. Bista had lived most of his life in the medieval walled capital of Lo Manthang, but moved to Kathmandu over a year ago after he became ill, suffering from heart and kidney problems. He acted as a spiritual leader to the local Loba community, who speak a variant of Tibetan and are culturally and linguistically closer to Tibet than Nepal. Ringed by vast canyons and imposing red mountains, the remote kingdom has only recently begun to see glimmers of modernity after a new road connecting Upper Mustang to China and India was completed in 2014. The region was closed to visitors until 1992 and numbers are still strictly regulated. The man wanted in the murder of a Tampa nurse has been captured in Louisiana, according to the Tampa Police Department. Keith Earl Davis, 43, was located Friday in Sulphur, a small town near the Texas border. Keith Earl Davis was located in Sulphur, Louisana Davis is accused of killing William McGoff, a Tampa nurse PREVIOUS: Warrant issued for Tampa man wanted in murder of nurse Davis is suspected of killing William McGoff on Dec. 11 and stealing several of his possessions, including McGoffs car. Police discovered McGoff dead inside his home on Charlton Avenue after co-workers said he did not show up for work. A description of the stolen vehicle was released as police tried to locate Davis. Investigators received reports of the vehicle being spotted in northern Florida and Louisiana. Tampa Police detectives are heading to Louisiana to bring Davis back to Tampa. Police say he will face charges of first-degree murder, robbery and grand theft. No other details have been released at this time. AFP News Denmark's left-wing Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Wednesday kicked off the process of forming a new, broader government one day after scoring a narrow election victory. The Social Democrats, the largest party in parliament with 50 of 179 seats and accustomed to leading minority governments, now want to govern across the political divide after Frederiksen secured their best election win since 2001. "It will be very, very difficult. We don't know if it will be possible, but we will try our utmost", she told a party debate on Wednesday. Earlier in the day, the prime minister formally presented the resignation of her outgoing government to Queen Margrethe. The leaders of Denmark's 11 other parties in parliament were each meeting the queen individually on Wednesday before the monarch formally tasks Frederiksen with trying to form a new government. Frederiksen will then "enter into negotiations to form a broader government and that will probably take a while," political scientist Rune Stubager, a professor at Aarhus University, told AFP. Her left-wing bloc, which includes five parties plus three seats from the autonomous territories Greenland and the Faroe Islands, won a majority of 90 seats, compared to 73 for the right and far-right, and 16 for the centre. It was the Social Democrats' best election outcome in two decades, gaining two seats and securing over 27 percent of the vote, and allows Frederiksen to enter negotiations from a position of strength. Frederiksen's photo-finish win scuppered hopes of former two-time prime minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen, who founded a new Moderates party just months earlier, of becoming kingmaker in the new administration. - Broken dreams - The Moderates won more than nine percent of votes and Lokke Rasmussen insisted he wanted to be "the bridge" between the left and right, but daily newspaper Jyllands-Posten concluded that "in theory, Mette can do without Lars Lokke". While the Moderates will be part of negotiations, Stubager expressed doubt that they would be willing to "compromise sufficiently" to secure posts in the cabinet. A "more realistic" plan for Frederiksen would be a coalition government with various parties on the left, he said. While Frederiksen's government was largely hailed for handling the Covid-19 pandemic, the election was triggered by the country's so-called mink crisis. The affair erupted after the government decided in November 2020 to cull the country's 15 million minks over fears of a mutated strain of the novel coronavirus. The decision turned out to be illegal, and the Social Liberal party propping up Frederiksen's minority government threatened to topple it unless she called early elections to regain voters' confidence. The Social Liberals paid a price for the gamble, losing nine of their 16 seats and on Wednesday their party leader resigned. - 'Zero refugees' - To rule, the Social Democrats will still need to depend on support from the Social Liberals, which has made clear it will not support another minority one-party government. Broad consensus for Denmark's restrictive migration policy left the issue largely absent from the election campaign, but it could resurge in government negotiations. Advocating a "zero refugee" policy, the outgoing government had worked on setting up a centre to house asylum seekers in Rwanda while their applications are processed. The Social Liberals oppose the plan. "It will be very difficult for the Social Democrats to turn soft or to the left on immigration, because that has been a very pivotal point in their strategy over the past five, six years," Stubager said. "To give up on that would have dramatic consequences for them." The far-right has heavily influenced Danish politics in recent decades, but three populist parties together won just 14.4 percent of votes and are not expected to play a key role in the upcoming negotiations. The anti-immigration Danish People's Party, which hovered above 20 percent a few years ago, fell to 2.6 percent, its worst result since entering parliament in 1998. A new party founded by former immigration minister Inger Stojberg, the Denmark Democrats, instead won 8.1 percent, on a platform of less centralisation, less influence from Europe and fewer immigrants. cbw-jll/po/jm By Karolina Tagaris and Renee Maltezou ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras seems determined to go down in history as a leader who tried to save Greece's most vulnerable from austerity. But the crowd of pensioners in Athens on Thursday night was cynical about his promise to placate them with a one-off Christmas bonus. "We are living in misery and we won't tolerate being fooled any more," said Stavros Bokias, 75, one of hundreds of elderly Greeks protesting against deep pension cuts over the years. Under Greece's latest bailout, Athens can spend more on social programmes if it exceeds its fiscal targets, provided it consults its creditors first. Earlier this year, Greek lawmakers approved a social justice bill providing health insurance to vulnerable citizens and offering jobs for the unemployed. But political experts say the bonus was calculated to garner public support ahead of a big showdown with Greece's emergency lenders, the European Union and International Monetary Fund. They were concerned that the bonus showed Athens was retreating from its commitment to fiscal reform and reacted by shelving the prospect of short-term debt relief. Trailing badly in opinion polls, Tsipras needs support of politically powerful pensioners to help him stage another big confrontation with the lenders at a critical juncture in his effort to resist pressure on Greece to adopt more austerity. "Tsipras has repeatedly said that 'Greece will exit the crisis with its people standing on their feet'," a government official told Reuters when asked to comment on the premier's strategy regarding the Christmas bonus announcement. "This payout is part of this policy which he is determined to implement." ELECTION SPECULATION Speaking in Berlin on Friday, Tsipras said Greece would return to growth in 2017 after years of recession, and that economic development should not just be measured by statistics. "We want it to heal the wounds of crisis and to alleviate all those who have over these difficult years made huge sacrifices in the name of Europe," he said. But pensioners are having none of it. Almost a dozen pension cuts have pushed nearly half of Greece's elderly to below the poverty line with income of less than 665 euros a month. After rent, utility bills and health care, they barely make ends meet. "They are handing out crumbs compared to what they stole from us," Bokias said at the protest in central Athens as another demonstrator mocked the prime minister's populist gesture by handing out fake 50 euro notes. There is speculation among parliamentarians that Tsipras is prepared to call early elections next year. This would threaten the euro zone with further political uncertainty at a time when France, Germany and Italy are also on an election footing. His office has ruled out early elections but Tsipras has a history of resorting to the ballot box in big showdowns with lenders, most recently calling snap polls in September 2015 to consolidate his power and strengthen his hand in negotiations. Back then, he was riding high in opinion polls. Now, though, his leftist Syriza party is languishing more than 10 points behind conservative New Democracy and is widely viewed as having broken its promise to do away with austerity. Tsipras is eager to make a quick breakthrough with lenders next year, so that Greece can join other EU nations in joining the European Central Bank's quantitative easing programme from which is has been excluded, but he is being asked to first make more painful reforms. As encouragement, the EU and IMF granted short-term debt relief, but then Tsipras announced the bonus, called IMF technocrats 'fools' and warned lenders not to tell Greece what to do with its hard-earned budget surplus. Theodore Couloumbis, a political analyst, said elections next year were very likely and the government could be preparing the ground for a "heroic exit". "The government cannot go on. It's hanging by a thread," Couloumbis said. "Clearly it's to get a good rating in opinion polls ... He's stretching it because he can, at a time when Europe is being shaken." TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE Another government official said Tsipras was not thinking about a snap election but if forced to do so, the government would at least have paid out something to suffering pensioners. Greek pensions can still look generous on some measures, even after 11 cuts in the last six years. In 2014, four years into austerity, they accounted for 17 percent of gross domestic product, the highest in the European Union. That compared with 16.5 percent for Italy, 15.2 percent for France and 12.8 percent for Spain, according to Eurostat's latest data. Greece says the Christmas bonus, worth 300-500 euros each for its 1.3 million pensioners, does not breach the terms of its bailout. At a total cost of 617 million euros, it comes after the government exceeded its primary surplus target for 2016. But the hand-outs have so far failed to whip up any obvious increase in support for Tsipras among pensioners. Some have seen their monthly cheque fall between 40 and 50 percent in six years. For Nikiforos, a 76-year-old pensioner from the town of Thessaloniki, it is too little, too late. After 46 years of paying into a pension fund, he receives a monthly cheque of 436 euros while his living costs rise. This year, authorities scrapped a 230 euro top-up pension he received a month, and chopped an additional 50 euros from his main pension. "They want us to beg, but we still have our dignity," he said. (Additional reporting by Theodora Arvanitidou and Angeliki Koutantou; Writing by Michele Kambas; Editing by Mark Bendeich and Anna Willard) By Laila Bassam and Lisa Barrington ALEPPO, Syria/BEIRUT (Reuters) - A new deal is being negotiated to complete the evacuation of rebel-held areas of Syria's east Aleppo which ground to a halt on Friday after demands from pro-government forces that people also be moved out of two villages besieged by insurgents. A Syrian rebel official and a government official said early on Saturday the evacuation of Aleppo would resume and the two Shi'ite villages would be evacuated, as well as the wounded from two towns near the Lebanese border and east Aleppo. But sources said negotiations between pro-government and opposition forces, plus their international backers, were still going on to finalise how the evacuations would take place and how many people would leave. A senior Syrian rebel official from the powerful Ahrar al Sham group involved in the talks said the deal was being held up by Iran and its allied Shi'ite militias who were insisting people be allowed to leave the two besieged Shi'ite villages of Kefraya and al-Foua before letting the Aleppo evacuation happen. "Iran and its sectarian proxies are using the humanitarian situation of our people in besieged Aleppo and preventing civilians from leaving until the evacuation of their groups in al-Foua and Kefyra," Munir Sayal, the head of the political wing of the movement, told Reuters in a telephone interview. As darkness fell on Saturday afternoon and temperatures began to fall below freezing there was no sign the evacuation was happening. A resident in Aleppo told Reuters that nobody had left the rebel-held enclave and no buses had entered. He said he had heard gunfire near where people were supposed to wait for buses. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said thousands of cold, scared and injured people were still in east Aleppo waiting to leave. It said it had received some indications that a deal would be reached soon. The Syrian government official, part of the evacuations negotiating team, said: "It was agreed to resume evacuations from east Aleppo in parallel with the evacuation of (medical) cases from Kefraya and al-Foua and some cases from Zabadani and Madaya." The towns of Madaya and Zabadani are blockaded by pro-government forces. The operation to evacuate fighters and civilians from the last opposition-held area of Aleppo was suspended on Friday, its second day, after pro-government militias demanded that wounded people also be brought out of al-Foua and Kefraya, and protesters blocked a convoy on the road out of Aleppo. The chaos surrounding the evacuation reflects the complexity of Syria's civil war, with an array of groups and foreign interests involved on all sides. Aleppo had been divided between government and rebel areas in the nearly six-year-old war, but a lightning advance by the Syrian army and its allies that began in mid-November after months of intense air strikes deprived the insurgents of most of their territory in a matter of weeks. BEATEN AND ROBBED Numerous activists, rebels and east Aleppo residents shared reports and videos of people fleeing the sound of shooting, being detained and returning home badly beaten and robbed of their possessions near a checkpoint as they tried to leave the city on Friday. Rebels said the previous evacuation deal was breached by pro-government militias who detained "hundreds" of people trying to leave, leading to some deaths. A Syrian military source denied this, but said a convoy trying to leave was sent back. "Now we are working on international guarantees to guarantee the safety of those who leave Aleppo so that such violations are not repeated," Syrian rebel official al-Farouk Abu Bakr told news channel al-Arabiya al-Hadath from Aleppo on Saturday. An activist and teacher inside rebel-held Aleppo, Wissam Zarqa, told journalists via a messaging app that he spent Friday in the cold with his family hoping to leave. He said he did not feel safe trying to flee Aleppo after hearing about the attack on the convoy. The Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) and the ICRC said guarantees were needed to protect people. "We're ready to resume facilitating the evacuation according to our humanitarian mandate. But we now expect all the parties on the ground to provide us with solid guarantees in order to keep the operation going," said Marianne Gasser, head of the ICRC in Syria. NO BUSES YET A military news outlet run by Damascus's ally Hezbollah said evacuation buses were heading to the two villages. But the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war, said no buses or ambulances had entered al-Foua or Kefraya, where it says there are around 20,000 people, of whom roughly 4,500 are pro-government fighters. The Observatory said 8,000 people, including some 3,000 fighters and more than 300 wounded, left Aleppo in convoys of buses and ambulances in the evacuations that began on Thursday morning. Rebel officials say the numbers evacuated are much lower, with no fighters having left. The U.N. says around 30,000 people remain in rebel-held Aleppo, of whom a number would be taken to Idlib province, which is mostly controlled by hardline Islamist groups, and the rest would go to government-held city districts. Idlib is already a target for Syrian and Russian air strikes but it is unclear whether the government will push for a ground assault or simply seek to contain rebels there for now. Turkey has said Aleppo evacuees could also be housed in a camp to be constructed near the Turkish border to the north. OVERNIGHT BOMBING The Observatory said war planes bombed insurgent-controlled areas west of Aleppo overnight and north of Aleppo on Saturday. Syrian state media reported on Saturday that a number of fighters south of Damascus had surrendered their weapons to the state in the towns of Zakiya and al-Deirkheyba as part of local truces. Through a series of so-called "settlement" agreements and army offensives, the Syrian government, backed by Russian air power and Iranian-backed militias, has been steadily suppressing armed opposition in the capital city's suburbs. Russian President Vladimir Putin, Syria's most powerful ally, said on Friday he was working with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to try to start a new round of Syrian peace talks aimed at securing a nationwide ceasefire. A senior Syrian opposition leader, Riyad Hijab, said he was willing to attend the talks if the aim was to set up a transition government. Assad has ruled out stepping down as part of a political solution to the war. Aleppo, a once-flourishing economic centre with renowned ancient sites, has been pulverised during the war that has killed more than 300,000 people, created the world's worst refugee crisis and allowed for the rise of Islamic State. Even with victory for Assad in Aleppo, the war will be far from over. Insurgents retain their rural stronghold of Idlib province as well as other territory in western, northern and southern Syria, and the jihadist Islamic State group holds swathes of the east and recaptured the ancient city of Palmyra this week. (Reporting by Laila Bassam in Aleppo and Lisa Barrington and Tom Perry in Beirut and Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva and Suleiman al Khalidi in Amman; Writing by Anna Willard; Editing by Dale Hudson and Robin Pomeroy) By Suleiman Al-Khalidi AMMAN (Reuters) - A senior Syrian rebel blamed Iran and its Shi'ite militias on Saturday of holding up the evacuation of civilians trapped in the remaining rebel bastion in Aleppo and urged Russia to live up to its commitment to implement the deal. Munir al Sayal, the head of the political wing of the Ahrar al Sham rebel group involved in negotiations over the deal, said Iran was insisting people be allowed to leave two besieged Shi'ite villages before letting the Aleppo evacuation happen. He said Russia was failing to restrain its ally. "Iran and its sectarian proxies are using the humanitarian situation of our people in besieged Aleppo and preventing civilians from leaving until the evacuation of their groups in al-Foua and Kefyra," Sayal told Reuters in a telephone interview. The operation to evacuate fighters and civilians from the last opposition-held area of Aleppo was suspended on Friday, its second day, after pro-government militias demanded that wounded people also be brought out of al-Foua and Kefraya, and protesters blocked the road out of Aleppo. Sayal said Iranian-backed Shi'ite fighters led by Lebanon's powerful Hezbollah militia and other Iraqi Shi'ite groups were behind the detention of hundreds of people trying to leave on Friday, leading to some deaths before they were turned back, in an effort to disrupt the evacuation. Numerous rebels and east Aleppo residents shared reports and videos of people fleeing the sound of shooting, being detained and returning home badly beaten and robbed of their possessions near a checkpoint as they tried to leave the city on Friday. "These sectarian militias are responsible but we warn them the safety of our people in Aleppo is the priority and all options are open towards achieving that goal," said Sayal, whose armed group has a countrywide presence and is particularly active in northwestern Syria. The Iranian-backed Shi'ite militias have played a leading role in the siege of rebel-held Aleppo and in the Syrian army's retaking of near full control of the city. A picture of Iranian Revolutionary Guard commander Qassem Soleimani in a war-torn street in Aleppo was circulating on social media on Saturday by supporters. Reuters could not verify the authenticity of the photo. Sayal said Moscow's assertion that most civilians had already been evacuated from Aleppo showed Russia was trying to renege on its responsibilities under the deal. Thousands of hungry and cold civilians needed to be evacuated as soon as possible, he said. The agreement to evacuate the civilians and fighters was reached mainly between Russia, whose aerial bombing of Aleppo played a critical role in the defeat of the insurgents, and Turkey, which backs the mainstream rebels, acting as a go-between for the main insurgent groups. "Russia has failed to restrain the sectarian Shi'ite militias in Aleppo to complete the deal and Moscow should abide by its commitments," Sayal said. "There are still civilians in Aleppo who need to be evacuated in harsh weather conditions and Russian statements that besieged Aleppo is empty is absolving itself from following up on the agreement," he added. (Editing by Robin Pomeroy) FILE- In this Thursday, June 30, 2016 file photo, Congolese President Joseph Kabila, center, waves as he and others celebrate the Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC, independence in Kindu, Congo. Officials in Congo say negotiations between the countrys political parties are now on hold until Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2016. The announcement Saturday comes as the Catholic church attempts to resolve the impasse between President Joseph Kabila and opposition parties over delayed elections. (AP Photo/John Bompengo, File) KINSHASA, Congo (AP) Talks in Congo between President Joseph Kabila's party and the opposition are on hold after they failed to reach an agreement before the date Kabila was originally supposed to step down from power, mediators said Saturday. Kabila's original mandate ends Monday, and many fear widespread unrest if he stays in office unless some kind of political compromise is reached. Anti-government demonstrations are expected Monday and Tuesday. Police and military forces were already patrolling, searching cars and setting up checkpoints Saturday in Kinshasa, the capital. Authorities plan to cut off access to social networks Sunday for an undetermined period of time. The national election once set for November in this Central African nation has been delayed indefinitely, allowing the president to remain in power until a vote is held. Congolese authorities say that updating the voters' registrar will take until at least until July 2017 and budgetary constraints may delay the election even further. Catholic church officials who have been mediating the talks announced Saturday evening that the negotiations won't resume until Wednesday, raising fears of potential violence in the sprawling nation that has suffered decades of dictatorship and back-to-back civil wars. "Given the breadth of the topics, participants came to the conclusion that these questions should not be dealt with hastily," Monsignor Marcel Utembi said in a statement Saturday, adding that several church officials are now headed to Rome for a few days. "Meanwhile we ask everyone to pray for our country," he added. Opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi said he and his supporters maintain that a new election "must be held and can be held in 2017," despite calls from the presidential majority to hold them in April 2018. Opposition parties also want political prisoners released and for the case to be dropped against opposition politician Moise Katumbi, who left the country after prosecutors said they would charge him with hiring mercenaries for his protection. Story continues Justice Minister Alexis Thambwe Mwamba said the presidential majority was taking part in the talks with "an open mind to put an end to the crisis." He said while some prisoners could be released immediately, others might have to be pardoned by a commission. Kabila came to power in 2001 after the assassination of his father. Congo suffered through years of civil war, and some observers fear that tensions over Kabila's continued rule could once again unleash fighting in the mineral-rich country. Massive demonstrations broke out in Kinshasa and several other cities across Congo in September when the electoral commission failed to call an election and clashes with police left over 50 people dead. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said Saturday that concerns about unrest are high, especially since "no one to date has been held accountable" for the protesters' deaths in September. "We call on the government, and especially its security forces, to take all necessary measures to guarantee the rights to freedom of association and of peaceful assembly," he said. ___ Associated Press writer Krista Larson in Dakar, Senegal, contributed to this report. A court in communist Vietnam jailed two activists for over a decade on Friday after finding them guilty of attempting to launch a democratic revolution, their lawyers said. The authoritarian country leans on a raft of broadly-worded national security laws to detain dissidents and dole out lengthy jail terms, drawing frequent criticism from rights groups and Western governments. On Friday, a court in northern Thai Binh province convicted activists Tran Anh Kim, 67, and Le Thanh Tung, 48, of attempting to overthrow the government by "setting up a democratic force for revolution," said Tung's lawyer Vo An Don. Kim, a former soldier, was handed 13 years while Tung was sentenced to 12. Both were re-arrested last year only several months after they had finished jail terms for national security offences. Tung's lawyer told AFP after the trial that his client had been "wrongly charged". "It was just an intention. Vietnamese laws do not ban people from having the intention of setting up associations," he said. Kim's lawyer Tran Thu Nam also slammed Friday's trial as "not objective". Both will also be placed under probation for five years after they serve their sentences, the lawyers added. All newspapers and television channels are state-run in Vietnam, which ranks 175 out of 180 on Reporters Without Borders' latest press freedom index. Bloggers and activists have taken to social media in recent years to voice anti-government views but are routinely subject to arbitrary detention and jail time. According to Amnesty International, at least 45 people behind bars in Vietnam are "prisoners of conscience". By Natalia Zinets and Stephanie van den Berg KIEV/THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said he was confident parliament would approve a European Union compromise designed to rescue a cooperation accord between Ukraine and the bloc after Dutch voters rejected it in a referendum. Kiev and most EU capitals see the association agreement as crucial support for Ukraine against a Russia that is playing an assertive foreign policy role across Europe and the Middle East. EU leaders agreed on Thursday to spell out limits to the agreement to address concerns expressed by Dutch voters in an advisory referendum in April this year. The leaders agreed it did not make Ukraine a candidate for EU membership, and did not entitle Kiev to financial aid or military assistance. Neither did it give Ukrainians the right to live and work in the 28-nation union. "The situation with Russia is getting ever more confrontational," Rutte told a news conference on Friday. "That is a direct threat to our stability." Highlighting Russia's occupation of parts of Ukraine, hacking attacks against Western governments and political parties and Russia's support for Syria's government in its civil war, he said it was important to assuage Dutch voter concerns without "conceding to Russia". Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko welcomed the EU leaders' compromise, saying in a social media post that it was a "necessary step" towards securing the agreement. RUSSIAN SECURITY THREAT The Netherlands is the only EU country that has yet to ratify the deal, which would become void without its endorsement. Rutte said he was confident of winning a majority for the compromise in both houses of parliament, though he conceded it might take until after parliamentary elections due on March 15. Rutte's party faces competition from more anti-European parties that say the Ukraine deal must be dropped following the referendum vote. But Rutte said the Russian security threat outweighed the threat to his popularity in his calculations. Ukraine considers the agreement a symbol of its future direction, 25 years after the collapse of the Soviet Union. A pro-Russian president in Kiev was toppled by street protests in 2014 after he tried to ditch the EU accord in favour of a deal with Moscow. Russia responded by annexing Ukraine's peninsula of Crimea and went on to back a separatist rebellion in eastern Ukraine, a conflict that has killed nearly 10,000 people to date. (Reporting by Natalia Zinets in Kiev and Stephanie van den Berg in The Hague, writing by Thomas Escritt, Editing by Angus MacSwan) Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe addresses people at an event before the closure of his party's 16th Annual Peoples Conference in Masvingo, about 300 kilometres south of the capital Harare, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016. Mugabe officially opened the conference where he is set to be endorsed as the ruling party candidate for Presidential elections set for 2018.(AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi) MASVINGO, Zimbabwe (AP) Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, who turns 93 in February, was endorsed on Saturday as the ruling party's candidate in a national election scheduled for 2018. The ruling ZANU-PF party announced its support in the southeast town of Masvingo, where the party's youth wing even proposed that Mugabe should rule for life with broad powers. Opposition groups have described such adulation as a sign that Mugabe and his loyalists are out of touch with the desperation of a nation that is suffering massive unemployment, cash shortages and company closures. Despite the praise, Mugabe has acknowledged that some people within the ruling party have wanted him to quit. "Let us stop fighting each other," he said, referring to the succession fights that have engulfed his party. Mugabe has been in power since the southern African nation's independence from white minority rule in 1980. But a deteriorating economy has increased the pressure on him, and he has faced opposition protests in the past year. Even so, the ZANU-PF party rallied around Mugabe at its annual conference. Most delegates wore the party's colors of red, green, black and yellow, as well as Mugabe's portrait. Speaker after speaker extolled his virtues. One Cabinet minister named Supa Mandiwanzira did so by making a pun about his own first name. "I am not super, Mr. President. It is you who is super," he said, introducing the president. Kudzai Chipanga, leader of the party's youth wing, suggested that Mugabe's ID and birth certificate should be changed to read "President Robert Mugabe." Mugabe, who won the 2013 election that was marred by allegations of voting irregularities, has seemed frail at times but still travels widely and says he wants to live to 100. As Jonathan Davids, founder of influencer marketing platform Influicity recently explained to Small Business Trends contributor Brent Leary, YouTube is becoming an important place for brands to connect with customers. But it can also be an important place for small business owners and entrepreneurs to learn more about building and running their companies correctly. Below are 25 YouTube channels for small business owners and entrepreneurs you may want to check out regularly: Marie TV: Marie Forleo regularly serves up her own advice and answers viewers questions on Marie TV about how to create the business and lifestyle you really crave. Behind the Brand Behind the Brand offers a behind-the-scenes look into some of the worlds most successful brands. Host Bryan Elliott interviews everyone from entrepreneurs to actors to find out how they achieved success. This Week in Startups This Week in Startups includes a weekly roundup of the news stories that affect small, web-based companies. Entrepreneur Jason Calacanis welcomes a rotating panel of guests each week to discuss the news stories and how they can impact startups. Startup Grind Startup Grind is a global community of entrepreneurs and professionals. The YouTube channel features discussions with entrepreneurs in various industries who share their stories and lessons that may be helpful to others. ProjectManager.com ProjectManager describes itself as free project management training at your fingertips. Each video features tips and hints for dealing with various business related projects such as setting goals and managing employees. Stanford Business The Stanford Graduate School of Business aims to help create ideas and offer a greater understanding of business and management. Its videos feature discussions about issues that could impact young people entering the business world along with career tips from business leaders. Columbia Business Columbia Business is another channel that aims to educate young business leaders. Videos feature professors and business leaders offering career tips, along with activities from the students in Columbias business programs. Berkeley HAAS The Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley produces videos that include lessons from business professors and innovators in their fields on Berkeley HAAS. The channel also includes conversations with students and information from business courses at the school. Y Combinator This channel features videos from public Y Combinator events. The startup incubator features lectures from startup leaders along with question and answer sessions. Pando Daily PandoTV features interviews with entrepreneurs, investors, and other innovators. The videos mainly focus on the tech industry but other business related discussions as well. Entrepreneur Online Entrepreneur Online features news, expert advice, and growth strategies. It is the video complement to Entrepreneur Magazine. Alanis Business Academy Alanis Business Academy is a channel that provides video lessons on business topics ranging from economics and accounting to management and employee motivation. Google+ Your Business Videos from Google+ Your Business focus on Googles business solutions. Viewers can learn about advertising and Googles other products that they can then use to build their businesses. TED TEDTalks shares the best ideas from TED conferences in video form. Talks feature various leaders and entrepreneurs sharing tips and general motivation. O Reilly OReilly Media focuses on tech innovators. Its videos feature discussions about tech tools and even tech related tutorials. Gary Vaynerchuck Gary Vaynerchuck is an author, wine expert, and serial entrepreneur. His channel features talks about marketing and social media, along with question and answer videos that feature input from viewers. Prosperity TV On Prosperity TV Randy Gage shares video tips for people looking to find success and prosperity in life. Topics include overcoming fear, preparing for the future, and creating successful routines. INC The goal of INC is to provide tips and insights to help business owners and professionals overcome almost any type of business obstacle. Videos include interviews and input from CEOs, educators, and other professionals who discuss topics ranging from product creation to funding. Moz Moz includes resources and tips related to online marketing. Videos range from general marketing tips to tutorials for specific online tools. James Wedmore James Wedmore specializes in video and other online marketing tactics. His videos feature tutorials and tips for brands that want to use videos in their marketing mix. Derek Halpern According to Derek Halpern, businesses need to understand psychology and human behavior in order to really succeed. So the videos on this channel feature tips about sales, marketing, and dealing with customers in a way that tries to actually explain why customers react the way they do. Brian Tracy Brian Tracy is an author and speaker whose videos focus on both personal and business success. Each video includes tips and discussions about topics like leadership, finance and motivation. Dave Ramsey Author and radio and TV personality Dave Ramsey uses this channel to share financial and money management tips that can be relevant to both businesses and individuals. US Small Business Administration The official YouTube channel of the US Small Business Administration includes webinars, business tips, and information about SBA programs. Business Insider The Business Insider channel includes tutorials, information about tech gadgets, and other lessons about business and life. By Edward McAllister BANJUL (Reuters) - Lawyers, trade unions, teachers and journalists have joined a growing chorus of demands for Gambian President Yahya Jammeh to accept his defeat in a Dec. 1 election, as people lose their fear of the man who has ruled them for the past 22 years. As lawyers prepared to attend a meeting of the Gambian Bar Association on Monday, the intelligence service rang them with threats and monitored the ritzy Coco Ocean Hotel where they gathered, said the association's Secretary General Aziz Bensouda. But since the shock opposition victory that brought Gambians out on the streets of the capital Banjul in boisterous celebration, the familiar menacing tactics have lost their usual effectiveness. "The intimidation did not work," said Bensouda. "At the end, no one feared anything." After first conceding defeat to little-known challenger Adama Barrow, Jammeh last week rejected the voting results and his party is challenging them at Gambia's Supreme Court. Whether the small West African country can achieve its first peaceful transition of power in more than 50 years is an important question for a region long used to authoritarian rulers and sporadic coups. A top United Nations official said this week that Jammeh would face strong sanctions if he tried to cling to power beyond the end of his elected term next month. Following the five-hour bar association meeting, dozens of lawyers stood on the tiled steps of the resort's meeting room at dusk and accused Jammeh of "treason" for refusing to step down. Just a few onlookers were present, but the statement prompted an unprecedented cascade of similar denunciations. The next day, the Gambia Teachers Union called Jammeh's refusal to leave office a "recipe for chaos and disorder which undoubtedly endangers the lives of all Gambians." On Wednesday, the Gambian press union, one of the most harshly persecuted groups under Jammeh, said he must back down. "The defeat was conceded. There is, therefore, no turning back," it said. Transport and medical unions and the Chamber of Commerce echoed that call in statements on Thursday. "ILLUSION SHATTERED" The public demands have left Jammeh, who took power in a 1994 coup and once vowed to rule for "a billion years", looking isolated both internationally and domestically in the country of 1.8 million. Gambians are now openly speaking out against him in places they didn't dare before - in taxis, markets and on the phones and computers they used to worry were tapped. "The illusion of Jammeh as Gambia's all-seeing and all-knowing overlord has been shattered for ever. The fear among Gambians is gone," said Jeffrey Smith from campaign group Vanguard Africa. The lawyers who first spoke out against Jammeh had pent-up frustrations to voice. Their jobs had long been a struggle. Gaining access to detained clients was often impossible in the face of recalcitrant security officials. Many received death threats for representing Jammeh's political opponents. With Gambians too fearful to serve on the Supreme Court and the High Court, lawyers and judges have had to be brought in from abroad to fill key positions. So when the association brought forward this week's meeting to discuss the president's defiance, its attendance ballooned from the usual couple of dozen members to nearly 100. As they scoured the constitution for legal arguments against Jammeh, the tense atmosphere was suddenly broken. "A senior lawyer said, 'Let's just call it what it is. It is treason.' The room exploded in applause," said Bensouda, who was present. The lawyers voted to approve that wording, then celebrated with a meal of butter-fried shrimp and beef brochettes. Many hugged and laughed. "We have compromised ourselves for too long and have not stood up because of fear," said Bensouda. "When Jammeh lost the election, it solidified everyone." (Editing by Joe Bavier and Mark Trevelyan) Albuquerque Public Schools Superintendent Raquel Reedy will stay on the job as head of the states largest school district through at least June 2019. The APS Board of Education approved a one-year contract extension Friday morning in a 5-2 vote after a closed-door discussion of Reedys performance. Board members Peggy Muller-Aragon and Analee Maestas both voted no, citing concerns about the school boards changing makeup. An election is scheduled for Feb. 7, which could replace up to four board members. Muller-Aragon and Maestas said they think those new board members should have been allowed to weigh in on Reedys contract negotiation. We are tying the hands of the future board, Muller-Aragon said. But the other board members argued that the contract could be changed if necessary. Under the terms, Reedy will keep her $240,000 yearly salary. The contract also includes a no buyout agreement meant to end a string of big-dollar payments for departing superintendents Reedys two predecessors took deals worth a total of $430,000 after they were fired for poor performance. Reedy agreed not to take any exit package and her salary would stop immediately after she received a written copy of the school boards decision to terminate her. In an interview, Reedy said she will keep her focus on the students and do her best to guide APS through a difficult budget climate. I am looking forward to continuing the work we are doing together corroboratively with students, parents and teachers, she said. The work is going to be hard, but together we can get on the right course. The tight budget is an immediate concern APS could lose a total of $29 million for this fiscal year, about 4 percent of its total allocation. Reedy said she is also working to develop a new five-year academic master plan that is meant to address perennial issues, such as low graduation rates and poor test scores. Schools are our priority from Day One, always have been and will continue to be, she said. A longtime APS administrator, Reedy took over as acting superintendent in August 2015 after her predecessor, Luis Valentino, was forced to step down amid revelations that his handpicked deputy was facing child sex assault charges in Colorado. A Denver jury later found former Deputy Superintendent Jason Martinez not guilty. Reedy earned praise for steadying the district and was named permanent superintendent in April 2016. I believe this is the right superintendent for us right now, board President Dave Peercy said Friday. She has done a fantastic job during the short time she has been superintendent, and I think the community and I think the staff are very much behind her. Albuquerque Teachers Federation President Ellen Bernstein endorsed Reedy this spring, lauding her knowledge, professionalism and listening skills. A Harvard graduate, Reedy began her career in 1974 as a teacher of the visually impaired in Boston, focusing on Spanish-speaking children who were not receiving services. In 1977, she started at APS as a special education teacher at Atrisco Elementary. After an eight-year stint as a personnel specialist in the APS Human Resources Department, Reedy served as principal at E.G. Ross and Mitchell elementary schools before being named associate superintendent for elementary education in 2007, overseeing 45 elementary schools. Known as a low-key team player, Reedy never previously applied for the superintendent job. WASHINGTON The Latest on President Barack Obamas year-end news conference (all times EST): 7 p.m. The Senate intelligence committee says it will conduct a thorough, bipartisan investigation and hold hearings about what led to the Obama administrations Oct 7 statement that the Russian government directed hacking of political sites. Chairman Richard Burr of North Carolina says, The committee will follow the intelligence wherever it leads. California Rep. Devin Nunes, chairman of the House intelligence committee, says his committees ongoing oversight into the hacking has been stymied because the intelligence agencies have not provided information to the committee. Nunes says he is alarmed that supposedly new information continues to leak to the media but has not been provided to Congress. Nunes said the committee has planned visits to the FBI, NSA, CIA and the Defense Intelligence Agency in January to further investigate the hacking issue. ___ 4:10 p.m. President Barack Obama says he wont express an opinion on whether electors should receive a briefing on Russian involvement in the U.S. election before they cast ballots at meetings across the country Monday. He says, Its the American peoples job, and now the electors job to decide my successor. The president describes the electoral college as a vestige and a carry-over from history. But he says that if politicians have a strong message the popular vote and electoral college vote should align. Obama adds that theres no silver bullet or easy fix to explain Donald Trumps surprise victory and increased political partisanship. Obama is speaking at his annual year-end news conference. ___ The quotation in this item has been corrected to say now the electors job instead of not the electors job. ___ 4 p.m. President Barack Obama says hes advised Donald Trump to think it through before making any changes to the one-China policy. Trump has said he wouldnt feel bound by the decades-old policy in which the U.S. recognizes Taiwan as part of China. The one-China policy became an issue after Trump broke decades of diplomatic protocol by having a telephone conversation with Taiwans president. Obama says he told Trump to have his full team in place and be fully briefed on issues before considering any changes. Obama said at his year-end news conference that the Taiwan issue is of utmost importance to the Chinese, and how they react to any potential change could be very significant. ___ 3:50 p.m. President Barack Obama is stopping short of saying President Vladimir Putin himself orchestrated the Russian hacking of U.S. political sites during the election. But he is confirming that it was done at the highest levels of the Kremlin. Obama says not much happens in Russia without a nod from Putin. He says he will let the public decide whether there were rogue high-level Russian officials acting without Putins knowledge. Obama also says he wants to give the intelligence community a chance to issue a report on the hacking before the end of his administration. But he cautions that some information will be classified because disclosing it would divulge the way in which the U.S. has been able to collect the intelligence. ___ 3:45 p.m. President Barack Obama is criticizing Republicans for warming to Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying, Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave. He says Republicans are falling victim to efforts by Russia to weaken American democracy. Obama is citing a new survey showing that more than one-third of Republicans view Putin favorability. Thats up from just 10 percent in July 2014. The president is speaking at his annual year-end press conference. Much of his appearance has been dedicated to discussing Russias involvement in hacks of the Democratic National Committee and a top Clinton campaign staffer. ___ 3:35 p.m. President Barack Obama briefly paused his year-end news conference after an unidentified woman began to feel ill and medical help arrived. Obama sought help getting his doctor to come to the White House briefing room, where he was answering questions from reporters. At another point, he started telling people what doors to go through to get to the doctors office. Journalists and photographers many of them dressed for the frigid weather packed the rather small briefing room for Obamas final news conference of the year, rendering it stuffy and uncomfortable. Reporters without assigned seats stood in the aisles, which is where the woman was when she began to feel ill. Obama is accustomed to people passing out at his events around the country just not in the White House briefing room. ___ 3:30 p.m. President Barack Obama says the U.S. wouldve had to be all in and willing to take over Syria for him to intervene more forcefully in the countrys civil war. He says doing so wasnt feasible for many reasons. It wouldve required many U.S. troops; he lacked support from Congress and the right under international law; the U.S. already had costly deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan; Syrias opposition wasnt prepared to govern; and Russia and Iran were protecting Syrias government. Obama says military options short of invasion were tempting because we wanted to do something. But it was impossible to do this on the cheap. Obama says he asked himself if he could do something to save lives. But he says his No. 1 priority was doing what was right for America. ___ 3:25 p.m. President Barack Obama says hes offered incoming President Donald Trump some pretty specific suggestions about safeguarding the integrity of the office and other institutions. Obama made the revelation during his year-end news conference at the White House. He offered no specifics about what the suggestions were. Obama says Trump has listened to him. But he says he cant say with certainty whether Trump will follow his advice. The president and Trump have spoken by telephone several times since they met in the Oval Office two days after election, and its usually Trump who reveals that theyve talked. Obama says their telephone conversations are cordial and not defensive in any way, given their deep disagreements on the issues. ___ 3:20 p.m. President Barack Obama says he regrets not being able to transfer his own political success into Democratic races across the country. The president is acknowledging the failures of his party and himself to build up a broad base of support during his tenure. He says the party must do a better job of reaching out to all voters, even in states and counties they are unlikely to win. Obama says: Thats something I would have liked to have done more of but its kind of hard to do when youre dealing with a whole bunch of issues here in the White House. Democrats have lost more than 1,000 seats in Congress, state legislatures and governors mansions during Obamas two-term. Obama is speaking at his annual year-end news conference. __ 3:17 p.m. President Barack Obama says everyone should be concerned about the level of cyber hacking that renders governments, businesses and individuals vulnerable. Speaking at his year-end news conference at the White House, Obama says Russian hacking during the election was not some elaborate, complicated espionage scheme. He says the unsophisticated nature of what transpired concerns him and it should concern all of us. Obama says the episode underscores the constant challenge the nation faces with hacking that happens every day. Obama commented on intelligence and law enforcement assessments that Russia intervened to try to help Donald Trump win the presidential election. ___ 3:05 p.m. President Barack Obama is defending how hes handled the hacking of political sites that took place before the November election. He says at a White House news conference that his goal is to send a clear message to Russia that such intrusions wont be tolerated. But hes not saying what the U.S. response will be. Obama says with the hyperpartisan atmosphere of the election, his main concern was the integrity of the election process. He says he wanted to make sure the U.S. public understood that the White House was trying to play this thing straight. He says he spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin in September, and told him in these words to cut it out. The White House hasnt commented about what a U.S. response might entail. Options could include a retaliatory cyberstrike on Russian networks or sanctions targeting Putins associates. ___ 3 p.m. President Barack Obama says Syria, Russia and Iran have blood on their hands for whats happened in the Syrian city of Aleppo. Obama says the world is united in horror at the assault on rebel-held areas of Aleppo. Obama at a White House news conference is accusing the Syrian government and its two powerful allies of deliberately surrounding, besieging and starving innocent civilians, and targeting aid workers and medical personnel. He says entire neighborhoods have been reduced to rubble and dust. The president also says civilians have been executed. Obama acknowledges that Syrias almost 6-year civil war has been among the hardest issues hes faced. Despite his failure to stop the conflict, Obama isnt saying anything to suggest a change in U.S. strategy. ___ 2:46 p.m. President Barack Obama is using his year-end news conference to boast about his administrations achievements. Obama is citing a number of positive economic indicators such as a declining unemployment rate and higher rates of insured people under his health overhaul. And hes highlighting diplomatic achievements among them, the reopening of relations with Cuba. Obama says hes leaving the country stronger and more prosperous than it was when we started. But hes reminding the public that theres more to be done on the countrys biggest problems. He says hes going to continue working to push the agenda of his administration after leaving office. __ WASHINGTON President Barack Obama put Russias Vladimir Putin on notice Friday that the U.S. could use offensive cyber muscle to retaliate for interference in the U.S. presidential election, his strongest suggestion to date that Putin had been well aware of campaign email hacking. Whatever they do to us, we can potentially do to them, Obama declared. Caught in the middle of a post-election controversy over Russian hacking, Obama strongly defended his administrations response, including his refusal before the voting to ascribe motive to the meddling or to discuss now what effect it might have had. U.S. intelligence assessments say it was aimed at least in part on helping Donald Trump defeat Hillary Clinton, and some Democrats say it may well have tipped the results in his favor. Though Obama avoided criticizing President-elect Trump by name, he called out Republicans who he said fail even now to acknowledge the seriousness of Russias involvement in U.S. elections. Obama expressed bewilderment about GOP lawmakers and voters who now say they approve of Putin, and he said unless that changes the U.S. will be vulnerable to foreign influence. Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave, Obama said as he closed out the year at a White House news conference. Afterward he left for the familys annual vacation in Hawaii. Obama declined to state explicitly that Putin knew about the email hacking that roiled the presidential race, but he left no doubt who he felt was responsible. He said that not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin and repeated a U.S. intelligence assessment that this happened at the highest levels of the Russian government. Obama said he confronted Putin in September, telling the former KGB chief to cut it out. That was one month before the U.S. publicly pointed the finger at Russia. Suggesting his directive to Putin had been effective, Obama said the U.S. did not see further tampering after that date. The president has promised a proportional yet unspecified response to the hacking of the Democratic Party and Clintons campaign chairman. Emails stolen during the campaign were released in the final weeks by WikiLeaks. On Friday, CIA Director John Brennan said in a message to employees that the FBI agrees with the CIAs conclusion that Russias goal was to help Trump win. Trump has dismissed the CIAs assessment and talk about Russian hacking as ridiculous, while arguing both Democrats and the CIA are trying to undermine the legitimacy of his victory. He made no mention of the hacking or of Obama during the latest stop on his thank you tour in Orlando, Florida, Friday night. Clinton has even more directly cited Russian interference. She said Thursday night, Vladimir Putin himself directed the covert cyberattacks against our electoral system, against our democracy, apparently because he has a personal beef against me. The Senate intelligence committee said Friday that it will conduct a bipartisan investigation and hold hearings about what led the intelligence agencies finding. The committee will follow the intelligence wherever it leads, said chairman Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C. At the same time, Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., chairman of the House intelligence committee, complained that his committees oversight into the hacking has been stymied because the intelligence agencies have not provided information to the committee. Obama said hed leave it to political pundits to debate the question of whether the hacking swayed the election outcome. He did, however, chide the media for that he called an obsession with the emails that were made public during the elections final stretch. He said his reticence to detail publicly the U.S. response to Russia reflected a need to retaliate in a thoughtful, methodical way. The idea that somehow public shaming is gonna be effective, I think doesnt read the thought process in Russia very well, Obama said. Accusations of Russian election interference have heightened the already tense relationship between Washington and Moscow. Separately, Obama has blamed Russia for standing in the way of international efforts to stop the civil war in Syria, where government forces have beaten back rebels in Aleppo. Obama said he feels responsible for some of the suffering in Syria, but he defended his decision to avoid significant military action there. He said that while military options short of invasion were tempting, it was impossible to do this on the cheap. Still, he pinned the bulk of the blame on Russia, as well as Iran, for propping up Syrian President Bashar Assad. This blood and these atrocities are on their hands, he said. Meanwhile, the president rejected any notion that the dispute over hacking was disrupting efforts to smoothly transfer power to Trump. Despite fiercely criticizing each other during the election, Obama and Trump have spoken multiple times since the campaign ended. He has listened, Obama said of Trump. I cant say he will end up implementing. But the conversations themselves have been cordial. The president did weigh in on Trumps decision to speak with the leader of Taiwan, a recent phone call that broke decades of U.S. diplomatic protocol. Obama advised Trump to think it through before making changes in the One-China policy, in which the U.S. recognizes Taiwan as part of China. In a moment of self-reflection, Obama acknowledged he had not been able to transfer his own popularity and electoral success to other Democrats. His party is now reeling from the White House loss and failure to win back either the House or Senate. It is not something that Ive been able to transfer to candidates in midterms or build a sustaining organization around, Obama said. Thats something I would have liked to have done more of, but its kind of hard to do when youre dealing with a whole bunch of issues here in the White House. ___ Associated Press writers Eric Tucker and Bradley Klapper contributed to this report. ___ Follow Josh Lederman at http://twitter.com/joshledermanAP and Julie Pace at http://twitter.com/jpaceDC Families of those killed and injured in a 2015 drunken driving crash what one of them called a nightmare we cant wake up from spoke through tears about how multiple families lives were upended because of the wreck. After their comments, 2nd Judicial District Judge Alisa Hadfield sentenced Steven Trujillo, 37, to 30 years in prison for the drunken driving crash that left Mary Soto, 30, and Elijah Sandoval, 13, dead and six others severely injured. She did so although Trujillo who previously pleaded no contest as part of an agreement that called for him to get 30 years in prison attempted to withdraw his plea, claiming he wasnt the driver and arguing his lawyer pressured him into entering the plea deal. Investigators say he was trapped in the drivers seat after the crash and his DNA was on the steering wheel. Hadfield said that Trujillo, with the help of a different attorney, can pursue a motion to withdraw his plea at a later time. After the sentence was handed down, emotions from the courtroom spilled into the courthouse hallway, where a brief shouting match ensued after one of Trujillos relatives or supporters tried to push her way past Sandovals mother, who lost her arm in the crash. Trujillo, who had two prior DWI convictions, also will have to serve five years of probation after his prison sentence for two counts of vehicular homicide and six counts of great bodily harm by vehicle. His sentence will be served consecutive to any time he receives for convictions on charges of aggravated battery and bribery of a witness that he hasnt been sentenced for yet. Trujillo was arrested in July 2015 after, sheriffs deputies said, he ran a red light and crashed into an SUV carrying two adults and seven children from a couple of close-knit families. Deputies said that Trujillo, who at the time had been released from jail to await trial in the case thats still pending, was driving drunk and trying to flee from deputies when he crashed. A blood alcohol test measured 0.19 percent, well over the presumed level of intoxication of 0.08 percent, according to authorities. Trujillos victims were not properly restrained, and several were ejected during the crash. The sport utility vehicle knocked over a light pole close to Rio Bravo and Del Rio, west of Isleta. Soto and Sandoval died at the scene. Six other passengers suffered severe injuries, including burns and broken bones. The victims, most of them children, have been through multiple surgeries, and Elijahs mother, Veronica Prieto, had to have her left arm amputated. I lost my arm, my son and my best friend, Prieto said. Its not what was supposed to happen. I dont understand. Joseph Lujan, Sotos husband, testified at the hearing alongside his daughter, 13-year-old Angelina Lujan, whose face was scarred during the crash. He left my kids without a mother six kids, Joseph said. Angelina Lujan said the last year has been the worst year of her life. She said she and her siblings were placed in foster care after the crash, and her father had to work hard to regain custody. Its a nightmare we cant wake up from. Mr. Trujillo took innocent lives, said Lydia Prieto, Elijahs aunt and Veronica Prietos sister. I hope it haunts him. I really do. Stefanie Gulley, Trujillos attorney, said her client told her Friday that he wanted to withdraw his no-contest plea. She told Hadfield that Trujillo says Gulley pressured him to take the deal. I would like to tell the family Im sorry. It wasnt my intent, Trujillo said during the hearing. I was in the vehicle. I wasnt the driver. Assistant District Attorney Guinevere Ice said that Trujillo was trapped in the drivers seat after the crash and had to be rescued from the vehicle. She said his DNA was found on the steering wheel. GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. A former doctor for USA Gymnastics, already facing sexual assault charges in Michigan court, was arrested Friday on federal child pornography charges. Dr. Larry Nassar was arrested in Holt, Michigan, and transported to federal court in western Michigan. He appeared without a lawyer and remains in custody. Nassar has been under scrutiny since September when two gymnasts, including a member of the 2000 U.S. womens Olympic team, said they were sexually abused by him when they were teens. He denies it. The indictment says Nassar received child pornography and possessed thousands of images, from 2003 through 2016. Email and phone messages seeking comment from his attorney werent immediately returned. U.S. Attorney Patrick Miles will hold a news conference Monday. In November, the Michigan attorney generals office charged Nassar with sexually assaulting a girl at his home in Ingham County between 1998 and 2005. The allegations arent related to his time as a gymnastics doctor. He has pleaded not guilty. Besides working for Indianapolis-based USA Gymnastics, Nassar was a doctor at Michigan State University and treated gymnasts from all over Michigan. Lawyers for 13 women and girls recently told Michigan State that they plan to sue the school over alleged sexual assaults by Nassar. At least three other lawsuits against Nassar are pending. A former Maryland physician who killed his mental health counselor 14 years ago was convicted of first-degree murder Friday by a jury that waded through a long history of his schizophrenia and concluded he was legally sane at the time of the murder. John Lutz, 78, who sat in a wheelchair during the two-week trial, showed little emotion as the verdict was announced in Montgomery County Circuit Court. The conviction means he will be moved from a high-security, state mental hospital where he has been held since his 2002 arrest, to the Maryland prison system. It has been a long and painful road, the family of the victim, Nicole Castro, said in a statement after the verdict. We have waited 14 years for this trial. Finally, today, justice was served. Prosecutors said they will seek the maximum penalty. We look forward to a sentence of life without parole for this murderer, said Montgomery States Attorney John McCarthy. Castro came to a therapy session at Lutzs apartment, where he brutally attacked her, stabbing her in the face, neck, arms and hands, prosecutors said. He then wrapped her body in a pair of bedsheets, carried it outside and left it next to a trash bin. McCarthy called it a horrible crime and said Castro was a magnificent young woman trying to help others. She did not realize she had fallen prey to Dr. Lutz. During his trial, Lutzs attorneys argued that at the time of Castros death, Lutzs mental illness made him not criminally responsible for the crime. The delay in bringing the case to trial reflects what can be the complicated question of whether a defendant is mentally competent to stand trial. A key issue is whether the accused can communicate with their defense lawyer. Lutz has long asserted that after his arrest, police had injected him in the neck with a mysterious truth drug. For seven years, starting in 2002, doctors said Lutz was incompetent. The medical opinion of his competency changed briefly, in 2009, before Lutz was again declared incompetent. Judges have the ultimate say in proceeding to a trial and in late 2014, Circuit Court Judge Ronald Rubin ruled that Lutz could fairly be tried. He is not delusional and does not suffer from auditory or visual hallucinations, Rubin wrote. Lutz, a onetime internist, had a long and significant history of mental illness that included being hospitalized in a psychiatric facility west of Baltimore. On the morning of March 20, 2002, Castro drove a Chevrolet Cavalier to Lutzs apartment in Montgomerys White Oak area for a noon therapy session. After Castros body was found less than 100 yards from Lutzs apartment, police went to his door. They knocked and heard movements inside but received no answer, court filings showed. They got a search warrant and found Lutz with a fresh bloodstain under his sofa and a key to the Cavalier with a blood spatter on the key ring. Lutzs mental health quickly became an issue, setting off a transfer from the county jail to the maximum-security Clifton T. Perkins psychiatric hospital. In the spring of 2009, Lutz sent a two-page, handwritten letter to Circuit Judge Ann Harrington, recalling a number of topics on the day of his arrest. One of the officers pressure injected my postero-lateral cervical trapezius fossa with a drug, Lutz wrote. There were ten injections on the right side, nine injections on the left side. As a consequence, I was mentally impaired and suggestible. For many years, according to court records, Lutz was deemed so strident in his defense strategy that it impeded his ability to talk with defense lawyers. McCarthy called the judges decision to bring Lutz to trial courageous. The jury began its deliberations Thursday night and finished Friday. maryland-lutz-1stld-writethru Here comes another one of those things branded as an imminent threat to public safety, something evil lurking out there that is poised to infiltrate our minds and poison the republic. It is described in two words: fake news. Now some are clamoring to legislate, regulate or eliminate this thing called fake news. Fake news has already been blamed for tipping the presidential election, inciting racist hatred across the land and forcing the country toward a form of authoritarianism. Beware the fake news, we are told, and those who spread it, for surely their motives are impure! Even Pope Francis has warned against the evil of spreading fake news. Hillary Clinton recently told a group at the U.S. Senate that fake news is an epidemic that, left unchecked, can have real-world consequences. The former presidential candidate now backs bipartisan legislation giving Congress more power to respond to foreign propaganda, an apparent reference to the idea that Russia bankrolled faked information about her that skewed the presidential election results. But what is this fake news phenomenon, exactly? The definition seems to be as fluid as the number of people talking about it. Some define fake news as the so-called clickbait found on the margins or at the end of stories on social media. You know, those small boxes with luring and often erroneous headlines like Jennifer Aniston appears to be pregnant! The Washington Post recently reported that clickbait writers can earn up to $10,000 a month sitting in their basements churning out claptrap text for advertisers who are eager to pair their ads with the enticing clickbait headlines. But fake news has also been described as originating on Twitter, where troublemakers urge us to believe, among other fantasies, that a major child trafficking ring is operating in the shadow of the U.S. Capitol and its clients include top politicians with household names! That tweet caused a believer from North Carolina to grab his gun and travel to D.C. to save any children he might find at a pizza shop, the supposed front for the operation. Come on! Everyone capable of critical thinking should already know that what you read on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter should be taken with multiple grains of salt. The same for all those streams of reader comments online. Opinions, not facts, my friends. Think about it. Isnt fake news what we used to call just plain old gossip? And cant the fake news label also be applied to sassy opinion articles masquerading as objective journalism on news sites? They bear titillating tiles like Donald Trump is a Professional Dominatrix and the GOP Cant Get Enough of His Humiliation. The articles overt message that Trump is a cult leader and he is Hitler is obvious hyperbole. Does anyone really believe the president-elect plans to force citizens to drink poisoned Kool-Aid or that he has a strategy to exterminate millions of Americans? No clear-thinking person would believe that. And finally, readers who dont agree with what they find in legitimate news stories, written by career journalists, will willy-nilly label the report fake news. Just look at the online comment section of any major newspaper or magazine. Even those ubiquitous cable TV pundits toss the epithet fake news! at other pundits who dare to offer a different point of view. CNN defines fake news as Often blatant falsehoods passed off online as the truth and spread by conspiracy theorists. But it is obviously more than that, of course. You dont have to be a conspiracy theorist to pass on salacious internet items to others. And the more a falsehood is repeated, the more likely it is to be regarded as truthful. Thats why PR operatives invented spin an alternative story to counter negative news. Repeat the spin often enough, they figure, and the public will come to buy it as truth. A blatant lie? Deliberate propaganda? Wrap it up in clever language and someone will surely buy it. My, how gullible we have become as a population. Still, some remain convinced fake news is real. Something that springs from sinister minds, deliberately planted falsehoods designed to destroy our current belief system and way of life. Well, if that is true, it is time for every consumer of information to learn how to discern probable truth from fantastic fiction and teach it to their children. Schools had better begin designing classes to teach critical thinking, because no matter which big-name politician or religious leader calls for new laws to regulate this so-called fake news, the reality is there is just no way to legislate away freedom of speech and naivete. When I told my daughter the results of the presidential election, she simply asked, What does this mean? I think were all still trying to unpack that question. Theres a lot at stake over the next four years, including the future of our wildlife. The good news is that 90 percent of American voters support the Endangered Species Act, 74 percent say that the federal government should work to combat climate change, and 72 percent say that national public lands like forests, refuges and monuments help their state economies. But the election raises serious questions about our ability to sustain these fundamental environmental values. People, including my young daughter, are worried and need to know that our country will stand up for nature. As a lifelong conservationist, I pledge to do everything I can to protect, recover and preserve our wildlife heritage. I will combat the effects of climate change. New Mexicos wildlife, natural resources and communities are vulnerable to climate change. The specter of climate change will continue to haunt us if we dont act now. In fact, more than two thirds of the worlds wildlife could be gone by the end of the decade if action isnt taken soon. Defenders of Wildlife advocates for smart from the start renewable energy development, which aims to minimize threats to wildlife and their habitats while facilitating clean energy to combat climate change. I will fight to beat the clock on extinction. The Southwest is home to 118 federally listed endangered species, including the Mexican gray wolf. The recovery of the most endangered gray wolf in the world is caught in a political tug-o-war, which has prevented critical wolf releases into the wild. Fortunately, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will release a long overdue recovery plan for the wolf next year. Defenders will see this and all recovery efforts through every step of the way to ensure they are based on the best available science, not politics. We will also work with our partners to implement coexistence strategies and tools (e.g. fencing, guard dogs, etc.) in order to share the landscape with wolves. Coexistence is one important part of restoring wolves in an ecologically meaningful way while creating goodwill around the species. I will protect pathways for wildlife movement. As New Mexican author Charles Bowden once wrote, wildlife along the southwestern border lives in great biological unity. This unity is made possible when landscapes enable wildlife movement, or habitat connectivity. The more connectivity there is, the better. Defenders will work to protect vital pathways for jaguars and ocelots along the border, and yellow-billed cuckoos and Southwest willow flycatchers in the Upper Rio Grande Basin. I will ensure public lands remain in public hands. Within 100 miles of the border, there is an estimated 26.7 million acres of national public lands spanning southern California, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas. In 2011, national wildlife refuge visitors nationwide generated more than $2.4 billion in annual sales in local economies, supporting 35,000 jobs and producing an estimated $342 million in tax revenues. Our public lands and their extraordinary values must be protected at all costs. I will never give up. With Defenders new regional office in Santa Fe, my team and I bring renewed vigor to our conservation work. We are expanding our work in northern Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, intensifying our storied efforts on wolf restoration and broadening our habitat conservation work. We will engage with new voices and support a new generation of conservationists. Together, we will ensure every persons right to clean air, clean water and healthy ecosystems abundant with wildlife and connected landscapes. Donald Trump continues to shock the world as he endlessly fires off derogatory, lie-laden tweets and nominates generals and fossil-fuel zealots to his Cabinet posts. Hillary Clintons lead in the popular vote has climbed to 2.8 million votes, yet Trump retains his lead in electoral votes with 306 to Clintons 232. The disparity has many questioning the existence of the Electoral College, just as Trump did on election night in 2012, when he mistakenly thought Mitt Romney was winning the popular vote but losing to Barack Obama in the electoral vote count. Trump tweeted, The electoral college is a disaster for a democracy. Oddly, now, many among those who reject Trumps victory see the Electoral College as the last salvation to block him from taking office. The Electoral College meets Monday, when its 538 members cast their votes. The hope of many Trump opponents is that at least 37 Republican electors, slated to vote for Trump, will vote for someone else. This would leave Trump with 269 electoral votes or less, not enough to be declared president. The decision to choose the president would then fall to the U.S. House of Representatives. This extraordinary twist in presidential politics has only happened once in U.S. history, back in 1824. The Electoral College was established with the ratification of the U.S. Constitution in 1789, and refined by the 12th Amendment in 1804. In essence, people on Election Day dont directly elect the president; rather, the people vote on how their states electors will cast their votes. In most of the 50 states, its a winner-take-all process. Alexander Hamilton, the inspiration for Lin-Manuel Mirandas Broadway hit musical, has also inspired a group of electors. They call themselves Hamilton Electors, since it was their namesake who wrote, in The Federalist Papers No. 68, explaining the Electoral College, The process of election affords a moral certainty, that the office of President will never fall to the lot of any man who is not in an eminent degree endowed with the requisite qualifications. Hamilton warned that Talents for low intrigue, and the little arts of popularity could be used to win the presidency. One Hamilton Elector is Christopher Suprun, a Republican from Texas. He is a paramedic firefighter, and was a first responder in lower Manhattan on Sept. 11, 2001. Mr. Trump has proven again and again he is not qualified for the office, Suprun told us on the Democracy Now! news hour. Reflecting on the national unity he saw after 9/11, Suprun added: I see from Mr. Trump again and again attacks on First Amendment, attacks on his critics. Anyone who he doesnt believe is appropriate or worthy or perhaps the right color, he attacks them. Thats not America, and thats not what we want as a nation. Constitutional-law professor Lawrence Lessig has launched an organization, ElectorsTrust.org, to provide free and strictly confidential legal support to any Elector who wishes to vote their conscience. While Lessig is protecting the privacy of those electors who have contacted him for legal representation, another group has been very public. Following news of a CIA report claiming that Russia employed hacking in an attempt to influence the U.S. presidential election in favor of Trump, a group of 10 electors, including Suprun, sent a letter to Director of National Security James Clapper, requesting an unprecedented security briefing on the details. Christine Pelosi, the daughter of U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, is the letters principal author. Its our constitutional duty as members of the Electoral College to make an assessment that we had a free and fair election without undue foreign influence, she told us on Democracy Now! At least 46 additional electors, all Democrats, have signed on to it. Its a long shot to expect that 36 Republican electors will join Christopher Suprun in voting their conscience, against their party, against Donald Trump. But then again, it was completely unexpected when Trump captured the Electoral College majority on Nov. 8. We are living, as Lin-Manuel Mirandas Hamilton sings, in the world turned upside down. U.S. students are running in place were losing ground. U.S. Secretary of Education John King Jr. Every three years in 72 countries and school systems, students age 15 take a two-hour test called the Programme for International Student Assessment, or PISA, to assess their problem-solving skills in math, reading and science in relation to their peers. What wasnt good for the United States in 2012 became worse in 2015, and the results should cause great concern for anyone who, to borrow a phrase, wants to Make America Great Again. Because greatness is going to be a tough row to hoe when U.S. students have dropped to below the international average in math, and have flatlined at just average in science and reading. On a 1,000-point scale, U.S. students averaged a 470 in math (students in 36 countries did better), 496 in science (students in 18 countries did better) and 497 in reading (students in 14 countries did better). Singapore had the highest scores in all three subjects, with Canada, Estonia and Finland in the top 10 on one or more of the assessments. And before the usual excuses of poverty and minority populations for poor performance are brought up, know that the PISA shows they simply do not wash. PISA data show Americas teens perform worse in all three subjects compared to Vietnam students, where the average income, adjusted for purchasing power, is one-tenth of the U.S. average; and they do worse in math than students in Latvia, where the average income is less than one-half the United States. It is no better on the other end of the socio-economic spectrum, where Americas most advantaged teens scored below their well-off peers in science in 20 other countries, including Canada and Britain. As for minority students performing poorly, the PISA data shows attending a school with a high concentration of immigrant students is not associated with poorer student performance. Ditto for the cry to just spend more on education the worlds biggest per-student spenders include the United States, Luxembourg and Norway, and only Norway cracks PISAs top 10, in reading. However, the PISA did underscore the old lottery slogan of you cant win if you dont play; countries with the lowest number of students who skipped school in the two weeks prior to the test including Japan, Korea and Chinese Taipei were among the top performers. Almost 40 percent of U.S. students reported ditching class before the PISA. The real bottom line to the PISA results, and to ensuring American students are competitive in the global workplace, includes setting up a system that is strategic and focused on high standards for all schools. These systems invest in ensuring that teachers have the skills and resources to give excellent instruction. These systems have a well-established strategy for reform that focuses on a continuous cycle of improvement. Massachusetts, for one, is doing it. The Bay State participated as an entity in the PISA, and tied for first in reading with eight other nations and was second only to Singapore in science. The Boston Globe reports its the second time Massachusetts has taken part to see how the states educational system stacks up against those in leading countries around the world. The state is seeking such data as it tries to build a larger and more highly skilled workforce to compete in a global economy. And New Mexico and other states are on the right path. The 2012 PISA report stated an alignment study between the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics and PISA suggests that a successful implementation of the Common Core Standards would yield significant performance gains also in PISA. Not only has the Land of Enchantment adopted Common Core (that system thats strategic and focused on high standards for all schools), it has also implemented accountability metrics per the federal government, including strong and uniform student assessment tools geared for college and/or career, and teacher evaluations and school grades based on student improvement (that strategy for reform that focuses on a continuous cycle of improvement). When the 2012 PISA results were announced, National Education Association President Dennis Van Roekel said the difference was Asian nations that dominate the PISA results make a real commitment to education for all kids, and nothing deters them from that vision, and then they do whats necessary to make that happen. In the United States, we dont have the commitment for all kids and it needs to change. The 2015 results should underline his statement in bold type. If the latest PISA shows anything, it is that, in the new year, it will be essential for the United States as a whole to replicate best practices and truly think globally when it comes to education. 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. If EpiPens can be used by bee-sting victims and others, including non-professionals, to combat allergic reactions, maybe the next step in treating drug overdoses from opioids is the use of naloxone. New Mexico has the second-highest drug overdose death rate in the U.S., increasing by 146 percent from 2001 to 2014. Thats not good news to Rio Rancho Public Schools board member Catherine Cullen, on a mission to have the potential life-saver available in Rio Rancho high schools and possibly the middle schools as well. She made a presentation about naloxone which is used to block or reverse the effects of drugs made from opium in overdose situations to the school board this week. She reported it was well-received. A procedure and costs (plan) will be presented in January. Everyone supported it and Tonna (Burgos, executive director of student services) was already aware of it, Cullen said. (It) will also possibly go into middle schools as well. Its not that Cullen has heard that any high school in Rio Rancho has a plethora of opiate abusers. But if one life can be saved, how can that be wrong? Rio Rancho Public Schools should lead by example, she said. Albuquerque Public Schools doesnt have a naloxone program. You hope that you never have to use it; its another tool for our toolbox, Cullen said. Time is of the essence (in an overdose). Finding funds could be problematic. The 21st Century Cures Act, signed by President Barack Obama for an epidemic that can touch anybody, he said authorizes giving states $1 billion over two years to prevent and treat the abuse of opioids and addictive drugs like heroin. All 50 states are competing for the financial help. Naloxone is effective only in the treatment of an opioid-based overdose (morphine, fentanyl, hydrocodone, methadone, heroin, etc.), not just for any overdose, reversing the respiratory depression caused by these medications/drugs. Although an injection can save a life, theres no guarantee a heroin user will seek help to stop his/her addiction to it or other opioids. The amount of prescription opioids sold in New Mexico between 2001 and 2014 increased by 236 percent and people with prescriptions are also at risk of an overdose, not just non-medical users. Three of four drug overdose deaths in the state in 2014 with 540 reported drug overdose deaths that year involved prescription opioids or heroin, according to the state Department of Health. Using it mistakenly, such as for a non-opioid overdose, is not harmful to the recipient. A lot of people dont talk about (heroin addiction), Cullen said. It doesnt discriminate. Earlier this month, she gave an hour-long presentation to fellow board members at the New Mexico School Boards Associations meeting at Embassy Suites in Albuquerque. Gov. Susana Martinez signed House Bill 277 into law on Feb. 9. It provides for the authorized possession, storage, distribution, prescribing and administration of opioid antagonists; providing for immunity from civil and criminal liability; declaring an emergency. Those last three words are the key. According to the state Department of Health and the Office of the Medical Investigator, of the 20 deaths confirmed from January-September this year involving synthetic opioids, 11 also had methamphetamine present in toxicology results. Ages of the victims ranged from 17 to 63; 85 percent were male. The health department urged law enforcement, medical professionals, and others to consider using repeat doses of naloxone (Narcan is the nasal-spray version) as needed in the event of a potential overdose. Naloxone is injected into a muscle, preferably into the outer thigh; under the skin; or into a vein through an IV. Overdose symptoms may include slowed breathing, or no breathing; very small or pinpoint pupils in the eyes; slow heartbeats; or extreme drowsiness, especially if the victim cannot be awakened. If the victim is not breathing or is unresponsive, the naloxone injection should be performed right away and emergency medical care should be sought. Anyone administering a naloxone injection should not assume that an overdose episode has ended if symptoms improve get emergency help after giving the naloxone injection. Continued signs of overdose may require another injection every 2-3 minutes until emergency help arrives. Rio Rancho Fire Rescue carries the drug and, according to RRFD Dep. Chief Paul Bearce, Naloxone has been part of the scope of practice for EMTs and paramedics for at least two decades. We have used naloxone 48 times in 2016. The Albuquerque City Council recently approved a bill adding naloxone to first-aid kits in city buildings open to the public. Cleveland High School will be able to continue its controversial policy banning most honor cords and honor stoles from graduation ceremonies. On Monday, the Rio Rancho Public Schools Board voted 3-2 against a resolution that would have required the principal to develop a standardized guideline for the approval of regalia. Board member Catherine Cullen said she revived the proposal, which was first discussed in March, to recognize students academic achievements and club membership. She and Ramon Montano cast the only yes votes Monday. I knew this would be controversial, but not as much as it has been, Cullen said. The three board members who opposed the resolution said they didnt want to reduce autonomy at the districts two highs schools or challenge their long-standing traditions. Rio Rancho High already permits a variety of cords and stoles, while Cleveland Highs graduating seniors can wear regalia for National Honor Society, but not other organizations, such as Key Club, a community service group, and AVID, a program that helps students prepare for college. Administrators at both schools have been strongly against Cullens resolution, calling it micromanagement and an unwelcomed intrusion in an August letter to the board, which was updated and resent in October. Both high schools have a process by which students can bring suggested changes to their perspective student government officers, the letter states. We ask the board to please respect this process, tradition, and site based autonomy. Cleveland Highs student government also appealed to the board in a letter sent earlier this month. The roughly 25 student leaders argued that traditions should be decided at the school level, not mandated from above by board members. The letter restated the message the student government brought to the board in March when Cullen first introduced the resolution. Derek Sena, Cleveland student body president, told board members his school should not have to abide by a specific mandate. Several Cleveland honors students also attended the March board meeting to argue that they deserve recognition for their accomplishments during the graduation ceremony. On Monday, board president Don Schlichte said he voted against Cullens resolution to support the principals and student leaders. I dont have a stake in this game, but I dont like to go against the chain of command at a school, Schlichte said. Cullen told the board she does not plan to introduce the resolution again. Copyright 2016 Albuquerque Journal Corrales bookbinder Jerome Goss looks at a book and makes comparisons with the human body. Theres the back of the book, or the spine; the hinges that run on both sides of the spine that he likens to joints; the front and back boards, or covers, which he thinks of as the skin; and the inside pages, representing the myriad internal organs and vessels. Its understandable that Goss, 81, a retired cardiologist, sees those comparisons. Although he has always loved books and his Corrales home has an impressive library, it never occurred to me that I might become a bookbinder, he said; that is, not until he started thinking about what to do after he retired from medicine. In 2002, he took some private lessons with a local bookbinder and found that it really interested him. Wanting to learn more about the repair and restoration of old leather bound books, Goss enrolled in a yearlong bookbinding program in 2004 at the Glasgow Metropolitan College, a trade school in Scotland that teaches this highly specialized craft of antiquity. Of 12,000 students attending the trade college at the time, Goss said, only 12 were signed into the bookbinding program. Early love for books Goss was born in Dodge City, Kan., and grew up in heavily agrarian western Kansas. His father ran a restaurant and his mother was a school teacher who cultivated in him a love of books. In the summer, no matter what else I was doing, she had me at the library in the summer reading programs, he recalled. Initially, he entertained the notion of becoming a geological or petroleum engineer. That changed when, as a high school athlete, Goss got hurt in a track and field accident in which he severely injured his leg and an artery in his abdomen. I wound up spending two months in the hospital, and saw what the doctors and nurses did, and that got me interested in medicine, he said. After graduating from the University of Kansas, he attended medical school at Northwestern University in Chicago. He graduated in 1961, and trained at hospitals in Chicago, Cleveland and Denver. He did a stint in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War era, practicing cardiology at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. Goss found his way to Albuquerque in 1968 to help start a cardiac catheterization program at the University of New Mexico medical school, but a lack of funds and other issues delayed the launch of the program. Presbyterian Hospital, however, was looking to start a similar program, so Goss put his talents to use there. It was at Presbyterian that he met Lorraine, a registered nurse whom he married in 1986. Goss ran the program until 1995 and remained with the hospital until his retirement in 2004. Tools of the trade The tidy home workshop of Goss Milagro Bookbinding & Repair contains the tools and material of the bookbinding trade: book labeling machines; board cutters; a guillotine for cutting stacks of pages; book presses to compress and hold books and pages while glue dries; drawers containing high-quality paper; cabinets with rolls of calf, goat and kangaroo leather, Gosss three favorite skins to use as book covers; and a selection of dyes and shoe polish containing wax needed to blend and match cover colors. I always work on three books at a time because a lot of time involves gluing, compressing and waiting for things to dry, he said. And artisanal bookbinding is not just time consuming it is also expensive. Depending on the size of a book and the complexity of work required, a repair or restoration can take from weeks to months to complete, and could cost from $100 to more than $800, he said. There are only two reasons to have a book repaired or restored if theres an emotional attachment or if its valuable, Goss explained. Thats why most of his business comes from people who want to repair or restore favorite volumes and old family Bibles, or from antiquarian book dealers who have old and valuable books that need to be stabilized before theyre sold. Among his current projects are books on the history of Ireland and a family Bible, both from the 1800s; a collection of personality profiles of people from Louisiana from the early 1900s; a medical book from 1619 written in Latin; and a compendium of Greek words from the 1500s. When you have a book that is 400 years old, and you see the print quality and the paper quality, you know that people worked at making things beautiful and making them to last, he said. And likewise, when I put my label inside a book and it says Jerome Goss, bookbinder, I know someone is going to see that 100 years from now. They may not know who I was, but they will recognize the quality of the work. JEMEZ PUEBLO Secretary of Education John King Jr. met with New Mexico teachers at a charter school here Friday and called on President-elect Donald Trump to build on the tremendous progress of the last eight years. There has been work at every level early learning, K-12 and higher education that has produced real progress, King said after touring classrooms at Walatowa High Charter School. The question for the next administration is how to build on that progress, he said. King said he did not know Betsy DeVos, President-elect Donald Trumps choice to lead the U.S. Department of Education, but offered opinions about some of her policy priorities. DeVos has long been active in Michigans charter school movement and has supported school vouchers, which provide government funding for parents to send a child to a school of their choice, or to home school a child. Our view has always been that vouchers are not a scalable solution to the challenges we face as a country, said King, a former public school teacher and principal. In the long run, public education is the foundation for the long-term success of our economy and our democracy. King expressed support for public charter schools, such as Walatowa High Charter School, provided states demand accountability and are willing to close failing charters. I do think theres an important role that public charter schools can play and this charter school is an example of that, he said. King listed steps taken by the Obama administration to strengthen public education. The Department of Education has helped hundreds of thousands of children by awarding $710 million in grants to help states start or expand pre-kindergarten programs, he said. The administration also put $60 billion into the federal direct college loan program, created a $10,000 education tax credit and added $1,000 to Pell Grants to increase access to college, he said. Teachers from across New Mexico told King they need strong mentoring and support from the state and universities to succeed in the classroom, particularly in small, rural schools and districts. This has been a great conclusion to my career but, for a new teacher, it can be overwhelming, Walatowa High Charter School math teacher Ron Krueger said of his 10-year experience at the 60-student school. Karen Darensburg has won her share of cooking contests at the New Mexico State Fair. In fact, shes developed quite a devoted following. Though shes picked up accolades, the Albuquerque resident doesnt consider herself a professional cook by any means. Baking and cooking are her passion. And thats the reason she decided to take a leap of faith and audition for Food Networks Clash of the Grandmas. The six-episode competition series ends with Darensburgs episode airing at 8 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 18. Im looking forward to seeing the show, she says with a laugh. Clash of the Grandmas is hosted by actor Cameron Mathison. During each episode, four grandma super cooks are invited into the kitchen to compete against each other. But only one emerges the $10,000 winner. From Thanksgiving stuffing transformations and savory hand-held mac and cheese creations to decadent desserts, these grandmas are reinventing dishes with masterful home-cooking skills. A rotating panel of judges, including Monti Carlo, Nancy Fuller, Eddie Jackson, Brandi Milloy, Jamika Pessoa, Aarti Sequeira and Jake Smollett, determine the winner of each comfort food battle. I feel confident when Im cooking, she says. I do like to bake. I like to make bread and pound cakes. I like to experiment, as well. Darensburg has lived in New Mexico since 2002 and has collected her friends recipes along the way. For the show, she was flown out to Los Angeles to Universal Studios. In her episode, the grandmas made pizza using only a waffle iron. Then they had to make Hawaiian-Mexican fusion dishes. And then the final two use ingredients for a frozen daiquiri to make a dessert. We didnt get to meet each other before the show, she says. All of the interviews are done separately. But I got to talk with the contestants after the show and we will stay in touch. Didi OHearn, senior vice president of programming for Food Network and Cooking Channel, says the show lets grandmas take classic dishes to a new level. In this competition, age is only a number, OHearn says. This is what attracted Darensburg to the show. I enjoy watching competition shows, she says. Everyone likes to see attractive and young people on TV. There is very little chance for people that are older to be on TV. Im a grandma and I like to cook. I would definitely do another show like this again. On TV Clash of the Grandmas at 8 p.m. Sunday on Food Network. Top executives at Albuquerque Public Schools will take an unpaid vacation day next month to help address a budget cut that may balloon to $29 million 4 percent of the districts total funding. The 35 administrators will not receive compensation for the New Years holiday, celebrated Jan. 2, adding up to about $20,000 in savings. APS is also under a virtual hiring freeze for non-school personnel, though essential positions like police officers will still be filled. On Friday, Superintendent Raquel Reedy told school board members the financial picture is dire. The district is bracing for a possible additional $16 million reduction for the current fiscal year after budgets are completed by the Legislature, on top of a $13 million cut from Octobers special session. Overall, the state is facing a $69 million deficit, largely due to declining oil and gas revenues. We are taking this very seriously, Reedy said. We need to move as quickly as we can and as decisively as we can. The districts yearly budget steering committee is meeting early to address the issues, and Reedy said district departments are thinking outside the box to come up with new ways to pinch pennies. For instance, APS may try to reduce transportation costs by increasing walking zones children would have to live farther away from their schools to get a ride on the bus. Carrie Robin Brunder, director of government affairs and policy, said all cost-saving ideas are welcome. At this point, it is throwing spaghetti against the wall and seeing what will stick, she added. Brunder told the board she hopes to get budget figures from the Legislature as quickly as possible so the district can start planning. The 60-day session begins in January and runs through March. APS Chief Fincancial Officer Tami Coleman agreed that speed is essential for the district to cover cuts to its budget, which totals about $1.3 billion. She called the current financial climate one of the worst she has seen during her career. It is really, really tough times, Coleman said in a Journal interview. We are trying to justify every expense. Last week, Reedy sent an email to all district employees warning of the dire financial picture. Its been a tough decade for public education in New Mexico, and we dont have a lot of wiggle room in our budget, she wrote. But please know my commitment is to the classroom. Students must come first. Districts across the state are grappling with similar money woes. Neighboring Rio Rancho Public Schools has imposed a hiring freeze and has dramatically reduced funding for substitute teachers. PHOENIX Arizonas 11 Electoral College voters have each been inundated with tens of thousands of emails, hundreds of letters and untold numbers of phone calls urging them not to cast their ballots for president-elect Donald Trump. They say the anti-Trump effort is a waste of time, and thats a generous description of their reaction. We got a stack of letters from idiots, said elector Ed Robson, a Phoenix homebuilder. The 11 electors are all Republicans because Trump won the Arizona election with 49 percent of the vote compared to Democrat Hillary Clintons 45 percent. They were picked by the state party and will gather Monday to formally cast their votes. All swore to party officials that they will back Trump, even though theyre not legally bound to do so, and plan to hold to that pledge. I look at it this way when youre asked to be an elector, its an honor and you should be humbled that youre being selected to represent your party, said elector and retired nurse Carole Joyce. And when its a presidential candidate who won the election for your party I cant imagine anything but voting for that individual. Some opponents of Trump are planning protests across the nation as the electors gather, including at the state Capitol in Phoenix. But the Arizona electors say they wont be swayed by the protests or email and phone call deluge. Some have contacted other electors to urge them to stand firm, but others say thats not necessary. I dont think theres any need for me to, because all the electors in Arizona, all 11, are voting for Donald Trump, said Jane Lynch, a longtime GOP activist and former state party official. Theres no doubt about it, so theres no need for me to reach out to anybody. The Associated Press interviewed eight of the 11 Arizona electors, part of a national effort to reach all 538 people who will vote on the presidency. The AP interviewed more than 300 quizzing them on the unique pressure theyve received this year, their voting position and whether they believe the Electoral College needs to be changed because it does not reflect the national popular vote. The universal answer on changes to the Electoral College among Arizona electors was that it should be kept as is because it helps reflect the nation as a whole. I believe that the electoral college was one of the most forward-thinking ideas of the founders of this country, said Bruce Ash, a Tucson businessman and Republican National Committee member. It allows for the will of the people across the whole width and breath of this country to be properly represented in a presidential election. It is part of the reason that we have had the kind of leadership, both good and bad, through our countrys history. Arizona Republican electors have a recent history in holding their ground, even when it hurts their own party. In 2012, several party officials serving as Electoral College members for Arizona questioned President Barack Obamas eligibility to be president, voicing concerns that later drew disavowals from then-Gov. Jan Brewer and another Republican elected officials. All 11 Arizona electors cast their votes in 2012 for defeated Republican nominee Mitt Romney, who won the states popular vote. The slots are awarded to states according to the size of their congressional delegations and generally go to party loyalists and activists. Then-state Republican Party Chairman Tom Morrissey and two current or former GOP county chairmen spoke up during the 2012 ceremony to voice doubts about Obamas eligibility as a native-born U.S. citizen. I am signing this document with concern about the legitimacy of the birth certificate that I have seen presented by Barack Hussein Obama, Morrissey said at the time. This year, the states electors are solidly behind the man who gathered the most electoral delegates on Nov. 8. Im going to be voting for Donald Trump and the reason is, and I will give you the cliche he will make America great again, he is already, Mesa resident and elector Sharon Giese said. Hes doing a terrific job and he hasnt even been inaugurated yet. LAS CRUCES Las Cruces Assistant City Manager Daniel Avila has been on leave from his job in city government for several weeks. However, city officials are being tight-lipped about the reason for the leave. City Manager Stuart Ed appointed Loretta Reyes, whos the citys public works director, to be the interim assistant city manager/chief operating officer, one of two assistant city manager positions. Officially, (Avila) has taken a leave of absence, said City Councilor Ceil Levatino. At this point, thats all that needs to be known. Las Cruces Mayor Ken Miyagishma declined to comment about the situation, deferring questions to Ed, who started his job as city manager on Nov. 7. City Councilor Gill Sorg said he was told by Ed that Avila was on leave, but Sorg didnt recall the type of leave. Ed declined repeatedly to comment about Avilas absence, saying he doesnt like to talk about personnel matters. I dont comment in personnel matters, to include leave status, he said. Avila couldnt be reached for comment Friday afternoon. The Sun-News requested documents regarding Avilas leave under an Inspection of Public Records Act, which didnt state whether Avila was on administrative leave. However, he may be absent under a different form of leave, such as annual leave. According to city records, Avila is eligible for four weeks of annual leave per year. Las Cruces city councilors are slated to meet in a closed session after a regular city council meeting on Monday to discuss limited personnel matters, according to a meeting notice. Reyes has been seated at Avilas spot on the dais during recent city council meetings. Former City Manager Robert Garza hired Avila, an El Paso native, in June 2015. Avila is a former vice president of operations and engineering for El Paso Water Utilities, where he also served as the chief technical officer, project administration manager and construction manager. Hed also worked for the Federal Aviation Administration in California and El Paso and the Texas Department of Transportation. Avila was temporarily promoted to interim city manager in late May after Garzas departure. In late August, he was moved back to assistant city manager. Diana Alba Soular may be reached at 575-541-5443, dalba@lcsun-news.com or @AlbaSoular on Twitter. 2016 the Las Cruces Sun-News (Las Cruces, N.M.) Visit the Las Cruces Sun-News (Las Cruces, N.M.) at www.lcsun-news.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. _____ CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas There were three reports of dirty water before the 300,000 residents of Corpus Christi were told not to drink the citys water due to a chemical leak at an asphalt plant, city officials said Saturday, adding that the city hasnt found evidence of water contamination. Mayor Dan McQueen said he wont know until Sunday whether a ban on drinking, cooking or bathing with tap water will be lifted for the 113,000 people still under the restriction. McQueen, who took office Tuesday after defeating an incumbent who came under fire for her handling of previous water crises, said theres no indication the chemical leak contaminated the Gulf Coast citys water supply. Officials are hoping the answer will come Sunday with the release of the first results of 30 samples taken by the Environmental Protection Agency and being tested in Houston. McQueen said the city would seek to recoup its losses from the polluter. The EPA said there were four unconfirmed reports of symptoms possibly related to prohibited water use. McQueen called the reports rumors. Assistant City Manager Mark Van Vleck said earlier that the first dirty-water report came Dec. 1 from the administration building at the asphalt plant that oil refiner Valero leased to Ergon Asphalt and Emulsions. City workers flushed the pipe. A second report came from the building Dec. 7, he said, and the main was flushed again. We get dirty-water reports all the time, Van Vleck said of the first two, saying old cast-iron pipes are usually the reason. But Monday, Valero workers told the public works department something white and sudsy was in water at the administration building. City workers determined there was a leak in a chemical tank at the asphalt plant, and on Tuesday they determined there was a backflow problem. The city told the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality about it Wednesday, Van Vleck said, and hours later the state banned use of public drinking water. TCEQ spokesman Terry Clawson said the full city ban was justified. We did not have enough info to lift any bans or modify any bans until we did so, he said. Neither the city nor the state had information on the chemical composition of the spilled substance until Thursday. Van Vleck cautioned that the investigation is ongoing, so we dont know what happened. The ordeal was unnerving for Corpus Christi residents, especially those who live near the asphalt plant. Have we been exposed? Carol Gonzalez asked. We just dont know. Her family lives less than a mile away and her husband, Anthony Gonzalez, had made spaghetti for their 9- and 10-year-old daughters the night the water use ban was announced. The couple, interviewed while picking up a free case of bottled water at a city-run senior center, had already spent $150 on water, not to mention eating out. And theyve been driving out of the city to fill buckets of water they use to bathe their children, who include a 6-month-old girl. Its gotten very expensive, and theres not going to be any reimbursement, Carol Gonzalez said. A TCEQ report obtained Friday indicates a combination of Indulin AA-86 and hydrochloric acid leaked into the water supply. Indulin is an asphalt-emulsifying agent thats corrosive and can burn the eyes, skin and respiratory tract if a person comes into contact with concentrated amounts. The amber liquid is considered a hazardous material by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Ergon on Saturday acknowledged the soap solution had backflowed into a pipe through which it receives water. It said that pipe isnt directly connected to the city water main but rather is interconnected. It didnt offer additional details but said it has cooperated fully with the city, TCEQ and EPA and would continue to do so. Ergon spokesman Bill Miller said earlier the company was pushing the TCEQ for answers on whether there was actually contamination. Valero suggested Ergon was sluggish to acknowledge responsibility for the leak. It said its employees alerted Ergon three times after they encountered the dirty and contaminated water, on Dec. 2, 8 and 12, to ask if it could be related to Ergon operations. Hill, the Ergon spokesman, had no immediate response to Valeros statement. More than a half-dozen lawsuits have been filed against Valero and the privately held Flowood, Mississippi-based Ergon subsidiary, which makes paving and pavement preservation products. The Corpus Christi Caller-Times reported that several businesses and a class action lawsuit representing all of the citys residents allege the companies recklessly exposed business owners and residents to toxic chemicals. City public works employees couldnt find backflow valves on the chemical tank of the water intake pipes connected to the city water main, Van Vleck said. They thought it was there, but they could not show it to us, he said. The city estimated that up to 24 gallons of Indulin leaked because Ergon officials told them that was the amount of the chemical used to mix a batch of the asphalt emulsifier; 10 gallons of hydrochloric acid is used per batch. Its the latest in a string of water scares for the city. In May, the city issued its third boil-water advisory in a year as a precaution after nitrogen-rich runoff from rain flowed into the water system, resulting in low chlorine disinfectant levels in the water supply. According to a TCEQ report, the asphalt plant reported a spill of about 350 gallons of asphalt emulsion into the soil on March 25. The company cleaned up the spill, which it classified as nonhazardous waste, and disposed of it at a nearby landfill. The state agency did not issue a violation. A city manager said 23,000 cases of bottled water have been distributed, much of it donated, to help residents. The mayor said no one has turned up at a hospital with symptoms that might indicate he or she was sickened or burned by the chemical. ___ Associated Press writer Emily Schmall in Fort Worth and Paul J. Weber in Austin contributed to this report. The Irish Navy ship, LE Samuel Beckett, has arrived back in Ireland just in time for Christmas. The Naval Service vessel has spent almost three months in the Mediterranean to help in the search and rescue of migrants trying to reach Europe from Africa. It was announced today that Ascott Limited has acquired the Temple Bar Hotel for 55.1m. The Dublin property sits on Fleet Street, minutes away from Dame Street, a main thoroughfare in the Irish capital where many financial institutions such as the Central Bank of Ireland are situated. It is also within walking distance to the International Financial Services Centre that houses more than 500 companies including global financial institutions, law firms, audit firms and taxation advisors. Its central location offers guests convenient access to Grafton Street and Henry Street, the two main shopping streets in Dublin. In addition, major event facilities such as the Convention Centre Dublin, the 3Arena and Aviva Stadium are nearby. The property is close to museums, boutiques, restaurants, cafes, galleries and attractions such as the famous Dublin Castle, Guinness Storehouse and Jameson Distillery. The Ascott Limited is a Singapore company that has grown to be one of the leading international serviced residence owner-operators. It has over 29,000 operating serviced residence units in key cities of the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East, as well as over 22,000 units which are under development, making a total of more than 51,000 units in over 300 properties. Speaking today, Ascotts Managing Director for Europe, Mr Alfred Ong said, "We look forward to bringing our signature hospitality to Ireland with a centrally located and quality accommodation in Dublin for our corporate and leisure guests. Acquiring an operating property in Dublin will give us a much faster time-to-market." He added, "The property has been achieving over 80% occupancy in the last few months and we are confident that we will be able to add value to this prime asset. There are already plans to rebrand the property at a later date." Source: www.businessworld.ie About us There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't. There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't. Hi All, I have a script which downloads the file from the server. Its was working fine, but its throwing error now. I am getting error while creating the object using WScript. please let me know how to fix this issue. C# There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't. Hi, I was wondering if someone could please help me with the following code as it doesn't seem to be working and I cant work out why. Basically, I am attempting to create a document referrer so if a user on a website comes from X site (that site only) then they are redirected to A but if they come from Y they are redirected to B, while if they come from an internal source then they can continue. The code is: 
 var regExp = /https:\/\/(anon.to)\/(xxxxxx)/g; var dr = document.referrer; if (dr == ' ' ) { self.location= ' WebsiteExample1' ; } else if (dr.match(regExp)) { self.location = ' Otherplaceonwebsite' ; }



The code works if I just use var regExp = /https:\/\/(anon.to)/g; but that allows anyone from anon.to to access the link rather than just the users with the https://anon.to/xxxxxx link.



Hopefully this makes sense and someone can help.



Thanks,



Quote: Create a secure anonymous short link from your url which also hides http referer!

The service you're using deliberately hides the referrer information. Therefore, you can't use the referrer to detect whether the user came from your anon.to link.





"These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined."

- Homer







function getLocation() { navigator.geolocation.getCurrentPosition(function (pos) { var lat = pos.coords.latitude; var lng = pos.coords.longitude; if (lat == null ) { navigator.notification.alert( " GPS not activated!" , null , " GPS" , " Ok" ); } else { navigator.notification.alert( " Latitude: " + lat + " , Longitude: " + lng, null , " GPS" , " Ok" ); } }); }





But, there is one way may help you... Connect 'getCurrentPosition' - directly - to a button click, in this case it considered as an action by the user and will be permitted... Of course you have to exactly describe to the user what will happening what clicking the button...



A good reading: Geolocation - Dive Into HTML5[^]

Skipper: We'll fix it.

Alex: Fix it? How you gonna fix this?

Skipper: Grit, spit and a whole lotta duct tape.



I'm trying to understand two way binding in AngularJS but I'm unable to understand the behavior of functions and variables.



Consider the following example:



So, I have a controller like this:



JavaScript var app=angular.module( " cal" , []); app.controller( " calc" , function ($scope) { $scope.result=Number($scope.a || 0 )+ Number($scope.b || 0 ); });



and HTML like this:


 
   {{result}} 
 




This code doesn't update the variable "result".



However, if I use something like this:



JavaScript var app=angular.module( " cal" , []); app.controller( " calc" , function ($scope) { $scope.add = function (){ return (Number($scope.a || 0 )+ Number($scope.b || 0 )); } });



and






 
   {{add()}} 
 


the value in gets updated automatically with variation in variables "a" or "b".



How does this work? What's the difference in returning from the function and using the variable directly in the DOM?





JavaScript app.controller( ' calc' ,[ ' $scope' , function ($scope){ $scope.a = 0 ; $scope.b = 0 ; }); HTML < div ng-app =" cal" > < div ng-controller =" calc" > < input type =" text" ng-model =" a" / > < input type =" text" ng-model =" b" / > < span > {{ a + b }} < /span > < /div > < /div > "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."

- Benjamin Disraeli



JavaScript app.controller( ' calc' ,[ ' $scope' , function ($scope){ $scope.a = 0 ; $scope.b = 0 ; $scope.result = 0 ; $scope.calculate = function (){ $scope.result = $scope.a + $scope.b; } $scope.$watch( ' a' ,$scope.calculate); $scope.$watch( ' b' ,$scope.calculate); });

Personally I think in this sort of operation that an aggregate variable is overkill, and it would be better to directly inject $scope.a and $scope.b into a request, if that's what you're goal is.

"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."

- Benjamin Disraeli







Have a look at the Scope Lifecycle section of:

AngularJS Developer's Guide[^]



The important thing to remember is that the page rendering (anything on the template) is processed when the $digest is run, so loading functions directly into it can become a very expensive process.

"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."

- Benjamin Disraeli







If you need a transform from a scope property, but do not need the result bound to a property (a totals row, for instance) the ideal way is either native functions or filters.



Methods should really be saved for event handling and processing.

"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."

- Benjamin Disraeli



Hi,



I am trying to use AngularJS in my application, I am new to AngularJS, I am trying to use it with ASP.Net MVC 5, can anybody please help me? I am trying to execute the npm install from my Application route folder where project.json exists, but npm install is saying project.json file doesn't exist even it exists.

But I have just copied the project.json from some other Project, I don't know if its wrong or I shouldn't do it. But I don't know what to write in my project.json file. I don't have any other files copied too.



Should I have some other files? Any help is going to be very helpful, thanks in advance



My project.json file as below

{ " webroot" : " wwwroot" , " version" : " 1.0.1-*" , " compilationOptions" : { " emitEntryPoint" : true }, " dependencies" : { " Glimpse" : " 2.0.0-beta1" , " Microsoft.AspNet.Authentication.Cookies" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.AspNet.Diagnostics.Entity" : " 7.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.AspNet.IISPlatformHandler" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.AspNet.Mvc" : " 6.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.AspNet.Mvc.TagHelpers" : " 6.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.AspNet.Mvc.WebApiCompatShim" : " 6.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.AspNet.Server.Kestrel" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.AspNet.StaticFiles" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.AspNet.Tooling.Razor" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.Extensions.CodeGenerators.Mvc" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.Extensions.Configuration.FileProviderExtensions" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.Extensions.Configuration.Json" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.Extensions.Configuration.UserSecrets" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.Extensions.Logging" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.Extensions.Logging.Console" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.Extensions.Logging.Debug" : " 1.0.0-rc1-final" , " Microsoft.VisualStudio.Web.BrowserLink.Loader" : " 14.0.0-rc1-final" }, " commands" : { " web" : " Microsoft.AspNet.Server.Kestrel" }, " frameworks" : { " dnx46" : { } }, " exclude" : [ " wwwroot" , " node_modules" ], " publishExclude" : [ " **.user" , " **.vspscc" ] } Thanks,



Abdul Aleem



"There is already enough hatred in the world lets spread love, compassion and affection."



Hello,



I have created a job application form.

I need to send this form converted as .pdf file via mail.

Code behind

C# using iTextSharp.text; using iTextSharp.text.pdf; using iTextSharp.text.html.simpleparser; using iTextSharp.text.html; using System; using System.Collections.Generic; using System.Linq; using System.Web; using System.Web.UI; using System.Web.UI.WebControls; using System.Net.Mail; using System.Text; using System.Net.Mime; using System.IO; namespace myproject { public partial class ApplicationForm : System.Web.UI.Page { protected void Page_Load( object sender, EventArgs e) { if (!Page.IsPostBack) { Session.Remove( " clicks" ); } } protected MemoryStream getMemoryStream() { StringWriter sw = new StringWriter(); HtmlTextWriter w = new HtmlTextWriter(sw); this .Page.RenderControl(w); string s = sw.GetStringBuilder().ToString(); SelectPdf.HtmlToPdf converter = new SelectPdf.HtmlToPdf(); SelectPdf.PdfDocument doc = converter.ConvertHtmlString(s); MemoryStream Stream = new MemoryStream(); doc.Save(Stream); doc.Close(); return Stream; } protected String getHtml() { StringWriter sw = new StringWriter(); HtmlTextWriter w = new HtmlTextWriter(sw); this .Page.RenderControl(w); string s = sw.GetStringBuilder().ToString(); return s; } protected void add_Click( object sender, EventArgs e) { int rowCount = 7 ; rowCount = Convert.ToInt32(Session[ " clicks" ]); rowCount++; Session[ " clicks" ] = rowCount; for ( int i = 0 ; i < rowCount; i++) { TextBox TxtBoxE = new TextBox(); TextBox TxtBoxP = new TextBox(); TextBox TxtBoxD = new TextBox(); TextBox TxtBoxS = new TextBox(); TextBox TxtBoxR = new TextBox(); Label lblE = new Label(); Label lblP = new Label(); Label lblD = new Label(); Label lblS = new Label(); Label lblR = new Label(); TxtBoxE.ID = " TextBoxE" + i.ToString(); TxtBoxP.ID = " TextBoxP" + i.ToString(); TxtBoxD.ID = " TextBoxD" + i.ToString(); TxtBoxS.ID = " TextBoxS" + i.ToString(); TxtBoxR.ID = " TextBoxR" + i.ToString(); lblE.ID = " LabelE" + i.ToString(); lblP.ID = " LabelP" + i.ToString(); lblD.ID = " LabelD" + i.ToString(); lblS.ID = " LabelS" + i.ToString(); lblR.ID = " LabelR" + i.ToString(); lblE.ID = " LabelE" + i.ToString(); lblP.ID = " LabelP" + i.ToString(); lblD.ID = " LabelD" + i.ToString(); lblS.ID = " LabelS" + i.ToString(); lblR.ID = " LabelR" + i.ToString(); lblE.ID = " LabelE" + i.ToString(); lblP.ID = " LabelP" + i.ToString(); lblD.ID = " LabelD" + i.ToString(); lblS.ID = " LabelS" + i.ToString(); lblR.ID = " LabelR" + i.ToString(); lblE.ID = " LabelE" + i.ToString(); lblP.ID = " LabelP" + i.ToString(); lblD.ID = " LabelD" + i.ToString(); lblS.ID = " LabelS" + i.ToString(); lblR.ID = " LabelR" + i.ToString(); lblE.Text = " Employer " + (i + 1 ).ToString() + " : " ; lblP.Text = " Position " + (i + 1 ).ToString() + " : " ; lblD.Text = " From-Until : " ; lblS.Text = " Salary " + (i + 1 ).ToString() + " : " ; lblR.Text = " Reason for Leaving " + (i + 1 ).ToString() + " : " ; Panel1.Controls.Add(lblE); Panel1.Controls.Add(TxtBoxE); Panel1.Controls.Add(lblP); Panel1.Controls.Add(TxtBoxP); Panel1.Controls.Add(lblD); Panel1.Controls.Add(TxtBoxD); Panel1.Controls.Add(lblS); Panel1.Controls.Add(TxtBoxS); Panel1.Controls.Add(lblR); Panel1.Controls.Add(TxtBoxR); } } protected void btnsubmit_Click( object sender, EventArgs e) { string fname = " applicationForm" + DateTime.Now.ToString( " yyMMddHHmmss" ) + " .pdf" ; MailMessage mailMsg = new MailMessage(); mailMsg.From = new MailAddress(txtmymail.Text); mailMsg.To.Add( " my-email@gmail.com" ); mailMsg.IsBodyHtml = true ; mailMsg.Subject = " Contact Details" ; MemoryStream file = getMemoryStream(); FileStream filePDF = new FileStream(fname, FileMode.Create, FileAccess.Write); file.WriteTo(filePDF); file.Close(); filePDF.Close(); System.Net.Mime.ContentType ct = new System.Net.Mime.ContentType(System.Net.Mime.MediaTypeNames.Application.Pdf); System.Net.Mail.Attachment attach = new System.Net.Mail.Attachment(fname, ct); attach.ContentDisposition.FileName = fname; ContentDisposition disposition = attach.ContentDisposition; disposition.CreationDate = DateTime.Now; mailMsg.Attachments.Add(attach); SmtpClient smtp = new SmtpClient( " smtp.gmail.com" , 587 ); mailMsg.Priority = MailPriority.Normal; smtp.Credentials = new System.Net.NetworkCredential( " my-email@gmail.com" , " my-email-password" ); smtp.Timeout = 250000 ; smtp.EnableSsl = true ; System.Net.ServicePointManager.ServerCertificateValidationCallback = delegate ( object s, System.Security.Cryptography.X509Certificates.X509Certificate certificate, System.Security.Cryptography.X509Certificates.X509Chain chain, System.Net.Security.SslPolicyErrors sslPolicyErrors) { return true ; }; smtp.Send(mailMsg); Response.Write( " " ); txtfname.Text = " " ; txtlname.Text = " " ; txtfaname.Text = " " ; txtmoname.Text = " " ; txtmymail.Text = " " ; } } }

ASP.NET <%@ Page Language =" C#" AutoEventWireup =" true" CodeBehind =" ApplicationForm.aspx.cs" EnableEventValidation =" false" Inherits =" icts.ApplicationForm" %> < !DOCTYPE html > < html xmlns =" http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" > < head runat =" server" > < meta charset =" UTF-8" / > < title > Job Application < /title > < meta name =" viewport" content =" width=device-width, initial-scale=1" / > < link rel =" stylesheet" href =" https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/normalize/5.0.0/normalize.min.css" / > < link href =" css/bootstrap.min.css" rel =" stylesheet" / > < link href =" css/style.css" rel =" stylesheet" / > < /head > < body > < form method =" get" runat =" server" id =" form1" > < div class =" container" > < h5 > GENERAL INFORMATION < /h5 > < div class =" row" > < div class =" col-md-6" id =" col-md-6" > < div class =" col-sm-9" > < div class =" col-xs-8 col-sm-6" > < span > Surname < /span > < /div > < div class =" col-xs-8 col-sm-6" > < asp:TextBox ID =" txtlname" runat =" server" > < /asp:TextBox > < /div > < /div > < /div > < div class =" col-md-6" > < div class =" col-sm-9" > < div class =" col-xs-8 col-sm-6" > < span > Name < /span > < /div > < div class =" col-xs-8 col-sm-6" > < asp:TextBox ID =" txtfname" runat =" server" > < /asp:TextBox > < /div > < /div > < /div > < /div > < div class =" row" > < div class =" col-md-6" id =" col-md-6" > < div class =" col-sm-9" > < div class =" col-xs-8 col-sm-6" > < span > Date of Birth < /span > < /div > < div class =" col-xs-8 col-sm-6" > < asp:Textbox type =" date" runat =" server" ID =" bday" > < /asp:Textbox > < /div > < /div > < /div > < div class =" row" > < div class =" col-md-12" > < asp:Panel ID = " Panel1" runat = " server" > < /asp:Panel > < asp:Button ID =" Button2" runat =" server" Text =" Add field" OnClick =" add_Click" / > < /div > < /div > < div class =" row" > < asp:Button ID =" Button1" runat =" server" Text =" Submit" OnClick =" btnsubmit_Click" / > < /div >

With this code i am able to send a .pdf attachment via mail, but some of the fields are empty.

My form has text boxes, date input and radio buttons.



What would you suggest?



Thank you,





"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."

- Benjamin Disraeli


Fincantieri has been short-listed by the Australian Government to bid to design and build nine new frigates for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), and has established its local company, Fincantieri Australia, and will open a new Australian headquarters in Canberra soon, according to a statement.

Dario Deste has been designated Chairman of Fincantieri Australia and he will be supported by former Rear Admiral, Mark Purcell.

Deste said Fincantieri Australia will now manage the important phase of the shipbuilders participation in the competitive evaluation process for the SEA 5000 Future Frigates program.

Fincantieris commitment to this project will be total and we will deploy all of the companys strengths as a market leader. The FREMM Frigate we are offering is an absolute cutting-edge product. The company will engage with Government, businesses involved in the Australian shipbuilding industry and the supply chain, and other key players with a stake in the construction of the frigates in Adelaide, South Australia. Fincantieri Australia will be resourced with senior technical and other personnel recruited locally in Australia and drawn from Fincantieris global network of naval ship building executives," he said.

We are very happy with the team assembled so far and all of the people who will take part in with the team assembled so far and all of the people who will take part in bidding for this significant naval project will have an important role.

I make particular mention of former Rear Admiral Mark Purcell, who has joined the team and whose experience will certainly be a very significant point of strength for Fincantieri, Deste added.
LUGANO-SINGAPORE, Dec. 18, 2016 - Cancer has a major impact on mental and physical wellbeing, researchers report at the ESMO Asia 2016 Congress in Singapore.

Results from a Malaysian study (1) of 1,362 patients found more than four in five survivors were suffering from anxiety and a similar number had depression a year after diagnosis.

Lead author Shridevi Subramaniam, a research officer at the National Clinical Research Center, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, said: "We urgently need new ways of supporting cancer survivors and addressing wider aspects of wellbeing.

"Instead of just focusing on clinical outcome, doctors must focus equally on quality of life for cancer patients especially psychologically, financially and socially."

Researchers included Malaysian patients from the ACTION study (ASEAN Cost in Oncology Study) and nearly a third (33%) had breast cancer. They filled in questionnaires to assess health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Anxiety and depression levels were also included in the survey.

A patient's satisfaction with their physical health and mental wellbeing- or health-related quality of life -- is an important end result in cancer care. But the study showed that patients' mental and physical wellbeing was low overall 12 months after diagnosis. The more advanced the cancer, the lower the HRQoL.

The type of cancer was also a factor because disease severity differs. Women with reproductive system cancers, for example, had higher wellbeing scores than lymphoma patients. This could be explained by the fact that lymphoma is often aggressive and progresses quickly while reproductive system cancers, such as cervical, can spread slowly over a number of years. "The key message is to focus more on supporting patients throughout their whole cancer 'journey' especially in their lives after treatment," added Subramanian.

Young pay high mental and social 'cost' for cancer diagnosis

Cancer also has a significant impact on the lives and wellbeing of adolescents and young adults, as reported in a separate ongoing study (2).

Researchers set out to identify the extent of wellbeing issues and other problems in this group who not only are at major milestones in their lives but also do not expect to develop the disease. The study included patients who were newly diagnosed with cancer (n=56) and with an average age of 28. They completed a survey including questions on occupation and lifestyle, and were also asked about problems around physical symptoms, mental wellbeing and financial issues

Results showed more than a third (37%) were suffering distress at diagnosis of cancer. Nearly half identified the top cause as treatment decisions, followed by family health issues, sleep and worry.

Senior author Associate Professor Alexandre Chan, Department of Pharmacy, National University of Singapore and Specialist Pharmacist, National Cancer Center, Singapore, said: "The young differ from older people because they don't expect to be ill, and certainly not with cancer. They're also at a stage when they're facing many social responsibilities and family burdens. "That's why they need effective supportive care and help in managing the physical, psychological and emotional side-effects that come with both cancer diagnosis and treatment."

Commenting on these studies, Ravindran Kanesvaran, assistant professor, Duke-NUS Medical School, and Consultant Medical Oncologist, National Cancer Center, Singapore, said: "There is a critical need to find ways of addressing the high levels of distress among cancer survivors in general as highlighted by the Malaysian study.

"The psycho-social impact of cancer on adolescents and young adults also clearly needs further evaluation. This is to assess the impact on quality of life at the time of diagnosis as well as throughout and after treatment.

"What's required are specific interventions to meet the needs of this age group, as well as specially tailored survivorship programmes and supportive care.

"While it's not surprising that the young adult cancer population has a higher risk of suicide, conducting studies like this help us find new ways to address this issue effectively."

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LUGANO-SINGAPORE, 18 December, 2016 - Cancer patients are ending up in debt because they have to cover the costs of treatment as well as other care related expenses, researchers report at the ESMO Asia 2016 Congress in Singapore.

Previous studies have demonstrated that cancer patients face financial difficulties even in countries where the national public health system covers most of the expense. The economic hardship experienced by patients and survivors is often refered to as the "financial toxicity" of cancer (1). Research presented at ESMO Asia 2016 shows new aspects of the burden of cancer care on patients.

A study (2) from Malaysia has found that more than half of cancer survivors spend at least a third of their yearly household income on treatment, as well as on costs such as transport to hospital and childcare. They have to pay for cancer drugs because many are not funded by the government despite the availabilty of free healthcare.

Lead author Nirmala Bhoo Pathy, a clinical epidemiologist at the Faculty of Medicine, University Malaya Medical Center, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, said: "The scope of cancer care and drugs offered free through the public health services is limited in Malysia.

"The current system of funding for cancer healthcare needs to be reviewed. The government must increase financial risk protection especially for the poor. Early cancer detection must also be improved through policy changes."

The findings were based on 1,662 men and women who participated in the 2012-2014 ASEAN Costs in Oncology Study. More than half (51%) of those still alive (n=1,215) a year after diagnosis were suffering financial difficulties.

Low-income, a lack of health insurance and not having surgery were among the factors associated with patients having money issues. The risk was lower for those who did not undergo chemotherapy.

Commenting on the study, Professor Nathan Cherny, lead investigator for the ESMO International Consortium Study on the Availability of Anti-neoplastic Medicines, said: "Unfortunately this situation is not limited to Malaysia. Data from the soon-to-be published ESMO International Consortium Study on the Availability of Anti-neoplastic Medicines (3), indicates that the burden of out-of- pocket expenses for drugs that are not on the World Health Organisation (WHO) essential medicines list, is substantial in most upper-middle income countries like Malaysia.

"The problems are even more severe in low-middle and low income countries where patients often need to cover costs themselves, even for essential anticancer treatments."

Cancer patients report loss of jobs and income

The financial burden of cancer care is also highlighted in a separate pilot study (4) to be presented at the ESMO Asia 2016 Congress. It includes data from patients (n=14) aged 37 to 77 currently being treated at a hospital outpatient department in Australia.

All participants completed a questionnaire covering issues including income and employment history, as well as health insurance status.

Preliminary results found nearly three quarters (n=10) reported a reduction in household income after their cancer diagnosis. Of the twelve patients who did have a job, ten highlighted changes in employment conditions such as decreased hours (n=6), others were no longer working (n=3) and one had retired.

"The loss of work, a carer's income and early retirement can all contribute to the financial burden on the household," said lead author Anupriya Agarwal, research fellow, Concord Cancer Center, Concord Repatriation General Hospital, Sydney, Australia.

"Our study aims to provide insight into these costs and assist policymakers in finding ways of reducing this burden on patients."

Doctors favour expensive drugs if life-prolonging

Another study (5) included in the programme investigated why cancer doctors recommend costly cancer drugs.

Oncologists were asked to complete an online experiment. They were presented with several scenarios involving a fictional patient with advanced cancer, and then had to state the cancer drug (A or B) they would recommend.

The results based on 101 responses found that healthcare professionals were more likely to advise the use of drugs that allow patients to live longer and have a higher chance of improving their symptoms.

They were less likely to recommend drugs with an increased chance of side-effects and that cost patients more, because they are not subsidised by the government. However, doctors would favour expensive treatments if they increased a person's survival time by two months or more over the standard care available. They would take this approach even when the out-of-pocket cost could expose patients with advanced cancer to extreme financial difficulty or 'toxicity'.

Lead author Deme Karikios, PhD candidate, National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia, said: "Australian oncologists are willing to expose their patients to financial toxicity when recommending expensive unfunded anticancer drugs. They will only do this though in cases where the survival benefit is above that of standard care.

"Cancer doctors need to help patients understand the potential benefits, harms and costs of drugs not subsidised by the government. Then patients can make an informed decision about these treatment options."

Commenting on the findings, Cherny said: "Tools like the ESMO Magnitude of Clinical Benefit Scale (ESMO-MCBS) (6) can help clinicians better inform patients on how extensive the potential benefit is from a treatment option being considered.

"Using a very objective tool such as the ESMO-MCBS helps put the evidence into perspective, mitigates against optimism bias and can lead to shared decision-making that is better informed."

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Upendra Bharati | HENB | Kolkata : Getting it certified by the Hijab lover CM of WB, Mamata Banerjee, the Jihadi brothers of Bengal CM exercised their Peace in Islam in various parts of the state while observing Eid-e-Milad-un- Nabi.

On Dec 12, 2016 Bengal CM wished Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi day through an advt. in all the lead news papers in the state holding, Hazrat Muhammad is the torchbearer of World peace, Justice and Human welfare.

While the whole world has been suffering from the dreadful Radical Islam; when the major part of the world is affected by bloody Jihad, Islamic State, Boko Haram, Jaish-e-Muhammad, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Tehrik-e Taliban-Pakistan and other Islamist outfits; the Bengal CM culpably misused public money by incurring huge expenditure for Islamic propaganda glorifying a barbaric, blood hound, sodomite, fanatic and frightful gang leader named Muhammad.

As a result of this and being so exalted, the Jihadi brothers of Bengal CM attacked on Hindus at Sankrail (Howrah District) on Dec 13, 2016 while fanatic mob from Milad procession attacked Hindu shops and households with lethal weapons at Deowanghata. As per report of Dainik Jugosankha, the fanatic processionists hurled filthy languages to the local Hindus which sparked rioting situation as Hindus protested.

On the same day, at Mallarpur (Birbhum district), Muslims tried to stop Hindus Margashirsha observation for carrying out Milad-un-Nabi procession throughout the localities. As Hindus protested, a huge numbers of Muslims attacked the Hindus causing a communal clash. Police intervened the situation to pacify but the enraged Muslims from the procession attacked the police on duty. Two juveniles and a Rampurhat Circle Inspector of Police were injured by the Muslim attackers. Police resorted the peace after using rubber bullets.

On Dec 14, residents of Katwa Town in Burdwan district faced a communal situation on the day local BJP unit called a bandh in the town in protest of an attack on Hindu temple on Dec 12. Police stood on toe to control the situation.

Deployment of RAF (Rapid Action Force) was felt emergent as the communal situation worsened again in Howrahs Dhulagari, Shibtala, Deowanghata. Some people tried to block NH-6 near Dhulagari on Dec 14 evening to attract Govts attention to maintain peace in the areas.

Now, the prolific Peace Lovers of Bengal these days are hunting out State BJP President Dilip Ghosh to kill him by throwing stones !

This is only happened after issuing a fatwa like statement made by the Islamic zealot Nurar Rehaman Barkati of Kolkata Tipu Sultan Mosque.

In a trail of demonetization, Mamata Banerjee and Dilip Ghosh locked into hot exchanges each others. While Mamata Banerjee passed various unconstitutional epithets to PM Modi, Ghosh lambasted with dragging down Mamatas hair in retaliation to Mamatas planning to tieing ropes on Modis waist.

As a repercussion, Imam Nurar Barkati took the side of Mamata and told his followers and Islamic public to attack Dilip Ghosh with stones to put him a dire consequences.

As Mamata Banerjee wants to make Bengal as Arabstan and she much loves Sharia, she ordered her police perhaps not to take any action against Barkati. It is also difficult to know the quantum of satisfaction on the part of Bengal CM keeping intimacy with such a great Imam who earlier issued fatwa for Taslima Nasrins beheadment, organised Namaz e Janaza of Osama Bin Laden in Kolkata and now stone pelting on Dilip Ghosh.

[Of late it is heard that the legal cell of State BJP is contemplating a suit against Barkati under Sections 153 A (Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race etc.), 504 (Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and 506 (Punishment for criminal intimidation) IPC.]

Now, it is heard that one JMB hardliner Shaikh Abdur Rajjak Bin Yusuf is coming the Choto Kusthikuri, Police Station- Suri, Birbhum in Bengal from an unknown destination of Bangladesh t0 exhort in an iconoclast workshop on Dec 18, 2016. Though the prog went viral through an auto-banner uploaded in facebook, the news is not being confirmed from any ground authority.

Such Islamic zombies are protected by Mamata Banerjee and she has been promoting Jihadicrafts in Bengal from Khagragarh to Nabanna (the state HQ of Bengal).

See below a lecture of Shaikh Abdur Rajjak Bin Yusuf provoking the Muslim audience to break all idols by kicking or by sticks.

Once, one of her minister in council and very close to Mamata, Firhad Hakim claimed[1].Mini Pakistan in Kolkata[2].

Is Mamata Banerjee planning a Major Pakistan now in West Bengal?

Mamata Banerjee, Imam Barkati and Jamati people in Bengal Ministry are jointly vitiating the communal situation of West Bengal. Islamists in Bengal are attacking Hindus in slightest chance.

Hindus must retaliate and Central Govt in Home Ministry must take note of it.

First of all GOI must ban all fanatic preachings in social media in facebook, twitter, youtube, vimeo etc. immediately.

Source : Hindu Existence
Rally Inside Wells Fargo Headquarters Demands Bank Divest from Dakota Access Pipeline by #NoDAPLBayArea

During a busy payday lunch hour, members of #NoDAPLBayArea took over the global headquarters of Wells Fargo Bank in the financial district of San Francisco.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE



#NoDAPLBayArea Holds Rally In Wells Fargos Headquarters & Closes Accounts

Demands Bank To Divest Disputed Pipeline



December 16, 2016

San Francisco, California



Today during a busy payday lunch hour, members of #NoDAPLBayArea took over the global headquarters of Wells Fargo Bank in the financial district of San Francisco. As part of a continued campaign to stand in solidarity with the water protectors at Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota, the Bay Area activists are set on pressuring local figures who have decision making power around the contested Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL).



Two weeks ago, #NoDAPLBayArea paid Wells Fargo Chief Financial Officer John Shrewsberry a sunrise visit at his Piedmont, California home. The morning gathering was an attempt to wake-up Shrewsberry to the reality his financial institution is investing in the destruction of the earth and massive human rights violations. Today #NoDAPLBayArea continued to keep their promise to stand with Standing Rock, and restated their call for Wells Fargo to divest not only in DAPL but in the corporation that owns the pipeline - Energy Transfer Partnership (ETP).



While several Wells Fargo customers entered the bank to close their bank accounts in protest to DAPL, more than two dozen protesters sang political songs in the Wells Fargo museum while passersby watched thru the glass windows from the sidewalk. Simultaneously, a dozen other customers not on site closed their accounts online.



Divest your funds from oil/From Dakota Access Pipeline/Water is life and a human right/Can you Wells Fargo/ Can you do whats right?, asked one of the carolers songs done to the tune of Princes When Doves Cry. Think of the people downstream/ No one wants oil spills/Keep it in the ground /Dont turn the water brown /INDIGENOUS RIGHTS/Water i-is life



Outside, activists passed out fliers urging the public into action.



As a customer of Wells Fargo, call and DEMAND THAT WELLS FARGO DROP ITS ACCOUNTS WITH ENERGY TRANSFER PARTNERSHIP! DEMAND THAT WELLS FARGO USE CUSTOMERS MONEY TO INVEST IN CLEAN ENERGY PROJECTS!, reads a flier the water protectors were passing out. And close your account with Wells Fargo. Dont let them use your money to invest in companies that destroy the environment, poison drinking water and violate human rights and use violence against peaceful protestors, the flier continued.



Wells Fargo is just one of many financial institutions based both here in the U.S. and worldwide that has money tied in the DAPL. Wells Fargo is currently responsible for managing the financial accounts of Energy Transfer Partnership. Currently the bank has invested $567 million into the pipeline.



Since April of this year, more than 700 Native American tribes, calling themselves water protectors, have converged on Standing Rock reservation and neighboring treaty lands. Using prayer and non-violent direct action they are standing against the massive environmental destruction and human rights violations that have surrounded and will inevitably come with the building of the DAPL. Already, DAPL has illegally built on Native American lands, U.S. Federal property and private properties of thousands of U.S. citizens who never agreed to have the pipeline run thru their backyards. If constructed, the pipeline will contaminate the Missouri River - the largest watershed in the United States. DAPL will pollute the drinking water of 18,000 million Americans, thousands of acres of Native American lands, wildlife, ecosystems, farms and ranches.



DAPLs private security and hired mercenaries worked with Morton County Sheriffs to protect ETPs business interests by bringing down unthinkable violence and massive human and indigenous rights violations on peaceful and prayerful water protectors.



Water protectors and thousands of their allies have demanded that President Obama and The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers stop this pipeline. After their cries were met with silence, people are now going after the money behind this pipeline.



And the tactic is working. Last month the bank of Norway pulled their money out of the pipeline. And this week the state of Washington ended its relationship with Wells Fargo because of its involvement with DAPL. Over the past month, thousands of people across the U.S have closed their accounts with Wells Fargo in protest to the unwanted pipeline.



Several of #noDAPLBayArea have recently returned from the ground zero at Standing Rock, North Dakota. Wells Fargos international headquarters are here in San Francisco and key decision makers like Shrewsberry live here in the Bay Area, said #NoDAPLBayArea member Needa Bee. Its our responsibility now that we have returned from the Standing Rock resistance camps to put pressure on people in our own back yard that can impact the outcome of this pipeline.



Will Wells Fargos continue its current extractive reputation? Or will Wells Fargo take the sensible path and stand on the right side of history?



Hashtags:

#FareWellsFargo #DefundDAPL #NoDAPL #DumpETP #MniWiconi #WaterIsLife



Videos and Photos of todays action to come. Customers who have closed their Wells Fargo bank accounts today are also available for comment.



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Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald has been urged to increase garda numbers in Cork city due to fears the recent shooting of a senior Real IRA member will set off a series of "tat-for-tat" killings in the city, writes Fiachra O Cionnaith.

Fianna Fail justice spokesperson Jim O Callaghan called for the action on Friday as he warned if dissident paramilitary groups are not monitored closely events could spiral out of control "in the same way as gangland criminality n Dublin in recent times".

Speaking during a Dail debate with Ms Fitzgerald, Mr O Callaghan said he was deeply concerned at the killing earlier this month of Aidan O Driscoll, who was shot three times in broad daylight on the Commons Road in Blackpool on December 7.

The 37-year-old, who was nicknamed the Beast, was believed to have been heavily linked to the Real IRA and had previously survived an earlier punishment shooting in 2013.

Raising the issue on Friday, Mr O Callaghan said he is deeply concerned the situation could result in a domino effect of shootings in the city, and urged Ms Fitzgerald to take action now to address the potential problem.

"We have unfortunately seen in recent times an upsurge in paramilitary activity from dissident groups. It is very important that the Government, the Minister and our security service keeps a very close eye on this.

"We do not want to a situation to develop where paramilitary activity among dissident groups gets out of control in the same way as gangland criminality has got out of control in Dublin in recent times.

"The reason I raised this question is because of the unfortunate man who was murdered in Cork last week.

"It appears to me that there is some form of a split in the dissident republican movement in southern Ireland. We need Garda presence stepped up, particularly in Cork where this problem seems to have culminated in recent times.

"We have to be careful we do not allow a situation to develop where tit-for-tat killings take place in respect of the dissident community," he said.

Responding to the concerns, Ms Fitzgerald said she can "only agree" with the need to prevent further attacks and said actions are being taken to address the issue.

While not going into the specific shooting of Mr O Driscoll, she said gardai have recently been given fresh powers to covertly intercept communications from individuals who are "serious threats to the State's security", while a new special criminal court has also been established.

Meanwhile, the same debate also heard Ms Fitzgerald confirm she will bring new domestic violence prevention laws to cabinet next week, including the full implementation of the Istanbul convention.

The new laws, if enacted, will extend access to interim barring orders and give judges fresh powers to refer offenders to counselling and anger-management programmes


Our 2016-2017 Ambassadors (left to right): Chinah Clemons-Fountain, Chelsea Huggins, Yalissa Dominicak, Steaffon Moore, Zack Holton, Winnie Washington, Brandy Holliday and Denny Bolafka.

Contact: Attila Nemecz

Attila Nemecz Attila.Nemecz@beaufortccc.edu

Washington, NC Eight students have been chosen by the Beaufort County Community College Foundation to represent BCCC as new ambassadors for the 2016-2017 Academic Year. Those chosen are Denise Bolafka, Yalissa Dominicak, Chinah J. Clemons-Fountain, Brandy S. Holliday, Zackary Holton, Chelsea L. Huggins, Steaffon J. Moore, and Winnie Washington.For the third year, a student in the Beaufort County Early College High School, housed on the BCCC campus, was chosen as an ambassador.Bolafka, 60, of Washington, is pursuing an associate in special education from BCCC. She has worked at Pinnacle Home Care, Inc. Previously, Bolafka attended Rio Linda High School and has taken vocational training at Everest College in Brookline, MA. Wife of Michael Bolofka and mother of three, she plans to transfer to East Carolina State University and earn her Bachelor's Degree.Clemons-Fountain, 18, of Merry Hill, is pursuing a Registered Nursing degree at BCCC. She attended Bertie High School and received an EMT Basic certificate from BCCC. Clemons previously worked for Friendly Check Cashing as a teller. She is the daughter of Jacquelyn Fountain and plans to become a travel nurse after graduating from BCCC.Dominicak, 26, of Washington, is pursuing an associate in nursing degree from BCCC. Previously, Dominicak attended Bear Grass High School and received an associate in general education degree from BCCC. Daughter of Anthony and Sonya Beal and mother of two, she plans to transfer to East Carolina State University and earn her Bachelor's Degree.Holliday, 33, of Washington, is pursuing a degree in Human Services Technology at BCCC. Daughter of Pauline and Luke Holliday, she attended North Pitt High School. After graduating BCCC, Holliday plans to further her education in the Human Services field.Holton, 20, of New Bern, is pursuing a mechanical engineering degree from BCCC. A graduate of Pamlico County High School, he is the son of Chuck and Joanna Holton. Holton plans to work at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point after graduating from BCCC.Huggins, 17, of Washington, is pursuing a nursing degree through the Regionally Increasing Baccalaureate Nurses program from BCCC. A graduate of New Bern High School, she is the daughter of David and Janie Martin. Huggins plans to finish her BSN at East Carolina University and work as a neonatal nurse after graduating from BCCC.Moore, 17, of Washington, is pursuing an associate degree in Computer Information Technology at BCCC. He is a graduate of the Early College High School at BCCC and the son of Wynette Moore. Moore plans to get a job as a computer hardware repairman after graduating from BCCC.Washington, 33, of Greenville, is pursuing a degree in Human Services at BCCC. She attended Ayden-Grifton High School and previously worked with A Small Miracle, Inc. as a habilitation technician. Washington is the daughter of Sherry and Bernard Hill of Greenville and a mother of three. After graduating from BCCC she plans to attend East Carolina University and pursue a bachelor's degree in Social Work.Those chosen as ambassadors receive a one-year tuition scholarship and help the college market its programs and services. Ambassadors chosen from the ranks of Early College High School students receive a stipend.As part of the selection process, applicants were asked to submit a resume and to participate in an interview. A panel comprised of members of the BCCC Foundation Board of Directors and local business and civic leaders conducted interviews in an informal setting with candidates for the position.
In a presentation delivered on Wednesday in London  entitled Digicel: should I stay or should I go  CreditSights analyst Michael Chakardijan said the companys high debt levels  more than $6bn (5.74bn) left little room for manoeuvre.

W e view that there is limited-to-no equity cushion. This gives the company little wriggle room for poor performance and there is not an immaterial threat of distress in the event of poor results in key markets, he said.

Digicel, which operates in 32 markets in the Caribbean and South Pacific regions, has outlined ambitious plans to try to cut its debt.

The company said it fundamentally disagrees with CreditSights conclusions, adding Digicels outlook remains positive with robust plans to delever by monetising our network investment and through realistic cost- management initiatives.

However, Mr Chakardijan is doubtful that the company will be able to succeed in its ambitious debt-reduction exercise.

Digicel is focusing on growing its earnings in order to reduce the companys debt to earnings ratio while cutting costs at the same time.

The company aims to return to growth in the year to March 2018 as its massive expenditure programme on cable and fibre roll out begins to bear fruit. The plan involves increasing margins by 24 percentage points by March 2018, while cutting costs by using technology and changing back office functions.

Mr Chakardijan described these plans as highly ambitious and opaque and doubted managements ability to deliver.

We believe managements deleveraging plans come with substantial execution risk, which is a very important point, he said.

Another issue that he highlighted that may hamper managements ability to deliver is that Digicels users habits are changing. The company has been suffering from a decline in phonecall revenue as users switch to the likes of Viber, WhatsApp, and Skype.

The final headwind that Digicel faces is the currency exchange market.

One of its larger markets, Papua New Guinea, recently applied to the IMF for a loan and there is a possibility that the country may be forced to devalue its currency.

Digicel has two loans maturing in the near future. A $210m loan is due to be repaid in March 2018 while $90m in project finance debt on its South Pacific business will mature in August 2017.
THE faces look out in desperation, showering guilt on anybody who looks in.

They appear baffled at our apparent indifference to the slaughter.

For the most part, their pleas or testimonies are delivered in low voices.

Maybe they are resigned to their fate, or maybe those who would kill them are not too far away.

And there is always the noise in the background, more mortars blowing off limbs, more bombs rained down from a black sky. More terrifying death.

The social media images that emanated from Eastern Aleppo earlier in the week will in time enter the annals of history.

Once more the charge will be levelled that the world looked on as thousands of people were slaughtered.

We have been here before in Rwanda; in Srebrenica; in Kosovo; all the way back to the concentration camps of Germany and Poland in the 1940s. The first instinct would appear to be to look away.

Can you imagine if social media existed during World War II?

There would have been faces, white European faces, bearing live testimony to the Holocaust. Would that have changed anything?

Would the rest of the west have looked away, justifying indifference by referencing the other religion of those being massacred? Or would the images, as is the case in some instances today, be dismissed as propaganda?

Never before has the killing been relayed to an outside world in real time. The tweets and videos sent out were from people who believed they were in the last hours or minutes of life as a noose is tightened around their necks.

The noose was the image used during the week by Samantha Power, the USs Irish born representative at the UN.

At an assembly meeting, she delivered a powerful speech which included the following passage.

To the Assad regime, Russia and Iran, your forces and proxies are carrying out these crimes, your barrel bombs and mortars and air strikes have allowed the militia in Aleppo to encircle tens of thousands of civilians in your ever tightening noose. It is your noose, three member states contributing to a noose around civilians. It should shame you. Instead, by all appearances, it is emboldening you. You are plotting your next assault. Are you truly incapable of shame. Is there literally nothing that can shame you? Is there no act of barbarism against civilians, no execution of a child that doesnt get under your skin, creeps you out a little bit? Is there nothing you will not lie about or justify?

Some have pointed out that Ms Power, as the US representative, has a brass neck delivering such condemnation.

Down through the decades, America has had its share of proxies who engaged in extreme brutality, far from the glare of social or any other kind of media.

In fact, in another theatre of the wider Iraq/Syria conflict, US personnel are playing a crucial role.

Can we be confident that the Americans fighting Isis in the Iraqi city of Mosul are not wantonly committing the kind of crimes that were condemned at the UN.

It has also been noted that Ms Power would have been constrained in her outrage if she was not, as part of the Obama administration, on her way out the door.

But to be fair to the woman herself, she has a long record in calling out human rights abuses, and if her office is tarnished then at least she personally voiced the kind of sentiment that should be representative of any society that describes itself as civilised.

Dont expect her successor to call out such abuses.

All the indications are that whatever moral authority the USA might possess in dealing with Russia will be quietly shelved under Donald Trump.

In this country, the slaughter has made little impact on public consciousness.

The protest against Russias involvement has grown, but is still small.

Finally, there is an acceptance that its ok to protest a war being waged by a superpower other than the USA.

The over-riding sentiment, however, would appear to be cautious indifference. If the public were to confront the full horrors of what is afoot, that would inevitably lead to the most uncomfortable question of all  what can we do about it?

The obvious answer is to provide refuge to those who have escaped their bombed out homes or a bullet to the head. And there, an increasing number of people do not want to go.

On Mondays Claire Byrne Live on RTE1 television an opinion poll returned a result that 58% of people believe that this country cannot cope with a planned intake of 520 refugees next year.

The country took in about the same number last year with a pledge to accept around 4,000 in total.

Only around a third of respondents said we could cope, with the remainder not expressing an opinion.

In another part of the poll, 59% responded that we are taking in enough refugees while just 23% said we were not.

Have we come to this in a nominally wealthy country of more than 4 million people?

The majority of citizens feel that we are simply not equipped to provide refuge to a tiny number of desperate souls fleeing for their lives?

The discussion on the programme probably reflected conversations up and down the country, with one particular train of thought emphasising that we shouldnt be encouraging these people to flee the bombs.

This argument has it that the refugees are pawns of criminal traffickers rather than desperate people running for their lives.

As long as forces like the Irish navy save refugees from drowning, the traffickers will continue to point them in our direction.

The argument is convenient, eliminating any responsibility that we might have to towards basic human empathy.

If only the traffickers could be tackled, the poor refugees would stay at home and die conveniently.

During the week, the ESRI pointed out that this country has operated a relatively positive refugee resettlement programme, but there is much room for improvement.

In the context of the (refugee) crisis, Ireland and the EU continue to be criticised for pledging to resettle such a small proportion of those in need of refuge, the institute reported.

The forthcoming restriction on family reunification in Ireland will impact negatively on the ability of refugees, including resettled refugees, to reunify with family members left behind.

Are we doing all we can? Has our elevation in the developed world over the last two decades erased the sense of empathy with the oppressed for which this country was well known?

Looking away is no answer.

Keeping the head down is no answer either.
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DECEMBER 16: Seattle announced that Caminero has officially been released to pursue the opportunity in Japan.

DECEMBER 10: Mariners righty Arquimedes Caminero is close to a deal with the Yomiuri Giants in Japan, as noted by Yahoo! Japan (via Beyond The Box Scores Kazuto Yamazaki and Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune, who notes that the Mariners have already agreed to sell Camineros contract).

The 29-year-old Caminero is out of options, and the Mariners decision suggests that they dont foresee much of a future for him on a team with plenty of right-handed bullpen possibilities, even though he has four years of control remaining before free agency and has tantalizing velocity. Caminero throws harder than almost anyone  his 97.9-MPH average fastball velocity last year was faster than anyone except Aroldis Chapmans.

Caminero has had persistent problems with walks, with 4.9 BB/9 last year. His 3.56 ERA last year between the Pirates and Mariners looks decent on the surface, but his peripheral numbers have generally been unimpressive, and hes never been as dominant as his velocity would suggest, perhaps in part because he relies too heavily on his fastball. Through parts of four seasons in the big leagues with the Marlins and Pirates in addition to the Mariners, Caminero has a 3.83 ERA, 8.3 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9 in 155 innings.
Prophet Eric Amponsah, popularly known as Computer Man, has called on the incoming government led by Nana Akufo-Addo to help put effective structures in place to help build and grow the creative art industry in Ghana.

He also suggested there should be policies that would protect the works of the players in the industry to enable them to generate more revenues from their works.

According to him, enforcing copyright laws will also open doors for the creation of employment avenues for the youth, as well as the players in the creative industry.

He mentioned that the creative art sector can generate huge revenues for the country if it is properly tapped into.

These were contained in a congratulatory message to the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for winning the December 7 presidential election.

Nana Akufo-Addo beat the incumbent President John Mahama and four others, Ivor Greenstreet, Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings and Jacob Osei Yeboah (JOY).

Prophet Amponsah called for a reduction in the high levels of taxation in the private sector, saying, This is essential to encourage entrepreneurs to contribute to local economic activity.

The man of God emphasised that the creative industry needs to be adequately projected onto the international scene, adding this can be achieved with the support from the government.

He appealed to the government to invest in Ghanaian musicians, pointing out that there are many talents in Ghana who can match other talents around the world.

Prophet Amponsah charged Nana Akufo-Addo to fight corruption in the system with all boldness.
Abuja (AFP) - Regional West African leaders on Saturday said The Gambia's president Yahya Jammeh must step down next month when his term runs out, just over a week after he challenged the result of an election in which he had already conceded defeat.

The 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) issued its call in a statement at the end of a summit in Nigeria.

"The Authority calls on President Yahya Jammeh to accept the result of the polls and refrain from any act likely to compromise the transition and peaceful transfer of power to the president-elect," they said.

The summit vowed "to take all necessary action to enforce the results" of the December 1 poll, without spelling out what the measures would be.

Opposition leader Adama Barrow was declared the winner of the presidential ballot and Jammeh initially conceded defeat, only to reverse his decision a week later, condemning "unacceptable errors" by election authorities and calling for a new vote.

Gambian President Yahya Jammeh's party has filed a legal challenge against the election result at the Supreme Court

The summit in Abuja was attended by 11 heads of state but without the leaders of four members including The Gambia.

Earlier, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who is also ECOWAS chairwoman, said Jammeh's reversal "threatened peace", calling on him in a statement on December 10 "do the right thing and take actions to facilitate a smooth and peaceful transition in The Gambia."

Gambian security forces seized the country's Independent Electoral Commission earlier this week, drawing international condemnation.

On Saturday Johnson-Sirleaf said a prompt resolution of the crisis was essential.

"It is now important that the Authority, at this summit, considers recommended measures to bring this matter to successful conclusion before January 19, the constituted date when the mandate of the incumbent president expires," she told the summit.

Mediators appointed

Mohamed Ibn Chambas, the UN top envoy for West Africa, said the global body would support efforts to resolve the election logjam.

"The UN remains concerned by some of the worrisome developments that occurred during the post election period in The Gambia," Chambas said after the opening of the summit.

These included "in particular, the seizure of the headquarters of the Independent Electoral Commission by the Gambian military," he added.

Opposition leader Adama Barrow (C) was declared the winner of the December 1 polls

The summit also appointed Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama to mediate in the dispute and report back to the regional grouping

On Tuesday, Sirleaf led a heavyweight delegation to The Gambia to seek to broker a deal, meeting both Jammeh and Barrow.

But Sirleaf announced at the end of the talks there was no deal.

The situation has been further complicated by Jammeh's political party filing a legal challenge against the result at the Supreme Court.

The African Union, the UN, local and international rights groups have asked Jammeh -- who has been in power for 22 years -- to step down.

Ahead of the ECOWAS summit, around 200 politicians, human rights activists and Gambian diaspora figures gathered in Dakar, capital of Senegal on Saturday to call for a peaceful transition of power in Gambia.

"We ask ECOWAS and the international community to ensure this choice is respected and to do all they can so that the democratic transition is not impeded," said a joint statement by Amnesty International, Article 19 and RADDHO rights groups.
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Masvingo (Zimbabwe) (AFP) - Zimbabwe's ruling ZANU-PF party's congress endorsed on Saturday President Robert Mugabe as its candidate for the 2018 election, which could extend his 36 years in office.

The leader was endorsed by all party structures at the meeting held in Masvingo, 300 kilometres (186 miles) southeast of the capital Harare.

The congress voiced "its support to the president and first secretary comrade Robert Mugabe as the sole candidate for the forthcoming 2018 elections," said deputy secretary Eunice Sandi Moyo.

The endorsement was met with resounding applause from thousands of supporters attending the annual conference, chanting in Shona language "tongai, tongai baba" meaning "rule, rule father".

Mugabe, 92, has been in power since independence from British colonial rule in 1980 has avoided naming a successor or laying out plans to retire.

He once joked that he would rule until he turned 100.

The absence of a clear successor has sparked infighting including verbal exchanges on social media in recent weeks between factions angling for his position.
Ouagadougou (AFP) - At least 12 Burkina Faso soldiers were killed Friday in what local authorities said was the biggest ever jihadist attack on the army, at a base near the restive border with Mali.

"A detachment of our army's anti-terrorist force suffered a murderous attack which claimed the lives of 12 of our valiant soldiers and left some wounded," said President Roch Marc Christian Kabore, in an address to the nation.

"I strongly condemn this horrible attack which shows the cruelty of these perpetrators," added Kabore, who did not specify the number of injured.

Two more men were missing after around 40 jihadists riding pick-up trucks and motorbikes attacked the army's Nassoumbou base some 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the Burkina-Mali border, the high commissioner of Soum province, Mohamed Dah, earlier told AFP by phone.

"They were heavily armed with Kalashnikovs and rocket-launchers. They opened fire at the depots, the tents and set fire to some of the vehicles," he said, adding that it was "the biggest jihadist attack ever perpetrated" against the army.

Dah added that at least five attackers were killed although their bodies were removed from the scene by other assailants on motorcycles.

A security source who asked not to be named said the assailants were wearing turbans and waving black jihadist flags.

Troops at the Nassoumbou base are part of a 600-strong anti-terrorist battalion that was deployed in January 2013 when France sent in troops to counter a jihadist insurgency in northern Mali.

Mounting attacks

This was the second direct attack against the Burkina army since jihadist assailants surfaced in the country in early 2015, mostly staging attacks in the north near the borders of Mali and Niger.

But in January this year, three jihadists left dozens of people dead and 71 injured in an attack in the heart of the capital.

Thirty people were killed when gunmen stormed the four-star Splendid Hotel and a nearby cafe in Ouagadougou.

The Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) group behind a string of attacks in west Africa in recent years claimed responsibility for the strikes on the venues which were popular with Westerners.

The army has, since 2012, had an anti-terrorist battalion deployed along the country's long border with Mali, an area which is frequently subjected to attacks and kidnappings.

In October, Kabore had called on his countrymen to help fight back against the mounting jihadist threat.
President-elect, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is expected to address the Volta Regional House of Chiefs on Saturday days after his victory in last week Wednesday's presidential polls.

He would join members of the House to celebrate the election of Agbogbomefia of Asogli State, Togbe Afede XIV in the Volta Regional town of Ho.

The visit would be his first in the Region since the Electoral Commission (EC) declared him winner of the presidential election.

He defeated incumbent President John Mahama by polling 53.86 percent of the total valid vote cast. The President had 44.40 percent.

The President-elect would use the opportunity to preach peace and security in both the Region and country.

Agbogbomefia of Asogli State, Togbe Afede XIV

He would also assure the people of his preparedness to continue projects started by the outgoing National Democratic Congress (NDC) government in the Region.

Nana Akufo-Addo would also touch how he would ensure his government has adequately representation from the Region in the area of appointments.

Togbe Afede XIV defeated three renowned chiefs in the National House of Chiefs Presidential contest.

They were, Omanhene of the Lower Axim Area, Awulae Atibrukusu III, Okyenhene Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin II, and Omanhene of the Essikado Traditional Area, Nana Kwabena Nketia VI.

He would be taking over from outgoing President, Naa Professor John Nabila whose term of office has ended.
17.12.2016 LISTEN

Ungrateful nation wreckers! Hypocritical inglorious bastards, Ghanaian politiciansall of them! (Francis Kwarteng, Will Kufuor Vote for Akufo-Addo? Ghanaweb, December 7, 2016).

THE POLITICS OF COMPLACENCY

By all means marry; if you get a good wife, you'll be happy; if you get a bad one, you'll become a philosopher (Socrates).

At this point in time we have no evidence to support the idea of whether Annans positive or feel-good remarks about Akufo-Addos alleged technocratic prowess were strategically meant to assure foreign investors and the international community at large of an imaginary vibrant economy yet to unravel under the political stewardship of Akufo-Addo, to assure Ghanaians of a healthy economy under the incoming government of Akufo-Addo, or to reinforce the idea of a wobbling or collapsed economy under President Mahama and the NDC, or a combination of all the above.

Whatever the real intentions of Annan, the fact still remains that he completely ignored the unpredictable context of the global economy and that of the market economy of cash or commodity crops (including gas/oil and mineral).

On the basis of this technocratic omission therefore, we should not and cannot entertain the politics of complacency and allow it to crush the peoples collective hope in the likely event that the incoming administration does not deliver in line with Akufo-Addos grandiose electioneering promises.

Failed and broken promises are what Ghanaians have had to pay for their political illiteracy and ignorance.

Both the NDC and the NPP have managed to build their vampriric empires of political and ideological lies on a flaunted fountain of the politics of complacency.

The neoliberal kleptocrats of the NPP under Kufuor allowed the underground cocaine economy to flourish under legitimate businesses associated with members of the NPP and the partys political financiers and patrons, and others sympathetic to the NPP and its corrupt leadership.

These slimy neocolonial, neoliberal kleptocrats and their calculating Western patrons cooked up figures to buttress the idea that Ghana was the fastest growing economy in the world when, in fact, at the same time mass poverty and illiteracy, sale of state assets to service the countrys debt burden as well as to pay state employees, rising cost of living, poor or lack of public services, homelessness, child-street hawking, under-tree classrooms, road networks that remained untarred and broken, generally poor standard of living and quality of life of the masses, and dumsor defined the political economy under the Kufuor presidency.

At a time when the global economy was in a relativelyyet generallygood health and the market economy of cash crops (and minerals) looked up against the backcloth of debt relief, remittances and proceeds from the underground cocaine economy generously flowed into the national economy under the watchful presidency of Kufuor, thereby generating a cosmetic grounding for the countrys micro- and macroeconomics.

Bureaucratic incompetence and political abuse of state institutions (the Ghana Police Service (GPS), the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), and the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), etc.) for purposes of arbitrarily exercising coercive power against perceived political opponents were normalized or intensified under the Kufuor administration.

Kufuor even encouraged public corruption for fear that dealing with it as the public and his political opponents demanded could have potentially brought down his government. As expected, Akufo-Addo remained politically silent throughout this troubling dispensation of moral decay.

Akan-driven ethnocentric hegemony also intensified under the Kufuor administration.

In fact, Kufuor reportedly used the creditworthiness of the state to acquire a loan (and grant) facility for the Asantehene and the Okyehene while President Mahama allowed the North to rot under the crushing weight of public corruption and official ineptitude.

No one appears to know what exactly happened to this loan (and grant) facility. Accountability and transparency have no doubt gone to the dogs.

These cracks under the Kufuor administration continued to widen somewhat further under the democratic socialist kleptocrats of the NDC, the spitting images of the neoliberal kleptocrats of the NPP.

Now, it is clear that the mixed messages emanating from the Akufo-Addo camp that he may or may not legally pursue the kleptomaniacal corruptocrats within the NDC is not comforting, to the say the least, a policy position which directly speaks to his being afraid of his own shadow.

In a nutshell, how can the criminal prosecute his fellow criminal? The simple truth is that the ruling elites have each others backs! The Ghanaian should take a second hard look at the ruling elites!

Let us not also forget that no good leader can afford to ignore institutional corruption in all of its manifestations.

Any investigation (s) into institutional corruption should cover the entire period of the Fourth Republic, including the period of the Kufuor presidency when Akufo-Addo served in that government as Attorney General/Minister of Justice and Minister of Foreign Affairs!

What sort of political wives have Ghanaians been living with since the dawn of the Fourth Republic? Good political wives? Or simply bad ones?

Are Ghanaians happy because they have good political wives? Or simply that they have become philosophers because they have always had bad political wives?

Is Akufo-Addo a good political wife? Or a bad one? Are Ghanaians happy with him? Or that time is going to tell whether he is a bad political wife?

Are Ghanaians ready to accept their collective fate as philosophers if Akufo-Addo turns out a bad political wife?

SOME CRITICAL OBSERVATIONS

The truth is an offense but not a sin (Bob Marley, Jah Live).

Certainly, Annan may have underestimated the implicit and overt corruptibility of Akufo-Addo, of executive dominance and its concomitant willingness to exercise coercive power, of the corrupt nature of Ghanaian society, public institutions and officials, of the extent of organized crime and criminal syndicates in Ghana, and finally, of the unpatriotic character of the Ghanaian and the ruling class.

To overcome these tentative inferences ascribed to Annan however, Akufo-Addo (and his incoming government) should acknowledge his potential limitations before Ghanaian citizens, the men and women with whom he shared his overly flattering electioneering and sloganeering promisespolitical contract, after which they may properly be placed to calibrate what exactly to expect from his government should he fail to deliver.

This political contract now becomes his word of honor. Let us not gloss over the fact that this political contract is non-binding, yet its fulfillment or otherwise surely will underpin his political and moral character as a man of his word, a man who keeps his promises by being transparent and uneconomical with the truth about his potential deficiencies and strengths, or simply a liar.

Beyond these basic ideas, we may also have to accept change as a term of conceptual relativity. Then there is the additional factor of whether it is going to be cosmetic or sustainable.

The concept of change in the Ghanaian political economy has mostly been cosmetic and unsustainableto say the least.

It is why the country is stuck in the crushing doldrums of underdevelopment and mass poverty. Change has never come to Ghana!

Obama has said his administration brought change to America yet the American Electoral College gave the presidency to Trump, a subtle rejection of the Obama presidency and its characteristically trite rhetoric of change.

Of course, Americans are not Ghanaians and neither are Ghanaians Americans but the average American elector is, relatively speaking, more discerning and sophisticated in terms of the dynamics of his grasp of issues-based electioneering and sloganeering than his Ghanaian counterparts.

Was the Ghanaian voter discerning when he elected Rawlings, Kufuor, Mills and Mahama to political office?

Ignorance, lack of quality education, general apathy, grinding poverty (or privation), superstition and religiosity, ethnocentric and political regionalism, illiteracy, manufacturing consent and aliteracy, and uncritical thinking paralyze the average Ghanaian almost to the point where he has become an unthinking slave to the splendorous magic of easy political manipulation.

Even the so-called highly educated is not exempt from this demeaning victimhood of political stupidity!

The educated Ghanaian bourgeois is more dangerous to the state than his supposed illiterateunletteredcounterpart of the proletariat.

And, sadly or regrettably, we have refused to acknowledge this basic fact of life on the sheer basis of the politics of complacency, of convenience.

Democracy is a form of government that substitutes election by the incompetent many for appointment by the corrupt few, George Bernard Shaw once wrote.

There is no such thing as few corrupt in Ghanaian society, certainly not in the ruling class too. In any case corruption in Ghana expresses itself through a thunderous wavelength of pandemia.

Vigorous pursuit of sustainable change will therefore constitute a formidable challenge for the kind of corrupt political leadership that continuous to define the schadenfreude kleptomaniacal democracy of the Fourth Republic, for that grassroots critical mass simply does not exist to support the overthrow of this morally filthy environment of mass corruption.

And, since corruptocracy has completely usurped the moral fiber of the Ghanaian society, Akufo-Addo and his incoming government are implicitly indicted under this systemof blanket corruptocracy.

In other words, it is unimaginably regrettable that Ghanaians will elect a well-known ethnocentric corruptocrat to the highest office in the land.

Nevertheless, at the end of the day, Akufo-Addo and his incoming government must seek to avoid what Bob Marley called Them Belly Full (But We Are Hungry):

Them belly full, but we are hungry

A hungry mob is an angry mob

Cost of living gets so high

Now the weak must get strong

They say, oh, what a tribulation!

The second line underscores the righteous anger of a critical mass that is waiting to see change in societyelse!

Here is Bob Marleys Wake Up and Live:

Wake up and live, y'all!

Wake up and live!

Wake up and live now!

Wake up and live!...

Rise from your sleepless slumber!

We're more than sand on the seashore

We're more than numbers

All together now!

Flee from hate, mischief and jealousy!

Don't bury your thoughts; put your dream to reality

CONCLUDING REMARKS: KOFI JUMAH ON AKUFO-ADDOS CAMPAIGN PROMISES

Nana Akufo-Addo made a promise and it spans for four years. But to put a gun to his head and give him an ultimatum of 100 days, that is what is ridiculous. If they know how to give ultimatums, I think that they should redirect their ultimatum to the previous government

I was expecting enlightened people to suggest that we expect Nana Akufo-Addo to put together a budget that will guide his administration SO THAT HE WILL BE ABLE TO IMPLEMENT SOME OF THE THINGS THAT HE SAID HE WOULD DO and that would have been a more enlightened approach, but the way they are stating it, they look like a bunch of ignoramuses: they dont know anything, they are ignorant people. Its even unfair for them to come out like that (our emphasis).

Reality is no lying partisan chameleon, so learn to deal with it Mr. Kofi Jumah.

Then again no insults please, Mr. Kofi Jumah!

OUR TAKE

In sum, political realities are beginning to dawn on the nation. More of such controversies are already in the offing. The true nature of politics can indeed sometimes, if not all the time, disappointingly present with chameleonic or tendentious reading of policy strategies and tactics.

Thus, those who make promises must rise to the occasion by being true to themselves, by doing right by the people and the nation they preside over. As a matter of fact they simply cant afford to do otherwise. There is probably an NDC-driven Occupy Ghana already hiding under the thin skin of Ghanaians.

Of course, Jumah may be right but he and his party should be prepared for more public agitations in the near future. The public will be testing the credibility, openness, and resolve of the incoming government. What probably began and continued via the Mahama presidency is bound to repeat itself.

There is nothing new under the sun.

We shall return with Part 5!

REFERENCES

Ghanaweb. Its Ridiculous To Restore Trainee Allowance In 100 DaysKofi Jumah. December 15, 2016.
Maiduguri (Nigeria) (AFP) - Ali Bukar didn't know anyone when he arrived in Maiduguri with 43 people in tow and not a coin in his pocket.

Bukar was fleeing the brutal killings of civilians by the Boko Haram Islamists in northeast Nigeria -- along with his wives, his sons, their wives and grandchildren.

They slept in a parking lot "until a man took pity on us," he said.

Around one million people have flooded the capital of Borno state seeking to escape the insurgency that Boko Haram has waged since 2009.

The camps set up for displaced people are not sufficient, so many residents of Maiduguri have opened their doors to these victims of conflict.

But now years later the refugees still cannot return to their home villages, and struggling city residents are starting to blame the influx for problems in the community.

A warehouse made available for internally displaced people at one of the hosting communities in Maiduguri, north-eastern Nigeria

Between 70 to 90 percent of the displaced in Maiduguri have relied on the compassion of the local people to survive.

Bukar and his family have never stayed at a camp. A local merchant had welcomed them to his home and fed them for a year, the scar-faced old man told AFP.

But then they had to leave because the financial burden became too much, Bukar said.

Today the family is living in a so-called "hosting community", one of hundreds of such private places where refugees are sheltered around the city.

"I couldn't just sit there and watch people die of hunger, I had to help them," said Baba Kura Al-Kahi, the boss of these hosting communities, a local businessman who made his fortune in real estate and in 2013 turned over some land he owned to the displaced.

Boko Haram epicentre

One of the abandoned towns on the outskirts of Maiduguri in Borno State, north-eastern Nigeria

Today many refugees are squatters on construction sites, in schools, in public housing, while thousands of others are taken in by relatives or members of their ethnic group, often Kanuri or Hausa.

Neighbours have organised aid, growing food for the most needy, bringing them clothes and sheets and cooking utensils.

But "resources are overstretched, especially with regards to water and sanitation, with regards to hospital facilities, with regards to even food security issues," the Borno state governor, Kashim Shettima, told AFP.

Still Maiduguri, after years of being under siege, has a semblance of normal life compared with the devastated hinterland.

The city's ceasefire has been pushed back four hours to 10:00 pm. Soldiers and checkpoints are less noticeable and merchants and passers-by have returned to the centre city's sidewalks. The schools, which were closed for two years, reopened last month.

Over the past year, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari's government has made repeated announcements that Boko Haram is close to being defeated, and Shettima considers the battle "over" and predicts that hundreds of thousands of displaced people will have returned to their homes by May

But this is the cradle of Boko Haram Islamists and they have not disappeared.

Just last weekend, a new suicide bombing hit Maiduguri's busy market, killing one person and injuring 18 others. The two bombers were girls thought to be only seven or eight years old, a hallmark of the jihadist group which often uses women or girls in such operations -- especially in Borno state -- the epicentre of their insurgency.

Begging and prostitution

Baba Kura Al-Kahi is a businessman in Maiduguri who made his fortune in real estate and in 2013 turned over some land he owned to host internally displaced people

And the economy of the region has been ravaged by war. Unemployment is sky high at around 35 percent or more, according to the Borno governor. In the streets of Maiduguri the number of beggars in rags who bang on the windshields of the cars stopped at red lights has mushroomed.

The city's ills are now being blamed on the refugees, these waves of people who have flooded Maiduguri and doubled its population since the Boko Haram revolt began. The insurgency has left more than 20,000 people dead and 2.6 million displaced in northern Nigeria.

The governor says the displaced camps "are the source of many problems", including networks for prostitution and drug trafficking.

"The residents helped as much as they could but now they are more and more critical." a journalist in Maiduguri who requested anonymity told AFP.

"The people are afraid of the crime and epidemics that can arise,"

Yannick Pouchalan, director of Action against Hunger in Nigeria, says "it is clear that Maiduguri cannot offer a decent life to all these people,"

Yet compared to the villages, the refugees, especially the youth, find the city has more to offer.

"If you are 15, and you can take advantage of the security, the services of a big city and have access to the internet... you're surely not going to go back home to your village," Pouchalan says.
Nana Akufo-Addo waged a war against Election 2016 tribal bigotry prosecuted by his political opponent President John Mahama and won.

Ghana, during the dying days of Election 2016 campaign season, was almost at the precipice, as the NDC went all the hog on the tribalism tangent in total disregard of the morals of politics.

Seeking electoral leverage without considering the national interest denies politicians, who indulge in this absurdity, the high office they eye or want to maintain for the next four years.

It was good that Nana Akufo-Addo and his running mate Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia fought the rather dangerous cankerworm which threatened our cohesion as a nation with a common destiny when they hit the road talking to Ghanaians about why they should be voted for and not the others.

While Nana Akufo-Addo was disabusing the minds of Ghanaians about tribalism in our body-politics, Dr. Mahamdu Bawumia virtually turned it into a crusade, condemning it wherever he went in the Northern parts of the country.

And it worked the results from the recent polls providing sufficient and indisputable evidence.

Ghanaians now appreciate the importance of living together in harmony and diversity more than ever before.

Indeed one effect of the Election 2016 campaign season was how it changed the thinking of most Ghanaians. While Pastor Mensa Otabil succeeded in telling most Ghanaians not to become auto voters, politicians such as Nana Akufo-Addo and his running mate poured cold water over the bigotry President Mahama thought he could ride on to victory.

He used it in previous times; not so any longer. Ghanaians have lived with each other since the early days of colonial rule and have inter-married.

For a politician to think that he can consistently throw dust into their eyes just so they can win votes, is to do the unthinkable.

We have come a long way from those dark days of stark ignorance to the times of social media and FM stations. And so therefore those who think that they can continue to do such wicked things, they must learn from the lessons of Election 2016.

Yesterday Nana Akufo-Addo and Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia were guests of the National Chief Imam at the Abossey Okai Central Mosque, the two politicians having gone there to express gratitude to God over their electoral victory.

The amalgam they present- religion and geography- is another evidence of diversity worthy of emulation by other political groupings, if they have Ghana at heart as they claim.

The assurance by President-Elect and Vice President-Elect that their government would be one for all Ghanaians was an effective blow to the bigotry which nearly found a foothold in the country under President John Mahama.

Never again should Ghanaians watch unconcernedly as reckless politicians press the button on very dangerous subjects bordering on tribe and religion.

It was relieving to hear Nana Akufo-Addo promise to enhance the harmony existing between Muslims and their Christian counterparts.

God, it is said, could have created us to belong to a single tribe or even race but in his own wisdom decided to have us live in diversity.

There are lots of advantages in diversity. The Islamic scripture has it that living in diversity ensures that we understand and appreciate each other better.
The Tamil megastar Rajinikanth's fans will get to see him walk down the stairs in his landmark film Baasha yet again on the big screen. No, it is not a sequel that is in the making but a digitally remastered version of the film that is slated to hit the theatres soon.

The makers released a trailer of the digitally spruced up version and it shows two iconic scenes from Rajinikanth's film - the walking down the stairs sequence and him dishing out the dialogue, "Naan oru thadava sonna, nooru thadava sonna madhiri (If I said it once, it means I have said it a hundred times)."

Visually, the new trailer plays with more colours as we see an orange tinge of Thalaiva while he walks down the stairs. This makes his presence comes across as supernatural or larger-than-life in tune with his image among the minds of thousands of his fans. Also, the sound amplifies the impact of his famous dialogue as it is sure to echo across the theatres.

The Indian Express reports that initially, the producer of the original film, R. M. Veerappan, had planned to release the digital version on Rajinikanth's birthday on 12 December. However, that did not work out as the Tamil superstar has asked his fans not to celebrate his birthday as the nation mourns the recent demises of Jayalalithathaa and Cho Ramaswamy.

Baasha, directed by Suresh Krissna, revolved around an auto rickshaw driver-cum-gangster who returns to his underworld life, after a long dry spell, in order to avenge the attack on his sister.

Baasha was an immensely popular film and was also dubbed in Telugu and remade in Kannada and Hindi. The Hindi version was remade as a digital version and subsequently released in 2012. Now, the Tamil fans also eagerly await the digital version of Baasha which remains arguably Rajinikanth's most popular film till date.
President-Elect, Nana Addo and President of the National House of Chiefs, Togbe Afede XIV

The President of the National House of Chiefs, Togbe Afede XIV, says he will work closely with President-Elect, Nana Addo to deepen unity among all ethnic groups in Ghana, particularly between Ewes and Asantes.

According to him, Peace, unity and friendship among Ashantis and Ewes would mean peace, unity and friendship among all Ghanaians.

Togbe Afede XIV made the remarks in Kumasi when the President-Elect paid a courtesy call on the National House of Chiefs to thank them for their support and prayers before, during and after the elections.

Togbe Afede, who is also the Agbogbomefia of the Asogli State, reiterated that the chieftaincy institution would help Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to effectively develop the country.

He said the chiefs and queen mothers in the country were ready to work with the government to restore nobility and reverence to the chieftaincy institution and also promote the interests of all Ghanaians.

Togbe Afede, who is also a business magnate, maintained that government and the traditional rulers have a responsibility to ensure that the needs of the people are met.

Peace And Unity

The President of the National House of Chiefs, who expressed worry about the harsh economic conditions and high unemployment rate in the country, was hopeful all chiefs and queen mothers would support the government to improve the lives of Ghanaians.

He said without collaboration between government and traditional leaders, who are custodians of the land and voice of the people, governments plans would never materialize.

Togbe Afede congratulated Nana Addo on his electoral victory and also thanked him for supporting him to become the President of the National House of Chiefs.

From Fred Duodu and Gibril Abdul Razak, Ho


An Accra Domestic Violence and Gender-Based Court has set January 13, 2017 to start hearing of the case involving Bishop Daniel Obinim, Founder of the International God's Way Church.

The court fixed the date for the hearing at its sitting yesterday when it became obvious that the complainant, Irene Aborchie Nyahe, a legal practitioner, could not be present due to a mix-up in dates.

At the last hearing, the man of God, popularly referred to as 'Angel' Obinim, narrowly escaped arrest when he compelled the trial judge, Mrs. Abena Oppong Adjin-Doku, to issue a bench warrant for his immediate arrest due to his lateness to court.

The other accused persons are Pastors Kingsley Baah and Solomon Abraham.

The two have been slapped with the charges of abetting their senior pastor to abuse the two victims.

Bishop Obinim is reported to have on August 17, this year at Ashaley Botwe in Accra unlawfully and physically abused one Elliasu Obinim, 16 and Gyesiwaah Obinim, 14  his adopted children  in front of the congregation.

The accused persons are currently on a GH10,000 bail each with one surety, one to be justified.

DSP Abraham Annor said the complainant is a resident of Community 17 at Lashibi, also a suburb of Accra.

He said the victims live with Bishop Obinim in his residence in Accra and that on the day of the incident, the Accra branch of the church had a service when the man of God claimed that he had a revelation from God that the two were engaged in pre-marital sex, resulting in Gyesiwaah getting pregnant.

The police officer stated that Bishop Obinim further indicated that he was directed by the Holy Spirit to chastise them in front of the general congregation; and so subjected the two to serious beatings with his black waist leather belt in the full glare of the congregation.

The prosecution stated that 'Angel' Obinim was assisted by Kingsley and Solomon.

He argued that Kingsley held the victim and prevented her from running away while the bishop continued beating her, adding that the girl, in the process, could not bear the pain and therefore sought refuge with the wife of Obinim, Mrs. Florence Obinim, but the husband ordered her to stand aside, which she did.

DSP Annor contended that Solomon then brought back Gyesiwaah for his master to continue beating her.

He said Obinim, assisted by his two accomplices, continued to physically abuse the two victims till they were satisfied before releasing them to their fate.

[email protected]

By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson


THERE WAS drama at the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) Friday afternoon when three Hilux pickups, belonging to the assembly, were impounded following a court order.

The KMA had failed to heed to a court order to pay Freko FD Company Ltd a little over GH4 million for a waste collection deal at the Kejetia Bus Terminal, spanning from October 2007 to March 2010.

The Kumasi High Court (Commercial Division) presided over by Justice Kofi Akrowiah, on Friday ordered for the seizure of movable items belonging to the KMA, to be sold to defray the debt.

Considering the huge amount that the KMA owes, additional movable properties of the assembly would be impounded by the bailiffs and the police in the coming days to help defray the debt.

KMA Top Guns Run

Some top officials of the KMA who own vehicles, reportedly moved their vehicles away at top speed to prevent them from being impounded by the bailiffs.

The officials, who are said to be aware of the court order, were said to have been playing hide-and-seek with bailiffs from the high court.

Case

The KMA, after contracting Freko FD Company Ltd to clear waste at the Kumasi Kejetia Bus Terminal from 2007 to 2010  which amounted to GH524,746, refused to settle Freko FD at the completion of the job.

The assembly had reportedly said initially that even though it was aware that Freko FD had successfully carried out the job, it was not supposed to pay the money that the company was demanding.

According to reports, the KMA argued that the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development was rather supposed to pay Freko for the job done, claiming that it (KMA) had no contract with the company.

The managers of the company, who felt cheated, in November 2013 dragged the KMA to the court, where they demanded that the assembly should pay them an amount of GH524,746 with interest.

The KMA reportedly started to beat retreat after the case was sent to court as it then agreed that it was supposed to settle the debt and asked for an out-of-court settlement, which the court granted in February 2016.

But after 10 months the assembly had failed to pay Freko the money and so the company went to the court again on Friday and a fresh order was given for movable properties (of the assembly) to be impounded.

KMA's Response

When Godwin Okumah Nyame, Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the KMA was contacted, he said it is a legal issue and so he needed to get in touch with the assembly's lawyer, Thaddeus Sory, before he could comment on the matter.

FROM I.F.Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi


A grouping in the New Patriotic Party (NPP) 'Girls Girls for Nana Addo,' has urged the President-elect, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, to actively support people with disabilities to help improve their lives.

Maame Yaa Dufie, Ashanti Regional Coordinator of the group, said, It is our hope that Nana Akufo-Addo administration will establish a training institution and scholarship scheme for persons living with disabilities.

She also implored the Nana Akufo-Addo government to introduce policies and programmes to tackle discrimination against people, who are living with disabilities.

Maame Dufie disclosed this while speaking at a press conference to officially congratulate Nana Akufo-Addo on his electoral victory.

Established by NPP National Women's Organizer, Afisa Otiko Djaba, the 'Girls Girls for Nana Addo,' made up of pretty ladies, campaigned vigorously in various homes, churches, mosques, market places and schools, among others.

Maame Dufie accused the outgoing National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration, led by President Mahama, of doing absolutely nothing to improve the livelihood of disabled people in the country.

She was of the conviction that the country would experience massive transformation if all the citizenry, including people living with disabilities, are trained and resourced to contribute their quota to Ghana's development.

Maame Dufie also urged the incoming NPP administration to abolish all taxes that the NDC government imposed on head porters, also known as 'Kayayie,' which made life unbearable for them.

She also appealed to Nana Akufo-addo and his incoming government to introduce new programmes and policies that would make life comfortable for the head porters who were suppressed by the NDC government.

Explaining further, she said, It is our sincere hope that the president-elect's tenure of office will be marked by economic empowerment, unity, security and prosperity to the people.

Maame Dufie, on behalf of 'Girls Girls for Nana Addo' in the country, congratulated Nana Akufo-Addo for winning the just-ended polls.




President-elect Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the vice president-elect, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, have signed the book of condolence opened for the late Asantehemaa at the Manhyia Palace.

This was when they visited Kumasi on Wednesday to take part in an Awukudae Festival, which was held at the Manhyia Palace.

The late Asante queen mother, Nana Afia Kobi Serwaa Ampem II, died a little over one month ago at an advanced age of 111, having reigned for 39 years.

She was the biological mother of the sitting Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.

Party bigwigs such as the Acting National Chairman of the NPP, Freddie Blay, also signed the book.

Nana Akufo-Addo and his entourage wore black attire as they visited the palace, which is the seat of the Asantehene.

They expressed their condolences to Otumfuo Osei Tutu and the entire Asanteman following the painful loss.

FROM I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi


Bamako (AFP) - Malian lawmakers have decided a treason case should be dropped against former Malian president Amadou Toumani Toure, who was overthrown in a military coup in 2012.

Toure, known by the acronym ATT, came to power in 2002, and fled to Senegal after being overthrown by a military junta in 2012 just as he was preparing to end his final term in office.

"The elected representatives of the people have voted by secret ballot on the fate of former president ATT, and have decided not to pursue him after leading Mali for 10 years," an opposition lawmaker told AFP after Friday's vote.

Under Malian law, it is lawmakers who sit in judgement on current or former presidents.

Toure was accused by the current government of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita of treason related to the failure of soldiers to tackle an Islamist insurgency in the north of Mali.

The coup led by army captain Amadou Sanogo toppled what had been heralded as one of the region's most stable democracies and precipitated the fall of northern Mali to Al-Qaeda-linked groups until a French-led military operation in 2013 forced them out of the towns.
The Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC) wants the Nana Akufo Addo led administration to demonstrate its willingness to enforce the Petroleum Revenue Management Act (PRMA) and give value for money.

In PIAC's view, its work would yield the necessary results if government machinery acts on findings indicating instances of misappropriation.

Though the Chairman of PIAC, Joseph Winful would not readily explain in detail his expectation of the new government, he anticipates an effective collaboration from the Nana Addo led government.

This is a new government and I do not want to pre-empt their posture towards dealing with accountability; they might have a different approach to deal with that, he stated.

Mr. Winful added, I am looking at their co-operation and understanding of what we are supposed to be doing.

Meanwhile the Committee, mandated to monitor the allocation and expenditure of petroleum revenue says it is dissatisfied by the governing NDC's commitment in dealing with inappropriate petroleum revenue expenditure.

According to its Chairman, the delays in responding to acts of financial misappropriation do not augur well for achieving the objectives of the PRMA.

Citing some instances where no work had been done for monies allocated for projects in the Northern region as illustrations, Mr. Winful lamented the development and urged expedite work subsequently.

Not as good as we would have expected when there are queries and they are sent, they delay well over time. The government recently responded to some queries that were raised some couple of months ago. For instance, there were some projects that were expected to be done in the North but were not executed yet the monies were spent, he opined.

Some of the projects the PIAC questioned included a six unit classroom block at the Farikiya Islamic Institute at Tamale where a signage indicated that funding was from the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) without no mention of revenue from the PRMA.

In addition was the upgrade of electrical power supply at the Bagabaga College of Education at a cost of 247,000 cedis which has been abandoned for over three months.

Meanwhile PIAC has launched its latest document announcing its five year strategic plan.

The project, estimated at 9.4 million dollars is among others expected to strengthen the operations of the Committee to protect the expenditure of Petroleum revenue.



By: Pius Amihere Eduku/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana
17.12.2016 LISTEN

By Benjamin Mensah, GNA

Accra, Dec 16, GNA - The Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has presented an Air Carrier License to Goldstar Air, a privately-owned Ghanaian airline, to begin the process to operate scheduled and non-scheduled flights across the world.

When it begins operations, Goldstar Air, which has done the recruitment of its cabin crew, would operate scheduled and non-scheduled flights to 11 destinations across the world, including Baltimore in the United States of America and Gatwick in the United Kingdom.

It is expected to fly to Guangzhou, Dubai, Monrovia, Lagos, Abidjan, Freetown, Dakar, Conakry and Banjul. It will be using the Boeing 767-300 ER for its long haul routes while the Boeing 737-300 ER will be used on the West Coast.

Mr Martey Boye Atoklo, GCAA's Deputy Director General, Technical, on behalf of the Director General Simon Allotey, presented the license to Mr Eric Bannerman, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Goldstar Air at a short ceremony held at the Accra International Airport.

The granting of the license begins the first of five stages, the final of which is the Air Operator Certificate, in a period of between three months to two years, for the fight to be fully operational.

The management of Goldstar Air has, however, given the assurance that it had done adequate work to satisfy the requirements to fly the airline by April 2017.

Mr Atoklo commended the company for 'coming this far' and expressed the hope that the company would work timeously for the flight to begin operations very soon.

He urged GoldStar Air to get their manuals for their operations together and present them to the Authority for the company to go through the certification process to get an Air Operator Certificate.

Mr Atoklo stated that the entry of Goldstar Air into the already competitive aviation market, particularly on the American and London routes, was expected to stir up the industry to bring more benefits to travellers in terms of services and fares.

'It means that the whole civil aviation sector will become more competitive; the numbers are being added onto so it is more beneficial to the civil aviation and the economy as a whole,' Mr Atoklo said.

Mr Bannerman expressed gratitude to God for having brought the company far since its establishment in 2014.

The CEO described the receipt of the license as 'refreshing and unique' and promised would-be travellers timely flights.

He announced that the company would allow three bags of 23 kilos each on board per passenger, explaining that, 'The three bags will be without the hand luggage to enable Ghanaians have the opportunity to travel heavy at no extra cost.'

The Goldstar CEO announced that Ghanaian dishes would be served and local movies would be available to showcase the rich Ghanaian culture to the outside world.

GNA
By Albert Futukpor, GNA

Tamale, Dec 17, GNA - Sheikh Ibrahim Basha, the Leader of the Masjidul Bayaan Mosque in Tamale, has congratulated the President-elect, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and his Vice, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, for their victory at the recent polls.

Sheikh Basha, who delivered the congratulatory message, shortly after leading Muslims to observe the Friday prayers at the Masjidul Bayaan Mosque in Tamale, prayed for the success of the Government in waiting.

He stated: 'We will continue to pray to Allah to support and guide you through the herculean task of the Chief Executive Officer of the country'.

He also spoke highly of the Vice-President-elect saying, 'We are proud of your jealously gifted brilliance. May your Creator continue to guide and support you in all your endeavours in the coming days.'

'Your victory is our victory,' he added.

Sheikh Basha also thanked Allah for His blessings for the country, which ensured peaceful elections.

GNA
17.12.2016 LISTEN

Tema, Dec.17, GNA - The end of another season has come; the end of a political dispensation that ensures one political party goes down and another rises, and despite your extraordinary service to the country, your name was mentioned as the one to go down. Indeed it is a great blow not only for you but everyone who is associated with you and who wishes you well in your political journey.

Mr. President, you have had one of the most distinguished political careers in the nation, having risen from the ranks of an assembly man to becoming a member of parliament, a deputy minister, a minister, a vice president and a president, you go with such wealth of experience and one wonders why we should go for a-winner-take-all approach to governance. Why should such enormous exposure and experience be ignored when it could be put to the service of our dear nation.

During these years of distinguished service to the nation, you have championed many policies that have brought changes to the lives of Ghanaians such that the good people of Ghana would forever remember you. Your selfless dedication to the duties of the state cannot be overlooked. You may be thinking now that you have been defeated and that Ghanaians have not appreciated your work; you may even be thinking of never putting yourself up for service in any capacity in Ghana, but the good news, Mr. President, is that the greatest service you ever rendered to Ghanaians was that distinquished moment when you called Nana Addo-Danquah Akuffu-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to congratulate him on his victory in the 2016 general elections.

Only God knows the relief and easement you brought to the Ghanaian people as well as the international community. On the 9th of December 2016 when the Electoral Commission (EC) had not yet declared the results, pressure was mounting, akin to the one that mounted during the ascension of Professor Mills in 2008. And as the case in other African states, the incumbent's refusal to concede defeat and hand over power to the opposition has brought untold hardship to their citizens. But you averted that and quickly accepted the verdict of the people. Not only have you shown yourself to be a true statesman who would put everything aside and work in the interest of the state, you have also proved yourself to be an honest man who stands strictly by the principles of truthfulness and accountability.

Today, if Ghana enjoys peace, and if we have not given any headache to the international community, it is simply because, unlike others, you have refused to be carried away by extreme desire for power and focus on substantive issues that work in the interest of common good. As you rightly put it during your campaign, it was not under your watch that Ghana was going to be plunged into hostilities. You said it and you have done it, and as you put it again during your concessionary speech, posterity will judge your work.

Even in your moment of dejection, you are called upon to mediate in election dispute in The Gambia where President Yahyah Jameh is refusing to concede defeat despite overwhelming evidence to his lose. It shows you to be a man of great resolve to fight for the common good irrespective of the circumstance.

Indeed the economy was bad. Nobody would pretend otherwise, but we also know that the state of the economy was simply because you felt you must tackle infrastructure which would lay the foundation for an economic boom. But we did not understand it that way, or to some extent, we were carried away by hunger and joblessness to think that you were starving us. The result is that Ghanaians voted you out when everything showed you should have continued.

Understand this simple fact, that Ghanaians have an attitude. We are too quick to dismiss the "bad fetish" who have stayed with us all through the difficult moments, because we always look forward to a "good fetish" who would turn our lives around overnight. You should not be worried because we did it to Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. All of a sudden the one who gave us independence became a devil who was castigated and rejected by the very people he suffered for. Jerry Rawlings after stepping down was vilified and insulted when indeed we had hailed him as Junior Jesus when he bounced onto the Ghanaian political scene with his probity and accountability rethoric.

Do not despair and worry over your lose. That is how we are, and it is only a matter of months and Ghanaians would start looking for you in every corner. We like new faces and soon the new face becomes old and the cycle continues.

Like students, we are always eager to see a new teacher and we would tell them how the old one taught nothing even when he might have taught everything. This is our nature and understanding this fact would make you go to sleep over this matter. For the record, you did your best and even the new leadership knows and would appreciate you the more when they finally assume the reigns of government. Your efforts would never be forgotten.

GNA

A GNA feature by Alexander Nyarko Yeboah
Coffee with D is best served cold. There is not even a single sizzle in the over two-minute trailer. While the theatrical trailer is itself unbearable, one wonders what the film is capable of doing to its viewers.

While Sunil Grover's act as Gutthi on The Kapil Sharma Show is unbeatable, it is advised that he sticks to the same. Grover does not bring even an ounce of appeal to the trailer except in the first seen where he is seen mimicking journalist Arnab Goswami. However, we have seen better mimicry from Grover, like when he mimicked Shah Rukh Khan in Kya Aap Paanchvi Fail Champu Hai and Kaun Banega Champu.

It is refreshing to see Anjana Sukhani and Dipannita Sharma on the screen after so long given their last performances were in Vikas Bahl's romantic comedy Shaandar in 2015 and in the horror film Pizza in 2014 respectively. Another long lost gem that is a part of this film is music composer Anu Malik. His last noticeable film was Sharat Katariya's 2015 romantic drama Dum Laga Ke Haisha. Malik crooning the title song of the film does not add anything to the trailer, except a couple of cringes from the viewers.

The only hope of the film seem to be the two supporting actors Rajesh Sharma and Zakir Hussain, who plays a negative role of a don in the film. He seems to just repeat his character of JD in Ahmed Khan's 2007 comedy ensemble Fool & Final. Hussain pulls off the last shot of the trailer really well through his poised dialogue delivery. However, the two minutes between the first and the last shots are excruciatingly average.

Coffee with D is directed by Vishal Mishra. His directorial debut, which seems to be exaggerated as 'the next biggest comedy', is a pretty good joke in itself.
By Christabel Addo, GNA

Accra, Dec 17, GNA - The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research's (CSIR)-Technical Development and Transfer Centre, has organised a training programme on the Ghana Herbal Pharmacopoeia (GHP), for Traditional Herbal Practitioners from across the country.

The document, is a compilation of scientific information on selected medicinal herbs in Ghana, and serves as a useful informational guide on the medical uses of herbs, the clinical constituents of their active ingredients, as well as the illustrations of plants, among other features.

The GHP, which was compiled by the Science and Technology Policy Research Institute (STEPRI) of the CSIR, was first published in 1992 with 50 Monographs (researched herbal plants), was updated in 2007.

The third edition was launched in 2015, with an additional six monographs, which has increased the number to 56.

Dr George Osei Essegbey, the Director of CSIR-STEPRI, at the opening ceremony in Accra, underscored the importance of herbal medicine as an ancient medical system that provided the world's population with safe, effective and affordable medicine for centuries.

He said historical records showed that humans had used plants as medicine for at least some 60,000 years and at present the populations of developing countries continued to rely heavily on plant medicine for their healthcare needs.

'A herbal pharmacopoeia presents a nation's documented, authentic herbal tradition and the GHP is no exception,' he said.

He explained that the GHP was developed in collaboration with all the relevant stakeholders, including scientists, researchers, institutions and practitioners, with the rationale of preserving traditional knowledge and use of medicinal plants, which otherwise were not previously documented but transferred orally.

The oral tuition, he said, had leading to the distortion in the skills and knowledge by some practitioners over the years.

He said such knowledge and skills could easily be forgotten due to the dynamic nature and complexity of "our culture", and, therefore, needed to be documented to forestall its loss.

Dr Essegbey said over the years, the pharmacopoeia had served as a reference for medicinal plant, identification, preparation and use and the third edition of the GHP, contained available technical information on all the commonly used Ghanaian medicinal plants, for which definable quality standards existed.

Thus it had since its publication, contributed immensely to dispelling the erroneous impression that medicinal plants in Ghana had not been subjected to scientific investigations, he explained.

He encouraged all traditional herbal practitioners to patronise the document and use them in their practice.

He also urged them to collaborate with the CSIR-STEPRI in its pilot project, where High Rate Low Temperature (HRLT) Extraction Technology was used in research to ascertain efficacy, safety and quality of herbal products.

Dr Essegbey recommended that the book be made part of the reference books to be kept in hospitals and clinics where traditional medicines were used as well as traditional medicine sales outlets and manufacturing units.

Dr Francis Boateng Agyenim, the Director of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research's Institute of Industrial Research, said preserving the intellectual property of individual traditional herbal practitioners was key to the Council.

He, therefore, gave the assurance that no knowledge would be stolen from anyone, but rather the Centre would scientifically improve upon what existed through research and accord the necessary credit to those who owned the rights.

Mr Kojo Odum Eduful, the President of the Ghana Federation of Traditional Medicine Practitioners (GHAFTRAM), thanked the CSIR and its related Institutes for the immense support in enhancing traditional herbal practice and the use of their medicines alongside that of the orthodox ones for the treatment of all manner of ailments.

He, however, complained that some of its members were facing challenges with the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) with regard to the approval of some herbal products for the treatment of lifestyle illnesses, such as diabetes, because they had no scientific backing.

He appealed to the CSIR to intervene in the situation by enhancing its collaboration with the FDA and also including practitioners in such discussions, while speeding efforts to research into some of these products to be included in the fourth edition of the GHP.

GNA
Accra, Dec. 17, GNA - The Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG) Accra, and the Global Evangelical Church (GEC) have congratulated Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the President-elect, and his vice, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, on their victory in the just-ended elections.

Their goodwill messages were contained in separate statements, issued to the Ghana News Agency, in Accra. .

The PCG's statement, signed by the Right Reverend Professor Cephas Narh Omenyo, the Moderator of the General Assembly, also commended the outgoing President, John Dramani Mahama and the other contestants for their high sense of maturity during the electioneering.

It said the peaceful conduct demonstrated by the candidates was a reinforcement of the God- fearing, tolerant and peace-loving traits of Ghanaians, which it said must be emulated by other countries.

'These are great strengths on which Ghana must build in our collective efforts to achieve our goals,' the Church said.

The Church also lauded all electoral stakeholders including, the Electoral Commission, the security services, the Judiciary and the media for working harder to ensure that peace reigned in the exercise.

However, the PCG bemoaned the current reports about fracases between members of the two main political parties; New Patriotic Party and the National Democratic Congress, saying it was ungodly and it could derail the peace of the nation.

The PCG called on the public to keep praying for the favour of God as it said, it was only God's favour which could make Ghana prosperous.

It also observed that all the candidates who contested the presidential race sought the favour of God during their campaign tours, which it said, should be continued as more prayers were needed to ensure that the aftermath of the elections would not rob the nation of its peace.

The Global Evangelical Church, whose statement was signed by signed by the Rt. Rev, Dr Setorwu Kwadzo Ofori, the Moderator of the Church, said, 'As a Church, we are aware of the demanding task ahead, which could only be achieved through concerted efforts on the part of all citizens.'

It said its members would thus work hard to push the national agenda for a prosperous Ghana.

The Church entreated the unsuccessful parties to find solace in their love for the country and give peace a chance, saying, 'The Bible exhorts in Romans 12:18 that 'if it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone''.

'We wish to use this occasion to exhort our fellow citizens to rise to the new era God is ushering the country into and lend support to the vision of the in-coming administration,' it said.

'We pray that all Ghanaians whether with affiliation to the party in power or not, would rally behind the winning team for national development.

'While thanking God for doing His ultimate will, we wish to assure the new leadership of our constant prayer for guidance and blessings, as you embark on your new responsibilities from January 7, next year.

'We are confident that by the grace of God, the Akufo-Addo-led Government would live up to expectation by fulfilling the promises made to Ghanaians.' GNA
Financial Analyst, Sydney Casely-Hayford, has said the Vice President, Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, failed the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and its Presidential Candidate, John Mahama in the just ended election.

To a large extent, I think Kwesi Amissah-Arthur is to blame for the NDC losing this election, Mr. Casely-Hayford opined on The Big Issue.

The December 7 presidential poll saw the worst defeat recorded by a sitting President in Ghana's election history.

President Mahama became the first incumbent to lose a re-election bid after a first term, as the opposition New Patriotic Party's (NPP) Flagbearer, Nana Addo, won 53.85% of the total valid votes cast, against his 44.40%.

Mr. Casely-Hayford indicated that the Veep was brought into the party in 2012 as someone who was going to be able to sort out the financial and economic problems and also as a counter to the NPPs Running Mate and economist, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.

Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia

The past election cycle saw Dr. Bawumia present a bleak assessment of Ghanas economy, during a lecture, where he dared the NDCs Mr. Amissah-Arthur to answer his 170 questions on the state of the economy.

But Mr. Amissah-Arthur largely avoided the topic and said two days to the elections that, anyone asking 170 questions was not serious and that most of the questions put forward by Dr. Bawumia were mere statements of fact .

Mr. Casely-Hayford maintained that the Vice President was expected to bring some sanity into the NDCs economic policies and developments especially after the death of a senior adviser to the President and former Chair of the National Development Planning Commission, Paul Victor Obeng.

PV Obeng (right) addressing National Economic Forum in 2014. With him are Vice President PK Amissah-Arthur (Left) and Prof Stephen Adei (middle)

But Mr. Amissah Arthur was never able to step forward to assume that mantle after PV Obeng's death in 2014, given the crucial role he played with the National Economic Forum at Senchi, he stated.

Therefore [Finance Minsiter] Terkper became the person who was driving economic change and economic stability to the extent that Kwesi Amissah Arthur never featured strongly, even though he was one of the persons who had far more experience than anybody else in the party at the time, Mr. Casely-Hayford noted.

This ultimately let down the thrust of any financial change in the party and in government, according to Mr. Hayford, who added that the weakest part of the NDC was the economics issue, and they were never able to get somebody who could bring the confidence that it would change in the future.



By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Addis Ababa (AFP) - Ethiopia on Saturday inaugurated a hydroelectric dam that aims to double the country's electricity output, but which critics say is a threat to locals and a UNESCO-listed lake in Kenya.

The Gibe III dam, which reaches 243 metres (800 feet) in height, is the third-largest dam in Africa and the biggest in a series built along the Omo River.

When it comes fully online, the Gibe III is expected to produce 1,870 megawatts of power, enough to sell energy abroad including to neighbouring Kenya. The dam has been generating electricity for about a year.

"This hydroelectricity plant, with other ongoing projects, fulfils our domestic power needs and will be provided for foreign markets," Ethiopia's Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said in a speech inaugurating the dam.

But environmentalists and rights groups warn the project will dramatically decrease water levels downstream all the way to Kenya's Lake Turkana, which derives 80 percent of its resources from the river.

Environmentalists and rights groups warn the project will dramatically decrease water levels downstream all the way to Kenya's Lake Turkana

The lives of hundreds of thousands of people who make their living in the Omo River valley and on Turkana, both UNESCO World Heritage sites, would be affected, they say.

Poisoned relations

UNESCO has previously condemned the project and Human Rights Watch has accused the Ethiopian government of uprooting people from the Omo Valley to free up land for state-run sugar cane plantations.

"The project has overcome challenges such as financial and environment issues," Desalegn said. "Some people who think they have a concern for the environment have been downgrading the project rather than being reasonable."

Project boosters say the dam will allow authorities to better regulate the flow of the Omo, which spools out over 700 kilometres. They also deny the dam is primarily a way to ensure a steady flow of water to irrigate cotton and sugar cane plantations.

UNESCO has previously condemned the dam project, accusing the government of uprooting people like the Karo tribe

Gibe III, located about 350 kilometres (220 miles) southwest of Addis Ababa, took nine years to build and cost 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion), with 60 percent of financing coming from the Chinese export credit agency China Exim Bank.

Ethiopia was the world's fastest growing economy last year at 10.2 percent, however the International Monetary Fund estimates that the worst drought in 30 years is likely to see this plummet to 4.5 percent in 2016.

With no natural gas or oil reserves of its own, the Horn of Africa country is banking on renewable energy to help foster energy independence and economic growth.

Its Grand Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile, which is slated to be Africa's largest-ever dam, is expected to produce 6,000 megawatts -- tantamount to six nuclear reactors -- when it is completed in 2017.

The Blue and the White Nile rivers converge in Khartoum and from there run north into Egypt as the Nile.

But the project has poisoned relations with Egypt, which is almost totally reliant on the Nile for agriculture and drinking water, and fears the dam will hit its supplies.
Cairo (AFP) - Egypt's state prosecutor has ordered that the remains of those killed in the crash of EgyptAir flight 804 be handed over to relatives, his office said in a statement Saturday.

The doomed Airbus A320 had been en route from Paris to Cairo in May when it crashed into the Mediterranean, killing all 66 on board, including 40 Egyptians and 15 French nationals.

The prosecutor ordered the return of remains "of Egyptian victims, and there is currently coordination with foreign embassies to turn over the remains of foreigners," the statement said.
President-elect Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the Vice President-elect will today storm the Volta region to pay a courtesy call on the Volta regional house of chiefs.

It will be the third such visit by the President and Vice President elect to regional houses of Chiefs since their election victory.

They first visited the Greater Accra regional house of Chiefs and subsequently went to the Ashanti region to pay homage to that region's House of Chiefs.

Akufo-Addo last week won Ghana's Presidential election in a landslide victory beating incumbent President, John Dramani Mahama.

Akufo-Addo secured an overwhelming 53.85% of the total valid votes cast while the President got 44.40%.

Akufo-Addo will be sworn-in as President on January 7, 2017.

-Starrfmonline
Kinshasa (AFP) - Talks to defuse an explosive crisis in DR Congo resumed Wednesday, a day after bloody clashes, as the Roman Catholic church appealed for a deal by Christmas over the fate of President Joseph Kabila.

The call by bishops sponsoring talks between the opposition and the ruling party came after protests erupted over Kabila's refusal to step down.

According to a UN provisional toll, 19 people were killed and 45 hurt in violence across Democratic Republic of Congo on Tuesday, the day Kabila's second and final term ran out.

The government put the toll at 11 dead, nine in Kinshasa and two in the second city Lubumbashi, while non-governmental organisation (NGO) Human Rights Watch put the toll at 26 people killed by security forces in Kinshasa, Lubumbashi, Matadi and Boma.

Kabila's expiry was met without any plan for a political transition, with no election in sight.

DR Congo faces a political crisis

Tensions remained high on Wednesday, with activity resuming slowly in Kinshasa, a megacity of 10 million people, and soldiers and police posted at major crossroads.

In Masina, a neighbourhood in the south of the capital, calm had returned "but tension remains in the background," said a local community leader.

All eyes were on the resumption of the talks headed by the Episcopal Conference, CENCO, that had broken up at the weekend with no progress.

"Our wish is to end before Christmas," said CENCO chairman Monsignor Marcel Utembi. "If the political and civil society actors do not reach a compromise by then... CENCO will draw the consequences."

'Peaceful resistance'

In Rome, Pope Francis too appealed to the Congolese people to be "artisans of peace".

Supporters of DR Congo President Joseph Kabila parade his photograph in Kinshasa in November 2006

"May those who are in positions of political responsibility listen to the voice of their conscience, learn to see the cruel sufferings of their fellow citizens and have at heart the common good."

Gunfire rang out across the vast and troubled nation as the protests erupted Tuesday.

So far the mainstream opposition has called for "peaceful resistance" from the country's 70 million people, pinning its hopes on a deal at the negotiating table.

But in what Kabila's opponents dubbed "a provocation", a new government was announced overnight Monday, headed by Samy Badibanga.

The freshly appointed cabinet is part of an October deal struck between the ruling party and tiny fringe opposition groups enabling Kabila to remain in office pending elections in April 2018.

Wave of arrests

People protest in Kinshasa on December 20, 2016

However, the main opposition bloc headed by 84-year-old Etienne Tshisekedi rejects the plan. It wants elections next year -- along with a pledge that Kabila will not stand.

Maman Sambo Sidikou, the head of the UN mission in Congo, had voiced alarm on Tuesday about a wave of arrests of opposition leaders, rights campaigners and journalists since December 16.

Kabila, 45, who has ruled since 2001, is constitutionally barred from seeking a third term but under a controversial recent constitutional court order, he may stay on until a successor is chosen.

In a YouTube video, Tshisekedi launched "a solemn appeal to the Congolese people to no longer recognise the authority of Mr. Joseph Kabila, to the international community to no longer deal with Joseph Kabila in the name of the Democratic Republic of Congo".

He urged people "to peacefully resist the coup d'etat".

The message was not available in DR Congo where authorities have since Sunday imposed strict controls on social media networks -- which have become even stricter in the last few days.

Some applications which worked Tuesday were no longer available on Wednesday.

DR Congo has never witnessed a democratic transfer of power following polls since independence from Belgium in 1960.

The president has been in office since his father Laurent Kabila's assassination in 2001. He was elected in 2006, and again in 2011.

Two decades ago, the country collapsed into the deadliest conflict in modern African history. Its two wars in the late 1990s and early 2000s dragged in at least six African armies and left more than three million dead.
President-elect Nana Akufo-Addo says the New Patriotic Party (NPP) will work earnestly to remove the misconceptions which the people of the Volta Region have against the party.

He said the party will not give up on seeking the maximum support of the people for the Volta Region.

Nana Akufo-Addo was addressing the Volta Regional House of Chiefs on Saturday following his victory in last week Wednesday's presidential polls.

Read: Photos: President-elect assures Volta Region of development

He joined the chiefs to celebrate the election of Agbogbomefia of Asogli State, Togbe Afede XIV in the Volta Region town of Ho as President of the National House of Chiefs.

I recall the statement made by you Togbe Afede during my last visit. You said the Volta Region was not loyal housewife waiting for her husband who only came home only when he was hungry.

You said the Volta Region was a beautiful bride awaiting an appropriate suitor. The NPP has taken you at your word and we will continue to woo the Volta Region until we marry the bride, said Akufo-Addo.

Photo: Nana Akufo-Addo's visit to the Volta Region follows a special invite by Togbe Afede XIV to celebrate his election as the President of the National House of Chiefs.

Although Nana Akufo-Addo defeated incumbent President John Mahama by polling 53.86 percent of the total valid vote cast as against 44.4 percent for the President, votes from the Volta Region contributed the least to this victory.

The NDC, since 1992 has enjoyed huge support from the region, culminating into the region being tagged the "World Bank" of the party.

However, Nana Akufo-Addo polled approximately 18% more votes in the NDC stronghold during the 2016 election than he did during the last election in 2012.

I wish to thank the Chiefs and people of the Volta Region for their support and help in the election. Admittedly the results from this region fell short of the expectations of my party. But we have certainly done far better than we did in the last election, he acknowledged.

The President-elect also has assured the chiefs and people of the region that he will carry through with his promises of bringing development to the Region.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | George Nyavor | [email protected]
President-elect Nana Akufo-Addo has reiterated his pledge to involve the chieftaincy institution in his administrations governance of the country.

He said this during his trip to the Volta Region where he called on the Regional House of Chiefs to thank them for their support during the New Patriotic Partys (NPP) victorious election bid, which saw the party capture an unexpected parliamentary seats in the region.

Nana Akufo-Addo also spoke highly of the Agbogbomefia of the Asogli state, Togbe Afede XIV, who was recently elected as the new President of the National House of Chiefs.

You are in a great position to help in the modernization of the chieftaincy institution. You come to the position with great credentials and I am sure that you will get the support of other like-minded chiefs to help you.

Agbogbomefia of the Asogli state, Togbe Afede XIV

I intend to work with you at all levels; the Traditional Council, the Regional Houses of Chiefs and the National House of Chiefs to enhance the governance of our nation, Nana Akufo-Addo said.

Describing the NPPs election victory as a contract with the people of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo also promised that the incoming NPP government will keep its side of the contract.

I and the government I will lead shall always remember that the people of Ghana expected the quality of their lives to improve. we shall always remember that Ghanaians want to be treated with dignity, the President-elect declared.

Nana Akufo-Addo is currently on a thank you tour as he awaits his swearing in on January 7, and has already visited the Asantehene and the Asanteman Traditional Council in the Ashanti Region to express his gratitude for their support.



By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana
17.12.2016 LISTEN

 87.9 kilometers of developed urban motorways and a fourth bridge in Abidjan

 60 young engineering jobs created for young Ivoirians

 The African Development Bank, a major partner for Cote d'Ivoire

Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire, December 16, 2016 - The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has approved a loan of 769.78 million euros to Cote d'Ivoire aimed at significantly improving urban transport in the city of Abidjan.

This financing will contribute to improving the living conditions of the people living in Abidjan through the development and rehabilitation of road infrastructures. More specifically, the project involves the development of 87.9 km of fast urban roads, a 1,400-meter bridge, six interchanges, the rehabilitation of traffic lights at 89 intersections, urban waste management, and the strengthening of existing capacity for traffic control, urban planning, local revenue enhancement, road safety and the protection of natural ecosystems.

"The project will be implemented from March 2017 to December 2021 and will improve traffic flow, reduce road accidents, strengthen urban management, improve air quality, increase household revenues, recycle waste, reduce greenhouse gases and improve the quality of life of the people," said Amadou Oumarou, Director of Transport and ICT department at the African Development Bank.

Abidjan is the economic hub of Cote d'Ivoire and a port city with an estimated population of 4.71 million (21% of the country's total population in 2014), projected to reach 8.5 million by 2030. This city is the main supplier of products and services that make Cote d'Ivoire the third largest exporting country in Africa, after Egypt and South Africa.

With the combined effect of population growth, rapid rise of vehicular traffic and the decline of public transport systems, the road network and the traffic control systems have proved inadequate to ensure free flow of traffic. Due to the socio-political crisis of the last fifteen years and the strong demographic pressure, the accessibility of urban areas, transport systems, traffic control, waste management and urban planning have deteriorated. This is a major constraint to the city's economic potential.

Almost all intersections have severe congestion and road conditions are slowing down traffic, leading to road accidents, air pollution, and a slowdown in economic activity not only in the city of Abidjan but also in the West African sub-region.

Abidjan is a port city and a dynamic economic center, not only for the country, but also for West Africa in general, with an estimated GDP growth rate of 8% in the short term and 7.7% in the long term. It is the services sector that, through the transport and strong urbanization of the country (the total urban population of the country rose from 28% to 51% between 1970 and 2010), which supports these economic performances.

The Bank's added value in financing the project is threefold. It participated in the elaboration and validation of the master plan for urban transport in Greater Abidjan (SDTUGA), which is the benchmark tool for all donors. Secondly, the objectives of the project are in line with the Bank's 2012-2022 Decade Strategy and its five operational Priorities (High 5s) and focus on building infrastructure to support industrialization, stimulate agricultural production, improve the living conditions of the urban population and mitigate the effects of climate change. Finally, by supporting this project, which is the first operation of the SDTUGA, the Bank affirms its leadership in the urban development sector in Cote d'Ivoire.

Addressing the Board, AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina underlined the importance of this funding, whose outcomes will benefit the entire population, in particular state and local institutions, women's associations, industrialists, transporters and agricultural producers.

At the request of the Government, the African Development Bank Group also brought together many partners to complete the financing of the HKB Bridge (named after former President Henri Konan Bedie) and thus contributed to a significant resolution of the problems of transport and urban planning in the city of Abidjan.

Focus on the fourth bridge

With a total length of 1,400 meters, the 4th bridge in Abidjan will span a stretch of the Ebrie lagoon to connect the communes of Plateau and Adjame with Yopougon. With a population estimated at nearly two million, Yopougon is the most populous municipality of the Abidjan conurbation, and also an important industrial center. The communes of Adjame east of the Plateau are the main poles of the countrys business and administration.

"The bridge and the access roads associated with it will facilitate the daily travel of hundreds of thousands of Abidjanese and help to decongest the existing roads. It is estimated that more than 70,000 vehicles will pass through the bridge," said Jean Noel Ilboudo, Transport Engineer in charge of coordinating the project at the African Development Bank. The construction is expected to start in 2017 and end in 2020.

A port city, the 6th metropolis of the continent and economic powerhouse for West Africa, Abidjan has experienced in recent years strong demographic and economic growth which strained its transport network. The annual cost of malfunctions in the transport system in Abidjan (accidents, congestion, air pollution, greenhouse effects, noise) is estimated at 8% of national GDP.

"Reducing urban congestion will in particular contribute to strengthening the city's economic competitiveness. The 4th bridge will facilitate the movement of goods between the southern part of the city where the port and industrial zone of Vridi are located and the western and northern zones, where new industrial zones are rapidly developing," Ilboudo further said.

From a regional perspective, the 4th bridge will be a privileged transit route between the port of Abidjan and the international road corridors, especially to Burkina Faso in the north and to Liberia in the west. The accessibility to the port will support integration in the sub region by stimulating exchanges with the countries in the hinterland.
Mampong (Ash) July, 19----The Mampong Hospital Management Advisory Committee has recommended the setting up for Community Health Fund to mobilise funds within and outside Mampong to address the challenges facing the hospital.

Mr Kwadwo Nyarko Jectey, the medical superintendent at Mampong Municipal Hospital disclosed this last Monday when Mr Francis Addai-Nimoh, Member of Parliament for Mampong Constituency donated GH 120,000 Ambulance to the Mampong Municipal Hospital.

He said the hospital established in 1973 and the second largest hospital in Ashanti region in terms of beds capacity, has a number of challenges and the Fund will go a long way to help.

Mr Addai-Nimoh, the MP said in 2016, every MP received total amount of GH 155,000 each as their share of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS)Health Fundraising for 2014,2015 and 2016 respectively and he used part of this amount to purchase the Ambulance.

He said Human Resource Development depends on Health and Education and it is for this reason that he has used most of his share of MPs money in these two areas since he became Member of Parliament in 2008.

Mr Jacob Amoah ,the Municipal Ghana Health Service Director praised the MP for aggressively supporting health and infrastructure development in the Municipality and sponsoring vacation classes for students.

He appealed to meaningful citizens from Mampong and the general public to support the proposed establishment of Community Health Fund to meet the challenges in the health sector in the Municipality.

Nana Boakye Yiadom Atonsah, the Gyaasehene of Mampong Traditional Area who represented Daasebere Osei Bonsu II, paramount chief of Mampong thanked the MP for his immense contribution to the development in the area since he became MP and advised him to continue after leaving Parliament in January next year..
The United Progressive Party (UPP) has said Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo's resolve to fight corruption in Ghana should not be seen to be an empty promise.

It said Ghanaians expect more from a Nana Addo-led government hence the confidence reposed in him evidenced in his election.

The admonition was contained in a statement issued in Kumasi and signed by its acting National chairman, Alhaji Bashiru Zakari, which congratulated the NPP leader for the overwhelming victory at the December 7 polls.

The party also advised the newly elected president to consider the holistic development of the Northern regions.

The UPP advised Nana Akufo-Addo to be focused on the development plans and said it would be more prudent for the government to stay clear of chieftaincy disputes in the Northern part of the country.

Alhaji Zakari, who is also, doubles as the First-Vice-Nationa-Chairman,while wishing the President good health, wisdom and strength to rule and meet the aspirations of the good people of Ghana also called on the president to unite the people in the country's forward match.
The Yoruba people, who make up about one-third of the entire population in Nigeria, are unique in not just the way they express culture and tradition but also in the way they carry on themselves in their everyday life. Over the years, they have passed on these unique traditions and behaviors from generation to generations, and now, even the younger and more modern of the generations find they have to abide by these norms and endure the consequences, no matter how uncomfortable or dire. Jumia Travel , Nigerias No.1 online hotel booking portal shares 5 things only modern Yoruba natives can relate to.

1. The confusion that comes when you are hungry and you dont know if your aunty asked you to heat or eat the food.

2. Hours in the toilet after eating the pepper-saturated ewagoyin at your grandparents home.

3. The pain that comes with you having to pay heavily for Asoebi almost every month because all members of family have to.

4. When you travel home for Christmas and your knees are bruised from having to bend or kneel when greeting every older person you meet.

5. The embarrassment when your teacher picks up the register and starts to read out all the Yoruba names your parents, grandparents and ancestors not only gave you, but felt the need to include in your school records.
17.12.2016 LISTEN

A little over a year ago, l felt publicly humiliated, psychologically tortured and emotionally rejected when a young Muslim lady l encountered during a campaign trail on campus rejected my handshake not just on the first but also at the second attempt. Truth be told, deep within , l perceived her to be disrespectful, arrogant, pompous and profiled her to be one of those spoilt university girls who shake hands as if touching thorns, eat Banku and Ampesi with cutlery set, prefer bottled water to sachet and generally behave as if they excrete diamond, gold, silver and not the normal poo when they respond to nature's call.

Feeling embarrassed, l spent a minute with her and departed. Passing through town a year after this incident, l came across some brightly arranged and appetizing banana. Attracted, l proceeded towards it for a bundle. As l touched the palm of the seller upon retrieving my change, l saw a familiar face but struggled in identifying the face entirely covered in a trademark traditional hijab characteristic of Muslims. Suddenly she mentioned my name. Afterwards, l remembered her as the lady who denied me a 'common handshake' on campus. She narrated to me how she has been supporting her mother sell banana, watermelon, oranges, apples, pawpaw, pineapples and other fruits her entire life.

Her entire education she revealed was financed by the little pennies from this table top business. She explained her religion forbids her from shaking hands with the opposite sex hence her decision not to shake my hands the first time we met. After our brief chat l departed but had a sleepless night thinking: why must the hands that refuse me a handshake take money from me? Is money more important than a human being? Doesn't her palm touch mine while taking the money? Is that any different from a normal handshake with another human being ?

The mere fact that she cited religious beliefs for her actions settled everything. I forgave her at that instance with the revelation that her faith forbids her from shaking my hands but allows her to take money from the same hands she isn't allowed to shake. Afterall, l would have done same had l been her. Are we all not mad followers of religion in Ghana and Africa? Did we not hear of university graduates, learned personalities with their masters and doctorates praying hours for the Ghana Cedi to rise? Did we not hear of a bunch of educated Nigerians eating fresh grass like goats because their holy -spirit possessed pastor ordered them to? And just last week l got the shock of my life when news emerged that congregants of the End Times Disciples Ministries in Pretoria South Africa ate live snakes because their pastor Penuel Mnguni ordered them to do so under the prophecy that it would taste like chocolate as it was being consumed. Did we not hear of congregants sucking their pastor's sperms simply because their 'holy spirit possessed' pastor ordered them to do

so?

My Grandmother simply dislikes the Jehovah Witness Church, its teachings, beliefs and practices infuriates her. She narrated to me how her best friend: a beautiful woman with four young children died painfully and miserably in the early 80's at Santasi simply because her husband, mother, father and pastor all members of the Jehovah Witness Church prevented the medical staff at the hospital from giving her a blood transfusion needed to save her life. She laid on the hospital bed helplessly for 5 days and all she neended was a pint of blood to save her life. Annoyingly, they were praying and counting on God to save their daughter and wife. On the sixth day, her soul finally gave up.

Yet her family cried upon hearing her death, people went to mourn with them and they even had no shame organising a typical Ashanti-styled funeral in her name and took money from people as funeral donations!!! Today, all the children are multi millionaires, housing their father in a mansion and giving him the best treats of life whereas their mother who toiled daily for their early upbringing could not even live to see her children grow into millionaires all in the name of religion. So I ask, if God himself sent his only begotten son to die for our sins and save the world from eternal destruction, why would such a loving God be pissed off should Christians donate a pint of their blood in saving precious lives? Or, why would such a loving God forbid his followers from saving lives with blood he has given them when God himself sacrificed the blood of his only son in cleansing the world of its sins ?

Do we understand religion at all? Are we just stupid and mad followers of religion? Was Karl Marx right when he asserted that religion is the opium of the people? Are the popular religious books: Bible, Quran and the rest even from God and Allah? Were these books even written by God or Allah through men? How authentic is the authenticity of the Bible and Quran? Do we misinterpret the teachings of the Bible and Quran? Are the writings of the Bible and Quran the handiwork of men and not God or Allah? Why should Christians worshipping the same God argue and fight over Saturdays and Sundays as the holiest of days to worship God? Why should a Muslim man be on the same room and bed with his married wife but cannot pray together in the same place with the same woman? I mean why would Allah allow a couple to be in the same room, bed and even enjoy sex together but wouldn't allow them to pray together? I mean why? Is sex and living together more important than prayer? Let me be honest in admitting, that l have no in-depth knowledge about religion. Neither do l intend ridiculing or undermining the beliefs, teachings and practices of a religious sect.

Afterall, l was brought up to be religiously religious just as you are. But growing up and reasoning on my own, l deem it necessary to subject my own religion and that of others to scrutiny and sane criticism, demanding answers, education and enlightenment on these issues giving me sleepless nights.

If you have answers, antipodal opinions, explanations and diverse thoughts, let's kindly share them without insults, attacks and malice. Please this should not be used as,the basis,to attack any religion. Let's have an intellectual and enlightening discussion.

MICHAEL KWADWO NKETIAH ( [email protected] )
There are seven A's in the name of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo, the man who was elected as Ghana's new President on 7 December 2016.

Those A's are not there for nothing.

Nana Addo gets an A, for instance, because he's shown he has the bottle it takes to be a front-line politician in Ghana.

For in Ghana, political opponents can be crude. Very crude. They indulge in what our

first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah once described (to my hearing) as nkwasea politics [the politics of nonsense].

What do I mean? This: when it became known that Nana Addo was once again going to be the flag-bearer of the NPP, despite having lost the presidential race twice before, NDC propagandists thought their cocoa harvest season was at hand.

They proclaimed from the treetops that he was "too old". His heart was frail. He also had prostate cancer, as claimed by medical records allegedly purloined from a London clinic (that showed a very high PSA count!)

The propagandists also described Nana Addo as a fraud, inasmuch as he had touted himself as having studied to Oxford University, when he had not! A law firm he'd said he'd worked with in France was also not a law firm at all but a company that did something else. Further, Nana Addo hadn't been called to the Ghana Bar at all in 1975, as he had claimed. Instead, he'd impersonated someone else! And, of course, newspapers and radio stations went to town with this sort of crap.

Then there was a more serious development: jumping into the ring to lead the onslaught on AkufobAddo's

credibility at one stage was no less a person than a retired Judge of the Supreme Court  repeat Supreme Court  Mr Justice Mr Justice Francis Kpegah! This man filed a lawsuit making serious allegations of impersonation against Nana Addo! Now, the clever thing Kpegah did was to capitalise on the fact that claims in a lawsuit can be freely cited in the media, without the victim being able to sue for damages in respect of libel! Surely, a retired Supreme Court judge would  even if he were senile  not seek to take advantage of this legal privilege to waste the time of his brother judges by bringing such a frivolous lawsuit before them?

Nana Addo had to endure all this and more. It left a sour taste in the mouths of his relatives and friends: they had to ask themselves whether political office was worth this vicious slandering? (Vicious was in fact, the word used by President John Mahama himself to classify some of his party's campaigns against Nana Addo!  according to Kweku Baako, editor of the NewCrusader newspaper.)

And then came political manoeuvering from within his own party by those who thought they stood a better chance than Nana Addo of defeating Mahama, and who, rather perversely, enjoyed the drubbing Nana Addo was receiving bat the hands of the NDC. A kingpin from the all-important Northern Ghana branch of the NPP was horrendously murdered in cold blood. As a fallout from the murder, the party also lost both its national chairman and its secretary-general.

What? Yes  this was surely the nuclear blast that would kill and roast the goose of both the NPP and Nana Addo in the 2016 election?

But whoever was orchestrating these wicked events  and they seemed too convenient to the NDC to be left to the whims of 'happenstance'  to halt Nana Addo's journey to the presidency, was to be badly jolted by subsequent events. For the man simply did not understand the term, give up!

And the doggedness came from deep within his soul. For his political pedigree is such as few people could bask in  even if they were to be donated three or four lifetimes!

His father, Edward Akufo Addo, was a founding member, in 1947, of the country's first national political movement that fought for Ghana's independence, the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC). The UGCC's Secretary was Dr Kwame Nkrumah, who led Ghana to independence (after unceremoniously departing from the UGCC in 1949 to form his own Convention People's Party).

In 1964, Dr Nkrumah, as President, sacked Edward Akufo Addo (who had been a Supreme Court judge since 1962) because Nkrumah did not agree with a judgement Akufo Addo and two other judges had given in a political trial in which Nkrumah had a personal interest!

But only two years after sacking Akufo Addo from the Bench, Nkrumah was himself ousted by his army. In the wake of that change, Akufo Addo became Chief Justice (1966); and then, President (1970)! No growing adult could witness such a roller-coaster ride form the pattern of part of his father's career and remain untouched! And that partly explains the resilience and toughness with which Nana Akufo Addo approaches political matter.

However, the political pedigree extends farther than his paternal line. From his mother, Adeline's side, two members of Nana Addo's immediate family were also fated to suffer from the vicissitudes of political engagement. Dr J B Danquah was Nana Akufo Addo's grand-uncle, and William Ofori Atta was Akufo Addo's uncle. They were both in the UGCC, of course, with Nkrumah but fated to suffer imprisonment without trial when Nkrumah obtained power.

(Nkrumah passed a Preventive Detention Act, with which to suppress opposition to his rule.)

Dr Danquah was detained twice, and actually died in February 1965, whilst in detention at Nsawam Prison. William Ofori Atta was also detained at Nsawam but released after some years. And all they did was to exercise the freedom first of speech that they and Nkrumah together had fought the British to obtain for Ghanaians! Irony of ironies, not so?

Knowing that Nana Akufo Addo was painfully aware of all this, I was a bit perturbed when I heard that Nana Addo was politically ambitious and was at the forefront of the efforts being made by the Movement for Freedom and Justice to oust the military government of General Kutu Acheampong [who ruled Ghana from 1972 to l977]. I asked him whether he didn't feel that it might be said of him that he was labouring under an ethos of entitlement to a "dynasty", his father having once been President.

His answer could have been expected from a politician clothed with the skin of a rhinoceros. One always puts one's best foot forward! he said simply. No, it couldn't hurt that one's name was a sort of short-hand for public service with integrity.

In 2013 - a lot later --, I posed another interesting question to him: why had he not appealed to the full Bench of the Supreme Court, after the Atuguba-led panel had narrowly found against him in the election petition of that year? He muttered: But that full Bench, coming from the same background as the first  who could have guaranteed that there would be a different outcome? Having known his father, that sounded to me as if it was the old man's solid realism expressing itself through the mouth of his son.

So, then, Ghana is blessed with a President-elect who is pragmatic to a fault. I am sure he will approach the job of ruling Ghana with an open mind, always seeking the most intelligent answer to every question that confronts him, be it economic, social or political. Now, intelligence doesn't grow on trees, of course  either within the NPP or Ghana as a whole. Which means that Nana Addo may often find himself in a minority of one when serious issues confront his administration.

We must all be prepared to support him if he convinces us that he has adopted the brainy option  as against the politically expedient. With our support, he stands a good chance of being able to resurrect in Ghana, that sense of purpose and dedication to efficient service, that the first administration we ran after independence was able to demonstrate. That spirit, unfettered by the later idiotic curtailment of freedom and human rights, will enable us, once again, to look the world in the eye and say, We are black. And [not "but"!] we are as good as anyone else.

So then, this is the time for all imaginative people in Ghana to put their heads together and make their ideas freely available to our new Government. For at 72, Nana Addo is in a hurry to show what he can do to leave a tangible legacy for the people of Ghana to emulate in later years.

Making health services available to all and sundry, in the same way that war-torn Britain was able to introduce a National Health Service whilst trying to survive under post-war food and petrol rationing; are our water-sources safe from galamsey operators; if Ethiopia can build a rail line from Addis Ababa to Mombasa, why can't we build one from Accra to Wa and beyond? Etc.

It is time for us to put our brains to work. Even as we hail our new leader and yell out loud: Nana Addo anaaaaaaaa!
Harare (AFP) - Zimbabwe's veteran leader Robert Mugabe once quipped that he'd rule his country until he turned 100.

On Saturday, his ruling ZANU-PF party endorsed the 92-year-old leader as its candidate for the 2018 presidential election, bringing him closer to achieving his wish.

From crushing political dissent to ushering in disastrous land reforms that saw the economy crumble, many accuse Mugabe of turning the regional breadbasket into a food importer.

The leader who is currently Africa's oldest president, having clung to office for 36 years, has shown no sign of loosening his grip.

"His real obsession was not with personal wealth but with power," said biographer Martin Meredith.

"Year after year Mugabe sustained his rule through violence and repression -- crushing political opponents, violating the courts, trampling on property rights, suppressing the independent press and rigging elections," said Meredith.

The former political prisoner turned guerrilla leader swept to power in 1980 elections after a growing insurgency and economic sanctions forced the then Rhodesian government to the negotiating table.

He initially won international plaudits for his declared policy of racial reconciliation and for extending improved education and health services to the black majority.

But his lustre faded quickly.

Tainted leader

Mugabe, whose party commands most of its support from the ethnic Shona majority, is tainted by the mass killing of the minority Ndebele people in a campaign in the early 1980s known as Gukurahundi, which killed an estimated 20,000 suspected dissidents.

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe attends a meeting with the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association on April 7, 2016 in Harare

The violence on the Ndebele was unleashed by his North Korean-trained Fifth Brigade.

Yet it was the violent seizure of white-owned farms nearly two decades later that would complete Mugabe's transformation from darling of the West into international pariah -- even if his status as a liberation hero still resonates in most of Africa.

Aimed largely at placating angry war veterans who threatened to destabilise his rule, the land reform policy wrecked the crucial agricultural sector, caused foreign investors to flee and helped plunge the country into economic misery.

At the same time, critics say, Mugabe has clung to power through repression of human rights and by rigging elections.

Early years

Born on February 21, 1924, into a Catholic family at Kutama Mission northwest of Harare, Robert Gabriel Mugabe was described as a loner, and a studious child known to carry a book even while tending cattle in the bush.

After his carpenter father walked out on the family when he was 10, the young Mugabe concentrated on his studies, qualifying as a schoolteacher at the age of 17.

An intellectual who initially embraced Marxism, he enrolled at Fort Hare University in South Africa, meeting many of southern Africa's future black nationalist leaders.

Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe delivers a speech during celebrations marking his birthday in Masvingo on February 27, 2016

After teaching in Ghana, where he was influenced by founder president Kwame Nkrumah, Mugabe returned to Rhodesia where he was detained for his nationalist activities in 1964 and spent the next 10 years in prison camps or jail.

During his incarceration he gained three degrees through correspondence, but the years in prison left their mark.

His four-year-old son by his first wife, Ghanaian-born Sally Francesca Hayfron, died while he was behind bars. Rhodesian leader Ian Smith denied him leave to attend the funeral.

Health rumours

In the recent years the aging Mugabe's health has been increasingly under the spotlight, particularly after he fell down a staircase after addressing supporters last year.

He also read a speech to parliament in September apparently unaware that he had delivered the same address a month earlier.

In September he laughed off rumours of his own death, as he returned home from Dubai.

Mugabe, who is banned from travelling to the European Union, regularly travels to Singapore for what is officially called a routine health check-up.
Behind every successful government, there are positive strategic thinkers who plan, and execute with mathematical precision. The fountain source of this quality of governance is dependent on the astuteness of who governs the office of the presidency as Chief of Staff.

Though the NPP has men and women of integrity and great valour, the innovative and proactive qualities of Dr Kwame Amoako Tufuor stand out prominent. As a practical, innovative, and proactive thinker and planner, he was not only responsible for the much acclaimed successful school feeding programme during the Kufuor administration, he was the protagonist of the scheme.

This was a scheme that generated children's extreme interest to stay at school, and at the same time relieved parents of their wards' feeding responsibilities whiles in nursery and primary school. This programme was the brainchild of Dr Tufuor. Its operational success, from pilot scheme to full scale expansion was planned, executed and managed by Dr Amoako Tufuor and his team.

As advisor to ex-President Kufuor, there was nothing that Dr Amoako Tufuor proposed to the ex-President, that was rejected. His numerous advice to President Kufuor were plausible, commendable, and applicable for implementation and execution.

Amongst his numerous contributions to bringing about Nana Addos Presidential electoral success was his ability to attack and counterattacking NDC vainglorious propaganda on the airwaves, most especially in interviews. Dr Amoako Tufuor is the most feared political intellectual by the NDC, whose voice and physical presence and closeness to Nana Addo, sends chilling signals down the spine of the entire NDC.

During the 2016 electioneering period, we happened to work with him on security of the ballot boxes, and how to stop crossborder voting mercenaries from flocking into Ghana from Togo, to vote. This accounts for the massive loss of votes for the NDC, especially in the Volta Region. To kill mischievous NDC party, ever resurfacing as a governing party in Ghana, a strong-headed Chief of Staff, the like of Dr Kwame Amoako Tufuor will be inevitable.

Amongst Nana Addos promises to Ghanaians, was one village one dam, which accounts for several Northerner proteans from NDC to NPP. Dr Amoako Tufuor is an expert hydrologist, and most especially in building dams.

Setting aside his educational qualifications and experience, which many NPP men and women have, Dr Kwame Amoako Tufuor's involvement in executing remedial action against NDC committing electoral fraud was phenomenally exceptional.

Dr Amoako Tufuor has the tenacity, determination, and resilience to serve as a successful Chief of Staff of the in-coming Akufo-Addo administration, qualities that we will surely generate so much good will during the Nana Addo and NPP administration, and post Akufo-Addo regime, for a sustained NPP continuous longival administration, way down into posterity.

Adreba Kwaku Abrefa Damoa

0553236777

Bill Darlington Boampong

0245042206
By Julius K. Satsi, GNA

Accra, Dec. 17, GNA - The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has organised a blood donation exercise to create awareness on its mandate to regulate blood and blood derivatives as essential medicines.

Speaking at the event, held at the premises of the FDA, in Accra, on Friday, Mr Hudu Mogtari, the Chief Executive Officer of the FDA said: 'Blood and its derivatives are life-saving therapies for countless trauma cases; including accidents, surgery, haemorrhage during labour, delivery and postpartum.'

Mr Mogtari said: 'In World Health Assembly resolutions 63:12, 58:13, 28:72, member states were admonished to make available sufficient supplies of Blood and Blood derivatives of assured quality and safety in the face of known and emerging threats to public health by instituting stringent regulatory controls along the entire transfusion chain.'

'The FDA is encouraged by the Public Health Act 2012 (Act 851) and a Memorandum of Understanding with NSBG to pursue its mandate of protecting public health and safety,' he noted.

Dr Edwin Nkansah, the Head of Biological Products Units of the FDA, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that, the WHO enlisted blood and its derivatives products as part of biological products, which had also been captured as an essential medicine.

Dr Nkansah explained: 'Essential medicines are medicines that need to be available, of good quality, and affordable, therefore, blood which falls under this category, needs to be regulated by the FDA, as part of the Authority's mandate.

'What we do is try to regulate the processes of coming out with blood products and blood components that are safe and effective,' he said.

Dr Nkansah noted that the regulation process was started in 2008 to ensure that there was no wastage in terms of the blood collected.

'The FDA has been working with the National Blood Services Ghana (NBSG) to ensure that every unit of blood or blood component has been collected and tested,' Mr Mogtari said.

He said after the collection of blood, when intended for transfusion, the two institutions ensured that it had been prepared, stored and distributed in compliance with internationally recognised standards and specifications.

Meanwhile, Mr Stephen Danso, a Senior blood donor at the Southern Area Blood Centre of the NBSG, said the blood donation drive was necessary because there was the need to always store blood so as to efficiently handle emergencies.

Mr Danso told the donors that they could donate blood after every four months.

GNA
17.12.2016 LISTEN

Accra, Dec 17, GNA - Mr. Prosper D. K. Bani, the Minister of the Interior, has renewed the curfew hours of the Bunkprugu, Bimbilla, Kpatinga and its environs in the Northern Region and Alavanyo and Nkonya townships, in the Volta Region, respectively.

The Minister said, the curfew imposed by Executive Instrument, was on the advice of the Northern and the Volta Regional Security Councils.

This was contained in a statement signed by the Minister, and copied to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), on Thursday.

The statement said the curfew begins in Bunkprugu Township from 2000 hours to 0600 hours effective Tuesday, 20th December, 2016.

The Bimbilla Township curfew, starts at 2200 hours to 0400 hours effective Friday, 16th December, 2016.

It explained that the Alavanyo and Nkonya Townships had curfew hours beginning 2300 hours to 0500 hours, while that of Kpatinga and its environs was from 1200 hours to 0400 hours from December 16, 2016.

'The government continues to express its appreciation to the chiefs, elders, opinion leaders, youth and people of the area,' the statement said.

'The government urges them to exercise restraint in the face of challenges confronting them and to use non-violent means to channel their energies into ensuring peace.

The statement said there was a total ban on all persons in Bunkprugu, Bimbilla, Alavanyo, Nkonya, and Kpatinga townships from carrying arms, ammunition or any offensive weapon, and any person found with arms or ammunition would be arrested and prosecuted.

GNA
17.12.2016 LISTEN

Accra, Dec. 17, GNA - President John Dramani Mahama, on Saturday, arrived in Abuja, the administrative capital of Nigeria, to attend the 50th ordinary Session of the Authority of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) heads of State and Government.

The end of year meeting, would among other issues, receive reports and discuss the political situations in Guinea Bissau and the Gambia.

A statement from the Flagstaff House Communication Bureau, and copied to the Ghana News Agency, in Accra, said the leaders would also review the annual report of the ECOWAS Commission.

"They will also review the Sub-region's strategy for the African Union positions," the statement said.

GNA
17.12.2016 LISTEN

Accra, Dec. 17, GNA - The Australian High Commission in Ghana has presented a cheque for GH190,000 to the Orthopaedic Training Centre (OTC) after an application for funding under Australia's Direct Aid Program.

The grant award formed part of Australia's celebration for the International Day of Persons with Disability (IDPwD) at the OTC in Nsawam, Accra, on Saturday, December 3.

A statement issued by the High Commission, and copied to the Ghana News Agency, on Friday, stated that the Australian Government had been supporting IDPwD since 1996.

The statement noted: 'As highlighted by High Commissioner Andrew Barnes, disability-inclusive development is a priority for Australia's international engagement.'

To commemorate the day, staff of the Australian High Commission in Ghana, led by the High Commissioner Barnes, spent time with children of the OTC.

According to the statement, Staff of the High Commission also presented the children with assorted educational materials and spent time hearing their stories.

High Commissioner Barnes noted that for several decades now, Australia had supported pro-disability initiatives in Africa and elsewhere, through a number of aid programmes, including the Direct Aid Program.

'We believe in the importance of recognising and supporting the inherent dignity and human rights of people with disabilities,' he said.

'And that is why we continue to lend our support to quality initiatives that promise to empower disabled people and help them participate fully in life,' High Commissioner Barnes added.

'Through Australia's international advocacy, diplomatic efforts and aid investments, we aim to improve the quality of life of people with disabilities in developing countries,' he said.

The OTC is a non-profit organisation whose mission is to enable persons with disabilities in Ghana, mainly children, to lead independent and productive lives.

IDPwD aims to increase public awareness, understanding and inclusion of people with disability and to celebrate their achievements.

GNA
Deborah Apetorgbor, GNA

Accra, Dec. 17, GNA - Givers Never Lack (GNL), a foundation promoting the cause of autism and cerebral palsy awareness, has requested for assistance to facilitate its public education on the health conditions.

The Accra-based foundation has, for two years since its establishment in 2014, assisted cerebral palsy and autism patients in subtle ways and is caring for 220 children across the country.

Mr Edward Amankwah, the 60-year old founder of the GNL Foundation, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that any support, whether in cash or kind, was welcomed to complement the efforts of the Foundation.

He explained that organisations could partner the Foundation and help them with vehicles and other needed logistics to facilitate their movement across the regions so as to create the awareness of the behavioural factors that led to cerebral palsy and autism in babies.

He said he had been inspired to establish the Foundation due to the condition of his 15-year old son who suffered from cerebral palsy.

He said the condition of his son elicited much derogatory and unwelcoming commentary from neighbours and observers, adding, 'That compounded the situation as my family has always been very cautious to give our son the special care he needs.

'Many people in Ghana give mythical attributions to these conditions. Some claim the patients are river children, as such, parents of such children even go to the extent of sending their children to the forest and other places to engage in horrifying acts.

'Caring for my son is extremely stressful, so I also share the plight of parents in the same situation. Hence I have taken it upon myself with the help of the Foundation, to create awareness that the condition is not spiritual but result from the lifestyles of expectant mothers and other conditions,' he added.

Rev. Patrick Dogbe, the Chief Counsellor of the Givers Never Lack Foundation, in charge of the scientific aspects relating to causes, effects and management processes of the conditions, stated that the Foundation had received many calls from families with autism and cerebral palsy patients requesting their assistance, however small.

He said the Foundation had very limited resources with which to respond to the calls of distressed mothers whose partners had abandoned them due to their perceptions of these special children.

Meanwhile, Osabarima Asante Frempong-Manso II, the Chief of Apedwa Traditional Area, in the Eastern Region, had granted 10 acres of land to the Foundation to build a facility that would be dedicated solely to caring for children with cerebral palsy and autism.

However, according to Mr Amankwah, Osabarima Frempong-Manso had cautioned that if the land was not developed in the next two years, he would reclaim it and use it for another purpose.

For these reasons, he said, the Foundation was requesting assistance from all organisations and other entities as well as all Ghanaians to help complement the generosity of the chief to develop the land.

Mr Amankwah expressed the hope that in the near future, they would establish a school for cerebral palsy and autism children and reduce the rate of the conditions in Ghana and Africa.

GNA
Accra, Dec 17, GNA - The Police has been asked to investigate all election -related offences and work with the Office of the Attorney General to prosecute the offenders as deterrence to impunity.

Political parties and their candidates have also been called upon to denounce supporters who engage in hate speech and acts of violence.

This was contained in a statement by the National Democratic Institute's (NDI) International, an Observer Mission to Ghana's December 7 presidential and parliamentary elections.

The statement said political parties should disband party affiliated vigilante groups, and encourage party youth to engage peacefully in electoral and political processes.

It commended the Security Services for the roles they largely played positively and professionally at the polling stations.

'Nearly without exception, the Police and other security services deployed within the polling stations maintained a non-intrusive profile, and managed both queues and disputes in a calm and professional manner,' said the statement.

The statement noted that in the months leading to the elections, Ghanaians expressed grave concerns about hate speech and the propagation of misinformation, particularly, through social media.

'In one notable case, the Electoral Commission's (EC) efforts at voter education were almost undermined by a rumour that texting a voter ID number to a contact number established by the EC to help voters determine their polling station locations, would cause the voter's name to be deleted from the voter register,' it said.

The NDI also noted that whilst most journalists ensured responsible, objective and issue-oriented election reporting, others did not responsibly verify information received before broadcasting, which contributed to the rumour mill.

'In an example of good practices, the Citi Fm deployed approximately 200 trained reporters and volunteers across the country to provide accurate reportage on Election Day,' said the NDI adding that, 'likewise, the technology focused nonprofit organisation, Penplusbytes, set up a Social Media Tracking Center, to monitor and respond in real time, to postings on social media platforms.'

It tracked emergent trends, verified incidents, passed information on to relevant stakeholders and identified false reports.

The NDI observed that voter turnout was satisfactory, with special consideration being given to the elderly and pregnant women.

It said party agents from the two major parties, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP), were well represented in almost all the polling stations, adding that, these agents also conducted themselves in a mutually respectful manner.

Non-partisan citizen observers were deployed in significant numbers in almost all of the polling sites visited, the statement noted, adding that the Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO) for example, deployed 8,000 citizen observers across the country.

The delegation noted a significant reduction in the number of rejected ballots, compared with previous Ghanaian elections, which indicated successful voter education efforts by the EC, civil society organisations and the media, it said.

The statement urged the EC to undertake thorough post-election review of the conduct of the 2016 polls, both internally and with election stake-holders, and adopt appropriate recommendations on improvements to the process in order to attain and consolidate best practices.

It also urged the Government to initiate electoral reforms in the next legislature, prioritising issues such as revising the current voter register, or developing a new one, in order to ensure that all eligible Ghanaians had a genuine opportunity to exercise their right to vote.

The NDI is a non-profit, non-partisan organization, working to support and strengthen democratic institutions world-wide through citizen participation, openness and accountability in government.

GNA
- Nigerian Senate has said it might reconsider its decision to confirm Ibrahim Magu as the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)

- The upper chamber said the explanations provided by President Muhammadu Buhari, who nominated Magu, would determine if the nominee would be considered

- Ibrahim Magu was rejected by the lawmakers based on a security report on him

Senate to reconsider Magu's confirmation

The Nigerian Senate has said it might reconsider its decision to confirm Ibrahim Magu as the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The upper chamber said the explanations provided by President Muhammadu Buhari, who had nominated Magu, would determine if the nominee would be considered or not, The Punch reports.

READ ALSO: 3 prominent Nigerians capable of succeeding as EFCC boss

Senator Sabi Abdullahi, the chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, on Friday, December 16, said that the lawmakers had taken their decision on the matter and it was left for the president to take the next step.

He said: This is not an issue that is ambiguous and I will not take issue with anybody. What we have said is very straightforward and unambiguous. It is not our responsibility or in our power to tell Mr. President what to do.

It is his prerogative and for every action taken, there must be a basis. Let him take any action but, of course, he will base his action on explanations. If that happens, we will take his explanations based on their face value and see. Until then, our decision is very simple. It is unambiguous; that is what we said from the beginning and that is what we stand by.

However the Senate said Magus rejection would be communicated to the Presidency by next week.

Abdullahi, said the communication would undergo legislative process before getting to President Buhari.

The acting chairman of the EFCC was on Thursday, December 15, rejected by the lawmakers based on a security report on him.

READ ALSO: 7 reasons Senate may have rejected Magu as EFCC chairman

A security report by the Department of State Services (DSS) revealed the details on Magu, saying that the anti-corruption boss who has been praised for his work at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) failed integrity test.

In the memo signed by one Folashade Bello and addressed to the Senate on Friday, the DSS maintained that rejecting Magu was the right decision.

It also accused the anti-corruption chief of living beyond his means, such as currently staying in a 40million apartment at 20million a year. The apartment was not paid for by the EFCC but by a former ally of President Buhari Umar Muhammed, who was just recently released by the DSS on order of a court.

Source: Legit.ng
New Delhi: On Saturday, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley hinted that not all of the Rs 15.44 lakh crore worth of currency junked will be remonetised through issuance of new notes as he said digital currency will fill the gap.

Calling the scrapping of old 500 and 1,000 rupee notes as "a courageous step", he said the government could do it as India today has the capacity to take such decisions and experiment boldly.

The move will create a new Indian normal as the one that existed for the past seven decades is "unacceptable", he said, adding that demonetisation will help rid the economy of high cash circulation that had led to tax evasion, blackmoney and currency being used for crime.

"One of the efforts of this exercise has to be that even though a reduced cash currency could remain, our conscious effort... (is) to supplement the rest with a digital currency," he said while addressing annual general meeting of industry chamber FICCI.

As many as 17,165 million pieces of Rs 500 denomination and 6,858 million pieces of Rs 1,000 banknotes were in circulation on 8 November when the government made the surprise announcement.

Jaitley further said: "The whole process of remonetisation is not going to take very long time and I'm sure very soon the Reserve Bank by injecting currency daily into the banking and postal system will be able to complete that."

Also, the push to use the digital mode to make payments has been gaining ground. "The manner it has taken place in the last five weeks is indeed commendable. Only a section of Parliament seems unaware of what is happening," he said.

Once the remonetisation process is complete, it will mark "the creation of a new Indian normal because the normal that existed for 70 years is an unacceptable normal," he added.

"The 70-year normal had become a way of life for almost every Indian. It was not merely a fact that you had a lot more cash currency, far larger cash currency as part of your GDP... the economic and social consequences of that are extremely adverse."

He made a point that dealing in that cash currency had led to a lot of aberrations in terms of tax non-compliance, currency being used for collateral purposes like crime, escaping the tax net and not getting into the banking system.

As far as the decision with regard to currency is concerned, I think it marks a very important beginning: FM Arun Jaitley #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/lv5tKxjSdh  ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016

The government took "a somewhat courageous step" of withdrawing high demonetisation currency and went in for a large currency swap.

"The fact that India today has the capacity to take these decisions and capacity to enforce them, to experiment boldly even when at a time when the world is looking more inwards, marks an exception as far as India is concerned," the finance minister asserted.

Jaitley also spoke of the country's "stamina" to sustain a decision like demonetisation, which has "clear long-term gains even at the cost of short-term inconveniences".

"Therefore, once we have that stamina notwithstanding fringe positions taken by national parties, one would always be able to implement these extremely successfully. Long-term benefits of these are going to be absolutely clear even if we bear the short-term pains," he said.

The process of #ReMonetisation is not going to take a lot of time: FM Arun Jaitley at FICCI's 89th Annual General Meeting pic.twitter.com/eoxW2gDG75  ANI (@ANI_news) December 17, 2016

He seemed confident that the existing almost 75 crore debit and credit cards in the market, besides e-wallets, will help increase digital transactions. He also made a pitch that these transformations will have to be carried to their logical conclusion.

"There are, of course, even as we reform, domestic trends which are being visible on digitization of payments," Jaitley said, adding that the government has clarity of direction as well as a broad shoulder and stamina to sustain these decisions.
New Delhi: Former Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi was on Saturday sent to judicial custody till 30 December after CBI said he was not required for further custodial interrogation in AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam.

Special CBI judge Arvind Kumar also sent Tyagi's cousin Sanjeev Tyagi and lawyer Gautam Khaitan, co-accused in the case related to procurement of 12 VVIP choppers from UK-based firm during the UPA 2 regime, to jail after the probe agency did not seek their further custody.

After the agency's submission, all the three accused moved their bail applications, which will be heard on 21 December as the CBI sought time to reply to the applications.

During the proceedings, the counsel appearing for Tyagi submitted before the court that the Italian top court had

ordered retrial of ex-Finmeccanica executives in VVIP chopper scam case, which makes CBI's stand weak in the current case.

The court, however, said it will take up the matter on next date of hearing on 21 December.

The court had on 14 December extended the CBI remand of Tyagi and the two others by three days after CBI had said it was a "very serious" case requiring interrogation to unearth larger conspiracy as "interest of the nation was compromised".

The agency had earlier submitted in the court: "It is a very high-profile case and we need proper material. One part of the crime was committed in India while various other angles are in foreign land."

Tyagi's counsel had told the court that he was "a decorated war hero of the nation" and "CBI, which was termed

as 'a caged parrot' by the Supreme Court, is trying to tarnish his image".

Earlier, Tyagi's counsel had claimed that the decision to procure VVIP choppers from AgustaWestland was a "collective" one and Prime Minister's Office(PMO) was also a part of it.

CBI had alleged that Tyagi had "abused his official position" and when he was the Air Chief Marshal, he had made

huge investments in land and other properties and had not disclosed the source his income.

It was also alleged that Khaitan was the "brain" behind how the bribe money reached India and several firms through which the money travelled came into existence and Sanjeev was known to alleged European middleman Carlo Gerosa.

The 71-year old Tyagi, who had retired in 2007, his cousin Sanjeev and Khaitan were arrested on 9 December by the agency in connection with the case.

The CBI had also claimed that alleged European middleman Guido Haschke's statement, which was received through LR

(Letter Rogatory), proved that he was assured by Sanjeev Tyagi that the latter's brother was going to be Air Chief Marshal.

The accused persons, however, had alleged that the "CBI was trying to extract the confession using force".
Sean,

Were in trouble. I read your excellent piece about Russia and the DNC hacks and President Barack Hussein Obama being a ninny about cybersecurity, and I listened to your awesome interview with Julian Assange, American Hero, and I agree a million percent with everything you said about the alt-left basically creating a fake news story to destroy our confidence in President Trump. It was all awesome. As usual.

And you raised a great, basic question: Why didnt they say anything before the election? Sore losers! Trump won, and now Im getting absolutely hammered pounding down all those liberal tears distilled from sour grapes. Theres probably been no better time in all of human history to be on Twitter.

But it turns out your question is a lot more dangerous than maybe you first thought.

Dont get me wrong, though. I trust you. The FBI says theres no evidence, and Comey redeemed himself back in October with the email thing round two so definitely hes on the level. Plus Trump had this boss tweet the other day where he tweeted something about why didnt they say anything earlier? Just like you! And Assange says he didnt get any of the info from Russia. Theres no evidence! Case closed, Id say.

Besides, weve got Silicon Valley right here and they know so much more about hacking than the Obama regime they could have done it easy. Why isnt Nobama investigating them? And then this story about Russia helping Trump comes from totally out of the blue. (Get it? Totally out of the BLUE.) Because democrats cant accept the fact they lost, big league. Sour grapes make great wine, Sean. Or should I say whine? Feel free to use that! ;)

But heres my question I actually kinda remember hearing a lot about Russia during the campaign. I remember it because I remember that I thought it was just another alt-libtard media distraction to trick us into not reading the actual information that was in the Russian leaks. I remember it really well because that is when I knew I had a sacred duty as a patriot to share all the Podesta stories (gross) that I could on Facebook even if they came from Russia who was our sworn enemy since I was a kid. It doesnt matter where information comes from as long as its true. Bottom line: We knew it was put out there to help Trump. Russia couldnt use it directly, of course. It was up to America, and if the alt-left media wasnt going to do anything about it, then it was our duty as patriots to use whatever ammunition was provided us to take out Hitliary Sinton.

But thats why Im really worried. Because of what I remember. Like, I truly do remember sharing those posts and thinking, Oh man, this is going to destroy Crooked! Trumps gonna win! Landslide! (Did he ever!) And I remember thinking about how Russia and Wikileaks are national heroes in my book, because they did their patriotic duty, too, and saved us from a national disaster by doing all they could to get Hillary not get elected.

So thats why Im freaking out  because Im remembering things happening exactly the way Obama is suddenly lying about how they happened. But thankfully, youre saying it isnt true.

At first I thought I was crazy. But then I remembered I wasnt alone: all my friends said all the same things I did. And were not all crazy  we voted Trump lol!

So I gave it some thought and realized another possibility is that the American people could have been brainwashed by the alt-left into fake-remembering all the anti-Hitlery stuff that came from Russia that we shared on Facebook a few months ago with what I can only describe in a sissy way as pure glee.

So I looked into it because it would be a huge story if Obama were using propaganda and the cyber to try to change all our memories and get the electors to betray their country and elect Hillarious Blimpton or make Trump seem to the American people like hes maybe not a legit President (B Hussein O, Muslim Kenyan national, is stealing Mr. Trumps own idea and using it against him because he doesnt have any ideas of his own, just look whats happened to this country for instance) and the radical alt-liberace media like NBC Nightly News was in on it, so they were aiding and abetting treason.

And it paid off! I found all this stuff! Which is where you come in, because I trust you more than I trust the government or myself and youre saying the exact opposite thing from us. Plus Assange is saying it, too, and Comey is saying it, too. You guys might be immune because of all your time hardening yourself against alt-lib propaganda, and plus Assange has been locked up in a tower in London the whole time.

The only thing is that Russia isnt denying it, though, which  thats a little weird, right?

Anyway. Here are my big discoveries.

First: I checked Facebook and those posts were all right there on my own wall. All my MAGA friends had them on their walls, too, and so did the all the Trump groups and some of them were like, thanks ussr ha ha! which freaked me out a little because the government may have created a bot to do that and hack my private Facebook.

Then I used Google and it turns out that way back in July there were all these headlines. Like, there was even one from the Wall Street Journal, which I thought was conservative: Obama Says Experts Tie Russia to DNC Hacking  President says motives unknown but suggests Russia would stand to benefit from a Trump presidential victory.

AND THEN I saw there was this press conference Trump gave where he actually asked Russia to hack Hillary Clinton. Guess what? It was the same date as the WSJ article! Do you think maybe someone planted that like in 1984?

I would. Because then theres this other story from September where Boo-hisslery said she thought Russia was interfering and trying to tip the election in Trumps favor. Lock her up!

I obviously couldnt just stop there. It was just too big. I had to read all these liberal fake news stories for myself, because I had to get them to you  you are the only one who has the guts to set the record straight. (Alex Jones will not return my calls.)

And theres even this debate footage of Crooked rudely interrupting Mr. Trump to yell shrilly at him about how Putin was interfering in the election and it would be obvious that it would help Trump, and said something about the fact that  somehow  seventeen US intelligence agencies all agreed about it. I didnt watch that debate, so I dont know if its real  did you see it? What I do know is that seventeen US intelligence agencies would never agree on anything. Nothing is that certain! Plus it looks like the Clinton News Network may have faked the debate footage I found, or maybe doctored it with photoshop or something, because you cant see Clintons health harness under her shirt.

Plus, as you pointed out in your article using your awesome journalism skills, three weeks before the election Obama even said, there is no serious person out there who would suggest somehow that you could even  you could even rig Americas elections. And so Id advise Mr. Trump to stop whining.

Now whos whining?

But because I was so impressed that you found an article the media forgot to bleach, I looked it up, too. Turns out its even worse: everything I could find had the context of Obama not talking about the Russians hacking into the Podesta emails  instead, he was talking about them hacking the voting machines at that time. Rigging the voting/rigging the election. A sinister and subtle substitution.

So whats Obamas excuse for why he didnt tell us about all this supposed CIA evidence before the election? Well, turns out some people say  and supposedly wrote months ago  that he wanted bi-partisan support before going public that the hack was designed to hurt Hillary (help Trump) because he was worried about tipping the election and seeming partisan. He didnt get that bi-partisan support, but he sure implied what Russia was doing. What a patriot, right? He clearly does not care about national security.

But you know who does care about this country and didnt let any of that petty partisan stuff stand in his way and chose to do the right thing even if it influenced the outcome of a Presidential election and he didnt have any hard evidence on him just yet that he could point to in order to back up all the sensational stuff he was saying? James Comey, Republican, thats who.

And now look who looks partisan.

Barack Hussein Obama, Democrat, thats who.

But what did they really know? Nothing. Theres no evidence. But I guess the failing New York Times has this article supposedly from October where they say the Russian hack obviously would have been done in Trumps interest! The dead giveaway that this is a fake story, though, is the hack job on the quote from Trump at the end about whether he was connected to Russia: I dont deal there. I have no businesses there. I have no loans from Russia. Riddle me this: Why would Trump just volunteer out of nowhere that last weirdly specific part about having no loans from Russia, without being prompted by a question asking him about loans? Theyre setting up another conspiracy. Just wait.

Speaking of whether Russia really was working to benefit Trump, our own President-elects Twitter account may have been compromised. Check out some of his supposed campaign tweets  theyre making it look like he used the info from the Russian hack to his benefit. Now check Clintons Twitter. You guessed it: Nothing!

Thats the next President of the USA. High treason.

All this came straight from Google, which is run by liberals, FYI, which supports my theory.

I dont know what to make of it all, Sean. Its crazy. Whats happened to reality? Whats happened to the news? Who else can we trust? No one? Sometimes I feel like Im wearing earbuds blasting Kanye but Im in some totally incongruous place like, I dont know, Trump Tower or something.

I wonder if you know what the long-term consequences of this kind of discourse will be, should it keep up like this. Youre a smart man, so I bet you do. Were in for an information fight. There are two incompatible information systems and they cant even have a rational dialogue. And now everyone is scared of being hacked, so even the Republicans are going to have to be careful about what they say  even on private email. What does this mean for freedom of speech?

I mean, isnt that what our democracy is based on?

Our government and our people, who vote based on the information available to them, not only have a right to know but need to know exactly what happened here. Its not unlikely that the American government and its intelligence agencies colluded with a powerful propaganda machine to influence the electoral process in order to install a candidate of their choosing and render unstable the underpinnings of American democracy we once thought sacrosanct.

Facts are non-partisan. So in the end, Sean, Ive got to disagree with you on one really important thing: We desperately need a full, in-depth, relentless and transparent investigation.

The American people have a right to know exactly what happened here. What went down, what failed us. Because it wouldnt be good for our democracy, it wouldnt be good for our country, and it sure as shootin wouldnt be good for our sacred electoral process  which probably too many of us sadly already consider rigged  if were being brainwashed with propaganda spewed into our minds from the alt-lib media-Obama industrial complex on screens made in Chinese factories we never see designed by liberal tech corporations colluding with the Obama regime to deploy some sort of top-secret high-powered CIA mind tool that would make the entire American public except for you, Comey, and Assange misremember the last six months of US history. That would be unprecedented. We have a right to know.

Big fan,

Roger Sollenberger
READ: David Baazov's Lawyer Asks for Evidence in Trading 'Front' Case

December 16, 2016 PokerNews Staff

Former Amaya Inc. Chief Executive Officer David Baazov went to a Quebec court Dec. 13 to face allegations that he had used a front for illegal trading leading into the $4.9 billion bid on PokerStars, reported The Globe and Mail.

His lawyer, Sophie Melchers of Norton Rose Fulbright asked the courts for disclosure from the Quebec securities regulators, the Autorite des Marches Financiers (AMF), regarded the undisclosed front, sums and entities.

Without these pieces, Melchers told the court that she cannot build a proper defense and that would obstruct Baazov's right to a fair trial.

All those ingredients, we dont know them," she said in court.

Baazov is facing charges of "aiding with trades while in possession of privileged information, influencing or attempting to influence the market price of Amaya securities and communitcating privileged information," according to the Globe and Mail.

The AMF started its investigation in 2014 when looking into the acquisition of PokerStars' prior owner, Oldford Group Ltd.

Others have been charged for receipt of kickbacks for Baazov's alleged actions. Evidence for the present case was disclosed in both July and November with two more dates in the future and 80 witnesses identified.

A lawyer from AMF was scheduled to provide rebuttal later that day.

Read the full article on The Globe and Mail's website.
PokerNews Podcast Episode 424: Farewell EPT Feat. Lee Jones

December 16, 2016 PokerNews Staff

In this week's PokerNews Podcast, Matthew Parvis and Sarah Herring say their goodbyes to the European Poker Tour before listening to a few voicemails and talking with PokerStars' Lee Jones.

Jones goes into detail about his EPT memories and the final EPT Prague.

You can subscribe to the entire iBus Media Network on iTunes here, or you can access the RSS feed here. The PokerNews Podcast family of podcasts is now available on audioBoom.
Boron has been identified for the first time on the surface of Mars, indicating the potential for long-term habitable groundwater in the ancient past. This finding and others from NASA's Curiosity rover science team will be discussed in a press conference today in San Francisco during the American Geophysical Union conference.

"No prior mission to Mars has found boron," said Patrick Gasda, a postdoctoral researcher at Los Alamos National Laboratory. "If the boron that we found in calcium sulfate mineral veins on Mars is similar to what we see on Earth, it would indicate that the groundwater of ancient Mars that formed these veins would have been 0-60 degrees Celsius [32-140 degrees Fahrenheit] and neutral-to-alkaline pH." The temperature, pH, and dissolved mineral content of the groundwater could make it habitable.

The boron was identified by the rover's laser-shooting Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument, which was developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory in conjunction with the French space agency. Los Alamos' work on discovery-driven instruments like ChemCam stems from the Laboratory's experience building and operating more than 500 spacecraft instruments for national defense.

Boron is famously associated with arid sites where much water has evaporated away -- think of the borax that mule teams once hauled from Death Valley. However, environmental implications of the boron found by Curiosity are still open to debate. Scientists are considering at least two possibilities for the source of boron that groundwater left in the veins: It could be that the drying out of part of Gale lake resulted in a boron-containing deposit in an overlying layer, not yet reached by Curiosity. Some of the material from this layer could have later been carried by groundwater down into fractures in the rocks. Or perhaps changes in the chemistry of clay-bearing deposits and groundwater affected how boron was picked up and dropped off within the local sediments.

The discovery of boron is only one of several recent findings related to the composition of Martian rocks. Curiosity is climbing a layered Martian mountain and finding rock-composition evidence of how ancient lakes and wet underground environments changed, billions of years ago, in ways that affected their favorability for microbial life.

As the rover has progressed uphill, compositions trend toward more clay and more boron. These and other variations can tell us about conditions under which sediments were initially deposited and about how later groundwater moving through the accumulated layers altered and transported ingredients.

Groundwater and chemicals dissolved in it that appeared later on Mars left its effects most clearly in mineral veins that filled cracks in older layered rock. But it also affected the composition of that rock matrix surrounding the veins, and the fluid was in turn affected by the rock.

"There is so much variability in the composition at different elevations, we've hit a jackpot," said John Grotzinger, of Caltech, Pasadena, Calif. As the rover gets further uphill, researchers are impressed by the complexity of the lake environments when clay-bearing sediments were being deposited and also by the complexity of the groundwater interactions after the sediments were buried.

"A sedimentary basin such as this is a chemical reactor," Grotzinger said. "Elements get rearranged. New minerals form and old ones dissolve. Electrons get redistributed. On Earth, these reactions support life."

Whether Martian life has ever existed is still unknown. No compelling evidence for it has been found. When Curiosity landed in Mars' Gale Crater in 2012 the mission's main goal was to determine whether the area ever offered an environment favorable for microbes.

Four recent drilling sites, from "Oudam" this past June through "Sebina" in October, are spaced about 80 feet (about 25 meters) apart in elevation. This uphill pattern allows the science team to sample progressively younger layers that reveal Mount Sharp's ancient environmental history. "Variations in these minerals and elements indicate a dynamic system," Grotzinger said. "They interact with groundwater as well as surface water. The water influences the chemistry of the clays, but the composition of the water also changes. We are seeing chemical complexity indicating a long, interactive history with the water. The more complicated the chemistry is, the better it is for habitability. The boron and clay underline the mobility of elements and electrons, and that is good for life."
Health care provider burnout is known to have a relationship with both quality of care and patient safety. Psychologists from the School of Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis conducted the first study to systematically, quantitatively analyze the links between health care provider burnout and health care quality and safety across medical disciplines.

The meta-analysis of 82 studies focused on links between burnout and quality as well as between burnout and safety. The studies involved almost 211,000 physicians, nurses and other clinicians.

The IUPUI scientists examined relationships between various aspects of provider burnout -- including emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and reduced personal accomplishment -- and the quality of care as perceived by providers and as perceived by patients (patient satisfaction). The scientists also examined the link between provider burnout and health care safety in the studies.

Provider self-reported quality ratings had a stronger correlation with burnout than did patient satisfaction. Similarly for safety concerns, provider burnout had a stronger relationship with perceptions of safety than with reported safety events including close or near misses; however, both relationships were still statistically significant.

"The Relationship Between Professional Burnout and Quality and Safety in Healthcare: A Meta-Analysis" is published online ahead of print in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

In their meta-analysis, the IUPUI scientists combined data from different types of studies conducted at numerous locations around the world with a variety of types of clinicians. Meta-analysis enables compression of large amounts of information, permitting analysis and dissemination of composite findings.

"We found a consistent relationship -- technically a medium effect size -- between higher levels of provider burnout and lower levels of both quality and safety," said study corresponding author Michelle Salyers, professor of psychology at IUPUI. She directs the school's clinical psychology program and is director of the Assertive Community Treatment Center of Indiana.

"These are important observations; however, we don't know the direction of the correlations," she said. "Does burnout cause care quality to diminish, or does poor quality cause clinician burnout? Or is there another factor causing both provider burnout and poor quality?"

Studies were weighted to account for the number of providers involved. The IUPUI scientists also rated the rigor of the studies to determine if the correlation between burnout and quality or between burnout and safety varied by study size and thoroughness of investigation. They found that it did not. They did, however, note roles for other predictors of quality and safety including organizational policies, staffing ratios and communication.

"While burnout is not the primary cause of poor quality health care nor the primary cause of patient safety issues, links between provider burnout and care quality and patient safety are real and should be recognized," said Salyers. "Our work provides a message for health care funders, policymakers and those who 'run' health care in a variety of settings -- clinic, hospital and system administrators -- that as they work to improve patient outcomes and safety, they should pay attention to the well-being of their workforce."
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has clarified that the government has not made any changes to the laws, and there aren't any exemptions granted to political parties post demonetisation. A statement released by Jaitley's office said there was no change made to the taxation laws (Second Amendment) Act, 2016, which came into force on 15 December, 2016.

On the controversy regarding tax scrutiny of political parties, Jaitley said, "This is a complete media creation and there are no changes made in the law in that regard. Has a single change made in the last two months or so or in the last two-and-a-half years with regard to taxation of political parties? The answer is 'No'."

"Nothing has been done, whatever was the existing system which has been existed for the last 15 years is continuing and if somebody creates a political party for the purposes channelising funds, then obviously the law will step in," he said.

"I implore all journalist friends to be fully outraged against any step of the government, if it is not against corruption. But in equal measure, I would also implore them to do adequate research before jumping the gun. Under Section 13A of the IT Act, 1961, political parties have to submit audited accounts, income and expenditure details and balance sheets," he said.

"Post demonetisation, no political party can accept donations in Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes since they were rendered illegal tenders. Any party doing so would be in violation of law. Just like anyone else, political parties can also deposit their cash held in the old currency in banks till the 30 December deadline provided they can satisfactorily explain the source of income and their books of accounts reflect the entries prior to 8 November," he added.

"And if there is any discrepancy in the books or records of political parties, they are as liable to be questioned by the Income Tax authorities as is anyone else. They enjoy no immunity whatsoever. There is no question of sparing anyone, and the political class is no exception. In fact, PM Modi is setting a new example of propriety in public life, by asking all MPs and MLAs to submit their bank account details post demonetisation. We would like to urge the other parties to do the same and prove their intentions against corruption," Jaitley said.

With inputs from PTI
A particular structure in the brain is a "choke point" for a type of epileptic seizure that affects mostly children, Stanford University School of Medicine investigators have found.

The researchers used an advanced technology called optogenetics to show, in rodent models of one of the most common forms of childhood epilepsy, that inducing synchronized, rhythmic activity in a specific nerve tract within this structure is sufficient to cause seizures, while disrupting that activity is sufficient to terminate them.

Epilepsy, a pattern of recurrent seizures, affects about 1 in 26 people over their lifetime, said John Huguenard, PhD, professor of neurology and neurological sciences and of molecular and cellular physiology. Absence, or petit-mal, seizures -- a form of epilepsy most likely to occur among children ages 6-15 -- account for about 1 in 20 cases of epilepsy. They are characterized by a sudden loss of consciousness, accompanied by a behavioral and postural freezing in place, that persists for up to 15 seconds. A child experiencing an absence seizure usually has no recollection of it.

"These seizures can be so subtle that they go unnoticed or are mistaken for a lack of attention," Huguenard said.

The new findings, described in a study to be published online Dec. 15 in Neuron, point to the possibility of improved ways of reducing, halting or possibly even preventing absence seizures in susceptible children. There's reason to think these findings may also apply to a wider range of seizure types, including the more dramatic and better-known grand mal, characterized by involuntary jerking movements in addition to loss of consciousness.

Huguenard shares senior authorship of the study with Jeanne Paz, PhD, a former postdoctoral scholar in his group and now assistant professor of neurology at the University of California-San Francisco and assistant investigator at the Gladstone Institutes in San Francisco. After Paz, who initiated the study, departed for UCSF, the experiments were continued by Stanford graduate student Jordan Sorokin, the study's lead author, under Huguenard's direction.

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Multiple, daily seizures

"Many people think of absence seizures as being mild because there's no shaking or falling on the floor," said Paz. "But some kids have more than 200 absence seizures a day, making it impossible for them to learn at school. And the drugs they take for their seizures may not work well."

Absence seizures are a type of so-called generalized seizures: patterns of rhythmic nerve-cell firing activity that, while originating in one or another brain region, propagate throughout the entire organ. Implicated in all generalized seizures is nerve circuitry in a deep-brain structure called the thalamus, whose normal functions include relaying sensory information to the cerebral cortex via a nerve projection called the thalamocortical tract.

Resorting to an increasingly widespread technology called optogenetics, pioneered in the lab of study co-author Karl Deisseroth, MD, PhD, a Stanford professor of bioengineering and of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, the researchers inserted the gene for a light-sensitive cell-surface protein called an opsin into a set of excitatory nerve cells in the thalamocortical tract of rats and mice bred to be prone to absence seizures.

As a result of this manipulation, the opsin appeared on the surfaces of those excitatory thalamocortical nerve cells. The particular opsin the scientists used for some of their experiments was inhibitory. Its presence on nerve cells meant that, whenever yellow light was delivered to them via an implanted fiber-optic cable, those cells would be prevented from firing.

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The thalamocortical tract's excitatory nerve cells are somewhat like excitable second-graders. Imagine a classroom filled with children who share an inability to stay completely quiet for more than five seconds. Imagine, further, a teacher who doesn't mind the occasional loud whisper or random outburst but who will not abide noise above a certain threshold. When the din exceeds that level, the teacher shouts a show-stopping, "Quiet!"

The inevitable result of this enforced silencing: Five seconds later, the room will erupt in a burst of noise, in turn inducing an authoritarian cease-and-desist command, followed by another eruption, and so forth. The very act of inhibition drives a pattern of rhythmic firing.

Disrupting the pattern

Similarly, back in the thalamus, inhibition (the "teacher" analog) is meted out to the thalamocortical tract's excitatory nerve cells by a different set of cells in the thalamus whose job it is to generate useful rhythms in this brain structure. A gentle, rhythmic firing pattern in the thalamocortical tract is typical during normal sleep. It makes sense, when an individual needs sleep, to tune out disruptive sensory inputs from the thalamus to the cortex.

But in absence epilepsy, this useful, rhythmic thalamocortical lullaby is hijacked and amplified into the distortion range. It appears that subtle defects within the circuitry can predispose the thalamocortical tract's firing to slip too easily into lockstep synchrony.

The researchers had observed that firing in the thalamocortical tract shifted from a chaotic to a rhythmic pattern during their test animals' naturally occurring seizures. Using optogenetics, the scientists were able to abruptly inhibit firing in excitatory thalamocortical cells -- and, by so doing, to induce seizures at will in the animals -- at the flick of a switch.

"A single pulse of yellow light was enough to generate rhythmic firing activity throughout the cortex, in both hemispheres of the brain," Huguenard said.

The insertion of a different kind of opsin, also developed in Deisseroth's lab, far from inhibiting excitatory thalamocortical cells made them more excitable in response to a blue-light pulse. This predisposition could be canceled by administering yellow light. Toggling from one to another color of delivered light, the investigators demonstrated that making the excitatory thalamocortical cells less susceptible to inhibition disrupted their collective firing synchrony and blocked seizure activity.

"Our study shows that the thalamus is a choke point whose involvement is essential to the maintenance of absence seizures," Paz said. Both Paz and Huguenard suggested that treatments capable of guiding excitatory thalamocortical nerve cells from a tightly synchronized to a more chaotic firing pattern may be able to halt absence seizures -- and, maybe, other forms of generalized epilepsy, too.
Physicists at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), in collaboration with researchers in South Korea and Germany, have developed a theoretical framework for improving the stability and intensity of particle accelerator beams. Scientists use the high-energy beams, which must be stable and intense to work effectively, to unlock the ultimate structure of matter. Physicians use medical accelerators to produce beams that can zap cancer cells.

"When physicists design the next-generation of accelerators, they could use this theory to create the most optimized focused beams," said PPPL physicist Hong Qin. Dr. Qin, Executive Dean of the School of Nuclear Science and Technology at the University of Science and Technology of China, is a co-author of the research described in the November issue of Physical Review Letters.

Zipping through tunnels or tubes

Accelerator beams consist of billions of charged particles that zip through tunnels or tubes before colliding with their targets. In scientific experiments, these beams strike their targets with an enormous energy density and generate subatomic particles that have not been seen since the early universe. The long-sought Higgs Boson, the particle that carries the field that gives mass to some fundamental particles, was discovered in this way in the Large Hadron Collider in Europe, the world's largest and most powerful accelerator.

In order for a beam to maintain its intensity, the particles in the beam must remain close together as they zip through the beamline. However, the beam loses intensity as the mutual repulsion of particles and imperfections of the accelerator degrade the beam. To minimize such degradation and losses, the walls of large accelerators are lined with high precision magnets to control their motion.

The new research advances PPPL's theoretical work over the past seven years to improve the stability of beam particles. The theory strongly couples the vertical and horizontal motions of the particles -- in contrast to standard theory that treats the different motions as independent of each other. Results of the theory "provide important new theoretical tools for the detailed design and analysis of high-intensity beam manipulations," according to the paper.

Lead author of the work is Moses Chung, a doctoral graduate of the Princeton Program in Plasma Physics who is now with the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology in South Korea. Co-authors include the late Ronald Davidson, a former director of PPPL and professor of astrophysical sciences at Princeton University, and Lars Groening and Chen Xiao of the Helmholtz Centre for Heavy Ion Research in Germany. Support for this work comes from the National Research Foundation of Korea and the DOE Office of Science.

Altering a long-standing model

The paper addresses a 1959 work by two Russian physicists that formed the basis for analysis of the properties of high-intensity beams for the past several decades. This work considers the particle motions to be uncoupled. Chung and his co-authors modify the Russian model -- called the Kapchinskij-Vladimirskij distribution -- to include all coupling forces and other elements that can make the beams more stable.

The resulting theoretical tool, which generalized the Russian model, agreed well with simulation results for the Emittance Transfer Experiment at the Helmholtz Centre in Germany, which illustrated a new beam manipulation technology for future accelerators. More intense beams could enable the discovery of new subatomic particles, said Qin.
Researchers at the University of Turku, Finland have identified a new way of blocking the spread of cancer. Calcium channel blockers, which are used to lower blood pressure, block breast and pancreatic cancer invasion by inhibiting cellular structures.

By screening already approved drugs, the team led by Postdoctoral Researcher Guillaume Jacquemet and Academy Professor Johanna Ivaska has discovered that calcium channel blockers can efficiently stop cancer cell invasion in vitro. Calcium channel blockers are currently used to treat hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, but their potential use in blocking cancer cell metastases has not been previously reported.

Cancer kills because of its ability to spread throughout the body and form metastases. Therefore, developing drugs that block the ability of cancer cells to disseminate is a major anti-cancer therapeutic avenue. Developing new drugs, however, is a very lengthy and expensive process and many promising drugs fail clinical trials because of unanticipated toxicity and side effects. Thus, finding new targets for drugs already in use to treat other diseases, in other words drug repurposing, is an emerging area in developing anti-cancer therapies.

- Identification of anti-hypertension drugs as potential therapeutics against breast and pancreatic cancer metastasis was a big surprise. The targets of these drugs were not know to be present in cancer cells and therefore no one had considered the possibility that these drugs might be effective against aggressive cancer types, says Professor Ivaska.

Sticky Finger-like Structures in Cancer Cell Enable Its Movement

For several years, the research team from the Turku Centre for Biotechnology lead by Professor Johanna Ivaska has focused their efforts on understanding how cancer cells move and invade surrounding tissue. The team has identified that aggressively spreading cancer cells express a protein called Myosin-10 which drives cancer cell motility.

- Myosin-10 expressing cancers have a large number of structures called filopodia. They are sticky finger-like structures the cancer cells extend to sense their environment and to navigate -- imagine a walking blind spider, explains Dr Jacquemet.

The team found that calcium channel blockers target specifically these sticky fingers rendering them inactive, thus efficiently blocking cancer cell movement. This suggest that they might be effective drugs against cancer metastasis. However, at this stage much more work is required to assess if these drugs would be efficient against cancer progression.

The team and their collaborators are currently assessing the efficiency of calcium channel blockers to stop the spreading of breast and pancreatic cancer using pre-clinical models and analysing patient data.

The findings were published in Nature Communications journal on 2 December 2016.
Mastercard Incorporated, a technology company, provides transaction processing and other payment-related products and services in the United States and internationally. It facilitates the processing of payment transactions, including authorization, clearing, and settlement, as well as delivers other payment-related products and services. The company offers integrated products and value-added services for account holders, merchants, financial institutions, businesses, governments, and other organizations, such as programs that enable issuers to provide consumers with credits to defer payments; prepaid programs and management services; commercial credit and debit payment products and solutions; and payment products and solutions that allow its customers to access funds in deposit and other accounts. It also provides value-added products and services comprising cyber and intelligence solutions for parties to transact, as well as proprietary insights, drawing on principled use of consumer, and merchant data services. In addition, the company offers analytics, test and learn, consulting, managed services, loyalty, processing, and payment gateway solutions for e-commerce merchants. Further, it provides open banking and digital identity platforms services. The company offers payment solutions and services under the MasterCard, Maestro, and Cirrus. Mastercard Incorporated was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in Purchase, New York.
Winnebago Industries, Inc. manufactures and sells recreation vehicles and marine products primarily for use in leisure travel and outdoor recreation activities. The company operates in six segments: Grand Design Towables, Winnebago Towables, Winnebago Motorhomes, Newmar motorhomes, Chris-Craft Marine, and Winnebago Specialty Vehicles. It provides towable products that are non-motorized vehicles to be towed by automobiles, pickup trucks, SUVs, or vans for use as temporary living quarters for recreational travel, such as conventional travel trailers, fifth wheels, folding camper trailers, and truck campers under the Winnebago and Grand Design brand names. The company also offers motorhomes, which are self-propelled mobile dwellings used primarily as temporary living quarters during vacation and camping trips, or to support active and mobile lifestyles under the Winnebago and Newmar brand names. In addition, it offers other specialty commercial vehicles for law enforcement command centers, mobile medical clinics, and mobile office spaces; commercial vehicles as bare shells to third-party up fitters; and boats in the recreational powerboat industry under the Chris-Craft and Barletta brand names. Further, the company is involved in the original equipment manufacturing of parts for other manufacturers and commercial vehicles. The company sells its products primarily through independent dealers in the United States, Canada, and internationally. Winnebago Industries, Inc. was incorporated in 1958 and is based in Forest City, Iowa.
Trinity Industries, Inc. provides rail transportation products and services under the TrinityRail name in North America. It operates in two segments, Railcar Leasing and Management Services Group, and Rail Products Group. The Railcar Leasing and Management Services Group segment leases freight and tank railcars; originates and manages railcar leases for third-party investors; and provides fleet maintenance and management services. As of December 31, 2021, it had a fleet of 106,970 owned or leased railcars. This segment serves industrial shipper and railroad companies operating in agriculture, construction and metals, consumer products, energy, and refined products and chemicals markets. The Rail Products Group segment manufactures freight and tank railcars for transporting various liquids, gases, and dry cargo; and offers railcar maintenance and modification services. This segment serves railroads, leasing companies, and industrial shippers of products in the agriculture, construction and metals, consumer products, energy, and refined products and chemicals markets. It sells or leases products and services through its own sales personnel and independent sales representatives. Trinity Industries, Inc. was incorporated in 1933 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.
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B.V., Dymax Corporation, Embo Medical Limited, Enturia de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Enturican Inc., FJ International Inc., FlowCardia Inc., FlowCardia LLC, FlowJo LLC, Franklin Lakes Enterprises L.L.C., GSL Solutions, Gamer Lasertechnik GmbH, GenCell Biosystems, GenCell Biosystems Ltd., GeneOhm Sciences Canada ULC, GeneOhm Sciences Inc, Gentest Corporation, Gesco International Inc., Gesco International LLC, Glentech Inc, HandyLab Inc, HandyLab Inc., IBD Holdings LLC, Iontophoretics Corporation, JoHome LLC, Kabushiki Kaisha Medicon (Medicon Inc.), Liberator Health and Education Services Inc., Liberator Health and Wellness Inc., Liberator Medical Holdings Inc., Liberator Medical Supply Inc., Limited Liability Company Bard Rus, Loma Vista Medical Inc., Loma Vista Medical LLC, Luther Medical Products Inc, Lutonix Inc., Med-Design Corporation, Med-Design Investment Holdings Inc., Med-Safe Systems Inc, Med-Safe Systems Inc., MedChem Products Inc., Medafor Inc., Medegen LLC, Medinservice.com Inc., Medivance Inc., NAT Diagnostics Inc., NAT Diagnostics Inc., NOW Medical Distribution Inc., NOW Medical Distribution LLC, Navarre Biomedical LLC, Navarre Biomedical Ltd., Neomend Inc., Nippon Becton Dickinson Company Ltd., Omega Biosystems Incorporated, P.R.C. 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On a factory farm, behind thick metal bars, a pig without a name lost her babies over the summer. Again. She knew them for just 17 days. But there wasn't much knowing to be had. The bars kept her from turning her head - although she tried.

Direct Action Everywhere

And then - before the nameless pig could begin weaning her piglets - they all disappeared. The farmer's idea was to encourage the mother to give birth all over again, as quickly as possible. Most of them would be driven to a slaughterhouse when they were just 6 months old.

Dodo Shows Odd Couples Dog Is So Gentle And Patient With Her Foster Kittens

Direct Action Everywhere

So the cycle of birth and loss on this factory farm, it seemed, would grind on and on until this nameless pig had nothing more to give.

Direct Action Everywhere

But every now and then, a mother's dream escapes the dim confines of a factory farm. And sparks a little hope. That would be Madison.

Direct Action Everywhere

A group of animal rescuers from Direct Action Everywhere visited the farm earlier this month. "Witnessing the stress these mothers have when they're in labor and can't show love for their babies was one of the most terrifying things I've ever seen," Jenny McQueen, a member of Direct Action Everywhere, tells The Dodo. They managed to take one quivering piglet out of there. And that baby not only got a name. But also a home, where she would spend the rest of her days.

Direct Action Everywhere

Madison got to move to a sanctuary, where she's already embracing her new life.

Direct Action Everywhere

"She is very inquisitive, enjoys belly rubs, is extremely clean, and enjoys feasting on bananas and other fruit with other animal friends," McQueen says. Like goats, sheep, other pigs and chickens. And, of course, some very compassionate humans.

Direct Action Everywhere

Madison is just one little pig. Many more suffer every day. But sometimes, all it takes is just one to show us there's a better way to live with animals. "True that this is 'just one pig,'" Alex Bezjak, another member of Direct Action Everywhere, tells The Dodo. "But to Madison, her life is just as valuable as yours is to you."

Direct Action Everywhere
Home is where the heart is. For two Bornean orangutans named Johnny and Desi, that means the forest. Last month, International Animal Rescue (IAR) released Johnny and Desi into the forest in West Kalimantan, Indonesia.

International Animal Rescue

Both Johnny and Desi had rough starts to their lives. When they were young, people stole them from the forest and kept them as pets. While orangutans can lose their ability to return to the wild if they're kept as pets for too long, Johnny and Desi were rescued in time. They were still able to learn - or rather, relearn - how to be wild. Still, their rehabilitation process took time - four years, to be exact. First they had to go to "forest school," where they learned skills in climbing, foraging and making nests, and where they also got to socialize with other orangutans. Once Johnny and Desi graduated from forest school, they were moved to IAR's pre-release island, where they were assessed to see if they were candidates for release.

Orphaned rangutans on the way to forest school | International Animal Rescue

Johnny and Desi showed everyone that they were ready. "The two of them are in good condition and clearly able to fend for themselves," Ayu Budi Handayani, animal care manager at IAR, said in a statement. "They are able to forage and find food for themselves and make a nest each night to sleep in." Other orangutans have not been as lucky as Johnny and Desi. Not only are oranguatans kept as pets, but they're often deliberately killed. According to IAR, Bornean orangutan populations have declined more than 80 percent in the last 75 years. Only about 41,000 Bornean orangutans are left in the wild, and the IUCN recently listed Bornean orangutans as a critically endangered species.

Dodo Shows Adopt Me! Scared Little Dog Is So Full Of Joy Now  And Looking For A Family

International Animal Rescue

The Bornean orangutan's close cousin, the Sumatran orangutan, is also critically endangered, with only about 7,500 individuals left in the wild. The biggest threat to orangutan populations is the destruction of their habitat. While people will destroy forest for all kinds of reasons - logging or mining or farming - the palm oil industry is responsible for most habitat destruction. If a farmer comes across an orangutan while clearing land, it's not unusual for him to kill the animal. If the orangutan has a baby with them, the baby is often captured and kept as a pet, or sold through the illegal wildlife trade. But thanks to their rescuers, Desi and Johnny were able to return to their home.

International Animal Rescue

Release day was anything but straightforward. To get to the site, the IAR team had to travel for 40 hours by truck, boat and foot. The last six hours were the most arduous - locals had to carry Johnny and Desi's heavy transport crates as they cut through the dense forest.

International Animal Rescue

When they finally got there, it was all worth it.

International Animal Rescue

As soon as the IAR team opened the crates, Johnny and Desi immediately leaped into the trees and started to forage.

International Animal Rescue

"We can't imagine a bright future for orangutans if their habitat continues to be lost at this rapid rate ... They will only survive when people start to take the problem seriously," Sanchez said, noting that a team will continue to monitor the two to make sure they're OK.

International Animal Rescue

Yet IAR is confident that Johnny and Desi will be just fine.

International Animal Rescue

"We are sure they will do well in their new home in the forest," Sanchez said.

International Animal Rescue

International Animal Rescue

To help IAR rescue and release more orangutans like Johnny and Desi, you can make a donation here.
California is girding for open revolt against the incoming U.S. presidency of Donald Trump.

In the weeks since the Nov. 8 presidential election, many of Californias leaders have felt that their state is suddenly out of sync with the rest of the U.S.

California is a social welfare, pro-immigrant, pro-environmental protection jurisdiction that invests heavily in its people. Those attributes run counter to the fundamentals of the Trumpism that triumphed Nov. 8.

California, of course, leads the U.S. in population and in economic and innovation prowess. Its success formula has many components. But few if any are more important than attracting the best and brightest tech talent worldwide. That reliance on well-paid immigrants treated with respect runs counter to the hostility of Trumpism to newcomers.

On Nov. 9, the day after the election that made Trump president-elect, California State Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and his counterpart, State Senate Leader Kevin de Leon, issued a joint statement that vowed, We are not going to allow one election to reverse generations of progress.

Those combative words, variations of which have been issued by most of Californias top elected officials since Nov. 8, could be the opening salvo of an era of defiance against Washington. And some of the states business leaders will be on the front lines.

For the states business leadership, especially, the flashpoint for conflict with Trumpism is likely to be immigration. Multicultural California relies heavily on immigrant talent. Its business leaders, many of them first-generation immigrants, have been doing a slow burn since Trump got into the presidential race last year accusing Mexico of dumping its worst people in America, including rapists.

Ahead of the election, Shervin Pishevar, a California venture capitalist who helped fund Uber and Airbnb, wrote in a series of tweets that if Trump wins, I am announcing and funding a legitimate campaign for California to become its own nation.

Pishevar has yet to make good on his pledge. But then, like the states popular governor Jerry Brown, hes keeping his powder dry until the mercurial Trump shows his true colours.

Then again, a lot of Californians, who voted by a two-to-one margin for Hillary Clinton, figure they know what Trump is about.

Alex Padilla, the California secretary of state, has laid into Stephen Bannon, former chairman of the hate website Briebart News and Trumps future White House chief political strategist. Padilla said Bannon is one of the direct threats to American liberty, multiculturalism and equal opportunity.

Bannon is on record suggesting that too many of Silicon Valleys leaders are Asian or South Asian.

Padilla is no outlier in worrying about the relentless attacks on brown people by Trump supporters. California billionaire tycoon and environmentalist Tom Steyer told the Los Angeles Times that its impossible to look at the Trump campaign and not see a direct threat to the civil liberties and dignity of California citizens.

Trump has pledged to scrap the Obama Administration directive that U.S.-born children of immigrants could easily gain citizenship  a blow to Silicon Valleys recruitment efforts.

And Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook Inc., has been dealt a reversal with the Trump victory. Zuck had been lobbying for an increase in the quota of H-1B work permits for foreign-born talent in Silicon Valley. But Zuckerberg is now fighting a rearguard action just to keep the existing quota in place, Trump having promised to slash the quota.

Trump believes the H-1B work permits enable foreigners to steal jobs from Americans. The reality is that both Canada and the U.S. suffer acute shortages of tech talent. At this writing, there are approximately 500,000 unfilled positions in the U.S. for computer programmers.

The xenophobia that helped get Trump elected and has swept across Europe, as well, is antithetical to how California created and nurtures its success.

The late Andrew Grove is among the three co-founders of Intel Corp. That companys microchips have powered the Information Age, from mainframes to mobile phones. Grove was an immigrant from Budapest.

Fast forward to Google, worlds dominant search engine. One of its two co-founders, Sergei Brin, is a native of Moscow.

And when he was at the iconic Valley firm Sun Microsystems Inc., James Gosling became the godfather of Java, the programming language of the Internet. Gosling is a native Albertan.

Californias hope of remaining at the worlds technological forefront is pinned to its ability to keep attracting immigrants. Foreign-born inventors account for 65 per cent of the patents earned by the California R&D operations of U.S. drugmaker Merck & Co. The numbers for General Electric Co. and wireless telecommunications giant Qualcomm Inc. are 64 per cent and 72 per cent, respectively.

And over the past decade, immigrant-founded venture capital firms have provided the funding for California start-up companies that have created 450,000 jobs. Those companies now have a total stock-market value of about half a trillion dollars (U.S.).

About 250,000 Canadians work in Silicon Valley. Meanwhile, Southern Ontario has by now developed a critical mass of talent and funding for tech start-ups. The Trump election has emboldened tech recruiters in Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver and Kitchener-Waterloo to start reversing the brain drain to California by luring Canucks to come home.

Equally worrisome to Silicon Valley recruiters is that even the perception abroad of American xenophobia will steer emigres in Bangalore, Karachi and Jakarta away from the U.S. More than one U.S. tech recruiter has warned clients that persuading brown-skinned talent to immigrate to California just got tougher as of Nov. 8.

California lawmakers are prepared to become a rebel state, as Texas was in relentlessly blocking the initiatives of the Obama Administration for eight years.

But that might not be enough to keep California on top. Between 2001 and 2011, the state lost 33 per cent of its manufacturing base, or 613,000 jobs. The states K-12 schools, starved for funds since a 1978 tax revolt, have gone from near-best to near-worst in North America. California also ranks poorly in high-school Internet access. No wonder California is so reliant on top talent from abroad.

Can Duruk, a Turkey native and a software engineer at Uber, told Bloomberg News recently that he plans to stay in Silicon Valley, having just obtained his green card. But he is uneasy. This country has just elected someone who was more or less openly racist at points, Duruk said. It feels like a punch in the stomach.

What disturbs Valley executives sleep is that if the likes of Duruk werent already in the U.S., would they have opted to go there, when growing tech centres like Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary  each of them recruiting tech talent worldwide as never before  are so much more welcoming?

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With her blond ringlets, Kewpie-doll lips and statuesque height, Aloha Wanderwell could be a Hollywood invention, leaning against a Ford Model-T, all sass and swagger. But what her 1920s publicity photo doesnt reveal  and what has, for the most part, been buried in history  is that at the age of 16, Wanderwell embarked on an adventure that, among her many records, would make her the first woman to drive around the world, covering 380,000 miles and 80 countries before the age of 30.

Back in 1998, Vancouver television producer Randolph Eustace-Walden, co-author of the book Aloha Wanderwell: The Border-Smashing, Record-Setting Life of the Worlds Youngest Explorer, was using the brand-new Google search engine to research his own adventure when he inadvertently stumbled onto her story. Eustace-Walden was looking for information on driving around the world for a potential show idea when his cousin called from Ontario needing help with travel plans to Hawaii. He entered Aloha Airlines into Google, which mixed with his online search for driving, and up popped a story about Wanderwell. Intrigued, he saved the link, but it wasnt until a couple years later, when he partnered with journalist Christian Fink-Jensen, his co-author on Aloha Wanderwell, did their decade of detective work begin in earnest.

At this point, the duo didnt know that Wanderwell was originally named Idris Hall, born in Winnipeg in 1906, or that her husband had been jailed as a German spy (and later murdered). None of that is mentioned in her 1939 ghostwritten autobiography, Call To Adventure!

The ghostwriter tarted it up a bit, and added a lot of fiction, made it more melodramatic, says Eustace-Walden. When we first read it, we thought, Its too bad shes such a terrible writer, but as it turns out, she was incredible. Very eloquent and well spoken.

Wanderwells story is so incredible it doesnt require embellishment. In 1922, while the bored teenager was attending French convent school, she answered an ad looking for women with Brains, Beauty & Breeches to accompany Captain Ralph Wanderwell  whom she would eventually marry  as a driver and secretary on his international expeditions. The charismatic captain was also a brilliant marketer, and soon Wanderwell was filling theatres around the world as she lectured vaudeville-style in front of silent movies of their journeys through exotic locales such as Africa and Asia.

For 10 years, their escapades were front-page news, says Eustace-Walden. And yet, he and Fink-Jensen found plenty of conflicting information during their arduous research process, mainly because Wanderwell had reinvented her own personal history. Its difficult to tell a non-fiction story about someone who tried to keep their life under wraps, he says.

As it turns out, the key to unlocking Alohas mystery was Wanderwells children.

In order to gain access to films produced by Wanderwell that had been bequeathed to the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian, Eustace-Walden and Fink-Jensen needed permission from her two offspring. Both were initially suspicious, as they had been approached by unscrupulous journalists in the past looking for money in exchange for writing their mothers story. But when Valri, who lived in Honolulu at the time, discovered that the two writers were Canadian, she embraced their request. As it turns out, she and her brother Nile, now in their 80s, had been raised on Vancouver Island and still had fond memories of their early years.

The writers and children became close, swapping stories and memories. During one trip to Honolulu, Valri appeared with a dusty tin box she had recently discovered that was labelled with her mothers initials. Eustace-Walden picked the lock and discovered the Rosetta Stone for her story: Wanderwells original passport containing every border crossing (many of which were contrary to other reports), her logbooks and a draft of an unpublished memoir. They also discovered family photos and her private diary, which she had kept a secret from the captain, who forbade his staff to take notes about their travels.

Finally, Eustace-Walden and Fink-Jensen had all the details they needed to shed light on one of Canadas most incredible adventurers. As he concludes, Its the story of someone who was lost to history, and shouldnt be.

Correction  December 20, 2016: This article was edited from a previous version that misstated Randolph Eustace-Waldens surname.

Sue Carter is the editor of Quill and Quire.

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Machu Picchu is perhaps the biggest draw for the millions of tourists who flock to Peru each year, but lately its culinary offerings have been getting the attention of chefs and diners from around the world.

The cuisine combines Perus ancient ingredients with its multicultural past and uses modern plating to create a new category of dining. And yet in Toronto, a city that embraces global food trends, Peruvian cuisine has yet to go mainstream.

Chef Elias Salazar wants to change that. He has opened a Peruvian pop-up restaurant inside Rush Lane & Co. cocktail bar at 563 Queen St. W. at Denison Ave. For the next three months starting at 7 p.m. from Tuesday to Saturday, Salazar will cook up elegant plates bursting with colour and flavour.

Id say (Peruvian cuisine) is the most diverse cuisine in the world, says Salazar, who owns a catering business called Limon Modern Peruvian Cuisine.

With the Pacific to the west, the Andes in the north, deserts in the south and the Amazon to the east, Peru has a wealth of biodiversity leading to vastly different culinary regions. In addition to indigenous populations like the Incas cultivating countless varieties of potatoes and corn, Perus culinary landscape has been shaped by 500 years of immigration (forced and willing) from West African nations, Japan, Spain and Italy. Immigration from China has brought to life a category of Chinese-Peruvian food called chifa where fried rice and sweet-and-sour sauces reign supreme.

You can go through the year with a different menu every week and still not go through 25 per cent of the cuisine, he says.

Salazar, 36, is originally from Callao, the main seaport of Peru,. That was where he learned to cook from his grandmother before rising political and economic instability in the mid-90s brought his family to Toronto in 1997.

He began cooking under the Limon Modern Peruvian name five years ago, hosting pop-ups around the city and doing private events, but laments that Peruvian food never ventured on to mainstream appetites despite the cuisine itself being as diverse as Toronto.

Salazar tells all first-timers to start with his street-style ceviche: octopus and shrimp with paper-thin red onions and crispy fried squid. No ceviche is complete, however, without leches de tigre, or tigers milk, the leftover chili-lime marinade at the bottom of the bowl thats customary to drink after the ceviche is eaten. Salazar blitzes a mixture of lime juice, garlic, scallops, Peruvian rocoto and limo peppers (hes gets them from Kensington Market) to give the marinade a luscious, creamy texture and a pop of yellow.

Theres also causa, an ancient Peruvian potato salad that Salazar mixes with quinoa for crunch. He adds a Japanese touch of edamame, beets and tempura-fried queso. Its light, creamy, colourful and pairs perfectly with the chefs own recipe for chicha morada, a traditional Peruvian purple corn drink with maca root, pineapple, apple juice and five-spice powder.

A handful of Peruvian spots exist in the city  El Fogon in St. Clair West, Bloom Restaurant near High Park and The Boulevard Cafe in the Annex  but none do modern style. Previous attempts by Ardor Bistro and Pisco 1641, were short-lived.

Toronto loves food trends, but the point of the chef is to keep the food going beyond the trend, Salazar says. To cook Peruvian food, you have to do it properly. You need Peruvian peppers and you need strain them to get the seeds out and then chill it to marry the flavours.

Salazar has big dreams for Peruvian food in the city. He brainstorms ideas for his changing menu such as a Peruvian-Chinese fried rice with quinoa, crispy duck and a Peruvian tamarind sauce. He hopes to get his chicha morada into retail stores and has thought about a chain of takeout chifa joints and a place that does Peruvian brunch. For now he just wants the food-obsessed city to be more familiar with a cuisine. Its missing out, he says.

I wish I could have a full day of service so I can push out more food, Salazar says, acknowledging limits of cooking out of a bar not open during the day. But the most important thing now is to let people know Im here.

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The idea was to celebrate Montreals coming 375th anniversary with a Christmas tree bigger and grander than the famous one at Rockefeller Center in New York.

Instead, downtown Montreal wound up with something only Charlie Brown could love.

Its a bit of an eyesore, said Noor Malick, who has a view of the tree from her office window.

Its horrible, its completely awful, said Georges Malouin, who was passing through the open-air Christmas market where the tree is displayed. Im so surprised. I saw it on the internet but now, live, it looks very  cheap.

Its quite sad, really, said Michaela van den Berg, a visitor from England whose husband, Jos, compared the tree to a matchstick. Maybe its a joke.

People certainly are laughing, both in the streets and online. The tree has two mock Twitter accounts, one mainly in French and one in English. Melanie Joly, the federal minister of Canadian heritage who, among other things, oversees the national holiday decorations in Ottawa, tweeted that she loved the Montreal tree, but she added a winking emoji.

A classic specimen, the tree is not. Its trunk is crooked, for one thing. And its other shortcomings are painfully obvious to passersby.

It doesnt have a top. It looks like its missing branches; its kind of skinny-looking, Pierre Bourcier said after snapping a photo with his phone.

And then there are the ornaments: The tree is covered with red plastic inverted triangles topped by green maple leaves, the logo of the Canadian Tire retail chain, which supplied its white lights. A small child standing at the base of the tree this week stumped her father by asking why it looked like a store.

How did a holiday celebration became a municipal punch line? Chalk it up to (perhaps too much) ambition, inadequate financing and Murphys law.

We have good intentions, said Jean-David Pelletier, one of the principals of Sapin MTL, the company that came up with the idea of rivalling New Yorks tree. But the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and we had problems.

Sapin MTL is in the business of home-delivering normal-sized Christmas trees, and it proposed the big one as a promotional gimmick. Pelletier said the company had a more majestic, shapely tree in mind. It researched the typical height for recent Rockefeller Center trees  22.5 to 23 metres  and found one almost 24 metres high in Ontario that Pelletier described as amazing.

But its narrow height advantage vanished in early November when Rockefeller Center announced that its 2016 tree would be a 28.6-metre Norway spruce.

Pelletier and his partners then had less than a month to come up with a new, taller rival, and they appealed to the public, which suggested about 100 candidates. The balsam fir they chose came from the Eastern Townships of Quebec, near the border with the United States.

Its not perfect, but its authentic and its a real tree that you find in the forests of Quebec, Pelletier said. Were not pretending this is the most amazing, beautiful tree in the world.

Facing a Nov. 30 deadline for unveiling the tree, the Sapin crew had to hurry. The tree was harvested, placed on a special flatbed truck and brought to Montreal under police escort within 72 hours. But a tight schedule and a tight budget meant that some corners were cut  and so was the tree.

Somehow, the tree that reached the closed-off section of St. Catherine Street where the market is held measured just 26.8 metres tall, 1.8 metres short of the one in Rockefeller Center. Pelletiers brother Philippe, another principal in the company, said a bit sheepishly Friday that they had simply settled for the tallest tree they could find in time.

And there was no time or money to give it the extensive arboreal spa treatment that the New York tree gets; all the workers could do was reattach, sometimes rather obviously, a few of the larger branches that had broken off in shipping.

As for the decorations, Jean-David Pelletier said his companys responsibility ended once the tree was in its bare steel stand on St. Catherine Street.

Jane Shaw, a spokeswoman for Canadian Tire, said the company had not required the logo ornaments in exchange for donating the lights. She called them a gesture from the organizers of the Christmas market.

The skinny, misshapen and widely unloved tree does attract some expressions of appreciation. Many seem to be of the ironic variety often reserved for no-budget horror movies. But some seem sincere.

As a reporter was interviewing Pelletier in the market, a woman interrupted to say the tree was beautiful, before swiftly walking away.

This years debacle hasnt deterred Pelletier. He said his company was determined to make sure that Montreal truly outdoes New York next year, now that his fellow citizens have had their fun at this years trees expense.

I think we can celebrate the Christmas magic and stop saying its ugly, ugly, ugly, he said, as a family posed for a photo in front of the tree. Now in Quebec, theres Cirque du Soleil, Celine Dion and the naughty fir  we prefer that to ugly. Naughty is better.

Gesturing up at the tree, he said: Look at him. Youll find something sympathique in him. So would Charlie Brown.

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Never mind tolls. Can we talk?

Thats the pitch from Andrea Horwath in a lofty letter delivered to John Tory this week. Rejecting the mayors plan for tolls on city-owned highways, the NDP leader reached out to explain why hes wrong and shes right.

And why she has taken a right turn.

I hope to meet with you, so we can better understand each others position, importuned our opportunistic opposition leader.

The mayor didnt bite. But heres a suggested reply:

Thanks Andrea, but shouldnt you have a word with your fellow New Democrats on city council first?

Trying to keep score of how politicians are scoring political points at our expense? Heres a quick recap of the great debate over Torontos toonie tolls:

Tory, a former Ontario Progressive Conservative leader, wants drivers to pay $2 per trip on the Don Valley Parkway and Gardiner Expressway to bankroll transit and transportation. But he needs formal provincial permission, normally a formality because everyone pays lip service to municipalities running their own road shows.

Premier Kathleen Wynnes governing Liberals say they wont stand in the way.

PC leader Patrick Brown says no way. His party, which paved the way for extortionary tolls by privatizing Highway 407, now insists that dynamic price signals and user fees  normally the domain of right-thinking right-wingers  are a lame lefty idea.

No way, say Horwaths New Democrats. We, too, are anti-toll, despite extolling tolls when an NDP government paved over the 407.

Never mind price signals or environmental signals, its political signals that matter most. Tolls are unpopular with suburban commuters (voters), so count us out.

Despite her right turn, her fellow New Democrats at city hall are going in the opposite direction. Mere days after she explained herself to Tory  no need to toll commuters because a future Horwath government will turn over all the cash you need from general tax revenues  a gaggle of NDP councillors sensibly backed the mayors plan.

What do these city hall New Democrats see in road tolls that their fellow travellers at Queens Park are blind to? Might it be fidelity to transit priorities? Fear of congestion? Environmental peril?

Perhaps they sense that, despite Horwaths twists and turns, public opinion has turned. Polls on tolls traditionally show strong resistance, but recent surveys point to majority support in Toronto.

In a previous column, I described how the NDP-PC anti-toll tag team was the last straw for a lifelong New Democrat, former MPP Paul Ferreira, who has left the party in protest. Ferreira, once chief of staff to ex-leader Howard Hampton and (briefly) Horwath, told me in an interview that by opposing tolls  without thinking through the implications  the party was being intellectually dishonest.

And geographically duplicitous.

In the last election, Horwath lost crucial Toronto seats while pursuing her populist, pocketbook appeals elsewhere. Many New Democrats still buy into the caricature of Toronto as a bastion of wine-swilling, blood-sucking elitists who dont feel the pain of hard-working rural folk.

Purveyors of the anti-Toronto narrative remain oblivious to the outsized poverty, homelessness, and marginalization experienced by people in Toronto  be they the jobless, the working poor, or recent immigrants. Feeding into a competition of victimization wont make the province a better place.

If you want a taste of the simmering battle within the NDP, have a look at Ferreiras latest Facebook posting after our interview was published. He criticizes the NDPs abandonment of past party policies  notably a higher minimum wage, a provincial pension plan and public auto insurance  during their last (losing) campaign.

His comments, and the responses, are revealing.

I applaud you, Paul, for your brave and principled decision. Many of us share your dismay and even horror as the ONDP gradually abandons all its principles for the sake of crass (and illusory) political gain, wrote Michele Landsberg, a party activist in her day, and wife of ex-leader Stephen Lewis.

Its about time someone said what most of us are thinking, wrote another Facebook friend.

Ferreiras purpose in going public was to provoke a debate about the partys future. Mind you, the last time he questioned Horwath directly, during a caucus meeting several years past, Ferreira was quietly suspended for a couple of days by the leaders then chief of staff. And when he spoke out in favour of a debate on tolls, in 2011, the leader publicly admonished him.

No one can suspend him anymore for talking out of turn because hes no longer a member. As for Horwaths twists and turns, she wants to talk  just not about tolls.

Martin Regg Cohns political column appears Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. mcohn@thestar.ca , Twitter: @reggcohn

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Marc and Jodie Emery, the Prince and Princess of Pot, were reportedly arrested and released in Montreal on Friday  just one day after the marijuana activist couple opened six Cannabis Culture dispensaries within city limits.

Marc Emery was arrested along with several employees after mass raids and arrests at the several new Cannabis Culture Dispensary locations which opened in Montreal yesterday, read a post by Cannabis Culture on Facebook early Saturday morning.

The post goes on to say that Jodie Emery and Jeremiah Vandermeer, listed as Cannabis Cultures chief of operations, were arrested at their hotel for related reasons. As of early Saturday morning, Cannabis Culture hadnt responded to requests for comment.

The Service de Police de la Ville de Montreal (SPVM) said in a release on Friday that six dispensaries were raided by their officers on Friday, netting 10 suspects, 40 lbs. of marijuana, and cash. Neither Cannabis Culture, not the names of the 10 suspects, was mentioned.

All 10 face charges relating to trafficking in narcotics, and possession with intent to traffic, the SPVM release said.

Cannabis Culture, a private marijuana dispensary chain, operates in several cities across Canada, including Toronto. Several of its dispensaries were among the 43 raided during Project Claudia, a massive crackdown by Toronto Police Service officers last May.

Denis Coderre, the Mayor of Montreal, issued a warning on Twitter Thursday  hours after the Cannabis Culture storefronts opened  that the city had zero tolerance for dispensaries operating illegally.

At an unrelated news conference Friday, a few hours before the arrests, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters in Montreal that until weve changed the law, the current laws exist and apply.

Jodie Emery admitted to reporters on Thursday that the new Cannabis Culture dispensaries were illegal under current federal law, but pleaded for the SPVM to leave them alone.

I beg the Montreal police, let us be in peace. Please do not cause harm to the harmless people that are choosing to work here and push forward this very important issue, Emery said Thursday.

Marc Emery has been arrested numerous times during his years of pro-marijuana activism. He also spent four-and-a-half years in prison in the United States for selling seeds to American customers from his stores in Vancouver.

Cannabis Cultures Facebook page said early Saturday morning that Jeremiah Vandermeer and Jodie Emery had been released from police custody, but remained under investigation.

Two of our brave leaders have been released from custody  but the fight is not over! the post reads.

Friday afternoon, Coderre followed up on his initial Twitter warning with advice to supporters of marijuana legalization: focus on the legislative process, not a useless stunt.

Respect the law it ended.

With files from The Canadian Press

Story has been corrected from a previous version and clarifies that this was the first time Jodie Emery had been arrested.

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If we remember 2016 years from now  if, in other words, our concerted efforts to blot out the memory of this wretched year fail  it will surely be for the huge political surprises it brought.

This was the year of Brexit, after all, or at least of a majority vote for Britains departure from the European Union. (Our British friends will spend 2017 discovering, in great detail, that the vote and the thing are not the same.)

And it was the year Donald Trump was elected president. I like to think of this latter event, which I sure didnt see coming, in terms of three Time magazine cover lines on Trump. In chronological order: Meltdown, Total Meltdown, and Person of the Year.

These are complex events. It would be glib to generalize. But one thing they both had in common was the cheerful refusal of voters to do what the conventional wisdom or the political establishment said they must. (Im aware that darker impulses, including plain racism, drove some number of voters in both cases. I persist in thinking thats not the only thing that was going on.)

These two outbursts of iconoclastic populism, the Trump and Brexit surprises, have echoes in earlier electoral upsets closer to home. Rob Fords election as mayor of Toronto, say, or even the 2015 elections of Rachel Notley in Alberta and Justin Trudeau federally.

And I dont think its too big of a stretch to see precedent for these votes in the 1992 referendum on the constitutional amendments proposed in the Charlottetown Accord. Every mainstream political party in Canada campaigned for Charlottetown. Just about every newspaper urged voters to support it. They declined. The consequences of the accords failure were hard to foresee and seemed nasty. Voters didnt care.

Theres another event in 2016 that matches this pattern  a sudden surge in voter passion, and damn the consequences. Its less consequential than Brexit or Trump, and it was the work of people who would be revolted by the outcome of those votes, but I think it fits the pattern. Its the Edmonton convention in April at which members of the NDP voted to fire Tom Mulcair as their leader.

In that vote, the NDP decided to toss itself off a cliff and hope a parachute would materialize on the way down. The party had no strategy, no clear Plan B, and it based its decision on a gut reaction more than on a clear evaluation of Mulcairs strengths and weaknesses.

Under Mulcair the NDP had spent much of 2015 leading the other parties in pre-election polls. Under him the NDP wound up with more seats than Jack Layton had won in 2004, 2006 and 2008.

Mulcair is, as everyone knows, the most formidable opposition MP in the House of Commons, which is why the NDP asked him to stick around for a couple of years after they made a great show of firing him. No successor will know any provinces political culture as well as Mulcair knows Quebecs. None, including the likely francophone candidates, speaks French as eloquently as he does, but frankly, none speaks English as well as he does either.

Im rehearsing these arguments one more time purely for nostalgias sake. I know nobody will be persuaded by them, although I hope some New Democrats feel at least a momentary pang of regret. This was not a vote about competence. It was about tribe. Mulcair didnt smell like a New Democrat to New Democrats.

After the debacle, I asked Jennifer Hollett, the sometime Toronto NDP candidate, to write something for my old employer Macleans to explain what had happened. She wrote that 2015 was a three-peat for Toronto-area New Democrats whod already watched the provincial party under Andrea Horwath and the NDPs favoured Toronto mayoral candidate Olivia Chow lose big in 2014. We campaigned by watering down our leaders and language, writing ballot-box questions that other candidates could answer, she wrote. As we tried to grow, we lost our authenticity.

Authenticity is turning into a powerful rallying cry in todays politics. Pragmatism cant keep up. I maintain that the NDP is in a terrible fix and that they brought it on themselves. But its hard for an outsider to argue with insiders gut feeling that Mulcair didnt feel like one of their own.

There will be more moments in 2017 when finger-wagging from responsible outsiders fails to stop voters from keeping their own counsel. In some ways its a healthy instinct. At least thats what I keep trying to tell myself.

Paul Wells is a national affairs writer. His column appears Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

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Police are still searching for a 21-year-old Toronto man considered to be violent, armed and dangerous after a double stabbing Friday night that left one woman dead and her mother injured.

In a news conference on Saturday afternoon, Det. Sgt. Graham Gibson said that it is safe to say that the victim, Sarah Vermelhudo, 38, was the aunt of the suspect, Shayne MacDonald, who is wanted for murder and at large.

Gibson added that the second victim stabbed, a 59-year-old woman, was Vermelhudos mother.

MacDonald dropped by the home where both women lived, on College St. near Dufferin St., at around 8 p.m., a visit that Gibson described as a normal occurrence at the household. During the visit, there was a sudden argument and Vermelhudo was stabbed; when her parents tried to help, Vermelhudos mother was also stabbed.

Vermelhudos mother was seriously injured but is expected to make a full recovery.

MacDonald fled the house on foot, said Gibson, and was last seen going west on College and then north on Dufferin St.

Outside the house where the stabbing took place sat Christmas decorations on Saturday; a small wreath was on the door.

Police say they do not have a motive for the crime.

They were all friends, there was no history of ever having problems with him in the past, Gibson said. (MacDonald) was welcome at the residence and had been there in the past.

Vermelhudo was a self-employed life coach, running a entrepreneurial endeavour called Empower Yourself Coach.

Her website states that her passion is to transform her clients, from feeling Powerless to Empowered!!

In July, Vermelhudo posted a photo on Facebook with a statement about being a coach.

I am a highly sensitive person, and Ive learned to own that by empowering myself. By Not letting the criticism of others to make me lose my natural gifts, lose my intuition, and most importantly lose my (true) self! she wrote.

The manager at the Faema store in Sherway Gardens where Vermelhudo also recently worked would not speak to the Star, but employees outside the store on Saturday said they were shocked by the news. They said that they were told not to comment to media about her death.

MacDonald, 21, of Toronto is wanted in connection to the crime, for second degree murder and attempted murder. He is 5-feet-10, 160 lbs., with light brown hair; police warned that he is considered violent, armed, and dangerous.

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Infrastructure Grants Total Nearly $8.7 Million

Raleigh, N.C. Governor Pat McCrory announced today that the North Carolina Rural Infrastructure Authority (RIA) approved 26 grant requests totaling $8,697,833. The requests include commitments to create a total of 1,183 new jobs.said Governor McCrory.Authority members review and approve funding requests for grant and loan programs. The programs are operated by the Rural Economic Development team at N.C. Commerce, which is led by Secretary John E. Skvarla, III, and Assistant Secretary Dr. Patricia Mitchell. Grants support infrastructure development, building renovation and expansion, and site improvements.Since its creation by Governor McCrory and the North Carolina General Assembly in 2013, the Authority has approved approximately $128 million in awards.The RIA approved three requests under the state's Industrial Development Fund - Utility Account program:A $337,000 grant to upgrade water service in support of a 10-job expansion by Hysucat USA in Bath. The company is an international manufacturer of rigid inflatable boats for recreational, military and commercial markets. The enhanced water capacity will address the company's fire suppression needs.A $195,000 grant to provide industrial access to the Craven County Industrial Park. Enhanced accessibility will open an additional 100 acres up for development at the park, which is already home to several of the county's top employers. The grant supports a total investment of $260,815 being made at the park.A $750,000 grant to assist with construction of a wastewater pumping station, force main and gravity sewer main in support of Pharr Yarns, the towns largest employer. Existing sewer service to the company, which employs 900 workers, is no longer adequate. The grant supports a total investment of more than $7.1 million.The Industrial Development Fund - Utility Account provides grants to units of local government for 80 counties in the state considered Tier 1 or Tier 2. Funds may be used for publicly-owned infrastructure projects that are reasonably expected to result in the creation of new jobs. IDF - Utility Account funding is derived from set-asides of Job Development Investment Grants (JDIG) awarded in Tier 2 and Tier 3 counties.The RIA approved four requests under the state's Economic Infrastructure program:A $29,143 grant to support the demolition of a 5,000-sq.-ft. building constructed in 1918. The project opens up a downtown site for new construction and business opportunities. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $38,856.A $135,000 grant to provide wastewater service in support of the arrival of Norafin Americas in Mills River. The German company develops, produces and sells high-performance, specialty, nonwoven fabrics to a wide array of industries. Its new $16 million facility in North Carolina, which will employ 46, was announced by Governor McCrory on November 7th. [The company's new jobs are not included in today's job-creation totals.]A $30,000 grant to support the demolition of a 21,500-sq.-ft. industrial building in Spruce Pine. The project opens up a prime industrial site for new construction and business opportunities. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $40,000.A $500,000 grant to support extension of wastewater service to Pepsi Bottling Ventures new distribution operations in St. Pauls. The nation's largest privately-held manufacturer, seller and distributor of Pepsi-Cola and other beverages is building a $16.5 million distribution center that will serve 8 million consumers South Carolina to Delaware. The facility will employ 250 North Carolina workers. Governor McCrory announced the company's project on October 27th. [The company's new jobs are not included in today's job-creation totals].The Economic Infrastructure Program provides grants to local governments, with priority given to the 80 most economically distressed counties, to assist with infrastructure projects that will lead to job-creation. Water and sewer lines, wastewater treatment plants, natural gas lines, public broadband infrastructure, roadways and rail spurs are examples of infrastructure covered under program guidelines.The RIA approved two grants under the state's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) - Economic Development program:A $1.5 million grant to assist in providing expanded wastewater services in support of a 700-job expansion by Mountaire Farms. The Delaware-based poultry processor company currently has five locations in the state. The grant supports a total capital investment of $70 million by the company.A $1.5 million grant to assist in providing public water and wastewater service in facilitating the arrival of Everest Textiles. The company is a vertically-integrated developer and supplier of innovative products to leading brands in sports, casual and other apparel. Everest's choice of North Carolina for its 610-job plant was announced by Governor McCrory on December 6th. [The company's new jobs are not included in today's job-creation totals.] The grant supports a total capital investment of $8 million by the company.The Community Development Block Grant program is a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) program administered in part by N.C. Commerce. CDBG's economic development funds provide grants to local governments for creating and retaining jobs. Project funding is based on the number of jobs to be created and the level of economic distress of applicant communities.The RIA approved 17 grants under the state's Building Reuse program:Rural Health Care CategoryAn $85,000 grant to support the reuse of a building that will accommodate a 12-job expansion by Addiction Recovery Medical Services. The company provides counseling and therapy, medical services and outpatient programs. The building was constructed in 1945 and has been vacant six months. The grant is part of an overall capital investment of $362,000.Existing Business Building CategoryA $500,000 grant to accommodate a 95-job expansion at Prysmian Group. The company is a worldwide manufacturer of cable applications for the energy and telecommunications industries. The renovation project includes repairs and upgrades to three idle building at the company's site. The grant is part of a total capital investment of more than $20 million.a $500,000 grant to accommodate a 100-job expansion at Mowhawk Industries. The company is a worldwide manufacturer of flooring products. The project adds 100,000 square feet to the company's building, which was constructed in 2004. The grant is part of a total capital investment of more than $36.3 million.A $500,000 grant that will accommodate a major expansion at K-Flex USA. The Italy-based company manufactures thermal and acoustic insulation, gaskets, seals and mats designed for buyers in numerous industries. The project adds 360,000 square feet to the company's facility, which was constructed in 1994. Governor McCrory announced the company's 100-job expansion on November 2nd. [The company's new positions are not included in today's job-creation total.] The grant is part of a total capital investment of $16,750,000 being made on the company's expanded space.A $499,190 grant to support renovation of a building in Creedmoor that will accommodate a 50-job expansion by Stay Online. The company manufactures power cords, wiring harnesses and other electrical products for worldwide sale. Renovations to the building, which was constructed in 1986, include HVAC, electrical and roofing. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $1,020,000.A $55,000 grant to support the renovation of a building in Snow Hill that will accommodate a 17-job expansion by Home Elevator & Lift Products LLC. The company manufactures, sells, installs and services elevators, cargo lifts and stair lifts for residential customers. Renovations include roofing and office configuration. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $112,000.A $250,000 grant to support renovation of a building in Lincolnton to accommodate a 100-job expansion at Robert Bosch Tool. The company manufactures power tools, measurement tools and related accessories. The project converts existing warehouse space into a new production line. The building was constructed in 1976. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $13.3 million.A $120,000 grant for renovation of a building in Troy to accommodate a 12-job expansion by Alandale Knitting. The company manufacturer of circular knit fabrics. Renovations to the building, which was constructed in 1968, include repairs to its roofing. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $251,189.A $170,000 grant for renovation of a building in Randleman to support a 21-job expansion at Petty's Garage. The company designs, produces and sells automotive parts. Renovations include roofing, HVAC, electrical and flooring. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $737,900.Town of West Jefferson (Ashe County): A $50,000 grant to support reuse of a building that will accommodate by Doc's on Main, a restaurant, retail store and museum that is creating five jobs. The building was constructed in 1927 and has been vacant three months. Renovations include HVAC and flooring. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $646,000.Cleveland County: A $500,000 grant to support reuse of a building in Shelby that will accommodate an expansion by Mafic USA. The Canada-based company manufactures advanced materials for the composite industry. The building was constructed in 1974 and has been vacant one year. Governor McCrory announced the company's 113-job expansion on October 31st. [The company's new positions are not included in today's job-creation total.] Renovations include roofing, electrical, plumbing and flooring. The grant is part of a total capital investment of nearly $13 million.Duplin County: A $30,000 grant to support reuse of a building in Warsaw that will accommodate the arrival of Vantage South Atlantic. The company, which provides precision agricultural technology solutions, will create three jobs. The building was constructed in 1974 and has been vacant five years. Renovations include electrical, flooring, roofing and HVAC. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $60,000.City of Dunn (Harnett County): A $25,000 grant to support reuse of a building that will accommodate the arrival of Organic Butcher Shop. The company, a retailer of fresh organic beef, pork and chicken, will create five jobs. The building was constructed in 1926 and has been vacant five months. Renovations include HVAC, roofing, plumbing, electrical and flooring. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $173,000.Lee County: A $75,000 grant to support reuse of a building in Sanford that will accommodate the arrival of Seal It Services. The company, a producer and distributor of self-fusing silicon repair tape, is relocating from Florida and will create 15 jobs. The building was constructed 1973 and has been vacant five months. Renovations include office space and lighting. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $865,000.Lenoir County: A $100,000 grant to support the reuse of a building in Kinston that will accommodate the arrival of Midtown Motor Lodge, a hospitality company that is creating 10 jobs. The building was constructed in 1969 and has been vacant 18 months. Renovations will include flooring, electrical and HVAC. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $4,192,000.Lenoir County: A $62,500 grant to support the reuse of a building in Kinston that will accommodate a five-job expansion by Mother Earth Brewing, a popular craft brewery and taproom. The building was constructed 1949 and has been vacant two years. Renovations include HVAC, electrical, plumbing and paint. The grant is part of a total capital investment of $393,141.Lenoir County: A $200,000 grant to support the result of a building in Kinston that will house The Social Beverage Company, a craft distiller of premium spirits for retail sale. The building was constructed in 1903 and has been vacant 20 years. The company will create 23 jobs. Renovations include HVAC, roofing, flooring, plumbing and paint. The grant is part of a total capital investment of nearly $3.4 million.The Building Reuse Program provides grants to local governments to renovate vacant buildings, renovate and/or expand buildings occupied by existing North Carolina companies, and renovate, expand or construct health care facilities that will lead to the creation of new jobs in Tier 1 and Tier 2 counties and in rural Census tracts of Tier 3 counties.In addition to reviewing and approving funding requests, the N.C. Rural Infrastructure Authority formulates policies and priorities for grant and loan programs administered by NC Commerce's Rural Economic Development team. Its 15 voting members are appointed by the Governor, Speaker of the House and Senate President Pro Tem. The North Carolina Secretary of Commerce serves as a non-voting member of the Authority.said Commerce Secretary Skvarla.For additional information about NC Commerce's Rural Economic Development Division, visit http://www.nccommerce.com/rd
Who were the best people of 2016? I wrote a list of the worst but deleted it because lack of space meant perfectly deserving detestable people were being left off. There they sat, like sediment. I want to send you into the holiday season with glitter on your face and a candycane in your mouth. Heres Part I.

Dr. Jane Philpott. I have long admired Canadas health minister  she is intelligent, fantastically brave, hard-working and humane  but I have found an extra use for her services. I post affirmations on notecards to get me up in the morning, but I dont do chirpy, I just stick with the facts. My mordant mottos: Life Has Many Worthwhile Aspects. Survival. But finally Ive come up with one that works. What Would Jane Philpott Do? The only possible answer is Shed get out of bed. So I do. Shed also call for a ban on asbestos, but thats beyond my remit, at least before noon.

Kelly Oxford. This Canadian author created the social media hashtag #notokay that invited women to share their stories of their first sexual assault. She went first: Old man on city bus grabs my pussy and smiles at me, I am 12. She had 9.7 million responses. This is what the lives of girls and women are like. Youre not alone.

Alberta Premier Rachel Notley. She toppled the Conservatives in Alberta after 44 years of one-party rule. Although many of her foes, including politicians, are hateful, she has done a tremendous job of containing catastrophes, both economic and environmental. Alberta will recover and prosper.

Sammy Kogvik. This Nunavut man joined the Arctic Research Foundation and guided them almost immediately to the wreck of HMS Terror, one of the lost ships in the doomed 1845 Franklin Expedition. Hed seen its mast six years before. but the photo had gone missing and he thought no one would believe him. I heard a lot of stories about Terror, the ships, but I guess Parks Canada dont listen to people, Kogvik told the CBC. They just ignore Inuit stories about the Terror ship. Finally an aboriginal person describing what he had seen in his own lands had been believed.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren. I want this intelligent, courageous and unflappable person to be the next U.S. president. She has the right temperament, as we say now, to cope with the smashed nation Trump will leave behind. Think of Trump as No Country for Old Mens Anton Chigurh but without the smarts, the dignity and the good looks. Just the hair. Warren will restore the electric grid while tens of thousands of volunteers pick up the dead and wheelbarrow them to the central bonfires Trump used to burn books. Raw times ahead.

Charlie Brooker. This intensely clever Brit was a talent discovered almost by accident. He sold video games in a store, became a video games critic, then one of the Guardians best columnists and invented ScreenWipe, TV criticism on TV. Then he made Black Mirror, an online series about the insidious things the advance of little black screens has done/will do to our lives. Theyre all about the way we live now and the way we might be living in 10 minutes time if were clumsy, Brooker says. Black Mirror, in its third season, is terrifying but instructive. Russian black mirrors made Donald Trump president. Black mirrors spread false news, spied on us, destroyed love and self-respect. Worse to come.

Elena Ferrante. The only way for a woman to tell the truth about the lives of women is to write under a false name. An Italian woman writing under this name wrote a series of novels including the Neapolitan series and The Days of Abandonment that were realized to be extraordinary. They became best-sellers. She grew wealthy and famous. So an envious man hunted her down, revealed her real name, her addresses, the contents of her bank accounts. He punished her. What would happen if one woman told the truth about her life? wrote the poet Muriel Rukeyser in 1968. The world would split open. Ferrantes world did. She may never write again.

Daniel Dale. When the Toronto Star sent him to Washington, I just hoped he wouldnt get shot. Hes a great reporter and writer, a person of fundamental decency, so that was just me taking the darkest possible view. Dale became a beacon of sanity for Canadian readers, and Americans too. He checked facts and inspired others to do so. The fact that Trump voters only care about truthiness  what they feel to be true  doesnt detract from Dales greatness. His reward? At least four more miserable years in Trump City, poor guy.

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Behind the doors of an unassuming west-end house, conversations have been happening that could help change the lives of at-risk and abused women 12,300 kilometres away.

Ernestines Womens Shelter in Rexdale has been hosting visitors from the Tanzania-based human rights group, Kilimanjaro Women Information Exchange and Consultancy Organization (KWIECO).

Managing director Elizabeth Minde says the group has built the first shelter for abused women in Tanzania. Her visit was part of a partnership between the two organizations, a resource Minde said is desperately needed.

Our community is highly patriarchal in nature . . . A lot of discrimination exists, she told the Star near the end of her two-week visit. At home, the major thing were dealing with is the poverty cycle  how do we help the women get out of that poverty cycle?

Poverty, she explained, has contributed to domestic and sexual violence issues that can leave women with nowhere to go.

According to the 2010 Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey, 39 per cent of women ages 15 to 49 have experienced physical violence since age 15. Ten per cent of women in the same age group reported their first sexual intercourse happened against their will and, overall, 20 per cent reported having experienced sexual violence.

Although construction of KWIECOs shelter, located on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro in the town of Moshi, began in May 2015, the structure is still unfinished.

It now houses eight women and six children, just under half of Ernestines capacity. Minde said there simply arent enough resources to take in more. And, unlike Ernestines, the KWIECO shelter receives no funding from the federal government. It was awarded funding to set up the project by Finlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

We only take those that are really desperate, Minde said, explaining that some beds do not have sheets or mattresses, and food resources are stretched thin.

Her recent visit was a follow-up to a trip in August when Ernestines staff, including acting program co-ordinator Monica Amenya and facility services co-ordinator Deborah James-Sargeant, visited the KWIECO shelter to offer feedback and help develop programming.

James-Sargeant said she was shocked at the number of children arriving at the shelter, alone, seeking help.

I think that stands out most because I started at (Ernestines) in child and youth, so I do have a special eye, care and attention for children, she said, also noting that poverty and a communal society where women are often dependant on male family members  sometimes their abusers  were also major issues.

(The staff are) dealing with very difficult situations . . . Not just physical abuse, not just mental abuse, but deep, deep levels of abuse, Amenya added, noting that the shelter only had one counsellor.

In addition to helping with long-term planning, Ernestines staff brought simple tools like Healthy Relationship Bingo and childrens toys and books to leave at the shelter.

We really wanted to highlight in the Tanzanian context, What can programming look like, even with limited resources?  James-Sargeant explained.

Minde said KWIECO plans to focus on improving and refining services, such as better counselling services for women and children  something she said Ernestines does admirably.

She recalled one house meeting she sat in on at Ernestines.

One client was very new and still very frustrated and she wasnt sure what (to do), she recalled. By the time the meeting ended, she was a different person. You could see she was beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel.

This is the second time Ernestines has worked with a group from overseas. The shelter, through Crossroads International, has also worked with Togolese womens rights and development group Groupe de reflexion et daction Femme, Democratie et Developpement.

Correction: A previous version of this article said the KWIECO shelter was funded by Global Affairs Canada. In fact, its Crossroads International Volunteer Program, which facilitated the partnership between Ernestines and KWIECO, that is funded by Global Affairs.

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It would have almost been easier to process if Anthony Divers had died in a car accident, his family says.

At least we would have had some answers, said his eldest sibling, Yvonne Alexander.

Divers, 36, was shot and killed around midnight Sept. 30 by a Hamilton police officer, who was responding to a call about a man who had committed an assault and was reportedly armed with a gun, according to Ontarios police watchdog, the Special Investigations Unit, which is investigating.

There was an interaction and the officer discharged his firearm, said a brief news release issued by the SIU at the time.

More than two months later, Divers three siblings are left with little additional information. One thing of which they are convinced, however, is that Divers was not armed that night.

An eyewitness who spoke to Alexander said Divers, who was standing outside, took his hands out of his pockets when ordered to do so, after which he was shot, although he did not appear to be holding a weapon. Two witnesses interviewed by the Hamilton Spectatorsaid he did not appear to have a weapon.

I knew in my heart of hearts that he wasnt armed, and to hear that confirmed was good, Alexander said in a recent interview with the Star in her Hamilton home, along with her brother Edward Divers and sister Leslie Wilson.

A Hamilton police spokeswoman referred all questions about the case to the SIU, which refused to comment on the specifics of the ongoing investigation.

Anthony Tony Divers, described as a man who always put his family first, was the fourth person shot dead by Hamilton police in five years.

The case offers a window into how a family grapples with the grief over losing a loved one to a police shooting, and also the kind of public scrutiny that comes with it.

When initial stories emerged about Divers shooting, they inevitably mentioned his conviction for manslaughter stemming from the 2002 stabbing death of Ryan McDonald during a home invasion. Divers siblings had to deal with the online comments that his death was an eye for an eye.

We have always kept that family in our thoughts, Wilson said of McDonald.

As Edward puts it, the officer responding on Sept. 30 was most likely not even aware of Divers criminal background, and the shooting still raises the very important question of how police deal with individuals in crisis.

Divers siblings  who are angry and frustrated with what they see as a sluggish pace in the SIUs investigation and lack of answers so far  are sharing their story with the public for the first time.

An SIU spokeswoman said she could not offer a timeline as to when the probe would be completed.

While we attempt to conclude investigations as quickly as possible, our priority is to conduct a thorough investigation, Monica Hudon said in an email.

The SIU has been in regular contact with two of Mr. Divers siblings. All communications have been prompt, courteous, professional and as transparent as possible given the limitations during an ongoing SIU investigation.

Lawyer Roy Wellington, who has been assisting the family, described as unfortunate the lack of information being shared by the SIU.

To learn that your loved one has died in such a sudden and violent way is difficult enough, and its worse when you get to know absolutely nothing, he said. From the information that has come out thus far, everyone should be concerned about what took place that evening.

Like other families who have gone through a similar ordeal, the Divers siblings say theyve lost confidence in the police as well as the civilian oversight of police in Ontario.

They set up a Go Fund Me page, called Justice for Tony, to raise money in order to hire their own investigator and legal counsel.

Divers, who had mental health issues, was clearly in crisis that night, his family says. From what Alexander heard from the eyewitness, there appears to have been no attempt at de-escalating the situation before Divers was shot in the chest.

Maybe I was guilty of this too in the past, when reading these kinds of stories, but when it does happen to you and you realize its happened to other families before, it just seems people dont seem interested that police are killing people for no reason, said Edward.

The siblings say they approached Chief Eric Girt following a police services board meeting in November, demanding answers to questions including: Why wasnt a Taser used? What about de-escalation tactics?

They say the chief responded by saying he wasnt there.

The one killer thing is when he turned to us, a grieving family who has lost their brother to police homicide, and said how this cop must feel right now, said Alexander.

(Hamilton police did not respond to questions from the Star about this encounter, deferring to the SIU.)

Wellington, the lawyer, said the Divers case highlights the need for police to have a clear plan when responding to a call of a person with a weapon, including being ready for the possibility that the individual is actually not armed.

When police enter into a situation that they themselves are told is likely to be dangerous, they need to be coming up with some sort of planning, rather than reacting, because their actions are shaped by the perceptions that they have, he said.

Bullied aggressively as a child due to his height  he was nearly six-foot-five  Divers also suffered later in life from post-traumatic stress disorder, his family said. It was mostly as a result of losing his parents  his best friends in the whole world, said Edward  within weeks of each other while he was incarcerated.

His family had tried to get him help where they could, but also found mental health resources lacking. Recently, he was ready to chart a new path in his life, as he was planning to move out west and start over, his siblings say.

He was passionate about bodybuilding and personal training, and wanted to work on his modeling portfolio. He had a mutual undying love with his six nieces and one nephew, said Wilson, and would have wanted to start a family of his own.

All of these things with my brother could have been avoided, Edward said. I just hope that this time is going to be different, that this cop will be held accountable.

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Jennifer Whyte, one of the Peel Regional Police officers involved in a deadly shooting on Queen Frederica Drive last year that left a man dead, two officers injured and an innocent bystander with a bullet in her back, is no longer a cop.

The Mississauga News has learned from a Peel police source that the former constable, the daughter of Peels retired high-ranking Supt. Kim Whyte, is now a civilian member of the force.

Peel Sgt. Josh Colley would neither confirm nor deny that Whyte is no longer a police officer.

She is still employed and has never resigned from Peel Regional Police, he said.

Efforts to reach Whyte via email and phone were unsuccessful.

Whyte is named in a $21-million lawsuit launched by victim Suzan Zreik and her lawyer, Michael Moon.

Zreik, then 22, was cutting a lime in her kitchen on Queen Frederica Dr. in Mississauga on the evening of March 20, 2015 when she was accidentally shot by police. A stray bullet hit her in the back, narrowly missing her spine.

The lawsuit alleges three officers  constables Whyte, Adam Paiement and Branden Dary  were at the centre of the violence, along with 22-year-old Marc Ekamba-Boekwa and his mother, Boketsu Boekwa. The elder Boekwa is before the courts on several charges relating to the incident.

During the encounter, Marc Ekamba-Boekwa was shot dead and two officers wounded along with Zreik.

The SIU, the civilian oversight body, announced a year ago that the violent encounter was legally justified as police were dealing with a man armed with a knife who was closing in on them as they restrained his mother.

A struggle ensued, prompting the officers to fire a total of 19 bullets. Ekamba-Boekwa was hit with 11 bullets, the SIU ruled.

Lawyer Moon and Zreik still do not know which officer fired the stray bullet that struck the young woman.

Moon filed a private charge against Whyte earlier this year, alleging it came from her gun, but the Crown intervened and stayed proceedings, saying forensic evidence shows Whytes gunfire didnt strike Zreik and the bullet came from one of the other officers guns.

The lawsuit alleges Dary, Paiement and Whyte either disregarded their training or had never been properly trained in the dangers of potential injuries to innocent civilians when discharging a firearm multiple times in a crowded residential complex.

Zreik has had continuous psychiatric treatment for depression, anxiety and post-traumatic-stress disorder, the lawsuit states, adding she now walks with a cane. The suit also claims Whyte has close ties to Chief Jennifer Evans and alleges that Whyte was improperly trained to use her sidearm.

Whyte in fact failed her firearms qualification while at police college, and she should not have been deployed in public with a sidearm, says the statement of claim.

The Peel police board held an emergency meeting on Friday to deal with the lawsuit, which also names the board and Evans as defendants.

On Wednesday board Chair Amrik Ahluwalia would not rule out an internal investigation against Evans. When contacted Friday after the emergency meeting, the board said it could not disclose what was discussed during the private meeting.

The lawsuit alleges that Evans all but guaranteed Zreik a future in policing when the chief visited the victims hospital room shortly after the shooting.

Evans told the Star that the lawsuits allegations are without merit and that they would be challenged vigorously in court.

With files from Jacques Gallant and San Grewal

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What are Toronto values? Diversity Our Strength, is surely one. We all like the sound of our city motto. The mayor does.

In a speech to the City Age conference in San Francisco in April, John Tory began with that motto, while he pitched Torontos immigrant population as a competitive advantage. Tory mentioned the 25,000 Syrian refugees Canada accepted, many sponsored through private families, including his own.

Our embrace of diversity is not just a pleasantry or the by-product of what we see as our national character, he said.

Toronto is an experiment that has worked.

That sounds like what Toronto and Canada tells itself all the time.

It feels good, and maybe its good for business.

But do we actually defend the ideals behind the words?

Over the last few months, Kellie Leitch has led a divisive and incendiary campaign for the Conservative Party of Canada leadership around undefined Canadian values. Nick Kouvalis, one of Mayor Torys key advisers who helped him win the mayoralty in 2014, is advising the Leitch campaign.

Last week the National Post asked Tory about this relationship and the mayor said he hoped Kouvalis would be part of the 2018 mayoral campaign and that hes one of the smartest people I have available to me, swatting away any concern about the content of the Leitch campaign and Torys proximity to it.

Campaign managers are usually journeymen and women who do a job quietly and move on. Politics is messy and most of us have skin far too thin to deal with how, to use a phrase employed by political folks, the sausage is made. Its a shrewd business across the political spectrum.

John Laschinger chaired Olivia Chows mayoral campaign in 2014 when Tory defeated her, but he had worked with Tory before, notably during the 2007 provincial election when Tory, as Progressive Conservative leader, lost to Dalton McGuinty.

Laschinger worked on other conservative campaigns, but was also the guy behind David Millers mayoral win and has worked on other left-leaning campaigns.

Kouvalis, himself, was behind Rob Fords mayoral win in 2010, but, as Torys strategist, opposed Doug Ford in 2014.

Two things are different with the Leitch-Tory connection: first, Kouvalis enjoys a high profile. There are usually no windows into the sausage factory; we see the finished product brightly lit and packaged for sale. But Kouvalis is a vocal and visible part of the Leitch campaign, tweeting and retweeting her message on Twitter and ranting against elites. He moved from the back room to the front window and is holding a strobe light and bullhorn. Perhaps hell run for office, himself, one day, but, for now, hes the smartest guy in the room, the best in the business and vocally advising the campaign with the polling data he mines.

The second difference is Canada has not seen a campaign as divisive as Leitchs. Apart from her own dog-whistle politics, Leitch released a statement after Trumps election congratulating him on his exciting message. Its one that incited the KKK to endorse him and energized the alt-right people we used to call neo-Nazis.

In a speech at the cenotaph at Old City Hall on Remembrance Day that would seem to oppose this, Mayor Tory said, We are very fortunate to live in a stable country where peace, order and good government underlie a way of life founded on freedom and respect.

Some of these things are becoming harder to come by now. Mayor Tory is the mayor of all Torontonians and as His Worship, he embodies and must defend Toronto and what Toronto stands for.

His intellectual endorsement of Kouvalis is not done as a private citizen.

The political cynicism required not to see a problem here is incredible, but its also a little comedic. Kouvalis and Leitch rant about Canadian elites, but Tory is as elite as they come, a lawyer and business executive, his family name is even on one of the TD Centre skyscrapers downtown. Will he no longer be elite come 2018?

I recently wrote both about Torontos commitment to Sanctuary City principles, which amounts to a declaration that the city is a safe place for immigrants, and about how mayors across North America are taking stands against the rising tide of hate that has washed up with Trump and his Canadian derivatives.

Does Mayor Tory have his citys back?

Our increasingly polarized world reminds us just how quickly democracy can dissipate if it is not cherished and protected. It is fragile, Tory told the crowd at the Remembrance Day cenotaph, saying difference is a source of strength, not a reason to be afraid or adversarial.

Sometimes we fail to connect these dots, and we take for granted the freedoms and the sacrifices that have made our country peaceful, democratic and stable.

Are these just words were told to feel good? Or are they said to get the city business?

None of them mean anything if actions dont stand behind the talk, especially in dangerous times. Its, indeed, all very fragile.

Will the mayor connect his dots and stand behind his words?

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Would people go so far as to cheat Canadas immigration system by having a baby to cover up a marriage of convenience?

Three different adjudicators presiding over a Brampton womans long-drawn-out spousal sponsorship application apparently think so, even though the couple has a daughter together.

Since 2008, Saranjit Kaur Sandhu has made three failed attempts to bring her spouse, Kulwinder Singh Sangha, to Canada from India  twice the Federal Court of Canada overturned the negative decision and sent the case back to the immigration appeal tribunal for reconsideration.

The birth of a child does not definitely prove that a marriage is genuine. Each case will turn on its own facts, although there is much to be said for the presumption that the parties to a fraudulent marriage are unlikely to risk the lifetime responsibilities associated with raising a child, wrote Justice Yves de Montigny in rejecting the second tribunal decision in 2014.

(T)here is no evidence that having a child was a ploy to enhance the applicants husbands chances of obtaining permanent residence in Canada.

Sandhus appeal has recently been rejected by the tribunal for the third time and she is back before the Federal Court for another intervention.

The focus of the past decisions has been the conclusion that the child of the marriage was conceived to bolster the relationship for immigration purposes, wrote tribunal adjudicator Elena Rose in the latest rejection of the couples sponsorship appeal.

The panel does not believe that the mere continuation of a purported relationship during a sponsorship and an appeal period, nor a shared child, is necessarily evidence inconsistent with a primary goal of immigration on entering the marriage.

Sandhu, 35, was sponsored to Canada by her first husband in 2005 but the couple separated after six months because he became abusive towards me and I could not take the sufferings any longer, according to her affidavit filed with the court.

After the divorce, Sandhu remained in Canada. In 2008, she wed Sangha in an arranged marriage, set up by her family in India. However, her sponsorship application was rejected in the same year. Her battle with the immigration appeal tribunal ensued.

In the meantime, the couple had a daughter, Arshleen, who was born in Canada in 2010 before Sandhu took the then 4-month-old baby to India to be looked after by grandparents.

In the latest rejection, adjudicator Rose wrote she didnt understand why Sandhu remained in Canada after her marriage broke down, given she had no ties to Canada. She also pointed out that the applicant had failed to specify grounds for the divorce as cruelty.

Given the alleged difficult circumstances that the appellant had encountered with her first husband, her quick return and immediate embracing of a second marriage, without even considering any other candidates seemed curious, Rose wrote.

She also questioned why the husband, a never-married 40-year-old would marry a divorcee, 35, whose divorce, by her own admission, put her into a low place in society, the adjudicator wrote.

Although the couple provided supporting evidence detailing their relationship  calls, photographs and Sandhus yearly visits to see Sangha in India  the panel concluded that while corroborating evidence is often helpful in establishing genuineness, it can also be fabricated to bolster an appeal.

The adjudicator also took issue with Sandhu sending her daughter back to India temporarily while working three jobs  as a cleaner, at a bakery and a plastics factory  in Canada to support her husband and girl in India.

She also suggested Sangha memorized details about his wifes life, including her address and postal code, to show he is knowledgeable about her.

There is no evidence of a genuine sharing of responsibility for the welfare of the family, said Rose in dismissing the couples appeal. The evidence throughout was clear that the applicants marriage exists for him if he comes to Canada, reunification with his wife and daughter are very secondary.

In an interview, Sandhu said she insisted on remaining in Canada so she could raise her family and give her child a better future. Being in Canada by herself, she said she had no choice but to send her newborn daughter to her husbands family back home. However, she did bring the girl back to Canada in 2013.

I had to leave my daughter with my husband so I could work and earn money to pay for immigration litigation, my own living expenses and travel to and from India, said Sandhu.

Canada is a country of hope and good life if one works hard. This is my home. Since we came back, Arshleen often asks me why her father is not with us and why he does not take her to school.

In the 2014 Federal Court decision, Justice de Montigny said that the fact Sandhu has spent a few months every year with her husband indicates their established relationship.

The tribunals decision must rest on a reasonable assessment of the evidence and cannot be the result of irrelevant factors, peripheral considerations or, even worse, prejudice and insensitivity to cultural difference, said the judge.

With all that her client has gone through, Jaswant Mangat, the couples lawyer, hopes that this time around the Federal Court will take the rare move to order officials to approve Sandhus sponsorship of her husband instead of deferring to the tribunal for redetermination, again. A court date is pending.

No one would persist like this couple has just to bring someone over unless it is a bona fide relationship, said Mangat. They have suffered enough.

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SEGOVIA, COLOMBIAIt is nine in the evening and there is a knock on the door of Andres Bedoyas house. He opens to find a skinny teenager. The youth raises a revolver to Bedoyas head and fires.

Bedoya had no enemies, no debts and no links to the armed groups that plague this part of northern Colombia. His only crime was to work in the mines of Canadian mining giant Gran Colombia Gold.

Bedoya was the first to die in a terror campaign waged in Segovia late last year by Colombias most powerful criminal group, a paramilitary mafia known as the Urabenos. Their target was the riches produced in Gran Colombias mines. But it was ordinary miners who paid the price in blood.

One year on and the teenage assassin who carried out the attacks is beginning a 23-year prison sentence, after confessing his crimes in a recent trial. But the workers in Gran Colombias mines continue to pay  now in the form of money extorted from their meagre earnings.

The Toronto-registered company is Colombias largest underground gold and silver producer. But in Segovia, Gran Colombia does little actual mining. After arriving in the region in 2010, the company cut costs by laying off most of its directly employed workforce then rehiring them through subcontracting companies.

Today, about 65 per cent of production in Segovia is through Damasa, a business group of five mining companies all owned and run by one man, Julio Erazo. Damasa miners who spoke to the Star on condition of anonymity complained of low pay, a lack of proper safety equipment and unstable short-term contracts that are terminated if they complain.

In September last year, the workers already precarious situation took a deadly turn when the Urabenos dispatched an 18-year-old hit man known as Venom with orders to target Damasa. The Urabenos wanted their cut of Gran Colombias gold, and Julio Erazo had stopped paying it, according to witness testimonies in the case.

In the space of a month, Venom shot up a living room where a miner sat with his family, murdered Bedoya in front of his pregnant wife, hurled a grenade at one of the company processing mills and shot dead a mine manager in the street outside his home.

The attacks were accompanied by Urabenos threats distributed around town by unseen hands and circulated around social media networks. Their message was stark: every one of the 1,500-plus Gran Colombia contractors working for Erazo was a military objective.

There was a lot of fear, Carlos Durango, a miner who at the time worked for Masora, one of Erazos companies, said in an interview. There were days we couldnt work or we had to go to work without uniforms on because if they saw us with the red Masora shirts they would kill us.

Before the arrival of the Urabenos in the region, Erazo had paid extortion  known in Colombia as the vaccination  every month. He knew the armed group he was paying well; they had been part of the same paramilitary death squad.

Erazo entered into mining after demobilizing from the now disbanded counter-insurgency the United Self-Defence Forces of Colombia (AUC). While Erazo moved into the legal world, many of his former comrades held on to their arms and dedicated themselves to controlling the criminal interests left behind by the AUC in the region  including extorting mining.

I had to ask their permission to work, Erazo said in an interview in November 2015. They said You can stay, but you know the system  you pay the vaccination.

Extortion was not the paramilitaries only interest in Gran Colombias mines. There were also their gangs of machuqueros  mine robbers. Machuqueros dig narrow mud tunnels into the company mines, then spend weeks at a time underground, stealing gold ore and processing it in their own rudimentary portable mills.

Erazo stopped the extortion payments then cleared his mines of machuqueros when the Urabenos drove his former AUC comrades out of the region and took over their business.

His refusal to co-operate with the new rulers of the regions underworld was not tolerated for long. But Erazo was shielded by heavily armed bodyguards, so the Urabenos targeted his unprotected workforce.

In October 2015, after the Urabenos murdered a second Damasa miner, Erazo called together his workers and announced he was going to terminate their contracts and withdraw from the region.

I said, If I am the problem then I dont want to be here anymore, said Erazo. It is not worth the life of a single miner.

Within two days, though, Erazo was vowing to continue, because, he said, of the efforts of the security forces and the solidarity of the workers.

The workers, however, tell a different story.

The government sent the army and police to guard the access routes to the mines but not the routes to our houses, and this is what we said (to Erazo), you are taking care of the mine but not our homes, said another former Damasa miner, who did not want to be identified for security reasons.

The miners felt abandoned by both Gran Colombia and Erazo, so, fearing both for their lives and for their futures, they took matters into their own hands.

We looked for ways to contact the people who were intimidating us, to do what Julio Erazo wasnt doing  pay the vaccination, said Durango.

The miners cut a deal with the Urabenos for every work crew to make their own extortion payments. Numerous sources confirmed these payments continue today, and that the amount demanded continues to rise.

Gran Colombia CEO Lombardo Paredes says the company is not aware of extortion in its supply chain, either in the past or currently. However, he did not dispute worker claims that they are forced to pay their own vaccination to be allowed to work in Gran Colombias mines.

There are things that escape from our control, he said in a November interview at Gran Colombias Medellin offices. This kind of extortion we cannot deal with, the underworld and organized crime we cannot deal with. Its not our problem, it is a government problem.

For the miners, though, extortion is their problem. Many of the crews work for a cut of the ore they mine, and the extortion can mean that on a bad month they now struggle to provide for their families.

It is not profitable to work with Erazo anymore, said Durango, who quit. If the mine isnt producing well then there might be enough to buy food but not enough to pay the vaccination as well.

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Wanda Candolini hasnt seen two of her grandchildren in years, and hasnt even met her third.

Estranged from her two daughters and their kids, she says she continues to call and leave messages, hoping the situation will change.

She believes her daughters are good and loving mothers . . . . But what I find, I dont think they realize what harm they are doing.

I have an 11-year-old grandson and granddaughter, shes 8, but they have a memory of me. This is the thing that gets most of us. They remember me, they remember spending the night at my place, then I was gone.

Candolini attends support group meetings for others like her who have been alienated from their grandchildren, and said new legislation compelling Ontario courts to consider grandparents rights will help her generation.

Bill 34, which amends existing laws, was recently given royal assent after being reintroduced by NDP MPP Michael Mantha earlier in the fall. He said the new legislation brings Ontario in line with other provinces.

While it doesnt automatically grant grandparents access, it does mean courts must consider them in custody cases, while also looking at whats in the best interest of the child.

Courts now have to look at grandparents in a different light, said Mantha (Algoma-Manitoulin) in an interview, adding he hopes the bill will encourage nurturing relationships between the generations.

Advocacy groups estimate about 75,000 grandparents in Ontario have been estranged from their grandchildren and have been pushing for improvements to the laws for more than a decade.

During debate on the bill at Queens Park, Mantha thanked former MPPs Kim Craitor and Christine Elliott and current MPP Cheri DiNovo (Parkdale-High Park) for their work over the years on this issue.

He said a discussion within his own family prompted him to act. Then he heard from families around the province.

Just the fact that grandparents had not seen their grandchildren for years, and what it meant to them, said Mantha. Their hearts are devastated; they are just devastated and broken inside.

Often the estrangement begins with a marriage breakdown, a death, or even just a comment, Mantha said.

Some people assume that these issues arise out of divorce, but this is not necessarily the case for most, he said during debate on the bill. Sometimes the root cause is found in sibling jealousy over money, over disputes, people innocently speaking out of turn, or sons and daughters exercising their control. Most often, it just occurs with seemingly no logic, no reason  and its happening.

Candolini wonders what role her divorce played in her familys fractured relations, though she has a strong bond with her two sons. She also moved from Nova Scotia back to Ontario  north of Milton  and thinks distance is also to blame.

Both girls are good mothers, but on the path of understanding me and my role . . . I thought I got them through the worst of it as a single parent, and here I am, when I should be celebrating with my family around my table at Christmas.

She said meeting other grandparents through the group Alienated Grandparents Anonymous made her realize she was far from alone.

Thats what is so surprising, she said. You go around the room and people say, I didnt do anything. I dont remember anything specific. But I was cut off. 

For Candolini, going to court is not something she can afford and, besides, she doesnt want to fuel the fire.

We have to rebuild, she said of relations with her daughters. I dont want them to become bitter because I know they are struggling. For me, I want education; I want them to understand that (estrangement) is not good, and not good for the children. I dont think they are deliberately doing it.

But I am happy for other people who want to go that route. The pain . . . to be at the alienated grandparents association  the amount of ache in the room is phenomenal. Its like a grieving group. You feel the pain.

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When the French put a draft constitution for a newly enlarged European Union to a referendum in 2005, Pascal Verrelle voted passionately against it  hoping it would stop the European Union in its tracks. He rejoiced when the effort failed, yet was dismayed when the bloc kept gathering more members and powers, anyway.

At the time, Verrelle, a former soldier, was a prison director, but he eventually felt compelled to enter politics and joined the far-right National Front. When he was elected mayor of this small town in Provence eight months ago, the first thing he did was to take down the European Union flag from City Hall.

In 2005, a majority voted against Europe, and we still find ourselves in Europe, by magic, he said, and I find it inadmissible.

The European Union is wobbling under the weight of problems encouraged in part by that unchecked expansion  stagnant economies, the euro crisis, new pressures from Russia and deep strains over migration, especially from newer members in Central and Eastern Europe.

But a visit to Le Luc and other villages in southern France is a reminder that the European Union faces yet another serious problem long in the making  a crisis of legitimacy  that is fuelling right-wing, nationalist politics even in the traditional core of the bloc.

For Verrelle, 2005 was a watershed. Since then, opposition to a much-enlarged, poorer and vastly more diverse European Union has only increased. So has support for the National Front and its leader, Marine Le Pen, who has emerged as a serious contender in Frances presidential race.

Having suffered a Brexit vote this year in Britain, Europe faces a series of critical elections in the year ahead. But none is more important than the vote in France, a founding European Union member.

The British decision to quit the European Union was a major blow, but a victory by Le Pen could be the death knell. And with the election of Donald Trump in the United States, that prospect has taken on new weight.

Donald Trump makes Marine Le Pen sound reasonable, said Francois Heisbourg, a special adviser to the Foundation for Strategic Research in France and chairman of the International Institute for Strategic Studies. His victory gives her respectability. Everyone knows shes not Trump  she knows how to use a noun and a verb and is intellectually coherent about what she wants and doesnt want.

What Le Pen wants is to lead France out of the euro currency and out of the bloc. She has said she would hold a popular referendum, a la Britain, on French membership in the European Union  a test of public will that mainstream French politicians, she says, are afraid to have.

From the mood here in southern France, a Frexit push would probably prevail in a referendum, just as 55 per cent voted in 2005 against the constitution that a former French president, Valery Giscard dEstaing, had drafted.

The French non killed the treaty, intended to create new federal institutions for a bloc enlarged the year before by 10 countries, mostly former Soviet-bloc countries such as Slovakia, Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary.

In a way, Frexit already happened, said a prominent regional Socialist member of Parliament, Jean-David Ciot. Europe did not keep its promises, to create a world of wealth and full employment.

People feel peace has been attained but fear that the rest of the world has come to undermine this wealth, Ciot added. They fear Europe is not protecting them from these migrants who come to pillage and steal their wealth.

Since 2005, southern France has been shifting steadily toward the National Front and its opposition to the European Union, Verrelle said. In the past three elections, he said, support has been growing systematically.

The former prison director is scathing about the radicalization of young French Muslims and the dangers he says he believes that uncontrolled immigration poses to France.

When I saw the prayers in the corridors of the prison, and others hiding their crosses, I knew we were lost, Verrelle said. Whats most dangerous about Europe is the loss of borders, and today we see the result, he added, speaking of terrorist attacks and migrant flows.

Im worried about Daesh, he said. Were bringing in a Trojan horse times 1,000.

As for the European Union, it has no clear political direction, Verrelle said, adding that it is too diverse economically for a single currency and too weak to allow freedom of travel.

Were in Europe against our will, he said. Its a prison. Its not a solution that will last.

About 90 minutes away, in La Tour dAigues, overlooked by the ruins of a Renaissance castle demolished during the French Revolution, Le Pens National Front organized a protest against plans to bring about 30 teenage asylum seekers from Afghanistan to the nearby town of Grambois.

The protesters, fewer than 200, were met by about 300 counterdemonstrators holding up banners showing solidarity with the refugees, while 90 riot police officers, dressed in black protective clothing, ringed the two groups to keep them apart.

Marion Marechal-Le Pen, a niece of Marine Le Pens and a rising star of the National Front, addressed the crowd from a makeshift podium.

It is not the hate of others, it is love for Provence, love for France, Marechal-Le Pen, 27, shouted into the microphone, as counterprotesters whistled and booed to try to drown her out. She railed against a dictatorial European Commission that works to undermine national sovereignty.

The wave of anger and identity politics is washing over France, with the ready-made instrument of a modernized National Front under Le Pen, 48.

She has now become both a symbol and an agent of a kind of defensive French nationalism that is proving very popular, especially in the southwest and north, near the Belgian border.

As the European Union struggles with fundamental issues of coherence, policy and solidarity, she has also become a plausible, if unlikely, president of France  almost sure to make the two-candidate runoff for the post in May.

Brussels is an easy target, especially for politicians like her seeking to blame domestic ills on some supranational agency.

There is huge disappointment with Europe, said Sylvie Goulard, a French member of the European Parliament for this region. But a tendency to blame Europe for national competencies  hospitals and nurses, malaise of the police, housing  these are all Franco-French failures, nothing to do with Europe.

The mood is worse in the south, Goulard said. Im from the south, and people are angry and frustrated, she said, but you realize that lack of transportation or the failure to integrate foreigners are not the fault of Europe, but Le Pen is exploiting these issues.

But even Goulard, who has announced her candidacy to become speaker of the European Parliament, acknowledges Brussels many failures. It has not created functioning external borders, and its response to the migrant issue has caused severe strains among member countries and undermined solidarity.

It would be stupid to be too optimistic, Goulard said. But we have tried to do something never done on earth, to get so many people to live and trade together in peace.

There are some strong proponents of Europe, too.

Alain-Pierre Merger, president of the Maison de lEurope de Provence, the regional chapter of an association that supports the European Union and promotes European citizenship, said that it would be a tragedy to break up the union, and that young people now feel a European identity that must be strengthened. Europe is an idea, but it must be seen to be working, he said.

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COLUMBUS, OHIOThe nations vice-president and a retired Marine Corps general were among the dignitaries, family members and other mourners who choked up Saturday during a memorial tribute to the late space hero John Glenn.

Roughly 2,500 people gathered at Mershon Auditorium on the Ohio State University campus for a celebration of life for the former fighter pilot, history-making astronaut and longtime Democratic U.S. senator from small-town Ohio. He was remembered not only for bravery, but for his thoughtful consideration for others, his integrity and his optimism.

I think John defined what it meant to be an American, Vice-President Joe Biden said. The thing I liked most about John was that he knew from his upbringing that ordinary Americans could do extraordinary things.

Retired USMC Gen. John Dailey said Glenn will be missed, and never forgotten.

We had John for 95 great years and it still wasnt enough, Dailey said.

Glenn died Dec. 8 at age 95. He was the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962, and then in 1998 became the oldest person in space at 77.

Ethel Kennedy, widow of close Glenn ally Robert F. Kennedy, and their son Robert F. Kennedy Jr. were among the mourners present, along with Ohio political leaders including Gov. John Kasich and former Govs. Ted Strickland and Richard Celeste.

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden Jr. said the U.S. space program is standing on John Glenns shoulders with its current mission to Mars.

It was courage, grace and humility John displayed throughout his life that lifted him above the stars, Bolden said. He said Glenn always represented the best of our American ideals.

Bagpipes played as Glenns flag-draped coffin was brought into the auditorium after a procession from the Ohio Statehouse.

The service was preceded by a musical medley that included hymns, arias and popular songs. Some  including Nat King Coles Smile and Susan Boyles version of Impossible Dream  nodded to Glenns optimism. Others, including You Are My Sunshine, Moon River and Shirley Jones singing Goodnight, My Someone  recalled Glenns long love affair with wife, Annie, who survives him and attended the services with their children.

Thousands of visitors, including Democratic U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, visited the Ohio Statehouse on Friday to pay their respects as Glenn lay in honour. He will be buried in a private ceremony this spring at Arlington Cemetery near Washington, D.C.

MORE ON THESTAR.COM

Glenns former crewmate reflects on his life

Photos: John Glenn, American space hero, dies at 95

Former astronaut, U.S. Sen. John Glenn of Ohio has died at 95

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SEOUL, KOREA, REPUBLIC OFSupporters of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-hye clashed with anti-Park protesters Saturday, as large crowds of demonstrators again gathered in Seoul to demand the scandal-ridden leaders immediate ouster.

The historically large weekend protests over an explosive corruption scandal pushed South Koreas opposition-controlled parliament to vote this month to impeach Park. The impeachment suspended Parks powers until the constitutional Court decides whether she should permanently step down or be reinstated.

While polls measure Parks popularity in the low single digits, her impeachment has become a rallying point for her conservative supporters, who turned out in the tens of thousands on Saturday.

They waved the countrys national flag and shouted for Parks illegal impeachment to be nullified, and the rotten parliament to be dissolved.

The tension was tangible as anti-Park protesters, whose numbers were much bigger, gathered on a boulevard across the street from where Parks supporters were rallying. Protest organizers estimated that about 600,000 anti-Park protesters turned out.

Despite thick lines of police officers separating them, there was some yelling and shoving between the two groups, with one Park supporter hitting an anti-Park protester with the pole of her flag. There were no immediate reports of serious violence or injuries.

Huge throngs of anti-Park protesters later walked toward the presidential offices and residence, known as the Blue House, carrying candles and signs and demanding that Park immediately quit.

Other groups marched toward the office of Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, who assumed the role as government caretaker after Park was impeached on Dec. 9, and toward the constitutional Court.

I cant stand Park for even another day. Nobody wants her, but shes stubbornly sticking around, using taxpayer money like its her money, said Kim Eun-young, who participated in her third weekend protest.

Prosecutors accuse Park of colluding with a longtime confidante to extort money and favours from companies and allowing her to manipulate state affairs.

The court has up to six months to decide on Parks case. If she is formally removed from office, the country will hold a presidential election within 60 days.

Park has apologized for putting trust into her jailed friend, Choi Soon-sil, whose criminal trial begins on Monday, but has denied any legal wrongdoing.

On Friday, lawmakers attempted to inspect records at the presidents office, but were denied entry. The lawmakers had planned to look into allegations that Blue House security officials allowed Choi and her key associates to easily move in and out of the presidential offices and residence.

Parks lawyer, Lee Joong-hwan, said the court should restore Parks powers because there is insufficient evidence to justify her unseating. He and other members of Parks legal team submitted a statement to the court explaining why the case should be decided in the presidents favour.

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We used to laugh at fake news. When the National Enquirer told us Bigfoot had been found, we shared a chuckle and moved on. But fake news isnt funny these days because too many people seem incapable of distinguishing it from real news.

Teenagers in Macedonia can dream up absurd things, post them to a website, and millions of people around the world will read and believe every word.

A young man in the United States told the Washington Post he makes about $10,000 a month making up stuff. The money comes from companies that put their ads next to his fake stories. Even when youre paid just a few pennies for a thousand clicks, it becomes serious money when there are millions of clicks.

Fake news caught our attention during the American election campaign. Nonsensical stories about Hillary Clinton kept popping up and a great number of people found them credible. Bad enough. But things became very unfunny this month when a fake news story inspired a man to visit a pizza parlour in the Washington, D.C., area armed with a semi-automatic rifle. He fired three shots before he was arrested. He didnt manage to hit anyone, but he did manage to say he was investigating a story he read online. The story said the restaurant was the hub of a child sex slave ring run by friends of Hillary Clinton.

Its at least as easy now to read fake news on the internet as real news. In the last few days you could read about the worlds first prison staffed entirely by robots, how the FBI killed John Lennon, and about refugees in Europe gang-raping little boys.

The fact that even one person believes any of this is sad. That fact that countless people believe it makes you wonder whatever happened to the triple-digit IQ, and how were ever going to find enough human ingenuity on the planet to overcome problems like climate change. It is dispiriting.

But theres a silver lining in all this. Fake news could save real news.

Now, more than ever, we all need news sources we can trust. That has long been a selling point for what we now call mainstream media (or old media). They should be pressing that advantage now. Thats their brand  truth.

But newspaper readership is in free fall. Broadcast news organizations scratch for ratings in a crowded field. Theyve reacted to these existential threats by diluting their product. Theyve cut newsroom staff. So too often, they chase easy stories instead of important stories. They choose to feed readers and viewers what they want rather than what they need. They give reporters and editors fewer resources. Standards slip. Mistakes creep in.

Desperate to be first with some tidbit of information on Twitter, for example, even the best news organizations have made mistakes. And though they didnt mean to mislead, its really just more fake news. If even the respected names in news cannot be trusted they are doomed, and as a functioning democracy, so are we.

But what if the old-timers returned to their roots and worked harder than ever to make truth their most important product? Might that be the magic ingredient for success?

A lot of fake news is ridiculous on its face. Donald Trump is not going to insist that his national security briefings be limited to 140 characters, as one site headlined recently. But some fake news is, shall we say, plausible. Theres a story online, for example, that Barack Obama will start his own media empire when hes finished being president of the United States. The story cites sources for this inside information, just as so many real news stories do. So how do we know whether to believe it or dismiss it?

Id say, consider the source. The old mainstream media can still argue that they can be trusted. This newspaper has run stories in the past that would have looked right at home on a fake news site. The mayor of Toronto smokes crack cocaine? Hilarious! But because it was on the front page of the Toronto Star, it was entirely credible (and indeed, turned out to be true).

Big news organizations like the Star, the Globe and Mail, CBC News and CTV News have spent decades building and protecting their reputations for honesty and trustworthiness. They can proudly say they stand for the truth. Its the one thing they should never compromise, no matter how trying the economic times.

Mark Bulgutch is the former senior executive producer of CBC News and now teaches journalism at Ryerson University. His latest book is Thats Why Im a Journalist.

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The beginning of 2016 was marked by a rare optimism about the new government in Ottawa. As we approach years end, we are seeing the first signs of that optimisms fragility. Liberal support remains strong, but some recent polls suggest mounting criticism may well be having an impact.

Theres been much to applaud in the Liberal governments first year: the restoration of the long-form census and unmuzzling of government scientists, major infrastructure investments that will stimulate the economy and make our cities more livable, the modest expansion of the Canada Pension Plan, real movement on climate policy and the introduction of the Canada Child Benefit, which promises to raise tens of thousand of children out of poverty, among other accomplishments.

But in recent months, a series of stumbles has rekindled questions about the governments seriousness, which is to say both its sincerity and its gravity. Here are five areas Trudeau and his team should focus on to restore confidence that they are the government they promised to be.

Cash-for-access: Every time Justin Trudeau or one of his cabinet ministers hobnobs with the rich and powerful in exchange for a $1,500 contribution to the Liberal Party, the government gives the unseemly impression of preferential access. Yet Trudeau persists in his unwise and incoherent justifications.

The prime minister has said these fundraisers are strictly within the rules, which is no excuse. He has rightly said Ottawa has some of the toughest fundraising guidelines of any jurisdiction in Canada, which is irrelevant. And he has said that when he and his ministers are lobbied at these events, they respond by talking only about the middle class, which is, if not implausible, at least bizarre.

Ontario, which just banned such events, gets it. The federal ethics and lobbying commissioners get it. Even Trudeau once seemed to get it. He instructed his ministers in their mandate letters that there should be no preferential access to government, or appearance of preferential access, accorded to individuals or organizations because they have made financial contributions to politicians and political parties.

Yet, sadly, his government remains steadfastly on the wrong side of this issue. The prime minister should wise up in the New Year, lest his governments ethical credibility be forever damaged.

Electoral reform: The government still insists its working toward its promise of making last years federal election the last under the first-past-the-post system of voting. Yet every action Trudeau and his caucus have taken on the issue suggests otherwise.

The all-party Parliamentary committee on electoral reform spent months working on a report that ultimately issued a sensible recommendation: a referendum that puts FPTP up against at least some form of proportional representation. Yet Maryam Monsef, the minister responsible, issued such a perfunctory, anti-intellectual dismissal of the report that one had to wonder why the committee was struck in the first place. (She later apologized.)

And thats to say nothing of the ongoing debacle that is the governments public consultation on the issue. For anyone who has taken the profoundly unserious survey at mydemocracy.ca can attest, the sites most significant contribution is likely to be the vast body of Twitter parodies it continues to inspire.

If the government has no intention of pursuing electoral reform, it should stop wasting Parliaments time and eroding voters trust and simply say so. Otherwise, in 2017, it should treat the issue with the care and seriousness it deserves.

Indigenous reconciliation: Despite encouraging talk of a renewed, nation-to-nation relationship and an even more encouraging $8.4-billion budget commitment to improve the lives of indigenous people over the next five years, the Liberals have too often failed to live up to their word on reconciliation.

The promised investment, for instance, while big, is heavily backloaded. A large portion of the money is to be rolled out in the year after the next election. Meanwhile, crises are being ignored.

For instance, the government has brushed off repeated legal orders by the Human Rights Tribunal to address the child welfare crisis on reserves  a disheartening decision that has taken a terrible toll, contributing to, among other things, a youth suicide epidemic in communities across the country. In October, Parliament unanimously supported a New Democrat motion calling on the government to act. Liberal members, too. Yet, still, no money has been forthcoming.

This failure, along with Ottawas unilateral imposition of energy projects and its continued litigation to avoid compensating victims of the so-called Sixties Scoop, has cast doubt on the sincerity of Trudeaus lofty talk on indigenous justice. In 2017, Ottawa should make perfectly clear that reconciliation is more than just a buzzword.

Security law: The Conservatives were committed to expanding the security state with no apparent regard for civil liberties. Those, like us, who hoped the Trudeau government would correct the balance have been sorely disappointed.

The Liberals, who supported the Tories overreaching anti-terror bill, C-51, while in opposition, promised to amend the most problematic elements of the legislation once in office and ensure it conforms with the Charter. More than a year later, the law remains untouched, including aspects that represent a clear threat to privacy, as well as freedom of speech and security of the person.

Instead, the Liberals seem keen on introducing yet more intrusive powers. To frame its ongoing public consultation on security issues, the government released a discussion paper that dedicates far more space to the case for protecting the powers granted by C-51 and providing new ones than to the risks such powers pose.

In 2017, Trudeau should do as he promised and rein in a security apparatus whose reach continues to grow unencumbered by crucial new oversight or protections against abuse.

Tax fairness: Finance Minister Bill Morneau says tax fairness is his top priority, though he hasnt always acted like it. Canadas sprawling tax code is rife with regressive loopholes that the government has rightly promised to review. But action has been worryingly slow given the huge sums of public money at stake.

Take the tax break on executive stock options. Under industry pressure, Morneau shamefully backtracked on his promise to close the loophole, which costs Ottawa about $1 billion annually, 90 per cent of which goes to the top 1 per cent of earners.

This obscene tax expenditure is just one of more than 60 such measures that collectively drain about $100 billion from federal coffers every year, providing by far the greatest benefit to those who need it least.

The planned comprehensive review of Canadas tax system is expected to find $3 billion in savings  a plausible, if modest, goal. Fixing our prolix tax code cant happen overnight. But the government should show Canadians its serious about tax fairness by moving quickly to close loopholes and cap benefits that help the very rich while hampering Ottawas ability to help the rest of us.

Sincerity and gravity. The challenge for Trudeau in 2017 will be to show Canadians that his government means what it says  and delivers.

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Thomas Walkom has hit on the sticking point about carbon pricing: How high the price has to go in order to make a real difference in emissions.

The $200-a-tonne number he cites, far more than any government has proposed, is not beyond reason. As the price starts to get up there, it represents a huge revenue stream. That kind of money cant just be taken out of the economy without having seriously negative effects on the lower and middle class.

The only way to allow the price to get high enough to make a difference without disproportionately punishing the less fortunate is to return the money to the taxpayers on an equitable basis.

This can be accomplished with tax cuts, or with direct payments as in the fee and dividend model recently championed to the government by Citizens Climate Lobby during their annual conference.

This kind of revenue-neutral policy actually represents an answer to both of Walkoms questions. Will it be enough to do the job? It can be if revenue-neutral pricing is employed. Will Canadians accept the costs? They will if they are getting their cut.

Jack Morton, Toronto

Thomas Walkom is right to raise the question of whether Canadians will support a rising fee on carbon emissions. Although the need is obvious and urgent, the costs for the many who live paycheque to paycheque would be substantial.

The best way to build popular support for a price on carbon is to return the revenues raised to Canadian households. We can then address the costs of the carbon levy and invest our own funds to reduce our emissions.

B.C. saw the wisdom of such revenue neutrality in implementing its carbon tax in 2008. Patrick Brown, as Leader of the Opposition in Ontario, now embraces it as well. The other provinces would do well to follow suit.

Doug Pritchard, Toronto

Thomas Walkom asks two questions: Will the climate-change deal be enough to do the job and will Canadians accept the cost?

Be of good cheer, the answer is, yes  when the prime minister and provincial premiers finally get carbon fee and dividend. They will get it, probably sooner than later, because it is the only effective carbon-pricing policy capable of generating political will to see it through. Why?

The carbon fee will apply to all greenhouse-gas emissions, no exceptions. It gradually rises to whatever is necessary to cut emissions by 90 per cent.

All revenue will be returned to citizens as monthly dividends. That will offset costs and create jobs.

Domestic industries will be protected by border carbon adjustments on imports and exports.

Yes, this will happen. We have no viable alternative.

John Stephenson, Etobicoke

The Prime Minister, along with the premiers of every province plus aboriginal leaders, gathered in Ottawa on Dec. 10. Only one premier, Brad Wall of Saskatchewan, refuses to sign this agreement.

It seems to me that he is the only one with a bit of logic and common sense because he cares for the taxpayers of his province. Too bad the other leaders including the prime minister dont. We are supposed to be living in a democracy.

Why is it that Ontario, under Dalton McGuinty, passed the Green Energy Act, where the voter has no say at all on the locations of these wind and solar power installations?

Justin Trudeau said he will impose a carbon tax if the province does not. Is this the new democracy? You do as I say and not as I do?

Albert OConnell, Cornwall

The language of climate change is certainly strange. Thomas Walkom and many others use words like combating, fighting, defeating, and battling climate change as if the personified climate is the enemy, not actual persons and personified corporations.

Transition is another strange word. Transition until when? In 1968, former U.S. president L.B. Johnson was already speaking about transitioning to clean energy, but renewables are still only a fraction of the fuel mix. The goal of eliminating greenhouse gases has morphed into mitigation and adaptation.

Do the wordsmiths mean adapt to the threat of extinction?

Walkom asks about whether we Canadians will pay climate-change costs, but he doesnt argue for a progressive carbon tax targeting the wealthy who have large homes, heated driveways, gas-guzzling cars, who frequently fly, who hold investments in the big emitters like mining, industrial agriculture, aviation and shipping, and military-related industries.

Instead, the flat carbon tax takes from the poor and gives to the rich. There are subsidies for retrofits for people who are homeowners and there are subsidies for green hybrids for people who can afford these expensive cars.

Couldnt a progressive carbon tax help to restore (or provide free) public transportation, affordable housing and adequate health care and public education  and motivate the rich to reflect on what they are doing?

Judith Deutsch, Toronto

Congratulations to the federal government and those provinces that signed the new pan-Canadian climate agreement. It starts Canada on a path to meaningful reductions in greenhouse-gas emissions, allowing us to honour our commitments under the Paris accord.

Along with that comes the opportunity to begin the long and difficult, but necessary, restructuring of our economy by de-emphasizing fossil fuels and innovating with renewable energy technologies.

Its pragmatic, too. By allowing provinces the flexibility to implement carbon-pricing strategies as they see fit, it acknowledges their diversity and resists federal micromanagement. Should provinces choose, they can introduce a fee-and-dividend mechanism, which as several studies and British Columbias experience have shown, provides significant reductions in emissions while fostering economic growth.

Of course, time will tell whether this agreement delivers the results so urgently needed. Its up to us to ensure our governments follow through by holding them accountable. Future generations depend on it.

Richard Schertzer, Milton

Muddling the climate issue, Dec. 13

After reading this opinion piece on the wonders of Ontarios climate plan, I was left puzzled about why the Wynne government and the oh-so-independent folks at the OEB are doing their utmost to bury the true cost of cap-and-trade from consumers hydro and gas bills.

When did politicians ever like to suppress news that might cast a favourable glow?

Sarcasm aside, in an age when folks go positively apoplectic at the slightest increase in bank fees or cable/cellphone rates, Im amazed that the burying of billions in cap-and-trade costs isnt causing outrage.

Jeff Barker, Mississauga

Canadas climate plan is so faint-hearted that Ottawa will likely have to buy costly international carbon credits to meet its 2030 emissions targets. Why should Canada fob off its responsibility to reduce its own emissions on someone else, when we already spew three times the per-capita greenhouse gases as the global average?

And why would we expect a tiny carbon tax that will take six years to add 11 cents a litre at the pumps to noticeably curb emissions? Three years ago, pump prices were 30 to 40 cents per litre higher because international oil prices were double those of today. Those pump prices didnt restrain emissions, so what will 11 cents do?

Its time to end the artful dodging and get serious. Stop new pipelines, cap and then reduce emissions from the largest and fastest growing source  the production of bitumen from Albertas Sands.

Gordon Laxer, author of After the Sands, Gravenhurst, Ont.

Now that a carbon tax will come into effect, there needs to be a serious discussion about the pros and cons. The pros have been widely proclaimed by the government and environmental groups, but other than Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall, little has been said about the cons.

The Toronto Star has said that British Columbias carbon tax has raised the price of a litre of gas by 6.67 cents in that province.

Australia instituted a carbon tax on July 1, 2012, and repealed it two years later.

How can we compete with our biggest trading partner when our industries are burdened with a carbon tax and they are not? We have always moved in step with the United States, be it time zones, border security, tariff reductions or international obligations. Now is not the time to get out of step.

The time will come when carbon pricing is a good idea, its just not now.

Larry Prout, Peterborough

Only a Liberal and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau would celebrate a new way of taxing Canadians and raising the cost of everything to protect future generations from climate change.

In case Trudeau didnt read this with his morning cup of hair gel, Canada contributes only 2 per cent of all global emissions! So how does he justify a carbon tax to Canadians, while few other nations are gullible enough to follow our lead?

Simply put, you cant. The fact is, the Prime Minister is simply impoverishing more people to appease a select few enviro-quacks; the same sort who likely have cushy government jobs that will be protected from the worst excesses of this tax with good raises, while the rest of us have to choose between heating our homes and feeding our kids.

This scenario has already proved a failure in Ontario, with my provinces Liberal-government-imposed tax/fee charged on electric bills to fund green energy that created none of the promised green jobs, but did wonders to make rates rise through the roof.

And now our PM wants to ensure the same trick is applied everywhere. In doing so, he is proving once again that Liberals only know how to punish people for trying to live their lives, instead of helping them do so.

Steven Eleftheriadis, Toronto

I just read that Al Gores climate-change documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, is getting a sequel. I hope it comes out in time to be played at president-elect Donald Trumps inauguration.

Cindy Cohanim, Toronto

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Who'd a thunk it?

At the start of this year, few would have imagined that Walmart's (WMT) stock would outperform ecommerce giant Amazon's, but that is indeed what has happened. Walmart's shares have risen about 16%, while shares of Amazon are up 12.6%.

The world's largest bricks-and-mortar retailer had a strong year, showed promise in an area that was once considered its biggest weakness: ecommerce.

However, Walmart's challenges are far from over. Although it may have steadied itself over the past year, a few threats remain, and investors might want to consider less-risky growth opportunities.

One concern is that Walmart is on a possible collision course with the new wave of change sweeping through Washington.

President-elect Donald Trump is known for his anti-Mexico stance, and has boasted about scoring victories over Ford Motors and the Carrier unit of United Technologies to keep jobs in the U.S.

But Walmart is plowing $1.3 billion into Mexico in its quest to build new distribution centers and expand existing facilities and should hope it isn't inviting his criticism.

After all, as Boeing and Lockheed Martin have discovered, it can take only a tweet from Trump to send shares plunging.

Another challenge for Walmart is Amazon Go, a grocery store with no checkout lines that the ecommerce company is piloting in Seattle. This unique model combines a brick-and-mortar chain with payments operating via sensors.

Already, fresh food sellers such as Whole Foods Market, are wary of the competitive threat posed by Amazon Go.

If it finds favor with customers, Amazon will execute at the speed of light, without waiting for next Christmas.

Although Amazon cancelled its plans to open 2,000 stores, it could surprise other retailers with bigger plans.

Meanwhile, though Walmart has been lauded for making ecommerce inroads and its acquisition of Jet.com, the company is at its core a bricks-and-mortar retailer, and it will take it a while to think or move like Amazon.

And the ecommerce battle comes with its own costs, which could negatively affect Walmart's bottom line.

Finally, the run-up in Walmart's stock implies that profit-taking could happen at any moment.

The more than two dozen analysts with 12-month price forecasts for Walmart's stock have a median target of $73, which isn't much higher than where it is trading.

Next year will be interesting for Walmart, and while it has shown significant promise, there could be a hard landing in store for investors.

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The author is an independent contributor who at the time of publication owned none of the stocks mentioned.
Apollo Global Management, Inc. is a private equity firm specializing in investments in credit, private equity and real estate markets. The firm's private equity investments include traditional buyouts, recapitalization, distressed buyouts and debt investments in real estate, corporate partner buyouts, distressed asset, corporate carve-outs, middle market, growth capital, turnaround, bridge, corporate restructuring, special situation, acquisition, and industry consolidation transactions. The firm provides its services to endowment and sovereign wealth funds, as well as other institutional and individual investors. It manages client focused portfolios. The firm launches and manages hedge funds for its clients. It also manages real estate funds and private equity funds for its clients. The firm invests in the fixed income and alternative investment markets across the globe. Its fixed income investments include income-oriented senior loans, bonds, collateralized loan obligations, structured credit, opportunistic credit, non-performing loans, distressed debt, mezzanine debt, and value oriented fixed income securities. The firm seeks to invest in chemicals, commodities, consumer and retail, oil and gas, metals, mining, agriculture, commodities, distribution and transportation, financial and business services, manufacturing and industrial, media distribution, cable, entertainment and leisure, telecom, technology, natural resources, energy, packaging and materials, and satellite and wireless industries. It seeks to invest in companies based in across Africa, North America with a focus on United States, and Europe. The firm also makes investments outside North America, primarily in Western Europe and Asia. It employs a combination of contrarian, value, and distressed strategies to make its investments. The firm seeks to make investments in the range of $10 million and $1500 million. The firm seeks to invest in companies with Enterprise value between $750 million to $2500 million. The firm conducts an in-house research to create its investment portfolio. It seeks to acquire minority and majority positions in its portfolio companies. Apollo Global Management, Inc. was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in New York, New York with additional offices in North America, Asia , India and Europe.
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Lawrie Receivables Financing Ltd, Amberdate Ltd, Anglo Scottish Utilities Partnership 1, Aquilus Ltd, Automobile Association Personal Finance Ltd, BOS (Ireland) Property Services 2 Ltd, BOS (Ireland) Property Services Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages (Scotland) No. 2) Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages (Scotland) No. 3) Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages (Scotland)) Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 1 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 2 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 3 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 4 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 5 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 6 plc, BOS (USA) Fund Investments Inc., BOS (USA) Inc., BOS Edinburgh No 1 Ltd, BOS Mistral Ltd, BOS Personal Lending Ltd, BOSSAF Rail Ltd, Bank of Scotland (B G S) Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland (Stanlife) London Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Branch Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Central Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Edinburgh Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Equipment Finance Ltd, Bank of Scotland Foundation, Bank of Scotland LNG Leasing (No 1) Ltd, Bank of Scotland London Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Nominees (Unit Trusts) Ltd, Bank of Scotland P.E.P. Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Structured Asset Finance Ltd, Bank of Scotland Transport Finance 1 Ltd, Bank of Scotland plc, Bank of Wales Ltd, Barents Leasing Ltd, Barnwood Mortgages Ltd, Birchcrown Finance Ltd, Birmingham Midshires Financial Services Ltd, Birmingham Midshires Land Development Ltd, Birmingham Midshires Mortgage Services Ltd, Black Horse (TRF) Ltd, Black Horse Executive Mortgages Ltd, Black Horse Finance Holdings Ltd, Black Horse Finance Management Ltd, Black Horse Group Ltd, Black Horse Ltd, Black Horse Offshore Ltd, Black Horse Property Services Ltd, Boltro Nominees Ltd, British Linen Leasing (London) Ltd, British Linen Leasing Ltd, British Linen Shipping Ltd, C.T.S.B. Leasing Ltd, CBRail S.A.R.L., CF Asset Finance Ltd, CF1 Ltd, CM Venture Investments Ltd, Cancara Asset Securitisation Ltd, Capital 1945 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 12 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 3 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 5 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 9 Ltd, Capital Bank Property Investments (3) Ltd, Capital Personal Finance Ltd, Cardiff Auto Receivables Securitisation 2018-1 Plc, Cardiff Auto Receivables Securitisation 2019-1 Plc, Cardiff Auto Receivables Securitisation Holdings Ltd, Cardnet Merchant Services Ltd, Cashfriday Ltd, Cashpoint Ltd, Caveminster Ltd, Cedar Holdings Ltd, Celsius European Lux 2 S.A.R.L., Central Mortgage Finance Ltd, Chariot Finance Ltd, Cheltenham & Gloucester plc, Cheltenham II Securities 2020 DAC, Cheltenham Securities 2017 Ltd, Chepstow Blue Holdings Ltd, Chepstow Blue plc, Chester Asset Options No.2 Ltd, Chester Asset Options No.3 Ltd, Chester Asset Receivables Dealings Issuer Ltd, Chester Asset Securitisation Holdings Ltd, Chester Asset Securitisation Holdings No.2 Ltd, Chiswell Stockbrokers Ltd, Clerical Medical Finance plc, Clerical Medical Financial Services Ltd, Clerical Medical International Holdings B.V., Clerical Medical Investment Fund Managers Ltd, Clerical Medical Managed Funds Ltd, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Guadalix Hold Co BV, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Guadalix Spanish Prop Co SL, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Megapark Hold Co BV, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Megapark Prop Co SA, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Property Company S.A.R.L., Cloak Lane Funding S.A.R.L., Cloak Lane Investments S.A.R.L., Conquest Securities Ltd, Corbiere Asset Investments Ltd, Create Services Ltd, Credit Card Securitisation Europe Ltd, Dalkeith Corporation, Deva Financing Holdings Ltd, Deva Financing plc, Deva One Ltd, Deva Three Ltd, Deva Two Ltd, Dunstan Investments (UK) Ltd, Edgbaston RMBS 2010-1 plc, Edgbaston RMBS Holdings Ltd, Elland RMBS 2018 plc, Elland RMBS Holdings Ltd, Eurolead Services Holdings Ltd, First Retail Finance (Chester) Ltd, Fontwell Securities 2016 Ltd, Forthright Finance Ltd, France Industrial Premises Holding Company, General Leasing (No. 12) Ltd, General Reversionary and Investment Company, Gresham Nominee 1 Ltd, Gresham Nominee 2 Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 1) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 10) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 11) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 12) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 13) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 14) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 15) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 16) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 19) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 20) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 21) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 22) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 23) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 24) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 25) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 26) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 27) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 28) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 29) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 3) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 30) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 31) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 32) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 33) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 34) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 35) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 36) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 37) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 38) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 39) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 40) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 41) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 44) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 45) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 46) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 47) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 48) UK Ltd, Guildhall Asset Purchasing Company (No 3) Ltd, Guildhall Asset Purchasing Company (No.11) UK Ltd, HBOS Covered Bonds LLP, HBOS Final Salary Trust Ltd, HBOS Financial Services Ltd, HBOS Insurance & Investment Group Ltd, HBOS International Financial Services Holdings Ltd, HBOS Investment Fund Managers Ltd, HBOS Social Housing Covered Bonds LLP, HBOS UK Ltd, HBOS plc, HSDL Nominees Ltd, HVF Ltd, Halifax Credit Card Ltd, Halifax Financial Brokers Ltd, Halifax Financial Services (Holdings) Ltd, Halifax Financial Services Ltd, Halifax General Insurance Services Ltd, Halifax Group Ltd, Halifax Investment Services Ltd, Halifax Leasing (June) Ltd, Halifax Leasing (March No.2) Ltd, Halifax Leasing (September) Ltd, Halifax Life Ltd, Halifax Loans Ltd, Halifax Ltd, Halifax Mortgage Services Ltd, Halifax Nominees Ltd, Halifax Pension Nominees Ltd, Halifax Premises Ltd, Halifax Share Dealing Ltd, Halifax Vehicle Leasing (1998) Ltd, Heidi Finance Holdings (UK) Ltd, Hill Samuel Bank Ltd, Hill Samuel Finance Ltd, Hill Samuel Leasing Co. Ltd, Home Shopping Personal Finance Ltd, Horizon Capital 2000 Ltd, Housing Association Risk Transfer 2019 DAC, Housing Growth Partnership GP LLP, Housing Growth Partnership LP, Housing Growth Partnership Ltd, Housing Growth Partnership Manager Ltd, Hyundai Car Finance Ltd, IBOS Finance Ltd, ICC Enterprise Partners Ltd, ICC Equity Partners Ltd, ICC Holdings Unlimited Company, Inchcape Financial Services Ltd, Intelligent Finance Financial Services Ltd, Intelligent Finance Software Ltd, International Motors Finance Ltd, Kanaalstraat Funding C.V., Katrine Leasing Ltd, LB Healthcare Trustee Ltd, LB Motorent Ltd, LB Quest Ltd, LB Share Schemes Trustees Ltd, LBCF Ltd, LBG Brasil Administracao LTDA, LBG Capital Holdings Ltd, LBG Equity Investments Ltd, LBI Leasing Ltd, LDC (General Partner) Ltd, LDC (Managers) Ltd, LDC (Nominees) Ltd, LDC GP LLP, LDC I LP, LDC II LP, LDC III LP, LDC IV LP, LDC Parallel (Nominees) Ltd, LDC V LP, LDC VI LP, LDC VII LP, LDC VIII LP, LTGP Limited Partnership Incorporated, Legacy Renewal Company Ltd, Leicester Securities 2014 Ltd, Lex Autolease (CH) Ltd, Lex Autolease (VC) Ltd, Lex Autolease Carselect Ltd, Lex Autolease Ltd, Lex Vehicle Finance 2 Ltd, Lex Vehicle Leasing (Holdings) Ltd, Lex Vehicle Leasing Ltd, Lime Street (Funding) Ltd, Lingfield 2014 I Holdings Ltd, Lingfield 2014 I plc, Lloyds (Gresham) Ltd, Lloyds (Gresham) No. 1 Ltd, Lloyds (Nimrod) Specialist Finance Ltd, Lloyds America Securities Corporation1, Lloyds Asset Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Branches) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Colonial & Foreign) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Fountainbridge 1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Fountainbridge 2) Ltd, Lloyds Bank (I.D.) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank (International Services) Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Stock Exchange Branch) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank Asset Finance Ltd, Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance Ltd, Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance Scotland Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (HP) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.2) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.3) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.4) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Wertpapierhandelsbank GmbH, Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets plc, Lloyds Bank Covered Bonds (Holdings) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Covered Bonds (LM) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Covered Bonds LLP, Lloyds Bank Equipment Leasing (No. 1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Equipment Leasing (No. 7) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Equipment Leasing (No. 9) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Financial Services (Holdings) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Foundation for England & Wales, Lloyds Bank Foundation for the Channel Islands, Lloyds Bank General Insurance Holdings Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Insurance Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 11) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 17) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 20) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 3) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 5) Ltd, Lloyds Bank GmbH, Lloyds Bank Hill Samuel Holding Company Ltd, Lloyds Bank Insurance Services Ltd, Lloyds Bank International Ltd, Lloyds Bank Leasing (No. 6) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Leasing (No. 8) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Bank MTCH Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No. 10) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No. 13) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No. 17) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No.16) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank Offshore Pension Trust Ltd, Lloyds Bank Pension ABCS (No. 1) LLP, Lloyds Bank Pension ABCS (No. 2) LLP, Lloyds Bank Pension Trust (No. 1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Pension Trust (No. 2) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Pensions Property (Guernsey) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Properties Ltd, Lloyds Bank Property Company Ltd, Lloyds Bank S.F. Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank Subsidiaries Ltd, Lloyds Bank Trustee Services Ltd, Lloyds Bank plc, Lloyds Banking Group Pensions Trustees Ltd, Lloyds Capital GP Ltd, Lloyds Commercial Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Commercial Properties Ltd, Lloyds Commercial Property Investments Ltd, Lloyds Corporate Services (Jersey) Ltd, Lloyds Development Capital (Holdings) Ltd, Lloyds Engine Capital (No.1) U.S LLC, Lloyds Far East S.A.R.L., Lloyds General Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Group Holdings (Jersey) Ltd, Lloyds Holdings (Jersey) Ltd, Lloyds Hypotheken B.V., Lloyds Industrial Leasing Ltd, Lloyds International Pty Ltd, Lloyds Investment Bonds Ltd, Lloyds Investment Fund Managers Ltd, Lloyds Investment Securities No.5 Ltd, Lloyds Leasing (North Sea Transport) Ltd1, Lloyds Leasing Developments Ltd, Lloyds Nominees (Guernsey) Ltd, Lloyds Offshore Global Services Private Ltd, Lloyds Plant Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Portfolio Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Premises Investments Ltd, Lloyds Project Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Property Investment Company No. 3 Ltd, Lloyds Property Investment Company No. 4 Ltd, Lloyds Property Investment Company No.5 Ltd, Lloyds Secretaries Ltd, Lloyds Securities Inc., Lloyds TSB Pacific Ltd, Lloyds UDT Asset Leasing Ltd, Lloyds UDT Asset Rentals Ltd, Lloyds UDT Hiring Ltd, Lloyds UDT Leasing Ltd, Lloyds UDT Ltd, Lloyds Your Tomorrow Trustee Ltd, Loans.co.uk Ltd, London Taxi Finance Ltd, London Uberior (L.A.S. Group) Nominees Ltd, Lotus Finance Ltd, MBNA, MBNA Direct Ltd, MBNA Europe Finance Ltd, MBNA Europe Holdings Ltd, MBNA General Foundation, MBNA Global Services Ltd, MBNA Indian Services Private Ltd, MBNA Ltd, MBNA R & L S.A.R.L., MBNA Receivables Ltd, Mainsearch Company Ltd, Maritime Leasing (No. 19) Ltd, Membership Services Finance Ltd, Mitre Street Funding S.A.R.L., Molineux RMBS 2016-1 plc, Molineux RMBS Holdings Ltd, Moor Lane Holdings Ltd, NFU Mutual Finance Ltd, NWS Trust Ltd, Nominees (Jersey) Ltd, Nordic Leasing Ltd, Ocean Leasing (July) Ltd, Oystercatcher Nominees Ltd, Oystercatcher Residential Ltd, PIPS Asset Investments Ltd, Pacific Leasing Ltd, Penarth Asset Securitisation Holdings Ltd, Penarth Funding 1 Ltd, Penarth Funding 2 Ltd, Penarth Master Issuer plc, Penarth Receivables Trustee Ltd, Pensions Management (S.W.F.) Ltd, Peony Eastern Leasing Ltd, Peony Leasing Ltd, Peony Western Leasing Ltd, Permanent Funding (No. 1) Ltd, Permanent Funding (No. 2) Ltd, Permanent Holdings Ltd, Permanent Master Issuer plc, Permanent Mortgages Trustee Ltd, Permanent PECOH Holdings Ltd, Permanent PECOH Ltd, Perry Nominees Ltd, Prestonfield Investments Ltd, Proton Finance Ltd, R.F. Spencer And Company Ltd, Ranelagh Nominees Ltd, Retail Revival (Burgess Hill) Investments Ltd, SARL Coliseum, SARL Hiram, SAS Compagnie Fonciere De France, SCI Astoria Invest, SCI De LHorloge, SCI Equinoxe, SCI Rambuteau CFF, SW Funding plc, SW No.1 Ltd, SWAMF (GP) Ltd, SWAMF Nominee (1) Ltd, SWAMF Nominee (2) Ltd, Saint Michel Holding Company No1, Saint Michel Investment Property, Saint Witz 2 Holding Company No1, Saint Witz 2 Investment Property, Salisbury II Securities 2016 Ltd, Salisbury II-A Securities 2017 Ltd, Salisbury III Securities 2019 DAC, Salisbury Securities 2015 Ltd, Sandown 2012-2 Holdings Ltd, Sandown 2012-2 plc, Sandown Gold 2012-1 Holdings Ltd, Sandown Gold 2012-1 plc, Savban Leasing Ltd, Scotland International Finance B.V., Scottish Widows Administration Services (Nominees) Ltd, Scottish Widows Administration Services Ltd, Scottish Widows Annuities Ltd, Scottish Widows Auto Enrolment Services Ltd, Scottish Widows Europe, Scottish Widows Financial Services Holdings, Scottish Widows Group Ltd, Scottish Widows Industrial Properties Europe B.V., Scottish Widows Ltd, Scottish Widows Pension Trustees Ltd, Scottish Widows Property Management Ltd, Scottish Widows Schroder Personal Wealth (ACD) Ltd, Scottish Widows Schroder Personal Wealth Ltd, Scottish Widows Schroder Wealth Holdings Ltd, Scottish Widows Services Ltd, Scottish Widows Trustees Ltd, Scottish Widows Unit Funds Ltd, Scottish Widows Unit Trust Managers Ltd, Scottish Widows Fund and Life Assurance Society, Seabreeze Leasing Ltd, Seaspirit Leasing Ltd, Share Dealing Nominees Ltd, Shogun Finance Ltd, Silentdale Ltd, St Andrews Group Ltd, St Andrews Insurance plc, St Andrews Life Assurance plc, St. Marys Court Investments, Standard Property Investment (1987) Ltd, Standard Property Investment Ltd, Sussex County Homes Ltd, Suzuki Financial Services Ltd, Swan Funding 2 Ltd, Syon Securities 2019 DAC, The Agricultural Mortgage Corporation Plc, The British Linen Company Ltd, The Halifax Foundation for Northern Ireland, The Mortgage Business plc, Thistle Financing Holdings Ltd, Thistle Investments (AMC) Ltd, Thistle Investments (ERM) Ltd, Thistle Leasing, Three Copthall Avenue Ltd, Tower Hill Property Investments (10) Ltd, Tower Hill Property Investments (7) Ltd, Tranquility Leasing Ltd, Trinity Financing plc, UDT Budget Leasing Ltd, UDT Sales Finance Ltd, Uberior (Moorfield) Ltd, Uberior Co-Investments Ltd, Uberior ENA Ltd, Uberior Equity Ltd, Uberior Europe Ltd, Uberior Fund Investments Ltd, Uberior Infrastructure Investments (No.2) Ltd, Uberior Infrastructure Investments Ltd, Uberior Investments Ltd, Uberior Nominees Ltd, Uberior Trading Ltd, Uberior Trustees Ltd, Uberior Ventures Australia Pty Ltd, Uberior Ventures Ltd, United Dominions Leasing Ltd, United Dominions Trust Ltd, Universe The CMI Global Network Fund, Upsaala Ltd, Vine Street IX LP, WCS Ltd, Ward Nominees (Abingdon) Ltd, Ward Nominees (Birmingham) Ltd 1, Ward Nominees (Bristol) Ltd 1, Ward Nominees Ltd 1, Waverley  Fund II Investor LLC, Waverley  Fund III Investor LLC, Waymark Asset Investments Ltd, West Craigs Ltd, Wetherby II Securities 2018 DAC, Wetherby III Securities 2019 DAC, Wetherby Securities 2017 Ltd, Wood Street Leasing Ltd, and Zurich Insurance Group - UK Workplace Pensions and Savings Business.

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The Sherwin-Williams Company develops, manufactures, distributes, and sells paints, coatings, and related products to professional, industrial, commercial, and retail customers. It operates through three segments: The Americas Group, Consumer Brands Group, and Performance Coatings Group. The Americas Group segment offers architectural paints and coatings, and protective and marine products, as well as OEM product finishes and related products for architectural and industrial paint contractors, and do-it-yourself homeowners. The Consumer Brands Group segment supplies a portfolio of branded and private-label architectural paints, stains, varnishes, industrial products, wood finishes products, wood preservatives, applicators, corrosion inhibitors, aerosols, caulks, and adhesives to retailers and distributors. The Performance Coatings Group segment develops and sells industrial coatings for wood finishing and general industrial applications, automotive refinish products, protective and marine coatings, coil coatings, packaging coatings, and performance-based resins and colorants. It serves retailers, dealers, jobbers, licensees, and other third-party distributors through its branches and direct sales staff, as well as through outside sales representatives. The company has operations primarily in the North and South America, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, and Australia. As of February 17, 2022, it operated approximately 5,000 company-operated stores and facilities. The Sherwin-Williams Company was founded in 1866 and is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio.
The following companies are subsidiares of Sysco: 2234829 Alberta ULC, 2234842 Alberta ULC, A. M. Briggs Inc., A.M. Briggs, Almacen Fiscal Frionet Caldera S.A., Almacen Fiscal Frionet Limon S.A., Appert's Foodservice, Arnotts (Fruit) Limited, Asian Foods, Bahamas Food Holdings Limited, Bahamas Food Services Limited, Brake Bros, Brake Bros Foodservice Ireland Limited, Brake Bros. Foodservice Limited, Brake Bros. Holding I Limited, Brake Bros. Ltd., Brakes Foodservice NI Limited, Buchy Food Service, Buckhead Beef Co., Buckhead Meat & Seafood of Houston Inc., Buckhead Meat Company, Buckhead Meat Midwest Inc., Buckhead Meat of Dallas Inc., Buckhead Meat of Denver Inc., Buckhead Meat of San Antonio LP, Buzztable Inc., CAKE Corporation, Central Seafood Co., Christys Wine & Spirits Limited, Clafra Aktiebolag, Colorado Boxed Beef Co - Specialty meat-cutting division, Corporacion Frionet Sociedad Anonima, Crossgar Foodservice, Crossgar Foodservice Limited, Crown I Enterprises Inc., Cucina Acquisitions (UK) Limited, Cucina Finance (UK) Limited, Cucina French Holdings Limited, Cucina Fresh Finance Limited, Cucina Fresh Investments Limited, Cucina Lux Investments Limited, Curleys Quality Foods Limited (Third Party), Davigel Belgilux S.A., Davigel Espana S.A., Desert Meats & Provisions, Distagro, Doerle Food Service, Doughtie's Foods Inc., Dust Bowl City LLC, Eko Fagel Fisk o mittemellan AB, Enclave Insurance Company, Enclave Parkway Association Inc., Enclave Properties LLC, European Imports, European Imports Inc., Figg Inc., Freedman Meats, Freedman Meats Inc., Freedman-KB Inc., Fresh Direct (UK) Limited, Fresh Direct Group Limited, Fresh Direct Limited, Fresh Holdings Limited, FreshPoint, FreshPoint Arizona Inc., FreshPoint Atlanta Inc., FreshPoint California Inc., FreshPoint Central California Inc., FreshPoint Central Florida Inc., FreshPoint Connecticut LLC, FreshPoint Dallas Inc., FreshPoint Denver Inc., FreshPoint Hawaii LLC, FreshPoint Inc., FreshPoint Las Vegas Inc., FreshPoint North Carolina Inc., FreshPoint North Florida Inc., FreshPoint Oklahoma City LLC, FreshPoint Pompano Real Estate LLC, FreshPoint Puerto Rico LLC, FreshPoint San Francisco Inc., FreshPoint South Florida Inc., FreshPoint South Texas Inc., FreshPoint Southern California Inc., FreshPoint Tomato LLC, FreshPoint Vancouver Ltd., Freshfayre Limited, Fruktservice i Helsingborg AB, GHS Classic Drinks Limited, Gilchrist & Soames Inc., Gilchrist & Soames UK Limited, Guest Packaging LLC, Guest Supply, Guest Supply Asia Limited, Guest Supply Singapore Pte. Ltd., International Food Group, Isakssons Frukt & Gront AB, J & M Wholesale Meats, J. Kings Food Service Professionals, J. Kings Food Service Professionals Inc., Kent Frozen Foods, Les Ateliers Du Gout, Liquid Assets Limited, M&J Seafood Holdings Limited, M&J Seafood Limited, Manchester Mills LLC, Mayca Autoservicio S.A., Mayca Distribuidores S.A., Menigo Foodservice AB, Mitshim Etatu Supply LP, Newport Meat Company, Newport Meat Northern California Inc., Newport Meat Pacific Northwest Inc., Newport Meat Southern California Inc., Newport Meat of Nevada Inc., North Star Holding Corporation, North Star Seafood, North Star Seafood Acquisition Corporation, North Star Seafood LLC, PFS de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Palisades Ranch Inc., Pallas Foods, Pallas Foods Farm Fresh Unlimited Company, Pallas Foods Unlimited Company, Pauleys Produce Limited, Promotora del Servicios S.A. de C.V., Restaurangakdemien AB, Restaurant of Tomorrow Inc., Rohan Viandes Elaboration SAS, SMS Bermuda Holdings, SMS GPC International Limited, SMS GPC International Resources Limited, SMS Global Holdings S.a.r.l., SMS International Resources Ireland Unlimited Company, SMS Lux Holdings LLC, SOTF LLC, SYY Netherlands C.V., SYY Panama S. de R.L., Serca Foodservice, Servicestyckarna I Johannes AB, Servicios Ameriserve S.A. de C.V., Shenzhen Guest Supply Trading Co. Limited, Societe Civile Immobiliere (SCI) Bianchi Montegut, Societe Civile Immobiliere (SCI) De Boiseau, Societe Civile Immobiliere (SCI) De Garcelles, Societe Civile Immobiliere (SCI) J.D. Lanjouan, Societe Civile Immobiliere (SCI) Le Dauphin, Specialty Meat Holdings LLC, Stockflag Limited, Stockholms Fiskauktion AB, Supplies on the Fly, Sysco Albany LLC, Sysco Asian Foods Inc., Sysco Atlanta LLC, Sysco Autoservicio S.A., Sysco Baltimore LLC, Sysco Baraboo LLC, Sysco Bermuda Partners L.P., Sysco Boston LLC, Sysco Canada Holdings S.a.r.l., Sysco Canada Inc., Sysco Central Alabama LLC, Sysco Central California Inc., Sysco Central Florida Inc., Sysco Central Illinois Inc., Sysco Central Pennsylvania LLC, Sysco Charlotte LLC, Sysco Chicago Inc., Sysco Cincinnati LLC, Sysco Cleveland Inc., Sysco Columbia LLC, Sysco Connecticut LLC, Sysco Corporation, Sysco Corporation Director's Deferred Compensation Plan Trust, Sysco Corporation Employee's 401(k) Plan Trust, Sysco Corporation Executive Deferred Compensation Plan Trust, Sysco Corporation Good Government Committee Inc., Sysco Corporation Retirement Trust, Sysco Corporation Supplemental Executive Retirement Trust, Sysco Corporation Supplemental Unemployment Benefits Plan Trust, Sysco Detroit LLC, Sysco Disaster Relief Foundation Inc., Sysco EI VI S. s.r.l., Sysco EU II S.a.r.l., Sysco EU III S.a.r.l., Sysco EU IV Capital Unlimited Company, Sysco EU IV S. s.r.l.., Sysco EU V S. s.r.l., Sysco Eastern Maryland LLC, Sysco Eastern Wisconsin LLC, Sysco Foundation Inc., Sysco France Holding SAS, Sysco France SAS, Sysco George Town II LLC, Sysco George Town Limited S. s.r.l.., Sysco Global Finance LLC, Sysco Global Finance LLP, Sysco Global Holdings B.V., Sysco Global Resources LLC, Sysco Global Services LLC, Sysco Grand Cayman Company, Sysco Grand Cayman II Company, Sysco Grand Cayman III Company, Sysco Grand Rapids LLC, Sysco Guernsey Limited, Sysco Guest Supply Canada Inc., Sysco Guest Supply Europe Goods Wholesalers LLC, Sysco Guest Supply Europe Limited, Sysco Guest Supply LLC, Sysco Gulf Coast LLC, Sysco Hampton Roads Inc., Sysco Hawaii Inc., Sysco Holdings II LLC, Sysco Holdings LLC, Sysco Indianapolis LLC, Sysco International Food Group Inc., Sysco International Inc., Sysco Iowa Inc., Sysco Jackson LLC, Sysco Jacksonville Inc., Sysco Kansas City Inc., Sysco Knoxville LLC, Sysco Labs Europe Limited, Sysco Labs Pvt. Ltd., Sysco Leasing LLC, Sysco Lincoln Inc., Sysco Lincoln Transportation Company Inc., Sysco Long Island LLC, Sysco Los Angeles Inc., Sysco Louisville Inc., Sysco Memphis LLC, Sysco Merchandising and Supply Chain Services Canada Inc., Sysco Merchandising and Supply Chain Services Inc., Sysco Metro New York LLC, Sysco Minnesota Inc., Sysco Montana Inc., Sysco Nashville LLC, Sysco Netherlands Partners LLC, Sysco North Central Florida Inc., Sysco North Dakota Inc., Sysco Northern New England Inc., Sysco Philadelphia LLC, Sysco Pittsburgh LLC, Sysco Portland Inc., Sysco Raleigh LLC, Sysco Resources Services LLC, Sysco Riverside Inc., Sysco Sacramento Inc., Sysco San Diego Inc., Sysco San Francisco Inc., Sysco Seattle Inc., Sysco South Florida Inc., Sysco Southeast Florida LLC, Sysco Spain Holdings SLU, Sysco Spokane Inc., Sysco St. Louis LLC, Sysco Syracuse LLC, Sysco Technologies Cayman Ltd., Sysco Technologies LLC, Sysco UK Holdings Limited, Sysco UK Limited, Sysco UK Partners LLP, Sysco USA I Inc., Sysco USA II LLC, Sysco USA III LLC, Sysco Ventura Inc., Sysco Ventures Inc., Sysco Virginia LLC, Sysco West Coast Florida Inc., Sysco Western Minnesota Inc., The SYGMA Network Inc., Upsys, Victua SAS, Walker Foods Inc., Waugh Foods, and Wild Harvest Limited.

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Cardinal Health, Inc. operates as an integrated healthcare services and products company in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, and internationally. It provides customized solutions for hospitals, healthcare systems, pharmacies, ambulatory surgery centers, clinical laboratories, physician offices, and patients in the home. The company operates in two segments, Pharmaceutical and Medical. The Pharmaceutical segment distributes branded and generic pharmaceutical, specialty pharmaceutical, and over-the-counter healthcare and consumer products. The segment also provides services to pharmaceutical manufacturers and healthcare providers for specialty pharmaceutical products; operates nuclear pharmacies and radiopharmaceutical manufacturing facilities; repackages generic pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter healthcare products; and offers medication therapy management and patient outcomes services to hospitals, other healthcare providers, and payers, as well as provides pharmacy management services to hospitals. The Medical segment manufactures, sources, and distributes Cardinal Health branded medical, surgical, and laboratory products and devices that include exam and surgical gloves; needles, syringe, and sharps disposals; compressions; incontinences; nutritional delivery products; wound care products; single-use surgical drapes, gowns, and apparels; fluid suction and collection systems; urology products; operating room supply products; and electrode product lines. The segment also distributes a range of national brand products, including medical, surgical, and laboratory products; provides supply chain services and solutions to hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, clinical laboratories, and other healthcare providers; and assembles and sells sterile, and non-sterile procedure kits. The company was incorporated in 1979 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ohio.
No Ukrainian soldiers were killed, but four servicemen were wounded in the anti-terrorist operation area in eastern Ukraine over the last day.

Ukrainian Defense Ministry's Spokesperson for ATO Colonel Andriy Lysenko said this at a press briefing in Kyiv on Wednesday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

No Ukrainian soldiers were killed, but four servicemen were wounded as a result of combat actions over the past day, Lysenko said.

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This is what the Feds decision to increase interest rates looks like to savers. (istock/istock)

Dont look now, but the Federal Reserve has actually done something that will benefit the savers among us. To wit, money market mutual fund yields are going to rise a bit, thanks to the rate increase the Fed announced Wednesday.

And heres a thought that might help make a small break for savers a bit bigger: If youve got a serious amount invested in regular money market funds  Ill leave the definition of serious to you, because everyones situation is different  you might want to look at municipal money market funds, whose dividends are mostly or entirely tax-free.

Why mention muni money funds? Because while both regular and muni money funds will soon benefit from the Fed rate increase that everyone knows about, muni fund yields have been quietly benefitting from something far less well known: Securities and Exchange Commission regulations that went into effect in October.

Those regulations have driven many big institutional investors out of muni money funds, and have also driven out retail investors whose brokerage firms changed their sweep accounts to government funds from muni funds. Sweep accounts are the accounts from which cash is swept out to buy securities, and into which cash from securities sales, dividends and interest is swept in.

Retail government funds  which own only securities issued or guaranteed by the federal government  arent subject to the so-called gates and fees that the new SEC rules required retail muni funds (which buy state or local government IOUs) and retail prime funds (corporate IOUs) to adopt in October.

Those rules require retail and prime funds to limit redemptions, charge an exit fee or both if theres a run on the funds by investors desperate to get their money out right now because they think the fund may collapse. The odds against such a run occurring are very high, but memories of the Reserve Funds collapse in 2008, which got caught owning Lehman securities when Lehman went bankrupt, still haunt the markets.

Adam Banker, a spokesman for Fidelity, the nations biggest money fund issuer, said, We decided to offer only government money market funds, which are not subject to liquidity fees or redemption gates, for core sweep brokerage accounts because surveys showed that Fidelity brokerage customers didnt want to take even the slightest risk with their cash.

Assets in institutional muni funds have fallen more than 90 percent this year, to $4.6 billion as of Nov. 30 from $52 billion at year-end 2015, according to the Money Fund Intelligence newsletter. Peter Crane, who publishes the newsletter, said new rules require institutional muni funds to price shares to four digits rather than at the customary $1 a share, and institutions dont want to have to deal with that.

Crane says that total muni money fund assets have fallen almost 50 percent this year  to $130 billion as of Nov. 30 from $252 billion.

But despite the severe shrinkage of muni fund assets, the short-term financial needs of state and local government entities was little changed. That resulted in higher rates on those borrowings, which translated into higher muni fund yields.

Tax-exempt funds offer investors safety, high quality, liquidity and have attractive yields, says Colleen Meehan, director of municipal money market fund strategies for Dreyfus, and theyre attractive to people who pay serious income taxes.

Meehan, of course, is talking her book, as they say on Wall Street. But after I met with her recently, I went home, compared the yields on taxable and tax-exempt money funds, and moved the sweep cash in my familys taxable portfolios almost entirely into tax-free funds because Im willing to take the risk (which I consider minuscule) of running into gate or fee problems. I moved the sweep cash in my retirement accounts, whose income is tax-free, into prime funds.

We savers are finally getting a teensy-weensy break from the Fed, which has penalized the prudent for years by holding down rates to bail out the imprudent and to presumably stimulate our economy. Were heading back in the direction of normalcy. With all due respect to the dont-raise-rates crowd, which includes friends of mine, its about time.
Want to give them something they love? Good luck with that. (Diane Diederich/iStock)

In this season of generosity, you want to give the perfect present, right?

Or maybe, you dont.

Research by Deborah Cohn, a marketing professor at the New York Institute of Technology, describes what many recipients have long suspected. Some people purposefully select gifts with the aim of sending a message. And when their gift is a dud, its not just a gaffe.

A mother-in-law might give her new daughter-in-law a 12-piece cookware set with a card that says, I know you cant cook, so thought this might help.

A husband might buy his wife a big-screen television for Christmas knowing full well its really for him to watch during the Super Bowl party hes already planning.

Cohns research paper, Thanks, I Guess: What Consumers Complain About When They Complain About Gifts, puts an authoritative spin on why the holidays come with so many returns.

One out of every three gift recipients in the U.S. returned at least one gift item during the 2013 holiday season with the total dollars of returned gifts estimated at $262.4 billion (not including fraudulent returns), Cohn writes. This figure does not include unwanted gifts that are not returned but kept in a closet, regifted, sold, donated or thrown away.

By combing through online message boards and conducting in-depth interviews, Cohn identified five categories of premeditated present selection that result in bad gift giving:

Threats to self-concept. This is when someone buys a gift to try to change someone, Cohn said in an interview. But you are threatening who they are.

For instance, one wife told Cohn she hated the way her husband dressed.

I buy a lot of clothes because he has horrible taste. I bought him burgundy pants, really dark burgundy pants, and a silk shirt, which was really nice, and hes worn it twice because I forced him.

Really, thats what she wanted, for him to resent his gift?

On one message board, a woman complained that her mother-in-law repeatedly gave her pregnancy tests for Christmas. She was telling her, not so subtly, that it was time to get pregnant and be a mom, Cohn wrote.

Another woman had decided to be a stay-at-home mom. But her mother, clearly disagreeing with the choice, kept buying her business suits.

These types of gifts are not a good idea, Cohn said. The recipients get angry. They get frustrated. If people dont want to waste their money, they shouldnt do this. Think about who they are and not who you want them to be.

To you, for me. This would be the category for the big-screen TV husband.

You know you are buying the gift so that you can enjoy it. And you are not fooling anyone.

Although I must confess, I nearly did this just last week. I saw the most adorable Christmas-themed boxers. I was like, Ooh, my husband would look so cute in these.

Then I imagined his response. Um, not a chance.

I didnt buy the boxers. They were for me. (Saved myself $11.)

Aggression. There are times when you are buying a gift and you know the person isnt going to like it. Spiteful gifts are a symptom of a deteriorating relationship, Cohn writes in her paper.

Just before Christmas, a mother and her teenage daughter got into a fight. The mother gave the daughter a pocketknife and a Hershey bar, along with a card that said: Good luck in the wild.

People are interpreting your gifts, Cohn said. When you give gifts, people are asking, Why did I get this? Whats the meaning behind it? 

Ritual and obligation. A lot of people fall into this category. Theres no mischief intended but no thought given either.

Lets say there is an office gift exchange. You feel obligated to participate. But you just get anything so that there is something to open at the event, Cohn said.

Bragging. These bearers of gifts really get on my nerves. Their intention is to show off.

In the case of bragging, gifts are given to provide the giver with the ability to brag or out-gift another giver, Cohn writes.

This issue can blow up when, for example, grandparents ignore the wishes of parents who dont want their children to receive lavish gifts, especially because these presents often come with bragging rights.

Before you give, think about your motive, Cohn says.

Dont give out of spite or selfishness. Dont use a present to try to change someone or make a statement about the persons life choices.

The holidays can already be full of a lot of drama. Dont add to the tension by intentionally giving a bad gift.

Write Singletary at The Washington Post, 1301 K St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20071 or singletarym@washpost.com. Comments may be used in a future column, with the writers name, unless otherwise requested. To read more, go to wapo.st/michelle-singletary.
Exceptional Excellent Very Good



(Deb Lindsey/For The Washington Post)

Here are wines suitable for holiday parties or everyday quaffing, including an off-dry Austrian bubbly and a traditional white blend from Vienna, plus a couple of liter-size bargains. And for good measure, a Pennsylvania cyser complete with mulling spices to make a gluhwein against winters chill.

 Dave McIntyre

Steininger Gruner Veltliner Sekt 2014

Austria, $30

Gruner veltliner, Austrias signature white grape variety, makes a delicious sparkling wine. Steiningers, just ever so slightly sweet, is consistently at the top of the list. Enjoy this for a tasty variation on bubbly you may not have tried before. Alcohol by volume: 13.5 percent.

Distributed by Siema in the District, Maryland and most of Virginia, by Select Wines in Northern Virginia: Available in the District at Cleveland Park Wine and Spirits, DCanter, Georgetown Wine & Spirits, Schneiders of Capitol Hill; on the menu at Hazel, SEI. Available in Maryland at Cranberry Liquors in Westminster, Iron Bridge Wine Co. in Columbia, Wine Bin in Ellicott City. Available in Virginia at Balduccis (Alexandria, McLean), Chain Bridge Wine Cellars in McLean, Crystal City Wine Shop, Market Street Wineshop (downtown) and Wine Warehouse in Charlottesville, Oakton Wine Shop, Twisted Vines Bottleshop in Arlington, Unwined (Alexandria, Belleview), Wine Cabinet in Reston; on the list at Cedar Knoll in Alexandria, LuLus and Millies Diner in Richmond, Northside Social in Arlington, Trummers on Main in Clifton, Villa Mozart in Fairfax.

Wieninger Gemischter Satz 2015

Vienna, Austria, $19

Vienna is the only world capital with working wineries inside the city limits. The hillsides around the city offer not only great hiking and views of the city but also inexpensive winery restaurants. We can have a taste of that experience with this wine, a traditional Viennese blend of white varieties that dont inspire awards, just pleasure. ABV: 12.5 percent.

Distributed by Country Vintner: On the list in the District at Komi, Tail Up Goat. Available in Maryland at Downtown Crown Wine and Beer in Gaithersburg. Available in Virginia at Locke Modern Country Store in Millwood, the Vineyard in McLean.

GREAT VALUE

Koster-Wolf 2014 Riesling Trocken

Rheinhessen, Germany, $15 (1 liter)

This dry Riesling is delightfully balanced with apple and fruit flavors and refreshing acidity, making it a nice partner for casual pasta or seafood dishes. The liter-size bottle makes it an extra value for dinners or parties. ABV: 12 percent.

Distributed by Free Run (Artisans & Vines in Montgomery County): Available in the District at A. Litteri, Odd Provisions, Soapstone Market. Available in Maryland at Adega Wine Cellars & Cafe and Fenwick Beer & Wine in Silver Spring; Beer Wine & Co., Capital Beer & Wine, Cork & Fork and News Express in Bethesda; Downtown Crown Wine and Beer and Finewine.com in Gaithersburg. On the list at Alonsos in Baltimore, the Daily Dish in Silver Spring. Available in Virginia at Ellwood Thompsons Local Market in Richmond, Vino Market in Midlothian, Vinosity in Culpeper, the Pottery Factory in Williamsburg.

GREAT VALUE

H&M Hofer Gruner Veltliner 2015

Weinland, Austria, $18 (1 liter)

Austria enjoyed a terrific vintage in 2015, and even the most inexpensive wines offer excellent value. If youre not familiar with gruner, this would be a great introduction. If youre a gruner fiend like me, this is a delightful everyday white for before, during, even after dinner. Added bonus: Its certified organic. ABV: 12 percent.

Distributed by Country Vintner: Available in the District at MacArthur Beverages, Whole Foods Market (various locations); on the list at Eno Wine Bar, Restaurant Nora. Available in Virginia at Whole Foods Market (Alexandria, Arlington, Ashburn, Fairfax, Falls Church, Reston, Tysons Corner, Vienna).

Four Quarters Meadery, Harvest Fruit Cyser

Pennsylvania, $18

This cyser is a cross of cider and mead, made from apples and honey. It comes with a small sachet of herbs and spices  allspice, cloves and orange peel, mostly  and instructions to heat the cyser with the spices to make a mulled wine. Its simple, tasty and quite sweet. Much cheaper than a plane ticket to Europe. ABV: 15 percent.

Distributed by DMV: Available in the District at Pauls of Chevy Chase. Available in Maryland at Belle Grove Grocery in Little Orleans; Blue Goose Market in Hancock; Cranbrook Liquors in Cockeysville; Dunkirk Wine & Spirits in Dunkirk; Gillys Craft Beer & Fine Wine in Rockville; Jasons Wine & Spirits in Ellicott City; the Happy Grape and Mount Vernon Supermarket in Baltimore, Liquor Pump and Longmeadow Wine & Spirits in Hagerstown, Old Farm Liquors in Frederick, Patuxent Wine & Spirits in Lusby, Plaza Liquors in Pasadena, Rips Wine and Spirit Shop in Bowie, Town Center Wine & Spirits in Hyattsville.

Availability information is based on distributor records. Wines might not be in stock at every listed store and might be sold at additional stores. Prices are approximate. Check Winesearcher.com to verify availability, or ask a favorite wine store to order through a distributor.
The National Zoo used to have multicar trams for people to ride in. They were printed with animal designs. (I recall a white one with zebra stripes, an orange one with tiger stripes and an orange one with leopard spots.) Whats driving me nuts is that while I have pictures of me at the zoo during that time period, we have no pictures of these old trams. When did the zoo stop using them?

 Don Smith, Washington

If you have ever taken a child to the National Zoo on a hot summer day, you have eventually confronted one of the physical worlds most amazing transformations: When a toddler becomes tired, sweaty and cranky, it gains mass, eventually becoming as dense  and unstable  as a laundry basket full of plutonium.

Many a parent has stood at the southern end of the zoo, down by the lions, and wondered how they were ever going to make it up to the Connecticut Avenue end. If only there was a tram . . .

The National Zoo got its start in 1887 with something called the Department of Living Animals. It was the creation of William T. Hornaday, chief taxidermist at the Smithsonians National Museum.

Accustomed to preparing dead animals for display, Hornaday thought it might be nice for people to look at live ones. He arranged for several North American species  including red foxes, white-tailed deer, prairie dogs, a golden eagle and a spotted lynx  to be put on display on the Mall.

The little try-out zoo, as he called it, was a success, and in 1891 a more ambitious zoo opened in Rock Creek Park.

Like the creatures they house, zoos are constantly evolving. While once they resembled prisons, now they attempt to evoke the animals natural habitats. The National Zoo has been revamped several times, perhaps most extensively starting in the 1960s.

That was when zoo brass decided to do something about a curious design flaw that had worsened over the years: Vehicles traveled through the zoo. Beach Drive snaked past the Reptile, Monkey and Lion houses and through the American Waterfowl exhibit.

Contending with cars did not make for a relaxing zoo experience.

The solution was to dig a tunnel at the southeast edge of the zoo, allowing Beach Drive to bypass the zoo and link up with Rock Creek Parkway under the Calvert Street Bridge.

While that was in the works, other improvements were contemplated. As early as 1962, the zoo was proposing what it called trackless trains: carriages pulled through the zoo grounds. A California company called Zoo Tours Inc. offered to operate a system, repurposing trams it had used at the Worlds Fair in Seattle.

Nothing came of that effort, but in 1970, three trackless trains finally started rolling, serving several stops along the spine of the zoo. Tickets were 50 cents, with proceeds benefiting the Friends of the National Zoos education programs.

Visitors enjoyed resting their feet  especially on the uphill climb  but there was a problem: The trackless trains traveled on the same pavement used by pedestrians. When the zoo was crowded, the tram would get stuck in human traffic jams. In areas where the pavement was narrow and the tram had to make a turn, things were downright dangerous.

They were literally pinning people against fences as they came by, Bill Xanten, who worked at the National Zoo for 44 years, told Answer Man. On top of that, on the weekends or holidays, it took them forever to get from the top to the bottom because of the crowds. It wasnt worth the risk of lawsuits if somebody got run over.

FONZ decided to discontinue the tram service in 1978.

Interestingly, when the tram had debuted in 1970, it was seen as a temporary feature. What FONZ really wanted was a monorail, positioned 10 to 12 feet off the ground and gliding past the most interesting parts of the park. FONZ even commissioned a feasibility study from Mitre Corp.

The monorail never happened, but a zoo spokesperson told Answer Man that the master plan does call for an aerial tram linking the top and bottom of the zoo. It is years away  if its ever built. For now, visitors must traverse the National Zoos 163 acres just as wildebeests migrate across the great plains of the Serengeti: on their feet.

(Special Answer Man thanks to Lisa Fthenakis of the Smithsonian Institution Archives.)

Helping Hand

Were a third of the way there! Help us go all the way!

Im talking about The Washington Post Helping Hand, our annual fundraising campaign for three local charities: Homestretch, Community of Hope and Sasha Bruce Youthwork. Each works with homeless families and youths in our area.

So far, generous Post readers have donated $82,419. Our goal is $225,000 by Jan. 6. Your tax-deductible gift will help us get there.

For more information, or to donate online, visit posthelpinghand.com.

Twitter: @johnkelly

Send your questions about the Washington area to answerman@washpost.com.

For previous columns, visit washingtonpost.com/johnkelly.
An online app developed by Sarah Kleinman is a sleeker, clickable version of Metros Trip Planner. It was created using Mapbox, which is dubbed as a mapping platform for web developers. (Sarah Kleinman)

The software developer launched into a six-minute pitch, before a roomful of data wonks, software engineers and transit enthusiasts, based on a simple question: When is it faster to take an indirect route to work?

Using an algorithm that collected trip paths and estimated travel times, Joseph Haaga, 22, sought to answer that question through his own software application, which maps every possible route between two Metro stations  even the ones that take, say, 51 minutes for what is normally a 20-minute trip.

One spectator said it was like Googles Waze for Metro.

Sitting in the audience, Dan Larsen, a 37-year-old data analyst, had an idea to make it better. If you did this in real-time, itd be . . . awesome, the Reston resident said.

Although Haaga had used static data to develop his app, live information is now available for the techie types who turned out for the sixth Metro Hack Night.

MetroHero, co-created by James Pizzurro, draws from Metros real-time train data to illustrate a live map of the Metro system, showing riders potential choke points and tie-ups on the system. (MetroHero/MetroHero)

Six months after Metro began allowing app developers to track its trains in real-time, transit wonks were eagerly sharing their thoughts on how to improve the commutes of hundreds of thousands of Metro users, many of whom are frustrated by chronic delays and service disruptions related to SafeTrack.

[Navigating Metro during SafeTrack? Here are some apps that can help.]

The gathering at Metros headquarters, the latest in the series of monthly meetups sponsored by Mobility Lab, the research arm of Arlington County commuter services, was all about little fixes developers can make to improve riders experience, said Paul Mackie, a spokesman for Mobility Lab.

This doesnt need to be part of a 30-year-planning process or even a five-year process  a lot of these things can be incorporated immediately, Mackie said. Its not only free labor, but its passionate and caring labor.

Although some of the apps are available for free on mobile websites, others are in development. But several of the developers publish their code online for those who might be interested.

Metro agreed to release the data following a longtime push by app developers, who said the previous feed  based on Metro scheduling data  was glitch-ridden and unpredictable, essentially making it unusable for many apps.

Ben Shepherd, a marketing student at George Washington University, has used the live feed to map train positions so riders can visualize congestion on their lines. Sarah Kleinman has made a sleek, interactive map of the Metro system on which riders can click on individual stations to see the latest wait times. Another developer, Keith Kelly, created a program called Metro Math to determine how long it really took for trains to arrive, compared with Metros advertised wait times.

At Wednesdays event, some presenters used Metro data to call attention to anomalies in commuting patterns. Sam Winward, 23, who works in economic consulting, hatched an idea for an analysis when he arrived at the Foggy Bottom station about 7 p.m. one day and noticed a wall of riders waiting outside the faregates.

Moments later, I noticed that the whole group had swiped in behind me, he said.

[How a National Transit Map could connect transit deserts to the grid]

A careful look at the data confirmed a small spike in commuters just after 7 p.m. after steep dropoffs in Metro usage between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Those riders, Winward realized, were waiting for the cheaper off-peak fares to kick in before passing through the faregates. Whats more, he found, those commuters were more likely to be traveling long distances  to end-of-the-line stations, such as Vienna and Wiehle-Reston, to get the most out of their fares.

Over the regions where the fare is increasing significantly with miles, people are substantially more likely to wait, he said.

James Pizzurro, co-creator of the Android and iPhone-ready MetroHero app, which tracks trains in real-time and compiles historical data on the systems performance, came with a small wish list: For one, hed like Metro to allow developers to identify individual rail cars in their apps so they could point out when cars have air-conditioning or maintenance issues and keep a log of issues on specific cars.

But Pizzurro, a vocal critic of Metros old data set, said the agency has made strides, especially by making the live feed available.

[What happens when a group of transit wonks Play with Traffic?]

One such example came this past week, when Petworth resident David Solimini turned to MetroHero for an unlikely purpose: He wanted to pinpoint why his home had been violently rattling at random intervals every day since the summer, a problem news outlets reported last week.

One theory is that the increased prevalence of Metros louder, heavier 7000-series trains on the Green Line was causing the problem. When he felt the shaking Thursday, Solimini, a 34-year-old communications consultant who lives close to the Georgia Avenue-Petworth Metro station, checked in on Pizzurros app.

He said he logged 15 to 20 separate occasions when the rumble coincided with an eight-car train. Because of the datas limitations, however, he couldnt tell whether the trains were new 7000-series trains.

Metro General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld said at a news conference last week that Metro was investigating the issue.
THE DISTRICT

Man charged in fatal shooting

An 18-year-old D.C. man was arrested in a fatal September shooting in Northwest Washington, police said.

About 12:25 a.m. on Sept. 12, officers went to the 2300 block of 11th Street Northwest in response to a report of a shooting, D.C. police said. They found Eric Garrett, 23, of Northwest Washington with multiple gunshot wounds. He died Sept. 18.

On Thursday, authorities arrested Bikila Kejella of Northwest. He was charged with first-degree murder while armed.

 Justin Wm. Moyer

Man sentenced in fatal shooting

A District man was sentenced Friday to 24 years in prison for fatally shooting a Northwest Washington man during a break-in at his condominium in January, according to the U.S. attorneys office.

D.C. Superior Court Judge Michael Ryan sentenced Joseph Jennings Jr., 36, to the prison term plus five years of supervised probation following an October guilty plea to a charge of second-degree murder while armed.

Prosecutors said Jennings, with two other men, broke into the home of Matthew Shevlin in the 400 block of M Street NW on Jan. 22 in an effort to steal marijuana.

Just before 10 a.m., authorities said, Jennings pried open the buildings locked front door and tried to enter Shevlins unit through a sliding glass balcony door. As that was happening, Shevlin ran out of the front door and shouted for help.

Authorities said that Jennings chased Shevlin, the pair struggled and Jennings shot Shevlin, 37, who later died of multiple gunshot wounds.

 Clarence Williams

MARYLAND

Driver dies from crash injuries

A 93-year-old woman injured after the car she was driving struck a tree in Bethesda early this month died Friday, police said.

About 9:05 a.m. on Dec. 5, officers went to the 8000 block of Whittier Boulevard, Montgomery County Police said in a statement.

They found that Audrey Sloope Bell, who lived on the block, had been making a left turn in a 2003 Buick Century from eastbound Whittier Court onto northbound Whittier Boulevard when the vehicle left the road and struck a tree, rolling onto the drivers side, according to the statement.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation.

 Justin Wm. Moyer

Wildlife officials say deer-kill numbers up

State wildlife managers say hunters killed 12 percent more deer than last year during Marylands recently ended firearm hunting season.

The Department of Natural Resources said in a statement Thursday that hunters reported taking 35,078 deer during the two-week season that ended Dec. 10.

Wildlife and Heritage Service Director Paul Peditto says the increase reflects fair weather, combined with a slow start to the archery and muzzleloader seasons that preceded the firearm season.

 Associated Press

VIRGINIA

Man sentenced in MS-13 homicide case

A 20-year-old man was sentenced to life in prison Friday for his involvement in an MS-13 gang killing in Northern Virginia in 2014.

On March 29, 2014, Douglas Duran Cerritos, of Falls Church, and six other gang members killed Gerson Adoni Martinez Aguilar, a gang recruit, for breaking gang rules, Dana J. Boente, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, said in a statement.

Cerritos was the leader of a group that lured Aguilar to Holmes Run Park in Fairfax County and stabbed him in the back and neck, severed his head and buried him in a shallow grave in the park, the statement said.

The case was part of a large-scale prosecution of MS-13 members in Northern Virginia that involved 13 defendants, three murders and one attempted murder, prosecutors said.

 Justin Wm. Moyer

New college planned for Bristol

A Chinese firm plans to establish a four-year college in Bristol after acquiring the former Virginia Intermont College campus through a foreclosure auction.

News outlets report that U.S. Magis International Education Center, based in Flushing, N.Y., bought the property Thursday for $3.3 million.

Company spokesman George Xu says the firm plans to renovate campus buildings and apply for accreditation.

The company has not decided on a name for the proposed school.

Virginia Intermont College closed in May 2014 amid insolvency, plummeting enrollment and a loss of accreditation.

Xu says U.S. Magis International is owned by a Chinese businessman and was established to acquire and operate colleges in the United States.

 Associated Press
MARYLAND

Two men killed in accident on Route 301

Two Texas men driving along Route 301 in Southern Maryland on Friday night were killed after the vehicles operator attempted to turn left off the highway, but failed to yield to an oncoming vehicle, state police said. The driver, Curtis Bell Jr., 46, of Galveston, and his front-seat passenger, Xavier Hayes, 21, of Houston, were pronounced dead on the scene by the Charles County Department of Emergency Services.

After Bells Honda Civic was hit on the passengers side by a Mercedes van, it was pushed into a Volvo truck-tractor and trailer. There were no other injuries in the collision, but the investigation is ongoing. Alcohol is not believed to be a factor in the accident.

 Ian Shapira

VIRGINIA

2 arrests made in Pr. William homicide

Prince William County police said on Saturday that two people have been arrested in connection with the May homicide of Jason T. Mannion, 43, a Manassas man whose house was broken into during an attempted robbery. Acting on new information, authorities on Thursday arrested Marquan Antonio Brown, 25, now incarcerated on other charges in Culpeper County, and Jhaire Nathaniel Montgomery, 19, of the 22000 block of Highland Road in Culpeper.

Both men were charged with murder and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. On May 12, Mannion was found inside his house with a gunshot wound to the body. He was taken to a hospital where he died.

Brown and Montgomery are being held without bond and face a Feb. 6 court hearing. Police are still searching for a third suspect, Rhebekah Alexis Patterson. She is white, 5-foot-6, and 160 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes, police said.

 Ian Shapira
John Lutz, now 78, was convicted Friday in the 2002 fatal stabbing of Nicole Castro. (Montgomery County Police)

A former Maryland physician who killed his mental health counselor 14 years ago was convicted of first-degree murder Friday by a jury that waded through a long history of his schizophrenia and concluded he was legally sane at the time of the slaying.

John Lutz, 78, who sat in a wheelchair during the two-week trial, showed little emotion as the verdict was announced in Montgomery County Circuit Court. The conviction means he will be moved from a high-security state psychiatric hospital, where he has been held since his 2002 arrest, to the Maryland prison system.

It has been a long and painful road, the family of the victim, Nicole Castro, said in a statement after the verdict. We have waited 14 years for this trial. Finally, today, justice was served.

Prosecutors said they will seek the maximum penalty.

We look forward to a sentence of life without parole for this murderer, said Montgomery States Attorney John McCarthy.

Castro came to a therapy session at Lutzs apartment, where he brutally attacked her, stabbing her in the face, neck, arms and hands, prosecutors said. He then wrapped her body in a pair of bedsheets, carried it outside and left it next to a trash bin.

McCarthy called it a horrible crime and said Castro was a magnificent young woman trying to help others. She did not realize she had fallen prey to Dr. Lutz.

During his trial, Lutzs attorneys argued that at the time of Castros death, Lutzs mental illness made him not criminally responsible for the crime.

The delay in bringing the case to trial reflects what can be the complicated question of whether a defendant is mentally competent to stand trial.

A key issue is whether the accused can communicate with their defense lawyer.

[From 2014: Lutz ruled mentally fit to stand trial]

Lutz has long asserted that after his arrest, police had injected him in the neck with a mysterious truth drug. For seven years, starting in 2002, doctors said Lutz was incompetent. The medical opinion of his competency changed briefly, in 2009, before Lutz was again declared incompetent.

Judges have the ultimate say in proceeding to a trial and in late 2014, Circuit Court Judge Ronald Rubin ruled that Lutz could be tried fairly.

He is not delusional and does not suffer from auditory or visual hallucinations, Rubin wrote.

Lutz, a onetime internist, had a long and significant history of mental illness that included being hospitalized in a psychiatric facility west of Baltimore.

On the morning of March 20, 2002, Castro drove a Chevrolet Cavalier to Lutzs apartment in Montgomerys White Oak area for a noon therapy session.

After Castros body was found less than 100 yards from Lutzs apartment, police went to his door. They knocked and heard movements inside but received no answer, court filings showed.

They got a search warrant and found Lutz with a fresh bloodstain under his sofa and a key to the Cavalier with a blood spatter on the key ring.

Lutzs mental health quickly became an issue, setting off a transfer from the county jail to the maximum-security Clifton T. Perkins psychiatric hospital.

In the spring of 2009, Lutz sent a two-page, handwritten letter to Circuit Judge Ann Harrington, recalling a number of topics on the day of his arrest.

One of the officers pressure injected my postero-lateral cervical trapezius fossa with a drug, Lutz wrote. There were ten injections on the right side, nine injections on the left side. As a consequence, I was mentally impaired and suggestible.

For many years, according to court records, Lutz was deemed so strident in his defense strategy that it impeded his ability to talk with defense lawyers.

McCarthy called the judges decision to bring Lutz to trial courageous.

The jury began its deliberations Thursday night and finished Friday.
More than a dozen cellphones have been taken in recent weeks in robberies near the Braddock Road Metro station in Alexandria, police said.

Nine were taken from people who had them out or were talking on them, police said. Five were taken in connection with proposed transactions arranged through social media, police said.

A police official went to the 1300 block of Madison Street to discuss the problem. The site is about two blocks east of the Metro station.

The precise period over which the crimes occurred was not made clear. The time frame was described only as the past few weeks.

Police had advice for people arranging to sell to or buy from strangers. Suggestions included conducting as much of the transaction as possible without face-to-face meetings, and arranging any meetings in well lit, heavily traveled public places.

When on the streets, police suggested phone owners keep the devices in their pockets rather than carry them conspicuously.



Of course, keeping a phone pocketed diminishes much of its usefulness. Many people value phones for providing an ability to keep in touch during periods when they are not in homes or offices.
A young mans body was found in a warehouse. He had been stabbed to death. The authorities wanted to track down the killer. But heres the twist: They werent homicide detectives. They were epidemiologists.

Its a true story from Monrovia, Liberia, in 2015, when the country faced a deadly Ebola outbreak. And its the subject of a recent episode of the NPR podcast Hidden Brain, which explores why people make the choices they do.

Host Shankar Vedantam explains that the episode was prompted by a call from Tom Frieden, the director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Frieden wondered why the podcast hadnt tackled public health topics, and he suggested this case, which involved two CDC employees.

Their job was to help find everyone who had had recent contact with this young man, whose corpse tested positive for Ebola. The victim had been part of a 35-member street gang whose members had turned on him in a knife fight. Blood flying in close quarters meant they were all at risk of contracting the Ebola virus  as were their families, friends and other connections.

Tracing contacts is complex in almost any circumstance, but the process is even tougher when the people youre seeking are hiding from the police.

But the CDC workers enlisted a local epidemiologist and started searching slums and drug dens.

Incredibly, they managed to get almost the entire gang to go into an isolation facility. The trick was not to use any trickery. Instead, the Liberian government promised support for their families and even provided cocaine to the addicted members of the gang so that they wouldnt go into withdrawal while in quarantine.

But they still needed to find the person who held the victim down during the fight. His name? Time Bomb.

A big break came when they met someone claiming to be Time Bombs younger brother. He was with a woman and a baby. At that point, Vedantam says, the epidemiologists did something very kind and very wise: They offered the woman money to help feed her child.

The young mans demeanor changed. He revealed that he was actually Time Bomb, and he agreed to cooperate by staying in touch and going into quarantine if he developed symptoms, which he did not.

Its not exactly a happy ending: One person died of Ebola contracted from the stabbing victim. But its a fascinating way of learning that one of the most important tools for stopping an outbreak is trust.
Photographer Rita Kluge once was shooting a subject when he smacked her on the rear end.

It was hard to be offended, though. The cheeky fellow was a humpback whale, and the thump with his tail mostly seemed friendly. I think he just wanted to say hi, Kluge explains on Wired.com, which features her work on its newly redesigned photo website.

A series of aquatic images welcome viewers to join Kluge, who works seasonally as a guide on a whale-watching boat in the South Pacific, as she gets up close and personal with the massive mammals during their annual migration. Armed with a snorkel and fins  and her Canon in an Aquatica underwater housing  Kluge is able to capture the most intimate of images. You cant hear their songs, which travel for miles through the ocean, but you can gaze into their eyes and marvel at their acrobatics.

The dreamy blues of the water really pop, thanks to a website display that puts high-resolution photos inside a dark border. Thats just one of the innovations that Wireds engineers spent months developing, according to the company. The landing site (wired.com/category/photo) showcases a series of ribbons, each promising a photo gallery. Once youve clicked through, you can choose to hide or reveal captions and then scroll down for a short article explaining the significance of the images.

Expect featured photographers to find scenes that are out of this world  sometimes literally, with stunning shots from space. In addition to Kluges undersea adventures, viewers can tag along with Luca Locatelli on a trip to the Grand Bara Desert in Djibouti, where French troops train (and suffer). Or you can explore the disturbing beauty of industrial spills and waste, which J. Henry Fair has chronicled through aerial shots of petroleum tanks, copper mines and collection pits.

You may be most surprised by Peter Juzak, who focuses  really, really focuses  on acetaminophen (a.k.a. Tylenol). His extreme close-ups of pills taken through a microscope reveal a kaleidoscope of colors. And just as with swimming behind a humpback whale, its a perspective you probably havent seen.
Mr. Colburn, right, and Hugh Thompson meet with schoolchildren during a visit to My Lai in 1998. (Claro Cortes IV/Reuters)

Lawrence Colburn, an Army helicopter gunner who along with two comrades intervened in the U.S. slaughter of unarmed villagers in My Lai during the Vietnam War, an act of heroism for which he received the Soldiers Medal three decades after the fact, died Dec. 13 at his home in Canton, Ga. He was 67.

The cause was liver cancer, said his wife, Lisa Colburn.

Mr. Colburn was an 18-year-old Army specialist when he witnessed the massacre of hundreds of civilians in the hamlet of My Lai, in the Quang Ngai Province of South Vietnam, as it was underway on March 16, 1968. Nearly a half-century later, the killings loom in memory as one of the most shameful episodes in U.S. military history, as well as a tragic demonstration of the searing psychological effects of war on those called to fight.

The massacre was horrific, and the cover-up was horrific, and this kid did something special, said journalist Seymour M. Hersh, who won a Pulitzer Prize for exposing the massacre. Hes as much of a hero as anybody I can think of.

Along with his pilot, Hugh Thompson Jr., and their crew chief, Glenn Andreotta, Mr. Colburn set out that morning on a routine aerial reconnaissance mission. When the men spotted wounded civilians  casualties in U.S. ground efforts to root out the enemy Viet Cong  they dropped colored smoke to mark the victims location for the U.S. medical units that they assumed were on the way.

My Lai massacre survivor Do Ba places incense at his family's grave as Mr. Colburn looks on during a commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the killings. (Chitose Suzuki/Associated Press)

As the men continued their surveillance, they observed that the injured civilians were not being aided, and were instead being killed.

It became obvious to us what was happening when we lingered by one of the bodies that wed marked, Mr. Colburn said in an interview on the PBS program American Experience. It was a young female with a chest wound, but she was still alive. . . . We saw a captain approach the woman, look down at her, kick her with his foot, step back, and [he] just blew her away right in front of us.

She was no threat, he said. There was no reason to do that.

Mr. Colburn credited Thompson with taking the initiative to step in. We were ready to face the consequences, he said. It was so obviously wrong. When you see babies machine-gunned, you must intervene.

Thompson first landed the helicopter near an irrigation ditch where women, children and the elderly were sheltering. Thompson approached a soldier standing over the group and ordered him to help the civilians out of the ditch. The soldier agreed but began executing the group after the helicopter took off, Mr. Colburn said.

Later, from their air, Thompson and his crew identified a group of Vietnamese hiding in a bunker and a unit of U.S. soldiers advancing on them. Thompson again landed the helicopter and confronted the lieutenant, then called on Mr. Colburn and Andreotta for help. Thompson said that he would personally remove the Vietnamese from the bunker to safety, and that if the Americans fired on them, Mr. Colburn and Andreotta should shoot them.

The first thing I thought of was my mother, Mr. Colburn told PBS.  Oh my God, Mom, get me out of here. But, trying to think what she would want me to do, and she would want me to do exactly what Mr. Thompson was doing.

The Soldiers Medal, bestowed on Mr. Colburn in 1998, credited him with providing cover as Thompson evacuated the civilians. Mr. Colburn told PBS that he did not train his gun on his fellow Americans, and that he did not think he could have fired on them unless they shot at him first. The soldiers did not resist, and at least 10 Vietnamese were safely evacuated.

Later, Mr. Colburn returned with Thompson and Andreotta to the irrigation ditch, where they rescued an injured boy from under a mound of corpses. Mr. Colburns efforts on the ground with Thompson and Andreotta and their radio reports of the killings were credited with bringing about a cease-fire.

Mr. Colburn testified at courts-martial and other investigations into the massacre. Only one person, Lt. William L. Calley Jr., who contended that he was following orders to take out the enemy, was convicted in the case. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Mr. Colburn was denigrated as a hippie for his testimony, particularly after his own court-martial later that year for possession of marijuana.

Were not popular, he told the Baltimore Sun years later. The Army doesnt admit mistakes.

Mr. Colburn initially received the Bronze Star Medal, a decoration recognizing valor in a combat zone. He regarded the award as indicative of the militarys denial about the My Lai episode, which did not involve enemy combatants at all.

Shortly after receiving the Soldiers Medal  honoring valor in action not involving hostile forces  Mr. Colburn and Thompson returned to My Lai to mark the 30th anniversary of the massacre. Andreotta had been killed in action 23 days after events at My Lai.

Why they fired on those people, Mr. Colburn said during his return visit, I still dont know.

Lawrence Manley Colburn was born in Coulee Dam, Wash., on July 6, 1949. His father was an engineer who worked on dams, and his mother was a homemaker.

Mr. Colburn joined the Army at 17. After his time in Vietnam, he later worked in commercial fishing in Alaska, managed a ski resort shop and operated a medical supplies business. He said that for decades after the war, he dreamed about what he had seen at My Lai.

Survivors include his wife of 31 years, the former Lisa Cale, and a son, Connor Colburn, both of Canton; and three sisters. Thompson died in 2006.

Mr. Colburn saw parallels between the My Lai massacre and more recent events including the 2005 incident in Haditha, Iraq, where U.S. Marines who had lost a comrade to a roadside bomb were accused of killing two dozen Iraqi civilians.

I can also understand the guys in uniform, he told a military publication in 2006. Ive gone out seeking revenge myself. When you see a buddy taken down, something primal inside you clicks, and you go out and take revenge. And its a vicious cycle.

These atrocities are stark reminders to a weary public of what war does to people  both the victims and the perpetrators, he wrote in an online commentary in 2012. War destroys people.
It is ironic that Prince Georges County Executive Rushern L. Baker III described the opening of the MGM monstrosity on the hill as a watershed moment [Marylands MGM casino makes a play for D.C., Metro, Dec. 11]. The casino is located smack on the heights of the Potomac River watershed, so the developments pollution could affect the region. It is also ironic that the 24-story casino is visible from the entire Fairfax County shoreline. It is certainly an eyesore at the gateway to Maryland as you cross the Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge. I much preferred the woods and the eagles nests that were destroyed when the bay shoreline was developed.

Steven W. Brennan, Waldorf
A D.C. police flier seeking the killer a transgender woman who was slain in the District. Police arrested Shareem Hall, a defendant previously sentenced under the Youth Act. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post)

This weeks offering once again delves into the appalling number of repeat violent offenders on the streets of our nations capital. But a warning: Expect to veer into the bureaucratic weeds. Unfortunately, theres no way around them.

Last weeks column was devoted to the recent Post series that uncovered cases of 750 offenders sentenced under the citys Youth Rehabilitation Act multiple times in the past decade, including 121 who were later charged with murder, more than 200 sentenced for multiple violent or weapons offenses, and more than 130 convicted of armed robbery.

To understand how this dangerous situation developed, we need to know more about the citys criminal justice system, and how such a long-standing public-safety threat could go unaddressed.

Please note, an offenders pathway to crime does not start with an arrest, conviction and prison sentence. This is mentioned because whenever I write about public-safety issues in the District, invariably some readers charge me with ignoring what they regard as the source of crime: offenders spawned by broken homes and chaotic communities.

At issue today, however, are hundreds of criminals sentenced by D.C. judges under the Youth Rehabilitation Act, crafted by city leaders to give second chances to young adult offenders who have often gone on to rob, rape or kill in the nations capital.

Why is this being allowed to happen?

Three key actors in the citys criminal justice system  Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Kevin Donahue, D.C. Attorney General Karl A. Racine and D.C. Council Judiciary Committee Chairman Kenyan R. McDuffie (D-Ward 5)  were interviewed about this cycle of violence, including why and how young criminals are re-offending on such an apparently large scale.

As noted last week, each official pointed in the same direction for solutions: the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council.

Thats where I turned this week.

Congress created the CJCC in 2002, based on a study of the citys criminal justice system by the federal Government Accountability Office. The GAO found problems. The D.C. Council, accepting the need for reform, passed legislation in 2001, which Congress subsequently approved.

The CJCCs membership includes Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D), D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson (D), Donahue, Racine and McDuffie, along with the U.S. attorney, Superior Court chief judge and assorted federally funded parole, police, corrections and public defender officials.

The CJCCs mission is to identify pressing criminal justice issues that cut across agency lines, to propose actions and solutions, and to foster interagency cooperation to improve public safety in the District.

Keep that objective in mind.

Since 2003, the CJCC has received $21 million from U.S. taxpayers  U.S. because all of that money comes from the federal treasury.

Its also not a mom-and-pop shop.

Mannone A. Butler, the CJCCs executive director since 2011, told me that her agency is composed of 18 talented information technology professionals, researchers, policy analysts, and executive and administrative employees.

Asked for her reaction to The Posts Dec. 3 and 4 articles about offenders returning rapidly to the streets and committing more crimes, Butler said in an interview Dec. 13  nine days after the last article appeared  that she had not read the pieces thoroughly and couldnt comment.

Asked whether the CJCC had ever studied the Youth Rehabilitation Act  the way the law has been carried out by prosecutors and judges, as well as the effectiveness of the law itself  Butler told me: The Youth Act has never been discussed before the CJCC.

How can that be?

Experts told The Post that the Youth Rehabilitation Act provides benefits to violent offenders that dont exist anywhere else in the country.

Bowser, who chairs the CJCC, said that she thinks judges, prosecutors and public defenders have come to misapply the law at the expense of public safety.

Mendelson told The Post that he faults prosecutors as too willing to offer generous deals to violent criminals.

And? And?

This major public-safety threat has received the silent treatment.

So what good is the CJCC? Why are congressional paymasters pouring taxpayers earnings into the agencys coffers? Following my inquiries, Butler provided a list of CJCC public-safety initiatives, none of which, by the way, addressed the D.C. law that allows criminals to repay leniency by escalating their violent crimes upon release.

Most importantly, what are residents and visitors to the nations capital to do while D.C. criminal justice officials dither?

CJCC officials may not have studied or evaluated the Youth Rehabilitation Act  but Tavon Pinkney has.

Pinkney was 18 when arrested in 2014 for his first adult robbery offense. By the time he was caught, he had committed at least a dozen robberies, he told The Post in a prison interview.

He pleaded guilty to attempted robbery, received a suspended sentence and was given probation under the Youth Rehabilitation Act.

Five months into his probation, Pinkney shot and killed a man during a drug deal, and is now serving a 17-year sentence.

Of the law, Pinkney said: I went back to doing the same thing. Nothing changed. . . . They just gave me the Youth Act and let me go right back out there. They aint really care.

Thats one evaluation.

Read more from Colbert Kings archive.
Correction: An earlier version of this editorial incorrectly referred to Bahrains Shiite population as a minority. Shiites are the majority sect in the country. It also incorrectly attributed reporting to the Daily Beast instead of Bloomberg View.This version has been corrected.

GOVERNMENTS ACROSS the Middle East perceive that President Obama has subordinated much of U.S. policy in the region to the goal of completing a nuclear bargain with Iran. Policies that might disturb Tehran, such as acting against the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad, have been put on hold; meanwhile, traditional U.S. allies that are skeptical of the deal, such as Saudi Arabia, have been promised stepped-up U.S. military assistance.

One U.S. client that has sized up the situation with particular cynicism is Bahrain, a Sunni monarchy in the Persian Gulf that hosts the U.S. Fifth Fleet. Since 2011, the regime has been harshly repressing opponents calling for greater political representation for the countrys Shiite majority. Regular demonstrations in Shiite areas are put down by force; activists are arrested and often tortured; and opposition politicians and human rights monitors are prosecuted on trumped-up charges. In response to sporadic criticism and pressure from the Obama administration, the regime has occasionally promised reforms or dialogue with the opposition but invariably has failed to follow through.

More recently, the ruling al-Khalifa family appears to have concluded that it can afford to flout the Obama administration openly. Last year it expelled the visiting State Department assistant secretary for human rights after he met with opposition members, including from the al-Wefaq party. In December, it arrested the head of the party, Sheikh Ali Salman. On Tuesday, a court sentenced Mr. Salman to four years in prison on flimsy charges of inciting hatred and insulting public institutions.

King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa attended a horse show in England rather than the summit Mr. Obama held to sell the Iran deal to Persian Gulf leaders. But hes still counting on a handsome payoff: U.S. tolerance for the imprisonment of the countrys foremost opposition leader, and more military aid to boot. If that sounds like chutzpah, the king has been encouraged: According to Bloomberg View, Secretary of State John F. Kerry promised Bahrains foreign minister last month that the administration would work to lift a partial ban on arms sales to the island state, imposed four years ago in reaction to the repression.

While some U.S. military supplies to Bahrain have continued all along, items that could be used in the domestic crackdown, such as Humvees, ammunition and tear gas, have been held up. Mr. Kerrys pledge came before the case of Mr. Salman  whose arrest the State Department had protested  had been disposed of, and, according to the Bloomberg View report, before a U.S. inter-agency decision to end the ban had been made.

The State Department issued a statement on Tuesday saying the administration was deeply concerned about Mr. Salmans imprisonment. It should be. As Brian Dooley of Human Rights First observed, the verdict drives Bahrain deeper into political crisis and sweeps any chance of a negotiated settlement off the table while encouraging those seeking violent change. Thats a problem Mr. Obama seems to understand; in an interview with the New York Times in April, he observed that the biggest threats that Persian Gulf states face may not be coming from Iran invading but from dissatisfaction inside their own countries. In the case of Bahrain, hes surely right. But in its zeal to complete the Iran deal, the administration seems to be setting aside the presidents wisdom.
Shahjahanpur: On Saturday, BJP president Amit Shah hit out at the opposition for opposing demonetisation and accused them of stalling all business in the winter session of Parliament just to sidestep discussion on funding of political parties.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi favoured discussion and change in fund raising process of political parties during the all-party meeting at the beginning of winter session and said all elections from Panchayat to Parliament should be held on the same day," Shah said.

"But the opposition did not allow a discussion in the entire winter session. They do not have any intention of wiping out blackmoney from politics. Modiji has put forward a view, and I want to appeal to leaders of all opposition parties that and we should accept discussion on it to bring probity in politics," he said at his party's Parivartan rally.

Continuing his attack on parties opposing demonetisation, Shah said only those whose "billions have been reduced to trash" are feeling the pain after the measure.

"Have you seen the faces of Mamata (Banerjee) and Mayawati...their faces have lost glow, they have started looking 10 years older in a day', he said.

In one stroke by PM Modi, drug dealers, fake currency racketeers, Naxalites and terrorists have been set right, Shah said.

Stressing that development of UP is possible only when BJP is voted to power with a two-thirds majority, Shah termed SP and BSP as family and caste-based parties which cannot work for development of the entire society.

"It has been either 'chacha-bhatija' or 'bua-bhatija' who have been harming the state's development in the past 15 years," he said, referring to UP SP chief Shivpal Yadav, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and BSP supremo Mayawati.

Akhilesh was not allowing the benefits of the central schemes to reach the people as it would increase the popularity of central government, Shah claimed.

5 saal tak aapne(SP) purn-bahumat ke sath sashan kiya.UP ki janta ko hisab dijiye,Notebandi se gumrah karne ka prayas matt kariye: Amit Shah pic.twitter.com/5CQrvRaL93  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) December 17, 2016

"The benefits of Fasal Bima Yojana could not reach the beneficiaries as there was a tiff for commission between the chahcha and bhatija," he claimed.

Shah said the UP Chief Minister has been talking of an alliance with Congress as it seems he has now realised that defeat is staring him in the face.

"Since the past one month Akhilesh Yadav has been talking about alliance. Is he seeing defeat for his party? Even if all the parties come together the people of UP have decided to vote BJP to power in the state," he said.

Shah was also particularly critical of Mayawati for her alleged corruption.

"Though there is no record set for corruption in the world but if such a record is made Behenji's number will come out top in it," he said.

Opposition wasted complete #wintersession by shouting, they did not have the will to hold any kind of discussion: Amit Shah in Shahjahanpur pic.twitter.com/dWkiOxtBW8  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) December 17, 2016

Referring to the issue of 'triple talaq', Shah said after the central government clearly stated its views in the Supreme Court against it, the SP, BSP and Congress have all gone silent. "Na haan kehte kain na naa."

He also appealed to women voters to question those parties on what they are doing for women's rights and whether they agree on triple talaq or not when they come seeking votes.

"Should Mulsim women get their rights or not? Modi has worked towards securing the rights of women in the country", he asserted.
IT HAS been 32 years since Catherine Fuller, a 48-year-old mother of six, was murdered in an alley in Northeast Washington. The savagery and senselessness of her death  robbed, beaten and sodomized with a metal pole  unsettled Washington. That authorities blamed a large group of young gang members who swarmed the woman for thrills and the $50 tucked in her bra only heightened the horror for a city that had not yet become inured to violence. Equally unsettling  and horrifying  would be the possibility that officials erred in their prosecution and that innocent people were wrongly sent to jail.

That, though, is the claim of the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project, which has been leading an effort since 2010 to reopen the case. On Wednesday, the advocates scored a significant victory when the Supreme Court unexpectedly announced that it will hear arguments in the case. The court will decide whether the murder convictions of seven defendants must be set aside because prosecutors withheld information, notably about a suspect who had been spotted near the crime scene and was later convicted of killing a woman in a manner terrifyingly similar to Ms. Fullers case. The court could either uphold the convictions or return the matter to the trial court, at which point prosecutors would have to decide on retrials.

Of 13 people charged, 10 defendants, from 16 to 25 years old, went on trial in 1985, and eight were convicted. Six men, all now middle-aged, remain behind bars. One died in prison, and another was paroled after serving 26 years. Arguments before the high court will turn not on their claims of actual innocence but on whether their convictions were tainted by violations of case law requiring prosecutors to disclose favorable evidence to the defense. Both a D.C. Superior Court judge and the D.C. Court of Appeals rejected those arguments, and federal prosecutors in court filings cited the overwhelming evidence that led to the convictions being upheld.

We, of course, have no way of divining guilt or innocence, but the work of the defense lawyers has raised issues that have played a role in other cases of wrongful conviction and should give pause. Among them: There was no physical evidence; medical testimony was conflicting; some witnesses had monetary or other interests; and some defendants claimed they were bullied into false confessions. Nearly all of the living witnesses in the case have recanted their testimony.

It is hard to convey, more than 16 years later, the impact Catherine Fullers murder had on Washington, journalist Patrice Gaines wrote in a 2001 Post article that first raised questions about the convictions. Fullers death and the resulting trial consumed the community. Whether justice was done is a question that 32 years later should also consume the community.
In the parable of the sower, a farmer sprinkles seeds upon four different types of terrain, one of which is rocky, where seeds fail to thrive.

As interpreted by scholars, the rock refers to the human heart thats made of stone and therefore resistant to the seed (the Word of God), and therefore lost to salvation.

This was the topic of Bible study at Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church the night white supremacist Dylann Roof murdered nine African American parishioners as they closed their eyes in prayer. Roof can be seen as a parable within a parable, his heart a stone and he, impervious to the love and fellowship offered him by strangers.

After a federal jury found him guilty Thursday on all 33 counts, including hate crimes, Roofs salvation is very much in question.

To anyone following the trial, the verdict came as no surprise. Roof had confessed to the massacre, video captured him entering and leaving the church, and two survivors identified him as the shooter. Roofs attorney began his opening statement by acknowledging his clients guilt. The purpose of the trial was essentially to determine whether Roof should live out his days in prison or be executed.

The sentencing phase, during which Roof intends to represent himself (the better to create a path for appeal), will begin Jan. 3.

If anyone deserves to die for a crime, especially one so infused with racial hatred, Roof is surely that person. The 22-year-old, whose bowl haircut and baby face make him seem more boy than man, is a poster child for evil incarnate.

Yet, execution would be the wrong sentence.

It is both too good for him and too awful for the rest of us.

As a general matter, I oppose the death penalty for reasons both moral and practical. The moral issues should be obvious: Not only do I, as a citizen, not want to be part of anyones murder, regardless of whether its state-sanctioned (maybe especially so), I cant countenance anything less than a foolproof system.

One mistaken execution is one too many, and weve seen too many reversals based on subsequently available DNA evidence. Also, the fact that death sentences are sometimes arbitrarily or unevenly assigned on the basis of race is untenable in a just world.

As a practical matter, death sentences dont work. Yes, certainly, they ensure that the sinner doesnt sin again, but theyre ineffective as a deterrent. And they can be costlier than life behind bars thanks to lengthy appeals.

Now, to the part I am loath to admit: Death is too easy.

There is in each of us a temptation to vengeance, and this is my confession. Somewhere deep inside my brain is a tiny cell where marauding angels (not the better sort) bicker and shout and curse the day. They sleep with spite and dream of malice, plotting revenge and delighting in the prospect of anothers suffering. Forgive me, Father, for I know exactly what Im doing here.

Im recommending that its better to condemn Roof to a lifetime of suffering than to end his miserable life. Easing him to eternal rest does nothing to heal the wounds he has inflicted. But ensuring that he has to live every day for the rest of his life with the same horror, pain and, eventually, perhaps even recognition of the sorrows he caused is the punishment I wish for him. Life in prison without possibility of parole is what he deserves.

Although his guilty verdict and a life sentence in federal court would remand him to the relatively plush prison environment, not so a state prison where he could wind up. After this trial, Roof faces state charges on nine counts of first-degree murder. Again, his guilt isnt in question, but his sentencing provides a fresh opportunity to debate his fate.

Perhaps the most important reason to spare his life is because this is what the victims family members say they prefer. These are the same folks who forgave Roof less than two days after the shootings when they faced him at his bond hearing.

Because they have found it in their fertile hearts to leave Roofs fate to the final arbiter of justice, killing him would be a betrayal of their higher purpose and their faith in the power of redemption.

Pray the jurors see it this way.

Read more from Kathleen Parkers archive, follow her on Twitter or find her on Facebook.
The Dec. 14 front-page article Surprise pick reveals an unorthodox style reported that former defense secretary Robert M. Gates said that to understand Rex Tillerson, the chairman of ExxonMobil and President-elect Donald Trumps pick for secretary of state, youve got to understand that hes an Eagle Scout. Does what ExxonMobil did in Chad  discarding promises to help Chads people and instead making big money for the company and a dictator, with horrendous consequences  sound like the actions of a Boy Scout?

Jim Knaub, Reston

The Dec. 15 news article Tillerson suggests engineering could help manage climate  should have discussed Rex Tillersons frequent mention of a national carbon tax. Mr. Tillerson, President-elect Donald Trumps nominee for secretary of state, told an Oil and Money conference in October that a carbon tax would ensure a uniform and predictable cost of carbon across the economy. It would allow market forces to drive solutions.

Mr. Tillersons comments indicate that climate change is essentially an economic problem. Our economy allows free carbon emissions, thereby undervaluing investment in engineering solutions and preventing consumers and investors from properly assessing the true costs of their energy choices. Only Congress can fix this economic problem. When it does, well see engineering innovations, efficiency enthusiasm and cleaner energy decisions.

I hope Mr. Tillerson lectures Congress on how to structure a carbon tax. It could help environmentalists trust him as a Cabinet member and would help him fill the shoes of President Ronald Reagans secretary of state, George P. Shultz, who also advocates for a national, revenue-neutral carbon tax.

Judy Weiss, Brookline, Mass.
SINCE ASSUMING the nominally ceremonial position of president in 2014, Turkish ruler Recep Tayyip Erdogan has aspired to endow it with far-reaching powers, replacing the countrys parliamentary system with something more like what Vladimir Putin has established in Russia. His autocratic ambition was fiercely opposed by liberal opposition parties, and last year the project seemed dead after Mr. Erdogans ruling party lost its majority. But Mr. Erdogan proved both resilient and ruthless: After launching a war against Turkeys Kurdish minority, Mr. Erdogan called another election and won. Then, after a failed coup attempt in July, he orchestrated a far-reaching purge that has led to the arrest of about 40,000 people, including many who opposed his concentration of power.

Now Mr. Erdogan is moving forward with a restructuring that will convert Turkey from a Western-style democracy to something more like the Central Asian despotisms to its east. Under the reform introduced to parliament on Dec. 10, a new president will take office in 2019 with the power to name his own cabinet, introduce budgets and rule by decree. The parliament will be reduced to voting up or down on the executives edicts. Mr. Erdogan will find that familiar: He already has been ruling by decree under a state of emergency for the past five months. Having dominated Turkey since his Islamist party first won election in 2002, Mr. Erdogan, 62, would be permitted by the constitutional reform to remain in office until 2029.

Many Turks continue to resist the strongmans entrenchment and will vote no in a referendum likely to be held early next year. But their leaders and media outlets are being systematically eliminated. The Committee to Protect Journalists reported on Dec. 13 that at least 81 journalists were imprisoned in Turkey during 2016 as a result of their work, more than in any other country. The leaders of the pro-Kurdish Peoples Democratic Party, which campaigned against the presidential system, are under arrest along with 12 of the partys parliament deputies. The referendum will be tilted in Mr. Erdogans favor.

The destruction of what, a decade ago, was frequently described as a model Muslim democracy could have momentous geopolitical implications. The European Union, which has been considering Turkey for membership, is pulling away in revulsion; only a deal under which Turkey is paid billions to prevent Syrian refugees from reaching Europe prevents a complete rupture. Though Turkey is a NATO member, Mr. Erdogan is drifting toward Mr. Putins Russia and talks of joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a club led by Russia and China.

The Obama administration, which once looked to Mr. Erdogan as one of its closer allies, has appeared at a loss about whether or how to stop his power grab. The incoming Trump administration  or at least national security adviser-designate Michael T. Flynn  meanwhile appears intent on pandering to the strongman. Mr. Flynn has called for the extradition of Mr. Erdogans rival and alleged coup plotter Fethullah Gulen, even though the Justice Department has not completed an examination of Turkeys case against him.

Secular and liberal Turks, who still compose nearly half of Turkeys population, remain hopeful that the United States and European Union will somehow act to restrain Mr. Erdogan  or at least speak up clearly against his abuse of power. They are likely to be disappointed.
Amid the recent attention surrounding the Youth Rehabilitation Act, success stories such as mine have been overlooked.

When I was 16, I was arrested for first-degree murder. The author of the pre-sentencing report, which included information about my background and a recommendation for sentencing, suggested I be punished to the fullest extent of the law, believing that I was irreparable, that I could not change.

The recommendation was for me to spend the remainder of my life in prison, with no hope for a second chance. I was found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to 22 years in prison  longer than I had been alive. But at least it left me with the possibility of a second chance. I took advantage of it. In the decade since my release, I have focused my life on serving my community, trying to make amends for my crime and offering mentorship and guidance to others who share my experiences.

Upon sentencing, I entered the Youth Center at the Lorton Reformatory. At Lorton, I was overwhelmed by emotions, and my depression quickly turned into anger. As a result, I acted out. I got into a fight with two others in my unit and was moved to a medium-security institution in Lorton. Despite getting into trouble early on during my time in Lorton, I did much better after being moved as I was growing older and beginning to mature.

After my time in Lorton, I was moved around from prison to prison, state to state, with stays in southeast Virginia and Youngstown, Ohio. Finally, in 2000, I was moved to one of the most secure facilities in Colorado. I carried out the remainder of my sentence 1,600 miles from my friends and family. Despite being warehoused in one prison after another, I knew I wanted to be a better person and make a better life for myself.

Despite the failure of the prison system to provide meaningful rehabilitation for people my age, I began to educate myself, learned to distance myself from the negative influences around me and began to take responsibility for my actions. Through all of my personal growth and maturation, I knew that I had become a different person from the one I was when I entered the prison system.

By the time I was released in 2006, I had served 15 years  nearly half my life. In 2009, I founded One by 1 , a nonprofit organization dedicated to youth mentorship and successful reentry for formerly incarcerated members of the community.

In addition to serving as chief executive of One by 1, I have earned certification in faith-based mentorship, offender employment services, peer mentoring and community-building.

When I was a teenager, my life was nearly thrown away. Some people thought I would never change and deserved nothing more than to die in prison. In reality, all children grow and change, and researchers document that most youths age out of criminal behavior by the time they reach their late 20s. I certainly did.

In 2010, I completed the terms of my parole, and the next year the District sealed my case (part of the Youth Rehabilitation Act). Despite this, I continue to live with the weight of the actions taken by 16-year-old me. I can never undo what I did. The best honor I can pay to the victim in my case and his loved ones is to prove every day that I am worthy of the second chance I received.

I am not the exception. I am an illustration that we are all more than the worst thing we have ever done. If the D.C. Council revisits the Youth Rehabilitation Act, it would do well to address the lack of rehabilitation that exists for young people in the prison system and be mindful of people like me who were able to succeed in life because of the second chances we received.
Rahm Emanuel, a Democrat, is mayor of Chicago. He served as White House chief of staff from 2009 to 2010.

By nominating voucher and charter school advocate Betsy DeVos to be his education secretary, President-elect Donald Trump has ignited another round of debate over school choice. Yet as cable-news talking heads argue about whether or what kind of school reform is needed in the United States, parents are having a different discussion at the kitchen table  one based on finding the best school, not whether its a reform school.

Promoting choice at the expense of quality isnt an education strategy, its a political agenda. Rather, those of us creating education policy need to simply focus on providing the quality choices that students deserve.

We have seen successes when choice and quality have been pursued together. Some public charter schools, such as the Noble Network and Urban Prep in Chicago, have boosted graduation rates and increased college enrollment for low-income students of color. Nobles graduation rate is above 80 percent, and 100 percent of Urban Preps 2016 graduates were college-bound.

Despite charter success stories such as these, however, most children will continue to enroll in their local neighborhood school. We need to ensure that those schools are providing a high-quality education, too.

In the Chicago Public Schools, we implemented the largest expansion in school time  lengthening the school day and expanding the school year by 10 days. We made full-day kindergarten universal and conducted an early-learning race-to-the-top competition to reward the best providers and removed those not meeting quality standards. We closed low-performing schools, turned around failing ones and dramatically expanded successful educational models such as International Baccalaureate (IB) and STEM.

Our graduation rate has grown by 16 points since 2011, more than three times faster than the growth in the national rate. Chicagos eighth-graders led large urban districts in math growth, while our fourth-graders ranked third in reading gains. And with 42 percent of graduates enrolling in four-year colleges and an additional 20 percent enrolling in two-year colleges, CPS is on par with the national average for college enrollment despite a student body that is more than 80 percent low-income and minority.

But to continue this progress, those of us on the front lines need partners at the state and federal levels who are focused on quality. Previous Republican administrations sounded the alarm on educational quality, prompting renewed focus on stronger accountability. Democratic administrations pushed higher standards. The incoming Trump administration would be wise to focus on qualitative choices in four ways.

Put principals first: For too long the debate has been focused on teachers, but principals drive the standards and accountability in a school. The Trump administration should support efforts to increase principal quality, from creating training pipelines to rewarding strong performance. In Chicago, we partnered with 10 universities to train the next generation of principals and place them in year-long fellowships in our schools, and launched a program to provide our best principals more freedom to innovate.

Make the early years count: Children start dropping out of school in third grade, which is why the early years are the most important. We expanded full-day pre-K in Chicago by more than 60 percent. An analysis of CPS programs proved the value, finding that children who attend full-day preschool enter kindergarten twice as likely to read at grade level. The Trump administration should make universal full-day prekindergarten a priority and make quality a prerequisite for receiving funding.

Fight the toughest battle: The toughest nut for urban school districts to crack is high school, but again, investing in quality is the key. While we have backed quality charter options in Chicago, we have also invested in quality through magnet, military, IB and STEM schools to the point that 50 percent of our kids attend one of these models. IB and STEM programs in particular are proven to raise graduation and college enrollment rates for students of all racial and income backgrounds. In fact, our IB-enrolled students boast a nearly 100 percent graduation rate, and 81 percent enroll in college, a higher rate than their peers.

Failure is not an option: Children get only one chance at a good education. We closed failing charter and neighborhood schools and expanded those with higher quality. The incoming presidential administration should promote proven programs to turn around failing schools. In Chicago, in partnership with the Academy for Urban School Leadership, we worked to turn around 14 failing schools. Today, roughly 80 percent of these schools have attained high-performing quality ratings.

Instead of chasing another Washington debate about choice that goes nowhere, lets work together to help Americans get ahead by investing in better schools regardless of who operates them.
The USS Arizona makes its way out of the channel of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in 1940. The Arizona was sunk during the Dec. 7, 1941, Japanese attack on the U.S. Pacific fleet. (Handout/Agence France-Presse via Getty Images)

The Dec. 7 front-page article 75 years later, a reunion on the USS Arizona was valuable in bringing alive the memories of that time. Alas, it also repeated the myth that when the Japanese task force sailed to Hawaii, its only encounter was a lone Soviet freighter, which steamed by in silence. This did not happen, as I documented in a 2007 paper in the U.S. Naval War College Review.

The story emerged in a biography of Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto by Hiroyuki Agawi. Agawi later withdrew that account, but not before it had been repeated and distorted over the years. There is not a single documented account of this encounter. The fact is that no Soviet merchant ship was sailing on a course at the time that would have brought it anywhere near the Kido Butai, the Japanese fleet.

It is important that we remember our past. It is equally important, especially these days, to do so without repeating disproven rumors.

Martin J. Bollinger, Great Falls

The writer serves on the board of the Naval Historical Foundation.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the front-page article on Pearl Harbor. But I have one bone to pick. The article said that three soldiers who were killed when their sightseeing planes were shot down were the first U.S. servicemen killed in World War II. They were not even the first to be killed by the Japanese.

Regardless of whether one places the beginning of the war on the commonly accepted start date of Sept. 1, 1939, with Germanys invasion of Poland, or on Sept. 18, 1931, with Japans invasion of Manchuria, U.S. personnel had been dying in the conflict for years.

If one dates the start to the former, then Army Air Corps Capt. Robert M. Losey, a military attache, was the first U.S. combat death. On April 21, 1940, he was killed during the German bombing of Dombas, Norway, while aiding the evacuation of personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Norway to Sweden. If one dates the start to the latter, then the dubious honor of being the first American military death of the war would go to Navy Seaman 1st Class Freddie J. Falgout. On Aug. 20, 1937, Falgout was killed and 18 of his fellow sailors were wounded when an antiaircraft shell, either Japanese or Chinese, exploded on the deck of the cruiser USS Augusta.

In December of that year, the river gunboat USS Panay was sunk by Japanese aircraft on the Yangtze River, killing two Navy sailors and two civilians; 43 Navy crewmen and five civilians were wounded.

In the Atlantic, the United States had been engaged in an undeclared naval war with German U-boats since September 1941, placing American sailors in harms way. The first U.S. military casualties in this de facto conflict occurred on Oct. 17, 1941, when the destroyer USS Kearny was torpedoed by a U-boat while aiding a British convoy set upon by a wolf pack of submarines. Eleven men were killed, and 22 were wounded. On Oct. 31, the destroyer USS Reuben James was sunk by a U-boat while escorting a convoy south of Iceland. One hundred men were lost, and eight of 45 survivors were wounded.

Regardless of how one dates the start of World War II, American servicemen had been dying in the global conflict long before Dec. 7, 1941.

Thomas Bonner, College Park
The Dec. 15 Economy & Business article Trump hosts high-powered tech forum reported that at least one of the participants at a technology forum was excited to talk about jobs, a major theme of Donald Trumps campaign and, I suspect, the subtext of the meeting. On reading the articles Amazon makes first drone delivery to a customer and Uber starts using driverless cars in San Francisco, but state calls for a halt, which also ran on Dec. 15, I was perplexed by the incongruity among these pieces.

I am quite sure that all of these tech titans would very much like to see an increase in high-paying jobs to furnish them with customers for their products and services. I also bet that not one of them has ever incentivized its management team to increase the number of jobs within its organization. A study from Oxford University has predicted that more than 40 percent of jobs will be jeopardized within the next two decades, courtesy of the innovations being worked on by the very companies represented in Mr. Trumps meeting. The experience of the past four decades does not provide much confidence that these jobs will be replaced by better ones through the magic of creative destruction.

Until we address this contradiction, progress on our worsening inequality is unimaginable.

Victor A. Capece, Bowie
Political mildness is scarce nowadays, so it has been pleasantly surprising that post-election denunciations of the electoral college have been tepid. This, even though the winner of the presidential election lost the popular vote by perhaps 2.8 million votes, more than five times the 537,179 votes by which Al Gore outpolled George W. Bush in 2000.

In California, where Democrats effortlessly harvest 55 electoral votes (more than one-fifth of 270), this years presidential winner was never in doubt. There was no gubernatorial election to excite voters. And thanks to a reform, whereby the top two finishers in a multi-party primary face off in the general election, the contest for the U.S. Senate seat was between two Democrats representing faintly variant flavors of liberalism. These factors depressed turnout in the state with one-eighth of the nations population. If there had been more excitement, increased turnout in this heavily Democratic state might have pushed Hillary Clintons nationwide popular vote margin over 3 million. And this still would not really matter.

[Should the electoral college stop a Trump presidency? Depends whom you ask.]

Political hypochondriacs say, with more indignation than precision, that the nations 58th presidential election was the fifth in which the winner lost the popular vote. In 1824, however, before the emergence of the party system, none of the four candidates received a majority of the electoral votes, and the House of Representatives chose John Quincy Adams even though Andrew Jackson won more popular votes  38,149 more, although only about 350,000 of the approximately 4 million white males eligible to vote did so. All four candidates had been together on the ballots in only six of the 24 states, and another six states, including the most populous, New York, had no elections  their legislatures picked the presidential electors.

In 1876, Rutherford B. Hayes won the electoral vote even though Samuel J. Tilden won 254,694 more of the 8,411,618 popular votes cast. (With 51 percent, Tilden is the only presidential loser to win a majority of the popular vote.) In 1888, Benjamin Harrison won the electoral vote 233 to 168 even though President Grover Cleveland won the popular vote by 89,293 out of 11,395,083 votes cast. In both years, however, exuberant fraud on both sides probably involved more votes than the victory margins.

(Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post)

So, two of the five 21st-century elections (2000 and 2016) are the only clear and pertinent instances, since the emergence of the party system in 1828, of the winner of the popular vote losing the presidency. Two is 40 percent of five elections, which scandalizes only those who make a fetish of simpleminded majoritarianism.

Those who demand direct popular election of the president should be advised that this is what we have  in 51 jurisdictions (the states and the District). And the electoral vote system quarantines electoral disputes. Imagine the 1960 election under direct popular election: John F. Kennedys popular vote margin over Richard M. Nixon was just 118,574. If all 68,838,219 popular votes had been poured into a single national bucket, there would have been powerful incentives to challenge the results in many of the nations 170,000 precincts.

[Griping about the popular vote? Get over it.]

Far from being an unchanged anachronism, frozen like a fly in 18th-century amber, the electoral college has evolved, shaping and shaped by the party system. American majorities are not spontaneous growths, like dandelions. They are built by a two-party system that assembles them in accordance with the electoral colleges distribution incentive for geographical breadth in a coalition of states. So, the electoral college shapes the character of majorities by helping to generate those that are neither geographically nor ideologically narrow, and that depict, more than the popular vote does, national decisiveness. In 1912, Woodrow Wilson won just 41.8 percent of the popular vote but conducted a strong presidency based on 81.9 percent of the electoral votes. Eighty years later, Bill Clinton won 43 percent of the popular vote but 68.7 percent of the electoral votes. In 2008, Barack Obama won 52.9 percent of the popular vote but 67.8 percent of the electoral vote.

The 48 elections since 1824 have produced 18 presidents who received less than 50 percent of the popular vote. The greatest of them, Abraham Lincoln, received 39.9 percent in 1860. So, on Monday, when the electors cast their votes in their respective states, actually making Donald Trump the president-elect, remember: Do not blame the excellent electoral vote system for the 2016 choice that was the result of other, and seriously defective, aspects of Americas political process.

Read more from George F. Wills archive or follow him on Facebook.
The Dec. 14 editorial One last deal skipped over the most important step President-elect Donald Trump should take to reduce his conflicts of interest: Release his tax returns. The best way to ensure the credibility of information on his holdings would be be to examine what has been reported to the Internal Revenue Service.

Mr. Trump is the first president-elect in modern history who has kept the American people from examining his financial profile and his taxes. Until he comes clean, any steps he takes to quell ethical concerns about potential conflicts of interest are just meaningless optics.

Linda K. Foley, Potomac
President-elect Donald Trump needs to heal, not revel. That is, he must work on healing the divided country he is about to lead, not continue to revel in his victory with a round of thank-you rallies.

Instead, we see: Trump griping about the political correctness of being named person of the year. Quieting, but not really, chants of lock her up. Revving up the crowd against the very dishonest media. Thanking African Americans who didnt come out to vote. Jabbing at the foolish White House press secretary for daring to point out that candidate Trump had encouraged Russian hacking.

Crybaby, the Trump supporters will tweet. He won, get over it. But the president-elect is the one who seems to be having a hard time getting over it, or rising above, or inhabiting the responsibility  the majesty  of his new role.

Elections have consequences, and at the end of the day, I won, a newly sworn-in President Obama said eight years ago. So I accept: Trump won, Hillary Clinton lost. That has consequences for personnel and policy.

But the manner of winning and the scope of victory also have consequences. Let Trump proclaim his electoral college landslide  not true. Let him insist that he would have triumphed in the popular vote as well, if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally. Deduct away, notwithstanding that there is zero evidence of such massive fraud.

(Victoria Walker/The Washington Post)

Even by Trump math, he will preside over a deeply divided country. Half its citizens, or more, are worried about what a Trump presidency augurs. They doubt that he has the temperament or experience for the job. It is Trumps responsibility to reassure and reach out to them. It is his duty to consider  not summarily reject  evidence that Russia may have intervened on his behalf.

This is the sixth presidential transition I have witnessed, beginning with Jimmy Carter to Ronald Reagan in 1980, and the mood of the city is like no other. Anxious does not begin to convey the profound sense of worry.

The Reagan parallel may be most instructive. His election was greeted with a degree of shocked condescension by a large segment of the citys permanent establishment. The conservative blueprint of the Heritage Foundation was ascendant. The Reagan people swept into town for the inauguration, with their furs and limousines, and it felt like an invasion, a hostile takeover of government. Plus ca change.

But for all the disdain with which Reagan was greeted, the genial star of Bedtime for Bonzo was a far less frightening figure than Trump. He had governed the nations largest state; he had a clear, and clearly understood, political philosophy. The establishment may have disagreed with Reagan; it did not view him with dread.

Thus, the Post editorial board, the day of Reagans inauguration, acknowledged the political and ideological meaning of the Reagan victory, yet noted approvingly that the new president has shown . . . an ease and openness and willingness to expand his perspective that is as admirable as it is essential  essential to a successful presidency.

The next day, New York Times columnist James Reston noted the paradox that those who were most determined to elect Mr. Reagan now seem more worried about what he will do as president than those who opposed him.

That those conservative jitters proved unfounded does not undermine my point about the chasm between Washingtons wary embrace of the 40th president and its cringing at the prospect of the 45th.

Now, sober-minded people speak in all seriousness about fears for the future of the republic and the prospect of impeachment. These are not wild leftists but experienced hands, with long historical memories and understanding of how power ebbs and flows here. Whether or not these dire prognostications prove correct, the fact they are being voiced is alarming.

Dismiss this as the griping of obsolescent elites, but regular Americans are similarly apprehensive. Majorities in a Pew Research Center poll say Trump is reckless (65 percent) and has poor judgment (62 percent). More Americans (38 percent) believe he will be a poor or terrible president than are confident (35 percent) he will be a good or great one. Crowds at Trump rallies cheer, but the country worries.

In his finest post-election moment, Trump, echoing Lincoln, vowed on election night to bind the wounds of division. To acknowledge citizens concerns and adjust accordingly is an essential, if unlikely, first step  so far missing from the president-elects repertoire.

Read more from Ruth Marcuss archive, follow her on Twitter or subscribe to her updates on Facebook.
What am I missing about the nearly enacted D.C. Council bill to create a most generous paid family leave program for workers in the District? It will be paid for by taxes on D.C. businesses. Okay. But 64 percent of the benefits will be paid to people who work in the District but do not live here or pay taxes here. What?

The Dec. 10 editorial An ill-conceived plan noted the D.C. chief financial officers concern that the bill proposes benefits more generous than other existing state programs and presents multiple risk factors, including the need to build a new government bureaucracy with some 113 new employees. This program is going to be costly, but Im not opposed to the adoption of a sensible paid-leave program. I pull up short, however, at the notion of paying nearly two-thirds of program benefits to nonresident, non-D.C.-taxpaying employees.

What feckless surge of beneficence inspired most of the D.C. Council to want to adopt such a program? The District has never been allowed to impose taxes on nonresident employees for their share of city services consumed while working here. If they pay no taxes toward a family-leave benefit, why in the world would the District extend such a benefit to untaxed Virginia and Maryland residents?

There is, no doubt, a plausible explanation other than kind hearts at Christmas season.

Bernard Ries, Washington
Benjamin A. Gilman, a longtime Republican congressman from New York who chaired the House International Relations Committee and helped arrange prisoner exchanges, died Dec. 17 at a veterans hospital in Wappingers Falls, N.Y. He was 94.

Richard Garon, a former chief of staff, said Mr. Gilman had been in declining health after surgery to repair a damaged hip.

Mr. Gilman, a World War II veteran and former state legislator, was first elected to the House in 1972. He served 15 terms representing a sprawling district north of New York City that included all or parts of Rockland, Orange, Sullivan and Westchester counties.

Sometimes called a Rockefeller Republican, he was known for his moderate and even liberal views on some social issues, such as organized labor and support for abortion rights and family planning, before his partys positions hardened into a more conservative conformity.

He was a founder of the House Human Rights Caucus and worked behind the scenes to help free political prisoners, including Natan Sharansky, from the former Soviet Union and other oppressive regimes. Mr. Gilman often traveled to Haiti to observe rebuilding efforts and programs to improve the countrys educational and legal systems.

After the 1994 midterm elections, in which Republicans took control of the House, Mr. Gilman accomplished a long-held goal by becoming chairman of the House International Relations Committee, now known as the Foreign Affairs Committee. He stepped down after six years because of party-imposed term limits.

As an assistant attorney general in New York in the 1950s, Mr. Gilman first took note of the social problems associated with drug abuse. It became one of his signature issues in the House, as he worked with congressmen from both parties, notably Democrat Charles B. Rangel (N.Y.), to draft anti-drug legislation.

He sometimes bucked the GOP leadership, including the administration of President Ronald Reagan, to secure funding for law enforcement and drug rehabilitation programs and to pressure foreign governments to control the supply of drugs crossing their borders.

Ben is certainly one of the recognized experts and leaders in Congress in the area of substance abuse, Rep. William J. Hughes (D-N.J.) told the New York Times in 1987. Hes added a bipartisan perspective to the problem and he does not hesitate to criticize his own administration about its drug policies.

In 1978, Mr. Gilman had a pivotal role in arranging an international prisoner swap in which an Israeli pilot held in Mozambique, an American in East Germany and an East German spy jailed in the United States were freed. A year later, he helped arrange the release of four Americans from Cuba in exchange for four Puerto Rican nationalists who had been imprisoned after an armed attack on the U.S. Capitol in 1954.

Benjamin Arthur Gilman was born Dec. 6, 1922, in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. His father, a Jewish immigrant from Germany, ran a dry-cleaning business.

In 1933, Mr. Gilman accompanied his father to Berlin to persuade an aunt to come to the United States.

From her living room windows I saw the storm troopers marching up the street, painting signs on Jewish shops and houses and bullying people off the sidewalk, Mr. Gilman recalled in 1978. I was just a boy of 10, but my father made me take it all in. He told my aunt it would get worse and worse, but she wouldnt leave. So we came back, and my father was very upset. Her letters stopped in 1937 when they took her away. She was never heard from again.

During World War II, Mr. Gilman served in the Army Air Forces and took part in 35 bombing missions over Japan. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1946 and from New York Law School in 1950. After working as an assistant attorney general in New York, he had a private law practice in Middletown, N.Y. He served in the New York State Assembly from 1967 to 1972.

In 2002, New York lost two congressional seats because of reapportionment after the 2000 Census. Mr. Gilman, the oldest member of the House at the time, chose to retire.

His marriages to Jane Prizant and Rita Kelhoffer ended in divorce. He was predeceased by two children from his first marriage.

Survivors include his wife of 19 years, the former Georgia Tingus of Greenville, N.Y.; three children from his first marriage; two stepchildren; and 11 grandchildren.

Any worthwhile politician can see a mountain of trouble in this world, and he is supposed to do something about it, Mr. Gilman told People magazine in 1978. I think the only way a man can move a mountain is a little bit at a time. Each of us has to start somewhere.
Presidents often are tested early, by unexpected crises or provocations by foreign adversaries. President-elect Donald Trumps first test has come even before he is sworn in, and so far, he has responded with denial, equivocation and deflection.

The test has come over Russias brazen intrusion into the U.S. election process through its hacking of the servers at the Democratic National Committee and the email account of John Podesta, Hillary Clintons campaign manager.

Contrary to what Trump said last week, the Russian intrusion was known long before the election. The Washington Posts Ellen Nakashima reported in June that the Russians had penetrated the DNC network. Then on Oct. 7, intelligence officials publicly stated that the hacking had occurred, that the Russians were behind it and that only Russias senior-most officials could have authorized these activities. That was an obvious reference to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Trump may have missed the October announcement. He was preoccupied with the infamous Access Hollywood video, which The Post had released the same afternoon. At the time, the video captured most of the media attention. It seemed to present a dire threat to Trumps chances of winning the election. Trump weathered that storm and is a month away from being sworn in as president. Now he has a bigger problem awaiting him when he takes office, one he seems resistant to addressing.

In the past week, intelligence officials have added to their findings, concluding that the motivation behind Russias hacking was to help Trump win.

(Reuters)

The findings about Russian interference and the motive behind their actions will not change the outcome of the election. On Monday, the electoral colleges electors will cast their votes in the states, and no doubt Trump will have his comfortable majority secured.

Throughout the campaign, Trump described his philosophy as one of America first. He drew an enthusiastic response from his supporters for signaling that he would refocus U.S. foreign policy away from the course pursued for the past eight years by President Obama and seemingly abandoning a broader consensus that has guided presidents of both parties for decades.

But if standing up to Russian attempts to interfere with American democracy isnt a foundational principle of an America first policy, what is? Trumps response has suggested a different focus and different philosophy, one that might be described as Trump first, rather than America first. His instincts appear to be aimed at shielding himself.

[Intelligence agencies agree that Russians aimed to help Trump]

The hacking has become the elephant in the room since the election. It is a significant national security threat that Trump will have to deal with and also a roiling political debate that has threatened to complicate the transfer of power.

Trumps posture toward Putin and to the hacking long has puzzled and alarmed current and former government officials who have experience in these areas. His friendly attitude toward Putin is contrary to the views of officials in both parties about the man behind Russian aggression in various parts of the world.

His invitation to Russia to try to hack Clintons emails, issued last summer during the Democratic National Convention, was inexcusable, even if in jest. He has long resisted embracing the evidence that the Russians were behind the hacking. He said it could have been done by other countries or by somebody sitting on their bed who weighs 400 pounds.

(Jason Aldag/The Washington Post)

When it was reported about a week ago that the CIA had concluded that the Russians were trying to help him win the election, he responded with a tweet slamming the intelligence community for claiming that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction in the run-up to the Iraq War. The CIA was tragically wrong in that case, but was it necessary for the incoming president to publicly rebuke and provoke the agency?

All of this has put Trump at odds with the intelligence community he will soon oversee as commander in chief. That should be as worrisome to the incoming president as it is to the intelligence professionals. It has also put him at odds with many Republicans in Congress who are joining Democrats in their call for a thorough investigation and who already question whether Rex Tillerson, the ExxonMobil chief executive nominated by Trump to become secretary of state, is too friendly toward Putin.

Meanwhile, the political implications of the hacking have added to the raw emotions left behind by an election outcome that surprised people in both parties. Clinton is on record as believing that the combination of the Russian hacking and especially the interference of FBI Director James B. Comey over her emails cost her the election.

[Obama says partisan divisions make U.S. vulnerable to propaganda]

Caught in the middle is Obama, who is obviously loyal to Clinton and disappointed that Trump will be his successor. During his Friday news conference, he skirted some direct questions, showing the degree to which he is trying to maintain a working relationship with Trump during the transition while still trying to highlight the findings of the intelligence community. As he put it, not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin.

Since the election, Trump has rejected what would seem to be the obvious course to follow in light of the conclusions of the intelligence community. The simpler reaction would have been to respond the way many in Congress did, which was to express outrage at the interference and call for an investigation to examine exactly how the cyber-intrusion happened and how similar activities can be prevented in the future. Instead, he has continued to question the intelligence community and to suggest partisan motivations of those who accept the findings.

Perhaps his fear is that the more legitimacy is given to the conclusions that the Russians were motivated by their desire to help him or hurt Clinton, the less his victory will be seen as legitimate.

Or perhaps all of his tweets and statements are a prelude to Mondays electoral college vote, after which he will feel freer to reverse course and join others in calling for a congressional investigation to go along with the review and report ordered by Obama.

In recent days, some of his advisers appeared to be preparing for that kind of shift. But the American people  and Trump advisers  have learned that no one safely speaks for Trump other than Trump himself. And they have learned how difficult it is for Trump to admit error.

On top of all this is the president-elects apparent lack of interest in receiving daily intelligence briefings, a standard procedure for presidents. That raises questions about how he plans to conduct foreign policy. Will he seek all available evidence as he weighs decisions? Whom will he listen to and trust? And will he ever have a trusting relationship with the vast intelligence-gathering resources at his command?

Trump is still a month away from occupying the Oval Office. But he is already caught up in a controversy that will define the opening of his presidency and is struggling to find his way.
President Obama used one of the last news conferences of his presidency Friday to lament the countrys deep political divisions, asserting that they make the United States vulnerable to foreign manipulation, and to warn President-elect Donald Trump to be less casual in his dealings with foreign leaders.

My advice to him has been that before he starts having a lot of interactions with foreign governments other than the usual courtesy calls, that he should want to have his full team in place, Obama said. . . . He should want his team to be fully briefed on whats gone on in the past and where the potential pitfalls may be. You want to make sure youre doing it in a systematic, deliberate, intentional way.

For the past five weeks, Obama has tried to hide his disappointment about Trumps win and to remain publicly upbeat about the country and its institutions. On Friday, the optimistic facade began to crack.

He worried that the political discourse had been degraded to a point where everything is under suspicion, and everybody is corrupt, and everybody is doing things for partisan reasons, and all of our institutions are, you know, full of malevolent actors.

Obama began by praising the American people for driving an economic recovery that has cut the unemployment rate by more than half. He credited the Affordable Care Act for revamping the nations health-care system and bragged about the more than 670,000 people who signed up for health insurance on Thursday.

(Jason Aldag/The Washington Post)

By so many measures our country is stronger and more prosperous than it was when we started, he said. And I could not be prouder to be your president.

But with many of the questions focused on revelations about Russian interference in the U.S. presidential election to help Trump, Obama seemed uncharacteristically concerned about the soundness of some bedrock U.S. institutions.

The president has been adamantly insisting for years that the only way terrorists could defeat the United States was if the country lost its moorings or deserted its values. On Friday, he suggested that might have started to happen.

[Once the hope candidate, Obama came to face a hopeless electorate]

More than once, Obama cited research that many Republicans now view Russian President Vladimir Putin more favorably than they did before this years election. According to the Economist-YouGov survey, more than a third of voters who support Trump have a positive view of Putin.

Over a third of Republican voters approve of Vladimir Putin, the former head of the KGB. Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave. And how did that happen? he asked. It happened in part because for too long, everything that happens in this town, everything thats said is seen through the lens of does this help or hurt us relative to Democrats, or relative to President Obama.

And unless that changes, were going to continue to be vulnerable to foreign influence, because weve lost track of what it is that were about and what we stand for, he added.

At different points the president seemed doubtful about the functional effectiveness of the U.S. press, politicians and even citizens  whom he often has exempted from his harshest critiques in the past.

How is it that the basic decency and goodness of the American people has become so muted in the national political discourse, he asked, that you have voters and unelected officials who have more confidence and faith in a foreign adversary than they have in their neighbors?

Obama faulted political reporters for what he described as their obsession with emails hacked from Democrats, allegedly by the Russians. And he complained that the level of attention paid to those emails seemed inappropriate when there were so many big issues at stake, and such a contrast between the candidates came to be dominated by a bunch of these leaks.

You guys, he chastised the press corps, wrote about it every day, every single leak about every little juicy tidbit of political gossip, including John Podestas risotto recipe. Podesta chaired Hillary Clintons recent presidential campaign.

When the subject turned to Syria, Obama bridled when asked whether he felt a responsibility for the unfolding tragedy in Aleppo, where the atrocities perpetrated by the Syrian regime against residents in the onetime rebel stronghold are being witnessed by the outside world in real time.

[FBI backs CIA view that Russia intervened to help Trump win election ]

There are places around the world where horrible things are happening, and because of my office, because Im president of the United States, I feel responsible, he said. I ask myself every single day, Is there something I could do that would save lives and make a difference and spare some child who doesnt deserve to suffer? 

But the many meetings he held with his advisers  if you tallied it up, days and weeks of meetings  always ended with the same conclusion: Nothing short of a full-scale U.S. military intervention would change the equation in Syria.

And everything else was tempting because we wanted to do something and it sounded like the right thing to do, but it was going to be impossible to do this on the cheap, Obama said.

Obama pointedly declined to pass judgment on some of Trumps recent foreign policy pronouncements  including a renewed call for establishing safe zones in Syria and potentially recognizing Taiwan over Chinas objections. The president said he continued to engage in cordial conversations with Trump and has offered the president-elect advice in private. Still, he tried to clarify why some of Trumps moves could be seriously destabilizing.

The idea of one China is at the heart of their conception as a nation, Obama said of that countrys opposition to Taiwan being recognized diplomatically by other countries. That status quo, although not completely satisfactory to any of the parties involved, has kept the peace.

Obama said that he had spoken with Trump just a few days ago and that he held out hope that he can transmit some thoughts about maintaining the effectiveness, integrity, cohesion of the office, our various democratic institutions, and he has listened.

The president-elect might be able to help unify the country if he acknowledges that U.S. officials have learned, Obama said, how Internet propaganda from foreign countries can be released into the political bloodstream, and that we have got strategies to deal with it for the future.

But Obama acknowledged that there is no simple solution.

I guess part of my overall message here as I leave for the holidays is that if we look for one explanation or one silver bullet or one easy fix for our politics, then were probably going to be disappointed, he said. There are just a lot of factors in whats happened, not just over the last few months but over the last decade, that has made both politics and governance more challenging.

Greg Jaffe contributed to this report.
From left, Congressmen Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.), Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.), William R. Keating (D-Mass.) and Steve King (R-Iowa) lay a wreath at the site of a terrorist attack in 2000 in Moscows Pushkin Square. (Ivan Sekretarev/AP)

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) is finding himself newly relevant, after nearly three decades in Washington, as Donald Trumps presidential win provides his out-of-the-mainstream views on Russia a new foothold.

Last week, Rohrabacher praised the president-elects choice of ExxonMobil chief Rex Tillerson to be secretary of state, describing it as a victory in his lonely and oft-criticized struggle to relax Washingtons posture toward Russia.

Tillerson is facing criticism from Democrats and some Republicans over what they view as his too-close relationship with Russia and President Vladimir Putin.

Rohrabacher sees the issue quite differently.

[Tillerson is] a man who knows the players in Russia, obviously, and knows the nuances you need to make in order to have a successful relationship, he said in an interview. Im happy [Trump] chose Tillerson.

The representative from Orange County predicted that a softer attitude toward Russia and Putin will sweep into Washington under Trumps administration  a prospect that is proving exhilarating for Rohrabacher, who was once described in a news account as Vladimir Putins favorite congressman, after years of having his views on Russia relegated to the fringe.

This is what a number of [Trumps] people are all about, Rohrabacher said. Now that we have a president who is going to try his best to bring a better, more cooperative relationship with Russia, I think youll find more people stepping up to the plate and trying to put out an open hand.

Rohrabacher, a dark-horse candidate for secretary of state before Tillerson was picked, aggressively defends Trumps most controversial statements about Russia.

Like Trump, he rejects the FBIs and CIAs assessments that Russia interfered in the election to help the Republican win, saying the conclusion reveals only the intelligence communitys inability to abandon Cold War attitudes.

Most of the people who are so aggressively attacking Russia for everything it does basically have this image that Putin is the same as Stalin, and that is not the case, Rohrabacher said.

He also has criticized NATO, a onetime Trump target that is considered one of the most successful military alliances in history, as vilifying Russia and trying to get Americans frightened to increase its own power.

NATO is trying to justify itself by incredibly exaggerating a Russian threat to Europe, he said. The Soviet Union was a priority in the past; now weve got to look at radical Islam. The Soviet Union is not the enemy that it was.

Rohrabacher, 69, declined to comment specifically on speculation that he might be appointed Trumps ambassador to Russia, saying only that the transition has discussed several possibilities with him. He told Politico on Thursday that he has let Trumps transition officials know that he would prefer to stay in Congress over serving in the new administration.

Already a frequent presence in the Russian media, Rohrabacher is increasingly a go-to source for U.S. journalists trying to sketch how Trumps foreign policy might operate  or simply looking for a contrarian voice.

This can have explosive results, as two recent television interviews revealed.

Rohrabacher on Tuesday joined MSNBCs Morning Joe to discuss atrocities in Aleppo, Syria. The interview quickly devolved into a shouting match after host Joe Scarborough, a former House colleague of Rohrabachers, accused him of glossing over the Russian bombing campaigns killing of Syrian women and children.

Rohrabacher argued that the United States needs to keep Russia on its side to fight the Islamic State. Other experts on the show argued that Russia is involved in Syria to prop up President Bashar al-Assad, not to fight terrorism.

We allied with Stalin in order to defeat Hitler, Rohrabacher said, undeterred. Stalin was a horrible man, he murdered millions of people, but we knew Hitler was a bigger threat. Today, the biggest threat is radical Islam to our safety. If we keep trying to focus on all of the faults of Russia so that we cant work with them to defeat this common enemy, youre not doing any service to the people of the United States.

Last Wednesday, Rohrabacher made further headlines after a Yahoo News anchor asked him about Russias history of violating citizens rights. Oh, baloney, he shot back at the anchor, Bianna Golodryga. Where do you come from?

Golodryga said she came from the former Soviet Union as a political refugee. Oh, thats good  then the audience know youre biased, he responded.

Most foreign-policy experts reject the notion that a blanket strategy of greater warmth toward Putin is in the interest of the United States.

We should be very sober and pragmatic about him, Fiona Hill, director of the Brookings Institutions Center on the United States and Europe, said of Putin. We wont get any rewards just for being warm and fuzzy. He will see that as purely a sign of weakness.

Rohrabacher has labored in obscurity for most of his career, but a closer look at the details reveals a colorful and unpredictable character.

A former White House aide to President Ronald Reagan, Rohrabacher was elected to the House in 1988 with help from his old friend Oliver North, a fellow former Reagan aide who was forced to resign after he was implicated in the Iran-contra scandal.

He is famous for having arm-wrestled Putin, then-deputy mayor of St. Petersburg, in the 1990s at a bar during a Russian delegation visit to Washington. Rohrabacher lost to Putin in an instant, the story goes.

Rohrabacher has been criticized for freelancing his own foreign policy. Around the time of his election, he briefly joined a mujahideen unit fighting the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. After he won his race, he illegally entered Burma to meet with pro-democracy students. Against advice from the State Department, he became the first congressman to visit Croatia, in August 1991, after fighting broke out between Croatian secessionists and Serbian militants that summer. Ten years later, the State Department reportedly rebuked him for meeting with Taliban officials at a Sheraton Hotel in Qatar.

Rohrabacher considers these kinds of actions an essential part of his persona, which in his mind lies somewhere between Indiana Jones and a California surf bum. In earlier years, he wrote a handful of adventure-driven movie scripts, including a World War II drama titled The French Doctoresse. Im going to stay here [in Congress] 10 or 12 years at the max, he told the Los Angeles Times in 1989. To me, the ultimate nirvana is to be a creative writer and live at the beach.

Many of Rohrabachers relationships in Russia were originally shaped by his involvement in U.S. space policy. By 1992, Rohrabacher  a longtime member of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology  was advocating that the U.S. space program save money by purchasing rockets made by the former Soviet Union. He hosted several Russian delegations in Southern California, home to a number of aerospace companies.

Rohrabacher has a history of supporting Russian interests in Congress. Last month, Politico reported that he and his staff used information received from the Russian government to promote removing the name of Sergei Magnitsky, a whistleblowing Russian lawyer who died in jail, from a law barring the Russian officials blamed for his death from entering the United States, along other punishments. During a markup of the bill, Rohrabacher reportedly proposed an amendment to remove Magnitskys name from the bills title. The amendment did not pass, but critics still accused Rohrabacher of helping the Russians by muddying the waters.

Rohrabacher still chairs the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia and emerging threats. He said he remains in contact with Trumps transition team but is focused on shepherding what he described as a growing group of lawmakers sympathetic to Russia in the House. This may eventually involve ramping up the activities of the Russia Caucus, of which he is one of just a few members.

You can expect there to be a number of members of Congress who are willing to step up and say that we should quit being hypercritical and attributing hostility and evil to every step the Russians make, he said.

Read more at PowerPost


These photos of similar looking girls in Pakistan were used in efforts to determine whether five girls had been murdered and replaced by others when officials came to investigate. (Pam Constable/The Washington Post)

It was just a few seconds, a video clip of several young women laughing and clapping to music, dressed for a party or a wedding in orange headscarves and robes with floral patterns. Then a few more seconds of a young man dancing alone, apparently in the same room.

The cellphone video was made six years ago, in a village deep in Kohistan, a rugged area of northwest Pakistan. It was the last time the young women, known only as Bazeegha, Sareen Jan, Begum Jan, Amina and Shaheen, have ever been definitively seen alive.

What happened to them remains a mystery. Their fates have been shrouded by cultural taboos, official inertia, implacable resistance from elders and religious leaders suspected of ordering their deaths, and elaborate subterfuges by the families who reportedly carried out those orders.

[Killed in the name of honor in Pakistan]

Even in Pakistan, where hundreds of honor killings are reported every year, this case was extreme. According to court filings and interviews with people who investigated it, the families confined the girls for weeks, threw boiling water and hot coals on them, then killed them and buried them somewhere in the Kohistan hills.

Later, when investigators appeared, relatives and community leaders insisted that the girls were still alive and produced a second set of similar-looking girls to prove it. They even disfigured one girls thumbprints so she couldnt be checked against the identity of the victim she was supposed to impersonate.

The story illustrates many of the reasons Pakistani officials have failed to curb the problem of honor killings. These include the cruel sway of traditional tribal councils, known as jirgas, over uneducated villagers; the lengths to which such leaders may go to defy state authority; and the casual worthlessness they assign to the rights, lives and even identities of young women.

Today, the truth is finally beginning to emerge, mostly through the efforts of a few individuals including Afzal Kohistani, a young man whose brothers were killed as a result of the incident. He spent years seeking help from local and provincial officials, then petitioned the Supreme Court. In 2012, his case was dismissed, but last month the high court reopened it and ordered a new investigation that has produced a chilling report.

This has destroyed my family. The girls are dead, my brothers have been killed and nothing has been done to bring justice or protect us, said Kohistani, 26, who has received death threats. I know I will probably be killed, too, but it doesnt matter, he said in an interview last week. What happened is wrong, and it has to change.

Renewed judicial interest in these long-ago events coincided with another encouraging development: the passage of a law in Parliament that strengthened judicial powers in honor-killing cases. Often, even when such crimes manage to reach the courts, there is no punishment because the law allows victims families to forgive the perpetrators  who are often their own relatives.

[After Qandeel Balochs death, Pakistan takes a small step to discourage honor killings]

The new law, passed in October, gives judges more ammunition to impose life sentences for honor killings in extreme circumstances, allowing them to overrule personal deals by making the murder a crime against the state. But supporters fear that cultural and political resistance will continue to prevent justice being done.

We dont know yet whether the law will make much difference. Punishment is still not mandatory, and forgiveness can still negate justice, said Benazir Jatoi, a lawyer who works on womens rights. Until there is more political will, I dont think the lives of ordinary women threatened with honor violence will change.

The Kohistan case unfolded in a conservative rural region where social mingling between genders is taboo. The girls participation in a coed singing party was risky enough, but someone posted the video on the Internet, where it spread rapidly, bringing shame on their community before the vast virtual world.

(TWP)

The head of the local jirga, a Muslim cleric, allegedly issued a religious decree ordering the five girls to be killed for dishonoring their tribe, along with the boy seen dancing and every member of his family. There was no resistance from the community. After the girls were disposed of, several brothers of the boy were also caught and killed. The rest of the family, including Kohistani, fled the area.

There things stood for more than a year. No crimes were reported, and no one came to investigate. Kohistani, a college graduate from one of the areas wealthier families, said he repeatedly approached local and provincial officials, reporting the killings and seeking protection, but was chided for opposing the jirgas verdict.

No one in my district or my province has ever spoken against honor killing. They tell me I have defamed my culture, my religion, my tribe, Kohistani said this month. Everybody knows what happened, but no one is ready to come forward. This is an illegal, unconstitutional and un-Islamic tradition, but people dont even consider it a crime.

With assistance from a lawyer in Islamabad, Kohistani appealed directly to the Supreme Court. Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, a liberal activist, personally took up the case in 2012 and ordered two fact-finding missions sent to the remote area by helicopter.

When the visitors demanded to see the girls, their families at first refused but eventually presented three girls and said they were the ones in the video. The three delegates had no chance to speak to the girls in private, but they compared their faces with images from the video. Two were convinced of the likenesses; the third, Farzana Bari, said she had doubts.

I was upset and confused. We had no translators who knew their dialect, and everyone there insisted these were the same girls, recounted Bari, an academic in Islamabad. When we got back the second time, I filed a dissenting report, but the judge closed the case. I still feel terrible.

After that, life in the village apparently returned to normal for several years. One journalist sent photos of both groups of girls to analysts in England, who found only a 14 percent chance they were the same individuals. That evidence was taken to a provincial court, but it declined to take action. Kohistani, in the interview, named each of the original girls and their replacements, who he said were similar-looking sisters, cousins and sisters-in-law.

[Before she was murdered by her brother in an apparent honor killing, who was Qandeel Baloch?]

Finally, last month, Kohistanis crusade got an unexpected break when the Supreme Court, under a new chief justice, agreed to accept his petition. Once more, a fact-finding mission was sent to the village. This time, it included a district judge and two police officers, armed with government ID records with the heights and thumbprints of the missing girls.

What they encountered was hair-raising.

In his report afterward, Kohistan Judge Shoaib Khan said the village elders were unanimous in insisting that the girls were alive. But two of the girls they produced were much younger than the victims, according to their official birth dates. A third could not be identified because both thumbs had been burned; her parents insisted that it was from a cooking accident. He concluded that at least two girls did not match the ones in the video and that the others were probably also impostors.

All this leads to the suspicious conclusion that something is wrong at bottom, Khan wrote. The case, he advised, needs exhaustive inquiry.

On a recent day, Kohistani, wearing a conservative suit and carrying a copy of the judges report, walked up to the Supreme Court. He smiled slightly as he shook hands with his attorney, and they went inside to wait for the next hearing.

Read more:

An entire generation of a citys lawyers was killed in Pakistan

Between panic and euphoria, Pakistan tries to figure out Donald Trump

Pakistan honors Nobel winner in physics 37 years late. But his religion still stirs anger.

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news
What an unmanned U.S. Navy drone looks like. (U.S. Navy)

The Chinese government will return a U.S. naval drone seized last week in the South China Sea, the Pentagon said Saturday, in a move that promises to defuse heightened maritime tensions between the two Pacific powers.

Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said that Beijing had agreed to transfer the ocean glider, a small unmanned vessel used to assess water conditions, back to the United States, but said details on how and when that would occur had not been decided.

The latest spike in U.S.-Chinese maritime tensions occurred Thursday, when a Chinese submarine rescue ship close to the USNS Bowditch, an oceanographic survey vessel operating about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay in the Philippines, took possession of the U.S. drone.

The incident occurred within sight of the Bowditch, which tracks the drone as it collects unclassified data on water temperature, salinity and other factors that may affect U.S. naval operations. According to U.S. officials, the Chinese ship refused initial requests from the Bowditch to return the drone.

We have registered our objection to Chinas unlawful seizure of a U.S. unmanned underwater vehicle operating in international waters in the South China Sea, Cook said in a statement.

(Jason Aldag,Julie Vitkovskaya/The Washington Post / Satellite photos courtesy of CSIS)

Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the [drone] to the United States, he said.

[Pentagon: Chinese naval ship seized a U.S. underwater drone in South China Sea]

While the seizure drew criticism from some U.S. lawmakers, statements from Washington and Beijing suggest that both sides are eager to avoid further intensifying tensions at a moment of deep uncertainty in U.S.-Chinese relations after the election of Donald Trump to the presidency.

Even as China asserts a right to areas of the South and East China seas also claimed by some of its neighbors, it has embarked on an ambitious program of constructing artificial islands, some of which appear to be intended as military outposts.

The U.S. military has conducted repeated shows of force, sailing ships or conducting surveillance flights near disputed areas, while also seeking to avoid any serious military escalation with a key commercial partner.

After the Pentagon announced that the drone would be returned, a U.S. defense official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to comment freely, said that the Obama administration was glad to get it back and put this behind us.

Its somewhat reassuring that senior leadership in Beijing agreed that this was something that should be returned, regardless of the individual actions of their people at sea, the official said. It is not clear who authorized the seizure of the drone.





[Photos: Chinas rapid island-building continues]

Those comments came after the Chinese Defense Ministry issued a statement saying the marine device had been taken in the interest of safe navigation in the area, according to a report from the Associated Press. The ministry also said the U.S. vessel would be returned through appropriate means, the AP reported.

The flap over the drone comes as Trumps election generates concern among Chinese authorities, with the president-elect questioning long-standing U.S. policy on China and continuing his sharp criticism of Beijings trade and monetary policies.

Trump angered Chinese officials when he spoke by phone with the president of Taiwan, which Beijing considers a breakaway province.

While it is not clear how the Trump administration will handle efforts by China to assert itself in the South China Sea, his stance toward Beijing suggests a hard line.

On Saturday morning, Trump issued a tweet that said: China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters  rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act.

In a later Twitter message, the president-elect said: We should tell China that we dont want the drone they stole back  let them keep it!

Read more:

Trump draws rebukes after saying U.S. isnt bound by one-China policy

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news
Demonstrators hold Polish and EU flags during a protest outside the Parliament building in Warsaw, Poland December 17, 2016. (Kacper Pempel/Reuters)

Polish opposition leaders called for days of anti-

government demonstrations Saturday after police broke up an hours-long blockade of the Polish Parliament by protesters who claim that ruling party lawmakers are violating the constitution. Several thousand people responded to that call in Warsaw and other cities.

Organizers pledged to return and keep blocking Parliaments main hall, despite the threat of arrest. About two dozen members of the opposition Civic Platform had been taking turns sitting in the legislatures plenary hall through the night until they were forced out early Saturday.

Despite being ousted, the protesters vowed to remain at the gates of Parliament. We will be on the streets until they are done destroying the country, Mateusz Kijowski, the leader of the Committee for the Defense of Democracy movement, told protesters.

Polands biggest political standoff in years began Friday, when opposition lawmakers, objecting to plans by the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party to curb media access to Parliament, blocked the plenary hall podium ahead of a budget vote.

PiS lawmakers later moved voting to another area without media access, prompting accusations that they had passed the 2017 budget illegally, breaching the constitution.

In response, protesters blockaded the exits from the Parliament building, which is when police moved in.

Opposition party lawmaker Jerzy Meysztowicz told television network TVN24 that police used tear gas to disperse the protesters who tried to prevent the convoy carrying Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the head of PiS, and Prime Minister Beata Szydlo from leaving. Warsaw police spokesman Mariusz Mrozek denied use of tear gas but confirmed that physical force was used to remove protesters.

The clash with the opposition has highlighted a growing divide in Eastern Europes largest economy, with some Poles increasingly angry over the PiS governments efforts to assert more control over state institutions.

Since coming to power, PiS has passed laws that made it more difficult for the constitutional court to pass rulings, a move that led the European Commission to say democracy and rule of law were threatened in Poland.

The nationalist-minded, euroskeptic PiS party has also tightened control over public news media and state prosecution. The party has approved legislation that human rights groups said would curtail freedom of assembly.

If it becomes clear that it is impossible to talk to (PiS lawmakers), we should have early elections, Ryszard Petru, head of the liberal Nowoczesna grouping, told protesters in front of Parliament.

A snap election is unlikely, however, as PiS holds an outright majority in Parliament and would be able to overrule any vote of no confidence.

Despite criticism at home and abroad, PiS enjoys steady support among many Poles eager to hear its message of higher welfare, more Catholic values in public life and less dependence on foreign capital.

Government officials deny behaving undemocratically and have accused opposition leaders of fomenting dissent.

Interior Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said in an interview with RMF-FM private radio that the opposition blockade of Parliament was an illegal attempt to seize power.

And Szydlo, the prime minister, speaking at an event with firefighters in the southern city of Krakow, said opposition politicians have forgotten we need to respect each other and we need to be responsible.

For many, the focus of their activity is brawls, she said.
GaneshaSpeaks

The Rudraksha is a bead that grows on a tree of the same name in the Himalayan ranges, mostly Nepal, and the hilly region of Indonesia, Java, Sumatra and Burma. The Hindu scriptures are replete with the significance and benefits of wearing the Rudraksha. It has not only physical and mental benefits, but is also of immense value in spiritual upliftment.



The word Rudraksha is derived from Rudra (another name of Shiva) and Aksha, which means eyes, and it is believed that the beads are Shivas tears. These beads range from being one faced (ek mukhi) to 21 faced (ikees mukhi), but only the first 14 are worn by humans, and every bead, as per its properties, has its own different powers. The beads are said to have miraculous powers of healing many diseases and imbuing a person with tremendous spiritual energy.



Instead of wearing the beads randomly, Ganesha advises you to consult either a spiritual master or a knowledgeable astrologer before choosing which kind of Rudraksha will benefit you the most.



Here are some salient facts about the Rudraksha beads:



1. The best quality Rudraksha are found in the Himalayan ranges of Nepal.

2. The word Rudraksha is derived from the word Rudra (or Shiva) and Aksha (eyes).

3. These beads are known to have miraculous properties.

4. The wood of the Rudraksha tree is so tough that it was used to build the propellers of airplanes during the World War I.

5. The cost of the Rudraksha varies from type to type, and the higher the number of mukhis, the higher the cost, and the higher will its medicinal value be.

6. The best way to select a Rudraksha is consulting an expert, who will be able to tell you which type will suit your needs best.

7. Beware, also, of fake Rudraksha, and a majority of them are. The test is that when you put it in a glass of water, if it sinks it is genuine, but if it floats it is a fake.

8. These magical beads can control disease such as stroke, stress level, hypertension, and also give great relief from anxiety, depression and neurotic conditions.

9. These beads can be wore by everybody, regardless of their caste, creed, religion or culture.

10. If you wear the Rudraksha mala while meditation and yoga, it increases the benefits manifold.

11. A sinner who wears the Rudraksha mala is liberated of all his sins.



Rudraksha and Astrology:

Ganesha says that there is a very strong connection between the powerful Rudraksha and Astrology, and that various remedies for the planets can be conducted with the help of Rudraksha. Each Rudraksha is connected to a particular planet, and the effects of the particular Rudraksha can be helpful in either strengthening a planet, or nullifying its ill effects.



Benefits of some of the particular types of Rudrakshas:



1 Mukhi Rudraksha: Wear this for gaining peace and power. Know more @ 1-Mukhi-Rudraksh.



2 Mukhi Rudraksha: Teaches you to be compassionate. Know more @ 2-Mukhi-Rudraksh.



5 Mukhi Rudraksha: Increases your courage and helps you act boldly. Know more @ 5-Mukhi-Rudraksh.



Gauri Shankar Rudraksha: This Rudraksha is a very special one, as it denotes the Ardhnarishwara form of Lord Shiva. One side of this beautiful bead symbolises Lord Shiva, while the other side denotes the face of Goddess Gauri (Parvati). Know more @ Gauri Shankar Rudraksha.



With Ganeshas Grace,

The GaneshaSpeaks.com Team
It's the most wonderful time of the year for one very charitable sweater buyer -- and the veterans and disabled children who will reap the benefits of its hefty price tag.

Rapper 2 Chainz's self-proclaimed "World's Most Expensivest Ugly Christmas Sweater" went for a whopping $90,000. A joint effort with personal jeweler Avianne, the black blinged-out sweater wows with 50 carats of diamonds and 250 grams of gold. The sweater is currently listed as "sold out" on 2 Chainz's shop site.

RELATED: Whoopi Goldberg Has Designed a Line of Christmas Sweaters, But Don't Call Them Ugly

$90,000 cash. 50 carats of diamonds and 250 grams of gold on the worlds most expensivest ugly Christmas sweater. https://t.co/iJXWTwmqIl pic.twitter.com/4sQ2IV03gJ  Tity Boi (2 Chainz) (@2chainz) December 16, 2016

Proceeds from the hip-hop artist's fancy holiday sweater benefit his non-profit, T.R.U. Foundation, which assists vets and disabled children and supports arts education in Atlanta, Georgia and the surrounding areas.

Last year, 2 Chainz raised $2 million for T.R.U. Foundation with sales from his "Dabbin' Santa" collection. "This year, the mission is simple -- to help as many people as we possibly can," 2 Chainz writes on the foundation's website. "... The new collection will act as our vehicle to bringing real assistance to people and families that are looking for a little boost this holiday season. Join our movement. Let's aspire to inspire and bring cheer this holiday season."

WATCH: Prince Michael Jackson On Charitable Efforts and Father's Inspiration: 'I Hope to Lead By Example'

And not just with ugly sweaters. Check out the video below to see Madonna putting smiles on the faces of LGBT youth in Brooklyn.

Story continues

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The Daily Beast

GettyRussia announced Wednesday that it views Norways work with other countries in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as provocative, warning that Norways efforts to bolster its military in response to Russias invasion of Ukraine this year will likely be the death knell for Oslo-Moscow relations moving forward.Oslo is now among the most active supporters of NATO's involvement in the Arctic, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Wednesday, according to TASS. We cons
By Megan Rowling

NEW YORK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Tackling climate change is the "biggest economic opportunity" in the history of the United States, no matter who holds political office, said Hollywood star and environmental activist Leonardo DiCaprio.

"There are a few, very prominent people that still deny the overwhelming conclusions of the world's scientists that climate change is largely human-caused and needs immediate urgent attention," he told a U.N. awards ceremony on Friday evening.

But "the truth" about climate change has spread like "wildfire", he added.

DiCaprio's comments, as he received a prize for his work as a global citizen, did not refer to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump by name but were a thinly-veiled reference to his views and climate-skeptic cabinet members with oil industry ties.

Earlier this month, 42-year-old DiCaprio and the head of his foundation met with Trump and his team, reportedly arguing that support for renewable energy could create millions of jobs.

Trump has suggested climate change is a hoax and raised the possibility of withdrawing U.S. support for a new global accord to reduce greenhouse gas emissions which most scientists believe are driving up sea-levels and more droughts and violent storms.

"In less than 100 years of our pollution-based prosperity, we humans have put our entire existence in jeopardy," warned DiCaprio, who released his own documentary "Before the Flood" on the impacts of global warming two months ago.

DiCaprio, who won an Oscar this year for playing a fur trapper battling nature's elements in "The Revenant", said his documentary is the most viewed "in history ... (showing) just how much the world cares about the issue of climate change".

But he said the battle to address it is far from over, calling on the world to implement the Paris Agreement on climate change, which came into effect in November, and to "go further".

For more news videos visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS and Android.

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'ENVIRONMENTAL AWAKENING'

People everywhere are acting to curb the damage to humans, nature and wildlife from a warming planet, DiCaprio said - from putting a price on carbon emissions, to buying cleaner cars, eating less meat, and businesses vowing to be carbon-neutral.

"To those who may be discouraged by nay-sayers, let me remind you, the environmental awakening is all over the world and the progress we have made so far ... has always been because of people, not governments," DiCaprio told the United Nations Correspondents Association event in downtown New York.

DiCaprio, who has worked closely with outgoing U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on climate action, congratulated the U.N. chief for "elevating the significance of climate change to one of fundamental global sustainability and peace".

Without Ban Ki-moon's persistence, the world would never have made so much progress on climate change, culminating in the Paris Agreement sealed in December 2015, DiCaprio said.

Earlier on Friday, Ban Ki-moon said acting on climate change meant "jobs, growth, cleaner air and better health", adding that leaders of top companies, governors and mayors understand this.

The Paris Agreement is "a precious achievement that we must support and nurture", he told his final press conference at the United Nations. "There is no going back," he added.

(Reporting by Megan Rowling @meganrowling; Editing by Belinda Goldsmith; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, property rights and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)
Social Beverage Company, LLC will create 34 jobs

Contact: McCrory Communications

McCrory Communications govpress@nc.gov

Raleigh, N.C. Governor Pat McCrory, N.C. Commerce Secretary John E. Skvarla, III and the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC) announced today that Social Beverage Company, LLC will locate a craft distillery in Lenoir County. The company plans to create 34 new jobs and invest $5.8 million in the city of Kinston over three years.said Governor McCrory.The Social Beverage Company is a premium craft spirits producer dedicated to building a portfolio of lifestyle brands around a sense of community, innovation and responsible corporate citizenship. The company plans to revitalize a historic Kinston property to produce its signature farm-to-flask craft spirit, Social House Vodka. The distillery will adhere to rigorous standards for sourcing its essential ingredients from natural and organic farming, creating a gluten-free product made with North Carolina corn sourced within 50 miles of the facility.said Secretary Skvarla.Those new jobs will include management, production and sales positions. Salaries for the new jobs vary by position, but the average annual salary will be $50,071. The average wage in Lenoir County is $33,142.said Cary Joshi, president, Social Beverage Company.The project was made possible in part by a performance-based grant from the One North Carolina Fund of up to $68,000. The One NC Fund provides financial assistance, through local governments, to attract business projects that will stimulate economic activity and create new jobs in the state. Companies receive no money up front and must meet job creation and investment performance standards to qualify for grant funds. One NC grants also require and are contingent upon financial matches from local governments.In addition to N.C. Commerce and the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, other partners that helped with this project include the North Carolina General Assembly, the North Carolina Community College System, the N.C. Rural Infrastructure Authority, Lenoir County, and the City of Kinston.
Chris Connors passed away on Dec. 9, 2016. His daughters loving, hilarious obituary for him has gone viral. (Photo: Caitlin Connors)

Irishman Dies of Stubbornness, Whiskey is the headline of an actual obituary making the rounds online this week, and its subject, Chris Connors, may just be one of the most interesting men that ever lived.

Connors passed away on Dec. 9 in York, Maine, after suffering from pancreatic cancer and Lou Gehrigs disease. He was 67. While in hospice he avoided writing his own obituary, asking his daughter, Caitlin Connors, a copywriter, to make it funny.

She did. Chris Connors died, at age 67, after trying to box his bikini-clad hospice nurse just moments earlier, begins the death notice. It turns out that wasnt far from the truth, since his hospice nurse, a close friend, would administer his medicine while wearing a bikini.

The outlandish life of Connors is filled with countless such moments, most of them apparently true. Connorss life reads like a mashup of The Hangover and Indiana Jones. In his 20s Connors made a failed attempt to sail around the world; he ended up floating in a life raft off the coast of Cuba for 40 hours. Just a few years before his death, he climbed to the base of Mount Everest.

An actual business card used by Connors. (Photo: Caitlin Connors)

In his 1930s Connors had walked into a job on the New York Stock Exchange, despite having no background in finance. Apparently, hed been painting a fence one day, and a trader who liked his personality gave him a business card and suggested that he follow up.

Before that, Connors had lived up to the title given him posthumously: Ladies man, game slayer, and outlaw. His exploits included episodes in which he dressed up like a priest and got into a fight at a Jewish deli, was stabbed while saving a woman from a mugger in New York City, and regularly swam in the Atlantic ocean in January.

Connorss life, however, was more than wild parties and adventures. After his brother was killed in the Sept. 11 attacks, Connors rode a bicycle 530 miles to visit all three crash sites. In 2003 he bought the York Fire Department a boat for search-and-rescue operations.

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Charitable work in his name continues with the Chris Connors Fund, and some $10,000 in donations have already been pledged since his death.

He was a rare combination of someone who had a love of life and a firm understanding of what was important  the simplicity of living a life with those you love   reads the obituary. His acute awareness of the importance of a life lived with the ones you love over any material possession was only handicapped by his territorial attachment to the remote control of his Sonos music.

The family has asked that in lieu of flowers mourners pay the open bar tab or donate to the Chris Connors Fund.

Connors is survived by his second wife, Emily Ayer Connors, and sons Chris Connors, 11, and Liam Connors, 8, and daughter Caitlin, 33.





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KABUL, Afghanistan (AP)  An Afghan official says that at least six people, including five female government workers, have been shot and killed in southern Kandahar province.

Samim Khpolwak, spokesman for the provincial governor in Kandahar, said Saturday that five female employees of the Kandahar airport were on their way to work when they were attacked by unknown gunmen. All five were killed along with their driver.

No arrests have been made so far and no group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Amber Rose has broken her social media silence, and for good reason!

Late last month, the Dancing With the Stars alum announced she was "taking the rest of the year off of social media." But on Friday, she couldn't help herself from hopping back on Instagram and Twitter, sharing a sexy pic of her beau, Val Chmerkovskiy.

WATCH: Amber Rose Is Taking a Social Media Hiatus

"When you said you were going to stay off social media until the New Year but Bae keeps posting hot a** pictures," she captioned the photo.

When you said you were going to stay off social media until the New Year but Bae keeps posting hot ass pictures  pic.twitter.com/ZtOGVxznhQ  Amber Rose (@DaRealAmberRose) December 16, 2016

The snapshot was originally posted on the 30-year-old dancer's account, which he simply captioned, "me."

me @msayles A photo posted by Valentin (@iamvalc) on Dec 16, 2016 at 12:01pm PST

He also shared a sexy selfie one day earlier, which appeared to be taken in the shower (before the water was running, of course!). "Beyonce vibes this morning," Chmerkovskiy wrote. "#iwokeuplikethis."

Beyonce vibes this morning. #iwokeuplikethis A photo posted by Valentin (@iamvalc) on Dec 15, 2016 at 9:43am PST

Chmerkovskiy and Rose, 33, have yet to officially confirm whether they're a couple, but judging by their recent posts and romantic date nights, it appears these two are definitely more than just friends.

WATCH: Amber Rose and Val Chmerkovskiy Step Out Holding Hands During Dinner Date

The pair was spotted grabbing dinner at celebrity hot spot Delilah in West Hollywood, California, last Friday, holding hands and flashing smiles as photographers captured their pics.

Hear more on their rumored romance in the video below!

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Khan Yunis (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - Dutch artist Marjan Teeuwen walks past a column formed from rubble to show off her latest creation, a barren house in the Gaza Strip where doorless rooms face into bleak, empty space.

The 'Shaath House' in Khan Yunis in the south of the Palestinian territory was largely destroyed by an Israeli attack in the 2014 Gaza war but Teeuwen, 52, specialises in turning unwanted places into works of art.

Working with Palestinian engineers and artists and the Palestinian Red Crescent, she is "transforming a demolished house into a beautiful sculpture" which will serve briefly as a museum.

There is one major difference however between the Gaza house and her previous works, in the Netherlands, Russia and South Africa.

Teeuwen usually works in buildings that are due to be destroyed in a few months, turning them into temporary exhibits in what she describes as juxtaposition of the opposing forces of construction and destruction.

"(But) for the first time I started in a building which was destroyed already, which was destroyed by war," she told AFP.

Perhaps Teeuwen's most famous work in the Netherlands saw her transform four empty houses due for demolition into a minimalist space with tilted floors and caved-in walls.

But in Gaza, they had to start by rebuilding one of the walls destroyed during the war.

The team closed it with rows of bricks and breeze blocks stacked on top of each other but without cement, which is sparse in Gaza, leaving space for light to come through.

Inside the exhibition, which took Teeuwen three months, she has used rubble and chips of tiles from the war to construct a column which snakes upwards to the ceiling.

Floors have been twisted upwards or collapsed inwards, while some interior walls were removed completely. Others fall diagonally or are deliberately disjointed to create the feeling that "everything is on edge," a written guide to the work said.

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- 'We love art and beauty' -

More than 120,000 homes were partially or fully destroyed in the 50-day war in 2014, which led to the deaths of 2,251 Palestinians and 73 Israelis, according to the United Nations agency for Palestinians (UNRWA).

71,000 have been repaired, while 12,000 are in the process, UNRWA spokesman Chris Gunness said.

A further 57,000 are yet to be repaired or rebuilt.

Dressed in black, Teeuwen talked to her colleagues by a fire to keep warm in the winter air, despite the sun poking through holes in the roof.

"My message to the Palestinian people is visit this place and see the beauty," she said.

Mohamed Abu Dagga, Teeuwen's assistant, said he hoped the artwork would send a "message" about Gaza.

"Despite the blockade and all the wars the Palestinian people still love art and beauty and life," he said.

Gaza has been under an Israeli blockade for a decade, while Egypt has also largely closed its border with the beleaguered Palestinian enclave -- which is run by Islamists Hamas.

Mohammed al-Najjar, 40, from a nearby town, is still waiting for war-damaged his home to be rebuilt.

"I hope I find help to build a home like this," he said.

After being shown to the public the Shaath House building will eventually be demolished, as the owner wants to construct a family home.
Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f321558%2f3760ad00-a111-47cd-a959-0e6ba1be0cb7

Mystical clouds of sea smoke arose over bodies of water across the East Coast, from Lake Michigan to the Atlantic, this week as the polar vortex took hold.

Their dreamy look is the result of water and air temperatures intermingling, as cool air blows over comparatively warm water and then formulates the clouds of "smoke."

SEE ALSO: Trump falsely claims that nobody knows if global warming is real

From Illinois to New Hampshire, photographers were on hand to capture the beauty of the fog through a number of striking images.

Chicago, Illinois

The sea smoke rising off of Lake Michigan looked unreal from atop the Hancock Observatory this AM. Love me some #Chiberia. pic.twitter.com/gvlqNza4AM  Nick Ulivieri (@ChiPhotoGuy) December 15, 2016

Duluth, Minnesota

WOW! Sunrise that looked like a heart along with sea smoke this morning in Duluth, Minnesota. Photo courtesy of @Muddman4809 #Sunrise #MNwx pic.twitter.com/NZkNOa5HII  Mark Tarello (@mark_tarello) December 13, 2016

WOW! A wind chill of -31 this morning and sea smoke seen during sunrise from Duluth, Minnesota. #Duluth #MNwx pic.twitter.com/xhXbiBxXEe  Mark Tarello (@mark_tarello) December 15, 2016





Season's first plates of ice starting to form on Lake Superior this morning in #Duluth thanks to subzero temperatures pic.twitter.com/w2AjS67lZJ  Andrew Krueger (@akpix) December 15, 2016

Rye Beach, New Hampshire

Gorgeous little seasmoke devils roping out over the ocean on this frigid morning at Rye Beach. #NHwx pic.twitter.com/FWlPLEngRy  Rob Wright Images (@RobWrightImages) December 16, 2016

Seasmoke timelapse video from Rye Beach! #NHwx pic.twitter.com/1oFLDPd3M2  Rob Wright Images (@RobWrightImages) December 16, 2016

Georgetown Island, Maine

Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Eastham, Massachussetts
Champagne

The holidays are a time to toast to friends, family, and good fortune in the new year. But first you'll need a great bottle of Champagne  and when it comes to the bubbly, there's a balance to be struck between quality and price.

We talked to Alison Napjus, Wine Spectator's senior editor and tasting director, to get her recommendations for bottles that will impress your peers without breaking the bank. Wine Spectator does blind taste tests of more than 18,000 wines a year, and Napjus personally reviewed about 2,500 wines in 2016, including 500 sparkling wines.

She also gave us some tips on what to look for when selecting a bottle.

"The really big divide in sparkling wine, in terms of price, would be between vintage versions and non-vintage," she said. "Vintage is more expensive, and it's supposed to be symbolic of that year. Non-vintage is better for price, and it's the majority of what you'll see in the supermarket."

Non-vintage wines are typically blends of several different vintages that a producer makes as a signature sparkling wine each year. Non-vintage bottles are not usually labeled as such  you can recognize one by the absence of the word "vintage" on its label.

Other terms that might signify a higher price point: "blanc de blancs," "blanc de noirs," and "rose."

"Those are more expensive as well because they're using a specific type of grape, and they're often a small production, so there's a supply and demand situation," Napjus said. "Production process also affects the price of the wine."

Here are Napjus' best-value sparkling wine picks, arranged in ascending order according to Wine Spectator's ratings. While some of the more highly rated sparkling wines are Champagnes (meaning that they come from the Champagne region of France), others are Proseccos from Italy, Cavas from Spain, or sparkling wines from California.

Each of these wines can be had for $55 or less.

Freixenet Cordon Negro Extra Dry Cava ($12)

Saying hello to the holiday season. A photo posted by Freixenet Cava (@freixenetusa) on Nov 26, 2016 at 4:41am PST on Nov 26, 2016 at 4:41am PST

Wine Spectator score: 86/100

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Region: Cava, Spain

According to Wine Spectator's tasting notes, this Cava boasts flavors of "smoke, plum, tangerine and spice."

Ca' Furlan Cuvee Beatrice Prosecco Extra Dry ($10)

Wine Spectator score: 87/100

Region: Prosecco, Italy

Wine Spectator describes this Italian Prosecco as "balanced and lightly juicy."

2012 El Cep Marques de Gelida Gran Reserva Brut Cava ($14)

Wine Spectator score: 87/100



Region: Cava, Spain

Prominent flavors in this sparkling wine include apple, almond, and lemon curd.

Nino Franco Brut Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore Rustico ($18)

Wine Spectator score: 88/100

Region: Prosecco, Italy

Nino Franco Brut Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore Rustico

This Italian Prosecco has hints of white peach, Thai basil, sliced almond, and lemon pith.

2011 Juve y Camps Brut Nature Cava Gran Reserva de la Familia ($16)

Wine Spectator score: 89/100

Region: Cava, Spain

According to Wine Specator, this Spanish Cava is "a firm, focused version, with a smoky streak of mineral underscoring the flavors of fresh-cut pear, mandarin orange peel, vanilla biscuit, and pickled ginger."

Gloria Ferrer Blanc de Blancs Carneros ($22)

gloria ferrer blanc de blancs

Wine Spectator score: 90/100

Region: California

If you'd rather go for a California sparkler, this wine has both crisp and creamy flavors.

Ferrari Brut Trento ($26)

ferrari trento

Wine Spectator score: 90/100

Region: Trentino, Italy

Wine Spectator dubs this sparkling wine "very drinkable," with notes of "Asian pear, ground ginger, hazelnut and lemon zest."

Ployez-Jacquemart Brut Champagne Extra Quality ($43)

Wine Spectator score: 91/100

Region: Champagne, France

It's a bit pricier than the sparkling wines that come before it on this list, but this Ployez-Jacquemart Champagne is said to have notes of apricot, orchard blossom, and pastry dough.

Lanson Brut Champagne Black Label ($45)

Lanson Brut Champagne Black Label

Wine Spectator score:

91/100

Region: Champagne, France

Also hailing from the Champagne region of France, this sparkling wine is minerally and smoky.

Pol Roger Brut Champagne Reserve

Pol Roger Brut Champagne Reserve ($50)

Wine Spectator score: 92/100

Region: Champagne, France

This Champagne has flavors of poached pear and toast.

2008 Moutard Pere & Fils Brut Champagne Cuvee des 6 Cepages ($55)

Wine Spectator score: 92/100

Region: Champagne, France

According to Wine Spectator, this Champagne is best enjoyed with a meal. They describe it as "balanced and juicy, featuring smoke and spice notes on the plush finish."

Bereche & Fils Brut Champagne Reserve ($46)

Wine Spectator score: 92/100

Region: Champagne, France

This Champagne is acidic, with notes of blackberry, toast, licorice, and mandarin orange peel.

Alfred Gratien Brut Champagne ($50)

Wine Spectator score: 93/100

Region: Champagne, France

This Champagne is described as "rich," with a "firm acidity and an airy mousse."

2009 Domaine Chandon Brut Yountville Vintage ($45)

Wine Spectator score: 93/100

Region: California

Wine Spectator calls this sparkling wine "polished and graceful," with "floral aromas of Asian pear, fresh ginger and brioche."

NOW WATCH: The best wines under $25 according to a top sommelier





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Birdman may be going through it with Lil Wayne, but the mogul isnt letting Waynes $50 million dollar lawsuit against him stop plans for a Cash Money reunion tour. Thats right, guys! Cash Money Records taking over for the 99 and 2000s all over again!

The 47-year-old Cash Money CEO is reportedly gearing up for a tour that will rival Puff Daddys epic Bad Boy reunion concert, claims TMZ. The line-up for Babys tour will include OG Cash Money artists Juvenile, Mannie Fresh and Turk. No Lil Wayne because, well, the lawsuit and everything. And no B.G. though because hes currently serving 14 years in federal prison for gun possession and witness tampering. Birdman also plans to add himself and up-and-coming acts to the tour.

Not sure how a 20th anniversary Cash Money reunion tour can go on without the labels biggest star, Lil Wayne, but Baby isnt petty enough to block his son from joining the tour. The website claims theres an open invite if Wayne decides to relive Cash Moneys glory days. Theres doubt Wayne will entertain the thought since hes been yelling F*ck Cash Money for a while now. And how can he even trust Baby will give his fare share of the tour profits. Hell, how can any of the names reportedly attached to the tour trust a frequently sued Birdman? Who knows, but if all goes well, without or without Wayne, Birdman hopes to have the tour going February 2017.
La Paz (AFP) - Bolivia's ruling socialist party on Saturday defied the results of a February referendum and backed President Evo Morales for a fourth term in 2019.

The Movement for Socialism (MAS) party, holding a congress in the eastern city of Montero, approved the candidacy of Morales -- Bolivia's first president with an indigenous background -- in a unanimous vote.

Morales welcomed the party's decision, saying, "If the people decide it, Evo will continue."

He added: "So many times we have defeated the right."

Morales was first elected president in 2005, and re-elected in 2009 and 2014.

But he narrowly lost the referendum in February on the question of whether the constitution should be revised to permit him to run again in 2019. His current term expires on January 22, 2020.

The party congress Saturday recommended "four legal alternatives" to allow his candidacy within the constitutional framework, according to a union leader who read the conclusions.

The first was a partial constitutional reform through an initiative requiring the signatures of some 20 percent of the electorate. Another also involves a constitutional reform to allow an extended presidential mandate.

The third recommends that the president renounce his office before the 2019 elections, so that he would not have served three full terms, while the fourth involves a reinterpretation of the constitution.

Morales, who has cultivated an "everyman" image, has been highly popular throughout most of his presidency.

He won his first election with 54 percent of the vote, his second with 64 percent and his third with 61 percent.

Morales has generally benefited from a fragmented opposition.

At the time of the February referendum, his popularity had been damaged by allegations that he had fathered a child with a young woman, Gabriela Zapata, and done favors for the Chinese company employing her.

He admitted the two had had a son, who died in infancy, but emphatically denied the other allegations.

Story continues

Still, he lost the referendum by a narrow margin, 51 percent to 49 percent, and vowed to continue pressing the leftist platform that underlies his popularity.

As president, he has worked to redistribute the nation's natural gas wealth and provide a more inclusive environment for the indigenous majority.

To burnish his common-man credentials, Morales has often traveled on foot or stopped to play soccer with locals.

But some Bolivians said they felt he had amassed too much power in his years in power, and that the onetime outsider had himself joined the elite establishment.

In a survey early this month, the Ipsos polling firm found Morales's popularity had slipped a bit but was still relatively solid, at 49 percent.
By Alex Whiting ROME (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - If women farmers were given the same access to land, tools and credit as men, the boost to crop yields would dramatically cut world hunger, but this must be done fast before climate change closes the window of opportunity, hunger experts said on Friday. Agricultural yields would increase by almost a third if women had the same access to resources as men, said Neven Mimica, European Union commissioner for international cooperation and development. "As a result, there would be up to 150 million fewer hungry people in the world," he told a meeting of experts and government representatives, gathered at the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to find ways of helping women farmers. Children also have significantly better prospects for the future when their mothers are healthy, wealthy and educated, he added. "If we are serious about putting an end to poverty and hunger once and for all, then we all need to step up our support for rural women," he said. Women and girls make up 60 percent of the chronically hungry - often eating last and least in the family - Mauritian President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim told the meeting. They make up 45 percent of the agricultural work force - rising to 60 percent in parts of Africa and Asia - and own less than 20 percent of land, according to FAO. They work on average 12 hours a week more than men in developing countries, and reinvest up to 90 percent of their earnings back into their households, the U.N. agency said. CLIMATE RISK Climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of droughts in many parts of the world and changing temperature and rainfall patterns, requiring investment in new crops and techniques in many areas. "In the absence of concerted effort to address the gender gap in agriculture in the context of the changing climate, rural women are at risk of being trapped in a downward spiral," said Maria Noel Vaeza, director of programmes at U.N. Women. "Conversely, key initiatives that address this gap - such as secure land tenure, greater financial inclusion and access to information and markets - are also essential to accelerate the adoption of climate smart agriculture," she said. Climate smart agriculture includes reducing the amount of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture - which with forestry and changes in land use contributes 21 percent of global emissions - and adapting to the impacts of climate change. (Reporting by Alex Whiting, Editing by Emma Batha.; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP)  Reopening a bridge near the main Dakota Access pipeline protest encampment is key to restoring better relations between the state and the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, according to North Dakota's now-former governor and the tribal chairman, but the effort will take weeks if not months.

The bridge, unofficially called the Backwater Bridge, has been closed since late October, when protesters of the four-state, $3.8 billion pipeline blocked the bridge with burning vehicles, damaging the structure. It's also the site of several clashes, including on Nov. 20, when authorities used tear gas, rubber bullets and water sprays on protesters who they say assaulted officers with rocks and burning logs.

The state Transportation Department has said they can't inspect the bridge until they know their workers will be safe, though pipeline opponents believe the closure is meant to block the north end of the federal land, where hundreds of protesters are camped out.

Before he left office Thursday, Gov. Jack Dalrymple met with Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault, agreeing to enlist the Bureau of Indian Affairs to help ensure the safety of inspectors so that the bridge can reopen.

Dalrymple in a statement said reopening the bridge "will be a strong signal of cooperation to return area living conditions to a more normal state," while Archambault told The Associated Press that doing so removes a roadblock to emergency services and commerce. The bridge, on state Highway 1806, is the main route to get to the tribe's casino.

"If there's a way that we can help so that this bridge is opened, it's a step forward," Archambault said.

A timeline hasn't been finalized, but Transportation Department spokeswoman Jamie Olson indicates it will be a slow process, with testing of the bridge being done "in the next few weeks."

Core sampling to evaluate the concrete requires temperatures around the freezing mark for machines to work properly, she said, and the state has been blanketed by frigid arctic air for weeks.

Story continues

"Special equipment will need to be brought to the bridge site and may require a shelter or structure to be placed on the bridge in order for an adequate testing environment," she said, adding that the samples will be sent to a special lab.

The highway itself also has been damaged and will need to be repaired before the roadway can be opened, Olson said.

With the protest camp thinning out to a few hundred people due to the stalled pipeline work and harsh winter weather, officers have moved back from the bridge to de-escalate tensions but are monitoring it from afar and will respond if protesters try to cross a blockade of cement barrier and razor wire, Morton County sheriff's spokesman Rob Keller said.

The pipeline that is to carry North Dakota oil 1,200 miles to Illinois is stalled while Texas-based developer Energy Transfer Partners and the Army battle in federal court over permission for the pipeline to cross under the Missouri River. The Standing Rock Sioux and its supporters say the pipeline threatens cultural sites and drinking water; ETP says the pipeline will be safe.

___

Follow Blake Nicholson on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/NicholsonBlake
Montreal (AFP) - Police in Montreal raided six cannabis shops one day after they opened, following a warning by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that recreational marijuana is not yet legal in Canada.

Ten people were arrested in Friday's raids, police said, including veteran pro-cannabis activist Marc Emery.

Trudeau, who campaigned last year on a promise to end nearly a century of pot prohibition, warned that the government is still at least one year away from legalizing pot use.

"We haven't changed the legislation yet," Trudeau told reporters earlier in Montreal. "It is coming, but we're going to take the time to do it right."

Until that happens, the current ban on the possession and sale of marijuana for recreational use remains in effect, he said.

Emery on Thursday however went ahead and opened in Montreal six boutiques of the Cannabis Culture franchise chain, which already exist in other cities.

Police raided the stores at the end of the day as buyers braved frosty conditions to crowd into the boutiques to buy marijuana.

"The prime minister is a disgrace, as is the Mayor of Montreal, Denis Coderre," Emery cried out as he was being taken away by police.

Those arrested will face charges of drug trafficking and possession of items for trafficking purposes, the Montreal police department said.

Police reported seizing 18 kilos of cannabis, as well as money and equipment including scales and containers.

Emery, the self-proclaimed "Prince of Pot," has been arrested multiple times.

He was even extradited to the United States in 2010 and served just under five years in prison for selling on his website and mailing more than four million marijuana seeds. He returned to Canada after his release in August 2014.

In cities across Canada in the last year, entrepreneurs have opened storefronts seeking to grab market share ahead of the promised legalization.

The dispensaries themselves claim to be operating in a "gray area" of the law. Many have been raided by police only to defiantly reopen days later.

Story continues

Trudeau admitted in 2013 to having smoked pot five or six times in his life, including at a dinner party with friends since being elected to parliament.

On Tuesday, an expert panel unveiled a blueprint for creating a legal market for cannabis including plain packaging and labelling, restrictions on advertising, and retail distribution.

Under the proposed rules, individuals would be allowed to grow up to four plants at home for personal use.

Personal possession, however, would be limited to 30 grams (one ounce).

In settling on a minimum age of 18, the experts discounted the warnings of health groups concerned about the potential impact of marijuana on developing brains under the age of 25.

Trudeau called this proposal a "fair compromise" after recently pointing out that youths today can buy pot on the black market more easily than beer.
DailyFX.com -

Canadian Dollar May Hang Tough Against a Hawkish Fed

Fundamental Forecast forCAD:Neutral

Talking Points:

Big Week For Canadian Data With Retail Sales, CPI & GDP Ahead

Steepening Yield Spread Among US/CA Debt, Largest USD/CAD Upside Risk

USD/CAD Technical Analysis: Strong Reversal Puts Downtrend In Doubt

The Canadian Dollar weakened against the USD as did the rest of G10FX when the Federal Reserve signaled a more hawkish/ steeper dot plot than expected. The Canadian Dollar had Bullish momentum backing it going into the meeting on the back of the December 7 Policy Statement where the Bank of Canada noted that they are focusing on slack that remains in the Canadian economy and omitted the at present phrase when discussing possible rate cuts to stimulate the economy.

The backing off of dovish policy by the Bank of Canada disappointed many Canadian Dollar bears. However, when looking at the persistent relative month-over-month strength in the energy market and EM stability, whichdoessignificant trade with Canada, its easy to see why the Bank of Canada is backing off the aggressive dovish stance.

Last week, we saw an unfortunate combination for CAD Bulls of a compelling thesis for further US dollar strength alongside disappointing Canadian manufacturing sales that were negative again in October. However, next week will present a large slew of data for Canadian Dollar traders to consider into the New Year. While few are expecting fireworks regarding positive surprises for Canadian data, a print in-line with expectations would continue to see the Bank of Canada holding put as opposed to seeking easing policy, which may keep CAD bid in non-USD crosses.

Wednesday will present Wholesales Trade Data for the month of October, while Thursday & Friday provide the headline prints for the Canadian economy. Thursday will provide Retail Sales for October & the all-important CPI for November, which is slowing heading to and may eventually print above the Bank of Canadas 2% target with the stability in Crude Oil. Friday will present GDP for October, with YoY expected to remain unchanged at 1.9%.

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Canadian Dollar Traders should continue to keep an eye on widening or narrowing yield differentials. The Bank of Canada is doing their job in keeping the CAD stable, but volatility in sovereign yields will likely be a driver over the coming months.

Energy Effect Favoring CAD Stability

Crude Oil is playing a large role in what could be the resumption of the Canadian Economy. As economic data is stabilizing (disappointing less often), the Bank of Canada is turning more neutral as opposed to dovish, and the Crude market looks poised for a stability above $50/bbl. All of this combined with the Fiscal efforts by PM Trudeau may allow the Canada to benefit greatly from the recent OPEC accord to limit crude production to support the markets supply balance.

While risks remain given the uncertainty of future U.S. trade policy, the Canadian Dollar may shine as the beneficiary of a natural trade partner with the U.S. and a turning of the tide in energy markets that continues to play out.



original source

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By Leah Schnurr OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian marijuana firms, facing potential limits on advertising for recreational pot, are selling health food products and cultivating a lifestyle image to win customers in an anticipated multibillion dollar market. Canada is set to become the first G7 country to legalize recreational marijuana nationally when it introduces legislation next spring. Medical marijuana is already legal. If the government incorporates an expert panel's recommendations, outlined on Tuesday, it could strictly limit advertising and require plain packaging on products. That means companies will need to be creative to set themselves apart from the competition, with the advantage going to those who have already established a name, said Aaron Salz, founder of Stoic Advisory Inc, a cannabis advisory firm. "If you've been able to build a brand presence ahead of potentially more restrictive rules on advertising, you're going to have a leg up." Alternatives could include sponsoring events or companies putting their name on products other than cannabis, he said. Medical marijuana producer Peace Naturals has a line of food products, such as hemp hearts, sold in health food stores. It is a strategy that owner Cronos Group, which is changing its name from PharmaCan Capital Corp, might consider for its other brands, said Chief Executive Officer Michael Gorenstein. Gorenstein plans to use British Columbia-based In The Zone, which is licensed for medical marijuana cultivation, to appeal to the outdoor crowd when recreational use is legalized, with a focus on hiring like-minded employees to connect with customers. "If you build a culture and recruit a group of people that really represent what your brand is, you don't need to advertise," said Gorenstein. "The brand recognition will follow." Wholesaler Supreme Pharmaceuticals Inc is putting its focus on the quality of marijuana it grows. The end product is sold under other companies' names, but Supreme gets a producer's mark and is betting on customers recognizing where their marijuana came from and coming back for more. "A good analogy would be Intel chips," said Chief Executive John Fowler. "Whether you're buying an Apple or a Dell, you're looking for Intel inside as a mark of quality." Canopy Growth Corp, which operates Bedrocan and Tweed, plans to use the potential plain packaging to educate customers about the strength and strain of marijuana they are buying, said Chief Executive Bruce Linton. "We were not going to be using swirly, psychedelic colors," Linton said. "We're going to be using the chance to put the name 'Tweed' on the package." Executives said education through events or customer service will be key. It is a strategy Olivia Mannix, chief executive of Colorado-based cannabis marketing agency Cannabrand, recommends. "Be professional, that's really the best advice," said Mannix. "Have education and information behind your brand." (Reporting by Leah Schnurr; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)  The nation's vice president and a retired Marine Corps general were among the dignitaries, family members and other mourners who choked up Saturday during a memorial tribute to the late space hero John Glenn.

Roughly 2,500 people gathered at Mershon Auditorium on the Ohio State University campus for "a celebration of life" for the former fighter pilot, history-making astronaut and longtime Democratic U.S. senator from small-town Ohio. He was remembered not only for bravery, but for his thoughtful consideration for others, his integrity and his patriotic optimism.

"I think John defined what it meant to be an American, what we were about, just by how we acted," said Vice President Joe Biden, a former colleague of Glenn's in the U.S. Senate. "It was always about the promise. We were a country of possibility, opportunity, always a belief in tomorrow."

Retired USMC Gen. John Dailey said Glenn was "never in it for himself," but always acted for the nation's greater good. Like many others, he recalled Glenn's humility and basic kindness.

"We had John for 95 great years and it still wasn't enough," Dailey said.

Glenn died Dec. 8 at age 95. He was the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962, and then in 1998 became the oldest person in space at 77.

Thousands of people, including Democratic U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, visited the Ohio Statehouse on Friday as Glenn lay in honor. A solemn funeral procession through the center of the capital city carried his casket past more mourners willing to withstand cold and ice.

Ethel Kennedy, widow of close Glenn ally Robert F. Kennedy, and their son Robert F. Kennedy Jr., were among the mourners present, along with Ohio political leaders including Gov. John Kasich and former Govs. Ted Strickland and Richard Celeste.

The service was preceded by recordings of hymns, arias and popular songs. Some  including Nat King Cole's "Smile" and Susan Boyle's version of "Impossible Dream"  nodded to Glenn's trademark optimism. Others, including "You Are My Sunshine," ''Moon River" and Shirley Jones singing "Goodnight, My Someone"  recalled Glenn's long love affair with wife, Annie, who survives him.

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Their marriage was cited frequently as a source of Glenn's strength and an inspiration to those who have known and watched the couple for 73 years.

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, a fellow Democrat who first met Glenn when he was a teenage Eagle Scout, called Glenn "an FDR Democrat" who believed in the power of government and the importance of public service  through his military and space career and his tenure in the Senate.

"He was a work horse, never a show horse," Brown said. "He labored over the details of non-proliferation and environmental cleanup of nuclear disposal sites, grunt work to some, but John was content to spend his time not on collecting instant headlines but achieving lasting results that would leave the world better than he had found it."

Brown's wife, journalist Connie Schultz, recalled his tenderness when their grandson was curious about how astronauts urinate in space. She saw it as example for the nation.

"If American icon John Glenn could take the time to treat a child with such respect, surely we can find the time to listen to one another," she said.

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden Jr. said the U.S. space program remains indebted to Glenn.

"It was courage, grace and humility John displayed throughout his life that lifted him above the stars," Bolden said. "As the current head of NASA, I can say unequivocally that we are standing on John Glenn's shoulders as we pursue a human journey to Mars, a journey that would not be possible without his bravery and selfless dedication."

Glenn's son, David, said his father let him find himself and make his own mistakes  even when he came home with long hair and wearing bell bottom pants. "He might have blinked twice, or his face twitched or something like that. But that was it," he said.

Daughter Lyn said she wanted an "atta girl" for some good grades she brought home at age 8, to which Glenn replied, "Yes, but what have you done for your country today?"

She said Glenn refused a deal worth as much as $5 million to have his photo placed on a Wheaties box because he saw it as making money from government service.

She ended a touching recollection with a simple farewell, "Godspeed, Dad."

Taps was played as Glenn was carried from the auditorium. He'll be buried at Arlington Cemetery near Washington, D.C., in a private ceremony this spring.
(BEIJING/WEST PALM BEACH, FLA.)  China will return an underwater U.S. drone seized by a naval vessel this week in the South China Sea, both countries said on Saturday, but Beijing complained the United States had been hyping up the incident.

The drone, known as an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), was taken on Thursday, the first seizure of its kind in recent memory. The Pentagon went public with its complaint after the action and said on Saturday it had secured a deal to get the drone back.

Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said in a statement.

The incident drew criticism from U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to take a more aggressive approach in dealing with Beijing.

The drone, which the Pentagon said was operating lawfully and was clearly marked as U.S. property, was collecting data about the salinity, temperature and clarity of the water about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, off the Philippines.

It was seized on Thursday just as the USNS Bowditch was about to retrieve it, U.S. officials said.

The Defense Ministry said a Chinese naval vessel discovered a piece of unidentified equipment, and checked it to prevent any navigational safety issues before discovering it was a U.S. drone.

China decided to return it to the U.S. side in an appropriate manner, and China and the U.S. have all along been in communication about it, the ministry said on its website.

During this process, the U.S. sides unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate, and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue. We express regret at this, it added.

Trump, a Republican who takes office on Jan. 20, waded into the dispute on Twitter on Saturday.

China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters  rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act, Trump said in a tweet early on Saturday from his seaside resort club Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, where he plans to spend the holidays.

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HEIGHTENED CONCERNS

The drone incident has raised fresh concerns about Chinas increased military presence and aggressive posture in the disputed South China Sea, including its militarization of maritime outposts.

New satellite imagery shows China has installed weapons, including anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, on all seven artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea, a U.S. research group said this week.

Without directly saying whether the drone was operating in waters Beijing considers its own, Chinas Defense Ministry said U.S. ships and aircraft have for a long period been carrying out surveillance and surveys in the presence of Chinese waters.

China is resolutely opposed to this, and demands the U.S. stops this kind of activity, it said.

China will remain on alert for these sorts of activities and take necessary steps to deal with them, the ministry said without elaborating.

The Global Times, published by the ruling Communist Partys official Peoples Daily, earlier cited an unidentified Chinese source as saying they believed the issue would be resolved smoothly.

Trump has previously complained about the South China Sea build-up. He has threatened to declare China a currency manipulator and force changes in U.S.-Chinese trade policy, which he says has led to the greatest theft of American jobs in history.

Trump has also raised questions about whether Washington would stick to its nearly four-decades-old policy of recognizing that Taiwan is part of one China.

He irked Beijing by taking a congratulatory phone call from President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan after his Nov. 8 election victory. China lodged a diplomatic protest.

The 10-minute telephone call was the first of its kind since U.S. President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of one China.

President Barack Obama said on Friday it was fine for Trump to review Washingtons policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the U.S. relationship with Beijing.

(Additional reporting by Roberta Rampton and Jonathan Landay in Washington, Josephine Mason and Meng Meng in Beijing; editing by Ian Geoghegan, G Crosse)
Beirut (AFP) - At least 38 Islamic State group fighters have been killed in US-led coalition air strikes this week near Syria's ancient city of Palmyra, a monitor said on Saturday.

The jihadists retook Palmyra in central Syria on December 11, just eight months after the army backed by Russia drove them out.

On Thursday, US-led coalition aircraft destroyed heavy weaponry seized by the jihadists when they retook the city, the coalition said.

A statement on Friday said the strikes destroyed an air defence artillery system, 14 tanks, three artillery systems, two IS-held buildings and two tactical vehicles.

Among the Russian weaponry IS captured around Palmyra were thought to be modern surface-to-air missiles, or SAMs, giving jihadists the potential capability to shoot down aircraft, a coalition official told AFP.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group based in Britain, said that "at least 38 IS members were killed in the air strikes".

The strikes, near the Tiyas military air base northeast of Palmyra, helped regime forces gain some ground west of the fabled city, said the Observatory.

Palmyra is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and its recapture by IS gave the jihadists a propaganda boost as they face assaults on two of their key strongholds -- Raqa in Syria and Iraq's second city Mosul.
Rome (AFP) - Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos on Saturday received the Lampara peace prize, the "Catholic Nobel", for his efforts to reach a deal with his country's Marxist FARC rebels.

The award, handed over in the Italian city of Assisi, comes a week after Santos received the actual Nobel Peace Prize at a ceremony in Oslo, in recognition of his work to end the half-century conflict that has claimed more than 260,000 lives.

"I wanted to be an instrument of peace for my country, and there have been many instruments of peace among those who have joined me in this work," he said after receiving the lamp of Saint Francis, a symbol of peace for Roman Catholics.

"Today I want to ask Saint Francis to continue to inspire us so that this peace we have agreed can be felt in every Colombian town, village and family."

His visit to Assisi came a day after Pope Francis brought him together with his predecessor as Colombian president, Alvaro Uribe, at the Vatican.

Uribe led opposition to the agreement with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), ratified last month after an earlier version was voted down in a referendum in October.

The former president and his allies argue the deal grants impunity to rebels guilty of war crimes, giving them seats in parliament instead of sending them to prison.

After voters rejected the initial deal by a narrow margin, the government and FARC renegotiated it, deciding to have it ratified in Congress rather than risk a second referendum.
Colorados Health Department announced Tuesday the state will provide $2.35 million for research on the effects of marijuana, with most of the money aiding in two studies analyzing the impact marijuana has on driving, Denver Post reported.

Research that compares driving impairment between heavy marijuana users and occasional consumers and a second study reviewing the effects dabbing  a method of marijuana consumption that involves highly potent cannabis extracts  has on driving and cognitive function are to receive $1.68 million in funding.

This research will be invaluable in Colorado and across the country, said Dr. Larry Wolk, executive director of Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. The findings will inform our public education efforts and give people additional information they need to make decisions about marijuana use.

The grant will also be used to further research on studies regarding marijuana's impact on breast milk and how long traces of the plant stay in the milk of nursing mothers. Other research, including the effects of edible marijuana products, cardiovascular risks associated with marijuana use in people suffering from heart diseases and the effects of cannabis in older adults will also be conducted thanks to the funding. Another analysis of data from before and after implementation of recreational marijuana in Colorado conducted by a Colorado State University professor will also be funded by the grant.

Colorados Gov. John Hickenlooper in June approved roughly $9 million in funding to be released in the next five years to help fuel more research on various kinds of marijuana products adults are currently using in the state.

Our intent is to be rigorous scientifically, but also to act with some expediency because these are products that a large percentage of our population is using today, Wolk said at the time. We want to make sure that whats happening out there in everyday practice isnt harming people.

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Research regarding marijuanas effects on driving comes at a crucial time as eight states recently approved marijuana legalization measures following the 2016 election. The results from the studies could be particularly useful in California where Assemblyman Tom Lackey recently introduced a bill that could allow police officers to perform roadside tests on drivers suspected to be under the influence of marijuana.

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You'd think one scandal would be enough.

Mylan, the company that came under fire this summer for systematically raising the price of the EpiPen, is caught up in another drug price scheme.

The pharmaceutical player is one of six companies accused of inflating prices of a diabetes drug and an antibiotic, according to the New York Times. The complaint centers on generic, rather than brand-name, drugs.

A civil complaint filed by 20 states claims that the drug companies coordinated a price-fixing scheme through personal phone calls and texts as well as "informal industry gatherings," the Times said.

SEE ALSO: EpiPen maker Mylan is on an apology tour, we saw it, and it's not going well

The complaint also names Teva Pharmaceuticals and the smaller companies Aurobindo, Citron, Heritage and Mayne. Teva is the world's largest manufacturer of generic medicines, the Times noted.

This price fixing accusation revolves around anti-competitive coordination between companies, as opposed to the EpiPen outrage which involved only Mylan. In that case, the company steadily and steeply raised the price of the life-saving anti-allergy tool over the course of nearly a decade.

Mylan owned the rights to the brand-name product, and only introduced a generic option this week after months of outrage.

A Mylan spokeswoman told the Times that the company knew of no evidence that Mylan participated in price-fixing.

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Kinshasa (AFP) - Congolese crisis talks to ensure a peaceful political transition have been suspended, Catholic church mediators said, announcing they would resume Wednesday, the day after President Joseph Kabila's last legal term in office ends.

"Direct negotiations are suspended", said Monsignor Marcel Utembi, the head of the Congolese bishops conference (CENCO).

The announcement ended 11th-hour talks on Saturday between Kabila's ruling party and opposition groups to find a path forward for the Democratic Republic of Congo after December 20, when Kabila's second term ends.

The political transition talks won't resume until December 21, Utembi said.

"There is no deal," said Jean-Marc Kabund, the secretary general for the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) party of the main opposition leader, Etienne Tshisekedi.

"The ruling majority is sitting on its positions and refuses to offer any concessions on matters that require a political response," he said.

The Congolese constitution bans presidents from serving a third term, but Kabila has shown no signs of stepping down and no elections have yet been planned, prompting fears the situation could descend into violence.

The 45-year-old president has signalled his desire to remain in power until a successor is chosen in an election, but some opposition figures want him to hand over to a transitional leadership while awaiting the vote.

- Fears of violence -

The CENCO-sponsored talks had brought together the ruling party and fringe opposition groups, allied against a mainstream opposition coalition led by the 84-year-old Tshisekedi.

The latter accuse Kabila of delaying the vote in the hope of tweaking the constitution to extend his family's hold over a nation hugely rich in minerals that is almost the size of western Europe.

Kabund, speaking to the media after the talks broke up, said: "We call on the people to carry out their responsibilities with respect to the... date marking the end of Kabila's mandate," referring to a midnight Tuesday deadline.

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The church mediators have warned that failure to find a political settlement would lead to "an uncontrollable situation".

The international community has also warned the current tension could descend into violence, and Western diplomats in Kinshasa this week urged all non-essential nationals to leave the country.

The opposition coalition had threatened to mobilise in the streets from December 19 until Kabila left office, but did not immediately call for protests following the suspension of talks.

But on Saturday leaflets calling on people to remove Kabila from power began to circulate in Kinshasa, a city of 10 million where the head of state is notoriously unpopular.

Some two decades ago, Congo sunk into the deadliest conflict in modern African history, its two wars in the late 1990s and early 2000s dragging in at least six African armies and leaving more than three million dead.

A democratic handover would break ground for Congo's 70 million people who since independence from Belgium in 1960 have never witnessed political change at the ballot box.

In the last few years hundreds of people have died in political violence in the capital Kinshasa and elsewhere.

Tshisekedi and his allies had threatened nationwide protests from Monday to press Kabila to step down, but opted to hold off pending the negotiations.

The government has ordered that social networks including Facebook and WhatsApp be blocked from 11:59 pm (2259 GMT) on Sunday.

Police set up road checkpoints in Kinshasa, while the Republican Guard patrolled the capital's administrative district on Saturday near the presidential palace, AFP journalists reported.

A Belgian plane on a regular flight to dispatch material for military cooperation was sent back by authorities immediately after landing in Kinshasa on Saturday, a Western diplomat said.

The government frequently accuses Western powers of colluding with the opposition.
Photo: Chris Ware/Keystone Features/Getty Images

Police in Hudson, N.Y., are certainly breathing sighs of relief after responding to a citizens call of a frozen elderly woman inside a car. It turns out that the woman was actually a life-size mannequin, complete with an oxygen-tank mask.

A mannequin found inside a car was mistaken for an elderly woman. (Photo: Hudson Valley Police Department)

According to a report from CBS New York, an alarmed citizen happened upon a parked vehicle Friday and saw what seemed to be an older woman in the passenger seat. The realistic mannequin sported skin blemishes and the modest dress of an older person, so it made sense for the citizen to make the call.

After trying to find the owner of the car, police smashed the window and made the fortunate discovery that it wasnt an actual human being. Later, it was discovered that the owner of the car was a sales representative for a medical equipment manufacturer, and the mannequin was a CPR training dummy. That doesnt explain why the car owner placed the mannequin upright, wearing a seat belt. (Perhaps a carpool-lane gambit?)

According to the Associated Press, the owner of the car was upset that the police broke his cars window, thinking that their reaction was a little extreme. But Hudson Police Chief Edward Moore commended the community for stepping up to help what they thought was an actual person and defended the departments response.

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San Jose (AFP) - Costa Rica this week abruptly changed its migration policy to stop visitors using visas for the EU's Schengen zone or for Japan from entering the country, causing many "problems," according to one official.

The decision was not explained.

It came into effect on Tuesday, just as the tropical Central American country was gearing up for its end-of-year high tourist season.

"There has been a change in the past few days for Schengen visas and we have had problems with many people for this reason," one government official told AFP.

European embassies did not seem to be aware of the modification. The European Union's Schengen zone encompasses 26 countries, including some non-EU countries. Persons can cross internal borders without being subjected to border checks.

The order from Costa Rica's migration service said its change was made after "two years of studies" and the "necessary changes" were based on international accords. It did not elaborate.

The decision does not affect citizens from most European countries or the United States or Japan, who do not need a visa at all to enter Costa Rica.

Nationals from some wealthy Latin American and Asian countries are likewise exempt.

Also, holders of multiple-entry visas for the US were unaffected. They could still use a valid, multiple-entry US visa to enter Costa Rica.

But all other would-be visitors were now required to seek a visa from a Costa Rican embassy or consulate, a process that can take weeks.

The head of the International Migration Organization's mission in Costa Rica, Roeland de Wilde, said that countries should "promote easier and regular channels for migration that go to benefit them culturally, financially and in terms of tourism."
Members of the public gathered outside the Bundestag in Berlin on December 17, in protest over the war in Syria and in solidarity with the people of Aleppo, according to organisers.

According to the English translation found on the event page, the protest is against the siege of Aleppo, Assad and his allies, Iran, Hizbollah and Russia, ISIS and other terrorists, and the involvement of the USA, among others.

Our gathering is supposed to be a peaceful one in order to set a sign for peace in Syria, the event reads. Credit: Facebook/Jesse James Woods via Storyful
As Denzel Washington stepped onto the red carpet on Thursday night for the San Francisco premiere of Fences, a night hosted by the city's former mayor, Willie Brown, the star already had racked up a stellar week: Golden Globe and SAG Awards nominations for him and for the film, which he produced and directed, and sitting strong on Oscar prediction lists. But the event had Washington - arguably the most handsome man ever to play the Pittsburgh garbageman Troy Maxson - thinking back to nearly 40 years ago, when he was a MFA theater student working across this very San Francisco street at a cafeteria called Salmagundi's.

"I was the soup guy!" he gleefully told reporters lined up in the tent in front of the Curran Theatre. "I never got to go into the theater: I couldn't afford the show." Washington continued the tale at the panel discussion after the screening to a packed crowd that included House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Tom Waits. "I said one day, I'm gonna be in that theater," he recalled. "It took me 39 years, but I'm here."

Read more: Denzel Washington on the Ease of 'Fences': "We Had Performed it 114 Times to Great Success" | Director Oscar Roundtable

San Francisco - and the Curran specifically - also marks a homecoming for Fences. Playwright August Wilson's work first was staged at the Curran in 1987 before moving to Broadway, and its later screenplay adaptation by Wilson was picked up by Paramount and producer Scott Rudin and Todd Black. The event also marked the grand reopening of the Curran itself, which has been under reconstruction for the duration of "two-and-a-half pregnancies," as its owner, Broadway producer Carole Shorenstein Hays, put it on the red carpet. She was the sole backer of the play in its 1987 run at the theater before taking it to Broadway, and co-produced the Broadway revival with Rudin starring Washington in 2010 (she is not a producer on the film).

Washington told the crowd he decided to keep that Broadway cast intact, calling up Stephen McKinley Henderson, Mykelti Williamson and Tony-award winning Viola Davis: "The band was tight," Washington explained of keeping the crew together. The three male actors joined Jovan Adepo, a newcomer who plays Troy Maxson's son, onstage after the film, alongside the late Wilson's wife, Constanza Romero, who designed the Broadway version's costumes. "This was his answer to criticism that said, 'You wrote Ma Rainey, but can you write the great American play?'" Romero told THR. "He said yes, I can write a great American play and he wrote Fences. I'm sorry [the film] didn't happen in his lifetime, but I'm glad it happened in my lifetime."

Fences joins an Oscar contender lineup including Moonlight and Hidden Figures that has put several black stars in serious contention after two years of #OscarsSoWhite snubs, though the actors deferred questions about their chances Thursday. "The Oscar - who knows?" Williamson told THR. "That's not why we do this  We do this for healing, to give people joy, to give them an escape to get away from their lives and the things they're bombarded with on a daily basis. If it resonates with the people, that's amazing, that's what were after; if it resonates with the Academy, that's just icing on the cake."

But the film, released on Christmas Day and having started limited screenings in New York and Los Angeles Thursday, also comes at a fraught racial moment for the country, as the first black president is packing up to pass the White House to a white man whose platform was seen by many as a rebuke to racial progress and pluralism. In such Trumpy times, Henderson told THR, stories like Fences are important than ever: "This is one of those really wonderful plays that makes you realize family will sustain you: Knowing your heritage and legacy is gonna get you through whatever times. These things come and go," he said, referring to politics. "You have to keep on steppin'. Great art prepares you for that." He said he was proud of "the class act" Obama family: "They did the country proud. The work's ahead of us."

THR asked Washington what his character Troy Maxson - embittered from having his life's opportunities limited by racism - would make of a President Obama. "You know what Troy would have said?" Washington answered, using his gruff Maxson voice: "Obama ain't nobody! I could be president right now! Oh, there ain't nothing to it! You know just get two or three cabinet members, and tell 'em what to do!"

THR also asked Washington about a story citing him as a Trump supporter on Facebook - one of the big fake news stories proliferating on the social network during election season, to which Washington quipped: "What's that song back in the day? You heard it through the grapevine! Believe half of what you see and none of what you hear. And a tenth of what you read."

Washington stayed on the red carpet chumming with reporters long enough that Brown came back out to announce he was already done with his pre-screening introduction. At the film's conclusion, the audience applauded and hooted through the credits (a highly unscientific study puts the loudest hoots for Viola Davis). Washington added one last sentimental gesture before exiting the stage. "I didn't get the chance to do it when I worked across the street, but I'll do it now." He took a deep, arms-flaying-out-behind-him, showman's bow.

Read more: 'Fences': Film Review
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  Here's a look at what the North Carolina General Assembly accomplished or set aside during a three-day special session that ended Friday:

 Passed a bill signed by Gov. Pat McCrory that would combine the State Board of Elections, State Ethics Commission and lobbying regulators into one board. The eight-member commission would have four Democrats and four Republicans. The previous law gave the governor's party a majority of seats on the State Board of Elections and all 100 county boards. Each county elections board also will now be equally divided by party. The bill also reverts elections for appellate court seats to official partisan races and directs the full state Court of Appeals to hear legal cases in certain situations previously ruled on by the court's three-member panels.

 Passed a bill that would shift many administrative powers of the state public school system from the State Board of Education  its positions filled almost entirely by the governor  to the statewide elected superintendent of public instruction. A Republican will assume the superintendent's job next month. The measure also would subject the governor to having his Cabinet secretaries confirmed by the state Senate. Democratic Gov.-elect Roy Cooper also would be allowed to designate up to 425 state employees as his political appointees, compared with a cap of 1,500 for McCrory. McCrory has not yet acted on the bill.

 Confirmed three of McCrory's nominees to two judgeships and a seat on the Industrial Commission, a quasi-judicial panel that rules on workers' compensation claims. One judgeship went to McCrory's outgoing state budget director. The commission position will be filled by the wife of McCrory's chief of staff. No further actions are required.

 Filed roughly 20 other bills addressing topics ranging from prohibiting racial profiling by police to terminating a contract for toll lanes on Interstate 77 north of Charlotte. The bills did not pass.
Russian director Andrei Konchalovsky, whose Venice Film Festival-winning WWII drama Paradise recently was shortlisted for the Oscar in the best foreign language film category, intends to ban popcorn sales at screenings of his film.

"My films are not for those who eat popcorn," Konchalovsky was quoted as saying by the Russian news agency TASS. "I'll try to make sure that popcorn is not sold at screenings of my films."

WDSSPR, Disney and Sony Pictures' Russian distribution venture, will release Paradise in Russia on Jan. 19.

Konchalovsky has long been lashing out against "popcorn-eating" audiences, who he says can only watch Hollywood blockbusters, not serious films.

Two years ago, he declined to theatrically release his previous film, The Postman's White Nights, which, just like Paradise, won him the best director's Silver Lion at Venice.

Back then, he said he didn't want the film to be watched by "Hollywood" audiences, in whose heads "popcorn crunches."

Similarly, Konchalovsky, who worked in Hollywood in the 1980s but has become an ardent critic of the U.S. film industry lately, withdrew The Postman's White Nights from consideration as Russia's entry in the best foreign language film race that year.

This time, however, he didn't protest, and Russia submitted Paradise, which went on to be shortlisted for the best foreign language film Oscar.

Read more: 'Ben Hur' Director Blames U.S. Box-Office Failure on Film's "Forgive Your Enemy" Message
President-elect Donald Trump on Friday told his supporters they had been nasty and mean and vicious at rallies during his presidential campaign.

You people were vicious, violent, screaming, Wheres the wall? We want the wall! Screaming, Prison! Prison! Lock her up! I mean, you are going crazy. I mean, you were nasty and mean and vicious and you wanted to win, right? Trump said, speaking in Orlando, Florida, at one of the stops on his Thank You tour.

Now its much different. Now youre laid back, youre cool, youre mellow, right? Youre basking in the glory of victory, the president-elect added.

Trumps campaign rallies often grew violent, as protesters clashed with supporters. During the campaign, Trump both defended his rallies as the safest place you can be and encouraged violence at them. At a rally in Iowa in February, he told supporters to knock the crap out of hecklers. He also offered to pay the legal fees for a support who sucker-punched a protester at a rally in North Carolina.

Whatever happened to the deplorables, right? Theyre not so deplorable, he said Friday. Theyre not so deplorable anymore.
By Frank McGurty

(Reuters) - A fuel tanker skidded off a Baltimore highway and exploded on Saturday morning, sending sheets of fire in the path of the approaching traffic and triggering a deadly 55-vehicle pileup on the ice-coated roadway, Maryland officials said.

The accident on Interstate 95, which occurred at about 5 a.m., left two people dead, including the driver of the fuel truck, said Lieutenant Kevin Ayd, spokesman for the Maryland Transportation Authority Police.

The fiery pileup was one of dozens of crashes in the Baltimore-Washington area as freezing rain slowly accumulated into an icy sheet on roadways in the early morning darkness.

A second multi-vehicle crash occurred at about the same time along Interstate 95 in Baltimore, part of a major north-south corridor along the U.S. East Coast. One person was killed in that accident when one of the drivers exited his vehicle and was struck by oncoming traffic.

In the 55-vehicle pileup, a bystander's video shows the skidding fuel truck hitting a barrier and flipping over in a gap between the north and southbound lanes. As the fireball spread, approaching cars and trucks can be seen attempting to stop but instead plowing into one another.

"I want to share my deepest condolences to those affected by this morning's multi-vehicle crash," Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh said in a statement. "Today's icy road conditions remind us all that it is imperative to exercise extreme caution due to severe weather."

The crash forced the closure of the northbound lanes on the highway. Photos posted online showed dozens of emergency vehicles and tow trucks on the scene.

"We do not know when I-95 will be reopened," Ayd said. "We urged motorist to stay off the road until conditions improve."

A winter weather advisory was in effect for the Baltimore-Washington, D.C., area until noon, according to the National Weather Service, as snow and freezing rain gave way to a wintry mix or rain across much of the Eastern Seaboard.

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The NWS said at 10 a.m. that the heaviest weather had moved into the mid-Atlantic and Northeast, while the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes regions continued to see a mix of precipitation.

Warnings and advisories remained in effect throughout much of the country, stretching from the central Rocky Mountains to the East Coast. Dangerously cold conditions, in part due to high winds, were still being reported in the central plains and the Mississippi Valley.

(This story was refiled to correct sixth paragraph to fix the spelling of Baltimore mayor's last name to Pugh)

(Reporting By Frank McGurty, editing by Franklin Paul)
Dr. Henry Heimlich, the surgeon who invented the life-saving Heimlich maneuver, has died, according to NBC News. He was 96.

Heimlichs son, Phil, told NBC News that his father passed away on Saturday at Christ Hospital in Cincinnati after suffering a heart attack earlier in the week.

My father was a great man who saved many lives, Phil, an attorney and former Hamilton County commissioner, told NBC News. He will be missed not only by his family but by all of humanity.

According to NBC News, Heimlich was director of surgery at Jewish Hospital in Cincinnati in 1974 when he developed the Heimlich maneuver, which involves a series of thrusts to the abdomen to create a flow of air to the lungs in choking victims. The flow of air can then push out objects in the windpipe that are causing choking.

The maneuver was widely adopted by public health authorities and restaurant associations  making Heimlich a household name and saving countless lives.

Charles Krupa/AP

As it turned out, Heimlich had to wait many years to actually use the maneuver himself. In May, he told the Cincinnati Enquirer that he used the move for the first time earlier this year when coming to the aid of a fellow resident at the Deupree House senior living facility.

When I used it and recovered quickly, it made me appreciate how wonderful it has been to be able to save all those lives, he said at the time.

The Heimlich maneuver wasnt his only invention. According to NBC News, he also developed a chest drain valve that was credited with saving soldiers and civilians during the Vietnam war. However, he drew sharp criticism for a theory that injecting patients with a curable form of malaria could trigger immunity against the HIV virus.




An American Airlines passenger's electronic cigarette "malfunctioned" Thursday and started a small fire aboard the aircraft, airline officials said. The small fire forced the flight from Dallas to Indianapolis to make an emergency landing at Clinton National Airport in Little Rock, Arkansas.

American Airlines spokesman Ross Feinstein said none of the 137 passengers or five crew members was injured, according to the Associated Press (AP). The airline said crew members quickly extinguished the fire.

Feinstein also said a replacement plane was sent to Little Rock and all the passengers arrived in Indianapolis later Thursday.

"We were sitting on the plane and I noticed the flight attendants were frantically running," passenger Susan Karimi told Little Rock television station KTHV. "It was announced we were going to make an emergency landing and I felt lucky there was an airport nearby. I was prepared to land in the water or in the middle of a field."

Authorities inspected the original plane in Dallas and no damage was discovered. Feinstein told local media that all details about how the e-cigarette caught fire and where it was stored will be investigated by the FAA.

Under Federal Aviation Administration rules, e-cigarettes are prohibited in checked luggage but allowed in carry-on bags. The U.S. Transportation Department announced earlier this year a new ban on electronic cigarettes in checked luggage on commercial airplanes. Applicable to all domestic and foreign carriers with flights scheduled to and from the U.S., the rule prohibits all e-cigarettes, including electronic cigars and pipes.

There have been many instances in the past when e-cigarettes exploded due to faulty batteries. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration identified over 60 such incidents in 2015 and early 2016, after recording 92 explosions from 2009 to September 2015, AP reported.

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ABUJA (Reuters) - Gambia must ensure the safety of the president-elect, whose election victory is disputed by the current head of state, West African regional bloc ECOWAS said at the end of a special summit on Saturday. President Yahya Jammeh, who has led the country for 22 years, lost a Dec. 1 election to little-known challenger Adama Barrow and is due to step down on Jan. 18. Jammeh has called for a fresh vote and his party is challenging the result in Gambia's Supreme Court. (Reporting by Ulf Laessing; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
CAIRO (AP)  Security officials at Cairo International Airport say Omar bin Laden, son of the former leader of al-Qaida Osama bin Laden, has been denied entry to the country and was deported to Turkey.

Omar bin Laden and his wife arrived Saturday from Qatar but after checking details of his Saudi passport, security officials found his name on a list of those banned from entering the country.

The officials, speaking anonymously according to regulations, said Omar bin laden and his wife were allowed to leave for Turkey according to their choice.
Cairo (AFP) - Egypt's state prosecutor has ordered that the remains of victims from the crash of EgyptAir flight 804 from Paris to Cairo be handed over to relatives, his office said Saturday.

The Airbus A320 had been en route on May 19 when it crashed into the Mediterranean, killing all 66 on board, among them 40 Egyptians and 15 French nationals.

On Thursday, the aviation ministry in Cairo announced that traces of explosives had been found on the victims' remains.

But France's air safety agency said it was not possible to determine what caused the crash, saying it did not have information on how the samples were collected.

The prosecutor ordered the return of remains "of Egyptian victims, and there is currently coordination with foreign embassies to turn over the remains of foreigners," Saturday's statement said.

A lawyer for relatives of the French victims had said in September that there was nothing to "justify" the delay in handing over the remains.

France welcomed the decision on Saturday, and said it hoped it would be implemented as quickly as possible.

"This is an important decision which the families have been looking forward to and the urgency of which has been stressed a number of times in recent months by the French authorities," the foreign ministry in Paris said in a statement.

"The French authorities want this decision to be implemented as quickly as possible."

The plane airliner had also been carrying two Iraqis, two Canadians and one passenger each from Algeria, Belgium, Britain, Chad, Portugal, Saudi Arabia and Sudan.

Aviation experts have said there is little chance that a mechanical fault was responsible for the disaster.

The plane only entered service in 2003, making it relatively new for an aircraft that tends to have an operational life of 30 to 40 years.

It was flying at 37,000 feet (11,000 metres) and disappeared about 130 nautical miles off the Greek island of Karpathos.

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Investigators had determined that a fire broke out in or near the cockpit before the plane crashed between Crete and the coast of northern Egypt.

The disaster came as Cairo was still investigating the October 2015 crash in Egypt's Sinai of a Russian passenger plane filled with tourists flying home.

The Islamic State jihadist group claimed responsibility for bombing the Airbus A321 that crashed soon after takeoff from a Sinai resort, killing all 224 passengers and crew.

There has been no such claim linked to May's EgyptAir crash.

However, Egypt's aviation minister, Sherif Fathy, has said a terrorist attack was the most likely cause of the EgyptAir crash.

The chances of an attack were "higher than the possibility of a technical (failure)" for the downing of the plane, Fathy said in May following the crash.

The aircraft had plunged 22,000 feet and swerved sharply before disappearing from radar screens, Greece's Defence Minister Panos Kammenos said at the time.
A couple was killed in their Utah home after a fire broke out from a spark caused by their Christmas tree lights, a fire department official confirms with PEOPLE.

Gary Mecham, 77, and his wife, Melba Mecham, 74, were pronounced dead at a nearby hospital after neighbors reported a fire at their Woods Cross, Utah, home around 10:30 p.m., South Davis Metro Fire Chief Jeff Bassett told PEOPLE on Saturday.

Bassett said the couple was found unconscious in a hallway and fire officials immediately began conducting CPR before they were transported to the hospital.

The smoke became so great that it rendered them unconscious, Bassett said. And they couldnt make it out.

Bassett said the medical examiner has not officially determined the couples cause of death, but their investigated has led the fire department to believe they died from smoke inhalation.

The fire started when a strand of old lights on their Christmas tree malfunctioned, according to Bassett, who also confirmed that there were several gifts under the tree and Duraflame logs near the fireplace. He says all of these items contributed to the fire.

They encountered quite a bit of fire, but it kept smoldering and off-gassing, he said. Every time there is a fire, the smoke that is produced from items in our houses  Theres numerous things that create toxic gases in the smoke and thats what really renders people unconscious. Bassett said the couples one-story home had fire and carbon monoxide alarms that were both activated and working, and that there was no damage to the basement. He said the fire damage was minimal, but the smoke damage made the incident lethal.

The damage was $50,000, obviously not counting the loss of life, Bassett said.

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It is crucial that tree-shoppers remember to tend to their tree throughout the holiday season. Last year, nearly 14,000 consumers were treated for injuries related to holiday decorating. And according to the National Christmas Tree Association, trees should always be standing in 1 quart of water for every inch the trunk is wide. Trees dry out while indoors over the holidays, which makes them more susceptible to lighting on fire when paired with hot strands of bulbs.


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Flashing online images can cause ill effects for those with photosensitive epilepsy. (Bigstock Photo)

Yes, flashing online images can set off an epileptic seizure  and Newsweek senior writer Kurt Eichenwald, a frequent critic of President-elect Donald Trump, says hes planning legal action after just such an attack.

This isnt the first time Eichenwald, who has epilepsy, has been hit with a griefing GIF. He reported facing a similar threat back in October when someone tagged him in a tweet showing a flashing online image of Pepe the Frog, a cartoon character that has been appropriated by extremists.

Strobe lights and rapidly flashing graphics can be epileptogenic  that is, capable of inducing seizures or other health effects for those with photosensitive epilepsy. One infamous case involved a Pokemon TV cartoon that sent hundreds of Japanese children to hospitals in 1997. (Mass hysteria may have played a role.)

In 2008, malicious Internet users posted hundreds of epileptogenic graphics to an online message board run by the Epilepsy Foundation, causing some patients to suffer headaches or seizures.

The causes of photosensitive epilepsy are poorly understood, but the phenomenon appears the primary visual cortex. In vulnerable people, the neural networks that handle rapid changes in imagery may be overly excitable, leading to sensory overload.

Its thought that about 100,000 Americans with epilepsy are photosensitive, and the Epilepsy Foundations website says as many as 800,000 more could be photosensitive but unaware of the risk they face.

Eichenwald is quite aware. He said he fended off the October attack by dropping his iPad before a seizure set in. He wasnt so lucky the second time around. Heres what he said today in a parting series of tweets:

For self-protection, I am taking a short twitter break. I will be spending that time with my lawyers & law enforcement going after 1 of u Last night, for the second time, a deplorable aware I have epilepsy tweeted a strobe at me with the message you deserve a seizure on it It worked. This is not going to happen again. My wife is terrified. I amdisgusted. All I will be tweeting for the next few days are copies of documents from the litigation, police reports etc. Once we have the lawsuit filed, we will be subpoenaing Twitter for the identity of the individual who engaged in this cross-state assault. At this point, the police are attempting to determine if this is a federal crime because it appears to be cross state. This kind of assault will never happen again without huge consequences. This individual will be going to court, and he will be paying a price. And if any of you others ever try this again, I will make sure it happens to you. Online anonymity does not protect criminals. Thats why subpoenas exist. You are facing a criminal investigation and a lawsuit. So if any of you others think about trying this cute prank, consider the consequences. They will be severe.

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As you might expect, Eichenwalds tweets led to more Twitter taunts, including at least one more epileptogenic GIF. Maybe its just as well they went unread by their target. Eichenwald said he wont be using his Twitter account for a while, except to pass along paperwork relating to the legal case:

Otherwise, I'll be back once it is clear from the paperwork i will be tweeting that this is not a joke. See you soon.  Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) December 16, 2016

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BEIRUT (Reuters) - A military news outlet run by Damascus's ally Hezbollah said on Saturday buses that will be used to evacuate civilians from two besieged villages in Syria's Idlib province are en route from Aleppo. The evacuation of rebel-held areas of Syria's east Aleppo ground to a halt on Friday over demands from pro-government forces that people also be moved out of the villages of al-Foua and Kefraya, which are besieged by Syrian rebels. (Reporting by Lisa Barrington; Editing by Dale Hudson)
MONTEVIDEO (Reuters) - A former Guantanamo prisoner who was resettled in Uruguay but has asked to leave flew to South Africa on Thursday as a tourist, a Uruguayan official said on Friday. Once in South Africa, Jihad Diyab, a Syrian National, would have to return to Uruguay in 90 days or find another country to give him residency, the official said. "He left the country on his way to Johannesburg with a stopover in Buenos Aires, paying his own way," said Christian Mirza, the government's liaison with former detainees. Diyab was held for 12 years in the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, without being charged and was released along with five other prisoners to Uruguay in 2014 to reduce the number of detainees. Earlier this year, Diyab traveled through Brazil and Venezuela and was held briefly by Venezuela's intelligence agency after arriving in Caracas in July. While there a lawyer said he asked the Uruguayan consulate to help him travel to Turkey, where he wanted to be reunited with his family. He was deported back to Uruguay in late August and was on a hunger strike for 68 days in Montevideo, demanding to be resettled. Uruguay has agreed to extend financial assistance to the detainees remaining in the country for another year. (Reporting by Malena Castaldi; Writing by Caroline Stauffer; Editing by Andrew Hay)
Legendary TV producer Norman Lear says there has been some talk of rebooting All in the Family, The Jeffersons and other classic sitcoms  though with an important twist.

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With Netflixs Latino remake of his One Day at a Time set to premiere on Jan. 6, Lear told our sister site Variety that he and Sony Pictures Television have been having discussions about redoing All in the Family, The Jeffersons, Maude and Good Times with todays stars  and only as six-episode batches, re-enacting select, classic episodes.

Its sort of tricky to figure out what the business of that is and  how it would work, a Sony EVP told Variety of the miniseries concept. But its something were trying to figure out.

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This week, as top U.S. intelligence officials affirm their certainty that Russia intervened in the 2016 election and sought to help Donald Trumps candidacy, President Obama told reporters that the U.S. would take action in response to any foreign intervention in U.S. elections.

On Thursday night, Hillary Clinton spoke to that point, telling her supporters that Russian aimed to undermine American democracy. And, though Russian authorities have denied that any hacking was authorized at the top, and President-elect Donald Trump has downplayed the importance of the revelations, Obama discussed the matter on Friday during his final press conference of 2016, saying that he hoped that addressing the intervention would be a priority for the incoming administration as well.

Obamas belief that preventing foreign intervention in U.S. politicsor at least preventing further interventionis a nonpartisan concern has support in American history. After all, that very problem was a matter with which the Founding Fathers were seriously concerned.

Although the framers of the Constitution could hardly have anticipated cyber crime, the fear of foreign intervention does go back to Colonial times, as Matt A. Vega explained in a Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review paper on the subject. At the time, the U.S. was a brand new nation with an unproven system of government, and European history was replete with examples of powerful princes jockeying for power and influence among various weaker nations. This concern was a major reason for constitutional features like the emoluments clause, which is aimed at preventing bribery. James Madison cited examples from ancient times as well as then-modern Europe of the widespread nature of attempts at such intrigue, and The Federalist 68 (likely by Alexander Hamilton) describes the corruption that comes from the desire in foreign powers to gain an improper ascendant in our councils as one of the most deadly adversaries of republican government.

Get your history fix in one place: sign up for the weekly TIME History newsletter

The fear of foreign intervention continued well after the founding era, and in fact got new legislative teeth in the 20th century. In 1938, Congress passed the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), which, according to the Department of Justice, was a response to the large number of German propaganda agents in the pre-WWII U.S. The law required foreign agents to disclose certain involvements in U.S. politics.; specifically, it requires any informational material they produce to be labeled clearly as coming from a foreign source.

As explained by Gregory Bordelon in the book Dirty Deals, the 1938 FARA was the product of an age of corruption and increasing fear of foreign agents. (The House Un-American Activities Committee was established right around the same time.) Its original goal was to make sure that if ideas were introduced into American political discourse by outside sources, citizens would know where exactly the information was coming from. In the 1960s the FARA was amended to shift its focus to banning financial contributions from foreign nationals toward U.S. elections.

Nevertheless, despite more than two centuries of concern about keeping foreign influence out of U.S. politics, this years Russian intervention is not the first example of some sort of election-year maneuvering from outside American borders.

As Politicos Josh Zeitz pointed out earlier this year, after then-candidate Donald Trump called on Russia to look for Hillary Clintons emails, one concrete example of foreign interference in a U.S. election can be seen in 1968. That year, as the Vietnam War divided the nation, Richard Nixons campaign worked behind the scenes to convince South Vietnams leader that he would be happier with a peace deal arranged by Nixon than one arranged by the incumbent Democratseven though it is against the law for an individual American citizen to negotiate with a foreign government. The subsequent crumbling of what had looked like a solid chance for peace, after South Vietnam withdrew from talks, contributed to an election failure for the incumbent Democratic party. More recently, Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been criticized for seeming to want to influence the outcome of American voting, though not in so covert a fashion.

As U.S. intelligence continues to review just what happened during the course of the election and how much Russian influence may have affected the course of the campaign, its clear that the nation must still be on guard to follow Alexander Hamiltons entreaty that every practicable obstacle should be opposed to cabal, intrigue, and corruption.
HGTVs scandal-ridden Flip or Flop married stars Christina and Tarek El Moussa seem to be enjoying the single life, as both of them have now been reported to date people who work closely with the family.

Tarek dated the familys former nanny, 23-year-old Alyssa Logan, according to TMZ. The celebrity gossip site reported that Tarek and Alyssa began dating back in September and attended a Florida Georgia Line concert back in October but have since broken up.

TMZ said that Tarek fired Logan so he could date her without having to worry about hooking up with an employee. Meanwhile, Christina is dating Gary Anderson, a contractor who worked on flipping houses with her and her soon-to-be-ex-husband Tarek for the reality series, again according to TMZ.

For more celebrity videos visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS and Android.

Also Read: 'Flip or Flop' Star Tarek El Moussa Slammed for Gun Ownership: 'Idiot'

The El Moussas confirmed earlier this week that they broke up several months ago and both are seeing other people.

We have both dated other people following the separation, but neither of us is ready to announce anything in terms of another relationship, the couple told the publication.

According to the couple, they broke up following a May incident during which law enforcement responded to a call of a possibly suicidal male with a gun. The call was made after Tarek retrieved a gun from the couples Orange County, California, home and wandered into Chino Hills State Park.

Anderson was witness to the incident and provided the police with details of what went down, according to TMZ.

Also Read: 'Flip or Flop' Star Christina El Moussa Is Dating the Family Contractor (Report)

According to paperwork obtained by TheWrap from the Orange County Sheriffs Department, Christina El Moussa was crying and shaking during the incident.

Tarek told deputies that he headed to the park to blow off some steam, and that he brought the gun with him as protection against mountain lions and rattlesnakes.

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In a statement issued to People on Monday, the stars of the HGTV series referenced the incident while announcing their split.

Also Read: 'Flip or Flop' Stars Tarek and Christina El Moussa Split Up After Police Incident

Like many couples, we have had challenges in our marriage, the statement read. We had an unfortunate misunderstanding about six months ago and the police were called to our house in an abundance of caution. There was no violence and no charges were filed.

The El Moussas, who wed in 2009, have two children, daughter Taylor and son Brayden.

Flip or Flop, which premiered in 2013, revolves around the El Moussas, real estate agents who buy distressed properties and renovate them.

In a statement to TheWrap, HGTV, which airs the series, said that the show will continue production as scheduled.

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A former Fort Worth, Texas, police officer who was sentenced to life in prison after being accused of raping a 13-year-old girl in 1994 was exonerated on Friday, according to several reports.

Brian Franklin was exonerated after spending 21 years in prison. He was released in May when the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted him a new trial, which ended after less than two hours on Friday with a not guilty verdict, according to Fox 4.

Franklin got a new trial when the court ruled he was denied due process after it was discovered that his alleged victim lied under oath, according to CBSDFW. In 2014, the woman who accused Franklin of raping her allegedly said that she lied about part of her testimony against him in 1995, but maintained he was still guilty.

She admitted that she lied before about her stepfathers sexual abuse but maintained that Franklin had sexually assaulted her, Franklins defense attorney Neal Davis told the Star-Telegram. We maintained that just because you maintain a lie over a period of decades does not make it true.

The stepfather of Franklins accuser was later sentenced to 10 years of probation after pleading guilty to injury to a child as part of a plea arrangement, according to the Star-Telegram. He died in March.

I knew it was going to come, Franklin said, according to Fox 4. I wasnt surprised.  I had the trifecta against me: I was an innocent man, I was a former police officer and I was accused of raping a child.

According to Fox 4, the accusers stepbrother came forward about 10 years ago, and told authorities his stepsister told him she made up her story. And because the Tarrant County prosecutors had no DNA evidence linking Franklin to the rape, they only relied on the accusers testimony.

Franklin told Fox 4 he was angry but said he is channeling his frustration to help others who were wrongfully convicted.

Im not the first and I probably wont be the last, he said. When the system makes mistakes, they need to admit it.




United Nations (United States) (AFP) - France has presented a UN Security Council draft resolution on sending observers to Aleppo to monitor evacuations and report on the protection of Syrian civilians, according to the text obtained Saturday by AFP.

The measure, circulated to the council late Friday, could be put to a vote on Sunday despite resistance from Russia, Syria's ally and a veto-wielding Security Council member, diplomats said.

The draft text said the council was "alarmed" by the worsening humanitarian crisis in Aleppo and by the fact that "tens of thousands of besieged Aleppo inhabitants" are in need of aid and evacuation.

Thousands of trapped civilians and the last remaining opposition fighters in Aleppo were waiting for evacuations to resume on Saturday, a day after the operation was suspended by the Syrian government.

Syrian forces this week moved to assert full control over the east of the city, which had been held by opposition fighters since 2012.

French Ambassador Francois Delattre has warned that Aleppo could turn into another Srebrenica, where thousands of Bosnian men and boys were massacred in 1995 when the town fell to Bosnian Serb forces during the Balkan wars.

The draft resolution would request that UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon quickly redeploy UN humanitarian staff already in Syria to Aleppo "to carry out adequate, neutral monitoring, direct observation and to report on evacuations from besieged parts of Aleppo and protection of civilians inside Aleppo."

Ban would also ensure the deployment of further staff, according to the draft text, which demands that Syria grant access to the observers.

The UN chief would report to the council within five days on whether access has been granted by the Syrian government, which has repeatedly blocked UN access during the nearly six-year war.

- Protecting hospitals -

The evacuations from Aleppo were expected to resume under a new deal that would allow civilians and pro-government fighters in two other towns besieged by rebels to leave.

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The measure would seek to ensure the "voluntary, safe and dignified passage of all civilians" from Aleppo and other areas under UN monitoring and coordination, with priority given to the wounded and most vulnerable.

The draft resolution demands the protection of all doctors, medical workers, hospitals and ambulances following reports that Syrian forces had bombed all of the medical facilities in Aleppo.

The text specifically mentions the need to protect the border hospitals of Atmeh, Darkoush, Bab al-Hawa and Bab al-Salamah, where many of the evacuees would be taken.

The council would also demand that urgent humanitarian aid reach Aleppo, which has been under siege since July.

US Ambassador Samantha Power said Friday that the observers on the ground would provide a "presence as protection."

But Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said he found elements of the French proposal "questionable," including whether the observers could be quickly redeployed.

Ban has urged Syrian parties to resume the evacuation operation and allow civilians to leave safely, saying "Aleppo is now a synonym for hell."
BERLIN (AP)  The head of the European Union border control agency says that about 350,000 migrants have arrived in the EU so far this year.

Fabrice Leggeri, executive director of the Frontex border agency, was quoted Saturday by German daily Ruhr-Nachrichten as saying about 180,000 people arrived via Turkey and the eastern Mediterranean, while 170,000 reached the continent across the central Mediterranean route from Libya and Egypt. That's a sharp decline from 2015, when more than 1 million people arrived.

Leggeri said a deal between the EU and Turkey reduced the number of migrants coming from the East, but migration from northern Africa rose 30 percent.

The International Organization of Migration said Friday that 4,812 people died on the Mediterranean this year so far. That about 1,200 more than last year between January to the end of November.
Washington: Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian backers have blood on their hands, US President Barack Obama has said while pitching for an impartial international observer force in Aleppo to coordinate an orderly evacuation through safe corridors.

"The Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies are trying to obfuscate the truth. The world should not be fooled and the world will not forget," Obama told White House reporters at his final year ender news conference.

Around the world as well, there are hotspots where disputes have been intractable, conflicts have flared up, and people, innocent people are suffering as result, and nowhere is this more terribly true than in the city of Aleppo, he said.

"For years, we've worked to stop the civil war in Syria and alleviate human suffering. It has been one of the hardest issues that I've faced as president," Obama said.

The world, he said, is united in horror at the savage assaults by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo.

"We have seen a deliberate strategy of surrounding, besieging and starving innocent civilians. We've seen relentless targeting of humanitarian workers and medical personnel, and entire neighbourhoods reduced to rubble and dust. There are continuing reports of civilians being executed. These are all horrific violations of international law," the US President said.

"Responsibility for this brutality lies in one place alone, with the Assad regime and its allies, Russia and Iran, and this blood and these atrocities are on their hands," Obama said.

"We all know what needs to happen," he said, adding that there needs to be an impartial international observer force in Aleppo that can help coordinate an orderly evacuation through safe corridors.

"There has to be full access for humanitarian aid, even as the United States continues to be the world's largest donor of humanitarian aid to the Syrian people. And beyond that, there needs to be a broader ceasefire that can serve as the basis for a political rather than a military solution," Obama said.

"That's what the United States is gonna continue to push for, both with our partners and through multilateral institutions like the UN," he said, but regretted Russia repeatedly blocking the Security Council from taking action on these issues.

Soon after the news conference Obama left for Hawaii on his final year ender vacation as the President of the United States. The government took "a somewhat courageous step" of withdrawing high demonetisation currency and went in for a large currency swap.

"So we are going to keep pressing the Security Council to help improve the delivery of humanitarian aid to those who are in such desperate need and ensure accountability, including continuing to monitor any potential use of chemical weapons in Syria," Obama said.

"We are going to work in the UN General Assembly as well, both on accountability and to advance a political settlement because it should be clear that although you may achieve tactical victories, over the long-term, the Assad regime cannot slaughter its way to legitimacy," he said.

"That's why we'll continue to press for a transition to a more representative government, and that's why the world must not avert our eyes to the terrible events that are unfolding," Obama said.
Banjul (Gambia) (AFP) - Longtime Gambian leader Yahya Jammeh, who initially conceded defeat in a December 1 presidential poll, has lodged a Supreme Court case to challenge the result, despite pressure from the international community for him to cede power peacefully.

The opposition in the small West African country, however, fears Jammeh will use a judicial system -- considered by experts to lack independence -- to give legitimacy to his attempt to hang on to power.

The legal complaint

The ruling Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction (APRC) filed a complaint with the Supreme Court on December 13 alleging that opposition leader Adama Barrow was "not duly elected or returned as president, and that the said election was void".

The court challenge came after Jammeh had surprised observers by conceding defeat after 22 years in power on television, before changing his mind.

It said the country's Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) had violated electoral law, announced a December 5 recount without the consent of the APRC, and that its returning officers intimidated legitimate voters and turned them away on election day.

The Supreme Court

The Gambia's Supreme Court has lain dormant since May 2015 with Chief Justice Emmanuel Fagbenle, a Nigerian, the only current sitting judge.

Judicial independence is "the exception rather than the rule," said Niklas Hultin, an assistant professor at the US's George Mason University and Africa specialist.

"Where the Supreme Court and other high-level courts have asserted their independence, there has usually been some kind of retribution on the part of the executive," he added.

Jammeh fired several judges last year after they commuted the death sentences of former military officers to life imprisonment.

Judges needed

Jammeh needs to appoint four more Supreme Court judges for the constitutionally required panel of five to hear the challenge, and six if the decision requires a judicial review.

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Complicating matters, the target of his complaint, the Independent Electoral Commission, is represented by Jammeh's own Attorney-General.

The Gambia's most influential lawyers' group, the Bar Association, has described any future hearing as therefore "fundamentally tainted".

A Bar Association statement said the challenge was "tantamount to one being a judge in his own cause considering that the outgoing president has already pre-empted the outcome of court process by declaring the election result as a nullity".

President-elect Barrow says Jammeh has left cases against the government to stack up by failing to appoint justices.

"There are a pile of cases that are waiting... but he doesn't care about it," Barrow told AFP. "And now he has a case, if he appoints judges we will see this is personal interest, and not in the interests of justice."

Leverage

Senegalese political analyst Babacar Justin Ndiaye believes Jammeh's aim is to obtain better terms for his exit, given the universal condemnation of his volte-face and lack of other options.

"It's a strategy of giving him time, making the situation worse, wearing down the international community and finally to look for some sort of compromise, an arrangement," he told AFP.

Jammeh has "played his cards well", Ndiaye said, leveraging his continued support from important sections of the military to keep the Gambian population from taking to the streets against him.

If Jammeh wins the case at some point in the future, new elections could be called with a President Barrow in State House. That would be a "unprecedented" situation in Africa, according to Ndiaye.

International reaction

The United States has said it does "not believe (the case) will be heard by a credible court dedicated to ensuring the integrity of The Gambia's democratic process", a reaction that was notably more hardline than the UN and regional bloc ECOWAS.

"It is OK for the legal process to be going on," the UN's west Africa envoy Mohamed Ibn Chambas told AFP Wednesday. "That legal process has nothing to do with the term of his mandate," he added.

Banjul-based diplomats have emphasised that the most important focus now is the handover of power still expected on January 19, rather than the outcome of the legal case that for now remains looming in the background.
Even though Garth Davis only recently made his feature film debut with Lion, the Australian director can already be considered at the top of his moviemaking game.

Top of the Lake, the TV series starring Elisabeth Moss  Davis co-directed the first season with Jane Campion  was pivotal in his career progression. As was the roughly two decades as a globetrotting commercials director, whose reel Ninja Kittens for Toyota certainly had a fundamental formative function.

But the pre-Lion piece Davis seems most proud of is Alice, a short about an Australian family who loses their child. I suppose it was a very little taste of where I wanted to go with my filmmaking, he says.

Producers Iain Canning and Emile Sherman, who head British-Australian shingle See-Saw Films (The Kings Speech, Top of the Lake) thought Davis would be a good fit for Lion, the true tale of Saroo Brierley, a 5-year-old Indian who gets separated from his family, and manages to track them down some two decades later using Google Earth.

We were at Sundance just hanging out, and they said they had just read this [news] article, and when they saw it they just thought of me, he recalls. After rights were cleared to Brierleys memoir A Long Way Home, the first thing Davis did was travel to India to immerse himself in Brierleys world. He then went to L.A. and spent time with screenwriter Luke Davies, just talking together about the structure and how we could tell the story.

I wanted the script to come from a directorial place as well, he notes.

I wanted us to have a vision and an atmosphere, and I think we needed to really understand that together before the pen went to paper.

Along with the key narrative choice of having Lion start from the beginning, rather than recounting Brierleys separation as an extended flashback, came their bold decision to have the first part of the film be entirely in Hindi.

Theres going to be lot of nervous people when you are releasing a movie thats in a foreign language for almost [entirely] the first half, he says. But it had to be Hindi because we needed to see the contrast with Australian life, so we understand that hes become something very different.

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The casting for Lion was also a very hands-on process for Davis, especially in selecting Sunny Pawar, the boy who plays Brierley as a 5-year-old. Pawar was chosen from thousands of screen tests, many of which Davis scrutinized himself. With children you really have to do the work, he notes.

Casting Rooney Mara, who plays the adult Brierleys girlfriend in the pics second half, was less laborious. Our understanding was that Rooney Mara was not available, and then Harvey [Weinstein] suggested Rooney Mara, and we were like, Shes not available. And he was like, I think she is.

Weinstein came on board as an executive producer at script stage.

Lion was lensed by Australian cinematographer Greig Fraser, who more recently shot Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and has worked with Davis for many years.

They decided that the key was keeping the camera with Brierley. Basically at the beginning of our movie, the audience is with that little boy, and we have to be inside his experience, Davis says. I thought the more I could take the audience into that place, the more powerful it would be.

Davis and Fraser are shooting biblical biopic Mary Magdalene in Italy, with Mara in the title role, produced by See-Saw Films. When Davis was in post-production stages of Lion, he recounts, Iain and Emile came to me and said: Weve got your next project for you!

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KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Five female Afghan guards working in the airport in southern Kandahar were killed by unknown gunmen as they were on their way to work, security officials said on Saturday, the latest in a string of attacks against women in Afghanistan. From bomb attacks to targeted or honor killings or domestic abuses, Afghan women have borne the brunt of the 15 years of conflicts during the Taliban-led insurgency as security has deteriorated and violence has increased in most parts of the country. Samim Khpulwak, spokesman for the governor of Kandahar, said the five women were in charge of searching female travelers at the Kandahar airport, and had been hired by a private security company. "Two gunmen on motorbike followed their van and opened fire on them, killing the five and their driver this morning, said Samim. No group has claimed responsibility for Saturday's attack but the Taliban insurgents waging an insurgency to topple the foreign-backed government of President Ashraf Ghani oppose women working outside their homes. Although Afghan women had made hard-fought rights gains in education and work since the collapse of austere Taliban regime in 2001, there are growing fears that these could reverse with the deterioration of security and increase in violence. Despite years of pressure by women's groups and foreign donors, Afghanistan remains one of the most difficult places to be a woman. Restoring fundamental women's rights was one of the main objectives of the international community in Afghanistan, where the hardline Taliban Islamist banned girls from school and women from work in their rule from 1996-2001. (Reporting by Sayed Sarwar; Writing by Hamid Shalizi; Editing by Richard Borsuk)
ST. LOUIS (AP)  The nation's homeless are proving to be especially susceptible to a new, dirt-cheap version of synthetic marijuana, which leaves users glassy-eyed, aimless, sprawled on streets and sidewalks oblivious to their surroundings or wandering into traffic.

Nearly 300 homeless people became ill last month in St. Louis due to the man-made hallucinogen that experts believe is far more dangerous and unpredictable than the real thing. Other outbreaks have occurred in New York City, Los Angeles and Austin, Texas.

"It was common for us to see reactions where they were violent, incoherent, sometimes catatonic on the ground," Austin police Lt. Kurt Thomas said.

The homeless are easy targets in a confined area, experts say. The drug is cheap  as little as $1 or $2 for a joint  more difficult to detect in drug tests and is a fast escape from a harsh reality.

Things got so bad in St. Louis last month that the region's largest provider of homeless services urged people to stop giving the homeless handouts, because they were worried the money would be used to buy the drug.

The Rev. Larry Rice saw the odd behaviors from several homeless people in the streets outside his New Life Evangelistic Center shelter in downtown St. Louis.

"They told me, 'You get so low, you get such a sense of hopelessness. Somebody wants to sell this for a dollar and you take it,'" Rice said. "People are desperate out there."

Synthetic marijuana has been around since the late 2000s, packaged under names like K2, Darkness and Mr. Happy. The Drug Enforcement Administration says it is usually a mixture of herbs and spices sprayed with a synthetic compound chemically similar to THC, the psychoactive ingredients in marijuana. It is typically manufactured in China and sold in places like head shops, but it's also on the street and over the internet.

State legislatures have outlawed it based on its chemical makeup, but the makers tweak the formula enough that it escapes the provisions of the law. So far in St. Louis, only one charge has been filed  a homeless man accused of selling to others on the street.

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"You factor in some of the despair or difficult circumstances that these folks are going through, and they often fall prey to the suppliers offering an outlet to deal with their unfortunate situation," Thomas said.

The medical dangers are real with synthetic marijuana, which can be up to 100 times more potent than real marijuana, said Dr. Anthony Scalzo, director of toxicology for the Saint Louis University School of Medicine.

Users often experience rapid heartbeat, high blood pressure, anxiety and hallucinations, he said.

Research published last year in the New England Journal of Medicine indicated that 20 deaths from August 2011 through April 2015 were blamed on synthetic marijuana, though that doesn't account for overdose deaths of undetermined or multiple causes. Scalzo said those who survive can suffer permanent kidney failure and brain damage.

"We have no idea how the body is going to react to the next wave of chemicals," Scalzo said. "It's like Russian roulette. You just don't know what you're getting."

During one outbreak in Brooklyn in July, 130 people were hospitalized. Witnesses said many of users were shaking or leaning aimlessly against trees and fire hydrants.

In emergency room interviews, users said they would prefer to smoke real marijuana but took the synthetic drug to avoid detection in urine tests typically mandated for probation and parole issues and other reasons, according to Michelle Nolan of the New York City Health Department.

"For individuals still using a psychoactive substance, this afforded them, criminally speaking, fewer risks," Nolan said.

The Skid Row area of downtown Los Angeles saw the scourge over a few days in August, when 36 people were treated for overdoses. Some had seizures, others staggered through traffic or collapsed on curbs.

Around 150 homeless people have overdosed on synthetic marijuana since August in Austin, and one death was blamed on the drug, Thomas said. Police and homeless advocates in Austin are warning those on the street to avoid the temptation to use, but know it's an uphill battle.

"Being realistic, we're always going to have a group of folks who are willing to engage in self-destructive behavior," Thomas said.
Berlin (AFP) - Protestors rallied in Berlin on Saturday against the war in Syria denouncing the international community for failing to help civilians, especially children, in the besieged city of Aleppo.

Holding banners saying "The children of Aleppo are calling you!", or "Aleppo is bleeding and the world is watching", around 900 people braved plunging temperatures to gather in front to the Reichstag, the German parliament building, according to police estimates.

At the same time, another 1,800 people joined a second demonstration elsewhere in the German capital, police said.

"What is happening there amounts to what is the worst in the world," said Mahmoud Almizeh, a 19-year-old Syrian refugee who comes from Raqa, now the bastion of the Islamic State jihadist group.

Germany has opened its doors to some 600,000 Syrian refugees since the conflict began in 2011.

Having arrived in Germany a year ago, Almizeh lamented that European leaders were "unfortunately doing nothing".

In Aleppo on Saturday trapped Syrian civilians and rebels waited desperately for evacuations to resume from an opposition-held enclave of the city which has fallen to the brutal onslaught by Syrian government forces.

Aleppo has been ravaged by some of the worst violence of the nearly six-year war that has killed more than 310,000 people.

"We feel so powerless" about the tragedy facing the Syrians, said Anna Bone, a Berlin resident at the demonstration where another banner declared: "Stop murdering! Peace talks NOW."

"This powerlessness... this grief, it's what brought me here today," she added.

Hundreds of protestors also joined demonstrations in France on Saturday in the cities of Paris, Lille, Strasbourg and Marseille.

"It's crazy that the world powers cannot intervene," commented two protestors of Turkish origin, Hilal, 25, and Gulsan, 26, in Paris.

Thousands of trapped civilians and the last remaining opposition fighters in Aleppo were waiting for evacuations to resume on Saturday, a day after the operation was suspended by the Syrian government.

Meanwhile in New York, the UN Security Council could vote as early as this weekend on a French-drafted proposal to allow international observers into Aleppo and ensure urgent aid deliveries.
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Australians know how to protest.

Hundreds of people gathered Saturday local time at Parliament House in Canberra to make their way down a hill in a mass protest roll.

SEE ALSO: Airline skewers vlogger over stowaway video they say is 100% fake

The government plans to build a security fence to block access to the hill and other capital grounds. Protesters opposed to the fence rolled down the grassy slope just as many visitors to Parliament House often do. Even dogs got in on the democratic action.

The event was organized by Lester Yao, an architect, on Facebook and delightful videos of the roll-a-thon were shared widely on social media.

History made this morning with epic #DemocracyRoll at Parly House before the blasted fence goes up. Bastards. #Canberra #Australia #ParliamentHouse #democracy A video posted by jude (@sister_ratched) on Dec 16, 2016 at 4:56pm PST

Mass roll-over #democracy #parliamenthouse #people #cbrmap #canberra #thiscanberranlife #sofranksocial #igerscanberra #igersaustralia A photo posted by Georgia Curry (@georgia_in_canberra) on Dec 16, 2016 at 3:37pm PST

Hefner even got in on the action #perfectsummerdays #saynotothefence #parliamenthouse #Canberra #rollingdownthehill A video posted by Kim Mills (@kim.mills308) on Dec 16, 2016 at 4:09pm PST

This how we roll! #rollingdownthehill #Canberra #parliamenthouse #saynotothefence #perfectsummerdays @hefner_and_delilah A video posted by Kim Mills (@kim.mills308) on Dec 16, 2016 at 4:15pm PST

"It was only going to be about 20 friends and families, and now we had more than 600 or 700 people," Yao told the Sydney Morning Herald. "Unfortunately, kids might not be able to do this again and they're just enjoying themselves."

The fence became a matter of debate after demonstrators breached security at Parliament House earlier this year. Lawmakers had even tossed around the idea of digging a moat around the slope, but that was sanely rejected.
Hundreds gathered for a mass roll-a-thon on December 17 at Parliament House, possibly for the last time after the federal government approved the building of a security fence.

Parliament security protocols were re-examined after demonstrators managed to twice breach security in the final parliamentary sitting week from November 30 to December 1. Fearing the traditionally open lawns would no longer be accessible, users on Facebook organised a mass gathering to roll down the hill to celebrate simple joys and freedom.

One of the endorsed proposals was the construction of 2.6 metre fence around the building, preventing access to the iconic grassy lawns. A moat was also reportedly proposed, but rejected. Credit: Twitter/AndrewBrownAU via Storyful
India Saturday announced the names of the new army and airforce chief along with the heads of the country's spy agencies.

Lieutenant General Bipin Rawat will take over as the new chief of army staff from General Dalbir Singh Suhag as the head of the 1.3 million strong force.

"Government has decided to appoint Lt Gen Bipin Rawat, vice chief of army staff, as the next chief of army staff with effect from afternoon of December 31," the defence ministry said in a tweet.

Air Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa has been chosen as the new chief of the Indian Air Force, the ministry said.

They are the first high profile defence appointments by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government.

Rawat has served in the disputed region of Kashmir along the frontier with Pakistan, where troops of the nuclear-armed nations have been locked in almost daily cross-border firing for months.

He has also served in the insurgency-hit northern states and along the border with China.

The new chief was handpicked for the top job over two senior officers, a rare decision for the Indian army which follows seniority in appointments.

The government also announced Anil Dhasmana as the new chief of India's external intelligence agency, Research and Analysis Wing, while Rajiv Jain will head the domestic agency, Intelligence Bureau.

Both will take up their new roles in January, local media reports said.
By Ben Blanchard and Steve Holland

| BEIJING/WEST PALM BEACH, Fla.

BEIJING/WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. China's Defense Ministry said on Saturday it plans to return an underwater U.S. drone seized this week by a Chinese naval vessel in the South China Sea, but complained the United States was "hyping up" the incident.The drone was taken on Thursday, the first seizure of its kind in recent memory. It prompted the Pentagon to go public with a diplomatic complaint, and drew criticism from U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to take a more aggressive approach in dealing with Beijing.The drone was collecting data about the salinity, temperature and clarity of the water about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, off the Philippines, and was seized just as the USNS Bowditch was about to retrieve it, U.S. officials said.The Defense Ministry said a Chinese naval vessel discovered a piece of "unidentified equipment," and checked it to prevent any navigational safety issues before discovering it was a U.S. drone."China decided to return it to the U.S. side in an appropriate manner, and China and the U.S. have all along been in communication about it," the ministry said on its website."During this process, the U.S. side's unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate, and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue. We express regret at this," it added.Trump, a Republican who takes office on Jan. 20, weighed into the dispute on Twitter on Saturday."China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act," Trump said in a tweet early on Saturday from his seaside resort club Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, where he plans to spend the holidays.

The Pentagon has said the drone was operating lawfully and was clearly marked as U.S. property.Without directly saying whether the drone was operating in waters China considers its own, China's Defense Ministry said U.S. ships and aircraft have for a long period been carrying out surveillance and surveys in "the presence" of Chinese waters."China is resolutely opposed to this, and demands the U.S. stops this kind of activity," it said.China will remain on alert for these sorts of activities and take necessary steps to deal with them, the ministry said without elaborating.

The Global Times, published by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily, earlier cited an unidentified Chinese source as saying they believed the issue would be resolved smoothly.HEIGHTENED CONCERNS

But the drone incident has raised fresh concerns about China's increased military presence and aggressive posture in the disputed South China Sea, including its militarization of maritime outposts.

New satellite imagery shows China has installed weapons, including anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, on all seven artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea, a U.S. research group said this week.Trump has previously complained about the South China Sea build-up. He has threatened to declare China a currency manipulator and force changes in U.S.-Chinese trade policy, which he says has led to the greatest theft of American jobs in history.Trump has also raised questions about whether Washington would stick to its nearly four-decades-old policy of recognizing that Taiwan is part of "one China."He irked Beijing by taking a congratulatory phone call from President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan after his Nov. 8 election victory. China lodged a diplomatic protest.The 10-minute telephone call was the first of its kind since U.S. President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of "one China."President Barack Obama said on Friday it was fine for Trump to review Washington's policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the U.S. relationship with Beijing. (Additional reporting by Roberta Rampton in Washington and Josephine Mason and Meng Meng in Beijing; editing by Ian Geoghegan, G Crosse)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Is Adrian Peterson bearing gifts in Week 15?

Were down to the money weeks, the semifinal round in most Fantasy Leagues. Lets take a good look at the injury report.

 So, Adrian Peterson (knee) is going to play against Indianapolis. He was ineffective for a game and a half, hasnt dressed since Week 2. The Vikings have the worst run-blocking unit in the league. I would not use Peterson in a fantasy semifinal unless I was completely shellacked at the position, without no other viable options. All of the usual Injury Optimism caveats apply. But if you want some Peterson optimism, youll find some here.

 A.J. Green (hamstring) had a limited week and it sounds like hes not going to go Sunday against Pittsburgh (officially listed as doubtful), though he hasnt been officially ruled out yet. Again, Im going to fade this one. If you want some optimism on Green, some of the industry ranks him aggressively. Maybe theyre right. Im never going to play that way.

[Join the $90K Baller for Week 15 | Tips for your Daily lineup]

 The Jets are apparently going to have Matt Forte be a game-time decision for Saturdays game against the Dolphins. Its a shame for the Bilal Powell owners in the crowd, though perhaps Powell will be the featured back either way. Brandon Marshall is listed as questionable, but even at full health, hes not someone Id be looking to trust. Robbie Anderson has a nice connection going with Bryce Petty. Meanwhile, Matt Moore will take over for the Dolphins, standing in for injured QB Ryan Tannehill.

 Julio Jones (toe) wont play against the 49ers; Atlanta realizes theres no good reason to risk their franchise player in a game against an overmatched opponent. Mohamed Sanu (groin) is expected to return, but if I had to use an Atlanta wide receiver in this game, Id go for Taylor Gabriel.

 With Michael Floyd no longer on the Arizona roster, J.J. Nelson might see a few more routes and targets (though theyre different types of receivers). Surging tight end Jermaine Gresham (knee) might need a game-day check-in; he was limited in practice the last two days.

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 Donte Moncrief (hamstring) wont play at Minnesota, and the Colts will also be missing key personnel on the offensive line. I have an Andrew Luck/Philip Rivers decision that I probably wont make until Sunday.

 Michael Thomas (foot) had a full work Friday and is expected to go against the Cardinals.

 Theo Riddick (wrist) is doubtful, which means Dwayne Washington is expected to be the starter against the Giants. Perhaps the Lions will need a more balanced offense this week, because Matthew Stafford is playing through a finger injury. New Yorks defense has quietly been outstanding for most of the year.

 Sammy Watkins (foot) should play through his questionable tag. Charles Clay (knee) is also listed as questionable. He might be worth a Sunday check-in, with Clevelands lousy defense on the other side. Its been particularly crummy against tight ends.

 With Darren Sproles dealing with a concussion and Wendell Smallwood on IR, the Eagles might be forced to use Ryan Mathews more than usual. The club did have Jordan Matthews (ankle) and Dorial Green-Beckham (abdomen) at Fridays practice.

 With Melvin Gordon (hip) out for Week 15, Kenneth Farrow is the nominal starter against Oakland. Hes an ordinary talent, but workload is workload. Scatback Ronnie Hillman is the next option.

[Week 15 rankings: Overall | FLEX | QB | RB | WR | TE | DEF | K]

 Oakland expects Amari Cooper (shoulder) and Michael Crabtree (finger) to play through their questionable tags. Double check on Sunday, to be safe.

 Cam Newton is dealing with a wonky shoulder, but it would be a shock if he didnt start against Washington on Monday.

 All context clues point to Ty Montgomery, finally, being the back of choice wit the Packers. James Starks (concussion) isnt going to play, and Christine Michael is too limited a player  when hes on the field, youre practically telling the play to the defense. Cold weather is expected to be an issue at Chicago, which might push some extra work to Montgomery.

 Allen Hurns (hamstring) is out for another week, if youre gallant enough to talk yourself into Allen Robinson or Marqise Lee.

 Eddie Royal (toe) and Marquess Wilson (foot) wont play, which thins out the Chicago usage tree a bit. Im still not touching Alshon Jeffery, given that hes off a layoff, sucked for three months, and has limited experience with new QB Matt Barkley. The cold weather is also a problem.

 The Browns are rolling out Robert Griffin again, apparently because 0-16 is a goal of the team. Have a blast with the Buffalo defense.
Americans may find out in the next month just how many of them have been spied on through the intelligence communitys foreign digital surveillance programs, Reuters reported Friday afternoon, citing a letter to Director of National Intelligence James Clapper obtained by the newswire.

In the letter, 11 members of the House Judiciary Committee informed Clapper, who recently announced his resignation, that his staff and officials from the National Security Agency had described to the committee how the intelligence community would disclose the number of Americans whose electronic messages had been collected.

The disclosure is set to arrive just as Congress is likely to begin debating the merits of a provision of the 2008 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act known as Section 702, which expires at the end of 2017.

Section 702 allows the U.S. government to spy on anyone reasonably believed to be outside American borders, while prohibiting surveillance of people within the U.S. However, as the Washington Post found, the NSAs searches are designed to produce at least 51 percent confidence in a targets foreignness. This allows the intelligence community to incidentally collect information passed between Americans and foreigners, and that trove of information could be quite large, according to a report by the Brennan Center.

Critics pointing to Section 702s loopholes have called it a backdoor method of mass surveillance of American citizens.

As the letter showed, the number of Americans included in that data collection could soon be declassified, something Congress has long pushed for, but that Clapper has long resisted. As NPR reported in April, the intelligence chief has said that any methodology we come up with will not be completely satisfactory to all parties, and that if such an estimate were feasible, we wouldve done it a long time ago.

The revelation of the number of Americans affected, as the Judiciary Committee members noted in the note recently obtained by Reuters, could decide Section 702s fate.

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The timely production of this information is incredibly important to informed debate on Section 702 in the next Congress, the letter said, according to Reuters. The Committee added that, without the figure, even those of us inclined to support reauthorization would have reason for concern.

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IRVINE, CA / ACCESSWIRE / December 16, 2016 / Khang & Khang LLP (the "Firm") announces the filing of a class action lawsuit against StoneMor Partners L.P. ("StoneMor" or the "Company") (STON). Investors who purchased or otherwise acquired StoneMor shares between January 19, 2012 and October 27, 2016 inclusive (the "Class Period"), are encouraged to contact the firm prior to the January 20, 2017 lead plaintiff motion deadline.

If you purchased StoneMor shares during the Class Period, please contact Joon M. Khang, Esquire, of Khang & Khang, 18101 Von Karman Avenue, 3rd Floor, Irvine, CA 92612, by telephone: (949) 419-3834, or via e-mail at joon@khanglaw.com.

There has been no class certification in this case. Until certification occurs, you are not represented by an attorney. You may choose to take no action and remain a passive class member.

According to the complaint, during the Class Period StoneMor made false and misleading statements and/or failed to disclose: that the Company's reported non-GAAP financial metrics were materially misleading and concealed the truth about the Company's true financial condition; that the main purpose of StoneMor's regular debt and equity offerings were to pay distributions to unitholders instead of pay down indebtedness under the Company's revolving credit facility as publicly stated; and that as a result of the above stated, the Company's statements about its business, operations, and prospects were false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. On September 2, 2016, the Company announced that it would restate its financials to correct various errors. On October 27, 2016, StoneMor cut its distribution by half. On November 9, 2016, the Company announced that it needed to "amend its Form 10-K for [the] fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, and its Forms 10-Q for the quarterly periods ended June 30, 2016 and March 31, 2016." When this news was released to the public, shares of StoneMor fell in value, causing investors harm.

If you wish to learn more about this lawsuit, or if you have questions concerning this notice or your rights, please contact Joon M. Khang, a prominent litigator for almost two decades, by telephone: (949) 419-3834, or by e-mail at joon@khanglaw.com.

This press release may constitute Attorney Advertising in certain jurisdictions.

Contact:

Joon M. Khang, Esq.

Telephone: 949-419-3834

Facsimile: 949-225-4474

joon@khanglaw.com

SOURCE: Khang & Khang LLP
DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran has requested a meeting of a commission overseeing the implementation of its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, Iranian state media reported on Saturday, in response to what Tehran calls a U.S. violation of the agreement. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif asked for the meeting in a letter to European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, Iran's official news agency IRNA said. The White House said on Thursday that a bill extending U.S. sanctions against Iran for 10 years will become law without President Barack Obama's signature, but added that it would not affect implementation of the international accord limiting Iran's nuclear program. In response to the U.S. sanctions move, Iran ordered its scientists on Tuesday to start developing systems for nuclear-powered marine vessels. That action is expected to worsen tensions with Washington, already heightened by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's vow to scrap the deal under which Iran curbed its nuclear fuel production activities in exchange for relief from economic sanctions. (Reporting by Dubai newsroom; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
Jacquie Lee honors her friend Christina Grimmie and many others the world lost this year with her emotional new song and video "Somebody's Angel."

The song was inspired by Grimmie's death, after the former star of The Voice was fatally shot while signing autographs after a concert in June. In the video, Lee, also a contestant on The Voice contestant, remembers the many moments of loss in 2016.

"Obviously Christina inspired the song, but it woke me up to all of the tragedies that go on every day," Lee told People. "I feel like those words really helped me get through Christina's passing, so I wanted to make it open to everyone and tribute every person that we've lost this year."

The song features classic ballad electric guitar plucking, erupting in the chorus with a choir backing Lee's emotional delivery. She says it was written as an homage to her favorite of Grimmie's covers, Elvis Presley's "I Can't Help Falling In Love With You."

Meanwhile, the video shows Lee painting the image of a television set, which then shows news coverage of 2016's many tragic deaths. Headlines of lost icons such as David Bowie, Prince, Leonard Cohen and Gene Wilder are intercut with images of the Orlando nightclub shooting, terror attacks, Black Lives Matter Protests, natural disasters and more tragedies from all around the world. It ends with video of Grimmie and Lee singing karaoke on the first night of 2014's The Voice tour in San Antonio.

"I felt like this year we really needed it," said Lee. "We needed to all feel like we were taking this on together, especially near the holidays."

Read People's full interview with Lee here and watch her video below.
Kate Beckinsales daughter just got into college  and Michael Sheens response is giving us all the dad feels

Is there anything more uplifting than the pride a parent feels for their child?

Kate Beckinsale and Michael Sheens daughter Lily experienced this quite literally on Thursday, December 15th, when she received that nice, fat letter from the college of her choice. Not only did her parents burst into tears when they learned the happy news, but her doting dad physically lifted both his daughter and his ex-girlfriend-slash-co-parent off the ground in celebration.

The appropriate fatherly response when you find out your girl got into college : burst into tears ,drop everything ,rush over and pick up everyone even remotely involved, Kate wrote on Instagram. @lily_beckinsale we are so unbelievably proud of you . Fly fly fly .

The appropriate fatherly response when you find out your girl got into college : burst into tears ,drop everything ,rush over and pick up everyone even remotely involved . @lily_beckinsale we are so unbelievably proud of you . Fly fly fly  A photo posted by Kate Beckinsale (@katebeckinsale) on Dec 15, 2016 at 6:47pm PST

The Masters of Sex and Underworld stars dated from 1995 until 2003, welcoming Lily, their only child, in 1999. Beckinsale just finalized her divorce from director Len Wiseman and is seemingly enjoying the single life, while Sheen has been dating Sarah Silverman since 2014  but despite not being in romantic love with each other, the former couple is seriously goals when it comes to being in love with parenting their daughter.

And for what its worth, Beckinsale has been pretty freaking awesome when it comes to her exs relationship with Silverman. When the two were snapped hugging on a red carpet earlier this year, Beckinsale explained to the ladies of The Talk that she was basically family with Sheen and Silverman, and that she was glad to have Silverman in Lilys life.

Im completely open to any other strong, cool sensitive independent-thinking women who are going to be an influence in my daughters life, she said. Sarahs a great person and Im glad shes in the village thats helping. Its important as a teenager to have good women in your life building up the fabric of your experience of becoming a woman. Even if Sarah wasnt Michaels girlfriend Id want her to be in that.

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Even with Silvermans help, though, Sheen and Beckinsale didnt get what they wanted when it comes to Lilys choice in career  despite her parents wishes, she intends to study acting.

Shes going to go to drama college, Beckinsale said with a laugh, adding that the parents and friends had failed horribly.

Judging off of Instagram alone, that is not how Lilys parents truly feel.

The post Kate Beckinsales daughter just got into college  and Michael Sheens response is giving us all the dad feels appeared first on HelloGiggles.
MOMBASA (Reuters) - Kenya on Friday started constructing its first cruise ship terminal at its Indian Ocean seaport of Mombasa, hoping to boost tourism which brings in a substantial portion of the east African country's foreign exchange earnings. Cruise ships currently use the main cargo terminal at Mombasa. The new facility will be the seaport's first terminal customised for the luxury vessels. The 350 million Kenyan shillings ($3.4 million) terminal is being constructed under joint funding by the Kenya government and a private firm, Trade Mark East Africa. Mombasa seaport's managing director, Catherine Mturi, said they expected the terminal to boost the facility's cruise tourist arrivals by an extra 140,000 visitors annually and generate $52 million in the same period. Last year, 10 cruise vessels carrying 6,000 tourists called at the port and the number is expected to rise this year, Mturi said. We are very keen on improving our port in this area to attract more passenger vessels and fully exploit the great potential that exists in our Blue Economy, she said. Piracy in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean slowed cruise tourism in the region, but in recent years it has been picking up as naval patrols and deployment of armed guards on ships boosts security. ($1 = 102.1000 Kenyan shillings) (Reporting Joseph Akwiri; Editing by Mark Potter and Elaine Hardcastle)
DUBAI (Reuters) - Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei condemned Britain on Saturday as a "source of evil and misery" for the Middle East after British Prime Minister Theresa May called Iran a regional threat. "Shamelessly, the British have recently called ... Iran a threat to the region, but everyone knows that ... it is the British who have always been the source of threats, corruption and misery," the state news agency IRNA quoted Khamenei as telling participants at an Islamic unity conference in Tehran. Khamenei called "policies and the actions of the British in the past two centuries a source of evil and misery for the peoples of the region", IRNA added. May called on Gulf Arab heads of state at a summit last week to work with London "to push back against Iran's aggressive regional actions, whether in Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, Syria or in the Gulf itself". "So I want to assure you that I am clear-eyed about the threat that Iran poses to the Gulf and the wider Middle East," she told the summit in Bahrain on Dec. 7. Khamenei accused the United States and Britain of provoking conflicts among the main Sunni and Shi'ite branches of Islam and said: "The old British policy of 'divide and conquer' is seriously on the agenda of Islam's enemies." Iranian media reported on Saturday that the foreign ministry had summoned a top British diplomat in Tehran to protest against British criticism of its actions in Syria. The move came after British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said on Thursday he had summoned the ambassadors of Russia and Iran to convey his "profound disquiet" over events in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo. [U8N19K021] Britain and Iran exchanged ambassadors in September more than a year after Britain reopened its Tehran embassy, which was closed for nearly four years after it was stormed by protesters. Iran and most Gulf states are on opposite sides in Middle East conflicts, with Iran an ally of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria's civil war and of the armed Houthi movement fighting a Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen. (Reporting by Dubai newsroom; Editing by Sami Aboudi and Helen Popper)
North Koreas top officials have been warned against forming cliques  a move that has left high-ranking officials worried about a possible purge against them by leader Kim Jong Un, according to a recent report by Radio Free Asias (RFA) Korean Service.

Kims directive warns provincial and court officials to not form private alliances for economic or political interests, an official of the ruling Workers Party of Korea (WPK) told RFA, which is a nonprofit international broadcasting agency of the U.S. government. The leader also cautioned officials who stick together and speak in whispers from setting up little kingdoms, in order to bring subordinates in line with their objectives, the source said.

On Dec. 9, Ryanggang provinces chairman of WPK personally delivered the message to the officials, indicating its importance, the party source told RFA.

The people who deliver Kim Jong Uns directives are usually vice ministers from the research office of the [local] Department of Propaganda, the source reportedly said. Since it is very rare for the chairman of the provincial ruling party council to deliver a message in person, this means the matter is highly important.

The same message was addressed mainly to civilian officials, but also to senior military commanders in Chagang province, a source with ties to the military told RFA. Both Ryanggang and Chagang are neighboring provinces in the northern part of the country bordering China.

The commanders are now very afraid that this directive may be a warning of a coming purge, the source told the broadcasting agency, adding that military officials were also concerned over the absence of high-ranking officers during Kims visit to Samjiyon county near Mt. Paektu in Ryanggang last month.

Even though the directive was primarily addressed to civilian officials at the local level and not the military authorities, the source told RFA that this could easily be a trick.

Kim could carry out a purge by mobilizing his Guard Command in a surprise attack while the militarys leaders are feeling at ease, the source said, adding: Honestly, there is no place on Earth where corruption is worse than in North Koreas military. And the fact that Kim Jong Un did not directly mention this is making the commanders even more anxious and afraid.

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North Korea, one of the worlds most isolated nations, has witnessed several high-level purges under the young leaders rule after he assumed power in 2011 following the death of his father, Kim Jong Il. However, several reports of purges and executions in the country have later proved inaccurate.

The country observed the fifth death anniversary of Kim Jong Il on Saturday, who died Dec. 17, 2011.

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cancer cell

For some cancer patients, a new group of drugs has led to remarkable remissions with few side effects. But others have tried them, only to find little benefit and a lot of discomfort.

The treatment, broadly speaking, is called cancer immunotherapy. These drugs  many of which have become available in the past few years  have led to cautious optimism among oncologists who often had few options for treating certain cancers. Cancer researchers see promise. Drug companies see potential for a new group of mega moneymakers. Investors and billionaires, like former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Silicon Valley billionaire Sean Parker, have invested hundreds of millions into researching new treatments.

Yet it's still early days, and there's as much hope as confusion over the new treatments true potential and possible risks.

The promise

Jimmy Carter

In August 2015, former US President Jimmy Carter, then 91, announced he had cancer. The diagnosis was metastatic melanoma, and it had spread to his brain. He thought he had merely weeks to live.

Just four months later, he made headlines again, revealing he had tested cancer-free. Before long, doctors said he no longer needed treatment.

That remarkable turn came from a combination of a traditional therapy, radiation, and a new one, an immunotherapy drug called Keytruda, which was delivered intravenously once every three weeks. Keytruda had only been approved for about a year at that point.

New drugs such as Keytruda are a type of immunotherapy called checkpoint inhibitors. Most people have a type of protein that stops their immune systems from fighting the cancerous cells. Keytruda and similar drugs block those proteins. It's like taking down a guard tower, allowing the body's own immune system force to flood past a barrier, where it then gets to work killing and clearing away the cancer cells.

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Checkpoint inhibitors were first approved to treat melanoma but have since gone on to tackle lung cancer, bladder cancer, blood cancers, and other cancers.

Dan Chen, vice president and global head of cancer immunotherapy development at Genentech, told Business Insider that he considers Genentech's checkpoint inhibitor, Tecentriq, to be the foundation of the company's cancer immunotherapy program. It's the first FDA-approved immunotherapy for Genentech, and the company's already started looking for ways to combine Tecentriq with other cancer immunotherapy drugs that activate the body's immune system in different ways.

"This is a critical program for us. It allowed us to learn an enormous amount about cancer immunity," like how the drugs work to inhibit the checkpoints, Chen said.

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Genentech points to patients like Bob Schoenbauer to show why the company is "investing more than ever to bring personalized cancer immunotherapy (PCI) to people with cancer."

Schoenbauer had been diagnosed with late-stage inoperable lung cancer in 2013. Soon after, Schoenbauer was connected with a clinical trial of Tecentriq out of Georgetown University.

"Almost immediately, the cough was going away," his wife, Frances, told Business Insider. "It worked so fast, I couldn't believe how good he was feeling."

Schoenbauer, who still gets Tecentriq every three weeks, is active and walks to the mall in his Maryland town every morning. He's in remission and says he hasn't experienced any major side effects from the drug.

But even with this level of excitement, and anecdotal cases like Carter and Schoenbauer, there are some major caveats. First, not everyone is responding to the drugs  for advanced stages of melanoma, the number of people still alive after two years was about 35%, compared to 29.7% over the same time for those taking chemotherapy. And sometimes new checkpoint inhibitors under development fail key trials. In August, Bristol-Myers Squibb, a company with a checkpoint inhibitor called Opdivo said the drug failed a key lung-cancer trial study.

Side effects

Just like chemotherapy and radiation, immunotherapy can have side effects, but they tend to look very different than those from the other treatments. That's because they originate in the immune system.

Those checkpoint inhibitors act as "checkpoints" for a reason. In a normal body, they keep the immune system from going after healthy cells. So manipulating them, while it might help kill cancer cells, can at times be a blunt instrument. The newly freed immune system can, in some cases, start attacking healthy organs in the body, including the kidneys, liver, adrenal and pituitary glands, and, in some cases, the heart, The New York Times reports.

For example, a person on immunotherapy might experience gastrointestinal problems, such as diarrhea, that could get more serious and turn into the autoimmune disease colitis.

We are playing with fire, UCLA oncologist Dr. John Timmerman told The Times.

Immunotherapy nonprofit Cancer Research Institute CEO Jill ODonnell-Tormey told Business Insider in October that many of these side effects can be controlled with steroids, but it takes good communication between doctors and patients.

Because it is still so new compared to chemotherapy, understanding and knowing how to treat all these side effects is still a challenge. Researchers are trying to figure out why some people, such as Bob Schoenbauer, don't seem to have any side effects while others have serious responses, and can the side effects be caught and treated early.

"We follow the science. We try to think through the safety and clinical profiles, and we do think about pros and cons," Arun Balakumaran, an executive director at Merck told Business Insider regarding how Merck thinks about side effects for Keytruda.

Beyond checkpoints

t-cell immunity immune system immunotherapy

The field of checkpoint inhibitors has exploded. Take, for instance, Balakumaran at Merck. Two years ago, he said, he was a one-man show at the American Society of Hematology, a major industry conference in December, where data from blood-cancer treatments often debuts. This year, the Merck team had much more data to show, including results from two clinical trials.

Researchers are looking into how those checkpoint inhibitors can be combined, either with chemotherapy or other immunotherapies as well, which could get expensive.

But it's not the only approach researchers are taking to harness the body's immune system.

One promising route is CAR T-cell therapy. Short for "chimeric antigen receptor" T-cell therapy, the treatment takes a person's own cells, takes them out of the body, reengineers them, then puts the cells back in the body where they can attack a particular cancer cell.

There are a couple of companies leading the charge in developing these treatments.

Novartis plans to file for FDA approval in early 2017 for its therapy, called CTL019. At ASH, Novartis presented clinical data that showed that the treatment eliminated acute lymphoblastic leukemia, an aggressive blood cancer, in 82% of the patients treated.

Kite Pharma, a company with a rival therapy to Novartis, also hopes to file with the FDA by the end of the first quarter in 2017.

Bluebird Bio is developing gene and therapies for diseases including multiple myeloma, another form of blood cancer that affects plasma. "Basically we sent a T cell in to attach to the myeloma cells, and then basically blow them up," Bluebird CEO Nick Leschly told Business Insider.

But anytime you're "blowing up" cancer cells, there can be some major risks. Juno Therapeutics, another biotech company working on these cell therapies, stopped its leading CAR-T clinical trial after patients died while on the trial.

At the end of November, Bluebird gave results from its six-person phase-one trial in patients with myeloma who hadn't responded to other treatments. Of the patients who got a higher dose of the gene therapy, 100% saw tumor shrinkage.

Mark Alles, CEO of Celgene, the biotech company that teamed up with Bluebird on this myeloma treatment, called the response from these patients exceptional. At the Forbes Healthcare Summit on December 1, he continued, saying it's important to keep in mind how small this trial was: "That's the caveat, always the caveat, let's be careful not to get ahead of ourselves."

NOW WATCH: Countries around the world are pouring billions of dollars into France's revolutionary nuclear fusion reactor





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KTM 390 Adventure Espied

Some industry observers thought KTM would be content to expand its big-bore division with more choices (sport-touring/adventure-sport) to challenge BMW, the new 790 and 390 models refute the notion. Given the rush of light-middleweights (250-450cc) entries from Kawasaki, Honda, Suzuki and BMW have provoked another Austrian entry on the menu.

The spy photogs nabbed images of the 390 Adventure mule recently, indicating that the dirt-worthy version of the 390 Duke isnt far behind. The cobby-looking mule shown here is obviously far from what the production model will look like, but there are specific hints of what the configuration will be.

KTM 390 Adventure Spy Shots

The spoked wheels will likely reach production, but like the 790 Adventure tester, this one is obviously set up for pavement testing only with what appear to be 17-inch wheels with street rubber. Unlike the 790 proto, however, the 390 is equipped with what appears to be more production-like long travel suspension at both ends. When it reaches the showroom, the 390 will probably be fitted with 17/19 dualie tires, or 18/21 hoops. Or an option of 19 or 21 for the front, which we think would be prudent.

KTM 390 Adventure Spy Shots

The swingarm looks like a one-off unit built for testing, as does most of the bodywork and instrumentation mounting and position. The swingarm architecture and possibly the shock mounting may well differ when the bike reaches production. The skidplate appears to be a finished and nicely protective piece. We reckon the final iteration, probably not revealed until late next year, will have a larger fuel tank.

All of this is pure speculation at this point, and KTMs ability to bring the 390 Adventure in at a competitive price will be key to its success in a crowded market. We dont expect the Austrian company can manage the bargain rate of the $4,999 390 Duke, since this is much more than a simple upgrade. But if they can list it below $6,000, we think theyll have another winner.

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KTM 390 Adventure Spy Shots

KTM 390 Adventure Spy Photos

KTM 390 Adventure Spy Photos

KTM 390 Adventure Spy Photos

KTM 390 Adventure Spy Photos
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)  The latest on services for the late astronaut John Glenn (all times EST):

5:10 p.m.

A chorus has sung "Let There Be Peace On Earth" to a packed Ohio State University auditorium, capping a memorial service filled with moving tributes to the late space pioneer John Glenn.

Vice President Joe Biden and a retired Marine Corps general were among those who choked up while praising Glenn for bravery, consideration of others and his many achievements during the more than two hours of a "celebration of life" in his home-state Ohio's capital on Saturday afternoon.

Ethel Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. were among mourners present, along with Ohio political leaders. Glenn was a longtime Democratic U.S. senator.

Glenn died Dec. 8 at age 95. He was the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962, and in 1998 became the oldest person in space at age 77.

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3:40 p.m.

Vice President Joe Biden says space pioneer John Glenn "defined what it meant to be an American."

Biden told a memorial service crowd packing an Ohio State University auditorium Saturday that fellow Democratic lawmaker Glenn knew that ordinary Americans could do extraordinary things.

Retired Marine Corps Gen. John Dailey says the nation had Glenn for 95 years and "it still wasn't enough."

Political leaders and military and space officials joined mourners in the state's capital city.

Bagpipes played as the flag-draped coffin was brought into Mershon Auditorium. A procession of Glenn's hearse went from the Ohio Statehouse to the memorial service called "a celebration of life" for the former fighter pilot, astronaut and longtime U.S. senator from small-town Ohio.

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1:35 p.m.

Mourners who braved cold and icy roads are packing an Ohio State University auditorium ahead of a memorial service for space pioneer John Glenn as his funeral procession approaches the hall.

Barricades have been placed along the main road from the Statehouse to Mershon Auditorium to accommodate the procession of Glenn's hearse to the memorial service called "a celebration of life" for the former fighter pilot, astronaut and longtime Democratic U.S. senator from small-town Ohio.

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Democratic Vice President Joe Biden is among those expected to take part in the Saturday afternoon service. A host of other dignitaries, including present and former governors, members of Ohio's congressional delegation and university leaders, were in attendance.

Glenn died Dec. 8 at age 95.

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10:20 a.m.

A celebration of John Glenn's life is planned in Ohio's capital as the space pioneer's home state and the nation continue to honor him.

Vice President Joe Biden is among those expected for the Saturday afternoon memorial service in an Ohio State University auditorium for the Glenn, who died Dec. 8 at age 95.

Thousands paid their respects Friday in a public viewing of his flag-draped casket inside Ohio's Statehouse rotunda. They included Secretary of State John Kerry. Glenn was also a fighter pilot and longtime Democratic U.S. senator.

Glenn was the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962, and in 1998 became the oldest person in space at age 77. Burial is planned at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C., in a private ceremony in the spring.
The Pokemon craze is far from over. This latest Pokemon collection by StayReal will have you wanting to get em all.

The Taiwanese brand has launched the uber-adorable series that will attract Pokemon fans who want to gear up and show their love for their childhood cartoon. StayReals Pokemon collection is limited to Taiwan so if you are thinking of copping something, you would have to get someone to get it for you!

stayreal pokemon collection

A star of the collection would be everyones favourite Pokemon, Pikachu. This yellow backpack (NT$1,480, about SGD $67) features the ears of Pikachu sticking out the sides in a super adorable fashion, as if the starter Pokemon is clinging to your back. It is not too overbearingly childish and is roomy, so its a perfect everyday bag for whether youre a 13 or 30-year-old Pokemon fan.

stayreal pokemon collection

What better way to catch em all than with a giant Pokeball. This PVC backpack is enough to catch all your belongings for when you head out. It comes with a cute Pikachu hanging keychain. The Pokeball backpack sells for NT$1,680 (about SGD $76).

This unisex hoodie (NT$2280, about SGD $103) features bold red upper and white lower colours, which turns the wearer into a giant walking Pokeball. Great for some Pokemon hunting in the cold overseas weather for some geographically-limited Pokemon! Or you can just wear them in cold lectures or the cinema and have everyone envy you, your choice.

Another adorable must-have is this yellow sweater (NT$2280, about SGD $103) featuring Pikachus facial features in the front and its lightning tail at the back. Everywhere you go, you would have Pikachus chubby face smiling up at others.

stayreal pokemon collection

A true Pokemon trainer always has his or her cap. This black snapback (NT$1,280, about SGD$57) is great to combat Singapores sunny weather as you go hunting. This quality cap features an embroidered Pikachu in front and a Pokeball behind.

stayreal pokemon collection

For those who want a little subtlety, this basic grey sweater(NT$2280, about SGD $103) by StayReal is perfect for you. It features a simple plain design with the brands logo and two adorable Pikachus on your sleeves. Why wear your heart on your sleeve when you can wear Pikachu?

Check out more of the collection here.

Not heading to Taiwan soon? Get a traveller to buy it for you!

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The post Latest Pokemon Collection by StayReal is a Must-Have for Trainers appeared first on Airfrov Blog.
BEIRUT (AP)  The Latest on the conflict in Syria where thousands more civilians and rebels are expected to leave the eastern part of the city of Aleppo under a key cease-fire deal (all times local):

7:15 p.m.

Doctors, nurses and medics have staged a protest outside Parliament in London against the attacks on their professional colleagues trying to save lives in Syria's civil war.

Saturday's demonstration by health charity Medact featured a variation of a sit-in protest it called a "die-in," in which medical practitioners lay prone on the pavement outside the Houses of Parliament.

Their banner read: "You take out 1 doctor, you take out 100,000 people (s)he can no longer care for."

Medact cites at least 382 attacks on 269 health care facilities in Syria since the war began in 2011.

The charity director, Dr. David McCoy, said the people of Britain "cannot turn a blind eye to the continued disregard of international humanitarian law in Syria and elsewhere and the targeting of our profession."

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5:30 p.m.

Thousands of people are protesting against the ongoing war in Syria at two different locations in the German capital.

More than 1,200 people, most of them Turkish immigrants, protested Saturday against the humanitarian crisis in besieged Aleppo on a square in Berlin's Neukoelln neighborhood. Many were waving Turkish and Syrian flags.

Another 900 protesters came together in front of the city's Reichstag Parliament building holding a candlelight vigil against the bombing of Syria and carrying signs demanding a truce for the war-torn Middle Eastern country.

The cease-fire and evacuation from east Aleppo earlier this week marked the end of the rebels' most important stronghold in the country's civil war, now in its sixth year.

Reports differed on how many people remain in the Aleppo enclave, ranging from 15,000 to 40,000 civilians, along with an estimated 6,000 fighters.

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5:15 p.m.

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War photographer Paul Conroy, who was badly wounded in a 2012 attack in Syria, is returning for the first time as part of a British aid convoy to build a new children's hospital for Aleppo.

Trucks carrying supplies departed a central London hospital Saturday in a road trip expected to take about a week.

Conroy suffered severe leg wounds when government forces shelled a building filled with journalists in an opposition-held part of Homs on Feb. 22, 2012. Sunday Times reporter Marie Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik died in the blast.

Conroy says he's not concerned by returning to the war zone, describing the risk level as "far outweighed by what the Syrian people face every day."

The aid delivery, funded by an online crowdsourcing effort , seeks to rebuild a children's hospital destroyed last month during the Russian-backed government assault on east Aleppo.

A British-Syrian anesthetist leading the effort, Dr. Rola Hallam, said: "These are war crimes which have been allowed to continue with impunity and I felt it was time that we, the people, took action.

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9:45 a.m.

Syrian state TV says evacuations from east Aleppo are still suspended until rebels allow residents of two besieged Shiite villages to leave to government-controlled areas.

The channel's correspondent, speaking from Aleppo, said Saturday that the main condition for the Aleppo evacuation to resume is for residents of Foua and Kfarya to be allowed to leave.

The opposition's Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the evacuation of some 4,000 people, including wounded, from the villages could start Saturday.

The Aleppo evacuation was suspended Friday after a report of shooting at a crossing point into the enclave. Thousands were evacuated before the evacuation was suspended.

The Syrian government says the village evacuations and the one in eastern Aleppo must be done simultaneously, but the rebels say there's no connection.
Tripoli (AFP) - Libya's unity government leader Fayez al-Sarraj on Saturday officially announced the end of military operations in Sirte, after the liberation from Islamic State group forces of what was the last significant territory they held in the country.

However prime minister-designate Sarraj warned that the battle against the Islamic State group rebels was not over.

Eight months after the start of the operations against IS in the coastal town of Sirte "I officially announce the end of military operations and the liberation of the town", Sarraj said in a televised speech two weeks after the announcement that the area was in control of forces loyal to the government.

The capture of Sirte, first announced on December 5, boosts the authority of Sarraj's UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA), which was launched in Tripoli in March but whose legitimacy is contested by a rival administration based in eastern Libya.

The country descended into chaos following the NATO-backed ousting of longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011, with rival administrations emerging and well-armed militias vying for control of its vast oil wealth.

The infighting and lawlessness allowed extremist groups such as IS to seize several coastal regions, giving the jihadists a toehold on Europe's doorstep.

The fall of Sirte -- Kadhafi's home town located 450 kilometres (280 miles) east of Tripoli -- is a major setback for IS, which has also faced a series of military defeats in Syria and Iraq.

Sarraj made the announcement on Sirte on the first anniversary of the signing of a peace agreement in Morocco.

"The battle for Sirte is over but the war against terrorism in Libya is not finished," he warned, stressing the need to unify the various military forces into "one single army".

The GNA is the centrepiece of Western hopes to stem the upsurge of jihadism in Libya, as well as to halt people trafficking across the Mediterranean that has led to thousands of drownings.

But the unity government headed by Sarraj has struggled to replace the two rival administrations.
Foodies are flocking to Queens, the New York borough that has long lived in the shadow of glitzy Manhattan, as it emerges as a treasure trove of good eats.

From gastropubs popping up all over the place, to Michelin-starred cuisine, the hot new food scene reflects the steady gentrification in the area.

People in the know are trekking across the East River to explore this new culinary hub.

Something changed in Queens one evening in October 2015 when Lady Gaga, wearing a pink dress, walked down the street in the Astoria neighborhood to attend the opening of The Pomeroy, a hip restaurant run by a childhood friend, chef Bo O'Connor.

Her appearance helped New Yorkers realize that Queens had erased its image of humdrum suburbia.

Astoria -- the Queens neighborhood closest to Manhattan -- is at the cutting edge of this movement.

"A new restaurant and bar is opening almost every month," said Dixie Roberts, a freelance journalist who works for the website "We Heart Astoria" and lives close to The Pomeroy.

"Five years ago, there wasn't that many places," said O'Connor. "This area definitely hadn't developed. But in the past two and a half years, it's really been incredible."

Gastropubs -- a British import -- are cropping up along main streets and often sport a similar look: a bar, minimalist decor, designer tables and chairs, intimate lighting and parquet floors.

The food is changing too, with new restaurants trying to offer something different to the options traditionally available in the area.

"The menu you see here you won't actually find anywhere else in Queens. Everybody else in Queens is serving the same exact traditional cuisine," said Sonny Solomon, owner of an Indian place called Kurry Qulture.

He used to be affiliated with Devi and Tulsi, Indian restaurants in Manhattan that earned Michelin stars.

"We're trying to elevate Vietnamese cuisine," said Louis Leung, co-owner of District Saigon, praised in a review by The New York Times in June just four months after opening.

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At The Pomeroy, O'Connor serves American cuisine with a hint from South Korea, where her family is from, and lots of daily specials.

Queens is working-class, so while the new restaurateurs charge higher than average prices, they also try to stay affordable.

"There's just so many options," said O'Connor, whose offerings include small dishes that can be shared.

At Kurry Qulture, the average check is 45 to 50 dollars a head, "which is decent for the quality of food and service you're getting," said Solomon.

"When you come here, it's not only for food. It's about seeing and being seen," he added.

Even the lone Michelin-star restaurant in Queens -- the Mexican eatery Casa Enrique -- aims for affordability, with most dishes priced at under 20 dollars.

- 'No competition' -

Before this influx of chefs and entrepreneurs, the best known restaurants in Queens were either Italian or Greek -- two communities that still have a strong presence in the borough.

At Taverna Kyclades, a well-known Greek place that has been a staple for decades, owner Ardian Skenderi says he has no problem with the movement. "There is no competition," he said.

"Everyone knows each other. Everyone supports each other. We all do, like, a little bit of a different thing," said O'Connor.

"Taverna Kyclades is an institution and nothing can touch Kyclades," said Roberts.

Others worry about the deep transformation that Queens is undergoing -- similar to what happened in Brooklyn -- with the food frenzy just the tip of the iceberg.

In the northwest part of Queens, which includes Astoria, average housing prices have shot up 58 percent in five years, according to the real estate firm Douglas Elliman.

Dan, who belongs to a group called the Queens Anti-Gentrification Project and declined to give his last name, believes it is possible to prevent the borough being overhauled by developers.

The group managed to defeat a planned real estate project in the Sunnyside area after mobilizing people and lawmakers.

But it comes down to how much people care about preserving things, he said, adding: "I don't think there's a lot of resistance to development in Astoria."

Some want to think Queens will retain its fabulously mixed flavor in terms of its cultures and people.

Solomon said: "I hope it stays this way. It will be a lot of fun."
Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fstory%2fthumbnail%2f31219%2f75c17652-17d6-4e14-ae14-3863c6c1ad4a

Each year, Microsoft founder Bill Gates puts his name in the hat for Reddit's annual Secret Santa event. And every year, one lucky Redditor gets the Gates-made gift box of their dreams.

This year, it was user Aerrix, who came home from the post office one morning to a truly gargantuan delivery.

SEE ALSO: Weed lovers will find this Reddit gift exchange mixup hilarious

Image: reddit gifts

"So then I get the box open," she wrote in a Reddit Gifts post, "and there's just bubble wrap EVERYWHERE, but under the first layer I see a picture...and my jaw. Just. Drops."

The picture, of course, was of Bill Gates.

Image: Reddit Gifts

And inside the packages were carefully chosen and customized presents, from matching Zelda mittens for Aerrix and her dog to a new Xbox to a beaded Zelda picture frame.

It's clear from the gifts that Gates made his selections thoughtfully, referring often to Aerrix's Reddit profile. He even included a few personal notes: in a Cajun cookbook, for example, Gates wrote "Aerrix, Since you're originally from Louisiana and miss your uncle's Cajun cooking, I thought you might enjoy trying some of the recipes from this cookbook."

He also Photoshopped himself into a picture of Aerrix, her husband and their dog, because why not?

Image: Reddit Gifts

Gates also donated to Code.org, a nonprofit dedicated to expanding access to computer science education, in Aerrix's name.

"It's something near and dear to my heart," Aerrix wrote, "as my husband is a programmer and my brother has a degree in computer science!"

Check out even more photos of Aerrix's haul on her Reddit Gifts post. Also, we're signing up for Reddit Gifts next year.
If Verizon (VZ) wants out of acquiring Yahoo (YHOO), it will have to prove the recently revealed hack of more 1 billion accounts effectively changes the company's value.

The task may be harder than it seems given the hacks occurred so many years ago, said Scott Kessler, deputy global director and industry analyst at CFRA Research. Public behavior toward the company hadn't changed because of the leaks, he pointed out.

"The usage of a lot of their major offerings didn't seemingly get negatively affected by these revelations," Kessler said.

Verizon may consider asking for a price cut on its initial $4.8 billion offer for the company or consider scrapping the deal all together due to the news that a data breach in August 2013 affected more than 1 billion accounts, according to Bloomberg.

Yahoo said it was unrelated to the 2014 breach which leaked information about 500 million user accounts , which was announced in September.

The company did not provide any information on changes on user behavior because of the latest incident. However, Yahoo reported in October as part of its third-quarter earnings report that user engagement trends  which is a measure of website traffic that advertising prices are determined from  was very minimally affected, if even at all, after it revealed information about the 2014 leaks.

User engagement includes page views on Yahoo properties, mail read and sent, searches, and page views on main verticals.

"It doesn't seem like that much of an impact on its user base," Kessler added. "That's a big part of what Verizon has been focused on and buying into. So, I think it's going to be hard to make an argument that there was an material adverse change when usage didn't change at all."

However, part of Yahoo's valuation involves user information it can provide in the future to Verizon's business, said Forrester principal analyst Jeff Pollard. And, consumer confidence in the company is absolutely affected going forward, not to mention businesses that may have considered using Yahoo services, he added.

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"Imagine the next time that you are at a log-in prompt, and you are about to sign up for a Yahoo service," Pollard said.

"You'll think, 'But wait a second, I can't give my email. They obviously don't care about it.' Verizon isn't buying Yahoo just based on Yahoo now. Verizon is buying Yahoo based on 2017 and 2018 (and onward). I don't think Yahoo can make a bold statement that this can't affect them in the future."

"As we've said all along, we will evaluate the situation as Yahoo continues its investigation," a Verizon spokesperson told CNBC, declining to comment further. "We will review the impact of this new development before reaching any final conclusions."

"We are confident in Yahoo's value and we continue to work towards integration with Verizon," a Yahoo spokesperson told CNBC.

It's more likely that Verizon will aim to negotiate a lower price for Yahoo, Kessler said. The company still has value for Verizon's plans to become a media and digital advertising powerhouse, especially when coupled with AOL's capabilities.

"I absolutely think there's still an appetite for these brand properties," said Kessler. "Yahoo has a strong franchise across other content areas, not just email and messaging."

Yahoo is still expected to take in $2.98 billion in digital ad revenue globally in 2016, or about 1.5 percent of the worldwide budget, according to eMarketer. It comes in seventh overall, behind Google (GOOGL), Facebook (FB), Alibaba (: ), Baidu (BIDU), Tencent (Hong Kong Stock Exchange: 700-HK) and Microsoft (MSFT).

Yahoo is especially powerful in the growing area of mobile advertising, where it will generate an estimated $1.33 billion this year. Slight growth is still expected in 2017, though with the company having a smaller market share. It is projected to hit $3 billion in global revenue next year, $1.55 billion of which will be attributable to mobile.

For comparison, Verizon will only bring home $1.41 billion in digital ad revenue or 0.7 percent of the digital ad market in 2016, even with AOL factored in .

It's difficult to build a digital advertising business from scratch, so other companies will be interested in acquiring Yahoo if Verizon does back out, Kessler said. However, he pointed out that Verizon has the most knowledge on how to integrate a company of Yahoo's size into its existing technology, given its experience with the AOL acquisition.

But, some companies may want to shy away from the concerns Yahoo is now tarnished with, Forrester's Pollard said. It's more likely a private equity firm would step in if Verizon backs out, with the intention of selling it again a few years down the road, he contended.

"I don't think anyone wants to make an acquisition with brand loyalty and legal liability issues," he said.
Maiduguri (Nigeria) (AFP) - Ali Bukar didn't know anyone when he arrived in Maiduguri with 43 people in tow and not a coin in his pocket.

Bukar was fleeing the brutal killings of civilians by the Boko Haram Islamists in northeast Nigeria -- along with his wives, his sons, their wives and grandchildren.

They slept in a parking lot "until a man took pity on us," he said.

Around one million people have flooded the capital of Borno state seeking to escape the insurgency that Boko Haram has waged since 2009.

The camps set up for displaced people are not sufficient, so many residents of Maiduguri have opened their doors to these victims of conflict.

But now years later the refugees still cannot return to their home villages, and struggling city residents are starting to blame the influx for problems in the community.

Between 70 to 90 percent of the displaced in Maiduguri have relied on the compassion of the local people to survive.

Bukar and his family have never stayed at a camp. A local merchant had welcomed them to his home and fed them for a year, the scar-faced old man told AFP.

But then they had to leave because the financial burden became too much, Bukar said.

Today the family is living in a so-called "hosting community", one of hundreds of such private places where refugees are sheltered around the city.

"I couldn't just sit there and watch people die of hunger, I had to help them," said Baba Kura Al-Kahi, the boss of these hosting communities, a local businessman who made his fortune in real estate and in 2013 turned over some land he owned to the displaced.

- Boko Haram epicentre -

Today many refugees are squatters on construction sites, in schools, in public housing, while thousands of others are taken in by relatives or members of their ethnic group, often Kanuri or Hausa.

Neighbours have organised aid, growing food for the most needy, bringing them clothes and sheets and cooking utensils.

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But "resources are overstretched, especially with regards to water and sanitation, with regards to hospital facilities, with regards to even food security issues," the Borno state governor, Kashim Shettima, told AFP.

Still Maiduguri, after years of being under siege, has a semblance of normal life compared with the devastated hinterland.

The city's ceasefire has been pushed back four hours to 10:00 pm. Soldiers and checkpoints are less noticeable and merchants and passers-by have returned to the centre city's sidewalks. The schools, which were closed for two years, reopened last month.

Over the past year, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari's government has made repeated announcements that Boko Haram is close to being defeated, and Shettima considers the battle "over" and predicts that hundreds of thousands of displaced people will have returned to their homes by May

But this is the cradle of Boko Haram Islamists and they have not disappeared.

Just last weekend, a new suicide bombing hit Maiduguri's busy market, killing one person and injuring 18 others. The two bombers were girls thought to be only seven or eight years old, a hallmark of the jihadist group which often uses women or girls in such operations -- especially in Borno state -- the epicentre of their insurgency.

- Begging and prostitution -

And the economy of the region has been ravaged by war. Unemployment is sky high at around 35 percent or more, according to the Borno governor. In the streets of Maiduguri the number of beggars in rags who bang on the windshields of the cars stopped at red lights has mushroomed.

The city's ills are now being blamed on the refugees, these waves of people who have flooded Maiduguri and doubled its population since the Boko Haram revolt began. The insurgency has left more than 20,000 people dead and 2.6 million displaced in northern Nigeria.

The governor says the displaced camps "are the source of many problems", including networks for prostitution and drug trafficking.

"The residents helped as much as they could but now they are more and more critical." a journalist in Maiduguri who requested anonymity told AFP.

"The people are afraid of the crime and epidemics that can arise,"

Yannick Pouchalan, director of Action against Hunger in Nigeria, says "it is clear that Maiduguri cannot offer a decent life to all these people,"

Yet compared to the villages, the refugees, especially the youth, find the city has more to offer.

"If you are 15, and you can take advantage of the security, the services of a big city and have access to the internet... you're surely not going to go back home to your village," Pouchalan says.
By Suleiman Al-Khalidi

| AMMAN

AMMAN A senior Syrian rebel blamed Iran and its Shi'ite militias on Saturday of holding up the evacuation of civilians trapped in the remaining rebel bastion in Aleppo and urged Russia to live up to its commitment to implement the deal. Munir al Sayal, the head of the political wing of the Ahrar al Sham rebel group involved in negotiations over the deal, said Iran was insisting people be allowed to leave two besieged Shi'ite villages before letting the Aleppo evacuation happen. He said Russia was failing to restrain its ally."Iran and its sectarian proxies are using the humanitarian situation of our people in besieged Aleppo and preventing civilians from leaving until the evacuation of their groups in al-Foua and Kefyra," Sayal told Reuters in a telephone interview.The operation to evacuate fighters and civilians from the last opposition-held area of Aleppo was suspended on Friday, its second day, after pro-government militias demanded that wounded people also be brought out of al-Foua and Kefraya, and protesters blocked the road out of Aleppo.Sayal said Iranian-backed Shi'ite fighters led by Lebanon's powerful Hezbollah militia and other Iraqi Shi'ite groups were behind the detention of hundreds of people trying to leave on Friday, leading to some deaths before they were turned back, in an effort to disrupt the evacuation.

Numerous rebels and east Aleppo residents shared reports and videos of people fleeing the sound of shooting, being detained and returning home badly beaten and robbed of their possessions near a checkpoint as they tried to leave the city on Friday."These sectarian militias are responsible but we warn them the safety of our people in Aleppo is the priority and all options are open towards achieving that goal," said Sayal, whose armed group has a countrywide presence and is particularly active in northwestern Syria.The Iranian-backed Shi'ite militias have played a leading role in the siege of rebel-held Aleppo and in the Syrian army's retaking of near full control of the city.

A picture of Iranian Revolutionary Guard commander Qassem Soleimani in a war-torn street in Aleppo was circulating on social media on Saturday by supporters. Reuters could not verify the authenticity of the photo.Sayal said Moscow's assertion that most civilians had already been evacuated from Aleppo showed Russia was trying to renege on its responsibilities under the deal. Thousands of hungry and cold civilians needed to be evacuated as soon as possible, he said.

The agreement to evacuate the civilians and fighters was reached mainly between Russia, whose aerial bombing of Aleppo played a critical role in the defeat of the insurgents, and Turkey, which backs the mainstream rebels, acting as a go-between for the main insurgent groups. "Russia has failed to restrain the sectarian Shi'ite militias in Aleppo to complete the deal and Moscow should abide by its commitments," Sayal said."There are still civilians in Aleppo who need to be evacuated in harsh weather conditions and Russian statements that besieged Aleppo is empty is absolving itself from following up on the agreement," he added. (Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Making a Murderer: See how the documentary impacted the lives of Avery, Dassey, their families and their legal teams.

Steven Avery

Since the documentarys debut, Avery hired Kathleen Zellner, a lawyer who specializes in wrongful convictions. She filed a motion in August to retest evidence in the case and has been keeping fans up to date with any progress pertaining to it.

Averys fame due to Making a Murderer also attracted a gold digger, according to Avery. In October, it was announced he was engaged to a woman named Lynn Hartman (note: hes still in prison) but later found out she was in this relationship for money and publicity, his former fiancee Sandra Greenman wrote on Facebook.

The Avery Family

Carla Chase, Averys niece and spokesperson for the Avery family, tells TheWrap: The family never expected how the documentary would go world wide & how it has affected everyone. The support is great. I can only speak for myself on how it has changed my life, even tho it has changed all our lives with the outpouring of support.

She is one of the admins of the Steven Avery & Brendan Dassey Project, a family discussion Facebook page which has over 21,000 members.

Brendan Dassey

Since the documentarys debut, Dasseys life admittedly changed the most. His conviction was overturned in August (which the state appealed), and then news broke that Dassey would be released. However, the Wisconsin DOJ filed an emergency motion to keep Dassey in prison.

Len Kachinsky

Fans of the Netflix show Making a Murderer havent held their tongues in criticizing Brendan Dasseys lawyer, Len Kachinsky, and his strategies during the juveniles initial defense, but the public defender still insists nothing he did had any effect on the outcome of Dasseys case.

Frankly, Im not responsible for Dassey going to prison, Kachinsky, who is no longer involved with the case, told TheWrap. You can say I made a mistake, that I shouldve [attended] or I should have rescheduled the interview  thats valid criticism.

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Kachinsky declined to comment for this story.

Ken Kratz

Following the debut of the series, Averys prosecutor Ken Kratz was bashed on Yelp to warn potential new clients checking his law practices Yelp page against hiring him.

Mr. Kratz is a seasoned sexual harasser, with deep knowledge of abuse victims which he took advantage of. He has a long experience in evidence fabrication, and has the required strategic thought skills to send innocent men to jail for forged crimes, one man wrote in a Yelp review.

Kratz also told Dr. Drew that he had suicidal thoughts after this whole thing kind of blew up, referring to the Avery Case and an Associated Press report exposing racy texts he sent to a 25-year-old woman while Kratz was prosecuting her ex-boyfriend.

Kratz also published a tell-all book chronicling the Avery case and its depiction in Making a Murderer.

Kratz did not respond to TheWraps request for comment for this story.

Manitowoc Police Department

In Making a Murderer, the Manitowoc Police Department is over heavy scrutiny, with many alleging that its officers framed Avery for the murder.

Since the series debut, there were protests in front of the police department, and a bomb threat was called into the office in February. Authorities said that the caller claimed there were bombs in the building and that he was getting justice for Steven Avery. The area was deemed clear, but a second call was made 20 minutes later  but no devices were found either.

A spokesperson for the Manitowoc Police Department has not yet responded to TheWraps request for comment.

Netflix

Making a Murderer was a success for Netflix  In July, the streaming platform announced additional episodes which will chronicle Avery and Dasseys respective investigative and legal teams challenging their convictions.

Netflix has not yet responded to TheWraps request for comment.
BAMAKO (Reuters) - Mali's national assembly has overwhelmingly voted to drop charges of high treason against former president Amadou Toumani Toure in a decision that should allow him to return from exile in Senegal. The move late on Friday was expected given that President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita often praises Toure. It advances the rehabilitation of a former leader widely seen as having helped to establish democracy in the West African country. "I confirm the abandonment of the charges against him was adopted by the majority of deputies," said Mamadou Diarrassouba of the ruling RPM party on Saturday. Toure has not made clear whether he intends to play any further role in Mali's politics. Colonel Toure came to power in a revolution in 1991 and presided over a rapid transition before handing power to President Alpha Oumar Konare a year later after the country's first multi-party election. Konare promoted him to the rank of general but he resigned from the army and won elections in 2002 and 2007. He was deposed shortly before he was due to leave power in 2012 at a time when separatists and Islamist militants seized the country's north. French forces drove the separatists and militants back a year later but militants have since reorganized and launched dozens of attacks in recent months. The then-government charged Toure with high treason in 2013 for letting armed groups into the country, destroying military equipment and making dubious promotions. (Reporting by Tiemoko Diallo; Writing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg; Editing by Dale Hudson)
DALLAS, TX / ACCESSWIRE / December 17, 2016 / Since founding Western Rim Property Services, Marcus Hiles has singlehandedly changed the Texas housing market by offering luxurious rentals in highly desirable locations his company's homes, townhomes and apartments boast unmatched premium conveniences at a remarkable value. While the excitement of city living may continue to lure house hunters to consider higher-priced options with less modern comforts in the state's urban areas, the spacious interiors, resort-like luxuries and on-site green spaces found in all of Hiles' communities make a convincing and attractive argument for moving a bit farther from the nearest metropolitan area's downtown.

Marcus Hiles' suburban properties are highly desirable due to a host of aspects extending beyond mere cost: the neighborhoods provide an elevated lifestyle thanks to chic, contemporary design and unrivaled communal facilities. Located just outside of Houston at the Estates Woodland in Magnolia, elevator-accessible homes contain spacious 9-to-10-foot ceilings, expansive windows for natural light, and attractive hanging pendant lights. Gourmet chef kitchens come complete with extra large walk-in pantries, elegant, under-lit cabinets and sophisticated, energy-efficient Whirlpool ENERGY STAR appliances. At the Mansions 3Eighty in the Dallas satellite city of Little Elm, tenants have 24-7 access to a fully equipped, state-of-the-art fitness center with an on-hand expert personal trainer; outside, a welcoming infinity-edge, Olympic-sized swimming pool near the clubhouse is complemented by a series of lavish private cabanas and a professional tanning deck. Within a short drive of Austin in the Mansions at Stone Hill development in Pflugerville, ample alternatives abound for professionals called away from the office and requiring necessary services: a business center outfitted with free Mac and PC computer access, an outdoor Wi-Fi lounge and even a dedicated Starbucks Wi-Fi cafe.

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https://www.crunchbase.com/person/marcus-hiles

In addition to the privileged living experience, Marcus Hiles affords the residents of his properties, nearby employment opportunities and excellent school districts are important factors swaying working class Texans toward an upscale suburban life. Corporate relocations to outlying sections of the Lone Star state's cities have helped generate jobs, with more than 400,000 created during the last two years in the Dallas metroplex alone; with these sweeping changes, career growth has been greater in the suburbs, with new hires enjoying shorter and easier commutes. These same areas where Western Rim chose to establish their lavish neighborhoods are regarded for the exceptional quality of their public school systems as well; and as research has shown, the better educated a city, the higher the income. A brief look at the numbers comparing college graduates of the Frisco population (41 percent) versus Dallas (18 percent) also reveals an average household earning of $131,291 for the former and $72,625 for the latter.

Marcus Hiles is an esteemed real estate investment authority and philanthropist who has spent more than three decades as CEO of Western Rim Property Services. His development projects have included upmarket communities across Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin, Houston, New Braunfels and San Antonio. A graduate of Pepperdine and Rice Universities, his deep commitment to education and after school programs has inspired him to donate more $2.5 million to public and private K-12 initiatives, including a recent donation of 200 new computers to underprivileged inner city children.

Marcus Hiles - Chairman & CEO of Western Rim Property Services: http://www.MarcusHiles-News.com

Western Rim Property Services- Marcus Hiles - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Western-Rim-Property-Services-Marcus-Hiles-1013270532051763/

Marcus Hiles (@marcus_hiles) - Twitter: https://twitter.com/marcus_hiles

Marcus Hiles - New Luxury Apartments in Frisco, TX - YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmsJNbfOh-g

Contact Information:

MarcusHiles-News.com

marcus@marcushiles-news.com

SOURCE: Marcus Hiles
The Miami Marlins struck out on adding an elite closer to the their bullpen this offseason, but have reportedly struck a deal with an appealing consolation prize in veteran Brad Ziegler.

According to Ken Rosenthal FOX Sports, Miami reached a two-year, $16M deal with the 37-year-old side-armer on Friday. The agreement reportedly includes performance incentives, but wont be finalized until the veteran takes a physical.

The Marlins have now added two key relievers in a span of 24 hours. On Thursday, they signed right-hander Junichi Tazawa to a two-year, $12 million contract. Both Ziegler and Tazawa finished the 2016 season with the Boston Red Sox, who have also lost Koji Uehara in free agency.

The Marlins pursuit of bullpen help has been no secret this offseason. They made aggressive offers to both Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Jansen, with reports indicating they actually offered Jansen more than the Dodgers. Jansen ended up opting for comfort and familiarity, while Chapman received a record contract for a reliever from the Yankees.

To the Marlins credit, theyve rebounded from those perceived setbacks impressively and could actually end up with a deeper bullpen as a result. Investing what was required to sign either Jansen or Chapman would have taken a significant chunk of their payroll. Now theyve been able to spread that money around and pay two respected relievers who can fill their needs.

Brad Ziegler is headed to the Marlins. (Getty Images)

With that in mind, the Marlins still probably lack an ideal closer on the roster. Ziegler has enjoyed success in that role, recording 85 saves across nine big-league seasons. That includes a career-high 30 for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2015. But his delivery tends to be more effective against right-handed hitters, which would ideally position him as a specialist.

Given the Marlins options right now, Ziegler figures to be the leader for save chances regardless of the matchups. Tazawa, A.J. Ramos, Kyle Barraclough and David Phelps could mix in as well. If they have enough flexibility to add a power arm though, their bullpen could set up quite well without the splashy signing or loss of draft pick compensation.

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More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports:

      

Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
ANKARA (Reuters) - The materials used in a car bomb attack on a bus carrying off-duty military personnel in the central Turkish city of Kayseri on Saturday were similar to those used in a twin bombing last week in Istanbul, Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said. Kurtulmus made the comment in an interview with broadcaster NTV. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which killed 13 and wounded 55, but President Tayyip Erdogan has blamed Kurdish militants for it. (Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; writing by David Dolan; editing by Jason Neely)
MEXICO CITY (AP)  A Mexican journalist released documents Saturday from an internal affairs investigation that criticizes the government's handling of the case of 43 missing students who prosecutors claim were incinerated by a drug gang in 2014.

The documents are from an August investigation by the internal affairs division of the Attorney General's Office.

The documents released by Anabel Hernandez say that the arrests of about a half-dozen key suspects were illegally carried out.

Some of the suspects had their rights violated, and many "spontaneously confessed" in suspiciously similar language of participating in killing the students, burning their bodies or disposing of them remains.

Those suspects gave some of the first testimony about the garbage dump and river where the students were supposedly burned, and the charred fragments of their bodies were dumped.

A DNA match between one of those fragments and one of the students, and a partial match to another, represent almost the only physical evidence of the students' fate.

The Attorney General's Office has said the documents do not represent a formal, finished investigation and lack official validity. The investigator who prepared the report has since reportedly resigned.

Prosecutors' behavior in examining suspects, the crime scene and the handling the evidence had previously been questioned by a panel of international experts.

The Associated Press and other media outlets had previously reported claims by some of the suspects that they had been tortured by police or military personnel.

Should the case against the suspects fall apart because of prosecutorial misconduct, it would represent a major setback for authorities in one of the most highly-publicized cases of drug war violence in Mexico's recent history.

Authorities have said the students had hijacked buses in the southern Mexico city of Iguala in late September 2014 when they were intercepted by local police.

The police, allegedly working in alliance the Guerreros Unidos drug, turned the students over to gang members who allegedly killed and incinerated them. Experts have questioned whether so many bodies could have been burned at the dump.
Updated: Michael Sheen clarified an article that ran in the U.K. paper The Times that said he was going to leave Hollywood in order to pursue full-time activism.

Before this gets ridiculous I said Im thinking I might start acting less and maybe even stop for a while at some point but dont know yet, Sheen tweeted on Saturday afternoon.

He continued to explain his situation on tumblr, writing that he told the interviewer that he has become more involved with community issues back at home, but did not say that he would stop acting.

Original: In the same way as the Nazis had to be stopped in Germany in the Thirties, this thing that is on the rise has to be stopped, Sheen told the U.K. paper The Times.

Sheen is the star of Masters of Sex, which Showtime did not renew for a fifth season, meaning its final episode aired on Nov. 13. He also stars in Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratts sci-fi film Passengers which opens on Dec. 21. The actor also has two film currently in post-production  Home Again, starring Reese Witherspoon and Mike Whites film Brads Status.

Its not going to look like this in ten years time, Sheen told The Times. Everything has shifted. The dice are being rolled again.

Sheen said his involvement with the National Theatre of Waless production of The Passion in 2011, which involved more than 1,000 local volunteers, sparked his increasing role in activism.

Sheen is known as a successful stage actor, but also for his film roles in Frost/Nixon, Midnight in Paris and the Twilight saga. He was nominated for a Golden Globe for Masters of Sex and an Emmy for his portrayal of Tony Blair in 2010s The Special Relationship.

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DUBAI Iran has requested a meeting of a commission overseeing the implementation of its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, Iranian state media reported on Saturday, in response to what Tehran calls a U.S. violation of the agreement.Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif asked for the meeting in a letter to European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, Iran's official news agency IRNA said.The White House said on Thursday that a bill extending U.S. sanctions against Iran for 10 years will become law without President Barack Obama's signature, but added that it would not affect implementation of the international accord limiting Iran's nuclear programme.

In response to the U.S. sanctions move, Iran ordered its scientists on Tuesday to start developing systems for nuclear-powered marine vessels.

That action is expected to worsen tensions with Washington, already heightened by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's vow to scrap the deal under which Iran curbed its nuclear fuel production activities in exchange for relief from economic sanctions.

(Reporting by Dubai newsroom; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Showtime

Actor Michael Sheen announced he is taking a break from acting to become a full-time activist. The Frost/Nixon star said he wants to start grassroots organizations that will go toe-to-toe with emerging far-right populism groups in the U.K.

Now that Masters of Sex has departed this earth, Sheen has some extra time on his hands. But the actor is leaving at the height of his career in order to take on issues he holds close. Sheen told The Times UK the rise of far-right populism in England, mixed with Brexit and Donald Trumps ascension to the presidency were a number of reasons why he is leaving Hollywood behind:

In the same way as the Nazis had to be stopped in Germany in the Thirties, this thing that is on the rise has to be stopped, Sheen said. Its not going to look like this in 10 years time. Everything has shifted. The dice are being rolled again.

Sheen said he will be heading back to Port Talbot in south wales where he will be organizing some grassroots activism groups. He went on to say the switch in careers could affect his future in Hollywood, not to mention his relationship with Sarah Silverman, but is ready for the road ahead:

It will be a big change for how people relate to me, Sheen said. Once Im in, Im fully in, and this is big. As soon as you start to be effective, then people try to crush you, because its dangerous.

Its a major leap for an actor to take, but it will be fascinating to see how his activism efforts will turn out and if he ever returns to Hollywood.

(Via The Times & Rolling Stone)
Actor Michael Sheen is leaving Hollywood. The actor told U.K. paper The Times that he's giving up his full-time acting career to fight against the "hard populist right."

"In the same way as the Nazis had to be stopped in Germany in the Thirties, this thing that is on the rise has to be stopped," said Sheen.

The Masters of Sex star interviewed with The Times while currently promoting his new film Passengers in which he appears alongside the film's stars Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt.

Sheen also said that the recent U.K. Brexit vote and Donald Trump winning the U.S. presidential election sparked a "massive urgency" to commit himself to opposing demagogues and fascists by moving from Los Angeles back to his hometown of Port Talbot, Wales. Port Talbot voted for the Brexit in June which left the actor "sad and frustrated" and wanting to make a difference.

"It's not going to look like this in ten years' time," he said. "Everything has shifted. The dice are being rolled again."

Sheen said he developed an increasing role in activism after connecting with community organizations while participating in street performances with over 1,000 volunteers as part of the National Theatre Wales's production of The Passion in Port Talbot, Wales in 2011.

He said he's not signed up for any future acting projects and was unsure if his relationship with comedian Sarah Silverman, who is based in L.A., would last overseas or not.

"It will be a big change for how people relate to me," said Sheen on the career switch-up. "Once I'm in, I'm fully in, and this is big. As soon as you start to be effective, then people try to crush you, because it's dangerous."
Actor Michael Sheen is leaving Hollywood. The actor told U.K. paper The Times that he's quitting full-time acting career to fight against the "hard populist right."

"In the same way as the Nazis had to be stopped in Germany in the Thirties, this thing that is on the rise has to be stopped," said Sheen.

The Masters of Sex star interviewed with The Times while currently promoting his new film Passengers in which he appears alongside the film's stars Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt.

Sheen also said that the recent U.K. Brexit vote and Donald Trump winning the U.S. presidential election sparked a "massive urgency" to commit himself to opposing demagogues and fascists by moving from Los Angeles back to his hometown of Port Talbot, Wales. Port Talbot voted for the Brexit in June which left the actor "sad and frustrated" and wanting to make a difference.

"It's not going to look like this in ten years' time," he said. "Everything has shifted. The dice are being rolled again."

Sheen said he developed an increasing role in activism after connecting with community organizations while participating in street performances with over 1,000 volunteers as part of the National Theatre Wales's production of The Passion in Port Talbot, Wales in 2011.

He said he's not signed up for any future acting projects and was unsure if his relationship with comedian Sarah Silverman, who is based in L.A., would last overseas or not.

"It will be a big change for how people relate to me," said Sheen on the career switch-up. "Once I'm in, I'm fully in, and this is big. As soon as you start to be effective, then people try to crush you, because it's dangerous."

Read more: Alec Baldwin Teases Return of Trump Character on This Week's 'SNL'
First Lady Michelle Obama said that she is feeling what not having hope feels like since Donald Trump won the presidential election.

The First Lady sat down with Oprah Winfrey for an interview that will air on Monday but was previewed on CBS This Morning.

We feel the difference now. See, now, we are feeling what not having hope feels like, Obama said. Hope is necessary. Its a necessary concept, and Barack didnt just talk about hope because he thought it was just a nice slogan to get votes. He and I and so many believe that. What else do you have if you dont have hope?

Also Read: Reporter Gets Sick During President Obama Press Conference (Video)

Now we're feeling what not having hope feels like Hope is necessary.  First Lady @MichelleObama tells @Oprah pic.twitter.com/u6m7euFs3R  CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) December 16, 2016

Winfrey asked the First Lady if she thinks her husbands administration had achieved his promise of hope for Americans.

Yes. I do, the First Lady said. I feel like Barack has been that for the nation, in ways that people will come to appreciate. Having a grownup in the White House who can say to you in times of crisis and turmoil, Hey its going to be OK.

The full interview will air on CBS Monday at 8 p.m. ET and again on OWN on Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET.

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By Fayaz Bukhari SRINAGAR, India (Reuters) - Militants attacked an Indian army convoy in Kashmir on Saturday, killing three soldiers, a defense spokesman said, in the latest in an uptick of violence in the disputed region at the heart of tensions with rival Pakistan. The men were ambushed on the outskirts of Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir state where Indian forces have been battling an armed revolt since 1989. This year, after years of decline, militant violence has increased in Kashmir, deepening a chill in ties with Pakistan whom India blames for stoking and keeping the revolt alive by sending fighters and materiel across the de factor border. Pakistan denies the allegation and says New Delhi must agree to talks to resolve the future of Kashmir. Soldiers have launched a search operation to hunt the militants behind Saturday's attack, the defense spokesman said. Last month, militants stormed an army base near Jammu, killing seven soldiers. "A bad year in terms of security force casualties just got worse," Omar Abdullah, the leader of the main opposition group in Jammu and Kashmir, said in a Twitter post following the latest attack. (Writing by Sanjeev Miglani; editing by Jason Neely)
(Reuters) - Manager David Moyes said he might not have taken the job to manage Sunderland if he had known the club could be put up for sale and will have limited funds to invest in the squad. Owner Ellis Short, who bought Sunderland in 2008, is willing to sell the club for 170 million pounds ($212.4 million), according to British media reports. Moyes was tasked with pulling Sunderland out of a vicious cycle of Premier League relegation battles but has so far struggled to do so. The club remain rooted to the bottom of the table, four points from safety after 16 games. Chief executive Martin Bain recently said that Sunderland will be unable to significantly strengthen in January and Moyes needs to rely primarily on the playing resources available. [nL4N1E92KN] "I did not know the club could be going up for sale. I was not made aware of that before. So that would probably be what I would say the difficultly is," Moyes told British media. "I would have had to have thought a lot more about taking the job if I had known. Sunderland always had an appeal to me, but if I had known about the situation, I would have needed to look at it in a different way. "I find that difficult because I have come here to improve the club. I don't want to be here and be a team at the bottom." Sunderland, looking for the win that could take them off the bottom of the table when they host 11th-placed Watford on Saturday, have also been hampered by injury blows with Jan Kirchhoff being the latest to have suffered a cartilage tear. He is their fifth midfielder now out of action. "I didn't see us having no money. Even in the summer, I knew what we were spending was small in comparison (to others) -- and I said that to the owner, I said our spending was small," Moyes said. "But I hoped it would be a short period and we would then have the next period (January) to get things done. That has shown itself not to be the case. "I'm disappointed that I will not be able to do some work in January and try and build on what we've done." ($1 = 0.8004 pounds) (Reporting by Shravanth Vijayakumar in Bengaluru; editing by Sudipto Ganguly)
By Aaron Ross

| KINSHASA

KINSHASA Talks in Democratic Republic of Congo on Saturday between the ruling coalition and the opposition failed to reach a compromise on the political future of President Joseph Kabila, who is set to stay in power when his mandate ends on Monday.Delegates said the talks will resume on Wednesday once the Catholic bishops mediating the negotiations have returned from a trip to Rome to meet the pope. The opposition wants elections next year and for Kabila to pledge he will step down after nearly 16 years in power and not stand for a third term, which would breach Congo's constitution. The government says it cannot organise a presidential vote until 2018, however, and the constitutional court ruled in May he can stay on until the election.The capital Kinshasa is on edge ahead of planned protests against what opponents say is a bid by Kabila to cling to power. The presidents of neighbouring Rwanda and Congo Republic both changed their constitutions last year to allow themselves to stand for third terms.It was not immediately clear what impact Saturday's announcement would have, particularly given the limited popular appeal of opposition politicians, many of whom have cycled in and out of power over the decades.

Felix Tshisekedi, an opposition leader, wrote on Twitter: "The discussions have failed. Congolese people, the ball is in your court! We have reached the end of our efforts."But another opposition leader, Joseph Olengankhoy, was more circumspect, telling Reuters the talks had made "significant progress" but that more work remained to be done.

The opposition delegation at the talks pushed for the presidential election to take place next year but offered mixed signals about who would govern the country in the interim. Government spokesman Lambert Mende told Reuters on Saturday he was confident the two sides would reach a compromise after the bishops met in recent days with Kabila and the main opposition leader, Etienne Tshisekedi. The bishops said in a statement they "are happy to see that we are capable of producing a large consensus on the questions that divide us even if such a process might take time".

Mende said authorities had taken measures to prevent violence on Monday. Police in Kinshasa have set up checkpoints to search cars and the government has asked telecoms companies to cut most social media services from Monday.Congo has not seen a peaceful transfer of power since independence in 1960 and world powers fear protests could spark violence in the chronically unstable central African giant. (Reporting by Aaron Ross; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg and Catherine Evans)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
YANGON, Myanmar (AP)  Myanmar government forces have started launching attacks on the headquarters of the military wing of one of the country's ethnic rebel groups, the group said Saturday.

Tang San, a battalion commander for the Kachin Independence Army, said government forces have been using "fighter jets and heavy weapons continuously" on the headquarters in northeastern Mynamar since early Friday.

Ethnic rebel groups in the northeast have been waging attacks on government forces since last month. They have said that the attacks are in response to military pressure, but that they are still interested in peace talks to try to end decades of fighting between the government and ethnic minority groups.

Lamai Gum Ja, a member of the Peace Talk Creation Group, a committee of businessmen and community leaders from Kachin state involved in the peace process, said there have been reports of casualties on both sides from the military's most recent attacks, though the numbers are unclear.

He also said his group has written letters to the country's leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, but has not heard back from her. "She has been quiet about it, but the fighting is getting more and more serious," he said.

Khin Maung Myint, a lower house member of parliament from a constituency in Kachin, said that the military is doing whatever it wants. "The military doesn't want to change," he said.

Government officials were not immediately available for comment.
An otherworldly noise that was recorded near the Mariana Trench could be a never-before-heard whale call.

Dubbed the "Western Pacific Biotwang," this newly discovered call might be from a minke whale  a type of baleen whale  according to the researchers who documented the vocalization.

Regardless of what species it is, this whale has range: The call includes sounds that span frequencies that reach as low as 38 hertz and as high as 8,000 hertz. Humans can hear sounds between 20 and 20,000 Hz. [Listen to the New Whale Call from the Mariana Trench]

"It's very distinct, with all these crazy parts," Sharon Nieukirk, senior faculty research assistant in marine bioacoustics at Oregon State University, said in a statement. "The low-frequency moaning part is typical of baleen whales, and it's that kind of twangy sound that makes it really unique. We don't find many new baleen whale calls."

A minke whale in the Southern Ocean. NOAA

The call was recorded with autonomous seafaring robots, known as "passive acoustic ocean gliders," which can dive up to 3,280 feet (1,000 meters) below the surface. Scientists can send these devices out on solo missions to eavesdrop on whale conversations. Nieukirk and her colleagues collected their acoustic data in the fall of 2014 and the spring of 2015, in an area in the Pacific Ocean east of Guam around the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of the ocean. [Video: Take a Tour of the Mariana Trench]

The twangy, five-part call, which lasts up to 3.5 seconds, was recorded regularly during both the fall and spring. The researchers hope that other scientists will identify the call in other data sets so that they can confirm the source. But in their description of the whale call in the Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, Nieukirk and her colleagues wrote that they suspect a minke whale is responsible for the new call.

Because of the call's complex structure, frequencies and metallic-sounding conclusion, the researchers think that it most closely resembles the regionally specific calls that are produced by a group of dwarf minke whales off the northeast coast of Australia. (Those calls sound a bit like "Star Wars" sound effects.) They added that there are several types of minke whales in the survey area, but not much is known about their behavior  especially their vocal behavior.

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"We don't really know that much about minke whale distribution at low latitudes," Nieukirk said. "The species is the smallest of the baleen whales, doesn't spend much time at the surface, has an inconspicuous blow, and often lives in areas where high seas make sighting difficult. But they call frequently, making them good candidates for acoustic studies."

The call still needs to be translated. Most baleen whales use specific vocalizations for seasonal breeding and feeding, but this call  since it seems to occur all year  may have a complex function, the researchers said.

"If it's a mating call, why are we getting it year-round? That's a mystery," Nieukirk said. "We need to determine how often the call occurs in summer versus winter, and how widely this call is really distributed."

It wouldn't be the first time minke whales have puzzled scientists with their calls. In 2014, scientists solved a 50-year-old mystery when they figured out that the so-called "bio-duck" sound that was often recorded in the Southern Ocean was being produced by Antarctic minke whales.

Original article on Live Science.

Editor's Recommendations
NASA will celebrate the life and legacy of pioneering astronaut John Glenn with a memorial service at Ohio State University today (Dec. 17), and space agency officials will provide a live webcast of the service for the public.

Ohio State University in Columbus will host the memorial service for Glenn, who died on Dec. 8 at age 95. The service, entitiled "John Glenn: Celebrating a Life of Service," will begin at 2 p.m. EST (1900 GMT) and will be streamed live on NASA TV. You can also watch the webcast here, courtesy of NASA TV.

"One of NASA's original seven Mercury astronauts, Glenn, who died Dec. 8, also served 24 years in the U.S. Marine Corps and four terms as a U.S. senator from Ohio," NASA officials wrote in a statement. "His flight on Friendship 7 on Feb. 20, 1962, showed the world that America was a serious contender in the space race with the Soviet Union. It also made Glenn an instant hero." [John Glenn: An American Hero's Greatest Moments]

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden "will pay tribute to Glenns early contributions to human spaceflight and enduring legacy" during the program, NASA officials added.

You can see NASA's full tribute to John Glenn at the agency's dedicated tribute website here: https://www.nasa.gov/content/profile-of-john-glenn.

Email Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com or follow him @tariqjmalik and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

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BALTIMORE, MD / ACCESSWIRE / December 17, 2016 / NFM Lending is proud to announce that it was named a Top Workplace in the Baltimore area by The Baltimore Sun. This is the fifth year in a row that NFM Lending has received this honor.

Each year, The Baltimore Sun distributes a survey to employees of Baltimore area workplaces. The survey analyzes the job satisfaction and engagement of the employees along with the values and organizational health of the company.

"It inspires me that we are able to consistently remain on this list," said Bob Tyson, COO/CAO. "I view this as a true testament to the culture we work so hard to grow and nourish every day."

NFM Lending prides itself on its exceptional culture. The company's executive team has an open door policy, which allows a clear line of communication between management and staff. Employees are encouraged to voice their questions and concerns directly to management so that they can be addressed promptly and correctly. Managers often surprise staff members for their birthdays, and the company holds contests, holiday celebrations, health fairs, and other initiatives to show employees their appreciation.

In addition to this most recent award, NFM Lending has been recognized many times for its exceptional company culture. In 2016, it was named one of the Washington Post's Top Work Places in the Washington, D.C. area for the second year in a row, a Top Mortgage Employer by National Mortgage Professional Magazine, and one of Mortgage Executive Magazine's Top 50 Best Companies to Work For for the second year in a row. NFM Lending is proud of each member of its team and the work they do to make NFM a Top Workplace.

About NFM Lending

NFM Lending is a mortgage lending company currently licensed in 29 states in the U.S. The company was founded in Baltimore, Maryland in 1998. They attribute their success in the mortgage industry to their steadfast commitment to customers and the community. NFM Lending has firmly planted itself in the home loan marketplace as "America's Common Sense Residential Mortgage Lender." For more information about NFM Lending, visit www.nfmlending.com, like our Facebook page, or follow us on Twitter.

SOURCE: NFM Lending via Submit Press Release 123
New York (AFP) - Industrial rockers Nine Inch Nails announced their first release in three years -- an EP that frontman Trent Reznor described as "impenetrable."

Reznor, who last year promised new Nine Inch Nails music within 2016, made good on his word with days to go and said that the five-song EP, "Not the Actual Events," would come out December 23.

"It's an unfriendly, fairly impenetrable record that we needed to make," Reznor said in a statement.

"It's an EP because that ended up being the proper length to tell that story."

Reznor did not further characterize the sound but said that it marked a departure from his recent material.

Since the last Nine Inch Nails album, 2013's "Hesitation Marks," Reznor has pursued various side projects with a more ambient sound.

His recent music has included work on soundtracks including to the new film "Before the Flood," a documentary on climate change led by Leonardo DiCaprio.

Reznor created Nine Inch Nails in the late 1980s as he was working as a janitor at a Cleveland recording studio and quickly won both an underground and mainstream audience.

With albums such as 1994's "The Downward Spiral," Nine Inch Nails pioneered a brand of industrial rock rooted in post-punk but guided by electronic elements and Reznor's searing voice of despair.

Reznor said that the new EP would mark the arrival of British sound engineer Atticus Ross as a full-fledged member of Nine Inch Nails.

Ross has been a longtime collaborator of Reznor, working with him on the Oscar-winning score to the 2010 Facebook drama "The Social Network" and the Grammy-winning music to dark thriller "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo."

Nine Inch Nails also announced that the band was remastering all of its major albums for vinyl editions to be released starting in 2017.

Reznor said the effort required "an insane attention to detail that you probably won't notice," but that he hoped to create definitive versions of the albums.
By Roberta Rampton and Jeff Mason

| WASHINGTON

WASHINGTON President Barack Obama said on Friday it was fine for President-elect Donald Trump to review Washington's "one-China" policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the U.S. relationship with Beijing."For China, the issue of Taiwan is as important as anything on their docket," Obama said at a news conference. "The idea of one China is at the heart of their conception as a nation and so if you are going to upend this understanding, you have to have thought through what ... the consequences are."China lodged a diplomatic protest earlier this month after Trump, a Republican, spoke by phone with President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan. The 10-minute telephone call was the first of its kind by a U.S. president-elect or president since President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of "one China".Obama noted that, under the decades-old policy, China had recognised Taiwan was its own entity that did things its own way, while Taiwan had agreed that, with some autonomy, it would not charge ahead and declare independence.

"That status quo, although not completely satisfactory to any of the parties involved, has kept the peace and allowed the Taiwanese to be a pretty successful ... economy and a people who have a high degree of self-determination," Obama said.The Democratic president said he had advised Trump that foreign policy had to be conducted in a systematic, deliberate, intentional way.

"There's probably no bilateral relationship that carries more significance and ... where there's also the potential, if that relationship breaks down or goes into a full conflict mode, that everybody is worse off," he said of the U.S. relationship with China.He said Beijing would not treat a departure from U.S. policy toward Taiwan lightly.

"The Chinese will not treat that the way they'll treat some other issues. They won't even treat it the way they treat issues around the South China Sea, where we've had a lot of tensions," he said. "This goes to the core of how they see themselves. And their reaction on this issue could end up being very significant. That doesn't mean that you have to adhere to everything that's been done in the past." (additional reporting by Julia Harte and David Alexander; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Tom Wheeler, the former cable industry lobbyist appointed to head the Federal Communications Commission by President Obama, announced on Thursday that he would resign on Inauguration Day.

Wheelers decision to stick with the voluntary protocol by stepping down when a new president is elected likely spells a quick death for his major communications policies, including net neutrality rules that prohibit discrimination against Internet sites and services. New privacy rules for broadband Internet service and a tough approach to proposed mergers are also likely on the chopping block.

Some in Washington thought Wheeler might delay his resignation after Senate Republicans refused to take up the renomination of Democratic FCC commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel before adjoining over the weekend. Without Senate action, Rosenworcel will have step down shortly, leaving the agency deadlocked with two Democrats and two Republicans.

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But once Wheeler steps down, the two Republicans will form a 2-1 majority. One of those members, former lawyer Ajit Pai, is in the running to be named chairman once President-elect Donald Trump takes office. And Pai has already said that Republicans plan to fire up the weed whacker to cut down Wheelers various regulatory efforts.

All three of the people Trump named to his transition team overseeing the FCC are staunch opponents of the net neutrality rules that the agency adopted last year and that were upheld in court in June. Last month, he picked Jeff Eisenach, an economist who has been on Verizon's payroll, and Mark Jamison, who formerly worked on Sprint's lobbying team and now heads the University of Florida's Public Utility Research Center. Finally, he added Roslyn Layton, a telecom industry consultant and visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, who has opposed both the net neutrality and privacy rules.

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Fortune reached out to the three transition officials for comment and will update this story if any response is received.

Meanwhile, the FCC could move quickly next year to roll back the net neutrality rules. Under the rules, Internet service providers like and Verizon are barred from blocking, slowing access to or otherwise discriminating against web sites and online services. Two weeks ago, the agency alleged that Verizon and might be in violation of the rules by letting wireless customers watch streaming video services owned by the carriers on mobile phones without using up their data allowances.

Republicans in Congress have also sought to undo the net neutrality rules via legislation.

See original article on Fortune.com

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By Roberta Rampton and Jeff Mason WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Friday strongly suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally authorized the computer hacks of Democratic Party emails that American intelligence officials say were aimed at helping Republican Donald Trump win the Nov. 8 election. But with only a month left in office, during a somber press conference before leaving for a family holiday in Hawaii, Obama spoke despairingly about the "nasty" state of U.S. politics, saying the chasm between Democrats and Republicans has made it possible for Russia to cause mischief. Obama said he has "great confidence" in intelligence reports he has seen showing that Russians hacked into emails belonging to the Democratic National Committee and to John Podesta, who was campaign chairman for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. The leaked emails revealed details of paid speeches Clinton gave to Wall Street, party infighting and comments from top aides to Clinton who were shocked about the extent of her use of a private server to send emails while secretary of state. The leaks led to embarrassing media coverage and prompted some party officials to resign. Obama, who campaigned vigorously for Clinton, said she was treated unfairly and found the media coverage of her troubling. "This happened at the highest levels of the Russian government," Obama said when asked whether Putin was personally involved in the hacks. He added that "not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin." Obama said he warned Putin in September to stop meddling in American political campaigns, telling his Russian counterpart to "cut it out" during a face-to-face encounter in China at a Group of 20 meeting. Obama said he did not believe that U.S. electronic voting systems were tampered with. Obama, however, stopped short of directly blaming Putin and said he also wanted to give U.S. intelligence officials more time to produce a report that is due before he leaves office on Jan. 20 and Trump is sworn in as his successor. RETALIATION FOR CYBER ATTACKS Obama called Russia a smaller and weaker country than the United States that "does not produce anything that others want to buy, except oil and gas and arms." The comments underscored what Obama called the "sadly deteriorated" relationship between Washington and Moscow, which are also at odds over Russia's role in Syria's civil war and its aggressive actions in Ukraine. Russia has denied U.S. accusations that it was behind the hacks. Two senior government officials told Reuters that the Federal Bureau of Investigation backs the CIA's view that Russia indeed intervened to help Trump win the presidential election. Trump has maintained that he won the election fairly and has bristled at suggestions that Moscow influenced the outcome. But at one point during the heated presidential campaign, he publicly encouraged Russia to hack Clinton's emails. Trump spoke glowingly in the campaign about Putin, and since winning the election he has named top aides who have ties to Russia, including his nominee for secretary of state, Exxon Mobil Corp Chief Executive Rex Tillerson. Obama left open the door to U.S. retaliation against Russia to discourage further cyber attacks - countermeasures that may be up to Trump to implement. Obama said he has had "cordial" discussions with Trump since the election and has stressed that he would do everything he can to ensure a smooth transition. But the outgoing president also criticized Trump's fellow Republicans broadly. Referencing polls showing that more than one-third of Republicans approve of Putin, who used to lead the KGB spy agency, Obama said that conservative icon "Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave." "In some cases, you have voters and elected officials who have more confidence and faith in a foreign adversary than they have in their neighbors," Obama said. CHINA AND SYRIA Adding to the gloomy tone of Obama's remarks, he addressed two other difficult foreign policy issues that will outlast his time in the White House. Obama warned about the economic and geopolitical consequences of any breakdown in the U.S.-China relationship, and said Trump should think carefully about the diplomatic repercussions if he decides to "upend" longstanding U.S. diplomatic norms. Trump angered China earlier this month when he took a congratulatory phone call from Taiwan's president, Tsai Ing-wen - the first call of its kind since 1979 when President Jimmy Carter acknowledged Taiwan as part of "one China." Obama also condemned attacks on Syrian civilians trying to flee the city of Aleppo, blaming President Bashar al-Assad and his allies in Russia and Iran for "atrocities." Obama defended his decision to keep U.S. troops out of Syria and avoid military intervention, although he acknowledged the protracted anguish has weighed on him. "Everything else was tempting because we wanted to do something and it sounded like the right thing to do, but it was going to be impossible to do this on the cheap," he said. (Reporting by Roberta Rampton, Jeff Mason and Julia Harte; Writing by Richard Cowan and Roberta Rampton; Editing by Alistair Bell and Leslie Adler)
WASHINGTON (AP)  President Barack Obama has put Russia's Vladimir Putin on notice that the U.S. could use offensive cyber muscle to retaliate for interference in the U.S. presidential election, his strongest suggestion to date that Putin had been well aware of campaign email hacking.

"Whatever they do to us, we can potentially do to them," Obama declared Friday.

Caught in the middle of a post-election controversy over Russian hacking, Obama strongly defended his administration's response, including his refusal before the voting to ascribe motive to the meddling or to discuss now what effect it might have had. U.S. intelligence assessments say it was aimed at least in part on helping Donald Trump defeat Hillary Clinton, and some Democrats say it may well have tipped the results in his favor.

Though Obama avoided criticizing President-elect Trump by name, he called out Republicans who he said fail even now to acknowledge the seriousness of Russia's involvement in U.S. elections.

Obama expressed bewilderment about GOP lawmakers and voters who now say they approve of Putin, and he said unless that changes the U.S. will be vulnerable to foreign influence.

"Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave," Obama said as he closed out the year at a White House news conference. Afterward he left for the family's annual vacation in Hawaii.

Obama declined to state explicitly that Putin knew about the email hacking that roiled the presidential race, but he left no doubt who he felt was responsible. He said that "not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin" and repeated a U.S. intelligence assessment "that this happened at the highest levels of the Russian government."

Obama said he confronted Putin in September, telling the former KGB chief to "cut it out." That was one month before the U.S. publicly pointed the finger at Russia. Suggesting his directive to Putin had been effective, Obama said the U.S. "did not see further tampering" after that date.

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The president has promised a "proportional" yet unspecified response to the hacking of the Democratic Party and Clinton's campaign chairman. Emails stolen during the campaign were released in the final weeks by WikiLeaks. On Friday, CIA Director John Brennan said in a message to employees that the FBI agrees with the CIA's conclusion that Russia's goal was to help Trump win.

Trump has dismissed the CIA's assessment and talk about Russian hacking as "ridiculous," while arguing both Democrats and the CIA are trying to undermine the legitimacy of his victory. He made no mention of the hacking  or of Obama  during the latest stop on his "thank you" tour in Orlando, Florida, Friday night.

Clinton has even more directly cited Russian interference. She said Thursday night, "Vladimir Putin himself directed the covert cyberattacks against our electoral system, against our democracy, apparently because he has a personal beef against me."

Obama said he'd leave it to political pundits to debate the question of whether the hacking swayed the election outcome. He did, however, chide the media for that he called an "obsession" with the emails that were made public during the election's final stretch.

Accusations of Russian election interference have heightened the already tense relationship between Washington and Moscow. Separately, Obama has blamed Russia for standing in the way of international efforts to stop the civil war in Syria, where government forces have beaten back rebels in Aleppo.

Obama said he feels "responsible" for some of the suffering in Syria, but he defended his decision to avoid significant military action there. He said that while military options short of invasion were tempting, it was "impossible to do this on the cheap."

Still, he pinned the bulk of the blame on Russia, as well as Iran, for propping up Syrian President Bashar Assad.

"This blood and these atrocities are on their hands," he said.

Meanwhile, the president rejected any notion that the dispute over hacking was disrupting efforts to smoothly transfer power to Trump. Despite fiercely criticizing each other during the election, Obama and Trump have spoken multiple times since the campaign ended.

"He has listened," Obama said of Trump. "I can't say he will end up implementing. But the conversations themselves have been cordial."

___

Associated Press writers Eric Tucker and Bradley Klapper contributed to this report.

___

Follow Josh Lederman at http://twitter.com/joshledermanAP and Julie Pace at http://twitter.com/jpaceDC
By Roberta Rampton and Jeff Mason WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama said on Friday it was fine for President-elect Donald Trump to review Washington's "one-China" policy toward Taiwan, but he cautioned that a shift could lead to significant consequences in the U.S. relationship with Beijing. "For China, the issue of Taiwan is as important as anything on their docket," Obama told a news conference. "The idea of one China is at the heart of their conception as a nation and so if you are going to upend this understanding, you have to have thought through what ... the consequences are." China lodged a diplomatic protest earlier this month after Trump, a Republican, spoke by phone with President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan. The 10-minute telephone call was the first of its kind by a U.S. president-elect or president since President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of "one China". China considers Taiwan a wayward province, to be taken back by force if necessary. Obama noted that, under the decades-old policy, China had recognized Taiwan was its own entity that did things its own way, while Taiwan had agreed that, with some autonomy, it would not declare independence. "That status quo, although not completely satisfactory to any of the parties involved, has kept the peace and allowed the Taiwanese to be a pretty successful ... economy and a people who have a high degree of self-determination," Obama said. The Democratic president said he had advised Trump that foreign policy had to be conducted in a systematic, deliberate, intentional way. "There's probably no bilateral relationship that carries more significance and ... where there's also the potential, if that relationship breaks down or goes into a full conflict mode, that everybody is worse off," he said of the U.S.-China ties. He said Beijing would not treat a departure from U.S. policy toward Taiwan lightly. "The Chinese will not treat that the way they'll treat some other issues. They won't even treat it the way they treat issues around the South China Sea, where we've had a lot of tensions," he said. Taiwan reiterated it was committed to keeping the status quo in its relations with China and in promoting peace and stability, and thanked Washington for deepening U.S.-Taiwan relations. A statement from Taiwan's Presidential Office said Tsai's government looked forward to strengthening that relationship under Trump's administration. (Additional reporting by Julia Harte and David Alexander; Additional reporting by J.R. Wu in TAIPEI; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Paul Tait)
President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and their daughters Sasha and Malia touched down at the Joint Base Pearl-Harbor Hickam in Honolulu, Hawaii, on Friday night for their final vacation before leaving the White House.

All four Obamas were seen descending the stairs on Air Force One, and were dressed down for their warm weather vacation in the Presidents home state. For the past eight years, the family has headed west for a Hawaiian holiday.

President Obama, 55, and his eldest daughter Malia, 18, held hands as they walked down the stairs. The commander-in-chief wore a blue button-down shirt and khaki pants, while Malia sported an off-the-shoulder black top and brown midi skirt.

Marco Garcia/AP

Following behind, 15-year-old Sasha wore a black dress and the First Lady, 52, rocked a red frock.

ECarolyn Kaster/AP

The president and Malia were all smiles as the family made their way down the steps, shortly before hopping in a car for their next destination.

RELATED VIDEO: WATCH: President Obama Serenades Daughter Malia For Her 18th Birthday During Last Fourth of July Party at the White House

Earlier this month, the Obamas shined in their annual holiday card, which went out to friends, supporters and members of the media.

The cards, paid for and posted by the Democratic National Committee, featured a photo of the First Family, which was taken at a March state dinner honoring Canadas Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.




Monica Crowley

Monica Crowley, who was selected by President-elect Donald Trump to be National Security Council communications director, once advocated for Russian President Vladimir Putin to get involved in the release of Hillary Clinton's emails.

In a June tweet, Crowley shared a Daily Caller story that noted the US State Department would not release emails pertaining to the Clinton Foundation for 27 months.

"I guess Putin is going to have to do it," Crowley wrote on Twitter.

Crowley's tweet resurfaced amid the CIA and FBI's consensus that Russia attempted to influence the US presidential election.

I guess Putin is going to have to do it. RT "State Dept Wont Release Clinton Fdn Emails for 27 Months https://t.co/mnECDBYdX0  Monica Crowley (@MonicaCrowley) June 30, 2016

Trump similarly beckoned Russia at a press conference in July, when he suggested Russia would be "rewarded" by the US media if it found deleted messages from Clinton's private email server.

Hillary Clinton said the widespread hacking by Russian operatives was due to a personal vendetta Putin has against her. "He is determined not only to score a point against me, which he did, but also to undermine our democracy ... It's part of a long-term [Russian] strategy to cause us to doubt ourselves," Clinton told campaign donors at a meeting Thursday.

Trump and some Republican lawmakers have dismissed the notion of Russia's involvement. The president-elect has claimed the allegations against Russia are an attempt to delegitimize his election victory.

President Barack Obama on Friday said Russia would face consequences.

"Our goal continues to be to send a clear message to Russia or others not to do this to us, because we can do stuff to you," Obama said.

Story continues

NOW WATCH: OBAMA: Russia is a 'smaller country, they're a weaker country'





More From Business Insider


LIMA (Reuters) - The centrist government of President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski said Friday that it has rejected a new request to free imprisoned former authoritarian leader Alberto Fujimori filed by a supporter because it did not meet basic requirements. Justice Minister Marisol Perez Tello said the paperwork reached the government early this month but was declared inadmissible days ago because it lacked the signature of Fujimori or one of his relatives. "It is another process that unfortunately ends ... because of reasons of form and without a decision on the core issue," Perez told reporters in comments broadcast on TV station Canal N. The announcement comes ahead of a meeting between Kuczynski and Fujimori's daughter, opposition leader Keiko Fujimori - raising the possibility of a pardon being on the negotiating table as they seek to ease hostilities after her rightwing party ousted Kuczynski's education minister on Thursday. Kuczynski, who had a razor-thin victory against Keiko Fujimori in a June runoff election, said before taking office that he would not sign a pardon to clear her father of convictions for human rights violations and corruption even if the pardons committee recommends doing so. However, Kuczynski has said he would sign a bill that allows aging prisoners like Fujimori to carry out their sentences from home. Keiko Fujimori's party, Popular Force, controls an absolute majority in the single-chamber Congress but has yet to propose any such legislation. The most recent request to release Alberto Fujimori, 78, came from one of his supporters who asked Kuczynski to pardon him or put him under house arrest because of health problems, the magazine Hildebrandt en sus trece reported. It was unclear if Alberto or Keiko Fujimori was aware of it. Fujimori, who fired his attorney this year after two requests for a pardon were rejected by the previous president, could not be reached for comment. Keiko Fujimori's office did not respond to requests for comment. Earlier on Friday, Peru's conservative Catholic Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani announced that Keiko Fujimori and Kuczynski had agreed to meet face-to-face in his home to seek a political truce. Keiko Fujimori had turned down previous proposals to talk with Kuczynski since losing her second presidential bid to him after a divisive election that many saw as a referendum on her father's decade-long authoritarian rule. Keiko Fujimori had distanced herself from her father during her 2016 campaign, upsetting some of his hardline supporters. (Reporting by Mitra Taj; Edting by Bernard Orr)
MANILA (Reuters) - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Saturday fired two immigration officials facing allegations of corruption as he reaffirmed his commitment to ensure a clean government. "I said before that corruption will have no place in my government," Duterte, who won the presidency in May on a promise to rid the country of drugs, crime and corruption, said on arriving home from visits to Cambodia and Singapore. "Consistent with this electoral campaign, I have directed the dismissal of the two (officials from) the Bureau of Immigration who are now tainted with corruption," he said without mentioning their names nor giving details about the allegation. "They will be held accountable for their actions. They will face the full force of the law," the firebrand leader said. Just shortly before Duterte arrived in his hometown Davao City from Singapore, local media reported that two immigration officials accused of extorting 50 million pesos ($1 million) from Jack Lam, a Chinese citizen and head of Hong Kong-listed Jimei International, had tendered their resignation. The two officials, however, had denied the allegation and said they were a target of a demolition job for investigating corruption in the immigration bureau, the reports said. Lam, from the Chinese gambling enclave of Macau, faces allegations of economic sabotage and bribery in the Philippines. Lam's whereabouts are unknown. His lawyer in the Philippines has previously denied the accusations against Lam. Last month, local immigration authorities detained about 1,200 Chinese men accused of working without permits at Lam's online gambling operation in Clark Field, a former U.S. air force base in the Philippines. An associate of Lam had tried to secure their release, according to the country's police chief Ronald Dela Rosa, who also said Lam had left the Philippines but was willing to return and assist in any investigations. Duterte has also ordered the seizure of Lam's assets in the Philippines after he accused him of not paying the correct taxes. (Reporting by Enrico dela Cruz; Editing by Dale Hudson)
* Protest is about limitations to media access in parliament

* Government accuses opposition of seeking to seize power

* EU's Tusk, ruling party foe, warns about democracy

* Ruling party plans late-night meeting with media (Adds PM Szydlo, diplomat comment)

By Pawel Florkiewicz and Lidia Kelly

WARSAW, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Polish opposition leaders said on Saturday they would maintain their blockade of parliament's main hall and called for popular protests against a government that has accused it of trying to seize power.

Poland's biggest political standoff in years began on Friday when opposition lawmakers objected to plans by the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party to curb media access to parliament, and blocked the plenary hall podium ahead of a budget vote.

About two dozen members of the Civic Platform (PO) party have taken turns to occupy the podium and the party's leader said they would remain there for the next few days.

PiS lawmakers moved voting to another area without media access, prompting accusations they had passed the 2017 budget illegally, breaching the constitution.

Prime Minister Beata Szydlo said the protest was just whining by parties that lost an election in 2015 after eight years in government.

But striking a more conciliatory tone, PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski moved to organise a meeting between the speaker of the upper house of parliament and the media late on Saturday night to discuss the new plan for journalists' access.

Several thousand people protested in Warsaw and other cities after police broke up a blockade of the entrances to parliament in the early hours of Saturday.

Poland's Western allies have expressed concerns over government plans to reform the constitutional court, saying it contravened democratic standards.

But despite criticism at home and abroad, the eurosceptic PiS enjoys steady support among many Poles eager to hear its message of higher welfare, more Catholic values in public life and less dependence on foreign capital.

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"The situation ... has nothing in common with the real condition of our country," Prime Minister Szydlo said in a televised address.

"On the contrary, it reflects a sense of helplessness and frustration on the part of those who lost power and don't have nay ideas how to attract Poles to their views."

Earlier on Saturday, European Union Council President Donald Tusk, a former head of the PO - Poland's largest opposition party - urged the government to "respect and regard the people, constitutional principles and morals."

"Those who undermine the European model of democracy (and) attack the constitution and good customs, expose all of us to strategic risks. By throwing away the spirit of freedom and community, they write the next act of Poland's solitude," Tusk, who has a long-standing feud with PiS head Jaroslaw Kaczynski, told a conference in Wroclaw.

At Saturday's protests in a freezing Warsaw, opposition leaders served hot tea to the police and some of the 5,000 demonstrators who held banners saying "Free media" and carried Polish and European Union flags.

"If it becomes clear that it is impossible to talk to (PiS lawmakers), we should have early elections," Ryszard Petru, head of the liberal Nowoczesna grouping, told the protesters.

A snap election is unlikely, however, as PiS has a majority in parliament and could block any vote of no confidence.

One EU diplomat said the protests highlighted divisions in Poland but did not represent a growing anti-government movement.

"The people who have gone out to the streets are essentially those who are anti-government from the beginning," said the diplomat.

"I am not getting a feeling that people are ready to go up and protest. It doesn't mean they won't one day," (Additional reporting by Karol Wittenberg, Wojciech Zurawski, Pawel Sobczak and Justyna Pawlak; Writing by Justyna Pawlak and Lidia Kelly; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
Washington: Afghan-oriented militant groups like the Taliban and the Haqqani Network retain freedom of action from inside Pakistani territory, the Pentagon has said, while asserting that the US has been clear in urging Islamabad to deny safe havens to terror outfits.

"Afghan-oriented militant groups, including Taliban and Haqqani Network senior leadership, retain freedom of action from safe havens inside Pakistani territory," the Pentagon said in its six-monthly report to the Congress.

"The United States continues to be clear with Pakistan about steps it should take to improve the security environment and deny safe havens to terrorist and extremist groups," the report said.

Militant groups, including the Taliban and Haqqani senior leadership, retained safe havens inside Pakistani territory and sustained Pakistani efforts to disrupt active Haqqani Network threats were not observed during the reporting period, the Pentagon said in its report ending November 2016.

The Pentagon, in its report running into nearly 100 pages, said the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region remains a sanctuary for various groups. These include, the Taliban, al Qaeda, al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), Haqqani Network, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Islamic State, and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. "This sanctuary and these groups remain a security challenge for both countries and pose a threat to regional stability and security," it said.

Collectively, terrorist and insurgent groups continue to present a formidable challenge to Afghan, the US and coalition forces, the report said. There is a high concentration of terrorist and extremist organisations operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan, with several known designated organisations operating in the two countries, creating a complex threat environment, the Pentagon said.

Of the groups involved in the Taliban-led insurgency, the Haqqani Network remains the greatest threat to US, coalition and Afghan forces and continues to be a critical enabler of al Qaeda, it said. Haqqani Network leader Sirajuddin Haqqani's role as Taliban deputy has solidified Haqqani influence within the Taliban, the Pentagon said.

Sirajuddin Haqqani's position has likely allowed the Haqqani Network to increase its area of operations within Afghanistan and provided the Taliban with additional operational and planning capabilities, it said. The Pentagon said although al Qaeda's core leadership in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region has been degraded, elements continue to seek safe haven on both sides of the border to regenerate and conduct attack planning.

"The continued development of an al Qaeda affiliate in the region, AQIS, highlights the dynamic nature of the region's terrorist and militant landscape, posing risks to the mission and to US interests," it said.
Sherri Papini could not describe her abductors as they hid their faces from the 34-year-old when her head wasn't covered, authorities reportedly said. The investigation into Papini's kidnapping has made no progress so far, but police say the case is still "a top priority."

Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko told local KRCR-TV this week there was no sketch ready of the kidnappers as the California mother could not describe them. Bosenko told the TV station that Papini's head was covered most of the time. He also revealed authorities were waiting for the Department of Justice to process evidence, according to the Daily Mail.

Papini disappeared Nov. 2 while out jogging near her home in Redding, California. Her husband Keith filed a missing complaint after she failed to pick up her children from daycare. She was found heavily battered on Thanksgiving morning after being spotted by a motorist on Interstate 5 in Woodland, more than 150 miles from her home.

Bosenko reportedly said there was no reason to doubt the mother of two was kidnapped and tortured.

Police are still searching for the suspects in the case, believed to be two Hispanic women  one with curly hair, and the other with straight hair  who had covered their faces and spoke mostly Spanish.

Last week, serial killer profiler John Kelly told People magazine he wasnt convinced that two armed women kidnapped Papini. Kelly said the people involved in the kidnapping terrified Papini into lying about her abductors real identity.

This is a sadistic situation, and she somehow was able to convince them to let her go, Kelly told People in last weeks issue.

She somehow got them to believe she would not squeal on them, he said reportedly. Its only by an act of God that they let her go. I have a hard time understanding that as sadistic as these [people] are  and Ive hunted many of them  would let someone live.

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VATICAN CITY (AP)  Pope Francis celebrated an active if low-key 80th birthday on Saturday, sharing breakfast with eight homeless people before celebrating Mass with cardinals as greetings poured in from around the world.

The pontiff received more than 70,000 email messages wishing him a happy birthday, as well as telephone calls and telegrams from world leaders and religious figures.

His predecessor, 89-year-old Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI, sent a "very affectionate" written greeting that the Vatican said was "particularly appreciated," followed by a personal call in the afternoon and three small gifts that the bore "very personal and significant meaning for both." The Vatican did not otherwise divulge the nature of the gifts.

At breakfast, Francis chatted individually with each of the homeless guests four Italians, two Romanians, a Moldovan and a Peruvian  at the Vatican hotel where he resides, and shared Argentinian cakes with them before heading to Mass.

The guests offered the pope a bouquet of sunflowers. They were invited from among those staying around St. Peter's Square and at nearby showers for the homeless established by the pope's almsgiver. The pope also sent enough birthday cakes for 1,500 people to kitchens serving the poor and homeless in Rome.

Speaking to the cardinals, Francis contemplated the aging process.

"For some days now, I have had in mind a word that seems ugly: Old age, a thought that frightens," he said.

But then he recalled his own words during his first papal greeting in 2013, when he said: "Old age is the thirst for knowledge."

He added: "I hope it will be the same for me."

Saturday is a working day at the Vatican and Francis kept up his usual pace. He met with Malta's president and held an audience with members of the Nomadelfia community, a secular group whose lifestyle emulates early Christians, who sang "Happy Birthday" to the pontiff.

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The pope experienced the day "with great joy. He was particularly happy by the presence of many children and youths at the audience with the Nomadelfia community," the Vatican said.

Greetings arrived from all corners of the globe, both personal messages and succinct tweets with the hashtag #Pontifex80.

U.S. President Barack Obama said Francis "has inspired people around the world with his message of compassion, hope and peace," while Italian President Sergio Mattarella recalled that the pope has called on Europeans to show solidarity with the less fortunate, in particular "migrants and all those who live at society's margins."

Russian President Vladimir Putin sent Francis a telegram and followed it up with a phone call in which he "remarked on the big contribution he has personally made to strengthen ties between Russia and the Vatican, which moved to a significantly new level in the recent years," the Kremlin said.

The Kremlin said Putin and the pope "exchanged opinions" on the plight of Christians caught in armed conflicts around the world and the importance of an interfaith dialogue.

Earlier this year, Francis met with Russian Patriarch Kirill in the first meeting of the head of the Roman Catholic Church and the leader of the world's largest Orthodox Christian flock.

The patriarch's office said Saturday that Kirill had sent a congratulatory message to Francis and lauded him for improving ties between the Russian Church and the Vatican.
(VATICAN CITY)  Pope Francis celebrated an active if low-key 80th birthday on Saturday, sharing breakfast with eight homeless people before celebrating Mass with cardinals as greetings poured in from around the world.

The pontiff received more than 70,000 email messages wishing him a happy birthday, as well as telephone calls and telegrams from world leaders and religious figures.

His predecessor, 89-year-old Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI, sent a very affectionate written greeting that the Vatican said was particularly appreciated, followed by a personal call in the afternoon and three small gifts that the bore very personal and significant meaning for both. The Vatican did not otherwise divulge the nature of the gifts.

At breakfast, Francis chatted individually with each of the homeless guests four Italians, two Romanians, a Moldovan and a Peruvian  at the Vatican hotel where he resides, and shared Argentinian cakes with them before heading to Mass.

The guests offered the pope a bouquet of sunflowers. They were invited from among those staying around St. Peters Square and at nearby showers for the homeless established by the popes almsgiver. The pope also sent enough birthday cakes for 1,500 people to kitchens serving the poor and homeless in Rome.

Speaking to the cardinals, Francis contemplated the aging process.

For some days now, I have had in mind a word that seems ugly: Old age, a thought that frightens, he said.

But then he recalled his own words during his first papal greeting in 2013, when he said: Old age is the thirst for knowledge.

He added: I hope it will be the same for me.

Saturday is a working day at the Vatican and Francis kept up his usual pace. He met with Maltas president and held an audience with members of the Nomadelfia community, a secular group whose lifestyle emulates early Christians, who sang Happy Birthday to the pontiff.

Story continues

The pope experienced the day with great joy. He was particularly happy by the presence of many children and youths at the audience with the Nomadelfia community, the Vatican said.

Greetings arrived from all corners of the globe, both personal messages and succinct tweets with the hashtag #Pontifex80.

U.S. President Barack Obama said Francis has inspired people around the world with his message of compassion, hope and peace, while Italian President Sergio Mattarella recalled that the pope has called on Europeans to show solidarity with the less fortunate, in particular migrants and all those who live at societys margins.

Russian President Vladimir Putin sent Francis a telegram and followed it up with a phone call in which he remarked on the big contribution he has personally made to strengthen ties between Russia and the Vatican, which moved to a significantly new level in the recent years, the Kremlin said.

The Kremlin said Putin and the pope exchanged opinions on the plight of Christians caught in armed conflicts around the world and the importance of an interfaith dialogue.

Earlier this year, Francis met with Russian Patriarch Kirill in the first meeting of the head of the Roman Catholic Church and the leader of the worlds largest Orthodox Christian flock.

The patriarchs office said Saturday that Kirill had sent a congratulatory message to Francis and lauded him for improving ties between the Russian Church and the Vatican.
After more than three years at the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis is turning 80 Saturday. The octogenarian has had quite the run. His celebrity regularly draws the praise of followers.

Pope Francis has made waves with a variety of sometimes controversial positions and opinions. He has championed climate change mitigation measures and has been vocal in his pleas for a peaceful resolution to the deadly civil war in Syria. The pope has even suggested that contraception  or at least avoiding pregnancy  could be an acceptable way to fight the spread of Zika virus.

The pope was greeted by well-wishers who performed a pilgrimage to Italy to see the spiritual leader. He reportedly was happy and joked with them when they arrived at the Vatican.

Here are some memorable statements and photos of the Pope.

RTSUKCC

Photo: Reuters\

God never gives someone a gift they are not capable of receiving. If he gives us the gift of Christmas, it is because we all have the ability to understand and receive it.

Pope Francis

Photo: Reuters/David W Cerny

If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge? We shouldnt marginalize people for this. They must be integrated into society.

Pope Francis with US actor George Clooney and his wife Amal

Photo: OSSERVATORE ROMANO/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS

A little bit of mercy makes the world less cold and more just.

Pope Francis Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill meeting

Photo: Reuters/Tony Gentile

Together with a culture of work, there must be a culture of leisure as gratification. To put it another way: People who work must take the time to relax, to be with their families, to enjoy themselves, read, listen to music, play a sport.

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Popemobile in Philadelphia

Photo: Alex Brandon-Pool/Getty Images

Life is a journey. When we stop, things dont go right.

Pope Francis, New York, Sept. 25, 2015

Photo: Stephanie Keith-Pool/Getty Images

Since many of you do not belong to the Catholic Church and others are nonbelievers, from the bottom of my heart I give this silent blessing to each and every one of you, respecting the conscience of each one of you but knowing that each one of you is a child of God.

Pope Francis next to Obama

Photo: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst

Among us, who is above must be in service of the others. This doesnt mean we have to wash each others feet every day but we must help one another.

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Those celebrating Christmas may be anticipating opening presents from Santa on Dec. 25, but for many Catholic and Christian observers, the holiday marks the celebration of Jesus Christ's birth. Between opening gifts and feasting with family members and friends, take a moment to say happy holidays with a few Christmas prayers.

Check out a few prayers to say on Christmas Day below:

1. Lord our God, the heavens are the work of your hands, the moon and the stars you made; the earth and the sea, and every living creature came into being by your word. And all of us, too. May this tree bring cheer to this house through Jesus Christ your good and holy Son, who brings life and beauty to us and to our world. Lighting this tree, we hope in his promise.

2. Father, we are filled with the new light by the coming of your Word among us. May the light of faith shine in our words and actions. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

3. The day of joy returns, Father in Heaven, and crowns another year with peace and good will. Help us rightly to remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness of the shepherds, and the worship of the wise men. Close the doors of hate and open the doors of love all over the world? Let kindness come with every gift and good desires with every greeting. Deliver us from evil, by the blessing that Christ brings, and teach us to be merry with clean hearts. May the Christmas morning make us happy to be thy children. And the Christmas evening bring us to our bed with grateful thoughts, forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus sake. Amen.

4. Moonless darkness stands between. Past, the past, no more be seen! But the Bethlehem star may lead me to the sight of Him who freed me from the self that I have been. Make me pure, Lord: Thou art holy; make me meek, Lord: Thou wert lowly; now beginning, and always, now begin, on Christmas day.

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5. Lord and Giver of all good things, the magi traveled for miles to bring the Christ child the first Christmas presents. So may we, too, remember with thankful hearts the love that comes with each present we open. We also thank you for the love you have for each of us, and we thank you for the many gifts that you give us, especially the gift of live itself. Amen.

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Prince Harry & Meghan Markle went on the most ~perfect~ London date

Everyone, its going to be okay. Your royal heartthrob, er, highness Prince Harry and girlfriend, actress and a United Nations womens rights advocate Meghan Markle, arent shying away from the public eye. The Sun spotted the lovebirds in public and it looks like Meghan Markle and Prince Harry date went very well in London Thursday night. They were spotted walking hand-in-hand together in the Picadilly Circus neighborhood, on their way to see the show The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime in the West End. Cue the swoon. Harry allegedly purchased last minute ticket for Markle, who is a fan of theater. They went to see The Lion King two months ago, but in secret.

According to The Sun, Harry and Markle walked among hundreds of people, admiring the Christmas lights. The photo capturing the two together is the first of them out in public as a couple. Harry probably  no definitely  knew the press would capture this ~magical~ moment, because he wore the most adorable blue hat and green blazer. Markle wore a black pea coat with a droopy hat. Theyre totally like us, guys.



WORLD EXCLUSIVE: Prince Harry has been photographed with Meghan Markle for the first time https://t.co/XurKUPYtxJ pic.twitter.com/D8rXXOVO4d  The Sun (@TheSun) December 15, 2016

Markle has been staying at Harrys place on the Kensington Palace grounds  a two-bedroom Nottingham Cottage  when she visits the United Kingdom. As if they couldnt get any cuter (they most definitely can), the two had ventured out in public earlier to get a Christmas tree together.

The public appearances may come as a surprise after the statement Kensington Palace released on behalf of Harry and Markle last month. The press had been allegedly hounding the Suits star to the point of harassment.

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Prince Harry is worried about Ms. Markles safety and is deeply disappointed he has not been able to protect her, the statement read. It is not right that a few months into the relationship with him that Ms. Markle is subjected to such a storm.

Kensington Palace has issued a statement this morning about the harassment currently being experienced by Meghan Markle and her family. pic.twitter.com/EuFZ4fmUIj  Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) November 8, 2016

Its unclear whether or not the press took a chill pill, but clearly that isnt stopping the couple from living their lives and being adorable.

A friend of Harrys confirmed this to The Sun. He said, Harry has said his privacy is important to him but they are clearly not afraid to be seen in public together.

He also said theyre smitten with one another.

They are clearly crazy about each other and have told friends they are very much in love, the source said.

Seriously, #relationshipgoals.

The post Prince Harry & Meghan Markle went on the most ~perfect~ London date appeared first on HelloGiggles.
Marc Emery, the self-proclaimed Prince of Pot, was arrested by Montreal Police outside the Montreal branch of his Cannabis Culture marijuana dispensary on December 16. Emery was on hand to celebrate the opening of the new location in Quebec.

The Montreal Police issued a press release following the incident, saying that 10 people were arrested following raids on six dispensaries, leading to the seizure of 18 kg (40 lbs) of cannabis, money and equipment.

The video shows Emery being escorted away by police and then making a number of political statements to the cameras. Credit: Instagram/pascalrobidas (Radio-Canada via Storyful)
By Pawel Sobczak and Marcin Goettig WARSAW (Reuters) - Police early Saturday forcefully broke up an hours-long blockade of exits from the Polish parliament by protesters who said ruling party lawmakers violated the constitution by illegally passing the budget for next year. The passage sparked the biggest political standoff in years in European Union member Poland and the sharpest escalation of the conflict between the opposition and the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party since it came to power in October 2015. The head of the PiS party, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, left parliament in the early hours of Saturday after police used force to remove protesters blocking the exit from parliament, television footage showed. "PiS has crossed a certain line and nothing will be the same again," Tomasz Siemoniak, deputy leader of the biggest opposition party Civic Platform told local media outside parliament. Opposition party lawmaker Jerzy Meysztowicz told television network TVN24 that police used tear gas to disperse the protesters who tried to prevent the convoy of cars carrying Kaczynski and Prime Minister Beata Szydlo from leaving. Warsaw police spokesman Mariusz Mrozek denied use of tear gas, but confirmed physical force was used to remove protesters. Mrozek said the gathering before the parliament has been declared illegal starting from midnight. By 0237 GMT, many protesters had left, but some remained. Several opposition lawmakers said they would spend the night in parliament. CRISIS Polish opposition parties accused PiS of violating the constitution after Speaker Marek Kuchcinski moved a key vote on next year's budget outside of the main chamber of parliament and blocked the media from recording the vote. It was the first time since Poland's transition from communism in 1989 that a sitting of the lower chamber of parliament and a budget vote were held outside of the main chamber. "The 'sitting' was illegal. Period. This is a constitutional crisis," Civic Platform head Grzegorz Schetyna said on social media. Kuchcinski transferred the sitting after opposition lawmakers occupied the parliamentary podium protesting against a plan to curb media access and Kuchcinski's decision to exclude one opposition lawmaker. PiS earlier this week announced a plan to curb access of the media to the parliament, spurring widespread protests by non-state media and the opposition amid concern the right-wing government is intent on curtailing freedom of press. The opposition said the budget vote was illegal as it was impossible to confirm that the required number of lawmakers was present. "There is no proof that a quorum of lawmakers was present. We suspect that people who were not allowed to vote took part," leader of the opposition Nowoczesna party Ryszard Petru said. Before leaving parliament, Kaczynski said the vote was legal and involved the required number of MPs. Other PiS lawmakers echoed his comments. "What the opposition did was a scandal. And we were working," said PiS lawmaker Jaroslaw Zielinski. AFTERMATH Since coming to power, PiS has passed laws that made it more difficult for the constitutional court to pass rulings, a move that led the European Commission to say democracy and rule of law were threatened in Poland. The nationalist-minded, eurosceptic PiS party has also tightened control over public news media and state prosecution. The party has approved legislation that human rights groups said would curtail freedom of assembly. PiS is the first party since Poland's transition to democracy to hold an outright majority in parliament. Civic Platform lawmakers said they had difficulties accessing the hall where PiS lawmakers voted. "I was able to enter the hall only after pushing aside guards," Civic Platform (PO) lawmaker Slawomir Nitras told Reuters. "The access routes to microphones were blocked by chairs." Direct access for media to the hall was denied, with reporters only able to observe an official camera feed. Opposition parties Civic Platform, Nowoczesna together with the PSL party said the speaker violated the constitution and demanded parliament continue its sitting next week. Commentators warned that further escalation of the conflict might lead to violence, like in Ukraine during anti-government protests in 2013 and 2014. "It may lead to a nation-wide tragedy. We have to be aware of this," former head of the constitutional court Jerzy Stepien told local media. (Writing by Marcin Goettig; Editing by Mary Milliken and Richard Borsuk)
Thousands of protesters gathered outside Polands parliament in Warsaw on Saturday, December 17, for the latest in a series of protests against a new media law that would restrict media access to legislators.

The Saturday demo came the morning after police broke up a blockade of the parliament, according to Reuters. Credit: Facebook/Jan Grabiec via Storyful
WARSAW, Poland (AP)  Two days of anti-government protests have exposed clashing views on the shape of Poland's democracy, with a European Union leader and the protesters saying it is threatened by the government, and the prime minister insisting the threat is coming from the opposition's actions.

European Council President Donald Tusk and Poland's Prime Minister Beata Szydlo made separate comments Saturday on the rising political tension between Poland's conservative government and the pro-EU opposition.

They spoke after protesters rallied outside the presidential palace and the parliament building in Warsaw for a second day over a ruling party's plan to restrict journalists' access to lawmakers in parliament.

Tusk, Poland's former prime minister, invoked the word "dictatorship" and reminded his audience of protests in Poland under communism that ended in bloodshed.

"I appeal to those who hold real power in our country to respect the people, the principles and values of the constitution, the standing procedures and good practices," Tusk said in Wroclaw, southwest Poland, where he was attending a cultural event.

He warned that whoever was undermining the "European model of democracy" in Poland was "exposing us all to strategic risks."

A few hours later, Szydlo said in a nationwide televised address that Poland was a firm democracy and that the opposition was guided by a sense of "helplessness and frustration" over having lost power and was hurting Poland's interest with its actions.

"Noise, perturbation, destabilization have, alas, become the tools of the opposition parties," Szydlo said, appealing for dialogue, responsibility and calm.

The crowd of a few thousand in Warsaw chanted "Freedom! Equality! Democracy!" and waved Polish and European Union flags, a reflection of the pro-European views of many liberal, urban Poles who oppose the ruling party. Protests were held in Krakow and Lodz, too.

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"I feel terrified when I see what is going on around," said Maria Krykiel, a retired bookkeeper. "Only divisions and no calm. Where will that take us?"

President Andrzej Duda, who is allied with the ruling party, expressed deep concern and declared a readiness to mediate in the dispute.

The ruling party, led by Jaroslaw Kaczynski, has increased welfare spending and still remains popular with many Poles, particularly those outside of the cities and on modest incomes.

Some protesters held up copies of the constitution, to show they believe it was not being observed by the ruling party. They also chanted "Solidarity!" reflecting how many link today's protests to the anti-communist opposition of the past.

Ryszard Petru, head of the Modern opposition party, told the crowd in Warsaw that Poles would not accept the "dictators" who are trying to restrict the access of journalists to parliament. He even suggested an early election.

In Poland's biggest parliamentary crisis in years, opposition lawmakers protested the government media plan Friday, blocking a vote on the budget. Governing party members then voted in another hall, but the opposition says the vote was flawed and illegal.

Opposition lawmakers are now demanding a repeat vote on Tuesday.

The Senate speaker was to meet with media representatives to discuss the new rules for reporters.
She turned 90 in April  and marked the occasion with celebrations throughout her realm. But as the year of Queen Elizabeth IIs big birthday draws to a close, he milestone is being honored one final time.

A new photograph of the Queen and Prince Charles was released by the British Monarchy on Saturday  taken specifically to commemorate her birthday.

In the portrait, taken by photographer Nick Knight, the Queen sits on a gold chair, wearing a patterned, long-sleeve blue dress. Her hands folded at her waist, she looks elegant and stoic  her three-strand pearl necklace and matching earrings slightly catching the light.

Charles, in a classic bow tie and tuxedo, stands above her to her right. His right arm sits in his pocket and his left on rests on the back of her chair as he looks down below on her.

The photo, shot in May, was staged at the White Drawing Room at Windsor Castle  prior to the final night of the Queens 90th birthday celebrations at the Royal Windsor Horse Pageant.

RELATED VIDEO: Celebrate the Incredible Life of Queen Elizabeth in Just 90 Seconds

The Queen, who was born on April 21, 1926, actually has two birthdays.

She marked her milestone birthday in April with a 100-yard walkabout, where she greeted crowds of well-wishers. She then joined her family for a private dinner organized by the Prince of Wales.

While the Queens actual birthday tends to be a private affair, its also customary to celebrate a sovereigns birthday publicly on a the second Saturday in June  when the weather is nicer.

Called Trooping the Colour, the tradition is believed to have started during the reign of King George II in 1748. George II was born in October, but the annual ceremony became a celebration of the king  as well as the armed forces.

Its become the centerpiece of Londons highbrow season of festivities and one of the most spectacular royal events of the year  with more than 1,400 officers, 400 musicians and 200 horses participating in a grand military parade used as a national statement of pageantry.

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The royal family typically turns out in full force for the big day, with the men bedecked in military medals and sashes. The women, typically wearing pastel dresses and oversized hats, roll through the streets in carriages. They travel from Buckingham Palace to Horse Guards Parade across St. Jamess Park where the Queen inspect her troops, receives a royal salute and take a salute of her own.

The royal family  including Prince William, Princess Kate and Prince Harry  then gather on the Buckingham Palace balcony for the final proceedings (and the biggest photo op).

This years celebrations were especially special as it marked the first time Princess Charlotte appeared on the balcony.




WARNING: If you are not caught up on some of the biggest shows on TV, then you should leave immediately because we're about to rehash the most harrowing character deaths of 2016.

Over the past 12 months, TV fans have experienced some of the most traumatic twists and gut-wrenching turns as many of our favorite characters were murdered, devoured and obliterated from our screens. (Damn. As if 2016 wasn't difficult enough...)

We're counting down the 14 most heartbreaking TV deaths of the year, so grab the biggest box of tissues you can find and prepare for an emotional trip down memory lane

MORE: 14 of the Biggest Celebrity Heroes of 2016

14. Chad Radwell (Scream Queens)

From his very first douche-tastic line in the Scream Queens pilot, we quickly fell in love with Chad's egotistical and hilariously inappropriate personality. So you can imagine how distraught we were when his blood-smeared body plummeted through the ceiling of the hospital chapel just moments before he was supposed to say "I do" to Chanel. Luckily, Glen Powell told us he's hoping for a triumphant return to the Fox horror/comedy with a twin twist...

13. Barb Holland (Stranger Things)

If you didn't hear about Barb Holland's death on Netflix's smash drama Stranger Things, then you clearly must have been living under a social media-free rock for all of 2016. Barb was undeservingly sucked into the Upside Down dimension by a Demogorgon after cutting her hand open while shot gunning a beer at a party. Fans have been crying #JusticeForBarb on Twitter ever since, so ET caught up with star Shannon Purser to chat about the "crazy" response to Barb's death.

12. Tommen Baratheon (Game of Thrones)

After his beloved queen -- and all of the Sparrows -- were killed in a giant explosion of wildfire in Game of Thrones' season six finale, Tommen Baratheon had a calmly eerie response to his wife's demise. The young king took off his crown and proceeded to jump head-first out of his high-towered bedroom. ET recently sat down with star Dean-Charles Chapman (on the Iron Throne!) and he confessed that he was really happy that Tommen finally "chose his own path" in the end -- even if that path led to his untimely death.

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11. Angus Mhor (Outlander)

Outlander fans were forced to endure a gut-wrenching twist when fan-favorite character Angus Mhor suffered a fatal, wartime wound in the Battle of Prestonpans and died unexpectedly. It was especially shocking because in the Diana Gabaldon novel, Dragonfly in Amber, on which Season 2 of the Starz series is based, it was Rupert -- not Angus -- who was supposed to meet his demise.

MORE: 14 Most Gorgeous Celeb Wedding Dresses of 2016

10. Tyler Lockwood (The Vampire Diaries)

In a long-running show about the undead, it's only natural that The Vampire Diaries has killed off some (OK pretty much all) of our favorite characters over the past eight seasons, but we really thought that our O.G. Mystic Falls residents were going to be safe this year. Unfortunately for Tyler Lockwood, he could not escape Damon's anti-humanity rage and his high school BFF Matt was forced to find Tyler's bloody, cutthroat corpse in the trunk of a car. How traumatizing!

9. Robin Hood (Once Upon a Time)

Well, this certainly was not a happy ending we were hoping for. Once Upon a Time destroyed one of the sweetest on-screen relationships with the unexpected death of Robin Hood near the end of the fairy tale drama's fifth season. Robin selflessly sacrificed himself by shielding his beloved Regina from the blast of Hades' Olympian crystal. To make matters even worse, the crystal has the power to end someone's entire existence, which means that Regina has absolutely no way of magically reuniting with Robin.

8. Laurel Lance (Arrow)

Laurel Lance, a.k.a. The Black Canary was tragically killed by the end of Arrow's fourth season when Damian Darhk stabbed her through the chest with one of Oliver's green arrows. While Laurel seemed to make it through her emergency surgery, surviving long enough to exchange some heartbreaking words with Team Arrow, she coded when she and Oliver shared a private moment alone, and was pronounced dead at 11:59, the title of the somber episode.

7. Wes Gibbins (How to Get Away With Murder)

How to Get Away With Murder fans were shocked when it was revealed that Wes Gibbins, one of Annalise Keating's original law students, was the badly burned, lifeless body hiding under the coroner's sheet in season three. Star Alfie Enoch will continue to film episodes for the remainder of season 3 as the show flashes back and forth to reveal just who killed Wes and why, but we're sad to say goodbye!

MORE: Celebrity Sparklers! The 11 Best Engagement Rings of 2016

6. Hodor (Game of Thrones)

With Game of Thrones officially surpassing the plot of George RR Martin's books, the HBO drama delivered a blindsiding death when Hodor sacrificed himself to save Bran and was attacked and consumed by an army of wights. And here's when it gets even more depressing: While Hodor was following instructions to "hold the door," Bran inadvertently warged into the mind of Hodor's younger self, Wylis, and linked him into the mind of the present-day Hodor. This mental trauma caused Wylis to suffer a seizure, and began the boy repeating "Hold the door!" -- eventually slurring the sentence together until it became the only thing he could ever say: "Hodor."

5. Richard Gilmore (Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life)

Since his passing in 2014, Gilmore Girls fans have been mourning the loss of star Edward Herrmann, but the emotional wounds were reopened in Netflix's four-part revival. The winter episode of Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life flashbacked to Richard Gilmore's funeral and we couldn't help but sob alongside Emily, Lorelai and Rory as they grieved the loss of their stoic patriarch.

4. Poussey Washington (Orange Is the New Black)

During an initially peaceful demonstration in the cafeteria, Poussey tried to de-escalate a misunderstanding between the guards and Crazy Eyes, so CO Bayley restrained Poussey by putting her face down on the floor and keeling on her back. As Crazy Eyes continues to struggle, Bayley put all of his weight on Poussey, who is unable to breathe and she is accidentally suffocated. Star Samira Wiley spilled to ET that life after OITNB has been "amazing," but she'll always have a special place in her heart for Poussey.

3. Jack Pearson (This is Us)

One of 2016's biggest new shows also delivered one of the most heartbreaking deaths of the entire year. The mystery of Jack Pearson's whereabouts became a looming question for NBC's breakout freshman drama once it became increasingly clear that the character was missing in action in the present day scenes, and in the series' fifth episode it was confirmed that Jack had passed away. Looking back, there were 13 separate clues hidden in in the first five episodes that should have tipped us off to Jack's mysterious fate, but many fans (like us!) were too busy falling head over heels for this show to truly notice.

MORE: The 12 Best Moments from the President's Last Year in Office

2. Lexa (The 100)

We're filing this death under equal parts heartbreaking and enraging. Just a few minutes (of screen time) after Lexa and Clarke finally consummated their slow-burning relationship on The 100, the Grounder Commander was killed by a stray bullet from the gun of her right hand, Titus, as he tried to kill Clarke. It was shocking and senseless and, truthfully, we're still not over it.

1. Glenn Rhee (The Walking Dead)

It's well-known that it was actually Glenn who died at the hands of Negan's bat in Robert Kirkman's beloved comics, but this Walking Dead death was still truly miserable to witness. After Negan's bone-chilling game of "eenie, meenie, miney, moe" up and down the line of Rick's crew, the Saviors' sadistic leader selected both Glenn and Abraham to be Lucille'd. While fans mourned the loss of the Walking Dead original, star Steven Yuen confessed that Glenn's last four words -- "Maggie, I'll find you" -- were the "perfect" way to say goodbye.

Which 2016 TV death was the most shocking and heartbreaking for you? Share your thoughts with @LeanneAguilera on Twitter!

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Bayonne (France) (AFP) - Five people were arrested and arms seized in a police raid which France and Spain claimed dealt a "blow" to Spanish Basque separatists ETA, but which rights groups slammed Saturday as a "political" operation.

French and Spanish officers staged the raid late Friday near Bayonne in southwest France, and those detained are to be transferred to Paris, where anti-terrorism prosecutors will lead the probe, said sources close to the case.

During the operation "a large haul of arms, explosives and ammunition" was seized, said the French interior ministry.

But it subsequently emerged that those arrested included the head of an ecologist group, a former head of the Basque Country chamber of agriculture, and a female journalist.

The head of French rights group the Ligue des Droits de l'Homme (LDH), Michel Tubiana, said he had initially planned to be among those present but did not go, and condemned the raid.

He said the aim of the activists was to destroy ETA arms, and to hand them over to authorities.

Founded in 1959, ETA waged a violent decades-long campaign for an independent Basque homeland in northern Spain and southwestern France, and is blamed for the deaths of more than 800 people.

It declared a ceasefire in October 2011 but has refused to give up its weapons.

"We didn't hide, our plans were clear from the start," Tubiana told AFP. "There is a total blockage in the ETA disarmament process, a blockage which comes from the French and Spanish governments' side.

"Several civil society members wanted to relaunch the process, by carrying out a first destruction of weapons," he said, adding: "This police operation is clearly political."

French Interior Minister Bruno Le Roux said Saturday that "nobody has the right to proclaim themselves a destroyer of arms.

He added that for Paris and Madrid, the operation was "a new hard blow for ETA," while Spain's interior ministry said its police had "dealt a blow to the arsenal of the ETA terrorist group in France".

ETA is seeking to negotiate its dissolution in exchange for amnesties or improved prison conditions for the roughly 350 ETA members held in both countries.
Robert Durst, the subject of the true crime documentary series The Jinx on HBO, told Los Angeles prosecutors in an interview last year that he was high on methamphetamines during portions of his interviews for the show, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Durst, 73, agreed to a nearly three-hour interview with prosecutors after his arrest on March 14, 2015, and said he had to be swooped and speeding during some of the more than 20 hours of interview he gave during the filming of The Jinx.

I was on meth, I was on meth the whole time, he said, according to a transcript obtained by The Times. And, when I looked at the little pieces of it, I was going like this and like that. And it was  and it should have been obvious.

The news comes as Durst awaits the beginning of the murder trial for 2000 killing of Susan Berman, his longtime friend and onetime spokeswoman.

Durst was charged with Bermans murder in March 2015. His apprehension in New Orleans preceded the airing of the damning final episode of HBOs six-part documentary series The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst, which focused on the 1982 disappearance of Dursts first wife, Kathleen Durst, while examining Bermans execution-style killing.

In the HBO finale, he is heard muttering to himself in a bathroom, There it is. Youre caught! What the hell did you do? Killed them all, of course. He was allegedly unaware the filmmakers microphones were still recording at the time.

The New York real estate heir was extradited to Los Angeles in early November, where his impending murder trial will commence within the next year.

He is the only suspect to face charges for Bermans execution-style shooting death. Her lifeless remains were discovered inside her home in Beverly Hills, California, in 2000.

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Durst pleaded not guilty in November.

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Robert Durst, real estate heir and subject of the 2015 HBO six-part documentary The Jinx, told prosecutors that he was high on methamphetamines during interviews with the filmmakers.

Durst made the comments during a March 15, 2015 jailhouse interview, which was filed in L.A. County Superior Court on Friday, according to the L.A. Times.

I was on meth, I was on meth the whole time  it should have been obvious, Durst said, according to the transcript.

Variety has reached out to HBO for comment.

Durst is linked to the murders or, in one case the disappearance and presumed death, of three individuals  his first wife who went missing in New York in 1982; his longtime friend who was shot in Beverly Hills in 2000; and his former neighbor in Texas who Durst admitted to murdering in self-defense in 2001.

In the final moments of The Jinx Durst is caught on hot mic muttering, What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course. The revelation led to his arrest in New Orleans on March 14, 2015 where Durst was checked into a hotel under a fake name and found with marijuana, a revolver, more than $40,000 in cash and a mask, according to the court papers. Durst is currently housed in Southern California serving a seven-year term for illegal possession of the firearm.

After his arrest Durst was taken to a New Orleans jail where he was read his Miranda rights and interviewed by nearly three hours. When asked why he did not flee the country prior to the documentary being aired, Durst replied inertia.

I just didnt really, really, really think that I was gonna end up arrested, he said.

Since the interview, Durst has been charged with murder and is awaiting trial. He has pleaded not guilty.

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HBO

The saga of Robert Durst gained notoriety thanks to his odd presence and history as presented in The Jinx on HBO. The true crime documentary series came at the perfect time for more reasons than one, not only trailing the success of Netflixs Making A Murderer but also leading to the arrest of Durst on the day the finale aired . It was that episode where Durst was confronted with new evidence, leading to his odd bathroom confession that was caught on a hot microphone.

Durst was arrested on March 15th 2015 in a New Orleans hotel room, carrying a false Texas ID, stacks of $100 bills, bags of marijuana, a .38-caliber revolver, a map folded to show Louisiana and Cuba and a flesh-toned latex mask with salt-and-pepper hair and admittedly ready to flee. It was one of the oddest chain of events seen in a while, but now its a little odder thanks to Dursts interview with the Los Angeles Deputy DA according to The Hollywood Reporter:

Durst, 73, told Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney John Lewin that he took meth during his interviews with the filmmakers and had smoked pot every day of his life.

HBO

The 110-page interrogation was included with a motion by the prosecution ahead of Dursts trial for the murder Susan Berman, part of an attempt to have the judge appoint a special master to sift through boxes of documents that may be protected by lawyer-client confidentiality according to The Hollywood Reporter. All of it just adds more to the already odd nature of Dursts character, referencing his interview on The Jinx and leaving Deputy District Attorney John Lewin surprised:

You saw the envelopes. How come you didnt  leave then? Lewin asked Durst. Its mind-boggling to me. I guess inertia, replied Durst. I just didnt really, really, really think that I was gonna end up arrested.

Lewin apparently did everything he could to coax a confession from Durst during his interrogation, dealing him some praise for being the most interesting suspect hed ever investigated. He also wanted to know why Durst had agreed to sit down with Andrew Jarecki and the other folks behind The Jinx, providing a quote that would leave anybody scratching their head.

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I wanted them to see the whole thing, said Durst. That they would see me as an acceptable human being, as opposed to all this other stuff.

Im not sure I could go back to re-watch The Jinx, but this is the kinda stuff that plants the seed inside. A preliminary hearing is still being discussed, with lawyers agreeing to convene in February. Durst pled not guilty at his arraignment in early November.

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)
Robert Durst revealed to Los Angeles prosecutors in an interview last year that he was on methamphetamines during HBO's true crime doc series The Jinx, according to the Los Angeles Times.

"I was on meth, I was on meth the whole time," said Durst, 72, according to a transcript obtained by the Times. "And, when I looked at the little pieces of it it should have been obvious."

WATCH: Robert Durst Pleads Not Guilty to Murder of Friend, Won't Face Death Penalty

The New York real estate heir made the confession during a three-hour interview to prosecutors after his arrest on March 14, 2015, when a .38-caliber revolver was found in his New Orleans, Louisiana, hotel. On Friday, a transcript of the interview from a New Orleans jail was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, during which he acknowledged that "I was swooped, speeding."

According to the Times, Durst also told prosecutors that he refused a sit-down with TV journalist Connie Chung because he thought her interview with Mike Tyson put him in a positive light when it shouldn't have. "I never felt like that," Durst said. "I never felt that I was really a good guy."

RELATED: Robert Durst Sentenced to 7 Years in Prison on Weapons Charge

Durst also called himself "the worst fugitive the world has ever met."

HBO's The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst investigated the 2000 killing of Durst's friend, Susan Berman, and the disappearance of his first wife, Kathie Durst, in 1982. Durst pleaded not guilty in November. During The Jinx finale last year, Durst was heard saying to himself in a bathroom, "What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course."

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On a rare rainy night in Los Angeles, it was metaphorically clear skies on the red carpet at the the opening night of The King and I. Shirley Jones, the star of film adaptations of two Rodgers and Hammerstein classics, Oklahoma (1955) and Carousel (1956), was among those on hand to welcome the musical to Los Angeles. She was joined by Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Joey Fatone, Aubrey Anderson Emmons, Gabrielle Ruiz and Lou Ferrigno, among others. The opening night took place at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood.

Many guests claimed personal ties to the show and the theater, including Modern Family's Emmons who was in a community production of The King and I last summer and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend's Gabrielle Ruiz who performed at the Pantages in a touring production of Evita and was on-hand to support her college friend Manna Nichols, appearing as Tuptim. There was an unmistakable air of excitement and camaraderie to the proceedings.

Rodgers and Hammerstein, who dominated the mid-century American theater, still stand tall as stalwarts of the Broadway stage, with their shows being a favorite among regional productions and Broadway revivals alike. This Lincoln Center production of The King and I took home the 2015 Tony Award for best revival of a musical, and followed on the heels of the success of their previous Rodgers and Hammerstein revival South Pacific, also directed by Bartlett Sher.

Laura Michelle Kelly, who stars as Anna in the production, said the show's pedigree is what attracted her to the National Tour. "I've never felt like I wanted to leave my home of New York, but the idea of working with Bart Sher, Jose Llana [the King of Siam], and this incredible creative team was enough to make me decide to leave behind my creature comforts," she said.

Cast and audience members alike reflected on Rodgers and Hammerstein's enduring legacy. "Enduring. What a perfect word for them," said Ruiz. "Next to the definition of enduring, they should have Rodgers and Hammerstein. I feel like you put on a wonderful, winter coat every time you hear the songs of the show."

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"There's sometimes, once in a lifetime, a combination of a partnership that brings about something as genius as this. And not just this, but many shows before and after," added Kelly.

For The Middle's Brock Ciarlelli, it's Rodgers and Hammerstein's unforgettable music that has made their work perennial favorites. "When you go to see a musical, it's the music that people people hold on to. It's the songs that get stuck in everyone's head that make you remember why you love that musical in particular," he said. The King and I boasts such classics as "Getting to Know You," "I Whistle a Happy Tune," "Hello, Young Lovers," "We Kiss in a Shadow," and "Shall We Dance?"

While Kelly calls Rodgers and Hammerstein "ahead of their time," her co-star Jose Llana, who portrays the King of Siam, echoes these sentiments reflecting on their ability to mix exceptional musical scores with prescient and socially conscious storylines. "They take really relevant, progressive, intense subject matter and make it into a family friendly musical with catchy tunes that everybody remembers and wants to sing to their kids," he said. "That's why they are the foundation of American musical theatre."

Read more: Watch Ariana Grande and Seth MacFarlane Perform Rodgers & Hammerstein Classics

Working with these masters of the Broadway musical was a rare treat, but one enjoyed by both Shirley Jones and BarBara Luna, who appeared in the original Broadway production of The King and I. Both Luna and Jones say they owe their careers to the writing duo. Rodgers and Hammerstein discovered Jones and launched her to stardom when they cast her in film adaptations of their work ("I feel so, so happy to have been a part of their lives," she said). Luna, who appeared as a child in both the original productions of South Pacific and The King and I, said the men were like fathers to her, paying for her to take diction, acting, singing, and dancing lessons.

Luna said that she wasn't surprised when The King and I became an instant hit in its original run in 1951 because she expected nothing less from Rodgers and Hammerstein even as a small child. "I didn't know anything but," she said. "I was in South Pacific, which was a tremendous smash, so I thought that's the way it always was."

Jones can't pick a favorite memory from her time working with the musical duo on her two films because she said every moment was so wonderful, but she was struck by their unique partnership. "They were very different people," she noted. "Hammerstein was an incredible man and Rodgers was very funny, but they were great for each other because they were very different people."

The King and I is revived less often because its setting in nineteenth-century Bangkok calls for extravagant sets and costumes that require an expansive production budget. "This is one of the ones that doesn't get done as much because it has to be so lavish," said Kelly. "This is our generation's version of the show, and I'm honored to be part of it."

The show and its lavish accouterments are not without challenges though - Deborah Kerr famously lost twelve pounds from the weight of her gowns while making the film adaptation of the musical, and Kelly, who suffers from a bone injury in her ribs, said the costumes are the hardest part of the role. "It's something they would've had in the day, but on an eight show a week [schedule], your body can get put under duress," she said. "But that's part of the job. . . That's what I love about it. It's the adrenaline, it's the excitement of 'can I even get to the end?' It pulls greatness out of you."

For Jose Llana, who took over the part of the King of Siam for Ken Watanabe on Broadway, the tour is a chance to make his own mark on the iconic role and come full circle in more ways than one. "Obviously, it's the same show," he said, "But it's exciting to be able to flex the muscles of this piece and this part in a completely different way than I did on Broadway because we created something together, as opposed to me replacing in the Broadway company."

Yul Brynner, who originated the role in the first Broadway production, famously demanded dressing room renovations when he toured with the show at the Pantages Theatre in the 1970s and '80s, including carpeting backstage and an expansive star dressing room for himself. That makes the experience particularly special for Llana. "It's so cool to walk around and to know that the carpeting there is for our bare feet because Yul Brynner knew that his company was going to be barefoot for the most of the show," he said. "It makes me feel protected, and I feel like we're fulfilling this circle that Yul Brynner started at the Pantages with us, and it's a really sweet thing to know."

The King and I runs through Jan. 21 at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre.

Read more: 'The King and I': Theater Review
As the connective tissue between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story has to seamlessly weave in many legacy elements from those earlier movies, incorporating enough Star Wars touchstones to make Rogue One feel a part of that long-time-ago galaxy. The new entry feels like a throwback to the 1977 original, with familiar settings, vehicles, droids, and costumes, even though it eschews some basic Star Wars conventions.

We had a lot of details that we had to work our story into, co-producer Josh Swartz explained at the films Hollywood premiere. One of the first things we did on Rogue One was to make a reel of everything we did on Episodes III and IV that we had to stick to as we were telling our story  all the little rules that were already set out by George and the other films. It was really important to us to make sure we werent breaking anything in the other films.

Related: The Design of Rogue One: Exclusive Look at the Concept Art

Of course that means Rogue One is stocked with Star Wars references, callbacks, and Easter eggs, many of which we knew were coming from the trailers and TV spots, many we suspected, and many that left our jaws hanging. Heres our ranking, from least surprising to most. Please let us know in the comments if we missed anything. And beware, there are lots of spoilers below.



Hope

Jyn makes the case that rebellions are built on hope, repeating that mantra many times. That theme gets picked up by key characters throughout the film, which leads directly into Episode IV, a.k.a. A New Hope.

Moisture Vaporators/Blue Milk

The Ersos farm has two visual references to the Lars homestead on Tatooine in A New Hope. Outside are the familiar moisture vaporators; inside on the counter, a pitcher of blue milk that would make Aunt Beru smile.

Death Troopers arrive at the Ersos farm hideaway, with a moisture vaporator on the hill in the background (Lucasfilm)

Saw Gerrera

The grizzled freedom fighter and protector of the Ersos, played in Rogue One by Forest Whitaker, first appeared in four episodes of the animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars, fighting to save his planet Onderon with help from Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi.

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The young Saw Gerrera in Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Lucasfilm)

Related: Deep Inside Rogue One: Lucasfilms Pablo Hidalgo Reveals Secrets of New Star Wars (Exclusive)

The Death Star

Rogue One offers more backstory on the planet-killing battle station, including how its superlaser is powered (by the Jedis kyber crystals), how Grand Moff Tarkin came to run it, how it wound up with a fatal flaw, and how the Rebels wound up with the plans to exploit that flaw. Meanwhile, inside the station, we see the familiar ginormo-helmeted Death Star squads in charge of operating the various systems, including the big gun.

Tarkin gives the order to fire as the Death Star moves into range in A New Hope (Lucasfilm)

Imperial Disguises

A classic Star Wars stratagem, dating back to the 1977 original, is having our heroes incapacitate Imperial minions and use their uniforms to infiltrate enemy lines. In Rogue One, Jyn and Cassian knock out an officer and a ground crew member and use their duds to get inside the citadel on Scarif.

Cassian and Jyn in Imperial garb accompany K-2SO into the Scarif citadel (Lucasfilm)

Yavin 4

The Rebel HQ featured at the end of A New Hope gets more play in Rogue One. We see the base from alternate angles and get a better look at its inner workings.

Leia confers with Dodanna in the Yavin IV base during climactic battle in A New Hope (Lucasfilm)

Jan Dodonna

Among the familiar faces we see at Yavin 4 is the bearded Rebel general who plots the attack on the Death Star in A New Hope. Here, Dodanna is played by Ian McElhinney (Game of Thrones); in the original it was Alex McCrindle.

Mon Mothma (left) and Dodanna (in the white coat on the right) in the Yavin war room in Rogue One (Lucasfilm)

Related: Behind the Scenes at the Rogue One Hollywood Premiere

Mon Mothma

The Chandrilan senator is depicted as one of the key leaders of the nascent rebellion assembled on Yavin 4 in Rogue One. Following the death of Bail Organa when the Death Star destroys Alderaan in A New Hope, she emerges as the leader of the Alliance in Return of the Jedi. Genevieve OReilly, who played Mon in Revenge of the Sith, reprises the role, which was originated by Caroline Blakiston.

Mon Mothma in the war room at Yavin Base in Rogue One (Lucasfilm)

Related: How Mon Mothma Returned to the Star Wars Universe

Bail Organa

Another founder of the Rebel Alliance, Organa first emerged in opposition to Palpatine in Attack of the Clones. In Revenge of the Sith, he adopted Anakin Skywalkers infant daughter Leia to protect her from the Dark Side. In Rogue One, he supports Jyn Ersos mission to steal the Death Star plans before flying back to his home world of Alderaan  where he is killed in the Death Star attack in A New Hope. Jimmy Smits reprises his role from the prequels.

Bail Organa on Yavin in Rogue One (Lucasfilm)

Obi-Wan Kenobi

Although not mentioned by name, Mon tells Bail that he needs to alert your Jedi friend and Bail remarks that said friend served me well in the Clone Wars. Asked if he has someone he trusts to deliver the message, Bail replies in the affirmative, adding, I trust her with my life  an allusion to Leia and her New Hope hologram of help me, Obi-Wan, youre my only hope.

A hologram of Princess Leia beckons to Obi-Wan Kenobi (Lucasfilm)

Mustafar

The volcanic planet served as the site of the duel between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker in Revenge of the Sith. By the time of Rogue One, Vader has established his redoubt there, residing in a monolithic castle (an edifice originally conceived by Star Wars artist Ralph McQuarrie for Empire Strikes Back but ultimately discarded).

Bacta Tank

Darth Vader is first seen in Rogue One outside of his armor, submerged in the restorative fluids that his son Luke would eventually use to recover from the wampa attack in Empire Strikes Back.

Luke recovers in a bacta tank post-wampa attack (Lucasfilm)

Imperial Royal Guards

Two of the red-cloaked sentinels, among the most elite members of the Stormtrooper Corps, flank Darth Vaders chamber in his Mustafar stronghold.

The red-cloaked Imperial guards stand watch outside Vaders bacta tank (Lucasfilm)

Darth Vader

The dark lord of the Sith is at the height of his terrible powers at the time of Rogue One, where he is dubious of Krennics ability to bring the Death Star to full power without a hitch.

Darth Vader emerges from his chamber for some chit-chat with Krennic (Lucasfilm)

Force Choke

Krennic is on the receiving end of one of Vaders trademark throttlings; although it is nonlethal for the director, the Sith lord later employs his Dark Side strangling power to devastating effect on some Rebels trying to escape with the Death Star plans, just like he does to both Rebels and insolent Imperials throughout the original Star Wars trilogy.

Related: Rogue One 101  Everything You Need to Know Before Seeing the Movie

Devastator vs. Tantive IV

Otherwise known as, respectively, Vaders Star Destroyer and Leias blockade runner from A New Hope, these ships are among several familiar vessels that turn up in the climactic moments of Rogue One, as the rebels try to escape the Scarif system with the stolen Death Star plans. Theres even a quick glimpse and reference to the Tantive IVs pilot, Captain Antilles.

The Tantive IV tries to outrun the Devastator above Tatooine in the opening moments of A New Hope and minutes after the climax of Rogue One (Lucasfilm)

Twilek Dancer

At Saws hideout on Jedha, we briefly see hologram of a dancing Twilek female, a callback to the ill-fated Oola, who becomes rancor chow when her moves displease Jabba the Hutt in Return of the Jedi.

Oola, the ill-fated captive of Jabba the Hutt in Return of the Jedi (Lucasfilm)

Budget Holochess

Two of Saws fighters are playing a board game reminiscent of Chewbaccas favorite pastime holochess; however, the Rogue One version is a low-budget handmade version using physical pieces (including a rancor) in lieu of holograms.

C-3PO recommends that R2-D2 let Chewie win (Lucasfilm)

Related: Star Wars VFX Guru Talks Holochess Then (A New Hope) and Now (Force Awakens)

The Odds

Throughout Rogue One, the unfiltered K-2SO (voiced by Alan Tudyk) loves telling Cassian and the other team members the unlikely chances of success, not unlike C-3PO in Empire Strikes Back, who relays Artoos calculations for Luke surviving a night on Hoth and then states the improbability of Han surviving a run through an asteroid field, prompting the scoundrels rejoinder: Never tell me the odds!

May the Force Be With You

The most famous line in the franchise is uttered here initially by Jyn Erso as the team embarks on its desperate mission to Scarif. As the Rebel fighter pilots scramble to head to Scarif, a voice over the intercom invokes the line. And at the end, Admiral Raddus salutes Jyns crew using their call sign: Rogue One, may the Force be with you.

Ive Got a Bad Feeling About This

The second-most repeated line in Star Wars films gets delivered by K-2SO in Rogue One.

Its a Trap!

In Rogue One, its Saw Gerrera who puts his spin on this classic quote first exclaimed onscreen by Admiral Ackbar in Return of the Jedi.

Guardians of the Whills/The Force of Others

The blind warrior monk Chirrut Imwe (Donnie Yen) and his protector Baze Malbus (Jiang Wen) are introduced as members of a sect called the Guardian of the Whills, non-Jedis who believe in the power of the Force and protect the sacred sites on Jedha.

Baze and Chirrut, two very different Guardians of the Whills, former protectors of the Jedi temple on Jedha (Lucasfilm)

The Whills is a deep-nerd callback to George Lucass earliest scripts, when his movie was still called The Star Wars. The Whills was essentially the Force, and Lucas also referred to the Journal of the Whills, a repository of Jedi lore analogous to the Bible. Meanwhile, when we meet Chirrut, he is greeting passersby with the salutation, May the Force of Others be with you, a riff on the classic line that is also a nod to the original incarnation of the phrase from Lucass treatment.

Red and Gold Squadrons

The X-wing and Y-wing squadrons, respectively, that led the assault on the Death Star make a cameo in Rogue One, as they accompany the Rebel fleet into battle above Scarif. The filmmakers digitally inserted Gold Leader (Angus MacInnes) and Red Leader (Drewe Henley) from A New Hope into the scene.

Red Leader barks orders to his X-wing squadron during the Death Star attack in A New Hope (Lucasfilm)

Red 5 (Pre-Luke Skywalker)

In A New Hope, Luke has the call sign Red 5 in the Death Star battle. In Rogue One, we get the backstory of how that slot opened up  the original Red 5 is obliterated above Scarif.

Wilhuff Tarkin

We learn how the grand moff comes to command the Death Star via the schemings of the computer-generated recreation of Peter Cushings A New Hope character, who outmaneuvers Krennic. Tarkin is voiced by British actor Guy Henry, whose credits include a turn as a Death Eater in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Grand Moff Tarkin grills Princess Leia aboard the Death Star in A New Hope (Lucasfilm)

Ponda Baba and Dr. Evazan

Ponda Baba (perhaps better known by his action-figure name of Walrus Man) and Dr. Cornelius Evazan make a cameo on Jedha, literally bumping into Jyn and Cassian. They apparently got out of town before the Death Star blast, because we know the made it to Tatooines Mos Eisley Cantina, where Evazan tells Luke Skywalker in A New Hope, Were wanted men. I have the death sentence on 12 systems, before he and his toothy pal wind up on the business end of Obi-Wans lightsaber.

Ponda Baba, with Dr. Evazan looming behind, confronts Luke Skywalker in the cantina in A New Hope (Lucasfilm)

Related: The Cantina Scene  the Out-of-This-World Story of the Galaxys Favorite Dive Bar

The Ghost

The ship belonging to the main team in the animated Star Wars Rebels is parked at Alliance HQ on Yavin 4 and then later glimpsed in the dogfight above Scarif. While Rebels has frequently featured cameos from film characters, this is the first time something from that toon has crossed over to film.

The Ghost in flight in Star Wars Rebels; its presence in Rogue One is pure fan service, since none of its crew appears (Lucasfilm)

C-3PO and R2-D2

Continuing their streak as the only characters who have appeared in every screen incarnation of Star Wars, the iconic droids pop up on Yavin 4. Anthony Daniels, who plays Threepio, extends his personal streak of being in the most Star Wars-related productions of any actor.

C-3PO and R2-D2 on Tatooine after eluding capture aboard the Tantive IV in A New Hope (Lucasfilm)

In addition to the golden protocol droid and his astromech BFF, we also see several other models from the original trilogy, including GNK (or power droid), MSE (mouse droid), RA-7 (Imperial protocol droid), and Viper droid (Imperial probe droid).

Princess Leia

As promised, the film ends moments before A New Hope, as Alliance troopers deliver the Death Star plans to Princess Leia on the Tantive IV.

Leia gives R2-D2 the Death Star plans aboard the Tantive IV in A New Hope (Lucasfilm)

Leia, recreated through the use of a stand-in with Carrie Fishers young face animated on, appears in her familiar white robe and Cinnabon-hairdo and utters a single word: Hope, which seems like it was snipped from her help me, Obi-Wan speech mentioned above.

Watch Rogue One Stars Play With Their Action Figures:


Among the 10 most searched homes on Realtor.com for 2016 there is a mix of odd homes, those that are wrecks and expensive mansions. The most searched is a $3.6 million home in Texas, the construction of which has never been completed.

The house at 2354 Country Road 59 in Manvel, Texas, is described by Realtor.com as the nation's "biggest fixer upper." It has 30 bedrooms, 30 full baths and 10 half-baths. The house is 63,890 square feet large and is south of Houston, near Route 289.

Manvel is small, but prosperous. Its population is 3,046, according to the 2010 Census. Median household income is $65,862, well above the national average. Only 3% of the population is below the poverty line. On the other hand, it is not an area of extremely expensive homes. The median price of a home for sale is $377,397.

ALSO READ: Customer Service Hall of Shame

The house is so large, it is not even being listed primarily as a residence:

This property is set up perfectly for an Assisted Living or Group Housing Facility. It has never been completed so the walls can be moved easily to suit any of your needs. NO disclosures. Proof of funds are required to view. This property is being sold ''AS_IS'' and has HUGE potential for the right person or Company. You can fit up to 72 Lg rms.

What sort of buyer would want a property that is sold "as is" and without any disclosures? Not a smart one, which may be a reason for the low price.

ALSO READ: The Worst Companies to Work For

The listing and the trouble that the owner has had selling the home begs one question: Who in his or her right mind would build the house in the first place?

Someone in the family that owns the house had sense:

The massive home, abandoned and incomplete, has attracted media attention over the years. Located in the small town of Manvel, TX, the structure started in the early 2000s as a custom build for the original owners, a doctor and his wife, recounts Jim Youngblood, the current homeowner. They got 70% done, and for some reason his wife thought the house was too big.

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MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held phone calls with the foreign ministers of Turkey and Iran on Saturday to discuss the Syria crisis, the Russian foreign ministry said. The ministers stressed the importance of joint efforts by the international community to provide humanitarian aid in Syria and facilitate a political resolution of the conflict, the ministry said in a statement, adding that the calls were made on Russia's initiative. The three ministers agreed to meet in the near future, it said. (Reporting by Alexander Winning; editing by Jason Neely)
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Nothing like a Hollywood Walk of Fame star to get the Reynolds family out of the house.

Ryan Reynolds was honored with his very own plot of sidewalk on Thursday, and along for the ride was actress Blake Lively and the couple's childrenmarking their first public appearance as a family.

SEE ALSO: 'Deadpool' just got a big honor at the Golden Globes

Ryan Reynolds' daughter James, left, steals the microphone as Reynolds poses with his wife, actress Blake Lively, and their youngest daughter during a ceremony to award him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016, in Los Angeles.

Image: Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

You are the best thing, the best thing that has ever happened to me, second only to this star," Reynolds said to wife Lively, according to Yahoo.

"You make everything better, absolutely everything in my life better. Youve made me the father of my dreams when I thought I only had fun uncle potential," he said before playing with their two children, James, 2, and their youngest daughter.

Actor Ryan Reynolds poses with his wife, actress Blake Lively, their daughter James, left, and their youngest daughter during a ceremony to award him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016, in Los Angeles.

Image: Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

What a crew.

BONUS: What film stars really think about Hollywood's diversity issue
NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / December 16, 2016 / Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against GoPro, Inc. ("GoPro" or the "Company")(GPRO) and certain of its officers. The class action, filed in United States District Court, Northern District of California, and docketed under 16-cv-06654, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired GoPro between September 19, 2016 and November 4, 2016, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"), seeking to recover compensable damages caused by Defendants' violations of the federal securities laws and to pursue remedies under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act") and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder.

If you are a shareholder who purchased GoPro during the Class Period, you have until January 17, 2017 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com. To discuss this action, contact Robert S. Willoughby at rswilloughby@pomlaw.com or 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll free, ext. 9980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and number of shares purchased.

[Click here to join this class action]

GoPro develops and sells mountable and wearable cameras and accessories in the United States and internationally. The Company's cameras are designed primarily for filming while immersed in action, such as outdoor or extreme sports. On October 23, 2016, following months of delays, GoPro released the Karma drone, a compact, foldable drone designed for aerial photography using GoPro's cameras.

The Complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding the Company's business, operational and compliance policies. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) GoPro's Karma drones were prone to losing power midflight, causing them to fall out of the sky; (ii) the Company had thus significantly overstated the utility of and likely customer demand for the Karma drone; (iii) the foregoing issue, when publicly known, would necessitate a costly recall of the Company's Karma drones; and (iv) as a result, GoPro's public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.

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On November 3, 2016, shortly before the market closed, GoPro issued a press release and filed a Current Report on Form 8-K with the SEC announcing the Company's financial and operating results for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 (the "Q3 2016 8-K"). Among other information, the Q3 2016 8-K provided revenue guidance for 2016 in the range of $1.25 billion and $1.3 billiona significant decrease from the revenue guidance of $1.35 billion and $1.5 billion that the Company had provided in reporting its financial and operating results for the previous quarter, and consistent with an anticipated recall of the Company's Karma drone.

On this news, GoPro's share price fell $0.90, or 7.01%, to close at $11.94 on November 3, 2016, and fell an additional $0.78, or 6.53%, to close at $11.16 on November 4, 2016.

On November 8, 2016, post-market, GoPro announced the recall of the approximately 2,500 Karma drones purchased by consumers since the product's release, advising that the Company had discovered that Karma units were prone to losing power during operation.

On this news, GoPro's share price fell $0.45, or 4.14%, to close at $10.41 on November 9, 2016.

The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Florida, and Los Angeles, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com

SOURCE: Pomerantz LLP
The La Crosse Area Synod ELCA will host an ecumenical journey to Germany from June 12-21 in celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Revolution. Travelers will visit museums, villages, churches, monasteries and other venues where Martin Luther and other reformers lived, preached and studied.

The trip will include a visit to Wartburg Castle and an English worship service at the Castle Church in Wittenberg, where Luther nailed his famous 95 theses to the church door in 1517. Also included are visits to Buchenwald Concentration Camp, the church in Leipzig that was the meeting place for the Silent Revolution that is credited with bringing down the Berlin Wall, a Johann Sebastian Bach concert and other special exhibits and period-style events.

The group will be led by the Rev. Anne M. Hokenstad, who serves the De Soto-Freeman Lutheran Parish in the La Crosse Synod. She has taught at Viterbo University, is a former high school German teacher and is a German theological tutor.

The cost is $3,299 from La Crosse, based on double occupancy. Registration is limited to 45, and the deadline for registering is Jan. 31. For a brochure and itinerary, registration information forms and payment details go to lacrosseareasynod.org/500th-anniversary-of-the-reformation. For answers to questions, contact Reformation Task Force Tour Coordinator Janet Melby at jrhmelby@yahoo.com, 608-782-6109.
Photo: Getty Images

Norwood Thomas lost touch with his first love Joyce Durrant in 1945. And after reconnecting last year, he now is now mourning her death.

Durrant died on Dec. 9, two months after suffering a heart attack, according to Thomas.

She was the love of my life, Thomas, 93, said in an interview with The Virginia-Pilot. I hadnt spoken to her for seventy years.

Thomas, 93, and Durrant first met on the banks of Londons River Thames in 1945 during World War II. Tommie  then 21  was a D-Day paratrooper with the storied 101st Airborne Division and Durrant  then 17  was an Australian student nurse.

Following a whirlwind romance, the pair lost touch after the war ended, but never forgot one another. They reconnected in November 2015 after Durrant asked her son Robert Morris to search for her old beau on the Internet.

And after Durrants search went viral, a GoFundMe page was started and Air New Zealand offered to sponsor a trip for Thomas to visit his long-lost love in her hometown of Adelaide, Australia. In February, he flew from his home in Virginia Beach, Virginia, to Durrants home Down Under.

To me, it was about the best experience that Ive ever had, he said of the couples reunion after more than seven decades apart. Its hard to sit here and explain to people  my emotions, how I felt, how I do feel. But it was wonderful.

Before meeting, the couple talked about how much they wanted to give each other a squeeze. And in February, they did just that.

When I put my arms around her, I felt an emotion that I hadnt felt for a long time, Thomas said in his emotional interview. And then, as we were together, that emotion grew. And pretty soon, the old feelings were back.

She always had a smile, and she was full of life, he said, reflecting on what he loved most about Durrant.

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RELATED VIDEO: WWII Veteran Returns Home after Reuniting with His Wartime Love

Since their two-week-long reunion earlier this year, the pair have called each other four to five times per week and Thomas hoped to fly out to Australia again in the spring. But he told the The Virginia-Pilot that finding his way back to her was more than worth the heartbreak he feels now.

Ill tell you it was a great pleasure being with her in England, a great pleasure being with her in Australia and a great loss that Im feeling now, he said of their love story.
Photo: Getty Images

A couple in China might have started a new wedding trend, especially among future brides concerned about their appearance on their big day. Wu Shuai switched outfits with Ou Qian for their nuptials last week because his bride was concerned that she would look overweight in her wedding dress.

According to a Facebook post that has gone viral, Wu and Ous clever switch-up took place in the city of Nanchong in the Sichuan province of China. Guests were taken aback to see Ou enter the hall decked out in her grooms tuxedo, complete with sunglasses and her long tresses neatly tucked into a bun. Wu wore his brides white, flowing dress along with the requisite veil. Wu displayed confidence in wearing the off-the-shoulder number.

Wu told local publications that the swap was her idea, after Ou felt shed gained too much weight during the five years theyd been courting. Although Wu was initially hesitant about actually wearing the dress, he gave in and said that it was a worthy sacrifice.

Sometimes you just have to put yourself in her shoes, he said. Its the key to a happy marriage.

Smart man.

Weve seen similar outfit swaps in the past: Back in 2014, a pair of cousins serving as bridesmaid and groomsman switched outfits for the grand wedding entrance in Snohomish, Wash. The groomsmans sister was getting married, and the switcheroo was a hit. Yet, this recent swap looks like a first between a bride and groom.

Now, thats love.

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Correction: we originally reported (based on the Facebook post) that the swap was the brides idea, but additional sources have reported that it was the brides wish to swap wardrobes.
The roommate from hell is back: NBC is rebooting the 90s thriller Single White Female as a TV series.

The Hollywood Reporter says the series has received a script commitment from the network, and will move the action to San Francisco instead of New York. Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh starred in the 1992 original about a woman named Allison (Fonda) who takes in Hedra (Leigh) as a roommate, only to have her turn into a full-on psycho stalker. The iconic moment came when Allison discovered Hedra had copied her exact haircut and wardrobe  the birth of the term single white femaled.

Female was part of the late-80s/early-90s psycho thriller movie trend that gave us Fatal Attraction and The Hand That Rocks the Cradle. And of course, this is just the latest movie reboot to be announced as a TV series in recent months. (See: Heathers; Sneakers; Enemy of the State.)

Luckily, weve rounded up all the reboots and revivals currently in the works in one handy gallery for you. (Click on the gallery to the right, and be amazed at the originality coming out of Hollywood these days.)

Any Single White Female fans out there? Cast the roles of Hedra and Allison for us in the comments.

Launch Gallery: TV Reboots and Revivals: A Complete Guide

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Paris (AFP) - A Turkish national charged with murdering three female Kurdish rebels in Paris died Saturday, a French judicial source said, before his case came to trial.

Omer Guney died at a hospital in the French capital following a battle with a serious brain illness, the source said.

He was the only suspect sent for trial, scheduled to start next month, on charges of "murder in relation to a terrorist enterprise" over the killings of the three women, including Sakine Cansiz.

Cansiz -- one of the founders of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) -- was murdered along with Fidan Dogan, 28, and 24-year-old Leyla Soylemez.

The women's bodies were found in the early hours of January 10, 2013 at a Kurdish information centre. They had been shot in the head and neck.

Guney denied involvement in the killings, though investigators said they had surveillance footage of him entering the crime scene and one of the victim's DNA was allegedly found on his coat.

Lawyers for the victims' families spoke of their anger at being "denied a public trial which they had been waiting for almost four years".

They expressed their "consternation at seeing France, one again, incapable of judging a political crime committed on French territory by foreign secret services".

Guney had been described by relatives as a Turkish ultranationalist who infiltrated the PKK in order to spy on it, with one source saying he was tasked with "eliminating PKK cadres".

In January 2014 the Turkish intelligence services officially denied any role in the killings.

French investigators had concluded that members of the Turkish national intelligence agency MIT were "implicated" in the triple murder, according to an informed source.

However, the investigators had been unable to establish whether the service sponsored the hit or whether agents were acting on their own initiative.

The PKK launched its insurgency against the Turkish state in 1984, initially fighting for Kurdish independence although it now focuses on greater autonomy and rights for the country's largest ethnic minority.
By Laila Bassam and Lisa Barrington ALEPPO, Syria/BEIRUT (Reuters) - A new deal is being negotiated to complete the evacuation of rebel-held areas of Syria's east Aleppo which ground to a halt on Friday after demands from pro-government forces that people also be moved out of two villages besieged by insurgents. A Syrian rebel official and a government official said early on Saturday the evacuation of Aleppo would resume and the two Shi'ite villages would be evacuated, as well as the wounded from two towns near the Lebanese border and east Aleppo. But sources said negotiations between pro-government and opposition forces as well as their international backers, were still going on to finalize how the evacuations would take place and how many people would leave. The chaos surrounding the evacuation reflects the complexity of Syria's civil war, with an array of groups and foreign interests involved on all sides. Aleppo had been divided between government and rebel areas in the nearly six-year-long war, but a lightning advance by the Syrian army and its allies began in mid-November following months of intense air strikes, forcing the insurgents out of most of the rebel-held territory within a matter of weeks. A senior Syrian rebel official from the powerful Ahrar al Sham group involved in the talks on Saturday said the deal was being held up by Iran and its allied Shi'ite militias which were insisting people be allowed to leave the besieged Shi'ite villages of Kefraya and al-Foua before allowing the Aleppo evacuation to proceed. "Iran and its sectarian proxies are using the humanitarian situation of our people in besieged Aleppo and preventing civilians from leaving until the evacuation of their groups in al-Foua and Kefraya," Munir Sayal, the head of the political wing of the movement, told Reuters in a telephone interview. Al Farouk Abu Bakr, the head rebel negotiator inside Aleppo charged with negotiating on their behalf, earlier said an agreement was reached that included the two Shi'ite villages as demanded by Iran. But he said later that Tehran had once again obstructed a deal. As darkness fell on Saturday afternoon and temperatures began to fall below freezing, there was no sign the evacuation was happening. A resident in Aleppo told Reuters that nobody had left the rebel-held enclave and no buses had entered. He also said he had heard gunfire near where people were to wait for the buses. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said thousands of cold, scared and injured people were still in east Aleppo waiting to leave. It said it had received some indications that a deal would be reached soon. The Syrian government official, part of the team negotiating the evacuations, said: "It was agreed to resume evacuations from east Aleppo in parallel with the evacuation of (medical) cases from Kefraya and al-Foua and some cases from Zabadani and Madaya." The towns of Madaya and Zabadani are blockaded by pro-government forces. The operation to evacuate fighters and civilians from the last opposition-held area of Aleppo was suspended on Friday, its second day, after pro-government militias demanded that the wounded also be brought out of al-Foua and Kefraya, and protesters blocked a convoy on the road out of Aleppo. Another Free Syrian Army official Zakaria Malhafji said that he expected the Aleppo evacuation to resume on Sunday after reaching an agreement that also includes simultaneous evacuation from the two Shi'ite villages. "Tomorrow morning the evacuation from Aleppo will begin again", Malhafji told TV news channel al-Arabiya al Hadath. BEATEN AND ROBBED Numerous activists, rebels and east Aleppo residents shared reports and videos of people fleeing amid chaos, the sound of shooting, being detained and returning home badly beaten and robbed of their possessions near a checkpoint as they tried to leave the city on Friday. Rebels said the previous evacuation deal was breached by pro-government, Iran-backed militias who detained "hundreds" of people trying to leave, leading to some deaths. A Syrian military source denied this, but said a convoy trying to leave was sent back. "Now we are working on international guarantees to guarantee the safety of those who leave Aleppo so that such violations are not repeated," Syrian rebel negotiator Abu Bakr told al-Arabiya from Aleppo on Saturday. The Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) and the ICRC said guarantees were needed to protect people. "We're ready to resume facilitating the evacuation according to our humanitarian mandate. But we now expect all the parties on the ground to provide us with solid guarantees in order to keep the operation going," said Marianne Gasser, head of the ICRC in Syria. NO EVACUATIONS ON SATURDAY A military news outlet run by Hezbollah, an ally of Damascus, had said evacuation buses were heading to the two villages to complete the evacuations and said this could happen on Saturday. But the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war, said the evacuations in al-Foua or Kefraya, where it says there are around 20,000 people - of whom roughly 4,500 are pro-government fighters - was postponed and would begin on Sunday. It was expected that 50 buses would take around 1,500 people, including wounded, to government-held areas. The Observatory said 8,000 people, including some 3,000 fighters and more than 300 wounded, had left Aleppo in convoys of buses and ambulances in the evacuations that began on Thursday morning. Rebel officials say the numbers evacuated are much lower, with no fighters having left. The United Nations says around 30,000 people remain in rebel-held Aleppo, of whom a number would be taken to Idlib province, which is mostly controlled by hardline Islamist groups, and the rest would go to government-held city districts. Idlib is already a target for Syrian and Russian air strikes, but it is unclear whether the government will push for a ground assault or simply seek to contain rebels there for now. Turkey has said Aleppo evacuees could also be housed in a camp to be constructed near the Turkish border to the north. OVERNIGHT BOMBING The Observatory said war planes bombed insurgent-controlled areas west of Aleppo overnight and north of Aleppo on Saturday. Syrian state media reported on Saturday that a number of fighters south of Damascus had surrendered their weapons to the state in the towns of Zakiya and al-Deirkheyba as part of local truces. Through a series of so-called settlement agreements and army offensives, the Syrian government, backed by Russian air power and Iran-backed militias, has been steadily suppressing armed opposition in the suburbs of the capital. Russian President Vladimir Putin, Syria's most powerful ally, said on Friday he was working with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to try to start a new round of Syrian peace talks aimed at securing a nationwide ceasefire. A senior Syrian opposition leader, Riyad Hijab, said he was willing to attend the talks if the aim was to set up a transitional government. Assad has ruled out stepping down as part of a political solution to the war. Aleppo, a once-flourishing economic center with renowned ancient sites, has been pulverized during the war that has killed more than 300,000 people, created the world's worst refugee crisis and allowed for the rise of Islamic State. Even with victory for Assad in Aleppo, the war will be far from over. Insurgents still retain the rural stronghold of Idlib province as well as other territory in western, northern and southern Syria, while the jihadist Islamic State militant group holds swathes of the east and recaptured the ancient city of Palmyra earlier this week. (Reporting by Laila Bassam in Aleppo, Lisa Barrington and Tom Perry in Beirut, Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva, Suleiman al Khalidi in Amman and Mohamed el Sherif in Cairo; writing by Anna Willard; editing by Robin Pomeroy and G Crosse)
Thousands of people marched through central London on December 17 in protest against the military action of Syria, Russia, and their allies on rebel-held areas of east Aleppo.

The march was hosted by the Syria Solidarity Campaign, who shared this video. A Facebook page for the event said there was a Holocaust ongoing in Aleppo, and called on marchers to express outrage at the complete inaction of the international community. Credit: Facebook/Syria Solidarity Campaign via Storyful
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Paris (AFP) - A French anti-terrorist judge has charged three more men suspected of helping to arm the Islamist radical who crushed 86 people to death with a truck in Nice, a judicial source said Saturday.

The three, who were among 11 arrested on Monday in Nice and the western city of Nantes, were remanded into custody on Friday, said the source. The other eight have been released.

The three, aged 24, 31 and 36, were charged in relation to a terrorist plot.

The arrests come five months after Tunisian extremist Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel ploughed a 19-tonne truck into a crowd on the Nice seafront, further traumatising a country reeling from a series of jihadist attacks.

The victims from 19 different countries were watching a fireworks display on July 14, the Bastille Day public holiday. Over 400 people were injured.

Six people have already been charged so far over alleged links to the 31-year-old killer but investigators have yet to prove that any of them knew what he was planning.

They include an Albanian couple, Artan Henaj and Enkeledja Zace, and a French-Tunisian national, 21-year-old Ramzi Arefa, suspected of providing a pistol to the killer while not necessarily knowing what he was planning.

The three men charged Friday are linked to varying degrees to these suspects.

The 31-year-old, born in Tunisia, is suspected of being an intermediary between the Albanian couple and Arefa, said a source close to the investigation. The 24-year-old, born in Albania and a cousin of Henaj, is suspected of being implicated in a transaction over a Kalashnikov.

The Islamic State group moved quickly after the attack to claim Bouhlel as one of its followers.

Nearly six months after the Nice attack, investigators are still trying to understand the killer's real motives.

"There is a combination of (Islamist) radicalisation, a fascination for extreme violence and a background of psychological problems," said a source close to the case.

Separately, an anti-terrorist judge charged a woman as part of a probe into a gang of female jihadists arrested after the discovery of gas cylinders packed in a car in Paris in September, said a judicial source Saturday.

The 23-year-old, arrested Tuesday in Mantes-la-Jolie west of Paris, was charged Friday in connection with the alleged plot, foiled after the potentially deadly car was left near Paris's Notre Dame Cathedral on September 4.
WASHINGTON (AP)  President-elect Donald Trump said Saturday on Twitter the United States should let China keep the U.S. Navy's unmanned underwater glider that it seized in the South China Sea. "We should tell China that we don't want the drone they stole back.- let them keep it!" Trump tweeted a few hours after the U.S. military announced it had reached an understanding with China for the return of the underwater glider. According to the Pentagon, the drone was seized Thursday while collecting unclassified scientific data in the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety. The U.S. demanded the drone back, calling it an "unlawful seizure" in international waters.

BEIJING (AP)  China said Saturday its military seized a U.S. Navy unmanned underwater glider in the South China Sea but it would give the drone back. But President-elect Donald Trump tweeted later that the Chinese government should be told "we don't want the drone they stole back" and "let them keep it!" This comes after United States officials had confirmed that they "secured an understanding" for the return of the device. Trump's evening tweet may extend one of the most serious incidents between the American and the Chinese militaries in years. The Chinese navy on Thursday seized the drone, which the Pentagon said was being operated by civilian contractors to conduct oceanic research.

President-elect Donald Trump says the U.S. should let China keep the U.S. Navy's unmanned underwater glider that it seized in the South China Sea. Trump tweeted Saturday: "We should tell China that we don't want the drone they stole back.- let them keep it!" His tweet came after the U.S. military announced it had reached an understanding with China for the return of the underwater glider. On Saturday morning, Trump took to Twitter to blast China for, as he described it, ripping the research drone out of the water. According to the Pentagon, the drone was seized Thursday while collecting unclassified scientific data in the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety.

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JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP)  An Indonesian military Hercules C-130 transport plane crashed Sunday in the easternmost province of Papua, killing all 13 people on board. Air force chief of staff Agus Supriatna told MetroTV the plane was carrying 12 tons of food supplies and cement from Timika to Wamena, a distance of about 200 kilometers (125 miles), when it crashed just minutes before its scheduled landing. He said bad weather was suspected to be the cause of the crash. The plane was carrying three pilots and 10 other personnel. TV footage showed rescuers and locals had reached the wreckage of the plane and were bringing out the victims.

MANILA, Philippines (AP)  The United States said Sunday it will work with the Philippine president to address any concerns after he threatened to terminate a pact that allows U.S. troops to visit the Philippines. President Rodrigo Duterte was enraged after a U.S. government aid agency deferred a vote on a renewal of a major development assistance package for the Philippines over concerns about extrajudicial killings in Duterte's war on illegal drugs, which has left thousands dead. Although no decision on the aid package has been taken, Duterte on Saturday launched an expletives-laden tirade, telling the U.S. to "prepare to leave the Philippines, prepare for the eventual repeal or the abrogation of the Visiting Forces Agreement." He was referring to a 1998 accord that governs American forces visiting the Philippines for joint combat exercises.

TOKYO (AP)  It's been five years since North Korean leader Kim Jong Un took power following the death of his father, Kim Jong Il, whose demise was observed at monuments and on city center plazas across the nation Saturday. Here's a look at five ways the country that has now been ruled by three generations of Kim  starting with grandfather Kim Il Sung  has changed since the ascension of its 30-something "respected marshal." ___ THE MAN HIMSELF Kim Jong Un is in some ways a lot more like his charismatic and gregarious, albeit brutal and megalomaniacal, grandfather than Kim Jong Il.

MANILA, Philippines (AP)  The Philippine president said Saturday he would "set aside" a ruling by an international arbitration tribunal that invalidated Beijing's claims to most of the busy South China Sea, because he doesn't want to impose on China. President Rodrigo Duterte made the remarks when asked in a news conference if a U.S. think tank report that China apparently installed anti-aircraft and anti-missile weapons on its new artificial islands in the disputed waters would affect his perception of Beijing. The Philippines claims the reefs that were turned by China into man-made islands. Duterte, who took office in June, has taken steps to mend relations with China that grew hostile during the time of his predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, over the long-unresolved territorial disputes.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP)  Supporters of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-hye clashed with anti-Park protesters Saturday, as large crowds of demonstrators again gathered in Seoul to demand the scandal-ridden leader's immediate ouster. The historically large weekend protests over an explosive corruption scandal pushed South Korea's opposition-controlled parliament to vote this month to impeach Park. The impeachment suspended Park's powers until the Constitutional Court decides whether she should permanently step down or be reinstated. While polls measure Park's popularity in the low single digits, her impeachment has become a rallying point for her conservative supporters, who turned out in the tens of thousands on Saturday.

SYDNEY (AP)  A powerful earthquake struck off the coast of Papua New Guinea on Saturday, generating a small tsunami and knocking out power in parts of the Pacific island nation. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage. The magnitude-7.9 quake struck 46 kilometers (29 miles) east of Taron in Papua New Guinea, the U.S. Geological Survey said. The quake was deep, at 103 kilometers (61 miles). Deeper earthquakes tend to cause less damage than shallow ones. The USGS initially said the quake's magnitude was 8.0, but later downgraded the strength. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was a threat of a tsunami in Papua New Guinea and nearby areas.

YANGON, Myanmar (AP)  Myanmar government forces have started launching attacks on the headquarters of the military wing of one of the country's ethnic rebel groups, the group said Saturday. Tang San, a battalion commander for the Kachin Independence Army, said government forces have been using "fighter jets and heavy weapons continuously" on the headquarters in northeastern Mynamar since early Friday. Ethnic rebel groups in the northeast have been waging attacks on government forces since last month. They have said that the attacks are in response to military pressure, but that they are still interested in peace talks to try to end decades of fighting between the government and ethnic minority groups.
Electoral College

The Director of National Intelligence (DNI) all but ruled out the possibility that electors within the Electoral College will be briefed on the Russian hacking investigation before they meet on Monday.

All 538 electors will convene to certify the results of the US election, effectively making President-elect Donald Trump's victory official.

The agency said an intelligence review that President Barack Obama has requested on potential foreign influence in US presidential elections dating back to 2008 "involves sensitive classified information." It said the review would be finalized "in the coming weeks"  essentially ruling out any substantive briefing for the electors who are meeting on Monday.

"The Intelligence Community stands ready to brief Congress and will make those findings available to the public consistent with protecting intelligence sources and methods," the DNI's statement read.

A group of electors had requested information about Russia's meddling in the election, which was carried out through a series of data breaches and the release of emails and documents embarrassing to Democratic Party organizations.

Leaders close to the party's presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton, were the hacker's primary targets, according to assessments from the CIA and the FBI. The two agencies on Friday confirmed that they were in agreement about the veracity of the Russian cyberattacks and the motive  to hasten a Trump victory.

Trump and some leaders in the Republican Party have downplayed Russian influence in the election.

Trump falsely accused the White House of waiting until after he won the election to bring it up, even though the Department of Homeland Security and the DNI officially accused Russia of election-meddling in October.

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Obama had words for Russian President Vladimir on the matter in his final press conference of 2016 on Friday.

Said Obama: "Our goal continues to be to send a clear message to Russia or others not to do this to us, because we can do stuff to you."

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The nation's volatile politics have erupted along a new front line between President-elect Donald Trump and his antagonists: Yelp.

Yeah, that's right. The crowdsourced review service is battling a tidal wave of reviews on the page for Trump Grill. These seem to have been triggered following the recent dust-up between Vanity Fair magazine and our Tweeter-in-chief.

In sum: Vanity Fair wrote an unkind review of Trump Grill under the subtle headline: "Trump Grill could be the worst restaurant in America."

To wit: "The allure of Trump's restaurant, like the candidate, is that it seems like a cheap version of rich. The inconsistent menus -- literally, my menu was missing dishes that I found on my dining partners' -- were chock-full of steakhouse classics doused with unnecessarily high-end ingredients. The dumplings, for instance, come with soy sauce topped with truffle oil, and the crostini is served with both hummus and ricotta, two exotic ingredients that should still never be combined."

Trump was not amused, and tweeted:

Has anyone looked at the really poor numbers of @VanityFair Magazine. Way down, big trouble, dead! Graydon Carter, no talent, will be out!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 15, 2016

LOL. Right?

But then, humanity decided to weigh in on Yelp. The company posted warnings on the page noting that it was receiving a rather unusual number of reviews, due to having been in the news recently:

screenshot

But by Friday morning, they hadn't quite nailed them all.

Max S. of Denver opined: "The food is just like the owner, a gigantic piece of shit. However, the servers were extremely courteous and kind."

Otis L. of San Francisco mused: "Horrible! I shat myself within hours of eating this microwave slop. The employees, bless their souls, were very kind. Sad. They looked programmed. They do make an excellent Black Russian, by the way!"

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Lisa of Brooklyn astutely noted: "I tried to get in but there was a giant wall around the building. AND, the worst part? I was asked to pay *for* the wall. So, I tried to pay with my WomanCard, but they wouldn't accept it. Also, there was a pungent odor of swampiness surrounding the area. I hear the place is owned by a petulant man child."

Charles of Salt Lake City added colorfully: "This place is disgusting. Really bad. Food horrible. Service laughable. No wonder it's failing. The decor is unique. Think of something your 80-year-old great aunt would have thought "glitzy," circa 1979 and you get the picture. The tiny-handed owner is a real ass clown."

Keith B of Little Falls, New Jersey, and who has amazingly checked into the Trump Grill THREE TIMES, making him perhaps the world's leading expert, offered: "Great service manager did an excellent job of seating us during the busy holiday season and the now house of the President Of the United States. Steak sandwich with blue cheese was great the lobster roll (sic) was smaller then before but the presidential race cost Trump alot of $"

Yes, well, smaller lobster rolls. The cost of a presidential campaign.

Still, Luke of Brighton, Michigan countered: "This place is terrible. The worst. Everyone knows it. People are saying that the owner is a sexual predator. The people who work here are great, but the owner is human garbage. I would avoid at all costs. If you see the owner, run! He will probably try to grab you by the pussy."

So, basically, someone at Yelp is going to have a busy weekend fighting all these reviews. And we have no idea how Trump is going tweet back at all those haters on Yelp.

But hey, get ready for four more years of this!

This article originally appeared on VentureBeat. All rights reserved.

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President-elect Donald Trump mocked one of his formal presidential rivals at his Friday night rally in Orlando, Florida, calling Evan McMullin McMuffin. While recalling watching the polls close on election night, Trump referred to the investment banker as a character that nobody ever saw before, nobody ever heard of him before."

When someone in the audience called the former independent candidate McMuffin, Trump repeated it.

"Thats correct, thats his name, he said Evan McMuffin, do you believe this? Trump said, according to the Hill. I never heard of this guy before. Nobody did. And the polls said hes even with Donald Trump. My wife said, she looked at the television and she said hes not even with you. Believe me, hes not even.

McMullin took to his Twitter account to respond to Trump.

This is not the first time that people have heard McMullin being called "McMuffin." The former CIA operations officer himself mentioned the nickname during the election. Days before Nov. 8, the candidate posted a photo from McDonald's posing with two Egg McMuffins.

Trump attacked McMullin on several occasions previously, referring to him only as "some guy" and a challenger from Utah.

"I dont think a Republican has ever lost. Have they ever lost Utah? I dont think so. Utah is in play. Against some guy, that I look at him and say, Theres no way, Trump reportedly said at a thank you tour rally earlier this month.

McMullin responded to Trumps attacks, challenging him to use his name.

[S]eems youre growing obsessed with a guy whose name you still dont have courage to say, McMullin tweeted. Say it, Donald. You can do it.

McMullin, who served as chief policy director for the House Republican Conference in the U.S. House of Representatives and a senior adviser on national security issues for the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, announced in August 2016 that he would run for president as an independent candidate, backed by the organization Better for America.

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Giving his reason for running for president, the 40-year-old said he believes Trump was unfit for the office and he strongly opposed Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's liberalism.

McMullin was out of the race after he came in third place in Utah, receiving 20.6 percent of the state's popular vote, behind both Trump and Clinton.

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(Adds details)

By Steve Holland

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Dec 17 (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said on Saturday he has chosen U.S. Representative Mick Mulvaney of South Carolina to be his White House budget director, turning to a fiscal conservative to help pursue his policy agenda.

The nomination to be director of the White House Office of Budget and Management will require Senate confirmation. The announcement was made as Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, began his holiday vacation at Mar-a-Lago, his oceanfront club in nearby Palm Beach, Florida.

Mulvaney, 49, was an outspoken critic of former House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner, who resigned in 2015 amid opposition from fellow Republicans who were members of the House Freedom Caucus.

Mulvaney's selection points to a strategy by Trump to cut government where he can. The president-elect in recent days has, for example, railed against what he has labeled a far too expensive new version of the Air Force One aircraft he will fly that Boeing is supposed to build.

In a statement announcing his selection, Trump called Mulvaney a strong voice in Congress for "reining in out-of-control spending, fighting government waste and enacting tax policies that will allow working Americans to thrive."

"With Mick at the head of OMB, my administration is going to make smart choices about America's budget, bring new accountability to our federal government, and renew the American taxpayer's trust in how their money is spent," Trump said.

Mulvaney said the Trump administration "will restore budgetary and fiscal sanity back in Washington".

"Each day, families across our nation make disciplined choices about how to spend their hard-earned money, and the federal government should exercise the same discretion that hard-working Americans do every day," Mulvaney said.

Trump on Friday night vowed to seek approval from Congress to spend $1 trillion in new spending to rebuild America's crumbling network of roads, bridges, airports and other infrastructure as a way to create jobs and make some needed repairs.

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"We are going to fix our country. It's time. We have no choice. It's time," Trump said in Orlando, Florida.

Democratic President Barack Obama had sought infrastructure spending but was thwarted by Republicans in Congress.

(Reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Dale Hudson)
donald trump

President-elect Donald Trump tweeted Saturday evening that China should be told to "keep" the US Navy underwater drone it recently seized from South China Sea waters and agreed to return.

"We should tell China that we don't want the drone they stole back.- let them keep it!" he tweeted.

Earlier on Saturday, Trump had called the capture  an incident that added to existing tensions between the US and China  an "unprecedented" act.

"China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters  rips it out of the water and takes it to China in an unprecedented act," he tweeted, after deleting a widely mocked version of the tweet that used the misspelling "unpresidented."

The drone, deployed by a US oceanographic vessel in international waters in the South China Sea, was conducting a military survey roughly 50 nautical miles northwest of the Philippines before it was seized by a Chinese warship and removed from the water on Thursday.

"It's a sovereign immune vessel, clearly marked in English not to be removed from the water  that it was US property," a US official told Reuters on Friday.

Chinese officials agreed to return the vessel after negotiating with the US, the Pentagon said Saturday.

"Through direct engagement with Chinese authorities, we have secured an understanding that the Chinese will return the UUV to the United States," Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said in a statement.

However, China's Defense Ministry said it was "resolutely opposed" to this kind of activity, and accused the US of "hyping up" the incident.

usns bowditch navy

China's seizure of the vessel comes amid an increased military presence in the South China Sea.

A US think tank said Friday that China has installed antiaircraft and antimissile systems on man-made islands it has been constructing around the Spratly Islands, a strategically important chain that China occupies.

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Trump, a president-elect with no formal diplomatic experience, has taken stances opposing China's interests since winning the election in November.

He held a congratulatory phone call with the Taiwanese prime minister, Tsai Ing-wen, earlier this month, flouting decades of established US policy.

Trump has also called China a "currency manipulator," and threatened to impose a 45% tariff on Chinese imports on the campaign trail.

The president-elect was set to continue his "thank you" tour of postelection rallies in Alabama on Saturday.

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WASHINGTON (AP)  Donald Trump's candidacy broke long-standing conventions  and his incoming Cabinet embodies a sharp turn from the Obama administration.

Trump pledged major changes after eight years of a Democratic White House. And now he's assembled nominees for a Cabinet that includes many business executives who've never served in government. And military leaders are in line to oversee defense and homeland security.

In one case, Trump's named someone who once called for dismantling the agency he'd lead.

A change of political parties at the White House almost always brings policy adjustments.

But Trump's Cabinet expects to carry the outsider flair of his campaign, a role reversal compared with more conventional teams under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama that were heavy on former lawmakers, governors and veterans of past administrations.
Dec 17 (Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said in a speech in Berlin to a congress of European leftist parties on Saturday that it was time for his country's creditors to understand that the Greek people have made enough sacrifices.

Tsipras also said that Greece would not surrender to those who want Greece to permanently maintain austerity policies.

"Our creditors need to keep in mind that the Greek people have made enough sacrifices and now it's time for them to fulfill their obligations," he said. "We are decisive that we will never surrender our people to the 'yes men' who want Greece in the straight jacket of austerity for many years ahead."

"We have delivered on our obligations and our creditors need to do their part," he said. "I'm optimistic that Greece will achieve its goals. But we will never accept the logic of 'eternal austerity' that destroys Greek society."

(Reporting by Erik Kirschbaum; editing by Sabine Siebold)
OUAGADOUGOU (Reuters) - A dozen soldiers were killed in northern Burkina Faso when unidentified gunmen attacked a military post near the border with Mali, President Roch Marc Christian Kabore said on Friday, calling the assailants "forces of evil". Attacks in Burkina Faso were relatively rare before a major attack by al Qaeda-linked fighters on a hotel in the capital, Ouagadougou, that killed 29 people in January. "This attack demonstrates that the fight against terrorism will be without respite and also underscores the necessary decisions that must be taken to give confidence and vitality to our army," Kabore said. He said those killed were members of the army's special anti-terrorist group. The army had earlier said that 10 soldiers and one gendarme had been killed. Islamic militants are active in Burkina Faso's northern neighbour, Mali, and Burkinabe authorities are concerned the long desert border between the two countries could become a transit point for militants. Friday's attack about 30 km (19 miles) from the Malian border began around 5 a.m. (0500 GMT) and was carried out "by about 40 heavily armed individuals who have not yet been identified," the army said in its statement. A newly formed militant group led by a fighter formerly loyal to Algeria's Mokhtar Belmokhtar claimed to have attacked a Burkinabe military position in September, and unidentified gunmen killed three Burkinabe soldiers and two civilians in October. (Reporting By Mathieu Bonkoungou; Writing by Aaron Ross and Joe Bavier; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg/Larry King)
United Nations (United States) (AFP) - The UN Security Council will vote Sunday on a French proposal to send observers to the flashpoint Syrian city of Aleppo to monitor evacuations and report on the protection of civilians, diplomats said.

The council will meet at 11:00 am (1600 GMT) to decide on the draft resolution, despite resistance from Russia, Syria's ally and a veto-wielding Security Council member.

France circulated a draft text late Friday stating that the council is "alarmed" by the worsening humanitarian crisis in Aleppo and by the fact that "tens of thousands of besieged Aleppo inhabitants" are in need of aid and evacuation.

Thousands of trapped civilians and the last remaining opposition fighters in Aleppo were waiting for evacuations to resume on Saturday, a day after the operation was suspended by the Syrian government.

Syrian forces this week moved to assert full control over the east of the city, which had been held by opposition fighters since 2012.

French Ambassador Francois Delattre said the international presence would prevent Aleppo from turning into another Srebrenica, where thousands of Bosnian men and boys were massacred in 1995 when the town fell to Bosnian Serb forces during the Balkan wars.

"Our goal through this resolution is to avoid another Srebrenica in this phase immediately following the military operations," Delattre told AFP.

The draft resolution would request that UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon quickly redeploy UN humanitarian staff already in Syria to the city "to carry out adequate, neutral monitoring, direct observation and to report on evacuations from besieged parts of Aleppo and protection of civilians inside Aleppo," according to a copy of the text obtained by AFP.

Ban would also ensure the deployment of further staff, according to the draft text, which demands that Syria grant access to the observers.

The UN chief would report to the council within five days on whether access has been granted by the Syrian government, which has repeatedly blocked UN access during the nearly six-year war.

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- Protecting hospitals -

Evacuations were expected to resume under a new deal that would allow civilians and fighters in other besieged towns to leave, according to rebel officials, according to rebel officials. The Damascus government made no announcements.

The draft resolution would seek to ensure the "voluntary, safe and dignified passage of all civilians" from Aleppo and other areas under UN monitoring and coordination, with priority given to the wounded and most vulnerable.

It demands the protection of all doctors, medical workers, hospitals and ambulances following reports that Syrian forces had bombed all of the medical facilities in Aleppo.

The text specifically mentions the need to protect the border hospitals of Atmeh, Darkoush, Bab al-Hawa and Bab al-Salamah, where many of the evacuees would be taken.

The council would also demand that urgent humanitarian aid reach Aleppo, which has been under siege since July.

US Ambassador Samantha Power said Friday that the observers on the ground would provide a "presence as protection."

But Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said he found elements of the French proposal "questionable," including whether the observers could be quickly redeployed.

Ban has urged Syrian parties to resume the evacuation operation and allow civilians to leave safely, saying "Aleppo is now a synonym for hell."
By Anggy Polanco SAN CRISTOBAL, Venezuela (Reuters) - Hundreds of Venezuelans jumped barriers to defy their government's closure of the Colombian border on Saturday while looting and protests continued due to a cash shortage, causing pre-Christmas chaos. The unrest began on Friday following this week's surprise pulling from circulation of Venezuela's largest denomination note, 100 bolivars, before replacement bills were available. The move left Venezuelans flooding banks to deposit or swap their 100-bolivar bills within a short deadline, and many without the means to pay for food, gasoline or Christmas preparations in a country already reeling from a deep economic crisis. About 40 percent of Venezuelans do not have bank accounts. In the southern mining town of El Callao, where many shops were looted according to locals, a 14-year-old boy died, authorities confirmed on Saturday. An opposition legislator reported three people had perished in unrest there on Friday. The Democratic Unity opposition coalition said socialist President Nicolas Maduro should resign for incompetence and for inflicting yet more suffering on Venezuelans. Maduro, however, said opponents were stirring violence and justified the 100 bolivar measure as a way of strangling mafia and smugglers on the border with Colombia. He has closed crossings with Colombia and Brazil. Near San Cristobal city, about 400 people surged over the border into Colombia in search of food and medicines, which are scarce in Venezuela, witnesses said. "We jumped over the fences," said 41-year-old Claudia Perez. In southern Bolivar state, people broke into dozens of shops and warehouses in various towns, witnesses and business leaders said. Authorities declared a curfew in Ciudad Bolivar and the state governor said 135 people had been arrested. Security forces fired teargas in Venezuela's largest second city, Maracaibo, to stop looters, witnesses said. Some protesters burned 100 bolivar bills. Addressing thousands of supporters at a rally in Caracas, Maduro said new currency notes should be reaching Venezuela and entering circulation soon, despite what he called an "international sabotage" operation to prevent that. He gave no further details of that accusation. The 54-year-old successor to Hugo Chavez, whose popularity has plunged during three years of recession, says political foes are sabotaging the economy to undermine his rule. Some members of the Justice First and Popular Will parties were arrested for colluding with mafias, he said. Critics say it is time for Maduro to go after 18 years of socialist policies have wrecked the economy. But authorities have stymied an opposition push for a referendum to remove him before the next presidential election due in late 2018. (Additional reporting by Maria Ramirez in Ciudad Guayana, Corina Pons in Caracas; Writing by Andrew Cawthorne; Editing by Chris Reese)
KAPAA, Hawaii  Six people either closed or pulled most of the money out of their accounts at the Kapaa branch of First Hawaiian Bank Wednesday and another group is planning to do the same at the Lihue branch next Wednesday.

The action is in protest of the construction of the Dakota Access pipeline project, a 1,172-mile, 30-inch oil pipeline that would transport crude oil from fields in North Dakota through South Dakota and Iowa, and into Illinois.

Representatives from First Hawaiian Bank said the bank isnt involved in the Dakota Access pipeline project, even though a large shareholder in the company has surfaced as an investor.

First Hawaiian Bank has no involvement with the Dakota Access Pipeline. While BNPP is a significant shareholder of First Hawaiian Bank, we have many shareholders as a publicly traded company. First Hawaiian Bank was founded on the value of giving back to the community, said Susan Kam, spokeswoman for the bank. Today we are one of Hawaiis largest corporate givers of time and resources.

The pipeline is funded by 38 major banks and financial institutions, according to the results of an investigation by research company LittleSis; including Bank of America, Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase and other financial institutions have worked together to extend a $3.7 billion credit line to Energy Transfer Partners.

A significant part of First Hawaiian Bank is owned by BNP Paribas, an international bank thats popped up on that list of banks heavily invested in the project. So now its one of more than two dozen banks that are the target of efforts to stop the pipelines construction.

Were standing in front of the bank and holding signs to raise awareness that the owner of FHB is invested into the partners that are building the DAPL pipeline, said Sonja Kass, the woman who instigated Wednesdays demonstration.

Kass closed her account with First Hawaiian Bank on Wednesday.

Standing up for his personal beliefs was the driving factor for John Smith, who also closed his account at the Kapaa Branch of First Hawaiian Bank.

I support anyone who stands up for what they believe in, even if its not what I believe in, Smith said.

According to Energy Transfer Partners, L.P., a Texas-based company which is proposing the project, the pipeline is expected to transport 470,000 barrels per day, with the capability of transporting 570,000 barrels daily.

The entity says the pipeline would generate $156 million in sales and income taxes alone during construction phase, and annually the pipeline is expected to generate $55 million in property taxes to the states of North Dakota, Iowa and Illinois.

The people of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe in North Dakota are working to stop the construction of the pipeline, claiming it will threaten the reservations water supply.

Water is life and First Hawaiian Bank and many other banks directly fund the Dakota Access Pipeline, said Mahana Vaughn, who shut down her account Wednesday. This pipeline is a desecration of all that is sacred.

Accompanying the people who closed their accounts were about 20 others, who held signs in front of the bank.

Kass created Wednesdays event after returning from three weeks at Standing Rock, from Nov. 2 - Nov. 23, where she joined the protesters, who now call themselves water protectors, in building yurts.

She said it was a sense of compassion for the people involved, as well as a need to protect natural resources, that drove her to the camp.

I felt so strong that I felt the need to go there and be there myself and help, Kass said.

Kass eventually had to return home. She said the only thing she could do to continue to help the effort was to remove her account with an organization thats invested in the project.

Just because theyre Native Americans, their graveyards and prayer sites are not being valued, Kass said. And it really needs to stop and it made me feel good to do something about it and I wanted to continue that.
Rome (AFP) - Veteran Italian international prop Martin Castrogiovanni retired on Saturday after a career which brought him 119 caps and two European Cups.

The 35-year-old Argentina-born forward arrived in Italy in 2001 and made his debut with Calvisano.

He went on to play for Leicester, Toulon, with whom he won the 2014 and 2015 Euroepan Cup, before moving to Racing 92.

Castrogiovanni is Italy's second most-capped player behind skipper Sergio Parisse, who has played 121 internationals.
WESTMINSTER, Calif. (AP)  Vietnamese comedian Minh Beo has been sentenced to 18 months in state prison for sexually assaulting a 16-year-old boy in California.

Orange County prosecutors said Friday the 38-year-old must also register as a sex offender.

The comedian, whose real name is Minh Quang Hong, pleaded guilty in August to oral copulation of a minor and attempting to commit a lewd act on a child under the age of 14. The second charge stemmed from a meeting he arranged with a police officer posing as a 13-year-old boy.

He is known in Vietnam as Minh Beo, meaning "Fat Minh." He has been popular in stage, TV and movie comic roles and has his own theater in Ho Chi Minh City.
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Of course, it was only a matter of time before Cruz Beckham launched his singing career.

The 11-year-old son of David and Victoria Beckham released his debut single, "If Everyday Was Christmas," earlier this month on Capital FM. On Friday, he released a festive music video to go along with it. There's snow, there are glitter angels, there's his brother skateboarding, Brooklyn  basically, let the Bieber comparisons continue.

According to a tweet from Victoria Beckham, all proceeds from the single will go to Make Some Noise, an organization that supports outstanding charities within the UK.

Now that's something to make a glitter angel about.

Basically, every tech billionaire is an evil Bond villain

'Homeland' Season 6 trailer definitely hits a little too close to home

Martin Sheen, Moby plead with Republican electors to dump Trump

Kid's sensational Fifth Harmony lip sync would make Michelle Obama proud
Kevin Abstract threw a free event on Sunset Blvd in Los Angeles last night called "The All-American Drive-In Prom" and he pulled out all the stops to make sure it was a memorable experience.

In addition to performing his excellent new album American Boyfriend, Abstract also invited along some friends, including The Neighbourhood, Tyler, The Creator, and Jaden Smith. Jaden watched the show from the stage, seated alone at a table set for two, as if he were waiting for a date that never came.

Before the show, Abstract tweeted, "If no one comes tonight that's okay ima just dance on the dance floor wit my helmet b," but the packed event turned out to be a success. "LOS ANGELES THAT WAS SO FUN amazing first prom i heard ppl made out during 'american boyfriend' so sick get home safe babies," he tweeted after the performance.

Abstract also announced his first headlining tour across North America, which will begin on February 22 in Santa Ana, CA. See highlights from the show and the tour dates below.

Prom was amazing congrats @kevinabstract thank you for one of the best nights of my life pic.twitter.com/IcZiw3qceC  annaliese (@annaliesedianne) December 16, 2016

helmet boy's first prom pic.twitter.com/BmkgzH0PKu  kevin abstract (@kevinabstract) December 16, 2016

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Donald Trump

Even though hackers responsible for the cyberattack on the Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton's campaign weren't caught in the act, it doesn't mean they can't be identified as President-elect Donald Trump has asserted.

Michael Borohovski, a cybersecurity expert with experience working with the intelligence community and Chief Technology Officer of Tinfoil Security, says investigators have methods of uncovering the identity of attackers long after they're gone.

Its actually significantly harder to catch somebody in the act than it is to catch somebody after the fact, Borohovski told Business Insider. Unfortunately its not like in the movies where as soon as someone is attacking, big red alarms go off.

In a Fox News interview last weekend, Trump cast doubt on the CIA's recent findings that Russia was involved in cyberattacks against the Democratic Party to help him win the election, calling it "ridiculous" and an excuse for the opposing party's loss.

Hacking is very interesting. Once they hack, if you don't catch them in the act, you're not going to catch them," Trump said. "They have no idea if it's Russia or China or somebody. It could be somebody sitting in a bed some place."

Much like investigators at the scene of a crash can piece together clues about the incident, cybersecurity experts can use digital forensics to gain information about intruders, Borohovski said.

You start looking through logs, you start looking through, at a high level, digital breadcrumbs that were left by attackers and over time, you slowly figure precisely what occurred, where it came from, and who did it, he said.

Discovering criminals in the act is not impossible, however.

In May, the Democratic National Committee hired security firm CrowdStrike after a cyberattack and were able to monitor hackers after they breached a network, USA Today reported this week.

On Wednesday, NBC News reported that US intelligence officials believe Russian President Vladimir Putin was directly involved in the hacking campaign that targeted Democratic Party leaders and organizations during the US presidential election. The hack led to the release of thousands of emails that damaged the party's nominee, Hillary Clinton, and was orchestrated by Russia in an attempt to sway the election in Trump's favor.

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On Thursday, officials who spoke to CNN said Russia's cyberattacks targeting US political organizations have continued unabated, weeks after the election.

obama putin

"Certainly if they attack a system or an email server, they would not have stopped there," Borohovski said. They would have attempted to gain what is called persistence in an attempt to figure out how they can continue gleaning data and not just have a snapshot in time."

Despite the findings from intelligence officials, Trump has repeatedly dismissed the possibility of Russia influencing the election.

According to a Washington Post report, an attempt to form a bipartisan coalition to publicly accuse Russia of meddling was met with opposition from skeptical Republicans. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell went as far as to suggest he would accuse the Obama administration of partisan politics if the White House spoke up.

The White House did not push the issue because it believed Clinton would beat Trump and win the presidency, according to an unnamed US official cited by NBC News.

Democrats like outgoing Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid have urged for a full investigation of Russia's impact on the election, comparing the seriousness to Watergate or the 9/11 terrorist attacks. A US intelligence review is underway and will likely last several weeks, according to a statement from Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) released on Friday.

The FBI and the DNI on Friday affirmed the CIA's findings about Russia's involvement.

In excerpts of an interview with NPR published Thursday, Obama vowed Russia would face consequences for its interference in America's Democratic process.

"I think there is no doubt that when any foreign government tries to impact the integrity of our elections that we need to take action and we will," Obama said.

NOW WATCH: Donald Trumps connection with Vince McMahon and WWE spans decades





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MADISON, Wis. (AP)  A suspended University of Wisconsin-Madison student accused of sexually assaulting and harassing women is out on bail.

Twenty-year-old Alec Cook of Edina, Minnesota, was released with conditions Friday after a judge cut his bail in half and his parents paid $100,000.

Cook's release comes a day after more charges were filed against him. He now faces 21 charges involving 10 women. Prosecutors say Cook's behavior had been escalating, but his attorneys say that's not the case and the new charges give an unfair impression.

The university sent an email to students Friday telling them to call 911 if Cook is on campus.

Cook's next hearing is Jan. 20. His attorneys plan to file motions to dismiss the case, and the Wisconsin State Journal reports they may seek a change of venue.
NEW ORLEANS (AP)  It's D-Days  that is, digital days  at the National World War II Museum, with historians seeking to storm the internet and move thousands of first-person accounts of the fighting online.

Executives at the National World War II Museum say creating a vast online collection of 9,000 existing oral and written histories will take longer than the war was fought: 10 years and $11 million dollars. There's more than 22,000 hours of audio and video to be handled, thousands of documents to be digitized and millions of words transcribed.

Ultimately, all these firsthand accounts of Pearl Harbor, the D-Day invasion, Germany's surrender, Hiroshima, the homefront and more will be online.

Founded in 2000, the museum is a top New Orleans attraction. The digital collection is open to the world. But only about 250 of its oral histories are online so far. Uploading more will take time, partly because the museum's six historians also are racing to interview the last veterans alive.

"It's a fine balance. We have a sense of urgency to collect as many stories as we can ... But we also know it's extremely important moving forward to provide access" online, said Stephen Watson, the museum's executive vice president and chief operating officer.

Since May, the World War II Museum has collected 500 oral histories. But the war generation is fading fast.

Even people with childhood memories of the war are now in their 70s, noted James Gilmore, archives specialist in oral history at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. He said the Holocaust Museum has about 10,000 oral histories available online. Those also are among more than 66,000 that can be viewed or listened to on site.

"Our oral histories have been invaluable resources in teaching about Holocaust history and fighting Holocaust denial. They'll become even more precious once the eyewitness generation is no longer here," Gilmore said.

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Putting oral histories online is not just a matter of uploading and linking to huge audio and video files. The World War II Museum's six historians also help laboriously describe their contents for online searching, in a process more extensive than the Holocaust Museum's has been so far.

Take the four videos spanning two hours of interviews with Harold E. Ward , a Navy lookout on the cruiser San Francisco when Japanese warplanes struck Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.

The videos are divided into 12 segments, each with detailed annotations describing what Ward talks about section by section  like the one with Ward recalling the attack .

The San Francisco was being overhauled when the planes came in low and slow, leaving the fleet in flames. "I just stood and watched," Ward said. As a lookout, he was wearing headphones. An ensign somewhere else asked him to describe the scene.

"He says, 'What's going on there?'" Ward recounted. "So I told him we were being attacked by the Japanese Air Force." The ensign's response: "Don't you get wise with me, Ward. I asked you a question."

"So I began to describe what I was looking at," Ward continued. "And there was a dead silence when I finished speaking."

So far there are 4,000 staff-collected video oral histories, 3,000 video and audio recordings made by others, and nearly 2,000 "written histories" like journals and diaries that can be photographed, annotated and transcribed for online research, said Keith Huxen, the museum's senior director of history and research.

He said the six historians travel widely, scheduling at least four interviews per trip. Afterward, the historians add catalog information, including a short description of contents and when and where interviews were made. They then begin annotating the video with keywords mostly likely to be searched, Huxen said.

"Ultimately, the public will be able to go online, access the histories, search them, watch the video with face and voice ... with a verbatim transcription scrolling or at least accessible," he added.

The museum has allocated about $4.4 million for the project so far  about two-thirds from donations and grants, and the rest from the museum's operating budget, Watson said. One records management company, Iron Mountain, gave $100,000 to digitize 100 interviews this year and expects to donate a similar amount next.

"The commitment to this will never end," because there will be a constant need to update computers and software and to move the collection "to new forms of data storage that we don't even know about now," Watson noted.

The idea of putting the collection online was borne of bleak days after Hurricane Katrina flooded much of New Orleans in 2005. The museum didn't flood, but was closed for months to repair damage from roof leaks and from looting in non-exhibit areas. Few visitors showed up when it did reopen, prompting executives to consider how they could still reach people even when a city was emptied out.

"We had to think about how to fulfill our mission without people being here," said Nick Mueller, museum president and CEO.

___

Online: www.nationalww2museum.org

__

Associated Press writer Bill Cormier contributed to this report from Atlanta.
Verizon is considering backing out of its $4.8 billion planned purchase of Yahoo, Bloomberg reported Thursday.

Yahoo! shares plummeted after the company reported on Wednesday that 1 billion Yahoo! accounts credentials were stolen during an August 2013 data breach. Yahoo! stock dropped as much as 6.5 percent in trading on Thursday.

Verizon is now allegedly considering getting out of the deal with Yahoo!, or will bargain to cut the $4.8 billion price, according to Bloomberg .

A Verizon group headed by AOL Chief Executive Officer Tim Armstrong is focusing on integration planning between Yahoo and Verizon. Meanwhile, another team, walled off from the rest, is assessing the breach disclosures and the companys options, Bloomberg reported.

A key objective for Verizon is negotiating a separation from any future issues concerning the data breach. The company is seeking to have Yahoo! take charge of any lasting responsibility for the hack, according to Bloomberg .

Verizon said in a statement to Bloomberg , "As we've said all along, we will evaluate the situation as Yahoo continues its investigation. We will review the impact of this new development before reaching any final conclusions."

Yahoo! has not been able to determine how the 2013 breach occurred, but the company says it is the fault of a state-sponsored actor.

The stolen data included names, email addresses, telephone numbers, birth dates, passwords, and security questions and answers.

The investigation indicates that the stolen information did not include passwords in clear text, payment card data or bank account information, Yahoo! said in a statement. Payment card data and bank account information are not stored in the system the company believes was affected.

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Quick holiday pop quiz: What is a yule log? Some might say its a large hunk of wood thrown in the fireplace at Christmas; while others may argue its a dessert. Whos right?

Well, the definition of a yule log has changed quite a bit since medieval times. Heres the log lowdown, so you can trot it out before your own holiday hearth and impress your guests!

Circa 1100: The yule log is burned to please pagan gods

For starters, the word yule is Old English for the winter festival celebrated by civilizations in Northern Europe to honor the winter solstice, way before Christianity.

The tradition of a yule log harks to the 12th century, when revelers would venture into the woods and chop down the biggest log they could find and burn it as an offering to pagan gods in a bid for good health and abundance. Back then, the yule log was steeped in superstition: If it didnt catch fire on the first attempt, it would bring bad luck. If you didnt keep the ashes until next year, more bad luck!

The yule log tradition continued through the centuries, but as hearths shrankand got increasingly crowded by pots and pansthe chunk of wood dwindled in size and significance.

Circa 1600: The yule log becomes a dessert

At some point in the 1600s, the yule log tradition branched off and evolved into a cream-filled sponge cake that was rolled up and covered with marzipan or frosting to resemble a logcomplete with meringue mushrooms.

According to History.com, bakeries in Paris started producing these cakes in the 19th century, calling them buches de noel, and today its not uncommon to see this holiday dessert on dinner tables around the world.

Still, the fame of the yule log cake does not overshadow the familiar vision of an actual log crackling in a hearth. Many people still burn yule logs today, or festoon them with holly, evergreens, ribbons, and candles as a festive decoration in their homes, kinda like the stunted cousin of a Christmas tree.

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1966: The yule log makes its TV debut

In 1966, the New York City TV station WPIX aired a groundbreaking, yet dead-simple video that will celebrate its 50th anniversary on Christmas Day this year: a yule log burning in the hearth, crackling gently against a soundtrack of classic Christmas music. The station recognized that fireplaces had become scarce in the apartments of modern New Yorkers, and wanted to give them, well, some sort of hearth to gather round.

Although this broadcast ran for four riveting hours that day, the video is actually only 17 seconds long, running on a continuous loop (which is why you never see a hand tossing more logs on the fire).

For whatever reason, this yule became, well, a thing. Even famous.

Fred Thrower, the stations manager, may not have realized it at that time, but he had just given birth to a Christmastime tradition that touched a generation, said Lawrence F. Chip Acuri, the foremost expert on the broadcast and webmaster of the official fan site (theyulelog.com).

The yule log program took a hiatus from 1989 to 2001, and in 2008, the show went national, so that fireplace-less revelers across the country could bask in its glow.

The original video was filmed at Gracie Mansion, the New York City governors residence. But the film deteriorated over time and had to be reshot in 1970. By then, Gracie Mansion wasnt an option, so WPIX searched high and low for an identical fireplace, and found one in Palo Alto, CA. So the new yule log footage was filmed there.

For a long time the original footage was assumed to be lostuntil in July of this year, when WPIX digital director and archivist Rolando Pujol unearthed the original 1966 footage, restored it, and transferred it to a digital format.

To celebrate its 50th birthday, the footage will air this year on Tribune stations from 11 p.m. to midnight on Christmas Eve and again on Christmas morning from 7 to 8, followed by the 1970 version from 8 a.m. to noon.

2015: The yule log becomes a YouTube sensation

More recently, this curious fascination with the virtual yule log has given rise to riffs on the TV classic. One of the most haunting is a five-hour loop of Star Wars villain Darth Vader burning on a pile of yule logs. While it would have been extra dramatic to dub in The Imperial March instead of Christmas music as the flames danced around Darth Vaders corpse, the only sound youll hear is a crackling fire.

Theres also a video of a yule log with Jesus. . .

. . . and one of Lil Bub the famous cat.

. . . and most recently, one from Marvel featuring the hearths of homes for Thor, Captain America, Iron Man, and others. Each video is full of clever little details Marvel fans will undoubtedly recognize, like Iron Mans helmets placed on the mantel beneath a portrait of Tony Stark.

No matter which version of the fireside video you watch this season, if any at all, you will be partaking in a tradition that has roots that go much further back in history than most of us could have imagined.

The post What Is a Yule Log? This Holiday Tradition Has Some Weird Roots appeared first on Real Estate News & Advice | realtor.com.


Credit: Courtesy

Where fashion meets humanitarian efforts is Fashionkind, an initiative presenting ethically-produced and sustainable options in fashion while tapping into the fashion industry's power to support human rights and environmental efforts.

For their latest project, Fashionkind has partnered with Selima Optique and designer Michael Nelson to create limited-edition eyewear in support of educational efforts for children in Kenya. Each frame is hand-beaded by master artisan Lucy Kintalel in her home of Karen, Kenya. Honoring artisan craft and Kenyan tradition, each frame is accompanied by a handmade tote bag rendered in kitenge--a fabric traditional to Kenya and much of East Africa.

In support of the belief that education is the key to empowering and affecting world change, Fashionkind is pledging 10 percent of profits from each pair of sunglasses sold to be put toward an education fund for 22 Karen children--including Kintalel's daughter Lydia--so that they may receive the attention and guidance they need to succeed.

RELATED: A New Sunglasses Collaboration You'll Want to Wear

See the positive power of fashion in the video above and shop the sunglasses ($325; fashionkind.com) for a good cause.
Sound - it's all around us. But when it comes to awards categories, many voters turn a deaf ear, unable to discern the difference between sound editing and sound mixing. Really, though, it's not that difficult. The Oscars have two categories for sonic artists - sound editing, which recognizes how all of the sound elements are created, and sound mixing, which spotlights how all those sounds come together. To use cooking as an analogy, the sound editing team could be compared to those who create and assemble all the ingredients, while the sound mixers are the chefs who combine all the ingredients to make the dish.

"A sound editing team is usually comprised of editors responsible for sound effects,dialogue, Foley and ADR - with roles including sound effects editors and dialogue editors. A supervising sound editor is the person responsible for coordinating the team and keeping everyone on message, time and on budget. The title of sound designer can mean different things in different countries, but for us, a sound designer is responsible for creating a sound world unique to each film," explains Robert Mackenzie, who was supervising sound editor, sound designer and rerecording mixer on Lionsgate's Hacksaw Ridge.

Courtesy of Dale Robinette

Will Files - sound designer, supervising sound editor and rerecording mixer on Sony's sci-fi Passengers - says his job on that film involved creating sounds that don't actually exist in real life. "In Passengers, there were hundreds of things you can't just record," he says. "You can't record a fusion reaction or the sound of the spaceship. When you are coming up with things that exist in the future, it has to suggest highly sophisticated technology but feel plausible. We recorded things like glass balls rolling around on a metal table."

Read more: 'Nocturnal Animals,' 'Cafe Society' Cinematographers Reveal How They Up the Emotional Ante With Their Art

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For the sound design and sound editing on World War II-set biopic Hacksaw Ridge, Mackenzie says, "It was extremely important that the audience feel fully immersed in the battle so that they could fully empathize with what these soldiers were going through. Part of our job was to provide anotherensory connection that enabled them to feel and hear how brutally destructive war is."

In the category of sound mixing, the key roles include the production sound mixer, whois responsible for recording live sound on set, and rerecording mixers, who create the film's final soundtrack at a mixing console during postproduction.

Courtesy of Mark Rogers

Jose Antonio Garcia, production sound mixer on Ben Affleck's Live by Night and Clint Eastwood's Sully (both from Warner Bros.), says of his role: "Our job is to capture the performance. On Sully, with the plane, we had the actors wired and used boom mics and practical headsets to give them as many options as possible. The speed at which Clint moves is a challenge; he's a one-take guy. Live by Night also was about speed. They worked fast."

Musicals can present a different challenge: La La Land rerecording mixer Andy Nelson says that sometimes the music is recorded live on set (as was the case with Les Miserables, for which he won one of his two Oscars), while in other instances it's recorded separately. In the case of Lionsgate's La La Land, it was a little bit of both. Emma Stone's "Audition" number was recorded live, as was her "City of Stars" duet with Ryan Gosling. However the opening traffic number, "Another Day of Sun," was recorded separately. "That was a very tough one to get right," says Nelson. "It's the ope ing where everyone understands what they are going to see is a musical. To allow everybody into that - when you have the sounds of the city, the traffic jam - it took us a little while to find the right balance."

This story first appeared in a December standalone issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.
A pilot model of the Uber self-driving car is displayed at the Uber Advanced Technologies Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (AFP Photo/Angelo Merendino) (AFP/File)

San Francisco (AFP) - Uber said Friday it planned to keep its self-driving cars on the streets of San Francisco, defying a state order to halt the test program.

The ridesharing giant said it disputed the interpretation by the California Department of Motor Vehicles that the cars require a special permit, saying they had the same autonomy capabilities as Tesla cars which have an optional "autopilot" feature.

Anthony Levandowski, Uber's vice president for advanced technologies, said that as with the Teslas, the cars driven by Uber still have a driver capable of assuming control at any time.

"We respectfully disagree with the California DMV's interpretation of autonomous regulations, in particular that Uber needs a permit to operate in San Francisco," Levandowski told a conference call with journalists.

"While these are considered state of the art today, they still require monitoring by a vehicle operator at all times."

Levandowski said Uber did not plan on seeking a state permit and for now planned to continue picking up passengers in San Francisco despite the threat of legal action.

He called it "an important issue of principle" about "uneven application of statewide rules."

"We cannot in good conscience sign up for regulation of something we are not doing," he said.

Levandowski said Uber was having "frank conversations" with regulators and hoped to convince them that its autonomous cars were no different from Tesla's, which allow a driver to turn over many operations to an onboard computer but still need a human behind the wheel.

"We have a person sitting in the driver's seat, and there's also a person next to them looking at the system and trying to confirm that everything is going well," he said.

"They are able to override and take control of the vehicle at any time."

The announcement by the global ridesharing colossus came two days after state regulations said the testing program was not authorized.

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In a letter to Uber, DMV counsel Brian Soublet said the permit is required to protect public safety.

"It is illegal for the company to operate its self-driving vehicles on public roads until it receives an autonomous vehicle testing permit," he wrote.

"It is essential that Uber takes appropriate measure to ensure safety of the public. If Uber does not confirm immediately that it will stop its launch and seek a testing permit, DMV will initiate legal action."

Backers of autonomous vehicles say the technology can reduce more than 90 percent of accidents, which mostly are due to human error.

Since its debut in 2010, Uber has grown into a worldwide phenomenon despite regulatory hurdles and resistance from traditional taxi operators.

In its latest funding round, Uber was valued at more than $60 billion, but has racked up losses at it expands and takes on competitors such as Lyft.
In Ghana, as in any other country, every year brings with it its fair share of political rhetoric, although it's as though this year seems to have raised the bar.

This year, Ghanaian politics has yielded so many fiery - and sometimes downright funny - quotes that serial meme makers must've felt like it was Christmas all year round.

I didn't want to be left out, so I thought I'd compile a list of six of the best political quotes that I think should be immortalized in memes...that is, if they're not already.

Get the latest news on entertainment here

5. National Democratic Congress, General Secretary, Johnson Asiedu Nketia

Sarkodie and M.anifest's "beef" was pretty publicized, and rumors arose that NDC general secretary, Asietu Nketia, had somehow sided with M.anifest. When he was asked if he knew any such artists, this is what he said....and more

READ ALSO: President Mahama's daughter pens emotional letter to him

4. People's National Convention flag-bearer, Edward Nasigre Mahama

Giving his closing remarks after the NCCE presidential debates, Dr. Edward Mahama expressed that Ghana's unspoken trend of presidents bearing the name John was now at an end.

Pay Attention: Get all the latest news on yen.com.gh

3. Independent presidential candidate, Jacob Osei Yeboah

During the IEA debates where only President Mahama, Dr. Edward Mahama, Jacob Osei Yeboah, and Dr. Ndoum participated, Jacob Osei Yeboah had the audience in a fit of laughter when he made his statement about language graduates "rearing grasscuttters".

READ ALSO: VIDEO: Salma Mumin reveals she wants a husband and a child on her 28th birthday...and she's single

2. People's National Convention flag-bearer, Edward Nasigre Mahama

Following the announcement of results for the president president elections, Dr. Edward Mahama realized that his party had gotten zero votes at a polling station where his pastor votes, something he felt he needed to share this with the country.

Pay Attention: Get news whenever and wherever you go with YEN NEWS android app here

1. President John Dramani Mahama

Although this comment was made around November last year, it seems its repercussions have reverberated all the way till now. Speaking on the issue of strikes and demonstrations, President Mahama had said that he was now Impervious to them.

We hope you enjoyed this short recap of this year's - and plus one of the last's - political comments.

Do you have any thoughts to share on this article? Leave a comment below or find us on Facebook.

Source: YEN.com.gh
TWIN FALLS  Christmas was Randy Paulinos favorite holiday.

Every year, Paulino would decorate the inside of his home with garlands of greenery and artificial snow. He didnt have just one Christmas tree, but two.

Then in 2009, Paulinos decorating moved outside. Thats when the Candy Cane House on 498 Polk St. was born.

Seven years later, the house is still a holiday favorite for many Magic Valley families.

Cars parked outside the house Thursday night, headlights off and engines idling, as tiny drops of rain pelted their windshields.

Last year, the Candy Cane House lost some of its glow when Paulino died.

Paulino and his husband, Mitch Silvester, were putting up the lights and decorations on the outside of the house when he collapsed. Paulino, 53, died Nov. 18, 2015.

Im trying to help honor him and at the same time not get stuck in the same spot and keep doing something, Silvester said. I know a lot of people in the area like seeing it. I get a lot of compliments from people I dont know. I know it does a lot of good.

Silvester said it was a holiday tradition they started together, and now he continues alone.

He was the one who suggested it, and I liked the idea, he said. He was the one who really pushed it and found the hardware to start it.

Silvester and Paulino met in Twin Falls in 2004 at a Mardi Gras party. They were together 12 years and married just before their 11th anniversary.

After Paulinos death, Silvester said friends and family helped set up the lights. There were a few strangers who knocked on his door to offer help, mostly people who knew Paulino.

A few years ago, the couple installed a donation box in the parking lot across the street from their house. The money is donated to Valley House Homeless Shelter. On Monday, Silvester took $580 collected from the box to Valley House. He empties the donation box every one to two weeks. Last year, people donated $750. 2015s total donations were lower than usual, Silvester said, because he didnt turn on the show until mid-December, still reeling from Paulinos death.

This year, he started setting up after Halloween and powered on the lights the day after Thanksgiving.

The show runs from 5 to 10 p.m. on weekdays and 5 to 11 p.m. weekends 5 to 11 p.m. The show runs until midnight closer to Christmas. The final night will be Dec. 31.

This year, Silvester hopes to raise $1,500 for the Valley House.

Thats very possible with 18 days left in the light show, Silvester said. There are quite a few people who do a good job decorating and try to brighten up the world for everyone else around. Its nice to be part of that.
Cassia County

Felony sentencings

Kristina Marie Pashby; felony possession of controlled substance, guilty, $535.50 costs, $150 restitution, one year determinate time, three years indeterminate time, 244 days credited; misdemeanor drug paraphernalia - use or possess with intent to use, dismissed on motion of prosecutor; misdemeanor driving under the influence, guilty, $202.50 costs, $150 restitution, 90 days driver's license suspended, 180 days jail, 244 days credited; misdemeanor false information provided on own identity or another's to an investigating law enforcement officer, dismissed on motion of prosecutor; $150 restitution.

Cybill Skye Lybbert; felony possession of controlled substance, guilty, $535.50 costs, $100 restitution, 36 months probation, one year determinate, three years indeterminate, 15 days credited, penitentiary suspended; misdemeanor drug paraphernalia - use or possess with intent to use, dismissed on motion of prosecutor.

Dustin R. Penrod; felony sexual exploitation of a child, dismissed on motion of prosecutor; felony sexual exploitation of a child, guilty, $545.50 costs, three years determinate time, seven years indeterminate time, eight days credited, retained jurisdiction; felony sexual exploitation of a child, dismissed on motion of prosecutor.

Brooklyn Peralez; felony possession of controlled substance, guilty, $385.50 costs, $150 restitution, 36 months probation, one year determinate time, three years indeterminate time, misdemeanor driving under the influence, dismissed on motion of prosecutor.

Kody Ethan Durfee; felony controlled substance - manufacture, deliver or possess with intent to manufacture or deliver, guilty, $285.50 costs, $100 restitution, three months determinate time, 33 months indeterminate time, 106 days credited; misdemeanor driving without privileges, dismissed on motion of prosecutor, $100 restitution.

Felony dismissals

Cybill Skye Lybbert; felony possession of controlled substance, dismissed on motion of prosecutor; misdemeanor drug paraphernalia - use or possess with intent to use, dismissed on motion of prosecutor.

Driving under the influence sentencings

Jon Joseph Reynolds; misdemeanor driving under the influence, guilty, $300 fine, $202.50 costs, 90 days driver's license suspended, 12 months probation, 90 days jail, 88 days suspended, one day credited time, two days community service in lieu of jail; misdemeanor fail to purchase or invalid driver's license. guilty, $157.50 costs.
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TWIN FALLS  While you are out shopping this weekend, consider buying a toy for a child in need.

The fifth annual Magic Valley Marine Corps League will gather donations for the Toys for Tots toy drive from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday at the Magic Valley Mall next to Shopko. The event is support by Charlie Company 4th Tanks based out of Boise. The public is encouraged to donate new and unwrapped toys.

They are really in need of toys for boys and girls ages 8 to 16, said Cpl. Paden Barnard, of Twin Falls. All the toys donated stay local in the Magic Valley. This is a really big event and we need the community to come out and donate this year.

Besides toys, Barnard said items that are needed or suggested include sporting goods, cologne, blankets, purses, board games, backpacks, alarm clocks, curling items and lotion sets.

Monetary and toy donations keep growing, Barnard said. Last year was phenomenal and Im really challenging the Magic Valley to top last years donation because the need is always going to be there.
The former bookkeeper for Midland Printing of Billings denied federal charges accusing her of stealing about $170,000 from the business over a four-year period.

Polly Leischner Peden, 52, pleaded not guilty on Thursday to an indictment charging her with five counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.

Prosecutor Colin Rubich said in court records that Peden, who was a bookkeeper at Midland Printing, devised a scheme to steal from the business by writing checks to herself and another person and forging the signature of owners, identified as L.J. and J.O.

The thefts began in about March 2012 and ended in February 2016 and totaled about $170,693, Rubich said. To hide the thefts, Peden altered the companys check register to disguise and conceal the fraudulent payments.

Peden also illegally used the signature of L.J. to commit the crimes, the indictment said.

If convicted, Peden faces a maximum 20 years and a $250,000 fine on the wire fraud counts and a mandatory consecutive two years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the identity theft count.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy Cavan continued Pedens release pending trial. The case will be heard by U.S. District Judge Susan Watters.
Special To The Washington Post

In June 2015, the U.S. government discovered something horrifying: The Office of Personnel Management had been hacked by China. The attackers had stolen the Social Security numbers, performance ratings and job assignments of millions of current and former federal employees.

It wasnt the first time the Chinese had been tied to security breaches in the government. They had gained access to the computers of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.s top officials as well as sensitive data in government employees security clearance files. The Chinese military was able to steal weapons designs, data on advanced technologies and insight into U.S. government policies. They had collected information about Americas electrical power grid, gas lines and waterworks.

Headlines about Chinas attacks bordered on the hysterical. Successful hacker attack could cripple U.S. infrastructure, NBC blared. China hacks the world, the Christian Science Monitor declared. The National Interest called Chinas data theft a national security threat.

Over the past year, though, China has largely faded from the conversation. Its not because its hackers have gone away. The Chinese continue to extract secrets from the U.S. government. But their efforts are, and have always been, far less scary than Russias brazen new challenge in the information space. Unlike China, the Russians arent using their cyberspies to steal business insights or gather information that officials can use in private negotiations with the United States. Theyre looking to disrupt elections in the United States and Europe, break NATO, and undermine democratic valuesbig strategic goals that President Vladimir Putin energetically pursues. Russia has become the biggest threat in cyberspace, and it will be very hard to defeat.

Both Russia and China have absconded with Americas secrets for decades. Chinas efforts have been better known because Chinese hackers have gotten caught more. As the New York Times reported, they stole designs for the F-35 fighter jet, corporate secrets for rolling steel, even the blueprints for gas pipelines that supply much of the United States. In 2008, they accessed the campaign servers of Barack Obama and John McCain, stealing internal position papers and communications, the Times said. Those documents were never leaked.

Russian hackers have used more sophisticated techniques and, as a result, have operated mostly under the radar, navigating their way into the networks of major agencies, including the Defense and State departments. They have also gained access to U.S. Central Command, the White House, energy companies and critical infrastructure around the country.

Today, Chinas cyberespionage efforts have become more refined. But theyre still focused on gathering information as quietly as possible. China isnt looking to take down U.S. infrastructure, and its spies generally no longer steal secrets from foreign companies to help their own. President Xi Jinping has professionalized and centralized cyberspying, and China is careful to avoid anything that could look like an attack.

The Russians are not. The countrys aims are much more aggressiveand personal. Its leaders believe that the United States is trying to use the Internet (which the Kremlin calls a tool of the CIA) to remake the world in its own Western liberal image. Putins henchman Dmitry Medvedev, Russias prime minister, even claimed that Western social media is part of a plan for Arab Spring-style political unrest in his country, saying that they have been preparing such a scenario for us, and now they will try even harder to implement it.

As a result, Russian hackers arent just looking for information that could bolster their business efforts or improve their ability to negotiate with Washington. Theyre aggressively working to destabilize and destroy democracy. The Democratic National Committee hack, which has been tied to Russia, was only one of several high-profile incidents. The Russians allegedly hacked the German Bundestag. They broke into a leading French TV network (pretending to be the Islamic State) and took it offline. A power plant in Ukraine was hacked as a warning to Kiev. Russian hackers have been accused of planting false news to undercut a partnership between Sweden and NATO. European intelligence services say the Russians are more active and more dangerous than at any other time since the Cold War.

This is what Russia calls a new generation of warfare, which uses hacking, leaks and nontraditional weapons such as RT, an English-language news site with a strident anti-American tone. Russias government has hired hundreds of trolls to plant pro-Russian messages in the comment sections of Western media outlets, uses chatbots to flood social media with hostile comments, and, of course, leaks purloined emails through various organizations, including WikiLeaks. China doesnt do this.

This week, Obama pledged to retaliate against Russian hackers, telling NPR we need to take action. And we will. But figuring out what comes next has been a struggle. We cant unleash a major U.S. Cyber Command operation without risking war. Some proposals put forward by experts are silly, such as leaking Putins Botox injection schedule. Others are feckless, such trying to embarrass Putin by publicizing pictures of his girlfriends.

America needs a better strategy, one thats more assertive and nimble. And it cant be focused on Russia alone. Other opponents remain busy and dangerous. North Korea, Iran and China have all tested American cyberdefenses and found them wanting. A good cybersecurity strategy cant play whack-a-mole. We need an approach that convinces opponents its dangerous to attack the United States, and if they do, there will be consequences. The response to North Koreas Sony hack shows that opponents behavior can be changed: After the United States imposed retaliatory sanctions, the number of attacks decreased significantly. We can reshape cyber-risk if we take action. We must.
Cheer

Twin Falls County Sheriffs deputies saved the life of a jail inmate this week when Cody William James Meade, 26, a Tennessee man who has racked up six additional felony charges while in custody since he was arrested in May on suspicion of robbing an Oasis Stop N Go at gunpoint, smashed a window 8 feet above his jail door and escaped.

Meade then lowered the frame from a broken mirror over another inmates neck, taking him hostage and threatening to slit the mans throat at any moment.

Deputies kept Meade talking and rushed in at the perfect moment  just as Meade went to adjust the mirror.

Sgt. James VanZante likely saved a life. It was a close call.

The deputies deserve a lot of credit for quick thinking and brave actions.

Jeer

Jeers to the Twin Falls Police Department, who this week took nearly a half-hour to respond to a call where shots were fired.

It happened Tuesday morning at the impound lot of A-1 Towing in Twin Falls where Charles Legg said he was shot at twice by someone trying to steal a pickup truck impounded Monday night in Buhl.

Police say the call came in during a shift change, there were some miscommunications, and officers were worried they were being set up by an ambush.

None of these are good excuses when someone says theyre being shot at.

Yes, police put their lives on the line every day, and we all want to ensure their safety. But nearly 30 minutes is far too long to respond to a case where theres gunplay.

Hopefully, the department and dispatchers learn from this experience and close the communications gaps that caused such an inexcusable delay.

Cheer

A ribbon was cut, the governor spoke and the mayor shook plenty of hands Thursday at the official opening of the Crisis Center of South Central Idaho.

There was plenty to celebrate.

The center is just the third of its kind in Idaho, designed to offer immediate help to folks suffering mental health or addiction emergencies.

The center is run by ProActive Advantage, the contractor who won a bidding process earlier this year.

Since the center opened in late November, 23 people have already received help. Besides getting people immediate attention in crisis situations, the center should help lessen the demands on emergency rooms and county jails  which were sometimes the only places to take people in emergencies that werent immediately affecting their health.

Now, the center will offer hope to anyone who needs it, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
A Lame Deer man admitted this week that he shot a person in the chest at close range during a shootout at the Cheyenne Depot Gas Station and Convenience Store in March in Lame Deer.

Devan Gregory Sanchez, 25, pleaded guilty to assault resulting in serious injury during a hearing on Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy Cavan in Billings.

A plea deal calls for three other charges, including assault with intent to commit murder, to be dismissed at sentencing.

The shootout occurred March 19 and led the Northern Cheyenne tribal president to call for the banishment of nontribal members involved in drug-related activity on the reservation. Two shooters were hit and injured, and a female bystander was injured by a ricocheting bullet.

Assistant U.S. Attorney John Sullivan said in court records that Sanchez shot the victim, identified as C.R., in the chest with a .380-caliber pistol from about 10 feet away during a midday dispute at the convenience store.

Sanchez suffered a flesh wound to his abdomen, while C.R. suffered a through-and-through gunshot wound to his right chest, which collapsed his lung, Sullivan said.

C.R. was discharged from St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings three days later after being flown there from the Indian Health Service clinic in Lame Deer.

The gunfight began after a vehicle, driven by Bradley Baker, stopped for gas at the store. C.R. was a passenger.

While Baker was filling up his car, Sanchez pulled into the gas station and parked his truck adjacent to Bakers vehicle, Sullivan said. Sanchez got out and, instead of pumping gas, got into an argument with Baker and demanded to know if there were any Crows or Bloods in the vehicle, he said.

When Baker told Sanchez to look for himself, Sanchez shoved him to the ground, Sullivan said.

C.R. got out of the vehicle and began arguing with Sanchez.

Sanchez drew a Walther .380-caliber pistol and shot C.R. once in the chest, Sullivan said.

C.R. responded by drawing his own gun and returning fire, clipping Sanchez in the abdomen with one round.

At least five witnesses told investigators that Sanchez drew first and shot C.R. before C.R. returned fire, Sullivan said.

A video recording from the Cheyenne Depot corroborated those statements, he said.

Sanchezs defense attorney, Jessica Fehr, disputed some of the governments evidence.

Fehr said in court records that Sanchez was shot twice by C.R., with one shot leaving a grazing wound on his forearm and another shot going through his abdomen.

Sanchez also denied demanding to know if there were Crows or Bloods in the vehicle and that while he shoved Baker, Baker didnt fall to the ground, she said.

In addition, Sanchezs version of the shooting is that when C.R. was out of the car, Sanchez saw a pistol in C.R.s hand at his side. Sanchez drew his firearm but didnt remember if he or C.R. drew first or whether they drew simultaneously, Fehr said.

Sanchez fired once while C.R. fired eight rounds, Fehr said.

Sanchez also asserted that video of the incident is unclear at best, she said.

Sanchez faces a maximum 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Cavan said he would recommend that Sanchezs plea be accepted by U.S. District Judge Susan Watters, who will sentence Sanchez. A date has not yet been set.
Both Republicans and Democrats are mired in contradictions. Lets say you argue Putin really did hack the election in a meaningful way. You probably then ought to conclude that Obama was truly a deeply negligent president, in a manner unprecedented in recent times. (And since HRC was his Secretary of State, and more or less ran on a continuation of his regime, this oddly gives you the best case for voting for Trump! Can you see Trump letting Putin deny Ivanka the presidency in this way?) In this view, not only has Obama had only a lukewarm response to the hack, but he emboldened Putin over the last eight years, given his relative non-responses in Ukraine, Syria, the red line, and so on. Romney and Kasparov then have to be seen as right in their view of both Putin and Obama. Democrats of course are mostly unwilling to accept these conclusions, but the more seriously they talk of a decisive hack the closer they come to them.

Now those arent my views, but they should be the views of many of the Democrats I am reading. To avoid those conclusions, the Democrats would have to play down the import of the hack.

Republicans try to minimize the hack, noting correctly that a) it released only true information, and b) bad email practices by John Podesta did not in fact swing the election. The Republicans dont quite put it this way, but the main problem was with the American media and its ongoing insinuations of more sinister goings-on than turned up in the evidence. If you run a media without an obsession on the substance of policy, that can happen and in essence we manipulated ourselves. Whats the ratio of MR posts on economic and foreign policy and Star Wars to MR posts on Hillarys email? The NYT and WaPo media could do the same but of course they dont, neither does Breitbart, and that choice of emphasis is a much bigger problem than fake news. In that regard you can exonerate Putin.

Yet in other contexts, the Republicans insist, rightly, as seeing Putins behavior as establishing a broader pattern of norm violations and moving from one transgression to the next. If we insist on sticking with that bigger picture framing, the Russian hack then becomes more serious again, even though we can talk down its impact as a one-off event. What indeed will be next?

The intelligent hawk position takes a whacking too. How can we get tough with Russia when we will have had at least twelve years of American presidents (Obama plus Trump) who seem totally unwilling to do so? And ultimately that unwillingness is backed up by voter apathy. I see some anti-Trump marches, but there arent many get tough with Vlad demonstrations.

If American voters see their presidents wont get tough with Putin, shouldnt they indeed start liking Putin more? To be sure, some of this boost in Putins popularity comes from the partisan perception that he is pro-Trump and anti-Hillary. But consider the more intellectually honest slice of voter opinion. Shouldnt they also think that, if we are unwilling to be tough with Putin, we might as well try to get along with him and tolerate him? That means trying to like him more too, just as you might try to like your unruly next door neighbors, once you decided it is not worth the trouble to move away from them.

The hawkish position, precisely by requiring sufficiently high levels of hawkish credibility, can collapse into a kind of cowardice quite readily.

So who then isnt embarrassed? How about the hack was semi-serious, Obama is semi-deeply negligent, the apathetic, complacent public is the biggest problem, hawkish credibility cannot be earned back easily, and the election was nonetheless legitimate as a reasonable default stance?

Oddly enough, I dont think Trump and Putin will get along very well. Putin still needs an external enemy, young Russians do not love the United States, and in foreign policy Trump is likely to want the impossible. How will a Sylvester Stallone fan be global policeman with few trusting allies and little credibility? It seems we are going to find out.
The United States has moved to the rank of fifth export destination of Moroccan goods, Moroccan minister of economy and finance, Mohamed Boussaid, said when addressing the Atlantic Dialogues fifth edition held in Marrakesh.

Boussaid ascribed the positive results to the Morocco-USA Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signed in June 2005. Trade between the two countries has tripled and now accounts for 5.3 per cent of Moroccos trade with the rest of the world, Moroccan media leconomiste.com reports.

With this growing trend, Moroccan exports to the US have reached about $7.7 million, making the US Moroccos fifth global client.

On the other side, US exports to the kingdom of Morocco have been also on the rise as figures point at some $23.7 million. With these figures, the North African country stands as the fourth business partner of the US, while US trade to Morocco now represents 6.4 per cent of the total foreign US trade.

The two-lane trade has been also boosted by a number of agreements between the American Chamber of Commerce in Morocco AmCham and Moroccan business actors and institutions.

The agreements have enhanced connection between private companies of both countries.

The minister also urged Moroccan business people to explore the American market which offers an array of trade opportunities.

Some 300 delegates coming from Europe, Africa, America and the Caribbean representing different segments including politics, civil society and business took part in the forum held in Marrakech December 14 to 16.
President Joseph Kabila of the Democratic Republic of Congo and his relatives have built a network of businesses that reaches into every corner of Congos economy, Bloomberg reports.

According to the report published on Thursday, the Kabila Empire has recently become visible after Congolese regulators computerized and made corporate and government records publicly available.

Bloomberg News, with support from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, traced the Kabilas interests by amassing an archive of hundreds of thousands of pages of corporate documents that shows his wife, two children and eight of his siblings control more than 120 permits to dig gold, diamonds, copper, cobalt and other minerals, said the report.

Two of the familys businesses alone own diamond permits that stretch more than 450 miles across Congos southwestern border with Angola. Family members also have stakes in banks, farms, fuel distributors, airline operators, a road builder, hotels, a pharmaceutical supplier, travel agencies, boutiques and nightclubs. Another venture even tried to launch a rat into space on a rocket, it added.

Bloomberg attempted to speak to President Kabila on the issue through the government spokesman Lambert Mende and the familys assistant Theodore Mugalu, but it was in vain.

Kabila came into power in 2001 when he was 29 years old after his father, Laurent Kabila, who served as president since 1997 was assassinated by his own bodyguard.

Kabila is required by constitutional term limits to step down when his second mandate ends this December 19 but a constitutional court ruled that he can stay on until a new successor is elected.

The opposition accuse Kabila of manipulating the system to cling on to power, while a faction of the opposition has agreed and through a national dialogue, got one of its members appointed Prime Minister.

World Bank data show that nearly two-thirds of the 77 million people in the Democratic Republic of Congo live on less than $1.90 per day.
Moroccos textile company SEFITA has won a $1 million contract to manufacture uniforms for Ivorian police and military.

SEFITA will execute the contract via SEIFA; a local company based in the West African country, which has long been a traditional partner of the Ivorian armed and security forces.

The contract was signed in the presence Moroccan ambassador to Abidjan, Abdelmalek Kettani, Moroccan Arabic daily Al Ahdath Al Maghribia reports.

SEFITA will install by January two manufacturing lines in the Ivorian capital for the production of 12,000 uniforms a month and over 144,000 per year.

The project, the daily notes will generate 150 direct jobs and 75 indirect employments. SEFITA will also share its know-how with its partner through training of local work force.

The Moroccan company, set up in 1943, has also a branch in France through which it supplies uniforms to some regiments of the French army and some auxiliary forces.

New York police also commissions SEFITA uniforms.
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The Billings Police Department has logged 115 stolen vehicle reports since the beginning of November.

The majority of those came from residents leaving their vehicles unlocked and running during cold weather, according to a release from the department.

Of the stolen vehicles, 68 have been recovered.

Detectives are investigating the theft cases and interviewed one suspect. That conversation indicated that some of the vehicles might have been taken out of Montana, though it's unclear where. That investigation is ongoing.

The Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office has also responded to numerous reports of stolen vehicles, some of which are stolen in the city and ditched in the county and vice versa, said Sheriff Mike Linder.

Cars left unlocked and running make some of the car thefts "crimes of opportunity," Linder said.

Some vehicles are stolen with the owners' firearms inside, which Linder said is a major concern for law enforcement.

Billings Police investigated at least 67 auto thefts last month. In 17 of those cases, the cars were left running and unattended, and in 12 incidents there was a spare key hidden somewhere on the vehicle, according to Lt. Neil Lawrence.

Police noted that state law forbids leaving an unattended vehicle running. Anyone with tips can call the Billings Police Department at 406-657-8200 or Crime Stoppers at 406-245-6660.
Interviews

Prior to being traded over to the New York Mets with Javier Baez from the Chicago Cubs at the...
@JeremySWallace

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson said he is disappointed in President Barack Obamas administration for not saying and doing more about Russias attempts to interfere in the U.S. presidential election prior to the election and failing to launch a counter cyber attack against Russia to send a message.

During a meeting with reporters in Tallahassee, Nelson, a Democrat, said it is clear the White House knew Russian President Vladimir Putin had specific involvement and was trying to tip the scales for one candidate over another. Yet the White House was not explicit enough about bringing that out in the public before the election.

I think that was a huge mistake on the part of the Obama White House, Nelson said.

Nelson said the U.S. should have launched its own cyber response to make the Russians think twice in the future about trying to interfere again.

I was struck that the United States had not done some counter cyber attack against Russia, which is a way of telling them dont mess with us, Nelson said.
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The Festival Service of Nine Lessons and Carols, which began in England in the early 1900s, is now a part of Anglican and Episcopal worship throughout the world. The service is made up of lessons alternating with the singing of congregational and choral carols. Beginning with the story of Adam and Eve, the lessons trace the prophecies of the Nativity, and end with the beautiful passage from John: In the Beginning was the Word  . Please join us! A reception follows the service in the parish hall, and childcare will be provided for the service.
RAPID CITY, S.D.  Following 14 years of stalwart efforts to preserve Native American sacred sites from desecration and to protect natural resources from fracking, uranium mining and overharvesting of timber, the nonprofit Defenders of the Black Hills has decided to call it quits.

The organizations final meeting was conducted Saturday at the Mother Butler Center in Rapid City, and with smiles, hugs and a few tears likely. At the farewell, supporters celebrated nearly a decade and a half of volunteer activism and partnerships developed, all in the name of protecting the environment.

The decision to disband was not made without careful thought, said Charmaine White Face, one of the group founders and its coordinator since its inception.

Im getting old and tired, said White Face, who turns 70 in March. There are other groups now but, when we started, there were hardly any. Others will take up the mantle, but we feel like its time now. Its time to back out.

Defenders of the Black Hills was founded in 2003 to counter federal legislation passed that opened up the last 3 percent of the Black Hills to logging, including a wilderness area and two roadless areas that were supposed to be preserved untouched for time immemorial.

In the ensuing years, the Defenders group has pestered those promoting mineral extraction and fracking, successfully promoted legislation funding the cleanup of abandoned uranium mines and worked to prevent water pollution in the region.

In January 2003, White Face said the Defenders had 32 issues on its docket, all intended to protect, preserve and restore the environment. Among those issues was a firing range proposed within sight of Bear Butte, a sacred site to several Native American tribes. So the newly formed group held a prayer gathering at Bear Butte, followed by a dinner at Sturgis Brown High School attended by 200, she said.

At that session, a local attorney stepped forward and offered his services pro bono to the Defenders. Further investigation of the planned firing range found it was going to be financed through a Community Development Block Grant, a federal funding mechanism designed to assist poor people, White Face explained.

We pushed it hard and took it to court, she said. We discovered that 12 of the 16 CDBGs in South Dakota were illegal, the state and the businessmen backed out, and the firing range was dropped in the fall of 2003.

***

A writer and scientist who holds a double major in biology and physical sciences from Black Hills State University, White Face also serves as spokesperson for the Sioux Nation Treaty Council, a lifetime position. Disbanding the Defenders, she said, would allow her to devote more time to the oldest treaty council in the region.

Who am I? the self-effacing woman asked rhetorically. Im just a little grandma.

In fact, White Face is the mother of four biological and eight adopted children, as well as 13 grandkids and four great-grandchildren. But her friends and fellow environmental advocates say she is so much more.

Charmaine deserves all the recognition she gets, said Lilias Jarding of the Rapid City-based Clean Water Alliance. She and the Defenders leave a legacy of the focused defense of the resources and the people of the Black Hills.

Jarding said White Face and the Defenders were instrumental in the establishment of the Clean Water Alliance and have worked in tandem on issues involving unwise projects over the years. She said she worries about the group disbanding.

I think we will lose the skills and talents that were brought to bear on defending the vision of what the Black Hills can be; Lakota values and a broad natural resources viewpoint, said Jarding, who planned to attend Saturdays final meeting of the Defenders.

Michelle May, director of the Oglala Lakota College Academic and Public Library and Archives at Kyle, lauded White Face for making monthly treks to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation to make environmental presentations to students and interested community members.

Charmaine and the information she conveys are so relevant to our world and, not just the reservation, but the world of humanity, May said. Personally she is such a blessing and such a good friend. She always goes the extra mile and shares her information. Its incredible the generosity she has.

May said the legacy of the Oglala Sioux scientist, environmentalist and activist, and the organization she helped establish, will live on through videos captured of White Faces presentations, which have been archived in the tribal library.

***

Over the years, efforts by White Face and the Defenders have been recognized far and wide.

In 2007, the organization won the Nuclear Free Future Award, described as "the Nobel Prize for Environmentalists." Last summer, White Face was named a Giraffe Hero by the Giraffe Heroes Project, a nonprofit organization that encourages people to "stick their necks out for the common good."

White Face was chosen for the latter award due to her battles that have extended from her fight against corruption within tribal governments stretching back to the 1980s, as well as her more recent opposition to uranium mining in the Black Hills.

Her work has been met with threats as well as plaudits. White Face said that the brake lines on her car have been cut, and that people have told her to "watch out" or a bomb would be placed in her car.

But White Face doesnt dwell on negatives and, despite the disbanding of the Defenders, she said shed continue to fight the good fight for as long as she can.

Why was it all so important? she asked last week. I love the earth. They told me Ive been like this since I was a tiny girl. I dont like to see the earth ruined and Im sorry, but I get a little choked up."

Speaking of Mother Earth, she said: Nothing can live if shes sick.
Missoula emergency officials arent happy with how they learned of a 7,000-gallon diesel fuel spill in the Montana Rail Link train yard.

MRL says it discovered the leak around 5:30 a.m. Monday and followed proper protocol by notifying the (Montana) Department of Emergency Response within hours of detection, spokesman Jim Lewis said in an email Friday.

The state emergency office then notified state and local agencies based on their protocols, he said.

It was 3 p.m. by the time Missoula Countys Office of Emergency Management got the call from state Disaster and Emergency Services. Director Adriane Beck passed the news onto the city fire and health departments.

By then Montana Rail Link had vac trucks on site to start slurping up the fuel pooling on the frozen surface. The fire department never was called on to respond.

I was a little disappointed with the way we ended up hearing about the spill, assistant fire chief Chad Nicholson said. Typically we have a pretty good relationship with Montana Rail Link, but a heads-up would have been appreciated.

The process that we would like to see MRL follow when there is a spill of anything that has ... hazardous material (is to) notify 9-1-1 so we can initiate our mechanism of notification to insure public safety, Beck said.

An excavator was busy Friday digging a hole that had reached or surpassed 20 feet deep to get to the last of the fuel, while a steady stream of dump trucks hauled the contaminated soil away, 10 yards per load.

The spill apparently occurred when a coupling broke in a pump house servicing locomotives on the east end of the yard. Health officials said Friday the spill doesnt pose an immediate threat to drinking water.

Not yet, said Jon Harvala, an environmental health specialist in the water quality department. Its still probably 30 or 40 feet above the water table where theyre at.

It happens to be in an area that was already a state Superfund site from Burlington Northerns operations years ago, said Michelle Hutchins, also an environmental health specialist who was on-site most of Wednesday. Its a significant spill, but I dont think its anything near what they had in the past in that area.

A press statement issued Thursday evening by MRL said 2,600 of the 7,000 gallons had been recovered with the assistance of two contractors who specialize in environmental remediation. No update was supplied Friday.

Theyre digging down trying to find out when they hit clean soil, and then theyll just move around to find the area thats soaked, Hutchins said

The last significant hazardous materials spill in the MRL yards is believed to have been in June 2006 when a five-car derailment spilled 12,000 gallons of ethanol. Nine residents living near the tracks were briefly evacuated, and there was concern of an explosion.

In the aftermath, neighborhood leaders and others complained of a lack of notification. Lynda Frost, MRLs spokeswoman at the time, said the company had a procedure to alert employees and emergency responders when accidents occur but had no formal way to inform the public.

This time the press statement released by MRL on Thursday night was the first public notification of the spill. It came after the Missoulian followed up on an anonymous tip left on the newsroom voice mail.

Montana Rail Link was proactive in circulating a press statement Thursday evening, Lewis said by email Friday. In our communication with the Missoula County Health Department and DEQ there has been no concerns expressed regarding local drinking water supply or risk to public health in the area of the incident.

Beck said its probably fair to say (MRL) would have an obligation to let the public know about the spill.

Her office relies on the health department to determine the threat to public health. In this case there was none.

If there had been, Beck said, we would have leveraged every tool available to us to notify the public and our media partners and, to the extent we needed to, would have gone door to door.
District Court Judge Robert Dusty Deschamps kept the attorneys in the courtroom after the jury was excused for the weekend at the end of day three of the trial of Jordan Scott Bahr, accused of raping a Missoula woman in October 2015.

The judge wanted to discuss the topic of sexual consent.

Specifically, he referenced Montana law regarding the definition of the last two words in the "sexual intercourse without consent" charge Bahr faces. Deschamps said those could apply to this case in two ways: some sort of threat, or the woman being physically helpless. So far, he said, he saw no evidence of the former in the prosecutions case.

Deschamps said he has been ruminating on a prior Missoula rape case that was eventually appealed to the Montana Supreme Court. That court overturned a conviction, ruling that "frozen fright" didn't constitute "physically helpless."

The woman Bahr is accused of assaulting said she froze during the incident.

On Thursday, a licensed clinical psychologist testified about the freezing phenomenon, telling the jury that it was a physiological, uncontrollable response to high levels of fear that causes someone to not be able to leave or fight back during a traumatic situation like rape.

The judge encouraged the prosecution and defense to consider the legal question of consent before trial resumes Monday.

Im willing to take another run at the Supreme Court with the record weve got, he said.

***

After meeting Bahr in a group of mutual friends at a bar in downtown Missoula on Oct. 12, 2015, the woman said they biked home together because he lived along the way and didnt have a light on his bicycle.

She went inside when she reached his house and, feeling drunk, decided to sleep on his couch instead of riding the rest of the way home.

Its two in the morning, Im alone. Im female. Im intoxicated, she said in court Friday near the end of her testimony.

Bahr allegedly offered twice to let her sleep in his bed, which she declined. He asked if he could lay on the couch with her and she said yes, testifying that it was something she commonly did with platonic friends. Almost immediately, the woman said Bahr began an escalating series of painful sexual assaults. She said she froze and couldnt fight back, eventually dressing and leaving after Bahr stopped.

Mary Pat Hansen, the clinical supervisor for the First Step Resource Center who conducted the forensic examination of the woman the afternoon after the incident, said she found evidence of abrasion to her genitals consistent with the womans description of events, but said its not her role to decide whether that means the activity was consensual or nonconsensual.

Were not diagnosing sexual assault based on what we see, Hansen said. Consensual sexual activity can also result in injury.

Most of Friday was taken up by testimony from colleagues and friends of the woman, including her boyfriend, talking about how the incident has affected her.

Her sister, who visited from out of state months later, said she and the woman went to Big Dipper for ice cream, but had to go home after she saw someone standing in the line wearing a similar item of clothing to what Bahr had worn. She said the woman spent more than an hour closed off in her room after they left.

While many of the details the womens friends report her telling them about the incident at Bahrs house are consistent, there are a few disagreements. Some said she reported telling Bahr she had a boyfriend, others just that she said she told him she didnt want to do anything with him that night. Some said she told them she fell asleep and woke up to Bahr attacking her, others that she said she never slept before the pair lay down.

One of the mutual friends who had been at the bar with them earlier in the evening said he saw Bahr several days later, with Bahr telling him he and the woman had wild sex and that she stepped out on her boyfriend with him.

The friend said Bahr told him he had asked the woman if she wanted to come in to have sex and she said no, but also that what did she think was going to happen? when she came in to warm up, a statement the man said he found disturbing.
Santa Claus showed up at the Missoula Public Library on Friday right in the middle of a rousing chorus of "Jingle Bells."

The tots looked up at him with their wide eyes and, since he's Santa and therefore magic, he read the question in their eyes perfectly.

"It was so cold, I couldn't even use my reindeer," Santa said. "I left them back in the barn where it was warm.

"I had to come in a Subaru."

The children didn't balk or judge. It's Missoula, and Subarus and storybooks are treasured here.

Plus, Santa Claus, known as Mike Jakupcak in other venues and times of the year, was going to read them a story, a tale about ninjas sneaking around paying compliments and performing good deeds and top-secret missions, a book by authors of their own state of Montana, Helena's Tyler Knott Gregson and Sarah Linden.

Before he cracked open "North Pole Ninjas," hot off the press, Santa traded out one pair of glasses for another and wondered if the bundled little people sitting on their knees and tiny snow boots had seen readers before.

"Do your grandmas and grandpas sometimes use glasses to read?"

Cora Guerette, almost 3, empathetic, replied.

"Well, I do, too," Cora said.

Cora's mom later disputed the notion her little girl wears glasses, but Cora knows another little girl who does, and around Christmas, it's surely the thought that counts.

As he read, Santa showed the rapt group pictures of the secret elves illustrated by Piper Thibodeau, creatures "not often seen," and the ninjas, who are already heroes in the minds of the children, shoveling snow, feeding a kitty.

He periodically digressed from the book to accept a hug or short bit of conversation.

"I know about Ninja Turtles," said Anna Hebble-White, 4.

"What do you know about them?" Santa asked.

"They sometimes have shells," Anna said.

Santa continued, but after the reading, Anna explained the reason she is a fan of the ninjas: "They are secret."

Lula, 3, directed questions about ninjas to her spokeswoman Jessica Larson, who said the sneaky team of special elves exhibit wonderful qualities: "Honor, kindness and respect." The pair loves the library and have been visiting since Lula was a baby.

"North Pole Ninjas" is a different kind of book because it's a call to action, and Santa gave the children instructions, good deeds to do before Christmas. They could help shovel snow. Collect cans of food.

"What you might do is take them to the Missoula Food Bank," Santa said.

Perhaps anticipating some holiday sugar binges, Santa offered another possible good deed: Stay quiet.

Do they pick up their clothes? Brush their teeth? Santa asked the questions, although he also admitted he receives regular reports from informants.

"I have elves that watch you at night," he said.

The children looked at him with their wide eyes. On the spectrum between naughty and nice, they landed squarely on confident, enough to put in their Christmas orders after the story.

Trailers. Pianos. A commercial gadget.

Bets are some might get their own copy of "North Pole Ninjas," and maybe another visit to the library. Emily Harrington, Anna's mom, said it's good for her daughter to hear someone else's voice.

"She loves books, and I want to encourage the love of reading," she said.
George W. Hartley was born in Melstone on March 31, 1921, and moved to Billings when he was 12. He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps in April 1941. When he was honorably discharged in October 1945, he was with the 777th Bombardment Squadron and had been a Link Trainer instructor, teaching pilots how to fly on instruments and a mechanic working on B-17 and B-24s.

He was in campaigns in Rome, Naples and Southern France.

He wrote about some of his experiences in World War II in 1990 while recovering from pneumonia.

This is his story, in his own words.

Entering the war

I enlisted in the Army Air Corps on April 1, 1941, the day after my 20th birthday in Billings. A high school friend, Dick Rogers, enlisted at the same time. We left Billings the next day on a steam train headed for Fort Missoula, Mont. We were given a nice farewell by our families. I remember Dick had on a black cowboy hat.

The Sunday of Dec. 7, 1941, Dick Rogers and myself were on a pass in civilian clothes in Spokane (Hartley was stationed at Geiger Field, Spokane), spending the evening at the roller skating rink. Military Police came in and said that all military personnel passes are cancelled and we will return to bases immediately. I think we asked, "Why?" and they said, "You will find out when you get to your bases." We were in uniform from then on until discharged and back to our hometown.

I went on guard duty at Geiger Field. We went on shifts around the clock. This went on for quite some time. They were taking the attack on Pearl Harbor seriously. They were afraid of sabotage. I got orders that I was to go to Las Vegas, Nev., to an aerial gunnery school to be trained to operate the 50-caliber machine guns in a B-24 or B-17 bomber.

Across the Atlantic

Hartley was sent overseas in spring 1944. He remembered drilling every day during the two-week trip as the convoy made its trans-Atlantic journey.

We were issued bayonets, helmets, trench shovels, pup tents, mess kits, canteens, first-aid packs which we kept in a horseshoe backpack. We had this onboard ship. We always had the bayonet handy in case we were swept overboard for any reason  self defense or whatever.

We were told that they detected German submarines, but kept changing their course, like zigzagging to outsmart them. We were sure hoping that they would outsmart them. A Navy Destroyer came from possibly Africa or near Italy or Sicily and escorted us from part of the Atlantic through the Mediterranean Sea to Italy.

We docked on May 31, 1944 in Naples, Italy. Before leaving the ship, we put on our horseshoe packs on our backs with steel helmets and marched through Naples to a waiting Italian train. Of course, everything wasn't on time, so we waited like the Army  hurry up and wait. I remember as we were marching through Naples, watching the hungry faces and bewildered look of the children and adults. They were glad to see us, but the terribleness of war showed on their faces. They would beg for chocolate and caramel and chewing gum (mostly the children). Of course, we couldn't break ranks and I felt very sorry for them. Italy had surrendered earlier in the war, so the United States and her allies were trying to feed them the best they could. Southern Italy was the poor peasant country  some grew wheat and had chickens and eggs. If they were lucky, they had some tame rabbits to eat. On the whole, they were pretty poor.

Path to victory

The Fifth Army and Allies liberated Rome on June, 4, 1944  four days after we docked at Naples. I have a souvenir commemorating the Allies' entrance into Rome. The Italian people were selling them.... The Italians salvaged some aircraft tubing from the downed aircraft; tubing with "Roma" engraved on it. These souvenirs I got while I was in Rome. At Panatela Air Base, we stayed in five-men Army tents. We had to dig trenches all around our tents, or should I say, part way around to have something to jump into in case of an enemy raid. We never had one, which I am very thankful for. Later on the Link Trainer personnel cleaned out an old Italian castle like home down near the flying line. It had stables on the ground floor and rooms up above. It even had a lookout tower on one corner. Our Link Trainers were put up in a big stable-like room. We stayed in another donkey stable that we cleaned up for our Army bunks or cots. We got some wheat straw from an Italian peasant farmer and made straw ticks out of our mattress covers. There was an almond orchard near our base, so we picked almonds and dried them on the tile room where we lived  and got our fill of almonds.

We had turkey and the trimmings at Thanksgiving and Christmas. There was quite a bit of snow the Winter of 1944. It would get quite cold because the wind would blow from the two seas across the boot of Italy. In early Spring of 1945, I picked up an infection on the back of my right knee. It kept getting worse until I had blood poisoning in my leg. I finally went on sick call. When the doctor saw my leg, he said, "We will have to get you to the hospital fast." An Army ambulance took me to the 4th Field Hospital. I was put in bed and the nurses started giving me sulfa pills and lots of water. They also put packs on my legs. The nurses took good care of me and the other soldiers that were wounded from flying missions and soldiers with other sicknesses as well.

It sure was great news when V.E. Day came along on May 12, 1945. From then on, we were talking about when we would get to leave Italy. We exchanged some of Italian lira for American currency. I saved some of my Italian coins. I wish I would have saved some Italian paper money. We couldn't take our steel helmets with us. We could only have so much weight in our duffel bags. I felt bad that I couldn't take my steel helmet, so I had to leave it in Italy. Probably some Italian is wearing it. Ha.

Honor of a lifetime

Family members recall that a highlight of Hartley's life was when a B-17 came to Billings in 2006. Billings Gazette Chief Photographer Larry Mayer arranged to have Hartley get a ride on the plane before the public. It remained a highlight of his life.

When asked later if he'd go on one of the Big Sky Honor Flights to Washington, D.C., Hartley politely declined.

"I already went on my plane ride," he said.
Tony Tomsu wasnt sure he heard the boy right.

It was a few years back and the neighbors son had just wandered over to his place to ask the nationally known fly tyer for a pattern that had been working very well on the West Fork of the Bitterroot.

The Salmonfly hatch was in full swing and Tomsu had been supplying them with his realistic version of both the Salmonfly and Golden Stone patterns.

The well-spoken boy asked for something that sounded to Tomsu like Slamon flies.

Tomsu guessed that he was mispronouncing the word salmon, as sometimes young boys do.

Ben, Tomsu said with a smile, do you mean the Salmonflies?

The boys response was immediate.

No, I mean those Slammin Flies because the fish really kill those things, he said.

Turns out the boy had been fishing with his dad and uncle the week before and the trio had renamed Tomsus pattern because trout that spotted them floating on the surface slammed right into them.

That wasnt a surprise to Tomsu.

Over the last 20 years, hes become a nationally recognized leader in the development of realistic-looking flies made from foam through his firm River Road Creations, Inc., which is based on the banks of the Bitterroot River just north of Stevensville.

Later this month, Tomsu will share some of the secrets hes perfected over the course of years with the release of a new book titled, Creations from the River Road: Practical Realism for Tying and Fishing Foam Trout Flies."

The 212-page, color book published by Stevensville-based Stoneydale Press offers step-by-step photographs on how to tie 20 of Tomsus favorite trout patterns.

Tony Tomsu has been known in fishing circles worldwide for many years as a leader in the development of the use of foam materials for fishing both trout and warm water flies, said Stoneydale publisher Dale Burk. Its only natural that he would share his expertise in creating and fishing these flies through the medium of a new book.

A longtime fly fisherman and fly tyer himself, Burk said Tomsu holds nothing back.

Tony reveals every trick, tip, tool and technique he has developed over his 20-year history in the trade, including recently developed techniques that will allow his readers to easily add unprecedented levels of realism to their flies, Burk said.

Tomsu owns and operates a business out of his riverside home that creates Montana-made wing and foam body cutters for fly tyers, which have developed a legion of international followers.

Up until now, information about the businesss products has been spread mostly by word of mouth.

Fly tyers are kind of gadget heads, Tomsu said. Once someone gets something new that no one else has, they cant wait to show it to everyone else.

The secret to becoming a successful fly tyer is being consistent. Tying flies with foam thats consistently cut in the same pattern over and over again is a good way to start developing consistency.

Foam has other benefits too.

Its bombproof, Tomsu said. Its extremely durable. And it will float all day. You dont have to keep putting a floatant on it all day long.

But beyond all that, the foam allows tyers to create patterns that are very realistic.

Its radically different than traditional tying, Tomsu said. When you drop one of my hoppers in front a fish, they dont have to think about what theyre seeing. They know what it is.

Tying with foam isnt something thats brand new. People have been using the material for years.

But this is the first time that Im sharing all my techniques with the public, Tomsu said.

The book offers instructions on how to tie beetles, ants, caddisflies, hoppers, damselflies, dragonflies, cicadas, mayflies and several types of stoneflies, including the Slammin version.

Famed fly-fishing author Doug Swisher, whose 1971 book Selective Trout was considered a landmark in the fly tying world, spends time every year fishing with Tomsu and his wife, Kathi.

Swisher, in the books foreword, said: One thing about Tony, he doesnt keep secrets to himself. Instead, he shows such things as his unique coloring system and awesome technique for bending legs. Hes light years ahead of his time. This book will get your creative juices going.

The book is scheduled to arrive just after the first of the year.

The hardcover costs $40. It will be available at local fly shops, books stores or direct from either River Road Creations at www.riverroadcreations.com or Stoneydale Press at 777-2729 or www.stoneydale.com.

Perry Backus

Ravalli Republic Associate Editor

406-363-3300 ext. 30
A white supremacist website called The Daily Stormer has posted a call to "TAKE ACTION" against Jewish people in Whitefish, providing personal contact information and urging a "troll storm" against them.

The story claims the "vicious, evil race" has harmed the Whitefish business of Richard Spencer's mother. It quotes a story from the British newspaper Daily Mail that said Sherry Spencer "said she is being forced to sell a building she owns in the small town because residents are rebelling against her son."

The site posted phone numbers, email addresses, and Twitter handles for the Whitefish residents it alleges are harassing Sherry Spencer, along with a disclaimer that it opposes violence.

Richard Spencer is president and director of the National Policy Institute, which the Southern Poverty Law Center has identified as a hate group. The institute is "dedicated to the heritage, identity, and future of people of European descent in the United States, and around the world."

Spencer said Friday he's thinking about running for the U.S. House seat that would be vacated if U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke of Montana is confirmed as President-elect Donald Trump's choice to head the Department of Interior. (See related story.)

The Daily Stormer website has a tab called "Jewish Problem." It asks for donations from readers with a plea: "These bastards are always at our throats."

The piece by Andrew Anglin  described by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a "a prolific Internet troll"  about Whitefish uses a vulgar term to describe Jews, and also uses slurs against other minorities on its site. Its "call for action" in Whitefish says, "So then, let's hit em up. Are yall ready for an old fashioned Troll Storm?"

Some of those targeted by Thursday's post are involved in Love Lives Here, a group that fights discrimination  racial, ethnic, religious and gender  in the Flathead. It was founded in 2009 in response to screenings of pro-Hitler films by a white separatist group called Kalispell Pioneer Little Europe. Daily Stormer calls Love Lives Here a "Jew terrorist group."

Earlier this month, Whitefish Mayor John Muhlfeld signed a proclamation that declared, among other things, "The City of Whitefish repudiates the ideas and ideology of the white nationalist and so called alt-right as a direct affront to our community's core values and principles."

"Love Lives Here has never promoted the idea of a protest of a boycott of a building," Will Randall, the organization's chairman, said Friday. One of the people targeted by the Daily Stormer post "is a beloved member of our community who entered into this conversation trying to help."

The Stormer posted pictures of several Whitefish residents, including a child, with a yellow Star of David with the word "Jude"  German for Jew  added to each photo. During World War II, Jews in Germany and Nazi-occupied territories were forced to wear such stars on their clothing.

Randall said that his research into neo-Nazi groups has accustomed him to such images.
Montanas wolf hunting and trapping seasons have come under more scrutiny over the last two years following new laws and regulations aimed at reducing the states wolf population.
PABLO  Heres hoping officers with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Police Department had reason to 10-19  thats the code for return to station  Friday afternoon.

There were plates full of homemade cookies awaiting them.

Not to mention a couple of detention officers and a dispatcher eyeing the treats.

With all the officers out when the cookies arrived, we can go through the good stuff first, detention officer Sharmyne LaForge decided with a mischievous smile.

A dozen third- and fourth-graders at Pablo Elementary School waded out into fresh snow and frigid temperatures Friday to deliver cookies they had baked the night before to some of their neighbors.

There was more than chocolate chip. Haven Houle made mint and caramel cookies. Sebastian Ortega brought a Spanish desert, cheese empanadas.

Folks next door at Mission Valley Power got plates. Farther up the street at Pablo Foods, owners Tim and Sarah Schauss accepted batches for their employees.

Can we share them with customers? Sarah wanted to know.

Yes, she was told. Spread the cheer, and the calories, around.

Next week, the same students will deliver more than 600 items they collected in a school-wide food drive to the Ronan Bread Basket.

***

The 12 kids are the first-ever members of Pablo Elementarys PRIDE program.

At each stop, they recited in unison what that stands for  People Representing Intelligence, Demonstrating Excellence.

Theyre ones who will likely be on student councils and in National Honor Society when they get to middle and high school, Pablo principal Ryan Fisher said. Were tapping in and starting younger.

First-grade teacher Nicky Buck began PRIDE this fall, choosing the first members from the third and fourth grades based on grades, attendance and behavior.

Sometimes they dont get the attention that a kid that is struggling does, Buck said. We wanted to acknowledge students who make good choices.

Selection means one thing only. Once in PRIDE, members will do good things for the school they attend, and the community where they live. That's part of what being a leader means, according to Buck.

***

Its really fun, said fourth-grader Jasmin Rill, who made sugar drop cookies that went to Mission Valley Power. For the food drive, we had a goal of 500 items, but we collected 629 for the Bread Basket.

That was done in just over a weeks time, in a K-4 school with 207 students. PRIDE members organized the drive and encouraged their classmates to participate.

We have kids who need the Bread Basket, Buck said, so I wasnt sure if 500 might be too much. But we went well over that.

Before Thanksgiving, PRIDE members went into all the classrooms in Pablo Elementary with another request. They wanted all 207 students to pick out someone in their school, be it a classmate, teacher or staff member, and write them a thank-you note.

The notes brightened the day of more than a few recipients, including the school librarian, who was in the library when PRIDE members shared the idea with classmates and teachers, and was tickled to find notes she hadnt expected directed her way.

Everyone in the school will do kindness notes next.

***

The surprise cookie deliveries to Mission Valley Power and Pablo Foods didnt take long, but the tribal police department is on the other side of town.

The bitter cold didnt faze the children one bit. As they hiked the several blocks, the kids who werent carrying plates of cookies tossed themselves into snowbanks, made occasional snow angels and threw snow into the air along the way.

Maybe a couple of cookies were dislodged from their plates. Maybe third-graders Dusty Hall and Hayley Bergh rescued them from the snow. Maybe they made sure no police officer would have to eat a cookie that had landed on the ground.

So they ate them themselves.

Along the way another third-grader, Ryan Sharbono, told Buck that a good PRIDE project would be to pick up trash in Pablo once winter is over.

Thats the direction Buck, who has pointed the group toward the projects theyve done or are working on, wants PRIDE to go  with the kids coming up with ideas on their own for doing good around town.

Id truly be just the adviser, she said. They think of the need, and I help them execute it.

***

Meantime the kids, who meet to discuss projects during their lunch period, will make their delivery to the Ronan Food Basket next week.

As the school year goes on, they want to visit a local senior or assisted living center. Do something nice for people employed as trash collectors.

Their baking days may not be over, either, Buck said. But next time, they could be baking dog biscuits, to take to local animal shelters.

More human treats could be in their future as well. The students had planned to make a delivery to the Pablo Post Office as well, but it was closed between 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m., when the kids were making their rounds.

If they do bake more cookies, they should probably check in with the tribal police department as well. There may have been a 211 (that's a robbery) in progress right there at the station soon after those plates full of treats arrived.
White nationalist and part-time Whitefish resident Richard Spencer said Friday hes considering running for the congressional seat that would be vacated if Republican U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinkes nomination for Interior Secretary is confirmed.

Im definitely thinking about it, said Spencer, speaking with the Missoulian by telephone from Union Station in Washington, D.C., where he was waiting to catch a train. To be honest, I recognize it would be a difficult process. I recognize all the difficulties of it. But I think it might be a great prospect. I believe it would create an important conversation around Montana and the country.

Spencer said that while it would be more pragmatic to run as a Republican, the fact is, Im an independent person. I disagree with Republicans on a number of issues.

The GOP candidate in a special election would be chosen by the party. Likewise, the Democratic Party would select its candidate.

Jeff Essmann, said that as chairman of the Montana Republican Party, he couldnt comment on the merits of any candidate or share my personal views on any of them. However, he added, in most corners of Montana, a Spencer candidacy would be viewed skeptically.

A Montana Democratic Party response sent Friday included a statement from party chair Nancy Keenan: To be clear, Richard Spencers views are not Montanans views. Weve called on the Montana GOP to denounce this kind of racism in their party this year and we will continue to hold Republicans accountable for this fear-mongering behavior as we move toward a special election to fill this U.S. House seat.

Spencer heads an organization called the National Policy Institute, which describes itself as "dedicated to the heritage, identity, and future of people of European descent in the United States, and around the world."

Two weeks after the election of Donald Trump to the presidency, the group held a meeting in Washington that ended with Spencer calling out Hail Trump! Hail our people! Hail victory! as some in the audience of about 200 gave Nazi salutes.

Trump announced this week that Zinke, who won his second term to the U.S. House last month, was his choice for Interior Secretary. An election to fill his seat must be held between 85 and 100 days of Zinke's official resignation from his House seat, according to the Montana Secretary of States Office.

In order to run as an Independent, Spencer would have to submit a petition with 15,000 verified signatures 75 days before the election, according to that office.

I have some time, Spencer said Friday. Its not just something you just jump into.

Spencer, who lives part of the year in the Washington area, said he would figure out the how later.
Anacondas county commission will hear a proposal Tuesday night that could allow Missoula-based Premier Industries to build a slag processing plant on a Superfund site near the town  and possibly create new jobs.

Premier Industries intentions first came to light in January when The Montana Standard reported that the company  which then included Missoulian Rick Tabish as its principal agent  wanted to process Anacondas massive slag heaps into proppant, a material used in fracking oil and natural gas.

If you think youve heard the Tabish name before, you might not be far off. Tabish made headlines in the late 1990s and early 2000s when he was convicted and later acquitted of murdering Las Vegas casino executive Ted Binion.

But Bob Kelly, a Missoula-based consultant for the project, said Tabish is off the project.

Hes no longer a principal in the company, Kelly told the Standard by phone but added that Tabish could land a sub-contracting role.

Meanwhile, Jim Davison, vice chair of Anacondas Mill Creek Tax Increment Financing Industrial District, said the companys new principal is Lane McNamara of Texas. McNamara was previously cited as a partner in the company.

While the language of the proposal hasnt been finalized, an earlier form appeared before the Anaconda-Deer Lodge County commission last week but was ultimately tabled for further discussion.

According to an Anaconda Leader article on the proposal, the company wants to lease and ultimately buy 93 acres of land on Mill Creek Road, which is overseen by TIFID. The Leader also said the project could include a paved road and four buildings for housing processing equipment, materials, storage soils, and furnaces along with an investment of $3.19 million to prepare the land for construction. The company also projects it will spend $2.39 million on rail infrastructure, but Kelly said this is a rough projection.

But perhaps most notable is the number of jobs the plant is projected to create.

Kelly said the plant could boast a staff into the hundreds.

Although the county and company lawyers are still negotiating the terms of the agreement, Anacondas county attorney Ben Krakowka told The Montana Standard by phone that the leases duration is 99 years, representing a hefty commitment on the countys part.

However, the county will have an eject button if things dont go according to plan.

The county is working on language that will say Anaconda can take back the 93 acres if Premier Industries fails to meet milestones within a yet-to-be-determined timeframe, Krakowka said.

Similarly, TBID board members also attended the commissions Dec. 13 meeting, during which they gave the recommendations on due diligence.

Among those recommendations, said vice chair Davison, was to make sure the company is financially sound by asking for info on its banking and financing.

The board also recommended including a clawback clause in the lease agreement. Davison said this clause means the county can clawback the land if the project fails to get off the ground.

And Anaconda should know something about clawing back land from developers

In 2004 the county had to buy back land from the Lodge at Old Works after progress on the $6-million hotel came to a halt. Several contractors abandoned the site because, they said, the developers hadnt paid them.

Our goal is to not be in that same situation again, said Krakowka. Thats why were trying to carefully negotiate the terms of this lease.

Krakowka, meanwhile, could not provide specifics about what triggers would allow the county to take the land back, because the lease terms are still being negotiated.

Another noteworthy aspect of the plan is the potential purchase price of the land.

The Anaconda Leader said the lease contains an option for Premier Industries to purchase the land for $1. In his interview with The Montana Standard, Krakowka confirmed that the county would sell the land for as little as $1 or another small amount.

Were trying to come up with the best use of that property, said Krakowka when asked how Anaconda benefits from the agreement.

He noted that the plants proposed location resides on a Superfund site, making it difficult to ascertain the value of the land, which isnt exactly beach-front property.

Furthermore, he said, the county will benefit in the form of tax revenue and, more importantly, in the form of jobs.

When the Anaconda smelter closed in 1981, Krakowka said, the county saw a major component of its economic base wither away. Since then, he said, theres been a shortfall of industry and jobs.

But the slag processing plant offers renewed hope that jobs can return to Anaconda  and theyd be high-paying jobs, too, with benefits, Krakowka said.

Similarly, Premier Industries plans to invest a projected $3.19 million in infrastructure  including in dirt work that will level the ground and make it suitable for construction.

Because the land resides on a Superfund site, Krakowka said, its topped with a curved cap of earth and vegetation to prevent the contaminated soil below from running into the surrounding areas. Because the cap is curved, the company will need to level it with an additional layer of soil  hence the term dirt work.

Incidentally, the man for the dirt work job could be Tabish.

While Kelly did not say Tabish would be covering the cap, he called Tabish very capable in earth work and that hed likely be included in the project.

Meanwhile, Kelly said hes confident Premier Industries can get the job done.

Youre not going to spend the money unless you think youre going to be successful, said Kelly, who noted that the project is not a Vegas craps table.

Furthermore, Kelly said the procedure for processing the slag has been backed by research at Montana Tech.

In his January interview with the Standard, Tabish said he was working with Tech professors Courtney Young and John Getty, who have developed a process to turn slag into proppant.

All in all, Kelly said, he believes the project will be good for Anaconda.

It has the potential to be a good opportunity for the area, he said.
Lt. Jeff Williams of the Butte-Silver Bow sheriffs department instructed half a dozen of the county jails detention officers this week in the use of body cameras, an innovation seen more and more in departments across the state and nation.

The need for body cameras wasnt sparked by a single incident; officers say its simply the next step in policing that technology can deliver.

Buttes patrol officers were issued body cameras in January, but Williams and others wore their own personal body cameras jerry-rigged out of GoPros for up to a year before out of choice.

The new cameras, made by TASER, are equipped with a wide-angle fisheye lens that captures a 142-degree cone of whatever is in front of the officer as well as audio. Williams said the cameras can shoot up to 1080p resolution but that the department has ratcheted that down a setting to 720p since the patrol server meant to store one years worth of recordings was full after only five months.

Williams said body cameras provide accountability for both officers and civilians alike as he-said-she-said arguments are replaced with a verifiable record of events.

We can all gasbag about what we did, but to see it changes things, Williams said.

According to Williams, improved professionalism extends to the very vocabulary officers use. Theyre not supposed to swear, and Williams said being kept on the record helps build professional conduct into a reflexive habit.

In addition to making police and the community members they interact with more accountable, Williams said body cameras make some aspects of practical policing easier. For example, Williams said victim testimony has become more detailed over the years as departments have evolved from written testimony to audio and now to audio and video. He said visually recorded testimony is much more compelling  particularly for juries  than a piece of paper, as it shows the subjects full emotional range.

While the body cameras are new, the jail still has overhead security cameras, and between the two, detention officers now have fewer blind spots when reviewing interactions with inmates.

At the end of their shift, detention officers will log their footage into a central server. The whole process from hardware to software is designed to be user-friendly with little technical know-how required to do the job right.

All detention officers have access to the server and can easily burn copies of incidents to DVDs whether to demonstrate proper or improper technique in dealing with inmates or as evidence in a criminal case. Detention officers gave the example of finding a knife belt during a booking as the kind of incident that would make for a great training recording.

While theres been no precedent in the courts yet for when Montanas constitutional privacy law abuts body camera recording, detention officers are wary of when filming may be inappropriate. Theyre still determining the exact course of action to take when an officer wearing a camera does a strip search, but it will most likely involve leaving the camera outside the room or at least closing the iris.
The U.S. Marshals Service on Friday apprehended the second of two convicted drug dealers who walked away from the Connections Corrections Program in Uptown Butte on Dec. 3, authorities said.

Bryant Thieman was arrested in Tacoma, Washington, and will be returned to Montana to face felony escape charges, according to an email from Connections Corrections. Details on his arrest were not released.

The other walk-away, Justin Koehler, 27, was arrested Dec. 13 during a traffic stop in Missoula. He also faces felony escape charges.

Koehler was sentenced on two counts of drug distribution in November 2015 to five years in prison and placed in Connections Corrections, a drug treatment program, on Nov. 16, 2016, according to the Montana Department of Corrections.

Thieman was sentenced to five years in prison in June 2016 after being caught at an Interstate 90 traffic stop with an ounce of meth and admitting to trafficking drugs frequently between Montana and Washington.
MISSOULA - Excavators were 20 feet deep and maybe going deeper Friday chasing the last of some 7,000 gallons of diesel fuel that spilled early this week in the Montana Rail Link yard.

The spill occurred when a coupling broke in a pump house servicing locomotives on the east end of the yard. It was detected early Monday morning.

Missoula health officials say the spill isn't an immediate threat to drinking water.

It happens to be in an area that was already a state Superfund site from Burlington Northerns operations years ago, said Michelle Hutchins, environmental health specialist for the city-county health department. Its a significant spill, but I dont think its anything near what they had in the past in that area.

Hutchins, who was on the scene for a good part of Wednesday, said excavation started Wednesday. A vac truck was used before that to suck up pooling fuel on the frozen ground, according to Dan Kenney, who was initially in charge of the state response for the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.

MRL issued a press release Thursday night that was the first public notification of the spill. The statement said that 2,600 of the 7,000 gallons had been recovered with the assistance of two contractors who specialize in environmental remediation.

Theyre digging down trying to find out when they hit clean soil, and then theyll just move around to find the area thats soaked, Hutchins said.
As the son of Smith River ranchers, I was raised just below its convergence with Sheep Creek. Its always been an important part of my life, strongly molding my world view. As a kid, I enjoyed its great fishing before the advent of heavy recreational use in the late 1960s, which has had a tangible impact on the river. As an adult, the Smith is so personal to me that my wife and I were married on its banks.

My family and I were well acquainted with the rivers residents from long ago; people who remembered the river as a pre-1930s grayling stream, before alteration of the indigenous fishery through introduction of brown and rainbow trout. These old timers also remembered the river from before construction of Sutherlin Reservoir (east of White Sulphur Springs) after which the river didnt go dry many summers as it once had.

Growing up, I spent considerable time learning about our Native American culture and how to identify pictograph sites, camp sites, travois trails, and bison kill sites. I continued this through my studies at the University of Montana by contributing my local information to their archives.

Years later, we happily hosted archaeologists studying the pictograph sites during their field investigations at our ranch. We must do everything we can to preserve these artifacts for future generations, and Tintina Resources would be pleased to take an active role in protecting these irreplaceable treasures from vandalism or other threats posed by the high volume of visitors to the Smith River.

The public often states Tintina should be held to the highest standard in their efforts to build a mine at Black Butte. I agree and Tintina welcomes this challenge. Since its discovery, our goal has been to ensure development of the copper resource with no environmental impact and maximum positive impact to our community. It has been my good fortune to have professional relationships with mining experts who share my vision of optimal environmental protection and community enhancement through mining projects. This ethic manifests itself through the company we call Tintina. This is the kind of healthy synergistic investment mentality Montana needs.

For those of you who have yet to pay us a visit, we encourage you to do so. You may find that the Black Butte Copper project is far different than how it has been portrayed.
NOTICE OF PROBATE OF WILL, OF

APPOINTMENT OF EXECUTOR, AND

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

IN THE MATTER OF

THE ESTATE OF

VIRGINIA E. WEST,

Deceased.

To All Persons Interested in the Estate of VIRGINIA E. WEST, Deceased, who died on or about October 30, 2016:

You are hereby notified that on November 3, 2016, the last will and testament of VIRGINIA E. WEST, deceased, bearing date of July 12, 1979, was admitted to probate in the above named court and that MICHAEL A. WEST was appointed executor of the estate. Any action to set aside the will must be brought in the district court of said county within the later to occur of four months from the date of the second publication of this notice or one month from the date of mailing of this notice to all heirs of the decedent and devisees under the will whose identities are reasonably ascertainable, or thereafter be forever barred.

Notice is further given that all persons indebted to the estate are requested to make immediate payment to the undersigned, and creditors having claims against the estate shall file them with the clerk of the above named district court, as provided by law, duly authenticated, for allowance, and unless so filed by the later to occur of four months from the second publication of this notice or one month from the date of mailing of this notice (unless otherwise allowed or paid), a claim is thereafter forever barred.

Dated November 3, 2016.

Date of second publication

24th day of December, 2016

MICHAEL A. WEST

Executor of the Estate

2902 Dawson Street

Muscatine, IA 52761

R. Craig Oppel

#AT0005972

Attorney for the Executor

Allbee & Barclay, P.C.

115 East Second Street

Muscatine, IA 52761
MUSCSTINE, Iowa  Iowas Water and Land Legacy coalition is seeking legislative support for a 3/8 of a cent sales tax increase that will fund natural resources projects around the state, including water quality and soil erosion projects.

According to the groups report, Unmet Needs: How the natural resources and outdoor recreation trust fund can address our biggest challenges, these projects will cost at least 673 million dollars. The group estimates the proposed legislation will raise 200 million dollars a year.

The money will be used to create recreation facilities, wild life preserves and address soil erosion and nitrate runoff.

These issues are not going away, they are getting bigger and greater, said Mike Shannon, a member of the IWILL coalition. This is the only way to catch up with this backlog.

According the Iowa County Conservation Boards Association, some of these proposed projects will benefit Muscatine and Louisa counties, including the creation of an education center, shooting range, wildlife preserves and several parks.

Shannon said there is public support for the move.

Were just saying, hey the people want this, we want to see it done, he said.

Addressing water quality isnt the main goal of this proposal, said Brooke Van Der Beek, another member of the IWILL coalition, but 70 percent of the proposed projects will indirectly improve water quality.

Rep. Garry Carlson-R of Muscatine said he wants to address water quality issues, but that IWILLs proposal will allocate 50 percent of the funds to water quality issues.

Is this [the proposal] the right vehicle? Im not sure, he said.

Carlson said water quality issues will be discussed in the Iowa legislative session, set to begin in January.

I do think there will be aggressive discussion as to how to find a sustainable solution for water quality, if that includes a sales tax is under discussion, he said.
WASHINGTON  Senator Chuck Grassley has nominated 34 Iowa students to be considered for appointments to the U.S. service academies including three from Muscatine County.

Young Iowans who want to enter the academies and serve our country are a remarkable reflection on our state. These candidates accomplishments and leadership are exceptional, and their early desire to serve signals continued excellence in the U.S. armed forces, Grassley said.

Jerry Bastin and Garrett Dolan of Muscatine along with Noah Bierman of West Liberty were nominated for the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

Each year Grassley has the opportunity as a U.S. senator to nominate either current or future Iowa high school graduates for a select few service academy placements. The U.S. Air Force Academy, U.S. Military Academy and U.S. Naval Academy all select at least one qualified student from Grassleys nominations. The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy makes selections in proportion to states representation in Congress.

Grassley said he encourages Iowa students to consider applying to more than one service academy due to the highly competitive nature of admissions. Iowa representatives in the U.S. House of Representatives make nominations in addition to both of Iowas U.S. senators. Students may receive more than one nomination.

Students interested in academy appointments should begin the application process in the spring of their junior year of high school. Early application is encouraged. The academies select students based on the number of vacancies available for the next school year.

The academies offer some of the best options for higher education, and they offer an outstanding way to serve our country. Its a tremendous opportunity for young Iowans, Grassley said.

Traditionally, the high quality of Iowa nominees results in several Iowa students being offered admission to attend each of the service academies. The students then choose whether or not to attend the academy. More information about service academy nominations can be found here.

Grassley will make announcements as academy appointments are offered to Iowans.
WAPELLO - It may take a few months, but Wapello city officials are apparently willing to welcome Tango the skunk to the community.

Tango is the seven-month-old pet skunk of Janet Fuller, Grandview, who asked the city council Thursday to allow her to keep the pet so she could move to Wapello.

According to the citys ordinance, a variety of dangerous animals are prohibited in the city. The list includes pit bull dogs, badgers, wolverines, most members of the weasel family, black widow spiders, scorpions, raccoons, opossums and skunks.

Fuller, who brought Tango to the council meeting, said the pet skunk would not pose any danger to community residents or visitors.

She has never been in the wild, she was born in captivity, Fuller said.

Fuller also told the council she had the proper license from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources that identified Tango as a pet skunk and the animal had been vaccinated for rabies.

Fuller said she had gone through the same approval process with the Grandview City Council that allowed her to keep Tango in that community.

She is fixed, so she cant spray and she doesnt go outdoors, Fuller said as Tango draped herself over her owners shoulder.

I dont want to move (from Grandview) and then you guys say (no), Fuller explained about asking the council for the early permission.

This is kind of unique, council member Brett Shafer said after hearing Fullers request.

Council member Gene Arnold said he felt the city would need to amend its current ordinance to even allow pet skunks before any final decision was made.

Mayor Shawn Maine agreed and suggested the ordinance could be amended to allow the council to allow some pets with city council approval. That would be similar to the process the city now has in place to allow chickens inside the city limits.

An amendment would take three readings and officials said that could mean a delay until February to formally allow the skunk to reside in town. Fuller said that could create a problem with her move, especially if the council failed to follow through on its amendment.

Im not going to amend if you are not going to approve (allowing the skunk), Maine told the council.

After watching the council members, Maine acknowledged there were no vocal signs of agreement, but plenty of head nods.

If they say they are going to do something with a head nod, they are going to do it, he assured Fuller.

Arnold agreed.

We dont play games, he said.

In other action, the council agreed to hold a Jan. 5 public hearing on a proposed amendment to the citys Fiscal Year (FY) 17 budget. The amendment calls for an additional $196,552 in revenue and $382,882 in expenses.

The $186,330 difference would decrease the citys ending balance from $878,187 to $691,857.

According to the amendment worksheet, the additional revenue would come from grants, equipment sales and insurance reimbursements. The added expenses included new equipment for public safety, public works and recreation; increased insurance costs and higher sewer construction expenditures.

In final action, the council:

 Approved the transfer of almost $5,500 from the citys road use and water funds to its debt service fund to cover a payment for the Second Street Repair project;

 Accepted the Dec. 2 resignation of public works staffer Chase Strickland.
COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa  A Columbus Junction woman was transported to the hospital after a vehicle allegedly collided with hers, pushing it onto the railroad tracks where her vehicle was then struck by a train.

Louisa County Dispatch received a call at 6:44 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 16, of a car versus train accident on Second Street in Columbus Junction.

Tang Naw, 51, of Columbus Junction, was driving the 2014 Chevrolet Camaro that was struck by a train, according to a press release from the Columbus Junction Police Department.

Her vehicle was southbound and stopped at the railroad crossing when it was allegedly struck by a 2013 Chevrolet Malibu, operated by Lai Kingbual, 35, of Columbus Junction, and pushed onto the railroad tracks.

According to the press release, initial reports indicate Naw exited her car after it was struck from behind, and attempted to get back into the vehicle while a Canadian Pacific train approached, traveling eastbound.

Naw's vehicle was struck by the train, and she was thrown into the ditch. Her vehicle landed in a ditch on the east side of the road.

Drivers of both vehicles were transported to the University of Iowa Hospital.

Louisa County Sheriffs Department, Canadian Pacific Railway Police, Louisa County Ambulance and Columbus Junction Fire and Rescue assisted the Columbus Junction Police Department at the scene.

The incident remains under investigation by the Columbus Junction Police Department.
The U.S. Forest Service recently decided to, at least temporarily, stop mining on public lands in the Paradise Valley. Even if this were on private land and even if one believes strongly in private property rights the decision makes sense. Heres why.

In classic economics, any project can be looked at as a bundle of costs and risks. Whether drilling an oil well, digging a mine, or building a gas station, there are the direct costs and associated risks born by the investor/developer. But there are often other costs that are not direct. These are the costs/risks transferred to the public through the activities of the primary developer. It has long been established that communities have the right to be compensated for, or protected from the risks that are part of the projects social costs.

Mining produces social costs. They come in the form of risk to water, potential degradation of the environment extending beyond the actual work site, chemical exposure from spills, etc. Society creates laws to protect and compensate the public from these social costs. The developer, in exchange for the right to proceed, agrees to both mitigate and minimize the costs and indemnify in case of loss. This is not unusual in mining. Here is an example of just part of what a company may have to go through to get a permit:

Mitigating risks

Required reclamation includes removal or disposal of drill cuttings, drilling mud, and other nontoxic lubricants. Constructed access roads must be returned to a stable slope and possibly closed. Drill sites must approximate the original contour when possible. The first 25 feet of adits must be backfilled to prevent the degradation of discharge water. Where feasible, soils salvaged during exploration must be reapplied and areas revegetated.

Of course this all assumes things go as planned, but there is always the chance of an accident which produces severe damage to people and the environment.

This leaves one important question: Can the company proposing the project cover, not just its direct costs, but also the social costs? If the answer is no, and the project is approved, any uncovered loss will become the publics liability.

Which brings me to Lucky Minerals. This is a classic penny stock that trades in Canada. These are generally mining and energy exploration companies that trade for well under a dollar a share. Most of these companies ultimately go broke. Lucky Minerals has no history of making money, has a negative operating cash flow, and, as of the last official reporting by the company (June 30), had 134,000 Canadian dollars in liquid assets. Lucky Minerals is in no position to manage any emergency, meaning we will be writing the checks if anything goes seriously wrong.

Value in Paradise

Why do so many of these kinds of companies have such small assets on their books? Because it is smart. They do everything they can with the least amount of assets so if things dont work out, they close up shop, leave the liabilities with the public and start another company. The people who buy these penny stocks often lose minimal amounts when these companies fold. For them it is an investment game. Sadly, thats not the case for the communities left behind to clean up the mess and write the checks necessary to fix the problems. If you would like a financial overview of this company, read the summary from Reuters news service.

What if the company were well financed? Should the project then be approved? Not necessarily. Sometimes an area is so sensitive, so dependent on a certain kind of environment that the social costs and risks are so high that the public cannot be protected. In those cases permits should not be granted even if a company is financially sound. Given the economic, recreational, and historic value of the Paradise Valley and Yellowstone environment, one can argue that the social costs associated with extractive industries are too high to be overcome, and no permits should be granted.
Les blattes ou cafards (Blatta orientalis) sont des insectes qui appartiennent a la famille des Blattoptera. Ils se caracterisent par leur forme allongee, leurs ailes []
BUTTE  A toddler undergoing treatment for cancer has a simple wish  to receive 500 cheery greeting cards.

But 2-year-old Kaydence Weaver will get 1,152 cards  more than twice the request  all from Butte kids  sent to her home in Indiana.

Energetic sisters Zoee and Zaylee Thatcher of Butte Central Elementary have made it their mission to grant the little girls wish.

Misty Deavers, Kaydences aunt and guardian, put out a call online to alert readers to the Christmas card drive. The toddlers big sister Salem, 4, joined in the project as a way to help distract Kaydence as she undergoes treatment.

Its a novel way to help Kaydence deal with more chemotherapy treatments for rhabdomyosarcoma, a soft-tissue cancer that affects muscles, connective tissue, or bone. She has been in and out of hospitals for treatments, writes Megan Wrappe at littlethings.com.

Angie Thatcher, Zoee and Zaylees mother, happened upon the website, mentioned it to her active daughters, and the challenge was on.

When my kids got ahold of the idea, they wanted to bring it to school, said Angie. We want to send 500 cards just from Butte.

No worries about meeting that quota, as Butte Central Grade School religion/community service teacher Colleen Tutty said Zoees seventh-grade class and Zaylees fifth-grade class plus several Butte public elementary schools have churned out the cards for mailing the past few weeks.

Public school students who crafted Christmas cards hail from Hillcrest, West, Margaret Leary, and Kennedy.

It was a huge turnout from all the kids in Butte, Tutty added. I think its great that all the Butte elementary schools are working together.

Like busy elves, the kid volunteers fashioned enough unique, homemade cards to deck the halls wherever little Kaydence and her sister are at the time.

Inspired by the online posting, Zoee initiated the drive, and Tutty gave her the green light.

I asked the rest of the classes here at Central Elementary to make cards, and then I made phone calls to the Butte public schools to see if they would want to join us, said Tutty, sporting a festive stocking cap.

In the online article, Deavers said: We think she will be a survivor, she has been so strong. Of course, I couldnt say no to them, I just couldnt because I wanted to see them happy.

Cards to Kaydence may be sent to: Misty Deavers, c/o Kaydence and Salem, Box 615, Noblesville, IN 46061.

To help pay for the childs medical treatments, her family set up a GoFundMe page to accept online donations. The family has raised $8,774 of the $10,000 goal so far.

A womens church group comprised of St. Patricks Catholic and Immaculate Conception churches also donated a homemade prayer shawl for the little girl, which Tutty plans to mail with all the cards on Friday. Tutty is also sending a blanket for Salem.

Meanwhile, the Thatchers, their classmates, and public school peers can rest easy knowing they got one little girls Christmas off to a good start.

I am excited to say that we did it, Tutty added. We fulfilled the wish of the 2-year-old in Indiana and her sister and made a wish for a wonderful seventh-grader here in Butte come to life.
A Crow Agency man who admitted stealing mostly prescription painkillers while working as a pharmacy technician will spend three years on federal probation.

U.S. District Judge Susan Watters on Thursday followed recommendations from the prosecution and defense in sentencing Larin Myers Black Eagle, 29, to probation.

Watters noted that Black Eagle had a long history of substance abuse since age 16, when he began drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana, and that he became addicted to opiates at age 26 after having surgery. Black Eagle has not had treatment, she said.

Black Eagle apologized, saying he made a mistake and turned to the thefts to deal with emotional pain.

Black Eagle was convicted of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud, deception or subterfuge. He faced a maximum four years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Prosecutor Chad Spraker said in court records that Black Eagle stole more than 20 tablets from the Crow and Lodge Grass IHS pharmacies from November 2015 until February 2016. Black Eagle admitted to taking hydrocodone, oxycodone, Ritalin and morphine.
BEIRUT  Diplomats sought to salvage the evacuation of eastern Aleppo after it stalled Friday amid recriminations by both sides in Syrias civil war, raising fears the cease-fire could collapse with thousands still desperate to escape the rebel enclave.

The Aleppo evacuation was suspended after a report of shooting at a crossing point into the enclave. The Syrian government pulled out its buses that since Thursday had been ferrying out people from the ancient city that has suffered under intense bombardment, fierce battles and a prolonged siege.

The carnage in Syria remains a gaping hole in the global conscience, said U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Aleppo is now a synonym for hell.

The halt also appeared to be linked to a separate deal to remove thousands of people from the government-held Shiite villages of Foua and Kfarya that are under siege by the rebels. The Syrian government says those evacuations and the one in eastern Aleppo must be done simultaneously, but the rebels say theres no connection.

The foreign minister of Turkey, a main backer of the rebels, said he was talking to his counterpart in Iran, a top ally of the Syrian government, to try to resume the evacuation.

A closed emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council was held on the crisis in Aleppo, discussing a French proposal to have independent monitors oversee the evacuation of civilians and fighters. The council meeting ended with diplomats saying they would convene again this weekend.

The cease-fire and evacuation marked the end of the rebels most important stronghold in the 5-year-old civil war. The suspension demonstrated the fragility of the cease-fire deal, in which civilians and fighters in the few remaining blocks of the rebel enclave were to be taken to opposition-held territory nearby.

In announcing the suspension, Syrian state TV said rebels were trying to smuggle out captives who had been seized in the enclave after ferocious battles with troops supporting President Bashar Assad.

Several opposition activists said Syrian troops shot and killed four people in one bus, but the incident could not be independently confirmed.

The Lebanon-based pan-Arab Al-Mayadeen TV broadcast images of the government buses apparently returning evacuees to eastern Aleppo after the road was closed.

Al-Manar TV, the media arm of the Lebanon-based Hezbollah militant group that supports Assad, said Syrian government supporters had closed the road used by evacuees from Aleppo, demanding the wounded from Foua and Kfarya be allowed to leave.

Syrian state media said rebels shelled a road that was supposed to be used by people leaving the villages. But the oppositions Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Hezbollah fighters backed by Assad ally Iran had cut the road to protest a lack of progress in the evacuations.

Buses that arrived at a collection point in the Hama countryside to pick up evacuees from the villages waited for hours to no avail.

Later, two rebel spokesmen privy to the talks said the fighters besieging the villages, including the al-Qaida linked Fatah al-Sham Front, had agreed to evacuate several hundred wounded from the villages.

Turkeys state-run Anadolu Agency said Prime Minister Binali Yildirim had called Iranian Presidential Deputy Ishak Cihangiri and told him he was ready to cooperate with Tehran on the evacuation issue.

Reports differed on how many people remain in the Aleppo enclave, ranging from 15,000 to 40,000 civilians, along with an estimated 6,000 fighters.

There also were contradictory reports on the number of evacuees. Syrian state TV put it at more than 9,000; the Syrian state news agency said 8,079 opposition fighters and their families have left; and Russia, a key Assad ally, said over 9,500 people, including more than 4,500, were taken out.

More than 2,700 children have been evacuated in the past 24 hours, including the sick, wounded and those without their parents, UNICEF said. Hundreds of other vulnerable children, including orphans, remain trapped, it added.

We are extremely concerned about their fate. If these children are not evacuated urgently, they could die, UNICEF said in a statement.

There are still high numbers of women and infants, children under 5, that need to get out, added Elizabeth Hoff, Syrian representative for the World Health Organization, speaking by phone from western Aleppo.

During Thursday nights evacuation, Pawel Krzysiek of the International Committee of the Red Cross told The Associated Press he could sense fear, desperation (and) anxiety among those waiting to escape.

The civilians  including children and the elderly, the wounded and the sick  were out in the cold, burning the plastic, trying to get some sort of heat to warm themselves, said Krzysiek, who is still in Aleppo.

Its the people leaving their house behind, their lives behind. It is very often they are facing impossible choices and this all occurs at the very individual level and it is difficult to compare with anything else, he said.

This is what the people are going through with their families, their relatives. This is really something very personal for them. I have seen sadness. I have seen really sadness in the people eyes. Heartbreaking sadness, broken lives, heartbreaking stories, Krzysiek added.

Before the operation was suspended Friday, four convoys of ambulances and buses left Aleppo, Syrian state TV said, noting that some evacuees used their own vehicles.

Also on Friday, Syrian state media reported that a 7-year-old girl wearing a belt of explosives walked into a police station in the capital of Damascus, and her bomb was triggered by remote control, killing her and wounding a policeman.

In Japan, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a new peace initiative, saying he and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan were working to set up talks between Damascus and the opposition. Putin said they would take place in Astana, the capital of the Central Asian country of Kazakhstan.

Bassma Kodmani of the High Negotiations Committee, Syrias main opposition group, told the AP that her group supports the call for resumed peace talks but it wants them to take place under U.N. auspices and that it doesnt believe Astana was the appropriate place.

Several rounds of U.N.-mediated indirect peace talks this year in Geneva were suspended with no progress.
WASHINGTON  Determined to hold around two dozen Senate seats in 2018, Democrats will use the coming series of confirmation hearings to try to distinguish themselves from President-elect Donald Trump's billionaire nominees and convince working-class voters who elected him that he's not on their side.

While Democrats have little leverage to stop the Republican's picks in the Senate, they still plan a fight. To highlight what they say is the hypocrisy of Trump's campaign promise to be a champion for the economically struggling little guy, they'll focus on the nominees' wealth, ties to Wall Street and willingness to privatize Medicare, among other issues. In some cases, they'll seek to drag out the process by demanding more information and ensuring a full airing of potential conflicts of interest.

"We're going to give each of them a thorough examination to determine whether they'll actually stand up for workers against the special interests or rig the system even more," said incoming Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, echoing some of Trump's own campaign rhetoric.

Democrats gave up their ability to block Trump's nominees in 2013, when then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid changed Senate rules and reduced the number of votes needed to end filibusters. Now in the majority, Republicans can confirm the nominees along partisan lines.

The limits of the Democratic minority have already been tested, as California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who will be the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee in the new session, has repeatedly asked Judiciary Chairman Charles Grassley for more time to review documents ahead of Jan. 10-11 hearings for Sen. Jeff Sessions, Trump's choice for attorney general. Grassley, an Iowa Republican, has declined to delay the hearings.

Still, Democrats are hoping a populist message will resonate outside of Washington, where in the 2018 elections the party faces multiple tough races in deep red states full of white, working-class voters who overwhelmingly supported Trump over Democrat Hillary Clinton this year. Democrats are defending 23 seats, including in states such as North Dakota, Montana, Indiana and West Virginia that went overwhelmingly for Trump and also in once traditional Democratic states that flipped, like Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Much of their focus will be on the wealthy business executives whom Trump has tapped for his Cabinet  notably Steve Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs executive picked to head the Treasury Department.

On Friday, Democrats launched a website asking people who had been impacted by foreclosure practices connected to Mnuchin to share their stories. OneWest, a bank formerly owned by a group of investors headed by Mnuchin, foreclosed thousands of properties in the aftermath of the housing crisis.

Other wealthy executives chosen by Trump include Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson for secretary of state and billionaire investor Wilbur Ross for Commerce. To head the Labor Department, Trump turned to Andrew Puzder, the head of fast food chain CKE Restaurants Holdings who has drawn the ire of labor leaders.

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a contender for the Democratic presidential nomination whose populist message resonated in some Republican-leaning states, has criticized almost all of Trump's picks, saying they signal Trump will do the opposite of what he told voters during the campaign.

"That is not the type of change that Donald Trump promised to bring to Washington  that is hypocrisy at its worst," Sanders said of Mnuchin's nomination in a joint statement with Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

On policy, Democrats will highlight the fault lines between the nominee and Trump. Georgia Rep. Tom Price, the president-elect's choice to head the Department of Health and Human Services, strongly favors privatizing Medicare, arguing that a voucher system is necessary to ensure its long-term solvency. But Trump repeatedly promised his supporters he wouldn't cut entitlements like Medicare and Social Security.

Democrats won't fight Trump on every nominee. Many senators up for re-election in 2018 from Trump states say they will pick their battles carefully.

"I think I'll be supporting some of his nominees, I don't think there's any doubt about that," said Democratic Sen. Jon Tester of Montana, who faces re-election in a state Trump won by 20 percentage points over Clinton.

Tester said he'd support nominees whom he believes know rural America and "understand what's going on in my neck of the woods."

West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, another Democrat up in 2018 and a former governor, says he plans to be generally supportive of Trump's nominees because he believes an executive should have to answer for his own staff. That is, he said, "unless there's just something scathing coming out that I don't know about."

Unlike liberal stalwarts Sanders and Warren, the more moderate Senate Democrats are likely to focus their criticism more narrowly. And because Democratic support isn't necessary to confirm Trump's nominees, the senators are freer to pick and choose.

Democratic Sens. Joe Donnelly of Indiana and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, for example, have expressed concerns about particular nominees. Both are up for re-election in 2018.
The Calistoga Depot, a California Historical Landmark, has been sold to the Merchant family, owners of neighboring Indian Springs Resort.

John Merchant confirmed late last week that the closing of the sale would take place this week and a member of his staff will manage the property and its leases.

Well give it a real nice historic facelift, Merchant said.

Some much-needed repairs and sprucing up will take place including fixing leaky roofs, painting, and landscaping, he said.

A pop-up store currently occupies the rail car where Mother Dora was located, but Merchant said he expects to put in a coffee shop there. In the back rail car, across from Heibel Vineyards, Merchant said a chocolatier will open.

Built by Sam Brannan for the Napa Valley Railroad in 1868, a year before the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad, the Depot is the second oldest remaining railroad in California.

Editors note: The Weekly Calistogans office is located in one of the rail cars.
Its already hard enough to park in the Oxbow area  especially on weekendsbut new pavement stenciling in the lot next to the newly reopened CIA at Copia has left visitors scratching their heads about where they should or shouldnt park.

Visitors at Oxbow Public Market or the new CIA at Copia noticed after Thanksgiving that each of the 185 parking spots in the busy north parking lot had been labeled: either Oxbow MKT or CIA Copia.

Chavonne Leung of Lake Berryessa said she saw the new labels on Wednesday morning. She parked in a spot marked CIA Copia but shopped at the Oxbow Public Market.

I kind of freaked out, Leung said.

Was I supposed to park here? Where are the Oxbow spots? But then I figured, theres nobody here, and she left her car where it was.

Its kind of bizarre to me, said Louis de Coninck, who also parked in a Copia-tagged space but visited Oxbow. I dont know why they were labeled, he said. Its not fair to the public.

If people get the idea they are not welcome to park in CIA-marked spots, it could hurt Oxbow business, de Coninck said. If you dont have parking, you dont have business.

Derek Schumacher of Oregon also visited the Oxbow Public Market on Wednesday.

I wasnt sure of what to make of it, he said of the labeled spaces. It looked like nonsense to me.

Schumacher said he noted the 3-hour parking sign at the entrance of the lot and figured it was OK to leave his truck where it was.

He was happy to be able to park at all, he said. The night before he used Uber to get to the Oxbow because he knew parking was tough.

An employee at an Oxbow merchant, who declined to be named because she is not a spokesperson for her employer, said her first reaction when she noticed the new labeling was, What the heck is this?

Parking was already hard enough, said the woman. By labeling spaces, It says, Hey, you cant park here.

How will they enforce it? she wondered.

Thomas Bensel, managing director at The Culinary Institute of America, said the CIA didnt mean to cause confusion. Were not trying to be bad neighbors, he said.

The lot was labeled simply for clarity, so that parking attendants will know where to park cars during special events at the CIA at Copia, he said.

The CIA owns the north lot, Bensel noted. But some people seem to think it belongs to the Oxbow Public Market.

In reality, the market has an agreement to use 42 spaces in the north lot. The market also has access to about 30 spaces in the south lot via its owner ACA Financial Guaranty Corp.

Oxbow founder Steve Carlin declined to comment for this story.

So what happens to those who park in the wrong spot?

Its not a wrong spot, said Bensel. It doesnt say for CIA or restricted. It just says CIA Copia so that when we do manage the lot, we know which spaces our valet parking (vendor) should use and which ones he should not.

The idea is that people understood the parking lot is a shared space, said Bensel. It belongs to the CIA but well share it. It only makes sense because their customer is our customer.

We want everyone to be a success.

No one will be ticketed or towed, he said. The community is welcome here.

When asked if the labeling or the perception of excluding some visitors from parking in certain spots might seem a bit unfriendly, Bensel said I guess that could be the case. Parking in the area is a sensitive topic, he admitted.

Bensel said the size of the stenciled letters, printed in all capitals, did surprise him, a little bit.

However, We own the lot, Bensel said. At no point do we feel we are overreaching with this at all.

The CIA and the city are talking about long-term parking solutions in the area, said Bensel. I think Steve (Carlin) and Oxbow need to do the same.

If visitors remain confused, Bensel said hed consider additional signage to clarify parking lot usage.

According to the market, some 1.5 million visitors come to the Oxbow Public Market annually, the majority by car.

The unknown makes people think twice about where they can park, said Mayor Jill Techel.

Techel recalled that in 2011, when the city allowed a local artist to paint certain parking spots throughout the city with value statements such as gratitude, respect and tolerance, some drivers avoided parking in those spots because they thought they were reserved.

I think we need to have conversations about how best to move forward from this, she said.

Were going to need to figure out how to best take care of our guests that are visiting the entire Oxbow area.
Squirrels hate Christmas. Or maybe squirrels love Christmas?

Hard to tell. Either way, they're messing with it across the continent.

In Seattle earlier this month, homeowner Margaret Rican filmed a squirrel's repeated theft of her Christmas light bulbs. One by one, a rodent she dubbed the "Bulb Bandit" made off with dozens of them a day. "He has stolen 150 in 24 hours, carefully and precisely chewing through the wires to steal the bulb and bury them around the neighborhood," Rican wrote on YouTube. "He's the hardest working rodent we've ever seen."

This week, the Boston Globe reported that a band of squirrel outlaws had repeatedly caused outages of the holiday lights adorning 60 trees on Boston Common. A city official said he had been told the rodents like the taste of copper. A city contractor who maintains the lights referred to the local squirrels as "more and more aggressive." He said his company was turning to an organic product called "Critter Ridder" to keep the squirrels from killing the city's holiday vibe.

And on Wednesday, the Canadian Broadcasting Company revealed that squirrels have been destroying the lights that cast a glow on a park called Mel Lastman Square in Toronto. A city council member, John Filion, told the CBC that officials were looking into "squirrel-proof lights" to brighten the park and its ice-skating rink.

"I believe it totally has to do with one or more squirrels who perhaps don't like Christmas," Filion said.

Mikel Delgado does not concur. Delgado, a doctoral candidate at the University of California at Berkeley who studies squirrel caching, said she does not think squirrels "have a vendetta against Christian holidays."

Instead, she said, it's likely bulb-stealing squirrels are simply mistaking their booty for nuts. It's a busy, pre-winter food storage time for squirrels, and Christmas lights are vaguely shaped like acorns, so "there's something about the light bulbs that is similar enough to nuts that it's probably worth taking the chance," she said. Also, nuts fall during autumn like manna from squirrel heaven, so the little fellows are not super hungry and they probably bury their treasures without testing for edibility, she said.

"If there were Christmas lights in summer, the squirrels would probably figure it out pretty quickly," she said, though she said it was puzzling that they do seem to realize that lightbulbs do not smell like food.

As for those wires: Rodents love chewing wires (in car engines, too). Their teeth grow constantly, so it's their instinct to gnaw and keep the chompers trimmed. "A wire is not that different from a thin branch of twig they might chew on," said Delgado, who added that she'd never heard squirrels have a taste for copper.

This is hardly the first holiday season that squirrels have sought to stymie. Last year, the Norwalk, Connecticut city hall's tree lights were hit with attacks by bushy-tailed insurgents. In 2014, the Cincinnati Zoo's Festival of Lights was regularly darkened by strand-chewing squirrels. Zoo workers doused the worst-hit spots in hot sauce, but, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported at the time, it "seems the squirrels may like their cords with a little hot sauce."

But as is well known, squirrels harbor far grander ambitions: They want to take our power.
Calistogas leadership is poised to respond to the recent legalization of marijuana with a restrictive, ill-conceived, fear-based ordinance proposed by city staff. This unenlightened reaction to Proposition 64s passage clearly does not pass the smell test: an informal method for determining whether something is authentic, credible, or ethical, by using ones common sense or sense of propriety.

While progressive, future-thinking municipalities have been preparing for months to capitalize on the forecast change, Calistogas city council rushes to take their stand against the future. Without even waiting to see how Calistogans voted on Proposition 64 (results not yet available at this writing) and knowing that the measure passed in Napa County with 60.9 percent favorable vote (latest available results at this writing), city leaders are ready to act based on guidance from a weak and incomplete staff report that sends them down the wrong path. Primary issues of contention are the perpetuation of the bans on establishing medical marijuana dispensaries, commercial cultivation and outdoor cultivation of cannabis for either medical or recreational use.

Savvy leaders would look to the future and how to position their municipalities to reap benefits of the new law. The vote underscored a changing generational trajectory for marijuana in politics and culture and stands to invigorate Californias teeming medical marijuana economy. An article in the Sacramento Bee reported the states legal pot industry is expected to soar beyond the medical cannabis economy which is valued as high as $2.7 billion by a firm specializing in attracting marijuana industry investments. New Frontier data of Washington, D.C. and a group in Oakland predict Proposition 64s passage could lift the California market to $6.5 billion by 2020: We are expecting a robust, growing industry that will be one of the biggest employers in Californiawe are transitioning from the prohibited market to regulated market. And analysis for the California Department of Finance said recreational pot sales could generate from the high hundreds of millions of dollars to over one billion annually in total tax revenue.

While goal one of the city councils objectives for fiscal year 2016-17 is to maintain and enhance the economic vitality of the community and the financial stability of the city, the staff report from Lynn Goldberg allocates one sentence to acknowledge the potential revenue to be generated by sales tax from retail sales from a storefront or commercial cannabis activities (e.g. cannabis home delivery services). While skirting the issue of revenue benefit, Ms. Goldberg takes a page of her 4 page report to downplay the fact that if Calistoga passes the proposed, restrictive ordinance, the city would not be eligible to receive grants to assist with law enforcement, fire protection, or other local programs addressing public health and safety that will flow as revenue from Californias taxation of cannabis sales are distributed.

While our city leaders are more than happy to fill vacant store fronts with wine tasting and sales establishments and reap the benefits of developer fees as mega resorts transform sleepy, small town Calistoga into a high end, luxury tourist destination, they refuse to consider the biggest tax boon they could take advantage of. They seem content to inconvenience local resident medical cannabis patients, who now must travel over the hill to purchase their medicine, and lose the current tax revenues that pour into the tax coffers of Santa Rosa.

With the market for recreational marijuana is poised to explode at about the same time as our new high-end resorts open, Calistoga will be populated with well-heeled guests from the Bay Area used to a consumer friendly, competitive cannabis marketplace. While goal two of the city councils stated objectives is to offer excellent professional services to all customers, they do the opposite by offering no cannabis related services to residents and the guests they seek to attract.

While the council speaks of creating an environmentally sustainable community (goal four), they seek to deny residents the right to grow their six plants outdoors where the sun and heat provide the perfect setting for cultivation. Instead their new ordinance, if approved, will further add to the burden of an already taxed electrical grid by forcing those who wish to grow to do so indoors increasing electrical demand from grow lights and ventilation fans. Indoor growing also brings into play supplemental carbon dioxide generators, fueled by propane tanks, and ozone generators that both bring health and safety risks. Though banned by the proposed ordinance, these devices, which would be unnecessary with outdoor cultivation, will be hidden from view, making enforcement impossible.

As for complaints about the skunky smell of cannabis, savvy cultivators know there are strains that produce little odor. Neighbor complaints are best resolved by encouraging neighbor communication and negotiation, not heavy-handed ill-conceived regulation on the rights the electorate just approved.

Tom Sherman

Calistoga
A Miles City man denied possessing child pornography in U.S. District Court in Billings on Thursday.

Darwin Dean Thrams, 47, pleaded not guilty to a child porn possession count as charged in an indictment during an arraignment before U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy Cavan.

Prosecutor Zeno Baucus alleged that for about 10 years, starting in 2005 and ending in 2015, Thrams possessed child porn on his computer.

If convicted, Thrams faces a maximum 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Cavan continued Thrams release to the custody of his parents. The case will be heard by U.S. District Judge Susan Watters.
Anand Sharma, Member of Parliament and Deputy Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, in a special session with an Opposition Leader at the 89th AGM of FICCI, said that reforms need to be an ongoing process and this started way back in 1950s with Mr. Jawaharlal Nehru and Mrs. Indira Gandhi, which was carried forward by Mr. Rajiv Gandhi. It was in their tenures that the major reforms in India's manufacturing, services particularly the IT & communications, telecom were announced. It was under the able leadership of Mr. Rajiv Gandhi that India saw the first big revolution in IT. Mr. Sharma stressed that reform in any nation has to be looked at from a holistic standpoint. Reform needs to encompass social, economic, judicial and administrative areas. He said that the captains of the Indian industry should be the first channel to take the reform process forward. Mr. Sharma highlighted the prowess of the Indian industry under the UPA government and the state of economy when it relinquished office. He pointed that it was under that government that GDP of India rose from US$ 480 billion to over US$ 2.1 trillion in a span of 10 years. This, he mentioned, was a remarkable achievement which only some countries of the world were able to achieve. It was under the UPA government that policies such as RTI, Money Laundering Act and Whistle Blower Bill were launched. The Insurance Bill which was pending for seven years because of the then opposition government and it was only under the UPA government that it was passed. Speaking on demonetization, Mr. Sharma said that any government decision has to be well thought out. Quoting the Father of Nation, he said that the reform should be for the poorest of poor. He stressed that no government has a legal right to demonetize a currency. The same needs to be done by passing a law and not by a dictat. Mr. Sharma said that the whole act of demonetization of currency is giving wrong signals to the global market and it is appearing as if the whole Indian economy was based on black money. All this has led to disruption in weekly wages, slower economic growth, and a perpetual shut down of the Indian industry. Mr. Sharma urged that the government in power needs to maintain a balance before issuing any narrative and for a good governance, it is important to have a responsible opposition. (ANI)
Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, on Saturday said the success of an emerging economy like India is related to the availability of a skilled workforce. "As a nation today, we boast of having our young population as our innate strength. Appropriate skilling and training of this workforce is very important to be able to make this a true strength for India. Certification is important for establishing appropriate labour market linkages and ascertaining that the workforce is industry ready," he said. He said there are skilled people in India but if formally verified for instance four million tea-pluckers and 45 lakh goldsmiths in the country are without certification. Their certification would raise the percentage of skilled manpower in the country. A massive campaign for Recognition of Prior Learning is required by providing career pathways. He said, "Till date there are 40 lakh painters in the country but not even a single formal training institution in last 68 years exists for formal training of painters." Training and learning happens outside the boundaries of schools and colleges. Mr. Rudy reiterated the importance of apprenticeship, as it is the only key to provide "real-time" training to youngsters at real time workplace scenario. "Industry should act as labs for training and development," said Rudy. In the era of globalisation, language plays the most important role in connecting people from different cultures and nations. English being the local global language and being used by majority of people becomes vital for employability. For a country like India which is aiming to take maximum advantage of demographic dividend, language should not be a barrier for people who intend to settle down anywhere across the globe. "A student who doesn't have a formal education for 10 years and speaks good English has a 40 percent more employability factor than a BAs and MAs in this country," said Rudy. There is vast skill gap in India with several surveys suggesting that half of all graduates are not employable in any sector based on industry standards. This has sparked growing concern about the mismatch between educational institutions and needs of the job market. "Out of 127 trades exists of ITI, 98% are taken by electricians and fitters," said Mr. Rudy. The ITI system lacked connect with mainstream education which the Ministry of Skill Development has filled. He said that India needs to create an ecosystem where skilling should be seen as integrated component of education system. The fractured education system needed a strong emphasis on outcomes than the acquiring process. The National Skill Qualification Framework will address the connecting point among levels of education with competency of outcome. There should be professors for plumbing and carpentry instead of just academic subjects. Aggregators are the key to fill the gap of supply and demand and match the job seekers to employers. "In order to 'Make in India' we need Makers in India," said the minister. "One of the challenges that the industry has been facing is to differentiate between a certified and uncertified skilled labour and to address this issue it is critical to carry out an industry wide study to assess skill premium against industry productivity," said Mr. Rajan Bharti Mittal, Vice Chairman of Bharti Enterprises and Past President, FICCI. (ANI)
Terming note ban a (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi-made disaster for the country, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday accused the NDA government of aiding the rich at the cost of the poor through demonetisation. "Demonetisation, which was meant to curb black money and root out corruption, is a Modi-made disaster, as over 100 people died standing in queues at banks for a few notes across the country," said Gandhi at a public meeting in this Karnataka town, about 500 km from Bengaluru. Addressing a huge rally to mark the birth centenary of former Prime Minister and his grandmother Indira Gandhi, Gandhi said only the rich had benefitted from the note ban at the cost of the poor, farmers and labourers in millions across the country. "The Modi government came to power in the name of the poor but is sounding death knell to the hapless population to help about 50 super rich families. Who are these families holding most of the wealth in the country? You can see them touring foreign countries with Modi at the government cost. This is your Prime Minister whom you had reposed hopes of bettering your lives," he alleged. Noting that Modi failed to realise that black money hoarders invest their ill-gotten wealth in real estate, gold and in foreign banks, Gandhi said a mere six per cent of unaccounted wealth was in cash while 94 per cent was either deposited in Swiss banks or in real estate. "Unfortunately, in the name of the poor, honest and tax-paying people, Modi is going after them and ignoring the remaining 94 per cent," he said. Remembering his grandmother on the occasion, Gandhi also said he was sad over the plight of the ordinary people facing hardship due to cash crunch for over a month. "I want to ask Modiji why his government had not disclosed names of those who had stashed their black money in Swiss banks even after its government gave the list. Why he is not acting against crooks like Lalit Modi and liquor baron Vijay Mallya, who are staying in London?" asked Gandhi in his speech in Hindi. --IANS fb/vd ( 369 Words) 2016-12-17-23:00:13 (IANS)
Speaking to reporters on Saturday at the Dabolim International Airport, the minister also said that the current aviation laws need to be amended by the Parliament to enable Wi-Fi access during flights

Raju also said his ministry was weighing in the pros and cons of enabling Wi-Fi in aeroplanes.

He said there was a demand for the in-flight Wi-Fi service, but refused to give an assurance as to when the service would be enabled.

"There is no need to fix a timeline," he said

"We are working on amending the particular legislation," he also said, adding that one of the key reasons why Wi-Fi had not been enabled in-flight in India was because of security concerns.

--IANS maya/pgh/

( 147 Words)

2016-12-18-01:26:11 (IANS)
Actor Daniel Radcliffe likes to shock people by asking them for cigarette lighters because most people don't expect the "Harry Potter" star to smoke. "I do smoke and I like roll-ups. I get a kick out of asking people for a light - I'm always losing lighters. They fumble in their pockets, look up and realise they've committed the crime of giving Harry Potter cancer," Radcliffe told the Sun Newspaper, reports femalefirst.co.uk. He is currently dating a New-York based actress Erin Darke, and says the pair have a romantic trans-Atlantic love. "I live in both London and New York. My girlfriend and I hop back and forth, so we're constantly saying goodbye but looking forward to seeing each other. It's quite a romantic state to be in," he said. And although the actor loved working on the "Harry Potter" movies, he is happy to have moved on from the role of the young wizard. He said: "I'm not Harry Potter any more, but I don't regret a day of it. I had the time of my life. People look at me with pity sometimes. I know it's because they think I didn't have a childhood, that I was like a slave to the 'Potter' set. "But it was fun hanging out with Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, and the most fascinating grown-ups like Alan Rickman, Julie Walters and Maggie Smith. You don't meet those characters every day and they were like family to me." --IANS dc/nv/ ( 257 Words) 2016-12-18-02:40:11 (IANS)
Jammu and Kashmir police recovered a weapon, which was snatched from a police party during a clash in the central Kashmir district of Badgam, official sources said today. They said a scuffle took place between two groups over some issue at Makhama in the central Kashmir district of Badgam immediately after Friday prayers were over yesterday. They said police immediately reached the spot to restore normalcy and bring order among the unruly groups. Some miscreants started pelting stones on the police party. During the incident, some unknown persons snatched an INSAS rifle and fled away. Police has taken cognisance and a case has been registered in the matter, he said. During the search operation in the area, police recovered the snatched weapon from a nallah.No one was arrested, they said.UNI BAS RSA 1100 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0153-1069134.Xml
The Enforcement Directorate said they will also question bank official.

Sources said, earlier today that a case was filed on basis of one of the fake company director's: Nandu Paswan's FIR.

The ED has already arrested two Axis Bank managers. Twenty bank accounts of fake companies had been found and deposits of Rs. 60 crores had been made to them.

The authorities are concerned about the connivance of some bank executives with racketeers to launder cash ever since the announcement of demonetisation.(ANI)
Former Union Minister and Senior Congressleader P Chidambaram today visited DMK President and former Chief Minister M Karunanidhi at the Kauvery hospital, where he hasbeen readmitted on Thursday night following breathing problems dueto lung and throat infection. Meanwhile, Congress Vice-president Rahul Gandhi was expectedto visit him at the hospital. Mr Rahul would arrive here by a special flight from New Delhi and drive straight to the hospital. In a brief chat with reporters outside the hospital after visiting theailing DMK leader, Mr Chidambaram said he enquired with DMK Treasurer M K Stalin about the health condition of 'Kalaignar', as Mr Karunanidhi is affectionately called. He said Mr Stalin told him that Mr Karunanidhi has been recoveringwell. Mr Chidambaram also said he prayed for the speedy recovery ofthe DMK stalwart. Meanwhile, the DMK in a statement here today appealed to the party cadres not to visit Mr Karunanidhi at the hospital, where hewould remain for the next few days for treatment. It also said Mr Karunanidhi, who underwent a tracheostomy procedure to optimise breathing, was stable. ''Since Mr Karunanidhi needs to undergo treatment for another few days, party cadres, friends and visitors were advised not to visit him at the hospital'', the statement said. Mr Karunanidhi was re-admitted to a private hospital in the city onThursday night and he underwent a tracheostomy procedure yesterday to optimise breathing. A bulletin issued by the Kauvery hospital, where he was admitted, said "treatment has been initiated to clear his infection. He is stable and is being treated by a team of doctors''. Mr. Karunanidhi, who was convalescing at his Gopalapuram residence since his discharge from the hospital on December 7, complained of breathing problems due to lung and throat infections following which he was re-admitted to the hospital. Leaders of various political parties, including former TNCC PresidentEVKS Elangovan and senior DMK leaders visited him at the hospital and enquired about his health condition.UNI GV CS 1142 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0275-1069154.Xml
The General council meeting of the Opposition DMK,the highest political level decision making body of the party, scheduled to beheld on December 20, has been postponed. DMK General Secretary K Anbazhagan in a statement here today said,the meeting was postponed due to the hospitalisation of Party President M Karunanidhi. The fresh dates would be announced later, he said. Earlier, Mr Anbazhagan said the General Council meeting would be heldon December 20 to discuss about the party's constructive activities and that it would be chaired by Mr Karunanidhi. The meeting was apparently convened amid growing demands for elevation of DMK Treasurer M.K. Stalin to a higher post, though the agenda was that it was being convened to discuss about constructiveactivities of the party. But, following the re-hospitalisation of Mr Karunanidhi on Thursday night,the meeting has been postponed.UNI GV CS 1147 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0275-1069166.Xml
Police said that under the pretext of converting black money intowhite for a commission of Rs 50,000, the gang had invited thecomplainant Prakash to a particular place with Rs 15 lakhs.

On December five when Prakash came with the money to thedesignated spot, the gang robbed the cash after threatening him withlethal weapons and escaped.

The culprits were nabbed while they were trying to escape toBengaluru in a car which was purchased from the robbed money.

One new car, Motorbike and lethal weapons used for the crime wereseized from the arrested gang members.UNI MSP CNR RSS1400

-- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0284-1069342.Xml
Announcing details of the merger, 'maha sammelan' leaders M Mohammed Madani, A Asgarali and Media Convener Nizar Olavanna said besides them, large section of people from across the state would participate in the meet beginning at 1630 hrs.

The unification meet assumes significance as the two factions -- Kerala Nadavathul Majahidin and the breakaway faction of KNM (Markazu-DHAVA) -- led by T P Abdullakoya Madani and Hussain Madavur respectively -- are coming together after burying the hatchet after 14 years, they said.

The Mujahid outfits in the state had vertically split on ideological and political issues in August 2002.

Top leaders expected to participate in the merger meet are Opposition leader in the state assembly Ramesh Chennithala of Congress, Communist Party of India (Marxist) state Secretary and former Home minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, IUML All India President and former Union Minister E Ahamed, MP, former Union Minister and Janata Dal (United) State President M P Veeredra Kumar, MP, IUML all India Treasurer P K Kunhalikutty, BJP leader P S Sreedharan Pillai, CPI leader Benoy Viswam and E T Mohammed Basheer, MP, they said.

KNM state President T P Abdullakoya Madani will inaugurate the meet to be presided over by C P Umer Sullami, they added.UNI PCH CS 1455

-- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0328-1069321.Xml
India and Central Asian nation of Tajikistan today called for an end to terrorism in all its forms without any distinction between good and bad terrorists, and signed four agreements to scale up their security and anti-terror cooperation. Without naming Pakistan, the two countries also called for an end to sponsorship, support and provision of safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists. Noting that terrorism was threatening peace and stability over the entire region, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said he and visiting Tajikistan President Emoli Rahmonhad decided to increase the security cooperation between the two countries to fight the menace. "The threat from terrorism endangers not just our two countries. It casts a long shadow of violence and instability over the entire region. Combating terrorism has, therefore, been an important area of our cooperative engagement,'' the Prime Minister said in interaction with media after formal talks with Mr Rahmon. Later a joint statement issued after the talks said the two leaders agreed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be eliminated without any distinction between good and bad terrorists. It also called for an end to sponsorship, support and provision of safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists. "Both leaders reaffirmed their resolve to strengthen bilateral counter terrorism cooperation, expand security and defence ties and work for early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UN General Assembly,'' the statement said. He said India and Tajikistan live in an extended neighbourhood that continues to face multiple security challenges and threats. Appreciating Tajikistan's role in the Central Asian region as "a mainstay against forces of extremism, radicalism, and terrorism,'' Mr Modi said both of them had agreed today to strengthen action on this front through reinforcing overall bilateral security cooperation, through greater training, capacity building and information exchanges; and, through active coordination in regional and multilateral contexts.More UNI NAZ SW SNU 1636 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0091-1069601.Xml
India has emerged energy surplus state withassured supply of power from a situation of perpetual shortage ofenergy, Union Minister of State for Power and Coal Piyush Goyal said today. Participating in the first day events of the IIMBue 2016, theglobal leadership summit at IIM, Bangalore, organised by the AlumniAssociation here he said, ''from a situation of perpetual shortageof energy we have come to a situation of assured supply and evenenergy surplus thanks to decisive leadership and timely decisions,''he said. Mr Goyal said ''Root cause analysis of any complaint, forgingstrong partnerships with stakeholders and prioritising aremanagement principles that have helped me and, in the process,policy amendments have also been made''. He told the Management gurus ''transformation is possible inevery walk of life. As thought leaders, ask yourself are you leavingbehind a legacy or will you be a have-been''. Sharing his thoughts on 'Energise and Transform -- the LeadershipMantra for a Mature Institution', the Minister described IIMBue asan opportunity to inspire innovation, instigate disruption andprovide invigoration. He described his own journey in the power sector as a journey ofdisruption and change, saying management principles taught inschools such as IIMB, where he had done a short programme, helpedhim bring in positive results in the ministry. The tech-savvy Minister listed and demonstrated various appsdeveloped by the Power Ministry for the benefit of the citizens.''Put everything in the public domain, why should there bean RTI'' he said. Dwelling on innovative financing such as reverse bidding forprojects as a smart way of saving public money, he said: ''Byadopting such principles, I have been able to reignite the power andcoal sector.'' Biocon founder Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw who is also the Chairperson,IIMB Board of Governors, and Chief Patron of IIMBue, gave anoverview of the theme of IIMBue 2016, which is 'Start, Scale &Disrupt'. The theme was 'apt' because Bangalore is the undisputedstart-up capital in the country she said adding ''It is a city withimmense start-up frenzy and entrepreneurial spirit''.UNI CNR RS cs 1640 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0284-1069650.Xml
Prof K S Rangappa, Vice Chancellor, Universityof Mysore, today said, research scholars in India should upgradethemselves to enhance the quality of research. Inaugurating a state-level workshop on research methodology forresearch scholars in sociology, organised by Gandhi Bhavan, he said,''most of the research articles produced now lack the quality. Ourresearch scholars should compete with the foreign research scholarsin terms of quality in research.'' ''Unless one gets deeper into the subject, we can't callthesis a PhD. The research should always deal with investigation andit should discover new things. As I have observed, there are manythesis which are neither publishable in any journals nor can beaccepted. I have in fact rejected many of those subjecting to plagiarism''.UNI BSP CNR CS 1707 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0284-1069734.Xml
The ED sleuths raided the house of Maharaja Tailors owners Joginder Pal Singh, Gurmeek Singh and Gurwinder Singh and seized Rs 18 lakh in Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 denomination while Rs 75,000 wasrecovered in Rs 50 denomination and the remaining currency was in Rs 100, Rs 20 and Rs 10 denomination.

The sleuths also recovered 1.5 kg gold in the form of a gold brick weighing one kg, two biscuits of 100 gm each and the remaining in the form of gold coins from the house.

The Maharaja Tailors' shop in Sector 22 and their bank lockers were also searched by the sleuths.

The ED officials said they would investigate the source of the new currency notes.

Meanwhile, the Chandigarh Police arrested HDFC Bank employee Bhupinder Singh Gill in connection with the recovery of Rs 2.19 crore, including Rs 69,35,500 in new currency, during a raid by the Enforcement Directorate at the house of local businessman Inderpal Mahajan in Sector 22 three days ago.

SHO Inspector Ranjit Singh said Gill was cluster head of security, share trading and the loan department in two states. He used to charge between 20 per cent and 25 per cent and get the demonetised currency exchanged, the SHO added.UNI DB PY 1714

-- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0292-1069593.Xml
Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar today said that there was a need to pay attention to the states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan where there was no satisfactory development in the field of education and therefore the progress of the people in these states has been stalled. Speaking after inaugurating 29th All India Urdu Book Fair at Bhiwandi town of the district, he said that the statistics show that the members of Muslim, Hindu and other communities progressed as far as education was concerned in states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat while it was not so in the other states. ''There is a dire need to pay attention to this,'' he stressed. He said that the present government, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, had taken up several measures to promote Urdu language and various steps had been taken towards it. The Minister, while calling Urdu as a lovely language and its script an example of calligraphy, said that the Urdu Academy and Council had come out with several publications for promotion of the language. He also said that various educational institutions, universities and research centres played an important role in addition to social organisations, in promoting Urdu language. Expressing concern about the quality of education in the government-run schools in the country, Mr Javadekar said, ''Hence we (government) have decided to take several measures which will ensure that the standard of education in the government schools of all languages in the country improve and the issue of dropout is addressed too.'' He also said that his ministry has plans to go in for online teaching of Urdu, where everyone can get education in their spare time. The Minister called for improvement of the literacy percentage among the Muslims. ''If the 'talim' (education) improves, everything improves and the society as well as the country progresses,'' he observed and said their aim is 'Sabko Siksha, Aachi Siksha'. The Minister declared that the World Urdu Conference will be held in Delhi in March next year.UNI XR SS NP VS SNU 1830 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0171-1069763.Xml
The Prime Minister said that this is a landmark moment and will add tremendous strength to the "Accessible India" movement.

"Under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2016, the types of disabilities have been increased and provisions for additional benefits introduced," Modi said in a series of tweets.

"There are strict provisions for penalties for offences committed against persons with disabilities and violation of provisions of the new law," he said.

After being passed by the Rajya Sabha earlier in the session, the Lok Sabha on Friday gave its nod to the legislation.

It was the first bill in the winter session to be passed amid unusual bonhomie between the government and the opposition in both Houses.

Modi was present in the Lok Sabha as the bill was passed on the last day of the session.

The bill, which replaces the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995, has been brought to comply with the UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which India signed in 2007.

The legislation was pending in the Rajya Sabha since February 2014, as the term of the erstwhile UPA government ended soon after the bill was introduced.

--IANS ao/nir/bg

( 234 Words)

2016-12-17-21:04:13 (IANS)
COLLECTIVE MADNESS



Soft despotism is a term coined by Alexis de Tocqueville describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from despotism (also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people."
The Food Safety Unit of A and N Islands has seized huge quantity of fruit juice bottles like Litchi Juices, Mango Juices from the Godown of Baba Lokenath Company, which were allegedly imported from Bangladesh via Kolkata without any License, clearance acquired from the food safety unit of Port Blair. Andaman's Food Safety unit has today confirmed that all bottles has 'Made in Bangladesh' mark printed on it. "The brother in law of the owner of the Baba Lokenath Company has been questioned in this case, as the owner is out of town for some treatment," senior officer of Andaman's Food Safety unit told UNI on the condition of anonymity. According to reports, Baba Lokenath Company has obtained a license of manufacturing Sev but the company somehow indulged in this business of importing soft drinks in Andaman via Kolkata. The Food Safety Unit has seized the stock of Bangladeshi manufactured Cold Drinks of around Rs 1,40,000. As per details concerned agencies are now recommending for cancellation of license of the private firm in this case.UNI SKR BM -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0214-1070220.Xml
As many as 12 countries will be partnering with the eighth edition of the high-profile biennial Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, a conclave of industrial investors in Gandhinagar, the state capital between January 10 and January 13. Gujarat Chief Secretary JN Singh told reporters here, "The 8th edition of Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit will be bigger and grander." The event was initiated by Narendra Modi as the chief minister in 2003. So far, Gujarat has secured investment commitments of Rs 51,000 crore, of which 66 per cent projects have either been commissioned or are under advanced stages of implementation, Mr Singh said. The Summit will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister, who will throw open a Global Trade Show as well as chair a Global CEOs Roundtable. Modi will also declare open a five-week long Nobel Laureate Exhibition. He said the exhibition would be accompanied by panel discussions where participants will have a unique opportunity to interact with these global minds on science and learn about the scientific developments across the world. "We will also have dedicated seminars on 'Make In Gujarat', as an extension of 'Make in India'. For the first time we are organizing 'Action Seminars' to enable 'Make your own policy environment. The idea is to make Vibrant Gujarat a truly global platform to ideate, engage and collaborate," Mr Singh said. Additional Chief Secretary (Industries and Mines) PK Taneja said 12 countries would partner the event as against eight in the previous edition, "which reflects the growing interest in Gujarat worldwide." "Through the 8th edition, we are also extending our commitment to encourage startups and MSMEs in the state. Additionally, we are also reaching out to other state governments to be a part of Vibrant Gujarat to truly represent our theme of 'Connecting India to the World'. I am confident of the attendees finding the summit interactive, knowledge driven and engaging." The 12 partner countries are Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Japan, Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, Sweden, UAE, United Kingdom and the United States of America. The event will be supported by seven partner organizations, Australia India Business Council, Indo-Canada Chambers of Commerce, Japan External Trade Organization, UAE India Business Council, UK India Business Council, US India Business Council and British Council. UNI ND CJ SHK 2036 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0400-1070154.Xml
On credible information, the drug control officers raided the house and found Escitalopram, Duloxetine and Levocetrizine drugs, according to Drug control officers here today.

The drugs seized are in the form of powders and the accused Gaddam Naresh Reddy hailing from Krishna District of Andhra Pradesh, who took license for supply drugs to medical shops,illegally supplying drugs used in prevention of cold, to other stated and earning in crores.

He is absconding and searchers are going to nab him, the officer added.UNI KNR CJ SHK 2145

-- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0400-1070308.Xml
Union Civil Aviation Minister Ashok GajapathiRaju today said that Centre was considering requests of airlinecompanies to provide inflight wi-fi services. Speaking to reporters at Dabolim airport, about 29 km from here,he said the legislation had be amended and Parliament would have todo that. ''Aircrafts within India do not have wi-fi and there is demandfor that. Thinking is there. We are working on positive and negativeside of it, '' he said but refused to provide any timeframe. For long time, besides flights operating in the country,international flights using Indian airspace had been seekingpermission to use wi-fi, he said and informed that the ministry wasworking on amendemnt of the legislation. However, he warned that technology could be used and misused.UNI AKM NP SHK 2158 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0171-1070315.Xml
A 14 year-old minor girl student of class IX, was allegedly raped by a minor of her village and forced the brother of the victim, a class VIII student, to make a porn video of the rape incident. Kangra Sub Divisional Police Officer Surender Sharma today told UNI that accused Akshay, 16, had taken the minor girl in an open orchard in the village and raped her there. He said the incident took place around 1000 hrs. He said the minor brother of the victim was forced by the accused to shoot a porn video of the crime which he did. Meanwhile, the uncle of the victim saw the incident and informed the family of the victim. The mother of the victim lodged a report with Kangra Police Station. Girl was sent for the medical examination.The police will send the accused to a juvenile home after taking him into custody. The SDPO said a case under section 376 IPC and section 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) was registered against Akshay. The investigation is in progress. UNI XC DB PY SNU 1905 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0292-1069993.Xml
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav claimed that his government has always focused on welfare of the down-trodden section of the society and that development always remained on his top agenda. He said that to take the State ahead of all other states, his government took several big decisions which are now turning out to be milestone in the progress of the State. ``The socialists are always the supporter of development and welfare of the poor and downtrodden" and during my tenure as the chief minister so far, I always go ahead to follow the path showed by the socialists", asserted Akhilesh Yadav while saying that `development of the State' has always remained on top agenda of his government. Chief Minister was speaking soon after distributing 2000 E-Rickshaws, 10087 Asara Awas to the beneficiaries here today. He said that his government is giving one room flat under Asara Housing scheme to the poor but in the future, he will facilitate two bedrooms so the deprived section of the society can live comfortably with their family members. Chief minister said that the construction of Agra-Lucknow Expressway and launching Lucknow Metro, both in a record time, would make Uttar Pradesh one of the leading States in the country in the coming days. Congratulating those who received E-Rickshaw and Flats at free of cost, Akhilesh Yadav said that his government always took care of the poor and in the future also, his government would continue to do the same. Similarly he said that E-Rickshaws will help the poor to earn more. He also highlighted his government schemes like Samajwadi Pension Scheme, 108 Ambulance Services, 102 National Ambulance Services, UP-100. Akhilesh also hit at demonetisation alleging that the decision was taken in a haste hence it was creating lot of problems particularly for the poor and the farmers who could not even purchase or sow seeds this year. He said that most of the labourers are returning home after demonetisation and are having tough time. Without taking name of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Akhilesh Yadav said that the people will teach those a lesson, who pushed them in this trouble of demonetisation. Chief minister also launched `digital life certificate' facilities with the help of biometric device, here on the occasion of Pensioners Day today. Mr Yadav said this would facilitate the pensioners in the state to get `Life Certificate' with the help of Adhar Cards. Akhilesh Yadav also inaugurated a new renovated Central Library here at Yojna Bhawan this afternoon. Mr Yadav said that this library, having more then 20,000 books of various authors and in over 50 subjects, will facilitate the book lovers. He said that the availability of various books and material related to planning in the said library will also help the government officials and departments to formulate better policy in the coming days so that the State could progress with more pace. He claimed that this library will be also attached through E-Networking in the near future, so that readers could have on-line access to any material or any subject without visiting the library. UNI MB CJ SHK 2247 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0400-1070341.Xml
Army's vice chief Lt Gen Bipin Rawat was tonight appointed new armychief ending speculation on the matter while the government order also supersedes two othertop army generals. According to official sources here, the government also cleared the appointment of Air Marshal B S Dhanoa as the new chief of Air Staff. Air Marshal Dhanoa will replace the incumbent IAF chief Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha, who retires on December 31.While Dhanoa's appointment is on expected lines as he is senior most official after AirChief Arup Raha, there could be minor controversy vis-a-vis appointmentof Lt Gen Bipin Rawat. In rare developments, two serving generals - Lt Gen Praveen Bakshi, Eastern Army Commander and Lt Gen P M Hariz, Southern Army Commander - have been superseded, officials said.The appointment of army chief ignoring seniority was last done in 1980s when Lt Gen SK Sinha was overlooked to appoint Gen AS Vaidya.The appointment of Army chief has been necessitated as the Army chief Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag will also retire on December 31.An infantry soldier Lt Gen Rawat, according to top government sources and confidential reports, is credited for operational experience in the tough terrains of north east besides along the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan and Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China. The Modi government felt that under the given circumstances and especially growing tension with Pakistan, Lt Gen Rawat would be 'best suitable' for the top job among the senior Lt Generals.Earlier in the day, clearing crucial appointments, the government appointed Anil Kumar Dhasmana (1981 IPS officer) as Chief of external intelligence agency RAW while named Rajiv Jain, a 1980-batch of Jharkhand cadre IPS officer, as the new Intelligence Bureau (IB) chief.UNI DEVN SHK 2213 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0445-1070333.Xml
Having served in tough terrains of Mizoram in 1979 during the peak of insurgency movement in the North Eastern state, Gen Bipin Rawat - Army chief designate - is known for his experience in high altitude warfare and counter-insurgency operations. Appointed tonight , December 17 as new army chief, Lt Gen Rawat will take charge as the 27th chief of Indian Army from the present army chief Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag on December 31. "Government has decided to appoint Lt. Gen Bipin Rawat as next Chief of Army Staff -with effect from afternoon of Dec 31," an official tweet from the Defence ministry said. Gen Rawat also commanded a brigade in counter-insurgency areas in United Nations peacekeeping mission in Congo in 2008. Even as Gen Rawat's appointment comes superseding two senior officials,the top government sources say under the given circumstances and especially amid growing tension with Pakistan, Lt Gen Rawat would be 'best suitable' for the top job among the senior Lt Generals. At present the vice chief of army staff, Lt Gen Rawat also served GoC Southern Command. He also served in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa Area. An alumni of St Edward's School, Shimla, Rawat was commissioned in the Fifth Battalion of the 11 Gorkha Rifles from Indian Military Academy Dehradun. He also commanded an Infantry Division in the Kashmir Valley. Son of Lt. Gen. L S Rawat, he was born in a Gadhwali Rajput family serving army since generations.Commanding a Multinational Brigade in a Chapter VII mission for the UN in the Democratic Republic of Congo Rawat, then a Brigadier, carried out tactical support to the Congolese Army (FARDC), sensitization programmes with the local population and detailed coordination.His operational skills were appreciated even internationally. An highly decorated official, Gen Rawat has to his credit gallantry award AVSM. knownfor being academically inclined, he also authored numerous articles on 'National Security'. Lt Gen Bipin Rawat has also completed his research on military media strategic studies and was awarded Doctorate of Philosophy from Chaudhary Charan Singh University, Meerut in 2011. UNI DEVN CJ 2310 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0445-1070363.Xml
Fearing that India is buying time to complete its two 'disputed' water projects, Pakistan made it clear that Islamabad would not accept any modifications or changes to the Indus Waters Treaty(IWT) after New Delhi said yesterday that it was ready to bilaterally resolve its differences with the neighbour over the implementation of the treaty.The treaty, signed in 1960, gives India control over the three eastern rivers of the Indus basin the Beas, Ravi and Sutlej while Pakistan has the three western rivers the Indus, Chenab and Jhelum, daily Dawn said in a report from Washington.The treaty also sets up a mechanism, the Permanent Indus Commission, which includes a commissioner from each country."Pakistan will not accept any modifications or changes to the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty..Our position is based on the principles enshrined in the treaty..And the treaty must be honoured in..letter and spirit", the newspaper quoted Mr Tariq Fatemi, Special Assistant to PM, as saying.Earlier, Ministry of External Affairs spokesman, Vikas Swarup, told reporters in New Delhi that the resolution process required more time, the newspaper report added."India has always believed that the implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty, which includes the redressal of the technical questions and differences, should be done bilaterally between India and Pakistan,'' he said. "We believe that these consultations should be given adequate time."India's request for more time, however, alarmed Pakistan. Islamabad argued that India used the same strategy on previous occasions, completing a project during the dispute and then insisting that since the project was already complete, it could not be modified.The current dispute revolves around the Kishanganga(330 megawatts) and Ratle (850 megawatts) hydroelectric plants. India is building the plants on the Kishanganga and Chenab Rivers, which Pakistan says violate the IWT.Tensions over the water dispute increased late last month when Prime Minister Narendra Modi threatened to block the flow of water into Pakistan. International experts fear that the threat, if implemented, could lead to armed clashes between the two sides.New Delhi sought the appointment of a 'neutral expert' while Islamabad asked the World Bank to appoint the chairman of the Court of Arbitration. The IWT recognises the World Bank as an arbitrator.Pakistan was seeking a court of arbitration because only the proposed court had the authority to consider both legal and technical aspects of the dispute. A neutral expert could only consider the technical aspects, the report observed.Pakistanis argued that the designs of the two Indian projects violate both legal and the technical provisions of the treaty. India, however, opposed Pakistan's effort for the setting up a court of arbitration.The disagreement persuaded the World Bank to announce earlier this week that it was temporarily 'pausing' its arbitration and it was doing so to protect the treaty.The next step was to go to the UN Secretary General who, under the treaty, has the authority to appoint a chairman for the proposed court, the report said.UNI XC SS -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0089-1069337.Xml
Not even below-freezing temperatures will keep members of the Zion Lutheran Church from presenting their annual live nativity, a tradition that is in its 56th year.

It is an outreach ministry, and we are not going to let anything stop that, said Kristin Nistler, Zion's director of family ministry.

She has been involved in the event for 15 years, participating in the nativity, volunteering and, for the past few years, organizing it as an event director. About 40 to 50 volunteers, including many youthful members of the church, are involved this year.

"Zion's live nativity has given the youth of Zion a great opportunity over the years to share their faith with the community," said the Rev. Thomas Marcis Jr., senior pastor of Zion Lutheran Church.

For some, this has become a family tradition.

Some of our volunteers did this when they were kids, and so they bring their kids back, Nistler said. They volunteer as a family, and its been something that they have done for a long time.

There are no lines involved in the play. Silent acting is used to create a picture of Bethlehem from 2,000 years ago: Animals and people intermix with the smell of hay bales wafting in the cold air.

We basically dress up in the Old Testament costumes and stand out and brave the cold, Nistler said.

There are tricks they've learned over the years to standing outside in a North Dakota winter.

We wear everything underneath, Nistler said. Anything from coveralls, snow pants  most of our volunteers wear snow boots or whatever keeps their feet warm. And then the costumes are made larger so that they fit over those things.

The angels are adorned with white winter hats with halos attached. Costumes are long enough to cover snow boots, so the atmosphere isnt compromised by modern "advancements."

We have a lot of people that kind of drive through, especially when its really cold, Nistler said. They just drive through the south parking lot and then they stop and roll down their windows and look, and we take cider to their car.

Near Hannover, two local ranchers donate animals to the scene. Usually a donkey, a sheep and a calf make a presence in the stable. Panels, which corral the animals  often favored with visits by families with young children  are donated by Gold Label Feeds.

A lot of people with young kids will ... bundle them up and come and see the animals, Nistler said.

Each night after the nativity is finished, the animals are loaded into a trailer and taken out of town to a church members establishment, where they are kept warm and fed. The next evening, they are brought back to town.

The nativity stable is fairly large, and every year it is reassembled. Inside and outside, hay and straw bales donated from Kist Livestock are placed to help keep the people and animals warm.

There is nothing like having a live nativity for people young and old to witness the birth of Jesus, said Colleen Weltz, a director of the nativity who has been involved for more than 40 years. It gives everyone a more realistic feel.

This year, activities have been added to Wednesday nights nativity. People can create a wooden shepherd, and there is a luminaria walk to honor loved ones, past and present. Near the end of the night, a family worship service takes place in the sanctuary of the church.

We have added into the live nativity doing a family Christmas event, so that is kind of replacing our childrens Christmas program, Nistler said. The kids still help sing, and we have a worship service at 7 p.m. and activities before that.

Though this is a fun event, there is a deeper meaning for Christians.

The live nativity has given Zion a wonderful opportunity over the years to share with Bismarck-Mandan the real meaning of Christmas, Marcis said.

We would love for people to leave knowing the real true meaning of Christmas  knowing that Christmas is about the birth of Jesus, Nistler said.
Turkish warplanes have pounded Islamic State targets in northern Syria in the last 24 hours, killing at least 20 militants, the military said in a statement today.In addition to the 64 targets hit, the military said another 206 Islamic State targets were hit by artillery and other weaponry in its latest operations in northern Syria.REUTERS VS BL1738 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0440-1069807.Xml
West Africa's regional bloc ECOWAS must ensure Gambia's President Yahya Jammeh steps down when his mandate ends in January because he lost an election, the bloc's chairwoman, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, said today.Her comments came at the start of an ECOWAS summit in the Nigerian capital aimed at deciding on action against Jammeh in the face of what regional leaders say is a challenge to its principles of democratic accountability.Johnson Sirleaf did not spell out what measures the bloc would take but they could include sanctions, which could hurt Gambia because ECOWAS member Senegal is the country's only neighbour."It's now important that the authority at this summit considers measures to bring the matter to a successful conclusion before January 19 ... when the mandate of the current President expires," Johnson Sirleaf told the summit.Jammeh's 22 years in power have been marked by allegations of human rights abuses and repression against perceived political opponents. He lost a Dec. 1 election to little-known challenger Adama Barrow and is due to step down on Jan. 18.Initially, he conceded defeat but a week ago he rejected the results and called for a fresh vote in a move that was widely condemned. His party is now challenging the result in Gambia's Supreme Court.Johnson Sirleaf's remarks follow a mission to Gambia this week accompanied by the leaders of several West African countries including Nigeria and Ghana, whose President John Mahama lost a Dec. 7 election and said he would step down. REUTERS VS AS1833 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0440-1069908.Xml
- Syrian rebels accused Iran and its Shi'ite-backed militias on Saturday of holding up a deal to evacuate civilians trapped in the remaining rebel bastion in Aleppo.Munir al Sayal, the head of the political wing of the Ahrar al Sham rebel group involved in negotiations over the deal, said Iran was insisting people be allowed to leave two besieged Shi'ite villages before letting the Aleppo evacuation happen. He said Russia was failing to restrain its ally."Iran and its sectarian proxies are using the humanitarian situation of our people in besieged Aleppo and preventing civilians from leaving until the evacuation of their groups in Foua and Kefyra," Sayal told Reuters.reuters cj shk 2033 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0400-1070250.Xml
Mali's national assembly has overwhelmingly voted to drop charges of high treason against former president Amadou Toumani Toure in a decision that should allow him to return from exile in Senegal.The move late on Friday was expected given that President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita often praises Toure. It advances the rehabilitation of a former leader widely seen as having helped to establish democracy in the West African country."I confirm the abandonment of the charges against him was adopted by the majority of deputies," said Mamadou Diarrassouba of the ruling RPM party on Saturday. Toure has not made clear whether he intends to play any further role in Mali's politics.Colonel Toure came to power in a revolution in 1991 and presided over a rapid transition before handing power to President Alpha Oumar Konare a year later after the country's first multi-party election.Konare promoted him to the rank of general but he resigned from the army and won elections in 2002 and 2007. He was deposed shortly before he was due to leave power in 2012 at a time when separatists and Islamist militants seized the country's north.French forces drove the separatists and militants back a year later but militants have since reorganised and launched dozens of attacks in recent months.The then-government charged Toure with high treason in 2013 for letting armed groups into the country, destroying military equipment and making dubious promotions. REUTERS CJ BL2108 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0400-1070261.Xml
BEIJING, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- China will quicken reform next year in a coordinated manner and with a focus on key areas, said a statement released Friday after the Central Economic Work Conference.

Substantial progress is expected in mixed-ownership reform -- especially in electricity, oil, natural gas, railway, civil aviation, telecommunications and military industries -- where state-owned enterprises reform can make breakthroughs.

Legislation is expected on a civil code and better protection of property rights.

Authorities will try to overturn wrong convictions concerning infringement of property rights for enterprises, and protect and support entrepreneurship.

Fiscal, taxation and financial reform will move forward in a steady and proper manner.

Efforts will be made to push the reform regarding financial governance of central and local governments and expenditure based on division of administrative responsibilities, said the statement. The draft of an overall plan for the division of revenue between central and local governments will be stepped up. The formulation of local taxation system will be quickened.

The financial supervision and regulation system will be reformed in an active, steady and proper way, and efforts will be made to deepen the reform of multi-layer capital market system.

The government will improve governance of state-owned commercial banks and push for more private banks in an orderly manner.

The old-age insurance system will be reformed.
by Maria Spiliopoulou

ATHENS, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- The 320-milion-euro (334 million U.S. dollars) agreement for the transfer of a 24-percent stake in the Greek power grid operator ADMIE from Greece's Public Power Corporation (PPC) to China's State Grid International Development (SGID) was signed here on Friday.

The Chinese company won an international tender in October 2016 and the complex sale process was completed in record time, PPC chairman and CEO Manolis Panagiotakis noted during the signing ceremony.

Greek environment and energy minister Giorgos Stathakis celebrated the deal's having moved one step further, cementing the close economic relations between Greece and China, Greek national news agency AMNA reported.

Addressing the event, Greek officials welcomed the "strategic partnership", stressing that Chinese investors had once again cast a vote of confidence in the prospects of the company and in Greece.

ADMIE has major technological potential, an excellent workforce and plans to expand its network, Panagiotakis said.

In early 2017, a PPC shareholders' meeting will form the "Pubic Holding Company ADMIE" to which the operator's shares will be transferred.

At the end of the process, the Greek state will own 51 percent of ADMIE shares, SGID 24 percent, and other investors the remaining 25 percent. (1 euro=1.05 U.S. dollar)
PRAGUE, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- The percentage of Czechs showing their trust to President Milos Zeman rose to 56 percent in December, after hitting a year low level of 48 percent in November, according to a poll on Friday.

According to the poll, released by the Czech Center for Public Opinion Research (CVVM), the percentage of Czech respondents showing their trust to government increased to 39 percent, up four percent from the previous month.

More than three-fifths of the pollees said they trusted Czech mayors and municipal councilors.

Meanwhile, 27 percent of those surveyed showed their trust to the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of the bicameral parliament of the country, and 30 percent to the Senate.
HELSINKI, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- Finnish government confirmed on Friday that illegal residents in the country have the right for "necessary subsistence and care" from public funds.

The policy guidelines published on Friday determines that "residents without authorization" will be given "emergency accommodation" that will also include food and necessary medication.

The ruling is based on the Seventh Chapter of the Finnish constitution that assures basic care.

Municipalities have been urging a government policy to be defined. In practice, municipalities face an acute situation concerning the asylum seekers, and several municipalities have worked out their own criteria. For example, some municipalities have paid half of what a legal resident would get and only for four days at a time.

Currently, there are some 11,000 persons in Finland with negative asylum decisions.

While the government was slow in giving guidelines, the Minister of the Interior Paula Risikko said earlier that she thought the assistance "should be less" than what the standard Finnish municipal subsistence would give.

Legislative work will begin in 2017 to define what is the actual level of the service for illegal residents.

The government announcement on Friday had been delayed for weeks as there had been political pressure within the coalition in favor of stricter treatment, and some populist politicians simply said no assistance should be given.

However, during the delay, many people and organizations showed a different attitude towards illegal residents regarding whether they should have access to necessities. For example, this week the Chief Doctors of University Clinics for Children published a statement in leading newspapers that children in need of medical help would be treated in their clinics irrespective of their status as a resident.
A Syrian government soldier walks past a ruin in the city of Aleppo in northern Syria, Sept. 12, 2016. Shelling could still be heard on Monday afternoon in the eastern rebel-held areas of Aleppo, just hours ahead of a planned ceasefire mediated by the United States and Russia. (Xinhua/Yang Zhen)

UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- In an operation that started on Thursday and continued into Friday morning, thousands of people were evacuated from Aleppo, including 194 patients who were evacuated with assistance from the Syria Arab Red Crescent, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the United Nations, a UN spokesman told reporters here on Friday.

"They were brought to hospitals in Idlib, western rural Aleppo and to Turkey, with the support of humanitarian health partners in Gaziantep," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. "The evacuation of wounded and civilians from the besieged enclave of eastern Aleppo city was unfortunately suspended by the Syrian authorities earlier on Friday."

"The UN urged the parties to take all necessary measures to allow safe resumption of the evacuations," Dujarric said, adding that it is estimated that a high number of vulnerable people, including wounded, children remain in desperate conditions.

There are reports of children trapped in basements for days, sending pleas for safety, he noted.

"The UN and partners in Idlib have prepositioned supplies and are ready to provide assistance to all those in need and evacuated from eastern Aleppo," he said. "The United Nations stands ready to support the evacuation process by providing protection through its presence, and we have communicated this clearly to the parties."
MANILA, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has said he is unfazed by the decision of the United States aid agency to cut a multi-million-USD aid to the Philippines over concerns on "rule of law and civil liberties."

"We'll be glad to lose it," Duterte told reporters on Friday in Singapore before taking the flight back to the Philippines, adding that he is not bothered at all by the decision of the Millennium Challenge Corporation not to renew its grant amounting to 430 million U.S. dollars.

Duterte urged the U.S. poverty reduction aid agency to pack and leave the country.

"I also suggest that they start packing. Pact your things and leave maybe in six months or so," Duterte said.

Duterte said Filipinos will not go hungry without the U.S. aid.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the aid agency said it had "deferred" a vote on the resection of the Philippines for compact development, "subject to a further review of concerns around rule of law and civil liberties."

Earlier, Philippine Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay slammed the U.S. for imposing conditions.

"If they would really like to help us on the basis of our need, they should give it to us without any conditions," Yasay told reporters in Singapore.

Yasay, who accompanied Duterte on a state visit to Singapore, appealed to the aid agency "to try to reconsider" its decision.

"This has always been our appeal to America. Treat us with mutual respect, and treat us as a sovereign equal," he said.

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia also said he "wouldn't lose sleep" over the non-renewed aid.

The MCC is an independent aid agency created by the U.S. Congress in 2004. It supports developing countries address human rights, poverty and corruption through good governance.
Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attend a joint press conference at Abe's official residence in Tokyo, Japan, Dec. 16, 2016. (Xinhua Photo)

TOKYO, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- Japan and Russia on Friday wrapped up a two-day summit between their top leaders but failed again to make breakthrough in a long-held sovereignty dispute which has been a major stumbling block for bilateral relations.

Putin, the first Russian president who paid a visit to Japan for a bilateral meeting in the past 11 years, met Abe in the Japanese prime minister's home prefecture of Yamaguchi and then in Tokyo for talks on territorial dispute, peace treaty issues as well as economic cooperation.

Russia and Japan have not signed a peace treaty formalizing the end of World War II mainly due to a territory row over four small islands in the Pacific which are called the Northern Territories in Japan and the Southern Kurils in Russia.

The two sides agreed to start consultations on joint economic activities on the four disputed islands held by Russia but claimed byJapan, saying that it would mark an important step towards reaching a postwar peace treaty between the two countries that will formally end WWII, according to a press statement released by the two governments after their leaders' meeting.

Observers here, however, have noted that no progress seems to have been made over the dispute on sovereignty of the islands, withJapan still insisting the islands are its inherent territory, while Russia urging Japan to recognize the outcome of war.

Putin stressed at a joint press conference with Abe on Friday the legitimacy of Russia's acquiring for the four Pacific islands following the WWII, though agreeing on the importance of a peace treaty.

"There are security issues," Putin said. "We have two naval bases in Vladivostok, from where our ships go out to the Pacific....We'd like the Japanese side to take all these concerns into account."

"It would be naive to think we can solve this problem in an hour," Putin said, adding that the isles row can not be solved soon.

Abe, who has been eager to make a breakthrough to the issue, brought down his tune Friday, saying that "concluding a peace treaty that has not been concluded in more than 70 years is not easy," though still vowing continued efforts to push forward the issue.

The two sides stressed that joint activities on the disputed islands will be held "under a special framework" so that it won't "infringe on the sovereignty positions of either side," and consultations on such a framework will be launched.

The lack of progress has caused disappointment and dissatisfaction among many Japanese whose hopes for solving the territorial issue has been boosted by Abe's show of determination earlier.

Toshihiro Nikai, secretary general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, has been quoted by the Kyodo News as saying that most people were disappointed and the party shouldn't be "pleased with this level of things."

"Japan has regarded it as an opportunity to solve the territorial disputes on the four Pacific islands. But Putin did not cave in. Japangained nothing in this aspect," said Ling Xingguang, emeritus professor of Fukui Prefectural University.

Another focal point of the Abe-Putin summit is economic cooperation between the two countries, which has not been much in the past according to Putin.

Japan, for its part, has hoped to lure Russia to make concessions on territorial issues with economic cooperation and Japanese investment especially in Far East area of Russia.

Putin said that both the Russian and the Japanese government agencies would work out new agreements in investment, tax and labor spheres.

But he dismissed the notion that he was only interested in getting economic benefits from Japan, saying that the most important thing for him is to sign a peace agreement "because that would create the conditions for long-term cooperation."

He said that he hoped cooperation between the two countries on the islands "will contribute to creating a favorable atmosphere for the continuation of negotiations on the conclusion of a peace treaty".

The two sides signed here a total of 80 documents, including 68 private sector deals. The total contribution from Japan in terms of loans and investment was reportedly valued at about 300 billion yen (2.5 billion U.S. dollars), according to local media..

Japanese companies, however, despite the pressure from government, are said to be concerned over the uncertainties of business environment in Russia amid the Japanese sanctions and some of the deals announced here are "less than what they seem," according to sources close to the matter.

Japan slapped sanctions on Russia along with its western allies following Russia's takeover of Crimea.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (L) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) attend a Japanese-Russian business dialogue meeting in Tokyo, Japan, Dec. 16, 2016. (Xinhua/Ma Ping)
NICOSIA, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU) will be an active party at an upcoming conference in Geneva which is convened to put its seal on an accord for the reunification of Cyprus, the Cypriot government said on Friday.

Government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides said in a statement to Cypriot state television that EU participation will be confirmed when the two-day European summit in Brussels concludes.

Since Cyprus will continue to be an EU member after a solution, the EU should be a party in the discussions, the statement said.

Christodoulides said that EU will be represented by European Council President Donald Tusk and European Commission President Jean-Claude Junker.

"It is very important that the EU will be present at this crucial and historic moment for the Republic of Cyprus and it is prepared to assume its share of the responsibility towards a member state," Christodoulides said.

The conference on Jan. 12 will follow a three-day round of negotiations between the Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci, who will try to wrap up an agreement on all pending internal issues under negotiation in the past 18 months.

The conference will deal with security arrangements and a demand by Cyprus to terminate the system of guarantees accorded to Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom when the eastern Mediterranean island became a state in 1960.

Turkey occupied a sizeable part of Cyprus in 1974 in reaction to a coup inspired by the military rulers of Greece. The Turkish Cypriot leader would like the conference to be only attended by the three guarantor powers and the two Cypriot community leaders.

Akinci had indicated that the EU would be present as an observer.

But EU sources were quoted by the Cypriot state television as saying that it would be ridiculous and out of the question to have the two highest EU officials at the conference without a substantive role in ensuring that an agreement will be in line with the EU acquis.

"We are fully ready for Geneva," said the commission's spokesman Margaritis Schinas.

Anastasiades said that he would also like all five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council to be present at the conference as the council will be called to give its approval and guarantee a solution.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- Major U.S. intelligence leaders have expressed support for an assessment by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) that Russia intervened in the 2016 U.S. presidential election partly to help Donald Trump win the White House, local media reported Friday.

In a message to the agency's workforce, CIA Director John Brennan said that he met separately with Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation James Comey and Director of the National Intelligence (DNI)James Clapper earlier this week, and "there is strong consensus among us on the scope, nature, and intent of Russian interference in our presidential election."

"The three of us also agree that our organizations, along with others, need to focus on completing the thorough review of this issue that has been directed by President Barack Obama and which is being led by the DNI," the Washington Post quoted Brennan's message as saying.

However, the U.S. intelligence community didn't think Russia had a "single purpose" by doing so, said the report.

Earlier this month, outgoing President Obama ordered a full review of the Russian hackings before he leaves office, expecting it would provide "a comprehensive and best guess as to those motivations."

However, President-elect Trump has consistently dismissed the CIA findings about the Russian hacking, describing them "ridiculous" and hinting the White House only bothered to look into the matter now that he has won the presidency.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said on Wednesday that the president had known about the hackings prior to the election, but refrained from acting on it to avoid being seen as meddling in the election.

The New York Times reported Wednesday that hacker groups linked to the Russian government have been actively trying to obtain information from the Democratic National Committee of the United States since last year.

Trump's rant came as a deep rift between Trump and the establishment widened regarding their stance on Russia.

Trump on Tuesday nominated Exxon Mobile CEO Rex Tillerson, who is known to have close ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as his state secretary. The nomination faces potential hurdles in Congress, with members of Trump's Republican Party threatening to vote against it.

At a news conference during the presidential campaign in July, Trump encouraged Russia to hack his rival Democrat Hillary Clinton's email system and reveal the contents.

"I will tell you this, Russia: if you're listening, I hope you're able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing," said Trump, referring to half of the emails deleted from Clinton's private email server as she claimed they merely contained personal information.

The Trump team later characterized that remark as a joke.

Related:

Obama says Clinton not treated fairly by media during election

WASHINGTON, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama said Friday that Democratic Presidential nominee Hillary Clinton was not treated fairly by the media surrounding the Russian hacking incident. Full story

Obama vows to take action on alleged Russian hacking

WASHINGTON, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama on Thursday vowed to take actions against Russia for its alleged cyberattacks in the U.S. presidential election. Full story

White House, Trump team clash over alleged Russian hacking
An Afghan security force member inspects the site of an armed attack in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Dec. 17, 2016. Five female airport workers along with a driver were killed after gunmen fired bullets on their vehicle in Kandahar city, capital of Afghanistan's southern province of Kandahar, on Saturday, sources said. (Xinhua/Manan Arghand)

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Five female airport workers along with a driver were killed after gunmen fired bullets on their vehicle in Kandahar city, capital of Afghanistan's southern province of Kandahar, on Saturday, sources said.

"The firing occurred at around 5:30 a.m. local time in Deh Khoja locality of the city. The victims were travelling to office before their minibus came under attack in the city, 450 km south of Kabul, capital of Afghanistan," Samim Khpalwak, provincial government spokesman, told Xinhua.

The attackers fled the scene shortly after the firing and an investigation has been launched into the incident.

He said a pursuit operation has been launched against the fleeing rebels.

No group or individual have claimed of responsibility so far. However, the official blamed "the enemies of peace and stability", a term referring to Taliban militants, for the attack.

The Taliban outfit had banned education for girls and confined women in house during its six-year reign collapsed in late 2001.

Violence has been on the rise since the drawdown of foreign military forces over the past two years as the Afghan security forces struggle against a surge in attacks by anti-government fighters.
BANGKOK, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- A cabinet reshuffle under Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha was announced on Friday night, which is the fourth change in his government since 2014.

Prayut, a former army chief, came into power after a bloodless coup in 2014.

According to the announcement published in the Royal Gazette, Prayut switched or appointed 12 ministers and deputy ministers. The highest-level changes were the country's justice, education and industry ministers.

Former Education Minister Dapong Ratanasuwan and Former Justice Minister Paiboon Koom were earlier named by King Maha Vajiralongkorn as privy councilors.

Deputy education minister Teerakiat Jareonsettasin was appointed as education minister, and minister of Prime Minister's Office Suwaphan Tanyuvardhana became the new justice minister.

There are five newcomers to the cabinet, according to Thai media Bangkok Post. They are Veerasak Futrakul who became deputy foreign minister, Chutima Boonyaprapas deputy agriculture and cooperatives minister Pichit Akarathit who became deputy transport minister, Sonthirat Sonthijirawong who became deputy commerce minister and Uttama Savanayana who is the new industry minister.

The reshuffle was approved on Thursday and announced on Friday night. The changes take effect immediately.
The delegates of the Philippines Coast Guard (PCG) and the China Coast Guard (CCG) sign agreement during their first meeting in Manila, Philippines, on Dec. 16, 2016. (Xinhua Photo)

MANILA, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines Coast Guard(PCG) and the China Coast Guard (CCG) agreed to strengthen cooperation and mutual trust in certain maritime issues, according to a joint statement released on Friday in Manila.

The PCG and CCG held the first meeting on Thursday and Friday in Manila, discussing the establishment of the Joint Coast GuardCommittee (JCGC) as the initial cooperation platform for both sides.

The statement said the JCGC, once established, will serve as a venue for both Coast Guards to strengthen mutual trust, deepen confidence, intensify communications and exchange, enhance friendly cooperation based on equality, reciprocity, and consensus.

Both sides had a friendly exchange of views on the establishment of the JCGC, including the principles of the organizational structure, terms of references, and operational procedures, the statement said.

The two sides also explored possible programs of maritime cooperation, including combating drug trafficking and other maritime crimes, marine environmental protection, maritime search and rescue, and capacity-building in related areas.

During the meeting, the two sides had a substantial discussion on an interim arrangement for a proposed hotline communication. It was also agreed to convene the second organizational meeting and the inaugural meeting of the JCGC in February 2017 in Philippines.

File photo taken on Sept. 9, 2015 shows China Coast Guard vessels attend a drill in Xiamen, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Zhang Guojun)
BANGKOK, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Sangkhalok ceramics, an ancient product of the Silk Road and a combination of both Chinese and Thai cultures, are now being manufactured again and are winning new-found popularity due to the ceramics' unique colors and motifs.

Forty years ago, a Thai farmer came across some ancient ceramic wares with distinctive detailing while he was plowing his fields.

The farmer, Prasert Mahothorn, was mesmerized by the vivid blue color and detailed patterns featuring fish and flowers. After that he devoted himself to studying the ancient techniques used to produce such spellbinding and beguiling artifacts.

The Sangkhalok ceramics originally uncovered by Prasert can be dated back to the Sukhothai Kingdom period (1238-1583) and the Ayutthaya kingdom period (1351-1767).

In the 1970s, more than 200 kilns were also found in the Si Satchanalai region, adjacent to Sukhothai city.

Locals set up a private museum to collect the excavated ceramic wares from this area and an entire village specializing on manufacturing new Sangkhalok ceramics emerged.

In a studio packed with Chinese porcelain, 72-year old Prasert told Xinhua that these delicate artifacts are exceedingly beautiful and that it was their beauty that drove him to learn how to make these ceramics when he was younger.

Imitating the motifs found on authentic ancient ceramic artifacts and combining them with other patterns he learned from books, Prasert's works, with their unique style, won him some Thai businesspeople as customers.

Once his business had become successful, Prasert set up a studio to teach his family members and residents of the village the technique of making Sangkhalok ceramics.

Though there is a local museum, most of the excavated ceramic artifacts are now kept by the Southeast Asian Ceramics Museum of Bangkok University, which now boasts a collection of more than 16,000 ancient ceramic wares, and is the the biggest such collection in Thailand.

Ceramics from ancient China arrived in Thailand by Silk Road trade routes and inspired the Thai craftsmen at the time. The local craftsmen at the time went on to imitate the Chinese technique of manufacturing and thus Sangkhalok ceramics were born, explained Pariwat Thammapreechakorn, curator of the Southeast Asian Ceramics Museum.

"There were ceramics indigenous to ancient Thailand but these original ceramics cannot compete with Chinese ones in terms of technique or popularity around the world. That's why ancient Thai craftsmen decided to imitate the technique of Chinese ceramics, especially Longquan celadon from the Song Dynasty (960-1279)," said Pariwat.

The meaning of "Sangkhalok" is still uncertain. Some Thai scholars believe "Sang" may refer to the Song Dynasty of China, while others believe Sangkhalok was the then Chinese or Japanese inaccurate pronunciation of "Sawankhalok", a popular name in the city of Si satchanalai, according to Thai history.

Though it cannot be proved that its name comes from China, the birth of Sangkhalok ceramics is certainly closely connected with Chinese history.

During China's Tang Dynasty (618-907), a large number of Chinese ceramics, the main products of the maritime silk road, were exported to Southeast Asia. When it came to the Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368), China's blue and white porcelain was leading the world of fashion. The porcelain was not only a treasure of the then royal family and aristocracies of Thailand, but also used as sacred items in religious rituals.

However, the following Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) imposed a sea ban policy that restricted private maritime trading and coastal settlement, which led to a huge decrease of Chinese ceramics in global markets and thus encouraged Thai craftsmen to copy the technique of the Chinese.

It was a golden age for Sangkhalok ceramics. However, when the Ming court decided to end the sea ban policy in 1567, and also due to some other reasons, the manufacturing of Sangkhalok ceramics was stopped and the artifacts lost, until people found them in recent decades.

Many experts said the Sukhothai Kingdom sent men to China and brought Chinese craftsmen back with them to teach the technique of making ceramics, so there are patters on some Sangkhalok ceramics that are very similar to Chinese traditional patterns.

Pariwat argued that there is no record of any Chinese craftsmen setting up a kiln in Thai history, and although both Sangkhalok ceramics and Chinese blue and white porcelain have patterns of flowers, birds and fish, there are obvious differences because Thai craftsmen added their own understanding and depictions of nature to their work.

He said that Thais imitating Chinese ceramics reflects ancient Thais' craving for delicateness and civilization.

Nowadays, the Southeast Asian Ceramics Museum, together with Chinese experts, has held several seminars on ceramics trade from the end of the Yuan Dynasty to the beginning of the Ming Dynasty in Thailand.

Prasert's village has become the only one in Thailand devoting itself to the art of making Sangkhalok ceramics.

According to Prasert, there are about 40 families manufacturing Sangkhalok ceramics there and their products have been sold to different provinces of Thailand and also to foreign countries, as was the case in ancient times.
For China and the world to witness stronger economic growth next year, one thing is needed: stability. (Xinhuanet file photo)

BEIJING, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- For China and the world to witness stronger economic growth next year, one thing is needed: stability.

For an international market trapped in fluctuations during a year of surprising events, a new direction in 2017 is a must, something discussed at a recently ended annual economic policy meeting in Beijing.

"Seeking progress while maintaining stability" was the main theme of this year's Central Economic Work Conference, according to a statement released by the conference on Friday. Economic priorities for 2017 were also be hammered out.

With a gross domestic product (GDP) accounting for over 15 percent of the global total, China's growth at 6.7 percent in the third quarter, or between 6.5 percent and 7 percent annually, represents a natural and significant contribution to global economic stability.

That is true more than ever since the International Monetary Fund in October revised down global growth to 3.1 percent for 2016 and 3.4 percent for 2017.

Moreover, the spillover of China's new economic policies will be strongly felt in the ongoing joint construction of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, which will see development of countries along its route.

STABILITY WITH CONTINUED SUPPLY-SIDE STRUCTURAL REFORM

In combination with the growth trend in the second half of 2016, the important messages Chinese policymakers convey at the key annual economic conference will highlight a clear reform course for the world's second largest economy.

Stability is a prerequisite for reforms, commented Margit Molnar, head of the China Desk of the Economics Department of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Having dealt with such flashpoints like the asset bubble and local government debt, China will help prevent systematic risks, creating conditions for continuing the supply-side structural reform, he told Xinhua.

The economic work conference has maintained supply-side structural reform as necessary for stable growth, with a continued focus on upgrading the country's economic structure.

Reforms which focus on expanding effective supply in a dynamic supply-demand equilibrium, will promote stability, said Zhao Yao, professor with the business school of Rutgers University in the United States.

LONG-TERM MOVES TO COOL DOWN REAL ESTATE

Homes are for living in rather than speculation, the conference stressed, proposing to use financial, land, taxation, investment and other instruments to establish a fundamental and long-term system to curb real estate bubbles and market volatilities.

Guo Shengxiang, dean of the Australian think tank Academy of APEC Creative Finance, described the idea as "forward-looking".

"It will be a good news, to stabilize the market, improve people's well-being and facilitate the development of the real economy," he said.

The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corp. (HKSB) believes measures to cool down real estate will not thwart China's economic recovery.

Without a complete tightening of monetary policy, the impact of government regulations could be neutralized by infrastructure investment with financail support, it said.

PRUDENT AND NEUTRAL MONETARY POLICY AGAINST RISKS

The conference defines China's monetary policies for 2017 as "prudent and neutral", promising better adjustments to ensure stable liquidity.

Monetary policymaking should adapt to changes in the use of money supply tools, and further efforts are needed for smoother policy transmission, it said.

China will keep the yuan basically stable, while improving the flexibility of exchange rates.

"The stance shows the government is trying to find a subtle balance between stabilizing growth and controlling asset bubbles," noted Hong Hao, chief China strategist at BOCOM International.

Earlier, a Standard Chartered Bank report predicted financial and monetary policy instruments available to the Chinese government would suffice to support China's growth in the coming years.

Related:

China to accelerate key reforms in 2017

BEIJING, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- China will quicken reform next year in a coordinated manner and with a focus on key areas, said a statement released Friday after the Central Economic Work Conference.
Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang (R) shakes hands with his Russian counterpart Yury Trutnev, also presidential envoy to Russia's Far Eastern Federal District, during the second council meeting of regional cooperation between China's northeastern provinces and Russia's Far East in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 20, 2016. (Xinhua/Ding Lin)

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- Russia's development strategy for its Far East in recent years has yielded opportunities for local cooperation with China and for investment from Chinese enterprises.

The deepened China-Russia political ties and mutually complementary markets, among other factors, have also contributed to a broad prospect for win-win cooperation between the border regions of the two neighbors.

This is believed to be the consideration that has led to a recent visit here by a Chinese business delegation, along with massive investment and cooperation projects.



PRAGMATIC TRIP

The delegation included representatives from more than 10 big Chinese corporations, including the state-owned food giant COFCO.

Notably, entrepreneurs from both northeast China and the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen took part in the trip to Russia's Primorsky Territory.

They aimed to expand local cooperation with China's northeastern provinces, and to introduce the new concept in administrative regulation of the Shenzhen special economic zone, said He Zhenwei, secretary-general of the China Overseas Development Association, which co-sponsored the trip.

Primorsky officials discussed investment projects with and briefed the delegation on local preferential policies for foreign investors in Russia's Advanced Development Territories, among others.

Yuri Trutnev, Russia's deputy prime minister and presidential envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District, said the massive arrival of major Chinese businessmen with specific projects is a good sign for local economic development.

"We have already come to the point where discussions have been completed and projects found to satisfy both sides. In the future we expect to start the practical implementation of these projects," Primorsky Vice Governor Evgeny Polyansky told Xinhua.



PROMISING OUTLOOK

According to COFCO Vice President Chi Jingtao, the company is ready to open a branch in the Far Eastern port city of Vladivostok.

Its investment will be focused on a farm produce and food processing plant, which is expected to supply products for the Russian, Chinese and international markets.

Developing high-end tourism and commercial real estate at the cultural and tourist attractions of Russia's Far East is the other major part of the company's investment plan.

The development of the Slavyanka port is expected to be a major project for Lukang Fazhan, a construction company of ports and roads based in Changchun, capital of China's northeastern province of Jilin.

The company's long-term goal is to build a China-Russia intermodal logistics center in the port area, on the shipment route of goods from South China to Central Europe.

Guo Wei, a Chinese finance corporation, plans to build an exhibition center in Vladivostok to host the annual Eastern Economic Forum, while contributing to the development of a local tourist complex.

For the seafood company Venlian from Dalian, in China's Liaoning Province, it is part of a business plan to invest in a seafood processing plant and a refrigeration and logistics center in Primorsky, providing high-quality seafood products to Chinese markets.



NEW COOPERATION MODEL

With the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination between China and Russia, bilateral political exchanges and cooperation have reached a high level.

In the field of trade and economic cooperation, the two countries have planned to increase trade turnover to 200 billion U.S. dollars by 2020

According to He, the first investment of a China-Russia fund for regional development in the amount of 10 billion yuan (1.43 billion dollars) will be sent to Russia's Far East to attract Chinese enterprises and stimulate the construction of a free trade zone in the region.

In the meantime, for the realization of large joint cooperation projects, assistance will be provided during the companies' registration process, as well as for finding partners and legal advice.

"The main aim of the visit of the Chinese delegation to Russia is to explore a new model of economic and trade cooperation between China and Russia," He said.
GARDEZ, Afghanistan, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Security forces have killed 19 militants over the past seven days in Zarmat district of the eastern Paktia province, district governor Kaptan Ekhlas said Saturday.

"The operations were launched in Zarmat district one week ago and concluded last night; 19 rebels were killed and two others injured in the operations," Ekhlas told Xinhua.

"The armed militants have fled the area and law and order have been retorted to Zarmat district," the official asserted.

However, he admitted that mine blasts by militants had claimed the lives of eight civilians, including women and children, during the operations.

Meanwhile, Zabihullah Majahid, who claims to speak for the Taliban outfit, in contact with media confirmed the fighting in Zarmat district, but added only four Taliban fighters had been killed in the conflict which is still going on.
Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attend a joint press conference at Abe's official residence in Tokyo, Japan, Dec. 16, 2016. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that the isles row between Russia and Japan can not be solved soon. (Xinhua)

BEIJING, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The summit between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin ended not in a way Abe had expected despite Abe's strong desire to make headway on the long-standing territorial issue.

"All in all, the Abe administration has suffered big loss as what the Japanese side expected is mostly not achieved," said Zhao Hongwei, a professor with the Tokyo-based Hosei University.

"The Abe-Putin talks concluded with an eight-point economic cooperation agreement. However, there's no result on the territorial dispute, which the Abe administration hoped to solve," Zhao said.

Eager to leave a diplomatic legacy over the territorial disputes over the four small islands in the Pacific, which are called the Northern Territories in Japan and the Southern Kurils in Russia, Abe had pinned high hopes on the summit and expected some concrete results.

The Japanese prime minister had tried hard to win concessions from Moscow through various diplomatic maneuvers including playing economic card and hosting Putin to hot springs.

To seek a thaw with Moscow, he didn't even insist on Japan's previous stance that it won't cooperate economically with Russia unless progress is made on their territorial issue.

But Putin maintained a tough stance on the territorial issue, which has prevented the two nations from formally signing a peace treaty since the end of WWII.

At a joint press conference with Abe on Friday, Putin stressed the legitimacy of Russian control of the four Pacific islands following WWII, though agreeing on the importance of a peace treaty.

"There are security issues," Putin said. "We have two naval bases in Vladivostok, from where our ships go out to the Pacific. ... We'd like the Japanese side to take all these concerns into account."

"It would be naive to think we can solve this problem in an hour," Putin said, adding that the isles row cannot be solved soon.

"Japan has regarded it (the summit) as an opportunity to solve the territorial disputes on the four Pacific islands. But Putin did not cave in. Japan gained nothing in this aspect," said Ling Xingguang, president of China-Japan Relations Research Institute, a professor emeritus at Fukui Prefectural University.

Valery Kistanov, head of the Center for Japanese Studies of the Institute of Far Eastern Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, said that there has been no breakthrough related to the peace treaty.

"Japan is playing the economic card in order to reach a political rapprochement. It lies on the surface, as they do not hide the fact that the economic cooperation package reflects Abe's desire to use it as a lever to influence Russia, especially in the conditions when Russia's economic situation is not very good," said the expert.

Abe believes that Putin will appreciate a helping hand from Japan, and that he will agree to meet the territorial wishes of the Japanese. But Russia believes that it should not exchange one for the other, as the two are completely different things, said Kistanov.

The summit has caused disappointment among many Japanese whose hopes for solving the territorial issue were fanned up by Abe's enthusiasm.

"We have to keep in mind that most of people were disappointed," Toshihiro Nikai, secretary-general of Abe's Liberal Democratic Party, told reporters in Tokyo.

In addition to domestic dissatisfaction, Abe also needs to carefully handle the discomfort the summit has caused on Japan's Western allies.

As the first leader among the Group of Seven (G7) most industrialized countries to receive Putin for an official visit since Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, Abe has irked Japan's major ally -- the United States. Washington is feuding with Moscow over Syria and Crimea, although Japanese diplomats have sought to ease U.S. concerns.

Washington has expressed displeasure with the Abe-Putin summit on a number of occasions in November, voicing concern that the meeting could send the wrong message that the G7 bloc is not totally united in pressuring Moscow.

Related:

Russia-Japan territory dispute "not to be solved soon": Putin

TOKYO, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that the isles row between Russia and Japan can not be solved soon.
TEHRAN, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Foreign ministers from Iran, Russia, and Turkey will likely meet in the Russian capital of Moscow on Dec. 27 to discuss the situation in Syria following the recent developments in the Arab state, local media reported on Saturday quoting Foreign Ministry spokesman as saying.

"Our Foreign Minister has done his utmost effort to finalize the meeting of Foreign ministers of Iran, Russia, and Turkey in Moscow on Dec. 27," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi according to official IRNA news agency.

The meeting would seek to find effective ways to deal with the ongoing situation in Syria, he said, adding that Iran has been the first to propose ceasefire in the Arab state, relief aid transfer to the civilians, and dialog among the Syrians, said Qasemi.

Iran announced Friday that the Islamic republic is ready to send humanitarian aid to Syria.

Es'haq Jahangiri, Iran's First Vice President, made the remarks in a phone conversation with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, urging for Tehran-Ankara cooperation to diplomatically resolve the crisis in Syria.

Over 8,000 rebels and their families have been evacuated from their last strongholds in Syria's northern city of Aleppo since the announcement of truce on Thursday.

Nearly 15,000 people, including 4,000 rebels, were set to evacuate eastern Aleppo as part of a Russian-Turkish deal to end the presence of rebels in the city.

In exchange for the evacuation in eastern Aleppo, rebels in the northwestern province of Idlib will allow civilians to leave the besieged Shiite towns of Kafraya and Foa.

With the evacuation, the Syrian army will take over the whole Aleppo city, as it has already controlled 99 percent of the rebel-held areas in the eastern part of the city.
ANKARA, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- 13 soldiers were killed in an attack in Turkey's Kayseri, Turkish General Staff stated on Saturday.

A bus transporting soldiers was hit by an explosion near Erciyes University in the central Turkish city of Kayseri early on Saturday, killing 13 and injuring at least 48.

The blast hit the bus as it drove past a car believed to be packed with explosives.

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak said the blast was a car bomb, and it targeted the bus carrying soldiers.

Kaynak also said it resembled the attack in Besiktas in Istanbul.

Turkish General Staff said in the statement that the wounded were immediately transferred to local hospitals and there are some civilians injured by the attack.
ZHANJIANG, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese navy fleet left a port in Zhanjiang in southern China's Guangdong Province for an escort mission in the Gulf of Aden on Saturday.

This is the 25th convoy fleet sent by the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy for the missions since 2008.

The fleet is composed of two missile frigates, a supply ship, two ship-borne helicopters, dozens of special combat soldiers, and more than 700 seamen and officers.

Chinese fleets have escorted more than 6,000 ships and successfully rescued or aided more than 60 Chinese and foreign ships. They have carried out humanitarian rescue and safeguarded sea lane security.
Protesters hold candles during a rally against South Korean President Park Geun-hye in central Seoul, South Korea Dec. 10, 2016.(Xinhua/Yao Qilin)

By Yoo Seungki

SEOUL, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- South Korea has entered an initial phase of presidential race since the country's parliament overwhelmingly passed a historic bill last week to impeach scandal-scarred President Park Geun-hye.

Uncertainties remain about when and whether the constitutional court would permanently remove Park from office, but every move of potential candidates to replace Park is put on local media spotlight as voters already began looking for their next leader.

By law, the court has up to 180 days to deliberate, but its nine justices are placed under severe pressure to bring forward its final conclusion. A presidential election must be held within 60 days if the court justifies the impeachment.

The political development greased the ways for the opposition bloc. According to a Gallup Korea survey released on Friday, the main opposition Minjoo Party ranked first in approval scores at 40 percent, the highest-ever it earned.

It is the first time in 18 years that any opposition party has won so much support. The ruling Saenuri Party followed it by a wide margin with 15 percent, and the minor opposition People's Party came in third with 12 percent.

Occupying higher ranks in recent presidential polls are potential contenders in the opposition bloc, but factional strife in the governing party and the probable regrouping between opposition and ruing blocs blur the clear prospects for presidential race.

SHOWDOWN BETWEEN FORMER PARTY CHIEF AND RISING STAR

Presidential primary for the Minjoo Party is forecast to become a showdown between Moon Jae-in, the biggest opposition party's former head, and Lee Jae-myung, mayor of Seongnam, a city to the southeast of capital Seoul.

In accordance with higher popularity of their party, Moon's approval rating as presidential candidate rose to 24.0 percent, topping the polls for the seventh consecutive week, according to a Realmeter survey released on Thursday.

Entering this year in the low single digit, support for Lee skyrocketed in recent weeks and moved into a third place at 16.1 percent. Lee became a rising star in recent surveys as he was one of major politicians to participate, at the very beginning, in candlelight vigils to demand President Park's resignation.

Moon and Lee have many in common in terms of views on security, diplomatic and economic policies, but they have different merits and demerits that they may face as challenges in the upcoming primary.

They place dialogue over pressure in addressing the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s nuclear program, prefer a balanced diplomacy to avoid siding with one party, and pursue fairness and justice in the economy that has been controlled by a fraction of family-run conglomerates.

Moon may be a safe choice for liberal voters as he was the party's presidential candidate in the 2012 election, where he narrowly lost to President Park, and was chief of staff to late President Roh Moo-hyun, the country's most respected president who symbolizes the decentralized presidential power.

Moon's links with Roh had been denounced by conservatives as pro-Roh politics. His failure to defend, which caused negative awareness on such politics, may pose a challenge to Moon once again, changing the "political frame" into the pro-Moon politics.

"It was aimed at throwing me into the frame of pro-Roh and anti-Roh politics," Moon told foreign correspondents in Seoul on Thursday, saying that despite such attempts, support for him and his party rose to the highest among rival candidates and parties.

Meanwhile, Mayor Lee has a life story as dramatic as his social welfare policies during his two-term mayorship. He was born into a poor family who slashed and burned fields at a mountainous area, and moved to Seongnam to work as a teenage laborer in a paint factory.

Teenager Lee lost his sense of smell and had his left arm shattered under a machine, Lee said in an interview with Xinhua earlier this week. Despite the ordeal, he taught himself and passed the bar exam, serving as a lawyer defending labor activists and as a civic group activist supervising bureaucratic corruption.

Supporters praise Lee as a reformist politician, but detractors criticize him as a dangerous populist, which Lee may face as a challenge to gain support from conservative voters. In a country where welfare services are poorly built, even moderate social safety nets have brought strong backlashes from conservative politicians.

THIRD PLAYING FIELD, HOPE FOR CONSERVATIVES

The Minjoo Party's showdown between Moon and Lee is almost a foregone conclusion, but factional strife in the ruling Saenuri Party and shortage in popularity for the minor opposition People's Party obstruct the clear predictions for presidential race.

In last Friday's impeachment vote, nearly half of the 128 Saenuri lawmakers voted for the bill to impeach President Park. Intra-party rifts widened between pro-Park and anti-Park factions, which are pointing at each other to leave the party.

The People's Party, which is mostly composed of former Minjoo Party members who defected after a cut-and-thrust factional battle, gained 38 parliamentary seats in the April general elections, but the problem is that it suffers from a dearth of public support to win presidency.

Ahn Cheol-soo of the People's Party, a software mogul-turned-politician who once led the less-than-a-year-old party, has a support score of 8.5 percent, about half the third place. Ahn, the rising star in the 2012 presidential election, threw support behind Moon, but he bolted from the Minjoo Party to take his own line.

One of likelihoods is that the People's Party and the Saenuri's anti-Park faction form a coalition in the upcoming presidential election, opening a so-called "third playing field" where non-mainstreamers in both ruling and opposition blocs compete to field a single candidate.

Rep. Kim Moo-sung, who is known to lead the anti-Park clan, said Friday that he would deliberate for a week on whether to create a new party, according to Yonhap news agency report. Kim, who was once one of powerful presidential hopefuls in the ruling bloc, had declared his withdrawal from candidacy.

The greatest variable is Ban Ki-moon, outgoing UN Secretary-General, whose choice could bring about a three-way or even a four-way race as seen in the 1987 presidential election. His two, five-year terms in the top UN post is scheduled to end by year-end.

The career diplomat has never officially declared an ambition to run for president in his home country, but his candidacy has been brought up in opinion polls as his post is believed to have raised the country's stature.

Ban, who once topped presidential surveys, saw his approval scores decline in tandem with President Park's fall as he is known to be close to Park and her party. Still, he maintains the second place in recent polls.

The 73-year-old is seen as the only remaining hope for conservative voters as there is no distinguished contender in the ruling bloc for the presidential race.

If Ban declares his candidacy in the pro-Park faction, the presidential election would be turned into a three-way race competing with candidates from the Minjoo Party and the third playing field. If he opts to create his own party, the four-way race could come, and there remains a possibility for him to join the third playing field.

Related:

S.Korean presidential frontrunner pledges dialogue with DPRK leader, reset with Japan

SEOUL, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- A South Korean frontrunner in recent presidential polls pledged dialogue with Kim Jong Un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), the resetting of relations with unrepentant Japan and robust alliance with the United States.
An Afghan security force member inspects the site of an armed attack in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Dec. 17, 2016. (Xinhua/Manan Arghand)

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Five female airport workers along with a driver were killed after gunmen fired bullets on their vehicle in Kandahar city, capital of Afghanistan's southern province of Kandahar, on Saturday, sources said.

"The firing occurred at around 5:30 a.m. local time in Deh Khoja locality of the city. The victims were travelling to office before their minibus came under attack in the city, 450 km south of Kabul, capital of Afghanistan," Samim Khpalwak, provincial government spokesman, told Xinhua.

The attackers fled the scene shortly after the firing and an investigation has been launched into the incident.

He said a pursuit operation has been launched against the fleeing rebels.

No group or individual have claimed of responsibility so far. However, the official blamed "the enemies of peace and stability", a term referring to Taliban militants, for the attack.

The Taliban outfit had banned education for girls and confined women in house during its six-year reign collapsed in late 2001.

Violence has been on the rise since the drawdown of foreign military forces over the past two years as the Afghan security forces struggle against a surge in attacks by anti-government fighters.
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Halal food industry is welcome here in Brunei, a government official has said.

Dato Mohd Amin Liew, Brunei's deputy minister of finance, told Xinhua Friday that Brunei is looking forward to close cooperation in Halal food industry with foreign countries, including China.

"We look at especially Brunei Halal food as our strength. Foreign companies like Chinese companies can capitalize on our Halal certification here in Brunei and make it easier for them to export halal products overseas from here," the official said.

"We already have Gahnim International to establish a number of overseas markets with different foreign partners," Dato Mohd Amin Liew, who is also chairman of Ghanim International Corporation Board of Directors, added.

According to its website, Ghanim International "develops, markets and promotes high-quality halal food products under the bruneihalalfood brand with production bases and reliable suppliers across the world."

According to Nur Rahman, CEO of Ghanim International Corporation, Ghanim is one of the portals to export Halal food in Brunei.

"We are exporting into different markets, including China. And we are working with specific partners to promote bruneihalalfood into their markets," he said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attend a joint press conference at Abe's official residence in Tokyo, Japan, Dec. 16, 2016. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that the isles row between Russia and Japan can not be solved soon. (Xinhua)

BEIJING, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wrapped up in Tokyo on Friday with some agreements on economic cooperation, but no breakthrough on the territorial issue that Japan had craved for.

At a joint press conference with Abe, Putin stressed that the issue of the disputed territories (called the Southern Kurils by Russia and the Northern Territories by Japan) is the outcome of World War II, and implied that the U.S.-Japan alliance is an impediment to a solution.

The islets and surrounding waters are important for the Russian navy's access to the Pacific, while Russia has to consider Japan's special ties with the United States, said Putin.

Putin's remarks meant something as Japanese officials had said before Putin's visit that Japan did not rule out the possibility of the deployment of two U.S. military bases on two of the four disputed islands in the future.

Actually, the United States began to impede reconciliation between Japan and the Soviet Union shortly after the end of World War II. It threatened to take Japan's Okinawa permanently if Japan reconciled with the Soviet Union.

In some sense, the non-reciprocal alliance between the United States and Japan is turning into Japan's burden. The more the Abe government does in strengthening the alliance, the smaller room for Japan's diplomacy.

On Tuesday, a U.S. Osprey aircraft crash-landed off Okinawa. When local authorities lodged a protest, angry Gen. Lawrence Nicholson, the top U.S. military commander in Okinawa, said locals should appreciate U.S. pilots' move to keep the crash-landing away from residential areas.

Although local residents frequently staged protests and called for banning the operation of Osprey aircraft, the U.S. military soon announced the resumption of the flights of Osprey, totally ignoring local resentment.

During the recent U.S. presidential election, Japanese diplomacy's excessive reliance on the U.S.-Japan alliance was completely exposed.

At the very beginning, the Abe government betted on Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, and he flew to New York to meet her in September. Yet, after the election, Abe again immediately rushed to New York to flatter President-elect Donald Trump.

All of Japan's policies against its neighbors, including Russia, China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, and South Korea, are heavily subject to U.S. global strategies.

The reason why Abe performs teeter-totter in diplomacy is that he could not climb out of the "tender trap" of the U.S.-Japan alliance.

Related:

Abe's "hot springs diplomacy" fails to deliver progress on islands row with Russia

BEIJING, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The summit between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin ended not in a way Abe had expected despite Abe's strong desire to make headway on the long-standing territorial issue.
"He never asked to be the teacher of the language; he was more called to be. He was a simple rancher at heart."

 Three Affiliated Tribes Councilman Cory Spotted Bear, discussing Edwin Benson, the last person to fluently speak the Mandan language. He died at 85.

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"He said he'd done enough now and he was tired. This language which made Dad so well-known across the world, I'm afraid it's extinct."

 Edwin Bensons daughter, Heidi Hernandez.

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"I'm never going to give them a deadline or sweep it out. We just want to make sure people are safe. If they're going to stay, they're going to stay."

 Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairman David Archambault II, on the main protest camp near Cannon Ball.

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"Long after the issues surrounding the Dakota Access Pipeline are resolved, the state and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Council must work together."

 Outgoing Gov. Jack Dalrymple.

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"It's always been a scientific kind of approach, and I was drawn to the approach of the Native Americans, which is to treat nature as sacred. Water is sacred. That's enough. All that science turns people off. It makes people feel a kind of chill, detached or objectified."

 Rob Lewis, a 56-year-old house painter from Bellingham, Wash., who has been an environmentalist his whole life, on how he thinks the Standing Rock protests have changed the movement.

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"You're either pro-DAPL or no-DAPL, and somehow it's transformed into anti-police. We're finding ourselves in the position where some are treating us as the enemy."

 North Dakota Highway Patrol Lt. Tom Iverson, on dealing with the protest movement. Iverson maintains that law enforcement has acted professionally and with restraint.

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"Our transition team is working diligently to assemble a cabinet that will position North Dakota for a bright future by making government more efficient and responsive, streamlining services and balancing the budget without raising taxes."

 Gov. Doug Burgum, in a Monday release announcing Cabinet changes.

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"Some of the things we're doing this go-around are things we should've done a long time ago. The open access and the open doors are going to change."

 Rep. Todd Porter, R-Mandan, on increased security at the Capitol.

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"We want to avoid seeing it in (the consent agenda) and having to be like, What? Where did this come from?'"

 Dot Frank, the Bismarck-Mandan Homebuilders Association's executive officer, on why the association wants to help shape local building code.

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"We need the space ready by the fall of 2018, and actually, we probably need it a little bit earlier than that."

 Bismarck Superintendent Tamara Uselman, on a $57.5 million bond issue scheduled for a March 7, 2017, vote to increase and renovate middle school and high school space.

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"It was not an easy decision. There's something different every day. I enjoy working with the livestock producers and crop producers."

 Jackie Buckley, Mandan, who is retiring from her 37-year career as an agent of the North Dakota State University Extension Service.
JALALABAD, Afghanistan, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- A total of 16 militants affiliated with Islamic State (IS) group were killed after an unmanned plane targeted their hideouts in Achin district of the eastern Nangarhar province on Friday, provincial police chief Hazrat Hussain Mashriqwal said Saturday.

The air raids, according to the official, were conducted in Abdulkhil village of Achin district Friday night during which a huge weapon cache of IS militants was also destroyed.

Militants' loyal to IS are yet to make comments on the situation.

Nangarhar province with Jalalabad city as its capital, 120 km east of Kabul, has been the scene of IS outfit's violent incidents over the past nearly one year.

Scores of IS fighters have reportedly been killed by airstrikes in the eastern Nangarhar province over the past couple of months.
KIEV, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Ukrainian government this week officially opened the bidding for building a solar farm in the devastated area around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, making a major step towards resurrecting the exclusion zone.

According to the government's plans, the solar farm with a capacity of between 1 GW and 1.2 GW is expected to generate up to 1,500 GWh of electricity per year, becoming one of Europe's largest renewable energy producers.

Although the project has initially triggered speculations that it might be unsafe to build the industrial facility at the site of one of the worst nuclear disasters in human history, the latest radiation tests showed that Chernobyl is now not as dangerous as widely perceived.

ECOLOGICAL SITUATION IMPROVES

The tests carried out this year in the 30-km zone surrounding the nuclear reactor, which melted down in 1986, showed that the radiation level in certain areas stands at only 0.12 microsieverts per hour, more than twice lower than the boundary radiation level of 0.25 microsieverts per hour.

As the ecological situation improved, the Chernobyl zone, which has been a closed area for decades, has become a tourist destination, with an estimated 15,000 people visiting it in 2015.

In August this year, the Ukrainian government has officially allowed to use the land in the area for commercial purposes, indicating that it is safe for industrial needs.

Last month, Ukraine erected a new protective cover over the destroyed No. 4 reactor, which would prevent the leakage of the radiation from the unit during the next century.

"It is a very significant stage of a comprehensive program to make Chernobyl an environmentally safe system," said Ukrainian Ecology and Natural Resources Minister Ostap Semerak.

Local ecologists also pointed out that the radiation level in the Chernobyl zone is gradually returning to normal.

"Over the past 30 years, the environmental situation has substantially improved and radiation levels have decreased. Although the exclusion zone is still unsuitable for human habitation, it is suitable for industrial needs," Denis Vishnevsky, head of Ecocenter, an ecological group for radiation monitoring in Chernobyl area, told Xinhua.

PROMISING GREEN ENERGY PROJECT

Some territories in the exclusion zone are still hazardous, but safety standards prohibit people from working in those places, Vishnevsky said.

He added that currently about 6,000 people are working in Chernobyl area and their health is out of the threat as they follow the relevant safety instructions.

"There are special regulations, which prescribe the work loading levels, the working time and the working areas to eliminate health risks," he said.

The expert noted that in terms of ecology, building a solar farm is one of the best options to turn the Chernobyl zone into an industrial facility as it will not affect the environment.

"Construction of the solar power plant is absolutely safe because it will not lead to the recovery of contaminated dust and will not increase the background radiation. The energy produced at the solar plant also will be safe for consumers," Vishnevsky said.

From the economic point of view, the project also looks promising: the power transmission infrastructure that was previously used at the Chernobyl power plant is still functioning; the land in the area is comparably cheap; and there is enough sunshine to produce electricity.

It is also noteworthy that the Chernobyl zone is located only 110 km from the Ukrainian capital of Kiev with a population of about 3 million people, who can become potential consumers for the electricity.

CHINESE COMPANIES' PARTICIPATION

Given its competitive advantages, the Chernobyl Solar Farm project has already attracted the interest of about 40 companies from around the world.

In particular, Ukraine is in talks with a tandem of two Chinese companies, China National Complete Engineering Corporation (CCEC) and Golden Concord Holdings Limited (GCL), over their participation in the project.

The construction of the farm, which is due to start next year, could see the CCEC as a master builder and GCL as a provider and installer of solar components.

According to local analysts, cooperation with Chinese companies would be a great opportunity for the Ukrainian government to develop the Chernobyl zone given China's vast achievements in energy efficiency.

"Today China is a world leader in renewable energy. While five years ago this country was focused on generating energy from coal, now it is a major producer of solar and wind energy. And China is interested in entering the Ukrainian market," said Vyacheslav Potapenko, director of the Kiev-based Institute of Green Economy.

For Chinese companies, the project could also become a good investment opportunity. With a total required investment of 1 billion U.S. dollars, the Chernobyl solar farm is expected to bring returns of at least 125 million dollars annually.

However, the project is moving beyond just profit interests. Chinese investors perceive it as a tool to boost European energy efficiency, to put Ukraine on track for the development of renewable energy, and to help people living near the exclusion zone recover from the Chernobyl catastrophe.

"We will try to restore this area, which once has suffered from the disaster, using green renewable energy. This will bring significant social and economic benefits," said Shu Hua, chairman of the GCL.
ADDIS ABABA, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopia on Saturday inaugurated a hydroelectric power plant, dubbed Gibe III Hydropower Project, with a generating capacity of 1870 MW and a total investment of 1.58 billion U.S dollars.

Located between Wolaita and Dawero zones of Southern Regional State of Ethiopia, about 450 km south-west of the capital Addis Ababa, Gibe III Hydropower project has been contracted by two international companies namely, Salini Impregilo of Italy for the civil works, and Dong Fang Electric Corp. of China for the electromechanical works.

The project, which raises Ethiopia's power generation capacity to more than 4260 MW, has been carried out with the participation of 7,000 Ethiopian workers and 700 foreigners.

A loan from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) has financed 60 percent of the cost, while the balance has been covered by the government of Ethiopia.

Officially inaugurating the project, Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn hailed the project's contribution to foreign currency earnings, social and environmental development as well as to cooperation among neighboring countries.

In addition to power generation, Hailemariam highlighted the project's contribution also to economical and social benefits for the local people.

The prime minister said the project would have significant contribution to ongoing industrialization and other development activities being carried out in the East African country.

In his remarks made at the inaugural ceremony, La Yifan, Chinese Ambassador to Ethiopia, hailed the committed leadership of the Ethiopian government to development projects, which has enabled such landmark achievement.

Reiterating that the project is the result of hard work of Ethiopians and also fruitful cooperation among the different stakeholders, the ambassador said it would significantly contribute to Ethiopia's industrialization and attracting more foreign investments, thereby creating more jobs.

He said that China would continue its cooperation with Ethiopia in different areas.

Azeb Asnake, CEO of the Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP), noted that Gibe III Hydropower Project is a milestone in the power sector as it almost doubles the country's electric power generation.

Azeb Asnake, who is also Manager of the Gibe III Hydropower Project, reiterated the role it has played in technology transfer, thereby building local capacity in the sector.

The successful completion of Gibe III Hydropower project has made and continues to make positive and considerable contribution to the energy sector and to the country at large, according to the CEO.

With different sources, Ethiopia has targeted to boost up its electric power generation to 17,000 MW by the end of the country's second five-year growth and transformation plan (GTP II-2015/16-2019/20).
ALEPPO, Syria, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The suspended evacuation of rebels from their remaining strongholds in Syria's northern city of Aleppo will resume soon, a military source told Xinhua on Saturday.

The resumption of the rebel evacuation from their last few strongholds in the eastern part of the city is expected to resume on Saturday evening, as the rebels agreed to abide by previous pledges, the source said on condition of anonymity.

The evacuation was suspended on Friday due to rebels' failure to fulfill the deal struck between Russia and Turkey.

A major part of the deal was that the rebels in the northwestern province of Idlib allow civilians to leave the besieged Shiite towns of Kafraya and Foa.

Two batches of the rebels and their families, estimated at over 8,000 people, left Aleppo on Thursday according to the deal, but the rebels in Idlib haven't allowed the civilians to leave as planned.

When the rebels fell short of abiding to their pledges in the two Shiite towns, residents from the town who are now residing in Aleppo, cut off the road before the convoy that was carrying the rebels on Friday.

The deal was supposed to see the evacuation of 15,000 people, including 4,000 rebels.

This comes as the Syrian army has become in control of 99 percent of the rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo, as part of a major offensive launched recently to drive out the rebels from the city.
SEOUL, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of thousands of South Koreans took to the streets on Saturday night to demand the constitutional court give a green light to the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye that was passed last week in the parliament.

Organizers, composed of about 1,500 civic groups, estimated that around 770,000 ordinary people participated in the eighth Saturday demonstration held in capital Seoul and major cities across the country. Rallies lasted since the scandal involving the impeached president erupted in October.

In Seoul, some 650,000 protesters gathered in Gwanghwamun Square, just over a kilometer away from the presidential Blue House where Park's office and residence are located. In other major cities, about 120,000 turned out in candlelit vigils.

Demonstrators in the capital city called on the constitutional court to justify the impeachment as rapidly as possible given that uncertainties remain about when and whether to permanently remove Park from office.

The court has up to 180 days to deliberate, but concerns emerge over longer-than-scheduled deliberation as a group of attorneys defending the president reportedly claimed innocence for her alleged violation of multiple constitutional provisions and criminal laws.

Protesters on the streets shouted for the immediate resignation of Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-han, who assumes temporary power until the court's final ruling is reached. Hwang, a close aide to President Park, served as justice minister before being appointed as the second-highest administrative post in 2015.

Some of local media outlets criticized Hwang for his alleged abuse of presidential power though the unelected official serves as acting president. Hwang reportedly demanded excessive treatment, provided only for the chief executive, and exercise the right to let officials remain in office or appointed to a new position, a unique authority given to the president.

Parliamentary hearings are also estimated to have enraged South Koreans as witnesses appearing in the Wednesday and Thursday hearings broadcast live on TV insisted on their innocence and had no previous knowledge of wrongdoings linked to the scandal.

Considering the expected continuation of weekend rallies during the cold winter days, the organizers ended this Saturday's candlelight vigils earlier than previous protests.

An official event kicked off at about 5 p.m. after a preliminary function near the square in central Seoul.

A lights-out ceremony was repeated to allow people incapable of joining the street rally to indirectly take part by turning off light at home and offices for a minute. The lights-out is aimed to send a message that the darkness cannot beat the light.

The official event was followed by marches up to 100-200 meters from the constitutional court and the prime minister office as well as the presidential Blue House.

Slogans to imprison the chiefs of family-run conglomerates were presented once again on allegations that the country's largest businesses offered illegal funds to President Park's decades-long friend in return for receiving business favors.

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong is suspected of making the biggest donations to Park's confidante-controlled foundations and offering millions of U.S. dollars to the confidante's daughter in order to get an approval from the national pension fund for the merger of two subsidiaries of Samsung Group.

The merger between Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries was extremely crucial to Vice Chairman Lee to inherit management control of the country's biggest conglomerate from his father Chairman Lee Kun-hee who has been hospitalized for over two and a half years for heart attack. Enditem
A building of the University of Athens is lit with red lights to mark the World AIDS day, in Athens, Greece, Dec. 1, 2016. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos)

HARARE, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwe is making progress towards the Sustainable Development Goal of eradicating HIV by 2030 as national HIV prevalence rate has steadily declined from 18 percent to 14 percent over the last 10 years, according to results of a recent survey.

Experts, however, say the rate still remains high and call for redoubling of efforts to eliminate the scourge.

According to final results of the 2015 Zimbabwe Demographic and Health Survey (ZDHS) released Tuesday, HIV prevalence had decreased among both men and women aged 15-49 years since 2005, although there was a higher prevalence rate among women at 17 percent than men at 11 percent.

The country's national HIV prevalence rate stood at 15 percent in 2010.

"Prevalence rates are highest among those who are widowed or divorced and lowest among those who have never been married," according to the study.

Overall, 2 percent of children aged 0-14 years are HIV positive while in all childhood age groups, HIV prevalence is much higher among children whose mothers are HIV positive.

The findings showed a 50 percent increase in testing for both men and women in 2015, with HIV testing among women in the 15-49 age group increasing to 79.6 percent from 48.8 percent in 2010 while for men in the same age group it increased to 62.4 percent compared to 35.9 percent in 2010.

Speaking at the launch of the results, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) country representative Cheik Tidiane Cisse said the HIV results were promising and showed that Zimbabwe was on the right track to achieving the SDG targets.

"We should celebrate this great achievement, but we must not lose momentum," he said.

He added that Zimbabwe's HIV prevalence rate was still unacceptably high, the fifth highest globally and called for more investment in HIV prevention and response.

Zimbabwe National Statistical Agency director-general Mutasa Dzinotizei said the findings would help government and development partners develop relevant health related programs and interventions.

The ZDHS findings also showed that maternal mortality declined 32 percent to 651 per 100,000 live births from a whooping 960 in 2010 mainly due to improved maternal health care.

The maternal mortality rate, however, still remains high and far below government target to reduce the deaths to 326 per 100,000 live births by 2020.

In adolescent sexual reproductive health, the findings showed that the adolescent fertility rate remains high among young girls in Zimbabwe, with nearly one in 10 young girls giving birth every year.

Cisse said there is need for more interventions to help the girl child spend more time in school.

The 2015 ZDHS, done after every five years, is the sixth since independence in 1980 and is carried out by government with support from development partners to collect demographic and health data to help in the formulation of the country's development policies and programs.
A newly installed chandelier is seen at the Mazar-e-Quaid in southern Pakistani port city of Karachi, on Dec. 17, 2016. The new chandelier representing China-Pakistan friendship on Saturday was installed at the Mazar-e-Quaid, or the Mausoleum of Founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah, in Karachi, Pakistan, to replace the one given by the Chinese government 46 years ago. (Xinhua/Masroor)

BEIJING, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping Friday sent a congratulatory message to his Pakistani counterpart Mamnoon Hussain on the chandelier renewal ceremony at Mazar-e-Quaid, or the Mausoleum of Founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

Xi said that on behalf of the Chinese government and the people, and in his own name, he would like to extend warm congratulations to the Pakistani government and the people on this occasion.

Xi noted that the renewal of the chandelier, a witness of the friendly exchanges between the two countries, will become an important symbol of the friendship between the two peoples from generation to generation.

The China-Pakistan friendship benefits not only the fundamental interests of the two nations and peoples but also peace and development in the region and the world at large, he said.

Xi said he values the China-Pakistan relationship and hopes to work with the Pakistani leader to cement the all-weather strategic cooperative partnership of the two countries for further development.

In 1970, the Chinese government presented a crystal chandelier as a national gift to the Pakistani government, which became an often-quoted memory of friendly exchanges between China and Pakistan.

With China's assistance, the Mazar-e-Quaid chandelier renewal project was successfully completed and a new chandelier was installed at the mausoleum on Saturday to replace the one given by the Chinese government 46 years ago.
Empleyees work in the tobacco farm of Ivan Maximo Perez in the town of San Juan y Martinez, province of Pinar del Rio, Cuba, on March 1, 2016.(Xinhua/Joaquin Hernandez)

HAVANA, Dec. 16 (Xinhua)-- The Cuban government has authorized small farmers to directly hire full-time or part-time staff, as a new measure to increase national food production, a sector considered "strategic" by President Raul Castro.

A group of resolutions were published Friday by the government, allowing all agricultural producers to do this, whether linked to state or private agricultural cooperatives.

Previously, the official hiring of farm workers was reserved to cooperatives, making the process more complicated.

"The new resolutions aim at stimulating the hiring of workers for agricultural labour, in a fast, ordered and legal way, with the goal of making this activity more dynamic, due to the need to increase Cuban farm production," said the Gazette.

Such farm work is also usually paid better than most jobs in Cuba. "During harvest, the regular salary is 2 Convertible Pesos (CUC) a day if is an "easy crop" such as tomatoes. But for more difficult crops, such as garlic, the daily salary rises to 4 CUC," Alberto Mendez, a farm worker in the town of Guira, southwest of Havana, told Xinhua.

In a country where the average state monthly salary reaches only 20 CUC (20 U.S. dollars) a month, earning that amount in a few days sounds appealing for many workers.

Farmer Wilber Sanchez, 30, (R), drives a tractor near San Antonio de los Banos, carrying corn to be sold to small shops, on the highway in Artemjsa province, Cuba, April 13, 2016. (REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini)

Mendez stressed that written contracts are unusual. "The owner of a farm says he needs people and we all just go."

However, the new decrees on Friday determine that these new hires must be registered as "self-employed" workers and pay a monthly tax of 50 Cuban pesos (2 CUC), besides healthcare and social security contributions.

The Cuban government spends about 2 billion U.S. dollars a year on food imports for its more than 11 million people, which has been difficult to maintain for a country suffering from the U.S. economic embargo.

President Castro has called to elevate national food production and reduce imports as a "matter of national security." In that sense, the Cuban leader has ordered the delivery of over a million of hectares of state-owned land to people interested in farming.

Castro's administration has also opened dedicated bank credits with good terms for farmers interested in expanding their crops.
A newly installed chandelier is seen at the Mazar-e-Quaid in southern Pakistani port city of Karachi, on Dec. 17, 2016. The new chandelier representing China-Pakistan friendship on Saturday was installed at the Mazar-e-Quaid, or the Mausoleum of Founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah, in Karachi, Pakistan, to replace the one given by the Chinese government 46 years ago. (Xinhua/Masroor)

ISLAMABAD, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- A new chandelier representing China-Pakistan friendship on Saturday was installed at the Mazar-e-Quaid, or the Mausoleum of Founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah, in Karachi, Pakistan to replace the one given by the Chinese government 46 years ago.

Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory message to his Pakistani counterpart, Mamnoon Hussain on the event and said that the grand chandelier will become an important symbol of the friendship between the two peoples from generation to generation.

He said that the China-Pakistan friendship benefits not only the fundamental interests of the two nations and peoples but also peace and development in the region and the world at large.

Xi said he values the China-Pakistan relationship and hopes to work with the Pakistani leader to cement the all-weather strategic cooperative partnership of the two countries for further development.

In 1970, the Chinese government presented a crystal chandelier as a national gift to the Pakistani government, which became an often-quoted memory of friendly exchanges between China and Pakistan.

The new chandelier is a replica of the original one by using the most advanced 3D scanning technology. Chinese technicians visited the mausoleum many times in order to ensure the two chandeliers were to be made perfectly the same.

The new chandelier is lighter and more energy-saving, but has a longer using life than the old one that will be preserved in a museum.

For his part, Mamnoon said at the ceremony that the national gift given by the Chinese government 46 years ago is a gesture that reflected the love of the people and leaders of China for the Pakistani people and the country's founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

"Such gifts are a symbol of sincere love between the two nations which further increase friendship and fraternity between the two countries," said the Pakistani president, thanking the Chinese government for the gift.

He added he believes that with the passage of time, the two countries' friendship will be further cemented.

He also hailed that the "China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is reflective of the resolve of both nations that Pakistan-China friendship will continue to flourish and both countries will continue to work with each other for global peace irrespective of any situation."

Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Sun Weidong said on the occasion that this year marks the 65th anniversary of China-Pakistan diplomatic ties and that the completion and inauguration of the grand chandelier brings commemorative activities to a new height.

He said that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is building a more amicable bond between the two brotherly countries and bilateral friendly cooperation is ushering in its golden era for greater development.
ISLAMABAD, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan on Saturday condemned the terrorist attack in Turkey's Kayseri Province which killed and injured dozens of security personnel.

"We condemn in the strongest possible terms the terrorist attack that took place in Kayseri today, reportedly resulting in the loss of precious lives of 13 personnel of the Turkish Armed Forces, and injuring 48 others," Pakistani Foreign Affairs Adviser Sartaj Aziz said.

"We are deeply pained and anguished that this heinous act of terrorism comes within a few days of the terrorist attack in Besiktas district of Istanbul, in which 44 precious lives were lost and scores were wounded," he said.

Turkish officials were quoted as saying that a suicide car bomb targeted a public bus carrying off-duty troops near a university campus.

"We reiterate our unwavering solidarity with Turkey and reaffirms strong belief that the brotherly people of Turkey would be successful in their resolute fight against the scourge of terrorism," Aziz said.

The Pakistani adviser said that there is no doubt that the collective will and determination of the people of Turkey would defeat any evil design against the country's peace, stability, prosperity and internal harmony.

He said Pakistani prime minister, the government and the people have extended heartfelt condolences to the Turkish government and its people, as well as to the families of all those who lost their loved ones in this cowardly attack.
TEHRAN, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Saturday called for a joint meeting of Iran and the six world powers to discuss the recent U.S. extension of Iran Sanctions Act (ISA), which Iran says is a violation of the nuclear agreement , Press TV reported.

Iran and six world major countries, namely the United States, Britain, China, Russia, France and Germany, reached an agreement on the Iranian nuclear issue in July 2015 which puts Iran on the path of sanctions relief but more strict limits on its nuclear program.

The Islamic republic has remained committed to all of its obligations under the nuclear agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Zarif said in an official letter to the European Union foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, on Saturday.

"Maintaining the JCPOA integrity and coherence as well as its sustainability requires that all parties to the JCPOA pay attention to (their commitments to) implement its provisions," Zarif said, adding that however, the United States kept reneging on its obligations under the nuclear agreement.

Zarif asked the EU foreign policy chief to make necessary preparations for the JCPOA joint commission meeting to consider the extension of ISA which, Iran calls, a violation of nuclear agreement.

The earlier vote by the U.S. House of Representatives to extend the ISA was endorsed by the Senate last week.

The White House said in a statement on Thursday that the bill renewing the ISA was becoming law without U.S. President Barack Obama's signature.

The White House said that an extension of the bill "is entirely consistent with" the U.S. commitments in the Iran nuclear deal reached in July 2015.

The ISA was first adopted in 1996 to sanction Iran over its controversial nuclear program.
by Alessandra Cardone

ROME, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- As the year's end approaches, the latest data on Europe's refugee crisis showed the overall inflow of people fleeing war and poverty has sensibly dropped, compared to 2015.

Yet, Italy has remained on the frontline of the emergency, with numbers soaring in latest months despite the winter and worsening conditions in the sea that separates Europe from Africa's coasts.

Some 357,800 arrivals have been so far registered through the Mediterranean routes (including Greece, Italy, and Spain), compared to over 1 million in the whole last year, according to the UN refugee agency UNHCR.

In Italy, however, some 179,081 people have arrived between Jan. 1 and Dec. 11, against a total of 153,842 in 2015.

"While (Italy's) arrival trends in 2016 remained consistent with those of 2015 up until the end of Sept., arrivals since then have generally been higher," the UNHCR said in a report earlier this week.

The UN agency added it was "monitoring potential factors contributing to the increase," including a possible drop in the prices imposed by smugglers for Mediterranean crossing.

The Italian capital provided a good example of the overall situation in the country. Being Italy's largest city, it is a major destination or transit point for migrants and refugees.

"This remains a phase of high reception," Lino Posteraro, head of social and migration-related activities with Rome Red Cross, confirmed to Xinhua.

"It sounds strange, but we are witnessing much higher figures (of arrivals) in these weeks compared to the past, despite being winter."

While the peak of arrivals in Rome was registered between July and August in previous years, this year it was in November.

Currently, the Rome Red Cross was assisting some 750 people, all of them applying for various forms of humanitarian protection, according to the official.

"We have 400 people in the first reception hub, which consists of two tent camps and one house," Posteraro said.

"We also manage three emergency reception centers with 150, 70, and 25 people respectively; one humanitarian shelter with 85 people -- all waiting to be relocated in Europe -- and a structure for non-accompanied migrant minors with 28 kids."

The Red Cross is only one of the many humanitarian groups involved in the management of the migration issue in the capital.

Despite the network of reception centers set up by Rome authorities, however, the available places seem not enough to house everyone, and several migrants have remained stranded in latest months.

"Being not the only ones involved in the emergency, we cannot precisely say what percentage of migrants remains cut off from the hospitality network," Posteraro explained.

"Yet, it is very clear that Rome has a problem of reception right now: every night, we have a number of people -- from a few dozens to a few hundreds -- who finds no place in the circuit."

The daily reports of the Italian coast guard, which coordinates all rescue missions in central Mediterranean, would provide further proof. Looking at the latest days only, it registered 791 people rescued on Dec. 4; 473 on Dec. 6; 127 on Dec. 7; 1,164 on Dec. 11; and 1,134 on Dec. 12.

Yet, these numbers alone would not explain why the Italian authorities struggle to cope with the situation. For a country with 60 million inhabitants, some 175,000 people -- most of whom were willing to proceed elsewhere in Europe -- would not represent an unbearable burden.

Two factors need to be added: firstly, the distribution of refugees and migrants across the country has been uneven so far.

Only 2,600 out of 8,000 Italian municipalities have accepted to host them, according to Director General of the Interior Ministry's immigration department Mario Morcone.

This has resulted in "a very patchy situation," Morcone declared in a hearing in late October.

The Interior Ministry has recently launched a new plan in cooperation with the association of Italian municipalities (ANCI), which aims at making the so far "migrant free" cities accept their share.

The plan, still to be implemented, would impose a distribution of three migrants (or refugees) for each 1,000 inhabitants. The average would decrease to 1,5 migrants each 1,000 in large cities like Rome and Milan, which are already burdened with heavy numbers.

A second major reason for the emergency is that any expectation put on the European Union (EU) relocation scheme has been so far disappointed.

The plan allows asylum-seekers to be transferred legally, and under humanitarian protection, from the country where they have first arrived to another EU country.

The EU Commission approved it in Sept. 2015, with the specific goal of easing the pressure from Italy, Greece, and Hungary by relocating 160,000 people in the following two years.

The Italian Interior Ministry did not provide immediate data on the latest situation.

Yet, the UNHCR reported on Dec. 14 that only 2,032 people were relocated from Italy up to last week.

In a report on Dec. 8, the EU Commission had put the figure at 1,950.
MOGADISHU, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Twelve people were killed, including nine civilians and three Al-Shabaab militants, in their clashes in south Somalia on Saturday, officials said.

Ahmed Mohamud Ahmed, spokesman for Jubaland State security agency, said their forces backed locals near Kismayo town who were fighting Al-Shabaab.

"Al-Shabaab militants killed nine livestock owners. They also stole 2,000 camels from the locals. Later the locals backed by the military fought back the militants where the forces killed three Al-Shabaab fighters and injured several others," Ahmed said.

The spokesman said Jubaland State forces captured three key locations from Al-Shabaab militants in Saturday's operation.

"Our forces made progress in the fight against terrorists. We captured three key areas including Janay-Abdale and Ber-hano, about some 60 kilometers west of Kismayo town. We are in full control of those locations and we remain there and continue the liberation," he added.

Al-Shabaab militants has not commented on the latest clashes in Lower Juba region in southern Somalia.

Similar confrontation happened in central Somalia on November after locals rejected to pay taxes (Zakawat) imposed by Al-Shabaab. Enditem
MOGADISHU, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and the United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) have jointly embarked on an operation to open up key supply routes in HirShabelle region in central Somalia.

AMISOM Sector 5 Commander Venuste Nduwayo said the operation dubbed Antelope Operation is already underway and will restore more than 150 kms of roads in the agricultural region of Somalia.

"This project's objective is repairing the roads in this region to enable free movement not only for AMISOM but also for the Somali population," Nduwayo said in a statement issued in Mogadishu on Saturday.

The two organizations intend to open the roads in the region to help the military get access to Forward Operating Bases (FOB) in the sector that is under the Burundi contingent.

Major Raymond Kemei from the Mission Enabling Unit said the rehabilitation and opening up of the roads will help the local population move their crops from farms to the markets.

He added that the rehabilitated routes will enable the local population to move freely while the security agencies will be able to respond to emergencies much faster.

Kemei also noted that humanitarian agencies will also get access to populations in areas that have been cut off from the road infrastructure.

The rehabilitation works began on Dec. 1 after the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (SRCC) Francisco Madeira met the president of HirShabelle to discuss matters of security and infrastructure.

The operation in the newest federal state in Somalia is expected to take at least three months.
OUAGADOUGOU, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has condemned in the strongest terms the terror attack on a Burkina Faso military base that killed 12 soldiers in on Friday.

The chairman of ECOWAS commission in a statement on Saturday appealed to the global community for a severe repression of the jihadist attacks.

"The attacks cause indiscriminate deaths and desolation in the sub-region", the statement said.

The 12 soldiers were killed after at least 40 heavily-armed gunmen attacked the military base of Nassoumbou near the border with Mali.

Following the attack, Burkina Faso President Roch Marc Christian Kabore canceled his official visit to Nigeria, where he was expected to attend the 50th summit of heads of state and government of the ECOWAS.
by Maria Spiliopoulou

ATHENS, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Approximately 577,000 documented migrants originating across the world are currently living in Greece, according to a survey released on Saturday from the Greek Forum of Migrants.

On the occasion of the International Migrants Day observed on Dec. 18, the non-governmental organization collected data from the Greek authorities and groups representing immigrant communities to sketch the profile of the foreigners living legally in Greece.

At least 131,000 migrants are minors, while 33,000 are aged more than 60 years old.

The Greek Forum of Migrants called for the implementation of more policies to ensure their equal inclusion in Greek society.

According to the International Organization for Migration, one out of seven people on Earth today is a migrant.

Since early 2015, Greece, with a population of approximately 11 million, is at the forefront of the refugee-migrant crisis.

More than one million people have illegally landed on the Greek islands, seeking refuge in Europe from wars and poverty.

The overwhelming majority until last winter continued their perilous journey to other European countries, but after the closure of the Balkan route to central Europe, at least 62,000 refugees and migrants have remained stranded in debt-ridden Greece.
TIRANA, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Albanian parliament has to adopt a package of 27 draft laws until next March, thus before the upcoming parliamentary elections which are scheduled for June 18, 2017, a majority MP told media here on Saturday.

The package consists of 27 draft laws which are aimed at creating the conditions for implementation of a broader justice system reform and they should be adopted by an Albanian parliamentary committee, sources from the parliament confirmed.

Meantime, Fatmir Xhafaj, head of the ad hoc parliamentary commission, explained to media that the package of 27 draft laws would enable the efficient functioning of the new justice institutions.

According to him, the voting of the constitutional package by all parties in July 2016 opened the way for the overhaul of the country's justice system, and the adoption of seven organic laws cleared the way for creation of new justice institutions.

Xhafaj also said that the proposed legislation was crucial as it will regulate functioning of the system and administration of justice.
SKOPJE, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- There has been no sign of the creation of a new government in Macedonia, almost a week after the country held its snap parliamentary elections.

The ruling party VMRO-DPMNE led by Nikola Gruevski has won the majority of seats in Macedonian 120-seat parliament.

VMRO-DPMNE defeated its major opponent, Social Democratic Union (SDSM) led by Zoran Zaev with only a slim lead of two seats as they got 51 and 49 seats respectively.

Soon after the publication of the preliminary results, Gruevski told a press conference here that he would start immediately working on the creation of the new government.

Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov also said in a press statement that the political class here should respect the citizens, and he noted that he would soon give the mandate for the creation of a new government.

About six days have passed since the elections day. Citizens here have been looking forward to the creation of the new government since they saw these elections as a way out from the prolonged political crisis in the country.

The State Elections Commission (SEC) has continued to discuss and consider the claims and objections made by the main opposition party SDSM and other parties.

SDSM and other parties have filed complaints asking for repeated voting in several polling stations, which according to them, could alter the outcome of the elections.

The supporters of the VMRO-DPMNE held a protest on Friday night in front of the SEC offices, asking the commission not to consider such claims any more but publish the final results of the elections and conclude everything.

They claimed that their party won the elections so there is no reason to delay the process.

In another statement, the VMRO-DPMNE asked the ministry of interior here to investigate the attacks against Gruevski's supporters during these days.

According to the VMRO-DPMNE, coalition building depended on both the VMRO-DPMNE and other political parties.

Meanwhile, EU Ambassador to Macedonia Samuel Zbogar said earlier in a press statement that Brussels was waiting for the creation of the new government, which would continue to implement the necessary reforms for the country to continue its European integration path.

Business community in Macedonia has requested the politicians here to create the new government as soon as possible in order to deliver the promises made during the campaign for the improvement of the business climate in the country.
GAZA, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Islamic Hamas Movement said Saturday that the assassination of flight engineer Mohammad Al-Zawari in Tunisian city of Sfax "is an attack against Palestinian resistance."

Hamas military wing, al-Qassam Brigades, said in a press statement that the crime last Thursday will not go unpunished.

The statement said the assassination is considered "an alarm bell threatening the Arab and Islamic world."

"Al-Zawari has joined the Palestinian resistance and the movement, like many others of the Arab and Islamic world whose compasses pointed towards Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa mosque... and fight with the brigades in defense of Palestine," said the Hamas military wing.

Al-Zawari, a flight engineer and the head of the flight association south of Tunis, was assassinated by unknown gunmen from a close range in his head.

Arab media outlets said the Israeli Mossad was behind the assassination.

Israeli media sources said that Al-Zawari was assassinated due to his involvement with armed Palestinian factions, particularly Hamas.

The media also mentioned that three undercover foreigners with European passports were behind the assassination.

Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronot said that a group rented four cars and used muffled guns to shoot at him, who had previously entered into the Gaza Strip through tunnels, and trained Hamas militants and made unmanned aerial vehicles.

Al-Qassam Brigades used unmanned aerial vehicles, named Ababeel planes, for the first time last summer.

Hamas mentioned that its engineers were able to manufacture unmanned aerial vehicles and produced three types of them.
JERUSALEM, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of settlers and their supporters were gathering over the weekend in Amona, a hilltop illegal Jewish outpost in the West Bank, preparing to barricade themselves and confront the Israeli security forces who are expected to evict them next week.

If all goes as scheduled, Amona's 300 residents will be evacuated and their homes will be demolished under a Supreme Court order issued in 2014. According to the Court's decision, the outpost was illegally built on private Palestinian land and must be evacuated by Dec. 25.

It would be the first time the Israeli government has evacuated a Jewish outpost in four years.

Amona, east of Ramallah city, is the largest of about 100 outposts that are scattered across the West Bank. These outposts were erected by ultra-right settlers without permits from the Israeli authorities but the governments often turn a blind eye to their construction.

Over the past months, the dispute over Amona became a major issue in the Israeli politics and society, with implications for the fate of the entire settlement movement and the West Bank.

CONTROVERSIAL BILL

The implications stem from a bill that the Netanyahu's right-wing coalition is advancing in the Knesset, the Israeli parliament.

Under the so-called "Regulation Bill," the government could retroactively legalize unauthorized outposts.

The outposts are currently illegal under both Israeli and international law.

Under the bill, Israel could expropriate private Palestinian land and allow settlers to remain in homes that were built there.

The Palestinian owners would receive financial compensation.

The bill's main supporter, the pro-settler Jewish Home party, said it is the first step towards official annexation of West Bank lands.

Israel captured the West Bank in 1967 during the Mideast War. Almost immediately after, it began settling land with Jews.

The international community never recognized the settlements and Israel's policy of populating the West Bank with Israeli Jews is subject to constant international criticism.

It was estimated that around 350,000 Israelis lived in over 200 settlements, which Israel considers legal, and unauthorized outposts in the West Bank in 2013, according to Israeli human rights organization.

Both outposts and settlements are illegal under international law as they were built on lands occupied by Israel in the 1967 Mideast War.

Nevertheless, Israel has never openly annexed the West Bank and has not applied its legislation there.

On Dec. 5, the Regulation Bill passed a first reading in the Knesset, with 58 lawmakers voting in favor and 51 objecting. The bill still needs to be voted in two more readings before its final approval.

Ironically, Amona was excluded from the bill as part of a compromise deal with the right-center Kulanu faction, which agreed to support the new legislation only if it won't stand at odds with the Supreme Court ruling.

With the full backing of Netanyahu's 66-member coalition now secured, the bill could be approved in the 120-member Knesset within a few weeks.

WIDE CRITICISM

Netanyahu's far-right government took a bold step in putting forward the bill, a move which was quickly denounced by the Palestinians and the international community.

Observants fear that if approved, the law would make the stalled peace process even more difficult as it will further damage the weak trust between Israel and the Palestinians.

Following the vote, a spokesperson for the European Union External Action Service (EEAS) said in a statement that "the EU reiterates its strong opposition, in line with the position of the Middle East Quartet, to Israel's settlement policy and all actions taken in this context."

"Settlements are illegal under international law, constitute an obstacle to peace, and threaten to make the two-state solution impossible," the spokesperson noted.

The United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East peace process Nickolay Mladenov called on parliament members not to support the bill at subsequent readings.

"If adopted, it will have far-reaching legal consequences for Israel, across the occupied West Bank, and will greatly diminish the prospect of Arab-Israeli peace," he said in a statement.

Ahmad Majdlani, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee, told Xinhua that the bill might wreck the two-state solution.

"It is a very dangerous aggressive step by the right-wing and extremist government in Israel," he said, accusing Netanyahu of "exploiting the current vacuum in the American Administration to impose new realities on the ground and destroy the two-state solution completely."

He added that the bill is considered "a challenge to the international community, international law and the four Geneva Conventions, and approving it would put an end to any peaceful solution under the two-state solution."

He urged the international community to move promptly to end this "racist step, if it was sincerely interested in protecting the law and its enforcement."
This past summer, 8 Cambodian Americans in Minnesota ("MN 8") were detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for unjust deportation. Families, friends, and neighbors have banded together by launching the #ReleaseMN8 campaign. Watch their call to action video here What is happening is unjust because the Obama Administration pledged to deport felons, not families. Unjust deportation is an important Asian American issue and families are fighting to stay together (e.g. the Adam Crapser Korean Adoptee case). Now the next Trump Administration may escalate attacks on Asian American families, even though we understand that deporting people who contribute to society is a waste of time and money.Southeast Asian American refugee families from Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam escaped war and genocide, only to be resettled in poverty-stricken neighborhoods plagued by violence and crime. Many Southeast Asian American (SEA) children and young adults were funneled into the school-prison-deportation pipeline. Since 1998, around 16,000 SEAs have received final deportation orders -- 78% of them based on past criminal records for time served already.In 2014, ICE updated prosecutorial use guidelines to focus on immigrants with criminal convictions as the first priority -- making people vulnerable to deportations despite an explicit guideline that states if people aren't a "national threat, public security, and border security" they should not be deemed as a priority. Cambodian American survivors are not a threat to security.According to SEARAC's 2015 report , ICE agents can use "prosecutorial discretion" which enables ICE to use their judgement and authority to detain and deport persons based on background. This includes taking into account factors such as "circumstance of the person's arrival, ties and contributions to community, including family relationship, [and] whether the person has a U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse, child, or parents." Cambodian American survivors contribute to society and have loving families.
AMMAN, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Jordanian Treasury on Saturday received the 470 million U.S. dollars grant from the U.S. government as a direct support for the country's general budget.

The grant aims at supporting the Jordanian government priorities in the fields of economic growth, education, health, water, democracy and governance.

Imad Fakhoury, minister of Planning and International Cooperation appreciated the support in a statement, saying that bilateral relation between the two countries is assured in depth.

U.S. ambassador in Amman, Alice G. Wells, said the unprecedented value of this year's grant reflects the U.S. commitment to supporting Jordan, noting the 60-year-old bilateral relations based on partnership to address challenges that confront the kingdom.

The grant is part of four grants signed in October of this year.

The Global Concessional Financing Facility was launched by the UN, IMF and the Islamic Development Bank last April upon a request from Jordan to reduce the cost of loans for middle income countries.

In 2014, the two countries agreed on providing economic and military aid to Jordan worth 1 billion U.S. dollars in 2015-2017.
KHARTOUM, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Sudan government on Saturday criticized a statement by the U.S. State Department in which it urged Khartoum to exercise self-restraint regarding calls for civil disobedience.

Sudan's foreign ministry spokesman Ghariballah Al-Khadir denounced the U.S. statement as "lacking accuracy and objectivity," and is "completely far from the positive atmospheres being witnessed by the Sudanese arena."

"The Sudanese people are giving a unique model in the comprehensive dialogue and peaceful reformation as well as construction of a political and community system," he added.

He noted that Sudan's constitution guarantees freedom of association, publication and expression according to the laws in effect.

He reiterated the Sudanese government's keenness to security, safety and properties of the citizens, noting that the government would not tolerate any threats against the country's national security according to the law and requirements of justice.

The U.S. Department of State urged Friday the Sudanese government to exercise self-restraint towards the Sudanese people's calls for civil disobedience on Dec. 19, encouraging the Sudanese authorities to take all necessary steps to allow citizens to exercise their right to freedom of expression.

"The United States is concerned about the Sudanese government's threatening rhetoric and the crackdown on Sudanese media in response to calls by Sudanese civil society for civil disobedience," said a statement attributed to spokesman of U.S. State Department Mark Toner Friday.

A group of activists on social media sites have united to call for a civil disobedience in Sudan on Dec. 19, an act that is supported by Sudanese opposition parties and armed groups.

On Nov. 27, the Sudanese capital Khartoum witnessed a partial response to a civil disobedience campaign launched by social media activists.

The organizers attributed the move to prices hiking of major commodities, namely fuel and medicines.
UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Saturday urged parties in Lybia to join efforts to find a consensual solution to the country's ongoing crisis.

On Dec. 17, 2015, the Libyan Political Agreement was signed in Skhirat, Morocco. Saturday marks one year since the signing of the UN-brokered deal.

Ban said he cautions that the slow pace of implementation of the agreement has not brought the stability to the country, and therefore he urged those that are not currently engaged in the process to join the efforts, according to a statement released by his spokesperson.

"The Secretary-General reiterates that the United Nations will continue to accompany the process and support the Libyan people," said the statement.

Over the past year, under the agreement, the Presidency Council was formed and operates from Tripoli. However, Libya remains divided politically. And terrorism remains a major threat to the country. Enditem
ALGIERS, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Algeria on Saturday condemned the terrorist attack against a military detachment in northern Burkina Faso on Friday.

"Algiers vigorously condemns the despicable terrorist attack perpetrated Friday against a military detachment in the city of Nassoumbou," spokesman for the Algerian Foreign Ministry, Benali Cherif, told APS news agency.

"We offer our condolences to the families of the soldiers killed in this attack and we extend our deep sympathy and solidarity with the people and the government of Burkina Faso," added the diplomat.

Such attacks "should not undermine the determination of Burkina Faso and its neighboring nations in terms of the fight against the scourge of terrorism, which has no future in our African continent," said the official.

Some 15 counter-terrorism troops of Bourkina Faso's army were killed when an armed group attacked their post near the Malian border on Friday, local sources reported.
UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Saturday called on the international community to act on global compact to ensure safe, regular and orderly migration.

In his message on the International Migrants Day which falls on Sunday, Ban said this has been a turbulent year for refugees and migrants due to continued devastating effect of armed conflict on civilians.

He noted thousands of people have lost their lives in transit in the Mediterranean and elsewhere; in addition, migrants and refugees are being alienated and blamed for ills of society.

Therefore, Ban called on governments to build on their commitments to govern large movements of refugees and migrants in a way that is people centered and rooted in fundamental human rights.

The total number of international migrants has increased from an estimated 175 million in 2000 to 244 million persons in 2015. One of every ten migrants is under the age of 15, according to the UN.

In September, 2016, the UN General Assembly adopted New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants to enhance protection of refugees and migrants.

The Declaration reaffirms the importance of the international protection regime and represents a commitment by UN member states to strengthen and enhance mechanisms to protect people on the move.

The International Migrants Day is observed annually on Dec. 18 to celebrate the role of migrants and the contribution that migration brings to development.